[{"text": "***  This is really, really not good. Feeling the hard texture of the ground against his face, he realized that he had fallen facedown on the ground. He couldn't move, even when he tried, and he already couldn't feel his fingers. What he did feel was a certain heat, and it overwhelmed his entire body.  It's hot, it's hot, it's hot, it's hot, it's hot, it's hot, it's hot. He coughed and vomited the blood he felt rising in his throat the source of his waning life. So much came out that it frothed at the edges of his mouth. With his hazy vision, he could see the ground in front of him stained red.  You've...got to be kidding me... All of this is mine? Feeling as though all of the blood in his body had spilled out of him, he reached a shaking hand to try to find the source of the heat that was burning through his body. As his fingertips reached the large cut in his stomach, he understood. No wonder it felt so hot. His brain must have been mistaking pain for heat. The clean gash that ran through his torso was so deep it had almost sliced him in half. Only bits of skin were still holding him together. In other words, he had run right into a checkmate in the chess game of his life. As soon as he realized that, his consciousness immediately began to fall away from him. Before his eyes, he saw a black boot descend, making ripples in the red pool of his fresh blood. Someone was there, and that someone...was probably the one who killed him. But he didn't even think to look that person in the face. It didn't matter anymore.  The one thing he did wish was that she, at least, would be safe. \" baru?\" He felt as if he heard a voice that rang like bells. That he heard that voice, that he could hear that voice, felt like salvation to him more than anything else, so  *** With a short scream, someone else crumpled upon the carpet of blood. She landed right beside him. He lay there, weakly attempting to reach her. Her white hand fell, powerless. He lightly grasped it in his own bloodstained grip. He felt the fingers of her hand move slightly to accept his own. \"Just you wait...\" He seized his fading consciousness, pulling it desperately back to buy a bit more time. \"I'm going to...\"  find a way to save you. In the next instant, he Subaru Natsuki lost his life. CHAPTER 1 ***  This is really going to be a problem. With no money and no idea what to do, he repeated the thought over and over again in his mind. Well, it wasn't completely accurate to say he had no money. The wallet in his pocket was filled with all the cash he owned, enough to go on a little bit of a shopping spree if he had to under normal circumstances. But in this case, \"no money\" is really the only way to describe his situation. \"Yeah, but the currency system here is completely different, isn't it...\" The young man flicked his rare notched ten-yen coin in the air and breathed a deep sigh. He didn't really have any features about him that stood out. He had short black hair and was of average height, being neither short nor tall. He was a bit muscular, though, as if he had been working out, and the cheap gray tracksuit that he was wearing really suited him quite well. He had small irises, so the whites of his eyes stood out, but right now, the way his eyes were downcast, he didn't have a very aggressive or championing look to him. He looked average enough to be quickly lost in a crowd...but right now, most of those passing by looked at him out of the corners of their eyes as if they were looking at something strange they had never seen before. But that was to be expected. After all, among all those onlookers, not one of them had black hair, nor were any of them wearing tracksuits. They had blond hair, red hair, and brown hair...some even had blue or green hair, among others, and they were wearing armor, or black robes, or the kind of costume a dancer might wear...that sort of thing. As he stood before the waves of open stares, the young man crossed his arms and had no other option but to accept the truth. \"This has got to be one of those...\" he said, snapping his fingers and pointing out toward the crowd of onlookers. \"One of those so-called 'I've been summoned to another world' deals, right?\" he said as an oxcart-like vehicle pulled by a giant lizard-like thing crossed in front of him. Subaru Natsuki was an extremely ordinary boy, born on Earth, the third planet in the solar system, to a middle-class family in the nation of Japan. If you were to sum up his nearly seventeen years of life, the previous sentence would be enough to describe him, and if you felt the need to add anything else, the extra sentence, \"He was a third-year public high school student with a tendency to not show up to class,\" would be sufficient. Placed at a fork in the road of life, such as \"whether to pursue a college degree or jump straight into the workforce,\" people are generally forced to make a decision one way or the other. That sort of decision-making is something everyone has to deal with and part of what we call life, but in Subaru's case (you might call it his specialty) he was a bit better than your average Joe at running away from things he did not like. In avoiding such a decision, the number of his unexcused absences had piled up, and before he knew it he was a bona fide truant, the kind parents weep over. \"And to top it all off, now I've been summoned to a whole different world. I guess that seals the deal. I'm a high school dropout now. But seriously, what the hell is going on?\" He felt as if he was having a not-so-well-thought-out dream, but even after pinching his cheeks and smacking his head against a wall, he wouldn't wake up. Subaru sighed. He had drifted away from where he was, getting all sorts of curious looks, and was now sitting against a wall in an alley just off the main road. \"Assuming I really have been summoned to a fantasy world...the state of civilization appears to be the usual, medieval-like setting. So far, I haven't seen anything mechanical, but the roads are pretty well paved...and of course I can't use any of my cash.\" As for whether he could communicate with the people here, and regarding the value of goods, those were things that Subaru checked immediately upon realizing he had been summoned to a different world. Fortunately, he had no problem communicating, and he was able to confirm that commerce was handled in a currency of gold, silver, and copper coins. His first contact, a merchant at a fruit stand, wasn't all that welcoming to him, though. As for why Subaru was so quick to accept and understand his current situation, the fact that he was a modern Japanese youth poisoned by anime and games had something to do with it, and for that he was very thankful. It wouldn't be an overstatement to say that as an adolescent boy, this sort of otherworldly summoning was the kind of thing you'd dream would happen to you, but on that note... \"Without a little bit more of a welfare safety-net thing going on, a laid-back guy like myself isn't going to be able to deal, you know?\" Subaru complained. Given his current situation, and pitiful starting equipment, he couldn't help it. His belongings consisted of a cell phone (which looked like it would run out of batteries soon), a wallet (filled with membership cards from various video rental stores), a cup of instant ramen he'd bought from a convenience store (pork bone and soy sauce flavor), a bag of crispy snacks bought from the same store (corn soup flavor), his favorite gray tracksuit (unwashed), and well-worn sneakers (two years old). That was it. \"I don't even get a single Excalibur? I'm done. What am I supposed to do in this getup?\" Well, there's only so much you can hope for when you're summoned to a different world on your way back from the convenience store. It had happened in the blink of an eye. Subaru had already gotten hungry and eaten half of the one thing he had that might have been of any use his pack of crispy snacks before realizing that he had just gone through his only source of food. But worrying about it wasn't going to help him now. Even if he'd wanted to put his hopes on the possibility that this was being staged as part of an elaborate reality TV show, the large lizard carts and look of all the people passing by nipped that in the bud. \"The fact that no one seems to be paying attention to them means that they're probably normal...both those giant lizards and the half-humans.\" Subaru grumbled and looked on as people with strange outfits and colorful hair passed by, but out of all of them, the ones who really drove home the fact that he had been summoned to another world were the half-humans. Without having to look too long Subaru could see people with dog ears and cat ears, and there were even some who looked like they were lizardmen. But of course there were also ordinary humans, the same as Subaru. \"So this is a world with half-humans...and probably wars and adventures, too. As for whether there are any animals I'm used to around... I'm not too sure, but given that lizard cart thing...it looks like they use animals in the same way we do.\" After putting all of that together, Subaru let out a long breath, but not a sigh. If things unfolded the way he had fantasized about before about otherworldly summoning, he ought to be able to use his knowledge of modern civilization to hold sway over everyone else...but there were a lot of things that still didn't make any sense. \"The truth is, I have no idea what to do next, and I still have no idea how or why I was summoned. I don't remember stepping into a mirror or falling in a pond, and if I'm to believe this is the otherworldly summoning format I'm used to, where is the beautiful girl who summoned me?\" The lack of a main heroine in this otherworldly summoning setup was a big hole in the plot. If this were taking place in a 2D world, someone in the creative department was seriously slacking off. If Subaru was really summoned for no reason and then abandoned just like that, it put him on the same level as single-use disposable goods. Now that Subaru had finished establishing the state of his surroundings, he really couldn't think of anything better to do than return to his default state of escaping from reality. \"I guess if I keep this up, it's no different from locking myself up in my room back home.\" The thought of his parents crossed his mind, but right now he wasn't in a position where he could just sit around feeling homesick. Thinking he had to do something about his current situation, he stood back up and turned back toward the main road, but... Just as Subaru was about to walk out onto the main road, he almost bumped into someone who moved out in front of him. \"Oh. Sorry 'bout that.\" Subaru gave a short apology and tried to continue past, but... \"Hold up!\" ...he was grabbed firmly by the shoulder and"}, {"text": "pulled back into the alley. Nearly falling over himself as he turned around, Subaru looked up to see that the person who had thrown him back was a man with a large build. Behind that man were two of his buddies, and the three men stood in such a way as to block Subaru from exiting the alley onto the main road. The way they moved, it didn't appear this was the first time these men had done this, and Subaru had a bad feeling about what was going to come next. \"Umm... May I ask what you three fine fellows plan on doing with me?\" \"Oh, it looks like this one here's a smart one! Well, nothing to worry about. Just give us everything you've got on you, and there's no need for anyone to get hurt.\" \"So that's the deal, huh? Yeah, I guess it would be. Ha-ha... This really sucks.\" The men's gazes were filled with scorn and ridicule. They looked like they were in their twenties, with the meanness of their personalities reflected in their faces and dirty appearances. They didn't look like they were half-humans, but they certainly weren't saints, either. You couldn't call it an unusual plot development. Encountering thugs was a way to show the dangers of everyday life. In other words... \"Damn, I've triggered a compulsory event.\" As he looked at the men smirking, Subaru tried to hold the status quo with a fake smile and considered his options. He was in quite a pinch, but since the beginning of time, in stories where humans are summoned to other worlds, those humans tended to be able to wield some kind of superpower. If Subaru had been summoned to this world under the same conditions as the stories he was familiar with, it was very likely that he had been given some sort of power. With that thought, Subaru felt that his body was a little lighter than usual. \"I'm starting to get the feeling that this world's gravity is, like, only a tenth of my world's. I can do this. I can do this! I'm going to mow you all down and make this the first chapter of my glorious future! You're only here so I can pull experience points off of you, you scum!\" \"What the hell is he going on about?\" said one of the men. \"I don't know, but I'm pretty sure he's making fun of us. Let's kill 'im,\" replied another. \"Took the words right out of my mouth... You're going to regret this!\" returned Subaru, before flying forward with a straight jab from his right hand, aiming for the big man in front. Subaru's fist collided with the man's nose, but he also cut his fist on one of the man's front teeth and started bleeding.  I hit someone for the first time in my life! Wow! It hurts way more than I expected. Subaru was confident in his fighting form, but he had never been in a real fight before. The man who was punched fell to the ground. Without taking a moment to pause, Subaru leapt at another of the men, caught off guard, as his next target. With a clean arc he landed a kick on the side of the next man's head, slamming him into the wall of the alley. This was going even better than he'd expected, and he started to be sure of the notion that he was invincible in this new world. \"I guess in this world my stats are pretty good! What a rush! Now to finish this!\" Turning back around, Subaru bent forward to beat down the last man standing, when his eyes centered on what that man was holding in his hand: a glinting knife. Immediately Subaru dropped to his knees, bent over forward, and with a spectacular single motion prostrated himself, pressing his forehead against the ground. \"I'm sorry, that was absolutely terrible of me, I ask that you forgive me and please find it in your generous hearts to spare my life!\" Prostration it was the most exteme form of showing absolute submission to another and the lowest form of Japanese humility. Just where did all of that fired-up feeling go? Subaru felt as if he could hear the blood drain from his body. Desperately clinging to any hope of mercy, he tried to make himself seem small and continued to apologize. With a knife involved, fighting was out of the question. No matter how you might train yourself, if you were stabbed, it was all over. All things in life are transient. Before he knew it, the two that Subaru thought he had defeated were back on their feet. One was holding his bleeding nose and the other was shaking his head back and forth, but other than that both looked as though they were in surprisingly good condition. \"What?! You mean to tell me that my one-hit knockout punch only did that much damage?! What about my superpowers?!\" \"I dunno what you're going on about, but shut your trap! You've really done it now!\" It looked as though Subaru had been completely wrong about being summoned into another world coming with the promise of some kind of powers. He wasn't really any stronger than he had been before. One of the men stepped on the back of Subaru's head, scraping his forehead against the ground and causing him to bleed. Another then kicked him in the face, and Subaru curled into a ball as tightly as he could as he was subjected to further acts of violence. After all, the one who hit first was Subaru. The men didn't hold back at all.  Crap, this really, really hurts. Like, I could die. No, seriously. Unlike in his own world, there was no guarantee that these thugs wouldn't take his life. At this rate, it would be better to try one last-ditch effort to retaliate before he was beaten to death... \"Stop moving, you whelp!\" \"Ow! No, don't... Ow! Ow! Ow!!\" The man with the knife stomped on Subaru's hand as he tried to get up, then readjusted his grip on the knife so that the tip was held back toward his arm, ready to strike. \"After we make sure you can't move we're going to take everything you've got. That's what you get for acting tough, you punk...\" \"I-if you're looking for money or valuables, I'm sorry but you're out of luck. After all, I don't have a cent on me...!\" \"Then those strange-looking clothes and shoes'll do just fine. You can just stay down and be food for the alley rats!\" Oh, so there are rats in this world, too, Subaru thought. I hope they aren't big, like monster rats or anything. Subaru looked at the knife about to come down as if it didn't concern him at all, distancing himself from reality as best he could. Subaru didn't see his life flash before his eyes, and he didn't feel like time was slowing down, either. The end would probably come like the cutting of a thread, he thought.  But just then... \"Hey! Out of the way! Out of the way! I'm talking to you! Move!\" yelled someone in a flustered-sounding voice as they dashed into the alley. Like the men, who suddenly looked up, Subaru managed to glance up in the direction of the voice, though he couldn't move his body. What he saw was a small girl with longish blond hair dashing by. From her red eyes, you could sense a strong will, and her one canine tooth sticking out made her look like quite a prankster. She seemed more cheeky than anything else, but Subaru felt that if she smiled she would look pretty cute. As if it had been staged for a comeback, the fading light of hope Subaru had been holding lit anew. He was waiting for this kind of development. The girl, in her well-worn clothes and unclean appearance, had stumbled upon this attempted murder and robbery in the act! What would surely happen next, was that with an overflowing sense of justice this girl would save Subaru's life, right from the clutches of death... \"Whoa! You look like you're in quite a pinch there, but sorry! I've got my hands full right now! Good luck! Live life to the fullest!\" \"Wait, what?! Are you serious?!\" Unfortunately, that hope was shattered in an instant. The girl raised her hand in an apologetic sort of gesture and didn't slow down as she continued racing down the alley. She went right past the men and kept going toward what should have been a dead end, kicked off against a wooden plank set up against the end wall, grabbed the top of the wall, and lightly flung herself up onto the roof of one of the surrounding buildings, where she disappeared. After the girl was gone, a silence fell upon the alley. It was as if a hurricane had just passed. Both Subaru and the men were dumbstruck. However, this didn't mean that Subaru's situation had improved at all. \"Doesn't what just happened make your anger just sort of melt away and make you want to change your minds about all of this?!\" \"More like it killed the mood and now I'm even angrier. Don't think you'll get to die a pleasant death!\" The men kept their feet planted on Subaru so he couldn't move. As Subaru looked at the glint of the knife in the man's hand, the death that loomed before him seemed ever more real.  No, I mean, you've got to be kidding. I can't die this easily, can I? A twitching smile formed on Subaru's face as he looked around desperately for someone to deny the death that was coming his way. However, no such convenient development came. The tip of the knife drew ever closer. A feeling of resignation came over Subaru and he felt tears welling up in his eyes. It wasn't fear that overwhelmed him; it was more the feeling of emptiness that this would all end without him accomplishing anything. In the midst of this overwhelming despair, feeling as if he had been abandoned by everyone and everything... \"Hold it right there, you evildoers!\" That voice overcame the noise of the crowd, the vulgar insults of the men, Subaru's own heavy breathing, as well as everything else, and shook the very foundations of the world. When people say, \"Time stood still,\" they must surely be talking about times like this. There was a girl standing at the entrance to the alley. She was beautiful. She had long silver hair, with braids in it that reached down to her hips. She was looking straight at Subaru with violet eyes that shone with intelligence. In her soft features were both elements of youth but also mature beauty. There was also a noble air about her that gave her a dangerous and bewitching charm. The girl was about one head shorter than Subaru, which made her around five feet, three inches tall. The clothes she wore used white as a base color, and there was nothing terribly ornate about them, but on the other hand, the simplicity emphasized her presence. The one thing that stood out was the white cloak the girl was wearing. It was emblazoned with embroidery that depicted a bird of prey, adding to her impression of majesty. However, it wasn't the clothes she wore that made her shine so. \"I will not stand by and watch any more of your wrongdoing. That is enough.\" Her voice, like silver bells, rang beautifully in Subaru's ears, and for a moment he forgot the situation he was in. He was completely undone by the silver-haired girl's presence. The other men seemed to be just as shaken up as Subaru was. \"Wha... Who do you think you are...?\" \"If you stop right now, I'll let you go. In a way, this is my fault for"}, {"text": "not being cautious. So do the right thing and give back what you stole.\" \"Hey, what she's wearing looks expensive. You think she's nobility? Wait, huh...? What we stole?\" \"Please. It is very precious to me. I'd be willing to give it up if it were anything else, but I absolutely can't in this case. Please. I won't do anything to you, so please just give it back.\" The girl looked as if she was pleading with all her heart. However, there was an inexplicable feeling of pressure that rose within the group. Something was happening that was hard to explain. \"W-wait a minute! We don't know what you're talking about!\" \"...What do you mean?\" The men pointed to Subaru, still underfoot. \"You didn't come here to rescue this guy...did you?\" \"...Those are some weird clothes that boy is wearing. Did you all have a fight among yourselves? I don't think three against one is really fair, but...if you're asking me if I know this person, I haven't ever seen him before in my life.\" Perhaps it was because she thought the men were trying to change the subject, but you could hear an amount of irritation in her voice. Because of that, each of the men rushed to explain themselves. \"Wait a second! If you're not after this guy, then we're not involved! I bet it was that girl from before!\" \"You said you had something stolen from you, right?! That wall! You see that wall? She jumped off that wall and ran away on the rooftops!\" \"She's farther back! Back past that wall! At the rate she was going, she's probably another three streets down!\" As the men continued to plead their innocence, the girl turned her eyes to Subaru, as if asking whether these men were telling the truth. Without thinking, Subaru nodded. \"Hmm... It doesn't look like you're lying. So the one who stole from me is down farther ahead? I've got to hurry...\" The girl turned away from Subaru and the men and toward the main road. The men clearly looked relieved. Subaru, faced with the reality of his abandonment, started to enter a state of shock, when... \"Still, this situation is one I can't just ignore.\" As she turned back around the girl put her hand up, palm facing outward, and a series of shining lights began to dance in front of it. A dull thud rang out, like that of a hard object striking flesh, followed by the cries of the men as they were thrown backward. Then, there was a high-pitched sound as a fist-size clump of ice fell to the ground right beside Subaru. The clump of ice, which seemed to have formed heedless of both the season and the laws of physics, quickly evaporated as if it were being eaten by the surrounding air. \"...Magic.\" The best word to describe what just happened immediately tumbled out of Subaru's mouth. There wasn't any incantation or anything, but that chunk of ice had definitely shot out of that girl's palm. Magic having seen it with his very own eyes for the first time, Subaru realized something. \"It isn't quite as fantasy-like as I imagined... To be honest, this is kind of a letdown.\" Subaru had imagined there would be more light and energy being bounced around. In reality, all that happened was an unrefined-looking clump of ice suddenly materialized, was used as a blunt object for physical damage, and then suddenly disappeared. There was no feeling or anything put into it at all. \"Now...you've done it.\" Subaru's feelings on magic aside, the other men, who had taken a real hit from those clumps of ice, got back to their feet. To be fair, it was only two of them who managed to get back up. The remaining man must have gotten hit in a bad spot, because he was still knocked out. But rather than this fact taking the fight out of them, it seemed to just make the other two men even angrier. Standing next to the man with the knife, the other drew out a blunt, club-like object, and both were ready to fight. \"I don't care if you're a magic user or nobility or whatever! I've had enough. We're gonna kill you! Do you really think you can win a two-on-one fight?!\" yelled the man with the knife, holding his face, blood still dripping from his nose. In response to his threats, the girl closed one of her eyes. \"You're right, one against two sounds like it could be a little tough.\" \"...In that case, would two on two be bit more fair?\" As if it were finishing the girl's sentence, a new, higher-pitched, genderless voice entered the fray. Startled, Subaru looked around. The other men also followed suit, but there wasn't anyone inside or at the entrance to the alley who looked as though they were the owner of that voice. Then, as if to show both Subaru and the other men the answer to their question, the girl extended her left hand. Sitting on top of her palm and white fingers, there it was. \"When you all stare at me like that, full of expectation, it's uh...kind of embarrassing.\" Using its paw to clean its face was a small, palm-size cat that stood upright on its two hind legs. It had gray hair and floppy ears. To the best of Subaru's knowledge it was nearest to an American shorthair. That is, if you ignored the fact that its nose was pink and it had a tail about the length of its body. Seeing the small, palm-size cat, the man with the knife seemed overcome with fear and yelled, \"Y-you're a spirit mage?!\" \"That's right. If you want to leave right now, I won't chase after you, but make up your minds quick. I'm in a hurry.\" With that, the men rushed to pick up their fallen companion and leave the alley, but as they passed the girl on their way out, one of the men clicked his tongue and said, \"I'm going to remember your face, you bitch. The next time we see you it won't go this well for you.\" \"If you do anything to her I'll curse you and all of your offspring, you know? Though, in that case you won't be having any.\" For the thug, that must have been his best attempt at intimidation, but in contrast, the cat's response was light in tone but much more severe. The cat didn't seem to be completely serious, but the men paled more than they ever had before, and ran out into the main road without another word. Once the thugs were gone, Subaru was left alone in the alley with the girl and her cat. Thinking that he at least needed to say thanks, Subaru forgot his pain and started to get to his feet, but... \"Don't move,\" said the girl in a cold emotionless voice. You could see in her eyes that she was being cautious. Even though she realized that Subaru was not with the other thugs, she wasn't about to let her guard down, that much was clear. It was actually Subaru's reaction that was more out of place. Even though the girl was looking at him like that, he was fixed on her beautiful and bewitching violet eyes. Not used to seeing such beauty, Subaru unthinkingly blushed and looked away. \"See? I knew I was on to something. If he had nothing to hide, he wouldn't look away like that,\" said the girl. \"I'm not so sure about that. That seems like a very natural reaction for a boy like him. I'm sensing zero evil intentions,\" responded the cat. \"Be quiet, Puck. ...You know the girl who stole my badge, don't you?\" Shushing her cat, the girl turned to Subaru. Her expression, full of confidence, was lovely. However... \"I'm sorry to let you down like this, but I totally don't know her, like, completely not at all.\" \"Wai What? Seriously!?\" As her confidence was stripped from her face, Subaru was able to get a glimpse of how she naturally expressed herself, as opposed to her ongoing act. With that dignified air of hers out the window, the girl, flustered, turned quickly to the cat still resting on her palm. \"Wh-wh-what are we going to do? Was this really all just a waste of my time...?\" \"A waste that's still in progress... I really think you should hurry. She was really fast when she ran away, so there's a good chance the culprit has some kind of strange protection on her side.\" \"Ugh... How can you be so unconcerned about all of this, Puck?\" \"You're the one who told me not to get too involved, you know? Anyway, what are we going to do about him?\" the cat said, as if just remembering about Subaru. As the topic of conversation centered back on him, Subaru put on a weak smile. \"Oh,\" said the girl as she finally realized the cat was talking about Subaru. In response, Subaru put on an empty display of confidence and replied, \"Don't worry about me. Thanks to your help, I'll be fine. You're in a hurry, right? You should go...\" Subaru had hoped to finish this off with, If you'd like, I don't even mind helping you out. How about it, m'lady? while brushing his hair back and flashing a smile, but... \"...Huh?\" Suddenly dizzy, Subaru reached for the wall but missed, and fell face-first back onto the ground. \"Wait. You shouldn't try to stand up just ye Well...okay,\" came the cat's warning, just a step too late. After falling with zero capacity to catch himself, Subaru felt a sharp pain as his consciousness went winging away. \"...So, what should we do?\" \"He has...nothing to do with us. That's not enough to kill him. We're going to leave him.\" In the far reaches of his consciousness as it left him, Subaru could hear just a little of the pair's conversation. That's an otherworldly fantasy for you. Everyone has quite the severe view on the concept of empathy. Am I just going to be abandoned here in this alley? was the negative take. Well, I suppose I was going to die, and now I'm not, so I should be super grateful, was a more positive thought. With those two views in mind, Subaru's consciousness drifted further and further...further and further away... \"Are you sure?\" \"I'm sure!\" Right before the thread of Subaru's consciousness was cut for good, he was able to see that silver-haired girl, red in the face, turn around and shout. \"There's no way! No way that I'm going to save him, okay?! Okay?!\"  Man, even when she's angry she's really cute. Go otherworldly fantasies. With that last thought, really this time, once and for all, Subaru's consciousness fell into darkness. It occurred to Subaru that the feeling of waking up was similar to having your face rise up from out of a body of water. When he opened his eyes, the sun's light was at an angle and shone into them, causing him to squint at the brightness and rub his eyes. He woke up in a rather pleasant way, and Subaru was the type of person to be fully awake once he opened his eyes. \"Oh, you awake?\" said a voice from right above Subaru's head, with him still lying down. As Subaru turned to look in the direction of the voice, he realized that he was still lying on the ground, but had his head on something soft that was being used as a pillow. \"You shouldn't move. You hit your head, so I can't say whether it's safe to just yet.\" This concerned voice also sounded very kind, as Subaru remembered what happened just before he lost consciousness, he thought. Given the circumstances, he might just be in one of those blessed situations one hopes to be in as a boy. To have one's"}, {"text": "head in a girl's lap... Responding to this divine revelation, Subaru pretended to turn to readjust so he could enjoy himself to the fullest. With a circular motion he rubbed his cheek against it and reached a feeling of absolute bliss, and far more than he expected he felt a fluffiness from the softness of the hair. \"Wow... Beautiful girls are a lot hairier than I imagin Hey, wait a minute!\" sputtered Subaru as he faced up, this time with his vision fully recovered, and took in what was happening. Right in front of Subaru, in his upside-down vision, was the face of a giant cat. \"I thought that at least until you woke up, I'd make you feel comfortable. You can thank me later.\" \"First of all, I'd like you to stop with that terrible falsetto voice. There's no way I'd mistake a cat for the heroine.\" Subaru had certainly never been in a situation before where he got to use a human-size cat's lap for a pillow and, well, it wasn't like you get to experience this every day, so he decided to make the best of it. \"Wow, this is actually really comfortable. Like, this is amazing. Now I understand why people want to love their cats 'til they go bald.\" \"Well, if you're going to be this happy about it, I guess it was really worth super-sizing... Don't you think so, too?\" The cat scratched at his face as if it were embarrassed and winked as if seeking a confirmation. At the end of that glance was a silver-haired girl, standing at the entrance to the alley looking unfazed. It was the same girl from before, if Subaru was to believe his memories, eyes, and heart, which were all deeply branded by her image right before he lost consciousness. \"Umm...I'm sorry about all of this. It looks like you ended up staying here with me until I woke up, and \" \"Don't get any ideas about this. The only reason I stayed is because I still have some questions to ask you. If it weren't for that, I would have left you behind. I mean it. So don't get any ideas.\" Pressing the point, the girl put strong emphasis on her words. This was a level of girl power that Subaru, who had no resistance against such beautiful girls, simply could not stand against. It was so strong that Subaru could do nothing but nod, ignoring the content of whatever she was saying. \"The reason I healed your wounds, and the reason I had Puck serve as a pillow until you woke up all of that was for me. So I'm going to have you make it up to me, okay?\" \"I know you're trying to build this up and everything, but if you just have something to ask, go right ahead,\" said Subaru. It looked like she was one of those people who took the saying \"helping others isn't just for their sake\" to heart. The girl looked sternly at Subaru and shook her head. \"I'm not asking, I'm commanding. You know something about my stolen badge, don't you?\" asked the girl, dropping the tone of her voice. However, as this wasn't any different from what she had asked before, Subaru had to tilt his head in confusion. They had gone through this once already, right before Subaru had passed out. She keeps calling the thing a \"badge,\" Subaru thought. So is it something like what police and detectives keep on themselves to prove what they are? I haven't seen anything like that. \"You didn't hit your head real hard or anything while I was passed out, did you?\" Subaru asked. \"You were only out for about ten minutes, and no, nothing like that happened. Answer the question.\" \"Well...if that's the case, I've got to say I really don't know. Ha-ha...\" You can't do anything about what you don't know. Subaru's answer was no different from before. However, the girl didn't look particularly crestfallen, but instead nodded. \"Well, if you don't know, you don't know. But, the fact that you know absolutely nothing itself is information you have provided to me, and enough for me to justify healing you,\" the girl replied, using twisted enough logic to baffle any swindler to describe her complete loss. As Subaru looked on, dumbfounded, the girl clapped her hands together as if to finish things. \"Well, I'm in a hurry, so I'm going to get going now. Your wounds should all be healed, and I threatened those other guys so much I doubt they'll go near you again, but it's still dangerous to enter an alley like this all alone. Oh, and I'm not saying this because I'm worried about you; this is a warning: If I see you in a similar situation again, there won't be any merit to me saving you, so you can't expect me to do so again,\" said the girl with machine-gun rapidity. She took Subaru's silence as affirmation, nodded to herself, and turned around to leave. The girl's long silver hair swayed as she moved, and sparkled fantastically in the dim light of the alley. \"I'm sorry about that. She's not really honest with herself. Don't think too strangely of her, okay?\" said the cat with a laugh as, having returned to its original size, it jumped up onto the girl's shoulder. The girl patted its back as if to affirm its touch, and the cat disappeared, slipping behind the curtain of her hair. Without once looking back, the girl continued to walk on. As he watched her go, Subaru thought about what the cat had said, about her not being honest with herself, and her intentions. She had something stolen from her, and even though she was in a hurry to get it back, she saved Subaru. Then, after Subaru had passed out, she healed him, and when he woke up, she used terrible reasoning to try to show him that she wasn't worse off for doing so. \"She's not really honest with herself\" was not going far enough. Her efforts were coming up negative in everything, and it was hard to watch. The girl had every right to blame Subaru for getting in her way, but she hadn't complained even once, and she didn't even look for an apology. That's because to her, the only reason she saved Subaru was for her own ends. \"If you live like that, you're just going to keep losing until there's nothing left,\" said Subaru as he got up, patted his dust-and dirt-covered tracksuit and started running. Sure, his beloved tracksuit was in pretty bad shape, but on the inside, almost all of his pain was gone. That's after being kicked and punched as much as he was. Again Subaru was reminded of the otherworldliness of magic, as well as the generosity of that girl who, despite going on and on about having Subaru pay her back, took nothing from him in return. \"Hey, wait!\" Subaru called out to the girl just as she had reached the entrance to the alley and was in front of the main road, looking unsure of where to go next. The girl touched her silver hair and looked a bit troubled as she turned around. \"What is it? I'm going to tell you right now, I only have a bit more time to spend dealing with you.\" \"So a little's fine, then?! Anyway, what you lost is really important, right? Let me help you look for it.\" The girl blinked a few times, surprised. \"But you said you don't know anything...\" \"It's true that I don't know the name of the girl who stole that badge from you, or where she's from, but at least I know what she looks like! She's got blond hair, is sort of like a kitten, and has this canine tooth that sticks out that's hard to miss. She's shorter than you and her chest is pretty flat so she's maybe two or three years younger than you! How about that?!\" When he got flustered, Subaru had a bad habit of speaking fast and not really even knowing what he was saying. Right now that bad habit was running at full blast, and even Subaru wanted to distance himself from his own words. The ensuing silence was painful. A cold sweat drenched Subaru's back, not to mention his hands and armpits, which was followed by heart palpitations, shortness of breath, as well as dizziness, and in addition to feeling faint, his nose stuffed up in an allergic reaction accompanied by a migraine, such that there were problems on every front. However... \"...You're strange,\" the girl said with a hand up to her mouth, tilting her head to the side as if she were looking at some rare animal. With a finger still at her lips she stared at Subaru, sizing him up. \"I should say up front that I can't offer you anything in return for your help. I might not look it, but I don't have a copper piece on me.\" \"Don't worry, that makes two of us,\" replied Subaru. \"Three of us, if you count me... Pretty terrible for us as a group,\" added a voice jokingly from the girl's silver hair, but Subaru ignored it and pounded his chest. \"I don't need anything in thanks. I'm the one who should thank you. That's why I want to help.\" \"I haven't done anything deserving of your thanks. I've already gotten something in return from healing you.\" She just won't give it up, will she? Subaru looked at the girl and her stubborn attitude with a weak smile. \"If that's the case, then I'll help you for my own sake. The reason is...yeah, that's it. I'll use you for my 'one good deed a day' project!\" said Subaru. \"One good deed a day?\" \"That's right. Once a day you do one good thing. If you do that, after you die you've got a one-way ticket to heaven! If I can do it, then a wonderful life of just eating and sleeping is waiting for me so I hear! So that's why I'm going to help you for my own sake.\" Subaru felt like turning to himself and asking what the hell he was going on about, but at least he'd managed to make his point. The girl stood in thought, considering Subaru's words, when her cat poked at her cheek with its paws. \"I don't sense any evil intentions from him, and I don't really think it's a bad idea, you know? With how large the capital is, it's way better than going on no clues at all.\" \"But if I get him involved...\" \"You're cute when you're stubborn, but it's foolish to let your stubbornness get the best of you and make you lose sight of your goals. I'd really rather not think of my own master as a fool.\" The cat added its support in favor of Subaru, but the girl was still hesitant. In response, the cat dropped its expression and continued in a serious voice. \"Plus, the sun is starting to set. If night falls, I won't be able to help you. I'm not worried about you handling a thug or two, but...it's better to be safe than sorry.\" \"Well, it sounds like you're the one to call if there's danger! But, wait according to what you said, you can't come out at night? Is that one of the deals of your contract or something?\" Subaru asked, taking a step closer. The cat flicked its whiskers with its front paw and said, \"It's more like, I may look cute, but I'm a spirit, you know? I use a lot of mana just by materializing. When night falls, I return to the crystal that is my vessel and prepare for when the sun is out again. I suppose you could say it's the perfect nine-to-five job.\" \"Nine to five? That sounds like a government job..."}, {"text": "The conditions to hire a spirit sound more severe than I expected...!\" Subaru was able to talk naturally about spirits, but that was only because of the analytical power he had as a modern otaku, poisoned by anime and games. Even traits looked down on by the public come in handy sometimes. While Subaru and the cat continued their conversation, the girl continued to anguish over her decision. However, that last point seemed to have tipped the scales, so after much moaning with a number of buts and stills and ifs she finally conceded. \"I'm telling you, I really can't give you anything in return, okay?\" After Subaru's first friendly interaction in this different world a pleasant, heartwarming episode one hour had passed. \"What is the meaning of this?\" Their investigation had stalled. As Subaru faced the girl's cold stare, he scratched at his face, trying to find a way out. \"Even with all of my experience, I never thought that it would be this difficult...\" \"You seem to have a really high opinion of yourself, but I haven't seen anything from you to prove it. No matter how you slice it, things aren't going well!\" \"Nobody says, 'no matter how you slice it,' anymore...\" Pointing that out only made things worse, and the girl's stare grew sharper, at which Subaru shrank away. Even though they had been searching for a little under an hour, for some reason, Subaru and the girl were back in an alley. Of course, there was a really good reason for this. There were several factors Subaru had discovered that made their search difficult. First, Subaru didn't know his way around town. Given that he had just been summoned from another world, it was hard to blame him for wanting a pass on this one. Additionally, it seemed that the girl was unfamiliar with the area as well, and at least ten minutes were wasted with both having full confidence that the other knew their way around. It was pretty funny, actually, or so Subaru thought. But the way the girl was staring at Subaru, she didn't seem to find it funny at all. Second, the characters and symbols written here and there...were completely illegible to Subaru. Given that Subaru didn't have any trouble communicating by speech, he hadn't thought all that much about it, but after a second look he saw that all around, here and there were handwritten symbols. Unless they were all some kind of \"mystic charms to protect against evil magic\" that tended to be popular, those symbols were probably letters for the common language. And because he couldn't understand them, he couldn't even read the road signs. In other words, while a miracle common in most otherworldly summoning works of fiction is \"for some reason our words and writing are mutually understood!\", in Subaru's case, only half of that came true. But given that if Subaru hadn't been able to communicate through words he would have been as good as dead, it was hard to call his situation unlucky. \"Still, why do you have to raise the difficulty like that on me...? The world's not kind at all.\" Rather than exhausting all options, it was more of a case of finding a series of critical problems before you even get started. While despairing at making absolutely no progress over the past hour, Subaru noticed that his companion, that girl, was standing up by the wall of the alley with her eyes closed, paying absolutely no mind to him. Seeing her lips move as she muttered something a few times, he tilted his head in confusion. \"Wonder what she's doing...\" \"Oh that? She's communicating with lesser spirits.\" Subaru raised his eyebrows in surprise as the girl's gray cat suddenly reappeared right in front of his eyes. \"I thought that I hadn't seen you in a while, but you hadn't gone home or anything; you were here the whole time?\" \"There's still a bit of time left before I have to go. Unlike those minor spirits she's talking to, I take my job seriously.\" \"Well that's quite honorable of you. ...But, what are these uh...lesser spirits again?\" Going by the name, I suppose they're a rank down from regular spirits? Subaru thought. As if agreeing with Subaru's musing, the cat, floating in midair, waved its long tail back and forth. \"Lesser spirits are beings that, in a state prior to becoming real spirits, start to develop some knowledge. If, over time, they gain power and self-awareness, they'll become spirits like me.\" As he nodded, listening to the cat's explanation, Subaru noticed that the area around the girl began to glow. The silver-haired girl was surrounded by faint lights that looked as though they were fireflies. It was the kind of scene that most people would subconsciously hesitate to interfere with. It was like holy ground, whereby the influence of the supernatural, only what was sanctified was allowed to be. In response to the scene, Subaru... \"Wow! That's so cool! Are all of these glowing things spirits?\" \"Ah!\" ...intruded on it without a second thought, breaking the fantasy of it all as he started talking to the girl. As the girl cried out in surprise, you could see droplets of tears that formed in reaction, sparkling in her eyes. Then the girl's flustered state spread to the lights around her and... \"Oh, look at that. They're panicking.\" The many lights started to flee this way and that before finally scattering and disappearing into the air. \"...Umm...\" Both Subaru and the girl opened their mouths, dumbstruck, searching for where the lesser spirits had gone. Quickly the girl tried to continue what she had been doing, but it didn't appear the lesser spirits were heeding her call anymore. \"Just look at what you did! They're gone! What are you going to do about this?!\" \"Ah... Um... I'm sorry! It was my first time seeing spirits like that and I got a little excited. I mean, it didn't look like they were dangerous or anything.\" \"It was only safe because I had them under control. If you had done that to an inexperienced spirit mage, it would have been awful. In the worst case, the spirits could have gone berserk and...BAM.\" \"'Bam?'\" The girl was trying to admonish Subaru for not taking his actions seriously, but using the word \"bam\" wasn't exactly helpful. \"Oh, come on. There's no way those little sparkly things could be dangerous. Do you really expect me to believe that?\" \"Well, to put it one way,\" Puck said, \"I may look pretty cute...but it would only take two seconds for me to turn you into a pile of dust.\" \"Damn, spirits are scary!\" A shiver went down Subaru's spine in response to the cat's peaceful-sounding death threat, and he looked back at the girl. \"I definitely hope you don't happen to be so upset you set that cat on me or anything...\" \"I would never use Puck for something like that. If I were going to be violent with you, I'd handle you myself... Ugh, it really looks like they aren't going to answer me anymore.\" Failing to establish a second contact with the lesser spirits, the girl, depressed, shook her head powerlessly. \"I suppose it's not helpful to ask this after the spirits have already gone, but what is it exactly that you were trying to do?\" \"I was trying to see if I could get any information from them about what I'm looking for. They disappeared before I was able to ask, though.\" \"What, really?!\" Subaru was struck speechless by the gravity of his mistake. Seeing that, the girl jumped in. \"Um, b-but... It did take some time and lesser spirits don't have the kind of clear awareness that regular spirits have, so I wasn't really expecting much, but... Okay, I'm sorry, that's a lie.\" The girl's hesitancy to lie was in conflict with her desire for a positive outlook, so while she tried, she was unable to soften the blow. In fact, her struggle with herself only highlighted to Subaru his own stupidity. At this rate, he wasn't going to be able to do anything but slow her down. This is bad, both considering the debt I owe and the fact that she's my one precious connection in this world... I'm gonna do my best to cling to this relationship and not let go...! \"From the look on your face, it looks like you're up to no good, but...did you think of something? Um...\" In front of Subaru, who had found a questionable new sense of determination, the girl hesitated. Subaru tilted his head and stared at her for a while as she furrowed her brow, but it was the cat that came to her rescue. \"Ah, now that I think of it, we haven't told each other our names yet, have we? Should we introduce ourselves?\" \"Oh, you're right. Well then, I guess I'll go ahead and go first!\" In an overly energetic fashion, in part to help cover up for his previous mistake, Subaru struck a pose and pointed to the heavens. \"My name is Subaru Natsuki! The ignorant and unintelligent, forever and everlastingly penniless! Nice to meet you!\" \"Well, that doesn't inspire a lot of confidence, does it? Anyway, I'm Puck. Nice to meet you, too.\" As Subaru put out his hand, Puck leapt into it with his whole body for a handshake. An onlooker would probably think Subaru was trying to squeeze the cat to death. The girl blinked in surprise at Subaru's bold interaction. \"It's rare to see someone who's willing to approach a spirit so easily...and your name is just as unusual. With black hair and dark eyes like that just where did you come from?\" \"Ha, I was waiting for you to ask that question. Given this trope, I'll have to say I come from a small country to the east!\" This is a pattern that has often come up in otherworldly fiction since times long past. A character will state that they come from a hidden country to the east, called something like \"Zipang.\" There tends to not be that much interaction between countries, so if you say you've traveled to where you are from that country, it will make sense to most people. It's a magically convenient clich\u00c3\u00a9. \"If you look at a map of the continent, Lugunika is the country farthest to the east, so...there's no country to the east of here.\" \"What, are you serious? We're at the ends of the east?! So...does this make this country my long-yearned-for Zipang?!\" \"So you don't know where you are, you don't have any money, you can't read, and you have no one you can count on. I'm starting to think you're worse off than I am...\" While Subaru was shocked at this new development, the girl was also starting to look anxious. With every action she took you could see the element of her personality that made her want to help others. She probably couldn't help but be concerned about Subaru, who to her was looking more and more to be not only defenseless, but absolutely helpless. The girl looked at Subaru again carefully, from the top down. \"Taking another look at you, you actually look like you're in pretty good shape. Um... Uh... Subaru.\" \"Huh? Oh. Yep, Subaru. That's my name.\" Having his name called in such a hesitant way for some reason felt like a fresh new experience to Subaru, and he couldn't help but stumble in his response. After clearing his throat to hide the fact that he was shaken up, he showed his biceps. \"I do strength training every day. Since I'm almost always cooped up in my room, I've got to do at least that much to stay in shape.\" \"I don't really get what you mean by 'cooped up in your room,' but you're from a high-ranking family, aren't you? Weren't you taught some sort of martial"}, {"text": "art?\" \"I'm actually from an extremely ordinary middle-class family, but...what makes you think I'm from a high-class family? Do I exude some refined air of nobility?\" \"Well, you do have a bit of a curious air to you, at least.\" Subaru jokingly raised his hands as if to acknowledge the flattery. But then the girl suddenly grabbed those hands, and Subaru, taken aback by the suddenness of her touch, had to hold back a squeak from rising out of his throat. \"It's also these fingers of yours, but your skin and hair are part of it as well. These aren't the hands of a commoner, and your muscles don't look like the product of hard labor.\" Subaru blushed as the girl continued to poke at his hands, but understood. He was also impressed by her ability to see that he was not just simply a foreigner in a foreign land. As Subaru stood in wonderment, the girl continued. \"Black hair and dark eyes. I hear that is a common trait of the refugees from the south, but the fact that you are here in Lugunika with those traits means that you are able to live a life of luxury. Also, the craftsmanship of these strange clothes of yours is magnificent... So, have I got it right?\" As Subaru grew quiet, the girl put on a proud smile. Feeling admittedly drawn by the bewitching atmosphere she had made fitting of her beautiful smile, Subaru processed the contents of what she just said and made a reluctant face. \"If you're asking me whether you're wrong or you are right...you're absolutely wrong, but is there any way I can say it so you won't get hurt?\" \"If I'm wrong, just tell me I'm wrong. If you don't, it's just going to be more embarrassing for me.\" The girl blushed as her earlier confidence transformed into embarrassment. As Subaru watched her go silent, he thought about how he was going to explain where he came from. He could just say, \"I'm a loser who was summoned from another world!\" but given the precedent set by fantasy fiction about other worlds, that would open the gates for him to be labeled as someone who was wrong in the head. Looking back on the results of what he had said so far, he felt there was a significant risk in telling the truth. \"You don't have to think that hard about it, you know? If it's something you can't talk about, I won't question you any further.\" Seeing Subaru struggling with what to say, the girl came to her own conclusions and didn't press him. Given that she had come to his rescue yet again in a way, Subaru grimaced, feeling all the more useless. \"But...really, this isn't looking very good,\" the girl muttered, in a now-weaker tone, a clouded expression on her face. \"...\" Seeing that the girl could no longer hide how hopeless she felt, Subaru felt a faint flame light up inside himself. \"What am I, an idiot? Well, yeah, I am an idiot. Just what have I been doing all this time...\" Right in front of Subaru stood the girl who saved his life. Hadn't he offered to help her out so that he could repay her? If that was the case, then how was he supposed to explain his total lack of support? \"Subaru?\" Seeing Subaru fall silent and looking troubled all of a sudden, the girl tilted her head and looked at him puzzled. Watching as with that motion her silver hair tumbled down off her shoulder, Subaru thought as hard as he could. Subaru tried to remember what had happened when the thief ran through that alley as those thugs were stomping on him. Focusing on that instant in time, he needed to find something, anything that he could use... \"I have a few things that I want to check with you, is that okay?\" \"Um...okay, yeah. Go right ahead.\" \"Thanks. I'm pretty sure I heard you mention it a few times, but this is the capital of whatever country we're in...right? So, basically it's the town that has the king's castle in it, and it's a really big place, is that correct?\" Subaru asked, remembering bits of the conversation that he had had with the girl before. While Subaru realized that his question must have sounded strange, the girl didn't interrupt and simply nodded a yes. \"So in this big city, there's a girl who appears to be making her living stealing things. By the look of her clothes, she definitely doesn't seem to be that well off... Now this may be obvious, but there's got to be a place where people like that live.\" *** \"Is there a place where crime is rampant, or something like a slum in the area...? I'm sure it's hard to exchange stolen goods for money without some connections, so I think there's a good chance she would have to go back to a place like that.\" With the image of the thief burned in his memory, Subaru analyzed her from head to toe, and used all of the knowledge he had about fantasy settings to help form his hypothesis. \"So, I think rather than searching around aimlessly, we have a better chance if we aim for that, but... What's wrong?\" \"I was just surprised. You really do have a good head on your shoulders.\" \"Well, rather than a logical conclusion, it's more that it's a common theme in medieval fantasy, but...if this is all it takes for you to start thinking better of me I have a feeling that I've got a long way to go...\" Despite Subaru's response, he seemed to be taking the girl's praise rather well. While Subaru scratched at the side of his head to try to keep from showing how embarrassed he was, the girl nodded several times. \"We'll go with your plan. Let's go back out to the main road and ask some people if they know of a place that's like what you described.\" \"We're already really behind as it is, after all. Let's hurry up and get going.\" After Subaru and the girl looked at each other and nodded, they headed out of the alley and toward the main road. However, right before they could start their search for a spot where a lot of people who they could question were passing by, Subaru remembered something. \"I was just thinking... I know your cat's name now, but I don't think you ever told me your name, ha-ha.\" While Subaru thought that bringing this up now might have not been the best time, the girl's eyes widened a bit in surprise. She then closed them, and after a few seconds of silence, said... \"...Satella.\" \"Oh?\" Subaru, who because of her silence had begun to think that he had made a mistake, was a bit late in reacting to her whispered reply. In response, the girl turned away from Subaru and continued. \"I don't have a last name, so you can just call me Satella.\" Her voice had no emotion in it. Because of her attitude, it was as if, though she was giving her name, she was refusing to be called by it. Through her actions, this girl, who gave her name as \"Satella,\" was putting a distance between herself and Subaru more than she had ever done before. Subaru, who already thought that he would feel more comfortable having a surname to call her by rather than having to use her personal name, felt that he really couldn't use that name at all. For the time being, looking for a way out, Subaru decided to avoid using her name entirely, and instead just use pronouns. As he observed Subaru and the girl's exchange from the sidelines, Puck had one thing to say before slipping back under the girl's silver hair. \"...That's in really bad taste, you know,\" it muttered, though its voice did not even reach the girl's ears, let alone Subaru's. Using the sounds of the bustling crowd as a guide, Subaru and Satella walked back through the alley they were in and reached the main road about ten minutes later. Shifting his gaze this way and that, Subaru looked for who they should question first, when Satella, who stood beside him, pulled on his sleeve. \"Hey, Subaru...\" When Subaru looked back at Satella he saw that she had her gaze fixed on something on the other side of the street. Subaru looked in the same direction and realized what Satella was looking at. I have a bad feeling about this, he thought. Adding further weight to his fears, Satella continued, with a serious look on her face. \"...Do you think that kid is lost?\" Out of all the possible things that could go wrong with this plan, the final one had reared its head. \"...Well, uh...\" One of the several things that Subaru had discovered throughout the day was that the silver-haired girl standing next to him was an incorrigibly kind person. But, whether it was due to a curse or some other reason, she would not ever admit it herself. Subaru sighed a deep sigh. \"Let's just calm down a minute.\" \"What are we going to do if she gets up and goes somewhere while we're dillydallying?! We've got to go talk to her right away...\" \"You know, that kindness of yours is a great virtue, and given the fact that I myself was saved by that kindness I really don't want to say this, but do you have any idea what situation you're in right now?\" Where Satella was looking, near the buildings across the street, there stood a young girl. She looked as though she was around ten years old, with shoulder-length brown hair that was very cute. If she smiled, the people around her probably would not be able to resist smiling back, but unfortunately, at the moment her eyes were filled with anxiety, and she looked moments away from tears. There was probably an 80 or 90 percent chance that Satella's observation was correct. Subaru was sure it was, but... \"There's also that my screw-ups are partially at fault, but the thief who stole from you is just getting farther and farther away from us. If we waste any more time here, by the time we catch her, she might already have sold it and then we'll have no way to get it back.\" \"You're probably right...but...\" \"Then...\" Certainly it would feel bad to just leave the girl like that, but with all of the other people around, the chance that someone else would help her was high. On the other hand, Subaru and Satella were pressed for time, and needed to gather information to continue their search. No matter how he thought about it, their current plan should have priority over helping that little girl, but... \"But don't you see, Subaru? Look at her, she's crying.\" *** \"If you don't want to stick around with me, that's just fine. Thanks for everything you've done, Subaru. I'll figure this out on my own...after I help that little girl.\" While Subaru stood at a loss for words, Satella looked like she had already made her decision. The way she said it, it wasn't as though she was saying that Subaru just didn't understand and she was tired of him, but that she felt guilty for forcing Subaru to play along with her unreasonableness. Her silver hair dancing behind her, Satella trotted off across the street to where the little girl was standing. The girl, who had been looking down with her teary eyes, noticed that someone had suddenly come to her side. There was a glimmer of hope in her eyes as she looked up, probably because she thought the person she was looking for had found her. \"I'm sorry I'm not the one you're looking for,\" said Satella as she knelt down to talk to the"}, {"text": "girl, whose eyes opened wide in surprise. But in those eyes was not a feeling of relief, but a feeling of fear. You could tell, even from far away, that being spoken to by a stranger had caused her heart to shrink away, afraid. \"I'm sorry if I'm bothering you, but where are your father and mother? Aren't they with you?\" It looked as though Satella had noticed the girl was afraid, and her voice was in a tone that was kinder than Subaru had ever heard it before. However, it wasn't enough to convey her concern to the girl, who had lost sight of her parents and was now shivering because she did not know what to do. \"Umm... Uh... Please don't cry. I won't do anything to hurt you, okay?\" Satella tried to keep open the girl's heart before it shut completely on her, but it didn't seem to work, and the little girl only shook her head back and forth. The tears that had welled up in her eyes looked as though they were about to overflow, when... \"Now feast your eyes on this magnificent notched ten-yen coin!\" \"Huh?\" said Satella, surprised by the sudden voice that had leapt in, and when she looked up, there was Subaru in his gray tracksuit. Subaru first smiled weakly at Satella's reaction, and then turned his smile from her to the little girl. The sudden intruder had also surprised her. Subaru then put out his right hand in front of her. \"Now, can you see this coin here in my right hand? I bet you can! All right, now I'm going to squeeze it tight. Like this...squeeze squeeze squeeze...\" \"Wait, Subaru...what are you...?\" \"And would you look at that!\" Ignoring Satella's interruption, Subaru took his fist where he had been holding the notched ten-yen coin and opened it wide for the two to see. When he did, the coin that should have been in his hand was gone. \"Wow! The coin I was squeezing is gone! Now where could it have run off to...?\" The little girl blinked a few times and then stared hard at Subaru's right hand, but whether she looked at the back of his hand or his palm, she couldn't find it. Subaru, emboldened by the girl's reaction, nodded, and then reached out with his left hand and gently brushed his fingers through her hair. \"Would you look at that! So this is where the coin was hiding.\" When the little girl saw the coin resting between the fingers of Subaru's left hand, she was stunned. Satella, who couldn't figure out the trick, was just as confused. Subaru took a magnificent bow before the two and then dropped the notched ten-yen coin in the little girl's hand. \"I'll let you keep it as a present. It's special, so take good care of it, okay?\" Subaru looked on with a smile as the little girl held the coin close and nodded vigorously. As he was doing so, Satella poked him in the side. \"Hey, Subaru...\" \"Don't look at me like that. I mean, I'll admit what I said before was a bit harsh but...\" \"How did you do that?\" \"Oh, you mean that? You're not questioning my motives, but how I did the trick?\" Subaru promised to explain the trick later to Satella, who looked very interested, before turning back to the little girl, who was looking very curiously at the ten-yen coin. It seemed like Subaru's amazing magic had helped calm down her anxiety. When Subaru knelt down and asked her a few questions, she answered them quickly and clearly. \"I see. So you got separated from your mother, huh. Don't worry, don't worry. Just leave it to your big brother and sister. We'll find her right away!\" After giving the girl another pat on the head, Subaru held out his hand to her, and with a little hesitation, she grabbed it. Satella, who was watching, opened her eyes wide. \"You really look like you're used to this... Subaru, is your profession taming children?\" \"When you take it out of context like that, that sounds really, really bad! And no. I'm unemployed.\" Technically, Subaru had the incredibly convenient status of being a student. However, given that he hadn't been going to school lately, and particularly now that he had been summoned to a different world, he didn't really feel that he was qualified to call himself that anymore. But, regardless... \"So, big sister, how about you hold this lonely little girl's hand? She looks like she could use another friend,\" said Subaru with a wink. The little girl had reached her other hand, the one that was not holding on to Subaru's, out to Satella. Satella looked surprised for a moment and held her breath, but then let it out and took the little girl's hand in her own. \"Right. Don't you worry. Just let your big sister handle this. We'll definitely find your mom, okay?\" Satella said, smiling at the little girl as she nodded silently. Subaru and Satella led the girl along, with her between them, and the three continued down the main road through the waves of people together. \"The way we are now, don't you think there are some people out there who look at us and think that we're a young couple with our child? How embarrassing!\" \"...Huh? Even with the benefit of the doubt I don't see how anyone would think that you and that girl are anything other than brother and sister...\" \"I can't tell if that's just a really dry joke, or that's really what you thought I meant!\" As Satella and Subaru went on talking, the little girl between them let a small smile spread across her face. Fortunately, perhaps because they really stood out as a group, it didn't take long before they found the little girl's mother. In this case, it wasn't only Subaru who stood out, but also Satella, with her silver hair and extraordinary beauty. \"Thank you so much!\" Once the girl's mother was reunited with her child, she thanked Subaru and Satella several times, though they smiled and played it off as if it were nothing. As the little girl and her mother were leaving, the girl looked back and waved good-bye several times, and Subaru and Satella waved back. Subaru turned to look at Satella, as she stood beside him waving to the girl, and saw that she had a bright and cheerful expression on her face. \"Now, I get the feeling that we've wasted a lot of time doing this, but what does our big sister have to say? I'm sure she'll find some kind of way to describe this as a means to an end!\" Subaru said in an orchestrated manner, snapping his fingers and making fun of Satella's all-too-kind nature. Of course, he wasn't really criticizing her; it was more that he was just poking fun. After all, Satella had given such a roundabout excuse for why her encounter with Subaru was useful, so he was curious to hear what she would say. \"...It's simple.\" In response to Subaru's teasing, Satella smiled. \"Now we can be in a good mood as we continue to search.\" *** \"Even if we got my badge back, I'm sure I would have regretted not helping that girl. Don't you think it is better to both help the girl and get my badge back?\" It didn't look like Satella was just saying that to keep her own hopes up. She looked so refreshed she probably believed it. With that kind of response, Subaru really didn't know what to say. He would have to rethink his opinion of this girl. Not only was she the type of person who was so kind she always ended up losing everything, she also was the type of person who wanted to have it all. \"I see. You're right. Thanks to your quick decision, we won't have to say, 'Sure, we abandoned that little anxious crying girl all lost and by herself, but we were able to get the badge back, safe and sound, hooray!'\" \"Well that's a really negative way to put it,\" said Satella, frowning, then glaring at him as though she seemed to have remembered something. \"But besides that... Why did you help me? I thought you were against helping the girl, Subaru.\" \"I just wanted to show off my ability to do magic tricks! ...Which is, of course, a lie. Didn't I say so before? I'm going to help you find your badge so I can do my good deed for the day and go to heaven.\" \"But since you helped the girl, doesn't that count for your good deed for the day already?\" \"That's a very good argument! But I mean, it's not like I'm limited to one a day or anything. I can do more. So anyway, I'm going to do enough for tomorrow today! I'm actually planning to get this whole week out of the way!\" Subaru had the feeling that he was getting away from the true meaning of this whole \"do one good deed a day\" concept, but he still tried to make an argument. Satella stood by, shocked. \"Subaru...with a personality like that, you're going to end up losing everything one day.\" \"You're the last person I want to hear that from!\" Subaru shouted, flipping her words back toward her, but Satella just tilted her head in confusion. Apparently she really just didn't get it. \"You really are a nice boy, aren't you?\" \"You know, it kind of bothers me that you're treating me like I'm younger than you. I know that a lot of people think East Asians are younger than they are, but we really can't be that different in age, can we?\" Subaru thought that by a rough estimate Satella looked to be about seventeen or eighteen years old. Given that Subaru had a rather early birthday compared to others in his age group, he was seventeen and thought that it was possible she could even be younger than him. But in response, Satella narrowed her violet eyes slightly and said, \"However old you think I am, I don't think that you're very close... After all, I'm a half-elf.\" *** Subaru was at a loss for words. Seeing his response, a number of complicated emotions flashed across Satella's eyes. Finally, the emotion that settled was an ineffable mixture of resignation and hopelessness. \"I see. No wonder you're so cute. After all, it's like a given in fantasy worlds that elves are always beautiful.\" \"...Huh?\" Subaru finally nodded, having come to his own conclusions about Satella being a half-elf. Satella blinked her eyes several times. Her expectations had completely missed their mark. \"Hmm? What's wrong?\" \"It's not that anything is wrong, it's just...I mean...I'm a half-elf, and...\" \"Yeah...I heard you the first time.\" Unsure of what Satella had a problem with, that's the only way Subaru could think to answer, but Satella's reaction was dramatic. \"....ah.\" Satella made a strange sound in her throat, before suddenly turning away from Subaru, finding the nearest wall, kneeling beside it, and holding her silver-haired head in her hands. In the face of such an inexplicable reaction, Subaru just didn't know what to say. \"Take that!\" \"Ow! What the hell was that for?!\" The gray cat, which as always seemed to come and go as it pleased, had punched him in the face with its paw like it was reenacting a fancy fighting move. Puck purred, flicking at his whiskers with the same paw he had punched Subaru with. \"I don't know, I just felt this overwhelming frustration and couldn't keep it bottled up inside of me.\" \"If that's the only reason, it's going to be hard to get rid of the feeling that a great injustice has been done to me, but it was a soft and squishy punch, so I forgive you.\" \"I mean, I'm not really mad"}, {"text": "at you or anything. If I had to say one way or the other, I'd say it's the opposite.\" \"The opposite?\" said Subaru, confused. \"Yes, the opposite,\" Puck said with a nod. But before Subaru could ask what Puck really meant by that, Satella had returned. Twisting the ends of her silver hair in her fingers, Satella glared at Subaru. \"Subaru, you...nincompoop.\" \"Nobody uses the word 'nincompoop' anymore, and what have I done to be insulted by you?\" \"Hmph. If you don't understand, that's not my problem. More importantly, we've got to continue our search.\" With the subject of Satella's unreasonableness cut off without another word, Subaru looked irritated, but that irritation evaporated as Satella began to act more friendly and familiar. Subaru still didn't know why she'd had such a sudden change in attitude, but there were more important things to think about. \"Anyway, that episode with the little lost girl made it painfully clear isn't this town just too big to be searching around for something in?\" \"Well, it's the capital of Lugunika. It's the largest city in the nation. If I remember correctly, there are about...three hundred thousand people who live here, and a lot of others come and go.\" Satella answered Subaru's question in detail and with a hint of pride in her voice. \"I see, I see. Three hundred thousand people, huh. That's quite a lot... Thanks for the regurgitated information.\" \"Urr...\" Satella muttered. It appeared Subaru's guess had been on the mark. Subaru tried to use that new information to picture Lugunika's capital city in his mind. If it had a population of 300,000 people, then for a city in a medieval fantasy setting, it was quite large. Of course, that number only reflected the people who lived in the city, so after adding in traveling merchants and adventurers, the number of people at any given time would probably be greater than that. As Subaru watched all of the people passing by from the side of the street, he was again astonished by the concentration of such variety in a group of people. There were half-humans, half-beasts, and regular humans all mixed together, and it really was like a melting pot of different races. The fact that they had gotten lost in the alleyways for almost an hour wasn't just something to laugh about, either. The area was so large and the roads so complicated that they really had gotten lost. \"In other words, we don't have any more room for error. We have already given up a big advantage to the thief, and if we get stuck again it really will be too late. So let's choose our next move carefully.\" \"What do you mean?\" \"If we run around without some sort of plan, we won't get any results. For instance, if we go back to the place where your badge was stolen, we might be able to get more information out of people. Was there anyone who saw what happened?\" \"Actually...I think there may have been.\" Satella put her hand to her mouth as if she had remembered something and then explained herself to Subaru. According to Satella, her badge had been stolen in broad daylight, right in the middle of a crowd of people. If so, the theft was a bold move, but looking at the commotion on the street in front of him, Subaru thought that it wasn't necessarily a bad decision on the part of the thief. The more people there are, the easier it is to get lost in the crowd. \"Do you remember where it was stolen from you?\" \"Yes, I think...it was this way.\" Subaru followed Satella down the street. As they made their way through the confusion of the bustling crowd with its many different kinds of people, Subaru felt his sense of distance and direction taken from him just as quickly as when they had made their way through the maze of alleyways before. He felt as if he no longer had any idea of where he was walking. While the place they were in should have been one he had never seen before, Subaru felt a strange feeling that he had seen it before, and that feeling just wouldn't go away. \"Wait. No, I have definitely seen this place before.\" Seeing the place that Satella had led him to, he scratched the side of his face and smiled a half smile. The place where Satella had had her badge stolen from her was the same street corner to which Subaru had been summoned. \"This is where I was so confused I decided to go cool my head down in an empty alley, and then had my encounter with thugs A, B, and C...\" Remembering what had happened about two hours earlier, Subaru now mused to himself that amazing coincidences like this really did happen sometimes. If so, he was in in luck. He had someone in mind that they could talk to. \"So that's the situation. I told her, 'Leave it to me!' and came over here to see you, Mr. Fruit Salesman.\" Subaru spun around and pointed at the owner of a fruit shop on the side of the main road. The fruit that lined his shop was fresh, and just looking at it made his mouth water. \"...What, it's you again? I was hoping for a customer, Mr. Broke,\" said the shop owner with a cold glare that didn't seem fitting for one who dealt with customers on a daily basis. The man wore a bandanna and was very muscular. He had a stern looking face and a deep, threatening voice. To top it all off, he also had a white scar that ran down the left side of his face, probably left by some kind of blade. No matter how you looked at it, there was no way he was a respectable, law-abiding citizen. That's why it was so surprising for him to be behind the counter of a fruit shop. \"Oh, don't be so cold, Pops. You were acting pretty nice to me not all that long ago.\" \"That's because I thought you were a customer. If I had known you had no money on you, I would have chased you out earlier, like I'm about to do now.\" Subaru was trying to act like they were best friends, but the shop owner was having none of it. He waved his hand as if he was shooing away a bug. \"Oh, come on,\" Subaru sighed, relaxing his shoulders. \"Are you sure you want to treat me like this? Haven't you noticed that I'm different from the last time I came here?\" \"What's that?\" said the shop owner, unsure of how to react as Subaru made a triumphant expression, nostrils flaring. Subaru stepped aside and held both his hands out to show Satella standing behind him. \"Look at that! I brought someone with me! You may have chased me off once you learned I was penniless, but what do you think, now that I've brought in someone who just very well may become a new frequent customer of yours?!\" \"Um, Subaru...? I hate to say this when you've got your hopes up, but I don't have any money on me.\" \"Huh, what, really? You're telling me that we were walking around the capital without so much as a single coin between us?!\" The shop owner gave a sigh as he looked at the two paupers in his shop. \"So? What was it that you wanted to say, now that one beggar's become two?\" \"Well, actually, we're looking for something, and I wanted to ask if you could at least hear us out?\" \"That was just my way of saying I don't have the time to deal with you people! Take a hint!\" the shop owner yelled. Subaru felt himself take some intense eardrum damage. \"Th-this wasn't a good idea after all, was it?\" said Satella, shrinking away as she tugged on Subaru's sleeve. It might be true that asking for help without buying anything was pretty selfish, but that didn't change the fact that they had no money to buy anything with. Just when Subaru was about to give up on trying to get any information out of the man, he heard a voice. \"Hmm? Are you...the two from before?\" Subaru and Satella turned around. Standing right in front of them was a woman with long brown hair. It was someone they had both seen before; after all, the woman was not alone. Holding her hand was a little girl who looked very happy to see them. \"We are, but...why are you here in a place like this? The only other person here is this heartless, scary-faced man.\" \"Ha-ha... This is my husband's shop, so I thought I'd stop by and say hello.\" \"Your husband's shop?\" Subaru and Satella looked at each other, and then turned back to look inside the shop, their gazes finally settling on the scar-faced man, who had folded his arms. \"Pops...you didn't kill this woman's husband and take their shop, did you?\" \"What are you going on about? This is my shop, and that is my wife!\" Subaru looked back in shock at the woman, who smiled, looking a bit unsure of how to react. She was a beautiful woman, with fine features and a gentle demeanor. This woman and that stern-faced man? There had to be some mistake. He couldn't possibly be threatening her, could he? Subaru thought with a worried look. But despite Subaru's rude conjecture, the little girl who was holding her mother's hand darted past Subaru to the shop owner, who hugged her and picked her up. \"Oh, look at you! Aren't you all excited. Now tell me, do you know these two destitute beggars?\" \"Beggars? Dear, don't call them that!\" After hearing her husband's sharp words, the girl's mother raised her eyebrows and began berating her husband. She then explained how she, her daughter, Subaru, and Satella had come to meet. After hearing what happened, the shop owner set his daughter down. \"I'm sorry about that. That was not the way to talk to the people who saved my daughter. Please forgive me.\" \"Oh, don't worry about it. I mean, it is true that we don't have any money on us, and...\" \"That's right, old man! I hope you think long and hard about your action...s... Um...your cute face looks pretty scary right now.\" A look from Satella shut Subaru up. Right after that, the little girl reached out her hand to Satella. In her hand was a small ornament in the shape of a red flower. Satella held her breath, and looked from the ornament to the little girl and back several times, with a slightly troubled expression. \"Please, take it,\" said the mother, placing her hand on Satella's back, urging her on. \"My daughter wants to thank you in her own way.\" Satella nodded slightly and then took the flower ornament from the little girl's hand, and pinned it on the left breast of her white cloak, before kneeling down so that the little girl could see it. \"Thank you. I like it very much.\" As Subaru watched Satella's brilliant smile from the side, he found himself unable to look away. Seeing that smile, the little girl blushed and looked away, and the shop owner, watching all of this, cleared his throat. \"You saved my daughter. I want to thank you. Ask me whatever you want.\" With a strong nod, the stern-faced shop owner put on his best smile. Satella was surprised, but then looked to Subaru and smiled, but it wasn't the same smile as before. This one was a triumphant one. \"See, I told you. It really did come around and help us in the end!\" she said, as if this odd twist of fate was entirely her own doing.  Even though the street was just one off the main road, the atmosphere was full of gloom."}, {"text": "It was still and silent, and there was no sign of any kind of life, let alone traces of people around. The street Subaru and Satella were on wasn't far from the main road, but the hustle and bustle from before now seemed like a far-off dream. \"We heard from that guy that if we were looking for stolen goods, they would be handled and sold in the slums, but...\" whispered Subaru as he peered down the street that supposedly would lead them to the slums, \"...the air down there and the mood, not to mention the general character of the people down there, are all probably going to be pretty terrible. Are you sure you really want to go?\" \"You're the one who suggested that my badge might be there in the first place, and the owner of that shop said it would probably be there, too...\" \"You shouldn't forget that right after he said that, he added that we should probably give up,\" said Subaru, reflecting back with a sour face on what was said at the fruit shop. Thirty minutes after unexpectedly reuniting with the little girl and her mother at the fruit shop, and using that coincidence to turn the situation around and gain some valuable information, Subaru and Satella were now at the entrance to the rumored slums, where most stolen goods were said to be brought. After realizing that Subaru and Satella had helped his daughter, the stern-faced shop owner had warmed up to them, and listened to their plight. Because of that, they were able to get information about the slums, but now they were hesitating. \"I probably should have mentioned this earlier, but wouldn't it be better to ask for help? Like, if we asked the police, or...I guess they would be guards in this case...I'm sure if we asked those kind of people to help us search and they sent a team out to find it, this would get resolved a lot more quickly.\" \"We can't.\" Satella immediately rejected Subaru's suggestion. In fact, she so flatly rejected it that it took Subaru by surprise. \"I'm sorry, but...we can't. I also don't think we can get the guards to act over such a small theft, and...I have other reasons that I can't ask the guards for help,\" said Satella, pausing for a moment with her lips shut tightly, before looking at Subaru with a look of pleading in her eyes. \"I'm sorry, but I can't say why.\" Realizing that she quite clearly didn't want to be asked, Subaru raised his hands slightly, conceding. \"So, what should we do, then? I suppose we can still employ team tactics with just the two of us,\" said Subaru in a light and joking tone, trying to keep the mood up. \"Don't forget me!\" replied Puck, who had reappeared on Satella's shoulder, looking at Subaru and Satella as it wiped its face with its paw. \"But we don't really have the time to just sit around and talk anymore. Even if you want to try those team tactics with two humans and a cat, I've only got about an hour before it's time's-up for me.\" As Puck looked up at the sky, Subaru followed its gaze and saw that most of the sky that was peaking through the buildings on either side of the street had already shifted from blue to orange. The reason the slums seemed so dark and dreary wasn't only because of the damp and sour smell coming from it. It was getting closer and closer to sunset which of course meant that Puck would soon reach his limit. \"So whether you decide to go or turn back, it's best to make that decision soon,\" finished Puck. \"I don't know what you mean by 'team tactics,' but we've got to keep going. There's no way that we can let this chance go and risk having my badge be out of our reach forever,\" Satella said, answering Puck. She then turned to Subaru. \"All right, so I've decided I'm going, but...the people who live here are probably used to getting into fights, so I want you to be careful, even more than before. If you're scared, you can just wait here for me to come back.\" \"Wait here?! Just how much of a chicken do you think I am?! I'm going! I'm going to stick to you like I'm a spirit who's come back to haunt you!\" \"So in other words you don't want to be in front. That would really, really make it easier on me, though.\" Satella sighed yet again in the face of Subaru's energetic readiness to flee. Subaru thought about how, ever since he and Satella had met, he had only made her look troubled. The few times she did smile, the reason had nothing to do with Subaru. It was unfortunate. Given how cute she looked even when she was displaying negative emotions, Subaru thought it would be wonderful if she ever did smile at him. \"All right! Let's do this! It's about time I do something to show you what I'm made of!\" \"What are you so excited about all of a sudden? I can see up your nostrils.\" \"Well, that was a great way to ruin my display-of-determination scene! Thanks!\" Even though he had his energy tripped up a notch from the start, Subaru hurried his pace so he wouldn't fall behind Satella, his arms flailing back and forth as he rushed to not be left behind by this girl who kept continuing on toward her goal. Now, Subaru and Satella entered the next stage on the way to completing their task the slums. And it looked like they were going to have a lot of trouble... That is, until it became clear that an unlikely character would prove themself very useful; very useful indeed. \"Who, you ask? Me! Yes, me! For some unknown reason, the people here in the slums are really nice to me! Just what unknown variable is responsible for this?! Has my charm stat finally been adjusted?! I haven't felt so loved since I was in preschool!\" Back in preschool, Subaru was quite the cute one. His hair was long and he was often mistaken for a girl. Given the change to his current state only took ten plus a few years. The passage of time really is cruel and unforgiving. \"Has something about me changed from before? Do I, like, have something on my face?\" \"Well, you do have your evil-looking eyes, short ears, and flat nose on your face...\" \"I could have gone without the evil eyes and flat nose description!\" retorted Subaru before hanging his head. Satella put her finger to her lips and thought. \"Hmm... It probably has to do with the way you look and are dressed right now. You're covered in dust and dirt and there are even traces of blood. The people who live here also have it hard, so they must look at you in pity and can't help but be kind to you...\" \"Right now you're doing a good job of making me feel as bad as I look! But you're right! It makes perfect sense! Damn it all!\" As they say, people with the same sickness pity each other. While it was great that Subaru seemed to be more likable in the slums in an unexpected way, Satella's likability was at an all-time low. The reason again probably had to do with the way that she was dressed. \"The thugs from before made similar comments, but you really are dressed pretty well, aren't you?\" \"I guess I do stand out, don't I...?\" replied Satella, looking at Subaru nervously, as she rolled down the sleeves of her white cloak. However, while she acknowledged the problem with her fine clothes, she seemed to be oblivious to the fact that it wasn't just the clothes, but the person wearing them as well. \"Um, I have something I'd like to ask you, but \" \"What's that? This is no place for you and your fancy clothes to be walking around in, young lady, so go on now, get outta here!\" Again, Satella was brusquely turned away as she tried to ask someone for help. Given that her low rate of success had to do with both her good looks and her fine clothes, rather than twice worse off, it was better to say she was \"worse off squared.\" However, it wasn't as though Subaru could suggest that she get all dirty like he was. \"At least you might be a little better off if you take off your cloak...\" Subaru suggested. \"...I know, but...\" Satella gripped both shoulders of her cloak with her hands, but would not take it off. Subaru thought that her response was a little bit strange, but he didn't bring it up. As Satella looked down, she lightly brushed her hand against the red flower decoration pinned on her left breast. Subaru, seeing how Satella found comfort in that decoration, couldn't help but feel like smiling, and it made him want to try even harder for her sake. If Satella couldn't do this on her own, he was glad to make use of his dirty appearance to make progress. I guess this means that good things can come even from getting beat up by a bunch of thugs in an alley, Subaru thought. \"Well, don't worry too much. You can leave this to me. Anyway, with the fruits of my labor, we'll soon have her cornered, so let's keep chasing after that criminal. So yeah, with the fruits of my labor, we'll soon have her cornered! So! Let's...keep...searching!\" \"I understand that you're happy to be useful for once, but it's really lame when you put so much emphasis on yourself like that.\" Subaru had struck a pose with every pause of his sentence, which he thought was cool, but when Satella put it like that, it just made Subaru seem like he was hopping up and down as if to say, Look what I can do! Satella stared at Subaru with a face that looked like she regretted raising her opinion of him earlier, and Subaru just responded with a weak smile. It had been little more than two hours since they had met, but with things like this, Subaru already felt as though he had known Satella for a long time. However, this little episode had a different ending than the last few. \"I'm sorry, but I'm already at my limit,\" said Puck weakly as he leaned up against Satella's neck. His gray coat glowed with a weak light, and his figure blurred as if he were going to disappear at any moment. \"The way you disappear kind of looks like you're dying.\" \"I tried to stick around longer than usual because I wanted to protect my precious daughter from this evil-eyed guy hanging around her. But when I work myself to the bone, I end up fading away when it's time for me to disappear.\" \"That's terrible! But leave it to me! I won't let any dangerous guys near her after you disappear!\" \"Wait, does that mean it's okay for me to wipe you off the face of the Earth before I disappear?\" \"No! Not okay!\" shouted Subaru, stepping away and hugging himself. \"I'm joking,\" said Puck with a small burst of laughter. After that, Puck looked to Satella, who took from her breast pocket a crystal that was glowing with a green light. \"I'm sorry for pushing you so hard, Puck. I'll do my best from here on out, so you just get some rest.\" The green crystal continued to glow with a faint light in Satella's hand as she held it. It looked different from what you might call a jewel. So far as Subaru could tell, \"crystal\" was the word that fit best. Puck crawled down Satella's arm and approached the crystal, then reached out and hugged it to its small"}, {"text": "body. Finally he turned back toward Satella. \"I'm sure you know this already, but be careful, and don't push yourself too hard. If something happens don't hesitate to use your od to call me back out.\" \"I know, I know. I'm not a child. I can take care of myself.\" \"I wonder about that... My precious daughter here always makes me worry when it comes to things like this. I'm counting on you, Subaru.\" Puck looked at Satella with affection, the way a parent looks at their child. Satella blushed, but also looked annoyed. With the conversation thrown his way, Subaru beat on his chest. \"All right! Just you leave it to me. You can trust my sixth sense. When it sounds the danger alarm, I'll get us out of there in no time!\" \"I really don't understand half of what you're saying, but all right. Now with that out of the way, good night. ...Be careful.\" With a last glance directed at Satella, Puck finally vanished. His small body became a small ball of light, which gradually melted away into the world around it as he disappeared. Other than the fact that it was a talking cat, this was the first time Subaru had seen Puck do anything spirit-like. Now, having seen this fantastical display, he felt mixed feelings of excitement and awe welling up inside him. As Subaru was getting excited all by himself, Satella ran her hands lightly over the crystal and put it carefully back in her breast pocket. From the conversations that they had before, Subaru thought that crystal must be holding Puck's core right now. \"Now it'll be just the two of us...but don't get any ideas. I can still use magic, you know.\" Apparently Satella had taken Puck's last words seriously, and was on her guard. \"Hey, the last time I was alone with a girl was in elementary school. I'm not really capable of doing anything. Haven't you been paying attention to my lack of human skills thus far?\" \"You're totally hopeless, but then again, I'm convinced. ...All right. Let's keep going. But remember, with Puck gone we need to be even more careful than before.\" Perhaps shocked by Subaru's proud proclamation of his cowardice, Satella couldn't seem to keep up her apprehensions of him, and so tied back up the front of her robe and went on ahead. \"I'll be the vanguard, so you just keep your eyes on what's behind us. If anything happens, call me right away. You mustn't think that you can handle everything on your own. I don't want be mean...but you're really weak.\" \"Well, when you put it that way, it's hard to get angry about it...\" If Satella just wanted to push Subaru away, \"You're really weak\" would have been enough. Given that she couldn't hide what she truly felt, Satella was soft at the core...too soft, even. Subaru nudged Satella along, even though it looked like she wanted to say something, and the two continued their search. Despite all the talk, their search continued in the same way as before. Their methods were basic. Whenever they found someone, they would describe who they were looking for and asked if the person had any ideas about who it might be. Subaru, who was now doing all of the asking, had gotten better at it after having talked to so many different people. He was starting to hit his stride. \"You know? It might be that Felt girl. She was blond and really fast, right?\" A little under an hour after they had entered the slums and started asking around, they had finally run into some valuable information. The guy who gave the information was someone that Subaru had gone straight up to and said, \"Hey, my brother, how's life?\" like they were already friends. \"If it's Felt you're looking for, whatever she stole is probably sitting in the loot cellar. She usually takes things there, gets them tagged, and then the old man who's the master there'll get them sold at a market somewhere else.\" \"That sounds like a pretty strange system... Doesn't anyone worry about the master of the cellar taking off with all of the goods?\" \"The reason he's the master is because people trust him not to do that. But, well, even if you go up and tell him it's stolen, he'll probably just say 'So what?' right back at you, so you'd better be prepared to negotiate a price to buy it back. After all, it's the original owner's fault for being stupid and getting it stolen in the first place!\" the man finished with a laugh. Subaru was able to get the guy to tell him the location of the loot cellar, so they would probably be able to find it soon, but there was a new problem. Subaru and Satella were both penniless. \"That guy said we should buy it back, but without any leverage, I get the feeling this master guy would wipe the floor with us.\" \"Why do I have to pay to get back something I already own...?\" As the problem veered back toward their combined lack of funds, Satella looked worried. She had a point, of course, but it wasn't like they could expect the loot cellar's master to agree. In order to solve the matter peacefully, and with certainty, it would be best to follow that man's advice and try to negotiate. However... \"It seems a little late to be asking this question, but that badge you say was stolen from you...does it happen to look expensive? Even if we walk in expecting to be overcharged, it would be impossible to negotiate without having any idea of what it's worth.\" \"...It's small, but there is a jewel embedded in its center. I don't know how much money that someone might buy it for, but I am fairly certain it wouldn't be a small amount.\" \"A jewel, huh... That seems like it's going to be a problem.\" Even for people unfamiliar with how much things are worth, a jewel is one of those convenient items that you can tell is expensive at a glance. Subaru doubted that there was the technology to produce imitations in this world, so most things that resembled jewels were probably jewels. In other words, they would all fetch a high price. While none of this new information sounded like good news, Subaru thought there was something strange about what Satella was saying. Even though the badge was supposedly hers, she said that she did not know its value. While it was possible it was something she might have received from someone else, it stuck in his mind. \"Anyway, let's first just find this loot-cellar place. It is possible that we can negotiate a way to buy it back at a reasonable price...\" In the worst-case scenario, Subaru had one way to secure funds, although he was reluctant to use it. And he didn't want to tell Satella until right before he had to. As they walked, Subaru and Satella spent the next ten minutes talking about various ways they might be able to take back her badge, but nothing seemed to come together. Now that they were in front of the place called the \"loot cellar,\" Subaru and Satella looked at each other. \"This place is a lot bigger than I imagined. Just how well can the market for theft be going these days?\" Subaru said. \"I understand them calling it a cellar rather than a shed...if this place is filled only with stolen goods... Either way I'm not sure the people here have any hope of salvation,\" added Satella. Of course, as the loot cellar existed as a place to hold items until they were sold, it was unlikely it would be filled to the brim. It wasn't a high-storied building, but it was wide enough to the point where it looked as though it could function as living quarters for a large number of people. The building was right up against a tall defensive wall, and was in the deepest part of the slums. \"That tall wall behind the building...is that...?\" \"I think it's one of the walls of the city. Which means that we must have come all the way from the city's center to its edge,\" replied Satella. Subaru tried to imagine a map of the city in his mind, given what Satella had said. It was likely that the city was built as a square and had walls like this on all four sides. Additionally, either in the center or on the northernmost side there should be a castle, from which these slums would be positioned far away. Considering that it had been three to four hours since Subaru and Satella had begun their search, the scope of the city seemed to be a little larger than Subaru had originally imagined. \"All right, according to what we've heard, there should be a master in charge of this cellar who handles all of the stolen goods, but...just how exactly do you want to approach this?\" \"We're going to be direct and honest. We'll just say, 'We've had something stolen from us, so if you can find it, please return it to us.'\" Subaru tried to explain that that wasn't going to work, but Satella wouldn't listen to him. At her core, Satella was too direct and honest herself. If something was twisted or bent, she couldn't help but try to set it right. Of course, that was one of the reasons Satella saved Subaru in the first place. \"All right, I got it. But leave this to me.\" Because of Satella's personality, Subaru was all too sure things would get complicated if she was the one doing the talking, so Subaru volunteered himself. His backup plan... Well, it was hard to call it a \"backup plan\" if he was already considering using it, but if things got complicated before he had the chance to put it into action, that would also be a problem. Subaru had made his decision; he wasn't one to hesitate at times like this. Satella looked surprised that Subaru wanted to do the talking, and while Subaru was musing on how cute her surprised expression was, he hurried to try to think of a comeback for whatever argument against it Satella would have, but... \"All right. I'll leave it to you.\" \"Look, I understand that it's hard for you to let me handle something this important, and I'm not stupid enough to think that I've gained your trust, but I've got a plan, so if you'd just trust me this once Wait. Huh?!\" \"W-why are you so surprised?\" \"Going by everything that's happened so far, you'd think that this would signal the start of an argument, right? I imagined you'd say something like, 'Do you really expect me to just let a good-for-nothing like you, whose only ability is to convert oxygen into carbon dioxide, handle something this important? Don't make me laugh! I'd expect a dog to do a better job than you!' Then I, while hurt, would use the opportunity to renew my determination!\" \"I would never say something that mean!\" As Subaru exposed his exaggerated persecution complex, Satella didn't look all that happy. However, clearing her throat, she fixed her amethyst eyes on Subaru and said, \"Of course I would be lying if I said I didn't think that you were holding me back in any way, and just when I think you're finally being serious, to my chagrin you say something completely stupid...\" \"'To my chagrin,' huh? I haven't heard that in a while,\" joked Subaru. He sighed and relaxed his shoulders, unable to argue back. \"Still, even though you act like a jerk sometimes, it was because of you that we were able to keep that little girl from crying, and I don't think you're the kind of person to lie or do anything without thinking about it"}, {"text": "first,\" said Satella, looking back over their much-sidetracked journey thus far. \"So...I'll trust you. ...If this all works out I might even think that meeting you was all worth it.\" \"You know, if instead of that last part you had just looked up at me and said, 'Please, do your best for my sake,' I would have been totally pumped up to do this, you know?\" \"I can't force myself to say something like that, but... Good luck.\" This was a girl who could not bring herself to lie for any reason. \"...All right, I'll give it my best shot,\" said Subaru, breaking into a smile before heading toward the entrance of the cellar. The trump card Subaru had, which he wasn't able to tell Satella about, was the one thing out of what he had brought from the previous world that he could really consider worth anything. Because that thing probably didn't otherwise exist in this world, there was a possibility he could use it to barter. Subaru would have liked to avoid doing that, but at the same time he was fairly certain that in this world, Satella's badge couldn't possibly fetch a higher price than his cell phone, and he didn't think he would have another chance in this world to use his cell phone this way. \"Um... Is anybody home? ...Er, wait...the door's open.\" A sour, spoiled sort of smell drifted out of the entrance to the loot cellar. Subaru went to knock on the door, but from a gap in it, he saw that it wasn't locked. As he peeked inside, he could only see that it was incredibly dark. \"It's hard when there's not any kind of light... Well, considering the purpose of the place, I suppose it makes sense, and it even serves as a metaphor for the dark feeling of guilt in doing dirty business.\" Subaru stuck his head inside and tried to look around, but not even the light from the moon reached this place in the deepest part of the slums. He couldn't see an inch in front of his face. As Subaru prepared to go inside, he turned around to Satella. \"I didn't hear anyone answer me, but I'm going to go ahead and go inside, so can you please keep watch?\" \"Are you sure? Wouldn't it be better for me to go instead...?\" \"If on the off chance someone ambushes us and you're the one taken out, then it's all over. If I'm the one attacked, you'll be able both to help me, and to strike back. This is the most reasonable way to do this, so please let's just go with my plan, okay?\" Satella considered Subaru's plan. After a few moments of silence, she took out of her breast pocket a white crystal, which suddenly shone with a white light. \"At least take a light. And call me in whether someone's there or not.\" \"I know, I know. Puck told us to be careful, so I'll be careful. This is really useful, by the way.\" \"You can find lagmite ore just about anywhere. You really are ignorant, aren't you, Subaru,\" said Satella, unable to contain her shock, as she handed Subaru the lagmite ore. The crystal gave off a faint warmth along with its light, which was about as much illumination as you could expect from a candle. \"Okay, well then, I'll go take a look. I don't think I'll be gone too long, but you can go ahead and eat without me.\" \"Oh, stop being so stupid. Be careful, okay?\" \"Gotcha. Also, Satella? Don't come in until I call for you got it?\" The courage that Subaru had been building up to prepare himself to enter the cellar had pushed him just enough to say her name. Up until now, he had felt too embarrassed to say it, and had hesitated. After clenching his fist together, excited he was able to finally say it, he looked back at Satella. \"...What's wrong?\" Satella was looking at Subaru frozen, with her eyes open wide. This reaction was far different from any that Subaru expected, and so he tilted his head in confusion. \"I'm sorry... It's nothing. Once we get my badge back, I'll apologize properly.\" \"I don't know what you're planning on apologizing for, but I'd rather hear a 'thank you' instead. It would be even better if that thank-you came along with a smile.\" \"You dummy.\" As those two words came out of her mouth, Satella made a little bit of a smile, which Subaru made sure to burn into his memory. Even with his stupid jokes, Subaru was at last able to make her smile. If all of this turned out well, he would like to see that smile again, in a brighter place. \"All right. Will it be a snake or a demon that pops out this time? Given the fantasy setting, neither option is one I can just laugh off...\" Subaru joked to himself, and with lagmite in hand, he carefully made his way into the cellar. In the dim light, Subaru could make out a counter in front of him, across from the entrance. The building must have originally been something like an inn. It looked as though they were using the first-floor bar area without any major changes. On top of as well as behind the counter which was probably serving as something like a reception desk Subaru could see a lot of different items cluttered close together. There were small boxes and pots, swords and cheap metallic objects, and many other varied items. It was clear that all of these were stolen items, based on the wooden tags that were attached to all of them. \"The way the system works, if you rounded up all of these wooden tags and handed them to the guards, it looks like they could arrest everyone at once...\" However, as was usual with this line of business, there were probably some connections between this place and the not-so-upstanding citizens who offered support. Subaru was suspicious of where most of these stolen items ended up. Subaru ventured farther into the cellar, looking for Satella's badge. But just then... \"Hmm?\" Subaru suddenly stopped, feeling something strange under the soles of his shoes. It didn't feel like he had stepped on something hard; it was actually the opposite. Like the ground he had stepped on was clinging to him; like there was something sticky on his shoes. He raised his foot, and touched the bottom of his sneakers. He felt some sort of fluid, something strangely sticky that clung to his fingers, stretching as he pulled them away. It was something that instinctually made him feel uneasy. \"What is this...?\" Subaru brought his fingers close to his nose and tried to smell it, but because of the stagnant air inside the building mixing with it, he couldn't quite pin it down. Unsurprisingly, he didn't have the courage to try tasting it. After wiping the rest of the substance on the nearest wall, Subaru, urged on by a feeling of unpleasant dread, put the lagmite out in front of him and started forward. Then, he found the source of the slime. \"...Wha?\" Subaru unconsciously let out a foolish sound as he looked on. In the small visible range of his light, what he first saw lying limp on the ground was an arm. Its hand's fingers were reaching out as if to grab something, but the other end of the arm, at the elbow, was missing the body it should have been connected to. Moving his light and following along the axis of the arm, Subaru saw a leg farther on ahead a leg attached to a body. With the exception of one arm, that body had all of its other parts, though the throat area was cut wide open. It was the corpse of a large old man. \"Eek!\" Subaru squealed pointlessly as he realized what he was looking at. At that moment, Subaru's mind had blanked out. His thought processes had completely left him, and his hands and feet had frozen in place. There was a pause, and then... \"...Well, you found it. That's just too bad. Now I have no choice, yes, no choice at all.\" Subaru thought that it was the voice of a woman. The voice was low and cold, the voice of a woman who seemed somewhat to be having fun. \"Gwah!\" Subaru didn't have the opportunity to turn around. As soon as he turned to face the voice, his body was blown away by an incredible force. He hit his back against the wall, and on impact let go of his lagmite, and darkness closed in as it tumbled into the distance. But Subaru wasn't thinking about that. What now ruled over his consciousness was... \"Gu...it's...h-hot.\" A heat assaulted Subaru Natsuki and completely overwhelmed him.  This is really, really not good. Feeling the hard texture of the ground against his face, he realized that he had fallen facedown on the ground. He couldn't move, even when he tried, and he already couldn't feel his fingers. What he did feel was heat, and it overwhelmed his entire body. He coughed and vomited the blood he felt rising in his throat the source of his waning life. So much came out that it frothed at the edges of his mouth. With his hazy vision, he could see the ground in front of him stained red.  You've...got to be kidding me... All of this is mine? Feeling as though all of the blood in his body had spilled out of him, he reached a shaking hand to try to find the source of the heat that was burning through his body. As his fingertips reached the large cut in his stomach, he understood. No wonder it felt so hot. His brain must have been mistaking pain for heat. The clean cut that ran through his torso was so deep it had almost cut him in half. Only bits of skin were still holding him together. In other words, he had run right into a checkmate in the chess game of his life. As soon as he realized that, his consciousness immediately began to fall away from him. Now, even the heat that had been ravaging him disappeared, and the unpleasant feeling of touching his own blood and organs vanished as his consciousness continued to fade. The only thing left behind was his body, which refused to follow his soul. Right before his eyes, he saw a black boot step down and make ripples in the red carpet of his fresh blood. Someone was there, and that someone...was probably the one who killed him. But he didn't even think to look that person in the face. It didn't matter anymore.  The only thing he did wish for was that she, at least, she would be safe. \" baru?\" He felt as if he heard a voice that rang like bells. That he heard that voice, that he could hear that voice, felt like salvation to him more than anything else, so  *** With a short scream, someone else fell upon the carpet of blood. She fell right beside him. There he was, weakly attempting to reach her. Her white hand fell, powerless. He lightly grasped it in his own bloodstained grip. He felt the fingers of her hand move slightly to grasp his own. \"Just you wait...\" He seized his fading consciousness, pulling it desperately back around to buy a bit more time. \"I'm going to...\"  find a way to save you. In the next instant, he Subaru Natsuki lost his life. CHAPTER 2 *** \"...What's wrong, my man? You're staring off into space.\" \"...Huh?\" When a man with a white scar across his stern face spoke to Subaru, that's all he could respond with. The man with the scar twisted his face. \"Look, I'm asking you what you're going to do! Are you going to buy that abble or not?!\" \"...Huh?\" \"An"}, {"text": "abble! You want to eat one, right? You started talking to me, and then you suddenly stopped and stared off into space! I almost freaked out! ...So, what'll it be?\" The muscular, scar-faced man, put a round, cute-looking red fruit into the palm of Subaru's hand. Whatever it was, it looked almost exactly like an apple. After Subaru looked at the fruit and then back at the man's face, he said, \"No I mean, didn't I tell you already? I'm forever and everlastingly broke.\" \"You kidding me?! I've had enough of you wasting my time. Get outta here! I've got a job to do. I don't have time to deal with your nonsense.\" The man annoyedly pushed Subaru aside and went across to another part of the shop. Subaru continued to look around, puzzled. \"Huh? What? What's going on?\" He was so flustered, it was a miracle he was even able to get a sentence out as he tossed his questions around. The main road was full of people as always, and apart from the lizard carts that would pass by, the full width of the street was filled with pedestrians. It was still at a time when the day was bright. It wasn't as though it was really hot outside, but it would be enough to make you think that the wolflike half-humans walking around in their fur coats must be sweating. \"But this is totally not the time to be reflecting on the state of the setting!\" Subaru held his head in his hands and twisted about, and his strange poses of distress were enough to gather curious glances from all around. However, now, Subaru really didn't have the capacity to worry about that. \"After all...it was just night a minute ago, wasn't it?\" The sun was high in the sky. At the very least, according to what Subaru had sensed, it should already be night. The night flipped immediately from night to noon. The change was so sudden it reminded Subaru of when he was summoned to this world in the first place. However, that and this were under completely different conditions. \"My stomach...isn't cut open, is it?\" Subaru lifted up the top of his tracksuit and looked at his stomach. Earlier, it had been cut open with what must have been a large blade, and he had bled so much that he was sure he was going to die. However, not only was the wound not there, there were not even any traces of blood. Actually, Subaru's beloved tracksuit wasn't even dirty. The convenience store bag he held in his hand was also as full as it had ever been, and his cell phone and wallet were where they should be. In every sense of the phrase, he was back to square one.  It was enough to make him feel like he was going crazy. Realizing there were gaps in his memory, Subaru tried to think of what happened right before he had lost consciousness. His stomach had been cut open and he was moments from being killed. He thought that he had heard a woman's voice. He had found a corpse in the loot cellar, and the person who probably had killed that man attacked Subaru. In that state of near death... \"...That's right! Satella!\" Satella, who must have been worried about Subaru and entered the building, had also been cut down by the same weapon that took him out. As soon as Subaru realized that, he felt his innards twisting in pain. The feeling of guilt was even stronger than the feeling of pain he had felt when he himself was attacked. \"Wasn't I told to take care of Satella?!\" Subaru thought back to Puck's words right before he disappeared. The promise Subaru made with that cat certainly wasn't a joke. Despite the fact that there were at least three times he should have turned back, he had missed every opportunity to do so. Satella had told him as well. If anything happened he was to call her. He didn't even do that. \"Am I an idiot? Well, of course I am. I don't even have time to just hang my head depressed like this. I've got to go find Satella and Puck...\" Both of them might be dead. When that thought crossed his mind, Subaru shook his head to brush it away. Subaru didn't have any positive qualities, and he couldn't make himself useful at all. He was something like a mob character, or at best the comic relief character, and yet he was still alive. If that were the case, there was no way that good-natured Satella, who could use magic and wasn't honest with herself but was true to her ideals, or that aloof weirdo spirit cat could be dead. At the very least, he didn't want them to be. \"At any rate, I've got to go back to the loot cellar...\" Since that was the last place he was in before his consciousness was cut off, there must be some kind of hint left there. As soon as he thought of that, Subaru moved to act. This was where his quick decision-making could shine. In the previous world, most of that was used in decisions like \"I'm not going to school today,\" but right now it was important for him to act quickly and cut off all his doubts. However, as soon as Subaru had made his decision and was ready to go... \"Hey, kiddo. How about let's have some fun.\" Subaru unfortunately had his path from the alley cut off by three men. When Subaru looked at who had talked to him, he couldn't help but gape. \"Hey, what's with the stupid look on yer face?\" \"I bet he doesn't realize the mess he's gotten himself into. How 'bout we tell 'im?\" said another man in the group mocking Subaru, as they smiled with sinister smiles. After staring at the men for a little longer, Subaru felt as though he was being forced to watch a farce. There were three men. Even if you were trying to be nice, you couldn't call them well put together. Their bad personalities and bad upbringings just seeped out of them. They were classic thugs. With all of this, Subaru was feeling an incredible sense of d\u00c3\u00a9j\u00c3 vu. \"Did all of you guys hit your heads on something while I wasn't looking?\" These were the same guys who had served as the reason for Subaru and Satella's meeting just hours before. Sure, they were nothing more than mob characters, but it was hard to imagine that three other guys with the exact same faces were doing the exact same thing. \"In other words, now that you've found me alone, you want to get revenge...is that it? I understand that you want to kick me when I'm down, but this is really not the time for me to be dealing with you. You guys...\" \"What the hell are you babbling about? Have you lost your mind or something?\" Subaru had wanted to just talk his way out of this, peacefully, but given the way these guys were acting, even Subaru was starting to get ticked off. The only reason that he wanted to solve the issue peacefully in the first place was because he was in a hurry. Normally, Subaru had a pretty short fuse. \"Now listen here, kiddo. If you just put down everything you've got and walk away, we'll let you go.\" \"Ah, is that right? Everything I've got. Gotcha. I'm in a hurry, so that's fine with me, really.\" \"But you've got to get down on all fours and act like a dog first! Say, 'Save me, save me, please!' too!\" \"All right, I've had it with you idiots!\" They just had to push it too far, didn't they? Subaru had already lost it. The men weren't prepared for Subaru's sudden change of attitude, and were shaking. Of the three, as they stood dumbfounded, Subaru picked the skinniest of the group to hit first. It was the one who had the knife, the source of Subaru's defeat before. \"You're first! Guys like you who don't know the preciousness of life can go to hell!\" Subaru landed an uppercut on the man's jaw with all his strength, and then threw a punch into his open abdomen. The man slammed against the wall and was out like a light. Subaru immediately moved to trip the next man beside him. Unable to react, the kick landed and the man fell over. As soon as he was down, Subaru tackled the remaining man. His tackle aimed low, and with the force of it he was able to carry the man and slam him into the wall. After the man lost his breath from the impact of his back against the wall, Subaru landed another kick to finish him. Subaru then turned around to the man he had just tripped and motioned him with his hand. \"Now it's one-on-one! Come at me with all you've got!\" \"Who're you to act all fair and square with that surprise attack?! You little punk!\" The man ran at Subaru and grabbed his collar, trying to push him into the wall. \"Not good enough!\" Subaru yelled, and took hold of both of the man's wrists and pulled them away. Looking at the startled man's face, Subaru's expression twisted into a fiendish smile. \"Don't underestimate the free time of a truant! I spent so much time swinging around a sword because I didn't have anything better to do that my grip strength is over seventy kilograms of force! I can bench eighty kilos, too!\" The man cried out as Subaru crushed his wrists, and as soon as he had broken his stance, Subaru struck him with his elbow, and the thug cried out. As Subaru spun around behind him and put his arms around his waist he said, \"If I accidentally kill you, don't hate me too much for this, but I've always wanted to try doing a suplex on someone without mats!\" Subaru lifted the man up part of the way and then threw him backward. Unable to react, the thug's head collided with the wall behind them and he slumped to the ground, unmoving. After making sure the other two men were silent, Subaru walked over to the first man he hit, the one with the knife. Although the man had comparatively taken little damage, you could see that he was sweating. As Subaru came closer he tried to pull out his knife. But as he did, Subaru kicked him relentlessly in the face. He was out. \"Hmph! Well that was easy! In this world, evil never triumphs!\" said Subaru Natsuki as he struck a pose to celebrate his victory. After checking for sure that none of the men had actually died, Subaru immediately left the alley. \"Even with this, it's not like the situation has gotten any better. I've got to hurry to the loot cellar.\" Subaru noticed as he was leaving that there were onlookers who were wowing and gasping in surprise that he had left the alley unscathed. If you realized I was back there, then you should have gone to the guards! Subaru thought as he held back the urge to lecture them. Right now he couldn't let any minute go to waste. After having enacted his revenge back in the alley, Subaru headed toward the deepest part of the slums, and when he arrived at the entrance to the loot cellar, the sun had already moved far across the sky. \"F-finally...finally I've found it. ...It sure took me a long time, damn,\" said Subaru, wiping the sweat from his brow, and slumping down to rest. He had spent nearly two hours running around before he finally had reached his destination. \"I was just here, so I thought I would be able to find it again without getting lost, but...\" Probably the biggest problem was that"}, {"text": "Subaru couldn't read any of the signs. Additionally, it wasn't as if he could mention the name \"loot cellar\" outside of the slums, so he had to rely completely on his memory. \"Last time we came here I was talking with Satella, and my eyes were on her most of the time, so I guess it's no surprise I don't remember the way very well, damn it,\" said Subaru as he continued to drip with sweat. However, the greatest sin Subaru had to face was now right in front of him. While he was doing his best to ignore it by talking to himself, his heart wouldn't be fooled. It started to beat louder and louder as his pulse quickened, and Subaru felt his hands grow heavy. His mouth felt dry and his ears were ringing again and again inside his head as though someone was hitting him. The answers that Subaru sought were inside that loot cellar. For an instant, Subaru had a flashback as he closed his eyes: the old man's corpse, his own sliced-open abdomen, and the figure of Satella, whom he had dragged into all of this. \"Don't be scared. Don't be scared. Don't be scared. Are you an idiot? ...Well, of course I am, but do you think I'm really going to come all this way and then go back empty-handed?\" Of course, it wasn't as though Subaru had any place to return to. Right now, this was the only place that he could cling to. Finding his determination and facing forward, Subaru realized that his knees were shaking as he tried to walk. He slapped his legs to calm himself down and after a deep breath he finally moved forward. In the orange light of the early evening, the rough door to the loot cellar looked as though it was wordlessly rejecting him. \"Is there anyone home?\" After pushing away these negative feelings, Subaru knocked on the door and raised his voice. The dull sound rang out, but there was no answer. With uncomfortable silence as his only answer, Subaru became frightened by that very silence and knocked harder on the door. \"Someone... I know there's someone in there! Come on, answer me! ...Please.\" Clinging to a fleeting sense of hope, hoping and praying that what was happening right before him was somehow a mistake, he beat harder. Unable to take the force of Subaru's sudden desperation, the door began to creak and its hinges started to bend, and then... \"Cut it out already! What are you doing, trying to break the door down just because you don't know the password?!\" The door was suddenly opened with a great force, and Subaru, who had been leaning up against it, was thrown back. Subaru was thrown about five meters from the entrance to the cellar, where he rolled a few times and then looked up, completely startled. At the end of Subaru's gaze was a giant, red-faced, bald old man. The man had ragged clothes that covered his muscular body, and the red light of the setting sun shone on his polished bald head. In other words, it was a giant, very energetic-looking old geezer. \"Who are you, boy?! I've not seen you around here before! How did you know where to find this place? How did you get here? Who told you?!\" With astonishing speed, the old man closed the distance between him and Subaru and lifted Subaru up by the collar. Feeling his feet leave the ground, Subaru very quickly learned his place. Subaru had thought that in most circumstances he could win in a fight, but these were not ordinary circumstances. As he was held up by this six-or seven-foot-tall old man, Subaru lost all desire to resist. \"My name is Natsuki Subaru, the ever-busy and never-free wandering vagrant...... For now at least, would you be so kind as to put me down? Let's talk with both our feet on the ground,\" Subaru added, giving it his all just to squeeze out that indirect request. While his violent first encounter in the place had left a terrible first impression, in the end, Subaru was let in to the loot cellar. Subaru had described the man from whom he'd first gotten information about the loot cellar, and told the giant old man that he was the one who introduced him to the place. In front of the counter that was facing the front door, Subaru sat on a fixed chair meant for visitors and shifted uncomfortably. There were splinters sticking up out of the seat, and they kept poking him in the rear. If he'd had to go to the bathroom, those splinters could have been the trigger to make him pop. \"Why do you keep moving about like that? Are you that concerned about where your balls are?\" \"Of course not. My boys are just fine. But, really? That's the first thing that comes out of your mouth in this situation?\" \"Giant\" was the best way to describe the old man, since he wasn't just tall, and he looked cramped as he bent down behind the counter. When he came back up, he had a bottle of liquor in his hand, and after pouring himself a glass, brought it to his lips. \"Well, you interrupted my drinking time. I hope you have a good reason for coming here. If not, that's just terrible.\" \"The sun's just started to set and you're already drinking? You're going to die an early death if you keep that up.\" With that retort, Subaru, holding his chin up with his hand and elbow on the counter, took a quick look around the inside of the loot cellar. There was not a single trace of the tragedy that Subaru had witnessed the previous evening he had been here. As he looked at all of the various stolen items strewn about the room, he couldn't tell whether they were organized in some way or not. The old man noticed Subaru looking about, and narrowed his eyes in a knowing way. \"So, kid, are you interested in some of these goods?\" he said, striking right away at the heart of the matter. The giant old man, who had given his name as \"Rom,\" smiled as he poured himself another shot of liquor into his dirty glass. \"There are really only two reasons that people come to this place: they're either bringing something in they stole, or they have some business with the stolen items themselves.\" \"...Well, one of those is one of the reasons I'm here.\" \"One of the reasons...huh. So that means you've got some other business being here?\" Rom raised one of his eyebrows as Subaru gave a conditional agreement. Subaru nodded, and then, reluctantly, knowing full well that he probably wasn't going to be taken seriously, said, \"This may sound a bit odd, but... Old man, have you...uh, died recently?\" Subaru decided not to add in the details about the decapitated arm or sliced throat. Old Man Rom opened his gray eyes wide for a few moments before; as if to signal time starting back up again, he broke into a laugh. \"Ga-ha-ha-ha! I was wondering what you were going to say! Now I may be an old man with not much time left to live, but too bad, I haven't died yet! I suppose when you get to this age, I don't imagine it being that far off, though.\" Apparently, Rom took Subaru's question as some kind of edgy joke, and took out another glass for Subaru. \"Want a drink?\" Subaru refused the alcohol with a hand signal, followed up by a \"Sorry, not right now.\" Subaru had managed to get his first question out, but the others inside him were multiplying. The corpse that Subaru had seen in the loot cellar...there was no question about it. It was definitely the corpse of the old man who was sitting in front of him right now. Sure, it was dark, and it was the first time Subaru had ever seen a corpse, so it wasn't as though he'd been in a perfect state of mind. However, this old man had so many characteristic features about him, Subaru couldn't imagine mistaking him for someone else. But Subaru could turn the question he just asked on himself. He, too, had been inflicted with mortal wounds as well. Subaru started to think that it had somehow been all a dream. He wasn't sure he could trust what was inside his own head. Was all of what happened here really a dream? If it was, then how much of it was a dream, and why am I here in the first place? The burning pain Subaru had felt, the warmth he felt from that girl's touch, the overwhelming pangs of guilt...if they were all just some leftover traces of a dream, then why was he here right now? It would make more sense to say that everything since he'd been summoned to this world in the first place was a dream. \"Rom, have you seen a silver-haired girl around here lately?\" \"Silver hair...? No, I can't say I have. Silver hair's one of those things that stands out in a bad way, too, so even if my memory's starting to fail me, I don't think I would have forgotten if I saw someone like that,\" said Rom, following up with a laugh. But that didn't make Subaru feel any better. Rom must have noticed the seriousness in Subaru's expression, because he wiped his own smile away and said, \"Drink,\" putting a glass in front of Subaru again. Rom tilted the glass and filled it up full with an amber-colored liquid. Seeing that Subaru did nothing but stare silently at the glass, once more he said, \"Drink.\" \"I'm sorry, but I don't feel up to it right now. Plus, I'm not so much a little kid that I want to drink to act like I'm cool.\" \"What are you talking about? Drinking and acting up is exactly what kids like you are supposed to do! So go ahead and take a big gulp and burn up your insides. When you do that you'll be able to cough up a bunch of things you've got stuck inside because they won't be able to take the heat. So drink!\" said Rom a third time, pushing the glass on Subaru. Overpowered by his attitude, Subaru took the glass in his hand and brought the amber liquid to his nose. A strong smell of alcohol struck the inside of his nose and Subaru's face twisted as he almost started coughing. However, despite all of Subaru's resistance, there was a part of him that wanted to do as Rom said. Subaru had thought that drowning one's troubles in alcohol was the mark of a lame adult, but... \"All right...here goes!\" Subaru tilted the glass and drank all of it in one gulp. Immediately his esophagus began to scream as it was burned. Subaru slammed his glass on the counter. \"Argh! Gah! That's terrible! It's hot! It's so bad! Ugh! Disgusting!\" \"You don't have to say it that many times! Come on! You're going to lose out on half of the fun in life if you can't understand how good liquor tastes!\" As Subaru spewed out comments along with the heat from the liquor, Rom yelled at him and drank again. This time he took the whole bottle up and gulped from it. After drinking about three times as much as Subaru just had, Rom gave a mighty burp and smiled. \"But still, you should be proud of yourself! That was good form there! So how about it? Do you feel like letting any of that stuff inside you out now?\" \"...Yeah! Just a little! Old man, it's time for me to take care of that one other reason I'm here!\" Turning the old man's smile back with a wicked smile of his own, Subaru wiped his mouth"}, {"text": "with his sleeve and pointed into the back of the cellar, where it looked like most of the stolen articles of value were concentrated. Rom's face took on an air of seriousness, and Subaru told him directly. \"I'm looking for a badge that's got a jewel embedded in it, and I want you to let me have it.\" This was Subaru's original goal. Other than confirming Satella's safety, it was the main reason he was here: to retrieve the thing so important to Satella that she would face danger just to get it back. Even while Subaru still felt insecure about the state of Satella's well-being, he thought that if he could at least get a handle on the state of the badge, he would have a clue toward finding her. After Subaru had stated his goal with all of his emotions thrown behind his words, Rom made a difficult expression on his face before replying. \"A badge with a jewel... I'm sorry, but no one's brought in anything like that.\" \"...Really? Think long and hard about it you sure you're not going senile yet?\" \"If I can't remember when I'm at my best with liquor running through me, then I really have to say I don't know. However...\" Just as the last thread of Subaru's hope was about to be cut, Rom gave him a sly grin. \"Someone's made plans with me to bring something in later today. I'm told it's something valuable, too, so it might just be the thing you're looking for.\" \"Is the person bringing it in, by chance...a girl named Felt?\" \"That's exactly the case, but...what? You actually know the name of the thief who took it?\" Subaru couldn't help but strike a victory pose. Just as he'd thought he had lost all of his leads, things had connected once again. Felt's name had just come up. Felt, the name of the girl who had supposedly taken Satella's badge. If that were the case, Felt's existence would prove Satella's existence. At the very least, Subaru would be able to be sure that Satella wasn't some figment of his imagination. \"I was just about to think that my love of silver-haired heroines had made me delusional...\" \"I'm sorry to interrupt your strange sense of relief there, but you don't have any guarantee that you'll be able to buy back the item, even if she brings it here. If it's got a jewel embedded in it, it's going to fetch a high price.\" \"Ha! You can look around at me all you want, but I'm sorry. I've got nothing! I am eternally and peerlessly penniless!\" \"Then you're out of luck!\" Rom yelled back, taken by surprise. But just as he did that, Subaru lifted up a finger in front of his face and waved it back and forth. \"Tsk-tsk-tsk. It's true, I may not have any money. However! In this world, you do not necessarily need money to obtain things. There's this wonderful system called 'barter' haven't you heard?\" Rom didn't argue back, he just nodded in silence, egging Subaru on. Subaru dug around in his pants pocket, and in his hand when he took it out was... \"...What's that? It's the first time I've ever seen anything like it.\" \"This object that I now raise up is fantastic magical item that can be used to freeze any object in time! It is called a 'cell phone'!\" It was a compact-size, white-colored, thin-model cell phone. As Rom looked on amazed at this mysterious item he had never seen before, Subaru quickly moved his fingers and a moment later a white light flashed in the darkness inside the building. As a loud shutter sound rang out along with the flash, Rom fell back behind the counter. It was such an exaggerated reaction that Subaru couldn't help but laugh, but Rom was obviously mad. \"What are you doing?! Are you trying to kill me?! Don't think you can fool me with your funny moves!\" \"Wait, wait, calm down. Take a deep breath, relax, and come over here and take a look.\" Rom was still red in the face, and it wasn't because he had been drinking, but nevertheless Subaru held out his cell phone in front of him. After a doubtful look at Subaru, his eyes opened wide as he looked at what was in front of him. \"This is...this is my face. How did you do that?\" \"I told you, didn't I? This is a fantastic item that cuts out a piece of time and freezes it. Using this item, I cut out a bit of your time, just before now, and sealed it within this device.\" Then, Subaru changed the direction of the camera and pointed it at himself, and took another picture. When he showed the screen to Rom again, it showed Subaru making a peace sign. \"It cuts out little pieces of time, just like that. So how about it? Pretty rare, huh?\" \"I can't get terribly excited about that lame pose of yours, but this really is...hmm...\" After insulting Subaru's pose, Rom looked very intensely at the cell phone. Subaru made a fist and squeezed it, emboldened by the fact that Rom seemed more interested than he expected. \"This is my first time seeing one of these, but...basically, this is a mitia, isn't it?\" \"A mitia?\" Subaru was about to say, \"It's just a flip phone,\" but caught himself. Rom nodded again. \"It's what you call things you can use to do magic without opening up a gate, like magic users do. That said, they're mostly used as gifts rather than tools...\" So magic items were called \"mitia.\" Subaru nodded, thinking the word fit pretty well. Rom, who had continued to look closely at the cell phone, finally put it back on the counter. \"I'm not sure I can put a definite price on this. I've worked here in the loot cellar for a very long time, but this is my first time handling any mitia. ...I can say, though, that it certainly would sell at a high price.\" It seemed that rare items commanded attention in any business, even for those working the black market. Rom's voice had quickened in excitement, and he rubbed the tip of his chin as he looked down at Subaru. \"To be honest, even if it has a jewel embedded it in, exchanging something like this for a purely decorative item really puts you at a loss. You'd be better off trading it for something more expensive... Well, really, you can't compare it to any of this stolen junk I have here.\" For someone involved in illegal activities, it was strange for Rom to give him such a kind warning, and Subaru responded with a weak smile. To anyone else, what Subaru was trying to do must seem stupid. \"No, it's all right. I'll exchange this mitia for the badge that Felt brings in.\" \"Why would you go so far to do that? Is that badge really worth more than this mitia? Or are you saying that it's worth more than money can buy?\" asked Rom, unable to come to terms with Subaru's decision. Honestly, if Subaru was in the same position as Rom, he thought he might have said the same thing. \"Well... Actually, I haven't seen the badge myself yet, but I don't think that it could be worth more in money than this cell phone, and I'm sure I'm going to be taking a loss.\" \"If you understand all of that, why do you want to go through with it?\" \"Isn't it obvious? I want to take a loss.\" Rom blinked a few times at Subaru, but at the same time Subaru felt a sense of exhilaration, because this...this was his answer. \"I want to pay someone back. I'm someone who always feels like they have to return a favor. I'm one of those modern kids who can't handle the feeling of being indebted to someone. I wouldn't be able to sleep at night. So, even if I have to take a big loss, I'm going to take back that badge.\" \"Hmm... So, it sounds like this badge isn't actually yours... Is that right?\" \"It belongs to a beautiful silver-haired girl who saved my life. I don't understand why, but it's very precious to her.\" \"But what about that person who saved you? Why isn't she here?\" \"I'm currently looking for her! Actually, right now I'm not even sure she's not a figment of my imagination that I created because I was feeling down!\" Subaru gripped his fist and laughed off his previous anxiety by putting it into words. Subaru was going to get this badge back, and then once again meet that girl. He wanted to see her smile. \"You're quite the idiot, aren't you?\" laughed Rom as he looked on at Subaru and his determination. After having gotten through the first round of negotiations, Subaru spent the next while chatting with Old Man Rom. Given how interested Rom seemed to be in the mitia, Subaru mused to himself that gadgets were something men were fond of, no matter what world you were in. \"Whether it be your clothes or this, you've really got a lot of strange stuff on you, don't you? I mean, these things here are delicious!\" \"I know, right? Hey, wait! I thought you said a bite! Those are my corn chips! That's the last food I had on me!\" \"Oh don't be so stingy. If you keep something as tasty as this all to yourself, you're gonna fall straight to hell, I tell ya.\" \"Oh and you won't, for eating all them yourself?! Blaming others while you're doing the same yourself is a really bad habit of you baby boomers... I said, stop eating those!\" Subaru thought he was just being kind by sharing some of his snacks, but after seeing them all get eaten like this, he sure did regret it. As he put his empty snack bags back in his convenience store bag, he was close to tears. By the time they both heard a knock on the door, it was already quite close to sunset. It was just as Subaru was starting to doze off, and when he looked up, he saw Rom move his giant body lightly toward the door. After quietly putting one ear against it, Rom whispered. \"To the giant rats...?\" \"We give poison.\" \"To the great white whale...?\" \"We lend a fishing hook.\" \"To our most honorable great dragon...?\" \"We say, 'Burn in hell!'\" To each of Rom's short questions came a curt answer. Along with the special knock, those had to be passwords. Satisfied with the answers, Rom unlocked the door. \"Sorry I took so long, Old Man Rom. I had someone really persistent on my tail, and it took me a long time to lose 'em.\" With a friendly tone in her voice, a young girl slipped past Rom, bragging of her exploits. The girl's blond hair was semi-long, and her eyes were red like a rabbit's. From the side of her mouth peeked a mischievous canine tooth. The clothes she was wearing looked easy to move in, but they were in tatters. Subaru stood up without thinking, causing a clatter. The girl immediately looked his way and wiped the smile from her face. \"Who's this? Hey, Rom. I told you I was going to bring something big, so I didn't want anyone to be here, didn't I?\" \"I understand how you feel, but that uh...kiddo there has some business with you, Felt, and it's not completely unrelated to that 'big thing' you said you were bringing in.\" Rom's answer only made Felt more suspicious. By the way she was unconsciously drawing her hand close to her chest, it appeared that that's where she was holding the badge. Felt continued to be on her guard as she looked at Subaru. \"What's with that guy? You didn't sell me out, did you, Rom?\""}, {"text": "\"Just how long do you think we've been working together? I'd never do anything like that. The only reason he's here is because I think that he's got an offer for you that ain't too bad.\" Rom winked at Subaru, \"Right?\" While feeling disgusted at being winked at by an old man, Subaru cleared his throat to help dispel his nervousness and, ignoring Rom's continued gaze, turned to face Felt. \"You don't have to be so nervous. Why don't you just sit down and have a glass of milk first?\" \"Stop it with that stupid face of yours. I can tell you don't know what you're doing... Look, I don't know what you're scheming, but I'm not interested in anything you have to say, unless I'm sure it means more money for me. So go ahead and get straight to the point.\" Felt's reaction was cold. Subaru's shoulders fell at how bad his first impression went by, but... \"I begged this old man here to give me some time to talk to you, but...my business is actually with that jeweled badge you have hidden away in your pocket there.\" The girl raised her eyebrows along with the level of her caution. Subaru knew not only about her theft, but exactly what she stole. But Subaru raised both of his hands in front of her, trying to calm her down. \"I'm not planning on doing anything. I've only come here to talk. That is, to negotiate.\" Subaru then, with his two hands still in the air, pointed down at a small table near the counter. \"Let's aim for a result where both of us come out on top. In other words, a win-win situation.\" After a short pause, Felt nodded, and both sat down on either side of the small table. Rom then poured two glasses of milk and set both in front of them. \"I'll give you the place and this milk, but you're on your own when it comes to negotiating.\" \"Don't worry, I've come here prepared to have everything taken from me. Just watch me as I lose it all,\" said Subaru, punching his fist into his other hand as if he was bragging, about to enter a fight, though saying nothing to be proud of. Rom snorted, but Felt, who had already begun to drink her milk, twisted her face. \"Hey, Rom. You haven't watered this milk down, have you? It tastes terrible!\" \"Why does everybody have to insult the drinks?! I'm showing you some kindness here...!\" said Rom before taking his giant hand and rustling Felt's hair. Subaru thought it looked as though Rom was going to tear Felt's head off, but it was clear from Rom's face that he meant no harm and was just patting her head like any old man would his grandchild. Plus, Felt looked used to it. \"You two look closer than I thought you would be. I'm getting lonely over here all by myself.\" \"Don't say something wimpy like that when you've got a face that looks just as awful as this old man's.\" \"I've had my face insulted before, but really? As bad as this guy?! Come on!\" yelled Subaru, shocked as he looked back up at Rom's bald head and was stricken with horror. While Subaru didn't have the most handsome features and was often mistaken for some kind of thug, he didn't think they were so bad as to be compared with this six-foot-tall giant of an old man. \"...You're right. Sorry about that, I went too far,\" replied Felt. \"Here's where I'd want to say that, to make it up to me, I'd like you to call me 'big brother' in a cute voice for the rest of the discussion, but I'll go ahead and forgive you for now. You've got to be careful so you don't say anything too hurtful, or... Rom, what's wrong?\" \"I'm really beginning to think you two have teamed up together just to come in here and make me angry...\" Rom was smiling, but a vein was popping out of his forehead. Subaru and Felt looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. Rom let out a deep sigh. \"Just when I thought Felt had made a new acquaintance around her age, you turn out to be just as twisted as the others.\" \"...Rom, please. I know you think you're helping, but I'm going to ask you to stop saying such embarrassing things,\" said Felt. \"Plus, 'around her age'...? Although I suppose from your perspective everyone else looks like they're in the same age group.\" Subaru took another look at Felt, but even taking into account the fact that she was probably thinner than she should have been, she looked about twelve or thirteen. If you wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt and stretch your imagination, she might have been able to pass for fourteen years old. It was enough of an age difference for Subaru to feel embarrassed if Felt were referred to as his acquaintance or friend. But Subaru's analysis aside, Felt and Rom's argument continued on without him. \"What do you think is going to happen to you if you keep up this 'lone wolf' attitude of yours? Sooner or later, I'm going to get too old to be able to take care of you anymore. Do you really think you can make it on your own?\" \"Just how many times have you told me this already? Isn't it a mark of senility to say the same thing over and over again? But other than that, it'll be a long time before you're too old for anything, and before that happens I'll...\" \"...You'll do what?\" Subaru said, jumping in, as Felt's sentence trailed off. Felt suddenly looked up, irritated. Given that he seemed to have asked a question he shouldn't have and was in danger of wrecking the mood, Subaru cleared his throat. They had gotten very sidetracked, and it was time to return to the main point. \"Anyway, let's go ahead and start our negotiations. So, uh...Felt. You've got that badge, right?\" \"...Yeah, I do.\" Subaru cut straight to the point, and in response, Felt answered honestly. Reaching into her breast pocket, Felt took out something and set it silently on the table. It was the badge that Subaru had been looking for. What first stood out to Subaru was a design on it that was in the shape of a dragon. The badge itself was about the size where it would fit easily in the palm of your hand. While Subaru couldn't exactly tell what material it was made out of, the design of the winged dragon was intricate, and in the dragon's open mouth was a red jewel that made it look very unique. Subconsciously, Subaru was drawn to the sparkle of the jewel in the badge's center. \"So...\" Felt's voice caught Subaru's attention and brought him back to where he was. She then slid the badge over to the edge of the table, as if to remind him that it still wasn't his yet. \"Now it's your turn to show me what you've got. As you can see, this is no ordinary badge, and I went through a lot of trouble to get it. If you can show me something that will match both the badge and my efforts, we can both be happy, right?\" \"While I see you're trying to test me with that evil-looking smile of yours, I'm sorry. I've only got one card to play. After all, you would have to look far and wide to find one as destitute as me!\" Subaru proudly threw out his chest, but Felt didn't look all that happy. The moment I say \"poor,\" everyone makes that face at me, don't they? thought Subaru. But Subaru's feelings aside, he went ahead and played his only card. Subaru slapped his cell phone on the table, and just as he thought, Felt looked confused. However, that reaction was just the kind he was looking for. Subaru started up the cell phone's camera and... \"Take this! Nine-frames-per-second continuous shooting!\" \"Wah! Wha ?! What are you ?! Hey, what's with that noise, and why is it so bright?!\" A white light flashed and a mechanical-like shutter sound went off several times at a rapid pace. Felt seemed like she had something to say about Subaru's terrible breach of manners, but before she could open her mouth, Subaru held the cell phone's screen in front of her face. Upon seeing her own self on the screen, she opened her eyes wide and said, \"That's...\" \"That's right! I made a copy of you! This mitia cuts out a slice of someone's time and stores it away! I want to trade you this mitia for that badge you've got.\" Having played his best card right away, Subaru was able to push the negotiations in his favor. It was an established negotiation tactic, and depending on the situation, could be used to force a conclusion to be made right away. Of course, this also meant telling the person you're negotiating with that you had no stronger cards to play, and Subaru had said that already in the first place, but it seemed to work. \"I see. That's pretty amazing. Rom, how much do you think this mitia would go for?\" Felt looked at the screen and nodded a few times, but Subaru thought that her reaction was incredibly indifferent. Her eyes didn't light up and she didn't even take the cell phone in her hands to look more closely. She wasn't interested in the cell phone's uses or its rarity, but only how much money she could turn it into. \"So this fascination with high-tech stuff is only limited to men in this world, too?! Somehow that makes me feel really sad and lonely!\" \"Oh, shut up. What's there to make a big deal about? If this so-called mitia can sell for more than this badge, then I couldn't be happier. For that, I trust Rom to give me a proper appraisal.\" \"Well, I can't say exactly how much I think it would go for. To be honest, I don't think the two objects can be compared. I think that badge could go for a lot of money...but not as much as this mitia. In other words, I think you have a lot to gain by making this trade, Felt. That's what I think.\" \"I see, I see. If that's the case, then why not?\" Felt seemed pleased when the trade got Rom's seal of approval. While Felt's reaction was a little bit different from what Subaru had expected, it appeared the trade was going to happen as planned, and Subaru couldn't be any happier about that. However, as soon as he reached across the table toward the badge, Felt interrupted him. \"Wait. Our cards have been played, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to try to sweeten the deal.\" \"...I'm not sure how I feel about you saying that so plain and clear, but no matter what you say or do, I don't have anything else. Like I said before, I am peerlessly and infinitely broke.\" \"I'm not that cruel, and after all, Rom said so himself. Your mitia is worth more than this badge. However, I doubt that you don't have any more cards to play.\" Felt stood up and looked down at Subaru. Her red eyes were lit up, and he could see that she was sizing him up. A cold sweat ran down Subaru's back. Subaru had already played the strongest card he could in their negotiations so far. However, Subaru still had a few other things on him that he thought might be valuable in this world. At the very worst, he thought he might be able to play a few more cards, but... \"I said not to worry, didn't I? I don't plan on trying to take any more from you. I'll be happy enough"}, {"text": "if I know I can just turn this thing here into money.\" Felt lightly clapped her hands together and smiled, appearing pleased at the look of anxiety on Subaru's face. Subaru gulped upon seeing Felt's reaction and, taking a few deep breaths, looked away in hopes that he could hide just how shaken he felt. \"So then, if that's the case, what do you mean when you say you still want to 'sweeten the deal'?\" \"Hmm? Oh, that? It's simple. It just means that you're not the only person I'm negotiating with.\" Subaru looked confused, but Felt stuck out her pointer finger and explained. \"The reason I stole the badge in the first place is because someone asked me to...in exchange for ten blessed gold coins.\" \"So you've already got a price settled with the person you stole it for?! Ten gold coins, huh... I don't really understand how much that is, but...\" Subaru glanced at Rom, who took the hint and nodded back. \"If it were me, I might be able to sell this badge for four, at best five gold coins. There's also the possibility that I would get talked down to three.\" \"So that means that they're already paying twice its worth?\" \"Didn't you hear her? She said blessed gold coins. They're made of blessed gold, which is much rarer, so ten blessed gold coins is closer to twenty gold coins in worth.\" \"So they're paying four times as much?!\" \"Why are you acting so surprised? With that mitia of yours, even in the worst case you could easily get twenty blessed gold coins. Besides, there are probably collectors out there who would pay even more. You can't even compare the two.\" Subaru really didn't understand the general cost of goods in this world, but he had thought that gold coins were the most valuable currency. The thought that his cell phone's worth was measured in a currency even greater than that, and not just one or two but twenty coins, was enough to take him by surprise. \"If this mitia really does fetch a higher price, then I have no intention of honoring a prior agreement with someone else, and I don't have a problem telling them that.\" \"Then why are you saying you'll 'sweeten the deal'?!\" Felt's mischievous grin twisted into an even more villainous smile. \"If I tell them you've made such a ridiculous counteroffer, if they still want the badge, don't you think they'll try to offer me something more?\" \"In other words... Is that what you're saying? If the other side turns around and offers more than twenty blessed golden coins...then if you don't show me all the rest of your cards, you won't have a chance.\" Felt's villainous smile had become so villainous it had reached a breaking point and become more like something refreshingly triumphant as she said those last words. On the other hand, with this ominous turn of events, Subaru's expression started to cloud over. \"So when are you planning on meeting with this person who commissioned you to steal the badge? I assume you'll let me sit in on the negotiations, right?\" \"Of course, if I put you at too much of a disadvantage, I might end up losing some of the money there is to be made. But don't worry about the location, we're meeting here,\" Felt said, tapping the edge of the table with her finger, before leaning against the back of her chair and looking up at Rom. \"As long as Old Man Rom's around, most people will forget about using violence as an option. Just the thought of having to fight this scary old man sends shivers down your spine, don't you think?\" Felt looked to Subaru for agreement, and after one quick glance at Rom, Subaru nodded several times. On the other hand, Rom didn't seem too bothered about their having that kind of opinion of him. \"You really can't do anything without me, can you, Felt? I worry about you. Would you like another glass of milk? I also have some other things that are a little sweeter.\" Rom had started to look like the grandfather who spoils his granddaughter like she was a cute kitten. Rom looked thrilled as he poured another glass of milk for Felt. Subaru looked at the two of them, and let out an exasperated sigh. \"Really, if you had already called that person here in the first place, were you planning on trying to negotiate the price with them even if I didn't show up?\" \"Of course I was! Just how much do you think I had to go through to steal this thing? What if poor little me had to meet with them all on my own and got talked down on the reward? Wouldn't that be sad?\" \"'Poor little me,' huh...\" Felt was small and thin and though from that outward appearance one might be tempted to describe her as such, given how strong and stubborn a personality she had Subaru had a problem thinking of her as helpless. Thinking back to when Felt had run away after having stolen the badge, she had left Subaru for dead as he was being assaulted by those thugs. Remembering that episode left Subaru a bit angry, so he couldn't help but bring it up. \"Speaking of which, don't you remember me at all?\" \"Huh? Did we meet somewhere before? I mean, unless it was some really sort of shocking encounter, I don't think I'd remember you. I'm quite busy, and to be honest you look pretty plain. Only your hair and clothes stand out.\" Felt cackled. As far as he could tell from the way she said it, Subaru didn't think that Felt was lying. There was also the fact that he had just had the plainness of his overall appearance insulted, so it was enough to put him into a minor state of shock. It was starting to seem like there really was no such thing as common human decency in this world. Not if anyone could so easily forget passing by the scene of an attempted murder and robbery. But then again, there were people like Satella, who had saved Subaru even though there was nothing in it for her, and this old man who, despite being a bit of a villain, you just couldn't bring yourself to hate. Even in this different world it wasn't as though everyone was the same. It wouldn't be right just to judge everyone based on the actions of a few bad eggs. \"Anyway, that's enough about your terrible memory, Felt. When is that other person supposed to be coming?\" \"I'm not sure I like your attitude... But I said I'd finish the job by sunset, so we agreed to meet here after sunset... Since the sun's already set they should be here any minute now I think?\" That conversation might have triggered an event flag, because just then came a sharp knock on the door. All three people at the table looked at one another. \"Did you tell 'em about the special knock?\" \"Ah... No, I didn't. It's probably for me, so I'll go check.\" Felt stuck her tongue out at Rom and she leapt from her chair and went over to the door. The way she acted, you'd think she owned the place. \"You really okay with letting her get away with that?\" Subaru said as he turned to Rom. \"Well, it's not like I just met her. We've known each other for a long time... I suppose I can let her depend on me every now and then.\" Subaru thought Rom actually looked very happy to be depended on, as the old man went into the back of the cellar and returned with a large club. The club was about the length of a bamboo kendo sword, and it seemed to be made of wood. At the tip and sticking out in various places were sharp points, and it looked like a clean hit would easily leave a fatal wound. The closest thing to compare it to would be a bat with nails in it, but even in this world it looks like clubs are pretty standard equipment... Wielding a club like that seemed to suit the six-foot-tall, musclebound old man. Subaru thought that if his clothes were a bit more torn and he was wearing a loincloth it would be an even more perfect fit. \"Upon seeing your uncivilized figure in all its glory, even I can't help myself but wince and smile at the same time.\" \"You sure like to run your mouth, don't you? Just who do you think you have to thank for getting this far? Woe is me,\" Rom added, shaking his head. Subaru looked back at Rom for a few moments. \"Well, to be honest, I've very thankful for your help. It's not like everything's over yet, but I'm almost there, and the only reason things have been going so well for me is because of your help, so...thanks.\" \"...If you suddenly start being honest with me like that, I'm not going to know what to do,\" said Rom in response to Subaru's thanks, scratching at his bald head before letting out a deep sigh. \"You have more to thank yourself for in finding this place and making use of what you had on ya. I haven't done anything deserving of your thanks.\" \"You know that's not true. After all, Rom, you knew that Felt was planning on discussing the price of what she stole here with someone, right? Then, as soon as you heard what I had to say, you had all the reason to just throw me out.\" *** \"You're the one who gave me a chance to even talk to Felt. Of course, it was my efforts my efforts! that took it from there!\" It was important so Subaru had to say it twice. As Subaru proudly pointed his thumb at himself, Rom's expression grew complicated and he was silent. Thinking that Rom had finally grown tired of his antics, Subaru started to regret his eagerness to praise himself. \"I wouldn't call the way I feel about it 'thanks,' but...if either of us is to thank the other, it should be me, rather than you,\" muttered Rom, softly, just as Subaru's feeling of regret was starting to show on his face. The old man's wrinkles deepened as he put on a smile. \"There's the fact that you have a mitia and then there's your clothes and the look about you... You come from a pretty well-off family, don't you?\" \"Well, I wouldn't exactly say that...\" \"You don't have to hide it. I bet that you can't make public the fact that Felt stole that badge. If for nothing else, I'm very grateful of the fact that you're trying to settle this in a peaceful way.\" It seemed that Rom had formed his own conclusions about Subaru's mysterious background, and that inside his head, Subaru was something of a very thoughtful gentleman. \"Felt and I...we've been together about as long as she can remember, since when she was a little girl,\" Rom said. \"I remember you saying something like that a little while ago...Have you two been here that whole time?\" Subaru nodded his head in the direction of the surrounding slum area. Rom nodded. \"In a place like this, everyone's just struggling to survive. In that kind of environment, the young ones tend to gangs from others like them, but...Felt really isn't suited to that.\" \"If the way she's been acting is the way she acts to everyone, I'm not that surprised.\" Felt's attitude so far seemed resolute and bold, but while that sounded good, there was no question that all of that resolution was geared toward her own ends. If you act like that, Subaru thought, anybody who wants a mutually beneficial relationship with you isn't going to be too thrilled. \"But isn't there also a problem"}, {"text": "in how she approaches you, Rom? I don't mean to be rude or anything, but I think that part of the reason her selfishness has gotten so bad is because you're always there for her.\" \"...I don't have anything I can say to that. After all, it's true that I tend to spoil her,\" Rom said softly as he ran his hand over his bald head. The way the old man looked when he said that made it clear to Subaru that Rom felt as though Felt was family to him. They probably weren't related by blood, but at least from Rom's side, there was a clear bond between them. \"Well, I hope it's not a one-sided sort of thing,\" Subaru muttered, without being clear on who the subject was. But Rom must have heard, because he whispered, \"I don't mind, even if that's the way it is. ...Actually, it'd be best if it were that way.\" But just then it looked as though their time was up. \"What are you two doing, muttering to yourselves? It's creepy, so cut it out,\" said Felt, annoyed, as she returned. Behind Felt, who was doing a terrible job of putting on a fake smile, was one other person. \"I was right, it was for me. We're over here, would you care to take a seat?\" Felt motioned, pushing Subaru aside, and turned back to the person behind her while attempting to be courteous. When Subaru looked up, preparing himself to face the next person he was going to have to negotiate between, he was a little bit surprised. Felt had invited in an incredibly beautiful woman. She was very tall for a woman, about the same height as Subaru, and she looked as though she were in her early twenties. The beautiful woman had eyes that angled down toward their edges and she had a certain calmness about her. One thing that stood out about her in the darkness of the loot cellar was the almost sickly whiteness of her skin. She was wearing a black coat, but the front was open and you could see that her clothes underneath were also black and were tightly fit against her skin. While she was fairly thin, she definitely had curves where they should be, and a very nice body overall. Like Subaru, the woman also had black hair, which seemed to be very rare in this world. Her hair was tied in a braid that reached all the way to her hips, the tip of which she was twirling around in her fingers. In short, she was a bewitchingly beautiful older woman. For Subaru, who had no real experience being around women even in his own world, seeing a woman like this was so new to him that he could not help but feel extremely nervous. Having already lost his cool, Subaru followed Felt's directions and gave up his chair without any complaint. Felt took that seat, and Rom took the seat to the left of her. Subaru just stood to Felt's right, unable to hide his nervousness. With so many people awaiting her arrival, the woman didn't seem upset, but she did look puzzled. \"I get the feeling that there are a lot of unrelated people here.\" \"I can't just let myself be in a position to be talked down on price, you know? It's the wisdom of the weak. Anyway, Subaru, go fetch us some drinks.\" Felt motioned to Subaru with her hand, like she was ordering a servant around, but Subaru couldn't bring himself to talk back, and so went behind the counter and picked out some relatively clean glasses, filled them with milk, and came back to the table to set them down. The woman said, \"Thank you,\" to Subaru before looking him up and down. \"I understand that old man being here, but who is this?\" The woman must have been able to tell by Subaru's demeanor that he was not very used to the place. Rather than being wary of him, she had posed a simple question. In response, Felt smiled her evil smile. \"This guy here is your rival. He's come to negotiate as well,\" she declared, and her process of \"sweetening the deal\" began. \"I see. I understand what's going on now,\" said the woman before taking a sip from her glass and licking off the milk left on her lips. The woman, who went by the name Elsa, gave off an air of eroticism in every move she made. While Felt was explaining the current situation to Elsa, she turned her glance several times toward Subaru, which made him so flustered he could hardly handle it. \"That's the way it is, so now we'll start the bidding. I don't really care who walks away with this badge, so it'll go to the one who can offer me the best deal.\" \"That's a nice attitude you have there. I can't say I dislike it. ...So, how much did that boy over there say he would pay for it?\" Elsa originally said that she would pay ten blessed gold coins. If Subaru was going to compete with her offer, she must have thought that he had offered more money. Thinking that it would be better to not take a \"wait and see\" approach, he took out his cell phone for the third time and demonstrated its use. A flash lit up the inside of the cellar and Elsa's image was captured by the device. Elsa raised her eyebrows in response to Subaru's sudden actions, but Subaru immediately showed her the screen. \"What I have to offer is this mitia. It's a rare item, and it's probably the only one in the entire world. According to this muscular man, it should sell for over twenty blessed gold coins.\" \"A mitia...\" Elsa said, staring at herself on the screen and slowly nodding. With this, Elsa should have realized that Subaru was looking to barter for the badge, not pay outright, and that his offer was not a bluff. Elsa took a small leather bag out of her pocket and placed it on the table. In the bag was probably the payment she had prepared for the badge Subaru could hear the sound of heavy metal objects clanging together as she set it down. Felt fixed on the bag with her eyes like a curious cat, as Rom wordlessly reprimanded her. Elsa placed her white fingers on top of the bag she had placed on the table. \"The truth is, I was given a little extra by my employer, in case you happened to have second thoughts about the price, so I do have a little more to offer.\" \"Your employer...? So you're just following someone's directions to pick up the badge?\" asked Subaru. \"That's correct. The one who wants the badge is not me, but my employer. ...Are you by chance involved in the same sort of work as I am?\" \"If that were the case, then that would mean you'd have to be unemployed!\" \"So, this unemployed kid over here is saying he'll pay a much higher price than you offered. Just how much is your master willing to pay?\" asked Felt, challenging Elsa. Elsa silently opened the mouth of the bag, and turned it over. What came tumbling out were several shining blessed gold coins. Felt's eyes sparkled as she saw the coins layer on top of one another, and even Rom made a sound in his throat. Subaru was more concerned with the number than the coins themselves. If he counted correctly... \"Twenty coins, exactly,\" said Elsa. \"This is all that my employer has given to me. This is what they decided would be enough to pay for the badge, but...am I correct in thinking their estimates may have been a little off?\" asked Elsa, directing her question at Rom, rather than Felt. After counting the coins, Rom gazed down at a nervous-looking Subaru, and then smiled. \"There's no reason for you to act like such a baby. You should be embarrassed. Aren't you a man? ...It's true that twenty blessed gold coins is an outrageous amount. However, I remember saying that in the worst case, your mitia should sell for twenty gold coins. In other words, it's worth more than that.\" Rom took his giant callused hand and roughly patted Subaru on the head. \"The way I see it, the negotiations lean in favor of the kid. No offense to your employer, but it looks like you're going to have to bring them their money back,\" Rom said, shoving the coins back toward Elsa. Subaru let out a cry of excitement. Felt threw her hands up in the air to signal that she didn't have a problem with the decision, and Elsa shrugged but did not look all that displeased herself. Subaru followed up with a triumphant pose, but that exaggerated action just made him stand out from the crowd. \"W-what? I'm happy, all right? Let me be! This is the first time I've actually accomplished something here! What's wrong with a little celebration?!\" said Subaru, embarrassed. \"I didn't say anything. If you want to celebrate, then celebrate. As long as I get my money, I'm happy,\" said Felt. \"My employer doesn't actually need that badge, so I don't have any reason to beg you to reconsider,\" added Elsa. Both Felt and Elsa seemed uninterested in Subaru's antics. However, while Subaru wasn't so mean-spirited that he was hoping for Elsa to beg and plead, he found it strange how disinterested she seemed, despite the negotiations not going her way. \"Well, I'm sorry, Elsa. I imagine your employer's going to be angry at you.\" \"There's no helping it. It would be different if I failed because I was the one who made a mistake, but in this case, it's my employer's fault for thinking that they would be able to get away with paying so little for the badge.\" \"But when you plan for as much as twenty blessed gold coins and that turns out to be not enough, that's got to be tough,\" remarked Rom. \"Well, I guess it just means that my luck is in full swing! Does this mean that my era of greatness has finally come?\" Felt laughed, oblivious to the mood, in contrast to the two males who were showing sympathy for Elsa. Either way, Subaru had managed to complete one of the goals he had in coming here. Without having to fall back on a plan B, it looked as though there was a glimmer of hope that he would be able to pay Satella back. Normally, it would be best to report to Satella that Felt and Elsa were the ones responsible for the theft, but Subaru didn't have it in him to do anything that might result in either of them getting locked up. It had been simple opportunism. \"Well, as the negotiations did not go in my favor, I think I'll take my leave now.\" Elsa stood up and gulped down the last of her milk. Again, she used her tongue in an erotic way to lick up the last few drops of milk, before looking at Subaru. As she stared at him, it felt as though her eyes were binding him in place. \"By the way, what is it that you were planning on doing with that badge?\" Elsa asked in a somewhat deep, frozen sort of voice. The sweet ring of her voice threatened Subaru's eardrums and made him feel, by some delusion, as though he couldn't lie. \"...Oh, I was planning on returning it to its owner.\" As soon as he said it he knew he had made a terrible mistake. He had just declared, in front of both the girl who had stolen it and the woman who had ordered the theft, that he was going to return the stolen item to its owner. \"I see. So you're with them.\" Subaru's words were"}, {"text": "enough to set Elsa's cold murderous intent into motion. \"Wha ?!\" Subaru felt a sudden impact from his side. The impact was enough to force him to the side, and unable to catch himself, he tumbled to the ground. From Subaru's perspective there was first pain and shock, his vision spinning as he hit the ground. When he looked up he saw that Felt was clinging to his side. \"What do you \" \"Are you an idiot? Pay attention and get out of the way! You want to die?!\" Felt yelled. \" think you are doing?!\" The last part of Subaru's shout was drowned out by Felt's. Subaru was in shock. From his low vantage point he saw Elsa facing toward him. \"Oh, it looks like you managed to dodge that one,\" she said, her head tilted in surprise. Elsa held in her hand a weapon that glimmered with a dull light. The weapon was, according to Subaru's knowledge, a kukri blade, and it clashed with the rest of Elsa's image. It was easily a foot long, with the body of the blade bent inward as it extended from the handle. Due to the weight of the tip it was a weapon that was often used similarly to an ax to decapitate enemies or prey, and just by looking at it, it was not hard to imagine the weapon's vicious brutality. Despite wielding the blade, Elsa's serene smile was unchanged. From her stance, it was clear that she had already swung the weapon once. Which meant the only reason Subaru was safe was that Felt had leapt up and tackled him out of the path of the weapon. Fear, late in coming, made Subaru's hands and feet shake, and he felt nauseated. However, the situation wasn't going to stop just for him. \"Rrrragh!\" Old Man Rom let out a roar as he rushed toward Elsa, swinging the club that had never left his grasp since the negotiations had begun. The spiked part of the club came barreling down toward her head. Despite the club weighing at least twenty pounds, Rom swung it as if he were swinging a twig, and it cut through the air before slamming against the floor of the cellar. As the club sprang off the floor it felt as though the entire building had shook. Several stolen articles flew from the shock of the impacts, which continued as Rom and Elsa traded blows in front of Subaru. \"This is my first time in mortal combat with a giant,\" said Elsa. \"Go ahead and keep talking, little girl. I'll turn you into mincemeat and feed you to the giant rats!\" As Rom threw his insults he swung his club even faster. Before the power of that swing, any untrained attempt to block would be no more effective than a sheet of paper. Inside the cellar, there was very little room to move around, and allowing the swings of that club to corner you could easily be a fatal mistake. However, Elsa's skill was of such a high level it could only be called freakish. While still wielding her kukri, dangling from one hand, Elsa, herself like a black shadow, was able to slip around each of Rom's surely fatal swings. Her movements were precarious, walking a thin line, just barely away from life-threatening danger, and still it was she who was in control of the fight, not Rom. This can't be good, thought Subaru instinctively. Something in his head was setting off an alarm. \"This is bad...\" muttered Subaru, his lips shaking. \"Don't worry. There's no way Old Man Rom can lose! Ever since I can remember, I've never seen Rom lose a fight!\" Felt yelled back, putting her trust for Rom in words as if to dispel her own doubts. In Felt's words were experiences built up over long years; experiences that formed her unshakable trust. But even without Felt telling Subaru outright, he could see their trust in how close they were when they interacted with each other. Despite Felt's confidence, Subaru was preparing for the worst. But he couldn't figure out why. \"Take that!\" Before Subaru could pin down his anxiety, there was a change in the flow of the fight. Rom yelled and kicked over the table, the same small wooden table they had been negotiating around. The table split and splintered from the force of the kick, and for an instant Elsa, who was up against a wall, was hidden behind its fragments, her line of sight cut off. Rom swung his club down with all his might. If the hit landed, it was sure to be an instant kill. However... \"Rom!\" Felt's distraught scream shook the air inside the loot cellar. Subaru then saw the result that scream had sought to prevent. Something was flying, spinning in the air. It was Rom's right arm, still tightly gripping his club. The arm, which had been severed at the shoulder, flew through the air, spraying blood everywhere before it landed against the wall. The whole room had been showered with blood. Subaru and Felt were no exception. Felt screamed again. \"If I'm going down, I'm taking you with me!\" Having lost his right arm, Rom was spraying blood out of his shoulder like a hose. Without even trying to stop the flow of blood, Rom leapt forward toward Elsa, to attack her with his one remaining arm. As the splintered wooden table fell to the ground, Elsa stood behind it, still holding the position of the follow-through of her swing. Before Elsa could flip the kukri back around, Rom's giant body would crush her. But in that fleeting moment of Rom's last stand... \"I forgot to tell you before, but thank you for the milk.\" ...he was cut short. With her other hand Elsa struck with a broken shard from the very glass she had been drinking from. On the sharp tip of the shard were droplets of blood blood that had come from Rom's slit throat. His arm severed and his throat cut, blood frothed from the old man's mouth, and as the light from his eyes vanished, he collapsed on the ground. Though his body convulsed there was no strength left in it, as Rom's life was dragged away even as it clung to his body. Elsa bowed once gracefully toward the body, as if paying her respects. While Rom's body continued to twitch, Elsa gently placed the remains of the glass down by his feet. \"I'll give this back. I don't need it anymore,\" she said coldly, before twirling her kukri around in her hand and pointing its red-stained tip toward Subaru and Felt. However, Subaru, still collapsed the floor, was unable to say anything. All of Subaru's thought processes had been arrested by the slaughter that had taken place before his eyes. Someone that he had been talking to just a few minutes ago was now dead. Dead not by sickness or an accent, but killed by the actions of another, plain and simple. \"Ah, I see that you're the one with the courage,\" Elsa said, impressed, and Subaru, still unable to move, looked up. While Subaru was still in a state of shock, Felt had stood up and was slapping her legs to keep her knees from shaking. She then pushed back her blood-soaked hair. \"How... How dare you...\" Subaru was behind Felt, so he could not see her expression. However, it was clear from her voice that she was not choking back tears. \"If you put up too much of a struggle, you will only end up hurting more,\" said Elsa. \"I bet you'd still plan on killing us even if we didn't fight back, you psycho...!\" \"If you move too much I won't be able to make a clean cut. ...I'm not all that skilled with a blade.\" As Elsa said this, she twirled the kukri around and pretended as if she were practicing the proper cuts to butcher Felt. But Felt was empty-handed. There was no way that she could win. In his mind, Subaru had reached the conclusion that he should cry out. He needed to distract Elsa, even if only a little bit, to allow time for Felt to escape. If he could just give her time to call for help, or even just escape on her own... But even though Subaru had made his decision, he couldn't stop his body from shaking. \"...I'm sorry for getting you wrapped up in all of this,\" Felt said to Subaru in an apology little above a whisper. \"I-I...\" In response, Subaru's face jolted up toward Felt, and forgetting the words he should have said to her, he could only manage a choked mutter as though pleading for her forgiveness. But Felt left Subaru's sentiments forever behind her as she dashed forward. There was a loud sound as she kicked off from the ground, and it was as though a gale had suddenly blown through the cellar. Just when Subaru thought that Felt had vanished from his sight, he saw Elsa's body twist. A high-pitched sound rang out, and Felt clicked her tongue from Elsa's side. In Felt's hand was a small knife, and with Elsa's overwhelmingly fast reaction she was able to dodge Felt's attack. Felt leapt back, riding the gust of air she made as she flew. With Felt's irregular movements, even the walls of the cellar became like ground to her. Even Elsa seemed to be surprised by Felt's acrobatic feats. \"So you have the protection of the wind. Oh, how wonderful. The world must adore you...I envy that.\" Elsa's ecstatic smile suddenly turned, and her eyes were filled with hatred as her arm bent back. \"Wha \" Felt was cut down in midair by a slice that extended across from her shoulder, and unable to catch herself, she hit the ground and entered a roll. The opening of the wound cut across her chest, from the left shoulder to her right underarm, and it was so deep it cut through bone and into her organs. Ending her roll faceup, with every beat of her heart Felt spewed blood like a fountain, and it was clear that she had already lost consciousness from the pain and shock of the cut. She didn't move an inch. In just a few seconds the flow of her blood lost its pressure, silently signaling the end of her life. Subaru could not move. He wanted to go to Felt's side and try to stop the bleeding. If it was too late for that, then he at least wanted to close her eyelids. But Subaru's arms and legs rejected his plea, and he could do nothing but shiver, shamelessly. \"The old man and the girl are both down, but you won't move. Have you already given up?\" Elsa said in a tone as though she pitied him, with eyes that looked bored. All she had to do was walk a little closer and strike a single time with her knife. That much was obvious to her, hence her bored look. In Elsa's movements was not even the slightest hint of hesitation. It even seemed as though she was trying to hold back a yawn. In response to Elsa's attitude, Subaru felt an uncontrollable anger welling up inside him. The two people fallen in front of him were people he had met just under an hour ago. But they had not only talked, they had bared emotions to one another. To take those two people and kill them, and feel no guilt whatsoever, was to Subaru absolutely unforgivable. Furthermore, he could not forgive himself. He had just watched as both of them were slaughtered by this vile woman. \"So you've finally gotten to your feet. It certainly took you a while. I doubt you'll entertain me much, but it could be worse.\" The anger welling up inside Subaru, though far too late, finally gave him the power to move his arms and legs. His"}, {"text": "limbs still shaking, Subaru slowly pushed against the ground and was somehow able to stand up, though his movements were almost animalistic. Was his shaking due to fear, or anger? Or was it both? Subaru didn't care. Facing Elsa and her kukri blade held at the ready, Subaru charged forward with all his strength and spirit, teeth bared. He would fly at her and beat her down, pushing his own strength past its limits. But that mad rush of Subaru's was... \"Pathetic.\" ...brought to a swift end as Elsa elbowed him directly in the face. As she spun around, using the least amount of movement necessary, she had stuck Subaru with her elbow, and as he was reeling, Elsa, still in her spin, traced an arc with one of her long legs and landed a kick. Subaru was thrown back into a shelf filled with porcelain and came crashing to the ground. In one single round of attack, Subaru had both his nose and front teeth broken. His side, which took the brunt of Elsa's kick, was in terrible pain, and he could feel that a number of his ribs had broken. But still, Subaru shoved his fist against the ground and immediately stood back up. Subaru's brain had already started excreting endorphins and was rejecting the pain, which was greater than any Subaru had felt before. In this aroused state, his breathing abnormal, Subaru launched another mindless attack...but he was again struck back. Subaru's flailing arms could not reach Elsa, and with her flowing limbs she struck Subaru with the blunt side of her blade, breaking his left shoulder. Then, as if she was annoyed by having to listen to his screams of pain, she threw in a kick straight up into his jaw, which immediately shut him up. It also succeeded in knocking out the rest of Subaru's broken front teeth. Elsa looked down at Subaru as he tumbled to the ground. \"You're no good at all. You're just as inexperienced as you look, and your movements are all over the place. You don't have any divine protection, or any special skills. I thought you might use your head and have some trick up your sleeve, but I see you have nothing. Just how did you ever think you could stand a chance against me?\" \"Shuddup... It's called being stubborn... You dink I'll just dake dis lying down?\" Subaru's nose was broken, so he couldn't even make a proper comeback. Thanks to the last counterattack, Subaru couldn't use his arm anymore. Everything from his left shoulder down was dangling limply. He couldn't feel any pain, but the ringing in his ears was getting unbearable. He was intensely nauseated, and it felt as though his anger was seeping away out of his mouth. Subaru was beaten. He could never win. His chances of even landing a hit were minuscule. \"Well, I'll admit that you've got at least an unusually high amount of determination. If you had gotten yourself up a little earlier, there might have been a different outcome for these two.\" With the tip of her knife, Elsa pointed to the two bodies lying abandoned on the floor. As Subaru followed Elsa's motion and looked at the corpses he suddenly felt a strange feeling come over him. Why? Why did he feel that he had seen this all before? The loot cellar, with its floor a sea of blood... The giant corpse with its missing arm... The dull glint of a reddish blade... In the back of his mind, a thought shot through him like lightning. \"Let's put an end to all of this. I'll send you off to go meet the angels.\" Elsa licked her red lips, and with a sensual smile vanished into the darkness. Whether or not it was by some trick, to Subaru it looked as though Elsa had sunk down into the shadows of the cellar. Subaru looked left and right, unable to find Elsa. \"Wh-where are you?!\" Subaru began to panic, looking this way and that, listening as hard as he could for any sound. He looked like the prey of a ferocious predator just waiting to be devoured. From Elsa's perspective, nothing could make her less excited, but that just made her want to get it over with even more quickly, so in a brilliantly direct slice... \"Wha ?!\" As soon as Subaru realized that the attack was coming for his abdomen, he managed to get clear, with not a hairbreadth to spare. Subaru jumped back, pulling his stomach in, so that the horizontal slash only just grazed him. The skin of his abdomen was sliced open, but Subaru gritted his teeth and bore the sharp pain. \"Ughraaah!!\" Then with all of his might, Subaru was able to strike Elsa's upper body from the side with a spinning kick. As Subaru twisted himself and landed his critical hit, he was able to confirm that he had been able to retaliate at least once. However... \"Ah... That one was very satisfying,\" Elsa said as, with a second kukri she had drawn from her waist, she sliced about 70 percent of the way through Subaru's abdomen with her other hand, spilling out his blood and guts. \"Huh...?\" Subaru took one step, two steps back, and as his shoulder brushed up against the wall, he slid down against it and fell to the floor. As Subaru looked down he could see the blood flowing out of his abdomen and staining the floor bright red. With a shaking arm he tried uselessly to return the blood, but the bloody clumps of tissue spilling out of his stomach pushed his hand away. \"Are you surprised? I opened up your stomach as you rushed me. It's my speciality, really,\" Elsa said with a smile, walking splish-splash across the sea of blood. Elsa approached Subaru, who was unable to say anything but gurgle out cries of pain, and stared at his bloody, blackish innards with a look of ecstasy on her face. \"Ah...just as I hoped. Your intestines have such a beautiful color to them.\" This woman was out of her mind. At the pain that even his endorphins could not negate, Subaru's consciousness started to fade. He realized that he seemed to have fallen on his side. With shaking fingertips, he weakly touched Elsa's foot. \"Uu...ugh...\" \"Are you in pain? Does it hurt? Are you sad? Do you want to die?\" With his hand still grabbing at her ankle, Elsa knelt down beside Subaru and looked him in the eyes. Elsa's eyes were filled with ecstasy. She had absolutely no qualms about taking another human life. Instead...she seemed to be incredibly happy, filled with bliss. \"Slowly, slowly, slowly, ever so slowly your body will lose its heat and you will go cold.\" Subaru could feel Elsa's voice vibrating his eardrums, torturing him, savoring him, pitying him, affectionate for him, loving him. Before he knew it, Subaru couldn't see anymore. His loss of blood was too great, and bit by bit he was dying. Now, he couldn't hear anything. He couldn't smell anything. He couldn't see anything. He could only feel his body growing colder, his body dying, and the fear that came with it. In this space, not knowing exactly when the light of his life would be extinguished, Subaru could not separate himself from the fear of death. When will I die? When will I die? Am I still alive? Am I not already dead? How do you define life? Can you even say that I'm alive in this state, lesser than any insect? What is life? What is death? Why is dying so frightening? Is it really necessary to live? No? I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. As an absolute and unconditional death grew ever closer, Subaru's mind instinctively rejected it. At the end, that rejection filled everything that Subaru was, and as his vision whited out, he thought... Ah...I'm dead. And with that very last thought, Subaru Natsuki's life flickered out. CHAPTER 3 *** \"Hey, man, don't just stare off into space like that. You want an abble?\" As soon as Subaru's consciousness had returned to him, there was a ripe red fruit in front of his face. It looked just like an apple, and as he stared at it, the phrase \"fruit of knowledge\" crossed the back of his mind. It was that forbidden fruit that, when eaten, resulted in expulsion from paradise. If Subaru ate that fruit now, would it save him from the inexplicable situation he found himself in? \"Hey, kiddo,\" said a middle-aged man as he furrowed his brow and called out to Subaru, who was being completely unresponsive. Subaru slowly drifted from the vague edge of his consciousness back toward reality, and when he was back, he suddenly raised his head. He looked this way and that, his heart beating ferociously and his breathing ragged. He was in front of the fruit store on the main street, just past noon. There were various colorful vegetables and fruits laid out, and the person standing in front of those goods was a stern-looking man, the shop owner with the white scar across his face. This was the crowded street that Subaru had already seen several times before. He scratched his head. \"I just don't get it...\" he muttered, and then overcome with dizziness and nausea, he collapsed on the spot. As he felt a cold rush of water on his face, Subaru was somehow able to bring his muddied consciousness back to reality. *** Subaru looked at the empty water jug the fruit shop owner had brought Subaru. After Subaru had collapsed in front of his shop, the owner had helped him get himself together. Subaru was glad that the owner had the heart to worry about him, but the fact that he was so kind as not to ask where Satella had gone struck a deep wound in his heart. As Subaru sat on the earthen floor, he wiped away the water from his bangs and clenched his teeth. The glint of that blade still haunted the back of his mind, along with that terrible smile as it danced through the stench of blood. \"Hhgh...\" The back of Subaru's throat twitched and as he sat hugging his knees, he couldn't keep his entire body from shaking. He'd lived a completely normal life up until this point. He had never experienced so much fear, so much despair. He didn't want to think anymore. He didn't want to remember anymore. He wanted to draw back inside his shell and forget everything. The glimmer of the blade, the arm flying off, the scream, sinking in a sea of blood, that silver hair... *** The less Subaru wanted to think about it, the more clearly his memories came back to him. Overcome by anguish, Subaru raised his face up to scream, but just as he was about to let everything out... \"Huh...?\" The voice that had risen up inside Subaru dribbled out full of doubt, and he just stared, dumbfounded. In Subaru's range of vision, with his eyes open wide, he could see a tall figure with skin like a reptile...a beast-like humanoid that was only as tall as his waist...a young dancer with pink hair...a swordsman with six swords at his waist... ...and a young girl in a white robe with silver hair that swayed as she walked. Those violet eyes of hers took one glance at Subaru as she walked by, but she looked away as though uninterested and walked on. Those amethyst eyes, full of determination, just looked straight forward as she stared down the road. In that gallant stance, that delicate beauty, in that girl that Subaru had been searching for, there was no change. Unable to call out immediately, with"}, {"text": "rasping breath Subaru struggled to his feet and chased after her. \"Wai ! W-wait! Wait up! Please, wait...\" For an instant, the girl reacted to his voice and looked back at Subaru with a cold gaze, as if she was looking at a stranger. Subaru felt his heart gouged by the chill in her sharp gaze. He had not done what she had asked of him. He had hurt her. He hadn't apologized yet. There was no way that he could be forgiven, but even so Subaru chased after her. He didn't know how she felt. At the very least he had to know what she was thinking. If he was going to let what he imagined her to be thinking hurt him, he would rather be hurt by the real her, here in this reality where he could feel pain. \"Wait, please! Satella!\" He wasn't sure of what he wanted to say to her if he could catch her, but when the answer to that question became clear in his mind, Subaru called out Satella's name as if he had just remembered it. Finally it seemed as if his voice had reached her, because just as she was starting to get away from him the girl stopped immediately in her tracks. Subaru weaved through the crowd to catch up to her, and put his hand on her thin shoulder. \"Don't...ignore me. It's my fault that I went away and it's my fault for not listening to you, but I've been desperate. After what happened I went to the loot cellar, but I wasn't able to meet you there and...\" As Subaru grabbed her shoulder, Satella looked at him in surprise. As she turned around and Subaru opened his mouth, what came out was a sort of self-defense that sounded full of excuses. What made him realize that was Satella's clear eyes. Her stare was emotionless, and as Subaru faced it, he still felt a sense of ease. As far as he could tell, Satella didn't appear to be wounded. Subaru experienced this as salvation. \"I'm sorry for going on about myself... I'm so glad to see you're okay.\" The fact that they were able to meet again made Subaru feel simple happiness. There were so many things they had to talk about, but before all of that Subaru felt as if nothing he had done was in vain. He was finally and profoundly relieved... \"...What do you think you're doing?\" But as Subaru found this sense of ease, Satella was incredibly angry. Her white cheeks had reddened, as she twisted her body to get Subaru's hand off her shoulder. After taking a step back and putting some space between her and Subaru, Satella's eyes were filled with hostility. After this unexpectedly stern reaction, Subaru unconsciously gulped. Still, this reaction made sense. From Satella's perspective, she should be shocked that Subaru would even show his face in front of her. There was no insult too great for her to lob at Subaru and  \"I don't know who you are, but what the hell are you thinking, calling someone the same name as that Witch of Jealousy?!\" After hearing that reaction, which was beyond anything that he could have imagined, everything that Subaru had built up to brace himself was smashed to pieces. Faced with those unexpected words, Subaru felt as if time had stopped. The sound of the crowd disappeared. All that Subaru could hear was the violent beating of his heart, and the rough breathing of the silver-haired girl in front of him, tense and defensive. He felt as if all of the other sounds had disappeared...but that was no illusion. \"...What?\" As Subaru looked around he realized that everyone, everyone all around this crowded shopping district, all the pedestrians on the road were staring at them. Everyone looked shaken, and no one would move a single muscle, stock-still and quiet. It was as if the conversation between Satella and Subaru had taken control of the entire area. With her severe stare, Satella was waiting for Subaru's answer. However, unsure of what he was guilty of, Subaru couldn't think of how to answer. The reason why Subaru thought Satella would be upset and the real reason she was upset were different. \"I'll ask you one more time. Why are you calling me by the Witch of Jealousy's name?\" \"What do you mean? That's what I was told to call you...\" \"...I don't know who told you that, but whoever it was, that's in incredibly poor taste. Even if you're not the one who thought of it, it's bad enough that you agreed. This is the Witch of Jealousy we're talking about, the embodiment of all things taboo. Most people would hesitate to even utter such a name, and you're using it to name me?\" With her anger displayed for all to see, Satella...the silver-haired girl threw Subaru into a storm of confusion. Everyone else around seemed to be nodding, agreeing with her, and that, more than anything else, proved that she was right. Subaru had absolutely no idea what was going on. He couldn't understand what she was saying. Subaru had only just called her by her name. But Satella had rebuked him, and everyone around agreed that she was in the right. \"If that's all you wanted to say, then I'll be on my way. I don't have time to deal with you.\" The girl looked on as Subaru simply stood where he was, hanging his head. She then turned and walked off, with her hair dancing behind her, having nothing more to do with him. Subaru thought to call after her, and started to shout her name, but it got caught in his throat as if it had frozen shut. If Subaru called her name again, he would simply be making the same mistake twice. But then, what should he call her? He hesitated, unable to decide what to do. *** Subaru gasped. On the canvas top of a cart on the side of the street, from a position just a head taller than Subaru, something leaped. A small body was pulled by gravity toward the ground, and as soon as it landed it took off on the wind. That little gust of wind, with dirty clothes and blond hair trailing behind it, wove through the crowd with a godlike dexterity, and from it an outstretched arm slipped into a certain girl's hawk-embroidered white robe. The two only touched for an instant, but to that little gust of wind, that moment was enough. As the wind made the robe fly up and the girl with the robe twisted around, the wind took off flying again. \"It can't be!\" The silver-haired girl raised her voice in shock and stuck her hand into her robe. She couldn't find what she was looking for, and with eyes opened wide, she looked in the direction of the quickly fleeing wind. Seeing the dragon-adorned badge in that wind's hand as it passed quickly by, Subaru yelled, \"Felt?!\" With Subaru's call, the wind waved for a moment in hesitation, but without slowing down it quickly flew down a narrow alley. Everything happened so incredibly fast that Subaru could only see for an instant what happened, but that had to be  \"I've been had! Is that why you stopped me? Are you two working together?!\" moaned the girl as she looked at Subaru standing still. The girl quickly turned her palm toward Subaru, but apparently changing her mind, she ran off in the direction the wind had gone down the alley. \"Hey, wait! This is a misunderstanding! I...\" Subaru took off after them down the alley, hoping to sort things out. As he ran, his mind was filled with questions and doubts. There was too much information to process, and his panicked mind couldn't deal with it. Even without that, he had just gone through death twice, and everything in his mind was muddled. \"There's got to be someone out there who'll be nice to me! Why the hell was I even summoned here?!\" Subaru yelled, having had enough with nothing making sense, as he kept running with unsure footing down the dark alley. Subaru wasn't sure of his stamina, but at a short distance, he didn't think he would lose to those two girls. However... \"Damn! A wall?!\" Subaru spat. Right in front of him was a dead end. Neither of the two girls was there. Felt probably could easily climb over a wall like that, and he thought that Satella would have been able to do something about it with her magic. I could try to climb over to the other side, but I don't think I'd be able to catch up to them. Subaru couldn't afford to waste time here. He had no idea how to get around the capital, so if he lost them here, it would be impossible for him to catch up to them. \"Then should I head to the loot cellar? If Satella and Felt are alive, then Rom must be...\" Even as Subaru said this, he felt that several things were wrong and contradicting themselves. Felt had been cut down. Rom's neck was slit. Satella fell in a pool of blood. Subaru had his abdomen cut open twice. How was it that everyone was alive...? \"No. Now's not the time. I can't waste time thinking. Right now I've got to...\" Subaru would go on ahead and quickly meet up with Rom. That was what Subaru had to do. He could think later. The best thing for him to do right now was to leave this alley and head to the slums. Subaru turned around. \"...You've got to be kidding me!\" Right in front of him, blocking the entrance to the alley, were three shadows, three people, with dirty clothes and a rough and barbaric appearance. Three thugs who used these alleys as their hunting grounds. It was Subaru's third time encountering them that day. \"Give it a rest already! Just what is it going to take for you punks to learn?!\" Tired of seeing those three thugs again, Subaru furiously stomped on the ground. This was the third time they had met. Every time was in a back alley, three against one. Given how their first and second efforts were fruitless, Subaru was stunned that they were so determined to catch him that they'd try a third time. \"I don't have the time or the patience to deal with you fools. Out of my way, now!\" The current situation had really put Subaru out of sorts, but there was also the fact that, given what happened last time, he thought he should be able to scare them if he shouted. At least that's what he thought. \"'Get out of my way,' he says. Ha! I don't like your attitude. You don't get it, do you? You're not in a position to be ordering us around.\" \"It was three-on-one last time and you guys still lost like you were nothing! You think you can talk big like that? Even sore losers would show more shame when they wail!\" However, the thugs didn't seem to fear Subaru at all, and kept up their taunting. Subaru bit his lip at their unexpected reactions. Even small-time villains like this had a sense of pride, he thought. He wanted to avoid wasting any more time and risk losing Felt and Satella. Also, given the risk that a fight would entail, Subaru decided that he should deal with this peacefully. \"Fine. Have it your way. I'll give you everything I've got. That's what you want from me, right?\" Subaru held back his irritation and raised both of his hands in the air, showing that he was giving up. The thugs all looked at one another after Subaru changed his attitude, and then all burst into laughter. \"What's that?! If you were that scared, you should have just said so!\" \"Ha! Look at this guy!"}, {"text": "Don't talk all big if you're just gonna bend over!\" \"Whatever. If he's going to do as we say, that just makes it easier on us, right? But what a coward, huh?\" Subaru was irritated, but he just laughed it off. He decided to name the group of thugs \"dumb, dumber, and dumbest\" to make himself feel better, and muttered under his breath, so they wouldn't hear. \"Once I meet back up with Satella, I'm going to borrow Puck and make them...pay?\" Just as Subaru was about to lay out all that he owned in front of him, he froze. \"Huh...?\" Out of everything that had happened since Subaru had arrived in this new world, this was the most unsettling. \"Why...?\" At Subaru's fingertips, inside his plastic convenience store bag, was a bag of crispy snacks. Corn-soup flavored, they were one of his favorites, and he had grabbed them on a whim at the store to eat in place of his dinner. When Subaru was with Rom at the loot cellar, he had shown them off to him as a great late-night snack, an act that he had later regretted. However, that bag was still there, as full and sealed as when he had bought it at the store. \"I shouldn't have these anymore... Rom ate them all, and I complained and...there weren't any left. I'm sure of it.\" Why were the snacks back in the bag? There was no trace that it had been opened. It wasn't possible. Subaru felt his thoughts blocked on all sides. However, in that locked state, Subaru still came to a conclusion about what was happening. Even though he had come to a conclusion, it wasn't doing him any good. As soon as it occurred to him, he rejected it as impossible. His sense of reason denied the possibility. \"Hey, what are you doing?!\" \"...What?\" Subaru suddenly heard a voice right next to him. Cut from his train of thought, that was the only way he could react. It was one of the thugs. The smallest one. The one Subaru had just named \"Dumbest.\" While Subaru was lost in thought, Dumbest had walked over and put his hand on Subaru's shoulder. Subaru twisted and pushed his hand away. \"Out of my way...\" \"What'd you say?!\" \"In every sense of the word, I've run out of time to deal with you guys. I've got to...check something.\" \"Are you kidding me?\" As Subaru pushed Dumbest aside and moved to exit the alley, the other two stood angrily in his way. \"Get out of my way! I've got somewhere to be!\" He had to rule out this unbelievably stupid, unthinkable theory... Faced with Subaru's yell, the men hesitated a bit. If he could break through and get out onto the main street, he would probably be out of harm's way. After deciding that, Subaru stepped down to kick firmly off the ground. However... \"...Wha?\" Just as Subaru put his foot down it twisted. The strength drained from his legs, and he fell to his knees. He put out his hands to catch his fall, and cursed his idiocy for stumbling at such a critical moment. \"Huh... That's strange...\" Just as Subaru tried to push against the ground so he could stand back up again, his arms started shaking. He didn't think he could stand back up again. He didn't think he could even lift his body. \"Well, I've done it now, haven't I...?\" Subaru looked back as he heard that voice tinged with anxiety, and then he realized what had happened. A knife was sticking out of his back. \"Gah... Ah...\" As soon as Subaru was conscious of it, an unbearable pain swept through him. He choked. It was a natural reaction to the searing agony. ...I've been stabbed! I've been stabbed! I've been stabbed! I've been stabbed! I've been stabbed! I've been stabbed! I've been stabbed! Dumber, the one with the knife, had struck first. Subaru didn't notice as he drew his weapon, and just as Subaru was trying to push past him, he was stabbed in the back. This pain was the same kind of torture that he had experienced in the past few hours, but no matter how many times he experienced it, he didn't think it was possible to ever get used to it. \"What? You really stabbed him?!\" \"I didn't have no choice! What do you think would have happened if he had escaped out into the street? Just think of what we'd have to deal with if he did.\" \"Wait! Don't do that, you idiot! ....Ugh. Yeah, this is bad. His guts are damaged. He's gonna die.\" The giant, Dumb, turned Subaru's body over, and as he did, the knife was pushed deeper into his back. \"Ughh....\" Still greater suffering was piled on top of Subaru's existing pain and even Subaru's death throes were kept from leaving his throat. Subaru couldn't call for help or scream out in anger. There was nothing left for him to do. He just repeated his irregular breaths, feeling as though he was going to drown in his own blood as it filled his throat. The feeling in Subaru's hands and feet started to leave him, and his consciousness was flickering weakly like a light about to go out. Again, his vision went dark. This was the end, just like last time. What do you mean, \"last time\"...? Subaru thought to himself. The fact that he was now clinging to an idea that he had disregarded as stupid before just made him feel even more pitiful. But if he was going to cling to it, he might as well go all the way. Turn your thoughts away from dying. Before you die, figure out what's happening around you. Your eyes are dead. Your arms and legs are gone, too. What you have left is your nose and your ears. Then you'd better use them both to death. It doesn't matter what lingering scent I smell. It doesn't matter if all I hear are insults. I smell the mud of the road. I smell the iron-like smell from the blood pouring from me. Now my nose is dead. It's dead. I doubt my ears will last much longer, either. \"...at...take the...valuables...\" \"...ere! The guards! They...\" \"...un! No! If we...caught, I'll...\" All I was able to pick up were those bits of conversation. That's great and all, but the part of my brain I need to figure out what that means is already dead. I'm dying so I just listened. I don't know if I'll remember. ...What does it mean to remember? Why do I want to remember? What does it mean to want? Why...what? As Subaru's brain died, his other functions followed soon after. At the very end, with a faint sound of something being pulled from him, something scraping...Subaru lost his life a third time. When Subaru's consciousness awakened, he was in darkness. But realizing that it was a darkness of his own creation, he opened his closed eyelids. The bright sunlight burned his eyes. Subaru groaned a bit and put his hand over his eyes. \"So, kiddo. How's about that abble?\" It was a question that Subaru had grown used to hearing, in a voice he had grown familiar with, that was lobbed at him. His ears were in perfect working order. The hustle and bustle of the main street was loud, and completely different from the silence that was around him just before the end. That was the way things were, despite the fact that, distance-wise, the silence was in an alley just one turn off the main street. Pretty pathetic that I couldn't even get more than one street away. The shop owner frowned at not getting an answer to his question. As Subaru saw the white scar being stretched across his face, he thought it made him look even more villainous. But Subaru knew that he was actually a really kind and thoughtful person who was obsessed with his kid. Of course, he probably didn't remember what Subaru did. Thinking of that, he turned once more to the scarred shop owner. \"How many times have you seen my face so far?\" \"What do you mean, 'how many times'? I haven't seen you before in my life. The way you stand out, I don't think I'd forget you and that awful expression you've got if I'd seen you before.\" \"I didn't need to hear that last part about my expression, you know? Anyway, what's the date today?\" \"It's Tammuz the 14th. At this point, according to the calendar it's halfway through the year.\" \"Huh. I see. Tammuz, huh.\" Subaru had no idea what that date was supposed to mean. To begin with, he had no idea how they fixed the calendar in this world. It was probably too much to expect that they went by a solar calendar, but he couldn't be sure. \"So anyway, kiddo. How's about that abble?\" The shop owner was patient as Subaru went silent, but for him to have to deal with someone this long to just buy a single apple... He seemed to be reaching his limit. His face was starting to twitch. Now this was a guy who didn't look all that great wearing a smile in the first place. When he was trying his best to smile, it probably had more of an effect of scaring customers away, and Subaru felt that whatever god put this man in this occupation was a cruel god indeed. As for Subaru's answer to the shop owner's question, he put his hand on his hip and proudly put out his chest. \"I'm sorry, but I'm as broke as the sky is blue!\" \"Then get the hell out of here!\" The shop owner's yell was enough to throw Subaru back, and he scrambled out of there in a hurry. I really can't go back to that shop for a while, Subaru thought, with both meanings in mind. CHAPTER 4 *** \"Wallet...check. Cell phone...check. My corn soup chips and cup ramen are also here. My tracksuit and sneakers are at zero damage, and of course...\" Subaru lifted up the hem of his tracksuit top and twisted around this way and that to look at his back. There were no scars or any other traces of a wound on his back, around by his hips, or around the front of his abdomen. There wasn't a knife sticking out of him, or anything else unusual. \"Phew. Good. There's no greater embarrassment for a swordsman than getting stabbed in the back. As someone who did kendo in middle school, even if I take a wrong turn off the road when it comes to life, I can't let myself lose the way of the swordsman.\" The sun was high in the sky and a gentle breeze brushed up against Subaru's skin. People bustled about, back and forth on the main street, and yet again that same lizard cart passed by. \"Well, with this much circumstantial evidence, I've got no choice but to accept this, do I? It's a little bit hard to believe, but...\" All of the wounds on Subaru's body had disappeared; the rips and bloodstains on his tracksuit were gone as well. In Subaru's hands, inside that plastic convenience store back were his unopened chips, waiting for Subaru to eat them. \"So, it's one of those things, huh...\" He put his hand that had been up against his jaw out in front of him, and then snapped his fingers so that everyone on the street could see him. \"Whenever I die, I start back at square one in my initial state. At least, that's the way it seems.\" Subaru had thought that his theory was stupid before, but he finally decided to accept it. \"I guess I'll call it 'Return by Death'... The fact that it's a power that assumes you're going to lose really makes it fitting for me, doesn't it?\" It"}, {"text": "was a power that activated once the user had lost their life. If the heroic thing was to come back from the brink of death and win the day, then getting a chance to do things over after you've lost felt more like something a cheat would do. \"More seriously, though...would you call this sort of thing time travel?\" A loop phenomenon that only activated under certain conditions. If you were to think of it as a game, you could say it was like Subaru was being brought back to an auto-save point, one he had no control over, whenever he died. \"So a loop or a time slip, huh... I mean, I'm used to this sort of thing happening in manga, but I saw somewhere that realistically it was really hard to explain time travel to the past...like, that it would be easier to remake the world from scratch rather than slip back in time.\" With what Subaru knew from the Internet, where knowledge was vast but shallow, going back in time was about as unrealistic as you could get. However, given that he had already been summoned to another world, he wasn't really in a position to be debating degrees of unrealism. \"But if you consider that this Return by Death thing is really happening, then everything so far starts to make sense.\" Looking back, Subaru had already died three times in this world. The first time was when he and Satella had visited the loot cellar together. The second time was when he, Rom, and Felt had all been cut down by Elsa's blade. Then the third time, which to Subaru just felt like it happened a few minutes ago, he'd died a dog's death. Unlike the first and second times, the third death was the worst, and he couldn't make any excuses about it. He didn't think that he could mess up so badly as to be killed by weak mob characters while he was still in the prologue. \"Still, dying three times in only half a day is just way too high of a rate.\" Given that normally people only had one life to live, dying three times in half a day was just absurd. Sure, Subaru had lived the previous seventeen years of his life peacefully, but depending on how you looked at it, if you multiplied 17 years by 365 days, and three resets, Subaru had lived through quite a few days on which he could have died. \"Or...if you looked at it another way, I just suck at living.\" The difference between the difficulties of staying alive in his previous world and this one was far too great. There were tons of places here that threatened Subaru's life. There were dangerous places wherever he turned. \"Given the similarities between the first and second time...Elsa was probably the culprit the first time as well.\" The first time, the one who was hiding in the shadows of the loot cellar was probably Elsa. The giant corpse was Rom, and he and Satella had arrived after Felt and Elsa had had their negotiations. \"I can't be sure, but Felt probably asked for too much, and after negotiations broke down...that's what happened.\" After Elsa had finished making sure no one was left alive to tell what happened, Subaru and Satella had been unlucky enough to walk right in. \"The second time is simple. I was already with Rom and Felt when negotiations broke down... To be killed twice by the same person... Is Elsa the kind of character that when you run into them it means certain death?\" Subaru tried to pass the idea off as a joke so that he could lie to himself about how scared he was of her. It was obviously foolish to even think of any options he might have if he ran into her. The only place where Subaru had a chance of encountering Elsa was the loot cellar, and the only reason that Subaru needed to go to the loot cellar was to take back Satella's stolen badge, and the reason he wanted to take back Satella's stolen badge was because he wanted to return the favor to Satella for saving him. However, because Return by Death had sent him back in time, his duty to return the favor to Satella was left behind in the world of his first run-through. When Subaru met Satella on his third run-through, her cold reaction to him was proof of that. Satella didn't know Subaru anymore. The favor that he was supposed to return got lost along the way as he was reset. If so, it would be best for Subaru to forget about Satella and focus on avoiding the threat of Elsa. Subaru didn't know why had been thrown into this Return by Death scenario, but because of it, he was fortunate enough to know the future. He knew what mines to avoid. Avoiding them was the right thing to do. \"Well, it's about time I got moving. Fortunately, I know that I can turn my cell phone into cash, so I'll just amass some funds, and live a good life using my modern knowledge. It'll be full of dreams! Don't you think, old man?\" \"Just when I thought you were muttering some nonsense to yourself, you're asking my opinion? I don't know what you're talking about, and I don't care.\" As Subaru looked back to the man in the shop from before, seeking affirmation, the man gave his retort with an annoyed look on his face. With that cold response of his Subaru felt a little hurt inside. No matter what world you're in, the way people interact with strangers isn't all that different. \"But you see, there are some people out there who, even if it puts them in a tight spot, can't help but help other people out.\" Even after something precious had been stolen from her, and even as she was in the middle of chasing after the person who'd stolen it, Satella had helped a completely and utterly useless stranger, took the time to heal his wounds, and tried to walk off without accepting any thanks. She accepted that useless person's selfishness and for her trouble met a horrible end. \"When you do the same thing three times, there are a couple of things that you begin to understand. Well, more like after three times you'd have to be incredibly stupid not to understand those things. I may be a little stupid, but not that stupid.\" \"Just what nonsense are you talking about?\" \"There's probably a pattern here. Some kind of inevitability. No matter how many times you do something over, at least a few things will never change. Or at least there's some sort of strong force that tries to keep things that way. For example...\" All three times, Satella had her badge stolen by Felt. The first and second times, Elsa caused a bloodbath. Even the third time around, it had probably happened as well, unrelated to Subaru's death. \"I don't know if I can win against Elsa. I still don't know. But there is one thing I do know.\" If on the fourth time around Subaru didn't do something, Felt and Rom would be killed by Elsa. It was also unavoidable for Elsa and Satella to fight as well. So what if those two died? Subaru thought. One's a bit of a villain who deals in stolen goods, and the other one is a bold girl who tries to overcharge for those stolen goods without any sense of shame or regret. Both of them were criminals, so wouldn't it be better off if they were gone? But still... \"Well...I guess I really am a product of the modern age. Even though I always used to make fun of people like this when I sat in front of a computer screen...\" Subaru used to act as if he thought pity and compassion were stupid. It wasn't that he thought of it as an act, however. He just thought of himself as someone who didn't really care all that much. That way, no matter what situation he found himself in, he was able to keep himself from getting too emotional about it. It didn't matter to him if a few people he knew died. At least, that's how he used to think. \"But you know, I hate it. It feels terrible. I know those two are far from being saints, but knowing that someone you know is going to be killed...that's just impossible to ignore.\" In the past, when he acted uncaring, it really must have been nothing more than an act. It was the product of his interactions happening in a virtual world. Now that he had to deal with these heavy issues in real life, there was a whole different level of weight to them. But at the same time, Subaru thought he was shallow for changing one of his core beliefs about life, just as soon as things got hard. \"And of course there's also Satella I mean, that girl. I just can't just abandon her like that.\" After calling her by that name and seeing her reaction, Subaru realized that \"Satella\" was a fake name. When he thought back to the first time around, she didn't seem to be too fond of being called by that name. Then with the third time, it was painfully clear. In other words, that meant that she didn't trust him enough when she'd told him that name. Subaru hadn't built up enough relationship points with her, so at one of the scenario forks he failed the test for getting her real name. \"In that case, I guess I'll just have to work hard enough for her to actually give me her real name this time.\" Subaru stretched and twisted his body around, popping several joints as he got himself pumped up. The storeowner looked on at Subaru's strange actions with a surprised look on his face. Subaru, in response, suddenly lifted up his hand and said, \"There's just some times where a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do! Right, old man?\" \"Yeah, yeah. That's exactly the way it is. Totally agree. So go on and get outta here.\" Subaru thought that he had struck a good pose and said that line pretty well, but given the storeowner's terribly monotonic reaction, he could feel his face starting to twitch. Once the annoyed storeowner finally pushed him out of the store, he hurried along. After running about two hundred meters down the crowded street, he stopped and stood for a moment. \"Now, then...\" Subaru lifted up his short bangs with his hand and then in exaggerated motions looked this way and that. Then he put his hand out to a nearby wall and leaned against it. \"Where do I need to go if I want to meet Not-Satella...?\" he said. It wasn't a phrase that inspired confidence about his actions, but he wasn't going to just sit around and wait. Now that Subaru thought of it, most of the circumstances surrounding his and Satella's meeting were coincidence. Both the first time and the third time Subaru had run into Satella in a place not far from this main street, but that was about the only thing in common. At the very least, it would help if Subaru knew when the theft would be taking place... \"Just how long was I sitting glumly there in front of that fruit shop?\" Subaru felt like it could have been a few minutes, but at the same time it could easily have been almost an hour. \"Should I just wander about and leave everything to chance? Hope that the red string of fate between me and her will bring us together?\" Subaru had lifted both of his pinkie fingers in front of his face, twisting them around as if they were dowsing rods while spectators watched on with curious glances."}, {"text": "As Subaru continued searching he realized that he was in a place that he remembered seeing before. \"I guess my ties to fate are working pretty well after all!\" Subaru said, full of himself, before realizing just where he was. Before he knew it, he had wandered into an alley. \"Isn't this the place where I first met Satella...?\" He felt that it was similar, but he couldn't be sure. Even if this was the exactly same alley as before, there was no guarantee that she would come running down it. \"After all, the dead end I was at when I was killed the third time was in a completely different place...\" Even if it was certain that Not-Satella would get her badge stolen by Felt every time, the route that they took after that would differ depending on the circumstances. It was possible that the first and second times the route they took was the same, but the third time, because of Subaru's interference, fate must have shifted slightly. After thinking that far, Subaru realized just how shallow his thinking was. If he entered this familiar alley, it was possible he would run into Felt and Not-Satella. However, that also meant meeting another set of people as well. In other words... \"I really am tired of looking at your faces, Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest,\" said Subaru wearily as he turned around, and saw the same three thugs blocking his path out of the alley. Their looks, their clothes, their faces everything was the same. Both their goals and their equipment must be the same as well. Subaru was making absolutely no progress at all. Subaru supposed that made sense, though; after all, he was just walking around the same places as before. \"Why these guys when I have so much trouble finding Not-Satella and Puck...\" The reason Subaru was having trouble meeting up with Satella was that her actions were probably affected by several other random factors besides Subaru. However, the reason that Subaru kept encountering Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest was probably because they had picked him out for a target early on. That's why, even if he picked a different alley, he would always run into these guys. Their event was unavoidable. \"Even if I've come up with a splendid theory as to why all of this is happening, it doesn't make me any happier. So what do you want with me, guys?\" \"Just what is this fool mumbling about?\" \"He's probably just too clueless to understand what's going on. How about we show him.\" Dumb and Dumber's conversation was the same as ever, and that made Subaru feel even lousier about the whole thing. However, this didn't mean that he could let his guard down. The bar set for the conditions necessary to clear the Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest event wasn't very high, but there wasn't a 100 percent chance that Subaru would be able to make it out of this alley. After all, they were the ones who had caused his death the third time around. As he was thinking about that, Subaru's thoughts drifted to what happened the last time, just as he was dying. As he lay dying, he was able to pick up some of the sounds of what was happening. Subaru tried to remember the final conversation that Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest were having. What were they afraid of? There was a word that they said. Subaru thought he should be able to remember it...and it was... \"Guards!!\" Hearing Subaru's sudden and unexpected SOS, Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest jumped. The silence of the alley was broken and the volume of Subaru's yell was sure to have reached the main street. With all of Subaru's training in kendo, his sense of shame about suddenly yelling out was long gone. Additionally, Subaru, who realized at this point in his life what a loser he was, wasn't one to let his pride be hurt by suddenly calling for help. \"Someone! Someone please call some men over here!\" \"Wha... What, are you kidding me?! You're really going to start calling for help?! Who does that?!\" \"In this sort of situation you're supposed to listen to us if you want to avoid getting hurt! You're just going to ignore us and call for help?! That's not normal!\" \"What?! Don't give me 'That's not normal'! In what world is this not normal?! Oh! It can't be! You're not saying that you're trying to do something where it'd be trouble if I called out, are you? Oh my God!\" \"Shut up! You know what we mean!\" \"I'm not listening! I can't hear you through that thick wall of insincerity! Police!!\" Subaru continued to yell and keep the thugs on their toes, but on the inside he was breaking out into a cold sweat. As Subaru had been breathing his last during his third time around, just as his consciousness was leaving him, Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest had said the words \"guards\" and \"run.\" In other words, in this world, there was an organization that functioned like a police force. That information led Subaru to the new option, \"Call for Help.\" Even he thought it was a pretty lame tactic. But unfortunately, Subaru didn't seem to get a very encouraging reaction from the crowd out on the main street. \"Well, looks like that didn't work...\" \"Threatening us like that...I almost got a little bit scared there, man.\" \"Just a little bit!\" \"Not even a little bit! Only a tiny bit!\" In unison, Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest proceeded to deny how pathetic they were, in about the most pathetic way possible. As the men tried to regain control of the situation, after looking at each other and nodding, each of them took out their weapons. One took out a knife, one took out a rusty hand ax, and finally the last one... \"Why are you the only one without a weapon? What? Didn't you have the money to buy something?\" Subaru taunted. \"Shut up! I'm stronger without a weapon! I'll beat you to death, you little punk!\" \"Man, I would have loved to show you all what happened to you guys the second time around.\" Remembering how he had landed that perfect suplex, Subaru wanted to give himself another pat on the back, but at the same time, he realized that he was in a pretty bad spot right now. It was looking more and more like Subaru wasn't going to make it out of this. \"Can't you guys let me off easy? ...I'm not a big fan of pain.\" After going through the experience three times already, Subaru knew that he was never going to get used to dying. To top it all off, the cause of death in all three instances was because of wounds inflicted by a blade. The sharp pain that went along with those wounds always felt fresh and was always a shock, as if his nerves were being whittled away. Subaru didn't want to experience that kind of death again, and that was not all. \"Just because I've been Returned by Death a few times already, there's no guarantee that it will happen this time as well...\" Subaru had no reason to think his Return by Death had a limitless number of uses. Subaru didn't notice a number on his body or anything, but as the saying goes, Buddha only has the patience to save you three times. If what was happening to Subaru was a gift of the Buddha's good graces, Subaru had already used up all of his continues. \"If I die here, my life in this new world may really come to an end. ...I guess my best bet is to try to run away, even if I get injured in the process.\" The weapon that looked the most able to inflict a mortal wound was, of course, the tried and true knife. The hand ax really did have a lot of rust, so if Subaru blocked himself with his convenience store bag, he'd get away with a blunt hit rather than being cut. Of course, the weaponless guy was a safe bet. So Subaru focused all of his attention on Dumber, the one with the knife, and played through his escape in his head. Three... Two... \"That's enough.\" That voice suddenly and clearly cut right through the dry tension of the alley. In the voice's gallant tone there was no sense of hesitation, and no ounce of mercy. Just listening to the voice was enough to be overpowered by its existence, and it was a perfect match for carrying the voice's owner's intentions. Subaru lifted up his head, and Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest turned around. In front of them was a young man. What stood out about his appearance, more than anything else, was his flaming red hair. Underneath it were sparkling blue eyes that could only be described as \"daring.\" His extraordinary good looks helped magnify his sense of gallantry, and with one glance you could tell that this young man was a cut above the rest. He was slender and tall and wore well-made black clothes, and while it did not have elaborate decor, around his waist he also wore a knight's sword, which endued him with an inordinately intimidating air. \"No matter what the circumstances are, I will not allow you to perpetrate any more violence against that young man. That is enough.\" As the young man said this, he walked straight past Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest, and got between them and Subaru. Subaru was at a loss for words at the young man's bold attitude, but Dumb's, Dumber's, and Dumbest's reactions were different. All of the thugs' faces went pale, and with quivering lips they pointed at the young man. \"That burning red hair and sky-blue eyes...plus that knight's sword sheath engraved with the image of dragon's claws... It can't be...\" The thugs stared on in disbelief. \"Reinhard... Are you the Master Swordsman Reinhard?!\" \"Well, I suppose I don't have to waste time introducing myself. ...Although I am not fond of that title everyone gives me. It's still too heavy for me,\" the man called Reinhard muttered with a tinge of self-deprecation in his voice. But the light in his eyes was unwavering. The thugs, overpowered by the young man's stare, took one step back. They looked at each other as if trying to determine the best time to escape. \"If you're planning on running away, I'll let you off this time. Just head back out toward the main street. However, if you plan on being stubborn, you will have to deal with me.\" Reinhard put his hand on the hilt of his sword and motioned to Subaru behind him with his chin. \"We're down three against two. They have the advantage on us in numbers. I'm not sure if the little help I can give will be enough to make a difference, but I will do the best I can, on my honor as a knight.\" \"Wha-what?! Are you kidding me? This isn't even a contest!\" After hearing what Reinhard had said, Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest were completely out of sorts. They scattered like baby spiders, forgetting to even hide their weapons as they ran out onto the main street. Unlike the first time around, none of them threw any insults as they ran. That was a testament to the difference in scale between them and this young man. As soon as the thugs left the alley, the heightened tension that had permeated it immediately faded away. Realizing that this was something the young man did purposefully, Subaru was again at a loss for words. More than anything else... \"For you to do all of that and still keep so cool...it's like you and I aren't of the same species.\" The level of human purity in his face, his voice, his stance and actions, were all way too high. If his personality and upbringing were also the"}, {"text": "same way, if he wasn't doing something corrupt on the side, there was no way it all could balance out. Putting his jealousy aside, Subaru let out a flat-sounding laugh, and then prostrated himself on the ground. \"You have saved my life, and I, Subaru Natsuki, am forever grateful. I must say that I am impressed with both your honorable intentions and bravery...\" \"You're giving me too much credit. It was because their advantage of three against one fell to three against two that they became unsure of themselves. It would have been different if it was only me against them.\" \"No... Given how scared they were of you, even if it were ten against one...or even a hundred against one, I still think they would have run away. But what's with your gallantry stats?! You're like a saint both in body and mind. You're so brilliant I think I'm going to go blind!\" To be honest, there was such a difference in their looks, Subaru really didn't want to be standing next to him. Subaru examined Reinhard again, but the more he looked at him the more he thought that this beautiful young man had to have been chosen by God. However, he did not look like he was a guard. \"Umm...I can just call you by your name, Mister, uh...Reinhard...right?\" \"I don't need the 'Mister.' You don't have to be so formal, Subaru.\" \"Well, we're pretty close all of sudden, huh? Anyway, thanks again, Reinhard. You're the only one who came running when I called. I have to say, it makes me feel a bit lonely that no one else seemed to care.\" Given how many people were out walking on the main street, it wasn't possible that Reinhard was the only person who heard Subaru call out. But as Subaru complained, Reinhard lowered his eyes slightly. \"I don't really want to say this, but I think I can understand them. For the majority of people, the risk of interfering when thugs like those are involved is too great. You were right to call for guards.\" \"The way you're saying that...are you a guard, Reinhard? You don't look like one at all.\" \"I get that a lot. I am off duty today so I'm not wearing my uniform, and even I know that the way I look, I'm lacking the sternness of an authority figure,\" Reinhard said, spreading both his arms, but Subaru thought differently. The biggest reason that Reinhard didn't look like a guard was that he appeared to be far from the lowly, rough sort of idea Subaru had of what a guard should look like. \"Now that I think of it, didn't they call you something like 'master swordsman'...?\" \"My family's position is rather special, you see. So I've got a lot of heavy expectations placed on me. Every day's a battle.\" Reinhard smiled, shrugging his shoulders. Apparently Reinhard had a sense of humor as well. Subaru was now completely sure that this guy was the perfect human being. Forget about lamenting to God about the unfairness of it all, at this point, Subaru was just impressed. \"By the way, I thought that your hair and clothes, and also your name are pretty unusual, but... Where are you from? Why did you come to the capital of Lugunika?\" Reinhard asked, looking down at Subaru and his appearance. Given that Subaru's background was unclear, it seemed to be a pretty natural response for someone who was a guard. \"It's a little hard to answer that first question. Last time when I said, 'a small country to the east,' it didn't work, so let me rephrase that. I've come from a place even farther east than here, a place no one has ever seen before from the ends of the Earth,\" finished Subaru with a glint in his smile. Subaru thought that it was a pretty safe answer, but Reinhard looked surprised. \"Farther east than Lugunika...? You can't mean beyond the Grand Cascade. Is that supposed to be a joke?\" \"Grand Cascade?\" Subaru tilted his head with the unfamiliar term. Cascade...like, a waterfall? Subaru, who wasn't familiar with the geography of the surrounding area, had no idea what Reinhard was talking about. The only places Subaru really knew in this world were the main street, alleys, the slums, and the loot cellar. \"It doesn't seem like you're trying to fool me or anything, but... Well, that's fine. Anyway, it looks certain that you're not from the capital, but you have a reason for being here, right? Right now, Lugunika is not as peaceful as it usually is. It's falling into a state of unrest. Whatever you're here for, I'd be glad to help.\" \"Come on, it's your day off, right? There's no need for you to waste a day off just to help me out, you've really done more than enough already. ...But, I would like to ask you a question, if I could.\" Subaru shook his head in response to Reinhard's offer, but then he raised up a finger as if he suddenly remembered something. \"I'm all ears. I'm not a very informed individual, so I'm not sure I can help all that much, though.\" \"Well, it's less of a question and more me asking about a person, so no worries. So anyway, have you seen a silver-haired girl with a white robe walking around in this area?\" Not-Satella's appearance was one that stood out. Of all of the things about her, the color of her hair and that hawk-embroidered white robe in particular stood out the most. If someone like that was walking around in the capital, there was a good chance that Reinhard, a guard, had noticed. \"A white robe and silver hair...\" \"If I were to add anything, she's extremely beautiful. Also, there's this cat... Well, it's not like she's carrying it around in front of her, but she has one, if that's helpful.\" If there was someone who was wearing a white robe, had silver hair, and had that cat spirit, then it had to be her. However, the cat was usually hidden away inside her hair, so expecting a sighting that included the cat was hoping for a little too much. \"...What do you plan on doing when you find her?\" \"Something she lost...er...I guess something she's looking for? Anyway, I want to give what she's looking for back to her.\" Of course, Subaru didn't have it on him right now, and it was even possible that she hadn't had it stolen from her yet, but there was no need to complicate things. Reinhard narrowed his eyes at Subaru's response, and then silently thought for a few moments before answering. \"Unfortunately, I can't say I've seen anyone like that. If you'd like, though, I don't mind helping you find her.\" \"I can't ask that much of you. It's all right, I'll figure things out on my own.\" Subaru lifted up his hand to refuse Reinhard's request, and then turned to exit the alley and walk along the main street. It was possible that he would run into Not-Satella again, like he did the third time around. If possible, it might be better to catch Felt and keep her from stealing the badge in the first place. Considering what would happen otherwise, Subaru thought that might be the best approach to take. \"The problem is, considering how fast Felt is, whether I could really catch her or not. In the worst case, I could get some guards to come to the loot cellar, but...\" \"Loot cellar?\" \"Oh, don't worry about that. Forget I said anything. It's just the name of a place an old man I know likes to hang out.\" As Reinhard reacted to his statement Subaru tried to divert his attention and at the same time rejected the idea of getting guards involved. Even if Subaru brought guards with him, with Elsa as an opponent there was a good chance that it would only result in more casualties. That's just how superhuman that assassin's skills were. \"Well, if all of the guards here were superhuman as well, it might be a different story... Anyway, I guess I should head back to the main street.\" \"Are you going?\" \"Yeah, I am. Thanks again, Reinhard. I'll have to return the favor one day. ...Can I meet you again if I go to a guard station or something?\" \"I think so. If you just give my name, they'll know where to find me. I'd love to see you again, so stop by for any reason at all.\" \"Have I really done anything, or said anything to raise our relationship score that much? ...Anyway, if I ever get stuck or lost again I'll be sure to stop by,\" said Subaru jokingly, waving his hand good-bye. \"Be careful,\" said Reinhard, as cool and gallant as ever. Pushed on by those words, Subaru was able to exit the alley with absolutely zero damage, all the while not noticing just how much the young man with the blue eyes was sizing him up as he watched him leave. Now that Subaru had made it safely back to the main street, he did his best to look for Not-Satella. However, all that he could really do was open his eyes wide and stare at the passing crowd. Using his memories from the third time around, Subaru positioned himself near the fruit store he had become familiar with. The face of the scarred store owner that Subaru could see out of the corner of his eye was very stern. \"This time our meeting wasn't exactly the best, was it... But, I know that you really are a kindhearted guy!\" Subaru said, giving the villainous-looking shop owner a thumbs-up, to which the shop owner turned his face away from, annoyed. Subaru drew his thumbs back feeling unloved, and then returned his gaze to the street. As always there were tons of people passing by, of all shapes, sizes, and kinds. It had been over ten minutes since Subaru had started his lookout, and it had already been nearly an hour since he had started his fourth run. \"I'm not sure I can trust my sense of time, but it would be strange if the theft hasn't happened yet...\" said Subaru to himself, when an anxious thought crossed his mind. \"Hey, old man.\" \"What is it, Mr. Penniless?\" When the shop owner came out in front of his store and looked at Subaru, he had already given up trying to hide how annoyed he was. \"Well, it's true that I am penniless, so I won't deny that, but... Old man, I've got something I'd like to ask you. Have you seen any sort of commotion happen around here lately?\" \"You've got guts asking me a question without buying anything.\" \"Well I know that, but last time... Wait...\" As Subaru was talking he realized why the shop owner was in such a bad mood. The first time around, when Subaru and Not-Satella had visited the fruit shop together they had met again with...the shop owner's daughter. She hadn't been saved yet this time around. \"How could I have forgotten about that?! Don't tell me that I have to go find her first?\" \"What are you talking about? Oh, fine. Whatever. Look, kiddo. Those sort of 'commotions' you're talking about aren't exactly unusual around here.\" \"I'm glad you answered my question, but are you serious?!\" Now that Subaru thought about it, the loot cellar was filled with things stolen from all over the capital. If there were that many thefts occurring, it spoke volumes about the level of security in the capital. \"Does this mean I've completely run out of options...?\" \"However, the most recent commotion wasn't the usual fare. Someone was using magic and shot off two or three blasts of it. Just look.\" The shop owner leaned forward and pointed to a stall about four spaces to the left. When Subaru followed"}, {"text": "with his gaze, he saw that right beside that stall was an alleyway, and there were a few holes gouged out of the wall leading into it. \"Oh, wow.\" \"There were some icicle-shaped things that were used like arrows, and one of them stuck inside that wall. It disappeared immediately afterward, though.\" Each of the four holes was a little bigger than a quarter. Since they were able to make a hole like that in a stone wall, Subaru shivered to think what would happen if they hit a person. \"This magic looks like it's on a different scale from the first time I saw it... I wonder if Not-Satella's a little more upset than usual this time...\" If Subaru approached her without thinking, he might be the one on the receiving end of that magic. Subaru felt a cold sweat form on his brow. \"But if that's the case then I was too late this time as well.\" If the theft had already taken place, it was going to be difficult for Subaru to meet up with Not-Satella on his own. In other words, what he should shoot for now was... \"I need to try to meet up with Felt. If possible, I need to try to catch her before she enters the loot cellar, and then exchange my cell phone for the badge, but...\" Given that was a place at which he had already been killed twice, Subaru wanted to avoid the loot cellar as much as he could. \"If I go too late, then it'll be what happened the first time all over again. However, if I go and meet up with Rom and wait for Felt, then I'll end up repeating what happened the second time around...\" What was most important was Felt's location. Right now, Felt was probably being chased around the capital by Not-Satella. If he could, Subaru wanted to meet up with her before she arrived at the loot cellar. \"Maybe I could just rely on my Return by Death and use this time just to gather information...?\" While that seemed like a viable option, Subaru shook his head and quickly rejected that plan. This was something he realized after experiencing death three times, but every time it was incredibly painful. He didn't want to experience something like that ever again. Subaru was anxious about relying on his Return by Death power when he didn't know how or why it worked. Say Subaru decided to throw away this fourth time around by watching things unfold with the intention of dying afterward so he could reset everything. What if when he did that, his Return by Death didn't activate because he had run out of the number of times he could use it? No one would be laughing at that end. \"In the end, I've really got to cling to life as long as I can. Well, I suppose that goes without saying, though.\" After making his decision, Subaru twisted around to stretch his body. The shop owner didn't seem too pleased as Subaru did his radio exercises in front of his store, but as Subaru finished and was jogging in place he waved back at him. \"I don't know why you suddenly decided to help me, but thanks, old man.\" \"It's no big deal. Just a little while ago, another penniless person like yourself helped my little girl out, you see.\" As he listened to the shop owner's reply, Subaru first was surprised and then burst out laughing. Oh, the power of fate. No matter how troubled this shop owner's little girl was, someone was going to save her. Just knowing that made Subaru feel that it was worth coming here. \"All right! I'm really going to get going now. Next time I'll buy one of your abbles for sure!\" \"Well, if you do you'll be a customer, and I'll welcome ya. Work hard, Mr. Penniless,\" the shop owner said in a monotone. \"Gotcha. I really am praying that the next time I come back here will be with money in my hands, I tell you,\" said Subaru as he left running. Subaru's destination was the slums, but this time, in a different direction from the loot cellar. If he headed toward the loot cellar, he was sure to raise a couple of bad flags, so this time he was going to try a different route. \"You're looking for where Felt lives? If you just take that road over there until it turns into another street, you should be able to find it.\" \"Thanks, you really helped me out, brother.\" \"No problem, brother. You uh...live strong and take care of yourself out there, okay?\" The middle-aged man Subaru was talking to smiled at him weakly as he disappeared behind a creaking door. Throughout their entire conversation, the look of pity on the man's face never once disappeared from his awkward smile. Subaru tightened his fist, happy that his plan was working. \"It was a strategy I formed after my experiences from the first and second times in the slums, but...I never imagined it would work this well,\" Subaru said, shaking the sleeve of his tracksuit, which was caked in dried mud. In order to help him track down Felt, the brilliant plan he'd thought of after arriving at the slums was to make himself look as down and out and destitute as possible. The first time around, when Subaru visited the slums with Not-Satella, Subaru had not long before been beaten up by Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest. Because of that, most of the slum's inhabitants had pitied him and been fairly cooperative. The second time, however, when Subaru hadn't taken much damage, the people gave him a comparatively cold reception. The difference was like night and day. So remembering that, Subaru made himself look so bad he had risked overdoing it. \"Well, I did step in the poop of who knows what kind of animal, after all. Anyway, I think I've pinned down where Felt sleeps, but...the problem is whether she'll come back here or not before she goes to the loot cellar.\" Fortunately, of the four people he was able to get information from, all of their answers about the location of Felt's living place matched up. However, Subaru thought the chances of her coming back to it were about fifty-fifty. There was also the possibility that she did not want to risk having her place found out by returning there while she was being chased. \"Well, sitting around and worrying about it won't help me at all, so let's stop worrying. Okay!\" No sense in worrying about things that can't be helped. This is where Subaru's decisiveness shone. As he continued to scrape off more caked mud from his clothes, Subaru dashed off deeper into the slums. It was dark as ever and there were puddles of who knows what here and there that Subaru had to jump over to avoid. But just as he was doing so, he almost ran right into someone who suddenly appeared. Subaru was able to turn just in time and hit his back against the wall of the alley, giving off a grunt as he lost his breath. \"Oh, I'm sorry about that. Are you all right?\" \"Don't worry. Don't worry. I'm actually a pretty sturdy fell...ow...?!\" As he was trying to play himself off as tough, Subaru looked up and when he realized who he was looking at his sentence trailed off and ended in a high-pitched squeal. After hearing Subaru's voice like that, the black-haired woman laughed softly. \"What a funny guy. Are you sure you're all right?\" she said, lifting her hair back behind her ear. Even that simple motion was somehow sexy, and Subaru reaffirmed the belief inside himself that every move this woman made was extremely erotic. She was definitely someone Subaru did not want to meet again. It was the woman who had cut open his abdomen and spilled his guts twice. It was Elsa. \"You don't have to act so scared. I won't do anything to you.\" \"I-I'm not sc-scared, okay? W-why would you think that....?\" \"You smell...\" replied Elsa, seeing past Subaru's empty attempts to seem tough as she slowly narrowed her eyes as part of a beautiful smile. \"Smell?\" thought Subaru, confused. But Elsa just breathed in through her beautifully formed nose. \"When people are afraid, they smell afraid. Right now you are afraid...and also angry, it seems...at me.\" Elsa seemed to be having fun revealing what Subaru was thinking, as she looked up at him. Subaru answered with silence and a false smile, taking deep breaths and doing his best to control the quickening pace of his heart. As Subaru went silent, Elsa narrowed her eyes like a snake. While Subaru felt pinned down by her stare, at the very least he would not be so weak as to look away. Elsa licked her lips in response to Subaru's empty display of strength. \"...I can't say I'm not curious, but fine. I can't risk causing a fuss right now.\" \"Th-that doesn't sound very nice. If you scare people too much your beauty's going to be put to waste, you know?\" \"Well, don't you have a way with words. ...If you could better hide the animosity you have for me, I might have been impressed.\" Elsa took her finger and gently pushed on his forehead, and Subaru's frozen body loosened up. As Subaru gasped and heaved, trying to get his breath back, Elsa put her finger to her lips. \"Well then, I'll be going now. I have a feeling we'll meet again.\" \"If the next time we meet is in a bright place with lots of people around I'll be able to relax, too,\" said Subaru cynically, but it was all he could do just to get that out. Elsa gave a longing smile as if she didn't want to leave Subaru just yet, but turned back around, with her black robe fluttering as she melted back into the darkness. After Subaru watched Elsa literally vanish from sight, he leaned up against the wall, feeling like he had run a mile. \"I...I definitely didn't expect to run into her again just yet. I guess she was just wandering around the area before she went to the loot cellar...?\" At the unexpected encounter with the final boss, Subaru felt as though his spirit was about to break. In terms of how mentally prepared he was to deal with either, meeting Elsa had much more of an impact on him than meeting Not-Satella. Subaru prayed that this was the last time he was going to have to see Elsa. \"I think that Felt's place is just farther down ahead, but...Elsa couldn't have found Felt and already wreaked havoc, could she...?\" She was a deranged psycho who derived pleasure from cutting open people's stomachs. It was not unthinkable that she would have slaughtered two or three people just to kill time. Plus, with this being the deepest part of the slums, Subaru had a bad feeling about what he might find. \"I-it's probably all right. I didn't see or smell any blood. ...I think.\" Given the stench of rotten garbage that filled the alley it would be impossible to discern the smell of blood, and it was so dark that Subaru wasn't sure he'd be able to see traces of blood if they were there. But it was probably okay. Surely it was. So Subaru hoped at least. About five minutes after his encounter with Elsa, Subaru reached a dilapidated shack. \"With the information I was given, I think this is it, but...does this really count as a living space?\" said Subaru, confused as he stood in front of the wooden plank that was serving as a door to the shack. The inside of the shack was about the size of two portable toilets, the kind used at construction sites. It was as though someone took the phrase, \"You only"}, {"text": "need half a tatami mat for standing, and a full one for sleeping,\" to heart. \"Well, I suppose if it's just a place to sleep, then it fits the description...\" However, the thought that such a small girl was living in a place like this made Subaru feel pity for her. He supposed he could forgive her for being so obsessed with money. \"So she's living out her life here, huddling her already small body into an even smaller space. I guess it's no surprise she'd turn out as twisted as she is. Ah... How pitiable, how pitiable is she.\" \"Oh come on! It's not that bad. Just who do you think you are, kid, belittling my place?\" Just as Subaru was entering his pitying mode, he heard a voice behind him and turned around. There in front of him, glaring at him, was the little blond figure of...Felt. The way she looked was not particularly different from the other times they had met. If anything, she looked a little dirtier than before, but that seemed like the result of her getaway being a quite a bit more rough on her than last time. \"What's with you, looking at me like that with those pitying eyes?! You underestimating me just because I'm a girl and just a little bit filthy?\" \"I think you're reading the wrong emotion there, but...I'm just glad I've found you.\" While Felt didn't even try to hide how irritated she was, Subaru subconsciously relaxed his shoulders in a sense of relief. Subaru was genuinely happy to meet up with her again. He was worried about what might have happened after his near-miss incident with Elsa, but in the end, things seemed to be looking for the better, rather than the worse. In response to what Subaru said, Felt replied, \"Oh, so you're a customer.\" She breathed out her nose, pleased with herself. \"The fact that you came here means you've got business with me, right? From the way you look, it's clear that you're not from around here.\" \"Oh. You're quick to see that I'm not really one of you. You've got good eyes there.\" \"The people around here would at least take a little bit more care about the way they look. You're trying way too hard. Plus, the way you're trying to fool us with that dirty trick of yours, you look like you're even worse a person than I am.\" As always, this girl really knows how to be insulting, doesn't she? Subaru thought, quickly wanting to take back everything he'd said about pitying her. \"So, what do you want? If you want something stolen, I'll need the money first. Depending on who the target is I may ask for more later, though.\" \"'If I want something stolen,' huh... This is quite a business you're running here. Are you really that proud of your thievery?\" \"It's called making a living. If I don't do this, I'd have to sell my body. Anyway, so what's it going to be? Or do you have some other business for me? Depending on your answer...\" said Felt, quickly moving her fingers as if showing off her dexterity. In her hand was a small knife that appeared as suddenly as if it had been summoned by magic. It was clear that she meant to show that she could defend herself. If Subaru had to fight Felt, given both her dexterity and the fact that she had a knife, he had no chance of winning. But Subaru had no intention of fighting. He lifted up his pointer finger and shook it left and right while clicking his tongue, as Felt continued to be on guard. \"I only have one item of business to discuss with you. I would like to buy from you that badge you stole.\" Having come this far, Subaru thought that being indirect or trying to dodge the topic would just worsen Felt's impression of him. There was also the fact that Elsa was still wandering around the area, so Subaru wanted to dive right into negotiations. However, Felt put her hand over her chest where it was likely she was holding the badge. \"How do you know that I stole a badge? The only person who should know that is the one who hired me, and I only stole it just a little while ago. This is way too quick a response for you to have just heard about it on the street.\" \"When you put it that way... Yeah? That's a good point. That was too careless, even for me, right?\" \"...You really need to do a better job of hiding your intent, kid. A little taunt like that and you're already spilling the beans?\" As Subaru held his head in his hands at his mistake, Felt looked as though she had lost the heart to keep up her hostility. Felt dropped to her knees so that she was eye level with Subaru. \"So you want to buy this badge off me, huh? What are you trying to do? You can't be on the same side as that woman, right? Is she your rival or something?\" \"More like my archenemy, maybe? Like how you'd feel if she killed your parents. Or rather, if she killed you.\" \"What are you talking about? Well, whatever, I don't really care about that.\" As Subaru was trying to figure out how he was going to talk his way out of this one, Felt just laughed. She then took the dragon-adorned badge out from her breast pocket and waved it in front of Subaru. \"I'll sell this to whoever can offer me a higher price. Even if there's a chance that woman'll be angry if I break off our deal.\" \"Yeah, there's definitely a possibility she'll just snap, but... Anyway, I'm just talking to myself, you can ignore me.\" Subaru cleared his throat, and put on a serious face. \"So does this mean you'll hear me out?\" \"Only if it looks like there's money in it for me. That's obvious, right?\" \"Sounds good to me. ...I've prepared an item that is worth more than twenty blessed gold coins, and I would like to buy your badge with it.\" Felt's ears perked up, and her red eyes narrowed like a cat's. It looked as though she was trying not to appear shaken, but if she had a tail it would be twitching back and forth, so Subaru could not help but smile. \"Huh, I see. That's quite a price. It looks like my hard work's finally gonna pay off. ...But unfortunately for you, your rival has already offered me the same amount, you know?\" \"Cut the crap! The deal was for ten blessed gold coins, right? You get too greedy and you'll die! No, like, seriously.\" In actuality, it was pretty clear that that was why she died the first time. Cause of death: greed. With Subaru having gotten the price right, Felt must have thought that she couldn't play it off anymore. After staring wide-eyed at him for a few moments, Felt lightly scratched the side of her head. \"What, you know that much, too? ...Yeah, okay? The deal was for ten blessed gold coins. But you know, if I tell the person who hired me that another offer was made, she might counteroffer with more, you know?\" \"That one's not a lie, you know?\" Felt, the thirteen-or fourteen-year-old, added, curling the edges of her mouth. \"You really are sly, aren't you? I'd like to say just give it up and take the deal, but I don't suppose you'd listen to me, huh?\" \"Of course not! Plus, I'm not sure I can trust you. My ears didn't miss a word you said. You didn't say you brought twenty blessed gold coins, but only something worth that much. Isn't this a little unfair, with me knowing nothing about what you've got up your sleeves, but you knowing all about me?\" \"I think it's more of a matter of how much you can prepare that really matters in negotiations...but it is true that without showing you this first, we're not going to get anywhere.\" Subaru wanted to avoid having Felt sulk too much and wasting time, so he took his key item for the negotiations, his cell phone, out of his breast pocket. Upon seeing the small device, Felt raised her eyebrows a little bit, but that was it. As always, she didn't respond to anything unless it was clear that it would lead her to money. \"Twenty blessed gold coins for this thing? It only looks like a hand mirror to me...\" \"This is one of those immensely popular mitia. It can take a slice of time and freeze it, saving it away.\" Subaru turned on the continuous shooting mode. A light and mechanical sound went off several times. The bright light flashed through the alley and showered Felt with light. \"Whoah!\" she said, in a rare show of girliness as she reacted. Felt looked as though she was about to complain, but Subaru quickly showed her the cell phone's screen. \"This is the power of this mitia. Using it you can leave behind a clear image. Another thing to add is that this is a very rare item. This is the only one like it in the entire world. How about that?\" Subaru had gotten used to explaining the cell phone's function at this point, and when he finished, Felt went, \"Hmm...\" and looked carefully at the cell phone in Subaru's hands, before nodding in agreement. \"...It doesn't seem like you're lying. But this is me? You said a clear image, but I think I'm quite a bit better looking than this.\" \"If you weren't in such a terrible environment and eating better, and while it may contribute to what you might think of as shrewd business sense if you could rid yourself of that sly, dirty personality of yours, I'd say there's hope for you! It's really just a matter of how you're dressed up.\" \"If we're talking about choosing the right words to say, you have no talent when it comes to holding a conversation, do you? Geez.\" While Subaru might have scored himself a bit of irritation from that last statement, things were going well overall. However, one of the strong points of the people who lived in the slums was that they never easily agreed to anything. \"I'll accept that this thing you have is rare, but I'm still not sure I believe you when you say it's worth twenty blessed gold coins. I'm not such an airhead that I'll just take you at your word.\" \"Well...that's to be expected. I don't mind personally that you've got a spongy brain, but you're right. We need a third party's opinion.\" It would have been great if Subaru could have pushed the negotiations through then and there, but he expected that that wasn't going to work. The problem was who to use as a third party... \"Deep in the slums, there's this place called the loot cellar. It's just as the name suggests, but I think that the quickest way will be to ask the weird old man that's there. He's fair when it comes to appraisals. He's very experienced, so I think he won't have a problem, even with this mitia.\" \"I thought this would happen...\" Subaru had expected Felt to suggest Rom. It was also her meet-up point with Elsa, as well as a place where she'd have a bodyguard if things went south. Given that an appraising eye was necessary for Subaru's mitia card, there really was no other choice. However, Subaru really wanted to have everything settled before they ended up at the loot cellar. \"I have no problem with having the old man look at it, but...\" \"Are you really going to call him 'old man' without even having met him yet? You may regret it, you know? He's pretty rough with people who"}, {"text": "don't know how to show respect.\" \"Despite that, he seems to be quite doting on a certain foul-mouthed young girl, always giving her milk and all...\" Subaru thought about the bald old man who always looked at Felt with calm eyes. From Rom's perspective, it must be like taking care of a granddaughter. But Subaru had no problem with him; it was the place that was the issue. \"I don't know what you seem to have a problem with, but if you're in such a hurry, we should go ahead and get going to the loot cellar. To be honest, there was something else that I was planning on doing, but...\" \"Planning on doing?\" \"Well you see, the person I stole this badge from is a lot more persistent than I thought, so I thought I'd try to sabotage her a bit. After all, you give the guys hanging around a little money and they'll do anything for you.\" \"All right, let's get going, immediately. Right now. Let's go go go!\" Subaru pushed on Felt's back as she started walking and hurried her along toward the loot cellar. \"What's with you?\" complained Felt, puffing up her cheeks, but Subaru was proud of himself for being able to avoid as many casualties as he could. A little cash was way too low a price to offer for anyone to stand in Not-Satella's way when she was in a hurry. If the alternative was getting hit with a block of ice and squirming on the ground, Subara was sure they'd rather clutch their hungry stomachs instead. \"My only condition is that we have the old man take a look, settle the deal quickly, and then get straight out of there.\" \"Why are you in such a hurry, kid? You're all sweaty, you know. Live strong and take care of yourself.\" \"Everyone seems to say that, but is that like the slogan of the slums?!\" Subaru had the feeling they should change it from \"live strong\" to \"live rough.\" As Subaru put that thought behind him, he made his way with Felt to the loot cellar for the third time in total this fourth time around. He would leave immediately. He would dash right out of there, even if he had to leave everyone else behind. Having made his decision, Subaru pushed harder on the back of Felt in front of him. \"That hurts!\" \"Ow!!\" said Subaru as he was kicked. After meeting up with Felt at her shack, Subaru and Felt made their way through the slums toward the loot cellar. The space between buildings was very narrow, and it was difficult for sunlight to make it through into the winding alleys. This additional darkness from the shade of the buildings only made the slums seem even drearier. *** Subaru could feel a dampness underfoot. There were broken bottles of alcoholic drinks and scraps of paper all over the place, and every now and then there was a strong unpleasant stench that struck the inside of his nose. Whether it was with Felt or Not-Satella, this was not the kind of place to be walking alone together with a young girl. \"Now this would just be so much better if we were holding hands and in a more beautiful and colorful place.\" \"Cut it out with that disgusting talk. Don't tell me that you're into little girls.\" \"I'm more into older women. You don't have to be so cautious, come on over here.\" Perhaps because Felt had sensed danger from what Subaru had said, she started to pull away, but Subaru called her back. Reluctantly, Felt edged closer. \"No funny business, okay? You're the one who's going to be more in trouble if this deal goes south. We clear?\" \"Why can't you just see that I'm doing my best to get this wary little kitten I'm dealing with here to relax so we can be friends? If you're so against me being friendly, why don't you stop messing around and actually take me to the loot cellar?\" \"...How did you...?\" \"How did I figure it out? Oh, come on, I'm not that stupid. I mean, I'm not incredibly familiar with this area, but I'm confident in my sense of direction. The way we've been zig-zagging around like this, even I'm going to start to get suspicious,\" said Subaru, looking down at Felt, who went silent, and shrugging. With Subaru being right on the mark, Felt couldn't help but look away, but Subaru himself was extremely nervous, his heart racing. After all, everything Subaru had just said was mostly a bluff. Subaru had been bothered by the fact that Felt's route didn't quite match up with the way he thought was the right way to get to the loot cellar, but what really caused him to question Felt was the fact that he had seen the same graffiti that was written on the wall twice, though at a distance, in a short period of time. However, at this point, his bluff was all he had to rely on. \"I know it's asking too much for you not to doubt me, and from your perspective, what I have to offer probably sounds too good to be true, so I can't blame you for wanting extra time to look me over.\" \"You've figured all that out, and you're not angry?\" \"Well I understand that it makes sense for you to doubt me, and I am being unreasonable. However, I will not compromise on time. Please, take me straight to the loot cellar. I'm begging you, please,\" said Subaru, raising his hands, pleading. Felt was startled, her eyes opened wide as she hesitated for a moment, not sure how to react, but she then took her hand and roughed up her blond hair. \"Well damn, I just don't get you. I don't get you but...I feel like I've got to pay you back for not getting angry at me just now. Fine, I'll take you straight there. I'll just leave the rest of my doubts in Rom's hands.\" \"I don't dislike that attitude of feeling totally free to rely on others, but...well...I, uh...nevermind.\" Just as Subaru was about to lecture Felt, he realized what he was about to say and muddied his words. What did Felt really mean when she said she'd leave everything to Rom? Rom treated Felt like she was a cute granddaughter of his, and he felt so strongly about her that he was ready to lay down his life for her. But how did Felt feel about Rom? Subaru didn't want to think that that bald old man, whom he couldn't bring himself to hate, was just being used by her. Felt narrowed her eyes as Subaru suddenly trailed off, but she didn't pry. Instead, having changed her attitude toward Subaru, she led Subaru straight to the loot cellar, without taking any detours this time. As Subaru kept after Felt as she trotted on ahead, he thought again about the course of events that would happen once they got to their destination. It was already Subaru's fourth time doing this. He wanted to go the best route he possibly could. As Subaru continued to walk, lost in thought, he saw that Felt had stopped, and was glaring at him. \"Stop looking down as you walk! You'll get infected by the gloominess around here, you know?\" \"Well, I'd love to keep my head up, but it's not exactly clean and organized down around my feet, so it's dangerous if I don't pay attention. ...What do you mean 'infected by the gloominess'?\" \"You know exactly what I mean. I'm talking about the attitude of all the losers who live here.\" Felt nodded her head to show she was talking about the surrounding area, the slums. The way she spit out her words showed clear animosity and hatred for the place, and Subaru opened his eyes wide. \"Losers...? Don't you think that's a bit harsh?\" \"How's it harsh? I'm talking about people who languish in this alleyway life and lose the will to even try to get out of here or better themselves someway. I hate losers like that.\" Subaru had spent a good amount of time talking with the people who lived here in the slums. It wasn't as though they had fallen so far that words wouldn't reach them, but like Felt said, he couldn't deny that they seemed to be content with life here, or rather, they seemed to have given up on getting anywhere else. It would be easy to say that that kind of attitude couldn't be helped, but Felt wouldn't accept that answer. In the dim light of the alley, the light from Felt's crimson eyes would not fade one bit. \"I have no intention of living out my whole life here in these slums. If a chance comes my way I'll cling to it and make it mine. The same goes for this deal now.\" \"So that's why, huh...\" The second time around, Felt had done everything she could to find weaknesses in and get more out of Elsa and Subaru. It was easy to explain those actions simply by saying she was greedy, but knowing what he did now, Subaru thought he could understand why Felt was so persistent. Felt wanted to leave the slums, to break out of the circumstances of her orphaned childhood. At the root of all her actions was a desire for something more. \"So, with twenty blessed gold coins, will that dream of yours come true?\" \"...It'll definitely be closer to coming true, and if I were going alone it might just be enough, but I don't know,\" Felt muttered. \"If you were going alone?\" Subaru's sharp ears wouldn't let that one slip, and he raised his eyebrows in response. Felt realized her mistake, clicked her tongue, and looked away. \"It's nothing. We're not so friendly that I'm going to talk about... Why am I being so talkative today in the first place?\" said Felt, clearly regretting the slip of her tongue. \"Maybe you're loosening up a little because your goal's in sight?\" replied Subaru, as he felt himself grinning. Felt said if she were \"going alone,\" she might be able to make it. This meant that she had someone else in the slums she couldn't leave behind. For Felt, who held such a feeling of animosity toward the people of the slums, there could only be one person she could feel that way about. Thinking about who that was, Subaru couldn't help but grin. \"What's your problem? That smirk of yours is starting to tick me off.\" \"It's no big deal. I just realized that I was worrying too much about something I didn't need to be worrying about. Of course that's how it is. Of course. I don't know why I was worrying so much,\" said Subaru, showing his teeth as he smiled. Everything suddenly made sense to him. The second time around, Felt and Rom seemed to treat each other like family. Both were killed by Elsa, but even as they were dying they must have been thinking of each other. Plus, Felt had saved Subaru's life in the nick of time once before as well. If Subaru felt indebted to Not-Satella, then he should feel indebted to Felt as well. \"Let's hurry up. We've already lost too much time.\" \"I still don't understand why you're Hey, wait. I said stop that!\" As Subaru started off and walked past Felt, he put his hand on her head and roughed up her blond hair. Her hair with its thin strands, which had probably never been combed, didn't feel bad flowing through Subaru's fingers. After Felt left the slums one day, and was dressed up a bit, Subaru thought she would probably shine bright. So, in order to also put Felt on a path to reach her dreams... \"I've really got to make this work, don't I? ...I'm the only one who"}, {"text": "can do this!\" \"Stop saying all these weird things and getting obsessed with yourself! I'm gonna bite you!\" With Subaru's hand still on Felt's head despite her protests, he silently solidified his determination. He would change the fates of not just Not-Satella, but Felt and Rom as well...all of the people who had moved his heart. That must be why Subaru kept repeating this day over and over again. \"I said, cut it out!!\" Felt said, before biting Subaru. \"To the giant rats...?\" \"Where might I find me some boric acid\u00e2\u20ac\u201claced dango? Now that's some poison.\" \"To the great white whale...?\" \"You know, the first guy who comes to mind when I think of the word 'captain' is that good ol' Captain Ahab. Bet he has some fishing hooks.\" \"...To our most honorable great dragon...?\" \"Since this is a fantasy world, I bet they really exist, but man, if I ran into one of those I can guarantee you I wouldn't be able to do anything. But you know, they are really cool, so I do kind of want to see one, but what a contradiction, huh? Those mixed-up feelings of mine can burn in hell!\" \"Can't you just say the passwords without having to throw in all that nonsense?! Can you be more irritating?!\" The door to the cellar slammed opened so hard it looked as though it was going to come off its hinges, but Subaru, who expected this, had stepped back and was dealt no damage. Growling in frustration, too tall for the entrance, was the bald giant Rom, whom Subaru had grown used to seeing at this point. His face was red, his blood pressure probably high. \"If you get all angry like that, you'll pop a blood vessel. Even if we had modern medicine, I'd say your situation looks pretty bad.\" \"If you think it's so bad for me, then don't make me angry! Just who are you anyway?! I'm not supposed to let anyone in today, so scram!\" \"Uh... Sorry about that. This guy is actually my customer, so could you please let him in?\" said Felt, who had been hiding behind Subaru's back and just peeked out from behind him. Rom slowly relaxed his shoulders. As Felt looked between a disappointed Rom and a whistling Subaru, she let out a sigh. \"You really have a terrible personality, kid. Without being too mean, it's simply the worst. Anyway, we're coming in, Rom.\" As Felt slipped past Rom, still looking down, she entered the loot cellar as if it were her own place. Rom first looked at Felt for further explanation but was ignored, so he turned his annoyed face toward Subaru. \"She really marches to the beat of her own drummer, huh? Us normal guys just get left behind, am I right?\" said Subaru. \"I'd like to start back at square one, where I was first teaching her what different words meant... Anyway, get inside,\" replied Rom, with the tone of a man who had given up and washed his hands of everything, before shrinking his giant body back away into the cellar. Subaru followed after Rom into the dusty air of the loot cellar. He tossed a few cautious glances this way and that, but fortunately there was no sign that Elsa or Not-Satella were hiding somewhere inside. Felt was casually sitting at the bar counter, drinking a glass of milk as if it were her own. \"What? This is the only cold one left. I'm not letting you have it,\" she said. \"I can't believe you're not the least bit bothered by how shameless you're acting... Hey, old man, I'll just have some alcohol, whatever you've got. Thanks,\" said Subaru. \"You're one to talk! I'm not sharing with you! You're not getting any, you hear?!\" shouted Rom as he ran across the room and rushed behind the counter, creaking the floorboards as he went, trying to hide what looked like his stash. Rom's overreaction was enough to inspire pity, and Subaru just said, \"I'm joking,\" with a chuckle. \"Well then, old man. We've already wasted a lot of time, so before we get sidetracked, I'd like to get straight to the point.\" \"I get the feeling we've already gone way off track, but...what's up?\" \"Basically, I want you to appraise something. I would like you to put a price on this mitia I have here, and guarantee its worth to Felt.\" When Rom realized that the conversation was turning to business, his gray eyes turned serious. Old Man Rom looked at Felt, who nodded in confirmation, before turning to look back at Subaru. Realizing that Rom was wordlessly asking to see the item, Subaru took his cell phone out of his pocket and handed it to Rom. It seemed that the metallic look of the phone was what first caught Rom's eye, and while he ran his fingers over it it looked like a tiny toy in his oversized hands. \"So this is a mitia. Even for someone like me, this is my first time seeing one of these...\" \"I'm pretty sure this is the only one of its kind in the whole world. Also, it's rather delicate so please be careful with it. If you break it I really have to kill myself, and I'm not joking about that...of course, meaning so I can start over.\" Rom spent a while carefully looking over its outward appearance, but then slowly opened the folding phone. Rom had his first surprise as the phone started up and let out a sound, and he got his second surprise when he saw the phone's wallpaper. \"This picture...\" \"I thought that this would be a good time to use that one. In order to show you the device's abilities, I put a scene from Felt's day as the wallpaper.\" The wallpaper was one of the pictures that Subaru had taken of Felt when he met her in the alley. He picked the one he thought looked the cutest, and given the image quality he thought it was quite nice overall. Rom looked from the image over at Felt, who was sipping her milk, and said, \"Well, you've certainly surprised me. I don't think there's anything else out there that could draw such a perfect picture.\" \"This is a mitia that takes out a slice of time and stores it away. It doesn't even compare with a picture someone has drawn, does it? If you'd like I can take one of you as well.\" \"I'm interested, but it seems kind of dangerous. It doesn't take any of your life away, does it?\" \"No matter what age and no matter what world, it looks like that superstition about photographs persists, huh...?\" Subaru gave a weak smile in return to Rom's reaction, something that seemed like it should be out of the Taisho period, or before, and replied, \"Even if I take your picture, you'll easily live until you're eighty or so.\" Felt's reaction as she was listening to the conversation was also cute, and so after getting his permission, Subaru took a picture of Rom and showed it to him. \"Hmm...\" Rom nodded. \"This is certainly something. If I were to take care of it, in terms of blessed gold coins maybe fifteen...no, I could absolutely get more than twenty for this. I believe it's worth that much.\" Rom's business sense sparked; his eyes were shining as he made his appraisal. While Subaru thought he was unsure how proud he could be to get the seal of approval from someone in the business of selling stolen goods, it certainly did put him at ease. His nostrils flaring with confidence, Subaru turned to Felt. \"Well, there you have it. This is the card I have to play. Like I said, it's worth more than twenty blessed gold coins. So now, I'd like to trade you this for that badge you've got.\" \"I see you seem to make that face a lot, but it really is annoying.\" Apparently unimpressed that everything looked as though it was going according to Subaru's plan, Felt made a face. However, that didn't change the fact that this new information made the deal sound even better to her. \"Well, to be honest, I'm happy that I've got a guarantee that I can turn this mitia into cash. It looks like I don't have to doubt you anymore about it being worth twenty blessed gold coins, either. I accept the card you have to play.\" \"Right?! So anyway, it looks like our negotiations have gone well. It'll be your job to sell it, but I wish you the best of luck! Now that's wrapped up, how about we go off somewhere and have a drink to celebrate our success?\" Subaru quickly walked over to Felt and put out his hand to take the badge, but Felt slowly pushed it back. \"Wait a minute. Why are you in such of a hurry?\" \"Life has its limits. You've got to treat every second of it as precious, and it's a shame to waste any \" \"Right, right, enough of that,\" Felt said, narrowing her red eyes, and with a calm attitude stuck at the heart of her doubts. \"Why do you want this badge in the first place?\" Subaru paused, holding his breath, and as both Rom and Felt saw that, Subaru realized he had made a mistake. What he should have done was say a bunch of nonsense, just like he had before. However, nothing would come out. As Subaru kept his silence Felt's mouth loosened up into a smile. \"The older lady who asked me to steal it in the first place didn't want to talk about it either, and it looks like you're the same?\" \"...Well, stealing is pretty bad itself, so with theft involved, I'm sure everyone has some ulterior motives they wouldn't like to talk about...\" \"But in your case, you stand out more than one usually would. If I slow down and think about it, you're trying to steal this away from whoever wanted me to steal it in the first place.\" Felt's attitude was like one of a cat torturing its prey. \"Just what is this badge anyway? It's worth more than it looks, isn't it? That's why everyone wants it. In other words, it's worth more than even this mitia.\" \"Wait, Felt. That line of thought is really dangerous. I pretty much already know what you're planning on saying right now, even if I'm just drawing on my experience from playing games, but...really, you need to stop.\" As Subaru watched Felt's miserly gauge rise, he broke out in a sweat as he tried to stop her. If negotiations dragged on any longer than this, the bad end that was just waiting for them was going to be a reality. \"This deal is for more than twenty blessed gold coins! Just take it! Don't be any greedier than that! El The one who commissioned you can only pay twenty blessed gold coins herself. She won't pay any more than that.\" \"How do you know that?\" \"Well...\" \"The more you talk the more you're giving away. You're in league with her, aren't you?\" Subaru wished he could just tell her that he knew because of his Return by Death ability, but of course he couldn't. Even if he did explain it that way, there was no guarantee she would believe it. As Felt's eyes filled with even more doubt, Subaru knew that whatever he said, she wouldn't believe him anymore. At this point, he might have to wrestle the badge away from her. But if I did that I'd have to deal with this muscular geezer... \"Well, she's got you dancing in the palm of her hand, doesn't she, kiddo? Must be embarrassing given that she's younger than you.\" \"It's all your fault for giving her free rein. She's so tough I feel like I'm about to cry.\" If Subaru tried to be violent, all"}, {"text": "that would happen would be his getting beat to the ground by Rom. Even if he was able to grab it away from Felt, he didn't think he could outrun her. Subaru had seen how she could run like the wind. There was no way he could escape. \"Felt, please...\" \"Don't think begging is going to get you anywhere. Look, I accept your deal as an option, but it's not fair to make a deal without hearing what my original client has to say about it all. If you would tell me how much this badge is really worth and are able to prepare what it's really worth in payment, then I may reconsider, though.\" In Felt's eyes was not even the slightest amount of compassion or mercy. Her two eyes were desperately trying to draw out the truth from Subaru's attitude. However, Subaru's reasons for wanting the badge were not the same as Elsa's. He only wanted to return it to its owner. But while Felt didn't know Subaru's intentions, he knew hers. Subaru knew why Felt was so desperate to negotiate the best deal possible. He knew who she was trying so desperately for. So after a pause, he told the truth. \"All I want is to return that badge to its rightful owner.\" \"...What?\" Telling the truth was the most sincere thing he thought he could do. So while Felt's eyes opened wide, Subaru just repeated what he said before. \"I want to return that badge to its rightful owner. That's why I want it. That's all.\" Felt's red eyes glinted full of animosity, but Subaru stayed silent. He didn't have it in him to joke around at this point, so he just bowed his head. \"...Felt, I don't think he's lying,\" said Rom. \"Don't you be tricked by him! This has got to be a joke! Return it to its rightful owner? By paying all of this money to buy it back from the person who stole it? How stupid can you get? If that's what he wanted to do, he should have brought a guard with him to round us up!\" Of course Subaru couldn't do that. Not-Satella didn't want to get the guards involved. That's why Subaru had refused Reinhard's offer. Subaru couldn't go against Not-Satella's wishes. It was the least that Subaru could do, and it was his answer to the one who had saved his life. \"If you're going to lie, do a better job of it! Even if you act like you're serious, I won't be tricked! If I don't... That's right. I won't be tricked...\" Felt said, as if shaking some thoughts from her head, ending in a feeble-sounding voice. \"Felt...\" said Rom in a caring tone with a painful expression, probably knowing what was going on inside Felt. Either way, it didn't look as though Felt was going to change her mind. In other words, negotiations had failed. \"...Who is it?\" Suddenly, Rom's expression changed and he looked toward the entrance. Subaru, still in a state of shock from the negotiations breaking down, was too late to react to Rom's voice. \"It could be my client. It does seem a little early, though.\" Felt went over to the door, with her angry expression still on her face, and reached to open it. Subaru suddenly identified the impatient feelings welling up inside him. The loot cellar, a knock at the door, Felt's client all of those signals could only lead to one thing. \"Don't open the door! We'll all be killed!!\" It was earlier than Subaru had expected. From the windows he could see the sun still high in the sky. It was too bright to be past sunset. The first and second times around, despair had come knocking after sunset. Subaru hadn't let his guard down about their limited time, but still, this was way too early. Subaru still hadn't accomplished anything he needed to do to change this world. Subaru didn't make it in time. Her hand was already on the door, and it was pushed open from the outside, and the reddish light of early sunset swept the dimness of the cellar away. And then... \"What do you mean, 'be killed'? I'd never do anything that violent without warning!\" said a silver-haired girl with a sour look on her face as she stepped into the cellar. CHAPTER 5 *** \"I'm so glad you're here... I won't let you get away this time.\" Upon seeing the girl, Not-Satella, walk in through the door, Felt wordlessly stepped back. Felt looked mortified and her mouth twisted in frustration. \"You really are a persistent woman, aren't you... Why couldn't you just give up already?\" said Felt, sounding as though she was on the verge of grinding her teeth together. \"Unfortunately, this is not something I can give up on. ...If you'll be a good girl and hand it over I won't hurt you,\" replied Not-Satella, the tone of her voice incredibly cold. As Subaru felt the tension of the atmosphere in the cellar rise, he couldn't help but shiver. Why was Not-Satella here? The sun had only just begun to set. The first time around he and Not-Satella hadn't even reached the entrance to the slums yet. By the time they had reached the loot cellar, the sun was completely down. \"...Which must mean that without me, she would have found this place a lot faster...\" Even if Not-Satella hadn't run into Subaru in the alley and healed him, she would have found this place all on her own. Subaru couldn't describe how he felt, with the uselessness of his actions across both space and time so thoroughly proven. But even as he drowned in his empty feelings, the situation advanced without him. As Felt continued to step back, she had already crossed from the center of the room to the back, and Not-Satella, while continuing to block the exit, changed her stance and pointed her palm forward. With the faint sound of shattering air, Satella activated her magic. It seemed that her specialty really was ice magic, and as icicles formed in the air in front of the palm of her hand, the temperature of the room dropped. \"I only have one demand of you: Return my badge. It is very precious to me.\" There were six icicles floating in the air. The tips were rounded, so that their power seemed more in their weight rather than their sharpness. However, it was clear that if one hit, it would do far more damage than if a stone were thrown. Of course, Subaru himself was counted among the possible targets, and so he tried his best not to incite Not-Satella, just wordlessly looking on. \"...Rom,\" called Felt, a little over a whisper. \"I can't make a move. It's your fault for bringing in such a troublesome thing along with such a troublesome opponent, Felt,\" replied Rom, his giant body tensed as he shook his head. Rom had at some point grabbed his club and still held it in his hand, but his arm was slack and he didn't look ready to swing it. He seemed to be gripping and releasing it as though he was still hesitating. \"You're going to give up before the fight's even started?\" said Felt, challenging Rom. \"If this were an ordinary magic user I wouldn't be complaining, but...this one's a problem,\" replied Rom, with a hint of admonishment in his voice, narrowing his eyes as he looked at Not-Satella. In Rom's stare as he looked down at her was both an extreme sense of caution and an element of awe. \"You're an elf...aren't you, miss?\" said Rom, his lips shaking. Subaru looked up reflexively. Rom guessed that she was an elf, but that would make him only half right. Subaru knew from what Not-Satella had told him about herself the first time around. Upon hearing Rom's question, Not-Satella closed her eyes for a few moments, and then after a small sigh, she responded. \"Technically, you're mistaken. Only half of what I am is an elf,\" she said in a tone as if she was making a painful confession, and Subaru furrowed his brow. However, the other two had a much more exaggerated reaction, especially Felt, and with a shudder she continued to step back and said, \"A half-elf...and with silver hair?! You...you can't be...\" \"I'm not her! We only look the same! It's... It's a problem for me, too.\" Subaru didn't know what was going on, but he could tell that this was a conversation that Not-Satella didn't want to be having. However, Not-Satella's denial didn't seem to calm Felt down; rather, it put her even more on edge, and she turned her red eyes full of animosity toward Subaru, who was still standing silently on the sidelines. \"You... You set me up, didn't you?\" \"What?\" \"I thought it was fishy when you said you wanted to return this thing to its owner. The fact that you kept me from hiring people to block her way was also part of the plan, wasn't it? You two are in this together, aren't you?!\" As Felt said those words, gushing full of hatred, Subaru realized a few things. One, that Felt was having another misunderstanding, but secondly, why Not-Satella was able to find this place in such a short time. Normally, it really would be impossible for her to reach the loot cellar in this short amount of time. Normally, Felt would have hired people from the slums to get in Not-Satella's way, delaying her arrival. Because Subaru had rushed Felt and stopped her from doing that, Not-Satella had been able to come straight here. While Felt's doubts were untrue, they weren't very far off. It was true that the current situation was moving in Subaru's favor. Subaru did want to get the badge and return it to Not-Satella himself so he could receive her praise, but as long as she got it back, he wouldn't complain. If things kept going at this rate, it would work as a nice backup plan. However... \"Huh...? What do you mean? You two aren't together?\" Not-Satella seemed puzzled as to why Felt was turning on Subaru, but Felt just laughed. \"Ha! Cut the act! I'm the one who's backed in a corner here. So go ahead and take this badge from me and laugh at my stupidity, why don't you?\" \"Oh, come on. Just because you're at a slight disadvantage doesn't mean you have to cave so easily,\" replied Subaru. \"That's all you have to say after bringing this girl here? Damn it, I've been had!\" said Felt, roughly scratching at her blond hair and clicking her tongue. Satella seemed to frown at Felt's far-from-ladylike attitude, and Subaru gulped at the dangerous state of circumstances and misunderstandings, not knowing where to fix his gaze. As Subaru looked around he realized that there was a red flower decoration pinned to the left breast of Not-Satella's cloak. \"Haa...\" Subaru sighed, and then smiled. All of his hesitation up to this point just seemed so stupid now. Seeing Not-Satella's stern expression and attitude had reminded Subaru of the way she had rejected him in his last loop, and had caused him to be unable to do anything. However, he knew that no matter how many times he looped back, Not-Satella, at her core, wouldn't change. The fact that she had saved that little lost girl this time as well was proof of that. \"The more we all talk about this, the more confusing it's going to get, so, Felt, why don't you just go ahead and give that badge back. Now, Ste I mean, you should take it and get out of here, so you don't get it stolen from you again.\" \"Why are you acting like you know me all of a sudden? I really don't get what's going on here...\" said Not-Satella. \"I don't get what's going on either. Just who do you think"}, {"text": "you are?\" asked Felt, looking at Subaru. Subaru had tried to get things moving again and change the mood, but Subaru only got turned on by both girls, and failed to get anywhere. Subaru looked to Rom for help, but... \"It's a magic user we're dealing with. I can't really make any moves. Don't be so hasty,\" replied Rom, misunderstanding what Subaru was trying to say. Ugh, this old man's useless, thought Subaru, just barely holding himself back from clicking his tongue in irritation, then trying to figure out how he was going to respond to both girls' stares. But just then...a black shadow silently seemed to slide in and creep up behind the girl with the silver hair. \"Puck! Block!!\" A sensual smile melted into the shadows and raced forward, and a silver glint seemed to squirm as it lunged toward Not-Satella's white neck. In that instant with Subaru's eyes opened wide, the girl's head went flying at least it would have. There was a loud clash, not the sound of steel cutting through bone but of steel shattering glass. As Not-Satella was thrown slightly forward there was a bluish white magic circle activated behind her head. The light of the magic circle took the tip of the blade and had just barely kept the silver-haired girl alive. Not-Satella then leapt forward and turned around, her silver hair waving, and behind that curtain of hair Subaru could see a gray-colored furry animal standing. Puck lifted up its nose, proud of its save before looking toward Subaru. \"That was just in the nick of time there. You saved us.\" \"Nice going there, Puck. Really, I'm the one who's saved. Thanks,\" said Subaru, giving the cat a thumbs-up, even as he was still shaken. It was still before the sun had set in other words, Not-Satella's very reliable backup partner was still on its working hours. Subaru's quick response was important, but it was due to Puck's amazing performance that Not-Satella was still safe. As for the aggressor, her surprise attack blocked... \"A spirit, a spirit, huh? Ah...ha-ha... That's wonderful. I haven't ever opened the stomach of a spirit before.\" Lifting her dangerous weapon in front of her face, the woman's expression was one of ecstasy. It was the murderer Subaru had seen so many times before: Elsa. Both Subaru and Not-Satella were immediately on guard in response to the sudden new arrival, but the first one to react was neither of them. \"Hey! What's the meaning of this?!\" Felt yelled, stepping forward with her voice raised in anger. Felt pointed a finger at Elsa and then took the badge out of her pocket with her other hand. \"All you're supposed to do is buy this badge from me. Turning this place into a bloodbath was not part of our agreement!\" \"Buying the stolen badge from you is certainly what I came here to do, but it's hard to hold any negotiations if its owner had already come and taken it away. So, I decided on a change of plans.\" Felt's face was red with anger, but upon seeing Elsa's eyes fixed on her, wet with murderous intent, she gulped. Elsa looked on, with an almost loving gaze, at Felt's fear. \"I'll just kill everyone here, and then I'll pick that badge up from the sea of blood afterward,\" said Elsa, all while holding the expression of an affectionate mother on her face. She then tilted her head and continued on cruelly, \"You weren't able to do your job. Do you really expect me not to throw away something that's useless to me?\" *** Felt's face twisted as if in pain, but the emotion behind it was not of fear, but something else. Elsa's words must have touched upon something sensitive, deep inside her. Subaru didn't know what that was, but... \"Don't give me that, you bitch!!\" ...it was enough for Subaru to shout out in anger at Elsa, and forget about how weak he was compared to her. Elsa turned and looked at Subaru, surprised, and she wasn't the only one. Felt and Rom turned to Subaru and even Not-Satella was no exception. However, the one most surprised was none of them, it was Subaru. He couldn't understand himself, just why he was so angry. In part because he could not understand it as this emotion rose up inside him, he spit all of it out. \"Is it really that fun for you to pick on such a little kid, you intestine-obsessed sadist?! Just because things aren't going exactly the way you planned, you're going to wreck everything and throw a tantrum?! What are you, five?! How about you treasure life for once?! Do you know how much it hurts to have your stomach ripped open?! I know!!\" \"...What are you trying to say?\" \"I'm just taking this moment to let the unforeseen sense of justice inside me rant about the injustice of this damn world, and right now, to me, the injustice of this world is you, and this situation, so right now I'm channeling all of my anger about everything on to you!\" As Subaru's shouting continued to make no sense to her, Elsa let out a rare exasperated sigh. But while Subaru was kind of hurt by her nonserious reaction, with spit flying, he shouted one more time. \"All right! That's enough buying for time. Get her, Puck!!\" \"That was such an amazingly lame tirade there, I want to write it down and leave it for future generations. ...Guess I'll have to respond to your expectations, huh?\" Compared with Subaru's shouting and stomping, Puck's voice was aloof and detached. Elsa immediately looked up, but all around her, from all sides, were sharpened icicles, more than twenty in all. \"It seems I haven't introduced myself, little lady. My name is Puck. I'd like it if you at least remembered my name, as you say farewell to this world.\" Immediately afterward, the icicles flew at Elsa. *** The crisscrossing icicles whipped up a white mist and Elsa's black coat was lost in the low-temperature storm. The speed of the icicles was far greater than what Subaru had seen in the alley, and he could just barely follow them with his eyes. Subaru thought the sharp-tipped icicles would easily cut through Elsa's body, the tips of the clear bullets stained red with blood. There were twenty of them. If any of them hit their mark it should be a lethal. However... \"Did we get her?!\" said Rom. \"Now why did you have go and to say that?!\" Subaru yelled back. Even though Rom had been quiet all this time, he had said the worst possible thing at the worst possible moment. \"It pays to be prepared... I don't like wearing it because it is heavy, but it looks like I was right to wear it this time.\" Cutting through the white smoke, Elsa leapt out, with her black hair dancing behind her. She had her kukri held high in her hand, and in her light steps it appeared she had no injuries. Other than the fact that she had thrown off her black coat and was now only wearing her black skintight outfit, she looked no different from before. \"You're not going to tell me that because that coat is so heavy that just by shedding it you're suddenly a lot faster, are you?!\" \"That would be interesting, but the truth is simple. That coat has a formula woven into it that can ward off magic a single time. It looks like it saved my life.\" Elsa politely answered Subaru's question before kneeling down and striking upward with the tip of her knife. The target was Not-Satella, and the strike was aimed to drive the knife into her chest. Subaru instinctively started to cry out, but... \"I'd like it if you didn't underestimate spirit mages. We're pretty frightening if you make enemies of us.\" Not-Satella clapped her hands together in front of her chest, forming a multilayered ice shield that was easily pierced by Elsa's blade, but it took the knife and stopped her attack. Elsa immediately leapt back to retreat as a few smaller icicles were hurtled her way. The counterattack was due to Puck, who was standing on Not-Satella's shoulder by her silver hair, sweeping his arms this way and that like a battle commander. \"One manages defense and the other attack... In reality, it's two against one,\" said Subaru, impressed. \"That's the tricky thing about spirit mages. One'll attack, and the other defends. Depending on the situation, one might use simple magic, buying for time, as the other prepares a special attack... That's why we on the battlefield say, 'When you meet a spirit mage, lay down your weapons and wallet and run,'\" muttered Rom, still gripping his club. Subaru nodded. It didn't look as though the pairing between a spirit mage and their spirit could be easily beat. \"By the way, old man, what is it you're planning on doing?\" \"I'm looking for an opening so I can help out that elf girl. Of the two, she seems the one more willing to listen to us.\" \"Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait! No! You'll only get in their way! If you go out there the only thing that's going to happen is you're going to lose your right arm and have your throat slit. Stay right where you are!\" \"Don't say that! The way you put it makes it sound like I've already been cut down!\" As Subaru had seen Rom get cut down twice already, his words had a sense of truth in their tone. As if Rom was feeling what had happened to him in those different dimensions, he put his hands on his arm and neck. While Subaru was able to talk Rom out of it, the truth was that the fight between Elsa and Not-Satella was so intense, it didn't look like there was anywhere anyone could cut in. Countless ice shards had been created and were flying all over the room. However, in the midst of all of that, the way Elsa was handling it could only be described as superhuman. She would spin around, duck down so low it looked as though she were crawling on the ground, and at times she would step on the walls to evade attacks as though she were completely ignoring gravity. If even with all of that she didn't seem able to dodge an attack, she would use her blade to cut through the ice crystals and shatter them. She had paired with what her opponent could do in number with an overwhelming degree of skill. \"She really looks used to fighting, despite her being a woman,\" muttered Puck, impressed with Elsa's godlike skills and fighting sense. \"Well, it's been a very long time since someone called me a girl.\" \"From my perspective, most people I deal with are like babies to me. But even so, you're so strong I almost feel like I should pity you.\" \"To be complimented by a spirit such as yourself, I must say I'm honored.\" As Elsa gladly took Puck's praise, she fended off another shard of ice with her knife. Almost a hundred pieces of ice must have been thrown at her, but other than that very first attack, it didn't seem as though a single one of them had made their mark. \"I think if they keep this up, Elsa will tire out before they do...but I'm still anxious,\" said Subaru. \"That woman in black's movements really are incredible, but I don't think they can lose if they continue to hold the advantage in numbers...but it's not like that spirit will be able to keep itself here forever. As soon as that spirit's out, the balance of power will shift,\" replied Rom. \"Damn, you're right. How soon is it to five o'clock?!\" The first time around, Puck went to sleep just a little after sunset. It wasn't"}, {"text": "as though much time had passed since the start of the battle, but with this much magic use, wouldn't he be using up all of his stored mana or whatever? \"Just when things were starting to get fun... It pains me to see that something else is distracting you from paying attention to me,\" muttered Elsa as she twisted her body to dodge an icicle attack, confirming Subaru's fears. \"As a popular male, it really is tough on me. I can never put the girls to sleep. However, you know if you stay up too late it's bad for your skin,\" replied Puck in a light tone, but he didn't deny what she was saying. Just as Subaru was beginning to worry that Puck had reached his limit, Elsa's movements suddenly stopped. In response, Puck winked his black eyes at her. \"Don't you think it's about time we draw the curtain on this performance? When we keep repeating the same act it begins to get boring.\" \"My foot...\" As soon as Elsa tried to take a step, she fell forward, catching herself with her hands on the ground. Elsa's right foot had been frozen to the floor. The fragments of the ice shards Elsa had broken had piled up on the ground, and some had served as a way to bind Elsa's feet. \"You didn't really think I was scattering all of these things around for no reason, did you?\" \"...I guess this means you've got me.\" \"Just blame it on the gap in our ages. You have plenty of reason to congratulate yourself for getting this far. Now, good night.\" Throwing its chest out, Puck's body, still standing on Not-Satella's shoulder, started to oscillate at a high frequency. Puck was posed as if he was about to release his ultimate move, with both paws out in front, focusing more magic than ever before, and Subaru watched as that magic was shot off like an arrow. The magic did not take the shape of ice, but was simply a load of destructive energy. Along the path of the bluish white light everything froze, and in one fell swoop the loot cellar was filled with white. The energy passed through Elsa and broke into the door that formed the entrance to the cellar, blowing it off its hinges, and residual freezing energy from the attack even reached outside. As the brilliant light from the attack passed, everything was frozen, from the counter to the stolen items, to even the ground they lay on. Of course, if directly hit, even a human being would quickly turn into an ice statue, but... \"It can't be...\" said Puck. \"Of course it can. Ah, that was wonderful. I really thought I was going to die there.\" ...this was all assuming the attack would hit. \"...With you being a girl, I can't say I approve.\" While Puck's attack was dodged, Puck didn't seem any angrier than what his words conveyed. He simply wasn't happy with what Elsa had done. Subaru saw blood dripping, and a bit of steam was rising from the frozen ground. The blood was coming from Elsa's right foot. She was standing barefoot just out of the line of fire from Puck's attack, and bleeding profusely from her right foot, and it wasn't hard to see why. After all, she had sliced off the sole of her foot. \"I was afraid I might lop the whole foot off, seeing as how I hurried. That was a close one.\" \"Even if you only cut that much, it must hurt a lot,\" said Puck. \"Well yes, you're right. But it's wonderful. It makes me feel alive, and in addition to that...\" In response to Puck's worried sounding words, Elsa nodded with a look of ecstasy in her eyes, and without hesitation pushed her bleeding foot against a piece of ice. A sound that sounded like air shattering came erotically from Elsa's throat, and then immediately afterward she took her knife to the ice around her foot. With that, she had managed to stop the bleeding with the ice. \"It's a little hard to move, but this should be enough,\" said Elsa with a laugh, clicking her ice shoe against the ground, looking as though she was having fun. Subaru had no words to say in response to how Elsa's addiction to fighting left her without any hesitation when it came to maiming herself, but right now it was her opponent, Not-Satella, who was in trouble. \"Puck, do you think you can keep going?\" whispered Not-Satella. \"I'm sorry, but I'm really tired. I think I really underestimated her. At this rate I'm going to disappear from having run out of mana,\" Puck replied, for the first time without the confidence that had filled his voice before. As the cat stood on Not-Satella's shoulder, its figure began to shine, and looked as though it would fade at any moment. They were out of time. \"I'll find a way to handle the rest on my own, so go ahead and rest. Thank you.\" \"If something happens, I'll obey my contract. If need be, call me out, even if you have to use your od,\" said Puck with a warning, as his body disappeared in a wisp of mist. Subaru bit his lip, but he wasn't the one most disappointed by Puck's departure. \"Aw... You're going away? That's terribly unfortunate,\" said Elsa, the one who had been fighting with Puck with her life on the line. She sounded truly disappointed. She readied her kukri again and with the high-pitched click of her icy shoe, began to head toward Satella. A number of icicles materialized around Not-Satella in response, but there were far fewer than when Puck was with her. Even though Elsa had her movement limited now, the match appeared even. \"It looks like we can't just sit around and watch this anymore, can we?\" said Rom, gripping his club and getting ready to move. \"I don't know who's going to win this anymore, so if we just wait around we're going to miss our chance. You understand, right, Felt?\" continued Rom. \"I know, I know. Whether we help or run, we're going to have to make a move soon,\" said Felt, talking for the first time since Elsa threatened her. Felt moved beside Rom and then turned to Subaru. \"About what you said before... Thanks. It made me feel better.\" \"Huh?\" \"Only a little bit! Plus, don't call me a little kid. I'm fifteen years old. You're not much older than me, right?\" \"...Actually, I'll be eighteen this year. I'll be able to get a license to drive a car, and I can get married, too.\" \"You can't be that old! Your face looks younger than mine! Age a little, why don't you? At least on your face!\" Well, Subaru had lived his years lazily in the peaceful country of Japan, aiming to live every day as ordinarily as possible, so it couldn't be helped. Subaru felt as though his lack of determination was being mocked, and so he looked down at the ground, feeling useless. The weakest one here was Subaru, and it was enough that he was completely lacking in the ability to fight, but also... \"My legs just can't stop shaking... I guess this is what happens when you lack resolve.\" Forget about being qualified to fight, Subaru was physically unable to. Rom had strength in his arms and Felt strength in her legs and Not-Satella had strength in her magic, and so all of them could manage to fight. However, Elsa's abnormality trumped all of those abilities. \"It looks like she's starting to get pushed back,\" said Rom, and that was enough to completely describe what was happening. Not-Satella hadn't stopped shooting projectiles at Elsa, but Elsa just slapped them away with her blade, rendering them useless. In response to Elsa's dance of slicing attacks, Not-Satella would block the attacks with her ice shield, and freeze the ground in front of her feet to slide away, barely dodging Elsa's continuing attacks. After Not-Satella gained some distance, she would continue her barrage, but you could not deny that her position was inferior to Elsa's. To change the current situation, some kind of support was absolutely necessary. \"All right, I'm going!\" Apparently Rom had thought the same as Subaru, and after letting out a yell, Rom joined the fight. As Rom swung his club, it brought a gust of air along with it, and as Elsa ducked her hair was caught up a little in the blast. \"Oh, how rude of you to interrupt our dance,\" said Elsa. \"If you want to dance that much then I'll make you dance a fine dance, so give it your best shot!\" As Rom swung his thorny pointed club at Elsa, he changed his line of attack. He thrust the club toward Elsa's throat, but Rom froze at the result. \"What the hell is this?!\" \"I'm only able to do this because you're so strong,\" said Elsa from above as she stood on the tip of Rom's club. That kind of technique could only be accomplished with a godlike sense of balance. Before that balance could be broken, Elsa swung her blade horizontally at Rom. The strike was level with Rom's forehead. If it landed, the top of his head would be sent flying. \"You think I'd let you?!\" Shing! went the sound of Elsa's sword as it collided with a knife thrown by Felt. The collision had altered the path of Elsa's sword, but the side of it still collided full force into the side of Rom's head. A dull sound rang out as Rom toppled over to the side. \"What a naughty little girl,\" said Elsa as she landed lightly back on the ground and turned just her eyes toward Felt. *** Felt's small knife had saved Rom's life. She probably had aimed for Elsa's arm, but in the rush of the moment her aim was a little off. However, without that slight miss, Rom might not have been saved. \"You don't have the determination or power to fight. You should have just cowered in the corner like a good little girl.\" The high-pitched click of Elsa's step rang out as she instantly closed the distance between herself and Felt. Rom was unconscious, and Not-Satella, who had been trying to keep her distance, was now too far away. Felt herself had frozen like a frog being stared down by a snake, and... \"Aaaaahhhh!!!\" ...so the only one who was able to tackle her to safety was the coward who had been shivering beside her moments before. Subaru dove into Felt at about hip level, and while hugging her light body tumbled across the ground. Just before he hit the ground, he felt something metal scrape across the back of his head, which made all his hair stand on end. But, feeling the weight of the person in his arms, he did his absolute best to ignore it and kept rolling to put as much distance as possible from where they were before. When at last Subaru looked back, standing on his knees, Elsa was staring back at him in surprise. Feeling as though he had pulled one over on Elsa, Subaru couldn't help but smile back, awkwardly but proudly. \"Are you all right?!\" he said to Felt. \"I was desperate there, so if I accidentally touched somewhere I shouldn't have, please forgive me, okay?!\" \"If you hadn't said that I would have thanked you like normal! ...But why?\" \"I don't know! My body moved on its own. If I had to give a reason...well, you don't know about this, but with this now we're totally even, okay? Remember that! We're even now!\" said Subaru, clenching his fist after he let Felt go. The second time around, Felt had saved Subaru from Elsa's blade. That memory didn't mean anything in the world this time around, but with this"}, {"text": "he was able to repay his debt. Subaru thought that even so, his debts should be returned, so nothing about what he needed to do before had changed. \"Listen here, Felt. Right now I'm going to do the same sort of thing as Rom did before he was knocked out to help stall for time. When that happens I'll be sure to open up a window for you, so I want you to use that opportunity to run out of here as fast as you can. You got it?\" \"What?! No! Are you telling me to just turn tail and flee?!\" said Felt, glaring up at Subaru with her red eyes. But Subaru just got closer and stared right back at her. As he did so, he was sure not to miss the moment when Felt looked as though she was scared at what Subaru was trying to say. \"Yes. That's what I'm telling you to do. Turn tail and flee. To be honest, that's exactly what I want to do right now. I don't want to stay another second in this violent space,\" Subaru said, patting Felt roughly on her head. As Felt started to say, \"But...\" Subaru interrupted her and continued. \"You're fifteen and I'm seventeen. Out of all of us, you're probably the youngest one here. So it's the right thing to do to give you the highest possibility of getting out of here alive. It's what's only natural.\" \"D-don't give me that... You were just shaking yourself a minute ago!\" \"That was then, this is now! I'm not shaking now, so it's okay! Really, before I remember and start shaking I've got to do this now. Okay? So get ready to run!\" Subaru put his hand on Felt's forehead as she looked as though she was going to object again, and then pulled himself to his feet. Not far away on the ground was Rom's club. It looked really heavy, but Subaru thought he would still be able to swing it. As Not-Satella continued to shoot barrages of ice at Elsa, there was not a sign of dullness in her movements as she danced to avoid the shots. In the first place, Subaru wasn't really sure if he, faced with a superhuman like Elsa with absolutely no real fighting experience himself, could open up a window for Felt to run. All that he could do was wordlessly spring a surprise attack on her when she wasn't paying attention to him. So right after Elsa had swung her knife and shattered a large icicle, and Subaru was completely in one of her blind spots, Subaru sprang forward at her, forgetting even to breathe, and swung the club down on her. Perhaps Subaru's adrenaline had finally kicked in, because the speed of his swing was far faster than he had imagined it would be. It sliced through the air toward the back of her head, and... \"You picked the right moment and angle to target me, but unfortunately I could have sensed your intent to kill a mile away.\" \"Intent to kill?! I have no idea how I'm supposed to hide that!\" In order to block the swing that came directly behind her, Elsa struck the club with the blunt edge of her blade, changing the course of the swing enough for it to miss its mark. However, at that very instant Subaru opened his mouth wide, with his teeth bared, and yelled. \"Now, Felt! Run!!\" *** Like a spring Felt launched her small body onto the wind and raced forward. She was going so fast that Subaru couldn't keep track of her with his eyes, and the girl, now turned to wind, rushed to the exit. \"Do you really think I'd let you go?\" To stop Felt, Elsa took another knife out of her breast pocket and threw it toward Felt. As if it were a symbol of payback from what Felt did before, the simple undecorated knife flew straight at her back. However... \"Too bad, but I wanna let her go!\" Subaru kicked the round table that was beside him upward, which collided with the knife and sent it off course. \"Man, I'm awesome! That was awesome! Wow, my toe hurts more than I thought it was going to! ...Uwah?!\" Maybe it was Subaru's adrenaline again, or some power that had awakened in him that failed to activate the last three times, but as Elsa's long leg came up and kicked him in the side of the head and sent him flying, his self-congratulations were cut short. He was hit so hard the world seemed to spin around, and together with the onset of pain and taste of blood in his mouth, Subaru threw up. \"That's the first time in a long time someone's made me actually a little bit angry.\" \"Well, that's something I'm happy to hear! Ha-ha! Serves you right! I let one of us get away!!\" Subaru stood back up and pretended to be in better shape than he was, doing his best to continue drawing Elsa's attention. As if Elsa had read Subaru's mind, she smiled at him, and forgot about Felt for the time being. \"Fine, if that's what you want, I'll pay attention to you. Your dancing had better not bore me.\" \"I'm going to go ahead and warn you, but if you're going to dance with me, you'd better be careful. I haven't learned a thing about dancing so I'll be sure to step all over your feet,\" said Subaru, spitting out the blood that had risen in his mouth. He readjusted his grip on the club that was still in his hands. It wasn't as though Subaru was going to have very many chances to land a hit, so he used everything he had to focus on striking Elsa as she rushed toward him. \"You'd better not forget about me!\" said Not-Satella, along with a chunk of ice lobbed from behind. But without even looking back, Elsa swung her blade and broke the ice to pieces. With Elsa's superhuman senses on full display, even Subaru wasn't able to keep taunting her. \"I've started to get tired of this little game... Are you sure you'll be able to keep me entertained?\" asked Elsa in a low voice, with her smile the color of blood. As Subaru gazed at her smile, he felt a shiver run down his spine, and looked over at Not-Satella to make eye contact. \"If you've got some kind of hidden true power available, I think that now would be a great time to use it.\" \"...I do have another trick up my sleeve, but if I use it, I'll be the only one left alive.\" \"I would like it if you held back on that, then. No self-destructs, please. ...Okay fine, I get it. Damn. Use it if you have to, but don't be too hasty, all right?\" Subaru intended that to be a joke, in order to help shake off some of his cowardice, but Not-Satella took Subaru's statement seriously. After seeing him take a deep breath and solidify his determination, Not-Satella's lips relaxed into an almost smile. \"I won't use it. I can't while you're still trying your best. You can do this, so keep on struggling. Relying on the power of one's parents is my absolute final option,\" replied Not-Satella. As she said that she really did look as though she was running out of options, and that lit a fire inside Subaru. In one way, Not-Satella looked as though she was just about ready to give up; at the same time she looked ready to accept the fact that Subaru was weak and wouldn't help much. To Subaru, Not-Satella was someone who, no matter how tough things got, would never look down and give up. Because that was the way she was, Subaru had worked so hard to see her smile. Subaru had died several times and come this far in order to save her. He hadn't come this far just to see her give up. \"I didn't see anything right now.\" \"...What?\" \"This conversation we just had, it didn't happen! I just remembered the reason I'm here. Just leave it to me, damn it! I'm going to make sure you never have to use that final option of yours!!\" Subaru pointed at Not-Satella and then at Elsa, and made his declaration. He spit as he did, stomped on the ground, and let all of his emotions howl out from his soul. \"I'm going to blow you away and we're going to have ourselves a happy ending. You don't belong here, so scram!\" \"...Well, don't you look overexcited,\" replied Elsa. \"I'm just ready to give it my all. This time's gonna be the climax. I've got a lot more energy than before!\" As Elsa leaned forward, Subaru swung the club as if he was declaring he was going to hit a home run. Elsa's lips then curled into a smile and she melted away into the darkness. From such a low height that it looked as though she was crawling on the ground, Elsa slid toward Subaru. As he kept his eyes on the dull glint of her blade, Subaru swung the club with all his might. Subaru's swing held nothing back; he was prepared to beat Elsa to death. But Elsa just ducked even farther, like it was nothing, and was so low it looked as though she was licking the ground. \"You spider-woman!!\" \"Well, I suppose it's correct to say that you're tangled in my web.\" As Subaru saw Elsa's sword rising upward, Subaru quickly threw his body back. However, he still couldn't pull out of the striking range of her sword. Fear raced up Subaru's spine, and without thinking he kicked up his knee. Even though he hadn't meant to aim his knee anywhere, as Elsa was right in front of him, it landed straight in her stomach. The path of the blade shifted a little, and then right in that path came a bluish white light, followed by a high-pitched sound. \"An ice shield! Nice cover!\" \"I'm not good at making those at a distance. I could have accidentally frozen someone!\" \"Her, right?! You mean her, right?!\" replied Subaru, with a mix of jest in his thanks. Not-Satella continued to draw Elsa back with her barrage of ice. \"I've started to grow tired of you little buzzing insect. ...I think it's about time I wrap this up.\" \"Hey, don't underestimate bugs, okay? It's not my fault if you get stung and break out in hives!\" \"Well, don't you sound all high and mighty when you're out of my striking range?\" replied Elsa as she focused on dodging Not-Satella's attacks, while Subaru continued to try to draw her attention away. While Subaru would have loved to try to aim for Elsa's back as she continued to dodge, he didn't want to run the risk of becoming victim to friendly fire, so he really couldn't move. That was probably the reason that Not-Satella's attacks were muted when Subaru made his move before. It was the kind of problem you have to face when working on an improvised team. Subaru continued to watch as Elsa deflected Not-Satella's attacks, every now and then diving in with an attack of his own, before retreating again, but he could sense the situation getting worse. If Elsa really wanted to, it was clear that she could quickly take care of Subaru, like she did Rom. The only reason it appeared that they were on equal footing was because Elsa would not divert her full attention to him. Elsa's caution was instead directed to the possibility that the spirit Puck would appear again. That was enough to keep the current situation holding. Another reason that Elsa didn't act was because Subaru's cowardice was holding him a step back. He was taking care not to put himself in range of lethal danger. If Subaru had been"}, {"text": "a brave idiot, she would have cut him down and the balance would have shifted. However, it didn't look as though Subaru's cowardice would serve him much longer. As Elsa's counterattacks grew more severe, Subaru's retreats weren't making it in time, and he was getting slight cuts all over himself. Subaru had cuts on his upper arms, on his calves, his underarms, and even a few slight cuts to his neck, and as those injuries increased, Subaru's gray tracksuit began to be stained with blood. \"Damn, it hurts! Argh!! How about this?!\" Even though the pain was enough to bring him to tears, Subaru swung a kick, trying to do something new to catch Elsa off guard. However... \"I'll just take that,\" said Elsa. \"...Damn.\" Elsa had easily avoided Subaru's kick and to top it all off, she had easily grabbed his leg. Elsa raised her kukri, aiming to lop off the whole leg. With the strength of Elsa's swing, its speed, and the sharpness of the blade, Subaru knew what would happen next. His leg would be cut off at the thigh and he would die from shock as the loss of blood and pain overwhelmed him. Subaru could just see the words BAD END 4 rising up in front of his eyes. I shouldn't have done that! Subaru's thoughts screamed. He tried to raise the club to block, but with the handicap he was facing, with one leg held in the air, he wouldn't make it in time. Not-Satella screamed. The cut would mercilessly reach his leg in moments. As Subaru thought of the pain and spilling of blood it would bring a scream rose in his throat, the blood he would vomit when... \"That's enough.\" A flame appeared, burning through the roof from the center of the loot cellar. The flame was filled with a ghastly malice that swept through the room, and stopped even Elsa in her tracks. Subaru's leg released, he hopped back before falling down. Right before his eyes, in the middle of a rising pillar of smoke, he saw a red, burning, shining figure. \"That was close. I'm glad I made it in time. Now...\" \"Y-you're...\" The flame wavered and stepped forward. Its very existence was enough to make Subaru, Not-Satella, and Elsa all freeze. Taking in the gazes from everyone present, without being shaken one bit, stood an absolute sense of will. With sky-blue eyes shining with a pure sense of justice, the young man smiled faintly. \"I think it's time to draw the curtain on this performance!\" the hero declared, brushing back his red hair. As Felt sped like the wind through the entryway to the loot cellar, she felt as though she had been released from despair. Behind her, Felt could hear the freezing of the air, and the sound of metal clanging on ice. She also heard the sound of a blunt object swinging through the air, along with \"Hii!\" and \"Wahhh!\" and other stupid-sounding utterances from someone dodging attacks. The battle still raged on behind her. As Felt's legs started to shake as she ran, she shook her head to try to deny the mess of thoughts running through it. It was clear that if she had stayed behind, she would have been killed. Against an opponent who could knock Rom out with a single blow, Felt didn't have a chance. The same went for that silver-haired half-elf. Without support from her spirit, there was no way that she could win against that woman, either. Subaru was even worse off. It was clear that he had little experience fighting, and didn't seem used to it at all. His clean hands and fingers were proof that he had never even tried to hold a weapon before, and his clean hair and skin was proof that he had never been wounded before. In other words, Subaru had lived a sheltered life, one in which it was not necessary to consider fighting. Given that he had such an expensive mitia on him, it all made sense. Felt should just accept that it served him right. Despite not knowing anything about the world, Subaru had let a notion of chivalry get the best of him and try something far beyond his means. Felt should simply laugh at his idiocy. Subaru went and tried to act cool and let her get away, so he would probably be happy to see her keep running. But...still... \"Someone! Anyone!\" Though Felt knew in her mind that she should be winding down alleys, she had run straight toward the main street. Out of breath and with an expression of panic on her face, Felt looked this way and that. This was strange. Felt reached up and frantically rubbed her teary eyes. Even if she had reason to be sad about Rom, Subaru was someone that she'd just met. Why should she care if he died? But Subaru had gotten mad at Elsa for Felt's sake, and he had just about thrown his life away so she could get away alive. Felt didn't understand what she was feeling, but because those feelings were there in her heart, she kept running about. She had felt something in response to Subaru's actions. Because of those feelings, her feverishness did not subside, and while she felt like she wanted to scream, Felt kept running. Then, finally after running down a few streets... \"Please...help me.\" \"Understood. I'll help you.\" ...she found a young man like red fire, and changed the fate of the world. \"...Reinhard?\" \"That is correct, Subaru. I suppose it hasn't been too long since we've last met. I'm sorry I'm late.\" The red-haired young man Reinhard turned to face Subaru, who was still toppled over on the ground, with a slight apologetic smile. Even as Reinhard wiped the dust from his sleeve, every motion seemed trained and deliberate. The way Reinhard carried himself was different from when Subaru first encountered him in the alley with Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest, and as Subaru watched him, he thought he was now seeing a glimpse of Reinhard's true self. Without letting his guard down for a moment, Reinhard looked ahead, and turned his eyes toward the black-clothed beauty who was now focusing her animosity toward him. Reinhard's blue eyes narrowed, as if he were remembering something. \"Black hair and black clothes, and your weapon is the bent blade particular to the northern countries. With all of those characteristics aligned, there's no mistaking it. You are the 'Bowel Hunter,' aren't you?\" \"What's with that super-violent-sounding alias...?\" muttered Subaru. \"It's an alias given to her based on the way she kills. She's well-known in the capital to be a dangerous individual. However, from what I hear she appears to be more of a mercenary,\" replied Reinhard faithfully in response to Subaru's rhetorical question as he trained his clear eyes on Elsa. \"Reinhard. Ah, yes. The knight among knights...and of the 'Master Swordsman' lineage. Well, that's amazing. I never thought I'd meet such an enjoyable opponent. I'll have to thank my employer now for giving this job, now won't I?\" \"There are many things I would like to ask you. I recommend you surrender, however...\" \"Would you say to a starving predator as it stands before its wounded prey, a perfect specimen and already dripping blood, to bear its hunger and move on?\" Elsa licked her thin red lips erotically with a look of ecstasy in her case as she stared at Reinhard. \"I see.\" Reinhard responded, scratching at the side of his cheek as though he wished there was another way. \"Subaru, I'm going to have to ask you to get farther away, and please take that elderly man with you out of harm's way. After that, if you could stay beside that other person there, it would help me a lot.\" \"Understood. ...That woman's quite the monster, so don't let your guard down, all right?\" \"Fortunately, you could say that fighting monsters is my specialty,\" said Reinhard confidently, and walked forward without any sign that he was preparing himself for battle. Reinhard did not even reach for the sword at his waist, but continued on empty-handed. After a sharp intake of breath, the kukri in Elsa's hand flew forward, in a flash, toward Reinhard's neck. Unlike when Subaru was her opponent, there was no sign that Elsa was holding back as she made her silver strike, and it seemed to kill the very air as it raced toward Reinhard's slender neck. Yet Reinhard was completely defenseless. Not only did he not make any move to defend himself, he didn't even make a move to dodge the attack. Subaru could already picture Reinhard's head flying off his body. However... \"I don't really want to be violent against a woman, but...\" said Reinhard, starting off in a gentlemanly way, but Subaru thought that the tone of his voice had dropped. \"...you'll have to excuse me.\" Reinhard planted one foot down, the pressure behind it fracturing the ground beneath him, and with the other leg launched a kick so strong it created a shock wave as it collided with Elsa and sent her body flying. The back blast was strong enough for Subaru to feel it where he stood. He was speechless. All it was, was an ordinary forward kick, but the air pressure it caused was enough to create a wind that shook the entire building. Elsa, who took the hit head-on, was blown away like a leaf. However, she was able to reduce the damage taken by springing off the walls to kill the force of impact with her legs. Still, when she looked up, you could see the look of shock on her face. \"No, no, no, no, no. There's no way. You're kidding me, right? ....Just what the hell was that?\" Subaru had described certain things as being \"on a totally different scale\" several times before in his life, and it was at this very moment that he realized he had been mistaken. That phrase, \"on a totally different scale,\" existed solely for the purpose to describe this hero who stood in front of him. Before Reinhard's existence, all of the extraordinary phenomena of this new world dulled in comparison. \"It's just as they say...or rather, you're more than what everyone says you are,\" said Elsa. \"Well, I can only hope I'll live up to your expectations.\" \"Will you not use that sword of yours? I would like to have a taste of its legendary sharpness.\" Elsa pointed at Reinhard's sword. She wanted to face Reinhard at full force, without him holding back. However, Reinhard shook his head. \"This sword is made so that it can only be drawn when it should be drawn. The fact that the blade has not removed itself from its sheath means that now is not the proper time.\" \"I suppose I've been underestimated.\" \"Personally, I would have preferred to take you up on your offer. So...\" Reinhard suddenly turned his eyes away from Elsa, and looked about the inside of the loot cellar. Eyes eventually settled on an old-looking two-handed sword propped up against the wall. Reinhard used his foot to kick up on the hilt, sending the unsheathed sword spinning through the air. He easily grabbed it in his hand, and swung it once lightly as if testing it out. \"...I'll use this one to face you. Any complaints?\" \"No... This is wonderful, wonderful! You had better show me a good time!\" As Reinhard gripped his blade, Elsa made the first move, darting to the side. As she made her slicing attack she leapt to increase its speed. In response, Reinhard readied a stance to swing his sword from below, straight upward. In that moment of attack and defense, Subaru was able to get a clear view of what was happening. Reinhard's strike was sublime, it was magical, it was perfectly trained. In his hands, even a throwaway sword at its end of life, sleeping"}, {"text": "away in a cellar, shone like some treasured sword passed on by legend across generations. Reinhard's sword technique captured every ounce of performance that could be extracted by the sword and he used it at will. Reinhard's blade hit its mark, just where the blade of Elsa's kukri met its handle. Despite the fact that it was two pieces of steel striking together, Reinhard's sword showed an unbelievable amount of cutting power and sliced the blade of Elsa's blade right off its base. Elsa had no words for the fate of the kukri she held in her hand. The blade had become just a handle, and as for the remainder... \"Now that you have lost your weapon, I recommend you surrender.\" ...as Reinhard turned around, he held the blade of Elsa's kukri in his free hand. With a flick of his wrist he threw it, and with a sharp sound it stuck, lodged in the wall. Even Subaru could hear Elsa gasp. \"He really is not normal. I can't even find the energy to joke about it.\" Subaru just barely squeezed out what he thought, and hurried to put distance between himself and the battle taking place. Along the way, Subaru went over to Rom, and somehow was able to drag his giant body to a spot along the wall. \"Rom. Old Man Rom. Hey. Baldy. You alive?\" \"Who...you...callin' baldy...\" \"Who else? My only goals in life are to never go bald or get fat. You are, like, the best example for me of who I don't want to end up like.\" Even though Rom's response was weak, after giving him a few more slaps on the cheek, Subaru let out a sigh of relief. Other than the fact that Rom had hit his head pretty hard, everything else looked all right. There was a chance that Rom's memory might take a hit, but considering he was alive, it didn't seem like much of a problem. \"Does it look like that person's going to be all right?\" asked Not-Satella as she came running up beside Subaru, her long silver hair trailing behind her. Checking the state of Rom's injuries, she muttered, \"He needs treatment,\" and her hands began to glow with a faint blue light. \"Hey now, I'm just saying, but this old man's in league with the one who stole your badge. You know that?\" \"That's precisely why I'm doing it. Once I heal him I can use his gratitude to get information out of him. People don't tend to lie to people who've saved their life. I'm only doing this for my own sake.\" It was like she could not justify any of her actions unless she made a case for them being for her own sake. Subaru gave the ever-roundabout Not-Satella a weak smile, and looked back toward the battlefield. Elsa was on her knees but Subaru couldn't see her face. All Subaru could think was that Reinhard had taken away her will to fight. With his old sword down by his side, Reinhard approached Elsa with his defenses down. Surely Reinhard had confidence in the difference in ability between himself and Elsa, but pride always leads to the worst possible outcome. An alarm rang inside Subaru's head. \"Reinhard! She's got another blade!\" As Elsa's second kukri was drawn from her waist, it took a bit of Reinhard's bangs as he leaned back. With her surprise attack evaded, she turned her eyes toward Subaru. \"I'm surprised you knew.\" \"Well, I've already experienced it once before!\" said Subaru, giving her the middle finger in a bragging tone although it really couldn't be called bragging. Elsa apparently decided that what Subaru was saying was nonsense and ignored him. \"However, you'd be wrong to think I have only two of these fangs. ...Shall we start over?\" she said to Reinhard. \"Will you be satisfied if I destroy all of your weapons?\" \"If I lose my fangs, I'll fight with my nails. If I lose my nails, I'll fight with my bones. If I lose my bones, I'll fight with my life. That is how I, the Bowel Hunter, do things.\" \"In that case, I'll just have to have you forsake your ideals.\" Elsa drew a third knife from her waist and held both at the ready. Worthy of the \"spider-woman\" insult that Subaru had lobbed at her before, Elsa seemed to fly about the room as though she were ignoring gravity, using all space on the ground and in the air available to her. As blade met blade and steel met steel, each violent collision sent sparks flying. Kicking off from the walls and from the ceiling, Elsa continued her fighting style of attack and retreat. Reinhard met her attacks as they came. As the battle seemed to go back and forth, Subaru gulped as he watched on. \"It can't be possible that even Reinhard lacks the ability to settle this, can it...?\" Elsa's abilities had stepped out of the realm of human possibility and it was hard for Subaru to even track her movements. However, Reinhard's ability was, at its very core, legendary. Their battle was like two gods colliding with each other in the heavens, but Subaru could see that, in terms of pure ability, Reinhard was far ahead of Elsa. But then why was the battle still raging? \"...We're holding him back,\" muttered Not-Satella in response to Subaru's doubts as she continued to heal Rom. \"Huh?\" replied Subaru, and Not-Satella bit her lip, frustrated. \"Because I'm using spirit magic, he can't fight full force. At least not until I finish my healing.\" \"I have no idea what you're trying to say.\" \"If Reinhard decides to fight full force, all of the mana in the atmosphere around us will turn away from me. ...I'm almost done. When I give the signal, call out to him.\" \"O-okay.\" Subaru still didn't understand her explanation, but while still a little unsure, he agreed. The blue light continued to heal the bump protruding from Rom's head, and another wound that had been bleeding a little. Subaru looked on amazed as the traces of blood and the opening of the wound gradually disappeared, when Not-Satella took a deep breath and let it out. \"I'm done.\" \"Leave it to me. Hey, Reinhard! I don't really understand, but get her!!!\" Subaru delivered the message to Reinhard, who had continually been on the defensive, that Rom's treatment was complete. Reinhard glanced back. When his and Subaru's eyes met, he gave a slight nod. \"...What is it you're going to show me?\" \"The House of Astrea's sword,\" Reinhard replied in short and with dignity as Elsa leaped at him. Immediately afterward, Subaru felt all of the space in the cellar warp. \"What?\" Subaru saw the air in his line of sight twist, and he couldn't be sure, but he thought that the room had lost some of its light. Apart from that, the room's temperature, which had already been falling because of all of the ice magic, dropped even further. Subaru found himself shivering and hugging his shoulders. \"Wait? Huh? Why are you...\" \"I'm sorry, it's just... Could you lend me your shoulder?\" As Not-Satella started to lean on him, Subaru, while flustering about, rushed to support her. Her slender body was incredibly hot and Subaru could feel his heart racing from a completely different reason from before. But one look at Not-Satella's face and any ideas Subaru may have gotten were blown away. Not-Satella was short of breath and looked as though she were in pain. It was as though she was running a high fever. \"What happened? Did you suddenly start to feel...?\" asked Subaru. \"No, it's the mana... You know, right?\" replied Not-Satella. Subaru didn't have a clue. He would have liked to fold his arms and declare so, in his usual humorous way, but now didn't seem to be the time for that. It was not the weight on Subaru's shoulders that made him decide to stay silent; it was how the entire room had changed its atmosphere, and what was happening at the source of that change. In the center of the room, Reinhard held his sword ready with both hands in a low stance. But that wasn't it. That stance itself had been something that Reinhard had been holding since the battle had begun. However, as Subaru looked on, it felt to him that only now, for the very first time, Reinhard was holding his sword at the ready. \"Elsa 'The Bowel Hunter' Gramhilde,\" said Elsa, licking her lips. \"Reinhard van Astrea from the line of master swordsmen,\" Reinhard replied majestically with a nod. The presence of Reinhard's sword overwhelmed the room, and the animosity between Reinhard and Elsa shook the air. In this place, turned mostly to ruins, a black-clothed murderer and a lightly armored hero faced each other, and what would clash would be the blood-soaked blade of a knife against a rusted old two-handed sword. But despite the faults of one side's weapon, Subaru held his breath. After declaring their names, both were going to try to end the battle at once. Subaru felt that he was witness to a verse from an epic tale of heroism. Someone screamed out. Subaru couldn't tell if it was Elsa, or Reinhard, or even himself, but a brilliant light blew off the roof of the loot cellar and ripped right through it, cutting the entire space into two halves. Subaru couldn't help but feel that the entire world had shifted as an immense light filled the room and whited everything out in an instant. As the light cleared, the world was subjected to another sudden shift, as the displaced space tried to return to where it had been before. Air was distorted as residual waves from the attack swept over the room and caused strong gusts to rush, spiraling back into the center of the room. Along with those gusts, stolen items, furniture, and even materials from the building's structure itself were pulled in. Subaru desperately tried to protect both Not-Satella and Rom from this storm of collateral damage. \"Just what is... H-hey! Hey!!\" Subaru couldn't really explain how all of this was happening, but he knew who caused it. The \"Master Swordsman\" had, at full power, swung his sword. Once. Only once, and this was the result. Subaru kept yelling, trying to get through the pain and the wind, as finally, the storm lost its strength and the various items tumbling to the ground signaled its end, along with the chorus of dull creaking sounds from the building. Subaru tossed away the remains of a scroll-like object that had landed on his head and checked that both Rom and Not-Satella were still okay. It looked as though Subaru's cover wasn't completely enough, as Rom looked as though he was covered in milk and other things, but Subaru thought he deserved to be cut a little slack. \"What do you mean, 'Fighting monsters is my specialty'? You're enough of a monster yourself!\" shouted Subaru. \"Even I get hurt when you say things like that, Subaru,\" replied Reinhard, the root cause of all of this destruction, with a weak smile as the gusts of wind blew his fiery red hair. After all of this, even Reinhard had beads of sweat formed on his cool-looking face, and in his hands... \"I'm sorry for pushing you so hard. Rest well.\" ...his two-handed sword disintegrated. Something of such a poor making could not last even one of Reinhard's true swings. The strike was enough to make the steel of the sword's blade rot away, so as for Elsa... \"Forget a corpse, I don't even see any trace of her left... This is all just from one swing of your sword?\" In the path of Reinhard's attack, which had seemed to rip through the very fabric of the world, there was absolutely nothing left. In the destruction, the counter next to the cellar's entrance was blown completely"}, {"text": "away with all of its chairs, and the residual waves of damage extended even into the open space in front of the building. The resulting gusts of wind had wrecked the supports of the building, and it seemed ready to collapse at any moment. The space where Elsa had been standing was of course within range of Reinhard's attack, and her tall, black-clothed figure was nowhere to be seen. \"But then, that means...\" Subaru said, stretching his stiff body and breathing a big sigh of relief. Still unable to quite believe had happened, Subaru turned to look at the silver-haired girl still leaning against him. Not-Satella's breathing was still shallow, but when she saw Subaru looking at her she turned her violet eyes toward him. \"Is it over...?\" she asked weakly. \"Yeah... In the true sense of the word, it looks like it is,\" Subaru said, helping her stand. Not-Satella ran her fingers through her own hair, and with still uncertain steps, let go of Subaru, while Subaru stared. \"Why are you staring at me like that? That's very rude of you,\" she said. \"Your limbs and head are all still attached to your body, right?\" \"...Why wouldn't they be? Could you please not say something so ominous?\" replied Not-Satella, not understanding what Subaru was trying to say. As Not-Satella stared back at Subaru with an annoyed look in her eyes, Subaru gave her a thumbs-up and smiled. \"That's right. I mean, that makes perfect sense. I, myself, have all my limbs; I don't have a knife stuck in my back or a huge hole in my stomach!\" \"The way you say that, it sounds like you had experienced all of that at one time.\" Well...he had. Because of Subaru's uselessness, Not-Satella had had her life taken, Rom lost his arm and his head, and Felt was cut down, too. \"Now that I think of it, Reinhard, I haven't thanked you yet. You really saved us there. There's also what happened in the alley... Did you hear the screams of my heart or something, my friend?\" \"Well, I certainly would be proud of myself if I could do that, friend,\" replied Reinhard, relaxing his shoulders, looking sorry. With his chin, he motioned toward the entrance of the loot cellar. As Subaru followed with his eyes... \"Oh hey,\" said Subaru as he saw the person there, feeling his mouth form an unexpected smile. At the entrance to the loot cellar, which had been at this point pretty much destroyed, was a small blond-haired girl with a canine tooth poking out from her mouth, hiding in the shadow of one of the few pillars left standing. \"That girl over there was running frantically down the street, where she asked me for help. The only reason I was able to come here is because of her. After that, I was just doing my job as a knight.\" \"Is flattening old buildings part of your job description?\" \"Don't you think that's a bit harsh, Subaru?\" said Reinhard, wincing and putting his hand over his chest. Despite having dealt this much destruction, the fact that he was acting just as friendly with Subaru as he had before was frightening in and of itself. \"That's...\" Not-Satella, still trying to regain her footing, had noticed Felt. Subaru stepped between them, running to Felt's defense. \"Wait a minute. If she hadn't called Reinhard for help, we both probably wouldn't be here right now. So for my sake, overlook her crimes and please don't turn her into an ice statue.\" \"I wasn't going to do that! And what do you mean, 'for your sake'?\" Not-Satella rubbed her fingers up against her brow, looking tired. Even in that action of hers, Subaru was able to feel happiness in some way. Since everyone was alive, they could all be joking around. \"I guess now it's all up to my negotiation skills...which are something I'd never want to put my trust in!\" \"What is with you, all of a sudden? The way you're flailing about like that is really lame.\" In response to Not-Satella's words, Subaru put his hand on his chest and reenacted Reinhard's previous reaction. Of course, it didn't look remotely as cool and dignified as when he did it. As Reinhard watched Subaru's antics, he smiled. He raised a hand toward Felt, who was looking in on everyone, and started walking toward her. Subaru watched from behind at Reinhard's gallant figure as he walked over to Felt, and he couldn't even feel envious of him. Subaru could only shrug his shoulders and think that this was the difference between someone who had it and someone who didn't. Even while Felt was cautious of him, perhaps because she was feeling gratitude that he had come to save everyone, Felt didn't try to run away as Reinhard approached. Watching the two, Subaru felt like smiling, when... \"Subaru!!\" ...Reinhard suddenly turned toward him and yelled, and Subaru realized that they hadn't escaped danger yet. Scraps of the building had been thrown up, and underneath them was a black shadow. The black shadow, with black hair trailing behind it and blood dripping from it, kicked firmly off against the ground and accelerated. Holding a blade that was bent out of shape, a bloody Elsa wordlessly raced toward Subaru. \"Enough already...!\" After having somehow survived Reinhard's incredible strike, Elsa's murderous eyes were filled with a pitch blackness. The murderous intent that she released was greater than any she had before, and it sent chills racing down Subaru's back. It would only be a few seconds before she was close enough to strike, and in that short amount of time, Subaru sent his thoughts racing. One instant and it would all be over. Elsa was counting everything on this one strike. Reinhard wouldn't make it in time. If Subaru could stop Elsa this one time, Reinhard could handle the rest. Not-Satella didn't even have time to turn around. Where was the target this time? Subaru had experienced this twice before: two deaths, the fear and the pain. He would protect her the third time. Protect the girl!! \"She's aiming for your stomach!!\" Subaru pushed Not-Satella out of the way, and using the club from before still in his hands, he guarded his own stomach as Elsa's strike collided with him. The horizontal slice felt less like a cut and more like being struck by a heavy blunt object. The force of the collision swept Subaru off his feet and he felt the world spin 180 degrees as he vomited blood. It wasn't just his vision but his entire body that was spinning. Unsure of how far he had been thrown, Subaru struck the wall, unable to catch himself. \"There you go, getting in my way aga \" spat Elsa, clicking her tongue as she watched Subaru fly. \"That's enough, Elsa!\" As Reinhard came running up, Elsa understood that there was no longer any meaning in continuing the fight. She threw at Reinhard her knife, which had been completely bent in that last attack that Subaru took. Her aim was off, but the throw succeeded in drawing Reinhard's attention away from her, and that was enough. \"One day, I will open the stomachs of everyone here, so take care of your bowels for me until then!\" she cried, using a part of the collapsing building as a foothold to leap up onto the roof. It didn't look possible to chase her down as she leapt lightly from roof to roof as she made her getaway. Reinhard, who was not interested in pursuing this fight any further, didn't run after her. After Reinhard watched Elsa go, he ran over to the silver-haired girl. \"Are you all right?\" \"I'm perfectly fine! Can't you see?! Rather than me, you should be worried about...\" shouted Not-Satella, before racing over to the wall with her unsteady feet where Subaru was collapsed upside down. \"Are you all right?! What were you thinking?!\" \"Ugghh... Oh... It's no big deal... If there was ever a time to act before thinking that was it, don't you think? I'm the only one who could move, and I was able to quickly guess where she was going to attack,\" said Subaru, raising one hand to Not-Satella as she walked over to him and using the other to carefully touch his tender stomach. He was immensely bruised, and everything under his clothes as he lifted them up was purple. \"Ugh...\" said Subaru, disgusted by the way it looked, before turning over and getting back on his feet. \"She's completely gone now, right?\" \"I'm sorry, Subaru. This is all my fault for letting my guard down. If you weren't there we would have been in trouble. If that person there had gotten wounded, then...\" \"Stop stop stop stop! Don't say it! Don't say it! I forbid you to speak any more than that! You're going to steal my thunder,\" said Subaru to Reinhard as he tried to apologize, and smiled at him as he went quiet. After that, Subaru slowly turned around to face the silver-haired girl looking up at him. She fidgeted and then stood up beside him. They were about two steps away from each other. If Subaru reached out with his hand, he could touch her. It had been a long time coming, and Subaru paused to think about everything that had happened for him to get here. As Subaru closed his eyes in silence, the girl looked as though she wanted to say something, but before she could open her mouth, Subaru pointed a finger up to the heavens. With his left hand on his hip and his right hand pointed in the air, Subaru disregarded the surprised stares coming from all around him, and declared in a loud voice, \"My name is Subaru Natsuki! I know there's a ton of things you want to say and a ton of things you want to ask, but before all of that let me confirm just one thing!\" \"W-what...?\" \"I totally just saved your life right now from that terrible weapon, didn't I? We okay so far?\" \"O...kay?\" \"It means everything's fine. So, are we okay?!\" Subaru used his upper body to form an O and a K, and while the silver-haired girl in front of him seemed to twitch a little, she replied. \"O-okay...\" \"I'm the person who saved your life! Your rescuer! Now you are the heroine I rescued. Don't you think that I should get some kind of reward? Don't you think so?!\" \"...I understand. Only if it's something I'm able to do, though.\" \"As long as you understand! Now I only have one, just one request of you!\" Subaru put his finger out in front of him to emphasize this point. While the girl looked a bit worried in response, she seemed to find her determination and nodded firmly. \"So my wish is...\" \"Go on.\" Subaru smiled, showing his teeth, then snapped his fingers and then gave a thumbs-up, striking a pose. \"...I want you to tell me your name.\" The girl's eyes opened wide in shock, and a moment of silence fell upon the two. Subaru's gaze would not waver, and he looked the silver-haired girl in front of him straight in the eye. The girl then put her hand to her mouth and started to giggle, her white cheeks blushing, and her silver hair swaying behind her as she smiled. That smile of hers was not one of resignation, or a faint fleeting smile. It was not a tragic smile, either. She was simply smiling because she was happy. That was all there was to it. \"...Emilia,\" she said, laughing. *** Hearing that single response Subaru took in a short breath, and then breathed out. In response the girl straightened herself, put a finger to her lips, and smiled in a teasing sort of way. \"My name is Emilia. Just Emilia. Thank you, Subaru. Thank you for saving me,\" Emilia said, holding"}, {"text": "out her hand. Looking down at that hand, Subaru hesitantly took it in his. Her fingers and wrist were slender and her palm was small, and her hand was very warm. It was a living hand, with blood running through it.  Thank you for saving me. Subaru wanted to say the same to her. She was the one who had saved him first. With this, he had finally repaid her, after dying three times from blade wounds to get here. After all of that pain and suffering, after all that fighting with everything he had, his reward was her name and a smile. Ahh... \"Man, that wasn't worth it at all,\" said Subaru, smiling as he gripped Emilia's hand. That would have been a good place to end the story. However... \"Though really, I have to say I'm surprised to see you're all right,\" said Reinhard, as though he had been waiting for the right moment to jump in after Subaru and Emilia had finished, breaking the silence he had been forced into before. Even from the perspective of a man with Reinhard's skill, Elsa's final attack must have seemed overwhelming. Subaru gently put pressure on his hurt abdomen and pointed to the club lying on the ground. The spiked club was thick and sturdy and had worked well as a shield, even though that was not its true purpose. \"I quickly guarded myself with that thing. If it weren't for that, right now I'd be cut in two,\" said Subaru. \"You're right. If it weren't for this \" Reinhard started to say, reaching for the fallen club to pick it up. \" I wouldn't have been able to avoid 'BAD END 4,'\" Subaru laughed, finishing his sentence. \"Huh?\" As Reinhard picked up the club, part of it slid across a smooth cut going through it, and fell to the ground with a thud. Cut completely in two, its service was done. Reinhard slowly looked up at Subaru with an uncomfortable look on his face. Subaru followed Reinhard's gaze nervously and pulled up his tracksuit. Just as before, everything was purple and bruised, but there was a slight change. A red line suddenly ran straight across his abdomen. \"This doesn't look good. Even I can see what's coming next.\" Just as Subaru finished his statement a searing pain shot through him, and then his stomach opened along the cut, spilling bright red blood everywhere. \"S-Subaru?!\" Right beside him, Subaru could hear Emilia's panicked voice. Subaru had finally been able to hear her name and now it looked as though this was going to be the end, again. But even if that was the case, Subaru was sure he would return to this place again. Subaru's vision shifted sideways, and he thought that he must have fallen over. He could see that Reinhard was panicked as well, and as Emilia looked straight at him, close to his face, he could see that she was very distressed. She looks cute even when she's panicking... What a place this fantasy world is, Subaru thought, feeling he had thought something similar before, before the pain and shock swept his consciousness away like a storm at sea. *** Reinhard looked on from a distance at the faint blue light, its wavelengths those of water, the element of healing, and let out a soft sigh that no one around him could hear. Signs of grief showed on his handsome profile as well as traces of tension left over from the battle. If you were to take the image of his figure as he stood in front of the ruins behind him, it would surely be a masterpiece of art. Such was the way he stood. However, Reinhard had a deep sense of regret in him, the weight of which could not be lessened by words. \"...All right. That should do it,\" came a voice like silver bells to Reinhard's ears, as he had continued to blame himself, his eyes closed. Emilia brushed her hand across Subaru's forehead, as if wiping it, and brushed away his hair as he lay propped up against the wall. She made sure that there was still a look of redness, of life in his face. Emilia then stood up and nodded. \"I'm done treating him. He's probably made it past the worst of it.\" \"That's good to hear. Now that that's taken care of, Lady Emilia...\" Reinhard said as he walked swiftly over to Emilia, knelt down on one knee, and bowed his head. Reinhard's every motion was executed without any fault, and perfectly adhered to proper etiquette. \"Due to my shortcomings, I have caused you a great deal of stress. I am prepared to take whatever punishment you deem necessary in response to my failure.\" Reinhard placed his sword in front of him as he knelt and apologized for his failings. As a knight, this was the most sincere way he could apologize. No matter what might befall him, Reinhard was prepared to take any punishment without complaint. Emilia, however, stuck out her finger and waved it back and forth, looking annoyed. \"I never understand why you all are like that.\" \"Meaning...?\" \"You saved us all from grave danger, and everyone made it out alive. Yet here you are, trying to take responsibility for our pain and all of the trouble we went through.\" Emilia pointed her finger toward Subaru, who was now sleeping soundly. \"That one over there is a lot more honest. He saved me and then demanded a reward, even if he didn't really ask for much.\" Reinhard saw Subaru strike his pose and ask for Emilia's name. As Emilia smiled, remembering that moment, Reinhard couldn't help but smile as well. \"So, thank you for saving us. That is all I have to say to you. I don't see any fault of yours to punish you for. If that's not enough for you, then work harder next time you save someone.\" \"Understood. Thank you for your kind words,\" said Reinhard, bowing further to show his respect before standing up again. When the two stood facing together, it was clear that Reinhard was much taller than Emilia, and so when he looked at her, he had to look down at her. Where was that grandness that he sensed from her just moments before? It must be a difference in the capacity of our characters, mused Reinhard, taking heed of his own narrow-mindedness. Surely Emilia was simply one of those \"chosen ones,\" he reaffirmed within himself. \"I just remembered, talking about how you saved us, but...how and why did you come here?\" Emilia asked suddenly. \"Today is my day off, and I was wandering aimlessly about the capital. If I had been patrolling off duty, my squadron leader would have gotten upset at me, so I really was just walking around, but then...I met him,\" said Reinhard, pointing to Subaru as he answered her question. It all began after Reinhard had met Subaru in that alley. As they talked Subaru had given a description that matched Emilia's and had mentioned some place called the \"loot cellar.\" With the mixture of this prior and newfound knowledge, Reinhard had also made his way to the slums to investigate. As he was looking around... \"Then I ran into that girl over there, and the rest you know.\" \"Yes, that girl...\" Now that Felt had come up in conversation once more, Emilia turned her eyes to a corner of the open area in front of the loot cellar, where Felt was taking care of Rom, who had yet to wake up. The blond-haired girl turned around as she felt Emilia's stare and looked down awkwardly. \"Lady Emilia, who is that girl...?\" \"Reinhard, I appreciate all of your help, and thank you for saving us. However, please...I must ask you to refrain from interfering from here on out,\" said Emilia in a strong tone, and that was enough to keep Reinhard from pressing any further. Emilia closed her eyes, trying to figure out how she would approach Felt. As Reinhard looked at Emilia's beautiful face, he sighed. \"I won't ask what's going on, but your safety is very important. I would ask that you take care of yourself. I will send knights to take you home, so please go along with them.\" \"Normally I would have to refuse, but after all of this I suppose there's no helping it. All right, I'll take you up on your offer,\" Emilia replied. \"Understood,\" replied Reinhard. Emilia giggled and when he followed her stare, it landed on Subaru's peacefully resting face. \"What relation do you have to him...to Subaru?\" \"I just met him,\" Emilia replied immediately, and Reinhard paused, giving her a doubtful and confused look. Perhaps because she found Reinhard's reaction amusing, Emilia smiled. \"It's the truth! There's no other way to put it. I don't have any memory of meeting Subaru before. The first time I had ever seen him was when I walked into this place not long ago...\" \"But earlier, he said that he was looking for you. He said he had something he wanted to give you. Then there is the fact that he was present here for all of this, and...\" ...the fact that he put his life on the line to protect you, Reinhard was about to say, but stopped. He thought that if he said it, he would be belittling the brave act that Subaru had performed. \"That's why it's so strange,\" said Emilia. \"I'm beginning to think that weirdo is somehow involved in all of this.\" \"Please refrain from speaking that way about Provincial Lord Roswaal. He is a very upstanding citizen. I will admit that he does have some peculiarities, but...\" \"The fact that you linked the word 'weirdo' to him makes it clear what you really think.\" \"...My apologies. Please keep this a secret from Lord Roswaal,\" said Reinhard with a wink. \"Of course, of course,\" Emilia replied. Reinhard then turned the subject back toward Subaru. \"What shall we do with him? If you would like, I could have someone from my family take him in as a guest...\" \"...No, I'll take him with me. I'll be able to find out more about him that way, and even if he isn't connected to that weirdo, it does not change the fact that he saved my life,\" said Emilia. \"But thank you for offering,\" she added, to which Reinhard replied with a slight nod. With that, Reinhard and Emilia had just about finished all they had to talk about. Afterward, Reinhard would go and send a few knights to escort Emilia back to her residence, and then he would have to start working on cleaning up the aftermath of the battle. As Reinhard looked at the loot cellar that he had destroyed, he closed his eyes before the extent of the damage. As always, he was frustrated that he could not properly control himself. All of this damage was the result of a slight miscalculation of power on his part. If he had been even more careless he could have leveled an entire block. He needed to be more careful. \"What is it that you plan on doing next to deal with the area?\" asked Emilia. \"We'll have to declare the area off limits for a while, and pass out wanted posters for the Bowel Hunter. She is already a person who has a lot of rumors floating around about her, so I'm not sure it will help, but...\" \"What about the girl, and the old man?\" \"...It's hard for me to grasp all that has happened, but given my occupation, I do not think that what they were doing is something that I can just ignore. However...\" Reinhard paused, and then shrugged his shoulders. \"...today happens to be my day off. If I might add another thing: If there's no victim filing a complaint, then the lack of evidence makes it hard to convict. But above all else,"}, {"text": "it's really hard for me to grasp what happened.\" \"Ha-ha-ha... You really are a terrible knight.\" \"Well, that is the truth, despite everyone calling me the knight among knights,\" said Reinhard jokingly, and Emilia put her hand to her mouth and giggled. Finally, after all the laughing had subsided, Emilia's thoughts were in order. She walked toward the blond-haired girl who was still hugging the old man beside her. When she noticed Emilia coming, she looked up, prepared to face her. \"Is this old man your family?\" asked Emilia, squatting down so that she was on the same level as Felt. Felt looked shocked. Of all the things she had expected to hear, that was not one of them. Even Reinhard, who didn't know what had happened between the two, could tell that they were not on particularly good terms. Felt scratched her cheek and tried to regain her composure, and then, as if trying to hide her embarrassment, she slapped Rom a few times. \"I-it's kinda like that. To me, Old Man Rom is like my only...uh...grandfather figure sort of thing.\" \"I see. I only have one family member as well. He's always sleeping when it counts, and when he's awake I don't think I could ever say that to him.\" \"Well...I can't say these sort of things when Rom's awake, either.\" Reinhard couldn't be sure, but it looked as though the intensity of Felt's slaps was increasing. She probably wasn't paying attention. The frequency was also increasing, and the old man's white bald head was turning red. Felt then looked up at Emilia, with a weak light in her red eyes. \"I was sure you were going to be angry at me.\" \"Well, that might have happened if things were as they were before, but I don't feel like I have it in me anymore. So while only a little bit, I'll forgive you for his sake,\" said Emilia with a weak smile and a shrug, before pointing back over to Subaru, who was still sleeping. Felt looked at Emilia, then at Subaru, and then looked down before quietly saying, \"I'm sorry. He saved my life, too. I can't be so ungrateful as to ignore that. I'll return what I stole.\" \"Good. That makes things easier on me. I really, really would feel bad if I had to sic this guy over here on you,\" said Emilia with a wink, pointing back at Reinhard. After hearing those words and looking at that young man with the red hair and blue eyes, Felt grimaced. \"The knight among knights... I would have to be crazy to try to run away with someone like that on my tail. It's the first time I've ever seen anyone faster than me. It really surprised me.\" Upon hearing those words, Reinhard just smiled back at Felt, wordlessly. With a slight click of her tongue, Felt stood up and walked over to Emilia, who stood up as well. \"All right, I'll give it back,\" said Felt, digging around in her breast pocket. \"If it's that important to you, make sure you hide it better so it doesn't get stolen again.\" \"That warning feels a little strange coming from you. ...If possible I would like it if you stopped your thievery altogether.\" \"That's something I cannot do,\" said Felt in a flat refusal. \"Just so you know, I'm only returning this to you this time because I owe my life to you all. I don't think I did anything wrong, and I have no plans to stop.\" Felt put on a strong-willed smile. Considering Felt's age, it was almost painful to watch. As Felt declared her intentions, Reinhard looked on in silence. Given his occupation, Reinhard knew that this was not something he should overlook, but what other way of life did she have? What right did he have to talk of justice without offering her any alternatives? Reinhard had seen enough of the capital to not be so naive as to ignore that fact. Emilia seemed to realize this as well, and after lowering her eyes for a few moments, she stuck out her hand without another word. \"Understood. ...I was asking for too much.\" \"If I was able to eat without having to work for it, I might quit, but that's not happening. Anyway, here you go.\" Felt reached out to put the thing she had taken out of her pocket into Emilia's hand, to give back what she had stolen. For an instant, Reinhard saw a flash of red cross in front of his eyes. That bright light was something he had seen before, and as he narrowed his eyes Reinhard searched through the sea of his memories for it. Then after he had found what he was looking for... \"Huh?\" \"Reinhard...?\" ...he reached out and grabbed Felt's hand, still holding on to the badge. Both girls looked up in surprise at Reinhard, but when they saw his serious expression, both fumbled for words. \"Th-that hurts... Let go...\" said Felt, shaking her head and trying to resist. However, Reinhard did not loosen his grip. The strength in his hand was such that, if he wanted to, he could bend steel. Even if he wasn't using his full strength, it was not something that a slender girl like Felt could shake away from. \"I don't believe it...\" muttered Reinhard, his voice shaking. Upon hearing those words, Emilia responded, her eyes trembling. \"Wait, Reinhard. I understand that it is hard to let her off without a word, but she didn't realize how much this badge is worth. Plus, I do not find fault with her. It was my fault that I let it get stolen in the first place.\" \"You're mistaken, Lady Emilia. That's not what I have a problem with,\" said Reinhard in a forceful tone. Confused, Emilia went silent. Reinhard stared intently at Felt, so much that he had already forgotten how rude he just was to Emilia. As Felt looked back at the young man with hair as red as her eyes, those red eyes of hers wavered with anxiety. \"...What is your name?\" \"It's F-Felt...\" \"What is your surname? How old are you?\" \"I-I'm an orphan, all right? I don't have a surname and I...I think I'm about fifteen years old. I don't know my own birthday. But enough about that. Let me go!\" As Felt spoke, she seemed to regain a bit of her composure and tried to wrestle herself away from him. Reinhard kept his firm hold on Felt and then turned to look at Emilia. \"Lady Emilia, I am no longer able to fulfill your request. I'm taking this girl with me.\" \"...May I ask why? If the reason has anything to do with this badge...\" \"That is certainly not a crime I would like to ignore, but considering the far greater crime it would be to watch this moment before me unfold without any action, it is a trivial matter.\" Emilia furrowed her brow, in both hesitation and confusion. But Reinhard accepted Emilia's confusion. He felt that there was no helping it. After all, this was something she was used to. It would be cruel to tell her to realize what was happening. \"You're coming with me. I'm sorry, but I can't let you refuse.\" \"What are you, crazy?! Just because you saved me doesn't mean you can just... Huh?\" Just as Felt was about to continue yelling at Reinhard, her body went limp. As the power drained from her body Felt glared at Reinhard, until the very end, finally saying, \"Burn in hell... Damn it...\" before her head drooped and she fell unconscious. \"That's again not a very knightly thing for you to do... If you do it that roughly, it's going to leave lasting effects on the gate.\" \"Fortunately, this is something I've had to live with all my life, so I understand how to keep everything in moderation. ...Lady Emilia, I believe you'll hear again from me soon. Please understand.\" Reinhard gently took Emilia's badge out of Felt's limp hand and gave it to her. The dragon on the badge was, in fact, the state symbol of the Dragon Kingdom of Lugunika. In Reinhard's hand the red jewel shone with a dull light, but when it was returned to Emilia's hands it shone bright, as if delighted to be back in the hands of its owner. \"I ask that you take good care of Subaru,\" said Reinhard with a bow, after Emilia silently took her badge from Reinhard and continued to look at him. Feeling Felt's light weight in his arms, Reinhard brushed her blond hair away from her forehead. When she was unconscious like this and didn't have to be so on guard, her white face looked both innocent and charming. If she were given a change of clothes and a bath, surely she would shine. A strong wind blew and Reinhard's bangs danced in front of his face. Through those bangs Reinhard looked up at the sky and saw floating in the twilight above the capital, the moon. It was a full moon that shone with a bluish white light, and its beauty was both alluring and bewitching. \"This may be the last time I can look up at the moon and feel at ease...\" muttered Reinhard, his words only reaching the moon that looked down upon them. ***  Even now, she deeply recalled the feelings she had at the time. Familiar sights had flames all around them; people she knew had turned into silent corpses. A world coming to an end. A closed world. A thankless world. A world that was harsh, senseless, and brought nothing but pain. Even so, she reached out with her hand, moved her fingers, quivered her lips, and pleaded. After all, while it was a world beyond saving, it was still the only one she had. It was a world that always had its back turned to her, locked away before her eyes, a world she could gaze into only from afar. She wanted to abruptly tear down that wall; squint at the broad, dazzling world before her; and carve into her unopened eyes the color of sunbaked skin, the color and smell of burned meat, the color of the beautiful \"horns\" that danced in the sky  Here was the world about to end, and what was she thinking about? For even then, she could still remember the feelings she had at the time  Thereafter, she devoted each and every day to expunging her guilt over those feelings above all else. CHAPTER 1 *** The first thing that flew into his eyes as they blinked open was an artificial sense of dazzling white. Beyond the light, a broad ceiling spread before him, with crystals attached to it providing flickering light that illuminated the room's interior. Confirming in his head that he was waking up, Subaru's mind immediately grasped how good his wake-up felt. \"...The pillow feels different, huh. Smells better, too... Definitely higher class than usual.\" Subaru savored the feel of the blanket and the other fine scents as he sat up in bed. At a glance, he knew it was a room for the upper class. Subaru had slept in a king-size bed that could fit five people to spare; the room was about ninety square feet, oddly spacious with only a bed in it. \"The quality of the painting on the wall is so high it makes the room feel lonelier, huh. A guest room, then?\" Subaru, now completely awake, gently swung his legs over the side of the bed and checked his physical condition. He made sure he could rotate his legs and shoulders, finally pulling up his clothes and gingerly touching his belly. \"Abdominal wound...totally gone. No bruises, of course no scar, either... This world's medical tech is pretty awesome to not leave sewing marks. Assuming my big scene wasn't all just in my imagination, anyway.\" He recalled the string of events"}, {"text": "leading up to his abdomen being deeply slashed. Subaru, a completely ordinary Japanese schoolboy, was abruptly summoned to another world in a painfully clich\u00c3\u00a9 manner, coming face-to-face with death, literally, on multiple occasions. That he was still alive was thanks to a string of coincidences that one could only call miraculous. \"But how much time's passed since then... No way to tell the time, huh?\" He glanced all around the room, unable to find any sign of calendars, clocks, or anything similar. The gold-glowing crystal above the door stood out; the darkness outside the window told him it was night, which was news to him. Subaru slumped his shoulders and took a deep breath. Then, he voiced the inescapable conclusion on his lips and finally resigned himself to face reality. \"Any way you slice it...this time I managed to avoid Return by Death, huh?\" \"First time, it was a pathetic death; second time, it was a bold death; third time, I died like a dog; fourth time, I got involved in mortal combat and died from a stray blow is what I would be saying if I hadn't overcome that development. Man, if I died then, I'd be on a one-way ticket to mob-ville.\" Flopping back into the bed, Subaru counted the causes of his deaths on his fingers. Looking back on it, armed robbery included, he'd been slashed to death every time. He didn't want to see a blade again anytime soon. At any rate, he'd somehow managed to avoid Return by Death and had finally been able to move time forward. The fact that he was all right after sustaining a plainly lethal wound meant... \"Considering the situation, it was that girl's...Emilia's healing magic, huh?\" An image arose in the back of his mind of a beautiful lilac-eyed girl with silver hair Emilia. He thought it was safe to assume she'd healed his abdominal wound. Having had a wound healed by Emilia once before, it was a natural assumption for Subaru to make. Subaru reasoned that, as a result, the guest room he was resting in was part of a mansion owned by Emilia. Then again... \"It's entirely possible this mansion's connected to Reinhard's family... But, well.\" Glancing toward the door, Subaru let out a dissatisfied sigh at the lack of information on his current situation. \"Normally, there'd be a pretty girl at your bedside when you open your eyes, saying, 'Are you awake?' And there weren't any pretty girls when I was summoned, either. For a summons, this one sure has some glaring inadequacies...\" This summons was definitely third-rate. He couldn't slice through armies, and he'd barely had any meaningful encounters. \"Besides, nothing's happening so far... So it's up to me to do recon and make myself comfortable.\" Subaru practically leapt to his feet and put his hand on the door. The refreshingly cool air blew in through the open doorway and the floor transferred the cold directly to his bare feet. When he left the room, the walls and floor of a corridor, all in warm colors, unfolded before him. The passageway continued on and on to both the left and right. Frighteningly, he couldn't see either end of the corridor. \"It's so much like a palace that all I can say is whoa. It's insanely huge... Can't even tell if anyone's here.\" Delicately walking down the corridor on bare feet, Subaru scowled at the silence. It was as if he couldn't hear any signs of life that should normally be there. \"It's too quiet, even for the night... Makes me not wanna raise my voice...\" Personality-wise, Subaru was geared toward asking, Is anybody here?! in a loud voice, but the present circumstances made that too dangerous. After all, Subaru had not yet determined whether this was a safe place for him or not. Subaru had accepted as a matter of course that the host was friendly, but in the worst case, it was possible the assassin with a love of slitting bellies might have returned and abducted him. All the same, he wouldn't be able to lift a finger if he assumed everything was doomed. \"Kenichi once said, life must be lived. That's what I think, too.\" Incidentally, Kenichi was Subaru's father. It was very fitting that a person like him was his father. Subaru's steps forward did not falter. But after walking awhile, Subaru twisted his neck a bit. \"I've walked this much, but I haven't hit a bend. Is that even possible?\" Unsurprisingly, he could not contain his misgivings. Subaru turned around, thinking about going back the other way. Then he raised an eyebrow and remarked, \"Huh...? That painting... I think it was right in front of me when I came out of the room...\" Subaru crossed his arms as he stood in front of the oil painting decorating the corridor. The painting was of a forest scene at night. He felt like it was the same as the one he'd seen when he stepped out of the room. Unless Subaru had moved at the literal pace of a snail, he jumped at the only possibility he could think of. \"Maybe the floor has some trick that makes it move around on its own or...could it be that the corridor loops around...?\" He'd probably turned in the opposite map direction after going a certain way. It was a field trap like you'd see in an RPG. \"If the corridor's looping, maybe it's got something to do with Return by Death.\" Subaru, hoping someone out there agreed with him, grasped the doorknob of the closest room and opened it. When he did, a no-frills room that had nothing within greeted him. Of course, no one was in it, either. \"A looping corridor with any number of rooms... So if I don't find the right one, I can't get out?\" Though he hadn't yet truly accepted he'd been summoned to another world, here he was facing a new fantasy element right after waking. \"So if this goes according to clich\u00c3\u00a9, it could take me hours to find the right one. I'll go hungry; my mind'll give out, then my body will, too. If that's the case...\" The situation made Subaru want to hold his head. Taking a deep breath, Subaru wiped the sweat off his brow and took the first decisive step forward. He twisted the doorknob of the door facing the oil painting in other words, the door that looked like the one Subaru had exited. \"I'll sleep in my room till someone comes. Maybe that first room was the goal anyway.\" Speaking his characteristically flippant thoughts, Subaru entered the room  \"...How do you look like such a deeply irritating person, I wonder?\" Within the book-filled archive that Subaru had no recollection of seeing earlier, a girl with curly hair glared right at him.  It was a room that truly screamed book archive at you. The breadth of the room was about twice that of the first one, chock-full of bookshelves that rose to the ceiling. Each shelf was lined with books; it hurt to even try to guesstimate. \"Man, here in a place full of books and I can't read a single one... What a bummer.\" His breath caught when he looked all around the bookshelves, unable to find a single one with the title on its spine in Japanese. It wasn't some sort of alphabet, either; rather, these were characters like those he saw in the royal capital the characters in common use in that world. Subaru let out a sigh as he looked over the characters he couldn't read no matter how hard he tried. \"Looking all over someone else's bookshelves, and sighing on top of that... Are you trying to offend, I wonder? Perhaps I should respond in kind?\" \"Your pretty face'll go all to waste if you're that prickly. C'mon, smile, smile!\" \"I am simply pretty by nature. I suppose my contemptuous sneer should be enough for the likes of you.\" Putting the tips of her fingers to her cheeks, the girl formed a cruel smile. Betty was a sweet, lovely girl a sight he'd seen several times in this world already. She looked younger than Felt in the slums, no more than eleven or twelve years old. Her frilly hairstyle matched her ornate dress, both framing her lovely face. Her pale, cream-colored hair was worn long, distinctive for its swirling rolls. If she'd only smile properly, there was no one's heart she'd fail to melt. She held a large book in her hands as she sat on a wooden footstool, from which she looked up at Subaru. \"You know big words like contemptuous sneer, huh...and you're in a bad mood because I got it right in one go? My bad! I've been doing stuff like this since way back.\" Subaru Natsuki had a knack for picking the right answer to difficult questions with many options, without hints, on the first try. In the past, Subaru had unwittingly ruined many a scheme like that. The corridor from before made one more on the list. \"All my hard work constructing the domain, all for naught, just like that... It is quite horrid.\" \"I suppose GMs would want me to trigger all their events instead of skipping to the end, so I get it. My bad, my bad.\" Subaru made a light wave of his hand in apology while the girl glared at him with half-lidded eyes. Apparently, it was this girl's scheme that Subaru's thoughtless act had foiled. \"Well, let's make that water under the bridge. Could you tell me where this is?\" \"Hmph. It is my archive, my sleeping quarters...my private chambers, perhaps?\" \"Shouldn't that make me feel kind of sad for you? I mean, you don't have your own bedroom to sleep in? That's horrible. Or about you using a library as your private chambers...maybe I should just laugh?\" \"Are those remarks intended with a touch of teasing, I wonder?!\" The annoyed girl replying with blunt sarcasm, who called herself Betty, puffed out her cheeks and advanced upon Subaru. \"I am finally reaching the limit of my patience. You should be put in your place a little, I suppose.\" \"Hey, whatever you're planning, let's not? I'm just an ordinary guy, no combat ability at all here?\" His eyes became smaller and damper as his body made tiny quivers in a showy pose. But the speed of the girl's soft footsteps increased. \" Stay right there.\" Suddenly, Subaru was assailed by a feeling like a chill up his spine. The girl, already before his eyes, stretched out her hand all the way to Subaru. Subaru froze as the girl, her height not reaching near his upper chest, stared at him with pale blue eyes. His skin broke out in goose bumps as a quiet, high-pitched ringing echoed inside his skull. \"Is there something you wish to say...?\" As the girl posed her question, he unfroze for a moment. Subaru searched for the best thing to say during the instant he had been permitted. Subaru's gaze wandered as his lips quivered. \"I-it's not gonna hurt, is it?\" \"Should I applaud your devotion to your flippant tongue, I wonder?\" Speaking with a tone of genuine admiration, the girl reached her hand to Subaru's chest. Her palm pushed against his breast, her fingertips pressing softly against the surface. It felt ticklish. And  \"Bwah...!\"  the next moment, Subaru felt like his entire body was on fire. Something was running wild inside him, making him feel like he was on fire from the tips of his fingers to the very ends of his hair. The eerie pain was as if a finger of flame were tracing his internal organs. His vision darkened. When Subaru came to, he had fallen onto his knees, a large amount of tears flowing from him. \"It seems you did not faint. Perhaps you are as sturdy as I heard?\" \"Wh-what did you do, drill loli...\" \"I simply interfered with the mana inside your body. Does"}, {"text": "the circulation feel slightly off, I wonder?\" The girl calmly murmured as she knelt down and jabbed a finger into Subaru's body. \"Well, it would be good to confirm whether you had hostile intent or not. And, for your rudeness toward my hard work, your mana should be confiscated before letting you go, I suppose.\" Subaru, having reached his limit, was unable to remain upright from the jab, his head falling to the floor. Despite this, he was able to slowly use his neck, looking up as the girl glared down at him with a sadistic smile. \"You're not...human, are you? And I don't mean your personality....\" \"You are quite slow to grasp that for someone who has met Puckie already.\" The girl looked down with amusement as Subaru crawled. She looked younger than her choice of words hinted at, feeling like the sort of little girl who'd rip the wings off an insect in a cruel game. \"Correction... Your personality's...inhuman, too...\" \"Surely a sublime being far beyond your ability to measure, human.\" It was an overly glacial statement coming from the lips of a little girl. Subaru felt the inside of his chest smolder. But he had no strength left to describe the heat with words. Subaru's consciousness sank into darkness against his will.  Geez, I just woke up and I'm getting knocked out again?! \"If you died here, your husk would be troublesome to remove. I shall speak to the others.\"  Don't say husk, it makes me sound like an insect, you little brat  Subaru returned to sleep once more, unable to move even his frivolous tongue. \"My, it seems he has awakened, Sister.\" \"Yes, Rem. He is awake.\" When he next awoke, two girls spoke, their voices sharing the same timbre. He was in the same soft, comfortable bed as before. The slight opening of the curtains let in the dazzling rays of the sun, burning sleepy Subaru's eyelids. He instinctively assumed it was morning. \"Ugh, I'm not so much nocturnal as I am a denizen of the night. Waking up in the morning makes my chest burn...\" Wide awake, Subaru sat up as he remembered that his day and night cycles were inverted while school was out. He looked around, rotated his shoulders, and shifted his hips toward the window as he looked in that direction. \"Dear Guest, it is now Seven Solartime.\" \"Dear Guest, it is about Seven Solartime.\" Their friendly voices conveyed the time of day. Seven Solartime he didn't know what that meant, but he guessed it meant something similar to seven AM. \"That being the case, if you don't count the wake-up earlier, I've slept for about a whole day, huh? Well, my record is two and a half days, so this is no big deal, really.\" \"Sister, did you hear? Quite a lazy thing to say.\" \"Yes, Rem, I heard. Quite a good-for-nothing thing to say.\" \"So who're these ladies who've been chewing me out in stereo here?!\" Subaru sat up quickly, taken by surprise at the girls, sandwiching the bed from both sides. The girls rushed a short distance to a corner of the room, joining hands and drawing their faces close as they looked at him. Standing side by side, their faces were two peas in a pod; the girls were obviously twins. Both stood about a hundred and fifty centimeters tall. Their big eyes, pink lips, and the soft, youthful loveliness of their faces made them outright adorable. Both wore their hair in short bobs, with their hair parted to fall across one eye the right eye on one and the left eye on the other. The way their hair was parted and the fact that one had pink hair and the other blue were the only visual clues to tell them apart. The twins watched Subaru carefully. His mind quivered, as though it were all scratched up, as he suddenly realized. \"No way... There are maid outfits in this world, too?!\" They wore black apron dresses with white accents and white lace headpieces on their heads. These outfits were specially modified to expose their narrow shoulders, which, combined with the short skirts, flaunted their body lines in scandalous ways. Subaru didn't know a whole lot about maid outfits, but he was certain the level of skin exposure represented the designer's personal taste...though the twins who wore them were beautiful regardless. \"I thought maids were supposed to dress modestly...but I think I'm a fan!\" \"This is terrible, Sister. Right now, in Dear Guest's head, you are the subject of obscene, degrading thoughts.\" \"This is dreadful, Rem. Right now, Dear Guest's head has become filled with completely disgusting thoughts about you.\" \"Don't take my mental capacity for granted, ladies. You're both going to star in my fantasies!\" Subaru crossed his forearms and made suggestive motions with his fingers. The gesture made the two maids' faces tremble; the girls wrapped around each other, releasing their hands and pointing at each other. \"Please forgive me, Dear Guest. Let me go and defile Sister instead.\" \"Please stop this, Dear Guest. Let me go and humiliate Rem instead.\" \"Where's the sisterly love here?! I mean, selling each other out and making me some archvillain?!\" The two maids pushed the role of scapegoat onto the other, looking at Subaru as if wondering which one he'd sink his evil fangs into first. That was when he suddenly noticed... Knock, knock. The girl stood inside the open door, tapping it softly while looking at the three of them. \"...Couldn't you wake up with less drama?\" Today, she was letting her long silver hair hang naturally all the way to her hips. Her outfit was not the robe he'd seen at the capital but rather, an outfit that accentuated her light skin and slender physique with its design. The skirt was unexpectedly short; Subaru, marveling at how it showed off her long legs, pumped a fist. \"I get it! Whoever chose this, I get what they were thinking!\" The silver-haired girl Emilia gawked at Subaru's praise. \"...I'm not quite sure what you're referring to, but I'm veeery disappointed that I know it's something meaningless.\" In one move, Emilia's sudden visit had greatly improved Subaru's mental state. In a place full of unknowns his incident with the first little girl he had met was especially poignant seeing Emilia, a friendly face he'd known since just after his summoning to another world, made it all the more special in his mind. \"To think I was worried a bit when I heard Beatrice was rough on you when you were low on blood... I really shouldn't have bothered.\" \"I'm in a super good mood from waking up to your face, though. And I'm a little afraid to ask this, but...\" With Emilia giving him a suspicious look, Subaru put both his hands together and timidly looked at her with upturned eyes. \"You, ah...remember all about me, right?\" \"That gesture, for some reason I don't like it. Also, that's an odd question. I don't think I'd forget someone who stands out as much as you do, Subaru.\" With Emilia smiling charmingly at him and calling his name, Subaru slumped his shoulders in relief. Then, realizing that for once a girl was calling him by name, he was rather flushed. \"Please listen, Lady Emilia. This person was terribly humiliating. For Sister, that is.\" \"Hear this, Lady Emilia. This man has trapped and violated girls. Rem, that is.\" The twins left Subaru behind, who was now red to the tips of his ears, as they rushed to Emilia's side to make their baseless charges. Emilia made a strained smile at their slander and glanced sideways at Subaru. \"I...don't know Subaru enough to say I know he wouldn't do that, but I trust that he probably did not. Don't tease him too much, okay?\" \"Yes, Lady Emilia. Ram shall reflect on this.\" \"Yes, Lady Emilia. Rem will reflect on this.\" Despite their statements, the twins didn't appear to mean it even a tiny bit. Emilia showed no signs of objecting to their attitude; perhaps she was simply used to it. \"Anyway, Subaru, are you doing all right? Nothing feels wrong anywhere?\" \"Mm, oh, yeah, before I slept I felt like my whole body was on fire and I was going to die, but I don't feel one bit of that now. I actually feel like I slept a bit too much.\" \"If you're no worse than that, good. Can you handle a little stroll?\" \"Stroll?\" Emilia was making a small smile as Subaru tilted his head. \"Yes, a stroll. I try to go into the garden once a day, and this seems like a good time for it, no?\" \"Once a day...doing what? Watering the flower bed?\" \"Not exactly. One of the conditions of my pact with the various spirits is that I make contact and speak with them every morning.\" When Emilia said spirit, Subaru thought back to the cat spirit he'd seen with Emilia. A stroll and a chat with the spirits. It was a nice idea that provided fodder for his curiosity and his ulterior motives. \"Sounds like great rehab to me, Emilia-tan. How about I stroll around the garden and exercise while you're talking to the spirits?\" \"Well, if you don't talk loudly or make a big fuss, sure... Eh? What did you say just now?\" \"Okay, it's a deal. Let's go to the garden!\" \"Hey, what did you say? What is tan? Where'd that come from?\" The pet name seemed to throw off Emilia. Subaru was hiding his blush at having her call his name so openly when he turned toward the faces of the two maids standing side by side. \"Hey, maid sisters. Where are my old clothes? Feels like I got in a hospital gown while I was out. I figure the mansion here lent this to me, but...\" \"Do you understand, Sister? Perhaps he means that drab gray rag?\" \"I understand, Rem. He means that bloodstained mouse-colored piece of filth.\" \"Some guts there, calling it filthy and looking like a dirty rat. If it's in one piece, could you hand it over?\" Faced with Subaru's request, the twins turned to Emilia. Their looks said they wanted permission. When Emilia responded with a nod, the twins politely bowed and left the room. \"You don't need to hear this from me, but you mustn't strain yourself. You were terribly injured.\" \"You closed the wound perfectly, though. Oh yeah...\" As if remembering something, Subaru straightened his posture and slowly bowed his head to Emilia. \"Thank you for healing my wounds, Emilia-tan. You saved me. I really am scared of dying. I'd like to do it only once.\" \"Normally once is all you get...? But, mm-hm, never mind that...\" After the spontaneous verbal jab, Emilia's purple eyes wavered as she looked at Subaru. \"I should be the one thanking you. You risked your life for mine when you barely knew me. Healing your wounds was the least I could do.\" Subaru's breath caught at her sincerely apologetic look. He hated himself for being unable to give her the reply he wanted to.  Emilia had said never mind that at her saving him. Yet it had been Emilia who'd saved him first. But the only record of that was inside Subaru's memories. Subaru smiled, holding in the gratitude he could never properly convey. \" Well, since we saved each other, I think we're all square here.\" \"Square...?\" \"It means that neither of us owes the other a thing, so let's get along, brotha!\" If he were talking to a resident of the Poor District, this would be the time for him to kindly clap them on the shoulder. But at that moment, it was all Subaru could do to cover up his embarrassment and blushing face as best he could. Emilia made a small smile at Subaru. \"Do I really need a younger brother this weird?\" \"That's a pretty harsh comment?!\" He slumped his shoulders at the casual put-down."}, {"text": "Both laughed at the exchange as the door opened and the twin maids returned. Subaru straightened as he saw them carrying the top and bottom of his tracksuit, one part each. \"Guess it's time to restart the day.\" His first day since surpassing Return by Death was truly beginning. Subaru shook his head when the maids offered to dress him, changing clothes by his own power before heading to the manor's garden with Emilia. Subaru let out a sigh of admiration as he looked over the broad garden. \"This is really big, too. The mansion's huge, but this is more a grassland than a garden.\" He'd seen gardens of the manors of the well-off in manga and anime from time to time. They were the sorts of places where you held dinner parties. There, in the middle of the huge garden, Subaru began stretching exercises to begin his rehabilitation posthaste. Emilia looked on curiously as she watched Subaru's movements. \"Those are odd moves. What are you doing?\" \"Oh, don't you do warm-ups here? You do them before starting strenuous exercise.\" \"Hmm, I haven't really seen much of that. But I do understand it's dangerous to make sudden, hard movements.\" \"So people don't do stretching in this world? Oh well, it can't be helped how about I teach you? Genuine warm-up exercises from my homeland, passed down through the generations!\" Emilia seemed to yield in the face of Subaru's confident proclamation. \"R-right. Just a bit, then,\" she said, copying Subaru. Subaru stood beside Emilia and gave out instructions. \"Morning Warm-Up Part Twooo! Reach high with your hands and stretch that back~~!\" \"Eh, what, no way?!\" \"Just do what I do. I'll pound the essence of radio calisthenics into you yet!\" With Emilia lost, Subaru scolded her and followed the beat of a routine famous around the nation. Emilia was still bewildered at first but proved a quick study. When both finished making their final deep breaths, Subaru spread both hands into the sky. \"And last, raise your hands. Victory!\" \"V-victory!\" \"Okay, there you go, Emilia-tan, you are now a Radio Calisthenics Novice!\" Having finished doing calisthenics with all her might, Emilia's face showed the new title had made a deep impression. But she made a face like she'd just remembered her original purpose. \"Right. Things really got off the beaten path, but if I forget this, they'll be upset.\" Emilia, making a thin, pleasant smile as she spoke, brought out a green crystal from her pocket and showed it to Subaru. \"Ah, that's...\" \"A crystal for spirits to inhabit. You know, like Puck.\" \"The kitty cat that slept through all the big stuff? Bet he doesn't know about my heroic scene, then?\" The crystal glowed as if to rebuke Subaru's taking him lightly. The indifferent voice came from the crystal at first. \"Oh, not at all, Subaru, Lia told me all about it after things got wrapped up.\" Finally, light poured out of the crystal and condensed into an outline forming atop Emilia's palm. \"Heya. Morning, Subaru. Nice weather.\" \"It's been an up-and-down night and morning for me, though. First the looping corridor, then that menacing little girl. Now I'm past that and working up a sweat with Emilia-tan...\" Emilia's lips tapered into a pout. \"People will get the wrong impression if you say that.\" Emilia then looked at Puck, sitting atop her palm. \"Good morning, Puck. Sorry for pushing you so hard yesterday.\" \"Good morning, Lia. I'm the one sorry for yesterday, though. I almost lost you. I can't thank Subaru enough, really.\" Puck looked up at Subaru with his round black eyes as he stroked his pink nose with his paw. \"Well, I owe you something. I wonder if there's anything you want? Something I can do, I mean.\" Subaru's reply to Puck's grandiose statement was immediate. \"All right, let me touch that fur of yours to my heart's content.\" Puck's and Emilia's eyes went wide. Apparently, the speed of the reply had surprised them as much as the content. \"Sh-shouldn't you take a little longer to decide? Puck might look small and unreliable, but his power level really is quite something.\" \"Hey, to me, being able to feel fur like from the finest fabrics is a really huge thing. I wouldn't take any amount of money over it. No, seriously.\" As Subaru spoke, he indulged his right and stuck his finger toward Puck: first belly, then chin, and the ears to finish him off. \"Oh, these ears are addictive! I'm totally into your fluffiness here!\" \"I know from reading the surface of your thoughts, but to hear you actually say it, wow.\" Subaru liberally toyed around as Puck made pleasant noises from his throat. Emilia let out a sigh of resignation as she watched Subaru and Puck play. \"Well, I'm going to talk to the lesser spirits, then... It's fine if you two play, but don't interfere, okay?\" \"So, she dumped us.\" \"Yep, she dumped us.\" As both slumped their shoulders, Emilia made a point of ignoring them as she softly went to a corner of the garden. She gave the ground a light brush before sitting down. Emilia closed her eyes as pale lights began to surround her.  He'd seen that sight before. \"Lesser spirits, huh?\" \"That's right. Most are classified as lesser or greater spirits...though a lot are outside of those categories.\" \"Not that it doesn't help...but I don't know how to classify them.\" Subaru knew that the lights frolicking around Emilia were lesser spirits because Emilia had said as much during the loop in the royal capital. As Emilia sat, she spoke softly to the minor spirits, smiling from time to time; the minor spirits seemed to brighten or fade accordingly. \"You said 'a pact with minor spirits,' but, like, what is that?\" \"A ceremonial pact with a spirit forging a covenant.\" Subaru frowned at the term he hadn't heard before. \"Err, you see, a Spirit Master can't use spirit spells unless she makes a pact with spirits first. The details of the pacts differ according to the spirits. Still with me?\" \"So it's not like interest and collateral for a bank loan, then. Gotcha.\" \"My name's not Gotcha, but let's move on. So individual spirits want different things...but minor spirits like that just want pacts with simple conditions like contact with the caster.\" \"So it's like easy stuff for beginners. I take it that doesn't work for other spirits?\" \"It helps that you're quick on the uptake. This won't get far if you keep going off on tangents, though?\" Oops, said Subaru with a blushy smile. For his part, Puck gave him a warm look as he toyed with his own whiskers. \"Right, it's a bit harder to satisfy a spirit with a mind of his own, like me. I'd like to give to the pact maker as good as I take...but my conditions with Lia are pretty strict.\" \"It's been on my mind since earlier, but Lia, that's a cute nickname.\" \"Your Emilia-tan's even cuter, though. I should call her that, too.\" \" Don't. Seriously. I'm begging you.\" With puffed-up cheeks, Emilia cut into their silly games. As Emilia returned, the spirits around her winked out; apparently Spirit Talk Time had come to an end. Subaru stood up and brushed the grass off his rear. \"Quality time over? That felt easier than I expected.\" \"I was mindful of you two, so I asked them to keep it short. We have things we need to discuss today.\" As Emilia spoke, she offered up her palm; Puck leapt from Subaru, landing upon it. Puck's round eyes turned toward Emilia with what seemed like a small, satisfied smile. \"It's all right. I got a good feel for him, and I can't find one shred of malice, hostility, or intent to do harm. Subaru's a good boy, though his personality is a bit weird.\" \"Now wait a...\" Aghast at Puck appraising him to Emilia on various levels, Subaru could only gape. \"Why did you... Even if it's true, isn't saying it in front of him hurtful?\" \"Oh, ah, that's fine! I'm a complete stranger to you, so of course you'd check me out. You're right to doubt. But that part at the end really hurt, Emilia-tan!\" Emilia quickly covered her mouth with a hand and made a pained smile at Subaru. Subaru hadn't touched Puck all over without a reason. He'd expected this to come up. Emilia and the others weren't so careless as to accept Subaru without knowing a single firm thing about him. No doubt that partially explained Ram's and Rem's demeanor. \"That said, I don't have any good way to explain.\" There was obviously no preexisting record of Subaru in this world. Explaining that he'd been summoned was a tough sell, with good odds he'd be treated as a lunatic. That being the case, letting Puck get a good read on him was the best option. Words from Puck, trusted by Emilia and able to read conscious thoughts, were a lot more convincing than anything Subaru could come up with. \"It's all right, Lia. Oh, and I know what you were up to, Subaru. Naughty boy, using my mind reading like that.\" \"I'm honored. Let's get along famously, my friend!\" How Subaru addressed them put a look of shock on Puck's face; he then broke into a wide smile. \"It's been a while since I got this kind of treatment. I like it.\" \"I'd rather hear those words from Emilia-tan. Oh well, as they say, to take down a general, first take down his horse... Well, you're kind of a cat so does that still make sense? ...I wonder?\" A surprised look came over Emilia as she watched Subaru put a finger to his chin and sink into serious thought. When Subaru curiously raised his eyebrows, Emilia inhaled a bit. \" Really, Subaru, you are so strange.\" \"Huh?\" \"Giving leading looks to a...half-elf like me who speaks to spirits like it's a normal thing...it surprised me, even as a joke.\" In his heart, Subaru countered, Would you be as surprised if you knew it wasn't a joke? But he forgot all about that as he fell for Emilia's charming smile. This smile was on par with the one she'd given him when they'd exchanged names at the royal capital. It seemed fleeting and fickle, which only made his heart flutter all the more. Her beautiful, flowing silver hair was as surreal as dew in the moonlight; her skin was as pale as the first snow. Her violet eyes seemed to hold Subaru's mind firmly in their spell and wouldn't let go. He knew she was sublime, beautiful, with a heart of gold wrapped around an unshakable core. Subaru wanted nothing more than to put his hands on his cheeks and give thanks to Mother Nature, but he abstained. \"Huh, wonder what's with those two?\" And, as Emilia mentioned something she'd noticed, Subaru looked toward the manor. The twin maids were walking down from the mansion. Both gave formal bows before Subaru and Emilia, speaking in perfect stereo, not off by the slightest bit. \" Master Roswaal, lord of the manor, has returned. Please come this way.\" Their perfect combo surprised Subaru, but the maids' change of demeanor surprised him more. Their earlier frivolousness was nowhere to be found, replaced by a sense of dignity befitting servants of the upper crust. \"I see. Roswaal... We'd best go see him, then.\" \"Yes, and he said to bring our Dear Guest as well, should he be awake.\" Puck wriggled into Emilia's silver hair. Emilia's face stiffened a bit as she patted down her hair. Watching her from the side, Subaru cracked his neck slightly at being addressed. \"So, who is this Roswaal guy, anyway?\" \"Lord of this manor... Ah, that's right, I didn't explain.\" Emilia put her palm to her mouth as she realized her own slip. \"Err, right. Roswaal is... You'll understand when you meet him.\" \"You gave up on that"}, {"text": "explanation too fast! What, he's too plain to describe?!\" Emilia, Puck, Ram, and Rem all replied in unison... \" No, the opposite.\" Subaru's jaw dropped open in a face of surprise multiplied by four. The blue-haired girl gently closed his mouth from below with her hand before giving a solemn bow. The pink-haired maid standing beside her motioned to the mansion. \"One cannot describe the likes of Master Roswaal with words alone. You shall understand when you meet him, Dear Guest. It is all right; he is a kind lord.\" The twins met each other's gazes and nodded, with the repeated affirmation serving only to deepen his doubts. With Subaru bewildered, Emilia looked like she grudgingly agreed with the twins as she gently reached out to him. Giving Subaru's shoulder a couple of pats, Emilia murmured in a grave voice. \" You'll probably get along just fine, Subaru. He'll wear you out, though.\" CHAPTER 2 *** In the dining hall the twins led them to, where breakfast was to be held, the girl with curly hair said in place of a greeting, \"Watching from above, I felt...dismay at seeing your considerably disappointing head, I wonder?\" Emilia had split off midway to return to her room to change clothes, so at that moment, only Subaru and the curly-haired girl were in the dining hall. Subaru made a sour face at her sarcasm. \"What's with talking like that on a fine morning like this, loli?\" \"What is that term, I wonder? I have never heard it, yet it feels distinctly...unpleasant.\" \"It means you're not on my list. I never go for girls younger than me.\" \"...Perhaps I should pity you for having insulted me so?\" Deliberately ignoring the sarcastic girl's words, Subaru looked over the dining hall. A table covered in a white cloth was at the center; the plates had already been set. If one was set for Subaru, it was surely the lowest seat at the table. \"I don't know anything about table manners. How about I let you give me pointers?\" \"Is that arrogance, I wonder? If you do not understand, simply say so and lower your head.\" \"If I could do that much, I might as well just sit in the big chair and really irritate you.\" The girl shook with anger, her face going red as Subaru waved with a palm and sat in the big chair. It'd probably be Emilia or the lord of the manor who'd sit there, with fifty-fifty odds for each. Seeing Subaru genuinely unable to get comfortable in the chair, the curly-haired girl shook her exasperated face. \"Well, fine. More importantly, have you no words with which to thank me?\" \"Thanks? I asked for help just now and you brushed me off, didn't you? And what kind of person asks to be thanked? I'd wanna see the look on your dad's face for that one!\" \"What are you angry for, I wonder?! I should be the angry one! After all I did...!\" They kept egging each other on. The girl, her voice flustered at Subaru's reply, never quite finished her sentence. Mindful of the unnatural pause, Subaru prompted her to continue, but... The door to the dining hall opened and the twin maids came in pushing a cart. \"Pardon us, Dear Guest. I shall set the meal.\" \"Pardon us, Dear Guest. I shall set the tableware and the tea.\" The blue-haired girl laid out an orthodox breakfast menu consisting of salad, bread, and the like, while the pink-haired girl briskly poured and placed cups of tea. The warm scents made Subaru's stomach grumble out of nowhere. \"Whoa, not bad at all. Now this is a breakfast fit for nobility... I was worried it was going to be some weird out-of-this-world thing.\" Subaru, worried that any strange thing could potentially be served here, was considerably relieved. When he looked all around, he couldn't place anything in particular that seemed to pose physical or mental danger. His enthusiasm rising, Subaru leaned back against the chair, making it creak. The sound echoed throughout the dining room, bringing a hint of annoyance to the girl's soothing face. For some reason, Subaru couldn't resist needling the curly-haired girl. Wanting to see her soothing face break down further, Subaru, full of mischief, decided to move his butt all around the chair. However, before he could do so, a new individual entered the dining hall, his happy-sounding voice interrupting everything else. \"Ohhh my. You certainly seem raaather spry. That is good, veeery good.\" He was a tall man, at least half a head above Subaru's height, wearing his dark blue hair long to nearly cover his entire back. But his body seemed not so much slender as delicate, with his skin color ghastly pale. Combined with the look of his face, he somehow seemed like some sort of pretty boy. The effect was further accentuated by his left and right eyes being different colors, the first yellow, the other blue.  Well, it might have if he wasn't decked out in that weird outfit and makeup that made him look like a clown. \"...Man, you hired a jester to entertain us before breakfast? I'll never get how rich folks think.\" Beatrice watched and commented. \"I have some idea what you must be thinking, but I shall not get in the way.\" \"Don't be that way, Betty. We're friends, right? Let's do some more small talk.\" \"What kind of relationship do you and I have, I wonder? Also, do not speak my name so casually.\" The girl snubbed him with a shrug and withdrew from the conversation. Subaru scowled at her behavior as the clown walking into the dining hall opened his eyes wide, looking at both her and Subaru. \"Oh my, it is raaare to see Beatrice here. Is it not fortuitous thaaat you decided to share a meal with me after so looong?\" \"If that man over there is the only optimist, wouldn't that already be too many, I wonder? I wait for Puckie and Puckie alone.\" Brushing off his chummy statement, the girl Beatrice shifted to behind the clown. The silver-haired girl, having finished changing her attire, entered the dining hall a bit after the clown. \"Puckie!\" Practically leaping from her seat, Beatrice ran over, her long skirt swaying. Seeing a smile like a flower in bloom come over her was so adorable that it made him forget how he'd pegged the girl as \"cheeky.\" Her gaze was trained on Emilia, but it was not Emilia who replied. \"Heya, Betty. It's been four days. Have you been happy and ladylike?\" Beatrice nodded at the words of the buoyant little gray kitty popping out of Emilia's hair. \"I have been eagerly awaiting your return, Puckie. You would enjoy spending the day together, I wonder?\" \"Yeah, that'd be great! Both of us can take it easy for one day.\" \"That is wonderful!\" Puck leapt off Emilia's shoulder to land upon Beatrice's outstretched palms. As she caught Puck, Beatrice lovingly embraced him and ran around in circles then and there. Subaru was struck senseless by the happy, carefree scene as Emilia walked over with a teasing smile. \"Tee-hee, aren't they merry? Puck and Beatrice are very close, you see.\" \"Nobody uses merry anymore...\" When Subaru gave Emilia his stock reply for when she used outdated words, Emilia went, \"Mm?\" and pointed Subaru's way. \"Er, Subaru, that chair...\" \"Oh, right! Uh, it's not what you think. I mean, a cold chair really throws you off, so I figured I'd warm it up a little. It wasn't that I just wanted to sit where you usually sit, like an indirect sit-down, really.\" \"Sorry, I'm not really sure what you mean, but that's Roswaal's seat.\" With Subaru's big scheme foiled, he slid off the chair in front of the wide-eyed Emilia. \"Oh, there's no need for concern. I see, your warmth may not reach Lady Emilia, but I shall treasure it greatly.\" The clown reached out and patted Subaru's shoulder, smiling at him in consolation. The touch to his shoulder and the gently smiling, made-up face drew a sour frown from Subaru. \"This clown's acting real chummy. It's not polite to touch the dancing girls, you know?\" \"Since when did you become a da... Er, no, Subaru, this man is...\" \"My, my, myyy, I do nooot mind, Lady Emilia. Considering how he went from being at death's door to being in such high spirits, shooould we not be quiiite grateful?\" The clown's tone of voice excelled at getting on one's nerves, yet his statement was extremely sensible. The others continued to watch the clown as he slowly sat down in the chair the very chair at the head of the table that Subaru had been seated in just before. \"Hey, now. Not that I should say this, but sitting in someone else's chair is gonna tick people off.\" Emilia made an exasperated face at Subaru's statement as she murmured, \"No need to worry about th... You, ah, really should introduce yourself to Subaru.\" It seemed Emilia's exasperation was also directed toward the clown. \"What do you mean?\" \"In ooother words, she meeeans...this.\" The clown seated in the chair replied to Subaru's query as he spread his arms out wide. \"'Tiiis I, lord of this manor, Roswaal L. Mathers. It is goooood that you feel so safe and comfortable under my roof, Subaru Natsuki.\" And so, the deviant noble dressed as a clown introduced himself in a lively manner thoroughly devoid of shame. Beginning with Roswaal in the seat of honor, they sat in prearranged seats and began breakfast. \"Mm...this is better than usual...\" Subaru was admiring the food before his eyes reminiscent of salad and soup. Roswaal nodded back, seeming to take personal pride in Subaru's appraisal of the cooking as he looked at Rem. \"Mm-hmm, iiindeed, indeed. She may not look it, but Rem's cooking is quite something.\" When Subaru looked at Rem, too, she made a fox sign with a hand. Subaru didn't know what it meant, but it might've been this world's version of making a V with your fingers. Subaru made a frog with both hands in reply. \"So the blue-ha... Is calling you Rem fine? So you cooked this?\" \"Yes, Dear Guest. Rem handles the meals in this household. Sister is not especially good at it.\" \"Oh-ho, so it's like, you twins have different specialties. So, your sister's really good at cleaning?\" \"Yes, Sister specializes in cleaning inside and doing the laundry.\" \"So since you're good at all the cooking, you're not so good at cleaning and laundry, Remrin?\" \"No, I excel at all domestic chores, including cleaning and laundry, more than Sister.\" \"What's she here for, then?!\" An older twin sister worse at everything under the sun than her little sister? This was a new one. The older sister seemed to pay no heed to Rem's statement. Subaru couldn't prove it, but he guessed the words were true. So why wasn't Ram bothered by it at all...? \"So maybe it's different fields, huh? Ramchi does combat stuff and the other does more domestic stuff?\" \"Not a baaad guess. Though Ram and Rem make a poor first impression because of their idiosyncrasies, yes?\" \"Hard for that to stand out now when their master's so unique, Rozchi.\" By Rozchi, Subaru was addressing the man in charge by a pet name, but Roswaal let the statement pass with practiced ease. Subaru had an ingrained tendency to get a rise out of people, but not so here. That said, the items on the menu vanished from the plates one after another before they knew it. \"It'd be something of a dilemma if the food wasn't good, but it's delicious, so no prob. Right, Emilia-tan?\" Emilia wiped her lips with a napkin, grimacing at Subaru's carefree words. Subaru tilted his head, wondering what was up, as Emilia exhaled slightly. \"You know, Subaru, you shouldn't speak at the dinner table. It's rude to Ram and Rem, who prepared this"}, {"text": "all by themselves. Without proper manners, you'll make blunders during important occasions, so...\" \"No one uses blunder anymore... Table manners, huh. Kind of late to learn them now, though, right?\" Subaru delivered his clich\u00c3\u00a9 while motioning toward the dining hall with his hand. In spite of the spacious hall, Subaru was sitting right beside Emilia. By rights, the two would be seated quite far apart to make full use of the dining table. \"But I moved closer because I wanted to eat with Emilia-tan. Roswaal didn't say he minded, so what's the big deal? I mean, you can give me any veggies you don't like.\" \"All right, you can have my green bepper  Wait, that's not the point. I'm being an idiot.\" Subaru laughed, finding it cute how Emilia tapered her lips in a pout at being outdone in their verbal jousting. After that, Subaru belatedly brought up an issue Emilia's words had raised. \"Incidentally, Rozchi, I thought I heard Emilia-tan say this household has only two maids working here?\" \"Ahh, yeees, such is currently the caaase. Ram and Rem are the only ones left.\" \"Two people handling a place this huge? You'd think people would die from overwork no matter how good they are. That said...it doesn't feel like you're going to be hiring any new maids here?\" Roswaal was silent to Subaru's question, crossing his arms at the table. Roswaal's face displayed a smile, but the eyes with which he regarded Subaru had subtly changed. \"You truly are a mystery, having come to the house of Mathers at the far reaches of the Kingdom of Lugunica, yet you do not know the circumstances? Amazing that you made it past royal customs.\" \"Well, I am kind of an undocumented immigrant in a sense...\" Subaru's casual reply startled Emilia; she gave him a glare like she was scolding a young child. \"I can't believe it. If you say things like that so easily, bad people will make mincemeat out of you.\" \"Nobody uses mincemeat anymore.\" \"Don't joke about this. Hey, Subaru, is that really true? Is everyone where you come from like this, or is it really just you who doesn't know?\" Subaru, feeling bad at how Emilia was genuinely worried, reflected upon his own behavior. \"Err, more like my education's especially lacking. So if it's no bother, I really would be grateful if you filled me in.\" \"You seem an educated enough child to me from the big words you're using, but...\" \"I mean, this here's my debut with high society. I mean, there're things you don't know either, Emilia-tan? Honorifics like that and extra-polite words seem to throw you off?\" \"Err...you do have a point.\" Emilia seemed to shrink at Subaru's observation. Seeing Emilia like that surprised him, but it was not the wilting Emilia who followed up but Roswaal, previously silent in the seat of honor. \"I do understand what you are saying, but Lady Emilia is cuuurrently studying such things, you seeee.\" \"Studying, huh. Wait, you mean we lost her when we were talking earlier?\" \"You truly do have an active mind. It is because you think so much that you can make such thoughtless-sounding statements.\" Subaru slouched from Roswaal's apparent praise before giving his own chest a thump. \"Thinking while you live is just common sense. It's the duty of every man to think on his feet for when the chips are down. That or your guts get spilled all over the floor.\" \"I feel like your guts kind of did spill on the... Ahem. Back to the other subject... Subaru, do you know this country's...the Kingdom of Lugunica's situation at the moment?\" \"Not the smallest, tiniest bit.\" \"Hearing you say it like that, I'm shocked you've lived this long.\" That doesn't sound like praise to me, Subaru thought while looking fondly at Emilia. He wasn't trying to arouse her protective instincts, but she was certainly giving him that mother-hen feeling. \"By 'situation'...you mean the country's in a bad spot?\" Roswaal carefully chose his words. \"A fairly difficult situation, yes, for Lugunica currently lacks a king.\" Subaru's breath caught as it sank in. He gave the man in performer makeup a guarded look as he sat straighter in his chair. \"There is no need for suuuch concern. The gravity of the situation is alreeeady well known to the public, you see.\" \"Well, that's good. I was thinking I'd learned a dangerous secret and would never get out alive.\" \"It's sad you're hearing it first from us... Anyway, the nation's highly unstable right now,\" Emilia said. I see, thought Subaru as that sank in. A kingdom without a king was in a very precarious situation. The sudden death of a king, from natural causes or otherwise, could shake a country to its core. \"But isn't that usually dealt with by having a child of the king inherit and take over?\" \"Usually, that iiis the case. Howeeever, that went awry due to an incident half a year ago when a great plague struck inside the palace walls.\" As Roswaal told it, they announced that the epidemic only affected those of a particular bloodline. And so, the king and his descendants dwelling in the castle perished. \"Can't blame them for getting sick and dying. But what's gonna happen to this country, then? If there's no royal bloodline, what, start a democracy and elect a prime minister?\" \"I do not cooomprehend the latter part of your statement, but presently, a Council of Elders manages the affairs of the country, formed from great families decorating the kingdom's history. The country will continue to operate. However...\" After pausing a moment, Roswaal grew tenser. \"...a kingdom must have a king.\" \"I suppose so.\" Even if just for show, you couldn't have an organization without someone at its head, let alone a kingdom. \"I see,\" reflected Subaru. \"I've got the gist of it. In other words, the country has no king and is in a jumble while it's trying to pick a new one. Your relations with foreign countries are deteriorating and you're in international isolation. So a mysterious foreigner like me appearing is...super suspicious?!\" \"Fuuurthermore, by making contact with Lady Emilia, you have become associated with the House of Mathers, you see... Though the evidence is circumstantial, that is all some would need to...\" Roswaal lowered his eyes and traced a line across his throat with his thumb. Though Roswaal looked like he was joking, Subaru suddenly broke out in a cold sweat. He had a bad feeling about something. He'd picked up on it earlier, but it loomed larger and larger with each passing moment. \"Why is...the lord of the manor calling Emilia-tan lady?\" The golden rule of any household was that everyone paid respect to the person of the highest rank. When Roswaal laughed, Subaru felt like the bud of anxiety in his chest had begun to bloom. \"Is it not naaatural to address someone of higher rank than I with proper reeespect?\" Subaru froze with his mouth open. He looked at Emilia so robotically that you could hear the gears turn in his neck. The girl, a grimace on her face, sighed with resignation. \"I don't want you to think I was pulling the wool over your eyes, all right?\" \" Err, in other words, Emilia-tan, you're...?\" Subaru stubbornly stuck to the nickname as she seemed to drive in the final nail. \"Currently, my title is royal candidate, one of those seeking to become the forty-second ruler of the Kingdom of Lugunica...with the backing of Roswaal's House, that is.\" Her words made Subaru feel like he'd insulted Heaven itself.  So the pretty girl he'd stumbled upon in the other world was a queen. That word alone firmly established that this was a true-blue fantasy world. Technically, she was a candidate to be queen. When he remembered his time in contact with her now... \"Man, three lives aren't enough to pay for this, are they...?\" \"Sorry to surprise you this much. I really hadn't meant to keep quiet about it, but, well...\" \"Hey, I'm not upset. You truly are as kind as an angel, Emilia-tan.\" \"Eh?!\" Subaru's overly direct words made Emilia's face look shocked, then scarlet. \"Well, you know, you're the reason everything's happened since I've been here, Emilia. You're seriously E M T (Emilia-tan's a Major Treasure), that's my honest opinion!\" \"...Sigh. Now I think I understand how I got involved with you. You'll brush off anything from anyone. Let's just get to the point, shall we?\" Traces of redness still on her face, Emilia clapped her hands to reset the scene. Though still seated, the earlier sense of distance seemed to return; Subaru was forced to go along. \"I feel like I am interruuupting, but regardless, let us indeed get to the poooint, shall we? Is that fiiine with you, Subaru?\" \"Based on my head not flying off my shoulders, I'm guessing it's nothing all that bad.\" Roswaal whistled at Subaru's words. Emilia looked equally taken off guard, for both surely saw Subaru's words and actions as a sign that he had a firm understanding of their intentions. Of course, both were reading far too much into it, but that flew way over Subaru's head. \"Well, that's what I guessed about the 'point' based on your telling me Emilia-tan's a royal candidate and why that's important, right?\" Emilia made a belated remark. \"...Subaru, are you actually smart, or are you simply wrong in the head?\" \"Those are two extreme choices, you know?!\" Subaru agonized as Emilia stuck out her tongue at him a little. She was cute, so all was forgiven. Notwithstanding Subaru's internal simplicity, Roswaal followed up after Emilia's \"apology.\" \"Your guess is quite on target. This matter is deeply related to what shall become of you. Lady Emilia?\" \"Mm, I understand.\" Emilia, nodding when called, pulled out something and set it on the table. Her white fingertips pushed it forward. Subaru raised his brows when he saw it. \" That's that badge from...?\" Glittering atop a white cloth, it was a badge with a dragon motif, a jewel embedded in the center of its maw. It was also the key item stolen by the light-fingered Felt, which Subaru had returned to Emilia, its proper owner, coming back from three deaths to do it. The deep, serene twinkle of the jewel struck Subaru's eyes, filling him with newfound awe. \"The dragon is the symbol of Lugunica, you see, enough that it is known by the rather graaand name, the Dragonfriend Kingdom of Lugunica. Castle walls and weapons are often adorned with this symbol, but this badge is particularly important.\" When Roswaal took a pregnant pause, Subaru looked at him to urge him to continue. Roswaal shifted his gaze to Emilia to suggest she proceed. Emilia closed her eyes as her lips trembled. \"It is one's qualification as a royal candidate a test to determine if the person is worthy of sitting on the throne of the Kingdom of Lugunica.\" Her statement, said in a strained voice, made Subaru's eyes go wide. The badge sitting on the table, a dragon with wings outstretched on the glittering jewel, supported the proof of her claim. \"H-hold on here... You lost the badge that proves you're a royal candidate?!\" \"That's putting it rather crudely. A light-fingered girl stole it!\" \"Same difference !!\" With that great shout, Subaru smacked his palms against the dining table as he rose to his feet. The impact threatened to make utensils fall to the floor, but Rem's quick follow-up prevented that. Subaru paid that no heed as he spoke. \"Wait, seriously, what'd happen if you didn't have it?! That's, like, the type of item that's really, really bad to throw away, right?! They can't issue another one?!\" \"Weeell, if a candidate loses it, it won't end with just talk and excuses, yeees?\" With Subaru all flustered, Roswaal adjusted the lapel of his unnecessarily large outfit as he spoke. \"A king carries the kingdom on his shoulders. It is thought"}, {"text": "that a person who cannot protect a single small badge cannot be entrusted with a responsibility as grave as an entire land.\" \"Well, that figures. If anyone knew, it'd be a huge scandal... Which means?!\" The strife in the royal capital over the stolen badge and the warm reception now it could mean only one thing. Subaru continued, \"It's really bad if the public finds out you lost the badge. That's why Emilia-tan was looking for it all by herself.\" Emilia replied, \"...Yes, that's right.\" \"Felt was the one who stole it, but Elsa was the client, and she said someone else put her up to it...meaning someone's trying to stop Emilia-tan from becoming queen?\" \"That wooould appear to be the case. There is no simpler way to disqualify someone than to steal the baaadge.\" Inside Subaru, everything that had taken place the day before started to come together. How Emilia stubbornly refused his help; Felt and her client, Elsa; Subaru being murdered three times over all of it was rooted in the value of the badge. So, too, was why Subaru was there at the manor. \"Man, looking back on it, I did a super good job! Man, I need a bigger reward, huh!\" Subaru was full of himself now that he suddenly knew the importance of his own actions. He looked down at Emilia haughtily, wagging his finger teasingly. He was waiting for the punch line. But. \"Yeah, you're right. You've been a huge help to me, Subaru. So much that merely saving your life isn't enough. That's how much this means to me.\" The way she lifted her hand to her breast, giving Subaru a serious look, put him at a loss for words. The stiffness of his cheeks didn't match the tense, serious aura all around him.  Oh man, I seriously suck at reading the mood. Subaru's inability to read the tension in the air clashed with the serious look on Emilia's face. Finally, amid his great embarrassment... *** \"...What are you doing?\" \"Er, my hand just kind of reached out.\" With Emilia staring at him, Subaru had gently brushed his fingertips into her hair, not so much stroking her head as simply passing his fingers through the hair and enjoying the feeling. \"I'm an easygoing guy. I was thinking this would be reward enough for me.\" \"...You stroked Puck's fur, too. Subaru, do you have some kind of hair fetish?\" Subaru let out a yell at the harsh assessment. \"Hey, wait, fur and hair aren't the same thing at all! Your silver hair's really pretty!\" Emilia's silver hair truly felt smooth as silk; its soft charm bewitched Subaru in an entirely different way from Puck's fur. But for some reason, Subaru's words made Emilia lower her eyes with a pained look. Subaru tilted his head, not knowing the reason for Emilia's action. His head was still like that when he felt a gaze from behind. \"Ah, perrrhaps we are in the way? We could leave you two to yourselves?\" \"Your concern's the dictionary definition of none of your business. And it's still my turn to ask questions.\" Subaru continued enjoying the feel of Emilia's hair as he used his free hand to point at Roswaal. \"I understand Emilia-tan being a candidate for becoming queen, but what about this business of you backing her?\" \"You really aaare rather observant. You've picked up the preeevious matters quite well, though this is aaall second nature to any human born and raised in the city.\" \"I'm honored to have your praise, Count. Though simple anime and romance novels kind of prepared my mind for this fantasy stuff.\" Like any reader, he'd been thrust into original scenarios with confusing, hard-to-remember world-building. Stuffing this level of background info into his head was no big accomplishment. \"Well, it is not something I was trying to conceal. My title is the Kingdom of Lugunica's...I suppose technically I am lord of the outer regions, but my role sounds better expressed as...court magician, perhaps?\" \"Court magician...? So you handle magic use at the castle?\" Emilia picked up where Subaru's words left off. \"Yes. That's the magician of the highest rank... He's the foremost magic user in the entire kingdom.\" She looked a little dissatisfied nonetheless. Roswaal seemed nothing but pleased with Emilia's reply, smiling as he brought some tea to his lips. \"So continuing the earlier topic, I stand in support of Lady Emilia's royal candidacy. I am the shield behind her, her patron, sooo to speak.\" \"Patron, huh.\" A representative for those backing her. So that was the position of the man before his eyes. Subaru looked anew at the tall man in clown makeup before gently trading a glance with Emilia. \"I don't mean to put this the wrong way but...Emilia-tan, you sure about this guy?\" \"It can't be helped. He's the only one in the kingdom I can ask for support. In the first place, only a meddlesome eccentric like Roswaal would help someone like me, so...\" \"Ah, I see. Process of elimination.\" \"Quiiite a conversation you two are having right in front of your patron, if I maaay say so...\" Perhaps feeling somewhat slandered, Roswaal gave off an adult chuckle rather than anger. Maybe he had really thick skin that or he simply took pleasure in ignoring people. \"So, back to the point, Rozchi. I get that you're Emilia-tan's sponsor. It's cute how she goes from one extreme to another to hide how she's a bit of an airhead, but acting on her own like she did yesterday in the capital, that's kinda rare, huh?\" \"I wooould call it unprecedented. Thooough Ram should have been with her...\" Roswaal made a strained smile as he shifted the topic to Ram. When Subaru looked at her, he saw she had the same hairstyle and face as Rem, standing beside her. At least you could nicely tell them apart by their hair color. \"Man, that totally smug 'I got away with it, just as I hoped' look gets on my nerves.\" Whether she intended to reflect on her error or not, he had her over a barrel. However, Emilia raised a hand in her defense with an awkward look on her face. \"Um, it's not Ram's fault. Yesterday I split up from Ram because I...lost out to my curiosity and wandered all around.\" \"What's that doe-eyed little-girl excuse?! Emilia-tan being a big airhead doesn't change the fact that she didn't fulfill her lord's commands. Is that all right...?\" With Emilia trying to cover for Ram, Subaru pointed a finger from each hand at her before he shifted them over to Roswaal. \"You dooo have a point, thoooough I share responsibility for Ram's lack of discretion. But what are you trying to say, I wooonder?\" \"Simple. You're the ones who dropped the ball by taking your eyes off someone important like Emilia-tan. That's where I came into the picture. I'm saying, if you had it all covered to begin with, none of this would've happened.\" Subaru's little speech changed the looks on everyone's faces. Emilia raised her eyebrows, one of the twins looked apologetic while the other glared with hostility, Beatrice still had her heated gaze trained on Puck while Puck was precariously stuck headfirst into the egg yolk on the dish before her...and Roswaal made a pleasant smile, nodding as if he agreed. \"I seeee. Certainly Lady Emilia's worth exceeds my considerable personal fortune. It is appropriate that you should seek a reward only from me, as her sponsor, iiis it nooot?\" \"Yep. And you're not gonna say no, are you, Rozchi? I mean, I saved Emilia-tan's life and stopped her from dropping out of the royal selection. I'm totally her savior!\" Subaru rose from his seat and posed with a finger pointed up to the sky. \"I muuust admit that it is the truth. Now, then, would you care to elaborate?\" Roswaal, too, rose from his seat, looking down at Subaru from his superior height. Emilia looked worried as she watched Subaru and Roswaal stare each other down. \"Whaaat is it that you seek from me? I cannot refuse your request, if only to prevent this matter from becoming public knowledge. Nooow then, what is your desire?\" \"Heh-heh-heh, that's a noble for you; you really get it. Whatever reward I want! And you can't say no, Rozchi! A man doesn't take back his word!\" \"That is quiiite a saying! I see, a man should make no excuses. No reneging on his word.\" Subaru's petty villain behavior made him hear his popularity meter drop in his mind, but the entire effort was devoted to dragging that one statement out of him. Roswaal's consent made Subaru's inner self smile. \"I want one thing and one thing only. I want you to hire me.\" Compared to the extended foreplay, Subaru's declaration was plain and simple. The girls behind Subaru were in shock at his statement. The looks on the twins' faces became mildly conflicted, whereas Beatrice looked seriously perturbed. As for Emilia... \"I-it's not for me to say, but that's kind of...\" Her eyes were so wide that even the sublime beauty she was born with lost half its power. \"You're cute when you're surprised, but are you that against the idea?\" \"It's not that; you want so little!\" It was like Emilia was angry for him as she slapped the table and closed the distance with Subaru. \"It's not just the thing with Puck, okay? It's...like when you asked me my name back in the royal capital.\" Emilia listed the rewards Subaru had claimed to the best of her knowledge. Emilia knew what he'd done to get those rewards; she shook her head like she really didn't understand. \"You don't...understand how grateful I feel. I can't...repay you at all for saving my life and more, if you ask for so little!\" Emilia's inflection tapered off as she pressed a palm to Subaru's chest and lowered her head. Hearing Emilia's lament, Subaru painfully understood his own thoughtlessness. Emilia had always felt indebted to him. She wanted to pay him back in some suitable way. But the same went for Subaru. Subaru had always been indebted to Emilia. And twice he had become indebted to her in a way he could never repay. He could not repay kindness that had \"never happened.\" Before him, Emilia raised up her wavering violet eyes. Seeing the serious look with her plea, Subaru abandoned all thought of kidding around or papering it over. Subaru decided to convey to Emilia how he really felt with all the seriousness he could muster. \"You don't understand, Emilia-tan. At the time, that was what I truly wanted from the bottom of my heart, you see?\" \" Huh?\" \"At the time, I wanted to know your name. I think being in a new, uncertain land with no idea what would come the next day, if I'd stopped to think about it, there were lots of things I could've considered  But I'm a man who can't lie to himself.\" It was a reward for which he'd died three times. For nothing more than to see the smiling face of the silver-haired girl before his eyes and to learn her name.  At that moment, there was no greater reward he could wish for. \"My request to Rozchi's like that, too. Right now, I'm completely, totally broke. Sure, I could ask for a pile of gold, but why not set myself up so I can make a living long-term?\" \"...If you wanted that, you could ask to just live here for free, not as a manservant, you know?\" \"Oh, I could've done that?! Hey, Mr. Roswaal, could you let me live as a fr \" Looking at Roswaal as Subaru tried to amend his wish, the man crossed his hands above his head in an X mark. \"I shall honor the first request. A man does not take back his word, dooooes he?\" \"Whoa! You're right! A man doesn't do that, huh?!\" Subaru tearfully"}, {"text": "found his request denied because someone had to open his big mouth earlier. \"And I thought for a moment there you seemed actually serious... I must have just imagined it.\" \"And then Emilia-tan lowers my rating! That's kicking me while I'm down!\" Subaru realized he'd passed up the chance to establish the perfect easy life in a fantasy-world environment. He didn't need to lower the beautiful girl's opinion of him on top of that. \"Anyway...that's how it is, so...I mean, Ramchi and Remrin must be straining to take care of this place all by themselves, so please let me work under them.\" \"It iiis true that is an actual concern... Though I beeelieve it is as Lady Emilia said, it is indeeeed asking rather little?\" With Roswaal showing a strained smile for once, Subaru put up his left and right index fingers and wiggled them. \"I'm a super greedy guy, actually. I mean, living under the same roof as a super cute, beautiful girl who's totally my type, what guy wouldn't want that? Close in body is close to the heart, and opportunities abound!\" \"...I seeee, certainly it is as you say. It is rare one gets to work by the side of girls one is interested in, iiis it not? Quiiite pleasant for you.\" \"Well, besides.\" Subaru stopped wiggling his fingers and used them to scratch his unkempt hair. \"Besides, you're not gonna let a guy you know nothing about like me just pack up and leave. And to me, the pros and cons say I should stay with Emilia-tan.\" Subaru knew a few too many inconvenient things. He was declaring his belief that nothing good would happen to him if he left the manor without any means of protecting himself. If Roswaal had never considered any such thing, no doubt he would have taken extreme offense. But in contrast to Subaru's awkward feelings about it, \"Then it shall be as you ask I hope we geeet along very nicely.\" Roswaal's instant reply came with one eye closed, looking at Subaru with his yellow eye alone. Subaru couldn't read what he was thinking behind that suspicious twinkle. Incidentally, Subaru was very embarrassed inside from having made such a strong public confession. But when Subaru timidly looked at Emilia's expression... \"Goodness, you really are a hopeless child... Did something happen?\" Her perfectly calm reply left Subaru at a loss for words. Maybe he was overthinking it? This was just the result of his lack of experience with being around a beautiful girl. \"Man, dealing with a girl I like this much is gettin' me all worked up...\" Emilia, watching Subaru get fired up on a tangent instead of dealing with more pressing matters, murmured in a little voice, \"Which one's more your type, I wonder...Ram or Rem?\" Emilia put a finger to her lips in a huff, taking what he'd said earlier completely the wrong way.  With the long breakfast taken care of, the matter of what to do with Subaru was largely settled. Seeing this, the first to stand was the girl with curly hair Beatrice. \"I see the discussion is settled, so may I take my leave with Puckie, I wonder?\" Beatrice was quick to finish her own meal so that she could leave as soon as possible. Grimacing even then, she seemed about to leave without bothering to put her plates in order when Subaru wagged a finger at her. \"Wait, there's no need to be in that much of a hu  Hey, at least introduce yourself. I don't know what your place is here at all. You Rozchi's little sister?\" \"Treating me as that thing's relative? You are quite accomplished at angering me.\" Beatrice let out a sigh full of disgust as Roswaal, thoroughly bad-mouthed, smiled in amusement. Subaru slumped his shoulders as Beatrice shot him a nasty glare when Puck spoke up. \"Betty's the librarian of the archive of forbidden books here in Roswaal's manor!\" \"Puckie?!\" Just when it seemed like an argument was about to break out, the gray cat's statement tore it to shreds. Puck was busy nibbling on the heel of a loaf of bread glazed with sugar for a luxurious dessert. \"Sweet, tasty, meow...\" \"Hate to bug you when you're on a sugar high, but could you tell me more?\" With Puck lost in a sweet daze, Subaru touched Puck's heavily sprinkled ear, urging him on. Subaru was toying with it quite a bit when Puck raised his face from the plate. \"It's because Roswaal's a pretty accomplished magician, plus he comes from a pretty old family. There're lots of books here that aren't for other people to see. So, he made a pact with Betty for her to protect them.\" \"Yes, that's true. How is Puckie always so right, I wonder?\" Beatrice seemed to agree without thinking, speaking as her hand sprang out to Puck's other ear. A lovely look came over her as her fingers felt the fur of his ears. It was the first time Subaru had seen Beatrice with an expression that suited her loveliness. Subaru's breath caught. The odd girl out, Emilia tilted her head a bit as she watched. \"You two look like you're really getting along nicely while playing with the cute kitty there.\" \"Getting along nicely with this person is a little...!\" \"How could I ever get along with this person, I wonder?!\" Subaru and Beatrice both shot down Emilia's idea. For his part, Subaru was hiding a blush; for her part, Beatrice looked quite serious. \"Hee-hee. I'm so scary, making two people at odds with each other into my slaves... Meow meow meow!\" Puck was busy being the literal center of attention when Emilia's outstretched fingers grasped him. Puck was in Emilia's fingers, unable to move, as she sighed. \"All that said, being the guardian of an archive of forbidden books... The sound of it really tickles a guy's mind.\" Beatrice was giving Subaru a sullen look as he tickled Puck, but Subaru's suggestion softened her expression. She toyed with her own long rolls as she gave what was, for Beatrice, a frank reply. \"Perhaps you did not hear Puckie's explanation? It is the room you entered earlier.\" \"Oh, the one with all the books!\" Remembering the great volume of books chewing up all the floor space, Subaru could accept it being that kind of archive. On the other hand, the idea that all those volumes were somehow forbidden made him feel like it was a crime on a completely different scale. \"Don't tell me this loli's your unwitting partner in crime...?!\" \"That word annoys me every time I hear it. And to answer your question, the very thought that I am an innocent victim annoys me enough, couldn't I just die, I wonder?\" \"Don't be so prickly, shrimp. It takes calcium and a calm heart to get taller. If you were about as tall as Emilia-tan and me, we'd have quite a little love comedy going on here...\" He left Beatrice to stew indignantly at his comment as he gave Emilia an amorous glance. But Emilia let that comment slide and pressed a different issue with Beatrice. \"Wait a minute. Beatrice...don't tell me you let him into the archive?\" \"...I shouldn't have to tell you. Why would I ever need to let in a stranger such as him on purpose, I wonder? No, he solved the riddle of the Passage all on his very own.\" A vein bulged on Beatrice's forehead as she roughly stood up and pushed open the dining hall door. Subaru, faced with the incomprehensible scene before him, asked like a complete idiot, \"Ah? The hallway just...?\" Before his eyes, the open door that should have led to the manor's hall beyond had opened to a huge room lined with bookshelves. He almost swooned when he remembered that he'd seen it once before. \"This is the Passage. You are trembling as its sublime beauty burns itself into your eyes, perhaps? Come on, Puckie.\" Beatrice stepped into the archive of forbidden books, looking triumphantly at Subaru as she stretched out her hand. Puck leapt from Emilia to land upon her outstretched palm. Upon this, Beatrice closed the door behind both her and the cat. Ram didn't say a word as she opened the shut door. Subaru's eyes widened in total surprise. \"Whoa, that's incredible.\" Beyond the door, closed so roughly a moment before, Subaru walked with his own feet into the hallway beyond. The scene before him a moment before was like a mirage. \"I see. In other words, magic makes it so any door here can connect to any room. Pretty neat for recluses who need to find the john in a pinch.\" Emilia seemed a bit thrown off. \"You actually look less surprised than I expected. What's a recluse?\" \"A guardian who sacrifices himself holding down the fort at home, waiting for weary family members to return.\" \"Er...that sounds noble. Are you a recluse, Subaru?\" Emilia was full of concern when a puff of smoke interrupted her and Subaru, tickling his nose. \"Achoo!\" \"Yes, yes, shall we continue the introductions? Ram, Rem.\" \"Pleased to make your acquaintance. I am Rem, employed as chief maid by this household.\" \"Nice to meet you. I am Ram, working as an ordinary maid in Master Roswaal's mansion.\" Subaru crossed his arms. \"Wow, you sisters suddenly got nice and formal. Well, not that I'm one to talk, but...\" The twins joined hands and looked at Subaru. \"But Dear Guest...or rather, Subaru, you are our coworker now?\" \"But Dear Guest...or rather, Barusu, you work under us here now?\" \"Hey, Big Sis. You're throwing my name back in my face here.\" That was the one thing you absolutely did not do at your first formal introduction. Of course, there was no way for Ram or Rem to know of that rule of Japanese society. Subaru endured the mockery as he turned toward Roswaal. \"So that's my standing, huh? Not so much a butler as an apprentice maid?\" \"In this situation, your doing odd jobs at their discretion seeems best. Dissatisfied...?\" \"If I was gonna be dissatisfied I'd have only myself to blame. Well, had to be done, so no regrets. Take good care of me, my seniors. I'm gonna work super hard and break a leg!\" \"Break a leg.\" \"So it would seem.\" The three seemed to instantly agree on the never-before-raised term. With a yeah! Subaru raised his hands and they high-fived each other. They were already getting along. \"Harmonious relations are a beautiful thing. As your employer, I think it iiis just fine, so long as there are nooo ill feelings, yeees?\" \"For some reason, we kinda get along. A lot better than that loli! Way better than with her!\" \"You really don't want to be seen as Beatrice's friend, do you...\" Emilia's pitying murmur signaled the end of the gathering. \"Well then, shall we be off, Barusu?\" So spoke Ram, commanded by Roswaal to be Subaru's personal tutor. Her little sister, Rem, was off to the side meticulously cleaning up the dining hall; Ram made no effort to help as she reached for the dining hall door. \"So you intend to call me that full-time, huh?\" \"Yes, I do, Barusu. Master Roswaal commands it, so I shall show you around the mansion. Can you at least make sure not to wander off?\" \"I'm not Emilia-tan, so I won't let curiosity get the best of me.\" Emilia's cheeks puffed up at being teased about getting lost in the capital. \"Su-ba-ru!\" Emilia was about to split off to continue studying various ceremonial roles, mandatory for a royal candidate. Subaru was making a point of burning Emilia's beauty into his eyes before she left. \"Well, with minor regrets, let's be off. Lead the way.\" \"Yes, let us, Barusu. Until later, Lady Emilia.\" Ram held the hem of her skirt, bowing courteously as she left. Subaru started to follow behind her. \"Subaru. I will, too, but...try hard, okay?\""}, {"text": "\"Wow, I'm super happy to hear that. I'm really pumped for this!\" Mimicking Ram, Subaru held the collar of his track jacket as he bowed. Emilia shot him a strange look as he did so before leaving the room. Ram had a grimace on her face, waiting as he walked into the hallway. \"That's quite a sour face, Big Sis. I was just playing around a little. I'm not so ignorant of maid culture to the point that I think a maid is the same as a manservant. Oh yeah, what about clothes?\" He didn't think it was very likely he'd be starting life as a servant in his tracksuit. Prompted by Subaru, Ram put a hand to her mouth and nodded. \"Certainly, clothing is very important. Let's see, clothing in your size... Yes, we should have some.\" \"Awesome. Okay, let's get me changed, then. I think formal actually suits me pretty well. Let's make me a refined, high-quality man!\" Subaru smiled with a thumbs-up and a twinkle of his eyes when Ram led him upstairs to take his measurements. \"The servant quarters are on the second floor, so you'll change there. Your clothing size should be similar to Frederica's, who quit several months ago.\" \"Huh, interesting timing to quit. This Frederica...is a woman?\" \"Her dimensions should be right about the same as yours.\" \"But she's not the same gender, right?\" Ram stopped walking and gave Subaru a cold look. She looked tired as she put her hand to her forehead. \"Clothing that is formal, refined, and high quality...which of these do you have a problem with?\" \"How about all the above?! Emilia-tan looked like she was gonna pay me and everything, so why do I have to borrow a maid outfit?! What if people think I'm some kind of weirdo?! I don't want that!\" A trip to a fantasy world without any special talents, save cross-dressing. Subaru would almost have rather died. But, since Subaru had a frightening ability, death was no consolation. Guided by Ram, he continued to the west side of the manor. Roswaal Manor had a main wing in the center, with a corridor connecting it to the east and west wings. The dining hall and Roswaal's private study were in the main wing, whereas the empty servants' quarters were on the western side. \"An empty room on the second... Yes, any room that has no plate above it is fine. Pick whichever you wish for your private quarters and I shall drop off your change of clothes there.\" \"Okay, roger that. Hmm, which one...\" Having been granted private quarters in the mansion, Subaru surveyed the candidates from the end of the corridor onward. Having said that, surely only the locations differed; the contents would remain the same. Being near the stairs was convenient, so... \"All righty, I'll pick this room over h \" He opened the door with no special consideration. At that moment, he spied what looked like a loli playing with a kitty cat in a library. \"Fuwaah, you're so wonderful, Puckie. Your fur is the best fur ever...\" The girl with the long curls noticed Subaru and slowly shifted her gaze toward him. Subaru looked back at Ram, standing in the corridor, as she shook her head. Subaru gave her a big thumbs-up. \"Don't worry, I won't say a thing. That feeling turns all of us into blithering idiots...\" \"Could you cut short the magnificently stupid statement and close the door already, I wonder?!\" \"Gyaha!\" Some invisible power, likely something magical, threw Subaru back, and he flew hard into the corridor wall. The impact to the back of his head made Subaru's eyes spin as he saw out of the corner of his eye the door slam shut with a ferocious sound. Shaking his head, Subaru retraced his steps to complain about the violence of a moment before. But when he opened the door, an empty room within greeted him. The Passage had done its magic. \"Once Lady Beatrice conceals her aura, one cannot know which door it is. She will not emerge unless you go opening every door in the entire mansion.\" Ram spoke like he should bluntly accept defeat. From behind, she patted his shoulder. That feeling made Subaru admit he had lost this  \"Oh man, she annoys me. She acted like I did something wrong there!\" Or not. Brushing off Ram's hand, Subaru turned and sprinted down the corridor full force. In front of wide-eyed Ram, he ran straight to the door at the other edge of the hallway. \"Here!!\" \" Hyah?!\" The girl yelped as the gray cat made a sound of admiration. \"Impressive, Subaru.\" This time, seeing Beatrice's face rocked at his having broken the Passage a second time, he instantly made a roll into the archives so that she couldn't blow him out again. Beatrice's eyebrows rose with anger at something one simply did not do in any library, never mind these archives. \"You are kicking up dust!\" \"Well, you should've dusted it better, then!! And you don't bring cats into the library anyway! You get claw marks all over the covers!\" \"It's fine, Lia trims my claws really short!\" The odd man out, Puck's casual murmur failed to reach Subaru and Beatrice as they argued. They looked ready to shout loud enough that the echoes would carry through the entire mansion. Ram, belatedly entering through the door leading to the archive of forbidden books, looked at the arguing parties and said in a small voice, \"If not friends, you certainly are birds of a feather.\" Roswaal Manor seemed to shake from their combined shouts. \" Absolutely not!!\" And so, Subaru's life as a servant started with a bang. With the conclusion of the unexpected session with Beatrice, Subaru used a dressing room to put on the servant's attire that Ram had given him. It was a white shirt with a black jacket and matching pants, doing no violence to Subaru's preconceived image of a butler. The problem lay elsewhere. \"Hey, Ramchi, I put on the outfit, but...\" Ram, waiting outside the dressing room until he'd finished, entered when called. \"Though I'd like to say something about how I've been addressed, is there something wrong with...?\" Ram, complaining as she made her way in, stopped mid-sentence as she got a good look at Subaru, putting her hand to her forehead. \"Indeed there is. Your shoulders, and also, your legs are too short.\" \"You mean my height?! The shirt's fine, but the jacket's real tight on the shoulders. I'm decently athletic, not that it gets me anywhere, but this super tight top makes me look like a macho man here.\" Just as Ram had indicated, the shoulders were stiff because the sleeves were a poor fit. In particular, the armpits were far too tight for his shoulders to move. Subaru wondered if this was a natural problem when dealing with hand-me-down servant uniforms. \"I can roll up the sleeves, but the top's no good like this. I suppose I can handle shortening sleeves on my own, but...\" \"So you have unexpected talent, Barusu... We cannot have you working in such a sorry outfit. It will bring the manor's, and Master Roswaal's, standards into question.\" \"He dresses like that and he worries about standards?\" Though Ram had a neutral expression, the tilt of her head made plain her displeasure, so he shut up. Subaru's \"zipping\" his lips with his finger brought a sigh out of Ram. \"We can do nothing for what is inside, but we can at least make you look presentable. At any rate, let's leave the shortening of the legs for later and just fix the top.\" \"Easier said than done, though? I don't have any experience with that, either.\" Maybe I could manage anyway, voiced Subaru as he assessed the limits of his sewing skills, but Ram countered, \"No need for concern. Rem, come over here.\" \"Come over here...? She's not gonna pop right in just 'cause you...\" \"You called, Sister?\" \"Waaaaah!\" As soon as she was casually called, Rem appeared right beside them, giving Subaru quite a fright. It was as if they were playing a joke. The twins tilted their heads in unison as they watched Subaru's shocked, frozen reaction. \"What are you so surprised for?\" \"What are you so scared for?\" \"I'm not s-scared! Just a little surprised! That Twin Power thing's really something!\" Maybe it was some kind of twin \"sympathy\" they talked about on those supernatural investigation shows; that thing where they could read the other even when apart. Seeing Subaru so shaken, Ram made a hmph sound. \"Of course it is no such thing. I spotted her happening to walk by and called out to her. Perfect timing.\" \"That last part sounds like it's rubbing it in somehow?\" Ram cut in. \"So what is it you need? I do not have much time to waste on Subaru.\" \"That uncaring attitude really hurts, geez! I'm the new guy! Be gentle!\" But the truth was that Rem was indispensable for maintaining the manor. Delaying her for any real length of time was surely a bad thing, yet Ram looked at Rem, pointing to Subaru as she stated, \"Rem, surely you have noted Barusu's pathetic appearance?\" \"His shoulders rotate oddly and his legs are too short. Also, his face is terrifying. And?\" \"You just had to poke at two things I can't do anything about!! It's not like clothes; you can't change how your face looks no matter how hard you try!\" The sisters ignored Subaru's complaints as they continued to converse. Subaru, the odd man out despite being the subject, was left with nothing better to do than to roll up his sleeves. \"Barusu, hand Rem your jacket. You will have to do without it until tomorrow morning.\" \"That's a big help, but...sure about this? You've got a mountain of work, right?\" \"Of course I am quite busy. However, handing it over saves time and trouble later.\" \"Ahh, right. Please and thank you.\" Swayed by the sound argument, Subaru stripped off his jacket and handed it to Rem. Upon taking the jacket, Rem pointed to the dressing room and motioned with her chin for him to get in. \"I need to take your measurements. You can't take them yourself, can you?\" \"...I feel sorry for making you go through all this trouble.\" \"I do not mind. Someday, you shall repay me for this. With interest.\" \"That doesn't sound quite right, but you seem dead serious. So scary!\" Subaru and Rem left the haughtier-than-thou Ram in the corridor and went into the dressing room. The dressing room held not only servant uniforms but various changes of clothes for Roswaal as well. Everything felt like it came straight from a circus dressing room. When his gaze left the area with lord's attire of rather poor taste, several more flowery outfits drew him in. One of them was an outfit he'd seen at the royal capital, so these were no doubt outfits for Emilia. \"I'd love to have her model all of those, twirling around and showing them off...\" \"What are you mumbling about? Get over here, please.\" Summoned by the especially sharp voice, Subaru obeyed without further kidding around. The middle of the dressing room had no booth for trying on clothes, but it did have a divider for that purpose, and there awaited Rem with a slender measuring tape. The elaborate imprint on the tape marked it as a high-quality item. \"Stand straight over there. Stretch out your arms so I can measure your arms and shoulder height.\" \"Okay, roger that. Thanks.\" Turning away from Rem, Subaru reached out both arms as she had instructed. Subaru stretched his short frame as much as he could while Rem wrapped the tape around his arms and back. Subaru's shoulders quivered with a sensitive sound when he suddenly became aware of her soft touch and breathing. \"Please do not make strange noises, Subaru. It is unpleasant.\" \"I"}, {"text": "couldn't help that! This is tough on a guy on more than one level!\" Faced with Rem's cold, heartless words, Subaru searched his mind for any change of subject. \"By the way, there's Rozchi's and Emilia-tan's clothes in here, but I don't see any dresses for you, Ram, or the loli. They in another room?\" \"Lady Beatrice changes her clothes in her private quarters. Sister and I do not wear clothes other than these, so we do not require different outfits. We change in our own quarters.\" Subaru raised his eyebrows at Rem's matter-of-fact reply. Then Rem, having just finished measuring him, wrote something on a nearby memo. Subaru crossed his arms and looked at her. \"You don't have any other kinds of outfits, so what, it's all maid outfits? What about when you go out and days off?\" \"It is no hindrance to our work here at the manor or when accompanying Master Roswaal in public. I think it is a quite logical way to present our status without need of an explanation.\" \"Logical ain't the point here... I think a beautiful girl has a duty to wear pretty clothes and bring joy to others.\" \"Sister may be another matter, but no one would be pleased were I to dress up.\" \"Maybe I would?\" \"Would pleasing you do me any good, Subaru?\" \"Maybe it'll make me work harder at the servant's life. That's logical, isn't it?\" Rem had the slightest look of surprise at Subaru's comeback. Subaru, pleased at cracking her neutral expression, twisted the corners of his lips into a grin. \"I do not know why you would go so far as to say that, Subaru.\" \"Even your hairstyles and outfits are the same! Your personalities are different so at least pick different clothes! ...Or something like that. I mean, the maid outfits look good on you, and it does kinda work for twins like you girls.\" In her current outfit, she was cute with room to spare, but their attire was identical down to the haircut. Precisely because they were twins, he wanted to see some individuality, the essence of human emotion. That was how Subaru felt, but... \" ness.\" \"Eh?\" \"None of your business. What is wrong with my being the same as Sister?\" It was hard to believe, but Rem's expression was more glacial toward the wide-eyed Subaru than before. Subaru unintentionally hemmed and hawed, the exchange of small talk until just earlier seemingly long forgotten. \"...Let us go back and not speak silly things. I cannot leave Sister waiting any further, and there is a great deal you must learn, after all.\" Her demeanor permitting no dissent, Rem turned her back on Subaru and headed to the room's entrance. Subaru, more confused than before, walked behind her as he murmured. \"That's being a little too into your big sister...\" He sighed, concerned about where his relations with the seemingly unflappable girl would go. With the measurements done, they linked back up with Ram in the dressing room, and Rem went her separate way. In spite of being pressed by work, Rem said, \"I will re-stitch your jacket overnight and deliver it before morning once it is done.\" She shot Ram a look rich in meaning as she left. Their eye-to-eye message system made Subaru give Ram's shoulder a soft poke. \"Hey, what did Rem say with that eye-contact thing just now?\" \"She said, 'Subaru gave me perverted glances when we were alone'...You beast.\" \"So you got that much from just th  Hey, don't back away, that hurt my feelings!\" Though Ram's retreat from Subaru, clutching her own shoulder, pained his heart, his time as a servant at the manor finally began in earnest. The west wing contained the servants' quarters, spare furniture, and normal books not meant for the archive. In contrast, the east wing had suites for welcoming visiting nobles, with rooms for entertaining guests and other facilities, with few functional differences from the main wing. \"You have now toured nearly all the manor. All that remains are the gardens outside the buildings and the front yard between the manor and the gate. You can see those later. Any questions so far?\" \"Shouldn't the tour have been something Emilia-tan would've done?\" \"Not at all, since we will be getting to work immediately.\" During the guided tour, Ram's personal disposition and Subaru's penchant for stopping and going off on tangents made her easily fend off Subaru's latest line. Subaru wasn't sure if that meant the last several hours had brought them closer or he'd simply dug himself into a deeper hole, but... \"My chores for today are maintaining the garden and front yard and checking the surroundings. I will be assisting in preparing lunch, and at Eight Solartime, I must wash the silverware... You shall assist me, Barusu.\" \"Sure thing, but what's that Solartime you mentioned?\" It was a term he'd heard when he'd awoken that morning. He'd guessed that Solartime referred to time during the day, but... \"So Eight Solartime indicates the time... Do you have a clock or something?\" \"Clock...? If you mean a magic time crystal, they are all over the mansion, including right over there.\" Subaru looked where Ram pointed and saw a crystal emitting a dim light. The crystal hung from the upper part of the mansion's wall pretty much right where a big clock might be back in his world. Subaru squinted as he stared at the flickering green light emitted by the crystal. \"It's a little weird, but I guess it's just another clock. How do I read it?\" \"Solartime is Wind Time from zero to six, then Fire Time for the next six. Lunartime goes from Water Time to Earth Time  To not know this, are you some kind of barbarian, Barusu?\" \"An actual barbarian wouldn't answer yes to that, you know?\" He hated hearing it, but Subaru's lack of common knowledge made that appraisal hard to shake. Thinking back, there was a magic time crystal in the room Subaru awoke in, too. Subaru felt that the crystal had been a lot greener then. \"So, what, the color gets brighter as time passes?\" \"...Wind Time is green, Fire is red, Water is blue, Earth is yellow. Anything else you want explained?\" \"I'm okay with the time stuff now. Solartime and Lunartime are kind of like AM and PM from the sound of it.\" No doubt he'd have to endure many other clashes with what passed for common sense in a fantasy world. Subaru crossed his arms and nodded. Ram seemed tired as she put a hand to her forehead. \"It's hard enough to train you for the job from scratch, but having so little common sense... When did I go from domestic help to an animal trainer?\" \"It's scary just to hear words like animal trainer, so maybe you could pick different ones, boss?\" Ram's eyebrows twitched at being called boss. Feeling that she either didn't care or wasn't too bothered, Subaru switched gears a bit. \"By the way, there were only you two taking care of the place earlier, but it wasn't gonna be like that forever, right? I mean, you had that maid who quit before?\" \"...Master Roswaal has relatives living at various lesser manors, so most of our coworkers have come from there until now. Rem and I work here at the main residence so that we may attend to Master Roswaal personally.\" \"Main residence and lesser manors... So, um, this is the main residence?\" \"Master Roswaal is head of the Mathers family, so of course he lives at the main residence. And I say relatives, but his relations with the other branches of the Mathers family are not particularly deep.\" Perhaps Subaru should have expected that a nobleman like Roswaal would have a complex relationship with his family. Now that Subaru was working for the man, he couldn't consider himself a bystander in that; besides, he was closely related to Emilia, a royal candidate. \"Even if you're just looking after Rozchi, this mansion's too huge for two people to handle, right? Can't you hire more people?\" \" Circumstances make that impossible at the moment. Also, the time for idle talk is over.\" Ram clapped, signaling the end of that line of discussion as she calmly walked forward. Subaru wanted to ask her more about stuff, but he could do that and pick up more common knowledge as he worked. He needed to put his back into the work first, to keep her happy if nothing else. \"Haven't worked like this before, but I feel really positive for some reason. I guess it's the beautiful-girl thing?\" \"Flattery will get you nothing. No kindness, no mercy.\" \"You should learn a little modesty from your little sister, geez!\" Subaru threw that out, still chewing over the conversation with Rem back in the dressing room. \"Oww !\" Subaru was half in tears as he yelped at the fresh wound, wet with red blood. Ram, engaged in the same work right beside Subaru, narrowed her eyes as she watched him wave around his bleeding left hand. \"That is what thoughtlessness gets you. Basuru, do you know the meaning of improvement?\" \"But this is the first time I've dealt with any tableware that's not chopsticks!\" Subaru stuck his cut finger into his mouth as he complained, his cheeks puffing as the metallic taste filled his mouth. They were in the kitchen, shortly before noon. After wrapping up in the garden with Ram, the two returned to the dining hall to help Rem prepare. That being said... \"I understand me, but making your big sister peel stuff, too? I mean, where's the dignity?\" Ram was quick with a counter. \"We have worked and lived together a long time, so we divide work by our specialties. This is not my place to shine.\" \"I thought I heard earlier that she's better than you in every area, though?!\" He'd heard earlier how Ram came in behind Rem at cooking, cleaning, washing, sewing, and pretty much every other chore. Ram did seem pretty experienced at peeling veggies, though. \"Are both of you going to be done soon?\" Rem spoke, seemingly wide-eyed at the two she'd entrusted the peeling to as she put them to shame with her ferocious meal preparation. Rem's practiced hand was far beyond the norm, making her cooking feel like a type of highly polished performance. ...Completely unlike the other two, doing menial work off in a corner. Rem looked back as she poured ingredients into a huge frying pan and mixed them. Silently looking over her big sister peeling and Subaru bleeding, Rem nodded like nothing had happened. \"As usual, Sister, the sight of you peeling vegetables is worthy of a painting.\" \"Your favoritism is so obvious, it's refreshing! I'd love a comment for the work I'm doing, too!\" \"I feel sorry for the farmer who grew those vegetables.\" \"Stop, you're wounding me!\" Rem was looking at the atrocious wreckage of the vegetables Subaru had peeled. The potato-like vegetables had been cut down roughly halfway, yet, skin remained on them. Furthermore, fairly deep cuts to his hand had left the table wet with blood. Ram, peeling her potatoes very prettily, glanced at the still-bleeding Subaru and offered advice. \"You handle a knife poorly, Barusu. You're cutting yourself because you're moving the knife, not the vegetable. When peeling, keep the knife steady and rotate the vegetable around.\" Her form was excellent; her peelings had no interruptions from head to tip. She continued, \"I will have you know, my specialty is steamed potatoes.\" \"You actually looked proud when you said that! Damn it, just watch. My beloved blade Shooting Star will put you in your place!\" Frustrated, he picked up the knife and tightly grasped the wooden handle. It was a completely ordinary knife for peeling, but from that day onward, it would be Subaru's precious Shooting Star. \"Uoaaah !\" Raising his voice, he hunched over and held the knife steady, rotating the vegetable just"}, {"text": "as Ram had advised. The first cut was still rather deep, but he was surprised inside at how smoothly the rest went. When he glanced over, he saw Ram looking proud of Subaru doing as she had instructed. Genuinely grateful, Subaru concentrated on peeling without a word, when suddenly  \"...What? If you stare at me like that I'm gonna start blushing.\" Subaru looked up when he realized it was Rem who was staring at him. Rem looked slightly taken aback as she tried to counter. But whatever she was trying to say, Ram's words interrupted. \" She is staring at how pathetic you look, Barusu. In particular, your head is quite lacking.\" Her words made Subaru tilt his head. \"I thought this haircut was a lot better than it used to be, though...\" \"At the very least, it deserves a failing grade, given that you are a servant... Right, Rem?\" \"...Ah, yes. I suppose so. It does seem just a tiny bit lacking.\" \"Looks like it really bothers you! Geez, sorry!\" Their plainspoken low assessment of the work he'd taken some pride in put Subaru down a bit. As Ram watched Subaru, she made a hmph noise through her nose. \"Incidentally, Rem handles people's hair here at the manor. She dresses me and does my hair every morning, you see?\" \"Yeah, that's how you twins are the spitting image of... Wait, that sounds wrong?\" The way she said it just then made it sound like Ram did all the work by herself. But faced with Subaru's retort, Ram folded her arms and boldly replied. \"It is exactly as you think, Barusu.\" \"Help out your little sister a bit, geez!\" Ram's boldly declaring herself to be the good-for-nothing older sister made Subaru shout with a look of feigned shock. Then, Ram stroked the pink hair that Rem had combed, looking at her younger sister. \"Rem, would you mind giving Barusu's hair a little cut?\" \"Now hold on, having a girl playing with my hair is really gonna throw me off here!\" \"Sister...?\" Ram's sudden suggestion threw off both Subaru and Rem. Ram trained her red eyes on her sister's questioning look, slightly lowering the tone of her voice. \"...You were looking at Barusu because of his hair, yes?\" \"...Yes, that is correct. A little combing and styling would make it look much better.\" \"You should let her do as she says, then. Rem's hands are heavenly, I assure you.\" \"That makes it sound like a kind of perverted request, you know...\" It seemed like the older sister was giving Rem the excuse to indulge in her unexpressed interest. Maybe it was an issue of personalities. Unlike Ram, already giving Subaru no quarter, Rem apparently hadn't decided yet how she should act toward him. Subaru agreed with the need to close the distance, but... \"If you don't want to, then you don't have to. I kind of hope you do, though!\" \"No, not at all. It is true that it bothers me slightly, very slightly, just a little.\" Knowing that it was really bothering her, Subaru lost more confidence. He thought he was just indulging in his individuality but with such thoughts on his mind, three voices sounded as one. \" Ah.\" The edge of Shooting Star shifted from a potato to Subaru's thumb. Subaru yelled out as he shallowly peeled the wrong kind of skin. \"Whoaa! Oh man! It took off a little !\" \"It seems it is displeased to be called your 'beloved knife.' Since your love is so one-sided, perhaps you should try calling it your favorite knife instead?\" \"Sister, the water is boiling, so let's put in the vegetables you cut \" \"You two love hazing the new guy, don't you?!\" Their prioritizing of the work was admirable, but Subaru lacked the mental strength to praise it.  And so, half a day flew by. \"So tired !\" As Subaru spoke, he flopped completely onto the bed, all his strength exhausted. He was in the servants' quarters he'd been given. From that day onward, it would serve as Subaru's private quarters and sleeping space. It was a frugal room with a cheap bed, desk, and chair, so of course it lagged far behind the standards of the guest room where he'd been a patient. \"Well, the expensive stuff is really stifling, so this is A-OK...\" Burying his face into the pillow, he decided it still smelled and felt up to high-class standards. Now that he was off work, Subaru quickly changed from his uniform to his tracksuit, intending to go to sleep in clothes that he was more accustomed to. \"Man, they worked me to the bone. Work's hard work. I seriously get why Dad and they are so awesome in the working world. Even one day of this is nothing to sneeze at.\" He let out honest admiration as he loosened his creaky body, thinking back on his first day at work. Sure, there were lots of little details he didn't know, but he was still depressed at how bad a job he'd done. The saving grace was perhaps Ram's attitude as an instructor. \"She's blunt and to the point, but she's gentler and more polite than I expected, really... Ah?\" He lifted his face at the abrupt knock on the door. As he did so, he heard a voice from the door's direction. \"It's Rem. Subaru, is now a good time?\" \"Ah, sure, sure. I'm not doing anything weird, so come on in!\" \"That makes it sound more suspicious rather than less, but pardon me.\" Rem opened the door and entered the room, still dressed in her maid outfit. For a moment, Subaru raised his eyebrows at Rem's visit, but he understood the reason as soon as he saw the black jacket she had in her hands. \"Wait, you don't mean you're done already? This redefines the words fast job.\" \"It is nothing so grand as re-tailoring it altogether. I would have to take more care if it were one of Master Roswaal's outfits, but this will do for you.\" \"That made it sound like you, um, really cut corners?\" Rem made no reply as he took the jacket, briskly opening it and putting his arms through the sleeves. Before, the outfit's armpits were too tight and his shoulders could barely rotate, but... \"I hate to admit it, but you did it perfectly. My arms can go round and round... Ah, does it look good on me?\" \"When combined with the rarity of your gray-colored clothing, nobody else's strange outfits could compare.\" \"Okay, that didn't sound like a compliment. Guess even I can tell that much!\" Having the manservant's jacket over a T-shirt made Rem's assessment a natural one. Indeed, it must have taken considerable effort not to laugh. But... \"What shall we do about the cuffs?\" \"Cuffs... Ah, you mean for the pants. Crap, I forgot. With a needle and thread I could do it myself, though.\" \"I have brought some with me. Shall I adjust them now?\" It was a good-faith suggestion with no apparent ill will from Rem's side. She'd slipped in some choice words with it, but that was her style, so he let it slide. Either way, Subaru wanted to repay the favor somehow. \"Okay, hand the needle and thread over here. My sewing skills are gonna get a whole new grade today!\" \"I should expect more from the person who had showed such dexterity while struggling to peel vegetables for dinner today?\" \"Keh-keh, underestimate me while you can. And by all means, prepare to be shocked!\" Looking like she was giving up on Subaru, sky-high with confidence, Rem took a fantasy-world sewing kit out of a pocket and handed it to him. He took it, finding that the contents matched up pretty nicely with what he could expect from home. With a practiced hand, he passed the thread through the needle and pulled the cuffs of the trousers up over his knees. \"Mmm, hmm, mm-hmm.\" As Subaru made a singsong sound, Rem let out a sigh of admiration. \"...I am shocked. You really do have experience.\" Subaru moved the needle in a brisk, lively fashion. Before he finished humming, he pulled it up. \"Okay, one side done. Take a good look. I sewed it right, didn't I?\" Subaru stretched out the pants to show off his own work. Rem drew in her chin in plain acknowledgment. His mood improved by the reaction, Subaru began working on the other cuff when Rem spoke abruptly. \"Ah...Subaru, about the conversation at noontime...\" \"Mm, noon? Noon, what happened then?\" \"Ah...er, if you have forgotten, it's quite all right.\" Rem made a small shake of her head in front of Subaru, who still had his head down. Narrowing his eyes at her reaction, he recalled that they'd discussed fixing his hair when preparing dinner. \"Oh, about the hair? I half thought that was a joke. You gonna do it?\" \"No, I just thought it was very impertinent of me. You may be a coworker, but you are also Lady Emilia's savior, so our positions are different.\" \"That kind of stiff attitude will just crimp my style... Wait, that's what you think?\" Her statement, that she couldn't treat him as a simple coworker because they stood apart, stuck in his ears. Seeing Rem raise her eyebrows at the question, Subaru began roughly tugging on the hair on his head. \"To be honest, I'm not good at picking up on stuff like that. Sorry to...make you worry about it.\" \"No, I am simply saying it cannot be helped. Please forget about it.\" \"I can't just let that go so easily. People are petty like that. Now, then...\" Subaru put a hand to his forehead, lowering his eyes as he looked at Rem. She seemed not so much regretful about her slip of the tongue as she seemed chastened by Subaru's admonition. That helped him decide what to say. Subaru lifted a finger as he made a suggestion. \"Okay, I'll give you my one condition. If you're okay with that, I'll totally forget what you just said.\" Rem closed her eyes briefly before nodding with a look of resignation. \"Condition...you say? I understand. I will hear you out.\" Subaru made a strained smile, not intending to draw out that big a reaction, and then said... \"If you fix up my hair and give it a little brushing, I'll forgive you.\" *** Unable to take Rem's silence in the face of his counteroffer, Subaru raised his voice. \"The silence is kind of painful to me here, you know.\" Rem's pale blue eyes reflected Subaru in them as she sighed a little. \"Lady Emilia already pointed this out, but you desire very little, Subaru.\" \"That's weird. I thought we'd be making up instead of you getting all shocked like that...\" \"As I have heard from Sister how you gave her perverted looks when you were alone, I was rather resigned to something less decent.\" \"Slander's a horrible thing!!\" He was scared that Ram's gossipy statement would make sparks fly with Emilia in short order. He'd have to establish a direct lifeline with Emilia before that could happen. Subaru was still plotting countermeasures against Ram in his head when Rem grasped the hem of her skirt. \"I accept your condition I shall go along with your idea.\" And so, with a prim and proper bow, she accepted his suggestion for smoothing things over. Her performance drew a laugh out of Subaru as he looked down at his hands. \"Hey, I wrapped up shortening the legs while we were talking. I did it right, huh?\" The work complete, Rem took hold of the trousers, acknowledging his work... \"...Yes, you did. You get full marks for sewing. But much like yourself, I do not think it will be of use, Subaru.\" ...then poured cold water all over him. \"Huh?! I thought we just made up here?!\" Combined with Subaru's retort, the earlier awkward atmosphere had fully lifted. Subaru returned the sewing"}, {"text": "kit to Rem before stroking his own forehead. \"So, about my hair...when do you wanna do it? It's tough to do it today 'cause it's so late.\" \"That is true. I would like to get it done as soon as possible, but I will be working in the evening for several days...unfortunately.\" \"We'll just have to make the time. Man, it's really been a while since I had my hair styled!\" He'd been cutting his own hair since he got into middle school, nearly five full years earlier. He was good enough to do it by touch without using a mirror. \"Well then, it is getting late, so I will excuse myself. You will be working in the morning as well. Can you wake up on time on your own?\" \"Honestly, not all that sure there. I'm good at waking up if I have a clock, but there's nothing like that here, so maybe not? Don't you have roosters or something?\" Faced with Subaru's unreliable reply, Rem reluctantly launched him a life raft. \"...This seems severe, so Sister or I shall wake you in the morning.\" \"Seriously? I feel bad to use my seniors in place of a clock, but...\" \"It shall do us no good to have you sleep into the afternoon, after all.\" \"What kind of oversleeper do you take me for?!\" \"Someone who could sleep away the entire day, I imagine?\" It took a while for Subaru to realize that this was a joke, by Rem's standards. After the banter, Subaru thanked Rem as she left for accepting his suggestion. She passed through the doorway and waved a hand as she went out of sight. \"Whatever comes out of their mouths, they're sisters through and through, huh.\" Rem was superficially polite as she slipped in the dagger; Ram was arrogant. But just the same, they were considerate to the point of overbearing, something Subaru thought was highly desirable in coworkers.  Later. \"So then, how was Subaru after all that?\" It was evening the sun had already set in the west, just as the crescent moon took its place in the night sky when the secret report took place. It was a large room. The center had a table and tall chairs for receiving guests; farther within, the room was furnished with a chair and desk for its owner to conduct his writing affairs. The ebony desk had sheets and feather pens strewn over it, beside which stood a cup that was still steaming, a gentle aroma wafting up from it. This was the uppermost floor in Roswaal Manor's main wing, the private study of its lord, Roswaal L. Mathers. His voice was like a whisper, but it reached its mark with no difficulty. Of course it did. The small body of Roswaal's speaking companion was sitting right across his lap. \"It's been five days since that spectacle time enough for you to see how this shaaall proceed?\" \"I suppose so  He is no good.\" Ram heard her master's voice in her ear as he stroked her pink hair. Roswaal and Ram were the only two people in the room; there was no sign of the twin's \"other half,\" Rem. Put simply, that day's report was about the issue of Subaru and Ram's education of him. With her stating that his education was going most poorly, Roswaal stared for a moment before laughing. \"Ahaaa, is that so. Completely useless?\" \"Barusu really can do nothing at all. He's no good at cooking, clumsy at cleaning, and the very thought of entrusting laundry to him disturbs me. He's oddly skilled at sewing, but besides that, nothing can be left to him alone.\" \"In a place with so many girls, that, too, is a grave matter, is it nooot?\" At that age it cannot be helped, Ram seemed to say with a strained smile, looking up at her master as she thought back on the details of the previous four days. In that brief but vivid time, even a stranger would have noticed the grimace replacing Ram's graceful, neutral expression. \"It is quite raaare to see such a face on you. Is he so worthless?\" \"Worthless through and through. It is not that he is clumsy; it is that he does not know. I cannot but think he was raised poorly. However, he is also lacking in culture.\" \"So haaard on him.\" Roswaal held back a laugh. Ram sighed a little, shifted her position in her master's arms, and sank farther against him. He gave Ram's pink hair a good stroke with his palm. \"So, Ram, the important part  Do you think he is involved?\" Roswaal maintained his smile, his tone of voice unchanged from before. The subject was unstated, but she knew what he wanted to hear. Ram closed her eyes, thinking for a little while. \"I cannot rule it out, but I think the possibility is low.\" \"Hmmmm. Why is that?\" \"He stands out too much to have been sent to infiltrate this House... Not in a good or b... No, in an especially bad way... In the first place, Barusu himself is...\" The words seem to pour out of her mouth. It was, in a fashion, a reply to his question, so Roswaal greeted her answer with a satisfied smile. It was the smile of a master that said: It makes perfect sense. Though the smile was not being sent her way precisely, Ram realized her cheeks were burning nonetheless. \"I see, and I must agree with that. Meaning he truly is a benevolent bystander.\" As Roswaal spoke, the chair creaked as he shifted positions. He turned opposite to the desk, straight toward the large window through which shone the moonlight. Roswaal's oddly colored eyes seemed to twinkle; the corners of his lips rose at the scene below. \"I muuust say, he certainly doooes not discourage easily.\" The private study overlooked the manor's garden. There, in one corner of it, he saw a black-haired boy speaking and laughing with a silver-haired girl. As was typical, the young man made one-sided conversation, but the girl didn't seem to mind. \"How chaaarming. I no longer possess such passion.\" His words were like a soliloquy, but Ram looked into Roswaal's eyes from close up as she replied. \"Women are happy when they're pursued.\" But in contrast to the luster in her eyes, Roswaal's eyes narrowed in a teasing look. \"Perhaps you measure Subaru higher than I thought?\" \"...He is no good at all, but I do not think poorly of him. He knows nothing related to the work, but what he simply does not know, he can be taught.\" Responding to the dissatisfaction in Ram's eyes and her chilly voice, Roswaal used the hand with which he had brushed her hair to caress her cheek. Ram seemed too enchanted to speak as Roswaal pondered her reply. It was rare for Ram to speak of others like this. Her unexpressed counsel to her master was, Let us get to know him better. It seemed the two maids were quite fond of the black-haired young man. There is beauty in enthusiasm, Roswaal thought with a nod. \"Based on my position, I shooould probably intercede, yeees?\" Roswaal commented as he looked down on the cute rendezvous in the garden with his yellow eye alone. \"Both are such children. Nothing will happen regardless.\" \"You do have a point.\" Faint laughter filled the private study as they pulled the curtain over the window overlooking the rendezvous between the boy and girl below.  What happened after that, not even the moon was given the privilege to see. With the moon still lingering in the center of the night sky, Subaru was full of optimism. He stretched out the wrinkles visible through his manservant outfit's sleeves and checked how he looked in the window. It'd already been four days since he was wearing these clothes, so he thought it was about time he felt used to them. \"Not bad, not bad at all. I can do this. Right out of the bath, I look fifty percent sexier in the mirror. I feel like this is gonna work!\" Whether it was objectively 50 percent was another question, but it was important to reassure himself. Trying to at least surround himself with an attractive aura, Subaru took a long, shallow breath and stepped forward. He was walking on the shortly mowed grass of the garden, heading for a green-covered corner lined by high trees, a place where the blessings of the moon were all the more remarkable. There sat a girl, her silver hair twinkling in the moonlight as a pale light surrounded her. Subaru now knew that the firefly-like pale glow actually came from spirits. That fact added to how watching the surreal scene bewitched his heart, like a demoness that wouldn't let go. He unintentionally stopped in place, his breath catching. Perhaps sensing him, the girl's closed eyes abruptly opened. The two amethyst jewels caught sight of Subaru approaching. \"Oh, hi. R-real coincidence bumping into you like this?\" \"You come like this every day, you know. As for coincidence...don't we live under the same roof?\" One glance from being spotted before he could speak threw Subaru off his game; for her part, Emilia sighed at the already typical line from him. Undeterred by his slip, Subaru smiled at Emilia. \"Hearing the words under the same roof really gives me a tingling...\" \"The word tingling really sends a shudder up my spine. For some reason, I don't like it.\" With Emilia staring up at him, Subaru scratched his cheek and sat next to her like it was perfectly normal. They were a mere three hands apart, proof that the sense of distance between them had lessened. Emilia, by now used to Subaru sitting next to her, did not bother to point out the distance. Between her daily morning ritual and mealtimes, his sitting beside her was something she now took for granted. It was unclear whether she was silently permitting it or simply giving up on forbidding it, but either way, Subaru was happy to be so close. \"So, what are you doing?\" \"Mm? An extension of the morning routine. I can meet most of them in the morning, but I can meet some of them only at night, so...\" Subaru nodded in response, readily accepting Emilia's reply. He was finally accustomed to living in a world where time was measured in \"day\" and \"night.\" Incidentally, daily life over a twenty-four-hour period was largely as one would expect. Living in accordance with the body's internal clock brought a sense of tranquility like nothing else. His four days of training as a manservant had also been four days acquiring that world's common knowledge. That said, learning servant work came ahead of academics, so his overall comprehension was still rather thin. \"Gives me new perspective looking back on my school days with the weekends off...\" Subaru had often disparaged his Spartan instructor during the last four days. But such one-sided comments from Subaru still furthered the friendly conversations he had with Emilia at night. Subaru silently watched the side of Emilia's face as if bewitched by the dreamlike scene. Emilia suddenly commented, perhaps finding it rare for Subaru to be lost for words. \"It's no fun to watch, is it?\" How Emilia somehow sounded apologetic made Subaru sit up and shake his head. \"Nah, I could never be bored being with you, Emilia-tan.\" \"Wh \" The straight-hitting statement made Emilia's breath catch as her cheeks reddened. Seeing Emilia's face flushed from the surprise attack made Subaru redden up to his ears. After all, the line he'd said just then had been the complete, literal truth. Subaru rapid-fired his words as if trying to explain away his blushing. \"Ah, er, I mean, we hadn't had a chance to settle down and talk for days, right?\" Emilia nodded in full agreement. \"Th-that's right. Seems you've had quite a time learning how to work at the manor... You've"}, {"text": "been working your heart out, huh?\" \"Hearing that makes me so happy I wanna cry...\" Glossing over the atmosphere, they buried that topic in a deep hole and turned it into an unintentionally bittersweet moment. Assessments of Subaru's work over those four days had been rather harsh, and even if he managed to somehow bribe his superiors, it would not change his score of \"totally useless.\" Subaru's first job, since he was lacking ability in the domestic fields of cleaning, laundry, and cooking, was to acquire the skills required of a servant at a manor. His current grade for all of the above was stuck at C. \"Shortening the sleeves of my uniform and putting buttons on an apron got me top marks, but that's it.\" \"You really are exceptional in only one area.\" \"Well, I tried to grow up to be a guy with an edge instead of perfectly round and flat...\" Subaru's skill at sewing was a product of how his parents had raised him, but he, too, wondered what in the world they'd been thinking. Emilia, not knowing of Subaru's introspection, gave honest praise for his self-confidence. \"I see, is that so. I'm glad that you're confident in something, too.\" Subaru made a rather conflicted smile at the sight of Emilia being happy for him. \"Besides, it's not like you're awful at the other jobs. Ram and Rem keep this quiet, but they have been praising you, you see...\" \"Seriously? So I'm making ground even with my seniors here? So, what, cutting myself with the knife, knocking over the bucket, and messing up the laundry, it all raised my relationship points?!\" \"I think you should reflect on that just a little.\" Emilia made a pained smile at Subaru's stating his glaring failures. Her violet eyes gently narrowed, looking at Subaru, examining him carefully at close range. \"But work's hard every day, isn't it?\" \"Super hard, totally tough. It makes me wanna borrow Emilia-tan's arms and breasts and lap for some low-stress healing.\" \"Yes, yes. If you're making light of it, you must be all right.\" Emilia reached with a fingertip and gave Subaru's forehead a light push. Subaru, weak to the pressure, could not resist Emilia's fingertip, making a showy tumble backward onto the grass. He let out a pleasant sigh as he felt the soothing coolness of the grass and gazed up at the star-filled sky. A world without city lights made Subaru appreciate the beauty of the stars and the moon in the sky more than ever before. \" The moon's so pretty, isn't it?\" \"There are some places you just can't reach, right?\" \"I wasn't asking for it at all, and you hit me with something like that?!\" \"What, did I say something bad?\" Subaru's attempt at dropping a romantic line fell flat due to cultural differences in a different world. He pressed a hand over his heart to show he was apologetic, startling Emilia. \"Ah...\" \"Oh, darn it! I was tryin' to hide that...\" Subaru tried to hide his blushy smile as he moved the hand Emilia was staring at behind his back... The left hand that had borne the brunt of his repeated failures at work. Subaru stuck out his tongue to try to gloss over it, but Emilia lowered her eyes with a serious look. \"So, everyone else is working hard, too.\" Emilia's murmur sounded like she was criticizing herself. Subaru silently acknowledged what Emilia was thinking as she spoke to herself like that. Subaru wasn't the only one learning something at Roswaal Manor. Emilia was in the middle of absorbing a wide variety of things that she had to learn as a royal candidate. Subaru and Emilia were after much different things. To compare the pressure on the two of them was nearly outright rude. Bearing such heavy burdens must have been exhausting. Perhaps Emilia carried worries that she couldn't discuss with anyone. Belatedly, Emilia asked a question. \"...How about I cast a healing spell?\" \"Nah, it's fine. I'd rather not heal it and leave it like this.\" \"Why's that?\" \"Mm, it's hard to put it into words... It's kinda a sign of how hard I've worked?\" Subaru thought that they weren't typical words coming from him as he strongly clenched his beat-up hand. \"I don't mind working hard as much as I thought I would. Being able to do things I couldn't do before...it ain't bad. It's hard, it's really tough, but it's kinda fun. I mean, Ram and Rem are surprisingly strict, that loli's annoying, seen less of Rozchi than I thought I would, though...\" \"Roswaal would probably get prickly if you told him that.\" \"Nobody uses prickly anymore...\" Subaru bent a hip to emphasize his bending the conversation. Then, rising to his feet like a spring-loaded doll, he brought his right hand to his forehead in a tidy salute toward Emilia. \"Well, just need to knock down the problems one by one. I mean, this is the only place for me to live... Either way, it's fun, see?\" In his original world, living \"easy\" had been just fine with him. But he couldn't expect that kind of peaceful daily life in this world. Hence, Subaru sought as much \"ease\" as he could. Having been senselessly tossed into that world, one could call it Subaru's stubbornness toward his fate. Subaru's display of determination made Emilia's expression freeze like time had stopped. Only her eyes moved, blinking several times over, before a smile suddenly came over her. \"That's right. Yeah, I think that, too... Goodness, Subaru, you're such an idiot.\" \"Wait, isn't that reaction weird?! Shouldn't we be falling back in love or something?!\" \"I wasn't in love to begin with! You really are such a... I'm an idiot, too.\" Subaru looked hurt at the exaggerated reaction. Emilia's final murmur never reached him. Emilia's smile deepened. The softness of her charming smile was as if the earlier pressure on her was long forgotten, like Subaru had unintentionally bewitched her with his own spell. He couldn't express how Emilia looked at that moment with mere words like pretty or cute. \"E M D (Emilia-tan's Majorly Divine)!\" \"I'm genuinely grateful and you joke about it like that...?\" Emilia tapered her lips in a slightly annoyed pout and pushed a finger into Subaru's forehead again. It was likely not Subaru's mere imagination that these occasional touches carried more warmth than they had before. \"Having said all that...it's nice that you're trying hard, but how'd you get your hand all beat up like that, anyway?\" \"Oh, this one's simple. This afternoon, I tagged along when Rem went shopping at the village close to the mansion. The kids were playing around with me when this little dog-ish thing chomped on me.\" \"So it's not the product of hard work?!\" \"Nah, it's so big you can't notice the traces of hard work... I didn't think I was the type animals hated, though...\" Back in his own world, children and little animals loved him that, or he just looked like a pushover. That made the former result odder still. But his effect on kids was still going strong. \"The village kids... They smacked me, kicked me, and blew snot on me, too. That sucked, damn it.\" \"Somehow you seem good at looking after little kids, Subaru.\" \"That's taking it the wrong way, Emilia-tan. Winning them over now means I'll reap the rewards when they grow up. I'm a long-term thinker, see.\" \"Yes, yes. I will admit you're honest about your petty stubbornness.\" Emilia, accustomed to Subaru's silliness, let it roll over her as she stretched and looked up at the sky. \"I'd best return to my room now. How about you?\" \"I can't sleep by Emilia-tan's side, so I'll head back, too.\" \"You get that job only when you've polished your skills with your current work.\" \"Now you said it. Just watch, they're gonna write legends about me...!\" Subaru took Emilia's words to heart, burning with enthusiasm. Emilia made a strained smile as Subaru looked back and raised a finger. \"Ah, right. Would you come with me tomorrow when I give the village brats some payba er, a lovey-dovey da er, go to watch the cute little animals?\" \"Why did you correct yourself several times...? And, ah, I...\" Emilia lowered her eyes, seeming hesitant as she murmured, \"I don't mind going with you, and I'm curious about that small animal, so...\" \"Okay, let's go, then!\" \"But it might be troublesome for you to have me with you like...\" \"Got it, let's go!\" \"...Are you really listening?\" \"I'm listening! I could never let a single word or phrase from Emilia-tan escape!\" \"Oh, Subaru, I just hate you!\" \"Aaa! Aaa! Sorry, what was that?! I can't hear you!\" How Subaru covered his ears, spectacularly taking back what he'd said the moment before, made Emilia break out in laughter, all ills forgotten. Then, she wiped a teardrop from her eyes with a finger as she looked at Subaru. \"Goodness...but only after I finish my studying and you finish all your work, Subaru?\" \"Oh yeah! Roger that! I'll so totally get them done!\" With the date arranged, Subaru made a dramatic fist-pump pose. Watching Subaru's self-satisfied look, a charming smile came over Emilia as she let out a little sigh. \"I was thinking, watching you makes my worries seem so small, Subaru.\" \"No way?! I mean, you might become queen; worries and social stress like that would turn my stomach inside out!\" Emilia, unable to hold back any more, burst out laughing, her mirthful voice making Subaru laugh, too. The two laughing like that announced that their rendezvous for that night had come to an end. Let it be noted that there was one final exchange. \"Come to think of it, why are you dressed like that after work?\" \"Ah, I thought it'd make a good impression on you... So, what do you think? Pretty handsome, huh?\" \"Mm, I suppose so. It has that 'I'm a capable servant' look.\" \"Well, there you go crushing my hopes!\" Subaru had his hand on the door, peeking in as he spoke in a casual voice. \"Huh, do you actually sleep right, loli girl? If you stay up too late, you won't grow as tall as you should and you'll end up as an adult that short.\" Beatrice replied with resentment in her voice. \"...Do you breach the Passage as if it is a matter of course, I wonder?\" She sat on the wooden stool well within the archive as she glared at Subaru. \"Did you have a reason to come see me, I wonder?\" \"Not really. I thought I'd say hi before I went to bed. I was gonna give up if I didn't get it in three tries, but I got it in one, so...\" \"Truly, what kind of intuition do you have...?\" Beatrice had a tired look as she pulled on one of her rolls. When her fingers released it, the stretchy, elastic roll bounced the other way. The sight struck Subaru profoundly. \"Can I try it, too?\" \"Only Puckie may touch the likes of me... Would you go away already, I wonder?\" \"Not fair only you get to play. Oh well. I'm in a good mood, so I'll forgive you.\" Still buoyant from the promised date, Subaru headed out as Beatrice glowered at him. But the moment before the door closed, he thought he heard a voice speak with a lonely echo. \" That has nothing to do with me.\" The voice tugged at him. \"Huh, gotta open the door so I can give her a good comeback.\" The once-open door to the secret archive now led to a simple guest room once more. He tried opening and closing the door in front of him to see if he could catch it connecting to the archive again. Rem looked beside herself as she watched Subaru there, opening and closing the door. \"...What have you been doing? Checking the condition of the lock?\" \"Oh yeah, I"}, {"text": "thought I heard a creak in the hall the last few nights... So that was you, Rem?\" Rem was carrying a silver tray with nothing on it in one hand as she watched Subaru feel up the door. \"Is something bothering you?\" \"Nah, this led to the archive of forbidden books with the loli girl till just now; it's gone, though.\" \"Did you want something from Lady Beatrice? You could ask me if you prefer...?\" \"Just saying hi before going to sleep. Nothing...big.\" The phrase he heard from Beatrice just before the door closed was on Subaru's mind, but he shook his head it wasn't something he needed to press her about at the moment. \"What, you're still working, Rem? Better turn in. Morning's coming quickly.\" \"I'll sleep after I do the dishes. At the moment, Sister is serving tea to Master Roswaal, you see.\" \"What the heck are those two doing at a time  Ah, well, that's fine.\" It was almost past midnight; he didn't much care for Roswaal and Ram having a private chat, discussing some lively topic between just the two of them. Not my business to say, though, Subaru reflected. He suddenly realized that Rem was watching him. Her pale blue eyes were staring in the direction of his head. \"Don't suppose chances like this come up much. Doesn't look like it bothers you any, though.\" \"...No, until now it has not bothered me that much, or somewhat, or even a little bit.\" \"Geez, downplaying a bunch of times back-to-back makes it sound like it really bothers you!\" The sharpness and intensity of Rem's gaze increased to the point that his capacity for speech faltered. Subaru wrapped up work rather late and Rem had been constantly busy, so few opportunities presented themselves. What the heck, thought Subaru with a grimace when Rem raised her hand a bit. \"If you like, how about I do it now?\" \"What... Now? It's pretty late, isn't it?\" \"A quick cut and wash will not take very long. If I do not, I cannot fulfill the cherished desire you confided in me from your own lips, Subaru.\" \"Cherished desire is a little much!\" For such a neutral expression, Subaru saw Rem's eyes brimming with fierce determination. Subaru scratched his face, realizing it must have annoyed her quite a bit over the last four days. He wanted to do something about that annoyance if he could, but  \"Sorry, Rem. I've made a promise to go out with Emilia tomorrow. I've gotta get up early and take care of work quickly, so I really can't do it tonight...\" \"Is that so... No, I was being unreasonable. I'm sorry.\" Using the just-made promise as his reason for putting off the promise he'd made to Rem before, at his own suggestion, weighed on his conscience. But Rem was a practical girl and tried to take Subaru's circumstances into account. Feeling guilty about Rem's position, Subaru felt his words left a bitter taste in his own mouth when suddenly, \"How about tomorrow night?\" \"...At night, you say?\" \"My condition for the promise with Emilia is getting all my work wrapped up. There's no special work scheduled for tomorrow afternoon, so after that, since it's still on your mind...\" As he spoke, he was truly shocked with himself for arranging dates with two girls on the same day. Not that his feelings toward Emilia and Rem were in the same vein to begin with... With Rem, he felt fondness toward a fellow coworker. He still didn't really know how he felt toward Emilia. Faced with Subaru's suggestion, Rem closed her eyes and made a small nod. \"Understood. Tomorrow night it is. This is a firm promise, you understand?\" \"I don't know why it bothers you that much, but yeah, a promise it is. Tomorrow night, then.\" He thought about making it a pinkie promise, but he hesitated, not knowing if such a thing existed in that world's customs. As he hesitated, Rem made a polite bow, turning around with a small flutter of her skirt. She departed with quiet, gliding steps. Subaru watched her go before heading back to his room, biting down a yawn as he mentally went over his schedule for the coming day. \"I have to thank the kids for creating the reason for a date all the way to the village tomorrow. Oh, before I do that, got to find out where the best flower gardens are...\" As he entered his room, he held his nose high and puffed out his chest, full of hopes and dreams for the coming day. Subaru stripped off his butler uniform, giving himself a makeover with the tracksuit as he crawled into bed. As his head hit the pillow, his eyes were open, thoughts racing about the next day, not conducive to sleep at all. Faced with his mind betraying his body, Subaru immediately switched mental gears and resorted to his secret weapon. Namely... \"One Puck, two Pucks...\" In the back of his mind, little gray kitty cats were running around and frolicking as he counted them one by one. Subaru linked his fantasy Puck to the real one, letting his memory of the fluffy feline lead him to a happy place. His mind slowly sank, pulled into dreamland. \"One...hundred and four Pucks...\" Picturing a fluffy paradise, warmth enveloped his mind and finally vanished. As Subaru awoke, he felt like his consciousness was rising as if poking his head through the water's surface. Suddenly released from the suffocating feeling, his eyes opened, waiting several seconds to take in the world. He felt like he'd woken up in a different place than where he'd gone to bed. He felt sunlight burning his eyes. Subaru sat up his slightly sluggish body and shook his head. His head was a bit heavy. Perhaps he was tired from not being entirely used to his new life yet. But this was not the day for such weak thoughts. Wide-awake, Subaru went over the date promise he'd made with Emilia the night before. \"That's right, Subaru Natsuki today's the time to leap into action!\" The day was a day with a happy future. A day he'd awakened to crisply, a day of promised victory. But... *** Pink-haired and blue-haired twin sisters looked upon Subaru's determined face in surprise. Subaru, blushing to the tips of his ears, buried his face in the pillow to hide it. \"What! You were there?! Then you should've said something! Aw man, I'm so, so embarrassed!\" The fact that they'd stopped rousing him awake two days before made him careless. To think that both of them would visit on that particular morning... As usual, the twins' expressions did not change much as Subaru groaned on top of the bedding. Though it did seem like they were fighting the temptation to point at him and break out laughing. \"Er, hold on, you two. I mean, that reaction kinda hurts. I'm a delicate soul here. There are other reactions, right?!\" He was looking forward to their at least engaging in the cold verbal abuse to which he was accustomed.  Subaru realized afterward that it was quite awful for him to actually be looking forward to the verbal abuse. \"Sister, Sister. He's greeting us as if he knows us somehow.\" \"Rem, Rem. He's greeting us in a very chummy fashion.\" It didn't feel right. Their murmurs brushed against something in the back of Subaru's mind. \"Er, ah? Something weird? My seniors coming to wake me up is one thing, but playing pranks on me is bad taste, you know?\" Certainly the two were always blunt, but something felt off. As Subaru spoke, he began to realize why he felt that something was off with them.  Their eyes. The way they looked at Subaru. The familiarity from the previous night was gone; they'd gone back to treating him like a complete stranger. Then, decisive proof came flying at him. \"Sister, Sister. Our Dear Guest seems to be a little confused?\" \"Rem, Rem. Our Dear Guest seems to be a little touched in the head.\"  Subaru was aghast at being called \"Dear Guest.\" The polite echo made Subaru feel like something sharp had gouged out the back of his stomach. Subaru pressed a hand to his chest to hold back the phantom pain. He didn't know what it all meant. Their reactions, it was as if  \"You two... Ha-ha, this really isn't...funny...\" With both of them still looking at him like a complete stranger, Subaru abruptly brought up his left hand to block them from his view. But Subaru instantly regretted doing so... ...because he saw that the bandage on his left hand was gone. The rough fingertips from kitchen work, the callouses from handling knives in ways he wasn't used to, the bite marks from the puppy that had bitten him while the children toyed with him they, too, were gone.  Somewhere distant, he heard what sounded like a bell tolling. The ringing came over him in a rush, crashing against him over and over again like a wave. Subaru didn't realize that the pain that came with the sound was from him pulling out his own hair. The temple of his head really hurt; he felt a hot, nauseous feeling in his nose. But Subaru's mind focused instead on the sharp pain and taste of blood from biting his own lip, as if he were using it to drown out the sense of loss that felt like someone had carved out his internal organs. The facts at hand forced Subaru to accept reality. Feeling his eyes grow hot inside, Subaru buried his face in the pillow for an entirely different reason than before.  For he absolutely, absolutely did not want anyone to see his face at that moment. Not the people he'd grown so fond of. Not the people who'd seemed to grow so fond of him. He absolutely didn't want to cry in front of people looking at him like he was a stranger. \"Why'd I...go back?!\"  And so, Subaru was dragged back into the loop anomaly that had brought him so much suffering. For the second time, his first day at Roswaal Manor began  CHAPTER 3 *** \"Dear Guest, Dear Guest. You look rather unwell. Are you all right?\" \"Dear Guest, Dear Guest. You look like your stomach hurts; did you soil yourself?\" As Subaru hung his head in shame, the sisters called out with voices of concern. They were familiar voices, even after such a short time. The voices were sometimes annoying, sometimes relieving, voices that he could trust.  But now those voices sounded entirely different, ringing harshly against Subaru's eardrums. Responding to the feel of their gazes, Subaru put his breathing in order and lifted his face. \"Sorry to...make you worry. I'm just a bit...dense when I'm waking up.\" Somehow, the rage surging within him had dissipated while he pressed his face into the bedding. Though the initial shock had subsided, he felt as if he were bound with silk string, a sense of loss that made him feel a sob rising from his chest.  Thinking how wonderful and infuriating it would be if only this was all just some mischievous trick Roswaal was playing on him. The pretense in his own mind making him feel somewhat better, Subaru opened his eyes and looked straight ahead. \" Ah, that's right.\" After an instant, the blurry world became clear and reality forced itself upon the young boy. Subaru saw the twins standing on both sides of the bed, their hands on the bedding. The familiar faces of Ram and Rem were gazing expressionlessly at Subaru, as per usual. Neither pair of eyes contained any emotion toward Subaru whatsoever. The four days that he had lived with them, growing closer to each other bit by bit, had evaporated like morning mist. \"Dear Guest ?\" With bewildered voices, both of their lips wove the words in unison. Their gazes chased after Subaru, now sitting up in bed. But"}, {"text": "Subaru, seemingly feeling a chill in the air, obeyed his feeling of unease and rose in great haste, putting distance between them. \"Dear Guest, you mustn't move suddenly. You are not yet well rested...\" \"Dear Guest, it's dangerous to move suddenly. You have not yet soundly rested...\" Subaru's body reflexively pulled back from the two girls and their concerned voices. The cold response made their eyes tighten with hurt looks, but Subaru was too frantic to notice such a thing. He was having a very hard time dealing with the feeling that he knew them but they did not, in turn, know him. It was only a few days prior that Subaru had the same feeling in the busy street, the back alley, and the dilapidated shop. But it was completely different now. The situation was different. The time was different. The experience was different. It wasn't like when he'd redone things with Emilia and Felt when he'd barely known them. Certainly he'd done some arm-twisting to redo things with the people he trusted. But now, faced with having people he knew turn back into strangers, Subaru was gripped by an unshakable, faceless terror. The maid twins before Subaru's frightened eyes had begun to sense that something was terribly wrong. Silence descended upon the room. Neither side could say or do anything. That was why... \"Sorry I can't do this right now!\" ...Subaru's action, gripping the doorknob and practically falling into the hallway as he rushed out, was just a moment faster than the twins' move to stop him. Subaru ran, the bare soles of his feet soaking up the cold of the hallway, drawing heavy, ragged breaths as he went. He ran fiercely, in a daze, with no particular destination in mind. He ran. He fled. Yet he didn't comprehend what he was running from. All he knew was that he couldn't bear to remain in that place a moment longer. Subaru ran down a corridor lined with similar-looking doors, his strides still tenuous, like he was about to fall over at any moment. Then, out of breath, Subaru put his hands on a door as if it led right to it   and, as he tumbled in, he was greeted by the great mass of bookshelves in the archive of forbidden books. With the door shut behind him, the archive was completely sealed off from the outside world. The only remaining way to intrude into the room from the outside was to open every single door in the entire mansion. Subaru no longer sensed pursuit. He slumped his shoulders, leaned back against the door, and sank to the floor. He wasn't squatting, and yet, his knees were shaking. So were the fingers he stretched out to try to hold them in place. \"If I were playing paper sumo, I'd cut some crazy lines right about now, ha-ha...\" Even his self-mockery had no bite to it. His dry smile seemed to contain nothing but hollowness. The scent of old paper in the air of the calm archive gently sprinkled a sense of ease and tranquility into Subaru's mind. Though Subaru knew it was shallow comfort, it was the only thing he had to cling to at the time. One after the other, after another...he desperately took deep big breaths. As Subaru gasped like a fish out of water, a scornful voice spoke from within the archive. \" Quite a rude thing you are, barging in without so much as a knock.\" There was a footstool sitting straight ahead from the entrance, well inside the dimly lit room. A girl sat upon it. It was Beatrice, guardian of the archive of forbidden books, keeping her distance from Subaru, the same as always, not a single hair of difference. With a loud sound, Beatrice closed the book, altogether too large for her tiny body, and looked at Subaru. \"I wonder, how do you breach the Passage...? This makes twice now.\" \"Sorry, a little while is fine, so let me stay here a bit. Please.\" Subaru put his hands together, bowed his head in supplication, and closed his eyes without waiting for her reply.  This is a quiet place with no one here to bother me. I've gotta get a grip on the facts. What's my name, where am I, who are the two twins from earlier? What's the name of the girl in front of me, and who is she? This weird room? The four days I spent? The promise I made, to be with someone, tomorrow, who  \"Oh yeah, Emilia...\" He recalled her silver hair, twinkling under the moonlight, her bashful smile... He remembered the promise he had made with Emilia, with the moon and the starry sky shining above them... \"Beatrice...\" \"...Are we close enough for you to be calling my name, I wonder?\" \"You said I breached the Passage just now, and once before, too?\" Beatrice made a sour look at being addressed like an acquaintance and having a question foisted upon her. However, Beatrice valiantly maintained her poise as she replied, \"You and your thick skull barged in here not three or four hours ago.\" \"The time I came in, messing with your setup, and you got mad so you bullied me. Got it.\" Though there was no strength behind it, he did not neglect his sarcasm toward Beatrice, getting further under her skin.  Subaru had encountered Beatrice three to four hours earlier, she'd said. Her words could only mean when he had first awakened at Roswaal Manor, when Subaru had, without any thought whatsoever, broken through the looping corridor on his first try. When he next awoke that morning, Ram and Rem were in front of the bed. \"In other words, this is the...second time I woke up in the manor, then.\" Subaru gathered up memories from all over the place to piece together his circumstances. The only time the twins had both been present when Subaru woke was that morning. They'd alternated after that. Furthermore, the first day was the only time when he'd had the social status to use the bed in the guest room. \"In other words, I went five days ahead, and I've gone four days back...?\" Just like in the royal capital, Subaru had gone back in time. That summed up his present situation. But understanding it was one thing; accepting it was something else. Subaru clutched his head and tried to think of what could cause him to go back in time. When Subaru had gone back in time at the royal capital, it was triggered by death, which he'd dubbed Return by Death. He'd decided that, having died three times over before saving Emilia, he'd left that loop behind. In point of fact, he'd spent five days at Roswaal Manor in absolute peace and quiet, hadn't he? And then, poof, suddenly going back in time he hadn't received any warning whatsoever. \"Did the conditions change from before...? I made myself think dying sent me back, but maybe it goes back on auto after one week...? No, if that were the case, then...\" If that was so, there was no reason for him to have awoken on the first day at Roswaal Manor at all. The principles underpinning going back in time remained unclear, but loops like the one at the royal capital surely followed certain rules. One rule was definitely the place where you were reborn. If Subaru hadn't been freed from that loop, he should have awoken right in front of the owner of the fruit shop with the scarred face, as he had three times over. \"But it wasn't a scarred middle-aged man, it was those angelic maids. Guess I've moved on up...\" That part made him feel like he'd traded Hell for Heaven. With several pats, Subaru felt up his own body and ensured that he was uninjured. You wouldn't think anything had happened. \"But if I died, how did I die? Everything was normal before I slept during the fourth night. At any rate, it didn't feel like any situation I'd die in my sleep before reaching the fifth day.\" He wondered if instant death without any conscious knowledge of it whatsoever was truly possible. He tried to picture dying from poison or gas in his sleep, but that meant being assassinated. There was no reason anyone would assassinate Subaru, so the preliminary conditions simply hadn't been met. \"So does that mean it's a forced loop unless I reach clear conditions...?\" If you looked at it like a game, it was like a Game Over that happened if you didn't trigger the necessary flags. Not knowing who'd put up the flags or why was bad enough, but not knowing the triggers that was pretty dismal game design. \"Besides, I'm the kind of gamer who gives up quickly and runs off to read a strategy guide...\" A scornful smile came over Beatrice as she watched Subaru sink into an ocean of introspection. She sounded bored when she spoke. \"It's become rather boring around here with all the mumbling you've been doing. Death this, life that this is why humans are so boring, I suppose. It's all deceits and conceits to the very end. This is why I can't hold a conversation with your kind.\" It was a blunt, even cruel way of blowing him off. But Subaru was relieved that Beatrice's attitude hadn't changed a bit. He rose up, dusting off his rump as he turned to face the door. \"Leaving, I suppose?\" \"There're some things I've gotta figure out. I'll leave moping around for sometime later. Thanks.\" \"I have done nothing at all... Would you leave already, I wonder? I really must readjust the Passage.\" Though there was not even a sliver of gentleness in her tone, for some reason, Subaru found that reassuring. Beatrice herself may not have had any such intention, but Subaru felt like her words were pushing him onward. He twisted the doorknob; a cool breeze blew as he took his first step outside. The wind made his short hair sway; he covered his face with an arm as he felt a faint prickling in his eyes. Then, the wind stopped, he felt grass under his bare feet, and his breath caught a bit as he spotted the silver-haired girl in the garden, making his heart leap for joy. \"Ahh, she really is so radiant.\" Well, this is a nice touch, he thought, internally pouring out a string of invectives at the cheeky guardian of the archive. \" Subaru!\" Upon noticing Subaru, the girl's violet eyes opened wide as she urgently rushed to his side. Those three bell-like syllables pouring from her lips were in the highest pitch she could make. Subaru spontaneously shifted his feet toward the fast-approaching girl. As she gazed at him from head to toe, the corners of her eyes descended in relief. But she immediately snapped back to her senses and returned to her normal look. \"Don't make me worry like that. Ram and Rem were really worked up, running all around the mansion making a big fuss because you ran off right after you woke up.\" \"Rare for them to get that worked up, huh. And sorry. Beatrice held me up for a bit.\" \"Again? I heard she picked on you once already before I got up, but...\" As Emilia's beautiful face drew near with an expression of concern, her defenseless look made Subaru reach out his hand to her, as if his own weak heart were trying to cling to her for support. But it was far too abrupt a place for it. If he did that, calming down in the archive would lose all meaning. It wasn't his goal to make a scapegoat out of Beatrice. All Subaru could do, seeing Emilia's anxious face, was respond with a vague expression. It wasn't very Subaru-like behavior, but Emilia's formality didn't permit her to dig much deeper. Of course it didn't. Emilia hadn't spent a single hour with this Subaru since meeting"}, {"text": "him; there was no way she could know that. The four carefree days Subaru and Emilia had spent together had been tossed into the gutter; four carefree days that had really happened, that Subaru knew but Emilia did not. \"What is it? Is there something on my face?\" \"Yeah, there are cute eyes, nose, ears, and mouth all over your face... Er, I'm glad that you're all right.\" Emilia's face, scowling as if to complain about the initial sweet talk, immediately nodded at the last part. \"Yes, I'm quite all right, because you protected me. How about your condition, Subaru?\" \"Ah, all good, all good. Thanks to blood loss, mana drain, and the shock from when I woke up, I'm a bit weak and my mind feels like it's been beaten with a bat, but I'm feeling good!\" \"I see, that's won  Eh? That sounds like you've been taking a beating all over...\" \"I'm fine. See?\" He spread out both arms and turned all around to show Emilia that he was in good health. He did seem to be returning to top form, bit by tiny bit. The gears were turning, the tongue was moistening the lips; he had to start being Subaru Natsuki. \"Well, that's fine and good... Er, are you going back to the mansion? I have a little bit of business, actually.\" \"Ah, chat time with the spirits, huh? I won't be in the way, so can I stay? And lend Puck to me, would you?\" Emilia tilted her head and spoke as if speaking down to a child. \"That's fine, but you really have to stay out of the way. This isn't a game.\" Emilia's sisterly behavior was just so adorable that it made Subaru's spirit burn with determination. \"Okay, Emilia-tan, let's get this show on the road! Time is short, the world is big, and our tale has just begun!\" \"I suppose s... Eh? What did you say just now? Where did this 'tan' come from...?\" \"It's okay, just go with the flow!\" With Emilia expressing surprise at his intimate pet name, he pushed on her back as both headed to that spot in the garden. Her losing the will to keep \"correcting\" him and grudgingly accepting how he spoke to her had been one of the bonds built up between them during those four lost days. Emilia still wore a face of resistance as Subaru walked behind her and murmured very quietly. \" We'll get them back.\" As they stopped, he gazed at her long silver hair, and then shifted his eyes to the sky.  He spitefully looked at the sun rising in the low sky of the east. This and four more and he'd be right at the appointed hour. All he needed to fulfill the promise with this girl like the moon was to greet the arrival of the sun.  He had time. And he knew what the answer would be. \"I dunno who's got it in for me, but I'm gonna take it all back and make you cry. Don't underestimate how tenacious I can be after I fell madly in love with the smile I saw that night.\" He shook a fist toward the sky and declared war to no one in particular. It was Subaru's first declaration of open defiance at the \"summons\" and \"loop\" that had brought him to that world. He had begun his battle against the second loop. All so that he could move past his week at Roswaal Manor and learn how those days would continue. And to protect and fulfill the promise he had made that night  Subaru's caustic words to the rising sun raised the curtain for his second \"first day\" at Roswaal Manor. All he had to do was see the sun rise five times. Subaru's plan was to spend the intervening time doing the same things to the fullest extent possible. In accordance with his resolution in the garden, Subaru's final objective was to fulfill the promise he'd made to Emilia on the final day. To do that, he had to get to that fourth night and make that promise once more. This was because he'd concluded that loops were, to a certain degree, set in stone. If he followed the same path, the story would \"conclude\" at the same place. If things followed the same flow as before, it was a natural result. Factoring in the thought processes and behavior patterns of the people involved, things would surely head to the same place. To Subaru, the important thing was to redo everything and change up only the end result. That was the best way to proceed he could think of. In other words, the best way to reach his objective was to see the loop through. With sublime mischief, Subaru resolved to save and load his way forward, leading events to the conclusion he desired. \"So, what is this...? Did I mess up somewhere...?\" In the steamy bath, Subaru opened his mouth wide and blew bubbles as he looked back on his first day. As far as his plan was concerned, everything after that moment of resolve that morning had been a complete disaster. First, he'd finished his daily morning routine with Emilia and awaited Roswaal's return to the manor before speaking to him in the dining hall. Put bluntly, he didn't have confidence he could reproduce all the fine points of an in-depth conversation, but surely he'd touched on all the high notes from last time. He'd got to touch Puck as a reward, addressed Emilia like a friend, discussed Emilia's candidacy for the royal succession, and determined where he stood in relation to Roswaal Manor. Just as before, Subaru had charmed his way into becoming an apprentice servant at Roswaal Manor. Afterward, he'd gone off with Ram to be shown around the manor and begin his first day of work, but that's when things went off the rails. Subaru, his face the only part not submerged in the bath, let his chin ride upon the water of the tub as he murmured with dismay. \"Then why was everything different from last time? I feel like a student who went through all the trouble of writing cheat sheets when they changed all the subjects on the test... What was the point of redoing it?\" Subaru's whole plan had been to redo everything exactly as he'd done before. However, the details of the training for his new post and the duties Ram had imposed on him were completely different from before. He felt like it went from Odd Jobs 101 to Odd Jobs 401. \"They were still all odd jobs, but...there was waaaay more to them than last time.\" Perhaps he needed to look at it as trusting him with higher-level work and more of it? \"Last time everything just ran me ragged, but this time it was hard as nails... Damn, I thought it was gonna be easy, all the same stuff.\" Subaru was not merely venting complaints at his expectations being so cruelly disappointed. He'd decided he really wasn't in a good situation. This was the result of his trying to spend his time like before. With so many details of his first day altered, he could not rationally expect things would be like last time on the second and following days. Overlooking the fine details, he was terrified that a much larger problem might yet rear its head. \"I still don't have any real clue why I went back this time around...\" This time, he'd gone to sleep \"normally\" and woke up having gone back in time. Unlike the death loop he had been in before, he had no way to avoid something he couldn't anticipate. Just the thought of it made his head hurt. \"With this many differences, can I rely on my memory at all...?\" He thought back to that fateful day when he met Emilia in the capital. A mountain of little details differed, but things were still proceeding in largely the same direction. He didn't know how to escape from the big event. The only thing that stood out differently from the last time in Subaru's mind was the promise he'd made with Emilia. Surely, if he made it that far, he'd be able to change the results and get past this. Subaru sank into the bathtub, put his thoughts in order without a breath of oxygen, and poked his head out of the bathtub once more. \"Well, hello. Maaay I join you?\" The sight of the bare-naked nobleman before him, hands on his hips, made Subaru deeply regret that he required air. They were close enough to touch as he stood in the nude, his crown jewels swaying between his legs as he looked down at Subaru. \"It's currently occupied. I refuse.\" \"The facilities in my own manor are my personal belongings, are they nooot? Allooow me to freely enjoy them.\" \"Then don't ask. You don't need my permission to get in the tub!\" \"Oh my, so haaarsh. You do not understand. The bath is certainly my personal possession...\" Roswaal went down on one knee as his hand reached out and gently lifted Subaru's unresisting chin. \"...but in the capacity of my servant, are yooou not as well?\" Chomp. \"No hesitation, I seeee.\" After biting the creepy fingertips holding his chin, Subaru swam backward, putting distance between Roswaal and himself. The bathroom's size was firmly in the realm of \"stupidly huge,\" with a tub as broad as the oldest, best bathhouses. Plainly, it was the habit of nobles to use an excessively large amount of space, but he had to admit that monopolizing all that space felt pretty satisfying. \"Another twist I didn't expect, geez...\"  During the previous four days, he hadn't encountered Roswaal in the bathtub even once. During the last loop, Roswaal had been extremely busy; the two barely saw each other. No doubt the twins had tended to his needs, but Subaru barely had any contact with him outside of mealtime, their initial meeting excepted. \"Damn it, every little thing's happening in completely different ways than what I expected...\" \"Althooough I know not what troubles you, not eeeverything in this world goes according to plan.\" Roswaal moved to Subaru's side as he spoke of it being a tough world. He leaned back against the wall of the bathtub and let out a long sigh, somehow looking like any other man in the world enjoying the pleasures of the bath. \"I only just noticed, but I guess even you take off your makeup for hot baths.\" \"Mm? Aaahh, that's right. Oh my, Subaru, I wonder iiif this is the first time you have seen my face unadorned?\" \"I suppose it is. I'm like, you look totally normal. No need to hide your face like that.\" \"Cosmetics is a hobby of mine. 'Tis nooot out of any need to hide my face. It is not as if the curl of my lips or the arch of my nose are abhorrent to the eye... Oh my.\" \"Don't look at me while saying that stuff. Make three doe-eyed blinks and I'm keeling over here and now.\" Being born with bad looks was a serious drawback when making first impressions. And if Subaru wanted to complain about the face he was born with, what could he say? He looked exactly like his mother. Remembering his parents, Subaru had a conflicted look on his face as Roswaal changed the subject. \"Aaare you getting along nicely with Ram and Rem? They've worked here for quite a while, so they are suuurely passing things along to their junior?\" \"Well, I haven't talked to Rem much, but I'm getting along well with Ram. If anything, Ram is a bit too friendly. Even with us senior and junior, she hasn't treated me any differently from when I was a guest.\" \"Weeell, Rem will make up for that shortcoming. It is only right sisters support each other. Those two are verrry"}, {"text": "well suited for each other in that sense.\" \"From what I see and hear, Ram's the weaker sister, while Rem always covers for her.\" In every sense, it was clear which twin sister had the superior ability at domestic work. Rem had first-rate skills across the board while Ram would have needed to work hard to come close to second-rate. Normally, that setup would give Ram an inferiority complex, but... \"But all I hear is, 'Ram's amazing because she's older.' Being so bold is unreal.\" \"If you wish to speak of being bold, I think you are quiiite the specimen? But I see. I wonder if you replied and said the same things to her? It is quite a thing you are treading upon without reserve, which is quite maaarvelous.\" \"The emphasis there doesn't sound like praise at all, you know?\" Subaru didn't hesitate to intrude on other people's personal turf because he was so bad at reading the mood. That aloof disposition made it easy for him to get isolated. You might say that it was his bad habit to get on other people's nerves. At Subaru's reply, Roswaal closed his right eye and looked up at the ceiling with his yellow left eye alone. \"It is not sarcasm. I truly believe it is a gooood thing. Those girls are a little too perfect for each other, you see. Quiiite likely, some things change only when someone comes from outside and gives a liiittle...push, yeees?\" \"Something like that, huh?\" \"Something like that, indeeeed.\" The two immersed themselves into the bathtub up to their necks, letting their entire bodies soak up the sensations. A little after that, Subaru raised his eyebrows, remembering something. \"Oh, right. Ros, there's something I wanted to ask you. Is that all right?\" \"Weeell, if it is within my vast personal knowledge, I wooould not mind.\" \"That's the most roundabout way of saying 'I'm really smart' that I've ever heard. But ah, anyway, how is this bath heated?\" Subaru knocked a couple of times on the bottom of the tub as he addressed what had been nagging him the whole time. The bathtub Subaru and Roswaal were soaking in was made of stone; its pleasant smoothness made him think of marble. The bath was in a corner under the mansion, and of course it was for both genders. To begin with, everything in the bath was swapped after each time, so he had no special sense of fulfillment from getting in after Emilia. Subaru added a thought. \"Not that I'm boiling in here. I just noticed before I got in.\" \"From time to time, your inquisitive spirit truuuly astounds me. I wonder if it is youth...although I wonder if I would have had that thought when I was your age?\" Roswaal seemed to see a rare dazzle in Subaru's youth as he nodded. \"Regardless, the answer iiis quite simple. You seeee, there is a fire-attuned magic crystal under the bathtub that heats it. When triggered by the mana of someone entering the bath, it activates and brings the water to a boil. Surely you used such a thing in the kitchen?\" \"So that's how that pot worked. I was wondering how you cooked here without gas.\" After Rem had made brief use of it, it'd been Subaru's turn to peel vegetables. In the first place, not understanding the meaning of words like it runs on mana, spoken like an obvious, everyday thing, probably meant the dawn of Iron Chef Subaru was still a long time away. \"I mean, if it's mana, does that mean only magic users can use it?\" \"Nooot at all. All life forms have 'gates.' Nooo plant or animal is an exception. If 'twas not so, we could nooot achieve a society built on the use of magic crystals.\" Subaru puzzled over the new piece of vocabulary. Roswaal, watching Subaru like that, cleared his throat and raised a finger. \"Very well, shaaall we indulge in a lesson here? I, teaching magic tooo you, the somewhat unenlightened?\" \"I'll ignore the way that stuff came out and accept with grace.\" Responding to the lecture proposal, Subaru turned to face Roswaal, who was kneeling in the center of the bathtub. None of that changed the fact that both were buck naked. \"Verrry well. First, the basics. Subaru, you know what a 'gate' is, do you not?\" \"No, you say it like it's obvious, but you don't know what you don't know...\" \"Your voice sounds very low all of a sudden. So you do not know of gates...or shall I saaay, totally? Mm, did I use that correctly?\" Roswaal checked on the proper use of the word totally. Among all the little expressions Subaru had imported that originated from his world, he'd used that one especially frequently, so Roswaal was quite accustomed to it. Subaru gave Roswaal full marks for good usage. After making a high five, they returned to the lecture. \"So, what is a gate, anyway? Is that something you have or don't have?\" \"Put very simply, a gate iiis a doorway that leads inside your own body. Mana enters through the gate; mana leaves through the gate. A basic rule ooof life.\" \"Ahhh. It's like a faucet connected to MP...\" He grasped Roswaal's simple explanation. So that was a gate; his ears had heard the term several times over. So it was pretty much what he'd guessed. \"So if everyone has a gate, I have one, too?\" \"Weeell, you surely would, if you are confident that you aaare human. So, are you?\" \"There's no purer human that's been thrown into another world, ever. Totally normal. Totally mob-grade.\" Situations that required combat strength to bust through them were completely new to him. His scientific know-how was fairly below average; his hand-eye coordination was pretty high, but his endurance was a sore point. His Acquired Skills were Sewing and Bed-making. One-way trip to becoming cannon fodder. But Subaru wasn't hung up on that; this was the second thing to be happy about since arriving in a different world. Enthralled by the word magic, his heart thumped, his eyes twinkling with hope. \"Of course the first thing I'm happy about is meeting Emilia, but this is pretty awesome! Finally, I can fulfill my dream of being a magic user... I've waited my whole life for this!\" \"Weeell, I am glad speaking of magic pleases you so, but becoming a magic user is largely dependent ooon fortune. In the first place, the properties of gates matter a great deal. You are uuunlikely to be as blessed as a genius such as I. I boast only because I must.\" Roswaal's behavior made Subaru hear a little ding as a flag rose in his mind. In spite of Roswaal's overwhelming confidence, he didn't know that Subaru, soaking in the bathtub in the nude before his eyes, was a \"guest\" summoned from another world. Tradition held that those summoned from another world possessed special abilities. So far, weapon skills were out, intellect was out, his luck modifier was either zero or somewhat negative, but: magic! \"My new hope is in your hands, Rozchi. Magic, magic, let's talk magic some more! There's a magic wave here, and my twinkling future's surfing on it!\" \"Is that sooo? Then let us continue. Did you knooow that magic has four basic affinities?\" \"Nope!\" \"Ahaaa, it feels good to have someone so senselessly, pointlessly guileless and ignorant before me, so I shall explain. The four elements of mana are fire, water, wind, and earth. Dooo you understand?\" \"Got it; these are the basics, huh? Consider them absorbed. Go on, go on!\" Subaru's request seemed to rub Roswaal the right way, so he nodded and continued his explanation. \"Fire element relates to temperature. Water element regulates life and healing. Wind element functions outside the bodies of living things. Earth element functions inside the body. So, most affinities are divided by these four categories, aaand normal humans have an affinity for one of the four! Incidentally, I shall have you know I have an affinity for aaall four.\" \"Whoa, the boasting's annoying but I'll praise you anyway. That's fantastic! How do you figure out someone's element?\" \"Naaaturally, a magic user as accomplished as I can discover that through mere touch.\" \"Seriously?! This is what I've been waiting for. Well, do it and tell me!\" As Subaru begged like a puppy that hadn't been housebroken, Roswaal gave him a halfhearted look and pressed his palm to Subaru's forehead. The eyes of both completely nude men twinkled at the scene. \"Well, if you shaaall excuse me. Myon myon myon myon...\" \"Whoa! A magical sound! Total fantasy immersion!\" Subaru was taken in by the invigorating scene before his eyes, forgetting his many sources of worry for that moment.  Magic. Finally he, having been summoned to another world, would get fangs of his very own. His eyes twinkling in certainty of his hope, Subaru awaited the results of the scan. \" Yeees, I see.\" \"Here it comes! What, what is it? Maybe fire element that burns like I do? Or water for when I'm calm and composed, the coolest guy in the room? Or maybe wind because of my refreshing nature, like the breeze blowing through the grass? No, no, it's gotta be earth for my being such a laid-back, big-brother-type nice guy, definitely!\" \"Yes, it's Dark.\" \"None of the above?!\" Doubting his ears at the scan result, his reaction was like someone being told he had cancer. Roswaal then spoke in a grave tone that seemed to fit that image perfectly. \"You are completely, uuutterly Dark. Your connection to the other four elements is quiiite weak. Put differently, though, this iiis exceedingly rare...\" \"So what is Dark, anyway?! It's not in the other four categories? Some kind of reject?\" \"I did not mention it, buuut there are also elements beyond the basic four, namely Dark and Light. Hoooweeever, very few people have those affinities, so I diiid not bother to explain.\" Meaning Subaru was far, far off the beaten path. Hearing Roswaal elaborate made Subaru feel less buffeted and calmed him down. Yes, this was a rare, limited element: in other words, a special power! \"It's gotta be a really awesome element. Like some super-special power that comes only once in five thousand years.\" \"Yes, Dark element magic is quite famous...able to obstruct an opponent's vision, sever him from sound, slow his movements, and the like. Rather convenient uses.\" \"I'm a Debuffer?!\" A Debuffer was a specialized support class dedicated to so-called debuffs skills that weakened the enemy. He'd had his hopes up that he could use magic of peerless, legendary destruction, able to rend the sky and split the earth, but Roswaal was breaking it to him that his magic would have crowd-control and attribute-lowering properties. He really did seem apologetic, so it was no doubt the truth. \"Summoned from a world without weapons skill, intellect, or cheat codes...and a magical element for debuffs...\" \"Incideeentally, you have no talent for magic. If my limit is a ten, yours is about three.\" \"I wanted to hear that even less! This place is forsaken by God and Buddha!\" Subaru opened his mouth and made a loud groan as he immersed himself in the bathtub. Until a few moments before, it had been a theoretical hope, but expectations, once sprouted, were not so easy to brush aside. \"Well, using it at all is good, I think... Or maybe being a debuffer makes me kinda cool...?\" \"Putting aside the level of coolness, there is nooo harm in learning. If you wish to use magic, by all means, learn. Fortunately for you, there is indeeeed a specialist in Dark spells here at this mansion.\" \"I see, that's it! I suppose I should be satisfied with learning magic for situations where you wanna slow someone down. Okay, let's get this show on the road!\" Subaru was eager to have Emilia guide him into magic, drawing both of them"}, {"text": "closer together. His prior goal of following the same route as last time was long forgotten. \"You seem to harbor a misunderstanding, buuut the specialist in Dark spells is nooot Emilia, you know?\" \"The heck?! Are you enjoying playing with someone's heart like this?! So who's the specialist, you, the elite magic user with all elemental affinities?! This sucks!\" \"It is Beatrice.\" \"That's worse!!\" With a great kerplunk, water spray leapt everywhere as he let loose his loudest shout of the evening. \"Damn, that was all over the map. Damn that Roswaal, working me up and down like that like I'm on Buddha's palm!\" In the washroom, Subaru's face was red as he put his hands through the sleeves of his change of clothes. With the affinity scan in the bathtub ending in dejection, Subaru got out of the bath first. He'd been worked up during the conversation with Roswaal, but his face felt heavy from the effects of the long bath. After all, it hadn't been a full day yet since being healed from his wound; he had to expect some anemia. \"Plus I'm gonna have serious aches and pains tomorrow. Ugh, damn you, Ram; you remember this, just because I'm better than last time doesn't mean you have to work me like a dog...\" \"I will remember that as you wish.\" \"Fwaaaah?!\" The timely reply, coming just as Subaru was leaving the washroom with his laundry in a basket, surprised him enough to make him jump. As Ram stood in the corridor before the washroom, his underwear, scattering out from the bouncing basket, fell to her feet. \"My goodness.\" Ram crouched, plucked Subaru's underwear off the floor, and stuffed them into a garbage bin right beside her. \"There's a guy carrying a basket heading to the laundry right in front of you, y'know?!\" \"I'm sorry, I was gripped by psychological distaste the instant I picked them up. I had to get rid of them without a single moment to spare.\" \"Considering all that, your form was very relaxed, huh?!\" Subaru tearfully recovered his underwear from the garbage bin and turned to face Ram. Seeing Ram serenely standing in the hallway, he tilted his head and wondered what she was up to. Ram seemed to reply to his unasked question. \"Unfortunately, I have already bathed, so my clothes will stay on no matter how long you wait.\" \"I didn't say anything!! And ain't that backward for a maid?!\" \"I jest. I am simply waiting for Master Roswaal to finish before helping him dress.\" \"That's pampering him a little too much. I'm sure he can dress himself.\" Apparently, in this world, there existed people who'd never in their lives worn a single shoe without a servant slipping it on their foot. Roswaal surely fit the bill. \"Don't tell me you both help him put on that weird makeup. My low trust's falling even further.\" \"There shall be no rudeness toward Master Roswaal in my presence. Next time I shall spank you.\" It felt like a warmth-filled warning, but seeing that she wasn't kidding, he knew he ought to take it to heart. In point of fact, Ram had explained his chores at the mansion with great care and patience, but she had a look that suggested she'd make him work in the hog house if he asked her the same question twice. \"I'll save myself the grief, then... If you'll excuse me. See you tomorrow.\" \"Basuru, what are you doing later?\" \"I'm just heading off to sleep. Morning comes early after all? Damn it. Those mornings are really tough.\" At Subaru's reply, mixing rebelliousness with weakness, Ram nodded a bit and closed her eyes. Subaru was just about to ask the silent Ram if there was something she wanted to say when she opened her eyes. \"Wait in your room, then. I'll be there later.\" Subaru's response sounded very obtuse. \" Huh?\" Subaru Natsuki, as he'd declared several times over, was firmly in Emilia's corner. Perhaps it was because he'd never encountered such beauty, either in this new world or the one from which he came, but Emilia stood out in Subaru's mind. It was partly pure physical beauty, but also the beauty of each and every action. Consequently, there was simply no room for anyone else in his heart, no matter what she looked like. \"That's why this perfectly made bed has one purpose: for me to get a good night's sleep!\" Subaru forcefully thrust an accusing finger at his bed, venting to no one in particular. Subaru, having returned to his room after leaving the bath, had wasted all the intervening time on putting his bed in order. He'd abandoned his laundry, working up quite a sweat in spite of having just bathed. \"There's no deep meaning to it. No deep meaning to it! Mundane thoughts out, mundane thoughts out. Calm down, calm down. One Emilia, two Emilias, three Emilias... Is this Heaven?!\" \"Be quiet, Barusu. It's night already; do be quiet.\" \"Yikes!\" He made a large leap and slammed into the wall. Ram, having opened the door without a sound, was standing at the entrance to the room. \"And just after I told you to be quiet. You are hopeless.\" \"What's with rules that apply for only you?! Anyone would jump from that! What do you want from me here?!\" Ram made a muted hmph at Subaru as he vented. Subaru, struck by the humiliation of not being worth a proper word, had no good option left but silence. Then, cutting in front of the silent Subaru, Ram entered the room and headed straight to a writing desk in the corner. It was something every room was supplied with, but to Subaru, who couldn't read that world's books, it was a worthless piece of junk, so he had not turned in the desk's direction until then. \"What are you standing there for? Come here, Barusu.\" Subaru made a dispirited face at being spoken to like a dog being taught manners, but he was resolute to not get wrapped up in Ram's pace. Besides, screwing around was Subaru's job. He headed toward her with a steely resolution to not be swayed no matter what wacky statements she might dish out. Subaru felt like he was going to war as he stood before Ram, puffing out his chest. \"And? What impossible trial awaits me this time?\" \"What are you talking about? I told you, sit down quickly if you want me to teach you how to read.\" \"That's news to me!\" His steel heart was instantly shattered. Subaru could not hide his unease at having his hardened resolve so easily broken. He sucked in his breath as he beheld the pure white note page spread atop the table, joined by a feather pen and a reddish-brown bound book. Apparently, this was neither a joke nor a prank; she truly intended to teach him how to read. \"But why now, all of a sudden...\" Ram's reply to the bewildered Subaru's question was extremely straight and to the point. \"I realized while watching you work today that you could not read. So I will teach you. If you cannot read, I cannot send you to buy groceries or leave you notes.\" Ram showed Subaru the red-bound book as his mouth flapped like that of a fish caught off guard. \"We shall begin with a simple picture book meant for children. I will accompany you for study every night from now on.\" No doubt it was an offer he should be grateful for, but Subaru's bewilderment was stronger than his gratitude at that moment. Like the events that unfolded in the bath, this situation was one that was unthinkable last time. And, according to Subaru's senses, his intimacy with the twins still fell far short of what he'd experienced on the fourth day last time. \"Why are you being nice to me like this?\" \"It is obvious. I... No, it is to make things easier.\" \"Man, you're hard-boiled. You didn't even say what you corrected...\" \"It is only natural. As your work increases, mine decreases. If my work decreases, Rem's work will naturally decrease as well. It's all for a good cause.\" \"That means a ton of work falling on me, though?!\" *** Ram tilted her head like she couldn't understand what he was getting at. He was at a loss for words. But even if he was at a loss like this, he was happy that Ram was showing him such concern. \"Okay, roger that. Let's get this studying started, shall we?\" \"Since you already have the spoken language down, it should not be all that difficult. After all, now is the time to correct your vulgar word selection.\" \"Tossing in insults with your help, huh?\" As he spoke, he sat down at the desk and completed preparations, feather pen in hand. With light and rather smooth and speedy strokes, he wrote his first words one ought to use to commemorate a visit to another world. \"Subaru Natsuki enters stage left... There we go!\" \"You do not have the free time to be scribbling. Time is limited. Morning comes quickly, after all.\" \"Well, this is actually my mother tongue... Guess it wasn't obvious, huh?\" He'd held out hope that their being able to talk might mean she'd be able to read his writing, but nothing so convenient unfolded. Just like Subaru, she was unable to read the other side's language. \"First, we'll begin with basic I-script, moving on to Ro-script and Ha-script after you've perfected I-script.\" \"So there're three types, huh? Sucks to hear that.\" It was tough to have your spirits discouraged right before a lesson in a new language. He recalled how foreigners felt when trying to clear the high hurdle of the hiragana, katakana, and kanji when learning Japanese. \"You can read the picture book by grasping I-script. Time is limited to one hour. Tomorrow is another day, and Ram is sleepy, too.\" \"That last bit sounded like the real story. Not that I mind...\" \"I think my honesty is one of my selling points.\" He didn't know if her unhesitant reply was serious or a joke. It really felt like she meant it, so Subaru dove right into the script lesson. Fundamental to learning any new language was grasping the characters through repetition of the writing process. He copied the basic characters Ram wrote down, filling the page with them. It was enough drudgery to break him, but it was necessary, indispensable labor. Subaru felt fatigue and sleepiness pile up when, seized by a somewhat mushy feeling, he conveyed his honest thoughts to Ram. \"Y'know, even if you said it's to make things easier for you, I'm still glad.\" The feather pen made a faint sound as it ran along the paper. Subaru thought back to the four days from last time while writing down the same characters page after page. Now that he thought about it, he was chasing after Emilia every day whenever he had the chance, but he'd spent the most time with Ram during that period. Subaru was basically an amateur at all the chores of the mansion. Of course teaching him was bone breaking, all the more so because Ram was doing that on top of her regular duties. The burden naturally fell on Rem as well. In addition to that, he hadn't had much contact with Rem during those four days. Subaru knew that the highly competent Rem was covering for a portion of her sister's chores, so Subaru owed her for indirectly shouldering his burden, too. \"Honestly, I didn't think you liked me that much.\" It was natural that educating a useless newbie like Subaru was a pain. Certainly that was the opinion Ram voiced, but Subaru felt used to it already. \"I hate to weigh you down, but thanks. I want to be useful as soon as possible.\" Subaru was thanking her from the bottom of his heart for then and"}, {"text": "for the future. For her part, Ram quietly went... \"Guu.\" ...making a cute sleeping sound atop the immaculately made bed. The feather pen made a sharp sound as it snapped. Subaru, surrendering to his sudden impulse, opened his mouth wide and yawned. He brusquely wiped away the wetness from the corners of his sleepy eyes and stretched all the way up. The sinking sun of the evening sky had left an orange tint as its parting gift to the leisurely passing clouds, thanking them for another day's work. Subaru watched the clouds as he rotated his arms, legs, and neck to make sure everything was in working order. Effects remained from heavy labor, but he didn't feel the same fatigue that he had on his first night. No doubt it wasn't that his body had grown tougher; rather, he'd become more accustomed to his chores, the greater efficiency leaving him less beat. Since his body didn't get any stronger with Return by Death, he had to rely on learning through experience. \"Sorry to make you wait, Subaru  Are you all right?\" \"Mm. Yeah, I'm totally okay. Finished your shopping, Rem?\" \"Yes, no holdups. It seems you were rather popular.\" Holding a carry bag containing the things she'd bought and complimenting Subaru was the blue-haired girl Rem. Wearing her maid uniform, Rem was holding down her windblown hair as she looked at Subaru his servant's outfit stained with mud, dust, tears, and snot with a slightly hardened expression. \"Kids have taken a liking to me since way back. I guess they really fell for, you know, motherly stuff that I just can't keep bottled up?\" \"It's because children are just like animals and naturally decide a hierarchy. They instinctively recognize whether it's appropriate to make light of a person or not.\" \"That doesn't sound much like praise!!\" Sharp comments like that were what made him accept that Rem and Ram were actually sisters. Ram was direct; Rem was roundabout. You had to have a thick skin to stick around them. Of course, their job was one that could not be accomplished without physical toughness as well. The village closest to the mansion where Subaru and Rem were at was called Auram. Though Roswaal dwelled in the hinterlands, he was nonetheless a minor lord possessing several pieces of land. Everywhere within them, and Auram Village was no exception, the residents welcomed Subaru and Rem like it was the natural thing to do, speaking to them in a very friendly manner. Apparently, just the fact that the twins spent a lot of time in contact with them in the course of shopping meant word of Subaru's existence had passed around. The shock at the speed rural rumors traveled surprised Subaru, but still, though it was awkward, Subaru was happy for the warm welcome. \"Having said that, what's with those brats getting all clingy like that... Don't they know that touching everything just gets your fingers burned? Can't they tell I'm putting out a hard-boiled aura here?\" \"It seems your pretending to be a 'motherly' adult kept you quite busy all by yourself.\" \"The 'by yourself' part sounded a bit sharp there, but it would've been nice being busy without getting mobbed like that. I really should've stuck with you going shopping...\" Since Subaru's inability to tell ingredients apart made him useless, Rem had him kill time in the village while she was shopping. The kids found him and he was immediately abducted. \"Man, they just don't have any respect. That's why I can't really get to like kids.\" \"When it comes to lack of respect, you look plenty childish to me...?\" \"A very sound theory! Having said that, I think taking someone for granted from the get-go is a little different... Ram's really good at that, though.\" \"Sister is incredible.\" They were speaking past each other somewhat. The way Rem seemed full of herself as she boasted about her sister, plus the fact that her sister wasn't watching, made Subaru surmise they were her true feelings. \"Feels like Ram's personality causes a lot of conflict, though.\" \"Her unflinching demeanor is part of her charm. It is not something I can pull off...\" Subaru, hearing a sad undertone to the words she added at the end, knit his brow but didn't press the point. With Subaru suddenly at a loss for words, Rem seemed to snap back to normal as she changed the subject. \"Come to think of it, how is your studying going?\" \"I'd like to say...steadily, but it's not as simple as that. Stuff like this needs time to slowly nurture and develop...just like love!\" \"As long as you don't give up midway.\" \"There wasn't much tenderness in that comment just now!\" Seeing that his shout brought a slight smile to Rem's face, Subaru also smiled in relief.  It had already been four days since Ram had offered him personal lessons. He'd heard Rem might take over, but she hadn't actually assumed the instructor's position as of yet. Ram being that busy meant that the burden on Rem was all the greater. Subaru kept smiling and waved to Rem, who was acting slightly hesitant for once. \"Don't worry about it. I'm not going to give up or disappoint Ram. I just wish she wouldn't fall asleep on my bed in the middle of the lesson. It's really distracting.\" \"Sister is probably acting that way to spur you forward.\" \"Man, your total worship of your sister is way past normal. Totally demon possessed.\" \"Demon possessed...?\" Rem tilted her head at the latest word trend Subaru had coined. \"Like possessed, except by a demon instead of a divine spirit. Demon possessed. It works, huh?\" \"Do you like demons?\" \"Better than gods. I mean, gods don't give you anything, but a demon will have a good laugh with you over a chat about the future.\" Talking about the last year seemed especially popular with them. Subaru remembered the image of the Red Demon and the Blue Demon hugging each other as they laughed themselves silly, when he suddenly realized there was a definite smile carved upon Rem's face. \"Whoa...\" He'd seen her faintly smiling several times over, but this was the first time he'd seen a real smile on her face. Subaru didn't know what had tickled Rem's thoughts, but he snapped his fingers. \"That smiling face is worth a million-volt skyline.\" \"I will tell on you to Lady Emilia.\" Subaru straightened himself and meekly pleaded for forgiveness. \"I wasn't trying to hit on you!\" Rem lightly raised her eyebrows toward Subaru. \"What happened to your hand?\" \"Mm? Oh, that mangy mutt with the kids went all chomp-chomp on me.\" His left hand, covered in bite marks, had already stopped bleeding, but it still looked somewhat pathetic. Incidentally, it was only after he returned to the mansion that he realized that the middle of the back of his servant outfit was stained with snot. \"May I heal that wound?\" \"Eh? What, you can use healing magic, too, Rem?\" \"Only simple magic up to first-aid level. Perhaps you prefer Lady Emilia?\" \"Mm, that is a pretty attractive suggestion, but...I'll pass on both.\" Subaru declined her offer while gazing at the bite marks on the back of his left hand. He'd decided that scars, in a way, were a good thing. The fact that everything, up to and including his scars from the previous loop, had vanished when he'd begun this play-through weighed heavily on Subaru's mind. The presence or absence of scars was a great way to tell if he'd done a Return by Death or not. If the dog hadn't happened to bite him, he'd have been forced to cut himself with a sharp feather pen. \"Well, it's a mark of honor. No one lives as prettily as on the day they were born.\" \"It is said that scars are a man's medals, though all you accomplished on the battlefield were mistakes.\" \"That might have a kernel of truth, but don't say stuff so cold, geez!\" The way Rem tilted her head and looked at him indicated she didn't realize what a venomous tongue she had. That was even scarier. \"Besides that, I've cut my hand lots of times in front of you before, so why offer to heal me all of a sudden? I mean, you never offered to do it before?\" \"That's because I thought you'd forget if it didn't hurt, so you should keep the wounds as a warning.\" \"That's educational policy straight outta Sparta... So why'd you offer now, then?\" He wanted to know the reason why this case was different from the others, making her unable to let this one go. After Subaru posed his question, Rem kept her silence for a while. Looking at her face from the side, Subaru thought it might have to do with the little smile from earlier. \"The futon flew on. The kitten catnapped. Who's the one who said a pun?!\" \"Did you suddenly go wrong in the head?\" \"You're jumping to conclusions. No, I thought I'd find out for sure why you were all smiles earlier.\" Though, considering her reaction to the demon talk earlier, he thought it could be that, too... \"I thought you'd really go for cheap gags. So I wondered if I tried it, maybe it would put you in a good mood and make you want to be nicer to me, or something like that.\" \"Do not expect you will get a chance to have me heal your wounds ever again.\" \"You're that angry?!\" \"I have been this angry since earlier from your bad-mouthing Sister behind her back.\" \"I do that a lot lately!\" The look Rem shot at Subaru grew sharper still thanks to that last comment. Fearful, Subaru gave up on apologizing, closing his mouth and gazing at the sky. Evening was slowly giving way to night. That was when he felt his limbs stiffen.  After all, it was his second time in that world reaching the fourth day. \"So the challenge is to get to tomorrow morning safely but before that...\" ...Before that came another important challenge: making sure that he actually had a promise with Emilia for a date to begin with. For the second time, Subaru Natsuki was approaching his greatest crisis during his first week at Roswaal Manor. With things having gone so much against his experiences during the first loop, he couldn't really call it smooth sailing, but the greatest danger was indeed that moment. And so, with a slight blush, Emilia said to him... \"So, since Ram and Rem both said they weren't going to show their faces here tonight, I've come to supervise your studying in their place. Not that I can do much to help...\" ...and cutely stuck out her tongue. With Subaru sitting facing the desk, having Emilia sitting on the bed, watching him like a hawk, was ferociously whittling down his endurance.  Here was a cute girl in the room of a teenage boy, just the two of them, late at night like this... Surely no one could blame Subaru for losing his concentration as he struggled against his baser instincts? \"Hmm. You're taking studying more seriously than I expected, Subaru.\" Subaru was desperately chanting innocent inside his head, unable to feel innocent at all, when Emilia got up and voiced her admiration. Apparently she'd bathed just earlier; the faint hint of warmth hovering around Emilia, mixed with her own scent, were two more sharp blows to Subaru's state of mind. Subaru fumbled with his notebook as he opened it to show Emilia where he'd gotten in his studying. \"R-right now I'm learning basic I-characters by writing them. My current goal is to read this picture book for kids, since it's mostly written in I-script.\" \"Hmm, the goal is a picture book... Ah!\" \"What, it's got an interesting story or something?\" Emilia lightly shook her head at Subaru as her hand stopped midway through browsing the picture book he was using"}, {"text": "for reference. \"Well, nothing big, but yes, a little. When you can read this, too... Yeah.\" Audibly closing the book, Emilia sat on the bed once more and got comfortable. Subaru was unable to conceal how Emilia's refined but unguarded nature left his mind all jumbled. \"Normally I wouldn't be doing this for someone I met only a few days ago, but I'm giving you special treatment...to thank you for your hard work.\" \"Sheesh, that's not a whole lot of thanks, Emilia. If you want to show your thanks, how about a massage? Something to melt away and heal all the aches and pains of a hard day's work, geh-heh-heh.\" Emilia clapped her hands as she scolded him. \"That sounds perverted somehow, so no. And don't change the subject. Keep going, will you?\" Subaru turned back toward the desk as he fought his worldly desires. Subaru chanted innocent, innocent in his head as he wrote the characters onto the notebook, driving out idle thoughts as he focused his head on one thing at a time. \"Goodness, you can do it just fine if you don't let yourself get distracted.\" \"That's because I lose track of everything around me once I'm into something. That's why I'm straight-like-an-arrow aimed at the person I like!\" \"Hmm, is that so? It'd be nice if the person you like notices that sooner rather than later.\" Certainly, Subaru's statement had been very frivolous, but Emilia brushed it off like it had nothing to do with her. The fact that she clearly didn't see herself as the target of Subaru's affections gave him no route to follow up. \"Hey, Subaru... Why don't you take work as seriously as you do studying?\" \"My motto is to be diligently un-diligent...is what I would say, but this isn't the right mood for that. Uh?\" \"It's a serious matter Ram was complaining about it a little, too. From time to time it feels like you're holding back.\" Naturally, Emilia's words and expression both held distaste at having to convey such a message. Hearing this, Subaru could make only a pained grimace, for she had hit the mark. Ram was correct in her assessment that Subaru was holding back from work, for the truth was that Subaru wasn't taking the work seriously. More precisely, he was deliberately trying to produce the same outcome as the last time. Compared to last time, when he hadn't learned the first thing about being a servant, Subaru was at least a little bit better. His slight adjustments hadn't escaped the veteran maid's attention. \"...So you do feel guilty about it. It feels like you're honest to a fault in some odd places, Subaru. You're not slacking off studying, after all.\" \"Well, there's some little circum... I guess that's not an excuse. I'll put everything into it starting tomorrow, so please forgive me, Your Highness!\" \"Mnn, I have no objections... Ah, was that a little off?\" Emilia cutely tilted her head, perhaps wondering if she'd been a little too haughty. Subaru, relieved at seeing Emilia's stance softening, firmly resolved to honor the pledge to Emilia he'd just given. At the very least, there'd be no need to copy the last time after that night was done. He'd work very hard to repay the debts he owed to Ram and Rem from over those four days. ...Not that he thought easing up on the brakes would turn everything around overnight... \"Feelings are real important here. I want my renewed hard work to completely provoke those two sisters!\" \"And there, another splendid moment completely wasted... Are you finished studying?\" \"I managed to get today's part done! Hey, Emilia, would you listen to a little request of mine? I'd like a reward for working hard from tomorrow on, so...?\" \"A reward? Just so you know, I don't have a lot of money I can spare.\" \"Wow, you sure were brought up strict. Now, now, just hear me out. I'll work seriously starting tomorrow, so...let's go on a date!\" Subaru posed with a full smile and a thumbs-up as he made his proposal to Emilia. Faced with the greatest smiling face in Subaru's arsenal, Emilia's big eyes blinked slowly. \"Um, what's a date?\" \"Heh. A date is when a guy and a girl go out all by themselves. What happens between them, only the Goddess of Love knows!\" \"Then you went on a date with Rem today, Subaru?\" \"Nooo, an unexpected counterattack?! Please, that didn't count, that didn't count!!\" Certainly that counted as going out with a beautiful girl, but Subaru was hoping for something a little more mutually involved than buying groceries for the household. \"I understand you want to go out with me, but where?\" \"Actually, there's this village close to the mansion with this super lovely mutt. It has flower gardens, too. I wanna use my metia to record for all eternity you standing among the blooming flowers.\" Subaru went to a corner of his bedroom, where his shopping bag with his few, precious possessions from his original world were stored. The cell phone and cup of ramen were still in there, having survived the ferocious combat at the fence's shop. \"If the battery holds up, I wanna fill the whole memory card with pictures of Emilia...\" \"Ah...the village, huh?\" In front of the person who wanted to drag her out from her daily routine, Emilia put her hand to her cheek, deep in thought. Subaru recalled that she'd hesitated considerably before the last date invitation, too. Somehow he'd gotten her to say yes the last time. Subaru made his teeth shine to recreate that memory. \"The dog's super cute. Let's go!\" \"But it might cause you quite a bit of trouble, Subaru. The villagers....\" \"The kids there are completely innocent, totally a bunch of angels. Let's go!\" \"...All right already. It can't be helped. I'll just have to go with you.\" \"The flower gardens are magical and wonderful and... Wait, seriously?\" He was struck senseless at how Emilia seemed less resistant to the idea than last time. Subaru was still thrown off as Emilia tapered her lips and drew in her delicate shoulders. \"If that'll make you work hard from tomorrow on, I'll go with you. So don't go drifting off anywhere, okay...?\" \"Nope, nope, will do no such thing! My soul's already burning with determination to finish all my work perfectly!\" \"Your soul's burning for something like that?!\" Emilia's shocked face at Subaru's burning drive sent them both into laugher. After laughing like that for a while, Emilia nodded a bit and got up from the bed. She passed by Subaru's side and looked out the window, making a faint, charming smile up at the sky. \"Mm, the stars are so pretty tonight. It'll probably be clear tomorrow, too.\" \" Yeah. It'll be a day I'll never forget.\" \"There you go again, Subaru...\" Emilia turned around and leaned against the windowsill as she began to admonish Subaru for his frivolity. But her tongue stopped moving when she saw the expression on Subaru's face.  No doubt it was because, when she hadn't been looking, Subaru's expression had become uncharacteristically serious. \"If you stay here too long, I'm gonna end up falling asleep and mistaking you for a squeeze pillow till morning...\" \"Just now... Ahh, it's nothing.\" \"You know, if you suddenly stop talking like that, it really makes guys nervous...?\" Emilia, perhaps set off by his probing the deeper meaning of her actions, remarked, \"It's nothing!\" as she left the window and cutely strode past Subaru. She went straight to the doorknob before looking back. \"Now then, Butler Subaru. Work hard come tomorrow. Rewards come only to children who work hard for them.\" She made a light wave of her hand to bid him good night, followed by a smile and a toss of her hair. Without waiting for Subaru's reply, the silver silhouette vanished past the doorway. He could stretch out his hand, but it could not reach. All that remained in his room of the lovely girl was the faint scent of her perfume in the air. But  \"Hold on, hold on, seriously? Geez, I'm getting real popular here. Seriously.\" The promise had been made once more. Now, Subaru could challenge the night again. It was six hours to get through the fourth night. Six hours before the promised morning of the fifth day. \"Now, Mr. Fate, let's do this \" Subaru was sitting on the floor with his back against the bed, anxiously passing each moment as he waited for daybreak. The coldness of the floor hadn't really registered in the two-plus hours he'd spent sitting there. But Subaru's body was extremely, almost excessively aware of the cold. The reason was simple. \"Who could sleep with his heart pounding like this anyway?!\" His heartbeat was fast and loud, making large thumps that he could swear were ringing in his eardrums. His senses were keen to the point of feeling his blood coursing through his whole body; his fingers throbbed nonstop like they were numb. \"Here's what I get for looking forward to the promise with Emilia. Geez, I haven't had this much trouble sleeping since before that picnic in first grade...and I ended up oversleeping for the school trip. Really takes me back...\" His reminiscing distracting him somewhat, Subaru glared at the sky he'd been looking up at for hours on end.  Still a long time, he belatedly thought. It was about four hours until morning. He didn't feel sleepy whatsoever, but remaining on guard for whatever might occur had frayed his nerves. Thinking of the possibility of an attack made it impossible for him to focus on anything else to kill time. Besides, continuing to think was the only thing Subaru could do. He'd redone the last four days, as in, four days for the second time. There were numerous differences in discord with prior events. They had heavily affected the path he'd taken to reach that night. But Subaru had surely checked off the majority of the events in his memory. However, what nagged at him was that he still didn't have a clue how to avoid causing a new loop. Relations with Emilia were good. He felt like relations with Ram and Rem were getting better, but... He hadn't encountered Beatrice since that night. The last time, it wasn't for long, but Subaru had been in contact with Beatrice. Setting that aside, he had barely seen Beatrice this time around. Strict time management had prevented him from exchanging more than a few words with her. \"Just like before, she gave me a good tongue-lashing just from seeing my face, sheesh...\" He didn't recall having much discussion with her, but it was most certainly Beatrice's being there that had saved Subaru's mind from shattering when confronted with facing his \"second\" first day. It was the sheer normality of how she blew him off that made Subaru feel calm enough to find himself. \"I should've thanked her for that somehow.\" Not that Beatrice would appreciate what he was thanking her for, and no doubt she'd make quite a sour face if he did, but Subaru still wanted to share his thoughts with her. With a smile, he thought back on the thorny conversations the two had instead engaged in. If he made it to the next morning, there would be lots and lots more that he could accomplish. He had things he wanted to say, not just to Beatrice but to Ram, Rem, and even Roswaal. Of course, he wanted that to be after first exhausting ten thousand words on Emilia. Looking back on it, he had to smile. Putting last time and that time together, it was eight days all told. Maybe it was the mushy feeling inside him that made his eyelids seem a bit heavier, though there were still three whole hours until morning. \"This isn't an MMO. It's no joke if I fall asleep here...\" He rubbed his eyelids as the sudden"}, {"text": "sleepiness faded away. But the sleepiness had come with a chill; he made a bitter smile as his body began shivering out of the blue. He cradled both shoulders, trying to raise his body temperature. But the chill wouldn't leave him no matter what he did. Still, the sleepiness gradually got worse.  Subaru, so gripped with optimism, realized that the situation had changed. Looking closer, he saw that the skin under the sleeves of his track jacket had goose bumps all over. Chilled to the bone, he couldn't stop shaking. It wasn't normal. The season of this other world was like late springtime in his own world. The days were almost too warm for long-sleeve shirts. So why were his teeth chattering like this? \"This is bad; don't tell me this is...?!\" Feeling a chill that came not from cold but from fear, Subaru nervously put his hands on the floor. But with the shaking already spreading through his whole body, his arms could not support him. When he got up, his knees felt creaky enough to break apart; Subaru was aghast at how sluggish and nauseated he felt. \"S-somebody...\" Subaru's heart rate, so strong just earlier, had weakened, and his breathing was hard as he left the room. He wanted to call for help, but his raspy voice caught in his throat. His legs were cramping as if his lungs weren't accepting oxygen from the dry air that hovered in the dark corridor. This is bad, was the thought that dominated the back of Subaru's mind. He didn't have any tangible understanding of what was happening to his body. The one thing he did know was that his life was in danger. Subaru sluggishly walked forward, groaning as he made his way toward the stairway going up. Each step through the familiar passageway was labored enough that it seemed to shave off another piece of his soul. \"Haa...haa...\" Reaching the stairs, he climbed up one step at a time on hands and feet. He wondered how long it would take him to reach the top. Just thinking about it deflated Subaru as he crawled deeper into the hallway. The insides of his body seemed to be melting; he felt like everything was turning into some kind of soup. The vomit that welled up dripped from the corner of Subaru's mouth onto the corridor; his face was stained with tears. Subaru, crawling so pathetically, had only one thing, one person, in the back of his mind.  Emilia. Emilia. Emilia. I have to get to Emilia. Responsibility, or perhaps duty Subaru was driven by an emotion he couldn't put into words. In that moment, Subaru had none of the self-preservation instinct common to all species. Subaru, crawling his way to Emilia's room, was already barely breathing. His arms too weak to bear the weight of his body, he leaned against the wall and slid his way forward. Anyone watching would have felt less pity than disgust at his having lost the dignity of walking upright like a man. *** His whole body was sluggish. His breaths were ragged as his ears continued their high-pitched ringing. So it was pure happenstance, one might even say dumb luck, that Subaru noticed the strange sound.  The sound he noticed was like the clank of a chain. Getting a bad feeling, he stopped moving. His shoulder slid down the wall; he pressed his head against the floor. \" Uh?\" The next moment, an impact blew Subaru back. Subaru's body, flopping to the floor but a moment before, flew. He bounced several times, his face literally wiping the floor, as Subaru realized something had hit him incredibly hard. There was no pain. However, he felt a malaise like everything from the tips of his fingers and toes to the middle of his chest had gone through a blender. \"What happ...\" What happened, he started to say as he tried to put his hand to the floor to lift himself. But his shaking hand had no strength to grip the floor. That was strange. He had no balance. His right arm was working so hard; what was his left arm doing? Where'd it run off to? Annoyed for no tangible reason, Subaru glared at his useless left arm.  That was when he realized that everything left of his shoulder had been torn off. \" Ah?\" Falling on his side, Subaru gazed dumbfounded at his amputated left arm. A large quantity of blood gushed out from the wound carved into him that had sent his left arm and shoulder flying, dyeing the hallway red. A moment after he noticed the existence of the wound, Subaru was wracked with pain like lightning coursing through his whole body. Subaru, no longer able to process the pain and heat, flailed around like a stranded, dying fish and slammed himself against the ground several times, too choked up to even scream. His vision faded, with red and yellow light mixing together as Subaru's consciousness faded from the mansion. I wanna die. I wanna die. I wanna die. I wanna die. I wanna die. I wanna die. I don't wanna live. I just wanna die. I'll die soon. I'm dead. I don't know anything. Everything's far off. Can't remember anything. Don't care about anything. Just let me die already. As if responding to Subaru's earnest plea  \"The sound of a chain...\" That faint sound was the last thing he heard before his skull was smashed, granting his wish. *** Waking up screaming was an experience that was bad for the heart. Subaru, thrusting off the sheets as he woke, breathed raggedly as he absorbed the shock. \"L-left hand... It's here; it's here, isn't it?\" He stretched his left hand into thin air as if grasping for something with it. His severed, blown-off left side was intact. Clutching his right arm to confirm it, too, was there, the sense of loss Subaru absorbed for a while made him shake and feel sick to his stomach. Subaru felt like his heart was wrenching as he looked at his restored left hand. Of course, there were no scars, either, not from being blown off, not from the dog biting the back of his hand. \"I've gone back again...\" The vanishing scars meant that Subaru had lost his bout against fate. He'd gone back in time. Perhaps one could instead say that he'd been given another chance for a rematch. At any rate, he had to confirm the time and as he arrived at that thought... \"Ah, sorry. Good morning.\" Subaru finally realized that the twins were clutching each other in a corner of the room as they watched him. Like small animals keeping their distance, neither replied to Subaru's completely out-of-place greeting. Subaru scratched his head as he wondered what he should do. Ram and Rem had no doubt forgotten about Subaru. That pained Subaru's chest somewhat, but Subaru ignored the pain and formed a smile. He'd show his sincerity as the first step to getting along. After all, even if they'd forgotten him, he hadn't forgotten them. \"Sorry for the trouble. Subaru Natsuki, rebooted and ready to go!\" Subaru strongly rose from bed, standing and pointing his index finger to the heavens. Disregarding the twins' surprise at his sudden approach, Subaru remained in his dramatic pose and said, \"By the way, what's the date and time?\"  And so began his first day at Roswaal Manor for the third time. CHAPTER 4 ***  Looking back on his memories of the four days, Subaru came to a conclusion. \"So when I went back the first time, it was debilitation causing death in my sleep...\" As Subaru waited for morning, he'd been assaulted by unbearable cold and sleepiness. That feeling of having his mental and physical strength drained away was plenty strong enough to shave away his life in a short time. Someone hit by that while asleep and defenseless would simply never wake up. \"But what about the sound of the chain...?\" He couldn't come up with any connection between that chain sound and his debilitation hypothesis. It was a sound specific to long, heavy metal chains. That was probably the deadly weapon that had carved a chunk out of Subaru. Just remembering the injury made his lost body parts throb and go numb. Though his body hadn't experienced it, his soul was rejecting the memory. \"So there was an...attacker, then? Not that I know if the debilitation and the chain were by the same person.\" What he'd gleaned this time around was only enough to judge there was a perpetrator. Someone had attacked Roswaal Manor on the fourth night. Subaru's name was on the list of pitiful victims. He didn't know if any other residents of the manor were on it. \"If I'm included, it's probably everyone. No doubt related to Emilia's royal candidacy, just like with the fence...\" But having thought that far, Subaru clutched his head. He'd come to understand there'd be an attack on Emilia and the others. That much was a success. \"But even if I know it, I don't have any proof to explain it with, and I'm too green to have any way to stop it...\" You could say that the problem with Return by Death was that you had no way to explain the information you got before you died. That went double for a prediction of an attack on the manor. Even if he got Roswaal to take countermeasures, it wouldn't help if the attacker changed his plans. Beyond that, there was the option of driving away the attacker himself, but Subaru's low combat ability and ignorance of the opponent's capabilities ruled that out. It'd probably end like last time: him crying like a baby while getting beaten to death. \"I'm just too pathetic. Plus I didn't see the opponent's face or weapon. A total dog's death, geez...\" He couldn't begin to plan to drive off an opponent he knew nothing about. Beatrice, seated in the middle of the room as Subaru paced around her in a circle, spoke with ill humor from the bottom of her heart. \" You are so gloomy I could die. Either stop right now or I shall blow you away. Choose.\" Subaru glanced back at the dangerous look Beatrice was giving him and innocently stuck out his tongue. \"Sorry, sorry. But for some reason, making something other than my head turn around gets my head turning, too. So let it slide, okay? We're buddies, after all.\" \"Is there such a relationship between us, I wonder? We have met only twice, after all?\" \"The heart speaks louder than words. I mean, you did let me in here.\" \"You broke through the Passage all by yourself, I suppose. It is really quite unbelievable.\" In typical fashion, Beatrice did not hide whatsoever her hostility toward Subaru. Subaru had made his way to the forbidden book archive on the morning he woke back up, feeling saved by her cold demeanor once more. He'd meant to see it through, but being treated by Ram and Rem like a complete stranger was hard, after all. Unlike last time, he'd properly excused himself as he left the room, but it was truly the only place he could cling to. \"Well, I won't cause you any trouble. Let's have some tea and take it easy.\" \"We shall do no such thing. You truly are irritating.\" The corners of Beatrice's lips twisted in annoyance as she toyed with one of the curls of her hair. Watching Beatrice like that, Subaru suddenly had a thought. \"Come to think of it, you don't look like it, but you're a magic user, right?\" \"Your choice of words offends me. Will you not associate me with such second-rate imbeciles, I wonder?\" \"...You don't have many friends, do you?\" \"How did you leap from that subject to this one, I wonder?!\" \"Er, I don't have any friends, either, so I picked up on it, but that's not good for you. Being"}, {"text": "so high-handed at such a young age is going to affect you later in life. Should adjust that now while you can.\" Feeling the glare of Beatrice's reddened face, Subaru coughed to clear the air. There was something Subaru really wanted to ask Beatrice, the magic user with the dissatisfied look on her face. And that was... \"Is there magic to...weaken someone and kill them in their sleep?\" Subaru wanted to clear up whether the debilitation inflicted on him was via magic rather than poison or illness. In hindsight, he suspected that the terror and lethargy assaulting his entire body had been caused by magic. For one thing, he didn't know of any disease with an onset that rapid that debilitated and killed you within hours. Even if it was another world, it was still a little hard to believe. He'd thought about assassination via poison, but he just couldn't put good odds on it. When you added the fact that someone had bludgeoned Subaru to death, attacking both with poison and by weapon just didn't make any sense. Listening to Subaru's question, Beatrice raised her eyebrows and shrugged her small shoulders as she replied. \"Such things do exist.\" \"They do, huh?\" \"It is closer to a curse than a spell, I suppose? Shamans specialize in such arts, as suits their devious natures.\" Bewildered, Subaru added the new profession shaman to his lexicon as Beatrice raised a finger and elaborated. \"Inflictors of curses, or shamans, hail from the nation of Gusteko to the north and practice an offshoot of magic and spiritualism. They are all worthless sorts unable to use their talents for anything better, I suppose.\" \"But how do you call someone who can kill someone else with a curse 'worthless'?\" \"Because that is all they can do curses have no use except to inflict harm on others. That is why they are the pettiest of all mana practitioners, I suppose.\" Apparently, aversion to the dark arts was so ingrained that Beatrice could not hide her disgust. Subaru wasn't trying to stick up for curses, either; he simply craved all the information he could get, visibly prodding her for more. \"So curses can do things like what I said earlier?\" \"I believe they can. But are there not simpler methods than a curse, I wonder?\" \"Simpler?\" \"I believe you have experienced it already.\" As Subaru inclined his head, Beatrice turned her palm toward him with a cruel smile. The malevolent smile that in no way suited a little girl clued in Subaru as to the true meaning of her words. \"You mean...I could've died from that invasive mana-drain thing?!\" \"Mana is the force of life itself, I suppose. Had I continued draining you so strongly, I could have indeed weakened you until you died. It is a much easier and more reliable method than relying on a shaman.\" \"So that thing you used at our first...I mean, the first day! You mean one slip and I was a goner?!\" \"I held back because having your husk in here would be too much trouble, I suppose.\" \"Don't say husk! That sounds like I'm a bug!\" Subaru himself wondered why he felt such tranquility there when Beatrice truly thought of him as nothing more than that. \"Don't tell me you were the one who killed me...\" \"It would be more peaceful if I had killed you and we weren't having this conversation. Unfortunately, I am quite busy, so I lack the time to bother to kill you, I suppose.\" Beatrice held her hands behind her back, striding past Subaru to stand before the bookshelf. The hem of her goth loli outfit quivered as the little girl stretched, trying to get to a place just a little bit higher than she could reach, when... \"Is it this one?\" \"...The one next to it. Give it to me already?\" \"Yeah, yeah.\" Subaru took the unexpectedly thick tome off the bookshelf and handed it to Beatrice, whose cheeks were puffed out. Beatrice kept up a sullen look as she accepted the book from him, not speaking a single word of thanks as she sat on a stool in the center of the room. He'd seen her several times like that in the archive of forbidden books. It probably suited her better than an actual chair. \"What kind of book are you reading, anyway?\" \"One that contains a method for driving an insect out of a room.\" \"A bug in an archive, huh... Sounds horrible. What kind?\" \"It has large black eyes and a foul mouth. Also, it thinks rather highly of itself.\" \"That's pretty specific for an insect, there...\" He looked around the area, thinking of driving it off straightaway if he could. As Subaru twisted around his neck, his eyes fell upon the book once more. Beatrice went, Ahem. \"Is there still something you want, I wonder? If not, could you please go?\" \"Ah, er... Right, is that mana drain something anyone can do?\" \"Should I feel slighted, I wonder... In this manor, only Puckie and I can perform such a feat. Even Roswaal cannot.\" \"Huh. I thought he said he could do it all.\" So Roswaal was indulging in vanity? That or mana drain was an unexpectedly rare skill given the simplicity of its effect. \"Anyway, um, don't go sucking people dry too much, okay? Especially me I'm seriously short on blood right now, so I'd weaken and die pretty easily.\" \"Ah, because the flesh was all restored but the blood was not? Well, I had no obligation to go that far regardless.\" To Beatrice's declaration, made with a shrug of her shoulders, Subaru tilted his head and went, \"Mm?\" The grammar she'd used just then implied something rather odd. \"The way you said that just now, it sounded like you closed my wound. Don't tell me you're petty enough to take credit for Emilia's work?\" \"That half-baked little girl lacks the power to heal a fatal wound. She and Puckie stopped the bleeding, but I healed the wound... What of it, I wonder?\" \"Er, I'm seriously super conflicted here!\" The circumstances of Subaru's recovery had been exposed in highly unexpected fashion. Subaru had been absolutely certain that Emilia had healed his wounds just like she'd done in the alley previously, but... Though he narrowed his eyes suspiciously and made a look of doubt, Beatrice was unmoved. Barring her being a liar of exceptional gall, the truth was no doubt as she'd spoken. Meaning Beatrice was... \"Then you're a big filthy liar! Lot of gall you have there. Bottom-of-the-barrel personality!\" \"And you have quite some gall to not politely accept the generosity of others!\" Subaru's rude statement and Beatrice's angry shout resulted in a staring contest between them, one Beatrice finally resolved by sending Subaru flying back with magic until he smacked into a wall. As Subaru bounced off the wall and rolled head over heels before her, Beatrice slowly stroked one of her long curls. \"Could you finally leave, I wonder? Your hands aren't shaking anymore, so it would seem you've put your fears behind you.\" \"...So you noticed, huh?\" \"You were trying to hide it, I suppose. I'm offended you tried to play me like that.\" Beatrice made a bored-sounding snort and shooed away Subaru with her hand like he was an annoying insect. Her words and how she lifted her hand before Subaru's face made his fingertips forget to tremble. He'd died a total of five times so far, but he most certainly wasn't used to it. Quite the opposite; the more times he died, the more the accumulated experience made his knees quiver from his raw fear of experiencing death again. That went double for the cause of death being first-degree murder. Upon his return, Subaru's heart creaked from despair; surely no one could blame him for his courage not reaching the tips of his fingers and toes. \"Guess there's no more time for excuses. Man, you're not nice at all.\" Sighing away the last cobwebs, Subaru got up and reached toward the archive's door. Subaru looked back and made a bitter smile toward Beatrice, who wasn't even looking at him. \"Sorry, but thanks. See ya next time.\" \"I shall take more mana from you next time, so could you simply stay away, I wonder?\" Her eyes remained fixed on her book as she verbally brushed him off. Feeling Beatrice's attitude spurring him onward, Subaru turned the knob and slipped through the Passage. Then  \"Wait, the insect from earlier don't tell me you meant me?!\" \"You want to leave not on your feet but through the air, I suppose?!\" And so, he flew out of the Passage. In the garden, the silver-haired girl looked down at him. \"Er, may I ask if you're all right?\" \"That kindness alone heals my wounds. That much is no lie.\" Subaru slumped his shoulders as he spoke. Sent flying by Beatrice's magic, Subaru had been rammed through the Passage and shot out of a second-story terrace window facing the garden, tumbling onto a flower bed below. He'd almost died from a domestic dispute. \"The theory that she killed me is getting more and more convincing...\" \"I think Rem fertilized that flower bed with manure yesterday...\" \"Whoaaaa, three-second rule !!\" Having been thrust into the flower bed for more like thirty seconds than three, Subaru leapt out. He desperately tried to brush the mud and perhaps things other than mud off him as he stood before Emilia at an oddly close distance. \"It doesn't count! It doesn't count, right?! That was yesterday and all!\" \"Well, just think of it as: When bad luck is with you, good luck is not far away.\" \"And Emilia's already in Consolation Mode!\" As Subaru wiped away small tears with his sleeve, Emilia, a bitter smile on her noble face, must have felt pity for him as she touched the pendant between her breasts. \" Puck, wake up.\" The green crystal flared lightly, responding to Emilia's call. The light formed first the contours, then the full image of a little cat that materialized and rested on Emilia's palm. The little kitty heavily stretched its little body, looking like it was making a yawn. \"Mm, good morning, Lia. Ahh, Subaru's up already.\" \"Good morning, Puck. Sorry to wake you all of a sudden, but could you wash Subaru, please?\" Puck, watching with one eye as Emilia pled her request, suddenly oohed as he looked in Subaru's direction. Looking at Subaru's mud-covered appearance, he nodded, apparently agreeing with the girl's request. \"Time for a bath, then. There!\" \"Bath is putting it mildly. I... Whoa?!\" As Puck thrust out both hands, the dazzling, pale light that came from them turned into a large amount of water the next moment, slamming into Subaru's upper body with incredible force, scrubbing away all the world's impurities. \"That's a water cannon !!\" \"Whoops, I threw off his balance a little.\" With Subaru's body turning around from his upper body being bathed in water, Puck adjusted the water flow in the other direction with a little too much oomph. Subaru was unable to resist being turned right to left, round and round. \"See? You're all clean now. Isn't that nice?\" \"Wh... When you play with me like that...my heart goes...round and round...\" Subaru, sitting on a soggy patch of grass, was groggy with his eyes still spinning. He wiped his face with his soaked sleeve and somehow rose up despite his wobbly state. \"Man, if you're that rough, I'll start seriously thinking you're the culprits?\" \"I'm not sure what I'm being suspected of, but I'm deeply, deeply hurt... Nyaa?!\" As the little kitty floated in midair, pretending to be upset, Subaru pressed a finger to his narrow forehead and turned him toward Emilia as he cried out. Somehow, this was the most frivolous, wonderful reunion he'd had so far. Putting aside that Emilia should have been tearfully rushing to greet Subaru upon his revival from mortal injury... He wondered what he should say as"}, {"text": "his first step to resolving the situation  \"Bwa.\" \"Huh?\" \"Bwahaha! I'm sorry, I can't, ah-ha-ah-ha-ha-ha! What are you two doing... Ah, my sides hurt; I'm going to die...\" Suddenly Emilia, unable to hold it in any longer, burst out laughing, driving away all his worries. As Emilia pointed at Subaru, who looked like a drowned rat, her normally neatly arranged expression was gripped by mirth. The unexpected reaction made Subaru look at Puck, who was floating right beside his face. \"Well, my initial bad impression's all gone! Thanks for the assist, Dad!\" In response to Subaru's impudent suggestion, Puck puffed out his chest haughtily. \"Who are you calling 'Dad'?! You won't have my daughter that easily!!\" Upon hearing this, Emilia's loud, laughing voice filled the whole garden. Having finished her laughter, Emilia was watching Subaru as she spoke. \"I heard Ram and Rem were heading for the garden, but they're a little late...\" Emilia was still wiping the vestiges of the tears from her eyes from laughing so hard. Subaru, the chief culprit, toyed with Puck in the middle of his hand. \"Huh. So when you say they're late, can I take it that you've been waiting here for my sake?\" \"Uh, isn't it the other way around? It's true that I should thank you, and if I moved without thinking, we might miss each other and I don't want that, but it's just coincidence that I stayed here with you.\" \"Right, it's just coincidence, Subaru. She makes me drag out my grooming for one reason after another and speaks to the lesser spirits about the same things over and over... She says it's all just coincidence.\" As usual, just as Emilia was in the middle of completely self-destructing, Puck added fuel to the fire. \"Sheesh, Puck!\" \"She should just be honest with herself. That's a cute thing about Lia, though...don't you think, Subaru?\" \"Oh, definitely! Everything about Emilia-tan is the brightest star in my sky!\" \"Now Subaru's teasing me... And what is that 'tan'? Where did that come from?\" She was finally voicing some doubts about the way he was speaking to her. Up until last time, it was a subject Emilia had managed to let slide. Subaru put a hand to his chin and made what sounded like some kind of diabolical chuckle. \"It's a sign of my affection. It's like how Puck calls you Lia... A way for two people to show how close they are to each other.\" \"...Not that I remember being quite that close to you?\" \"Wow, that statement kind of hurts, you know. I was kind of making a down payment. I'm totally planning to have a relationship with Emilia-tan that goes hand in hand with the pet names. Okay?\" At the very least, he hoped to get close enough to her by a few nights from then that she'd forgive him for it. Emilia's face expressed surprise at Subaru's strong approach, then her cheeks reddened a bit. \"F-fine. I'll accept that. Hey, don't look at me like that!\" \"Er? I thought I was getting brushed off? What's that positive reaction? Explain this, Mr. Puck.\" As Emilia turned her face aside, Puck sat on her shoulder and twirled his mustache. \"My daughter doesn't have many friends, so being called by an intimate nickname makes her happy. Put simply, she's easy.\" Subaru exclaimed in surprise, \"My leading lady's easy!\" He thought he'd merely climbed a treacherous wall, but he felt the sudden realization that it was more. He continued, \"But we're still a long way apart... I need to learn a little more about this whole nobility thing.\" \"Ugh...could you not mention something I really don't want to talk about?\" \"I just want to reach an agreement on E M P (Emilia-tan's Majorly Pretty). Oh?\" Subaru pressed silliness onto Emilia when he abruptly looked back at the mansion and narrowed his eyes. Emilia followed Subaru's gaze, tilting her head as she watched the twins come out of the mansion. \"Ram and Rem, huh... It's a bit too soon to be breakfast time, though...\" The image of the sunlight reflecting off her silver hair seemed to burn into Subaru's eyes as he confirmed that events were proceeding. It was the time of Roswaal's return. The twins simultaneously bowed their heads before them. They spoke with the same stereo effect he'd now heard many times over. \"Master Roswaal, lord of the manor, has returned. Please come with us.\" Subaru watched Emilia nod to them as he turned toward the twins with a hand casually pressed to his rear. \"Sister, Sister. Since last we saw him, he has become a muddy drowned rat.\" \"Rem, Rem. Since last we saw him, our guest has become a stained, filthy rag.\" Subaru made a pained smile at their sharp comments as he looked up at the sight of the mansion. He would change clothes, tidy himself up, and head to meet Roswaal for a fresh start.  Because this time, he intended to take a completely different approach than before.  And so, his first week at Roswaal Manor began in earnest for the third time. For this third loop, Subaru wanted to emphasize gathering information. \"My keywords are magic and chain...but that doesn't tell me anything yet.\" The only thing he knew for sure was that someone would attack in the dead of night on the fourth day. Under the present circumstances, if he told Roswaal and the others, they'd no doubt ignore him. Subaru simply couldn't explain where he got his information. Subaru could even get himself suspected as one of the assassins arrayed against them. If he at least had a physical description of the attacker, things might be different, but... \"That's why I've gotta spend this time gathering intel. If the Return by Death conditions are the same as before...\" On the royal capital loop, he'd died three times and had a breakthrough on the fourth. If things were as before, he'd be able to return one more time. So this time he'd gather the intel he needed for a breakthrough the fourth time around. \"To be honest, I don't like picking a plan that's giving up from the start...\" However, his options being very limited, he had to resign himself to some sacrifices. At any rate, he had no intention of throwing away his opportunity. It was the difference between resolving to redo everything and aiming from the start to overcome the challenge. This time, he'd focus entirely on getting out of the loop. \"For that, I had to tell Puck under the table to keep Emilia safe.\" In the middle of playing around with Puck in the garden, Subaru had whispered to Puck to pay attention to Emilia's surroundings. The little kitty could read minds; Subaru figured he'd know Subaru's earnestness was no lie. \"I made things pretty vague, but he seems genuinely protective of Lia.\" After all, he'd given Subaru's pushy suggestion a warm reception. He could now assume that Emilia would be relatively safe. It wasn't much, but it did relieve a bit of the burden on his shoulders. \"After that, there's Roswaal and the loli... But after that, what?\" Subaru scratched his head all over, plucked out a hair, pinched his feather pen under his nose, and stretched his back. His head hurt from the difficult dilemmas. That being said, he had to do whatever he could. If possible, he wanted Ram and Rem, and of course Roswaal and Beatrice as well, to get through those four days safely. He had his reasons for not running no matter how formidable the challenge. \"My concentration just ain't cutting it. What to do... Huh?\" As he leaned back against his chair, it made a creaking sound when he heard a voice from outside. \"Pardon me, Dear Guest.\" Faster than Subaru could reply, the door opened and he saw a pink-haired maid Ram. Subaru raised an eyebrow as Ram came in with a steaming cup sitting on a tray in her hands. \"Oh my, Dear Guest, you really are studying.\" \"That's super rude, you know. I am kind of an actual guest at the moment?\" \"Dear Guest, you are the manner of houseguest known as a freeloader.\" Looking calm and composed, Ram let herself into the room and began serving tea. Watching from the side as she worked, Subaru could not conceal his bitter smile at her words. A houseguest and freeloader he thought the terms fit all too well. \"Here you go, Dear Guest.\" \"Oh, thanks. Hot-hot-hot...\" When he took the cup and looked down into it, he saw steam rising from the surface of the hot amber liquid. The tea of this world was nearest to black tea in appearance and taste. The rich aroma was just as easy to enjoy. Ram's attitude was very blunt, but it was odd that she'd come in to serve tea like this. As he watched Ram's polished movements, Subaru slowly tasted the tea he'd been offered, nodding. \"Mm...really does taste awful.\" \"This manor serves tea using leaves of the highest quality, so that is quite a statement.\" \"If it tastes bad, it tastes bad. I just can't think of it as anything but black tea. Tastes like...plant.\" Ram coldly watched Subaru's scowling face as she served herself tea that she had brought like it was the most normal thing in the world, sitting down on the bed and stretching her legs without a care. \"I don't have words for the guts you have, slacking off in front of a guest.\" \"I believe you were the one who said to take it easier, Dear Guest? I am doing this only to respond to your request. You should be thanking me.\" \"This is, like, even pushier than you were before, though?\" Subaru voiced his complaints as he sank back in his chair and made a loud sound. Ram listened to that sound as she wet her tongue with black tea, finally giving Subaru a sideways glance. \"And, Dear Guest leaving in two days, have you made any progress?\" Subaru broke out in a small, bitter smile as he listened to her exceptionally dry delivery.  It was already the second night since he had begun the third loop. For this third time around, Subaru had been treated at the mansion like a guest, a sharp difference from before. That was because Subaru had requested as much at that first breakfast. Now that he was being treated as a guest, Subaru had his own room and Rem and Ram took turns serving him as he continued the language study he'd begun the last time.  All of it was to justify his leaving the mansion temporarily without creating a stir. He was forming plans in his head while his fingers continued copying I-script almost automatically. His movements were robotic enough to make one's stomach twist, but nothing was really getting into his head. \"Are you always this bad, or is your foolish head unable to concentrate?\" \"Got some nerve saying that to a literary enthusiast like me. Aren't you inspired from watching me give this desk my all back there?\" \"An uncouth statement to match such sloppy writing I am aghast you call yourself a literary enthusiast, Dear Guest.\" \"This is the first time I've seen a maid talk to her guests like you do.\" Ram politely ignored Subaru's resentful statement and browsed with apparent interest the pages filled with characters. Even with the distance so close, he glared as he watched the side of her face, unable to stop the feeling that his insides were being wrung. Unlike the previous occasions when Subaru had been treated as a servant, he'd had little contact with Ram this time around. Beyond his time spent in pursuit of Emilia, he'd mainly stayed in his room writing characters like this. Though once in a while he spared some time to go tease Beatrice a little... So the distance between Ram and Rem and himself felt far greater than"}, {"text": "when he was treated as a servant. In spite of that, here was Ram visiting Subaru in his room, spending time with him and speaking to him like a very blunt friend. He couldn't help but find it strange. \"If you do not stop staring at me like that, I shall slap you, Dear Guest.\" \"Hey, the only one making the inside of my head go pink is Emilia... Oh, that's right.\" Trying to deflect his unease as he averted his eyes, he set aside the tea and picked up a book with its back cover facing up. This was the picture book he was using as learning material; he was finally able to understand the characters in it. \"In other words, I want to make all this studying feel like it got me somewhere.\" \"It contains only common stories you should be ashamed not to know. You need to master basic I-script before calling yourself a 'literary enthusiast.'\" \"Does calling myself that tick you off that much?\" Ram made no reply to Subaru's question as she poured the remaining contents of her cup down her throat. She then reached for Subaru's cup. \"Wait, you're gonna drink all the tea you brought here?!\" \"You do not need it if you are making a face like that when you drink it. At least it shall be enjoyed by someone with a properly functioning tongue.\" \"I told you, I just can't get that plant taste out of my h... Oh, never mind. I'm gonna focus on this book, so you can kill time or head off, whatever you want.\" Subaru made a brusque wave before leaning forward in his chair and opening the picture book. First came the author's preface and the table of contents; after that came the body, written in the characters he'd now grown accustomed to. \"Err, let's see...a long, long time ago...\" So fairy tales start the same way in every world, huh, he accepted with strange ease as he continued reading the story. The fact that it was in a picture book meant the story was exceptionally concise with a clearly defined introduction, body, and conclusion. Child-level comprehension was prioritized, with pictures used precisely where there was room for imagination. Incidentally, if one asked Subaru which fairy tale he liked best, he would reply, \"The Crying Red Demon.\" If one asked Subaru which fairy tale he hated most, he would reply, \"The Crying Red Demon.\" \"It's, like, a happy ending and a bitter ending slamming into you at once. Why can't it all be happily ever after?\" \"Sorry to intrude on your deep thoughts, but are you finished reading?\" \"I'm finished reading. The things that went against common sense were fun, so it was more interesting than I expected. Guess that's another world's culture for you. Maybe I should bring in fairy tales from my own homeland, too, like 'The Crying Red Demon'?\" \"'The Crying Red Demon'...?\" Subaru was mumbling about the copyright issues in another world's jurisdiction when Ram's eyebrows trembled in response. Huh, went Subaru, getting a rare rise out of Ram. \"It's the title of a fairy tale from where I come from. How about I tell it to you?\" Ram did not reply as Subaru made the suggestion with a thumbs-up. However, the way she sat on the bed with her hands on her knees, shifting her gaze to Subaru, clearly conveyed that he should get on with it. \"All right, attention, please. 'The Crying Red Demon.' A long, long time ago, in a certain land, there was...\" The fairy tale began with a bitter argument. \"The Crying Red Demon\" was a tale of friendship between the Red Demon, which wanted to become friends with humans, and his best friend, the Blue Demon and what came between them. It went something like this: The two demons living on the mountain tried various things to get the Red Demon in the good graces of the villagers, culminating in the Blue Demon committing wicked deeds upon the village, only to be driven off by the Red Demon, who thus befriended the human beings. The tale ended with the Blue Demon leaving; the Red Demon, dispirited at the Blue Demon's display of friendship, cried for the Blue Demon's sake. \"And so, the Red Demon read over and over the letter left at the Blue Demon's house and cried... The end.\" Subaru finished conveying to Ram a somewhat abridged version of the fairy tale. It was a fairy tale Subaru himself had read many times over. He thought he was as faithful with his words as possible, keeping his own opinions out of it. Ram lowered her eyes as she listened to the tale. Subaru stayed in the same position as when he'd finished the story, waiting for her to speak. Finally, Ram let out a small sigh. \"...A rather sad tale.\" \"I suppose so. But I think it's a happy story, too.\" \"I think the cast of characters was full of idiots... The Red Demon, the Blue Demon, and the villagers, too.\" \"Well, that's being a tough critic. Not that you'll get any argument from me...\" He agreed that none of the three sides had enough introspection. The villagers were pure suckers, and if the two demons had spoken more to each other, they might have found proper common ground. At the very least, surely they could have avoided the need for one to put distance between him and the other for the rest of their lives. \"That's why I love this story and hate this story. The Blue Demon's self-sacrifice was super cool, but he was an idiot beyond saving, too. I like to think I can save myself through putting in the effort...\" \"So you think that about the Blue Demon...I think it is the Red Demon who is beyond saving.\" Ram's reply made Subaru lift his head. Ram was looking at Subaru as she bit her tongue. \"He wrapped the Blue Demon in his own desires, losing nothing when the Blue Demon lost everything. I think that is a rather horrible result.\" \"What do you think the two demons should've done, then?\" \"...If the Red Demon truly wanted to be friends with the humans, he should have gone to live in the village, even if it meant cutting off his horn. He should have done that long before the Blue Demon left.\" \"Man, that's a pretty extreme position, there!\" Subaru raised his voice at the radical view she'd provided, but Ram simply stroked her own short hair like she was saying, Is it now? She proceeded to toy with the ribbon holding her hair in place. \"Making the Blue Demon pay for something he wants is unforgivable. If the Red Demon wants it, the Red Demon should pay the price. The Blue Demon robbing him of that chance is a problem, too.\" \"That's a really strict view of it. Do you have something against demons...?\" \" Dear Guest, which of the two demons would you rather befriend?\" Subaru blinked at Ram's question. He hadn't really thought about it. \"...Which of the two?\" Ram nodded and stretched out both hands toward Subaru, raising one finger from each. \"On the one hand, the Red Demon who asks and asks and leaves others to pay the consequences, or the Blue Demon, the idiot drowning in his own martyrdom. Which?\" \"Geez, you make both of those choices feel bad... So what, I'm a villager who just arrived here?\" It was rather rare for the point of view of the villagers to come up in a discussion about \"The Crying Red Demon.\" Either way, Subaru was a little lost as he stared at the two hands Ram presented before him when she said, \"...What an uninteresting reply.\" \"Don't say that! Since I've read 'The Crying Red Demon,' I sympathize with the two of them, so I want to help out both, okay?\" Subaru gently pressed both his hands onto both of Ram's hands. Subaru's reply drew a long sigh out of Ram; she glared at Subaru, who of course was close enough to touch. \"So you're the type who understands neither his position nor that of others... When distance grows, your type gets left behind by both.\" \"Distance, huh. Why not just tell people how you feel while they're still close? The Red Demon's not a bad guy for wanting to get along, and the Blue Demon's not a bad guy for wanting to help him, either. I'm the type who likes demons, not the type to just drive 'em off the island at the drop of a hat.\" Ram sighed at the grinning Subaru and looked at her own two hands as he grasped her raised fingers. As she brushed him off, Subaru shrugged and sat back in his seat, readjusting himself to face Ram again. \"You know, Ram, you seem to like 'The Crying Red Demon' quite a bit.\" \"Dear Guest, you will someday regret fickle, indecisive thoughts such as wanting to be friends with both.\" \"I don't remember that being what we were talking about here?! I thought we were talking about demons?\" As Subaru shouted and shook his head, Ram made a small clap of her hands to indicate the subject was closed. Her quick-tempered behavior tugged at him, but Ram pointed to the book on the desk before he could say a word. \"Setting aside the tales from our Dear Guest's homeland... What did you think of the stories of this land?\" \"Let's see... I suppose the one that stood out was the dragon one in the middle of the book and the witch one at the end. No matter how I slice it, those two are different somehow.\" Subaru gave a wandering reply as he browsed the book. Those were the two tales that had left the deepest impression upon him. The former definitely got special treatment. As for the latter... \"The witch story was like...they felt they had to put it in but they went halfway. It completely ignored story structure...like a bunch of highlights.\" \"...That cannot be helped. We are in Lugunica... Of course the dragon story gets special treatment.\" Subaru nodded as he flipped the pages of the picture book on the desk. \"Right, 'Dragonfriend Kingdom of Lugunica,' right? Now I get why it's called that.\" Apparently the large kingdom Subaru was staying in was called the \"Dragonfriend Kingdom of Lugunica.\" On world maps, it looked like the easternmost nation in the world, but apparently it had good reason to be called the \"Dragonfriend Kingdom.\" It was a simple tale, really. Long ago, the kingdom had come under the protection of a dragon, forming a pact. \"The dragon is said to have lent its power to Lugunica, protecting it in times of famine, plague, war with other nations, and other various predicaments.\" \"So that's why they call it 'Dragonfriend,' huh. It did say in the picture book that the royal family made a pact with the dragon. This is less of a fairy tale than ancient history, right?\" \"I suppose so. It's a true story, after all. Even now, the dragon protects the peace of this land from under a great waterfall far away until the day its promise to the royal family comes to an end.\" Subaru cleared his throat as he listened to the oh-so-strict Ram speak such words. A promise made with a dragon in ancient times... The picture book had not drawn the details, but it was a big enough deal that the kingdom had been saved from crisis many times over. Thinking of that, Subaru suddenly realized something about the royal family that'd made the pact with the dragon. \"Hey, the family that made the promise with the dragon...didn't it just die out?\" \"It did, and suddenly at that.\" \"Isn't that, like, bad? Er, not that I'd know what bad means here.\" No doubt the dragon had been promised something considerable in return for protecting its"}, {"text": "promise all that time. Yet with the royal family that would be granting it dying off on him like that, who would honor that obligation? Ram began. \"No one knows what the dragon seeks, so it was not put in the picture book. Only gods know what the dragon will do in this situation...\" At that point, Ram paused for a moment. \"Rather, Dear Guest only the dragon knows.\" Subaru's breath caught. He wasn't warm, but he felt sweat on his brow regardless. He chewed over Ram's words, swallowed them, and breathed in and out hard enough to make his stomach churn. Negotiating with the mighty dragon was the responsibility of the ruler of the kingdom. In other words... \"That has to be a mountain of pressure on Emilia, then...\" \"Yes. The dragon can protect the kingdom or destroy it on a whim... Thus, the kingdom and its destiny rest upon Emilia's shoulders. Just thinking about it makes it seem like a story from that picture book.\" There'd been a conflicted look on Emilia's face when she saw the picture book on the last night of the previous loop. Now Subaru understood why Emilia's hand had stopped when she was flipping the pages. The size and weight of Emilia's burden had far surpassed Subaru's expectations. His mind wanted to cry out just from thinking about the heavy responsibility borne by those delicate shoulders. \"It cannot be helped.\" \" Ah?\" \"Everyone was born with a role to play and the responsibility to live up to it. This is what Lady Emilia was born to do. It is a path she must walk, no matter how treacherous it may be.\" Subaru's voice was shaking with anger from a source he couldn't place. \"One girl's supposed to shoulder the whole burden like that?\" For her part, Ram's voice was cold and logical. \"I believe it is best if others can carry it with her. However, sooner or later, Lady Emilia must be seen to climb that summit herself.\" Subaru slumped his shoulders when he realized Ram was holding back to not fuel his anger further. He could vent at Ram all he wanted, but he'd be mistaken. Ram wasn't responsible for the weight of Emilia's burden; at any rate, Subaru had no right to be angry. That part really burned him. \"Oh, right. Ram, about that other story...\" Wanting to do something other than apologize, Subaru changed the subject and pointed at the picture book. Contrary to how the story of the dragon in the center of the book had received special treatment, the story of the witch had only a few pages drawn for it at the very back of the book. The story was titled, \"The Witch of Jealousy.\" \"So this witch story...\" \"I do not wish to speak of it.\" Just like that, she seemed to verbally cut things off after the story of the dragon. Subaru opened his eyes wide without thinking as Ram briskly got up, tray and cups in hand. \"I have been here too long. I do not wish to cause Rem too much trouble. Dear Guest, I shall call you again for dinnertime.\" \"R-right...\" Ram, turning her back like she would brook no argument, immediately headed out of the room. But just before her hand reached the door, Ram stopped and looked back at Subaru, left in her dust. \"About the demon story from earlier...\" \"Mm, right. 'The Crying Red Demon.' What of it?\" \"Don't tell Rem that story. She would probably find it distasteful.\" Surely no one would have that kind of reaction over a simple fairy tale. Regardless, Subaru, feeling overwhelming pressure from Ram's words, could only nod meekly in response. Seeing this, Ram finally left. Subaru, feeling drained, flopped onto the bed. It felt like there was something more to Ram's last action than just banning him from telling Rem a fairy tale. \"What the heck's up with all that...?\" Venting at the ceiling, Subaru picked up the picture book and flipped through the pages. The final chapter, \"The Witch of Jealousy,\" was a short tale only four pages long. \"A scary witch, a frightening witch, it is terrifying to just speak her name. That was why everyone called her 'The Jealous Witch' \" There was no story structure, just contents conveying the raw terror of the witch. It was straight-up eerie, doubly so when written in characters meant for small children. \"And after all the trouble of studying to read this thing...\" His feelings of success, satisfaction, and the glow of having just read a book seemed to fall by the wayside. Subaru turned in bed and switched his head to a different subject: thinking of what he could do for the remaining two days of that loop. He'd put his preparations for the last day in order and shifted to what he'd do two mornings hence. Subaru squished his countless worries one by one until he finally fell asleep. \"Err, my time here's been brief, but thanks for taking care of me.\" In the mansion's entry hall, all the human beings in the mansion (meaning only four people, with Beatrice not included) were seeing Subaru off as he made his good-byes. Subaru had asked that he be allowed to stay for three days. That time had passed; that morning, he would journey onward. Subaru wore his tracksuit and carried the convenience store bag containing his starting equipment, but he also carried a knapsack over his back that Roswaal had generously provided. The knapsack was fairly heavy from a decent sum of coinage, Roswaal explained simply. \"My thanks for taking care of Lady Emilia.\" Among those seeing Subaru off, Emilia called out to him, a look of deep concern on her face even then. Subaru, grateful for Emilia's feelings, vividly thumped his chest. \"I'll be fine. I'm just gonna take it easy. When I become a strong, wise, and rich man suitable for you, I'll come riding back on a white horse.\" \"You have your handkerchief? And drinking water, lagmite ore, and, and...\" \"She's totally acting like she's my mom?!\" Emilia fussed about this and that. The way she asked last, \"Can you sleep all by yourself?\" made Subaru wonder just how much she longed for the company of others. Or perhaps she was acting on instinct, voicing the unease Subaru was desperately shoving down inside him. Roswaal came to shake his hand. \"Weeell then, be in good health, Subaru. It has beeeen a short time, but it was quite enjoyable. Do not be concerned about my parting gift. Consider it a smaaall reward for the memories you created these last three days.\" Roswaal added a wink to the last part. Subaru could guess what he meant; the knapsack over his back was jingling just from their shaking hands. \"I get it; you're paying me to keep my mouth shut. I won't say anything. I swear on the dragon.\" \"It will keep others from approaching you as part of some wicked scheme. Besides, in this nation, to swear upon the dragon is to make the highest of oaths. It is not that I doubt you, but strive not to forrrget that.\" Subaru raised a hand in response to Roswaal's reminder; he then turned to the twins, standing behind the clown-faced nobleman. The two stood silently as Subaru reached and patted them both on the shoulder. \"You two were a huge help, especially Rem with those really delicious meals. Ram... Mm, well, she cleans toilets really well?\" \"Sister, Sister, the Dear Guest's flattery is despairingly awkward.\" \"Rem, Rem, the Dear Guest's flattery is a complete disaster.\" \"Well, excuse me, I really couldn't think of anything else! But thanks.\" Having said his good-byes to everyone, he pushed open the front doors before he got cold feet. From the entrance of the manor, he cut through the garden, passed through the metal gate, and continued on to the forest path that was a straight shot to Auram Village. Subaru's stated plan was to head from there to the nearest highway, hire a passing carriage, and head to the capital but that plan was a feint. \"Subaru, thanks for everything. If anything happens, come back anytime, okay?\" With Emilia's statement of farewell, her words gentle until the bitter end, Subaru departed, walking the path toward Auram Village. The silver-haired girl waved until she could no longer see Subaru from the mansion. Her oh-so-adorable behavior dulled his worries and made his sense of duty burn once more.  After heading down the path to the village for a while, Subaru stopped and cautiously looked around the area. When he was sure no one was around to watch him, he left the path and dove into the woods. He did so regardless of Ram's and the others' admonitions that this was dangerous due to the many wild animals within. Ignoring their warnings, Subaru pushed his way through the foliage as he headed deeper into the forest. At some point, he ascended a slope, not slowing his pace when branches and briar patches scratched him. He proceeded up the mountain like that for about fifteen minutes. \"Okay, I'll do it here.\" Subaru left the greenery, the soaring sky greeting his vision. Subaru had cleared the forested slopes, arriving at a foothill nestled among the mountains. He could watch the mansion below from the cliff right in front of him. From there, he could observe the familiar, luxurious sights of Roswaal Manor. He'd circled around from the forest path and cut through forest and mountain to arrive at the perfect observation point. \"It has an especially good view of Emilia's room. I'll see anything weird happening right away.\" He could make out the window to Emilia's room even at a distance. He couldn't see inside, but it was a good spot for watching for any signs of trouble. And on the night of the fourth day, trouble would surely come. \"In other words, tonight. All that's left is to wait for something to happen.\" From that morning, Subaru had about sixteen hours to kill surely he could hold his concentration that long. This way, he could figure out what would happen at Roswaal Manor beforehand and rush back to the manor immediately. This time Subaru would have the element of surprise on his side. If he'd remained at the mansion, Subaru would be one more victim of the attacker's curse. With limited means of counterattack and low overall combat ability, Subaru couldn't take on the attacker straight up. He desperately needed any shred of information he could get on the assassin. So, what to do? Subaru had come up with a simple answer. \"This time, my goal is to identify the attacker and nail down the details of the attack...even if it kills me.\" Having died twice so far, Subaru had determined that the attack was an assassination having to do with the royal succession. He didn't know if he'd been collateral damage with Emilia as the main target or if he'd been killed as some kind of message to her. But having been murdered twice already, Subaru considered it highly likely everyone close to her was being slaughtered. \"Putting aside if countermeasures will work...seems like Roswaal has his guard up anyway...\" Subaru based that on the premise that Roswaal, the nobleman with a scheming mind behind his clown face, was not such a fool as to leave his king piece, bearing the name of Emilia, defenseless on the chessboard. The existence of Ram and Rem, the two servants he'd left behind at the mansion, was further evidence. \"To be honest, at first I thought it was nuts to have just two maids taking care of a huge mansion like that, but...\" They were lord and vassal, their mutual trust rock solid, bonds of loyalty formed through long service. Seeing Ram's slavish devotion and Rem's adoration of her had told him that much. Roswaal had surely surrounded Emilia with people who would never betray him."}, {"text": "The fact that one maid had retired several months before, yet, according to Ram, no replacement would be hired, assured him Emilia would be protected. \"The problem is, I don't know if they're on guard enough, given that I died from the attack already. If I'm the only one who died, well, good... Wait, that's not good.\" If Roswaal's defense plans simply didn't account for Subaru, a wild card, then all was well and good. If it wasn't so, that meant Emilia would come to harm as well. And Subaru, having died three times at the capital and two at the manor, was accustomed by now to reality foiling the best of plans. You needed to expect the worst case...and then expect worse than that. \"Here, the worst case is that Roswaal's guard is down and Emilia gets assassinated. Of course, that'd mean Roswaal, Ram, Rem, and then Beatrice get slaughtered, too... Ugh, damn it.\" Just picturing the worst-case scenario filled him with disgust. Though it was to stop all that, he wanted to vent at his entirely logical decision to watch events unfold from the outside. Of course Subaru, who wore his heart on his sleeve, planned to stay on guard the whole time, ready to instantly rush back to the manor if anything happened, running around and warning of the enemy attack, but... \"Well, it'd be nice if the guy's super cautious and runs off just from my yelling at him, right?\" Subaru voiced the optimistic view as he pulled a rope out of his knapsack. It was a rather long rope he'd borrowed from the manor's warehouse. Subaru firmly tied one end around the trunk of a nearby tree and the other around his own waist. He used complex knots along the way as if his life depended on it, which it kind of did. \"And last, the knife to cut the rope... She'd probably be ticked off if she knew I was using it like this.\" As he spoke, he took out the knife that he'd lovingly dubbed Shooting Star. In the present loop, he'd been in a position to lay his hands on it for the first time only that day. \"I used it a whole bunch during the four days of the other loops, though.\" During his time doing odd jobs as a servant, Subaru's kitchen duties mainly involved peeling vegetables and washing tableware. Shooting Star was the beloved blade that Subaru had used to cut potato-like veggies, apples, and, from time to time, his own hand. When, this time, he'd come up with a plan that required a knife, he grabbed that one without a second thought. \"Hopefully just for cutting the rope, but if worse comes to worst...\" The knife was not only to facilitate his escape but to wound himself if the time came, for surely stimulation from the pain of self-harm would make him able to resist the gnawing sleepiness of the curse. If worse came to worst, he might have to turn that blade upon the enemy. And if it was worse than that  \"For suicide, huh? Geez...can I do that? Something that scary...\" Subaru looked at himself reflected in the blade's edge as a laugh at his own expense came over him. As he looked at the blade in his hand, memories of Ram and Rem rose in the back of his mind. Ram had insulted Subaru for his clumsy knife work; Rem had shot him shocked sideways glances when he'd cut his own hand with the knife. They angrily shouted things like, Do not cut what you are not supposed to. \"...They'd be angry with me for misusing it like this, too, wouldn't they?\" He could totally picture in his mind both girls angry with him, with Ram glaring down at him and Rem looking aghast. Ahh, that scene was just  \"They'd be totally pissed, huh... I hope they would be...\" The longing words leaked out from his lips. One way or another, he truly wanted to bury himself in that day-to-day life again. \"I don't wanna die  I don't wanna let them die...\" Subaru said it for his own benefit as he remembered the faces of the people he'd only just said good-bye to. Subaru had cast away Emilia and the others to prepare for the next loop. Yet this time, just like the last times, he'd formed definite bonds with the girls. He suppressed his throbbing chest. This was his punishment, the natural price to pay for what he had done. It was a cross to bear that Subaru, having formed a plan premised on losing something, could not shirk. He had to carry both the sweet and the bitter thoughts with him. Subaru had spent those thrown-away four days prying open that raw wound, enduring pain like that of having his flesh gouged and his bones broken, all so that he would remember it. \"You said it yourself, Subaru Natsuki. Even if everyone else forgets...you'll remember.\" That was why he couldn't think of this time as something he could forget. Subaru had to continue to crave a happy ending until the last possible moment. No one had the right to decide that Emilia and the others were no more than bubbles on the edge of the time stream. Subaru kept hidden among the trees as he observed Roswaal Manor. The resolve permeating his presumably stressed body quieted his breathing and lowered his heart rate. He felt like his body was acting in accordance to his will in a way it never had before. Trusting his body to that hard-earned feeling, Subaru stayed put and waited for time to pass. As evening drew near, the setting sun bathed the hill Subaru was on in an orange light. Squinting from the sun's rays, Subaru moved his tense body around, shaking out the cobwebs. He'd already been watching the manor for something like eight hours. During that time, there had been no sign of anything unusual; the mansion remained entirely peaceful. So things really were fine there until night fell. \"Come to think of it, Rem didn't go shopping this time...\" There had been no sign of the Day Four event of Rem going shopping. Perhaps she simply didn't need to because Subaru's departure meant one less mouth to feed. It was an odd discrepancy. When Subaru realized he was smiling at the memories, his sense of tension lifting, he pinched his own cheek. This wasn't the place or time to let up on his concentration. \"Like I can do something stupid like that with eight hours to go. Concentrate, concentra \" He stopped mid-word. For better or worse, it was at the very moment Subaru switched gears that the attack came. *** The instant his eardrums detected a faint sound, Subaru dove to the side without hesitation. He'd devoted his five senses to determining when to do the evasive maneuver he'd settled on beforehand. The next moment, he heard something exceptionally heavy make a smashing sound, snapping trees in two. The trees all around him, plus their leaves and branches, came down with a wild cacophony of snapping sounds. Amid all that, Subaru rushed straight for the cliff and leapt straight down. \" Aa!\" Even clenching his teeth, he couldn't stop himself from letting out a faint cry, his insides turning over from the weightless feeling of falling. But his lifeline cut that short after two long seconds. He let out an anguished cry from the pain of the ropes biting in. \"Emergency escape...!\" Cutting the rope with his knife, he resumed his descent, the bottoms of his shoes digging into a slanted rock face. Sliding and hitting his shoulder, Subaru landed on the ground roughly, somehow keeping his footing, and ran without pausing for breath. He tossed away the knapsack to lighten the load, breathing raggedly as he ran without a care for proper form. \"I saw it! Yeaaaah...I totally saw it!\" The object that had attacked Subaru by surprise and mowed down various trees was a spiked iron ball as large as a man's skull. It was basically a killer bowling ball on a really, really long chain the weapon known as a \"morning star.\" Subaru had hit the dirt when his eardrums picked up the faint metallic sound of that horrible weapon's chain. Having witnessed its fiendish power for himself, Subaru still wasn't biting with his teeth lined up right. The way that thing had flown at him, his body probably would have been splattered if it had connected. Now Subaru could understand how half his body had been sent flying. \"But...he came here, huh?!\" He stomped on branches, leapt across a gulch, and raced across areas with poor footing. Subaru had anticipated that he might be attacked. Having distanced himself from the manor, he determined that an attack on him was just as possible as a raid on the mansion itself. If the objective was to kill anyone involved, Subaru was still on that list. \"But that's based on knowing I was at the mansion since days ago!\" That would mean the assailant had been observing the mansion for several days, drawing up plans in secret. *** Out of breath, he'd lost his way, focusing on not tripping as he headed down a game trail. Subaru, breathing roughly, clicked his tongue at the scene unfolding before him. \"So I've been totally dancing on the other guy's palm?\" Dismayed, Subaru stood before a cliff that hemmed him in. Looking at the hard, jagged rock wall, it was like a natural fortress for resisting all attempts to climb. Naturally, Subaru had no way at the moment to overcome that obstacle. Subaru turned around and girded himself, taking deep, ragged breaths. The forest before him had grown darker at some point, with the trees filtering out the setting sun, making him feel cut off from the world and very, very alone. \"If you're coming, bring it on...!\" Subaru shoved away his misgivings, opening his track jacket in front and stripping it off. He spread out the track jacket with both hands, quietly waiting for his assailant to arrive. He was being pursued. He'd been backed into a corner. That moment, Subaru felt as helpless as prey caught in a predator's trap. But he wasn't so cute and helpless that he'd let himself get eaten without a fight. He'd make the other guy earn it. \"Damn it...you coming or not?!?\" Subaru's body demonstrated uncanny reflexes toward the lethal attack before his eyes. He raised the track jacket aloft with both hands, catching the flying iron ball from below, enveloping it as he barely evaded by the skin of his teeth a ferocious strike to his body. But the top was ripped from his hands as his body smacked against the wall with an undiluted impact. But the moment Subaru lifted his eyes and saw that the iron ball, having missed its target, was stuck in the face of the cliff just as he'd hoped, he got a firm grip on the elongated chain. Then he glared down the chain he gripped in the direction of the assailant holding the other end. \"Now, show yourself, bastard! I've gone through a lot of trouble to see your face!!\" He raised an angry shout and talked trash to lift his own spirits. Gripping the chain in one hand, he used the other to re-grip the knife he'd cut the rope with earlier. He resolved to swing it in the assailant's face if worse came to worst. If it came to that, Subaru wouldn't hesitate. His eyes hardened. He wouldn't run no matter who or what came out. His life was in grave peril, but somehow, he was still alive. Maybe he didn't have to throw away this time; maybe it was still possible to drive off the assailant. Having already given up once, Subaru desperately reached out for any glimmer of hope. Perhaps that glimmer was Emilia. Perhaps it was the maid twins."}, {"text": "Perhaps it was that cheeky little girl or maybe Roswaal. Without intending to, Subaru forgot his situation, remembering the collection of memories he thought he'd shoved aside. He'd made promises. Promises he had to keep. But then... \" You leave me no choice,\" she said. The chain made a sound. He felt slack in the chain as its wielder drew closer. But Subaru didn't pick up those subtleties as his eyes opened wide. He couldn't speak. His lips quivered as a whimper came out of his throat. Unintentionally, his fingers grasping the chain let go as he made a small, listless shake of his head, as if rejecting the reality before him. Walking on the grass, stepping over branches, a young girl emerged from the darkness. She was wearing a black, rather short apron dress. She wore a white lace hairpiece. She gripped a handle chained to the iron ball thoroughly unsuited to her small stature. Her blue hair rustled in the wind as she made a familiar tilt of her head, a neutral look on her face. \"...You're kidding, right, Rem?\" One of the girls Subaru had meant to protect was wielding the fiendish iron ball before him. Instantly, the back of Subaru's mind was completely filled with white noise. He desperately wanted to deny the sight before his eyes, but he could think of nothing that would let him.  Subaru's thoughts were white, pure white, with nothing in them whatsoever. His breathing stopped. His heart seemed to stand still, like it had forgotten to keep beating. What freed Subaru from that state was the cold feel of the drop of sweat rolling down the skin of his forehead.  This is bad. Bad bad bad bad bad bad. His empty thoughts became filled over and over with violent unease and panic. No rational thoughts came. Was this truly Rem before his eyes? Was this truly the Rem Subaru knew, her polite words sliding in like daggers, punctual to the point of obsession, doting on her impudent sister, harboring a serious inferiority complex? With Subaru having lost his earlier will to fight, Rem looked at him as she ran her free hand through her hair. \"If you do not resist, I can grant you a quick end?\" \" You really think I'm gonna say yes? That's like telling me to eat shit.\" \"How very rude. Yes, I suppose that is in your nature, Dear Guest?\" Rem was behaving just like she had at the mansion, her curtsy and polite speech so thoroughly out of place that he felt like he really was seeing things. But that could not make him dismiss the brutal foreign object in Rem's hand. \"I'll grant you that a girl with a blunt weapon is kind of hot, but...\" A spiked iron ball on a chain. A blunt weapon that could turn an opponent into mincemeat with one blow. Rem had to be quite a sadist to pick a weapon like that. Subaru, having tasted its might and losing his life to it once already, knew only too well that Rem's control of the iron ball was absolute. Little by little, Subaru ground the reality down between his teeth, his mouth forming the words he was reaching for. \"It's kinda clich\u00c3\u00a9 to ask, but...why are you doing this?\" \"It is nothing complicated. You are suspicious, so I will render judgment as a maid should.\" \"Haven't you ever heard of 'love thy neighbor'...?\" \"I am fully committed to this, so...\" Rem looked at Subaru like she expected a prompt response, apparently having no intention of letting him play for time. If he moved now, she'd kill him for sure. It was less of a stalemate than staring down the barrel of a gun. Subaru's brain spun as he desperately tried to wring a little info out of this without his anguish lowering his guard. \" Does Ram know about this?\" Abruptly, he invoked the name of the sister sharing Rem's face. Ram wore three crowns: she was arrogant, rude, and overbearing. As a maid, she was inferior to her little sister in every respect, but Subaru had spent more time with Ram than anyone else at Roswaal Manor. If even Ram had become his enemy what did those days they spent together mean? That was why Rem's reply was the one Subaru had sought without knowing it. \"I intend to finish this before Sister is aware of it.\" Subaru took a deep breath and looked back straight into Rem's eyes. Rem raised her brows as she watched Subaru lick his lips as if he'd come back to life. \"So you decided this on your own? Roswaal didn't order you?\" \"I will eliminate all who oppose Master Roswaal's wishes. You are merely one.\" \"Man, can't he train his lapdogs not to bite at people just passing thro  Ugh?!\" Subaru taunted Rem a little to probe Rem's true feelings, only to have the chain leap in from the side. \"You shall not insult Master Roswaal.\" The blunt impact made his vision waver; a sharp pain conveyed the vertical cut in his left cheek. With the iron ball still stuck in the rock face, she'd smacked Subaru by using the chain as a whip. So that was the price he paid for his flippant taunt. But he'd gotten something for it. At the very least, he could now confirm that Rem's loyalty to Roswaal was the real thing. She no doubt really believed silencing Subaru was for Roswaal's benefit. She'd decided that Subaru's leaving Roswaal Manor was disadvantageous for Roswaal, who was supporting Emilia's candidacy. In other words, this was  \"Ah, that's what it is  That's how little you trust me, huh?\" \"Yes.\" Her grudging nod made Subaru feel pain equal to a sharp blade being thrust deep into his chest. Subaru had dreaded that answer, for accepting it meant looking at his days at the manor in an entirely different light. So Subaru didn't say it. He locked that horrid feeling deep in his chest. But he couldn't help himself from laughing at his own obliviousness. \"Damn, just look at me. I thought I'd done all right, but I was so wrong...\" \"...My sister \" \"I don't wanna hear it ! Take this!\" Rem hesitated slightly for one instant as Subaru shouted and drew his cell phone from his pocket, thrusting it before him.  The next moment, a white light cut through the darkness of the forest, freezing Rem momentarily. \" Raaah!\" Subaru screamed as he leapt in and tackled her small body, knocking her away. Rem was able to wield that violent device with unbelievable force, but in a straight-up collision, Subaru's greater height and weight won out. His charge held nothing back, sending her small body flying; she lost her balance and stumbled to the ground. Subaru didn't spend even a moment to look at her as he rushed past. He wheezed as he shoved air into his lungs and thought as he ran. If this was Rem's decision alone, Subaru had two options for survival. One surely was to return to the manor and speak directly to her master. But if Roswaal thought the same way Rem did, he'd simply be going from the frying pan into the fire. \"But even so...there's Emilia...!\" His memory of her shone brighter than that of any other. If he could trust anyone, it was her.  But would she, a royal candidate, trust Subaru's words when she had the most to lose from doing so? *** Instantly, the voice from the back of Subaru's head struck him with the force of a thunderbolt. Without any doubt, it had been his voice that doubted Emilia's heart. It was Subaru himself who had doubted her, knowing how she was forthright, earnest, and unhesitant to put herself in harm's way for others. \"Why...am I doing...!\" His standpoint had changed, and so had his thoughts. But to doubt Emilia? If Subaru couldn't even trust the person he'd resolved to protect, who could he believe in? He was pathetically fleeing through the mountains because of the big plan he'd formed to protect the life of someone whose heart he doubted. How sane was that?  He'd gather intel this time? Yeah, right. Why was he here, under threat from a completely unexpected direction, running for his life like this? He'd been too proud. He'd been naive. He hadn't thought it through. His breath ragged, half running and half falling down a slope, Subaru was awash in regrets. He whined as tears clouded his vision. His steps grew clumsy. Suddenly, the trees opened wide into a clearing; Subaru saw that night was creeping across the sky. Then  \" Ah?\" A blade of extremely concentrated wind lashed out, slicing off Subaru's right leg at the knee, sending it flying away. Subaru watched his right foot leap and bounce with great force as he lost his balance, slamming into the ground. The impact made the cut on his cheek bleed again; his shoulder bone sounded like it'd exploded as it rammed into the rock. Subaru screamed, the cut across his whole body jabbing into his brain like an electric shock. \"Aaaaaaagh! M-my leeeeeg?!\" It didn't hurt, and that felt scarier. Pieces of his lost lower leg were blown off, sailing into the thickets ahead. A delayed gush of fresh blood dyed the ground reddish-black; only then did the pain invade his nervous system in earnest. *** He clawed at the ground as unspeakable pain rippled through him. He pressed down on the wound, thrashed his body, pounded his free right hand against the ground, smacked a tree, and clawed at the bark as his consciousness boiled from the heat. It hurt, it hurt, it really hurt. He felt the pain shaving away his nerves as if a carpenter's plane were whittling him from the inside out. Having lost so much blood so quickly, it gradually dawned on him that he was dying. \"Mana of Water, grant thy healing.\" A soft palm abruptly pressed down on Subaru's thrashing body. Unable to move, Subaru shifted his bloodshot eyes and noticed the girl in the maid outfit at his side. It was the blue-haired Rem. Rem, who had tried to kill Subaru just now, enveloped her palm in a pale light, pouring warm magical energy onto Subaru's amputated right leg. He felt the itch of healing magic. The pain didn't vanish completely, but shock seized Subaru at the surreal scene. Subaru didn't know why Rem was healing him at a time like this. Sensing Subaru's gaze, she gave him a soft, casual smile. What seemed like a tiny ray of hope died with the words that followed. \"I will not be able to ask you anything if I let you die so easily.\" It truly sank in what an optimistic idiot he was. Rem stood up as she finished her first aid, making a sound with her chain as she pulled along the iron ball. Subaru was lying faceup with the iron ball gouging the earth as it neared him. The closer he saw it, the clearer it looked like the crude, unrefined, specialized tool for violence that it was, existing only to take life. Rem had deliberately brought it where he could see. Her intentions were crystal clear. It was the easiest way for her to demonstrate that his life was in her hands. \" I am confiscating this.\" Rem spoke as she crouched and opened up Subaru's firmly closed hand. His hand had been locked around the knife since his encounter with Rem, unable to let go. Rem roughly pried open his fingers and took the knife, turning it around in her hand. \"Had you stabbed me with this earlier, you would have been able to flee a little farther.\" Rem knitted her brows, speaking like she couldn't comprehend Subaru's illogical act. But Subaru, suppressing his breathing amid the throbbing pain, shook his head.  There was no way he could have stabbed Rem with that knife. That knife had"}, {"text": "been the implement in his hands when he'd spent such busy and gentle times with Rem's back to him as Ram taught him how to peel vegetables. He couldn't stab Rem with that.  Subaru's heart lacked the strength for that. As Subaru continued shaking his head without a word, Rem sighed and discarded the knife into the forest thicket. She seemed to refocus her attention as she made the chain clank and coldly looked down at Subaru. \"I ask you, are you working with one of Lady Emilia's rival claimants to the throne?\" \"...My heart belongs to Emilia.\" The moment he spoke, the chain ferociously lashed Subaru's upper body. His shirt, scratched all over during his flight, easily tore open, as did the skin underneath. Subaru's scream echoed through the forest. \"Who hired you and on what terms?\" \"E-Emilia-tan's smiling face is...priceless.\" She moved her wrist the other way and did the same thing again. Feeling like she'd lashed him in precisely the same place, he knew his anguished cry served as praise for her skill. She asked more questions like that. He made more replies like that. Several times more, the chain rang out. Several times more, Subaru's painful cries matched it. When his consciousness faded, Rem treated him with healing magic. Trapped in a hell of repeated healing and violence, Subaru's spirit frayed; he lost consciousness several times like that. Yet, his heart did not submit to Rem's lashings. Rem must have felt tired of Subaru's obstinate attitude when she wiped the blood spatter off her face and looked up at the sky. \"If I do not get back soon, I will be late preparing the meal...\" \"...Dinner, huh. What's on the menu today, huh...\" \"Let's see. How about mincemeat pie?\" \"S-sorry, I think I'll have to skip it...\" Rem finally showed some sign of emotion as she sighed at Subaru's behavior, flippant to the bitter end. After that, she fell silent for a while before looking down at Subaru, her eyes colder than ever before as she interrogated him. \" Are you a member of the Witch Cult?\" Subaru knit his brow, perplexed at having vocabulary he'd never heard before thrown at him. He didn't know what those words meant in regards to the place, the circumstances, or Rem's real thoughts. \"Answer, please. You are one of the Bewitched, yes?\" \"...Be what?\" \"Do not play games with me!\" Agitated, Rem's pale blue eyes shot daggers through Subaru in a rage. It was literally the first time Subaru had seen Rem worked up like this since they'd met. Rem's pale face glowered as she looked down at Subaru with pure hostility. \"I don't know them... My whole family's atheist to begin with...\" \"Still denying it? It is plain you are involved with the witch. Her stench is all over you!\" Hatred. Rem's eyes seethed with dark hatred as they glared at Subaru. Subaru's eyes widened, feeling like this part of Rem, this vortex of emotion, put every single thing she'd done in a completely new light. \"Even if Sister or no one else notices, I can smell it on you! The leftover stench of that monster makes me want to spit in disgust!\" Subaru fell silent. Rem, standing before him, bit her lip so hard that she seemed to be grinding her teeth. \"I was anxious and angry when I saw you speaking with Sister. You, someone involved with the one who put Sister through so much...weaseling into our precious home !\" Her words of undiluted malice mercilessly bathed Subaru in bitterness. \"I have been watching you since Master Roswaal welcomed you...but the entire time, it hurt to watch you. I could not bear it.\" Subaru had been unable to say a word. Then, Rem drove the dagger home. \"Even if I knew that the whole time Sister was taking care of you, she was just pretending to be friendly!\" *** Rem seemed to be making up for her seemingly inadequate emotions by slamming all her bottled-up resentment at Subaru in one go. Rem stopped speaking as her shoulders shook, her eyes filled with rage as they glared at Subaru. Then, her anger abruptly wavered from surprise. \" What the hell...?\" For, as Rem spoke words filled with hatred, Subaru had been crying quietly. \"I knew it was...something like that.\" Sobs came up his throat, hot tears slipping out of his eyes and falling upon his cheeks. The flood of seemingly ceaseless tears continued as Subaru said in a sorrowful, halting voice, \"So that's what it was... I knew there was some reason behind all the kindness. But...I was too afraid to ask...\" It was the two of them who had drilled the basics of work into good-for-nothing Subaru. Ram had scoffed at him for not knowing how to put on a butler outfit. Rem had re-tailored the ill-fitting suit and taught him how to put it on. Ram had patiently stuck with Subaru when he'd been painstakingly learning characters. After the promise to have Rem cut his hair, she'd often been staring at him; he'd been happy to have people paying attention to him and urging him on. They were all kind memories he could never forget. \"I finally learned how to peel veggies without cutting my hand. I learned how to do laundry right. Didn't finish learning how to clean the place, but...\" He couldn't have hoped for more in four days. But he'd thought that, if he could get past those four days, there was much more to learn in the days to come. \"Reading... It's just the simple stuff, but I can do that now. I studied like I promised. I read the picture book. It's all thanks to you two...\" \"What are you...talking about?\" The tone of Rem's voice fell, like she was creeped out by Subaru's rambling words. Subaru looked straight up into Rem's eyes. \"I'm talking about what you two have done for me...\" \"I recall no such thing.\" \" Why don't you remember?!\" The sudden burst of rage made Rem take a step back without thinking. Subaru forced his lying body to rise, glaring at Rem with his teeth bared as he shouted. \"Why'd everyone leave me behind...! What did I do to you...! Tell me what I did to you...!\" He couldn't control his emotions. He knew full well he'd be ripped to pieces, but Subaru's heart, his very soul, could not stop shouting. He'd been summoned to another world, subjected to senseless things, and in spite of it all, he'd gritted his teeth and pushed forward. But he'd reached his limit. \"What'd I do wrong? What's wrong with me? Why do you girls hate me that much...? Even...that promise... I've always...\" *** \"I've always lo \"  The impact did not permit him to say any more. The sudden force bent back Subaru's body; it gently hit the tree trunk behind him. Subaru heard nearby sounds like faint breathing and frothing water. When he shifted his gaze, he immediately discovered the cause. *** His throat. Half of Subaru's throat had been ripped out. He was gurgling air and bubbles of blood from the middle of his windpipe. Dumbfounded, he looked at Rem's face as she stared at the wound. Having seen that much, Subaru's eyes lost their spark, going dizzy and white. He couldn't speak. His mind felt like someone had turned off the switch. Everything grew distant. There was no pain, no sadness; he left behind all his emotions. But in the end, he had the faint sense he could hear someone's sad voice. \" Sister is too kind.\" CHAPTER 5 *** He wasn't aware of the exact moment he returned to consciousness. The sound of heavy rain kept ringing in his ears. His vision flickered between red and white. The world was bent and warped. Unable to feel his arms or legs, he made a thick, anguished scream as if someone were wringing his intestines like wet laundry. He twisted his body and leapt, every movable part of his entire body unleashing fierce incomprehension.  He didn't know what was going on. The burning pain of his leg being severed and the scars of his body being lashed all over by the chain were...gone. He'd lost his blood. He'd lost his life. He'd died. He hadn't wanted to die. He hated the pain, the suffering, the sadness, the fear, all of it. He wanted to push it all away. Everything he could see, everything he could touch, everything he could feel. *** He heard something. He heard someone's voice. He heard a voice, like someone was desperately trying to calm a wild beast. The meaning didn't get through. He didn't understand the meaning. He didn't want to understand the meaning. It was useless to listen. Listening would only get him hurt. Listening wouldn't change a thing. Yet as he rejected all, color returned to the world, as did sound, as did shape. The senses of his entire disheveled body told him, correctly, that blood was reaching his limbs. His flailing hand hit something, breaking fingernails and ripping the back of his hand, making it bleed. The sharp pain jabbed into his brain, somewhat lessening the force of his scream. Then he realized it. Someone had grabbed and wrapped up his hurting arms. He felt something similar on his legs. Something was covering him, making him unable to move either leg. Right above him, his returning vision saw the familiar white ceiling he'd seen several times over now. He realized he was lying faceup on the soft bed. He finally breathed out, strength draining from his stiffened body, when... \"Dear Guest, Dear Guest. Have you finally calmed down?\" \"Dear Guest, Dear Guest. Have you finally stopped flailing?\" The instant his ears heard the two familiar voices, Subaru remembered to scream. Subaru's fourth first day at Roswaal Manor had begun in the worst way possible. Subaru lived with the shame of having already died six times since arriving in that world. They were most certainly not peaceful deaths. Each death came with its own commensurate sense of loss. You didn't get used to the pain and suffering of it. Though he picked himself up each time, no one could understand the loneliness, the desolation, the anguish he felt. He'd resolve that no matter what pickle he might find himself in, his heart, at least, would not falter. But that resolve had been shattered by his latest Return by Death. His sense of loss, of despair, of loneliness, gouged Subaru just as deeply as the bonds formed over the days before. There was no way he could recover. He didn't have the strength to recover. Emilia, sitting on the bed beside Subaru, smiled at him as she patted his injured right hand. \" All right, done. I think it's nicely patched up, but you mustn't thrash around like that, okay?\"  At that moment, Subaru and Emilia were the only two people in the room. The two maids who had been present when Subaru awoke retreated in the face of Subaru's disgraceful behavior right after waking, leaving things to Emilia. \"Ram and Rem were really so worried about you.\" Subaru reflexively raised his face at the mention of two names he didn't want to hear. Subaru's reaction put a bit of surprise on Emilia's face, but she instantly brushed it off with a small shake of her head. \"They're feeling unusually down, thinking they may have offended you somehow. How about you say something to them next time you see them?\" \"Offended, huh? No, they didn't do anything... There's nothing between those people and me.\" Emilia's feminine eyebrows softly grimaced at the insensitive tone of his voice. Her reaction was in the corner of Subaru's vision, but no apology or excuse came from his lips. Instead, what came out was a question without the slightest hint of sarcasm. \"Hey, Emilia, do you...think I'm a bother?\" Emilia raised a finger and seemed to speak rapid-fire to hold Subaru in check."}, {"text": "\"How could I think you're a bother? You saved my life, Subaru. What are you supposed to do if someone you owe a debt to just gets up and leaves? It'd really put me in a bind.\" Subaru listened in silence, belatedly realizing that he was staring intently at every detail of Emilia's face and actions. \"Whoa, I was seriously...\" He was disheartened that it was he who'd given Emilia such a look of distrust. Emilia had unexpectedly hit the nail on the head, had she not? To stop thinking of your benefactor as your benefactor was the lowest thing you could do. Emilia was the only oasis Subaru had in an uncertain world. Subaru, having lost everything else he'd set his heart upon, had nowhere else to turn. *** He suddenly had a small thought. Perhaps it was to Emilia that he should reveal the truth of the Return by Death? \"That's right...\" Now that he thought about it, Subaru had tried to change his dead-end reality completely on his own so far. But all he'd achieved was a dead-end fate, with both the future and the past blocked off. Breaking through that stalemate required fundamental change. Maybe the answer was to form a bond of trust with a third party, someone he could rely on? \" Emilia, there's something I want to tell you.\" The clouds seemed to lift as Subaru's feelings of hesitation and unease parted inside him. Hearing the tone of Subaru's voice fall like that, Emilia sat back down in a chair, looking at Subaru with a face tense with concern. Watching himself reflected in her violet eyes, Subaru thought of how he should begin this. How should he talk about Return by Death? Perhaps Subaru ought to first find out if it was something that happened to other people of that world, too? It was a pretty funny story, really. The chances were high she'd think it was a big joke. But Emilia would listen to Subaru tell it, wouldn't she? Then and there, that was the hope that kept Subaru going.  He'd talk to her about Return by Death. And that he hoped she would lend him her strength. Subaru, well aware that here he was, already receiving her gratitude and yet making another request, opened his mouth. They'd change this extremely confusing situation. They'd fight against Fate and win...together.  Or so he thought. \"Emilia. I c \" He began his confession. The moment the thought formed, it came. *** Discomfort. Something's wrong, Subaru's mind told him. What's wrong, he wondered back, but he immediately noticed why. Sound. Sound was gone. There was no sound anywhere. His own heartbeat. Emilia's breaths. The sounds of morning filtering through the window. All had completely vanished from the world. And that was but the prelude for what was to come.  Next, movement followed sound, vanishing from the world as well. The passing of time lengthened. A single moment extended to eternity. The next second simply never arrived. Emilia's serious expression remained before his eyes, unmoving. She was like an ice statue, her next motion an eternity away. Subaru was the same. He couldn't move. His mouth, his eyes, nothing for eternity. Sound had vanished, time had stopped, and Subaru's hand could not even reach out to beg. For some reason, only Subaru's mind continued on during the phenomenon beyond his understanding.  And then, suddenly, it came. A black cloud. Subaru, unable to blink, suddenly saw it fill his vision. In a world where nothing could move, only the cloud was still in motion. The cloud wriggled and changed shape. Its mass was such that it could be held in the palms of one's hands. Bit by bit, the contours of the cloud took form, and it finished changing shape.  Subaru saw something like a black palm. It had five fingers. It didn't reach to an elbow, but he could definitely make out a forearm. The black fingers shifted. The gentle movements of what clearly had the shape of a hand swam through the air. Subaru's mind gasped when he saw where it was headed. The black fingers slowly reached to Subaru's chest...and seemed to go right in. Subaru felt the feeling straight to his soul. The feeling of the fingers brushing against his internal organs, stroking his rib cage... Discomfort and unease gripped Subaru. The black cloud wouldn't stop moving. It was as if it hadn't found what it was looking for and had to look deeper, deeper into Subaru's chest.  Hey, hold on here. His voice wouldn't come out. His body couldn't resist. Subaru's mind let out a terrified yelp.  This isn't funny. Subaru was shaken beyond what he could call his innards, to the very core of his being. Could anyone put into words why having your internal organs damaged hurt? The question is pointless. No one needs to think about it. In that instant, Subaru felt no need to put into words what that excruciating pain felt like. It was really simple. Having his heart mercilessly squeezed felt like his very soul was being crushed. He couldn't scream. He couldn't writhe from the pain. There was only suffering. And along with suffering came something that made Subaru wish he could scream. The pain was pulling apart the person called \"Subaru.\" His mind was frayed, twisting, falling apart. Subaru was being cut into pieces, unable to remember what a logical thought felt like  \" baru,\" *** \"Subaru, what's wrong? Don't go all quiet like that. It worries me.\" Her hands were on his thighs as the silver-haired beauty gazed into Subaru's eyes with concern. Subaru seemed to stop holding his breath when he was sure his fingers were moving as he intended. He gingerly touched his own chest, confirming from the outside that his heart was making quiet beats. His body moved. His voice came out. He couldn't feel any pain from his heart.  But the fear remained. Subaru fell into despair, for it had ripped his one hope to shreds. Just thinking about defying it a second time made him see the swaying black cloud in his mind. Subaru had no choice but to face facts. Unable to hold back her emotions, Emilia put her palm against Subaru's face, at a loss as she asked an uncertain question. \" Wh-what's wrong? You've been acting weird since earlier. If something's wrong...\" \" I want to ask you a favor.\" Subaru cut off Emilia's worried voice midway, lying down and turning away his head. He couldn't face her. His features probably looked horrible. If he looked at Emilia in his current emotional state, there was no telling what he might say to her. Working all out to keep his mind steady, Subaru could manage to say only one thing. He threw away the words he wanted to say. He threw away the feelings that wanted her to hear. He threw away everything. \"Don't have anything to do with me.\" Listlessly, that was all he said as he curled into the bed. He didn't even look at Emilia's shocked reaction. Unconsciously, Subaru had firmly grasped a single fact the moment the palm touched his chest.  He would not be permitted to break free. Subaru was alone. And he would remain alone. Having brushed off Emilia, Subaru gloomily began his fourth loop. Roswaal went to Subaru's room after he'd hurt Emilia with his heartless statement. Subaru largely didn't remember what they'd talked about. But he felt like he'd been appraised like an expensive vase. He didn't know if that was just this time or if it had happened before and he just hadn't noticed. \"I shall treat you as a guest for as looong as you prefer.\" Subaru felt like he'd said something convenient like that. He also felt like the details didn't matter anymore. If he left the mansion, they'd shut him up for good. That was certain. But even if he was dead weight in the mansion, he couldn't avoid getting ground into mincemeat in the near future. He felt like his saved game guaranteed a BAD END. The fact that it was autosave made it extra brutal. *** Subaru was on top of the bed and not moving much, but his breaths were quick and ragged. Fearful of falling asleep, Subaru had used the feathered pen in his hand to cut the back of his other hand several times. Every time his eyelids seemed to droop, he forced his consciousness awake through pain. If he slept, he didn't know what he'd wake up to. He'd already died three times. In the royal capital loop, he hadn't experienced more than three deaths. To Subaru, plunged into that first day for the fourth time around, dying a fourth death was unknown territory.  Maybe, if he died here, he'd never come back. He couldn't find a way to avoid death. But still, he didn't want to die. He distrusted all and struggled against all in his desperate fight to live. He forgot the passage of time, the churning of his empty stomach; Subaru became eager to simply exist. The pain of his wound felt like affirmation of his existence. The spaces between the holes in his hand vanished. Pain. Joy. Pain. Joy. Pain. Pain. Pain  Suddenly, his face shot up when he abruptly heard a little girl's voice. \" You certainly have a cowardly look about you.\" A girl was standing at the entrance, leaning against it, shooting Subaru a look like she was gazing at a beast. Beatrice, whom he had yet to meet even once during this loop, had come to visit. Subaru's vigilance ratcheted up at the unprecedented change of circumstances. \" So it's you this time?\" He belatedly realized that his voice was low and scratchy. It surprised him. His voice held more hostility in it than he'd imagined. Maybe he was voicing his feeling that the world was cursed. \"What an incorrigible fool, to waste away like this in the span of a day or two.\" \"No one asked you  What'd you come for?\" Beatrice, having mocked Subaru's disgraceful sight and received his sullen retort in turn, narrowed her eyes slightly. \"...Puckie and that little girl asked me to pay you a visit.\" \"Puck and...Emilia?\" \"You were acting oddly since you awoke, I suppose, so they suspected that I had done something to you when you first woke up. A rather rude suggestion, if I may say so.\" It was true, and Beatrice was innocent, but those things didn't register with Subaru. Surely Subaru's heartless words had hurt Emilia, yet she was concerned for Subaru all the same, enough to speak directly to Beatrice, even if her suspicions were misplaced? As a result, Beatrice, with a weakness for Puck to begin with, had Puck begging her to help them, so here she was, reluctantly showing herself in Subaru's room. Emilia's concern for him brought just a tiny bit of warmth to Subaru's heart. Even if it was meaningless as far as breaking the stalemate was concerned... \"Got it. I'm all right now. You came to apologize, and that's enough.\" Beatrice's lips twisted as Subaru tried to brush her away. \"Why must I apologize to you, I wonder? Before anything else, I will not be leaving until that misunderstanding is cleared up.\" Instead of leaving the room, she marched over to the bed. Subaru was about to pile on more complaints when... \" Hm?\" Subaru watched as she crinkled her nose and tilted her head. If she just stayed quiet she'd look pretty adorable, but... Beatrice looked displeased at being stared at and covered her face, glaring at Subaru. \"'Tis not just your dull face, I suppose, that is rotten. It is quite thick all around you.\" \" Huh?\" \"Perhaps I speak of the scent tickling my nose? It would be wise to avoid meeting the twins for a while.\" Beatrice pinched her nose and waved with her free hand as if driving off an unpleasant scent. *** But Subaru's mind couldn't"}, {"text": "let go of the keyword scent. Scent. Certainly someone had used that word around the end of the third loo  \"A smell coming from me...?\" \" The scent of the witch. Perhaps your nose is broken?\" He remembered that word. He'd come across that piece of vocabulary only recently. So that meant  \"The jealous witch?\" \"In today's day and age, there is none other who would be called witch, I suppose.\" Her statement, belittling him as a petty idiot, aroused only more questions in Subaru. \"Why is that scent coming from me?\" \"Who is to say? Perhaps the witch took a liking to you, or perhaps she hates the very sight of you. Either way, the witch giving you special treatment makes you attract trouble.\" Beatrice slumped her shoulders, her gloomy behavior indicating any further talk about it was unwelcome. Witch a being shunned throughout the world to the point that the fairy tale \"The Witch of Jealousy\" would not record her name. But Subaru had no connection to the witch or the story; he'd read about it only in a book. Naturally, without any memory of having met the witch, he had no memory of how he might carry a lingering scent from her touch.  Rem had also said he stank of the witch, hadn't she? He felt that the overwhelming hostility was related in part to the scent of the witch. If that was so, he'd earned her hatred through something he had no memory of; with one slander piled on another, she felt she had no choice but to silence him. Subaru, having grasped something that was wholly outside his control, sighed at length. As Subaru remained silent, Beatrice looked at him as she reached toward the doorknob. \"If nothing's wrong with you, I'm leaving. I should tell Puckie that we had a chat and what we talked about, I suppose.\" She seemed ready to vanish into the Passage when he called out to stop her. \"Wait a sec.\" Beatrice looked distinctly displeased as she looked back at him. Subaru stubbornly arrived at the words and tossed them out. \"You feel bad about what you did to me, don't you?\" He didn't know if it meant anything or not but he thought it was worth a shot. Beatrice shot Subaru a sour look as Subaru knocked against the bed and asked again. \"Do you feel bad about it? Yes or no?\" \"I think no such thing.\" \"I'll tell Puck on you.\" Beatrice repositioned herself to face Subaru, crossing her arms and raising her nose with a haughty air. \"Ugh...perhaps I think it a teeeeeny bit.\" \"I'll forgive you if you'll do one little favor for me.\" \"...Would you speak it, I wonder?\" \"Could you protect me until sunrise on the fifth da  The morning after tomorrow?\" It was a thoroughly shameless request to make of a girl who looked younger than he did. Beatrice was silent for a while in the face of Subaru's heartfelt request. \"That is a rather vague statement. Perhaps there is a reason someone is after you?\" The question Beatrice countered with was quite natural and sensible. Beatrice kept Subaru in her sights as she paced around the room. \"In the first place, I do not want to bring discord to this manor. This manor is a place that, to me, I must not lose, I suppose.\" \"...I don't want to cause any trouble. I just wanna put out any sparks that fly.\" \"That is quite a sentiment coming from someone trying to make it another's problem?\" \"For once, I don't have a comeback.\" Beatrice sighed as Subaru bowed down before her. Subaru was still bowed as he thought he heard a sound like the door being closed from the inside. The sound of Subaru's request being denied and Beatrice returning to her archive. The moment he heard that sound, Subaru's threadbare hope snapped. \"Could you put out your hand, I wonder?\" With Subaru filled with resignation, Beatrice walked to the side of the bed and offered her tiny hand. Beatrice's irritation sent Subaru, in complete shock, rushing to take her hand. As he did, Beatrice scowled as she looked at the damaged back of his hand. \"Disgusting. Perhaps you are an unsalvageable deviant who delights in self-harm?\" \"Roswaal's got the deviant market locked up. I was just trying to give myself a tattoo and messed it up.\" \"Your artistic sense, skill, and talent for lies are completely lacking... There is no saving you from that.\" Exhaling, Beatrice put her tiny palm on top of Subaru's hand, as if trying to cover the wounds. Her smooth fingers invited his in until their hands intertwined. \" I shall grant thy wish. By the name of Beatrice, the pact is formed.\" Beatrice's solemn statement left Subaru completely at a loss for words. Suddenly, the girl before his eyes looked completely different than before. As her fingers gripped his, the warmth they conveyed made his mind see the aura of mystique surrounding her. \"Makeshift or not, a pact is a pact  Perhaps I have been moved by your irrational request.\" Beatrice released his fingers and crossed her arms once again. Subaru bowed before her, suppressing the wave of emotion that hit him. He didn't put the emotions into words, but they gushed from a bottomless well deep in his heart. He didn't know how to react to being offered salvation from the least expected source. \"Seriously...a little girl's gonna make me cry...\" \"Could you not say little girl, I wonder? Also, I will never forgive you if you say one word to Puckie about this.\" \"So that's the important part?! Desperation gets you demon-possessed, I tell you.\" Subaru made a bitter smile in response to Beatrice's look of genuine hostility. His fourth loop had begun with despair. It was a small smile, the only of this loop, but it was there. By forming a temporary pact with Beatrice, Subaru gained a tiny but tangible piece of security. However, the circumstances pressing down on Subaru had not fundamentally improved at all. As was his wont, Subaru continued life as a hermit in the room he had been granted; Beatrice was not hovering around Subaru, protecting him twenty-four hours a day. The problem was from the night of the fourth day to the morning of the fifth to reduce the effort needed to protect him during that time, he'd be leaving the room, not showing his face again until the appointed hour. In return, the one who visited Subaru time and again, and currently nodding while sitting on the side of the bed with a charming smile on her face, was Emilia. \"I see, so Beatrice came to properly apologize. I'm glad. A job well done.\" For Emilia to approach him like this after Subaru had treated her so poorly, which weighed heavily on his conscience, it was no exaggeration to say he thought of her like a goddess, his one light in a dark world. When Emilia visited again and he tried to apologize for his initial rude statement, she simply brushed off Subaru's horrible words. \"You were just overwhelmed, right? It can happen to anyone. It can't be helped. Ram and Rem will be pleased to hear you say that, though.\" Subaru gave no proper reply to the gentle request she'd slipped in at the end. Their loyalty was so great that they'd kill someone merely for knowing an inconvenient truth. Subaru had experienced that firsthand, but he couldn't hate them for it even so. He closed his eyes and thought back on his days at the manor. Back then, during those memories, were there not moments when Subaru and the sisters drew closer together?  Maybe he just wanted to believe it was so. Emilia looked at the tray left on the side of the bed and the untouched meal, slowly going cold, resting upon it as she murmured in a sullen tone. \"So you really didn't eat breakfast, did you?\" \"...Sorry.\" After snapping at Emilia, Subaru had become more quiet and withdrawn. Though Subaru acted like that, Ram and Rem diligently went about their duties as servants. Even when they knew he would never touch the food nor thank them for it. One was rude, while the other was polite only on the surface, but both were very formal and professional at heart. Subaru knew that. Despite knowing that, he could not accept the food.  For all he knew, it might be poisoned. That was the thought that passed through his mind when he looked at it. He hated himself for doubting the two of them. However, Subaru knew a future existed where the sisters waved around horrid weapons to kill him. He knew they had many virtues, but they'd try to kill him anyway. It was when Subaru had accepted that fact that his despair had truly begun. \"Maybe it's tough, but it's bad for you if you don't eat at least a little bit.\" \"My stomach won't take it... Well, maybe if Emilia-tan went 'Say aah' for me I could eat, but...\" Subaru cursed what an incurable joker he was, sending such a flippant remark Emilia's way when she was genuinely worried about him. However... \"Here, then. Say aah.\" \" Eh?\" \"I said, say aah \" Emilia had set the food tray on her lap, lifting a spoon and looking at Subaru. She used the spoon to scoop up some soup, which was still somewhat warm, and gently brought it toward Subaru's mouth. Subaru immediately shook his head, unable to understand what Emilia was trying to do. \"No, nonono, wait, hold up, Emilia-tan, what are you doing?\" \"What do you mean, what? You said you'd eat if I did this, didn't you? So eat. I'm saying 'say ahh' and everything.\" \"Err, this is like a ritual that girls don't actually do; their faces just go bright red and that's as far as it goes, I thought?\" \"If you're going to speak like a child, you can't be embarrassed at being fed like one. That would be silly.\" As Subaru dragged his feet, Emilia went \"Say aah\" again with a powerful, compelling stare. Subaru finally buckled under the pressure, feeling like he'd gone red to the tips of his ears as he opened his mouth. \"A-aah...\" \"There, swallow. Here's the next one. Here, here, here, here, here.\" \"That's too fast!! Was that aah just to get my guard down?!\" The way Emilia carried soup to his lips, automatically with no wasted motion whatsoever, made him wonder if she'd been in a fast-feeding competition or something. Subaru tried to keep up with one spoonful after another before roughly waving his hand midway. \"T-time-out, time-out! Can we stop? It's going down my th-throat the wrong way...!\" \"Goodness, and it was going so well, too... Subaru?\" \"Cough, cough, r-really, my throat feels...all weird...\" Subaru averted his face from Emilia, faking coughs to try to make the action seem more natural. He didn't want Emilia to see his face just then. Something hot was welling from deep in Subaru's eyes. He opened his eyes to give his tears somewhere to run and desperately tried to stop them from flowing. She continued to be kind to him in a world where he could see no hope. He wondered if he was truly worthy of such treatment... ...for Subaru Natsuki was in despair precisely because he rejected that he was. \"Hey, Subaru.\" As she called out to him in concern, Subaru lightly cleared his throat and tested his voice as he got back in order. \"...Mm, ahh, ahh. Okay. Yeah. I'm all right now. I think. I'm all right.\" He made the richest expression as he turned toward Emilia... ...and met her extremely gentle eyes, looking right at him. \"Let's continue.\" \"...The way you put that makes this feel really naughty somehow...\" *** Emilia, tilting her head, apparently hadn't noticed the risqu\u00c3\u00a9, bewitching nature of her statement. Or maybe it'd all been in his head to begin"}, {"text": "with. And so he finished eating, with Emilia offering a 'Say aah' and him opening his mouth, cheeks red from shyness and complicated sentiments. With the meal finished, Emilia clapped once in satisfaction. \"Good. Now, what do we say when we're done eating?\" \"That was great.\" \"That's bad manners. Once more, and say it right.\" \"Thank you for the food.\" \"You're very welcome.\" Faced with Emilia's broad smile, Subaru patted his belly, which strangely felt nice and full. His stomach felt no discomfort at having been stuffed after two days of going empty. \"Ram said, 'He hasn't eaten properly in a while so we must be gentle on his stomach,' and that's how Rem made it. They're such good girls, aren't they?\" Emilia's words, as if boasting on behalf of the sisters, stabbed Subaru's doubts like a dagger. If that was the truth, he'd be happy enough to cry at such a show of concern. But Subaru knew better. The very pain of the delusion made him want to cry. If only their gentleness and kind treatment didn't have that lurking behind it. \"Well, now that you've eaten, too, you must be tired, so I'll head back and let you rest.\" \"You could always sleep here beside me?\" \"Good, good, seems you're already your usual self. Now, I do have things I need to be doing, too. Don't tell anyone I was slacking off, okay?\" Emilia winked and stuck out her tongue. Subaru, remembering what Emilia would normally be doing at a time like this, felt deeply ashamed. Emilia had a kingdom resting on her shoulders; she didn't have one second to waste as she spent each day striving for a better future. She shouldn't have been wasting a single second of that precious time on someone worthless like Subaru. \" Emilia. Keep your door locked at night and don't let anyone in, okay?\" Perhaps he said it because Emilia's kindness had rekindled the tiniest spark of the will to defy Fate. Emilia brushed back her silver hair and inclined her head ever so slightly at Subaru's sudden admonition. \"Or you'll sneak in?\" \"Right, exa... No!! Hey, that was Puck not Emilia just now, wasn't it?!\" \"Wow, got it in one.\" Puck popped his head out of Emilia's hair and grinned at her and Subaru. He swished his tail as Subaru glared at him, no doubt having been listening in that hiding place from the very beginning. \"I didn't want to intrude on such a lovely scene, but your emotions suddenly turned serious, huh? That got my attention.\" \"...I just have a bad feeling, okay? You take good care of Emilia, now.\" With the black cloud lurking, Subaru had to be evasive when speaking about the future. Even so, Puck, able to read emotions, accepted his words without question. \"I'll have you know I really don't like feeling left behind in this conversation,\" Emilia complained. \"It's just saying a cute girl like you should always be careful about night visits, and to watch out for cars and men. Right, Dad?\" \"That's right, Lia. Daddy forbids you from seeing men...bad-looking, dark-haired men in particular.\" \"Brutus?!\" Puck laughed out loud as Subaru invoked the name of the famous betrayer. Emilia pinched the laughing Puck and shoved him back into her hair, this time rising to her feet. Subaru saw both of them off and, now alone in the room, flopped onto the bed. He'd gotten them to watch out more, but it was a small comfort. To begin with, the current crisis had little to do with either of them, so he figured they'd be all right. \"Aw, no...\" The instant Subaru's mind felt a smidgen of relief, his consciousness dove into a deep sleep. The pangs of sleep that he'd kept at bay with pain for so long suddenly rushed back, robbing Subaru of his will. And his stomach was full, too. His consciousness felt like it was sinking downward, unable to resist. Subaru's consciousness felt like a floating cloud, trapped between dream and reality. He'd heard somewhere that dreams had the side effect of organizing the waking brain's information. That would explain why Subaru, having delayed his sleep so long, beheld a string of such clear and vivid memories, as if they meant to haunt his dreams. Subaru's vivid, \"dead\" memories replayed over and over, etching themselves deeper into his mind. He moaned, tossed, turned; he made anguished sounds as sweat drenched his entire body. Immersed in tears and faint sounds, his soul was whittled down, down, down, and when the final thread was cut, surely nothing would remain. That was how far he had been worn down, both mentally and physically. *** Abruptly, the tension in Subaru's body vanished. It was as if the cold and terror that made his body shake had been swept aside.  It was his hands. Someone was holding Subaru's hands. Someone's touch from the real world pulled back Subaru, drifting in unconsciousness in the bed. It was a warm sensation, a gentle sensation, one that conveyed compassion. He felt like he'd been saved. He felt like a gentle breeze blew into his tattered mind. His ragged breathing eased; he forgot his suffering and returned to peaceful sleep. Who did it? What was it? Was it real or just a convenient trick of the dream? He continued to feel warmth lingering between the palms of his hands  \" Just how long are you going to sleep, I wonder?\" \"Whoaaaa!\" Subaru cried out in pain, having been violently kicked, followed by a hard landing on the floor. When Subaru shook his head and rose up, Beatrice was there, scowling, one leg raised in an unladylike manner. Beatrice snorted, once again unable to hide her displeasure. \"You were sleeping quite comfortably while I bothered to come at the appointed hour.\" \"It's like, you've got to put people down even when you don't have to?\" As Subaru talked back, he broke out in a cold sweat at having unintentionally slept. He'd gone as far as to hurt himself to stay awake and to keep his guard up. \"Sleeping on the all-important fourth day. Maybe I really do have a death wish.\" \"Would you cease your muttering, I wonder? There are more appropriate places for it.\" Beatrice, looking down and watching as Subaru lightly poked himself, sat on her stool as she spoke. Seeing her in her usual position like that, Subaru realized something was off and looked all around.  He was already in the archive when he awoke. \"Well, this is a surprise. Did you carry me in my sleep?\" \"I would not like to spend time in a room filled with that scent of yours, I suppose. This archive is my place and none other's. Could you behave yourself while here, I wonder?\" Subaru decided that Beatrice's actions, taken without asking him, had improved his situation. Beatrice's Passage would keep an assailant from narrowing down Subaru's location. Surely Rem had no sure means of breaching the Passage herself. \"You actually thought this out, huh?\" \"Do not just sit on the floor mumbling. Would you like to be swatted like an insect, I wonder?\" Oh, so that's what you're reading, said Subaru, looking at the pages open before Beatrice as he stuck out his tongue. Apparently, thinking of this as consideration would be overstating the case. Subaru rose from the floor, abruptly staring at his own two hands. An odd sensation remained. Someone had held his hand as he slept, hadn't  \"Hey Beatrice, don't tell me you held my hand while I was asleep?\" \"I won't be telling you such a thing, I suppose. I would not, even if Puckie asked me to.\" \"What a thing to say... But hey, at least we can die together!\" \"No. Absolutely not.\" Beatrice, rather sour, tapered her lips as Subaru looked around the room once more. The archive, filled with books as usual, lacked any convenient place to sit. \"How am I supposed to kill time in here...?\" With the time limit so close, his anxiety and stress were heightened; it was an open question as to how long he could keep his cool. If he could just immerse his head into something and forget the passage of time  \"Oh, right. Are there any books here written just in I-script?\" \" To think that you cannot read but the simplest things. How many humans do you think would cry with joy at just the thought of entering the Mathers family's archive of forbidden books?\" \"Well, I do feel bad for them... So what, you're here full time?\" Subaru had never seen Beatrice walking about except at mealtimes. Aside from the exception of her having visited his room the day before, Beatrice was always in the archive on her stool. Beatrice lowered her head a little at Subaru's question. \"Such is the pact I have made.\" \"Another pact, huh? Maybe I shouldn't say this when you're helping me, but isn't it rough?\" Beatrice closed her eyes and spoke as if to cut off all further inquiry. \"All the pacts, they are things I desire, I suppose.\" He'd heard the term pact several times since arriving in that world, always with heavy overtones. Beatrice spoke the word with the same weight as Emilia and Puck did for the spiritual pact they had. Subaru appreciated as much, having formed one temporarily with Beatrice himself. Beatrice looked so young, yet here she was, in and upholding a pact for some reason, Subaru felt something like an unendurable ache deep in his chest when he looked at her. \"Hey, are you really fine with all  Whoa!\" \"Your questions are becoming annoying. You can read something and be quiet, I suppose.\" She underscored her statement by tossing a book at him. When Subaru caught it, he realized that the book he'd caught was written in I-script, down to the title. When Subaru lifted his face, Beatrice had already lost interest in him, lowering her eyes to the book in her own hands, making a show of declining conversation. She seemed to be strenuously insisting that he leave his half-asked question unfinished. While her demeanor left no room for words of thanks, Subaru was grateful and happy. Time in the archive of forbidden books passed gently and quietly. With neither exchanging words, only the sounds of the pages being softly turned echoed within the archive. That said, Subaru's heart wasn't into reading at the time; all he was doing was turning the same page over and back again, making the same page sound like a prank.  Shut in the archive of forbidden books, he had no way to know what was going on outside. Beyond the room not having windows, the very nature of the archive was to be in a separate space, locked off from the outside world. He had no way to tell the time of day or feel the passage of time. He wondered what time it was by then. By simple logic, being in the room for half a day would get him through the problematic night. But he had only a vague sense of just how much time had passed while he'd been in the archive. He couldn't trust his own senses, but he also hesitated to ask Beatrice. It wasn't for any reason as simple as not wanting to stop Beatrice while she focused on her reading. Subaru was afraid that any action he initiated might stir up something. His fingers turning the pages of the book were numb. The tip of his tongue begged for water. His heart was beating like an alarm bell. He was out of breath. How long could he remain strong against such tension, he wondered? If the start had been so brutal, the end might be without any warning whatsoever. A murmur abruptly echoed through the silent archive. \" Calling.\" Subaru's face seemed to leap up as Beatrice put down her book and slid her legs onto the floor. Rather than"}, {"text": "speaking to Subaru, it felt like she was murmuring to herself. \"A call for me, I suppose?\" Beatrice waved a finger as she spoke. The next moment, Subaru's whole body felt ill as space bent. Subaru made a small moan as his entire body shuddered from the sensation that most resembled floating. Hearing this, Beatrice looked at Subaru as if only just remembering he was there. \"Ah, you were there, weren't you? I forgot, I suppose?\" \"That's a bad joke, forgetting about a guy right in front of your face...\" \" Puckie is calling. It would seem this is an urgent matter.\" With that as Subaru's only warning, Beatrice strode past him to the door like it was the natural and obvious thing to do. Subaru's voice shook as he called out to stop her. \"W-wait, hold on! If you go out now...\" \"You can stay shut in here if you like. Perhaps you will be safe here?\" Beatrice left behind her words of obvious sarcasm as she passed through the door. Subaru, blood rushing to his head from her attitude, seemed to kick away his chair as he leapt up and reached toward the door. He'd hesitated for only a few seconds, but... \"Aw, to hell with it. What's the big deal, right?!\" Spurring himself on with the foul-mouthed statement, he roughly opened the door and stepped outside. The next moment, it hit him. \"Ah \" Without thinking, Subaru's voice leaked out of his lips like a complete idiot. His hand shielded his eyes from the piercing sunlight of the morn that greeted him. Deeply moved, he waved his hand in the air as if to confirm it. Subaru's body wobbled forward toward the window just on the opposite side of the corridor that peeked out over the inner garden beyond which the sun had just begun its rise. It was the morning of the fifth day that he'd yearned for but had never reached. \"You mean...I made it? Past the fourth night...?!\" Unable to believe the result before his eyes, he pushed open the window, almost pounding it. Holding down his hair as a cool breeze blew in, Subaru took a breath of the fresh morning air. He stumbled, bumped his back against the wall, and slid down, having lost the will to stand. He could do nothing but stare in shock. He'd given up. He'd surrendered to despair. He'd been worn to the bone. And yet, Subaru had passed beyond the fourth day and arrived at the fifth. \"Ha-ha-ha...\" Without realizing it, a dry laugh came over him. Once it began, he knew no way to stop it. \"Heh-heh, ha-ha-ha. What is this? Hey, what is this? This is just... Ha-ha...\" He couldn't think of any rational way to show how he felt at that moment. Hugging his knees, Subaru remained squatting in the hallway, laughing like a madman. He thought it was a far-off place that his hand would never reach. He couldn't speak. He couldn't find the words. Finally, Subaru had  Suddenly, a voice like a bell interrupted Subaru's hollow joy. \" Subaru?\" Lifting his gaze in annoyance, he saw a silver-haired girl standing deeper in the hall Emilia. He was able to find her safe and sound, here on the morn of the fifth day. Both of them had gotten past the fourth night. That fact made Subaru tremble. He'd hoped for this chance. If the morning of the fifth day greeted both of them, they could rekindle that promise and have it granted. He'd introduce Emilia to the kids in the village, they'd both walk around the blooming flower garden together, they'd form the same memories together and yet... \"Emilia...?\" Subaru began feeling a sense of accomplishment that barely seemed real while Emilia watched him in silence. Then, as if Emilia had remembered something, she rushed over to Subaru. \"Subaru, where did you go?\" \"Er, I...\" \"I mean... No, that's fine. It's fine, just...come with me.\" Emilia pulled up Subaru with surprising insistence and ran off with him. She looked like she wasn't going to take no for an answer as a smirk came over his face. \"Where are we going... Hey, Emilia, listen to me. I've worked really hard to get to this point...\" Subaru stared at the side of Emilia's face as he tried to find the words to convey his success. \"Why are you making a face like that? I mean, it all turned out all right...didn't it? I'm safe and sound, and you're... Yeah. Let's go to the village...together, and then...\" *** \"There's lots I want to do with you and talk about with you. A lot's happened. I wanted you to know th \" \" Subaru.\" With one brief call of his name, she interrupted him. That was when he noticed the momentary wavering in her eyes, the irritation she could no longer conceal. The look she had was like when they'd been fighting for their lives at the fence's shop. \"What in the world h \" Happened, he tried to ask but couldn't. For before he could put the word on his lips, a different sound slammed into his eardrums.  He thought it was a yell. Perhaps it was a wail instead. It was a long, high-pitched sound filled with sadness that scarred the very soul. The morning air of the manor was rent by the unending cry of pain, as if someone were being torn asunder. They passed through the corridor and headed up the stairs. The east wing of the second floor of the manor was for the servants' bedrooms, where Subaru's room on previous loops had been. Emilia led him by hand to the innermost room. And there stood... \"Roswaal and...\" ...The man with long indigo hair narrowed his eyes as he saw both rushing over. Beside Roswaal stood Beatrice, leaning her back against the wall as a gray cat curled up on her shoulder. With the three of them having arrived, Subaru was about to ask about the circumstances when Roswaal spoke simply. \"Inside.\" Roswaal motioned to the open door of a bedroom beside him. When Subaru turned toward Emilia, she nodded to him as well. Emilia's clear violet eyes settled things for him. Holding his breath, Subaru walked in. Here, too, the yell continued unceasingly, filling the whole of the room. Subaru entered, his eyes wide open, frozen from tension and then he saw. It was an immaculately preserved room. It looked like a girl's room with minimal furnishings employed to maximum effect, a reflection of a steadfast maid's personality. Though Subaru had received an identical room, it felt different. For a moment, such feelings let Subaru forget the sight before his eyes. But the moment passed as the horrible truth crashed upon him, a truth from which he found nowhere to run. \"AaaaaaAAAAAaaaaaaaAAAAaaaaA !\" It was Ram yelling, tears pouring out, her deep sadness threatening to rip her throat asunder.  And there lay Rem, still clinging to her older sister when she had breathed her final breath. How many times had his mind gone blank from what he'd experienced? How many times had he come face-to-face with tragedy beaten into him? Wasn't it time someone saved him from this? *** The blue-haired girl lay upon the bed, no longer breathing. Her skin was pale; her eyes would never open again. She was dressed in a delicate negligee that somehow seemed perfect on her. Subaru abruptly realized that he hadn't seen Rem out of a maid uniform once. \"Why did...Rem...\" As Subaru murmured, brushing his short hair back with his hand, he fell to his knees. His head hurt. His brain came up with the wonderful suggestion that the sight before him was all in his sleep-deprived imagination. This was his fourth loop at the manor. To Subaru, who'd already died and gone back three times, Rem was the person he was most wary of. \"Then why...why was Rem killed...?\" Surely it was Rem who killed Subaru, not the other way around. Suddenly, a little devil on Subaru's shoulder whispered maybe she wasn't really dead? Maybe it was all a trick, a trick to make Subaru drop his guard? A joke in exceptionally poor taste was incomparably better than the nightmare before him being real. He approached Rem to check her pulse, but... \" Don't touch her!\" As he reached out to touch Rem, his hand was slapped away, hard. When Subaru yelped and looked up, Ram was glaring angrily at him. The tear-filled rage on her face easily drowned out any words of retort Subaru might have used. \"Don't...touch my little sister!\" She refused to let anyone come between them. With a tearful voice, Ram repeated herself as she clung to Rem's body, tears flowing quietly down her face. There was no sign that the devoted, pain-filled older sister expected her little sister to ever awaken. That made the truth clear.  Rem really was dead. As Subaru wobbled out of the room, Roswaal stood by the doorway and voiced his deductions. \"Appaaarently, death by debilitation. Her vigor was stolen as she slept, her heartbeat gennntly slowed, and the fire of her life puttered out, likely the work of a curse rather than magic per se.\" Subaru's eyes snapped open at the word curse, the word for what the clown believed to be the cause of death. Death by debilitation via a curse: that was the direct cause of Subaru's deaths during the first and second loop. In other words, Rem had died from the same curse that had previously killed Subaru. \"But I thought the curse came from Rem...\" The second loop, Subaru had died from debilitation via curse as well as having his head smashed by an iron ball. Subaru had deduced from that night's circumstances that the witchcraft and the iron ball were linked. But Rem herself being killed by a curse had ripped his hypothesis to shreds. \"Then the shaman and Rem are separate...?\" Subaru's mind was in chaos as the thought of a new, separate shaman arose. Rem had slain Subaru out of loyalty to Roswaal. At the very least, that was the only answer if Rem's words during the third loop were true. He wondered if Rem, who'd killed him by her own hand, and the shaman were connected somehow. But if that was the case, Rem being killed this time around made no sense whatsoever from the shaman's point of view. So maybe Rem and the shaman weren't connected to begin with...? The first time, the magic of a shaman had slain Subaru; the second time, the shaman's spell had debilitated Subaru when Rem murdered him for whatever reason. The third loop, Rem had eliminated him with no connection to the shaman whatsoever. \"The fourth time...I didn't do anything, so Rem was the target instead...?\" It was baseless supposition, but based on the circumstantial evidence, it was the only reasonable conclusion. If Subaru had been the target for reasons related to the royal succession, he could understand it as an indiscriminate preemptive strike against Emilia's side. The victim, be it Subaru or Rem, was random. \"You appear to be in raaather deep, serious thought?\" The mismatched blue and yellow eyes looked down, reflecting Subaru in them. Subaru's eyes rose as he felt like Roswaal's scrutinizing gaze was seeing into his very soul. \"It pains me to ask such a thing...but do you have aaany idea about what happened, good guest?\" \"Wh-why would you think...I...\" \"Myyy, forgive my rudeness. I am simply somewhat...displeased at the moment, that one of my pretty retainers has suffered such a fate, you see?\" Roswaal abruptly shifted his gaze from Subaru to the painful sight inside the room. Looking at the side of his face, it truly sank in to Subaru just how precarious his situation had become. Subaru had no way to prove his innocence. This time, Subaru had done nothing to earn the slightest smidgen of trust from the others. Emilia tugged on his sleeve, speaking with an anxious voice. \"...Subaru.\" When"}, {"text": "he looked, the shimmer in her violet eyes seemed to be pleading with him: If you know anything, please say it. Her eyes and her calling his name told him that much. The implication of answering Emilia's earnest request hit Subaru hard. He'd have loved to tell everyone what he knew. He wanted to shout it at the very top of his lungs. When Subaru made no reply, Emilia's small fingers trembled a little as they held his sleeve. He'd thought that repeating the past would lead to a better future, yet here he was, every silver lining having a dark cloud, with the outcomes worse than he ever imagined possible. \"Subaru...\" Confusion clawed at the inside of his head. He'd thought that it would all be swept aside and things would be better someday. No, he thought they'd become better already.  And the moment he thought it, this happened. *** The moment he pictured the black cloud and the world stopping, ceaseless pain gripped his head. His breath caught. The sensation of Emilia touching his sleeve made Subaru's stomach twist in pain. If Emilia kept her pleading look trained on him, Subaru's heart would falter. Even if he didn't, Puck, able to read emotions, could easily expose the fact that Subaru was hiding something. But still, Subaru couldn't explain anything about Return by Death. And that meant the torture would continue, pain without end, over and over. He felt his tongue quickly dry. Unable to resist his urge to flee, he took a small step back. \" If you know anything, you'll never escape me.\" To the girl crying her eyes out inside the room, Subaru's small action looked like nothing more than an attempt to flee for his own convenience. Instantly, a raging gust of wind made the door violently shake, its passage blowing Subaru's hair down flat. The moment after the sudden gust made him close his eyes, a sharp pain heralded a vertical cut on his cheek. \"Ow...!\" He immediately touched his cheek, moistening his palm with blood. Wind. The wind had wounded him. From within the room, Ram was shooting Subaru a hate-filled look as she trained her palm toward him. \"If you know something, spill it!\" \"Wait, Ram! I...!\" Can't, Subaru was about to say, but the word died instantly on his lips, since he knew what would befall him. But he was coming up empty for any way to kick that can down the road. With Subaru holding his tongue, Ram shot him another gust of wind as a warning of what would follow. Had he been able to calmly assess the matter, he would have called it a Blade of Wind. Wind magic magic that inflicted cuts like the whirlwind monsters of lore. The sharp slice had enough power to leave a cut on the floor between Subaru and Rem, slice the door in half, and stop right at Subaru's cheek; such was the power she threatened him with. If that hit him full force faced with the phenomenon before his eyes, Subaru forgot to breathe. But Beatrice extended her cream-colored palm in front of Subaru and countered the Blade of Wind. \" I am one who keeps her promises.\" She gave her raised palm a small shake, as if that were no great feat, as she looked back at Ram. \"I have made a promise to protect this man from harm while he stays at the manor.\" \"Lady Beatrice...!\" Whereas Beatrice's demeanor was elegant, Ram bit her tongue with indignant anger. As Ram raged to the side, Beatrice looked up at Roswaal, still standing right beside them. \"Roswaal. Your maid is being quite rude to your guest.\" \"Certainly. I find that sinceeerely unfortunate. If possible, I wooould like to welcome him anew as my guest, as soon as he breathes out what he is holding within, to feel all the lighter.\" \"How could he be involved in this matter, I wonder? He was in the archive of forbidden books all night.\" \"This is too grave a matter to simply drop. Surely you cooomprehend this?\" With negotiations having failed, Roswaal shrugged and raised his palms into the air. Subaru saw the multiple orbs of differing colors that floated from his palms. They were red and blue, yellow and green even Subaru, untrained in the ways of magic, understood that those four colors represented magical power. Their beautiful glows contained energy beyond his imagination. \"It is just like you to engage in petty tricks. Just because you have a little talent, a little more power than others, a pedigree just a little finer than others, you need to flaunt in others' faces... You are quite a child, I will have you know.\" \"How very haaarsh of you. Is the difference between we, who walk about normally, and you, passing time in a room where time has stopped, sooo great? Perhaaaps we should put it to the test.\" He could feel the magical tension between them making the very air twist. Subaru was becoming a third wheel as hostility rose. \"Hooowever, to think that you would go through such trouble...are you truly sooo fond of him?\" \"Your jokes are in as poor taste as your makeup, Roswaal. Puckie is my ideal partner. That human cannot match such lovely fur.\" Beatrice looked defenseless as she stood before Roswaal's four glowing, floating balls. However, the \"simply standing\" girl projected something around her so powerful that it made the air itself bend. Something invisible but frightening was about her. As the situation became explosive, with both wielders of supernatural power glaring at each other, Ram's shrill voice wedged itself between them. \"Who cares about that? Who cares?!\" Everyone looked at her as she stormed over, hands holding the hem of her skirt. \"Let me through and do not interfere. If you know something, say it, all of it. Help...help me avenge her!\" It was a sad, painful plea. The words gripped Subaru's heart. He truly wanted to tell her what she wanted to know. But Subaru had no words to offer her. Ram shot Subaru a despondent, despairing glare. Emilia stood beside Beatrice, as if they were both shielding Subaru from her hostile gaze. \"I'm sorry, Ram. I still believe in Subaru.\" Emilia put her palm toward Ram to hold her in check while looking back at Subaru from the corner of her eye. Her eyes wavered, trying to find the words, before dropping for but a moment. \"Subaru, please. If there's something you can do for Ram and Rem...please.\" Her compassion made Subaru feel more ashamed. Emilia had sided with Subaru, even in such extreme circumstances, even though Subaru had said such horrible things to her at the start of the week, even though he was still holding his tongue in silence... \"I'm sorry !\" As if crushing Emilia's concerns under his heel, Subaru stepped not forward but back. In that instant, Emilia's eyes went silent as her emotions raced. They spoke of shock, sorrow and, above all, unbearable disappointment that her trust was about to be betrayed. What Subaru truly saw in Emilia's eyes was his own despair. He knew his actions had opened the door to a nightmare and could never be taken back. That was when Subaru, no longer able to meet Emilia's eyes, turned his back on her. Instantly, Emilia reached out toward his back. But this was to block the Blade of Wind before it reached Subaru. The wind crashed against pure magical power; mana bounced off mana as Subaru ran. \"Subaru !\" Shaking off the voice trying to stop him, Subaru rushed down the corridor in a daze. He felt the magical confrontation behind him increasing in severity, but Subaru lacked the courage to look back. He was weak. He was fragile, unable to do anything. That was why he'd run out on Emilia, who'd trusted him after all that, and Beatrice, who'd tried to save his life, spurning their goodwill and good intentions. He didn't know what to do anymore. What he did know was that Ram shouted behind him like she was spitting blood  *** Having lost her other half, the girl pursued him with a cry that threatened to tear her asunder. Covering his ears, shaking his head, making wordless sounds, Subaru ran. He ran. And he kept running. With his attention devoted solely to running, he didn't know how much time had passed. Out of breath, his knees begging for mercy, sweat dripping down his chin, he kept running. If he didn't keep running, the incoherent emotions following behind him might catch up. And when they caught up with him, this time everything would be finished. Ram's sad, painful yell, and the malice and hatred it contained, still rang in his ears. He couldn't go back. Now that he'd run, Ram and Roswaal would not spare him; surely Emilia and Puck could no longer trust him for keeping his mouth shut. Beyond that, he'd abandoned Beatrice despite forming a pact with her. She would not be his ally any longer. \"I can't help it...! I want to...but I can't!\" He didn't know how it'd come to this. He didn't know what he'd done wrong. Subaru didn't know what he might do so that the world would forgive him. \"After it was...so much fun...!\" Suddenly greeted by another world, he'd had no choice but to live within it. For Subaru, surrounded by a vast desert of anxiety, the manor that had welcomed Subaru had been his oasis. Those beloved days, that beloved time, which didn't amount to a single week, seemed so far from Subaru in that moment. He'd redone, he'd relived, and the world had sunk its fangs into him.  Can't do it anymore. Suddenly, that was the murmur that arose in the back of his mind.  There wasn't any point in trying anymore. Bewitched by his own voice pleading with him to give in, his pace relented. If he did as the words said, it really would be easier, he thought. Subaru, after all, was the type of person who looked for the easiest solution to any situation. It wasn't just Subaru. That's what people in general did. When faced with two unpalatable choices, they looked for a third way. Who could blame him for feeling like there was a third, Heaven-sent option? Blood suddenly drained from his head, making his heart, beating so powerfully, feel distant. His limbs grew heavy; he found himself dragging his feet as if they were rejecting him. *** It was right around when he stopped that he noticed the trees all around him. He was in the forest. Having rushed out of the mansion, he'd apparently gone off the road to the village, getting himself lost on a mountain path. The gloom from the sky being blocked off and the briars all around him made Subaru think it resembled where he'd died the third time around. The instant he recalled his own death, the third choice hit him in the face. \"If I die...\"  Would it save him? \"Yeah, that's right. If I die, this'll change.\" When he said it with his own lips, they formed a smile as if there could be no finer idea. He'd died three times. He'd arrived at the fourth world, where he failed at anything and everything. This time he'd valued only his life. This time, his life was the only thing he had left. What was the meaning of continuing to struggle and struggle if this was the result? \"If you're gonna do it, do it already. It doesn't matter what happens to me anymore...\" Biting his lip, he aired his bitter hatred of the situation he'd become wrapped in. The blue sky unfolded before Subaru's eyes, reflecting his hate right back. And... \"...A cliff.\" Surely this was made-to-order by God himself. Answering that one prayer surely meant there was a Heaven he should be grateful for.  So that the foolish and pathetic Subaru Natsuki could find peace. The"}, {"text": "cliff seemed to invite him as he headed toward it, wobbling and dragging his feet. The wind was strong. Using the sleeve of his jacket to shield himself from the strong headwind, Subaru stood at the cliff's edge, peering into the blue sky beyond. Below him was a precipice with a face lined with sharp rocks, a drop dozens of meters onto a rocky place below. If he fell from this height, nothing would greet him but death. Subaru panted heavily as he looked down at the rocks below, able to acutely picture his own death. He heard the loud heartbeat he had forgotten once more. His lungs let out the air they'd been holding. His entire body was drenched with sweat, making Subaru feel cold as he closed his eyes.  If he kept his eyes closed and took one step forward, it'd all be over. Subaru wondered what would happen if he died this time. Would he return to the first day at the manor and begin the loop anew? He thought he wouldn't mind. If he did actually return to the first day, Emilia would be there, and so would Ram, Rem, everyone. Subaru would work as a servant, see everyone's faces, and die peacefully in his sleep on the fourth day. If he continued that over and over, at least Subaru would be immersed in a little day-to-day peace. It seemed like a good plan. If he could not hope for greater salvation, death wasn't so bad, he thought. *** And yet, Subaru's body, standing atop the cliff, did not move forward. Only his knees moved to shake. He reached down to stop his knees from trembling, collapsing the moment his hips bent. Falling to his knees, it was as if he were prostrating himself before the sky. Subaru bit his lip at how pathetic he was. \"Just one step... I can't even do...one simple thing...\"  Perhaps he simply lacked the courage. Even under pursuit, he lost to his impulses, too indecisive to put it into action. His resolve and determination were so frail it was funny; Subaru could only remain on his knees and cry. He didn't know why he should live, yet he was too afraid of death to die. Subaru wailed, clawing at the ground at how truly pathetic and unsightly he was. He continued to weep and mourn his own wretchedness until his endurance finally gave out. Subaru thought that the scene he saw while unconscious was a nightmare. He was in a well-lit room, at a dining table with Emilia. Roswaal was in the seat of honor, with Beatrice there pouring black tea to Puck, his head diving into a plate right beside her. Emilia chided Puck for kidding around at the dining table, and Rem wove in and out, performing her duties, while Ram attended to Roswaal, ignoring all else. Subaru just laughed. The others laughed with him.  And so, he saw a nightmare full of happiness and warmth. It was a bitter dream, a dream that brought sadness and a sense of wrenching loss. His soul whittled down to the point of pain, Subaru's agony made him forget to breathe. *** Suddenly, his face eased. He realized someone was holding his hand. The warmth conveyed to his palm seemed to push aside his negative emotions. Then, he saw a light. A white light. A dazzling light. A light that seemed to guide his consciousness back to  \" Are you finally awake?\" When Subaru opened his eyes, the orange sky of the setting sun was right in front of him. He realized, too, that he'd passed out on the ground lying face up. He recalled, too, what he'd been thinking about just before, as if it had consumed his consciousness.  Namely, that he'd chickened out from suicide, wept shamelessly, and fell asleep from exhaustion. It was too shameful to be funny or pitiable. He'd acted like a baby. No, Subaru was far lower than a baby, for they had no capacity to sin. \"Could you say something, I wonder?\" \"...Something.\" \"What an old, rotten joke. You are quite something, joking with that glum face.\" Beatrice spat out a bitter reply as she tossed aside the hand of Subaru's she was touching. Beatrice was wearing the same dress as always, something that looked extremely out of place on top of the cliff. It was like a landscape painting where a lone little girl stood out. \"...No sane person goes hiking dressed like that.\" \"I had no intention of hiking in rustic mountains to begin with. Perhaps you should not have fled to a place like this and cried yourself to sleep?\" Beatrice was waving the sleeve of her dress, making her annoyed statement, when Subaru realized just what Beatrice was doing outside the manor, to the point of showing up all the way over here. \"Why...?\" \"Why what, I wonder?\" \"Why did you come? I...\"  While Beatrice had honored her pact to protect Subaru, he could tell her nothing. Seeing Subaru's words catching, Beatrice made a sour, exasperated face and snorted. \"I made a pact to keep you safe. Having you toss yourself off a cliff to kill yourself would be an affront to my dignity.\" \"Weren't you supposed to be my bodyguard only till...this morning?\" \" I do not recall saying anything about a time limit. You assumed incorrectly that there was one, I suppose.\" Subaru groped through his memories while Beatrice, looking at him out of one eye, glanced away. Beatrice was using that contradiction between their \"assumptions\" about the details to continue her pact with Subaru. It suddenly struck Subaru how a girl with a viper's tongue and a foul-tempered horse's personality like Beatrice could show such deep compassion. Beatrice had not forsaken him. If that was true, then just maybe maybe he didn't have to give up? \"This is no time for vain hopes.\" *** Beatrice shook her head, pouring cold water on Subaru's easy way out. \"You cannot regain what you have lost. There is little more I can do for you. You can no longer explain things to the older sister. You threw away that chance.\" *** I'd have told her if I could, he wanted to shout. Subaru would have confessed all and pled for forgiveness if his heart wouldn't have been crushed in the process. Not because it would help Ram he knew it wouldn't. Simply for his own peace of mind. \"At a time like this. Am I an idiot?...Yeah, I'm an idiot.\" Subaru had come this far by putting on a face, apologizing, pleading, protecting himself over and over. And now, he'd been driven to the top of a cliff, physically and mentally, with nowhere to run. Run, run, run, and run some more was exactly how Subaru had arrived at this point. \"If you know I can't go back...what do you plan on doing for me?\" \"At the very least, I will have you die where I cannot see, so as not to disturb my dreams, I suppose. If you wish to flee, I shall take you beyond this domain.\" Beatrice's kindness, wrapped in severity, cut deeply into his heart. Beatrice's expression was cold, her gaze acidic, as if beholding an annoyance. Even so, the kindness of the intent behind her words struck Subaru like none other. No doubt Beatrice spoke the truth. If he desired to flee, she would agree and aid him. He didn't know what waited for him after fleeing. But it couldn't get any worse than this. His own foolishness having wrecked his oasis, what was wrong with throwing away everything and running? *** Blood trickled a little from the painful cut left on his cheek by the Blade of Wind. Touching the wound, Subaru realized too late that he'd felt its kind before. Subaru's very soul remembered its sharpness. When he had been fleeing from Rem in the mountains, a Blade of Wind had severed Subaru's right leg at the knee. As he touched the wound, Subaru's instincts told him it was the same magic. \"The magic that gouged out my neck at the end, too...? So they...double-teamed me...\" His late understanding of how he had died deepened the silent despair in his heart. Even now, he could still hear Ram's hate-filled roar, her heartrending wails from losing Rem. That was the moment. That was the point of no return. Subaru ought to have never fled the manor. Even if he didn't have the resolve to endure the pain, he should have faced Ram and spoken to her. He'd missed his chance, and now their hearts were separated forever. Having let it slip through his hands once, Subaru could never have it back.  At least, in that world. With a low, gloomy voice, Beatrice interrupted his silent contemplation. \"The older sister endured for the younger. The younger sister lived for the older. Neither could exist without the other.\" Beatrice ran her fingers through her own ornate hair, not looking back at Subaru as she continued to speak. \"Now that one half is lost, the whole can never return. Roswaal is unlikely to forgive it, either.\" \"What do you mean by that? What do you know...?\" He felt like she was avoiding something. Something really important. Subaru urged Beatrice to share her true thoughts. But she moved her fingers from her hair to Subaru's sleeve, tugging and gently pulling him to the ground as she extended her foot. Subaru was in shock at how he seemed to flow right onto the ground. Beatrice tossed back her hair. \"Does it truly matter to you, I wonder? These last four days, you spent most of your time holed up in your room and had little contact with them. Would the older sister let you press her about these matters now? I think not. It has nothing to do with you.\" \"It's not like...!\" Like I don't know anything about them, he would have said, but Subaru's words died on his tongue. His repeated loops had given him more than two weeks of time with them. Subaru could have responded that he'd forged memories with them during the time that this Beatrice knew nothing about, but he did not, for he suddenly realized something. Subaru realized it was possible he knew nothing of Ram and Rem, not their true faces, their feelings, or the bond between them, just as Beatrice had stated. Subaru wondered what he really had learned about them during those first three lives. What was the point of Subaru feeling such loss and despair when he didn't truly know anything about them? Was it all really just a bad dream? What was it that Subaru could draw on to refute Beatrice, who looked sternly down at Subaru at that very moment? Or did Subaru not know anything, not a single thing, about the two of them? Even though he'd thought of them as precious people he wanted to protect... \"So in the end, I got worked up and pathetic all on my own, not knowing, not understanding anything...?\"  It has nothing to do with you. Subaru knew nothing. He'd beaten away all his chances. He had nothing left but the skin on his back. Within the darkness covering his eyes, the memories of the days he'd spent at the manor broke apart, one by one, into dust. Subaru's heart, too, shattered. Lying on his back, Subaru put his palms to his face and wailed at his own powerlessness. Had it all been a utopia beyond his reach from the beginning? Was everything Subaru had seen simply a dream, the time he'd spent there a mere illusion? Subaru looked like he was about to break out in tears when Beatrice called to him. \"...How long are you going to stay like that, I wonder? Stand before she finds you.\" Impatient from Subaru still not moving, she roughly grabbed the palms covering his face and yanked them up. As his field of vision opened,"}, {"text": "the lightweight girl used her entire weight to haul Subaru to his feet. *** The sensation conveyed by her palms took away his thoughts. Ignoring Beatrice's intent in rousing Subaru so insistently, he felt her palms, weighing how they felt. \"H-hey. What do you think y  Why so interested in my palms, I wonder?\" \"I've felt these hands before, just like this... Earlier, did you?\" \"...I shall regret it for the rest of my days. Perhaps you were simply too wretched as you slept like that?\" Abruptly, Beatrice looked away, giving him only her cheek. Subaru flexed his hands several times, reflecting on the warm, peaceful sensation he'd felt from them while he slept.  While Subaru had his nightmare. A dream with an agonizing sense of despair and loss, over and over again. That hadn't been the only time he'd felt warmth when in pain. It'd happened before  \"Back then...someone held both my hands...\" Beatrice suspiciously raised an eyebrow. Subaru brought not only his right hand before him but his left as well. It was difficult for one person to hold both hands of someone who was asleep. He doubted a single person could lie on a bed alongside another and hold both hands without difficulty. *** So why did he feel like both his hands had been held? The reason was simple. \"Ram. Rem.\" Both had held Subaru's hands while he slept. It had been here on the fourth loop, before anything had happened at Roswaal Manor. Seeing Subaru suffer as he slept, both of them had taken pity on him and given him some small measure of compassion. *** I will kill you, the hate-filled voice had cried out, her rage pounding into him like a curse. The cruel words had scarred his heart. But more than that... \" Can't you make the crying stop?\" It was Ram's sad cry of despair at having her other half ripped from her that never left his ears. Some corner of Subaru's heart, which should have been shattered already, cried out.  By nature, Subaru was the sort to pick the path of least resistance. He didn't want to feel pain, suffering, despair. Just the thought of living with such burdens made him want to run. \"What...stupid things am I thinking here...\" For he thought he didn't want to run anymore. He wanted to do something. \"I lived this time and everything...\" His shameless plea to Beatrice had allowed him to reach the fifth day with ease. It was the thought of what had greeted him that very day that settled Subaru's decision. \"That's right. My life's mine. That's why \" What was wrong with fighting for an easier, more enjoyable life? \" I'll decide how to use it.\" The moment Subaru said it, he crossed a line inside. There was no going back. Beatrice furrowed her brows at Subaru's words. However, before he could ask her why she was doing that, her eyes looked toward the forest, full of caution. \" You dithered too much.\" Beatrice's regret-tinged words came as the rustle of the wind through the forest's trees deepened. Mixed with the sounds of the swaying leaves, the sound of footsteps reached Subaru's ears, too. He turned around. A girl with pink hair stood before him. Ram, the forest at her back, glared at Subaru. \"I've finally found you you will go no farther.\" Pain swept over Subaru's heart as he beheld the look on Ram's face, thick with hatred. As she stood there, Ram had none of her usual meticulous look. Branches had torn and punctured her skirt; there was no sign of the headdress normally on her head. Her pink hair, buffered by the wind, had lost its usual beauty.  The sisters dressed each other and did each other's hair. Subaru knew this. He remembered that they'd told him at some point. He knew several other secrets between the two sisters. \"Would you relent, I wonder? So long as the pact is active, I cannot hold back against anyone.\" \"Lady Beatrice, it is you who should stand aside. I cannot hold back against you, either.\" \"A joke, I suppose. Did I hear you say to hold back in regards to me?\" \"Perhaps you have forgotten you are not in the mansion, Lady Beatrice? Do you truly believe you can protect that man away from the archive, here in the forest?\" Subaru held his silence as the two girls continued to square off before him. Beatrice's words of regret proved that Ram's words were no empty boast. Beatrice's strength came with limitations, and this situation was beyond them. Even so, Beatrice stubbornly refused to move, upholding her pact in front of Subaru. From behind, Subaru reached out toward Beatrice. Then... \"Boing...\" He grabbed hold of the girl's two ornate hair rolls and pulled on them, hard. He let go. The large amount of hair bounced quite generously. Bouncy-bouncy  \"Mm, that felt pretty good.\" \"W-w-w-wh...\" Her eyes wide open, her tongue quivering, Beatrice turned around, all flustered. Subaru inclined his head slightly as he looked at her. \"Mm?\" \"What are you doing, I wonder?! You have a death wish, I suppose?!\" \"Don't be silly. I don't wanna die one tiny bit. When you die, it should be one time, to end your life for good. I truly believe that.\" As he spoke, he patted Beatrice on the shoulder and calmly walked past her. Straight ahead, Ram glared at Subaru's face with astonishment. As Subaru walked before her, she heightened her guard, exhaling from pursed lips. \"Quite some nerve. Finally resigned to your fate?\" \"Not exactly. More like...I decided to do something.\" Not understanding Subaru's intent, Ram scowled. \" What?\" \"Sorry. Because I was sloppy, I brought you girls so much sadness.\" \" ! So you did do something to Rem...?!\" \"No, sorry, but I honestly don't know. There's so much I don't know. But...\" Subaru's words trailed off as he took a moment to breathe. \"There's so much I don't know, but I think I know one thing now.\" \" What's the point?!\" Ram shouted back, unable to accept Subaru's display of resolve as anything but childish games. Ram swung down a foot, kicking the earth like she was stamping her feet. \"Rem's already dead! There's no taking that back! What good is it that you know something now?!\" \"I'm not gonna say I can do anything. It's because I couldn't do anything that things ended up like this. I know more than anyone that's not gonna convince anyone.\" He wasn't being defiant. Even now, regret deeply pierced his heart. He hated himself for his own stupidity and weakness. If you could die from shame, he might have been dead already. Still, his shameful behavior, his shameful living, his pathetic helplessness these had brought him to this place. And, thus, to his conclusion. \"And what is it you know about Rem and me?!\" \"...You have a point. I don't know any of the important stuff between you. But...\" Subaru had spent almost twenty days together with them. They didn't know that, and he was unable to tell them. But Subaru remembered. Even if they had forgotten, Subaru's soul remembered. He'd seen them. Laughed with them. Spent time with them. The worlds Subaru had walked with Ram and Rem those worlds really had existed. Which was why  \"There's no way you girls knew this, but...\" \"What...\" \" I! Love! Both of you!\" The blunt, worrywart big sister. The sarcastic, superficially polite little sister. Subaru thought fondly of the days he had spent with both girls. They were precious memories to him, even though they had killed him more than once. Enough that, if he had the choice to spend time with them once more, that was a choice he would make. Subaru's shout made Ram open her eyes wide, freezing in shock. Of course it did. From Ram's point of view, Subaru's declaration was meaningless, empty nonsense. Furthermore, he'd already abandoned them in an instant. Ram's thought process froze for only a moment. In the next instant, her body thawed and leapt into action. But a momentary opening was an opening nonetheless. *** Subaru's sprint was just a moment faster than Ram's switch to anger-filled attacking. Turning his back to Ram, Subaru rushed past Beatrice, his body moving like the wind making a beeline toward the cliff. \"Wait !\" Behind him, a girl's high-pitched wail reached out. Subaru's mind never caught up to which girl's voice it was. He'd meant to be determined, but now his thought process was in tatters, like someone had clawed it apart. His heart beat hard, but his body creaked all over, as if to betray his mind. His limbs felt like leaden weights. He was running with all his might, but the world seemed to move in slow motion. It was as if Subaru's mind were putting off the results of his change of heart as long as it possibly could.  So stupid. He was conflicted even then. He knew why. He'd tenaciously clung to living without shame to that point. Even when he'd wanted to die, he'd chickened out in the end, able only to fall to his knees. But Subaru could do it now. \"It's rude to Beatrice, huh...\" With those words, Subaru voiced his final regret and left everything behind. He raced to the cliff. A few steps more. He was too scared to count them. Pathetic. Insane. He had the urge to laugh. But he didn't laugh. He couldn't laugh. All that he was leaving behind was a life of living death. To Subaru, giving up on a future in that place meant he'd already died inside. If he could live as a dead man walking, he could do \"something\" with that life. And that decision, to do something instead of doing nothing, was one only Subaru could make. \" I'm the only one who can do it.\" His feet left the ground. He clawed at the air. He could touch nothing. He could reach nothing. So fast. The wind was strong. His eyes hurt. His head hurt. The ringing in his ears was distant. He felt like he'd left behind his beating heart. He couldn't hear the ringing. The ringing inside his skull was like a broken record. If it ended with his death, that was that. But if, if only he could go back, then... For she had cried out, \"I'll kill you.\" If he could go back  \" I'll save you, I swear!\" The moment after he voiced his determination, his head smashed into the hard ground. He heard the echo of something spectacularly breaking apart, and then nothing. The hate-filled voice could not chase him any longer. Nothing could, not anymore   All that was there was \"nothingness.\" Absentmindedly, he looked around the nothingness of his mind. Perhaps looked around was not the proper phrase. Eyes did not exist within his mind. Nor did hands, nor feet, nor any pieces of his body. All that remained was his incorporeal, floating mind. Knowing nothing, aware of nothing, he looked about. Darkness. A room with nothing. A room that was a world without a floor or a ceiling, covered in pitch-blackness so great that it defied thought. Suddenly, in the world of everlasting darkness, there was meaning. A silhouette abruptly emerged in \"front\" of his mind. The contours of the silhouette were slender and as pitch-black as the rest, the upper body more of a fog, rejecting his mind's recognition. With the emergence of the human shape, the mind gained its first strong desire. He felt a breach in the cold as the shadow gently moved, as if to convey something to his mind. He didn't understand. He was aware of nothing. But for some reason, his mind could not avert itself from the shadow  \" I cannot meet you. Not yet.\" With that faint whisper, the dark world abruptly vanished, and in so doing, the shadow, and his mind, went with it. CHAPTER 1 ***  Subaru Natsuki experienced only a single moment between losing consciousness"}, {"text": "and reviving. *** His head had smashed against the hard ground, bathing his world red just an instant ago. The moment after he lost all five senses, Subaru found himself on top of the soft bed. \"Whew \" He exhaled. His body relaxed as the shock of death retreated from his soul. It was enough to make him pull up the sheets and cower, forgetting even to breathe. Of course it was. He'd never leaped off a cliff and taken his own life before. His fourth death in this loop was suicide. Without a manual for how Return by Death worked, or any precedent, that could have truly been the end of Subaru's life for all he knew. But  \"I'm...back...\" Subaru clenched his trembling fist, smiling thinly at the white ceiling that filled his vision. The soft bed, the sweet-smelling pillow, the well-furnished suite all of it belonged to the guest room that had greeted Subaru on his first day at Roswaal Manor. And more importantly  \"Sister, Sister. Our Dear Guest appears to be slow to wake.\" \"Rem, Rem. Our Dear Guest seems to be slow in the head for his age.\" The twin sisters were clasping the other's hands, their eyes side by side as they looked at Subaru from the foot of the bed. They wore little black dresses with white aprons on the front. Both had dazzling white lace headpieces on top of their short bob hairstyles, one with pink hair, the other with blue. Their faces were young and lovely. They were the maids who took care of the mansion, and also the reason Subaru had made his Return by Death. Subaru's heart shuddered at hearing their familiar voices speaking in familiar ways, during what would be the fifth round of meeting them for the first time. He had a mountain of things he wanted to ask. But he felt like something was lodged in his throat; the words wouldn't come out. Seeing Rem alive and well, while Ram behaved with her typical rudeness, everything felt so ordinary and natural that it was hard for Subaru to keep his emotions down. \"Dear Guest, Dear Guest. Is something wrong? Are you unwell?\" \"Dear Guest, Dear Guest. Are you sick? Perhaps a chronic illness?\" Subaru put a hand on his chest and lowered his head before the bewildered twins. The maids went to one side of the bed and separated slightly, reaching out with one small palm each as if to touch Subaru from both sides. Those hands  \"Let me borrow those for a sec.\" \"Eh?\" \"Ah.\" Subaru, not waiting for them to say yes, grasped their hands, entwining his fingers into theirs. With the sisters frozen in surprise, he got a good feel for their slender fingers and the warmth of their palms. \"Yeah, I knew it... There's no mistaking it.\" Subaru remembered the feel of their hands and how their warmth had saved him in his time of need. He wasn't wrong about what had given him the determination to throw himself off that cliff. Both pulled their hands back and poured scorn on Subaru's rude, insolent behavior. \"No, Dear Guest. You are surely mistaken. About everything.\" \"No, Dear Guest. It was surely a mistake that you were born.\" But Subaru nodded as if even those cruel words were music that refreshed his soul. \"All things considered, I probably shouldn't smile at that...but right now, it feels good.\" \"Sister, Sister. Might Dear Guest actually enjoy being insulted?\" \"Rem, Rem. Might Dear Guest be a perverted masochist?\" These were odd accusations to throw at a \"Dear Guest\" so quickly, but he smiled and let them slide. If it meant he could really do things over with the two of them, everything else was unimportant. Faced with an attitude that was less caution and more blatant, visceral distaste, Subaru hopped off the bed. He pressed a hand to his butt as he double-checked his body's condition before turning toward their two suspicious faces. \"Sorry for doing that earlier without even saying hi. There's something I want to say beyond apologizing, though.\" Subaru crossed his arms, dramatically puffed his chest, and sat back down, directly facing Ram and Rem. Feeling the rather sharp gazes that both trained upon him, Subaru absentmindedly mused, They're probably already starting to assess me. If Subaru Natsuki could not win their trust, indeed, the trust of everyone under the mansion's roof, he could not hope to regain the peaceful, tranquil time he had lost. So he chose to throw caution to the wind, hoping to assuage their suspicions  \"I mean, geez, I'm not some kind of delinquent who can't get along with anyone...\" Hearing Subaru's murmur, both of them tilted their heads a little, as if they had their doubts about that. Finding it funny that even now their gestures were syncing up, Subaru felt the tension and stress drain from his body. He already knew what he wanted to say, as well as what he needed to do. \" I trust you, so let's get along, okay?\" Just like in the first loop, he'd do his best to earn the girls' trust. Having a little knowledge of the future didn't change Subaru's core nature, nor did the mere possibility he might be able to change things. All he could do was address the situation before his eyes and live every day to the fullest. Subaru's request made the twins look at each other and trade a silent conversation between their eyes. Their back and forth was still going on when they abruptly looked toward the door, having noticed a lone girl entering at just that moment. She had skin so pale you could almost see through it, with silver hair she wore down to her hips. Her violet eyes seemed to emit a bewitching magical spell that lured you in. It was Emilia, a girl of inhuman beauty. Emilia, noticing Subaru staring at her, broke out in a small smile as she looked among the three in the room. \"I heard a ruckus, so I came to peek... You seem pretty lively, Subaru. I'm glad.\" \"I felt kind of conflicted there, but seeing Emilia-tan blows all that away. You're like a compassion pill that works extra strong on my heart.\" \"Sorry, I don't really know what you're saying...\" A troubled look came over Emilia's beautiful face because Subaru was speaking even more glibly than usual. \"Even your sad look is cute... You're always fresh, and that makes me feel refreshed.\" \"Somehow, that sounds kind of creepy. But good morning. I'm glad you're safe.\" The grimace she had made quickly softened into a charming smile and she beamed at Subaru. As far as Emilia was concerned, this was their first reunion after the events in the royal capital. Subaru sincerely accepted Emilia's words of relief at seeing him come back from the brink of death. \"Yeah, good morning. Well, let's start again, shall we?\" The three girls in the room, not understanding what Subaru meant by that, tilted their heads slightly with puzzled looks. Seeing all three of them react like a trio of sisters made Subaru break out in laughter. \"What I meant was, it's time for me to start clearing the Roswaal Manor level.\" His goal was to reach the morning he wished to see for him, and for everyone at the manor.  Now, let's get this show on the road. And so, he began his first day at Roswaal Manor for the fifth time. He needed to surpass two major obstacles to get through his first week at Roswaal Manor. The first was to win the trust of everyone living there. This meant not just Ram and Rem but their master, Roswaal, as well. If the girls saw any part of him as even remotely dubious, the chances they'd commit murder to silence him were exceptionally high. The second obstacle was bringing down the shaman attacking Roswaal Manor. But he didn't have any real leads for doing that as of yet. His opponent was a tough one, his true identity remaining concealed even as Subaru was taking his fifth crack at it. Subaru needed to earn the twins' trust and deal with this unknown, evil magic user. Those were the victory conditions he had discovered by his fourth death. However, Subaru still lacked many of the elements he needed to fulfill those requirements. In spite of his Return by Death, he hadn't been able to lay his hands on anything solid. His head felt stuck between a rock and a hard place, but Subaru threw off his negative emotions and looked to the future. He had to confront the wall standing before him no matter how high it was. It was Subaru's choice to come back and do this, not knowing if he'd even make it. He decided that, having once experienced death by his own hands, he would do it...even if it killed him. The moon was rising in the nighttime sky as a private discussion took place in the study on Roswaal Manor's highest floor. The man sat at the desk, posing his question in his slow, exaggerated manner of speech. \"So hooow is he, Ram? How would you raaate him from what you have seeeen?\" He was a man with long indigo hair with ghastly pale skin, and he would look something like a classic variety pretty boy if not for the clown-like makeup covering his face. That, combined with his peculiar speech pattern, made him a hard man to forget. He was Roswaal L. Mathers, lord and master of the manor. Participating in the conversation were Roswaal and a maid Ram facing toward him and the desk. Roswaal crossed his arms and made a broad smile while Ram tilted her head, deep in thought. He raised an eyebrow, finding her hesitance to make her report a rare sight. \"Hmmmm, to see Ram, prone to snap judgments about everything, so conceeerned, it is quite a siiight, is it nooot? Perhaaaaps one day is not sufficient to get to know him?\" \"That is...not the case. However...\" Though she immediately denied it, her words revealed a lack of clarity. Ram put a fingertip to her own lips and still seemed a little unsure as she began to speak again. \"Let me grade him first. He...Barusu...has no ability. His workmanship as a servant is completely amateur.\" \"My, my... Is it not somewhat puuuzzling that he himself asked for this role?\" Roswaal grinned as he recalled the exchange over that morning's breakfast. He remembered, too, what words the freshly awakened guest employed as he sought a reward for his exploits. What stood out was Subaru's claim of being a teenager with good health, a half-decent education, and a not-terrible head. It was a robust self-assessment that, by the same token, merited a certain level of caution. Accordingly, he had commanded Ram to oversee his education, as well as to observe his actions and report her findings, as she was doing that moment. He had not thought the matter would be resolved in a single day, but Ram's hesitance in making her report was a problem in itself. Roswaal rested his cheek against his hand. Ram held her silence for a little while before opening her mouth. \"There are some mysterious things about Barusu.\" \"Yes, yes, do teeell. Speak of anything that stands out.\" \"He can be said to be completely without talent, but Barusu seems to be...a little too quick-witted when it comes to particular things.\" \"What do you mean, a little toooo quick-witted?\" \"These are very minor things, but...in the middle of work, he seems overly familiar with minor details about the mansion, things I have yet to teach him. When putting dishes away, he opened the drawers in the proper order. Also, our...tastes in tea leaves.\" *** Roswaal said nothing in reply to Ram's words, instead silently running a fingertip across his chin. Seeing Roswaal do this, Ram added, \"Of course, these are all quite minor"}, {"text": "details. After breakfast, I gave him a brief tour and explanation of the mansion. I noticed his eyes drifting to various places. That is really all, but...\" \"I see, too much to be a set of simple coincidences... That is rather iiinteresting.\" Suspicion begins from the smallest things. If he was not overthinking it, Subaru could have checked out the mansion before infiltrating it in earnest. But what made that possibility difficult to fathom was... \"His feat was protecting Lady Emilia in the royal capital, was it nooot...?\" \"It seems too...blatant a means to infiltrate the mansion. At any rate, he might well have lost his life had Lady Beatrice not been available.\" The memory of his being carried into the mansion was still fresh in Roswaal's mind. Though he had not healed the boy personally, it was impossible that Beatrice would participate in such a scheme. Furthermore, Ram had nursed the wounded Subaru the entire way back from the royal capital. Slipping something past both of them was very unlikely. \"All things considered, such thoughts seem sooomewhat excessive in light of the faaacts.\" \"The Bowel Hunter' who attacked Lady Emilia... I imagine it is possible he conspired with her to infiltrate the mansion, but...\" Ram's words lacked conviction, suggesting even she viewed it as unlikely. For his part, Roswaal shook his head. \"No, that is not pooossible. Surely we need not even suspeeect that the Bowel Hunter would team up with him?\" \"...Is...that so?\" \"More importantly, are there any other issues of concern?\" Prodded by Roswaal to move on, Ram lowered her eyes. \"I suppose that...putting aside his being too quick-witted from time to time...Barusu is so optimistic, it is rather nauseating.\" \"Eh?\" Roswaal raised an eyebrow at Ram's statement. She seemed to be not so much choosing her words carefully as she was searching for the right ones to use. Surely even Ram knew she'd said something off topic. Ram continued, looking frustrated at her own inability to find a more accurate explanation. \"At this rate, he will speak himself to death. His smile never falters when he bumbles, and he seems exceptionally attentive to how he behaves toward us...\" \"...What do you thiiink of that?\" \"...It is different from how Lady Emilia describes him... Namely, how he's honest about his own desires like a little child, genuine in a likable way...\" Ram tried to keep her response to the subtle question short. Roswaal, having had little contact with Subaru, couldn't understand what made Ram so doubtful. But these were the words of a loyal retainer who had a long record of service. Roswaal tugged on his chin as he digested Ram's analysis \"It seeeems we shall have to keep an eye on him for some tiiime. His first day made for difficult viewing, but it cannot be heeelped. It is aaalso a fact he deserves a commensurate rewaaard in thanks for saving Lady Emilia.\" \"...And if...it becomes necessary?\" Ram's hesitation made it seem like she didn't want to hear what would come next. The expression on her face remained the same, but Roswaal had spent long enough around her to read what she was feeling inside. Roswaal beheld Ram's moment of weakness with his yellow eye as he made a small shake of his head. \"This is a matter we must handle with great deeelicacy. Above all else, see to it that Rem does not get ahead of herself.\" Ram nodded crisply in response to Roswaal's command. The maid not participating in the conversation, Rem, had a tendency to act according to her own ideas from time to time. Usually, her rushed judgment could be met with just a cute little scolding. At times like these, however, independent action was likely to push things in a very poor direction. She might well eliminate the danger beforehand, worsening his relationship with Emilia in the process. The thought did not amuse him. \"Yes, I shall...endeavor that Rem does not act on her feelings of distrust toward Barusu.\" Roswaal leaned back with a creak of the chair. His voice felt tired somehow as he murmured. \"I am deeply grateful. This is a time of great expectations... Indeed, time to put them all to the test.\" Ram started to say something to him, but she closed her mouth and held her tongue. Silence descended between the two as the cool night air drifted in. \"So, Ram, shall we concluuude your report here?\" \"...Yes. I apologize for not being able to convey a great deal.\" \"I shall not scooold you for such a thing. Now, then, shall we proceed? After nothing for two days, you are aching rather considerably, are you nooot?\" \"Ah...yes.\" Ram somehow seemed bewitched as she obeyed Roswaal's beckoning finger. From her standing position before the desk, she seemed to wobble as she stepped close to Roswaal and meekly sat on his lap. \"Once again, if you will...excuse me.\" \"'Tis merely exercising a natural right. It is the same as always, nooothing to be embarrassed about. Your precious body does not belong to you alooone, after all?\" He stroked her cheek. She gently closed her eyes as he tilted her head up. Stroking her pink hair with his other hand, Roswaal closed one eye, gazing down upon Ram with his golden iris. \"Now, theeen, given what you are to us...we should get along nicely, yes?\" Roswaal murmured mostly to himself as his consciousness switched to a different gear. He stared at Ram before him, his consciousness sinking into Ram and Ram alone. The first night at Roswaal Manor grew late as the suspicious conversation between master and maid came to a conclusion. \"Good morning! The weather's great today, perfect for laundry! Let's make this a happy day!\" Subaru raised a shrill hip, hip, hurrah! to welcome the arrival of the rising sun. It was his fifth go at his second morning in Roswaal Manor. He stood in the middle of the garden, his body bathed in morning sunlight as he twisted his upper body all about. He used the popular morning warm-up exercise to get blood circulating through his whole body, making full use of the energy he had gained from sleep. \"Yes, victory!\" Finally, he thrust both hands into the sky and shouted in triumph as he finished the start to the start of another day. Subaru vigorously wiped away the light sweat on his brow and turned around with a smile. Emilia smiled back, albeit tersely, standing in the corner of the garden as she engaged in her daily conversation with lesser spirits under the shade of a tree. \"You really are energetic in the morning...\" \"Hey, don't talk like it's all me here. Put your back into it, Emilia-tan!\" Puck, Emilia's little cat spirit, was hovering alongside her, cleaning his face with his paw. \"When I see him clean his face like that, I'm like, he's seriously a cat. I guess spirits get sleepy, too, huh? He looks half asleep there.\" \"You sleep when you're tired, too, don't you? When mana, the source of our vital power, fades away, well, it's close enough. If we're not getting enough mana...\" Puck yawned generously. Emilia put her hand to her mouth and yawned a little, too. \"Both up late, huh? You were staying up talking to a boy you like, weren't you? Let me in on it! Huh? Which girl do I like...? That's, ah, embarrassing to say, you see...\" Subaru folded his arms, looking down as he glanced a little at Emilia. \"All right, all right,\" Emilia said, waving casually at Subaru's act. \"I like Puck. Puck likes me. The end.\" \"Mutual love?! Is there any room for me in there?!\" \"Not even a little, meow. My charm sets Lia's heart a-flutter. You might not be a bad catch, Subaru, but all that is wasted before me. You should just give up on Lia right...meow, meow!\" Subaru closed on Puck, glaring down at him with reproach, but Emilia's fingers caught one ear on each of them before they could start anything. \"Don't get carried away. I'm going to be upset if that's all you two do.\" \"Ow, ow, she's upset, ow!\" Subaru and Puck meekly endured Emilia's punishment together. When Emilia let go of their ears, they both rubbed their aching heads as she stood before them, hands on her hips. \"I'm glad you two are getting along, but no taking advantage of people just so you can play. Say yes if you understand.\" \"Yeees.\" Both of them raised a hand and nodded firmly. Strangely, though being treated like a child should have bothered Subaru, seeing Emilia's pleasant, satisfied smile made such minor concerns irrelevant. Emilia, not noticing that Subaru had completely fallen for her smile, abruptly clapped her hands. \"Oh, right, now is good. Subaru, sit over here for a moment?\" Emilia sat on the grass with her legs out to the side, patting the ground beside her to invite Subaru over. \"You call, I come running! What, what? The timing's good for what exactly? No matter what your request, Subaru Natsuki leaves no itch unscratched. If there's a place you can't reach, just command me to scratch it and I shall obey!\" \"All I said was to sit beside me. That's a bigger reaction than I expected. What should I do?\" Unsurprisingly, Emilia made a pained smile at Subaru's fierce enthusiasm. \"Err...yesterday was your first day at work. How did it go? Did you do well?\" \"Ah, yeah, failed at eighty percent of it!\" \"I see; you're certainly full of confi... Eh? Failed? Eighty percent of it?\" \"Er, maybe eighty's overstating it... Maybe more like six, no...seventy-five.\" \"That still means you flunked a lot of things...\" Emilia acted like she felt responsible somehow for Subaru's unexpectedly low rating of his own work. But she immediately lifted her face in a show of concern. \"Ah, but, hey, that meant you got twenty percent of work right on your first day, huh? That's fine; I'm sure it's all right. Be confident, now.\" \"Hey, you're right! It's a long road, but if I start at twenty percent, I can raise that little by little from here!\" \"Don't be conceited. Reflect on it properly.\" \"If you're going to start sweet, why can't you end sweet?! Ah, no, it's nothing, very sorry.\" Subaru, cowed by the pressure of Emilia's glare, shrank and nodded meekly. In any case... \"I do feel like I'm eating Ram's and Rem's dust somehow. Getting twenty percent right while trying my best means that's just where I'm at, so no helping it. I'll just expect better from myself going forward.\" \"If you're going to be that optimistic about it, there's nothing more I can say, but...\" Upon hearing Subaru's positive declaration, Emilia tapered her lips into something that resembled a pout. The cute childlike behavior she indulged in from time to time never failed to light a fiery yearning in Subaru. But he restrained himself, smothering the embers. Subaru pointed at Emilia with a finger from each hand in a comical gesture. \"So, so, you see, I'm spending every day with maid sisters tutoring me while I devote myself to life as a servant. If I get tired of that life I'll just come running to Emilia-tan's lap, so leave it open, okay?\" \"...I was only half listening to that, but it sounded kind of all right.\" \"Harsh assessment with a cute face! Well, if that half was the lap part, that's A-OK! Like I said, leave that lap open for me for tonight, Emilia-tan... Don't steal my spot, Puck!\" Subaru thrust a finger at Puck, calling out his name. Puck reacted to the declaration of war with a casual flick of his own whiskers. \"It doesn't matter what you say, Lia's pact with me means her heart and body are already mine. There's no changing our relationship meow, meow!\" Emilia grabbed Puck's ears for his incorrigible behavior and tossed him into the air to make"}, {"text": "him ponder the error of his ways. \"Goodness, don't change the terms of our pact behind my back.\" Maybe Puck was just used to it, for despite that, he simply landed in Emilia's hands and happily wriggled in them with a look of complete calm. Subaru couldn't help but feel envious of their relationship. \"Well, now that I've energized myself I'd better start the morning work.\" \"What do you mean, 'energized yourself'?\" \"By teasing Emilia-tan.\" \"There you go again. If all you do is tease people, they won't trust anything you say when you're actually telling the truth, you know?\" \"That sounds like something out of a fairy tale. If that happens, guess I'll be reaping what I sowed...\" \"Wait, you're telling me that...?\" With Emilia giving him an exasperated look, Subaru sent a bright smile back her way as he rose, brushing off his backside. \"They'll be seriously ticked if I don't get going, though. I'm supposed to help them with this morning's breakfast. Emilia-tan, you don't like eating green beppers, do you? I'll make sure they're not on your plate.\" \"You have to eat even the veggies you don't li When did I tell you I don't like green beppers?\" Emilia tilted her head with a questioning look as Subaru departed with a little smile and a wave. She actually had talked to him about it; he'd even seen her distaste for them with his own eyes. He focused on staying on the path, always joking whenever Emilia set eyes on him.  He had to focus, focus, always focus, to keep the smile on his face. Emilia watched Subaru wander off until he was out of sight before letting out a small sigh. Puck, watching Subaru from her palm, abruptly looked up when he realized Emilia was now watching him. \"That's a gloomy face. What's wrong?\" \"I just feel down somehow. I can't really put it into words.\" Emilia cringed at the wishy-washy attempt to express her internal unease. But what caught in her throat didn't have a chance to become proper words as she sighed again. Puck's pink nose twitched as he watched Emilia's conflict. \"You're worried about Subaru? It's not often you worry about other people like this.\" \"Don't go off and phrase it like I'm some sort of klutz at dealing with people. I'm not bad at getting close to others... I just haven't had many chances to do it!\" Emilia puffed out her cheeks, an expression she refused to show to anyone save Puck. Though it looked like the act of a spoiled brat, it was a testament to Emilia's absolute faith in Puck. The spirit, fully accepting her trust, smiled up at her like she was his own daughter. He offered a nod toward the delicate emotions Emilia couldn't put into words. \"Well, it's no surprise it's throwing you off. Because this has become a little bit of a problem.\" \"Bit of a...problem?\" He'd said the words in a casual manner, but Emilia's face grew tense; she couldn't miss the tone behind them. By nature, Puck behaved exactly the same no matter how high-pressure the situation. She didn't know if it was because he was a spirit or if it was simply his personality that made him that way, but he reserved grave observations as a spirit to provide input for hard, important decisions namely Emilia's. Seeing Emilia's breath catch, Puck casually toyed with his whiskers. He still spoke in his peculiar manner to the end. \"I only touched him a little, but Subaru's mind is all scrambled. What he shows on the outside doesn't match the inside. At this rate, it won't be long before he reaches the end of his rope.\" The high-pitched ting and the sound of pottery breaking made Ram's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. The young manservant prancing around like a dancer Subaru raised his voice as he grabbed hold of a broom and dustpan. \"It's okay! It's okay! Don't worry! I've got this!\" He quickly cleaned up the ceramic fragments scattered at his feet and pretended to wipe sweat off his brow. When he looked at Rem, who'd stared at him during the entire sequence, he flashed his teeth in a fiendish smile. \"Don't worry. I took care of it super fast, and there wasn't even one casualty.\" \"I think your concern is praiseworthy, but were you not the one who dropped the vase, Subaru? I need to get a replacement vase, wipe the floor, put the flowers in order...\" \"No, it's all right! I can get a vase and put the flowers in myself! Go ahead and focus on your own work!\" Driving Rem off almost like he was ordering her, Subaru headed to the storage for furnishings and returned several minutes later with a proper vase. He promptly put the new vase in the same place as the old and added water and the flowers, returning things to as they were. \"Whew. Feels good to get a job done, Remrin.\" \"It is extra work you made for yourself, but at least you took care of it... Subaru, where did you hear where the spare vases are? From Sister?\" \"Mm, ah, er... Right, your big sis! It's me we're talking about here she was pretty sure I'd break one at some point. So she told me in advance exactly where to get a new vase!\" Listening to the clumsy excuse, Rem did not think, That is Sister for you, such foresight. She was less concerned with the vase and more with the fact that Subaru had such a grasp of the mansion's layout that he'd retrieved the broom and dustpan to clean the broken vase with, then gone to grab a spare, without any hesitation. Rem really doubted someone working for only a day or two would do such a thing. That said, rather than raise her suspicions... \"You all right? You're so swamped with work, go ahead and send some my way. I'll do it; I'll do anything.\" ...He was so friendly about it that she just couldn't put a finger on the problem. It was not the behavior of someone bearing malice or hostility, but neither was it how a guileless person behaved. More to the point, for someone hiding something, his facade was riddled with openings. He looked like he was genuinely trying to get used to the job and attempting to get along well with Rem and Ram. Rem knitted her brow, looking like she was warding off the emotions bearing down on her at his earnestness. The sight of Subaru striving so hard, even when no one acknowledged it, stirred up a throbbing ache in her chest. \"Subar \" \"Oh, I forgot the work Ramchi asked me to do! Sorry, I'd better hurry up and take care of that! I'll hook back up with you right after!\" Subaru rushed into the hallway faster than she could call out to stop him. Rem withdrew the fingers she'd reached out to him with, looking over her shoulder as if she should discuss her misgivings with her older sister, but  \" No, it is not enough to trouble Sister over.\" Rem walked toward her own work space, trying to wrap up her remaining work and reduce the lingering ache in her chest in the process.  I feel sick. \"Oh, Ramchi! Did you see me? I'm doing pretty well with a kitchen knife after just one day learning it, huh? Maybe my talent is taking bloom!\"  I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick. \"Remrin, look, look! Right now, my fingers are miraculously imbued with the skill that makes such fine workmanship possible! The power of illusion!\"  I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick. \"Meeting Emilia-tan really puts my heart in a jumble! It's too sinful! I feel so guilty!\"  I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick I feel sick. He kept a smile nailed to his face as he continued trying to sound playful. He wrestled with his entrusted tasks full force, resolutely attacking problems with no fear of failure, and when he was done, he wandered around looking for more to do. He had to. He needed to. He didn't have a single second to waste. It was like a video game where you simulated in your head every potential outcome to a particular event. He had to manage the event flags. That was his specialty, right? The more he encountered them, the better his odds.  I should be able to make them smile more. I should be able to make them laugh more. His actions were meaninglessly exaggerated. He tried to convince them he was an oblivious fool. He tried not to make them think he was useless. His head spun and spun, always weighing his actions. Subaru constantly kept watch for anything that seemed remotely out of the ordinary. He couldn't let his guard slip for a single instant, never mind a second.  I can't make a mistake. I just can't. I can't. Warning bells rang without pause in his head at repeating things over and over. Danger, danger, they announced. He hadn't advanced an inch since reaching this other world, but he felt his sensitivity to peril, at least, had grown more acute. \"See, Ramchi? I'm not slacking off here. I'm totally doing so much work. Almost enough that my superior could just go back to her room and take a nap, you know?\" He evaded the situation with an irregular approach, casually glossing things over with a charming smile. He wondered if he could really do it. Could Subaru Natsuki really pull this off? He hadn't given them reason to doubt him, had he? He paid ten, no, a hundred times more attention, not only in front of Ram but Rem as well. He played Subaru Natsuki, erasing the unnatural with the natural. It was simple. It was all up to him. He had to pay not the slightest bit of attention to what anyone living at the mansion really thought, bathing himself in innocence and lack of restraint, until he seemed like a lazy pig who took whatever was given unto him. As far as the world was concerned, he knew nothing, could do nothing, noticed nothing, and that was all there was to him. He continued to loiter about, wearing his charming grin like a mask. He was inside the mansion. He didn't know who would pop out or when. His free time wasn't free. He spent all his spare time examining his past actions and forming plans for what he'd do in the hours to come. \"Wh...o...a...\" He suddenly felt the urge to throw up. A slight moan slipped from the corner of his mouth, but Subaru's smile did not falter whatsoever. He kept his expression steady, skipping as he walked, practically dancing his way as he slipped into the nearest guest room. And he stepped over to the room's lavatory when... \"...Blehhch. Uuogh, uuuuughnn...!\" The contents of his already-empty stomach poured out. He vomited up every bit of the food and drink that had entered his body. That time, everything came out as sickly yellow stomach acid. And the internal pain that had made him spew it all continued to ache. The nausea wouldn't go away. He gulped down running water until he was full, then expelled it immediately afterward. This repeated several times, his stomach heaving like it was cleaning itself out. \"Haaah...haaah...haaah...\" Subaru roughly wiped his mouth with his sleeve, his face pale and his breath ragged. The pressure was killing him. If he kept this up without any time to rest his mind, he felt like he'd"}, {"text": "waste away and expire from that alone. He wanted to laugh at himself for putting himself in this situation, but not even the faintest smile would form on his lips. All that welled up from within his chest was anxiety and despair.  Am I really pulling it off? The time he'd gotten along with everyone best was during that first loop, when he knew nothing. From the second loop on, he'd been so obsessed with the first loop that it caused problems in his work and personal relations. That was probably a major reason why he hadn't earned the sisters' trust. Consequently, Subaru was using the first loop as his model this time around. That said, he'd failed in the second loop by trying to copy the first. That meant he had to do things better than the first time. Meaning, all he had to do was put everything into any work he found in front of him and do well at it. \"But that still only gets me fifty points... Can't get a hundred if I don't figure out who the shaman is...\" Merely evading death by the sisters' hands wouldn't protect Subaru from the menace of the shaman. On the morning of the fifth day, someone in the mansion would be crying. It might be over Subaru; it might be over Rem. Subaru really wanted to get information on the shaman, to turn it over to the others so they could plan a counterattack, but he could not. Even if he suggested courses of action, they didn't trust him enough to act on them yet; he also couldn't divulge the source of his information. And Subaru would get a little taste of hell if he broke the prohibition on speaking to others about Return by Death. Pain scared him, but what terrified him even more was meeting the fingertips of that black cloud. He had to win the others' trust and expose the shaman's identity. Time was extremely short enough to make him feel like the walls were closing in. He had to do something, but he was rushing down a blind alley. The night before, he'd been held captive by that vortex of helplessness, unable to get a wink of sleep, no answer forthcoming. He felt powerless, having well-founded reasons for his anxiety but being unable to find any solution for it. He'd paid with his life to come back, yet there he was, an incapable fool. \"Ah, damn it... I'm being pathetic.\" He couldn't fail here. His back was against the wall. Even if it was a life he'd thrown away, a life that ought to have been over, he was afraid of losing it again. It was his fifth time. Even Subaru wasn't optimistic enough to think he could come back again. His spirit was in tatters from his mind continually being bashed. If he wasn't at the brink, he wouldn't have made the decision to struggle with all his might. He simply lacked the courage. He was mediocre. Ordinary in every way. The more he learned how small a person he truly was, the more he grew to despise himself. \"Stupid, stupid. This isn't the time to whine and cry...\" If he had time to complain, then he had time to run his frivolous mouth and make a better impression. Shaking off his nausea, Subaru slapped his stiff cheeks in self-rebuke and headed out of the guest room. It was free time right now, but he didn't have a moment for a break. He couldn't waste a second on rest. He had to find where Ram and Rem had gone and  \"I've finally found you.\" He was putting his thoughts in order when he heard someone call to him from behind. When he looked back, he saw Emilia standing there, breathing slightly heavily. The instant Subaru set eyes on Emilia, his mind clicked and switched to a different gear. He forgot all about the pain in his stomach, the ache in his chest, and the stifling feeling, turning everything toward Emilia. His cheeks bent into a smile. \"Oh, Emilia-tan calling me by name. I'm happy, embarrassed it's so rare! Your word is my command! I will pass through fire and water for you, even loot sellers!\" Subaru shoved his emotions to the back of his mind for Emilia with a lot more verve than was necessary. He prided himself on quick comebacks, but Emilia had a different reaction to seeing it than he had expected. He expected an exasperated look and a sigh or something, but instead... \"...Subaru...\" \"Wait, now, if you're the Emilia-tan I know, you should be... Hurk! Are you an imposter?! But could someone else really copy a beautiful girl wrapped in such an adorable package?!\" His ridiculous humor invited amazement, but Emilia's reaction to even this was muted. Defying all his expectations, Emilia looked at Subaru, her eyes filled with...pity.  Not good, his instincts warned him. \"Eh? You've gone quiet. This isn't some sort of prank you're playing on a guy who gets carried away on tangents, right? You know, like me!\" This is wrong, said a voice inside his brain, over and over. Emilia wasn't shocked or angry; she was simply staring at Subaru with pained eyes.  I wonder if the comedian's mask I'm wearing slipped somehow. The instant worry wormed its way in as Subaru remembered the kitty cat always hovering by Emilia's side. That cat was also a spirit able to read the subconscious thoughts of others. It was only then that Subaru realized that the jig was up. The charming smile plastered onto his face vanished, replaced by a look like that of a child fearful of being scolded. What a joke. She'd seen through him time and time again while he danced in an effort to hide it all. More than that, Emilia was the one he least wanted to know; his tiny bit of pride at pulling the wool over her eyes was destroyed. A silence fell between them. Subaru could no longer find words to say. Emilia looked like she was trying to find some herself, without success.  I'm disappointing Emilia. I didn't want that to happen, above all else. But Subaru didn't know what excuse he could form. He opened his mouth several times, stopping each time, unable to find the right words. Seeing words fail Subaru, Emilia abruptly murmured \"all right\" to herself quietly before continuing. \"Subaru. Come with me.\" \"...Ah?\" \"Just come on.\" Emilia grabbed Subaru's arm, dragging him along into the guest room right beside them. A questioning look came over Subaru about going back to the room he'd just left. But Emilia left Subaru hanging as she put her hands on her hips and looked around the room. When she pointed at the floor, her voice rang like a silver bell, as always. \"All right, Subaru. Sit.\" He followed her finger downward. The carpeted floor belonged to a room no one was using but was cleaned regularly nonetheless. Granted, it was soft enough to sleep on, but... \"If I'm going to be sitting, why not the bed or a chair? Why the floor specifica \" \"Just sit already!\" \"Yes, with pleasure!\" Cowed by the strong tone she had never used, Subaru dove onto the floor without hesitation and sat properly on his knees. Emilia nodded, apparently satisfied, and stood right beside him. Naturally, this left Subaru looking up at Emilia from a submissive position, but wicked thoughts never entered his mind. Instead, he was desperately trying to figure out what her intentions were. Emilia's voice sounded quietly from her throat. \"...Okay.\" She seemed to have said it for her own benefit. Emilia took a deep breath and sat right beside Subaru, kneeling just as he was. Subaru's heart thumped at Emilia sitting within touching distance, but his sideways glance at her pale face could not tell him what she was thinking. He belatedly realized that her cheeks were flushed; even her ears were red. \"This is a special occasion, all right?\" \" Eh?\" Something pressed against the back of Subaru's head faster than he could properly voice his doubts. Already kneeling, his body offered no resistance as it bent forward until a very soft sensation hit him. \"The position's a little awkward, and, mm...kind of prickly.\" Something shifted around under his head as he heard Emilia's fairly bashful-sounding voice from right overhead. In surprise, he looked up; the sight before him made his eyes go wide. Right above him, Emilia's face was so close that they were almost touching. His eyes reflected a beautiful face that was inverted. Subaru belatedly grasped, Oh, I'm upside down looking up at her. This distance, her upside-down position, the soft sensation under his head...  Subaru mentally searched for terms to describe it and found exactly one. \"Lap...pillow?\" \"It's embarrassing, so please don't say it out loud. And you're not allowed to look this way. Close your eyes.\" She gave his forehead a light slap, using the palm of her hand to cover his eyes, obstructing his field of vision. However, Subaru moved Emilia's resisting hand aside and dragged the words out. \"Emilia-tan, you're the best when you're embarrassed...but what is this? When did I do something to earn a reward like this?\" \"You don't need to put up that front right now. \" She smacked his forehead again. But this time Emilia left her hand on it, stroking Subaru's hair with her fingers. He squinted at the ticklish feeling. \"You asked me to let you rest on my lap when you were tired, didn't you, Subaru? So that's what I'm doing. It won't be like this all the time, but today's special.\" \"Special? Come on, it's not even the end of the second day here. My body's not weak enough to keel over from overwork that fast...\" \"I can tell you're beat-up just by looking at you. You won't go into the details and tell me, will you? I don't think this'll make everything better, but...it's the only thing I can do, so...\" Her compassionate gaze made it hard to brush her off. Her fingers had parted his black hair; she began to gently stroke his forehead like he was a little boy. Subaru burst out laughing and tried to twist away from Emilia's fingers. He had promised himself to stay strong in front of Emilia. To say this was all a misunderstanding. To say he wouldn't do anything as unseemly and uncool as that. \"Ha-ha... Emilia-tan, you, doing that...for...me...\" Yet his voice was shrill. His throat caught, and the next words wouldn't come out. Subaru couldn't switch mental gears when he felt her soft fingertips stroking his forehead. \"You're tired, aren't you?\" \"I I can still do...more. I'm totally...all right...\" \"Have you been having trouble?\" \"You're being so nice to me, I mean, I'm gonna blush. If you keep doing that, I'm...gonna... Ha-ha...\" Subaru's reply to her brief question sounded like complete lies. Even he could tell that his words sounded hollow and empty. Then Emilia gently drew her face close to Subaru's. \"It's been hard for you, hasn't it?\" *** She sounded like she pitied him. She sounded like she sympathized with him. She sounded like she cared for him. That was all it took for Subaru's walls to collapse. They crumbled, fell apart, and came crashing down all at once. All the powerful emotions he'd tried to keep bottled up hadn't gone away in the slightest and came rushing out. \"It was...hard. It was really, rough. I was really, scared. I was really sad, enough that I thought I was gonna die. It hurt so much...!\" \"Yeah.\" \"I I tried. I really tried. I did everything I could. I desperately tried to do everything right...! I did! Really, really. I've never tried to do anything that hard before!\" \"Yeah, I know.\" \"It's because I like it here... This place, it's precious to me...! That's why I was dying to have it back. I was afraid. I"}, {"text": "was so afraid to see that day again...and I hated it. I hated myself for that!\" He couldn't control his emotions. The initial explosion had blown the dam wide open, a deluge of tears marring the smiling mask over his cowardly face. The tears wouldn't stop. His nose was runny. His mouth was awash in some sort of weird liquid as Subaru's sobbing became harder to listen to with each passing moment. It was a sorry sight: a grown man with his head on a girl's lap, bawling his eyes out. It was pathetic enough that he could die, but the warmth filling him might just kill him, too. Emilia made gentle sounds of understanding as she listened to Subaru weep. There was no way she actually understood what Subaru was saying. And yet, the kindness of her voice brought relief to Subaru's heart. He didn't understand why. Maybe he just wanted it to be so. But it was true nonetheless that Subaru felt saved by her warmth. And so, a flood of tears flowed from Subaru as he continued to cry on Emilia's lap. He cried, he cried, he wailed, and at some point, the sobs faded into the distance.  The only noise that filled the guest room after that was the sound of quiet sleep. As Subaru sank into slumber, he felt the presence of heat deep inside his chest. Subaru knew now what that emotion was. The throbbing in Subaru's chest had grown stronger each time he looked at Emilia, spoke with her, felt the touch of her fingertips but he hadn't had a name for it before. When he thought of her, his body was afflicted by the hot pangs of that troublesome illness known as love. Once a person became aware of it, he lost all will to fight against the disease. Subaru was no exception. After all  No matter how much he got hurt, no matter what pain he endured, no matter how often he tasted despair, it was all to save Emilia. Everything was so he could spend his days walking by Emilia's side.  Even if Subaru Natsuki died again and again, that love would live on. Emilia was gently stroking Subaru's hair as he slept when Rem arrived at the guest room. Opening the door without a sound, Rem saw Emilia inside and opened her mouth, but she closed it when Emilia put a finger to her own lips. \"Shh.\" Rem narrowed her eyes a bit, walking over as she looked at the two of them nestled close together on the floor. \"Subaru is merely asleep?\" \"Yes. Hee-hee, he's like a little boy. He looks so peaceful when I stroke his head like this.\" Emilia seemed to enjoy petting Subaru, as she prodded Rem for agreement. Rem replied with a quiet shake of her head. \"It seems Subaru will not be able to work any further today.\" \"Yeah, he gets the rest of today off. He's a very naughty boy for taking time off on his second day. When he's all better, make sure to punish him, okay?\" Emilia made a small smile and returned to toying with Subaru's head. She appeared to have no intention of moving the sleeping Subaru to free up her legs. Rem, reading Emilia's intent, quietly looked down at Subaru, who seemed to be deeply asleep. He looked so innocent. There was not even the slightest trace of tension on his childlike face. It was completely different from his strained attempt at lightheartedness when last they had spoken during work. It was enough to make her earlier suspicion seem incredibly stupid. \"It is hard to think of that when you see him sleeping like this, though.\" Rem seemed to be murmuring that more to herself than to Emilia as she gave Subaru's hair a light caress with her fingers. His ignorance of the world, like an innocent babe, made Rem's lips slacken just a little. \"I will inform Sister that Subaru is of no use for today. We must reallot today's chores.\" Rem left things at that, bowing politely as she turned to leave. She started to go find her sister. Around this time, she would still be cleaning up the dining hall. There, they would rearrange their schedule for the day. \"Rem...\" Abruptly called, Rem stopped and gently turned her whole body around. Emilia was sitting below her on the floor. In spite of that, Rem mysteriously felt a powerful pressure coming from Emilia's gaze, like Rem was the one who stood lower. Emilia, not noticing Rem's small measure of surprise, spoke in a quiet voice. \"Subaru is a good boy.\" *** Rem responded with a single, solemn bow. Then, without another word, she headed to the door and left Subaru and Emilia behind in the guest room. She mulled over Emilia's statement as she walked down the hallway. Even Rem did not notice the slight tremble on the side of her neutral visage.  But the faintest trace of a vile odor remained lodged in a corner of Rem's mind. CHAPTER 2 *** \"Borrowing a girl's lap, letting her caress my head, and falling into a peaceful sleep... By itself you'd think it was awesome, but man...\" Subaru said things like that over and over, red to the tips of his ears as he plucked a bit of hair from his head. He thought back to the scene several hours before, when he'd spectacularly laid bare his soul. \"So I was a big crybaby in front of my sweetheart, fell asleep with tears on my face and a runny nose. Plus, I had her lap to myself for hours on end... This is like a humiliation game.\" He thought back to the sensation of Emilia's knees, as well as the price they had paid to convey it to him. The spectacle had left Emilia's skirt all a mess from his runny nose. No matter what problems Subaru had been going through, this was inexcusable, even if just from a hygienic view. Still, Emilia hadn't rocked him awake in all that time, nor did she hold it against Subaru as he earnestly apologized for dirtying her clothes. \"That's fine if it makes you feel a little better. Besides, you really don't understand, Subaru.\" \"Eh?\" \"It's more satisfying for the other person to hear a single thank-you than a dozen apologies. I don't want you to apologize for something I wanted to offer you, so there.\" The way she pressed a finger to his apologizing lips and winked at him would bowl over any man. Indeed, Subaru bowled over right on the spot. Now that Subaru knew he loved her, everything she said and did, that included, seemed covered in glitter and gloss. Emilia headed off to change clothes in her room. Subaru kept wandering around the mansion in a dreamy state for a little while before finally regaining his senses and clutching his head at what he'd done. \"Oh man, I've totally done it now. Emilia's the one I didn't want to look weak in front of. Is there anything more embarrassing I could've done? I seriously can't look her in the eye now!\" \"...Is that what a person says when entering someone's room late at night, I wonder?\" The way Subaru pressed the middle of his thigh against the stool and writhed around it put the girl in the dress Beatrice in a particularly bad mood, bringing a dreadful scowl over her adorable face. After parting ways with Emilia, Subaru had it in his head that he couldn't let anyone else see him, so his feet carried him to the archive of forbidden books, and thus beyond anyone's reach. Though, he liked tweaking the nose of the girl in charge of it, too. \"Don't say that, Beako. We're friends, right?\" \"What kind of relationship do you think Wait, what did you call me just now, I wonder?\" Beatrice raised an eyebrow with a twitch of her cheek when Subaru clapped his hands. \"Beako. I think nicknames are an indispensable way to show my friendship. You're the only one in the mansion so far who didn't like it even a little bit, though...\" He thought back to the last loop, when the loneliness and despair had been driven home. One could even say he was cajoling her into bringing sophistry and threats at him. It was from such humble beginnings that a firm pact had been established between them. In the end, Subaru had unilaterally severed the deal. But Beatrice had exploited the vagueness of the details to continue to protect him. Even if Beatrice had forgotten, Subaru would never forget how he felt back then. \" So I don't care what you think of me, I'm going to call you Beako. It's the greatest sign of affection I can give you!\" \"That does not please me whatsoever! What is with that overbearing goodwill?! Is it merely distasteful or completely disgusting, I wonder?!\" \"Hey, what's with that way of talking?! I'm thanking you from the bottom of my heart here. This is no time to make fun!\" \"If you're going to insist that what you said just now was not meant in jest, you and I are no longer engaged in conversation. It may look like dialogue, but it is not!\" She informed him that if conversation was supposed to be a game of catch, this was more like rugby. He was showing considerable affection in an appropriately Subaru-like way, but that seemed to be lost on Beatrice. \"Well, I'll set that aside, but I'll still call you Beako.\" \"Such single-minded resolve is quite unnecessary. What would happen if I simply do not respond to that name, I wonder?\" \"Don't say cold things like that, Beako.\" *** Subaru called out to Beatrice, but silently keeping her gaze lowered to her book, she made no reply. Apparently she meant what she had said earlier. While Beatrice acted stubborn, Subaru grudgingly walked over and paced around the stool. \"What's wrong, Beako? You look glum, Beako. Are you all right, Beako? If there's something wrong, you can talk to me, Beako. Mm? What is it, Beako? We can do this, Beako. Beako, Beako!\" \"I have never seen anyone as annoying as you! What is with you, I wonder?!\" Someone as thin-skinned as Beatrice was natural prey for someone born with a talent for getting on other people's nerves like Subaru. He pumped a fist, the corners of his lips twisting as Beatrice's shoulders shook in anger. \"Actually, I've got an admission to make. I'm backed into a corner and really need your help.\"  He explained to the curly-haired girl the conclusion he'd formed after pathetically bawling his eyes out. While on Emilia's lap, all the ugly feelings and tears built up inside Subaru had come pouring out. What remained were Subaru's pure personal desires.  He loved Emilia. He'd thought he loved her before, but now he truly knew what falling for someone meant. It was love at first sight. Just hearing her voice made his heart skip a beat. Just talking with her was so pleasant it felt like a dream. He couldn't leave this girl who put herself in harm's way for others. That's why I love her, he had thought, but now he sincerely understood what he'd felt. She was the first one to save Subaru when he was summoned to another world without anyone to depend on. And, when he'd been backed into a dark alley of despair, it was she who had saved his dying heart. She'd saved both his life and his heart.  He could no longer think of living in a world without Emilia. He loved spending his days with Emilia at the mansion. He loved learning all sorts of things about the world. He loved Ram, who'd taken such care of him in spite of her blunt tongue. He really loved Emilia. He loved Rem, who insulted him with polite language but always showed him how to do"}, {"text": "things. He was enveloped by goodwill toward everyone living at the mansion. Subaru wanted to stay there forever. Those overflowing feelings filled his chest to bursting. But on the other side of that happy coin  He loved Emilia. He despaired at lacking the power to protect her. Life at the mansion had grown stale. He didn't know where or when he'd be found out. He feared Ram, who commanded Blades of Wind that could slice his throat. He was terrified of Rem and her skull-crushing iron ball. Roswaal's disturbing madness could lead him to command the twins to eliminate Subaru without mercy. Every time he woke up, he checked whether he was still alive, and he could sense himself cracking under his own constant vigilance against despair. These, too, were Subaru's true, indelible feelings. Emilia had saved Subaru before the friction in his mind had roasted Subaru from the inside out. By consoling him, Emilia had pulled his heart back from the brink. Thinking about her filled him with life and energy. Emilia was what kept his urge to flee in check. \"In other words, E M D (Emilia-tan's Majorly Divine)!\" Beatrice responded to Subaru's declaration by acting astounded and shooting him an annoyed grimace. \"Did you say something exceedingly stupid just now, I wonder?\" \"Not at all. I'm putting my top priorities back in order.\" \"Let us return to the topic at hand... You say you want my help? What do you mean, I wonder?\" \"Yeah, I'm pretty serious about that, like enough to beg God for help. I can't think of anyone else I can go to.\" In the present situation, Emilia was, of course, the member of the mansion he could place the most trust in but she was also the most important part of Subaru's life. In other words, the absolute last thing he wanted to do was put her in danger. To Subaru, who normally prioritized his own life, Emilia's life weighed much heavier than his on the scale. That being the case, he couldn't go to Puck for help, either, which left  \"Beako. She's actually pretty sweet. And softer than she looks.\" \"I don't understand your meaning, but I do sense that you are mocking me.\" \"That's not my intent at all... Actually, the way things are in the mansion right now, you're the only one I can rely on.\" Of course, he couldn't come clean to Ram and Rem, let alone Roswaal. Except for Emilia, Beatrice was truly the only person in the mansion who he could trust. \"Please. I'm begging you.\" Subaru was kneeling on the floor before Beatrice, bowing his head as he petitioned for aid. Subaru needed a lantern to light the way so that he could bring an end to the chain of despair. \"I need your help. I want to set everything right and protect the place where I can be happy. And that's no good if it doesn't include everyone here.\" *** Subaru, touching his head to the floor, looked up at Beatrice after a long silence. \"...Beatrice?\" The conflict he saw in her eyes made his breath catch. Beatrice knit her brows and bit her lip as she glared at Subaru. And yet, despite the ferocity of her gaze, she looked on the verge of tears. *** She opened her mouth to speak, but her gaze wavered as she found herself unable to find the words. Beatrice's heart had been shaken. He had to make her speak to him. \"Listen to me, Beatrice. I understand why you don't want to help me out of hand. To you, I'm a weirdo and a stranger who wandered in just the other day.\" \"...If you know that much, you do not need to hear it from my lips, do you?\" \"You're the one who patched me up. Thank you. I know you don't know this, but I have a mountain of other things I need to thank you for. And here I am asking you for help again... It's pretty pathetic. It's a miserable sight, really, but you're the only one I have.\" He laid out all his cards on the table. It was the lowest form of begging pushy and self-centered and with no regard for Beatrice's feelings whatsoever. With Subaru lowering his head in nothing but earnestness, wearing sincerity on his sleeve, Beatrice made a very typical snort. \"You are a worm crawling on the ground, wailing about your own powerlessness. Do you have any pride at all, I wonder?\" \"I know what's important to me. I'll bow my head ten times or a hundred times and pound the floor if that's what it takes.\" He was too much of a weakling to obsess over petty pride. Subaru kept his head down as he continued to plead for her aid. He knew it was a cowardly way of doing things. During his five loops, he'd continued to quarrel with Beatrice during their encounters along the way. That's how he knew. Beatrice acted like she was blowing him off, but  \"You may...raise your head.\" The moment the soft voice reached his ears, Subaru believed his craven request had been granted. He was acutely aware of his own pettiness and he resented himself for his insincere behavior toward Beatrice. But even that had been necessary to make the girl named Beatrice come to her decision. That was how the rather simple man named Subaru Natsuki had seen it, but... \"Bea...\" \"Take this, would you?\" \"Bwah!\" But that miserable, heartfelt face met the merciless sole of a shoe. Subaru was still prostrate as his head alone lifted from the floor, with his formless sound of anguish echoing around the archive. Subaru remained in that awkward, bent-back position, making an incoherent yell as she stomped him a few more times. \"Hey...this is...!\" \"You could think on it a hundred times and you would never comprehend the work I go through. No matter how many silver coins you gather, they will never equal the sacred glow of a gold coin. Do you understand, I wonder?\" \"Er, if you get a few thousand silver coins they'll equal it, I'm sure. It's just a matter of comparable value, right? Or maybe you're just bad at math?\" \"Will you stop looking at me like a pitiable child, I wonder?! Are those the eyes of someone who was just begging me?!\" And so, Beatrice and Subaru resumed their bickering. It was a pointless battle that had begun for no particular reason, repeated several times across different worlds. As he continued his familiar banter with Beatrice, he thought on some level that the pathetic stubbornness inside him was pretty moronic. \"All right, then, I'll play my trump card. If you cooperate with me, I'll give you a reward of equal value, you hear?\" \"Do you think the likes of me would be lured by any reward you can muster, I wonder?\" \"How about this? Because I saved Emilia at the capital, I get to borrow Puck. And Puck said if I want to swap that for something else, I only need to ask... You see what I'm getting at here?\" Beatrice's expression changed. Subaru smiled unpleasantly as he brought all his negotiation skills to bear. Now that it involved a reward, she agreed to reluctantly cooperate with Subaru. Subaru thought it was pretty silly to settle things by offering up Puck on a silver platter. He knew the little magic user would go for it, but still... It hadn't exactly been a warm and fuzzy process, but Subaru had finally managed to win Beatrice's cooperation. He'd repent of pushing things on to a little girl because of his own powerlessness after all the problems were cleared up. \"...You want to know more about shamans?\" Subaru's cut-and-dry statement caused Beatrice to raise her shapely eyebrows with an air of disgust. His top priority was to deal with the menace of the shaman's attack on the mansion without a moment to lose. A large part of why he asked Beatrice for help was so that her magic could counter the deadly curses. Explaining as much as possible to Beatrice without getting to the heart of the matter was crucial for Subaru. \"I'll probably pay a price if I let too many cats out of the bag, so...\" When he'd tried to confess his Return by Death to Emilia, time had suddenly stopped all around Subaru as a black cloud took the shape of a hand and inflicted immense agony upon him. Subaru's silent screams and the torture of having his heart crushed had robbed him of any notions of easy defiance. As a result, Subaru was immensely wary of the black cloud, choosing his words very carefully as he continued to explain. \"I know there's such a thing as curses, but I don't know anything else beyond that they're different from magician and spirit stuff. I want to know more about them.\" \"It is rare for someone to ask about that. I wonder, does paying that bunch any heed get you anywhere?\" Like before, Beatrice's distaste toward even forming the word curse on her lips was considerable. Back then, he'd avoided pushing deeper into the matter, but that would not be the case this time. \"Curses are magic spells that exist only to cause trouble for other people and come from some country up north, right?\" \"Is it not sufficient to know that much, I wonder? Curses invade their targets like a disease, limiting their movements and robbing them of their pure life forces... A tradition in very poor taste.\" \"Normally I'd say it depends on how you use them, but looks like you can't use them except to hurt people, huh?\" Reason enough to call these curses. If curses were supernatural powers that existed to bring down others, the practice in his home world of putting needles into voodoo dolls probably counted. Well, not that he actually accepted the existence of the occult in that world... Subaru sat up more, thinking about the things Beatrice had mentioned in a grave tone of voice. \"So, let me ask this... How do you defend against a curse?\" It was pretty tough to aim a counterattack at the shaman without knowing his identity. Subaru's one advantage was knowing in advance that an attack would take place. Consequently, figuring out a way to stop the shaman's attack in its tracks was a wonderful idea...in theory. \"You do not.\" \" Eh?\" \"No means exist to defend against a curse once it is activated. Once activated, you are finished. Isn't that what a curse is, I wonder?\" \"I-isn't there any kind of Instant Death Resist...?!\" In a video game, you dealt with Lv. 1 Death type spells by casting Instant Death Resist in advance. With the light at the end of the tunnel growing ever distant, Subaru pulled his hair, his brain on fire as it tried to come up with a new plan. He'd underestimated the situation. That reality sent Subaru's mind into free fall. \" However, that is limited to curses that have activated.\" \" Huh?\" The words spoken to Subaru a moment later made his eyes go wide. Beatrice grinned with what seemed to be great delight. She got me good, thought Subaru as the look on her face confirmed it; all he could do was open and close his mouth like a flounder in a mix of surprise and anger. \"Just as I said, there is no way to defend against a curse once it has been activated. However, an un-activated curse can be blocked. It simply requires a cleansing rite prior to activation, so anyone with the requisite skill would find removing it rather simple.\" \"I'll save getting angry for later... So, who can do that?\" \"In this mansion, there's me, and of course Puckie. Beyond that, Roswaal and...the three little girls do not have the requisite experience, so no. Oh, and of course you cannot.\" \"I know that one only too well...\" He'd"}, {"text": "gone through hell because of his lack of resistance, not once but twice. Subaru put aside his unpleasant memories as he raised a hand and asked Beatrice a question. \"So how would you know to use a rite before a curse activates?\" \"Powerful curses place a commensurate burden upon the body. Perhaps magic and curses share that in common? The side effects of a curse are considerable. Could I say that they are deeply flawed, I wonder?\" \"So...is there something you can do in advance to protect yourself?\" Subaru asked his question like he was hanging from a thread. In response, Beatrice closed her eyes for a while, licking her lips. \"Though it depends upon the specific details...there is an iron rule for curses.\" \"An iron...rule?\" With bated breath, Subaru prodded Beatrice to continue from where she'd left off. And so she did. \" Physical contact with the target. An absolute prerequisite, I wonder?\" *** Subaru's brain spun round and round the instant that detail entered his skull. The caster of a curse needed to touch his target. In other words, both times Subaru had suffered from the effects of the curse, he had made physical contact with the shaman beforehand. That narrowed the possibilities to  \"If it's no one here at the mansion, then...it's gotta be the village...\" Subaru had walked to the village both times he'd undergone Return by Death from suffering the effects of witchcraft. When he thought about it more, he'd gone to the village midway through the fourth day both times. At the village, the shaman had performed the rite for the curse, and that curse activated that night at the mansion resulting in his death. That had been the pattern. The shaman being at the village would explain why Rem had fallen prey to the curse during the last loop. That time, Subaru had never gone to the village, so Rem became the shaman's target instead. If Ram had gone, she would've been the target; if Subaru had gone there with her, no doubt he would've been the target again. It connected. It connected everything. The shaman was in Earlham Village. It was unclear whether the shaman was a resident or a visitor. If he was the latter, finding him wouldn't be all that hard. It was a village with a small population. A stranger's face immediately became known to all, just like Subaru's had. If the former, it'd have been a carefully premeditated crime, but... \"That doesn't seem likely.\" In the prior incident, someone tried to throw a monkey wrench into Emilia's royal candidacy. But that candidacy didn't exist before the royal family suddenly died out only half a year beforehand. Emilia's name popping up on the candidate list probably took time, so that meant only three or four months to prepare at absolute most. A shaman would have had to infiltrate the village years beforehand to be considered a native. \"So the shaman's an outsider. Finding him won't be all that hard, either...\" Subaru voiced his thoughts out loud as he began to search for holes in his logic. It wasn't a bad idea to raise a hypothesis, even if you amended it as you went along. As far as the shaman was concerned, he hadn't actually done anything yet. Short of his opponent being God or the Devil himself, it was impossible for his existence to be exposed as of yet. Subaru mulled over the fact that he was still on the night of the second day. He had a long grace period before things were due to take a turn for the worse on the fourth. In other words, it meant he could do his own preemptive strike on the shaman. \"I've got you by the tail now, damn it. I didn't die twice at your hands for nothing!\" Subaru, finally able to see his situation brightening, clenched a fist as his voice quivered with joy. While Subaru delighted in the change in circumstances, Beatrice looked quite dissatisfied at having been dropped from the conversation. Her lovely cheeks reddened to emphasize the sourness of her gaze. \"What is that attitude in front of someone you asked for aid, I wonder? If what I spoke was of service, I think you should say as much to my face.\" \"Yeah, you're right! You saved my bacon; I can see the light thanks to you! I love you, Beako!\" \"Wha ?!\" Subaru leaped over to Beatrice, picking up her very light body and twirling all around with her on the spot. Despite her elaborate dress, the girl's body was as light as a feather. Subaru's spinning increased in synergy with the buoyancy of his mood. \"Let g Would you put me down, I wonder?!\" \"Ha-ha-ha, I could just fly in the sky right now! Nah, how 'bout we fly together, Beako?!\" \"Fly all by your lonesome !\" \"Bwah?!\" She released magical energy from right above him, slamming him hard enough to make him do a full leg split on the floor. The impact he felt on the top of his skull transferred to the rest of his body. Subaru's internal mana was all a jumble. His eyes were spinning as he continued to rest on his butt. For her part, Beatrice landed with an elegant flutter of the hem of her skirt, turning her head and sending a snort Subaru's way. \"Do you see what happens when you get carried away with frivolity, I wonder?\" \"That's not the only thing I saw. They're white!\" \" .  ?! Take this, would you?!\" \"Brfhh!\" Subaru took the second shot right between the eyes, sending him flying into a corner of the archive like a rag doll. He rolled head over heels before slamming into a bookshelf, bringing heavy books down upon his head. He crawled his way out of the mountain of books, tears in his eyes from the many bumps and bruises. \"The friendship gauge goes down just a little and I get this?! If you're not happy with something, just say it, geez!\" \"Being picked up like a little child, spun around in midair, having my panties seen, you speaking superficially lovey-dovey words, all of it! Is your entire existence a nuisance, I wonder?!\" \"Hey, don't put down my existence; that's really sad stuff! I'm trying not to be a masochist here!\" Subaru hoped to find ways to improve himself, just like he'd found a chance to improve his circumstances. Just because I'm powerless doesn't mean I have to be helpless, too, Subaru thought, nodding at his own internal rebuke. \"Anyway, the situation's a lot better than it was. It'll be hard waiting out the night, but tomorrow I'm heading to the village.\" Let's find out who this shaman really is, he thought. That'd probably mean going with either Ram or Rem. Considering they both had combat strength, it was a natural choice in case he ended up duking it out with the shaman then and there. If he could get rid of the vile shaman and raise his friendship gauge with both girls in the process, that'd be the grand finale bringing his first week at Roswaal Manor to a successful conclusion. \"Now that I think back on it, I sure went through a lot...\" He knew it was speaking too soon, but it was a light at the end of the tunnel even so. Surely no one could blame Subaru for feeling that way. Shouldn't you be thinking of something else? he wondered. Looking up meant missing that which was right at his feet, didn't it? Subaru, a man of little nerve and much wariness, suddenly remembered... \"The scent...of the witch...\" \"What do you mean, I wonder?\" \"Right, the witch. Rem mentioned her. You did, too, Beako.\" The moment the word witch formed on his lips, he remembered the various places he had encountered it. The witch was often treated as an abominable being by the residents of that world, but Subaru's only clue as to why was the broad outline given in the children's story \"The Witch of Jealousy.\" That really bothered him all of a sudden. After all, the road traveled by Subaru Natsuki had been peppered by references to her. Subaru lifted up his face and looked at Beatrice, who was knitting her eyebrows. He wasn't sure she'd even answer the question he was about to ask. It was grave enough that Ram had refused to answer it entirely, while Rem had used it as one of her justifications for attacking him. He felt that even Emilia strongly resisted the topic. \"Beako, you know about the witch, right?\" *** The reply didn't come immediately. The word thrumming in her ears made Beatrice close her eyes, sinking into silence as if making sure she'd heard correctly. Her reaction left Subaru with no option beyond trying to keep calm and waiting. When she suddenly murmured the words, Subaru's breath caught as his eyes went wide. \"She who drinks the world itself. Queen of the Castle of Shadows. The greatest of all disasters the Witch of Jealousy.\" Upon seeing Subaru's reaction, Beatrice let out a gloomy sigh. \"In this world, there is only one being indicated by the word witch. Should I add, it is even considered taboo to speak her name aloud, I wonder?\" \"So everyone's in awe and fear of her, and no one defies her?\" \"Yes, precisely. Rather, why would you even ask if I know her, I wonder? In this world, aren't the names you know best those of your parents, then other family, and finally, the name of the witch, I wonder?\" \"Oh, come on...\" Subaru tried to poke fun, but he swallowed his words when Beatrice's expression made plain that she wasn't the slightest bit joking. And if she was serious, that meant the witch was an unparalleled darkness in the world. \"The Witch of Jealousy, 'Satella.' She consumed the great sinners of yore known as the Six Witches, swallowing up half the world in the process, the vilest of all calamities.\" Beatrice's words, spoken with emotions suppressed, brought a short, hard breath out of Subaru. The name, one he'd heard before, bore much more gravity in the context of the rest. \"It is said that the witch desires love. It is said she does not comprehend human speech. It is said she envies everything in this world. That none have seen her face and lived. That her body is untouched by the ravages of time, unable to grow old or decay. That the Dragon, the Hero, and the Sage combined their power to seal her away, because even they could not hope to destroy her.\" Beatrice spoke point by point, not allowing Subaru to get a word in. \"It is said...\" Finally, as if reaching the end of her tale, she paused after her preamble and said, \"...she is a half-elf with silver hair.\"  Satella, the Witch of Jealousy. The Six Witches had made the world scream, but this witch wiped them out in one fell swoop, ushering in a calamity that destroyed half the world. A hero had sealed her flesh within a crystal, where she continued to sleep, even then, in some corner of the world. That's an absurd story, Subaru's sensibilities as a child of modernity made him think. Crimes so vile that people spoke of them centuries afterward were already bad enough, but the fact that the perpetrator continued to exist, sealed away somewhere out there, would be unthinkable in his world. Subaru began to cite a rather extreme example as he sat cross-legged with his chin on a palm, watching a corner of the garden. \"Well, I can't really go by that. Even if people don't know the name of their own prime minister, they know the name of, say, the nation's most popular idol group...\" It was morning as Emilia sat on the grass of the inner garden, conversing with the flickering lights surrounding her. The scene never lost its mysterious, surreal air no matter"}, {"text": "how many times he set eyes on it. Seeing Emilia like this every day was one of the most beautiful sights that world had to offer. Subaru was watching at a distance so as not to interfere with Emilia's conversation. He was still wearing his servant's outfit as he suppressed a yawn, letting out a long breath as he sank into a sea of contemplation once more. It was now the morning of the third day, for night and sunrise had passed since his conversation with Beatrice in the archive of forbidden books. As the night had crept toward morning, Beatrice had suddenly scowled. \"I suppose my skin shall be compromised if I do not get my beauty sleep. Staying up late like this is quite a bother.\" After being roughly evicted from the archive, Subaru managed to get in a morning bath before meeting up with Emilia in the garden. The sight of her so diligently carrying out her daily routine made him clench a fist with renewed determination. A gray fur ball in other words, Puck popped his face up in front of Subaru's eyes and called out to him. \"Well you seem to be doing better now.\" Puck continued to hover in the air as he began grooming his face with his short paws like any normal cat. He continued, \"To be honest, you were not much to look at yesterday. I'm a little relieved.\" \"That so? Sorry to make you worry. But my naive heart still isn't completely over everything, so I want the feel of your fur to comfort me. Ahhh...\" \"Well, if you can bluff like that I suppose you're fine. Lia did lend you her lap and everything.\" Subaru's fingers wrapped around the palm-size cat and, searching for something beyond even the surprising sensation of his ears, arrived at Puck's tail. From base to tip, the feel of it was beyond even Subaru's expectations, making his breath catch. Subaru savored the supremely comfortable touch in his hand as his eyes met Puck's. \"Did you see the lap pillow, too, by any chance?\" \"Only because she did it for so long. It was quite difficult to stay kneeling in that position for hours, and I offered to take over several times, but... Relax, Lia saw it through to the very end.\" Puck's metaphorical seal of approval abruptly made Subaru, still shy about the awakening of his love, red in the face. Puck nodded at Subaru's schoolboy reaction. And then  \"Ei!\" \"Ow ! Why did you just scratch me?!\" \"You had an explosion of complex feelings of affection for my daughter. Maybe I ought to explode you?\" \"You ought not!! That daddy mind-set's a complicated thing, geez!\" Puck's \"explosion\" of fatherly concern threatened to put distance between Subaru and Emilia. Subaru plaintively bowed his head before Puck, somehow managing to keep the situation in check. When this process was finished and he glanced back at Emilia, he saw that she seemed to still be immersed in conversation with the spirits, never noticing the comedy routine between man and beast that had ruptured the calm of the morning. Subaru watched the side of her face, gazing at the gentle, charming smile so beautiful that you could drown in it, when he abruptly murmured to himself. \" A silver-haired half-elf, huh?\" It was one of the things Beatrice had said about the Witch of Jealousy. The witch had shaken the world to its core, and even now, her name was synonymous with terror. He wondered how great a burden it must be to have similarities with such a being. Even Subaru, who had never felt hardships like this, could imagine it was no easy road to travel. And yet, Emilia had been raised to be an honest, benevolent person... No doubt in the hope that she would live as a lovely, untainted flower. \"Either she grew up in a real friendly environment, or...\" Puck looked back and smiled, one paw on his hip, the other toying with his whiskers. \"Or maybe she was raised by a good father. Mm-hmm.\" The cat could read his emotions. He'd no doubt discerned Subaru's thoughts to work out the context of the soliloquy from a moment before. \"Well, to a large extent she was just born that way. Not to harp on it, but that girl had a much, much harder time than you can imagine. It's adorable how she's like this in spite of it all, though.\" As Puck squinted, the thought of contradicting him never crossed Subaru's mind. The plain fact was that Subaru didn't know anything about Emilia, while Puck had spent an enormity of time with her. Subaru's knowledge of how hard it'd been for her barely scratched the surface. Puck was driving home that Subaru had no right to act like he knew. Men were helpless in the hands of Fate. Subaru knew that powerlessness all too well. \"Hey, Puck, do you know about the Witch of Jealousy?\" \"There is little that I do not know.\" \"Okay, I wanted to ask you this... Under what circumstances would you use the Witch of Jealousy's name as an alias? Wait, alias doesn't sound very nice; it's more like...borrowing the Witch of Jealousy's name temporarily.\" The back of his mind recalled an occurrence in the midst of the loop in the royal capital on the first day of his summons. In the very, very first loop, Emilia had called herself \"Satella\" to Subaru, who knew nothing at all at that point. Subaru had vaguely guessed what she must've been thinking, but he wanted a second opinion on the matter. There was no one better than the person who knew Emilia best. Not knowing Subaru's intentions, Puck swayed his tail and inclined his head a bit. \"I think that would be a reckless thing to do. There are still many people with undiluted hate toward the witch, with fear and despair still carved into their souls. A person would have to be soft in the head to use the name of the witch as an alias around people like that.\" \"I'll take that as a 'never.'\" \"Meow meow?\" Puck made a skeptical sound as Subaru poked him with a finger. Subaru then snapped his fingers, for Puck's support for his hypothesis made him put aside his own doubts. In this world, using the name of the witch as an alias would obviously be insane. It was only Subaru, there by chance without the slightest clue about what passed for common sense, who would think it was normal. So why would Emilia, who certainly knew better, claim the name of the witch as her own? \"So she was trying to creep out a weirdo to keep him out of this royal selection business...\" She had tried to protect him, a boy she had met only in passing. Emilia's thoughts behind claiming the alias had already vanished into another dimension. Only Subaru knew she had ever done such a thing. And Subaru would never have the chance to ask her what she truly intended by it. But he couldn't help but imagine that that was what it meant. All he could do was believe. Subaru, struck by the tenderness of that Emilia in another dimension, was caught off guard as the current one sat next to him with a strained smile. \"That's quite the distant look you have. What's wrong?\" He could no longer see the flickering lights frolicking around Emilia, so her pleasant conversation with them seemed over. Puck, having waited off to the side with Subaru until then, landed on her narrow shoulder to replace them. \"Back in my proper place. Ahh, this is where I'm most at ease. Home sweet home.\" \"Oh, so now you're Daddy back home from a trip, are you? Poor you, driving home all tired like that.\" \"That's because my eyes were wide open protecting my daughter from a wolf's poison fangs. Those poison fangs won't come near her, you see?\" \"Hey, don't stare at me and talk about 'poison fangs' twice! You'll ruin my reputation here.\" Subaru forced a smile as Puck's big black eyes beheld him. Playing with the little cat like this meant he was kicking down the road a bit one of his opportunities to speak with Emilia, even though she was right there. It wasn't that he hated talking to Emilia. He just couldn't look her in the eye. After all, he'd bawled his eyes out on her lap and spent untold hours with her stroking his head. It'd been only a single night since then; he didn't know how he could face her. That he had gone to meet her even so proved only that Subaru had a severe case of Emilia poisoning. Faced with Subaru's extreme confusion, Emilia hesitated, too, running an unhurried finger through her long silver hair. After a brief silence, Emilia made a determined breath and smiled. \"Err, this is a little embarrassing... Are you feeling all right?\" \"I was in a tight spot until I heard Emilia-tan's voice. And, er, also, sorr \" The apology died on his lips. Subaru swallowed back the word he was about to say and changed his approach. \"...Thank you. For everything. After all that, I think I have my head on straighter.\" \"It doesn't seem you're completely over it, but I'm glad you think you're getting there. Mm, if I was able to help a little, that's just fine. If you feel whittled to the bone again, just tell me. Your sister will gently console you.\" Emilia teasingly put a hand to her chest and winked. Surely she was acting this way to lighten Subaru's feelings of guilt. But when he gazed upon her happy, older sister\u00e2\u20ac\u201cish look, the fact that she kind of seemed serious made him tremble a bit. \"The main thing is that you're feeling better. You have to work hard today, you know? Are you sleepy? You slept at such odd times.\" \"No need to worry. A shut-in like me holding down the fort sleeps all day and is up all night to begin with. Well, it got a bit healthier as of late.\" \"Just to ask, what is a shut-in anyway?\" \"He is the Guardian of the Culture, always immersed in an ocean of information about the state of the world and the global economy to better protect the home day and night... The upper ranks never set a foot outside the house and even commemorate their lovers' birthdays through their screens.\" To be blunt, the souls of those who did that had long risen to a higher plane of existence. The oddness of Subaru's explanation seemed to tug at Emilia a little as she made a lovely smile. Seeing Emilia's reaction, Subaru suddenly had a thought. \"Hey, Emilia-tan, what kind of magic do you use, anyway?\" \"Err, strictly speaking, I'm not a magic user. That's because I'm a spirit mage, including my pact with Puck here. What I use isn't magic but spirit arts. The principles are largely the same, though...\" \"So how are magic users and spirit mages different?\" Subaru turned his neck and looked at Puck sitting on Emilia's shoulder. The little cat, realizing the conversation had shifted in his direction, stroked the fur over his belly as he explained. \"Magic users use the mana inside them when they use magic. In contrast, spirit mages use the mana in the air around them. The process is fairly different, even when the effects are the same.\" \"So what kind of differences are those, sensei?\" When Subaru raised his hand and asked his question, Puck, sitting in the lecturer's role, grinned like a cat in a good mood. \"Technically, it's whether a gate is used or not. The size of a gate depends on the individual magic user, but that doesn't matter much for spirit mages. That's because you're using external mana.\" \"I see. So magic users bring in mana from around them through the gate, then send"}, {"text": "it back out the gate when they use magic, but spirit mages can cut out the middleman.\" Subaru was digesting the explanation when he tilted his head halfway. \"Mm? But then that makes spirit mages way too powerful. Magic users are limited to the amount of fuel they can store inside them, but spirit mages have a free pass to use as much as they want. There's no contest.\" \"You understand quickly. But it isn't quite that convenient. In the first place, the mana in the air isn't infinite...\" Puck's words trailed off as he looked up at Emilia. The girl nodded as she took over. \"And the strength of the spells a spirit mage can use is dependent on the spirit you've formed a pact with. The predisposition needed to form pacts with spirits is rare to begin with, and powerful spirits are even rarer. It's difficult to say which is better.\" Subaru replied, \"Mm-hmm...but it must feel pretty good to get a pact with a strong spirit, right? You must really be hot stuff, Emilia-tan. Seems like Puck is hot stuff himself, though...\" \"Well, I can't really deny that I'm above average.\" \"Man, you just said that with a straight face; no hesitation at all rating yourself like that?\" Subaru thought his self-consciousness outclassed most, but Puck's bluntness was a level higher. No doubt it was the age difference. A greenhorn had seen many fewer years than Mr. Great Spirit. Though, judging from the rather merry, blushy smile the Great Spirit was making, maybe he wasn't as used to flattery as he pretended to be... \"Oh, by the way, what kind of spirit is Puck, anyway? He made ice come out at the loot seller's place, but...if my memory's right, there's no ice affinity to begin with.\" With the bath serving as a lecture hall, Roswaal had explained to him that the four orthodox magical affinities were fire, water, wind, and earth. The annoying light and dark affinities rounded out the six. It was not Puck, still making a blushy smile, but Emilia who replied to Subaru's question. \"My specialty is ice, but it's actually fire mana. Fire relates mainly to temperature, so cooling that which is hot is classified as part of fire, apparently.\" \"Huh, is that so? Magical logic...? Magic...? Magic, huh?\" Upon hearing Emilia's explanation, Subaru felt a fondness for magic bubble up within him. Having withdrawn momentarily, Puck twitched his ears as he looked at Subaru's face once again and nodded. \"Hmm. By any chance, do you want to use magic?\" \"Can I?! I mean...if I can! Super-powerful stuff, like calling down a meteor shower and \" \"Ah, well, no. Fundamentals are important, both for magic and spirit arts. Magic is not something you can learn in a day.\" Subaru's hopes suddenly leaped up, only for Puck to smack them back down. Subaru wilted on the spot, then Puck twirled a whisker and added, \"But...if you simply want to experience it, we can do that.\" \"Meaning...what?\" \"Meaning, if you want to use magic, Lia and I just have to support you. We'll use the mana inside you to use magic through you. The magic we use from the atmosphere is different from the mana inside you, so the magic itself will come out of your gate. How about it?\" Emilia rebuked Puck for his invitation. \"Puck, wait. Don't make it sound so causal. It might be dangerous.\" However, Subaru's feelings were set in stone. \"Sorry, Emilia-tan. I'm super happy you're worried about me...but I'm gonna do it!\" Subaru gave Emilia a congenial smile, complete with a glint of his teeth and a thumbs-up. Subaru's action, meant to drive away all unease and anxiety, made Emilia's eyes go wide. \"Wh-why do you want to do it so much...?\" \"That's obvious so that I can live as the man I was born to be!\" Subaru clenched a fist as he made the manliest cry he could. To anyone born a man, ceasing to pursue your dreams was the same as death itself. Since arriving in another world, Subaru had never displayed as much courage as he had then and there.  Besides, being able to use magic gave him one more option. Perhaps it would increase his chances of protecting Emilia and the others during the current loop. Faced with Subaru's strong spirit, Emilia shook her head, abandoning all thoughts of stopping him. \"If you think it's getting dangerous, you will stop right away, understand?\" And so, with that warning, she resolved to see Subaru's battle through. Subaru accepted Emilia's words of caution with a nice smile before turning back to Puck with bated breath. \"So what should I do first? Draw a magic circle? If you need a sacrifice, can I volunteer Beako?\" \"I'm happy you seem to be getting along better with Betty. Yes, first, how about I see what affinity you are, Subaru? That's the first step to knowing what kind of magic you can use.\" Subaru's expression, buoyant until that moment, instantly died when he heard Puck's suggestion. As Puck and Emilia blinked in surprise side by side, Subaru shook his head in robotic fashion. \"My...affinity...is probably...'fire'...?\" \"Why the sudden pauses...?\" When Emilia asked, Subaru simply lowered his eyes. He didn't want to remember any further. But Puck leaped off Emilia's shoulder and hovered in front of Subaru's face as he stretched his tail. \"All right, let's check. Myon myon myon myon...\" \"I know the weirdo nobleman did the same thing, but isn't that, like, overkill?!\" The tip of Puck's long tail swished across Subaru's forehead as his mouth made the accompanying sound effects. Subaru wallowed in apprehension as he awaited the scan's verdict. \"Wait, I should think positively about this. Thinking back on it, Roswaal's behavior was unnatural, wasn't it? Right, he was jealous of the hidden magical talent within me. Yeah, it was jealousy. That's why he tried to convince me to just give up \" \"Wow, this is rare. Your affinity's pure Dark.\" \"Farewell, my magic-using life !\" Subaru wailed at crossing into another dimension only to be blacklisted by someone else. His glittering future was now closed, with the curtain rising on Subaru's life as nothing more than a debuffer. \"So all I need to do is practice saying, 'I've turned their defense to paper! Go, NOW!' Ha-ha-ha...\" \"Ah, you have no talent at all, either. Your gate's small; at least the number is kind of okay...? But there's barely any opening, so not much is coming through.\" \"Shut up, I know that already! Incidentally, what does that talent thing mean, by the numbers?\" \"If you spent twenty years in daily training, you might become a high-end second-rate magic user.\" \"So I'd devote half my life and still come up short of top tier... I think I'd better give up now...\" Emilia finally wore an exasperated look when she heard Subaru hold back tears as he gave up on his dream. But it couldn't be helped. Yes, effort and trying your best were words prominently featured in Subaru's lexicon, but whether to give up on a man's impossible dream or not was a different subject. \"I just want to try the magic demonstration. What do I have to do?\" \"Since it's Dark affinity, Lia can't handle it. How about something simple, like Shamak?\" \"Ah, a magic smoke screen? I've never seen it myself,\" Emilia replied. Apparently, it was something of such a trivial level that she'd never encountered it professionally. The two continued their magic talk while leaving Subaru aside as he sank into deeper despair about his tiny skill tree. \"It's not fair you're in a world all by yourselves. I mean, we're talking about my magic, right? I mean, can I actually use that Shamak thing? That's kind of important here.\" \"Good point. Unknown magic is a scary thing. All right, this is Shamak.\" \" Eh?\" Puck, nodding in concession that Subaru had a point, made a brief incantation and waved a paw. The next moment, Subaru's vision was shrouded in darkness. Instantly, the scene before his eyes was buried in pitch-black. Startled, he abruptly raised his voice, but the sound never reached his ears. The profound darkness had cut off his vision from everything outside him. A shiver went up his spine at being severed from the outside world. \"There, all done.\" When Subaru heard the clap of hands, he realized that he had returned to reality. Seeing Emilia in front of him when his sight returned put him at ease. \"That was just a moment, but he broke out in such a sweat... Subaru, are you all right? Do you want me to hold your hand?\" \"I-I'm all right. I just lost my senses for a moment... Ah, I lost my chance to hold your hand.\" While making his typically flippant comment, Subaru touched his own eyelids to make sure nothing had changed there. \"So that's a Shamak, huh? It's simple, but it's pretty strong stuff, isn't it?\" \"Not at all. Anyone but a lower-grade opponent can brush it off with skill, and it can't be maintained for long. Although I could cast it on the likes of you so that you'd spend your entire life in darkness...\" \"That's a scary thought!! I'd go crazy if I had to live one day like that, let alone the rest of my life!\" Subaru made a strained smile. He quietly hid his trembling fists behind him. He didn't want to convey how the feeling of being momentarily cut off from the world had filled his entire body with terror. The instant he thought that he was alone in the world, with no one on his side, the sheer loneliness made Subaru's heart quake. I'm pathetic. He bit the thought down and smiled to conceal his inner turmoil. \"Anyway, whether it's any use or not, I can use that magic, too, right? I wanna try that right away! I want to, but, um!\" \"That's fine. I'll assist you. Lia, if his mana runs wild, it might blow up, so please move back. I don't want to get your clothes dirty.\" \"It's not like that's gonna happen, right?! That's, like, a super-rare case that basically never happens, right?!\" Puck smiled in silence. Emilia made a slightly sad face, counseling, \"Don't be reckless, okay?\" as she really did move away from him. The very outpouring of concern deepened his unease. Left in the lurch, Subaru was in an exceedingly uneasy position as events proceeded. Puck sat down on top of Subaru's black hair and adjusted the position of his tail. \"What a prickly and uncomfortable head to sit on.\" \"Hey, it's not like I thought someone was going to sit on it someday! No one warned me to bring a cushion, but just, uh, help yourself, okay?\" \"Nah, I'll be done and back to Lia's lovely hair in no time. So, ready to begin?\" When prompted, Subaru hesitated for just a moment, but a smile quickly came over him as he nodded. He was on something of a knife's edge of unease, but he just couldn't deny his curiosity. Having received Subaru's assent, Puck made a large nod of his own. Then, Subaru suddenly felt his entire body get hot. He felt something besides blood running through his veins no doubt it was the formless gush of mana stirring inside him. He could tell that the energy inside his body was moving in accordance with Puck's hand. \"Subaru, try to picture it in your mind. Move the mana inside your body, flowing through me, by your own will. Push a portion of it out of your body through your gate. Picture it as a black cloud.\" \"Picture, picture. Trust me, daydreaming is totally my thing.\" Subtly distorting Puck's advice, Subaru tried to picture where the energy wriggling inside his body was supposed to go. He tried to picture the gate the doorway at the center of his body. He pictured himself carefully opening a heavy door to"}, {"text": "make the energy inside flow out. Once outside, Subaru would generate the phenomenon by his own will  Right around the last part, Puck murmured abruptly, \"Huh, this isn't good. All of a sudden, the gate...\" Subaru didn't even have time to ask, The gate what...? The next moment, Emilia cried out  \"Are you two ?!\" A few seconds later, a black cloud spewed out with explosive force, shrouding the corner of the inner garden of Roswaal Manor. He didn't blow up, but the result was a spectacular failure nonetheless. \"If I must make a conclusion, your control of your gate is too weak, so you shouldn't push it, Subaru.\" \"You see me like this and that's the first thing you say, damn it?!\" Puck slapped his head and stuck out his tongue. \"Tee-hee-hee.\" \"That's not cute, you know!\" Subaru shouted at Puck as his whole body soaked up the sensation of the lawn. Lying atop the grass, Subaru felt his breaths were labored; his whole body felt unusually languid. He was as sluggish as if he had a high fever. His limbs seemed to lack the will to move. He'd felt something like this before. Back on what was, in a true sense, his first day at the mansion, he'd felt the same sluggishness after Beatrice drained his mana. That was to say, Subaru was completely out of gas at that moment. Emilia interrupted. \"For better or worse, Subaru simply isn't used to using his gate. That's why it ignored the user's will and everything inside flew right out.\" \"So I didn't close the lid right... What am I, soy sauce...?\" He managed to voice his resentment, but the depletion of his strength was nothing to laugh at. He wanted to at least manage to get up, but he couldn't put any energy into his limbs or the rest of his body. Subaru was still stuck lying on the ground when Emilia, kneeling beside him, met his gaze. \"You mustn't move. You're all out of internal mana, so behave yourself. Maybe you should take today off work, too.\" \" That's really bad!\" Emilia was scolding him like a misbehaving child when Subaru raised his voice out of the blue. Emilia blinked in surprise off to the side as Subaru deeply rued his own carelessness. If he really did have to give up the whole day, it meant abandoning one more day he needed to put this loop in order. That was crazy, even fatal. And now his body felt like it was rusted over. \"Ughhhh...\" \"Now hold on, I told you not to push it!\" \"Now's when I have to push it. If I don't, I'm going to really seriously regret it later...\" It was by no means unusual for him to reap what he had sowed, but the timing was simply too awful. Emilia, seeing Subaru's brow covered with sweat as he struggled with all his might, slumped her shoulders. \"Goodness, you really can't be helped.\" Once more, Emilia's lips tapered as if she was upset with him. Subaru, not grasping the meaning behind Emilia's statement, could only lift his eyes to look at her. \" ? Emilia-tan, what's mnnff?!\" Emilia peered down at his face from above while suddenly stuffing something into his mouth. He felt something round and soft on his tongue. Though bewildered, Emilia put a hand over his mouth and nodded to him. \"Bite down.\" *** \"Bite down...and swallow. Yes, there you go.\" With Emilia tolerating no dissent, Subaru located the object in his mouth and bit down on it hard. A bittersweet taste swirled all around his mouth. He narrowed his eyes as his taste buds sensed it was some kind of fruit. The next moment...it hit him. \"Whoaaaaaaa ?!\" Subaru, feeling like his whole body was alight, got up then and there, practically leaping to his feet. He felt like his blood was boiling as it coursed through his entire body, scalding heat reaching all the way to the tips of his fingers and toes. He exhaled hard, as if the air in his lungs was too hot to handle, and his knees were marching up and down all on their own. It was around that point when Subaru realized he was standing on his own two feet. There were still vestiges of sluggishness in every part of his body, but the crippling lethargy had vanished. \"Wh...? What was that...?\" \"It's called a bokko fruit. When you eat it, it gives the mana inside your body a kick so that your gate powers up again, just enough to feel a bit better.\" Apparently, the mysterious fruit was some kind of MP recovery item. Subaru rotated his arms and, finding that nothing was wrong aside from a little fatigue, breathed a sigh of relief. \"Wow, I'm relieved. I'd never forgive myself if I got another BAD END on account of that. Thanks, Emilia-tan.\" \"I don't have many of them, and it's not good for the body, so I didn't really want to use it... You weren't bluffing there, were you?\" No doubt it was Subaru's genuineness that had spurred Emilia into using such a precious item on him. Subaru responded to Emilia's prodding by sticking out his chest and boldly declaring, \"Not one bit. I won't let you regret this.\" Then he immediately wiped all the sweat off his brow. \"But man, I was an idiot there... When this is all over I'm going to kick myself even more than before.\" He carried the burden of having experienced numerous forms of death, something other people would only experience but once, but he wanted to avoid dying from embarrassment if he could at all help it. In fact, he wanted his suicide by leaping off a cliff to be the last death he ever experienced. The scars of having decided to end his own life ran deep. He didn't want to do that again, ever. One death was enough for anyone. He wanted death to be the natural end of his life. Of course, the best result would be some crazy event that ended with Emilia embracing him, but  \"Man, I'm such a kid I can't even think about it, huh?\" Even though he was always so glib, he would never again casually speak the word death. Surely Subaru could only laugh at his own cowardice because he was reliving the same experiences, literally whether he wanted to or not. Seeing the change in Subaru's expression, Emilia had a sullen look as she asked, \"Are you all right? Do you think you can go to work?\" \"I'll do work, and all the other stuff, too. Having you on my side is like riding an unsinkable battleship, so I'll give it all I've got.\" \"...Riding a... I'm not quite sure what you mean by that, but...\" \"Hey, Emilia-tan, how you put that kind of makes me excited. Can you say that again?\" \"You have a lewd look in your eyes, so no.\" Their usual banter left Subaru laughing as he stretched his limbs and finally his back. \"Well, I'd better go face my seniors and turn over a new leaf!\" \"I suppose so. I don't think either has spoken one word about you since yesterday.\" \" Ah.\" Subaru stretched his back as his hips made their own dull creak. \"Sister, Sister. The lout known as Subaru has come.\" \"Rem, Rem. The wage thief named Barusu has appeared.\" \"I'm very sorry about yesterday...! Please forgive me!\" Subaru sought forgiveness, bowing his head low in an earnest apology. He felt like he'd done nothing but bow his head for half an entire day. He'd accounted for everyone at the mansion except Roswaal meaning the entirety of the female population. \"I'm back to a route with all the girls looking down on me again... I've got some deep karma here.\" \"Sister, Sister. It seems Subaru is quite the pervert.\" \"Rem, Rem. Subaru is a masochist who likes being degraded.\" \"That's going too far, especially for you, Big Sis!\" Shouting in response to the sisters' sharp rebuke, Subaru used his arms as a fulcrum to go from his prostrate position into a handstand, twisting his body around and using the momentum to rise to his feet. \"Anyway, I'm sorry about being pathetic yesterday and annoying the day before... Well, a lot happened, but I've had a complete change in attitude, so it's a new me going forward.\" \"It was the lap pillow.\" \"The lap pillow, yes.\" \"Don't tell me everyone knows?! That's so embarrassing!\" Subaru hid his reddened face and crumbled as the twin maids met each other's gaze. \"It is time to begin the morning chores, Sister.\" \"It is time to begin our morning duties, Rem.\" \"No comment?! That puts me down even more!!\" With a wave, the two left behind Subaru and his pleas, heading off to work just as they had declared. As they did so, Subaru called for them to stop. \"Time-out, time-out. There's a favor I want to ask about work this morning.\" Subaru's appeal made both twins stop, turn around, and tilt their heads in sync. \"A favor?\" \"A hassle?\" \"Weird, I haven't heard Big Sis's bluntness for a while and it's getting me all fired up...\" A pained smile came over him. Unlike the little sister, the older sister's unpleasant attitude was a lot easier to deal with, but he was glad he could talk to them like this at all. He breathed out, trying to brush off the absurdity of it all. \"Actually, I'd like to go see the village. It's nearby, right? Isn't there something you need to buy there?\" Overnight, he'd formed a firm hypothesis in the archive of forbidden books, but he wanted to get to the village that day no matter what. That was what was on Subaru's mind as Rem put a hand to her chest, sinking into thought. \"Certainly, we are running a bit low on spices, so I was thinking of heading to the village tomorrow...\" \"Let's change the schedule and do it today, then. Might as well get more before you're running out, and you can't just borrow some from the neighbors out here, can you?\" There were no other mansions in the first place, even if they had wanted to go see the neighbors. Rem seemed to ponder Subaru's suggestion a little when... \"It's fine, isn't it?\" \"Sister?\" In contrast to the little sister's pondering, the older sister stroked her own pink hair with a look of indifference. \"We have to buy them either way, and there are no other pressing matters. It is the perfect opportunity to employ Barusu as a mule.\" \"I was in bed with a gut wound just three days ago, so take it easy, okay?!\" Subaru had hoped for some warmth from the merciless Ram, but her cover fire still made him tilt his mind's inner head a bit. He'd thought so, but this was vivid proof that the twin maids were not united in their opinions. He remembered how, in the loop before last, Rem's coming to kill him had been on Rem's own judgment. Perhaps their thinking was even less on the same page than Subaru had assumed. Either way... \"...If Sister...says so, then...\" After thinking it over a bit, Rem finally gave her own consent. The majority of work at the mansion got done only because of Rem, but Subaru knew from long experience that she let Ram, the less accomplished of the two, make a lot of the decisions. Whether mere coincidence or not, Ram's intervention had essentially settled the matter. Subaru pumped a fist as Rem's face went from contemplation back to a calm, neutral look. \"However, either way, going to the village must wait until after lunch. Let us do it after Two Solartime...after we have finished all other outstanding work.\" \"It will be all right. Barusu has pledged to work until his body is ground to a pulp, yes?\" \"Yep. Just watch what I can do now that"}, {"text": "I've been reborn. I'll work like a hot knife through you know what.\" They corrected his corrupted idiom in unison. \"Butter.\" \"Right. That.\" Subaru scratched his face as it sunk in that he'd succeeded in his negotiations. Now that the promise to go shopping had been made, it was finally time to begin servant time. He watched Rem leave in a hurry, probably sorting out in her head the order of her chores, before shifting his gaze to Ram beside him. Naturally, Ram had been given orders to stick with Subaru for another day and oversee his education. No doubt it was best to avoid the tension that had built up the day before or rather, the day before last. More to the point, finding himself had been so painful that re-creating the tension was a little too much to ask. \"Getting self-conscious of my own bad points in such a short time like that... It's a bigger shock than seeing an infant grow into a man in three days.\" As Subaru sank into reflection, Ram folded her arms and gave him a cold look. \"Before we get to the issue at hand...\" For some reason, Ram's gaze made Subaru feel like he should straighten his back. He did so and turned toward her. \"About that magic in the garden earlier...\" \"Ah, sorry for the mess. I can't use that thing right, so I'm not touching it for a while. I hear it'd take twenty years for me to learn the fundamentals right.\" \"A mess it may have been, but do not provoke Rem too much.\" *** Not understanding what Ram meant, a virtual question mark came over Subaru's face. Ram watched Subaru's inquisitive look before making a belated hmph. \"Rem was quite disturbed by the magic that covered a corner of the garden as well as Lady Emilia. You should be dancing for me in thanks for stopping her, Barusu.\" \"Ah... Ahhhh... Yeah, you're right...\" In his shock at the failure of his magic, Subaru hadn't noticed, but a third party was unlikely to see that situation as a mere failed spell. He was truly grateful that Ram hadn't jumped the gun. On the other hand, he was aghast at Rem's willingness to make a snap judgment on the spot. \"Oh man, I was way too careless... I have to think ahead more after four Continues.\" \"What are you mumbling about...? If we do not get to work soon, both breakfast and dinner shall run late.\" \"Oh, I was just thinking about the shopping in the afternoon. Which one of you will be going with me?\" Under the circumstances, going with Rem would be a heavy weight on his mind. Either way, though, it made practical sense for Rem to be the one to go with him to the village. Subaru figured that he'd be going shopping with Rem, just like he had on two previous occasions. However... \"What nonsense are you speaking?\" \"...Eh?\" Subaru inclined his head. For once, Ram's neutral expression broke into a smile an extremely cold, malicious, devilish smile. \"You shall go with both of us. You will have a lovely flower on each arm, Barusu.\" That would be nice, as long as the flowers aren't poisonous. Subaru, now aware that the negotiations had gone a little too well, covered his face with a palm, looked up to the heavens, and groaned. CHAPTER 3 *** From Subaru's perspective, it was his third visit to the village. It was a village named Earlham, practically right beside the mansion, part of the territory belonging to Roswaal in his role as margrave. It was a small village, with about two hundred residents, give or take. In his original world, that wouldn't have been enough to fill an elementary school. And there was Subaru, walking around a village you could do a full lap of in twenty minutes, with two girls, \"a flower on each arm.\" \"I must say, work was finished rather quickly.\" \"Barusu was so deft, it was revolting. What happened to him?\" \"I won't blush, so praise me all you want. The latent potential sleeping in me has finally blossomed!\" Subaru was rather full of himself at the high praise for his work before noon. He'd focused on speedy work for the sake of the afternoon shopping trip, and it worked out well. Apparently, he'd been failing as a result of putting too much stress on himself; this time, a more natural approach seemed to work much better. No doubt his ability to let go had something to do with the feel of Emilia's lap... That sure helped me relax, huh...? Unlike before when he was under so much stress, the lying on Emilia's knees had made him able to smoothly converse with the twins. The remaining nervousness only bolstered his resolve, erasing his carelessness in the process. Furthermore, at that moment, Subaru was calm enough that he felt like nothing could shake him. That was very fortunate, because he couldn't afford to behave like a troublesome eccentric here. The Q&A session with Beatrice the night before had established that a shaman had to physically touch the target of a curse. That's what made curses a fairly risky means of assassination. He compared having to get up close and personal to sniping from long range like someone would do from his world. The risk was probably offset by the curse being such certain means. \"Either way, I have an MO for the perpetrator. It has to be someone who touched me on the trips to the village before.\" And if the person had arrived in the village in only the last few days, then his suspect was as good as found. That said, Subaru couldn't rely on everything in the village being perfectly as he remembered. He'd learned that the hard way back at the mansion. It'd be very hard to go over the same things save for a few specific events. \"The ones who stand out are Muraosa, the acting headman, the granny touching butts in search of her lost youth, the leader of the young men with short haircuts, and the guy with a short cut leading the Ram-Rem Defense Force.\" Subaru named all the people whose faces stood out to him and went over each one. There was the guy who acted like he led the village, Muraosa, and the old woman who engaged in perverse behavior while laughing and saying, \"Got me youth back, got me youth back.\" The two young men wore identical faces; they'd frequently butted Subaru's shoulders, perhaps out of jealousy for being so close with the twin sisters. \"I had to lead Muraosa to the john when he started flaking out... Now that I think about it, all of them touched me somehow. That's kind of suspicious...\" But all of them were native villagers through and through. They didn't fit the profile. \"That being the case, guess I'd better just hang around the same places...\" Subaru sighed at himself for his lack of any better idea. And as Subaru made that gloomy sound, a series of voices reached Subaru from above. \"What's wrong, Subaru?\" \"Are you hungry?\" \"Do you have a tummy ache?\" Subaru twisted his neck to see the multiple silhouettes glomping onto his back. They were children who had raced to reach Subaru first before he'd even set foot into the village. There were seven in all, not just latched onto his back but his legs and hips, too. Subaru, not finding the weight excessive for his build, cracked his neck. \"I've got a connection with you across time and space or something...\" \"What are you saying?\" \"Did you hit your head?\" \"Do you have a tummy ache?\" \"Quit it about the tummy ache, geez. You make it sound like I've got diarrhea or something.\" As Subaru spoke, the children all burst into laughter. No doubt it was less about his joke than the word diarrhea being funny in and of itself. Apparently, hopping worlds didn't change the fact that kids of that age thought the cruder, the funnier. \"And I've got kids all over me, just like old times...\" The kids on his back were pulling on his cheeks. Subaru could only slump his shoulders at being a brat magnet. \"Why is it I get along great with brats and the elderly? I mean, it's like it's the only good point I have in this world.\" He twisted his body to nuzzle the kids riding his back. Subaru heard merry cries behind him, voices calling, \"Me next! Me next!\" as he marched around the village, children in tow. At the time, Subaru was moving around by himself. Not that he actually was alone, but Ram and Rem were not with him. When they'd arrived at the village, the maid sisters hurried off to go shopping, leaving ominous statements behind them. \"Sister, Sister. Let us gather all the light things.\" \"Rem, Rem. Let us leave all the heavy things for Barusu.\" Subaru had said he wanted to have a look around the village, so no doubt they were being considerate, but he really did wish one of them had stayed with him. That way, the kids would have happily jumped onto her. \"And I managed to meet all the suspects without being super nervous, even...\" Subaru wiped some cold sweat off his brow, breathing heavily as he continued using himself as a decoy. Subaru had opted for the extremely risky method of searching for the shaman. It was near suicidal behavior to put himself back on the chopping block, but if he didn't, he wouldn't be able to get a look at the face of the one responsible. \"At the very least, if it's just the rite, I can get Beako to lift it, right?\" As long as there wasn't some mistake and the curse activated right away, just having the rite embedded in him shouldn't be a mortal threat. If he got cursed, he just had to bow his head to the floor before Beatrice and beg her to take it off. \"Subaru, your face looks bad!\" \"Scary face!\" \"Weird face!\" \"Geez, you make that sound awful. And that third comment annoys me just a little!\" Subaru continued strolling around the village, dragging the children along while bearing the brunt of their jokes. It wasn't like he could shake them off him, anyway, and they knew their way around the village, so they were somewhat useful. More importantly, to a shaman trying not to cause a fuss in the village, attempting to harm Subaru while he had a gaggle of children all over him was a poor option. So they functioned as human shields, too. \"Man, I'm getting pretty evil, too. I'm expanding my horizons here!\" \"What's wrong, Subaru?\" \"What is it?\" \"Did you flake out?\" \"Nah, it's nothing.\" Subaru rubbed the heads of the children clamped on his legs and laughed at his own expense. \"Well, this is all for my happiness. You'll cooperate a little longer, won't you?\" Incidentally, he didn't think he liked children very much to begin with. They were noisy, way too chummy, and completely self-serving.  Perhaps that was how he thought about himself, too. Ram ran a hand through her pink hair as she sighed with exasperation. \"Free time was finally over, so we came to look, and this is what we see...\" Ram stared at Subaru as he raised both arms to the sky then and there. \"Victory!!\" After Subaru raised his arms and shouted, a chorus of voices rang out in celebration. \"Victory!!\" The people beside him spontaneously patted one another's backs as they voiced their admiration. Subaru, too, wiped the sweat off his brow, exchanging pleasantries and giving high fives as he caught his breath and headed toward Ram. Subaru's buoyant approach was greeted by Ram's frosty gaze. \"What kind of attraction is this?\" \"It's nothing big enough to call an attraction. I figured I'd kill time with"}, {"text": "the kids, and then the adults saw and jumped on the bandwagon, that's all.\" Aerobics was his chosen method for playing with a bunch of noisy kids at the same time. The adults saw and they joined in, with the end result being a huge ruckus with almost half the village's population pitching in. \"Well, I've gotten so popular it scares even me. It's something fun for the young and old alike. Maybe it really is the secret to living longer!\" \"I would not know.\" \"Geez, that's a cold brush-off.\" Subaru gave Ram's unimpressed reply an exaggerated reaction. Upon seeing this, the children copied him. \"That's cold, Ramchi!\" \"That's awful, Ramchi!\" \"You're scary, Ramchi!\" \"...You taught these children that manner of address?\" \"Not so much taught them as, ah, made you more approachable? I mean, if you keep everyone at arm's length, they can't see who you really are. That's a lonely thing... That's what I think, anyway...\" \"You certainly have an active mouth. I do not mind, but Rem may not care for it.\" \"Remrin?\" \"Remrin.\" \"Remririn.\" \" Ah, we kind of...crossed that bridge already.\" Hearing from the children that her words of caution had come too late, Ram slumped her shoulders in resignation. \"So, did you look around the village as you desired?\" \" Yeah, that part went off without a hitch.\" Subaru's cheeks warped into a grin in response to Ram's question. His stroll around the village to come into contact with the people on his suspect list was a great success. More to the point, Subaru stood out so much that it was he who had the opportunities to touch them this time. \"The last, last thing on my to-do list was to high-five the guy with the crew cut after aerobics, and that's done.\" Having touched all the obvious suspects brought him a measure of relief. Now his time in the village was at an end in other words, time to say bye-bye to the kids. \"I've got work to do, so get lost, guys. Ahh, what a pity. If I had more time I could've played with you some more. Ha-ha-ha, too bad so sad!\" \"He's smiling!\" \"He's laughing!\" \"Are you really so happy?!\" Subaru \"regretfully\" shook loose of the kids, sticking his tongue out in the face of their complaints. He did not consciously recognize the sense of satisfaction filling him at having regained even such mundane ground with his limited capacity as a human being. Either way, he and Ram were on their way to the rendezvous point with Rem when  \"Ah?\" Abruptly, the girl wearing her brown hair in braids tugged on Subaru's sleeve, her face red. Subaru was surprised, for until that moment, the braided girl had religiously maintained an arm's-length distance from the other kids while they'd piled onto him together, never entering the fray herself. Subaru crouched so that their gazes were at the same height. \"What is it? If you've got something to say, I'm happy to listen.\" \"Err, well... Come over here.\" The girl led him by his sleeve to another place. Subaru, guided by the slender hand, looked back at Ram. \" You may do as you please a little while longer.\" \"Oh, thanks, I owe you one. So, what is it?\" With permission having been granted, he continued to follow the little girl's hand. With her in the lead, the children from earlier followed them to a corner of the village. \"You'll be real surprised.\" \"You'll love it.\" \"You'll break out in a dance.\" \"Surprise, happiness, dancing? You sure are expecting a big reaction out of me here.\" Surrounded by giggling children giving previews of how he'd react, they slipped past the houses of the village to a nook away from prying eyes. Then his eyes followed the children's pointing fingers and saw it. \"Ah, yeah, there was this event, too, wasn't there...?\" Out of the blue, Subaru voiced his assent, clasping his hands together and nodding several times over. The braided girl rushed over, picking it up in her arms, out of breath as she returned.  This was the creature with brown fur that looked like a dog. Its eyes were round and its fur soft, making it almost seem like a newborn pup. The latter quality appealed to a connoisseur of fur such as Subaru. But unfortunately, the puppy did not respond to Subaru in kind. \"Arf!\" \"I figured this was coming...\" The moment Subaru reached out with his hand, every hair on the dog's body stood up as it barked out a warning. The children all wore shocked faces at how its small body shuddered, on guard against him. \"But he's always been so good!\" \"He's only angry at Subaru!\" \"What did you do to him, Subaru?!\" \"That's what I wanna know sheesh! This is the third time and everything. Just not compatible or what?\" The children booed behind Subaru as he turned toward the unfriendly puppy with a strained smile. He'd encountered this puppy on both his prior visits to the village in other words, during prior loops. Each time it had displayed a severe dislike of him, wounding his animal-loving heart. \"I guess in one sense, having something not change between loops feels about right...but I'd have liked a more friendly reaction, seriously.\" In spite of Return by Death, many things had been repeated very differently, but the puppy's reaction was practically a broken record. But when Subaru made a friendly smile, the puppy suddenly let down its guard. With the puppy curled up in the braided girl's arms, Subaru snapped his fingers, realizing this was his chance. \"Well, if you'll excuse me...\" He'd show this puppy his full range of the fur-stroking skills he had honed on Puck. He rubbed the puppy in all the important places, like the head, neck, and the base of the tail, with the sensation bringing a big grin over Subaru. \"Heh-heh, I've been looking forward to this feeling. Pretty nice stuff for a stray. A little tender, loving brushing and this'll be a long, shiny coat. Hey, there's a bald spot on the head. This a wound? Where did you bump against ?\" Maybe the puppy had a complex about the white scar; the instant Subaru touched it, the puppy's maw chomped hard on his hand. He quickly pulled his hand back, but it had a prominent bite mark on it nonetheless. Subaru yelped at the sharp pain on the back of his blood-smeared hand as he stroked the wound. \"What an event with which to get a one hundred percent completion rate. You even got me in the same place. What, did you do a time leap just for this?\" Subaru smiled to put it at ease, but the puppy, back on guard, continued to snarl. Watching relations between man and beast return to the gutter, the children observing the two nodded to one another. \"Yep, he got carried away.\" \"It's because he touched it that much.\" \"The puppy's a girl!\" \"I feel like that's a weird tangent at the end there...and what, no one's worried about me? I'm gonna cry here.\" Subaru lightly washed his hand at a watering hole and waved good-bye to the puppy and the frolicking children. The braided girl looked like she felt responsible, waving with a frail, bashful smile before returning to the others. When he got back, he had a maid waiting for him, leaning against a wall with her arms crossed and a big attitude. \"Sorry for the wait.\" \"I sent you off thinking it would be a brief affair, but you come back with your hair disheveled, your clothes a mess, and bleeding from your left hand, of all things.\" \"Well, sorry about that! A bunch of things happened. You can tell just by looking, right?\" \"I suppose so. One glance and I can largely tell what happened.\" He saw a gloomy expression on her elegant face as she sighed a little. Subaru raised an eyebrow at the odd nuance of her statement and her un-Ram-like demeanor, but Ram instantly gave her usual hmph, not allowing Subaru to voice his question. \"Your wound and clothes are both unsightly. We shall quickly rendezvous with Rem, because she can actually heal you.\" \"Ramchi, you don't use healing magic?\" \"I can handle sealing a wound after an amputation.\" Subaru could not conceal his shudder. \"That's some really extreme first aid there!!\" Out of nowhere, Ram walked over and tugged on Subaru's sleeve. Subaru blinked, turning only his head to face Ram when she went, \"Aren't you coming, Barusu?\" \"It's with you, so yeah.\" For a single, brief moment, he saw her lips slacken at his reply. Ram proceeded straight to leading him off by his sleeve. He thought that she'd be really cute if she always acted this straightforward, but that might have been because his honesty with himself kept him spewing lines like that all the time. Perhaps honesty, too, had a time and a place. That was the thought on his mind as he and Ram walked toward where Rem was waiting for them. For some reason, he sensed that the girl leading him was walking more slowly, more gently than usual. By the time the three returned to the mansion, the sunrays were heavily tilted, as it was well into the evening. As they stood before Roswaal Manor, bathed by the evening sun, a lone man collapsed onto the ground. It was none other than Subaru Natsuki. He set the oversize keg aside and flopped onto the ground, breathing hard. \"I made it... I made it! ...Good job, me! Totally good job!\" \"Yes, yes, well done.\" \"Yes, yes, much appreciated.\" The twin maids sandwiched the fallen Subaru as they gave him stiff, formal thanks for his labors. Ram's coolness was entirely normal, but Rem's bluntness was no doubt due to her anger at seeing Ram leading Subaru by his hand when they met up after shopping in the village. The first words out of Rem's mouth had been, \"You and Sister seem to be getting along nicely.\" That made Subaru regret the decisions he had made. He wanted to make up for it somehow, so when she'd made him carry a heavy barrel back to the mansion out of apparent spite, he hoped it would improve her impression of him just a little. Rem spoke down toward Subaru. \"Well, then, we shall return to the mansion ahead of you. Take your time.\" She then picked up the large barrel as if it were filled with feathers. Subaru could bench-press about 175 pounds, but he had serious doubts that he could lift that barrel above his shoulders. And yet, he'd just seen Rem pick up the heavy object with one hand while still carrying miscellaneous objects in her other arm. Subaru laughed drily at the pretty picture it all made. \"You didn't need me to carry that, did you?\" \"As you can see, not at all.\" Ram wasn't minded to pamper Subaru's inner boy at all. As he saw Rem casually walk off while carrying the cask, he was painfully aware that his grunt work had been meaningless. \"So why'd you make me do it, then? Was it seriously just a grudge against me? Stop bullying the new guy, sheesh.\" \"Do you not understand, Barusu? It is out of consideration for you, of course.\" \"I don't get what you mean by 'consideration' here.\" \"Barusu, what would Lady Emilia think if she saw you coming back carrying nothing but a small bag full of spices behind Rem while she carried a large, heavy object?\" \"You're such a considerate supervisor, it leaves me speechless!\" As Ram knelt, he expressed deep gratitude toward her. If Subaru had come back full of himself carrying a little bag while a girl smaller than him lugged around something huge...and Emilia had seen... Just picturing it was enough to make him want to die. Rem, who had gone to the mansion ahead of them, returned during their"}, {"text": "exchange, looking down at the two. \"Sister, Master Roswaal summons us.\" Ram responded quickly to the mention of her master on her little sister's lips. Instantly, her usual laid-back attitude vanished; she straightened herself and looked down at Subaru. \"What are you doing, Barusu? Do you intend to make Master Roswaal wait?\" \"Just because you two know something doesn't mean I do. Er, what, this is a meeting with all the servants?\" Subaru felt like he was being treated like a child who was slow on the uptake as he followed behind the others. Along the way, he straightened himself in accordance with Ram's lessons and opened the mansion's front doors. As he did so, Roswaal, the lord of the manor, awaited the three with open arms. \"Ohhhh, you were together, were you nooot? That indeed saves me some tiiime.\" He had indigo hair and oddly colored eyes, one blue, one yellow. He had the delicate build of a pretty boy, but the clown makeup adorning his face put it all to waste. But all that included, the air he gave off felt different somehow. \"Are you wearing that to go out somewhere?\" \"Precisely. I actually do not faaavor formal wear like this, either, but it cannot be heeelped. The other paaarty is troublesome to deal with in normal attire, so I am forced to go out wearing thiiis.\" Usually, Roswaal indulged in his eccentric taste in clothing. It had been some time since Subaru had seen him wearing something with geometrical patterns, lacking the usual clownish spirit. Or rather, it was the very first time. Subaru could think of only two possibilities as to why Roswaal would be wearing such an outfit. Ram and Rem, thinking the same thing as Subaru, aired both possibilities simultaneously. \"Entertaining a guest?\" \"Going on a trip?\" Faced with questions from all his servants, a pained smile came over Roswaal as he pointed at Ram. \"Ram is correct... I am heading out. A somewhat troooublesome message has arrived, you see. There is something I must check in the environs of Garfiel, though I do not plan on being very laaate.\" Having never heard that particular word before, Subaru couldn't be certain whether it was the name of a person or a place. But given that the twins seemed to know what he was talking about, Subaru nodded without objection. \"For that reaaason, I do not believe I shall be back tonight, so...Ram, Rem, I leave matters in your hands.\" \"Yes, if you command it.\" \"Yes, even at the cost of my life.\" Roswaal acknowledged the pair's immediate replies with his oddly colored eyes alone before gazing at Subaru with them. Subaru, feeling backed into a corner by the differently colored glints, squirmed uncomfortably. \"Sorry, I'm not loyal enough to swear even at the cost of my life yet.\" \"That is fine and weeell. If you swore that all of a sudden, it would feel raaather disconcerting. But I leave things in yooour hands as well, Subaru.\" Roswaal patted Subaru's shoulder, one eye closed, so that only his yellow iris was visible. \"This has a fishy aroma to it. I can cooount on you to take care of Lady Emilia, yes?\" \"Yeah, you can seriously count on me for that.\" That went without saying. Subaru didn't know how much of a read Roswaal had on the situation. He didn't know, but he'd picked up this much...  This had never happened before. Perhaps it truly meant that Subaru's actions had changed the world around him. Nodding, Roswaal gave Subaru a satisfied smile before giving his faithful twin retainers various instructions. \"Well, theeen, I shall be off. I pray that nothing shall occuuur.\" As he spoke, Roswaal went out the entrance, with the three of them watching him go. But Subaru belatedly realized that there was no coach or carriage to whisk Roswaal away. Surely Roswaal wasn't going to walk  \"Well, I leave it in your hands \" When Roswaal spoke, his overcoat flapped as he made a light leap. And then, Subaru saw: Roswaal's body sailed up into the sky, wind wrapping around it as he soared at high speed. Subaru's mouth opened in surprise as Roswaal rose almost as high as the clouds, heading toward the mountains, growing smaller, and finally vanishing from view. \"H-he flew... Geez, magic's amazing stuff.\" Subaru voiced his admiration at the solo flying he had just witnessed. In contrast, the sisters, clearly accustomed to Roswaal's flight magic, quickly switched gears. They instantly established the order of affairs in the mansion in the absence of their master. \"Even if Master Roswaal is absent, our duties do not change. Indeed, the fact that he is not present means we must be even more diligent,\" said Rem. \"That's a nice professional attitude. Okay, then, let's get this started!\" Rem began divvying up work as Subaru rolled up his sleeves, burning with enthusiasm. Of course, he wasn't just fired up about work but about the changing situation, too. The change clearly made the twins expect a potential attack on the mansion. They would be securely guarding the mansion, but Subaru, who knew with certainty an attack was coming, was even more on guard than they. He needed to discover the shaman's identity without a single moment to lose. If the other side was acting faster, there was no doubt in his mind that the visit to the village that day had triggered it. In other words, Subaru's decoy plan had worked as he had meant it to. All Subaru had to do now was confirm his suspicions and smoke the shaman out. \"So, it's that time again, Beako!\" Those were the first words out of his mouth when he pushed open the door and entered the archive of forbidden books. His grand and very pushy entrance made Beatrice, sitting on the footstool as she read a book, slump her shoulders. \"Really...? How do you breach the Passage with such ease...?\" \"Intuition. It's all intuition. I've got a sixth sense about these things.\" Beatrice wore a very sour face as Subaru approached, and she abruptly narrowed her eyes, no doubt because she noticed the seriousness in Subaru's. \"Another half a day and you have yet a different expression. I suppose you are a busy sort?\" \"Hey, I want to take it easy, too. But the world's enough of a mess that it's not exactly giving me the chance.\" Subaru, an ordinary person, had been buffeted by one problem arising after another. But he was confident that, at long last, he was catching up to the problems, instead of them purely catching up to him. \"I want you to check something for me, so I finished cleaning the bath in record time.\" \"If cleaning the bath came first, surely it is no great affair?\" This applied to Subaru as well, but time in the bath was one of the few respites in a world of few pastimes. Just thinking of Rem's reaction if she found out he'd slacked off in cleaning that place of rest was enough to give him chills. After all, Subaru getting along with her big sister had put his friendship rating with Rem in the dumps. Even if he located the shaman, poor relations with Rem meant Subaru couldn't escape a BAD END. Having to advance along both routes simultaneously made Subaru feel like he was walking a tightrope. \"If it was just a problem of which girl to get lovey-dovey with, I'd be real happy, but...\" \"Are you wandering off topic again, I wonder...? What did you want of me, then?\" \"Ah, yeah, about that...\" Subaru sank in thought in front of Beatrice, who at least seemed tentatively willing to hear him out. After hesitating about how to put it exactly, he nodded once. \"I think there's a little curse on me. Can you check?\" \"...What are you saying, I wonder?\" \"I think there's a little curse on me. Can you check?\" \"I did not tell you to repeat yourself! Has it been even half a day since we spoke about shamans in detail, I wonder?! Even gullibility has its limits...\" Beatrice stormed over and yelled, probably thinking Subaru had some sort of persecution complex. But her expression changed midway to one of surprise; she looked up at Subaru as if some doubt had just been answered. \"I sense a curse rite... You truly have been cursed.\" \"Seriously? I mean, I figured as much, but having it actually said out loud is still kind of a shock...\" The whole point of the decoy operation was to get cursed, but it was still a jolt to know that he really had been. What brought a pall over his face was not only fear but his own thoughts in other words, the fact that one of those lighthearted villagers had been an assassin. \"Do you know what kind of curse it is?\" \"I can say nothing from merely seeing the rite. But as we discussed, the odds are extremely strong that it is a curse to take your life.\" Subaru calmly accepted Beatrice's statement when she looked up at him with a blink of her large eyes in apparent surprise. \"You do not look like you think dying is a frightening thing, you know?\" \"Huh? What a stupid thing to say. I'm super scared of dying. There's nothing more frightening in this world than death. People who say there's worse stuff than dying should say that after they've tried death once or twice.\" It was the one unshakable truth Subaru had learned from that world: Death was absolute. He could not abide it being treated lightly. Nor could he stand comparing death to other things by those who had not experienced it. After all, Subaru, having experienced death multiple times, had returned to the world to start over because he had himself tasted despair worse than death. \"That's why I'm going to get through it this time, Fate.\" If there was indeed a deity that governed fate, Subaru had just declared war upon him. Subaru Natsuki would snatch back his happy ending to make up for the agonizing times he had suffered. Having finished his rant at the supernatural being, Subaru turned back to Beatrice. \"So, could you lift that little curse for me? I'm short on time here.\" But at the very moment Subaru was burning from the chance to strike the perpetrator when least expected, the girl who should have been his greatest ally cut him off at the knees. \"...Why do I have to save your life, I wonder?\" Subaru scratched his head as he replied, \"I thought you might say something un-cute like that, so I came beforehand with a way to convince you. If I die, it'll make Puck sad, too.\" \"...Would Puckie's heart be greatly moved by your demise, I wonder?\" \"No, no, if I die, it'll be a pretty huge shock to Emilia. If it's a shock to Emilia, that'll hurt Puck, too. And especially you, the one who could've stopped it beforehand!\" \"You are completely touched in the head, unable to distinguish begging for your life from using it as a threat!\" Beatrice stomped on the floor, but apparently a rebuttal to Subaru's declaration was not forthcoming. She sighed in annoyance and gave him a reluctant look as she beckoned him with a hand. \"I suppose I shall yield. However, do not bother me any further, ever!\" \"To be honest, I can't promise you that, either. If I'm in trouble, I'll be back to ask for your help. I'll pick the scraps from your table if I have to.\" \"Are you even aware that I am saving your life, I wonder?\" \"I'm super aware that I'm annoying you with weakling logic. Sorry.\" When Subaru bowed his head in apology, Beatrice shook her head with a look of annoyance. After that, her palm glowed with a white light, which she gently touched to Subaru's body. \"I shall now"}, {"text": "destroy the curse rite. Bear in mind that it is implanted in the place where the shaman touches your body directly.\" \"Sure, don't worry, I'm all set.\" Subaru checked his own body as he felt the light in her palm convey its warmth. He'd kept track of where the suspects in the village had touched him. Only the granny searching for her lost youth had touched his butt. So, if Beatrice moved her hand to his butt, he'd know that the granny was the perpetrator. He'd also complain to Beatrice about sexual harassment. \" Eh?\" But the place Beatrice's palm touched was completely at odds with Subaru's expectations. He felt a swirling heat where the white glow leaped from her palm into his flesh. There was an itchy feeling where she had touched, but it seemed to ooze right out of his body as a... \"Black...cloud...?\" The light in Beatrice's hand directly caught hold of the black fog that had been the curse. The itchiness vanished as Subaru shuddered from that wriggling cloud having been inside his own body. Then... \"Must you be so abominable, I wonder?\" Beatrice crushed it in her hand before it vanished, then shook her hand as if having touched something icky. Realizing Subaru had gone silent, she harrumphed. \"It is done. I suppose you will be fine now?\" When she said it is done, Subaru realized that he'd stopped breathing. He rued his timid heart, but a more pressing concern came to mind. \"Hey, Beako.\" \"Would you stop addressing me that way already...?\" \"Is the place you touched with your palm the place the shaman touched me?\" Faced with Subaru's grave question, Beatrice set her own complaints aside and reluctantly nodded. Her nod affirmed in Subaru's mind the perpetrator behind the string of curses. \"I've got to...go to the village !\" Now that he knew the culprit's identity, he had no choice but to act immediately. He'd originally planned to wait until the next day, go to the village with Roswaal and the twins, flush the shaman in the village out of hiding, and deal with him. But he couldn't do that now. Subaru's heart continued to race as he rushed to put his hand on the door. His breath was so ragged as he ran that he didn't even hear Beatrice call out for him to stop. Fate's irrationality and poor taste in irony, dangling Subaru and the others on a string, filled him with rage. That anger gripped Subaru as he ran, yelling at the top of his lungs. \"Just how far are you gonna take playing me for a fool...?!\" He kept running. Subaru dashed through the hallway, leaped down the stairs, flipped around at the landing of the stairs, the heels of his shoes sliding to a stop at the entry hall as he raised his face and yelled out. \" Ram! Rem! I've gotta talk to you!\" Ram immediately popped into view, responding to the shout that probably carried throughout the entire mansion. Apparently she'd been working quite close by. She looked at Subaru's red face and ragged breathing with her eyes narrowed in disapproval at the impropriety. \"What is it, Barusu? Your haste is quite unsightly.\" \"Sorry, I'm heading to the village. You can't stop me; I'll go even if you try. I just thought it'd throw everyone off even worse if I just left without a word.\" \"The village...? Why would you...? No, more importantly, do you intend to disregard Master Roswaal's instructions? Tonight, Rem and I are in charge of this mansion. Surely you understand this?\" Ram glared at Subaru even more sharply. Ram's position was that whatever Roswaal wanted came first. Subaru's open disregard of her master's command really rubbed her the wrong way. But Subaru wasn't minded to retreat an inch even so. \"Time's short, so I'll get right to the point. There's a bad magic user in Earlham Village. I know who it is, so I have to go now.\" \"...You ask me to accept what sounds like a child's made-up excuse?\" \"I can't help it; there's no other way to put it here. Go talk to Beako; you'll see I'm telling the truth... Besides...\" As he pleaded with the increasingly suspicious Ram, the great doors opened behind him as Rem emerged. \"Sister \" When Rem saw the two speaking in the entry hall, she went to her sister's side like it was second nature. \"Sister, what is...?\" \"He says he is heading out to rid us of an evil magic user in the village.\" Ram bluntly conveyed Subaru's statement to Rem for him. Hearing it put that way, even Subaru thought it sounded like pure fiction. Apparently that was Rem's conclusion, too. \"Sister, Sister. Subaru's joke is not very funny.\" \"Rem, Rem. Barusu thinks he has a future in comedy.\" \"Ram, Rem. I might kid around all the time, but I talk seriously sometimes, too.\" Faced with their twin-act lines, Subaru spoke to both at once. He took a step forward as if to emphasize that he wasn't cowed by the sisters' reactions. \"I know it's an unbelievable story, and it's asking too much for you to just take my word for it right now. But I'm not asking you to let me go without any conditions.\" To Subaru, this was a crucial fork in the road. Subaru wet his lips with his tongue, jabbing a finger toward the silent pair as he made his proposal. \"I'm going to the village. If you think that's suspicious, fine, tag along. Watch me and see. But I'm not going with Emilia left all alone, so it has to be just one of you.\" \"You cannot simply go off on your own... In the first place, neither Sister nor I have any reason to go with you if we are to uphold Master Roswaal's command...\" \"No, you don't, if Roswaal's command in the evening is the only one you're upholding. Are those the only orders Roswaal gave about me?\" *** Rem was at a loss for words. Subaru's statement a moment before had been a mere bluff, but her uncomfortable reaction made it plain he'd hit the mark. Piecing together info from the previous loops, Subaru had guessed that Roswaal had ordered the pair to keep an eye on him. Rem looked like she was searching for an escape route, but Ram beat her to the punch, exhaling. \"Understood, Barusu. We will accept your independent action.\" \"Sister?!\" Rem was in utter shock at seeing her sister wave a white flag so easily. But Ram indicated to her little sister to keep quiet. \"However, just as you said, we cannot allow you to go alone, Barusu. Allowing you to act alone here would in itself disregard Master Roswaal's commands.\" \"I figured as much. So what's our compromise gonna be?\" \"Though it pains me, we have no choice but to go along with your prior suggestion. Rem will accompany you.\" \"Ask and ye shall receive, I guess.\" Subaru thrust out a clenched fist to show his agreement with Ram's terms. Ram sighed a little as she turned to her little sister, shunning Subaru. \"Rem, this is how it is, so, please. I shall confirm matters with Lady Beatrice and protect Lady Emilia myself I shall be watching you from here.\" \"Sister, you must not use that eye too oft \" \"This is no time to say that. I will use it if I need to. The same goes for you, Rem.\" The way the older sister put it left no room for Rem to question any further. Subaru was glancing toward their conversation, understood by only the two sisters, when Rem shifted an unfriendly glance at him. \"Subaru, I would like to hear the details.\" \"I'll tell you on the way. Things might've already gotten pretty bad, though...\" If Subaru's worst premonition proved true, there would be damage that simply couldn't be laughed off. Not to Subaru personally but in a much larger sense. He gave Ram's shoulder a light, grateful pat as he headed to the entrance with Rem, who still didn't look on board. He was figuring it was fifteen minutes to the village if they ran straight there, when  \" Subaru, where are you going?\" A voice clear as a bell danced down from above the great stairway of the entry hall. Turning around without a thought, he looked up to see Emilia standing there, her silver hair swaying. Judging from her heavy breaths, she'd heard Subaru's earlier shout and had come over to see the three of them below. \"I thought I'd come down because I heard a loud voice earlier... Did something happen?\" \"Something...might've happened. You don't need to worry. Ah, I'll be happy if you worry a little bit.\" Subaru was behaving casually on purpose so as not to make Emilia too anxious. Though Subaru was acting in his usual lighthearted fashion, Emilia seemed to pick up on something. \"Your face says you're going to do something dangerous again.\" Emilia had a sullen look about her as she saw right through him. Subaru wailed inside at how his grand act had been so easily foiled as he covered his face with his palms. \"That's what we were arguing about just now. We finally got everything cleared up, so...\" \"There's no point trying to stop you, is there?\" \"Well, not really. And if you succeeded, it'd only make things worse...\" \"Yes, yes, I understand. I won't stop you.\" Emilia walked down the stairs, stopping just in front of Subaru and placing her hands on her hips. Subaru was unable to look away from her glimmering violet eyes. With Subaru unable to move, Emilia reached out and gently touched his chest. \"Even if I tell you not to be reckless or careless, you probably will anyway, won't you?\" \"If that's what it takes... Ah, er, not that I want to do either, mind you.\" Whether it was achievable or not, the best thing would be to travel a path free of worry and strife. If, instead, Subaru was the only one who could change the situation, he had to act, even if it was recklessly. He wondered where he'd picked up such a troublesome personality.  Probably has something to do with the girl I'm staring at right now, he thought with a strained smile. Emilia was still touching his chest as she murmured. \" May the grace of the spirits be with you.\" \"What was that?\" Subaru tried to decipher the expression without success. Emilia shot him a broad smile. \"Words you say when seeing someone off. They mean 'come back safely.'\" \"Ahh, I see. Got it, Emilia-tan. So when I do come back safe and sound, you'll gently hug me to your chest like a baby chick, right?\" \"Yes, yes.\" Letting Subaru's desire for coddling slide off her, Emilia shifted her gaze to include Rem. Rem, who had been silently watching the exchange, straightened her back in response. \"Be careful, Rem. Also, make sure Subaru doesn't do anything rash.\" \"Yes, Lady Emilia. As you wish.\" Seeing Rem grab the hem of her skirt and make a polite bow, Emilia nodded to her in satisfaction. Subaru waved. \"Well, Emilia-tan, I'm heading off.\" Emilia's voice had given him words of encouragement to see him on his way. \"Come back soon.\" He pushed the doors of the entrance open and began to run toward the village side by side with Rem as the remaining two watched them go. \"So, I would like to hear the details now...\" \"There's a shaman in the village to hurt Emilia's royal selection. He cursed me good, but Beatrice removed it. If we don't act now, the whole village could get wiped out.\" Even while running, Rem's breath caught, her eyes going wide as she asked, \"Are you...serious?\" Subaru replied with a silent nod as he focused his energy on getting to the village. He wouldn't have had to imagine a shaman with human intelligence taking such a measure."}, {"text": "But if Subaru's deduction was correct, he had to assume the worst. And so, Subaru ran onward. Rem continued to silently sprint by his side, as yet unaware of the gravity of the situation. By the time they arrived at the village, bonfires burned brightly, pushing back the dark of night. Normally, there was no way anyone would have so many fires lit just to keep it bright at that hour. Rem, standing beside the out-of-breath Subaru, picked up on the strange atmosphere; her face showed she understood something was wrong. A young man from the village recognized the pair and hurried over. \"Hey, it's the two from the mansion. What are you doing here at a time like \" Rem interrupted the youngster's question. \"It seems good that we are. Has something happened?\" The young man seemed a little surprised by Rem's manner of speaking, but he immediately replied excitedly. \"Yes. Actually, a bunch of village kids are missing. We knew they were out playing before it got dark, but...well, that's why a whole bunch of people are looking.\" Since the youngster in front of them wasn't being specific, Subaru cut in before Rem could ask further. \"The missing kids, that's Luca, Petra, Mildo, and them?\" \"Y-yes, them... Do you have any idea where they went?\" When the young man answered affirmatively, Subaru clicked his tongue and kicked the ground. His gaze shifted outside the village toward the wall that separated it from the forest. \"Who else is looking for the kids besides you?\" \"All the young men in the village, plus Muraosa.\" \"The kids are in the forest. You'll never find them by looking around the village like this.\" Subaru's declaration brought a change in the young man's face. He seemed like he wanted to ask Subaru more, but Subaru patted his shoulder and ran toward the trees. \"I'm going into the forest. Tell everyone that's where the kids are!\" Subaru made a beeline toward the woods, paying no heed to the questioning voice behind him. Rem hurried to keep up with Subaru, giving him a look wrapped in doubt about how certain he seemed. \"How do you know such a...?\" \"I can tell. No, I know. If what the brats said was right, they should be this way.\" A tall wooden fence surrounded the village. The pair climbed over a section bordering the forest and cut among the trees as they headed deeper in. Subaru had just been going by his memory of what he'd heard, but Rem, walking beside him, suddenly lifted her face. \" The barrier has been...severed.\" Rem's surprised voice made Subaru grit his teeth, because he had been right. Rem pointed to a crystal embedded in a large tree right before their eyes. Judging from how it wasn't glowing, it must have been placed there to power a barrier blocking off the spaces between the trees. Subaru remembered several times when people had pointed to the forest and spoken of the barrier. He couldn't recall exactly when, but Ram had told him point-blank not to go into the mountains. \"What does the barrier being cut mean here?\" \"It means that demon beasts can cross the boundary. This forest is their habitat, you see.\" \"Demon beasts...? Huh? So, um, what are they, anyway?\" Subaru's question made Rem's eyes waver as she delivered a textbook reply. \"They are beasts imbued with dark power, the enemy of intelligent life. It is said that the witch created them.\" \"More of the witch, even here, geez...\" Subaru grimaced at the piece of vocabulary that stuck out, but Rem's explanation made him certain: He knew who the \"shaman\" was, and that this was just a prelude to an attack on the village. Before Rem's eyes, Subaru stepped into the gap between the trees she had called a barrier and headed deeper into the woods. \" ! Subaru, what are you ?!\" Rem, surprised, raised her voice to stop him. \"The kids are in there. I have to save them.\" \"Do you have hard proof of that? Master Roswaal's permission is required before crossing the ba \" \"The scar on my hand is proof!\" He raised his left hand so that Rem could see the animal bite mark on the back of it. It was the scar left by the bite he'd gotten in the village that afternoon when the kids had surrounded him and he'd touched the puppy. Beatrice had pointed to that scar and said that the being that made it was the culprit behind the curse on Subaru. Meaning  \"The kids had a cute puppy with them. It looked like a dog, but what if it wasn't a dog? What if it was a demon beast that curses whoever it bites?\" That puppy had bitten Subaru not once, not twice, but three times. If he hadn't been bitten this time around, he had no doubt Rem would've been bitten instead. Human hands hadn't cast the curse; it was more like a natural disaster. Just like rats were the medium through which the Black Plague spread, demon beasts were the vector by which the curse was propagated. The kids had followed the demon beast into the forest. There was no telling whether or not they were safe within. \"This gets worse the more time passes. We don't know if the kids are already cursed, but for now we've got to bring them all back to the mansion and purify them.\" \"Hold on. You cannot simply decide that on your... In the first place, the situation is too suspicious.\" \"Huh?\" Rem pointed toward the village, which happened to be toward the mansion as well. \"To have such a problem occur while Master Roswaal is absent... Are you certain this is not a diversion for an attack on the mansion?\" \"So what would you do? Abandon the kids in trouble right this minute, go back to the mansion, and batten down the hatches? I mean, yeah, we can do that, if you're all right with everyone in the village being dead by morning.\" Even as he said it, Subaru was well aware of how cruelly he'd put it. Rem was just trying to do her job and minimize the risks to the people at the mansion. It was natural for her to think that way, and he had no intention of blaming Rem for it. But there came a time when you had to make a choice, no matter how much you tried to push it away. And Subaru knew only too well that the greatest regret came from choosing not to choose at all. \"Rem, let's go. We've got to do something.\" \"Why are you that determined to...? Subaru, what connection do you have to the vill \" Perhaps it was her still being unsure about his judgment, but it was the first time Subaru had heard Rem murmur in a feminine fashion. Here was Rem, prim and proper through thick and thin, uttering such soft complaints. If he was being honest, Subaru would've said he was scared to go forward. His legs were trembling from fatigue, but from another reason as well. Who could have blamed him if he'd displayed the face of a coward he was desperately keeping concealed? But Subaru slapped his own cheeks to make his heart forget its slide toward weakness and escape. \" Petra wants to be a clothing maker in the capital when she grows up.\" \"...Ah?\" \"Luca wants to follow in the footsteps of his dad, the top woodcarver in the village. Mildo wants to make a wreath from flowers from all the flower beds and give it to his mom as a present...\" *** Subaru recalled each face one by one in the back of his mind as he continued, counting with his fingers. \"Meyna's all happy because a little brother or sister will be born anytime now, and those brothers Dyne and Cain are both working hard to get Petra's hand in marriage...\" He let out a small laugh. Then he shook his head to Rem, who stood in silence. \"I know their faces, their names, and what they want to do in life. I'm not some stranger anymore.\" Subaru hated kids. They were noisy, rowdy, and they talked trash with no respect for their elders. They thought nothing of discourtesy or disrespect, were brash and unreserved it was like looking at himself in the mirror. \"But, Rem, I promised them I'd do aerobics with them again tomorrow morning.\" Subaru had thought the same things during the loop on the first day after his summoning. It'd be easier just to let things go. But he ran forward because he couldn't. He looked at Rem. She was conflicted. She hesitated. Looking weak, powerless, about to break out in tears that was Subaru's job. Seeing her looking weaker than he, Subaru resented himself for hardening his resolve. He loathed that he was a small and petty-enough person to use others to protect himself, even though he was the incurable scaredy-cat. If his own cowardice could be used as a tool, he'd use that, too. \"I keep my promises and expect others to keep theirs I'll do aerobics with those brats again, you'll see. That's why I'm heading in.\"  He had no idea courage was such a terrifying thing. Subaru was so focused on keeping his hands from shaking that he didn't even notice the tremor in his voice. From behind, Rem watched all this, then silently closed her eyes. Then... \"Then it cannot...be helped.\" \"Rem?\" Subaru lifted his face as Rem's tongue abruptly loosened. It was practically the first time since he'd met her that she'd displayed clear emotion on her face. \"After all, I have been assigned to watch over you, Subaru. I cannot accomplish that duty if I let you go by yourself, can I?\" Rem sounded like she was teasing Subaru, leaving him in shock before he finally shook his head. \"Yeah, I suppose not. Keep a good eye on me to make sure I don't do anything suspicious.\" \"Yes, I will. So, let us be off?\" Seeing Rem standing beside him, Subaru felt like it was the first time they had truly stood side by side. He had an urge to thank Rem, but before he could find the words, he noticed it. As Rem walked beside him, she had at some point taken an iron ball in her hand. Attached to a handle via a long chain, the metal looked much too heavy for the ease with which she carried it. \"Er, ah, Rem, that's...\" \"For self-defense.\" \"Er, but that's...\" \"For self-defense.\" Subaru and Rem traded words along those lines as they walked into the woods without any path to follow. He desperately tried to re-harden his resolve and revive the courage he'd wrung out of himself at such great pains. With Rem maintaining her combat readiness with the iron ball \"for self-defense\" in one hand, the two continued exploring the night-covered forest. The moonlight was obstructed by the tree canopy, bringing a deep, black darkness over the forest. As they stepped around the trees obstructing their path, plowing forward through leaves and branches, their bodies picked up scratches that oozed blood. Plunged into a world with just a little moonlight trickling through to light the way, there was only one thing they had to search for. *** Rem stopped, looking all around as she sniffed the air. Her motion was like that of a police dog, and they were indeed relying on Rem's sense of smell to guide them through the forest. Subaru kept from speaking to her so as not to disrupt her concentration, but his unease was intense. He trailed after her small back as she stepped ahead of him, the long silence whittling Subaru's mental state down further, when... \" I smell something alive... It is close.\" Rem sent a sharp gaze to her left as she murmured, and Subaru followed suit. But he saw nothing there but darkness, the same as all the"}, {"text": "rest. Seized by impatience, he patted Rem's shoulder. \"Is it the kids?\" \"I do not know, but it is not an animal smell.\" \"That's enough to go on,\" said Subaru, nodding to Rem as he rushed forward. She ran right behind him. Even Rem's expression brightened a bit from having a solid lead that cut through the darkness. She subconsciously picked up her pace. Although, as their expectations increased, so did their unease. That fact was probably part of why Rem was unwilling to say for certain if the scent belonged to the kids. Rem drove forward, shoving aside foliage to make a path. Subaru chased after her, out of breath as his legs began to grow heavy. But his mind was crystal clear. His eyes had begun to acclimate to the darkness, so Subaru started to make out the outlines of the forest, too and the next moment, the forest opened up, and both arrived on top of a high little hill. Moonlight shone down on the green slope in the gap in the forest like something out of a dream. And there  \"It's the kids!\" There, lying on the ground, were the children, arms and legs spread as they slept. Rem and Subaru rushed over together to check on whether they were safe. There were six on the ground in total. They weren't conscious, but they were breathing, and their bodies were warm to the touch. \"They're alive. They're alive!\" \"We made it in time!\" Subaru shouted with joy. But Rem, standing beside him, had a stern look on her face. \"No, they are still breathing, but they are heavily debilitated. At this rate...\" \"Debilitated...? The curse?!\" When he looked closer, he saw that the children all had pale faces; their breaths were short and ragged, like even that drained their strength. Their brows were covered in cold sweat as they slept with pained expressions, like they were seeing nightmares. \"After we finally found them... Rem, can't you lift the curses?\" \"My skill is insufficient. If Sister is indeed watching this place... At any rate, I will use healing magic to put them at ease. We shall carry them once they calm down.\" \"Got it. I'll... Shit, I'm so useless. I'll keep an eye out for trouble.\" Subaru resented himself all over again for his lack of ability. Rem said nothing to him; instead, she infused her palm with a pale light the light of healing mana and began to treat the children. While he kept a lookout, Subaru watched as the wave of healing began to bring peace to more of the sleeping children. At the rate they were calming, they could bring the kids back to the mansion and ask Beatrice to lift the c  But just as Subaru was mentally putting plans in order, a girl lightly opened her eyes and called his name. \"Suba...ru?\" Her gaze looked troubled, perhaps because her mind was so hazy, so Subaru took her hand. \"You're awake, Petra? Okay, good girl, you're a strong girl. We'll be taking you back real soon and making the reason you're suffering go bye-bye, so right now you need to just rest...\" \"There's one in... Still... The forest...\" \" Hey, what did you say?\" Petra was trying to tell him something with her halting words. The information nuggets gave him a bad feeling, so Subaru called out to Petra once more. But his voice never reached her; her eyes had closed and she'd lost consciousness again. Subaru patted the sleeping Petra's forehead and urgently rushed to the other children, looking them over. Then... \"Aw, crap... She's right. I don't see the youngest one here.\" He knew the faces of all six of the children sleeping there from spending time with them during the day. Setting aside Subaru and the puppy, it left the shy, withdrawn girl missing. \"Damn it all!\" Subaru stood up, tearing at his hair at the turn for the worse. Rem, who'd seen and heard the entire exchange with Petra, widened her eyes, apparently alarmed at Subaru's behavior. \"P-please wait. It is too dangerous. If she was taken away by the demon beasts, there is nothing \" \"I know what you're trying to say. I know. I know all too well, but you heard it, too, Rem. Petra said to go get the last one of them before anything else.\" Petra was suffering to the brink of tears, weakened to the point that breathing was a struggle. Even so, she'd expressed concern for her friend rather than saying the words save me. She was a weak little girl, but the life of her friend came before her own. \"...I want to do what Petra asked me to. If we're gonna pick one up, we might as well do our best to pick 'em all up.\" \"You are too greedy. If you pick up too much, you might end up dropping everything on the floor.\" \"You're here to make sure that doesn't happen, Rem.\" Rem looked daunted by it all. Seeing her so surprised, Subaru spread his arms wide to make her look at him. \"I can't do anything here, either. I can't use healing magic, and there's no way I can bring the kids back by myself. If so, I should use myself as effectively as I can, right?\" \"What does that have to do with m \" \"You need to save your strength to carry the kids, Rem. The young men from the village will...probably be coming in after us soon enough. Just hand the kids over to them and come after me.\" The villagers had to be well aware that demon beasts were in the forest. Furthermore, they'd no doubt girded themselves with gear and plenty of light sources. All Rem needed to do was hand the kids over and tell the men to bring the kids to the mansion. \"While you're doing that, I'll go deeper in and look for the last kid... Hey, if it's worst case, I'll come running right back. But if there's still any ray of hope, at least I can buy some time out there.\" Rem, unable to accept Subaru's decision, grabbed Subaru's sleeve and argued vehemently. \"You do not know your opponent's strength. There is no guarantee when the villagers will come, and worst case, I may not be able to find you.\" Perhaps she was worried about him. Perhaps it was just her nature not to go along with uncertain plans. Thinking that it'd be nice if it was the former, Subaru pulled Rem's fingers off his sleeve and held her hand. \"I'll be all right. You'll find me.\" \"What proof do you have of...?\" \"I've got proof right here.\" Subaru smiled, pointing a finger at his own nose before pointing it back at Rem's face. \"Even if no one else notices, you'll notice my scent. I have the lingering stench of a villain hovering about me, right?\" Rem's eyes opened wide in surprise. It was thrilling, really. He laughed, like seeing this Rem before his eyes was taking revenge on that other Rem from times past. \"Subaru...how much...do you know...?\" \"Ah, I'm pretty ignorant about tons of things. It's so bad, I'd never find the answers even if I repeated yesterday, today, and tomorrow over and over again.\" He thought back on those days and how repeating them too much had worn him to the bone. He then realized he'd changed a lot to actually be able to laugh about it. \"Looks like you have some things you want to ask me, and I have a mountain of things I want to ask you. So when this is all over, let's talk it out till our throats go dry. It's a promise.\" And, without waiting for Rem, he kept their hands together as he wrapped his little finger around hers. Rem remained perplexed at the sight of their intertwined pinkie fingers as Subaru moved the fingers up and down in a shake. \"There. Pinkie promise.\" \"Wh-what did you just...?\" \"It's a ritual from my homeland for making a promise. It's a terrible ritual guaranteeing you'll get a thousand sewing needles stuck into you if you break it.\" The encroachment of Subaru Space had already exceeded Rem's comprehension. Rem was befuddled and confused beyond words when Subaru snapped his fingers and flashed his teeth. \"I believe in you, Rem. So I want to act based on that trust. That's why we need to promise here.\" *** \"I told you, right? I keep my promises, and I expect others to keep theirs. Plus I've got Emilia's blessing on my side, so don't worry, be happy.\" \"H-happy...?\" Completely unable to keep up, Rem made a long, exasperated sigh as she laughed weakly. Subaru, seeing that Rem was continuing to laugh, kept his voice down as he laughed, too. Then Rem said, \"A promise, then. There really is much I want to ask you, after all.\" \"Sure thing. It's a promise between the two of us that needed making. The same probably goes for the hair, too.\" \"The hair...?\" \"The reason why you keep staring at my hair.\" Rem was at a loss for words when Subaru pointed it out. Guilt also seemed to well into her eyes as he watched her open her mouth. \"Subaru, I...\" \"It's all right. I'm not getting the wrong idea. You were always watching me while I did my amateur work because the shabby top of my head really bothered you...right?\" On the last day before he'd begun looping again, Subaru and Rem had made a promise a promise for Rem to cut Subaru's unsightly hair. Now Subaru understood the truth behind those words. At the time, Rem had been seized by enormous distrust of Subaru, hence the intensity of her gaze toward him. Ram had simply been trying to cover for her. That promise had been made on the basis of a lie. He knew that now. But Subaru would take the promise that began with a lie and make it true, smiling all the way. \"When I come back safe and sound, I'll put myself at your mercy. I'm counting on you to make me look so cool that Emilia will fall for me without even thinking.\" \"...Given what I am starting with, even I have my limits.\" \"Could you please put facts like that in a less direct way...?\" This was the Rem who had always left him behind. Her agreeing to go along with his suggestion made him happy then and there. Subaru made a satisfied nod at how the cheerful days he sought were being born anew. Rem said, \"I shall hand off the children and immediately catch up with you. Please do nothing rash in the meantime.\" \"Don't worry. After all, I'm possessed by a demon today.\" \"Possessed...?\" \"Possessed by a demon instead of a god. Lately it's my favorite saying!\" Subaru posed with two fingers standing above his head to act as pretend horns. Regardless of what she thought about Subaru's frivolous behavior, she let his pose pass without comment. \"Please be careful.\" With Rem sending him off and turning around, Subaru went down the low hill, going deeper into the forest. He headed in the direction Petra had indicated just before losing consciousness. \"Well, Subaru Natsuki, let's do this.\" Speaking to encourage himself, Subaru ran, clenching the hand with which he'd made the pinkie promise for good measure.  He didn't know if despair or hope awaited him, or something else. One way or another, the morning of the fourth day seemed far, far away. His heart was in a hurry, but he tread cautiously. The inside of his mouth was parched; his throat was tense with stress. He kept his footsteps quiet as he guardedly advanced into the dark forest. His steps were hesitant, but not because he was afraid or timid about moving forward. \"I sure flapped my lips in front of Rem there, but...\" It was a dangerous move to go alone, but Subaru"}, {"text": "thought his odds were far from hopeless. In the first place, Subaru was a weakling; his personality was fundamentally averse to gambling. He was doing this precisely because he had a reasonable basis to think he had a chance. \"If it was that puppy from today that cursed the kids, I've got a shot...\" It bore the frightening title of demon beast, but surely a puppy didn't have much combat ability. Its curse was indeed a frightening thing, but if it came to a clash of man versus fang... \"I won't lose to that thing, right...?\" It was rather pathetic to pin his hopes on his opponent's small size, though. No doubt it was an optimistic and convenient thought, but he didn't think he was wrong to be optimistic, especially because this world had given Subaru such a raw deal. If he just piled on negative images, he would lose himself, cast into despair too deep for his exuberance to get him out of. Subaru sighed, slumping his shoulders at how his parents had taught him to look at the warped world around him. Then... *** Subaru held his breath and stopped his feet at the sudden malaise he felt. The air seemed to shift against his skin. The sweat on his brow suddenly grew much cooler. The wind carried into his trembling nostrils the thick scent of beasts in the direction he was traveling. Whereas before the air was thick with the scent of grass and soil, it was now full of the stench of some wild animal in nature. Subaru, unable to quash the feeling that something bad was on its way, stilled his breathing. He poked his head out through a gap in the trees. His breath caught when he saw the cause of the wafting scent. *** At the end of his line of sight, in a tiny clearing, he saw a tree that had fallen due to wind and rot. A slender white leg was poking out beside it. When he craned his neck and peered in, Subaru saw that the leg had tattered cloth over it, attached to a girl wearing her frayed brown hair in braids. He'd found her. *** He held his breath and thought about this. There was no doubt this was the girl in question. But the girl's body did not so much as twitch while she lay on the ground. She was not conscious, and of course, he couldn't even check to see if she was breathing from where he stood. He quickly scanned her surroundings, but it seemed like the demon beast that had left the girl here was not close by. So the beast had dragged back his prey, then abandoned it? That didn't feel right. It didn't, but... \"...It's a golden opportunity... What to do...?\" With every moment he waited during this ideal chance to save the girl, the danger increased, all the more so because Subaru had, at best, a 50 percent chance of actually handling his potential opponent.  Why was Subaru Natsuki the one here? What if it had been Roswaal? Or Beatrice? Or Reinhard? If it were one of them, blessed with power worthy of heroes, the situation could be easily resolved. But it was Subaru Natsuki who stood there. It was Subaru Natsuki who yearned for a miracle. And it was Subaru Natsuki who most assuredly could not bring a miracle about. His rational mind pleaded for him to play the sure hand and wait for Rem. And yet...  Emilia wouldn't hesitate. The instant he thought it, Subaru's legs stopped shaking. His pulse, quickened by the decision pressing upon him, calmed along with his ragged breath. Subaru rushed through the grass, flying into the clearing in front of him, and made a beeline toward the girl in the shade of the fallen tree. He sat up her tiny, light body and checked to see if it had a pulse.  Her breathing was frail, but he felt a faint, steady pulse through her veins. \"...I'm so glad.\" He was truly relieved that he hadn't decided to abandon her. The faint breathing and pulse might have meant she was being affected by a curse as well. If that was the case, he needed to get her healed by magic and have the curse lifted without a moment to lose. He wasn't exactly confident about his endurance, but he figured he could carry a single girl out of the forest...but as Subaru rose to his feet with that judgment in his head... *** The sudden chill running up Subaru's spine made him gasp and look over his shoulder.  The bushes rustled as a four-legged beast crossed the grass and stepped onto the bare soil. It was a beast with short black fur. At a glance, it seemed similar in size to a Doberman from his world, but it was built twice as thickly as the dogs Subaru had seen. The clawlike paws were sharp; slobber was dripping out from its fangs even with its maw closed. It made a low growl as its bloodshot eyes glared at Subaru. It was a demon dog, or rather, a demon beast. Such a name suited its malevolent appearance. \"...This is, uh...not what I had in mind here.\" He didn't even realize his cheek was twitching as a smile and a dry laugh came over him. The demon beast before his eyes was clearly not the little puppy-size one Subaru had expected. In addition, the timing with which it had showed itself meant that... \"...You used this girl as a decoy and waited for her to lure me out...?\" Subaru shuddered. Perhaps it was only feral instincts at work, but the beast's unexpected intelligence disturbed him. Either way, he didn't have any time to ponder the matter. His eyes roamed the area, but he saw neither any sign of Rem catching up to him nor any avenue for escape from the demon beast. Indeed, the latter had already lowered its head, clawing the ground. He had no time to hesitate. \"Tch... Shit, if you're gonna come, come!!\" As Subaru vented, he stripped his jacket off, wrapping the well-tailored garment around his left arm. In a confrontation with a wild animal, the thing you had to worry about the most was its sharp fangs. Wrapping thick fabric around your arm to limit the damage was the least you could do against a four-legged beast. He'd remembered seeing police dog training on TV in his old world and instantly copied that. He thrust his left arm out, glaring at the demon beast as it tried to figure out when best to leap at him. The way the demon beast kept its center of gravity low, not moving a muscle, unnerved Subaru. \"Hey, what's with the laid-back attitude here?! Hey! Come on! C \" It vanished. Suddenly, the demon beast that should have been right in front of him melted into the darkness. Fright froze his throat as an indistinct black cloud headed for Subaru's outstretched left arm. The next moment, he felt sharp fangs punch through the thick fabric, with the demon beast biting deep into his flesh. \"That !\" In an instant, he felt a jabbing pain, intense enough to turn his vision red, slam directly into his nervous system. But... \" Didn't hurt!!\" He poured strength into his left arm, tightening the muscles so that the fangs sunk into his muscles wouldn't come out. As a result, the demon beast clamped on at an angle was now completely unable to move. Its two red eyes met Subaru's gaze. Subaru bathed in the beast's overwhelming enmity as he said, \"You bit me, you mangy mutt !\" Wrapping his whole left arm around the demon beast, Subaru whipped his body around, hard. Centrifugal force sent the demon beast floating into the air, spinning it backward toward the fallen tree and slamming against an outstretched branch. *** The sharp branch ruptured its hide, making a dull sound as it rent the beast's flesh. Its dying howl echoed throughout the dark forest. The demon beast, impaled through its back, kept Subaru's arm clamped in its maw for a while, but it finally relented as it stopped moving. Subaru, for his part, fell to his knees. \"I...won?\" Seeing that it was not breathing, Subaru murmured as he yanked the demon beast's fangs from his arm. His forearm was in horrid shape under the bloodstained jacket. Upon actually seeing the wound, Subaru made a soundless whimper as pain assailed his nerves. Even so, he made a sigh of relief, grimacing all the while. Even without Rem's strength, he had been able to get out of that crisis. He took the time to retie the jacket around his arm, using it as a bandage. He made sure his arm could still move before walking back to pick up the girl for real this time. \"Hurts...but that means I'm alive. Crap. Anyway, gotta get back to the vill \" He cut his words off there because he noticed that the grass had rustled once more. His hair stood up as his entire body was gripped by the sense that something bestial still lurked. He looked back. Then Subaru murmured, \"Oh come on...\" Red eyes flared through the dark forest a horde of them gazed at him through the trees ahead, their numbers virtually beyond count. Not that he really wanted to count, but all his fingers and toes put together probably wouldn't cut it. Before he knew it, Subaru had thrust his arms out wide. Not to surrender to the countless points of light but to shield the little girl behind him. *** The beasts were unimpressed by his silent resolve. The red points of light ignored Subaru's wishes and leaped at him all at once. \"Ooo !\" Subaru realized his own throat howled. He roared, unwilling to give in. His spirit kept up the facade, telling him that he would not lose, no matter how many red eyes were before him. He was, of course, bluffing; his tiger's mask was nothing more than paper. As Subaru yelled, a demon beast rushed up to rip out his throat  ***  when the head of the demon beast before his eyes exploded like an overripe melon. Bludgeoned to death at point-blank range, its fresh blood showered Subaru's face. The demon beast's headless body sailed forward and crashed into Subaru. Blown backward by the force, Subaru rolled and, feeling unpleasant from the pain and blood, he shook his head and stood up.  What just happened? A blue-haired girl had descended onto the field of battle, one hand lightly grasping the hem of her skirt as it made an elegant twirl, the other wielding a malevolent iron ball. \"The children are safe and are returning to the village. I see your efforts to buy time have gone well.\" \"Rem, look o !\" Subaru's elation over the arrival of his awaited reinforcements was short-lived, for now that the vanguard of the demon beast force had been cut down, two more leaped toward her slender body. \" Hah!\" Her right arm, wielding the iron handle, whipped sideways; the iron ball followed in the wake of the whirling chain. The destructive weapon, which ought to have been slow and unwieldy, turned with incredible force, following the arc of the swing of her arm to utterly pulverize everything in its path. Its might mowed down branches and snapped tree trunks before slamming straight into the demon beast's body. The weapon connected with such power it split the torso in two, turning it into fertilizer for the forest. And, as the comrade beside it fell in a single moment, the other soared to angrily sink its fangs into Rem's left flank but just before it reached her, Rem smashed her left fist into its snout from above, pummeling it out of the sky. The might of her fist caved the beast's skull in, slaying it instantly with a blow powerful enough to bury its head into the soil."}, {"text": "Her skill was crystal clear. Subaru had thought he appreciated Rem's destructiveness, but now he truly knew. That made his head hurt. \"Y-you're so strong!!\" \"Are those appropriate words to speak to a girl, Subaru?\" \"That's the only thing a weakling like me can say! You're really out there!\" Ecstatic that Rem proved far more reliable than he'd imagined, Subaru leaped as if to embrace her. He then skirted around right behind Rem as the remainder of the pack spread out and surrounded them. Having lost two more of their number, the pack moved sluggishly. The beasts crouched, awaiting their well, Rem's next move; Subaru could tell that there was bitter enmity in their eyes. \"...Incidentally, Rem, do you plan on wiping them out by yourself?\" \"There are too many of them. Alone, they can overcome me with numbers.\" \"Well that figures. In that case...\" Before the beasts could recover their bearings and come leaping at them, Subaru and Rem had the same thought. Their eyes swept the surroundings before settling on the same place a weak point in the encirclement with only three of the beasts. Subaru yelled in concert with Rem's attack. \"There!\" The iron ball ripped through the air, with the howl heralding the slaughter. A moment before reaching the cluster of demon beasts, the iron ball smashed into the ground, kicking up a huge cloud of dirt. Subaru sensed that the cascade of soil had thrown the beasts off. Rem was the next to yell. \"Now !\" Subaru ran like his body had been shot out of a cannon. The blow from a moment before had opened a hole in the barricade, a narrow area that he could break through  As Subaru flew through the gap, the demon beasts howled at how they had left open a path. But when they rushed in pursuit, they became easy prey to the iron snake lashing behind them. \"Whoa, traumatic sound alert !\" As he sprinted full force, Subaru recalled the sound of the dancing chain sending his left arm flying off. Behind him, the iron ball swung ferociously, making numerous bloody flowers bloom fresh in the dark forest. Subaru vaulted over a tree root, getting smacked on the cheek by a branch as he yelled, \"Rem, I can't see where I'm going!\" \"Straight...straight ahead. This will be settled when we pass through the barrier. Head for the bonfires in the village!\" Straight ahead, she'd said, but Subaru couldn't even tell which way was the front. He never imagined that the darkness, leaving him able to see only a little ways in front, would ruin his sense of direction to this degree. Nor could he grope ahead with his hands when he had a little girl weighing down his arms. He was out of breath. He was full of anxiety that he had lost his way or that the beasts were about to catch up to him. His left arm was going numb. The bleeding had never stopped; the fabric of his jacket was drenched in blood. He could picture in his mind how blooddrops were falling to the earth, leaving a perfect trail that led his pursuers right to him. He saw what looked like the same scenery over and over, as if he hadn't made a single step of forward progress. A sense of irritation burned in his chest; he felt like he was about to fall to his knees. Yet, all the while... ...he heard the sound of a chain whipping behind him. \"Aww, shit! My side really hurts !\" Forward, forward ! Then the darkness before Subaru suddenly lifted. His field of vision broadened and, as his eyes instinctively narrowed at the suddenness of it, he saw man-made light off in the distance. \"Rem! I see light! Someone from the village is...at the barrier!\" Subaru looked back in joy at the appearance of a literal ray of hope. But a moment later, his eyes silently went wide. He could describe the sight of Rem fighting to protect him from behind only as heroic. Her perfectly sized maid outfit was ripped and gnawed to shreds; the white flesh below it was marked with countless cuts. Her vivid blue hair was all a mess, and there was too much fresh blood in it to make out the original color. He saw Rem in a ferocious battle worthy of legend. And at that very moment, the same Rem was fast approaching Subaru as she reached out to him with a hand. \"Rem ?!\" Rem's outstretched hand shoved on Subaru's back, adding enough forward momentum to send him sprawling. He instantly protected the girl in his arms from the shock, but in exchange, he was unable to protect himself as he hit the ground face-first, banging up his body. Subaru felt the pain and tasted the dirt in his mouth; he wanted to ask Rem why she'd done something so violent just then but he was at a loss for such words. \"...You're kidding me...\" Subaru murmured as, right before his eyes, the soil was sweeping from right to left. Wind enveloped the earth, sand and mud rose in a vortex, and trees were torn from their roots as the very terrain of the forest changed. Faced with the violent scene before him, Subaru caught his breath when he shifted his eyes to the point from which the flowing soil originated.  For there, he saw the little demon beast, surrounded by a golden glow as it unleashed magical power.  Demon beasts were enemies of mankind that possessed magical energy. This was no curse. Curses couldn't be wielded the way that energy could. In other words, it was using magic. \" R-Rem?!\" When he belatedly understood what was happening, Subaru realized that Rem was no longer behind him. He also realized that Rem had shoved him to protect him from the river of dirt. And in exchange... *** ...the dirt and stone had launched her uniform-clad body high into the dark sky. The ground gave Rem a rough welcome, buffeting her small body like a fallen leaf. The way blood scattered from her and how she flew helplessly in the air proved with crystal clarity that she'd taken more damage than she could bear. Rem was unable to soften the blow when she made a hard landing. The saving grace was that she hadn't cracked her skull on the ground left bare by the flow of the soil. \"Re... You idiot! How can you...? What have I been...?!\" Doing this for, Subaru was about to yell, but in that instant, his spine froze. No doubt they'd all felt it, too. The little demon beast making the current of earth and the pack chasing after them...they all stopped moving. He could feel it. He was sure of it. What hovered in the air was the heavy presence of death.  Slowly, Rem's fallen body rose up. Even though she'd taken such a spectacular blow, Rem didn't show any sign of injury as she stood up. Indeed, as far as he could see, all her wounds had closed. The incredible healing energy emitted a high temperature, and her very blood boiled, rising as red steam. Rem turned her head, slowly looking around the area. Her eyes had lost all trace of reason. Her face, covered in blood spatter, twisted into an ecstatic smile. Then, Subaru saw. \" A demon.\"  With her headdress now off, he saw a white horn grow from Rem's forehead. \"Ah-ha...ah-ha-ha \" She laughed. It was loud laughter like that of a little girl but overflowing with naked cruelty. Twisting herself, Rem's body moved like the wind as it charged the demon beast pack. Faster than the unmoving demon beast in the vanguard could react, Rem smashed it with her heel. She kicked its body at the demon beasts ahead of her, slowing them down as she swung her iron ball, leaving a large quantity of bloody blossoms and beast corpses behind it. \"Demon beast! Demon beast! Demon beast! Witch!\" Rem continued to yell with each overpowering blow as she slew one demon beast after another. Blood scattered, skulls caved, and innards and gray matter scattered around the forest with great force. Subaru fell to his knees, forgetting all about his pain as he took in the scene. He didn't have the courage to raise his voice. That ought not have been so, but somehow, Subaru knew that if he appeared on Rem's radar right then, he'd have been killed in a heartbeat. Rem's behavior was so far off that he couldn't imagine he was wrong. Subaru was taking in the fact that Rem had gone berserk. But the demon beasts didn't simply sit and wait for death. Unfrozen after the initial shock, the demon beasts surrounded Rem to take advantage of any opening. The corpses slain by single blows grew in number as they whittled Rem down by fang and claw. The horde was endless. By now, she ought to have crushed at least the number that had initially pursued them, but the numbers of red eyes had increased along the way; they came in waves that seemed as constant as the tides. \"Even if she's in her Ultimate Mode, there's no way she can hold out against enemies with infinite spawn...!\" The circumstances had undergone a dizzying change, but Subaru and the others were still at a steep disadvantage. Subaru, grasping the situation objectively, looked back when he felt another spike in magical energy. The demon pup kept its distance from the melee between Rem and the pack while deploying a magic circle. It was sucking the air dry of its mana, preparing to release yet another force to warp the space around it. Rem's face whipped up, apparently sensing the vortex of energy, sending the iron ball flying high so that she could whirl it to dispose of the new menace. But when Rem stopped moving, the pack of demon beasts seized their chance, leaping at Rem's back all at once. *** It was instantaneous. He was reaching for Rem's back before a single thought entered his mind. Rem's breath caught at the impact that pushed her out of the way. Her face stiffened in shock and unrest. Her empty eyes regained the luster of reason, her monstrous smile dropped away, and her emotions spilled over.  Ah, you can make a face like that, too, he thought in a corner of his mind. \" Gaaaaah!!\" The next moment, something crushed the wrist of his outstretched arm. He screamed. His right leg, his left flank, and his back felt fangs sink into them simultaneously. His vision was dyed red. He couldn't register the pain. His ankles were crushed. His belly was rent. Blood and intestines flowed out, a waste of blood and flesh. \"Subaru !!\" He thought he heard a shriek. Even though he tried to lift his face toward it, his body no longer moved as he wished. His balance was wrecked. His crushed ankles were unable to respond at even half normal strength. He collapsed to the ground as such wounds demanded. Right before him, a maw lined with fangs was rushing at him. It went for his windpipe. Also right before him, the iron ball rent the earth and smashed it. Blood scattered. Was it his blood, or...? His mind was wandering. He didn't know when it would vanish altogether. He felt his life drain away. He, too, thought it was a stupid thing. He'd put the cart before the horse. What was the point of redoing it all now? Pain. Suffering. Everything was so far away invisible, inaudible. Dwindling. His life was oozing out of the hole in his side like grains of sand from an hourglass. I'm fading. It's over. It's all...over. \"Don't die, don't die, don't die !\" A voice on the brink of tears. A cry. *** CHAPTER 4 *** His consciousness floated on a distant wave. His mind, in a daze atop the shifting tide, floated back and forth between dream and reality. \" no other way to"}, {"text": "save him?\" \" all, I wonder? You should do as you please, then.\" Far away no, close by at the border neither here nor there, he heard one person conversing with another. A clinging voice. A blunt voice. A crying voice. A voice with frozen emotion. Voices. Abruptly, he felt an embrace of a soft hand. He remembered whose it was, because he had felt it several times before. He craved that warmth. He wanted to go back. He didn't want it to be simply a dream. The sensation of the hand suddenly grew distant. Far, far away, unreachable and untouchable. \" I will...save you.\" Only those words of iron determination remained. Everything vanished. It all left, leaving him far, far behind. And then  How many times had he been knocked out cold, only to wake up like this? Subaru stared at the unfamiliar ceiling as such thoughts hovered in his mind. \"Unngh, ow...\" His side spasmed the instant he sat up in bed. That really woke him up. When he tried to touch his painful belly, he felt something very wrong with his left arm. The ill feeling remained as he brought his arm before him, seeing with his own eyes what a sorry state it was in. There were white scars covering him from the tips of his fingers up to his wrist. It wasn't just his arm that felt off. He yanked up his shirt and saw that he had similar scars on his right side. He had more on both ankles, on his right upper arm and shoulder, and lastly, one on his butt. They all seemed to be scars left from the demon beasts' fangs. \"I was sure I was a goner...\" He'd been bitten all over when shielding Rem. The maws of the ferocious beasts had made mincemeat out of Subaru's flesh. He felt how low his life had dimmed in his blood and internal organs; he'd been more than half sure that it was over. \"So I barely held on to life and got patched up after...?\" Subaru carefully looked around the area as he made sure his fingers were moving properly. The ceiling was unfamiliar; the bed, crude. The room was far too cramped to be one of the rooms in Roswaal Manor. Then he noticed the girl sitting in a wooden chair right next to the door, her head down as she slept. \" Emilia.\" She showed no sign of responding to his call. Emilia was breathing quite deeply, matching the depth of her sleep. Her beautiful silver hair was disheveled for once; more than that, her clothes were still heavily caked with blood and mud. He was wounded. He'd slept close to morning. Emilia was sleeping right beside him. Add all that to the state of her clothing, and even someone as dim-witted as Subaru could grasp the situation. \"I'm in her debt again, huh...?\" \"I wonder about that. This time, Lia might think of it as giving you a hand because your hard work brought results.\" Subaru turned in the direction of the faint murmur. Puck crawled out of Emilia's hair and hovered in the air beside her. \"Heya. Good morning, Subaru. Those will hold you back, huh?\" \"Maybe not. Feels a little stiff where I'm scarred, but I'm not gonna complain about having my life saved. I'm a guy, so I don't plan on whining just because my body's scuffed up, either.\" He didn't intend to turn them into marks of honor from the field of battle, but the deep feelings inside him associated with the white scars would no doubt never fade. To Subaru, what had happened to the source of his scars was more important. \"Guess it worked out like I expected, but...what actually happened after? To be honest, I don't remember a thing after the dogs went chompy-chomp-chomp on me.\" \"'Chompy-chomp-chomp' is such a cute way to put it. From what I saw when they hauled you in, it was more like, 'Chomp-munch-crunch-rip-yank-tear'...\" \"If it was like that I'd be dead already. Five or six extra arms wouldn't cover all that.\" \"Mm, well, the extra damage you didn't get was why the maid with the blue hair was in a sorry state.\" Subaru's throat suddenly froze over at the casual, carefree way he put it. Seeing Subaru react like that, Puck added another thought. \"That's because changing to her demon form makes that girl heal wounds very rapidly. By the time she carried you back to the village, she didn't have more than scratches left on the outside, enough that she didn't even need recovery magic.\" \"Don't scare me like that, then... Anyway, Rem got back to the village, too, huh? What happened to the last kid with me?\" \"You can rest easy about that. All seven children are safe. You really made the right call, Subaru.\" Puck said out loud \"clap, clap\" as he brought his paws together without a sound. Subaru imagined Puck's paws were simply too soft for audible applause, and he twisted his lips at the sight before shaking his head, driving away such idle thoughts. \"Puck, what about lifting the curses on the kids who got back to the village?\" \"Don't worry about that, either. Magic healed them a fair bit, so Betty and I will lift those curses in no time at all. They're as good as cured; you have my guarantee.\" Puck thumped his own chest as he gave his grandiose seal of approval. Upon seeing that, Subaru let out a deep breath, relieved at the fact that his own actions had not been in vain. Subaru's hand was still on his own chest as his eyes drifted back to the sleeping Emilia. \"And Emilia...? She pulled an all-nighter?\" \"I told her to just be patient and wait, but she wouldn't listen. She even wore down her od to heal you, so could you let her sleep?\" \"Od...? What?\" Subaru shook his head when he heard the unfamiliar piece of vocabulary. Puck toyed with a whisker. \"The magical energy that fills the air around us is called mana. Od is the opposite, the magical energy that all living things are imbued with. The total capacity varies greatly from person to person, and drawing on it really wears you out, so I told Lia to avoid using it as much as possible, but...\" Puck's words and demeanor made it easy for Subaru to imagine how Emilia had taken that. In the first place, calling Puck out during the night was outside the terms of their pact. If calling upon Puck and Beatrice was what it took to lift the curses, Emilia wouldn't have hesitated even an instant. She helped others, even if it meant getting hurt. That was why he loved her. \"This is someone's house in the village, right? Is it all right if I take a look around?\" If he wasn't going to wake Emilia up, it was best to conclude his quiet conversation with Puck. Subaru was in the process of sliding his legs off the bed when Puck replied with an agreeable nod. \"Probably best to move around a little and see how well the healing took, anyway.\" Having received Puck's permission, Subaru slowly began heading out. Along the way, before he stepped past Emilia, he lowered his head in a polite bow. As he bowed, he looked at Emilia's sleeping face, desperately holding out against his urge to tease her as he made his way outside. Subaru left his room, poking his head out of the building's entryway when he saw that the village was in an uproar. He murmured, \"Ahh, well, guess that totally figures.\" The morning sun hadn't even begun to rise, yet numerous human silhouettes stood in the plaza at the center of the village. It was a small village. The details of even the tiniest disturbance spread like wildfire. Women, children, and the elderly all had looks of concern as they huddled around the stout young men arguing in the center. They were no doubt the young men who'd pursued Subaru and Rem into the forest. He saw that several were wearing bandages; apparently they'd had casualties, too. He scanned the crowd, troubled that he couldn't find the face he was looking for. \" So you are awake, Barusu?\" The voice came from behind. Subaru stopped and turned around. He could guess who it was from the way she'd said his name, but still, seeing her face filled him with relief. A pink-haired maid Ram stood behind him. Ram had the sleeves of her familiar servant outfit rolled up, and she was holding something akin to a basket in her hands. Judging from the large number of baked potatoes filling the basket, she was in the middle of moving them from point A to point B. The faint whiff of steam wafting from the potatoes sent Subaru's stomach into a small growl of heightened expectations. He belatedly realized he was really hungry. \"How unsightly, waking up ready to eat after worrying others with such grave wounds. Perhaps you caught rabies from the bites?\" \"That's not what these dogs are spreading. Oh, and hey, you worried about me?\" \"Just eat.\" \"Hfwoh!\" Subaru was teasing Ram for her rare slip of the tongue. So she stuffed a hot potato into his mouth. His throat blocked off by the scalding potato, Subaru turned his face up and loudly wolfed the whole thing down. \"I thought I was gonna die there! Tasted good, though!\" \"Of course it was tasty. They were freshly baked...no, steamed.\" \"Oh man, that I'm-so-awesome face ticks me off. Still tasted good, though!\" \"Yes, yes. Be quiet if you want another one.\" When she handed him the potato, he accepted it, fawning over it like a child. \"Well, I should simply thank you outright concerning the incident last night. Well done.\" \"Sure didn't come easily... But why are you thanking me?\" \"When the people of a fiefdom suffer harm, it calls the lord into question. At that rate, the children would have fallen to the Urugarum pack...and so, I believe your actions to have been correct, Barusu.\" \"Urugarum... Huh.\" So that's what the black demon beasts were called. Urugarum. As far as Subaru knew, it was also the name of a demon beast straight out of mythology. Somehow, the name seemed fitting to him. A single word conveyed that your life was in peril from even a single encounter with the creature. Subaru nodded as Ram shifted her gaze toward the forest. \"We rewove the frayed barrier last night. Judging from the lack of any issues with it overnight, no Urugarum should be crossing the barrier from here on.\" \"That's only if no one here crosses past it, right? Not much point to it if a bunch of kids crosses it to play on the other side and a 'puppy' comes back with them?\" \"That makes painful listening. I shall have a word with the villagers later.\" Ram's unchanging neutral expression gave her last sentence some unpleasant subtext. Most likely, it was the villagers' duty to check that the barrier was up and running and to report if it was not; their laxness in doing so had caused Roswaal difficulty and no doubt rubbed her the wrong way. After that, Subaru snatched a pair of steamed potatoes from Ram before they went their separate ways. Ram was heading for the distraught villagers still arguing among themselves. Ram was surely acting out of fondness for the village. It was just like Ram to use steamed potatoes to display that goodwill, too. \"Man, these potatoes are delicious, though. Going light on the salt did real wonders.\" Subaru strolled around the village, munching on his potatoes along the way. He was checking both on the condition of his body and the well-being of the children they'd rescued from the forest. The children were still soundly asleep from fatigue and exhaustion from the now-lifted curses, but the parents and relatives of the children"}, {"text": "thanked him, almost to excess. Put bluntly, Subaru hadn't done it out of a desire for gratitude, and this sparked a near-terminal case of stage fright. Unable to play the fool to deflect his rising panic, he blushed up a storm and ran for the hills. Having done a sweep of the village, Subaru thought he'd return to the house and wait for Emilia to awaken but he realized he had yet to see a certain blue-haired girl's face. *** Suddenly, the sight of the demon girl, laughing loudly while covered in blood spatter, rose from the back of his mind. It was a spectacularly ghastly sight. And yet, when Subaru remembered it, he felt no fear to make his body tremble. What was it that Subaru had felt when he saw the pure white horn grow from her forehead? Yes, back then, what Subaru felt was  But before a word could properly express that emotion, a young girl's voice called out to Subaru. \" There you are. Just in time.\" A thicket swayed, and through it walked Beatrice, the hem of her showy dress dragging along the ground in the process. \"Aren't you going to get that long dress awfully dirty, going outside with it like this?\" \"I suppose magical power might repel the sources of grime, such as mud and sand More importantly, I need to speak with you.\" Beatrice gave Subaru's silly question a serious answer and beckoned him over. She wanted to go somewhere else meaning, it wasn't something she could discuss with him there. Though that unnerved Subaru a little, he had nothing against Beatrice here. Subaru followed the girl, who was also his savior, then abruptly clapped his hands together. \"Come to think of it, you're here outside the mansion because you were lifting the curses on the kids, right? Thank you.\" \"...'Tis nothing. I suppose I only did it because Puckie asked me to.\" Of course, the reason Puck asked her to was because Emilia asked him to. No doubt Beatrice understood as much. Yet, knowing this, she used Puck as her reason once again. She just wasn't a girl who admitted things straight up. Subaru found himself growing impatient as Beatrice led him to a flower bed right by one corner of the village. With the villagers gathered in the central plaza to discuss the demon beast incident, he couldn't see even a single person randomly strolling around in such a far-flung corner. \"So, what did you bring me all the way out here to tell me?\" Subaru spread both arms out as he spoke. For her part, Beatrice's reply seemed awkward. \"I thought it had the proper atmosphere to deter you from making boorish jokes.\" Her gaze seemed to be wandering as she toyed with her skirt, like she was hesitant to say something. What's with her? Is it that hard to say...? As far as Subaru was concerned, this plainly wasn't typical Beatrice behavior. She had the air of a little girl afraid of angering her parents. Seeing that expression, Subaru just couldn't bring himself to drag it out of her. He crossed his arms, leaned back on the wooden fence protecting the flower bed, and waited for her to resume. The sight of Subaru waiting seemed to spur Beatrice into a decision. She closed her eyes, then gently opened them, gazing straight at Subaru. \" In less than half a day, you will die.\" Subaru bit down hard on the words, ground them with his teeth, and swallowed them. He stopped for several seconds as they passed down his throat, into his stomach, and finally flowed through his veins to his brain. Beatrice raised her eyebrows in surprise at Subaru's reaction, apparently far more silent than she'd anticipated. \"I suppose you are less agitated than I expected. I thought you would be crying like a baby by now.\" Beatrice still had that look on her face when Subaru raised his right hand before her, showing her a pair of raised fingers. \"Okay. There are two possibilities I can think of here.\" Subaru bent down one of his raised fingers as Beatrice stood silently before him. \"First, this is graveyard humor, a really awful joke. Put bluntly, this really isn't funny, so...if you're gonna bring out a wooden sign that says FOOLED YA! and laugh, go ahead, now's the time.\" He closed one eye in an attempt to lighten the mood, but Beatrice's expression went unchanged. With Beatrice saying nothing before him, Subaru folded the second finger. \"If it's not a joke, there's only one possibility: The curse hasn't been lifted yet.\" Beatrice folded her arms as if to lend support to Subaru's hypothesis. This was the result of white scars from demon beast bites covering his entire body. They still throbbed as Subaru looked at them in a new, ominous light. \"I'll ask just to make sure. You can't lift the curse? You're not holding out on me here?\" He didn't think Beatrice would say, No one asked me to, so I will not, but he wanted to ask just in case some sliver of hope remained. Naturally, Beatrice replied to his question with a shake of her head. \"If it was something I could remove, would it put you eternally in my debt, I wonder?\" \"Hey, give me a break here. I'm already up to my eyeballs in debt to you!\" He couldn't repay her for even a smidgeon of it, not last time, not the time before that, not this time, either. Not in that world. Subaru's reminiscing brought a suspicious look from Beatrice, but he papered things over with a hand wave. \"Mind if I ask why you can't lift the curse?\" \"...I suppose you should at least know how you shall pass on. It is a simple tale. There are too many layers of curses, making the curses too complex to lift.\" \"...Curses have layers?\" Subaru pondered, trying to come up with an image. Beatrice spread both hands apart. Suddenly, the two hands were connected together by a red string. \"A curse is like this red string, I wonder?\" Beatrice took the string she held on each end and tied a knot with it. \"This knot is a curse rite. I suppose lifting a curse is as simple as undoing this knot. But...\" With a deft motion of her fingers, Beatrice increased the number of strings between her hands. The new strings were blue, yellow, green, pink, black, and white. She entwined the new strings into knots and tied the knots into one another. \"If it is only one curse, it can be undone. But if you mix more of them together like this...\" Beatrice held out both hands, offering the knots to him. Subaru slid a hand into the tangle. The string, connecting finger to finger, offered no sign of how it might be unraveled. \"If the curse is like this, too... Aw, crap, yeah, that's a high difficulty level there.\" Even if one or two could be removed, at some point it would be impossible to know what should be touched. Of course, given sufficient time, it was probably possible to undo the whole thing, but... \"You said it's set for under half a day from now. What do you figure happens then?\" \"I suppose that part is rather simple. In half a day, the demon beasts' rite to seize your mana will activate.\" Beatrice raised a finger and pointed it at Subaru as she continued. \"Would the curse's purpose be to drain your mana, I wonder? Its aim is to absorb fuel for the creature's body... In other words, you are the demon beasts' prey.\" \"So they attack people when they're hungry? That's a wild animal for you keeps things simple. I suppose I should be grateful their bellies weren't empty before now.\" Subaru wanted to lash out and hit something, but unfortunately, his hand was buried in the string. Beatrice watched Subaru glare at the string as he spoke resentful words before she replied. \"Are you not afraid, I wonder?\" \"Huh?\" \"From your point of view, what I have said is a death sentence. Also, even though Puckie and I have the means to save you, we cannot because there is no time for it.\" Optimistically, Subaru had twelve hours left to live. Depending on how hungry the demon beasts were, even that time might be shortened. Having informed Subaru of the fact that he could not be saved, Beatrice waited for Subaru's reaction. Subaru belatedly thought that Beatrice seemed to want something. \"What's with you ? You want me to blame you here?\" *** Beatrice didn't deny it. But she didn't agree, either. Since Beatrice chose silence, Subaru couldn't know what was going on inside her, but he made a pained smile anyway. \"Maybe your and Puck's decision feels a bit inhumane, but it's the natural, logical choice. The risk and effort involved are too much. You two are right. I don't think it's heartless at all.\" He really believed that. It wasn't just because he was thinking long-term about his life. Hence  \" I wanted to ask you something else, though. Do you mind?\" \"...What is it, I wonder?\" \"Does Emilia know that I'm still cursed?\" That very moment, Emilia was still sleeping in that room, having healed and nursed him to exhaustion. If Puck and Beatrice had given up, he wondered how Emilia took it. Had Emilia abandoned him, too? That was the one thing tugging at him. \"The mixed-blood girl does not know. I suppose Puckie is not attempting to lift your curse to hide its existence from the girl?\" \"...Ah, I see. If Puck starts working on it, Emilia will be able to tell. She'd probably pick up on the fact that my being cursed like this means the chances of saving me are pretty slim, too.\" When Puck had realized he couldn't save Subaru, his concern had shifted to Emilia. If he kept his silence until the curse activated, Emilia's heart would bear only the wound of his death. For Puck, who prioritized Emilia above all else, it was a good and wise decision. Puck was tougher than he looked; Subaru had to accept his judgment. \"That aside...\" Subaru switched the subject as he pointed a finger at Beatrice. Beatrice raised her eyebrows, looking at the finger pointed at her, as Subaru declared: \"You don't look malicious enough to go through all this trouble just to hand down a death sentence to me.\" \"...What do you know of me, I wonder?\" \"At the very least, enough that it feels like I know you four times as long as you think I do.\" Subaru saw the creases on the girl's forehead deepen further as Subaru's last two weeks flashed before his eyes. His relations with Ram and Rem were as good as they'd been since the first loop. Putting aside the lap pillow, things were A-OK with Emilia. Now he knew the identity of the shaman, the source of all his ills, and the children's lives had been saved. Looking back on the previous loops he'd gone through, this one was near full marks. It would count as the best by far if only Subaru could live through it. \"You, Rem, and Emilia healed my wounds, right? That's not the way you treat someone you figure is a goner from a curse and can't be saved.\" He felt Beatrice waver. Subaru laughed at how the girl just refused to be upfront. \"Man, you suck at lying.\" \"It is a fact that the odds of your being saved are incredibly low. I suppose that is why Puckie did not want the girl to have anything to do with it?\" \"So that's why you're playing the villain to soak up all my anger. That's way too roundabout for a little girl. So would you tell me about that really-low-odds possibility?\" He formed a circle with his index finger and thumb, showing it to Beatrice in search"}, {"text": "of a reply. Beatrice hesitated for a while before sighing in resignation. \"Do you remember when I explained about curses, I wonder? I said there is no way to stop a curse once it has been activated.\" Beatrice's words seemed off. \"Yeah, you did say that. That's why it had to be lifted before it activ No, wait. The premise is all wrong. If that's the case, then...how'd the kids get saved?\" Subaru thought hard, unable to square that knowledge with the available facts. According to Beatrice, lifting a curse succeeded only against a rite that had not yet been activated. The fact that there was no way to stop it after it had been activated was what made it such a scary thing. The children they'd found in the forest were debilitated. He was certain that the demon beasts' curses had activated. So the reason the children were alive was  As deductions formed in his mind, a possibility emerged that struck him like lightning. Subaru lifted his face, turned toward Beatrice, and asked, \"What happens to the curse if the caster dies?\" \"A normal curse would continue to take effect. But isn't this rite for eating, I wonder? If the eater loses his life, the feeding would logically cease midway.\" Beatrice's affirmation rang true to Subaru. The curses on the children had progressed no further because the demon beasts that had inflicted them had perished. Upon the caster's death, the curse reverted to a simple rite that Beatrice could lift without difficulty. The night before, a considerable number of demon beasts must have lost their lives. If the individuals that had inflicted the curses on the children had been among them, that supported his deduction. And that certainty simultaneously gave rise to a new question. \"So that's what it is. There were so many who put curses on me, some are still out there.\" Subaru looked over his shoulder at the forest in which the demon beasts dwelled. His entire body had been battered by the countless fangs of the demon beasts pursuing him. If each and every bite inflicted a curse, there was no way to know how many Subaru carried. More than that, taking out every single monster in less than half a day didn't seem realistic. That's why Puck and Beatrice had dug in their heels, refusing to tell Emilia the truth. \"Puckie was...\" \"You don't need to say it. I know how Emilia is... If she knew, she'd probably try something crazy. That makes me real happy...and also real scared.\" Emilia didn't hesitate to help others, even if it hurt her. That was why Subaru didn't consider asking Emilia for help. He didn't want to even think about it. After all, if by some chance he did lose Emilia right before his eyes, ripping his own body apart a hundred times over wouldn't come close to the pain he would feel. \"The degree of difficulty's totally demonic. Not totally impossible but still crazy. Gotta just give u \" Are you giving up, then? Subaru was about to complete the word when the voice emerged from the back of his mind. It was a delicate voice, like a collection of fragments of noise echoing in his subconscious. He gasped, lifted his face up, and looked all around. But there was no one there, except for Beatrice and him. Still, the voice continued. Is there another way to save him? it asked, searching for something to cling to. But somehow the voice was imbued with sorrowful resolve. \"Do you have a headache, I wonder? That is to be expected.\" Only that, I wonder? You should do as you please, then. The Beatrice before his eyes spoke, her words overlapping the different ones she had spoken elsewhere. He didn't know when or where he'd heard them. But the conversation he'd heard somewhere jostled around in his head. His field of vision narrowed as a ringing echoed like a warning bell. Before he knew it, he began to fall to his knees   I will save him. The voice, echoing with iron resolve, jolted his knees back up. Subaru knew that voice. He knew whose it was and when he had heard it. \"Where...is Rem?\" Subaru hadn't seen the blue-haired girl anywhere that morning. He'd heard she had returned to the village with him, safe and sound. Beatrice stood silent. Subaru closed the distance and asked her. \"Beako... Beatrice. Where...is Rem?\" \"If you were in her shoes, what would you do, I wonder?\" \"That's not an answer!!\" Her self-important, roundabout reply made him shout, which in turn made him bend over. His anemic body wavered; Subaru rocked as he looked back on his own actions. He wanted to tear someone limb from limb. And here was Beatrice, standing there to be blasted by his emotions. He couldn't even manage annoyance with his own wretchedness in behaving exactly as she had expected. And then... \"I cannot disregard what I heard just now.\" Quietly, the emotion in her voice suppressed, Ram walked between Subaru and Beatrice. Looking back, he realized that the pink-haired maid had walked over from the direction of the village square. \"Ram...\" When Subaru called out her name, Ram looked back. The sheer coldness of her gaze made Subaru's breath catch. He'd somehow imagined as much, but this was the Ram who had cried out in hatred during the loop she'd lost Rem. With the person she loved most, her little sister, in danger, would Ram come to hate everything like she had then...? *** Just when he thought that, Subaru realized it. The hands Ram held crossed in front of her were shaking a little. She was biting her lip to preserve her neutral expression, desperately trying to keep her emotions off her face. \"My Clairvoyance cannot locate Rem... Lady Beatrice...where is Rem?\" \"All I did was present possibilities. Puckie and I do not have sufficient reason to act. Our choices are limited, I wonder?\" \"That's not it, is it...? So Rem really did go to...?\"  She went into the forest with the intention of wiping out the entire pack that lived there...by herself. All to save Subaru Natsuki. \"Why...? Why would Rem go that far for my sake...?!\" Rem had previously taken Subaru's life with her own hands. Even if the relationship between them was better than before, he didn't think they had a connection that made her think his life was worth saving at the risk of her own. Subaru was having a hard time digesting Rem's decision, when he saw the dramatic reaction in Ram as she stood beside him. In an instant, her expression of grief hardened into determination; she turned toward the forest, ready to run after her little sister without any hesitation. \" Wait!\" Subaru instantly leaped in front of Ram, spreading his arms wide to block her path. His demeanor earned him a sharp glare from Ram. \"Move aside, Barusu. I have no time to spare, so I cannot be gentle with you.\" \"You can't just go without thinking! I've got a bunch of things I have to ask you, and I want honest answers.\" \"There is no time for anything like \" \"I wanna save Rem, too. If you think of me as one of you at all, listen to me. I want to raise the odds here, even a little.\" Hearing that this was about saving Rem, Ram's hard posture wavered just a bit. Subaru, seeing Ram's hesitation, raised a finger into the air. \"There are just two things I wanna ask. Will you be able to tell where Rem is with your Clairvoyance?\" \"...Yes, I will. Once I am past the forest barrier, she will be within range of my Clairvoyance. With my vision set on 'Beings on the same wavelength as Ram,' if she is in range, I will find her.\" \"Different fields of vision to see through, huh...? It's like checking on different security cameras in a monitor room. Anyway, if we can use that to link up with Rem, great.\" Nodding at the first condition being cleared, Subaru raised a second finger for question number two. \"So, second question: Ram, are you the type of maid who can fight?\" \"...What do you mean by that question?\" As Ram narrowed her eyes, Subaru slumped his shoulders. \"Well, um...until we hook up with Rem, there's no telling how many demon beasts we'll run into. If we can't protect ourselves, this plan isn't going anywhere. Just so you know, I'm total deadweight in combat.\" \"W-wait a moment. Barusu, you intend to come with me...?\" How Subaru so confidently expressed his own shortcomings brought a rare nervous look over Ram. \"I know that threw you off, but it's mandatory, right? Er, to be honest, if the goal's just making sure Rem's safe, then you don't really need me, but...\" Ram looked even more doubtful as Subaru's line fizzled out. Seeing her expression, he hastily waved a hand. \"I've gotta make it to the fifth day with everyone. That's what I've been fighting for over and over. So please, let me do this.\" Seeing Subaru bring both hands together in supplication, Ram's lips trembled as if she was at a loss for what to say. But in the end, it was not words that brought an end to that but a sigh. \"If you expect me to fight as well as Rem's horned form, you hope in vain.\" \"Meaning?\" \"Unlike Rem, I am hornless. I can use somewhat violent wind magic, but that is about all.\" As she replied, Ram twirled a finger and made Subaru's hair sway with a gust of wind. If she'd used that magic to interfere with nature more violently just then, she could have sliced off Subaru's right leg or gouged out his throat. The thought of it sent a chill up his spine. But he couldn't ask for anyone more reliable to have on his side of the fight. \"Beatrice! Ram and I are heading into the forest. If Emilia wakes up before we're back, pull the wool over her eyes, okay?\" \"...To bring the younger sister back is to abandon your own life. Do you understand that, I wonder?\" Subaru wagged a finger in response to Beatrice quietly questioning his resolve. \"That's a little off, so let me correct you. I'm not giving up as if I'm used to dying. Life is precious, and you have only one. I know you've all worked desperately to save mine. That's why I'm gonna fight for it, even if it looks ugly.\" They'd saved a life he had once thrown away when he thought all was lost. It was because so many people had reached out to Subaru that he could do this. It was only thanks to them that he'd made it to extra innings. \"We'll turn this thing around. It was real awful before, but we still got things this far. I'm doing this because I want to see myself in the sequel... I'm greedy like that.\" It was a stupid reason with no legitimate explanation. It wasn't a direct answer to Beatrice's question at all, but Subaru puffed his chest out to her nonetheless. \"I have no idea what you are thinking whatsoever... I suppose you should just do what you like? I have presented choices. I suppose it is up to you to select whichever choice you prefer.\" \"And that's how you sent Rem off, huh? Still...thanks, Beako.\" He headed toward the forest, his thoughts turning to Rem, fighting within its dark depths even now. She was a high-maintenance girl who had run off without a word, assuming how others would feel and coming to a hasty, arbitrary decision. Silly and stubborn. \"I mean, geez, I want to help you at least as much as you want to help me here.\" He cracked his fist to harden his resolve, heading toward the demon beasts' forest as he made his declaration a declaration of war against the pack"}, {"text": "of black beasts that dwelled within, and against the supernatural force that had dragged Subaru into this destiny, just in case it was forgetting about him. \"All right, it's time for the championship bout. Mr. Fate? Game on!\" Some fifty minutes after his declaration of war against Fate, they were in the gloomy forest when Ram murmured offhandedly, \"Well, you certainly talked a good game.\" Ram was walking beside Subaru, looking up at him as he struggled on an area with poor footing. \"It is difficult to hide my dismay at how much deadweight you truly are.\" \"Do you even know what the word hide means...? If you let the other person know what you're hiding, what's the point...?\" And so, Subaru made light of Ram's grandiose, high-handed declaration, adding a sigh at the end. Subaru and Ram were in the forest of the demon beasts, walking around and searching blindly for Rem. Consciously slipping past the barrier and walking their way deep into the forest was Ram's idea, knowing full well the nature of the demon beasts. Normally, they never got close to the village because the barrier hurt them, leaving the mountains as their habitat. Naturally, Rem ought to have headed there with the aim of wiping out the beasts. \"That said, the fact that there're just game trails makes it tough going...\" \"You may not be accustomed to this, but our meager progress is unacceptable...truly.\" \"Wait, don't leave me behind that quickly. I understand how you feel, but just a little longer!\" Ram's maid outfit might have been wholly out of place for going hiking in the mountains, but her practiced gait made her marching twice as fast as Subaru's. To Ram, full of concern about her younger sister, matching Subaru's slow-footed pace was a hundred cons and no pros. At the very least, he couldn't restore his good name by moving so slowly. \"I'm walking wounded with a blood shortage, so I'm getting tired easily... Come to think of it, I didn't have Emilia-tan telling me to come back soon, either!\" \"If you have yet to say, 'I'm back,' last night's 'come back soon' remains in effect.\" \"It, ah, it works that way...?\" Subaru tilted his head at Ram's sophistry and thrust the sword in his hand into the ground like a cane to support his shaky legs as he chased after Rem. He had borrowed the sword he was using in place of a cane from the young men of Earlham Village. Subaru had a hard time forgetting the look on the face of the young man representing the others the moment he told them he was heading into the demon beast forest. He had been shocked, and when Subaru brushed off his cries to stop and partially explained the circumstances, the young man lent Subaru his sword. The sword, supposedly the finest in the whole village, was a simple one-handed blade. Even an amateur like Subaru could manage to swing it. He had accepted the weapon and the villagers had seen them off. But that wasn't the only thing they had provided him. \"Inside this pocket are...candy, a pretty stone, and... Whoa! There's a bug in here!\" Subaru let out a cry as rummaging through the pocket led to touching something fairly disgusting. Freed from cramped quarters, the winged insect escaped from Subaru's hand; he watched it fly into the forest. \"Just like those little brats to slip something like that in there. I'll give them a good sermon later.\" \"It is proof that they adore you... What do they see in you...?\" \"The sincere eyes of children see how my manly nature sparkles before them. Besides, you're well aware I'm not the only one they like, right?\" Subaru sought Ram's agreement, and Ram concurred. \"...I suppose you are right.\" Subaru looked quite satisfied with that, nodding several times. Ram, too, had seen the children toying with Subaru before they left the village. Subaru connected heart-to-heart whenever he could; to Ram, that was something she only wished she could do. After the young men had seen them off, Subaru and Ram had been caught by the freshly awakened children. Wanting to thank Subaru and Ram in person, the children had stuffed one sign of their affection after another into his pocket as soon as they noticed him. The piece of candy, the pretty stone, even the bug these were the children's gratitude in physical form. Subaru could not treat them lightly...though the bug had gotten away. Subaru repeated what the children had said with smiling faces as he wavered under the pressure of unnecessary gratitude being pushed on to him. \"'Bring back Remrin so we can thank her, too...' Huh.\" Where was Rem at that moment? How dangerous a spot was she in? Why was she fighting at the risk of her life? The children didn't know that. They didn't need to know. After all  \"Don't worry, ya little brats. I'll make sure she's right there with her big sister to lecture you about being bad kids for going into a dark forest to play without saying a word to anyone.\" He should probably join them as the stupid boy who'd made trouble for everyone by rushing headlong into the woods and turning into a human chew toy. Wouldn't it be fun to kneel for a lecture from the village chief all night? Naturally, drawing up that image of the future in his mind brought a twist to his lips. Then, in contrast to the odd grin on Subaru's cheeks, Ram stopped walking forward. She quietly lowered her head, speaking in a commanding tone without looking back. \"Barusu, wait a little. I will be using Clairvoyance.\" She turned toward the silent forest. Subaru felt like sound itself had vanished as he rushed to Ram's side. He drew his sword from its scabbard as he looked around cautiously. He couldn't let his guard down, for Ram was defenseless while she was using her Clairvoyance. *** Ram lowered her pale face as she silently concentrated on Clairvoyance, also known as the Sight of a Thousand Eyes. She'd explained it as a power that could borrow the vision of other living things, and not limited to people, either. By riding the vision of creatures with compatible wavelengths and using the vision of yet other creatures to further expand her range, she was literally able to look around with \"a thousand eyes.\" Ram had used that power to scry the forest several times since they had entered, but she had yet to locate Rem. Apparently the sheer abundance of life made it rather difficult. However  \"Barusu there are eyes watching us once again.\" \"They came, huh...? Should I just walk in front?\" Seeing Ram nod while keeping her eyes shut, Subaru inhaled a little and realized his heart was pounding hard. He gently stepped forward on the grass, leaving the defenseless Ram by herself and making his way up a moss-covered boulder. He stood on top of the rock and took a deep breath. He banged the iron scabbard against the hard surface of the boulder. As the sound echoed, the forest rustled right in front of him. *** The silence was broken as the sounds of running across the ground and unified howls thundered against Subaru's eardrums. He instantly looked back to see a black four-legged beast above his head, leaping out from among the trees. Its fangs were bared and aimed at Subaru's throat, pouncing on Subaru's slow reaction to rip him to shreds. Subaru instinctively used both hands to protect himself, but the wild beast's speed outpaced his own. Its maw opened wide as it closed in right before his eyes. Just before the tips of its fangs were about to easily puncture Subaru's flesh, bringing blood and his very life gushing forth, a Blade of Wind struck it in the flank, slicing it neatly into two, slaying it instantly. The front half kept going and collided hard with Subaru and sent him flying. \"Whoa!\" An exasperated-sounding sigh reached Subaru's ears. \"I simply cannot understand why you lose your nerve at the sight of a single one of them, Barusu.\" Unfortunately for Subaru, he ended his flight by hitting the slope and rolling downward. He stood up, wiped off his scraped-up butt, and glared defiantly at Ram, who was looking down at him from the top of the hill. \"Hey, you! You can cut that a little less close, can't you?!\" Ram twisted her lips as she tossed him a nonchalant line. \"I was too concerned about killing it with the least amount of suffering to think about your needs, Barusu.\" Subaru looked at the body lying beside him. It was already a lifeless corpse. Even though he knew it was a dangerous creature, the thought of a living being lying dead like that tugged at his thoughts. Subaru gently brought his hands together in a prayer. \"Your heart will not hold up if it breaks over a single creature, all the more so because your life is forfeited if they are not annihilated, Barusu... Hunting it like this was your idea, was it not?\" \"Let me have my hypocritical sentimentality here, geez. It's important for my own peace of mind.\" It wasn't so much an issue of sentimentality as it was growing up in different worlds. Subaru couldn't exactly claim to be a man of deep faith, but he did revere life. His awareness of its value had grown a little stronger over the course of Return by Death. \"So, did you find Rem with your Clairvoyance earlier?\" \"No. Unfortunately, she seems to be deeper in the forest. Like just now, it is proving difficult to concentrate on her location with the Urugarum sporadically targeting you, Barusu.\" Ram put a hand to her cheek as she said it, looking mystified at how the demon beasts went straight for Subaru. Subaru had a vague suspicion that he knew the answer, but he couldn't bring himself to say it directly he was weak. With Subaru's lips sealed, Ram glanced back and forth between him and the beast. \"I suppose it is because you are weak.\" \"And that's what you come up with?! That's rude.\" \"It is because you are easy prey, then.\" \"That's a distinction without a difference, Big Sis.\" Ram shrugged; Subaru slumped his shoulders. It was hard to tell if Ram meant those words or was just needling him. Probably the latter. Lone demon beasts had attacked them a few times since entering the forest. Either way, Ram had been using magic to strike down the ones targeting Subaru. It was Subaru who'd established the surefire hunting method. They always went after Subaru, even when Ram was defenseless while using Clairvoyance. At first, Ram had had her doubts about it, but that was then.  Subaru halfheartedly thought that now was as good a time as ever to bring up a different subject. \"Can I ask you what hornless means?\" He'd kept wondering about the term he'd abruptly heard just prior to entering the forest. He could guess up to a point. Ram took the word in as she continued looking down at Subaru from above. \"It is what it sounds like, a disparaging term employed by fools to mean a demon without a horn.\" The word demon brought to mind the sight of Rem from the night before. He would never forget the sight of her covered in blood, laughing hysterically, with a white, faintly glowing horn on her forehead. She looked like a demon straight out of the fairy tales. And Ram had called herself hornless. In other words, Ram's forehead  \"I lost my one and only horn in a minor skirmish. I have had to rely on Rem for everything ever since.\" \"...Probably was a bad thing to ask, huh?\" \"Why?\" As Subaru scratched his face, Ram tilted her head as if she was genuinely mystified. \"Er, well, I don't know how big a horn"}, {"text": "is to someone who's a demon, but I'm guessing it's a pretty big deal. I thought it might've been pretty insensitive to ask.\" \"Even if that is the case, there is no getting it back now. Well, you can rest easy.\" Ram spoke down at Subaru, putting him in his place before lightening her tone very slightly. \"I may not have been calm about it then, but I am now. I lost my horn, but I gained a life in its stead I suppose that is not what Rem thinks, however.\" Her voice had a painful overtone before she cut things off, a wave of her hand indicating her intent she was entering Clairvoyance again. By the time Subaru climbed up the slope, Ram was already deeply enmeshed in viewing the world through the eyes of others. Ram's eyes were closed, her breathing ragged, and she had a considerable cold sweat on her brow. Both of her legs trembled, looking like she'd run them ragged over the course of the long day; more than once, she looked like she was getting dizzy and was about to totter over. Using Clairvoyance to borrow the vision of other beings simply put that great a strain on her body. But no matter how painful it was, not the slightest sound of weakness passed through Ram's lips. When you really got down to it, Ram and Rem were twins who greatly resembled each other. If pushing themselves hard was what it took, they'd do it without a moment's hesitation. When you considered Emilia and Beatrice as well, the mansion's girl squad prioritized others just a little too much. \"Man, this makes me feel even guiltier for being a weakling...\" He kicked the grass at his feet. That was a major miscalculation, for a piece of grass leaped into his mouth and the dirt flew right into his eyes. Spitting out the earth-tasting grass, he cursed his own extremely hesitant nature. But he relaxed a little, thinking that even such stupidity was fitting for him. Even though he knew it wasn't a good thing to disturb Ram's concentration while in Clairvoyance, he asked, \"Ram. You're worried sick about Rem, right?\" Ram, her concentration focused on aligning herself with other people's vision, belatedly replied, \"Of course I am. Certainly that girl is much stronger than me, but that is no reason not to worry.\" \"...Yeah.\" \"Even if she is better than I am at everything, I am still her older sister. That will never change.\" Until then, Subaru had seen Ram as someone who used her younger sister for the sole sake of making things easier on herself. He'd gotten it all wrong. Calling it a foolish misunderstanding didn't come close to cutting it. Ram understood her own position far more keenly than Subaru ever had. She was well aware that she couldn't live up to Rem's constant boasts. Subaru, seeing how Ram had accepted it, could only harden his own resolve. He scratched his head, murmuring as he stretched to loosen up. \"I really figured we'd have met up with Rem by now, but...\" Maybe Ram felt how Subaru seemed unable to calm down. At any rate, she abandoned her fruitless Clairvoyance and brought her mind back in full. She promptly put her sweaty hair in better order as she cast Subaru a suspicious glance. \"Barusu, what do you plan on doing?\" \"The way things are, I'm just baggage, exactly as you said. I told you before we headed into the woods... I'm gonna make myself useful and help save Rem.\" He wasn't waiting to be sure of his guess, but based on prior events, he gave it about 70:30 odds in his favor. Of course, the remaining 30 percent weighed heavily on his mind, but... \"I've gotta play the hot hand here. Ram, you ready to cross a somewhat dangerous bridge?\" \"I am alone with a young man in a forest full of demon beasts. As a maiden, there is surely no greater danger.\" \"Oh, now you've said it, Sister.\" Subaru laughed, then took a deep breath and reopened his eyes. If Subaru's thought proved true, he could turn the situation around. Even though he knew it was necessary, it didn't quell the fear in his heart. He knew he was a scaredy-cat. Even so, there were some things he couldn't run from. If Subaru was right, this was one of them... \"Ram, actually, I \"  He began to speak of Return by Death. Subaru acted like he was about to break the taboo, putting into words that which it was forbidden to convey. Before his eyes, Ram looked like she was wondering what Subaru was saying when her expression froze. No time itself had stopped. The world lost color, sound vanished, and the very concept of time came to a grinding halt. It was a world where everything had stopped. Suddenly, the sole exception to the rule appeared. \"There you are.\" His murmur did not actually create a sound, but he hoped his invective still reached that which hovered before his eyes. If even a fraction of his emotions communicated, that would give him great satisfaction indeed. In the frozen world, the only thing unaffected was the black cloud. The cloud that had suddenly emerged before Subaru shifted into a silhouette of an arm to call his bluff. It formed fingers, then a wrist; the biceps emerged to complete a full right arm. Though the previous arm hadn't even reached an elbow, this one materialized all the way up to the shoulder. *** Subaru's breath felt like it caught inside him as the cloud, more distinct than the first time around, slid its black fingers forward. They moved past the thin flesh of his chest, stroked his rib cage, and went straight toward his heart. Even though he knew it was coming, there was no way he could endure pain so far past his limits. He had no words with which to express the mad screams inside his head from feeling his heart directly grasped. The long suffering, the time of unbearable anguish, continued. His heart rhythm was thrown off. His blood flow was cranked to the limit, making his entire body scream out. It was such torture that he felt like he was gushing tears of blood, biting down on his teeth hard enough to break them. For Subaru, the only thing he could sense in this world was pain. All he was allowed to do was continue to writhe. The agony seemed to last for eternity as his field of vision was dyed pure white  \" Barusu?\" When he heard his nickname, Subaru realized he had fallen onto his knees and butt. He hastily wiped off the saliva that had spilled from the corner of his lips and rose back up. \"Man, daydreams are bad, bad stuff.\" \"It is because you forced yourself back from injury too soon. If it is too hard, you should return to the village. If you have some other way to find Rem, at least tell me that before...\" Before completing her sentence, Ram gasped, and her expression changed as she looked all around the area. The only sounds were those of the quiet forest: tree branches swaying from the wind and leaves rustling as they rubbed against one another. Ram listened carefully as she looked back at Subaru. \"What did you do, Barusu?\" \"...I rolled the dice a little, pain and all.\" Despite how extreme the pain had been, not even a single trace of that remained in his body at that moment. Even as Subaru silently reviled the wounds carved solely into his mind, he was grateful for the saving grace that his body still had enough endurance with which to act. After all  Within the deep verdant foliage, the rustle of the wind began to lose its tranquility. Ram frowned and looked to her right. \"The wind is astir... The scents of beasts approach, many of them.\" He looked that way, too, and saw multiple red points of light approaching from deeper in the forest. Based on the number of eyes, there were about five demon beasts running their way. Ram made a small click of her tongue. \"And we haven't even found Rem yet...!\" \"Well, don't worry about that. She's not that far, so we'll hook up soon enough.\" \"How can you be certain of such a thing?\" Subaru shrugged in the face of Ram's sharp gaze and rebuke. \"Rem's goal is to wipe out the demon beasts here in the forest, right? As long as I'm here, they're going to keep coming to try to eat me. That'll bring Rem running straight to me in time.\" He'd been thinking of it from the beginning. And he'd also thought it strange from the beginning. Why did the demon beasts prefer Subaru as their target for the curse during every loop? When Subaru repeated those four days, the demon beast always cursed Subaru when they'd met in the village. That wasn't so much unavoidable fate as the operation of some other compulsion. Subaru's existence provoked a reaction from the demon beasts. Subaru had deduced the answer as to why from the exaggerated reactions he'd received from other sources. \"In other words it's the stench of the witch.\" Demon beasts were enemies of all mankind created by the witch. And they seemed to be intensely sensitive to Subaru, who carried the scent of the witch. That was no doubt why they'd gone after him and not Ram since they had entered the forest together. If all it took was a whiff of the witch to compel the demon beasts to appear, he'd make full use of that. He'd lure every demon beast in the forest to put their curses into Subaru, a grand feast that would bring Rem running in after them. He called it Operation: Subaru Chew Toy. When he'd previously tried to tell Emilia about Return by Death, Beatrice had made an offhanded comment in the aftermath that gave him the clue he needed to draw up his plan. Apparently, the appearance of the dark cloud had thickened the stench of the witch hovering around him. That haze was probably related to the witch in some way. Somehow, the scent of the witch around Subaru was related to the power behind Return by Death but it was not the time to think about such things. All he had was anguish he could not speak of to anyone, ferocious pain without anyone who could hear him complain. In the face of fast-approaching danger, the sheer exhilaration of turning the tables on the hand Fate had dealt him made the corners of Subaru's lips warp into a malevolent grin.  Yeah, I've finally shot an arrow off at Fate for putting this loop together! Cheering inside his mind, he re-gripped his one-handed sword, positioning himself to face the oncoming tide. And to Ram, who stood by his side, he stated in a high-pitched voice, \"So, since you're super reliable in a fight, please and thank you for that!\" \"After this, when you look back objectively at what you said, please beg me to kill you.\" A sigh trailed behind Ram's voice as she slammed a Blade of Wind into the throng approaching from the front.  The cast had been changed for round two in the battle against the demon beasts. He kicked off from the ground and leaped forward. He trampled on the large, undulating root beneath him, slamming his feet into it as hard as he could. He had been truly mistaken to think that there was no sure footing when moving through forests and mountains without any proper roads. All he had to do was run down the natural game trails and not hesitate in his judgment as to where his heels should touch down. Trusting the stoutness of his shoes as he stepped forward made a huge difference in progress. His breath was ragged. The sweat on his brow"}, {"text": "was getting into his eyes, so he made painful blinks to give the sweat somewhere to go. He was sprinting full force, tilting his body forward to reduce wind resistance even the tiniest bit. But the sounds of his pursuers' footsteps did not diminish. They rang out right beside him, as if mocking Subaru's attempt to escape. The chances of getting away were virtually nil. His lungs hurt, and he gasped as if desperate for oxygen. Subaru's mouth was open in an unsightly fashion. And to top it off  \"What a horrid face... I shall tell your home village on you.\" \"I'll remember that later, damn it!!\" Subaru immediately regretted his unnecessary use of oxygen as he continued to carry Ram in his arms as he ran. About ten minutes had passed since he'd used the stench of the witch for Operation: Subaru Chew Toy. As Subaru had planned, the demon beast pack had gathered around them. Amid exceptionally harsh combat, the two of them finally...had no option but to run through the forest for their lives. \"And I believed you could fight them, geez!\" \"I did fight them. My endurance simply didn't hold up as well as I had hoped.\" \"What about being ready to cross a dangerous bridge there?!\" \"It was a bridge too far. We would have fallen before crossing it.\" Ram had a comeback for everything Subaru had to offer. Her mana had been depleted from repeated combat; she wasn't even in any state to properly move her limbs. The demon beasts had treated Subaru's release of the witch's stench as a written invitation, arriving one after another, their numbers soon exceeding anything they could handle. The only word he could muster was regret. Ram had used her wind magic to take out some seventeen fiends. Things had gone swimmingly until that point, but Ram suddenly lost her strength and collapsed. Subaru, scared witless right beside her, picked Ram up, carried her, and started running for the hills  \"Nothing changes with you... Still, I appreciate your inability to prepare.\" \"You're cheeky for a girl being carried around! And don't talk too much! Looks like you bit your tongue...and my strength's...not...gonna...hold...!\" Subaru could boast athletic ability that scored well above the norm, but that was all indoor stuff. Outdoors, his stamina issues were substantial. He'd never dreamed of running a marathon back in school. Even with his pathetic stamina, he wrung out everything he could in that life-and-death situation. That said, it was only a matter of time until his endurance ran dry... No doubt the demon beasts pursuing them were well aware that Subaru was at the end of his strength. They'd nipped at his heels as if they truly enjoyed preying on the weak, which further fueled his flight instincts. \"Looks like it's finally time to unleash the power hidden within m Ow!\" Subaru let out a painful yelp as demon beast fangs sank into his right shoulder. One of the bastards toying with him had run ahead of them. The sharp pain buried deep in his shoulder and thrust into his brain, making his head feel like it was about to burst. He desperately twisted his body in an attempt to shake the beast off him  \" Barusu!\" \"Oh cra !\" Right after Ram spoke from within his arms, the forest suddenly opened wide, and Subaru's feet were slicing through the air. His feet clawed at the sky as a floating feeling assaulted him, as if every internal organ were rising inside him. The next moment, his heels dug into the slope; Subaru and Ram lost their balance as they slid down together. \"Bastards tricked me...!\" He should never have underestimated them as mere beasts. Even though repeated contact with them had given Subaru an appreciation for their intelligence, when push came to shove, he'd been unable to shake his impression of them as just animals. As a result, the seemingly viable path he'd followed had literally led him off a cliff. \"Damn it all!!\" Subaru's yell made his throat tremble as they slid down at an even sharper angle. He held Ram tighter as he thrust the drawn sword in his left hand into the cliff. \"Owwww, ow, ow, ow!\" His left side scraped against the ground as the sword he'd thrust into the cliff twisted, stopping them from sliding farther. When he looked, the cliff ended a short distance below; had he been a single second slower, they would have surely met their deaths. \"Whoaa!\" When he looked up, several demon beasts pursuing them were rolling down beside them. The beasts, moving with too much force to stop, yelped like domesticated dogs as they vanished off the edge of the precipice. Their bodies mercilessly smashed against the sharp, rocky ravine below; the sound of their bones breaking reached even Subaru's eardrums. \"Ah, we came very close to needing condolences ourselves...\" \"Arm...hurts...!\" Ram complained as Subaru's arm tightened around her. Her body was light, but when added to Subaru's own weight, the burden on the sword thrust into the ground, and on Subaru as he gripped it, was more than two hundred pounds. His limit would not be long in coming. \"It will of course be dangerous if we fall down the cliff. Can you climb, Barusu?\" \"I'd love to tough it out...but the demon beasts up there are still a problem,\" he said as he put more strength into his left arm. He let the blade, thrust in at an angle, support their weight as he tried to somehow get in a more stable position, when... \" Ah,\" both said together. The same moment, the high-pitched sound of steel breaking rang around the area. The blade thrust into the cliff snapped, leaving the end of the sword stuck in the slope. He hastily thrust the warped blade into the ground anew, but the dull edge didn't penetrate very deep. He clung to the slope with all his body, resigned to however scraped up he might become, but friction alone could not slow two people. His efforts proved fruitless as the blade popped out. They began to fall once more. \"Aaaaa! We're done for !!\" \" You owe me for this, Barusu!!\" Subaru fell headfirst, every hair on his body standing up as he recalled flinging himself over a cliff. Even so, he never abandoned his duty as a man, continuing to hold Ram in his arms to try to shield her from the fall. Ram let him handle the physical work and twisted in his arms to aim her hands toward the ground. \" El Fulla!\" Mana welled up in Ram as she chanted, causing a powerful gust of wind to erupt at their estimated landing point. As they fell straight down, Subaru's body hit the ascending air current and rode on the pressure underneath them; he managed to get them upright again as their fall slowed further. We can do this, he judged while the world spun all around them. He focused all his strength into his legs, biting down hard enough to split his teeth as he endured the impact of landing. \"Nguuuuuuh, aaaaaa we made it!!\"  They had endured. He labored to leap onto his numb, incredibly unhappy legs as he looked up at the cliff from which they had fallen. He was aghast at the height over thirty feet, the rough equivalent of jumping out from the fourth floor of his high school. That, combined with the hardness of the ground, made their very survival quite a feat. \"You totally turned into my Buddha there, Ram. If it wasn't for your wind magic there, we'd be \" It was when Subaru tried to express his gratitude for Ram saving his life that he realized she wasn't moving within his arms. Ram's head drooped as a thin line of blood trickled down from her nostril. Her eyes were closed, her breaths shallow, and the only sounds she made were painful moans. \"Ah, er, Ram? Uh, geez, this is bad.\" He gently rocked her body and called out to her, but Ram made no reply. From the beginning, she'd been exhausted from using Clairvoyance and fighting the demon beasts. No doubt Ram had really overdone it with that spell, putting her mind in a precarious state. \"Ah, crap. My timing really is shitty...\" Subaru cursed his own impulsiveness as he re-embraced Ram more carefully. He laid her down beside him, awkwardly slid the broken blade into its sheath, and looked up. Even the demon beasts couldn't leap down the edge of a sheer precipice after them. Surely they'd circle around to resume their pursuit. He'd hoped that would give them the advantage in the meantime. \"Oh, come on, you've gotta be kidding me!\" The very moment Subaru looked above his head, a large number of rocks flowed down the slope that they'd barely survived falling from and riding atop them was a pack of demon beasts, with a pup deploying its mana leading the way. Subaru recognized the demon beast pup: He was absolutely certain it was the one that had first cursed him in the village, and the one that Rem had delivered a powerful blow to when it chased the children the night before. Seeing the way the other demon beasts followed it, as if it led that whole pack in spite of its size, Subaru couldn't keep a dry laugh away. \"I'm starting to hate you, Lady Witch that perfume of yours is overkill.\" Duly lodging his complaint, Subaru checked on his numb legs as he prepared to flee once more. He prayed that the demon beasts would show them contempt and not pounce the instant they landed  \"Er, wha...?\" A moment before Subaru started running, he tilted his head, sensing that something was off. The demon beasts sliding down the cliff looked wrong. They began to flinch while on the rolling rocks, and the instant they hit the ground under the cliff, they began to scatter in all directions. \"Huh? Uh, I'm over here, guys...?\" The sight of them scattering like little spiders was a bit much for him to take in. The heck's going on here...? The moment after he thought it, the explosion atop the cliff brought the answer. \" Heh?\" When he looked up again, the change atop the cliff surprised Subaru, but he instantly understood.  A human silhouette now stood on the precipice far above them. It was a girl wearing a servant's outfit, her blood-drenched ball and chain held low as she glared down the incline with eyes that had lost all trace of sanity. The moment his eyes met that murderous gaze, Subaru broke out in a cold sweat as he experienced a bad feeling like no other. In an instant, the demon leaped off the high cliff to land on the ground far below. Subaru's breath caught. Here he was, deep in the forest surrounded by demon beasts, face-to-face with a demon girl, one arm around a girl he had to protect at all costs and he had arrived at the final stage wielding nothing but a broken sword. \"This is just...a tiny bit unfair, don't you think?\" His plea died on the breeze blowing through the forest, unheard. It was, as they say, a do-or-die situation  Ram and Subaru had entered the forest of the demon beasts fully aware of the danger, but since they had cooperated together to take down the beasts, they had arrived deep in the forest without a scratch. The idea was to find Rem, who would be miraculously unharmed, and lecture her for being a loose cannon in a safe, peaceful, happy reunion. And, using Subaru's knack for drawing the demon beasts to him, they'd use Ram's and Rem's sisterly powers to take down the demon beasts one after another, liberating Subaru from the curse. End of story. \"That's how I imagined it, but, yeah...\" In a pathetic voice, Subaru mused about how his smooth-sailing scenario was now in tatters. Subaru didn't see a single shred of"}, {"text": "friendship in Rem's eyes as she stood before him. All he sensed was pitch-black bloodlust. Though he couldn't be sure, she didn't look like she was in any mental condition for them to talk things through. The pressure rolling off her made him hesitate to even blink. He didn't know what might happen if he took his eyes off the threat in front of him for even a split second.  That very thought brought a strained smile to Subaru as he realized Rem viewed him as her enemy. What the hell am I doing all the way out here, then? \"Heya, Remrin, it's your pal Subaru! Your buddy!\" Unaware that his face had gone stiff, Subaru nonetheless managed to call out with a cheerful voice. Perhaps he thought that calling to Rem might bring her back to her senses, but... Rem turned her head toward him, locking on with a look so sharp that he could practically hear it. \"If you give me steamy looks like that, I'm gonna get singed...\" Subaru felt the entire weight of her attention on him. Perhaps he had failed. Rem's dreadful appearance certainly warranted that thought. The familiar servant's outfit on her was fully covered in blood spatter. A coat of fresh blood dampened the dried blood below it in a gruesome two-tone pattern, sporting blackish red and vivid red. Her nails were long and sharp enough to rival those of the demon beasts perhaps an effect of her horned form. Under her right hand was her iron ball for \"self-defense\" and a pool of blood and little bits of flesh, an exceptionally ominous combination. He'd somewhat expected to find Rem like this, so he was able to keep hold of his senses, but if Subaru had met this Rem in a dark alley, it was safe to say he'd be 100 percent certain to piss his pants. That was how terrible Rem was in her ghoulish madness and yet, in the midst of it all, the white horn protruding from her forehead had maintained its purity and beauty. To Subaru, even though the horn was the very symbol of Rem's malevolent demon state, it was the only thing that seemed out of place in contrast to the rest. But the circumstances did not permit Subaru such leisurely thoughts. When he looked, he saw scattered demon beasts waiting behind the shadows of boulders and among the trees of the forest. No doubt the beasts were watching their every move. He'd be lunch the instant he showed them the slightest opening. Rem standing before him, the demon beasts standing behind his life was truly dangling by a thread. Subaru couldn't move. The demon beasts couldn't move. The entire situation would hinge on Rem's next action. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and looked straight back at Rem once more. He didn't know if he could make Rem's eyes waver, but he had to give it everything he had and leave no stone unturned. Then  \"Sister...\" Her voice was tired and faint. However, the sound and its meaning thrummed in Subaru's ears. Her lips quivered, and she seemed out of sorts as her eyes fixated on the side of Ram's face. Even amid a frenzy sufficient to make her lose her sanity, Rem still recognized the sight of her other half, the sister she loved above all. Subaru sighed in astonishment. \"If I didn't know better, I'd say you had a sister complex. If that brought you back to sanity, I'm all for \" \" Let her go.\" She interrupted his words as she flung the iron ball at him with the force of a typhoon. It was close to a miracle that he'd managed to bend his body to the left in time. It was perhaps fortunate that Subaru's knees were a little wobbly, having not yet recovered from the earlier hard landing. The spikes of the iron ball grazed his right shoulder as it passed. The anguish clawing out his flesh sent his brain into hysteria. Biting down to hold back a pain-filled shout, Subaru advanced at an angle. \"That hurt, damn it!\" Subaru turned his gouged shoulder before sidestepping the chain as it lashed downward. A moment later, the chain violently slammed into the spot where Subaru had just been, leaving a snakelike trail on the ground. If Subaru had been any slower in dodging, his back would have borne an identical mark. He shuddered, imagining his flesh rending as he looked at Rem. But Rem looked no different from before. Her eyes were steeped in enmity without having regained their sanity. \"Horned form isn't the problem; it's whether or not you can control it...\" That was Subaru's guess based on Rem's current demeanor. If that was the case, the issue was how to restore her sanity. She'd been in a frenzied state the night before, too, but her mind had been more Rem than mad demon in the moments before he'd blacked out. Perhaps the sight of Subaru gravely injured before her eyes would be enough of a shock to snap her back to lucidity. \"Maybe I should try getting hit by the iron ball once? Wait, I'll be mincemeat then...\" Repeating the conditions from the night before would surely bring Rem around, but by then Subaru would be dog food. *** Ram might have understood the situation, but the girl in his arms was a long way from conscious; he'd been trying to shake her awake, but that was probably going to take some time. Time that Rem and the demon beasts surrounding him weren't likely to permit. Subaru licked a drop of sweat trickling down his cheek, using the moisture on his tongue to lubricate his lips. If no new option presented itself, he'd just have to try everything. If charging forward was the only way, then that was that. It was the Subaru way. \"Hey, Rem! Don't just look at your sister in my arms here, look at me! My name is Subaru Natsuki! The absolutely useless newbie doing odd jobs! The doe-eyed manservant at Roswaal Manor! I probably caused you and Ram a lot of trouble, but we got along some of the time, ri Whoa!\" He was in the middle of appealing to Ram's memories and emotions when her short temper put an immediate stop to it. The whirring iron ball snapped and shattered the trunk of every tree in its path, smashing branches along the way as Subaru made a leaping forward roll to evade. He dodged her next attacks with a pretty hop-step-jump and looked back. \"It's rude to beat someone to death midsentence! I saw my family's faces before my eyes there... Ah, here we are!\" As Subaru yelled, Rem leaned forward and murmured, \"Give Sister back...!\" But out of the blue, Rem yanked back the iron ball she'd swung with one arm alone, using the momentum to spin her body around on a dime when... *** ...Rem's backward spinning kick connected with the torso of the demon beast leaping at her from behind. With a roar equal to that of a bomb, the demon beast exploded; even from some distance away, Subaru could clearly make out its innards sailing through the air. That's what you get for trying to profit from the misery of others. The demon beasts had formed a second wave to attack behind the vanguard, but the gruesome sight of that death made them stop in their tracks. But this was folly, no different from offering up one's belly in the face of one's predator. She unleashed a single horizontal attack that smashed together the bellies and skulls of the next two beasts. Rem, unconcerned by the flying blood and flesh, charged in the wake of her attack. One of the beasts drew its head back, so she crushed one of its front paws; now that it had stopped moving, she used her other foot to kick it in the head, snapping its neck. Her heel continued up, then back down into the torso of the next beast. A third pounced at Rem to avenge its comrade, but she gripped its throat below its wide-open maw and hurled it high into the sky. The demon beast arced through the air, curling its tail as it made a faint yelp. It flew farther and farther, then closer and closer, until finally smashing against the hard ground with a sound resembling that of an overripe fruit. Slaughter followed slaughter. It was carnage for the sake of carnage, a massacre even by massacre standards. It was already plain that the beasts could not compare to the destructive power of the single, mighty horned demon who had descended upon them. Yet even so  \"Damn, numbers really are a weapon all their own.\" Though the demon beasts saw their brethren cut down one after another, they showed no sign of disengaging. They bared their fangs, brandished their claws, and howled menacingly as they sprang at Rem. Even as they were blown away, crushed, smashed, and dismembered, adding to the pile of demon beast corpses, they carved shallow wounds into Rem's body little by little. When Subaru saw that the maid outfit, drenched in blood spatter, was reddening not just from the outside but fresh bleeding from the inside, he realized the tide had begun to turn against them. The battle before his eyes between horned demon and demon beast was extremely intense; they no longer paid any heed to Subaru and Ram whatsoever. Both sides were leaving low-threat opponents for later as they concentrated their rampages on their mortal enemies. If Rem had been dominating the battle, Subaru would no doubt have let her hunt the demon beasts to extinction without it weighing on his conscience. But her situation was gradually getting worse. *** Rem's arms flung about, mowing down demon beast torsos. She gasped in pain as claw after claw reached her own body. Blood scattered; lacerations carved into her white skin. Subaru couldn't just sit and watch. There was a way. All he had to do was butt into the fight. But charging in to join the fray directly would only get him wrapped up in the typhoon and blown back the way he came. For him, interjecting meant drawing the horned demon's and the demon beasts' attention to something besides one another it was the only way to save Rem. He resigned himself, spread his legs, took a deep breath, and looked right at Rem.  I can do this. Girls have charm, boys have courage. \"Don't make that scary face, Rem. Smile. I've Returned by \" For the second time that day, the world ground to a halt, and the black cloud brought another banquet of screams. Even though he'd resigned himself to the extreme pain that would arise, it was not pain one could endure. All the more so because this time, it was not just a right arm but a left arm that emerged with it. Perhaps the completed right arm had developed a taste for this. Before Subaru's unmoving, wide-open eyes, the right hand slid past his rib cage and brushed against his internal organs as the left hand split off. The right hand went for his heart; the other caressed Subaru's cheek like it was fond of him.  Terror welled within him, and the next moment, pain shot through his every nerve. He ceased to be himself. From the top of his head to the tips of his toes, he had a horrible, unendurable sense that something was wrong. His brain boiled in a tempest of negative emotions; his consciousness faded in and out. And yet, the soft touch of the palm on his cheek bore warmth that brought relief when he felt like his mind and body were about to melt. But Subaru knew a feeling of beyond that, so  \"I'm...back!\" His vision was blurred. His soul had been whittled down. None of the pain and suffering had carried over to the real"}, {"text": "world. No time had passed. Rem and the demon beasts were in front of him, at each other's throats just like before.  But the instant Subaru returned to reality, a great change came over the field of battle. Rem and the demon beasts poured all their attention onto Subaru; it was as if some anomaly had emerged then and there that could not be ignored. No doubt the cause was that, just as Subaru had planned, the witch's stench was erupting from him. *** Rem roared. The demon beasts howled in unison. Subaru, too, yelled at the top of his lungs. With split-second timing, he evaded the claws of the leaping demon beasts and the iron ball slamming toward him, as if his life, his very soul, had been set on fire.  And so the great melee began. As the unquestionably odd one out in a battle of horned demon, demon beast, and ordinary boy, Subaru paid attention to every detail of the melee as he bobbed and weaved. His conduct was exceedingly simple. He'd hold his position as the battle grew more intense, making no effort to increase the distance, dodging only the sparks that fell in his direction end of story. *** Once again, the demon beasts pounded by the iron ball became wall paste before his eyes. Heedless of their comrades' deaths, three demon beasts teamed up to attack Rem without pause, aiming to inflict greater wounds upon her. But such crude intelligence went to waste, for her hand knocked them away; once they were immobile, they became easy prey for the iron ball's descent. Subaru glanced at the spectacle as he shifted his hold on Ram, in danger of falling out of his grasp, and jumped back. He barely evaded the fangs of one demon beast, only to dance right into Rem's range of attack. And when Rem realized Subaru was closing in, she instantly moved to intercept. Subaru came to a very abrupt stop to escape the thrust of her iron handle, then leaped back and ducked to avoid the lash of the chain that followed, with the iron ball passing over his head to change the head of the demon beast chasing behind him into a spectacularly blooming crimson flower. Subaru heard the body crashing down behind him as he threw shame and honor to the wind and crawled on the ground, cockroach-style, to escape immediately. Rem, hot on his heels, found her path obstructed by demon beasts. Escape successful. Subaru held his distance as he rewarded himself with a single sigh of relief for the quick thinking that had saved his life. \" Hah! I'm actually doing pretty well here!\" He'd desperately bounded away to avoid being bitten, foisted the pursuing demon beasts on the maid girl, and had crawled like a bug to escape the angry girl's wrath. If his actions were ever recorded for posterity, he would want to die then and there, but he focused on the fact that his conduct was intended to keep him alive. At that moment, things were unfolding according to Subaru's plan. The situation could be worse they were at least buying time and reducing the number of demon beasts. When he glanced up, he sensed the eyes of demon beasts all around the valley. Once they spied the battle, they joined the fray one by one. The demon beasts were obeying their instincts in response to Subaru's spreading the stench of the witch throughout the forest. This could work. He saw a chance for victory. That, at least, was what Subaru thought. \" Uh?\" Subaru engaged in more evasive action when he suddenly felt dizzy and tilted heavily. It wasn't that he'd been careless with his steps. He was suddenly assailed by a feeling of lethargy as a chill ran through his entire body... He knew. \"The curse... At a time like this...?!\" Subaru looked up to try to see if the demon beast from which the curse hailed was one of those surrounding Rem. But he had no way to tell which was the caster. Besides, it was unlikely the demon beast had triggered the curse just to make Subaru suffer. It was the simple result of being faced with the menace of Rem and craving the mana with which to fight her. And Subaru was right there with them, rite ready for activation, his mana there for the taking. A simple reason but also a fatal one. The curse got the better of Subaru, making him lose his balance and crash to the ground. If the demon beasts bit Subaru to death, it was only a matter of time until they weighed Rem down by sheer numbers. But more than that, the very reason Rem had entered the forest would be  \" Aah!\" A great shout echoed loudly enough to rend the air and split the ground as she swung down, her fist turning one demon beast into dog food. In a single instant, with incredible, explosive force, Rem had broken through the monster ranks to kill a demon beast far away from her. The sight shocked Subaru and the beasts alike. When Subaru recovered, he immediately realized it.  He was breathing easier. The lethargy had abated. He had been freed from the effects of the curse. \" Rem.\" *** Rem returned to butchering the demon beasts surrounding her as if she hadn't even heard Subaru call her name. Subaru watched the blue-haired girl in the midst of combat as it keenly sunk in that, though she wasn't lucid or in a state to recognize who Subaru was, Rem had saved him by turning that demon beast into paste. She hadn't mistaken the sight of her beloved older sister. Nor, apparently, had she forgotten the reason why she'd plunged into the forest in the first place. If that's the case..., he thought. Subaru scraped his mind for the thing that only he could do. He thought that he should be faithful to his original goal, not resort to a roundabout plan like this. \"In other words, I'll have the heartthrob maid sisters, Ram and Rem, send that curse packing!\" If Subaru could accomplish that, he might yet be able to get out of the situation alive. Furthermore, to do that, he needed to bring Rem back to sanity in a real sense. Subaru's business was not with the murderous demon but with the superficially polite, quick-to-jump-to-conclusions girl whose running off on her own caused everyone else so much trouble Rem. \" The horn.\" Suddenly, Subaru heard a voice from within his arms. Ram, still in his embrace, faintly opened her eyes, giving Subaru an unfocused upward glance. \"You're...awake?!\" \"I think my timing here is quite...excellent...\" Ram was smiling a bit. Subaru smiled back half seriously as he replied. \"Yeah, you've got awesome instincts, Big Sis. What do you mean, the horn?\" Ram pulled her chin in with a look of annoyance. \"It is that horn that has led Rem astray... A single, powerful blow will...bring her back...\" \"You're sure that'll work?\" \"Fairly. Largely. I believe that it will.\" \"That's kind of vague, you know?! But I wanna believe you.\" Subaru cut off his words and looked at Rem. The white horn jutted out from Rem's forehead to a length of some four inches. If Puck stood on her forehead, he and the horn would be around the same height. A single blow there. \"Doesn't that seem kinda...impossible?\" \"Use your intellect and courage and just do it.\" \"Well, I do kind of have a way to do this that involves intellect and courage, but...\" Subaru's unexpected reply made Ram raise her eyebrows. He smiled weakly at her, as he had difficulty putting it into words. \"It's probably gonna give you a scare.\" \"If it brings my little sister back to sanity, I shall not be upset.\" \"Really?\" \"Really-really.\" \"You swear on Rozchi?\" \"...You must really not mind dying to pick that. Yes, I swear on Master Roswaal.\" It was because Ram had said it in such a thoroughly valiant way that Subaru respected her view so highly. Before them, Rem slowly turned in their direction. The bulk of her attention was trained on them, with the remainder toward the demon beasts surrounding them to warn her if they came close. In contrast to Rem, on guard for attacks from every direction, Subaru was focused solely on smacking that horn. Namely  \"Aaaaand, off you go!\" \" Ah?\" Ram had a distant look of shock on her face as Subaru lifted her up by the hips...and chucked her forward. No doubt that the thought he'd throw her had never entered her mind. Ram looked aghast, but Rem was equally so. Rem, still in her horned form, stood agape for a brief moment before reaching out as her older sister flew through the air toward her. The iron ball fell from Rem's grasp as she welcomed her big sister with open, bloodstained arms. In an instant, her expression, so hard and painted over with hostility and bloodlust, changed into something much softer.  Subaru sprang forward to not let that instant go to waste. The same moment he hurled Ram forward, Subaru lowered his body and charged. Rem's gaze was aimed up, preoccupied with her big sister, while Subaru approached from the blind spot closer to the ground. His feet slid as his right hand drew his sword from his waist. In one motion, he sliced through the wind as he slid the blade out of the scabbard, aiming it at the horn on Rem's forehead the timing was perfect. Even Rem could not respond in time to the sudden attack. But  \" Ah?!\" Through a combination of the blade's broken tip and Subaru's own timid, halfhearted step at the end, the blade missed a direct blow to her horn, passing a few millimeters short. Subaru was appalled at having let his tiny moment of opportunity slip through his hands. \"I chickened out! I didn't have enough courage for the last part!!\" His body swam as he got nothing but air. Subaru's momentum carried him past her, exposing his back, and Rem raised her left hand to stab him. The long claws on her fingertips would surely go right through Subaru's back and stick out the other side. He regretted dying one step away from success, and at Rem's hands at that. The very moment he thought it  \"Whoaaaa ?!\" The ground beneath his feet exploded, with the resulting cascade of rocks vaulting Subaru straight up. The scattering rocks pelted his body all over. Skin breaking and bleeding, Subaru looked down from midair to see the cause of his pain. South of the point where the ground had exploded under Subaru, he saw the demon beast puppy in a low crouch. The Urugarum had kept a low profile since leading the pack down the cliff, waiting for its opportunity to take Subaru and Rem out in a single cascade of rocks. And so, seeing Subaru create an opening, it had spectacularly intervened with the goal of sending both him and Rem flying. However... *** ...its plan was foiled when Rem roared and stomped onto the ground from which the rocks were erupting. Force canceled force, ending with only her blue hair heavily disheveled. She'd canceled out magical force with raw violence smashing the spell with brute force. The cascade of rocks ceased, and Rem's shoulders eased as she held her big sister preciously in her arms. Subaru, still above her, had vanished from even the furthermost reaches of her mind. Buffeted by the magic spell, Subaru whirled head over heels with no idea which way was up. But his right hand kept the sword firmly in its grip even then; fortunately, he landed not against the rock wall but merely on the hard ground. And Rem stood right below him, her head exposed, not noticing him whatsoever. There would be no better chance, nor no chance after. It was now or never. He gripped the single-handed sword's hilt with both hands"}, {"text": "and swung with all his might. He had arrived at this point at the end of a long string of coincidences. Opportunism for the win. Miracles were awesome. Even if purely by whim, sometimes God did good work although God's work would also have helped tremendously with the previous attempt. And now he was right above Rem, unnoticed, her head fully exposed... He made a strained smile. There was no time. Rem was close at hand, and so was a slow, leisurely world with her. He saw the horn. He swung the sword past its apex with all the energy he could muster. \"Laugh, Rem. Today, I'm more demonic than any demon!\" The blade flashed straight down, aimed at the white horn  The high-pitched sound of steel striking steel sharply echoed through the demon beasts' forest. The next moment, Subaru crash-landed, his own painful yelp merging with the echo. *** Compared to her older sister, the girl named Rem had a very difficult everyday life. Even among humanoids, the might and mana possessed by the demon race were head and shoulders above the rest. Their robust bodies and the quality of the mana they employed granted them peerless fighting strength. They boasted the title of the mightiest of all humanoid races. The single weakness the demons possessed was their crushingly low population. A race dedicated to producing the mightiest individuals did not give breath to great numbers, and so, despite their strength, the demon race was obliged to dwell in poor villages deep within the mountains. Because they were a race dwelling far from human habitation, there were strict taboos among the demons to protect their limited numbers. To their race, twins were abominations. This was one of the unbreakable laws of demon kind. By nature, demons are born with two horns on their head. In tranquil times the horns are hidden, but when circumstances change and their demon instincts awaken, the horns appear on their heads and consume mana from the surrounding area. Their horns draw in and control mana from the atmosphere, greatly heightening their combat capabilities. This purpose made them the pride of their race. But twins were born with only one horn each. Among demons, the \"hornless\" were considered the dregs of society. Losing even one was cause for ridicule. Twins lacked something deeply precious from the moment of their birth. What else could they be but abominations? And so, it was taught that twins were to be discarded immediately. The fate of this pair of twins ought to have ended then and there. And it would have, had one of the twins not displayed her gift from the heavens with a tremendous burst of magical power the very moment the chief, having made the bitter decision, was about to render judgment by his own hand. The older twin was named Ram; the younger, Rem. Both occupied the lowest rungs on the ladder among the tribe. Their daily lives were far from pleasant. Even though their lives had been spared, they were still twins. Both were treated as hornless from the beginning and raised inhospitably by their people. In spite of their connection by blood, their own parents acted distantly toward them. Their fellow tribesmen did not hide their contempt for the two \"abominations.\" For both of them, it was the worst childhood imaginable. The hostility continued until the demons realized what they were capable of or more precisely, until the older of the twins became aware of it herself. The most accurate term describing Ram during childhood was wonder child. She had talent that exceeded even that of great demons throughout their storied history. Indeed, their entire race was enthralled by the beauty of Ram's horn, which allowed her to use a vast amount of mana in spite of her youth. Her demeanor was as forthright as the single, pure white horn on her forehead, lacking any hint of becoming drunk on her own might and potential, making it seem natural for their brethren to bow their heads before her. It was very special treatment for a girl who was not yet ten years of age. Even their cold and distant parents, even their kin who had openly scorned them, even the chief who had tried to slay the twins shortly after birth all were speechless before Ram's authority. She was destined from birth to become the pinnacle of the horned demons, the mightiest of all humanoid races. Members of a race that prized individual strength were flawless in their politeness toward an individual with such power. And yet, Ram never once used the tribe's reverence for her own benefit. All Rem could do was stumble down her older sister's path to glory. She had no abilities above the norm. Her mana supply was strictly average, with her body's capabilities in line with what a normal demon with only one horn could do. Compared to Ram, she did not have a shred of confidence; she cowered behind her sister's back like a shadow. That was how the young Rem coped. That was how she protected her immature heart. It wasn't that she was jealous of her older sister. She admired her. She adored her. It wasn't that her parents hated her. They loved the younger as well as the older. It wasn't as if their people had spurned Rem. Of course they had high hopes. She was her little sister. Her sister, kinder than anyone; her parents, full of expectations; all her kin, cheering her on to excel like her twin these were the little cuts that chafed Rem. No doubt it was the direct consequence of her and her sister looking like two peas in a pod. Yet even though their heights and faces were identical, their qualities as demons were on completely different scales. Of course, Rem strived to change those circumstances. It may have been no more than shallow, clumsy trial-and-error efforts by a young child, but Rem tried any and every way of getting closer to her older sister, to beat her in even a single area. But Ram was simply better at everything. And so, Rem was still a young child when she learned that the sister to whom she was closest, the sister she loved more than anything, occupied an area that she could never, ever reach. She could never stand by her sister's side. Ram would always walk ahead of her, bathed in the light of the world. Rem's place was behind her sister, cowering behind her back, peeking out once in a while, only to shrink away from the dazzling light. Once she gave up, she could accept the sufferings of daily life, like a reed bending with the wind.  She wondered how long she would have to bear her own weak capitulation. One night, Rem awoke, unable to sleep well because of the heat. She slid off the wooden bed and pulled the blankets off her sweat-covered body. When Rem looked around, she suddenly realized that her older sister, always sleeping beside her, was gone. I have to look for my sister right away, she thought. If her sister was awake, she had to follow behind her majestic gait. To do so without fail, even for matters as trivial as waking up briefly to pee, was Rem's obsession at the time. I have to go outside but only then did Rem belatedly notice the source of the warmth flames that enveloped her home. When she touched the doorknob, she yanked her hand back from its heat. At that moment, the truth sank in. Rem's sleepy sense of smell was awoken by the scent of something burned; her forehead felt itchy as her horn grew, appearing fully. Instantly, she used her solid body to break the door down and dash out of the house enveloped in the hellish flames. She didn't know why this had happened, but she obeyed her instincts to flee, to get outside. Rem kicked apart the brittle fence and rushed from her home to the outside world. Even then, a single, fanatical thought ruled in her mind: I have to leave the house and have Sis tell me what to do. But then, that thought fell by the wayside at the sight awaiting her once she left the house. In the center of the village was a pile of burned bodies. The burning houses and flame-swept trees had turned her familiar world into a reddish hell in one night. When Rem saw the faces of her parents among the corpses swallowed by the flames, she immediately abandoned all rational thought and fell to her knees then and there. Rem remained kneeling as a group of men dressed in black robes calmly surrounded her. Even up close, the deep shadows of their hoods hid their faces until they were very close; even then, they were not faces she recognized. However, when Rem did not sense a single trace of goodwill from them, a smile came over her that seemed alien on her cheeks. That smile was the one that hid her despair for the good of everyone else. The figures did not respond in the slightest to the expression or the pain behind it. The shadows approached her, raising their hands and swinging the glimmering silver blades within them down at the girl but their heads flew off in the next moment. Blood. In a single moment, four lives had been taken with such skill that the heads never raised a shout, never even realized what had happened. The familiar feel of the mana pulsing against her skin instantly told Rem it was the work of her sister. She stood up. If her sister was here, Rem had to follow her lead. She didn't even need to look around. Her eyes located her older sister immediately. The face identical to Rem's own was warped with grief. The older sister ran over to embrace the younger, sighing with relief and relaxing her body when she realized Rem was unharmed. Rem hugged her sister back, never feeling more pathetic, or happier, in her life.  Rem did not clearly remember what happened next. She thought that she'd leave everything up to her sister. That was best. That was right. Sis always chose the finest option among all available possibilities. And yet, they had been surrounded before she realized it. Even with silhouettes so numerous they formed a wall, Rem looked at them in a daze, still believing that Sis would somehow overcome. Her sister pushed before her, straining herself yelling. Tears flowed from her cheeks; her body seemed to shrink as she made a desperate plea. When they threw her sister to the ground, Rem felt troubled. To look down at her sister was to contradict her way of life. To stand behind her sister, to hide behind her back, was what brought meaning to her existence. Her sister screamed. She returned to her feet and spread her hands out before her. She unleashed the mana. The power would flow through her sister, and invisible blades would descend upon the world, slicing everything around them. But the moment before unleashing it, her sister turned around, embraced Rem then, an impact. And then, Rem could only watch. She saw steel flash at her sister's head from the side. She saw a white glimmer dance in the reddened sky. She saw the severed horn spin round and round and round. She saw blood gush out from her sister's forehead. She heard someone's high-pitched scream. She listened to the cries of the sister she adored, the sister who had shielded her and taken the blow for her, as the beautiful white horn that she had so envied tumbled through the sky.  Finally. It finally broke off. That was the thought she had. Rem did not understand the details of what occurred after that point. What she did grasp was that at some point, they'd lost consciousness, only to awaken far from home with a huge mansion all around"}, {"text": "her, and that her sister, who had lost her horn, was there with her. Her sister had regained consciousness first and was overjoyed to see Rem awaken, but Rem was lost in thoughts of her twin, whose abilities ranked lower than the average person's now that she had lost her horn. On the surface, her behavior was largely unchanged, but there was no trace of the talent she had commanded in every area. Now that she struggled with even minor things, Rem had many opportunities to help her. And so, one would think that Rem would develop a superiority complex toward her now universally inferior sister but one would be wrong; the inferiority complex took root in Rem's spirit even deeper than before. In other words, Rem felt shame at the fact that her sister had gone from beloved by the whole world to having to endure life at the bottom. Rem's guilt was spurred on by the admiration she had for her older sister. Had Rem's heart been filled with only jealous thoughts, no doubt it would not have been so. But Rem loved her sister. And she was not so shrewd or self-serving to live and forget the thought she'd had that moment when her sister's horn was broken. \"I have to do everything in Sis's...Sister's place...\" Rem changed how she addressed her older sister and put her days of hiding in her shadow behind her. Rem's battle had begun. In all things, in all duties she was assigned, all she could think was, Sister would do this. She'd always been right behind her sister, watching. Her sister's judgment had never failed. Even so, the results were always less than she expected. That was natural, for her sister was incredible. With a flawed little sister like her, even both of them working together could not reach the same place. Rem had to blaze the trail that was properly her sister's to have blazed, to have walked, to have led her down, and to lead her older sister along it by the hand.  There was no longer any individual life for the girl known as Rem. To Rem, the only thing she could do was \"live the life Sister would have.\" That she could not fulfill such a role made her unable to believe that she had any real value. Days and months passed. There, in the mansion that had taken them both in when their homeland was burned away, the gap between their reality and Rem's ideals wore at her day after day. It was not that she minded her role as a servant. The lord of the manor had benevolently given them a place to stay, and moreover, she adored her older sister enough that she did not mind offering up body and soul. If problems arose during these untroubled days, Rem took full responsibility. You have done well, the master would say in praise. She had heard such words from her homeland many times over. Don't force yourself, her sister would say to Rem out of concern. But even forcing herself was not yet enough. Why do you push yourself so hard? one irresponsible person had asked Rem.  That was obvious. Because she was inferior in anything and everything. Even if she pushed herself to the breaking point, whittling away her soul and burning her body to ash, she would never reach that which ought to have been.  What could she do to atone? And so, Rem dedicated her life to cutting open the path that her sister ought to have walked herself but that Rem had stolen from her. For Rem was a substitute for her sister in all things and nothing more. With her obsession strengthened, the seven years wore upon Rem. Others dutifully commended Rem on a daily basis for her earnest hard work, though to Rem these efforts never yielded satisfactory results. Even Margrave Roswaal praised her as a capable worker, to the point that he commanded her to serve at his side during that significant time when the royal selection was underway. And yet, all the praise she earned filled Rem's chest with vague unease. The days and months had not made her sense of guilt fade away; indeed, they had only reinforced it and she continued to live her life for the sake of her older sister. And then, Lady Emilia and Sister had returned from the royal capital, bringing a foreign element into the mansion. \"My name is Subaru Natsuki. Zero work experience! Pleased to meet you!\" The wounded lad had been brought into the mansion because he had saved Emilia's life. Upon waking, the young man negotiated with Roswaal and gained for himself the position of apprentice servant in no time at all. Naturally, Rem was gripped by a deep sense of distrust toward the youth of uncertain origin. In particular, she could find nothing to like during the first two days, when the young man had plastered a smile on his face and worked constantly to win her and her sister's favor. Furthermore, there was a scent wafting around him that triggered memories in Rem that she could barely endure. It was the scent of the witch the miasma that surrounded only a few beings in the entire world. Ever since her homeland had become a sea of flames, Rem's nose had learned how to pick out the scent. She did not know why. She knew only that it triggered abominable memories and that seven long, bitter years had taught her that nothing good came from that which accompanied the scent. She had been unable to make her antipathy plain in front of Roswaal and Emilia, but instead, she had often found herself staring at the young man while he seemed at war with himself. Now that she had lost her horn, Sister had no need for any relationships other than her one with Roswaal, whom she adored. To Rem, who had stolen her sister's proper place, there was nothing more important than protecting the place her sister could be at ease. And Rem would show no mercy to those who threatened their home. As far as anyone else could see, the boy showed no sign of untoward behavior whatsoever. Yet even as her sister told her that they should only watch, Rem thought he should be driven out of the mansion as soon as possible. By the time something happens, it will be too late. Such was the conclusion Rem had formed at the time.  And then, she saw Subaru sleeping on Emilia's lap. Rem gave Emilia's opinion on the matter a great deal of weight, but internally she was still struggling to think of how she should treat the person known as Subaru. Rem, who had strictly observed Subaru's every action because he was an outsider, understood that he tried his utmost in everything he did including the sarcasm. It was in complete contrast to his frivolous manner. And seeing him struggle so hard to produce results in spite of inferior ability reminded her of someone, but she couldn't put her finger on it. From the following morning onward, she saw Subaru's demeanor and behavior in a different light. The strained atmosphere evaporated; how he approached everything changed, even if his technical skill had not. He had gone from striving without a tangible goal to burning with desire to accomplish something. Naturally, his approach to work changed as well. He still held others back, but the quality of his work did rise a little bit. Rem, who welcomed no changes to her environment, still regarded Subaru as a troublesome interloper, but she felt like she should at least not regard him as an enemy. Then, when Roswaal was absent, disaster struck. \" Worst case, the whole village might get wiped out.\" Rem, ordered by her older sister to accompany Subaru, half doubted the extreme scenario he'd suggested so seriously. However, when they reached Earlham Village, the children really were missing, and the barrier that should have blocked off the forest had been breached and was no longer functioning. \"Rem, let's go. We have to do something.\" Rem had recoiled at Subaru's invitation to go into the forest to rescue the children from their plight. Of course it was strange. Rem could not grasp why someone so powerless would act so desperately for children he barely knew. Subaru was not being reckless. He was well aware of his own weakness. And still he did not hesitate to ask others for the things he lacked. What incredible arrogance, she had thought. They had gone into the forest, found the children, and used magic to save them. Even when Subaru wanted to go deeper into the forest to find the missing last child, Rem was not surprised. With eyes that said he was useless, an expression that said he didn't measure up, a voice that bit back the urge to give in many times over Subaru never stopped struggling. When Rem watched Subaru head into the forest by himself as she healed the children, her heart fluttered furiously. She was filled with warmth that words could not express. After Rem had handed the children over to the young men of the village, relying on the miasma of the witch to reach Subaru once more, she had found him in a life-and-death situation, surrounded by a pack of demon beasts. Seeing the sleeping girl in Subaru's arms had cleared away all Rem's doubts. As Subaru ran, Rem leaped into action, running interference for him against the attacking mob of demon beasts. Blood and pain toyed with her, but Rem felt light, as if a weight had been lifted from her heart. Not once had she imagined that trusting someone, trusting Subaru, could feel so good. The next moment, Rem had sustained an impact that plunged her mind into darkness. In its place, her demon instincts took over, and she began an indiscriminate slaughter. She learned the pleasure of making flesh fly apart. She felt delight at indulging in her power, completely forgetting her goal. Her demon instincts demanded more blood, more lives  *** The collision against her back had sent Rem flying, dulling her reactions. Something was holding her down. When she looked behind her, she saw Subaru's face. The relief on it snapped Rem from reflex to rational thought. She saw a ferocious demon beast right next to him, its fangs drawing near. She needed to jump, to reach out, to save him so thought Rem when suddenly, the miasma tickled her nose. That made her delay her decision by a single moment. And then... \" Gaaaaah!!\" ...Rem finally realized that she had not changed at all. She had committed the sin from long ago...again. CHAPTER 5 ***  When Rem regained consciousness, her feet were not planted on the ground. There was an arm firmly around her waist. Someone was carrying her. She did not think that the rough manner was any way to touch a girl. Though that was indeed the case, the owner of the arm was sprinting recklessly, with not a shred of concentration for anything beyond that. \" Barusu, go right at the broken tree in front! You are slow!\" \"Don't...demand the impossible... I'm haghh running...as hard as I can...here!\" Two familiar voices, one more intimately so, were yelling at each other from close by. The intense up-and-down shaking jostled Rem's head back into consciousness. \"...Subaru, what are y \" \" ! Rem...you're awake?!\" Subaru kept running as he voiced his delight and glanced down at her. Rem looked up at him, her mind still rather hazy, when something unexpectedly caught in her throat. The side of Subaru's face was wet with blood. Maybe he'd cut his forehead? The scars all over his body from the night before had whitened; at some point, new wounds had been made on top of them, staining both with fresh blood. Ram, her pink hair swaying as she ran beside Subaru, made a faint, pleasant smile toward her. \"...I am so"}, {"text": "glad, Rem... You are one high-maintenance girl...\" Ram's words were few, but only those who really knew her knew this particular smile. She reached out and stroked Rem's blue hair. A moment later  \"Fulla!\" She conducted the Blade of Wind incantation and used the resulting attack to slice through the trees and cut the demon beast charging at them into discs to nourish the plants on the forest floor. For a moment, Ram seemed dizzy; her steps went astray, making her lightly bump into Subaru's body. \"Owwwww! Ram, you know better than to touch my right shoulder, geez!!\" \"...Be quiet. You would have been bitten if not for me. You can at least be a wall for me to lean on.\" \"At least pick the other should Owww!\" Subaru was half in tears as he cried out in fierce pain. Ram put her weight on Subaru as she bled from the scar of her lost horn. Rem watched both of them as the current situation slapped her in the face. Why was she in a place like this? Why were they protecting her? \"Wh...y...?\" \"Ah?\" \"Why...did you not just let me be?\" She trembled as she voiced the question. Subaru stared down at her with a look of disbelief as Rem's quivering lips continued. \"You and Sister coming made it meaningless. I...I have to do this myself... I should be the only one getting hurt...\" \"It's a little late for that. Ram and I are all beat up already! Hell, maybe more than you are!\" Subaru was prone to exaggeration, but he seemed to believe every word of that last sentence. She wondered what Ram thought of that, but her beloved twin did not enter the conversation. Rem felt like her sister had left her out on a limb as she desperately tried to find the right words. \"It...it is my fault. I hesitated last night, that is why... I have to take responsibility... If I do not, I cannot face you or Sister...\" \"Now may not be the best time for it, but we're actually, you know, talking! That's seriously awesome...\" \"Really, you should not have been bitten at all \" Though Subaru didn't look like he was listening, he apparently heard her words loud and clear. His face went stiff, looking at Rem as she confessed her sin. Rem's shortcomings had caused Subaru to risk himself to shield her during the forest battle the night before. When she saw the fangs had punctured and ripped Subaru's flesh, bathing him in blood, she could only gape at what her conduct and judgment had wrought. The same scent as on that day long ago, when everything had been burned away, had hovered thickly around Subaru. And Rem had caught a whiff of it, leaving her unable to move. \"It is because I hesitated to reach out to you that you nearly died. And then your body suffered too many curses to lift. That is why I \" \"You went off to deal with it by yourself to atone for it, right?\" Just as Subaru nodded in acceptance, Rem drew in her chin, once again acknowledging her own sin. Rem was prepared to be scolded and scorned. Subaru should have given her a tongue-lashing before she had set foot into the forest again. She had not let him because she had not a moment to spare to save Subaru. That, or she was unprepared to face the consequences of her weakness.  Rem, resenting her own frail heart, thought it must surely be the latter. She was prepared to accept whatever words he struck her with, however stern they might be. After all, that was only the punishment she deserved for the crime she had committed. \"Rem.\" \"Yes.\"  Subaru's face was truly right before her eyes. \"Bonk.\" *** The hard smack sound of bone upon bone sent sparks into Rem's vision. For an instant, the sharp pain narrowed Rem's field of vision as she put a hand on her forehead in confusion. When not in her horned form, her flesh was no hardier than an ordinary human's. No doubt others would be able to see a faint, reddening bump from the impact to her brow. Rem's eyes were still wide, with no idea what was going on, when Subaru looked down at her. \"To begin with, are you an idiot? No, you are an idiot.\" \"Barusu. You split your split forehead and it is bleeding again.\" Ram butted in to speak. Subaru shook his bloodied face. \"I'm an idiot, too. I know that already! But your little sister's an even bigger idiot!\" Rem realized that Subaru had head-butted her. She didn't understand the significance at all. \"Now look here, in my homeland, they say, 'Three women make a market.' Not that that has anything to do with this. But they also say, 'Three heads are better than one.'\" What's sagacity, anyway? Subaru murmured to himself after he spoke. \"Er, anyway,\" he said, twisting his neck as he continued, \"it's like how it's easier to snap an arrow with three people than a person might think.\" \"I am guessing you are using that somewhat unlike the original...\" \"A-NY-WA-Y! Don't think about it all by yourself and rely on the people around you! You understand what I'm saying, right?! If you had your heart grabbed like m \" Subaru was about to say something when his expression changed to one of pain. \"That was over the line, huh...? Th-that's a little strict, ain't it?\" \"What are you talking ab ? Wait, Subaru, the scent of the witch is suddenly much thick \" Rem pinched her nose, twisting her body away from the repugnant smell. Right beside her, the horrible, abominable stench wafted about. What had suddenly caused it to ? But Subaru moved to set Rem's misgivings aside with a statement of his own. \"Well, I need you to switch gears on that for now. I'll switch gears, too.\" Rem was agape, but the serious look on Subaru's face told her to push that question down the road. Subaru looked ahead as they ran, the tension and caution in his eyes growing stronger. Simultaneously, Ram, again running beside him, put a hand to her painful forehead as she began to chant. \"Ram, the villa No, the barrier's good enough. Which way is it to get there?\" \"If we can slip past the pack before us, we simply need to sprint to the left, but what are you planning?\" When Ram asked, Subaru let out a long mmm sound as he made a sour face. \"How about I push Rem onto you and I cruelly run off to the barrier on my own?\" \"You intend to let me flee with Rem while you lure the Urugarum away? Understood.\" \"Can you not spoil what I was trying to hide?! It's embarrassing!!\" The speed of their run did not abate as Subaru and Ram sparred with their words back and forth. When she heard what they were saying, Rem felt a feeling of despair, like the whole world was turning black before her. \"I cannot...save you like that... Pl-please stop this. If you do this, I...\" \"Luggage should be seen and not heard! It's all right, I'll get past the barrier and hook up with you there. After that, I have a special plan you don't know about to take down the demon beasts all at once. It'll be big, an easy win!\" She had no idea what \"special plan\" Subaru had prepared. To be blunt, she wondered if there even was one. Was he simply papering things over? Subaru slipping past the pack by himself was all but impossible in the first place, she thought. \"You need to do no such thing... I will wipe out the demon beasts all by myse \" She couldn't let Subaru do anything rash. Rem tried to move her arms and legs. But her limbs merely dangled, refusing to obey her commands. The most she could do was wiggle her fingers and move her tongue around a little. Nothing was working as she was accustomed to. \"Where is my weapon...?\" \"Like I could carry around a heavy thing like that! I'll buy you a new one later, geez!\" Pain shot through Rem as she realized she was unarmed and unable to move, so there was nothing she could do but be protected by others. The thought drove her to despair. Subaru gently handed Rem off to Ram. \"Don't drop her.\" \"I believe I have more strength than you possess in one arm, Barusu.\" \"Why'd you make me carry her, then?!\" \"You never told me to, did you, Barusu?\" \"Seriously, that's your answer?!\" Subaru slapped his own face for missing the opportunity. Rem looked up at Subaru from her sister's arms, shaking her head at the unbelievable reality. She'd said so many mean things about him. Why was he going this far? \"Subaru, why are you going this far to...?\" \" Good question.\" Her inquiry sent Subaru into thought for but a single moment. He raised a finger and smiled. \"Because you're the first girl I ever went on a date with. I'm not so cruel that I can just turn my back on you.\" As he spoke, he gently petted Rem with the same hand. \"Well, I'm gonna head off for a little bit. Take care of Rem, Big Sis.\" \"I pray that you meet with us safely, Barusu.\" With that brief exchange, they suddenly parted ways, with Subaru running one way and Ram another. Ram ran right. Subaru ran left. The Urugarum pack coming from the front hesitated at their prey splitting up, but only for a moment. They immediately ran off in pursuit of Subaru. \" Sister!\" \"Barusu is risking his life to buy us time. I shall make good use of it.\" Sweat formed on Ram's brow as her tone made plain she had no margin for error. The combination of wounds and fatigue slowed her down considerably. Compared to Rem in horned form, it was nothing. When Rem thought of that, she regretted what she had done enough that she wanted to cry. If Rem could have returned to horned form, she'd have had the power to get them through this, not only to save Subaru but to carry her older sister out of danger. She could do it all. And yet, at the most critical of moments, she was unable to even bring out the demon within her. It was her own halfhearted weakness that had brought Subaru and her older sister here and held them back. In contrast to the regret-filled Rem, Ram had not hesitated when Subaru offered himself as a decoy. No doubt that was because she valued Rem's life above Subaru's and, indeed, even her own. Knowing that Subaru's ploy would buy them time and increase their odds of survival, she had accepted without the slightest falter. Though Rem thought her beloved older sister's judgment was correct, she suddenly rebelled against the idea. Why was Sister so strong, strong enough to cut anything and everything away? What incredible part of her allowed her to make such a horrible decision so easily? Rem wanted to see for herself. \"Sister... Subaru... Subaru is !\" \"Rem. We cannot turn back. It would put his resolve to waste.\" They were the words of her beloved sister. Her sister was always right. If Rem followed her, she would surely be safe, for Ram had always been right.  Then why did what was right feel so empty...? \" Sis!!\" *** Ram's expression greatly trembled in response to Rem's heartfelt shout. Ram bit her lip, her eyes wide open as her feet came to a stop. Rem instantly twisted her body, escaping her sister's arms to fall to the ground, rolling as she looked behind them and saw Subaru's back as he ran. Far away, his run was much too slow to be called a sprint. She saw his black hair and his wounds all over. She saw the sway of his listless"}, {"text": "right arm, devoid of strength, and the way Subaru appeared to be hiding his emotions. Towering before Subaru was a giant, sheer black demon beast. Judging from its size compared to the rest of the pack, it might well have been the leader. Under that fearsome gaze, surrounded by predators, Subaru ferociously ran. No matter how much she stretched out her fingers, no matter how much her heart quaked, she could not reach his back. And yet, Rem shouted, as if pleading. \" Subaru!\" She did not know if her voice reached him. All she saw was Subaru on the run, his left hand drawing the dimly glimmering sword as if responding to her call. He didn't understand it himself. Since when had he become a man stubborn enough to do something crazy like this...? No matter how much he wanted to put on a brave face and not make the sisters feel like they owed him, this was completely, thoroughly not like him. With his back turned to them, the look on his face crumbled the instant he knew they could no longer see it. He keenly felt both extremes of pain dull and sharp alike. His mask had fallen to pieces, Subaru's magnificent face scowling as his tongue pathetically hung out like that of a dog. \"It hurts... It hurts. It hurts, Mommy, Daddy, Emilia-tan...!\" He invoked the three most important people in his life as he glanced at his dangling right arm. The intermittent numbness in his shoulder was from his crash landing after his blow to Rem's horn. He hoped dearly it was merely dislocated. One way or another, he couldn't rely on his right arm for combat. With one less weapon at his disposal, Subaru had no idea how he was going to face the enemy standing before him. As Subaru ran, he found the demon beast pup standing in his path the one that had been the bane of his existence more than once. Subaru wondered if it had a grudge against him to be so darned persistent. \"I'd like this to be the last time we meet...\" Subaru kept running as he girded himself for the cascade of stones the demon beast would surely unleash. If that hit him when his guard was down, there was no way he'd get away with just a dislocated shoulder. Shaking off the unpleasant image of being whittled to death by a thousand stone cuts, Subaru mentally simulated dodging at the exact moment the stones would be unleashed. He gave the demon beast a half-resentful, gimme-your-best-shot glare when  \"Uhh?\" He suddenly sounded quite clueless. Subaru could scarcely believe his eyes at the scene unfolding before him. The demon beast pup made a small howl before curling up its little body further. It seemed to be gathering all its strength. Before Subaru, whose eyes were narrowed with no idea what was coming next, it... *** The fur ball suddenly grew with explosive force. Poof in the blink of an eye, it grew from the size of a cute, huggable domesticated dog to something larger than the largest breeds, to the point one might call it jumbo sized. \"I've seen this in manga a lot, but seriously, where does all the extra mass come from?!\" The reply to his question was a howl that seemed to make the entire forest shudder. It used its hind legs for support as it vigorously sprang off the ground. The demon beast then struck together the claws of both its raised paws, revealing them to be sinister weapons that could slice through human bone with the slightest graze. \"Oh, so you're not gonna settle this with magic? What did I ever do to you...?\" Subaru shuddered at its decision to fight their final battle mano a mano as he looked around, searching for any avenue of escape but demon beasts in pursuit were cutting off the back and the sides, making escape a difficult proposition. \"Man, coming after me instead of the beautiful sisters... You guys have seriously demon-cursed taste... Damn it all!\" Once he noticed it, his steps slowed as the beasts surrounded him. Apparently, Subaru had brought every demon beast in the whole forest running. His decoy operation was a huge success. He didn't have time to have a nervous breakdown or piss his pants while begging for his life. With all avenues of escape cut off, his only option was to run straight forward. In other words, he had to take the giant demon beast down one-on-one. He fumbled in his side pocket. He felt a rock...a piece of hard candy...something that felt sticky and icky...and... \"All I can do now is trust in Puck...!\" He took it out and tossed it in his mouth as he prayed to the gray cat with all his might. There wasn't much time before Subaru would reach the demon beast. They would clash in mere seconds. That was when... \" Subaru!\" ...he heard it. That moment, Subaru heard someone call his name. It had a painful echo, drenched in sadness as if the whole world were about to end, knowing that whether Subaru lived or died determined whether her heart would shatter perhaps it was insensitive of him, but Subaru was happy. I'm too pathetic. A pervert. A two-faced jerk. It wasn't like he couldn't guess how the girl felt as she cried out his name. The fact that he smiled nonetheless was proof he was totally mad. He smiled, and smiled, and when he was done smiling, Subaru's left hand drew out the broken one-handed sword. The demon beast roared before him. Subaru put all his weight behind the sword as he, too, yelled out. Their voices raised a pair of discordant war cries. Soul clashed against soul. A moment before they were within each other's reach, Subaru inhaled deeply. He pictured the center of his body. He focused on the region between chest and waist, imagining a gate connected to the outside, just above his navel. *** The magical invocation permeated the air. The next moment, a black cloud erupted around Subaru. The cloud enveloped Subaru and all the demon beasts. The decisive battle in the forest was now sealed within the darkness. Within the black cloud, the world was incomprehensible. The shape of the world, its color, its scent none of these things could be discerned here. The single firm, solid sensation came from the soles of his feet touching the ground. If not for that, surely he would not have even known which way was up inside the darkness. He could see nothing. He could hear nothing. He could understand nothing. So this was the end of the world. As Subaru felt his feet pressing against his shoes, he searched for something within the haze. Surely there was something that awaited him within the black cloud, something he had to do.  Something, something, something, something was missing. Faced with a world of incomprehension, he had to remember the world of comprehension. Why had this nothingness come? Who had brought it? What were the conditions for ending it? Remember, remember, remember the world beyond, the world that was firm under his feet. His command to his brain made thoughts erupt like sparks. He couldn't make it another step. His feet were drained of all strength. Sooner or later, the incomprehension would crush him, making him doubt even the sensation of his soles. If he could see that coming, the answer did not lie outside him. If the answer was not outside his body, it must lie within. Even if he could not bring the oblivion outside him to heel, he could call upon his internal organs, all subconsciously functioning even then. The roles had been assigned. It was time to move. And so, finally  *** Suddenly, he felt like his entire body was on fire. The unendurable sensation of heat ripped through Subaru's body, bringing not words from his throat but a bestial cry... No, he thought it had. He did not understand even that. He didn't understand. He didn't understand, but his feet, once drained of strength, moved once more. Forward. His feet moved in the direction he believed to be forward. Awareness, oblivion, awareness, oblivion, awareness, oblivion, over and over and over, until finally  The instant Subaru broke through the black cloud, leaping outside it, his sword hit something extremely thick. The sword in his hand was ripped out of his grasp. Subaru lifted his face and bit down his shock. Before his very eyes, the huge demon beast's head remained thrust into the black cloud and the single-handed sword Subaru had been grasping was deep in its chest. The surprise blow left an ugly feeling lingering in the middle of Subaru's hand the feeling of plunging a dull blade into the flesh of a living creature. The psychological shock was greater than he'd anticipated, giving rise to what was almost an eerie, out-of-body feeling. The demon beast, still in the world of incomprehension, couldn't even feel the blade in its body. Even as Subaru glanced at the contradictory spectacle of a dead beast that didn't know it was dead, he shamelessly ran, putting distance between them while he still could. His head was heavy; his whole body was sluggish. It was the aftereffect of using magical power without complete command of it, and thus burning excess amounts of mana. In the first place, using that magic should have spewed out all the mana in his body, leaving him on the ground and unable to rise again, but Subaru had played his trump card to get around that. \" Thanks a million, brats.\" Subaru spat out the tiny remnants of the fruit's skin still in his mouth as a small smile came over him. He'd spat out a bokko fruit, a recovery item that brought strength back to a body devoid of mana. It was amid the completely useless things the kids in the village had pushed on to him when he was heading off to rescue Rem. He had no idea where they'd found one. The instant he was sure he had one, his head had been able to muster that plan alone. If he bit down on it at the exact moment he used his magic, maybe he'd be able to move afterward. He'd gambled his very life on it, but the scales had marvelously swung Subaru's way. Putting his back to the demon beast trapped in incomprehension, his feet took him in the direction the barrier ought to have been. Subaru was a beginner with insufficient mana, so he had no idea how long his Shamak would keep going. He couldn't think of any other way to buy time, so he had to get as close to the barrier as he  \" Ah?\" But Subaru's scheme was instantly foiled by a single claw that grazed the back of his left thigh. The sharp pain heralded the bleeding. Subaru let out an anguished groan as he fell to his knees. But Subaru's mortal foe would not permit him to kneel. Its thick paw violently grabbed Subaru's neck, the tips of its claws digging in as it easily hoisted him up. \"Damn it all...\" Before his very eyes, he saw the gaping maw of the huge demon beast, open wide enough to swallow Subaru whole. Its fangs dripped with blood as its stinky breath hit Subaru's face. He could only smile desperately at the depth of the creature's grudge. \"Go to hell, why don't you ?!\" He yanked the sword out of the demon beast and plunged it into the creature's mouth with all his might. *** The fatal blow delivered to the inside of its mouth sent the demon beast roaring and flinging Subaru's body away. Subaru tumbled across the ground, holding onto the sword, then held it before him as he looked up at the demon beast. \"Yeah! How's that, sucker?! Bite on that!!\" The demon beast shook its head, facing Subaru in a berserk rage. Subaru, his"}, {"text": "body drenched with blood, taunted it with trash talk. With blood all over their faces, they only had eyes for each other. They were whittling down each other's lives. They both understood. None of this would end until one of them slew the other. They stood off against each other. A single spark would be enough to set them off. The confrontation between man and beast no, two beasts was on the cusp of beginning. But the square impact of the fiery shot that rained down from the sky put it on permanent suspension at the sound of a man's voice. \" Ulgoa.\" \"Whoaaa?!\" Subaru shielded his face as the shock wave enveloped his body and blew him back. All of a sudden, the ground in front of him exploded into flames. The high-temperature impact enveloped his entire body with a ferocious wave of heat. Subaru, lying on his side, shook his head as burns added to the wounds already peppering his flesh. \"What the hell just...?\" The hot, parched air seared Subaru's throat as he looked up...and saw. His cheeks stiffened in shock.  Before Subaru's very eyes, the huge demon beast was wrapped in a pillar of fire. It was burning. The flames licked its entire body. The demon beast's paws shuddered and tore at the ground in agony. With the air scorching its lungs, the demon beast could not make a sound as it writhed within the crimson sea and finally dropped to the ground with a heavy thud. All that was left behind was a clump of blackened flesh that had lost two-thirds of its mass. *** The unforeseen end of the demon beast was not all that surprised Subaru. Flaming shots like the one that had burned the demon beast to death rained down from the sky one after another, plunging into the black cloud. From outside the spread of the darkness, Subaru could not see for himself the full power of the flames upon landing. But he could guess what they were doing. Inside the impermeable darkness, the demon beasts were being destroyed without even realizing. Subaru could no longer tell if that was cruelty or mercy. However  \"Myyy, my, myyy, who would have thooought that a mere Shamak, used chiefly for smokescreens, could be employed with this much impaaact?\" The man who had directed the demon beast's fiery-death scene floated down from the sky, a flippant smile on his face. His long indigo hair swayed in the wind. His eyes were oddly colored: one blue, one yellow. He wore a bizarre outfit over his tall, slender body. The clownish lord, mightiest magic user in all the kingdom, Roswaal, had arrived. Upon landing, Roswaal brushed off his pant legs and swept his long hair behind him as he looked down at Subaru. \"Ohhhh, you look rather teeerrible, I must saaay.\" \"You're super late to the party, Rozchi. How many times do you think I thought I was gonna die there?\" It was definitely more than a handful. After flinging his abuse, Subaru lost his strength; he fell down then and there, not even strong enough to get up on his knees. \"You sure figured out where I was, though.\" \"Ah, that is because of what Lady Emilia pounded iiinto me at the viiillage. She said, 'Even if it's crazy and reckless, if he's backed into a corner he'll probably use magic, so don't you dare miss it from the sky.'\" \"Damn it, Beako...you let Emilia figure it out real quick.\" Apparently Beatrice had not been up to the task. Perhaps it was for the better, given how Roswaal had miraculously entered the fray at the last moment. Subaru thought over the circumstances when a voice sounded in his ears. \"Master Roswaal !\" He saw Ram, who'd taken a detour around the burning black cloud, cutting through some thickets. Rem was leaning on her shoulder as Ram's expression melted in Roswaal's presence. \"I am sorry to have caused you so much trouble.\" \"Oh no, that is quite fiiine. Indeed, you have done veeery well in my absence.\" Blushing hard at the words of praise, Ram pressed a hand to her chest as she made a solemn nod. Watching the exchange between them, Subaru let out a deep sigh of relief. \" Subaru!\" Rem suddenly rushed over and embraced Subaru, drawing a sharp cry from his throat. \"Guh!\" Before his eyes, blue hair swayed right next to his face. The soft sensations in so many places made Subaru understand the circumstances. In any other context, he'd be overjoyed, but he had no such leeway at that moment. \"Rem, my body's banged up all over the... Ah, my mind's kinda...\" Maybe she couldn't control her feelings, but she was hugging him with all her might. Every wound on his body began to cry out as Subaru desperately tried to pat Rem's back to appeal to her. But  \"You're alive. You're still alive. Subaru, Subaru...Subaru!\" Rem was too overcome with emotion to notice how Subaru was reacting. He felt her press her face against his chest and her warm teardrops flowing down her cheek. A wide range of ticklish sensations struck him, well beyond the capacity of Subaru's brain to deal with. In other words  \"Oh man...not this...again...\" As Subaru spoke, his head slowly tilted forward, his neck no longer able to support itself. His mind grew distant. The voices grew faint. Finally... \"Go ahead and sleep. When you awaken, I must thank you quite earnestly. At the very least, rest assured I shall eliminate that which threatens you.\" ...someone's voice sounded in his ears, serious and devoid of clownish affect. Feeling a deeper sense of security, Subaru gently let go of lucidity. Until the moment he fell asleep, he reveled in the warmth of the embrace and the relief of finally receiving it. Subaru's consciousness sank into a river of unconsciousness. *** Subaru's mind was invited to the land ruled by the black shadow once more. There was nothing. Only his consciousness seemed to hover in space. Subaru dimly realized that he existed. There was no one. There was nothing. Nothing began. Nothing ended. It was a world of no being at all. Subaru felt like he had been cast into the sea at night. He let his mind float with the fickle sensation. Abruptly, a change came over the world of darkness. In front, directly ahead of Subaru's mind, someone stood. The shadow grew vertically. Before he knew it, a human silhouette stood before Subaru. He couldn't see its face. The shape was indistinct. But he vaguely thought that it had the shape of a woman. The shadow wavered and slowly reached out a hand. For some reason, when her fingers gently grazed his mind, Subaru wanted to weep. The wave of strange emotion washing over him suggested that he had always been waiting for her to do so. He had an instinctive desire for the wriggling shadow to embrace him, to swallow him whole and then it stopped. Something had stopped it. Subaru's mind realized that there was another shadow, its white fingers embracing him from behind. Her touch felt soft, and not just warm but hot. The instant Subaru felt that heat, the shadow before him rapidly faded away. He faced his front. His heart trembled. He shouted ferociously. But the world of nothingness had no sound. He was left behind as the shadow became distant, fading, fading away. Finally, the shadow serenely stretched her fingers out toward Subaru, who was nearly in tears. \" ve you.\" Even the words he could not hear faded, and the world fell apart. When Subaru awoke, the first thing his eyes took in was an unfamiliar, ornate ceiling. Unlike his bedroom, the chamber he awoke in was ornamented more than most parlors; even the ceiling was decked out to excess. Perhaps it was mandatory in an aristocrat's mansion, the better to show off the master's authority to other parties. At any rate, to a boy like Subaru, born and raised in a small city, it was distinctly uncomfortable. Subaru blinked several times in the moments it took him to arrive at that thought after waking. \" It seems...you are awake?\" The voice came from the edge of the bed, and at point-blank range. Subaru turned his head, which rested on an exceptionally soft pillow, and narrowed his eyes upon the girl sitting right beside him. \"I suppose in one sense, having a maid by your side when you wake up is a man's cherished desire.\" \"...Considering my degree of carelessness, this is the least I can do to atone.\" \"Man, that's such a negative thing to say, Rem. More to the point...\" With Rem's eyes downturned, Subaru sat up, punctuating each movement with a word as he took his right hand from under the blankets and lifted it up. It was firmly in Rem's grasp. \"Did I do this? If I just grabbed you and didn't let go... That's kind of embarrassing. It's like when I was a kid and wouldn't let go of my favorite towel.\" \"Er, no, that's...\" When Subaru posed the question, still holding Rem's hand as he glanced at her, he saw her cheeks redden just a bit. \"I...did it.\" \"Why? I mean, I sweat a lot when I sleep, so my palm's probably pretty nasty, too.\" \"Subaru, I...\" \"Yeah?\" As Rem's words faltered, Subaru had a warm feeling as he quietly watched her, their hands still joined. There was no rush involved, so Rem took several breaths before looking at Subaru with upturned eyes. \"You seemed to be suffering while you slept, so I...\" \"You held my hand?\" \"Yes, because I am weak and full of flaws. Hence, I do not know what I can do for someone when this happens. Since I did not know, I did the thing that would have made me happiest.\" Her halting, fumbling words suggested that this was linked to some kind of embarrassing memory. However, Subaru gave his hand a smile as Rem made her feelings clear. It was like that hand had rescued Subaru from a bad dream, as if he were a little kid. No doubt someone had held Rem's hand on some night when she seemed about to cry. Subaru couldn't help but be happy, even giddy, that she had done the same for him. With no reason to let go, their hands remained together. Subaru kept soaking up the warmth as he inclined his head. \"Anyway, care to tell me what else happened before I read the sequel?\" \"Yes. How much do you remember, Subaru?\" \"Rozchi made fire rain from the sky, and you were worked up and bear-hugged me. That's it.\" \"...So, what happened after, then...?\" Haltingly, Rem explained the aftermath in a businesslike fashion. After Subaru lost consciousness, Roswaal had mopped up the demon beasts in the forest. The effect of Subaru's stench of the witch worked fine even with him out cold, so Roswaal had used him as bait to lure out the demon beasts, and then incinerated the remainder in the forest. \"Then the curses on me...?\" \"In this case...the casters were the demon beasts that bit you. You need not be concerned about dying from those curses any longer. Master Roswaal and Lady Beatrice and the Great Spirit have already taken care of everything.\" \"So all three are guaranteeing it, huh...? Well, I'll believe it this time.\" He'd been bitten almost everywhere else, so Subaru put a hand on his breast as he sighed with relief. Apparently the time bombs in his body had been successfully defused. He grimaced as he recalled just how many times he'd almost died and what pain and suffering he'd gone through to achieve this. \"Master Roswaal also calmed the agitated villagers in person. Things have mostly returned to peace and quiet.\" \"I see. So the brats are safe, huh? But they're probably worried sick about their beloved Big Bro Subaru coming back all beat-up, heh-heh.\" Subaru was lightening up"}, {"text": "the mood when Rem made a murmur rich with meaning as she pulled down the blanket covering him. \" Yes...so it would seem.\" What? thought Subaru, suspicious of Rem's demeanor, but his expression soon changed to surprise. Under the blankets, Subaru was dressed in a gown just like the one he'd worn on his first day at Roswaal Manor when he'd been severely injured. He realized there was something odd on the parts of the gown below the waist, namely... \"There are scribbles all over it...like on a cast for a broken leg!\" \"The children Master Roswaal graciously invited to the mansion wrote these things.\" \"Geez, those little brats...!\" Subaru clicked his tongue as he looked over their notes to him. In the first place, they were written upside down from Subaru's point of view, and it wasn't good handwriting to begin with. But since they were written in the I-script Subaru had learned, he eventually read everything. \"Thanks for bringing Rem back.\" \"Thank you very much.\" \"You look crazy, but you're cool.\" \"Do aerobics with us like you promised.\" \"Love you.\" Subaru grumbled as he leaned back against the pillow, looking toward the window. \"Geez, those brats... It's so stupid. I don't even like kids...\" He was glaring toward the village and the children there who had written such things. He was looking forward to paying them a visit as soon as he could. Then he'd give those happy, prank-playing children a real chewing out. Rem warmly watched how Subaru's words contrasted with the look on his face. Then her expression wavered, her lips trembling. \"Setting aside the past, I need to speak to you about your body.\" \"Mm, ah, suppose you're right. Setting aside the curse, I pushed it pretty far, huh?\" It was only as he spoke that he realized his right shoulder, the same side as the hand Rem was holding, was in its socket. Even when he put weight on it, there was no ache. He felt no malaise from the scars all over his body where fangs had punctured his flesh. This world's healing magic can do anything, thought Subaru. \"Subaru, I am sorry.\" In spite of Subaru's optimistic judgment, Rem bent forward at the waist and bowed her head before him. \"Hey, hey,\" Subaru said with a wave of his hand, not able to grasp why Rem would be apologizing to him. \"Lift your head up, Rem. My body's fine; there's nothing bad about it. I'm in perfect condition.\" \"That is...not true whatsoever. Certainly the visible wounds have been healed, and fortunately, you need not be concerned about aftereffects hindering normal, everyday life. But...\" As her words broke off, a bitter shadow came over Rem's face. \"The scars remain...not only on the body but the heart as well. Also, due to repeated healing, your body's mana is on the verge of running dry.\" \"Ahh, that's why my body's a little sluggish... But that's not a big problem, is it? Scars on the body are a man's medals as long as they're not on the back. And I'm pretty tough when it comes to mental scars.\" Subaru pointed his thumb at himself as he smiled to drive away Rem's pangs of guilt. He wasn't making it up. If his heart had been naive enough to have been broken beyond repair, he'd never have made it to that morning to have Rem holding his hand like that. After all, he'd undergone wounds to his spirit that could very well have made him unable to look Rem in the eye again. Subaru gazed at Rem intently. She had short blue hair. Her face was more the \"lovely\" than \"pretty\" type. At first, he thought she showed little emotion on her face, but she was coming around on that bit by bit. He wasn't afraid of her. He wasn't afraid of her at all. There was a Rem who had made Subaru loop more than once, but here was a Rem happy from the bottom of her heart that he had come back alive. It was all by chance. There was the Rem who ran amok for her sister's sake, the Rem who acted rashly to protect Subaru, the Rem who ran off before switching to Berserker Mode so that she wouldn't cause friendly fire  \"You may look like you have it all together, but you really aren't the calm type at all, are you, Rem?\" In everyday life at the mansion, Rem had exceptionally sound, rational decision-making ability. But in a fast-moving crisis, Rem's thoughts also moved quickly, making her hasty and rash. Subaru wasn't really one to talk about snap judgments, but in Rem's case, it was scary how she held a hammer only to see every problem as a nail. Subaru had experienced that firsthand. When Subaru pointed that out, Rem froze for a moment before making a listless, low bow. \"I...understand.\" Her murmur seemed like the first drop to break the dam of feelings she held inside her. \"I am powerless, talentless, and a reject of the demon race. That is why I could never live up to Sister. I was so slow-footed compared to Sister, and I could not think of any way to catch up beyond running faster.\" Rem covered her face with her free hand, continuing her confession as if squeezing it out of herself. \"Sister did everything better. Sister never blundered. Sister never wavered. Sister was right about everything. Sister... If it was Sister, she...\" Rem's words trailed off as she meekly looked up at Subaru. What rested in her eyes were not tears but hollow resignation and despair. \"I was always Sister's...substitute. I've always, always been inferior. Truly, I am a good-for-nothing. I could not catch up to Sister no matter how much I chased after her.\"  Faint tears abruptly welled up in her eyes. \"Why was I the one to keep my horn? Why wasn't it Sister? Why was Sister born with only one? Why...? Why were Sister and I twins?\" Rem's lips trembled as she sought meaning for her very existence. The tears welling in her eyes rolled onto her cheeks, making Rem's pale flesh glimmer in sorrow. Subaru held his silence. Rem seemed unable to bear the quiet, hastily wiping the tears off her cheek. She spoke rapid-fire, trying to take back her preceding statements. \"I...I am sorry. I said some very odd things. Please forget them. This is the first time I have said such strange things to anyo \" \"Hey, Rem.\" Subaru called her name, cutting her words off midway. Rem was afraid of what Subaru would say now that he had broken his silence but lifted her face nonetheless. And so, Subaru said to her... \"From everything I've heard from you, you're a pretty big idiot.\" \" Eh?\" \"I can think of three stupid things about you. Can you guess what they are?\" Rem's eyes quivered, unable to grasp the meaning behind Subaru's words. Subaru smiled at her reaction and raised a finger in front of Rem. \"Can't be helped, then. The first stupid thing is...you're going overboard given the fact that I was actually, you know, saved. You see me waving right before your eyes, right? I have both legs on and everything.\" Subaru wiggled his scratched-up legs. Rem realized that Subaru was speaking in regards to her confession but meekly shook her head even so. \"That is...justifying after the fact...\" \"A wise man once said, 'All's well that ends well.' To be honest, I think my version's a lot more on target than trying to grade every part along the way. That leads me to the second stupid thing, which is you trying to carry everything on your shoulders by yourself.\" With a wink, Subaru raised a second finger. \"Now, I'm super happy you flew off the handle like that for my sake, but everything has a time and a place. To begin with, if you'd talked to other people about it, we'd probably have come up with a better way.\" Where hunting the demon beasts was concerned, it was crystal clear that Subaru had a point. Rem, unable to refute him, lowered her eyes as if ashamed of her own impulsiveness. Of course, his criticism was something that could be said only in hindsight. But Rem did not realize that even the tiniest bit, nor did she realize Subaru was sticking out his tongue just a little. \"As for the third... You know what it is, Rem?\" \"I...do not understand at all. I am always insufficient; I can never reach as far as \" \"Yes, that. That's the third stupid thing.\" Subaru pointed at Rem and how she never missed a chance to put herself down. Then he raised a third finger and waved the three about. \"Rem, just because she's your older sister, you build her up and put yourself down to where it almost kills you... I don't think Ram's always in a stronger position than you, okay? Her stamina's worse than yours, her cooking's lousy, she slacks off work, she makes snide comments... I suppose she thinks a little too much, too?\" In Subaru's mind, Ram's specs were a long way from the pillar of perfection Rem spoke of. She was an older sister with talents behind her younger sister in every area. Surely the sisters themselves were well aware of this. That was what Subaru supposed, but Rem shook her head, rejecting his suggestions. \"N-no...you are wrong. Sister is truly... If she had her horn, you would never judge her so \" \"But Ram doesn't have her horn. So I don't know a Ram like that.\" Subaru, cutting off Rem's attempt to firmly deny herself, continued. \"The Ram I know is just like I described. She can't hold a candle to you in cooking, sewing, cleaning, politeness, or the way she talks well, I don't think that last part is a bad thing, really.\" It wasn't bad to butt heads with her over her haughty manner of speaking from time to time. To Subaru, the distance between him and Ram was more comfortable. \"It's probably only you who's worked up about whether she has a horn or not. Comparing someone else's good points and your own bad points just gets you bent out of shape.\" *** \"Whatever she doesn't have, you have. So accept it already... You're gentle, a hard worker, always doing your best, and your breasts are bigger than Ram's, too \" *** \"Ow! Hey, don't smack me with tears in your eyes like that!\" Subaru recalled his brief conversation with Ram in the forest. There, he had learned that Ram wasn't particularly hung up any longer on what she had lost as a demon, to the point where he believed Ram wanted Rem to get over it, too.  Subaru was not arrogant enough to think that was a problem he was capable of fixing. In the end, Subaru was just a mouthy young man lacking the length or depth of life experience to handle the job. A lecture from someone like him wasn't going to get him anywhere. He put no pressure on himself. He imagined no gravitas in his words. It was simply something in him that refused to compromise: the idea that, in the end, you didn't get the answer from someone else you had to just roll up your sleeves and do it yourself. So Subaru was simply conveying to Rem his exceptionally simple feelings about the matter. \"If it wasn't for you, I'd be dead and dog food right now. I'm safe and sound because you were there. I'm alive now thanks to you. That's your doing, not your sister's.\" \"...Truly, Sister could have done it better.\" Subaru poured cold water on her weak rebuttal as he brought his left hand over his right, which still held Rem's hand. \"Maybe she could have...but you were the one there for me.\" When Rem gasped and lifted her face, Subaru put enough gratitude into his voice to make"}, {"text": "himself blush. \"I'm glad you were there for me, Rem. Thank you.\" *** A choked sob escaped Rem's throat at his words. After that, Rem turned her face aside so that Subaru would not see the look on it. \"I...I have always been a substitute for Sister...\" \"Stop defining yourself with lonely words like that, all right? You and Ram are different genres. I mean, she's the older sister and you're the younger sister sometimes you're gonna clash.\" There would always be differences between the two. Each had their unique good points. Whether Rem understood what he was saying or not, Subaru's encouragement made Rem squeeze her eyes shut. \"Well, I haven't really asked why she lost her horn, and since I didn't ask I don't know. I don't know, so I don't want to talk like I do know, so...\" Subaru put his left hand on the upper part of his own forehead patting it right where Rem's horn grew out of hers. \"Ram doesn't have her horn, and you have yours, so you can just do whatever she would need a horn for. You can just be two demons getting along great. There's nothing stronger than love between beautiful sisters, right?\" \"...Ah...\" \"So I mean, you said you were a substitute, but Ram has no substitute for you, does she? I mean, if you weren't there for her, can you imagine the state she'd be in?\" Rem, aghast, didn't know this, but Subaru had seen such a future. He had seen Ram, despairing at the death of her younger sister, go mad and use all her remaining strength for the sake of vengeance. \"...But...\" Yet even so, Rem did not simply nod in agreement. \"I get it. So, how about we do this? You have an idealized Ram inside you that you can never compare to no matter what you do. Let's take that ideal Ram you have on a pedestal and send her packing.\" \"That is...easier said than done. I have always compared myself to \" \"That's why I want you to listen to how I rate her. My rating's based on reality, not the ideal. Just so you know...I don't have any talent for reading the mood at all, so I just call 'em like I see 'em, no flattery or mercy. What you see is what you get.\" Subaru smiled at Rem, grinning as he stroked her blue hair. It tickled her, but she merely narrowed her eyes, drawing a small sigh out of Subaru. \"Where I come from, they say, 'Talking about the future makes a demon laugh,' so...\" Rem said nothing and merely tilted her head a bit as Subaru continued caressing her head and speaking. \"Laugh, Rem. Don't make a glum face. Laugh. Let's laugh and talk about the future. Let's make up for all that living in the past you've been doing and talk about what's to come. I mean, even if we start with tomorrow.\" \"...Tomorrow?\" \"Yes, tomorrow. Anything's good, all right? Like, whether it'll be Japanese or Western food for breakfast tomorrow, or even if you're going to put on your right shoe or your left shoe first. It doesn't matter how trivial, there'll be a tomorrow, so we can talk about it. How about it?\" Subaru spread his arms, prodding Rem for an answer. Rem hesitated to reply for a while before lowering her brows with a conflicted look. \"I am...very weak...so I will most likely lean on you a great deal.\" \"What's wrong with that? I'm weak, too. I'm not very smart, I'm not good-looking, and I can't read the mood, which gets me down even when I'm the one saying it, but I still get by because the people around me help me. We just have to lean on one another and move forward.\" She had been unable to see a path for her to walk because she insisted on putting anything and everything onto her own shoulders. The least Subaru could do was offer his two empty hands and make the walk forward that much easier. Even so, he'd just been extra baggage himself more than once...but if you couldn't see ahead by yourself, you just needed someone to share the burden with as you moved forward. That's how he felt, anyway. \"So let's laugh, hug each other, and talk about tomorrow. I've always dreamed of laughing with a demon and talking about the future, anyway.\" \"...You truly are possessed by a demon.\" \"You bet.\" Subaru closed one eye with the corner of his lips curled up. Rem apparently couldn't resist making a small smile herself. She laughed, and as she laughed, tears poured out of the corners of her eyes. The seemingly endless tears poured out, flowing and flowing, but Rem continued to laugh even so. Rem laughed, Rem cried, Rem buried her face in a pillow to suppress her laughing, sobbing voice. Even so, her mirthful, tearful voice quietly filled the room. Subaru gently caressed Rem's hair the whole while, his right hand grasping hers. Softly, softly, he stroked her hair. He thought back to the days he had repeated over and over in his first week at Roswaal Manor. Subaru had a place at the mansion with a good relationship with Ram and Rem. The children of the village had been saved, and the demon beasts in the forest had been wiped out, eliminating that danger. It was a grand adventure spanning some twenty-odd days. Yes, it should have been cause for celebration. And if not for the girl using a finger to toy with her silver hair, in a sullen mood as she laid into Subaru, it would have been. \" It's not that I'm upset. No, I'm not upset. All that happened was the patient I'd been nursing was gone when I woke up, and when I was going to go looking for him, I found out I'd been tied to the chair and left behind. No, I'm not upset about that at all.\" A flood of cold sweat poured down Subaru's brow as he silently listened to Emilia's rant. It had already been some ten minutes since Emilia had come to the room, but most of that time had been chewed up by a mix of lecturing and venting. Her initial visit was out of concern for Subaru's condition. When she was certain he was fine, she had sighed with relief and switched gears to leveling her complaints on the spot. That was Emilia's personality for you. \"I'm...not upset...so...\" \"Yes, Emilia-tan, you're right to be upset with me. I'm very sorry.\" \"Sheesh, I said I wasn't upset. But since you apparently feel guilty I have no choice... I will accept your apology, Subaru. Really, don't make me worry like that.\" After Subaru gave in to her pressure, Emilia accepted the apology and punctuated her last sentence with a broad, charming smile. It wasn't even remotely fair. How could she say things like that and make that kind of face at the same time? After he'd made up with Rem, the maid had left, and Emilia had taken her place. The moment she'd arrived, he'd largely expected how the rest would go, but now that her lecture was finished, the way there was nothing in her purple eyes but concern for Subaru made it really hard for him to calm down. \"I have to say, Subaru, you sure get hurt a lot. And the reason you got hurt was that you came to the mansion, too... I mean, it's only been four days.\" \"Hey, it's not like I want all these injuries. I guess you could say the world kind of has it out for me...so, if I can at least have Emilia-tan fawning over me, it's all good!\" \"I fawned over you plenty and you just ran off. You can fend for yourself next time.\" \"Nuaaa! I let my chance slip away! Damn it, if only Beako had done a bit of a better job!\" Subaru shouted in anger at the coldhearted girl, having not seen a single trace of her curly hair since his recovery. Emilia pouted as Subaru's words made her remember how he'd left her behind. \"I told you, when I woke up after falling asleep in the chair I was tied up in it. I was flabbergasted.\" \"No one uses flabbergasted anymore...\" \"Don't make light of it... Puck tried to keep me from going after both of you, too. I don't know what would have happened if Roswaal hadn't come back. Understand?\" Faced with Emilia's tight-lipped anger, Subaru could only feel ashamed of himself. Just as he had imagined, Puck attempted to keep Emilia from putting herself in danger. Apparently Beatrice had abandoned any thought of convincing her early on and had moved straight to physical restraints. Having both of them impeding Emilia must have been pretty hard on her mental state. Subaru knew that was exactly how he'd feel if it'd been him left behind like that. Even so, if he'd had to do it all over again, no doubt he'd have left Emilia behind once more. \"You've saved me again, though.\" \"Eh?\" \"I said, you've saved me again, even though the whole point of bringing you to the mansion was to thank you for saving me before. Thank you very much.\" Emilia put her hands together for emphasis as her face broke into a radiant smile. Subaru, bearing the full effect of it, finally felt something go plunk in his chest. \"Err, that's fine, really! I just did it because I wanted to, and it's not like this has nothing to do with me, either. Yeah, that's right. I...did it.\" As he said it, it really sank in. That was what had fallen inside his chest. Having repeated events over some twenty days, Subaru had finally made it to the end. After having his heart broken and crushed so many times, his hand had finally reached that which he had long sought. He was finally able to register that feeling of I did it! \"That's what you say, but that won't put my conscience at ease. I'm sure Ram, Rem, and Roswaal are all grateful to you, too.\" \"That so...? All right, let me take advantage and have my contract with Rozchi amended so that Ram and Rem are my personal maids for a while, muah-ha-ha. And then!\" Subaru put his hand over his mouth as he made a lewd laugh. He then swayed his body left and right as he drew closer to Emilia, thrusting a finger toward her, making her recoil ever so slightly. \"Am I going to get an Emilia-tan reward, too?\" \"Goodness, if I can afford it. If it is within my power, then... Wait, last time, you asked me for my name.\" \"Heh-heh. Do not underestimate my greed. This time I am a man unaffected by anything so weak. I am aroused by greed and avarice and a vortex of libido!\" Though he never even got up from the bed, Subaru posed, furiously spreading his arms up at an angle. Perhaps seeing Subaru worked up to that degree made Emilia believe the subject couldn't be avoided. She sat down, properly facing him. As Emilia awaited the inevitable, Subaru browsed the \"Emilia Reward List\" in his brain. He carefully went over options ranging from the bittersweet to nighttime adventures, selecting one. And so... \"All right, Emilia-tan, let's go out on a date.\" ...he would redo the promise he'd made with Emilia so many days before. \"'Date'...?\" \"It means we head out together, see the same things, eat the same food, share the same memories together.\" \"...You're fine with that?\" \"I'm fine with that.\" How many hardships had Subaru gone through to go on his long-desired date with Emilia? Along the way, various other intentions had piled up with it as he leaped over one hurdle after another, but he'd finally cleared the last obstacle and reached his wish. Hence, the promise was a"}, {"text": "fitting way to tie all the loops together. \"I want to brag about you to the brats in the village, Emilia-tan. Plus, the flower bed's just awesome. To me, it'd be special just to have a casual stroll there together.\" \"I think your definition of greed is a bit different than for most people.\" \"Don't say that. My shamelessness will freeze that cute smile on your face yet. Oh yeah!\" Subaru's teeth glinted as he did a thumbs-up and a wink. \"Yes, all right already, I'll go on a 'date' with you.\" The promise having been made, Subaru clapped his hands together and exulted. \"Yessss! And that's why E M F (Emilia-tan's Majorly a Fairy)!!\" Subaru, seeing Emilia sigh at his enthusiasm out of the corner of his eye, directed his hopes for a speedy physical recovery outside the window, toward the village where they would have their promised date. Visions of a glittering future danced when Subaru abruptly thought of the demon beast forest. The curses that inhabited his body had lost all their effectiveness. The demon beasts had been eradicated the end of a long chain of events beginning with a single one slipping past the broken barrier. This time, matters had ended with one species wiping out the other. The events left a bitter aftertaste that he didn't fully understand. He remembered how he was in a daze as he thrust his sword into the demon beast's body. The memory was fresh, and the sensation of taking a life lingered on his hands. He wondered if he would forget that sensation someday. Surely the passage of time would make the ache in his chest subside. But until that day came, what could he do...? \"Subaru.\" \"Yeah?\" He looked back when she called his name. He wondered what Emilia would think of the meaning behind Subaru's distant, absentminded gaze. Emilia rose to her feet and opened the curtains. Light flooded into the room all at once. Emilia's silver hair was enveloped by vivid, dancing light that left him spellbound. Finally, as Subaru sat in silence, Emilia smiled at him out of the blue. \"When we go on the 'date,' let's bring back a flower bouquet.\" \" Sure.\" Subaru covered his face with his palms. There was no winning against that smile. He thought, before the day came when he forgot, he ought to carve it into his chest so that he could not. He knew it was hypocritical and would only force the pain on to him, but he felt it was the right thing to do. He felt like Emilia's pretty smile was telling him so. So he did. Emilia and Subaru continued to spend time together with smiles on their faces.  Having finally and truly reached it, the morning of the fifth day continued to gently shine down upon them. *** About half a day had passed since Subaru and Emilia had promised to go on a date together. The man's gentle voice contained a masculine eloquence that was the product of years of experience. \"First, I must thank you for your service during my aaabsence. The situation was salvaged thanks to your efforts.\" His tone was casual, but its firm, unwavering resonance made Ram's shoulders tremble. \"I do not deserve such praise. Besides, in the end it was settled by your own hands, Master Roswaal \" \"I mind not. Incinerating harmful beasts in the forest is no great expenditure of tiiime.\" Roswaal waved a hand, speaking as if it was a trivial matter. Ram was well aware that his claim was not false modesty, hyperbole, or an empty boast. She could not say a word to refute him. They were speaking to each other in Roswaal's study on the uppermost floor of the mansion. As always, their nocturnal chats involved only the two of them. \"Leaving past events aside, let us speak of something more construuuctive. For instance, what shall become of young Subaru from here ooon, I wonder?\" \"...His body is most certainly largely healed. Lady Beatrice made many complaints, but she fully exerted herself to heal him, so...\" \"I wonder what illness has befaaallen her. I have known her for quite some time, and the boy is the first time I have seen her become so involved. Surely she could not have...? Ah, surely not...\" Roswaal closed his blue eye as he discarded the implication of his own words. Ram pretended not to hear the quiet portion at the end, not wishing to disturb her master's thought process as she said, \"Either way, if not for Lady Beatrice, I doubt we could have saved Subaru.\" \"Perhaps we should call that young Subaru's good fooortune. Indeed, there are few more accomplished healers than Beatrice. I am embarrassed to say that I specialize only in the infliction of harm.\" Roswaal shook his head and tilted it to the side a little. The corners of his lips formed a thin smile. It was a transparent, mild expression, the sort that would perfectly conceal his pleasure or displeasure from anyone but himself. \"Howeeever, I am guessing, from your stating this as the preface, that his condition is not so rooosy?\" \"Yes. Barusu has had his gate forced back to life after running dry twice in a short period of time. On top of that, he has been healed from life-threatening injuries, so...I wonder how well his gate can function after being forced open and abused like this.\" \"Is this the diagnosis of Beatrice and the Great Spirit?\" \"Yes.\" Roswaal folded his arms and closed his eyes as he mulled the report over. Damage to one's gate, and thus, one's ability to use mana, was a fatal affliction for any magic user. Roswaal, bearer of the title of court magician, keenly appreciated the state Subaru was in. \"Though gates mend differently for each person, it would take years no matter what. He will face a very difficult choice.\" Ram nodded at Roswaal's conclusion before voicing how Subaru's condition was even graver still. \"It is not merely an issue of his damaged gate but the remnants of the curses as well.\" \" I thought the danger of activation has passed?\" \"The casters...in this case, the Urugarum...have been eliminated, so there are no casters to activate the curses...but the rites for them still remain in Barusu's body.\" \"So they are intertwined with such complexity that even Beatrice cannot unravel them... My, my, that is a curse in an altogether different sense... I suppose this means we must reward his service all the mooore.\" Though the rites remaining in the absence of their casters was some cause for concern, there was essentially no danger of their activating. However, Subaru's body had taken the bullets that, in the worst case, would have spread to others still, those not only in his employ but also, more importantly, Emilia. As a result, Emilia's participation in the royal selection had been preserved. It was, in every way, service that merited a reward. \"Incidentally, Ram...concerning the iiissue of the demon beasts, did you check on what I asked you to?\" Roswaal asked with a meek look that was quite rare to see on him, and it threw Ram off a fair bit. He awaited her reply as she touched her forehead. Her finger prodded the old wound beneath her headdress. Ram felt the faint throb of the scar as she made her report. \"As far as I have determined from the corpses that remain, the demon beasts were all hornless.\" Roswaal exhaled at Ram's reply. He leaned back against his chair. \"The demon beasts I mopped up were the same. Howeeever, that makes this something far larger than an issue of mere noxious beasts, does it nooot?\" \"A demon beast with its horn severed will obey the one who severed it. That would mean some fool directed the beasts toward your manor or your lands in general, Master Roswaal.\" \"It is no doubt relaaated to the royal selection. Like the invitation to Garfiel's land, this has interfered with us considerably.\" Ram raised her eyebrows at the invocation of the well-known name. \"Gar...Garfiel, you say?\" Roswaal had a conflicted look as he shrugged. His behavior was aloof, but Ram was acutely aware that this was no small matter. Indeed, it was a battle with low odds of victory. They needed every card they could add to their hand. Ram knew very well that she was one of those cards. Her inability to do anything but watch Roswaal battle alone chafed at her. \"Let us return to the matter at hand. Do you have an educated guess as to the 'ringleader' who severed the horns?\" \"...Tentatively. But the trail has already gone cold. One of the children Barusu and Rem supposedly brought back from the forest vanished from the village the next day.\" When she'd asked about the girl with braids who the two had brought back, they had said the villagers all claimed they didn't know the girl. According to the children, she became part of their group at some point, but they couldn't say when. When she pressed further, they told her that it was that girl who had first brought the demon beast pup to the village, and it was she who had later brought the children past the barrier with her into the forest. She was all but certain that girl had been the ringleader. \"First the Bowel Hunter in the royal capital, now the Beast Mage here. Certainly a strange cast of characters.\" \"Yet they cannot best you no matter what they throw at you, Master Roswaal.\" \"My, such a cheeky thing for you to say. Come.\" When Roswaal smiled and beckoned with his hand, Ram cut across the ebony desk to be at his side. As she did so, Roswaal reached his arm around Ram's small body, pulling her atop his lap. Then  \"Because I could not be here last niiight for you, it must have been hard on you.\" \"I know that you are very busy, Master Roswaal. Even if you leave my needs for later...\" \"Ram, I have always tooold you...\" Ram's eyes were downturned when Roswaal lifted her chin with a finger, turning her face toward his with a smile. \"You and Rem are among those beings precious to me, so few I can count them on one hand. Indeed, if some terrible fate had befallen you in this incident, I am not confident I could have restrained myself.\" His finger remained on Ram's chin as the dramatic words Roswaal tossed at her put an enthralled look on her face. Heat seemed to fill Ram's eyes as she gazed at Roswaal from close up. \"To Master Roswaal, Rem and I are \" \"Yes, to me, you and Rem are precious, vital, and irreplaceable...\" As their words piled upon one another, so did their feelings as Roswaal beheld Ram with his yellow eye, pausing for a brief moment... \"...pawns.\" So spoke Roswaal to Ram in theatrical style. His words did not carry the slightest hint of guilt, for he was stating what he regarded as pure truth. And Ram, upon hearing her existence described as that of a pawn... \" Yes.\" ...her cheeks reddened as she nodded back. Ram's demeanor was perfectly docile and full of adoration as Roswaal pulled her even higher on his lap. \"Nooow, then, shall we begin? You pushed yourself quite considerably, yes? You are quite mana-depleted, even though I told you to take it easy.\" \"I am very sorry... Please.\" Ram untied the headdress atop her pink hair as she acknowledged Roswaal's words. Roswaal slid a finger past her hair to where a faint white scar rested on the upper reaches of her forehead.  It was the last vestige of her life as a wonder child among the demon people. Roswaal grazed his finger across the scar like it was a beloved, wonderful thing. \" The blessings of the stars upon thee.\" Four glimmering colors flowed along Roswaal's arm and converged upon"}, {"text": "the tip of his finger to become a white light. The light coursed down his finger and poured into Ram's scar.  The technique to transfer mana directly to another demanded exceptional skill. If the elemental composition of the mana was not perfectly balanced, the mana would harm the recipient's body when converted back into energy. It was a \"therapy\" that Roswaal could employ because he was attuned to all four major mana affinities and was accomplished at using them all at a very high level. For demons, the horns on their foreheads formed the pipeline through which mana passed in and out of the body. Their horns, which functioned much like stronger, finely tuned gates, were the foremost reason the demons were a powerful race. But Ram had lost her horn due to external factors, leaving her body unable to draw in mana or emit power as her body demanded, a loss all the graver because Ram's body was top tier, even by demon standards. Left to her own devices, her body would simply wither away. These private nighttime chats were a daily event so as to prevent that from happening. Ram felt her body come back to life as mana poured into her through the horn scar. She let herself luxuriate in the sweet feeling of warmth filling her body from the inside out when she said out of the blue, \"Ah, I forgot something. There was something else I need to report to you, Master Roswaal...\" \"Mm? And what would thaaat be?\" Roswaal continued the treatment with one eye closed while Ram sank into thought for a while. She seemed to be at odds about how to word it exactly. \"Rem has...fallen in love with Barusu.\" \"Mm?\" \"It would seem Barusu has...grazed all of Rem's weak points.\" Rem was the younger twin sister. As her older sister, Ram was painfully aware of her younger sister's state of mind. Put another way, she knew all too well that it was not in Rem's nature to be honest with herself. \"Rem has, has she? Weeell, perhaps it is not so mysterious. After all, she does not serve me out of loyalty, unlike youuu.\" Ram remained quiet before her master's assessment of her younger sister in silent agreement. Unlike Ram, who loyally served Roswaal without asking anything in return, Rem viewed that as a betrayal of the self. To Rem, Roswaal was very much \"Sister's patron.\" Since her sister was her very purpose in life, Rem's thought process never extended beyond that. It was that line of thinking that made Rem so reckless and rash when it came to defending her community; take your eyes off her, and she'd eliminate anyone she viewed as a threat to it without a second thought. Ram believed Subaru had been saved because he'd gained Rem's trust before she could assault him. Of course, all that being said, Ram still regarded Rem as the cutest little sister in the whole world, someone more important than Ram herself.  But if someone asked her if Rem occupied the highest pedestal in her heart, Ram could not simply nod and agree. \"Regardless of Rem's feelings, you shall remain firmly in my hands, Ram. Where you go, Rem shall invaaariably follow. You seeee, things shall be as before. Nooothing will change.\" \"I...suppose so, though now that there is one more precious thing to Rem, the chance of her acting rashly is even greater, one might say.\" \"Let us cross that bridge when we get to it. This is important work for tomorrow, after aaall.\" As Roswaal jested, light faded from his palm. The treatment was over. Ram felt full not only of life but also disappointment as she slid off Roswaal's lap. After Ram rose from his lap, he rose from the chair. \"Things shall be busier from here on. It shall require much labor, but I am counting on you and Rem, yeees?\" \"As you wish. I am yours, Master Roswaal, as I have been since that fiery night.\" Ram grasped the hem of her skirt and bent her knees in a reverential curtsy. Roswaal noted her display of loyalty as he crossed his hands behind him and walked toward the window. He glanced at Ram, following beside him, as he opened the curtain. When he looked up at the sky, and the full moon floating within it, Roswaal narrowed his oddly colored eyes. \"We must be victorious in the royal selection, no matter what...for the sake of my goal...\" As he murmured, he reached out his arm, wrapped it around Ram's shoulders, and pulled her close. Able to feel the warmth of his tall body for a second time, Ram closed her eyes and leaned into him. She listened to the voice of the man beside her, her lord and master, the man she had given her soul. \"...For the day the Dragon dies.\" ***  How many times had he been slammed to the ground? He felt the hard, flat earth beneath him. A mix of blood and gravel made a mess of his mouth. His entire body burned like it was on fire. After so many blows to the head, his thoughts felt foggy and out of focus. His left eye had swollen shut. He heard a voice from somewhere high and distant, from someone looking down at him. \" I believe it would be futile to continue further?\" Subaru remained flat on the ground, limbs splayed, as he looked in the direction of the voice. He saw the violet-haired young man swaying the tip of the wooden sword in his hand. His mostly white ceremonial uniform did not have a single speck of dust on it, nor was he out of breath, nor even sweating. Only the bloodstained weapon he held detracted from his elegant mien. \"If you take back what you said and bow your head before me, I will leave it at that. Do you accept?\" It was the young man who had inflicted such pain on Subaru's body, relentlessly striking until he mercilessly drove Subaru to the ground. Each time he did, he would deliver his order for surrender again, as if some kind of rule demanded it. But Subaru's reply was set in stone. \"...I'm not wrong... I'm not...bowing my head.\" Even with blood trickling from his nostrils in an unsightly fashion, Subaru leaned on his wooden sword and rose again. He coughed violently to spit out the blood clogging his throat. The difference in strength was clear. Everyone knew who the winner and loser would be. It'd take a miracle for Subaru to get a single blow in, let alone win. But he thought, Yeah, like I care. \"...You should take back what you...!\" Subaru bit back the pain in his mouth and cut off his last biting words before charging forward too slowly, too late. He poured all his strength into one desperate blow. \"You can put everything on the line and it will never be enough. That is the difference between us, unchanged from birth.\" He smoothly parried the oncoming blow, and, after Subaru lost his balance, the young man slammed him hard in his chest. Subaru's breath deserted him, and the next moment, when his vision flickered, a blow to his face sent him tumbling backward onto the ground. The pain was tremendous. Amid agony so strong he forgot to breathe, Subaru stared up toward the heavens through his right eye. He saw the azure sky, high and distant, but nothing beyond it. It was so blue it made him sick. Subaru forced himself back to his feet and peered ahead, enduring bloodcurdling pain with nothing more than his inexhaustible anger. But it was as if that anger was a diversion from whether he was in the right or the wrong in the first place. CHAPTER 1 *** \"And last, stretch your arms high in the sky for the big finish Victory! Victory!\" He listened to the giddy voices as he wiped the sweat off his brow. Subaru raised both hands high as he spoke his trademark phrase. A chorus followed, ending another morning's workout. The people who joined him in his exuberant radio calisthenics were residents of Earlham Village, the one closest to Roswaal Manor. Probably half the village was present. Subaru's cheeks softened without him realizing it at the sight of the familiar buoyant faces. He wordlessly lowered his gaze a little, unable to watch them for a few moments. Subaru had suggested teaching Japanese radio calisthenics to help the village, where scars from the recent demon beast crisis were still fresh. This had improved his reputation among the otherworldly residents and exploded into a village-wide movement. At first, Subaru had been worried about the lack of participants. But seeing the children who had been victims of the demon beast attack enjoy themselves made him feel it was all worth it. The customs of his homeland were not to be underestimated. Radio calisthenics weren't the only popular tradition... \"Okay, you brats, line up! It's stamp time!\" Subaru raised his voice while taking out a raw potato with one end sliced flat. Subaru dipped the flat end into an ink container, then pressed it onto the sheets of paper that the queued-up children held out eagerly. The very in-demand \"potato stamp\" recorded that day's fruits of labor. \"So how about it? In another week we'll start the long-awaited, much-requested event, Monday Puck. The highlight will be those floppy ears.\" \"The kitty's so cute!\" \"He's wonderful!\" \"He's adorable!\" He'd stolen the potato-stamp idea from radio calisthenics during summer break back home. A lot of kids had fun guessing what was going to be on that morning's stamp. Subaru thus used his oddly dexterous fingers to engage their young minds. After a time, his pleasant chat with the villagers came to a close. Subaru waved to them and went on his way. He approached a tree at the edge of the village square, wearily calling out to the girl leaning against the trunk in the shade. \"Ahh, that wore me out. Anyway, sorry to keep you waiting, Emilia-tan.\" \"No, it's all right. I see you worked hard, Subaru.\" Emilia smoothed her silver hair with a charming smile, readjusting the hood she wore low over her face. \"The villagers seem much happier these days, and it's all thanks to you, Subaru.\" \"It's no big deal. I just showed them how to do some healthy exercises that get the blood flowing. But I feel bad making you come with me every morning, day after day.\" \"That's okay. You're not in tip-top shape yet, and Ram and Rem can't come because of their work at the mansion. Besides, I really don't mind doing this.\" \"As in, you don't mind spending your mornings with me?\" \"Pfft, not that. More like...I like being even a tiny bit involved with the villagers I never used to come in contact with. I think maybe...I drew a line between us until now.\" He could make out a small blush on Emilia's face under her hood. The lovely sight warmed Subaru's cheeks before he even realized what was happening. Lately, Emilia had often gone with him to the village as soon as she finished her daily chitchats with the minor spirits, returning together after Subaru completed the morning workout routine. For about fifteen minutes, he and Emilia would walk side by side on the way from the village back to the mansion. Subaru treasured these rare moments more than anything. \"I have to say, though, you really get along with the villagers, Subaru. You're probably more famous than Ram and Rem by now.\" \"Well, I am kind of the hero who saved them. Plus, I'm the ultimate gentleman who never asks for thanks, never brags about my deeds... I'm sure you'll fall in love with me all over again!\" \"I wasn't in love to begin with, mind you... Also, I think your assessment is slightly off.\" Emilia put a finger"}, {"text": "to her lips, tilting her head slightly with a conflicted look. For his part, Subaru was a little dejected at her brushing off his favor so easily. She continued, \"I think that the villagers see you as oddly perceptive rather than a hero who saved everyone. I mean, you know some very mysterious things.\" \"So they're treating me like a well-educated professor, huh... But, um, besides aerobics, I don't know all that much...\" \"There's the games you play with the children, potato stamping... Also, mayonnaise.\" Emilia clapped her hands together as her eyes sparkled. She'd become a huge fan of the experimental mayonnaise Subaru had made at the mansion. Subaru, a natural-born mayo lover back on his world, had reproduced mayonnaise to put some zest in his meals; the sauce was apparently a smash hit with Emilia and the villagers. \"I think they're underselling my hard work a bit, if they think mayonnaise and rescuing children from demon beasts are on the same level. I mean, I put my body on the line and everything...\" He'd gone into the forest to save the children, and got bitten all over. When Rem went out to save him from certain death, he protected her and got bitten, and he was about to be bitten some more when Roswaal showed up to save him... \"Huh?! Come to think of it, I did, like, almost nothing!\" Thinking back on his exploits, they amounted to considerably less than he'd originally thought. Perhaps it was better to say that he'd been involved in many exploits, but his individual efforts had accomplished close to nothing. \"Sheesh. Don't worry about silly little things like that.\" \"But, Emilia-tan...\" \"Everyone knows you worked very hard, Subaru. Roswaal, Ram, and especially Rem, right?\" Subaru's expression remained pathetic in spite of Emilia's encouragement. She ran a few steps ahead of him and turned around. The sudden movement sent her hood falling back, letting her long, silver hair flow down her back, sparkling in the morning sun. \"And me, too.\" \" Huh?\" \"I know very well how hard you worked. That's why we will have no moping. Understand?\" Emilia tilted her head and asked, \"Your answer?\" The dumbfounded Subaru vigorously nodded his head. His reaction prompted a beaming smile from Emilia. \"What was that? You were moving like a broken toy. You're always like that.\" \"Er, this time it wasn't on purpose... And besides, you're a hundred times more unfair. No matter how much I struggle, I just keep falling back in love...\" \"Yes, yes. I think you have very bad habit of glossing things over, like just now.\" Emilia wore a charming smile, oblivious to the sincerity of his words. Watching her put her hood back on and walk beside him once more, Subaru thought again that he'd never find a better girl than this. The gate of Roswaal Manor had come into view during the course of their conversation. A few meager minutes remained until they arrived and the regretful end to his morning bliss. \"There's a...dragon carriage parked in front of the mansion.\" When Emilia paused beside Subaru and murmured, he stopped, too, looking in the same direction. There was indeed something like a horse-drawn carriage parked at the gates. It was \"something like\" because the vehicle was clearly not horse-drawn. After all, the creature pulling the carriage was a lizard as large as a horse. Subaru was so surprised at its sheer size, compared to lizards back home, that he wound up clapping his hands together. \"Oh, right, I saw those passing through the royal capital here and there. Dragon carriages, you say?\" \"...? Yes, the land dragon pulls the carriage that's behind it, so it's a dragon carriage. Wait, don't tell me it has a common name I don't know?\" \"No, no, I'm the one who knows nothing about it. I'm sure you're right, Emilia-tan. Have confidence in yourself.\" \"Really? You're not teasing me? You're not going to embarrass me by letting me use the wrong words in the wrong place, are you? If you're pulling my leg, I'll clobber you!\" \"Nobody says clobber anymore...\" When Emilia raised a hand in mock anger, Subaru clutched his head and pretended to recoil. Their antics continued as they made their way forward, arriving in front of the dragon carriage. \"Whoa... Damn, this is impressive. It's, like, so huge it's unreal.\" He'd seen these several times back during his time in the royal capital, but this was his first good look at one up close. The lizard that Emilia had dubbed a land dragon was indeed as large as a horse, but thinner and lighter. It looked like it'd beat a horse in a footrace. As the two approached, a man stood up from the dragon carriage's box seat and announced, \"My, my. Please look out below.\" Before the startled pair's eyes, the man agilely leaped from the top of the seat to stand on the ground below. Subaru's breath caught a bit when he noticed he'd barely made a sound upon landing. The box seat was around Subaru's eye level not a height to casually leap from. The old man bowed and spoke with eloquence befitting an aged gentleman. \"Welcome back. Please excuse me for currently occupying the front of your gate.\" He politely stroked back his solid white hair before donning an immaculately tailored black suit. Though advanced in years, his body was obviously honed into fine condition, and his aura made Subaru subconsciously stand up straighter. If this man was indeed the driver, and therefore a servant, the master he accompanied had to be quite the person. Thinking this, Subaru shifted his gaze back to the dragon carriage. \"The envoy is already inside the manor and possibly engaged with Marquis Mathers.\" The aging gentleman seemed to read their minds and answered their question preemptively. Subaru was unexpectedly at a loss for words as Emilia, standing beside him, stepped forward and faced the old man. \"Envoy...? Could this be...?\" \"As you have no doubt surmised, Lady Emilia, this concerns the royal selection.\" At the term royal selection, Subaru's head snapped up. The way Emilia's expression tensed had Subaru furrowing his eyebrows, suspicious about this turn of events. The man continued, \"I believe the envoy has an official message for you. Please return to the mansion to receive it in person.\" \"...Am I being summoned?\" \"Please ask the messenger personally.\" The old man's discreet reply caused Emilia's face to harden as she lowered her head. \" Let's go.\" She began walking without even looking back at Subaru. He broke into a short jog to catch up. At the last moment, he glanced back, and saw that the driver was still bowing low, silently watching them go. \"Welcome back, Lady Emilia.\" After the driver saw them off, the two arrived at the mansion's foyer and were greeted by a girl in a maid outfit Rem. Strangely, emotions were absent from her high-pitched voice, replaced with calm formality. It was Guest-Greeting Mode, something Subaru hadn't seen much in the mansion lately she'd been showing her smile to Subaru especially. \"Thank you. I'm sorry for leaving the mansion. It seems that we have a guest?\" \"An envoy from the royal capital is visiting. Master Roswaal is engaged with the guest. Do you wish to join them?\" \"Of course. It's my problem, so we can't have me out of the loop.\" Rem nodded in response. Emilia began up the stairs. Subaru walked by her side, joining the conversation like it was a normal thing. \"All right. Just because the pressure's on doesn't mean I can let it get to me. I better pull myself together and not do anything stupid.\" He was pumping himself up. But seeing Subaru so enthused, Emilia halted. \"Err, what is it, Emilia-tan? Suddenly all stressed out? Need a massage?\" \"Err... Sorry, Subaru, this is an important meeting, so...\" \"...I know that. That's why I'm getting my head in the game and...\" Emilia was finding it hard to let him down easy, so Rem dispassionately cut him off for her. \"Sister is already attending in the reception room. There is no place there for other servants. Understand?\" Subaru took in Rem's words and looked back at Emilia. \"You're kidding, right? I'm the one who's out of the loop?\" \"Sorry, Subaru. Rem, lead the way.\" \"Yes. Subaru, please return to your room.\" After Emilia's small apology, Rem spoke kindly to Subaru even while in Work Mode. Rem walked off to the upper floor with Emilia behind her. Subaru stayed in place and clicked his tongue. \"Well, I don't know much about this world, so I probably wouldn't be of much use anyway...\" He wondered if it was selfish that he still wanted to be a part of this. It had been approximately one month since Subaru had been summoned into another world. During that time, Subaru had taken it upon himself to favorably alter the destinies of the people with whom he'd become involved. Emilia was the first, but his rapport with the people in the mansion and the village was proof he'd done some good. In light of that, he was disappointed he hadn't been included in such an important issue. \"I'm being left behind here literally and metaphorically.\" Of course, he accepted that his limited talents were the main reason why. \"But accepting that and giving up are two different things. What should I do, huh?\" Subaru Natsuki wasn't meek enough to simply wander back to his room and sulk in bed. He sank into thought, trying to cook up an approach to deal with the situation his way. Finally, Subaru's face twisted into an evil grin as he thought of something and snapped his fingers. \" Ding.\" \"Isn't it boring waiting out in front all this time? Maybe take a breather?\" The old man on the box seat widened his eyes in surprise as Subaru came with some tea. The dragon carriage was still parked by the front gate of the mansion. \"Forgive my rudeness. This is somewhat unexpected, and so, please watch out below again.\" With that, the aged gentleman leaped down from the box seat. Just as before, his landing was nearly silent. He continued, \"I shall do as you suggest. Certainly, my throat has become slightly parched.\" \"Well, then, here you go. I didn't know what you liked, so I just brought the most expensive tea I could find.\" The aged gentleman had a mild smile on his face as he accepted the tray. The expression deepened the age-appropriate wrinkles around his mouth, Subaru noticed, studying him intently now that he was close, when... \"Whoa, what the...?\" Suddenly, a light impact from the side took him by surprise. He quickly found the culprit the land dragon was poking its snout into Subaru's shoulder. The jet-black creature regarded Subaru with sharp, reptilian eyes. Its gaze felt strange, but not uncomfortable. Perhaps he simply didn't feel any hostility in those gentle eyes. The gentleman quickly addressed Subaru. \"M-my apologies. This land dragon is the finest one in our house, but...\" \"Ah, no, don't worry about it. Actually I feel lucky to get so up close and personal.\" \"I am relieved to hear that. I must say, it is rare for it to react in this manner.\" After apologizing for the animal's discourtesy, the aged gentleman turned his blue eyes on Subaru as well. The boy's body tensed, as if he were suddenly at knifepoint. The gentleman continued. \" If I may ask, are those battle scars?\" \"These? Well, a bunch of things happened, but I wouldn't go as far as calling them battle scars...\" \"They are from the claws and fangs of beasts. That is why you are favoring your left side, yes?\" *** Subaru was surprised the old man could tell exactly what had left the white traces exposed by the rolled-up sleeves of his track jacket. It was true that Subaru had been favoring his left side ever since he had been injured. \" I am"}, {"text": "deeply sorry for my repeated offenses. It may not be a question you wish to answer.\" Apologizing in response to Subaru's silence, the aged gentleman took a cup of black tea and brought it to his lips. He commented, \"A fine taste. It has a considerable kick to it, I think.\" \"...Well, I didn't exaggerate. It seriously is the most expensive tea in the mansion. I'll have a pink-haired maid on my case if I get caught for this...\" That was no hyperbole, either. Ram would have quite the lecture waiting for him if she found out he used the \"Do Not Touch\" top-class tea without permission. The aged gentleman kept one eye closed as he appraised Subaru with the other. \"Now then, what do you want from this old fossil after buttering me up with such wonderful tea?\" Faced with the man's calm demeanor and shrewd discernment of his ulterior motive, Subaru could only tense up. As a youth, he knew he was sorely outmatched in this war of words, so he promptly raised the white flag. \"Ya got me. My name is Subaru Natsuki. At the moment, I'm an apprentice servant here at Roswaal Manor. I'd at least like to ask what your name is.\" Acknowledging his status as a novice, he hoped to get his senior to offer a shred of mercy. Seeing Subaru meekly bow his head, the aged gentleman relaxed his expression. \"My, that is polite of you. I am called Wilhelm. I currently serve the House of Karsten, and that work has brought me to this place.\" \"Wilhelm, is it? Thank you very much... I'd be really grateful if you could at least tell me what brings you here... Ah, er, would you like to come inside?\" \"I believe that the envoy is speaking about the matter?\" \"Well, yeah, but they won't let me in on that. It's no fun to be left out of an event and not advance the story, so I figured I'd approach it my way.\" He knew this was not a man to spill secrets about important matters. But gradually growing on people was Subaru's specialty. He wasn't just a delinquent without any talent for reading the mood. For a brief moment, Wilhelm was at a loss for words at Subaru's ambitious behavior. \"You remain levelheaded at unforeseen developments, and when your motives are exposed, you do not cower but only grow more defiant Such a personality will assuredly incur displeasure.\" \"...So you're saying I can't even take a hint?\" \"As I do not know your position within this manor, I cannot carelessly run my mouth. I hope you understand.\" Wilhelm's expression sharpened for a brief moment, then softened as he politely brushed off the impudent request. If things continued this way, Subaru would just wind up making Ram angry. \"I will say, you do seem very close to Lady Emilia. It does not look like you are a mere servant.\" \"R-r-really? Emilia-tan and I don't look like an odd pair to you?\" \"'Tan...'?\" Wilhelm raised an eyebrow at the odd manner of address. Then, he smiled thinly as he realized the nature of Subaru's feelings. \"You walk a treacherous path indeed. She may become the next queen of Lugunica one day.\" \"Right now, we're just a super-cute girl and a dull servant boy. With the infinite future ahead, you never know what'll happen. When you asked your wife to marry you, Wilhelm, did you think she was the loveliest woman in the whole world?\" \"My wife \" Subaru's radical assertion made Wilhelm slip for a brief moment. He immediately nodded. \"I see. Certainly, it is just as you say. I think of my wife as the most beautiful in the world. I felt like everyone was staring at her, and I needed to woo her while I could. Pathetic, yes?\" \"You see? I'm like, if she has to end up with someone, might as well be me, even if I'm 'unworthy.' It might take a lot of persistence, but that's my win-win ideal.\" \"You certainly act according to some very amusing logic. Fascinating, really. However, in the end I am a mere driver. I do not think I shall be of much service.\" \"I wonder. If you could tell it was Emilia-tan under her hood, I don't think the 'I'm just a driver' excuse works very well.\" *** Subaru's flippant statement wiped the expression from Wilhelm's face and silenced him. \"The robe Emilia-tan wears is supposed to stop bad magic users from figuring out who she is. Plus, because of some stuff recently, a hooded mantle was added that makes it even stronger... People can't see who she is unless she wants them to, or they can break through the magic.\" The robe, put together with Roswaal's magic, was an effort to nip trouble in the bud before Emilia's half-elf background could cause it. It was to protect her from the unfair handicap she had to bear, being born in her world. \" And you realized all that from the beginning. Very cunning.\" \"Oh no, it was total dumb luck. When I was pouring the tea inside the mansion, I was like, 'Wait, wasn't that kinda odd?'\" The color of Wilhelm's gaze changed as he watched Subaru smile very casually. At the very least, he probably figured Subaru wasn't just a tea fetcher. \"I suppose I cannot call myself a mere driver, then... As you surmised, I am indeed related to the royal selection or related to someone related, I should say.\" \"Related to someone related... That's pretty much the position I'm in here.\" \"You and I are different, I believe, because my reason for involvement is not so romantic.\" \"Well, of course not, when you're married to the most beautiful woman in the world. I think Emilia-tan would beat her out for cuteness, though.\" \"No, even in loveliness, my wife has no match.\" Subaru had meant to make light of things, but the firm reply left him without a comeback. Wilhelm's cheeks seemed to slacken again as he successfully drove the riposte home. \"However it would seem we are out of time.\" \"Ah?\" Subaru blurted like a dimwit as Wilhelm silently motioned to the mansion. \"That's Rem coming out with... Who is that?\" The familiar blue-haired maid was leaving the mansion with someone unfamiliar. Based on Wilhelm's behavior and their previous conversation, he reasoned this must have been the all-important envoy in question. \"I guess, objectively, this fantasy stuff is extraordinary...\" Perhaps he said that without thinking because the object of his attention didn't look like an \"envoy\" at all. The visitor noticed Subaru's gaze and responded with a teasing smile. \"Hey, it's normal to fall in love with a beautiful person at first sight, but don't you know it's rude to stare?\" The speaker was a girl with a lovely face, her flaxen hair cut semi-long. She was tall for a girl, almost the same height as Subaru. However, her figure was terribly delicate, and her every action terribly feminine everything just screamed girl at you. A white ribbon adorned her hair, and the sparkle in her wide eyes gave her the impression of an adorable cat. Indeed, atop her head were... \"Seeing them in person, I have to admit, cat ears do have a certain magic to them.\" \"Meow, meow?\" As if responding to his murmur, the animal ears, the same color as her hair, quivered. He hadn't had any chances to get up close and personal with a demi-human before. The genuine article was really a sight.  Subaru had never felt such anguish before at keeping his inner fur connoisseur in check. As Subaru drifted off into the clouds, the girl turned to Wilhelm as he greeted her. \"Hey, Grandpa Wil. Sorry to make you wait outside like that. It was boring, meow?\" \"Not at all. This kind individual deigned to engage these old bones in conversation, helping me pass the time pass quite enjoyably.\" \"Fumyu?\" At the old man's reply, the girl put a finger to her cheek and tilted her head. Her catlike pupils narrowed as she observed Subaru. After a supercilious inspection, she clapped her hands together and announced, \"Oh-ho. You're the boy Lady Emilia meowntioned.\" It was what she did next that caught him completely off guard. \"Uh, eh, ehh?!\" \"Don't move. It's time for a little inspection.\" Subaru was dumbstruck as the girl wrapped one arm around his neck, embracing him with her slender body. Since their heights were similar, her face pressed up to the side of Subaru's. The whisper of her voice in his ear made his body tingle all over, and he blushed in acute embarrassment. The soft sensation was accompanied by a curiously nice scent. The sudden turn of events froze him solid as he devoted every ounce of willpower to keeping his cool. \"Nom!\" \"Hyaa!\" His efforts crumbled when he felt a single nibble on his ear. Laughing at Subaru's adorable yelp, the girl released him from her embrace with satisfaction. He hastily backed up, tumbling down onto his bottom. \"Tee-hee, what a cute reaction. Anyway... The flow of water mana inside your body really is stagnant. If only there was time to do something about that, meow.\" \"Wh-wh-what were you doing?!\" \"Checking your body out a little. The bite was complimeowntary.\" Her glossy eyes locked on him as she provocatively bit her own pinkie finger. Even knowing that she was teasing him, Subaru was still agitated and couldn't dismiss it as mere humor. \"Oh, don't blush so much. Anymeow, I guess nobody's told you anything, have they?\" \"What do you mean? About what?\" \"About your body, and the deal, and things like that.\" Subaru's eyebrows rose as the girl seemed to be deliberately prancing around the details. Though he found it hard to ignore her peculiar disposition, he had to simply hang on for the ride. \"It would kinda help if you could tell me what those things are, you know.\" \"Oh, what to do? This is an important job, too... Tee-hee.\" \"Let us leave it at that, Ferris.\" Wilhelm scolded the girl for her excessive teasing. She pouted in response. \"Thhbt. You're too serious, Grandpa Wil. It's no fun.\" \"I am grateful to Sir Subaru for the tea, and besides, it is time to be on our way.\" Wilhelm bowed as he exchanged what somehow seemed like lighthearted banter with the girl. The girl still had a sour look about her, but she seemed to recover her humor as she winked in Subaru's direction. \"Sowwy. You look like you could use some more teasing, but we're meowt of time for today. If we don't get home soon, dear Lady Crusch will be so worried she won't sleep a wink tonight.\" \"I don't want to ignore that first part, but who's Lady Crusch?\" \"A name you'd better remember she's the lady who'll rule this country someday.\" At the last sentence, her carefree demeanor vanished, replaced by total seriousness. Then she gave him the dumbstruck Subaru a little wave. Wilhelm set his empty teacup back on the tray. \"It was a fine drink. Well then, Sir Subaru, may you be in good health.\" Wilhelm agilely leaped back up to the box seat and took hold of the land dragon's reins. \"Well, sorry for no introductions but Ferri's real busy. Later!\" \"Hey, wait! There's a mountain of things I still want to ask \" \"You should take all that up with Lady Emilia. If fate permits, we'll meet again at the royal capital. Bye meow!\" The girl left him nothing, her smile being the last thing he saw as she entered the dragon carriage. Realizing that his opponent had completely thrown him off balance, Subaru instinctively realized she was his mortal enemy. As Subaru held back his frustrations, Wilhelm cracked the reins with a brief \"Farewell.\" The land dragon brayed while the wheels of the heavy carriage creaked into motion. It stomped the ground several times before taking a powerful step, accelerating rapidly"}, {"text": "the next moment. Before Subaru's eyes, the land dragon burst into a high-speed sprint down the road, kicking up a large cloud of dust as it sped off into the distance. Subaru, left in abject defeat, had only the scent of the high-priced tea, largely left untouched, to console him. \" And did you fulfill your duties as envoy?\" \"Well, of course. I would never fail to do anything my Lady Crusch requests of me. Oh, Grandpa Wil, you're such a worrywart!\" Servant and envoy conversed as the land dragon left Roswaal Manor far behind. Wilhelm sat on the box seat, guiding the land dragon effortlessly. Behind him, the pale-haired girl poked her head out the window of the dragon-drawn carriage. In one sense, there were few places more suited to a private conversation. \"But I have to say, Grandpa Wil, I didn't expect you to speak to that boy while you waited. You don't like talking to people, do you?\" \"That is a most grave misunderstanding.\" \"Oh, is it now? Sowwy. It's just that you like slicing people more than talking to them, right?\" \"...That is an even worse misunderstanding.\" She had only been teasing, but Wilhelm offered no elaboration. The girl pressed her lips together in a pout, displeased with the stony reaction to her provocations. \"You're no fun. What, it was more fun listening to that boy than your dear Ferris? He didn't seem that special, but you like him that much, meow? You think he's actually so strong he's hiding his abilities?\" \"Not so. He is an amateur a cub without a mane. Nor does he have any talent worthy of mentioning. I am certain he is very ordinary.\" \"So why then, Grandpa Wil? You said you hated riffraff meowst of all.\" Everything the girl said painted him in the worst possible light. In response, Wilhelm calmly raised a hand and pointed at his face. \"It's his eyes.\" \" Eyes?\" The girl lowered her head as she inquired. Wilhelm simply raised his gaze, thinking back. \"The lad's eyes interested me ever so slightly. They said he has crossed the boundary of death. Many come close to the line, stop, and draw back, but...\" Wilhelm lowered his lids in thought as his words trailed off. \"Those are the eyes of one who has crossed once, no...several times, and returned. I know of no such being. You might say I was compelled by curiosity.\" But the girl blithely dismissed Wilhelm's expression of wonder. \"Meow, that doesn't make much sense...\" This time, Wilhelm answered with a strained smile. The girl continued, adding, \"But if that's true, Grandpa Wil, that boy's won't find an easy path to follow.\" The girl narrowed her eyes as she tossed her glossy gaze toward the broad back sitting against the box seat. \"Having the Sword Devil, Wilhelm van Astrea, interested in you is as unfortunate as the Witch having a thing for you.\" \"You're going to the royal capital, right? Well I'm going, too!\" With the guest having gone home, those in the reception room were able to breathe a sigh of relief an atmosphere thoroughly shattered with a single sentence out of Subaru's mouth. \"You seeee?\" Roswaal's grin drew a fatigued response from Emilia. \"I suppose I do...\" Subaru wore a sullen expression at being left out of their exchange, which prompted Emilia to let out a sigh. \"Just so you know, I'm not going there to play around. This is an important summons...very important.\" \"It's the royal selection stuff, right? I know, I know, it's a big enough deal to shake the whole kingdom up and everything, but I'm begging ya, take me, pleeease?\" Subaru knelt on the carpet and brought his hands together in a desperate plea. Emilia seemed conflicted as she surveyed the reactions of the others in the room. However  \"Ah, do not mind meee, I would say you are free to choose as you desiiire.\" \"This aroma... It can't be! Ram's treasured tea leaves?! Barusu is truly capable of anything...!\" Roswaal washed his hands of the situation, grinning all the while. Ram, on the other hand, was preoccupied with shock at a sudden discovery about something, and barely registered Emilia's predicament. And Rem, the final person, said, \"Taking him along is fine, isn't it? It seems that Subaru has acquaintances in the royal capital. He should visit them so they can rest easy.\" Until recently, Rem could be relied on to offer the most sensible opinions, but now she was solidly in Subaru's corner. \"Ooh, nice assist there! Rem, Reeem, come over here!\" \"Yes!\" Answering Subaru's call with a flower-like smile, Rem sat beside him and offered her head. Subaru began to stroke her hair with a clearly practiced hand, making sure he would not mess it up. Rem's obvious pleasure helped Emilia realize she had no allies in this argument. \"In the first place, what do you intend to do by coming, Subaru? There'll be a really important meeting about the royal selection, so I'll have my hands too full to deal with you at all. On top of that, in a real sense, this meeting is different than all the previous ones...\" \"That's even more reason to go. I'll cry if I'm not involved at all in the critical moment that might make Emilia-tan into royalty, even if it's way off on the edge of things.\" \"That's why I can't bring you. If you go with me, you'll try too hard again for sure. I don't want to make you do such a thing. Understand?\" \"You're the one who doesn't understand, Emilia. If trying too hard can help you, then I want to try too hard, see?\" \"I...don't...\" With bewilderment in Emilia's eyes as she murmured, an awkward silence fell over the reception room. It was Roswaal who broke the unpleasant mood with a clap of his hands. \"Yes, yeees, that is far enough. It seems this conversation is not maaaking any headway, so let us wrap things up. I have decided that Subaru shall accompany you to the capital. This is my command to him as his employer.\" \"Roswaal?!\" Roswaal completely bowled over Emilia's hesitance. As shock made itself plain in her expression, Subaru raised a thumb in approval. \"Yesss! You said it, Rozchi!\" \"Howeeever, Subaru is going to the capital strictly for medical reasons. All matters pertaaaining to the royal selection are striiictly separate. Understand?\" \"Huh? Medical...reasons?\" Subaru raised his eyebrows at the unexpected addition. He noticed that Rem's face, still resting against his shoulder, tensed slightly. Emilia wore a pained expression as well. \"In the course of your battle with the demon beasts, your abuse of magic ran your gate dry. Even if your physical wounds have healed, treating this affliction is a different matter. Surely you have noticed this yourself, have you nooot?\" \"...Just 'cause you say I'm in bad shape because of some invisible thing doesn't mean \" Emilia cut in. \"Subaru. Mana circulating through the body is the lifeline of every living creature. When that flow stagnates, it retards the circulation of the very essence of life... Please, don't try to hide it.\" As Wilhelm had pointed out, he was still experiencing the aftereffects of his physical wounds, like his limbs feeling heavier than they should. Subaru scowled at having been found out so easily, but he couldn't just brush off Emilia's plea. \"I know my body's in rough shape. So how is healing it connected to the royal capital?\" Rem replied, \"Because you need a top-quality healer to treat it. Subaru, did you meet the messenger?\" \"You mean the cat-eared girl? To be honest, not the type I want to bump into again, really.\" \"That messenger is an especially accomplished user of water magic, even by the staaandards of the capital. With such skill, it is no doubt possible to restore your health. As the child has various quirks, Lady Emilia went through quite some trouble toooo negotiate for cooperation...\" \"Roswaal, wait a...! That's...\" Roswaal, who'd apparently \"slipped up\" on purpose, feigned indifference to Emilia's indignation. \"...Emilia-tan, seriously? For my sake?\" Emilia blushed furiously as she raced down her list of excuses. \"I-I mean, it's partly my fault that you're not fully healed, Subaru. You wound up at the mansion because you shielded me... And I should really have done something about the demon beasts, but you did that in my place. So this is paying you back, or compensating you for your loss, however you want to look at...\" \"Look, I know you're hiding your gratitude because you're embarrassed, but you don't have to put it like that!\" Subaru wore a wry smile as he crossed his arms. \"Sounds like you're all for me going to the royal capital. Why are you acting like you're against it?\" \"Because if I just came out and asked, you'd get carried away and do something crazy. I know what kind of mischievous rascal you are...\" \"No one says 'mischievous rascal' anymore...\" Subaru murmured his retort as he pressed his hand to his neck. Emilia stuck out her tongue at him and the meeting drew to a close. \"Weeeell then, the matter is settled. Subaru shall accompany you on your trip to the royal capital. Preparations will require about one day, so departure shall be the morning after tomorrow is this acceeeptable?\" Roswaal's firm words were met by assorted replies from all assembled in the reception room. \"Haaah, I understand.\" \"No objections!\" \" As you command, Master Roswaal.\" And so, the plan for the Roswaal household's visit to the royal capital was established.  And two mornings later, Subaru's voice quivered with admiration at the gate of the mansion. \"Whoa, this is !\" Subaru beamed at the huge carriage parked before him. Of course, it was a land dragon that drew the carriage, but this one boasted a sheer size that put every other land dragon Subaru had seen to shame. \"He's so huge! And his scales are so hard! And his face is so scary!\" Emilia's lips softened into a slightly exasperated exhale at Subaru's exhilaration. \"He really is worked up like a little kid. Isn't he?\" She shifted her eyes to Rem, standing by her side, in search of agreement. But Rem gazed at the excited Subaru, enthralled. \"Subaru is cute when he gets like this. Do you not think so, Lady Emilia?\" \"Well, I do think it's cute, but... Mm, Subaru's been a bad influence on you, hasn't he?\" Emilia exhaled once again. Subaru, paying no heed to the girls' opinions, reached to touch the land dragon without a second thought and shouted in a strange voice. \"Hot damn! I'm so excited! I'm living the uber-fantasy dream right now, aren't I?!\" The land dragon's tolerance reached its limit around when Subaru lost himself in the moment and his touches turned into taps. A single sweep of its tail sent Subaru flying, spinning sideways. Several seconds later, Subaru emerged from the foliage, spitting leaves out of his mouth. \"Wh-what happened there?\" \"Subaru, land dragons are highly intelligent creatures. Even if they cannot speak, they can express themselves very well. That is why one must treat them with the utmost respect.\" \"Couldn't you have told me that a little sooner?!\" Brushing the leaves off his body, Subaru observed the shockingly huge land dragon. It narrowed its yellow eyes and let out a long breath, as if saying, That's what you get for running your hands over me. During the exchange, he finally caught sight of the people he'd been waiting for. Roswaal and Ram were coming out of the mansion. \"Hey there, what's up? You're late, aren't you? You're the one who set up the schedule, Rozchi. The guy who sets the schedule oughta live by it, don't you think, Rem?\" \"I agree! Although, I'm the one who woke you up today when you didn't wake up on time... You may praise me for it, if you like.\" \"Okay, all right, okay, that's enough, Rem.\" Subaru stroked Rem while urging her"}, {"text": "silence after her unnecessary addition. That earned him a sharp stare from Emilia, but he bore it as best he could and dragged the subject back to Roswaal. \"So why were you late? Everything looked in order at breakfast time.\" \"Ah, so sooorry. You see, with Ram staying behind, I will not be seeing her for a little while, yes? Thaaaat is whyyyy, I siiimply wanted to have a sooomewhat thorough farewell before our departure.\" Roswaal adjusted his collar, raising a finger as he excused himself. Beside him, Ram hastened to ensure her hair and clothing were also in order, plainly in high spirits. \"Okay, let's pretend I didn't ask. She's really gonna stay behind, though?\" \"It can't be helped. We can't leave the mansion unattended, and Miss Beatrice is here as well, so I must look after her. It's troublesome.\" \"You put what you really think at the end, huh. Oh well, Beako would have it rough if you weren't there to spoil her.\" \"I might point out that if Miss Beatrice heard that, she might smash you into little pieces this time.\" This trip to the royal capital was for Emilia, a candidate for the royal selection, and Roswaal, her sponsor. Subaru was going along for medical reasons, with Rem serving and guarding the other three. The group totaled four people. That left Ram and Beatrice, who would presumably be holed up in the archive of forbidden books, remaining in the mansion. \"You gonna be okay here by yourself, Big Sis? It's not easy keeping a mansion running all by your lonesome.\" \"You do not understand, Barusu. People can survive three or four days without food, after all.\" \"No plans to eat your own food, huh?!\" After Ram's lively, defiant statement provoked Subaru, she abruptly grabbed his collar and pulled him aside. Subaru's breath caught as her immaculate face drew close. \"Understand, Barusu? Keep a firm grip on the reins so that Rem does nothing rash.\" \"...You're the one who always goes to the royal capital, right? Why is Rem coming this ti...?\" \"It is infuriating you're forcing me to state the reason with my own lips.\" Ram shoved him in the chest, letting out a hmph as she walked off. By the time she was gone and Subaru looked back at the dragon carriage, Rem was just about finished loading the luggage. It seemed the time for friendly banter had passed; it was time to get the show on the road. \"Beako didn't come to see us off, though... What a cold-hearted loli.\" Subaru glared at the distant entrance to the mansion, cursing the absent girl. Of course, he had expected as much, leading him to mercilessly tease Beatrice the day before so he could leave without any regrets. Still, without her around to say good-bye, their departure was a bit lonely. But  \" Oh.\" His eyes met those of someone covertly watching them from the entrance to the foyer, open just a tiny crack. For a split second, the person in the dress recoiled at meeting Subaru's eyes, but she immediately reopened the door so he could see her more properly. It was as if she was trying to hide her sullen, forlorn expression. Subaru waved at her with little smile thanks to her typical behavior. In response, the pale-faced girl waved at him like she was shooing him away. She returned inside a moment later, having fulfilled her duty to see him off with minimal effort. When he turned back, Emilia was looking down at him as she leaned out of the dragon carriage's passenger cab. \" Subaru? What is it?\" The others had begun to get aboard without him realizing it. Subaru hurried over and reached for the doorframe. But white fingers reached out to him right before he could take hold of it. \"Here.\" Subaru hesitated for a moment before taking her hand. She pulled him up as he entered the cab. Now that Subaru was aboard, Rem nodded from her perch on the box seat toward Ram, standing alone on the ground. She took hold of the reins. The land dragon began to gently tread forward and pulled the carriage along. Subaru poked his head out of the window to give Ram one final wave. \"Well, we're off! Let's both take care now!\" \"At least try to evade the blows if something happens, Barusu. I do acknowledge your talent...as a decoy.\" \"I'm good for a little more than that, right?!\" Such was their clumsy early morning farewell. The land dragon accelerated, and their speed began to rise quite suddenly. The mansion grew distant in moments, and Ram's figure beside the front gate quickly shrank. A moment before Subaru lost sight of her, she held the edges of her skirt and slightly curtsied. It was an exceptionally maid-like way to see someone off. \"...I suppose that's picture-perfect for how a cute maid should do her job, huh...?\" When they entered a dip in the road, Subaru was no longer able to see Ram at all, and he finally sat down on his seat in the carriage and exhaled. He finally felt at ease enough to begin enjoying the comfort of riding the dragon carriage. The seat had a high-class feel appropriate to the expensive design of the vehicle, making for a surprisingly enjoyable ride given that the road was not an especially well-maintained one. Judging from how fast the scenery was scrolling past the window and his experience with cars from his own world, he guessed he was traveling close to sixty miles per hour. And yet the vibrations felt far lighter than one would expect, on par with a typical sedan. Roswaal laughed as Subaru turned this way and that, seat creaking under him. \"My myyy, are dragon carriages such a raaarity?\" \"Hey, is Rem fine all exposed on the box seat with us going this fast? It's not like I'm worried about her falling off... But won't her hair and clothes be a huge mess by the time we get to the royal capital?\" Emilia cut in to reply. \"There's no need to worry, since the dragon carriage is protected by a blessing.\" \"Blessing?\" \"Yes, blessing. Gospel granted by the world itself when a life is born. There are numerous kinds so there is no universal rule for them, but some species always receive one particular blessing. The 'wind repel' blessing land dragons receive is one example.\" \"Wind repel blessing, huh?\" \"When a land dragon gallops, the wind doesn't affect it whatsoever. The blessing extends to the carriage connected to it, so it isn't affected by the wind, either.\" \"And that goes for Rem sitting outside, too?\" When Subaru indicated he understood, Emilia replied with a satisfied look, \"Very good.\" Then Subaru asked, \"So, Emilia-tan, what about me? Do I have a blessing?\" Being summoned to another world was supposed to provide cheat abilities. Certainly, Return by Death was a special power without compare, but Subaru still hadn't lost his craving for something special that was a lot less...painful. \"Mm, I don't like to say this, but a majority of people are born without blessings. Also, everyone with a blessing is aware of it to my knowledge, so...\" \"Damn it, no good, huh... Nah, I get it. Meeting Emilia-tan was the miracle granted to me by the world, huh?\" \"Yes, yes. It'll be six hours until we get to the royal capital, so be a good boy and behave.\" \"Emilia-tan's so cooold!\" Emilia and Roswaal let Subaru sulk as they began to discuss what they would do upon arrival. It was serious business; naturally, Subaru couldn't get a word in edgewise. Unable to get involved in the conversation, he soon began to get bored out of his skull. \"Emilia-tan, Emilia-tan, let me sit by the window!\" \"What's wrong? Ah, motion sickness, huh? It happens a lot to people who aren't used to riding. I understand. I'll lend you Puck, so...\" \"I'm happy for the concern, but it's not that. And I'm not sure why you'd give me Puck for motion sickness. What, am I supposed to use him as my emergency barf bag?\" \"If it goes that far, even Puck might get upset...\" Emilia sank into thought, murmuring to herself, when Subaru shook his head. \"No, I just meant, Emilia-tan's too busy for me, so maybe seeing the scenery would take the edge off my solitude?\" At that point, a new voice cut in. Rem peered in through the small front window to the box seat. \" Well, if that's the case, you should come to the front here, Subaru. There's nothing to do inside the carriage if you're bored, right? Here, you can see the sights, and I'll be glad to talk with you.\" \"Th-that is a very tempting suggestion... Emilia-tan, you won't be lonely with me over there?\" \"To put it plainly, I'll be completely, absolutely all right.\" \"Do you have to be that all right with it?!\" Though the lack of effort to stop him gnawed at Subaru, he did have Emilia's permission to go. Since Subaru didn't mind, Rem, holding the reins, checked with Roswaal to confirm. \"May I stop temporarily, then? The land dragon will not be able to run again for a short time, however.\" \"Why's it gonna take time?\" wondered Subaru. Roswaal replied, \"Because blessings are not omnipotent eiiither. A land dragon's wind repel blessing, once suspended, cannot be reactivated for a brief period. Shall we stop for an early meal?\" \"Well, I don't wanna ask you to do that... If I open the door while we're moving, it won't slow down, right?\" As Subaru rose and reached toward the door, Roswaal smiled as he inferred Subaru's intent. \"If you have a certain degree of athletic ability, there is no proooblem, but if you fall, you will die.\" \"Eh, a little detour's no big deal. Wait up, Rem, and don't make an acrobat out of me here.\" \"I am concerned, but I understand. I shall wait. Come soon, come soon!\" At first, Rem looked worried at Subaru's suggestion, but very quickly sounded like she couldn't wait. Smiling thinly, Subaru rose to circle around the carriage to the box seat. But Emilia called out to stop him, handing over a belt attached to the wall of the carriage. \"Wait a moment, Subaru. Here you go. It's not that dangerous, so I won't stop you, but keep a good hold on this.\" \"If this is connected to the wall of the carriage... It's kind of like a seatbelt?\" \"The belts are for when the dragon carriage tilts to the side. Use it as a lifeline. I'll take it back when you get to the box seat.\" Subaru gracefully acknowledged Emilia's concern and wrapped the belt around his right wrist. As a worried-looking Emilia saw him off, Subaru opened the carriage door and embarked on his short outing. It was strange how the scenery passed so quickly, yet he didn't feel any wind whatsoever. Like he was traveling inside a glass bottle. Careful to not let the uncanny sensation get the best of him, Subaru gingerly grabbed hold of the carriage's rail and wound his way toward the box seat. If nothing else, he had good spatial awareness. The footing felt precarious, but his movements themselves were smooth. \"This is really something. So this is what having a blessing is like.\" Subaru took in the mysterious phenomenon of his current world as he suddenly regarded the whole situation objectively. The wind repel blessing affected the dragon carriage and everyone inside it. What would happen if something under the effect of the blessing touched something that wasn't? Feeling the desire to test his largely meaningless hypothesis, Subaru stretched his fingers up. Then, Emilia remembered something. \"Ah, that's right. Subaru, I forgot to mention, please don't put any part of your body too far from the dragon carriage. You'll end up outside of the blessing.\" \" No way.\" The moment after his fingers grazed"}, {"text": "the air, wind slammed into Subaru's entire body so hard he thought his hand would be ripped off at the wrist. The unexpected impact loosened his grip on the railing, and thus his support, blowing him straight to the side.  Off the dragon carriage, obviously. \"Ahbuhbuhbuh ?! This is bad, seriously bad, oh man!\" The wind buffeted him until he lost all sense of up and down. He would have smashed straight into the ground, but the belt around his right wrist snapped taut. Subaru's body floated parallel to the dragon carriage. Pain wracked his wrist until it seemed like it would tear off. His life was literally linked to Emilia's lifeline. The fierce strain and the unlucky turn had already blanked out Subaru's mind, but head snapped up amid the ferocious wind when the high-pitched sound of a chain reached his ears. Right in front of him, he could see a silver-colored snake with large, round, spiked head. \" I'm gonna have nightmares again.\" A moment later, the snake wrapped around Subaru's body. He raised a pathetic cry at how much tighter it was than he expected. But his body was hoisted up just before he became roadkill. He floated up and over the dragon carriage with ease; at the apex of his arc, the chain released him and tossed him forward. Subaru saw Rem at the bottom of his revolving world. She held the reins and her morning star with one hand, extending the other to Subaru to guide him down. As he realized that his life had somehow been spared, Subaru reflected, \"I'll live a slightly quieter life from now on...\" Subaru, saved from a messy landing, promptly blacked out. CHAPTER 2 ***  Subaru Natsuki's heart was beating at a fever pitch. \"Um, Emilia-tan... I'm a little conflicted saying so, but shouldn't we cut this out?\" Subaru wore an amicable smile, but cold sweat ran down his face as he made the suggestion. The point of concern was how they firmly held hands. They were in the royal capital. Specifically, Market Street, an exceptionally congested thoroughfare. No doubt, two people holding hands amid the constant bustle would look like an intimate couple. So long as no busybodies overheard scraps of their conversation, anyway. \"Absolutely not. This is you we're talking about, so you will do something strange as soon as you're out of my sight. I won't permit a single step unsupervised while we're in the royal capital. Understand?\" \"I'm really sorry for my stupidity in the dragon carriage! But this is treating me too much like a little kid!!\" The gaze Emilia leveled at Subaru was sharp and cold. Her trust in him had plummeted to rock bottom levels. Even if he was reaping what he had sowed, the treatment was extreme from Subaru's perspective.  Following his close call with an \"unscheduled stop\" from the dragon carriage, and the tragedy of waking up to a Roswaal lap pillow, the subsequent conversation created a plan to limit his activities in the royal capital. This situation was the result. \"I'm deeply aware that I was rash but... Could we at least not do the holding hands thing?\" \"Hmm, so that's what you're complaining about. We did this plenty in the village when it was a 'date,' didn't we?\" \"Back then I was fully prepared in mind and body, but I'm totally not right now. My hands are sweating!\" Even though his hands were sweating from the exceptional tension, Emilia looked completely at ease, which only made him more nervous. And as for what the at-odds couple was actually doing in the royal capital  A coarse, manly voice interrupted their cute little argument. \" Hey, can you stop flirting in front of a man's shop like this?\" Emilia's face stiffened. Well, that's sensible, accepted Subaru. After all, the voice of the scar-faced man carried an irrefutable argument. \"You're driving my customers away. Buy something or get moving already.\" \"Well, that's rude and inconsiderate. Here I came all ready to keep my promise. The shock alone could've made me forget completely, you know? Makes me wanna cry.\" As Subaru slumped his shoulders, the man, resting his elbow on the counter, indelicately snorted back at him. Subaru thought the shopkeeper's foul demeanor toward his customers was a good indicator that he'd picked the wrong profession. The shop, with a sign reading CADMON in I-script with bright colors, was a fruit vendor with colorful produce on display. The shop had a deeper significance for Subaru. \"Here I am returning the favor to the first guy I met in a new world, and this is the thanks I get?\" \"That's overstating it. It was almost a month ago, and we only spoke a few words, right? I mean, I vaguely recall it, but...\" The owner of the store, actually a very kind man, was striving to remember when Emilia pulled on Subaru's ear and bowed her head. \"Subaru, don't say crazy things. Sir, please don't force yourself on our account.\" Subaru pleaded with her, yelping \"Ow, ow!\" as she gave him a sharp glare and said, \"I thought you said you wanted to say hello to someone who'd helped you...but I never expected this promise to be a one-sided deal. Unbelievable.\" \"Hey, Emilia-tan, you can't just throw a promise between men into the garbage like that!\" \"Don't exaggerate! How many people do you think a shopkeeper meets in the course of one day?\" \"Emilia-tan, you can hurt people when you overestimate them. I mean, there's no way a shopkeeper with a scary face like that is doing that much busin... Ow, ow, I'm sorry!\" The shopkeeper, watching their back-and-forth, clapped his hands as he watched tears well in Subaru's eyes. \"I remember that pathetic look now. You're the kid without a coin to his name. So the ingrate returns without buying a thing.\" \"I'm gonna ignore how you remembered me...and I told you, I'm back so I can repay you!\" \"Ah, I see. Now that's a sense of responsibility. I like it.\" Now that he recognized Subaru, the shopkeeper smiled generously, hauling a wooden box from inside his store and placing it on the counter with a heavy thud. The red, round, vibrant fruits inside glistened under the sun. \"Here y'go, abbles like you promised you'd buy. How many? They're two copper coins each now.\" \"I'll go big and get ten. That'll cover the promise and then some.\" The shopkeeper clapped his hands at Subaru's magnanimity. In high spirits, Subaru put his hand into his pocket to get his wallet out when he noticed that Emilia, standing beside him, was doing the same thing. \"Er, Emilia-tan, why are you getting out your purse?\" \"What do you mean, why? You can't pay for something without money, can you?\" \"No, I mean, it's weird for you to pay instead of me, Emilia-ta... Old guy, what's with that look?\" \"You said you'd buy them when you had the money, but I can't condone making a rich girl pay in your place...\" \"Can't you see me arguing with my lovely lady here?! I'm trying to pay!\" The shopkeeper watched Subaru with suspicion as Subaru hastily thrust his wallet forward. The contents were his pay from his work at the mansion and, since Roswaal was a generous employer, Subaru really did have money to spare. \"Lemme see, two coppers per abble... So two silver coins should cover ten?\" \"Hey, don't you know the current exchange rate...? It's nine coppers for a silver coin right now.\" \"So two silvers and two coppers then? Here.\" Subaru fished the appropriate coins out of his wallet and handed them to the shopkeeper. The man was stunned into silence, tilting his head as he sighed at length. \"Took my word for it, huh. Kiddo, you really need to not be so trusting. The changes in the exchange rates are posted on the sign at the entrance to the market. If you wander in without giving that a good look, some crooked merchant will have you for lunch.\" The shopkeeper seemed to be warning him because his honesty made him a sucker here. True, paying based on only what he was told might be overly trusting, even if it was common sense back home. Back at the village close to the mansion, everyone was so tightly related in an isolated community that deceit was inconceivable, but a huge city like the royal capital was fertile ground for mischief. In other words  \"Man, you really are a super-good person, old guy.\" Subaru smiled playfully in a show of goodwill to the scar-faced shopkeeper. \"Only once in a while. I'd have nightmares if I swindled a customer who'd come back to fulfill a promise I'd nearly forgotten and who paid exactly what I asked for. That's it.\" \"So you're mean-looking guy with a heart of gold. Got it.\" \"Take it and go already! You've paid in full. Come again!\" The first half was intimidatingly gruff; the second half, a paragon of customer relations. Subaru, having a good laugh at the two extremes, picked up his bag of abbles with one hand, while Emilia led him away from the shop by the other. \"Thanks, old dude. Maybe I'll bump into you again someday.\" \"You're quite welcome as long as you buy something... And, miss, you really need better taste in men.\" \"Now, that's none of your business!\" As the shopkeeper watched them go, Subaru shot him the middle finger as he and Emilia entered the throng of people. As the distance between them widened, the human wave obstructed his vision, and the good-natured shopkeeper disappeared from view. \"I'm glad he actually remembered you... I'm a little surprised, though.\" \"Yeah, he definitely seems scary at first, but you get used to it pretty quick...\" \"Not that. I mean, I'm flabbergasted you did the math that quickly.\" \"No one says 'flabbergasted' anymore...\" Even as Subaru teased Emilia for using outdated words, he didn't mind praise. He didn't look it, but he was actually pretty good at arithmetic. \"I've got a knack for basic math. So you go for the intellectual, cerebral type, huh?\" \"Cerebr...? I'm not sure what you mean, but that's not the only reason I'm surprised... Just a little coincidence. Tee-hee, it's funny, actually.\" \"Ah, that's a cute face. What, what, where's the coincidence?\" \"That's a secret between me and the shopkeeper's daughter. So what's next?\" Subaru had some idea what Emilia meant by a secret, but he didn't probe deeper, opting to readjust his grip on the bag of abbles instead. The royal capital was far too big for casual strolling. His first objective of the day had been to visit the first person he'd met in this world. Now that he'd repaid his gratitude to the fruit merchant, his next objective was a no-brainer. \"My next goal...is to see Felt and Old Man Rom. Reinhard took care of them after I blacked out, right?\" \"Mm, yes. At first, I thought he'd let them go without any problems, but...all of a sudden, Reinhard went pale and said he was taking the girl with him.\" \"That sounds like a criminal kidnapping her, but that doesn't exactly fit him... Crap, the good-looking ones get all the breaks.\" Subaru clicked his tongue as he sullenly recalled the handsome, red-haired young man. Emilia watched from beside him, putting a finger to her lips as she pondered the issue. \"If you want to get in touch with Reinhard, we should go to the garrison on this side of the Nobles' District. There's a building there that's... Well, it's nothing but a pile of rubble now.\" Subaru agreed with Emilia's suggestion. After all, the fact Reinhard had been walking the streets of the capital \"off duty\" made it clear he was a guard, most likely high-ranking a knight. \"I guess that settles it. Let's head to the station and get ahold of Reinhard from there. Well, let's get a move o... Oh?\" \"What? Something wrong?\" \"Nah, I"}, {"text": "was just counting the abbles in the bag... There's eleven of 'em.\" He had counted a total of eleven big, round, ripe, vibrant red fruit. It was highly unlikely the merchant, proprietor of his own store, had miscounted. \"That old guy's too generous.\" As he recalled the prickly shopkeeper, he felt a warm, fuzzy feeling bubbling up inside and smiled to himself.  Keeping his promise was the right choice. \"Come to think of it, what did you mean, get ahold of him from the garrison? There're no phones, right?\" As they walked toward the garrison, Subaru voiced a sudden doubt. \"'Phones'?\" Emilia's mystified expression suggested she'd never heard the word in her life. \"I mean, like, a device to talk directly to someone in a distant location...\" \"You mean a metia? They should have magic mirrors...\" \"Magic mirrors?\" \"Metia that display one person to the other and let you talk between them. They're fairly common as magical artifacts go, so they're apparently used in a number of different places...\" \"Gotcha. So there is a way to do it. Mirrors! That's so magical.\" When Subaru thought about it, he realized he'd never laid eyes on a real metia. He'd heard the term metia from Old Man Rom at the loot cellar and pretended his cell phone was one, but that was it. \"Either way, it's a ray of hope. If we can get in touch with Reinhard we can clear everything up.\" \"I suppose so. Rem will be upset if we don't get back soon, so we'd better hurry...\" Rem had wanted to go with Subaru on his tour of the royal capital, too. However, she had too much work to do as the entire group's caretaker so, with great reluctance, she allowed Emilia to be his guide in the city. No doubt she was tearing through her work out of spite at that very moment. \"Well, it's too bad for Rem, but for me, not having her here is a bit of a perk...\" \"...? What did you say just now?\" \"Ahh, nothin'. I'm just like, I don't have to be embarrassed if she sees us holding hands and stuff... Hey, Emilia-tan, about that royal selection thing tomorrow...\" Seeing the tense, guarded look on Emilia's face, Subaru abandoned his carefree tone. But then Emilia's expression vanished entirely, and the gloom filling her violet eyes only accentuated her demeanor. The morning the envoy came, as well as during the time before their departure, Subaru had questioned Emilia several times, but she never lowered her guard. Their arrival at the royal capital had not changed that. \"I've told you several times, haven't I? I brought you here so you can keep your promises and get healed. You don't need to concern yourself with me.\" \"There's no way I can do that. I mean, here I am, holding your hand... How could I not concern myself like this?\" At some point during his reply, Emilia had stopped walking, holding Subaru back. Under her hood, a single lock of silver hair spilled down Emilia's face. Subaru couldn't help but think about how it looked like a falling teardrop. \"I want to help you. If you're having a hard time, I want to do something. That's how it's been...and that's how it's gonna be.\" *** Subaru admitted his feelings honestly. He intended to exhaust every effort on Emilia's behalf. He knew exactly what motivated him, but  \"Why?\" \"......uhh?\" \"Why do you go to such lengths for me, Subaru? I don't understand.\" The incredulity in Emilia's eyes thoroughly bewildered Subaru. When her hand squeezed his in search of an answer, Subaru's throat caught as he struggled for words. \"That's...\" *** \"Th...that's...!\" Even if he knew what he ought to say, he needed the resolve and courage to speak the words. And suddenly put to the test, Subaru lacked both. In the end, Subaru said nothing as Emilia waited. As the silence dragged on, he ran out of the time Emilia had given him. \"...Let's go. The sun will set if we don't do this soon.\" Emilia started forward again, pulling him along by the hand. Subaru followed, clenching his teeth at his own lack of nerve. As he watched her small, slender back, he hated himself for losing sight of what he needed to say. He despised his weakness in the face of the girl who had saved his life and his spirit the girl who lit the brightest fire in his chest. As Subaru sank into a vortex of negativity and self-hatred, he started as he suddenly heard a genderless voice, like someone whispering straight into his skull. \" You'd best leave things at that, Subaru.\" *** \"It's me. I'm speaking directly into your mind, so Lia can't hear you.\" The method of communication was odd, but the voice was certainly familiar. It was the spirit Emilia had formed a pact with, the supernatural cat always at her side Puck. Subaru was taken aback at the sudden telepathic communication. \"...! So you can hear me, too, then?\" \"You catch on fast. I wasn't sure at first, but...it was easy to make a connection, so you might have a high compatibility with spirits. Maybe that's why Betty likes you.\" Puck's one-sided knowledge of the situation added irritation to Subaru's gloom. He felt left out. \"Lia's all right. Don't lose hope from that conversation just now.\" \"That's... How the hell do you know?\" \"I just know. I know everything there is to know about Lia, after all.\" Even if he didn't put it into words, Puck's fatherly love for her was evident in his tone. The spirit's guarantee made Subaru feel worse about his own powerlessness. Puck had only reminded him that, when all was said and done, he didn't know a single thing about Emilia. The Emilia he knew was a stunningly beautiful half-elf girl. She was a candidate to become the next monarch of Lugunica, under the care of her sponsor, Roswaal. He knew she was honest, naive, willful, and soft-hearted; her personality drove her to help others even at the cost of herself, making her like an older sister, but also an easy mark. But all these facts barely scratched the surface. He knew nothing of the girl inside, her emotions, or even how and why she came to pursue the monarchy. \"Putting your heart and soul into everything is pretty rough on you, huh?\" Even if closed lips could conceal his shallow thoughts, he could not silence his very mind. It was impossible to hide everything from Puck, who scooped up surface thoughts like so much soup broth. \"Hey, Subaru.\" He didn't want to face his own wretchedness any longer. He weakly denied Puck, but these words, whispered to the mind and not the eardrum, never arrived. With Subaru expressing his will through silence, Puck instead continued, \" Don't get my hopes up too much, or Lia's.\" \"...Huh?\" \"Hope is a gentle poison. Even if you know it will ruin you, you can't help but reach for the illusion that seems close enough to grasp. You are truly a poison.\" To Subaru, who had viewed Puck as an unflappable, tranquil being, those words contained enough force to change his impressions completely. \"What do you mean by...\" But before he could finish his perplexed reply, Emilia, guiding his hand, stopped walking and said, \"We're here.\" Subaru pitched forward, in danger of bumping into Emilia's back, but he somehow managed to right himself. When he raised his head, he belatedly understood why this was called the Nobles' District. The scenery was more refined than that of the slums or Market Street, with much more money invested in it. This was true for not only the buildings, but also the streets, the walls, and the trees had aesthetic appeal. As the name suggested, this was the ward where the upper crust resided. Their destination was a building that served as the gateway, sealing off the single street connecting it to the outside world. The solid stonework structure was far plainer than anything in the Nobles' District behind it. The back of the building contacted a section of the wall, allowing someone on the roof to survey the whole city in a single sweep. However, the purpose of this vantage point was obviously to keep watch over what was below, not to enjoy the sights. \"This is the garrison for the royal capital guards. They also check the identity of people entering the Nobles' District.\" \"So it's like a customs checkpoint, too. That's probably what they built it here for, huh?\" He could appreciate it on logical and practical grounds, but his aversion to it was no doubt an instinctive reaction to something so emblematic of bureaucracy. Emilia said nothing to the reluctant Subaru as she headed for the garrison. Mindful of the time and place, she finally let go of his hand. He mourned the loss of her palm. And just as Emilia was about to knock on the garrison's door, it opened toward the outside as a young man poked his face out. \" My, it is not often I meet an acquaintance in a place like this. It has been some time, Lady Emilia. You have not changed at all since then.\" The young man bowed formally to Emilia whom he had recognized even though she was wearing the hood. That alone put Subaru on guard, but Emilia's expression was serene as she nodded toward the youth. \"...Yes, thank you. No changes in particular, no. I see you are also in good health, Julius.\" \"I am honored that you remember me. Your beauty has only increased, Lady Emilia.\" The young man named Julius praised Emilia's good looks in a very polished manner. He had violet hair and an equal mix of snobbery and politeness. He was about half a foot taller than Subaru, putting him at around five foot nine, give or take. His body was slender, but he did not seem frail; rather, he had a handsome, supple frame. His amber eyes, no doubt bewitching to the opposite sex, suited him to a detestably fine degree. \"Is it not a rarer sight for you, a royal guardsman, to be here at the garrison?\" The man wore an extravagant uniform with a dragon emblem. A slender sword like a rapier hung from his hip. Julius's appearance and manner of speech suited such a title. \"I've come to express appreciation to the soldiers for their services and take the opportunity to observe the city...or something like that. A friend asked me to pay a visit, and I suppose it is good to put friends first once in a while. After all, I was able to lay my eyes upon a beautiful flower along my path through these streets.\" With well-practiced motion, Julius intimately grasped Emilia's hand as he spoke, bending down on one knee. Without a single pause for breath, he brought his lips to the back of her pale hand. Subaru watched this course of events in complete shock. After a few moments' delay, his emotions came to a boil as this man's conceited behavior rubbed him in every wrong way imaginable. His breath ragged, Subaru was about to rush over and give Julius a piece of his mind when Emilia held him in check with her other hand. \"Thank you, Julius. I regret that this is very sudden, but...I would like to get in touch with the castle about a certain matter.\" As Julius listened to Emilia's request, his voice lowered as he looked at Subaru. \"Ah, so that is why you came to the garrison... This matter, does it concern him over there?\" Not enjoying Julius's condescending gaze, Subaru locked eyes with him and glared back. \" His character and demeanor form a poor match for those clothes. Such an appearance does not make a good first impression.\" \"Thank you for the kind advice. I have some advice for you, too. If you eat curry udon in an outfit"}, {"text": "like that, the broth stains will really stand out, so you definitely should pass.\" \"Thank you for going out of your way to say so. I shall pay it heed if I should ever have such an opportunity.\" The smiles they exchanged were most certainly not friendly. Subaru did not like him. Julius no doubt thought the same. In that spirit, he promptly ignored Subaru and turned his attention back to Emilia. \"I shall guide you to the magic mirror, then, though it pains my heart to bring you into a humble place such as this, Lady Emilia.\" \"You needn't be concerned. I'm quite all right, so please.\" \"Very well. Come in.\" With that, Julius went back inside first. Subaru snorted a bit and stepped forward. But Emilia turned to him in front of the doorway, obstructing his path. \"Subaru, you wait here.\" \"...Huh?\" Subaru was taken aback. Emilia's long eyelashes trembled a bit as she lowered her eyes. \"I'd like to have you come, but I don't think Julius will take it well, so wait here.\" \"The heck? You care about that annoying jerk's feelings more than mine?\" \"It's not that. It's not about upsetting him, it's that I don't want to put you through something you'll probably hate, so please, Subaru, wait here.\" \"I hate it enough as it is already. The way that bastard licked Emilia-tan's hand all over like it was nothing...!\" Subaru had pegged that particular action as a sign of perversion, adding one more item to his list of negative impressions. It only compounded how he didn't want Emilia to have any contact with that man. Subaru's masculine instincts wanted desperately to warn her to watch out for Julius. \"This won't take long, so please, be good and wait.\" Her words were very gentle, yet heavily tinged with rejection. Emilia was fundamentally distancing Subaru from her own affairs. But afraid of incurring her displeasure for intruding, he was unable to speak a word in protest. She vanished behind the door as it closed, separating them physically and metaphorically with a dull thud. Subaru murmured, \"...I'm super-uncool.\" Kicking around a rock some distance from the entrance as he waited for Emilia, Subaru distracted himself from his seething self-hatred as he recalled the annoying man. \"She said he was a royal guard, didn't she?\" If Subaru's hunch was correct, that meant he was a Knight of the Royal Guard. If knightly orders existed in this world, surely Knights of the Royal Guard served the royal family directly. But where did they stand in a country with no sitting monarch? \"The whole royal family died from plague, huh. They might make the elites in the Knights of the Royal Guard take responsibility for not seeing that coming and disband them, tossing them and their families out onto the street... Well, that sucks for the rest of 'em, but I wouldn't mind that annoying bastard going through a little hell...\" The somber thought gave him some small measure of satisfaction. He wondered who he'd picked up that pettiness from. In the past, Subaru would have never directed his ire about the inconveniences that befell him toward another person. He wouldn't have given a single thought to speaking ill of heaven or venting his frustrations. In a good sense, he was now concerned with appearances in a way he had not before arriving here. He wanted to live a life that he could show the honest and forthright girl close to him without shame. It was a vague thought... But he wondered if he had really changed a little? He couldn't tell. \" Mm?\" As Subaru ruminated, he felt a disturbance and frowned at a glimpse of something at the edge of his vision. For a brief moment, his gaze had wandered toward the city for no particular reason and caught sight of a colorful dress disappearing into a back alley. The color was such a vivid red that it seemed to sear itself into his eyes, even with only a glance. And had the dress been merely traveling down the street, no doubt it would not have registered in Subaru's mind whatsoever. Even entering a back alley, the garment would not have caught his attention, save for the fact that the girl wearing it was being led there by seedy-looking men. \"Just now... There's no way it could be a that, right...?\" A major crime in broad daylight in front of the guards' garrison or so he thought, but perhaps this was a case of hiding in plain sight. Upon closer inspection, the location was in the garrison's blind spot. Subaru had seen them by dumb luck the instant he'd entered an alleyway while he moped. \"Setting aside that I just feel calmer in narrow spaces, I'd better go get the gua \" Subaru hesitated. He hadn't witnessed an actual crime taking place. It was very possible he'd misinterpreted what he'd seen. At any rate, Subaru bore a powerful, arbitrary grudge against the garrison at that moment. \"Plus, if I'm wrong, it might make trouble for Emilia... It won't be too late to call for help after I confirm things first.\" Voicing this excuse to himself, Subaru shot a glance at the garrison as he ran toward the alley. He felt guilty about going back on his promise to wait patiently for Emilia, but a higher duty called. Plus, Subaru's resentment toward Julius. And hearing an angry shout the instant he entered the alley, Subaru was firmly convinced he'd made the right decision and picked up his pace. \" Why, you little bitch! I'm not messin' around here!\" \"Don't mess with me, woman! You want a punch to that pretty little face?!\" \"Do not get ahead of yourself, peasant. Those of low character enjoy appropriately lowly fates.\" Several voices argued, and three men surrounded a lone woman in the narrow alley, cutting off her avenues of escape. This was a stereotypical street punk encounter, but what left a burning impression on Subaru was the striking appearance of the girl who repulsed the atmosphere hanging over the cramped alley. Her hair was a radiant orange like the sun itself, flowing through a single barrette before spilling down her back. Her dress was blood crimson, and above all, the overwhelming beauty of the girl herself shone in her sordid surroundings. Even untrained eyes could tell at a glance that the jewelry on her neck, ears, and fingers were of the highest quality. Her full outfit, coordinated from top to bottom, had to be worth at least a hundred times the money Subaru had on him. And yet, all that extravagant jewelry was incomparable to her face. She had red, defiant eyes. Her faintly pink lips emphasized the hue of her skin, white as the purest snow. One might spend an entire lifetime and fortune in search of such beauty and never find it. Subaru realized all over again how often this world defied his idea of common sense. The girl crossed her arms in a calm posture that only accentuated her bountiful breasts. He couldn't just stand back and watch while her attitude raised the men's hackles ever higher. \" H-heya! Sorry to keep you waiting, honey!\" Subaru immediately raised a hand and wedged himself into the middle of the action. Laughing by himself as he interrupted the surprised trio, Subaru put his hands together in supplication. \"It seems that she's caused you a little trouble, but could you do me favor and let it slide? I'm sure you can tell just by looking at her, but the girl is a little...y'know...in the head. You get me?\" Her celebrity-like style practically screamed \"Rob me, please!\" and she was hanging around the alleyways in a city with questionable levels of law enforcement. What sane person would be so reckless? Subaru asserted to the stunned men, \"So that's how it is!\" and grasped the girl's hand. \"Mm...!\" \"Hey, let's move on before you cause the good boys here any more trouble. Let's do like we promised today and feed each other sweets, just the two of...\" Subaru quickly laid things out, casting her in the role he'd assigned Emilia in his fantasies, aiming to get her out of there as fast as possible. However... \"Uhh?\" \"Do not...touch me so freely!\" She put her other hand on top of Subaru's, twisting her body to yank the boy forward. A moment after he realized he'd lost his hold on her wrist, his face slammed right into the wall. \"Wht th hll?!\" \"Goodness, I take a step outside and this happens? Commoners drooling all over me...\" As he stood back up, Subaru glowered at her, as if finding her words beyond comprehension. \"Play along, damn it! That's the time-honored method of saving a girl from street punks! You're supposed to catch on to these things!\" \"I do not know what you mean. I simply do as I please.\" \"A woman who slams your face into the wall is the worst kind of first meeting, you know?!\" Not only had she not picked up on his attempt to extricate her, but she treated him as a pervert. The pain and humiliation made him regret exercising his limited courage. Thinking that the men must find it hilarious, Subaru turned toward their pitying gazes again. \"Hey, wait a minute, I remember you guys.\" Subaru tilted his head with the bad feeling that he was reliving a prior crisis. Subaru compared the faces of the men before him against the ones in his memory, clapping his hands together when a light suddenly came on. \"Ah, Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest. Eh, wait, no way. Does this city have any other punks besides the three of you?!\" Of course he remembered them. These were the Three Stooges he'd encountered on the first day of his summoning. Having experienced death at their hands once already, Subaru regarded them with caution. But... \"I'm more depressed than anything else. Don't you guys have any other way to make a living?\" The three men looked at one another and began to talk, oddly relaxed about Subaru's presence. \"First he sticks his nose in, gets his face smashed on a wall, and now he says he remembers. He bonkers?\" \"Hey, I don't wanna mess with him. You deal with him.\" \"I don't wanna, either. Why don't we just shiv him somewhere?\" With the supposed thieves having finally lost all vestiges of belligerence, the silent girl broke the atmosphere. \"Oh my, so irresolute. Are you a bunch of little girls? If so, adorn yourselves in a manner suitable for my eyes. Yes, some fine jewelry on your burly, hairy bodies would make for quite a sight.\" The girl put a hand over her mouth, ripping into them with a look of complete contempt. For an instant, the men did not understand what she had said to them. A moment later, they seethed as one. \"Don't mess with me, bitch!\" \"Who do you think you are, girl?!\" \"What's with the high and mighty talk, huh?!\" Subaru chimed in. \"You're seriously off your rocker! We oughta spank into your girly butt the fact that we're guys wait, why am I jumping in with these idiots?!\" Subaru was surprised at himself for impulsively taking part in a four-man gang. He was acutely aware that blame for the incident lay on the girl's side, too. \"So I get where you guys are coming from, but I'm not turning back now. Besides, I'm carrying my own grudge from the first day we met.\" \"I dunno what's with that little bitch, but what's the deal with you, shit face?\" Apparently they didn't remember Subaru at all, a pretty meager reaction considering Emilia had sent them packing with magic, they'd suffered a crushing three on one defeat at Subaru's hands, and they'd knifed Subaru to death sometime after that. \"Well, none of those events happened in this world, so all they'd remember here is... Oh yeah, the good-looking guy showing"}, {"text": "up?\" \" ! Hey, I remember him! From an alley off Market Street a little while back...\" \"Oh, that one! The brat with a screw loose! He hasn't changed one bit, huh?\" \"It's really him. The clothes are different, so I didn't recognize 'im!\" When realization came over Dumb's face, Dumber and Dumbest followed in short order. Though Subaru was no fan of how they'd characterized him, he clapped to applaud their effort. \"Good, good, I'm glad you remember me. So since you know me, how about you let this slide?\" \"Are you nuts? We like you way less than someone we don't know. Just 'cause it's three-on-two instead of three-on-one doesn't change a thing.\" Even though Subaru hoped to bluff his way through the scene, the willful girl paid no heed to his plans whatsoever. \"Correction. It is not three-versus-two, it is three-versus-one-versus-one.\" \"Can you shut up for a bit?!\" He wished he could have gone back in time five minutes and told himself not to bother, but the die had been cast. Besides, Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest weren't patient types. Watching the temperature in their eyes dropping, Subaru knew it was only a matter of time before there'd be blood. \"...No choice, then. I really didn't want to resort to this, but...\" \"Ahh? Would you stop messin' around already? What the hell can you \" \"I'll have you know, I know Mr. Reinhard, guys. Reinhard and I are best buds. If I yell, he's gonna come running right over!\" \" Wha?!\" This was his trump card, \"The Fox Invoking the Lion,\" and it worked wonders. The mention of Reinhard's name scared the trio witless. The effect was immediate, and Subaru forced himself to act like a big shot to cow them further. \"So what'll it be, guys? One shout and he'll make mincemeat out of you with his bare hands.\" It was a desperate bluff, but the men gritted their teeth resentfully. \"W-we'll let you. This time.\" \"Remember this, it's not like you beat us or anything!\" \"And it's not like we're scared of Reinhard's name or anything!\" The men immediately fled the alley, their weak, stereotypical parting shots only enhancing their petty crook image. Only when they had completely gone did Subaru exhale deeply. Somehow he'd ridden the crisis out. Now if he could only get the girl to soften just a little  \"What? Are those the eyes of a beggar? You shall receive nothing from me, commoner.\" \"They are not. Well, would it kill you to thank me for saving you at least?\" \"Save?\" The girl inclined her head slightly with a mystified expression. She closed her eyes, sinking into thought, and let out a small sigh when she arrived at an answer. \"So that prattling of yours earlier was meant to save me. Mm, I had not noticed.\" \"You didn't notice?! This sets new standards for dense, you know?!\" \"Do not misunderstand. No difficulty would have befallen me even without your help. I can only marvel at your taking pride in resolving something that was not a problem to begin with.\" \"I don't know what you mean, so what do you mean? I mean what, like, okay, you're super-strong, so you'd have been fine even if I hadn't saved you?\" \"Not at all. It is far simpler. This world is composed solely for my convenience. Nothing occurs that is not to my benefit. It is thanks to me that I was saved, yet you attempt to claim this as your own exploit. Have you no shame at stealing credit from another?\" With one blatant forward thrust of her bountiful breasts, the girl was asserting, as if it was natural, as if it was obvious, as if it was common sense that she was absolute. The way her eyes radiated like an arrogant sun made Subaru keenly aware that this was someone he absolutely should not associate himself with whatsoever. \"Th-that so. My bad for being too big for my britches. Sorry to interrupt. Bye now.\" He determined it was best to agree with such a person as much as possible not provoke her, just nod enthusiastically, avoid any defiance, and do a quick about-face away from her. But an unexpected call came from behind, and Subaru cursed his feet for stopping. \" Wait.\" \"Wh-what?\" \"What is in that bag there? Show me.\" The girl strolled around him, nodding to indicate that Subaru should put down the bag. He didn't want to oblige, but defying her would only prolong things, so Subaru reluctantly opened the bag and showed its contents a mountain of ripe, red fruit. \"I do not recognize them. These fruits... What are they?\" \"They're, um, abbles. The fruit of knowledge. Never seen one before?\" Blinking at his reply, the girl snorted as she looked at Subaru like he was an imbecile. \"You lie. Do not make me laugh. Abbles are white, understand? I have absolutely never seen fruits such as these.\" Astonished, Subaru replied, \"Well, they're white when you peel them...\" It was the girl's turn to stare blankly. He remarked, \"Wait, don't tell me you've never seen an abble that hasn't been peeled...?\" \"Mm, I have indeed never seen one that was not at the dinner table. Very well. Hand them over.\" Nodding in satisfaction, the girl audaciously demanded he give up his the abbles. He'd saved the girl from a robbery only for the girl to attempt robbery on him. Subaru wanted to see Emilia again. He wished Rem were healing him that moment. \"Hand them over. I shall split one open and see for myself. Or is it only lies that dribble from your lips?\" \"...Handle with care, okay?\" Judging resistance to be the fool's choice, Subaru took an abble out of the bag and placed it in her hand. The girl took the abble, turning it around as if studying the sensation upon her palm. Then, her left hand flashed toward the abble neatly severing it vertically and horizontally into four equal pieces. The girl licked the fruit juice off her fingers, satisfied at the cross section. \"Sweet and sour... Certainly, this is the taste of an abble. I will spare your life.\" \"Spare my... No, never mind. Anyway, you're satisfied now, I take it?\" \"Ab-so-lute-ly not!!\" Her statement, crossing the line from arrogant behavior to tyrannical, made even Subaru erupt in indignation. \"You don't even care that you sliced one up out of the blue. Why do I have to give you all of them? These abbles aren't just abbles. They're the bonds between two men!\" \"Enough prattle. How about this?\" The girl pointed at the bag, her lips cracking into a wry smile. \"We shall wager for them.\" \" Wager?\" \"Yes, a simple wager. Something easy, flipping a coin and guessing whether it is heads or tails. A single abble shall rest upon each attempt. How about it?\" She was proposing a contest, but all Subaru could do was laugh at her suggestion. \"You just say the darndest things. Why would I agree to that in the first place? There's nothing in that gamble for me. I can just run like heck out of here!\" \"Of course, I shall have something worth winning at the ready. Let's see...\" The girl touched her tongue to her lips as she sank into thought. She shifted her bewitching eyes toward Subaru, lifting up her ample bosom with her crossed arms. \"Should you win the wager, you may touch my breasts. How about it?\" Subaru sighed at length and shook his head at her offering up her own body as a gambling chip. The way she offered herself in a wager without a single reflection on the consequences of losing indicated the kind of personality that ruined gamblers' lives. No doubt she thought that her beauty allowed her to seduce any man setting eyes on her. He thought her worldview was regrettable and rather sad. The girl gave Subaru a slightly suspicious glance, perhaps wondering what was taking him so long. With that gaze bearing down on him, Subaru told her exactly what he thought. \"You need to take better care of yourself. That's crazy talk... And you can't seduce me with that look!\"  And so, Subaru found himself still in the alley, having lost seven straight bets. \"That makes seven wins for me. There are only three abbles left, you know?\" \"No way! You're robbing me blind!\" \"Now, then.\" The girl picked up one of the abbles lying before her and deposited it into the bag at her side. Subaru was down to his last two chips, so to speak. When their game had begun, he had ten he never imagined he'd go on an eight-in-a-row losing streak, leaving him in danger of losing the shirt on his back. \"Now you know what happens to those who challenge me. I am the pinnacle, and you are suited only to wriggling around at the bottom.\" \"Hey, isn't it a little extreme to treat me as the bottom of the pyramid just because I'm losing? Pride comes before the fall, you know...a fall to rock bottom!\" \"You may rest easy. All is rock bottom except for me. The world has me, and all else is beneath.\" Subaru wanted to refute her irrational logic, but that would only make him sound like a sore loser. \"Now then, what shall we do next? If you do not trust your luck at coin flips, a different wager is fine.\" \"Oh, now you've done it... I'm down in the bottom of the ninth, but I propose we do rock-paper-scissors!\" \"Rock, paper, scissors...?\" When the girl raised an eyebrow at the unfamiliar term, it gave Subaru a tiny ray of hope. \"Rock-paper-scissors is a way to settle things. At the signal, you make a shape with your hand, and the stronger shape wins. There're three shapes: rock, paper, and scissors. Paper beats rock, scissors beats paper, rock beats scissors. Understand?\" \"Oh, yes, I understand. A rather amusing game, it would seem. What is this signal?\" \"Well, when you finish saying rock-paper-scissors, you show your hand when you get to the 'scissors' part. Oh, and if you both show the same hand, you say rock-paper-scissors again as the signal and do it over on the spot.\" \"That is all there is to it? Very well. I shall go with paper.\" \"You're already showing your hand?!\" Subaru shuddered at the breathtaking speed with which she strategized. He'd just finished explaining the rules, and here she was, picking it all up like a pro, poised greedily with victory in her grasp. He supposed he should praise her. She said to him, \"Let us begin, then. Rock...paper...\" Subaru felt nervous about falling behind. \"Ah, wait, time-out. I haven't decided what I'm gonna go with ye \" With his thoughts still in a jumble, the girl reached the signal and raised her hand high. \" scissors!\" The girl's hand indicated paper, just as she had proclaimed. Subaru's hand was rock. She commented, \"It would seem that you owe me another abble, complaints about the method notwithstanding.\" \"It's not that! Statistically, people subconsciously keep their hand closed when they're tossed into rock-paper-scissors without warning! Ugh, I'm such an idiot!\" The strategist had been defeated by his own scheme. Subaru certainly looked defeated as he handed the girl her abble.  With this, Subaru was down to his very last abble. \"Now, let us gamble for the last abble and bring this to a conclusion, shall we?\" \"You wouldn't show mercy on me and let me keep the last one, would you?\" \"All the abbles you carried belong to me. Leaving one in your hands is the same as leaving you all. It is all or nothing. That being the case, we may as well gamble for all the abbles on the final round. That goes for both of us,\" the girl added, meaning it would be her ten abbles against Subaru's one. It was truly emblematic of the girl's ruinous, high-stakes way of thinking. He asked, \" How about"}, {"text": "rock-paper-scissors for the last one, too?\" \"I have already made my decision. All that remains is for you to choose the method and present me with my abble.\" The girl showed no doubt about her victory, nor any intention of letting Subaru go. In other words, he had no choice but to harden his resolve to trap a Rakshasa by the vilest of means. The two called out simultaneously, \"Rock...paper...scissors!\" When both showed their hands, sound vanished from the world. With her fist clenched in a rock, the trembling in the girl's red eyes only grew. \"Th-this is...\" \"Listen and be amazed, look and be astounded! Behold, the ultimate combat technique RoSciPer!!\" \"What is that...thing?! You did not inform me such a hand was possible!\" \"Shut up! I didn't mention it, but it's your fault you didn't ask! That part is rock, this here's scissors, and over there is paper! In other words, my hand's beaten your rock!\" \"If such logic holds, a different part loses to my rock.\" \"Ahh! Ahh! Ahh! I can't hear you! My rock is borrowing power from the scissors and paper, forming the holy trinity of friendship, effort, and victory! It's all here, baby!\" Raising the hand of RoSciPer to the heavens, Subaru boldly proclaimed victory with his flagrant cheating. He was well aware his logic was absurd, a desperately underhanded attempt to throw the wager itself into doubt. But the girl defied Subaru's expectations, sighing deeply as she said, \"I see. Certainly, it is I who was in error. At the same time, I am amused at how my expectations have been surpassed... Very well, you have won. You may do as you please. Here you go.\" After her minimal warning, she abruptly stepped forward. Without thinking, Subaru, floored at how quickly she jumped to the next step, stepped back a distance equal to the one she had advanced. \"...Do not tell me that now it is time to feel my breasts, you have lost your nerve?\" \"Huh?! I-I seriously don't know what you're talking about! Who's s-s-s-scared here?!\" \"...Truly, you are a vexing man. I suppose such bashfulness is adorable in its own way, but...\" And there they stood, Subaru getting cold feet at the last moment versus the girl whose pride did not permit her to take back what she had offered. One advanced and the other retreated a standoff that continued until outside forces intervened. Abruptly, the girl's gaze left Subaru and focused on the entrance to the alley. \" Mm, it seems this will become troublesome.\" \"Er? It looks like some pretty rough-looking dudes are coming this way.\" \"And the one at the vanguard is a commoner, I recall. Goodness, these fools do not interest me even slightly.\" \"What are they thinking, coming back after hearing Reinhard's name like that?!\" \"It would seem they have called your bluff about being acquainted with the knight among knights. It is rather easy to understand. Even they have reputations to protect, so they have returned in greater numbers for retribution.\" \"Damn it, this day is just nothing but trouble!\" First, he had a close call back on the dragon carriage, then he had gotten on Emilia's bad side, and now this. Today's really not my day. Since the girl was just standing there, Subaru grabbed her hand and dragged her along, carrying the bag of abbles as he rushed deeper down the alley. She protested, \"Hey, what are you doing? Do not touch me so carelessly.\" \"Now is really not the time! If you don't wanna get all beat up before marriage, run!!\" The girl wasn't very motivated to run as Subaru pulled her down the beat-up alley and plunged into the darkness. The men behind them pursued with a great shout and a flurry of footsteps. Subaru, cursing the heavens for his truly unlucky day, kept running with a desperate expression on his face. \"If we do not hurry they will gain on us. Is this time to play around?\" \"I d-don't wanna hear that from y... Time out, seriously, wait a...!\" They'd been racing through run-down streets for the last five minutes, but the girl was running well ahead of him, showing no sign of losing her breath. On the other hand, Subaru, never one to hold up for long sprints, was about to collapse from exhaustion. At first, he had been in front, but his endurance issues soon switched their positions. \"I'm convalescing, so this is really pushing it... But we're in a pretty bad spot. Doesn't look like many people live here... You have any ideas?\" The other group was a fair distance behind them. However, they were in one long alley, so slowing down meant it was only a matter of time until they were caught. He'd have liked to get on a thoroughfare, but all he could see was a maze of other back streets. \"It is not my problem! Everything I set out to do turns out well for me. I do not think deeply about things, for I do not need to. I need only trust in this fact.\" \"Yeah, well you lost at rock-paper-scissors to me earlier...\" At least they hadn't bumped into a dead end, but that didn't improve their predicament. Right in front of the winded Subaru, the girl suddenly came to a halt. \" Mm, this is indeed rather vexing.\" Subaru, still holding her hand, also stopped. He looked at her, wondering what the deal was. \"Hey, we don't have time to stop here. If we don't put in as much distance as we can, they'll catch up with...\" \" I have lost interest.\" \"I see, you've lost intere... Wha ?!\" Subaru was in utter shock at the girl's unbelievable statement. She returned his gaze, apparently bored. \"I said, I have lost interest. In the first place, why must I run? I shall decide what I do myself. I absolutely shall not be forced to do anything because of what lowlifes say or do.\" \"Th-that's easier said than done, you know?! That ain't gonna fly in a situation like th \" \"Mm, I have decided. You shall have the honor of carrying me.\" \"No thanks!!\" As Subaru crossed his arms in a clear sign of refusal, the girl scowled as if he was putting a damper on her mood. \"The honor of carrying me is not for just anyone to receive. Only a man who does not know fear would reject such a thing.\" \"Do I look like a macho man that can carry someone and run?! Even when I was at full strength, it took everything I had to carry a girl with way fewer style points than you! And I'm about worn out now!\" As Subaru used the remains of his energy in protest, the girl shot him a look of scorn, but he couldn't use what he didn't have. Her games led them to a stalemate costing them precious time. That was the thought in his head when, out of the blue, he heard an aged voice. \"It's been some time since I've seen you. What are you doing here?\" The speaker's large frame emerged from the darkness. Subaru lifted his gaze to a typical height for making eye contact, but found himself staring at this man's chest. He raised his gaze even farther to his ugly, balding head.  A familiar and very muscular old man gazed down at Subaru and the girl. \"Gramps is here to save the day! We can win this !\" \"You're quick to annoy someone who hasn't seen you in a while. I'm leaving you here.\" \"Wait, I really need your help! It's, like, the tenth crisis I've had in the last month!\" \"That's too many!!\" As they exchanged banter in lieu of greetings, the giant Old Man Rom peered at Subaru and the girl. \"What, in more trouble, are you? Causing a ruckus with a woman? Quite the adventurer you are.\" \"Do not look at me so rudely, you filthy gnarled tree.\" \"Hey, I'm ribbing him, too, but that's really harsh!! Don't say that to the old man giving us a get-out-of-hell-free card! Don't take it personally, Old Man Rom. We've just got a little case of excessive honesty here!\" \"You certainly are good at wearing a man down. Hurry and hide!\" Subaru covered the girl's mouth before she could spew insults again and rushed toward the place Rom had silently indicated. There was a pile of scrap wood there that seemed able to comfortably conceal two people. Subaru pushed the girl down first before squatting himself. She looked like she wanted to complain about the dust, but his hand over her mouth managed to keep her silent. \"We're okay on this end, Gramps!\" \"No, you're not... I'll hide you with my body. If they see you it'll be trouble for me, too, so don't move.\" Grumbling all the way, Old Man Rom hid them completely behind his huge body. A mere ten seconds or so later, a commotion of footsteps came from a nearby alley  The leader of the men shouted, \"The hell, I thought it was the brats, but it's the old man! Shit!\" Old Man Rom fielded the foul language with a serene expression. \"What? You shouldn't surprise your elders like this.\" Old Man Rom hadn't put any special invective into his sentence, but the displeasure of a giant like him carried a force all its own. The entire group shuddered, the leader included. But one of the members of the group pointed at Old Man Rom and mocked, \"Hey, wait, it's Grandpa Cromwell. Hey, should you really be talkin' smack to us here?\" The furrows of Old Man Rom's wrinkled face deepened further in a bitter response. \"I do not like being called that name.\" \"Get outta here, old man, or we'll bust up your loot cellar and make you the laughingstock of the slums.\" \"That place has gotten incredibly dirty over the years. If you destroyed it entirely you'd be doing me a favor. So how about I do as I please?\" \"Yeah, fine. Now, Cromwell... Did you see two brats runnin' this way?\" \"I didn't see them. Do you know where my blond daughter is?\" \"Beats me. You picked her up off the street, so what's the big deal? Man, goin' senile must suck.\" The men waved farewell, laughing derisively as they noisily left the area. Old Man Rom watched their retreating backs, biting his lip as he held back his anger. As Subaru watched his face through a small gap, he couldn't help but feel bad for him. He was glad that Old Man Rom was friendly for their belated reunion, but he seemed a little different from the Rom Subaru knew. \"Hww wong rre...\" \"Mm?\" A whisper-like voice interrupted Subaru's thoughts, prompting him to look to the side. Right beside him was the beautiful girl, so close they were practically breathing the same air, her mouth still covered by Subaru's palm. \"...you gonng to cvrr my...MOUTH?!\" Chomp. \" Yipe!!\" At the merciless bite, Subaru let out a high-pitched, puppy-like yelp that quietly echoed through the nook in the back of the alley. \"Thanks for hiding us, Old Man Rom. The last time I saw you, I thought you'd had the sense knocked right out of you, but I guess you made it through fine.\" \"...Do you want me to change my mind and call those youngins back?\" \"You sure are petty for a big guy! With me here, there's more than enough petty for everyone!\" Subaru grinned and shot him a thumbs-up. Old Man Rom sighed with a worn-out look. They'd moved from the previous narrow alley to a more open city street. Old Man Rom conversed with Subaru while guiding the pair to a place where they could blend in. The girl, having kept her silence until that moment, finally tugged Subaru's sleeve in irritation. \"Hey, you. I see you having an intimate conversation. Who is this old man? Explain it to me.\" \"This old"}, {"text": "man is the face of the royal capital's slums. The giant's Old Man Rom trader for the bosses of the sticky-fingered types and all-around stingy bastard. He's got bad eyes, loves his cute granddaughter, and he's not nearly as tough as he looks.\" \"That is his worth after having lived a long life? I see. I pity your pathetic existence, gnarled tree.\" \"Your lady friend is an annoying little girl, isn't she?\" Old Man Rom was indignant at the harsh appraisal. Though Subaru's explanation was the truth, he set that aside and gave Old Man Rom a warm smile. \"I'm so glad I ran into you, really. Even I was getting desperate back there. I didn't have a clue what I was gonna do.\" Old Man Rom made a strained laugh and casually looked Subaru over. \"...The way you switch gears so quickly really throws an old man off. Seems you managed to escape with your life back then, too...\" His face twisted painfully as he saw the scars on Subaru's body. \"I may not be one to talk, but it seems that knife wielder got you pretty badly.\" \"Nah, that babe only got me in the stomach. All the other wounds are from a thing that happened after.\" \"Goodness! Something else happened to you, not even a month later?!\" Subaru thought Old Man Rom's loud reaction was quite sensible as he reviewed the last month though in truth, the boy had experienced nearly twice that time. Those turbulent weeks had included the maid sisters, the demon-beast incident, and the Liliana issue. With Subaru keeping his mouth shut, Old Man Rom seemed to accept things all on his own, shaking his head as he brought up a separate issue. \" Hey, brat. Do you know where Felt went off to?\" \"...Haven't you heard? Reinhard took her with him, or so I'm told...\" \"Reinhard...the Sword Saint? Why would the knight among knights take her with him?\" Apparently, this news was a bolt from out of the blue. Subaru thought back to how things had gone down at the loot cellar, finally noticing the inconsistency. Old Man Rom was out cold before Reinhard had entered the fray. Rom and Reinhard hadn't interacted while Subaru was conscious. \"So, what, you just woke up in a wrecked shop without any explanation, and all you could do was wonder?\" \"It wasn't nearly that bleak. I woke up in the guards' garrison. I appreciated their healing me, but I let myself out right after.\" \"Ah, yeah. Not exactly a comfortable place for you, huh.\" A criminal wouldn't feel at ease waking up in a police hospital. Subaru couldn't blame him for getting out of there ASAP without hearing all the fine details. \"So that's why you didn't hear, huh? Okay. Anyway, let me fill you in on what happened before I blacked out, plus the little bit that apparently happened after.\" After that preamble, Subaru acted out a dramatic retelling of the events at the loot cellar. Old Man Rom watched Subaru's meaningless theatrics with admiration, and even the bored-looking girl leaned forward, gripped by the performance from start to finish. Subaru concluded, \"She was so surprised! And then I said, ' I want you to...tell me your name.'\" The girl replied, \"Ho-ho, a rather fine choice of words, if I do say so myself. I must grudgingly approve.\" Rom followed up, \"Keh, you really told her... Bah, this is no time to admire! The bottom line is that you don't know any more about Felt other than the fact the Sword Saint took her with him, do you, brat?\" \"Part of why I came here today was to do some footwork to find out exactly what happened...\" But he'd hit a roadblock right at the heart of it, the attempt to make contact with Reinhard. Rom murmured to himself so faintly that Subaru did not hear. \"But... The House of Astrea, of all things...\" Old Man Rom had a serious expression as he lifted his face. Subaru helplessly shrugged. \"Well, I'm gonna see if I can get ahold of Reinhard, so I'll let you know if I hear anything. I mean, I wanted to find out if Felt was safe and sound to begin with.\" \"That'll be a big help... You seem oddly trustworthy. Is this girl involved with this somehow?\" \"No, not a bit. I don't even know her name.\" \"Just how many scrapes do you get into for girls whose names you don't know?!\" \"Hey, back when I didn't know Emilia-tan's name, I was pretty desperate, so I don't think anything I did was that weird.\" Subaru's indifferent reply made Old Man Rom rub his eyebrows in exhaustion. \"No point thinking about it. All right, fine. I'll rely on you, so let me know if you find out anything about Felt. If I can repay you, I will.\" \"You're really gushing. It's because it's your adorable granddaughter, huh?\" \" That's right. She's...like a granddaughter to me, so please.\" Subaru's jaw dropped at Rom's straight-up, unashamed agreement with him. He wondered if the blond thief girl really knew how deeply he felt for her. Knowing her, he figured she'd go red in the face and try to blow it all off. As Subaru's discussion with Old Man Rom wrapped up, the girl haltingly murmured, \"Reinhard... To hear the name of Reinhard here, of all places...\" She suppressed a laugh. Subaru's relaxed expression tightened again as he turned toward her. \"Hey, it's not polite to eavesdrop. Don't go listening in on other people's business like that.\" \"I did not listen in. You two oafs simply began speaking right in front of me. You. From the way you speak of him, it seems your claim to know the Sword Saint was not a bluff. Are you close?\" \"It'd be a bit much to say we met once and became best friends forever, but we're on good terms, yeah.\" Subaru owed a debt to Reinhard. He had enough of a sense of reciprocity to pay it back...even if he couldn't exactly imagine Reinhard in a crisis that Subaru could bail him out of. Subaru asked his new companion, \"Well, what do you know about Reinhard? You don't seem like a fan of his.\" \"From what I have heard, he is a rather twisted person. Beyond that, I have only seen him slightly from afar.\" The way she declared someone to be twisted without having even spoken to him suggested it was her own thinking that was twisted. But with the girl's silence indicating she had no intention to elaborate, Subaru turned his attention back to Old Man Rom. \"Leaving her aside, how should I get in touch with you?\" \"There's a store called Cadmon on Market Street. Give my name to the grumpy-looking man there and he'll get in touch with me.\" \"All right, all right. Cadmon... Cadmon?\" As Rom explained how to get in touch, Subaru tilted his head at the familiar-sounding word. Either way, he'd fulfilled his promise to pay Old Man Rom a visit. That was one thing off his to-do list. To take care of the rest, first, he needed something else... \"Incidentally, the girl and I are actually completely lost. I don't want my adventure to end here before I can fulfill my promise, so ah, could you lead us back to the main street?\" \"Mm, all right. Leave it to me. Which street is it?\" \"Back to the garrison. Please and thank you.\" \"Didn't you hear me tell you I escaped from that garrison?!\" Old Man Rom's exasperated shout filled the sky above the alleyway. According to that sky, he'd been separated from Emilia for nearly an hour. The orange-haired girl gazed at the back alley indifferently and muttered, \"At first, I thought the disorder of such a grimy place held promise, but now that I am accustomed to it, it has nothing to draw my eye. It is quite useless for assuaging my boredom.\" She raised the hem of her dress and shook it, a blunt expression of her insufferable displeasure. \"I don't think the royal capital's designer drew up these streets to be exciting,\" Subaru remarked. \"The world exists for my sake, so should not everything in it serve to amuse me? I have no idea what the man who approved such boring streets was thinking. Royalty should have a keenly discerning eye. Lack thereof seems to have been decidedly fatal of late.\" Just hearing her statement set Subaru's heart racing. His head whipped back and forth to see if anyone had overheard. \"Th-that's a pretty arrogant thing to say right at the king's door, you know...\" The girl snorted at Subaru's caution, or rather, cowardice. \"A dull reaction and a futile concern. It would seem that you, too, are part of the common rabble.\" \"I'm well aware I'm a one-hundred-percent common, ordinary, straight-down-the-middle guy, and I'm fine with it. I don't want to waste any more time hanging around you, anyway. The girl who's waiting for me will hate me.\" \"What absurdity. It is an insult for you to think about anyone besides me during the time we are together. I may be accompanied now, but I think nothing at all of walking alone.\" \"Well, you should think about it. Being with you is miserable.\" He was the chaperone for a girl who seemed to be arrogance incarnate. Subaru's self-pity flared up again at how he'd once again thrown himself under a bus in no time flat for the sake of someone he'd never even seen before. But he remarked to himself, \"Ah, whatever...\" They were strangers to begin with. Neither knew the other's name. Once they reached the main street, they'd never see each other again. He wasn't magnanimous enough to shut off his own feelings of discomfort to try to make friends with just anyone. In Subaru's book, forcing yourself to like something you hate was among the most distasteful things around. That Subaru had decided this, yet had no intention of leaving the girl on her own until they'd exited to the main street, was evidence as to what kind of person he was. Coincidentally, Old Man Rom was not accompanying them. He abhorred going out onto the main street, so he led them to an adjacent alley before heading off. Subaru somewhat regretted the loss of his company, but... \" While I was thinking about all that, here we are.\" Just ahead of a bend, he could finally see the bright, western sun over the road. Subaru beheld the uninterrupted flow of people passing to and fro, relieved that his suffering was finally at an end. \"Now that we're out of there, we're total strangers again. I have to look for my cutie-pie companion, so I don't wanna get into any more trouble, like hanging around you. I'm sure your escort has been desperate to find you, so if you stay put I'm sure you'll meet up with him soon.\" With the moment of their parting so close, Subaru vented out all the resentment that had built up during that time. Naturally, the girl was poised to respond, but instead, she halted and crossed her arms in silence. \"What, nothing to say? Okay, maybe I went a little too far, but I can't change how I feel. Things haven't exactly gone smoothly, but if you try a little prudence now and again, I'm sure...\" Subaru was simultaneously excusing his resentful words and lecturing her when she sneered back. \"Mmm, I think I pity you just a little. Whether you are aware of it or not, you so thoroughly play the fool. It is no virtue. It is merely a thin shell within which you conceal your weakness. It is as repellant to the eye as your face.\" \"The first part sounded serious, but that last part was definitely making fun of my looks, wasn't it?\" \"If you intend to maintain the game to the very end, it is no concern of"}, {"text": "mine...\" Whatever the girl wanted to say wasn't registering with Subaru. Consistent with her bearing and actions, she made statements without any consideration for the comprehension of others. No doubt he wouldn't get a straight answer even if he pursued the matter further. With that in mind, Subaru gave up on speaking to the girl further. Or, perhaps telling himself the girl was incomprehensible was his way of avoiding the truth. But he wouldn't receive any more answers here to begin with. After all, the instant the two exited the alley, they were greeted by a voice Emilia's voice. \" I've finally found you.\" Unlike the back alley, the bright rays of the sun illuminated everything on the main street. The sunshine dazzled and burned his eyes. That radiance haloed her white robe as she looked at Subaru. Her elegant brows were furrowed. Her fingertips restlessly toyed with her sparkling hair. Her gloomy, violet eyes quivered as her lips loosened in slight relief. It was plain as day how much she'd worried about Subaru. Subaru both deeply regretted making her worry and was happy she had worried. His expression brightened at their reunion, unexpected but eagerly awaited. \"Ah, Emili \" But as Emilia let out a soft sigh, he felt that something was wrong. He began to call her name but stopped when he saw someone beside her a male someone with a burly chest. \"Wait, wait, wait! Don't go flirting with Emilia-tan when I'm not around!\" Subaru dashed forward to put himself between the man and Emilia. But his glare at the silhouetted man froze in the face of a torrent of sharp words. \"Hey, hey, lil' missy. I think your guy here has a screw loose. Is he all right?\" The chummy voice addressing Emilia was a bit hard to make out. That was only natural, since the speaker's head was covered in a full-face helmet. The jet-black helm, meant to conceal his entire face, looked highly refined, but the headpiece alone wasn't what made him stand out though that description is misleading. He stood out because the helmet actually was alone. \"More worried about an interloper than excited for your reunion? What a fascinatingly complicated sense of masculinity.\" \"Well, you've got pretty horrible fashion sense, don't you?!\" \"And you've got quite some lip toward your seniors. I'm an easy-going old man, so I'll let it slide, but someone else might chop your head off.\" Subaru gaped as the man tapped a finger against the nape of his neck in obvious amusement. Yes, the bare nape of his neck, for while the man wore a pitch-black helm over his head, beneath he wore only a shabby mantle and an open linen vest-and-shorts combo that made him look like some bandit. His \"shoes\" were sandals with split-toe socks. Behind his waist, he carried a handsome sword with a fat blade resembling a Chinese crescent sword. Everything clashed with everything else. Subaru's tracksuit was no less out of place, but the man's attire was surely the greater offense to common sense. Subaru tentatively asked Emilia his burning question. \"Emilia-tan, don't tell me this guy's outfit passes for normal here in the capital?\" \"Don't worry, Subaru. I'm as shocked by what he's wearing as you are.\" The man erupted into laugher and promptly divulged what he was doing with Emilia in the first place. \"Oh yeah, she was really shocked. It was so cute. I said I was looking for someone, and I was pretty surprised when she said she'd come along, though.\" Subaru put a hand on Emilia's shoulder and stared at where the man's eyes probably were. \"Emilia-tan's kind-heartedness is a real virtue, but you still have to pick who you help. Why do you think a poisonous mushroom looks so bad? It's saying, 'I'm poisonous. Danger. Eat me and you'll die.' That's to stop damage before it happens.\" The man replied, \"You're making it sound like I'm a dangerous guy. That's horrible.\" \"Back where I come from, one look at you and they'd bring all the local school kids together and tell them about kidnappers.\" Subaru blew off the man's flippant comment and returned to Emilia. \"Anyway, Emilia-tan, like I'm always telling you watch out for men and cars. Men are wolves, so you can't show them that defenseless, adorable, smiling face... Are you upset?\" \"No, I'm just thinking that sounds more like something I've said to you than something you've said to me, Subaru. No offense.\" Subaru was tempted to cover his face, regretting that his slip of the tongue had only heaped more trouble onto him. But the coming lecture was mercifully interrupted by an outside party. The orange-haired girl stepped forward and pompously declared, \"Mmm. How perceptive of you to wait for me at my destination. Your loyalty is admirable, Al.\" Her words made the man Al laugh out loud. \"...To be honest, I want to say it was dumb luck I happened to be here, but that'll just put you in a bad mood. I agree with you, Princess. Yep, it's just like you said!\" He stood beside the girl and ruffled her orange hair with the palm of his hand. \"Apparently, by sheer coincidence, the person the lady here was looking for and the person I was looking for were together. Maybe you could call it fate?\" \"So it's like the saying, even chance meetings are the result of karma? No thanks, I don't want any threads of fate except red ones with Emilia-tan.\" There was a momentary pause before Al's reply. \" This guy's got quite a mouth on him.\" But Al's laughter and the light wave of his hand wiped Subaru's doubts away. All his actions had been with his right hand the entire time for the man didn't have a left hand. So the man had one arm, a pitch-black helmet, and a haphazard threadbare outfit. Judging from his tone of voice and his appearance below the neck, he was probably a bit more than twice Subaru's age. In spite of that, he didn't come off much like Subaru's senior, sporting an attitude as light as his clothes. To put it kindly, he was easy to get along with. To put it rudely, he was an adult that needed to pull himself together. Subaru commented, \"With Puck there as your guardian, I'm wondering why he let you go around with this guy...\" Puck replied to Subaru's question telepathically. \"Lia spotted him looking in garbage bins on the side of the street as soon as she stepped out of the garrison. Her meddling happens at lightning speed, so I didn't have any time to stop it.\" \"Oh, come on...\" Subaru's reply couldn't hide his exhaustion. True, Emilia's soft-hearted nature was nothing new, but Al looking for his traveling companion in trash bins was completely off the rails. He wondered if the man had put any funny ideas in her head while they'd been alone. Subaru gave Emilia a look of concern when he realized that... *** ...without a word, Emilia had slipped behind Subaru's back as if to avoid the eyes of other people. She pulled down her hood to hide her face again, keeping her voice quiet as if that would erase her presence. Subaru dubiously raised his eyebrows and looked toward the orange-haired girl who seemed the cause of Emilia's misgivings. \"What, staring at me?\" the girl said. \"Drinking in the beauty you will dearly miss once I depart? Certainly, it is cruel that my beauty is so divine, but it is rude to stare in silence.\" \"Sorry, my eyes are in perfect shape... Everyone found who they were looking for, so how about we break this up?\" Subaru gave the girl the one Emilia seemed to be hiding from a dismissive reply as he directed the spotlight away from her and toward Al. He didn't know why, but Emilia seemed averse to the attention. So Subaru did what he felt would serve her best. Al replied, \"Well, that's all fine... The decision to shift the talk to me instead of Princess included.\" \"...I sympathize with you more than a bit... No, a lot.\" Al shrugged at Subaru's rather earnest words and looked down at the girl. \"An adult with a broad mind can put up with a lot without gettin' sick of it. Even a proud cat that's never been housebroken. Maybe I've just gotten old enough to find it adorable.\" Subaru couldn't see his eyes through the helmet, but he sounded like a father figure protecting his beloved daughter. They get along pretty decently, huh, thought Subaru vaguely in his mind. He added out loud, \"Well, we're gonna head this way... How about you?\" The girl replied, \"Then I shall go that way as well.\" \"...Then, we're gonna head the other way.\" \"Then I shall go the other way as...\" \"Oh, good grief. Are you stalking me?! What, did you fall in love with me or something?!\" \"I imagine that is a joke, and a petty one at that. Lackluster men die in lackluster ways, you know.\" With great pomp and ceremony, the girl, dispassionate to the bitter end, departed with her companion. Her hesitant steps proclaimed that even though she wanted them to part ways, she found it unamusing to do so. So with all the invective remaining in him, Subaru said to the departing girl, \"Hey, arrogant chick, take this.\" \"What an insolent tongue to direct at me. With one command, Al could take that head off your \" As the girl turned around with some very menacing words on her lips, her red eyes widened. Her hands stretched and caught the pair of abbles lazily arcing toward her. \"Take 'em. These are bonding abbles. In the end I may have won the bet, but the winner has the right to show mercy like a noble warrior. Take care not to wander into bad guys like that from now on, okay?\" \"I will have you know I did not become involved with those men by acting like some foolish child.\" \"...Incidentally, why did you get involved with them?\" \"When I asked them if it was not inexcusable that they should live with such impoverished faces and attire, they became agitated.\" \"You're the one in the wrong there!!\" Subaru sympathized with Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest all over again and turned his back to the girl, pulling Emilia along by her arm. The small measure of payback gave him some satisfaction. Emilia kept her head down as she went along with him. As they quickly departed, they heard one final muffled shout from the street behind them, filled with apparently genuine gratitude. \" Lil' missy, thanks for comin' with me on my search!\" \"Hey, Emilia-tan, they're gone now, so why don't we talk finally?\" Subaru asked. Parting ways with the arrogant girl and her guardian, Subaru and Emilia walked together for a while before stopping. He was worried that something he'd said had brought about Emilia's sudden change in behavior. After a brief silence, Emilia lifted up her face and, just as Subaru expected, the subject was the girl she'd attempted to hide from. \"Subaru. About that girl from earlier... She... Where did... Why were you...?\" \"Ehh, Emilia-tan! What, are you jealous? We're at the point where you're just burning with envy?\" \" Subaru.\" With one word, Emilia cut off Subaru's typically glib reply. She had a solemn expression, and the tension in her cheeks told even Subaru that bad jokes weren't going to cut it. \"Err? Emilia-tan, what's with the really serious look...?\" \"Please, Subaru, don't make light of this. Why were you with that girl...?\" Emilia seemed to want to hear something from Subaru. It threw him off, but he sank into thought to try to give her the earnest reply she sought. But just as Subaru focused properly about things for once...his efforts were for naught as an angry, rough, and coarse shout interrupted their conversation. \"Finally found ya! You're a lot of trouble, damn it!!\" At the voice, Subaru"}, {"text": "scanned the area, aghast. Roughnecks were on both sides, blocking the street to prevent their escape. Dumb of Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest stood at the vanguard of the men, glaring at Subaru. \"I've been lookin' for you and the woman to pay you back for makin' fun of me before.\" Subaru replied, \"...So you brought all your friends for payback over a war of words? No matter how much you resent an insult, a man with a spine wipes his own butt... That's what I...always believed in...!\" \"Hey, don't try to make me feel bad! What do you know about me, anyway?!\" Subaru listened to Dumb's abuse, complete with spittle flying, as he quietly looked around. There were fifteen or sixteen men blocking the street. He couldn't exactly expect Reinhard to bail him out of this one. \"Meaning, it's pathetic, but the best thing I can do is rely on Emilia-tan and Puck, so...!\" Puck telepathically praised Subaru's quick turn to the aid of others. \"It really is pathetic, but I think it's commendable you accept your helplessness so quickly.\" Subaru felt sorry for Dumb and company, but Puck the Great Spirit could take on street thugs regardless of their numbers. It'd be WinterFest in Lugunica's summer. But before Subaru could shout, \"Take it from here, maestro!\" and yield the path like a villain in a historical play, a telepathic thought rich in meaning arrived from Puck. \"You have quite a disturbing image in your mind there... But apparently I'm not needed.\" Faster than Subaru could ask what he meant, a rather scary statement came from overhead, heralding the descent of a certain blue-haired maid. \" I came here tracking Subaru's scent. What kind of disturbance is this?\" Tumbling end over end as she descended, Rem held down the hem of her skirt and landed with a boom. She brushed the dust from her sleeves as everyone gawked at her. Rem made an adorable little tilt of her head. \"So, Subaru. Do you have something you wish to say to me?\" Subaru pointed at her feet and voiced his question. \"Let me start with, err... He's ah, not dead, is he?\" Rem lowered her gaze. Underneath lay Dumb, smashed to the ground the moment she landed. Head buried in the city street, the hoodlum said one last thing before he ceased to move altogether. \"Not another...maid...\" Rem slowly nodded. \"He is breathing.\" \"It's all good, then!! That's Rem for you, the all-purpose maid everyone wants in their time of need!\" \"Oh no... Saying how you can do nothing without me, you are making me blush.\" Subaru and Rem engaged in their daily routine, even as Rem's violence had the thugs reeling. Subaru's praised made Rem's cheeks go red as she demurred. In the meantime, the men gradually regained their bearings. \"D-don't toy with us here! You really think you're gettin' out of this alive...?\" Rem's voice lowered as she switched to her emotionless Work Mode. \"I judge that these men are threatening Subaru and Lady Emilia's safety.\" The hooligans faltered at the change. Subaru felt a pang of pity for them while raising a finger to Rem. \"Rem.\" \"Yes?\" \"Don't kill them, okay?\" \"You are as kind as ever, Subaru I shall half-kill them, then.\" In a miraculous combination of equal parts violence and loveliness, Rem leaped into the mob. Some lunged at her only to be thrashed. Others turned tail and ran. Others still squatted down and cowered, unable to grasp what was going on Rem heaped punishment upon them all impartially. Subaru gawked at the sight of people flying through the air like they weighed nothing. \"Whoa, that's amazing.\" The impending end of the strife before his eyes filled Subaru's head with tranquility, as if he were removed from the uproar. He never even noticed the violet eyes staring at him, nor the pleading murmur that accompanied them. \" Subaru.\" \"So that's why we're gonna rough you up a little. Just a little, wee bit,\" said a thug to the girl. The men blocking off the road and laughing lewdly included Dumber and Dumbest. Their group, separate from Dumb's, had surrounded the girl and her companion. They didn't need to put into words exactly what kind of payback they had in mind after capturing her. The vulgar lust in their eyes said it all. But the girl paid the men around her no heed as she brought the slice of abble to her lips. \"...Mm, bittersweet. It is indeed an abble on the inside. I am forced to conclude that the clown from earlier did not simply dye them red as some kind of joke. So abbles are indeed this color? I am shocked.\" Al replied, \"Hey, ah, Princess, you seeing what's happening here?\" \"Whatever you wish to say, speak it clearly. I dislike all this indirectness.\" \"Fine, I'll come right out and say it. There's two abbles, so ain't one of 'em mine?\" \"Ha! How absurd. Now hear this, I caught both abbles that the clown tossed. Consequently, both are mine.\" \"It's common sense that if you have two of something and two people, each of 'em takes one.\" The disregard of both master and servant drove the ruffians' anger to its limit. With clear malice, each one drew his blade as they began to tighten the circle. Al asked her, \"So, Princess. What about what the world around you wants?\" \"My choice is the world's choice. You should bear that in mind, Al.\" \"I try.\" The girl nodded with satisfaction at Al's words and resumed nibbling on her abble. Her cheeks relaxed at the bittersweet taste, bringing an angelic smile over her beautiful face. And as if ripping off an insect's wings with cherubic innocence, she stated matter-of-factly, \"I am now in a very good mood. Consequently, you may spare their lives.\" Hearing those words, Al put his hand on the handle of the large sword sheathed horizontally behind his hip. There was a slow shing the sound of a blade being drawn from its sheath. With that as background music, he stated, \" Aye-aye, ma'am.\" The smile under the pitch-black helmet was vivid and fierce. CHAPTER 3 *** \" Ehh?! You're leaving me behind?!\" Early in the morning at the inn, Subaru raised his voice in shock as he learned the day's schedule. Subaru was stunned while Emilia and Rem sat before his eyes at the table. Roswaal had left the inn earlier, stating that he had a prior engagement; the other three were just finishing the breakfast Rem had prepared. Emilia answered him, \"Of course I am. Subaru, the reasons you're here in the royal capital were to see if your acquaintances are all right and to get you treated. That was the deal.\" \"Er, but, since I'm feeling pretty well, you could loosen up the interpretation a little...\" \"Absolutely not. Today really isn't fun and games, and outsiders are forbidden to enter. I can't even bring Rem with me.\" Emilia's atypically strict instructions were hard for Subaru to argue with given how he'd wandered off just the day before. He looked to Rem for salvation, but the blue-haired maid shook her head. \"This time, Lady Emilia is absolutely correct. Please listen to her.\" \"Crap, isn't anyone on my side here?! And I can't say anything because of what happened yesterday, either. Ugh!\" Even if Rem was fundamentally biased toward Subaru, priorities were priorities. As a result of his failing to uphold Emilia's instructions and wandering off on his own the day before, he was totally grounded. With Subaru directing his lament skyward, Emilia put her hands on her hips and exhaled. \"It won't be that long... Or I'd like to say that, but I don't really know when I'll be back. So go ahead and eat supper together with Rem. Otherwise I think it might be a rather long wait.\" \"Pfft. If you're going to be that mean about it, I've got my own ideas, Emilia-tan. Hey, Rem. Let's have a feast all by ourselves!\" \"No, today's menu is abble chips with abble salad, abble pie filled with abble jam, and I have freshly squeezed abble juice ready for dessert.\" \"Abbles all the way down?! Damn you, Scarface!\" Apparently, since he'd returned with nine abbles in his bag, it meant the evening's menu would be a veritable abble festival. Subaru laughed desperately as the image of the scar-faced shopkeeper smiling and giving him a thumbs-up came to mind. \"Well, that's fine, abbles are my favorite fruit, anyway! Being surrounded by abbles is heaven itself! Okay, Rem!! Let's eat the whole thing up between the two of us!!\" \"Oh, I couldn't. If you like it so much, I'll let you have all of it.\" \"You act like you're cozying up to me, but sometimes you just chuck me over the cliff, you know?!\" Subaru was aghast at how Rem acted less out of concern for his position and more out of how to use his position to her advantage. Emilia slumped her shoulders at the interaction between the two before focusing on the maid. \"Anyway, I'm trusting you with this, Rem. I think Roswaal has told you this, too, but... Be strict... Really, be strict, okay?\" \"The way you repeated yourself after that pause Emilia-tan's super trusting of me, huh?\" Subaru gave a thumbs-up at Emilia's earnest reminder. Emilia, already accustomed to the sight, gently rested a hand on his fact. Subaru's breath caught at the sudden contact. \"Subaru, I'm not asking much of you...\" \"R-right...?\" \"Please, let me trust you, okay?\" For a moment, the sound of Emilia's plea froze Subaru's thoughts solid. Then, he caught her meaning, chewed it over, and swallowed with a nod. \"Y-yeah! I'll do just that! I practically live to meet Emilia-tan's expectations!\" He still didn't understand the cause of the lingering unease in her eyes when he reflexively agreed to all her conditions. He'd just accept them for now and take them into account when he shifted to action. In contrast, Emilia's violet eyes darkened. Then, she quietly added... \"Yes I trust you.\" It was probably less than an hour after Emilia had left for the royal palace. Subaru was spending his time studying the world's writing system under Rem's tutelage at the inn. He was mechanically copying characters, his thoughts consumed by just one thing.  Namely, how he could be at Emilia's side as she competed in the royal selection. Emilia was right to worry about how he would take her entreaties for him to wait. Subaru hadn't considered patiently waiting at the inn for her return in the slightest. He felt a little guilty about disregarding his promise to her. Even so... \"There's definitely people here in the royal capital who have it out for Emilia...\" The last time she had been to the royal capital was the first day Subaru had met her. Apparently she had snuck her way in to visit. In spite of this, enemies had targeted the emblem she carried, attempting to rob her of her qualification for the royal selection, and even her very life.  Thinking back upon their fateful encounter, Subaru could not endure the burning in his chest. Having been suddenly summoned into another world, he'd lived until that day without a single word from anyone. He still had no idea who had summoned him or why. He didn't have any leads. That was why Subaru was thinking about how to blow the current situation wide open. If no one was going to grant him a purpose, he'd decide his purpose for himself. \" I'm gonna...help Emilia.\" Subaru had probably been summoned to that world for that very reason. And if not, he'd do it anyway. That was the thought that animated Subaru Natsuki and gave him strength. \"And that's why...\" *** Rem just happened to catch a glimpse of Subaru's eyes as he hardened his inner resolve. With a slight blush of her cheeks, the maid stood firmly in his way, forming an impassable barrier in front of the"}, {"text": "door. He'd tried various methods to get her to leave her post already, but she'd even brought a chamber pot in with her. \"Stare...\" \"What is it, Subaru? Those intense eyes are making this a little awkward...\" \"Stare...\" \"Y-you may not. Even if you look at me like an abandoned puppy, you may not.\" \"Stare...\" \"I-I promised Sister that I would fulfill my duties. So you may not.\" The power of Subaru's silent stare was backing Rem into a corner. She seemed increasingly agitated as she endured Subaru's gaze, glancing back at him with reproach. \"Are you...worried about Lady Emilia that much? The royal palace is filled with numerous privileged guests besides Lady Emilia, so I imagine security is very tight.\" \"It's not how good the security is... I hate being left behind when Emilia has something really important happening.\" \"Subaru...\" What Rem was saying made complete sense. He was acutely aware of his own deficiencies. The power Subaru possessed was meager and useless, and could only lead to pain and sorrow. But he didn't care if he was useless. \"If something happens, then I probably won't be any use. And if it isn't likely to happen, it's great if it doesn't. I get that.\" *** \"But if something does happen, maybe it won't get resolved if I'm not there. I don't know when that something might come, so I want to be there with Emilia when it counts.\" If some events could not be undone save through Return by Death, a tactic that only Subaru Natsuki could use, then that was a stage he ought to be fighting on.  Subaru did not realize that his thought process, taking his own \"death\" into the calculation, was warped to begin with. \"...My goodness, Subaru, you really are incorrigible.\" Rem's halting murmur sounded like surrender, making Subaru lift up his face in the hope that his wish had been granted. \"Then you'll...\" \"No, you may not. Even so, I cannot permit you to pass, Subaru.\" \"Wait, what's with the way you were talking just now?! It totally sounded like...\" As Subaru chewed her out, Rem dodged his question and raised a finger. \"However... I will be working on a new abble dish that I suddenly thought of. As this requires great concentration, I will be extremely busy in the kitchen. It is highly probable that someone could slip out of this room without me realizing.\" *** \"But you must not do anything untoward. Please continue your studies until I return. When everything is settled...I will treat you to the finest abble cuisine anyone has ever made.\" Subaru was cowed into silence as Rem gave him a motherly smile before standing. Just as she'd announced, she tied on an apron and left the room. Subaru listened to her light footsteps go down the stairs before he slumped back heavily in his chair. \"Ahh, Rem's so adorable... I'm the worst for taking advantage of her.\" Closing his eyes, he thanked Rem for her clumsy idea and rose from his chair. Before leaving the room, Subaru reconsidered for a moment, took a pen, and tore out a page from the workbook. Rem returned to the empty room, touching the table as she murmured offhandedly, \"...I am slightly disappointed that he did not say, 'Come with me.'\" He'd left behind a note on the table with \"Sorry, and thanks\" written in crude I-script. \"Subaru, you truly are incorrigible...\" As Rem gazed at the note, her expression betrayed the true meaning of her words. Rem picked up the note, pressing it against her chest and closing her eyes as she treated it as a precious gift from Subaru. \" But I wonder what Master Roswaal is thinking?\" She inclined her head slightly as she voiced her doubts about the instructions her master had left that morning. \"He said, 'Do not stand in Subaru's way no matter what Lady Emilia may say to you.'\" It was as if he'd anticipated Subaru's actions and had instructed her accordingly. She also wondered why he was valuing Subaru's opinion above Emilia's. But at any rate... \" Please come back to me safely, Subaru.\" She did not think he had run off without any plan, but she knew he was a boy who would do such a thing for the sake of another, putting the safety of others before his own. All Rem could do was fulfill his request and pray he would be unharmed. For a time, Rem closed her eyes, picturing Subaru in her mind as she offered up a prayer. She then finished the tidying up of the half-completed study materials Subaru had abandoned before she retreated to the kitchen. And so, Subaru Natsuki was let loose in the capital a second time, perhaps dancing in the palm of someone's hand though none could tell. Subaru, having skipped out of the inn thanks to Rem's kindness, ran downtown in the royal capital, his feet taking him to the Cadmon fruit store so he could contact Old Man Rom. \"Sneaking into a castle...is not very realistic, is it? Well, nothing's gonna happen unless I make it to the entrance of the royal palace...\" It might have been possible to gain entry by explaining that he was connected to Emilia and Roswaal. But Subaru had few cards to play to even get that far. \"Even if I got to the garrison and explained, Emilia would probably turn down a magic mirror message...\" If he could make it to the foot of the castle, he was confident he could verbally wear Emilia down. Emilia was weak under pressure. He didn't think she'd chase Subaru off after he'd undergone a dangerous adventure to reach her. Subaru went to Market Street in the hopes of improving his chances of success. He wanted to get in touch with Old Man Rom and relay his plan to infiltrate the Nobles' District as soon as possible. The day before, Emilia had attempted to contact the royal palace from the garrison, but her efforts had apparently failed. But as it was clear that Reinhard was assigned to the Knights of the Royal Guard, he would surely be attending the royal selection meeting that day. Before Emilia had left the inn, she'd said that she would ask him about Felt afterward. Subaru wanted to tell Old Man Rom, a worrier in spite of his large frame, as soon as he could. Weaving his way into the crowd with quick feet, Subaru found the shop sign that was still fresh in his memory. The eccentric colors of the Cadmon sign were easy to mentally associate with the unmistakable scarred face of the shopkeeper. It's a small world, thought Subaru as he leaped out in front of the shop, when... \"Hey, old guy. Long time no \" As Subaru tried to call out to the storekeeper, a congenial voice interrupted from right beside him. \"You're late, bro! Just in the nick of time. Lucky you, I was gonna wait just a bit longer before heading off.\" A heavy metallic rattle accompanied a muffled laugh. Subaru shrugged off the arm openly wrapped around his shoulders, putting some distance between himself and the very close voice. \"Who are... Wait, you're the guy from yesterday?\" \"Yeah, I'm the guy from yesterday. I'm glad you showed up. Now I won't get an earful over it.\" Not minding that his arm had been brushed off, the man in the black helmet Al patted his chest with his one arm. The appearance of the eccentric swordsman was just as unbalanced as it had been the day before. Al chuckled again, seeing Subaru's obvious shock at the unexpected reunion. \"Hey, don't get bent out of shape. It's your fault for talking about meeting up here right in front of Princess. She's a sharp cookie to begin with.\" \"Right in front of...she was eavesdropping! So why are you at the place I'm supposed to meet Old Man Rom, anyway? I get that the girl ordered you to, but not the reason why.\" \"Hey, don't ask me why. Princess does things on a whim so much, a lot of the time there's no point asking why. So let's get goin' then!\" \"'Goin''?\" Apparently, both master and servant expected him to charge off into a new affair without his misgivings being answered. With Al ready to move out without a sufficient explanation, Subaru furrowed his brows and objected, \"Hold on a minute. Go where? You haven't explained one thing to me... I mean, I've got a place I have to get to!\" \"Why're you dragging your feet? Hey, it's a big world out there and people get carried away by the currents, so just forget your doubts and go with the flow. It's fun!\" Subaru pointed at Al's helmet, unable to see the expression behind it as he soundly declared, \"I don't wanna hear philosophy from a grown-up slacker like you. I've got things to do. I don't have time to mess with you or your princess!\" Subaru had no idea how Al had wound up associated with said princess, but that didn't mean he had to shut up and play along. He continued, \"You should really reconsider spoiling her before it gets both of you in really hot wa \" \" You're looking for a way to get into the royal palace, right?\" *** Al's murmur stopped the stern lecture on Subaru's lips. \"Whoa, that sure worked. That's Princess for you. It's just like she said.\" \"Wh...what do you know...?!\" \"Nah, I don't know nothin'. I'm just saying it 'cause Princess told me to. And it worked, huh?\" Al's shoulders rocked in delight as Subaru bit his lip and held his breath. If what the man said was true, Subaru was dancing on the palm of a girl who wasn't even there. Suspecting he was completely boxed in, Subaru licked his parched lips. \"...I can...get into the castle, if I...go with you?\" The way Al avoided the heart of the matter was unsettling. \"Well... You'll find out if you come along, won't ya?\" Subaru averted his eyes and resisted the urge to click his tongue. Al had tossed the ball into his court and now calmly awaited his reply. In spite of that, he seemed to know exactly what reply Subaru would give, which burned Subaru to no end. After a brief, silent pause, the boy scowled in defeat as he raised a white flag. \" Understood. I'll go with you.\" \"Don't look so sad. I knew how this was gonna go down the moment you arrived in front of this shop with me waiting for you, just like Princess wanted.\" \"...You seriously believe in her like that?\" Al didn't reply to Subaru's feeble question, using his one arm to fend off the issue as he moved the conversation forward. \" Well, out of time. If we don't get a move on, she's gonna leave us behind. She's really strict about that stuff.\" Subaru was about to fall into step behind Al, but first he looked back and said, \"So there you have it. There's stuff I wanted to talk about, but I'll save it for next time, old guy.\" He was speaking to the shopkeeper, who'd been grimacing as Subaru and Al conversed inside the store. The shopkeeper traced his facial scar with a finger and let out a brief snort. \"I don't really mind. Can't be helped... Having a weirdo like that in front of my store was driving my customers away. Get going already.\" \"I'm not sure Al's the cause of your customers staying away, but... I've got one favor to ask you. You can get in touch with this crazy-huge geezer named Old Man Rom, right?\" Subaru, feeling confidence in the unusual connection, chose his words with great care as he added, \"I want you to tell Old Man Rom this: Subaru Natsuki says, I'm heading to the castle to check on Felt. Wait up for good news.\"  When Subaru reached Al's destination, he looked up, completely and"}, {"text": "utterly overwhelmed. \"This is... How to put this...\" Standing beside him, Al nodded to display his sympathy with Subaru's halting words. \"I know, bro. I get it, looking at this and wondering what you should say.\" Then, the two met each other's eyes, pointing at what stood in front of them, and said simultaneously, \" Rich people.\" The dragon carriage was the very definition of needless extravagance. The passenger cab was subtly engraved and adorned with numerous flamboyant ornaments. Glittering, radiant gold leaf had been applied to the exterior, and even the wheels had been jewel-encrusted. The land dragon in front also had an ostentatious appearance. The crimson-skinned, two-headed land dragon had extravagant feathers all down its back, with the intricate designs on the reins and bit completing the image of quintessential opulence. \"...People ride this? This isn't some kind of mistake?\" \"Unfortunately, even in a vast kingdom such as this, only Princess would ride such an embarrassing thing.\" Subaru did a double take as Al patted him on the back and walked ahead of him toward the occupied vehicle. It was parked on the side of the street, but nonetheless, an unnecessarily huge dragon carriage just sitting there made a large impact on passersby. It received many stares, more out of raw shock than indignation at the interference. Deeply conscious of their stares, Subaru finally resigned himself to climbing into the dragon carriage. He could almost hear the unvoiced whispers behind him: He's getting into that... Sitting by herself in a custom seat, a girl greeted them with a crafty smile. \" You have made me wait some time. Such rudeness can cost you dearly.\" The girl's attire for that day polished and amplified her beauty more than ever. The dress was wide open at the chest, presenting her ample bosom with such assertiveness that her sensuality tempted eyes to wander. \"...I'm extremely humbled and delighted by your invitation.\" \" 'Tis no trouble. You are riding for my entertainment, nothing more. A minor amusement I am slipping in at the last minute.\" \"So I'm a super-outstanding servant here to serve as your entertainment for the evening? You're gonna make me cry.\" As Subaru scoffed at the door, the seated master and servant traded glances with each other. The awkwardness had Subaru grinding his teeth by the time Al said to him, \"Sit. We can't get this dragon carriage moving if you just keep standing there. Even if the blessing makes it not rock on the inside, it's a hell of a lot more comfortable sitting down. Besides, Princess hates being looked down upon.\" \"Indeed, you understand me rather well, Al. So, commoner, that is how it is. Sit down at once. If you continue to tower over me like this, I shall have your height reduced...by about half.\" Since it really didn't sound like a joke, Subaru plopped down immediately. That instant, the dragon carriage started. The scenery outside the window moved gently. Very gently. Al guessed what was on Subaru's mind, trying not to laugh as he said, \"Appearances were prioritized at the cost of speed. Form over function. Easy to understand, yes?\" Subaru scratched his head at the way of thinking so different from the world he had come from, but the girl in the carriage prodded him, speaking in a fairly playful tone. \"So, peasant. What is the purpose of your riding in this dragon carriage?\" \"Err... Uh? Purpose or not... It's because you told the guy there to invite me aboard, right?\" \"No. That was the trigger, but not the reason. I am not asking you why you came here. I am asking you, what is your reason for being here?\" For a moment, Subaru refrained from a comeback as he searched for better words. It burned him, but it clearly was not the time to get on the girl's bad side. She might just threw him out of the dragon carriage, but worst case, he'd be finding out what it was like to be on the business end of the sword on Al's hip. Besides, she had chosen her question deliberately not why he had come, but why he was there at all. \"...Because I need to go to the royal palace. That's why I'm in this carriage.\" \"Correct. That is your reason for being here. Put another way, so long as you carry that reason with you, you would be hunting for another way to get into the palace, even if you were not on this carriage, yes?\" Subaru lowered his head, unable to refute the girl's words. \"That's...right... Maybe I'd end up sneaking in on one of the rich folks' carriages.\" So long as he could not accept \"giving up\" as an option, Subaru would have groped for a way to get into the royal palace by any means necessary, even if it meant sneaking in aboard a nobleman's vehicle. But as Al pointed out, \"That's reckless talk. Even if you could normally, this is a real special day. The checks are gonna be a lot stricter. There's pretty much no way that'd work without help from guards at the garrison and people taking care of the carriages.\" Naturally, Subaru had no connections with which to make such arrangements. No doubt he'd have completely failed if he had attempted such a plan without being prepared. \"If that's the case, getting invited here is a huge lifesaver, huh...?\" \"So you boarded this dragon carriage because you aim to enter the royal palace. In other words, you believe this carriage is heading to the royal palace... There is no meaning in hiding it. Surely you are well aware of this.\" \"...Yeah, that's right... And if this isn't going there, let me off now because I'm on the wrong ride.\" Al interrupted with a low chuckle. \"Sorry, this is a special express that won't stop until the fourth station down the line.\" Subaru raised his eyebrows at the expression, but the girl continued before he could follow up. She glanced over at Subaru as she said, \"Luckily for you, this dragon carriage is in fact heading to the royal palace... And do you understand why this dragon carriage is heading to the royal palace?\" *** \"I pray you do not disappoint me by being a foolish commoner manipulated by the information before your eyes and fail to miss the obvious. If you are, that makes you a fool whose life bears no value. Answer with care.\" As Subaru swallowed his breath, the girl uncrossed her legs and sat up. She sat with her legs off to the side, her back straight and deep in her seat as she gazed at Subaru and asked, \"Why is this dragon carriage heading toward the royal palace?\" \"This dragon carriage's...heading toward the royal palace, because...\" Held captive by those two red eyes, Subaru felt his stomach squeezing. The extreme pressure rolling off the girl no doubt would make the weak of spirit buckle then and there. She was a proud girl who spoke and acted like she viewed the entire world from a position above it. She had an obedient servant and a luxuriant dragon carriage. These formed the outline, and when Subaru added the final piece, the puzzle was complete. There was only one possible answer. \"...Because you're participating in the royal selection. This carriage is carrying a candidate.\" \" My. In other words, you do understand.\" \"...You're one of the candidates fighting for the throne of the Kingdom of Lugunica, aren't you?\" At Subaru's reply, the girl narrowed her blood-colored eyes and let loose a bloodcurdling, sadistic laugh. \" Al.\" \"Right, right, understood. It's what you figured, bro. This young lady is a candidate for the royal succession of the Kingdom of Lugunica. This is Lady Priscilla Bariel.\" Al called the leisurely posing girl Priscilla a name he spoke with reverence. Priscilla nodded in satisfaction at her servant's words before looking at Subaru. \"One might argue that even a fool would have answered thusly after being provided with so many hints. Regardless, you may rest at ease. At the very least, you have avoided an immediate shedding of your blood.\" \"Well, I'm relieved, too. This thing may be huge, but I don't think we'd ever get the smell of blood and guts out of it.\" \"I would simply arrange a new carriage in that case. Worry less about such trivial things and more about my mood.\" \"A petty bourgeois like me just can't understand a princess's sense of money.\" Priscilla and Al engaged in casual master-servant banter. As Subaru watched, he subtly let out a long sigh. He'd hazarded a guess when they'd parted ways the day before. Without doubt, Priscilla's haughtiness marked her as someone from society's upper class, telling him she had a strong pedigree. But what had really settled it was Emilia's reaction. Emilia had been fearful of coming into contact with Priscilla in spite of the robe she wore meant to conceal her identity. If Priscilla was Emilia's political rival, it all fell into place. In that light, the fact she'd invited Subaru aboard the dragon carriage meant... \"You knew who I was with yesterday, then?\" \"It would seem she attempted to conceal herself with some pathetic rags. The way she hid in a nook along the street suited her public image very nicely.\" \"Why, you. There's things you say and things you don't...\" Subaru was unable to conceal his indignation at Priscilla's mockery of Emilia. \"Hey, lay off, bro. I only just got her to chill out on the spilling blood stuff.\" It took only an instant. As Subaru stood up, Al drew his crescent sword and touched the thick of the blade against the bottom of Subaru's chin. One step farther and Subaru's head would roll from his shoulders. Al continued, \"You get how Princess is by now, right? That's her default mode, so just be the bigger man and accept it. If you don't... Well, you chose wrong.\" \"For a one-armed guy, you're pretty handy with that thing.\" \"I've lived longer with one than with two. People adapt.\" Unable to see Al's face to judge whether he was joking, Subaru clicked his tongue and backed off a step. Accepting this, Al twirled his razor-sharp weapon and returned it to its sheath. Subaru sat back down in his seat and calmed himself. He scowled as Al's helmet made a satisfied shake, rubbing salt into his wounds. Subaru gazed at him and broached the subject that had been nagging him all this time. \"Is it too rude for me to ask where you lost that arm of yours?\" He was pointing at Al's left arm, the most distinctive thing about him. If he has trouble answering for once, I wouldn't mind, he thought.  But that spurred a turn of events far different than he had expected. \"Sure, I can see why it'd bug you. It was my baptism to a whole different world. You know what I mean, don't you, bro?\" \" Ah?\" Subaru had meant to gain some measure of revenge upon him, but the unexpected truth washed that thought away. He stared in abject shock while Al toyed with the gap of his helm with his left hand and tilted his head a bit. \"Wha, don't tell me you didn't notice by now? I'm the only one who knows what you're going through, bro.\" \" Huh?\" Subaru let out a breath as his eyes opened as wide as plates. Al's words had frozen his thoughts stiff. With his brain blanking out, he was at a complete loss for words. The boy raised a hand, his head feeling dizzy as he chewed over the implications. \"Wait... Wait. Understand what I'm going... You're, ah, really?\" \"Can't really blame you for doubting me. I couldn't believe my ears yesterday. That stuff about how even chance meetings are the results of karma, the red threads... Haven't heard those quotes in eighteen years.\" \"Eighteen...?!\" That outrageous length of time caused Subaru's voice to catch in"}, {"text": "his throat. In real time, he had only been summoned one month prior. But if what Al said was true... \"That's right, bro. It's been eighteen years since I got summoned here. I lost my arm around the same time... Right around the age you are right now.\" Just like that, Al confessed to Subaru that he'd experienced the same situation. However, Subaru was far from overjoyed at having so easily found someone like him. Al had spent eighteen entire years in that place knocked the wind right out of him. \"Did you ever find out...how, or anything...?\" \"What, how I lost my arm, or the summoning? If it's the arm, it was when I didn't know right from left here. It was a plain, ordinary mistake. If you mean the summoning... I still don't know.\" *** \"It's not like I've looked under every rock for the reason I got called to this world... I've been working my ass off to survive.\" So Al truly had lived eighteen years in another world. Being blessed with a relationship like Subaru's with Emilia wasn't common. It really did hit close to home: He could very easily have lost an arm or spent his days desperately trying to live, forgetting all about the time. It was by good fortune that Subaru Natsuki was not walking a path quite that bleak. Priscilla's haughty behavior shattered the gloomy silence that fell over the carriage. \"You two men and your glum faces are dulling the luster of my dragon carriage. From what I have heard, 'tis all trifling issues of the past. Even those clownish tall tales about your homeland beyond the Great Waterfalls make for a more amusing conversation for me.\" \"Beyond the Great Waterfalls...?\" \"Do you not know? At the ends of the maps of the continent, the land ceases at the four corners of the world, with all washed away by great cascades of water in other words, the Great Waterfalls. From time to time, there are rumors of people who have come from beyond them, such as you and Al. Most are simple nonsense... But Al is different.\" \" ! Why do you think that? Do you have some kind of concrete reason to think...?\" \" Intuition.\" It wasn't what Subaru expected, but the response fit Priscilla perfectly. \"Understand? Nothing happens in this world that is not convenient for me. In other words, my intuition is not a reason, for I require none. It is an answer all by itself. Al is a buffoon of a different breed than the other vulgar peasants and their nonsense. And...it would seem that you are, as well.\" \"You're unbelievable... Does it really benefit you for me, someone related to your political rival, to ride on the same dragon carriage as you?\" Even if her words were consistent, her actions were not. That was what Subaru was trying to get at. However, Priscilla smiled at him like a carnivore surveying her prey. \"...How about this? I take you, someone related to my political rival, hostage and use you to blackmail her into abandoning the royal selection. Or, I deliver her your head and threaten her by telling her that she is next. Either way, 'tis a simple matter, is it not?\" *** Priscilla rolled her tongue around in delight at how Subaru's eyes widened in distress. It was a possibility he had not even imagined until that very moment. The reason for this was simple: Subconsciously, he didn't think he was valuable enough to capture as a hostage to bait Emilia. \"Your face says that is beyond what you anticipated. That makes you an even greater buffoon, yes?\" Subaru hadn't even considered the risk he could become a liability to Emilia. Priscilla clapped her hands as if she were making sport of her own, hand-raised pet. \"Judging from your eyes, you have taken the girl's side for reasons of passion. Your mad emotions have clouded your vision, making you neglect what lies at your feet... No words exist to describe your foolishness.\" Subaru was unable to even let out an ugh as he wilted before Priscilla. He'd meant to rush to Emilia's side because he wanted to help her, to be there for her, but that had turned into a tragicomic farce. Al interjected, \"Hey, Princess, he's from my homeland. Don't tease him too much, okay?\" Priscilla shrugged her shoulders as a look of tedium came over her. \"I am not berating him, whatsoever. This peasant has realized his oversights and fallen into despair and gloom all by himself. It bores me. You need not overthink things, commoner. Had I intended to use you in that manner, I would have had you dismembered in the street yesterday. That I have not done so, and invited you to ride within my dragon carriage, makes my intentions crystal clear, does it not?\" \"...Whether you're taking me hostage or not isn't where my self-loathing's coming from... I'm pathetic for not having thought of it. And why did you get me to ride this thing, anyway?\" Subaru couldn't help but think that many of his actions had rebounded on Emilia. Priscilla's declarations might have been hard to listen to, but they'd merely brought the facts to his attention. However harsh the lesson, it was the truth. When Subaru turned a questioning gaze toward Priscilla, she altered her position again, resting her chin on a hand. \"I have told you already. You are here for my entertainment. I think it will be more amusing to bring you to the royal selection assembly than to use you as a hostage or for threats. That is my decision.\" Subaru was taken aback by her completely unexpected thought process. To this, Priscilla yawned. \"Everything in this world exists to convenience me. Furthermore, I shall decide the course of whatever I please. Whatever I decide, it shall be. Therefore, all I need to do is decide what will entertain me, and what will not. There is no inconvenience to me.\" *** With Subaru still dazed, the girl closed her eyes, declining to discuss the matter further. Judging from her posture and demeanor, she intended to nap until the time of their arrival. Given there was a meeting crucial to the royal selection in under an hour, it was truly bold. When Subaru looked Al's way, the guardian raised one hand to indicate subservience to his carefree master again, sinking soundlessly into his seat. Subaru was unsure whether he should do similarly and settle in for the long haul when Priscilla added, \"If there is one reason beyond my amusement...\" \"Eh ?\" \"The abbles.\" After those two words to a thoroughly dumbfounded Subaru, Priscilla went silent entirely. Since her conduct made clear she would not permit him any questions or doubts, Subaru wracked his confused mind, finally coming up with a single possible answer. In other words, \"The old guy at the fruit store saved my life, then...?\" He recalled that, for whatever reason, the shopkeeper had been involved in a large percentage of his exploits in the royal capital. The thought of having survived thanks to something so banal and trivial provided Subaru a brief respite from his self-loathing.  The carriage arrived at the palace and entered through the main gates. As Subaru walked straight up the front stairs, he felt painfully aware of just what a little fish he was in that ocean. \"Hey, um, am I all right here? To be honest, I'm so out of place it's kinda scary...\" Subaru looked down at his own outfit before glancing at Al, walking beside him. \"Well, yeah. We're basically party crashers. No question they aren't rolling out the red carpet for the two of us.\" Al's ever-aloof attitude suggested he had no qualms about looking far more out of place than Subaru. Apparently, his eighteen years in another world had washed away all concerns about dress codes. Not only that, all eyes were on the girl walking before them Priscilla as she continued toward the central chamber. The corridor was decorated with paintings and other works of art, and guards in full armor lined it on the left and right, swords raised in salute. Subaru had difficulty breathing under the pressure even though he wasn't the object of attention. In the meantime, they arrived at the end of the corridor. He raised his eyes to see an enormous pair of double doors before them. \"Soldiers lining the corridor, huge doors...\" The sight of the closed doors overwhelmed him with its grandeur. He felt himself standing straighter just from being in its presence, his discomfort reaching a fever pitch. As Priscilla led the party onward, a fully armored soldier in front of the door took a step forward, saluting her with his sword. He removed his great helm and looked over Priscilla and the others with an intellectual air. \"We have been expecting you, Lady Priscilla.\" The man was around forty years old, give or take, with an expression that was not so much tough as stern. His face was as austere as an image carved into a boulder, giving off the air of a man who'd seen plenty of combat. Priscilla replied to his salute with a haughty nod and turned her head slightly toward Subaru and Al. \"They are with me. One is my knight, and the other...my abble boy.\" \"Hey...!\" Subaru immediately started to refute Priscilla, but stopped very quickly when he realized that such a thing was impermissible in that place. The knight's face didn't even twitch. \" Abble boy, is it?\" \"Yes, abble boy. He is a type of clown, bearing the exalted duty of providing me with red, bittersweet abbles. He is harmless. Surely you do not mind?\" Without replying to the imperious Priscilla, the knight appraised Subaru and Al as his blue eyes faintly twinkled. \"I cannot detect any dangerous magic. That sword is the only one you carry, sir knight?\" \".........Oh, by 'knight' you mean me. Yes, yes, that's right. If I see any dark-haired, mustache-twirling villains around, I'll chop 'em in half with one hand.\" \"Should an incident occur, please concentrate on protecting your master, Lady Priscilla, and leave the rest to us guards.\" With his casual banter brushed off, Al halfheartedly replied, \"Sure thing.\" The man dipped his head and shifted his gaze toward the huge doors, which slowly began to open. \"Everyone is already waiting inside, so with all haste...\" \"I am superior, so it is fitting that the masses wait for me. The reverse is impermissible, however.\" Entirely self-absorbed, Priscilla stepped through the door, all eyes still on her. Seeing Al follow her without hesitation, Subaru firmed up his resolve and entered as well.  As his view expanded, he found himself in an enormous room with a red carpet covering it. The glittering adornments on the walls were illuminated by extravagant lighting hanging from the high ceiling. The room had few places to sit considering its size, though a small set of steps led to chairs on the far side of the chamber. There were five seats from left to right, and what stood out most was the one seat in the center. Resting against a wall, the innermost chair was fashioned into the form of a dragon, as if to show that he who rested in that chair shouldered the dragon upon his own back, while being protected by it in turn. It was a classical throne room of a royal palace. Meaning that chair had to be the throne of the King of Lugunica. After the throne caught his attention, Subaru timidly looked around the rest of the chamber. Unlike the exterior, he couldn't see a single sword-carrying guard. Instead, he saw rows of elite troops dressed in white-themed uniforms with knights' swords at their hips the Knights of the Royal Guard. Farther within was a group of apparent civil officials in ceremonial dress, all men of high rank based on their appearance. Their dignified faces suited a throne room. And"}, {"text": "at the center of the room, removed from the cluster of knights and nobles, a small group of people stood in a line. And among them was  A silver-haired girl. When she saw the three people entering through the large doors, she called out with obvious surprise. \" Subaru?\" Her wide-open violet eyes wavered with bewilderment, like she was unable to believe that Subaru was there. Inundated with Emilia's shock and surprise, Subaru's heart beat so loudly it hurt. Now that he knew Emilia was there, he felt joy, but also guilt at having betrayed her to get there. In spite of all the thoughts and feelings that had spurred him into action, he was at a complete loss for words in front of her quivering eyes. \"Er, Emilia, I...\" *** Even though this was what he had sought, words just wouldn't come out. Emilia's gaze wandered over Subaru as she, too, searched for words, but her lips were drawn tight. Neither of them broke the silence, but rather a voice and bump from behind... \"What are you doing staring at my servant, you imbecile?\" \" Err.\" The touch against his back was frighteningly soft. The arms that wrapped around his chest and neck were outright bewitching. Priscilla, pressing against him from behind, rested her chin upon Subaru's shoulder so that they gazed at Emilia together, their faces side by side. \"What are...! G-get off! Emilia-tan's gonna get the wrong idea!\" \"The wrong idea? Do the bonds between you and I not form a deep and intimate relationship? I permit it. Come close.\" \"I didn't give you those bonding abbles to have you use them for nefarious purposes!\" As Priscilla teased, Subaru extricated himself from her and put distance between them. The apparent rejection prompted Priscilla to stomp a heel, narrowing her eyes in displeasure. But before any unrest could break out, the familiar voice of a man with delicate features intervened. \"My, oh myyy. Lady Priscilla, I am dreadfully sorry for the trouble my house's servant has caused you. And you even cared for him after he became lost in the castle... Please forgive this terrible rudeness.\" Before Subaru knew it, Roswaal, the character with long, violet hair, was standing beside him with a dubious smile, wearing a formal uniform with a maple emblem unrelated to his status as Court Magician. \"And so the swindler steps forward. I have no recollection of such a thing. I picked up that peasant myself... And do you have proof that he is any servant of yours?\" Priscilla had a crafty comeback. However, Roswaal greeted her question with a shrug. \"Fortuuunately, I do. I have looong been in the practice of marking that which is mine. My family crest should be sewed into the liiining of his uniform.\" *** Priscilla's face went blank. She looked at Subaru as if seeking confirmation of the tale. Under her gaze, Subaru turned up the sleeve of his coat and saw that there was indeed something resembling an embroidered hawk in the lining. He showed Priscilla the embroidery as well, to which she responded with a short snort. \"A cheap trick. Well, fine. Toying with the clown and the imbecile has driven away much of my tedium along the way And besides, my vassal asked it of me.\" \"Princess, you promised not to mention that p...\" \"Do not be concerned about little things. You'll never grow taller otherwise.\" \"You shouldn't expect a guy pushin' forty to be growing anyway...\" Priscilla silenced Al with a glance before striding forward, not paying Subaru the slightest heed. She was heading toward the gathering at the center of the room near Emilia. Emilia stiffened when Priscilla walked close, but the orange-haired girl passed by without paying her the slightest heed. Emilia slumped her shoulders at being ignored before turning back toward Subaru. \"But I must saaay, that you were found by Lady Priscilla along the way... Your jinx is truly quiiite something. I wonder what might have haaappened to you if she had not been the one to find you.\" \"The hell? You're not trying to tell me that peacock is famous for her vast benevolence and compassion, are you?\" \"Oh, nooo. I simply thought that the others might have haaad you imprisoned or cut down then and theeere. In that sense, Lady Priscilla gave you equal odds of survival, depending upon her mood.\" \"Yeah, I get that I'm walking quite a tightrope here... You're...not upset?\" With Roswaal speaking to him like it was nothing, Subaru timidly posed the question. \"Why would I be? After all, I was thiiinking that you might show up. And in truth, you have arrived. It would seem that the family creeest upon your uniform was of some value midway.\" \"Midway...? Er, not really, I thought I was ninety percent likely to kick the bucket just now, but...\" Subaru inclined his head at the odd choice of words, but it was Roswaal's face that registered surprise. \"You were not stopped when entering the castle? Then just hooow did you get in to begin with?\" \"That selfish princess picked me up outside the castle. Er, it's a pretty long story...\" They spoke past each other, each with a different understanding of the situation. But before Subaru could bridge the gap, he realized that Emilia was walking resolutely over to him. \"Why...?\" *** With a single earnest word, Emilia conveyed the full gamut of conflicting emotions swirling inside her. Her why, with the many doubts within it, made Subaru's breath catch. \"How did you...? No, why. Why are you here, Subaru?\" \"That's...going to be a long story... I suppose I could sum it up in one word, but...\" \"Don't make light of this. Subaru, I told you. I told you, didn't I? Don't you remember...?\" The way Emilia repeated her words for emphasis made Subaru shut his mouth and avert his eyes. She was, of course, referring to the promise he'd made with her at the inn the promise to wait for her that he had broken. On the one hand, he had indeed broken that promise. But on the other, it was no lie he had gone out of concern for Emilia. And so, relying on a series of coincidences, he had arrived for her sake. He wanted her to at least trust his motivation. But before Subaru could clarify how he felt inside, a clear voice echoed from in front of the throne. \" All have been assembled. The Council of Elders may enter.\" The great doors opened once more. The armored knight stationed at the door led a group of old men filing into the chamber. All the men wore robes identifying their station. Each solemn stride made plain that these were men of great dignity and experience. The one who stood out the most was a white-haired man with a beard so long it nearly touched the ground. Though his back was not stooped, he stood almost a head shorter than Subaru. Even among the others, the deep wrinkles of his face made him seem especially old, but his eyes were sharp enough to cut steel. As Subaru observed the silent procession, he remarked to Roswaal with a whisper, \"The Council of Elders, that's the people running the kingdom in place of a king, right?\" Roswaal shrugged and stated with extreme disrespect, \"Formally they are an adviiisory body, but yes. Matters of state currently rest in the Council of Elders's hands... But having said that, it is not reaaally much different from when the royal family still existed.\" It sounded like the Council had been holding the reins since the rule of the previous monarch, apparently a man of little talent in public affairs. Al, silent until that point, motioned with his chin toward a section with Knights of the Royal Guard neatly lined up. \"It's time, bro. We need to line up over there, not over here.\" Those assembled had naturally sorted themselves out, with knights and officers on the left, and civil officials and nobility on the right. \"Seems like it, but is it all right for me to line up over there?\" Roswaal replied, \"The proper thing to do would be to immeeediately throw you out of the castle, but as this will be amusing, you may go with him.\" Emilia's eyebrows shot up at Roswaal's attitude. She approached to object. \"Roswaal, wait a...!\" \"Unfortunately, Lady Emilia, this is not the time or place for you to argue. If all the facts become clear, Subaru will be staying here...for a very, veeery long time.\" \"But if we let Subaru stand over there, he'll \" \"The time for argument is at an end, Lady Emilia. The conference is beginning. To the center...\" Roswaal's face tensed as he gazed at the seats around the throne, being filled by the Council of Elders that very moment. The only vacant seat left was the throne of the king at the heart of the chamber. And in front of the old men of the Council was a tidy line of people who had given off a special aura since the moment of their birth. The girl with orange hair was at the top of the list of three girls with magnificent posture, conspicuous and vibrant. Standing in the center, Priscilla put a hand on her hip and pushed her shoulders back, causing her skirt to sway slightly. Even before the elders that governed the nation, she still had that belittling look on her face. To Priscilla's right stood a girl dressed in clothes resembling an army uniform. The color of her hair was such a deep green it nearly seemed black, but upon closer inspection, the glossy luster definitely reflected green. Her long hair was tied at the end by a white ribbon. Her beautiful, dignified face was trained straight ahead. She was tall for a girl, about the same height as Subaru, but their legs were very different lengths. On her hip, she wore a sword bearing a family crest with a lion baring its fangs. She looked like a beautiful girl disguised as a handsome man. And in contrast to the green-haired girl's serious ambiance, the girl to Priscilla's left with light violet hair exuded a serene image. Her wavy hair fell down to the middle of her back, looking cottony soft. She was short compared to the other two girls and wore a white dress made with generous amount of fur. Particularly eye-catching were the white fox muffler and the ridiculously large purse at her hip. All were beautiful, projecting a particular unique aura. They were clearly cut from a different cloth. Emilia bit her lip in regret, delivering Subaru a reminder before trotting back to the line of girls. \" We will discuss this later.\" When Emilia lined up with the others, her silver hair dancing about, her attire definitely seemed a step behind everyone else's. However, the loveliness within excelled above all the others, at least according to Subaru. \"In other words, they're the future royal candidates for the selection... Huh?\" All the participants were girls, Emilia included. As he realized this with surprise, the people around him began moving one after another. Subaru followed Al's lead and headed toward the lined-up Knights of the Royal Guard. As he did so, a certain red-haired, handsome young man standing at the head of the knights, greeted Subaru with a bright, friendly smile. \" So you did come, Subaru.\" It was Reinhard. The agreeable young man apparently hadn't forgotten him in the last month. He still had flaming red hair and eyes as blue as if very sky had been trapped in them. The only change was that he was wearing a formal royal guard uniform. He added, \"When I heard that Lady Emilia would be attending, I wondered if you might show up.\" \"That's a crazy-high appraisal of me on your part, isn't it...? I thought the main image you had of me was pathetically crying for help and getting"}, {"text": "sliced open...\" Reinhard replied to Subaru without the faintest trace of sarcasm. \"I think you underestimate your own virtues. You, of course, protected Lady Emilia from a wicked blade, but you also made virtuous choices in other areas as well.\" He shrugged good-naturedly. Even that gesture was perfectly polished, and Subaru couldn't help but be a jealous. And so Subaru stood to Reinhard's side, and Al to his. Just as he realized that they were in the front row among the knights in a very prominent position, he heard the overly friendly call of a cat-eared girl, accompanied by a playful smile and a wave... \"Subawu, it is you!\" It was the messenger girl who'd triggered their trip to the royal capital. Subaru was a little surprised to see her standing with the knights, dressed in a female uniform for the Royal Guard, complete with a skirt. And standing by the cat-eared girl's side, giving him a silent nod, was none other than Julius. \"Subaru, what's with that scowl all of a sudden?\" Reinhard asked. \"In my homeland, they teach you to make this face when you look at an insect called archnemesis.\" Reinhard attempted to smile as Subaru tried to hide the disgust making itself plain on his face. \"I hope you don't take this personally, Julius. It would seem Subaru does this to make a more humble first impression on people.\" \"No, there's no deeper meaning here. Can you not make me out to be sneakier than I am?\" Reinhard ascribed uncomfortably great praise to Subaru's words and deeds, so Subaru shot him down immediately. Julius, in response stroked his hair back as he said, \"I do not mind, Reinhard. It is the duty of a knight to behave in a manner befitting his station. I am Julius Juukulius of the Knights of the Royal Guard. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance...and that of the good knight beside you.\" After his pompous introduction, Julius tried to draw Al into the conversation. Without much energy, Al replied, \"Aw, don't get stuck on formalities, okay? Stop calling me good knight or sir knight or whatever. I'm, whatchamacallit a common cutthroat. I'm not one of the high and mighty like you.\" Subaru reflexively raised an eyebrow at his behavior. He'd thought Al was the type to get along with anybody, so his attitude toward Julius was unexpected. But unfortunately, there was no time left for a follow-up. \" The gentlemen of the Council of Elders and the candidates have been assembled. If I may be so bold, I, captain of the Knights of the Royal Guard, Marcus, shall oversee these proceedings.\" \"Mmmm... Very well, please do.\" Still at his seat, the one who crossed his arms and made a faint nod was named Miklotov. Marcus, captain of the knights, nodded and presented a solemn expression to all assembled. \"I have an important announcement to make to this assembly for the election of the next ruler...for the royal selection. It is for this purpose I have gathered the Council of Elders and called you all the way to the palace.\" Marcus's voice was not especially loud, yet it reverberated so that everyone in the throne room could hear. The captain of the knights had a voice fitting his title, one that marked him as a man destined from birth to lead others. \"Half a year ago...beginning with the late king, the members of the royal family passed away in rapid succession. Any kingdom lacking a king is in crisis, but it is an especially grave matter for the Dragonfriend Kingdom of Lugunica, deeply related to the Covenant.\" The Covenant apparently this indicated the pact between the kingdom and the Dragon. He'd heard the term in fairy tales and in conversations at Roswaal Manor several times. However, just like the royal selection itself, there were numerous details that remained unclear to him. In that sense, Subaru was grateful for how the conference was unfolding. \"The kingdom's relationship with the Dragon began several centuries prior. The king of that time, His Highness, Falseil Lugunica, and Holy Dragon Volcanica formed a covenant between them. Since that time, the kingdom has been rescued from crisis by the Dragon several times over, preserving it and its prosperity.\" \"Holy Dragon Volcanica is extremely faithful, with a deep sense of duty. Even many generations later, he has continued to protect us from beyond the Great Waterfalls far away.\" As Marcus delivered his solemn speech, Miklotov stroked his beard and nodded. \"Mmmm. Furthermore, the continuance of the royal family is deeply related to maintaining the Covenant. This makes the loss of all members of the royal bloodline to plague an especially regretful matter. A Dragon Maiden is required to begin the next era without a moment to spare.\" \"Renewal of the Covenant through the Dragonfriend Ceremony, a meeting of the minds with the Dragon, requires a maiden that meets select criteria. This duty was shouldered by succeeding generations of the royal family, but now we seek another to carry it.\" Keeping the emotions in his voice as restrained as possible, Marcus faced the Council of Elders sitting on the dais and touched a hand against his chest. \"For this purpose, we, the Knights of the Royal Guard, upon the command of the Council of Elders, have undertaken the duty of locating maidens selected by the light of the Dragon Jewels.\" Marcus slid his hand into a pocket. Upon his palm, he raised up a gemstone with a tiny emblem upon it. It was one Subaru had seen many times, for it marked those qualified to participate in the royal selection. \"Everyone, present your Dragon Jewels \" The girls responded, presenting their own emblems. Instantly, the throne room was bathed in a vivid glow from the jewels bearing the insignia. The one in Emilia's hand was red, and each other emblem dazzled the room with a different color. The knights sighed in wonder. Even the wrinkled faces of the Council of Elders showed a faint sign of relief. \"As you can see, each of these candidates is qualified to become a Dragon Maiden. Having beheld this fact, we shall do as commanded by the Dragon Tablet and...\" The solemn proceedings came to a halt at a soft voice. \"...Excuse me?\" As Marcus's breath caught, a girl in front of him bearing a twinkling blue Dragon Jewel inclined her head. She had violet-hair and wore a white dress. \"I understand the captain wants to tell his story, but as folks say in Kararagi, time is money.\" In contrast to her gentle tone and docile face, her request was as straight and to the point as a fastball. She put her Dragon Jewel away and smiled softly. \"If you're repeatin' what we already know anyway, I'd rather hear more about why we're here.\" The demand by the girl with a peculiar accent seemed to rock Marcus back on his heels. But Subaru was rocked to a far greater degree. \"Hey, wait a... No way, that's Kansai dialect?\" Al, standing next to Subaru, could only whisper back in sympathy to Subaru's murmur. \"Oh, first time you've heard it, bro? Apparently they all talk like that in the Kararagi area to the west. I mean, I've never seen the place myself, but the way they talk sure stands out.\" To him, hailing from the same homeland as Subaru, Kansai dialect should have been familiar to him. The way he phrased things put Subaru off a little, but he suddenly became very curious about what this Kararagi land to the west was like. The next girl over said, with a clear voice that echoed across the surprised occupants of the throne room, \"She has a point.\" As the violet-haired girl crossed her arms and tucked in her chin, the green-haired girl offered her agreement. Marcus appealed to her, \"Lady Crusch, the head of the House of Karsten should not be...\" \"Formalities may be important, but we don't have all the time in the world. We should touch upon the reason for our being gathered as quickly as possible. In fact, I have largely guessed already.\" The girl Marcus addressed as Crusch closed one eye, surveying the Council of Elders with the others. Miklotov let out a sigh of admiration. \"As expected of the Duchess of Karsten. So you already understand the meaning of this gathering?\" \"Yes, Lord Miklotov. A banquet, yes? We shall eventually be rivals, but there is still much we do not know about each other. By sitting us at the same table to exchange toasts, we may gain some understanding of the character of our competitors...\" Crusch had decided the occasion was a particularly formal banquet when Miklotov interrupted. \"No, that is not the case.\" The girl raised her eyebrows at his reply and slowly turned toward Subaru and the others. \"Ferris, this is not what you told me.\" \"Oh no. All Ferri said was that they're bringing lots of food and wine into the castle so maybe they're going to have a banquet. Oopsie.\" \"I see, I assumed too much. I'm sorry for doubting you.\" It was an odd kind of master-servant banter, without much affection. Crusch faced the front again, letting out a small sigh as she put that brief conversation behind her. \"And so, with some embarrassment, I take back my previous statement.\" \"Oh my, Lady Crusch, you're being way too manly...!\" The girl named Ferris put a hand to her cheek with an air of concern. Apparently, she wasn't particularly bothered that she'd leaked false information to her master. Given her current reaction, Subaru felt she'd done it on purpose. The girl speaking in Kansai dialect clapped her hands in search of agreement from the other candidates. \"Hey now. Just because Crusch backed off doesn't mean my opinion's changed. Everyone knows the gist of this royal selection thing by now, right?\" Crusch nodded in reply to the question, but Priscilla rudely blew it off with a small snort. Then, Emilia raised her hand a little. \"I think th-that we should listen to the full story.\" But the girl's treatment of Emilia was altogether too cruel. \"Sorry, but I'm not asking your opinion here.\" As if she had been struck by the hostility, pain ran across Emilia's profile. Subaru couldn't bear to watch. \"Why, you, what's with that attit \" As Subaru bellowed angrily, Al stepped in front of him from the side, raising his arm up high. \"Yeah! I don't know about this royal selection business, so I want to hear the rest and stuff!\" As all eyes gathered on Al's buffoonish behavior, he comically waved his hand to further establish his harmlessness. \"Hey, don't look at me like that, I'm gonna blush. I know I'm really out of place, so don't treat me like some suspicious intruder or something. You're gonna drive a middle-aged man to tears.\" Marcus seemed to be the only one keeping his complete cool. \"Lady Priscilla, your knight has requested it, but...would you like to hear the explanation about the royal selection?\" Priscilla fanned the flames in a grandiose tone. \"Whether I desire it or not, you love your long-winded stories all on your own. It is a waste of time to me. Repeated words are no different than nonsense. I do not even speak nonsense in my sleep.\" In contrast to the selfish bearings of the others assembled, Emilia's good character stood out. But it was clear from the earlier exchange she was not being treated fairly. Al said to him, \" That's one you owe me. No, two now?\" With Al holding up two fingers and tilting his head toward the younger boy, Subaru was grateful on the inside. It was scary to even think about what would've happened if he'd continued and blown a gasket. Al had taken all the blame on himself in Subaru's place. Priscilla continued, \"By my grace, we shall follow the commoner's view. Rejoice and dance upon my palm. Continue, Marcus. Tell my"}, {"text": "knight how I shall become monarch.\" The violet-haired girl slumped her shoulders and threw in the towel at Priscilla's demeanor. \"It's really somethin' how you pass the buck onto everyone else. I'm just gonna keep my mouth shut.\" With a consensus seemingly forming, Marcus looked at Emilia and Crusch, with both nodding as well. \"Very well, with that brief digression finished, I shall return to the topic. You who are qualified to become Dragon Maidens are assembled here because of the prophecy carved into the Dragon Tablet. This prophecy states, 'Should the Covenant of Lugunica lapse, the nation shall be guided by she who forms a bond with the Dragon anew.'\" Miklotov replied, \"Mmmm. The words on the tablet are providence itself. The Dragon Tablet, with a history at least as long as that of the Covenant, contains the words by which the fate of the kingdom shall be decided. Considering the impact of these details upon subsequent history, surely it is our duty to obey them.\" The other members of the Council of Elders solemnly nodded in response to Miklotov's words. Marcus continued, \"The Dragon Tablet, handed down by Holy Dragon Volcanica, has guided our kingdom's path since the days of yore. They have provided the land with advance warning of various crises, from the Great Cuedegra Famine and the Nightmare of Blight Dragon Balgren, to the onslaught of the Black Serpent in recent years, enabling us to minimize the damage incurred.\" \"Mmmm. There is no need to continue listing these achievements. They are known to all present.\" The aforementioned achievements were likely major affairs in the kingdom's history, but they didn't ring a bell with Subaru, ignorant as he was. He thought that a prophecy letting you plan for upcoming events was a pretty nice thing to have. Either way, apparently Emilia and the other candidates, or rather, maidens able to communicate with the Dragon, had been gathered in accordance with this prophecy. In a quiet voice, Subaru raised a doubt he'd been harboring with Reinhard beside him. \"I just thought of this, but if the problem's just the Covenant with the Dragon, the Dragon Maiden doesn't actually have to become queen, right? Can't you have the ruler and the maiden be separate?\" The corners of Reinhard's lips rose in a strained smile. \"I think you have a valid point, Subaru. But it can't be done.\" \"Mind if I ask why not?\" \"Because the Covenant for the prosperity of the kingdom is formed between the Dragon and the king. The Dragon isn't simply choosing someone able to communicate with. The pact is formed because that person is carrying a kingdom on his shoulders. In other words, the Dragon is very particular about his partners.\" \"But if that's the case, won't rushing a maiden into a monarch just annoy the Dragon more? It's, like, I close my eyes for one moment and poof, the king is gone, and here's a maiden to take the place of the king. Would the Dragon go for that?\" \"That's a fairly strong argument. But in the end, the Dragon Tablet upon which the fate of the kingdom is engraved takes precedence. That is what the Council of Elders has decided, and they have commanded us knights accordingly. I want to think that it was the right thing to do.\" Even if he had doubts, the higher-ups had settled the issue. The only one who knew how the Dragon would judge was the Dragon himself. It was truly as Ram had said: Only the Dragon knows. With one issue having been settled, Marcus's voice echoed across the quieted gathering. \"The prophecy continues thus: 'There shall be five able to lead a new nation. Of these, one shall be selected as the maiden to form a new Covenant with the Dragon.'\" Hearing that sentence from the prophecy, something tugged at Subaru's mind and made him frown. \"Five...?\" \"Yes, five. Currently there are only four candidates so the royal selection has not even begun yet. It is our shame that we have been unable to find a fifth.\" \"Your population's, like, fifty million people, right? Finding four in half a year sounds downright speedy.\" They had to search for people on a world without any national transportation networks. Those were pretty harsh conditions. Subaru thought finding four candidates in such a short time was worthy of serious praise. Marcus finished his explanation, apologizing to the girl who'd raised the initial objection to his carrying on. \"That summarizes the present circumstances. Lady Anastasia, please forgive my great rudeness.\" \"Don't, don't. This mess isn't my fault. Happy now, Princess?\" \"I wonder. Al, has your little head gained any new insights?\" \"Yeah, I've got it. Sorry for makin' ya go through the trouble. Sorry to the lil' lady from Kararagi, too.\" As Al flippantly waved with his one arm, Priscilla replied, \"There you have it.\" The girl Anastasia rubbed her forehead at the irresponsible master and servant and looked back up to the Council of Elders. \"Anyway, if there's still more, can we get on with it? I don't have forever, and I got a lot to do later. You old men with the purse strings get what I'm sayin', right?\" The rudeness of Anastasia's statement stirred the room up, and Subaru stiffened. But Anastasia seemed to have a very good read on her position, and the Council of Elders showed no sign of irritation. Abruptly, Miklotov lowered his voice. \"It pains me to take so much of your busy time, Lady Anastasia, but I must ask you to remain with the conference a little longer. After all...this day shall be marked in the history of the kingdom.\" Though the room had gradually lost its original tension, the statement triggered an ambiance that compelled everyone to stand a little straighter. And moving the proceedings forward was Priscilla, pushing out her chest without a single ounce of shame. \"So history shall move, you say, old fossils? In other words, you mean that, yes?\" Miklotov replied to Priscilla's quiet question with a small nod from his perch. Then, the eyes under his thick eyebrows sought Marcus. The look was some kind of signal, as Marcus saluted and suddenly bellowed across the chamber. \" Knight Reinhard Astrea! Come!\" Subaru's shoulders trembled out of the blue as Reinhard, seemingly having waited for the call, replied, \"Yes, sir!\" He advanced straight forward, saluting the four candidates before standing to attention before Marcus and the Council of Elders. \"Very well, Reinhard. Report!\" \"Sir!\" Marcus took a step back and yielded the center of the platform. With all eyes upon him, Reinhard stepped forward and faced the Council of Elders without a single trace of timidity. \"Esteemed members of the Council of Elders, I am Reinhard van Astrea of the Knights of the Royal Guard, here to report that my mission is complete.\" Miklotov instructed, \"Mmmm. Say it so that all may hear.\" Reinhard turned around, looking over everyone in the room. \" We have finally found the fifth candidate to become Dragon Maiden, and monarch.\" The ranks of knights stirred and formed a space between them. The expressions of the candidates changed, registering strong emotions: determination, delight, tedium, and bewilderment. \"Bring her in,\" Reinhard curtly called. Receiving his command, two guards before the entrance saluted and slowly opened the doors. Beyond them a girl, accompanied by ladies-in-waiting, was led into the throne room. When Subaru laid eyes upon her, his jaw instinctively dropped in absolute shock. The hem of her light yellow dress fluttered as her high-heeled shoes stepped upon the carpet. Her scrupulously arranged blond hair practically sparkled. The girl was remarkable for the strong determination in her red eyes and the impish appearance of her snaggletooth smile. She looked so different that he almost doubted what he was seeing. He couldn't help but be lost for words. With Subaru paralyzed by surprise, the announcement seemed to echo against his eardrums several times over. \"This young lady who seeks the crown is called...Lady Felt.\"  And so, the royal selection that would determine the fate of the Kingdom of Lugunica began. CHAPTER 4 *** The wild-eyed girl with scruffy blond hair had worn, grimy old rags. She was a tempestuous girl of the slums, more grubby than hardy. That was the image of the girl named Felt in Subaru's mind. As Reinhard made his declaration, the ladies-in-waiting quietly accompanied Felt as she walked into the throne room. Gracefully walking atop the red carpet, she looked like a nobleman's daughter. Subaru had thought long before, She might sparkle if someone polished her up. But this unhewn stone, polished via the power of Reinhard's family, was not only sparkling. Indeed, the only term to do her justice was radiant. Felt slowly passed by Subaru's dumbfounded gaze and stood before Reinhard. He nodded with a charming smile at her appearance and addressed her with the utmost respect. \"Lady Felt, thank you for gracing us with your presence.\" Felt raised her eyes and called out to him. \" Reinhard.\" Reinhard responded to her clear-as-a-bell voice. \"Yes?\" Knight and lady, their eyes met. And then... \" Why you. What's the big idea, dragging me in here with no explanation?!\" ...she raised the hem of her dress, her long, slender leg tracing an arc an arc that was about to slam right into the tip of Reinhard's chin when the knight raised a hand, stopping it short. \"I am quite surprised. What brought this on so suddenly?\" Remaining balanced on one leg, Felt violently slapped at her dress in anger. \"Don't block me and then play dumb! It's this place! These clothes! Them! You! What the hell is going on here?! I can't take any more of this!\" It was an expensive dress, no doubt custom-ordered for her. Seeing it treated so roughly sent the ladies attending her wilting to the floor as if their eyes were spinning. \"You did not like the dress? I believe it looks very good on you.\" \"This isn't about the dress, and it's not that it's embarrassing! I'm saying that I hate it! And not just the dress! I hate you too! Don't you think abducting and holding a girl against her will is embarrassing for a knight of honor?!\" Reinhard declared without hesitation, \"If it is for the prosperity of the kingdom, it must be done.\" Felt put a hand to her forehead as if he was giving her a headache. Subaru remarked to himself, \"I'm so glad. I thought she'd completely changed, but it's only how she looks. I guess leopards really don't change their spots, and it isn't just me!\" It would've made a sorry story for Old Man Rom if he'd had to report back that she'd become a whole different person. He was relieved at being able to confirm she was safe and sound in a place he never expected. On the other hand, he couldn't help but think Felt being dragged into becoming a royal candidate was prearranged rather than mere coincidence. After all, Reinhard had met her in the first place because she'd been the one to steal Emilia's badge... Emilia, realizing who Felt was, had apparently reached the same conclusion as Subaru. \"That girl...from back then...?! That's why Reinhard was so surprised...\" From Emilia's point of view, Felt had gone from the thief of her badge to her rival for the very throne. The other candidates, the knights, and the nobles all displayed appropriate reactions to the newcomer's crude behavior, none friendly. Under the austere stares, Felt clicked her tongue rudely. In the short time Subaru had known her she'd never been this much of a brat. He guessed that it was a product of various things during the last month. Subaru had been through a lot, but her transformation from a street urchin to a royal candidate was a Cinderella story to rival his. Felt was scanning the chamber to size up her surroundings when she suddenly noticed Subaru among the knights in the front row"}, {"text": "and brightened. \"Oh, hey! What are you doing here, mister?\" Felt shoved Reinhard away with a hand on his chest and walked over without a care. Where did all that ladylike behavior go? Subaru wondered as he raised a hand, delighted to greet a friendly face. \"Hi, it's been a while. Looks like you're in good health!\" said Felt. The instant the sunny greeting escaped her lips, she kicked Subaru straight in the stomach, sending him crumbling to his knees. Violence out of the blue. Subaru groaned, forcing himself up with one leg as Felt crossed her arms and nodded, remarking, \"Looks like your belly's all healed up, but you've got a whole bunch of new scars in other places. You okay there?\" \"If you're worried, take it easy on me, damn it...! What's with the hard smack instead of a hi? Geez, what if you'd broken something... It's not like it's been that long, either.\" Even though the wound was now fully closed, Subaru had a big, white horizontal scar right across his belly. He had scars from demon beast bites all over his body, too. He couldn't talk about scars on the back being the shame of a knight any longer. Though calm and reserved on the surface, Marcus motioned toward the dais, wanting to continue the meeting's proceedings. \"Lady Felt, if you are finished greeting your old friend, could you please come this way?\" Felt scowled at the solemn look on his face, glowering as she stepped forward. \"So what do you want me to do here?\" Reinhard replied, \"'Act more like a lady,' I would like to say, but instead, I would have you hold this.\" Felt scowled at Reinhard's joke. Reinhard took a dragon emblem out of his pocket and deposited it in her palm. The gemstone immediately emitted a white light. \"I thought this back when I stole one of these, too, but these are strange rocks. Why do they glow?\" Felt had blithely said something very dangerous. Marcus seemed to notice her careless statement. \"Stealing?\" But Reinhard immediately followed up, \"As you can see, the Dragon Jewel acknowledges Lady Felt as a maiden. Now that her participation has been confirmed, I believe that this royal selection now begins in a true sense.\" Marcus put a hand to his chest and knelt down on one knee. Reinhard followed suit, then all the Knights of the Royal Guard. The knights reported their mission was a success. Thanks to their efforts, five Dragon Maidens had been found in other words, the candidates for the next queen of Lugunica had been assembled. Priscilla remarked, \"I see. Thus, this day will go down in history.\" This was the very definition of a huge, must-see event. Surely, everyone present had to be deeply moved by the occasion, or so Subaru thought as he watched and noticed that, for their part, the government officials appeared troubled, with bewilderment and astonishment plain in their expressions. And one man from among them stepped forward. \"Pardon me, if I may?\" He was a middle-aged man with a stoop and unhealthy-looking bags under his eyes. He stroked his thick beard as an apparent nervous tic. \"I have no words sufficient to thank the knights of the kingdom, and the Knights of the Royal Guard in particular, for everything related to this royal selection ceremony. Without their assistance, it surely would not have been possible to arrange this in such a short time.\" Marcus replied, \"You are too kind.\" \"However, and it brings me no joy to say this, even though we are following the Dragon Tablet, are there not various...issues, with those selected?\" \"You are saying what, exactly?\" \"I am wondering if we have been too focused on those qualified to be Dragon Maidens, and not enough on those qualified to wear the very crown of the kingdom without becoming an object of ridicule?\" The declaration of the hunchbacked man was clearly tinged with anger. \"Hear, hear!\" said a few other civil officials in a display of support. He continued, \"The Covenant with the Dragon is the gravest matter. Lugunica has come this far as the Dragonfriend Kingdom and cannot survive as a nation without the Covenant. But valuing the Covenant so much more than the people will sow the seeds of future discord.\" \"In other words, the Dragon Maidens that we knights spilled our blood to search for would not make kings worthy of our fealty?\" \"Th-that is not how I would put it, but essentially, yes.\" The man broke out in a cold sweat at Marcus' frank summation, and after a moment he acknowledged the true meaning of his oblique comments. The knights had desperately toiled to solve a nearly unsolvable problem. This ridicule of their efforts did not exactly instill pleasant emotions in them. Subaru, standing with the knights, felt the hot anger all around him on his skin. He remarked, \"Smells like something's burning in here...\" Hearing Subaru's murmur, Al cheerfully spoke to two other people in the same row. \"Well, it sure sounded like he was insulting the knights. I don't mind, but what do you two think?\" The two he'd addressed, Julius and Ferris, turned their heads toward Al and Subaru. Ferris spoke first. \"Your dear Ferri doesn't really mind, meow? I mean, whatever Beardy says, Ferri's fealty is already to one person alone, you see.\" Julius followed up. \"I will not go quite as far as Ferris, but I feel the same. I have already pledged my blade. One day, they will offer their fealty to another. I do not intend to be so narrow-minded that my heart should be disturbed prior to that day.\" Not one to be outdone, Al said, \"Ha, that's mighty fine of you. Of course, it's the same with me where Princess is concerned.\" The two others could only make wry smiles at that. Subaru wasn't exactly enjoying being the odd man out. Ferris had Crusch. Al had Priscilla. That would have to make Julius a supporter of Anastasia. They were three knights, bearing the full trust of their masters. Comparing their position to his own sent a keen sense of inferiority through Subaru, even though he no doubt wanted to fulfill Emilia's wishes at least as much as any of the rest... Subaru felt a strange feeling of unease as the back and forth in the throne room intensified. The earlier opinion was only the beginning as the civil officials aired their discontent one by one. \"One must be both maiden and king. Perhaps they are not sufficiently aware that they must wear the crown?\" \"No matter how dressed up they are, their demeanor exposes their true natures.\" \"They are not refined enough. Their education is lacking. How can they be monarchs like this?\" A familiar voice interrupted the civil officials. \"Surely it is not a proooblem. I would think such a bounty of personaaality will make for a highly amuuusing royal selection.\" \"You be quiet!\" Subaru looked at Emilia and the others. No doubt Felt's crude, in-your-face attitude earlier was what had really set the civil officials off. But he couldn't say the other candidates hadn't sparked any unease themselves. In truth, Emilia's expression, as if trying to endure the pain, hurt him acutely. He wanted from the bottom of his heart to rush over that moment and give her a shoulder to lean on. Miklotov's single word quieted the throne room. \" Silence.\" As the man of highest stature there, Miklotov narrowed his eyes as he regarded Felt. After keeping his silence for a time, the old man let out his breath. \"Mmmm. That was somewhat irreverent behavior, so I do understand Mr. Rickert's view. In that light, I believe everyone should hear a brief summation of the candidate's personal history.\" A bald, stern-faced old man seconded Miklotov's opinion. \"...Indeed. We can decide whether she is suitable or not from that.\" Seeing the rest of the Council of Elders nod, the civil official apparently named Rickert took a step back. Miklotov continued, \"Sir Reinhard. We would first hear the highlights of what you know.\" After he was called, Reinhard bent down on one knee in a show of the utmost respect. Subaru wasn't even involved, but a cold sweat broke out over him nonetheless. After all, a blunt telling of the truth would naturally expose Felt's life of crime and stir up more problems. \"Until approximately one month ago, Lady Felt was living in a corner of the Lower Quarter of the royal capital also known as 'the slums.' An occasion arose where she had an opportunity to touch a Dragon Jewel. Having judged that she was qualified to be a Dragon Maiden, I brought her with me as a matter of course.\" Assuaging Subaru's concerns, Reinhard made his report while deftly dancing around the problematic parts. The explanation had huge, glaring gaps, but the assembly did not focus on those, but rather, certain other things. \"A waif from the slums... Sir Reinhard, are you insane?!\" Rickert exploded. \"You bring a vagrant from the streets to a ceremony to select the monarch who must shoulder the future of Lugunica?! Just what do you think the royal throne is?!\" *** Reinhard had done as asked, expressing utmost courtesy to those on the platform. His gallant profile did not reveal the slightest hint of negativity. Rickert directed his words at Miklotov next. \"Someone should be selected who is suitable for the crown. We cannot simply lay our hands on whoever happens to walk be \" As Rickert eloquently attempted to sway Miklotov, a familiar voice dashed cold water over his efforts. \"Mr. Rickert, you are sliiightly too heated over this matter, are you nooot?\" \"Nonsense, Roswaal. Nor do I approve of your conduct. Not only I, but all of the officials. Until now we have overlooked this because we are in a time of crisis, but I shall still my tongue no longer. Not about the House of Astrea hauling a waif into these halls, nor you, the fool nominating a half-demon to be monarch...!\" \" Mr. Rickert. I would suggest you amend your comments.\" The frigid words reverberated throughout the chamber. Rickert's face, red from indignation, paled. Roswaal continued, \"It is poor manners to address a half-elf as a 'half-demon.' Furthermore, Lady Emilia remains a royal candidate... Do you understand which of us should remember his place?\" Roswaal's tone of voice was unchanged from the norm, but the power behind it made Rickert avert his gaze. He shook his head, as if to conceal his intimidation, and dramatically motioned to the dais. \"A-and what of it? I do not believe my claim to be in error. Qualified as Dragon Maiden does not mean qualified to be king. Lord Miklotov! Please reconsider! The future prosperity of the kingdom cannot be built upon the election of an obscene royal candidate such as \" \" Sir Reinhard.\" The sage addressed not Rickert, attempting to sway his view, but the red-haired knight. \"Is this girl...?\" \"I cannot be absolutely certain, for the means to prove with certainty no longer exist. However, I must resist the urge to call this coincidence happenstance.\" \"What would you call it, then?\" \" I would call it fate.\" At Reinhard's reply, Miklotov closed his eyes as if that statement held some special meaning. Neither Subaru nor those around him had any idea what the two were talking about. It seemed only the pair knew to what they referred. Surrounded by such confusion, Miklotov put a hand to his forehead, as if lamenting the situation, and looked across the other old men. \"Have you not noticed? Take another good look at Lady Felt. If you cannot tell even then, I must question your fidelity to your own kingdom.\" In response to Miklotov's challenge, the occupants of the chamber held their breaths and gazed at Felt. Felt, at the eye of a storm of unrestrained stares, scowled openly. Rickert bluntly pointed out Felt's shortcomings. \"Looking at her, of course one can tell...she"}, {"text": "is still very young, and there are far too many things she would have to learn before setting foot near a thro !\" Suddenly, his face stiffened as if he'd realized something, his eyes opening wide in shock. \"B-blond hair and crimson eyes ?!\" Once Rickert said it, the other officials were struck with similar force like a row of dominos. The only one not affected was Subaru, ignorant of common knowledge in that world. When Subaru glanced to the side, Ferris and Julius appeared to understand. He couldn't tell what in the world Al was thinking, per usual, but Al showed no special sign of surprise. \"Blond hair and crimson eyes these are peculiar to the bloodline of the Lugunica Royal Family. But! It cannot be! The entire royal bloodline passed away in that incident half a year ago! It is simply impossible that this girl could \" Reinhard calmly interrupted Rickert's forceful denial. \" Mr. Rickert, are you aware of a certain incident in the palace some fourteen years ago?\" The words from Reinhard's lips struck Rickert with even greater force. \"Sir Reinhard... Surely, you are not saying that...\" \"Fourteen years ago, thieves infiltrated the castle and abducted the daughter of the late second prince, Lord Fold. The thieves were permitted to escape, and the daughter was never found.\" This was the kind of national failure that was never leaked to outsiders. \"As the matter was not written upon the Dragon Tablet, the thieves were easily permitted to infiltrate the royal palace at the time. Since there were a number of other urgent matters, an all-out search for the daughter was not conducted.\" \"Mmmm. That incident was the trigger for the dissolution and reconstitution of the Knights of the Royal Guard. Your kinsmen were not uninvolved in this matter, I believe?\" \"Thus, I have information that would otherwise be unknown to me. And based upon this...\" Miklotov replied to Reinhard's minimalist reply with a nod of his own. However, Rickert's frenzy showed no sign of diminishing. \"That is an extreme no, an irrational position! Are we to believe a daughter of the royal household vanished without a trace fourteen years ago, came to live in the slums, and now you incidentally discovered her with the royal selection nearing?! And furthermore, you just so happened to find out that she is qualified as a Dragon Maiden?!\" Even after the barrage of information Rickert was still standing. \"This is absurd!\" he laughed. \"This is all too contrived. You could easily have found a girl with maiden qualifications and dyed her hair and used magic to alter the color of her eyes. Surely you have not engaged in such shameful behavior?\" \"I swear it upon my sword.\" Reinhard laid the sword at his hip upon the floor, offering it in a show of the highest respect. Rickert, seeing the knight among knights displaying such deference, sank into a heavy slouch. \"...With all of the royal family already lost, no means exist to confirm whether she has royal blood or not. I do not think anyone will bow their heads based on mere supposition about her identity.\" \"That is natural. However, I am certain that Lady Felt is worthy of throne...even without a claim by blood.\" Reinhard's unshaken reply drew a resigned sigh from Rickert. \"It seems that the Sword Saint of our age is rather invested in her.\" Once more, he turned his gaze to Felt, the subject of the matter at hand. \"Setting aside your maiden qualifications, you hail from the slums. And it is possible you possess the royal bloodline, presumed lost. I cannot even begin to fathom the distress this must bring you. Are you determined to see this through?\" The statement sounded like a test, a ritual so that Rickert could use her reply to let go of his misgivings. Only when he received Felt's reply could he allow the discussion to end. But Felt flatly denied her qualification, completely ignoring the flow of the conversation to that point. \"Huh? What are you talking about, old guy? I never said one word about being king.\" The unexpected reply caught everyone in the chamber off guard. \"I got dragged here out from the slums against my will,\" she continued. \"I told him to take me back and he wouldn't, and he hid my old clothes so I had to wear this stupid thing. I am way past ticked! I'm annoyed a million times over! No, I don't accept this!\" Felt's rage-filled rant brought another awkward silence over the hall. Even Subaru, famously unable to read the mood, could tell that things were going south. Among the silent remaining candidates, Priscilla, her arms crossed with a bored expression, spat out, \" How long are you going to entertain this boring, pointless discussion?\" As all eyes fell upon the girl, her full bosom shook above her folded arms. \"Even if it is in name only, five have been assembled so the process can commence. All we need do is begin, and the unworthy will be culled in due course. After all, I shall be the last one standing. Whether the excess baggage is qualified to be king or not is completely beside the point.\" Priscilla's brash, irrational argument drew a heated reaction from Felt. \"Ahh...?\" She leaped down from the dais and glared at Priscilla head-on. \"I was thinking earlier you were a good-looking chick, but I guess it's a flower bed inside your head, too, huh? If you wanna pick a fight, I'm game. Everyone knows with me you get more than you bargained for.\" \"Such arrogance. Do you know who I am...?\" \"Ha, like I'd know...!\" Felt brushed off Priscilla's statement with a loud laugh. Priscilla's eyes cruelly narrowed. With Subaru's breath catching from the decisive change in the atmosphere, Al shouted from beside him, \"Princess, this is \" He must have known exactly what Priscilla was about to do. Then, at Al's shout, a gust wind cut across the chamber. Reinhard moved directly in front of her in a split second and spoke in a quiet voice. \" Pardon me, Lady Priscilla.\" In the literal blink of an eye, the knight, on one knee on the dais a moment before, had come between the two royal candidates. The red-haired knight was facing the orange-haired girl and behind him, Emilia held Felt close to protect her. Emilia's violet eyes filled with anger as she chewed Priscilla out. \"Such hostility in an important place like this... What are you thinking?!\" However, Priscilla waved off the nuisance with a hand, numb to any pangs of guilt. \"I am merely teaching an untrained bitch her proper place. After all, impoliteness toward me can only be repaid with one's life.\" Emilia pressed the point against the unrepentant Priscilla. \"Won't you say you're sorry? Or do you actually not realize you've done something wrong?\" For an instant, the words made Priscilla's face go blank. Then, she glanced at Emilia with barely constrained laughter. \"Ahh, this is most amusing. I have rarely been so entertained. You may take that as a compliment.\" \"What a disagreeable child you are. What are you talking a \" \"One should apologize for doing something wrong, you say? If that is the case, why do you not apologize, silver-haired half-elf? In your case, 'I'm sorry I was ever born.'\" Even Subaru could tell that the shock had shot right through Emilia's entire body. Her shoulders shuddered, and her fearlessness faded from her eyes, replaced by acute pain. \"I-I have...no relationship to the Witch...\" \"Does such an excuse mean anything to anyone? You are the spitting image of the being that is taboo to the world. The very sight of you fills people with fear and makes their hearts tremble. Is that not why you cover yourself and obscure your appearance?\" Assaulted on all sides by Priscilla's acrimonious words, Emilia silently bowed her pale face. Even Subaru understood Priscilla's meaning. He understood it, but he could not accept it, for it unjustly brought pain to Emilia for reasons that had nothing to do with her whatsoever. He couldn't take it anymore. Yet, once again, Subaru had to wait to act as Al, his face unreadable under his helm, offered a frank critique of Priscilla's despotism. \"Princess, can we leave it at that? Adding more enemies here seriously puts us in a bind, especially if one of 'em's the Sword Saint. How 'bout you just apologize?\" \"My vassal should not make such a pathetic display. And what of the Sword Saint? Merely the supposed mightiest in the land. Do something.\" \"I wouldn't last one minute...\" Al had calmly assessed the tale of the tape, raising the white flag in short order. His demeanor brought exasperation to Priscilla's face, and all the malice and enmity to that point seemed to dissipate. No one in the room, Subaru included, could conceal their shock at Al's skillful handling of such a ferocious beast. But at the very least, the immediate threat of an explosive situation had been defused. With that matter settled, the chamber settled into silence once more. Abruptly, a high-pitched ring echoed throughout the sound of a coin being tossed into a bowl. Miklotov thus gathered the group's attention. \" Is everyone satisfied? It would seem that both Lady Felt and Lady Emilia have calmed sufficiently...\" Emilia replied first. \"Y-yes... I'm all right. It would seem she is also...\" \"Let me go, already! It's not like I even did anything!\" In response to Felt's outburst, Emilia hastily nodded and let her go. \"I was fine, so you didn't need to do nothin'!\" she fumed. \"Do I look like some weak little kid to you?!\" \"...Yes, it was unnecessary. I am sorry.\" \" I'm not thanking you.\" Felt scowled. Noticing her attitude, Reinhard politely nodded to Emilia before returning to the knights, leaving Emilia and Felt to uncomfortably line up with the other candidates. Only Priscilla seemed unchanged, wearing the same bored look she had begun with. She didn't look like she was reflecting on the error of her ways in the slightest. Either way, Miklotov, seeing that the dispute had been settled, announced anew, \"Then, let us proceed with our agenda the dispute over the royal succession. The Council of Elders hereby proposes a meeting between all the candidates for the royal selection.\" Miklotov's most solemn announcement brought tension to the chamber again. Spontaneously, even the candidates stood a little straighter; the faces of the spectators no longer looked relaxed. Miklotov scanned the expressions of the other members of the Council of Elders, seeking confirmation with his announcement of the formal start of the meeting. In answer, the old men dipped their heads in assent one by one. \"I thank you for your approval. Let us begin the debate. Though the subject under discussion is who shall be king...the issue is the method of selection. We have assembled candidates via the Dragon Jewels, but the method of selection is not set in stone. To determine this, I thought it best to first ask how far the candidates are willing to go.\" The members of the Council of Elders nodded alongside Miklotov's words. Seeing that there were no objections, Miklotov looked toward Marcus, standing at the ready on a corner of the dais. The knight stepped forward once more, bowing deeply as a proxy for everyone in the hall. \"Then, if I may be so bold, I shall continue. I believe each candidate present has a case to make. I would have all in the chamber hear these arguments. First, let us please begin with Lady Crusch. Sir Felix Argyle!\" Crusch calmly nodded at Marcus's words. \"Mm.\" Ferris casually raised a hand. \"Yes, sir!\" As Ferris jogged ahead to join Crusch's side, she looked up at Marcus along the way, pushing up her cheeks with her index fingers. \"Captain, Ferri keeps telling mew, it's Ferris, not Felix. It hurts Ferri's feewings.\" Marcus's chin shot up immediately. \"I have no intention of granting special treatment to any subordinates, including you. Present yourself.\""}, {"text": "Ferris stuck her tongue out in dissatisfaction as she stood by her master's Crusch's side. \"Crusch Karsten, royal candidate and head of the House of Karsten.\" \"Ferris of the House of Karsten, Lady Crusch's knight.\" Crusch announced herself without the slightest display of timidity, and Ferris remained as casual as ever. Marcus amended her self-introduction. \"Sir Felix Argyle.\" The scowl on Ferris's face was quite blatant. Subaru remarked, \"Huh, so her real name is Felix? That's a very guy-ish name there.\" In Japan, the eldest children of old samurai families were known to inherit a certain name regardless of gender. There was also a well-established fad where dating games would gender-swap generals out of the history books and turn them into very pretty girls. \"Subaru, haven't you heard?\" Reinhard replied. \"Heard what?\" \"Ferris doesn't just have a man's name. He is very much a male.\" *** Reinhard's statement brought Subaru's thoughts to a halt. He folded his arms, inclined his head, closed his eyes, and earnestly mulled over the meaning of those words. \"What...did you say...just now?\" \"Ferris doesn't just have a man's name. He is very much a male.\" Word for word, syllable for syllable, Reinhard repeated the very important statement. The instant his mind processed the information, Subaru's yell echoed throughout the hall. \"Whaaaaaaaa ?!\" \"That's a guy?! Or is the knight among knights just really bad at jokes? This isn't funny!\" He wailed as he looked Ferris over from top to bottom. Certainly, Ferris was tall for a girl. But those facial features and body contours struck him as completely feminine. Some parts were understated for a woman's body, but there were plenty of women in the world with flat chests, even as adults. That wasn't proof of anything. However, Crusch, having maintained her silence on the matter until then, affirmed that the cause of his shock was the truth. \"Ah, it is your first time seeing him? I can firmly declare that my knight, Ferris, is a man.\" \"A-anyone can say anything... I need proof. Yeah, I won't believe without proof!\" \"When I was young, Ferris and I bathed together, and he certainly had a male organ between his...\" \"I'm very sorry!! I don't want to make a pretty girl speak of male organs! My mistake!!\" And thus, Subaru surrendered in spectacular fashion. He glared at Ferris, now standing at Crusch's side. \"This is your fault, too, damn it! You led me on! A guy under those cat ears, ugh! Just remembering that nibble is making me shudder!\" \"Hey meow, you got it wrong all on your own, Subawu. Ferri never said one word about being a girl.\" \"Don't mess with me, you bitch correction, you bastard!\" Ferris giggled, sticking his tongue out with a wink. Crusch seemed satisfied as she commented, \"Everyone makes that face when they find meowt. It's so amusing and never gets old. Not many have such a big reaction, though.\" This brought an uncharacteristic scowl to Miklotov's face. \"Mmmm. It is in poor taste to continue this, knowing what shall result, Lady Crusch.\" For her part, Crusch's face firmed up again slightly as she shook her head. \"It seems that you misunderstood, Lord Miklotov. I do not instruct Ferris to dress like this. All of it is of his free will.\" Rickert lodged an objection to Crusch's words. \"Though I believe it is a master's duty to see that a vassal is appropriately dressed...\" Crusch's eyes narrowed in response. \"It is a master's duty to see that a vassal is appropriately dressed, you say? In that case, I indeed desire that Ferris be dressed as he is now. Do you understand why?\" \"Why, I wonder?\" \"It is very simple. One should be attired in the manner that makes one's soul shine the brightest. Ferris's current attire suits him far better than knightly armor, just as I wear my own outfit because it suits me better than any dress.\" Crusch pushed out her chest in a display of personal pride as she spoke. As Ferris stood beside her, she or rather, he smiled at the sight of his gallant master. The sight of Crusch so poised made Rickert lose all stomach for an argument. As he kept his silence, Subaru too could not help but feel his chest stir in the face of Crusch's composure. Reinhard remarked, in a voice that seemed rather loud considering the circumstances, \"That is Lady Crusch for you... Among the candidates, she is the first to voice her opinion but also the one with the strongest support. Whatever she says, she speaks with a different sense of confidence than the others.\" \"What do you mean?\" Subaru asked Reinhard from the side. \"The House of Karsten that Lady Crusch heads is a family of dukes and duchesses that have supported the Kingdom of Lugunica since early in its history. The house has proven its loyalty to the nation through many deeds. And the wisdom with which Lady Crusch herself leads as such a young duchess makes her the favorite of the royal selection.\" \"So she's... I see, the favorite based on early scoring.\" Even Subaru, lacking detailed knowledge of ranks and titles, knew that she was only a few steps removed from the top of the pyramid. With the royal family wiped out, public opinion probably favored someone close to the late king. The faint murmur spread through the hall as people all around nodded to each other about Crusch's superiority. Apparently, her being the favorite in the royal selection was something to accept as fact. However, it was Crusch herself who interrupted the murmurs. \"It would seem many here harbor a minor misconception.\" As calm returned to the hall, she nodded with a composed look. \"I strive to be fully aware of what everyone expects by having me take the throne. The House of Karsten is a house that has carried great authority and political influence for many years. Should I succeed as monarch, politics and national policy are guaranteed to continue without so much as a ripple... Correct?\" Several people in the chamber nodded as they listened to Crusch's eloquent speech. \"I regret to dash your expectations, but I can guarantee no such thing.\" At Crusch's statement, the throne room briefly fell silent, only to erupt in an earthquake several seconds later. \"What's the meaning of this?!\" several of those assembled exclaimed as Crusch looked up at the dais, her expression unchanged. She shook her deep green hair as her gallant gaze looked past them to a mural etched on the wall behind the royal throne. \"The Dragonfriend Kingdom of Lugunica... This nation has remained prosperous by honoring the Covenant made with the Dragon long ago. Thanks to the Dragon, various crises have been averted, from war, to plague, to famine. The word Dragon has never vanished from the kingdom at any point through its long history.\" All of this was according to Marcus's tale of \"The Covenant with the Dragon\" at the start of the meeting. Upholding the Covenant between the Kingdom of Lugunica and the Dragon had brought fame and prosperity throughout history. As everyone mulled over the meaning of her words, Crusch folded her arms and scanned the gathering. \"For the most part, prosperity brought by reaching the Covenant with the Dragon has been a good thing. If war arises, the Dragon breathes and burns our enemies away. If there is plague, it employs its mana to heal people. If there is famine, soaking the soil with Dragon's Blood grants the blessing of bounty. And so, the guidance of the Dragon has saved us from hardship and guaranteed our glory \" In spite of the glowing details on Crusch's lips, her face did not brighten. Under the silent attention of the entire assembly, she remarked, \"Let me ask you. Do you not think it is shameful?\" The chamber returned to silence with an even greater sense of tension than before. But if one were to compare the emotions of its occupants, the most heated, raw anger was without doubt coming from Crusch, standing before the throne. \"The Covenant guarantees we will be protected from any crisis and any hardship so long as we uphold it. And so, we have descended into softness and depravity, relying now upon a change of leadership for its continuation. To think that you take this for granted.\" Crusch's stern lecture spurred one among the Council of Elders to rise, his voice shaking with anger. \" You go too far, Lady Crusch! I cannot permit anyone to make light of the Covenant! Do you have any conception of the sacrifices the kingdom has been spared since the Covenant with the Dragon long ago...? Are you denying the weight of history itself?!\" \"I have already stated that this past prosperity is mostly a good thing. No words have passed my lips claiming that I myself have not been a beneficiary of its blessing. The House of Karsten was born with the kingdom and has shared in its glory. Had a crisis destroyed the kingdom, my house would have shared its fate. Whenever the Dragon has saved the nation, it has saved my house as well.\" Crusch paused briefly. \"However, the future is a different matter. Do you think nothing of the pathetic sight you make at this moment? Have you not ceased to use your minds because you cling to the Dragon and the Covenant? When war, plague, and famine assail the kingdom anew, is there nothing we can do but sing the Dragon's praises?\" \"That is \" \"This nation has relied upon the writings of the Dragon Tablet for too long, becoming so soft and weak that it cannot stand on its own power. The nation takes for granted that the Dragon and prophecy will aid it whenever it is shaken. But can you argue that we have strived to avoid such matters from occurring to begin with? A number of calamities in recent years, including the failure of the Great Subjugation fourteen years ago, are things we courted through that weakness.\" Everyone held their breath in shock, eyes wide at Crusch's declaration. Bathed in gazes of shock and anger, she raised a fist and nobly declared, \"If the kingdom is to crumble without the Dragon's protection, then crumble it should. A nation too blessed stagnates, that stagnation courts corruption, and corruption brings about its demise. That is what I think.\" \"Are you... Are you saying you will destroy the nation?!\" \"No. If the nation is to crumble without the Dragon, we should become the Dragon ourselves. Everything that the kingdom has relied upon the Dragon for until now should be borne by king, minister, and people. Furthermore...\" Crusch took a deep breath. \"When I become king, I will make us forget about the Covenant with the Dragon until now, come what may. The Dragonfriend Kingdom of Lugunica belongs not to the Dragon, but to us.\" *** \"Hard times await us. Perhaps they will be disasters we averted in the past due to the Dragon's power, or perhaps even greater calamities. But I do not wish to live in a manner that shames my very soul.\" Crusch's voice dropped. She shook her head and lowered her gaze. \"I have long harbored doubts about the state of the kingdom. I believe that this course of events is a Heaven-sent opportunity to set it right.\" In terms of loyalty to the late king, or lack thereof, it was a blasphemous statement for which one could be cut down on the spot. Subaru took in all of Crusch's words. \"The nobles are right in theory, but...\" A lot of what she said is hard to deny, he thought to himself. Looking around, he saw he wasn't the only one; no one was willing to raise a voice against the girl's boldly voiced argument. Here was a girl willing to smash the history of the kingdom the very essence of what it took to be a monarch. Miklotov, having listened to Crusch's claims to the very"}, {"text": "end, passed matters along to Ferris, standing beside her. \"Mmmm. We understand Lady Crusch's point of view. Now then, Sir Felix Argyle, is there anything you wish to add?\" Apparently, it was the place of the vassal to advocate for the master. \"Thank you for asking, but I have nothing further to add. Lady Crusch's thoughts are exactly as she says. And history will prove that Lady Crusch's actions are correct. I have no doubt whatsoever that it is my master who shall become king.\" Ferris solemnly bowed at his slender hips as he expressed his immense trust. Then his face returned to its usual fawning expression as he smiled at Crusch. \"Lady Crusch, you're just as incredible as ever. Ferri's swooning \" \"From time to time, I fail to understand what you are saying, Ferris. But I forgive you. You would never do anything that costs me.\" The warm regard for Ferris in Crusch's eyes made the strength of their relationship plain. With the conclusion of that expression of trust in Crusch, Miklotov briefly set things in order. \"Mmmm, we have finally heard from one person... Mmm, though it seems her opinions have created quite a stir.\" To the Council of Elders and the civil officials, the plans of the candidate with the strongest backing were a thunderbolt out of the blue. It was evident the entire exchange had alienated many would-be supporters. But anyone hearing that speech would harbor no doubt that those who supported her held the highest trust in her possible. Subaru remarked to himself, \"I still don't know how they're actually gonna pick someone, though...\" The whole point of this display was to determine how they would go about it. The lack of hard-and-fast rules meant that all he could do was keep watching the debate, mixed feelings notwithstanding. Marcus, having apparently regained his composure, proceeded. \"Then, let us continue, following with the next in line beside Lady Crusch.\" The orange-haired girl stepped forward with an arrogant look on her face. \"Hmph, finally. It's Hyper Priscilla Time, then.\" Subaru was in complete shock at the strange combination of words. \"Just now, did she say, Hyper Priscilla Time...?\" Al walked over and stood at Priscilla's side, giving her a thumbs-up like he was taking credit. \"It would seem that the riffraff's eyes are all upon my gorgeous self.\" \"You used that pretty nicely, Princess. Totally nailed 'em with a big uppercut.\" Ignoring the fact that the looks regarded her less as \"amazing\" than \"bizarre,\" Priscilla thrust her shoulders back in pride at Al's off-the-mark flattery. \"Very well, Lady Priscilla Bariel, if you please...\" \"Though it pains me, I shall humor you. I need only demonstrate my majesty to the old fossils and establish that they should simply choose to obey me, yes? A simple matter.\" As she spoke, she pulled a fan out of the yawning gap of her cleavage, loudly snapping it open and using it to conceal her mouth as she giggled. Her adorable looks clashed with her evil, sadistic laugh. \" The Bloody Bride. What gall.\" Such words of deep, seething resentment ran across the entire chamber. Thanks to Crusch's explosive declaration, the atmosphere in the hall was far from warm. The murmurs chilled the air frostier still. And the prologue of the royal selection had barely begun. Without hesitation, Priscilla cut through the disquiet governing the chamber with a thoroughly wearied voice. \"Such boring, insignificant jeers. I am so accustomed to them that they do not even serve as a lullaby.\" She was no doubt referring to the reaction around her moments earlier, including boisterous jeers that called her the Bloody Bride. Priscilla did not let it bother her, nor did she make any attempt to refute them. Following Priscilla's statement, Miklotov interrupted inquisitively. \"This has been on my mind since well before. Bariel... As in, Mr. Lyp Bariel? Mmm. Now that I think of it, I have not seen any sign of Mr. Lyp. Where is he...?\" \"That lewd old man suddenly went senile half a year ago. He remained unable to tell the difference between dream and reality, and passed away but a few days later.\" \"What, Mr. Lyp has...? Mmmm. Lady Priscilla, what does that make your relationship to Mr. Lyp?\" With Miklotov expressing surprise, Priscilla dully commented on the death of her partner. \"I suppose it makes me his widow. He had not touched me with so much of a fingertip, so our relationship is, quite literally, in name alone.\" Al promptly stated, \"Princess, isn't it just a little too harsh to put it that way?\" Priscilla paid him no heed, sweeping her gaze across the crowd as if daring anyone else to complain. \"A meaningless death to end a worthless life. If the life of that old man had any meaning whatsoever, it is in the fact he transferred his entire estate to me. Accordingly, the House of Bariel is mine.\" Her stare only increased the discontent in the hall, but no one actually lodged an objection. Even Rickert, having protested against Crusch with such vehemence, apparently lacked the courage to enter a war of words with an opponent immune to logic. And so, Miklotov replied, \"Mmm. I understand, then. As Mr. Lyp was an acquaintance of many years, I regret to hear of his passing... But I see that your claim is on firm ground, Lady Priscilla.\" \"But of course.\" As Priscilla arrogantly nodded, Miklotov now shifted the conversation to the vassal at her side. \"Though I would like to press for further details, does the knight beside you have anything to add?\" \"Aahhh... Ah, me?\" Al's yawning reply did a splendid job of drawing the antagonism all around him. It was as if the servant was cooling off the heat that his master had brough to the hall. \"Yes, you. Your attire is highly unusual. I have not seen you among the Knights of the Royal Guard...and your helm?\" \"Oh, can you tell? This was made in Volakia down south. It was a lot of trouble getting it out of there. It's tough, so it's held up for a long while. Also, it looks cool, so it's pretty important.\" \"A Volakia Empire...? Then, you are not assigned to the Knights of the Royal Guard.\" \"I've cut all my connections to Volakia. Now I'm a wanderer who goes with the flow... So please, just call me Al. Also, you seem a little upset that I'm not showing you my face... Can you gimme a break on that?\" Al's profusion of rude statements drew even sharper glares. Under so much attention, Al deftly slipped his one hand under the chin of his helmet and began to lift it up. \"Urk !\" Out of the blue, someone let out a pained cry as the helm rose to about mouth level. It was hard to blame him for that. After all, the visible part of Al's face was blanketed with old scars from burns, cuts, and perhaps other sources still. It was no exaggeration to say his scars were ten times as bad as Subaru's. \"So y'see, my face is a sorry sight. That's why I hope you permit me the discourtesy of keeping my face covered in front of everyone.\" Marcus interrupted. \"This may be an even greater discourtesy... If you hail from Volakia with such wounds, were you a Sword Slave by any chance?\" \"Hehhh, that's the captain of the knights for you. That Empire likes to keep its secrets, but apparently you know a thing or two about the darker parts of it. Yes, I was a Sword Slave, a ten-odd-years vet at that.\" Murmurs spread across the chamber once again as the term Sword Slave was repeated on the lips of many a knight. From the words forming the compound, it seemed to mean \"a sword-wielding slave.\" \"I take it you were in a battle or two, then?\" \"That's the size of it, bro. I messed up when I was young and lost an arm that way, y'see.\" Al, ever playing the fool, didn't flinch from discussing the gruesome experience. For their part, those who had gazed upon him with such hostility moments before were now dumbstruck. But Subaru was shaken by the impact even more than the rest. Back in the dragon carriage, Al hadn't said much about his own body. He downplayed the cause of losing his other arm and dodged the subject of his helmet altogether. But Subaru had been subconsciously avoiding that subject, too. After all, just like him, Al had been summoned there from another world in other words, his experiences hit Subaru very close to home. Losing an arm, having his face scarred up to the point he couldn't show it to anyone else that was a future Subaru, with countless scars already carved into his body, could easily have encountered for himself. If the icy chill running up his spine was any indication, Subaru would never have been able to endure it. Miklotov spoke again. \"Mmmm. Hailing from the Empire of Volakia... Is that why you came to stand at Lady Priscilla's side?\" Priscilla replied, \"Not at all. It is the result of a little game of mine. From the beginning, my becoming king was as good as divine providence. The result will be the same regardless of my vassal. And so, I am free to select the vassal that I like. As a showpiece, this man is sufficiently amusing and then some.\" \"How did you come to select him, then?\" \"What, you want to know? I caught sight of him in a bodybuilding contest I held on my estate, with the winner to be offered the job of my vassal. It was an amusing sight.\" Priscilla gave Al a glance rich in meaning as she replied to Miklotov. \"Mmmm, I see. So he was the winner of that contest, I ta...\" Al corrected him, \"Nah, I didn't win it. Life's not kind enough for a one-armed guy to beat a pack of beefy bodybuilders. I was lucky to round out the top five at the victory ceremony.\" Miklotov's face registered surprise that Al would interrupt even him. \"My word. Then how did you become Lady Priscilla's vassal...?\" Priscilla straightened with pride as she gave Al's back a hard slap. \"I told you. I am free to pick whomever I please.\" Al yelped a loud, dry Ahhnn! audible to all, as she continued, \"To begin with, my keen eyes allowed me to discern that he is a physical wonder, far more than a collection of dim-witted louts overconfident in their muscle-bound arms. And more than that, only he boasted an escape from Volakia and a birth beyond the Great Waterfalls.\" Priscilla briskly concluded her tale, loudly stomping with a high heel as all eyes fell upon her. \"And so, I selected Al to be my vassal. It is providence that my selection of Al, and my path to become king, shall both shine in accordance with my glory.\" She did not bear even the smallest molecule of doubt or hesitation. She was so full of confidence it was frightening. \"You say that...Heaven has chosen you...?\" \"But of course. After all, nothing happens in this world that is does not benefit me. Furthermore, 'tis I who is worthy of becoming king, and no other. You need only bow before me and serve.\" Everyone was agape at her insolent declaration. The only one unaffected by her haughtiness was the man who called the girl his master. \"Princess, what's your basis for all that?\" \" 'Tis very simple. Serving me means siding with the winner. You may have anything you desire; I allow it. But I shall not permit you to serve anyone else. That is all.\" Priscilla brushed her orange hair back, raising her hand in a lofty wave toward the heavens. It was a gesture that meant, I have said all that there is to say. With that, she turned her back to the Council of Elders"}, {"text": "on the dais and walked away. Before turning his back to follow, her knight looked up at the dais and said, \"You might not like how she says it, but Princess is on the money. If she wants something, so long as she doesn't change her mind, she gets it. That's because the heavens themselves have chosen Priscilla. I'm sure you've heard how the old... Er, Mr. Lyp's lands have bounced back lately?\" Al sent a meaningful look in Marcus's direction. \"We have already confirmed this for ourselves. Following the passing of Mr. Lyp Bariel, Lady Priscilla took control of policy within his lands...resulting in the region's unprecedented prosperity.\" \"Well, don't mistake that as us working hard for the sake of everyone else or something, okay? Princess's guesses are always on the mark like she's a natural. She's just right about everything, no ifs, ands, or buts.\" *** \"Well, if you're under Princess, you can do whatever you want. If you're gonna bet on the winning horse, I think it's best to do it sooner rather than later, though.\" It was as if both master and servant, so full of confidence, had forgotten their humility back in their mothers' wombs. When they returned to their place among the candidates, the tension in the air relaxed as a matter of course. \"A cross-dressing guy and pretty-girl combo, a rich widow and a guy from another world, this is totally genre-breaking stuff here...\" As Subaru murmured, the royal selection ceremony continued on. The next person called by Marcus was the girl with violet hair. \"Next, then, is Lady Anastasia, and her knight, Sir Julius Juukulius. Come forward!\" The girl reacted elegantly, but Priscilla had left vestiges of feverish agitation hovering over the chamber. That was when Julius lifted a hand up to the sky and swung it downward. The dry crackle echoed, forcing an inescapable change in the atmosphere. To this generous deed, Anastasia said, \"Thank you kindly,\" smiling pleasantly as she advanced. Julius stood at her side.  Thus the most conventional-looking master and servant advanced to the fore. Faced with the next royal candidate, Subaru cleared his thoughts and focused ahead once more. Anastasia smiled warmly. \"If y'all expect me to be as intense as those last two, I'm in a bit of a bind. I doubt you'd want me to come on too strong, so I guess my gimmick is that I don't have one.\" Her demeanor and pleasant smile relaxed some of the tension in the room. \"Now then, I Anastasia Hoshin will speak for a spell. I hope you'll forgive my indiscretion, since I'm an outsider and all.\" Julius stroked the front of his hair in an unnecessarily polished motion to draw attention to himself. \"I am Lady Anastasia's knight, Julius Juukulius. Please be gentle with her.\" Subaru finally reasoned that the talk about her \"gimmick\" was a high-level joke. But what he couldn't get out of his head was the contrast of Anastasia's accent. Apparently, Subaru wasn't the only one who noticed, as Miklotov asked, \"With that peculiar accent, are you a native of Kararagi, then?\" \"Exactly. I was born in Kararagi to the lowest class in the League of Free Trading Cities.\" Miklotov's eyes narrowed slightly at that. \"Mmmm. The lowest class then what is your connection to Lugunica?\" If lowest class meant the same thing there that it did in Lugunica, Anastasia was born a commoner. Depending on the meaning of the term, it could imply something even lower. \"I was born in the lowest class, but now I have a right proper mansion in the city. I have stores in a host of other cities... That's how I first imposed on Lugunica.\" Julius added, \"She serves as chairwoman of the Hoshin Company, the most influential company in Kararagi. For many years, this position in her nation was occupied by the Lushika Industrial Company, but thanks to Lady Anastasia's personal commercial genius, it was reconstituted under a new name, the Hoshin Company.\" Standing beside Julius, Anastasia's eyebrows peaked as if she were a little embarrassed. If Julius's declaration could be taken as fact, Anastasia's pronouncement had been humble in the extreme about her exploits. Julius continued, \"Accompanying its vast expansion across Kararagi, there was talk of expansion into Lugunica as well. That was the impetus for my meeting Lady Anastasia for the first time.\" Miklotov replied, \"Mmmm. So in spite of being born to humble beginnings, she established herself as a brilliant young merchant... I must say, this reminds me of the tales of the founder of Kararagi itself.\" As Miklotov's lips bent into a smile, Anastasia clapped her hands together, and her eyes sparkled. \"Yes, exactly. I always looked up to that man, Hoshin of the Wastes. When the time came to establish my family name as a merchant, I decided to adopt the name Hoshin in his honor.\" Miklotov praised Anastasia's spirit. \"Hoshin is the name of a great man known across the entire continent, revered from ancient times to the present. To name yourself after him... I see, a splendid display of spirit.\" Even Subaru had heard of Hoshin of the Wastes. If he recalled correctly, the man was the main character in one of the ballads sung on that world. Anastasia continued, \"One of the great things about Kararagi is how it gave a gal like me a fair shot. It turns out I have a real knack for sniffing out the scent of gold, and it's fun, too.\" Subaru saw that these statements were creating a considerable stir all around. Judging from appearances alone, Anastasia was younger than he was. Given her age and the reaction around him, she apparently had a reputation as a monster in the business world. Julius remarked, \"Lady Anastasia's commercial genius is a divine gift... It is no exaggeration that she rivals Hoshin himself. My own lack of ability in this area leaves me envious of her.\" Julius's rhetorical flourish drew a generous nod from Miklotov. \"My, my, she must be quite something indeed for 'The Finest of Knights' to boast of her so.\" But Subaru, unable to accept that last sentence, asked the man beside him, \"Did I hear wrong? Did he just call him 'The Finest of Knights'...?\" Reinhard replied to Subaru's question matter-of-factly. \"That is what they call him. Among the Knights of the Royal Guard of the Kingdom of Lugunica, Julius is second only to Marcus, captain of the guard. There is a vice captain, but it is a ceremonial position that exists in name only, so it's best to think of it as vacant. In skill with a sword, employment of mana, pedigree, and exploits, Julius fulfills all the qualifications of a knight and is second to none. He is without question worthy of being called 'The Finest of Knights.'\" \"But when people in the capital talk about the 'knight among knights,' they're talking about you, right? You're really well known, plus you never denied it, right?\" \"The qualifications for that nickname are somewhat different. Certainly, in terms of strength with the sword alone, I'm stronger than Julius. I have yet to meet someone stronger than I am.\" Just like that, he declared he was mightiest of all. Subaru wasn't sure how to respond to that, but Reinhard wasn't boasting. If anything, his eyes were filled with envy, his lips pursed taut. The way Reinhard looked cornered left Subaru wondering what to do, but, faster than he could say anything, the debate proceeded with something that could not be ignored. Miklotov said, \"It is plain that relations between master and servant are very good. Mmmm. Lady Anastasia, there is something I wish to ask you. You are a native of Kararagi. What is your purpose in seeking to be king?\" \"Ahh, so my birthplace really bothers you, doesn't it?\" It was a natural subject to raise. Nations existed in this world, too, meaning that borders existed between states and peoples. Subaru didn't know how high the barriers were, but even in a state of emergency, the throne of your own kingdom was not something to hand to a visitor from another nation lightly. The entire chamber held its breath as Anastasia, surrounded by the tension, smiled wryly. \"Y'all have such high expectations, it's makin' me nervous. Unfortunately, I don't have any high ideals like Miss Crusch, or Miss Priscilla confidence that she's been chosen for greatness.\" \"Surely you are not saying...the Dragon Jewel responded to you purely by chance?\" Faced with Miklotov's question, Anastasia stuck her tongue out and replied casually. \"Ah-ha-ha, if it was like that even I wouldn't show my face here. 'Course I've got a goal of my own. You see, I'm actually real greedy.\" The declaration, so at odds with what was expected, made most present doubt their ears. \"I think I've been greedier than normal since I was teeny-tiny. The reason I became a first-rate merchant with a nose for gold is because I want it more than everyone else.\" \"You want it more?\" \"As a maid at the first little company I worked for, I made a couple suggestions to the owner and they were big hits, so I got involved in bigger and bigger deals, and soon I was livin' so large I forgot I what it was like to be low class. It should have been fun, but I found out I wasn't free. I was even less free than before.\" Anastasia, counting on her fingers the steps she had climbed, shook her head. \"...Mmmm. And why was that?\" Miklotov asked. \"That's the scary part about greed. The more you get your hands on, the more you wanna get your hands on. 'I want this. I want that.' It's not enough. It's never enough and that's when I realized it.\" Anastasia grinned as she pointed toward her feet. It was clear what she was indicating the palace itself. \"I'm greedy, so I want anything around. But I'm not satisfied yet. I don't know what real fulfillment feels like. So I want a country of my own.\" \"You are saying, you want this kingdom to weigh your greed?\" Anastasia responded to Miklotov's rebuke with a robust smile. \"Hey, if that smashes my scale to bits, smash away. I'll be real happy to have my fill and be totally satisfied.\" In other words, she was announcing that she sought the royal throne out of her own avarice. \"But if gettin' my hands on the kingdom isn't enough... I'll probably use this country as a stepping-stone to get even more.\" \"And what shall become of the kingdom if you obtain it, yet it holds no value for you?\" \"I told you, didn't I? I'm greedy. So once somethin's mine, it's mine through thick and thin. And if I get an even stronger hankering, I use whatever I have to satisfy it. My life in Kararagi, the Hoshin Company, and all the people who work there, they're all part of my drive for fulfillment. I would never throw them away. So...\" Anastasia swept her gaze over the faces of everyone in the chamber. \" How about you just relax and become mine?\" She looked across the chamber with the same warm, gentle smile she had initially worn. Her way of thinking was founded on desire, but that made her argument very simple. She wanted the throne for her own desires, and, from the day it was hers, she'd work tirelessly for the prosperity of the kingdom. She wouldn't throw it away, given that her personality demanded she make anything she owned into something greater and grander than before. That was her message. \"Mmmm. Lady Anastasia has surely pressed her claim sufficiently. Do you have anything to add, Sir Julius?\" With his master's speech concluded, it was time for the vassal to make his case. Both had argued beforehand about the master's fitness to be king, but Julius stepped in front and indicated Anastasia with his hand as he said, \"Lady Anastasia used the word greed"}, {"text": "to express her desires, but put another way, this reveals the depth of emotion behind her ambition. On the other hand, from a business point of view, she is able to make any decision without emotional involvement, an indispensable quality in a statesman.\" \"Mmmm. Certainly, it is as you say.\" \"Furthermore, as I stated earlier, Lady Anastasia is a brilliant businesswoman something this kingdom desperately needs at this hour. Repeated, serious clashes with neighboring nations in particular, skirmishes with the Empire have drained our coffers; with the large famine last year, the finances of the Kingdom of Lugunica are in a precarious state.\" Faces went red as Julius abruptly touched upon the nation's dirty laundry. \"I believe such details ought not to be so lightly divulged in a public place, Sir Julius.\" \"The importance of financial reconstruction to the nation has been common knowledge for several decades now. I do not feel any reason to hide this from those assembled here. Do you not think that the very reason the affairs of the nation have stagnated is because we have averted our eyes from this difficult financial state for so long?\" \"So a mere knight speaks to us about political affairs beyond his purview...?\" \"That's right. These affairs will affect the House of Juukulius very little. Even if we avert our eyes, it surely will be nothing irreversible for my generation. However, even if my house will emerge unscathed, I cannot ignore the matter of the throne I serve falling into distress.\" With veins bulging from the foreheads of the Council of Elders, Julius looked back at Anastasia. \"However, the Hoshin Company has connected us to the extreme prosperity enjoyed in Kararagi, bringing a fresh wind to Lugunica. I have seen for myself that Lady Anastasia is worthy to be king if we continue along this path. What can you call this, if not fate?\" Perhaps Julius had been overcome by fervor, for his tenor rose and his words quickened. \"If Heaven chooses the king, then it has chosen Lady Anastasia. I, devoted to the Royal Family, having pledged my loyalty to the kingdom, hereby declare that Lady Anastasia is worthy of the throne. I thank you for lending me your ears.\" Julius behaved much like a stage performer as he summarized his address for the audience. Those attending, mesmerized by his aura, seemed to come to their senses as they looked back upon master and vassal. Yet, even then, Marcus's calm expression did not waver. \"Sir Julius, may I judge this sufficient?\" Julius, probably accustomed to the attitude of his superior officer, stated, \"Yes, thank you very much,\" and returned to Anastasia's side. \"You were splendid, Lady Anastasia. It is indeed a place such as this where your flower may truly bloom.\" \"Yes, yes, you are very kind. Sheesh, you didn't need to say that. It's so embarrassing.\" A red-faced Anastasia fanned herself with a hand as she returned with Julius to the other candidates. Now that the third candidate's camp had asserted its claim, the next in line was  After a brief silence, Marcus called the name of the silver-haired girl who had kept her silence to that point. \"Then, the next candidate Lady Emilia.\" She was the only candidate lacking a knight of her own. After her name was called, she raised her head. From the side, Subaru could see worry on her pale, beautiful face, but, with a look of strong determination, Emilia replied. \"Yes.\" She stepped forward. Her part in the royal selection had now begun.  That was when Subaru Natsuki had a thought. The instant Emilia's right hand and foot moved forward together in her first step to the center, Subaru thought... I've gotta do something. On any normal day, he could fully appreciate how adorable she looked E M P (Emilia-tan's Majorly a Puppy) but it boded ill under the circumstances. Somehow, even though Emilia's hands and feet were moving at a normal clip, he noticed that her stride seemed strained just before she reached the center. The Council of Elders gazed down at her as she stepped forward. And yet, the whispers did not stop. Repeatedly, Subaru's ears picked up the word half-demon. Reinhard moved to soothe Subaru's nerves, raw from the unpleasant atmosphere. \" It's all right, Subaru. You need not worry.\" \"Don't read my thoughts like that. Am I an open book here?\" \"Foul words are overcome by seeing a person's qualities before your very eyes. Believe in Lady Emilia.\" But Subaru should have been the one to assert this. Having Reinhard say them to him left a nameless disappointment in his chest. Following Reinhard's statement, the chitchat receded like the tide as if to prove him right. Roswaal had advanced to stand by Emilia's side. Seeing Roswaal next to Emilia, Marcus, the master of ceremonies, bowed his head with a weighty look. \"Then, Lady Emilia, and Lord Roswaal L. Mathers, if you please...\" Roswaal's tone was casual even now. \"Yes, yeees. Myyy, following in the footsteps of all these knights, I feel so teeerribly out of place.\" He prodded Emilia with an \"Am I?\" Of course, he earned no reaction. A normal response may have been too much to hope for given her tension from moments before. Roswaal's insensitivity rubbed Subaru's nerves even rawer. But he instantly set even those strong feelings aside a moment later. After all  \"Members of the Council of Elders, it is my pleasure to meet you for the first time. My name is Emilia. I have no family name. Please, simply call me Emilia.\" Her name, spoken with a voice clear as a bell, seemed to engrave itself upon the very hearts of all present. Her voice did not quaver, and she gazed forward, steady and strong. Subaru had to wonder where all that anxiety from a moment ago had gone. Emilia, stating her name before the Council of Elders, was not to be outmatched by the other candidates whatsoever. Roswaal followed, \"And I am the humble man nominating Lady Emilia, Roswaal L. Mathers, bearing the rank of Marquis. We are grateful for the Council of Elders' valuable time.\" Miklotov stroked his beard while directing where the conversation should proceed. \"Mmmm. So she is nominated, not by the Knights of the Royal Guard, but by the Court Magician. I would very much like to hear the details of why this is so.\" Miklotov gave Emilia a penetrating once-over. To Roswaal, he continued, \"Please provide us details about the candidate Lady Emilia, including her lineage.\" \"Understood. First, though I believe all present are well aware, I shall begin with the circumstances of Lady Emilia's biiirth. As you can see from her lovely silver hair, her skin so pale one can nearly see through her, violet eyes that seem to capture the very soul, and her voice, like a silver bell, one echoing unforgettably in the ears, even in one's dreams. As you well know, these enchanting qualities are proof that elven blood flows through Lady Emilia's veins.\" A bald old man sitting among the Council of Elders interrupted Roswaal's explanation. \"And the other half of her blood is human in other words, she is a half-elf?\" A vein bulged on the large-framed old man's forehead, hatred in his eyes shooting through Emilia as he spat out, \"How dare you. Have you no shame, bringing this silver-haired half-demon filth before the royal throne?\" Miklotov countered, \"Mr. Bordeaux, your words go too far.\" \"Mr. Miklotov, do you not understand? A silver-haired half-demon with an appearance matching the Witch of Jealousy as handed down by the old tales! She once consumed half of the world; she leads all living things to despair, chaos, and annihilation! Do not claim ignorance!\" *** \"How much do you think your appearance and lineage alone makes others tremble? You ask us to place such a being on the royal throne? Inconceivable. Even the commoners of other nations would call us a collection of madmen, to say nothing of the people of the Dragonfriend Kingdom of Lugunica the nation where the Witch sleeps!\" Bordeaux stomped his foot, his arms wide as he shouted, his tone and manner frayed. Even this act brought no reaction from Emilia. The atmosphere in the hall chilled at once. And then, Roswaal replied, \"Master Bordeaux, are quiiite finished?\" \"If you ask whether that is all I have to say, then I have not said nearly enough. Do you even comprehend what you have done, High Sorcerer of the Court?\" Bordeaux seemed like he was trying to cow Roswaal into submission. \"I understand veeery much. Master Bordeaux, speaking on behalf of the Council of Elders, expresses that the reaction of the populace upon seeing Lady Emilia would be of conceeern, yes?\" Roswaal raised a finger. \"Howeeever, perhaps you have forgotten, Master Bordeaux? The issue of which you speak has no beaaaring upon the royal selection whatsoever.\" \"...What do you mean?\" Roswaal lowered his voice as he looked up at the Council of Elders. \"If I may, it is preciiisely as Lady Priscilla stated at the beginning. Even if as a mere formality, there are five candidates, so the royal selection may begin. And if it begins, one need merely see it through, yes?\" Miklotov's eyes narrowed. \"Mmmm. In other words, you are saying that what is important is that the Dragon Jewel chose Lady Emilia, and that her actual suitability to succeed as monarch is...irrelevant?\" \"Though it might be a cruuude way to put it, think of her as a stalking horse. Lady Emilia's appearance is very particular. Virtually no human being can look at her and not think of the Witch of Jealousy. She is easily employed as a pawn upon our chessboard.\" And just like that, Roswaal denied all possibility of Emilia actually succeeding to the throne. The sheer shock of it was enough to make Subaru completely forget his anger at Roswaal's earlier intemperate remarks. He was Emilia's sponsor and backer, who knew just how hard Emilia was striving to be king, and yet he said that. Bordeaux asked, \"So the royal selection between five candidates would in actuality be between four?\" \"Do you not think that reducing the options reduces the possibility of dissolution? The current lack of a king invites other nations to intervene in our internal affairs. Should we not prepare countermeasures to dimiiinish this threat?\" Roswaal's suggestion sent Bordeaux into deep thought. The other members of the Council of Elders appeared ready to say, Well, if it's like that... To decide to abandon all of Emilia's hard work by the roadside to use her as the stalking horse of the race. An angry shout reverberated throughout the chamber. \"Don't give me that crap !!\" As the echoes died, the hall was silent once again. The only sound left in the hushed chamber was the ragged breathing of the boy who had called out Subaru. With his face red with anger, the back of Subaru's mind announced, Now you've done it. But it was too late to back out now. He could not retreat. Now that Subaru had walked forward out of the blue, Roswaal turned his head and gave him a cold look. \"I did not think you were this obtuse. This is not a place for the likes of yooou to speak. Apologize and leave.\" \"Don't give me that crap. I said what I meant. And I'll add this. You all should be apologizing.\" Gone was Roswaal's aloofness. In its place was an overwhelming, bloodcurdling aura; just looking at him chilled one to the bone. Perhaps the wavering of the air around him was from a vast quantity of mana. \"I am all the more surprised at your disregard for your own life.\" Subaru clenched his teeth. The back of his mind knew what to expect overwhelming power, a vortex of great flame. He recalled the sight of the Urugarum demon beasts in the forest, burned away without mercy or pity. \"If you grovel on your knees this instant, I shall permit you to simply leave."}, {"text": "But if you insist on being stubborn...\" The royal selection was the gravest issue for the entire nation. For disgracing it with individual feelings, Roswaal would sentence Subaru to the flame on behalf of the dignity of the kingdom. The vast danger made Subaru's knees cry out for mercy. The shaking spread from his fingertips; had he not clenched his teeth, everyone would be hearing them rattle by then. But  \"I-I said, it's not me who should apologize, it's all of you!\" His shrill voice quivered. But even so, Subaru would not kneel. He couldn't kneel, for Emilia had not done a single thing wrong. \"Veeery well. One can do nothing without power. I shall drill this lesson into you. Though it cannot serve you in this world, perhaps it shall in the next.\" With his final ultimatum ignored, the power flowing from Roswaal manifested in the form of a flaming sphere, so bright that its light dazzled the entire chamber. The mass of fire on top of Roswaal's hand burned with intensity like a miniature sun, enough that Subaru, standing at a distance, felt his skin start to burn. \"Behold, fire mana of the greatest power. Algoa.\" With one cruel, final word, Roswaal turned his hand toward Subaru. The fireball launched from his palm, with the heat slowly approaching Subaru to burn him to a crisp. Subaru immediately tried to dodge, but his body simply wouldn't move. Perhaps it was because his legs were shaking, or perhaps it was because the knowledge of impending death had spread from his eyes to the rest of his body. No. It was because Emilia was standing behind Subaru. That was why, that very moment, he could not move from that place... *** Instantaneously, everyone held their breath at what followed. The instant the fireball collided with Subaru, it was wiped out by a pale blue glow that covered his entire body. The powers of red and white jostled with each other and vanished into nothing more than white steam. And as the onlookers gaped, a voice, clear as a bell, spoke with the same frigid tone. \" That is enough. I shall permit no further violence in my presence. If you wish to continue this \" Emilia's resolute voice was followed by a more neutral one. \" Then I am prepared to wield my power as my beloved daughter demands.\" Dubious eyebrows rose at the source of the voice, but the next moment, everyone noticed it the biting cold spreading throughout the chamber manifesting the Great Spirit's frigid anger. The little gray cat folded his arms, making a small snort with his pink nose as he slowly floated down. His black eyes were frozen in an expression of unprecedented coldness. \"You lowly humans are saying quite some things in front of my daughter.\" *** As Puck's emotionless gaze swept the area, the strongest reactions came from the knights. Their swords were already drawn as they raised their guard toward the small cat floating above their heads. Subaru, left behind by the shift in events, hadn't entirely grasped what was going on. \" Ah? Er, what?\" It was a moment after he was certain Roswaal would really burn him to death. He had thought he was shielding Emilia, but she stood in front of him, and everyone was warily eying Puck, poised in a position to defend her. And their wary gazes also contained something that looked like fear. Miklotov's hoarse murmur struck the silent gallery like a thunderbolt. \" The Apocalypse Beast of Eternal Frost.\" Upon hearing these words, Puck's ears twitched as he answered the old man. \"Ah, that's right, some people have called me that. Seems you're informed for a youngin.\" Though everyone else was tense, Miklotov's razor-sharp wit permitted him to maintain his cool in Puck's presence. \"To be treated like a youngster at my age is an experience I ought to treasure deeply.\" Puck responded to the old man's attitude with a pompous flick of his tail. \"You are free to call me whatever you like. But if you want details about who and what I am, you should ask him over there, not me.\" At Puck's suggestion, Miklotov called out to Roswaal. \"I suppose so... Lord Roswaal?\" Accepting the call, Roswaal solemnly lowered his head before motioning to Puck and Emilia with one hand each. \"As you have surmised, Lord Miklotov... This is a supernatural being, one of the Great Spirits of yore, known to our forefathers as the Apocalypse Beast of the Eternal Frost. And currently, he is Lady Emilia's contracted spirit.\" Bordeaux's fixed Puck with a stare, his voice hoarse from the extent of his shock. \"It can't be! One of the Four Great Spirits in someone's service...and that of a half-demon at that!\" But not even the old man could summon the courage to point at a being capable of turning him into an ice sculpture. \"That youngin included, the lot of you should all be grateful to Lia that I'm not turning this place into a glacier right now. My cute, beloved daughter pleaded to me, so I will behave. If she wasn't stopping me, you'd all be icicles right now.\" The casual way he said it only made the threat seem that much frostier, chilling all those in the chamber to the bone. Faced with his presence, it was all too clear that he was making no boast. When the lives of everyone present were at the mercy his supremely powerful paw the sudden sound of an inhalation sounded awfully loud. \" Ho, ho, ho!\" The sight of Miklotov jubilantly slapping his thighs seemed enormously out of place. \"Even my heart skipped a beat. Allow me to call this a most amusing presentation.\" Miklotov's words caused Puck to drop his expression and shrug his shoulders. \"Mm, we're busted. See, Roswaal? I told you it wasn't good to overdo things.\" That instant, the cold enveloping the chamber vanished. Amid the bewildered onlookers, Roswaal lightly smacked his own forehead. \"Oh myyy, and I had such confidence... It is so dispiiiriting.\" \"W-wait...! What in the world are you talking about?\" It seemed only Puck, Roswaal, and Miklotov were in on this elaborate joke. Roswaal finally shifted his gaze to the bewildered Bordeaux and said, \"To put it simply this exchange was the speech from Lady Emilia's camp. I understand that the format somewhat differs from that of the other candidates, but...\" Under Miklotov's gaze, Roswaal raised both hands in a show of surrender. Subaru stomped on the floor, glaring at Roswaal as the latter adopted his familiar, clownish expression once more. \"So you're saying this was all a performance to show everyone Puck's power and pound into them that he can do more than this?! Is that it?!\" As Subaru shouted the explanation, it was Bordeaux who had the strongest sense of being had. \"That was acting... Acting, you say?! Then all this was a farce from start to finish! Roswaal! Damn you, what do you think this place is?!\" Puck began with an apology. \"Yes, yes, of course you're upset. I apologize. I deeply apologize. Forgive me. Sorry. My bad. But everything I said was the truth.\" The last part, though, made Bordeaux's heart beat louder. The little cat circled around the old man and added, \" The reason I'm not freezing you right now is Emilia's benevolence. Don't forget that.\" Puck's voice was tranquil, yet somehow threatening. Bordeaux rebutted with an old man's stubbornness. \"A-and now you make threats. These words and this show of force convey, 'Do as I say or you shall be an icicle.' If this is not blackmail, what is...?!\" Then, Emilia wholeheartedly affirmed his suspicions. \" Yes, I am threatening you.\" She continued, \"I shall make my case to the esteemed members of the Council of Elders once more. My name is Emilia. I spent a long time in the Great Forest of Elioor, the World of Eternal Frost, and am served by Puck, the Great Spirit that governs fire mana. I am a silver-haired half-elf. The people of the nearby villages called me...\" Emilia paused, surveying the faces of the Council of Elders on the dais. \"...the Freezing Witch, born in the Frozen Forest.\" Witch. At that word, the atmosphere in the chamber shifted. Everyone's mouths snapped shut, unable to speak; all save one, Miklotov, who was apparently made of sterner stuff than the rest. \"You displayed your power, and now you state your demands. Truly this is the way of a witch. Then, what does the Freezing Witch seek in threatening us so?\" \"I have but a single demand. I simply want fair treatment.\" \"...Fair?\" \"I understand I am regarded with prejudice, both for being a half-elf and a witch. But even so, I completely reject that this should rob me of this possibility.\" \"And so you desire to be treated fairly as a candidate for the royal selection?\" No doubt her memories were filled with the inexpressible malice she had experienced on a daily basis. Surely being persecuted because of the circumstances of her birth had not occurred only once or twice. \"Fairness is an exceedingly valuable thing to me. That is the only thing I demand of you: to be treated impartially. In turn, I shall do nothing unjust, such as use my contracted spirit as a shield with which to usurp the royal throne.\" That was surely one option available to Emilia. But she did not choose it, instead opting for a situation that, if anything, put her at a handicap. After all, as she explained, \"Compared to the other candidates, I am inexperienced and lacking in too many areas. There is a mountain of things I do not know and that I must study. Even so, I believe my effort to reach my goal is no less than that of any other.\" Subaru had seen for himself how Emilia took her studies at the mansion very seriously. That was why he knew the truth behind her assertion more than anyone else present. He couldn't hide his shaking. It was strange how his throat was so dry, yet his eyes stung, ready to shed tears. He desperately held back from bawling his eyes out. Emilia continued, \"I do not know if my efforts are worthy of the throne. But my desire to make my efforts equal to the task is genuine. I believe these feelings are not unequal to those of the other candidates. Therefore, please look at me with unbiased eyes. Look at me as Emilia, of no family name, and see not the Freezing Witch, nor a silver-haired half-elf. Look at me.\" The final murmur echoed like a solemn plea. But the strength of the will behind it did not diminish the power of her request. The chamber fell into silence for a time. It was not that they were at a loss for words. They were waiting. Finally, Bordeaux, bathed in the gazes of all assembled, sighed at great length. \"My view shall not change. It is unmistakable that your appearance, reminiscent of the Witch of Jealousy, will have ill effects upon the populace. It would place the royal selection in a precarious state.\" His low voice had, to that point, argued against Emilia's position. A faint shadow formed around Emilia's violet eyes. But Bordeaux continued. \"However sentiment is an area where none may intrude. Furthermore, it is something no one can do anything about, no matter what he may think. Even so, I apologize for my earlier rudeness. No, I deeply apologize for my rudeness, Lady Emilia.\" Bordeaux knelt then and there, displaying the greatest respect he could. \"You could freeze me where I stand if I do not submit to your will. Yet, even so, you have not, asking only for fair treatment. This is an act worthy of respect.\" Now that he was speaking calmly, Bordeaux's face was gentle and intellectual; now Subaru could understand why he was on a Council of Elders. His reply drove the shadow from Emilia's eyes, replaced by a brighter, more natural"}, {"text": "expression of joy at being accepted. Her lips curled in a pleasant, flowery smile. Bordeaux, under the full force of her gaze, lost his breath and turned red in the face. Miklotov redirected the conversation. \"Though that was a rather stormy digression, enough has been said, I believe. Lady Emilia, Marquis Roswaal, do you have anything left to say?\" \"No.\" \"I have not spoken suffiiiciently. What to do, what to...\" Marcus swiftly brought an end to Roswaal's playful comment. \" Thank you very much, then.\" He gave Roswaal's tall back a light pat before Emilia turned toward Subaru, still standing right behind her. Her violet eyes betrayed a whirlwind of conflicted emotions. Her red tongue poked out of her mouth as if she was about to say something  From the dais, Miklotov raised an eyebrow and looked down at Subaru. \"Incidentally, what is that young man's position?\" The question, concerning the unmoored Subaru, brought tension back over Emilia's face. \"Ah, err, this is my, ah... Err...\" All her prior composure went flying out the window. And so Emilia had returned to the girl who'd ignited the love burning in Subaru's chest day after day. Relieved by the sight, Subaru patted Emilia's shoulder as he stepped forward. \"It's all right, Emilia. I'm ready for this, too.\" \"Ready for...? Hold on, Subaru, what do you think you're...? Wait a...\" As she called from behind, Subaru boldly stepped forward. Beneath the gazes of the Council of Elders up on the dais, the boy grit his teeth and briskly raised his head. As he had learned by observation, Subaru bowed on one knee like the knights had and opened his mouth, his heart racing as he spoke with the highest respect he could muster. \"Pleasure to meet you, members of the Council of Elders. First, I'd like to apologize for the late introduction. My name is Subaru Natsuki! A servant at Roswaal Manor and knight of the royal candidate, Lady Emilia!\" Subaru, feeling the weight of the hall's silence upon him, grit his teeth to beat back the tension. \"I am extremely pleased to make your acquaintance,\" he continued. The out-of-place Subaru had joined the battle to clearly define his own place in the world. He felt the temperature drop, even colder than when Puck had appeared. Subaru Natsuki had shrugged off Emilia's efforts to stop him and declared himself her knight. When Subaru made his announcement, the hall became bereft of sound, replaced by a thick, unpleasant cloud. Seeing the conflicted gazes of onlookers, Subaru realized that something was going deeply, unexpectedly awry as Miklotov asked, \"Mmmm. A knight, are you. Marquis Roswaal... Who is this?\" \"Ahhh, a somewhat ignorant boy, is he not? ...This is a poor showing, even for him.\" \"Indeed, what is the status of Lady Emilia's actual knight?\" \"Unlike the other candidates, Lady Emilia currently lacks a knight that she can place her trust in. That is most certainly a matter of concern. Howeeever, that does not mean simply aaanyone can be a knight, particularly one claiming to be a knight of someone who may become king someday.\" Roswaal continued to speak in his normal tone, seemingly for Subaru's benefit. \"Fidelity toward one's master is one of the qualifications of being a knight. Furthermore, the power to defend one's liege is required. He must have some special quality enabling him to blaze the path for his master to become king. If he does not, then...\" A voice abruptly interrupted Roswaal's speech, hailing from the line of candidates. All eyes fell on the handsome young man with violet hair Julius. \" That alone is not enough, Marquis Roswaal.\" Julius elegantly bowed. \"Forgive my intrusion. However, there is something I must ask him.\" When Julius indicated him, Subaru scowled, remembering the former's hostility from before the royal selection. \"You need not be so defensive. I have only one question. Once it is done, you may do as you please.\" \"Do I look tense to you? Why not let me relax a little, ditch the question, and save it for tomorrow?\" \"Cease with the clown act. At least, if you truly wish to be Lady Emilia's self-declared knight.\" \"...What do you mean by that?\" Julius regarded Subaru with exasperation, as if he was a complete dunce. \"It seems you do not understand. Just now, you announced yourself as a knight before the entire body of Knights of the Royal Guard of the Kingdom of Lugunica.\" Julius slowly motioned to indicate the knights lined up behind him. Prompted by his words, the knights in their rows stood at attention without disturbing a single thread of the carpet, saluting with their swords raised. \"Th-that's pretty good stuff there. Did you all practice that just for today?\" Subaru was sniping to keep his wits under the pressure, but Julius's calm composure did not falter. \"Indeed we did, for we are highly aware we embody the dignity of the kingdom on a daily basis. We train in body and spirit, including how to behave in a ceremonial place. Are you prepared to learn all this?\" Only then did Subaru truly appreciate the true intent behind the question posed to him. Julius was asking him if he was prepared to shoulder the weight of the title of knight, like the Knights of the Royal Guard behind him did. Subaru had called himself a knight to demonstrate that he was Emilia's supporter and the person who held her the foremost in his thoughts to her rival candidates, to the knights, to the Council of Elders, and everyone involved in the royal selection. \"I...I want to...make Lady Emilia king. No, I will make her king.\" \"Do you have enough resolve, and enough strength, to do this?\" \"Resolve isn't everything, and I know I'm not strong enough. The feeling in my heart may not be the same loyalty and fidelity that other people have...but my answer won't change.\" Subaru took a deep breath, wet his tongue, and braced himself as he stepped forward. \" I'll make Lady Emilia king. I'll make her wish come true.\" \"...Do you not think that this is an exceptionally arrogant reply?\" Dismay entered Julius' expression, as if he were listening to a tale of an empty dream. \"Do you understand? People are divided according to their birth. Perhaps it is best to use the term capacity. Nothing is gained by attempting to surpass one's own capacity. Furthermore, you will never gain what you seek in doing so, especially not the title of knight, which falls so frivolously from your lips.\" Julius drove the scabbard of his own sheathed sword into the floor with a thump. On cue, the knights assembled behind him produced the same sound a moment later. The hard, heavy echo displayed that he had all the knights behind him. \"Those who pursue knighthood require loyalty to lord and kingdom and the power to protect their liege by force. No one may call himself knight without either one of these things. Can you still say there is the will, the power, the resolve within you?\" \"Don't get all high and mighty on me with your buddies. I know I don't have the power to follow through on how I feel as I am now...\" \"You say that you accept your current lack of power? I see; that is a precious thought. If you had not acknowledged your weakness, I might have been forced to reduce myself to your disgraceful level.\" Subaru was helpless to respond as Julius, unable to conceal his contempt, heaped scorn upon him. \"You understand that you are lacking in strength? Did you declare it so loudly in expectation of a reward? Weakness is a matter of shame, not pride.\" *** \"Next you will no doubt say your feelings will carry you through. I see. Your emotions conquer all. Fine and well. Did you strive to earn the right to stand in this palace with the might of your strong and lofty feelings? Did you come here in an effort to insult us, the Knights of the Royal Guard, to the highest degree possible?\" The stern words bit into him. But even then, Julius did not sheath his verbal blade. \"Only those of certain birth may be recommended for entry into the Knights of the Royal Guard, the pinnacle of knighthood. This is not out of deference to lineage, but because their ancestors have displayed their loyalty to the kingdom, down to the very blood that flows through their veins. I do not accept that you, nor the mercenary calling himself Al, have any qualifications to call yourselves knights.\" \"Bloodline... It's not like a person can do anything about something like that...!\" \"Indeed. It is just as I have said. People are separated by birth. It was the same in your home. Just because two people have been born does not make them equal.\" *** \"Of course, not all born to knightly households become knights. Many lack the will. A knight eternally strives for greater heights, ever willing to cast his life aside, coughing up blood, to protect whatever greatness stands behind him. That is the ultimate honor of those qualified.\" With classical nobleman's thinking, Julius stomped on Subaru's feelings, rejecting the essence of his very existence. And every knight there felt the exact same way. Not a single person in that place acknowledged Subaru as a knight. And yet, he replied, \" Even so, I'll make Emilia king.\" \"I do not understand. In the face of such rejection, why are you still even here?\" Cold glances from throughout the chamber watched Subaru's recklessness with scorn and contempt. But Subaru couldn't feel any of that. He felt something far stronger the gaze of the silver-haired girl behind him. He felt Emilia. He couldn't look back. He didn't have the courage. Feeling her presence, he hesitated for a brief moment, and then answered. \" Because she's special.\" That was his answer. Julius's eyes widened slightly in apparent surprise. However, the surge of emotion was immediately concealed when his face calmed again. \"You are obstinate. I accept that you have a reason for standing here regardless of whether you are qualified or not. In that case, I have nothing more to say to you.\" Julius turned his back to Subaru as if he was returning to the line of candidates. But his very first step halted, and his head alone turned back toward Subaru. \" However, do not think that I accept you as a knight, or ever will.\" \"What are you...\" \"I understand that you esteem her enough that you wish to protect her. However, your thoughts are... No, it would be ugly to elaborate deeply upon it.\" Julius shook his head, pitying Subaru. \"A man who brings such an expression to the one he wishes to stand beside...is not a knight.\" Subaru's thoughts shifted behind him. Everything felt cold. He wondered what kind of look was on Emilia's face. He was too frightened to find out. That was why the next thing out of Subaru's quivering lips was a transparent attempt to get in the last word. \"Y-you're saying that whether you can be a knight or not is settled from birth? What, every one of you was a golden child, the best at everything? Don't make me laugh. You're not the one who gets to be called the knight among knights around here. Don't think anything you say can get to me.\" It was a cheap insult. But Julius did not display his emotions as he casually replied, \"Subaru Natsuki, you said? You should know that speaking such cheap insults to others diminishes not only your own worth, but damages the worth of everyone around you. Subaru Natsuki. There is no beauty in it.\" And so, Julius summarized Subaru's words and actions to date, rejecting them, and him, in one fell swoop. That single remark made Subaru realize that he, and his own conduct, had hit rock bottom. The candidates gave Subaru blank stares. Behind the dignified Julius, many of the"}, {"text": "knights seethed with resentment at Subaru's rude statement. For their part, the rows of civil officials had no love lost for Subaru, who seemed unable to make any argument not based on sentimentality. He didn't even have the courage to look up and see what the Council of Elders thought of him. Even if it meant making an enemy of the whole world, he'd be in Emilia's corner. Until that moment, his resolve for that part, at least, had held strong, but... Before Subaru summoned the nerve to look back, a voice, clear as a bell, moved around to his front. \"Subaru, that's enough.\" The trembling of the hand touching his shoulder shocked him enough that even he wanted to look away. Emilia took hold of Subaru's wrist as she bowed her head to the Council of Elders and said, \"I apologize for the waste of your time. He will leave immediately.\" The words waste of your time sliced into Subaru's heart sharper than any razor. But he could say nothing. He had indisputably taken his resolve, determination, and himself, and trampled on them all. Subaru did not resist as he was led away from the stage by his arm. As Emilia pulled him forward, he still couldn't look at her face. From the dais, Miklotov sounded hoarse, yet mysteriously, his voice carried far. \"I judge some of this to have been time well spent, Lady Emilia.\" Neither of the two stopped walking as Miklotov continued. \"He showed us that, at the very least, you are not a half-elf like the one the world fears. You have a good vassal.\" Emilia paused and looked back. \" Subaru...\" She was watching the Council of Elders on the dais. Subaru, standing beside her, was not in her field of vision whatsoever. But when she turned, he could clearly see her face. Her expression was frozen over. Her eyes were frigid with the readiness to emotionlessly cast something aside, when her tranquil, clear voice stated plainly  \"...is no vassal of mine.\" Thus, she spurned Subaru's words and feelings up to that very moment. Subaru wandered around in a corridor outside of the chamber, completely rudderless. He didn't remember much after he'd humiliated himself in front of Emilia and a huge audience. All he remembered was that the captain of the knights had permitted his departure and had left his fate to Emilia's judgment. It would have been wrong to say he was there because he didn't want to cause Emilia any more trouble. The reason he'd fled, even after he had gone against her instructions to reach the palace in the first place, was far simpler.  He couldn't bear Emilia's frigid eyes any longer. Subaru was mentally berating himself as the guard who'd escorted him to the castle's waiting room gave him a concerned look. \"Did something happen to you?\" He hadn't seen Subaru's humiliation because he'd been stationed outside the huge double doors. Furthermore, his demeanor showed respect toward someone he believed to be involved with one of the royal candidates. \"It's...nothing. Sorry for all the trouble in the middle of a really important job.\" \"I don't mind. Inside the throne room, they're deciding the future of the entire nation. Even if I'm not qualified to be inside, I'm proud just to be on the edges of it.\" The irony of the words, spoken with a clear voice, left Subaru with an uncomfortable awkwardness. Here was a guy full of pride for what he was doing at the edges of the selection of the next king. What of Subaru? Could anyone take pride in what he had done? No one would. And the one person he had wanted to acknowledge his efforts had rejected him. *** Unable to stand still, Subaru shifted his gaze when he suddenly noticed a ruckus at the end of the corridor. Just as he turned his head to look, a guard popped in, apparently in a hurry. \"Pardon, open the way! We've captured an intruder. We need orders from the captain!\" \"Wait, they're still in the middle of the conference! Hold the intruder in the barracks until...\" \"The circumstances do not allow us to do that. Either way, we cannot make this decision ourselves!!\" Ignoring the urgings of his comrade, the guard shouted back down to the corridor. Several men were dragging forward the intruder that'd snuck into the castle. Subaru, wondering what was so bad they needed to interrupt the royal selection, glanced at the intruder. Then... Regret stronger than anything else that day struck Subaru Natsuki. \" Ah?\" He stared dumbfounded as four men dragged the man along by his hands and feet, desperately trying to move forward with a balding old man Subaru knew well. It was Old Man Rom, who had no business being there whatsoever. *** He'd left a message at the fruit seller's place for him to wait. What was Old Man Rom doing there  Subaru's mind went blank, but then, for once, he instantly found the answer to his question. \"W-wait... Don't tell me, he...\" He followed me. At first, Subaru doubted himself, but then certainty welled within him. If Old Man Rom had tried to sneak into the castle there and then, the trigger could have been none other than the message Subaru had left at Cadmon. The sharp old man had deduced that Subaru had reason to think Felt was at the royal palace. And he'd tried to enter by any means necessary. No doubt Old Man Rom's own clumsiness had led to his discovery and capture. But Subaru was the one who'd brought that result about. Subaru knew how precious Felt was to Old Man Rom. He should've known Rom might lose his head over it... *** The guards passed before his eyes. By the time he reached out, Old Man Rom was already too far away. Subaru froze in place, watching them go in silence. If he spoke to the guards then and there, he could explain to them who Old Man Rom was. But that also meant admitting that Subaru was connected to an intruder who'd attempted illegal entry of the palace. It wouldn't end just with Subaru. It would make him an even weightier ball and chain on Emilia's ankle. That was as far as he got before he did a mental double take. When he considered the possibility he'd leave Old Man Rom to rot, using Emilia as the reason why, he felt filthy. \"Hey, wait a...!\" Subaru called out to stop them, but a foul-mouthed shout buried his words. Quietly, his eyes went wide as he realized the torrent of insults was coming at him from Old Man Rom himself. \"Ha! You high-falutin' nobles have some awful taste! Is one bumbling old captive something to stare at?! If you're going to laugh, laugh, you filthy-minded youngin!\" Old Man Rom, watching Subaru holding his breath, made a disgusting grimace with his bruised face. \"If you wanna stare, take a good, hard look at this dirty old man from the slums!\" One of the guards, offended at the rude words from the intruder toward Subaru, a VIP, swung his fist down in punishment. \" Watch, your, tongue!\" \"Ugh!\" Subaru countered, \"Wait, please! There's no need to go that fa \" Rom replied, \"You are very kind, young one. Heeey, how about it, knights? Your beloved master's giving you an order. Why don't you just wag your tails and do what he sa ugh!\" \"Haven't you said enough, vagabond?!\" The knights responded to Old Man Rom's continued verbal abuse with even harsher strikes than before. For a moment, the boy's gaze met Rom's, and Subaru understood his intent.  Even in that place, Old Man Rom was covering for him, because if Subaru said too much, it would only put Subaru in a worse position. \" Don't butt in, youngin.\" The small, faint murmur was followed by insults like those from before for the benefit of the guards. Subaru alone realized the true meaning of Rom's words. And that sentence left a very deep scar in Subaru. Subaru had reached out, only to have his hand rejected, his assistance refused, just like in the chamber. No matter what he tried to do, the person concerned didn't need, or want, his help. *** Subaru fell into silence. The guards saluted, dragging Old Man Rom with them once more. Their destination, the throne room, lay ahead. He wondered what treatment Rom would receive at the site of the royal selection. He shook his head, driving the images off. Rom had a much better chance at a pardon without Subaru opening his big mouth. Besides, there were three people present that knew him, with one practically a relative. Nothing bad was likely to happen to him. Probably nothing. Almost definitely nothing. His judgment shouldn't have been wrong, but  \"What am I...doing this for...?\" Murmurs spread through the throne room. The cause of this exchange of whispers was obvious. The uproar had begun when Marcus, receiving a report from the guards, dragged a vagabond who had infiltrated the castle into the throne room. At first, many doubted the judgment of the captain of the guard, but one look at the intruder made numerous participants understand the reason for his decision. And then... \"I told you, let Old Man Rom go. That's all I'm asking.\" \" Unfortunately, I cannot comply.\" In the center of the chamber, a tense deadlock continued, with Felt and Marcus squared off against each other. A vein bulged on Felt's forehead at the way Marcus dismissed her demand. Reinhard raised his voice in an attempt to mediate. \"Captain, I believe that explanation is insuffi \" But Marcus rebuffed his intervention. \"Silence, Reinhard. I understand you wish to support the master you have sworn your sword to, but her acceptance of your sword is premised on her willingness to become your king. During the proceedings of this conference for the royal selection, Lady Felt publicly announced she has no intention of participating in the selection process. Abandoning her qualifications means abandoning any right she might have to give commands to us Knights of the Royal Guard... Do you understand?\" Marcus laid out the logic of his refusal to comply with Felt's demand. His words brought a scowl to the former thief's face as she furiously clawed at her own blond hair. \"This is getting annoying, so let's sum it up, 'kay? In other words, you won't do as I say because I don't wanna do this royal selection thing?\" \" That is indeed the crux of it.\" \"Ohhh, I see. I get it... You are so annoying.\" Felt's catlike eyes glared fiercely at Marcus. Marcus easily maintained his usual poise under the pressure of the young girl's near murderous gaze. Then the old man, having kept his silence up to that point, made a plaintive yell that echoed throughout the chamber. \"Never mind all that...! Hurry up and save me!! Felt, it's me! The Old Man Rom you lived with in the slums! I don't really get all this, but you can save me now, right? Then save me! I don't wanna die!!\" Kneeling on the carpet spread across the floor, the old man made the most amicable smile he could as he pleaded to her. The shameful display left Felt speechless. Even the attendants showed hints of disgust at the miserable old man. \"I always saved you when you were in trouble! Many, many times over! Pay those favors back, now! Now, I say! Quick, quick!! Do something, will you?!\" The old man sent spittle flying as he cried out for a quick rescue, flailing around with self-serving logic. It was such a mean and disgraceful sight that even those predisposed to sympathy and compassion would be sorely tempted to walk away. In a brief span of time, the old man had made enemies out of most occupants in the hall. Reinhard, sensing danger in the old man's behavior, instantly began to step forward. \"This is bad \" The red-haired"}, {"text": "knight instinctively realized the old man's true intent and judged he needed to adapt to the circumstances. \" Do not move, Reinhard. 'Tisn't good to do anything untoward here...\" But his efforts were frustrated from the outset by Priscilla, smiling craftily as she hid her mouth with her fan. \"Why do you act in such haste, Reinhard? ...It almost looks as if you wish to silence this elderly man before he says something troublesome for you. Simply frightening...\" She got me, thought Reinhard, clenching his teeth as he realized his mistake. Priscilla shrugged her shoulders in a manner more typical of her. Around them, people seemed to recover from their stupor, whispering about what they had just seen an old man pleading pathetically for his own life. \"Did you see? How unsightly.\" \"And that face is even worse. I cannot even feel sympathy. It is the spitting image of a thief.\" \"He shouldn't be released, though Lady Felt defends him...\" Even the knights hoping to have the crime dismissed began to faintly scowl at the old man. \"Lady Felt was raised in the slums...where people like him live?\" \"Even if she really does have royal blood, can someone with such an upbringing handle royal duties...?\" \"We need to rethink this. Or just do what the Dragon Tablet says in name only...\" Reinhard bit his lip as the spreading murmurs confirmed his worst fears. He had been too late, denied any opportunity to refute the words putting down the girl he revered as his master. Then, with the knights' murmurs all around her, he watched from behind as the girl slightly lowered her head  Finally, unable to listen to any more, the young girl let loose with a high-pitched, foul-mouthed shout, \" Would you all shut up, you ball-less jerks!!\" A wave of shock plunged the chamber into silence. Attendees looked at one another, seemingly unable to believe what their ears had heard, when the girl, her shoulders slumped, marched forward. The giant old man was kneeling, and she was a little girl, but she still had to look up at him. Her red eyes filled with grief. \"What's with you here? That's the worst-looking, most pathetic plea for your life, ever, and I really, really hate it.\" *** The old man's amicable smile at her approach froze over. \"Hey, Old Man Rom. We people from the slums, there's no help for us, right? We know the people above us look down at the poor lives we lead, and we all have rotten personalities, me included. It's a terrible place to live.\" Having rated so many things so lowly, including herself, Felt paused for breath and added, \"But... \"Yeah, we're a pile of garbage at the bottom of the trash heap...but even if we do live in a place like that, we've come this far by having at least a smidgen of pride in ourselves. No matter how lowly other people see us, we don't lower our heads.\" \"Felt...\" \"I wish I could show you your face in the mirror right now. Looking all meek and submissive, wagging your tail and eager to please, just to save your life... You can't call that living!\" Many of the attendants gravely nodded at Felt's words, with Crusch among their number. The ideas Crusch had voiced were very much in tune with Felt's words. The small girl put her hands on her hips and bluntly stated, \"If you wanted me to spare your life, you went about it all wrong. There's no way I'd give up my right to run from a crummy place just to save you, if that's how you're gonna be.\" The red-haired young man watched. Her declaration meant she was abandoning someone very close to her, abandoning her right to issue commands and refusing to participate in the royal selection. \"...Lady Felt.\" Reinhard couldn't bear the pain that her declaration sent running through his heart. He'd seen it coming. He'd guessed what reaction the proud girl would display when she saw the old man's behavior. In that sense, she was playing right into the hands of Priscilla and the old men no, of one old man. Now abandoned, the old man's shoulders fell, bending forward onto the floor as if all strength of will had left him. But Reinhard did not miss the faint, instinctive slackening of the old man's lips. This was a display of neither despair nor regret; no, he was filled with a sense that his actions had achieved their intended result. The old man had gambled his very life, and had succeeded in grand fashion. Truly, Reinhard wanted to expose the old man's scheme even then, to tell Felt that she needed to change her decision. But Reinhard could do no such thing His hands were tied, precisely because of who, and what, he was. Marcus, watching the old man hang his head before the girl, must have decided the discussion was over. The knight pulled on the old man's manacles, sending the clink of the chain echoing through the chamber. \"I deeply apologize for causing this uproar before the throne. I shall immediately remove this \" Suddenly, Felt interrupted Marcus's apology and attempt to leave. \"Or something like that, I guess. I was waiting for someone to jump to conclusions...\" Marcus's mouth closed with a rare look of shame. Seeing his solemn facade crumble, Felt beamed, feeling very proud of herself. She twirled before the dumbfounded audience. \"Sooo, get his hands loose, captain. Those shackles are way too small for him. It hurts just to watch.\" \"I have already informed you several times over, Lady Felt, I cannot comply with your comma \" \"Because I didn't wanna do this royal selection thing, right? Then it's simple. I'll do it, the royal selection. I just gotta try to be king, right?\" *** The declaration, accompanied by a laugh showing off her snaggletooth, sent a shudder throughout the entire chamber. Many of the onlookers seemed aghast at how lightly she made such a critical decision. But naturally, the old man's reaction was even greater, his feelings about her announcement plain on his face. \"Wh-what are you saying, Felt? I-I accepted it. What you said is right. You can't live by losing your pride. Having you cut me loose couldn't be hel \" \"Cut the crap, you shitty old man. What, you've lived this long without knowing you can't act worth a damn? I've been with you long enough to know all sorts of things about you, like when you tell a lie, the swirl on your forehead turns backward!\" Felt raised her cheeks and drew a little pattern on her head to demonstrate. Her gesture made Old Man Rom's face go pale. He cried out, \"You're lying!\" and touched his bound arms to his own head in haste. Felt watched him and said, \"Yep, I'm lying. Wow, do you look stupid. No sympathy from me.\" \" Ah?!\" Old Man Rom was beside himself at falling so easily for her trap. Felt shook her head. \"So there you have it. Get those shackles off him. Everything up to now was just the wild fantasy of a senile old geezer.\" Marcus dragged his feet even then. \"We cannot simply let him go on such flimsy grou \" \" This old man's my family,\" Felt resolutely stated. \"Let him go, now.\" Hearing these words, Marcus's face registered surprise for a brief instant. The next moment, the hesitation vanished. \"As you command.\" Marcus stood at attention and let go of Old Man Rom's shackles. Then, he ordered the guards behind him, \"Unlock the manacles.\" But Felt raised a hand to stop them. \"Too slow Reinhard!\" \"Here.\" Reinhard responded instantly to the girl's sharp voice, his tall frame advancing to the chamber's center. As the red-haired young man stood at Felt's side, Felt didn't even look at him. Instead, she crossed her arms and motioned with her chin. \"Do it.\" It was the world's shortest command. \"Yes, my Lady \" Reinhard raised a hand up to the sky, fingers straight, slicing down through the air like a knife. The old man's wrists were bound by metal shackles, but the knight's hand sliced through them as if they were paper. The manacles, cut clean in two, slid off as if they melted, falling to the floor. A high-pitched clink echoed in the chamber. In a true sense, this sound announced this was the moment the two had become lord and vassal. Felt remarked, \"So this all went the way you wanted, didn't it?\" \"Not at all. This was guided by the hand of Fate.\" \"Ha! Fate again. What, are you a slave to fate?\" \"No I am, more than anything, your knight, Lady Felt.\" Felt seemed to yield in the face of his unrelenting support as she murmured, \"You're no fun...\" Old Man Rom was still prostrate as the two bantered right in front of him. \"Why, Felt... I I wanted you to...\" Felt replied, \"I have a pretty good idea why you said all that embarrassing stuff and what you were after You saw how I hated being here so much I couldn't stand it, right? So you thought you'd give me a helpful nudge.\" \"If you understand that, then why \" When the old man tried to pose the question, Felt broke into an awkward laugh. \"What, you think I can sneak back into the city after abandoning my own family? There's no way I could be that shameless.\" When Old Man Rom heard these words, his face broke into an expression different from bitterness. He turned his back to her, rubbing an arm over his face to hide it. \"I-I've lost! And all because...\" Old Man Rom looked up to the heavens, his hoarse voice quivering with chagrin and something powerful and inexpressible. \"...I raised her too well !!\" Rom's plaintive cry about how he had raised the girl resounded in the hall. Miklotov, perhaps moved by the lament, cleared his throat, seeking to clear the air in the process. \"Well, then, Lady Felt, Sir Reinhard, may I conclude that you both intend to participate in the royal selection?\" \"Sure, go ahead.\" \"Yes, as my Lady wills it.\" Felt's behavior was insolent to the end, with Reinhard following her. The lenient sage let the incongruity pass without comment, quietly replying, \"Understood,\" as he nodded. He continued, \"Though there have been some minor uproars, I judge that all the preliminaries have concluded. Lady Felt, do you have anything else to add?\" Surely he thought it proper to give Felt the same chance to give a speech that the other candidates had received. She answered the prompt with a, \"Hmm,\" and thought about it a bit. \"One thing, then.\" Landing on a proposal, Felt raised a finger and looked up, bathed in gazes from the dais. Her red eyes flared as they surveyed the faces of those assembled. Finally, she took a deep breath and smiled buoyantly as she swept one hand toward the Council of Elders. \" I hate nobles.\" She kept that smile on her face as she pointed at the Knights of the Royal Guard with her other hand. \" I hate knights.\" Then, with both arms still spread wide, she said, with a spectacular smile and maximum venom... \" I hate this kingdom!\" She continued. \" I hate all of you in this room, I hate the structure you built, I hate every little thing here. That's why I think I'll break it all. How 'bout it?\" Felt inclined her head. For a single moment, her behavior brought time itself to a halt. Then, the chamber exploded. \"Wh-what is she saying?!\" \"This is where the king is selected, and she says she'll destroy the nation?!\" \"What have we spent all this time for!!\" Felt blew off the vociferous, angry shouts of the onlookers all at once. \"Ohh, where's all your high-and-mighty talk now? What about that proud history? Now look, when I become king, I'm breaking all of it. I'm smacking down the lot of you knuckleheads who still can't see the floor"}, {"text": "crumbling underneath. You all need a breath of fresh air.\" The speech of the bright-faced girl threw the hall into chaos like never before. Miklotov, listening to the proclamation that was reckless without precedent, nodded generously, his expression unchanged as he glanced at the knight standing beside the girl. \"Your lord is quite a feisty one. Having heard her words, what do you think of them?\" \" Truth be told, I believe Lady Felt's wishes are, unfortunately, still in the realm of fantasy.\" \"Hey, you!\" \"However, someday, Lady Felt's words will reach everyone. It is my duty to give her my full support until that day comes.\" Miklotov countered, \"But Lady Felt counts you among those things she intends to destroy, does she not?\" Reinhard bowed deeply on one knee toward Miklotov, showing no sign of relenting. \"Surely after destruction, there will be renewal. If she will have me, I have no greater desire than to be at her side during that time.\" Felt furiously scratched at her hair as she watched his chivalrous profile. \"So in the end, which one are you, my ally or my enemy here?\" \"Your ally. Yours, and yours alone.\" \"...Fine, then. I'll put you to good use.\" With her acceptance, the final candidate for the royal selection declared them lord and vassal. Miklotov dipped his head as he gazed at the radiant row of royal candidates. \"Finally, all the candidates have been assembled. I ask the Council of Elders, do we have a consensus?\" As Miklotov closed his eyes, the atmosphere around him shifted. The old man's voice carried the power of a strong will. \" My brethren, I ask for your consent to announce that this royal selection shall begin with the five candidates assembled to date.\" \" By the authority of the Council of Elders, I assent.\" \"And I.\" \"I assent as well.\" One by one, the members of the Council of Elders agreed to Miklotov's proposal with solemn nods. Listening to them until the end, Miklotov finally rose from his seat, walking beside the empty throne before opening his eyes. \" Then, I shall announce the rules for the royal selection!\" Crusch Karsten, lord of the House of Karsten. Crusch's foremost knight, the Blue Knight, Felix Argyle. \"The candidates are Crusch Karsten, Priscilla Bariel, Anastasia Hoshin, Emilia, and Felt. All of these five bear the qualifications to be Dragon Maidens!\" Priscilla Bariel, the Bloody Bride. The mercenary Al, one-armed wanderer from another world. \"The day shall be one month prior to the Dragonfriend Ceremony in three years, renewing the pact with the Dragon!\" The young company president from a foreign nation, Anastasia Hoshin. Anastasia's foremost knight, the Finest of Knights, Julius Juukulius. \"The selection shall be made according to the guidance of the Dragon via the radiance of the Dragon Jewels and the combined will of the nation's people!\" Felt, of the lost royal bloodline (unconfirmed). Felt's foremost knight, Reinhard van Astrea, the Sword Saint. \"Until the appointed day, all candidates for the throne shall work to uphold their own lands and the kingdom to the greatest possible extent!\" The silver-haired half-elf, Emilia, the Freezing Witch. And absent from that place, her self-declared knight, Subaru Natsuki. \"With the minimum conditions fulfilled, I hereby announce the royal selection has begun !\" Miklotov's great shout filled the chamber with an incredible fervor. No one spoke, but they all were unable to contain their heartfelt cries. Miklotov, feeling the waves of excitement rolling against him, straightened from his stoop and declared  \"Let the royal selection commence!!\" CHAPTER 5 ***  Subaru learned of how the tale had proceeded in his absence thanks to Reinhard and Ferris, who had shown up together in the castle's waiting room. \"And so the meowgnificent royal selection began,\" Ferris concluded. \"Subawu, you're going to serve as Lady Emilia's knight, huh? Good luck to both of us.\" Ferris wrapped up his summary, but the sarcastic twist of the knife at the end was very sharp indeed. He'd been in the chamber from start to finish; surely he knew quite well what kind of mental state Subaru was in. But Subaru had no time to pay the jab any heed. The royal selection details were crucial, but at that moment, there was an issue Subaru had to find out about even more than that. Seeing how Subaru was too timid to properly ask, Reinhard answered his unspoken question. \" The old man is unharmed. His safe release has been secured through Lady Felt's kindness.\" *** \"I didn't think he'd come in through the same corridor without you seeing his face, and I knew you two know each other. It was easy to guess why you were anxious.\" When Subaru lifted a finger, Reinhard moved quickly to assuage his concerns. But even he didn't know the true source of Subaru's sense of guilt. The instant Subaru had let himself leave Old Man Rom to rot, a dark cloud formed at the bottom of his heart from which there was no salvation. Ferris chimed in, \"That's wonderful. You should thank Reinhard and Lady Felt because it's all thanks to them. Now you don't need to make any excuses at all, Subawu!\" *** An icy shudder ran up Subaru's spine. He looked up and turned to face Ferris. His amber eyes glittered like they could see right through Subaru, all the way into his soul. Having someone look inside him felt deeply unpleasant. So Subaru forced his stiff face into motion to cover it up. \"Y-yeah... I'm so glad! Totally like I figured! It really was a good idea to leave it all to Emilia-tan and Felt better than anything I could've done... Right? That's right, isn't it?\" Subaru spread his arms wide as he gave both a dose of deliberate, exaggerated, clownish behavior, his next words even hastier and more flippant, \"But man, Felt really set her heart on winning the royal selection 'cause of me, and that means one more strong rival for the throne. Emilia-tan might give me a real scolding for this one.\" In different ways, the expressions on Reinhard's and Ferris's faces changed in response to Subaru's sudden shift, but in the end, they chose not to press the point. Both knights were showing him pity. Subaru, painfully aware of the fact, ignored his crippled heart's pleas. \"So now that the talk is all over, where is Emilia-tan and everybody?\" \"The candidates remained in the chamber to discuss the fine details of the royal selection process. During that time, I said I would go to check on you, and Ferris came with me,\" replied Reinhard. Reinhard's actions made sense, but he couldn't stop wondering why Ferris was showing his face, too. Thus, Subaru asked the latter, \"Thanks for checking up on me, but is this all right, not being by your master's side?\" \"It's totally fine. Lady Crusch is much stronger than Ferri, so it's perfectly safe!\" \"Just laying that out there like that... How's a slacker like you in the Knights of the Royal Guard, anyway?\" Ferris gave Subaru a sidelong glance and wagged a finger at him. His fingertip glowed with a blue light. \"Mew know why. Ferri's got a special talent that's in high demand.\" \"Uh... Why do I feel lighter, like my shoulders, knees, and hips aren't working as hard anymore...?\" \"Subawu, your body's aching all over like an old man.\" \"That's your selling point, eh...? Right, I heard you're a really good water mana user.\" In the first place, the reason Subaru was allowed to go with Emilia to the capital was to improve the poor physical condition he was in. The one who was supposed to heal him was none other than the cat-eared man before his eyes. Reinhard replied to Subaru's comment, saying, \"The words really good do not suffice, Subaru. It is fairer to call Ferris the greatest master of water-type magic on the continent. It is not for nothing that he bears the title of 'Blue,' standing at the pinnacle of those who share his magical affinity despite his young age.\" Reinhard's praise prompted Ferris to push his chest out, displaying not the slightest shred of modesty. \"Meow, the title came from all Ferri's fans.\" Given that he really was a healer as good as his title, Subaru saw his numerous admirers in a new light. It really put into perspective that this person was treating him. Subaru's tone was heavy and pained as he arrived at the answer he'd expected. \" So Emilia-tan really did...\" \"So Lady Emilia indeed organized it,\" Reinhard concluded. Subaru could only guess at the back-and-forth that arranged for his healing. That was why he couldn't stop the heavy melancholy rising deep in his heart. Asking Ferris, in the Crusch camp, to treat his body meant relying on a political rival on the very eve of the royal selection. In other words, Subaru had been deadweight for Emilia...again. He asked, \"Hey, why do I have to accept the treatment no matter what?\" \"Because she already paid. If Ferri doesn't heal you, Subaru, it'll mean Lady Emeowlia went through aaaaall that effort for nothing.\" \"What's this payment? If it's just some object, you can hand it back, ri \" \"It's not an object, and once you know it you can't give it back. So Ferri has to say no to your request, Subawu.\" Shot down at point-blank range, Subaru could only put a hand to his forehead and cradle his head. Even though Subaru didn't want to be a liability, it seemed that was all he had been to Emilia. He wanted to help her. That was Subaru's whole reason for being there. It was the one and only reason that gave his existence there any meaning. A tranquil voice echoed through the waiting room. The speaker was neither Reinhard nor Ferris, but a man with refined features leaning against the open door Julius. \" If you curse your own lack of strength so much, I believe you have one choice you can make.\" Subaru's face shot up like it had been slapped. \"What? Oh, it's you.\" Subaru scowled with resentment. Julius received his gaze with a calm, composed look. \"I would rather you did not make such a disagreeable expression. I did not expect a warm welcome, but letting your emotions get the better of you...\" \"The better of me... So what?\" \"...It brings the character of those who stand with you into question. Strive to remember this.\" \"Ugh...!\" Subaru's throat constricted with anger. It wasn't the words themselves, but the sensitive places they jabbed. He maintained his silence as Julius strode past him toward an open window. \"Now, I suppose you wanted to ask me what I am doing here?\" The knight turned his back, surveying the grounds beyond the palace, narrowing his eyes as a breeze blew. \"Naturally, I came to see you. I would like you to accompany me for a brief time.\" How about it? Julius asked with a wave of his hand. The man's sharp gaze even then implied this was not some friendly suggestion. \"Just so you know, I'd never say yes to something like that, not knowing the place or what it's for, even on one hour's sleep.\" \"The place is the parade square. The objective... Yes.\" In response to Subaru's seemingly casual but extremely biting words, Julius looked down in apparent thought. Then, with an arrogant smile, he spoke with as much venom as Subaru had. \"How about...teaching you a lesson or two about reality?\" Some ten minutes after that precariously sarcastic exchange, Subaru was standing atop tightly packed, sandy soil. They'd moved from the waiting room of the castle to the knights' garrison adjacent to the castle. The tamped-down reddish training ground was ringed by stout walls that gave off a strong sense of the place's history. The area was perhaps half the size of a high school campus, providing plenty of space for running around and crossing swords. Subaru tested his footing, then casually began stretching. Reinhard, standing"}, {"text": "at the entrance of the parade grounds, tried to get Julius to relent. \"Julius, you should stop this. It isn't like you.\" The expression on his face was not one of haste or anger, but pure concern for Subaru's well-being. He continued, \"I accept it was a petty thing for him to say, but it was nothing that couldn't be settled by a retraction. Normally, you would judge as much yourself, no?\" \"That is precisely so, my good Reinhard. Normally, I would.\" Julius was removing the ceremonial decorations from his Knights of the Royal Guard uniform one by one as he looked back at Reinhard, his eyes betraying no emotion. \"Had it not been this day, and had I met him in a different place, I might have simply let him be. However, it was not meant to be. My good name was sullied before those connected to the throne, and he spoke lightly of chivalry itself. Furthermore, he has not only failed to apologize but has heaped on additional insults.\" Just like that, the faint murmurs that had filled the parade square fell silent. \" I shall now chastise the base ruffian who has besmirched my knightly honor! Any objections?!\" *** Abruptly, a wordless typhoon roared through the air over the training grounds. The gathered knights and guardsmen shouted, their voices creating the gale. No doubt they saw things very simply: Julius was their representative against Subaru, the man who had disrespected them all. Never in his life had Subaru stood before so many people directing such hostile emotions at him. He remarked, \"Odds are about seven hundred to zero with no one betting on me. I'm so unpopular, I could cry...\" Truthfully, it chilled him to the bone; his body was filled with an overwhelming urge to fall to his knees. Yet, his heart was calm, and though his limbs felt heavy, they did not shake. It was not that he had resigned himself to his fate. Subaru really didn't understand the mental state he was in when Julius spoke up again. \"Now then, before we begin, I shall ask once more: Do you intend to apologize for your earlier impropriety and ask for forgiveness? If you make a full apology for your repeated transgressions here and now, I shall pardon you.\" \"Repeated transgressions, huh. I can't think of any... And apologize how?\" \"Put your forehead to the ground with tears in your eyes. Or, if you find it more fitting, roll onto the ground and show me your belly to curry favor like the good lapdog you are.\" \"Neither choice is very elegant, so if you don't mind, I'll pass on both.\" No doubt he'd never expected Subaru to accept. \"I see,\" Julius murmured to himself curtly as he finally handed his knight's sword to one of his fellows standing beside him. He accepted a pair of wooden swords in its place. \"Properly speaking, it would not be strange for a man to cut you down for your foul tongue. However, you are Lady Emilia's vassal, whether she desires it or not. Accordingly, I shall face you using these wooden wasters.\" Any objections? asked Julius's eyes. Subaru answered with a curt wave of his hand, signaling there was no problem. Concluding that his opponent had accepted from his gestures and expression, Julius nodded. \"The referee shall be Ferris.\" Julius glanced sideways at him, while Ferris casually lifted up his palm and waved back. \"Sure, suuure.\" He'd easily accepted the role of referee. There was no way to know what he thought on the inside. Unlike Reinhard's hope to put a stop to this, Ferris seemed all too eager to get things under way. \"Have at it, you two. No matter what horrible wounds you suffer, Ferri can patch you up as long as you don't actually die, Subawu, so good luck!\" \"Why say that to just me? Worry about the other guy, geez.\" \"Meow, what strong resolve! Hear that, everyone? All right, one, mew, three!\" Turning to the onlookers, Ferris raised both hands high and brought them down. At his signal, the parade square erupted in uproarious laughter, pouring scorn on Subaru's reckless words. Bathed in laughter, Subaru stepped forward and turned to face Julius. When Julius offered him one of the practice weapons, he gripped the hilt firmly, as if he was used to it. Similarly, Julius gripped the other waster and announced the start of the mock duel. \"At least you are enthusiastic. Shall we begin?\" Subaru, his skin crackling with the electric energy of the audience, poised the wooden sword and pulled back, then twirled the waster in his hand around as he complained, \"Ah, time-out. The feel of this doesn't seem right.\" \"Is that so? I do not think they differ much, but you may use this one if you prefer?\" \"Sorry, sorry. I'm a child of the modern era, so I don't wanna use something that doesn't feel right.\" As he spoke, he accepted the wooden sword Julius offered with one hand. In its place, he offered Julius the sword handed to him just earlier  \"Oops.\" *** Subaru's hand let the wooden sword go a moment before Julius's fingers could take it. Naturally, gravity caused the waster to fall. Julius instantly bent forward as his hand chased after it. The knight, his body curved forward, had lost his height advantage over Subaru. \"...Hmph.\" Subaru stepped forward and flipped the waster in his hand from down to up, aiming squarely at the tip of Julius's chin. Simultaneously, his left hand thrust straight forward, tossing the sand he'd covertly picked up during his warm-up exercises toward Julius's eyes a classic blinding, two-step surprise attack.  Got him now, thought Subaru, smiling with malicious satisfaction at his little trick. The next moment, he heard a voice right against his ear. \"It seems that you truly have no shame It must make the vulgarity easy to come by.\" Simultaneously, a blow struck Subaru. He felt a sharp, hard jab right to the solar plexus. The shock to his torso shuddered through the rest of his body. He felt weightless; just after his feet left the ground, his face slammed hard into the earth. Sandy dirt smeared his face, mixed with vomit forced out by the blow to his solar plexus. Pain and heat struck his brain with equal force. The next moment, the parade square erupted in boisterous cheers at how Subaru, the fool who did not know his place, received what he deserved. The boy curled into himself on the ground as the pain caught up, screaming into the sky above the parade square. Higher, higher. Farther, farther. \"Reporting. Currently, Sir Julius and...Lady Emilia's vassal, Sir Subaru Natsuki, are engaged in mock combat with wasters in the parade square.\" \"...Eh?\" Upon hearing the guard's report, Emilia's thoughts slipped out in a breathless whisper. Stay calm, stay composed, the voice inside her kept saying. She didn't know what it meant. \"Wh-why would they be doing such a...?! The parade ground, you mean the knights' building next to the royal palace, right? Julius and Subaru are...brawling there?\" Emilia could not conceal her bewilderment. The guard, however, could not let one part go uncorrected. \"Pardon me, but it is a mock combat. It is no brawl arising out of a personal grudge, but a matter of Sir Julius's honor.\" His manner, on the verge of open disrespect, shook Emilia all the more deeply. She thought back to the war of words between Subaru and Julius in the throne room. Neither had a good impression of the other, and if that was the reason for a private duel... \"Anyway, I need to stop this immediately. Lead me to this parade square...\" Emilia was about to rush off to the square to talk some sense into them when a high-pitched voice interceded Anastasia's. \"Ah, I think you oughta let them be.\" When Emilia turned, she saw that Anastasia had raised a hand, gathering attention on her. Having moved from the throne room to a conference room, the candidates were seated, with their associates at their side. Naturally, everyone else had heard the report as well. Anastasia continued, \"I want to make sure of somethin'. Who proposed this mock combat?\" The guard replied, \"I understand that Sir Julius did. However, because Sir Subaru Natsuki accepted, we are in the present situation \" Anastasia gave the guard's reply a generous nod before looking back at Emilia. \"Ahh, that's fine, that's fine. I just needed to know it was Julius's idea Since Julius started it, I'm against stopping it.\" Anastasia's reply put her squarely at odds with Emilia. \"Your knight and my...my friend, are clashing. Aren't you worried?\" \"Worried? About what? That Julius might go too far and make me pay to heal your boy?\" Anastasia tilted her head a little as she replied, looking mystified. Emilia was at a loss for words. In the half-elf's place, Priscilla poked a small smile out from behind her fan. \"Certainly. From what I saw, he is an incorrigible fool. I imagine he is having his face rubbed into the dirt for a second time today out of excessive stubbornness.\" Anastasia added, \"Perhaps. Back in the hall, he had some nerve. Makes you wanna look up to him since someone probably threw him across the room.\" The ill-natured smiles the two were trading left Emilia unable to believe her eyes, her voice quivering. \"D-don't you have anything else to say...?\" But only adding to her shock, Crusch broke her silence and announced her own opposition to Emilia's view. \"If Emilia's vassal had requested a duel, I would agree that it is correct to stop them. However, since it is Sir Julius who requested it, and Emilia's vassal who accepted, I believe stopping them is a mistake.\" \"Why? I mean, Subaru isn't my...\" \"If you do not understand, no explanation shall suffice. Besides, though his temper was quick, this is a necessary thing.\" Crusch cut Emilia off with a strong tone that did not allow further discussion. Crusch, too, had taken a hard stance that Emilia should not get involved. The stalled conversation brought a sour expression to Felt's face before she raised her voice in annoyance. \"So why did that guard come to tell us about this, anyway? I mean, it's one thing if you're gonna report before they start, but why get all weak-kneed in the middle of it? Just wait for them to finish fighting and tell us what happened after.\" Felt's question, posed with arms crossed and a bad attitude, made the soldier's face visibly blanch. Marcus, sensing from his demeanor that something was amiss, stepped in front of his subordinate and broke his silence. \"Report.\" \"S-sir! I have come to request orders because...the mock duel between Sir Julius and Sir Subaru Natsuki is excessively one-sided!\" \"...What do you mean, one-sided?\" \"Sir Julius is surely holding back...but it does not appear that way.\" The guard seemed distressed, as if he'd seen such a miserable sight that he couldn't bring himself to look in Emilia's direction. That announced to all present just what a terrible spectacle was occurring. That news was the last straw for Emilia, who threw her indecision to the wind and rushed out of the room. \"I have to stop them...!\" She ran down the corridor toward the knights' garrison and the parade square within. Once Emilia left, the room seemed on the brink of an uproar when Al raised his hand and suggested, \"So, how 'bout we follow the lady and take a look, too?\" he motioned toward the open door and shrugged his shoulder to Priscilla, standing beside him. \"You like this sort of thing, right, Princess? Watching a ferocious beast toy with a weak critter.\" Priscilla lightly turned her back away from him as her charming laughter shook her bountiful breasts. \"Do not cast aspersions upon me with your petty delusions, Al. Well, I do enjoy it... Very well. I wanted a break from this dreadfully long-winded"}, {"text": "talk, anyway. Looking down upon a variety of fools and laughing at them is good for the soul.\" The haggard guard broke out in an icy sweat as Priscilla thrust the tip of her fan toward him. \"Lead us to this parade square I command it.\" Blood from Subaru's head wounds seeped into his eyes. He raggedly wiped at them to clear his red-tinged vision. He'd already lost count of how many times he'd been knocked to the ground. His left eye was already swollen shut; he tasted too much blood to tell if it was just his lip, or if the inside of his mouth was cut, too. He didn't really feel the pain. He wasn't sure if the aching had become so great that he had grown numb or if it was the adrenaline soaking his brain. It was probably a number of things. But what was driving the pain from Subaru's mind was pure anger. The strength of Subaru's spirit, so deviant from the norm, earned him exasperation from Julius, not praise. \"How about you finally acknowledge your own limitations?\" His handsome face was still untouched by a single speck of dust or a single drop of sweat as he calmly swayed the tip of the frayed wooden sword he had used to beat Subaru to a pulp. He continued, \"Surely by now you are painfully aware of the difference between us, and how grievously you insulted me by treating the word knight with such casual contempt?\" It was not an attempt to appeal to Subaru's heart, but to smash it to pieces. Julius was only pounding on Subaru to show him what being a knight meant. Subaru was only recklessly, stubbornly resisting the reality Julius was drilling into him. There was no room for anything to grow between them. And nothing did, no matter how long their confrontation continued. Julius said to him, \"I believe going any further may put your life in jeopardy.\" \"...Like this much is gonna kill someone. Don't talk about it like you know.\" \"You sound as if you have prior experience.\" \"I know more about it than any man in this world.\" Since Subaru had set foot upon that land, he had perished a total of seven times. There was no one in that whole, wide world that had faced death as many times as Subaru. People used words like hurts enough to die, mortified enough to die, enough to die, enough to die, but he knew that people did not die of these things. Shaking his cut, throbbing head, Subaru sluggishly lifted up his weapon, raising his voice as well. The instant he brought Julius into range, the tip of his wooden sword cried out as he raised it for a swing  \"There is no beauty in you.\" A moment before Subaru was about to unleash a downward strike, a blow struck his right wrist his sword hand. The sharp smack sent his wooden sword flying, and Subaru's eyes instinctively followed it. The next moment, he was bowled over by another blow to the solar plexus. His breath caught, and, unable to break the fall whatsoever, Subaru rolled onto the ground, the earth and sky trading places about five times before he ended up flat on his back, arms and legs spread wide. Subaru literally coughed up blood. The knights and guards were still gathered to watch Subaru's public whipping at Julius's hands. But there were no cheers any longer. Subaru was the villain who had belittled the very nature of knights at the royal selection that would determine the kingdom's future. And so, Julius rose to represent the Knights of the Royal Guard and rebuke him, making him taste pain until he apologized That was the scene they had come expecting to see. Indeed, when it had begun, they cheered heartily in delight, or laughed in mockery at Subaru's pathetic display, unreservedly supporting their comrade, Julius. What had changed was that everyone now understood this was a beating, and nothing more. There was a vast, yawning chasm in ability between Julius and Subaru. Unskilled in attack and wide-open in defense, the boy was knocked down over and over. At first, derisive laughter rang out each time he went down. The exasperated sighs began when the number exceeded ten. By the time people had lost count, everyone wanted to avert their eyes. Just end it already, they thought. Anyone could see who had won and who had lost. They had learned all over again that knights were superior. Beyond that, this was a meaningless dispute. But Julius continued to beat Subaru and showed absolutely no sign of relenting. As referee, Ferris had the authority to stop the fight at any time, but made no sign of stopping, regardless of how hurt or injured Subaru became. And Subaru himself betrayed the knights' hopes, standing up again. Everyone understood. This no longer held any meaning, any significance. It was nothing more than a pathetic display of senseless stubbornness. Therefore, in the end, it was the least they could do to watch Subaru be bullheaded to the bitter end. They did not leave, because those who watched the spectacle unfold had become part of it, and shared responsibility for it. *** Subaru's quivering upper body sat up before the eyes of the knightly onlookers. He picked up the waster that had fallen beside him, using it as a crutch to prop himself up. He coughed violently, spewing a large volume of blood. The somber sight confirmed everyone's thoughts. As if by nature, they understood  The next exchange would be the final blow in this pointless dispute.  One more hit and I'm done. Funnily enough, Subaru had managed to reach the same conclusion as the onlookers watching his absurdity. But he no longer cared about what anyone saw. Inside Subaru, there was no one but him and Julius. He wouldn't get up after the next blow. Even if Subaru's sword miraculously made contact, Subaru would be unable to continue. Why challenge him, then? If the end result would be the same either way, why even try? He couldn't see the answer. He had lost his original reason for starting the fight, filled purely with hatred for Julius standing nonchalantly in his swollen field of vision. And so he decided he'd put everything he had into one final blow, aiming to break the bridge of Julius's nose. *** His lungs ached simply from breathing. Exhaling made his mouth hurt that much more. Pushing the agony away with his threadbare consciousness, Subaru collected his remaining strength and waited for his chance hoping Julius would let his guard down for even a moment. He couldn't let this opportunity slip away.  PainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainDIE. *** Julius's gaze seemed to drift for an instant. In his tattered state, Subaru took his shot. He heard nothing. He left everything behind, lifting his sword up with all his spirit. Julius, having taken his attention ever so slightly off Subaru, hadn't reacted yet. Something had attracted his attention, but every cell of Subaru's brain was devoted to thinking about that single blow. *** He thought he heard something something in that world without sound, where only he and his target existed. \" ru!\" He heard a voice. Someone's voice. Someone's voice in his ears. His mind was being pulled away. But everything was forgotten, drowned out by his furor. That moment, his eyes trained on the single thing that gave his existence any meaning. \" baru!\" The voice became clearer. It began to hold meaning. If he heard it clearly, there would be no going back. That was why Subaru brushed everything away, to escape from the overwhelming fear that pursued him still, right on his heels. With every ounce of his being he shouted. \" Subaru!!\" *** Betraying the clear-as-a-bell voice in his ears, Subaru chanted the incantation at the top of his lungs. A black cloud erupted, dying the reddish-brown soil of the parade square black, blotting out everything. A realm of oblivion unfolded. Within it, Subaru rushed forward, shouting in his guttural voice. In this space where reason held no sway, his brain commanded his arms to swing down. The dark cloud swallowed the limbs stretching in front of him, ignoring all else to do as they were commanded, so that the tip of \"something\" might reach  \"So this is your secret weapon, then?\" Clear as day, Subaru heard the voice in a world that should be soundless. The black cloud brightened And from within the source of light, a wooden sword cut through the air, mercilessly slamming Subaru's body down to the ground. The voice flitting his way from above sounded surprised rather than hurt. \"I did not expect that you would use Dark-type magic. I admit you caught me by surprise.\" Subaru, lying on the ground with his limbs splayed, gazed up at the sky in a daze as he faced reality head on. \"However, your training is deficient. Such low-level magic can only work on someone of lower ability than you, or perhaps an unintelligent beast. Such a plan would not work against a single Knight of the Royal Guard.\" The voice seemed to carry pity. Pity that crushed Subaru's heart and told him to give up on everything. He had thought he could change his situation. He thought that even he could accomplish something. \"You are irredeemably powerless. You have no place by her side.\" Those words, at least, he wished to refute words that denied that his life held any meaning. Subaru moved his neck to glare at the man, trying to get him to at least take that part back... *** ...but instead, he caught a glimpse of the silver-haired girl with violet eyes. She was leaning over a terrace on a floor midway up the royal palace wall that overlooked the parade square. Behind her were girls he recognized, each one coldly surveying the results. The thoughts behind her blanched face no longer mattered. Subaru no longer cared what anyone at all thought of him. Or rather, that would have been true if the person standing there hadn't been the absolutely last person in the entire world he wanted to see him in this state. *** Inside him, Subaru heard a sound like a thread snapping. That was the last thing he knew before his consciousness began fading far, far away. With his mind, distinct until that point, cut loose, the world quickly lost its color. This time, Subaru's mind truly left anything and everything behind as it plunged to the bottom of the abyss. \" Subaru.\" He thought he heard a murmur he should have been unable to. Then, it vanished along with the rest. When Subaru awoke, his brows furrowed as he stared up at an unfamiliar ceiling. To Subaru, who usually woke up more quickly than he liked, the brief period of mental vagueness between sleep and fully waking was precious time. For several seconds, Subaru immersed himself in this boundless, nebulous state as his mind groped for its memories, such as what he'd done before sleeping, what that place was... Subaru felt his temple throb painfully. That ache brought everything rushing back. \"I...remember...\" He remembered the disgrace he had endured before he ended up where he slept. He raised a hand to his forehead, but his eyes were drawn in by the discovery of a serious scar near his wrist that he didn't remember. He immediately realized it bore the traces of healing magic. And that he could feel the traces of wounds on his body meant  \" I didn't...die.\" Touching his presumably cracked forehead and most likely fractured wrist, he let out a sigh, lamenting that the healing had removed all physical pain. If not for the smoldering feeling of humiliation in his chest, he'd almost think the whole thing had never happened. No  Now that Subaru had regained consciousness, the betrayed look she gave him was something no spell could heal. \" Subaru.\" Emilia sat on the side of the bed, her"}, {"text": "violet eyes full of melancholy. For no reason he could discern, she'd folded the white robe she'd been wearing over her lap while watching over Subaru. The rays of the western sun filtering through the open window made Subaru guess it was several hours later on the same day. The first thing on his lips was harmless and inoffensive enough. \" The royal candidate discussion's over already?\" Emilia apparently waited for him to make some kind of excuse before she opened her eyes a little wider, caught off guard by how he tried to pretend nothing had happened. \"Yeah, it's finished... Most of what everyone wanted to say came out in the throne room, so the rest was mainly working out the minute details about the royal selection. Most things were settled by Roswaal approving them.\" Emilia shook her head, a subtle lament in her voice at her own powerlessness. Subaru realized he took comfort in that Emilia, regretful she couldn't do anything in the royal selection, was somehow sharing in his misery. Subaru tried to hide it from himself by making an attempt at being glib. \"That so. Then you probably wasted a lot of time waiting for me while I overslept. Anyway, let's get straight back to the inn. Gotta pick up Rem and work out plans for the royal selection, right?\" \"Subaru.\" \"Here in the castle you don't know who's watching or listening, so best to save the deep talk till we're back at the mansion, right? Or do you have to talk with high-ups in the capital here first?\" \"Subaru...\" \"Errrr, maybe it's best to make non-aggression pacts with some of the candidates here instead? It's tough when you don't know who's coming at you and when...\" \" Subaru!\" Emilia sharply shouted Subaru down amid his rambling, cutting off his excuses. He turned his averted gaze back toward her. She spoke to him quietly, but gravely, not be swayed. \" Let's...talk.\" Emilia rose from her seat, her arms tightly hugging the fabric of her folded robe. The stiffness of her cheeks conveyed better than any words that the coming conversation was not about anything good. \"There are things that I want to ask you... Truly, many things.\" Her lips quivered, as if in hesitation, groping for exactly what subject she should broach. \"...Yeah, I, suppose so.\" Subaru had a pretty good idea why she was hesitant. Everything Subaru had done until then had been completely unexpected. Therefore, Emilia was seeking the right way to ask about Subaru's true intent behind his actions that day. He had only a single, unabashed reason to give. But the question on Emilia's lips was not what he wanted. \"Err, then... Why did you...come to fight with Julius?\" This answer was much harder to come by. What significance did that battle have ? \"You had a reason for it, didn't you? It's you, so I'm sure you had an important...\" Already beaten down, Subaru had been waiting in the corridor when Julius appeared before him. When Julius invited him to the parade square, Subaru immediately deemed it would be payback for the rudeness he had shown in the throne room. He certainly tried to appreciate the difference in the power Julius wielded compared to him. He knew from the start he had no chanceof victory. And yet, Subaru had taken the wooden sword, challenged him to the hopeless battle, and had been pounded into the dirt. Why did he do all that? The answer was  \"I wanted...payback.\" \"...Ah?\" Subaru lifted his face. Looking up at the bewilderment in the silver-haired beauty's eyes, he continued, \"I wanted to show him that...I'm not something to throw away on the side of the road. I thought I could pay him back, and show him I could...stand by guys like him even if only a little.\" His words were all jumbled. He resented himself for not being able to put it more clearly. If not for the emotions smoldering in his chest, ramming against his heart, he wouldn't need to endure such conflicted thoughts. \"Subaru...\" \"I was...stubborn. I hated him. For saying I'm disgraceful, powerless, how I'm in the way...how I'm not worthy of you, how he tried to push me away from you... So I took him on.\" He figured the last one was the straw that broke the camel's back. Yes, Julius had been sternly rebuking Subaru, telling him he wasn't worthy of Emilia. But he didn't even have to say that. Subaru himself knew that more than anyone. To gloss that over, he had desperately worn a mask, feigning ignorance, but that man had easily called his bluff. So unable to forgive him, Subaru had taken him on, leading to the inevitable result. The boy's listless reply, spoken with a hung head, made Emilia's breath catch a little. \"That's...why you...?\" No doubt it was not the concrete reply she had been searching for. Whatever lofty ideals she had held onto, the truth behind Subaru's banal stubbornness betrayed them. Subaru listened to the trace of disappointment slip past her lips. \"...Emilia...tan, you...\" Her quivering words had scolded the powerless-feeling Subaru into a confession. Emilia hadn't intended to do it. She did not understand how cruel and relentless her act was. That was why, as Subaru spoke with a frail voice, he was unable to even look at her. \" You just don't understand.\" That was what he said. The moment he said it, Subaru realized he'd been lashing out. To deny that someone understood was the worst kind of excuse, cutting off that person from your heart. Subaru was unable to keep his face raised when he heard a breathless-sounding voice. \" You're right.\" Her agreement, spoken almost like a sigh, made it sound like she grasped what he had said, that she was agreeing not to push the issue any further. Her reaction made Subaru's shoulders ease with a sense of relief. That was when she said, \"Tomorrow, Roswaal and I will be returning to the mansion. You will remain in the royal capital to focus on medical treatment.\" Subaru couldn't make sense of her words \"Huh?\" When he tilted his head in confusion, Emilia strove to hide her heavy emotion as she turned toward him. \"That's what we agreed to in the first place, yes? You came to the royal capital so that your depleted gate can be healed. Ferris agreed, so you will be healed by him, then recuperate.\" \"W-wait a minute.\" Emilia stated the plans for Subaru at a rapid clip. \"While staying in the capital, you will be in Ferris's...or rather, Lady Crusch of the House of Karsten's care. Rem will be staying with you, so you won't need to worry about a thing.\" Subaru, realizing that his intent had been completely missed, called out to her in a desperate voice. \"I said wait!\" His fingertips immediately reached out, taking hold of her sleeve as if that would stop her from pulling away. \"Why are you...all of a sudden...I...\" In reply to Subaru's frail voice, Emilia looked away as she said, \"...You push yourself too far when you're around me. Don't you?\" Subaru held his breath at her words. Emilia's expression was unreadable. He strained, trying to get her to look at him. \"You don't have to...put it like that...\" \"I'm not wrong, am I? It was like that when we first met, and like that at the mansion. And it was like that today... All of it's because you were together with me, wasn't it?\" Her way of speaking was thick with discontent. Faced with negativity and cynicism that was all too out of character for Emilia, Subaru could only shake his head. \"That's not what I was trying to say... I just...\" \"Just?\" \"I just did those things...because I wanted to give you something...\" \"For...me?\" When she echoed his words back, Subaru sent a determined nod back her way. He had earnestly struggled against destiny for Emilia's sake, and hers alone. It was that feeling, above all others, that he wanted her to understand. ...That was why the next words out of her mouth left Subaru in complete shock. \" It was all for your own benefit, wasn't it?\" *** Beyond the silence, Subaru's brain was a complete blank. He didn't know what to say. He didn't know what he wanted to say. \"I...I just...wanted...to give you...\" Sadness? Suffering? Regret? Anger? Sorrow?  I want to give you happiness.  I want to help you get what you desire.  I want to protect you from everything that makes you sad. Those were the pure feelings Subaru had for Emilia that formed the foundation of his every deed. He had acted in the belief that his efforts would convey his feelings stronger than any words. But that had been his conceited assumption, made without any consideration for other people's feelings. \" Mff!\" The dazed Subaru yelped in surprise at the sudden impact of soft fabric on his face. When he immediately pulled the material away, he realized it was the white robe with an embroidered hawk that Emilia had been holding in her hands and that she had struck him with it. But he couldn't associate Emilia with such a violent action. Even if he accepted that, logically, Emilia had thrown it at him, he could not emotionally accept it. After all, the Emilia Subaru knew was always kind, filled with motherly affection, and, though she was not consciously aware of her own stubborn streak, she was a soft-hearted girl who couldn't stop helping others if she tried. Why, then? Emilia's violet gaze quivered with a wave of emotions. Her face was tense as she bit her lip, which seemed to tremble from fierce emotion. He'd never seen either before. Neither her expression nor her gaze fit the girl he knew whatsoever. Yet, both were aimed at him, of all people. He understood how out of place the sentiment was, but he thought that she was...beautiful, like this. The wave of emotions turned to tears that filled her purple eyes. \"Stop lying about doing all these things for my sake !\" With a small shake of her head, she seemed to be venting about every last thing eating at her. \"Coming to the castle, fighting with Julius, using magic... You're saying it was all for me? I didn't ask you for any of those things!\" *** \"All I wanted was for you to do the things I asked you to do!\" *** \"Hey, do you remember? What I asked?\" *** Hearing her reject his actions so clearly froze Subaru's mind with terror. That was why he couldn't produce an answer to her question from within his jumbled head. With Subaru unable to answer, Emilia firmly closed her eyes. \"I asked you to stay at the inn with Rem and wait.\" *** \"Using any more magic would be very bad for you, so I asked you not to use magic.\" He remembered that she'd used the word please for both. Both times, Emilia had strongly urged him to behave out of concern for his health. But Subaru had trampled on her words each time based on his own selfish delusions. Somewhere deep down inside, he had thought of things so frivolously, as if good results would always let him smooth over his broken promises. But as a result, Subaru had not only disregarded her pleas, but didn't have a single proper thing to show for it; indeed, he'd only disgraced himself and held her back. But even so, he at least wanted her to understand that the underlying motivations were genuine. \"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you. I'm really, really sorry. But! But you're wrong, I, I didn't do them for my sake...\" But Subaru's tongue cramped like it had gone numb, rejecting his efforts to put feelings into words. As he flailed for words, Emilia stared at him with sadness. His words were unforgivably selfish. He never should have said them. \"Emilia, don't you...believe me?\" Someone who had just"}, {"text": "denied that she could understand him had no right to say any of it. \"I want to believe you... I want to believe you, Subaru.\" She sounded like she wanted to cry. She might have already been crying. But Subaru didn't have the courage to find out. He couldn't bring himself to look at her, even though she might be in tears; even though he might have been the reason why she was in such a state. Subaru had continued running forward trying to avoid that, but at the most critical moment, Subaru Natsuki just  Her emotions exploded. \"I wanted to believe you...but you're the one who stopped me, Subaru!\" Though she had sometimes lost her calm and logical demeanor to anger before, this was the first time he had seen her cast them aside, like shackles on her emotions. Freed of those restraints, Emilia poured her overflowing feelings into words. \"You didn't uphold a single promise, did you, Subaru? You...promised, but you broke them all like they were nothing and ended up here, didn't you?!\" He'd trampled on the promises they made together in other words, her trust. His claim, that he had done it all for her, was moral justification that only held meaning for Subaru himself. Emilia carried on, saying, \"You haven't kept your word, but then say you want me to trust you...? However you ask, I can't do that. I can't...\" No!, he wanted to cry out in a loud voice. But in reality, Subaru's trembling throat made no sound; his head felt as heavy as lead, too heavy to lift from its lowered, face-down position. In front of the crying girl, whose emotions he had toyed with, who sought an honest answer from him Subaru chose to turn his back to her, and thus, continue to betray her. She asked him, \"...Hey, Subaru. Why do you want to help me so much?\" It was surely the doubt nestled in Emilia's mind that kept her from asking many times before. Seeing Subaru running around covered with injuries, forcing himself to smile all the while, or watching him endure great pain and leap into the jaws of death, she must have entertained those doubts for some time. Thus, it was inevitable she would press the issue now. If Emilia didn't let it all out there, if she kept her misgivings forever deep inside, not understanding why Subaru kept doing his utmost for her, it would only bring her more pain. The question was Emilia's final offer of salvation to Subaru. He had thought that, having so lightly treated his promises, there was nothing he could say that could reach her, but even so, she was asking him to honestly tell her.  Why did Subaru work himself to the bone for Emilia?  Why had he tenaciously clung to her since arriving in that world? \"I want to do everything I can to help you because you saved me...\" \"I...saved you...?\" \"That's right.\" When he had been suddenly invited into another world, he was at a complete loss, not knowing right from left, with unavoidable violence threatening him; for all he knew, that world would have been the end of him. He continued, \"I don't think you understand how...much you helped me. But that...saved me, more than words can express.\" What Emilia had saved back then was not his life, but Subaru himself. It didn't start with Subaru. The first time, it was Emilia who did the saving. Everything he'd done since was nothing more than repaying her for what she had given him. \"Subaru, I don't understand...\" \"That can't be...helped. But it's true. You saved me. That's why I tried to...pay back the favor...but now, it's...\" It's not just that, were the words that should have followed. But Emilia exploded in emotion, her silver hair violently swaying as she shook her head, so the words never arrived. \" I told you, I don't understand!! I saved you? I did no such thing. The first time I met you was at the loot cellar. I'd never seen you before in my life!\" \"No, listen to \" \"If I'd met you before that, if that was true, I'd... I'd...!\" Burying her face in her hands, Emilia rejected Subaru. She would listen to him no longer. His words did not have the strength to stop her from fully retreating into her shell. He had no idea what kind of sore spot of hers he'd brushed up against. He didn't know, but he had to keep talking. That's why Subaru quickly pulled himself together and said, \"Maybe you don't understand, but listen to me anyway. It's the truth! The first time we met when I came to this world \" Instantly, the scene ground to a halt, and Subaru realized he had brushed against the forbidden. This was the world where time was frozen and everything stopped. He could no longer hear even the furious beating of his heart. Emilia's voice, which he had heard until that very moment, grew distant. Even the high-pitched ringing sounds vanished without a trace as the world of silence beckoned. Subaru could not contain his anger, both at himself, and at the enforcing shadow with no respect for the mood the shadow that inflicted unending pain upon Subaru when he spoke about his peculiar trait. After the warning from the halted world that he had nearly violated the taboo, time began to tick once more.  With a thump, Subaru realized his entire body had broken out in a cold sweat. By the whim of the shadow, he had not received a painful penalty. He remembered that. If he kept talking like he had just been about to, the shadow would mercilessly torture his heart in the frozen world. The words he would have spoken tumbled back down his throat. The sincere thoughts he wanted to share had no place to go, a millstone Subaru's shoulders had no choice but to bear. Emilia said, \"...Once again, you're not saying anything.\" Her cold, hard voice battered his eardrums. It sounded like despair like she'd given up. The uncharacteristic anger, the surge of sadness within her chest that had no outlet what could he do about them? Even if he tried to tell her how he really felt, she wasn't listening to him anymore. And if he tried to tell her everything, that accursed shadow would get in his way to stop him. He asked, \"Why...don't you understand...?\" \"...Subaru.\" \"I thought, you... You of all people would understand...\" \"The me inside your head is really something, isn't she?\" That one sentence was filled with enough distance and isolation to make him cry. When Subaru lifted his face, astounded, Emilia averted her eyes and faced away from him. He wondered whom the lonely smile that came over her lips was meant for...him, or her? She continued, \"She understands it, all of it, without even having to ask. Your pain, your sadness, your anger she feels all of them as her own.\" \"......Huh?\" \" If you don't say it, I can't understand, Subaru.\" He'd been rejected. He'd been smashed to bits. His illusion crumbled into dust. The one thing he truly thought he could believe in since falling into that world vanished. *** He'd risked his life, endured the pain of being bitten all over, wiped away his tears and surpassed them, all to continue to protect the idol he had erected in his mind. And so, his arbitrary utopia, one that had never existed, crumbled without a sound. His lips quivered. His eyes were hot inside. His tongue was twitching. His heartbeats were so fierce he could hear them. \"Everything...I've done...\" He lifted up his face and met Emilia's violet eyes. They were filled only with sadness. When he saw his own face reflected there, it was truly pitiful and beyond salvation. He raised up his shrill voice in anger, so much that the room seemed to shake with it. \" You got this far because of me, didn't you?! Like at the loot cellar when your crest got stolen! I saved you from that uber-dangerous serial killer! I put my body on the line! All because you're important to me!!\" His fingertips trembled as they gripped the sheets. His nails dug into his palm and slowly drew blood. He continued, enumerating every deed to his credit that he could think of as he tried to chase after her shadow, far in the distance. \"Like at the mansion! I barely hung on there! My skull got cracked, my head went flying, but everyone in the village got saved anyway, didn't they?! And things turned out the best way possible with Ram and Rem, I'm sure of it! That's because I was there, right?!\" The fact that he had saved everyone at the loot cellar, and at the mansion all that had been possible because of him. These were the deeds Subaru ought to be proud of, and rewarded for. He'd come that far. He'd done so much. He added, \"You have to owe me something for everything I've done for you !!\" He shouted because the meaning of all his actions, and the thoughts behind them, had been refuted. Subaru's vainglorious search for praise, his gnawing desire for satisfaction, and his egotistical wish to be wanted, had been the unconscious extremes that had led him down his path. And all were summed up in a single, defining word. With a halting, shaky voice, Emilia said to Subaru, who was breathing roughly with sweat on his brow, \"...Right.\" Her words had a tone of acceptance, of resignation, of resolve in other words, it was the end. \"Subaru, I owe you a huge, incredible debt for many things you've done, so...\" \"Yeah, that's right. That's why I \" \"So I'll repay it all to you. Then we can end this.\" Her statement, incredibly clear, raised Subaru's face like he'd been kicked. And when he saw that Emilia's gaze was even hollower than before, he realized that his hasty words should never have been spoken. In a childish tantrum, he had trampled even his purest thoughts underfoot, throwing it all away. \" That's enough, Subaru Natsuki.\" If the relationship between them was only about repaying favors, that relationship would end as soon as the debt was repaid. That was the only conclusion the situation could reach, now that he'd tallied up the things he'd done in the hope of giving her something without the slightest thought of a reward. Ever since their first, intimate encounter, she had called Subaru by his first name. He understood all too late that he could not recover the affection he had lost. She stated, \"Rem will come later. Do as she says. Everything else, I will arrange afterward, so...\" He couldn't even reply. Nor was there anything he could ask of her. Emilia began to walk, putting distance between them physical distance, but an emotional distance that was far greater. In that moment, Subaru lacked the courage to reach his fingers toward her back, or even to watch her as she left. When Emilia reached for the door, she abruptly stopped and murmured. *** She spoke in a soft voice, like she wanted to say it less to Subaru than to herself. \"...got my hopes up. I thought, just maybe, you...you wouldn't give me special treatment, Subaru. I thought you could look at me like an ordinary person, like an ordinary girl, the same as any other...\" This was the girl that had demanded fair treatment in the chamber at the royal selection. The fact she was a half-elf must have caused her intense and prolonged suffering for her wish for something so meager. But... Subaru replied with a faltering, quiet murmur of his own. \"I can't...do that.\" Emilia hadn't spoken as though she sought a response. Therefore, Subaru's own murmur was not a reply, but a statement for his own benefit. Mulling over Emilia's words, Subaru weakly and limply shook his head. \"Even if you tossed out every other person in the"}, {"text": "whole world, I couldn't do that. I can't look at you the same as everyone else, I just can't.\" That, at least, was the unmistakable truth. He heard the door close. The air became still again. Left alone in the room, Subaru curled up on top of the blankets, his gaze wandering. Abruptly, he pulled himself to the corner of the bed. He saw the robe that had fallen on the floor. He reached out, pulled it close, and embraced it. As he hugged it, he felt like a trace of human warmth remained in it when all others had vanished. Subaru squeezed it against his chest, as if trying to bind that warmth to himself.  That day, for the first time in that other world, Subaru Natsuki became truly alone. *** \"So do you have anything to say, Sir Julius?\" \"No, nothing at all. Everything is in accord with the report.\" Two men spoke in the darkness of a room untouched by the sun's rays. The space belonged to the captain of the guards in the knights' garrison, adjacent to the royal palace. Marcus was sitting at his official desk, with Julius standing ramrod straight in front of the table. \"I could offer no complaint if you were to banish me from the Knights of the Royal Guard for my breach of conduct. Do as you will, captain.\" Julius pulled his sword out of the scabbard at his hip and offered it across the top of the desk. The sight of Julius offering up his sword drew a deep sigh out of Marcus. \"So during a discussion about the royal selection, you detained a man related to one of the candidates, led him to the parade square, beat him senseless, and sent him off to be healed. Judging from the contents of this document alone, I cannot simply let this pass with a slap on the wrist.\" But the better question was what in the world the \"finest\" of knights was thinking when he did such a thing. Naturally, the knightly blood was not so thin in Marcus that he could not hazard a guess. He continued, \"I am at liberty to take circumstances into account. Many of your fellow knights at the parade square have entreated me to show leniency. Having said all this, you indeed went too far.\" The wounds endured by the young man at the parade square far exceeded what was tolerable for mock combat. Marcus asked, \"Did you find his tarnishing of your knightly pride unforgivable to that extent?\" \"Glossing this over will only give rise to personal grudges. My personal shortcomings are solely to blame. Please, captain, do not waste any more words for my benefit.\" Julius did not relent, meekly awaiting his punishment to the very end. Marcus lowered his eyes, considering what words to use in light of his unyielding stance. Then, Ferris opened the door, entering the room with his well-worn guard uniform and a casual attitude. \"Hi, sorry to keep you waiting. Your dear Ferri has returned!\" Seeing Marcus and Julius facing the other, Ferris put a hand to his mouth and smiled mischievously. \"Meow, did Ferri come at a bad time? You're sharing such passionate looks...\" Marcus replied, \"...Cease that idle prattle and report, you precocious brat.\" \"Ohh, captain, your true colors are showing.\" \"I suppose I should behave before my men the same as in public... Well, fine. Make your report.\" With Marcus shooing him off, Ferris stood right beside Julius. \"As per the captain's orders, Ferri went all meowt healing Subawu. His wounds are closed, his bones mended, even his teeth have been restored. He'll be all right.\" \"Well done. You didn't miss anything?\" \"If Ferri missed it, it couldn't be found in the first place. There's no problem with his body... Though, the same can't be said for his heart.\" Ferris's cat ears twitched as he shot Julius a teasing sidelong glance. \"You really are a softie, Julius. How many girls have you made swoon with that thoughtfulness and devotion? You're even making Ferri's heart flutter.\" \"I do not know what you speak of, Ferris.\" \"You don't need to keep playing tough. That girl with good instincts already noticed, and it still worked wonders on the guy who didn't, so why worry? Or maybe dear Ferri comes off as an airhead who won't notice what Julius and the captain are thinking?\" When Julius held his silence, Ferris's eyes narrowed in even greater delight. \"Tee-hee, you're so cuuute when you're quiet. But don't worry. Because you put him through so much torture, we don't need to worry about other people going after him that don't know how to stop.\" *** Ferris's teasing words dragged a faint smile out of Julius. Marcus, having listened to their conversation in silence, nodded and indicated he understood Julius's decision. \"The young ones were no doubt on edge from how the brat's statement demeaned the knightly class. Being assigned to the royal guard means great skill with the sword and pride to match.\" The knights' discontent, created by Subaru's conduct at the royal selection conference, had been in search of a place to explode. Marcus continued, \"Had someone else run off and started a confrontation, the lad might well have lost his life for his insolence.\" Ferris picked up where Marcus left off and pointed out what Julius had concluded. \"So a knight had to smack Subawu around before that could happen. If it wasn't for Julius, Ferri might have had to take care of it...\" Julius explained, \"It's using the right person for the right job. We can't have you becoming his enemy when you have to heal him. Besides, it seemed more natural if I was the one to do it. I could also say...I was confident that I could pull it off the best.\" Marcus commented, \"It was no doubt correct to leave a weaker opponent to Julius's hands. Practice with your sword more often, why don't you?\" \"Nooo! Swinging swords around makes you all sweaty and gives you callouses. Meow, Ferri could never show these pearly white palms to Lady Crusch again!\" Marcus, seeing Ferris so casually brushing off his captain's commands, sighed with a resigned look. \"Sir Julius Juukulius, this is your punishment. For five days, you are suspended from your duties and forbidden to enter the garrison or enter the royal palace. I shall retain your sword until that time has passed.\" \" As you command.\" Julius, closing his eyes as if digesting the stated punishment, handed Marcus his knight's sword. Marcus, accepting the weapon that was the very symbol of his pride as a knight, quietly shook his head. \"Sorry. Properly speaking, this was not a burden you should have had to bear.\" Julius rebutted, \"Captain, you always strive for the best possible outcome. The Knights of the Royal Guard were once disbanded, but today, they boast the strongest and most gallant of men because of you.\" Ferris chimed in, \"That's right. Ferri would never say this to anyone besides Lady Crusch, but have more confidence in yourself, captain.\" Marcus bluntly replied, \"If you're going to say things like that, put on a proper man's clothes!\" Ferris shrugged his shoulders as if to say, That's the one order I'll never obey. Marcus laid Julius's sword on top of the table with care before sitting back down in his chair. \"The matter is concluded. There are other duties I must attend to. Dismissed.\" Marcus's formal words announced he had returned to his public persona. When the other two left the room, the atmosphere became tranquil once more. Marcus, now alone, leaned back into his creaking chair and glared up at the ceiling. The affair on his mind was separate from the mock combat, and concerned a report he had received from the castle guards after the conference's conclusion. \"'Should an intruder in the castle bear the family crest of the hawk, let him pass'...\" So read the order issued to the guards at the palace gate. That order was why the guards had requested instructions from Marcus after they captured the old man related to Felt. In other words, the appearance of an intruder was set in stone from the very beginning. When the clownish visage of the man who had issued the command came to mind, Marcus ground his teeth. \"Damn you, Roswaal. What the hell are you planning...?\" His stony face burned with irritation as he pondered what the eccentric might be up to. \"Meow, the captain's not too smooth, either. He saw the whole thing through, so why couldn't he just drop it altogether?\" \"Allowing such an act to go unpunished would be unacceptable even under these circumstances. I wouldn't wish for that, either.\" Ferris was gazing at the side of Julius's handsome face as the two walked down the corridor of the garrison side by side. Ferris's lips pouted at how Julius looked so satisfied. \"So, Julius, what are you going to do meow?\" Ferris asked. \"Naturally, I will follow my captain's command and spend time at the mansion. I will explain the situation to Lady Anastasia... My only concern is whether she can take it easy in the meantime.\" \"But you like that about her, don't you? Ferri can tell!\" Ferris's cheeks puffed up as he put his own spin on Julius's words. Julius then looked at his cat-eared companion as if he'd just remembered something. \"Incidentally, Ferris, about the boy from earlier...\" Before the question was even fully posed, Ferris replied, all warmth draining from his lips. \"He's with Lady Emilia right now. After...he'll be staying at the Karsten mansion to convalesce.\" Accepting the reply, Julius closed his eyes and pondered for a time. \"Convalesce...is it? It would seem he has suffered an injury far graver than any seen from without.\" \"Mew didn't hear one word about that from your dear Ferri.\" Ferris's behavior, however, made the situation clear as day. Julius could guess what had happened since handing Subaru over to Ferris. The wise young man soon arrived at his answer. \" It is truly in Lady Emilia's nature to cause pain in others.\" \"Are mew thinking, 'Even though she could live a much wiser life'?\" \"No. That very nature is what allows her to live as nobly and beautifully as she does. I do not deign to wish her to change. Thus, all I can do is hope that she lives more righteously, more genuinely, without anything to be ashamed of.\" Julius lifted his face and resumed his walk. Ferris followed half a step behind, hands crossed behind his back, leaning his body forward as he looked up at Julius. \"Does that go for the boy, too?\" \"It goes for everyone, Ferris. It is for that very reason I wield a sword.\"  He will probably break, thought Julius. If he was going to break, breaking him then and there would be a mercy. But if just if all that was not enough to break him, then... \"It would not be such a bad thing to trade swords with a fool full of idealism once more.\" \"Well, even if that's what you think, Julius, Subawu might not wanna do that again after the public beating you gave him. Hey, hey...\" \"What is it?\" \"Lots of things came together to cause that duel, but he got on your nerves juuuuust a little, didn't he?\" With Ferris's words seeming meant to test him, Julius stopped and looked over. \"Ferris, you wound me. I am a knight. However imperfectly, that is the precept I live by.\" Julius, deeming his own conduct to have nothing to be ashamed of, looked straight at Ferris. \"As for an annoyance...perhaps he was that, a little bit.\" \"Well, he got on Ferri's nerves quite a bit, mew know?\" The two exchanged laughs as if it was the funniest joke they'd ever shared. They finally arrived at the entrance to the garrison and shook hands. Julius said, \"Well, then, we must part. I"}, {"text": "deeply wish that you and your lord remain in good health.\" \"Lady Anastasia will probably complain, so good luck with that, Julius... You can just leave all the mopping up to Ferri.\" Ferris casually waved before turning his back and walking off. Julius watched from behind as his friend departed and an enemy took his place. \"Lady Anastasia shall succeed as king.\" \"Nuh-uh. Lady Crusch is the fittest for the throne.\" And so, the knights exchanged their declaration of war before returning to their respective masters. The rays of the setting sun poured down from the evening sky, dying all who dwelled in the royal capital equally red.  In so many ways, the royal selection had now begun. ***  The man was skin and bones. Surrounded by a darkly robed group, he was covered in a black priest's habit himself. Slightly taller than Subaru, he had deep-green hair that was long enough to catch the eye. His cheeks were gaunt; his bones seemed to have only the minimum amount of flesh necessary to maintain a humanoid physique. Judging from such an appearance, one might think his body was devoid of vitality...save for the twinkle of madness in his eyes. \"I see... Certainly, certainly, this is of great interest.\" The man leaned his body forward, bending his neck more than ninety degrees to the side as his wide-open eyes gazed unflinchingly at Subaru. Behaving in a manner that could only be described as bizarre, he nodded as if something was clear to him. Then, still leaning at an angle, he thrust his right thumb into his mouth and crushed the tip without any hesitation. The flesh was mashed and the bone broken; he sucked on the drops of blood as his dead eyes opened wide. \"Could you...possibly be 'Pride,' by any chance?\" The man's question was directed at Subaru, who was bound to the wall. However, the boy did not reply to the question. He only blankly stared up at the face of the man standing before him, with merely a flippant and thoroughly out-of-place smile coming over his lips. Subaru's black eyes blinked, but just like the man behaving in deviant fashion, they were empty, devoid of sanity. \"Hmm... That doesn't seem to be a reply.\" The man drew his thumb out of his lips, tapping his own head with his bleeding hand as if he had just remembered something. \"Ahh, I see. It occurs to me that I have been rude. My goodness, I have yet to introduce myself, yes?\" He acted with courtesy that seemed wholly out of place and then gave a malevolent laugh that tore the edges of his pale lips. He politely bowed at the waist as he stated his name. \"I am Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti \" After that, he stayed bent over, twisting only his head to face forward before he stated his title. \" Archbishop of Sin of the Witch Cult...entrusted with the duties of Slooooth!\" The man Petelgeuse pointed at Subaru with the fingers of both hands and laughed. Cackle, cackle. Cackle, cackle. Cackle, cackle  CHAPTER 1 *** The clear, refreshing-looking sky spread overhead, filling Subaru's vision as he lay on the ground. Thinking back, about two months had passed since he had been summoned to this other world. He wondered just how many times he had gazed up at the blue sky in the same way during that time. The thick cumulonimbus clouds intercepted the sunlight, but bright, dazzling rays broke through the thick cover, pouring down to the surface. The sun's radiance was burning the insides of Subaru's eyes when he suddenly had a thought. Come to think of it... I haven't seen a single rainy day since I came here. He'd experienced small sprinkles late at night and showers right around sunset several times over, but there was nothing even close to resembling a long downpour that lasted an entire day. The temperature of Lugunica was slightly too hot for long sleeves, which felt not unlike June in Subaru's old world or perhaps the lingering effects of summer stretching into September. Maybe the lack of rain was due to his current world's dry season. \"Shall we bring this to an end?\" As Subaru lay on the ground, idly thinking, an elderly male voice suddenly called out to him. The boy remained faceup, raising his head to peer at the older man standing there. He was a tall man dressed in a black servant's outfit. He stood perfectly straight, his extremely toned body inconsistent with his apparent age. His bountiful white hair was perfectly combed, suggesting his refinement. The senior's peaceful face had gentle wrinkles carved into it, giving him the look of a warm, elderly gentleman, but his hand gripped a long wooden sword. Subaru replied to the man's question. \"Nah, not yet. I was just thinking about a philosophical question.\" \"Ohh, how interesting. And what did you ponder?\" \"Fire above and water below... So I'm caught between a rock and a hard place. Or something.\" Subaru swung both legs high, and then brought them down with enough force to pull him to his feet. The core of his body still felt heavy in some respects, but the pain of his bruises and other wounds had largely subsided. Subaru rotated his limbs a little to check before swinging the wooden sword still in his hand to the fore thrusting it straight at Wilhelm. \"One more lesson, if you please.\" \"Incidentally, what was the answer to the earlier philosophical question?\" \"Nothing major just me getting pissed even though I'm the one who wet the bed.\" With that nonsensical answer, he stepped forward and swung with his waster, tracing a semicircular arc from a low posture. The tip swept through the air, the wind whipping around the full-force blunt strike. However... \"Unah!!\" \"You are using too much energy. In your hands, feet, neck, hips, and in your head.\" Wilhelm parried the hard-driving blow, smoothly deflecting it away from its target. The attack, aimed at his head, sailed above it. The old man turned his body, and the sword danced in his hand to accurately and gently rap the boy's head, throat, and solar plexus all vital points of the human body. The slight impact of Wilhelm's waster sent Subaru's body flying. Thanks to his extreme restraint, the damage was practically nil. But even so, the shock to Subaru's vitals hindered his breathing, and his failed defense ended up making him groan audibly. \"Gwoeh!\" The hit to his back made him dizzy. He was flat on the ground with his limbs splayed out once again, the sky laughing down at him. He was starting to resent this decidedly pleasant sight for some reason. \"Shall we bring this to an end?\" Wilhelm inquired gently without the slightest hint of sarcasm or disparagement. How many times had he already voiced that question, gauging Subaru's intent? \"It seems you are working hard.\" As Subaru gazed hatefully upward, a female voice interrupted. He lifted his head to see a woman standing at the terrace, gazing down at Subaru, limbs spread wide as he lay in the courtyard. \"I only heard your voices, but you seem to be quite worked up about this.\" The beautiful green-haired woman leaned on the railing as she looked down at Subaru and Wilhelm. Her long, dark locks had a lustrous jade sheen, and she gave off the air of someone who naturally stood straight, bold, and proud. Her body, blessed with very feminine curves, was clad in a rather masculine military uniform. She was the lord of the manor as well as Wilhelm's master Duchess Crusch Karsten. In spite of her young age, she was a brilliant woman occupying a critical national post making her someone extremely important to the Kingdom of Lugunica's present and future. \"My, Lady Crusch. Have we interrupted your duties?\" \"No, I was just thinking of taking a break. No need for concern.\" Crusch nodded amicably at Wilhelm before shifting her gaze toward Subaru, prone on the ground. She added, \"Besides, I do not want to be so haughty as to stifle the earnest efforts of others. Employees need time off. By all means, make full use of yours, Wilhelm.\" Wilhelm bowed deeply in thanks for Crusch granting permission in her typical manner. \"Understood. Having said that...\" Then, the old man shifted his attention toward Subaru. \"Shall we bring this to an end?\" \"Even I'm smart enough to tell that you mean, 'Let's end this now.'\" Subaru pulled up his grass-stained body, moving his limbs to confirm for the third no, tenth time that all was well. He cracked his fingers and sighed audibly. \"I feel like getting my butt kicked while a pretty girl's watching is kinda hard to swallow as a guy... My manliness gauge is dropping fast.\" Subaru made a strained smile as he tossed the wooden sword back to Wilhelm, who caught it with ease. Crusch replied, \"There is no need for concern. It is hardly the first time I have seen you getting hurt.\" \"Urgh!\" The merciless statement had Subaru clutching his chest as he groaned. \"I only heard about what happened after the fact, but I believe your words are a little too direct, Lady Crusch.\" \"Is that so?\" Crusch reacted to Wilhelm's comment with an innocent rise of her eyebrows before continuing. \"It is evident when a far superior opponent is impossible to match. But I do not think an unflinching display of determination is anything to regret or be ashamed of.\" As Crusch touched her chin and expressed her thoughts, Subaru felt moderately uncomfortable. Putting aside the unexpected appraisal of his humiliation the day before, he was reminded of everything that happened before and after that episode. The greatest failure of his life when they had parted on the worst possible terms in the castle waiting room. \"Truly, if I were you, the events last night would have been far harder to accept. I have only hearsay to go on, but...knowing myself, I imagine I would be indignant.\" Feeling Crusch's partially sympathetic gaze, Subaru scratched his cheek and laughed drily. \"...Ta-ha-ha.\" It was the only reaction he could muster when thinking about what had occurred that evening, a mere half day prior: an unscheduled meeting with Reinhard, the Sword Saint, who'd gone out of his way just to visit Subaru at the Crusch residence. Seeing the change in his expression, Crusch returned the conversation to the previous topic. \"And besides, even if it is painful to receive instruction while a woman is watching, is it not something you have already done many times over?\" She leaned halfway over the rail as her gaze, rich with meaning, crossed to the other end of the courtyard. There stood a blue-haired girl who had quietly watched everything. Realizing that Crusch was looking at her, Subaru grimaced in embarrassment. \"...Embarrassment feels a little different when it's in front of a friend.\" \"I would think continuing to reveal your hand before your eventual enemy is a problem in and of itself... But the same could be directed at me for welcoming such a person to my mansion. For once, I am somewhat at a loss about my own thoughts.\" Crusch nodded a few times, as if her reply led her to some internal reflection. Then, she set such thoughts aside for the time being and addressed her servant. \"Wilhelm.\" \"Yes.\" \"I feel up for a little exercise. I shall delegate the remaining affairs to others. It is earlier than scheduled, but could you give me today's lesson?\" \"As you command. Please take as much time as you need.\" \"That is a somewhat difficult request given my current mental state...\" A wry smile came over Crusch as she moved away from the railing, standing and returning to the study. She was the picture of dignity. Her green hair fluttered and danced, softly taking in the light of the sun until it vanished from Subaru's field of vision. The boy watched her go as he released the tension inside him"}, {"text": "with a sigh. Subaru smiled bitterly at himself when he realized the raw sense of relief he felt when she left his sight. Put bluntly, Crusch was exactly the sort of lady he had a hard time with. Her straightforward and unyielding gaze was so sharp, it seemed to pierce straight to the heart. There had been many cases where her honest, sincere personality, and the words and deeds supporting it, left him distinctly troubled. She lived strong and proud, full of confidence, without a single shred of hesitation about what she should do. Comparing his position to hers, Subaru seemed all the more pathetic. \"Shall we finally bring this to an end?\" As the boy shook his head to change emotional gears, Wilhelm turned back to him and asked again. \"That didn't sound like a question, so I guess that's that...\" Wilhelm gracefully shifted into position with his wooden sword, and the disappearance of the question mark at the end of his sentence told Subaru that this kind yet stern session was coming to a close. The older gentleman made a thin smile when he saw the sincere regret in Subaru's black eyes. \"Now that Lady Crusch has arrived, I must fulfill my duties as an instructor. This is half the reason the House of Karsten employs me, you see.\" \"Hey, I'm not gonna be selfish like a little kid. You did me a big favor, spending some of your time off with me like this.\" Subaru pointed the wooden sword directly at his opponent's eyes, feeling intense loneliness as the training approached its conclusion. He'd quit kendo in middle school, but he'd still picked up the basics of swordplay. Seeing Subaru's straight posture and quiet disposition, Wilhelm's face abandoned all trace of softness. \" En garde.\" \"Any time.\" Subaru replied to his tutor's declaration, leaping forward across the ground. He didn't even try to feint. His attack was a plain downward swing, no tricks involved. From a high position, the blade sliced through the air in a helm-splitting strike, but the tip lost sight of its mark and thrust into the ground. Subaru, missing his target, found his forceful lunge turning into a forward roll. Then, \" !\" Subaru sustained what seemed like countless sword blows. It had already been three days since Subaru Natsuki had entered Crusch Karsten's manor. The home of the duchess of Karsten was located directly in the middle of the Nobles' District within the royal capital's upper strata a mansion that stood out even among the luxuriant dwellings alongside it. He had been told that it was a villa used only during stays in the capital, but its size and sheer extravagance rivaled that of Roswaal's primary residence. But Crusch herself had no interest in the decor of the overly ornamented manor. No doubt she saw it as a display of consideration for the many nobles who might visit the capital. And one of those visitors had been Reinhard van Astrea. The incident from half a day prior was bitterly etched into Subaru's memory. \"I am truly sorry I was unable to stop the incident at the training ground. I am ashamed of myself for being unable to do anything but watch.\" After calling for Subaru, the first thing Reinhard did was apologize, bowing his head under the magic lamps illuminating the Karsten residence's front gate. It was an apology from the man so trusted and respected by his nation that he was commonly known as the Sword Saint. Subaru, who didn't think himself worthy to even face Reinhard, was taken completely by surprise. \"Wa-wait-wait-wait. Why do you have to apologize for everything? You didn't do anything wrong, did you?\" \"That isn't the case at all, Subaru. I'm your friend, and Julius's as well. Not stopping my friends from making a mistake was a failure on my part.\" \"Fr...iends...\" Subaru's breath caught a little at the mention of the second-to-last name in the world he wanted to hear. But Reinhard bore no malice. Indeed, he was apologizing for not intervening at the time. If he'd involved himself, no doubt Subaru wouldn't have experienced a fraction of the misery he was going through now. The \"duel\" between Subaru and Julius might not have qualified as the real thing, but it was not the place of others to interfere with a bout that was held to settle an issue. That much was set in stone. Therefore, Reinhard had been feeling guilt for something he shouldn't have given a second thought. The fact that he still felt compelled to apologize showed why Reinhard was the \"knight among knights.\" \"...Well, whatever the case, I'm real happy you came all the way over to see me. You have to be busy with a million things right now?\" Subaru said. \"I do not want to balance my schedule and my friendships on a set of scales. If I hadn't taken the opportunity tonight, I wouldn't have had a chance to apologize to you for some time.\" \"'Some time'? What, you're heading off somewhere?\" \"Lady Felt will be away from the royal capital, under the care of my family. There are many things she needs to learn, and there are new recruits who require training.\" Reinhard talked with a thin, wry smile at the numerous hardships he expected. But at the very least, the knight didn't harbor any unease about the rapport in his master-vassal relationship. Subaru posed a question. \"You think Felt can really pull this off?\" \" Strangely, more so than I ever did before. I'm sure her determination and talent will surprise everyone. I will be merely encouraging her to help bring that future about.\" Hearing that unreserved reply, Subaru subconsciously shifted his gaze away from Reinhard. \"...Is that so? Glad to hear it.\" He couldn't bear to look straight at the knight. The red-haired young man didn't worry about hardships, nor did he hold any concerns about his relationship with his master. He had not even the slightest ambivalence about doing his duty to his utmost abilities. At that moment, the difference between him and Subaru was simply too great  Noticing Subaru was averting his gaze, Reinhard's brows furrowed in a sympathetic look. \"Do you...have regrets?\" Regrets. ...Subaru bit his lip as the word floated inside his head. He'd always had regrets. Yesterday, he felt remorse for the day before that. Today, he was bitter about yesterday. Tomorrow, he'd no doubt be anguished about the present day, too. The choices made over the course of his life amounted to a never-ending trail of regrets. It was impossible not to yearn for the world he'd missed due to choices he hadn't made. With Subaru silent, Reinhard lowered his eyes. \"I will not say anything as flippant as, 'I understand how you feel.' But I am equally ashamed of what transpired. Perhaps it is the first time I've said such a thing, but I regret what happened.\" The words seemed not quite apropos to the chagrin that enveloped Subaru, but that was only natural. Their positions were different, so their points of view were different. The two didn't see events the same way. That was why Subaru braced his heart for what Reinhard might say next. And yet  \"The duel that day between you and Julius...was a meaningless battle. I knew, but I did nothing, and as a result, you were unjustly hurt. It has pained me ever since how I simply stood back and watched.\" *** But his meager resolve didn't prepare him to hear that. \" No meaning at all?\" \"Yes, that's right. What happened because you and Julius clashed there? You were injured, and Julius has a black mark on his record, nothing more. Are you aware that he was placed under house arrest afterward? I'm sure Julius is regretting his own actions this very moment.\" Julius's punishment was news to Subaru, and it actually surprised him. So many knights watching the spectacle had been in Julius's corner. Subaru had been convinced his opponent had made arrangements to avoid trouble afterward. And yet, he had been disciplined.  But Subaru didn't think the knight felt any regret at all. He had crossed swords with him, albeit wooden ones, more than enough to understand that loud and clear. Unaware of what was in Subaru's heart, Reinhard said with sincerity in his eyes, \"If you had both had more time, you could have calmly discussed the matter. I should have ensured you had it... Things could have been resolved peacefully with no ill feelings instead of with a duel.\" \"...So there'd have been no fight at all?\" \"Correct. This may seem somewhat hard to believe, but normally Julius is a man who sincerely listens. If you'd fully aired your differences, the misunderstanding could have been immediately \" \"Reinhard.\" With an earnest voice, Subaru interrupted him. The red-haired young man closed his mouth, looking back at Subaru with an unclouded gaze. Not a single negative emotion resided in his azure eyes. In other words, Reinhard had been completely serious. He truly believed that duel held no meaning.  He couldn't understand that it was a matter of pride, with neither side able to pull back from the brink. \"I understand how you feel, and I'm glad. You're...a really good guy.\" \"Then...\" \"But I won't accept what you said. I can't accept what you said... This conversation's over.\" The sight of Subaru breaking off the discussion and turning his back left Reinhard beyond surprised. When the boy passed through the gates to return to the mansion, the knight instantly began to reach out to him. \"Reinhard. You're a super-good guy. I totally understand that everything you said just now was out of pure goodwill, and you meant no harm at all... I get that.\" The remark stopped Reinhard mid-motion. Sensing it behind him, Subaru didn't turn back as he passed through the gate. \"But...just don't. I won't let you rob that duel of its meaning. Anything...but that.\" Subaru didn't want that, and neither did Julius or the knights who had seen the duel to the end. Their fight had to be worth something. It had concrete, definite value, even if Reinhard, the Sword Saint, couldn't understand it. While Subaru distanced himself, Reinhard attempted to bridge the gap. \"Even if that is so... What did you gain from that duel? You've only lost things, haven't you?\" But the words he chose for that purpose provided the last nail in the coffin. \"You've even lost Lady Emilia.\" The very last name in the world Subaru wanted to hear at that moment had materialized. He replied to the Sword Saint indifferently. \"Go home, Reinhard. Before your master gets lonely and starts yelling.\" With a loud noise, the gate closed between them. And so they parted ways. \"...He didn't need to bother, geez.\" Subaru gritted his teeth at the memory of the previous night as curses he couldn't bring himself to say to Reinhard's face spilled out. His lips twisted as he tore at his head, as though brushing away the still-raw memory. \"Do not be like that, Subaru. You've been hit on the head, so behave while I tend to it.\" As Subaru lay there, a voice full of affection gently brushed his eardrums. When he glanced up, he saw the blue-haired girl smiling down at him pleasantly. She was wearing a rather short black-motif apron dress. The maid with the adorable face Rem was kneeling on the green grass with Subaru's head on her lap in the venerable \"lap pillow\" position. Rem, appointed as Subaru's maid, ran a finger through his hair as she whispered softly. \"You've worked hard in special training. Please, relax and rest on my lap for a while.\" \"Doesn't really deserve to be called 'special training'... Just simple sword practice. Must've been boring to watch, huh?\" \"It was not boring at all. Just spending time with you makes me very happy, Subaru.\" Everything pouring out of Rem was positive, but in his current state, Subaru couldn't accept"}, {"text": "any of it. He covered his face with a hand, averting his gaze from her, who saw even his most unsightly moments in a positive light. She'd watched the sword practice, hardly anything more than playing around, from beginning to bitter end without complaint. Even despite Subaru concealing his emotions, Rem didn't speak a single cross word. She silently waited out his attempt to hide his true feelings and affectionately supported his weight, softly running her finger through his hair as if to simply remind him that time hadn't stopped. Unable to bear the silence any longer, Subaru spoke first. \"...Hey...Rem.\" His halting voice brought Rem's finger to a standstill. As she indulgently waited for him to talk, Subaru took a fair bit of time before continuing to speak. \"Do you...think I'm pathetic?\" It had come from his own mouth, but he genuinely wondered what answer he was hoping to hear. Did he want her to say yes? Did he want her to say no? What exactly did he want her to appraise about him? Did he mean right then, or three days prior, or perhaps long before that...? \"I do.\" Rem easily answered, interrupting Subaru's rumination. As his concerns unraveled, Subaru glared at Rem from below in protest. \"So you think that, too? Why are you sticking with me if I'm pathetic, then? 'Cause you were told to?\" Rem, upside down in his field of vision, gently shook her head at Subaru's acerbic reaction. \"Thinking you are pathetic and being with you is not a contradiction. Even without a command, I believe I would have stayed with you regardless, Subaru.\" \"...Why's that?\" \"Because I want to.\" Her reply was brief. The matter-of-fact delivery left Subaru speechless. He had no idea what to say, although the words made his chest feel light. It was as if his incomprehensible self-examination had received an equally baffling answer. \"Rem... You're really something else.\" \"I am. But Sister is even more incredible.\" \"I still don't understand why you put your sister on a pedestal, but you're incredible.\" Subaru raised a hand in surrender, letting his entire body relax as he sank into Rem's lap fully. He closed his eyes, leaving her to stroke his forelocks with her finger once more as she said, \"I am here because I believe you want me to be here, Subaru.\" \"So I want you to watch me get beaten up and then act pathetic and embarrassing after? That makes me sound like some kind of masochist...\" Rem curiously inclined her head, asking with a completely innocent look, \"You aren't?\" Subaru could only exhale deeply through his nostrils in a wordless reply. Time continued in a quiet, lazy fashion, without any intrusions. Finally she asked, \"Perhaps we should head back in? Any longer and we might be in the way of Lady Crusch's sword practice.\" When Rem's thighs seemed about to move, Subaru grabbed hold of them, his cheek savoring the feeling. \"Just a little longer. I've been hit on the head. Might be dangerous to move this soon?\" Rem let her legs relax as she acceded to Subaru's suggestion. \"Yes... If that is what you desire, Subaru.\" Thanks to her unlimited kindness, he didn't have to think about the things he didn't want to. He let his body sink deeper and deeper into that gentle quicksand.  It had been three days since the declaration of the royal selection. Three days since Subaru and Emilia had parted ways. Subaru Natsuki was steadily rotting away. I must've done something wrong, Subaru thought once he had time to reflect. He knew it was an unpleasant memory, but before he realized, he was going back over and over to that evening and the sight of a silver-haired girl turning from him and walking away. As the sound of a closing door echoed, Subaru thought, I must've come up short somewhere. He was well aware that his words had gone too far. The fact that it had come right after receiving a beating had been part of it. When Emilia's words forced him into a corner, he'd ended up blurting out a lot of really unacceptable things. As a result, Subaru and Emilia had ended up separating. Did the suddenness of his words mean that they were just jumbled half thoughts? Or did it mean that they had been dwelling in his heart all along? He cared for her, and he wanted her to acknowledge that; both feelings were true. But how much he meant the rest of what he'd said... Even he wasn't sure anymore. \" Hey, kid. Kid!!\" Subaru was submerged in a sea of self-doubt when a throaty voice from nearby reeled him back to reality. When he blinked, the man standing right in front of him slumped his shoulders, lamenting as he creased his brow. \"Come on, kid. Don't be glaring like that in front of a man's shop. You'll scare off the customers,\" he lamented with a frown on his stern face, marked by an attention-grabbing vertical scar. Subaru, back in the present, gently rubbed his eyelids, quickly recovering from the impact of the man's fierce countenance. \"Hey, Pops. I think it's your glaring at customers that scares 'em off.\" \"I'm not glaring! I'm worrying about you, damn it! You come here with some weirdo in tow, and then when Old Man Rom hears your message, I can't get in touch with him anymore. I should be giving you an earful for all the trouble you put me through!\" The shopkeeper raised his voice in anger and pounded the counter with one of his thick arms. As he did, the slam caused a basket with fruit on display to tilt, threatening to send his produce tumbling. However, with a flutter of the hem of her skirt, Rem landed in the space right in front of the shop. \"That is no way to handle food.\" Her fingers gripped the basket on the counter, gently catching it before it could fall along with all the fruit within. \"Ohh, thanks a lot, miss.\" The man Cadmon sighed with admiration at her skillful move, taking the basket back from Rem with visible relief. Then he lowered his voice as he directed a look back at Subaru. \"So take my advice. Get away from this mean-mug guy. It won't end well.\" \"Hey, what are you talkin' about here? Don't go around spreading unfounded rumors, geez,\" Subaru countered. \"It's not unfounded at all. You were here with a girl not long ago, and now you've got a different one, don't you? The earlier girl... Ah, I can't remember clearly, but that just means this young lady is prettier. Two-timers can go to hell.\" \"Do I look like I can handle two-timing girls? In the first place, how did you...?\" Forget about Emilia, Subaru had been going to say. But Cadmon's lack of memory was an effect of the anti-recognition magic she used to conceal her identity. Recalling that brought her face to the forefront of his thoughts, accompanied by a painful throb in his chest. As Subaru fell into silence, Cadmon gave him a suspicious look before resuming his speech to Rem. \"You see? Incorrigible. You'll end up with nothing but hardship no matter how hard you try.\" \"Thank you very much for your consideration... However, I am doing this because I want to.\" Rem's cheeks reddened as she glanced at Subaru to gauge his reaction. Cadmon's look, even sourer than before, made plain that he thought her unfortunate. \"I have to say, though, the feel on the street's different today. There aren't more people than usual, but... It's like there's a stir in the air. Maybe more people are...stopping and standing than usual?\" Subaru gazed at the hustle and bustle, changing the topic to distract them from how he hadn't finished his previous sentence. \"Surprisingly sharp eye. Well, that's how it is. When big stuff's going on, it's time for merchants to make some money. Right now, everyone's hungry for the next rumor.\" Cadmon nodded at Subaru's musings as he grabbed one of the fruits lined up in front of his shop and took a bite. Subaru gawked at the owner holding fruit with teeth marks. \"That's your merchandise...,\" he remarked before he continued. \"Well, I'm not sure what business opportunities the royal selection has for a fruit vendor, but I'm impressed you weren't left behind when it started. Guess you're a natural genius at this, Pops.\" \"Oh, shut your mouth. At any rate, it's because there're more people rubbing shoulders and whispering to one another. Everyone's talking to everyone else right now. See, look over there.\" Cadmon forcefully pointed with the core of his fruit, indicating a sign at the edge of the street. Even among the signs desperately competing to stand out along Market Street, this one stood taller than all the rest. \"Well, if it's anything but I-script, I can't read it.\" \"What? How uneducated. You can read my store's sign, then?\" \"I feel like the characters are close to I-script, but they're so bad that I can't read them.\" Cadmon was taken aback at Subaru's ill-natured attempt to cover up his own lack of education. \"So what is written on that sign, anyway?\" \"The same thing we've been talking about. 'The Royal Selection Has Commenced.'\" Subaru frowned, unsure what Cadmon's point was, so the shopkeeper roughly scratched at his head and added, \"All right. Let me spell it out to you. Miss, take care of the store for a bit.\" \"As you request.\" The way Cadmon abandoned his station as if it was nothing, and the way Rem followed up without the slightest hesitation, left Subaru simply uneasy as he slouched. \"Don't let amateurs run your shop just like that, geez. And Rem, don't make promises you can't keep.\" \"All she has to do is exchange merchandise for coin according to the prices listed. It's not like I'm getting customers anyway.\" \"So you finally admit it?!\" Subaru wore a defiant look as Cadmon led him away. Rem waved after them as she headed toward the counter. \"I have to say, though young or old, everyone seems super interested in the royal selection. What do you think, Pops?\" Cadmon scowled bitterly at Subaru's words and replied. \"Hmm. Well, there's a lot of hot air about who'll become the next ruler, but it's not as if they can leave the throne empty forever. I wish they'd just hurry up and decide already.\" \"This is only what I've been told, but doesn't the Council of Elders handle running the country? How badly does not having a king affect the people?\" \"Hey, if that's a joke, it's in bad taste. Now, some people snub the king as a figurehead when it comes to administration but... The Covenant with the Dragon is made with the royal family generation after generation. We have the Dragon protecting Lugunica to thank for the clashes with Volakia down south not turning into anything besides skirmishes.\" Gusteko to the north, Lugunica to the east, Kararagi to the west, and Volakia to the south those were the names of the great nations that ruled this world. Subaru had heard that smaller nations existed, too, but they were treated as client states of the great four. Subaru asked another question. \"Volakia, huh... What, you think if the Dragon's gone, they'll invade?\" \"Their imperial motto is, 'Many troops, strong nation, eat the weak, grow strong.' They say Lugunica was in the middle of a war with them four hundred years ago right before the Covenant with the Dragon was first made. Some say they're still sore about the Dragon butting in.\" \"So that's how the people feel about not having a king, huh...\" \"Even if it wasn't for that, a country without a ruler's in as much of a bind as a beast without a head. The last king wasn't a wise one, but he wasn't bad, either. That's what I think, anyway.\" Cadmon cut through the"}, {"text": "throng of various races before standing in front of a sign that towered above the already tall man. He blended in with the people looking up at it with the same objective, craning his neck to read the characters that Subaru could not. \"It's an announcement that the royal selection has begun, and a summary. The king will be determined three years hence before the Dragonfriend Ceremony, who shall conduct the ceremony thereafter, et cetera. Then it lists the candidates.\" Cadmon, reading the details in Subaru's place, relayed things the latter already knew. Subaru's interest had begun to fade, but the last word, candidates, put a stop to that. Cadmon, watching from the side as Subaru licked his parched lips, nodded appreciatively. \"The candidates are on your mind, huh? There're five royal selection candidates in total. The best-known are Duchess Crusch Karsten and the Hoshin company president, a girl named Anastasia.\" \"Is that Duchess Crusch famous?\" \"Well, she's a duchess. It'd be pretty bad if people living in the capital didn't know her name. She's still young, but as duchess and heir to her household, she's already considered one of the most brilliant women in national history. The tales of her first sortie in the duchy of Karsten, the reason she inherited the title, are common even here in the capital.\" \"First sortie...?\" \"The duke of Karsten at the time her immediate predecessor was injured by a horde of nasty monsters that appeared in the duchy of Karsten. So she took over command for him and brought things under control in the blink of an eye, and then everyone knew her name. There'd always been rumors that she was brilliant, but she was so good that her father had his seventeen-year-old daughter take over for him.\" Listening to someone outside Crusch's sphere of influence evaluate her made Subaru's shoulders feel tighter and tighter. Not noticing Subaru's internal turmoil, Cadmon traced the scar on his face with a finger as he went on. \"And there's not a merchant around who hasn't heard about how much progress the Hoshin Company has made these past few years, even for them. That young lady at the helm Anastasia she's even taken down major companies and brought them under hers. Just like that old legend, Hoshin of the Wastes. It's like she's a reincarnation of the man.\" Subaru wondered if the proud way Cadmon spoke of Anastasia was due to his identifying with her as a fellow merchant. Going from a mere trader to a royal candidate was a real Cinderella story. On the one hand, there was Crusch, a woman with an inspired demeanor, pursuing her beliefs with an iron will. On the other was Anastasia, the girl with light-purple hair, standing out due to her Kansai accent. The details on the sign before them had no discrepancies from what he'd heard in the royal selection conference. The contents were conveyed to the populace with thoroughness and sincerity and no unfairness whatsoever. Cadmon resumed. \"So rumor has it that those two are the leaders for the royal selection. Personally, I think Lady Crusch, in a crucial position in the kingdom, has more weight than a merchant born in another country.\" \"So both are leading the pack, huh.\" No doubt Cadmon's words were colored by personal opinion he'd ventured at the end. Even so, it was without doubt that Crusch's position and family name constituted powerful backing. To the people, unaware of her speech, it was most natural to assume that Crusch would inherit the throne. \"So Crusch is the favorite, and Anastasia is the runner-up... So who's the dark horse?\" After Subaru's comment, Cadmon read the names of the three remaining candidates, crossing his arms with a conflicted look on his face. \"It's hard to talk about dark horses. Putting those two aside, the three others are basically unknown. I've lived in the capital for a long time and even I don't know them. This Priscilla seems to have a noble's name, but I don't even see family names for the other two. Given how the president of the Hoshin Company became one, I really have to wonder how they're picking these candidates.\" On that point, Subaru imagined he'd be in perfect agreement if he didn't personally know the details. You had the current heiress of a hereditary duchy, the young president of a foreign trading company, an unknown bearing a family name of noble pedigree, and two remaining candidates with no family name and uncertain origins. Withholding information about the basics of how they'd been selected was unfair to the general populace. Even Subaru, who knew that the crests with the Dragon motifs had been used to select the candidates, had no idea what the Dragon's motives were in choosing the girls. But just when Subaru was about to burst into laughter at all the idle speculation, Cadmon narrowed his eyes, twisted his lips in disgust, and spat his opinion. \"But I'm hopping mad they included a half-elf. I can't help it. It lists some basics about each royal candidate, but this Emilia... Apparently they made a half-demon a candidate. I tell you, it's stupid any way you slice it.\" \"Half-demon...huh?\" \"It's what we call people who look like witch accomplices. What the hell are the high and mighty thinking...?\" Cadmon glared up at the tall sign that was a full two heads above him, his eyes filled with disgust. Subaru couldn't immediately react. *** He had a not-insignificant amount of goodwill toward the scarred shopkeeper. This was the first man he'd spoken to in this other world, and when reunited with him later, he'd grown to view the man as someone he could trust. In contrast to his stern appearance, his personality and character were amiable, and he was full of love for his wife and child. At the very least, Subaru didn't doubt that he was a benevolent person. The boy couldn't help but be surprised to hear such a man speak such slander about another as if it were a matter of course. Besides, to Subaru, it couldn't be casually dismissed. And so, his lips blurted out a denial. \"...It doesn't mean everyone who looks like that is involved with the Witch, does it?\" \"Hah?\" Under Cadmon's curious gaze, Subaru's emotions got the better of him as he pushed on. \"D-don't go judging her just because she's a half-elf. That 'Emilia' girl, she's incre... She might be doing this for the sake of the country. She might be a good, incredible girl for all you know.\" \"Hold on. I don't know why you're trying so hard, but stop covering for a half-demon. If someone else overhears, they ain't gonna understand.\" \"Yeah, I suppose so. And you wouldn't want the pretty girl doing on-the-job training to see a grown man making a scary face, talking trash about someone he doesn't even know.\" Subaru's large helping of invective mixed with sarcasm made Cadmon put a hand to his forehead. \"I get it, give me a break. I said too much. I apologize, okay?\" \"...Tch.\" Though it was an apology he was pushed into, Cadmon's mature reaction made Subaru back down. Yet as Subaru relented, Cadmon carried on. \"You're free to think what you like. But it's not possible for a half-elf to become king.\" \"You're still...! Why not? Because of the Witch of Jealousy? What, because the Witch was a half-elf, that means all half-elves are dangerous?!\" \" That's right.\" To Subaru, worked up again as their argument resumed, Cadmon's voice had a shockingly cold ring to it. \"There you go again...!\" Subaru was about to make a rebuttal when his voice caught in his throat, because he saw the look of fear in Cadmon's eyes. \"The Witch is scary. That goes without saying. It's a feeling everyone shares. I don't know how you grew up not knowing this, but at the very least, the vast majority of people avoid half-demons for the same reason.\" *** \"Look. They say the Witch...the Witch of Jealousy...is a monster completely off the charts. Four hundred years ago, her shadow swallowed up half the continent. Famed heroes and dragons succumbed one after another before that. If it wasn't for the Holy Dragon's power, the Sage's knowledge, and the Sword Saint of the day, the world would've been destroyed for sure.\" Subaru had never heard this before, and he was unable to avert his eyes from Cadmon's deadly serious expression as he heard the details he couldn't dismiss. \"But in spite of all that the Witch of Jealousy has done, we know next to nothing about her. What we do know is that she's a half-elf with silver hair. That, and the fact she can't be reasoned with, can't understand how others think, and she seems to rampage around out of a hatred for everything in the whole world.\" The wave of surging emotion behind Cadmon's trembling pupils conveyed the raw emotions of every person living in the world in a way dry sentences alone never could. Like the picture book Subaru had seen, the story of the Witch was passed down orally and through the printed word. Depending on the storyteller, the means and the amount of repetition varied, but the final result was always the same: absolute terror that the people born in that world would never shake, as if it were a nail driven through their very hearts. \"The Witch is a symbol of terror. Everyone's afraid of things they don't understand. So people want to use the few details they do know to keep as far away from them as possible.\" \"...And that justifies discriminating against half-elves?\" \"At the very least, a lot of half-demons having twisted personalities is the literal truth. I will admit that I don't know if it's just their natures or if it's the circumstances that make them like that.\" Cadmon was grimacing as if chewing on a bitter insect, likely because Subaru's words had backed him into an uncomfortable corner. The man seemed well aware that what he was saying was irrational. But the emotions about the Witch welling up inside dimmed his view of any rebuttal of that logic. Moreover, that thinking may well have been a universally held opinion in their world, from the lowest rungs to up on high. When Subaru realized that, only then did he truly appreciate the meaning of the plea Emilia had made at the royal selection conference. *** She was a half-elf. Her destiny was something she could not divorce herself from no matter how hard she tried. She wore an iron shackle that others starting in the same position did not, one she could never remove. Cadmon crossed his arms and spoke sullenly. \"And since that's what people think, she has no chance of winning at all. Someone being fond of that half-demon and promoting her like this... It's a bad joke, I tell you.\" The object of his argument, and his anger, seemed to have shifted from the candidate herself, Emilia, to whoever had hoisted her onto a palanquin when she had no chance of victory. It was a benevolent concession on Cadmon's part, but it was small comfort given the thoroughly negative image of half-elves. The girl Emilia first needed to overcome the obstacle of prejudice. To the uninformed Subaru ignorant of the tyrannical history of half-elves and why people feared the Witch as a result Cadmon asked, \"Why put her through it if she has to carry a handicap like that?\" Certainly, Subaru was completely inexperienced where the history of that world was concerned. He couldn't know about the wicked deeds of the Witch beyond the details written on a page. It was hard for him to imagine just how much people feared half-elves, how deep their aversion ran, and for that matter, what half-elves living in such an environment thought of other people. But he'd heard the girl's words, spoken with a voice clear as a bell... \" Hold it right there, evildoers!\""}, {"text": "She had saved Subaru, who had been crawling on the ground in pain and humiliation. Where were the expectations and calculations behind her actions back then? Subaru didn't know their world's history, about the Witch or half-elves. But he knew Emilia. \"My name is Emilia. Just Emilia. Thank you, Subaru.\" He understood that the girl with silver hair and stubborn benevolence who always acted with no regard for her own loss or gain might resemble the Witch of Jealousy, but that had absolutely nothing to do with her. He knew that she, who had lived in a world that showed no kindness to her whatsoever, possessed heartfelt good will toward others even so. No matter how badly the world might treat her, at least Subaru would  Suddenly, a chill ran up his spine as a frosty voice interrupted his thoughts. \" It was all for your own benefit, wasn't it?\" In the back of his mind, her lovely, charming smile transformed into a sharp gaze and a stern voice. \"I wanted to believe you...but you're the one who stopped me, Subaru!\" He had trampled her trust underfoot, and her pained voice reverberated inside his cramped skull. He tried to understand. He thought he got it. He'd acted as if he did. And he'd frivolously broken and tossed aside the promise he'd made to her. The blame impaled his chest once again. \" If you don't say it, I can't understand, Subaru.\" In his memories, Emilia berated him for his actions on that day over and over. He felt agony as if pieces of his chest had been ripped off, and sadness bore down on him to crush him, but Subaru's anger toward the girl glaring at him also surfaced. He'd worked so hard. He'd helped her so much. He'd been hurt so much. What was wrong with hoping for a reward? What was wrong with wanting her to respond?  If I don't say it, you can't understand? I could say the same to you. Emilia hadn't told him anything about the royal selection, discrimination, or her feelings on that day. She'd shunned Subaru, pushed him away from her goal, treated him like he was barely a side character. Of course Subaru didn't know anything about Emilia. She wouldn't tell him anything. He didn't know how she had lived up until then, how she felt as she aimed for the royal throne, what she thought about the world seeing her as the Witch herself... And as for what Emilia thought about Subaru, he didn't want to know. \" Kid. You all right? Hey!\" \"...Eh?\" Subaru, realizing that Cadmon's face was leaning in extremely close, recoiled with a start. \"Waah! Pops, don't do that! Your face could kill someone like that, damn it!\" \"That's a horrible thing to say! You were staring into space again, just like earlier. You got some chronic illness?\" \"W-well, if the passionate feelings burning in my chest are a disease, I might have been infected with something. It's a feverish, nasty illness that seduces mankind, sometimes gently and sometimes severely...\" Cadmon, unable to keep up with Subaru's joking attempt to hide his empty, wounded heart, shook his head. \"Yes, yes, you're afflicted with poor character is what it is. Fine, let's head back to the shop.\" Subaru, following him on the way back, came to realize that his entire body was drenched in a cold sweat. Perhaps it was due to the roiling emotions inside him, but each step felt very heavy. His head drooped as Cadmon abruptly murmured, his back still turned, \"And this might be sticking my nose in, but stop talking about the Witch out in the open. If anyone hears you, they're not gonna be understanding...me included.\" It didn't seem like an effort to revive the earlier debate. Sensing the seriousness in Cadmon's voice, Subaru silently indicated his acceptance. With such thorough prejudice, there was no telling whose ire he would earn by running his mouth. At the very least, he had no desire for any more trouble in the royal capital. Cadmon ignored Subaru's agreement and repeated himself for emphasis. \" You never know who's listening.\" As they cut through the throng and made their way back to the shop, the air between them seemed weighty somehow. Subaru hadn't managed to sort through his feelings, and Cadmon seemed annoyed and embarrassed about the dispute. There was barely a word spoken between them as they returned to the shop. However... \"Welcome back. The final customer was just departing.\" Cadmon's mouth dropped open, and he stared agape at the sight of Rem exchanging merchandise for money and seeing off a customer with a polite bow. Dumbfounded, he peered at the empty display cases on the counter. For a moment, perhaps he thought that he'd abandoned his shop, trusting it to Rem only to have her sell his merchandise at fire-sale prices, but the store's till filled with coin showed that wasn't true. In other words, she'd sold it all. Cadmon sank to his knees, covering his face with his palms, his pride as a merchant apparently wounded. \"I-in that short time, you sold more than my shop normally sells in an entire day...\" With no regard for the store owner's dignity, Rem smoothly slipped around the counter and rushed to Subaru's side. She glanced expectantly toward the boy, and it seemed like an invisible tail was swaying behind her. \"How did I do, Subaru? I heard he helped you in the past, so I worked my very best to at least be of assistance. You can praise me if you like?\" The rare sight of Rem going, Praise me, praise me! made Subaru realize his heart felt just a little lighter. \"...You really are incredible, Rem.\" \"I am. But Sister is even more incredible.\" Subaru forced a smile and, following Rem's lead as she offered her head, gently petted it. He savored the totally familiar texture of her hair, and Rem's throat let out a small sound from Subaru's soft touch. \"I still don't get how that logic of yours works, you know...\" Watching the interaction between the two from behind, Cadmon stroked his own scar with a finger and slumped his shoulders. He murmured, \"I guess appearance does matter...\" The reason for his shop's slow sales was now all too clear. \"Interesting. So that's why he gave mew these abbles for your troubles.\" Cat ears twitching, the speaker thrust a fork into a mountain of sliced red fruit and raised a juicy morsel to smiling lips with perfect grace. Those short feline ears were the same color as the shoulder-length flaxen hair below them, and the white ribbon adorning those locks joined large, round, teasing eyes to complete the picture of a pretty girl who was actually a boy. Subaru replied, \"Well, I already taste tested them, so all I had to do was hand them to the kitchen. Setting that aside, don't give me sidelong glances and lick your lips. It's giving me chills.\" No, knowing both his external appearance and his actual gender, the proper term was definitely pretty boy. It was in between meals, some time prior to supper, and abbles had been brought in as a light snack. Cadmon had given them the fruit as a souvenir, looking both grateful and deeply burned at how Rem had broken his store's sales record in a short span of time. She had returned to her quarters for a change of clothes, intending to rendezvous with him later in his room as the daily ritual during Subaru's stay in the capital continued until suppertime. Subaru remarked, \"That said man, returning to my room only to find a pretty boy sneaking into it ahead of me... I was careless for not leaving the door locked, but isn't that, you know, impolite for a knight?\" \"Aww, it's fine, no, isn't it? It's just proof how much Ferri can relax around you. Besides, Lady Crusch could never see Ferri act so lazy, even by accident.\" The pretty boy Ferris flopped right down next to Subaru's flank. As Subaru felt the bed bounce against his rear, Ferris looked up meaningfully from his position on his belly. \"Did your heart flutter just now?\" \"It skipped a beat. I don't think anything bad about you, but I just don't have those kinds of interests at all. I like girls, as ordinary and regular as they come.\" No matter how adorable he might look, the fact they were the same gender was a barrier that Subaru had no intention of crossing. He shook his head in exasperation at Ferris's shocked expression. \"In the first place, I have no idea what your reason is for being so relaxed around me. I mean, it's not like I remember getting along especially well with you before. I'm not giving off some kind of pheromones I should be worried about, am I...?\" Ferris put his chin on his palms and responded blithely. \"Ah, that's pretty simple, actually. It's because there's no doubt meowtsoever that you're weaker than Ferri, Subawu. You're a weakling, so no worries.\" Subaru blinked once and murmured, \"You have a really bad personality, geez.\" \"Wooow, what a surprise! Ferri was sooo sure mew were going to blow your lid there...\" \"Hey, facts are facts. I'm not gonna get bent out of shape over that.\" Subaru had learned many times over just how feeble he was. Since being summoned from his own world, he'd had his powerlessness repeatedly pounded into him. If the day of the clash with Julius at the parade square was the greatest example in terms of quality, the number of times Wilhelm had smacked him to the ground there at the mansion provided quantity. Besides, that sense of powerlessness wasn't particular to his new world, either. The pain of his own frailty was something he'd experienced everywhere he had ever lived. \"Well, you can keep saying I'm weak, but how about you? I mean, since you're a part of the Knights of the Royal Guard, you've probably been trained some, but...\" \"Mm, me? Ferri doesn't have any skill with a sword at all. Knights' swords are heavy, so Ferri doesn't carry one just the dagger from Lady Crusch. Nothing good will come of waving it around, so Ferri doesn't.\" Ferris's cackling laugh and kicking feet embarrassed Subaru. The sight of the cat-eared boy so casually admitting his own shortcomings made his chest burn, plain and simple. His attitude not thinking of weakness as a failure was not one Subaru could dismiss so easily in his current state. Ferris seemed to see right through the silent Subaru's inner thoughts as he made an addendum. \"But Ferri has other redeeming features, mew know? That's why being completely mewseless as a knight isn't upsetting at all.\" \"Good save. Well, if you accept it then that's totally fine... Totally fine.\" Ferris's confident declaration was no doubt built on a very strong foundation. Subaru, with no such footholds, averted his gaze in distinct discomfort. Perhaps because Subaru turned his back doing so, Ferris sat up from where he lay on the bed and nestled into Subaru's shoulder, letting it support his weight. Then he asked a question. \"Nervous?\" \"On the first day I was, but not anymore. If you're gonna do it, please, go ahead.\" \"Boooooring.\" Pouting, Ferris sat Subaru up and put his hands on both of his shoulders. It was a shoulder rub posture, but Ferris held still in that position, silently closing his eyes.  The warmth passing from Ferris's palms began to circulate from Subaru's shoulders into his whole body. The power of the water mana in his hands met the magical mechanism inside Subaru's body called a gate, rising and flowing through it. Ferris spoke again. \"Gently, slowly, softly. Ah, found a split end. It feels like you've been working unusually hard, Subawu. Ah, a gray hair, too. Yanking that...\" \"Ow! And could you not babble when you're working? All this mana sloshing around in my body feels pretty"}, {"text": "icky. If you aren't careful, you're gonna make me dizzy.\" His head felt a little heavy, and his limbs were sluggish. His body felt like it was reacting poorly to the attempted treatment. Ferris was the preeminent water magic user in the royal capital real name Felix Argyle. The reason Subaru was lodging at the Crusch villa was so that he could take advantage of the healing magic to heal his damaged gate. The idea of healing via water magic might have called to mind something cool and refreshing, but in practice, it was nothing that simple. A gate was the means by which one used magic. The direct cause of the damage to Subaru's gate was repeated overuse, as well as doping when his mana was depleted. Thanks to that continual abuse, just bringing his gate back to a normal state required rather rough measures. Subaru offered a comment. \"So this healing technique is like taking a hose that water only trickles out of, plugging the leak and pushing out all the mold and junk that's built up inside...\" \"What? From the way you're speaking, it feels like mew aren't very happy about this, meow?\" \"I'm just beating myself up. Don't worry about it. Ugh, this feels gross.\" Subaru shook his head, enduring the sensation while trying to placate Ferris, whose mood had worsened. It was the third day he had been living at Crusch's mansion in other words, the third day of Ferris's treatment so perhaps he had begun to grow a little accustomed to that part, too. On the first day, he'd groaned out loud from the very start, unable to silently endure the urge to vomit. It was Ferris's turn to speak up. \"Well, that first day couldn't be helped. Ferri had to pump this directly through the worst, ickiest part. That's what happens when you're a living corpse with wounds all over your mind and body, meow?\" \"You don't go halfway when you poke at uncomfortable stuff, do you?\" Subaru hated how Ferris, who should have been unable to see the look on his face, seemed able to read his thoughts through his body. One might say that the way he unflinchingly dug at Subaru's scars was far craftier than how Reinhard unconsciously peeled the scabs off his heart without even realizing. \"Oh, Subawu, it feels like mew really are thinking of getting payback. The training you're doing with Grandpa Wil isn't unrelated to that, is it?\" \"Can you stop jabbing at a guy where it hurts? I'm sure even you understand how I feel... Wait, do you?!\" \"Of course. Ferri's been like, 'I wanna be strong!' too... Well, Ferri's given up on doing anything reckless like that, though.\" Ferris's tone sounded slightly more serious as he used his pretty-boy speaking style to dance around the matter. Subaru was a little surprised, sensing Ferris's reaction contained his real feelings on the matter. Even someone as unflinching as that had had moments in the past when he was uncertain or lost. But eventually, he had realized his potential for magic and gave up the path of the warrior. What about Subaru, then? Did he have anything he could boast of to others? And if he could find such a thing, would it be able to drive away the miserable aching in his chest...? \"Point being, you should give up on dark thoughts like getting payback, okay? It's a little hard to say, but... If there is a next time, you might die, mew know?\" With a sulky look, Subaru closed one eye, his reply a barely spoken murmur. \"...Even I know that.\" The earlier battle with Julius had ended with Subaru being pummeled beyond description. And in spite of the pounding he had received, he understood that the knight had gone easy on him. There was no other way to explain how he had been struck so many times yet had not suffered any lasting effects. That wasn't due to Ferris's skill as a healer alone. The difference between Subaru and Julius had simply been that overwhelming. Fully aware of this, Subaru had asked Wilhelm to teach him. He wasn't dreaming of becoming exponentially stronger in a mere several days of training. It was just... \"Can't you just let yourself be lazy? Your body's in bad shape, Subawu. No one would blame mew for sleeping the day away in recovery. Who would complain if mew take it easy and give your mind and body a rest?\" Ferris's words came out in a rush, not giving Subaru any time to make excuses. The way he said it grated on Subaru's nerves a little, but the message was extremely seductive given his current state of mind. For some reason, his heart wavered at that moment, though normally he would feel indignant. But... The sound of a gentle voice pulled him back from his chaotic emotional state. \" Master Felix, please do not toy with Subaru too much.\" Rem was standing at the doorway of the room with a neutral expression on her face. She had supposedly returned to her room for a change of clothes, but her outward appearance was not visibly different from when she had been sightseeing with Subaru in the royal capital. Noticing the questioning rise of Subaru's eyebrows, Rem grasped the hem of her skirt and twirled around as she said, \"I changed out of my maid-uniform-for-errands into my maid-uniform-for-visiting.\" \"R-right, is that so. You always seem to know what I'm thinking, Rem.\" \"Yes. I always want you to see me fresh.\" \"I'm happy you feel that way, but your phrasing makes you sound like fresh vegetables...\" Subaru answered Rem's apparent request to evaluate her freshness, and the maid did not follow up. Rather, she shifted her gaze toward Ferris. \"I am grateful for the treatment you conduct for Subaru day after day. However, please desist from using that as an opportunity to lure him into temptation.\" Ferris made a suspicious-sounding laugh and nestled into Subaru's back once more. \"'Luring into temptation' sounds so bad, meow. Ferri is only saying these things out of concern for his well-being.\" The flow of power from his palms, coursing in via Subaru's shoulders, suddenly flooded through his back and into his entire body. The influx of mana beyond Subaru's capacity to bear distracted him for a moment. However, a soft impact against his head brought his wandering mind fluttering back into place. \"Master Felix. Please give these pranks a rest. There are some things I cannot let pass as a joke.\" When Subaru gasped and regained his senses, white fabric covered his face. Straining his eyes, he realized that his face was pressed into a very familiar apron dress and that Rem was caressing his head. \"Hey, um, Rem, this is a little embarrassing to do in front of someone else...!\" Subaru tried to cover up his bashfulness with his usual jokes as Rem embraced him even tighter. \"Subaru, be quiet for a moment Master Felix?\" Her tongue formed polite words, but they carried cold emotion. Ferris traced little patterns on Subaru's back like a child whose prank had been figured out. \"Oh. They did say you can use a few water arts, Rem. Guess that would make you object to what Ferri has been doing...\" \"Hey, Ferris. Having a pretty boy do weird finger stuff like that doesn't make me happy one little b... Er, wait, Rem? My head, ah, feels good, but don't...hug...so...strong l... Gyah!!\" \"Ahh, Subaru, I'm so sorry. Master Felix just wouldn't pull back... I thought, if someone was going to take you from me, it was better that I...\" \"That statement's going dangerous places!!\" Feeling like his skull was creaking, Subaru rolled to the floor to escape from both Ferris and Rem. He warily glared at the other two from the corner of the room, while Rem visibly lamented as she shook her head. \"Subaru, you poor thing. You've gone through quite an ordeal, haven't you?\" \"What you were saying at the end was the scariest of all, Rem! There's a crazy little yandere in you, isn't there?!\" Ignoring Subaru's objections, Rem faced off against Ferris across the bed. She gazed emotionlessly as the cat boy twirled his finger around his flaxen hair with a mischievous expression. \"You have a reason to be angry, Rem, but it wasn't all some scheme by Ferri, mew know? It was for Subawu's sake, just a teeny widdle bit.\" \"And everything besides that 'little bit'?\" \"The rest was for my friend's feelings, and everything else was for Lady Crusch. That's natural for a retainer, isn't it? It's no different for you, is it, Rem?\" \"It is not. Accordingly, you must understand what my reply must be, Master Felix.\" Ferris must have sensed something in Rem's stare, because he soon raised both hands in surrender. \"Okay, okaaaay. Ferri will stop using the treatment to brainwash him.\" \"From here on, I shall be present for all treatments.\" \"Meow, no trust at all. Well, that's fine, really.\" Ferris glanced sideways at Subaru. When Rem shifted, as if protecting Subaru from that gaze, Ferris stretched up and looked down at him over Rem's shoulder. \"So that's enough lecturing from Rem for today. Our next date will be somewhere she won't find us, meowkay?\" \"I don't remember dating you, and you just said 'brainwash,' didn't you?! I'm not meeting up alone with a guy who'll say something freaky like that!\" \"Okay, okay, that sounds like a yes.\" \"No doesn't mean yes, geez!!\" Ferris, waving as if the matter were settled, hopped off the bed and stretched as he headed toward the door. He stopped right before putting his hand on the doorknob as he looked back. \"Rem.\" \"Yes?\" \"You might not believe this, but... The part about this being for Subaru's sake, it wasn't a complete lie, mew know?\" \"...I...understand.\" Since Subaru was standing behind Rem, he couldn't see her expression. But he sensed that her brief reply held just a slight bit of hesitation. \"Ah. Well, that's good. Bye-bye, then!\" With a smile, Ferris gave his carefree salutation and finally left the guest room. Subaru, feeling utterly exhausted for some reason, flopped down from the sudden rush of lethargy. \"I'm supposed to be getting treatment. Why do I have to feel this tired from it?\" \"Are you all right, Subaru?\" \"Mmm... I'm all right...I think. I don't really get it, but you saved me from something?\" \"That is unclear. Master Felix does not appear to hold any ill will toward you, so... I do not know the true motives behind his previous behavior.\" Seeing Rem ponder the matter, Subaru turned his head, perplexed. \"Errr, so what state was I in earlier, anyway?\" \"Until just now, Master Felix was interfering with all the mana in your body, Subaru.\" \"That so? Just figured healing required it. It's not a good feeling, and it's pretty awful, to be honest, but somehow I put up with it...\" \"Having another person's mana in you like that is the same as taking that person inside you. That made Master Felix's words much easier for you to accept, you see.\" \"The way you said that sounds pretty bad, you know?!\" Subaru stood up in a hurry, patting his body down to check things out. \"Am I all right? There's nothing weird going on? My heart isn't becoming more womanly or my speech having more feminine twists to it or something?!\" \"It is all right, Subaru. You are quite splendid. I am always watching you, so please believe me.\" Subaru thought for a moment that he couldn't allow the peculiarities of her statement, but instead, he let it roll over him as he patted his chest down in relief. He also gained a new appreciation for just what position he was in. \"Now that I think of it, this is, like, one of the enemy's main headquarters. I've been relaxing and letting my guard down a lot, though...\" \"Please be at ease. It is"}, {"text": "true that you are incorrigibly laid-back and slow to catch on, but I am keeping guard, so there is nothing for you to be concerned about.\" \"You couldn't leave out the 'incorrigibly laid-back' part?!\" That moment, the truth struck him clear as day. Just imagining how much Rem had been waging a one-woman war while he was idly whiling away his time made him want to run out the door. \"I'll try to be a bit more careful from now on. Everyone here is an enemy, after all.\" \"...An enemy, you say?\" He was trying to pull himself together after having been so focused on one thing. But in his determination, Subaru didn't notice that Rem was murmuring something. After ensuring his body was safe and sound, Subaru gazed at the magic crystal on a wall of the room to check the time. \"Oh, time's a-wasting. How about you help me study until we get called for dinner, Professor Rem?\" Subaru headed to a desk in the room. The remaining abbles were on top of the desk, sitting alongside study material he had brought with him from Roswaal's mansion. In other words, it was study time for Subaru, who had not yet mastered the language of this other world. \"I really cannot get accustomed to being addressed like that.\" \"Well, I think it's all right, since you're the one doing the teaching... If you don't like it, I can stop, Professor.\" \"No! Please continue! It is something you call only me by! So Subaru may not call anyone else that! If you do, I will be upset!\" \"Well, if you're gonna be like that, I'll be relentless, too! Nggggh, you won't outdo me...!\" Subaru chose an odd point to make a show of stubbornness, fiercely turning toward the table. Rem stood behind Subaru, watching him affectionately. But from time to time, she would stare into the distance, her mind wandering as her face showed faint signs of strain. \"Professor, I don't understand this part very well...\" But all traces of that look vanished the instant she heard Subaru's voice. \"Oh Subaru, you are helpless. You could not get anything done if I were not here with you. I would not mind if you demonstrated your gratitude from time to time...?\" \"Excellent timing. Subaru Natsuki, would you come with me for a while?\" Subaru had finished bathing and was on his way back to his room when someone addressed him in the lobby on the second floor of the Crusch residence. The long-haired woman was ascending the stairs and carrying a tray when she called out to him. For a moment, he wasn't sure who it was, since the outfit and aura she gave off were completely different from usual. Subaru's only reaction was to raise his brows. \"...Miss Crusch?\" \"It is. Is there something odd about...? Ah, I see, this is the first time you have seen me in an outfit unrelated to my duties. I imagine it has startled you.\" Crusch seemed to realize what had unsettled him. The outfit she normally wore that resembled an army uniform was gone; in its place, she wore a nightgown with thin, dark fabric and a cape over the shoulders. Unlike the scrupulously buttoned-up military uniform, the nightgown showed off her very feminine physique with every step, greatly altering the aura she projected. Subaru was averting his eyes, feeling vaguely embarrassed, but Crusch apparently hadn't noticed. She continued, \"Either way, it is fortunate that question has been resolved. To return to the original question, do you have some spare time? If it pleases you, I would like to have a drink with you this night.\" \"...I don't drink alcohol, though.\" \"You may sip water if you wish. I do not intend to drink enough to become inebriated.\" Crusch smiled a little as she rose farther up the stairs. Subaru was a little thrown off but, finding no reason to court her displeasure, made a short run to catch up. She led Subaru to a balcony on the third floor of the mansion. A white table and chairs had been placed in one corner of the terrace. Crusch sat down first and indicated the opposing chair with her gaze, so Subaru meekly complied. \"The breeze is very refreshing tonight. It's the perfect weather, since I like to drink my liquor while watching the night sky.\" \"I'm wondering why you invited me today, though. You could have invited Ferris or someone?\" \"Of course, normally I would have Ferris with me... However, he must work late this evening.\" Crusch must have been referring to Ferris's work as a healer, in great demand even in the royal capital. Just as Ferris had done for Subaru in the evening, he treated numerous people on a daily basis. It was a packed schedule that made almost no allowance for free time. \"Besides that, it's good to exchange drinks with someone of a different rank and position once in a while.\" \"I said it once already, but I don't drink alcohol, you know?\" \"You can simply add plenty of ice. You may even fill it with cold water if you wish. Now, then?\" The tray on the table had a pair of wineglasses on it. In one, she poured amber-colored alcohol; in the other, she poured clear water. Subaru accepted the water, reluctantly touching his glass to Crusch's. The light clink was accompanied by the sound of the ice shifting within it as Crusch narrowed her eyes. \"It seems you are anxious about a number of things, but please be at ease. I have not brought you here out of any desire to interrogate you. I swear that it is no such petty trick.\" \"Ah, no... I wasn't worried about that.\" \"There is no need to try to hide it. I can see anxiety and doubt in the night breeze around you. As we belong to rival camps, I am actually relieved by your wariness. That way, I do not forget my own principles.\" Crusch made a show of enjoying her half-filled glass, savoring it with her red tongue. Subaru, desperate to wash away the sense that she could see right into his mind, poured the cold water down his throat. \"So these last few days, you've been pretty busy... Is it related to the royal selection?\" \" Ha-ha-ha! As soon as I tell you caution is unnecessary, you plunge straight into the heart of the matter. I certainly did not expect that. I do think that is exactly how rival camps should be, however.\" \"Not knowing my place and not reading the mood are kind of my defining characteristics.\" \"I would add spinning your own vices into virtues to the list. Certainly, it is the royal selection that has kept me occupied these last few days. It has added to Ferris's and Wilhelm's labors as well.\" Her wineglass held at an angle, Crusch spoke smoothly and in good humor. She seemed even more attractive than usual to Subaru's eyes, so he shifted his attention to the courtyard, which was in sight of the balcony. \"And it's related to all the stuff you've been hauling into the mansion and the people coming and going?\" \"A sharper eye than I expected... Or rather, the scale was large enough that you could not fail to notice.\" With no sign that her good mood was waning, Crusch loosened her lips and replied to Subaru's question. \"It's not unrelated at all. My house is currently assembling all the men and materiel possible for a particular task. It may cause you and Rem some trouble in the coming days.\" \"I feel like it's us who are causing you a lot of trouble, but... What's this particular task?\" \" Have you heard the details of how Wilhelm came to enter my service?\" After his question was answered with another question, Subaru couldn't say anything. He understood only that the \"particular task\" Crusch had mentioned concerned Wilhelm and that the details were not a topic he could broach without the old man's permission. \"You are free to speculate... It seems I have said too much. Wilhelm might well scold me for this.\" \"Wilhelm doesn't look like someone who'd talk to his master like that, though...\" \"He is a man without mercy. You should watch him instruct me in the sword at least once. He must think of our first meeting as a rather embarrassing one himself.\" Crusch made a wry smile, savoring the wine with the colorful tip of her tongue as she switched subjects. Subaru also sought a change in subject to reset his mind. \"So you have sword lessons every day, too, huh?\" \"Surely you are not saying I should not wield one because I am merely a woman?\" Subaru instinctively responded with embarrassment, but Crusch winked at him. \"I jest. It is merely something I am accustomed to hearing since my youth that the little Karsten princess is both a maiden as well as a crazed fencer. I was considered the fool of the duke's house for my love of getting my hands dirty more than flowers.\" \"...That's pretty different from the rumors I've been hearing. In public, all the common folk are praising you, saying you'll leave your mark on the kingdom's history.\" \"The people changed their appraisal when they learned of my exploits. The sudden shift was rather calculating of them in my opinion, but it is my own fault for not having produced results in all that time. I do not intend to blame lords for altering their public stances. As for the rumors in the city, I can only call them embarrassing.\" She was apparently a big enough person to accept whatever people said about her deeds, for good or ill. Crusch never averted her eyes from discussion about being \"merely a woman.\" Public opinion had dramatically changed because of her exploits which jogged Subaru's memory about something. \"So that famous first battle was what changed how everyone thought of you?\" \"Mm...\" As Subaru pursued the topic, Crusch rested her lips on her wineglass as she let out a small sound. Her amber eyes narrowed. \"It is embarrassing.\" She turned her head with an uncharacteristic pout on her face. Subaru countered, \"How can it be embarrassing? I heard demon beasts attacked your land, and you handled it great in your father's place. That's pretty cool for a first battle, isn't it?\" \"Of course not. Let me correct one misperception. I did not fell the demon beasts. I merely drove them off. I was a princess hastily and impudently taking command in place of her injured father.\" \"But it worked, didn't it?\" \"Of course it did. I could not allow my first sortie to end in failure after I brushed aside my father's objections. However, the problem is the extent of the results. To me, my na\u00c3\u00afvet\u00c3\u00a9 at the time is a shame most difficult to bear.\" Her mood had not fallen, but Crusch wasn't sugarcoating anything, either. She didn't think it was worthy of heroic tales. The topic Subaru had chosen was, from her perspective, a sore point of sorts. Thus, Crusch concluded the topic, shooting Subaru a jovial look. \"You are rather fond of needling people yourself. As expected of a political rival, I suppose?\" Subaru was completely unaware that he was such a person, but she'd given him no room to argue. He brought the ice-cold glass to his lips and tried to change the topic in an attempt to smooth over the awkwardness. \"S-so incidentally, what else has changed besides that?\" \" Let me see. Since word of the royal selection spread, the number of proposals has increased by leaps and bounds. Though such talk comes with the territory of being a duchess to begin with.\" \"Pfft!\" Subaru spewed out water without thinking when his probing of a rival's internal circumstances took an unexpected turn. \"P-proposals, as in, proposals for marriage?\" \"I will soon be twenty years of age... Marrying then is"}, {"text": "not uncommon. It is awkward due to my gender and position, so I have deftly evaded such talk until now.\" \"Ahh, the...duchess thing must really intimidate the men...\" \"A rather blunt way to put it. But that is indeed the case. A few have come forward to take my hand, each trying to make me his, but... That was then, and this is now.\" Crusch closed her eyes as a larger sip of wine flowed across her tongue. Her position as a royal candidate made her an especially pivotal person for the nation. No doubt there was a horde of potential suitors coming out of the woodwork who'd never made an attempt for her hand. \"Miss Crusch, you're pretty optimistic about this proposal talk. Are you looking to get married?\" \"I wonder. It is a topic I have pondered myself. If I were to marry someone, he might be of great assistance to me in many situations, including ascendance in the royal selection. But all the candidates are single women, so the conditions are the same for all. I suppose matters are slightly different for Priscilla Bariel, who is a widow.\" Hearing Crusch's opinion, a wave of anxiety pressed against Subaru's innards. \"I-I see... Everyone's single. Similar conditions... Marriage, huh...\" Marrying someone of high status meant bringing that person into one's political camp. If Crusch had received marriage proposals, the other candidates probably had, too. Naturally, the same could be said for the young Emilia. \"Forgive me, Subaru Natsuki. I have been somewhat mean to you in revenge.\" \"...Eh?\" Subaru, distracted by the possibility of Emilia marrying, was slow to react to the apology. \"All individuals chosen as candidates for the Dragonfriend Ceremony are forbidden to marry during the royal selection period. Nominally, it is because one should put the kingdom before the self, but in reality, it is more of a desperate measure to prevent marriage ties from exacerbating political conflict.\" \"Th-then all these marriage proposals you've been getting?\" \"I will assess them all after the royal selection is complete. Making the proposals beforehand rather than after the fact is more acceptable, I suppose. I will not make empty promises only to revoke them later, however.\" Subaru sighed with relief. If marriage arrangements were prohibited, there was no danger of Emilia being married off to someone behind his back. \"But one can hammer out all the details while leaving the actual marriage for later.\" Subaru sullenly complained, \"...Miss Crusch, do you enjoy toying with the hearts of men?\" \"You prodded at my own source of shame first. The least I could do was to return the favor.\" Crusch tilted her glass without a single hint of guilt. \"Besides, people are usually too conscious about differences in rank to be honest with their own hearts. I have a rather deep interest in how such affairs will be settled.\" \"Worry about your own love life before someone else's, sheesh. If you're pushing twenty, you must have one?\" Since she'd been toying with him, Subaru tried to counterattack, but the reply he received was unexpected. \"Unfortunately, having been born a Karsten means I cannot hope for freedom in marriage. I am still a woman, however much I may deviate from the conventional norms.\" In contrast to Subaru's romantic fantasies, Crusch had already given up on her own freedom to decide her relationships. It was a natural view of marriage in a world where status and family determined partners regardless of personal interest. As Crusch's eyes gazed at the melting ice in her glass, they quietly held unshakable will and resolve. Subaru took his time trying to form a rebuttal, but he was unable to speak a word. With the night breeze blowing across the balcony, Crusch ran a hand through her fluttering hair. She had pale skin. Almond eyes. Beautiful green hair, and a profile filled with such beauty and elegance as to shake others to the core. As much as she said that she deviated from the norm, Crusch was a beautiful woman. That fact did nothing to detract from the sublime nobility of her beliefs. Unable to bear the silence, Subaru chose a topic that might have been overly vague. \"Miss Crusch... What do you think of the royal selection?\" \"Mm,\" she began in response, closing her eyes as she thought it over. \"I spoke of it at the royal selection conference, but I harbor misgivings about the state of this country.\" \"...You did say that, yeah.\" \"If I take the throne, my policies will be as I stated. In spite of that, the Dragon Tablet selected me as a candidate, someone who would surely reject the Covenant. This is either the Dragon's will or that of some divine being. Do you not think so, Subaru Natsuki?\" As Crusch posed her question, Subaru fell silent. Since he was unable to immediately give her a reply, she continued. \"I do not overestimate or underestimate my own abilities and position. Reputation comes not from within but from others. That is especially so for one who rose to the status of candidate as I did, judged by those who thought nothing of me. It's not how I have lived until now that should be judged but how I live from now on.\" \"It sounds like you want to make people pay for judging you like that.\" \"Quite the contrary. Reputation is something granted by others, but I believe it should be granted after the fact, not before. If someone has a certain level of ability, judge her once you have seen the results. And yet the Dragon Tablet brought me, one convinced of these things, within reach of the throne... Perhaps that was a smart thing to do.\" Crusch's amber eyes narrowed slightly as they gazed at the ice in her glass. Subaru couldn't think of a response. He felt like she viewed the world in a very different way than he did. Unable to bear his silence, Subaru tossed the ice in his glass into his mouth and crunched it down. Just as he tried to use the sound of crushing ice to break the silence, a scornful voice suddenly interrupted him. \"Aaah! Why is Subawu here with mew, meow?!\" In the direction of the cry, he could see Ferris rushing onto the balcony, his shoulders heaving. He hurried to the table and banged a hand on it, shaking the glass bottles as Crusch thanked him for his labors. \"Thank you for your hard work, Ferris. I'm sorry, I thought you would be back much later, so I had a drink with Subaru Natsuki as an appetizer.\" \"Did you just call me an appetizer?!\" \"Goodness, Ferri can't leave you alone for one second, meow! Ah? And Lady Crusch, you've had much more wine than mewsual, haven't mew?!\" Ferris looked at how much liquid remained in the bottle as he spoke. \"Being all friendly with Subawu... Having such a fun conversation... Aaaagh, so jealous!\" \"It is true I've enjoyed more wine than usual. He is a rare conversation partner, and we leaped from topic to topic. Some of it was rather embarrassing, however.\" \"People are gonna get the wrong idea if you put it like that!\" \"Grrrrr! What is this?! And Lady Crusch, you're wearing such a defenseless outfit!!\" When Ferris pointed it out, Crusch looked down at her mere nightgown. She inclined her head slightly, raising her glass a little. \"What of it? Do I not always dress like this when I have drinks with you in the evening, Ferris?\" \"That! Is! The! Problem! Mew can't compare your time with Ferri to a ravenous beast of a man like this! Men are wolves, meow!\" As Ferris admonished Crusch like an aggrieved parent, Subaru yelled back. \"Hey, don't single me out here! You're a man, too, aren't you?!\" Subaru had not forgotten about how Ferris's gender had thrown his heart for a loop. \"That's because Ferri would never cast a lascivious gaze upon Lady Crusch! But the way Subaru wanders this way and that, he can't be trusted, meow.\" \"That's enough toying around, Ferris. All at the royal selection conference know who Subaru Natsuki cares for. He would not set his sights upon a woman as lacking in charm as myself.\" When Crusch eyed Subaru in search of agreement, he hesitated for a moment. \"Err... Well, that's true...I suppose?\" Ferris instantly cut in. \"Haahh? What? You're disappointed with Lady Crusch in some way...? Do you want Ferri to kill mew?\" \"Why do I need your approval for my answers?!\" Crusch interrupted. \"Wait. Why did a wind of hesitation and deception flow from your direction just now...? What does this...? Ah, I see. You have Rem as well. Certainly my words were not adequate.\" \"And now she really has the wrong idea!\" Crusch wore a very accepting expression while Ferris glared frostily at Subaru. The conclusion she had come to was trouble enough, but the usually adorable cat boy was quite intimidating when his expression was serious. Subaru desperately tried to explain and clear up the misunderstanding as the night breeze again washed over the three on the balcony. In front of Subaru, who was taking little sips of his water, Crusch and Ferris filled their glasses to the brim with wine. As he watched them, he abruptly voiced something that had been nagging at him. \"You two get along really well. Been with each other a long time?\" \"Hmph. Continuing to gather intelligence on the enemy?\" Ferris asked. \"Not at all. You just look so close, I wanted to come out and ask.\" Ferris sat alongside Crusch, glancing at his master while enjoying the same wine. Subaru didn't think feelings that ran as deep as Ferris's were formed in a short period of time. \"You are right. Ferris and I have been together for a long time... Ten years now, is it?\" \"Ten years, one hundred twenty-two days, six hours. Give or take, meow.\" \"That's so specific it's scary, you know.\" Ferris glared at him. Subaru regretted his comment as the pretty boy put a hand to his own cheek. \"Even now, Ferri can't forget that first glimpse of Lady Crusch. It's engraved in my meowmery. Since that day, Ferri has been Lady Crusch's eternal servant.\" Crusch commented, \"You make too much of it, Ferris. I did no more than what was required of me. The fact that doing so earned me your loyalty is what I would call the most fortuitous event of my life.\" There was no distance between them. From a simple crossing of paths, they had become so incredibly close. Their relationship as master and servant surely made them the pair with the strongest foundation out of everyone vying for the royal throne. \"We get along fabulously, right? Unlike some other pairs I could meowntion?\" Ferris said. *** \"Goodness, Subawu, you're too easy to see through!\" Ferris smiled, having bluntly revealed the thoughts currently rising to the surface in the back of Subaru's mind. His cheek twitched as he glared at Ferris, but the feline eyes watched him innocently as their owner tilted his wineglass. Crusch took up the topic instead, closing one eye and giving Subaru a stern look. \"I presume that what has brought you to a standstill is your relationship with Emilia as lord and vassal.\" Crusch drew her chin in a little, gently licking her alcohol-drenched lips. \"You cannot use my relationship with Ferris as a reference for resolving that stalemate. The issues between Ferris and me were resolved an entire decade ago.\" \"...My 'stalemate'?\" \"Perhaps I should call it a rite of passage... Something that must be overcome by people before they can become lord and vassal in a true sense. Now that I think of it, right after Ferris decided to serve me, he explored what he could do through pure trial and error.\" Like a child being teased, Ferris's face turned red at having his past abruptly revealed. \"W-wait, Lady Crusch! Please"}, {"text": "don't talk ameowt that. It's embarrassing!\" Crusch watched Ferris and shook her head. \"It is nothing to blush over. How could the sight of one doing his best to locate his place and appropriately serve another be shameful? Impressed by your resolve, I went to equal lengths to be a master who would not bring you disgrace. Even now, I do not know if I have achieved such a thing.\" \"Ferri will never harbor dissatisfaction toward his lady Crusch, not in an entire lifetime!\" \"You spoil me. You would say the same thing if I spent all my days in complete idleness. This is why I must have a strong character: to resist the temptations of depravity.\" It was a very humble-sounding statement, and Crusch seemed to be earnestly speaking from the bottom of her own heart. Ferris sent her an even more passionate look, but Subaru simply wanted to run away. Seeing their relationship, and the absolute, unshakable trust between them, tore at his heart. Crusch said to Subaru in a sharp voice, \" Do not lower your eyes, Subaru Natsuki.\" \"...Eh?\" \"If your eyes become clouded, your soul will go astray. That will mean your future is closed and you have lost your purpose for living.\" *** \"When you follow your own sense of justice, you can do any number of things if you just look at the ground. Lift your face, look forward, reach out your hand. Even when doing something for others, you must be able to see them for your feelings to get across.\" Subaru's throat caught. Every drop of blood in his body froze. For a moment, Crusch's words drove a nail into his heart. Still, she didn't look at the frozen boy, but at the wine in her inclined glass. Subaru wondered: if those eyes pierced him at that very moment, what would have happened?  Perhaps, at that instant, he would have fallen on his hands and knees without a single moment's hesitation. Subaru was not only surprised at her seeing right through him, but he also had to take his hat off to her skill as a great stateswoman. Still, he was able to avoid kneeling before her because Ferris was the first to respond to her words. \"Ahh, Lady Crusch... I swear again to exhaust my life in service of my master.\" \"Then I can only respond to your loyalty with the entirety of my spirit  Subaru Natsuki, strive to do nothing that would diminish yourself. I do not want to think of you as an insignificant foe.\" Ferris's loyalty, Crusch's nobility both stirred Subaru's heart deeply. He wet his parched tongue, failing to form words several times before he managed to speak. \"Lending an enemy a hand, huh... It's awfully nice of you to give your opponents a fighting chance.\" \"This matter is important enough to decide the future of the entire nation. This may be highly impudent of me to say, but if I must struggle for the throne, I wish for it to be against worthy rivals. A crown earned by defeating weaklings will do nothing to impress the lords of the land.\" \"...Wanting strong opponents means you're confident about beating them, huh?\" \"I have no such confidence whatsoever. What I have is will, and I have poured effort into achieving optimal results so that I can do what I must. Furthermore, I hope that my rivals do the same.\" This was the individual named Crusch Karsten, her every thought humble until the bitter end. Having exchanged drinks with her like this, the impressions he held of her \"sincere,\" \"high-class\" changed. This was a woman like a sword, fierce as a firestorm, pitiless as a naked blade. Ferris relaxed his voice, clapping his hands together as he dissolved the tense atmosphere. \"Somemeow, the conversation became so formal. Let's unwind now.\" Bathed in a cool breeze, Subaru realized that his brow was covered with sweat. Crusch replied, \"I am sorry for speaking so stiffly. I mustn't get carried away with entertainment or my drinks.\" \"No, no, mew needn't apologize for anything, Lady Crusch! Subawu understands what he needs to do meow.\" Ferris's words, summarizing the earlier conversation, sounded very hollow to Subaru's ears. \"What I...need to do now...?\" Surely he understands had been the implication, but Subaru couldn't put his finger on it. The only things he'd picked up during the evening spent over drinks were that Crusch and Ferris shared an unshakable bond and that he was small and confused. Subaru didn't see anything about what was to come or what he needed to do. Yet in spite of that, what could Subaru tell them that he now understood? *** \"As far as Ferri is concerned, having Lady Emilia and Subawu all split up is kinda fun, but that's not what Lady Crusch wants at all. Sooooo you need to make up with Lady Emilia as soon as meowssible. And do what mew can do to make that happen.\" \"What I can do?\" Could he really accomplish anything, worn to the bone as he was? \"Yes. A long time ago, back when Ferri became Lady Crusch's knight, he thought very, very hard about what he could accomplish.\" Ferris put a hand to his chest as he returned to that time in his memories. Crusch's lips slackened slightly as she glanced over at him like that. For a moment, Subaru heart beat faster in his chest.  Something only Subaru Natsuki could do? He realized it, as if it had come down to him like a revelation from the heavens itself. \"There...is something I can do.\" Both of the others glanced at him as he continued, \"There's something only I can do Yeah, that's right. No one should've had to tell me that.\" Now he knew. No, he'd always known. He'd been reminded when he had been on the verge of forgetting. Truly, Crusch and Ferris were benevolent people. They were providing aid to the enemy with everything they had, like the famous Kenshin Uesugi.  They had reminded Subaru of exactly what he could do for Emilia's sake. \"Yeah... I have something. I've always had it.\" It had nothing to do with power, or knowledge, or rank, or status. It didn't need to. For, just as Ferris had said, Subaru possessed a single, ultimate weapon. It had been in him from the beginning. But everything that had happened to him had shoved it into a dark corner of his mind. Images of Julius, Reinhard, and Emilia came to him, one after another. All of them looked at Subaru with contempt sharp enough to cut his soul.  These were the people Subaru Natsuki had to prove himself to. \"I just need a chance. If I can get that... I can make all my problems go away.\" Subaru felt like a dark cloud had lifted as doubt left his heart and he gained confidence in its place. He clenched a strong, tight fist, picturing a silver-haired girl in the back of his mind. Crusch gently turned her wineglass around in her hand as she murmured offhandedly. \"The wind blows stronger. It would seem tomorrow's weather will be somewhat stormy.\" Then, with a small sound, the melting ice cube within her glass neatly split in two. CHATER 2 *** The tip of the wooden sword made contact with Subaru's forehead. The next instant, centrifugal force immediately blew him away. He felt like the sky and the ground had been swapped as he wrapped his arms around himself, cushioning the blow as he made a well-formed roll. Having neutralized the damage from the tumble, he proudly licked his lips at his own mastery. \"Geh, there's dirt on it. Ptoo, ptoo, ptoo. Tastes like grass. Ptoo, ptoo!\" \"Shall we bring this to an end?\" \"Surely you jest. You saw my expert falling technique, didn't you? My genius has finally blossomed!\" Saying the words almost broke Subaru's heart. He had mastered the skill in the course of being pounded day after day. The boy had sparred with Wilhelm every day during his stay at the Crusch villa. He still couldn't land even one attack, but his ability to improve his falling technique suggested that Wilhelm wasn't simply smacking him around without a purpose. The older man presented a rebuttal, though. \"However, it is a useless technique for a duel with real swords.\" \"You didn't need to point that out!! The pine tree of my heart has a lot of cracks right now!!\" Certainly, in a bout that could end in a single sword stroke, a martial arts skill for properly receiving a blow and falling was not very useful. Improving a skill used solely for practicing was a misplaced priority, but it was still well worth it during sword training. \"I must say, you seem to be more spirited this morning somehow.\" \"Last night, I had a little discussion with Miss Crusch about my concerns  Thanks to that, all my hesitation's disappeared. I feel pretty good at the moment.\" \"In a book I read yesterday, a character who was only beginning to become accustomed to the battlefield spoke much like you are now. He lost his life because he took his fight for granted, Sir Subaru.\" \"So there's death flags even in other worlds?!\" Apparently even in a small corner across the cosmos, there were lines that marked you for death, just like back home. But Subaru had been anxiously awaiting Wilhelm's words of concern. The older man raised his eyebrows in a questioning expression. \"Sir Subaru?\" A smile came over the boy as he shook his head. \"...Nothing. Really, nothing at all.\"  At that moment, \"the field of battle\" and \"death\" were things he could welcome with open arms. Those were opportunities for Subaru Natsuki to establish his worth in an undeniable way. \"So much waste.\" \"Ugah!\" When sword practice resumed, Wilhelm exploited the opening created by Subaru's wandering thoughts, using a minimal motion to strike with his sword. He took advantage of all the boy's excess power and unnecessary momentum and easily sent Subaru's body dancing into the air with no visible power behind the sword attack. \"I can handle this!\" Subaru, desperate to keep from falling on his head and causing serious damage, instantly shifted his head and curled up, adopting an ironclad fall-breaking posture that could let him land anywhere without major injury. However... \"Do you really think that is the last of it?\" With one smooth motion, Wilhelm inserted his wooden sword through a gap in Subaru's curled-up limbs, wrecking his posture. The boy's arms and legs spread out wide, and unable to grasp what was happening, he slammed into the ground, limbs splayed. \"Gyah!\" Subaru rubbed his still-smarting nose and shot an objecting glare at Wilhelm. His sword-fighting tutor responded by thrusting his wooden weapon straight down into the grass. Subaru's breath caught in his throat under the calm gaze. \"Adopting a position to break your fall and prepare for whatever might come next is the first meaningful progress you have made. But more important, I refuse to accept the premise of teaching you to fight in a manner that assumes defeat from the very beginning.\" \"Uhh...\" \"If I may, before teaching you how to swing a sword and techniques to break a fall, I shall tell you how to prepare in a more fundamental manner.\" As Subaru grunted, showing Wilhelm had hit the mark, the tutor raised a finger. \" If you have decided to fight, fight with all your body and soul. Forget all pretty words that lead to defeat. Hunger and thirst for victory using any means necessary. If you can still stand, if you can still move a single finger, if your fangs have not yet been broken, stand. Stand. Get up, get up, and attack. So long as you live, fight. Fight, fight, fight!\" *** \"That is what it means to do battle.\" Wilhelm's visible pause lifted the tense air that had come to dominate the courtyard. Only then did Subaru"}, {"text": "realize just how loudly his own heart had been beating. At the same time, each deafening throb drove home the fact that he was alive.  Living had never felt better. The feelings that had made him welcome the prospect of death until mere moments before had suddenly flown away. The instant Wilhelm began to speak of preparing for battle, the air around him completely changed. He might have looked like a mild-mannered gentleman, but Subaru felt a sword-wielding demon within him. Perhaps that was the true nature behind the old man named Wilhelm. The one who wielded such strength that he was employed as the personal sword instructor of Crusch Karsten, favorite to win the royal election the aged swordsman, Wilhelm Trias. \"So fight to win, even if you know...you're gonna lose... It's a little inconsistent, but I understand what you mean. It's not logic; it's a matter of emotion. Then...\" Subaru, still in awe of the elderly man, felt the fighting spirit in him rekindled as he replied. I can handle this, said his stubbornness. He couldn't let that breakthrough to his doubts, that ray of hope come apart in such a short time. The feelings of Subaru Natsuki were not that cheap. He couldn't let them be. \" If I can do that, can I get a little stronger?\" \"That is a different matter. The desire to be stronger and actually doing so are separate matters altogether.\" \"So now you deny me?! Don't you think saying yes would make for a more beautiful tale?!\" \"...I have learned the cruelty of lies through bitter experience. I could not forgive myself for telling one.\" Subaru did not notice how the other man's eyes momentarily fell as he spoke. \"I believe sometimes the truth is crueler than a lie, just so you know...\" Subaru felt like Wilhelm was dodging the question, so he re-gripped his wooden sword and abruptly murmured, \"Do you see any sword talent inside me?\" \"From where I stand, unfortunately, you have none. Your aptitude for the blade goes no further than the common man's the same place as mine.\" The strained, self-deprecating smile that came over Wilhelm made Subaru raise an eyebrow in surprise. \"That's pretty humble coming from you, saying you have no talent with a sword.\" \"It is the truth. I have no gift for it. If I did, I surely would not have had to wield one nearly as much. Therefore, it is possible for you to arrive at the same level as I.\" \"...Incidentally, how long would I have to work at it?\" \"Nothing so great. You would only need to devote half your natural life to it.\" \"Only, he says.\" It was often said that continually striving to improve was true talent. In actuality, even with Wilhelm telling him that he could arrive at the same level, Subaru couldn't fathom the drive to devote as much time to the sword as the old man, or a reason to do so. In the first place, the reason Subaru had Wilhelm teach him like this was  \"I thought, like, pouring myself into the sword without worldly thoughts might let me find enlightenment for the first time...\" \"I wonder now. Whatever you might grasp will not make you suddenly stronger, after all, and I do not think a clear mind or lack thereof determines who will win and who will fall in the end.\" Wilhelm drily conveyed his opinion. \"Besides,\" he continued, \"if I must say so, I have rarely wielded my blade with a clear mind. Particularly when I first began, I had very few thoughts about the way of the sword.\" \"So what did you think of?\" \"My wife, and my wife alone.\" \"Sheesh, Wilhelm! Sometimes you really go on about that wife of yours.\" Subaru remembered how he had spoken of his beloved wife when they had first met, but Wilhelm had also praised his bride to high heaven during Subaru's stay at the mansion. It must have been a harmonious marriage. Seeing Subaru break out in a strained smile at the latest episode of this behavior, Wilhelm rubbed his chin. \"Someday, you will reach a point where such preparedness is necessary to become stronger. Well, it's nothing you need to worry about at present, Sir Subaru.\" \"What do you mean?\" Subaru tilted his head slightly. Wilhelm shook his head a tiny bit at the gesture. \"I simply mean that there is little point in lecturing someone about what it takes to become stronger when he has already abandoned the choice to do so.\" *** For a moment, Subaru's face froze over, unable to comprehend what he was being told. However, the breakdown was momentary. He immediately shrugged, as if dismissing it as a joke. \"Hey now, what are you saying all of a sudden, Wilhelm? I'm as surprised as a burglar who gets stopped before he actually steals anything. I've done what now?\" \"If you are aware of it yourself, it would be inelegant to speak further of it. I have said what I wished to say. It would have been difficult to tell you had I let this opportunity slip by.\" Wilhelm, speaking as if he understood everything, left no room for Subaru to pursue the matter. Unease smoldered in Subaru's chest. Wilhelm's words had left him with an undeniable sense of nervousness. And Wilhelm could tell exactly what that feeling meant. Instantly, that truth tore unbearably and mercilessly at the boy's heart. Subaru, sweating in the throes of a phantom chill, raised his head when Wilhelm looked toward the mansion and spoke. \"Sir Subaru. It seems that this morning's practice is at an end.\" \" Ah?\" When Subaru followed his gaze, he noticed a small silhouette racing into the courtyard Rem. Normally, she was not one to show emotion on her face, but he could see a sense of quiet tension on her as she ran. Had something...happened? For Subaru, at that moment in time, it was fortuitous salvation, a golden opportunity to forget his conversation with Wilhelm. He looked at Rem's haste and agitation with relief. Or maybe that was because Subaru had suspected where things had been headed. \"Subaru  We need to talk.\" When Rem stood right before him, her serious expression made his heart tremble.  But Subaru would never speak to another about the anticipation he felt in that moment. Lady Crusch, waiting in the reception room, gave a knowing nod as she saw Subaru approach. \"It would appear that you have already heard.\" Crusch and Ferris were together in the reception room, waiting for Subaru and Rem as master and vassal. Subaru, last to enter the room, couldn't deny he felt late to the party as he shook his head a little. \"I haven't heard the details yet. Seems like Rem only has a vague idea, too.\" When Subaru's eyes shifted to indicate Rem beside him, she dipped her head with a tense expression and said, \"What I have felt is only a result of the consciousness I share with Sister. Sister's clairvoyance would be able to gather more details about the situation, but...\" Rem lowered her eyes as her words trailed off, looking dismayed at her own powerlessness. Rem's reply caused Crusch to exhale in apparent admiration. \"Shared consciousness I have heard of this, that close relations from a select few humanoid species, such as twins and blood relatives, can understand each other's thoughts without requiring words... And you can do this from the royal capital to a place as far removed as the Mathers dominion?\" \"As already stated, it is a vague thing. Powerful emotions and words that one wishes to convey very strongly can be related. However...\" As Crusch sat, Ferris adopted a casual posture behind her, his kitty ears quivering. \"From how mew put that, mew must have felt something pretty unsettling over that telepathy, right?\" Subaru, put off by Ferris's demeanor, shifted to stand in front of Rem. \"Don't keep us in suspense here. If you know anything about this, say something. Don't just leave Rem twisting in the wind like that. Spill the beans already.\" \"Ooh, mew don't like me now? Besides, intelligence doesn't come for free. You're just a patient and a guest, Subawu. Why should we tell you anything?\" \"You...!\" Properly speaking, Ferris was right. Even if he was a guest on the surface, Subaru's position was that of a patient and an outsider. He could insist it concerned him all he liked, but since he was part of a political faction, only a fool would toss him a bone just because he'd begged for it. But as Subaru cursed his own shallowness, it was Crusch who rebuked Ferris. \"Ferris. Do not be unkind. There is no reason for you to play the villain here. All toying with Subaru Natsuki will earn you is an angry glare from Rem.\" \"Fiiiine.\" Crusch, still seated alone on the sofa, motioned for Subaru to sit in the chair opposite her. \"Self-reflection leads to personal progress. But that depends on the time and situation. I would like to prioritize trading opinions here and now. How about it?\" \"...Sure thing. Hate to take a free ride, but I really want to hear what you have to say.\" Subaru accepted her offer and sat with Rem standing at his side. Crusch began. \"In the Mathers dominion that is, in the fiefdom of Marquis Roswaal dangerous activities have apparently been reported around his manor. Part of the domain has already been placed under lockdown at the marquis's command.\" Subaru's brows rose at the unsettling language. \"Dangerous activities? Lockdown?\" The fact Rem's telepathic connection had been triggered had prepared him for bad news, but even hearing the details made unease churn within him. \"We do not actually know what is occurring within the Mathers dominion. But I can hazard a guess, given that the marquis's support for Emilia in other words, a half-elf as a royal candidate has come to light.\" \"What, you mean the serfs are on stri  They're complaining left and right?\" When Subaru voiced the first misgivings that came to mind, Crusch easily agreed with them. \"That is quite possible, of course. The infamy of the Witch of Jealousy makes prejudice against half-elves a battle she cannot avoid.\" Once again, Subaru couldn't allow the circumstances of her birth to be her shackles. He was growing to hate the faceless mob that talked trash about Emilia without knowing anything about her as a person. \"Your rage is surely misplaced. She chose this path, knowing what she would face.\" \"Misplaced? You mean me or those people? ...So what, they're kicking up trouble in Roswaal's fiefdom for a stupid reason like that? Are these little brush fires that'll burn out, or is it going to turn into a massive firestorm?\" \"Setting aside whether the reasons are petty or not, the summary is sound. This also explains Rem's telepathic reaction.\" Crusch turned to Rem as she spoke, drawing all eyes to the previously silent girl. \"The feelings I am picking up from Sister are partly unease and largely...anger. I believe she did not mean to convey these things but did so subconsciously.\" \"Do these shared sensations between you occur with great frequency?\" \"No, it is quite rare. We are always controlling our thoughts to a certain extent. I believe that in this case, Sister transferred these things to me in spite of self-restraint.\" When Rem reached the latter half of her explanation, she could not conceal the anxiety coloring her words. It was not an exaggeration to say that Ram had the most mental strength of anyone at Roswaal Manor. A crisis that could shake even her restraint was clearly no small matter. And yet, beyond what Ram had let slip telepathically, she had made no effort to call for Rem's aid. Subaru murmured to himself alone as his conclusion burned him up inside. \"It's like she's...trying to keep us from getting involved...\" The only explanation he could come up with was that Ram had told"}, {"text": "Rem of the danger over their mutual link without calling her sister back, because she intended to convey that information to Rem...and avoid letting Subaru know.  Did she want to keep Subaru out of her problems to that extent? \"But she's in trouble, isn't she...?\" The situation was bad enough that it had reached Crusch's ears, there camped in the capital. As was typical, there were few that Emilia could count on, and she had enemies numbering beyond reason. In such circumstances, who would take her side without some kind of ulterior motive? The answer was no one. After all, there was nobody currently at her side who would be her staunch ally. She had left behind the one who would have. No doubt, when Emilia realized that, she would regret what she had done. That was why  Subaru lifted his head and murmured with determination, \"I've...got to go save her, don't I?\" This time, all gazes fell upon him. Crusch raised one eyebrow, and Ferris softly closed his teasing lips. Then Rem tugged on Subaru's sleeve with a nervous look. \"N-no, Subaru, you mustn't...!\" The anxiety and mournful pleading in Rem's eyes startled him. She continued, \"You must do as Lady Emilia and Master Roswaal have told you and concentrate on your own treatment. I, personally, agree with them. You must focus on healing your body for the time be \" \"If I do that, stuff will happen that can never be undone. Rem, it's like that time back when we talked before going into the demon beast forest. We've...got to do something.\" *** Rem's expression stiffened in pain at Subaru's words. They had spoken like this in the past, just before entering the demon beast forest to rescue the abducted children. Subaru had said the same things to Rem when she'd tried to stop him. Those actions had consequences. As a result of his decision, the children had been rescued safe and sound. That was why Rem knew very well what was behind Subaru's resolve now. Keeping Rem at bay as she clung to him, he shifted to look straight at Crusch, seated before him. \"It's as you heard, Crusch. Rem and I will go back to the ma... To where Emilia is. Until things are settled, I'll have to put off the treatm \" Subaru was delivering his verdict as a member of his political camp when Crusch curtly interrupted him by calling out his name. \"Subaru Natsuki.\" Subaru's breath caught under Crusch's penetrating gaze. His heart beat much harder; he had the sinking feeling that he'd forgotten who he was dealing with. Then she coldly stated... \" If you leave this place, it means that you have become my enemy.\" Subaru felt those words as keenly as a blade slicing into his flesh. Then, when the meaning began to dawn on him, like a laceration just beginning to ache... \"Wh-what do you mean by...?\" \"Let me correct your misunderstanding. My treatment of you as a guest and Ferris's healing you is the result of a contract.\" \"Contract...?\" \"Yes, a contract for your care between Emilia and me. My house has received collateral in exchange for treating you as a guest. However...\" As her words trailed off, Crusch put a hand to her chest to indicate herself. \"The circumstances before the royal selection, when the contract was formed, and now are different. Now that we are publicly political enemies, I must take great care in any negotiation with Emilia's camp. It is the same for the contract governing your treatment. If there is any violation of its terms, I have no obligation to uphold an agreement formed before the commencement of the royal selection now that it has begun in earnest.\" To Subaru's ears, the word contract that she kept repeating sounded like promise. It sat very poorly in his chest, mingling with his memories of parting ways with Emilia. Crusch pressed on. \"In these circumstances, your departing from my residence would be a violation, a unilateral abridging of the contract midway. After all, though there is no enmity attached, Emilia and I are enemies.\" Subaru's mind couldn't catch up with Crusch's blunt declaration of war. He understood that the duchess and her people were \"enemies\" on paper. He'd barely finished saying to Rem that he was sorry for leaving himself defenseless in the manor and would adopt the right mindset going forward. And yet, Subaru had yet to fully grasp what that meant. The person standing before him was the greatest enemy standing in his and Emilia's way. \"I did have it all wrong... I thought for a little bit that we might be able to be friends or something.\" *** \"That was just dumb talk over drinks. 'If you can do something, do it...'? I was a fool to take an enemy's words at face value. I'm being petty. Tripping up your opponent is the right thing to do.\" The same hazy sense of alienation that he'd felt at the royal selection conference seeped into his chest. Subaru saw his memory of their conversation over drinks the night before in a new light and felt betrayed, since it was Crusch herself who had told him to do whatever he could. To stand in his way despite those words: Was that not a betrayal? Ferris, silent to that point, spoke as if he couldn't stand to watch. \"...Don't misunderstand, meow!\" His sharp look made Subaru bite his tongue and swallow his words. \"Lady Crusch isn't acting out of malice but kindness. It wouldn't hurt her at all if mew left to return and try to help Lady Emilia \" Crusch interrupted. \"Ferris, stop.\" But Ferris brushed off Crusch's rebuke and glared at Subaru. \"No, I will say it. For such a minor meowsunderstanding, it's far too cruel, so someone has to say it... Subawu, going will do nothing to change things. It's pointless to go. On top of that, you'd be wasting Lady Emeowlia's contract, which she paid for with a fair sum. After the humiliation you went through at the royal palace and what happened with Julius at the parade square, you still don't get it? Staying put, hoping for the best, and focusing on healing your body is the far better choice.\"  Subaru heard something. The sound of something snapping inside himself. He'd been stuffing his anger into a sack within him, and when he realized it was now open, Subaru was seized by such a rage at the humiliation inflicted on him that his teeth cut into his lip. Those provocations were more than enough to harden his resolve. \"I've decided I'm returning to the mansion where Emilia is. It's been a short time, but thanks for your hospitality.\" As Subaru spoke his farewells, Rem shouted to hold him back. \"Subaru!\" But he held up a hand to Rem as he rose from his seat, looking down at Crusch. Crusch folded her arms and closed her eyes. He had no idea what was inside her heart. Ferris, seated beside her, let out a long sigh, his face making his sullen mood clear as he said, \"No respect for others' feelings... Shouldn't a good man take warnings at face value?\" \"Your warning let me make my decision. Thanks.\" Ferris apparently gave up on discussing the matter after Subaru returned his sarcasm. Instead, Crusch unfolded her arms before looking at him and resuming the conversation. \"Subaru Natsuki. Unfortunately, all of this house's dragon carriages for long-distance transportation are already assigned to other tasks. All that I can lend you is a slower freight carriage or a midrange carriage that would require you to dismount and go part of the way on foot.\" \"...Er?\" Subaru's eyes widened. He'd expected her to berate him for unilaterally breaking the contract, but Crusch...almost sounded like she agreed with Subaru's decision. The unexpected reply made Subaru's eyes nearly bulge out of their sockets. She raised an eyebrow with a questioning look before turning toward Ferris. \"Ferris. Did I say something odd?\" Ferris put his hands to his cheeks and squirmed as he replied. \"Even Ferri's dazzled at how incredibly you can adapt, Lady Crusch. But, ah, you aren't actually going to lend Subawu a dragon carriage, are you?\" Crusch nodded in the affirmative. \"It is as I said. I respect the decisions of others. No matter what the decision, it is very important to take responsibility for it. And no matter what burden you bear, you must work to achieve what you want to achieve and bring no dishonor to your soul  Is it not so?\" \"...Yeah, it is. That's exactly it. I don't want my soul to become shameless. If that girl's in trouble, there's no way I can stay here as a patient and spend my days without a care in the world.\" Crusch's affirmation made Subaru uncomfortable, as if he had been gearing up to fight an opponent that didn't plan on doing battle. Perhaps Subaru had conveyed his resolve, because Rem closed her eyes, seemingly berating herself for a single moment. When she opened them again, she had returned to her normal neutral expression. \"In place of my master, let me extend my deepest thanks for everything you have done to date.\" \"I don't mind. There is benefit to us as well. However, I would like to speak to you concerning the last leg of the journey...\" Rem lowered her head, treating Crusch's offer with great courtesy. \"If I may be so bold, we would be grateful for the help. We wish to confirm that the dominion is safe without a moment to spare. However, time is short. It will no doubt take two and a half days to reach the Mathers lands from the royal capital.\" Subaru exclaimed, \"Over two days?! Why? When we came it didn't even take half of one day to get here!\" If his memory was correct, the dragon carriage left Roswaal Manor in the morning, arriving at the royal capital just past noon. Even without a long-distance carriage, the disparity in the lengths of the journeys was too extreme. \"That's impossible now. The Liphas Highway we used to get here cannot be used currently. The season is poor, and fog is covering the road... Therefore, we must take a detour around it.\" \"So what if there's fog on it? If we just cut right through that \" Ferris interrupted, swatting Subaru's opinion down with what was apparently public knowledge. \"It's the White Whale that makes the fog, mew know? If mew stumble across it inside the fog, your life is gone. That's just commeown sense, right?\" Subaru scowled at the unfamiliar term White Whale. But Rem set aside the fact that Subaru didn't understand and proceeded with the larger discussion. As a result of her negotiations, they came to the following terms: Subaru and Rem would borrow a medium-range dragon carriage from the House of Karsten and then board some other dragon carriage at a village along the way to return home as fast as possible. Subaru gritted his teeth over the inconvenient lack of a dragon carriage that could go the whole way without stopping. It was times like this that he painfully missed cars, something that needed only fuel to make it run farther. It was a bad situation that made him want to hurry, but hurry he could not. The fog that covered the highway seemed like a manifestation of the worry spreading before his eyes. The sense that this was a looming bad omen wouldn't stop pricking at Subaru's heart. Once the plan had been hashed out, things moved quickly. In short order, Subaru and Rem were headed toward the front gate of the Crusch villa with their luggage, yet there was already a vehicle awaiting them, stripped of all ornamentation to lighten it, with a single red-skinned land dragon drawing it. Wilhelm was holding the beast's reins as he awaited their arrival. When he noticed Subaru and Rem rushing over, the"}, {"text": "aged man bowed deeply. \"This is the fastest land dragon that this house is able to lend under these circumstances. Even so, I dearly regret that it is inferior to the long-range dragons employed by the marquis...\" With Rem taking the reins, Subaru stood beside her and looked at Wilhelm. \"I'm immensely grateful you're lending me anything at all... I'd love to say I'll return it for sure, but...\" His tone dropped at the end. Wilhelm was the only one to see off Subaru and Rem at the front gate. They had said their farewells to Crusch and Ferris at the entry hall of the mansion. The least he could do was politely return the dragon carriage later as a final parting of ways. \"In my position, I can but obey Lady Crusch's decision. Once you depart from the mansion, my master and your master will no doubt become mutual enemies  This dragon carriage will serve as a parting gift for the half-fulfilled treatment and sword instruction.\" \"But that's... I don't think they said one word about that when we left the mansion.\" At the very least, the farewell from master and vassal suited them almost too well. \"I pray your efforts shall be valiant, and that you will strive to make your choices proudly, without shame to your soul.\" \"With Lady Crusch being this nice to mew, you'd better make up with Lady Emilia in a hurry. Now get going already!\" That last sentence probably left the strongest impression. There hadn't been any hint of the kind of consideration he felt from Wilhelm, but... \"I, too, serve Lady Crusch, so I am somewhat familiar with my master's way of thinking.\" \"Incidentally, when did you start working for her?\" \"I believe it is just over half a year now...\" \"Hey, that's way shorter than I thought!! From how you talked about it, I thought you'd been master and servant for years and years!!\" Rem was piling luggage onto the dragon carriage while Subaru and Wilhelm traded words in that manner. Rem took the reins again and gave the land dragon's snout a gentle stroke. \" Understand? Then do as I say. That's it, good boy, good boy.\" \"Rem, how's it looking?\" \"He seems to have a slightly wild disposition, but I have just instructed him who is on top, so there shall be no trouble. I believe he will obey my commands.\" \"R-right... Gotta establish the hierarchy. You really know how to crack the whip, huh?\" As a result of Rem's \"conversation\" with the land dragon, they seemed to be getting along. Given the fact they'd be racing together for over a day's worth of time, the relationship between driver and land dragon was crucial. Rem discussed their plan. \"Taking a detour across the plains to avoid the fog, we should pass through two villages on our way to the marquis's lands. We can likely procure and switch to another dragon carriage at a village named Hanumas near the border.\" \"Incidentally, how long till we get to Hanumas?\" \"It will likely take fourteen to fifteen hours. If we run the dragon carriage into the ground after we switch, we might be able to arrive at the fiefdom in another half a day...\" Subaru scratched at his head, biting back his words of dismay before bowing his head to Wilhelm. \"Thanks for everything. It's a shame to leave practice half-finished like this...\" \"I believe I have taught you the most important things. Beyond this, if you desire to increase your skill at the sword, there is no better way than to continue swinging one. May you stay in good health.\" Wilhelm offered his hand, Subaru accepted it, and the two exchanged a good, hard shake. Rem took over the driver's seat as Subaru entered the small carriage. Poking his head out of the window, he gave one last wave to Wilhelm, who was seeing them off from the front gate. \"Well, we're heading out. If fate allows, I'd love to spend some time together again.\" \"If you enjoy being welcomed with blows from a wooden sword, come back anytime.\" Wilhelm gave a gentlemanly smile as he saw off Subaru and Rem with a very fitting joke. The land dragon neighed and began gently picking up speed. The carriage accelerated further, leaving the Crusch villa farther and farther behind them. The figure at the front gate kept his head bowed until Subaru could no longer see him. They headed downhill, passing the guardhouse that formed the entrance to the Nobles' District, heading straight down the main street to the gate that linked the royal capital to the highway outside that was their destination. Thanks to the land dragon's blessing, the vibrations in Subaru's rear were exceedingly soft. He nervously looked out the small window, unable to bear the sense of urgency inside him. Leaving the streets of the royal capital behind, his field of vision was dominated by green grassland and blue sky and nothing else. Since Rem was concentrating on driving, he couldn't speak to her, so there was nothing for him to do while in transit. Inside the carriage, Subaru sank into a sea of thought. Crusch had declared that they could not lend a dragon carriage for long-range use. Accordingly, the feel of the passenger seat was much shoddier. It was probably for rushing servants from place to place. He'd entered and left the Crusch residence in the blink of an eye. The fact that the duchess had kindly lent him a single dragon carriage upon his departure left Subaru in a tangle of complicated thoughts that were difficult to put into words. Only the night before, he'd judged her as strict but not indifferent. The back-and-forth before his departure had only added to the complexity. What he did understand was why many people wanted to converse with her. No doubt Emilia would have to work hard to build up a network of personal connections as Crusch had. That was a necessary hardship for her. Yet unnecessary ones burdened Emilia as well. \"That's why...I need to get over there, and fast...\" Of course, these were political questions and a matter of connections between people of privilege. Subaru did not have such an inflated view of himself as to think he would be of help with those issues. He knew there would be difficult problems where he would be nothing but dead weight. But it wasn't in him to use his powerlessness as a reason to cast aside someone he cared about when she was in trouble. If he poured his heart and soul into it, he was certain that he could overcome these obstacles. Subaru Natsuki possessed that power. \"Nothing will work unless I'm with her... Now she'll understand that.\" It was unfounded certainty no, it was nothing but hope. Emilia had fallen into peril. If he was there, galloping to her rescue, somehow everything would work out. That was his slender, flickering hope, in danger of being snuffed out by the wind. He wanted to prove his worth. He needed to. If Emilia was in distress, Subaru would save her. No, that's how it had to be. Subaru needed Emilia to fall into peril so that he could discover his own value and show others that he had worth. \"That's right... It's no good if I'm not with her. For sure...!\" In the back of his mind was the incredibly lovely girl with silver hair. Her smiling face was enveloped by an amorphous darkness, buried by malice attempting to quench her sublime spirit. *** With that vision in his mind, Subaru closed his eyes and bit his lip. In the carriage, he silently let the time pass, alone. With the exception of Rem in the driver's seat, he was isolated in that place, unable to sense the presence of any other.  And he never noticed the faint twisting of his lips. Late that day, instead of Hanumas, where they had planned to switch carriages, they rested at a stopover town ahead of it named Fleur. Rem had suggested it as the sun was setting, just before night began to fall. \"Traveling by night will increase the probability of encountering bandits and demon beasts. I am also concerned about passing close to the fog, so I believe it's best to lodge at a nearby inn tonight.\" \"How long is it to the halfway point at Hanumas? We can't just rush the rest of the way there?\" \"It would take until midnight to arrive at Hanumas from here. We might not be able to get an inn, and procuring a dragon carriage is difficult in the middle of the night, so...\" \"Ugh... That's true. So it's not like we can just get there and everything will work out, then.\" Rem had been thinking while Subaru was mulling things over. Naturally, she had made her proposal with much deeper consideration than Subaru's. Though he was irritated at having to stop, he accepted Rem's suggestion. \"So let's get an inn here in Fleur and head out first thing in the morning. That'll give the land dragon some rest and maybe cut down on the time needed to find a carriage in Hanumas?\" \"Yes. If we leave early in the morning and things go well in Hanumas midway, we just might be able to make it to the mansion before nightfall tomorrow.\" As Rem replied, her voice was filled with relief that Subaru had accepted her proposal without complaint. Fortunately, their hope of finding an inn upon arrival in Fleur was granted. They entrusted the land dragon to the stable adjoining the inn, filled their bellies with an exceedingly crude evening meal, bathed briefly, and dove into bed so that they could rise immediately at daybreak. But when Subaru thought of Emilia, his sense of urgency and impatience drove off all drowsiness. \"Can't sleep...\" Desperately trying to doze off, all he ended up doing was blindly changing positions in bed over and over. After all, he'd spent quite some time at Roswaal's mansion and Crusch's villa, the finest laps of luxury that world had to offer; the hard bed of a backwater inn made it hard for him to sleep. Of course, given that he wanted to wake up as early in the morning as possible, curses for time and his own body welled up his chest. He didn't need more time to think. What he needed was an opportunity to link the conclusions drawn in his mind to tangible actions. Thus, all he yearned for was the morning sun. How many times had he glared at the ceiling and at the backs of his eyelids? How many times had he turned in bed? A sound slid into his eardrums; a knock at the doorway, then someone hesitantly opened the door. \"...Subaru, may I come in?\" When he lifted his head and looked over, he saw Rem's upper body leaning into the room. She'd slipped out of the servant's outfit he was used to and had changed into a thin blue nightgown he'd seen at some point before. Rem, realizing Subaru was awake, looked relieved as she headed toward the bed. Subaru asked her, \"What's wrong? If you're here to say you feel lonely and can't sleep by yourself, it's a hard day for it. If I was a little calmer, I'd have a really good laugh at that, but right now...\" \"That proposal makes my heart flutter, but no. I could not sleep, so I wanted to talk a little.\" \"I see... You, too, then. Well, nothing we can do about that, huh?\" Subaru crawled out of bed as Rem timidly sat down by his side. Feeling like their shoulders were close enough to touch, he turned his attention to her pale face and opened his mouth. \"I feel bad that you've had to take care of me ever since we left the mansion, Rem.\" \"Please do not apologize for that. I do not think"}, {"text": "of anything as hardship if it is for your sake.\" Her strong shake of her head pricked at Subaru's conscience. He knew that was what Rem would say. Ever since the demon beast uproar, she had been his ally through thick and thin. Ironically, she was probably the one who most understood his worth. \"...Finding out by telepathy must've made you way more worried about the mansion than me. And here you are worrying about me on top of that  We still don't know that anything's happened, right?\" Rem nodded stiffly in reply to his question and lowered her eyes. \" Don't worry about it. I'm sure something rough has happened, but she's not cute enough to fold that easily. We'll get back soon. I'll manage to take care of it somehow.\" Subaru smiled with unwarranted cheerfulness, trying to lessen even a little the burden weighing Rem down. He wanted to make her feel at ease. As was typical for him, Subaru's claims were baseless. It wasn't as if he had some brilliant, tangible plan to overcome difficult obstacles. Anyone ought to have doubted a declaration like that. And yet... \" Yes. I believe you, Subaru.\" Rem smiled pleasantly at him with relief, as if ten thousand cavalrymen had come galloping to her aid. *** Realizing that her smile had captivated him, Subaru's face reddened as he averted his gaze. He'd said something embarrassing, and her acceptance of it had been equally shameless. Subaru immediately turned his back to her without continuing. He didn't know what Rem must have thought of him.  His breath caught when he suddenly felt the weight and warmth of her body against him. \"M-Miss Rem? Er... I wonder, why are you hugging me like this?\" The soft sensation against his back and her breath made Subaru unconsciously slip into a more formal form of address. \"...Because I want to.\" The answer she gave in response, rich with meaning, carried a warmth that set off alarm bells in his heart. Behind Subaru, still sitting on the bed, Rem had her arms around him, as if to cover him up. Her feminine softness, sweet scent, and arms around him drenched Subaru's entire body in warmth. \"Er, ah... This feeling is...\" Subaru, sensing it from head to toe, tilted his head when he suddenly realized that the \"warmth\" Rem was imparting was something apart from body heat greatly resembling something he had felt over the past several days. In reply to Subaru's misgivings, Rem maintained the contact and opened her mouth. \"I am healing your gate, the same as Master Felix did for you, Subaru. After all, I had several opportunities to watch while standing right beside you. Compared to Master Felix, perhaps I cannot do much more than put you at ease a little, but...\" \"R-right, treatment! Treatment, yes! I see, I see. Yes, yes. E-exactly, huh. Ha-ha.\" Feeling embarrassed at his impure delusions, Subaru glossed things over with a hollow laugh. He felt Rem smile slightly behind him as the strength of the mana flowing into him increased. \"Whoa, incredible... This feels way better than Ferris's stuff ramming into me.\" \"Thank you very much. But that assessment is unfair to Master Felix.\" \"Not at all. I'm totally serious. It feels good and...makes me feel...sleepy...\" Maybe the effect of the treatment was inferior to Ferris's, but Rem had far greater consideration for her patient. He felt like he was immersed in warm water, wrapped in softness. He felt comfortable, relaxed, and drowsy, so he did not catch Rem's faint whisper. \"That is most likely...the difference between our feelings toward you, Subaru.\" His head was slipping down when Rem brought her lips close to his ear. \"It's all right to fall asleep. I'll lay you down in bed properly, cover you with blankets, and leave after I've had my fill of watching you sleep.\" \"I wasn't worried about my belly being out in the open, and that's quite a line at the end... But when you're working so hard, how can I fall asleep in the middle of it, Rem?\" It was petty stubbornness, but he didn't want to come off as rude after everything she'd done. He sensed Rem beaming as he felt her hands touch his head. The warmth coming from her palms increased, making his eyelids even heavier. \"Aww, crap... Why am I...? I mean, it's...hard for you, too, but... Rem, why are you...doing this for me...?\" He rubbed his eyes, irrationally resisting the drowsiness, continuing to speak to hold on to his consciousness. \"Rem, why...so much...for me...?\" \"Because I want to... I do not need any other reason.\" He let go of his mind before her words really sank in. Even so, he heard Rem reply, \"I want.\" That part was important. That was probably the starting point for all the thoughts enveloping Subaru  What would happen when he returned to the mansion and reunited with Emilia? He was full of anxiety. \"She'll...yell at me at first, won't she...?\" Subaru's eyes fell as he shook his head. As he wobbled, Rem's arms gently embraced him to provide support. \"It'll be all right, Subaru. You're a wonderful person. With time and a proper meeting, if you tell her how you feel, I'm sure she will understand.\" \"Is that...so. Guess...I am, for you to think...like this about me...\" Sound grew distant. No, his mind had begun to withdraw from reality. The comfortable drowsiness coursed through him like a curse, his eyes closing to become a cage around his mind. Just before his consciousness completely slipped away from reality, Subaru thought he felt the faint touch of Rem's lips against his neck as she said, \"So please keep me in a little corner of your thoughts, and don't go anywhere else, Subaru...\" Subaru no longer had the mental strength to reply to the seemingly pleading whisper as his mind gently sank into the darkness.  What woke Subaru up was the feeling of hot sunrays burning his eyelids. He remained lying in the bed as he absentmindedly lifted a hand to block out the sun. The light entering through the room's large window was strong; with him covered in bed up to his shoulders, they made him so hot that it was hard to sleep. He indulged in that feeling for several long seconds before enough blood flowed into his half-asleep head for him to realize... \"The...sun's up?!\" Subaru threw off his blankets, leaped off the bed, and sprinted to the window. When he pushed it open, a cool breeze flowed into the room, and he gazed dumbfounded at the sun watching him from high in the sky. That sight struck him with the terrible truth. \"No way... At a time like this... Am I an idiot?!\" Having arrived at the despairing conclusion he'd overslept, he rushed with all haste to Rem's bedroom next door in the inn. Subaru knocked furiously on the door before throwing it open. \"Rem! Wake up! We massively overslept!\" Cursing the fact that he'd slept nearly half the day away, he scanned the room in desperation. Anyway, he had to get Rem up so that they could resume their march  Or so he had thought. \"...Rem?\" The room was completely empty. There was no bulge on the bed. The sheets were untouched. Subaru had a bad feeling about the lack of evidence that anyone had been in the bed at all. The room held no warmth from a human presence. Unable to even see any luggage, he ran out of the room to the inn's front desk. The innkeeper who had greeted him and Rem the previous evening was sitting at the desk, smiling sociably when he noticed the boy. \"My, my, good morning. It would seem you slept very well last night...\" Subaru did not return the innkeeper's courtesy, slamming his fist on the desk to drive his question home. \"What happened to the blue-haired girl who came here with me?!\" The innkeeper reacted with surprise. Seeing Subaru's expression, he raised his hands in an attempt to mollify him. \"D-dear guest... Please calm down; you will disturb the other patrons...\" \"Answer me! Where is she...? Where did Rem go?!\" \"Y-your companion... Who came with you on...the dragon carriage late last night...?\" \"That's not an answer!\" Cowed by Subaru's threatening demeanor, the innkeeper practically shouted his reply. \"Hear me out!! She left during the night! She left on the same dragon carriage you came in on! She paid for your stay and left a bag for you on the way out! She actually paid enough for you to lodge here for several days, so there is no problem whatsoe \" \"No...problem...you say?\" The innkeeper had tried to take care not to provoke Subaru, but the words he chose enraged him further. \"There damn well...is a problem!!\" Raising an angry voice, Subaru slammed his arm against the bag on top of the counter and clutched his head. Welling up inside him was distrust. Doubt. Anger. Sadness. The irrational feelings wrestled with one another in his head as Subaru tore at his black hair and looked up to the sky. \"Rem... What... What the hell are you thinking...?!\" The fact that even the person who knew him best had failed to understand him weighed down on him as he wailed in despair. To Subaru. By the time you read this letter, you will no doubt be quite angry with me. I will not ask you to forgive me for leaving you to head for the manor. However, please understand. It is dangerous to bring you to the mansion as you are now. I am thinking not only of the state of the mansion but the state of your body, Subaru. Therefore, please wait for me here in Fleur village. I will be back for you when everything is taken care of. I have left behind all the money. I have already paid the innkeeper thoroughly, so you can stay for several days without any trouble. Please take care of yourself, and please wait until I return I beg you.  From, Your Rem CHAPTER 3 ***  He'd been betrayed. Betrayed. Betrayed. Betrayed. \"Rem, you idiot...!\" When Subaru read the letter accompanying the bag left for him, he spat in irrepressible rage. He was sitting on a hard sofa in a lounge on the first floor of the inn. No one else was around. The reason for that was his prolonged, violent behavior. The innkeeper who'd led him to the lounge hadn't even been able to look him in the eye when answering his questions. A wise decision. That moment, anyone who appeared in Subaru's line of sight was his enemy. \"And I thought...at least you understood me...!\" The letter was written completely in carefully penned I-script. Subaru, who was still learning the written language, couldn't read anything except I-script characters. Rem had been considerate in that sense, but in light of her abandonment of him, that only shoved Subaru's heart deeper into darkness. The letter overflowed with concern for Subaru's well-being, but so much sadness filled his head that he had no chance to realize that. He gleaned only one thought from reading the letter. \"Even you think I'm useless and powerless, Rem...\" His conversations at the Crusch residence, his dialogue with Rem the previous night, and Emilia's lecture in the royal capital came rushing back to him. Words upon words piled on him in their voices, berating Subaru for his helplessness and incompetence. He'd brushed them all aside and seized the perfect opportunity to prove to them Subaru Natsuki's value or so he had thought. He'd thought that at least Rem believed he was worth something, yet... \"Yeah, I get it...! You're tellin' me that I'm dead weight, so you're cutting me loose... And if I don't believe you, you want me to look at how much I've been relying on you...!\" Subaru spat, clenching his teeth as he rose to his feet. The luggage and the allowance Rem had left"}, {"text": "were lined up on the table in the lounge. There was quite a lot of money in the sack. Apparently Roswaal had left a small fortune in Rem's hands. With that much money at his disposal, Subaru wouldn't have any trouble with daily necessities for quite some time. He knew that was exactly what Rem had in mind when she left it with him. She underestimated him. Did she really think she could betray his trust, leave him with nothing but money, and expect him to meekly kneel and submit? There was no way he'd do as she pleased. No, Subaru was coming up with all kinds of ways he could use money to break the stalemate. \"If I hire a dragon carriage and driver, I might be able to get to the mansion... That said...\" Rem had made careful preparations to trip up any such plans Subaru might have. According to the innkeeper, that village didn't have any establishment that could lend a dragon coach. In addition, the appearance of the \"fog\" had thrown off the schedules of carriages that regularly connected the various villages. There was no dragon coach at any price. No doubt Rem had begun planning everything out as soon as they'd lodged at that village inn the night before. It was as if she was laughing at Subaru's paper-thin knowledge, politely smashing his options flat one by one...all to strand him in that village and stop him from returning to the mansion. \"Then I'll just have to hoof it... That's stupid. I don't have a map, and I can't deal with monsters.\" If bandits or demon beasts appeared, that chapter would be over. He'd seen world maps several times over, but he didn't know the local lay of the land. Wandering around aimlessly would reduce his chances of arriving at the mansion to practically zero. It was all a result of his own ignorance. Subaru's lack of education and strength kept letting him down. He had never anticipated having to deal with bandits and demon beasts to begin with. The fact that he'd never carried even a single sword on him was proof of that. He'd had Wilhelm instruct him in the art, but he could do nothing with that training if he set out empty-handed. Subaru hadn't taken such normal, prudent measures because he was relying on Rem. The price of an overnight stay at an inn was far less than the fare for a dragon carriage. Even if he had a small fortune, his inability to procure something of value made it worthless. It was the cost of his lack of education, which was the direct result of Subaru's letting numerous opportunities to study slip away. \"Well, I can't help that now. I've gotta do what I can with what I have.\" Subaru himself was the root cause of the stalemate keeping him penned in. His knees bounced in annoyance as he tried to pretend he wasn't well aware of that fact. \"So no hoofing it. I have to get a dragon carriage... There's gotta be a way. Think.\" Subaru put a hand to his forehead, desperately reviewing everything he'd seen and heard in that world and everything he'd learned from the people in his original world, trying to come up with a plan. *** He ran through every memory and shred of knowledge in his head, focusing all his body's resources above his neckline. Then he looked at the possibilities that might exist for breaking out of his cage. \"This village...has no establishment that can lend a dragon carriage. The regularly scheduled carriages aren't available...meaning...\" The village was now occupied by its original residents, travelers who'd arrived by regular carriage, and  \"Maybe there's someone who came in on their own dragon carriage, like Rem and I did, who stopped over?\" If anyone were to enter and leave the village freely, they would have to have their own means of transportation. That very inn had stables for the use of its guests; his thought couldn't be far off the mark. \"To have a dragon carriage you'd have to be rich... No, a merchant would be perfect. A merchant who hasn't settled down is either working for someone else or a peddler going around with a horse-drawn wagon. That's just basic.\" The lantern light of Subaru's extinguished hopes began to flicker once more. To find the right person, Subaru immediately went to the innkeeper and explained. At first, the innkeeper was reluctant, but he introduced several merchants, albeit with a strained expression. \"But most traveling merchants will be intent on shipping goods to their destination. I don't know if any would be willing to take on someone as a passenger...\" \"Well, I'll give it a try anyway. Thank you very much for telling me about them.\" Thanking the considerate innkeeper, Subaru visited the traveling merchants one by one.  But in line with the innkeeper's concerns, negotiations proved very difficult. Just as he had claimed, they had little inclination to alter their travel routes, but the situation was far direr than that. Each and every one responded to Subaru's suggestion the same way, shaking their heads. \"The Mathers dominion? Sorry, but I can't go there now,\" said a very scrawny man as he ended negotiations with Subaru. He stood with his canopied dragon coach as his eyes lingered on Subaru with some sympathy. \"I hate to say this, but I don't think I'll be the only one saying no. In my case, though, it has to do with the cargo I'm carrying.\" \"Cargo?\" \"I'm transporting weapons, armor, and other metal wares. Rumor has it prices in the royal capital for this stuff are through the roof, so tomorrow I'm rushing there with my dragon carriage. My profits are on the line.\" The man patted the cargo in his dragon carriage as he spoke, gazing distantly in the direction of the setting sun. Then, when he saw the slump of Subaru's shoulders, he adjusted the position of his bandanna and said, \"There're a lot of people who use this as a stopover to the royal capital like I do. That's why this village is pretty well-off for its size. So there're merchants who come in twos and threes but... They'll probably all turn you down.\" \"...Yeah. You're the sixth one to say no.\" \"That's because every decent merchant is rushing to the royal capital with revenues on the mind. No way around it. After all, there's the uproar over the royal selection. Everyone's caught the scent of gold.\" \"So that's how it is, huh...\" The man's reply and sober expression made Subaru frown as he surmised the reason for his successive failures namely, he'd misread the merchants from a business perspective. It wasn't the prospect of a temporary payday that was luring them to the royal capital but the sight of bigger, longer-term profits. For a trader to abandon such plans to accommodate Subaru would be nothing short of madness. The merchant continued. \"On top of that, there're all kinds of fishy rumors about the Mathers dominion flying around. Even if you find someone who's not heading to the capital for profit, they probably still won't go.\" \"Fishy rumors...? Related to the royal selection, by any chance?\" \"Groundless speculation, I think. There's talk that one of the candidates is a half-demon and the lord of those lands is supporting her... But I haven't heard the details of the election yet. Do you know anything?\" \"...No, I don't know much about it.\" Subaru lied on the spot because he didn't want to be exposed as a related party, which would only make negotiations harder. But covering for Emilia's lineage still left a strange feeling in his heart. As Subaru grimaced like he'd swallowed a bitter pill, the man suddenly clapped his hands together. \"Oh, that's right. I just remembered someone who might accept your proposal.\" \"Seriously?! I was pretty much at the point of giving up and falling to the dark side here!\" \"I'm not sure what you just said, but it's true. Come on, I'll introduce you.\" The man patted Subaru's shoulder with an easygoing look and beckoned him forward. Subaru followed a little behind him until he pointed to a building across the road. \"I'm pretty sure he's been there since last night. Wait here, I'll call him over for you.\" The man left through the wide-open double doors as Subaru watched him go, looking up at the sign. \"...I feel like it probably says 'Tavern' or something...\" He had only moderate confidence, since the sign he was looking at was written in Ro-script, which he had only just begun to learn. The faint whiff of alcohol wafting from the entrance made Subaru about 89 percent sure he was right. The energetic way the man headed in suggested the people inside would be troublesome. \"What is this person doing, glugging alcohol when he's traveling...? Doesn't this world have laws against steering dragon carriages while under the influence...? Back in my world, you'd lose your license with one violation.\" Not that he was sure there were dragon carriage licenses to begin with. If the newcomer in question showed up looking drunk and dangerous, Subaru resolved to make a run for it and spend as much money as he needed to do so. And just as Subaru hardened such tragic resolve, the man came back outside. \"Sorry for the wait. Here he is. Hey, Otto, introduce yourself.\" The man roughly dragged along a young man, practically tossing him forward as they approached. He had gray-colored hair and looked no more than a year or two older than Subaru, though he was a fair bit shorter. He had a slender and fairly symmetrical face. Subaru deemed that, at the very least, this was not the drunkard he had feared. \"My name's Subaru Natsuki. Sorry to drag you out here. I heard that you just might accept my request, so... Ughh! You stink! You totally reek of booze!\" His efforts to get negotiations started on the right foot were immediately short-circuited by the scent of alcohol wafting from the other party. The young man before him glowered sullenly, giving off a stench so strong that Subaru's stomach was on the verge of emptying itself. He might not look scary or dangerous, but he was a tottering drunkard nonetheless. \"Why hello, hic. Let me introduce myself. My name, hic, is Otto, hic.\" He hiccupped three times during his brief greeting. His face red from drunkenness, the young man named Otto looked between Subaru and the other man. \"So what is it that y'wanted? Business? Was it business, hic? My business is, hic, ah-ha-ha-ha, hic. It's kind of a joke right now, hic.\" Finally, Otto squatted down and suddenly burst into laughter. Subaru, sensing that was the sound of his hopes grinding to a halt, shot a hard glare toward the man who'd introduced them. On the receiving end of that gaze, the man quickly pointed back at Otto. \"Wait, wait! I didn't deceive you!\" \"If you actually meant for this to be an introduction, I'm seriously doubting your head's screwed on straight. It's not fun getting arrested for drunk driving. A student would get sent to the principal just for being in this state.\" Subaru had salivated at the prospect of finding a solution, and yet the man introduced to him was a drunkard. The man sighed at Subaru's words and roughly shook the squatting Otto's shoulders. \"Otto! Hey, get up, damn you! You're the one who told me to introduce you to anyone who could turn your situation around! What, you're going to let booze ruin it all?!\" \"A way to turn things around ?!\" Otto's ears quivered, while his eyes, dead until that point, completely changed. With the support of the man's hand, he rose to his feet, as if his drunken state had never been. \"I have been most impolite. My name is Otto Suwen. I am a humble"}, {"text": "independent merchant, making his way in life as a traveling peddler.\" Otto faced Subaru and assumed an expression so crisp one could almost hear the snap to attention. While Subaru was speechless at the instant turnaround, Otto examined him from head to toe. \"I see. It seems that he has a certain degree of status. He certainly has the makings of a good customer. Mr. Kety, thank you very much for introducing us.\" \"Sure thing. You'll be all right from here out, yes? I'll get going, then. Don't forget to keep your chin up. And you owe me one, Otto.\" Otto had brightened to the point one would doubt he'd ever been in his drinks, so Mr. Kety patted his chest with relief and departed. Subaru watched the man who'd made the friendly gesture leave before turning back toward Otto. The young man had scrutinized him and acknowledged him as someone he could do business with. Otto clapped his hands together, smiling broadly, and began, \"Well then, let us talk business... What is it that my customer desires?\" Subaru's breath caught, knowing he could not let him or that chance escape, and he got down to brass tacks. \"This is a bit of a far-out request to make, but...\" With that preamble, Subaru explained the situation, careful about what not to say. If Otto said no, he was finished. He spoke as naturally as he could despite his tension as he talked business. And then... After Subaru gave him a simplified explanation of events, Otto thought about it a little, then nodded. \"Mm, I do not mind accepting that at all.\" Hearing his well-formed reply, seemingly coming from an entirely different person than the one brought before him, Subaru grabbed him with both hands in surprise and gave him a good, hard shake. \"Th-thank you! I see, you'll do it! That would be a huge help! Seriously, a huge help!\" \"Oww! Ow, ow, ow! D-don't squeeze so hard! P-please wait, I'm glad that you are satisfied, but I have conditions, too!\" Otto freed his captured arms from the shaking and retreated a step from Subaru as he spoke. The word conditions made Subaru tilt his head. Now that his hands were free, Otto gave a light wave. \"My dragon carriage is a resource for my business... Or rather, my lifeline. I cannot part with it lightly. Of course, this will be lending aid rather than formally loaning the carriage, particularly because there are many disquieting things happening in the Mathers lands at the moment.\" \"That's only natural. I won't go as far as to say you can jack up the price, though.\" Subaru was a little worried that he'd be subject to price gouging. All he could offer was what he had on hand. If that wasn't enough, he'd have to get the price cut somehow. Seeing Subaru's wariness, Otto gently loosened the corners of his mouth. \"I suppose not. Then for all the money you have here...yes?\" And so, Otto struck first in the negotiations, seizing the initiative as he thrust his conditions to the fore. No doubt he'd already deduced from Subaru's demeanor how much money was in the bag. He pressed his strategy, firmly controlling the pace of negotiations to enhance his own profits even a little, just like a textbook merchant. It was mouth versus mouth, tongue versus tongue. The battle had begun, a verbal clash pitting the speech and business acumen of both parties against each other  Well, not quite. \"Is that okay? All right. I'll hand this bag to you, then. Can we leave right away?\" Shock overcame Otto as Subaru readily handed him the whole bag. The weight of the purse made Otto swallow as he nervously looked at Subaru. \"Wha...? This isn't how it goes!! Normally, both people lay out their demands and then start the negotiations to find common ground, don't they?! It's never this eas \" \"It'd be a waste of time, and I'm not going to win any verbal sparring matches anyway. There's no meaning in fighting a pointless battle, and if what's in that bag is enough, you'll be granting my request regardless.\" If all the money he had on hand resolved everything, it was a bargain as far as Subaru was concerned. Otto scowled at Subaru's calm demeanor, probably wondering if he'd been too hasty. \"This is... Perchance I've been introduced to a very troublesome individual.\" \"Relax. I don't intend to cause you any trouble. Not on purpose, anyway.\" \"Are you aware that the way you phrased that only makes me even more concerned?!\" Even Otto, a man he'd just met, was indignant at his exceedingly unconvincing statements. However, he sighed in apparent resignation and adjusted his grip on the bag in his hands. \"Understood. I presented my condition and you immediately accepted. I do have pride as a merchant, after all. Just allow me to see exactly how much money this... Ehh?! Wh-what is this fortune here?! What are you doing handing off something like this so ea...? Uaaagh.\" Checking the contents of the bag, Otto was so surprised at the amount of money that his nausea returned. As Otto squatted, Subaru stood behind him, clutching a fist as if he finally had hope in his hand. So many obstacles had been placed in his path, but he'd overcome them all somehow. He still didn't know the true nature of the obstacle blocking Emilia's path, but if he stood at her side, he'd no doubt find out. And that was the kind of problem only Subaru could solve. \"Just wait. Soon...soon.\" The twisted smile on Subaru's lips was plain for anyone to see. That smile might have come over him from the thought of fulfilling his objective of saving Emilia. Perhaps it had another cause. Even he didn't know, since he didn't even realize he was smiling at all. Subaru enjoyed the gentle rocking as he gazed at the rolling landscape. The sky, on the verge of evening, was dyed orange; soon, night would fall. Normal travelers would be preparing to camp or lodge at a nearby village at that time of day. It seemed that only the likes of Subaru and Otto would choose to set out when they did. Otto said, \"So the destination is in the Mathers domain, the marquis's own mansion, on the condition that we ride right through half the night to shorten time as much as possible... I accepted it because a fee is a fee, but this is reckless, you understand?\" \"I don't wanna hear it from a guy who instantly changes his mind at the sight of money. Please. My future's riding on this.\" \"I'll do my best. My own future is riding on this, too, after all.\" As Otto spoke, he guided the land dragon with the reins as it raced across the ground. The dragon carriage Otto owned was a large, canopied vehicle for hauling freight, so his land dragon was correspondingly huge and powerful. Subaru was concerned that such an apparently heavy beast would lack in speed, but Otto had explained, \"It makes up for that with endurance. This is an especially hardy species even among long-distance land dragons. It could run for three days straight without getting worn out.\" \"You'd think running for three days straight would wear out the people riding it instead.\" \"Two years ago, I had to do that to not let a particular business opportunity slip. Humans can go through a lot if they're ready to risk death to achieve it. Having said that, I keeled over just after trade negotiations were over, and I hovered between life and death for about a week afterward...\" \"Like you're ready to risk death, huh.\" As Subaru watched the side of the merchant's face, Otto looked toward him with a look that seemed to say, \"What?\" Subaru silently waved him off, averting his eyes to face forward as he put his elbows on his knees and his chin on his hands. \"I'm quite sorry, I never imagined I'd be carrying a passenger, so I never prepared proper seating for one,\" Otto said. \"Hey, I'm the one who pushed for this, and I don't mind a little pain in my butt. That blessing keeping the wind from tossing me around is more than enough for me.\" Otto's dragon carriage, meant for the simple objective of hauling cargo from place to place, had no extra space for passengers to ride. Naturally, that left Subaru with no choice but to sit next to the other young man on the driver's seat. Otto continued, \"If you get sleepy, it might be a little rough, but please use the wagon. I have to camp frequently myself, so I have a number of blankets on hand.\" \"That's very gracious of you... So since I don't have to switch dragon carriages anymore, we can just leave Hanumas aside and keep on going, right?\" \"That is correct. As a stopover, Hanumas is more affluent than Fleur, but I have plenty of food and water as it is. This is an urgent request, after all, so we'll bypass it.\" No doubt he was very accustomed to traveling. Though they had set out on their journey without a plan, Otto didn't show a single shred of concern as he kept his grip on the reins. Otto himself had probably already traveled this route several times over. As Subaru watched the side of his face, he sensed a gravitas that belied the great similarity in their ages. Subaru bit his tongue as he unwittingly compared the difference in experience and courage between them. \"Hey, why did you agree to this, anyway? I have no idea why you said yes.\" \"Y-you just came right out and asked a very difficult question, Mr. Natsuki.\" From the side, Subaru saw a strained smile on Otto's face, but the amiable atmosphere soon returned. Since he had arrived here, Subaru had rarely been addressed by his family name. Feeling a bit strange at being called that for the first time in forever, he realized that he'd thrown a fastball straight at something the other party didn't really want to discuss. \"Well, can't take it back now... Confess, and things will go easier for you.\" \"Yes, Officer. I didn't mean to do it, honest... Wait, why does this feel like I did something wrong?! I didn't mean to do it; it was an accident!\" Otto followed up his exaggerated reaction to Subaru's joking comment by slowly turning his head with a sullen look. \"The wagon behind us is filled to the brim with my cargo... What do you think is inside?\" \"...Now that I'm looking at it, seems like vases or something. What, were you carrying artwork?\" \"Close, but not quite. What I'm selling isn't what's outside but what's on the inside. The pots are filled with high-quality oil. Originally, I planned to haul these to the northern nation of Gusteko, but...\" Otto's shoulders slumped, his abject expression making plain that things had not gone as expected. \"I wonder if it is an effect of the royal selection? The path between Gusteko and Lugunica has been temporarily closed. I tried to plead my case that I couldn't get my goods to market... But they ended up chasing me away with swords.\" In a country as cold as Gusteko, you should be able to make a killing selling oil, but it was more of a great wasteland than a market. To add insult to injury, Otto had sold off metal wares at fire-sale prices to buy the oil he could no longer trade. As a result, he'd forfeited an excellent chance to sell metal wares on top of losing access to the market where he would have sold the oil instead. This was apparently why he'd drunk himself into a stupor. \"There's no way I can sell a large amount of oil like this in Lugunica for a fair price, and if"}, {"text": "I sell it at bargain prices again, I'll be bankrupt. And so, I was halfway to throwing my life away when you appeared, Mr. Natsuki.\" \"And what I paid you makes up for your losses?\" \"I can sell all this oil at any price and stay solvent. It will certainly let me keep working.\" Otto clapped his hands together to convey his earnest thanks to Subaru, but Subaru waved off the gesture. \"Cut that out.\" He was equally grateful to Otto. If anything, Subaru's feelings ran even stronger. For a while, they went back and forth: \"It's all thanks to you,\" \"No, thanks to you,\" \"I'm here only because of you,\" \"Yeah, it's fate that we both met,\" and so on as their bond deepened. Finally, their casual praises died off, and silence abruptly fell between them. Subaru's gaze shifted from the road they were galloping down to the plain, continuing as far as the eye could see, as he murmured, \"Hey, Otto. Can't we cut across this plain?\" Hearing Subaru's suggestion, Otto slapped his knee as if it was the best joke he'd ever heard. \"My, my. That's too much, even for a jest. When the fog falls on the plains, that's where the White Whale appears. It is the most famous of all demon beasts... Should we meet it, our lives will be forfeit.\" \"It's that dangerous? No one tries to put it down?\" \"No, because by avoiding the fog, you can also bypass the White Whale, so the damage is minimal. I imagine that is the real reason why it persists to this day.\" In other words, people had tried to subdue the beast and failed, with the damage sustained in the process discouraging further expeditions. Complicated thoughts enveloped Subaru when he heard the words demon beasts. To him, a demon beast meant an Urugarum, like those he had encountered fairly recently the same creatures that had gravely injured Subaru and perished at Roswaal's hands. He had something of a history with them. Subaru mused aloud, \"White Whale...huh. So it's shaped like a whale and white colored, then?\" \"According to witnesses, at least. Apparently it is so enormous that no one has ever seen its full size, and those people were tossing anything and everything aside as they fled for their lives while it rampaged. A frightening story,\" Otto concluded. He shut his mouth and would say nothing more. For a merchant like him, the White Whale was no doubt an odious being indeed, since its loitering on these plains for days on end would throw travel schedules into great disarray. Though he would be grateful if someone got rid of it, he had no intention of encountering it himself. Perhaps Otto's point of view was common to all merchants. Subaru changed the subject. \"So how long is it going to take to get to the Mathers dominion at this pace?\" \"Hmm, let's see. Though night is coming, my land dragon has excellent night vision, and there's no sign of any fog. Plus, I imagine there are no bandits willing to risk their lives by working near the plains right now, so...if things go well, tomorrow morning perhaps?\" After providing that answer, Otto glanced over at Subaru, who raised his eyebrows in response. Otto quickly played innocent, averting his eyes and going, \"Ah, nothing.\" He soon continued, though. \"Our destination is...the mansion of Marquis Roswaal...isn't it?\" \"Yeah, that's right.\" \"The small fortune you paid me... Those clothes must be expensive... This is just between us, but who are you, Mr. Natsuki? Are you...involved with the marquis somehow?\" Subaru understood why Otto harbored such misgivings to the point of meekly raising his doubts. From the merchant's point of view, Subaru's identity was a complete mystery, and yet he'd pushed a small fortune into his hands and proposed they rush to the mansion at a time when the rumors swirling around the place were uniformly bad. \"That's right. I'm involved with Roswaal...the marquis. You might have heard some strange rumors, but I don't know what's true or false yet. And I already told you, I don't intend to cause you any trou \" \"No, no! I'm not worried about that at all! It's just, uh...that... According to rumor, the good marquis is famous for his...eccentric interests... I was wondering if it is true?\" \"...If what is true?\" Subaru inferred from Otto's equivocation what he wished to ask. Even so, he concealed the hardness of his voice as best he could while prompting Otto to carry on. \"If the good marquis really is backing a young half-elf lady.\" *** Figures, thought Subaru, the inside of his chest sinking in dismay. The anxiety in Otto's voice made it clear that he was nervous to learn the truth. Emilia's birth was about to be slandered again. Subaru spoke quickly to head off his prejudice. \"Even if I told you no...you'd find out for yourself soon enough. It's true. The candidate the marquis is supporting is a half-elf. But that girl's nothing like you all think she...\" \"Is that so I'm so relieved.\" However, Otto's reaction was not the one Subaru expected. The merchant lowered his brows and put a hand to his chest in apparent relief. Realizing that Subaru was gaping at him in shock, he smiled awkwardly, visibly embarrassed. \"Ah, ahh... I'm sorry, getting worked up all by myself here. I mean, when I heard those rumors... She seemed an odd person to champion.\" \"To champion... Emilia, you mean?\" \"Ah, Lady Emilia is her name? Yes, well, you know. A half-elf would have had a hard life until now in various ways. For someone to rise from an unpleasant background and stand as a royal candidate... Yes, it's very impressive.\" Otto's eyes were distant as he watched the road, his voice quivering faintly. Listening to the merchant's reply, Subaru realized it had thrown him completely off guard. Complex emotions thrashed around in his chest, leaving him unsure of what to say. Otto, unaware of the chaos in Subaru's heart, rubbed his nose with a finger as he said, \"These might be small concerns compared to those of someone like Lady Emilia, but I know what it's like to be misunderstood... An odd point of sympathy, perhaps. I think becoming king will be very difficult, but if she tries hard, maybe... Well, I just wanted to ask.\" Otto cut things off there, since going any further would require him to speak more about himself. Once again, Subaru found himself unable to say a word to Otto. He folded his arms and continued looking downward. *** Normally, Otto's words would have helped Subaru so much that he'd come right out and thank him. Emilia had irrational obstacles blocking her path. However, even in a world filled with such problems, it didn't mean that everyone hated her. Some people in that world, like Otto, would cheer for her when they learned about her background. To Emilia, that fact had to be the greatest silver lining of all. It had to be, and yet... *** For some reason, Subaru was unable either to communicate his gratitude to Otto or to keep down the incomprehensible aching in his own chest as the dragon carriage continued to sway. \" Mr. Natsuki! Please wake up! We are finally entering the Mathers dominion!\" Subaru, curled up under a blanket in the wagon, opened his eyes as Otto called his name. He hadn't been able to sleep much. His head was still hazy when he poked it out of the curtain, and he was greeted by the rays of the morning sun, a line of mountains, and hope. The sun had risen once again, pouring sunrays down among the mountains and making Subaru squint. In the half day and change that they had spent in their overnight journey, Subaru had arrived back at the Mathers dominion. \"Good job, Otto. Working like a horse while I was asleep like that...\" \"Can you not say that as if I have no professionalism here?! More importantly, there is a village named Earlham near Marquis Mathers's mansion, yes?\" Otto had a map spread across his lap, glaring at it and the road ahead as he asked the question. His eyes were a little bloodshot from the all-nighter, but fortunately, he didn't seem worn out from it. \"It's my second all-nighter in a row with some spirits in me in between, but I feel great! If we head straight forward we'll reach the mansion after all! Fueh-heh-heh!\" \"Are you really all right?! You didn't take some weird drug to forget about being tired or something?!\" \"Do not be concerned. Lugunica is a law-abiding country that bans medicines of that nature.\" Subaru warily watched Otto, who seemed to be straddling the line between lucidity and insanity, as his own heart lightened a little at having returned to the Mathers lands. \"I'd love to run straight there without a break, but we might pass by Rem along the way.\" \"Nah, I don't think so. She did have over half a day's head start on us, after all. More importantly, Mr. Natsuki, shouldn't you prepare yourself for returning to the mansion? You should comb your hair and so forth.\" Otto raised a hand as he spoke in a half-joking manner. Subaru was putting his hair back in order when his breath caught. Now that the mansion was so close, right in front of his nose, all the things about a prospective reunion that Subaru had tried not to think about came rushing to him with a vengeance. He thought it unlikely that she'd simply welcome him back with open arms. After their parting of ways at the royal capital, he'd deliberately abandoned the half-finished treatment for his gate to return. Rem had surely arrived first, and ignoring her admonishments, too, meant he might have no allies at all. But whatever they might think of him, even so  \"I came back to do what I have to do. I'm not ashamed of that at all. I'm not wrong about anything.\" He said it to justify it to himself or, perhaps, to make excuses to someone who wasn't even there. He murmured similar things over and over as if they were the magic words that continued to sustain his spirit. \" It's for Emilia's sake. She can't get by if I'm not here.\" Such were the arguments that kept Subaru's fragile mind from crumbling, somehow suppressing the words that would otherwise be ever-present in his memories. They entered via the highway between the hills, traveling along the road at a safe speed. The road cut through the mountain forests ahead of them, with increasingly familiar scenery. At that pace, it would be less than an hour before they arrived at Roswaal's mansion. That was when the carriage's wheels came to a screeching stop, and the land dragon let out a ferocious sound as it violently clawed at the ground. \" ?! H-hey, Otto?!\" The instant Subaru felt the carriage stop, the land dragon's blessing must have cut out, since he keenly felt the full impact as the vehicle rocked to the side. Subaru yelped as he was suddenly jostled around inside. \"Otto! What was that just now?! We haven't gotten there yet, have we? Why'd you stop all of a sudd ?\" Otto held the reins low as he spoke to Subaru without looking at him. \" Mr. Natsuki. Can we make this as far as I proceed with you?\" For a moment, Subaru couldn't process what had been said to him, but then he immediately grabbed Otto by his lapel and pulled him close. \"What do you mean? That wasn't the deal! Damn you, we've come this far; don't cut and run out on me midway. Stay with me until we get to \" The end, Subaru was going to shout, but his breath caught when he saw that Otto's face was as white as a ghost. He released the pale-faced merchant, who sat on the driver's seat"}, {"text": "and hung his head. \"I am...very sorry. I had intended to remain with you until the end, Mr. Natsuki. Even so, I don't have the courage to go any farther.\" \"What are you going on about? What does this have to do with courage? Just a little farther and we'll reach the mansion. It's not like the road is bad. Otto, please!\" \"Even if you beg me...I cannot. I don't need the entire reward. I shall return half to you. Therefore, please allow me to pull out of our deal.\" Otto put his hand on the driver's seat with a genuinely apologetic look toward Subaru, though still refusing to get into the details. Subaru couldn't hide his bewilderment at the tragic look in Otto's eyes. \"What is it, all of a sudden? Did something happen...?\" \"My land dragon...is afraid. And it's not only that. The area around us seems too quiet to me. This is why traveling merchants use land dragons. A land dragon's instincts tell him about places he mustn't approach!\" Otto's hands trembled on top of his lap as he focused on his land dragon. When Subaru peered closer, the land dragon made quiet, ragged breaths as it awaited its master's command. But the way it was snorting at the direction they were traveling announced loud and clear that it held danger for them. That behavior, and Otto's trust for his own land dragon, explained where the merchant's reaction had come from. Asking Otto and the land dragon to accompany Subaru when none of them had any idea of what situation awaited them it would have been too cruel to both. \"...Thanks for everything. Sorry to put you through something scary, Otto.\" \" Eh?\" Subaru heard a surprised voice behind him as he hopped off the driver's seat down to the ground. The land dragon beside him looked back up at Otto, moving a foot around as it silently pled its case. \"I'll head to the mansion on foot from here. Hey, I've come this far; it's practically right in front of me. You've brought me far enough. Take all the money and go.\" \"I cannot do such a... No, more importantly, Mr. Natsuki! You mustn't go! Come back with me! Fog is approaching this place right now!\" \"The White Whale's gonna show up?\" \"To a traveling merchant this is a black omen! When fog covers our destination, it is a matter of life and death for us... No, that doesn't matter here! Anyway, please reconsi \" \"Sorry.\" Subaru wore a pained smile after Otto shouted his concern for him. He was far too much of a softy for the cutthroat, deceptive world of the merchant. He pondered the benevolent Otto's suitability for his chosen trade as he walked away from the dragon carriage. \"Just like you're weighing your life and money on your scales, I'm weighing my life and something I value just as much. Something worth that much to me is waiting just ahead.\" \"Mr. Natsuki, please wait! L-let's discuss this. We can talk it over!\" \"I don't blame you at all for turning back. I mean, if you know there's danger, turning back is the right call. Knowing beforehand is enough for me.\" Now Subaru knew that the road ahead, as well as his destination, held enough danger to make even a land dragon afraid. But he had to hurry. He had to run forward. The chance for Subaru to find the answer he sought surely awaited him there. \" Mr. Natsuki!\" \"Thank you.\" Otto's voice held concern for Subaru until the very end. Leaving him behind, Subaru rushed full-tilt down the tree-lined highway. He headed for his destination, casting aside the man who had guided him without trying to overcharge. The sights seemed almost familiar to him, but it was only a resemblance. Just how far did he have to go before arriving at Roswaal's mansion? One way or another, running down the road would lead him there. With the danger loud and clear and his destination right before his eyes, Subaru's emotions ran wild inside him. At any rate, he wanted to get there without a moment to lose. If he did, the painful, lingering emotions inside him would come to a head. He'd settle this, whether it turned out how he wanted it to be or not. \"...? The...hell?\" Subaru was running without a care or rather, while suppressing his innumerable worldly worries when he came to a halt. It wasn't because he'd arrived at his destination. The scenery remained unchanged, and it seemed to stretch on so much that he had to wonder just how far the highway continued, with the thick trees on both sides seeming to block all escape. He was out of breath, but he had yet to run out of endurance. Why, then, had Subaru stopped? That was because  \"It's...too quiet, isn't it...?\" Subaru had paused because he sensed something was wrong. Unintentionally, he repeated what Otto had said earlier. When he looked around, there was no change in his surroundings whatsoever. Compared to the rustling of leaves as the wind passed through, his own breath was quite noisy. But that was all he heard. And to Subaru, who'd spent nearly two months in these lands, it felt wrong. The oppressive silence, without even the sounds of insects, was abnormal.  And then, something suddenly appeared, slipping neatly into Subaru's consciousness. \"Wh...what?!\" He recoiled a step, his throat tightening from shock. Without a sound, a person had appeared in front of him. Furthermore, the figure's entire body was shrouded in black clothing, with something like a hood on, so that even the face of this complete stranger was concealed. Furthermore, that wasn't all that shocked him. \"This guy... No, these guys...!\" One after another, black figures emerged all around Subaru, as if they were responding to his confusion and his shifting gaze. In the blink of an eye, they numbered more than ten, surrounding Subaru as if mocking his efforts at caution. *** Particularly abnormal was the insane quiet that continued even after the shadowy group's appearance. They continued to watch Subaru in silence; he didn't even hear any of them breathe. There was no way they were friendly. That said, they hadn't shown any hostility, either. The eerie figures left him tongue-tied, unable to even move a muscle. How did they stare at each other like that? Feeling the pressure, Subaru felt like time was moving incredibly slowly. Then, that turbulent silence crumbled just as easily as it had begun. *** All at once, the figures faced Subaru and reverently bowed their heads to him. \" Ah?\" Subaru's brain was unable to process the scene before him. The incomprehensible band that had emerged was paying Subaru respect for reasons unknown, and leaving him behind in his confusion, they began sliding out of sight. The wordless scene before Subaru's eyes left him more dumbfounded than anything. Rather than do something to the frozen boy, the figures departed with silent footsteps. It was probably the silence of their footsteps that had allowed them to slip through Subaru's mental blind spot. But though he understood that much, he knew absolutely nothing else about them. Subaru tossed aside any attempt to comprehend the figures, suppressing the worry churning around inside him as he continued to run. He focused on heading back to the mansion, as if doing so would shake off the fear and discomfort. He didn't understand who the figures were or what they were after, so he stopped trying to understand them. That was why he never noticed it. Why he never noticed the fact that the unknown figures sliding out of his line of sight were headed in Otto's direction. Nor would Subaru reflect on this later. Not even once.  His thoughts had stopped as he ran forward, as if he truly believed that it would save him. Worry. Worry dominated his entire body to the point that he wanted to tear and scratch at it. His feet moved forward. His heart was set on the future. The destination of his mind was ahead of him, and yet he felt like fear of those unknown figures was stalking him from behind. His ears were ringing loudly. Nausea was rocking his head. He felt like every drop of blood in his body had turned into muddy water. The anxiety that tormented him was rapidly eclipsing everything within him, making the physical organ housing his formless heart feel like it was going to burst.  Why did it have to be like this? Everything seemed to be going well. Everything seemed to be going in the right direction. It was just a twist of fate. It was merely the timing that had been thrown off. He should've been able to do it. It should have been clear so that he could do it without hesitation. The stuff at the royal capital was just a bad dream, the result of simply pressing the buttons in the wrong order. That was why he wanted to meet Emilia now. He knew what he had to do. He just had to save her. She was in peril. It was his time, just like it had been before. That's how it'd always been. It'd be like that this time, too. Everything would turn out all right. Subaru would be redeemed in Emilia's eyes. She'd accept that she was wrong, that it would work out only if Subaru was there with her. She would allow him to be at her side once more. \"Ha...ha...ha!\" He was out of breath. His lungs hurt. His overused limbs creaked. His body was crying out in pain. But he couldn't just stand there. If he did that, it would catch up with him. Something irrational was chasing him from behind. \"Shit... Shit, shit... Shit!\" He wanted to meet Emilia. He wanted her to smile at him. He wanted Rem to be nice to him. He wanted to stroke her head. He missed and adored Beatrice's insults and Ram's put-downs. Roswaal's eccentricities and Puck's making the world revolve around him put Subaru's heart at ease.  He wished he'd never left. He'd headed to the royal capital, but the time he'd spent there, and the royal capital itself, was the root of all evil. Reinhard. Felt. Old Man Rom. Ferris. Wilhelm. Julius. Anastasia. Al. Priscilla. The Council of Elders. The Knights. One after another they rose up in the back of his mind, all of them objects of hatred at that moment.  Curse you. Suffer and die painfully. If it weren't for them, Subaru would have never lost sight of himself. If he'd reconciled with Emilia, returning to live his days in peace, he would have obtained perfect happiness. All of it had slipped out of his hands. That was why he was there to pick it all back up. \"Just a bit farther...and I'll...be back there...!\" His lungs burned with agony. Subaru averted his eyes from the regrets forming cracks in his heart as he ran. It was cursing everything, and trusting that what he desired lay beyond those damnable things, that was keeping him alive. \" Aa.\" Subaru had been staring at the ground as he ran for all that time, and when he could hardly breathe anymore, he raised his head. The scenery lining the road had begun to change from what he'd been seeing as he ran. The gaps between the trees were widening, and the natural traces of human labor appeared among them. When he caught sight of the rising slope of a familiar hill, a raspy voice of joy left Subaru's mouth. He could see white smoke rising above the tree line coming from the other side of the smoke. Maybe it was from cooking, or maybe it was from boiling hot bathwater, but either way, steam was rising, produced by human hands. The village. On the other side of that hill was Earlham Village, the one closest to the mansion. \" Whe...w.\" Until that point, only"}, {"text": "the faces of the people at the mansion had graced the back of his mind, but now he imagined the villagers he had so dearly missed. They included the very pushy children and the astoundingly unguarded adults. These were the good people who had welcomed the trivial things Subaru had brought into this world without laughing them off as absurdities. He missed their smiling faces so much that the memory of them almost made him cry. He didn't know why he had forgotten them. It was living proof that Subaru had been in this world. He had saved them. They might have been wiped out had it not been for him. It was Subaru's feat. Was there any other result of his actions he could take that much pride in? With the pillar that supported him right before him, Subaru's steps quickened. The dissipating white smoke nearly vanished in the wind. Subaru pressed on, as if fearful of that very thing. Someone was there. People who knew Subaru, people who knew his worth they were definitely there. That moment, it was enough. He wanted proof that someone cared for him, that someone had affection for him. He ran. He sprinted up the hill. When he neared the crest of the slope, he could finally see the source of the white smoke. Subaru climbed up to the peak, using his sleeve to wipe off the sweat trickling down his brow, and cheerfully looked at the village.  And then, the nightmare finally caught him. When Subaru ran to the village entrance, his gaze shifted around to find the first citizen he could. That was when he frowned, sensing something was wrong. The moment his legs stopped, the accumulated stress on his heart and lungs crashed down upon him. He gasped for breath over and over, coughing up spit, and strived to let his body recover as his eyes searched the area. At first glance, he thought that nothing odd had occurred in the village. The air that morning was very fresh, enough to snap a sleepy person awake. It was such a clear and sunny day, and yet he couldn't sense anyone in the village whatsoever. Having been up so late, Subaru didn't fully appreciate the fact that it was still very early in the morning, enough that people might still be asleep. He slumped his shoulders at the sleepyhead villagers and moved on, searching for the cause of the white smoke. If he looked for the source, he'd surely stumble across someone. *** But Subaru's hopes were in vain. He didn't come across a single face. By the time he'd nearly reached whatever was burning, everyone was long gone. What had once been a fire was still faintly smoldering, causing the smoke, but he couldn't sense anyone's presence. That was when Subaru was haunted not by vague anxieties but by very tangible ones. For reasons unrelated to fatigue, his breathing and heartbeat quickened. With his body reacting to that panic, Subaru banged on the door of a nearby house. There was no response. When he rushed in, it was an empty shell. No one was home. Maybe the whole family was out doing farm chores  No, he couldn't dismiss the situation with a silly joke. He rushed into the next house, searching for people. There were none. It, too, was unoccupied. An amorphous chill came over him. Subaru, realizing that it greatly resembled what he'd felt when he met the figures in the forest, almost lost himself as he desperately kept searching for a human presence. *** He shouted enough for his voice to go hoarse, pounding on house after house, not caring that it was splitting his fingernails. The result was nothing but silence. Subaru, all alone in the world, collapsed to the ground, powerless. No matter how often he might encounter them, he couldn't get accustomed to these incomprehensible situations. Naturally, the same went for senseless developments that he did understand. Forsaken by all, prospects grim, all avenues of escape cut off. This was always Subaru Natsuki's future. *** Having lost count of how many sighs he'd made, Subaru made one more as he decided that further searching was meaningless. No matter how many times he looked around the village, he wouldn't find anyone. There was no one left. Subaru rose up, brushed off his butt, and tried not to slip on the muddy ground as he stepped forward. Though there was no trace of rain having fallen, there was mud everywhere. He'd lost his footing and tumbled several times over when he'd been running around the place. So Subaru avoided the mud, bypassed anything that might cause him to trip, and headed to the center of the village, the direction of the white smoke. The fire that had caused the smoke was already out. The smoldering remnants were nearly extinguished. Subaru gently lowered his gaze, looking absentmindedly at the remains. There was nothing odd to see, save for the charred corpse of the old man from which the white smoke was rising. *** Subaru scratched his head, averting his mind from the sight as he walked toward the village exit. If there was no one inside the settlement, there was no point staying there. He had to hurry to the mansion. He stepped around the carelessly strewn corpse of a young man, walking carefully so as not to slip on the bloody mud. He gave the bodies of the young couple, piled on each other, a wide berth, passing right beside the old woman lying faceup as he entered the village square. Subaru searched for any signs of life among the numerous dead therein, seeking any salvation, anyone who might call his name. But his hope went unfulfilled, for inactivity was all that remained. Too many detours. He hadn't fulfilled his original intention, and this was the result. He'd taken too much time, and futility was his reward. Everything in that place was in vain. There was nothing there that wasn't, Subaru included. *** Abandoning everything as futile, he dragged his feet in a daze as he crossed the village square. As he did so, his foot abruptly caught on something, sending the half-aware boy tumbling forward. Groaning from the pain of landing on his shoulder, Subaru reflexively glared at what had snagged his foot.  And so, he met Petra's empty, unseeing eyes. \"AAAAaaaaaaa !!\" He couldn't escape. Subaru cried and screamed until his trembling voice went hoarse, a flood of tears pouring down as he wrapped his arms around Petra's remains, cast aside on the ground. Warmth had long faded from the girl's body. Rigor mortis had set in. The body of an unconscious person ought to have been heavy, but even considering Petra's youth, her body was far too light. That was probably because of all the blood that had flowed out of the gaping wound in her chest. Petra had died with her eyes open and an expression of surprise. The only comfort to be found was that the absence of pain or suffering on her face meant that she'd died instantly when her heart was impaled. After all, there was no reason for her to die with a gaping hole in her chest and then suffer in agony on top of that. Subaru laid Petra's corpse upon the ground and covered her with his track jacket, the only funeral he could provide her. He'd tried to close her eyes, but with her body already stiff, he couldn't grant her even that small mercy. Praying that Petra would rest in peace, Subaru trembled as he turned his back to her  He continued to avert his eyes from the hellish scene the familiar village had become. The cause of the white smoke was Muraosa's charred body. The young men had no doubt fought with the swords they had. There were weapons and farm implements scattered about, with the blood of the slain villagers drenching the bare earth around them. Death had befallen the village. It had all been over long before Subaru arrived. Far too late, Subaru was now the only person to bear witness to the results of the tragedy befalling that place. He offered up both his hands, as if pleading for someone, anyone to take them. What happened? What had happened? What terrible, horrible thing had occurred? Who had violated the village in a merciless slaughter of its innocent denizens, trampling upon their dignity even in death? No one still breathed. Not a single person was left alive. A memory of days long forgotten arose in the form of a carefree voice. \"Oh, Master Subaru. Good morning to you. Here to play with the children again?\" He remembered the brash, noisy, fond, and very pushy voices of the young children. \"Subaru's here!\" \"Subaru came!\" \"Subaru's all alone!\" One girl had pretentions of adulthood as she made a cheeky promise about the future. \"Eh-eh-eh, Subaru's the one who saved my life, so when I'm bigger, I'm going to return the favor.\" He couldn't see her face anymore. His track jacket now covered it. No one was left. His memories had been trampled underfoot, shredded, discarded, lost. It wasn't sinking in. Liquid was pouring from every cavity in his face. Whether it was tears, snot, or drool, he had lost the will to hold it back as it continued to sully his face. \" Aaa.\" Then, as Subaru wallowed disgracefully, practically drowning in tears, he came to grasp something far too late. He finally understood the obvious. There was no reason for the senseless tragedy to have stopped at the village's edge. *** A chill worse than any that had come before shot through Subaru's entire body. Since Subaru had fallen into that world, he had overcome mortal crises several times over. Even then, he had never known fear and despair as he did in that moment.  The despair that, somewhere beyond his reach, the people precious to him had been taken away. His teeth chattered to their very roots. His eyes, painful from too much crying, could see little, but he raised his limited field of vision to the sky. The clear blue ether seemed innocent in the face of the tragedy beneath it. And under that sky, the mansion awaited. That place he'd wanted so much to return to, that he'd yearned for, the place practically right before his eyes, was now too frightening to contemplate. But whatever had turned the village into hell surely hadn't overlooked the mansion. \" Ah, ahh.\" He was scared. He couldn't help but be scared. He didn't want to think of the possibility that this \"something\" had torn through the mansion. He was afraid that if he thought it, let alone spoke it aloud, that would make it real. He shook his head, casting off the fearful images. But though Subaru tried to drive them to the back of his mind, one of them obstinately held on, whispering in Subaru's ear, refusing to be forgotten. That was why Subaru clung to it, the lowest means for him to escape. If he could voice even the possibility, the chance that something had happened to her, then... \"Rem...? Rem...where are you...?\" It was the name of the girl who ought to have arrived before him, the girl who had cared for him, who had cuddled with him, who had affirmed him, and who had betrayed him in the end. Subaru instinctively knew what it meant to call her name. And knowing this, Subaru had chosen to do it anyway. In the name of worrying about Rem's safety, he was fooling his heart with the most sordid of means. \"If Rem came back... She'd never sit back after that happened to the village...\" Excuses. It was another excuse, spoken in a place where he stood alone, and it didn't even fool him. He was the worst. He was the lowest of the low. He didn't want to understand, but he did. If he could"}, {"text": "voice the possibility that he'd lost the girl he cared for and the possibility his own heart could break, then why not offer up a sacrifice so that he wouldn't have to? Subaru told himself such lies so that he could pretend not to see his own overly unscrupulous heart. He felt like the blue-haired girl's pleasant smile, the warmth of her nestling against him, her voice that called Subaru's name, were growing further, further away. \"That's right... Rem... Rem can... Rem...\" Subaru began listlessly tottering along the road to the mansion. He dragged his feet, leaving Petra's remains and the corpses of the villagers behind, covering his ears to block everything out. He still didn't know what awaited him. He thought both that he didn't want to know and that he needed to know, but he didn't have the courage to run to find out. Subaru slowly, slowly climbed the upwardly sloping path, clinging to the girl's name like she was the pillar supporting his heart as he walked toward the mansion.  Rem was dead in the courtyard. The courtyard he had seen on many a morning had turned into a hell unlike anything he'd ever seen. The small but vivid flower bed had been trampled awry, and the trees standing around the mansion had been felled, snapped in half. The green grass had been dyed black with blood, with the prostrate corpse joined by the remains of several black-robed figures. Each showed signs of being subjected to incredible violence, with few remaining relatively whole. The gruesome damage to the remains exceeded what he had seen in Earlham Village, no doubt evidence of the great rage behind the murder weapon that had turned these unfortunate victims into mincemeat. The deadly tool that had wreaked such havoc upon them, a bloodstained iron ball, lay fallen among the dark figures in the center of the garden. The metal orb, linked to a handle via a chain, had smashed apart a number of foes, but in the midst of battle, its mistress had somehow relinquished her grip; it seemed to regret having been unable to fight alongside her to the very end. And as for the demon who he presumed had wielded it one-handed in ferocious battle... \" Rem.\" ...She was long gone from that place. In a corner of the courtyard, a short distance removed from the iron weapon, was Rem, her servant's uniform dyed crimson red. The surface of the ground where she had fallen was drenched with a great quantity of blood that spoke of the heroism of her demise. *** Looking at the large number of corpses besides Rem's in the courtyard, he knew. She had fought. The fangs that had slaughtered the villagers had menaced the mansion with ill intent. She had battled hard to defeat a number of them, struggled while heavily wounded, and died. *** What had the group of black figures been thinking in killing Rem? Why? Why? Why, why, why, why, why? What did they know about her? Rem tried her best, always worked hard, always took care of others, jumped to too many conclusions, was kind and gentle and stern to Subaru; when times were tough, she was on his side, but she'd left him behind; she loved her sister and hated herself, but she'd just begun to like herself a little more, and  Just when she'd stopped calling herself a substitute for her older sister, just when she'd begun to walk down her own path in life, she... \"...Rem.\" Though he called out to her, she made no response. Though he shook her, her body had already gone cold and hard. He tried to stroke her soft hair several times over, but it clung to her forehead, sticky with blood. Subaru didn't even have the courage to turn her over and see the look on her face. Maybe her expression was bitter, locked in place as she struggled against death to her final breath. Perhaps it was peaceful. He didn't have the right to accept either. After all, it was Subaru Natsuki who'd as good as killed her. *** He left Rem, fallen with her arms wide to the sides, when he noticed the shed containing gardening tools. Rem's unnatural location. The shed that she seemed to be protecting. And the blood that had flowed out from under the closed door. Despite the scent of death, Subaru suppressed his nausea as he reached toward the shed. With a creak, the door opened; the next instant, the scent of overflowing blood assaulted Subaru's nostrils. He reflexively covered his mouth with his hands as he beheld the results of Rem's attempt at defense.  Not a single one of the children inside the shed was still alive. Subaru fell down and pathetically crawled onto the grass, heaving the contents of his stomach upon the lawn. He thought that his overflowing tears and vomit would stop, but there was no apparent limit. \"Uh, fuggh...\" Rem had died to protect the children and failed. He thought back to the villagers who'd apparently picked up arms and fought. They hadn't run, either. The adults had stayed in the village so that the children could escape. The little ones had run to the manor, with Rem fighting heroically in the courtyard to protect them as they huddled in the closed shed, praying for salvation. But their prayers were cruelly, mercilessly trampled on, and then their lives were taken from them as well. \"Hyeek.\" Abruptly, a cry in falsetto escaped his throat. It wasn't that anything had happened. It was simply that the forgotten terror had suddenly reared its ugly head once more. Subaru had returned to the village and the mansion in the hope of finding someone who knew him. And yet, not a single living soul was left. Only the silent dead greeted Subaru. He felt like those hollow, empty eyes were saying something to him. He felt like the blood-drenched tongues in their wide, gaping mouths were berating him. He felt like they hated him. He recalled the days they had spent sharing smiles with each other. \"No... No, no, no, no, no...!\"  Why are you alive?  Why did we have to die instead? \"No... I didn't... This isn't what I wanted at...\" He'd had an ideal. He had dreamed of a hope. When Subaru heard that Emilia had fallen into peril, he had thought it a blessing from heaven. Since she had lost all faith in him, he believed this was his chance to get back into her good graces. He'd believed he would save her from peril as he had done before, she would thank him, and they'd put their meager differences behind them to walk side by side, hand in hand. He had disparaged the suffering, the danger, the tragedy that had occurred as nothing more than a means to that end. He had taken it lightly, believing he could fix anything, no matter what happened. And if the cost of that was a vast number of dead bodies  \"It's...not my fault... I-I didn't...!\" Subaru shook his head, rose to his feet, averted his eyes from the shed, turned his back on Rem's corpse, and ran toward the mansion. He cut through the courtyard, kicking in a window on the terrace and climbing through to intrude into the mansion. The dimly lit manor seemed to treat Subaru like an outsider as the soles of his shoes crushed fragments of glass. He began to run around the building, clinging obsessively to the search for another living soul. \"Someone, anyone, anyone, anyone, anyone, anyone, anyone, anyone, anyone...\" Just as when he had run from the village no, even baser hopes continued flowing from him. \"It's not my fault... It's not my fault... It's not my...fault...!\"  I didn't want this to happen. So it's not my fault. He wanted someone to be alive so that they could agree. Or perhaps, the fact that someone had survived at all would be enough to affirm his claim. So Subaru kept searching for survivors. He had to find one. If he couldn't, he'd never be able to live with himself. Now faced with the notion that his own, flippant thoughts had brought this tragedy about, there was no way that he could stay composed. To stop his mind from shattering, and to not have to bear the burden of the multitude of dead, he required a more tangible defense. He violently thrust open the door of the nearest room, peering in to find it empty. Dejected, he moved to the next chamber. Checking whatever room was closest at hand, Subaru continued his search for the four people who ought to have been at the mansion: for Ram, for Beatrice, for Roswaal, and above all, for Emilia. Subaru's half-crying voice carried a heavy imprint of despair. \"Come on... Come on... I'm begging you... Help me... Help me, please...!!\" Normally, Subaru would have been able to easily reach Beatrice's archive of forbidden books, even without trying. Yet when he needed to most, he was unable to find it no matter how hard he looked. He wanted to hear invective from her sharp tongue almost more than air itself. Subaru, dragging his feet along in unmanly fashion, still had tears rolling down his cheeks. Distracted by sobbing breaths, Subaru continued to walk in search of the living, his own eyes like those of the dead.  He found Ram's body in the room at the end of the second floor. Having seen so much death in such a short time, Subaru knew immediately that she was not asleep as she lay on the bed. Her light skin had grown so pale that you could almost see through her. In contrast, her tongue stood out for being redder than normal. Unlike how her identical younger sister had passed away, Ram, adorned by the cosmetics of death, was lovely even after her passing. Subaru had always glibly said that she'd be cute if she only kept her mouth shut.  But he'd never said that out of a desire to see her like this. \"Hgheee.\" Subaru felt like he heard a curse. The same curse upon Subaru's life spoken by the dead in the village and the courtyard. Subaru stumbled clumsily out of Ram's bedroom and fled. He put his hands on the wall, slapping his uncooperative knees, and distanced himself as fast as he humanly could. Closing his ears, shaking his head, Subaru arrived at the dance hall on that floor. He crawled on hands and knees, stumbling several times midway, and pathetically climbed up the stairs. Ram was dead. That left three survivors. As if they had a mind of their own, his feet avoided the floor where Emilia's room was and climbed to the top level toward the chamber at the center of the main wing. This was Roswaal's study. The thick double doors remained shut in silence, their formidable solemnity making them seem removed from the wickedness that had infested the rest of the mansion. The doors weren't locked. He stepped inside and looked all around, feeling half resigned to the possibility of finding Roswaal's corpse slumped over the desk. Rem was dead. Ram had passed away in the mansion. Subaru himself was no longer certain if he was really looking for survivors or to find the despair that would eradicate his last hope. *** There was no one in the study. There was no sign of anyone having broken into the room. The desk and the writing supplies on it were just like he remembered. A slight feeling of relief took hold of Subaru, not only because he was unable to confirm that Roswaal was dead or alive but also because there would not be another casualty to weigh upon his battered conscience any further. *** No, he realized that his earlier feeling, that the room looked just like he'd remembered it, was off. There was actually one thing that was significantly different"}, {"text": "from his memory. Namely, the bookshelf wasn't in the same location as usual. \"A secret...passage...?\" The bookshelf on the wall had slid well to the right, revealing the entrance to a dark corridor behind it. He timidly drew close and peered within, finding stairs spiraling downward. A thought rose up in the back of Subaru's mind. An emergency escape route. As a marquis and lord of the land, it was no surprise that Roswaal had such measures in place for his own protection. It was the sort of thing he'd gleefully arrange beforehand. The cold wind blowing through the secret passage suggested that it continued for quite a way down. He naturally imagined that the route was for safely escaping from the mansion itself. \"If so, then Emilia...\" Subaru took several deep breaths, hardened his resolve, and stepped into the escape route. When he touched the rather cold wall, he wondered what it must be made of; as he did so, it gave off a pale-blue glow that allowed him to see several meters ahead. Relying on the light, he kept one hand touching the wall as he carefully followed the steps downward, making sure not to slip. Apparently the hidden passage went underground. When he reached the end of the stairs, the tunnel stretched forward in a straight line. The source of light didn't change, leaving him relying solely on the radiance from the walls. But the feeling that he was really chasing after survivors was enough to support Subaru for the moment. Whether he himself was dead or alive seemed ambiguous to him now. \" Nn, oh?\" The wall he had been touching suddenly ended, leaving him abruptly groping into thin air. Subaru unwittingly flailed forward and was greeted by a hall in the middle of the passage. Really, it was more the size of a lounge than a hall. Smaller than a guest room, the space was supported by unevenly distributed pillars, so haphazard that he felt like the architect had a twisted mind. Slipping past the annoying supports, Subaru sluggishly advanced. Ever since he'd gone underground, he'd felt like his limbs were stuffed with lead as languor dulled his movements. Even his thoughts were clouding; even his memories from mere seconds before seemed vague. It was a hard battle to take even a single step at a time. His eyelids were heavy; both his shoulders felt like millstones holding him still. Even so, a combination of tenacity, hatred, sense of duty, and madness pushed Subaru's body forward. Threading between the pillars, he headed straight forward to see an iron door at the back of the room. When he reached it, the breeze slipping between the split at the center told him that the path continued ahead.  What was I looking for, anyway? He reached out with bloodless fingertips before his stagnant thoughts could produce an answer. Subaru opened and shut his mouth as he breathed hard, grasping the door for no reason other than his sense of responsibility. \" Agauaa!\" Screaming in fierce pain, Subaru shook his right arm as if trying to tear it off. Touching the doorknob had left his entire hand in scalding pain. Subaru anticipated further agony as he lowered his eyes onto his right hand.  He saw that it was missing its index finger. \" Huh?\" Dumbfounded and astounded, Subaru lifted his hand before his eyes and spread it out. Now colored white, with cracked skin, it was missing its index finger from the knuckle. The middle finger and thumb were also missing their tips. *** Slowly, his gaze returned to the door. Subaru's finger was stuck to the door where he'd grabbed it. More precisely, it had ripped his finger right off.  Gotta get it back on, quick. With only that incoherent thought in his head, Subaru reached out once more to take back the finger he'd lost. But lethargy afflicted his body even more than before; his thoughts reached his shoulder and elbow but not any further than that. Impatient that his arm would not move, Subaru tried to step toward the door, but the instant he did, his right foot shattered from the ankle down. \" aaa!\" Subaru fell on his side, his voice trickling out of his throat though he was unable to form words. He didn't know if he was screaming out of pain or in a futile struggle to live. The instant he drew in breath to scream more, white frost filled the inside of his chest, and he could move no more. His lungs convulsed. In a single moment, his ability to breathe came to an end. He made short, shallow gasps, but his lungs could not expand nor take in oxygen anymore. In that perilous state, Subaru's eyes alone desperately shifted about. He had very little feeling anywhere in his body. It was the second time he'd lost a leg, but the pain and sense of loss from its shattering were on a different level than mere severing. The right side of his torso, now the underside of him, was cracked in several places. His tongue stopped trembling as white breath came over it. Only then did Subaru realize the truth. His cheek was now in contact with the ground. If he moved his head, his flesh would probably crack and tear right off. He no longer felt any pain. He moved violently, tearing his right cheek and ear right off, but he didn't care. He spent some time repositioning his body so that he was lying faceup. When he looked back at the upside down view of the little room, he understood. Of course the pillars were in irregular locations. They weren't pillars at all. No, they were pillars, but their function wasn't to hold up a structure. These were human pillars, men who had frozen over and died. Subaru had wandered into the same white apocalypse, and his body would become a frozen statue like the other victims'. And it would happen very soon. His breathing had already stopped. His limited oxygen flowed to his brain, but in the world of absolute cold, which would end sooner, his brain functions or his life? He understood nothing. He saw nothing. From the tips of his fingers, the being called Subaru Natsuki was coming to an end, replaced by a fragment of ice. Or perhaps it would have been more accurate to say it was no longer Subaru Natsuki there but a madman wearing his flesh? Perhaps his mind had died long before, the moment he arrived in the village. He lost all feeling in his lower body. He couldn't see his arm anymore. It was strange that his brain was functioning at all. Where did one's life reside? The brain or the heart? There was no way that he would find the answer in that freezing world. In the realm ruled by nothing but white, there was a frigid murmur. \" You are far too late.\" And then...  Subaru Natsuki shattered into tiny pieces, into white crystals, and vanished from the world. CHAPTER 4 ***  When the darkness split apart and he awoke, it began with the pain of sunlight burning his eyes. \" id?\" Warm blood flowed through his limbs. His shattered lower body was firmly standing upon the ground. Right after the first blink, all his lost mental functions seemed to return at once. His brain instantly restarted and then short-circuited from information overload, making his eyes literally spin. Where the ringing in his ears had dominated his world, the sounds of thronging humans going about their lives came rushing in. Various people mingled along the dusty road, burying his field of vision in the living souls he had so craved. Subaru stood rooted in place as the human wave parted around him. The beating of his cracked heart grew fiercer. \"Hey! Hey there! You listening?!\" Along with a click of the tongue, the rough voice reached him from right beside him. Subaru slowly shifted his gaze toward it and saw a stern, scowling face with a vertical scar on it. The man rubbed the white streak with a finger. \"Gimme a break, kid. Don't just stare into space like that.\" \"Eh, ah?\" The very faint reply drew a sigh out of the man. \"What's with that weak reply? Well, whatever. More importantly, something happen to you?\" The speaker held out his hand with a nice, shiny red fruit sitting on top of it. Subaru came to the conclusion that the man's appearance was a truly terrible match for the person inside. It seemed surreal. Subaru remained silent as he gazed absentmindedly at the fruit. His situational awareness was badly lacking. However, the man didn't suspect that something was wrong with Subaru, instead leaning forward as he said, \"Hey, enough fooling around here. I asked, how many abbles? Don't make me say it over and over.\" The man reached over the counter and grabbed hold of Subaru's shoulder. He roughly pulled him closer, and Subaru's defenseless body pitched forward and crashed against the shelf. The man let go with a surprised look on his face. \"Wh-what are you doing?! Stand up properly. Your legs are all wobbly, damn it...\" \"L-l-legs?\" The man pointed to Subaru's lower body with an exasperated look on his face. \"You've got two good ones attached to your hips. What, daydreamed you'd lost them or something?\" When Subaru looked down, he did have legs, trembling and shaking though they were. Since they were unreliable and unable to support his body, he was leaning on the shelves at the moment. With an annoyed voice, the man said, \"I'm begging you, quit the bad jokes. This ain't normal conversation, and it's messin' with me.\" But Subaru's body did not respond. Reality didn't register as real. He felt detached somehow, like some sort of discord had developed in the connection between his body and his soul. What was he doing there? What had happened to him? He felt like something had happened to him, but what?  What am I doing here? What, what, what...? Suddenly, a girl's voice sounded in his ears. \" Subaru?\" *** Unable to speak a word, Subaru felt his eyes go wide as he lifted up his face. Behind the counter, there was a tiny silhouette standing near the stern, tall man, cleaning things up. She wore an apron dress that was mostly black, with a white apron and white headdress. She stood straight with a small stature and an elegant body. With the counter between them, she turned her lovely face toward Subaru. Her shoulder-length blue hair fluttered in the wind, drawing attention to her refreshing, gentle image. Tears formed in his eyes. \"Ahh?\" \"Subaru?\" Sobs poured out of him as his field of vision blurred. He earnestly rubbed both eyes, fearful that the clear, distinct image of the girl would fade. And yet, she grew more and more distant as the murmurs loudened. Before he realized it, he'd lost the support of the counter and fallen onto the street. Unable to send strength and will to his feet, he lay there amid the pedestrians coming and going, tears flowing as he gasped with disjointed breaths. No, it was not breathing... \"Hu-hee... Hi-hi, ha-ha... He-hi, hi-ha-ha-ha...!\"  It was laughter. The murmurs broadened. He could tell that more and more people were shifting their gazes to him. Someone was watching him. Someone saw him. He wasn't by himself. He wasn't isolated. From this alone, he knew he was accepted, even lying there in the street like a marionette with cut strings. Rather than run around the counter, the girl leaped right over it to move to his side. \"Subaru, what's wrong?! Are you all right? Get a grip on...\" The girl wrapped her arms around the fallen Subaru to sit him up. As she did... \"Eh?\" She felt so defenseless, and he hugged her back with all his strength. The girl accepted the embrace with astonishment. Her breath was so close, and"}, {"text": "her warmth was so comforting as he buried his nose into her shoulder and hugged her tight. Perplexed, she tried to say something. \"Er... Um, Subaru? Umm...\" Each word, each syllable, each character, each breath, was a hymn to Subaru. He embraced her firmly, his arms refusing to let go. Nor did the girl stir even an inch, quietly accepting the embrace, making no move to brush him off. The warmth of her body, the heartbeats of life, made him feel that others were alive like nothing else could. \"Hi-ha... Uhi-ha, hi-hi-hi-hi.\"  The madman named Subaru Natsuki continued to simply laugh. Ferris, sitting in a leather-covered chair, put a finger to his cheek and solemnly declared, \"To be frank, Ferri can only say that it is all over now, meow...\" His ears twitched, and he swept back his flaxen hair as he shifted his gaze away from Subaru, sleeping in a feminine-looking bed. He looked instead to Rem with a pitying look in his eyes. He continued, \"Ferri can only do something about physical wounds, you see. Issues with the body are workable, whether within or without...but there is nothing Ferri can do for the mind, meow.\" After Ferris's apology for his powerlessness, Rem bowed in a show of respect. \"...No, thank you very much for exhausting all your efforts.\" But somehow, her flat voice sounded devoid of emotion. This was not like her normal suppression of her opinions. Rem's inner turmoil was simply too great and had turned into profound sadness. Ferris closed one eye in a pained look. Rem did not notice his reaction and gently leaned her head forward, shifting her attention to Subaru where he lay on the bed. They had Subaru in bed to tend to him, but that didn't mean he was asleep. Both his eyes were wide open as he stared straight at the ceiling. From time to time, he'd make a fragmented laugh, like he'd just remembered something, and when that passed, he would suddenly break into tears. In his unstable state, Subaru's torment continued apace.  Truly, the change in the boy had been a sudden one. Until that morning no, the entire time he'd been walking with Rem through the royal capital that morning he had been his normal self. Certainly the incident the day before weighed on him, and his behavior showed some signs that he was stressed, but Subaru was striving as he normally did. Rem deeply respected his wishes and sought to be close to him without changing his behavior. She didn't think anything had happened that could trigger this. Rem painfully regretted that the instant Subaru had abruptly changed was when she'd taken her eyes off him. Even so, she was right there at the shop, listening to the shopkeeper converse with him. Thanks to Rem's tireless efforts, the store had sold its merchandise nicely, and the shopkeeper, in quite high spirits, seemed inclined to give them a souvenir. He was asking how many abbles Subaru wanted to take with him, and she remembered him answering, \"How 'bout all of 'em?\" The very next moment, his demeanor abruptly changed, and he fell limply onto the street. When Rem sat him up, he seemed so overcome by sadness and tears of joy that he kept laughing. Deeming he wasn't well, Rem carried Subaru back to the Crusch villa, accepting all the trouble it might cause. Suspecting it was some kind of magical interference, she politely insisted that Ferris examine Subaru. However, it had all come to naught. Even Ferris, the most accomplished healer in all of the royal capital, could not identify the cause of his sudden change. If Ferris could do nothing, it might well mean that gathering all the great magic users in the entire royal capital would still not be enough to heal him. Subaru's present condition was unrelated to magic. But his mind had suddenly become unbalanced. Ferris asked, \"Ferri doesn't really want to ask, meow, but what will you do?\" \"Without understanding the cause, dealing with it is difficult... I am sorry to have troubled you, Master Felix.\" \"Mmm, don't worry ameowt it. As a matter of fact, it's better for Ferri's treatment now that he's not making a weird fuss, in a meownner of speaking.\" Subaru hated Ferris's treatment and often voiced his complaints. On that level, Rem could understand how he was easier to deal with lying down and listless. The words were still highly insensitive. Ferris continued, \"But...but is it really good to continue treatment meow?\" Rem, who was watching Subaru, lifted up her head and shifted her gaze toward Ferris. \"...What do you mean?\" \"Don't be upset by my asking, meow, but the treatment for Subaru's gate is to make life easier for him, yes?\" \"Yes.\" \"If he can no longer live a normal life, treating him is meaningless, isn't it?\" \" Subaru is...!\" The even more insensitive remark drove Rem to forget Ferris's status as she yelled. But even faced with the maid's emotions, Ferris's look of doubt did not falter. \"Are you saying don't stop now, meow? Seeing him like this? Are you serious? It's true some things happened to him, but if that's enough to break him, he's not likely to ever recover!\" Ferris looked down at Subaru with undiluted scorn. To Rem, who knew that this was the man to whom Lugunica had granted the title of \"Blue,\" the archetype for all water magic users, his behavior was all too callous. If someone couldn't be healed, throw the person away. That was the judgment of the kingdom's foremost healer? What did he understand about the individual named Subaru to judge that he had no prospects for healing? \"Oh my, what a stare mew have... Subawu's a lucky man. Not that he ever realized it.\" \"Subaru's current situation is unrelated to the royal selection. He is not a person who would lose his mind over minor failures.\" \"Believe that all you want. As far as Ferri is concerned, keeping his sanity after everything that's happened presents problems of its own, meow. And besiiides...\" Ferris set aside his flippant tone as he looked frostily at Rem. \"Don't misunderstand. Ferri doesn't hate Subawu, so this isn't meowt of some kind of special grudge against him.\" *** \"This isn't particular to Subawu as a person. Ferri just hates people who lose their will to live, pure and simple.\" Ferris pointed at Subaru, and then he touched his finger to his own chin. \"Even for someone with my meowgic specialty, there's no way to use that power besides healing. Ferri helps all kinds of people day after day to be of service to Lady Crusch. Meow, everyone struggles hard to live, so thanks doesn't matter, but Ferri hates wasting this power on anyone.\" \"I think that is admirable.\" \"Thank you  But it's not right to save people who don't want to live. Even if you heal the body, isn't it just saving an unused life? If that's the case, end it before it causes other people trouble. Well, in this case it already has, meow.\" Ferris delivered his blunt assessment with a stern face. Behind that hard demeanor, Rem keenly felt Ferris's sincerity concerning the many lives he had no doubt saved. His way of saying it was dismissive, but it was what Ferris had learned from watching life and death in all that time. That had informed his views on life itself. \"Even so, Subaru is...\" Rem, battered by Ferris's words, looked at the boy with pure regret. Subaru was unaware that he was the subject of the conversation as he made faint, intermittent, warped giggles, as if hearing these things had stirred the wounds remaining in his mind. Deep inside, Rem wanted nothing more than to lose her grip on herself, cling to Subaru, and cry aloud. But that would bring dishonor to him and tarnish the good name of Roswaal, her benefactor. More than anything else, it would be a betrayal of the feelings she herself had carried while watching over him all this time. A clear voice flowed into the room, abruptly breaking the awkward silence within. \" Ferris, I believe your view is just a little too strict.\" Rem reflexively raised her head at the voice. When Ferris noticed the visitor, his expression brightened. After all, his eyes were always full of zealous devotion when they gazed upon her. \"Lady Crusch,\" said Rem. \"I do not go as far as to say weakness is a crime. I do believe, however, that condoning that weakness and wallowing in it while leaving the situation uncorrected is very much a vice.\" When Rem hastily lowered her head at Crusch's arrival, the duchess checked her with a hand. With a shake of her long green hair, she moved to the edge of the bed. Her eyes narrowed as she looked down at Subaru, who had a wicked smile on his face even then. \"I see. This certainly is an alarming state. Do you know the cause?\" Hearing Crusch's question, Ferris raised both his hands up as he replied, \"No. According to Rem, he suddenly fell over, so Ferri examined him from head to toe. But there's no sign of any interference with his mana, meow.\" \"Is it possible this is some kind of curse? It is difficult to imagine, but I can think of someone taking measures against those with knowledge of the royal candidates. Or one could suspect that this is a show of force by another camp. However...\" \"Neither is very likely, is it, meow? There's not much time to set something up, and who'd go after Subawu in the first place? Anyone involved would know he's powerless, and there is no meowgical interference anyway, curses included. Ferri's positive. And besides...\" As Ferris's words trailed off, he tilted his head and gently leaned into Crusch, who stood there with her arms folded. \"Lady Crusch, do you doubt Ferri's abilities?\" \"Of course not. I could never question your ability, personality, or loyalty. Even if you were to hold a dagger in front of me, ready to run me through, that thought is set in stone.\" \"Oh my, Lady Crusch, what a meowgnificent line... Ahh, Ferri's falling to pieces.\" Crusch left Ferris to squirm and wallow as she shifted her penetrating gaze toward Rem. \"Ferris has spoken. And if Ferris's power will not suffice, none in my house is capable of treating Subaru Natsuki. I'm sorry we can be of no assistance.\" Crusch's apology, despite doing nothing wrong herself, sent Rem into another low bow. \" Not at all. Your deep consideration leaves me speechless.\" In truth, beyond the reach of words and pleasantries, Crusch had conveyed warmth to her that she could never return. The finest healer in all the kingdom had rendered his diagnosis, and the head of a rival political camp had conveyed sympathy nonetheless. What more could Rem hope for from them? Crusch and Ferris had done nothing wrong. Rem knew that.  After all, she had her own suspicions about how Subaru had ended up in that state. \" The Witch.\" The presence, the \"miasma\" of the Witch enveloping Subaru's entire body had become denser still. What linked that miasma to Subaru's abnormal state was unclear, but it was a fact that she'd sensed an outpouring of it just before he had collapsed. If the cause was the Witch's poison, she could not criticize Ferris's judgment that there was nothing he could do. Very few beings were able to sense the presence of that substance in the first place. Not even Ram could catch the scent the way Rem could. Nothing good came with such pall. Those who planned wicked things were rich with it. Her physiological distaste for it, and the hateful memories that accompanied it, made her deeply prejudiced against those who bore it. Although the actions of the boy with the strongest Witch smell she'd ever met had melted her hard heart and swept those prejudices aside... Even"}, {"text": "so. Yes, even so. Rem knew that nothing good came from that miasma.  The demon in her knew this. Rem bowed and conveyed her deepest gratitude. \" You have gone through great trouble for us. On behalf of my master, I thank you for your benevolence until this day.\" Crusch and Ferris stood before her. Rem and the others were meeting in the Crusch villa's reception hall in other words, Rem was bidding them farewell. \"I am sorry we could be of no help. By rights, it is presumptuous to receive compensation for such a thing...\" Seeing Crusch's eyes fall slightly, Rem lifted her face and firmly replied, \"Not at all. Ending our request before it was finished is due to our own circumstances. You have given us your utmost consideration until now, Lady Crusch. It is only right that we pay compensation as promised.\" Receiving her reply, Crusch made one final apology: \"I am sorry.\" She would say nothing more. With his master's lips closed, Ferris followed up. \"To be honest, it does leave things half-done, but it can't be helped, meow? Rem, be in good health. As for Subawu...get well soon, is what Ferri should probably say?\" With one eye closed and one finger raised, Ferris indicated Subaru, standing behind Rem, leaning against the door in a slovenly state. His condition had not improved. His reactions were as dull as before, with his consciousness stranded somewhere between dream and reality. In spite of that, he followed like a child when they led him around by the hand, and he could at least manage not to fall over. Though he still suddenly broke into little fits of laughter and tears from time to time. Rem replied, \"My words are insufficient to apologize for the rudeness caused by a member of our house. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for treating him with benevolence.\" Crusch replied, \"We had a contract, and at the very least, I have exchanged words with him. I could never treat him in an uncouth manner. I believe things will be difficult from here, however...\" Rem glanced at the faintly smiling Subaru, grasping the hem of her apron in a display of resolve. \"I am...prepared for that.\" Just as Crusch had gloomily pointed out, she knew there were many hardships to come. Even so, Rem had appointed herself to be the one who would walk with Subaru through thick and thin. After all, she'd never forgotten what he had said to her long ago. Let's laugh, hug each other, and talk about tomorrow. I've always dreamed of laughing with a demon and talking about the future. She'd remembered that scene in her head many times, tens of times, hundreds of times over. That was why she could give Subaru no less than what he had given to her. For what she had received was too precious for any sum of money to ever repay. Crusch lowered her eyes and shook her head. \"I regret that I was unable to fulfill your request.\" Rem smiled a little. She was grateful for Crusch's considerate words, especially then, when she felt ready to crumble. \"It is all because of our shortcomings  Though this chapter has reached an unfortunate result, I pray that you will do many great things, now and in the future, Lady Crusch.\" \"And you as well. Tell Emilia, 'Let us both fight to bring no disgrace to our souls.'\" With that exchange, Rem keenly felt that her duty in that place had come to an end. Subaru's treatment had been abandoned before it was over, and she wasn't able to fulfill Roswaal's secret command. She would no doubt be sternly scolded for scurrying back. Even so, she had to return to the mansion...for Subaru's sake. \"Ferri understands you're returning to the mansion, but do mew have any leads for treatment?\" Rem held back the regret in her voice and replied to Ferris's question with her single ray of hope. \"At the very least, if he can meet Lady Emilia...\" No matter how much she spoke to him, how much she touched him, how much she continued in vain, the boy never responded to Rem with his usual Subaru-like reactions. But even in this state, sometimes words rich with meaning would tumble out of Subaru's mouth. \"Names...\" \"Mmm?\" \"From time to time, he says names. My name, Sister's. And...\" She was happy that her own name was among those he whispered. On the other hand, the fact that he didn't respond when she called his made her sad. Though much of his behavior was meaningless, the name he murmured with the most frequency was... \" Lady Emilia's. If he is able to meet her, perhaps it will change him somehow.\" \"But Ferri heard they parted on really bad terms. It hasn't even been four days since then; is that enough time for her to calm down, meow? If you could wait a little longer... Ah, you really can't, huh?\" \"I am well aware that Lady Emilia has a poor understanding of her own heart. However, this is no longer something I can decide on my own. I must return and receive instructions...\" Rem's words, full of concern for her lord and master, were for the purpose of deceiving her own heart. She was hiding what she truly desired, burying it under her duties as a servant. After all, it pained her to the point of tears that she was not enough to save his heart and mind. Abruptly, Crusch lifted her face and narrowed her eyes. \" Wilhelm has arrived.\" Following Crusch's gaze, Rem saw that a dragon carriage was entering the courtyard of the villa from the iron gates. A familiar aged gentleman was sitting in the driver's seat. Crusch continued, \"At the moment, this is the only long-distance dragon carriage that my house is able to lend. I cannot reveal the details, but a large number of these vehicles have been required for another matter of late.\" Ferris followed up, \"You're in luck, meow. If you head along the Liphas Highway, you should get back to the mansion before tomeowrrow. It might take you half a day's travel, give or take.\" Rem, watching the dragon carriage's arrival, thought that the rays of the sun high above were dazzling indeed. Since it was around noon now, an all-out carriage ride would mean arriving back at the mansion around midnight. If they were close to the manor, her shared consciousness with Ram would no doubt inform her sister of their return. \"Thank you very much for your kindheartedness.\" Crusch replied, without a single hint of false pleasantries, \"I do not mind. It is still a far cry from what I would normally be able to provide, so I can only hope that this modest offering nonetheless accommodates your needs.\" Rem thought that getting to know Crusch as a person might have been one of the few happy things she'd gained from the time she had spent there. \"Then this time I must excuse mys \" As Rem was stating her final farewell, Crusch interrupted her. \"Rem.\" When Rem stopped, she saw indecision in Crusch's eyes for the very first time. The duchess continued, \"This is extremely inelegant of me...but there is something I wish to ask.\" \"Yes, what is it?\" \"Why do you strive for Subaru Natsuki so?\" Watching Rem and the boy leaning against her, emotion vanished from Crusch's amber eyes. She continued, \"The relationship between you and Subaru Natsuki is not the master-retainer relationship Ferris and I share. I simply find it distasteful to judge men and women by appearances alone.\" *** With Rem falling into silence, the tone of Crusch's voice dropped, as if she was apologizing for her own lack of clarity. \"I do not mind if you do not wish to answer. I am embarrassed to even ask.\" Ferris silently watched his master as Rem shook her head at both of them. \"No, I am not hesitating to answer. I am simply unsure about what words I should use  It is a difficult thing to explain.\" When she was on the verge of putting it into words, she felt it change into something else entirely. It was natural for Crusch to have doubts. What existed inside Rem didn't stay the same for even a second. Its size, strength, and heat shifted from moment to moment, putting down its roots inside Rem. She didn't want to come out and say it. She couldn't come out and say it. How, then, to describe something formless inside Rem to another person? \"I suppose it is because...Subaru is special?\" *** Rem didn't really understand if that qualified as an answer or not. However, she felt like that response best exemplified what was at the bottom of her own heart. \"Did something...happen to both of you?\" As she supported Subaru, putting a hand to her chest, she inclined her head at the lack of a reaction. When she looked, both Crusch and Ferris were standing there, gaping with somewhat surprised expressions. Rem had a gnawing feeling that their reactions might indicate she'd said something rude. Master and servant traded gazes, nodding to each other. \"I am sorry. I am somewhat astounded at what I was doing.\" \"No, nooo, it was unavoidable. Ferri was surprised, too. Like...Rem, you weren't even there for the talks at the royal palace...\" Rem didn't really understand what they were saying. However, Crusch seemed satisfied with her reply as she stated, \"I apologize for my impolite and unrefined question. I'm very sorry Subaru Natsuki is a lucky man.\" Crusch was smiling a little. Ferris followed up teasingly, \"He really is. If he ever gets his senses back, Ferri has to tease him about it, meow.\" They had conveyed, by fairly undiplomatic means, that they wished for Subaru's recovery, so Rem gave them a small smile rich in gratitude. The two sent her off. \"Be in good health.\" \"Good luck, meow!\" Rem gave them both one deep, final bow before leading Subaru by the hand out of the Crusch villa. Wilhelm, waiting at the gates, greeted her with a nod as he offered her the reins. She accepted them, bowing to the aged gentleman in return. \"You have also been exceptionally benevolent to us, Master Wilhelm.\" \"Not at all. Words wasted on these old bones. Besides, I feel as powerless as my master. It never occurred to me to do something before this happened.\" Wilhelm narrowed his eyes as he watched Subaru, his pupils filled with complex emotions. Now that Rem thought about it, the old man was probably the person at the Crusch villa who'd had the most contact with Subaru. Though it had been for a mere four days, one might say that the sword training had given the two a relationship as master and pupil. Perhaps Wilhelm felt regret that he could not save Subaru, either. He commented, \"It would seem I have indeed not advanced a single step since that time...\" Wilhelm murmured to himself, apparently gazing through Subaru at something off in the distance. \"Master Wilhelm?\" When Rem called out to the older man, he blinked and shook his head. \"Pardon me. There is nothing I can do, but I shall at least pray for Sir Subaru's convalescence. Miss Rem, take due care while traveling that path.\" Rem did her best to ignore the faint, fleeting anxiety in the aged gentleman's eyes at the end. \"Thank you very much. Be in good health, Master Wilhelm.\" Even at the best of times, Rem was more awkward than other people. She could only reach out with both hands and do one thing at a time. And now, she'd decided just what her hands would support. \"Subaru, this way.\" \"...U, aa?\" Supporting his wobbly body, she hoisted Subaru up from behind and sat him in the driver's seat. Rem took her place beside him, accepting Subaru's presence atop the cramped-feeling seat. She sat right up"}, {"text": "against him, wrapping her left arm around his hip and firmly grasping the reins with her right hand. \"It might be a little cramped, but please bear with it.\" They would have to race in this posture for a long, long time. Rem was worried about the strain on Subaru, but she would also need to protect him after they arrived back at the mansion. Roswaal and the others were unlikely to give him a warm welcome. If Subaru would be without other allies, Rem had to be the one he could count on. \"Because...I will always be by your side, Subaru. Always.\" Rem, deeply hardening her resolve, snapped the reins, and the land dragon began to race along the ground. As the mansion receded behind them, the elderly gentleman watched them go. Slowly, the carriage's wheels gradually turned faster and faster. Rem felt the sensation through the reins, as if the wheels themselves were expressing the state of her heart.  Setting out from the royal capital, the journey to the Mathers dominion was a comparatively quiet one. Rem had been concerned about Subaru acting up, but fortunately there was nearly no sign of that while atop the dragon carriage. Yes, Rem was right at his side, limiting his movements, but he spent the majority of the time quietly in his seat, gazing absentmindedly at the scrolling landscape. So far as she could tell, the mental issues that caused his laughter and tears had also lessened. Perhaps the change in scenery had produced some small change in Subaru's heart as well. Hope sprouted in Rem's chest that Subaru really might be able to recover. However, the scent of the miasma tickling her nose dashed cold water on her heart's expectations. *** Gradually, having Subaru's head resting on her own shoulder brought a faint smile to Rem's lips. In truth, she was happy that he was defenseless, guileless, completely entrusting his whole body to her. Rem knew that this Subaru was not his normal self and that what he was doing was not of his actual will. Even so, having him rely on her like that was the pinnacle of joy. \"Subaru, this way, a little farther.\" \"...Mm, u.\" Close enough feel his breath, Rem pulled Subaru's body even deeper into her own. Atop the narrow driver's seat, they had half-melted into each other already, but Rem instead rested Subaru upon her own left knee. Her right hand firmly re-gripped the reins as she secured his body in place. Rem was thoughtfully doing as much as she could to prevent Subaru from pushing himself during the drive. She let him occupy most of the cramped driver's seat; when Subaru's snoring seemed troubled, she lent him a reassuring hand; sometimes she would stop the dragon carriage to get Subaru to drink some water and assist him with physical necessities. Moving by dragon carriage put a not-insignificant burden upon the driver. Paying close attention for over half a day at a time, a normal person would collapse from exhaustion before the journey was over as often as not. However, Rem's physical body was made of sterner stuff than a normal person's. Her mental endurance was also strong, and more than that, the fact that her labors were for Subaru's sake was the best match to light a fire under her. \"By rights, I really shouldn't put my personal feelings into it, though...\" Subaru, embracing her, made no reply. From the look of his profile, he was still hovering between dream and reality. Rem's murmur was more for her own benefit than his. \"Perhaps remaining in the royal capital was not what you really wanted, but...in truth, I was just a little happy. I cannot have you to myself at the mansion, after all.\" At Roswaal Manor, the time that Rem could spend together with Subaru every day was fairly limited. After all, she had her hands full with work at the mansion while he was always off with someone or other. \"During work hours it is with Sister, in your free time, with Lady Emilia...and you even spend some of your limited time teasing Miss Beatrice... I had to put up with all that.\" \"...Nn, hu.\" \"You were always so busy; you never had time to stand still... At the mansion, you worked for the villagers and for me... In the royal capital, for Lady Emilia... Always, always so busy.\" So far as Rem knew, Subaru was always running and running, never at a standstill. Perhaps it was for someone else, perhaps it was for himself; there was no single reason. But seeing Subaru run to and fro like that put a single emotion into Rem's heart. \"That's why I was...just a tiny bit happy that I was able to have you all to myself at Lady Crusch's mansion, even though I knew you had many worries. I'm sorry, Subaru.\" Subaru snored on, grimacing as Rem apologized with a faint smile. She softly caressed the forehead under his bangs, barely a tickle, and sighed slightly. \"Even though I heard that you had an argument with Lady Emilia. I'm sorry, Subaru.\" She apologized again. She was thinking back to the day of the royal selection assembly at the palace. Rem hadn't actually been there, so she didn't know exactly what Subaru and Emilia had said to each other when their relationship ruptured. \"After all, neither Lady Emilia nor Master Roswaal spoke to me in detail about it. The gist was, 'Subaru is at the castle, go get him, he will be in the care of Lady Crusch...' I was truly surprised when I met you at the castle after that, though.\" Nothing could make her forget the blow to her chest when she found Subaru's haggard state in the waiting room at the castle. She was both concerned at his condition and convinced that he must not be left alone. \"That is why I am at your side as much as I can, Subaru. But half of it is out of worry, and the other half is for my own sake... Being around you has made me into a naughty girl, Subaru.\" Even though she ought to be thinking of him, it was there that she discovered her own joy. It was always like that when she was with Subaru. She always discovered parts of herself that she didn't know existed. Rem counted off on her fingers things that she had come to realize about her old self. \"I have discovered many unpleasant things about myself. I discovered that I am lonely when you are getting along well with Sister, I am annoyed when you speak to Lady Emilia with your face all red, and I think it most unfair when I see you playing with Miss Beatrice.\" But her present self hadn't discovered only bad things by any measure. \"I am happy when you are getting along well with Sister. I think it is adorable when you speak to Lady Emilia with your face all red. When I see you playing with Miss Beatrice, I think, He's so gentle... I have those kinds of warm feelings in me as well.\" She continued whimsically confessing things to herself as if the lack of a reply was a good thing. Rem's words wouldn't stop, with feelings flowing out of her that she could never have said to his face. That moment, the things normally trapped in her heart were pouring out all at once. \"I would never have discovered these feelings, both good and bad, if I were not with you, Subaru. That is why I have thought of my time with you as happy... That makes it difficult right now.\" Having expressed those warm thoughts, Rem bit her lip, lowering her head at her own meekness. Even though such gloom had enveloped Subaru, Rem had been prepared for whenever he would spit it out. Had her passive stance not brought the current situation about? If they had grown so close, shouldn't she have asked Subaru about his worries? And wasn't her own weakness, her own desire to monopolize him, the reason why she had not done so? As Rem brooded, Subaru turned in her arms, sleeping uneasily. \"Subaru, it is all right. Relax and go to sleep...\" Rem spoke in a gentle voice, breaking the train of thought that was devolving into self-hatred. The forced march had indeed put quite a strain on his body. She'd meant to ride right through the night to reach the mansion, but it seemed better to camp somewhere for a short while. Since it would be midnight in another two to three hours, that pace would have them arriving at the mansion before the crack of dawn. \"In that case, it will be difficult to convey matters to Sister through our mental connection...\" It worked only for a given range, and only on the condition that both their minds were awake. The limitations of range and willpower were particularly strict when Rem was transmitting to Ram. It was not possible to link to Ram at the present range, and even if range were not an issue, it would soon be late at night. \"...Yes, we should camp.\" Having made that decision, Rem directed the land dragon to come to a stop through the reins. The creature gently halted, breathing through its nostrils as it looked up at Rem. She left Subaru in the driver's seat, leaping down to the ground to confirm that the area was safe. Night had already fallen over the Liphas Highway. For illumination, Rem had only the light of the moon and a lagmite crystal attached to the dragon carriage to rely on. Fortunately, there was little cloud cover that night, so the light of the moon was plenty to see by. There was probably little chance of being attacked by some kind of highwaymen. \"Pardon me, Subaru.\" Rem picked up the boy sleeping on the driver's seat bridal-style, resting him upon a blanket inside the carriage. After watching Subaru's relaxed breathing and his sleeping face, Rem exited the carriage and proceeded to stand watch over the campsite. She had little concern about bandits, but more than a few wild-dog and demon-beast packs were known to roam the highway at night. Rem knew that wild animals and demon beasts hungry for the taste of flesh and blood were far more dangerous than human beings. \"But you are here, too, tonight, so perhaps I have little need to worry about that.\" Rem reached out with her hand, stroking the head of the land dragon as it lowered the tip of its snout toward her. This was the wise and prudent creature that had stuck with her throughout the reckless forced march. Though he and Rem were first-time acquaintances, he had shown no sign of rebelling against her commands. She imagined the duchess's family ought to be praised for the scrupulous training of its beasts of burden. It was not unrelated, however, to the fact the land dragon's instincts told it that a demon occupied a higher place on the food chain. Among the various species of dragons, land dragons were conspicuous for their friendly relations with the humanoid races. They often occupied crucial roles in the lives of mankind and were beloved for their gentle personalities. Flying dragons and water dragons required special training, and many of them were ill-tempered. Thanks to that, they had relatively little place in the daily lives of humanoids. At any rate, land dragons were well known among dragon-kind for their gentleness and intimacy with people, but as a species, they drew the line when it came to all other beasts. There were virtually no wild animals so ignorant that they would willingly attack a land dragon. Plus, the land dragons themselves possessed an unusually keen nose for any kind of danger. Nothing short of a sizable band of highwaymen or a particularly large pack of demon beasts would attack"}, {"text": "them, and land dragons could sniff out such a large gathering before it ever arrived. This was the greatest reason that they were prized treasures for merchants and other travelers. Rem whispered toward the dragon carriage, \"Rest well, Subaru.\" She continued to pet the nearby beast as she sat on the ground. As she did, she leaned against its tough hide, covered herself with a blanket, and she spread her attention to the surrounding area. If they departed the next morning with the rising sun, they'd surely arrive back at the mansion before noon. She would return without having fulfilled her objectives. She had to take her scolding without a single word of complaint. Even so, she at least had to work to keep Subaru from being hurt in the process. \"And to get him back to his old self...\" Surely only Emilia could do that. Rem could not help but be irritated by that. In the first place, Emilia was a very difficult person for Rem to get close to. Even Roswaal, who had welcomed her as a guest, treated her as a superior now that she was a royal selection candidate. In fact, he had also ordered both Rem and Ram to get close to her. Her master, Roswaal, treating Emilia more highly than himself did not particularly bother Rem. Ram seemed displeased with Roswaal's adherence to hierarchy, but Rem's regard for such things was not as strong as her older sister's. Of course, Ram was not such a fool as to openly air her opinion on the matter. Nonetheless, Rem frequently picked up hints of deep dissatisfaction over their telepathy, whereas normally she would sense very little. The complicated feelings Rem felt toward Emilia had nothing to do with Roswaal. It was terribly vulgar, but Rem's conflicted thoughts toward Emilia were the product of the circumstances of her birth the fact that she was a half-elf. In other words, because she was a half-demon. In her head, Rem understood that Emilia herself had done nothing wrong. However, the emotional part of herself just couldn't accept it. Emilia was not in the wrong. However, half-demons had affected Rem's life, their influence far too large to lightly dismiss. She still remembered how the Witch Cult had laid waste to her birthplace. That fact pricked terribly at Rem's heart. As a result, she had firmly maintained her position of \"guest and servant\" where Emilia was concerned. Rem disregarded her emotions and responded to Emilia's instructions like an automaton. If no special occasion demanded it, Rem avoided coming into contact with her so that she would not pick up on her demeanor. Their tacit relationship was to never encounter the other by choice, whether their intentions were fair or foul. Time passed, and Rem had thought their weak relationship would continue unaffected by the royal selection. Based on her position, she thought it highly unlikely she would be involved with the matter at all. When thinking of her own role to play, she decided that going out of her way to support Emilia went beyond her duties.  And yet, Rem's feelings toward her had changed since back then. She wondered if it was herself who had changed or Emilia? It was probably both, set in motion by a common cause Subaru. Since the moment he wedged himself into her daily life, Rem's world had undergone great changes. When how you feel about the world changes, everything looks different, like black and white bursting into vivid color. Her work at the mansion felt more rewarding than before. No longer afraid of standing by her sister's side, she gained the confidence to approach Roswaal and Beatrice more. In spite of her decision not to lend her support, she'd found herself exchanging words with Emilia more often. After all, she knew that they shared a common interest. And though she held the boy in her own fleeting thoughts, she knew just who was the apple of his eye. That was why Emilia remained a source of irritation for Rem. \"I cannot bring myself to love, or hate, Lady Emilia. I am indecisive, aren't I...?\" It was a quiet night. The only things she heard were the faint sounds of insects and the breathing of the land dragon at her side. Relying only on the light of the moon, the boundary between dream and reality was indistinct. Her thoughts shifted from place to place of their own volition. Time seemed to flow slowly. She felt like she'd looked up at the moon numerous times, only to find its position unchanged. The night was long. That time alone was a deep, cold eternity. Abruptly, Rem was seized by the urge to sneak back inside the carriage behind her, which she was protecting. There, Subaru was sleeping with a gentle expression, too deeply to be dreaming. How good would it feel to slide under the blankets at his side, to share that warmth between them? \"Even though I was touching him so closely until just earlier... It is a luxury I cannot afford.\" Rem rebuked herself for being affected by the urge, but her heart would not stop picturing the fantasy.  A temptation arose, the temptation to throw anything and everything to the winds. At this rate, harsh realities far removed from Subaru's ideals awaited him upon his return to the mansion. She could still run off with the dragon carriage somewhere, with nothing but her own conscience to chide her. The funds Roswaal had granted her for traveling expenses were considerable. With that, she and Subaru could no doubt head somewhere and live in seclusion together. With time and continued contact with people, Subaru could move past his present childlike state and regain himself. Even if it was different from before, they might be able to share the same moments together. Surrounded by people who had no idea that they had fled there, she and a recovered Subaru could begin brand-new lives together. It would be a quiet life with the one she cared about, with no one to get in her way  \"Tee-hee, now that's a fantasy...\" Rem shook her head and, holding her knees, pressed her forehead against them, smiling weakly at her own imagination. There was no way that she could choose to turn her back on everything. To even have the thought was a sin. She could never simply abandon Sister, abandon Ram, back at the mansion. Sister and Rem were two halves of a single whole. On top of that, she couldn't even imagine what burdens Ram would have to carry in her absence. She was a kind older sister who indulged Rem, so no doubt she would forgive even this. That was why she could never betray Sister. Roswaal had entrusted Rem with such a fortune precisely because he had faith in her loyalty. Her diligent personality would not permit her to betray such trust, either. \"More than that... I cannot leave Subaru in this state after all.\" To begin with, Rem was well aware of her strong personal desire to have things to herself. If at all possible, she wanted everyone precious to her to be right at her fingertips. Doing her utmost for others helped her feel the worth of her existence deep down. It was no exaggeration to say that she was born predisposed to be a maid. That was why the effort required to care for Subaru in this state was not really a hardship from her perspective. Indeed, she would feel fulfilled if Subaru was unable to live day to day without her. But this wasn't the real Subaru. The words she had used to reply to Crusch when they parted ways came to mind. I suppose it is...because Subaru is special? Yes. That was everything. She remembered his smile. She remembered his voice. She remembered his words. Rem remembered what he had said to her and the warmth of his hand reaching out to her back when everything in her life was stagnant, when she was drowning in resignation. It was Subaru who had rescued Rem from the mistaken path of despair that she walked. Rem had made an error in judgment and planned to abandon those children, and it was Subaru who had saved them. Even though he was bathed in demon-beast curses, walking his own tightrope between life and death, Subaru had abandoned no one. Not Ram and not Rem. It was enough. It was plenty. Nothing more was required. What more did Rem need than to devote herself to Subaru Natsuki, body and soul? What more was required than the feelings burning in her chest? She would do whatever was necessary so that he could regain his true self, so that she might know his company once more. And why? Because the person known as Subaru Natsuki  \"...Is a bedeviled, incredible person.\" Rem stroked her hair back, moist from the foggy morning air, and gently raised her head. Perhaps it was accurate to call her half awake. Rem felt a little woozy, hovering somewhere between sleep and waking as her internal clock told her it was time to finally rise to her feet. There had been no changes of note during the night. No demon beast or highwayman had appeared; she hadn't even sensed any. All that said, Rem seemed to have been fairly worn out as well. Certain of her comparative safety, her body had strived to recover while she was half-awake. She rose to her feet, stretching up high as she felt the cool morning breeze. It was a lazy, unladylike gesture. She would never do such a thing where others could see, but she had no concern about that at the moment. The only one around was Subaru, sleeping soundly beside h  \"S-Subaru?!\" Rem jumped in surprise when she noticed Subaru was right beside her, curled up under a blanket. Since he'd been leaning on Rem for support, the young man gently flopped onto the grass, scowling as he turned his body a little. \"H-he came out of the carriage while I was sleeping and cuddled up next to me...?\" Rem hastily looked between the boy and the dragon carriage behind him. Even putting the truth into words sent her into quite a panic. On the one hand, she was shocked that she hadn't noticed him moving; on the other, she blushed hard as she realized just how tolerant her heart had become where Subaru was concerned. In other words, even if Subaru had assaulted her in her sleep, she would never have resisted. \"...I have been too careless.\" Even as she made that maidenly lament, Rem thought deep down that Subaru's action might be a good omen, the next step after he behaved himself so well during the dragon carriage ride. Subaru made no response except laughing or crying. Yet even in that state, he had performed a voluntary action, getting out of the dragon carriage under his own power. Rem held onto the hope that his broken heart was beginning to mend and his personality beginning to reform. \" All right. Let us go back, Subaru.\" If a change had been initiated, things would probably head in a good direction thereafter. Such optimistic thoughts were not like her, but this, too, was no doubt the influence of the young man before her eyes. And that internal shift was something Rem considered very dear to her. She believed that the thoughts rising into her head the night before had been a bad dream caused by her timid mind and tired body. She'd completely forgotten it, a cheerful future having overwritten it as if it had never existed. She lifted up the still sleeping Subaru, resting him upon the driver's seat as she roused the land dragon. She brought water for the awakened beast to drink, rewarding him for his long hours standing watch, and prepared for their departure. With one hand embracing Subaru over her knees and the other holding"}, {"text": "the reins, they departed once again. The carriage wheels turned, and the scenery moved. They were about halfway there. It would probably take another seven to eight hours of travel. Her mental and physical endurance was far stronger than on the day of their departure, with its tragic circumstances. Subaru was deeply asleep, and Rem gazed at the side of his face, conveying her impatient feelings through the reins so as to pick up the pace. A faint vibration ran through the dragon carriage. Rem adjusted her embrace of the curled-up Subaru, intertwining her own fingers with his. \"It looks so slender...but this is indeed a boy's hand.\" Resigning herself to her weakness in fleeing to that hand, she hoped her meek desire to touch him could be forgiven. It was a little ritual for forgetting about a bad dream. \"This warmth, having you so close... If I have that, it is enough.\" After all, hoping for more was simply her own selfishness. Her feelings from sensing that warmth, and the fact he needed her, had been carved into Rem's heart. She would give him her utmost efforts.  She would give him everything she had.  There was something amiss in the air. As the dragon carriage raced onward, Subaru seemed to be sleeping poorly, so Rem had rested him atop her knees, using her supporting arm to stroke his black hair when she finally realized it. Maybe it was the fact she'd had a lot of time to think things over the night before. Rem, having accepted to a certain extent the complicated feelings within her, was jubilant on the inside when she saw that Subaru had gotten out of the dragon carriage in the dead of night to snuggle up against her. If that was the reason she had failed to notice the change sooner, she was a great fool indeed. \"It is...too quiet...\" In all that time on the Liphas Highway, Rem had not come across another land dragon even once. This was an offshoot from the main highway, but seeing none at all, even on the distant horizon, was clearly unnatural. Normally, traveling merchants en route to the royal capital and peasants returning with new farm implements were here and there all over the highway. And yet, the road had been deserted since the day before. She had not taken any special measures to avoid farms, but she hadn't seen a single person, man or child. What was particularly wrong was that the cries of birds and insects had vanished from her ears a short while earlier. A bad feeling rushed into the back of Rem's mind. Such silence meant that the creatures of the wild were in hiding. It was a sure omen of something beyond the ken of man. As they cut through the hills and entered the mountain road, drawing closer to the mansion, that malaise had only increased. With unease, Rem snapped the reins to spur the land dragon, already running at a desperate speed, to hurry even faster. She knew she was pushing it too far, but she had no time to spare to locate the cause of that unease. She didn't mind if it turned out to be a baseless fear. She would apologize to both Subaru and the land dragon for accompanying her on the reckless journey. She would face them just as she had faced her own anxieties the night before. And just after she had that thought... \" Sister?\" Suddenly, thoughts that were not her own threw her mind into chaos. Nearly unbearable levels of anxiety, anger, and fury flooded her, and then it all immediately vanished, leaving Rem on her own. It had been Ram. Those feelings had flowed into her from her sister through their shared link. Ram was always a model of self-control on the outside, but in truth, she was built of stern stuff on the inside, too. Normally, the only things that could shake her were related to Rem or their master. And yet, Ram had been possessed by such fury that she'd communicated it to even Rem via their shared connection. Furthermore, the fact it had cut out immediately meant that she was controlling herself so that Rem would not pick it up. Rem guessed that her sister assumed she was in the royal capital, not able to make it in time as her older sister fell into peril. But Rem was close enough to do something, even if that was not Ram's wish. That was why... \"I must hurry back !\" With a concrete reason to make haste, she gripped the reins so hard that her hand went white. In an instant, Rem's sense of urgency and impatience cast all her misgivings about her surroundings to the winds. On the surface, Rem was normally emotionless, always striving to maintain her inner calm, but when lives were on the line, she lost sight of everything around her. It was Rem's defining flaw, one that Ram had pointed out to her many times and one a former colleague had pointed out to her as well. And now that flaw was rearing its ugly head once again.  When the land dragon's head sailed before her eyes, Rem saw it in slow motion. CHAPTER 5 ***  The head of the running land dragon flew from the base of its neck. Without a conscious creature to pull it, the large frame of the carriage tumbled accordingly, leaping off the road and turning onto its side. The overturned vehicle made a spectacular gash in the ground, kicking up a dust cloud with a great roar. In an instant, they formed a disastrous picture with the carriage wrecked and the fallen land dragon's body tangled in one of the wheels. They were in a tranquil, forested area in the mountains, surrounded by trees on all sides. The dragon carriage had already entered the Mathers dominion; it was probably about two hours of running from reaching its destination. But the dragon carriage had been cruelly destroyed along the way, with only the sound of a free-spinning wheel resounding through that hollow place. With the land dragon a corpse and the vehicle nothing more than a wreck, the scent of blood began to hover over the area. \"...Uu, uua.\" And there, a young man lay, raising a voice of lament after being thrown from the dragon carriage. He had fallen into a cluster of bushes a short distance away from the half-destroyed dragon carriage. Mosses and vines had likely cushioned his fall. Miraculously, the youth's injuries were quite light. But his defenseless state didn't mean that he didn't feel the pain of his wounds. He was scratched and bruised in several places. Fortunately, he had no broken bones, nor any major blood loss from his wounds. But the pain was more than enough to make him cower like a little child in shock. \"A, huu... Gu, hi...!\" The dark-haired young man cried and moaned in pain as he lay upon the grass. The ground had scratched his forehead, and the soil was stained with red. His tears and mucus were especially unsightly. The disgraceful picture of a grown man splayed on the ground, along with the wrecked carriage, formed an unbearable scene that told of the tragedy of the crash. *** And yet, the shadowy black-robed figures continued to stand in place and watch, as if they were part of the background. Over ten such figures stood encircling the young man and the dragon carriage. Having ascertained that the headless corpse of the land dragon was indeed good and dead, their attention was focused on the young man. The figures wore hooded black outfits from head to toe, leaving their faces and even their genders impossible to fathom. They wavered, seemingly gliding along the ground as the circle closed in on the teen. Then, one of the figures, walking soundlessly, mumbled something. \" la.\" As soon as one had voiced it, the next murmured something similar. The low murmurs continued like this as a ceaseless chain, a cascading chant as the shadows enveloped the young man. The world was composed of two things alone the sound of leaves in the wind and the black figures' murmurs. Eventually, the young man heard those whispers, and they sparked a change in him. \" Agaa, aa! Aa, aaa!\" The young man's injured, pain-filled body thrashed around, flopping on his back, wriggling like a fish suffocating out of the water. His anguish was clearly of a different nature than before. It was as if his distress came not from without but from within his own flesh. He agonized as if there were something running amok inside his body, chewing away at his heart. From all appearances, he had noticed the muttering of the figures around him and reacted to them. The shadows looked down at the suffering boy, making no move to halt their chant. But one of their number seemed to come to some kind of conclusion about the writhing young man and extended a hand toward his body. \" Don't touch Subaru!\" The next moment, an iron ball howled as it sailed through the air, shattering the head of the figure who had tried to touch Subaru, the young man on the ground. Skull fragments flew around the area as the figure fell and the chain clinked lightly. The weapon danced toward the others like a ferocious silver snake in search of further prey. However, the group made its decision quickly. Instantly abandoning their dead comrade, they scattered voicelessly to evade the chain's pursuit. As if by reflex, they drew cross-like daggers from their flanks and gripped their weapons of poor taste with both hands, together keeping watch over north, south, east, and west. The figures numbered eleven. The way they had instantly responded to a surprise attack by taking up a formation to eliminate blind spots was nothing short of commendable. However, that mattered against only an attacker whose options were limited to two dimensions: front, back, left, and right. \" Shii!\" Above the group, someone sprang from among the trees, her apron dress fluttering. With enough power in her legs to leave shoe marks in the trunk of a tree, her body shot forward at an angle. The girl leaped down with incredible speed, moving just a moment before her prey could detect the sound above them. What descended was the end of the deadly weapon's handle, driving into an unfortunate figure's skull. With a sharp sound, a cavity opened in its cranium; blood spilled out of the victim as they wobbled and collapsed. The girl kicked the body toward another figure standing to the side to obstruct its vision as she leaped behind it. However, this one did not hesitate to strike its comrade's corpse. With a swing of two blades, the figure sliced its comrade-turned-corpse apart, regaining its field of vision  The next moment, a twisting iron ball fell upon the menace in black, turning it into bloody fog. Having hurled her weapon out in front of her, the small girl froze in position. Seeing that she had stopped, the figures took the brief opening to hurl their cross-like swords in unison. The girl, apparently defenseless as blades rushed toward her from all sides, drew a miniature version of her weapon from her side with her left hand and batted down all the daggers in one swing. After the girl's incredible feat, it was her attackers who were open now. They paused for less than a second, but before the opponent they now faced, that time was lethal. \"Roaaaaa!\" The girl shouted, howling as she bared her teeth. With a great backhand swing of the flail, she mowed down every tree in its path, tracing a semicircle of utter destruction. Another enemy was caught in the iron mass's advance, slain as blunt trauma ripped their limbs right off. The beautiful blue-haired girl who had taken their lives had an ivory white horn protruding from her"}, {"text": "forehead. That truth was enough to identify her as a monster in a girl's flesh. \"You shall not lay one finger on Subaru.\" The adorable demon's lovely face was stained with blood; her eyes were brimming with ferocity and aggression. But the position she had taken made clear that she was protecting Subaru from the figures surrounding him. Having spoken her warning, Rem ignored her own bloody left shoulder and swung the iron ball around above her head. She had sustained the wound to her shoulder when the dragon carriage went on its side, unable to completely evade the carriage as it bounced. If she had been by herself, she would most likely have escaped uninjured, but that wasn't possible with Subaru in her arms. It was all she could do to use her own body to shield Subaru and throw him to a safe place. She had seen him fall on the bush as she intended while she shared the same fate as the wrecked dragon carriage. As a result, her forehead had been lacerated, and a branch had stabbed her left shoulder fairly deeply. She seemed to have a fracture in her left femur close to her hip; moving sent a shot of ferocious pain through her that made her white cheeks go numb. But Rem stepped forward with a gait that betrayed none of that pain. She glared at the group in black, spewing in a voice filled with hatred, \"Witch Cult !\" Rem spat blood as she called out to them, but as before, the figures made no sign of a human response. Unchanged, they faced off against Rem, almost as if they weren't even conscious of what they were doing. They were at an impasse the instant Rem made that judgment, she moved first to break the stalemate. \" Yaa!\" She altered the course of the iron ball she was swinging above her head, lengthening the chain to its full extent. The single blow snapped the trees along the side of the road, smashing wood and soil together and sending them flying toward the figures. Her opponents variously leaped and ducked to evade, then rushed at Rem to seize the opening she had given them. Rem, her arm extended, twisted her body so that she could draw her limb and distant weapon back to her. However, a blade would to tear into her chest before the iron ball could arrive  \" Raa!\" A moment before the tip of the figure's knife reached Rem, her demon foot rose from below to send its jaw flying. No, this was not a metaphor for its head being kicked aloft the blow was so powerful that her enemy's jaw literally sailed away. The figure's face was covered in fresh blood. Even so, it did not hesitate out of pain as it thrust the blade forward. The action, made in complete disregard for the attacker's own life, was wrong for any living thing. *** The head of the figure who had failed such a basic biological test was shattered from behind as Rem's iron ball returned. Showered in blood and pieces of flesh, Rem gripped the iron ball with her left hand. Holding it such that the iron spikes posed no danger to her, she used what was now an iron fist to flatten the face of the enemy rushing right at her flank. Where there had once been twelve, now there were six. Rem breathed raggedly as her demon gaze pierced the assassins, now half their original number. A rock tapered and sharpened at one end like a lance sailed into that gaze. With a tilt of her head, she dodged it just before impact. Her hair, moving a fraction slower, was ripped from the side of her head; the pain and surprise turned her vision pure red. As the shock to her head robbed her of her decision-making ability, Rem went by the sudden slushy feeling beneath her feet and leaped. The moment after she jumped, her delayed thought process told her just what a mistake she had made.  She had sprung into the air, rendered herself unable to move, against an enemy capable of long-range attacks. A fireball appeared and burned its way through the great treetops, charging at Rem as she sailed through the air. She felt like the high temperature was setting her flesh alight as she instantly thrust her left hand in front of her. \"Hyuma!!\" Rem deployed a thin layer of ice in front of her. The instant the fireball slammed into it, white steam erupted, and the dying hiss of the vaporizing ice clawed in her ears. She had managed to reduce the force of the flames, but she was unable to nullify it completely. Her decision was instant. She plunged her left fist, still in motion, into the inferno, sacrificing it to break the flames apart. \" Uaaa!\" Withstanding the explosion in midair, Rem's body spun as it was blown away, and her back collided with the trunk of a tree. The thick trunk broke and crashed to the ground with Rem on top. When she got up, she groaned in agony at the dull pain in her left arm. When she looked at the scorched remnants of her limb, she couldn't even feel pain past the elbow. Without the services of a healer on Ferris's level, no doubt she'd never have use of that hand again. Even with a grave wound like that, Rem bit her lip and dragged her mind back to reality. She grit her teeth against the pain, using her aggression and rage to light a fire in her belly and drive the anguish out of her mind. She roared, asserting her own existence, and tried to draw even a little of the figures' attention to her. She prayed only that Subaru had vanished from their awareness. But. *** One of the group had approached without a sound, and it drove a hand into Rem's torso with incredible force, slamming her into the great tree behind her. The force, enough to crack Rem's sternum and crush her internal organs, left her spitting out a copious amount of blood. Coughing up the sticky liquid burned her throat. Her body sank in the agony that coursed through every corner of it. When the hand lashed out again, by sheer luck, she fell to her knees and escaped having her skull crushed. The palm thrust into the great tree behind her, sending it sailing away with unbelievable ease. The unarmed figure, able to form craters in the ground's surface with a single stomp, was clearly different from the others. When it leaped sideways in pursuit, Rem rolled to evade it, spat out the blood remaining in her mouth, and searched for the iron ball she had dropped. \"Ah, uh?!\" The instant she dodged a stone lance, which still grazed the side of her face, a rock slammed right into her body from behind. Her spine creaked ferociously, and her small form crashed into the ground and bounced into the air. The unarmed figure was waiting for Rem at the end of her arc. They were holding in their hand the iron ball Rem had released, and they swung the deadly spiked weapon up to meet her mid-bounce. \" El Hyuma!\" The chant she'd built up burst out of her lungs. Mana combined with the blood she spat out, freezing it over. A blade of crimson ice sliced off the arm of the one holding the iron ball, forcing his thick limb to drop the weapon. \"Gaurururu!\" Crashing into the ground, Rem regained control of her body and snatched up the handle of the fallen iron ball into her right hand. Simultaneously, she kicked the weapon itself at the figure from behind, using the weight of the ball to tightly wrap the chain around its thick neck. A dull sound echoed as she snapped its spine. Seeing her foe's head turn at a 180-degree angle back at her, Rem relaxed slightly after felling a powerful foe. That instant... *** The figure's body, which should have been powerless, lashed out with a ferocious kick that devastated Rem's torso. The blow connected with her left side, fracturing every bone in that half of her rib cage and completely snapping her fractured left thigh. After that one blow, the figure expired for good this time, but the damage Rem suffered was severe. \"Uu, aaa...!\" Moaning and coughing up blood, she cursed her now-useless left side as she stood back up. She'd likely just taken care of the best that the enemy group had. There were five left. The fact that they hadn't approached her meant that close combat wasn't their specialty. She could still do this.  She could get close and snap their necks. But could she really do that when only her right side could move properly? \"What a weak thing I am...!\" Rem shook her head, suppressed her frail musings, and roused her despairing self. Whether she could didn't matter. She had to do it. She had to. So her left side was dead to her. What of it? She could still move her right side. If her right arm became useless to her, she'd stomp them with her foot. If her right leg became unusable, she'd tear out their throats with her teeth. If she killed the last one, and Subaru was still alive, Rem would have won. *** The moment she thought of why she fought, Rem's heart sought the sight of the young man dear to her. She looked toward where he had fallen to suppress the last of the hesitation within her. She would burn that final image in her eyes, and it would be the kindling to set her heart ablaze. \" Subaru?!\" He was gone. Subaru ought to have been there, gasping from pain, from agony, from fear...but he was not. Rem hastily scanned the whole area. She wondered if he'd been caught up in the battle and knocked away somewhere. But search as she might, she couldn't see him anywhere. Then Rem finally realized: \"They're one short...?\" There were five figures left among the group. But Rem could make out only four. The figures had shifted to stand side by side, blocking the road, arms lowered with crosses in both hands. It was as if they had moved to conceal their comrade from Rem's field of vision. To keep her away from their ally as they fled with Subaru. \"Why...you...\" Her shaking voice fell from trembling lips. Her lips, which felt bloodless due to all she had lost, were dyed crimson from the great amount she had coughed up. Such violent war paint transformed Rem's adorable face into that of a veritable demon. \"You weren't content with Sister's horn...so you had to take away my reason for living...?!\" The iron ball danced around as her right hand gripped its handle. Her good leg was filled with explosive energy. The figures before her thrust their crosses forward in some kind of pose, rushing at her all at once. That instant... \"Do you wish to take even my reason for dying here away from me ?!!\" Rem's roar rent the air as her leg pushed her up, as if the ground itself had launched her. To the front, an enormous wall of flame spread out before Rem as she leaped. She broke through that barrier, smashing in the face of an enemy standing beside it. The moment after, a fireball bore down on her, large enough to bury her entire field of vision. *** A thunderous shout. An orange glow rose up amid the trees bathed in the morning sun, then another and another. The inferno surged wildly, burning away the trees, with the very world groaning as the high temperature turned the area to ash.  On that scorched plain, the charred remnants of a white apron dress fluttered and vanished into the wind. Subaru drooled as he swayed on the figure's shoulder, not offering any"}, {"text": "resistance. He no longer felt most of the pain from the wounds he'd suffered from falling out of the dragon carriage. It wasn't that he couldn't feel them, but other pain blotted out anything external, so it didn't matter. He moaned, the agony tearing at his heart robbing him of all will to put up a fight. Back where the dragon carriage had fallen on its side, the figures surrounding Subaru had begun some kind of chant. As he listened to that sound, Subaru felt something alien well up inside his body, wriggling and eating at him from the inside, as if the ringing in his skull wasn't enough to drive him into raging madness all by itself. Over and over, he heard someone's voice over the chant. It sounded different, like the whisper of a woman's voice a whisper like a curse. In her kind, gentle way, she berated the agonized Subaru and drove him mad. If it went on a little more, just a little more, he thought and then shuddered. That pain broke the hearts of men. It bent them into unrecognizable shapes. It changed them. It made people into not-people. That was the kind of curse that it was. \"Hu-he, hi-hi-hi, he-hi-hi-hi...\" Suddenly, the corners of his lips curled into a crazed smile, drooling as he seemed to remember something. The reverberation of the wriggling black thing grew distant, and his attention began to shift from his internal agony to his external once again. Accordingly, he forgot the eerie feeling that had threatened to shatter his heart and began to cry plaintively in response to the more immediate pain. \"U, higu, a, uu...\" Subaru's body hurt all over. He sought a hand to console him. A voice. Warmth. But the figure running through the woods, seemingly rushing along a game trail, paid Subaru no heed. It gripped Subaru with such incredible strength that he could not move an inch, and yet the delicate body possessed unimaginable agility, running through the forest like the wind itself. The depths of the woods had no markings, yet the figure's steps held the certainty of one with a guide. How many tens of minutes had they been running like that? Gradually, the speed eased, and they finally came to a complete stop. In front of them was a prominent wall of rock, bare except for the lichens covering its surface. The wall, stretching up above eye level, was a natural fortress that could not be easily overcome without the aid of appropriate tools. Perhaps he'd taken a wrong turn. However, the figure showed no hint of confusion as he stood before the rock face. Gently, he stepped forward and pressed a hand to one section of the stone. *** The faint goose bumps on Subaru's flesh were similar to the ones he felt when someone used magic right next to him. Where his abductor touched the wall before him, the mass of rock blocking his path vanished instantly, as if truly by magic. It was a stupefying supernatural phenomenon. Apparently the hole left by the vanished rock now belonged to a cave. The figure adjusted its hold on Subaru and carried him gracefully into the hole. The air in the cave was cold and chilly, but the figure's gait was calm. From time to time, Subaru's moans seemed to spoil that tranquility, but his kidnapper showed no sign of caring. After advancing several dozen yards, even the light filtering in through the entrance faded. Likely, the rock had been restored, hiding the cave again. They could see within the hollow space even without the light from the entrance. The narrow, rocky corridor had white crystals at regular intervals, and their glowing light guided the figure down the path. Following that light, the black-robed being went deeper and deeper into the cave, carrying Subaru farther and farther into darkness. The deeper they went, the more the black wriggling thing inside Subaru's body began to stir. This time, instead of tearing at Subaru's internal organs, it licked at every corner of his being, as if showing its affection. The unceasing pain and accelerating, increasing uncanny feeling made Subaru quiver on his captor's shoulder. Tears flowed from the corners of his eyes as he continued his frivolous laughter. Finally, the seemingly interminable corridor of rock came to an end. The glow of the crystals was a little stronger. He was able to make things out more clearly than in the corridor, and this was an especially large natural cavern. There, Subaru would come face-to-face with the true \"malice\" of that world. \"Oh my?\"  There was a thin man. The man in the cavern, surrounded by shadows, wore black robes like the others. He was a slight bit taller than Subaru, but his physique was skin and bones, as frail as a corpse. His deep-green hair was lifeless; he looked weak and unhealthy.  Were it not for the madness in his eyes. The figure carrying Subaru bound his unresisting body to the cavern wall. With iron chains and shackles attached to his limbs, Subaru's mind appeared absent as he was tossed onto the hard ground. The man opened his eyes, eyeing Subaru with deep interest. He leaned forward a fair ways, with his hips bent at a ninety-degree angle and his head bent perpendicular to his neck. His gaze, as cold as a reptile's, shot through Subaru. \"I seeee... Certainly, certainly, this is of great interest.\" He stared at Subaru, taking him all in, and nodded as if he understood something. The one who had brought Subaru knelt earnestly on the spot, awaiting the man's next words with great reverence. As the first knelt, the others followed suit. However, the man in the center did not react to the show of respect around him, instead sticking his right thumb into his mouth as he sank into thought alone. It seemed like he might bite his nail for fun; instead, his back molars crushed the digit itself. Drawing the red flesh from the corner of his mouth, the man paid no heed to the bleeding from his mangled finger as he tossed out a question. \"Could you... possibly be 'Pride,' by any chance?\" But even with an insane man calling out to him, Subaru was not in his right mind, either. Subaru watched the self-mutilation, seeming like he wanted to look away but continuing to frivolously laugh all the while. The two men, neither in his right mind, stared at each other. The madness in the eyes of each one seemed to startle the other. \"Hmm... That doesn't seem to be a reply.\" The man roused his own body, their rivalry disintegrating with a whimper. The man pulled his thumb out of his lips as he seemed to remember something, with no sign of a dampening mood. He touched his blood-smeared hand to his own forehead. \"Ahh, I see. It occurs to me that I have been rude. My goodness, I have yet to introduce myself, yes?\" A wry, malevolent smile came over him as he acted with wholly incongruous courtesy. Subaru's insane smile seemed to strike him as proof positive of some kind of intimacy between them. \"I am Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti \" The man politely bowed at the waist as he stated his name. After that, he turned his head alone forward and stated his title... \"...Archbishop of Sin of the Witch Cult... Entrusted with the duties of Slooooth!\" The man Petelgeuse pointed at Subaru with the fingers of both hands and cackled. His obnoxiously loud laughter ripped through the tranquility of the cave with a gloomy echo. The guffaws echoed off the walls of the cold, dark cavern. It was unclear what struck Petelgeuse as so funny he would laugh, but he shook with joy as he bared his bloodstained teeth. Faced with the man's amusement, Subaru's cheeks were stretched from his own dry laughs. The iron manacles were fastened to him so tightly that his hands and feet had changed color; numbness spread through him thanks to his constricted arteries. It seemed that his welcome was in no way a warm one. \"Ahh, what a comedy! What a very, very, very, very interesting scene. Truly, truly, truly, truly, truly!! My brain trembles...!\" Wild laughter came over Petelgeuse as he traced some kind of symbol on the wall with the drops of blood from his hand. The shape's lack of meaning made the makeshift mural a reflection of the man's state of mind. As the two men with a diminished appreciation of reality faced off against each other, one of the kneeling figures intervened. It was the tall one who had carried Subaru there. The figure murmured something to Petelgeuse. *** It was a whisper like the sound of an insect's wings, reaching only Petelgeuse. Once he listened to it, Petelgeuse's wild laughter vanished. He set aside all jest and tilted his head to form a right angle. \"Iiis that so... Ahh, that makes my heart leap; it makes my heart shiver, yes!\" The tone of his voice and his expression were completely different. With a serious look, he changed his tone instantly; this time, Petelgeuse crunched down on the hitherto undamaged fingers of his left hand, one by one, without the slightest hesitation. The sounds of cracked bones and crushed flesh resounded. \"Ow... Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! Ahh, I am full of liiife!\" Petelgeuse shook the crushed fingers of his left hand, splattering blood as he looked up at the ceiling. Unmoved, the shadow watched him, remaining on its knees as it whispered again to Petelgeuse. \"My left ring finger, destroyed! Ahh, what a sweet ordeal this is! For our diligence to have been so richly rewarded... Today, we have shown this uncertain world what love truly is!\" *** \"Ahh, that is just fine. The remaining bones of the left ring finger have fused with the middle and index. There are still, still, still, still nine fingers left, many, many more opportunities to prove my devotion.\" He stretched out his hand, dripping with blood, and placed it on the kneeling figure's head as if in thanks. Subaru could not see into their mind as their entire body shook, but they seemed deeply moved by Petelgeuse's action. \"Yes! An ordeal! An ordeal! This is an ordeal! A test of faithhhh, all to convey our affection! Illuminate! Guide! Ahh, my brain treeeeembles!\" As Petelgeuse laughed in delight, spraying saliva, the figures clapped their hands together in apparent adulation. It was a strange, eerie gathering, one only they comprehended. The figure's report became more detailed, but within the tranquil cavern, it was quieter than a mouse's paws. Furthermore, it was almost as if its purpose was to provide vile material for Petelgeuse's one-man comedy routine. Petelgeuse twisted his hips, lowered his body, and leaned forward to bring his face close to Subaru's. \"Setting that aside, him! Ahh, himmmm! Just what is this man?\" With stinky breath blowing on him at close range, Subaru's crazed eyes looked up, unmoved. \"Certainly, certainly, certainly, certainly-ly-ly, this is straaange. Turbulent, unfathomable... What is someone like you, not recorded in the Gospel, doing in this situation, on the eve of the ordeal?\" *** \"Dragon carriage! Ahh, land dragons are looovely! Adorably loyal, diligent in obedience, diligent in work, a marvelous species striving for diligence in all things!\" *** \"You killed one! Ahh, that too iss good! It drew the carriage, so it could not be helped! Ahh, you have been industrious once again! As long as there are still fingers on my hands, diligence is the most crucial thing of all! Ahh, love! Life! People! Diligence in all things!\" Petelgeuse was so worked up, he bent his body so far back that he almost touched the ground. He sprang back to his feet like a drawn bow with a look of ecstasy. \"My fingers are so diligent, they brought down a land dragon, a living symbol of diligence!"}, {"text": "Ahh, my brain trembles. Trembles, trembles, treeeeeeeeeeeembles!\" Petelgeuse, his madness rising to heights unknowable to normal men, had blood trickling out of his nose. As it reached his lips, Petelgeuse licked it with his tongue, his cheeks relaxing with an intoxicated look about him. He closed his eyes, his body shuddering as his fervor reached its peak. Petelgeuse wildly wiped away the nosebleed with the sleeve of his religious habit and let out a long sigh. \"Ahh... The land dragon that died was slothful, was it not?\" With that, the previous excitement was nowhere to be found as he pointed toward the entrance of the cavern and spoke with a calm demeanor and a deliberate voice. \"Here on the eve of the day of the coming ordeal, the immediate disposal of the wrecked dragon carriage will keep from revealing our existence. We have eliminated all human presence, so there is no concern about witnesses from...others on board? You did take care of them, didn't you?\" *** Petelgeuse, listening to the figure's report, shook his head. The bones in his neck creaked. \"One other in the vehicle... A blue-haired girl. The left ring finger engaged, demolishing the dragon carriage, and entered combat while the boy was being secured. The girl destroyed the ring finger in the process... It is unclear whether the girl is dead or alive.\" For a while he sank into thought, his head turning left and right like the pendulum of a clock, tilting, twisting, turning, swaying, and finally, leaning forward. \"Unclear...whether...she is dead...or alive?\" Petelgeuse murmured with a hint of darkness in his voice as he raised his face up and looked at the figure's hollow eyes. \"Are you sloth...?\" As the figure's eyes snapped wide, Petelgeuse ferociously grabbed both sides of its face. His crushed fingers on both hands smeared its cheeks with blood, but Petelgeuse didn't care as he yelled, \"You left an element of uncertainty here, on the eve of the trial?! That! That, that, thaaat! Is how you faaaaithfully repay the Gospel?! Ahh, such sloths! Sloths, sloths, sloths, sloths!\" It was unclear where a man of skin and bones held such power, but Petelgeuse easily shook the head in his hands, shoving the figure's back to the ground and straddling it. Then he looked up toward the sky, tears flowing down his cheeks. \"And! My finger's laziness is my own! Ahh, please forgive the indolence in this flesh, filled with affection for thee! Living solely to work diligently for body and soul of the Gospel! For how things must be! Forgive that I have wasted my time in idleness!\" As tears poured down from Petelgeuse, the figure on the ground let out a sob of its own. Making a humanlike reaction for the first time, it looked up at the sky and prayed, just like Petelgeuse. \"Love! This is love! One must sacrifice for love! Laziness cannot be permitted! I must obey the Gospel! I must return the love granted to me with my own!\" *** In a shrieking voice, Petelgeuse gave a command to the black robes. \"The girl whose death is uncertain... Find her! If she is alive, wring her neck. If she is dead, cut her head off her corpse and bring her here! Reward her with love!\" In response, the figures seemingly melted into the darkness of the cavern and vanished. As they departed, Petelgeuse was gazed off absently, breathing raggedly on his knees for a while before turning toward Subaru. \"Now then, then, then, then, then, then, then, then.\" Still kneeling, Petelgeuse drew close to Subaru, who was in a crouch. \"So in the end, what are you?\" \"Uh, aah...\" \"The Gospel does not seem to have guided you here, but Her affection hovers thickly all around you. Truly, truly, truuuly a most interessting thing!\" Petelgeuse stuck out his tongue, drawing near enough to lick Subaru's eyeballs. The green-haired man clapped his hands, unable to conceal his delight at the boy who was staring at things that weren't there. \"I should know the faces of all except 'Pride,' but having said that, I don't think the affection you have received is unrelated to the Gospel.\" With that murmur, Petelgeuse reached within his habit and pulled out a single tome. It was a book with a black cover, about as large and heavy as a dictionary. At first glance, he looked like he was simply carrying his favorite book with him, but that was too normal an act for a madman. \"Ahh... I feel the love of the Gospel. My brain, it shivers...\" Petelgeuse rested the book without a title in his hands, calmly and reverently turning the pages. \"You are not recorded within the Gospel. Of course, there is also nothing here about any problems occurring here today, on the eve of the Great Ordeal! In other words!!\" Petelgeuse slammed the book shut, spit spraying as he lifted up the closed book. \"It means you are nothing to get seriously worked up about! Even though you have received such deep, deep, deep, deeeep affection... It is quite an inconsistency!\" He poked a finger at his temple, clawing at it with the nail as if he were trying to dig a hole. He tore the skin, yet the bloody, violent sight right before Subaru's eyes elicited no reaction. The boy merely continued his frivolous laughter, watching idly as Petelgeuse harmed himself. \"Ah, ah, ah, ahh... It is so lonely to be ignored! Even though! Even though! I have been soooo warm and friendly to you, you, you, youuuuuuu...\" His words trailed off, and the next moment, Petelgeuse's hands grasped Subaru's face. The boy's expression was frozen, his mind off somewhere else as Petelgeuse forced Subaru to look at him. Unsurprisingly, even in his stupefied state, Subaru scowled and resisted the rough treatment. Petelgeuse's voice was quiet, but there was a power in his eyes that would not take no for an answer. \" Look into my eyes.\" Startled, Subaru shuddered. His face was blank as he looked at Petelgeuse like he was told. Those gray eyes, giving off the glow of madness, evaluated Subaru's mind. \"You will respond. Your mind will respond. I demand answers to my questions. What are you doing here? Why have you been granted such affection? Why do you not have a Gospel? Does that mean she whispers directly to your heart?\" \"Uu, a, uaaa...\" \"It seems we are at an impasse. Therefore, I shall rearrange my questions.\" After his string of questions was rebuffed, Petelgeuse tilted his head ninety degrees to the right. With his head horizontal, he glared up at Subaru from below. \"Do you hearrr me?\" \" Auu!\" Petelgeuse stretched out his tongue, licking Subaru's left eyeball. Subaru's chains clinked as he tried to get away from Petelgeuse after the extremely creepy gesture. However, that lasted only until he heard the next sentence. \" Why, might I ask, are you preteeending to be crazy?\" \"Aa! Aaaa!\" Gross, no, I'm scared, forgive me, save me, scared, scared, scared, scared. He didn't know what was being said to him. The ghastliness of someone licking his eyeball, the discomfort of being stared at like that, and his urge to flee the madness of the eyes looking at him, all made his body freeze. With his mouth gaping absently, his open eye having been licked, Subaru was asked again, \"Why are you pretennnding to be crazy?\" Subaru tried to slam him with a manacled arm. The chain went taut, denying his freedom. His arm flailed in the air a little before falling back to the ground on its side. \"Guu! Auaaa! Aiii!\" \"No, no, no, no, it is a very important question. Why, for what purpose, with what meaning, are you acting like you are seized with such madness?\" He mustn't listen. He mustn't let the words into his ears. He mustn't know. He shook his head, yelling as he struggled against the manacles. His consciousness was somewhere far away. He had to blot from his ears the words of the man in front of him, for he was forbidden to listen, to know, to realize. \"The subconscious does not prepare such convenient escape routes. You consciously, and with full knowledge, wrapped yourself in such madness, yes?\" \"Aaa! Gauaa! Guruaaa!\" \"Your madness is too lucid. The crafty, deliberate way you seek sympathy and beg for love, it is quite rude to those who are actually insane.\" Subaru raised his voice, shouting enough to tear his throat apart, trying to make the man's words go away. But the man seemed to mock his resistance, and his voice drove into Subaru's eardrum like a needle. \"Your pretense of being a madman is quite lacking. If you were truly insane, if you were drenched in lunacy in a true sense, you would never recognize the eyes of another. For you would not understand anyone exists beyond your mad self, a world of one person, trapped in the desolate wasteland of his own mind!\" \" Baa! Baaa! Baaaaaa!\" \"Ahh, what a comedy, what a farce indeed! Why, why are you pretennnding to be a madman?! If you were truly a deviant, the pretense would not fall away so quickly! I can't stop laughing!\" It hurt to breathe. He felt horrible. Something was pushing its way up inside him, trying to assert its own existence. No, it had been there from the start. He'd simply sealed it away and pretended not to look at it. It was because he knew of its presence that he absolutely could not allow it to surface. \"Pitiable! Pathetic! You, such a lowly and deep sinner, drunk on your own pathos I pity you from the heart! You are loved so much; why do you need to deny it?! Do you desire to remain in stagnation as the wind whittles you away, without drowning in the love you have been granted freely, without returning their devotion?! Ahh, how can this, how can this beee!\" The gray-colored man grabbed Subaru's head and violently tossed him toward the wall. The powerful motion slammed his upper body against the rock, sending sparks scattering as his head began to bleed profusely. \"Ah, ah, ah, you...are indeed slothful!\" There was a clang, and Subaru felt like something in his head had split in two. I don't hear you. I'm not listening. It's all the ravings of a madman. None of it hit the mark. None of it arrived at any truth. I still don't get anything. That's as it should be. That's as it ought to be. It has to be like that. If it's not, I'll  \"Ahh, that's quite far enough.\" The black thing inside him reached its peak, ready to explode at any moment. Just before it did, the man pulled him back from the brink with a calm murmur, as if the previous madness was a distant memory. Bereft of the world of thick madness, the sense of danger Subaru felt from the man redoubled, raising goose bumps on his skin. The man said to him, \"Yes, backing you into a corner will cause a trifle, yes, a trifle, trifle, trifle too much trouble later. Take your time, slowly face up to the truth of your devotion, and you shall surely find your own answer.\" \"Aa... Uguu...!\" What was the man trying to say to him...? From beginning to end, the words out of his mouth had been a string of insults. Subaru didn't get it. The man was acting like he understood something about him. One moment, he was like an adult kindly leading a little boy by the hand; another, he acted like a monster tempting lost people while they tried to cross a bridge. He was a monster beyond fathom. The distance between them could stay as it was, forever. Before he crossed the divide into the land of no return. The man said, \"Ahh, in other words... You are not a sloth. You are diligent.\" Subaru's eyes bore a"}, {"text": "lack of understanding as the madman's perceptive words pressed upon him. Petelgeuse folded his arms, gazing up at the heavens, murmuring as if he was praying. This was the only action that made his title of archbishop seem not to be a farce. After praying for a while, Petelgeuse seemed to notice something and looked back. \" Oh my?\" He was gazing at the figures emerging one after another within the cavern, the ones that had vanished and gone outside. The black robes seemed to sprout right out of the ground, their numbers exceeding ten. They knelt in reverence to Petelgeuse, bowing their heads low as they awaited instructions. \"What is the meaning of thisss?\" *** \"What, the girl is coming here? Ahh, that is why you have returned? That is good! That is very good! By all, all, all, all, all means, let us welcome her. I must welcome her with my very own handsss!\" Petelgeuse was bursting with joy. The meaning of his words did not reach Subaru. However, the boy was panting as if he had a fever. Nothing trickled out of his mouth but a moaning voice, but on the inside, an inexplicable feeling was guiding something inside him to the surface. But, \" !\" His mouth felt like some invisible object was blocking it, leaving his voice trapped within. What he felt shutting his throat was different from fear or his other emotions. It was like something tangible, something physical was keeping his lips sealed. Subaru opened his eyes, sensing something like an unseen hand was constricting his throat. When he looked over, he saw Petelgeuse cackle. \"Now, no need to be hasty... We have plenty of time.\" Petelgeuse's dry, cackling laughter reverberated throughout the cavern. Even if the invisible gag disappeared, Subaru would have no way to stop the eerie rumble from echoing against his eardrums. Forbidden to even laugh or cry, all he could do was wait in silence.  It was a bit under an hour when the change he waited hopefully for finally arrived. The figures remained on their knees, keeping their silence was their custom. Between them, Petelgeuse paced around without speaking a word, leaving only his footsteps and Subaru's ragged breaths to disturb the air of the chamber. The first figure to raise his head was the one closest to the corridor connecting to the chamber. Following that individual's movements, the other fanatics lifted their faces one after another. Petelgeuse, noticing their movements, looked toward the cavern's entrance just as they did and laughed. An expression of glee came over his face, wide enough to split the corners of his mouth. \"It seems she has arriiiived.\" The echo of a great roar drowned out Petelgeuse's delighted murmur. An incredibly heavy-sounding explosion shattered it, and the sound of destruction sent fierce vibrations through the cavern's cold air. The successive sounds reached Subaru through the hard ground as well, and all present were able to sense that the entrance had been smashed by a most violent knock. The figures swayed and stood up, drawing their crosses from their flanks and posing with their hands held low. Though they were in a chamber, when ten-odd people moved together it was impossible to claim they had plenty of room. They deployed with the urgency of a school classroom fire drill, readying themselves to respond to the assailant. There wasn't anywhere near enough space to leap and run around. It was a favorable condition for an intruder at a numerical disadvantage. \" I've found you.\" Her roaring iron ball sailed and mowed down the shadowy figures, creating several red smears against the wall. The flail, butchering three figures with the first blow, was an unstoppable murder weapon that robbed life from everything it touched. There was no option but to dodge it, but the confined cavern made that a difficult proposition. Falling to the ground, the iron ball shattered the rocky surface, and its barbs, smeared with blood and flesh, made a dull sound as they split the earth. The blue hair of the girl walking ahead of it was dyed completely black as her brilliantly glowing eyes surveyed the chamber. They landed on the boy lying on the ground. Her lips quivered as she made a shallow breath. \"Subaru. I'm so glad...\" The demon Rem relaxed her shoulders as she called the boy by name with relief. Her appearance was ghastly, with the cuts all over her expressing the heroism involved in her arrival. There was not a single part of her body not drenched in blood. Her blue hair was now pitch-black; there was no visible trace of the apron dress that had been burned to a crisp. Her legs, poking out of her ripped and shredded skirt, were lacerated. Her left arm had been burned so cruelly that Subaru wanted to avert his eyes. With her entire body covered in the perfume of blood and death, Rem smiled reassuringly toward him even so. And with Rem looming so violently before him, Petelgeuse raised his voice in acclaim. \"Ahh oh my, how marvelouss!\" He had forgotten that Rem had slain his subordinates before his very eyes; to the contrary, it seemed to have stirred him all the more, with his excited voice bursting with praise. \"A girl! A single girl! Bearing all these wounds yet moving forward! And for what? For this young man! You have gone to these lengths to rescue this beloved boy! You are possessed by love; you live for love!\" \"You may save your sermon, devotee of the Witch...\" Petelgeuse was standing between Subaru and Rem, practically frothing at the mouth as he shouted in joy. Rem gazed coldly at his crazed state as she continued, \"You are a band of fools to enter the dominion of Master Roswaal, lord of the Mathers territory, and commit illegal acts. With my master absent, I, Rem, sentence you to death in his place.\" \"As tattered as you appear? You should not make promises you cannot keep. To begin with, you have come only to take this young man away from here, so enough with your convenient excuses.\" Petelgeuse crouched and clutched Subaru's head, lifting it up. Enjoying himself, he grabbed Subaru by the hair, nodding it up and down against his will. \"...ch him.\" \"What was that?\" \"I said, don't touch him!!\" Rem's face contorted in fury at Petelgeuse's antics. Seeing the demon girl lose her composure, he laughed in satisfaction. \"Yes, very good. Bare your true desires, bare your heart, bare your love! Love! Love! This is love! Love is what guided you here! To deny that love, to conceal it, to disguise it with falsehoods, all are betrayals of that love! Insults! Ahh, and so slothful!\" \"One insult after another...!\" \"I am so glad for that shout. That is your true desire, devoid of all unnecessary impurities, for you rushed here purely out of your feelings for this young man!\" Rem, still enraged, was cowed into silence as Petelgeuse pressed his point. His mad eyes gazed at her with a glint of compassion; then his gaze fell upon the boy at his fingertips. \"It is deeply regrettable. A devotee of love to such an extent as thee... Why are your eyes firmly locked on one such as this? An effete, ignorant, disgraceful, shameless sight such as this... Truly the product of sloth!\" \"What do you know about Subaru?! Do not speak out of turn, devotee of the Witch!\" \"You are upset because you do not accept this, are you not? That this young man, the object of your love...is already finished, long lost to you.\" \"He isn't finished! I am here. I have not forgotten Subaru's words. I will take him by the hand and lead him away. So long as I am here, he is not finished!\"  These were not mere words of consolation. They were words conveying a firm truth inside Rem. As Rem shouted, Petelgeuse laughed, slowly lifting up Subaru's head while leaning him against the wall. *** Some kind of voice came up from inside Subaru. He didn't know what was being said or why. Rem saw the partial change in the boy drowning in a sea of rejection. She leaped with her wounded body. As Rem sprang into the air, the figures that had maintained their silence so far did the same in pursuit of her. Two figures kicked off the wall to approach. Their cross-shaped swords, melting into the darkness, stabbed at the small girl. She yelled back, \"Don't get between Subaru and me!!\" She swung her right arm with the chain for the iron ball wrapped around her forearm. With a high-pitched sound, she deflected the crucifixes, following through to gouge out large parts of one figure's face. Another tried to grapple with her after its blade was deflected, but the iron ball, trailing behind, easily caved in the back of its skull. The two corpses fell to the ground as Rem landed in the center of the chamber right in the middle of the fanatics. Just before the blades around her were about to slice her apart, Rem spat out blood as she shouted, \" El Hyuma!\" The incantation surged cold, making the corpses at Rem's feet bounce. No the fresh blood flowing from the corpses froze, forming sharp-tipped blades of red ice that turned on the enemies around her. The black robes leaped in hard, but it was they who were impaled. When they came to a stop, their torsos run through, Rem's fist and flail mercilessly smashed them to pieces. Petelgeuse exclaimed, \"Splendid. Splendid indeed! It is no exaggeration to say that you are splendid! And yet, why! Ahh, why! I cannot accept love! I do not acknowledge this! I do not understand! Without the words, there is no salvation, no more than you can grasp a cloud! And yet, why is it?!\" \"Do not speak such words so cheaply! I already have my salvation! After that night when I should have lost all, there is no greater than what I had that morning! That is why!\" Rem brushed aside the madman's voice, her eyes staring straight at Subaru. \"I will repay everything I have received with everything I am. I have no intention of labeling the feelings behind my actions, behind my desire to take those actions, as cheaply as you do!\" The figures in the chamber once numbered around fifteen. Already, nearly half of them had perished from Rem's attacks. The remainder seemed incapable of halting her fury. Her superiority was beyond question. The might of the demon race was very real. And yet, why? Petelgeuse clutched his head, letting out hot breaths as he surveyed the cruelty inflicted on his faithful. \"Aa, aa, aa...\" He didn't seem shaken by grief, fear, or anxiety. Her anxiety only grew as it became clear to her that his reaction was one of pure excitement. At Petelgeuse's side, Subaru watched Rem's rampaging battle. Slowly, the meaning of the scene, and the girl's reason for fighting, seeped into his brain. He didn't understand. He didn't want to understand. He wasn't trying to understand. And yet, it reached him all the same. The sight of her bleeding, wounded, and yet continuing to fight stirred something inside his chest, bringing it to the surface. Perhaps he had to put into words what troubled him. Yet if he did, he could no longer remain in a stupefied state. It meant facing up to what was right, what was wrong, and why he was there. For Subaru, to fear this, to prioritize his love of himself over all else, was just  Petelgeuse rose to his feet as he said, \"My brain trembles.\" The sleeves of his black habit swayed as he calmly stepped forward. Unlike his adherents, his hands held nothing in them. Indeed, the relaxed way his open hands swung before him held not a single smidgeon of visible hostility. His body was skin and bones; his behavior betrayed no suggestion he was"}, {"text": "strong. Noticing Petelgeuse's advance, Rem knocked down yet another of the black robes and leaped. Hanging upside down from the ceiling, she glared as Petelgeuse advanced beneath her. An instant later, she would shoot out like an arrow with an attack that would surely smash Petelgeuse's thin body to pieces. And yet, why? Why was a terrible feeling clawing at her heart even so? \"Get away from Suba \" Rem's voice cut off. The rest of his name never reached Subaru's ears. But the echo of her voice delivered a decisive tremor to Subaru's heart. Rem herself had surely not intended any such thing. But the girl's repeated, earnest cries thawed Subaru's frozen heart. \" m.\" He made a faint sound from the back of his throat and crawled. It was a meaningless fragment of a word, carrying not even an iota of the feelings he wished to convey. And yet, as he gasped for breath, Subaru lifted his face and put all his emotions into one short word... \"...Rem.\" His voice was as frail as a whisper. He didn't know how long it had been since he had spoken that name on his lips. And yet his voice was so weak, threatening to disappear completely. \" Ah.\" His feeble voice seemed to die on the wind. He wondered if she could even hear it. As the blood-drenched girl grasped the ceiling, a faintly soft look came over her face. Her lips slackened just a little, her eyes radiating with joy as they beheld Subaru. \"Subaru \" As the boy returned from stupefaction to reality, he clearly heard Rem call out his name. And then...  In an instant, her entire body was torn to pieces that audibly fell onto the cold, hard floor. Subaru lost his voice as he beheld the blood spreading from Rem's fallen body. \"...aa?\" Her corpse, fallen to the ground, had been cruelly destroyed for all to see. When she had intruded into the cavern, she was wounded all over yet lovely. Now, each of her limbs was bent in a different direction; the wounds to her front and back looked as if the fingertips of a giant had gouged out her torso. And what had wreaked such violence upon her body was... \"The authority of 'Sloth' \" As Petelgeuse murmured, Rem's body, limbs destroyed, floated up before his eyes. There was no visible sign of magical interference, yet neither had anyone lifted her up. Even so, Rem's body hovered. It was as if hands had stretched up from beneath her to raise her overhead. \" Unseen Hands.\" Petelgeuse looked back, raising both hands before his own face while Rem's body floated behind him. There was no one in her vicinity with hands to place on her. No one was touching her. It was a bizarre spectacle. \"The power to reach places the hand cannot and do anything without moving one's body. Utmost diligence while being a sloth of the flesh  Ahh, such slothful feelings make...my... brain...shiver.\" Subaru watched Rem's final moments, dumbfounded. She would never move again. His voice wouldn't come out. His eyes widened as he forgot to breathe and his grip on the world around him felt less real, slipping into stupefaction once more. His mind was wrapped in darkness, as if he were falling and falling down a bottomless pit  As he tried to flee from reality, Petelgeuse stopped him, roughly grabbing hold of his bangs and using them to lift his head. \"You are not permitted to run from this.\" The shock of the pain made Subaru grimace as he thrashed around, trying to thrust Petelgeuse back. Petelgeuse did not allow him to do any such thing, though the boy stretched his chains to their limit. The metallic bonds tore at Subaru's flesh to the point of drawing blood, but Subaru's eyes were forced to face forward. \"Look. Go ahead, look. Look, please. The girl is dead. She died for love. She fought while injured, struggled against her fears as she stepped forward, and died with her desires unfulfilled.\" \"Ua, aa...\" \"Look, please. Look at her burns. This is the result of your actions.\" \" aa?\" Rem's body floated as Subaru's head was thrust forward as far as the chains around him would permit. Even so, Subaru writhed and stomped on the ground as a pair of hands held him in place. The madman's putrid breath washed over him; Subaru panted with the bloodstained Rem before his eyes. \"It is the result of your actions. You were slothful and did nothing. And because of that, she is dead! Because you killed her!\" \"...You.\" \"It was by my hand! It was by my fingers! It was by my flesh! But it was you, you, you, you, you, you who, who, who...killed her, yes!\" Petelgeuse's abnormal power toyed with Rem's body as he chirped, almost like he was singing. Rem's body, lying down in midair, shifted like a marionette on a string as her arms and legs dangled. Her twisted limbs danced according to the madman's whims. \"...op it.\" There came a scrish of something ripping apart. Unable to handle the manipulation, Rem's body broke...and so did something within Subaru. \"Owww, ow it hurts, it hurts, the pain, the pain, save me, save me... Ahh, Subaru?\" It was a cheap taunt, the lowest of base humor. The madman violated Rem with his antics. With easy enjoyment, he debased the girl Subaru revered directly in front of him. That spectacle was so ugly that he dearly wanted to avert his eyes and make himself forget it. \" Petelgeuuuuuse!!\" Subaru was afraid of seeing reality, but the rotting stench hovering around him had been enough to pull him back to his senses. He stretched his neck, trying to bite at the windpipe that was tantalizingly close. But the manacles intervened and his canines fell just a little short. He stumbled forward, tumbling hard onto his face. His nose was bleeding and he had chipped a front tooth. Petelgeuse laughed in delight as he looked down at Subaru. \"I'll kill you, I'll kill you...kill, kill, I'll kill you. I'll kill you. I'll kill you! Kill, kill...die, I'll have you killed, die, die, dieeeee!\" \"To hate another so that you may live, that fierce passion toward others is the opposite side of the coin of love! Ahh, how splendidly warped this is! This spurs both my fingers and me to greater heights of diligence!\" \"Kill... I'll kill you. You...killed...Rem. I'll...kill, kill, kill. I'll have you killed. Yeah! I'll kill you! Kill, kill! Die, damn you! Damn you, aah! Die, damn you!\" He spewed saliva as he spat out curses and raised a resentful howl. He didn't care if his arms tore off. He didn't care if his legs tore off. If he could get free of those manacles and kill the man before his eyes then and there, it was enough. He hated, hated, hated the man to no end. The man had to die. He could not be suffered to live. He had to make very sure that the man died then, that moment, that very instant. Subaru thrashed his entire body around in rage as Petelgeuse stood beside him. Abruptly, the latter's crazed laughter faded, and he murmured, \"This has been a rather untidy affair, but it is finally time that we must part.\" With a hand, he assembled the surviving figures together and pointed toward the cavern's wrecked entrance. \"We shall abandon this place. You will disregard the number of fingers remaining, continue the role of the left hand, and join with the other five fingers  The ordeal shall be conducted as planned.\" \"Die! Die, damn you! Die, die, dieeee!\" Having issued his brief orders, Petelgeuse clapped his hands. On that signal, the black robes vanished, melting into the gloomy darkness of the cavern. And one by one, all trace of life vanished from the hollow, with Petelgeuse himself finally departing, walking leisurely toward the entrance. The loud clicks of his shoes echoed off the rock walls of the cavern, with Subaru howling, cursing him with death over and over as his back grew distant. \"Wait, you piece of shit! Kill! I'll kill you! Die here! Die here, now! Die right now! Die! Die! Die!!\" \"Ohh, I forgot one thing, it would seem.\" Even with the bloodthirsty shouts directed at him, the madman stopped and called back as lighthearted as ever. As Subaru glared at Petelgeuse, the latter looked back, nodded to the former, and crossed both hands over his own chest. \"You truly do not understand your position. In spite of this, I would have you make a decision here and now.\" The madman's head tilted into a perfect right angle with enough force to break his neck, or so it seemed. A dark smile appeared. \"I will leave your arms and legs bound. All that awaits you is death. And yet...if you were to take up the Gospel in this place, you can still be saved.\" \"Go to hell! Die here, right now! I'll tear you apart! Blow you away! Blast you to pieces!\" \"You can be saved if you become one of us. If not, you are a mere stranger. It is clear and simple, yes?\" Petelgeuse, stating what seemed to him like a most wise plan, proceeded to turn his back on Subaru. He treated the foul curses flowing out of the boy's mouth like nothing more than a breeze, with his feet regarding the pool of blood like a puddle of water left by an early afternoon shower, his casual demeanor wholly unaffected. By rights, Petelgeuse would have departed without taking any further notice of Subaru. However, he did not, for a heavy, watery sound drew his attention to the side. \" Aaah.\" Petelgeuse looked toward the sound, nodding as he stared at the blue-haired girl who had fallen there. Having lost all interest in playing with her as a doll, he was just about to leave when he noticed her tossed by the wayside.  It was no exaggeration to say that this, too, was treating her like a toy. \"You, too, are a devotee of love. Yes, yes. You tried very hard.\" Petelgeuse stood still and corrected the posture of Rem's corpse, making a sign of the cross over her. He seemed to praise and acknowledge the girl's actions up until several minutes prior. However... \"You died for love, defying your destiny with all your might. However, you lie ruined and unfulfilled, having lost the object of your love, unable to fulfill your desire with emptiness hovering all about you...\" His acclamation turned on a dime, lamenting the futility of Rem's actions as his cheeks twisted into a mocking smile. \"Because...you were slothful!\" There was no greater way to belittle the existence of the lone girl Rem. *** Howls and shouts fiercely echoed throughout the cave. Subaru Natsuki raised an inhuman cry, his anger great enough to fill his entire throat, his rage enough that he couldn't form words, his regret enough to produce tears of blood. Hearing this, Petelgeuse laughed, as if it were a shower of the highest possible praise. He cackled and cackled. *** He did not stop walking. Of course, Subaru could hope neither to stop him from behind nor wring his neck. He kept hearing that cackling voice for long after. Even with Petelgeuse himself gone, even though his own curses couldn't reach the man, even though the light inside the cave dimmed all at once and left him alone with the corpse in the darkness, it wouldn't stop. Cackle, cackle. Cackle, cackle.  Cackle, cackle, cackle, cackle, cackle. \"Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill.\" Amid the darkness, dead to the world, he spewed enough bloodlust and hatred to burn a man alive. He murmured and spat over and over, forgetting how many times it had been, yet his scorching hatred did not subside. *** He had never hated anyone, not a person, not any living being, as much as he did then."}, {"text": "Since arriving in that world, he had experienced hatred of the formless thing called Fate several times over. He had been beaten down into the ground, with reality pitilessly thrust in his face, with that callous world making him pay for bad decisions with his life but the times he had hated and cursed were fewer than the number of his fingers. But to this point in his life, he had never hated another individual to that extent. \"Petelgeuse...Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti...!\" Voicing the name on his lips, he recalled the man behind his eyes. His eardrums wallowed in his own shout. When his brain thought about that man, a fire raged inside him that made every drop of his blood boil.  What the hell was with that man, anyway? Subaru understood nothing about his identity. All he knew was that Petelgeuse walked far from the path of sanity, that he was a demon in human flesh who could not be reasoned with, and that he was a despicable person, the foulest of villains. He was the most awful of men who'd hurt Rem, the girl who'd sacrificed her own body in an attempt to rescue Subaru, and went on to humiliate and dishonor her life. He couldn't even imagine the damage that letting that man live would wreak. That was why Subaru had to kill him. Subaru needed to kill him with his own hands, not letting anyone else do the deed. He had to kill Petelgeuse with his own hands. If he couldn't do that, how could he pay him back for Rem's death? \"Kill, kill, I will...kill you with my own hands...\" Subaru embraced the bloodlust pouring from his own mouth and earnestly twisted his own body, clinking his shackles. He'd tried to force his arms out of the manacles or kick them off his legs several times over. The manacles were clasped tightly and rather painfully on Subaru's limbs, to begin with. He felt the pain. His fury would not permit him to forget it. But even as that discomfort clawed at his nerves, he bit it back with thoughts of what Rem had undergone. Even if the manacles tore off his hands and wrists, he didn't really care. As long as he could escape, as long as he could move a single finger, as long as he had a single tooth left, he'd snuff out Petelgeuse's life.  Several hours had already passed since his foe had departed the cave. The lagmite ore had lost most of its power, so the cavern fell into darkness. Subaru wondered if it was some kind of mistake. He was inside a natural cavern, yet not even a single insect lived within it. He was the only living being there. \" ! Petelgeuse!!\" A moment before Subaru noticed the darkness and silence, he wrung the hateful man's name from his throat to keep his thoughts intact. Within the gloom, unable to see a thing, Subaru could sense nothing beyond himself in the whole world. His ragged breaths, the beats of his heart, the sounds of the chains chafing, the drip-drops of water isolation and solitude quickly weakened the human heart. If he remained in this place like that much longer, with no change whatsoever... \"Woaaaaa! Petelgeuse! Petelgeuse!!\" Subaru abandoned his body to hatred, as if rejecting the image of his mental balance crumbling away. A human mind walled off from the outside world was well on its way to decay, to collapse, to a final end. Subaru screamed as if trying to avert his eyes from reality, trying to shake off the fear of being left behind. As long as he could shout his hatred, he would remain sane. As long as he was enveloped in bloodlust like a madman, he would not go mad. To keep his sanity, Subaru needed hatred.  Subaru did not know how many more hours passed after that. \"Hff, hff... Kuh...ll.\" Subaru's consciousness hovered somewhere between alertness and unconsciousness. Fatigue, debilitation, the abrasions on his body all these dragged down Subaru's body and spirit. Still bound by the manacles, his limbs, abused beyond their limits, no longer accepted the brain's instructions. The metal scraped his flesh and even wore down the bones of his wrists and ankles. Just moving around sent him into convulsions from the ferocious pain.  Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill. In spite of that, even then, bloodlust welled up from the very bottom of his heart. That moment, with both body and head no longer listening, it was the heart alone that kept Subaru going. It had been dozens of hours since he had been abandoned in that world of solitude. His body and spirit had reached their limits, but Subaru's consciousness had not shut down. Archbishop of Sin. Petelgeuse of \"Sloth.\" Witch Cult. Right hand. Left hand. Unseen Hands. Index finger. Ring finger. Little finger. Diligence. Sloth. Sloth. Sloth  These were the keywords Subaru had gleaned from Petelgeuse's high-pitched, shouted ramblings. With his head dying on him, he recalled these terms, wondering what they meant, thinking about Petelgeuse to keep his consciousness together even a little bit and to keep his hatred astir. He needed to remember a fresher, firmer, clearer image of the man's face. He reflected along the same lines the man's voice, his appearance, his way of walking, his manner of speaking exactly as if thinking about one's dearly beloved. The direction of Subaru's sentiments was the only thing that had changed. He was still using it as fuel to ignite his soul and keep himself awake. From afar, it seemed Subaru's spirit had already arrived at the dimension of madness. Perhaps the mind would wear down and vanish first. Perhaps his body, unable to keep up with his active mind, would expire first. He was on a path where the end was nigh; it was simply a choice between one dead end or the other. Surely keeping his mind intact no longer had any meaning other than that. Subaru continued his futile struggle, but he was truly alone in all the world. \" aa?\" His panting within the darkness had been frail, but his breath abruptly caught when he felt that something was off. It was troublesome to even move his head, but Subaru looked in the direction of the disturbance. Of course, his field of vision displayed nothing but the darkness of the cavern. But he felt something from that darkness nonetheless. Slowly, truly slowly, he felt a presence rising. It moved at only a snail's pace, bit by bit, but inexorably drew closer to Subaru. *** Somehow, even within complete darkness, it seemed to know where he was. Subaru shuddered with urgency and unease at the individual. But that feeling immediately fell away as a different feeling rose up in the back of his mind.  Where is this feeling coming from in the first place? He heard a sound like clothes rustling and extremely faint breath. The distance was rather close, no more than several yards away from Subaru. Having thought that far, he suddenly realized: it was at close range, not from the entrance, that the presence had abruptly appeared  No, what if she had started breathing again...? \"R-Rem...?\" He called out the name of the girl to whom the sounds and presence were likeliest to belong. That can't be right, Subaru's logical mind denied. Though he couldn't endure looking straight at her, the last thing he had seen while the cave still had light was the horrific state of Rem's body, to the point that he thought one of her fallen foes was far more likely to rise from the dead. She couldn't be alive. She was dead. Of course she was dead. Yet in spite of that, he half believed that the presence in front of his own eyes was alive, and it must be Rem. And if she were dead, it was probably her just the same, coming to take him away. It had to be Rem either way. Therefore, there was no reason to be worried about the presence at all. \"Rem, Rem...?\" *** He addressed her, clinging to hope, but the silence returned with a vengeance. Even so, perhaps Subaru's voice made the other being certain of its goal, because it felt like it started crawling just a little faster. Yet it was truly only a very slight change. Slowly, slowly, he heard something pulling closer across the cold, rocky surface of the ground. Subaru pulled himself up, with the chains attached to his hands and feet ringing as he moved as close to her as he could. He'd advanced such a short distance, and the tormenting shame summoned tears once again, though he had thought they were dry. He kept himself from sobbing. He didn't want Rem to hear that. Within the darkness, only the sound of crawling continued, with the distance closing and closing. And then  Subaru felt the struggling presence reach his body. The instant he felt something graze his upper arm, he instantly tried to take her hand and call out her name. \"Re...\" His throat froze over. The grasp on his arm was so light, so cold, that none would think it came from a living person. \"R-Rem...?\" Rem's body lay facedown beneath the kneeling Subaru. The girl's slender arm was shaking a little, but it was as cold as could be, devoid of warmth-giving blood. She was as icy as a corpse. She could no longer be here in this world. Yet though she should have been finished, she had dragged her body over and clung to Subaru. She touched his arms, his shoulders, his chest, his head, as if to make sure they were there; she pressed everything against him in a hug from the front. *** Subaru, silently accepting the embrace of the dead, had no idea what would happen. A breath away from each other, Subaru was certain that it was Rem hugging his body. However, her flesh felt dead to the touch, unreal, as if she were animated solely by the dying embers of her life. But it was not unpleasant. Subaru meekly returned her continuing embrace. When he thought about it, they'd been close against each other many times, but that might have been the first time they'd touched like that. Perhaps that was how Rem wanted the final moment of her life to be. If so, the least he could do was to respond to her wishes. Even with Rem already dying and Subaru having already given up, perhaps his arms could transmit his feelings to her. It was Rem who brought the continuing cold, silent embrace to an end. \"Rem?\" As Subaru hugged her, her body surrendered its strength, collapsing onto his lap. He hastily moved to support her, but the next motion made that impossible. After all... \" Uuu?!\" ...Rem grabbed his outstretched arms and smashed them to the ground. Subaru, pulled forward and down, was shocked at the sudden violence achieved with strength far beyond his imagination. Hence, he was slow to react to Rem's next action. Subaru's arms, pressed to the floor, were bathed in a large amount of liquid. It was a cold, viscous substance with a rusty scent. The fact that Subaru had become so used to the smell made him rather slow to realize that Rem had coughed up blood. A chill ran up his spine at the discomfort of so much of another person's blood pouring over him. But the bad feeling vanished in an instant. \" ma.\" The whisper vibrated faintly in the air as the intervention of mana achieved its result. \" Dwaa!\" Pain, like something sharp digging into his wrists, seized Subaru. The unexpected numbing ache shot from his wrists straight through his forearms, all the way to his shoulders. He didn't know what was going on. He shuddered at the thought that Rem was doing this, coughing blood on him, sending sudden jolts of pain through him, and proceeding to turn both arms into useless appendages. But the"}, {"text": "next moment...  The wrist manacles, unable to bear the pressure pushing out from the inside, noisily blew apart. \" Oh.\" The destruction sent metal fragments flying, and a tinkling sound echoed throughout the cavern. Subaru breathed raggedly as his pain radically eased, and his entire arms felt incredibly free despite the scalding sensation. He opened and closed both of his now-unfettered hands, confirming that they could still move. Then he understood. \"Rem, you...\" Rem had used magic to freeze the blood from her mouth, utilizing the pressure to destroy the manacles from within. Of course, both of Subaru's arms, having directly endured the effects of magic, hadn't emerged unscathed. That said, he could rotate his wrists and get his fingers to do as he asked. If he disregarded the pain, he could move them normally again. In other words, Rem had succeeded. \"Re...?\" Subaru was about to voice his thanks when he felt a very light body bump against his chest. Light. So very, very light. She'd lost so much blood, the last of her consciousness was a candle in the wind, ready to be snuffed out. In other words, her life would soon expire. \"Rem...wait, Rem. Wait...don't...\" Don't leave me, he might have meant to say. Do you hate me? he might have wanted to ask. Subaru despaired at the true thoughts and feelings behind both. That once again, she had protected a weak, miserable creature such as him. She'd literally come back from the dead to save him, yet he... \"...Nn.\" \"Rem?\" Rem's tongue, as cold as a corpse's, tried to form words with some kind of meaning behind them. She barely had the strength to speak a single syllable, yet she'd wrung magical energy out of her immobile body and hazy mind. She'd worked herself past the point of death to accomplish her objective, but she wanted to leave one last thing behind. Subaru, not wanting to let such a message slip by, embraced her body and drew it close. He brought his ear near her quivering lips so that he could carve each word, each syllable, upon his very soul. The girl's last words were... \"L...ive.\" *** \"I l...o...\" She died. That moment, Rem died. Within Subaru's arms, her light body grew heavy. Her form, both light and so, so heavy, her frame completely bereft of her soul, burdened Subaru's entire being with its excessive weightlessness.  In the end, haltingly, haltingly, Rem had told Subaru, \"Live.\"  His wails resounded throughout the dark cave. By the time Subaru removed his leg shackles and exited the cave, it had been several hours since Rem had died. His hands, free from the wrist manacles, had snatched a cross sword from the nearest figure's corpse. Using that, he'd unfettered his legs over a period of long hours. \"...Light, huh.\" Subaru rotated his scraped ankles. Each step sent pain running through him fierce enough to make his mind go blank. If he ignored that, not a problem. His legs were more than enough to support him while he carried Rem's remains. He tossed the broken crucifix sword against a wall. The impact made the lagmite ore in the wall glow, bathing the cavern in pale light. Subaru felt like his eyes were burning. With Rem in his arms, he gazed at her face, not having seen it in the light for over a day. Tears gently fell from his eyes.  Subaru would never be able to forget the cruel state of the girl in his arms. \"Let's go, Rem.\" Subaru relied on the light as he made his way through the dark cave, following the narrow corridor to the entrance. From inside the passage, the rock blocking the entrance was transparent. Subaru passed right through it. It was probably some kind of magic trick to obstruct vision. It was probably closer to a hologram than a mirage. Subaru had neither the determination nor a compelling reason to consider the matter further. When Subaru exited the cave, it was not the light created by lagmite ore that greeted him but the orange rays from the sun. The light pouring from the sunset scorched the world beneath it. The sun was sinking past the horizon of the forest and hills beyond it, giving its final greeting before retiring from its daily duty and dyeing the world in the same color as its own flames. Subaru, greeted by that scene, stood with the rock wall behind him and unfamiliar trees standing everywhere he looked. A quick glance around the area revealed no trace of a road, forest trail, or anything else that resembled a path. He should have expected as much. A group infiltrating an area would logically set up far from human habitation. \"But I'll walk...\" His destination was the same as before: Roswaal's mansion in the Mathers dominion. Subaru was sure that Rem had been heading to the mansion with him when his mind was a hazy abyss. He rummaged through his memories of the dragon coach rocking him as he rested peacefully on Rem's lap. Thinking of Rem made his heart tighten painfully. He wanted to thank her and tell her he was sorry. When he remembered Petelgeuse, his body creaked with hatred, almost as if it would snap. Rage. Sadness. Hatred. Love. These supported Subaru. These kept Subaru alive. His path was uncertain, and there was nothing to guide him. Even so, Subaru's mind rebelled, and his feet stepped forward to search for an uncertain destination.  Perhaps it might be said that what happened to him was nothing short of a miracle. Without anyone's aid, with nothing to rely on, Subaru arrived at his destination. The one desire of his shriveled mind was granted surely it could be called nothing else. It was the first miracle that world had bestowed upon Subaru since his arrival. If there was indeed a deity that governed fate, that god was finally smiling upon Subaru. And then, Subaru knew. \"Ha.\" If there was a deity that governed fate, its manner of laughter was surely the same as Petelgeuse's.  The village had been violated in exactly the same hellish manner he had seen before. The houses had been burned down; the villagers were covered in blood. The remains of those who had futilely struggled against the theft of their lives had been carelessly gathered in the center of the community, piled into a mountain of corpses. He looked right; he looked left. There were only smoldering embers and the stench of death. He could not hope for any survivors. Looking over the corpses of the villagers, Subaru realized that this world held one difference from the one before it. \"Petra. Mildo. Luca. Meyna. Cain. Dyne...\" The cruel sight of the children's corpses was a part of the mountain of corpses and the river of blood. *** With Rem still in his arms, Subaru's knees let go. He fell on the spot, clutching tight the cold body in his arms, and wept. What had he been doing all that time...? Knowing what would happen, why did he sit back and watch...? Until he slipped through the game trail and saw the smoke rising from the direction of the village, Subaru had completely banished from his own brain the hellish sight that had shattered his mind. No, he'd averted his eyes. He'd wrapped himself in grief over Rem's death and used it and his limitless hatred of Petelgeuse as excuses to deny his memories of that hell. Once again, Subaru Natsuki had fled from reality due to his selfishness. The result was the sight before his eyes. The children had died there because Rem, who would have protected the children like last time, had been unable to arrive at the village. The adults were not able to let the children escape. The sight of their own children being murdered, as if for sport, had been burned into their eyes before they, too, died in agony. Not a single one had been spared. Subaru had stood by and done nothing, and this tragedy was the end result, leaving only despair and resentment in its wake. That contemptible reality ate at Subaru's heart. I get it now. I get all of it.  Petelgeuse. The man who had killed the villagers, the children, and Rem. He, the madman, had committed those unforgivable acts not once, but twice. \" Ha.\" His plan was set in stone. He knew what he needed to do. \"Petelgeuse...\" He had to kill Petelgeuse. Murder him, kill him, keep killing until the last cell of his body was burned away, his entire being erased from that world. Nothing short of that could even begin to make up for these deaths. His thoughts were dyed with nothing but hatred. His field of vision turned crimson red. He knew that what was left of the blood he'd lost had mostly gone to his head it was even bleeding out of his nose. He roughly wiped away the nosebleed, re-gripped Rem so that she would not be stained, and rose to his feet. His knees shook, his ankles quivered; whether he could stand, let alone walk, was an open question. \"Kill, kill, kill, kill, I'll kill you...\" But if he could walk, if he could move forward, then he could surely tear out the man's windpipe with his teeth. Dragged forward by his hardened, bloodlust-dyed mind, Subaru headed toward the mansion. He'd seen the hell at the village. Next was the mansion. What was it that awaited him there? Right before his death, right before he started things over, something had happened, but his memories were broken, unclear. He thought that he'd arrived at the mansion and seen something that decisively cracked his psyche. He desperately lit up the neurons in his head trying to remember what it was. He'd found Rem dead. And this time, that experience had already run its course. \"Khah.\" Spontaneously, laughter spilled out of him. Really, really, nothing has changed at all, has it? Only the order had been altered. Nothing had changed in terms of what had happened. Had he ever before spent his relived time in such idleness as he had then? Before, no matter what had happened, Subaru gained something over the course of death. But trapped in his own cage, he hadn't been able to salvage anything. Now that he'd encountered the same hell once again, was there anything he could gain from it? Having wasted his Return by Death, did he have any value at all? *** At some point, he'd begun to lose sight of the target of his bloodlust. Petelgeuse. That name was all that kept Subaru going. That was a good thing. He was who Subaru wanted to kill, right? So kill him already. After he'd been killed, \" \" could die for all he cared. Who is \" ,\" anyway? Just kill them, too, then? Yeah, if everyone dies, all the better. When such static began to invade Subaru's thoughts, his mind flickered on and off, over and over. Subaru looked ahead of him with bloodshot eyes as he once again straddled the fence between sanity and madness. Having already decided to head to the mansion, come what may, he chose to postpone dealing with the immediate problem, like he always did. Then... *** The instant he crested the hill, Subaru witnessed the destruction of Roswaal Manor. A ferocious sound erupted, and smoke rose all around. The roof collapsed; the terrace fell to pieces. All at once, the glass windows cracked and shattered into glistening shards, the cracked white walls wailing like a maiden as they were rent asunder. When he arrived, Subaru stared up at the front gate, dumbfounded at the overpowering devastation. The mansion had lost its shape in a single instant, just as if someone had demolished it with explosives. The familiar building had lost all integrity, its meticulously arranged garden was buried in rubble, and the ruin that had once been the mansion was falling to pieces."}, {"text": "\"Wh-what the...\" He groped through his memories. But he had no memory of this experience. Something had happened that he didn't remember. Or perhaps the shock of being on the verge of death was so vivid that he'd forgotten the destruction surrounding him as he died. Having lost his bearings, an all-too-thin man's crazed laughter rose in the back of his trembling mind. If the slaughter of the village had been that madman's deeds, he'd surely directed his vile actions at the mansion as well. If that was the case, was this destruction Petelgeuse's? \"What in the world is he doing...?\" Faced with a spectacle beyond his understanding, Subaru continued to carry Rem as he exhaled white breaths. Discouraged, he craved a stronger sensation within his arms, but it was cold that flowed through his hands and turned to sadness in his chest. His body shivered; he coughed at the cold pain in his lungs.  Far too late, Subaru finally realized that his own ragged breaths looked like white clouds. *** The moment he realized it, pain enveloped his body, stabbing at his skin. His exhalations were white, and the air he inhaled was freezing his internal organs, like he was breathing blowing snow. He felt like his body was dying from the inside out. Subaru's instincts screamed to him that his life was in jeopardy. I...don't...know...what's...going...on. His entire body robbed of its warmth, it became hard to even stand, and so he buckled. He squatted down on the spot, leaning forward before he hit the ground, and fell on his side, still carrying Rem. That was his final act of resistance. His fallen body froze to the very core, his limbs no longer able to even tremble. Unable to convey his thoughts to his limbs, Subaru knew that his mind had been severed from his body. Subaru had already experienced it several times, but he'd never get used to that feeling of desolate helplessness. His nervous system sent commands to his entire body to resist the impending end even a little, to somewhere, anywhere that could move. Behind his closed right eyelid, his eye was barely functional. With all his spirit, Subaru moved his eyelid, using his barely functional eye to look up at an angle, in the direction of the mansion. Once it reached that position, it would probably never move again. Before the view faded, he saw something... \"...a.\"  He saw a beast standing on the wreckage of the collapsed mansion. It was a holy beast, with gray fur all over its body, with glowing golden eyes. The sight of it standing on all fours, calmly swaying its long, long tail, was most mysterious. More than anything, the beast was enormous, rivaling the mansion itself. *** Beholding the sight from afar, Subaru understood what had caused the mansion's collapse: the sudden appearance of that beast from inside it. Of course the building couldn't withstand the pressure of something that huge emerging from inside. *** The gray beast swayed, surveying the area with its eyes. Its face most resembled that of a great feline predator. Sharp fangs poked out of its mouth; the giant being exhaled breaths like blowing white snow, repainted the world into a frozen hell with the white powder to freeze all that lived. What was that? As he thought about it, his vision whited out. He realized then that he'd stopped breathing. At some point, he'd stopped feeling the bitter cold. Warmth, though, he could feel. That warmth tempted Subaru to give himself entirely to it, to forget the burning hatred, to forget sadness enough to tear his soul asunder, to forget anything and everything. Forget, forget. Let your mind wander to oblivion and the frozen warmth within. Just before he fell asleep, he felt like he heard someone's voice. \"Sleep...together with my daughter.\" It was a low, ferocious voice. Yet it somehow sounded forlorn and sad. He didn't understand. He didn't understand. Not within the meaningless serenity. Subaru Natsuki melted. He melted, he melted, he melted, and then disappeared.  He realized that his mind was in deep, deep darkness. His consciousness, dead to the world within the expanding, eternal darkness, shifted its gaze in search of any change. It wondered just how long the pitch-black world of the end would continue. It felt as if it had been locked away, completely beyond the world's reach. What is this place? What am I doing here? It was odd for him to have such questions. To begin with, he didn't understand who he was to be thinking in such a manner. His mind was all that hung in emptiness, lacking any body to support it or receive its thoughts. He stood. His legs were on the ground. But what he thought was beneath his feet blended with the darkness covering his vision, and so his footing was uncertain.  Abruptly, there was a change in the vast world of nothing but darkness. A shadow warped and flattened out, and a crack emerged in the nothingness. Without a sound, the rip in space rent apart the world of eternal darkness, connecting the interior of that void to another void. Just after the momentary anomaly, a lone human silhouette emerged from the widening crack. *** He thought that the figure was a woman. The instant he recognized it, emotions he could not put into words nearly took over his mind. He felt fierce, explosive emotions well up. He wanted to run to the figure, embrace her slender body, put his lips to her nape, to drive home that he was himself. And yet, he lacked the legs with which to rush to her, the arms with which to embrace her, the lips with which to kiss her and prove that he existed. Even though his chagrin made him want to cry, he didn't understand why these emotions manifested. He didn't know. He didn't understand. He comprehended nothing. But the figure seemed to understand how he felt, slowly reaching out with her arms, somehow closing the unchanging distance on her own. Those two hands gently came close enough to firmly embrace him. As the fingertips touched him, great happiness flooded into him, as if joy was gushing from every cell in her body, filling every nook and cranny of his consciousness. And then she said... \" I love you.\" The moment Subaru's consciousness went back in time and inhabited his body once more, the boy spectacularly tumbled to the ground. Cadmon, standing behind the counter as he watched him fall onto the road without any forewarning, leaned over in a rush. \"Whoa! Wh-what's wrong, kid?!\" Subaru scowled, having fallen right over without softening the blow and earned himself meaningless injury. \"Er... I just slipped a bit.\" \"That 'slip' was so bad, I wondered if you'd lost a leg or something. Can you stand and walk? I can't associate with you if you don't quit all this crazy stuff.\" \"What do you mean, 'crazy'? You're making me sound like some sort of scoundrel with no common sense.\" \"A mischief-maker either way, and that goes for how you come and go without proper clothes on, too. I get the sense you're a troublesome sort who's hard to deal with, to be honest.\" Having said those terrible things, Cadmon tut-tutted in a show of dissatisfaction. And when Subaru abruptly felt a tug on his sleeve, he looked back. He couldn't help but gasp. \"Subaru, are you all right?\" He saw a girl standing there, setting her hand on his wounds. When she began to heal him with magic, she noticed Subaru staring at her and tilted her head a little. Her pretty blue hair swayed above her shoulders. Seeing her stirred fierce emotions in Subaru's chest. Memories, memories, memories flooded in, rushing to the back of his mind. He silently widened his eyes as he felt the raging torrent wash over his freshly returned consciousness. What should I say? What can I say? he thought, his mouth agape as answers escaped him. *** He tried instantly to call out her name, but his parched tongue wouldn't immediately form the sounds. His consciousness whirled in the air as the welling emotions weighed upon his chest enough to crush it. Biting his tongue in his impatience, Subaru's lips quivered as he spoke the girl's name. \"Re...m...\" The word was formed so softly within his mouth and was so faint and halting, he didn't know if it reached her. Concerned she hadn't heard it, he breathed in to immediately speak her name again. \" Yes, I am Rem.\" And yet, a reply came. A moment before he repeated her name, the girl Rem smiled in response to Subaru's clumsy address. He had called out to Rem, and she had answered. \"Rem.\" \"Subaru?\" \"Rem, Rem...Rem.\" Rem raised her eyebrows, looking conflicted at hearing her name so many times. Subaru, too, thought it was strange and bizarre. Yet even knowing this, he couldn't stop the word from pouring out. He'd called her name, and Rem had answered, right before his eyes. That was enough to make him happy. After she died so brutally, he was happy just to have her before his eyes again. He had never been that happy in his life. \"What is wrong? You are making an expression like you have just seen a ghost. I assure you, I am right here. I am your Rem, Subaru.\" Rem smiled pleasantly, joking for once. It surely hurt her to see Subaru as haggard as he was. And the phrase she had used, that he had \"just seen a ghost,\" was not one he could laugh away. Really, truly, he couldn't laugh off those words at all. \"Rem, I... I...\" \"You are a difficult audience. I think that a smile suits you far better than that dark expression, Subaru. Therefore, I thought I would make you smile, but...\" Rem lowered her eyes in disappointment. During that time, she'd finished neatly healing Subaru's wound. After a visual confirmation, she declared, \"I am finished,\" and began withdrawing her fingertips. \"Subaru?\" As her fingers began to move, Subaru caught them with his hand to keep that warmth from slipping away. Rem's face registered surprise at his bold action, but she immediately noticed the keen emotions thickly covering Subaru's face. \"Really, what is it? I mean... I am happy to have you be the one doing this, but it is rather sudden and took me by surprise.\" \"Thin. Small... Warm, huh.\" He felt Rem's small fingers as they rested snugly in his own hand. That soft warmth was proof that she was alive. Her body with blood flowing through it felt so different than her stiff, bloodless flesh. She lived. She was alive. She'd come back to life. Such an obvious thing consoled Subaru's heart, once shattered. \"Subaru, I somewhat mind being called small, so I do not wish to hear it often, but it is fine if it's you. As for warm, that goes without saying. I am alive, after all.\" That last phrase made Subaru gasp and look up at Rem. Face-to-face, their eyes met, with deep compassion in Rem's pale-blue irises. \"Are you anxious? But I am here. I will save you, Subaru, even at the cost of my life, so it's all right.\"  No. She was wrong. Subaru had let Rem die. He'd killed her. Twice. Ruthlessly. Mercilessly. The first time, one could claim he had nothing to do with it. But the second time was different. The second time, he could make no excuses whatsoever: Rem had died for Subaru's sake. To protect him, to save him, for his sake, she had used her life and wrung it out to the last, dying for Subaru's sake. The Rem before his eyes didn't know this. Subaru alone knew. *** Before he realized it, he was gripping Rem's small hand, bowing his face so that she would not see it. Seeing his behavior, Rem felt her fingers tremble in anxiety, wondering"}, {"text": "if she had done something to inconvenience him. But that was only for a single moment. \"It's all right. It's all right. Everything is fine.\" Rem realized through her fingers that Subaru was afraid. So she used her free hand to pat his back, gently consoling him like a child. And this she did, stroking him, showing him affection, until Subaru raised his head. Always gentle, always loving. \"Sorry to interrupt your touching moment, but I can't do any business like this.\" Cadmon gazed at the episode in front of his shop and waved both away as he spoke. Normally, that would have rubbed Subaru the wrong way, prompting him to say something like, \"It's not like you were gonna get any business done whether we were here or not,\" but here, Subaru followed the lead of Rem's hand, gently departing from that place. If Cadmon had really wanted to get in the way, he would've done something five minutes earlier. He was a fundamentally good person, and that was why he'd waited for Subaru to calm down before breaking out his capitalist spirit. For his part, Subaru did not have any room to notice such benevolence. That moment, the inside of his chest was governed by one emotion alone.  Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Even though Return by Death had remade the world, that hatred was the one thing that had not been erased. This time, Subaru had a mortal enemy. And that enemy had a name. Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti. He was the worst of all madmen and had committed the great, unforgivable crime of slaughtering Rem and the villagers. It was Subaru's duty to use the power of Return by Death to kill that man. As Rem led Subaru away from the front of the shop by the hand, she stopped. \"...Subaru, if you have a moment?\" When Rem looked back, Subaru replied, \"What is it?\" with a casual shrug of his shoulders, making light of the dark emotions inside his heart. She stared at him, making a small sound through her well-shaped nose. \"No... I might be mistaken. It is simply that...I feel like the bad odor coming from you has grown stronger.\" \"A bad odor, huh?\" When she pointed it out, Subaru gave his own arm a sniff, but he couldn't make out anything. Coming from Rem, those words likely meant that she smelled the scent of the Witch. Thinking back, he felt that Petelgeuse had ranted about Subaru's nature in some capacity. \"So my Return by Death does have to do with the Witch...?\" The more he Returned by Death, the stronger the Witch's presence became around Subaru. He'd used that to strike back at the demon beasts in the forest, and afterward, he'd been too busy to look into the matter deeply so had dropped it. Maybe that subconscious urge to make that conclusion was part of the Witch's power. As Subaru pondered these thoughts, Rem watched him with a look of concern. Subaru hadn't meant to cause her any trouble. He pushed those thoughts off for later. \"Don't make that face, Rem. Your lovely features will go to waste, and that would make for a dark future.\" \"I'm sorry. I'm quite a worrywart, really...\" As Rem babbled, Subaru thought of what he might say to put her at ease. Promptly, he lightly lifted their still-intertwined hands. \"Well, if you're worried about my running off somewhere, just keep a hold of me like this, okay?\" \"Eh?\" \"There's no way I can out-muscle you, so you should feel safer that way, right?\" As he made the statement, hiding the unexpected blush that came with it, Rem looked between Subaru and their joined hands. \"Yes.\" With a pleasant smile, she nodded, standing neither before Subaru nor behind him but right at his side. From there, the two walked abreast. Rem stared at the hand she was holding, firmly shut her mouth, and matched her pace to Subaru's. As he walked with that adorable girl, smiling softly from the warmth she felt through the touch of his palm... Subaru continued to seethe with bloodlust and hatred. Even though their hands were together, their hearts were at opposite poles. Subaru Natsuki's heart was tempted far into that deep, deep, dark abyss  *** Right now, the Return by Death phenomenon was on the third series of loops from Subaru's point of view. The first set concerned the loops related to the badge-theft incident on the day of his summoning. The second was centered around the demon beast attack on Roswaal Manor. \"This is the third one... I've died twice already, and what do I have to show for it?!\" In the previous loops, Subaru had pieced things together from information gleaned over several run-throughs of Return by Death, managing to break out of seemingly impossible situations. Yet this time, Subaru had blundered to his \"death\" not once but twice; he didn't even have the full picture of what had happened in each loop that led to his death. But even with such paltry gains from Return by Death, he'd gained one, and only one, solid piece of information. \"Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti...!\" He, the commander of the oddballs in the Witch Cult, was the root cause of the entire tragedy that had befallen the village and mansion. Eradicating that abominable madman was now the driving force behind all of Subaru's actions. To escape from the loop, he needed to cast a very wide net and dredge the depths of his memory.  The hatred that Subaru had accrued from his first and second deaths stoked the flames of his bloodlust. \"First, I need to figure out how much time I actually have.\" The Witch Cult raid on the mansion and village had taken place in the preceding half a day before Subaru had reached the village. Pathetic details of his second death aside, Subaru had arrived in the village at more or less the same time. \"Working backward from that, I have at most five d... No, four and a half days?\" Upon voicing the words, Subaru ground his teeth at just how little time it was. When considering how long it took to travel from the royal capital to the mansion, that didn't leave him more than two days. In that limited interval, he had to stop the Witch Cult by wringing Petelgeuse's neck. \"I can cry about it later... Next is figuring out the victory condition for breaking out of these loops.\" An absolutely unavoidable tragedy would unfold at the mansion and the village, and the Witch Cult was responsible. The only answer that Subaru could come up with in response to his current fate  \"I'm going to butcher Petelgeuse.\" By putting an end to that crafty murderer, that madman, the root of all evil, everything could be saved. And clearing that simple condition required an equally simple solution in other words, power. Subaru needed a group of his own to face the Witch Cult under Petelgeuse's command. When he considered that, the military might of the Emilia faction was actually quite meager. In the first place, Subaru had never seen a hint of private troops under the command of Roswaal. Perhaps Roswaal himself was so powerful that he didn't need an army to defend his territory. \"Come to think of it, where the hell was Roswaal during the attack...?\" Subaru hadn't caught sight of him during his first or second time through the current series of loops. The magic user was gaudy in both appearance and fighting methods; if he'd fought seriously, there would have been clear evidence around the mansion. But no such signs were apparent. \"The Witch Cult attacks right when Roswaal's away? Or maybe Roswaal couldn't fight because he was assassinated out of the blue?\" If it was the latter, then the Witch Cult had been meticulous, and if it was the former, Roswaal had truly dropped the ball. Subaru could only sigh either way. \"...Besides, I still don't know anything about that monster that wrecked the mansion at the end of my second time around.\" He recalled the sight of the four-legged beast he had caught a glimpse of right before his death, so massive that the creature could have been mistaken for a mansion itself. Its breath froze everything around it; no doubt Subaru had died from the freezing cold. If that monster was part of the Witch Cult's arsenal... \"I really don't have enough strength to put up a fight.\" Barring his way were the Witch's disciples, Petelgeuse, and quite possibly that snow-breathing monster as well. The balance of power simply put Subaru at an overwhelming disadvantage. He needed a way to bolster his side.  And Subaru knew just the place for that. After dropping by the shops and stalls along Merchant's Street, running through the middle strata of the royal capital, Subaru and Rem arrived back at Crusch's mansion right on the cusp of evening. Holding each other's hands under a sky gradually becoming scarlet, they were greeted by Wilhelm at the front gate. \"I see you have returned.\" The aged gentleman, dressed in long-sleeve, formal black clothing, narrowed his blue eyes as he saw the two of them nestled so close. \"Sir Subaru, I believe it is the nature of a boy to have a fickle heart, but as an individual, I cannot approve.\" \"What are you talkin' about, Wilhelm? I'm just holding Rem's hand so I don't get lost. Isn't that right, Rem?\" \"Yes, of course it is. Subaru's sense of caution is rather lacking, so I would be too worried about what might happen were I to take my eyes and hands off him. Even when we were at the mansion, I couldn't let my guard down.\" \"Er, I think that might be overstating it just a little...\" Subaru and Rem lightheartedly responded to Wilhelm's remark. Subaru smiled weakly after hearing Rem's seemingly earnest reply as he shifted his gaze to the area in front of the mansion's entrance. \"Seems like someone's meeting with Crusch again?\" He was looking at the dragon carriage outside the iron-barred front gate as he posed the question. The carriage lacked showy ornamentation but was still somewhat refined, no doubt to display the owner's status. Subaru saw that the red land dragon drawing it along had a very glossy-scaled hide. The driver, wearing formal clothes of his own, did not engage in pleasantries beyond a simple acknowledgment with his eyes. \"Correct. Now that she is participating in the royal selection, Lady Crusch cannot refuse those who request an audience with her. Of course, she invited some of them herself.\" \"Guess all sorts come out of the woodwork to meet with a potential future king. Well, I guess even people like that have their own problems...\" Wilhelm broke into a wan smile as Subaru briskly stated the facts. But then, the old man's face twitched. His blue eyes peered into Subaru's, seemingly searching for something. \"Sir Subaru. Have you had some change of heart while you were away?\" \"Ehh? What is it all of a sudden? Did I become a lady-killer in the two or three hours I was gone?\" \"You wear the visage of a man haunted by an ordeal...and one of no small consequence.\" Subaru responded to the words with nonchalance, but his expression changed. It shifted from a vague smile to a \"real\" one. \"Oh, Wilhelm, you big kidder. What, you think I went through some kind of weird transformation?\" \"It is difficult for me to call it a minor change. There must be a reason why there is now such a dark glint in your eyes  I understand better than most.\" As the man nodded, Subaru realized that he had never taken a good look at Wilhelm's eyes. Wilhelm was an individual seething with hatred against someone for some unforgivable sin, which was no doubt why he had noticed the flames of hatred burning within Subaru. \"Are you...going to"}, {"text": "kick me out?\" \"No. It is no doubt best to let you do what you wish, Sir Subaru. I much prefer you as you are now, rather than how you were but a short time ago.\" The two exchanged dark smiles. Though neither shared what tormented him on the inside, they understood each other at least on the surface. \"Subaru. You are making a bad face.\" \"Hee-hee-hee... Er, ow, ow, ow! Hey, Rem! You'll tear it off...!\" The pair's excessively dark exchange was interrupted when Rem painfully pulled on Subaru's ear. \"Please do not give me reasons to worry.\" \"Hey, it's super rare for you to ask for something, but you're being way too vague. In any case, you can relax. I'll deal with everything from here on out, somehow.\" Rem, unable to keep track of the conversation, had grown concerned. Subaru poured as much affection as he could into a smile. Now that he knew what he needed to do, Subaru didn't feel apprehensive at all.  After all, it was reassuring to know that the only thing he had to do was murder someone. So Subaru wondered why Rem's face seemed even more concerned than before. Her eyes showed her hesitation, but just before she said something... \"It would appear that the guest will be taking his leave.\" As Wilhelm murmured, a man exited the mansion's entry hall and began striding toward them. He was a tall man with long blond hair, clad in formal clothing with sophisticated trimmings. He was probably thirty years old, give or take. He had an air of capability about him. The man casually acknowledged their gazes as he reached the front of the gate, touching the well-groomed beard on his chin. \"My, my. What unusual people.\" The visitor's smile was warm, his manner of speaking was gentle, and he had a low, beautiful voice that seemed to naturally filter into people's minds. He gave them a friendly look, but Subaru did not recognize him. Naturally, this brought furrows to the young man's brow. \"Ahh, pardon my rudeness. I am called Russel Fellow. I hope we can see more of each other in the future...Subaru Natsuki.\" \"...Thank you kindly. Incidentally, how do you know my name? Someone give it to you? Anonymity is more my speed, so if my name gets around, I'll be too embarrassed to go about my business.\" \"Just a little something I heard through the grapevine. After all, you are a famous man who declared himself the knight of Lady Emilia, candidate at the royal selection conference. That being said, few are aware that this very person is currently staying at Lady Crusch's residence.\" Subaru was guarded, but Russel displayed no ill will on his face. Even so, Subaru was cautious of what might be hidden in the reply. The man seemed to be intentionally engaging him in a verbal joust, which made it hard for Subaru to like him. The atmosphere was steadily worsening when Wilhelm briskly interrupted with an aside. \"Mr. Russel. Did your meeting with Lady Crusch go well?\" Russel shrugged and shook his head. \"Unfortunately, no. Lady Crusch is a remarkably strict person. She turns rather sharp eyes toward us, as she is quite strict in her views. Judging from events to date, swaying her will not be easy.\" \"Is that so? How unfortunate. If you have not yielded, it will be difficult to make others agree.\" \"With a noble title and you on her side, I think it is the other candidates I should pity, Mr. Wilhelm... You call yourself Wilhelm Trias now, yes?\" Wilhelm nodded in response to Russel's words, lowering his deeply wrinkled face. \"As I am now, nothing good will come from invoking the name of my wife's family.\" \"You are very strict as well, so much so that I am mightily impressed as someone who cannot live in the same fashion. That being said, allow me to cheer on your side.\" The conversation, which was inscrutable from the outside, came to an end, and Russel walked to the dragon carriage in front of the gate. Then, just before climbing in, he looked back and said, \"Should Lady Crusch succeed in her current endeavors, we would feel nothing but delight. It would help achieve your great ambition as well, Mr. Wilhelm. I have high hopes.\" With that, Russel climbed aboard the dragon carriage. Wordlessly, the driver saluted and spurred the land dragon to a run. Like the man holding the reins, the land dragon was very unsociable and surprisingly silent as it galloped away. Subaru watched the dragon carriage fade into the distance as he asked Wilhelm about the visitor. \"Wilhelm, who was that guy?\" \"Russel Fellow, treasurer for the Merchant's Guild operating here in the royal capital. In name, he is a merchant like any other, but he is a crafty manipulator of both legitimate and unscrupulous movements of goods in the capital. It would be wise to assume he knows more about you than simply your name, Sir Subaru.\" \"Eww. It's downright creepy to have an older man interested in me instead of a girl.\" \"Mm, I share that sentiment. Now, then \" After his response to Subaru's casual banter, Wilhelm turned to face them once more. \"Mr. Russel was the last visitor for today. I had thought to finally head in, but...did you have something you wished to discuss, Sir Subaru?\" Subaru scratched his face, feeling awkward about throwing off Wilhelm's plans. That said, beating around the bush wasn't going to help anything. \"Sorry, but I'm the last visitor for today. I want to have a talk with Crusch the topic is...whether she could lend me a hand with something.\" \"That you are my final visitor for today is an amusing turn of events.\" Heedless of the fact that her schedule had gone awry, Crusch responded with a good-humored smile. Dressed in male attire, Crusch was sitting heavily in a chair in the reception room with her legs elegantly crossed. She stroked her deep-green hair, her amber eyes narrowing as her gaze pierced his chest. Subaru thought her sharp look would have bowled over his old self in an instant. Now, with Rem at his side, he didn't feel nervous at all facing her like this. In the meantime, Ferris stood behind Crusch, his feline ears twitching as he glared at Subaru in obvious dismay. \"Fortunately, there is a break in my schedule between now and supper. I am able to humor you without any issues until then.\" \"Since mew asked out of the blue, this is the only time she has available, meow. The depth of Lady Crusch's indulgence should make mew bow your head to the ground in gratitude, Subawuuu.\" \"Do not be concerned. I need no thanks nor groveling.\" \"Oh my, Lady Crusch. Your gallantry and generosity are making me fall for you even more... I'm in love!\" Ferris and Crusch engaged in their usual game where the master rebuked her servant for his attitude. \"Beating around the bush won't solve anything, and I don't think you like that stuff, anyway.\" Subaru needed to be careful how he broached the topic, but a roundabout discussion would only draw Crusch's ire. \"You sought this audience. I shall let you start  What is it you want?\" She really did get right to the point. Subaru licked his dry lips to moisten them, took a deep breath, and dived in. \"The Witch Cult or whatever it's called is planning to attack Roswaal's territory. I want you to lend me your strength so we can crush them.\" Subaru cut right to the issue at hand: These were the conditions necessary for fulfilling his goal. He needed raw fighting power to oppose the Witch Cult. Without Roswaal to rely on, he had to go elsewhere, and Crusch was a good fit. \"I see. The Witch Cult, is it?\" Subaru's request garnered various reactions from the others in the reception room, but Crusch nodded. When her glossy lips turned up in a wry smile, Subaru was startled by this side of her he hadn't seen before. Her response had betrayed all of Subaru's expectations. But the fuse had already been lit. Subaru's heart beat hard and fast as he waited for Crusch's next action, when... \"What is the matter? I told you, this is your time to speak.\" While Subaru hesitated, the thin smile remained on Crusch's face as she inclined her head. The unexpected remark threw him off somewhat. \"Er, I mean... It's as I said just now.\" \"Surely you do not intend to conclude with that request alone? What is your reason for asking this of me? What will come about as a result? What advantage would I gain from accepting your call for aid? One cannot dub this a negotiation when those things are not yet clear.\" Urk. Subaru's voice caught. Crusch seemed turned off as she closed one of her eyes. From that gesture alone, Subaru knew just how impudent he had been. \"I suppose you're right about that. Sorry, that was rude of me. I mean, er, bear with me a little; I don't really have any experience with negotiations like this.\" \"It's only natural to acknowledge personal shortcomings. Do not worry. But this conversation lasts only until supper keep this in mind.\" Mentioning the time limit directly after a display of generosity plainly showed that she was employing both the carrot and the stick. \"First, the reason I'm asking for your help... Put simply, we don't have enough manpower, way too little to stand up against the number of Witch Cult attackers. As a result, we can't fend off the assault.\" \"A simple story. But is Lord Mathers not sufficient by himself? He may well be the strongest fighter out of anyone in Lugunica. The Witch Cult should be no match when relying on numbers alone.\" \"If they all gathered in one place, that might be the case, but it's not. There's only one of Roswaal, and they'll be attacking at least two places at once.\" If nothing else, the village and the mansion were already two targets for certain. He remembered hearing \"sweeping clean\" and the like multiple times. It was possible they'd assault even passing dragon carriages and traveling merchants. \"I see. I understand your position. However, is this not Lord Mathers neglecting his domain? The duty of a lord is to maintain his martial might to keep the peace. If his overconfidence has led him to be lax in these duties, his reputation as marquis will inevitably suffer.\" \"I can't disagree with a single word you said. Anyway, for those reasons, we don't have enough to deal with the Witch Cult. I want something to fight with, the power of numbers.\" For the purpose of negotiations, Subaru concealed that Roswaal and the power he brought to the table might not even be present. He glanced sideways at Wilhelm. If his request was accepted, Wilhelm was of course a part of Crusch's forces that he hoped to borrow. Perhaps understanding the meaning behind Subaru's gaze, Crusch exhaled as she seemed to sink into deep thought. \"The Witch Cult... They are finally making a move, I see...\" \"Mm-hmm. Well, we figured as much when Lady Emilia, a half-elf, rose onto the stage...\" As Crusch murmured and Ferris agreed, master and servant nodding to each other, Subaru furrowed his brows. But before he could ask anything, Subaru shifted his focus to his side where Rem, seated there, silently pursed her lips as fierce emotion poured out of her. The expression on her profile was intentionally blank, but her internal turmoil was obvious. The Witch Cult, the object of Rem's hatred, was now Subaru's greatest enemy. He probably had the same look in his eyes as she did. \"Your circumstances are clear now. Next, I'll hear the reason for choosing to ask my house for aid...and your logic in doing so.\" \"I picked you and your people because you have the"}, {"text": "best chance of turning this thing around. Besides, you've given Rem and me your hospitality, and I think it's easier to work with you than the other candidates.\" Subaru had expected this line of questioning, so he had an answer prepared. Deep down, he believed there were others who were easier to deal with than Crusch. But Subaru's own sentiments, and the ease of contacting her at the moment, had led him to the current meeting. \"Easier to work with, you say.\" \"Yeah, that's right. That's why I wanted to come speak to you about th \" \"Subaru Natsuki, allow me to correct you about one thing.\" As she received Subaru's reply, Crusch gave him a beaming smile, rich in meaning, as she raised a single finger. \"My hospitality for you as a host has engendered a misunderstanding. For this, I apologize.\" \"...What do you mean, a misunderstanding?\" \"I am not treating you like an enemy. However, Emilia and I are already political rivals. Do you see? Emilia stands in opposition to me.\" \"Er, but you took us under your roof...\" \"Because a contract had been formed. Your treatment is part of that agreement. Regardless of how I treat you in this mansion, it does not change our position as rivals beyond these doors.\" Even the first time around, Crusch had declared that Subaru would be her enemy the moment the contract was over. It was both a sincere statement of fact and a declaration that it was useless to seek anything from her. \"In other words, there's no chance of joining forces with you?\" \"That is a different matter altogether. As I said before, Subaru Natsuki, if there are to be negotiations, there must be acceptable benefits for both sides. Everything until now, including your motivations, have served only to clarify your premises. I merely wish to ask from your point of view what I stand to gain from lending you military strength. After all...\" At that point, Crusch's words trailed off. She put down an elbow, resting her chin against her palm. \"It could be said that no explanation was really necessary. Now that Emilia's lineage is common knowledge, we have been expecting the Witch Cult to make a move. Regardless of the circumstances, we were already sure of this.\" Apparently, Crusch had never questioned that the Witch Cult would try something. Perhaps it could be called common knowledge peculiar to her world. Either way, it was working in Subaru's favor. \"That being the case, this negotiation hinges on mutual benefit. In your case, you would be able to borrow my house's might to eliminate the menace of the Witch Cult. What of my house, then? This is what I ask you.\" \"S-simply saving people isn't \" \"It would be ideal, in a sense, if that were reason enough for us to mobilize.\" The gaze Crusch turned upon Subaru was like a blade, cutting apart the illusion in his reply as it aimed to inflict a mortal wound. Subaru desperately grasped for a comeback before he was shut down altogether. \"Ahh, right. For example, lending a hand in this time of crisis would mean that our camp would owe you a pretty big favor...\" \" Am I to take that to mean you understand that if I accept your proposal, it would entail Emilia's forfeiture in the royal selection?\" \"Eh?\" The sharp thrust of her comment left Subaru's mouth hanging open. \"It is natural, yes? Throwing yourself at the mercy of another lord when your own territory is in danger is an issue of fitness for the throne. If someone cannot protect their subjects through the rule of law and strength of arms, how can they be expected to shoulder the burden of an entire kingdom? Subaru Natsuki. I shall correct you about one more thing.\" Crusch pointed the tip of her finger toward Subaru, cowed into silence, as if ready to drive it through him. \"By conducting these negotiations, you bear Emilia's fate on your shoulders. Naturally, everything you say affects her, and it carries the same weight as Emilia's words. This is not a decision you should make lightly, nor are the words you say easily taken back.\" \"...Ah, uh...\" \"Moreover, I ask again should you owe me in this matter, it will mean the defeat of the Emilia camp. Are you truly fine with this?\" It was only at this moment that Subaru began to genuinely understand his position. They were not participating in a lighthearted after-school debate club where Subaru had no real responsibility to bear. Theirs was a great stage where a single statement could alter the fates of many people or even decide the direction the entire kingdom would take. \"But even so...\" Too late, he realized what a heavy burden he carried on his shoulders. But Subaru ground his teeth. Just as Crusch said, borrowing her strength under the present terms meant that Emilia would lose her place in the royal selection a failure from which there was no turning back. But if he didn't lean on Crusch's strength, all that awaited was the rampage of the Witch Cult's fanatics and tragedy. Subaru's brain painfully creaked from the ceaseless back-and-forth of the scales in his head. \" Still, I want you to help us.\" \"...Even if it means losing the royal selection?\" \"It's better to be alive than not. If you die, that's the end of everything.\" Subaru's shoulders fell as he replied, unable to conceal his dejection and despair at his own powerlessness. If you die, then it's over. The terrible spectacle of the ruined village, of Rem, who was sitting right beside him, meeting a cruel death Subaru didn't have the courage to witness it again. He lowered his head and swallowed the humiliation. It was necessary so he could at least save their lives. \"Understood. In that case, the House of Karsten shall not lend you any assistance whatsoever.\" For an instant, Subaru froze, unable to process what had just been said to him. \" Huh?\" It was less a word and more a sound of doubt that was also a simple indication of incomprehension. But Crusch brushed it off, crossing her slender legs. \"I repeat. Your request for my house to send aid to the Mathers domain to lend military forces to Emilia is hereby rejected.\" Subaru gritted his teeth as Crusch spelled it out in terms he could understand. Feeling belittled by her composed statement, Subaru flew into a rage. \"Don't f ! Why are you...?!\" \"First, the advantage to my side that you so bitterly conceded Emilia's defeat in the royal selection has no weight as a bargaining chip of use in these negotiations. Do you understand why?\" \"Wh-what the hell? Kissing one of your rivals good-bye should be plenty worth it for you...\" \"Do you realize what you have said? As far as Emilia's defeat is concerned, it will come about without any intervention on my part whatsoever.\" \"What are...\" ...you saying? Subaru would have said, but then he realized it for himself. \"As you have stated, without aid, Emilia cannot protect the Mathers domain. Meaning, at this rate, and completely without my involvement, Emilia will be defeated in the royal selection.\" *** \"Indeed, were I to recklessly lend assistance, the knowledge I was involved in Emilia's defeat would itself become a problem with the other candidates. As you are aware, my house is currently the favorite to win this royal selection. If it became known that I booted another candidate from the contest, I could not fail to attract the enmity of all the others.\" In other words, as long as she quietly watched, Crusch would gain the benefit Subaru had indicated with no harm to herself. There was no reason for her to court danger unnecessarily; it would be akin to snatching chestnuts out of a fire. But that meant  \"You're going to let the people in Roswaal's...in that village be slaughtered by the Witch Cult's attack?!\" Subaru had shouted, but Crusch's icy gaze gave him pause. \"I shall correct your misunderstanding. And I am changing the subject, Subaru Natsuki.\" \"Ugh...!\" \"It is Emilia's lack of power to protect her domain and Emilia's lack of ability that has invited disaster upon her populace, not mine.\" Lack of power...lack of ability the weight of those words shocked him. Subaru felt a need to rail against Crusch's claims. And yet, the childish, emotional retorts welling up within him did not grant him the strength to refute Crusch's sound argument. \"It would seem you have said your piece.\" Crusch checked the time, as indicated by the amber light of the magic time crystal above the reception room's door. \"It shall soon be Earth Time. Time for supper. All according to schedule, apparently.\" Seeing Crusch about to rise from her seat, Subaru was suddenly stricken by nervousness as he called out, \"W-wait!\" He raised his hand to stop Crusch from breaking off the conversation, desperately searching inside his head for some way to keep negotiations going. \"Y-you'll really abandon them? The folks in the village haven't done anything wrong! There's no reason for them to die!\" But the words that came out of Subaru's mouth were little more than a feeble attempt to appeal to another's charity. A faint look of disappointment entered Crusch's eyes as she listened to his immature reasoning. \"I told you. I am not the one whose strength is insufficient...\" \"Don't you feel bad knowing and abandoning them anyway?! If you have the power to save them, why won't you?! What's wrong with helping people?! Because it's someone else's land, it's not your problem?!\" \"Would you just shut up and listen a little \" \"It's fine, Ferris.\" \"But Lady Crusch! This time he's gone too far, meow!\" \"He has bared his spirit. It does not sit well with my beliefs to withhold an answer.\" Though Ferris howled in dismay, he quietly bowed to Crusch's command. Watching him from the corner of her eye, Crusch sat straighter in her chair. After taking a deep breath, she mulled over Subaru's statement. \"You ask is it wrong of me to overlook this, to allow them to die?\" \"That's right! You're aiming to be king, right?! Carry the whole country on your back? What kind of king overlooks a whole village?!\" \"I shall correct one misconception of yours.\" Crusch raised a finger. Her gaze shot right through Subaru, seemingly reproaching him for his frivolousness. \"When I rejected your proposal, I stated one reason. I shall elucidate the other chief reason for my doubts.\" Crusch had another reason for not being open to Subaru's proposal the reason she was abandoning Emilia. And that was  \"And that is because I do not trust your story enough to order my house into action.\" Her statement threw the premise of the entire meeting back at Subaru, stunning him. \"Wh...aa?\" \"The Witch Cult? Yes, it's possible that they would make a move at this juncture. It would be consistent with their creed and their activities to date. I can make a deduction based on those factors. However, the problem lies elsewhere.\" \"Elsewhere...?\" \"It is a simple matter. How is it that you can determine the exact place, date, and time of where they will strike next?\" Pointing her finger toward Subaru, Crusch's eyes and voice were like daggers. \"The Cult is absolutely inscrutable, to the point that its true nature is completely unknown. It's telling that their organization has survived for hundreds of years while evading destruction, causing immense damage in the meantime. So how exactly have you learned of their next vile act?\" \"That's... But you never said a word of that before...!\" \"I did not feel the need to be that explicit. Since you could not accept it, I pointed out the heart of the matter for you. If you still cannot, there is but one possibility.\" In place of Subaru, cowed into silence, Crusch slowly spelled it out for him. \"Naturally, wouldn't you know about the Witch Cult if you were part of it?\""}, {"text": "\"Don't mess with !\" This time, fierce, irrepressible emotion rushed to his throat to turn into a scream. But it stopped just on the verge of that, though not because of Subaru's self-control. *** That reason was the increasingly ghastly aura rising from Rem as she silently watched the exchange between Crusch and Subaru. \"Lady Crusch, surely you jest.\" Crusch tilted her head at the modesty of Rem's tone, no different from before. \"There is no way that Subaru could be part of the Witch Cult.\" \"Is that so? Judging by Subaru Natsuki's statement, if he cannot voice the reason he has such knowledge, I can reach no other conclusion. Have you not sensed for yourself why I say this?\" \" I have not.\" No doubt Crusch detected the slight hesitation in her statement. Rem, who could sense the Witch's scent coming from Subaru, had been tripped up by Crusch's casual, leading question. \"At any rate. For both of these reasons, my house cannot lend Emilia aid due to insufficient trust. Moreover, you have not been granted the right to act as a negotiator in the first place, have you?\" \"Ugh...\" \"Earlier, I threatened you by stating that Emilia's advance or retreat rested upon your shoulders, but in truth, the problem precedes even that. At this juncture, you have no responsibility at all.\"  He'd charged ahead alone, tried to protect things alone, and failed alone. Crusch's words calmly tore into Subaru's bared heart. \"...As you are now, meekly remaining here under my protection, you possess no power that can move me.\" *** Over and over again, her words crashed into him, exposing Subaru's helplessness, pressing onto him his ignorance, driving home his spinelessness, and mocking him for being senseless, rash, indiscreet, and ugly, with backhanded sympathy thrown in for good measure. Subaru was overwhelmed by the realization that absolutely nothing had gone the way he wanted. Had he made a mistake somewhere? He was only trying to do the right thing. Thinking himself correct, he believed someone would help him, and so he had searched, beseeched, and begged. Wasn't that what you were supposed to do? \"The Witch Cult is coming! They're going to slaughter everyone in the village...!\" Subaru pleaded with so much anger and sadness that he felt like his throat was about to burst. He'd seen it. He'd felt each and every one of their deaths. All the precious people he cared about had turned to white crystal as everything in the world froze over. If nothing was done, the heartless reality of the situation meant that it was certain. That tragedy would happen again. Why can't anyone understand that? Why won't people get out of my way and let me prevent such a terrible fate? \"Kill them...just kill them already! Don't you get it?! You can't let people like that live! Kill them! Help me, damn it...!!\" Subaru fell to his knees, prostrating himself as he earnestly implored her for assistance. If he needed to put his forehead to the floor and beg, he would happily play the clown. As long as Crusch would lend her strength, he didn't mind being looked down upon or insulted. He'd even bark like a dog or cluck like a chicken. As long as his bloodlust could be sated, then  \" So that is the true motive for your actions?\" But in the face of Subaru's sincere, unwavering, humiliating plea... \"You hate the Witch Cult. That's the reason you approached Emilia, is it not?\"  This woman of influence, who never made decisions based on her emotions, held not the slightest shred of pity. Torn apart by her cold voice and gaze, Subaru was speechless, his shoulders trembling. Engulfed by a torrent of emotions, Subaru no longer knew whether he was feeling anger, sadness, or some strange mixture of the two. \"No... I I just want to save everyone...\" Crusch's conclusion was off the mark. The idea that he acted solely because of hatred for the Witch Cult was nothing more than a misunderstanding from an incomplete perspective. Subaru's feelings were always rooted in trying to help others, weren't they? And yet, he could not raise a single word in rebuttal. \"You cannot deceive others with the lies you tell yourself. Right now, the glint in your eyes can only be called bloodlust or madness. Have you not noticed, Subaru Natsuki?\" Crusch's gaze was both harsh and yet filled with something that resembled pity. \"They have been like that ever since the moment you returned to the mansion.\" Her dry observation elicited a dramatic reaction from Subaru. Unwittingly, he covered his eyes, as if to find out for himself that which he could not see, even though it only further proved that he could not refute Crusch's accusation. \"I do not know why you are so obsessed with the Witch Cult. The Cult has perverted the lives of many. Perhaps you are one among them. Perhaps your anger and hatred are entirely just. However, that is irrelevant in these negotiations.\" \"Even if even if I hate the Witch Cult, so what? Th-they're the blight of this world. It'd be better if you just killed every last one of 'em. It's true, that's what I think, but it isn't a reason to break off negotiations and abandon people...!\" \"Do not change the subject again, Subaru Natsuki. It's true; my suspicion that hatred is the reason for your conduct is unrelated to negotiations. More precisely, the fact that you are unfit to negotiate with me is of great import, for it brings into question the propriety of what you seek to discuss.\" \"What do you mean...unfit?\" Subaru, clenching his teeth to the point that they seeped blood, kept lobbing questions in an attempt to cling to something. The end of this conversation meant the end of negotiations. That was his pressing fear. \"If my hypothesis is correct, and the motivation for your actions is an unbridled loathing for the Witch Cult, then I can only wonder if you approached Emilia purely to use her as a stepping-stone in the first place.\" \"I...approach her...stepping-stone...?\" \"It was clear that if Emilia participated in the royal selection and the circumstances of her birth were made public, the Witch Cult would predictably move according to its beliefs. If someone was hoping to catch the cultists under their thumb despite the fact that it was normally impossible to find even a trace of their activities, no other plan could have greater odds of success.\" \"You're saying I'm using Emilia as a pretense to get revenge?!\" Subaru pounded his fist into the table before him, raising a shout at the unbelievable accusation. \"Do you think your display just now and simply yelling 'no' can convince me...? Hatred shows clearly in your eyes, and bloodlust oozes from your every word, the sort that clings to a person so thickly and grows so hard, it can never be scraped away, let alone forgotten.\"  No! No, no, no, no! Crusch's statement did not capture Subaru's true character in the slightest. \"They're evil whether I hate them or not! You can't let people like that live! That's why we should kill them all! That'll save everyone! It'll help everybody! No one has to suffer those bastards just need to die!!\" \"I have told you already, Subaru Natsuki. If you do not even believe the lies you tell yourself, there is no chance they will deceive anyone else.\" While Subaru breathed raggedly, his eyes bloodshot, Crusch refuted him in a hard voice. As Subaru's shoulders heaved, she looked up at him with narrowed eyes from her seat and spoke. \"Bereft of hatred, bloodlust, and bile toward the Witch Cult, your statements are unconvincing.\" \"Wh-why...?\" When Subaru spoke with a broken voice, Crusch looked at him with sympathy and pity in her eyes. \"Do you really not understand?\" However, Subaru's brows furrowed with perplexity at what Crusch was getting at. She lowered her eyes, unable to conceal her disappointment and dismay at his reaction. \" You have not said, 'I want to save Emilia,' even once.\" \"...Huh?\" \"You claim to want to save people, to protect people, smoothing things over on the surface while darker emotions boil up inside you. At the very least, it is inconsistent with what I saw of you in the throne room.\" Unable to understand the meaning of Crusch's words, Subaru wavered, his gaze hollow.  I wasn't thinking about saving Emilia? *** It couldn't be true. Ever since he had been transported to this new world, from the first time she had saved his life, Subaru had lived for Emilia. His feelings were no different in the throne room, during the incident at the parade ground, or even during his negotiation with Crusch. If the situation was left to play out as it was, he'd lose her and the village. His actions were for the sake of saving them. And absolutely, absolutely, absolutely not because hatred had seized his heart  Abruptly, a voice struck Subaru, breaking the silence. \"I cannot permit you to advance any farther.\" Subaru's mind was instantly jolted back to reality. In front of him was Wilhelm, standing straight. The elderly man had placed himself beside the table separating Subaru and Crusch with compassion on his deeply wrinkled face. For some reason, that downward, tender gaze was really rubbing Subaru the wrong way. Abruptly, something tugged on his sleeve. \" Subaru.\" Rem was grasping Subaru's sleeve, her eyes filled with sadness. \"Please calm down. Nothing will come of losing control here. And if you do, I won't be able to fight off Master Wilhelm.\" \"...Control? What are you talking about? I'd never do anything viole \" \"Wait, wait, wait. Then what do mew intend to do with that tablespoon you're squeezing so hard? Maybe your parents raised you badly, but that's not how you hold one, meow.\" When Ferris pointed it out, Subaru realized for the first time that he was holding a tablespoon in his right hand and that he was crudely gripping it backward, like he was going to stab someone with it.  How... When did I...? \"Just like Rem pointed out, violence will get you nothing, meow. If you fly into a rage here, I'll just keep Rem occupied while Old Man Wil slices you in half.\" \"Moreover, I do not want to issue such a command. To do so after you have stayed here for several days would cause political problems, and I would rather not stain the carpet that my father sent me as a present.\" In the face of Subaru's insolence, Crusch still behaved reservedly. This was at once a display of the greatness of her character and scorn for the powerlessness of Subaru, who had nothing to wield in anger save a tiny utensil. All of it really rubbed him the wrong way. But instead of an apology, dogged insistence came out of his mouth. \"...So you're not going to lend a hand, no matter what, then?\" \"Correct. Your statements are not credible, nor does cooperating with you hold any attractiveness for my side. Accordingly, I shall observe from a distance.\" \"The Witch Cult...is coming. When they get here, they're going to kill all the people in that village. Knowing but not doing anything means it'll be your 'Sloth' that kills the village.\" Subaru glared at Crusch, invoking the title of a certain despicable madman. \"Quite arrogantly put. Consequently, there is one more thing for me to add.\" While Subaru gave her a filthy look, Crusch stood up, staring straight back into his eyes. \"I am able to largely discern whether a person is lying. I can boast that, since far back, I have never once been cheated in negotiations.\" Suddenly, Crusch began to speak on a different topic. She continued to peer into Subaru's eyes as they clouded with doubt. \"If my experience is anything to judge by, what you speak are not lies.\" \"Th-then...!\" \"You wholly believe that your assertions are the truth, and therefore, they are not"}, {"text": "lies to you. Those in such a state are called madmen, Subaru Natsuki.\" It was then and there that Subaru clearly understood that negotiations had failed. *** Continuous clenching of his teeth had cut the edge of his lip, sending blood dribbling down his jaw. Crusch narrowed her eyes as she watched the painful image. \"Ferris, go ahead and heal him.\" \"I don't need it!\" Before Ferris could move a muscle, Subaru rejected the offer and stood, practically leaping from his chair. \"Suppertime is here. Will you not be joining us?\" \"You wouldn't want to eat at the same table as a madman, would you? No matter how eccentric your taste or style might be, that'd be a bit too far even for you.\" Subaru replied to sarcasm with sarcasm as he reached for the reception room door. Following suit, Rem stood at attention and politely bowed to Crusch. \"It has been a short time, but thank you for the hospitality. On behalf of my master, I offer my thanks.\" \"So this is your...no, Marquis Mathers's reply?\" \"Yes. He instructed me to respect Subaru's wishes in all things.\" Subaru couldn't see Crusch's expression during the incomprehensible exchange, but Crusch's voice seemed to bear no small amount of regret as Rem stated her farewells. Whatever she felt, it was clearly not the coldness she'd shown to Subaru, and it was infuriating him. \"Rem, let's go.\" Picking up the pace, Subaru called out to Rem and opened the door. \"Have you anywhere else to turn to?\" \"Make sure you become a good king, okay? The despotic type that tosses aside the weak.\" Spitting out his reply without turning around, Subaru slammed the door shut. And thus, in pathetic fashion, the curtain lowered on the negotiations. It was well into the evening when Subaru bolted out into the Nobles' District after negotiations had broken down. The sun had already dipped low in the west. The aura of night was slowly creeping over the world. With the light of the crystal lamps lining the road shining down upon him, Subaru leaned back against an iron fence, spitting out curses. \"Shit. One thing after another...\" The exchange with Crusch rose in the back of his mind and with it, the humiliation he had suffered. \"Those know-nothings... Why don't they understand I'm doing the right thing...?!\" The swirling vortex inside his chest was emotion close to hatred toward the woman who had impeded his path. Things had turned out this way because she hadn't seen for herself that tragedy or the laughter of that cruel, conniving madman. It was because she had not heard it. She hadn't experienced it for herself, so she didn't understand: They were beasts and could not be suffered to live. \"Fine. Fine already. My messing up, people with no feelings, gotta forget all that. Right now I need to focus more on what's in front of me...!\" Rather than stand still and mope, the right choice was to move forward, one small step at a time. After all, to Subaru, with so few cards to play, time was a precious thing. \"Sorry to keep you waiting, Subaru.\" While Subaru tapped a foot in annoyance, Rem passed through the gate, returning to her spot beside him. She was carrying the luggage they had brought with them to the Crusch residence, neatly packed up and ready to go. After Subaru's caustic outburst and furious exit, he had been waiting while Rem went to gather their things. \"...Sorry. Gimme the luggage; I'll haul it.\" \"It is fine. The bags are not heavy, and you are still recovering, Subaru.\" Rem politely declined Subaru's offer and hefted the luggage in her arms. Normally, Subaru would have insisted, but with his mental resources otherwise occupied, he did not dwell on the matter. \"Come to think of it, you weren't opposed to leaving, were you, Rem?\" \"Correct. It was your choice, Subaru.\" \"Well, after all that, I can't exactly come crawling back for more healing. Whatever Emilia bargained for it, I feel bad for her.\" Emilia had tendered something to pave the way for Subaru's medical treatments. Subaru had distinct feelings of guilt on multiple levels for wasting her kindness again. But Subaru was sure it'd be all right. Once he rescued her from this crisis, they'd be able to make up, so she'd probably forgive this, too. To that end, among other things, Petelgeuse had to die. \"Subaru. About the...negotiations with Lady Crusch...\" \"She made a big deal about trustworthiness, benefits, and other pointless crap. No shred of human decency in her. How can anyone put up with that high-and-mighty attitude ?\" Subaru interrupted Rem with his curses, cutting off her attempt to raise the subject. Perhaps she sensed his desire to not revisit the matter, because she brought up something else. \"What will we do now, Subaru? If what you say is true, there is not a single moment to lose.\" \"If?\" \"...There is not a single moment to lose. Will we be returning to Master Roswaal's mansion?\" Subaru interjected about a part of her line that bugged him, but Rem didn't bite. Subaru shook his head in response to her latter question. \"Nah. Right now, if it's just us heading back, there's not a whole lot we can do. We've gotta go with a big enough crew to put up a decent fight. And if we can't do that, we need to find another way somehow.\" If only Subaru and Rem showed up to help, it would result in a repeat of what had come before. Yes, if they departed sooner than previous times, there was a chance they could make it back to the mansion safely without encountering the Witch Cult. But it would probably be very difficult repelling the Cult with nothing but the resources the mansion had on hand. \"We just don't have the numbers. What the hell has Roswaal been up to...?\" By himself, Roswaal was powerful enough that they might be able to send the Cult packing. So what was that court magician doing at the very moment they needed him most...? \"Subaru. Actually, in regards to Master Roswaal... There is a very high chance he will be absent from the mansion for several days.\" \" ?! You knew? So Roswaal not being at the mansion was preplanned?\" \"Master Roswaal was to visit Garfiel's... Er, the place of an important individual within the dominion, and he planned to stay there for several days.\" \"Shit, his timing sucks! So that's why they can't repel the attack!\" Rem's answer bolstered Subaru's concerns, and he clawed at his head as he spat his frustrations like a curse. Now that Roswaal, their greatest weapon, could not be relied on, his earlier estimate rang true: They were at an overwhelming disadvantage. Subaru and Rem turning back early wouldn't make any difference. \"Looks like I was right. I've gotta bring the cavalry with me somehow...\" Subaru, revisiting his first conclusion with renewed confidence, nodded to Rem, who watched him all the while. The objective was set, but time was short. If he wanted to at least do better than the previous two loops, he had to leave the royal capital the following day. Considering that night was falling, this left him with about half a day to work with. \"Anyway, we've got no choice but to look for help from someone else. Rem, how well do you know the layout of the capital?\" \"Fairly well, since I have come here several times before and spent quite a bit of time looking around with you over the past few days... But who?\" \"First, let's find an inn. The rest comes after that. At the latest, we need to leave the capital tomorrow or we won't make it in time. Anyway...I'll think about everything after that.\" Subaru bluntly told Rem that they had to prepare to the greatest extent possible. Seeing out of the corner of his eye that Rem had quietly accepted his plan, Subaru looked up at the sky without another word. From the other side, darkness was creeping across the sky above the capital. It felt like it was an ill omen. The shadow moved eerily and sluggishly, as if implying storm clouds were gathering along Subaru's path... CHAPTER 2 *** \" I may not look it, but I am a surprisingly avid reader.\" The girl who spoke was sitting in an extravagant chair, resting one elbow upon it. She was flipping through an exquisitely bound book in her other arm, already perusing the latter half, and the sight made her seem different from the girl Subaru remembered. She wore a long-sleeve red nightgown similar to a negligee with an identically colored cape draped over her shoulders. Her voluptuous body was plain to see in her outfit, but the girl showed no outward sign of concern that a man was present. The girl was so natural, completely immersed in her book, that it was easy to forget she was in the middle of receiving a guest. *** Subaru felt himself unintentionally taken in by the solemnity of her gestures. Her graceful white fingertip traced the characters as her eyes passed over them. The young man felt like he could watch her all day. Perhaps it was because this unknown side of the girl before him had enchanted him. *** As Subaru stepped on the carpeted floor in his sneakers, he felt unsure of what to do now that he'd been ignored. He was wondering if he was permitted to enter, but the lady of the household was not paying him any attention. When he'd tried to forcefully begin a conversation, she'd rebuffed him at the first word. Surely she wasn't telling him to wait until she finished reading her book... \"That's excessive no matter how you cut it...\" Though he tried to deny his unease, seeing her leisurely turn the pages made that difficult. In point of fact, Subaru knew that the girl's personality was not incompatible with such irrationality. Her hair was orange, reminiscent of the sun; her eyes were crimson, like a fire that would scorch away everything it touched. She had glossy white skin and a striking feminine figure. The thick perfume wafting around her was like poison. It was difficult for the word beautiful to sufficiently capture the sight of her as she silently examined her book. How much favor must the heavens have shown her for her to be loved by all?  Her name was Priscilla Bariel. She was one of the candidates for the royal selection, as well as the next prospective cooperator Subaru sought an audience with. Subaru's shoulders sank when he learned Reinhard was absent from the royal capital a fact he'd confirmed after departing from the Crusch compound and while Rem was securing an inn. Reinhard was the last one Subaru had hoped to rely on. An elderly couple inhabited the villa in the capital set aside for the Astrea family and had been charged with its care. When Subaru arrived without any forewarning, the two had welcomed him in and lent an ear to his request, but... \"The young master returned to the main household with his liege, Lady Felt, and her family some two days ago. We can offer contact with him from our side, but...\" Just as he'd mentioned during his visit to the Crusch residence, Reinhard had left. Even though he remembered what Reinhard had said, Subaru had still clung to a slender thread of hope, but his pleas went unanswered. Even if he could reach Reinhard somehow, the distance from the royal capital to the main household of the Astrea family, and from there, the distance to the Mathers lands, was fatal. The odds of him joining their forces in time were despairingly low. Subaru said his farewells to the elderly couple. Then, once he was out of sight of the mansion, he clutched his head. \"Roswaal and Reinhard are seriously useless, and right when I"}, {"text": "really need 'em, too...!\" This time, everything was going wrong. One prospective collaborator fell through after another, leaving Subaru truly at the end of his rope. If only his Return by Death restore point brought him back to the night when he'd parted ways with Reinhard  \"If you don't have it, you don't have it... Think, think, think, think. I don't have strength, numbers, time anything. Racking my brain is the only thing I can do.\" Desperately turning the gears in his head, Subaru earnestly fought to come up with the next best plan of action. Now that he'd scratched Crusch and Reinhard off the list, Subaru had scant few cards left in his hand to pick from. Considering the circumstances, pleading with the Knights of the kingdom would no doubt produce the same results as his negotiation with Crusch. Besides, Subaru felt nothing but mistrust toward them.  At the very least, now that Crusch, someone he thought he had a good relationship with, had abandoned him, a storm of paranoia toward others brewed inside Subaru. Not even realizing how this was narrowing his already limited options, Subaru could think of only two other people. However, one meant bowing his head to \"The Finest of Knights,\" someone he hated more than the Knights in general, which was unthinkable. That left Subaru with a single candidate. Rem caught up finally. Seeing Subaru deep in thought, she called out to him. \"Subaru, what should we do now? I \" \"It's all right. Leave it to me. You don't have to do anything. Don't...do anything. Just stay right behind me. That's enough.\" After that interruption, Rem turned a frail smile toward Subaru as he continued thinking to himself.  I absolutely have to stop Rem from bearing the brunt of everything. Subaru knew that if it was to save him, Rem wouldn't hesitate to hurl herself at danger and cast her life away. He had to protect her, no matter what. Subaru was certain that she was emotionally dependent on him, and it was his duty to save her. Whatever might happen, he had to avoid losing her. There was no other option. If he couldn't protect Rem, saving Emilia and the villagers would lose all meaning. Even indulging his hatred of Petelgeuse would be  \"Wait, that's...\" Subaru touched his temple as an exceedingly violent thought instantly came to mind. Just then, it had almost seemed as if eliminating Petelgeuse was a higher priority than saving Emilia and the others. Wasn't that exactly the thing Crusch had pointed out earlier...? \"It's all right. Everything's all right. I'll...get this right. I'm gonna do it. I...gotta do it.\" Subaru reassured himself, seemingly speaking for his own benefit. He ruminated on those words and pretended he had noticed nothing, as if he were putting a lid on top of a bottomless pit. This was the only way Subaru Natsuki could maintain his own sanity. The next morning, as dawn broke, the two returned to the Nobles' District to follow the slender thread that bore Subaru's remaining hopes. The Nobles' District on the upper section of the royal capital was lined with dazzling buildings. The showy facade of the stately mansion Subaru and Rem arrived at did not betray their expectations. No, it was more appropriate to say that it was showier and more extravagant than they had imagined. \"No need to ask around for who this belongs to. I can't imagine anyone would have a hard time figuring out the owner of this place...\" Subaru was nonplussed. The sight of the luxurious mansion was not one he'd soon forget, even from afar. The roof was painted over with gold that cast the light of the morning sun in all directions, while a number of intricate images had been engraved into the walls. As far as he could see, there were even reliefs adorning the windows, and a number of statues he could only call avant-garde art dotted the courtyard. The home was an acute reflection of the tastes of a big spender. Subaru couldn't help a dry smile when he considered how the spectacle so aggressively asserted the owner's will. As Subaru was rooted to the spot in front of the gates, Rem stood beside him with a dumbfounded expression on her face for once. If the point of the building's outward appearance was to give guests a shock, it had accomplished its goal ten times over. \"You're not gonna tell me this was the previous owner's style, are you? I feel sorry for him.\" \"Ahhhh, well actually this is the Princess's tastes at work. It was a pretty extreme makeover, you know? I sympathize with the folks who worked straight through the night, but she slapped their cheeks with sacks of gold coins so they couldn't complain.\" \"Hey, that's completely different from slapping people around with a wad of bills. Whacking people with a bag of coins would totally count as actual violence.\" The man standing on the other side of the gate laughed at Subaru's joke. The man slid his thick fingers into the gap between his black helmet and his neck and scratched. Below his pitch-black full helm, the gateman was dressed roughly, like some kind of bandit. Though he made for an odd sight in general, what stood out most had to be the fact that he was missing his left arm from the shoulder down. This casual one-armed man who concealed his face named Al served as the retainer of the woman Subaru had come to see. Calling himself a mercenary, he was similar to Subaru, summoned from the same world. That was the basis for the strange rapport between them, as well as the reason for Al's friendliness upon their early morning visit. \"So what are you doing out here at a time like this? As you can see, I have low blood pressure, so I'm seriously not a morning person. If you're inviting me to go hunting for a bite or something, I might not be completely up for it.\" \"Nothing so tame as a family restaurant. Today, I'm here to speak with your Princess.\" \"Princess...?\" Unable to see the expression behind the helmet, he had no idea how Al was looking at him at that moment. An unpleasant pause followed as the one-armed man seemed to mull it over. \"Well, I did get to recharge my supply of maid energy, so I guess I can take a message.\" \"That was more meaningless than I expected. Besides, it's not like you don't have any maids in this mansion, right?\" \"Hey now, you don't understand Princess. You think we can have maids waltzing around when Princess thinks she's the cutest in the whole world? The only thing we have in the mansion is a cute young butler.\" \"My fault for asking... It might lower the value some, but yeah, can you pass on a message for starters?\" \"Sure thing,\" answered Al in a casual voice, leisurely vanishing back inside the mansion. Rem, standing to the side and a single step behind him, maintained her silence as her neutral expression tightened. But through her fingertips, lightly grasping his sleeve, he could sense the worry she couldn't hide. Subaru wanted to wipe away her concerns, but that wasn't possible when he harbored the same ones. \"Well, it is ridiculously early in the morning... In that girl's case, I'd expect her to say something like, 'You are interfering with my precious time for slee '\" \"Hey, you can come in and meet her!\" Al poked his head out from the mansion's entrance, his laid-back voice interrupting Subaru's barb. For a moment, Subaru was taken aback at the unexpected speed of the reply. \"I-isn't it insanely early, though?\" \"You wouldn't expect it, but Princess is one hell of a morning person. The flip side is that she goes to bed really early at night. Either way, come on in.\" Al laughed at Subaru's hesitation and invited them inside with a carefree demeanor. As they followed behind him, it soon became clear that the building's interior was similarly intense to the exterior. Even an untrained eye could tell. Expensive-looking fixtures and pieces of art were on display in the corridor, almost to the point of impeding movement. The apparently compulsive need to adorn even lamps and picture frames with gold felt like a form of insanity. \"I suppose it's all a little blinding at first, but you get used to it. It's not as bad in the morning like this, but the halls are seriously scary at night.\" \"I'm not a little kid, so you don't have to tell me the halls are scary at night. What kind of adult are you?\" \"The eyes of the statues glow.\" \"Your master's messed up in the head.\" When Subaru examined the statues lining the hallway more closely, he noticed they had something like gemstones embedded in their eye sockets. They probably would glow when it got dark. Both purchaser and designer had a screw loose. Rem followed behind both of them, and he could hear noises coming from her nose every so often. Rem had a keen sense of smell, and she'd apparently picked up some kind of unsavory scent, staring at the back of the iron helm as they walked along. The trek of the mismatched trio soon came to an end. \"Princess is in the top room up there. The whole floor's one really decked-out room.\" \"Sounds kinda like a hotel suite. Can we go in?\" \"Well, you can, bro.\" Al's reply contained a clear implication when he approached the stairs and indicated the floor above with his thumb. At the unsettling undertone, Subaru shifted a guarded look his way. \"Hey now, I'm not saying it to be mean. Princess said she'd only meet with you. The young lady'll be escorted to the guest room.\" \"You think I'll just hand her over when you were talking about recharging your maid energy earlier...?\" \"You got me there, but don't worry, I'll be waiting right here in front of Princess's room. It's a pity, but I'll leave escorting the young lady to my senior, Schult.\" Anticipating Subaru's concerns, Al's voice suggested he was barely restraining his laughter when he snapped his fingers. Immediately, a young man with curly pink hair and red eyes appeared. The only words Subaru could think of to capture the youth's essence were pretty boy. His small frame was dressed in a butler's outfit, while his face showed a stern, fervent devotion to his duties, but somehow, he gave off the impression of a pervert. \"Take good care of our guest, now.\" \"Yes, leave it to me.\" When Al gave the youth a pat on the shoulder, the pretty-boy butler offered a formal reply and proceeded to escort Rem. Instantly, she glanced back at Subaru, seemingly at a loss. \"Sorry. Wait up for me until we're finished talking. All the dangerous people in this mansion, Helmet Guy included, are gonna be on the top floor, so just relax and wait up.\" \"That's harsh, bro, making me out to be some suspicious guy. Though intruders do say that about me pretty often.\" Subaru ignored Al's peevish reply and stroked Rem's head to put her at ease. Rem almost closed her eyes like she was ticklish, bowing her head as she resigned herself to the inevitable. Afterward, she gently drew close to him and whispered an additional word of caution. \"Understood please be especially wary of that person.\" Rem's eyes looked at Al for only a single moment. Apparently, he'd really set off her alarms. \"Mm, got it.\" Though Subaru truly wanted to believe in his amiable compatriot, Rem's appraisal of his trustworthiness was more natural. Considering the back-and-forth at the Crusch residence, it was best to regard Priscilla's people as opponents as well. Subaru nodded and smiled. The pretty-boy butler led Rem along, vanishing down a corridor. \"Phew. Not bad, bro. I see she's really sweet on you.\" \"If"}, {"text": "you're gonna do that, just do a proper whistle. Not that I can whistle with you.\" It wasn't as though the weather was cold enough that it physically prevented anyone from whistling. For the most part, Subaru had bitter memories of how he'd tried and failed to learn to whistle since way back. \"Ah, no can do. Lips aren't intact. I can't manage a real whistle.\" \"Th-that so. Sorry 'bout that.\" The answer was heavier than Subaru had expected, so he abandoned any thought of pursuing the matter. \"Well, it's a pity to keep the young lady waiting like this, and Princess gets annoyed and scary if you make her sit around too long. Better head upstairs, pronto.\" \"Short and sweet. Big help... Incidentally, what's Priscilla's mood like today?\" Since he was dealing with Priscilla, her current disposition would affect the results of any discussion to a rather frightening degree. \"Mm, I don't think it's particularly good or bad, so that means you really can't go in expecting anything. Princess's moods can change before, after, or during a conversation, and they can go up, down, left, right, or bounce all around the place. What she likes to talk about isn't set in stone. You need to be good at ad-libbing to get by.\" \"So a no-prep match... The worst kind for me.\" He climbed upstairs, slipped past a dancing hall, and came to a door an exceedingly ornamented one. \"This is Princess's way-too-big private room. She never calls me inside, so I'll wait here while you go ahead.\" Ever relaxed, Al sat on the stairs leading up to the door. As he did so, he drew his curved broadsword from his back-of-the-hip sheath and laid it over his lap. \"She's not in that bad a mood, is she? I don't wanna get sliced to ribbons, and I'm tired of dealing with her when she's unreasonable and in a temper.\" \"...Sorry, but she's dumped a lot of her unreasonable demands on me, too.\" After Al gave his petition a blunt reply, Subaru took a deep breath and pushed open the door.  And so, we return to the beginning of Subaru's standoff with Priscilla. After he entered, Subaru spotted Priscilla waiting for him at the far end. She sat in a chair positioned above some stairs, elegantly continuing to read, not acknowledging Subaru at all. Without an opening line to get things started, Subaru's bewilderment and nervousness only grew as time steadily pressed onward. That's why when the sound of Priscilla's book suddenly closing shut reverberated through the room, Subaru's shoulders jumped in surprise. \" Now, then.\" Subaru gritted his teeth a little, feeling like his weakness had been blatantly exposed. Priscilla, not looking like she cared one bit, stroked the cover of the closed volume as she made her remarks. \"'Twas a boring tale.\" \"...You sure looked like you were into it, though.\" \"When reading any book, it is proper to become immersed in the world between the pages and be able to state what was gained after finishing a tale. Only a fool would declare something boring without completing it.\" It seemed she was as avid a reader as the claims said. After declaring the foolishness of appraising unfinished books, Priscilla took the volume she had read in full and tossed it into the air without warning. \" Ahh.\" Subaru watched, lost in bewilderment, as the soaring tome suddenly burst into flames. Scorched by the incredibly powerful fire, only black ashes remained dancing in the air. \"Now then, this is robbing me of my precious morning reading time. At the very least, have you brought me a tale to pique my interest more than that book?\" With a devious, crafty smile, Priscilla recrossed her lithe legs and pointed a white finger at Subaru. He felt as if the heat of her fingertip were pressing against his forehead when he willed his parched tongue to move. \" It's about Emilia, a royal selection candidate, same as you. I want you to lend me your strength so I can break her out of a tricky situation she's in right now.\" *** Closing a single eye, Priscilla silently prodded Subaru to continue. Under her red gaze, completely unmoved, Subaru earnestly concentrated on the words he'd rehearsed. And so, he laid out everything over the course of several minutes before reaching his conclusion. \"The Witch Cult...is it? ...Hmph.\" Propping herself up on her elbow, Priscilla supported her head with her hand as her other hand slapped her knee. Having listened to the very end of the modified version of what he'd said at the Crusch mansion, she had murmured to herself with some deep-seated emotion before she closed her eyes. \"Yes, the Witch Cult. If no one does anything, they're going to hurt an awful lot of people. Emilia won't be the only casualty. I want to take them down before that happens. That's why I need \" \"Hee-hee. Heh.\" *** Abruptly, Priscilla leaned forward, her shoulders slightly trembling. Subaru's brows rose at the small sound from her mouth, and Priscilla's head snapped up. \"Ha-ha-ha-ha! Amusing! You are very amusing. I see, you've certainly swayed my heart more than that book. You must be incredibly talented to come up with a farce like this!\" Priscilla laughed and laughed, mocking Subaru. It was the howl of a fiendish, carnivorous beast. He instinctively understood that this was the kind of smile that a cat might wear while tormenting a mouse to death with its claw. \"...! What's so funny?\" \"That you do not understand makes it a true masterpiece. Tell me, do you actually fail to comprehend just how illogical your actions have been?\" Priscilla ran a finger through her orange hair, twirling it around as she giggled in amusement. Subaru remembered this manner of speaking, proclaiming the speaker had seen right through him. It was the same tone that Subaru had heard a number of times at the Crusch mansion. It was saying, You just don't understand. \"I do not know if you simply have no one to rely upon, but going around informing the opposition of your own side's weakness serves only your enemies' interests. For us, seeing you lower your head and say, 'We're too weak and desperate, please help us,' is a matter for celebration.\" Priscilla tapped her temple with a finger as she ridiculed Subaru's desperate plea. He'd considered the possibility that she would brush him off. But he hadn't expected she would tear into him like this. \"Not caring about appearances is fine, but you have considered this too little far too little. Aiding the enemy to help your own camp when it falls into crisis... Your behavior is that of a talentless employee. You are hopeless. Death would be far preferable.\" Priscilla rose from her chair while hurling insults without restraint, going down the stairs until arriving right in front of Subaru. \"Indeed 'twould be better if I severed your head myself.\" The next instant, Priscilla pulled a fan out from her cleavage, resting it upon the carotid artery on the right side of Subaru's neck. He had seen neither her step nor the swing of her arm; only a master could pull off this move. Even though the fan was not a bladed weapon, Subaru felt like it could lop off his head the instant it moved. \"You couldn't even see it?\" Priscilla moved aside her fan, speaking as if Subaru's unwitting gulp bored her. \"Not just foolish but slow as well. There's no saving you... Though, to bear with such terrible treatment and still be thinking of your master I admit such devotion is admirable. And so...\" Priscilla narrowed her eyes, audibly opening her fan and using it like a red curtain to conceal her own lips. \"Even I would have a bad taste in my mouth if I dismissed you with nothing but a laugh. Thus, I shall grant you an opportunity.\" \"...A-an opportunity?\" \"Yes, an opportunity. 'This is your big shot,' in other words.\" Priscilla's pronunciation of the modern phrase was strange; perhaps she'd learned it from Al. Priscilla folded her fan once more and extended it toward Subaru. For some reason, Subaru could not evade its straight, silent motion as the end of the fan pressed into his forehead, sending him tumbling onto his backside. Then... \"Lick it.\" Priscilla offered her bare foot before his eyes. *** Not understanding what she meant, Subaru felt his gaze wander between Priscilla's face and leg. With Subaru seemingly lost, Priscilla spoke to him gently, as if explaining for the benefit of a poor student or to torment her slave. \"Crawl across the floor, ruminate on your humiliation like a pathetic wild stray, and lick my foot like a babe suckling its mother's teat. If you can do this, I shall consider your proposal.\" \"Wha ?!\" \"If you don't want to, that's perfectly fine. If your meager personal pride comes first, wave your tail and your master shall abandon you to the wilds. Either way should provide amusement.\" Priscilla concealed her lips and smiled, as if to say she would enjoy his fall regardless of his choice. Subaru felt his guts boiling over in anger at the pure malice of Priscilla's behavior. But though he was on the brink of crying out something in a coarse voice guided by emotions, he restrained himself. If he gave in to his feelings and charged ahead, these negotiations, too, would end in failure. *** He looked between the foot still hanging before him and Priscilla's mocking smile. When he closed his eyes, he saw their faces one after another: Emilia, Ram, Beatrice, and the children and adults of the village. Little by little, he cooled the magma seething inside his belly. In anguish and consternation, he came to the conclusion that  \"I...got...it.\" Enduring the humiliation, Subaru kneeled and took Priscilla's foot in his hand. When he thought of the agony-filled deaths Emilia and the villagers had to endure, how could the humiliation Subaru would taste in their place even compare? To avoid that hopeless future, to find the world he needed to reach, he didn't mind being a dog or worse. His trembling lips neared the top of her white foot, about to press against her fair skin when  \"Ahh, it seems you truly are nothing but a very, very boring man.\" The kick, from right before his nose, sent Subaru flying, as if he weighed hardly anything. *** He flipped head over heels, losing track of which way was up. Subaru couldn't comprehend what had happened. An incredible blow slammed into his head and, after a few moments in the air, his entire body crashed into something. At that point, he stopped feeling anything. It took his intermittent conscious thoughts an ill-defined amount of time to catch up and realize he was lying on the floor, limbs splayed. A large volume of some kind of viscous liquid poured out from his nose. \"What you have is neither loyalty nor faithfulness. It is filthier than that. It is a dog's existence and a pig's greed. A lazy pig that wants, wants, wants. A swine's greed is the most unsightly of all.\" Neither the ringing in his ears nor his nausea would stop. The inside of his skull was spinning. He heard Priscilla's voice from somewhere, but the details weren't sinking into his head. \"Even if you drive off the Witch Cult, I shall destroy your camp by my own hand for harboring such a beast. I have reached this decision based on your thoughtless actions.\" As he lay down, she gripped his collar and violently lifted up his body. When his torso was raised, more blood flowed out of Subaru's nose. Subaru coughed, finding it hard to breathe as she insulted him mercilessly at close range. \" Take pride in this. It is you who has invited that woman's Emilia's destruction.\" She thrust him away at full force, and Subaru's body rolled and slid all the way to the entrance. \" Aldebaran!\" When she yelled in a"}, {"text": "sharp voice, the sole door to the outside opened from the other side. Al poked his face in and looked at Subaru, who was covered in blood by the door. \"What in the world happened here...?\" \"Throw out this repulsive fool. Or cut him in half, I care not.\" \"Well, I sure care... Hey, c'mon, bro.\" Without a single word of rebuttal to his enraged master, Al easily hoisted up the fallen Subaru and passed through the door. But on his way out, he gently turned his face toward Priscilla in the center of the room. \"Don't be so angry, Princess. Violence ruins your pretty face, y'know?\" \"If you do not wish me to break your broken visage even further, take him and go. I will not say it again, Aldebaran.\" \"Like I said, don't call me that.\" Quick on his feet, Al descended the stairs with Subaru over his shoulder and spoke in a considerate voice. \"Anyway, it's best if you get out while the going's good. It's Princess. If she changes her mind, it's not unthinkable for her to tell me to cut you down. Get out of here while she still thinks it's all right to not kill you.\" \"A-huu...?\" \"This...is bad. I'll call the young lady you brought with you. Just get outside, okay?\" Al shrugged at the barely conscious Subaru, a deft feat under the circumstances. After that, he picked up his pace even more, leaping his way down the stairs. \" Subaru?!\" When she saw Subaru sitting slumped against the mansion's gate, Rem's face went pale as she ran over. Subaru was slack-jawed as Rem touched him. She checked the state of his injuries as she chanted a healing spell. A pale light enveloped the wound on Subaru's face. \"What happened upstairs?\" \"Ahh, that. Looks like our Princess's mood turned sour. I told him to be careful, but... Well, you have about as much chance trying to perfectly predict the moods of a cat.\" Al's reply was rather awkward but his statement did not carry a single shred of guilt or apology. Rem, aghast at his demeanor, was about to raise her voice in protest. \"...You don't...need to say anything.\" \" ! Subaru, can you think clearly?\" In accordance with his healing concussion, his fuzzy mind had begun to clear. Rem's face brightened at the sound of Subaru's voice, but she closed her eyes, focusing on his treatment. \"I really cannot let you out of my sight, Subaru. You were away not even an hour, and yet you return with such grave injuries.\" \"Hey, it's not like I'm trying to get hu \" Now that his circulation had returned to normal, blood poured freely from his nose once more. Rem immediately caught the trickle with a hand she had held over him, drawing a handkerchief from her side and placing it against his head. \"Please hold this on your nose. The bleeding will stop on its own. I will continue treatment.\" \"......ight\" Subaru held his nose as Rem had told him while he received gradual treatment via mana. Meanwhile, Al watched, nodding as if to say, Looks like you'll be okay. \"There's no point just standing around, so I'll head back inside. I don't know what you were talking about, but from the looks of things, it didn't go well. If you take too long leaving, Princess'll seriously tell me to cut you down, bro.\" \"Cut Subaru down...?!\" \"Hey, don't make that scary face, young lady! I'm saying she will! So get outta here before she gives me any orders. It's not like I wanna do something like that.\" After his dramatic reply to Rem's overreaction, Al's shoulders sank as he shook his head. \"Well, take care of yourself, bro. And young lady... Ah, that's right, you're Ram. Take good care of bro here.\" \" Ram is the name of my older sister. My name is Rem, Master Al.\" When Al gave his flippant parting words and turned his back, Rem formally introduced herself. That instant, Al's feet stopped. \"...Rem?\" The one-armed man stopped before he looked up, then slowly turned around. \"Don't be silly. You're Ram, right?\" \"I am Rem... Forgive my rudeness, but where have you met Sister, Master Al?\" Rem explained how he'd mistaken her for her nearly identical older sister as she posed the question. However, Al made no reply. He raised up his one arm and touched his helm, busily poking the metal. \"What the hell's goin' on here...?\" Al sounded nervous, seemingly unable to process the information. The increasingly rapid tapping offered further proof. \"So you're Rem...and your sister is Ram?\" \"Yes, that is correct.\" \"This might be a weird thing to ask but...is your older sister alive?\" \"...? I do not understand the meaning of your question. Sister is alive, as she should be.\" The instant Rem gave that answer, Subaru, who had been listening to the conversation in silence, felt goose bumps all over his flesh. \" This ain't funny.\" A low, cold voice accompanied by a grave echo reached his ears. Al was leaning forward, his hand over the forehead of his helm, murmuring as if wringing the words out of his throat. It was only then that Subaru understood that Al was the source of the dreadful chill he was feeling. An instinctive alarm went off, telling him that he could not stay here. Rem, sensing the same thing, gently pulled close to Subaru. She suspended the treatment, still bent over as she asked a question in an audibly guarded voice. \"Subaru. If I lend you my shoulder, can you stand?\" At those words, Subaru dipped his head in a nod, doing his best to match his movements to Rem's. \"Hey, relax. I'm not gonna do anything.\" With a shake of his head, Al reeled in his ghastly aura and acted like they were needlessly concerned. Subaru's shoulders subconsciously eased as the tension in the air dissipated. Even Rem's neutral expression softened as she, too, felt a sense of relief. \"Sorry to say this when the bad atmosphere just lightened up, but you'd better get going. Feels like I'm not in a great mood myself.\" \"...Understood. Please tell her thank you for her time.\" \"Roger that. Take care, now.\" Concluding the proper social pleasantries with Al, Rem lent Subaru her shoulder. They walked off together, her petite frame supporting his weight as they put Bariel Manor far behind them. They descended the hill, growing more and more distant from the mansion, as all the while Al continued to stare at their backs. \"You gotta be joking me. So that's what it was... Makes me wanna puke.\" Now that negotiations with Priscilla Bariel had broken down, all paths were well and truly closed. \"My top priority was borrowing some muscle, but I guess I can't even manage that, huh...?\" Battered by despair and powerlessness, Subaru held his nose as the words poured out. Priscilla had crushed him on that crucial day's morning, and already it was nearing noon. Only half a day remained until the time Subaru had set for them to depart from the royal capital time-wise, he had even less margin for error. Yet in spite of that, he couldn't claim it was one step forward, one step back every step had been backward. \"Setting that aside, that shitty, arrogant woman... She forgot all about the time I helped her...!\" Subaru was referring to having helped Priscilla escape the ruffians who had been surrounding her when they'd first met. The corner of his lips warped, and his tongue twisted in disgust. The fact was, she'd behaved without the slightest shred of gratitude at the time, but even he hadn't expected her to be that heartless to someone desperately reaching out for aid. And then there was Al, so uncaring that he didn't say a single thing about his master's violent act. They might be from the same world, but the man was useless to him. \"Damn every last one of those bastards. They don't know a thing. They don't understand... It's not like they're protecting anyone, but they still get in my way...!\" Subaru ground his molars in irritation. A cut on the edge of his lip dampened his tongue with blood, but the taste of iron didn't register only that of anger and humiliation. \" Switch gears, switch gears. This ain't the time to get sidetracked by those two idiots.\" He had a lot to process. Having sent Rem off in one final act of resistance, Subaru headed to their rendezvous point. His feet took him down the street, out of the Nobles' District and to the capital's central strata, the Commercial District. From there, he navigated the crowds, heading straight toward his destination. \"Wow! Hey you, mister! You look really hurt! Are you all right?\" \"Huh?\" Subaru, surprised by the abrupt voice, shifted his gaze down, looking for its source. The person who hailed him was short in stature, not even reaching Subaru's hip. It was a beast-man child with an orange pelt, big round eyes, and an adorably joyful face, who was apparently stretching upward to get a better look at him. \"You're bleeding, aren't you? Sometimes I cut my mouth when I'm eating, so I know! That must really hurt! You look like you're ready to cry.\" \"I'm not bleeding for a little-kiddie reason like... Er, I'm busy so, later.\" \"Don't you want me to heal it? Sniff-sniff, sniff-sniff. Besides, the smell isn't just from your mouth, mister. You're bleeding from your nose, too, you know?\" The wound Priscilla had given him ought to have already closed, but the girl's sense of smell could apparently still pick it up. The unpleasant memory resurfaced as Subaru tried to brush the girl off. But before Subaru could do so, another girl found her first. \"Hey, Mimi. Don't be causing people trouble. You know you shouldn't make so much mischief.\" At the sound of a soft voice, Mimi looked back, waving energetically with her short arms. The person who had found her approached, smiling at her enthusiasm. *** \"I'm very sorry that my girl caused you trou... Mmmn?\" Subaru's breath caught. She immediately noticed his expression, which made her stop mid-apology. The momentary surprise vanished. Instead, a look entered her eyes that seemed ready to welcome an unexpected event with open arms. \"You're... That's right, you're Subaru. Emilia's knight, Subaru Natsuki  So you're still in the capital, huh? What an unexpected surprise.\" She was a small girl with soft pale-purple hair. Her narrowed light-blue eyes suggested she had gentle regard for others but Subaru knew that the girl was avaricious deep down. Even if he was meeting her in a different place, there was no way he could mistake her aura. \"Anastasia Hoshin...\" \"Mm, I see, you actually remembered me. I was right worried I didn't make much of an impression back there, so I'm kinda relieved... If you still recognize me after everythin' that's happened to you, everyone else should be able to, too.\" Anastasia smiled as she spoke in a Kansai dia a Kararagi dialect unfamiliar to his ears. Subaru, shocked to have bumped into Anastasia, scanned the area. If Anastasia was there, that man had to be somewhere around  \"Relax, Julius is on other business. He's not comin'.\" \"...That so.\" Subaru let his discomfort show in his reply once he realized that the reason for his unease was plain as day. Anastasia, putting a hand to her mouth in amusement, seemed to be under the impression he held little love for servant or master. Subaru couldn't bring himself to think of the unexpected encounter as a golden opportunity. In the first place, there was Julius. Given the antagonism between them at the parade grounds, Subaru assumed joining forces with the Anastasia camp was utterly impossible. \"Well, you seem to be mostly healed up. I was just a teensy bit worried.\" \"...Thanks. You seem in pretty good health, yourself.\" \"I'm muddlin' through, I s'pose.\" \"Yeah! Muddlin' through!\" The Western-sounding reply to"}, {"text": "Subaru's sarcasm made the kitten laugh with amusement. Apparently, she was called Mimi, and she was accompanying Anastasia. \"Should one of the big players in the royal selection be walking around without an escort these days?\" \"I am trying to travel incognito, after all. Is it not working?\" Anastasia looked around before showing off her outfit that she had created with the attire of local city girls in mind. Her clothes certainly fit in, but her trademark white fox muffler and huge purse didn't make for a convincing disguise. Apparently, Anastasia gathered as much from Subaru's look of disbelief and laughed. \"Well, how do you hide charm like mine? Besides, if anything happens, I have my very reliable, hard-working deputy captain, so no worries!\" \"Reliable...deputy captain...?\" Anastasia stuck out her rather flat chest in pride as she spoke, but when he saw that she meant Mimi, Subaru adopted a dubious expression. Mimi, who was shooting the breeze at the different stalls, didn't look the part at all. \"I see you don't believe me, but it's true. She's the second-in-command of my private army. I think she'd hold her own against Julius a lot better'n you would.\" *** \"Ahh, did I make you mad? Sorry, sorry, my apologies. You just look like a fun person to tease. So, oops?\" Oops my ass. Subaru pursed his lips, making his displeasure clear. \"If this is just small talk, would you mind letting me be on my way? Unlike you, I have things to do.\" \"Well, you're no fun. Things to do like what?\" \"I have to meet up with the girl who's traveling with me. After that, gotta get a dragon carriage and leave the capital. Stuff.\" He was supposed to meet back up with Rem at one of the restaurants lining the royal capital's main street. Whether his pathetic attempts met failure or success, the two had planned to procure the dragon carriage they needed to leave the royal capital within the next few hours. \"Hmmm. Gettin' a dragon carriage. So you say, but can ya really? Right now, it's a lotta work findin' one here in the capital. I hear it's just one mess after another recently.\" \"Hard getting a dragon carriage? That shouldn't be a...\" Subaru would have continued to say problem, but the word caught in his throat. In previous loops, he'd taken his dragon carriage for granted when he returned to the Mathers domain, but the vehicle from the first time around was a loan from Crusch. Considering that circumstances had been similar the second time around, he had assumed Crusch had lent them one then as well. \"Someone's buyin' up all the dragon carriages in the capital or somethin'. So if you wanna rent one right now, it's gonna take a lotta legwork.\" \"...Seriously?\" Anastasia suppressed a giggle while Subaru could only murmur in bewilderment. She had no reason to lie. That would be an obstacle to even exiting the capital. Subaru clutched his head, almost unable to believe the difficulties besetting him. \"Miss, you shouldn't tease people!\" Mimi tugged on Anastasia's sleeve at the sight of Subaru bent over. \"Dragon carriages, you mean those lizard thingies? You can just lend him one, can't you, miss?\" \"Wait, you have a dragon carriage I can borrow?!\" \"I'm company president, so a dragon carriage or two is no big deal, see? But it seems you don't wanna talk with me very much, Natsuki...\" \"Ugh...Sorry for... how I behaved earlier...\" When she pointed out how Subaru had tried to cut off their conversation, he replied with an awkward expression. Anastasia put a hand to her mouth and giggled when she saw it. \"It's fine, it's fine. I forgive ya. In exchange, would you stick with me for another chat? It's very important to maintain smooth relationships with others. How about the shop where you're meetin' the girl?\" Subaru couldn't summon the words to refuse the adorable merchant's smile. \"It's still a bit early for lunch, but it ain't good to sit down without orderin'.\" Anastasia said this as she returned from the counter carrying a light meal vegetables and meat sandwiched between two pieces of bread, kind of like an elongated hamburger. Mimi took it from Anastasia and happily buried her face in it. It was a casual eatery along Main Street, right in front of the main gate of the royal capital. This gate had the most traffic in the entire city, where people ceaselessly entered and exited. The shop was packed; Subaru and the others had taken the last open seats. \"Natsuki, you should eat all ya want. Since you were plannin' to meet that girl here, you musta meant to eat, right?\" \"I feel kinda bad making you treat me to lunch when I'm asking you for a favor. If I really wanna eat something, I'll take my meal with my friend later. Ana... Er.\" There were many people around, but the establishment wasn't very large. He hesitated to call Anastasia by name in such cramped quarters. \"I don't really mind much, but if you're havin' trouble usin' my name, you could call me 'young lady'?\" \"It'd be even harder to say that... Anyway, about the dragon carriage.\" \"Cuttin' right to the chase, hmm? You won't please your business partner if you prioritize only what you want. The core of negotiation is how much you can please the other party. You're not too good at that, Natsuki.\" Chiding Subaru for being in such a hurry, Anastasia bit into her meal of vegetables and meat; the way she licked the sauce was charming somehow. Though she differed from Crusch and Priscilla, Anastasia similarly possessed a unique charisma in each and every gesture that was nothing like ordinary people. Perhaps he ought to say that all the royal candidates had a special essence. \"It's a little awkward if you stare at me while I'm eatin'. I wasn't raised with very good manners, y'see. Am I doin' somethin' strange?\" \"I haven't been educated in high culture enough to judge something like that... I don't think it's weird at all. You just don't, uh, often see a woman opening her mouth wide like that.\" \"...Are you tryin' to get into my good graces? If so, you gotta do way better'n that.\" Anastasia snickered as she criticized Subaru's clumsy approach. Her heartless appraisal had quickly brought Subaru to his knees. \"Um, I'm not kidding around here. I'm really in a bind, that's why I wanna get to the point.\" \"If you wanna appeal to my sympathy, that's the worst plan possible when you're dealin' with a girl like me. But I applaud you for tryin'. You need a dragon carriage, right?\" Anastasia spoke while pulling a pen out of a pocket. From there, she spread open the paper wrapped around the pen, quickly jotted something down, and neatly folded the sheet. \"I've written down the location of a shop that should still have a dragon carriage and added my signature. This is all you need to accomplish your goal, Natsuki.\" \"Well, no need to act all high and mighty about it.\" \"I sure will it's no fun if I just hand it over for free, is it?\" Speaking softly, Anastasia put the folded piece of paper down on the table. She gently rested her palm over it, hiding it from view, and grinned at Subaru when he winced. The smile on her face looked different from the ones he had seen on her before. \"Don't tense up your shoulders like that; it'll be fine. I just want you to stick with me for a little chat. It's sad when you can't talk about anything except what you really need to. I don't think I'm being too greedy for wantin' to shoot the breeze with ya till that girl of yours shows up.\" \"Why? This is a lot of trouble just for some small talk with a guy like me. Not like you're gonna get anything out of it.\" \"I don't think there's a single thing in this world that's meaningless. You never know who might end up giving you insight. And out of everyone, I feel like you might have somethin' special for me, Natsuki.\" \"...I'm not really grateful if that's the impression you got from me at the royal selection assembly.\" \"It's not like I've met you anywhere else, Natsuki.\" Subaru's desperate attempt at sarcasm was sliced down and cast aside by a sound argument. After evaluating Anastasia's request and goal, Subaru immediately resigned himself to his fate. \"Just to be clear, we're only going to talk until Rem gets here. And then I'll have you hand over that paper.\" \"I certainly lie and deceive people, but I assure you this is true. I can put that in writing if you'd like.\" \"You didn't even blink when you said that... What do you wanna talk about?\" \"I told you when we started, didn't I? The core of negotiations is to get in good with the other party. If you wanna get better at talkin', you gotta get better at listenin'. A solid start would be findin' out what your partner's interested in.\" Or more candidly, Don't look like you're simply putting up with the conversation. It would be bad for Subaru to stray from his commitment and sour her mood. He scratched his head and sank into thought. \"Hey, hey, miss, miss. I wanna eat more of what I just had. Pleaaaase?\" \"Sure, eat all you like. Ah, don't make your mouth messy with the sauce. We don't want that adorable face gettin' dirty, do we? Well, that's kinda cute, too.\" \"Wipe it for me! Rub, rub! Yay! I'll be back!\" Once Anastasia cleaned up her face, Mimi flew over to a shop worker in very high spirits. Subaru did a double take as he watched the tiny girl. \"Earlier, you said that runt is second-in-command?\" \"What? You're asking about Mimi and not me? You swing that way, Natsuki? Is it because you have a thing for kitty ears? That's why you're tryin' to get close to my girl?\" \"I don't have any weird fetishes like that. In the first place, if I were into that...\" Subaru clenched his teeth as he recalled the image of a cat-haired knight at that mansion full of know-nothings. \"Anyway, no. It simply caught my interest. I think you said something about a private army?\" \"For what it's worth, they're pretty famous in Kararagi. They're the Hoshin Company's own mercenary band, the 'Iron Fangs.' I'm their sponsor, so of course I get the privilege of choosin' the members.\" Anastasia spoke while shifting her gaze to Mimi, who looked absentminded all the while. \"She's suuuuper cute, isn't she? She's so much fun to hug and go to sleep with, you know?\" \"It's my turn to ask if you 'swing that way,' geez. You're not telling me you twisted arms to get someone like that in as second-in-command, are you?\" \"No need to worry; it's fine. I told ya, didn't I? That girl's the number two of the Iron Fangs all right, and she has skills worthy of deputy captain. That's why I can stroll around the capital with only her.\" Sensing absolute trust in Anastasia's comments, Subaru observed Mimi's back once again. She really didn't look strong at all. But her master's words were convincing all the same. A candidate for the royal selection would never walk around with a lone bodyguard if that person wasn't capable. \"Ah, just to get this out, I won't talk in detail about the members, okay? I'm not generous enough to put all my cards on the table. In fact, I'm pretty confident it's a bad idea.\" \"Well, that doesn't make you sound as confident at all...\" Though she'd blunted any effort to poke deeper, Subaru engraved the name of the Iron Fangs into the back of his brain as one more potential threat. If he and Anastasia became overt enemies at"}, {"text": "some point, it would be yet one more wall to overcome. \"Natsuki, your brow is too wrinkled. You look like you're glaring.\" \"Hey, I was born with this face, okay? No need to go picking at a guy's complexes.\" \"Complex? Mm, that's fine. That said, you mentioned your birth, but where were you born, Natsuki? We don't see black hair very often around these parts, and your outfit stands out, too.\" \"I was born in Japan on Earth, and this is a tracksuit, probably the only one in the world.\" It was a strange topic. His honest answer sounded like he was dodging the question entirely. Sure enough, it made Anastasia pout; her face clouded. \"Japan of Earth. Never heard of it. But...where is that?\" \"Past the Grand Cascade. Far to the east, and then farther east past that is Zipang.\" \"The Grand Cascade...\" Subaru gave a flippant answer, expecting her to burst into laughter, but Anastasia sank into thought. Subaru raised an eyebrow at her completely unexpected reaction. \"You're not gonna laugh? Reinhard thought it was pretty stupid...\" \"Mm. Well, you see, once in a very great while, you hear about people who hail from beyond the Grand Cascade. I never expected for you to claim your homeland is there, though.\" \"What, there's other jokers besides me? Famous people even?\" \"If you want to know more, I think you should study up on 'Hoshin of the Wastes.'\" Anastasia still wasn't laughing when she offered him a piece of advice. Subaru cocked his head at the mention of \"Hoshin of the Wastes.\" After all, that was Anastasia's family name. And Subaru recalled that \"Hoshin of the Wastes\" was also a heroic tale. \"You're not actually related to this Hoshin, are you? I thought I heard you saying you took up the name for yourself.\" \"It's the name of the founder of Kararagi. As a Kararagi native, I'm not completely unconnected, but there's no blood relationship. I just decided to call myself that. Fitting for someone who rose up to become a goddess of commerce, don't ya think?\" \"Damn, you've got a lot of guts to come right out and say that.\" She apparently rated her exploits high enough to warrant declaring herself a goddess without any hint of irony. He recalled Anastasia's boast at the royal selection meeting that she wanted to get a kingdom for pure self-interest. That performance put her on a one-way train; there was no going back for her now. \"If I fail, people will point at me and laugh, though. But I've come this far. I'm not gonna talk too highly of myself when I'm still halfway to where I'm going.\" Subaru had heard only a tiny bit about Anastasia's birthplace during her demonstration of conviction at the royal selection meeting. Apparently she'd been born in the slums of Kararagi and afterward rose to her present position on the merits of her genius alone. A great mercantile house, as famous as any nation, served her, and she had declared herself as a candidate for the royal throne. Not for the first time, Subaru felt like the person before his eyes was unlike any he had seen before. \"How can you do that much...? Aren't you afraid of failure?\" \"Oh my, my, my. Natsuki, have you finally taken a proper interest in me?\" Subaru didn't have a plan; he'd simply voiced his honest doubts. Perhaps, just as Anastasia had taken it, he asked the question because he was finally looking straight at her: not a troublesome opponent, not someone connected to Julius, but Anastasia, the individual. \"Failure, huh? I'd say I'm afraid of that, too. I'm not exactly claimin' I've won every battle I've fought to get to where I am now. I've just kept winnin' the ones that really mattered.\" \"You never wonder if you've won enough of your bets? I mean, you have plenty as it is. You're a big-time merchant, you have lots of people around you, and...\" \" Can I really say I have plenty? I don't even know what would satisfy me.\" Her low voice and piercing light-blue eyes made Subaru unwittingly stare at her. As Subaru fell silent, Anastasia finally softened her lips and suddenly changed the subject. \"I...have a dream.\" Subaru said nothing as she tapped a finger against the counter, ignoring him. \"I've carried that dream with me since my time in the slums, never knowin' what the next day would bring, tryin' my hardest to live... I want everythin' I can get my hands on.\" \"Everything...you can get your hands on...\" \"My dream is to see just who I can become, just how far I can go. But I won't compromise one bit until I'm satisfied I've done that. As long as I live, everything I can reach and take hold of will be mine. Will I die penniless? Or will I die fulfilled by the innumerable possessions around me?  My life is one big contest until I get one result or the other.\" Subaru was overwhelmed. He realized that the small-statured girl before him was an amazing person, someone he might even look up to. Her fundamental character as a human being differed from Crusch's and Priscilla's. The power of her charisma was in no way inferior to theirs. No, to Subaru, in that moment, he had a much more favorable impression of her than the other two. With the division between him and the know-nothing Crusch, and considering Priscilla's arrogant dismissal, he thought that Anastasia might just be a heaven-sent final thread of hope that he might be able to count on. For Subaru, unable to gather any reinforcements, this was one last possibility if he wanted to borrow strength from others. \"Hey, Anastasia. There's something I really wanna talk to you about...\" Subaru, who had initially treated Anastasia as a nuisance to be swept aside, was now meek toward her. I can depend on her. At that though, the image of Julius flickered in the back of his mind, stabbing Subaru's chest, but he suppressed that emotional wound with all his might as he tried to broach the topic. \"Hey, time-out. It's just been you askin' questions this whole time. I'm happy that you've taken an interest in me, but this isn't very fair, is it?\" Anastasia cried foul and brought his determined move to a halt. \"That's not really enough to call it unf  No, never mind. Talk to me.\" \"Yes, yes, compromise is real important. It's an issue of personal relations that comes even before negotiating... Natsuki, you look like you're leavin' the royal capital, but have you done enough sightseein'?\" \"Don't call it something casual like sightseeing, geez. I'm not, and I'm sure you aren't, either. Is this really the time for a trip just to feel better?\" Subaru shot down the topic interrupting his subject. \"I don't plan to just travel around, but don't turn up your nose at seein' the sights  People get something out of just explorin' a place with lots of people in it and takin' a look here and there.\" Midway, Anastasia's strained smile vanished as she lowered her voice slightly. That change in her demeanor and expression stole Subaru's attention. She indicated the street with her chin. \"The atmosphere on this avenue's changed, like the shoppin' area before it. Did you notice, Subaru?\" \"...Now that you mention it, it feels way more hostile somehow.\" Subaru had known the sights of the royal capital for only a total of several days and hours, but even he could sense that the air of the royal capital felt different on his skin. \"The looks on people's faces have changed. The talk about the royal selection's brought all kinds of misers out of the woodwork.\" \"I think you're the pot calling the kettle black, especially when you're the one poking into their business...\" \"Hey, when you compare the people goin' for tiny piles of coins to a gal who's after a whole kingdom, they're pretty pathetic. Besides, in business, speed is the name of the game... When you look at what people with a nose for money are doin', you see more of the big picture.\" Anastasia thought about \"the big picture\" in a way Subaru could not fathom. \"When the ones at the top move, then the people start to move. When the people move, things move, too. So right now, traveling merchants are pouring into the royal capital from all over. If the people are there, things follow. So I can see this and that about what's to come.\" \"The things you see...are merchandise? Is there some special meaning to what they're selling in the capital right now?\" \"You caught on fast. Incidentally, the prices of quite a few goods are in flux around here at the moment, but things made of metal have gotten especially expensive. Someone's snappin' up weapons like swords and spears inside the capital and out.\" \"Iron and weapons. I feel like I've heard about that before... Ahh, from Otto.\" The conversation was from when he'd traveled with Otto during the first time going through the loop. Otto had been drowning in drink because he'd been carrying a large quantity of hard-to-sell goods; apparently, his bankruptcy really had been assured. \"Swords and armor... So not just iron itself but weapons and stuff? You don't think the people gathering up all that are planning to start a war, do you...?\" \"Who's to say? It's possible the goal is more financial in nature. Workin' the market to favor you is more than enough reason. Merchants collude with one another quite a bit... If they think something's worth gettin', they'll grab it by the throat.\" Subaru readily accepted Anastasia's reasoning. Certainly, merchants would be grateful toward another party creating a favorable business opportunity for them. A thriving industry was connected with a thriving city. \"From the way you're talking, is the person gathering up iron pretty well-known? Who is it, then...?\" \"It's someone you know very well, Natsuki.\" \"Someone I know...?\" \" Duchess Crusch Karsten. She's been on an iron-buyin' spree here in the capital.\" \"Crusch is...?\" Subaru, who had been blithely following the conversation, was shocked to hear the name of someone that closely related to him. But when he thought about it, things added up. Crusch had been receiving guests day after day; maybe she wasn't just dealing with influential political figures but negotiating with merchants and bargaining for merchandise as well. \"I see, so that's why Russel showed up...\" \"Russel Fellow? He's a big fish.\" Quite naturally, Anastasia instantly recognized Russel's name. And thanks to Anastasia's information, scattered pieces of the puzzle were connecting inside Subaru. \"So all those people heading in and out, putting cargo in the courtyard even in the middle of the night, that was all a strategy to get merchants on her side?\" He remembered that on the night he'd exchanged wineglasses with Crusch, servants were busily working all around the place. But they seemed to move with a purpose greater than simply gathering metalwares. They seemed to be expecting something bigger than that  \"...Well, not like it has anything to do with me now.\" Subaru initially felt the urge to pursue his doubt but gave up midway and cast it aside. Whatever Crusch was planning or whatever was disturbing the economy of the royal capital had nothing to do with him. All that mattered to Subaru now was finding a way to oppose the Witch Cult. There was nothing else. So why did he need to puzzle over unnecessary considerations like that? While Subaru's thoughts ground to a halt, Anastasia murmured across from him. \" My, my, I'll have to keep that in mind.\" Subaru looked up, sensing a particularly weighty tone in her voice, when he saw she was gently holding out her palm. Without thinking, Subaru took the scribble that he would need to obtain a dragon carriage. \"Thank you, Natsuki. You've given me enough of what I wanted"}, {"text": "to hear.\" The scribble and Anastasia's smile told Subaru that the conversation was over. But Rem still hadn't arrived at the establishment. And yet, she'd used the word enough  When Subaru's thoughts reached that point, he realized far too late that something wasn't right. \"...Was this a coincidence?\" \" Well, Natsuki, what do you think?\" While Subaru gritted his teeth, Anastasia addressed him casually. Her light-blue eyes seemed to see right through Subaru, as if they would never let the change in his expression slip past her.  Just like a con artist watching someone who'd completely fallen for her act. \"So you set up that whole little 'chance meeting' in the street just to ask me about this.\" \"You got into a tiff with Crusch last night and went your separate ways, didn't ya? I figured you'd be easier to read now, in all kinds of ways. Your words, your eyes, and your expressions.\" She'd tricked him. It made Subaru's blood boil, and his throat tightened. \"H-how can you be so satisfied with yourself?! Ambushing people like this...!\" \"It pains my heart, too. But it's hard to smile and trade info smoothly with our relationship. It's natural to want some insurance when you're doin' business with someone you don't trust.\" The way she looked straight at him and pegged him as untrustworthy needled his heart. Putting a hand on his chest, Subaru glared at Anastasia with resentment. \"So you misjudged me just because you don't like me, too...\" \"Misjudged...?\" \"I'm saying you're distracted by the stupid stuff right in front of you and missing what's important! Even though you'll regret your mistakes and missing the right path later...!\" \"I wonder just what is right and what is mistaken here? Well, everyone's got their own opinions, but I'll give ya mine.\" Anastasia cocked her head slightly while Subaru ground his teeth, her charming smile never faltering. \"If you want people to believe your path is just, you have to show them something concrete that backs up your claim. I don't see that in you, Natsuki. I can't help but value you less for the lack of it.\" *** \"Your worth is decided by what you've done... In other words, your past. No matter what you do, you can't change the past. So the worth of the Natsuki I know hasn't changed one whit.\" Anastasia patted her own modest chest, looking at an enraged Subaru with upturned eyes. \"When you make a mistake, it never, ever goes away.\" *** \"Hey, mister, don't get any closer to Miss Anastasia. Mimi's super-strong, okay?\" When Subaru unwittingly took a step forward, Mimi thrust a large staff against his face. She'd wedged herself between Subaru and Anastasia, preempting Subaru's loss of control. \"Thank you, Mimi. But you don't need to do anything. I'm sure there's nothing Natsuki can do.\" \"...! How can you just...decide that I can't do anything like that...?!\" As Subaru spit and shouted, Anastasia put distance between them and crossed her hands behind her, tilting her head. \"Ahh, did I hit a sore spot there? Sorry if I did. But I won't apologize for using you. It's an ironclad rule among merchants to take anything that isn't bolted down. Besides, neither of us said anything that hurts us personally, did we? You asked me whatever you wanted, and you answered several of my questions, Natsuki.\" \"That's just because you led me into it! It's dirty... It's underhanded, damn it!\" \"I told you at the start, I lie and deceive. And when I offered to put it in writing, you're the one who didn't want me to, aren't you, Natsuki?\" \"I never said anything like tha...! You're the worst, master and servant alike! Eat shit!\" He should have remained true to his initial instinct, the distaste he'd had the instant he'd seen her face on Market Street. He should have known she was the worst of the worst from the simple fact that Julius served her. She'd manipulated him through the art of conversation into expecting that she might be trustworthy. Truly, just how much disgrace did he have to endure before people were satisfied? \"...Haven't paid him back for Julius, either. Well, that was partly my fault, too.\" Subaru gave no heed to Anastasia's words as he was about to rip up the paper in his hand and throw it away, but he hesitated right on the cusp of that impulsive action, knowing that he would then have truly gained nothing for all he'd endured. \"I'm relieved that you really aren't that stupid  Mimi.\" \"Riiight! Mister, turn this way!\" Subaru was breathing raggedly and clutching the paper in his hand when Mimi held her staff aloft. Subaru stood rooted to the spot while a pale light softly enveloped his face. \"Pain, pain, go away...!\" *** Using magic, she healed the cut on his lip that had been there before their initial encounter. While Subaru was speechless, Mimi smiled at him, apparently without a single care in the world. \"Miss is high-maintenance, but she never means to do bad things, so forgive her, 'kay? This is why she doesn't have any friends.\" \"Mimi, you don't have to tell him that... Well, see you 'round, Natsuki.\" Anastasia had thoroughly wrecked him to the point that even her follower had taken pity on him. Subaru's shoulders quivered as Anastasia turned her back on him. \"I'll add just one last lesson about the basics of negotiation, Natsuki.\" Standing still, Anastasia's back remained turned to him as she raised a single finger and spoke. \"The secret is to prepare everything you can before you ever reach the bargaining table. Learnin' little tricks is all part of turnin' the situation in your favor. You have to know yourself and dangle what the other party wants in front of them. Where you come up short, Natsuki, is that you want and want, but you got nothin' to offer in return.\" He didn't know Anastasia's real motive. Even if he listened to her, it was meaningless. But he would understand the meaning of those words soon enough. \" All right, let's go, everyone!\" Anastasia called out with a clap of her hands. Subaru raised his eyebrows at her gesture when the customers in the place rose from their seats all at once. Together, every last customer in the packed-to-the-brim establishment followed Anastasia out. Every single person in the group was wearing a hood, concealing their true identity. However, when he looked more deeply, there were unnatural bulges under their hoods. From this, Subaru deduced they likely concealed animal ears. Clear as a bell, the name of Anastasia's private army leaped out from the back of his mind the Iron Fangs. \"What, you were all here? Ah, mister, see you later!\" Mimi smiled at her comrades as they filed out, giving Subaru a wave of her hand before she, too, darted away. The only ones left in the place were Subaru and the proprietor.  That was what she'd meant by preparing everything you can before you sit at the table. \"Shit!!\" Unable to endure his own worthlessness, Subaru slammed his fist into the tabletop. With no customers remaining in the establishment, the proprietor quietly withdrew into the back. His face was as conflicted as Subaru's. Subaru stayed like that, his shoulders shaking from humiliation, when a voice called out to him. \" Subaru?\" It was Rem. She had arranged for them to meet at that place, and now she rushed over to Subaru. \"Subaru, what's wrong? Did something happ \" \" It's nothing, Rem. How about on your end?\" Subaru interrupted Rem's concerned voice, covering up his current humiliation with all his might. Even if he told Rem about how Anastasia had gotten the better of him, it would change nothing. Faced with Subaru's stiff demeanor, Rem closed her mouth, then she politely reported the results of her activities. \"I reported the covert maneuverings of the Witch Cult to the Knights' garrison. By invoking Master Roswaal's name, I was not dismissed immediately at the gate, but...\" The awkward wording and frail tone of her voice for the latter half pretty much told Subaru how that had gone down. Rem, Roswaal's servant, was more likely to be successful in spurring the Knights to action than Subaru, who had a grudge against them. Trying to exploit that was his final act of resistance, but... \"They didn't give you a good answer?\" \"...It would seem that the Knights have a jumble of similar reports. Few concrete details are known about the Witch Cult's underpinnings, and apparently an endless stream of tips constantly flows in with no practical way to verify it.\" \"Ahh, I get it now. This is seriously like back when they had real witch trials... It ain't much of a joke if that's how the Witch Cult actually hides itself.\" The sheer number of people afraid of the Witch Cult lurking nearby gave birth to imaginary phantoms in every corner of the land. Those fears took form as tips to the Knights, dragging down the value of any real leads as a result. That seemed backward somehow. Both the arrogance of the Knights and the vileness of the Witch Cult were at fault. The Knights should have been rigorously checking out any and all potential leads related to the Witch Cult, considering how they were a blight to all. With that, Subaru understood that all his plays had failed. \"If gathering reinforcements isn't possible... I hate it, but there's no avoiding it.\" \"What will you do?\" \"Goes without saying. We head back to the mansion and get Emilia and Ram out of there. We'll bring them here to the capital or wherever Roswaal went off to the destination doesn't matter. Anyway, where they are now is dangerous.\" Petelgeuse's loud laughter came back to life in the back of his head. Subaru's fist trembled in frustration. Even if he wanted nothing more than to pulverize that bastard's skeletal face, he didn't have the means. Even if he did choose to take on the enemy with his current resources, it would invariably entail putting Rem at the tip of the spear.  He would avoid that at all costs. Getting Rem hurt because of Subaru's thoughts and actions was unthinkable. He couldn't bear it. If he couldn't drum up the strength to battle Petelgeuse, taking them on was unthinkable. Any option that meant losing Rem was out. Even then, bloodlust made his insides seethe. The inexhaustible hatred was like a curse echoing over and over inside his skull. \"Excuse me, Subaru. Actually, about the dragon carriage needed to return to the mansion...\" \" It's tough to get one, you mean? In that case...\" While Subaru's blood boiled, Rem broached a topic that seemed difficult for her to bring up. He nodded at her concern and revealed the paper Anastasia had handed him. As promised, it had the name of the store and her signature. It was Subaru's consolation prize for his ignominious defeat during negotiations. \"If we go to this place and talk to them, they should treat us all right... I'm sure of that much.\" \"Really? Where in the world did you... Just as I'd expect of you, Subaru!\" \"'As you'd expect.' Expect, huh... Ha-ha, you're funny, Rem.\" *** Rem, having no idea how he'd gotten a hold of it, couldn't have meant anything malicious or ironic by it. Even so, Subaru couldn't stop a dry laugh from coming out. \"There's no time. Let's get moving.\" Pulling the bewildered Rem along behind him, Subaru walked out onto Main Street, heading for the indicated store. Annoyed by the jarring, disorganized noises, he clicked his tongue as he walked along. \"If we can get out of the capital within half a day, we can be back to the mansion by the third day. If we do that, we should have time to rescue Emilia and them.\" Subaru had gone over his memories of the first time around again and again to make sure of that. The reason"}, {"text": "he couldn't state it with absolute certainty was because he couldn't rely on his memories from the second time around. Subaru Natsuki had frittered away the time that would have allowed him to compare and be on surer footing. \"The second time... Shit! How many days was I not in my right mind...?!\" He scratched at his head, berating his useless memories and his useless self as he continued to walk. Behind Subaru, Rem, whose strides were a different length from Subaru's, worked earnestly to match her speed to his. But Subaru never noticed Rem doing that, for he had forgotten to look back. CHAPTER 3 *** Anastasia's introduction had led him to borrow the largest dragon carriage he had yet seen. Boasting a huge size, the land dragon's hind legs thudded along, making the ground shudder as it raced across the grassy plain. \"It's as fast as it is huge... That's great, but could it do something about kicking up all this dirt?\" The dust dancing upward clouded his field of vision, making Subaru squint in the driver's seat. \"This appears to be a land dragon normally used to haul freight. Therefore, its manner of running has no consideration for passengers, and since it is specialized for speedy travel, it has not been trained in running quietly...\" \"It was the last one, and it's running without a break. Beggars can't be choosers, but...this is still kinda tough.\" Fortunately, thanks to the land dragon's blessing a special power belonging to particular individuals and species of that world the dust did not directly affect them, though Subaru could not help but be annoyed at the poor visibility. Subaru wound up looking at the sky, hoping for any change. The clouds flowed overhead as the sun gradually changed its angle. These signs meant the passage of time, and thus, Subaru's heart smoldered little by little.  Surely they were moving far quicker than they had during the previous iterations of the loop. They had not been able to gain reinforcements, but departing by dragon carriage on the second day was a major departure from before. They would be able to make it over the highway in half a day, arriving at the mansion on the dawn of the third day. They were gaining more than half a day over the first time around surely enough time to get Emilia and the others out of the mansion and to flee from the Witch Cult. \"The problem is...the possibility of encountering the Witch Cult along the way like last time.\" According to his vague memories of the second time around, he'd been inside a cave when he truly regained consciousness. If he had been en route back to the mansion, it was possible that the same thing could happen this time, too. When he thought of how Rem had been killed, and how he had spent nearly an entire day pulling her along before they left the cave: \"It means they must have infiltrated the area outside the mansion days in advance.\" But he didn't know exactly which day that was. The tragedy would fall the morning of the fifth day. The second time around, Subaru's deduction that it had taken him a day's worth of time to get out of the cave put his encounter with the Witch Cult between the third and the fourth day. \"In other words, even if we arrive tomorrow morning, that doesn't mean that we're any less likely to bump into them...!\" Not knowing what they could expect made him grind his teeth hard enough that blood seeped into his mouth. Subaru glanced to the side at Rem, who was holding the reins and concentrating on driving. Once again, were they to encounter the Witch Cult, he'd have no choice but to rely on Rem. Subaru had thought of making clear beforehand that they might encounter the Witch Cult, but when he tried to speak the words, he realized that his voice simply wouldn't come out. It was not fear of the penalty for divulging information gained via Return by Death. Certainly, he was terrified of that pain. No sane person could endure the agony of that squeezing on the heart. He didn't even want to think about tasting it again. But that pain was not the reason Subaru hesitated to speak of the Witch Cult. He had another reason, one he could not escape.  Would Rem really believe what Subaru told her? *** Just thinking about it sent a chill running up Subaru's spine. Unable to endure it, he hugged his own shoulders. His heart rate quickened to a stupid degree. The urge to vomit seized his innards. The stress of his extreme situation had kept him from getting a wink of sleep. The physical fatigue was rotting his mind and body alike. At that moment, Rem was the person he could trust most in that entire world. Even Emilia had cast him aside. After Crusch, Priscilla, and Anastasia had rejected him one after another, Subaru had fallen into paranoia, doubting anything and everything. In that moment, Rem was all Subaru had. Rem was the only one he could call an ally beyond suspicion, someone in whom he could unwaveringly place all his trust. If he revealed things about the Witch Cult to her, and her face became clouded with suspicion, what would it do to him? It frightened Subaru to even think of it. \"This isn't the time to get cold feet...!\" Venting in a hoarse voice was the only thing he could do to drive away his cowardly emotions. The land dragon drowned out his voice, fainter than a whisper and reaching only Subaru's ears. Afraid as he was, he couldn't keep it to himself. Now that the possibility of encountering the Cult remained, keeping his silence was nothing less than a betrayal. After all, Subaru had lost his life and returned to take hold of the best possible future. \"R-Rem... I need to talk to you ab \" \"Subaru there is a gathering of people on the road ahead of us.\" \"Eh?\" As Rem glared to the front, Subaru followed her gaze to see a number of silhouettes hovering in the cloud of dust. He gaped openly. Was it really the Witch Cult lying in ambush? Though Subaru had lost his voice at the too-soon turn of events, the contours of one of the vague silhouettes gradually grew more distinct, finally becoming a clear figure. This figure stood right in the middle of the road, waving both arms and loudly calling for the dragon carriage to halt. \"Heyyyyyyyy! Can you stop your land dragon so we can trade information?!\" The man, with a delicate face and gray hair, was Otto Suwen, traveling merchant. \"Ahh, I'm so glad. These days, most people are heading to the royal capital, and there's precious few coming out of it. So I thought I'd ask you a couple of things if possible.\" With the dragon carriage stopped, Otto came to greet Rem and Subaru with a handshake and a smile as he spoke. He seemed neither drunk with wine nor in sorrows about the world. He didn't strike Subaru as a wounded man. Rather, Otto the peddler felt alive and well. The memory he'd expunged of Otto desperately trying to stop him the first time around returned. Subaru tried to wash away the bitter taste of it while surveying the people behind Otto. \"Is everyone in this whole group a traveling merchant?\" \"Indeed they are, every last one. We're headed to the capital with a yearning for profits in our hearts.\" Otto replied to Subaru's question with an amiable smile. There were various dragon carriages stopped on the side of the highway, and the men, presumably the dragon carriage owners, were gathered together. There were more than ten of them, ranging from the young to men in their forties. Judging that Otto, Subaru, and Rem had concluded their pleasantries, they congregated around the latter two, introducing themselves by name as they began establishing the topic of conversation. The contents mostly concerned the current situation in the royal capital and changes thereof. Furthermore, the merchants spoke mainly of things like trends in coinage prices and the atmosphere in the marketplace. Put bluntly, every minute wasted there was precious. Now that he had confirmed Otto was safe, he would have been happier to pass on such mundane conversation and leave. But... \"You'd head out now...? Isn't that dangerous? It's night already. We plan to camp here tonight. You could remain with us if you like.\" Just as Otto said, the sun was already sinking in the west, with night creeping over the highway. The Liphas Highway would soon be subsumed by night. They would have only the light of a magic crystal lamp and the stars to rely upon. The traveling merchants had already begun preparing to camp, lighting a brilliant fire in the center of the group. With this many people, even wild beasts and bandits appearing along the highway could surely do little. But even time spent in safety was time Subaru could hardly afford. \"So you say, Otto. You're just trying to pawn off some of that oil you bought at the wrong time, aren't you? Don't pull that oh-so-friendly face on me!\" The instant Subaru declined the invitation, a chorus of voices started needling Otto, and raucous laughter spread through the group. Otto, the butt of the joke, pursed his lips and made a sour face. \"That is not my motive at all. This is purely well intentioned. Well...you'll need food and lanterns. Though I grant you...if I could interest you in even a small bit of oil, I would like that very much.\" As Otto lowered his shoulders and voiced his obvious dismay, Rem inquired, \"What is this about oil?\" \"Oh, I simply wound up getting something of a short straw. At present, the merchandise I am carrying is a somewhat large quantity of oil. I'd really meant to trade it in Gusteko for a large sum, but now, my very life hangs in the balance, and I must mitigate the loss as much as possible...\" It was plain as day that he was seeking sympathy for his plight...and a buyer for his oil. No doubt Rem understood this full well. Sympathetic as she might be, she would offer him nothing beyond perfunctory condolences. \"I do not know if I will be able to sell all this oil even if I go to the royal capital. If I sell it for the price of dirt, I will be bankrupt bankrupt!\" Repeating himself for emphasis, he opened the door wide for a highly generous person to take all the oil off his hands. Though the man had helped him during the first time around, it was precisely why Subaru sought to avoid getting deeply entangled now. He could pray for Otto's prospects, but at that moment, Subaru and Rem's futures came first. To get to the Mathers domain as soon as humanly possible, they could not avoid rushing along the highway at night. But just as Subaru was about to say his good-byes, he suddenly realized something. If trust wasn't enough to put things into motion, maybe he should move them with money... \"Otto, there's something I... No, I have a business proposal.\" Otto's eyes opened at how the expression on Subaru's face vanished, and the air around him changed. But perhaps sensing from Subaru's voice that he wasn't joking, he immediately adopted the posture of a salesman. \"If it is business, I will listen to anything you have to say. Dear customer how may I be of service?\" \"I'll buy every drop of oil in your dragon carriage. In return, give me a hand.\" Subaru pointed to Otto's land dragon, which he remembered, and then opened his arms wide, shouting in a voice loud enough for all the merchants setting up camp to hear. \"Every merchant with a land dragon here... If your services"}, {"text": "are for sale, let me buy everything you have!\" At first, the merchants looked at one another and laughed at Subaru's \"business proposal.\" But when Rem, sensing what Subaru had in mind, lifted up her sack and showed everyone the coinage within, the expressions of all the men who'd dismissed it as a joke changed in an instant. After that, Otto acted as the ringleader and recruited those willing to participate. As a result, of the fourteen traveling merchants in that place, ten decided to go along. The conversation had a rocky start, but Otto's proposed split of the profits neatly resolved the issue. \"Everyone will entrust their cargo to the four with the largest dragon carriages. The net proceeds from joint sales in the royal capital will be distributed at a later date. The sales will offset the freight cost of accompanying Mr. Natsuki.\" Thanks to Otto's skill in bringing everyone to a consensus no doubt an effect of his desperation when faced with the chance of a lifetime he was unanimously voted to represent the group. Seeing Subaru with his arms folded, concerned about their departure time as he watched fellow peddlers transferring their cargo, Otto asked him, \"I'm pleased that you're buying up my oil, but what do you intend to use all these dragon carriages for?\" Subaru touched his chin as he mulled over the question. \"We're on our way to the Mathers domain. I happen to be a manservant working for Marquis Mathers, you see.\" \"I'm aware of him. Marquis Roswaal L. Mathers, with his 'penchant' for demi-humans. They say that he is an eccentric, even by the standards of Lugunica nobility.\" Had Ram overheard that appraisal, she would have no doubt been indignant. Subaru's shoulders sank at Otto's description. \"Well, no denying that. It's true he comes off as a perv.\" \"But he is your employer, you say? Er, I broached the subject because I rather expected a reply of that sort. Though I must confess that you do not look like a nobleman's servant, Mr. Natsuki.\" \"I'm still in training. I only make the grade in sewing and making beds so far.\" \"Either way, I'll trust your story about serving the marquis... But why hire all these dragon carriages? A marquis can surely afford his own?\" Otto's probing questions were proof that he doubted Subaru's true intent. \"Like I said, we need a bunch of dragon carriages. We have a lot to haul, so it's best to have them as empty as possible. In your case, that means having to buy up all your oil.\" \"For which I am very grateful. What is the freight you intend to transport, then?\" From Otto's repeated questions, it seemed he did not doubt Subaru's station. He appeared to be pressing out of simple concern that the freight to be transported might be dangerous. *** There was no need to conceal it with a lie. He couldn't let this talk foster doubt and lead to the deal being called off. \"We're transporting...people.\" \"Don't tell me this is slave trading?!\" \"Nothing shady like that. There's a village near the marquis's mansion. It's a small settlement, and the villagers put together don't even number a hundred. I wanna get those people aboard and move them out.\"  That flash of inspiration was why Subaru had hired Otto and the others. The large dragon carriage for commercial freight that Subaru and Rem were using could run with more than ten people aboard. With similar dragon carriages put together, he figured they could evacuate every last villager. \"You are not telling us to carry corpses, I take it. If so, I would have to decline with deep regrets...\" \"...I want you to bring them out of there so it doesn't come to that.\" In his haste to reunite with Emilia, Subaru had forgotten about the villagers. He was upset with his own lack of consideration, but coming across Otto and the others was a very considerable stroke of good fortune. Be it coincidence or fate, Subaru was fortunate to be on something's good side for once. \"Actually, we're planning on doing a large-scale mountain hunt in the area around the marquis's mansion in the near future.\" \"A mountain hunt, you say?\" \"There's been a bunch of demon beasts breeding in the wilderness around there since way back. Barriers isolated the people from the demon beasts until now, but... Not long ago, those monsters injured some people in the village.\" \"And this 'mountain hunt' is the result of that? But...\" Otto couldn't quite let it go; he seemed to be having trouble with something in Subaru's explanation. Subaru remained silent as he rolled up the sleeve over his right arm, showing him the cruel scars the beasts had left on him. Otto drew a small, sharp breath at seeing the deep wounds of claw and fang. Many more had been carved into Subaru's body that would never fade. \"In his goodwill, the marquis sent me off to the royal capital to be healed. Now that I'm partly recovered and no longer at death's door, I'm on my way back.\" \"I I see... Er, but why, then, are you procuring dragon carriages along the highway without the marquis being directly involved...?\" \"The marquis decided to start the hunt right away before moving the residents. That's why I want to make sure it's covered. It's not that I don't trust my master; I just have prior experience with this.\" As Subaru offered that humble statement, lowering his eyes, Otto made a small sound and sank into thought. \"Understood. Sorry for prying into things you didn't want to speak about. I shall explain this to the others without mentioning the scars.\" A pained expression came over Otto's good-natured face as he made a show of consideration for Subaru. No doubt he regretted unintentionally dredging up Subaru's past trauma. Subaru thought that his sudden change in demeanor, shifting from thoughts about commerce to simply worrying about his business partner, showed that Otto was a real softie at heart. \"Don't sweat it. Please just explain it to everyone straight so that no one gets any weird doubts.\" \"Well, if you insist, though I'm not really cut out for that.\" Making light of Subaru's decision, Otto smiled apologetically. Subaru thought himself a far greater villain for internally making excuses.  Namely, that he wasn't really lying; he just wasn't telling the whole truth. It was another two hours until all preparations to pull out of the campsite had been completed. After the freight was transferred to the four large dragon carriages, Subaru and the others departed along the highway by night. There were eleven dragon carriages heading toward the Mathers domain. They might prove somewhat cramped, but they should be more than enough to get all the villagers out. Otto called to him as his dragon carriage ran parallel to Subaru's. \"By running through half the night, we'll probably arrive in the Mathers domain near morning...\" It was the land dragons' wind repel blessings that enabled them to have a normal conversation while two dragon carriages ran side by side. They did more than nullify the effects of wind and vibrations on them, apparently. \"Sorry to make you keep running without a break.\" \"Not at all! I have no complaints. Now that I can dispose of my stock and defray the freight costs, I am invincible. I could keep this up for three days and nights!\" \"And then you can fall asleep right after the deal is done?\" \"Huh?! Did you read my mind?!\" The punch line to a classic joke was stolen right out of Otto's mouth. From there, Subaru shifted his gaze toward Rem, holding the reins beside him. He could not read any emotion from the side of her face as she stared straight ahead. To Subaru, it wasn't a very pleasant situation. \" Subaru.\" \"...Y-yeah. What is it, Rem? Something's up?\" \"No. It is quiet, so I wondered if you might be tired. The dust makes for poor visibility, but with other land dragons about, the path is not uncertain. If you are sleepy, it is all right for you to rest.\" \"I'm happy to hear you say that, but it's not cool to make you do all the work.\" \"But Subaru, you are still convalescing, so...\" Rem's considerate stance toward Subaru made him shut his mouth. Her manner of speaking was gentle, but there was a stubborn, steely will behind it. He keenly understood that she wished to reduce the burden on him as much as possible. But her tenacious efforts made him fearful that he didn't know her true intentions. The thorns he could not dislodge from his chest were the product of both wanting to know and not wanting to know. \"Rem, do...?\" \"Yes?\" Subaru's breath caught as Rem's pale-blue eyes stared at him, as if seeing right through him. He wanted some way to redirect her attention from his doubting, hesitant silence, but Subaru shook his head, brushing aside such thoughts. If he doubted Rem's intentions enough that it hurt, it was far better to get them out in the open. \"Rem, do you have any doubts about what I'm doing? I didn't explain anything to you. Not about the Witch Cult, not about the traveling merchants...\" He was painfully aware of how Rem had kindly indulged him in spite of his duty to explain himself. That was precisely why he was worried about how Rem felt about following him without question or debate. Rem closed her eyes but once at Subaru's question. \"Master Roswaal told me to respect your actions in the royal capital.\" *** Subaru's expression stiffened, the reply leaving him lost for words. \"Roswaal...told you to...?\" \"Yes. He did not command me to do any specific thing, but rather, to go along with your plans in the royal capital, whatever they might be. I also planned do so as much as I could.\" \"Roswaal's orders...\" Rem's words somehow weren't sinking into his skull. Instead, the fact that Roswaal had ordered Rem repeated itself in his head, over and over. Rem's lack of dissent toward Subaru's actions was because her master had directed her to shut up and obey. Did that mean, in other words, that Rem's actions to that point had not been of her own will? Hell, even her staying by his side at that very moment might not have been... \"Subaru?\" As Subaru fell silent, Rem peered at him, her shapely eyebrows drawing together. Yet in that moment, Subaru was unable to take even that expression of concern at face value. \"I-I'm all right. It's nothing.\" Shaking his head to flee from Rem's gaze, Subaru gave a perfunctory reply to keep the peace. Her caring concert, her support when he was on the brink of collapse, her being by the isolated Subaru's side, were all of these because of Roswaal's orders...? Beyond that, deep down, did Rem approve of what Subaru was doing...? *** As paranoia brought bile up from his stomach, Subaru swallowed down the acidic liquid filling his mouth. With his nausea having nowhere else to go, fright and despondency raged inside his body. His limbs felt numb, his vision narrowed, and there was an unbearable, physical itch in his brain. His breath was ragged as he fought the urgent desire to crack his skull open and jab his fingers in to scratch at it. He didn't want to think. About anything. The more he thought about things, the more he mulled them over, the more he sought answers the more distant his desires would become, the more his ideals would turn to fantasies and his dreams to hopelessness and despair. \"Subaru, did you fall asleep?\" He hated it. He wanted no more of it. He didn't want to think. He didn't want to doubt. He didn't want to trust. He didn't want to be betrayed. He clutched his head, shutting himself in and cutting off all responses to the"}, {"text": "outside world. Rem called his name several times. Seeing that there was no response, she gave up after a while and shifted her gaze back to the highway. By then, Subaru had finally, and by his own hand, become truly alone in that world. \" ru. I'm sorry, Subaru. Please wake up.\" Subaru sensed someone calling him and shaking him awake. The touch on his shoulder roused him from the abyss of unconsciousness. When he absentmindedly rubbed his eyelids with his hand and opened his eyes, he found the face of a familiar girl right in front of him. \"...Rem, huh. What's wrong?\" The instant he was sure it was Rem, Subaru remembered their exchange before he slept. He felt a dull ache in his chest. Rem, not noticing how hard Subaru was working to endure that pain, lowered her head apologetically. After another brief apology for waking him, she said, \"We are about to reach a fork in the road. As it is a landmark that cannot be mistaken even in the dead of night, it should be all right...but I want to be certain before we reach it.\" The area around them was filled with deep darkness. Even with Rem sitting right beside him, her face seemed indistinct. The crystal lamp hanging from the land dragon's neck and a simple light attached to the dragon carriage itself provided the only illumination. It was very little to go on if not for land dragons with good night vision, then certainly for the humans. \"I see your point. What do you want me to do, though?\" \"I want to check the map, but I cannot take my hands off the reins... I put the map in the sack at your feet. Could you get it out for me?\" \"At my feet. This, huh?\" In the dark, he pulled over a fairly heavy sack. He set it on his lap and thrust in his hand to fish around, but finding what he was after proved rather difficult. \"I can't even tell what's a map and what's not. Isn't it too dark to even read it?\" \"That is... Mm, that could be a problem. What shall we do...?\" \"Yeah, what can we...? No, wait a sec.\" Rem's expression was clouded when a light suddenly turned on in Subaru's head. Once again, he searched at his feet, picking something out of a different sack the one with Subaru's personal belongings. \"Oh, I found it!\" He took out the object, cool and hard to the touch, and thrust it in Rem's face. Right in front of her wide eyes, Subaru pressed the power button of something he hadn't held in ages. \"It hasn't been charged in a while, so I hope the battery isn't dead... Ohh!\" After a single tense moment, the boot-up sequence appeared on the screen. A few seconds later, a dazzling light shone from Subaru's hand. Rem looked at Subaru with surprise at the brilliant sight. \"Subaru, what is that?\" \"Lost technolo... Er, future technology. A cell phone. Looks like it still has a little juice left, luckily for us.\" The cell phone had been off ever since his generous use of it on the day he had been summoned to this other world. It was one of Subaru's few possessions from home. He had a few other personal belongings, but this was by far the priciest and most useful at least, as long as its battery held out. \"I never imagined the next time I'd use it would be as a flashlight, though.\" Using it in a manner inconsistent with its original purpose, Subaru shone the light of civilization upon the contents of the luggage. After he easily found the map he'd been searching for in the sack, Subaru spread it out over Rem's lap. \"I'll shine this on the map, so take a look-see.\" \"Yes, thank you very much.\" At that moment, Otto poked his head in from the side, his interest keenly piqued. \"Mr. Natsuki, what is that? I've never seen such a thing.\" Leaning over from his dragon carriage, immediately to the left, he tilted his head in confusion. \"A crystal lamp I have never seen bef  No, not a crystal. It seems to be made of some material unfamiliar to me.\" Noticing Otto's reaction, a man in his prime with a bandanna wrapped around his head pulled his dragon carriage along the right side as well. The eyes of the driver glimmered as his gaze remained pinned to Subaru's cell phone. Ordinarily, their reactions would have doubtlessly brightened Subaru's mood, inspiring him to casually show off and brag. However, the current Subaru was in no mood for such pleasantries. \"Sorry, it's a secret item the marquis gave to me. If I told you about it, you might vanish without a trace. Best to forget you ever saw it.\" \"Whew, that secretive explanation just reeks of money...\" Otto's interest seemed to have only deepened. But before a long cover-up conversation became necessary, Rem lifted her head from the map and nodded. \"I realize where we are now. A little farther and we should be able to see the Great Flugel Tree. From there, we take the road northeast and enter the Mathers domain shortly after.\" \"The Great Flugel Tree?\" Subaru inclined his head at the unfamiliar term. Otto raised a finger. \"The Great Flugel Tree is a huge tree found along the Liphas Highway that seems to pierce the very clouds. The tree really is huge like you wouldn't believe. According to legend, a sage named Flugel planted it.\" \"So that's why it's the Great Flugel Tree. Why'd the sage do that, anyway?\" \"Er, well, this was hundreds of years ago, you see. Aside from the story of how he planted the tree, next to nothing is known about Flugel, not even why he is treated as a sage.\" \"The hell is that? Why treat him like a big shot if you don't even know what good he's done?\" Subaru was itching to hear the rest after Otto's incomplete account, but when he saw that Rem and the other merchants weren't adding to the story, it was apparent that his exploits really hadn't been passed down. Subaru mulled over the thought, and around half an hour later, he saw the Great Tree for himself, to his shock. \"Whoa... Yeah, incredible is about the only word I can use for it.\" The venerable tree, its branches rising into the night sky, towered over Subaru and the others with an overwhelming presence. Its size dwarfed the trees from his old world that were often said to be more than a thousand years old. According to Otto, this specimen was centuries old, making Subaru wonder if plants grew at a much faster pace in his current world. Before he realized it, he was seized by a considerable sense of awe. The enormous tree had put down its roots not in a great forest, but alone in an open field. Along the Liphas Highway, there was no landmark more prominent. Passing by the calmly towering Great Tree, the dragon carriages headed northeast in accordance with the map. As the distance to the Mathers domain lessened, Subaru finally began to feel a little regretful at leaving the Great Tree behind. \"Geez, this isn't the time to get all sentimental. Er, ah?\" If he had been less troubled, he might have taken a picture of it with his cell phone. Subaru, who was sitting on the driver's seat when he had the thought, felt uneasy as he redirected his attention from the Great Tree. \"Where'd the bandanna guy to the right of us go?\" Subaru could see no sign of the dragon-carriage owner who had shown interest in his cell phone while running on their right. Subaru checked behind him to see if it had suddenly slowed down, but he saw only the dragon carriage that had been running behind the bandanna man; he was gone from the convoy, leaving an empty space. \"Don't tell me he was so enchanted by the big tree that he wandered off?\" \"What is it, Mr. Natsuki? Are you looking for something?\" \"Not something one of your guys, the one who was running on this side till just now, a manly looking guy with a bandanna. This ain't the time to go tree climbing like a little kid.\" Subaru harshly answered the carefree Otto with sarcasm, inwardly scolding him for poor management. But Otto, on the receiving end of that annoyance, stared blankly and tilted his head, as if he had no idea what Subaru meant. \"What are you talking about? No one's been on the opposite side of you.\" \" Huh?\" Subaru's mouth hung open, and the meaning of the reply failed to sink in. \"What are you sayin'? He was all curious and staring at my cell phone just earlier, same as you.\" \"Ahh, so it's called a cell phone? Wait, ah, can you guarantee my safety for having heard that? I don't want to disappear...\" \"Don't play games with me!\" Subaru roared at Otto, who was casually ignoring Subaru's question as if he thought it was all some big joke. Subaru looked to the right again, but the gap was as wide as before, and the carriage that should have been there nowhere to be found. *** Then, as Subaru stared at the gap, his field of vision suddenly became indistinct. He sensed a blur, as if there was a haze right before his eyes. Subaru blinked several times, but that did not wipe away his unease. The dark empty space continued to run parallel to Subaru and Rem's dragon carriage. The darkness was terribly ominous, and he couldn't help the nervousness welling up inside him. That was why Subaru opened his folded cell phone, shining light upon the gap to drive away the darkness. He meant to look for a trace of the person who should have been there, and to ascertain the source of the uncanny feeling that just wouldn't go away. And within the shining light  \"...Ah?\" There, floating in space, Subaru met a truly gigantic eye. The next moment, something roared, and mist covered the Liphas plains.  Mist. Bathed in a powerful gust of wind, Subaru felt like he'd been smacked in the face. *** Pounded by the gale, Subaru's body floated up, in danger of being tossed from the driver's seat altogether. He instantly reached out, but his fingers found nothing to grasp; Subaru's body flew straight forward, hurtling toward the darkness or it would have, if she had been a moment later. \"Subaru!!\" His collar was grabbed from behind, forcefully pulling him back down. The hard impact of his butt upon the seat made him see stars; amid them, he saw Rem, holding him down while handling the reins. Rem's mouth was open as she abandoned her usual neutral expression, howling desperately. Her shouts became a chant. Mana gathered according to Rem's will, transforming the world around them with magic to create spears of ice as long as Subaru was tall. In the blink of an eye, three frozen missiles formed in midair, shooting out like arrows with incredible force. The ice spears raced through the sky, landing with a sound like steel smashing stone and the darkness before them was shattered. \"Oh, wahhh?!\" The next moment, Subaru was grabbed by his neck once again and instantly hoisted straight up. As he floated upward and away from the driver's seat, he saw the dragon carriage beneath him. The land dragon, not realizing its passengers had vanished, continued kicking up dust as it sprinted along the highway with all its might. In the next instant, a hit from the side with enormous mass behind it reduced the dragon carriage to splinters, sending the land dragon hurtling along with it. The unadorned vehicle for hauling commercial freight was torn apart like paper; the huge animal, slammed into the ground, burst apart from the impact, turning into a smear"}, {"text": "of blood, innards, and fragments of flesh on the highway. Subaru's mind went blank from the overwhelmingly unreal spectacle. \"Left !!\" He thought he heard a shout from right beside him. A second later, his body landed on a hard floor. The dull pain coursing through his shoulder and hip dragged his mind back to reality. However, the blows assailing him one after another gave him no opportunity to lift up his head. The dragon carriage he was now riding made a sudden turn, and the centrifugal force flung Subaru to the side. When the vehicle tilted, the rope wrapped around his fingers was the only thing keeping him from being hurled right out. Turning his head, he came to realize that he'd leaped onto Otto's dragon carriage. Wrapping the rope for securing freight around his wrist, Subaru tried to get up amid the shaking. \"No, Subaru, you mustn't! The dragon carriage's blessing has given out. It's dangerous for you and Rem to get up!\" When he looked, Rem had impaled the floor with her own right arm to support herself. It was difficult for her to keep steady during the rocking, even with her physical abilities. Without the effects of the wind repel blessing enveloping the land dragon, Subaru's body was mercilessly subjected to the ferocious wind and shaking. He grew ill; he couldn't even try to stand. Rem had clutched Subaru and leaped from their dragon carriage to Otto's. If she'd made that decision even a second later, she and Subaru would have shared the same fate as the pulverized cart. \"Wh-what happened?! What the hell's going on here?!\" The overwhelmingly destructive change had happened in mere tens of seconds. Subaru couldn't even begin to wrap his mind around the sequence of events. \"Don't you get it?!\" Otto responded to Subaru's confused question in a near scream. When Otto looked back, his face was white as a ghost, his teeth chattering as he pointed to the sky. \"The fog appeared! That giant thing swimming in the sky can only be one thing!\" It was as if Otto was convincing himself because he refused to accept it; he grudgingly shook his head, convulsing with fear as he desperately drew air into his lungs and shouted with all his might: \" The White Whale!!\" As if responding to Otto's shout, the White Whale's roar shook the air, echoing across the plains.  The White Whale. Subaru knew he'd heard the name during the first time around. The name of the monster shrouded in mist that had shut off the highway. With the highway blocked due to this creature, he'd had to take a huge detour to get back to the mansion. One might say it was the reason he didn't get back before the Witch Cult's onslaught. But until that moment, Subaru had never laid eyes upon the monster itself. Furthermore, Subaru had forgotten its existence; he couldn't deny that he'd been too naive. Namely, that... \"How could it come out like this, right now?!\" Subaru knew that the highway was closed whenever the White Whale appeared. The first time around, the blockade had occurred on the third day of Subaru and Rem's journey back due to the appearance of the White Whale's mist along the road. And that moment was the night of the second day no doubt the royal capital would be informed of the appearance of the mist in the morning, with the highway sealed during that day. That night was the only one when they were unaware of the White Whale's presence, and they had blundered into the menace. \"To think...running into the Wh-White Whale... O Dragon, O Dragon, please deliver us...!\" With hollow eyes, Otto murmured a prayer to the Dragon in search of salvation. As Otto lost the will to fight and even his very spirit, Subaru saw with his own eyes how, among traveling merchants, the existence of the White Whale was synonymous with absolute terror. The previous time around, Otto had indicated how the White Whale was an evil omen among all merchants. Otto's lips trembled, his mind somewhere else as he managed the reins. His land dragon, sensing the presence of the White Whale, had fallen into a state of terror, exhausting its remaining strength to kick the ground and propel them forward at an unsustainable speed. The White Whale had sunk into the night, its giant body nowhere to be seen. \"Shit... Just when it starts coming after us, the fog comes out...!\" Subaru scowled as he felt cold droplets of sweat on his brow, wiping them off with the palm of his hand. With few sources of light to begin with, the emergence of mist made maintaining visibility all but impossible. Subaru looked behind, to the side, and above, searching for any trace of something that resembled a fish. \"Rem! Do you see the White Whale?!\" \"I cannot; it is too dark! But...!\" Rem replied bitterly to Subaru's question, but for some reason, she trailed off. The catching of Rem's breath tugged at Subaru, but when he tried to look at her, all he could see in the deep mist was a silhouette; he couldn't tell what was on her face. The mist grew even thicker, to the point that he wasn't sure where his own hands were. *** When Subaru had first met the White Whale's gaze, it was bigger in circumference than Subaru's arms could reach. If the giant eye was anything to go by, the White Whale had to be truly as large as the name implied. It struck him that such a monster was hiding without any sound or sign of its presence, and it was able to swim freely through the night sky. They'd lost sight of the White Whale in the deep fog, a fact that aroused even greater terror. \"But I believe my preemptive attack struck... It is possible the creature has retreated.\" That was surely too optimistic. The might of the ice spears Rem had rammed into it with her incantation was on par with the most powerful magic Subaru had yet seen. If he were ever the target, it'd be enough to kill him three times over. Perhaps even a gigantic creature like that might hesitate to pursue them too far. \"What happened to the other dragon carriages?!\" \"They seem to have scattered and run for it. If you split up and flee the instant the mist arrives, you might be able to escape without the White Whale pursuing if you're lucky.\" No doubt it was standard operating procedure when encountering the White Whale. It made sense. Certainly, the dragon carriage that had been running parallel to theirs was nowhere to be found. The other vehicles that had followed behind them until that point seemed to have obeyed the unwritten rule and scattered to the winds.  Subaru clenched his teeth at the fact that he'd lost the carriages he'd worked so hard to obtain. The timing was a disaster. His plan to evacuate everyone in the village had fallen to pieces once more. \"No point crying over spilled milk. Anyway, right now I've gotta focus on a way to get out of this fog...\" As the rocking jostled his internal organs, Subaru pushed aside all other concerns until after they escaped. They had few cards to play to deal with the immediate crisis. Now that his own dragon carriage was unavailable, he needed at least Otto's to get back to the mansion. That was why, right then, they had to get past that dangerous fog  *** A mouth cavity lined by giant teeth resembling rows of millstones suddenly opened wide before their very eyes. The overpowering violence of the sound and the blast winds of its thunderous roar sent the land dragon reeling. The ground split, tripping up its feet, and the dragon carriage's wheels lifted as the wagon tilted far to the side. The canopy holding down jugs of oil broke, and the cargo went flying outside; Subaru, holding his cord, was in danger of being thrown out himself. Subaru desperately clung to the wagon as he saw the enormous mouth lined with filthy teeth in front of them bearing down, seeking to swallow them whole. It was in that moment that Subaru truly grasped just how little he'd understood. And now, in that instant, plunged into that encounter with the White Whale within that deep nighttime mist, was the gambling table upon which they would wager their survival. \" Roaaaaa!\" The instant the maw came to swallow the dragon carriage, there was a great shout as something shot into the air from the wagon's floor. Rem had leaped, shooting in front like a bullet, shattering the floor in the process. From the hair under her hairpiece, buffeted by the blast winds, a sharp horn protruded as she entered her Oni state. She swung her personal weapon, a spiked ball on a chain. \" Slip past it on the left!\" \"Left, left, left, left, left!\" The iron ball smashed straight down into the White Whale's upper jaw, sending a pitch-black cloud of blood spurting forth as the enormous, yawning mouth snapped shut. The lower jaw gouged out the earth, but even so, momentum continued to propel the giant head forward. Otto poured his entire being into controlling the land dragon, slipping right past the side of the head. However, the wagon behind the sprinting animal could not completely evade the gargantuan body to its right; the two met, kicking up a sound like that of rubbing against solid rock. With a heavy creak, the wagon lost a wheel; without that balance, it flipped right over. Naturally, Subaru, who was atop it, was powerless to avoid being tossed toward the ground in the process.  Am I gonna die? Just before his inability to respond led to his death, a silver snake wound around Subaru's chest with a loud roar. Subaru was forcefully dragged up from his steep descent and plopped headfirst onto the driver's seat. \"Take thiiiis !\" After dragging Subaru up with the iron ball in her right hand, Rem smashed the joint connecting the luggage compartment to the driver's seat with her empty left hand, grasping the edge of the separated section. Instantly, the land dragon pulling the dragon carriage let out a painful neigh from the strain as the parts of the large commercial freight vehicle were torn apart. Even if half of it was gone, it was a supersize bullet made of almost as much wood as a log cabin. It squarely struck the White Whale's straying belly. The White Whale thrashed, its tail blasting apart the earth and the trees, kicking up clouds of dust. \"D-d-did you get it?!\" Even if Otto didn't know what had just happened, he'd surely noticed the fact that most of his dragon carriage was missing. His voice was tinged with bitterness as he sought hope that would warrant the sacrifice. A roar made the air tremble as an even worse mist blotted out the light. From the pressure bearing down on them from behind, one known as absolute despair, he knew that hope had been shattered. \"Wh-why is it only after us...? Aren't there other carriages?!\" Otto let out a lament as he cursed the misfortune that had befallen him. He blamed the sheer irrationality of the other eight carriages being ignored while his was attacked. Subaru felt the same way, but he swallowed his complaints when Otto launched a string of curses. He felt like he was getting a good, hard look at an ugly truth against the Witch Cult, he and the others Subaru brought along would have served only as sacrificial pawns, or perhaps meat shields. \"Besides, cursing my fate won't change a thing...\" The menace of the White Whale continued to press upon them from behind, swimming through the sky faster than the land dragon. Even though the land dragon was running with a lightened load now that they had abandoned the freight, it"}, {"text": "was only a matter of time before the whale caught up. \"Think, think, think. There has to be a way, something, something...!\" Subaru desperately put his head to work, but no plan for a counterattack came to mind. With a sense of urgency weighing on him and the night mist so thick that he couldn't see his own feet, Subaru couldn't find even a single hint. And as time idly wasted away, fate forced yet another difficult choice upon Subaru. The carriage was heavily rocked. As Subaru clung to the floor, Rem approached. She should have been shaken, too, but she didn't seem bothered by it as she nestled close. \"Subaru. Please take this.\" \"What?! Did you think of something?! Now we can do something ab \" Believing that Rem might have come up with an off-the-wall plan to escape the crisis, Subaru lifted his head as she pushed a small sack onto him. From the heavy weight, he immediately realized it was the traveling money. What use would money have at a time like this...? Feeling a deep chill at Rem's offer, Subaru's cheeks stretched into a stiff smile. \"R-Rem...? I know there's a coin-toss skill to at least knock someone off balance, but that's just in games...\" \"I will get off the dragon carriage and counterattack. During that time, please cut through the mist, Subaru.\" Though Subaru tried to deny reality with a joke, the firmness of Rem's voice shattered the effort. Rem turned, facing Otto instead of Subaru. \"Master Otto. Please take care of Subaru. He is able to pay the promised reward  Cut through the mist and report the appearance of the White Whale to the Mathers domain.\" Otto, not having heard the previous exchange, replied, \"R-reward...? There's no time for that! Right now, our v-very lives hang in the balance!\" Despite his protest, Rem was relieved to see that he was earnestly making his land dragon run so that he might live. Her lips softened as she looked back at Subaru. \"Subaru, please forgive me. I am not very bright, so this is the only plan I can think of...\" \"W-wait, Rem! You said to report about the White Whale showing up, didn't you? Don't tell me...you don't plan on coming back alive?\" Subaru desperately tried to make Rem reconsider the tragic decision she had made. Even though the darkness that had befallen them continued to blot out the rest of the world, for some reason, the only thing he could see clearly was Rem's face before his eyes. \"I won't let you go! I won't let you! If you... If you die, too, I'll...!\" As Rem stood before him, Subaru dropped the money sack to his feet, putting his hands on Rem's hips and pulling her to him. He wrapped his arms around her petite figure so that she could not withdraw. If he loosened his arms, he would be releasing Rem's life to fly away, too. He had to at least stop that. At least that  \"Ahh...\" With emotions raging within her, nearly enough to bring her to tears, Rem let out a heated breath as she accepted his embrace. As she looked up at Subaru, holding her in his arms, she lowered her gaze with a charming smile on her lips, seemingly enthralled by the sound of his voice. \"I was surely born for this very moment...\" \"What are you sa...?\" Saying, but his mouth wouldn't form the word. Something hit the back of Subaru's neck, and it seemed like the whole world had turned upside down. Rem had stretched out an arm, as if to hug him back, and delivered a chop to the back of his head. Strength drained from Subaru's body, and he crumpled against Rem. \"Re...m... What did you...?\" Not only was the swaying of the dragon carriage affecting his vision, but it was swallowing his fading consciousness as well. Subaru desperately clung to Rem as it became difficult to even hold his head aloft. Rem gazed affectionately at Subaru as he struggled. Then, she gently brought her lips to Subaru's ear, whispering as if to reach the last remaining shred of his consciousness. \"It's all right, Subaru. I will always be watching you from behind.\" You don't need to do anything. Just always be right there behind me. Those had been Subaru's words to Rem on the morning of their departure. Hence, just as he had said, she now stood behind him as his rear guard. \"No...I never intended...\" \"Subaru. I \" His mind fell away. It grew distant and went white. For a moment, he felt like someone was embracing him strongly. He felt something soft touch his forehead and then immediately depart. And that was the last thing he knew. *** Ah. He could feel the repeated rocking and jolting of the carriage, as well as something bumping into his head over and over. Gradually, it called to Subaru's blanked-out mind, bringing him back to reality. He tried to lift his head and sit up, but the rocking was fighting him. His hand was slippery, and he was about to fall onto the floor headfirst once more, but this was averted because something heavy was pressing down on his belly. The pressure on his gut came from something hard. When his hand touched it, he knew from the texture that it was money of some sort, and the memories from just before his consciousness faded rushed from back of his mind. \" Rem?!\" \"Mr. Natsuki?! You're awake?!\" Subaru cast aside the bag of traveling money on his stomach, remaining seated and leaning back on his hands as he looked around. The world was still mired in darkness, but the sound of violent shaking told him that he was still on the dragon carriage. And noticing that Subaru was up, Otto turned his head to check on him. Subaru was trying to get up when Otto raised his voice, still looking back from the driver's seat. \"Please do not move! You hit your head and the carriage's blessing has been gone for some time. Even now, the land dragon is running with all its strength; I have no time to be concerned about you, Mr. Natsuki!\" \"Never mind any of that! Rem, what happened to Rem?!\" Shouting back, Subaru searched every corner of the driver's seat for the girl. Without the wagon, the dragon carriage was very cramped. Anyone would understand in an instant that there was no need to search. Yet even so, until he checked for himself, he just couldn't accept that she wasn't there. \"Answer me, Otto. What happened to Rem...?!\" \"That young lady...\" Realizing that Subaru's voice was rough, agitated enough that he might pounce at any moment, Otto no doubt hesitated to reply because he knew how dangerous things were. \"...disembarked from our dragon carriage to engage the White Whale...so that we could have a chance to escape.\" This told Subaru that the exchange just before he'd lost consciousness was no dream or illusion but fact. *** Having dragged the answer out of the man, Subaru sucked in his breath but once. Then, he said, \"Turn back.\" \"...Huh?\" \"I said, turn back. Rem we have to save her! Turn back right now!\" Subaru leaped into the narrow driver's seat and grabbed Otto by his collar. Confused and still occupied with controlling the land dragon, Otto was unable to respond to Subaru's act of violence. His face went pale as his collar was grabbed. \"A-are you serious?! Turn back... Turn back and do what?! Did you not see how terrifying that monster is?! It's suicide!\" \"I'm telling you to go back to where we saw the monster so we can save Rem, damn it!!\" When Otto refused his command, a vein bulged on Subaru's forehead as he shouted in anger. The menace of the White Whale had been burned into Subaru's very eyes. The giant creature swam through the air faster than a land dragon could run; a single, casual slap of its tail could rend a carriage asunder. Even within the blinding mist, it unerringly located its prey; even Rem's magic hadn't inflicted any damage. Without doubt, it was the largest and mightiest of all the foes he had seen since arriving in this other world. Compared to the menace it posed, dealing with Elsa, classified as a human being, and the pack of countless Urugarum was far easier to plan for. But he couldn't even dream of a way to defeat a monster on that scale. \"And Rem couldn't, either... We can't just leave her. If we do that...!\" Subaru was well aware of how strong Rem was in her Oni state. But his familiarity with her abilities meant he could plainly state that it meant nothing before the might of the White Whale. If he left Rem behind, he would lose her for certain. Then everything would be pointless. Then there would be no meaning in Subaru surviving. Rem was an irreplaceable part of the future Subaru desired. If she wasn't there, Subaru would lose sight of even his own self. He would have no one to accept him. Subaru needed her to give him affirmation. \"I won't let her sacrifice herself to buy time! Turn back right now, Otto! If you don't...\" \"Have you lost your mind?!\" However, Otto's angry shout interrupted Subaru's plea. Still grasping Otto's collar, he felt a squeeze on the back of his wrist; in the next moment, he was slammed against the driver's seat back first. \"Agah!\" \"You think you can force a traveling merchant tearing down a highway without a blessing? You underestimate me!\" With Subaru facedown, Otto twisted the wrist in his hand, straining Subaru's shoulder to its limit still grasping the reins with his other hand all the while. \"At any rate, calm down! Look at yourself. What can you do in a state like this? Do you plan to put to waste the feelings that girl left behind?\" \"Don't you talk about Rem! You left her... You left Rem to die! You have no right to talk about her! Turn back! Save Rem right now...!\" \"Ahh, goodness! You're not listening! Please regain your composure!\" Subaru chewed Otto out as he writhed, struggling to get his pinned arm loose. Meanwhile, Otto gazed at the road ahead as the land dragon ran down the center. \"You still don't understand how terrifying the White Whale is?! There are many tales of those who tried to kill it, ever since it descended upon the world centuries ago! Don't you get it?!\" Misery clouded Otto's face as he ranted at the obstinate Subaru. \"They couldn't kill it, even with hundreds challenging it all at once! We don't even have weapons or power to fight with, so what can we do?! Stand before it and rescue the girl?! We can't do that! There's no way!\" \"Shut up already! I've heard all that bef \" \"Then it should be obvious! Even when the Kingdom of Lugunica assembled a great expeditionary force to quell it, the monster killed the last Sword Saint! We can't beat it!\" Otto's face trembled with bitter regret as he unwillingly confessed the truth. Otto, too, held great rage toward the White Whale that would never fade. But even so, the menace of the White Whale that stirred his anger was untouchable for man. To teach the ignorant Subaru the error of his ways, Otto had to force himself to acknowledge the enormity of the White Whale, experiencing heartbreaking pain in the process. \"It killed...a Sword Saint...?\" As Otto bared his soul, a part of the story Subaru had never heard before took the wind from his sails. Sword Saint that was the title granted to the most powerful human being Subaru had laid eyes upon since being summoned to that world. To Subaru, it was the very symbol of strength without equal. It was not for certain that the previous Sword Saint could not boast the same strength as Reinhard,"}, {"text": "the epitome of \"The Mightiest of All.\" But if the person bearing a title equal to Reinhard was someone with comparable power, and the White Whale killed that person... \"It's stronger than Reinhard...?\" A monster surpassing the mightiest of all beings could only be called the worst of all calamities. In short order, Subaru lost the baseless feeling of urgency pressing against his spine. Without the thing pushing him forward, Subaru realized that he lacked the strength to even sit up. \"What am I doing...? This ain't the time to be lying down on the j...\" He wanted to save Rem. He wanted to rescue her. If he didn't turn back now, that wish could not be granted. Yet, even though his heart understood, none of the will to fight reached to his limbs. His soul was too weak. Otto released Subaru from the hold, and with pity in his voice, he said, \"I am weak, and so are you. That is why we cannot save her we cannot hold a candle to her strength.\"  But deep down, Rem wasn't strong, either. Even though Subaru knew that, surely had always known that, he could say nothing. He hung his head as the shaking dragon carriage jostled his body. The land dragon continued forging ahead straight through the night mist. Rem remained behind them, abandoned as the dragon carriage grew distant, pulling Subaru farther and farther from her. *** He stayed bent over like that as time passed maybe five minutes, maybe ten. \"Mr. Natsuki, that's...\" Otto, having made the land dragon run in silence until then, seemed to doubt his own eyes as he called out to Subaru. Subaru lifted his head and clawed his way to sit beside Otto on the driver's seat, looking in the same direction and found a light flickering amid the darkness. \"There is mist in the way, but...that is the light of a crystal lamp!\" \"We made it...out of the mist...?\" \"Even if we have, we are still on the highway at night, so any light is unnatural. It's probably someone who was caught in the mist, just like we were...!\" As if to support Otto's deduction, the other party seemed to have noticed them, too. About half a minute later, a dragon carriage, and the man driving it, emerged from the mist. \"F-finally someone...! Hey, this is just mist, right?! Don't tell me this is the White Whale?!\" The man in his prime was frothing at the corners of his lips as he desperately shouted, falling into a state of terror. When he saw Subaru and Otto in the night mist, he must have clung to the hope that they were saviors of some sort. Tensely, he tried to deny the obvious, but Otto shook his head. \"I'm afraid that it is. We have already encountered the whale ourselves. Fortunately, we should have shaken it off by now, but until one leaves the mist, you never know where it will appear.\" \"F-for real...?! Ahh, this is terrible. Why, why did this happen to me...?\" After a sidelong glance at the man clutching his head, lost in his personal lament, Subaru glared at Otto, seated beside him his use of the word fortunately sounded like Otto had already shed his guilt at leaving Rem behind. \"Otto, watch what you say.\" \"What is it, Mr. Natsuki?\" \"I'm telling you not to make light of things. 'Fortunately'...? That ain't funny. What do you think Rem went through when she...?\" As far as leaving Rem was concerned, Subaru and Otto stood in the exact same place. Despite that, Subaru was angry when he thought about Rem an effort to assuage his own feelings of guilt. Subaru understood. He'd understood all along. The idea that Rem, left behind, would stand before the White Whale, exercising her wits, and survive it was nothing but a fantasy, not even wishful thinking. There, inside that mist on the third time around, Rem had died again to save him... \"Rem? Who is that?\" His thoughts of Rem's tragic resolve were undermined with shocking ease. \" Huh?\" \"Er, I mean, who is this Rem? There was no one by that name among the traveling merchants who scattered... Of whom are you speaking?\" Otto tilted his head, not understanding what Subaru had meant. To Subaru, that casual treatment toward her existence was like trampling mud all over her noble spirit.  He swung his fist into the side of Otto's face at full force. Instantly, the reins communicated the chaos atop the vehicle to the land dragon, resulting in the dragon carriage swerving violently to the right. Having lost his footing, Subaru crashed backward onto the driver's seat as the man he'd just struck hit the seat on his side. \"Wh-what was that for?!\" \"Don't mess with me!\" Unbelievable, said Otto's wide-open eyes in response to Subaru's act of violence, but Otto's words and actions were just as unbelievable to Subaru. \"What the hell are you saying...?! Asking who Rem is? She's the girl who stayed behind so we could get away! Don't mess with me! Do you have a death wish...?!\" \"I'm telling you, I don't understand what you're saying!! You're just spouting strange things all of a sudden... Did seeing the White Whale drive you mad?!\" Even in the face of Subaru's accusation, Otto proclaimed his own innocence. Subaru's field of vision was dyed crimson by fierce, irrepressible emotions. The passage of every second felt agonizingly slow as the bloodlust seething through him commanded him to snap the slender neck of the man before him. And just as his hands stretched out to wring the life out of the ingrate  The man in the dragon carriage alongside them, in shock as he saw the angry quarrel on the verge of escalating to murder, shouted to try and stop them. \"What are you two doing?! This isn't the time to argue! We have to get out of the m \" But his voice did not reach the two and was lost in the heat of the moment. It was man's next action after he spoke that broke up the ugly dispute. \"Getting out of the mist and running from the White Whale comes first, doesn't ?\" The man was continuing his realistic, heartfelt logic. Behind him, the dragon carriage was sucked into the giant mouth of the White Whale, vanishing from Subaru's and Otto's field of vision in the span of a single second. The head of the White Whale turned upward, swallowing the dragon carriage and land dragon whole in a single, enormously weighty bite. As wood and steel were crunched together, the land dragon let out a death cry as its flesh was ground between the millstone-like teeth. The great scream and the sound of its annihilation drowned out the voice of the man, no doubt similarly turned to mincemeat. \"Wh...y ?\" The silent approach of the enormous creature shocked both Subaru and Otto beyond words. Otto's knees trembled as he beheld the awesome spectacle of the White Whale once more; Subaru's eyes were wide, unblinking. \"Why are...you here...?\" The White Whale, still alive and well, did not pay the slightest attention to the two little people right beside it as it licked its lips, savoring the dinner spreading through its mouth. \"Your being here...means...\" What happened to the girl who had stayed behind to draw away the monster? With the overwhelming creature before him, he couldn't help but demand an answer. Naturally, the White Whale offered none. Having finished its chewing, it moved its giant eye down to look at the dragon carriage beside it and Subaru as it assessed its next prey. \"Uaaaaaahhhhh !!\" Otto shouted, cracking under the pressure before the creature even moved. The land dragon, also panicking due to the White Whale's presence, increased its pace to a gallop without a command from its master. The distance between them and the monster widened in the span of an instant, but then the White Whale swam faster. \"Why, why, why, why...? We should have shaken it off; why is it...?!\" On the driver's seat of the accelerating dragon carriage, Subaru remained sunk in despondency. Otto, driven to the edge of his wits, wailed as they cut from the right of the head to the left. \"Why is it after only us this stubbornly...?! In all this darkness... Why...?! Do I have s-some sort of target painted on my back...?!\" Otto wailed as he took the crystal lamp attached to the dragon carriage and threw it away. Even if it was futile, he wanted to hide from the White Whale's eye even if only for a tiny moment longer. But Otto's shout suddenly called an image to the back of Subaru's mind. During his lament, Otto had wondered aloud if there was a bull's-eye on the two of them that the White Whale was doggedly following. If there was any reason why it was so focused on them, then  \"It couldn't be...\" Subaru pulled himself up to the driver's seat, doubting his own eyes as he stared toward the White Whale swimming behind them. Within the night mists, the darkness all around obscured the creature's giant frame. However, when Subaru strained his eyes, he could just make out something on the head of the White Whale facing them. He saw a twisted, spiraling horn protruding from its head.  With his own eyes, he'd also seen horns on the Urugarum, the wild demon beasts living in the forest around the mansion that resembled oversize dogs. And he'd learned from experience that those demon beasts, said to be born from the power of the Witch, were attracted to her scent, given off by Subaru. In other words... \"...That monster...the White Whale is a demon beast, too...?\" When he voiced the hard-to-believe possibility, he shook his head at the unpalatable reality. But when he thought about it, everything fit. It explained why the White Whale had found their dragon carriage first out of all the ones that had scattered. It explained why it had obstinately pursued Otto from the moment Subaru had come aboard. It explained why the creature had pursued that dragon carriage after Rem had resigned herself to death to buy them time. He recalled how Rem had hesitated to tell him something about the White Whale as it pursued them through the darkness. That was when Rem had realized it. \"The White Whale...is drawn to my body...?\" The White Whale had assaulted them in pursuit of Subaru in pursuit of the scent of the Witch. Rem had realized that fact before anyone else; to protect Subaru, she'd disembarked from the dragon carriage in a bid for more time. To protect Subaru. For Subaru's sake alone. \"No, Rem... Because of me... Because of me...!\" Subaru lowered his head and sank down, fighting back the overflowing sorrow within him. The knowledge that Rem was gone, and that he bore all the responsibility for losing her, weighed heavily on both Subaru's mind and body. \"Mr. Natsuki...\" Stricken by despair, Subaru felt Otto pat his shoulder from behind. His fingers were shaking, his voice dry. He trembled as he looked in Otto's direction. \"Otto, I...\" \"Please die.\" The next moment, the shove to Subaru's shoulder easily sent him tumbling from the dragon carriage. \" Huh?\" His field of vision inverted as he violently tumbled down, losing track of which way was up. Amid the chaos of his vision, he saw Otto loudly laughing. His mouth was open so wide that Subaru could see his white molars, spit dribbling from the corners of his mouth as he spoke. \"I-it's your fault! I-if you're why it's after us, then take responsibility! Ah-ha-ha! Die! Die and save meee!\" Hearing Otto's maniacal laughter, Subaru realized that his mind had completely snapped. Otto had been driven to the edge. Overhearing Subaru's frail murmur, he clung to the tiniest of hopes, not bothering to ask for confirmation before shoving him to his doom. Right around the time Subaru realized this, his body reached the ground. His"}, {"text": "back slammed mercilessly against the earth. Without hyperbole, the pain was like he had broken every bone in his body. Crying painfully as his internal organs were crushed, he spat out blood and kept rolling. The impact was hard enough to dull even his ability to register pain. Subaru vomited bile and blood over and over, raising his wobbly head. He could hear the far-off, fleeing dragon carriage from which he had been shoved. Oddly, no words of reproach came to mind. Granted, he was in far too much pain and suffering to voice any complaint, but even ignoring that, he just didn't have the heart to fault Otto. The merchant had merely been in the wrong place at the wrong time and shoved off Subaru in a desperate struggle to survive. Maybe Subaru forgave him because he could hardly have been expected to do otherwise. \"Ehuh! Guheh!\" Such sentiments, the taste of blood filling the inside of his mouth, the ferocious pain his body was trying to remember... *** ...all these things were forgotten when the overwhelmingly huge creature showed itself before him.  With a single glance, Subaru came to understand just how foolish it was to defy this awesome and terrible menace. As Subaru lay prone, the White Whale was close enough to touch, expelling putrid breath out of its incomprehensibly huge mouth as it examined the tiny being before it. To the body of a diminutive man, a mere exhalation from the White Whale was a ferocious gale. Subaru, unable to support his own body, was sent rolling across the ground with that single burst of air. *** Then, while Subaru writhed with agony, the White Whale remained silent as it looked down at him, almost as if toying with him. A word like careless did not apply to the creature as it casually loitered in place. The difference between them was simply that great. It would have been like an ant challenging an elephant or a man challenging a whale under the ocean's waves. Inside Subaru's head, overwhelmed by pain and nausea, he knew he was feeling death drawing near. It was a feeling of despair that he had felt several times over. Slowly but surely, he was keenly aware of the despondency from what he had lost and his helplessness, that once more he had left the things he had to do unfinished. The emotions came to him like old friends, wrapping their arms around his shoulders like best buds as they laughed at his embarrassing troubles and his laughable struggles. He no longer had any idea what had gone wrong. But now that Rem was lost to him, Subaru had nothing left. He chuckled at himself for his ridiculous attempts at resistance and survival, even in his pathetic state. Stupid. Worthless. The lowliest of all lives, with nothing left to do whatsoever. He felt the White Whale, right before him, drawing its nose close. Its open mouth was lined with the unyielding teeth that had chewed up even hard-scaled land dragons with ease. These teeth would bite down on him, chewing and grinding his flesh, bones, and very soul. His lips quivered, trying to say something defiant, like, \"Kill me already,\" or, \"Hurry up and do it.\" \"I don't...wanna die...\" This time, Subaru truly despaired at how he was too weak to manage even that. Inside his chest, a sense of powerlessness like none he'd ever had before impaled him like a cold blade. His blood froze throughout his body. He despaired as everything in front of him turned black. \"N-no...I don't wanna die! Save  I don't wanna die... I don't wanna die, I don't wanna die... No, no, no... Save me, Rem, save me...!\" Tearful words and whimpers poured out of his mouth as the inevitable end to his miserable life drew near. It was pathetic. Repulsive. It could be called only a truly shameful sight. Anyone would avert their eyes at the spectacle and scoff at him. No doubt it would have hurt to even watch. He could not cling to life like this and hold on to his dignity as a human, too. It was wretched. Even bugs were more adorable and lived with more pride. This self-pitying boy, too filthy to count as a higher life-form worthy of respect, was truly \"the greed of a pig.\" \"N-no...I don't wanna die... Save me...\" Even so, he crawled in an effort to escape, grasping for whatever possibility might let him keep his life. His body, its strength exhausted, would go no farther. His fingertips merely pawed at the grass, lacking the power to claw the soil. Even the will to cry was now lost to him. Rolling onto his side was his final act of physical resistance. \"I don't wanna die...!\" Then he rolled onto his back, a plea for his life trickling out of his mouth. That was his final struggle to live. He could do nothing more. He could think no more. He could only await the inevitable. Yet even so, no matter how long Subaru waited, the blow that would end him never arrived. Though his old friend, the aura of death, preceded the bite that would be his violent end...it never came. The terror of knowing the end was near, but not when, was something that easily wrecked the human heart. As unendurable terror gripped him, Subaru forced his trembling body to comply. His gaze shifted around, and he sought an end to his despair, when... \"...Eh?\" ...he realized that the White Whale, supposedly drawing nearer with every moment, was nowhere to be found. From there on, desperately clinging to life was the only thing that kept Subaru going. \"I don't wanna die... I don't wanna die, I don't wanna die...\" He was out of breath, tottering on his feet, with droplets of blood in his eyes clouding his vision. But Subaru took no heed as he ran. It changed nothing; he'd been lost in darkness and mist to start with. Within the embrace of the moonless, starless night, Subaru couldn't even see his own feet. Or perhaps the White Whale had swallowed him long ago and he simply hadn't realized it. Perhaps, even in that very moment, he was in the belly of the demon beast, running only toward his own doom... \"Hic.\" Amid the darkness, Subaru kept running and running, all alone. He had lost Rem, Otto had abandoned him, even the White Whale had left him behind. He didn't know why I don't wanna die was the only thought he had. What meaning was there in living? What meaning was there in not dying? Perhaps the incoherent thought rose to the fore as a simple, instinctive means of protecting himself from fear and pain. It was disgusting how, even at that juncture, his self-pity was at work. \" Ah?\" As he berated himself to no end, the mist suddenly, and without the slightest fanfare, fell away. Subaru crumpled to the ground with an expression of disbelief at the abrupt end to the darkness that he thought would continue forever. Soft moonlight poured down on him as it sunk in that he had survived. Subaru, feeling blood flowing through his limbs once more, stretched both hands toward the night sky. What made him do so was not unbridled joy at grabbing hold of life. \"I did it again...\" He despaired at himself, having once more cheated death after another wretched struggle. Having obtained the life he had so craved, Subaru could take little joy in it. An unquenchable sense of guilt burned in his chest, and his shame at forgetting about her almost made him crave death again. \"Rem... Rem...!\" Covering his face, he called her name as irrepressible hot tears continued pouring out from him. In so doing, Subaru sought her forgiveness so that his own soul might find comfort. He rubbed his head against the soil as he wept. He didn't know how much time passed like that until he heard a slow creaking sound drawing closer to the hunched-over boy. \"Y-you're...\" It was a land dragon, pulling the bloodstained remnants of what had once been its carriage. He remembered it. There was no mistake it was Otto's land dragon. But there was no sign of the young man who had shoved Subaru off. \"Why are you...? Where is he? Where's Otto?\" Though he voiced the question, he of course received no reply. The land dragon tottered closer; Subaru, in turn, rose and walked toward it. As Subaru looked up at the cruelly damaged animal, he realized it.  The driver's seat was stained with blood, impaled with crucifix-like daggers. Someone had attacked when they'd left the mist. Subaru couldn't even imagine what despair Otto must have felt, having gone mad and even leaving Subaru to die in his efforts to escape with his life, only to be ambushed afterward. But the fact that his land dragon was alone made it all too clear what had resulted. \"...Let's go.\" With a muted murmur, Subaru dragged his pain-racked body up onto the driver's seat. Grasping the reins with his right hand, which was somehow still functional, he did as he'd seen others do and ordered the land dragon to move out with a flick. Sensing someone not his master through the reins, the beast looked up at Subaru with its round eyes, seemingly at a loss. But when Subaru flicked the reins once more, it gently began moving down the highway.  Under the gleam of the silvery moon, the land dragon smoothly ran along. The man and land dragon, having both lost someone precious, were licking each other's wounds in a sense as they bathed in the soft, soft laughter of the moon and the stars. Gently, gently, the land dragon continued to run. And kept running. CHAPTER 4 *** Making creaking sounds, the land dragon continued moving forward. Subaru's mind was hazy; leaning deep into the driver's seat, he was the driver in name only. It was partly fatigue, partly the effects of his wounds, but it was chiefly the wearing down of his spirit. His broken bones and cut forehead had not healed; his dislocated left shoulder was crying out painfully. His broken teeth felt extremely unpleasant; his clothes, filthy from blood, mud, and urine, transferred the chill directly to his skin.  Why had he survived? Protected by Rem only to lose her, abandoned by Otto, spurned even by the White Whale that had spared his pathetic life. He'd blundered his way along the highway through the night mist, breaking free of it and thus prolonging his life. Just where would this path lead him and the surviving land dragon? And once he arrived, would there be anything he could do? The desire to protect someone, to save someone he'd trusted it was that feeling that had spurred him forward. Yet, having seen things he wished he hadn't, he knew he had simply been consoling himself with pretty words. He'd come to realize that he needed his own life above all else; he was a lump of flesh wrapped up in self-pity. When they'd left Rem to face the White Whale, and Subaru had ordered Otto to turn around, maybe he'd only pretended his heart was broken by Otto's rebuttal but was actually relieved deep down? If it was an opponent even someone like a Sword Saint could not defeat, going back meant only a dog's death. Rem wouldn't want that.  So he'd told himself he didn't need to go back. He didn't need to die. As a matter of fact, Subaru hadn't gone back to save Rem; he'd even begged the White Whale, the purported target of his hatred, for his own life. He'd shouted, I don't wanna die, as he fled in a daze, peeing on himself all the while. At the time, Rem's safety or lack thereof never entered the back of his mind even once. Rem had done a pretty stupid thing, throwing"}, {"text": "her life away for a man like him. \"But...the stupidest thing is...\" There was no Rem anymore. Otto was gone, as were all the other traveling merchants. Subaru was alone, save for the land dragon silently continuing to advance along the well-maintained highway in search of human civilization. It didn't matter where. Subaru just wanted it to bring him somewhere. Subaru grew apathetic, releasing his hand from the reins as he collapsed onto the driver's seat. As he rolled onto his side, he could see the crucifixes still jabbed into a hard-to-see nook. It was evidence that Otto had been attacked by Witch Cult adherents he'd apparently encountered after slipping past the mist. All that time, Subaru had been wondering if the Witch Cult would appear before him as well; would he meet the same fate as Otto? Would his meaningless life be cut down as well? Or if it came to that, would he be spared once more, even if he was face-to-face with Petelgeuse? \"Petel...geuse...\" Haltingly naming the object of his hatred, Subaru knew just how hollow his own heart was. Even when voicing the name of the madman who'd brutally murdered Rem, mocked Subaru, and was the root of all evils, Subaru's heart didn't feel a twinge, even though only a few hours prior, Subaru's anger toward him was the only thing keeping him going. \"What the hell's wrong with me...?\" The dragon carriage's wheels creaked; an extremely high-pitched sound clawed at his eardrums. Almost in pain from the discordant sound, Subaru grimaced and sat up. \"A forest...?\" The land dragon had stopped its walking some time before. When he observed his surroundings, the land dragon was clawing at the ground of a woodland road surrounded by trees. Apparently the sun had risen some time ago, because white sun rays from above were baking Subaru's body. Now that he'd noticed it, Subaru savored the heat on his skin, soaking it up like a wick, when... \" Ah, Subaru?\" ...he was surprised to hear an innocent, high-pitched voice call him by name. A number of diminutive figures had climbed onto the stopped dragon carriage, peering down at Subaru as he sat on the driver's seat. They pointed at Subaru and began to laugh at the sorry state they'd found him in. \"It really is Subaru.\" \"What's wrong, Subaru?\" \"Subaru, you're filthy.\" \"You stink, Subaru.\" But these were not laughs of ill-willed mockery but rather, warm chuckles reserved for those whom they bore deep affection. \"Y-you're...\" He knew their faces. He'd seen them several times in the last few days. He'd seen them contorted in pain and agony, never to smile again. These were the grinning faces of the children living in Earlham Village, on the outskirts of Roswaal Manor. In a daze, Subaru lifted his head and saw that there, ahead on the woodland path, was the human civilization he'd sought. He had finally arrived at the place he'd longed for, that he'd craved so much. Subaru had made it back before he'd surrendered completely to despair and lost everything. \"Subaru?\" \"Er, what's wrong?\" \"Ahh, look out!\" The children's voices rose. Subaru knew what they were trying to tell him. Regardless, his head had already grown heavy, and he could no longer support his body. Something stretched taut made a sound as it snapped, and once again, Subaru's mind fell toward a dark, quiet place, as if he were trying to shove all his troubles away. \"Wait a  Don't fall \"  He fell. When Subaru opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was a familiar white ceiling. The plain room, adorned with only a crystal lamp, was something of a rarity among the dazzlingly ornamented rooms of the mansion. When he was here, he could feel at ease as the rank commoner he was. And so he had taken a liking to it, selecting it as his own room. Under his head was one of the pillows so eternally soft that he could never get used to them. The fact that sheets had been meticulously pulled up to his shoulders made it clear that someone had tucked him in as he slept on the bed. It was Subaru's nature to become alert as soon as he opened his eyes, no matter what the situation. He looked around the room, seeing for himself that it was indeed where he always woke up. \" Ah.\" There was a girl sitting near the side of the bed, her eyes quietly lowered upon a book. She wore a customized, very exposing maid outfit, with black as its chief color. She had a white flower hair ornament and a lovely face; the sharpness of her stiff, beautiful features displayed her inner refinement. The instant Subaru realized she was there, he practically leaped up into a sitting position, taking her hand into his before she even realized he was awake. Her face registered surprise... \" Do not touch me so casually, Barusu.\" ...as her cold, blunt words; the tone of her voice; and the feeling of his hand being shaken off shattered his illusion. In that instant, he realized that the girl before his eyes had pink hair. His reunion with someone precious whom he had lost was nothing but an illusion. This was the older twin sister of the girl he longed for, two peas in a pod, differing only in hair color. \"I can understand you are happy at seeing me after several days, but to leap at me by instinct is less like a man and more like a male. It is indecent.\" Ram glared reproachfully at Subaru, shifting her chair away as if to distance herself from the bed. The frigidity of her gaze and voice drilled into him that this was not her look-alike younger sister. \"Yeah......that's right, I don't have any right to that anymore...\" Ram suspiciously lifted an eyebrow as Subaru clawed at his head, bit his lip, and hunched forward. From Ram's point of view, she'd done nothing but greet his awakening with a suitably sharp tongue. The usual Subaru would make some sort of frivolous comeback, but he was falling silent with a grave expression. \"...I really would rather you did not make me do something so atypical, but...\" As Ram spoke, she drew near to Subaru and gently patted his head with her palm. The soft movement of her fingertips had a quiet, gentle rhythm that unsettled Subaru. \"Your face says you are thinking something rude, Barusu. You did not expect kindness from me?\" \"No, I...didn't... I thought you were the type to kick me when I'm down.\" \"I imagine there are few maids who have as much generosity and kindness as I. I'm too crafty to torment you in your current state, Barusu. I'll save the kicking for another time and place.\" \"Correction. You really are the woman I thought you were.\" Ram declared that she'd redouble her antics next time, but Subaru did not sense any less affection from her fingertips. Even if her speech was blunter and her personality was completely different, she really was Rem's sister. His chest grew tight with the knowledge that they really did think the same way. He bore the inescapable pain of what he had to tell her... \"Ahh...\" As he sank into thought, Subaru felt her fingers pull away, causing him to blurt out a sound in regret. He rushed a hand to his mouth, but Ram broke into a smile even faster as she shot him a teasing look. \"You wanted more?\" \"I don't need it. I'm not some little kid...!\" \"Bold words, when you look ready to bawl like a child. You're as stubborn as a little brat.\" Ram slumped as Subaru gave her a sulking sidelong glance. Her condescension was fully intact as she said, \"Now then, Barusu.\" *** Ram returned the chair in front of Subaru, sitting directly opposite him and staring at him. \" I must ask you what you have to say. Yes,\" she said, before launching into the topic at hand. \"You were in an awful state, Barusu. You appeared at the village with an unfamiliar dragon carriage, filthy and half-dead. At first, when people from the village called for me to come over, I thought it must be some kind of joke.\" In a businesslike tone, Ram recounted how she'd carried Subaru back to the mansion while he was unconscious. \"Dislocated shoulder, cut forehead... I connected the broken bones, but your wounds will open if you force yourself. I disposed of your filthy blood- and mud-covered clothes I shall refrain from telling Lady Emilia that you relieved yourself in them.\" \"...Yeah, that's a big help.\" Subaru's muted reaction made Ram lower her shoulders with chagrin apparent on her face. To Ram, that last part was just a tiny bit of humor, but it would have been a big problem for Subaru otherwise. \"And the one who healed my wounds was...\" \"Lady Emilia.\" Just like that, Ram said what Subaru had feared. When Subaru hung his head at the reply, Ram put her hands on her hips and humphed through her nose. \"It could not be helped. I asked Lady Beatrice first, but she refused. Though, given how fickle she can be, I fully expected that she might decline.\" \"Did...Emilia say anything about me?\" \"I shall tell you nothing of it. That is something you should ask her yourself.\" Ram replied icily to Subaru's meek question while patting his formerly dislocated shoulder. \"I have not heard what occurred between you and Lady Emilia in the royal capital. I am not interested. From your reaction just now, it would seem that you did nothing good regardless.\" \"That's pretty harsh.\" \"I think it is a fair statement, is it not? More accurately, you are afraid that I will address the main topic of concern, and you wish to clumsily put it off as long as possible by talking about something else.\" \"Uhh...\" Unable to even manage a proper groan, Subaru understood what Ram really wanted to hear. After all, the individual who should have returned by Subaru's side was absent. Naturally, he needed to tell her about that first. He wondered if it was Ram's kindness or her strictness that made her broach the conversation when Subaru had said nothing of it himself. It was probably both. He couldn't allow her benevolence to spoil him forever. \" Rem is dead.\" The instant the words were on his lips, Subaru felt something inside him gently come loose. The instant he made the confession, the weighty mass in the innermost depths of his chest broke apart and sank into his stomach, demanding acknowledgment from him. The hot sensation he felt through his forehead told him exactly what that mass was.  I've lost Rem. A flood of tears poured out of him. And he realized it. Only then did he realize: Subaru had let Rem die, over and over. Including the previous mansion loop, this made the fourth time Subaru had let her die, four times Subaru had felt her passing. Finally, it sank in that he had let Rem die four times over. And yet, that was the first time Subaru had shed tears over her death for her sake. Not out of self-pity, not out of guilt, but purely for Rem's own sake. \"I...couldn't do anything. On the highway, the mist... The White Whale showed up. Then, so I could get away, Rem... But I was left behind in the mist...and then, finally...\" He couldn't put what he wanted to say in proper sentences. With periodic sobs, his account jumped from idea to idea, failing to arrange the topics in an orderly manner. Unable to keep his excuses at bay, Subaru grew afraid, feeling that he had somehow sullied Rem's final moments. He acknowledged his crime. He would accept his punishment one befitting an unsightly man such as him. That was why he had to explain everything as clearly as possi  \"Who is Rem?\" *** \"Ah, er,"}, {"text": "huh...?\" He didn't...understand...what was being said to him. Unable to grasp the meaning of Ram's question, Subaru made incoherent sounds in response. Who is Rem? What did that even mean? But seeing Subaru lost in doubt, Ram cocked her head and opened her mouth once more. \"Barusu. Who is this Rem?\" Her eyebrow hadn't even twitched at the mention of her twin sister's name, and now she was asking who she was. \"Wh-whaddaya mean, who...? Don't say stupid things like that! It's the name of y-your little sister, isn't it?! Rem, right? R-e-m. Rem! This isn't the time for j \" \"My little sister...?\" Ram put a finger to her lips, closing her eyes as she seemed to sink into serious thought. Subaru had seen the gesture before, but in his present state, it was extremely difficult to endure. He felt the urge to yell, What the hell are you doing?! and punt Ram all the way into the mist at that very moment. \"My little sister, Rem. Ahh...\" \"You remember now?!\" \"I cannot remember what never was. I have no little sister. I have always been an only child.\" Subaru's face went very pale as Ram's plain statement defied his every expectation. \"That's crazy... What are you saying...?\" \" I do not have a little sister.\" \"Don't mess with me! If Rem didn't exist, what happened during that mess with the demon beasts in the forest?! You, Rem, and I went there and...\" \"Truly, what is wrong with you, Barusu? I am loath to admit it, but half the credit for exterminating the Urugarum pack is yours. The remaining half goes to my own efforts and Roswaal's power... There is no place to slip in some long-lost little sister named Rem.\" Even when hearing Subaru's protests, Ram obstinately refused to acknowledge her little sister's existence. Inside of Ram, things that had most certainly happened had been overwritten with false memories. He didn't know what it meant. He didn't know why she was answering him in that manner. \"This ain't funny... Not even a nightmare...would have a script this bad...\" \"As always, I am quite serious. It's you who's dreaming, Barusu.\" \"Dreaming... Dreaming? You're saying I'm dreaming?! Stop messing with me!\" With Ram completely at sea, Subaru pushed aside the sheets and got out of bed. His endurance hadn't returned; his lower body wobbled as he walked out, driven by his fierce emotions. \"Barusu, you should not be up y \" \"Shut up! Be quiet and...come look!\" Ram extended a hand toward his tottering body, but Subaru brushed it aside angrily. Subaru had been sleeping in his bedroom on the second floor of the mansion's east wing. Rem's room was on the third floor, so he walked to the stairs leading up in search of some trace of her. \"Your endurance has not returned. If you continue to force yourself and collapse, it will only cause me trouble.\" Ram followed behind him, speaking to him, but Subaru, his shoulders shaking in anger, had no intention of listening. Taking more time than usual to climb up the stairs, Subaru headed straight down the third floor corridor of the mansion before stopping in front of a room Rem's room. Once Ram saw it, surely her ridiculous notions would shatter into dust. Subaru grasped the doorknob to the room and marched in. He didn't hesitate. If he did, Subaru's timid heart would let him make more excuses. He had no time to be worried or conflicted. The room he stepped into was plain but decorated in a reserved, feminine fashion  \"...No...way.\" There was...nothing. The space he'd just entered had a made bed and a little table, no different than any of the other empty rooms. Rem's had been simple, but this was different, completely devoid of personality. The little feminine touches and decorations had certainly been in hers. \"This can't be rea...\" Looking around the room, Subaru couldn't believe it and rushed out into the hallway. Ignoring Ram's gaze as she stood beside the door, Subaru counted the rooms from the stairs to this one. He'd made no mistake. There was no way he could have. He could find the place with his eyes closed.  Then why...? \"C-could it be Beatrice? Maybe she shuffled the spaces around on me like that first time...\" \"Barusu.\" \"That's right! That has to be it! Why that little  Playing her games to make fun of me...\" \"Barusu, stop it.\" Seeing Subaru grow hysterically desperate, Ram quietly dropped all hint of affection. Shocked, Subaru looked at Ram. She gazed back at him, the almost unthinkable, plaintive look in her eyes expressing just how much she was concerned for his well-being. But it was wrong. That wasn't what Subaru was looking for. \"Rem... This is her...\" \" There has never been such a person at this mansion.\" Ram shook her head, her eyes clouding as she said, as if to slap him to his senses, \"I do not have a little sister.\" And so she finally destroyed his doubts. He'd meant to own up to his responsibility, to bear his crime on his shoulders. He had meant to accept that all-too-heavy burden, the responsibility he wished to cast aside and flee from at that very moment, and face up to Rem's death. *** Did he not even have the right to mourn Rem's death and plead for forgiveness? He'd done things thinking it was for Emilia's sake, but she hadn't accepted him; their feelings were at odds and still remained on different trajectories. Rem, who'd thrown everything away for Subaru's sake, had expended her life in heroic fashion as the world repeated itself. And yet, the world had robbed Subaru of the duty to shoulder the responsibility of her life. Time, the world, the Witch Cult, the White Whale various obstacles stood between Subaru and what he desired. Why was the world so cold to Subaru, betraying him and all his feelings? That was, that was  \"Barusu, please return to your room.\" As Subaru stood dumbfounded in the unoccupied quarters, Ram spoke thusly to him. With Subaru rooted to the floor, Ram, standing beside him, pressed a hand to his back to lead him out of the room and said, \"You must be confused about many things because you are tired. Head back to your room and keep dreaming in bed. I have things to do, so I cannot stay with you like this forever.\" Even though Subaru was beaten down, Ram's decision was strict toward Subaru. She meant to carry out her assigned duties without coddling him any further. \"Back to your room, and sleep.\" Repeating the command one more time as she left, Ram went down the stairs and vanished from view. Certainly, if he slept as she said, he might be able to escape that sense of alienation. It was all a bad dream, surely. He was dreaming, so he'd go back to bed to dream. He should just run away, run away, run away. He'd fled all the way to where he stood now. If he kept trying to get away, like he always had, like he always would if he ran and ran and ran and ran, then  \"Then...what...?\" Subaru murmured, his foot stopping just as he was about to take the stairs down. Judging that he needed to escape into a dream, he'd dragged his feet over to the stairs. Slightly raising his jaw, Subaru looked at the steps up to the next floor. No matter how far he fled, it'd all be the same. And Subaru would have betrayed Rem again. Rem had protected Subaru, gambling with her own life so that he might escape from the White Whale... And for what? So that Subaru could finish what he'd started. For his goal of saving the people precious to him from the evil clutches of the Witch Cult. If he abandoned that objective then and there, letting go and fleeing into his own mind... \"That's...a lot lower than begging for forgiveness...\" Subaru turned away from the stairs leading downward. This time, there was no hesitation in his gait. Subaru put his foot on the first step and went up, not down, because that was where he would find the reason for his return. Stepping firmly upon each step, Subaru slowly headed up. Arriving at the topmost floor, he breathed out as he found the door he had been fighting toward this whole time. When he reached for the doorknob, Subaru realized that he was oddly calm. It seemed unreal how much his heart had quieted down after its frantic pounding when he'd burst into Rem's room. He wondered if he had actually calmed down or if he had moved beyond stress entirely and sunk so far that he could no longer hear its powerful thumping. But: \"Rem, lend me...your courage \" When he voiced that name, Subaru felt his hand become stronger. That strength transferred to the doorknob; he gently opened the obstinate-seeming door. And on the other side of the open entryway, a girl was sitting at the desk, looking back toward him as she said, \" Subaru?\" When Subaru heard the chime-like voice calling out his name, he closed his eyes. He finally remembered the deep emotions rushing through his chest that were difficult to put into words...and that he had returned for the sake of hearing her voice. She was a girl with fluttery silver hair, pale skin, and violet eyes. Sadness marred her fleeting, beautiful features. The girl Emilia rose from her seat and said to Subaru, \"...Why...did you come back?\" It was not the words themselves but the trembling tone of her voice that robbed Subaru of all thought. Here was Emilia, lacking all strength in her eyes, her lips quivering. It had been a little while since he had seen her. He felt like she was thinner than when they had parted. Both her voice and her eyes were clouded with fatigue, enough to suggest she hadn't been getting any sleep. She'd probably been backed into a corner, her spirit worn down by external influences. Thus, Subaru stepped forward, ignoring Emilia's question as he offered her his hand. \"Come on. You can't stay here.\" Subaru's forceful behavior surprised Emilia; she pulled back slightly from him. When the original distance between them was restored, Emilia shook her head toward the troubled boy. \"Go where...? No, why?\" \"Anywhere will work, as long as it's not here. If you're gonna ask what it's for, my answer is that it's for your sake. I came back for your \" \"This again, Subaru?\" Emilia seemed disappointed in his reply as he spoke. Her velvet eyes watered slightly, glaring up at him through her lashes and cowing him into silence. \"Returning all of a sudden, covered in wounds and making everyone worry... Aren't you supposed to be undergoing treatment from Ferris in the royal capital? Why are you here now?\" \"A lot happened! There's a mountain of things to explain, but I don't have the time to do it right now. Please listen to me. We have to get out of this mansion this \" \"I told you I can't, didn't I? I can't trust you like this, Subaru... I told you.\" Grudgingly, Emilia shook her head and rejected him with a trembling voice. It was a direct continuation of their exchange back in the waiting room at the royal capital, without the slightest progress. Subaru had been unable to convey to Emilia his willingness to do anything for her sake, and he had failed to understand why Emilia refused to understand how he felt. But one thing was different from before. \"I'll drag you out of here if I have to. In a few days, you'll know I'm right whether you want to or not, so...!\" \"Wait. Wait, Subaru. What's wrong? This isn't like you, Subaru. I... And yet \" \"Just shut up and listen to me!!\" The instant he shouted, Emilia's shoulders trembled. Before her unbelieving eyes, Subaru's ragged breaths came with as much"}, {"text": "force as his angry yell, and he glared intensely at her. \"You can't stay here. You'll regret it. I know you will. It won't help anyone. It won't save anyone. I don't want to suffer anymore. I don't want to cry anymore!\" \"What are you talking about...? Subaru, I don't understand.\" \"Shut up! If everyone would just... If you do exactly what I tell you, it'll be all right! Everything will turn out okay. It's true! Why doesn't anyone understand that...?!\" Subaru clawed at his head, raising his voice not toward Emilia but at the irrationality of the situation. No doubt Emilia could not understand the meaning behind Subaru's angry outburst. But this was the only place where he could express these curses aloud. Only before Emilia could Subaru vent about all the senseless things he had encountered and bring out all the ugly emotions he had borne with such difficulty. Seeing Subaru plead in a tearful voice, Emilia lowered her eyes in sadness. \"I'm sorry, Subaru. I don't get what you're saying. I really can't understand it.\" Emilia's eyes remained lowered as she softened the tone of her voice in an effort to soothe Subaru's spirit. \"I want to understand. But even if I could understand with time, I can't give you that right now... There are so many things I need to do. That's why right now, I \" \"It'll all go wrong.\" Subaru interrupted her show of concern with a few short words, trampling upon Emilia's feelings. Hearing the malice filling his voice, Emilia was in shock, blinking as he repeated the words. \"It'll all go wrong. You're no good. You'll fail. There's no way you could do it. There's no chance. You're all talk. Totally beyond saving. No one can rescue you. You'll just keep doing rash and reckless things, and the number of corpses in the pile will be the same. That...is your future.\" The satisfaction filling Subaru's body was pitch-black, mean, ugly, and contemptible. As each word that fell from his mouth sounded in Emilia's ears, the pain on her face let him truly see the effects of jamming his feelings like blades into the weak points of her heart. At that moment, Emilia was forced to pay attention to everything he said. In that instant alone, he took morbid joy in the fact that she could not ignore him. He'd rejected her determination, laughed off her resolve, callously trampled on her actions, scoffed at her past idleness, and prophesied a completely dark future. As Subaru watched Emilia, stunned by all he'd said, his heart  Quietly, Emilia murmured, \"Why?\" Grief at Subaru's heartless words, along with pain at his description of an inescapably dark future, caused Emilia's expression to stiffen. But even then, her violet eyes remained unclouded. Captivated by the haunting, dimmed gleam of her eyes, he watched the world reflected in them in other words, Subaru himself, as seen by her. Then, \"Why do you look like you're crying from so much pain, Subaru?\"  Only then did he realize that a twisted smile had come over him while his tears poured out. He knew that everything he'd said had been thrown back in his face. Reflecting upon each and every word with which he'd crushed Emilia's feelings, eyes running all the while, he realized they amounted to nothing. With everything he said, Subaru had managed only to slice himself to ribbons. Determination, resolve, actions, past, future Subaru's had been rejected as much as hers. He felt like it was futile no matter how hard he tried. He knew that he was seized by an urgent need to do something. As for what he was struggling against, he had no idea. He knew only one thing. \"She...she brought me this far... No. She stayed with me this far, and there are things I have to do for her...\" \"Rem?\" Subaru anxiously searched his heart for the original feelings that had brought him to where he currently stood. Emilia, listening to his seemingly meaningless utterance, tilted her head slightly. *** His breath caught. The way Emilia had said her name. It was clearly how people sounded when they were confused. \" You too.\" \"Hmm?\" \"You've...forgotten Rem, too \" Not only had her own twin sister forgotten her existence, not only had all traces of her vanished, but the person who was the entire reason for Subaru's return didn't remember her, either, even though Rem had staked her life on making it happen. The days she had spent, the time, the feelings, the way she'd lived, all had vanished. Her smile, her anger, her tears, the touches they'd shared what had happened to all the things that made her who she was, that were firm proof she had lived? \" All right. I'll tell you everything.\" \"Eh?\" Emilia responded, surprised by Subaru's words. Looking up at her beautiful, refined face, Subaru found anew the source of the emotions that had driven him to such lengths. If the alternative was for Rem and her feelings to vanish into the ether forever... \"It's better to get everything out, even if it makes me cough up blood.\" Subaru had decided. He'd reveal it all. He'd tell her the truth about what clouded the depths of his spirit. Emilia, seeing that the look in Subaru's eyes had changed, swallowed stiffly. Standing before her, Subaru put a hand to his chest. His heartbeats were fast; he knew and feared exactly what was about to happen, what the result would be. That pain. Pain enough to drive a man mad. The suffering of those ministrations on his heart, the sensation of it being crushed, his inability to even let out a sound, continuing on and on, never knowing when it would come to an end... But he had thought about this, too. As if I care. I don't care. What's that pain compared to this suffering right now? She couldn't trust him. She couldn't understand him. If he would have to endure the suffering of no one remembering Rem on top of that, mere physical pain paled in comparison.  If you're gonna come, then come, damn it. If it's my heart you want, you can have it. \"Emilia.\" \"Yes?\" \"I've...seen the future. I know what's gonna happen. And if you wanna know why, it's because...I can Return by Death \" The instant he reached the verge of revealing everything, the world indeed came to a halt. As he'd expected, everything gradually slowed, finally stopping altogether. In that instant, the environment lost its color; all the sounds he had heard to that point vanished. The wind, his breath, his beating heart all grew further and further away and did not return. With all five senses deserting his mind, Subaru was isolated from the world.  Then, as if unable to leave him alone in his solitude, the hands slowly appeared, bearing their unsought benevolence. The black cloud that spawned seemed to slide through the air as it wriggled, shifting to form arms. In past times, only the right arm had the well-defined contours of a limb. But as the frequency of the evil hands' occurrence had increased, they formed a left hand as well with disturbing speed. Both hands drew near to Subaru, with the left stroking his cheek, seemingly fond of him. The right rudely refused to be patient, plunging into Subaru's chest, slipping past his ribs, and gently enveloping his heart. The frightening sensation of that alien limb softly, gently toying with his heart coursed through his entire body. Unlike the unimaginable pain inflicted on him previously, the blackness that held Subaru's life in its hands seemed to be craftily manipulating his ultimate fear to break his determination and resolve. With the impending agony failing to arrive, a new fear began to quietly take root in Subaru's mind. He'd made his peace with the excruciating discomfort and had sworn to endure it. The evil hands seemed to be mocking Subaru's determination, delivering no more pain to his body and mind than pinpricks, and relying on his imagination to fill in the rest. It was that way of inflicting pain, so different from what he'd expected, that made the immobilized Subaru want to scream. But he clenched his unmoving teeth and rejected the urge. He was in pain, afraid, ignorant, but Subaru did not allow that suffering to affect his spirit. If he failed, he would gain nothing. If he failed, he would never be forgiven. In a world where no one remembered that Rem had ever existed, Subaru had nowhere left to beg forgiveness for his responsibility in her death, save the confines of his own soul. If the hand wanted to inflict suffering, he would let it carve as much into him as it pleased. But that determination was the one thing that would not shatter so easily. Subaru glared at the evil hand toying with his own heart, holding his breath as he waited for the inevitable moment. But the hand made no move to do so. If it could do the deed anytime, it could also delay as long as it wished. In that world of stopped time, all he could do was wage a war of attrition until his mind was worn away. Even if Subaru's determination held firm for the moment, it would eventually falter, and his spirit would be subsumed and broken.  If that's what it thought, it had another think coming. He'd endure the agony, no matter how many hours or days it might take. He hadn't died over and over for nothing. If it wasn't going to kill him, he'd endure anything mere pain had to offer. Such was Subaru's resolve  \" Ah?\" Suddenly, something began to animate that stilled world. All traces of the looming pain, of which he'd received only a preview, vanished from his world. Subaru and his resolve were left intact as sound, color, and time returned. A flood of sounds his breathing, his heartbeat, of moving things moving in the world swirled around Subaru, as if that other realm had spat him out in derision. Perhaps the evil hand had judged that it was futile in the face of Subaru's obstinate resolve? Like hell, thought Subaru. His repeated suffering at those hands led him to scoff at the notion. Even then, he felt the black cloud's right hand softly grasping his heart. If it'd squeezed, Subaru would that very moment be  *** At that point, a doubt crept into Subaru's thoughts. Subaru had a firm memory of that abominable right hand touching his heart. But what had the left hand been doing during that time? At first, it had touched his cheek, but after that  \" Hu.\" Before he could find an answer to his question, Emilia, standing before him, seemed to murmur something. Her voice roused Subaru to his senses. He recalled the rest of the sentence he had started before time had stopped. Though his sudden release from the nightmare had thrown him off, if violating the taboo would bring no further price, he needed to concern himself with it no further. He'd reveal everything, sharing with her what lay moments into the future, so that Subaru, and everyone, could get the world they hoped for. Finally, his determination to see that through would bear fruit  \"Ahh.\" A moment before he could, Emilia's body abruptly leaned forward toward Subaru, who was standing just in front of her. Subaru instinctively reached a hand out to catch her. Her breath caught a little at the soft, warm touch against his hand when... Splat. \" Eh?\" Splat, splat, splat. \" Emi...lia?\" Splatsplatsplat, spurt. Emilia made strange sounds while she embraced him as an enormous amount of blood poured from her mouth.  Where had the left hand gone while the right was touching Subaru's heart? Emilia rested her head on Subaru's shoulder, continuing to cough up blood. The sheer amount coming out dyed half of Subaru crimson as her body grew lighter. \"Stop i... Wha? Wai...? Huh?\" She lifted her head, seemingly trying to stop the"}, {"text": "blood she was heaving up, but in that instant, her listless head dropped. She slid down his shoulder. Her lifeless gaze told him everything he needed to know. Right then, before Subaru's very eyes, Emilia's life  \"WaaaAAAHHHHHH !!\" A scream rang out. He screamed and howled enough to tear his throat apart, as if that would let him forget everything. If it were so, he wanted it to break at that very moment, to claw at it and rip it out with his own hands. Emilia's limp body was still growing lighter within his arms. The blood wouldn't stop flowing out of her. Subaru's body turned redder. Redder. And redder.  While the right hand had been touching Subaru's heart, the left hand had reached for Emilia's. His determination, his resolve, his actions, his past, and his future had all been stomped down and mocked. His stubborn determination, the resolve that he had only just decided would never be broken, had been smashed to pieces, and Subaru Natsuki plunged into an abyss of despair. His scream reached higher and higher, never fading. It had finally come to this. Subaru   had killed Emilia. This time, he surely had no more blood to cough up, no more tears to weep. He had been wrung dry. How much did he have to cry? How much did he have to suffer? Had he done something so unforgivable? His spirit had been wounded and trampled upon. He'd been robbed of someone precious. He couldn't protect the people he needed to protect. And by his hand, the most important person to him in the world had cruelly lost her life.  Had someone levied some kind of judgment upon him? *** He'd been wrong. He'd misunderstood. He'd gotten cocky. He'd become conceited after skillfully using the curse of the Witch on his soul to turn things around before. Encouraged by the thought that he'd come back even if he died, he'd dismissed the abominable being known as the Witch along with her evil hands, and this was the result. All those things, accumulated together, had produced the tragic spectacle now before him. Subaru fell to his knees, resting Emilia's corpse atop them, as his hollow eyes wandered aimlessly about. How much time had passed since Emilia had lost her life? When he touched her cheek, it had gone cold. The heat had faded from the blood that poured from her mouth. Her soft limbs had begun turning stiff, leaving him with less and less with which to deny her death. Subaru, understanding that, remained unable to move from the spot. He was exhausted. He'd suffered so much. Surely it was all right for him to stop now? Was there any human being anywhere in that world who had undergone as much as he? He'd made efforts unthinkable for his old self, trying to manage somehow. Even so, he'd been unable to avert the worst case, the calamity had overtaken him, and he had lost everything. Then what more could  \" Your face seems to say, 'I am the unluckiest man in the whole world.'\" No one should have been there, so Subaru doubted his own ears when he looked toward the entrance. As he sluggishly brought his head around, he saw a single girl standing in front of the door. She gazed at Subaru with disdain. Her long cream-colored hair was split into two beautiful rolls, and she wore an ornate dress fit for a Western doll. She had an adorable face, one Subaru had not seen upon his return to the mansion the last two times through the current series of loops. \"Bea...trice...\" \"In the time since I have last seen you, has your witless face grown even more foolish, I wonder?\" Making that harsh declaration, Beatrice surveyed the tragic sight in the room. Then she said, \"Well, now you've really done it...\" With a sigh, Beatrice summed up the tragic spectacle with extreme bluntness. Seeing Emilia immobile in a pool of blood, eyes hollow in Subaru's embrace, was Beatrice truly moved so little? But even if animosity was the obvious reaction, Subaru could no longer manage it. Indeed, in that moment, Subaru was grateful for Beatrice's reaction, not asking him a single thing. He would have been more grateful still if she simply turned around and left Subaru there. \"Will Puckie not come out, I wonder?\" As Beatrice spoke, she walked closer and kneeled right beside Subaru. \"Even if I tell you to look, I doubt you would listen... I do so hate to get my hands dirty.\" Speaking indifferently, Beatrice reached out toward Emilia. Subaru did not know what she meant to do with the deceased girl, but he made no reaction as her fingers touched Emilia's neck. Subaru, feeling uncomfortable with the action in a way he couldn't put into words, began rebuking her. \"It's disconnected, I suppose?\" But Beatrice accomplished her objective before he'd even gotten a word in. As Beatrice's hand moved away from Emilia, it held a beautiful, glimmering green crystal. This was the pendant that Emilia never took off Puck's abode, and the physical representation of the pact formed between Emilia and the spirit. But now, it was... \"Bro...ken...?\" \"A bold thing to say for the one who broke it... Though you seem to be unaware of the fact.\" Gazing desolately as the two pieces of the crystal rested on her palm, Beatrice tucked the ruined thing away. What had happened to Puck, the spirit who should have been inside the broken pendant? What had happened to the spirit who had loved Emilia, now resting in Subaru's arms, so much that he had called her his daughter? Where had he gone? \"Are you concerned, I wonder? Puckie is not dead. He has simply been returned to his true body for the moment. It is only a matter of time until he comes... But it shall not be too long, I think.\" Responding matter-of-factly to Subaru's unstated question, Beatrice stood up with a slight flutter of her skirt. Subaru watched the girl's bouncing hair rolls as he took solace in her answer. If that spirit was alive, if he would be returning here, then he'd probably... \" Do you have something you wish to say, I wonder?\" Seeing Subaru's extremely inappropriate relief, Beatrice gazed at him evenly as she posed the question. Subaru did not notice the feelings in Beatrice's voice. But if she was asking if he had anything to say, then  \"Kill me.\"  he wanted someone to end his life, then and there. He was sick of everything. It had been one thing after another, and he was worn out. So he wanted to die. He wanted to die and end everything. Even if he died and did it over, he'd probably lose it all again. If things started over when he died, or even if they didn't, he no longer wanted to be in that world. In a world where Emilia had died and Rem's existence had been erased, there was nothing left for him. That was why... \"Kill...me...\" ...putting an end to it all was Subaru's only hope for salvation. If there was someone out there who would hear his plea, he wanted his good-for-nothing life plucked away. He had trod the dignity of his life underfoot, rendered everyone's feelings meaningless, and abandoned everything in a pathetic effort to save his own life, and he wanted to be burned away and utterly destroyed. Surely the girl with supernatural powers standing before him could grant that much. Beatrice surely hated Subaru. If she listened to Subaru's request, there was no doubt he could expect a cruel punishment that matched the gravity of his crime. He was a foolish human being. Dying nine times over had done nothing to change that. Why not cut him down for the tenth time, then? Now that the benevolence of God, Goddess, Buddha, and Witch were exhausted, there was no better time. Hence, \"Kill me here, please.\" Subaru earnestly pleaded to Beatrice as he embraced Emilia's remains. If this was going to be the end, he wanted it to be with Emilia in his arms. Having achieved the worst of all worlds through his self-interested efforts, Subaru would indulge himself to the bitter end. Subaru squeezed Emilia harder, closing his eyes as he waited for the end. He imagined he would soon fall into that silent time. \"...t to.\" Subaru, having selfishly decided to end it all, abruptly heard something. \" Eh?\" It was a small, frail, halting voice. Without thinking, Subaru let out the breath he had been holding and opened his eyelids to look up at her. As before, Beatrice was standing in front of him, gazing down at him all the while. She embraced her tiny body with both arms, biting her trembling lips as if she were freezing. \"To ask Betty to kill you... Is that not too cruel, I wonder...?\" She said it with a tearful look and a choked voice, leaving Subaru completely at a loss. No matter how many times he blinked, Beatrice's thick sorrow would not vanish. The girl Subaru knew would never wear that expression. After all, she was supposed to hate him. Even though she was always blunt, she'd put up with Subaru because she had some goodness in her, but he thought she was someone who could heartlessly lay into you by nature. Even though he thought she might not readily accept, or might even turn him down, he expected it to be accompanied by disdain and mockery. \"You don't understand... You don't understand anything...!\" Subaru had never dreamed she would refuse to kill him with such a sad expression. \"B-Beatrice...?\" \"Shall I refuse every single thing you ask, I wonder? If you want to die so much, go die by yourself... I refuse to do it.\" Beatrice shook her head and covered her eyes with a hand, suppressing the emotion on her face. Hiding her welling tears rather than letting them fall, she turned that hand toward Subaru. \"What are you...? Everything is ?!\" In that instant, the world began to distort. Everything around Subaru warped, and a crack appeared. These were preludes to the destruction of the world, or so he thought, instantly clutching the body in his arms close to him. Looking down at him, Beatrice spoke again with cold eyes. \"If you're going to be this useless, having you here is a bother  At the very least, perhaps I can protect this mansion, I suppose?\" \"What are you say ? No, Beatrice, you're...!\" \" Do not think Betty is like Roswaal. Pain, anguish, suffering, sadness, fear... Perhaps Betty hates all these things?\" She replied to the question that was not a question with an answer that was not an answer. Space distorted, and the resulting fissure enveloping Subaru brought him beyond the reach of all known physical laws. It didn't hurt. \"If you are going to die, can you do it in a place where Betty will not see, I wonder?\" Though her final murmur was cruel, she could not conceal even a tiny fragment of her desolation. He could say nothing. He understood nothing. But her emotions did tell him one thing.  Subaru's decision and behavior had made Beatrice sad. The distortion reached its zenith, and then it snapped back to normal. Something like static ran across his field of vision as the world was instantly swept away; in the next moment, the distorted air succumbed without a trace and vanished. The gouge in the bloodstained floor was the only sign that Subaru and Emilia had ever been there. Beatrice watched the two vanish before leaning back against a wall with a tired look. She sluggishly raised her palms, lifting them over her eyes as if that would hide the world from her. \" Mother. How much longer must Betty...?\" The murmur of the girl left alone in the world petered out, reaching no one.  Without warning, Subaru was cast out of a rip in space,"}, {"text": "plunging headfirst onto mossy plants. \"Bwah!\" Subaru spat out saliva that tasted like dirt, then lifted his head and looked around. Bunches of trees appeared in his dim field of vision. Surrounded by nature in all directions, Subaru realized that he had been cast into the middle of a forest. \"A forest at night...? Somewhere in the mountains...?\" He was only able to see at all because the moonlight was unhindered. A cold breeze rustled the leaves of the many trees, with the sounds of insects dominating the gloomy forest under the twilight sky. The fact that it was night outside the mansion made Subaru aware that he'd slept for more than half a day. \"Teleportation...or something like it, I guess?\" The air had bent, and right after the resulting fissure had swallowed him up, he'd been dumped out into the forest. Using the Passage magic spell, Beatrice was able to freely rearrange where each door in the mansion connected. Maybe there was no reason to expect she couldn't relocate people one by one if she had a mind to. But even if he could understand that much, he still had no idea what Beatrice had really been thinking. Even then, the final image of her crying refused to fade from his mind. Though she had turned him down, he had been sure she'd disdainfully leave him there. And yet, Beatrice had looked at Subaru with dejection and despair in her eyes  \"It's as if...she...\"  as if she'd expected more of him. Subaru himself had rejected such notions, thinking them exceedingly self-serving. He'd acknowledged he was a spirit of pestilence, unable to do anything, hadn't he? He'd accepted it, hadn't he? If he couldn't expect anything from himself, no one else could, either. Having even someone who hated him expect something of him was nothing but the height of \"Pride.\"  Even though he had kept running and running from other people's expectations long before he'd reached that world. \"Man, I'm hopeless, aren't I...?\" A crooked smile came over Subaru as he slowly knelt up on the grass. His legs seemed less mobile than expected. When Subaru looked down, he realized that there was something other than him weighing on his knees. Even then, after tumbling through space, Emilia's remains continued to rest atop his lap. \"Emi...lia...\" In that world of gloom, a trickle of moonlight shone upon her pale face. She seemed neither in pain nor at peace in death. Instead, she seemed full of conflict, unable to understand the cause of the misfortune afflicting her body. Namely, how her heart had been crushed while she was still alive, in a world of frozen time. But even if she hadn't felt any pain, that was no saving grace. There was no such thing as a peaceful death, nor was death a saving grace for anyone.  Except for Subaru himself, in that moment. \"I'm sorry. I'm so, so, so sorry...\" As he looked down at Emilia's face, droplets fell upon her pale cheek. He had thought his tears had run dry, but they flowed from a bottomless well as Subaru was racked with ceaseless torture. He heard voices voices blaming him. The people Subaru had met were shouting down at him in frigid anger. There was a girl with silver hair and a girl with blue hair among them  \"Someone...someone, anyone...\"  Please kill me. Under a hail of shouts that would not vanish, Subaru picked up Emilia and rose to his feet. From there, he stepped on the grass and broke branches as he began slowly walking into the forest. He could hear beasts howling in the distance. If he met those black demon beasts now, he felt like he'd greet them with a smile on his face. He wanted them to consume his flesh, his mana, his life anything they pleased. For if they did not, if that did not happen, there would be no salvation for Subaru Natsuki. *** Heading toward the howls, Subaru advanced into the dark depths of the forest. He no longer felt the weight of carrying Emilia, nor fatigue from walking along the cold mountain road with poor visibility. He wondered if it was because he had a clear goal and was earnestly working toward it. That would be pretty pathetic. Nor did the word pathetic begin to describe his fate. \"Here... Past this ravine...and then...\" Carefully heading downhill, he climbed up the twisting tree roots as if they were stairs. Like a candle on the verge of burning out, he was exhausting the last strength his life had to offer. But that was not the only cause of the lack of hesitation in his steps. Put simply, he remembered the path. After all, this place was  \"Yeah, there you are.\" A thin, heartfelt smile came over his lips as if he was relieved not to have missed his mark. Mad laughter came over him the sort only a man smeared with blood and free of his sanity was capable of. Subaru knew a man who laughed like that. If he looked in the mirror at that moment, he'd probably see the same smile on his own face. Seeing such an expression ate away at your mind, its sheer malevolence giving rise to a physiological sense of revulsion. But those to whom he turned that crazed smile were accustomed to the sight. *** Inside the nighttime forest, a group in black outfits that blended in with the darkness surrounded Subaru. As if rising from the shadows themselves, they had silently encircled Subaru, not even allowing him to sense their auras as they continued to stare right at him. Their gazes held no hostility, nor amiability, nor malice, nor benevolence. He couldn't sense anything resembling \"will\" at all. Subaru, under their scrutiny, recalled his encounter with them from the first time around. \"Same thing, huh...?\" Just as in Subaru's memories, the black-robed figures all lowered their heads then and there. Like marionettes lacking wills of their own, they showed Subaru \"respect\" for the first time. Subaru had no idea why they demonstrated admiration for him. All he knew for sure was that they were all devotees of the Witch Cult, and that the darkness enveloping Subaru had some relationship to the Witch they worshipped. \" Outta my way.\" Really, there were many things that he wanted to ask them. If this had happened before he'd resigned himself to death, he'd have had a mountain of inquiries. But by then, even that sentiment was a mere worthless relic. At Subaru's brief command, the black-robed figures did not voice a single sound of dissent as they melted into the darkness and vanished. As they disappeared from his sight, Subaru noticed that the world was filled with silence. He no longer heard the howls of the beasts he wanted to come after him, nor the ceaseless cries of insects not even the wind. It was as if all living creatures scorned the Witch Cult. Perhaps the reason wasn't just the Witch Cult but Subaru's presence, too. Perhaps the Cult and Subaru being together in one place painted so repulsive a picture that the world itself recoiled.  He thought that this latter assessment suited the current him far better. A faint laugh came over Subaru as he advanced past where the Witch Cultists had surrounded him. He passed beyond the roots, stepped across the soil, crushed the tree leaves with the bottoms of his shoes, and finally, the forest opened. A rocky, sheer precipice spread out before his eyes. \"Beloved acolyte, I have been waiting for you.\" Standing before the rock wall was a gaunt man bearing the same mad smile that Subaru did. \"My, my, my? And furthermore, furthermore, furthermore, you carry in your arms... Could that be the half-demon girl?\" When Subaru approached the rocky area, Petelgeuse cocked his head and looked at Emilia, whom Subaru held in his arms. The madman's head remained parallel to the ground as his tongue slid out in amusement, dribbling spittle. \"Heavens, for her to lose her life before even undertaking our trial... What a tragic fate! What an untimely demise! Ahh! And, and, and...what diligence upon your part! On the verge of the trial, before I even act, you have stolen the half-demon's body and life...!\" Petelgeuse shouted, hailing Emilia's death with exaggerated gestures, waving his arms around. Subaru then noticed that the Witch Cult adherents had gathered around Petelgeuse at some point, all of them on their knees as they devotedly listened to the madman's ravings. \"Me, diligence...?\" Hearing Subaru's halting murmur, Petelgeuse rushed over with jubilant laughter. \"Yes, that is right! Diligence! It is splendid! Unlike us, slow to decide, meager of wit, and lacking decisiveness, you made the Witch's will manifest before any other!\" Then he slid onto his knees and fell prostrate, virtually slamming his forehead against the rocky ground. \"Compared to you! My fingers and I were so slow, so foolish, so lacking! Ahh, forgive me! For being unable to requite your love! Forgive this slothful, unfaithful flesh! Forgive this stupid man unable to respond to the love you bestow upon me!\" A flood of tears poured from Petelgeuse as he pounded the rock with an arm, nearly splitting his forehead with the intensity of his apology. The fervent act of self harm was accompanied by a spray of blood. Subaru could see bone from where his wrist was cut. Despite that, Petelgeuse did not cease his violent action; indeed, each of the faithful kneeling all around rushed to emulate the madman's self-destructive actions. It was a cacophony of blood and agony and as he watched it all, Subaru felt nothing. Even with the man he had so hated right before him, his heart was unmoved whatsoever. \"Ahh, what can I do for you, who fulfilled the trial in my place while I failed to respond to Her feelings? Tell me, please. What may I do for you, so that I may prove that my love is not slothful?\" Petelgeuse came close, the blood trickling from his head causing tears of blood to flow as he made his earnest plea. Subaru replied, \"Kill me.\" Surely even the expression on that madman's face would register shock from the sudden request  \"Are you sure about that?\"  but it did not. Without a moment's hesitation, he kicked Subaru away. The wind kicked out of him, Subaru sailed back as Petelgeuse watched him with an expression of ecstasy. \"Ahh, splendid, splendid indeed...! With the trial fulfilled in search of salvation, my actions, and those of my believers seeking salvation, may have thus become diligent...! Ahh, we are spared from being slothful! Both you and I! You have my thanks! And my diligence has earned Her love!\" Petelgeuse harbored no misgivings about the brooding Subaru's reply, nor felt a single pang of conscience over his own actions, seeing neither as contrary to the laws of the world in any way. Under the guise of diligence, his bloodlust had been unleashed. Subaru, seeing this in the madman, closed his eyes, his heart hardly stirred. At the very least, it was what Subaru wanted to see just then. \"Though I must say...\" When he heard Petelgeuse mutter something, Subaru felt hostility press upon his skin. \"Unable to even pass a single trial, not even facing a single Deadly Sin, bearing great expectations only to stumble over the first stone in her path...\" The madman looked down at the sleeping Emilia, sighing. \" Ahh, you were lazy!\" He had no greater words to demean Emilia's death. Subaru knew this, because he recalled how the madman had disgraced the life of a girl precious to him in a world long past. *** Subaru opened his eyes. That instant, he saw a dark cloud approaching, taking the form of a hand. For a single moment, he recoiled from the painful memories rushing into the back of his mind. But this evil hand was different. His body could move. His feet could move. His"}, {"text": "arms could move. Hence, his body evaded it. As the black hand gently slid toward him, Subaru leaped to the side, holding Emilia in his arms. The hand slipped past, seeming perplexed as it vanished. Subaru's breath was ragged as he watched it disappear. Petelgeuse stared at him, eyes wide with a fire raging in them, asking in a shaking voice, \"...You. Just now, you saw my Unseen Hands, did you not?\" The madman inserted his twig-like fingers into his mouth, crushing his fingertips with his teeth one by one. As each part of his flesh burst with the horrible sound of bones snapping and fresh blood seeping out, he continued, \"That will not do, that will not do at all. It is strange, it is wrong. There is some error, some mistake. My power, the power of Sloth, the Unseen Hands, Her favor bestowed unto me...! That another has set eyes upon them is unforgivable!!\" Spitting blood, Petelgeuse chewed on fragments of bone and nail as he glared at Subaru with bloodshot eyes. In the next instant, black arms rose out from Petelgeuse's back. Petelgeuse's shadow exploded into seven black limbs that madly danced about. A chill ran up Subaru's spine at the resemblance to the two evil hands that punished Subaru when he touched upon the taboo. \"But if I can see them, and my body can move...\" He could dodge them. The speed of the black hands was not all that fast. Though they boasted the power to rip a human limb from limb at a distance, their greatest menace was their power of Invisibility. Their greatest advantage no longer worked on Subaru. And with the last wisps of his life burning down, Subaru exhibited physical abilities beyond his limitations. \"Whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhyyyyyyyyyy...? Why can you avoid them?! Do you see them?! This love belongs to me! To me alone!!\" \"Deep down, there's only one guy I don't wanna be killed by, and that's you.\" Subaru twisted to evade one hand and leaped forward to dodge a different set of fingertips stretching up toward him. He crouched instantly to avoid the two coming at him from the left and right, practically falling forward and closing the distance with Petelgeuse. Seeing the insanity on Petelgeuse's face twist into shock, a dark pleasure filled Subaru's belly. He'd just remembered the fact that he had wanted to kill that madman. \" Bgah!\" Taking the shortest possible route, Subaru slammed his head into the bridge of the madman's nose, violently kicking his body as he rocked backward. The black hands flailed about, unable to strike precisely. Now blood was pouring from Subaru's forehead, too, cut by Petelgeuse's front teeth. The heavy bleeding got into his eyes, blotting out his vision on the right side.  A moment after he noticed something sliding under his feet, it grabbed Subaru's legs and sent him flying. The instant before he slammed against a large tree, Subaru abandoned all thoughts of cushioning the blow, clutching Emilia's remains even more strongly. Not to cling to her but to protect her. \" Gweh!\" And so his back collided against the tree, making him feel a seemingly lethal crack in his spine. Several vertebrae broke, and his recently closed wounds opened all at once. Each one cried out in a chorus of ferocious pain as Subaru fell onto the ground, writhing, and bubbles appeared around his mouth. \"Disgraceful! Disgraceful, is it not?! Ahh, I am so relieved. Truly relieved! At that rate, I would have wallowed in idleness, all my actions rendered meaningless! But I am indeed diligent, exhausting my efforts for love...\" \"Shut up, dim...wit...!\" His breathing sounded strange. He felt like he'd taken heavy damage to his lungs. Even so, he laughed and mocked Petelgeuse, bubbles of blood dripping from his lips all the while. \"What love, you moron? That so-called love you say you got... I can see it, too, can't I...? She's been cheatin' on you, sucker.\" \"What...are you saying...?! Saying, saying, sa-sa-sa-sa-sayiiiing... My brain, my brain treeeeeembles!\" Petelgeuse tore hair from his head as he raged, eyes wide open. He walked toward the fallen Subaru, violently kicking Emilia from his arms as if to deliberately distance her from Subaru. Emilia's body rolled, slamming into the roots of various trees. Petelgeuse glanced sideways at it and laughed. \"Denigrating my love is impermissible! Ahh, I have decided. It is decided! Though the half-demon who should have undergone the trial perished beforehand, those sheltering her yet remain!\" Petelgeuse ranted and raved as one of his black hands lifted Subaru by his neck. Subaru's eyes snapped wide as the force threatened to rip his head off his shoulders; the brutal pain left him unable to speak. \"First, I shall eradicate those associated with the mansion; next, I shall sacrifice the residents of the village nearby for Her affection. Nothing shall remain, for any survivors would be proof of Sloth. I, the pinnacle of diligence, and my fingers shall render judgment upon all the highway is sealed by the mist, so there is no one to interfere with my love!\" Shouting and spitting in his agitated state, Petelgeuse laid out his diabolical scheme. \"Before that, you seemed to clutch that half-demon's flesh as if it was quite precious to you... If I destroy it, I wonder what wonderful sounds I will hear you make?\" Petelgeuse's head tilted, his lips twisted, and his eyes filled with inhuman curiosity. Five arms other than the one holding Subaru up crawled out from the madman's back, each moving independently as they wriggled their way toward Emilia's remains. One grasped each of her limbs, with the last hand wrapping around her slender neck. \"Do you see them? Do you understand what is about to happen?\" \"...S...top!\" At that moment, Subaru was racked with fear precisely because he could see it. It made him remember every detail of what this man's black hands did to Rem's body when he couldn't see them. And now, those same destructive impulses were directed toward Emilia's flesh. He had no power to prevent the vile act. Subaru's grief only deepened Petelgeuse's crazed, amused smile. All that remained was for him to cruelly rip Emilia's flesh asunder  \" What are you doing?\" Without warning, the voice poured down from the heavens, coldly thrumming in the ears of all present. *** Petelgeuse's expression shifted, his gaze drifting around in search of the speaker. The voice had enough power in it and well-honed anger to make even his expression change. Finally, Petelgeuse's gaze turned toward a single point in the sky and stopped. A second after, Subaru, still held aloft by his neck, looked at the same point in the sky, too. \"I repeat...\" An incredible number of icicles poured down, filling their vision, seemingly blotting out the nighttime sky. A breath surged, dyed white; in the blink of an eye, a cold that threatened to chill the whole world spread throughout the forest. The black-robed figures still on their knees and Petelgeuse, with a crazed smile, over him, were at a loss for words. \"What are you lowlifes doing to my daughter...?\"  The Apocalypse Beast of Eternal Frost dyed the world white. To Subaru, it was the being who would bring him death at the end of his tenth time the tenth world. Since being invited to this world, Subaru had experienced death time and again. Under normal circumstances, it was an ordeal no one faced more than once a lifetime. That common-sense rule had been violated, and Subaru, who had already been granted ten opportunities to grapple with death, knew as much about it as anyone. And having come to know it so well, Subaru had become able to sense its approach. His refined senses told him loud and clear that death was on its way. \"You lot sure like to do whatever you please.\" The voice, bearing penetrating cold and oppressive might, had come from the icy veil in the sky above. The voice hailed from a small, mouse-colored cat, its emotions as frigid as the horde of sharp-tipped icicles accompanying it on its way to the ground. It was small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, with a tail about as long as it was tall. It had a pink nose and round eyes. Its short arms were folded, almost humanlike, as its expression was fraught with deep hatred. Petelgeuse and the other members of the Witch Cult were silent before the supernatural being that spoke the language of men. And Subaru, who was with them, felt his throat closing up in shock for a different reason. He had never before seen that being, that spirit, shaking in anger like that. As one present in that place, feeling the overflow of his anger, he knew that death had come to the world. \"...Puck.\" Under the white mist surrounding the floating spirit Puck the forest in their vicinity let out a crack-like sound as it was transformed. The trees turned white, as if the green had been sucked out of them; their mana absorbed, leaves, branches, and trunks froze over, dead as they fell. The ground itself displayed identical effects. First, the flowers died, then the cold crept over the soil, and finally, it reached Subaru, also on the earth, stabbing him all over with burning pain. He felt lethargy gradually rising from the depths of his body, causing his breathing to falter as his mind began to fade. Long before, Subaru had experienced being forcibly robbed of his mana at Beatrice's hands. The angered Puck was employing that power on a global scale, turning the world's power into his own. Beside Subaru, holding back a whimper, Petelgeuse backed up a step with heavy sweat on his brow, and the kneeling Witch Cult was gasping for oxygen through their open mouths, almost like fish. \"The Witch Cult no matter how much time passes, you never change, do you? In every age, it is you who bring me the saddest things of all.\" Puck spoke as if dealing with noxious insects as he trained his eyes on a single point in the forest. Subaru, following his gaze, saw that there was a single space left that Puck's power was not affecting. Only the prone girl's corpse was protected from the end of the world. \"Ahh, my poor Lia... You died without understanding anything.\" After gazing longingly at Emilia, Puck turned his eyes toward those who still lived. \"Depriving my daughter of her life is a grave crime. Do not think any of you will escape alive.\" \"How dare a mere spirit...! How, how, how, how, howww dare you speak?! A half-demon failing an ordeal is nothing but a filthy pretender! The blame is yours for your Sloth and inability to protect this fool! Ahh! Ahh! Ahhhhh! My brain is trembling!!\" Petelgeuse responded to Puck's threats by raising both hands to the sky, flying into a rage. The madman's bloodshot eyeballs were unfocused as Petelgeuse's welling bloodlust erupted in a geyser of froth. \"All that shall transpire, all that must transpire, the proper course of history is recorded in my Gospel! The Witch loves me, and I must repay Her with diligence! Whereas you, lowly spirit, wallow in idleness!\" Love, was it? To Petelgeuse, acts of worship toward the Witch were nothing but repaying her for her love. For the madman, actions that displayed his adoration for the Witch had absolute priority over everything else. The Witch was supreme and the Witch was the greatest. Furthermore, nothing and no one was permitted to defy his love for the Witch. \"Death to half-demons! And you, too, must pay for your idleness! The Witch's favor is the truth that lets my heart beat! All must be sacrificed for it!\" Petelgeuse waved his arms, ranting, raving, and loudly stamping his foot. Puck looked down upon Petelgeuse's madness with eyes that were cold to their very core. They contained neither pity nor anger, only a lucid view of the low worth of the object"}, {"text": "before them. Puck's and Petelgeuse's absolutely incompatible wills clashed, fueling each other's bloodlust. \"My fingers! This fool must pay for his \" \"Die.\" The descending icicles poured down on the Witch Cult adherents, skewering them and pinning them in place. The cultists' bodies and limbs were impaled against the ground, pierced like bugs for study. The air creaked, and the flesh of the dead Witch Cult worshippers froze over, turning the rocky area into an ice sculpture exhibit. *** Instantly, without warning, Puck had taken nearly twenty lives. During that time, his gaze did not waver in any way; neither did Petelgeuse's. Unmoved by the loss of the followers who obeyed his commands, who were now literal sacrificial pawns, he exploited Puck's temporary shift of attention away from him. \" My brain...is...trembling.\" His lips twisted darkly, and a moment later, Petelgeuse's shadow exploded. Simultaneously, Subaru's body was cast aside as a total of seven arms bore upon Puck, floating in the sky. With Puck's power, dealing with the gently advancing evil hands was child's play. But Puck made no reaction to the advance of the hands because he didn't see them. \"Puck !\" When Subaru tried to raise his voice to warn of the danger, the voice and eyes Puck turned toward him made his blood run cold. \"Be quiet, Subaru. I will deal with you la... Ngh?\" But before the spirit finished speaking, the black hands trapped his tiny body, which vanished from Subaru's view. \"Ahh...\" Puck's body was so small that a normal adult's hand was more than large enough to conceal it from view. There was no way anyone could have seen it through seven hands. And each of those black hands were so overwhelmingly powerful that they could rip a human body apart with ease. \"Carelessness! Negligence! In other words, Sloth! You should have eliminated me immediately! You possessed such power, yet you neglected its proper use! And this is the result! This! Thisss! Thisthisthisthiiiisssss!!\" The Unseen Hands that only Subaru could detect enveloped Puck's body and crushed it. Before Petelgeuse, who danced with mad delight, the Great Spirit was cruelly erased  \"Don't make me laugh.\" In the next moment, Subaru saw the converging black limbs being blown apart. \"That's all? You're four hundred years too young to be invoking the Witch. If you really want to kill me \" The frozen trees, unable to bear their own weight, shattered into shards of ice with one flick of his tail. The corpses of the Witch Cult followers who had become ice sculptures were smashed to smithereens. The front paws responsible for this made the ground under them into an absolute-zero zone of death. Its softest breath rivaled a raging blizzard, and within that white mist, its eyes were like dazzling, glittering gold eyes that mercilessly towered over a world of death. \"Then stretch half of Satella's Thousand Shadows, toward me.\" It was a four-legged, feline beast with gray fur, boasting such size that it stood above the forest. It was the Beast of the End that had destroyed the mansion and brought death to Subaru in a prior world.  It was indeed a grand manifestation of the End. *** The intensity of the cold went up another level, and it hurt to even keep his eyes open to watch the world go white. Subaru endured the pain as he looked up at the beast, agape. \"What...?\" A shaking voice echoed from a tiny corner of that world of ultimate cold. \"What is it you are telling me to bring?!\" This time, Petelgeuse's scream brought a vertical cut to his parched lips, from which a trace of blood trickled but in the blink of an eye, this, too, froze over, bringing an end to the bleeding and pain. Subaru feared that closing his eyes amid the blowing cold meant he would never open them again. He took in Petelgeuse's final cry and looked up at the beast once more. \"Puck, is that you...?\" \"I suppose it would be a little mean to say, 'Isn't it obvious?'\" The gray-colored beast's titanic mouth moved in reply to Subaru's broken question. Each word came with a gale, but it was the enormous beast's sarcasm that confirmed Subaru's suspicions. With that answer, Subaru came to accept the fact that in the previous world, and the world before that, Subaru had died at the end because  While Subaru was compelled to stay silent, Petelgeuse glared at Puck and murmured, \"Im...possible...\" The madman thrust his intact hand into his mouth, crushing his fingers one by one, and they oozed blood. It was as if that pain was what tethered his perpetual madness to the world. \"This is impossible; it cannot be! A mere! Spirit! A lowly spirit! Cannot possess such power! If that was possible, I !\" \" Echidna.\" *** Petelgeuse's movements stopped as bloody froth trickled from the corner of his lips, his eyes wide open. Puck had whispered a word that had interrupted Petelgeuse's denial. The color of Petelgeuse's face had changed the instant he heard what was apparently a name. \"As a man of the Cult, you understand what that name means, don't you?\" \"Filthy...!!\" Petelgeuse's reaction to it was nothing short of dramatic. Along with the sound of something hard, blood gushed from his mouth. It came from his molars. He was so angry, he'd bitten down on his teeth hard enough to break them. \"It is repugnant to even speak that name! Ahh, you poor, lazy fool, ignorant of fear! You dare speak the name of a fallen witch, a witch other than Satella, before me...!\" Petelgeuse's eyes had gone from bloodshot to scarlet-dyed; maybe the arteries had burst open. Tears of blood flowed from the corners. The madman turned his bitten and torn fingertips toward Puck. \"My faith! My love! That is nothing less than an insult to everything I offer to Her!\" \" A human living mere decades has no business arguing time with a spirit.\" Just like that, Petelgeuse ceased his mad writhing. No this was not something he had done consciously. He had frozen from the feet up, and that had made him stop. As Subaru lay on his side, his vision blurry and white, he saw his mortal enemy brought to the verge of death. Petelgeuse, too, knew that his freezing meant his death was not long in the offing. However, to the very end, his madness was directed not toward his own impending death but at Puck, towering before him. \"The depth of one's faith has nothing to do with time! You are a lazy beast, born with eternal time, yet exhausting most of it in idleness! Do not compare me with a fool such as you! Ahh! Ahh, ahh! My brain is treeeeeeeeeeeembling!\" Even knowing his own end was near, Petelgeuse's madness never wavered. To Subaru, who knew no phenomenon more absolute or terrifying than death, Petelgeuse's behavior was truly deviant. Seeing him profess his faith at the moment before his demise was proof that he was a truly corrupt being. \"Death is not punishment enough for you that's why I hate your kind.\" \"The trial has been fulfilled! No matter what happens to this filthy body, so long as my feelings reach the Witch I revere, She shall grant Her favor... Ahh, it will be so good to see Her again!\" Spreading both hands before the sky above, Petelgeuse let out a cackle. The snow blew with greater intensity, dyeing his gaunt body white. Subaru wasn't sure whether his voice or his movements gently slowed first. Yet even then, Petelgeuse's laughter did not cease. He was one with his buoyant madness until his laughter finally ceased and, with it, his life. \" Quit while you were ahead, didn't you?\" The gray beast murmured as it thrust down its front paw, smashing the Petelgeuse ice sculpture into dust. Even as Subaru watched the madman's life expire, his shattered fragments carried away by the wind, no strong emotions stirred within him. He had hated the man so; he had so wished to kill him. Petelgeuse was where it had all started; Subaru had believed that killing him would make everything turn out all right. But was that truly the result? Though he had witnessed the death of his hated foe, Subaru had only hollow emptiness inside him. The defeat of Petelgeuse meant clearing away the threat posed by the Witch Cult. But Rem, who ought to have been there sharing his joy, had been erased from the world; Emilia, who should have been quietly waiting for him to bring good news upon his return, had died at Subaru's own hands. The accumulated weight of both their deaths had made Subaru desire his own demise, but in the end, he could not even manage that, and a different avenger had claimed retribution  Subaru had nothing left. He'd done everything over and, as a result, achieved nothing. \" Now, then.\" Subaru felt his own powerlessness beaten into him as the beast quietly looked down upon him. He was reminded anew that the giant beast was Puck; the enormity of that truth made his body quake. He was reminded of how, previously, he'd watched with detached bemusement when the Knights and the Council of Elders at the royal palace had acted so terrified of fighting Puck when they heard his alias. \"Let's talk, shall we?\"  Now, he was painfully aware of just what they had felt back then. The cold was making it hard to think. Already, the pain tearing across his whole body had vanished. Subaru heard the gentle footsteps of his own death drawing near. And just as his body slackened from the sweet premonition that the end was nigh  \"Oh, this won't do. You're bleeding out too much I'll put a stop to that.\" \" Dwah!!\" He felt like he was being roasted alive, waking up his fading senses. With merciless pain blocking his throat, Subaru saw that each wound on his body was audibly freezing over. White steam rose as sharp ice connected, stitched, and tethered his wounds, even the ones inside his body. Through this act of treatment, abandoning all consideration for the human body, Subaru's flesh was violently healed. Blood vessels exploded within his eyes, dyeing his vision scarlet. It was more than an ow, ow, ow. The hell that had erupted within his body transcended even pain. \"Subaru, you have committed three sins.\" Subaru reeled, howling with a voiceless scream. The giant beast continued to speak as if nothing had happened. Though he had become enormous in size, his mouth lined with endless sharp fangs, and the tone of his voice had changed, the cadence was as gentle as always. That terrified him all the more. \"First, you broke your promise with Lia. It seems you do not truly understand just how weighty a promise formed between two people is to a spirit mage. I suppose you truly do not know how much your rashly breaking that promise hurt Lia.\" His mind rejected an understanding of what Puck was saying. No his mind was dominated by pain. His internal organs were frozen, and his broken bones were connected to one another by ice gouging obstructed flesh. The crimson ice over his open wounds had been ripped away, the areas affected frozen to the core, violently stopping the bleeding. The freezing had spread farther. The pain had spread farther. Death was spreading. It hurts, hurtshurtshurtshurtshurtshurtshurtshurtshurtshurtshurtshurts... \"Second, you ignored Lia's wishes and came back. Do you even know how much that drove her into a corner and made her suffer, when she didn't want to see you again? Not only did you break your promise, you had to trample on Lia's heart as you pleased.\" With Subaru on the white ground, limbs spread wide, Puck drew his face close and blew with his icy breath. Subaru's flowing tears became needles stabbing his eyeballs. His brain convulsed from the intense agony. \"And third, you let Lia die.\" It was like having his very soul filed down. The extreme"}, {"text": "pain made Subaru forget how to breathe. Amid that agony, like having every nerve in his body immersed in magma, Subaru cursed his own shallowness. He'd thought that pain was a lesser thing than death. He was wrong. He was wrong about everything. \"Pain,\" \"Death,\" \"Fear\" these smashed the heart of the weakling named Subaru Natsuki in equal measure. The soul of Subaru Natsuki had been backed into a corner with nowhere to run. As Subaru's sluggish mind began to appreciate that terrifying truth, Puck stated to him, \" In accordance with the pact, I'll be destroying the world now.\" Puck's eyes had contained anger. Only at that juncture did a new emotion begin to come to the fore. \"I will bury everything under ice and snow, as my parting gift to Lia.\" \"...That won't...\" \"It has nothing to do with making her happy or not. No matter what the pact, I will not break what has been agreed upon.\" Puck's eyes narrowed as he responded to Subaru's incoherent voice. \"But that act will end unfulfilled, I imagine. Even if I spread this world of ice to cover every land, like the forest where Lia and I dwelled...the Sword Saint will stand before me. That is a battle I will not win.\" Puck seemed to lament the disparity in strength when he brought up a certain red-haired hero's other name. Subaru couldn't believe he was hearing those words. Puck, wielding such overpowering might, had bluntly stated that he had no chance of defeating the Sword Saint. And if Puck knew he'd be struck down in the process, why would he sacrifice himself in such a battle? \"Wh-why...?\" \" Lia was the entire reason for my existence.\" Puck responded to Subaru's inquiry. The wind grew even colder, stabbing Subaru's flesh, filling up his eyes, freezing his blood  The end was nigh. \"It is meaningless for me to remain in a world without her. Now that I've lost her, I will not allow the world to move on. For me, everything ended when that girl died.\" When Puck finished speaking, the wind's intensity suddenly spiked. \"How long will it take for a person to die if he's slowly, gradually frozen from the tips of his extremities on up? Have you ever wondered that, Subaru?\" *** \"I'll take that as a yes. I want you to learn the answer.\" Slowly, slowly, the chill consumed more and more of his flesh. His wounds and internal organs were already frozen, so they were exempt as the rest of Subaru's flesh expired from the fingertips up. If pain could truly drive a person mad, his sanity would have been shattered long before. He wanted his mind to be ripped apart, smashed to bits, scattered in all directions. For if not... \" Mist is coming. It seems you've lured quite a nasty one.\" He couldn't hear. Someone was saying something, but he couldn't hear. \"Gluttony's... Ahh, nowadays they call it the White Whale, don't they? Calling it over, letting Lia die, losing your own life... You truly are incorrigible, do you know that?\" He couldn't hear. He couldn't hear. But even though he shouldn't have heard it, he heard the voice. He heard laughter from somewhere. A mocking voice. Cackle, cackle. He knew that laughter. The voice of the man he hated to the point of death. Where is it coming from? With the end near, his consciousness sought an answer to that question. Then he realized it. The incessant cackling was coming from his own throat. Ecstasy began to rule his brain, drowning out his pain. He took his first steps into a spreading world of madness. The way it warped everything around him felt...good. The laughter wouldn't stop. His own laughter was mocking him the one who had let Rem die, who had killed Emilia, and who was dying like a dog himself. Ah yes. He was truly...how would you put it... \" Subaru, you're lazy.\" With a sharp sound, he blacked out. It probably was not only his consciousness, and his life, that had been severed.  It was something more, something that had been barely holding him together, that audibly came apart in that moment. Snap. CHAPTER 5 *** Amid the white world, everything vanished. He couldn't tell if his flesh had dissolved, if it had been smashed to pieces, or if it would remain as an ice sculpture for all eternity. No matter how terrible the end of the body he had left behind, it was all the same to him now. There was only one thing he understood with clarity. Over the course of repeating, repeating, repeating, he'd seen things end cruelly, with the situation growing worse with each repetition, and now, having destroyed with his own hands that which he most wanted to protect, he finally realized it.  No one expected anything of Subaru Natsuki. Not even him. No matter how many times he experienced it, he'd never get used to the feeling of the senses he had lost suddenly come rushing back. He no longer felt frozen to the core, or even cold at all, and he could tell that white world into which he had sunk deeper and deeper was gone. In the blink of an eye, all his dulled senses became clear, and every last thing was just as it had once been. Blood flowed through the limbs that had known so much pain. The agony of his nerves being immersed in ice was no more. The cold stabbing his skin had been peeled away, replaced by dazzling rays that could give him a sunburn. *** \" aa.\" Sounds from hustle and bustle to the left and right intermingled as his dead sense of hearing returned with a vengeance. Blocking out the meaningless noise, Subaru checked the condition of his body. His frozen limbs, his injured spine, and his internal organs that had been turned to sherbet were all functioning without any problems. Everything was back as it should be. Subaru felt relief that the body lost to him was under his control again. And what brought Subaru more tranquility than anything was... \"Why are you staring into space like that, Subaru?\" Behind the counter, Rem tilted her head slightly, gazing at him with concern. He had been abandoned by everything and everyone, had an implacable sense of powerlessness drilled into him, had despaired at the loss and disappointment at what his own actions had wrought, and after dying like a helpless dog, he had returned. \" Rem.\" \"Yes, it is me, your Rem... What might be the matter?\" Rem responded to the call of his voice, slipping away from behind the counter and heading out of the shop. Subaru was rooted to the spot as Rem walked right in front of him, reaching out with her hand and touching him on the cheek. Her brows knit in worry, revealing a tinge of gloom on her noble face. \"I am sorry for not noticing. The crowd has worn you out, yes? I am a failure as a maid to have forgotten my most important duty of all.\" \"Tired. Yeah, that's right... I am.\" As Rem's hand rested on his cheek, he slowly lifted up his hand, pressing it down upon hers. The touch between them made Rem raise her eyebrows in surprise, but Subaru's haggard voice and expression left her at a loss for words. Rem looked like she was trying to say something, but Subaru didn't even look at her; instead, he felt Rem's firm, solid presence against his hand as if clinging to that warmth to keep it from running away. \"I guess all that...falling and getting worn down...was exhausting...\" Yet in spite of all that, the Rem he had surely lost was right there with him at that very moment, so... \"Subaru?\" Subaru resolved that, if nothing else, he would never let go of the girl right before his eyes. He ran rapidly through the crowd, heading down a gently descending slope. He scowled from the dust kicked up by a passing dragon carriage, but Subaru's gaze was aimed straight in front of him. He knew where he was going. His running feet were sure. When he thought back, Subaru had harbored nothing but uncertainty during those repeated days: uncertainty about what he should be like, about what lay in Emilia's heart, about whether his existence held any purpose, about whether he could bring out the best of all possible futures, all amid a vortex of madness. He was an unsure man lost in an uncertain, foreign world. But Subaru, unable to make a single manly step in one direction throughout, advanced with clarity of purpose he had never before known. Finally, he'd come to understand. Now that he'd arrived at that answer, the repeated days had not been in vain. Backed into a mental and physical corner, Subaru truly realized for the first time what he could do, what he must do. \" ru!\" His uncertainty lifted, his gaze was trained squarely on his objective, his legs powerfully thudding along the earth. His body was light. Relieved of the pressure on his heart, Subaru wasn't afraid of anything anymore. \"Please, Subaru, listen to me!\" Pulling his arm forward, he could see the main street at the end of the downward slope. Even in the royal capital, it boasted the greatest width, continuing all the way to the main gate through the stout walls that surrounded the capital. Everyone entering or leaving the royal capital had to pass through that gate. With the announcement of the royal selection, the main street was even busier with people coming and going; at that very moment, it was bustling with the numerous people along it. He cut past the shadow of a building. Abruptly, sun rays slid into his field of vision. Subaru used a hand to shield his eyes from the bright light as he raised his face up, looking at the symbols carved into the gate that read, LUGUNICA, THE ROYAL CAPITAL. One more step, and she and Subaru would be  \"Subaru!\" Having brought him all that way, his feet stopped when he felt a sharp tug on his arm. The unanticipated resistance made Subaru look back. As Rem stood still, her eyes wavered with bewilderment. When Rem freed her hand from his grasp, she seemed to shrink as she pleaded with him. \"What's wrong? What has happened? If you do not explain, I...\" Hearing those words, Subaru accepted that it was right for Rem to harbor misgivings. In her eyes, Subaru's transformation had to look sudden, even unthinkable. It was natural for her to be angry with him for dragging her by the arm all that way without an explanation. \"Ahh, my bad. I was in a bit of a hurry. I have a lot of things to think about. Sorry for cutting corners on explaining.\" \"It troubles me, you know. Even I understand you have many things on your mind, Subaru, but you must speak to me about them... Though I do not mind you being assertive.\" Rem put both hands to her very slightly reddened cheeks as she let out a sigh of relief. Perhaps she had sensed from the tone of Subaru's voice that he had regained his composure and concluded that she'd made too much of his odd behavior over the last little while. I see. Observing Rem's relief, Subaru thought his own lack of consideration was even more pathetic. No doubt Rem, who only knew the Subaru of before, thought that his transformation in the seconds after Return by Death was nothing short of dramatic. The experiences of several days changed Subaru in the span of a single second. Furthermore, on that day, in his own way, Subaru was busy trying to avert his eyes from the gloom in his own heart. He'd put on a disgraceful show at the royal selection conference, had been beaten half to death by Julius at the parade grounds, had created a fatal chasm"}, {"text": "between himself and Emilia and, having been left behind in the royal capital, had lost the purpose for his existence. He'd been idly spending his time at the Crusch residence, sinking deeper into the doldrums as he asked himself what he could do, what he needed to do, without finding any answers. It couldn't be called anything short of ridiculous. Subaru very much thought that now. From Rem's point of view, that uncertainty in Subaru had vanished in a literal blink of an eye. If you couldn't call that a thunderclap out of the blue, what could you call it? \"Sorry for making you worry. I'm all right now. I feel like you've had to see me all pathetic and bent out of shape, but I understand finally.\" \"No, to me, time spent thinking about you is time well spent... You understand finally?\" Subaru was speaking with unclouded eyes. There was a liveliness to Rem's voice as she replied. She couldn't hide her reserved delight at being able to converse with Subaru like that again. Then Subaru smiled shyly and nodded at the question Rem raised. \"I really do feel more than a little sorry for the trouble I caused everyone running around and worrying like that, but I finally know how to put everything in order. Well, no, now that I think about it, I saw it from the start, and people mentioned it to me, too... I'm just bad at giving up.\" \"I think that is a marvelous thing about you, Subaru...\" Subaru smiled weakly at Rem's soft-spoken reply. Then he looked up at the sky. Its height and breadth gently made his chest feel lighter. The world had probably been looking down at Subaru in frustration all along. But with this, that oppressive time would finally come to an end. The answer had been under his nose all along. No matter where Subaru headed, no matter what challenges he recklessly faced, no matter how much he ran around doing stupid things, she'd followed him without a word of complaint. Yes  \"Rem, I've decided.\" She stood close enough for him to reach out and touch as he looked straight into her eyes. Her short blue hair fluttered in the wind. Her pale, clear blue eyes held only Subaru within them. Her petite figure was clad in a modified black-themed apron dress. The overly serious way she carried herself projected her nobility and steadfastness. The vivid floral hair ornament delicately added to the loveliness of her small, refined visage. \"Yes, Subaru.\" Her pink lips formed a small smile. She narrowed her eyes, the benevolence in them piercing right through Subaru. The soft echo of her voice, full of affection, enchanted him; she seemed to be hanging on to his every word. \"First, we'll rent a dragon carriage. With the capital in such an uproar, hiring one seems to be rough, but we'll play dirty if we have to. No intro from Anastasia, so it's best to keep this on the up-and-up if possible.\" They needed a fast land dragon with plenty of endurance; if it was friendly on top of that, great. They'd need to keep running. They needed to travel light, to keep running without pause, day and night. \"A dragon carriage, you say...?\" Rem cocked her head slightly and echoed Subaru. From the confusion welling in her eyes, Subaru's rush to the conclusion meant his explanation had told her little. But he pretended not to notice Rem's natural misgivings and pointed at the huge front gate. \"We'll have to kill some time while we pick out a dragon carriage, so we should go buy some food during the downtime. Ah, I'm no good with old-style rations, though. Plain water's better than those things.\" He'd actually eaten simple rations and preserved foods on field trips and the like back in his old world. The hateful memory had made Subaru brand both as \"no good.\" \"Ah, wait, maybe there's some nice magical power to preserve food here...? We managed to make mayonnaise, so maybe we can experiment and find something good...\" \"Er, Subaru?\" \"Mm, ah, sorry. My thoughts started running in a weird direction. What's wrong?\" Realizing he'd gone off on a tangent, Subaru righted himself and smiled kindly as he looked at Rem. That smile made Rem go briefly silent. Then she lifted her head, seemingly trying to set aside her doubts. \"Er, I'm sorry. I am a poor guesser, so I do not understand what you are trying to do, Subaru. Er, what are...?\" \"Ahh! Right, my bad! Sorry, I didn't realize at all! Er, just now I was completely caught up trying to make plans for stuff we've gotta do. So embarrassing!\" Subaru slapped his knee, grinning in recognition of his mistake. \"It took a whole lot of experiences for me to realize a few things, but the answer was obvious a good while ago.\" A wry smile, a truly wry smile, appeared. He'd tasted bitterness. He'd chewed on his regrets. He'd shed tears over the absurdity and irrationality of it all. He'd been toyed with by a cruel fate. He'd been smeared with the blood of others, dying an absurd number of times. All of it had led to a single answer, one he now keenly understood. \"Rem.\" Calling her name, Subaru slowly stretched a hand toward her. Rem watched his hand, waiting for his next words. Responding to Rem's unspoken request, he put the feelings welling within him into words  \"Let's run away together. As far as we can.\" His defeat at Fate's hands was loud and clear. \"...Huh?\" Rem, unable to grasp the meaning of the words spoken to her, let out only a faint gasp from her throat. Subaru, unsurprised at Rem's reaction, shook his head and said, \"We'll leave the royal capital and head west...that, or north. I've heard that we can't get into the empire down south, so it's one of those two... I'm not good with cold, so personally, I vote for west.\" \"Er, um, excuse...\" \"It'll be a long journey with no clear end, and I don't think we'll have an easy time just 'cause it's a good chance to start over. Besides, in the first place, if we rent a dragon carriage, I can't see us ever getting a chance to hand it back. What should we do about that, huh...? Maybe buy a dragon carriage instead of renting one?\" He'd left procuring dragon carriages to Rem. Subaru didn't know if they had some rental car\u00e2\u20ac\u201clike system in place. He didn't even know where you'd buy one. He figured there had to be some means so that you couldn't just grab one and run, but  \"P-please wait!\" Subaru was in the middle of that thought when Rem urged him to pause. She kept her palms pointed toward Subaru as a rare expression of nervousness came over her. \"Er...what do you mean by 'run'? Subaru, from the way you are speaking right now, you sound as if you are trying to go to a different nation, one that is not Lugunica...\" Rem's gaze wandered as if she half doubted her own words. Then her expression changed to an Ah! look as she clapped her hands together. \"Since it is you we are talking about, you have another incredible idea, don't you? Something that will aid Lady Emilia and Master Roswaal...\" \"Nothin' of the sort, Rem.\" \"Eh...?\" Rem seemed to be clinging to the best possible interpretation of the true intent behind Subaru's words. But right in front of the girl who believed this of him, Subaru decisively repudiated that thought. \"I told you, we'll run away. Even if I stay in the royal capital, I can't do anything. But if I return to the mansion, that won't change the fact that I can't do anything I understand that now.\" His powerlessness, his emptiness, the irrationality of the world these weighed heavily on Subaru. No matter how hard he tried to deny it, the absurd would never leave him. But how light his heart had become, now that he had accepted it. Now, Subaru was free of the troubles he had endured, almost as if they had never existed. \"So run away with me, Rem. Every last person's told me that I can't stay here. I didn't want to accept it, so I kept on desperately denying it, but...ah, that's right. I'm weak. No one's ever told me, 'I need you.'\" He thought he'd been...too full of himself. He'd thought wrong. He'd been mistaken. He'd gotten carried away. Having arrived in another world and, through the power to rewind fate and just the tiniest bit of good fortune, he felt like he'd saved people on two separate occasions, but he'd been wrong. He didn't even possess the power or feelings deserving of being saved by others. \"That's not...!\" \"No one's said it. And I have been told, loud and clear...over and over.\" No one needs the likes of you. The first time around, Subaru had ignored Emilia's wishes and rushed out of the Crusch residence. He didn't listen to Rem's attempt to stop him, courting a massive tragedy as a result. The second time around, he'd been unable to change one iota of the result, everyone had died again, and through fleeing from reality, he'd caused Rem to lose her life; again, no one was saved. The third time around brought about the most despicable of all outcomes. He'd gotten even innocent merchants on the roadside involved, offered Rem up to the White Whale, and had robbed Emilia of her life with his own hands. Puck had slaughtered the Witch Cult, but if, after Subaru's death, Puck had indeed destroyed the world as he had proclaimed, the damage was surely greater than any time that had come before. What about the time unrelated to the power of Return by Death that could not be rewound? When the candidates had assembled at the royal palace, Subaru had dragged down Emilia in epic fashion. Merely by standing at her side, let alone speaking his impertinent words, he'd tarnished her reputation, and his \"duel\" to save face had resulted only in even greater humiliation. As a result, he and Emilia had had a falling out, and he had hurt her heart with his emotional arguments, which had been little more than outbursts of anger. \"...Kha-ha-ha!\" He laughed drily at the realization. Now that he thought back, it was a masterpiece. When he calmly reflected on his own actions, it was painfully clear that he'd been a pestilence. He wanted to lend Emilia his strength? There had to be people only he could save? There was no doubt everyone was done for if he wasn't there? What thoughtlessness. What arrogance. Yes, what hubris. Subaru's actions had only worsened Emilia's standing. Even so, he'd betrayed her enormously generous heart, and his foolish undertakings had only dragged Rem with him to her death. Incredible. Just incredible. No doubt everyone knew that would be the result. That was why everyone had told Subaru, You need to behave, don't do anything, your strength isn't required, don't butt in, just go away. Those around him who had told him so knew a great deal about the future. They were very different from Subaru, who ought to have known that he could do nothing, that he understood nothing, that he was able to comprehend nothing. Maybe they were the ones really doing things over? \"If they aren't, I'm the only one...screwing up like this.\" It was pathetic. There was no one lowlier, more unsalvageable, or more miserable than he. What did you call a man who resigned himself to being laughed at by others and acted so as to make others laugh? You called him a clown. Subaru, who wasn't even aware of the customers pointing at him and laughing, was unworthy of the title.  He was just a simple, irredeemable fool. \"So I've decided to go away. That's best. I"}, {"text": "know that's best. If someone like me tries to do something, it'll just add one more corpse...and if I'm not lucky, a lot more than one.\" Corpses. Corpses. Corpses. Corpses. Corpses. Strangers. Acquaintances. People precious to him. Important people. People who believed in him. People he wanted to think believed in him  Endless corpses. He'd had it. Why did all those things have to happen to him? He'd suffered so much; didn't he deserve some reward? Even Subaru knew that the idea that hard work was always rewarded, that any wish with a clear objective could come true so long as you gave it your all, was nothing but a pipe dream. But despite that, was it so wrong to have but one tiny wish to avoid the worst of all worlds? Subaru had been wrong. That was why the results continued to betray his expectations. \"Let's run away, Rem. You, me...we can't stay here in this country.\" Subaru had resolved to leave it all behind, flip the bird at everything, and run. And having decided to put so many things behind him as he fled, he wanted to take only one with him Rem, the girl standing before him. He couldn't bring himself to abandon everything in its entirety. He was afraid of being alone. He was terrified of solitude. Even in that vast world, that world of incomprehensible darkness, knowing that having nothing so that he would lose nothing was the right answer, Subaru couldn't put aside his fear of being all by himself. As the days repeated themselves, Rem had been the only one who'd stayed with Subaru. She'd been right at his side, watching his disgraceful displays, unsightly words and deeds, and off-the-wall way of living. Subaru thought that made her worthy of one final gamble.  Each of the three times, Subaru had let Rem die. To keep her from dying, he couldn't return to the mansion. Even when he had arrived at the mansion, she had heroically offered up her life along the way, in the end. Nor could he say with certainty that he could save her by keeping her at the royal capital. Even if they were spending their time in peace and quiet here, if Ram conveyed news of the crisis at the mansion, Rem would probably rush out of the city. If it came to that, Subaru wouldn't be able to stop her. And she would meet the same fate. He'd lose her again, and Subaru could clearly see how empty he would be without her. If he seriously wanted to save her, he had to get her out of the kingdom. \"You are saying all this so suddenly, I do not know what to do...\" Rem shook her head a little in the face of Subaru's forceful plea. It wasn't a gesture of rejection. Her expression projected the uncertainty that reigned inside her. Rem couldn't simply accept at face value what Subaru had suddenly said. He had cited far too few facts to make an informed decision. Subaru understood the irrationality of it, but even so, he could speak no further of the circumstances. He no longer knew how much information he could divulge with the Witch's evil hands looming. He felt like he'd brush against the Witch's curse no matter what he talked about. No matter what he did, he felt like it would lead to more sacrifices to the irrationalities of Fate. And if that came to pass, it wouldn't be Subaru who would be sacrificed but people precious to him. ***  It was a stalemate. He was hemmed in on all sides. Fate had shut off every avenue of escape. Therefore, Subaru had no means left to him but that plea. He was earnestly appealing to Rem's conscience, knowing that it was underhanded in every possible way, knowing that he was using the feelings for Subaru that Rem harbored in her heart. \"There's no time. I'm sorry this is so sudden. Really, really I am. I'm sorry from the bottom of my heart... But please choose.\" \"Choose...\" \"Me or everything except for me... Please choose.\" Subaru hated the situation he'd put her in, saying all that and making her suddenly choose based on the little information he'd provided her. But it was also a fact that giving her time to calmly think it over worked against him. He couldn't dismiss the notion that he was using the pressure of her predicament for his own benefit. Only in this situation, giving Rem little time to decide whether to leave Subaru there or not as he pled right before her eyes, did he have a shot at winning this. Or if not \"winning,\" then fulfilling a cherished desire more like hope the selfish hope that Rem, at least, would forgive him for running away. \"Let's get a dragon carriage and head west. Let's leave Lugunica and go all the way west of...Kararagi, was it? Let's buy a little house and live there, just the two of us.\" Rapid-fire, Subaru began sketching his vision of the future. It was an ordinary, tranquil future, one surely divorced from irrationality and cruelty. \"It means using the traveling funds, so I feel bad for Roswaal, but we can just borrow what we need and send the rest back. I'm gonna work hard to help set us up from the start, too... I've never worked at a proper job before, but it'll probably be all right.\" He was a delinquent who had dropped out of high school with only a middle school graduation under his belt. His work experience in this world consisted of nothing but a stint as an apprentice servant. Furthermore, though he didn't like saying it, his current work as a subordinate was little better than that of a child helping out with the chores. It'd probably be hard doing a real job, but he'd find work, come hell or high water. Compared to pain, suffering, and death, it'd be a walk in the park. The more Subaru thought about it, the more his future opened up. Thinking back to how he'd aimed for a single future, spending day after day courting the worst calamities no matter how hard he tried, it was a happy thing indeed. \"Even if it's tough, if you're there, I know I'll try hard. Even if I'm tired, just the thought of you waiting for me with a smile when I come home...!\" Even if every last person he left behind blamed him for running away, he figured he could take it if Rem was at his side. So please, I'm begging you, like I've never begged for anything before  \"Please choose me...!\" Subaru offered his hand to petition her, almost like he was trying to drag a yes out of her. \"If you pick me, I'll give you everything I have. Every part of my life will be yours. I'll spend my life for you. I'll live only for you...so please.\" Even with Rem standing right in front of him, he couldn't look at her face. He didn't have the courage to see what kind of expression she was making. Courage didn't suit him, not in the tiniest bit. If he did, surely everything would have worked out differently. Cowardly, underhanded, and pathetic as he was, he had nothing left. \"Run away with me... Live with me, please...!\" At least let me keep you from dying, he earnestly pled from the bottom of his heart. Putting all his feelings into his parched voice, Subaru felt his heart beat quickly, his breathing grow ragged. Exhaustion from the fierce mental pummeling Subaru had received struck him with fatigue, as if he'd sprinted with all his strength. Rem made no reply. The sounds of the crowd were distant now. It never entered his mind to wonder what other people might think of two people having a conversation like this in public. Rem was everything to him. To Subaru, in that moment, her existence was everything to him. Unable to endure the silence, Subaru opened his firmly closed eyes to peek at Rem's expression as she stood before him, all the while seized by the fear that it might reveal her answer. *** In silence, Rem pursed her lips, not realizing he was looking at her. Her expression struggled to remain neutral, but her brow and the corners of her eyes were faintly strained in a way she would not normally permit. Subaru could tell that a vortex of uncertainty, bewilderment, and hesitation swirled within her. The various things Subaru had just said were greatly, powerfully, fiercely shaking her heart. The long battle felt like an eternity. A sense of unease burned Subaru's back. But finally, that time came to an end. \" Subaru.\" Gently, she called his name with a voice that was full of affection. The instant Subaru heard the tone, the echo of her voice, he was certain his hopes had been answered. Rem had accepted Subaru. She'd forgiven Subaru for being weak. She'd embraced the human being called Subaru Natsuki and everything that came with him. A flood of emotions welled within him. He felt like he'd finally been rewarded. Then Subaru lifted his face  \"I cannot run away with you, Subaru.\" With a very sad face, Rem dashed his hopes. \"After all...\" *** \"When we talk about the future, we need to smile, don't we?\" With an expression resembling a tearful smile, Rem spoke the words that had once come from Subaru's own mouth. He'd gambled, and he'd lost. When Rem threw his own words back at him with a tearful smile, Subaru's inner self was exhausted, overwhelmed by a feeling that he'd thrown everything into one match and lost. Subaru had trusted no, hoped that Rem, with her strong dependence on him, just might say yes. That maybe, just maybe, even as he cast everything aside, she might choose him. It was a fleeting dream, a conceited thought. He should have understood that from the start. If his inability to find any worth in himself was the whole reason he'd chosen to run away, what business did he have expecting that? \"Right now...I might not be smiling, but...I mean, if we actually did it I'm sure I'd be smiling... Yeah, that's right. So, ah...\" Even though the matter had already been settled, unconvincing arguments poured out of Subaru's mouth in an attempt to smooth things over. He couldn't think of an effective rebuttal to Rem's words. But if he didn't say something, his desires were over then and there. He might still have a chance to change her mind as long as they kept talking though that might have been an exercise in wishful thinking. As Subaru clung to that hope, Rem watched him, a faint smile coming over her as she murmured, \"...I have...thought of it as well.\" She raised her shapely face up ever so slightly. \"After arriving in Kararagi, first we would rent a room at an inn. Though a house is the foundation for building a life, we could not be reckless with the money at our disposal. First, we would need a stable income.\" Rem lifted a finger up as she added to the image of the future Subaru had proposed earlier. \"Fortunately, I received a proper education due to Master Roswaal's good judgment. Even in Kararagi, I believe that finding employment would be a simple matter for me. As for Subaru...you would probably need to settle for physical labor, but perhaps you could work in close proximity to me.\" With a little giggle, Rem made light of Subaru's inability to do anything. It was no doubt an accurate assessment of Subaru's worth, as he was still largely ignorant of the culture and technology in that world. \"Once our income is stable, we would look for a slightly better place to stay. During that time, you would need to study properly for future employment... It would take about a year before you could do real"}, {"text": "work, maybe. You can become independent even faster, but only through your own efforts, Subaru.\" With that, Rem laid out an unexpectedly brutal studying regimen. When she had instructed him in Ram's place, her method of teaching was gentle, but her criticisms were merciless. He might have grumbled along the way, but he was rather fond of her strictness. \"With both of us working, we could save some money... Perhaps enough to eventually buy a house. Maybe a store of some sort would be better. Kararagi is a land overflowing with commerce, so there will surely be a way to profit from your eccentric ideas, Subaru.\" With an amused clap of her hands, Rem laid out a future that sounded too good to be true. Subaru, too, felt like he could clearly picture the scene playing out in Rem's head. As usual, Subaru would cause her lots of trouble, and she would indulge him. Of course he would feel responsible for that, so he'd end up working hard with plenty of sweat rolling off his brow for sure. That would be nice. An honest living, for her sake and hers alone how happy a life would that be? \"As our work progresses...ah, this is embarrassing, but maybe...children? As half-demon and half-human, they would most likely be very rambunctious. Boy or girl, twins or triplets, they are sure to be very cute children, too.\" Rem's cheeks reddened as she shyly let her thoughts run a little further ahead. She counted on her fingers one by one, and just as the number reached a terrifying ten, she continued. \"It would not be all fun, and I do not think it would all go as well as I imagine. Perhaps we would have no sons and only daughters, and you might not be able to feel proud of your family.\" \"...Rem.\" \"But, ah, even when the children get big enough to be mean to you, I will always be on your side, Subaru. We would be famous with the locals as the always happily married couple and slowly spend our days together, growing old together...\" \"...Rem!\" \"Subaru, I am sorry to say this, but if possible, I would ask you to please let me pass away before you. I would like to lie upon a bed with you holding my hand, surrounded by our children and grandchildren, while I say, 'I was happy,' and you all would send me off \" He couldn't hold up his head. The future Rem was portraying with her words was quietly, gently wounding Subaru's heart. \"That would be a...happy, happy way to end my life.\" \"If you've...!\" Listening to the bittersweet future Rem had refused was like having an irrepressible itch deep inside his chest that made him want to scratch himself raw. By the time Subaru finished listening, there was nothing left filling his heart but a pathetic, indescribable storm of emotion. His throat trembled. Something heavy sank deep inside his lungs. His head hurt. He shook his head to try and ignore the relentless heat filling the depths of his eyes. \"If you've...thought it through...!\" Then she could run away with Subaru as far as their feet could take them  \"Subaru, if you could smile while wishing for that future...I truly believe I could be happy after a life like that.\" But filled with a sadness that exceeded even Subaru's, the smiling girl did not answer his plea. Dumbfounded, Subaru stared at that small, painful smile when he finally understood. No matter how much he clung to hope, he could not get Rem to change her mind. He had truly, utterly lost the gamble, and he had no recourse. *** A sense of fatigue assailed him, as if he were carrying something very heavy on his shoulders. He was so disheartened that he could collapse on the spot. Subaru barely managed to avoid doing so, covering his face with his hands as he despaired. Rem had refused to go with him. That meant he was out of ways to save her. If he stayed by her side to protect her, all that awaited her upon their return to the mansion was a cruel future an unchangeable tragedy and Fate's pitiless dead end. Then perhaps it would be best to leave Rem behind and run away by himself...? If he did so, he could not escape loneliness, but he could at least flee from the despair in front of him. Of course, the fate of the people in and around the mansion would not change whether or not he was present. Subaru would simply be covering his eyes and ears, pretending not to know, spared from seeing reality for himself. In that moment, Subaru was so desperate for something to cling to that this paltry salvation would do. But even if he accepted that himself, would there be any salvation at all? Whether Subaru was challenging his foes, fleeing into madness, or putting everything on the line, Fate had not cut him the slightest slack. What, then, could he do ? \"Subaru, that you thought of running away with me...that you thought of living your life with me...thrills me to the bottom of my heart. But it will not do.\" Even having spurned the hand Subaru had offered, Rem's cheeks were still flush from the feelings swirling within her. She herself knew that they could flee, flee, flee and, eventually, make that fantasy a reality. She craved it. She'd stated firmly that the tale was a happy one and yet, Rem had rejected it, because  \"I mean, if we did run away right now...I am certain that I would be leaving behind the Subaru I love most.\" *** What was Rem saying? He didn't get it. Trembling, Subaru lifted up his face and looked at her with blank eyes. Rem was giving him a small, sad smile, but even so, her eyes projected her firm sentiments. Subaru felt overwhelmed by her gaze as she continued. \"Subaru. Please tell me what has happened.\" He shook his head. He could not. If he did that, Rem would die. \"If you cannot talk about it, then please trust me. I will manage somehow.\" He shook his head. He could not. If he left it at that, Rem would die. \"...But at the very least, can we go back now? If you settle down and think about it more calmly, you might be able to find a different answer.\" He shook his head. He could not. If he waited, everyone would die. \"I've...worried already. I've thought already. I've suffered already... That's why I gave up.\" No one believed Subaru. No one expected anything from him. If he told anyone he'd do something, they'd spoon-feed him his own foolishness. He'd ignored that, brushed it off, seen his own many stupidities, and thus arrived at his current state. To Subaru, that time, that wear and tear on his heart, was  \" It is easy to give up. However.\" Suddenly, Rem voiced a rebuttal to Subaru's words of weakness.  It is easy to give up. The instant the words entered his ears, a jolt of comprehension rushed through Subaru's whole body. It was as if a bolt of lightning had struck the crown of his head. Something he couldn't put into words exploded inside his chest, and every pore of his body felt like he'd been set on fire. \"It's easy...to give up...?\" \"Subaru?\" \"Don't...tell me that...!\" Subaru clenched his teeth, rasping with resentment at a perplexed Rem. It's easy to give up? That's a bad joke. You think it's a simple thing to abandon your goal and run away empty-handed? Like hell it is...! \"There's no way it's easy to give up...!!\" Subaru's throat trembled from the unbearably dark emotions exploding within him. Surprised by Subaru's angry outburst, Rem seemed to shrink. Even pedestrians traveling along the royal capital's main street were wondering what was up as they shifted their eyes to the enraged Subaru. Heedless of the offended gazes, Subaru glared only at Rem, standing before him. \"I didn't do anything, I didn't think of anything, I abandoned everything without a care, threw it all away just like that, and gave up is that what you think?!\" The decision was killing him. He'd cried tears of blood and yelled enough to rip his throat apart, and still he had gained nothing. Knowing that, he had made his decision. Giving up on everything. That was the only conclusion he could put into words, but just how many sacrifices had to be made for him to reach that conclusion? He wouldn't let anyone diminish that. \"Giving up wasn't easy at all...! Thinking you can fight, that you can manage somehow, that's way easier...! But I couldn't manage somehow! I had no choice! All the paths were blocked except for giving up...!\" Fate was mocking Subaru, for every path available to him ended in a dead end. No matter how much he fought, how much he stood tall, plotted, schemed, begged, or even ran away  It was no longer possible for him to have it all. Even the people he wanted to save had slapped his hand away. He was supposed to keep trying, then? Who could tell Subaru that it was too soon to give up? If someone had been through the same experience, the same suffering, the same hell, would that person be able to say such a thing? \"If I could do anything...I'd...I'd...!\" He truly wanted to do something. To help people, to save people, to keep them from being stolen away. But he couldn't. The world wouldn't let him. Everything during those repeated days had come back around to bite him again. That's why Subaru had  \"Subaru.\" As Subaru hung his head, drained of emotion, his voice petering out, Rem called to him. Subaru's ears were ringing heavily. The pathetic revelation of his unsightly true feelings left him unable to even look her in the face. And to that miserable, unsalvageable, hopeless man who had challenged Fate and lost, she said, \"It is easy to give up.\" *** \"However...\" Rem repeated once more the phrase that had sent Subaru into a rage just before. Sensing something almost incomprehensible in her words, Subaru lifted his face, dumbfounded. Why won't she understand? Why, after all this, couldn't she comprehend Subaru's anguish? The gloom, the dissatisfaction, the wounds on what seemed like every corner inside his heart  \" It does not suit you, Subaru.\" It all vanished as Rem stared directly into Subaru's black eyes and spoke. Rem stated those words as if she truly believed them, as if they represented some kind of absolute truth. \"I do not understand what painful thoughts, what knowledge is making you suffer, Subaru. I believe I cannot belittle it by saying that I understand.\" *** \"But even so, there is one thing that even I recognize.\" *** \"And that is, you are not someone who can give up on things before they're done, Subaru.\" To the man lost in sorrow before her, who'd cast away everything, who had said he was giving up but a moment before, Rem said such a thing without shame, without fear, without hesitation. \"I know this.\" *** \"When it is a future you want, you smile when you talk about it, Subaru.\" To the man who had spoken to her of running away to a world that was no doubt warm, peaceful, and tranquil, with guilt and regret on his face, Rem spoke plainly, without any disappointment. \"I know this.\" *** \"I know that you are a man who does not give up on the future, Subaru.\" This, Rem declared to a young man hanging his head, seemingly gritting his teeth. There was only sincerity in her eyes. They conveyed nothing but trust to him. Subaru was overwhelmed by that powerful, intense light. After all, Rem was wrong about him. So wrong, this was a veritable farce. Her statements valued the human being called Subaru far too highly. He"}, {"text": "didn't know how proud and noble the Subaru in her eyes must have been. But the real Subaru was nothing so fine a person as that. Spouting weakness, crushed from adversity, lamenting his own smallness and pathetic misery, defeated and beaten so hard that he was running away that was Subaru Natsuki. \"You're wro... I'm not that kind of person... I'm...\" \"I am not mistaken. Lady Emilia, Sister, Master Roswaal, Miss Beatrice, and everyone else... I know you have not given up on them, Subaru.\" She refuted him in a strong tone. But she was wrong. He'd thrown away all of them. \"I gave up. I gave up! I can't take them with me...my hands are too small, everything falls out of them, then I have nothing left...!\" \"No, that is not so. Subaru, you are \" Just how far, how far, would Rem go in denying that Subaru had given up? Why, after he had suffered such humiliation, did she so deny that he was in the wrong? Just what did she see in Subaru? It was so disturbing that he couldn't take it anymore.  Just what is it you're trying to say? \" What! Do you! Think you know about me?!\" He vented the flames smoldering inside his chest in an incandescent rage. Subaru shouted angrily, slamming a fist into the wall right beside him. With a hard sound, his knuckles broke; when he waved his fist around, blood splattered onto the wall. \"This is all I am! I have high hopes even though I'm powerless; I have all these dreams even though I'm dumb; I keep trying even though I can't do anything...!\" Everyone had at least one thing they could do right. And everyone pushed that one thing as far as they could to find a place suited to them.  But Subaru Natsuki didn't even have that. The lofty heights he yearned for were far above his station. \"I...! I hate myself!!\" Faced with the truth that he'd smiled frivolously in an attempt to hide, making light of things as he kept running from them, never facing them seriously for the first time, Subaru admitted what he really felt. More than anyone, Subaru Natsuki hated himself. \"I'm always nothing but talk! I'm full of myself even though I can't do anything! I'm worse than useless, but I'm still a world-class complainer! Who the hell do I think I am?! How dare I live such a shameful life this long?! Right?!\" Because he was unable to raise himself higher, he'd tried to bring others down. Because he wouldn't admit he was inferior to others, he tried to find fault in everyone else to protect his banal, paper-thin pride. \"I'm empty. I've got nothing inside me. Of course I am... Yeah, it's obvious. There's no question! Until I came here, until I met all of you, do you know what I was doing?!\" Before he'd fallen into another world. What was he doing in his former world except living out his idle, boring, ordinary, unchanging days one at a time ? \" I...wasn't doing anything.\" He'd wallowed in idleness, slumbered in indolence, spent his days far removed from studying and effort. It wasn't that he'd given up on himself but rather, he'd held on to the convenient idea that if the time came, he could just roll up his sleeves and do it. \"I didn't do anything... I didn't do one little thing! With all that time to do it! With all that freedom! I should have done lots of stuff, but I didn't do any of it! And this is the result! The result is the man I am now!\" If he'd properly used the time he had, even Subaru would surely have achieved something. But in reality, he had grandly squandered and wasted the time allotted to him, and as a result, he had gained nothing, and nothing had come from it. That was why, now that he actually wanted from the bottom of his heart to accomplish something, he lacked the strength, intelligence, and skill to achieve any of it. \"I'm powerless, talentless, and all of it, all of it, is because of my rotten personality...! I want to achieve something when I haven't done anything before conceited doesn't even begin to describe it... I was lazy and imposed on other people; I wasted my whole life away; I killed you.\" He was unsalvageable. He was hopeless. Even if he'd redone it all from birth, he'd probably go down the exact same path, waste his time in the exact same way, arrive there with the same feelings, and experience the same regrets. His rotten personality wouldn't change. A shallow human nature was the only one suited to the human being called Subaru Natsuki. That fact would never change. \"That's right, my personality hasn't... I thought I could live here, but not a single thing's changed about me. That old man saw right through me, didn't he?\" When he'd remained in the royal capital, Wilhelm had instructed him in the sword at the Crusch residence. Watching Subaru be knocked down time and time again, all beat up while challenging him over and over, the old man had nonetheless seen through it all. During those days of training, the old man had spoken of those who wield the sword, but he had shaken his head and said, \"There is little point lecturing someone about what it takes to become stronger when he has already abandoned the choice to do so.\" At the time, Subaru hadn't understood what Wilhelm was saying, so he'd denied the old man's words even though he knew deep down exactly what they meant. \"It's not like I really thought I'd get stronger or I'd be able to do anything... I just went through the motions...I was just a poser trying to justify myself...\" Emilia had abandoned him after he'd put on a more miserable display than any other at the royal selection site. Unable to bear being viewed as such by those around him, he tried to protect himself by adopting the mantle of a \"hard worker\" where those gazes could see. His behavior was the simple product of his search for a suitable excuse. I'm changing myself. He should have known that the thought was itself proof that nothing had changed. \"I wanted to say, I couldn't help it! I wanted other people to say it couldn't be helped! That's all it was! That's the only reason I pretended to put myself on the line like that! Even when you were helping me study, I was just putting on a show to cover up the embarrassment! I'm a small, underhanded, filthy guy down to the bone, always worrying about what other people think of me, and none of that's ever changed...!\" His bluffs had been stripped away, and the hubris underneath had crumbled. Once his thin shell was shattered, his vainglorious heart, not wanting to be thought of badly by others, and his ego, asserting that he wasn't wrong, poured out. \"...Even I knew. I understood all of it was my fault, really.\" If he could yell that it was somebody else's fault, that there was some reason for it, it was easier. He wouldn't need to look at who he truly was. If he kept his facade intact, he'd never have to look at what was on the inside. He wouldn't have to look at his ugly self. He wouldn't have others see it. Though he was weak, selfish, and all talk, he wished to be loved nonetheless. \"I'm the worst... I I hate me.\" Subaru was short of breath after venting all the gloomy darkness tearing him up inside. He'd let himself have it with all the filthy, corrupt things in him since coming to that other world no, those dark things had been in him long before in his old world. His nature as a human made even him want to puke. Even though he'd spewed it all out, the deep feelings in his chest only soured further. Weren't you supposed to feel a little better after you vented something pent up inside? On top of not feeling the slightest bit better, he realized with crystal clarity just how foolish he was. The shame seething inside him made him want to die then and there. And his weakness in exposing so much filth, thinking of nothing beyond his own concerns, was the stupidest thing of all. With Rem standing right there, still believing in him, Subaru had tried to sully and stain the beautiful picture in front of her sparkling eyes, exposing it as a fraud. And now, after all that, he was more concerned with his own standing than with her. That was it in a nutshell. Truly accepting and recognizing the corrupt, flawed parts of himself that he hated didn't mean things were going to instantly improve. If anything, the depth and darkness of the chasm within him underlined just how incorrigible he was, robbing him even of his will to live. The true character of Subaru Natsuki did not merit pity. As Subaru sank to the lowest depths of his filthy ego, still, the blue-haired girl  \"I know this.\" *** \"I know that Subaru is someone with the courage to reach out, even with impenetrable darkness all around him.\"  Even then, Rem would not forsake him. Her absolute love, her inviolate trust, chafed upon Subaru like nothing before. Having berated himself so much, having divulged so much of the ugliness in his heart, having confessed that he was a complete fraud, an unsalvageable piece of garbage   Why did she look at Subaru with such affectionate eyes? \"I love it when you stroke my head, Subaru. I feel connected to you when your hand passes through my hair.\" With Subaru fallen into silence, Rem began to express something unexpected in a soft, quiet voice. \"I love your voice, Subaru. I feel my heart getting warmer from every single word. I love your eyes, Subaru. They're usually quite sharp, but I like how they become soft when you're being kind to someone.\" Subaru said nothing as Rem continued, showering him with her words. \"I love your fingers, Subaru. They're very pretty for a boy's, but when they hold my hand, I always think to myself, 'They really are a boy's fingers.' They are slender and strong. I love how you walk, Subaru. When someone is beside you, you always check once in a while to make sure you really are side by side. I love that you walk that way.\" His heart was screaming. While Rem wove those words, Subaru's chest cried out. \"...Stop it.\" \"I love your face when you sleep, Subaru. You're as defenseless as a baby. Your eyelashes are just a little bit long. Your cheeks are so gentle when I touch them, and even if I touch your lips to tease you, you don't notice... I love it so much that it makes my chest hurt.\" \"Why...?\" Why was she still talking? Why was she still able to toss out such compliments at Subaru, the useless fool that he was? \"You said that you hated yourself, Subaru, so I wanted you to know that you have so much good in you.\" \"None of that is real...!\" Rem was looking at a convenient illusion. The real Subaru wasn't that kind of person. The real him was filthier than that. His genuine self was ugly, the exact opposite of the one she viewed so favorably. \"You just don't understand! I know more about myself than anyone else!\" \"You only know about you, Subaru! How much do you know about the Subaru I see?!\" Reflexively, Subaru raised his voice, but Rem's shout was even louder than his own. Subaru was shocked. It was the first time she'd raised her voice since they'd arrived here. The shock made his breath catch in his throat. At long last, he realized that Rem's eyes, dutifully maintaining their neutral expression, had"}, {"text": "large teardrops welling in them. Of course hearing Subaru's confession had hurt her. Of course listening to his extreme masochism had brought pain to her kind heart. Yet even so, she believed in Subaru. Rem knew all the horrible things within him that he had told her about, and she believed in Subaru despite them. \"Why do you...? So much... I'm weak, puny... I'm running away...! Even now, I'm running away just like I did before, so why...?\" Why do you believe in a pathetic, unreliable guy drowning in his weakness like me...? If I can't believe in myself, how can you...? \" Because you're my hero.\" When those words of unconditional, infinite trust hit him, Subaru's heart quietly trembled. No matter what awful conditions piled atop one another, no matter what flaws he might have, that one sentence was infused with the hope that he would come running and chase evil away. And far too late, finally Subaru realized it. He was wrong. He'd thought wrong. He had been so, so wrong. He'd thought that she, Rem, was the only one who'd allow Subaru to fall as far as he needed to, that no matter how weak, pathetic, and humiliated he was, she'd forgive him and he'd made a mistake. It had been an error, a lethal degree of foolishness.  Rem was the one, the only one, who would never allow Subaru to give in. Everyone had told Subaru that he didn't have to do anything, that he should just behave himself. They had said that they expected nothing from him and that his actions were futile.  But it was Rem who would not permit Subaru to be weak. She was the only one who'd kept saying, Stand up. Don't give up. Save everyone. No one expected anything from Subaru. But she had refused to abandon him, even when he had abandoned himself; nor would she accept his giving up. Such was the \"spell\" that Subaru Natsuki had cast upon her. \"In that gloomy forest, a world where I had lost myself, a world where I could only lash out without thinking, you came and saved me.\" *** \"When I woke and was unable to move, when Sister was exhausted from having used too much magic, you stood up and faced the demon beasts as a decoy so that we could escape.\" *** \"You had no chance of winning, and your life was truly in danger, but even so, you survived...and when you returned to my arms, you were warm.\" *** \"When you woke up, you smiled and said the words I most wanted to hear, at the time I most wanted to hear them, and you were the person I most wanted to hear them from.\" One by one, she enumerated the \"spell\" that Subaru had cast upon her. Those spells had bound her deeply kind heart with the chains called trust, and these firmly bound her until that very moment. \"On that fiery night when I lost everything except Sister, time stopped for me, never to move again.\" Rem gazed squarely at Subaru as she spoke of a fragment of her terrible past. Her gaze was infused with intimacy that had not wavered to even the slightest degree. \"My heart had stopped, frozen in time, but you softly melted it and gently made it move again. Do you know how much you saved me in that instant, on that morning? You can't possibly know how happy I was, Subaru.\" \"That's why,\" said Rem, placing a hand on her chest as she continued. \" I believe in you. No matter how much you might suffer, no matter how much things seem to be going against you, even if no one else in the whole world believes in you, even if you cannot believe in yourself I believe in you, Subaru.\" As Rem spoke, she took a step forward, closing the distance. They were close enough to touch. Subaru, hanging his head, did not move as Rem reached out with both arms, wrapping them around his neck. Even though there was very little strength in the pull, the unresisting Subaru could not avoid her embrace. Though Subaru was taller, Rem held his head to her chest, and he heard her voice from directly above as she said, \"The Subaru who saved me is a real hero.\" From the slippery sensation on his forehead, he knew she had brushed it with her lips. Heat spread from where she'd touched him. Incomprehensible emotions welled up deep inside Subaru's chest. Blood flowed through his unmoving limbs. The static filling his skull began to clear  \"No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't save anyone.\" \"I'm here. The Rem you saved is right here, Subaru.\" \"I'm empty. There's nothing inside me. No one'll listen to me.\" \"I'm here. If they are Subaru's words, I want to hear whatever they might be.\" \"No one expects anything from me. No one trusts me... I...hate myself.\" \"I love you, Subaru.\" The hand that touched his cheek was hot. Her eyes, gazing at Subaru from up close, were moist. That look, everything about her, made him accept that she was truly sincere. \"You're...fine with a guy like me...?\" He'd tried over and over, redone over and over, and he had nothing to show for it. Everyone died. His hand never reached them. He'd let everyone die. His thoughts were inadequate. He was empty, powerless, dumb, late to act, a blockhead dragged around by his desire to protect someone. Was he really good enough for her? \"I'm fine with you, Subaru.\" *** \"I don't want it to be anyone else.\" If he, who could not believe in himself, had someone who had faith in him...could Subaru Natsuki fight?  He didn't have to give up on fighting Fate? \"If you really are that empty, if you have nothing, if you cannot forgive yourself let's start over, here and now.\" \"Begin wh...?\" \"Just like how you made time move again for me, we can make the time that stopped for you move again, right now.\" He had taken his regret and shame at his past of achieving nothing, his days of doing nothing, his hours spent in waste and idleness, and tried to give up. Rem smiled at this Subaru, stating: \"Let us start over from here, from step one... No, from zero!\" *** \"If you find it difficult to walk alone, I shall support you. Let us divide the load and support each other as we walk. You said that to me on that morning, yes?\" So let's laugh, hug each other, and talk about tomorrow, he had said. Leaning on each other, supporting each other as they walked, he had said. \"Please show me the best in you, Subaru.\" He'd shown her nothing but the worst in him for the longest while. After all, it was Subaru himself who had cast the indelible \"spell\" upon her. It was his duty to take responsibility and see it through. \"...Rem.\" \"Yes?\" When he called her name, she quietly responded. He lifted his face. He looked straight ahead. He gazed into Rem's eyes. Softly, gently, they awaited the reply from Subaru's lips. So he wanted to be the Subaru Natsuki she loved so much. \" I...like Emilia.\" \" Yes.\" Seemingly knowing all along, Rem smiled and nodded at Subaru's confession. He knew full well how cruel he was being to that smile, that gentleness, as he continued, \"I want to see Emilia's smile. I want to be in her future as a help to her. Even if she told me I'm in the way, not to come back... I want to be by her side.\" Now that he'd accepted Rem's feelings, he again voiced the feeling that remained unchanged inside him. But the way he felt it was different from before. \"The idea that she'd put up with anything from me just because I liked her...was pretty arrogant, huh?\" *** \"Even if she doesn't get it right now, that's fine. Right now, I want to save Emilia. If there's a future of pain and suffering coming for her, I want to bring her to a future where everyone can smile.\" So he offered his hand to Rem, right at his side, and asked, \"Will you...help me?\" He knew it was an underhanded way to respond to the feelings she had offered to him. He knew he was using her emotions. But it was that Subaru, the Subaru who would not give up on the future of those precious to him, whom she loved. \"I can't do anything by myself. I come up short in everything. I don't have the confidence to just walk straight ahead. I'm so weak, fragile, and puny, so... Will you lend me a hand? Help keep me on the straight and narrow when I take a wrong turn?\" \"You are a terrible person, Subaru. Right after you dump a girl, you ask such a thing?\" \"Hey, it's pretty tough for me to ask someone who turned down a once-in-a-lifetime proposal of mine, you know?\" Rem was unable to hold back a little sigh at Subaru's weak chuckle. They smiled at each other for a while. Then Rem straightened up, elegantly grasped the hem of her skirt, and in a display of perfect courtesy, she said, \"If this will bring a future where Subaru, my hero, can smile, then I humbly accept.\" \"Yeah, you just watch. You'll have a front-row seat.\" Rem took the hand Subaru had offered as they exchanged their vows. She let out a small \"Ah\" as Subaru drew her close, burying her petite body in his chest. He was grateful that there existed a girl so soft, so warm, and who liked him so much. \" The man you fell in love with is gonna be the coolest hero there ever was!\" It was hot within her breast. As Subaru embraced Rem, she buried her face in his chest, hiding her expression. Her breathing was hot. Her forehead and cheeks were hot as she rubbed them against him. But the tears flowing from her eyes were probably the hottest of all.  Even then, Subaru could not like himself. He still hated himself. But a girl had told Subaru she liked him. If there was a girl who could like him, just as he was...  Emilia was watching. Rem was watching. He could not yield. *** The tale of Subaru Natsuki would begin anew. His life in another world would start over.  From zero. CHAPTER 6 *** The room was silent but filled with a strained sense of tension. Feeling that tension on his skin, Subaru moistened his parched lips with his tongue, grateful that arrangements for the first step of the scenario were in place. To Subaru, each and every face now present was absolutely indispensable. After all, he had no strength of his own. Lacking ability and manpower, all he could do by himself was to die in vain as he had done to that point. \"Now I can finally understand why you have gathered us here and delayed my supper.\" Crusch Karsten, sitting on the sofa with her hands crossed atop her knees, broke the silence, murmuring with a look of understanding on her gallant face. \"Reawwy? To be honest, Ferri still has some doubts, meow. I mean, how does such a clumsy boy get that look in his eyes all of a sudden?\" With an expression as casual as his tone, Ferris kept his guard up as he gazed at Subaru. He was brimming with a willingness to defend his lord from any danger. *** In contrast to Ferris, Wilhelm kept his silence as he sat to Crusch's left. Wearing his sword on his hip, the aged swordsman closed his eyes, with only his refined martial spirit hovering about him. There was no trace remaining of the warmth with which he had greeted them upon their return from the lower city. Now, he was wholly immersed in his role"}, {"text": "as a man wielding his sword for his master, Crusch, rather than for himself. Subaru was meeting Crusch and her retainers in the reception room of her residence, a place of which Subaru had few good memories. Twice in the past, he had endured bitter hardships there. He was meeting with Crusch, Ferris, and Wilhelm. That much was the same as before. But there was something different this time. \"It feels somewhat uncomfortable to be back so soon after my first visit. I fully expect that Mr. Natsuki will say something to sweep away such misgivings.\" The blond man of delicate features, defined by his comical beard, commented with a chuckle. This was Russel Fellow, a representative of the Merchant's Guild who possessed great influence in the royal capital. Subaru lightheartedly slumped a little at Russel's apparent diversion. \"Rem's calling one more person over right now, so please wait just a little longer. It isn't guaranteed my guest is coming but...it's a good bet.\" \"I await a prompt arrival. Incidentally, may I inquire as to your evidence for this 'good bet'?\" Russel didn't even blink in the face of Subaru's presumptuous statement. Subaru's lips twisted as he faced off against a real merchant with a head, mouth, and tongue superior to his own. \"It's a simple story. The person I invited is sensitive to the smell of money, or so I heard them say personally. If that's true, there's no doubt. That was true for you as well, wasn't it, Russel?\" \"My, my, you certainly have me there.\" Russel put a hand to his forehead, seemingly indicating that Subaru had scored a point on him. Of course, even Subaru wasn't blithe enough to take the gesture at face value. He was well aware of the danger posed by the narrow tightrope he planned to walk. The rope was just about set to be tied on both ends. The crossing was yet to come. Subaru would do it, supported by the power of borrowed courage. A few minutes later, the door opened and a lone girl Rem appeared. \"I am sorry to have kept you all waiting.\" \"That's okay!\" Subaru brought up his right thumb with a wink as she walked to his side and leaned her face close to his ear. \"She said that she would be slightly delayed but that she would definitely come.\" \" That so. All right, good work, Rem.\" With that, preparations for Subaru's tightrope performance were complete. Before arriving at the negotiating table, he'd prepared the argument he would use to move the deal in the direction he desired. Subaru's memories and experiences in this new world had led him to a single answer. \"Apparently, the last participant will arrive slightly late, but all the actors will be on the stage. No point waiting any further should we start?\" Subaru's statement brought a change in the air and various reactions from others in the room. Crusch made a thin smile; Ferris strongly pursed his lips. Wilhelm maintained his silence, his expression unchanging even then. Russel slowly sank into his chair. Seeing their reactions, Subaru took a deep breath and calmed his emotions. He could feel his own heart pounding rapidly. His blood circulated throughout his body. The deep anxiety simultaneously residing in his head made everything before his eyes seem to dim. But Rem, right beside Subaru, gently touched his sleeve in an effort to put him at ease. \"Subaru.\" She wasn't holding his hand, nor was she asserting her own existence. That little act of consideration was very Rem-like. The sense of relief enveloping him was as if ten thousand cavalry were riding to his aid. Rem was watching. He could not disappoint. \" Okie.\" Subaru hid his fears behind an impetuous smile and challenged the first wall. He needed to thread the eye of a needle, both to get to a Happy End and to take one step closer to becoming a hero for the sake of the girl who believed in him, the girl who'd told him she liked him. Just as Subaru lifted his spirits and faced forward, Crusch raised a finger and spoke. \"Subaru Natsuki, there is something I wish to confirm I would hear, from your own lips, the purpose of this gathering.\" As she sat, she raised a hand and rested her chin against it as her sagacious gaze landed on Subaru. Even though she knew full well the answer to her question, her posture showed no sign of softness that would allow Subaru to say so. Now that he had failed time and time again, he understood.  The game was on before he had even spoken a single word. \"Of course, what I want is \" So Subaru made a grandiose gesture, smiling powerfully to keep himself from being cowed by Crusch's rapier-like gaze and repeating his earlier failures. \"A negotiation so that the Emilia camp and the Crusch camp can become allies on equal terms.\" He thus began to challenge the first of many obstacles standing in his way. The exchange with Rem along Main Street had made Subaru decide to restart in a true sense. This was his sincere answer to Rem, who'd told Subaru she believed in him even after he'd bared everything inside his heart. Thanks to that, he gained a clear awareness of what he had to do. \"There's way too many walls I have to climb over to get there, huh...?\" The sheer number of the obstacles standing in their way didn't change the fact that they were one move away from checkmate. Subaru scratched his head as if he was trying to put his thoughts in order. \"But I've still gotta do something. Will you help me, Rem?\" \"Yes. If that is what you desire, Subaru...\" Rem readily nodded. Even after Subaru opened up to her, the same trust hovered in Rem's eyes as before. They lit two fires inside Subaru: courage and a sense of duty. Subaru no longer held any thought of hiding from Rem his own humiliation and panic at having his hands tied. After all, he'd half bawled his eyes out while venting every complex he had. Rem, too, had revealed truths that had raged within her; in a true sense, Subaru and Rem were now friends for life. And because Subaru had set his heart on something, his head remained remarkably clear. \"First, let's double-check the time we have left. If we head back now, that'll be just under an hour...and then...\" As previously established, the time limit until the Witch Cult caused upheaval in the Mathers domain was five days or rather, to be precise, they had a grace period of only four and a half days. He also needed to consider the sealing of the highway during that time. In reality, he had only two days to prepare. \"And those two days are full of unavoidable problems to deal with.\" The number and nature of the barred gates they had to bust through put previous sets of loops to shame. Clearing any of them alone was hopeless. A fist large enough to smash through the lot of them was required. The first problem was, naturally, the Witch Cult. If they didn't stop the fanatics under Petelgeuse's command, there was no way to save anyone at the mansion, let alone the residents of the village. The second was, though the killer and means had been varied, Rem's certain death. Even if Rem went with Subaru, fate would invariably lead her to her death. The first time, she'd died far from where he could see. And he had been despondent when she was lost to him before his very eyes the second and third times. It was no exaggeration that the shock was what had driven Subaru down the path of giving up entirely. The third problem was that Emilia's death would trigger an indiscriminate rampage by Puck, the Great Spirit. Thinking back, Subaru deemed the possibility that Puck had been the cause of his death on all three loops to be very high. When he considered his icy demises from the first time around through the third, he was almost certain of it. All those walls were formidable, but all three had to be grappled with, or else the future world Subaru Natsuki wanted to live in would be lost. That would mean betraying the image of the hero who Rem believed in. \" Whole bunch of 'em.\" Subaru murmured under his breath, underlining the depth of the problem. Rem, watching Subaru as he sank into thought, made no reply to his murmur, nor had Subaru been looking for one. Subaru knew that she was simply waiting for the words that had to follow. She was waiting for the best judgment of how she might contribute greatest to the hero she loved the most. That was the present Rem's reason for existing and her ultimate means of expressing her love. With Rem silently watching him, Subaru used his limited time to search his memories for any clue, any way to break out of the trap of limited time.  His head tied itself into knots. His mind was on fire. Neither his flesh, nor his abilities, could live up to those current ideals.  Think. Remember. To not let his death that third time be in vain, to not let the will of the girl he'd let die that third time be lost in vain, Subaru's mind assembled everything that had happened during that third, finished world into one heavy pile. The people he'd met. The conversations he'd had. Partings. Encounters. Anger, madness, sadness, despair, recovery. And  \"There's a...possibility?\" Suddenly, something little more than a single option rose up in the back of his mind. Each of the threads was weak, so fragile that tying them together threatened to make them collectively snap. They seemed far too unreliable to rest his hopes upon.  But he was all in. It was worth a shot. \"Rem. We need to talk. I have a few things I wanna ask you.\" \"Yes?\" Subaru sought Rem's cooperation in drafting the plan that he'd only just thought of in his head. \"Now that Emilia's participating in the royal selection, it looks like the Witch Cult is gonna move. If they go after Emilia, there'll no doubt be harm to the mansion and the village. I wanna stop that.\" \"The Witch Cult...\" A grave look came over Rem's eyes the instant she heard the words. But as Rem nodded at Subaru's words, her self-control held those emotions in check. \"Master Roswaal also has concerns that the Witch Cult might make a move. Though I do not know the details, I believe that he has studied the matter and drawn up countermeasures.\" \"But that's not gonna be enough.\" In fact, Subaru didn't really know what countermeasures he'd taken against the Witch Cult. He didn't know if they hadn't been executed or if they had just proven ineffective. Either way, whatever preexisting preparations Roswaal had set weren't up to the task, and he knew that hell would come to pass without fail. Now that Subaru knew that future, he had to secure the power to protect the lives at the mansion and the village without relying on Roswaal. \"I'm pretty sure the Witch Cult is gonna come in a quick, decisive battle. Rem, what does the mansion have to fight with?\" \"...This is a difficult thing to tell you, but the possibility Master Roswaal is absent from the mansion is quite high. He had planned to visit an important associate within his domain upon his return from the royal capital.\" Based on Rem's prevaricating reply, the situation was the same as last time. Roswaal wasn't there. The only people at the mansion at present were Emilia, Ram, and Beatrice. Only three people, and one of them was Beatrice. He was deeply suspicious that the uncooperative girl would willingly engage the Witch Cult in battle. That made Subaru recall the exchange between Beatrice and him the"}, {"text": "last time around, if only a brief one. He remembered that he'd asked Beatrice to kill him. He remembered Beatrice's face, turning eyes toward him like that of a child whose hopes had been betrayed  \"Right now...I've gotta set that aside.\" Subaru somehow brushed off the girl's tearful gaze and faced Rem once more. \"So that leaves two people to fight. Even if you and I go back there, we'd just be two drops against a bucket.\" \"As the majority of the main residence's fighting strength rests with Master Roswaal's personal abilities, I cannot deny it. If Frederica was still with us, it might be a different story, but...\" Rem lowered her gaze as she ruefully invoked the name of a former coworker at the mansion. Subaru patted her shoulder in consolation as he mentally filled the gaps in his own understanding. There was no point speaking any further of the mansion's available combat strength. Therefore, the next issue was the main one. \"Rem.\" Subaru sat up straight and stared at Rem. Then, as Rem, detecting that the atmosphere had changed, lifted her face and looked at him, he said, \"Please tell me what Roswaal ordered you to stay in the royal capital to do.\" *** Subaru thought her expression was dubious, or perhaps surprised that he had gone for an unguarded opening. However, Rem's reaction thoroughly defied Subaru's expectations. \" Yes. As you wish, Subaru.\" Rem nodded to Subaru as a small smile came over her, as if she was happy from the bottom of her heart. A single tear rolled down from the corner of her eye. \"An alliance...you say.\" He was now in the reception room at the Crusch residence. Crusch murmured with all eyes falling upon Subaru as he answered her question concerning the goal of the meeting. She lowered her head, falling into thought briefly before shifting her gaze from Subaru to Rem. Rem quietly deduced the meaning of her probing gaze and slowly shook her head. \"In accordance with Master Roswaal's instructions, I have proposed nothing this is something Subaru arrived at by himself.\" \"I do not doubt your loyalty. However...I see...\" The face Crusch made seemed to indicate that she understood, even if she did not exactly accept it. \"Then should I take this to mean the right to engage in these negotiations has...shifted from Rem to you, Subaru Natsuki?\" \"Yeah, that's what it amounts to. Roswaal was a real jerk with how roundabout he set this up, though.\" With an exaggerated sigh, Subaru expressed his personal thoughts as his clown-faced employer floated into the back of his mind. Secret orders concerning the royal capital had been kept from Subaru, handed down to Rem alone. Roswaal had strictly instructed Rem not to reveal the details to Subaru so long as he did not realize that fact for himself. \"It's not like it wasn't bothering me a little from the start. In the first place, it's plain as day that our side is short on manpower. So he'd leave Rem in the capital without a set plan? Rem, the one from the mansion who'd be most missed? There's no way. I really should've realized that earlier.\" Of course, the cover story was that Roswaal couldn't take responsibility for healing and repaying the man who'd saved his own domain from crisis without at least a single person to look after him. \"But I don't think that eccentric would let go of Rem for a humanitarian reason like that. When you think, 'There's gotta be something else going on'...\" Crusch recrossed her legs, picking up where Subaru left off to state her conclusion. \"So he naturally settled on her as the one who had the best opportunity for an audience with my house...\" \"Besides, I heard that Rem and Crusch were having secret meetings every night. I hate myself for being an idiot and not considering what the discussions were about, though.\" He couldn't even manage a laugh for how he'd been unable to see beyond himself that whole time. After all, even though Rem had actually dropped plenty of hints to convey Roswaal's secret intentions, it had taken him until the fourth time to look back and realize it. \"So every night you've been meeting about forming an alliance. I heard from Rem all about what my side's offering for the terms of the deal.\" \"The deal chiefly concerns magic crystals in the Great Elior Forest and the mining rights thereof.\" Just like that, Crusch exposed what Subaru's words had only hinted at, seeing that there was nothing to hide. The instant the words reached the ears of the lone merchant present, his eyes glimmered. \"My, my, that is quite a fascinating tale.\" Russel, who had maintained his silence to that point, positively glowed. He sounded pleased now that the details finally concerned him in some way. \"When one considers how magical stone craftsmanship has advanced by leaps and bounds in recent years, magic crystal mining rights hold ever-increasing value. That goes all the more for virgin territory.\" Subaru could not conceal his surprise that the merchant had bit on the hook harder than expected. When he'd first heard about the mining rights from Rem, the fact that Crusch had held out so far convinced Subaru that it wasn't all that attractive an offer. \"Does it really have enough value to put you in such a good mood, Russel?\" \"But of course. Magical stone craftsmanship thrives in the markets of Kararagi, and magic crystal craftsmen of my own nation have polished their talents over many years. Recently, their products can be seen here and there, even gracing the hands of the general public. These days, the more magic crystals the better. Until now, we have relied upon trade with Gusteko to the north for most of our supply, so I am overjoyed to learn of the existence of a rich local vein.\" Russel held up a finger and spoke with a buoyant tone as he answered. \"A magic crystal is composed of mana; it is pure crystallized magic. Their attributes are greatly influenced by the land of their origin and the skill of the craftsman who wrought them. In turn, the hand of a skilled craftsman can be applied to a variety of magic crystal crafts. If not mishandled, their intensity is excellent, lasting reliably for a period of several years. Surely it goes without saying that they make for very attractive merchandise.\" In contrast to Russel, listing all the good points adding to the value of magic crystals, Crusch went on to coolly enumerate the parts that diminished their value. \"However, the craftsmen able to work magic stones are few in number. Once a magic stone has been wrought, it is unprofitable to redo the work. At present, many mines have been placed under the kingdom's management, with the majority of magic crystals being distributed for public works. Though you say some reach the general public, it represents only a fraction.\" Undaunted, Russel carried on. \"There are no untouched mining sites that are not immediately snapped up the moment they are found. There is a rich history of succeeding generations of the marquis of Mathers tapping undiscovered veins to build a fortune. And we have the knight of Lady Emilia, a candidate in the royal selection, to vouch for it. It is a trustworthy bet.\" Russel spoke in a fervent tone, slyly glancing at Subaru all the while. He had quite a rotten personality to know of Subaru's humiliation at the royal palace and still declare his word to be proof of anything. Nor did Subaru forget that dressing up the issue of mining rights in such a frivolous manner was meant to hold him in check. Russel was driving home for Subaru that this could not be unheard. Not that Subaru had the slightest intention of backing out to begin with. \"Yeah, I don't mind if you trust that. I don't think we're villains enough to bluff at the first people we team up with over the course of a long royal selection.\" Subaru could rest easy because Roswaal had been the one to propose selling the mining rights. Russel seemed to recoil deliberately in response to Subaru's answer. \"I see. You would appear to have truly embraced the role of negotiator. I apologize for my rudeness in speaking as if I was testing you.\" \"Nah, it's fine. After all, I plan on using all the stuff you just said for all it's worth over the rest of the conversation.\" Subaru hadn't expected Russel to rate him highly to begin with. He'd correctly surmised that his ability would come into question and his measure would be taken then and there. He'd prepared a topic offering an easy avenue of attack, avoiding an assault on a far more pernicious front before broaching the main issue. He could not conceal his relief that the bait had been taken as intended. He put on meaninglessly grandiose airs of amiability to conceal the tension in his cheeks. \"Having said that, since he's apologized, I expect you to overlook one or two rude things I might say.\" \"So you seated Russel Fellow at the same table in hopes of this? You are an unexpectedly crafty man yourself.\" As Subaru flippantly commented, Crusch smiled slightly and voiced her appraisal to end the exchange. The fact that she hadn't ended the discussion seemed to indicate she hadn't given him a failing grade. Even as he felt a cold sweat at having climbed over the first gate, Subaru maintained his friendly smile as he looked at Crusch. \"Well, I also wanted an adviser, since this is talking about profits, but...calling Russel here has to do with the main topic coming next.\" \"Really now? The main topic?\" Subaru continued, and the atmosphere inside the room grew tense once more. Crusch, who had merely been humoring the conversation to that point, rectified her seating and quietly closed her eyes for a time. After that, she slowly opened her amber eyes; their gaze pierced Subaru like an arrow. Before its power, sufficient to bring to mind a cold, blowing wind, Subaru did not falter. The tightening of his mind served only to make him straighten his back and put his feelings in order as he faced her. \"Subaru Natsuki, I formally acknowledge you as the proxy of Marquis Roswaal, and also as an envoy from Emilia, and whatever details you and I negotiate will also hold true between Emilia and me.\" All it took for her to overwhelm people was for her to face them head-on. Crusch was not intentionally attempting to bowl Subaru over at that moment. All she'd done was switch mental gears from Crusch, the private individual, to Crusch Karsten, the public persona. Such was the power and presence of the current duke of Karsten.  This was what the valiant woman closest to the Kingdom of Lugunica's throne really looked like. Subaru felt goose bumps rise as exclamation points danced inside his head. As he quietly shuddered, Crusch extended a hand to him, firing the opening salvo to announce the start of the negotiations. \"I believe you have already heard, but I shall state it regardless. Rem and I were negotiating the sale of mining rights, but I have not accepted the offer. Though I imagine you already knew this?\" \"...Yeah.\" On the one hand was Rem, visibly lamenting her own insufficient strength; on the other hand was Subaru, pathetically unable to look past himself to even notice what had caused her such anguish. Subaru would take those two laments and regrets and put them to good use to avoid future distress and so that all his previous failures would not be in vain. \"I wanna make sure of something myself. So the offer just isn't good enough as it stands? Each camp lays off the other, mining rights for the Great Elior Forest are sold to you, and you work out the fine"}, {"text": "details of what to do with the magic crystals themselves later?\" \"The draft proposal came from Rem's side. I suppose I should say, as to be expected of Marquis Roswaal. On top of securing profit for his own camp, he offers just enough advantage so that my house might accept it. Normally, it is an offer one would never refuse. Such a proposal makes me want to have a written agreement prepared immediately, but...\" Subaru couldn't speak in any informed manner about the arithmetic behind the deal. If he did clumsily say something, it could wind up being taken as, Okay, take all the mining rights, then! \"In this case, what would follow such negotiations is the problem. Do you understand?\" \"It's not simply that...you don't trust Roswaal?\" Subaru was of the opinion that if Roswaal's conduct was being questioned, he could rectify that by behaving with absolute propriety henceforth, but that wasn't Crusch's problem with it. \"Making a deal with Emilia would mean an agreement with a rival royal selection candidate... Furthermore, one slandered as a half-demon. If one considers the consequences, caution is inevitable.\" Subaru was unexpectedly discouraged to hear Crusch quietly speak such words. The image he had of Crusch was of someone so steadfast, the words majestic and sincere suited her. She had been the living incarnation of those things when stating her convictions at the royal selection conference. It was precisely because he had heard her address that made her acting as if she cared about rumors seem so odd  \"Don't tell me this is merely a justification for saying no?\" *** \"Subawu? Ferri thinks that is really, really not the sort of thing you should say during an important negotiation?\" Ferris had held his silence since the start of negotiations, but Subaru's careless remark brought anger to his smile. A vein on his forehead was bulging as Subaru quickly covered his mouth and lowered his head. \"Goodness, this puts me in a bit of a bind.\" As he did so, Crusch, watching the exchange, loosened the corners of her lips very slightly. \"It is I who is embarrassed to have my justification exposed so bluntly. I shall learn from this. The opportunity does not often arise.\" With convoluted logic, she overlooked Subaru's present rudeness. That said, being saved by the awkwardness of his opponent's position put him in a precarious place. \"So that is an excuse for... Then you don't really think that forming an alliance with Emilia is a terrible thing in and of itself?\" \"Subaru Natsuki, I shall correct one misconception.\" Crusch raised a finger, pointing it toward Subaru. \"A person's worth is decided by how her soul lives and how it shines. A person's true nature is absolutely not determined by the circumstances of one's birth and where someone was raised.\" Of course, even Crusch understood that they had an indirect influence. She did not lack the power of imagination to deduce how the senseless cruelties inflicted by Emilia's environment, simply because she was a half-elf, had strengthened her in the process. \"Her words at the royal selection site were not false. It is because I am certain of her pride and resolve that I acknowledge Emilia as a rival.\" \"Well, that's convoluted. In other words?\" \"Forgive me. I have a fondness for theatrics.\" Crusch pursed her lips slightly, seemingly fully aware of just how grandiose her own statement was. A moment later, her expression tightened. \"I am not refusing an alliance with Emilia because she is a half-elf. From my perspective, Emilia, who is in no way politically opposed to me, is not someone I need to go out of my way to antagonize. I would even be willing to ally with her.\" \"Meaning that...\" \"Do not be so hasty to reply, Subaru Natsuki. It is no exaggeration to say that what you utter, and how your words are interpreted, will determine the course of these events.\" Crusch chided Subaru for assuming her reply was favorable as she threw the ball into his court once more. In other words, now that Subaru held the right to negotiate, she wanted to see what cards were in his hand. \"Mining rights for the Great Elior Forest would be highly advantageous for my side. On the other hand, it is a fact that there is no need for me to rush to get ahead in the royal selection. The period of time is three years. Too much haste to stir things up would sow the seeds for troubles down the road.\" \"So you're saying the advantages and disadvantages of forming an alliance with Emilia don't match up?\" \"Not precisely. At present, the advantages and disadvantages cancel each other out. By my house's thinking, we require convincing, a push for us to take that one final step.\" Crusch seemed personally in favor of the idea of forming an alliance. On the other hand, a noble house was apparently too large to be swayed purely by Crusch's private opinion on the matter. Hence, she sought \"something\" from Subaru something that would silence the voices around her urging her not to stir things up. *** When Subaru tried to speak, he was a little surprised at how his own throat seemed to be blocked. The tension and anxiety welling up in his chest blocked his throat just as he was on the verge of stepping forward. From here on would be completely ad-libbed in a way he had never before experienced. He hadn't checked it with anyone. It was possible he was reading this wrong. But Crusch would probably bite.  Yes. Subaru believed in his own idea. \"To form an alliance, we're offering mining rights...and information.\" \" Information?\" When she heard the word, Crusch stroked her own long hair as she prompted him to continue. She hadn't decided yet. Now came the hard part. \"Yeah, that's right. I'm offering a certain piece of information with it.\" \"Then I would hear it. Will these words from your lips stir us to action?\" Naturally, Subaru's entire body trembled from anxiety and tension. But a slight warm sensation to his elbow drove all that away, for Rem's fingers, touching Subaru's arm, were the spark that lit the borrowed courage within him. Subaru inhaled. In a single breath, he said: \" The card I'm playing...is the time and place where the White Whale will show up.\" CHAPTER 1 *** 1 In life, you can only play the game with the cards you've been dealt. This held true no matter the circumstances of a person's birth, appearance, talent, reputation, or the skills they cultivated. Subaru Natsuki was keenly aware that he was lacking in every single one of those categories. Through some kind of mistake, Rem had completely accepted Subaru, but he knew all too well that the Subaru Natsuki she saw was an ideal far removed from the real thing. Compared with the man she envisioned in her mind, the cards that the real Subaru held were few in number, and poor in quality  But he learned, now that he stood at the playing table, no one cared about his personal problems. All anyone in his position could do was try to win with the cards he was dealt. The rest came down to simply how well each person played, their timing, and if they used any bluffs. \" The White Whale.\" Of all the cards in Subaru's hand, he chose the one that resulted in the greatest effect on the others. His declaration changed the faces of those around him in different ways. They were currently in the reception room of the Duchess of Karsten's villa in the royal capital's Nobles' District. Not counting Subaru, five were participating in the discussion first, Crusch Karsten, lady of the manor, accompanied by her two retainers, Ferris and Wilhelm. Also in attendance was Russel Fellow, one of a tiny handful of influential movers in the royal capital, acting as an adviser for Subaru. And... *** ...the fifth was Rem, who was touching Subaru's sleeve, providing limitless strength by inspiring the courage within him. The conversation between those six in the capital quickly began hurtling toward an intense climax. In short, the objective of the discussion was to form an alliance between the Emilia camp and the Crusch camp. The Crusch camp was taking a cautious wait-and-see stance toward the Emilia camp's request of cooperation to resist the universal menace of the Witch Cult. Subaru's invoking of the White Whale's name was his trump card for breaking that stalemate. Crusch's eyes narrowed in profound interest; Ferris looked at his master with gloom-filled eyes. The deeply mercantile Russel knotted his brows, whereas Wilhelm  *** After an instant, Subaru involuntarily held his breath when a thick, dark hostility permeated the room's interior. Feeling sick to his stomach, as if his intestines were about to be rearranged by the tip of a sword, Subaru lifted his face to see the source and saw the white-maned, old man exhaling deeply and lightly shaking his head. \"...Forgive my...gross indiscretion. It would seem that I, too, still have room for improvement.\" Wilhelm closed one eye and apologized without any change in expression. The aged swordsman pushed the malice away, leaving no traces remaining even in the farthest corners of the room, then touched the sword on his lap as if ashamed. \"I have no excuse for interrupting. Say the word and I shall remove myself.\" \"No, stay. I wish to hear your opinion.\" Crusch personally stopped Wilhelm from excusing himself. \"You do not mind?\" he said, shifting his eyes to Subaru, who answered as well with a nod of agreement. \"Now then, the term White Whale has been thrown out rather suddenly. May I take it that the White Whale of which you speak is the Demon Beast of Mist, one of the three great demon beasts?\" \"Yeah. A monster that spews out mist and swims around in the sky that White Whale. I know when and where it'll show up next. I want to offer that information as part of the deal for an alliance.\" Is she gonna bite? wondered Subaru, his nerves on edge as he waited for Crusch's reaction. The lady of the house put a hand to her chin in contemplation. Before she rendered judgment, someone cut in. \"Apologies. May I ask you some minor things?\" Russel raised his hand and sought permission for questions. \"Sure thing, ask anything you like.\" \"First, there is a matter I must verify... Mr. Natsuki, do you have an accurate assessment of what value to place on your knowledge of where the White Whale shall next appear?\" \"...It could reduce the number of people caught up in the White Whale's damage. Merchants and land dragon cargo runners can revise their routes, and it would improve the condition of a lot of victims, I think?\" \"Yes, precisely. However, that only earns you a score of fifty.\" Russel's assessment of Subaru's mostly timid reply was rather harsh. \"Are you aware of just how much blood has flowed due to the Demon Beast of Mist to date?\" he continued. \"The unlucky caravans, which the White Whale's mist swallowed up, vanished without a trace! The royal knights assembled to dispatch the White Whale failed, routed by the beast! Until a few decades ago, it appeared near villages and cities, swallowing them and their entire populations whole. It was not uncommon for cases where it was impossible to ascertain the truth of what had happened. The White Whale is more than a very large demon beast.\" Russel's words, explaining the menace of the White Whale, were hot almost excessive. Subaru, prone to hiding his negative emotions behind a facade of denial, understood the desire to have others understand such feelings. Faced with an enemy too vast to fathom, people tried to extoll the vastness of its existence to protect their fragile spirits. \"With such a demon beast, the most crucial measure is never to encounter it. Many merchants and travelers fear nothing"}, {"text": "greater than mist covering their path. The White Whale is a symbol of calamity, and any mist itself is a veritable evil omen. If one could see ahead to know where it would appear, it would be worth an immense fortune! However...\" Having clenched his fists and spoken with such zeal to that point, Russel suddenly looked down at Subaru with cold eyes. \"Information is assigned value from its trustworthiness. Mr. Natsuki, how can you prove such a thing? Without proof, it cannot be seen as anything but fiction.\" \"Most of which I wished to express would only repeat Russel Fellow's words. I was about to ask if you could prove your claim.\" With thin smiles, Russel and Crusch both questioned the basis of Subaru's tip. Is the information true or false? Posed this question, Subaru felt a cold sweat against his back. But he could not reveal his anxiety. Returning a bold smile their way, he managed to keep himself from letting weak thoughts trickle out as he put his next card on the negotiating table just like he'd elaborately simulated many times over in his preparations beforehand. \"The reason I can know where the White Whale will come out beforehand...is this!\" Suddenly, he took something out of his side pocket and slapped it on the table. Subaru displayed his evidence on the table. He felt the expressions of everyone staring at it tighten briefly, but the next moment, bewilderment came over them. \"Subaru Natsuki.\" \"Yeah.\" When Crusch quietly invoked Subaru's name, he puffed his chest out without a hint of fear. Without commenting on Subaru's impudent demeanor, she pointed at the proof Subaru had placed at the center of the table. \"What...is this?\" It was a gleaming piece of cutting-edge future technology encased within a white, metallic body.  She did not take her eyes off the cell phone for a single instant as she quizzically tilted her head toward Subaru. 2 Subaru's knowledge of precisely when and where the White Whale would appear was truly the fruit of repeated coincidence and the mischief of fate. The decisive instant came on that misty night during the third loop when he encountered the White Whale face-to-face. While sitting in the driver's seat of a dragon carriage, he had retrieved the cell phone from his hand baggage and activated it to use it as a light source. \"It was then, right before that.\" The first time Subaru set eyes on the White Whale, he'd been trying to check on the dragon carriage running beside them, had vanished. His eyes struggled to pierce the darkness at the time, so he thought to use the light of his cell phone. Even in the present, he found it hard to forget meeting the thing in the dark, eyeball to enormous eyeball. Right after that moment, the demon beast roared. Then, its first attack blew Subaru and Rem's dragon carriage away, turning it into wood chips. As Rem grasped him by the collar and they sailed into the air, the scene seared itself into Subaru's eyes as everything moved in slow motion. And with the world crawling forward one frame at a time, Subaru saw it crystal clear: his cell phone, knocked out of his hand in the initial blast, twirling through the air and displayed on its backlit screen, 3:30 PM. After arriving in a new world, the clock function of his cell phone had lost all meaning. But if he used it as an indicator of a determined future event, it was more accurate than anything else available there. More importantly, the cell phone played the role of an irreplaceable device. \"It's no fault of yours for not knowing what this is. This is one of those metia thingies, unearthed in my homeland. This is the proof for what I'm saying.\" It was the very fact that the cell phone was from an unknown land that turned it into a valuable weapon for negotiations. \"...May I touch it?\" Russel was the first to swallow his saliva and reach out toward the cell phone. Subaru gave permission with a nod. The man timidly took the cell phone in his hand, checking the feel for himself. \"Oddly, it is quite comfortable to the touch. It seems to be metal, and yet it seems warm... The surface is glossy yet also soft... This spot...opens up?\" Russel unfastened the flip-up phone and marveled at the light flowing from the screen. Before the conversation started, Subaru had changed the display on the screen to that of a more orthodox clock. Even with skilled operation, there was little else to extract from it save for a few phone numbers. \"There is a glow, and the picture is changing... Ah, but I cannot determine the contents. Are these characters I have never seen? Or wait... Is this a picture?\" Bit by bit, the screen showed the second hand of the clock moving. But the human beings of that world used very different devices to tell time, so Russel could not understand the display. The same went for the numbers indicating the time. His best guess about the Arabic numerals was probably that they resembled a child's scribbles. Subaru knew how he felt. After all, he'd gone through the same thing day after day. \"They're special characters, so I don't think anyone here can read them.\" \"However, you can use it properly... Is that it?\" \"I actually can't fully use all its functions.\" When Crusch posed the question, Subaru employed caution, carefully choosing his words. There were a number of conditions for successfully completing these negotiations, but one reigned supreme. He could not let Crusch, who possessed absolute confidence in her keen eyes, detect any falsehood within him. Subaru needed to do everything in his power to avoid stepping on any land mines. \"In other words, you are saying the following: This metia acts like a warning crystal that indicates the approach of the White Whale.\" \"I don't recall ever hearing about these warning crystals, but I think so.\" Judging from the name, they were probably some sort of alarm crafted from magic crystals. \"A metia that signals the approach of the White Whale, eh? What does the expert think?\" \"In truth, I must admit I am at a loss. Individual metia differ greatly, and it is rare for any two to work precisely the same. The manufacturing of conversation mirrors is an exception because a method to reproduce them has been discovered, but the costs involved make mass production simply unfeasible even for those. At the very least, this is the first I have heard of this variety of metia.\" Russel avoided making any careless statements about an object he knew nothing of. For the moment, he played the role of a benevolent third party, intervening in neither Subaru's favor nor Crusch's. Naturally, Russel's eyes were exceptionally critical when it came to discerning whether siding with Subaru or Crusch would accrue him the most profit. \"Therefore, I cannot see any method of determining the veracity of the information. Which means your assertion becomes difficult to swallow at face value. Now then, what shall you do?\" \"Yeah, that is a tough situation. It'd be great if I at least had a way of proving it, but...\" In response to Crusch, Subaru raised both hands, his gesture indicating that there was no hope for that. \"Hmm. Perhaps try to see if it rings at the approach of an actual demon beast? Or maybe you have another way of proving that this metia is indeed a device that reacts to demon beasts?\" \"I'm gonna correct you about one thing.\" Subaru raised a finger and swayed it left and right, as if enjoying a chance to get back at Crusch. \"This metia doesn't react to demon beasts themselves. If it did that, any demon beasts hanging around would make it ring all the damn time. It turns on for only the important ones.\" \" Surely you are not saying it reacts when a demon beast is threatening the user?\" Crusch reacted to Subaru's assertion, adding a laugh, as if such a function was too good to be true. But there was yet another reaction that followed Crusch's. \" Ah.\" Standing at Subaru's side, Rem let out a tiny voice of comprehension. Then, immediately after, she lowered her face, apparently ashamed at having disturbed the negotiations. \"That reaction makes me wonder, Rem. Did that remind you of something?\" When Crusch pressed for an answer, Rem's eyes ran over the side of Subaru's face for only an instant. Hints of worry and gratitude filled her gaze, so Subaru smiled to give her visible reassurance. \"It's all right. If you have something to say, go right ahead, 'kay?\" \" Yes. If you say so, Subaru.\" Rem lifted her head, turned toward Crusch, then indicated the cell phone on the table. \"I shall omit the fine details, but recently, there was an incident within the Mathers domain caused by demon beasts. When it occurred, Subaru was the one who acted the swiftest to bring the situation to an end. He had not been with us very long, so I thought it strange he grasped the circumstances before the landlord himself, Master Roswaal, but...\" \"With this metia, he noticed the incident beforehand?\" \"It was an open question, as it was a little too convenient for him to notice without any tangible basis.\" Meekly, Rem tilted her head very slightly, glancing Subaru's way. She clearly harbored doubts over how Subaru had sniffed out the Urugarum incident in a very Rem-like way. The learning of the metia's existence had just erased those doubts. *** On the other hand, that reply drew Crusch's piercing gaze right to Rem. Her eyes gave off a sharp, penetrating stare that seemed to slip inside people's innards, as if she could see their very soul. In terms of actual time, only a few seconds passed. And yet, Subaru felt like each took a heavy toll on his endurance when finally  \" You have not...spoken falsely.\" Crusch displayed a certain level of trust and comprehension toward Rem's statement. Hearing her assessment, Subaru struggled with all his might not to show the relief he felt on his face. On the inside, he could not stop clenching his hands and pumping his fists. In other words, it had all been a bluff. If that fact came out, negotiations would immediately be cut off, and it would not have been odd for him to be sliced into thousands upon thousands of bits for his insolence. However, Subaru had glossed over it all by using his words to direct everyone toward a different topic. Subaru had not spoken a single falsehood in response to Crusch's questions. After all, the cell phone really wasn't a device that rang in response to demon beasts in its proximity. Moreover, Subaru, someone who had barely even used his cell phone to send messages, certainly could not use its full potential. Rem had unwittingly allowed herself to be exploited for the greatest hurdle Subaru needed, which was confirmation from a third party. Even if the contents of what she said differed from the truth, she had no intent to deceive, so it was not a lie per se. \"You've gotta admit, though, you said that like you can tell if a person's lying or not.\" \"At the risk of boasting, that is correct. One might call it having perceptive eyes, but in actuality, I have been graced with the blessing of wind reading.\" \"...What did you say?\" The completely serious reply Subaru received was not at all what he'd expected, recalling how in the past she had chewed him up and spit out the leftovers. During the previous loop, Subaru had chalked up Crusch's self-described \"ability to discern falsehoods\" to her perceptive eyes, but... \"Reading the wind allows me to judge that which cannot be seen by the eye. By nature, I am able to discern the wind that envelops the other party."}, {"text": "Those who speak lies have a telltale wind that blows from them there is none of this around Rem.\" \"R-really, is that so? I didn't know that. Had no idea.\" \"An unsettling wind does blow from you, Subaru Natsuki. That said, standing at the negotiation table while unaware of my wind reading was simply too unfair toward you.\" Subaru's smile twitched at how rotten Crusch's personality was for her to reveal that ability at the height of negotiations. A blessing that provided a way to determine whether the other party's words were true or false was practically cheating. It also explained the sharpness of the barbed words that had cut Subaru so deeply the last time around. \"Rem's words contain no hint of deception. At the very least, this certainly proves that you possess the means to detect a demon beast menace in advance.\" But in this one instance, her confidence in that blessing was a double-edged sword. Subaru was balancing atop a tightrope, embodying the very idea of letting his opponent get their cuts in as long as it meant he could hit back even harder. \"So can I take it that you believe in this metia now?\" \"That would be speaking too soon. Even knowing there is no collusion, it does not change that I must protect all my vassals. This is a decision that might determine the outcome of the royal selection, or even the fate of the kingdom itself. I shall not proceed lightly.\" Unsurprisingly, she fended off Subaru's attempt to quickly close the deal. He'd achieved a bare minimum of trust that his proclaimed metia could provide information about where the White Whale could appear, but that only meant they would consider the proposal seriously rather than laugh it off. What would build on that level of trust and bring the negotiations to a successful ending was  \" Sooo, how about letting me in on this metia talk, too?\" The reception room was seized by surprise when a voice suddenly interrupted. When the speaker stepped into the room, she elegantly smiled in response to their startled gazes. \"Aren't you a funny one, Subaru, looking the most shocked when you're the one who invited me?\" Addressing the wide-eyed Subaru, the charmingly smiling girl ran her fingers through her wavy mane. Her light-purple hair seemed as soft as down, reaching all the way down to her hips. With such a gentle face, she could easily put others at ease. However, the girl's eyes meticulously surveyed everything a clear sign that she was not to be underestimated. \" Anastasia Hoshin.\" Knowing who she was, Crusch shut one eye and addressed her by name. Anastasia responded to the greeting with an easy \"thanks.\" \"It's unfair that while I was busy hurrying over after getting word, you just went and started talking without me. With such an interesting, profitable conversation going on...you'll let me join, won't you?\" Phrasing her request in a pleading way, Anastasia's words and subtext contained genuine delight. After considering her presence, Subaru subconsciously glanced behind her. \"If you are wondering about Julius, you can rest easy.\" *** As he did so, the mischievously grinning Anastasia seemed to read his mind. \"Currently, Julius is under house arrest by order of the captain of the royal guards. He's currently undergoing punishment for smacking around someone else's boy without my say-so. That knight of mine is quite a handful.\" \"House arrest...\" Now that she mentioned it, Subaru recalled the night when Reinhard had told him the same thing. As a result of his private duel with Subaru, Julius was being disciplined with house arrest. Apparently, that was why he hadn't accompanied Anastasia to the current meeting. \"I see. That's...very...unfortunate.\" Subaru was too pathetic to keep the look of relief off his face. But even then, he was unable to summon any words he might have for the next time they met. \"You said you were invited here. By Subaru Natsuki, I take it?\" Crusch addressed Anastasia, ignoring Subaru's wounded feelings. Anastasia sat in a chair offered to her as she stroked the fox-fur scarf hanging around her neck. \"More precisely, it was the girl with him. Normally, I'd have just sent her away...but I couldn't wave her off after she said there was super-important stuff concerning the White Whale.\" When Anastasia finished chatting with a smile, Crusch turned to Subaru. After bringing two royal selection candidates to the same table, Subaru gripped his fist at the drastically altered situation. This is it. Everything starts from here. All the necessary parties were in the same room together. Subaru could finally begin the true negotiations. However  \"Pardon me, Mr. Natsuki, but there is one thing I would like to ask you.\" Naturally, Russel did not find the invitation of a rival merchant to the meeting very amusing. \"Go ahead, Mr. Russel.\" \"Mr. Natsuki, I would like to hear your true motive for calling Lady Anastasia to this place. As she is both a candidate in the royal selection and president of the Hoshin Company, possessing great influence with the merchants in the royal capital, my position here has become highly...indistinct. Surely it could not be...\" \"You're wondering if I'm weighing other options?\" The instant Subaru responded to Russel's doubts, the atmosphere in the reception room grew taut. Of course, Russel felt slighted, but his grave expression spread to Crusch as well. \"In other words, you are saying this: You shall select your alliance partner based on who bids higher for the information on the White Whale, my house or Anastasia Hoshin?\" *** \"If so, that is an exceedingly imprudent choice, Subaru Natsuki.\" With Subaru silent, Crusch slammed him with the force of her will, rising to her feet and gazing down sharply at Anastasia. Amused, Anastasia tilted her head slightly as she spoke. \"Oh my, Crusch. If you look at me like that, I'm going to get excited... That's a face that people in the lead get when they're worried about their competition catching up soon.\" \"You have questionable hobbies. Perhaps it is the correct decision for someone like you openly motivated by personal greed but my principles shall not be swayed.\" After fending off Anastasia's taunt, Crusch turned back toward Subaru with a serious expression. \"It is as I said, Subaru Natsuki. If you expected a bidding war between my house and the Hoshin Company for your information, let me say that you will be disappointed. I have no intention of cooperating with your sch \" \"Wait, wait, you're jumping to conclusions! Both of you calm down, okay?\" Subaru scrambled to stop Crusch from breaking off negotiations and wrecking all his efforts so far. \"Jumping to conclusions...? Mr. Subaru, so it was not your intent to draw two candidates to compete against each other?\" \"Of course not. I'm not so overconfident to think that I can make people dance in the palm of my hands. I ain't Buddha. Really, with what I have...\" Subaru gave a little wave before making a show of holding Rem's hand as she stood beside him. The touch conveyed a body heat that sent courage flowing into him, calming the faint trembling of his fingers. \"All I can manage with hands my size is holding on to another person, like this.\" \"Ahh, yes, yes, very touching. So where do you plan to take the conversation from here?\" \"Er, I guess that was a pretty lame line...\" When he tried loosening his grip, Rem fiercely resisted letting go, so Subaru left it at that while using his free hand to slap the table before continuing. \"I've played the White Whale card, and I've invited two people who represent the merchants in the capital. That makes the situation a big deal already...but I want to propose one more thing.\" Subaru tapped his fingers on the table while sending a fierce smile Crusch's way, blatantly hiding all the frail, weak-kneed parts of him behind a bold, confident front. \"Willing to listen?\" \"I am the one who rushed to conclusions and interrupted you. I have an obligation to listen. Say what you will.\" The sense of an oppressive wind blowing from Crusch intensified. On top of that, even Anastasia showered Subaru with similar pressure. It seemed like he would buckle at any moment. He had no doubt that if he was alone, he would've laughed, made light of it all, then promptly run for the hills. *** He felt a squeeze from the warm touch of the hand clasped around his. She could not call his name, nor could she offer any words. All she could do was convey her feelings. That made him happy. As long as he had that, Subaru could probably take on even the Witch. *** He closed his eyes, held his breath, and keenly felt thoughts and oxygen coursing through his brain. I'm pretty sure she'll bite. After thinking about it over and over, incessantly recalling what happened on the first, second, and third loops, he pieced together his accumulated knowledge, then drew out what he expected to happen onto a blank, white canvas. He wasn't...absolutely sure. It wasn't like anyone had told him that's what would happen, either. But combined with the pieces found scattered throughout the ongoing negotiations, the vague image pointed to only one possibility. It was either a convenient delusion or a miracle he had obtained after suffering death three times. It comes down to this. \"Crusch, I think...\" *** \"...I think my information will be extremely useful for your plan to hunt down the White Whale.\" Subaru's future information and the objective Crusch harbored these formed the basis of his decision. Subaru would become a suitable ally for Crusch Karsten, as a comrade in arms against their mutual foe: the White Whale. 3 In the instant after Subaru spoke, the room fell into silence as each person in attendance sank into thought: Crusch, Anastasia, Ferris, Wilhelm, Russel. Each closed their eyes, as if digesting the words Subaru had just given voice to. The moments that passed amounted to several seconds, but the incredible pressure of that quiet tied Subaru into knots. This is it. This'll decide everything. Unlike the events so far, simulations in his mind wouldn't cut it. Unable to determine the other parties' probable reactions, he was left with no choice but to react instantly to what they did then and there. \"I shall ask you about one thing, Subaru Natsuki.\" As he'd expected, it was Crusch who broke the silence. Crusch unfolded her arms and raised a single finger, turning it toward Subaru. \"From where did this extraordinary idea come? Why do you believe that my house has crafted such a plan? It is not a statement you can simply walk away from.\" Her uninflected voice betrayed no alarm or bewilderment, nor any emotions. Awed by her statesmanship, Subaru's gaze wandered as he breathed in and called out a name. \"Rem.\" \"Yes.\" \"Give my back a good, hard smack, would you?\" \"Yes.\" The moment he finished talking, Subaru thought to himself, Uh, a good, hard smack might be overdoing it, but it was too late. With an incredible jolt and a dry, explosive sound, the force shooting through his back made him wonder if his guts were about to spill from his belly. He felt something hot press against the center of his back in the shape of a small hand. Using the pain and heat to gather his wits, Subaru bowed his head to all the confused people watching. \"Sorry you had to watch that. I was losing my mind a little there.\" \"Everyone can remember one time or another when they needed to rally themselves after faltering before a great challenge. I was taught long ago to write 'enemy' on my palm, then to swallow the word to steel myself...\" \"Lady Crusch, Lady Crusch. That's the charm Ferri taught you a long time ago. You still remembered that?\" \"What...? Was it...a lie?\" \"It wasn't based on anything concrete, but if the charm"}, {"text": "helped dispel any doubt in your heart, then it was no lie, Lady Crusch. Ferri's really happy to have been a help to mew.\" \"I see. So you were thinking of me. In that case, I forgive you.\" Seeing how easy it was to cajole Crusch made the earlier discussion about her blessing rather suspicious. Though after many years together, Ferris probably knew exactly how to exploit the loopholes in her lie-detecting ability. \"Gotta say, though, this kind of talk is in a different dimension compared with the negotiations earlier...\" \"It's not that strange. I do the same thing before I begin working on any important business deal. Jingling a sack of gold coins by my ear brings out my courage... What's with the face?\" \"I was just thinking that if we cut off the conversation here, no one would guess that you guys are competing for control of a kingdom right now.\" Subaru pretended not to notice how trivial their chat was compared with the important matters they should have been focusing on. Anastasia pouted at Subaru's reaction, then sighed deeply before continuing. \"All right then. Now that we've had a nice change of pace, let's leave it at that and let you pick up where you left off.\" \"Yeah...thanks for being so considerate.\" Crusch and Ferris were simply talking as they usually did as master and servant, but Anastasia's benevolent humoring of the off-topic conversation had bought Subaru precious time to organize his thoughts into something coherent. \"There were a bunch of things nagging me while staying at this mansion for the past several days. First is the number of people passing through. The volume of visitors and goods going in and out has been more than just a little high.\" \"That's only to be expected once news that I am a royal candidate was made public. Surely you understand this?\" \"That explains the guests during the day. But what about the ones who came in the dead of night? After you've changed into your evening clothes, the only thing left for you is heading off to bed... Can you really claim that guests arriving at that hour are there just to talk?\" One night, during the first time around, Crusch had invited Subaru to a drink in the evening. Having changed into a nightgown before sleep, Crusch was incredibly feminine, and Subaru recalled finding it awkward not knowing where to look, along with the conversation they had, of course. But that wasn't the only thing he remembered. He distinctly recalled being together with Crusch, a wineglass in her hand, while noticing the presence of people coming and going in the yard below. \"Given your personality, you'd never even think of drinking alcohol if you were receiving guests. So how do you explain all the people moving around the mansion after you'd gotten tipsy? They were there for something besides seeking an audience.\" *** This time, Crusch did not have a response for Subaru's deductions. Having tentatively seized the right to guide the conversation, Subaru tapped the table with his hand. \"Another thing that bugged me was the market for metalwork here in the capital. According to a merchant I know, the price of various metal goods has been spiking. In other words, that means weapons and armor.\" Subaru had drawn this conclusion from disparate fragments of information he'd gleaned from his first, second, and third times around. \"So I'd bet that you've been gathering up a big amount of dirt-cheap combat gear. I heard that from that shop I know, and from traveling merchants coming here to visit you, Crusch.\" Maybe she's preparing for a war, said some traveling merchant or other he'd journeyed with, laughing it off. \"It's significant enough to affect the entire market, so it seems like you're buying up quite a lot. If you're going as far as to buy weapons from outside your own lands, common sense says that something's up, right?\" \"Mentioning my house in the same breath as the White Whale is far too great a leap from only that much circumstantial evidence. You've barely compiled enough to even speak the first letter in its name. It is a fact that my house has been acquiring weapons, but that is not proof that I plan to hunt down the White Whale. Perhaps I am amassing military power so that I may ignore the results of the royal selection altogether and seize the throne by force of arms.\" \"You don't have any reason to plan something so violent, and even I can tell you're not that kind of person.\" Crusch, who was the living incarnation of words like sincere or noble, was one of the last people willing to violate the trust of others like that. \"Though I must say, I am somewhat surprised.\" Crusch, who shouldn't have known what Subaru was thinking, sighed in admiration. She crossed her arms, tilted her head quizzically, and looked Subaru over from head to toe before speaking again. \"I had firmly believed that you went into the capital during the day purely as a diversion...but it was most definitely my own eyes that did not see clearly.\" \"Nn! Yeah, that's right. It's not like I spend all my time playing around.\" Crusch's open praise struck Subaru with heavy pangs of guilt. In truth, Crusch's initial assessment was exceedingly correct. She judged that he was gullible and spoiled. All he could do at the moment was to respond, turning a blind eye toward the truth. \"Anyway, when I first realized you were gathering weapons, I thought you were preparing for war. The real question was who you were planning to fight...but a slippery merchant let something fall from his lips.\" \"A slippery...merchant.\" \"Just to be sure, to avoid any misunderstandings, allow me to affirm that it was not I.\" When Crusch glanced at him, Russel directly denied the misgivings that were undoubtedly on the tip of her tongue. Apparently, Crusch sensed no hint of deception in his words, because she grudgingly showed that she believed him. As expected, Crusch's intuition was very sharp but her suspicions were actually both correct and incorrect. The merchant who'd let it slip from his lips was indeed Russel, just as Crusch had suspected. However, it was not the Russel currently standing before them but the Russel Subaru had met during a previous loop. \"Should Lady Crusch succeed in her current endeavors, we would feel nothing but delight.\" Russel had spoken those words on the way out after his negotiations with Crusch had broken down. Subaru had pondered the meaning behind those words for a long time. If Crusch had stated she expected to succeed the royal throne, it was difficult to imagine that would cause negotiations to break down. But if Crusch's and Russel's mutual goals were aligned, then  \"If you go by popular rumor, a lot seem to think you're practically running alone in the race, Crusch. But it looks like the merchants don't seem as eager to call it as regular folks do.\" \"I do not deny it. It is only sensible that the wealthy are the most reluctant. I acknowledge that the tax rate on commerce is high within my lands. Naturally, I use those funds to defend the peace and order...but I am well aware of the difficulty in conveying this benefit to other parties.\" \"So unlike the people benefiting from your rule in the Karsten domain, people who aren't swayed by fame can only judge what kind of person you are by how you appear to be, huh?\" It was entirely true that Crusch was a capable ruler who managed her territory well. But beyond those who could confirm her true skill for themselves, people had to rate Crusch based solely on secondhand bits and pieces of information. Much like Emilia, often judged based on the mere fact that she was a half-elf, Crusch alienated those who were able to see only the negative side of her austere way of life. \"So I figured it's like this. I don't think you care much for people who judge based only on what's visible on the surface, but in a royal selection, you need to persuade even those people to come down on your side. So what should a girl do to convince people like that to see you in a better light...?\" \"Well hey, if people judge only from appearances...then all you need to do is slap on a fresh coat of paint, right?\" Anastasia picked up where Subaru left off, bringing his point to its logical conclusion. \"Well, that's pretty easy to say, but it's not so simple to actually do it. In the first place, chances are good this is all a miscalculation. After all, you're wording things to be pretty convenient for yourself there, Subaru.\" \"I...can't argue with you there. There's no mistaking that Crusch is gathering weapons together for some big plan to somehow court the merchants to support her. But maybe tying that together with the White Whale is just a lot of wishful thinking on my part. I could have just convinced myself it's related to my knowledge about when and where the White Whale's gonna show up...\" Then, Subaru trailed off with a final \"But...\" while staring directly at Crusch. Crusch kept her emotions off her face, and he couldn't get a glimpse of what lay in her mind. However, she hadn't refuted anything he had said yet. That made the gamble worth it. \"I'll say it again. In return for an alliance between Emilia and Crusch, the Emilia camp offers the magic crystal mining rights in the Great Elior Forest in addition to information on the time and place the White Whale will appear in other words, the honor of hunting down the demon beast that has threatened this world for far too long!\" *** \"If any part of what I'm saying is off the mark, then just go ahead and throw it right out. If I'm wrong, then you can go ahead and simply consider the info I have on the White Whale as a plain bargaining chip for us to haggle over.\" Perhaps the two merchants present could simply take that information alone and turn a fine profit; Crusch herself could surely use that information to improve her reputation with merchants as a whole. It had at least that much value. \"But if what you're after is in line with what I'm hoping for, then \" Subaru raised his right hand and offered it, inviting Crusch to take his hand to tear down the wall between them, and to prove the future Subaru had seen was worth something. \"We should take out the White Whale let's go on a hunt.\" Subaru was proposing to Crusch that they hunt a creature of legend, a symbol of calamity to traveling merchants. That enormous, nightmarish Demon Beast of Mist that Subaru hated for its link to one of his abominable memories. \"Allow me to...ask you one thing.\" Crusch examined Subaru's presented hand and raised her finger, pointing it toward him. Subaru instinctively understood that the question Crusch would pose him was the final gate barring his path. \"You claim...to know when and where the White Whale shall appear. Is this absolutely certain?\" \" Yeah, it's true.\" Subaru released the breath he had been holding as he gave his answer. The final question was no accident Subaru could not lie. \"I guarantee I know when and where the White Whale will show. You can bet your...life on it.\" In fact, it really was information he had literally paid lives for whether his own or those of others, over and over. There was no doubt about how reliable it was, nor could Subaru show weakness now that he had come so far. \"...Though there are still some points about which I have doubts, you have done well to see through my plans.\" With a small sigh, Crusch closed her eyes as she replied, seemingly giving in. At first,"}, {"text": "Subaru was unable to grasp exactly what she meant. But as the words slowly permeated his mind, their meaning gradually took shape and became clearer. \"Then that means...\" \"I have misgivings. I have doubts. There are many elements I cannot comprehend, which makes accepting immediately difficult. However \" Crusch lowered the hand with which she had used to point at him and positioned it against Subaru's. Now, Crusch's slender, pale fingers were firmly grasping the hand he had offered earlier. \" I shall trust in your eyes and the spirit that leads us to the current state of affairs.\" The negotiations had succeeded. Seeing both of them shake hands, it was actually Russel's shoulders that visibly relaxed first. With an exaggerated breath, he was beside himself as he shook his head before he started speaking. \"There were a number of rather close calls, but it seems you have come to terms. Mr. Natsuki, can I assume that the promise you made prior to this meeting is still firm?\" \"Yeah. Sorry it's not much of a deal. You were a big help, Russel. Just like I promised, I'll give you my cell phone after we're done hunting the White Whale.\" Subaru responded to the devious smirk that came over Russel with one of his own. Noticing the exchange, Crusch had an exasperated expression on her face as she sighed. \"So you really were working together.\" \"Hey, I'm the one who invited him. I just asked him to give me a tiny helping hand.\" \"Please do not think poorly of me. In point of fact, I did my utmost to avoid any unnatural interference during the negotiations. At worst, I merely looked ahead to after you established an alliance.\" Crusch shrugged her shoulders at Subaru's and Russel's nonchalant replies. Subaru had gotten in contact with Russel immediately after exchanging information with Rem. Once he got a hold of Russel, whose negotiations with Crusch had similarly failed during Subaru's third time through the loop, they agreed to help each other during the meeting. That cooperation rested on the condition that Subaru would eventually hand over his cell phone. Properly speaking, Russel also had a false understanding of the cell phone's capabilities, but Subaru came to peace with it by seeing it as a chance for Russel to get his hands on an electronic device made with future technology. \"Now then, it is your duty to clear up these remaining areas of doubt.\" Crusch shifted her eyes from the link between Subaru and Russel, turning them toward Anastasia. Anastasia noticed that doubting gaze and tilted her head in an open question. \"Mm? You look like there's something you don't understand. But about what, I wonder?\" \"I understand that Subaru Natsuki and Russel Fellow have goals that align. This makes your position suspicious. What, pray tell, were you invited here for?\" \"Well, guess I see your point.\" Anastasia embraced her scarf, pouting with an adorable mmm before continuing. \"There are two royal selection candidates and one of the capital's leading merchants assembled. If you have alliance negotiations with this many heavy hitters...it's not like nothing you say goes outside of that place, huh. But just having me here gave Natsuki's words weight, didn't it?\" \"W-well, I did have a little bit of that in mind...\" Giving an evasive answer, Subaru hoped to muddy the waters even as he broke out into a cold sweat once she pointed out exactly what he had been thinking. In actuality, he had another reason for calling Anastasia over, albeit closely related to the one she had just mentioned. It was not to keep Crusch from saying anything carelessly. Subaru wanted to make sure Crusch didn't assume that anything he said was thoughtless and unfounded. By assembling so many important figures in one place, he felt it would lend greater credence to his words. Though given Crusch's and Anastasia's particularly sharp intuition, he was afraid to ask just how much it had actually worked. \"Then there was another reason as well. And that was?\" \"That's super-simple it's because I'm a merchant.\" Putting a hand over her lips, Anastasia smiled as she practically hopped forward. Then, she put both of her hands over Subaru's and Crusch's hands, still clasped together. \"I have big expectations for this hunt for the White Whale. For merchants like me, the White Whale is a matter of life-and-death, so if you're gonna take it out, I'll lend you two a big helping hand. Incidentally, you might want to consider the various products the Hoshin Company has on hand and ready to go?\" \"Please wait. Surely the Merchant's Guild of the royal capital has precedence in this deal. Lady Anastasia, I would kindly ask that you refrain from interfering in this matter.\" Russel rebuffed Anastasia's blatantly mercantile probing. As sparks flew between the competing merchants, Crusch looked at Subaru, seemingly having deduced something from the mutual exchange. \"Wait. Listening to your words, it would seem that we are rather short on time.\" \"Well, I never heard a thing about that, either. I just thought it felt that way from how the conversation was going. But you're actually pretty hard-pressed, aren't you?\" With both Crusch and Anastasia staring at him, Subaru licked his dry lips. Now that they'd formed an alliance, there was no point hiding the information anymore. \" Yeah, that's right. According to the metia, the White Whale will appear about thirty hours from now. The location is...the area around the Great Flugel Tree.\" \"Thirty hours...!\" \"The Great Flugel Tree \" Crusch ground her teeth at the incredibly tight schedule. Anastasia tried to wrap her head around the name of the location. Yes, the rest was a race against time. \"Within thirty hours, we need to deploy our forces to the Liphas plains, and strike at the White Whale with a coordinated attack just as it appears. For that...\" Crusch, quickly adapting to the situation, turned her head only to see Wilhelm nodding. The aged swordsman broke his previous silence and spoke. \"With regards to the attack force's organization, it has already been on standby in the royal capital for several days. In the first place, it had assembled in the royal capital to coincide with the timetable of the White Whale's expected appearance. Lady Crusch, I believe you are blessed that this should coincide with the beginning of the royal selection, but...\" \"That was fast! But what? Is there a pattern to when the White Whale shows up?\" Though Wilhelm's news was a lifesaver, what Subaru heard also surprised him. As far as he knew, the time and place of the White Whale's appearances were completely random. Its tendency to pop up anywhere, anytime was a part of the Demon Beast of Mist's greatest menace, but... It was Ferris, advancing to Wilhelm's side, who answered Subaru's question. \"Figuring out the times and places the White Whale comes out is all Old Man Wil's hard work, meow. He's spent the last fourteen years living with only the thought of giving it a good pounding, meow.\" Ferris's cat ears twitched. Then, he peered into the face of the broad-shouldered old man and spoke again. \"Thanks to Old Man Wil, I'm not worried about the morale or training of the troops, but I can't say the same for our logistics network. I mean, if people figured there was an army under Lady Crusch's command here in the capital, there'd be a huge fuss over it, so we've had to sneak stuff in bit by bit.\" When Ferris pointed that out, Wilhelm's sharp eyes shifted Subaru's way. \"Certainly, I cannot say that our weapons and equipment preparations are completely in order... Sir Subaru, did you bring Mr. Russel and Lady Anastasia to the same table to address this?\" \"Well, sometimes these things just happen... I wanted to say that at least once in my life, okay?\" Subaru scratched his head and returned Wilhelm's gaze with the answer he had prepared. Russel, preeminent merchant that he was, accepted Subaru's reply and motioned to outside the window. \"I have already sent the guild notice to be ready to move. Preparations are happening as we speak. Allow us until tomorrow afternoon, and we shall gather everything that is necessary from the merchants here in the royal capital.\" \"Hey, the same goes for the Hoshin Company. Let's give merchants not part of the guild a chance to fill the gaps. You can expect various other things from us as well.\" Anastasia followed Russel's words up with a strikingly powerful reply. Then, as Crusch folded her arms in relief, Anastasia smiled at her. \"I came here because it's an iron rule of commerce never to pass up a business opportunity. Selling things is nice, but, but, but, doing favors are number one! Intangible, no depreciation, no overhead and more than anything, you can slap a price on it after the fact!\" \"Hey, I'm glad she's on our side here, but hearing that makes me think 'Wow, this businesswoman's a real piece of work!' all over again.\" Anastasia was a cute girl with an adorable blush to her cheeks, but she was a miser to the core and thus, very, very scary. Subaru couldn't even fathom the price she attached to her favors. With Anastasia in a very good mood, Crusch glanced at her and nodded with an accepting look. \"So you prepared the path before negotiations took place. I see. So in this instance, it was I who lacked foresight and resolve. You have done well, Subaru Natsuki.\" \"I just crammed super-hard before the test. Me, I'm relieved to the bottom of my heart.\" He'd schemed and prepared endlessly beforehand, but even then, successfully brokering the deal was still like tightrope walking across a knife's edge. Even with wild cards on his side, he still had an awful lot to learn. Even so... \"Guess I managed to save face for staying behind in the capital, Rem.\" \"Yes. You are incredible, Subaru, as I knew you would be.\" He lifted up their still-clasped hands as he and Rem, the unsung hero of the negotiations, shared in each other's joy at their success. There probably wasn't anyone happier at the result of the negotiations than Rem. Originally, these negotiations had been Rem's appointed duty. He could easily imagine how being unable to divulge her task to Subaru and having to speak with Crusch day after day had whittled away at her spirit. Subaru had continually rotted by himself while the future of the Emilia camp had been entrusted to her she must have suffered under that burden. He hoped that in some small way, this victory repaid the girl whose feelings had supported him for so long; if so, then for the moment, that was enough for Subaru to be happy. \" Sir Subaru.\" As Rem and Subaru celebrated together, a voice suddenly called out to him. When he looked over, he saw Wilhelm, standing with his back straight as he watched Subaru with a serious demeanor. When the aged swordsman's eyes met Subaru's, emotions flooded onto Wilhelm's wrinkled, fearless face. \"Thank you.\" With that brief statement, he went down on one knee on the spot. The suddenness of it jolted Subaru. However, he was not alone in his surprise. Not only Crusch and Ferris, who knew Wilhelm, but even the others like Rem and Anastasia were startled. \"I offer thanks to you as deep as that I offer my lord, Duchess Crusch Karsten. I thank you for giving this elderly man an opportunity for vengeance.\" \"Uhh, that's...?\" \"As wise a man you are, Sir Subaru, you have likely already deduced this, but allow me to reintroduce myself \" Wilhelm paid no heed to Subaru's confusion, drawing his sword from its sheath. He lowered the blade onto the floor, then placed his hand upon it. It was the greatest possible gesture for paying the utmost respect. Then, he spoke his name. \"Previously, I was known by Trias, my old surname. My true family name is"}, {"text": "Astrea. I took the previous Sword Saint, Theresia van Astrea, as my wife, sullying the family line of the Sword Saints that is I, Wilhelm van Astrea.\" After a breath, Wilhelm's eyes were filled with a glimmer of hope as he carried on. \"My warmest thanks, for granting this withered body a chance to slay the damned demon beast that robbed me of my wife.\" Wilhelm deeply bowed his head, the emotions of his powerful, heartfelt plea slamming into Subaru all at once. Everyone listening to the exchange was waiting in anticipation of Subaru's reply. To meet their expectations, Subaru drew a deep breath and answered. \"R-right...o-of course I knew. Naturally, that's how I was sure Crusch would agree to wiping out the White Whale!\" \"Subaru Natsuki.\" Crusch calmly interrupted Subaru's oddly flailing reply. Her amber eyes peered into Subaru's floundering expression when she sighed softly. \"A deceitful wind is blowing from you.\" The power of the wind reading underscored how plain Subaru's paper-thin lie was. CHAPTER 2 *** 1  Slaying the White Whale. With negotiations concluded, everyone involved acted quickly to make the word hunt a reality. Just as the two merchants Anastasia and Russel had proclaimed, weapons and equipment were scrounged up from all over the royal capital, with Crusch mustering the punitive force she'd prepared beforehand. The rest, arranging dragon carriages to transport the additional people and supplies, was taken care of in short order. \"With so many dragon carriages being hired for this, no wonder I had so much trouble finding one to get back to Roswaal Manor.\" As Subaru watched people and goods rapidly flow in and out of the mansion, he realized how much had been happening behind the scenes during the loop, completely without his personal involvement. During his previous trips through, Crusch and Wilhelm had already been preparing to fight the White Whale, even while Subaru was off in his own little world. Subaru had a rude awakening when he finally realized it after all that time. He'd caused them trouble on three different occasions. He wondered if there was anything he could do to help. \"Hey, if there's anything I can...\" \"Ehh, Subawu, there's nothing at all you can do, is there, meow?\" \"Hey, I said if!\" Subaru, swept up by the busy atmosphere, was on the verge of offering some kind of help, but Ferris, concealing a yawn with a hand over his face, foiled Subaru's half-hearted attempt. \"Don't assume other people share your laid-back attitude. Even I must have something I can...\" \"Preparing supplies and organizing troops are both outside your areas of expertise, aren't they, Subawu? And we can't have outsiders running all around, so sit and behave, okay?\" \"Well, I can't do that. It's just that I'm the one who said 'let's do this' and everyone else is working into the dead of night while I'm...\" \"That's where you're dead wrong!\" With Subaru all worked up, Ferris thrust a finger into the tip of his nose, interrupting with some terse words. Forced into silence, Subaru yelped as Ferris flicked his nose as he spoke. \"Ferri really doesn't like that it's-my-fault way of thinking. Or rather, I hate it.\" \"...I really am the reason why they're pulling an all-nighter, though.\" It seemed strange for him to blithely sit around and quietly wait for the results. \" Nowadays everything's all about the royal selection, but way back when, Crusch was just a normal, adorable princess without any thoughts of participating in kingdom politics.\" \"Huh?\" \"Ah, did the princess part throw you off? She's always looked lovely, but Lady Crusch has become so strong and gallant since then that even men can't keep up...\" Subaru, bewildered by the topic's sudden onset, felt left behind as Ferris's cheeks flushed. Ferris let out a flustered sigh, swooning at the image of the young Crusch in the back of his mind as he continued. \"Lady Crusch is kind, wonderful, and invincible, earnest and valiant and more forthright than anyone...but the reason Lady Crusch turned into this Lady Crusch, strong enough to aim for the throne, is because she was at a certain someone's side.\" \"What are you talkin' about? And what do you mean, a certain someone...?\" \" His Highness Fourier Lugunica. This nation's late fourth prince.\" Subaru, completely lost in this conversation, drew in his breath just a bit at Ferris's words. But he had more reasons for being at a loss for words than surprise at the name of a dead person he never knew. *** The fleeting, sad look on Ferris's face when he spoke the name had grabbed his attention. His smile included a feeling of nostalgia and loneliness but, somehow, also a faint measure of pride. Even keeping his gender in mind, it was a beautiful sight that left Subaru short of breath. \"Watching you, Subawu, makes me remember Prince Fourier just a tiny little bit.\" \"...Was he someone with a mean-looking face?\" \"Nah, he was handsome. You're not even in his league, Subawu. But the willful personality, the simplicity, the pure, blatant conceit... Well, I won't say any more, since it might insult him.\" \"I think that's already pretty insulting and also a backhanded slap at me, too?!\" Apparently, it was their shared character flaws rather than similar faces that had gotten Ferris all sentimental. Sadly, Subaru couldn't deny any of them, but Ferris shook his head at Subaru's words. \"Prince Fourier was a confounding man to deal with, but he tried his very best. He always worried about how to act properly as a royal, and his inspirations caused all kinds of trouble for those around him. The prince wasn't talented, but he was full of drive, and he'd always listen to anything you wanted to ask him, meow.\" \"...Sounds like a pretty difficult guy to handle.\" \"That's right! He'd say, 'When everyone is working so hard, I simply cannot bear to be the only one standing still!' Exactly like you are now, Subawu. But His Highness would never, ever say anything like, ''Tis my fault.' He wasn't someone to consider it, or even to think it at all.\" The strained smile Ferris wore as his reminiscing words trailed off showed how much he cared for the prince. Was that really such an important person? Subaru wondered, before it finally dawned upon him. The fourth prince of the Kingdom of Lugunica meant this Fourier person they were speaking about had died in the plague that became the impetus for the royal selection. And if he was the reason why Crusch was aiming for the throne, that would mean  \"So this Prince Fourier and Crusch were...close?\" \"They were similar in age, and Prince Fourier visited Lady Crusch's mansion a great deal. He'd drop in here and there, making an excuse every time, but he was bad at hiding things, so his real goal was obvious.\" Ferris made a little smile as he cast his thoughts back in time, clueing Subaru in to how Fourier felt. Ferris and Crusch's relationship went beyond that of mere lord and servant or man and woman. But for that Fourier person to be included in that relationship was no doubt very important to Ferris. The relationship between the three was probably very special, and very precious. \"Ninety-five percent of the Ferri you see now is all because of Lady Crusch. But the most important part of that remaining five percent is thanks to Prince Fourier... That, I'm sure of.\" The way Ferris gently lowered his eyes and put a hand to his chest as he spoke gave Subaru an odd feeling deep inside. Until then, he'd been firmly convinced that Ferris had never opened his heart to anyone besides Crusch. He thought it might be the healer's experience related to life and death that let Ferris dole out looks cruel enough to give people chills. But when Ferris spoke of how he remembered Fourier, there was not even the tiniest trace of that. \"But what, you feel friendliness from me that's the same as what you felt from this Fourier person?\" \"Hah? Why does that make Subawu and Fourier the same? I'll kill you.\" \"That's so mean it's scary!\" The sharp, impaling voice and dangerous look in his eyes made Subaru retreat a step, unnerved. Seeing this, Ferris cleared his throat. \"That's not how I meant it... I'm not going out of my way to talk to you about this right now because of that, Subawu... Aw, sheesh! Why don't you understand already, idiot!\" \"Hey, that's not even the tiniest bit reasonable! The conversation jumped everywhere, so I didn't get it! What do you want from me, anyway?!\" Ferris stomped his foot on the floor in annoyance, with Subaru still cringing as a loud voice responded: \"Subaru, Master Felix, you are both speaking rather loudly, is something wrong?\" Rem, ostensibly packing luggage in the guest room, heard the ruckus and came down the stairs. Seeing the worried look on Rem's face, Subaru scratched his head, unsure how he ought to explain things. \"Er, I was thinking that maybe I could help out with something, but Ferris was saying I'd be in the way, and now I'm not even sure what he was trying to tell me.\" \"Subawu, you're just awful at putting things together. Sheesh, I tried to tell you... It's all because you tried to get in the way of everyone's work...\" \"Don't call it 'getting in the way'! I wanna help. I mean, all this started because of me...\" \"It's that!\" Ferris lifted his face, powerfully interrupting Subaru's meandering words. Then, the cat ears on his head made a little twitch as he poked a finger into Subaru's chest. \"Subawu, I hate how you say 'because of.' It's not 'because of,' it's 'thanks to.' That's why everyone's pulling an all-nighter and why Old Man Wil finally has a chance to fight the White Whale.\" \"Thanks to me...?\" Subaru quizzically tilted his head at words that didn't seem real to him. But Rem, standing close by, smiled at Subaru, agreeing with Ferris's satisfaction. \"Competing in the royal selection, fighting the White Whale... It's not really for Lady Crusch's own benefit. It's for everyone.\" With Subaru cowed into silence, Ferris continued on. \"Hunting down the White Whale is Old Man Wil's fondest wish. Apparently, he wasn't able to be at his wife's side when the White Whale took her, the previous Sword Saint.\" \"The previous Sword Saint...\" \"To take his revenge, Old Man Wil chased after the White Whale like he had a death wish. Without anything concrete to go on, it was a lot like trying to grab mist with your hand. He recorded the places the White Whale appeared, the time of day, the weather... For that, we went all over the place, testing different hypotheses, and finally, he figured out that there's something like an order to it.\" Subaru wondered just how deep Wilhelm's vindictiveness ran. Everyone knew of, and feared, the Demon Beast of Mist, a mighty foe in no small part due to how everything about the creature was shrouded in mystery and yet, all alone, this elderly man continued to struggle against that being. \"But when he finally figured it out, no one would believe a word he said.\" So the aged swordsman had spent night after night nursing his desire for vengeance as he pored over tomes with bloodshot eyes. Yet, when his fervor finally turned up a tangible lead, no one had the power to act on it  \"The kingdom's wounds from the Great Expedition still run deep. With the throne vacant, there wasn't anyone who could help Old Man Wil. No one had the will to fight the White Whale, or the resources to spare... I think Old Man Wil was probably on the verge of despair when he couldn't find anyone to cooperate with him.\" Wilhelm had yearned for vengeance, yet he could not even crawl to the foot of his hated foe. Subaru knew the despair"}, {"text": "that came from crushing helplessness, for weakness was a sin that he himself couldn't escape. \"It seems like he thought about leaving behind everything and everyone he knew to fight the White Whale completely alone. I think his shame from not fighting it was outweighing the fact that he couldn't win men really are idiots. His wife wouldn't have wanted him to do that, I'm sure of it.\" \"I suppose not...\" Yes, it was Rem, silent to that point, who agreed with Ferris. Rem touched a hand to her own chest as she gently glanced at Subaru with her pale-blue eyes. \"I want the person I love to be happy forever. Even if I am gone, I want to be remembered with a smiling face.\" \"...It's way too soon to talk about remembrances, y'know.\" Subaru couldn't help turning down Rem's sentimental words. He reached out with his hand and gave Rem's head a tiny poke, then gently touched her with his palm and caressed her. Rem fondly narrowed her eyes at Subaru's open outburst of emotion. \"Then, it was Lady Crusch who approached Master Wilhelm?\" Ferris nodded, averting his face with a distant look in his eyes. \"That's because Lady Crusch is truly kind at heart. She'll reach out to someone drowning in grief and despair, or speak to a person everyone's turned their backs to, and she'll help anyone who wants to take care of someone precious to them  She'd say, 'That's what His Highness would do.'\" For a moment, Ferris closed his eyes; then, he lifted his face with a normal expression on it, sticking out his tongue. \"All right, weird talk over. It was a long talk, but the point is, Subawu, you don't need to brood over this one itsy bit! Besides, it's not like we're doing any of this for your sake, anyway! No one's as interested in you as much as you think they are!\" \"Maybe you were trying to hide your embarrassment or something, but that was actually mean!\" \"It is all right, Subaru. I am very interested in you. If this is what others think of you, then my feelings are ten times stronger.\" \"That's scary, too!\" After Ferris's harsh statement came Rem's very different follow-up. Buffeted by both, Subaru nonetheless tried to understand the core of what they were telling him. \"Man, that was a convoluted conversation...\" \"That 'oh, now I understand' attitude really annoys me, meow. Hmph, that's Subawu for you.\" \"All that said...your tongue is somewhat too glib, Ferris.\" \"Meow?!\" Though he had adopted a blunt demeanor, Ferris jumped in surprise at the voice that suddenly came from behind. Anxiously, he looked back to see an aged gentleman standing behind him, arms folded. Wilhelm's sharp stare seemed to make Ferris shrink. \"I cannot say it is a good hobby to speak excessively of a man's shame to others?\" \"It's nothing to be ashamed of, meow. It's like a Ferri-style literary deconstruction of Old Man Wil's character?\" Ferris brought his fingers from both hands together and stuck his tongue out in a flirty pose. For all the world, he seemed like a pretty, adorable, cat-eared girl, but sadly, he was very much a guy. Of course, that sex appeal was unlikely in the extreme to work on Wilhelm. \"At any rate, do not prattle so much about a person without his permission.\" \"Gooot it.\" Curtly dressed down, Ferris's shoulders drooped as he meekly backed away. It was just like Ferris to bid them farewell, only to slip in a wink at the end. But it was Subaru whose mental state was in chaos. Having unintentionally heard all the details about Wilhelm's past, he couldn't help feeling guilty. He thought briefly about divulging his own past embarrassments to make up for it, but he could imagine what kind of scorched-earth landscape that would leave, so he firmly rejected the idea. As a result, the silence continued unbroken, with a bead of sweat trickling down Subaru's brow. \"My apologies you had to hear that unpleasant tale. I do not wish to waste your time with an old man's trivial delusions. Please, forget them.\" It was Wilhelm who broke the silence, trying to act like the conversation earlier had never happened. Seeing the painful smile on his face, Subaru silently resolved to respect his wishes. Ask nothing, said Wilhelm's silent wish. So he would ask nothing. \"You truly love your wife, don't you?\"  Miss Rem?! Subaru's shock was palpable. Rem had walked directly into a veritable minefield. Paying Subaru's nervousness no heed, Wilhelm raised an eyebrow for a moment before he replied. \"Yes, I love my wife. More than anything, more than anyone, no matter how much time may pass.\" Wilhelm's age itself gave his statement that much more weight. On several past occasions, Subaru had heard Wilhelm voice his feelings for his beloved wife. In those few moments, Wilhelm had conveyed just how dear his wife was to him, but now that he knew that these were Wilhelm's feelings for someone departed from this world, it stirred a different emotion deep within Subaru. \"If you will excuse me, preparations for tomorrow yet await. Please rest peacefully this evening.\" With the pair falling silent, Wilhelm turned his back to them and gently headed off. \"Tomorrow \" As Wilhelm excused himself, Subaru spoke to him spur-of-the-moment. He stopped. But he did not look back when he started speaking. \"Tomorrow, Rem and I will be fighting with you.\" \"That is...\" \"As if we can sit back and watch while our allies face a powerful enemy. Don't worry. Rem can fight...and I have things to do, too.\" Subaru piled onto his hastily spoken words, cutting off any rejection of his cooperation. Then he added, \"Let's join our strength together and give that whale bastard a real beating! I'll help every way I can!\" *** Subaru raised the thumb of his right hand as he swore that he and Wilhelm would be comrades in arms. For a time, Wilhelm said nothing to his declaration. Then  \" My wife was a woman who loved to admire flowers.\" Haltingly, he replied to Subaru's oath in a very different tone. \"She did not care for the way of the sword, yet the sword loved her like none other. She was not permitted to live any life save one with the sword, and my wife came to accept that destiny.\" Subaru had personally witnessed the might of Reinhard, the current Sword Saint. The blessing of Sword Saint granted the human body an absurd level of power enough power to define a person's future and narrow one's possibilities without limit. \"It is I who robbed my wife of the sword and made her abandon the title of Sword Saint.\" Once, Wilhelm had told Subaru that he was an aged swordsman with no talent that his current state had been achieved after offering half of his life to the sword. What setbacks must he have suffered, what nails must have been driven into his heart until he arrived at that dear wish? And then  \"She abandoned the sword and became a woman and my wife. All this she permitted so that she might live as Theresia instead of the Sword Saint  However, the sword did not forgive her.\" If she had abandoned the sword, how had she ended up part of the White Whale expeditionary force? However, Wilhelm's recollection did not touch upon that issue as he spoke. \"Sir Subaru, I thank you.\" After a breath, he added, \"In tomorrow's battle, I shall find my answer with my own blade. I will be able to go where my wife rests. I shall finally be able to meet her.\" Leaving those words behind, Wilhelm departed the room for good. Subaru couldn't keep his entire body from trembling from the flood of emotions within him. As a fellow man, Wilhelm's determination could not fail to inspire a deep reverence within him. Wilhelm was a man earnestly, sincerely beholden to love. \"Subaru...\" Suddenly, Rem's voice echoed across the now-silent room. Without a word, Subaru turned toward her, perfectly meeting Rem's gaze. \"...If I am gone, will you remember me just as long?\" \"...I don't wanna answer that. It's bad luck.\" Speaking with a voice of dismay, Subaru gave Rem's forehead a little poke. When he touched Rem's forehead, she smiled with a happy expression, almost as if she'd received the reply she had been hoping for. 2 It was the following morning seventeen hours before the appointed hour for subjugating the White Whale. \"Now then, it's Lady Crusch's orders, so go ahead, pick whichever one you like.\" \"Even if you put it like that...\" With a cool morning breeze blowing, Subaru was at the Crusch residence, utterly lost in front of a lineup of land dragons. Ferris, wearing a white uniform of the Knights of the Royal Guard instead of his usual feminine clothing, was having Subaru examine the land dragons. With a snow-white cape on top, and a face full of zeal, Ferris's cheeks puffed up at Subaru's reply. \"What?! Lady Crusch went out of her way to be so kind, and you don't like them?!\" \"It's not that. I'm really happy I can choose the land dragon I'll ride, but I don't have a clue how to figure out what's good or bad about each one. Do I look like a vet who's been handling 'em for decades?\" \"Hmm...not even a little. So how about you pick based on intuition? Considering that it's who you'll trust with your life, and who you might end up dying beside, Ferri won't hold any choice against you, meow.\" \"Stop that! Don't raise weird event flags like that! I'm not planning to die here!\" Even with twelve-odd hours left before the decisive battle, Ferris didn't seem tense whatsoever. It was better than being oddly stressed out, but Subaru thought the mood was a little too slack. At that moment, numerous land dragons were lined up in the front yard of the Crusch residence for the offensive against the White Whale. Many land dragons were for hauling freight, but a dragon mount to take into actual combat was an especially crucial decision. He'd heard that the House of Karsten had a fine selection, including famous dragons from excellent bloodlines, but... \"No matter how much I look, I can't really get past 'They seem really cool.' Rem, what do you think?\" Just like many knights setting out for battle with their favorite horse, Subaru had been given the privilege of choosing his mount. But at that rate, such a prized right would simply go to waste. Rem, standing at Subaru's side while stroking the neck of the land dragon in front of her, responded to his prompt. \"I wonder. In my case, I can tell most land dragons which one of us is in charge, so I have had little reason to be concerned with the differences between individuals...\" \"That figures. You really know how to crack the whip. Huh, what should I do...?\" The land dragon Rem was stroking sat on the ground, almost as if to display its submission. It probably did what came naturally after sensing that it stood lower on the food chain. Subaru couldn't really pull off the same thing, nor did he want to. \"If you spend too much time picking, we'll pay for it later, so pick quiiiick.\" \"You say it like this is none of your concern, sheesh.\" \"It actually isn't, but that's not the point. Seriously, they're all well bred, so you can't go wrong with any of these guys. Just pick on intuition.\" \"Well, that does make a certain amount of sense, but...mm?\" With Ferris urging him to hurry, Subaru walked around to examine the various land dragons, when he suddenly stopped. Rem had been walking beside him until he froze, which earned him a curious expression. \"Subaru, is something wrong?\" \"Nah... This one just kinda caught my eye.\" As Subaru stood still, there was a beautiful,"}, {"text": "pitch-black land dragon before him. It had sharp facial features and yellow eyes. Resting atop the saddle on its back was a leather helmet for dragon riders. The variety of gear didn't differ from that of the other land dragons, but what struck Subaru were its eyes. *** The land dragon's quiet gaze gave Subaru a different impression compared to its peers. There was not even the tiniest smidgeon of the pride or fidelity that land dragons typically displayed. The pitch-black land dragon simply sat there, calmly waiting to be selected. \"Hey...you're the land dragon I met at the mansion a while back, aren't you?\" Subaru, suddenly recognizing the individual dragon, reached out toward it. At his side, Rem was a little startled and was instantly tempted to pull back Subaru's hand. But faster than Rem could stop him, the land dragon nuzzled its nose against Subaru's hand. \"...Looks like this one is number one.\" \"I am surprised. I believe this land dragon is from an especially proud breed... I was concerned it might eat your hand, Subaru.\" \"Okay, maybe I was a little careless just now!\" But he'd thought there was no need for such concern. Maybe he and the land dragon were on the same wavelength. Subaru decided he'd bet his life on the black land dragon that had nuzzled him with the tip of its nose. \"Ferris, I'm picking this one. It's love at first sight.\" \"Yes, yes. Ohhh, nice pick. Subawu, you really are quite shameless... Also, don't say 'love at first sight'; you'll make Rem pout.\" \"I am not pouting. I will get along with it properly. I can do it.\" Subaru was a little concerned at how she added extra words for emphasis, but with Rem's permission, Subaru's choice of mount was decided. Ferris, who had a few other things to take care of, remained behind while Subaru and Rem headed back into the mansion side by side. There was little time remaining before they were due to set out. The Crusch residence had been gathering manpower in bits and pieces, forming an expeditionary force with the goal of fighting the White Whale. Even among them, there was something in the hall that especially drew Subaru's attention... \"Wh-what are they doing here...?\" Subaru was beside himself, unwittingly staring right at them. A member of the group noticed his gaze and approached him with an audible patter. \"Guess you're part of the expeditionary force, too! Nice to meetcha, bro!\" The voice Subaru heard had enough force to blow the crisp morning air away. The sound reached the far corners of the spacious mansion. Subaru could not help being struck by the forceful bellow. Subaru put his hands on his ears and grimaced heavily, glaring back at the other party, but... \"I heard all about ya from the lady! You're the one who made today's whale hunt happen. Ain't that right?! From here on, I'm part of the hunt, too! Glad the weather's cooperating!\" \"You're too loud! Can't those round eyes of yours read my reaction?!\" As a natural response to the booming words, Subaru ended up shouting, too. His angry voice sent the dog-faced beast man into a laugh that was even more stupidly loud. His entire body was covered in brown fur, with an oblong, dark-brown mane adorning his head like a Mahican hairstyle. However, he was almost six and a half feet tall, and the sight of his extremely muscular body clad in a leather outfit felt a lot like a truce coming after wildness and culture coming to blows. Subaru's eyes lingered on the steel epaulet protecting his otherwise exposed upper body, and the Hoshin Company logo engraved upon it. \"That logo on a beast man from Kararagi... That means you're Anastasia's Iron Fangs!\" \"Wha ! Your voice is too quiet, bro! I can't hear what you're sayin'!\" \"Oh, shut up for a second! What the hell did you eat to grow that big?! What race are you?!\" \"I'm a kobold, can't you tell?! As if there could be a dog race besides kobolds?!\" \"Huh, kobold... Wait, there's no way?!\" The beast man had called himself a kobold, but Subaru's image of a kobold was a little person with a dog face. The dog face and the humanoid body were in line with what he expected, but the body size was way, way off. \"They call me Ricardo. Nice to meet you, too, missy!\" \"Yes, Master Ricardo. Thank you for your kind words. My name is Rem.\" Emotionally prepared for Ricardo's hearty greeting, Rem politely introduced herself in turn. When Subaru glanced, watching the exchange, he saw Anastasia with a grin coming over to the head of Ricardo's group a band of beast people. When her mischievous smile met Subaru's sour look, she teasingly tilted her head. \"Oh no, Natsuki. It would seem Ricardo isn't very agreeable with your ears. The best way to get along with him is to not wander too close, you see.\" \"It would've been useful to know about that before meeting him. You really are rough on people.\" \"Sorry, I couldn't help wondering how you'd react, you see...\" \"Not just rough on people, a bad personality, too. Er, ow!\" As Anastasia giggled teasingly, Ricardo's huge beast-man hand gave Subaru's head a little push. He opened his big mouth wide to speak, which neatly displayed his fangs. \"Hey, bro! Watch your mouth when speaking with the lady! Be a little nicer to our employer, will ya! She almost never talks to anyone if it's not about profits and losses, so she has no friends! At this point, you can probably get in good with her with a little kindness!\" \"Ricardo. If you're going to sweep something under the rug, best not to be insulting about it along the way, yes?\" \"It's not an insult! I'm worried about you, miss! Ever since way back, you never got along with people too well, so comin' here from Kararagi without anyone you know has gotta been wearing you down, right?! But lookie right here! Heeeere ya go, friend number one!\" \"Hey, don't butt in and babble when people are talking! And don't go grabbing a guy's head and shaking it around like that! That ridiculous strength of yours could tear my head off!\" Assailed by literally superhuman strength, Subaru tried to somehow shake his attacker off before his neck snapped first. In a hurry, he escaped from Ricardo and immediately began neck-stretching exercises, rotating his head around. \"M-man, that was close. Wouldn't be funny to get injured and sidelined during chitchat right before the big battle. I'm pretty worked up for this, so no way am I gonna accept that kind of foul-up...\" \"What's with the big fuss! I'm just tellin' you guys to get along!\" \"Maybe different cultures have different definitions of getting along. Are all Kararagi people like this?\" \"Well, of course not. Ricardo's special. You see a vast difference in elegance and grace between him and me, don't you?\" Anastasia stood beside Ricardo and brazenly laid out her claim. Subaru deeply exhaled, pushing Rem forward as he countered. \"Now, look. If you wanna talk about real grace, talk about someone like Rem. See this elegance?\" \"Oh no... Calling me cute like this... I'm blushing.\" \"Hmm, a strange girl, but she seems nice and has excellent future prospects. You've got quite the catch there, Natsuki.\" Subaru almost wanted to say that it was more like they had caught each other, but Rem's reaction was already a little different from what Subaru expected, so it was hard for him to bring it up. Then, Crusch emerged from below Subaru and the others at the head of a motley assembly. \"From the look of things, you have finished getting to know one another.\" Crusch was not in her usual handsome dress uniform but rather, a light suit of unornamented armor. The build clearly focused on ease of movement; perhaps prioritizing mobility was in itself a feminine choice. To Subaru's eyes, it seemed questionable how much protection it would be able to provide the wearer. \"It is better to wear gear that is easy to move in. Do not be overly concerned. An earth blacksmith engraved this with the durability blessing. So long as my mana is not exhausted, it is far stouter than it appears,\" Crusch explained, realizing the doubts behind Subaru's gaze, and she touched a hand to her breastplate. \"There's a thing like that? As usual, magic and blessings are basically cheating... Maybe I have a convenient blessing like that sleeping inside of me and I just don't know yet?\" \"No matter how long a person sleeps, it is not as if anyone ever forgets how to breathe, yes? That is what blessings are like for those who possess them. If you are not aware of one, it is best to abandon the notion.\" Having experienced a similar put-down once before, Subaru pouted and discarded his faint hope. Rem comforted Subaru as if she were consoling a sulking child. Meanwhile, Crusch noticed Ricardo gazing down at her, so she peered up at his huge frame and spoke again. \"I see. I had heard the stories, but you are an even greater warrior than rumored. So you are the captain of the Iron Fangs, the blade who stands by Anastasia Hoshin's side?\" \"In the end, we're just being paid to do a job. You're Crusch Karsten, right? Besides the usual rumors, I've heard about you from the lady, but seeing you in the flesh is...\" With Crusch folding her arms and looking up at him, Ricardo audibly sniffed, using his canine sense of smell. Then, the folds of his nose crinkled and his throat rumbled in laughter. \"What a piece of work! This royal selection's gonna be pretty tough, miss!\" \"Well, that's why we have to sell favors like this. The price tag I can put on it depends on how hard you work, so better work hard, Ricardo.\" \"Gah-ha-ha-ha! That's our lady! Whether it's people or dogs, she works them to the bone!\" Anastasia seemed to agree with Ricardo's assessment of Crusch. Maybe she and the stupidly laughing Ricardo had been working together for a long time, for Anastasia seemed like just a regular young girl when talking with him. She must have had a soft spot for him. Loud voice aside, Subaru didn't sense any problems dealing with Ricardo, either. Maybe it was just his personality as a man, or perhaps he should say as a dog? However, Subaru did feel like he was just a bit too outspoken... \"Did you rest well last night?\" Crusch shifted her gaze away from Ricardo to show Subaru some consideration. Subaru was still massaging the neck Ricardo had twisted a short while ago as he responded. \"Yeah, thanks. It didn't seem like a good thing to be sleeping so easily while the rest of you were busy, though.\" \"There is a time and place for everything. Your job was assembling myself, Russel Fellow, and Anastasia Hoshin last night and accomplishing the formation of the White Whale expeditionary force. Indeed, from my perspective, your offering to assist in fighting the White Whale was unexpected.\" After a faint smile, Crusch's lips became taut as she stared straight at Subaru. Seeing the complex emotions behind her amber eyes, Subaru wilted at what might be coming next. \"I am grateful for assistance in fighting the White Whale...but can you fight?\" \"Not really? If you count me in, I'm like the cat's claws you borrow, because you're scraping the bottom of the barrel. A dog's claws can get pretty big, though.\" \"Hey, were you talkin' 'bout me just now?!\" \"I was, but you don't need to butt in! Man, you've got convenient hearing!\" Subaru yelled at Ricardo for interrupting the conversation, but Crusch's eyes had gone wide when he openly declared that he was useless in combat. Subaru racked his brain over how to explain it to her."}, {"text": "\"So as fighting goes, it's like that...but I think I'll be a help against the White Whale.\" \"Let's hear it, then. What do you mean?\" \"I'm not all that happy about this, mind you...but it seems that I have a peculiar scent that attracts demon beasts.\" The odd nuance of Subaru's statement once again pressed Crusch into silence. However, when Rem stated, \"There is no mistake,\" in an odd agreement while standing beside him, Crusch displayed only a brief hint of concern before asking him to continue. \"I shall tentatively state that I understand. Please give us the details.\" \"Maybe scent isn't quite the right word, but it's a physical condition I have. In fact, when we had that demon beast incident back at the mansion we mentioned last night, I used it to lure the demon beasts.\" \"Is that so...? Then the fact that you possess a metia to warn you of the danger of demon beasts is connected to this?\" \"Ah, that's some unexpected foreshadowing you  Er, I'm just talking to myself.\" With suspicious gazes trained on Subaru, he shut his mouth before he said too much. \"Anyway, I think that characteristic of mine will probably work on the White Whale, too. If I'm there, we can predict to a decent degree where the White Whale goes. But when we do, the demon beast's danger level is off the charts, so expecting me to actually fight it is a little much.\" An Urugarum was about as dangerous as a large dog. Even so, they had nearly killed him. Not that threats were proportional to body length, but the White Whale was thousands of times larger than an Urugarum. By himself, Subaru couldn't outrun the White Whale, let alone counterattack. \"That's why I'll take the land dragon you lent me and run around right under the White Whale's nose to draw its attention. While it's doing that, you'll go after it full force...or at least that's the tactic I'd recommend.\" To be blunt, it was a plan he wasn't sure he could speak from his own lips. He was saying they couldn't count on him for fighting strength but that he'd be useful running around the battlefield as bait. It was a role that would make even those with a death wish turn pale. \" I do not sense any deceit from you, which surprises me greatly.\" Crusch put a hand to her chin, barely able to believe her eyes as she let out a sigh of resignation. She'd no doubt weighed Subaru's statement with the blessing of wind reading, considering how the truth or falsity affected its effectiveness for the operation. \"Many times in the half day since last night, I have wanted to doubt my own blessing. I do not claim it is infallible, but...\" \"You've lost a little confidence in it?\" \"No. I simply get tense when the world exceeds my expectations in various ways.\" As she said those words, a smile came over Crusch that did not seem sore or bitter. It was the expression of a beautiful lioness, which she immediately hid under a gallant expression as she continued speaking. \"I heard from Ferris that you selected a fine land dragon even by my house's standards. If that is the role you desire, I have no objections. However, I require that you obey my commands.\" \"Also, I guess it goes without saying with that outfit, but you're planning on fighting, too, Crusch?\" \"Do you think I can simply sit in a chair at my mansion and await good news?\" Crusch flicked a finger off a fitting on her armor, puffing out her chest as if the answer was obvious. Subaru, seeing her so valiant, politely lowered his head for having asked about something so self-evident. \" It seems everyone has assembled.\" Accepting Subaru's apology, Crusch closed one eye as she murmured. As if taking those words as a signal, people trod into the mansion's great hall one after another. All of them were clad in combat gear and possessed stern visages. Their various pieces of equipment seemed well worn, giving off the impression of seasoned veterans. But Subaru was struck more by their ages. \"Somehow, some of these members...don't look so young.\" Subaru gave voice to what immediately came to mind. The people passing before Subaru's eyes were probably participating in the expeditionary force. In one line, there were ten or so men with a rather high average age; it was probably that none of them were younger than fifty. It was unlikely that anyone had heard Subaru's comment, but suddenly, one of the men turned to look his way. Before he knew it, Subaru froze as the man stepped toward him. \"Lady Crusch, we have arrived  Is this him?\" \"Yes, it is.\" The one posing the question to Crusch in a sober voice was a middle-aged man with both hair and beard graying. The man nodded to Crusch and faced Subaru once more, stretching a hand to his shoulder. Then, he spoke. \"Thank you, lad.\" \"Eh?\" \"Thanks to you, our dearest wish has been granted. We have never been happier.\" Subaru unwittingly lost his bearings as the hand grasping his shoulder conveyed the man's strong feelings. \"Thank you,\" said the man, patting a rocked Subaru on the shoulder before walking off. From behind, Rem watched the men leave as she whispered into Subaru's ear, \"All of them most likely have some connection to the White Whale.\" \"Connection to the White Whale... You mean, related to the old expeditionary force or something?\" \"Though there were many who had already retired from fighting on the front lines, these are the warriors who answered Wilhelm's call to participate in the current expeditionary force. Their morale and level of training are in no way inferior to any currently serving as a royal knight.\" \"So it's some old men who are dying for a chance at vengeance, huh...? I'm getting all fired up.\" Subaru felt something stir within him as he glanced over, watching Crusch examine the soldiers. It was Crusch who had set her sights to even exterminating the White Whale so that Wilhelm might realize his vengeance. The old men joining the battle must have felt the same gratitude toward her for giving them a chance to fulfill their greatest wish. It was probably partly the \"kindness\" of Crusch that Ferris had spoken of the previous night, and the will of \"His Highness\" who had so greatly influenced her way of life. \"You're not telling me that those guys are all the forces we've got for this fight, right?\" \"Those that arrived here are the principal members. The remainder should have already set out for the Great Flugel Tree to facilitate the force's deployment along the Liphas Highway.\" In other words, with the appointed hour impending, those assembled were the VIPs of the expeditionary force. The participation of the old veterans really imparted the feeling that the decisive battle was finally drawing near. As he might have expected, the tension in Subaru's heart rose, along with the feeling that it was a must-win battle. \"The time is ripe. I want both of you in the hall as well.\" Crusch looked up at the time crystal above the entrance, speaking curtly. She was surely to address the troops before departure, a kind of motivational speech to boost morale. Just as Crusch set out, Subaru saw Wilhelm and Ferris entering from the hall. Ferris was dressed in the same outfit Subaru had already seen him in when encountering him in the courtyard earlier, but Wilhelm was not. Gone was the usual black uniform; instead, he wore a light, minimalist suit of armor protecting only the most vital of organs. On both sides of his hips, he wore a total of six slender swords, and he seemed almost too ready to fight. \"Oh, so you're here, too, Russel. Maybe we can chat a bit?\" Following behind Wilhelm and Ferris was dark-blond-haired Russel. He looked like he had been working all night, but with the great battle before them, his eyes were overflowing with vitality. \"If you're making that face, then it's probably safe to say that you held up your end. How about you, Anastasia?\" \"Did you really think I'd come up short?\" \"Not really, but I just thought I'd ask.\" When it came to who seemed the most meticulous out of all the royal selection candidates, Anastasia was second to none. With preparations steadily completed and the appointed hour fast approaching, the hall was tense with fighting spirit. In moments, all would be set into motion toward the decisive battle. \"But before that...\" Subaru had one thing he had to do. Rem, standing beside him, tilted her head and glanced sidelong at Subaru as he called out to Anastasia just as she turned to head off as well. \"Anastasia. Would you mind letting Russel join us for a little chitchat?\" \"Heh...\" When Anastasia stopped and looked back, her face was all business. She was acutely sensitive to the fact that Subaru had something to offer. The girly attitude vanished from her eyes, replaced by the glint of a merchant flicking an abacus in her head. In that moment, the transformation was reassuring. Subaru headed for Russel, an impish Anastasia in tow. Noticing the pair's approach, life returned to Russel's tired face. Truly, merchants were a reliable bunch. \"I have something to discuss with you, as two merchants who are successful and possess a sharp eye for the future. You might laugh this off as counting my chickens before they hatch, but this is about after the whale's taken out.\" With that preamble, he proceeded to \"prepare the battlefield\" on the eve of the White Whale's extermination. 3 \" Four hundred years.\" The appointed hour came, and with those words, she began to address the assembled troops. Her voice was grave; the atmosphere, strained. Amid sharp sensations akin to pain running up a spine being stretched, Crusch stood perfectly straight, chest thrust forward, as all eyes rested upon her. Crusch stood upon the floor with a treasured sword bearing the mark of the House of Karsten, the Lion Rampant, and rested her hands upon its hilt as she slowly surveyed the faces of all present and said: \"Four centuries have passed since the Witch of Jealousy, the worst calamity in all of recorded history, threatened the world. During this time, the White Whale born of the Witch's hand has made the world its very own hunting ground, dominating and savaging those weaker than it.\" The Witch of Jealousy was the one who had apparently swallowed half the world in ages past. Her very name had been synonymous with fear for as long as anyone could remember. Having lost its master, the Demon Beast of Mist danced to its own tune. From the Great Expedition launched fourteen years prior on down, the monster had given rise to many casualties in every nation, swallowing one's very will to fight. \"The lives the White Whale has taken are beyond measure. Perhaps it is better to say, the mist's vile nature itself ensures that we will never know the true number of casualties. Over the course of four hundred years, the number of names on tombstones, and the graves that do not even have names, have only increased.\" Crusch's words made some old men stare at the ground, gritting their teeth as they held back sobs. There were others whose chests contained fierce, inexhaustible emotion, quiet anger they had carried with them, waiting for a chance to let it explode. Their regrets, their hatred piled up with every corpse, began to envelop the atmosphere of the hall in stagnant darkness. However  \"But today, that time is over.\" *** \"We shall bring it to an end. When we slay the White Whale, it will dispel so much sadness. Those who have never permitted themselves a moment shall finally be granted a proper chance to grieve.\" *** \"We"}, {"text": "shall end this pathetic demon beast, unceasingly obeying the command of its dead master.\" Subaru's chest was on fire. Without saying a word, everyone conveyed the same heat that was burning inside him. The old veterans were looking down; the warriors clenching their fists. The aged swordsman had closed his eyes but now, all of them stared at Crusch, standing before them. Accepting their gazes, Crusch thrust a hand out, speaking in a great voice. \"We march! To the Liphas Highway! To the Great Flugel Tree!\" \" Yes!!\" The stomping on the ground accompanying the roaring response seemed to make the very earth quake. Subaru realized that the hot fighting spirit surging within him had made him shout as well. Among them all, Crusch stood stronger and taller as she raised her drawn treasured sword to the heavens and made a proclamation. \"This night, by our hand the White Whale will fall!!\" The Battle of the White Whale, the largest operation since Subaru had been summoned to that world, had commenced. CHAPTER 3 *** 1 With Duchess Crusch Karsten at the head, the latest expedition to defeat the White Whale set forth. It was the first operation of its kind since the Great Expedition of fourteen years prior, undertaken with the expectation of fierce combat few would ever see. The expeditionary force assembled for the campaign was under Crusch's command with Wilhelm van Astrea, member of the family of Sword Saints, appointed as captain. The troops serving under Wilhelm were divided into fifteen platoons, with each headed by one of the old veterans who had attended Crusch's address in the great hall. Each platoon was composed of fifteen men, so the combined force under Crusch's command numbered roughly 220. However, the total combat strength was not limited to that. A wagon train under Russel's command was apparently running ahead of them to the site of the decisive battle, the Great Flugel Tree, so they could begin transporting the supplies necessary for deployment. On top of that, thirteen members of the beast-man mercenary group Iron Fangs, on loan from Anastasia, had joined under Ricardo's command. Ricardo was in overall command with two lieutenants reporting to him. And the \"lieutenants\" of the Iron Fangs were... \"I'm Mimi!\" \"I'm Hetaro!\" With great energy, the two kitten-like beast people waved, then politely bowed. They had orange fur, and their heads didn't even reach up to Subaru's hips. They had adorable faces, and really, the snow-white robes covering them up to their necks suited them very well, so if Subaru was to put his thoughts bluntly  \"They're so cute I wanna steal them for myself!\" \"The miss says that a lot, too!\" \"Th-there you go saying that again, Big Sis...\" The girl calling herself Mimi laughed vibrantly at Subaru's thought, with the young boy calling himself Hetaro appearing oddly ruffled as he rebuked her. Based on how he addressed her, they were siblings probably twins. They looked like a tomboyish older sister with a straitlaced, docile younger brother following in her wake. Subaru had no objection to the charm, but what mattered here wasn't appearance but ability. They weren't heading off to a picnic. \"So it's not that I'm doubting you, but...you're really lieutenants?\" \"Mm? Mister, have you met Mimi somewhere before? Mmmm, I can't remember, but it really feels like it...!\" Mimi crossed her arms and cocked her head, but Subaru glossed it over with a strained smile. It couldn't be helped that she didn't remember him. To Subaru, the first time he met Mimi was during the events of the last go-around. Furthermore, it wasn't an occasion he wanted to remember. However, then and now, Mimi's bottomless cheer was completely unchanged... \"Don't worry about it. My name's Subaru Natsuki. So are you two good?\" \"Okay, won't worry! And Mimi and Hetaro are the best! If TB's with us, we're even stronger! Super bestest! Ka-ching!\" \"Errr, yes, that's right. Big Sis and I will both work hard.\" The younger brother took the reins of his boastful older sister and somehow brought her under control. Watching the two, Subaru had to wonder if that world had any older sisters besides ones making the younger sibling follow in their footsteps. \" ? What is the matter, Subaru?\" When Subaru, harboring that question, looked at Rem, she tilted her head with a questioning expression and an adorable smile. At that point, Subaru cleared his throat, turning back to face Mimi as he said, \"Well that is an awful lot of confidence. Lieutenant's not something you can be unless you're hot stuff.\" \"In place of the captain and Big Sis, I give orders out to everyone else.\" \"Ahh, I see... Tough job, huh.\" Subaru imagined the older sister running alongside the belligerent giant, dashing across the battlefield with a hearty laugh. That would mean, lieutenant or not, Hetaro was the only one actually performing the appropriate duties. The cute older sister was like an image of naive recklessness drawn by a child. \"We will follow Lady Crusch's commands to the extent possible, but we have our own ways of fighting. I thought it was best to inform you of this to minimize chaos, Mr. Natsuki... Er, Mr. Natsuki?\" \"No, I'm just impressed you're so sharp and serious. That attention to detail is comparable to Rem.\" \"Mm-hmm, he's just amazing!\" \"Now you'll make Big Sis get carried away again... So cute.\" For some reason, Mimi was the one to puff her chest out in pride when she saw Subaru's frank assessment of Hetaro. Hetaro had a constrained look on his face from Mimi's reaction, only to slip in what he really thought at the very end. Subaru added the drawback of overly spoiled big sisters to the list of high-spec misgivings he had about twins of that world. Hetaro was in Rem's league on that point, too. Growing up with Mimi surely had no small amount of influence on Hetaro. Having finished meeting the siblings, Subaru glanced at his cell phone to check the time.  Twelve hours remained until the White Whale was scheduled to appear. They had about half the distance left to their destination, likely giving them about five hours after arrival until the decisive battle. \"Once we get to the Great Tree, we'll have to go over the operation one last time... It seems like having me running around is gonna create a fair bit of chaos.\" \"This time, you will have me by your side, Subaru I won't allow a repeat of what happened when we fought the Urugarum.\" Rem replied to Subaru's comment with quiet resolve burning in her eyes. \"I really am opposed to this. I believe using the scent of the Witch to lure the White Whale is too dangerous...and in the first place, the fact that the scent comes from you is...\" \"I'll use anything I can. If it adds a tenth of a percent to the win rate, that's a bet I'll take. I come up short on so many levels, if I don't do even this, I'll never make up for it.\" \"You are amazing, Subaru.\" Even faced with Subaru's determination, this was one thing Rem stubbornly refused to let go of. The way she seemed to pout as she turned her face away was a rare display of a flood of emotions, making Subaru's smile not so much strained as very, very soft. Subaru felt all too keenly the obvious change in Rem's demeanor in the last half day. Ever since the demon beast incident, he'd been convinced Rem had opened her heart to him, but it was only the previous day that their hearts had connected in a true sense. Perhaps Rem had sensed that where time had stopped, it had begun to move once more. Truly, it was so. That was why  \"I wanna win this.\" Quietly, Subaru voiced that hope. At present, things had proceeded apace to a degree he couldn't even have imagined during prior go-arounds. Where no one would listen to him no matter how much he pleaded, this time, they accepted his request. Relations with the Crusch camp, destined for rupture, were good. Setting aside the exposure of all the embarrassing things inside him, it was no boast to say his relationship with Rem was now a far stronger bond. But on the other hand, it was a fact that things had developed in a way more perilous than ever before. Even in that moment, the menace of the White Whale was seared into Subaru's mind, clear as day. Even Rem's might had proved completely unequal to the task against its huge, flying frame, able to send a dragon carriage flying in pieces with not even an attack but a flick of its tail. Its open maw swallowed a land dragon and the ground under it whole; its death cries, when those vile, millstone-like teeth ground its flesh, would never leave his ears. Just the thought that he was heading to face that thing made his limbs tremble, but he couldn't stop running forward. Yet, even as Subaru's mind backslid toward weakness... *** Rem, sitting beside him, peered at Subaru as if she could see straight into his mind. A weak, helpless Subaru Natsuki could not be permitted before Rem's eyes. \"Even I know that resolve doesn't make everything okay, but...\" Even if he'd stopped being a pessimist, that didn't mean his fortunes had improved dramatically. The route he was on held even greater danger ahead, yet he absolutely couldn't say preparations were ideal. All Subaru could do was what he thought best in the limited time available to him, calling on the girls and their allies for aid and leaving all the rest that lay ahead to the power of others. That said, Crusch and the others sought nothing further from Subaru, which was absolutely not because they were maltreating Subaru as a useless troublemaker. But when the time came, he'd do whatever he could with everything he had. Because the things Subaru could do occupied such a narrow range, he had to at least firmly grasp the range's breadth, thinking of what he could do within those limits. \"In other words, it's the same as usual. Guess that goes without saying, though.\" \"What's up, bro ? That's a determined-lookin' face you got there.\" Abruptly, Ricardo, riding alongside the line of dragon carriages, observed Subaru, laughing as he spoke. Glaring back at the dog-headed beast man, Subaru firmly twisted the corners of his lips. \"That's right. Took long enough, but it's rock solid. I'm really something when I've set my mind, okay? Whatever happens, I'm not givin' up on the future, even if it kills me.\" \"That's a man's words there! The lady's gonna be real happy to hear that! Like I figured, you're just the friend the lady needs!\" \"I don't think shaking her hand away from the big stage is a bad thing, either... Ah, but if I get along nicely with Anastasia, there's a troublesome guy there, too...\" Remembering Anastasia made him remember the sight of a handsome man beside her as a package deal. Even his beating at the parade grounds at Julius's hand seemed like a long time ago. He'd experienced time on the level of weeks, even though it had been only five days or so in actual time lapsed. Then, Subaru's words brought a huge, irrepressible smile over Ricardo's big mouth. From the reaction and the teasing look in his eyes, it seemed he'd heard all about Subaru's humiliation. Naturally, Subaru turned his face away in a visible sulk. \"If you're gonna laugh, laugh nice and hard. Even I can now appreciate just how little I read the mood back then.\" \"Hey, wait up! It's not that I'm findin' funny, it's somethin' else. Well, you'll figure it out on your own, so dumpin' it all out here would be just rude!\" Thus self-convinced, Ricardo stroked his own mane as he cut the topic off. The suggestive behavior tugged at Subaru, but even"}, {"text": "if he pressed the point, odds of a reply were slim. \"Incidentally, I've been meaning to ask you something since we set out...\" \"What? Ask me anythin'. We're buds, bro! If it's not crazy stuff, I'll talk about whatever! And if it is, it depends on what nails I'm steppin' on!\" \"That part sounds like the Kararagi in you talking... I was just thinking, those huge dogish creatures you guys are riding, they're really something else.\" Subaru pointed below the enthused Ricardo's rump to the creature he was riding, unsure how best to broach the subject. The beast mounts that Ricardo's Iron Fangs were riding were completely different creatures from land dragons. The closest comparison was to a huge dog, but the huge frames of the carnivores rivaled that of lions and tigers from his original world, and their speed and endurance were in no way inferior to that of land dragons. Subaru's comment brought an understanding expression from Ricardo as he patted the beast mount on the back. \"You don't see 'em much in these parts. These critters are called ligers. They're as precious in Kararagi as land dragons are over here. They're real territorial, so it's tough to raise 'em, which is why there ain't many in Lugunica or other countries.\" \"Ligers...\" When he blinked and looked, Subaru thought he was seeing some kind of offshoot of the Urugarums he had a history with. Fortunately, there were no signs of horns on their heads, and compared with those demon beasts, their faces were clearly more adorable. If the demon beasts seemed more like wolves, he could say that the ligers definitely looked more like dogs. But having Ricardo, a dog-type beast man, riding on top of that super-huge dog was a little  \"Somehow, it's a really weird feeling, like someone should paint this...but don't you feel awkward?\" \"Sometimes people mention that, but not really. I mean, I'm a beast man, this is an animal, big difference between us... Ah, now that you mention it, some guys might get ticked off if you say that. I don't mind, though.\" \"Nah, I was wondering if I should say anything or not. Sorry, my bad.\" \"Gah-ha-ha, well ain't that honest of ya!\" Baring his teeth as he laughed, Ricardo gave the back of the liger's neck a good rub. The liger made no reaction to its master's action, but the way it silently indulged its owner certainly make it look like a good, loyal dog. Even with the size difference, it apparently hadn't lost any of its canine virtues. \"Ligers don't have the horsepower that land dragons do, but their agility's way up there. Just watch, a wild battle to send the whale packin' is right up our alley!\" \"Horsepower, huh. Guess you still measure animal power like that, even with dragons and dogs all over the place... Not that I've actually seen a horse.\" He'd heard straight from Emilia's mouth that they existed, but he hadn't actually seen one in that world yet. Apparently, their rate of use was fairly low. After that, Subaru pointed to the expeditionary force on the march behind them. \"So less horsepower is why you have teams of dogs for pulling each carriage? Why not just have land dragons haul the freight? Don't want the dogs to get tired before the main event.\" \"Hey, we've gotta move our own stuff ourselves. Besides, don't worry, any liger haulin' freight is a liger properly trained for it. We don't spoil 'em, and no enemy's swinging 'em off their feet, White Whale or not.\" With a gulp, Subaru somehow stopped his internal mental turmoil from coming out onto his face. On the other hand, Ricardo failed to notice Subaru's surprise as he spoke. \"You never know what you'll come across on the road, like bandits or whatever. If you take too much time, you'll be late, and that's the worst outcome of all. So we've gotta at least be able to carry stuff by ourselves.\" \"...No way there are any bandits who have the guts to attack a completely armed group like you guys. If they did, it wouldn't be brave it'd be a death wish.\" \"Got a point there!\" Ricardo burst into laughter and, waving to Subaru, shifted away from the dragon carriage. He took up his post at the head of the beast mounts as other people around them looked over at the loud conversation. \"It would seem that Master Ricardo is going around speaking like that to alleviate everyone's tension before the battle.\" *** Watching Ricardo go off into the distance, Subaru heard Rem's soft whisper into his ear. A bitter smile crossed Subaru's face as he realized, suddenly, that the big beast man was looking out for him. \"And here I was thinking I'd hardened my resolve...\" Meaning, he still seemed awful green from his senior's perspective even though the impending battle with the White Whale was but the first hurdle, with others waiting ahead. \"Geez, you can say, 'Set forth, hero,' but it sure is easier said than done.\" Subaru murmured very quietly so that Rem might not hear, but his cheeks formed a smile. The things he had to do and the things he wanted to do were one and the same, and he had someone at his back to urge him to do them he supposed that made it all worth it. Their morale was at its peak on the eve of the approaching battle. \" Now, let's do this, Mr. Fate.\" 2 Fortunately, the expeditionary force safely arrived at its destination without any undue trouble. As scheduled, they arrived five hours early the gleaming moon had just begun to rise on the night of the decisive battle. The expeditionary force deployed, linked up with the vanguard, and proceeded to inspect arms and go over the operation one last time. Naturally, Subaru participated in the discussion, and when details of the operation were hammered out, how everyone would maneuver included, any time remaining before the fight was for free action. And as he spent his time until the operation with various thoughts running through his head, Subaru  \"It...sure is huuuge.\" \"You seem very happy, Subaru.\" Looking up to the point that his neck hurt, Subaru almost couldn't see the top of the tree because the trunk was so tall. With how it jutted up from the earth, its great roots spreading all around its base, Subaru couldn't keep his honest feelings of excitement off his lips. \"Men are creatures impressed by big, strong stuff by nature. I was pretty impressed the first time I saw a land dragon, but Mother Nature ain't half-bad! That Flugel guy did good work.\" As he touched the tree trunk, Subaru praised the work of the sage said to have planted the tree. Apparently, he was hot stuff, but no one knew what he'd done besides planting the tree; but even if that was his one great feat recorded in history, that wasn't a problem. The name Flugel was cool, too. \"Ah, gotta carve someone's name into the trunk, though. We're not students on a field trip, so it's just, well, proper manners. Rem, lend me a carving knife.\" \"Even for you, Subaru, I will be upset if you do that, as shall others.\" Rem gently and properly chided Subaru for his burning, rebellious desire to have his name carved. Then, as Subaru pouted, she gave him a little smile and looked up at the Great Tree. \"This is where the White Whale shall come?\" \"Yeah, it'll come. When it's time, this cell pho...this metia will ring.\" Subaru took the cell phone out of his pocket, fingering the strap to sway it left and right. The alarm had already been set to ring when the White Whale was due to emerge. They were the same words he'd shared during the final meeting, and the explanation for Crusch he'd racked his brains to come up with. He felt guilty at not divulging the truth, feeling like he had to make up for it by getting results. Of course, not exposing the truth to even Rem tugged at his heartstrings, but  \"So this metia will alert us to the presence of a demon beast...\" \"Mm, that's right. Put bluntly, if it wasn't for this, my worth this time around would be right about...\" \" That is a lie, is it not?\" When Rem said that with narrowed eyes, Subaru was sure his heart had stopped. Letting out a voice that did not even amount to a gasp, his heartbeats belatedly restarted. *** What had Rem said to him just then? I must have heard her wrong, Subaru vainly hoped, but the eyes with which Rem stared at him smashed that hope to pieces. She had said it, and with conviction. \"Wh-what are you talkin' about? Ya know what they'd do to me if I was lyin' about somethin' like...\" \"Resorting to Kararagi dialect does not suit you, Subaru.\" \"Er, fact is, even Crusch and the others accepted it, so it can't be a lie.\" Glossing things over wasn't working on Rem. Even so, Subaru tried to see the lie through, for if the truth was revealed, there was no mistaking that it would herald a worsening of the situation. If the lie was exposed, Subaru would no longer be consistent with the circumstances known to Crusch and the others, for the only way to square those inconsistencies would be to explain Return by Death. Of course, so long as he obeyed the taboo set in place by the Witch, he could not reveal Return by Death to anyone, all the more so because the pranks played by the Witch's hands had finally progressed to crushing Emilia's heart. If he had to guess who the next casualty would be, it was clear that it might very well be Rem.  He absolutely couldn't let Rem know the truth. And yet, Rem slowly shook her head at Subaru's excuses. \"Crusch and the others merely decided that it was not necessary for you to lie. If you risked that, you would make an enemy of not only Lady Crusch but Lady Anastasia and all the merchants in the guild, Master Russel included. That would be meaningless.\" \"That's...\" It was an undeniable truth. Back at the negotiating table, Crusch surely could have offered any number of rebuttals to Subaru. Russel and Anastasia, seasoned negotiators both, could have done likewise. He could only conclude that the fact that they had closed their eyes to the inconsistencies and accepted negotiations regardless was not due to trust in Subaru but a judgment based on the circumstances. Subaru had arranged the place and the people for negotiations. There was no necessity to Subaru deceiving them. Of course, the calculation that they would think that way was one of the pieces of insurance Subaru had employed. But that was based on nothing more than the pros and cons of success aligning atop the thinnest of ice. The type of \"lie\" Subaru was seeing through was based on a false initial impression. And it was the kind of lie that need never be exposed if it brought results...ever. But it was different as far as Rem was concerned. Then, as ever, Rem stood as Subaru's ally. Subaru was deeply aware that Rem was now the closest person to him in the other world. To continue lying to Rem held a completely different meaning than maintaining the deception with Crusch and the others. Making her accept it after she had realized it was false left an entirely different impression: namely, that he didn't reveal the lie to Crusch and the others because the pros and cons aligned that way, but he didn't reveal it to Rem because he didn't trust her. He couldn't help if it made her think that way, for whether she did or not, he absolutely could not reveal the truth to her... \"Rem, I...\" \"It's fine, Subaru.\" \"Huh?\" Subaru planned to use"}, {"text": "words to somehow smooth things over and protect Rem. But Rem rejected that with a shake of the head, a thin smile coming over her lips. With Subaru too surprised to close his mouth, Rem turned a sincere look toward him and spoke. \"I understand you enough to know when you are lying, Subaru. I have been watching you a great, great deal, after all.\" With a bashful, blushing smile, Rem teasingly touched a finger to her lips. Then, she moved the finger in Subaru's direction and continued. \"I also know you won't tell me the reason for the lie. But the fact that you won't speak to me about it does not bother me that much, you know?\" *** \"After all, I believe in you, Subaru.\" At the base of the Great Flugel Tree, a breeze passed between the two as they faced each other. With Subaru stunned into silence, Rem gently put a hand to her breast and stated before him, \"Subaru, if you say that you know where the White Whale shall appear, I believe you. If you say the Witch Cult is after Lady Emilia and the others, I believe you. Even should you say the moon shall fall and destroy this nation, I shall believe you, Subaru.\" \"...Well, I wouldn't go quite that far.\" \"Yes, I suppose not. But that is how serious I am.\" The smile vanished, and Rem stared at Subaru with very serious eyes. Then, she silently lowered her hips, grasping the hem of her skirt with both hands as she curtsied. \"I adore you with all this body and all this heart, Subaru furthermore, now and in the future, I shall never, ever doubt you, Subaru.\" *** \"Therefore, it's not necessary whatsoever to push yourself into a corner to make me believe your lie.\" Subaru barely managed to choke back the heat welling up from his throat. He pressed down on the inner corners of his eyes, turned his face up, and opened his trembling mouth wide and exclaimed, \"Ahh! Man, staring at this huge tree really raises the tension!\" \"Yes, I suppose so.\" \"I won't be able to calm down unless I'm looking up at this tree! There's no other reason at all, but I won't be able to look down for a little while!\" \"Yes, I suppose not.\" Subaru put on a show to keep his face turned up so that tears might not fall. It was a frail bluff on his part, but Rem, enveloped by gentle benevolence, did not call him on it. That moment, Subaru understood the true extent of his own idiocy all over again. If only he could have divulged everything to Rem from the very beginning. He couldn't have just told her everything, but if he could have at least conveyed to her the tragedy yet to come, Subaru would no doubt have been spared having the tragedy repeated a second and a third time. Subaru couldn't explain the reasons why, so he thought no one would believe him if he said anything. Thus, he decided he had to go it alone, leading to various failures over and over. But Rem was different. She wasn't asking for a reason. She'd believe Subaru, even if he didn't explain. Just like that moment, she forgave Subaru, in her gentle, affectionate way, for not speaking the truth. \"This is when, instead of sorry, you say thank you, huh?\" Having desperately held back the tears, Subaru somehow managed to face Rem once more. Rem made a beaming smile and nodded at his reply. \"To be honest, I feel like I'll only be able to return super-tiny little pieces of everything you've given me, Rem...\" \"That is not so.\" Rem lowered her head slightly as she denied Subaru's words. \"I really do understand that speaking like this will only bring you suffering, Subaru. That I have spoken regardless is my own selfishness.\" \"I don't think of it like that at all. I'm the bad one for hiding stuff.\" \"But it really is selfish of me even so. I am sorry.\" The words were self-effacing, but when Rem lifted her face, her expression was sunny. Seeing Subaru happily falter from the inconsistent sight, Rem tilted her head. \"I thought...it would be nice if you passed on to others a tiny bit of the load you carry. As I am now, that you had no one to do so makes me...unbearably sad.\" *** In that moment, Rem conveyed her resolve, the firmness of her feelings. Subaru leaned against the trunk of the Great Tree and took a deep breath. \"I...love Emilia.\" \"Yes.\" He revisited the words he had once exchanged with Rem. He knew that the words wounded her deeply, that they were words that made her suffer, yet Subaru spoke them once more. However  \"But...\" *** \"But when you're with me, my heart trembles... Go ahead. You probably think I'm a terrible guy now.\" He wondered if the word terrible even cut it. But they were Subaru's honest feelings. For even though he knew he could not answer Rem's hopes, only her words had warmed his heart so. Somehow, the breath Rem let out seemed hot as she said: \"Truly, you are a terrible person, Subaru.\" \"...I know.\" \"That is a lie. I love you.\" \"I...I know that, geez.\" Subaru's face turned beet red as she stated plainly how she felt all over again. If it were not night, that redness would have surely stood out. Subaru turned his back, as if trying to conceal the red surface of his face, and began to walk away from the tree. \"Time to head back,\" he said. \"We need to get mind and body ready right up to when the White Whale appears.\" Before he passed in front of Rem, he grasped her dangling right hand. When her hand was grasped, Rem raised her voice in a little ah, but immediately hurried to match Subaru's walking pace, staring at the side of the young man's face, one he did not wish her to see, with teasing eyes as she said: \"Subaru.\" \"...What?\" \"I am fine with being your second wife.\" They were words to make a man unwittingly halt in his tracks. When Subaru, unable to resist, looked toward her, Rem made a face like that of an adorable puppy, seemingly wagging her tail as she awaited Subaru's reply. Oh, good grief, just how far is this girl gonna ? \"If Emilia-tan's a very generous first wife...\" \"Well then, when we get back you must convince Lady Emilia. I shall try hard as well.\" Rem clenched the hand not grasped into a fist, very animated as she spoke with a smile. Speaking jokingly like that broke all the tension, driving home to Subaru how weak he was. He truly couldn't hold a candle to the girl. No man could hold a candle to a woman, be it Emilia or Rem, in that kind of situation. Not that he really minded accepting that particular weakness, compared with the other ones he had known to date... 3 With the approaching hour growing nigh, the area around the Great Tree grew taut with the tension particular to the field of battle. Having taken meals and sleep in shifts, the condition of the expeditionary force gathered in the battle zone was tip-top. The land dragons and ligers for the cavalry were breathing roughly through their noses, eagerly awaiting the signal. Everyone lowered their breaths and calmed their hearts, continuing to wait for the time to come. In the night sky of the Liphas Highway, the strong wind made the clouds flow quickly. As the clouds obstructed the moonlight, not a moment passed without gazes raised, checking to see that it was not the White Whale's giant body swimming in the sky above. That was how much vigilance ruled the hearts of all present. \"It is a short time until the appointed hour.\" When Crusch made that small murmur, Ferris, standing beside her, nodded briefly, glancing from the corner of his eye. In that moment, not even Ferris, having served Crusch for so many years without ever losing that witty nuance, could voice a single jest. It was not that he'd been swallowed up by the strained tension. It was because Ferris knew his role that of one of the expeditionary force's lifelines and had wholly set his heart upon fulfilling that duty. It was more than likely true that Ferris's actions would alter the final number of victors surviving the battle. Crusch believed that her force would emerge victorious. But she was not so conceited as to think they could slay the White Whale without sacrifices. Nonetheless, she held self-confidence that she could mitigate the number of casualties required. That self-confidence came from the trust she held in Ferris, her knight, so perhaps one could question if it ought to be called self-confidence. *** The sword-armed Wilhelm stood in front of her, on the very front line of the expeditionary force. Of the six swords on the aged swordsman's belt, he wielded one in each hand, poised to rush out in an instant. The quiet antagonism wafting around the Sword Devil was in a polished realm, honed to a fine point as he faced the moment for which he had so yearned. Crusch could not fail to be enveloped by an out-of-place sense of admiration at the Sword Devil's sheer purity that a person could maintain a soul so pure, so unswerving. Crusch thought from her heart that one day she, too, would arrive at the same realm. *** The faces of each brave warrior of the expeditionary force alongside Wilhelm had an expression of hardened resolve, their morale high. They obeyed Crusch's command, but as they awaited the White Whale, surely their hearts harbored doubts of their own both about Subaru, the primary source of information for the White Whale's emergence, and the fact that they had far too little time to develop bonds of trust between them. And yet, they obeyed without a single contrary utterance, for they deeply valued Crusch's judgment. Crusch was strongly aware of her own duty to respond to the trust they placed in her. *** As the time limit approached, the brimming will to fight was reassuring, but inside, Crusch was nervous. Crusch touched the hilt of her treasured sword, ensuring by feel that the engraved crest of the lion was truly there. It was a habit from her youth, a little spell by which she poured resolve into herself. They had to win. She felt the presence of Ferris at her side and the legacy of the Lion King on her fingertips. However mighty the foe, it was all Crusch needed to fight. And then  *** Abruptly, it rang across the Liphas Highway, subsumed by the darkness of night. She was slow to realize that the series of light sounds making her eardrums tremble resembled music of some sort. When she turned her eyes toward the source of the sound, she saw Subaru putting his hand on the shining metia. It was from the metia in his hand that the music was noisily flowing. It was the signal Subaru had said would announce that the time had come. \"All hands, on alert !\" At Crusch's shout, the expeditionary force poised as one. According to Subaru, the White Whale would appear within tens of seconds after the metia alerted him. If he was to be believed, it would not be strange for the White Whale's giant body to be swimming in the sky that very moment. With the metia having alerted him, the place had to be correct as well. She had plenty of room for doubts, but Subaru had given her no reason to doubt him. Crusch set her misgivings and apprehensions aside, honing her nerves as she awaited the demon beast. *** Amid the silence, she felt no sign of the enormous demon beast appearing. The expression on her face was not disappointment,"}, {"text": "properly speaking, but after a minute had passed with no change on the field of battle, Crusch could not help herself from being, for one, unnerved. Discrepancies in the information. Mistaken assumptions. Some kind of random accident. There was no change in the silence that had descended over the Liphas Highway; there was no sight of the enemy in the landscape around her. As before, the moonlight was obstructed by clouds, causing a large, dark shadow to fall over the plains, but  *** Looking up, Crusch instantly cursed her own shallowness. The moonlight vanished as a shadow fell over the plains. The altitude of the cloud intercepting the moonlight was gently descending, coming before their eyes.  But a cloud, it was not. 'Twas a demon beast, floating in the sky in the form of a gargantuan fish. As Crusch sucked in her breath, virtually everyone in the expeditionary force came to the same understanding. Then, as if their minds were one, they tossed their gazes toward Crusch.  They were waiting for the command for a preemptive strike. They had succeeded in taking the initiative, catching the White Whale at the moment of its appearance. All that remained was to launch a surprise attack as planned, seizing control of the front. *** Crusch breathed in, as if to settle her heart upon the first command to unleash. The White Whale had yet to notice the puny beings arrayed against it. The way the White Whale was moving its enormous head was as if to check where it was. And as it acted thus, its guard was down, full of openings  That settled it for Crusch. \" All hands...\" Full-scale attack, she went to command when  \" Nail it!!\" \" Al Hyuma!!\" As signal leaped ahead of Crusch, mana was simultaneously deployed via magical incantation. The world made a sound as if it had frozen over, bringing forth enormous and incredibly dense pillars of ice. Each and every one of the icy pillars rivaled the central pillar of a mansion, with there being four in total. Launched at super-high speed, the pillars raced through the sky and scored a direct hit on the White Whale's torso; with a slight delay, the demon beast's scream and spurting blood poured down to earth. When Crusch hurriedly looked, the land dragon Subaru and Rem were both riding was galloping, cutting across the vanguard. As Subaru clung to Rem's hips, he raised a fist, and Rem, having succeeded in her own duty by launching the preemptive magical attack, wore a very satisfied expression. How the two of them jumped the gun rather, got the jump on the rest rocked the expeditionary force. At the sight of them galloping forth, Crusch could not keep her own mouth from twisting greatly. Not in anger but in mirth. \"All hands, follow that pair of fools!!\" Crusch's order erased the unrest as the various members of the expeditionary force began the offensive. Dust kicked up in the process, and on the other side, the White Whale's cries grew loud once more, echoing across the night sky of the Liphas Highway. After much waiting, the Battle of the White Whale had begun. 4 No matter how many times Subaru experienced the wind repel blessing, he could not help thinking of it as unnatural. Vibration, wind, posture the impossible phenomenon blocked all those things from affecting them. While Rem sat squarely on the land dragon as it ran, Subaru put a hand around her hip as he strained his eyes. He licked his lips, which had begun to dry, moistening them a bit as he sucked in his breath. The cell phone alarm had rung as it was set to, and the White Whale had appeared in the twilight above the plains. He could only describe the emergence of the giant body as splitting the sky and crawling out of the resulting shadow. Its massive body instilled primordial fear in Subaru, with all the memories of it having menaced his life surging back into his heart. When he looked around, tension was running through the expeditionary force, noticing it just as Subaru had. As prearranged, they ought to be launching an all-out attack at Crusch's order. But for a brief moment, the feeling of oppression had left even Crusch drawing a blank, her breath caught. It could only be called a critical error, but such was the terror of combat the extreme situation had wrought. Accordingly, Subaru patted Rem's shoulder. \" Nail it!!\" \" Al Hyuma!!\" A half second before Crusch breathed out, that shout cut the covers of the gun barrels on the front. Responding to Subaru's voice, Rem gave direction to the vast amount of mana she had woven together. This gave rise to four of those vile pillars of ice, with their sharply tapered tips mercilessly gouging holes in the White Whale's underbelly as it floated in the sky. The ice collided with its stone skin, audibly shattering. However, just before the shattered pillars completely spread apart, the force of their stabs broke through the defense of the White Whale's thick hide scattering its blood all over the plains. The scream of the White Whale resounded across the plains. Even as the air shuddered enough to make one's eardrums go numb, the pitch-black land dragon Subaru and Rem rode advanced without fear.  Subaru and Rem had not acted rashly. The instant the White Whale emerged, a momentary lull occurred within the expeditionary force. Had they not acted during that time, the preemptive attack would have probably failed. That pause was a watershed moment. And knowing that such momentary hesitation was a matter of life-and-death, even someone of such remarkable character as Crusch had her breath caught before the menace of the White Whale. Even if she had been halfway confident the White Whale would appear, seeing the real thing created a ripple in the human heart. That ripple could create even tiny distortions in one's thought process, and distortion led to stagnation, and stagnation invited defeat. If it had been so, the battle might have begun with their side at a disadvantage.  If there was a difference between Subaru and Crusch that moment, he had to call it...love. Crusch's split-second delay had been born from her inability to have absolute trust in Subaru and his metia. Even if her mind believed him, it could not force a statesman of her caliber to forget her misgivings. But Rem had not even the tiniest smidgeon of doubt that the White Whale would appear the very instant Subaru said it would. Accordingly, Rem had prepared magic with the greatest firepower that she could muster, waiting for the moment Subaru had indicated, and slammed an attack into the White Whale the very moment it appeared. If he could not call that Rem's love winning out, what could he call it? \"But that analysis is super-embarrassing !!\" \"Subaru, please hold on to me more diligently. You'll be thrown off!\" In contrast to Subaru, assessing his own starting of hostilities, Rem shouted as she gripped the land dragon's reins. She announced that they were shifting from phase one of the operation the preemptive strike to phase two. \"Everyone follow that pair of fools!!\" A half second later, as Subaru and Rem galloped like the wind, the expeditionary force behind them obeyed Crusch's order, loading one cannon after another or rather, stuffing things like cannons with magic crystals, with the magic crystal cannons firing them like cannonballs. With a roar, that fusillade landed, its destructive power violating the White Whale's flesh. The instant they hit squarely, the magic crystals embedding into it transformed into the magical power of their corresponding mana, be it fire, ice, or light, widening the wound Rem had created, causing soot-black blood to pour down onto the highway. Amid the drizzle of blood, Subaru and Rem's land dragon employed agile movements to circle around to the White Whale's rear. The movement was just as arranged. \"I'll get the White Whale's attention, making it turn so that its back is to the expeditionary force...!\" \"The sky! They are using Night Repel! Please close your eyes!\" Rem took in the state of the battle, looking up and gazing at the horn on the White Whale's brow as she shouted. Subaru hurried to follow her instructions, lowering his face and closing his eyes and the next moment, the world became bright. A white light exploded in the sky above, and that white glow instantly burned the night away. The light was so powerful that it permeated Subaru's optic nerves through his closed eyes, making his throat catch in surprise. \"Whoaaa! It's just as incredible as you said!\" All trace of night had completely vanished from the Liphas Highway. Whatever had happened during those several seconds, the worlds of night and day had swapped places, and a light as bright as midday shone onto the plains. Above their heads, separate from the attacks on the White Whale, a special magical stone with an effect called Night Repel had been launched to shine in place of the purportedly sunken sun. Normally, it was simply a collection of light proportional to the mana infused into it, unable to shine with much more than a dull light, but... \"So when you abuse assets to put a mountain of 'em together, you've got a mini-sun on your hands?\" \"It is difficult to track the White Whale in a dark sky, after all  Now, it has only just begun!\" Putting together two of the top merchants, even by the royal capital's standards, and having them run around gathering magic stones was playing to their strengths. The effective range was the area around the Great Tree, and the time limit was a bit under an hour more than enough time to end the decisive battle. Having lost the twilight over the plains, the huge body was distinct as it floated overhead. That was  \"That's...!\" To that point, he had not been able to clearly make out the White Whale even once, but now, it was exposed under the light of day. *** The White Whale's enormous frame shuddered as it bellowed, seemingly enraged at having been dragged out of the night sky. The roar it unleashed surpassed the level of noise, closer to an act of raw destruction. The atmosphere rumbled, frightening even the trained land dragons, causing them to roar violently. Though it appeared to be bleeding from its entire body, its swimming showed no effects from the wounds. The White Whale's head traversed the sky over the plains, calmly gazing down at the puny humans daring to challenge it. \"What...size...?\" Subaru's voice shook as it trickled out, unable to stop the feeling that his limbs were going numb, unable to move. To that point, Subaru had seen, brushed against, and come to hate the menace of the White Whale, but faced with the full sight of it, he understood for the first time that he had seen only a fraction of the being. The White Whale: Just as its name suggested, the demon beast's figure was covered all in white. Countless body hairs sprouted from hide that resembled finely chiseled bedrock. The pectoral fins extended from the underbelly like grim reapers' scythes, with the smaller dorsal and caudal fins shaped similarly. Setting aside the disparity in savagery, the shape of the White Whale very much resembled that of the whales Subaru knew but its size betrayed his expectations twice over. As far as Subaru knew, the blue whale, the world's largest whale, was almost one hundred feet long, give or take, making it literally the largest mammal on Earth. However, the enormous body of the whale he saw in the distance easily surpassed one hundred feet, probably large enough to be close to one hundred sixty-five. Its giant frame was closer to a mountain than a living creature. By some cosmic joke, a white mountain was leisurely swimming in the sky above. \"Subaru.\" With Subaru trembling even then, unable to align his teeth as he bit down,"}, {"text": "a voice called out to him. It was the voice of Rem, her back facing him as Subaru clung to the hips of her small figure. She was already right in front of him, close enough for him to hear her breathe, so she didn't look back at Subaru when she asked the question. \"Are you scared?\" It was not a taunt but a call for trust. Firmly, Subaru clenched his teeth and twisted his mouth as he answered. \"Yeah, I'm scared of my shining future, and the praise I'll get for bringing that thing down!\" Subaru met Rem's expectations by cracking a joke, patting her shoulder from behind. \"I'm putting my whole life in your hands! Now, let's make a run for it!\" \"My life is yours as well, Subaru now then, let's go.\" When Subaru, his resolve hardened, declared they would run away in manly fashion, Rem softly made a little smile as she sternly cracked the reins. The pitch-black land dragon neighed, running across the ground, undaunted by even the fantastical White Whale. The White Whale turned toward them as they galloped low and to the right of it, aiming to circle around to its tail. They dashed away from the expeditionary force, and the White Whale's giant eyes turned toward Subaru and Rem as they approached. The maw that could swallow a large dragon carriage whole opened wide, poising its mouth, lined with millstone-like teeth, for a roar. Subaru, sensing baptism by destructive sound, braced himself against the land dragon he was riding. And above their heads  \"To turn away, you must have greatly underestimated me !!\" A moment after the valiant heroine's voice, the White Whale's head was shallowly cut by a single, horizontal slice. The invisible slash, grazing the solid, stone-like hide, drew blood from the White Whale's enormous frame once more. When Subaru looked back toward the source of the attack, he saw a white land dragon running after him at the front of the vanguard and Crusch, standing tall, with her arm out after following through the swing. But in her hand... \"She's not holding anything...?!\" \"A formless sword that ignores range Lady Crusch's famous swordsmanship is able to fell a hundred men in a single blow.\" Rem replied in a low voice as Subaru gawked. The anecdote Rem spoke concerning Crusch was news to Subaru, but the display was equal to the words. Though she appeared unarmed, such a statement was fitting for Crusch's skill and combat strength. The invisible slash stopped the White Whale's initial response; with its movement halted, more attacks followed. The magic crystal cannons went to work once more, concentrating firepower on the White Whale and landing hit after hit, causing its altitude in the sky to drop as the damage and agony to the demon beast piled up. The White Whale was at the same height as a cloud, but so long as its head was not pointed straight up, it was  \"Within...blade distance.\" A single land dragon ran across the ground and leaped, displaying agility that clashed with its large frame as it launched into the air. Even so, compared with the White Whale, it had little size to boast. The land dragon soaring before its nose must have seemed little more than a fly to the White Whale.  The vertical sword flash running straight ahead cut deeply up the White Whale's nose. The sight of the flash of metal rending the white, stony hide with such ease made the sound of cannons, echoing across the battlefield, vanish. This was no spell, no magic crystal cannon, nor even the slash of an invisible blade, but human training, proof that steel swung by man could reach even the demon beast. Proof that human willpower, expended over the course of many years, had indeed reached the Demon Beast of Mist. \" Fourteen years.\" The figure crouched as he thrust a sword into the split tip of its nose. He maintained his posture, poising the cutting blade as the other sword thrust deep, and he waved off the demon beast's blood from his blade. Behind him, the hostility he gave off was enough to warp the very air. \"For all that time, I dreamed only of this day.\" As the figure straightened his back, the White Whale twisted its body, trying to fling off the figure that had embarked upon the tip of its head. The White Whale let out a groan as it barrel-rolled in midair. But... *** The White Whale arched as it screamed in pain, its tail dancing wildly in the sky. A single, horizontal cut was added to the vertical one from before, carving a cross-shaped wound into the White Whale's brow; the figure stomped on the White Whale's back with a light sound of his foot. Malevolent laughter came over the Sword Devil as bloodlust glimmered in his blue eyes. \"Here you shall fall, and your corpse shall rot filthy monster!\" Spitting those words out, Wilhelm poised his swords in both hands as his body became the wind. He ran across the back of the White Whale from its head to its tail, slashing the demon beast's stone hide left and right with the blades in both hands. As he rent the purportedly hard, resistant hide with ease, sprinting as soot-black blood smeared the sky, he truly looked like a Sword Devil. With Wilhelm clinging to the White Whale's body, it had no good method of shaking him off. Unable to dislodge the aged swordsman, even as it moved to somersault in midair with the force of a whirlwind, he proclaimed: \"Good of you to help me slice you more!\" A moment before the White Whale turned its body, Wilhelm made a short leap and stabbed his sword right under him. When the White Whale whirled its body, the thrust blade created a vivid slash down it, using the White Whale's own body in service of the blade. Amid a scream and a mist of blood that mottled his own torso, the Sword Devil laughed. Laughing, his old bones continued swinging both swords as he headed for the giant frame's flank. With a swing, his blades carved a V shape into the flesh, leaving a reddish-black laceration behind. A bellow tore through the sky as the White Whale aimed to slap the falling Sword Devil with its tail. But a moment before the tail was to strike him, a leaping land dragon snatched Wilhelm's body away. He had slipped away from the menace of certain death. Upon landing, the land dragon instantly broke into a run. The White Whale gave into anger and chased after the elusive Sword Devil. \"Hey, don't look away, moron! Yer facin' the lot of us, too!!\" The single swing of the huge cleaver struck the White Whale squarely on the jaw with enough force to knock out several of the White Whale's enormous teeth, making a dull sound as yellow molars were sent flying. It was Ricardo, riding a liger, who bellowed as they galloped onto the White Whale's face at an angle. Just as he'd said, the ferocious dog had greater agility than a land dragon, and it was using that nimbleness to the fullest extent, master in tow, traversing the White Whale as its body rose into the sky. \"Hey now, we ain't done with you yet!!\" Atop the sprinting liger, Ricardo gave a cry more bestial than a beast's as he swung the massive cleaver. The outer hide shattered and flesh was gouged, all in a single charge. And following after Ricardo... \"All riiiight, let's goooo!\" \"Big Sis, you are too far out in front! Everyone, now!\" The lieutenant twins, both on the backs of small ligers, split apart, issuing commands to the mercenary band behind them. With ferocious leaps, a pack of ligers grappled onto the White Whale and began to run rampant with its giant body as their foothold. They swung sword and spear, inflicting damage to the White Whale like a swarm of wasps. Save for making its enormous frame dance, the White Whale had no countermeasure for shaking off the interlopers clinging to it. Its very size made small movements difficult, a weakness that was being exposed. Furthermore, at that point  \"All hands, move away!!\" When Crusch's order cracked across the field of battle, the Iron Fangs clinging to the White Whale leaped off its body as one. All the ligers landed agilely, and the White Whale, now freed of them, made a large turn, believing it was finally time to counterattack but it was mistaken in that judgment. \"So you've exposed your flank !\" Crusch's second attack struck far overhead, her diagonal slash running along the White Whale's side at an angle, and that stroke of her sword was the prelude to yet a third attack this time, from the magic squad, which had not attacked until that moment, devoting themselves solely to concentrating on chanting. \" Al Goa!!\" From the compounded chants from multiple squad members came a red-hot aurora. In that world, with both a sun and a moon floating in the sky, a new, second sun was born, low in the sky and clad in incandescent flames. Even knowing that it was the power of fire magic bundled together, Subaru could not turn his eyes away, gawking at the conflagration scorching the world before him. The waves of heat given off by the huge fireball, over thirty feet in diameter, could burn the skin even at a distance well removed, burning with enough heat to rob the moisture of his eyes, even with his eyelids protecting them. That great fireball wavered, then it gained velocity. \"Uoooo!\" Velocity gave way to acceleration, and acceleration, to high speed. The fireball headed for the White Whale's side, then slammed it right in the belly. Through its accumulated wounds, the fire burned inside its body, and the White Whale screamed while its internal organs boiled. Mercenaries hurriedly evacuated so as not to be caught up in the fragments of flame scattering over the plains. Subaru and Rem took part in that evacuation, even as their eyes continued to track the burning White Whale. That overwhelming, even one-sided, circumstance meant nothing less than that the surprise attack had borne fruit. At that rate, might not the demon beast be subjugated without it being able to do a thing? \"Feels like that hit it pretty hard! Maybe it'll all go like this?!\" At a distance beyond the flames' reach, Subaru watched the White Whale from the back of the land dragon, shaking a closed fist. Until that point, they'd completely overwhelmed the White Whale, surely inflicting no small amount of damage. With the failure of the Great Expedition fourteen years prior as precedent, he'd been on his guard, but this put him into an easy-win mood. It had bitten on the prearranged plan hook, line, and sinker, making him feel exhilarated that a quick victory was just before his eyes. However, with regret, Rem shook her head at Subaru's optimistic viewpoint, glaring up at the flame-engulfed demon beast. \"No were that the case, the surprise attack would have caused it to crash to the ground.\" Her words made Subaru's eyes go wide. He turned his eyes to the White Whale, wondering what she meant. Even then, half of the demon beast's body was being burned by the great magic, with no sense that the flames, spreading over its body hair, were dying out. The magic crystal cannons' direct attacks had inflicted many wounds, and the sight of blood trickling from them was downright painful. But  \"The altitude...ain't dropping.\" Looking up, he saw the White Whale calmly remaining in the sky. It was not up so high that the cavalry could not leap up to it, but it would be very difficult for men to challenge it on foot. More importantly, without the demon beast falling to the ground, they could not shift to the next phase of the operation. Ricardo pulled alongside, carrying his huge"}, {"text": "cleaver as blood spatter drenched the fur on his face. \"We played all our good cards right at the start. That it didn't go down means that thing was just tougher, huh.\" He snorted out of his canine snout, his pointy ears twitching as he said, \"Feels like we scored a point, but it ain't easy breakin' through that thick hide underneath. 'Cept for a weapon like mine with brute force, or Mr. Wil's skills, it's a drop in the ol' bucket.\" \"Maybe that goes for physical attacks, but it looked like magic attacks worked, yeah?\" \"I am quite doubtful that is the case. At first glance, they appeared to be spectacular strikes, but that white hair scatters the mana, dulling the force. My magic did not do as much damage as it appeared, either.\" Rem voiced with regret that the magic representing her own greatest firepower had been ineffective. When her words drew Subaru's attention, he saw that there certainly were numerous shallow wounds in the White Whale's flesh, but none amounted to deep wounds that diminished its fighting ability. But at the very least... \"Looks like the fire spells from earlier are burning its hair off pretty well, though.\" \"It's simple burn the magic-scatterin' hair off and we can have that fried whale flesh under it for dinner.\" Ricardo ferociously bared his fangs as he concurred with Subaru's guess. With the massive cleaver in hand, he gave the liger's back a pat, hurtling toward the front line once more. \"All riiight, let's bring what we've got left in the sack just like earlier! Crusch, give the big guy one more slug in the gut, will ya?\" Drawing up his own laundry list, he slipped under the White Whale and leaped onto its body once more. When Subaru looked, Wilhelm, who he was sure had moved some distance off, was also aiming to get back on the White Whale, this time from the tail end. The expeditionary force had apparently come to the same conclusion as Subaru and Ricardo and was shifting to its next move in other words, a second all-out attack. \"In this case, they'll be pouring firepower on the White Whale, so we'd just be in the way if we got close. Rem, can you slam magic into it like you did earlier?\" \"It would take time for an incantation of identical strength, and water element mana cannot do damage when it is scattered. Anything of lesser might would have insufficient firepower to begin with, so...\" If he went by Ricardo's earlier conclusion, the right thing to do was to have Rem join the front line, morning star in one hand, and add to the blunt-force attacks against the White Whale. However, if Subaru made her do that, he'd turn into her ball and chain. It was pathetic, but using his physical condition to implement a decoy operation meant Subaru couldn't send Rem off alone. \"It sucks, but I've gotta watch until there's a move I can make...\" As Subaru spoke, their land dragon eased away from the battlefield at a slow pace, and a different land dragon pulled alongside. \"That annoying feeling's the same for me as it is for you, meow.\" It was Ferris, riding a land dragon clad in heavily armored plates. \"Ferri doesn't have any ways to attack, so watching is pretty much all I can do. I'm kinda, sorta used to it, but it always bums me out, meow.\" \"Maybe so, but your healing is the expeditionary force's lifeline. Can't be havin' you go out in front. I'm begging you, focus on that job, okay?\" Subaru bluntly emphasized that to Ferris, taking that moment to approach in his normal demeanor. The reply made Ferris close one eye with a hmm. \"You really have changed in one day, meow. What happened to you?\" \"If I've gotta put it in words, I became a bit more of a man.\" As his eyes ran across the shifting battlefield, Subaru replied with a reflective expression, biting on bitter thoughts. Subaru's behavior sent Ferris suggestively poking a finger into a cheek as he said, \"Subawu, don't tell me Rem made a man out of you, meow?\" The answer was both yes and a definite no. Subaru was about to level an angry shout to shut Ferris up for the out-of-place vulgarity. \"Master Wilhelm is !\" But he was interrupted by Rem's urgent shout. When he hurriedly sent his gaze in the direction Rem was looking, he saw the aged swordsman running on the White Whale's back. With a sword, he stabbed the White Whale's backside, ripping the White Whale's body lengthwise as he ran. As Wilhelm ran from tail to back, the delayed spurting of whale blood made it look like he was being chased by geysers. That moment, Wilhelm's works were truly those of an angry god. The expeditionary force lifted their faces, with morale exploding higher at the Sword Devil's abnormal skill with the blade. The firing pace of the magic crystal cannons and the vigor of the mercenaries and cavalry unit's organized attacks grew greater still. Unable to withstand the agony, the White Whale writhed in midair, completely unable to respond to the expeditionary force's attack. Seeing the Demon Beast of Mist, the calamity that had caused continued suffering across four centuries, in such a pathetic state, Subaru firmly believed the tide was completely going their way. \"Cheeeeeiiiiii!\" With an energetic outburst, Wilhelm drew his sword in a line all the way to the White Whale's head, maintaining his momentum as his old bones leaped off from the tip of the enormous body. As the old man twisted and inverted in midair  \"There ya go!\" Ricardo's cleaver matched Wilhelm's timing, rising up to greet him from below. Wilhelm descended, aiming for the cleaver as it rose toward its zenith, the soles of the Sword Devil's feet meeting the cleaver's blunt, impending blow. \"Shii !!\" Ricardo's brawn added to Wilhelm's leaping ability, sending the Sword Devil flying like a bullet. Shot out, Wilhelm's dual blades whirled around, savagely slicing the White Whale's face. It was cruelly shredded from the tip of its nose up its cheek, with Wilhelm unleashing a stab toward its gigantic eye. *** The twin swords sank their hilts into the White Whale's left eye, and clear fluid flowed out of the ravaged eyeball. Wilhelm instantly abandoned the two sunken swords, drawing two new swords in a flash from right and left, his slashes cut above and below the eye; flipping the blades, he added vertical cuts to its left and right. As a result, the White Whale's left eyeball was cut from four directions when  \"The eye's falling!\" Gouged out by four slices, the White Whale's left eye fell freely, and Wilhelm along with it  The shout, from whatever source, became truth, and the eyeball, spewing blood and fluid, collided with the ground, squishing and splattering. Wilhelm landed right beside it, the Sword Devil driving a sword into the eyeball, threatening to lose all coherence, and raised it high so that the White Whale's right eye could see it. \" Pathetic.\" Then, the corners of his lips turned up in a ghastly, triumphant smile. The White Whale had been rendered helpless as the Sword Devil's sublime combat techniques made sport of it. It was clear to all that their fighting strength was not determined by the overwhelming difference in the sizes of their bodies. Perhaps it took the loss of its left eye for the White Whale to finally accept that fact... \"The color of the White Whale's eye is...!\" \"It's coming!!\" \"Subaru, please keep your head down !!\" The instant Subaru noticed the change, Ferris shouted, and Rem accelerated the land dragon. Because they had stopped, the wind repel blessing was not in effect. Subaru, clinging to Rem as he endured the ferocious wind and shaking, somehow managed to turn his eyes to the White Whale overhead. Within Subaru's field of vision, the White Whale's state changed at once. *** The White Whale, angry at having an eye gouged out, let up a roar as its one intact eye was dyed deep red. The eyeball, now the color of blood, shot like a dagger through the expeditionary force, pulling back to put distance between it and the beast. Immediately after, the White Whale's body quaked in hatred and rage as a change came over its flesh. ...the instant that change began, Subaru was unable to repress a sense of disgust that defied words. The White Whale opened its mouth. No, those words were both correct and incorrect. To more accurately express the truth...  The mouths of countless cavities over the White Whale's entire body opened and began to raise their voices. *** Reverberations like shrieking voices poured out of the countless mouths created all over the demon beast's flesh. The discordant sound one would not think existed in that world seemed to claw away directly at the listeners' spirits, coursing from their hearing to violate their cranial nerves. The damage did not stop at human beings alone. The land dragons and ligers employed as mounts stopped in their tracks, seized by instinctive, primordial fear. The expeditionary force was overcome by its worst instance of defenselessness since the start of the battle to bring down the White Whale. And then... \"...Ah...\" Raising a chorus, the countless mouths spewed an immense amount of mist. In the blink of an eye, the mist poured onto the plains, and the world illuminated by the effect of Night Repel was blotted out in white. His vision obstructed, his entire body cowering, Subaru understood that the White Whale had acknowledged them as its enemies. It was the Demon Beast of Mist raising its war cry that announced the true commencement of hostilities. 5 Loud laughter echoed across the Liphas Highway. Discordant sounds trickled from the small mouths open across the giant body of the White Whale as it swam leisurely in the sky. When it roared from its proper mouth, it came with such destruction that it made the earth shudder. But the sound given off by many mouths out of sync was twisted and repulsive, like being clawed by the very wind. The unpleasant feeling was not a blow to the eardrums but rather, like having one's brain poked at by slender needles. With that ghoulish change in the White Whale, Subaru sensed that the tide had turned. They'd pounded that immense preemptive strike into it with the expeditionary force, from Wilhelm on down, adding their own concentrated attacks. The damage inflicted on the White Whale was by no means minimal. After all, the combined firepower was enough to kill Subaru a hundred times over; if comparing with other demon beasts, it was attack power sufficient to wipe out an entire Urugarum pack ten times over. The beast, bathed in all that, had taken enough damage to lose one eye. If it was not enough to settle the battle, Subaru had hoped it would at least result in bringing the beast down to earth, but  \"Crap, the mist...!\" Continuing to raise a shrill cry, the White Whale spread mist from its countless mouths. The mist spread in a wide range across the highway, its encroachment progressing as it fell thickly from the sky. Subaru's field of vision became progressively whiter, and the effect of the Night Repel magic crystal waned.  The Demon Beast of Mist had come into its own. With visibility worsening, the expeditionary force was unable to maintain tight cohesion over the mist-shrouded plains. Moreover, didn't it look like even the White Whale was melting into the mist, vanishing from sight...? \"You're kidding me...?!\" \" Subaru, please entrust me with your life!!\" Rem leaned forward and shouted to Subaru, shaken by the vanishing of the White Whale. Subaru responded to her shout by deepening his arms' embrace of Rem's body. Obeying Rem's snap of the reins, the land dragon whirled around, splitting the ground as it began to sprint. Ferris,"}, {"text": "beside them until just earlier, similarly turned the head of his land dragon toward the interior of the mist. With the White Whale entering a state of combat, the counterattack would grow desperate. Naturally, casualties could not be avoided. That being the case, this was where his duty lay as he was called The Blue Knight, the greatest of healers. Yet, in spite of that... \"All hands, retreat !!\" ...a bellow from inside the mist resounded, halting them before they leaped into the sea of white. It was Crusch's voice they heard. What is she doing? was the look on the face Subaru lifted up, but the next moment  \"Whoa?!\" Subaru's body was shaken by centrifugal force as the land dragon veered left in a spur-of-the-moment decision. In front, Ferris's land dragon was making its own emergency right turn, resulting in them going separate ways. And white came violently surging into the corners of Subaru's tilted vision. \" Hey now, hold on?!\" The middle of the path that had opened up by their splitting apart was blown away in a single gust of very dense mist. The force of the tall wave of mist shooting through would have surely swallowed up the land dragons had they evaded even a second slower. Without having seen the real thing in action, one might laugh it off as making a big deal about mere mist. But no one seeing the nature of that mist up close with their own eyes would ever dismiss it so lightly. The surface of the plains grazed by the mist was gouged out as if melted away, with the highway surface vanishing all the way down to the foundation. A human body fully bathed in that mist would invariably share the same fate. \"If we got hit by that...!\" Subaru thought he'd fully taken to heart the briefing beforehand concerning the threat of the White Whale's mist. But the real thing was beyond even his expectations. \"So this is the serious mist...!\" The White Whale, called the Demon Beast of Mist, had mist that broadly fell into two varieties. The first was the wide-area mist it scattered to expand its own swimming area, such as what it had used to cover the highway. And the second was the annihilating mist, which had erased a good chunk of the ground before his eyes just then. He hadn't seen the means of attack until then, but it was the latter, the annihilating mist, that wrought destruction. And though a single glance was sufficient to understand its destructive power, there was even more to it than that. Namely  \"Yaaa!!\" In a vigorous flash, a gallant voice cut through the mist as something suddenly sliced open the white scene before Subaru's eyes. It was a white land dragon with Crusch on its back that leaped out of the mist. She'd probably used the super-long-range invisible slicing attack to disperse the mist and secure her vision. Crusch brusquely wiped off the sweat on her brow, panting atop the land dragon. Using her as a marker at the center of the cleared mist, the scattered elements of the expeditionary force began to hastily regroup. Crusch looked across her subordinates from each of the assembled squads and asked, \" How many people were hit?\" \"Our squad has twelve people we're three short.\" \"...Who are you missing?\" \"We don't know...!\" Faced with Crusch's impatience, a man in his prime seemed to wring out his reply as he shook his head. Under normal circumstances, such an exchange would be incomprehensible. The squad leader, cognizant of the number of people in his squad, was reporting that he could not remember the names of the lost members. Surely such a crazy thing was not possible, yet... \"We have fourteen and have lost one.\" \"Two men in my squad. Similarly unclear.\" \"Six men... I am very sorry! Our position was deep, and we were unable to avoid the mist...!\" Similar reports came in one after another, with none able to remember the names of their vanished comrades. It was that bizarre circumstance that was the true menace of the White Whale's mist. \"The annihilating...mist...!!\" In shock, Subaru's molars clattered as the murmur came running up his throat. Those literally annihilated by the mist had even the memories of their existence erased from the world. Even if proof remained of those erased, no memories of their existence remained. That was the true meaning behind Crusch organizing the expeditionary force in squads of fifteen men each. If the squads were to lose men due to the mist, they would be unable to even discern who had been hit. Even so, by having a set number in each squad, they could at least grasp the fact that they had lost people.  Subaru knew that eerie fear for himself, for he had tasted it the previous go-around. For Otto, the traveling merchant accompanying him on the highway, the existence of a fellow merchant fallen prey to the White Whale, and the existence of Rem, who'd stayed behind to slow the White Whale down, had been completely consigned to oblivion. At the time, Subaru was of the thought that Otto had forgotten those inconvenient memories out of fear, but it made more sense that he was under the effect of the White Whale's mist. All memory of his fellow merchant, and Rem, was erased from that world just like when, back at the mansion, even Rem's older twin sister, Ram, had forgotten her. Now, the same thing had happened again. Yet, even in spite of that  \"I'm the only one...who remembers...\" In a daze, Subaru voiced the undeniable fact. Just like in the last go-around, when Subaru never forgot the erased merchant or Rem, sacrificing herself so that Subaru could escape, he alone remembered. Two of the squad leaders gathered under Crusch...had become different people. Bathed by the annihilating mist, the original squad leaders had been erased. Everyone accepted the next in line as the squad leaders in their place, with no one noticing the sudden change in rank. Faced with that abnormality, Subaru knew that the Witch and the White Whale really were cut from the same cloth. Subaru Natsuki continuing to remember the things everyone else had forgotten surely this was not unrelated to Return by Death, a trait possessed by Subaru alone. Crusch looked over the faces of the expeditionary force and cut the conversation short. \"Now that it has submerged into the mist, we cannot know from whence it attacks. Crowding together is a poor plan we shall disperse, and employ mana repulsion crystals.\" Seeing everyone nod at the order in his peripheral vision, Subaru's eyes widened when he realized he didn't see Wilhelm or Ricardo among them. Surely even those two were not erased by the mist...? \"So you have returned, Wilhelm.\" But Subaru's nervousness was belied by a figure's timely return from the mist. Having sliced through the dense fog, the Sword Devil seemed ghastly, his entire body bathed in blood. Wilhelm wiped off his blood-sullied swords, tersely smearing the blood from his cheeks as an afterthought. \"I ran too far ahead our losses?\" Wilhelm asked. \"A total of twenty-one... Essentially one squad was annihilated. We can no longer hope even to properly honor the memory of the fallen.\" Being erased by the mist literally meant one's existence was wiped clean. With no traces left of them, even in people's memories, there was a complete blank where they had once existed in the world. Subaru wondered if the bonds and feelings, even love, that had been so certain until then, vanished someplace. When he looked closer, Subaru saw a pack of ligers behind Wilhelm, and among them were Ricardo, straddling his extra-large liger, and the two lieutenants. Apparently, just like Wilhelm, those fighting right up against the White Whale had endured minimal damage. \"The mist comin' out makes this rough. Mana repulsion crystals are scarce, and we've less than I'd like... If we use 'em in the wrong place, we're done.\" \"If we strike it with one more concentrated attack, it shall surely fall to the ground. Having lost sight of it, this is the right time to employ them, averting a surprise attack among other things. Objections?\" When everyone endorsed Crusch's judgment, her gaze turned to the support unit under Ferris's command. \"Ferris, launch anti-magic crystals from the magic crystal cannons. Twice only. We must employ them with care.\" \"Preparations are already complete~. Anytime, at your command.\" When Ferris tapped his chest, Crusch drew in her chin, looking over everyone before the battle recommenced. \"From here on is the real battle! The response remaining in your own hands shall prove that our attacks are effective upon the White Whale! Certainly, our opponent is mighty and unfathomable. Worst case, there may be none who shall remember our deaths. However!\" Crusch, able to launch cutting blows with her bare hand, drew from her hip the treasured sword of the House of Karsten a sword no doubt long bereft of use and raised it to the sky, declaring in a loud voice: \"For the sake of the dead with no name left on their tombstones, for the sake of the weak who would be menaced by the mist in the world ahead, we shall slay it, whatever it takes!  Come with me!!\" Every manner of weapon was raised to the sky, everyone shouting in exultation as one. The mist shuddered from the incredible surge of morale, ferociously setting their dampened fighting spirit alight. \"Launch the anti-magic crystal!!\" At Crusch's order, the individuals under Ferris's command fired magic crystal cannons in a salvo the next moment, with a great roar, the magic crystals soared high into the misty sky when... \"The mist...is clearing !\" ...the glow of the magic crystals shattering in the heavens erased the white mist obstructing their sight all at once. Properly speaking, all the mist covering the four corners of the plains had not been swept away. In the end, all that had changed was the density of the mist, which had thinned so that it was no longer difficult to maintain a clear view. But one could call even that result sufficient.  The White Whale's mist was apparently a calamity wrought from the vast mana it possessed. In other words, the White Whale scattered its mana in the direction of its choosing, and this became the mist visible to others. The anti-magic crystals by rights, crystals with the effect of forcing the mana in an area back into a colorless state, thus neutralizing it had used their power to nullify the mana of the mist, blowing it away. It was a dangerous gamble, for if the anti-magic crystals worked too well, it would also diminish the strength of their own magic attacks, but it seemed there was no need for concern so long as they could see remnants of the mist. \"Not enough to clear away all the mist, huh?\" \"In turn, there is no effect on our own magic. I, too, am in peak condition.\" Rem gave a little nod, but it was the glow of the horn on her forehead that offered the real answer. The fact that it sensed mana swirling around the area and had begun building Rem's magical energy once more was the proof. \" All right! I can't get cold feet now. I've come too far to be useless now. It's time for us to take the stage!\" \"Yes! Let us go!\" Rem handled the land dragon's reins, and its neigh matched the bounce of Subaru's rump. He grabbed hold of Rem's hips atop the dashing land dragon, searching for sight of the White Whale in the thin mist above their heads. With Crusch at the head, the expeditionary force set out as well, dispersing as its various parts searched for the White Whale. With the battle resuming at possibly any moment, Subaru felt the tension drying his throat out in a hurry. No one saw the White Whale come out yet. It felt like before"}, {"text": "the start of the battle, when they waited for the White Whale to appear in the night sky, when... \" Mist.\" Suddenly, a bad premonition popped up in the back of Subaru's mind. He had no special kind of proof of it. They were still able to use magic within the effect of the anti-magic crystals. When he remembered the various things spoken before the operation, and his experience meeting the White Whale on the previous go-around, that anxiety suddenly bubbled to the surface. There were remnants of widely scattered mist in the atmosphere. The White Whale had expanded its own turf and obstructed their fields of vision, the oldest trick in the Demon Beast of Mist's book. That was all the prior information he had, but could he really say that it was the only reason he was afraid? But before the doubt in his head could take form... *** ...the squeaking chorus that echoed across the slightly misty Liphas Highway came quicker. \"What the hell was that?!\" The high-pitched echo was like a woman's shriek, instilling a sense of disgust that made Subaru want to cover his ears. It was both roar and laughter, yet repulsive on a whole other level, traversing the mist to mock them across the plains. \"Just now...!\" Subaru tried to put the question into words when he noticed it that the mist coiled around his entire body seemed to melt into him, as if trying to permeate his flesh. And then  \"Aaa, aaa, aaa ?!\" The first shift came in the mounted dragon unit running alongside. Subaru's shoulders jumped at the strange voices, sounding nothing like ones coming from sane human beings. Guessing that something had changed, he looked over to see cavalrymen racing beside him, tumbling from their land dragons one after another. \"Hey! What's wrong?!\" Following the shouting Subaru's intentions, his own land dragon did a U-turn and headed toward them. He passed between the land dragons, confused by the loss of their riders, and called out to the tumbled men. \"You all right?! Falling from a horse can get you hurt pretty b...\" Subaru, concerned about such injuries, unwittingly let his voice die off midway. Having fallen from their land dragons, the knights were writhing around but their state was far more precarious than mere physical wounds. \"Uu, uu, uu, aa \" The strange voices they raised were not like those of human beings; they were closer to the noises of beasts. One man was frothing at the mouth, convulsing on the ground with his eyes rolled up. Another man let out a moan as he desperately scratched at his own arms. Yet another clenched down on his molars until they broke, pounding his head against the ground. There was no single set of symptoms, but even so, he knew: It was madness, using the mist as a medium to spread. \"This is...\" \"The voice just now directly affected their minds through the mist... It is like mana poisoning, but this is terrible...!\" With Subaru restraining his voice, Rem put a hand to her forehead, making an anguished face as she replied. \"Mana poisoning...? So this really isn't normal mist after all?!\" Judging from Rem's state and the feel of the mist coiled around his body, Subaru realized that this was the real function of the mist. The wide-area mist was an unavoidable trap inflicting abnormal status on the beings within its broad reach. The vastness of the effect, and the damage it inflicted, was in plain sight. Subaru didn't think the effects of the mist were limited to the squads around him and Rem, either. In fact, even as far as his eyes could see, he saw multiple squads stopped in their tracks, trying to deal with the abnormal state of their allies. \"So some people are resistant to the mist, and some aren't...? I don't feel a thing...!\" \"I only feel a little from...my head... I am calm...now.\" Breathing deeply several times, Rem touched the horn on her forehead as she calmed herself. In the meantime, Subaru dropped from his land dragon, rushing to stop those attempting to hurt themselves. \"Hey, cut that out! Your wounds'll... Whoa!\" \"Yeah, yeah, yeah! Stay baaaaack!\" One of the confused men slapped his arm aside, scratching his arm without mercy. When the sharp pain sent Subaru into retreat, the man resumed his self-harming behavior, scraping his face enough that it began to bleed. \"That hurt, but ain't this pretty bad? They might not stop till they're dead!\" \"Subaru! You're hurt?!\" \"It hurts and I feel like cryin' a little, but it's nothin'! More importantly, everyone'll tear themselves apart if we don't do something! Isn't there anything we can do?\" As Rem rushed over, she had a grim look on her face as she shook her head to his reply. \"Unfortunately, I do not know how much effect my healing magic would have. This is not simply interfering with the body but the Odo directly through their gates. Only Master Ferris can deal with such powerful mana contamination...\" \"In the first place, how long can he hold up against mental contamination? Besides the two of us, we're pretty much wiped out here!\" The squad running alongside Subaru and Rem was virtually routed and the few unharmed souls were trying to stop their comrades from hurting themselves like Subaru had. \"If Ferris gets contaminated, we're totally done for. What do we do...?\" This was only as far as Subaru could see. He could only despair that it was like that everywhere else, too. Along with Crusch and Wilhelm, if Ferris, their pillar of support, were to fall, that would be it for them. It would be difficult to even maintain the fight at all. \"Everyone who can move, get the wounded to the Great Tree! Use whatever force you have to!\" But he heard Crusch's voice from the other side of the mist. A series of voices responded, and apparently, Crusch had escaped the effect of the mist. She was conveying how they would deal with that same menace. Immediately after ordering the entire force to attack, she was instantly changing policies. Crusch's voice was chagrined, and Subaru, too, felt anger as he vented abuse at the White Whale. \"Strength-wise, fighting with people wounded is tougher than fighting with the dead, but do monsters even think to do that...?!\" \"It seems Master Felix is safe. With him going around healing, the effects of the contamination should at least be diminished, but...\" Rem hesitated, but Subaru knew what she was trying to say. With this much damage sustained, Ferris would have his hands completely full. With manpower split to gather the wounded, that made their fighting strength that much less. And more importantly  \"There's not enough time. We can't just be defenseless like this till Ferris heals everyone.\" \"Worst case, with the expeditionary force grouped up together like this, the White Whale's mist could swallow it whole. I do not wish to think it is that intelligent, but...given it has created this situation, that is optimistic.\" \"It's possible it's doing all this out of instinct, but...no, we can't underestimate it either way.\" Resigning herself to the danger, Crusch meant to entrust the wounded expeditionary force members to Ferris. Naturally, it was necessary to do something to buy time so that the White Whale did not approach the wounded. They needed to tender an attractive piece of bait to distract it from thoroughly pounding its enemy. \" Whew.\" Deeply breathing out, Subaru emptied his lungs. Wringing oxygen out of his body to his limit, he naturally felt stifled inside his chest his heartbeats slowed, and he knew that its rhythm was growing surer. Subaru spontaneously made a strained smile at how unexpectedly calm he was. He'd always been swept around by circumstances, toyed with by the events before his eyes, and Subaru's heart had reflected his emotions, running wild over and over. So why was it he was so calm, then, on the precipice of his decision? \"...Borrowed or not, courage is courage, I guess?\" Subaru thumped his chest and breathed in deeply. He paused once, closed his eyes, and then breathed out and opened his eyes. He turned forward. Before Subaru, Rem, riding the land dragon, was looking down at him. What was Subaru going to say? What did he desire? That was what she was waiting to hear. \"Rem, stick with me through the most dangerous part.\" \"Yes no matter where it may lead.\" Without hesitation, Rem accepted Subaru's request, a smile appearing on her face. With that accepted, Subaru ran over to the land dragon. Rem lent her hand, and he virtually flew onto the land dragon's back, straddling it as he headed toward the knights restraining their comrades struggling on the ground. \"Rem and I will draw off the White Whale! In the meantime, get them treatment from Ferris. After you hand them to Ferris, anyone who seems all right, hook up with Crusch!\" \"Draw them off?! How in the world will you...?\" \"Like this.\" Subaru smiled at the aged soldier raising a voice of doubt, drawing his breath and clearing his throat, then announced, \" Everyone who can hear this, cover your ears!! And if you can't, stay right there!!\" Subaru's full-force voice echoed across the misty plain. Rem listened comfortably to Subaru's loud voice, and then touched her hands to her ears. The nearby knights also rushed to cover their ears; other expeditionary force members within earshot had surely done the same just as Subaru had asked of them at the briefing before the operation. And then, Subaru willingly invoked the taboo  \"I've Returned by Death \" The instant he spoke it, Subaru's heart was wrenched by a rising fear that, in spite of his intentions, those black hands would stretch toward his comrades, toward Rem. But he forced that fear down, raising his voice so that the Witch might hear.  You can have my heart, so gimme a hand here!! Subaru opened his eyes wide, suppressed his weakness, and shouted in his heart and a moment later, it came to visit. \"I love you.\" It was a frail, delicate voice that seemed to whisper into his ears. However, what was the ardor infused within that made his breast tremble? Unwittingly, tears welled in the corners of his eyes, and Subaru's breath caught as he was struck by the urge to chase after the receding voice to embrace the speaker that very moment. His entire body was governed by the heat of love, burning white-hot in his mind  \"...I'm back.\" After a brief sojourn, Subaru's mind woke to reality. The fervor that had ruled Subaru until the moment before grew distant, and he became unable to remember the deep feelings he'd had until then. But he did feel unease at the fierce pain he'd supposedly resigned himself to having miraculously failed to arrive. Yet, even so... \"Rem, how is it? The Witch's scent on me...\" \"You stink!\" \"That was the idea, but isn't that a bit harsh?!\" Though not thrilled to receive a black mark from Rem, he'd accomplished his objective. His body shrouded in the Witch's miasma, Subaru looked back and raised his voice to the knights all around. \"Get away from us right now! Get as close to the big tree as you can and link up with Crusch as best as you can manage!\" \"U-understood! Good fighting!\" \"You too!\" Sending off the knights, Subaru's pat of Rem's shoulder was the signal for the land dragon to start running. At present, Subaru's body was giving off the fresh, lingering scent of the Witch setting aside the contradiction in those words, the scent had to be wafting all around him. The problem was how much effect it would have on the White Whale. \"With the Urugarums, the effect was enough to cover the entire forest, but how 'bout this time...? To be honest, there's no way to measure it, but...\" When he'd encountered the White Whale in the previous world, the White Whale had"}, {"text": "tenaciously pursued Otto's dragon carriage after Subaru shifted over to it. At the time, he'd said nothing in relation to the Witch. So if Subaru gave off an even stronger scent than before, he ought to be prime bait for the White Whale  Just after he had that thought  *** The land dragon, charging straight ahead, sensed something and turned abruptly on its own judgment with centrifugal force drawing an \"Ugeh!!\" out of Subaru as he hastily hugged Rem, right before his eyes, seemingly clinging for dear life. \"What's...?!\" \"The White Whale!!\" As Rem, pressed against him, shouted, a gargantuan maw suddenly emerged from the side, breaking through the mist. By a hair's breadth, Subaru and Rem diverged from their path and escaped, with the White Whale's huge mouth seeming to slide past them a little to the left, biting into the ground, swallowing grass and topsoil whole. Its stony outer hide seemed to be grazed as the demon beast rushed past, and from nearby, they heard the sound of its maw biting the ground apart. Then, with a roar, it chased after the pair. \"Whoaaaaa ?!\" There was an overwhelming amount of pressure as it chased them from the rear. With the overpowering sense chasing his back that they would be squished, the land dragon that the shouting Subaru rode earnestly kicked the earth. However, the swimming speed of the pursuing White Whale was extraordinary. With an enormous body like a mountain, it swam with such force that it surpassed the wind, closing the distance quickly. Steadily, the maw pressed close, drinking up the world around it. When the tip of its nose was right at their backs, close enough to bathe them in the raw stench of its breath... \"Rem!\" \"Ul Hyuma!!\" ...Rem responded with an incantation, sending three pillars of ice thrusting out of the ground as one. Her aim was true, punching into the White Whale pursuing the pair from right below it, impaling its belly in an attempt to halt its movements. Yet  \"It won't stop !\" The icy spears, each as thick as a hundred spears bundled together, were snapped off at the base, giving off a high-pitched sound as the ice shattered. The destroyed spears of ice instantly returned to the mana from whence they came, and though the White Whale, having lost what was sealing its wounds, bled from them, there was no effect on its movement. That it had been wounded and bled so much seemed only to bring into sharper relief the extent of its endurance. Subaru was aghast all over again at just how high a hurdle bringing down the White Whale was. \"This ain't like with the Urugarum when it was one-on-one!\" *** As Subaru moved farther from the White Whale, he raised his middle finger, taunting it. Enraged at the gesture, the White Whale's roar thundered across the plains. But from the side of its torso... \"Ryaaaaa !\" ...Wilhelm intervened, flying in with a vertical slash. Driving his blade in, Wilhelm ran up the White Whale's flank. As Wilhelm cut through the bloody mist, the kitten siblings appeared alongside, straddling their ligers and looking at each other's faces. \"Big Sis, join with me!\" \"Let's do this, Hetaro!!\" As the ligers crossed, Mimi and Hetaro leaped off and joined hands. The two stood before the gaping wound Wilhelm had carved as they yelled: \"Wa !\" \"Ha !\" The pair's voices overlapped; the sound waves broadened with incredibly destructive might. The shock wave coursed in through the open wound, making every injury on the White Whale's body bleed once more. The enormous body shuddered, and the White Whale's altitude dropped precipitously against its will. The White Whale groaned in agony, raising its voice as it endured the pain, and barely managed to avoid crashing as the twins, riding their ligers, leaped off its back. \"Trump card compleeete!\" \"Captain, please!\" \"Oh yeah, leave it to me! If the runts are tryin' hard, then I've gotta, too!!\" In place of the landing twins, a large liger climbed onto the White Whale from the tail end. Swinging his cleaver upward, Ricardo went around smacking the countless mouths that spawned mist. Wilhelm did the same, jamming slashes into the annoying mouths, silencing them one by one. But the White Whale didn't let them smash its means of attack without a response. From the mouths, seemingly infinite no matter how many they smashed, a literal barrage of annihilating mist spewed out. Ricardo, relying on his liger's mobility, and Wilhelm, pushing his body past normal human limits, continued to dodge, dodge, and dodge that mist some more. The expeditionary force and the Iron Fangs had both reorganized, and they began firing magic crystal cannons once more to assist Wilhelm and Ricardo in their precarious position. With the White Whale's own attacks unable to hit, and apparently losing patience from the increasing damage from the pesky attackers, it twisted its massive body, opening its mouth fully to spread mist far and wide. \"Rem !!\" Faster than Subaru could shout, Rem had their land dragon leap up onto the White Whale's nose. The approach of Subaru, with the scent of the Witch wafting around him, made the White Whale reflexively stare at them, throwing off its concentration; it was looking to send them flying when a slash interrupted that plan. *** \"That's very rude of you. Here I am, after nothing but your head for fourteen years, and you look away.\" With a stab, Wilhelm thrust deep into the White Whale's brow, his movement halting when his blade sank into the skull. But the aged swordsman instantly abandoned his third sword, leaping in and kicking full force the hilt of the sword he had let go of, and withdrew his fourth and fifth swords, both blades dancing wildly across the White Whale's back. Also atop the White Whale's back, Ricardo linked up with Wilhelm, opening his large mouth and laughing. \"This is gettin' fun! It's tougher than I thought, but it's not all that strong, now, is it!\" \"No...the response is a little too weak.\" While Ricardo exulted, Wilhelm knitted his brows and murmured. Biting his lip, Wilhelm sliced into the White Whale's tail fin as he said, \"I cannot easily believe my wife...the Sword Saint...could be defeated by this level of demon beast. Even considering that it did not take the initiative and split us apart with mist at the beginning...\" As Wilhelm swung his blades, his thought process was interrupted by the White Whale whirling its body about. \"Do ? Waaaah?!\" The demon beast's action, differing from all those before it, sent the White Whale's head suddenly rising up, with the force sending Ricardo and his liger flying off. Then Wilhelm, still atop the White Whale, said, \"I'll take one more before I take my leave!\" With the demon beast wriggling its body as it swam in the air, Wilhelm ran down it with nimble movements. The White Whale's body was climbing, with Wilhelm leaping down in the opposite direction. Finely adjusting his center of gravity and using the stabs of his blades to control his posture by force, the highly experienced old swordsman exercised his body to the fullest, chopping off at the base one of the dorsal fins at the extreme edge of the enormous body. *** Listening to the White Whale's scream, Wilhelm rode the fin he'd sent flying onto the ground below. Normally, you would think a fall from such a great altitude would result in instant death, but the soles of Wilhelm's feet kicked off the fin just before impact, and his land dragon caught him, softening the blow. \"Wilhelm!\" *** Subaru tried to make sure he was all right, but Wilhelm did not respond, for his eyes were on the White Whale, still rapidly ascending. Drawn in, Subaru looked up, and his vision was caught by the White Whale's tail as it swam in the sky high above. Blood dripped from the fin that had been sliced off, pouring downward with violent force. The grassy plain was dyed scarlet, and Wilhelm was bathed in red rain, his will to fight undiminished. Subaru didn't think the White Whale was going to just turn tail and run, either, but the demon beast's goal in heading up into the sky was unclear. The Iron Fangs and the expeditionary force uneasily looked up at the sky, and Subaru grew concerned for the wounded gathered at the roots of the Great Tree. \"It's coming.\" Wilhelm made a small murmur as he turned his gaze upward. Seeing the aged swordsman narrow his eyes and return both hands to his sword hilts put everyone on guard. And then, as they held their breaths they regretted it. Too late, they knew they should have deployed instantly without waiting for the White Whale, floating above their heads, to act. \" Mist, incoming!!\" Subaru shouted as loudly as he could. Rem made the land dragon whirl about and move away from the front. The land dragons and ligers all around them started running all at once, but there was no longer any leeway for Subaru to raise his head and see if the others were safe.  Billowing, annihilating mist came falling to earth with such force that it seemed to blot out the sky. The mist was like the clouds themselves were falling. There was no way to avoid it save escaping the area. Sheltering behind rocks or trees was meaningless resistance before destruction that would swallow all obstacles whole. There was nothing they could do but start running and pray that they were in time. Too afraid to look up, Subaru merely felt the oppression of the soundless apocalypse hurtling from above. He earnestly squatted against the land dragon's back, lowering his posture as far as he could as they ran  \"We got through?!\" Having apparently slipped out from under the thick mist and entered a clearer area, Subaru turned his head around and looked back. There were several figures on the ground behind them that hadn't made it out in time, swallowed up as the mist pressed down upon them. With expressions of fear and anger chiseled on the human beings' faces, they earnestly fled, but they were engulfed by the mist from the head down and vanished. The land dragons were obliterated with them. With the mist falling and scattering to the ground, no trace of their destruction remained. Not even their names would remain in anyone's memories. None save Subaru, the only one who would remember their deaths. \"U...aa...\" There were little moans in front of Subaru from distant figures scattered about the mists. It was clear that their numbers had greatly diminished since they had regrouped. That of course went for the expeditionary force's knights, but the Iron Fangs had not escaped unscathed, either. If we at least have our big guns, thought Subaru, shifting his gaze. \"Wil...\" He spotted Wilhelm, barely keeping one hand on his land dragon's back as he escaped the mist's area of effect. It was when Subaru called out to him from behind that he realized.  That from the other side of the dense mist, the demon beast was chasing Wilhelm, opening its huge mouth. \" Run!\" \"Nn ?!\" Wilhelm noticed the impending menace at his back at about the same time Subaru shouted. But both came too late for him to react in time. Approaching without a sound, the maw of the White Whale swallowed the ground, the land dragon, and Wilhelm whole. Scraping the ground, everything on the surface around Wilhelm was gouged out, entering the White Whale's mouth. \"Aaah...!\" Faced with the shock of that spectacle, it was not only Subaru who shouted but Rem as well. Knowing the grudge the old man bore, the sense of loss was all that much greater. More importantly, losing their main fighting strength would make their situation most dire, but... \"Oh no, ya don't!!\" This time, someone else raised his voice from right beside them. Before they could react, a liger"}, {"text": "came in from the side, bumping their land dragon and sending Subaru and Rem flying. \"Whoaa?!\" Tumbling from the staggered land dragon, Subaru grimaced from the pain of getting smacked all over. From the voice, he knew that it was Ricardo who had committed the sudden act of violence, but before he could ask what the big idea was... \" Gaa!\" ...Subaru gasped as he saw crimson flowers bloom before his eyes. \"Huh?\" The liger was sliced apart, pieces of its flesh sent flying as its corpse cruelly rolled onto the grassland. The large-statured beast man who should have been straddling it had vanished, with a vast pool of fresh blood left behind in his place. The White Whale swam at low altitude, swaying its enormous body and waving the tail that was covered in Ricardo's blood. He...shielded us? Then what...happened to Ricardo? There were various questions coming to mind, but Subaru set them aside when he realized something he could not ignore. Before him was a White Whale, which had mowed down Ricardo with its tail. And... \"No...way...\" When he looked back, he saw the White Whale that had swallowed Wilhelm and the ground around him beginning to bite down. In front, behind and up above, he saw yet another whale-shaped figure high in the sky, scattering mist all around.  The infinite mouths of the three White Whales laughed together, drawing out the despair of men. Bit by bit, Subaru once again felt hope being blotted out by a nightmare. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 The chorus grew higher and farther, echoing as they overlapped. In a world thick with mist, there were three fish-shaped figures, their enormous bodies swaying as they swam. The twisted mouths stretching from one side to the other of their huge frames were bizarre, continuing to emit a sound like fingernails on glass. It was a malevolent monster that had swallowed people of many races, extinguishing innumerable lives. That single monster had wielded enough power on its own to inspire despair within the hearts of all people, and now there were three, mocking those who dared to defy them. As Subaru looked up at the White Whale floating above his head, he heard the small sound of someone falling to his knees. A string of similar sounds followed, joined by a chain of high-pitched clatters weapons falling from their wielders' grasps. He saw the shoulders of one of the knights participating in the expeditionary force had fallen, and the man stared at the ground as he crouched low. His shoulders trembled, and none could hold back the weep rushing up into his throat. When Subaru gazed at the man's fellow knights around him, not one had a single word to say. They'd come fully equipped with all the numbers they could muster, seized the initiative and slammed their firepower into it, yet having taken the offensive to that extent they'd come to this senseless situation. Their numbers had already been halved by the depth of the mental contamination, and their remaining main fighting strength had been pulverized in a surprise attack by the newly emerged White Whales. Even if they gathered all their remaining strength together, it would still amount to less than half the fighting strength they had started with. On top of that, the demon beasts they had to fell numbered three surely there was no chance of victory. Everyone grasped it in a single second. They realized that their objective, and their lives, would be ruined in that place. The terror of the demon beast was great. And the bonds that the demon beast had robbed them of weighed heavily. And yet, they were powerless, unable to make it pay for the loss of precious life it had stolen from them. When the weight of all that crashing down, and the hearts that had supported them until that moment had broken, who could blame them for falling to their knees on the spot? In the face of such a senseless, unchangeable reality, could anyone deny that they should give up? \" Don't let it swallow him!!\" Abruptly, an angry bellow reverberated far across the silence that had befallen the plain. Hearing that voice, Subaru unwittingly lifted his face and he saw a lone figure kicking off the ground, leaping toward the White Whale a girl, with a flutter of her maid uniform and wielding a vile, spiked iron ball with her hand. With a gale entwined around it, the roaring iron ball came to a halt when it slammed straight into the White Whale's nose, easily smashing the hard outer hide, continuing on to gouge out exposed flesh and bone, widening the destructive wound further. The White Whale let out a scream and tried to lift its head up to the sky. But a blade of ice stretched up from the ground to impale its tail, and as it twisted its body around, the small-statured girl whirled her iron ball around, scoring a merciless hit that made the White Whale's enormous frame shudder as blood was scattered all about. \"We can still save him if we get him out before he's in its belly !\" There was a young man shouting, holding a rent shoulder as blood flowed from his brow. He walked out in front, giving orders to the girl swinging the iron ball. He grimaced, bitterly feeling the powerlessness that kept him from joining the battle himself, but even so, he stepped forward. A land dragon stood at the young man's side. He slowly climbed onto its back, his clumsy posture clearly from not being accustomed to riding, but still, he strongly gripped the reins and shouted, \"We're not done yet! None of this is over!!\" Before the knights seized by surrender, the young man lifted his face as if he was bolstering his own spirits, bared his teeth, opened his eyes wide, glared at the White Whale, and yelled. \" Don't think this is enough despair to stop me!!\" 2 Subaru keenly felt the sound of despair's footsteps approaching. One was above his head, one was behind him, and one was right in front of him three in total. This ain't funny. How much fighting strength had they poured to confront just one of them, and how much did they actually wound it? Because things weren't going so well, it called out two of its buddies to start the real fight. It was all a bad joke. Just how many senseless hardships would it take until Fate was satisfied? Shielded by Ricardo, Subaru had been tossed to the ground and remained there as he grit his teeth. Had he not clamped his molars shut, he would have let out sounds of weakness, or even sobs. Gently, he felt everything before his eyes go dark. His brain was unable to bear the strain of accepting the bitter circumstances; his mind seemed ready to give out from hopelessness at any moment. Suddenly, he realized that the familiar despair was mocking him, chummily wrapping an arm around his shoulders. \" Whaaaat, is it not about time you gave up once more?\" He could not see the face of the faint shadow, but someone was chuckling, the familiar voice suggesting he surrender. With those words, Subaru vividly accepted the weight of the circumstances before him that barred his path. Around him, Subaru saw the knights falling to their knees and giving up, just like him. They, too, comprehended that the situation before their eyes was beyond their means. Robbed even of the ardor to begin to resist, strength drained from everyone's eyes, and the willpower to even hold a weapon evaporated. When that sight broke his spirit, and he gave in to the futility wrapped around his shoulders, he realized something. Right at his side was Rem, thrown from the land dragon at the same time he had been. Having fallen on her side, she sat up, and he saw sadness on the side of her comely face. Her cheeks were taut, her lips blue, and her eyelids shaking. When he stared at her like that, he thought rather casually, Her eyelashes are long, huh. And he believed...  A smile suits her so much better. That was why  \"You're not getting any more stage time, ever!\" He brusquely shook off the chummy arm wrapped around his shoulders. With the shadow's mouth twisting in visible surprise, Subaru's next action was to turn a smiling face toward it and deliver a straight right punch smashing the black shadow to pieces and halting the shaking of his body. Stupid. Pathetic. He didn't have the time for doubts or stopping in place. So there were two more whales. So what? His limbs could move. He could lift his face. His eyes could see. His voice came out. It reached her. Rem was there. Rem was alive. There was nothing there, nothing at all, that warranted giving up.  Stand up. Over and over, again and again, his heart had been broken.  Stand up. A senseless fate had buffeted him, with despair being the conclusion forced upon him.  Stand up. When he thought all was lost, he threw everything to the wind, trying to abandon all as he ran, and when even that was not permitted, he faced his own heart.  Stand up. What for? \"For a time...like this, damn it!!\" He rammed a fist into the ground, pushing his torso upright. When Subaru howled, lifting his face, Rem looked at him in surprise. Subaru turned to her, extended his hand, and glared at the White Whale in front of him. \"It ain't over yet it won't end like this.\" \"...Subaru.\" \"Let's do it, Rem. It's our big scene.\" Meekly, she slowly grasped the outstretched hand that then pulled her to her feet. As she rose, Subaru hugged her around her chest, drawing her face close. \"Giving up ain't our style. Not me, not you not one of us!\" 3 With a howl, Rem ferociously leaped at the White Whale, twisting her body and ramming her fist into its stony hide. Her left arm swung around the iron ball, which crashed into its target with a tremendous sound, causing the White Whale to groan in agony as blood frothed forth. Rem was attacking the one that had swallowed Wilhelm from behind. The maw looked like it was biting down, but it was hard to believe that Sword Devil would be chewed so easily. \"As long as the head ain't smashed, we'll drag him out somehow !\" Pulling the reins, Subaru didn't feel particularly secure, but he entrusted his body weight to the land dragon. For Subaru to handle the reins himself, rather than Rem, was troubling; he had basically zero training. He only had the time on the road before arriving at the Great Flugel Tree and the free time after arrival to practice using a dragon mount. There was no way Subaru, lacking any experience whatsoever with horses from his old world, could master land dragons with only a few hours of practice. It was all he could do to set direction and speed, and to cling so as not to fall off. Even so, the highly intelligent land dragon perfectly grasped both Subaru's intentions and his capabilities. The pitch-black land dragon Subaru had chosen as his very own mount was being considerate so as not to let its inexperienced rider fall. Good land dragon. Nimble on your feet, sturdy, and more than anything, very quick on the uptake. From this moment on, your name is Patlash. That's the only name I could think of for such a loyal partner. \"Let's go, Patlash! Circle around the tip of the whale's nose!\" The loud shout and a crack of the reins spurred the land dragon into a run. Patlash responded with a gallop at a forward angle, knowing no fear as it charged toward the mighty White Whale. With Rem clinging to its body, the White Whale was twisting to try to throw her off, but it sensed Subaru's approach and instinctively turned"}, {"text": "its head in his direction. \"Sniffing Subaru's scent is a privilege for me alone !\" Rem leaped to the side of its face, delivering a kick with the force of a cannonball. The enormous face was greatly dented, and there, the iron ball scored an additional direct hit. The whirling iron ball broke through the White Whale's cheek, snapping molars and sullying the grassy ground reddish black from blood and saliva. A yellow liquid dribbled out of the wound as the White Whale screeched. Its body crashed to the ground and began to writhe upon it like a fish out of water. The earth was gouged in the process, with clods of soil violently scattered about. The wildly waving tail split the surface of the ground, mowing the wind and flying toward Subaru from the side with him seemingly unaware and just when he was in danger of a square hit... \"Ta-daa, Mimi is here!!\" ...the little feline beast person intervened a moment prior to the blow, the staff in her hand swinging to deploy a magical wall. With a yellow glow, the blow bounced off, and liger and land dragon rushed through the resulting gap at once. Taking a breath, Subaru turned back to look at Mimi the kitten that had saved him and said, \"Thanks a bunch! I'd have bought it right after starting the counterattack all cool and stuff!\" \"Hu-huu, you can praise Mimi more! But for today I'll praise you for working so haaard, mister!\" \"Working...?\" Mimi puffed her chest out, then when Subaru crooked his neck, she laughed at him. As she did so, she gave an orange pigtail a flick of her finger before she responded. \"Everyone was all blue and couldn't even stand, but you bounced back first, didn't you? Good boy! You're amazing! Not as good as Mimi, though!\" \"It's no big deal. I'm not about to let despair get the better of me.\" With Mimi extolling him in a loud voice, Subaru bit his lip and grimaced. That's right. It wasn't anything to be praised for. Just how much bitterness had Subaru tasted along the way? Compared with the impossible horrors he'd faced, how did a situation where he could still fight afford him the leeway to immerse himself in surrender...? If he had time to wallow in surrender, he might as well cough his blood out and go searching for hope, for defiance was far, far, far more comforting than surrender. *** As Patlash bounded, rushing straight forward, a fish silhouette suddenly appeared right in front, opening its huge mouth. Seeing the inside of the grotesque throat at point-blank range, Subaru instantly leaned forward as they took evasive action. But the mist filling the mouth dispersed a little faster than he could evade it  \"Close your mouth !\" From far overhead, an invisible blade swung down, vertically slashing the open maw. The power of the blow closed the mouth by force, and the White Whale writhed on the ground as it passed Subaru and Mimi. When Subaru lifted his head after just barely escaping, he saw Crusch was galloping over from the other side of the battlefield. She ran until she pulled alongside Subaru's land dragon, vilely glaring at the White Whale as she spoke. \"From a glance, this seems to be the worst possible case. What happened to Wilhelm?\" \"If you remember him, that means at least he wasn't wiped out by the mist... It's up to Rem now.\" Shifting his head, Subaru replied while keeping his eyes on the White Whale turning around and locking its sights on them. Receiving his answer, Crusch looked toward Rem, still in fierce combat. As the iron ball smashed downward, fresh blood spewed forth, and that White Whale made the ground quake as it thrashed in a sea of its own blood. \"What do you see, Subaru Natsuki?\" \"What do you mean by 'what do you see'? If you're suggesting in the sense of winning, I could say something self-serving, like, 'I see various things separating my life and my death,' but...\" \"Not that. Do you not find it strange?\" Crusch sent an invisible blade after the bridge of the nose of the White Whale pursuing from behind. The White Whale groaned, its pursuit crushed at the outset, while Subaru commented, \"Strange?\" as he looked at Crusch. \"The White Whales have multiplied to three. Viewing it simply, the situation is desperate. But if the White Whale was truly a horde of monsters, is that really something we wouldn't notice?\" \"I don't really get what you're trying to say.\" \"It must be some kind of trick.\" Crusch said it bluntly, turning her gallant face toward Subaru. By nature, having that powerful gaze shooting through Subaru made him stand straighter. \"So we've got to...figure out what it is?\" \"We shall render aid so as to buy time for your escape. Either way, we cannot hold for long. We must do something retreat is no longer an option.\" So declaring, Crusch changed the orientation of her land dragon and moved away from Subaru. Making a wide turn, she circled around the White Whale glaring down from above as she showed her face to the scattered units of the expeditionary force, raising her voice. \"Stand! Lift up your heads! Seize your arms! What have you come this far for?!\" *** The gazes of the men, seized by misery and despair, rose. Before them, Crusch grandly drew her treasured sword and raised it to the heavens as she cried. \"Look at that man! He carries no weapon. He is helpless, so weak that the wind alone could carry him away. I have seen this powerless man battered down with my own eyes!\" As Subaru ran, Crusch pointed him out with the treasured sword of her house as she cried louder still. \"He is weaker than any of you!\" Yes. Everything Crusch said was true. Subaru was weak. Weaker than anyone. He had no power to fight. He had no ability save that of surviving. He had been crushed over and over a man who had been beaten down and defeated many times. \"Yet, it is the weakest among you who was the quickest to yell it is not over!\" It was the most helpless man there who had grit his teeth and said he could still fight. He held back his tears, coughed out his blood, and in spite of that, stood up to resist for all to see. \"Then why are we hanging our heads low?\" *** \"Our power is weak. Even all together, I know not if we can reach the demon beast's throat. Even so, if the weakest among us has not surrendered, how can we be allowed to fall to our knees?!\" \"Y-yeah...\" The broken men with knees that would not stop shaking looked to one another, encouraging one another to stand once more. They picked up their fallen weapons and drew close to the land dragons waiting at their riders' sides. They reached out with their hands, took the reins, and where they had been kneeling now appeared knights astride their land dragons' backs. The mounts neighed as the knights drew their swords and cleared their throats once more. A great shout arose a battle cry to take pride in their own souls, as if to rally their own hearts. Behind the weakest man on the battlefield, they let out a ferocious roar, driving away the foolishness that lowered their heads.  People call this emotion shame. It was the fear of shame that made the knights lift their heads, cut through the various emotions holding them in place, or give in, and gave them the strength to step forward. \"Let's go!! Charge!!\" \"Ooooo !!\" With their once-yielding souls reinspired, the knights resumed their advance. The force of land dragons kicked up a cloud of dust. Though the expeditionary force now totaled just under fifty souls, they ferociously charged the two White Whales within reach of their swords, with Crusch at the head. Listening to the upsurge in the expeditionary force's morale, and to the scolding from Crusch that had sparked it, Subaru couldn't keep the corners of his lips from making a strained smile. \"Rub in how much of a weakling and a beaten dog I am, why don't you...?\" The fact that he couldn't bring himself to refute it only proved the severity of his case. They could call him what they liked, use him as they liked. It was the truth that Subaru was helpless, a loser, broken and flung about, and thus he had arrived at that point. It was because Subaru understood it that he could bellow then and there: Losing didn't mean it was over, being broken didn't mean you had to submit, being flung about meant there was still time, and being helpless...was not allowed. \"I'm counting on you, Patlash. Go right up close one more time, to the tip of its nose!\" The land dragon leaned down at an angle, clawing the ground and making repeated sharp turns, crying out as it rushed the White Whale. With the White Whale trying to shake Rem off before their eyes, Crusch and mixed split-off squads went on the attack in support. The knights' swords kicked up sparks as they rent the White Whale's outer hide, and they pulled away so that mounted dragons running parallel could add explosions via magic crystals. The White Whale let out a cry, slapping the ground all around it. Even that act of writhing in pain was a difficult-to-evade violent force to the human beings around it. One land dragon and mounted knight pair was sent flying by the attack; crushed by a very heavy weight, the sound of bones breaking scattered about. Blood spurted, and a single human life was snuffed out Subaru burned the sight into his eyes. A chill ran up his spine. He could not have saved him in time, but this was the result of Subaru's decision. It was the result of Subaru choosing to start that battle. He could not look away. The instant Subaru rejected that fact would be the moment he lost to the emotion of shame. When he'd lost to his own heart, when he'd faced his most despicable weaknesses, he deeply, gently rejected those weaknesses even so. That was why he could pamper himself no longer. With a shudder, he tasted the sensation of blood draining away as he cut through the wind, trusting fully in his land dragon.  The annihilating mist spewed by the countless mouths was right beside them as they grazed past. If even a single one of his fingers should have touched it, Subaru's existence would be erased and brought to an end. His entire body would be engulfed in a sense of loss different than death, and he would vanish, ended without even anyone to remember him. However... \"El Fulla!\" \"Like we'll let you!!\" \"Where do you think you're looking?!\" ...wind magic swept the mist aside. Blades rising with a bellow, and mauls with a roar, pounded and crushed the mouths spewing mist. The knights' support slightly thinned the barrage of mist. Even so, the mist's firepower was cause for despair, but Subaru's entire nervous system had grown finely attuned to the aura of impending erasure. Leaving their course to Patlash, Subaru's flesh took evasive action atop its back. He sprang onto his arms and pushed up. In so doing, Subaru evaded the mist pressing upon him from the rear, but having completely thrown off his balance, he was on his way to a fall when  \"G-guuuuuts!!\" Gripping the reins, he thrust his knees onto the saddle, barely averting the fall. The gripping power he'd honed swinging a wooden sword, something meaningless in his original world, allowed his hands to just barely hold on rather than slip from the shaking and vibrations. Subaru hung on to Patlash, clawing along the ground, as they broke past the barrage. Their vision cleared, and when the considerate land dragon slackened"}, {"text": "the pace, Subaru reseated himself, ending what must have looked like the most disgraceful sight ever. His endurance, never great to begin with, had fallen, and at that rate, next time would be one-sided but Crusch and the others advanced on the White Whale, launching their attack. \"Gotta rack my brain... Haaa, shit, don't just put your life on the line think, damn it!\" Even as he breathed raggedly, putting his life on the line to earnestly act as a decoy once more, Subaru's thoughts wandered to the trick Crusch had brought up during their prior conversation. Where the White Whale's \"ecology\" was concerned, Subaru was the least informed person there. He had no way of appreciating the damage the being had wrought beyond the extent of the words Great Expedition. There had to be something Subaru could notice, something that only he could notice, that others could not. Wilhelm had been chasing the White Whale for fourteen years to avenge his wife. The notion that the Sword Devil, having nursed that grudge to arrive at that field of battle, could overlook such critical information as \"There are multiple White Whales\" was simply unthinkable. Naturally, that meant the phenomenon was unknown. Then why hadn't anyone been told?  No, why had it escaped their knowledge? \"Why did more come out all of a sudden? ...The premise that there were three to start with is just weird.\" He felt like he was about to catch on. But before he could, Patlash's earnest sprint had brought them within smelling range of the White Whale. Crusch was chasing the White Whale, adding slashes from her treasured sword to it, but its gaze was shifting heavily toward Subaru. Simultaneously, it opened its mouth, releasing a roar that seemed to shatter the air along with the dense, vastly destructive mist that had filled its oral cavity. Patlash stomped down, sharply changing directions. That got them out of the oncoming tyrannical mist's immediate reach but was half a step short in getting them out of its effective range yet... \"We'll handle this!\" \"We won't let ya!!\" ...Hetaro and Mimi intervened, buying them the time to take that last half step. The twin cat people opened their mouths, unleashing overlapping roars of \"Wa!\" and \"Ha!\" The sound waves intermingled to combine into one, entwining as they transformed into destructive power. Then, the vast oscillation wave rippled across the plain, striking the onrushing mist head-on and blowing it apart. \"Whoaa!! That's awesome!!\" \"Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah! Praise me more! Woo-hoo!\" \"There you go again, Big Sis...\" Subaru's honest praise made Mimi puff her chest out, her cheeks loosening in satisfaction. Running alongside her, Hetaro exhaled, the two sandwiching Subaru as they darted close to him. \"We will support you. Without you, Mr. Natsuki, I do not see any way of winning this battle,\" Hetaro said. \"So can we go bam, boom, badaboom, and stuff?\" Mimi asked. \"Big Sis, we've been going bam, boom, badaboom, but we still need Mr. Natsuki's help.\" \"Heh!\" The low-stress conversation continued with Subaru stuck in the middle. Leaving aside Mimi acting like she didn't grasp the situation in the slightest, Subaru turned his head toward the receptive-looking Hetaro and said, \"That team-up attack, that's the one you smacked the White Whale with midway, huh. Can you do it again?\" \"Mana is tight, so one more and I will be at my limit Big Sis and I will defend you until the captain finishes healing up.\" \"That Ricardo guy, he's alive?!\" When Subaru raised his voice at the unexpected good news, Hetaro said yes as he nodded. That gesture spread the relief in Subaru's heart. When the liger Ricardo had ridden was cruelly slain, he'd seen the large amount of blood and feared Ricardo might have been blown away without even a trace. \"Our gravely wounded captain had a message for you, Mr. Natsuki.\" \"A message... It's not something like, 'You owe me big'?\" \"I believe he will say this to you later from his own mouth, but...it goes as follows. Ahem. 'Wha ? It got lighter. Fact I ain't dead is proof o' that.' End of message.\" Hetaro conveyed the message, mimicking Ricardo down to his Kararagi dialect. Subaru made no comment on the quality of the portrayal as he mulled over the meaning of the words spoken to him. It was a message Ricardo had literally put his life on the line to get to him. If he could only wrap his mind around the meaning within, and the real message behind it  \"You don't sound anything like him.\" \"Yeah, not one bit! You have no talent for this, not at all!\" \"Is this the time to say something like that?!\" Mimi innocently concurred with Subaru's insensitive remark. Hetaro refuted their thoughts with a voice on the verge of tears, but Subaru let that slide off him and looked up at the sky. Two of the White Whales were still tangling with the expeditionary force, engaged in fierce combat. On the other hand, the White Whale floating in the sky, with a commanding view of the battle, was calmly watching from up high. Subaru felt that its behavior was somehow...unnatural. The expeditionary force had lost its main fighting strength, and the diminished squads were split apart, fighting on two fronts. Even with Subaru fulfilling his role as a distraction, if the White Whale floating in the sky were to join either front, it would be enough to decisively shift the course of the battle. If either force was gobbled up, they were finished. And yet, that White Whale did nothing. Why...? \"Ricardo's message...\" Lighter, Ricardo had said. He was conveying the reason he hadn't died after putting his life on the line. So what did that mean? Lighter, but what was lighter? His life? Certainly life was lighter on the field of battle, but he didn't think that's how it was meant. Lighter, lighter meant... \"This is a heavy, hard situation. What the hell can be lighter...?!\" He put all his weight on Patlash and charged toward the tip of the nearest White Whale once more. With Crusch and the others all over it, the White Whale's oral cavity aimed their way, but an invisible slash from Crusch at the magic crystals lobbed into it inflicted explosive damage. A cry went up among the knights. Even as their numbers diminished, one here, one there, they were currently maintaining the battlefront on inexhaustible morale alone. Was this how strong human beings became when they resolved to defy death before their eyes? After all, the expeditionary force had challenged the White Whale with its full roster. Having lost their main fighting force and even much of their numbers, the fact that they were still resisting by force of arms could only be said to be the power of will  \"You can't expect even the power of will to explain all this, though.\" Having thought that far, Subaru gasped, lifting his face. He looked back at the White Whale left in the lurch behind him, glaring at the demon beast's distant visage. Then, he realized what felt so off. \"If that's the case...!\" Subaru gritted his teeth, a chill running through his entire body when the possibility rose and coursed through him. Transmitting his intent through the reins, Patlash made a sharp turn and ferociously approached the other White Whale. Rem, fighting furiously with her full Oni power unleashed, rode a liger as she smashed hole after hole in the White Whale's torso. Even with her apron dress sullied by demon beast blood spatter, she smiled firmly when she sensed Subaru's approach. Seeing that happy expression while she was daubed in whale blood was disconcerting, but imprudent as it was, Subaru watched Rem with fascination. Even with the situation at such a disadvantage, Rem trusted in Subaru's reckless resolve. Her faith, her love, could not go unanswered. *** Without any exchange of words, Subaru's land dragon crossed Rem's liger, with Subaru going toward the tip of the White Whale's nose, and Rem turning her mount toward its tail. There was no need to stop and discuss it. Both knew that Subaru had his own role to play, and Rem had hers. When Subaru circled to the front of the White Whale, the demon beast, sensing his approach, shifted his head in his direction. Above its gigantic eye, multiple mist-spewing mouths appeared, drooling as they emitted white mist. \"Ta-daa! Ba-baam! Whoosh, scatter, scatter!\" The liger Mimi rode jumped to the left of Patlash, to the right, above, and all around. As Mimi made decisive poses and voiced sound effects atop the big dog's back, the staff in her hand glowed, blocking the mist with a magic wall, buying Subaru and Patlash enough time to evade before the barrage reached them. \"This is gonna cost you big, mister!\" \"I'm grateful enough; when this is over I'll thank you a hundred times over!\" \"Okay, then!\" At Mimi's laconic reply, he turned his back and ran parallel in pursuit of the White Whale. Then he overtook it, and got out in front. Subaru turned, and he and the White Whale glared at each other. The demon beast, its one eye dyed crimson, let out a high-pitched cry at the defiance of the boy, as annoying and small as a pest. But the beast's appearance lent conviction to Subaru's own thoughts. Neither that White Whale, nor the one facing Crusch and the others, had a left eye. \"Just like I thought! There ain't three of ya, damn it you split apart!\" The one floating in the sky was surely wounded in the same places as the first, including the loss of its left eye.  The missing left eye was the battle wound Wilhelm had inflicted on the White Whale in the early fighting. It was crystal clear there could be only one reason the same wounds were on not a single beast but the two others as well: The one in the sky had split itself, bringing the other two into being. \"The hits are lighter because the offshoots only have a third of the fighting power! That trick explains why we can fight them even with way fewer people!\" It explained why Ricardo, struck in the surprise attack, was not killed in the process. So, too, did it explain why the expeditionary force, diminished in numbers, was able to keep fighting against multiple White Whales. Subaru had abandoned the convenient thinking that would peg it on the miraculous power of will. And it was precisely because Subaru was such a contrarian that he had arrived at the offbeat answer. The power of the annihilating mist was absolute. Accordingly, the White Whale had increased its manpower at the cost of its own endurance. If the tyranny of numbers broke the spirit of the expeditionary force, the battle would surely end there. Subaru had a hard time believing that the White Whale understood the weaknesses of the human heart and had resorted to the tactic with that knowledge. But the White Whale having the power to split itself was an incontrovertible fact. What would have happened if Subaru hadn't rebelled against surrender when he did? Subaru could not grasp what would have happened had he not howled. The current Subaru would not allow himself to perceive a future where he hadn't. He never wanted to stare at the White Whales' ugly mugs so long ever aga  \" What the...?!\" Before Subaru, forming that conclusion, the movements of the White Whale pursuing him changed. Where it had once floated in the sky, it now rubbed against the ground, as if some foreign object inside its body was causing it agony. \"Big Sis, now!\" \"Mimi understands! It's hard when you have an itch you can't scratch, huh!\" Hetaro, sensing a favorable opportunity, leaped forward, and Mimi, misunderstanding the White Whale's movements, followed suit. The twins matched their movements in a pincer attack on the White Whale from right and"}, {"text": "left, opening their mouths at the same time when  \"Wa !\" \"Ha !\" The howling waves from left and right greatly warped the White Whale's torso, and the shock wave punched through the outer hide to the innards. They bounced off the hardened hide, cracks ran across it, blood flowed out, and the next moment  \" Zuaaaaaa!!\" The part of the belly that rubbed against the ground's surface swelled from the inside, only for flesh and blood to break part. Reddish-black fluid flowed out like a muddy stream and spewed out; riding that stream was... \"Wilhelm?!\" The Sword Devil, his survival uncertain after being engulfed by the White Whale, had returned. Subaru rushed over to Wilhelm while the expeditionary force restrained the thrashing White Whale. Wilhelm, his entire body smeared with blood, fell to one knee, holding half his body up with a sword. \"I was...rash...and...careless...!\" he groaned. \"You don't need to talk! Aw, crap, I don't know what to do here, but at least you're alive. Let's get back to Ferris first thing!\" When Subaru reached out with his hand, he drew in his breath; the state of Wilhelm's wounds was far beyond his expectations. He still had the willpower to grip a sword, but he was knocking on death's door, his mangled left arm included. The torch of his life threatened to burn out at any moment if Subaru didn't find a healer, pronto. And yet, when Subaru rushed over, Wilhelm politely refused his hand. Planting his weight on the sword he leaned upon, he clenched his teeth, trying to stand on his own power. \"Not...yet. I can still...fight...\" \"This ain't the time! You'll die in front of the whale! So none of this 'it's not enough to kill me,' or 'I'm sleepy' crap! When it comes to life-and-death, I know more than you do!\" \"What...are...you saying...?\" Scolding the mangled Wilhelm, Subaru grabbed his body and dragged him up. During the time the two bickered, the cat-people siblings linked back up with them. \"The old man came out!\" \"Mr. Wilhelm, are you all right?!\" When the twins came rushing and saw Wilhelm's grave injuries, both instantly went into action. Mimi applied simplified healing magic to the aged swordsman's wounds, and during that time, Hetaro looked up at Subaru and said, \"Even Big Sis's healing magic cannot do much to heal these wounds. Mr. Natsuki, can you get Mr. Wilhelm as far as Mr. Felix?\" \"Yeah, I can see for myself Wilhelm's in bad shape! If he isn't treated, it'll be too late! I really wanna bring him myself, but...\" Subaru glared at the White Whale as it began to rouse itself once more. The belly wound ran deep, and the bleeding from the opening hadn't ceased, but the demon beast continued to spew mist from the mouths all over its body, showing no more sign of giving up the fight than Wilhelm had. There was no mistake: At present, Subaru's distraction was no small part of their fighting strength against it. If Subaru carried Wilhelm off, the fighting would only take a turn for the worse. \"Even besides that, I might end up leading the White Whale straight to the wounded. Can I leave Wilhelm to the two of you?\" \"We can do that with our ligers...but do you have something in mind?\" Hetaro accepted Wilhelm from Subaru, groaning a bit at the disparity in body weight as he put the man onto his liger. After that, he looked up at Subaru, taking the hand of his blissfully laughing sister as he said, \"If there is a chance to win, I will listen. If not, I must take my sister by the hand and flee.\" \"Ehh, why?! We haven't beaten them yet!\" \"Big Sis, be quiet.\" Her little brother's statement made Mimi pout her lips in visible dismay. Watching the exchange between the twins, Subaru said, \"I suppose so,\" and accepted with a nod. \"You're mercs. You're just working for money, not like me, Crusch, and the knights with a grudge against the whale... No obligation to risk your lives.\" \"Do not misunderstand. We are not obligated to throw away our lives.\" His face and demeanor were meek, but Hetaro gave Subaru his opinion with fortitude. Gazing down at the little beast people, not even reaching his own hips, Subaru exhaled deeply. \"Sorry, but there's no time,\" he said. \"I think there's a chance to win. For now, just get Wilhelm to the rear... I've gotta...talk to Rem and Crusch.\" With Patlash beside him, Subaru practically jumped onto its back, straddling it as he ran his gaze overhead. He looked up at the sky above, glaring at the abominable, fish-shaped figure leisurely swimming therein  4 \"The White Whale split itself, then?\" \"Yeah, I don't think there's any doubt. The locations of the wounds and the combat strength bear that out. Put bluntly, you and the other people fighting it directly must've felt it, right?\" \"For my part, I was in a daze, but...you may well be correct.\" Subaru had regrouped with Rem and Crusch, and both made accepting faces and nodded as Subaru explained. Having entrusted Wilhelm's retreat to Hetaro's liger, he'd joined the twins, now riding on the same liger, and had just finished explaining the \"trick\" to the battlefield's main fighting force. With the main force out of action, the cavalry unit and the Iron Fangs were keeping two of the White Whales busy. Their high morale and excellent teamwork oddly glossed it over, but there were mere minutes of time available for a strategy meeting  They had to come up with a plan to defeat the White Whale during that time. \" I accept your hypothesis that they are weaker than the original, single one. But what does comprehending this avail? Even if they are wounded and weakened, the menace to us is greater than before. Even with Ferris's healing, we cannot hope for those who have withdrawn to return to the battle lines.\" \"It hurts not to have Wilhelm and Ricardo, but I'm not asking the impossible. We've gotta win this without them.\" \"So we must kill three White Whales. It is easy to say but a high wall.\" \"We don't need to kill three killing one should be enough.\" With a twitch, Crusch raised an eyebrow at Subaru's words. Subaru returned her look of deep interest with a nod and pointed at the demon beast in the sky above. \"Whaddaya think that bastard's doing, making its two offshoots fight every which way while it watches from high up there?\" \"Perhaps it is refraining while it heals its wounds...?\" Subaru shook his head at Rem's unconfident reply. From what Subaru could see, demon beasts were not so different from other creatures. At the very least, the White Whale didn't seem to possess any kind of off-the-charts self-regeneration ability. If that was so, the role of the White Whale high in the sky was  \"That is the main body, then?\" \"That's how I'm seein' it.\" Subaru nodded, concurring with Crusch, arriving at the same conclusion as he. Put plainly, it was all no more than a guess. But it was pretty certain that the White Whale high in the sky was the original out of the three. And when considering how to defeat the additional White Whales, the fact that it was playing a waiting game was beyond all dispute. \"I think the fact that it doesn't come down and help either of its buddies can only mean one thing that it can't let itself get taken down.\" \"The reasoning matches up. However, put differently...\" \"It might mean that killing the bottom two might not even hurt the main body.\" Even if they defeated one at great pains, there was no guarantee the corpse would not simply be replaced by a new version. If that was so, the battle would plunge into an infinite loop with no end in sight. As a result, in contrast to the White Whale, playing with infinite continuations, he could see them crying uncle soon enough. Hetaro, quietly observing, posed a very realistic question. \"So the reason it does not descend is linked to how to defeat it. But what should we do, then? We don't have any way to fly that high and attack it.\" The little cat's question made Crusch shift her sharp, amber gaze to the White Whale overhead as she said, \"Even using my blessing, my blade cannot attack at that range with appreciable force. I might be able to strike it, but the White Whale shall not fall from that.\" The White Whale had fled to the upper sky, reaching an altitude roughly equal to the clouds. It was as if the White Whale was displaying its nastiness by occupying a position higher than when it had first appeared. At that range, even the accuracy of magic crystal cannons would surely take a heavy hit. \"Rem, could you, say, float a mountain of ice right up close to the bastard...?\" \"I am sorry. Mana is more difficult to control the farther away it is. I think it would be possible for Master Roswaal, but my skill is...\" Rem appeared chagrined, feeling the limits of her own power with a plan to break the deadlock before their eyes. Subaru gave her reply a wave of the hand to say, It can't be helped, and looked up to the sky.  He'd thought up a plan. Given Crusch's reply, Hetaro and Mimi's reply, and Rem's reply, the best plan was out, leaving the next best, one he hadn't wanted to use. \"I have a plan, but it depends a lot on rolling the dice... Wanna give it a shot?\" Closing one eye, Subaru checked how far the girls were willing to go before revealing that next-best plan. But one might even call it a rude thing to ask. The very fact that they stood in that place meant they would not shirk from any gamble... ...for they were a pack of great fools a fact of which Subaru was well aware. 5  From far in the sky above, the White Whale quietly watched the conflict below. The battlefield was neatly divided into two halves, right and left, by the tree at the center that seemed to pierce the sky. On both sides, little humans were clinging to the demon beasts' enormous frames, stabbing with the steel they gripped in their hands, brandishing stones that created light, defying the beasts in a superficial manner. As flames rose up and the demon beasts' anguished cries reached it from below, the White Whale swam through the sky, spewing mist. The mist it poured onto the plains was the ally of the offshoots beneath its gaze, steadily but surely whittling down the diminutive foe. The figures scurried around, but as time passed, their numbers dwindled; one here, one there, swallowed by the mist, their existence erased from that world. Everything would be swallowed up, and the end of that fruitless battle would not be long in coming. It was only a matter of time before the opposing fighting force began to develop fatal cracks and collapse. If the White Whale possessed human intellect, it would surely have thought this, certain of its own victory. But in fact, the White Whale possessed no such thing. The White Whale was simply following instinct, acting to destroy the opponent so as to preserve itself. There was no use asking a beast's instincts why it delivered such a judgment. In accordance with its instincts, the White Whale calmly, purposefully set about toying with and killing its prey. *** It spewed mist, progressively dyeing the surface white. Though pests had interrupted it, the White Whale's mission was to cover the world in mist. This, too, was the command of its instinct, and doing so was the purpose of the White Whale's existence. Thus, the White Whale's mind pulled away from the spectacle below when suddenly, its enormous eye shifted about, its mind reorienting toward"}, {"text": "the earth once more. Having detected mana gathering with enormous force, it looked at the flow with its naked eye. \"Al Hyuma.\" A blue-haired girl was standing in the center of the vast vortex of mana. Over time, the mana swirled around her legs, building up as the girl gave it direction, gently constructing a very long lance of ice with a sharp tip protruding from it. The vile frozen weapon was in the thirty-foot range, and its sharp spear tip was aimed at the center of the White Whale. Even from a distance, its might appeared menacing, but the White Whale noticing it before she fired it was fatal. \" Please!\" The girl shouted a prayer as the icy spear launched from the ground toward the sky. Of course, its target was dead center in the torso of the swimming White Whale. The icy bloodlust accelerated rapidly with force sufficient to break through the sky but the time it took to achieve that acceleration, and being seen at the moment of its launch, meant the plan had failed, its objective unfulfilled. The White Whale waved its tail, swimming through the sky by slicing the wind. That alone threw off the icy spear's aim. The pathetic spear of ice sailed wide of the mark, passing by the White Whale's flank on its way to the distant sky  *** The instant the icy spear passed by, the very gentle sound of something shattering reached the White Whale's hearing. Taking into account the vast disparity in mass between the two, that was little short of a miracle. That devil-wrought heavenly miracle told the White Whale that it was the sound of an irreparable mistake. \" Heya. I've gotta say, it feels real icky seein' you up close like this.\" An exceedingly light sensation mounted the White Whale's nose. At the same time it realized that a being had landed atop its brow, the icy spear, supposedly flying past, vanished without a trace, and the White Whale caught a scent of the wave of scattering mana.  And next, he discovered the source of the unbearably foul odor was right on top of it. \"You're coming with me. Gotta warn you, I'm a man considered too annoying to ignore.\" A wicked smile came over the source of the foul odor as the White Whale listened to his words. 6 To summarize Subaru's wild scheme, he'd ride an ice spear from Rem's magic up into the sky, whereupon he would break a mana repulsion crystal to get off it and climb aboard the White Whale. Of course, Rem fiercely objected, but he got his way with repeated cries of \"I trust you, Rem!\" wearing Crusch and the others down by insisting it was not reckless, procuring a mana repulsion crystal from them in the process. They'd anticipated that the White Whale would evade obvious great magic, and it was therein that Subaru laid his trap. To the contrary, had the White Whale not evaded, it was possible the icy spear, with Subaru clinging to the end, might have hit squarely and smashed to pieces. In one sense, it was the greatest danger to befall his life in that battle. \"But if I'm gonna say that, I'm in a pretty big pickle now this is really scary!\" Desperately clinging to the tip of the White Whale's nose, Subaru got a good feel of its rough hide and body hair on his palms while his face grimaced from the wind in the upper sky and the raw scent of the mighty creature. The clinging Subaru in other words, the concentrated scent of the Witch brought an about-face in the state of the White Whale. From its posture of solemn observation, the demon beast had clearly fallen into an agitated state, with mist, drool, and loud laughter flowing out of the entirety of its mouth, giving the rude Subaru a hearty welcome. \" Okie.\" Accepting the White Whale's unhappy greeting, Subaru took a deep breath and calmed his heart. Of course, Subaru did not have any special attack with which to send the White Whale crashing to earth. He wasn't naive enough to think that a bit of enlightenment and resolve were enough to bring that about, and even if he smacked it with Shamak at great cost to his body, he'd probably slip like a brain-dead idiot, falling to his death so that was out. So Subaru was clinging to the White Whale for one thing. \"Well, let's give this a try hardened resolve an' all.\" Before the White Whale shifted to action, Subaru let go and slid down the body's stony hide entering a free-fall course. He hadn't slipped like a brain-dead idiot, but he'd begun falling to the ground nonetheless. The White Whale shifted its head toward the sight of Subaru committing a spectacular act of suicide, making a slight movement of its body to pursue, but then, it stopped, as if something had made it hesitate. If it just watched Subaru go, its advantage from air supremacy would remain unshaken. The White Whale instinctively understood this, halting, as if it was resisting the lure of the scent. I see, stubborn instincts. Well, that's inconvenient. Accordingly, he played his trump card. \"At this height, there's no worry about anyone else hearing. Listen up! Big freebie here. Thanks to you, Rem died and I went through huge trauma, you bastard!!\" The instant he said it, Subaru's flesh, buffeted by the gale, was disconnected from the world. All the senses of his body grew distant, and his mind, ruled to that point by the feeling that his internal organs were floating upward, lost track of reality. He was invited to a place where the notion of time did not exist. The next moment  \"I love you.\" He felt like someone had whispered in his ear. An instant later ferocious pain shot through Subaru's entire body, as if a thunderbolt were turning him to ash. From a place he could not see, the hands had invaded from the back side to grab his heart, wringing it roughly, but with care, as if checking to make sure it was still there. He truly felt the organ that governed his life being treated roughly, the foreign sensation of having someone else freely manipulate such a vital part. At the end of the world, not even allowed to let out a scream, the sounds of the wind and his own scream told him that... \"I'm...baaaack!!\" *** Before Subaru's eyes, the White Whale's huge mouth was open as it ferociously plunged after him. His confession of the taboo had increased the scent of the Witch, and the increased hatred had overridden the demon beast's instincts. It let out a roar, its eye losing all sanity, seemingly forgetting about the conflict below as the White Whale came rushing, seeking to erase Subaru's existence alone. Shrouded by a whirlwind, the White Whale rapidly closed the distance between them, making Subaru afraid. In that situation, unable to do anything but free fall, Subaru had no way to evade the charge. At that rate, before ever reaching the ground, the White Whale would catch him, and he'd hurdle toward BAD END 11: \"Whale Food.\" At that rate, anyway. \" Rem!!\" \"Yes, Subaru!\" Subaru's shouting voice seemed to die on the wind, but she replied loud and clear. Simultaneously, with the White Whale focused exclusively on Subaru, a flying spear of ice flew in right from the side and collided intruding upon its open mouth, breaking a number of its yellow teeth, and dulling its movements. Seizing the opportunity, Rem, on Patlash's back, wrapped her morning star around Subaru's free-falling body. The chain wrapped around his hips, forcibly twisting him off his crash course and sending his innards to one side. \"Gwah!\" was the cry Subaru raised as he remembered tasting the same impact once before. It was the second time Rem had saved his falling body in that fashion. The first time was when Subaru's feet had slipped from the dragon carriage on their way to the royal capital. \"I guess you can get used to anything...\" After all, this time he had managed to avoid fainting. Manipulated by the chain, Subaru's body fell somewhat roughly onto Patlash's back. With Rem spreading her arms wide to receive him, Subaru ended up flying into her bosom. With a soft impact, Subaru's head was buried in a warm sensation as he exhaled. \"I'm saved!\" \"You are getting a treat.\" \"What are you saying?!\" Subaru's cheeks reddened, and he hurriedly lifted his face from the embrace of Rem's breasts. Right beside them, the face of the White Whale moved past  *** The White Whale had crashed into the ground headfirst, its momentum undiminished. With a great roar, the surface of the ground exploded in a cloud of dirt, the force making the earth shudder. As they became enveloped in a gust like a blast of wind, Subaru directed Patlash to sprint full force and behind them, the White Whale was taking flight, bursting out of the dirt cloud. The incredible force had messed up its head, and on top of that, the White Whale forgot itself, raising a scream as it bore down on Subaru. In its tremendous excitement, he saw not even the slightest trace of when it leisurely swam in the sky. Its swimming had grown choppy, and its speed, outstripping the wind, was a good match for Patlash. But in raw vigor, it was overwhelming. The earth split, and as its tail slapped the earth, the White Whale ferociously chased them from behind. Subaru put all his weight forward, entrusting his life to Patlash's reserves of strength. This was the land dragon that had earnestly and desperately exhausted all efforts for Subaru so far. Though it had been a short time, Subaru held enough faith to put his life on its shoulders. \"I'm counting on you, Patlash! You're a dragon, right?! Show me how cool you are!\" *** Patlash neighed, and it felt like the speed went up a notch. The roar of the White Whale resounded, and from the violent shaking of his eardrums and the world going blurry, he knew. Straight ahead. Straight ahead. We just need to run and go right past it. The White Whale swam, ferociously chasing down Subaru to devour him whole. And then  \"Take this, damn it !!\" *** A second roar reverberated, and right after, there was a series of sounds like something was being ripped apart. The intervals between the flagrant sounds narrowed, drew closer, and finally, a mighty shadow was born, making a very heavy sound as it the Great Flugel Tree fell straight toward the White Whale. *** Magic crystal cannons, invisible blades, roaring attacks destructive forces piled one on top of another had gouged out the roots of the Great Tree, which had grown over the course of four centuries and had been planted by a sage. As it came down, it crushed the enormous body of the demon beast flat. The great weight of the tree jutting to the heavens crashed straight into the White Whale, pressing into it from above. Against an attack that was in a different dimension compared to everything that came before it, even the defense from White Whale's tough outer hide was rendered meaningless. A scream and an incredible shock wave ran across the Liphas plains, with the blast blowing the mist away. Crushed under the Great Tree, the immobilized White Whale shrieked in anguish, curling its tail. And yet, its vital energy was such that its body had sustained a blow so great, but its life had not been extinguished. The White Whale writhed, trying to escape from the super-heavy mass, when at the tip of its nose  \" I dedicate this to my wife, Theresia van Astrea.\" Raising above his head the treasured sword he had borrowed from his master, a lone Sword Devil swooped down to lower the curtain on that ferocious battle upon which hung life or death, vindictiveness spanning fourteen years, and a history"}, {"text": "of conflict between man and the White Whale spanning four hundred. CHAPTER 5 *** 1  Let us speak of the man named Wilhelm Trias. Wilhelm was born the third son of the Trias family, a family of local nobles in the Kingdom of Lugunica. The Trias family was an old, storied family granted land along the kingdom's northernmost border with the Holy Kingdom of Gusteko. This said, its fame as a family of warriors was a thing of the past; by the time of Wilhelm's birth, it had become a small, weak baronial family, with only a meager fief and a tiny populace to its name. In real terms, it was no more than an example of nobility fallen from grace. Wilhelm's brothers were well removed from him in age, and his upbringing had no connection to inheritance of family leadership. Furthermore, he, lacking the aptitude for civil government of his brothers, encountered wielding the sword as his one path leading to a future. The sword decorating the great hall of their mansion had once been used by a string of men in the Trias family to gain fame as warriors for the kingdom, but to the present Trias family, it was simply a treasured sword to be admired on a wall. Even Wilhelm did not remember what triggered it. But when he drew the treasured sword, which he had never before even set hands upon, out of its scabbard, the way he was instantly captivated by the beauty of the steel that, he remembered distinctly. Before he knew it, he'd been taking the family sword on his own to the mountains out back, swinging it from morning till night. The first time he touched the sword, he was eight; he became accustomed to the length and weight of the blade, and when his limbs grew so that they were no longer mismatched, Wilhelm was fourteen, and the finest sword wielder of the domain. \"I'll go to the capital and enter the royal army. Then I'll become a knight.\" And it was at fourteen years old that Wilhelm spoke those words and ran off from home, carrying the brainless dream any boy had thought of at least once. The trigger was on the night of a storm when he had an argument with his oldest brother. His brother had begun a \"What will you do for your future?\" lecture to Wilhelm, immersed in only the sword and minded to associate with brats and scoundrels in the territory. Through swinging a sword, he'd felt himself growing stronger and stronger, and that by itself had made him happy. And so, the older brother's words toward his younger, lacking any ambition for the future, were very strict. He had piled sound argument upon sound argument, and Wilhelm, deficient in words, spoke those words as the prelude to his flying out the door. He followed them with his trademark phrase, \"You can't understand how I feel!\" and left, and in truth, the result was that Wilhelm left his family with nothing but a sword and a small amount of money. It was an unplanned departure, but Wilhelm was able to safely reach the royal capital. Wilhelm, triumphant as he arrived, made his way to the Royal Palace with all haste, and records note that he entered the royal army as a common soldier. If it were the current era, a stray ruffian arriving in an attempt to pass through the castle gate under such circumstances would have been rightfully and properly turned away. However, at that time, there was a civil war with an alliance of demi-human tribes centered upon the eastern lands of the kingdom the Demi-human War had long continued, and the urgency was so great that no number of volunteers seemed enough. It was then that a boy appeared, selling himself as having fair skill in the sword. He was welcomed with both hands, and Wilhelm entered the royal army without the slightest hindrance. Thus, unconnected to setbacks or travails, Wilhelm stepped onto the field of his first battle. There, for the first time, the boy came to know the wall called reality. His skill with the blade, unmatched on his home soil, served nothing against veterans of the field of battle, and he was confronted by his own recklessness and conceit. Such was the hardship of youth, the baptism of one's first battle.  Yes. By rights, it should have been like that for anyone. But in truth, without ever having faced live combat, Wilhelm's skill with the sword easily surpassed fifteen normal youths put together. \"What? They really weren't as tough as I thought.\" In his first battle, the boy soldier had built a mountain of demi-human corpses, and from atop that mound, he thrust his sword into his attackers. No one could behold him and not feel afraid of the bloodstained future that awaited him. Wilhelm's abnormal strength in the sword was multiplied over the days he swung a sword in his homeland. From morning to evening, until his energy gave out, Wilhelm had lived by continuing to swing the sword every day, from age eight to fourteen, six years without pause. Even once he had entered the royal army, his lifestyle of devoting every free moment to the sword did not change. Within the same unit, there were perhaps one or two people who reached out to Wilhelm, but he rebuffed their overtures, immersing himself only in the sword for days and months until the boy became a man. Unbroken by reality, yet unsatisfied with himself, Wilhelm continued to swing a sword on the field of battle, unable to quench the feeling of gloom within him. With his blade, by rending the flesh of others, bathing in their blood, and taking the lives of his opponents, he proved that he was stronger and he knew that only in those moments did a dark joy sprout within him. As knowledge of his skill with the sword spread, the name of the rural-born swordsman who refused all promotion, to knight or anything else, became known in both the royal army and the Demi-human Alliance by the alternative name of Sword Devil a devil of the sword, rushing across the battlefield, and smiling only when cutting a person down. It was a name that became synonymous with fright and hatred, and both friend and foe steered wide of him. His exploits were beyond counting, and yet, there was no question of promoting Wilhelm to knight. He did not associate with others, stoically devoting himself to the sword, rampaging on the battlefield without regard for his allies, leaping into the enemy formation, dancing as he made flowers of blood bloom. Such a man could not be worthy of a flowery title such as \"knight.\" In a kingdom with a long tradition of chivalry, Wilhelm's existence was loathed as an interloper regardless of his many services to the nation. And Wilhelm himself never once thought of changing that circumstance. He did not think like a knight, with their high pride, regard for the lives of others, and their tendency to polish the nobility of their own souls. When he fought, he killed people; he made their blood flow and smashed their lives to pieces. He, who took more joy in that than anything, was not suited for knighthood, and if it stopped him from being able to enjoy that, he wanted nothing to do with being a knight. His longing for battle was warped, but over a great deal of time, the heart of the young man named Wilhelm rotted. And it was when he was eighteen when he had been in the royal army for three years, and when none in the army knew not the name \"Sword Devil\" that a gap in that heart was born. 2 She had beautiful, long red hair, and from the side, her face was so pretty it made him shiver. With the enlargement of the battle lines, Wilhelm was temporarily sent back to the royal capital from the front lines, forced to take leave that he suggested was unnecessary. Separated from the battlefield, and the rampant smell of blood, gunpowder, and death, Wilhelm, with too much time on his hands, slipped out of the castle gates with his beloved sword in hand, heading for the lower parts of the capital. Since running out on his own family, the treasured sword he had taken with him in lieu of a parting gift of coin had become greatly worn, but over the course of ten years, he was used to that beloved blade like none other. It was not that he could not use other swords, but when he was bent on taking the lives of others, that sword was indeed best. Walking all alone, Wilhelm headed down a street in the lower quarter with no sign of life. His destination was the very edge of the royal capital, a run-down district that had been abandoned midway through its construction. The capital went from the Nobles' District through Market Street, continuing through the Commons, and the abandoned district had apparently been conceived a ways back, but construction had been aborted quite some time prior with no sign of resuming anytime soon. The word was it would likely stay that way until the civil war was resolved. *** In the morning, the unfinished district had no signs of human life, and if any did exist, it would be scum gathering there for no good purpose. They were cowards that would scatter like baby spiders if a little antagonism hit them. Of late, not even those outlaws had come close to the Sword Devil, wholly devoted to the blade, unafraid and unawares when he entered the unfinished district on his days off. \"Just as well, I suppose.\" The reason Wilhelm swung his sword in the lower city rather than at the parade grounds of the Royal Palace was so that his ears would be undisturbed by annoying voices, immersing himself into a silent world where he was alone. Wilhelm no longer sought to measure his skill by crossing swords with others. He turned toward the swordsman he imagined in the back of his mind, counterattacking his unleashed steel. The training he had continued since his youth always had Wilhelm crossing swords with the person he considered his greatest foe. \"Aren't you a bad looker?\" His eyes oozed with bloodlust; his lips were contorted in madness. The empty-eyed swordsman with whom he crossed swords every day was his reflection in the mirror.  To Wilhelm, his greatest enemy was always himself. This was not in a philosophical sense but rather, a realistic view of his might. On the battlefield, he confronted his opponents in other words, he took their lives. Having survived the battlefield, on the edge of life-and-death, there had been none on the field of battle to date that was mightier than he. Then what worthy rival was there to cross swords with than he, a man he could not kill no matter how hard he tried? Therefore, during his leave, he went to a place devoid of others to immerse in a sword dance against himself. For it was only there, in a sword drama none should ever yearn for in reality, that he truly felt what it meant to be alive  \"Ah, I'm quite sorry.\" That day, the sight of a beautiful girl was the foreign element wedging itself into the Sword Devil's world. To swing his sword and meet himself in deadly combat Wilhelm, on his way to the unfinished district with that aim, stopped when he noticed a different guest ahead of him. Normally, the heart of the unfinished district Wilhelm used was a completely empty space. The footing was comparatively level, and the breadth made it an ideal place for him and yet, a foreign element rested in Wilhelm's place of relaxation, tilting its head slightly toward him. \"To think someone would come to a place like this, and so early in the morning \""}, {"text": "*** The girl addressed Wilhelm with a little smile. But Wilhelm responded to the greeting with a simple slap of his antagonistic aura to drive her away. He felt as if he was shooing away an annoying insect. An amateur amid such antagonism would beat a hasty retreat; even a man of skill would likely perceive Wilhelm's level of skill and do likewise. But the girl did nothing of the sort. \"...What is the matter? Such a scary face.\" She parried Wilhelm's antagonism, continuing her words as if it were nothing. Wilhelm felt annoyed, clicking his tongue. This was an opponent upon whom such hostility was ineffective in other words, someone completely unrelated to the martial arts. At the very least, someone upon whom violence was effective would have shown some reaction to Wilhelm's antagonism. But to someone unconnected to such things, it was simple coercion. Depending on the opponent, someone might even receive it with a simple narrowing of the eyes. In the case of the individual before him, she was a shining example of the latter. \"Woman, what are you doing here on a morning like this?\" He hurled abuse at her, but she had yet to release Wilhelm from her gaze. The girl made a little \"hmm...\" at Wilhelm's words, then said, \"I would like to ask you the very same thing, but that would be a bit too mean, yes? Your face says you have no sense of humor.\" \"There are many dangerous men in this area. I cannot approve of a woman for walking around it alone.\" \"Ah, are you worried about me?\" \"It is possible that I am one of those dangerous men...\" Wilhelm replied sarcastically to the girl's lighthearted comment, making a sound with the hilt of his sword to announce the presence of his weapon. But the girl did not turn an eye to Wilhelm's action, pointing behind her as she said, \"Over here.\" The girl, sitting on a stairway, shifted her finger to a building opposite that against which she leaned. As it was a place Wilhelm could not see from his position, his brows furled at being invited to come closer. \"It is not that I do not wish to see, but...\" \"Never mind that, come on, come on.\" Wilhelm's cheek twitched at the tone, like that used when coddling a child, but he calmed himself and went over to her. He walked alongside the woman higher up on the stairway, leaning forward to peer at what lay on the other side. *** On the other side, the hot rays of the morning sun were shining on a broad, yellow flower garden. With Wilhelm at a loss for words, the girl lowered her voice and confessed her secret to him in a whisper. \"They stopped maintaining this district quite some time ago, yes? I thought no one would come, so I planted some flowers. I came over to see the results for myself.\" Wilhelm had walked that way many times, but not once had he noticed the presence of the flower garden, even though all it would have taken to see them was for him to stretch his back a little higher and broaden his vision. With Wilhelm's mouth remaining closed, the girl looked at the side of his face and asked, \"Do you like flowers?\" He turned to her, seeing the small, gentle smile her face made as he stared. \"No, I hate them,\" he replied in a low voice, curling his lips. 3 From then on, Wilhelm and the girl continued to encounter each other from time to time. On his days off, Wilhelm would walk to the unfinished district in the morning, only to find her having arrived ahead of him, bathed in a quiet wind as she gazed at the flowers. Then, when she noticed that Wilhelm had arrived, she would ask him, \"Do you like flowers now?\" He would deny it with a shake of his head, immersing himself in swinging the sword, acting like he had forgotten her very existence. When his sweat flowed and he raised his head, finishing his deadly struggle with himself, he would see the girl still there. \"You really have a lot of time on your hands,\" he'd always say in a sarcastic voice. He thought that, bit by bit, the amount of time they spent speaking gradually increased. They always spoke after he'd swung his sword, but he began to exchange a few words before swinging his sword as well, and the conversations after he swung his sword also became a little longer. Gradually, he went to that place at an even earlier hour, sometimes arriving to the flower garden before the girl. \"Ah, you are so early today,\" the girl would say, a regretful smile coming over her.  It must have been three months since meeting her like that before they'd exchanged names. The girl called herself Theresia, adding, \"For now,\" sticking out her tongue a little. When Wilhelm replied with his introduction, she pouted when he said, \"I've been calling you Flower Girl until now.\" He thought that exchanging names meant intruding onto each other's circumstances to some small degree. To date, their exchanges had been harmless and inoffensive, but their quality steadily began to change. One day, Theresia asked him, \"Why do you swing the sword?\" Without a moment's concern, Wilhelm replied, \"Because it is all I have.\" As was typical, Wilhelm's return to military duty was greeted with days filled with the scent of fresh blood. In due course, the civil war with the demi-humans had intensified; over and over, he casually carried out his missions, slipping past an enemy's magic into his flank, slicing him from toe to chin. He rushed overland, broke through the wind, flew into the enemy camp, and sent the general's head flying. He returned to his own camp with the head impaled on the tip of his sword, and bathed in gazes of acclamation and fright, he exhaled. Suddenly, he realized that on the battlefield below his feet, even as blood flowed, there were flowers blooming, swaying in the wind. And now, without being conscious of it, he took care not to tread upon them. \"Do you like flowers now?\" \"No, I hate them.\" \"Why do you swing the sword?\" \"Because that is all I have.\" It was his ritualistic exchange with Theresia when they spoke about flowers, Wilhelm was able to reply with a small smile. But when they spoke of the sword, somehow, it felt painful to give his stock reply. Why did he swing a sword? I have nothing else, he thought day after day, and there, his thought process had ended. When he seriously pondered the question in search of an answer, Wilhelm turned back all the way to the day he had first held a sword in his hand. At the time, Wilhelm was yet to know that the sword in his hand would be bathed in blood. When Wilhelm saw himself reflected in the light gleaming off the pristine steel blade, what had he thought? One day, still in a vortex of thought, unable to come up with an answer, his feet took him to the usual place. His steps grew heavy, for he was filled with gloom at how he would face the girl waiting for him. Perhaps it was the first time in his life that he had worried his head about such a thing. Had he not continued swinging a sword without needing to think? Just when he had resolved to give such a nasty reply... \" Wilhelm.\" ...the girl, there in place ahead of him, looked back with a small smile as she called his name.  Suddenly, his soul shuddered. His feet halted, and he could not help feeling nauseous. Suddenly, Wilhelm was assailed by a realization that seemed to crush his body. When he sought to cast everything aside with such a conclusion, that he had swung the sword without a thought, a variety of things he'd stopped thinking about and set aside suddenly spewed forth. He didn't understand the reason. The trigger wasn't set in stone. That moment, the bulwark he had raised so long ago had abruptly reached its limit. Why did he swing the sword? Why had he started to swing the sword? He yearned for the glimmer of the sword, the strength, the purity of living by the blade. There was that, too. There was that also, but surely, it had begun somewhere else. \"I have to do what my older brothers can't.\" It was because swinging a sword was a field largely neglected by his older brothers. Yet even so, it was because his brothers sought to protect their family in their own way that he, so useless to them, sought his own, different way to defend them. Was that not why he was captivated by the strength and glimmer of a blade? \"Do you like flowers now?\" \"...I do not hate them.\" \"Why do you swing the sword?\" \"It is all I... I could think of no other way to protect others.\" Ever since, the previous ritualistic exchange of words ceased to be. In place, he thought that their topics shifted around quite a bit. Before he realized it, he was heading there not with the aim of swinging a sword, but to meet Theresia. In a place where he should have been swinging his sword without a thought, his head somehow came to find that insufficient, and topics shifted to places away from the sword. Until then, his fighting style had been to charge single-handedly into the enemy formation and take as many heads as he could, but somewhere along the line, that changed to him running around with a focus on diminishing harm to his allies any way he could. The sight of him prioritizing his companions' safety over slaying the enemy naturally resulted in a change in how others saw him. Old war comrades that had stuck with Wilhelm since his bad-behavior days were both delighted at the change in him and conflicted by it... ...for the number of people who spoke to him and that he spoke to both increased. Previously unheard-of calls for his promotion to knight arose, and he spent only a small amount of time weighing the matter before accepting. Deep down, he, too, found having such prestige better than not. \"There were calls for my promotion, so I became a knight.\" \"I see. Congratulations. That makes you one step closer to your dream, doesn't it?\" \"Dream?\" \"You took up the sword to protect people, didn't you? And a knight is someone who protects others.\" He felt that, among the things he wanted to protect, her smiling face stood out. 4 More time passed. Having become a knight, and coming into contact with more people within the army, the information reaching his ears naturally increased. The deeply bogged-down civil war continued, with an advance on one front matched by retreat from the next. Wilhelm, too, experienced not only victorious battles but defeats as well. Along the way, he spent his days continuing to struggle to protect those within reach of his sword, while bitterly regretting those things that were beyond his reach. It was by happenstance he heard that the fires of war had shifted to the land of the House of Trias. That fact casually reached Wilhelm's ears from a newfound companion inside the army. Namely, that the civil war that had begun in the kingdom's east had broadened, reaching all the way to the Trias domain in the north. There was no order given. So long as a knight did not forget the position allotted to him, it was impermissible for him to act on his own. But to Wilhelm, embracing once more his feelings from the time he first grasped a sword, such things meant nothing. By the time he rushed to his beloved homeland, the advancing enemy army had already turned it into"}, {"text": "a sea of flame. When the scenery that he had abandoned over five years before faded before the reality of more familiar sights, Wilhelm drew his blade, raised his voice, and dashed into the bloody mists. He cut down his foes, trod over their corpses, and shouted until his throat grew parched as he bathed in blood spatter. The enemy's numbers were overwhelming. There were no reinforcements, and it was a land weak in fighting strength to begin with. Until that point, he had meant to fight in battle on his strength alone, but he learned the price, taking one wound and then another becoming unable to move. Collapsing atop a pile of corpses, crushed before the numbers of the enemy force that still showed no signs of running dry, Wilhelm understood that death was coming before his eyes. The beloved sword that had long been with him fell by the wayside, for his fingertips were too numb and lifeless to hold it aloft. With his eyes closed, he looked back at half his life, during which he had done nothing but swing a sword. It was a lonely life a life with nothing. Along with that conclusion came a momentary sight and along the way, one face after another flashed before him. He remembered them one by one: his parents, his two older brothers, the bad friends he had hung out with in the domain, his comrades and superiors from the royal army and finally, that of Theresia, with flowers behind her. \"I don't want to die...\" It should have been his true hope to live by the sword and die by the sword. But faced with the actual result of his way of life, devoting everything to steel, Wilhelm, with the end he should have desired before his eyes, was stricken with an unbearable feeling of loneliness. The enemy soldier that had cut down so many of his comrades would not honor the final words he had let slip. Inhumanly large in body, they mercilessly swung their great sword down at Wilhelm  ***  He would eternally remember the beauty of the slash that lashed out. A storm of swords blew, and in course, the demi-human's limbs, head, and torso were cleanly severed. A great uproar spread among the enemy force, but the racing silver flash was faster, easily inflicting death in large quantities. Splattered blood rose up, the death cries did not cease, and the demi-humans' lives were shaved away. The all-too-vivid slashes did not register even with those struck by them, managing no expression as their lives were snuffed out. Whether such acts were cruelty or mercy, no one knew. As to what was known, there was but a single thing   Surely he could not reach that realm of the blade in a lifetime, or even eternity. He had lived by swinging a blade, devoting the majority of his not-overly-long life to that purpose. And because of that, it was Wilhelm who could keenly comprehend the heights of the swordsmanship repeated over and over before his very eyes. So, too, the fact that it was a realm he, a man of no talent, could never reach. If Wilhelm had created a valley of bloody mist in his homeland, it was truly a sea of blood that spread before his eyes. The literal mountain of corpses piled atop one another had no comparison. The silver flash did not cease its dance until every demi-human invading the Trias lands had ceased breathing. Having witnessed the overwhelming slaughter to the end, he was carried out by late-arriving comrades from the royal army. They shouted various things and tended to his wounds, but Wilhelm never took his eyes off the sight. Finally, the slender long sword wavered, and the sword fighter finally walked off. Wilhelm shuddered when he realized that the sword fighter had not been bathed in a single drop of spattered blood. He reached out with his hand but could not reach the back moving away. Most likely, the distance between them was not a physical one alone. It was when he returned to the royal capital that he heard the true name of the one bearing the alias of Sword Saint. It was around the same time that the name of the Sword Saint began to reverberate in every land in the stead of Wilhelm the Sword Devil. Sword Saint once upon a time, that was the legendary being who had cut down the Witch bringing calamity to the world. To that day, the men beloved by the sword god were of the blood of that single family, and it was through that direct bloodline that one generation's superman was born after another. The name of the Sword Saint of that generation had never been public even once so, too, until that time. 5 It was several days later that his battle wounds had healed and he made his way to the usual place. Gripping the hilt of his beloved sword, Wilhelm quietly trod the soil as he headed for the flower garden. He was certain she would be there. And in accordance with his firm belief, Theresia was sitting in that place, no different from before. *** Before she could look back, Wilhelm drew his sword and leaped at her. Just before the semicircular cut would have split the girl's head she caught the tip of his sword with two fingertips, bringing it to a halt. A sound of wonder caught in Wilhelm's throat as a malevolent smile came over his lips. \"Humiliating.\" \"...Is that so?\" \"Were you laughing at me?\" *** \"Go ahead and laugh, Theresia...no, Sword Saint Theresia van Astrea!!\" With all his might, he raised his sword high and sliced at her again, but she evaded by a single hair in an undisturbed motion. A moment after the dance of her red hair stole his eyes, his feet were swept from under him, unable to break the fall as he was cruelly sent crashing down. Even without a sword in her hand, the Sword Devil's blade could not reach the Sword Saint. An impregnable wall, a preposterous difference was now evident between them. \"I will not be coming here anymore.\" Several times more, Wilhelm went slicing after her, and each time, he was struck by a counterattack and beaten to the ground. At some point, his beloved blade was snatched from him, and as it rested in her hand, he was beaten by the hilt until he was unable to move. So far. So very weak. He could not reach. It was not enough. \"Don't hold a sword with...that face...\" \"I do, for I am the Sword Saint. I did not understand the reason why I was, but I understand now.\" \"Reason, you say...!\" \"You swing the sword to protect others. I think I can do that, too.\" It was Wilhelm who had given Theresia, the girl who loved flowers, who could find no meaning in gripping a sword, that reason all the more because she was stronger than anyone, the furthest beyond the reach of anyone's sword. \"W-wait, Theresia...\" *** \"I'll take your sword from you. As if I care about your blessing or your role. Don't underestimate swinging the sword...or the beauty of the blade, Sword Saint...!\" The woman did not stop. Her back grew distant. All that was left behind was a lone, foolish devil, speaking of the sword to her, who was loved by the sword. Afterward, the two would never meet there again. 6 The Sword Devil vanished from the royal army; in his place, the name of the Sword Saint spread within it. A knight worth a thousand men with hard fighting by Theresia, the embodiment of those words, the civil war tilted in their favor. Though a single person, her martial feats were beyond the realm of any individual, and the alias of Sword Saint resounded even the demi-humans versed in the old legends despaired. It took two years after the Sword Saint emerged on the battlefield for the civil war to end. The Demi-human Alliance lost those who carried it upon their shoulders, and when peace talks were carried out somewhere between the current leaders on both sides, it announced that at minimum, the fight between those bearing swords had come to an end. Blessed by the end of the long-running civil war, the royal capital gently opened up and began to flower. A ceremony had been planned where a powerful, beautiful Sword Saint would be granted several medals. People throughout the kingdom traveled to the capital to glimpse the sight of Theresia, the red-haired Sword Saint the hero whose passion had single-handedly brought the long suffering from wild war to an end.  It was then that the Sword Devil unexpectedly descended, as if to slice that passion asunder. The soldiers on guard became agitated from the incredible antagonism rising from a man with a naked blade in his hand. But it was none other than the Sword Saint, the flower of the ceremony, who checked them and advanced to the fore. Each turned their sword toward the other, almost as if walking onto a prearranged stage. When her long, red hair fluttered in the wind, none failed to hold their breath at the sight of her facing the intruder. It was difficult to find words for an appearance with such refined beauty, yet so at one with the blade. The malevolent antagonism of the individual facing the Sword Saint was the polar opposite. Both the brown mantle over him and the skin underneath were filthy all over from rainwater and caked mud. Even the sword in his hand was meager compared to the ceremonial holy blade the Sword Saint held in hers. The blade of the well-made sword was crooked, with reddish-brown rust all over it. Though the king was seated on the same stage they were on, he halted the knights attempting to go to the Sword Saint's aid. When the Sword Saint stepped forward and her swordplay glimmered, all pulled their chins back, and none raised a voice, watching in silence. At the beginning, no doubt many found the two figures having vanished from their sight. Blade recoiled from blade again and again; high-pitched sounds shot past the spectators. There was a chain of glimmers and sounds of steel as the two figures danced upon the stage at a dizzying speed. Soon, those witnessing the spectacle had lost their voices, their hearts going to and fro, overwhelmed with a vast sense of admiration. They battled with incredible force, switching where they stood, from the ground to the walls to the very air as the swordplay of the two sword fighters blurred. Some even realized that the sight had brought them to tears. But as they listened to the orchestra of echoing steel, they instinctively shuddered, intoxicated by the sublime sight. They thought, is this really a realm that people can reach? Can the beauty of the sword truly instill such deep feelings in others? Their swordplay intermingled, with locked swords, flashing tips, and repeated recoils. And finally... *** ...the discolored blade snapped in half, its tip sent flying, spinning round and round in the air. Then, the hand in which rested the Sword Saint's ceremonial sword  \"Victory...\" *** \"Victory...is mine.\" The holy sword audibly dropped to the ground, and the broken sword's warped tip came to rest just short of the Sword Saint's throat. The spectacle made time stop, and all knew. The Sword Saint had lost. \"You're weaker than me, so you have no reason to wield a sword.\" \"If not me...then who?\" \"I'll carry on your reason for swinging a sword. You just need to become...my reason to swing one.\" He lifted up the hood of his outer garment. The sullen face of Wilhelm glared at Theresia from under the dark, filthy cloth. Theresia shook her head a little at Wilhelm's behavior. \"You are a terrible person. You've made a person's determination, resolve, everything all go to waste.\" \"I'll carry on everything that's"}, {"text": "gone to waste. You can forget about gripping a sword and just take it... Yes, that's it. You can raise flowers and live in peace and quiet behind me.\" \"Protected by your sword?\" \"That's right.\" \"You'll protect me?\" \"That's right.\" Theresia placed her hand against the flat of the sword thrust toward her, taking a step forward. The two faced each other, close enough to feel each other's breath. Tears welled in Theresia's damp eyes, but they only conveyed her little smile as they fell. \"Do you like flowers?\" \"I stopped hating them.\" \"Why do you swing the sword?\" \"To protect you.\" The distance closed as their faces drew close; finally, it vanished. When she drew back from the touch of their lips, Theresia's cheeks were red. She gently stared at Wilhelm as she asked, \"Do you love me?\" He averted his face and bluntly stated, \" You know I do.\" Just then, the people enthralled by the dancing of swords regained their senses, and a great throng of guards pressed close. Wilhelm's shoulders sank when he saw familiar faces among the soldiers rushing over. Theresia's cheeks puffed up at his dismissive demeanor. Their smiles were like those they had exchanged during the days they spent gazing at the flowers. \"Sometimes a woman wants to hear the words.\" \"Er.\" Scratching his head with a guilty expression on his face, Wilhelm reluctantly looked back at Theresia, drawing his face close to her ear as he whispered, \"Someday, when I feel like it.\" And thus, he glossed over the embarrassing words. 7  He raced like the wind, and the gleaming, treasured sword rent the stone-like hide with ease. \"Ooooooooooo !!\" The shout the aged swordsman raised seemed to trail behind him. Whale blood spewed from the fresh blade wound, dying the sky scarlet. He appeared wounded all over his body. Then as before, blood seemed to be dripping from his left shoulder, but the blood spatter drenching his entire body had mixed with his own blood, turning its color to black. Over such a brief period of time, no more could be expected from healing magic than stopping the bleeding and restoring a small amount of endurance. He was still in a gravely injured state, told he must have complete rest. But seeing Wilhelm as he was that moment, none could laugh him off as an old man on death's door. Seeing the gleam in both his eyes, seeing the strength in his steps as he raced, seeing the vividness of the slashes of the sword he wielded, hearing the earsplitting cry echoing forth, and captivated by the glimmer of his soul, none could laugh off the old man's accumulated life as that of a fool. His blade ran, a scream rose, and the White Whale's enormous, suffering body was wracked with intense pain. With the demon beast crushed under the Great Tree, unable to move, the Sword Devil racing along its back did not hesitate to use his blade. The slash begun at the tip of its head ran down its back and reached its tail, and when the Sword Devil stood upon the ground, he turned right around, rending its belly on his way back to the head. In one swing sharp, deep, and very, very long the single flash of silver cut the White Whale in two. With a leap, the Sword Devil came down onto the tip of the unmoving White Whale's nose once more. He shook the blood off his drenched sword as he and the White Whale looked each other eye to eye their two fates merging together. \"...I have no intention of speaking ill to you. There is no use explaining good and evil to a beast. Between you and me, there is only the law of life and death: The weak are cut down by the strong.\" *** \"Sleep eternally.\" Leaving behind one last little murmur, light faded from the White Whale's eyes. Its enormous body went limp, and when it collapsed, the earth shuddered; the droplets of its fresh blood formed a muddy river. No one could put the feeling of blood running underfoot into words. A silence befell the Liphas Highway. And then  \"It's over, Theresia. It's finally...\" Atop the head of the immobile White Whale, Wilhelm turned his face skyward. When the treasured sword fell from his hand, he brought that hand up to cover his face, and with a quivering voice, the weaponless Sword Devil said, \"Theresia, I...\" The voice was raspy, but there was boundless, undiminished love within it. \"I love you !!\" They were words of love only Wilhelm knew. Things he had never told her. They contained feelings accumulated over many years, words he had not spoken even once to the one he loved most, right up to the day he lost her. Finally, after the passage of decades, Wilhelm had voiced the words with which he should have answered her question so long ago. Atop the corpse of the White Whale, his sword fallen from his grasp, the Sword Devil cried out his love for his departed wife, and he wept. 8 \" Here, the White Whale has fallen.\" Haltingly, the sound of a stirring voice echoed across the silence of the nighttime plain. At that voice, the men, lost for words, lifted their faces. Their gazes poured over a young woman calmly advancing to the fore on the back of a white land dragon. Her long, green hair was frayed, and she was cruelly adorned by wounds suffered at the height of the battle, her face sullied by her own blood, a most sorry state for her to be seen in. And yet, in their eyes, the girl had never shone brighter. That was natural for those who judged the worth of others by the glimmer of their souls. *** With the knights gazing upon her, the gallant young woman lifted her face and took a deep breath. Having lent her treasured sword, Crusch's scabbard was currently empty. Accordingly, she thrust her fist toward the heavens, as if to show her closed hand to all present as she announced: \"The Demon Beast of Mist that menaced the world across four centuries of life has been slain by Wilhelm van Astrea!!\" \" Aye!!\" \"In this battle, we are victorious !!\" With their lord loudly proclaiming victory, the surviving knights raised shouts of joy. With mist clearing over the plains, signs of night returned once more a proper night, with moonlight illuminating the people on the ground far and wide. And there, after four hundred years, the Battle of the White Whale came to an end. CHAPTER 6 *** 1 An elated clamor spread across the moonlight-filled plains. The light of the moon reflected off the swords the knights raised high, with the glow of that light making the scene beautiful indeed. The White Whale's enormous body rested on its side beneath the Great Flugel Tree as a zealous throng rushed to surround it. Everyone exulted in victory, with tears of gratitude flowing that their long-cherished wish had been fulfilled. As if to pour water over their joy... *** ...two powerful roars made the air over the Liphas Highway shake, as if to paint over everyone's pleasure. Separate from the White Whale that had been slain, there were two White Whale offshoots that had lost the main body. Acknowledging the death of the main body, the offshoots above the ground writhed around, and their vastness and solidity began to diminish. With their supply of mana from the main body severed, they were increasingly unable to maintain their flesh. They looked pathetic; left to their own devices, they would surely dissipate within minutes. \"Crude.\" With that one disparaging word cutting them off, an arm swung, unleashing an invisible blade. Accompanied by a gale, the slicing wind entered one whale through its head, slicing the agonized White Whale's outer hide in half with ease and with its giant body neatly divided into left and right, the being literally dissipated. With a single blow of an expeditionary force magic crystal cannon, the remaining whale broke into the mist from whence it came, its mana blown away, melting into the wind, whereupon its enormous body vanished completely. That told them, in a true sense, the battle to subjugate the White Whale was at an end. However  \"We cannot simply exult in this.\" Touching a hand to her breast, Crusch was aware of the jubilation inside herself, but she shook her head, refusing to let the deep emotions show on her face. With everyone's cooperation, they defeated the evil demon beast, and everyone lived happily ever after, the end. In reality, the tale would not end so neatly. Such an ending was only permitted in fairy tales. Reality continued after the end of the tale, with a never-ending supply of things that had to be done. They had to provide relief for the wounded survivors and courteous burials for the dead, leaving no corpses behind. And when Crusch thought of such follow-up, she realized... At a place a little removed from the White Whale, a man who had served with distinction was desperately raising his voice. 2 \"Rem! Rem, open your eyes...!\" Subaru lifted the girl in his arms, his face pale as he desperately called out to her. The land dragon came right up to them, nuzzling them with its black nose in an act of concern. But at that moment, Subaru harbored a sense of nervousness so great that he did not respond to even that land dragon's consideration.  Subaru's plan to make the White Whale chase his scent and crush it under the Great Tree was a splendid success. Some had raised their voices in objection, reluctant to cut down a historical tree. But the beast-man mercenaries were rationalists with no such compunctions, and when even Crusch deemed it necessary, opinion easily shifted to his favor. Accordingly, Subaru, drafter of the plan, saw the operation through, shouldering no small risk in the process, resulting in achievement in battle that one might call second to none. But if this was the price he had to pay, it was the smallest of small comforts. \"This...is no good... Please, Rem...if...you're not here...!\" Before his eyes, Rem calmly rested with her eyes closed, completely unresponsive to Subaru's voice. There was no sign that conscious will was conveyed to her limp limbs, and the tearful voice calling her name seemed to pass right through her ears, a cry into empty space.  Under ferocious pursuit by the White Whale, they'd raced as the falling trunk of the Great Tree loomed near. The heavy weight of the Great Tree struck the demon beast squarely, with a loud crash to earth and a shock wave that flew indiscriminately throughout the area and amid it was the sight of Subaru and Rem, running right alongside. They were engulfed by the shock wave, losing track of which way was up, and Subaru recalled that he was protected by a warm sensation during that. The instant he grasped that feeling, there was a roaring sound from an incredible impact as he, and the sensation, were slammed onto the ground. Slipping through the gaps of Subaru's vague consciousness was the realization that he was lying on the ground. And lifting his head, he realized who had embraced him and that it was her body that had embraced his to the very end. \"...Suba...ru...\" \"Rem ?!\" With a twitch, her eyelids shuddered, and Subaru was reflected in the dim gleam beneath them. Reflected in her eyes, he looked so very weak, almost as if he was subconsciously recognizing the reality of what was unfolding before his eyes, when he said, \"I'm so g... Yeah, it's me. You know, Subaru. Rem, your body...\" \"Subaru...I'm so glad...you are safe...\" His throat choked up. For Rem, seeing Subaru unable to even get out the tearful words of concern for her the way he wanted, was smiling at him in visible relief as if taking no heed of her own injuries, happy so"}, {"text": "long as Subaru was safe. \"What happened to...the demon beast...?\" \"...It went down. We nailed it. It worked out. Everything worked out! I'm...not hurt, either... It's all...thanks to you...\" \"Is that...so? Then, Master Roswaal and...Lady Emilia...shall...surely be all right...\" \"It'll work out. Leave it to me. So, Rem, you don't have to say anything right now, just rest... No, don't...close your eyes... Aw, crap, what should I do...?\" She didn't need to force herself to speak. But if Rem spoke no words, he couldn't wipe away his own unease. Subaru was nervous, almost as if the relentless coercive power of Fate might yet snatch her life from his hand. He didn't know what he ought to do. He didn't know what was best to do. Not knowing what to do, Subaru couldn't help holding her hand and embracing her with his other arm as strongly as he could. \"That...hurts, Subaru...\" \"Sorry, my bad. But if I don't do this, you'll go off somewh...\" \"I shall not go...anywhere... I shall be at...your side, Subaru...\" Rem gave Subaru a little smile, like that of a mother consoling an unreasonable child in tears, when strength suddenly left her body. Subaru's throat froze in fear as he felt her body go soft in his arms. Inside his ears, he heard the sound of blood draining, of anything and everything leaving him behind. \"Rem...? Rem! Please, Rem...open...your eyes...\" \"Somehow, I'm very...sleepy... I'm sorry. Let me sleep just a little, and when I wake...soon, for your sake, I shall be...\" \"Never mind all that! You don't need to do anything. It's fine if you're just together with me...so please, Rem...!\" Even though she was right within his arms, Subaru wrung out his voice, desperately trying to hold fast to her as she began gradually slipping away. And yet, though Rem was right before his eyes, his voice did not reach. \"May I say something...selfish?\" \"...! Say it, say anything! I'll listen to anything, I'll do anything, so...!\" In a broken voice, in a frail tone, Rem looked up at Subaru and made a little murmur. \"I want you to say...that you...love me.\" Tears welling up forced Subaru's eyes open as he shook his head side to side. Then, he drew his face close to hers and told her: \"I love you.\" *** \"I really love you. Of course I do... I can't...manage without you.\" They were words from his heart of hearts. Subaru poured all his unembellished true feelings into the words he spoke that instant. He couldn't have made it that far without her. He couldn't live without her. \"Ah...I'm so happy...\" Receiving Subaru's confession, tears came out through her closed eyes. Rem's cheeks suddenly reddened as she happily accepted the words tossed toward her. With that, Subaru felt that the last of her strength had truly left her. \"Wait...\" \"I love you, Subaru.\" \"Don't kid around stay with me! Am I gonna have...nothing but regrets again?!\" He could not bear a future that did not have her in it. He understood that well before, and now, her existence loomed far, far larger. That was why... \"I don't wanna...laugh and talk about the future without you...!\" \"In that future, can I be by your side?\" \"...Of course. I won't let you be anywhere else.\" Closing his eyes, Subaru wiped away the rising tears before staring straight at Rem. And then, he stated firmly, \"You're mine. I won't...hand you to anyone.\" \" I shall take that...as a commitment.\" \"Huh?\" Abruptly, Subaru let out his voice like an idiot at the highly intellectual reply. As he did so, Rem slowly opened the eyes she had kept closed all that time, proceeding to sit up inside his arms. Then, with Subaru dumbfounded, unable to grasp the situation, she tilted her head and smiled at him. \"You have promised I shall be at your side, Subaru... You cannot take it back now.\" Where had the sight of her dying gone...? In a teasing, toying way, Rem closed one eye and gently touched Subaru's lips. Crestfallen, Subaru's strength gave out from his shoulders down as he sank to the ground. \"Why you...you, you...youuuu!\" \"Yes, I am Subaru's Rem. In name and fact.\" Hearing her trademark reply, now even more brazen, Subaru could not follow up his words. Even so, even if by rights it was a scene where he ought to be shaking with anger, the fact that the girl before his eyes was safe took precedence, leaving him too happy to do so. \"We've both aired our true feelings, so that's really overkill...\" \"Girls are strong when they become honest about love, Subaru.\" Subaru was flustered by how Rem no longer had any intention of hiding her love for him. More embarrassed than anything else, Subaru's face reddened as he let out a small breath and confessed, \"...If you'd died, I was about to die, too.\" \"I am a lucky woman that you think so much of me.\" \"I'm not kidding, either.\" Rem replied with a little smile, but Subaru had answered with his true and sincere feelings. If Subaru had lost Rem, he would have most certainly attempted to do it all over again. Even if the chance to do things over was not granted to him, there was no doubt he'd have tried anyway. That was how large a place Rem's existence now occupied in Subaru's heart. \"I absolutely must not die, then.\" \"Darn right. I won't let you die, even if it kills me.\" Subaru drew his face to hers, and their foreheads touched as they looked at each other from so very close. Rem gazed adoringly at Subaru's gesture, and it was hard for Subaru to just stay there with her close enough that their breaths touched. Naturally, his gaze was drawn in by her pink lips, and he felt his heart beat just a little faster  \" Could you two wrap it up already, meow?\" Ferris, looking exasperated from having watched from a distance as the two flirted, butted in to break things up at the most important juncture. Apparently, he'd been watching the whole time. Subaru was sure he'd done it on purpose. 3 \"You're so cute, Subawu, calling out to her so desperately, meow...I can't live...without you...!\" \"Shut up, you're annoying! You should reflect on your bad taste of staring so much!\" \"In the first place, if you thought about it calmly you'd have understood, meow. Ferri has to go around treating the wounded immediately, so that meant Rem's injuries weren't life-threatening, meow!\" \"Like I can think about it calmly! An important girl...who told me she loved me...was hurt and unconscious. Of course I couldn't think straight!\" \"Boys are so pure of heart, unable to say certain things except in a few places, meow.\" As Subaru vented with angry shouts, Ferris smiled flippantly as he turned his palm toward Rem, a blue glow coming over it. Even while the look on Ferris's face struck Subaru with unquenchable annoyance, he couldn't conceal his relief at how Rem's expression gradually grew softer. There were many things in what Ferris said that he couldn't just come out and agree with, but the part about triage, prioritizing healing the most heavily wounded, was no doubt the honest truth. Giving shabby treatment to Rem, part of another camp's fighting strength, and to Subaru, both key players in bringing down the White Whale, was not something his master would ever permit. As Subaru's thoughts reached that conclusion, that very same master Crusch appeared, calmly stepping over grass. \"You are all right, Subaru Natsuki?\" Even sullied by blood and mud, the sight of Crusch walking straight with her back tall was beautiful. Naturally, the elegance she had in no way lost wafted around her, and so, too, the vestiges of the battle; the beautiful woman seemed like the living embodiment of the word Valkyrie. \"Somehow or other, yeah. Glad you look all right yourself.\" \"I am. But the expeditionary force is depleted to no small extent. Nor will those slain by the White Whale return.\" When Subaru responded, waving up to her, Crusch drew her chin in, shifting her head pensively. Her gaze shifted toward the corpse of the White Whale, still crushed under the Great Tree. Over there, the survivors of the expeditionary force with comparatively light injuries had gathered together. Apparently, their first order of business was to get the Great Tree off the White Whale. \"What are they doing over there?\" \"We must transport the White Whale's corpse. With even the Great Flugel Tree sacrificed for the operation, some sort of evidence is required. It is what comes after the battle that concerns me.\" \"Transport...that huge corpse?\" Subaru wanted to make sure he hadn't misheard, but Crusch's demeanor was unchanged. Subaru hurriedly returned his gaze to the White Whale, observing the giant body over maybe one hundred and fifty feet in length as he remarked, \"Doesn't seem doable, does it?\" \"Failure is not an option. The creature was a menace that swam through the skies for four hundred years. At worst, we may have to return with the head alone.\" Crusch's words seemed like an exaggeration, but Subaru thought it over and realized her judgment was correct. To begin with, from Crusch's point of view, the subjugation of the White Whale was a success she wanted all to see to advance herself in the royal selection. Naturally, Crusch was not someone of such low character as to prioritize achievements over all else, which the battle had amply demonstrated. But the achievement was simply that grand. She was already the most influential of the royal candidates, with high support among the populace, and if this earned her favor with the merchant faction, which had been the final holdout, Crusch's position would be even more rock solid  \"Wait, did I wind up pushing us into a bad spot...?\" The degree of aid he had provided an opponent finally dawned on Subaru. There was no going back, either. He'd done everything so that he could return to Emilia's camp, but he wondered if he'd overdone it even so. Fearing as much, Subaru held far-too-late regrets. \"Your face has become rather dark it does not look like the face of the hero who brought down the White Whale.\" \"I'll get raked over the coals as Emilia-tan's biggest traitor... Er, what...did you say just now?\" \"The hero who brought down the White Whale I do not wish to be so shameless as to claim your exploits as my own house's feats.\" Returning her gaze from the corpse of the White Whale, Crusch's expression seemed to impale Subaru like a sword. Subaru blinked at the sincere glint in her eyes, turning to face her squarely. As he did so, Crusch gently put a hand to her own breast and stated, \"I cannot thank you enough for your cooperation. Were it not for you, we would have failed to subjugate the White Whale, and I would have surely fallen halfway along my path.\" Speaking those words, she adopted a stance of deep thanks toward Subaru. *** Subaru unwittingly froze at the heat of the noble Crusch's sincere gesture of thanks. He had no memory of any human being in her kind of position speaking such words to him ever. \"Er, ah...no, cut that out. I...didn't do anything big like that...\" \"You discerned the time and place the White Whale would appear; by your efforts, the expeditionary force, insufficient in strength, was bolstered; when the knights' morale was broken, you roused them; you proposed a plan to rescue the hopeless situation at great danger to yourself, and on top of that, you executed it splendidly, guiding us to victory.\" When Subaru replied with halting words, Crusch enumerated Subaru's actions during the battle and their results. Told of his own actions in such an orderly manner, and examining the result, Subaru could only conclude, \"Sounds like nothing but the work of a crazy man, if I do say so myself...\" \"Perhaps it"}, {"text": "would not be accurate to compare your actions to that of a ferocious, raging lion. However, there is no mistaking that you were the driving force behind this battle. If others should belittle your actions, I swear upon my honor that I shall correct them.\" Crusch extolled Subaru honestly and with a serious look, without any calculation or hesitation. Surely she, the living embodiment of sincerity, truly had not a single smidgeon of falseness in the words of gratitude she had spoken. Thinking back to the relationship he had with Crusch until the night before their departure, Subaru could only make a strained smile. \"I'm surprised. Seems like your assessment of me has improved quite a bit.\" \"This is nothing to be modest about. And I am compelled to recognize that my view of you until a short time ago was very mistaken. Properly speaking, a suitable repayment for such achievements would be to welcome you into my own house, but...\" \"I'll have to pass on that.\" Crusch had narrowed her eyes and, in a low voice, invited Subaru to her own side. But Subaru raised a hand and interrupted her cordial invitation. \"It's not the same thing as loyalty, but my trust's already been put where it ought to be. I genuinely feel like you're a good person, and you'd probably do a great job if you became king, but...\" Crusch would no doubt be a king to nobly lead the people more than any other. Such was the extent of her character, and he knew just a tiny bit about the powerful reason that compelled her to act in such a manner. A proper reason, and the resolve to endure, was probably something she'd inherited, entrusted by another. This included, everything had served to shape the lone woman known as Crusch Karsten. A small human being like Subaru who'd continued lying to everyone could only look at her dazzling form in admiration and envy. \" I will make Emilia king.\" *** \"Not for anyone's sake. It's what I want to do.\" \"...Though I understood as much, to think your reply would be to that extent.\" Subaru's reply made Crusch's lips break into a broad grin as she drew her chin back. Then, she uncrossed her arms, hardened her white fingers into a fist, and pointed it toward Subaru. \"Very well. Your exploits shall be repaid in a different form. I swear upon the name of Crusch Karsten that this promise shall be fulfilled.\" So solemnly declaring, Crusch opened her hardened fist and looked at her own palm. From then, the tone of her voice dropped slightly as she said, \"Now that I think of it, this is the first time I have felt so good about having an invitation of mine rejected. It is a most refreshing sense of defeat, and I can make no show of being troubled by it.\" \"...Crusch, I think you're an incredible person. If I were out here on my own, I think it's a sure thing that I'd let that hand prop me up.\" If he had nowhere to go back to, with nothing certain in his life, and someone on Crusch's level offered him her hand, he'd likely leap at the chance without hesitation and cling to her, relying on her for everything. But the current Subaru had someone else whose hand he wanted to reach out and hold, someone with a wavering back he would support with his own palm. Thus, he could not take her hand, but... \"I'm counting on you for the alliance thing. Even if we've gotta become rivals in the end, we can probably get along nicely till then, so let's do that.\" \" Subaru Natsuki, I shall correct one thought of yours.\" Subaru's reply made Crusch's smile vanish. She put on a solemn face and pursed her lips. Surprised at feeling the atmosphere grow tense once more, Subaru's eyes widened as he looked at Crusch. To him, Crusch raised a finger, then pointed it at herself. \"I shall regard you favorably, even when the time comes to determine my mate,\" she remarked. *** \"Even if the day we must part ways shall inevitably come, I shall never forget my debt of gratitude toward you this day. Furthermore, even should a time of rivalry come, I shall regard you with the greatest favorability and respect.\" Crusch lowered her arm with the raised finger downward, firmly declaring it in a crystal-clear tone of voice. This time, her conduct sent a chill running up Subaru's spine. It was not a negative feeling. It was simply his feeling overpowered by something so grand.  This was the woman named Crusch Karsten, Duchess of the House of Karsten. \"This would be a pretty dangerous spot if the number one and number two places in my heart weren't already taken...\" \" Hmph. I am not thinking as far as accompanying you as a woman. Though my heartstrings have been tugged upon in certain places, my heart is set on fulfilling a dream and so it shall remain, until someday, I achieve the dream he yearned for.\" Subaru tried to gloss over his agitation with flippant words, and Crusch smiled thinly as she replied. But the latter half of her words became extremely soft, and those did not reach Subaru's ears. With a blink, Crusch forgot that sentiment, going, \"Now, then,\" as she continued her words with a sober glance. \"If possible, at this juncture I would like to return to the royal capital with the wounded and the White Whale's corpse. But it seems some mission yet remains for you.\" \"...Can tell that 'cause of the blessing, huh?\" \"The power of the blessing is not necessary. I know that look in a man's eyes.\" Crusch closed one eye, peering into Subaru's eyes as she replied thusly. Then, she checked Subaru's appearance from head to toe and said, \"Surely you are not without injury. So you have something you must do in spite of that.\" \"I've gotta do it whether I'm hurt badly or not. In one sense, the whale hunt was so that I could do it. I feel bad saying it like that, though.\" \"Oh, really, after subjugating the White Whale?\" He said it in a way that surely came off poorly, but Crusch showed no sign of annoyance. She seemed curious about the objective Subaru spoke of so seriously. \"Most interesting you surely took the alliance with our house in account for that. If so, it is hardly unthinkable for you to request something of us... You require aid?\" \"I do. But...to be honest, I didn't think it'd be this tough, so...\" Subaru's shoulders sank when he looked over the expeditionary force members wounded far beyond his plans. With the subjugation of the White Whale finished, it meant returning to the Mathers domain, where Emilia awaited, and confronting the abominable group there. Fighting such a powerful foe required Crusch's power, but  \"With all these people hurt, I won't ask anything reckless of you. Besides, you have to see this with not just your personal feelings but your place as a ruler. Asking you to lend a hand beyond this is just...\" \" Then how about using these old bones until they fail?\" Abruptly, a tall figure walked over with quiet footsteps and interrupted the conversation Wilhelm, the aged swordsman still appearing as ghastly as before, his entire body bathed in demon beast blood. The Sword Devil approached, walking with a gait that showed nothing of the wounds to his flesh, and offered the treasured sword in his right hand to Crusch. \"Lady Crusch, I return that which you lent to me. In addition, let me offer my thanks concerning this matter from the bottom of my heart. It is because of your cooperation that my long-cherished wish has been granted, Lady Crusch thank you very much.\" \"Your long-cherished wish and my objectives aligned, that is all you may hold on to that sword for a little while longer. You can serve no role unarmed.\" \" As you wish. My thanks.\" Crusch responded briefly to Wilhelm's words of thanks and looked at Subaru. Accepting her reply, Wilhelm turned his head back to Subaru as well. *** Now that they were in close quarters again, the stench of blood wafting around him was incredible, and Subaru felt nervous from that surging, aimless antagonism, which felt like a slender blade poking into his liver. But the tense atmosphere from before the battle that had been lifted, and it was a fact that Wilhelm seemed like his spirits had been lifted with it. The aged swordsman looked straight at Subaru and, after that, fell to one knee on the spot. It was a gesture demonstrating the greatest of all respect to another, one he had seen the night before they'd set out. And then  \"Sir Subaru Natsuki. It is because of your cooperation that this subjugation of the White Whale was successful. It is you who has granted meaning to all the long years of my life until this day. I thank you. I thank you I offer my thanks, with the whole of my being on the line.\" *** This was Wilhelm, he who had offered half his life to the sword and then spent over a decade of life devoted to vengeance. Subaru, engulfed by the vast passion of the gratitude such a man directed to him, was so afraid of blurting out the wrong thing that he was at a complete loss for words. It took a while to settle his mind, waiting for the proper words to direct to the old man before him to coalesce for it would not do to have Wilhelm, a man of such resolve, put on such a shameful display. \"It's your own sword that did it, Wilhelm. You thought about how to fight the White Whale, you studied it, you trained, you didn't give up, you fought it...\" Having tasted setback after setback over and over, he must have been on the verge of giving up his grudge. Subaru didn't think he'd thrown everything away, never once attempted to abandon those deep-rooted convictions. It was Subaru, who knew more than anyone about the weakness of the heart, about being defeated, about being obstructed by the irrationalities of fate, who could understand the suffering Wilhelm had undergone until his strong feelings went fulfilled. \"You stuck with it until the White Whale went down because you reaaaally loved your wife. If I helped with that even a little bit, I'm glad. I'm not sure this is the best thing to say, but...congratulations. And well done.\" *** Prompted by Subaru's words, Wilhelm lifted his face, his blue eyes opening wide. Subaru had arbitrarily drawn comparisons between what he felt and what he imagined Wilhelm felt. He didn't think his brief words from just then could convey that, and for Subaru to speak as if he understood probably didn't amuse Wilhelm. But Subaru couldn't restrain his desire to say it anyway words to thank Wilhelm for his love for his departed wife still burning fourteen years on, and for his labors, continuing to fight Fate day after day until they led him to victory... \" I thank you.\" Briefly, and with a quavering voice, that was how Wilhelm replied. After that, he leaned forward slightly, and after a silence of but several seconds, he rose to his feet. Then, he turned his gaze to Crusch, and when she nodded, he said, \"I have received Lady Crusch's permission. Sir Subaru, I place this body in your hands. Please use it to the fullest for your objective.\" \"That's super-helpful, but you're serious?\" When he glanced at Crusch to make sure, she drew her chin in and nodded affirmatively. When he looked Wilhelm over in all seriousness, he felt both the dependability and the fearsomeness of the man, his antagonism undiminished in spite of having one arm wounded.  To Subaru, Wilhelm's cooperation was a wish come true. In the current situation, where every bit of fighting strength"}, {"text": "was desperately yearned for, he wanted the Sword Devil's strength enough that a hand might sprout from his own throat. But even an amateur like him could see that Wilhelm's injuries were grave. In the face of Subaru's doubts, Crusch shook her head. \"That is not a problem... Ferris!\" \"Yes, Lady Crusch!\" When Crusch called sharply, Ferris seemed to instantly glide into view in response. With a skip in his step, he lined up alongside Crusch, and as the kitty ears on his head made a little flutter, he said, \"What is it, Lady Crusch? Ferri's in the middle of going all around and doing a big job, but of course I'll prioritize anything Lady Crusch has to ask before everything else!\" \"Hey, don't drop your responsibilities halfway through the sentence!\" Ferris, the butt of Subaru's comment about easily casting aside all sense of duty as a healer, made a sour face. He was still like that when Crusch gazed at the expeditionary force and asked him, \"How many of the wounded are in mortal peril?\" \"I'm treating gravely wounded people, but I can clearly say the number in peril is zero. Other people's field dressings were excellent, and I'm a capable kitty, so it's okay to praise me, meow.\" With Ferris flirtingly touching a finger to his cheek, Subaru put a hand to his chest in relief. At the very least, Rem didn't seem to be in any serious danger. The exchange after the battle had been decided had put him at ease, but hearing all over again that she was safe was a relief nonetheless. In the meantime, Crusch nodded as she stroked Ferris's head. \"Understood. So the remaining wounded can be transported. Ferris, you can leave the existing healing as it is, then. Afterward, you will accompany Subaru Natsuki and fulfill the role of his ally.\" \" Eh?!\" It was Subaru who raised his voice in surprise at the order Crusch issued. She was splitting Ferris off and making him accompany Subaru. That order meant nothing less than prioritizing her ally, Subaru, over her own camp's wounded. Of course, Ferris would object to Crusch's decision to split him off from the Crusch ca  \"Understood. Ferri will accompany Subawu from here. I'll have to heal Old Man Wil on the road anyway, meow.\" \"Quite the trouble for you.\" \"Old Man Wil's the one swinging his sword, so that makes it about even, meow?\" There was no beating these people. Ferris accepted the order like it was a matter of course, and Wilhelm betrayed no expression of surprise at the order, either. Subaru couldn't conceal his bewilderment at the interplay between the two servants and their master. With Subaru in such disarray, Ferris glided his eyes over to him and said, \"So that means half of the people left in the expeditionary force look all right...? About twenty people, give or take? They'll be coming to cooperate with you, Subawu. Take good care of us.\" \"That's putting it pretty lightly! You're okay with this...?\" \"Okay with what, meow?\" \"Whaddaya mean, what...? Lots of things. Can you trust my judgment...?\" As far as he could remember, back in the royal capital, there had been none he'd come into contact with that had acted to gouge more wounds in him than Ferris. No matter how friendly a smile came over his face, no matter how adorable the attitude he dressed it up in, Subaru somehow understood that he harbored a deep disdain for Subaru's weakness. Subaru naturally thought that he'd feel reluctant to follow such a person, but... \"It's not that I trust you, Subawu. It's that I have faith in Lady Crusch's decision that Subawu is to be trusted. It's not like she's wrong, meow?\" \"O-oh...thanks.\" Ferris laughed loudly, as if rubbing Subaru's thoughts into his face. That behavior made Subaru feel guilty, and while his words caught in his throat, he somehow expressed his thanks. Ferris's smile deepened when he added in a little voice, \"...It's a bit like...you're disgusted by the one most like yourself.\" \" ? Did you...say something just now?\" \"Not reawwy? Nothing  Ah, that's right.\" Leaving the unclear statement hazy, Ferris deliberately clapped his hands together and said, \"I forgot to mention this, but Rem's holding the fort or rather, she'll go back to the capital with Lady Crusch and get some rest. Understand, meow?\" \" Why?!\" When Ferris made that declaration with a wink, a strong voice of protest arose. It came from a line of wounded, from which Rem had overheard the exchange. She glared powerfully at Ferris as she asserted: \"I I will be all right. Why, why would I not be with Subaru when he is heading into such danger from here on...?\" \"That's what you say, but your body won't move, meow? You pretty much took out one White Whale all by yourself, and you fired off high-end magic back-to-back on top of that... Rem, your body's really depleted right now, scraping the bottom of the barrel, meow. As a healer, I cannot allow you to push yourself any further. Understand?\" \"But!\" I cannot accept it, Rem surely meant to get up and protest. But when she tried to even sit up, she could put no strength into her arm, and with it unable to support her shaking body, she threatened to tumble over on the spot. Subaru hurried close and gently supported her shoulder. \"It's too dangerous... I'm begging you, do as Ferris says. Don't do anything crazy.\" \"But I do not want this. It hurts. I cannot bear it.\" As Rem looked back at Subaru, now beside her, large tears filled her blue eyes. It was not being left behind that she feared. No, what she feared more than anything was  \"When you are in distress, Subaru, I want to be the one offering my hand faster than anyone. When you hesitate along your path, I want to be the one pushing on your back. When you challenge something, I want to be at your side, stopping you from shaking. That is that is all I wish for. So please...\" \"You don't need to worry 'bout any of that stuff.\" \"Eh?\" Naturally, Rem's tearful-sounding voice weaving those lovely words brought a bashful expression to Subaru's face. Supporting her shoulder, he gently stroked her head as he said, \"You've been holding my hand nonstop, and you've pushed my back lots of times. When I'm shaking, just thinking of you lets me manage somehow you've been saving me all this time.\" \"...Ah...\" \"It's all right, Rem. I'll manage somehow, all of it. I'm your hero. I decided this was the first step toward that. So you don't need to worry.\" When her quivering eyes looked up at Subaru, her cheeks grew red and hot. With her like that, Subaru turned a smiling face toward her, baring his teeth as he smiled ferociously. \"The whale hunt's done already. Your hero's super-bedeviled, I guess.\" \"Suba...ru...\" Unable to restrain the emotions welling up inside her, Rem's call of Subaru's name faltered midway. From there, she seemed to anguish, as if restraining her impulses over and over, and after breathing in several times, the tears she could not hold back trickled from the corners of her eyes. \" Yes. My hero is...the greatest in the whole world.\" She cried with a smile on her face. 4 Crusch gathered up the wounded, Rem included, and the head of the White Whale, and departed for the royal capital. Half of the remaining expeditionary force escorted Crusch and the others, and the other half went with Subaru, heading for the Mathers domain. Headed by Wilhelm and Ferris, the expeditionary force accompanying Subaru amounted to twenty-four souls. It was somewhat below the numbers Subaru had hoped for, but it was reassuring fighting strength nonetheless. Besides, it was not just people from the expeditionary force accompanying him but also  \"Captain! Mimi! Mimi worked hard, too! Worked incredibly super-hard!\" Two beast people were riding ligers as they quarreled loudly. One was Ricardo, recovered after withdrawing from the battle lines after being wounded shielding Subaru. The other was Mimi, who had not lost any of her childish extravagance, even amid a battle with her life on the line. It was not only the two of them joining the battle but also the ten-odd surviving members of the beast-man mercenary band, the Iron Fangs. Apparently, the other lieutenant, Hetaro, had taken command of the wounded, returning to the capital with Crusch. \"Come to think of it, how'd your little bro get that wiped out when you're that full of energy?\" \"Hetaro's a little weakling! Goodness, so pathetic!\" Mimi cackled, laughing loudly as she made sport of her little brother's weakness. But Subaru judged that it was probably just the older sister's stupid amount of endurance. She was the berserker type who couldn't help laughing in battle or more precisely, an extremely positive thinker who saw fun in everything. Subaru couldn't help being envious. \"Welp, I didn't do much for the last half of the whale butt kickin', but don't worry. The Lady Anastasia asked nice an' proper. I'll be doin' plenty for the real job comin' up.\" \"The real job  Wait, you know what I'm trying to do...?\" Subaru said. \"Tangle with the Witch Cult, right?\" The words Ricardo quietly spoke made Subaru's throat tighten. Naturally, when he strongly gripped the reins of Patlash, the land dragon bearing his weight, he heard the pitch-black dragon make a little sound of concern for him. Seeing the side of Subaru's tense face like that, Ricardo bared his sharp fangs and smiled. \"Go ahead an' look surprised. To merchants, fresh info comes number one, and the miss has us on the payroll for a reason. We don't have these ears for nothin'. They pick up lots of things, not just 'bout you.\" \"That's right! Mimi's awesome!\" \"I wasn't talkin' 'bout you, runt.\" Mimi's reaction threw Ricardo's joke off on a tangent, earning a strained smile from him. While standing on the side, Subaru scratched his head, feeling surprised at Anastasia's poor actions. That said, now that they were sticking together thereafter, sharing info with Ricardo and the other Iron Fangs was inevitable. If possible, he'd love to sit everyone down, expeditionary force included, and properly talk things over. And along with them, the insurance Subaru had arranged before departure, though he didn't know if it would work, or  \"Oh, looks like we can link up.\" \"Ah?\" Beside Subaru, sunk in thought, Ricardo's eyes faced forward when he suddenly spoke those words. Subaru's gaze quickly followed suit, but he could see nothing through the darkness of the plains at night. Unable to see what Ricardo did, all he could do was tilt his head. \"You don't hafta strain like that; I can tell they're waitin' for us. Relax.\" \"So says the guy who can tell, sheesh. Showing off and all.\" \"Hey, if you've got it, flaunt it.  They're a bit far, but comin' from thataway is the other half of our band of mercs.\" \"Half?\" Subaru knotted his brows at Ricardo's words. The other half of the Iron Fangs ought to have meant the wounded withdrawing to the royal capital, but... \"By half, I mean exactly that. We put only half the members o' the Iron Fangs on bringin' down the White Whale. The other half had the other half to do.\" \"Doing what?\" \"Had to make sure no other humans on the highway got involved in the fight, right? So they were shuttin' off the highway from the other side. They set out durin' last night, so ya never had a chance to meet any of 'em.\" Hearing Ricardo's explanation, Subaru accepted it, drawing in his chin. He wasn't exactly thrilled they hadn't devoted all their forces to subduing the White Whale, but they had lent Ricardo and Mimi, their main combat strength. Considering that the subjugation failing might have meant complete annihilation, Anastasia wasn't wrong to hedge against that risk. He just didn't have"}, {"text": "to like it. It was Subaru's envy at work, for he had few cards in his hand and no options save tossing fastballs full force. \"So the ones coming now are the rest of your buddies. Who's leading 'em?\" \"Mimi's younger brother TB! He can do combo boomies with Mimi just like Hetaro! Incredible!\" Mimi stuck her chest out as she proudly replied to Subaru's inquiry. Just from hearing her vague, energetic reply, he had some concerns about their remaining comrades. \"Er, but that younger brother was a straight shooter. Does this younger brother take after the sis, the bro, or is it fifty-fifty...?\" \"I get why yer worried, but TB's the smartest o' the bunch. He handles our accountin' and negotiations, and he's the lady's right-hand man. He's an expert at handlin' Mimi, so he's a step up over Hetaro there!\" \"Don't say that, I'm gonna feel bad for Hetaro...\" The various rankings the older sister and the captain had issued made Hetaro something of a tragic figure. Either way, setting pity for him aside, Iron Fangs reinforcements was good news. It was surely best to link up with them, then talk to everyone and think about what was to come. A strategy session aimed at the awaiting Witch Cult Wilhelm and the others from the Crusch camp had likely surmised the circumstances. The problem was how Subaru would explain it. Just like with the White Whale, he had to explain things without touching upon Return by Death. \"But that's not an easy thing to do...mm?\" As Subaru's brain agonized, he saw a pack of ligers kicking up a dust cloud up ahead. Just as Ricardo had said, this was the other Iron Fangs group linking up with them. However, Subaru felt unease. *** With a corner of his head giving off an uneasy feeling, Subaru's eyes strained, and then, he discovered the source. Among the pack of ligers, there was a single figure to the fore with characteristics differing from those around it. As the distance closed, and as those vague contours became better defined, Subaru understood that those characteristics were that of a land dragon. And mounted atop that blue land dragon was... \" Why are you here?\" \"That is quite a thing to say to one's reinforcements. Most typical of you.\" Both groups stopped, and Subaru, still on his land dragon, faced the individual. His pale-violet hair was meticulously combed, his body was clad in the solemn, white armor of a Knight of the Royal Guard, and the corners of his handsome mouth were curled up in a thin smile. Subaru stared at the elegant figure before him, connected to him by karma Julius Juukulius. 5 As Patlash furled the folds of its nose, the blue land dragon before it screeched with a sharp glare. Subaru stroked its neck, trying to pacify the comrade that felt the same way he did. Though they had not yet been together long, the bond between Subaru and Patlash had been strengthened by escaping the edge of death together. Subaru felt like Patlash's thoughts were conveyed straight through the reins. \"This might trouble you at an inopportune moment, but could you stop soliciting my land dragon? Your land dragon seems quite fine as well, but such invitation goes too far.\" \"Hey, Patlash! Why, you  You're flirting?! I go thinking we feel the same way and you betray me?! Chasing tail before a do-or-die battle?!\" \"Hey, bro, that land dragon don't wanna hear that from ya. You were checkin' it out so much before we left and all. Besides, bro...your land dragon's female.\" \"Wait, you're a lady?!\" Patlash, the center of discussion, looked annoyed at Subaru's surprise over his partner's gender. Seeing Julius shrug his shoulders at the exchange, his statement just earlier seemed to be an unfunny joke. Subaru was about to yell at him for it, but before he could, Ferris cut in. \"Why, it's quite something to meet you in a place like this, Julius. We were fighting for our lives until just a few hours ago, meow.\" \"I have nothing I can say in my defense. However, I must correct you, Ferris. I am not the individual known as Julius. Let us see... I shall call myself Juli.\" When Ferris stared and offered sarcasm, Julius toyed back with a serious face. Everyone was giving him cold looks for his meaningless use of an alias, but he accepted their gazes with a slight, serene smile and said, \"If, for argument's sake, an individual of knightly rank were to join a band of hirelings, it could only mean he had fallen to the station of mercenary. Thus, it is untrue that the knight named Julius Juukulius has joined the Iron Fangs, but rather the lone man before you named Juli.\" \"I see, meow. Typical, families with proper chivalry are so much twouble. Ferri's so glad to be from fallen nobility.\" \"I do not think of being a knight as troublesome at all. I believe the only problem lies in the willingness to help out a friend coincidentally, I should also declare that the punishment by house arrest received by Julius Juukulius was last night, so whereupon the day has changed, it has been lifted.\" \"Puttin' up all those stupid distractions... Is there even a point to an alias, then?\" Listening to the conversation between Ferris and Julius, Subaru clicked his tongue and levied abuse. Averting his gaze with a twist of his lips, it felt like he was pouting, but given that this was actually the case, he could make no excuse for it. Hearing such abuse from Subaru, Julius abruptly looked his way, advancing his land dragon forward to take a position directly facing Subaru when he remarked, \"It is good you are in better spirits than I expected I wondered about the condition of your body.\" *** Julius's statement of concern for his physical condition made something in Subaru's brain audibly snap. Although Subaru's humiliation was nearly two weeks ago from his perspective, if only a few days from Julius's, the question, which could only come off as some kind of dry sarcasm, was more than enough to make him remember. As a slap in the face, the statement delivered like nothing else could, and Subaru just barely managed to lock his jeers in his own throat, holding his anger in. He cleared his throat, took a deep breath, put on a calm face, and gave his short forelocks a little flick. \"Yeah, well, it was just a scratch, right? Like, a little spit and polish and I was all better? Anyway, aren't you a little late to think of yourself as reinforcements? What? Were you busy writing apologies to the higher-ups because you got serious against an amateur?\" Subaru countered with his specialty, fanning the flames, using a guess based on the house arrest punishment he'd previously heard discussed. As he did so, Julius's face grew sterner, ever so slightly daunted. \"I did not wish to speak of that but rather, the valiant wounds sustained from the subjugation of the White Whale...but it is good that those scrapes have healed as well. In the first place, the wounds should not have been as severe as they appeared...though you rolled around in exaggerated pain, specializing in earning sympathy as you are.\" \"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.\" \"Hu-hu-hu-hu-hu.\" As the two exchanged dry laughter between them, the atmosphere began to feel like a powder keg. When Subaru thought of how those around him were taking this, he saw that Ferris and Ricardo were watching with the look of amused bystanders, while Mimi mingled with the other group in search of her younger brother. Naturally, the duty of calming things down fell to... \"It is good to warm over old friendships, but perhaps this is not an appropriate time?\" Advancing to the fore, riding a land dragon and making that argument, was an aged swordsman Wilhelm. Reproaching the two as they glared at each other, his calm, blue eyes reflected Julius within them as he said, \"I cannot thank you enough for coming in aid. Our fighting strength is rather depleted from the battle with the White Whale... As a man coming along for his own self-satisfaction, I was concerned.\" \"Wilhelm, that's not...\" When Wilhelm lowered the tone of his voice and stated that, Subaru interjected. To Subaru, subjugating the White Whale was the first must-clear hurdle on his list. Subaru had intervened firmly out of his own self-interest, so he could not possibly think of Wilhelm as a burden. It pained him that he could not explain everything, but he at least wanted to wipe away that sense of being indebted. But before Subaru could raise his voice  \"It is a fine face that you have become able to make, Master Wilhelm.\" In a quiet voice, it was Julius who addressed Wilhelm. Moved by Wilhelm's eyes, which no longer looked haunted, he nodded deeply and said, \"It is as if you are a different man from the one I met previously... Surely, this shall also be some small comfort to Reinhard.\" \"I...suppose it might.\" Wilhelm put a hand to his chin and lowered his eyes. How deep, Subaru wondered, must the conflict within the old man's chest have been to give rise to that momentary hesitation? The various people around them took their exchange in a variety of ways. Sympathy, relief knowing the circumstances, many must have had those reactions. Subaru, the only one not to know, was left behind. \"Regarding that, I was unable to face up to it. Even if he did no wrong, even if he meant no harm, I could not forgive him one day, I shall pay the consequences.\" \"Even those thoughts alone are surely enough to ease his heart.\" Wilhelm held back something bitter in his reply, but Julius took his words well. Then he slowly turned a gentle gaze back toward Subaru, as if all was water under the bridge. Naturally, Subaru girded himself for a resumption of the earlier war of words, but... \"I must give you my thanks.\" \" Ah?\" In front of Subaru, unwittingly raising his voice, Julius lightly hopped off his land dragon onto the ground. Then, he looked up at Subaru, still riding Patlash, and went down on one knee. \"Properly speaking, this subjugation of the White Whale was the longstanding desire of the Knights of the Royal Guard. For bringing a final end to the disaster neglected by every nation for many years, I thank thee.\" When he proceeded to display his gratitude with an elegant gesture, Subaru, who had held only enmity toward Julius to date, was unable to muster an immediate reaction. Meanwhile, beside the perplexed Subaru, Ferris interjected. \"Now, hold on! Don't misunderstand, the subjugation of the White Whale was led by the Duchess of Karsten so it's Lady Crusch's achievement, meow. And importantly, Old Man Wil's the one who slew it.\" \"I understand very well that there is no power within him to directly slay the White Whale, having crush having heard from Julius, who crossed swords with him directly.\" Julius showed every sign of sticking to the notion that he was the mercenary Juli to the bitter end. But having recognized Ferris's statement, he continued his words. \"However, there is no mistaking that his existence was a major impetus for the subjugation of the White Whale. Ferris, is it not right that you, too, acknowledge this?\" \"Meow!! That's... Well, that may be so, meow...\" When that was pointed out to him, Ferris hemmed and hawed as he wilted. Having put those kitty ears in their place, Julius turned his gaze to Subaru once more. \"Thanks to you, people can forget the days they spent in fear of the mist Lady Anastasia shall surely be overjoyed as well.\" \"Even though I can accept the first half straight-up, it's a lot harder to accept that second half as is.\" \"And my friend can...begin to put his regret of many years behind him.\" Subaru understood that by \"friend,\" he"}, {"text": "probably meant a certain red-haired hero, but Subaru didn't know the fine details of what regrets that complete super-human had harbored for many years. Did someone like him really have a past he needed to regret...? At any rate, Subaru had no intention of fiddling with how to take all those words. It was right to be happy for Wilhelm having achieved his long-cherished desire, and at the very least, he recognized that his own cooperation had been useful to that end. But even so, Subaru felt extremely conflicted having Julius praise him so. *** He put on a strong front, but he couldn't wipe away his weakness, flinching and recoiling from the handsome man. Even had he overcome his own weakness, all that awaited him was the unsightly image of a rebellious child having a tantrum. Even though he felt genuinely grateful for the reinforcements, the fact that it was Julius was hardening Subaru's heart, enough that deep down, he wanted to give his superior, Anastasia, a piece of his mind. Taking pains not to let such negative emotions come out onto his face, Subaru exhaled at length. \"So in the end, what are you doing here? What'd you come for?\" \" You really pulled it off, didn't you?\" \"Ah?\" Julius did not reply to Subaru's question, but somehow, Julius's murmur sounded like he was deeply moved. When Subaru prompted him, he commented, \"Nothing,\" and shook his head before saying, \"I wished to ask if you comprehend that the contract with Lady Anastasia lends the Iron Fangs to Lady Cru  Rather, to you, only during the subjugation of the White Whale?\" \"Huh? Was that the deal? But I'm sure the lady said that...\" \"Big Sis, please be quiet.\" Hearing Julius's declaration, Mimi tried to interject, but a little feline beast man with identical facial features sitting right beside her stopped her from doing so. That was probably the talented younger brother. Glancing sidelong at the exchange, Subaru grimaced at Julius's words. \"What are you trying to say exactly?\" \"It is a simple story. Having succeeded in subjugating the White Whale, we no longer have any reason to cooperate with you. The job is done yet here you are, trying to take them somewhere this very moment?\" \"Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Julius, you're so forgetful! The lady said this and that before we left and everything! Mimi's forgotten what it was, though!\" \"Be silent.\" Though the kitten-sibling interplay tugged at his mind, Subaru finally grasped what Julius was trying to say. In other words, it went like this: \"You want me to choose, here and now, whether to let the Iron Fangs pull out or stay on as reinforcements.\" \"I am under instructions to sell our services at a high price, you see. Or perhaps our strength is not necessary at this juncture?\" Julius indicated the others watching from behind him, pressing Subaru to decide. In spite of himself, Subaru could not easily permit his irritation to slip into the decision. It would be simple to give in to anger and chase them off, but that would be a fool's choice, diminishing his fighting strength while the tallest hurdle loomed ahead of him. That said, readily accepting the \"high price\" Julius had invoked brought its own problems. It was a bad move in negotiations to make promises you couldn't keep, and moreover, Subaru's decision had numerous lives, and the future of a particular girl, hanging on it. *** With Subaru pushed into silence, Wilhelm and the others beside him watched without saying a word. Even if Subaru had requested support from them at that juncture, it would turn the negotiation into the Iron Fangs entering the employ of the Crusch camp. But that would only serve to create one obligation to satisfy another. At present, Crusch was lending support to Subaru from a position of equality between them; put bluntly, he didn't want to upset that balance. *** When he looked next at the mercenary band under Ricardo's command, Ricardo was folding his arms, keeping his silence. Beside him, Mimi copied her captain, folding her arms as she twitched her ears. When he thought back to Ricardo's earlier display of willingness to fight the Witch Cult, it all came together. He was getting in Subaru's good graces in anticipation of this negotiation with Julius. \"That's dirty. You Kararagi folk sure play dirty...\" \"That's a harsh thing to say to someone, ya know. By the way, I ain't really into this whole 'takin' advantage of people's weaknesses' thing. I just like money more, so...\" \"You're so shallow it's depressing! Not that I was expecting more to begin with!\" Even if he was boss in name only, he still had no intention to seek aid from Ricardo, part of the enemy camp. At any rate, it was disgustingly obvious that the negotiation left Subaru no option but to say yes. Unlike the Crusch camp, lending him help so they could call it even, Anastasia was creating a one-sided debt. It was a painful decision, but there was no move to make save for grudgingly accepting the situation. Declining reinforcements would be a far stupider decision. If only there was some magical means to make the Iron Fangs fight the Witch Cult under the existing contract  \"Magic, magic...? Mist, White Whale...and the contract for the highway...\" Subaru, searching for some kind of convenient means, suddenly lined up side by side what had been mere words in his head. Upon examination, they seemed to be unconnected terms, but that little nudge made his thoughts burn white-hot. Bit by bit, a vague image began to take form inside Subaru's mind, turning into a coherent answer. And then  \"...How about this: The subjugation of the White Whale...ain't over yet.\" \" That is an...interesting statement.\" Julius narrowed his eyes as he replied to Subaru's desperate-sounding words. Subaru's statement unsettled not only the Iron Fangs behind him but the expeditionary force as well. Among them, Wilhelm's wide-eyed look tugged especially strongly upon Subaru's conscience. But in a meaning separate from Wilhelm succeeding in his long-cherished aim, it was his idea for addressing a problem that could not be set aside. \"It's possible that the White Whale is a demon beast acting for the Witch Cult. I'm...aware of people in the Witch Cult saying something like that.\"  It was the third time around, in other words, the final scene before that world came to an end. Facing off against Petelgeuse in the forest, he'd lost to the madman's Unseen Hands. After that, Subaru thought Petelgeuse's kicking of Emilia's remains was like he intended to force Subaru to feel powerless. At the time, as the madman's filthy mouth berated Subaru, he definitely ran his mouth to the effect of... \" The highway is sealed by the mist, so there is no one to interfere with my love!\" How did he know that? Why did he speak of it like it was his own doing? And buttressing that was a word spoken afterward by the Beast of the End, freezing the world over with its breath. \"Someone who knew the White Whale called it 'Gluttony.' If I'm not wrong in thinking that means something to the Witch Cult, the cause of the demon beast appearing is where I'm heading.\" If Petelgeuse had called the White Whale to the highway, obstructing entry to and exit from the Mathers domain, his objective could have only been to further his own mad ends. In other words, covering the highway in the White Whale's mist was preparation for the attack on the mansion and Emilia. \"The Witch Cult's got a chip on its shoulder, so we've gotta knock it off. With this added, that'll be four centuries of failure set straight. When we've done that, then we can say we've finished taking care of the White Whale.\" *** Subaru looked Julius's way as he continued with a strong declaration, \"The job of the employer is to give orders and dish out rewards. Don't cut out on me midway, merc. Or are you gonna pay compensation for cutting and running?\" The basis of his statement was so thin that, on the inside, even he was amazed. But Subaru was now able to maintain a bold, smiling exterior while saying such a thing. He'd gathered scattered bits of information from each repetition, piling them together to hazard a guess. He'd had that experience several times before, but this time, the guess was on spectacularly thin ground. After all, the crux of the information was gleaned from things he'd overheard while his mind was clouded. Even linking them together in some semblance of coherence, he had no idea if it would sway them. If it could not, at least it could be the thread leading to further negotiations  \"Mm, I think I shall grant you a passing grade.\" \"Huh?\" \"You could make it sound a little better for our ears, but in general, your claim passes muster. Nor shall Lady Anastasia lose face.\" \"W-wait a minute!\" Subaru raised his voice in haste at Julius's know-it-all reply. In response, Julius casually looked at the agitated Subaru. \"What is it? You need not be concerned; the Iron Fangs shall continue their assistance in accordance with the collateral that has already been paid to Lady Anastasia. There is no problem, is there?\" \"That easy...? I mean, what's with that know-it-all stuff! Why, you...!\" When Subaru began to voice the words that were to follow, he came to realize a very disagreeable part of himself. Julius had considered Subaru's circumstances, cooperating by taking Subaru's guess at face value. Subaru just hadn't wanted to notice his benevolence. Subaru wanted Julius to be a hateful person he could never see eye to eye with.  He realized the vulgarity of his own feelings in wishing that it were so. \"Well, it ain't like we're doin' this for free. A dumb robber only takes from ya once, but a clever one gets as many chances to take from you as he likes.\" \"Doesn't change that in the end, you're getting hosed, huh...\" Ricardo wedged himself into the conversation, and fortunately, he was on Subaru's side. In so doing, the easy way became easier, and Subaru hated himself for running from it. When Subaru's self-hatred mixed with the self-hatred of others, things only got worse and worse. But even Subaru knew that. He'd learned it long before. \"I'm...in the wrong... Crap, sorry. Aw, damn it, that's not even what I wanna say. Even back then, I knew I was...\" Putting a hand to his forehead, Subaru finally voiced the logical answer he'd agonized over. However, even though he understood in his head, it was hard to find the words for it. This was where he ought to be thanking Julius for bringing reinforcements and committing to the fight. Now that he could look back at it calmly, he could understand just who had been in the wrong, and that the previous antagonism between them was the result of Subaru's quick temper. Or perhaps even the reason Julius had done what he did at the time was  *** Julius simply waited, saying nothing to Subaru's difficult words. He surely understood what Subaru wanted to say. If Subaru couldn't say it, and he wanted to get out in front and voice a reply, surely he could. But he did not, and Subaru could not help hating him for not doing so. It would have been so much better if he could simply keep hating the man through and through. \"I...was wrong. Sorry. I apolo...gize.\" To Subaru, they were abominable memories to think back upon, but he'd have had to face them sooner or later, and that was the place, in front of the man he'd have to settle things with someday. Julius closed his eyes at Subaru's apology, slowly drawing in his chin. \"Allow me to apologize for my own rudeness. I do not take back everything I said and did in that place, but even so,"}, {"text": "I take back my belittling of you, from the bottom of my heart.\" Those were the words with which Julius answered Subaru's apology. Sincerity flowed from Julius's words, and Subaru knew that the resentful, hateful feelings inside of him had melted away with exceptional ease. Understanding this, he dismounted, standing on the same ground as the knight before him, squarely facing him on a level playing field. He was reflected in the other's yellow eyes, and Subaru's own black eyes reflected in the knight's as Subaru admitted, \"I was wrong. But...\" \"Mm.\" \"I really hate you I think badly of you, and right now I'm thankful you came, but I really hate you. I truly, from the bottom of my heart, hate...your...guts!\" The last sentence of his rude declaration was broken up, with shakes of his head to the left and right for extra emphasis. And slammed in the face by all that hostility, Julius looked taken aback. Then, his expression abruptly collapsed. \"That is well. After all, I am not very minded to become your friend, either.\" With that, Julius snobbishly stroked his hair upward and laughed. 6 \"Ahh, to be honest, this sort of thing really isn't my cup of tea. It's like, having people watch me with those serious looks is gonna make me blush...\" With the group of fifty sitting in a circle, Subaru stood at the center, embarrassed, as he let those words slip. The place was the Liphas Highway; the time was before daybreak, and the participants were everyone in the expeditionary force. The group that had persevered through the battle with the White Whale had been joined by reinforcements, the Iron Fangs under Julius's command, making them a rather large gathering, but the time had arrived when it was necessary to share the objective and information concerning it to all. For that purpose, Subaru had proposed to sort out all their information in one sitting, but  \"I didn't think I'd be standing in the middle of all these people for it, though...\" Surrounded by veteran soldiers, beginning with the likes of Julius, Ferris, Ricardo, and Wilhelm, Subaru could not help flinching. In the first place, he'd often anguished over his low interpersonal abilities since back in his old world. He was well aware that he lacked experience in standing before people like that, let alone the character to stand above others. But even if Subaru was timid from having them look at him with a certain level of trust in their eyes, he didn't mind it at all. It just put him in quite a bind. \"Anyway, let's straighten this out. Ahh, from here on, we're heading to the Mathers domain...or rather, Roswaal Manor. There, the Witch Cult will probably no definitely show up.\" \"The Witch Cult, you say...\" When he invoked the name of the Witch Cult, conflicted emotions came over the expressions of various people. Given conversations to that point, there were surely many among them resigned to where it would lead, but even so, it was a different feeling knowing for sure who you were up against. Though, Subaru did not know exactly what this world understood of the Witch Cult or how they would act on his information. \"As far as I'm concerned, though, they're the worst of the worst.\" Based on everyone's reactions, they all seemed to share that thought. When Subaru took comfort in that, Julius addressed him casually. \"Subaru. How did you come to realize the White Whale and the Witch Cult are connected?\" Ever since Subaru aired his real feelings about their quarrel, Julius's demeanor had softened considerably. To be frank, that transformation left him conflicted in and of itself, but at the moment, answering the question took precedence. \"Burns me to say it, but I had a run-in with disciples of the Witch Cult. I didn't get out unscathed and I have a pile of bad memories from it...but there was one guy who ran his mouth,\" Subaru explained. \"I see... It would seem the knights' guess was not in error.\" \"I suppose not, meow. The research Old Man Wil put together seemed to come to the same conclusion.\" \"Wait, you knew?\" Julius accepted Subaru's words, and Ferris nodded and concurred. Their behavior surprised Subaru, but Wilhelm gently shook his head and said, \"It was mere chance that I noticed the connection. I thought it was unnatural how often the distribution of the White Whale's appearances coincided with records of the Witch Cult's activities it was nothing firm enough to call concrete evidence, but...\" \"To Old Man Wil, the White Whale was the main course, and the Witch Cult is like dessert, meow. Ferri wasn't sure to believe it or not when hearing about it the first time, either...\" \"There has been similar talk among the knights. Though to be precise, they were never considered anything but old wives' tales, tales to amuse one another with.\" As Julius shrugged his shoulders, Wilhelm replied, \"That is a small wonder,\" and exhaled. Listening to their exchange, Subaru roughly scratched at his head and said, \"For starters, it's lucky for me that there's a foundation for you to believe what I'm saying. Either way, if we believe what that Witch Cult guy was saying... Er, that might not be very trustworthy, but I think it's almost certain they're connected to the White Whale. The Witch created the White Whale to begin with, right?\" \"So it is said. The existence and origins of demon beasts are mysteries to us. Some propagate in the same manner as ordinary living creatures, but some suddenly appear out of nowhere like the White Whale. Though, properly speaking, the only exceptions on par with the White Whale are the Black Serpent and the Great Hare.\" \"Feels like some words I shouldn't just let go are flying around, but they scare me, so is it okay if I move on?\" Everyone nodded as if to say no problem. Seeing this, Subaru cleared his throat and advanced the conversation. Now that everyone knew that they'd be facing the Witch Cult, there were things that had to be known to all. \"The Witch Cult's target is Emilia. They intend to burn away the mansion, the nearby village, and everyone inside. That's why we have to drive the bastards off somewhere.\" \"Drive off? Subawu, you're saying a really naive thing, meow.\" Ferris narrowed his eyes in a flirtatious manner; there was a suggestive inflection to his words as he looked at Subaru. It was a sensual gesture that sent a cold shiver up Subaru's spine. However, it still came from a guy. \"Whaddaya mean, naive?\" \"Shouldn't you just cut down every last one of a bunch like that? Given what they've done until now, isn't that the proper and just way to deal with them?\" *** Hearing Ferris unflinchingly propose slaughtering the lot of them, Subaru's mouth opened in surprise. It was not the extreme statement that surprised him but the statement that he himself was naive. He, who had gone over and over in his head that they ought to die and had to be killed, was surprised at the change in his mind-set that had made him use such soft words. That was probably because the order of what ultimately mattered most had changed inside of him. \"Right now, to protect the people in the mansion and village, that's fine. Whether it's driving out the Witch Cult, blowing them away, crushing them, beating them to death, twisting their heads off, turning them into mincemeat, roasting 'em, pounding 'em to little bits...\" \"I...understand. I see that you're very angry toward them, so...!\" \" Er! Darn it. No, you're wrong. I didn't go picking a fight out of anger and hatred. And it's unjust to say I got close to Emilia-tan just on account of that!\" \"No one said anything like that, meow!\" Subaru's anger was gradually rekindled as he spoke, with Julius and Ferris ending up calming him down. However, he also gathered that it was unnecessary to smooth such things over. During the previous go-around, people had tended to distrust Subaru, but apparently, this time people didn't feel even a hint of suspicion about him. That's wrong somehow, thought Subaru, wrapping his head around it, but... \"After bringing down the White Whale at so much risk to yourself, no one's saying anything unjust like that, meow? Subawu, you're surprisingly untrusting of people.\" \"I'm not being untrusting...\" In fact, he'd experienced Ferris and Crusch doubting him in just those words. But he hadn't just frivolously smiled and acted to hide his misgivings from them. Perhaps that transformation, too, reflected a change in Subaru's way of thinking and acting. \"In any event, surely there is no room to doubt that the Witch Cult is on the move. Given their faith and their past activities, it was anticipated given the fact that Lady Emilia has publicly declared herself a royal selection candidate.\" Separate from Subaru's internal thoughts, everyone seemed to be concurring with Julius. Their knowing reaction made Subaru finally voice a question he'd neglected to ask at previous opportunities. \"I've wanted to ask this for a while. How did you go from Emilia's name going public to accepting that the Witch Cult is on the move? It's a bit weird to me how everyone just accepted that so easily... I thought the Witch Cult was pretty much a mystery to everyone?\" \"You're saying that considering you know which way the Witch Cult is moving?\" Subaru had expected to be laughed at for his ignorance, so he paid no mind. \"Well, there's no time, so let's get on with it. So how'd you get there?\" \"Ain't it weird for the one not knowin' to put it like that...? ...Well, ya know to the Witch Cult that the Witch of Jealousy, Satella, is more important to them than life itself. Y'know that, right?\" Ricardo said. \"More or less. To be honest, I've only touched on that. I read it in a picture book, that's about it.\" \"Well of course, it ain't like there's anyone left who's actually seen her. I've only heard of 'er, too. Well, if y'know that the Witch Cult disciples worship Satella, it's all good. So ya knew that Satella witch is a half-elf, right?\" \"That, too, kinda.\" That information hadn't been written in the picture book, but he'd heard it when Beatrice had explained the Witch of Jealousy to him. Besides that, even in the royal capital, the issue of Emilia's appearance compared to that of the Witch of Jealousy had come up time and again. Each time, Subaru had indignantly insisted that it was no reason to put her down, but... \"Emilia's outside appearance is a dead ringer for the Witch, right? So back to the Witch Cult... It's simple to them a half-elf is in the way, y'see.\" \"What?\" Subaru, beside himself, unwittingly let his voice jump out of his throat. But from the reactions of those around him, no one else thought anything special of Ricardo's attitude. In other words, it seemed to be a shared opinion. \"Why's that? By any normal thinking...not that I'm sure these guys think normally... But normally, why would you persecute someone who's a half-elf, the same as your dear, precious Witch...?\" \"It's 'cause they worship her and think there ain't nothin' better than her, that they can't allow someone else that's the same kind. That she's kind of the same but not the same an imposter.\" The voice was exceedingly cold, infused with bloodlust down to its frigid core. Subaru blinked hard and instantly looked toward the individual who had let that voice loose. As he did so, that individual turned to Subaru as well, and the two ended up staring eye to eye. Subaru flinched from that gaze, as if it could see everything inside of him, when the individual said, \"Well that's the guess Ferri just wanted to try and see, meow.\" The expression easily crumbled as he stuck his tongue"}, {"text": "out, acting like the atmosphere just then had never existed. Subaru couldn't form the words to follow up on that virtual about-face in his demeanor, but with him so rocked back, Ferris put on an innocent look and leaned forward as he said, \"In the first place, the Witch Cult guys being weird in the head isn't a recent thing, so is it a big deal, meow? With the Cult after Lady Emilia, the real problem is who's leading them.\" \"An Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, I reckon.\" \" ?! Wait, you know that name...?\" When Ferris changed the subject, Ricardo concurred, and Subaru bit on the term that came out. Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins that was the position Petelgeuse had claimed to have, though he had also babbled about being charged with Sloth on top of that... \"The Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult, are they pretty famous?\" \"Well, at least enough people figure they exist. Plus, way back before the Witch of Jealousy went on her big rampage, the titles belonged to witches besides Satella.\" \"Pride. Wrath. Sloth. Greed. Gluttony. Lust. Six witches bore the names of those deadly sins, it would seem. Either way, it is said that once Satella claimed the mantle of Jealousy, she swallowed all of them.\" In other words, \"Witch\" meant Satella, the Witch of Jealousy, and other witches of the deadly sins no longer existed within that world. \"But and I do not know if this is the proper wording I have heard that those in the Witch Cult acting as leaders have taken the names of those deadly sins in place of the lost witches. Satella is the symbol of Jealousy, which is what they worship. In other words, besides that, there are six six Archbishops of Sin.\" \"Six...\" Listening to Julius's explanation, Subaru's breath caught at how little was known of the Cult they were facing. Since Petelgeuse had claimed to be Sloth, he'd expected that there were others charged with different deadly sins. To Subaru, they were wonderful, familiar words straight out of rich middle school subculture. That said, what stopped the term from making his heart flutter was that his first-hand impression of sloth was just too awful.  Were there really five more people like that? \"But we brought down the White Whale that was supposedly Gluttony, so the other Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins should show their faces in the Mathers land where we're headed. It's our chance to take 'em all out in one shot.\" \"Whoa, so stwong~! But Ferri agrees with the view that this is a chance to squish those Witch Cult weirdos. They've really underestimated Lugunica, huh?\" \"As with the White Whale, they have inflicted damage the world over. The knights have also long suffered at their hands. Many other knights are surely as grateful as I for this opportunity.\" Ferris and Julius concurred with Subaru's view, and Ricardo made a belligerent smile as well. Wilhelm responded with merely a solemn nod. That being the case, what Subaru needed to do was make good use of his future information to draft a plan using the fighting strength currently on hand though really, the plan itself was exceedingly simple, for all the necessary pieces were already on the board. \"Worst case, I'd have to pull this plan off with half the people we have now, but with Julius and them linking up, no more worries about being short on people. I think we can do this.\" \"I would like to correct you about one thing. My name is Juli. Certainly, I am on close terms with the eldest son of the Juukulius family, but I would prefer you pay that heed.\" \"In a nonpublic setting, that's just in the way, you know! It's holding back the conversation!\" \"The key to not slipping up at a critical juncture is to pay heed even during normal times.\" \"If you wanna warn people about normal, don't come dressed as a Knight of the Royal Guard! You're out of character!\" After yelling at Julius for his thin commitment to the ruse, Subaru breathed raggedly while looking at everyone's faces. Then, he cleared his throat. \"All right, let's start this Witch Cult Hunting Made Simple, so that even a monkey can do it.\" With a twist of his mouth and a villainous laugh, Subaru laid out his plan. The moonlight waned, and one could begin to see daybreak over the Liphas plains. It was a quiet beginning to the morning of the last day of that loop. CHAPTER 1 *** 1 Subaru Natsuki began the strategy meeting he'd dubbed Witch Cult Hunting Made Simple. It was before dawn on the Liphas plains. A group of about fifty warriors and mercenaries had gathered together. Standing at the center of attention of so many accomplished people was a little rough on Subaru's nerves. These people were older, veteran soldiers or rough-and-tumble beast people mercenaries. From Subaru's perspective, they were from a different world. Barring very specific circumstances, Subaru would never have had the opportunity to cross paths with them. And now these residents of a world unconnected to his own were sitting in a circle with Subaru at the center. That his meandering path had put him in command of such people sent a gale of anxiety and weakness through Subaru's heart. But his passion and will to fight were every bit as intense. \"Figures...\" The scene before Subaru's eyes was what he had yearned for every time he experienced Return by Death, something that had seemed almost impossible to reach. Subaru's piddling readiness and self-respect gave rise to an urge so great that it was almost painful; he didn't want to fail the innumerable people who had guided him so far ever again. He criticized himself for this more harshly than anyone else could have. *** \"What is it, Subaru? You went quiet all of a sudden.\" When Subaru put his fist to his chest in self-admonishment, someone watching him from the side called out to him. It was the other man who stood out even among their current company, a gorgeous man wearing the uniform of a Knight of the Royal Guard Julius Juukulius. \"I hardly think you're getting cold feet, but...time is of the essence. You said yourself there's not a moment to spare, no?\" \"Yeah, yeah, I know. You don't need to snap at me every time. The first thing you say at times like these is important, so I was just thinking about how to put it best.\" \"Such concern is unnecessary. Everyone here already knows your conduct before large numbers of people is problematic. Pay it no concern and simply be yourself.\" \"Gah-ha-ha-ha! Ya sure said it, Julius! Hey, bro, he really got ya there!\" \"Grrr...!\" A vein bulged on Subaru's forehead as his darkest moment was dragged out into the open. Ricardo, commander of the beast-man mercenary band called the Iron Fangs, broke into laughter as sympathetic expressions spread among the knights of the expeditionary force. Apparently, news of Subaru's humiliation at the royal palace had traveled further than he'd thought. \"That's so humiliating...!\" \"Yes, yes, now that's enough feeling ashamed of yourself! Subawu, it's your duty to work hard to clean the slate so you can live without shame, right? And Julius, I understand your urge to needle him, but think about how you say things!\" \"It seems you misunderstand, Ferris. I had no such intention. Certainly, it would be a happy day if he has become a better speaker for it.\" \"You really have a roundabout way of doing things...\" Ferris sighed, looking thoroughly annoyed at Julius's sardonic reply. Seeing his reaction, Subaru finally understood the purpose behind Julius's words and deeds. That only gave him the same feelings as Ferris, though. \"A little banter is fine. That said, I believe we should finally address the subject at hand. Our priority should be countermeasures against the Witch Cult.\" It was the sharp-looking Wilhelm who dragged the conversation back from the tangent. Of all his companions, Subaru expected the most out of the Sword Devil, both mentally and in terms of combat. Subaru had cooperated with him in slaying the White Whale, the elderly warrior's mortal foe of many years. In return, he unreservedly lent Subaru his strength. Joining Subaru and Wilhelm's force were the survivors of the White Whale expeditionary force as well as the Iron Fangs' reinforcements. These fifty-odd individuals formed the Anti-Witch Alliance, which would challenge the Witch Cult. \"Well, since Wilhelm asked and because time's a-wasting, I'll get to the point. The topic of discussion today is Witch Cult Hunting Made Simple... The actual contents are pretty simple. Like with anything, simpler methods give more intense results.\" \"Logical. What is your plan, then?\" \"How about we kick their asses go in for a preemptive strike to take the enemy commander's head and victory along with it.\" *** Subaru's conclusion sent a faint whiff of surprise through those present. His words were the very definition of audacity. That \"commander's head\" belonged to one of the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins commanding the Witch Cult. \"Well, that's definitely simple. Assuming we pull it off, it'd be a huge blow to the Cult.\" Amid the group's unease, which was beginning to border on unrest, Ricardo was the first to speak up in admiration. The huge dog-man showed off his fangs as he smiled, touching those sharp canine teeth with a finger as he spoke again. \"That's if we can pull it off, though. Anyone can talk big. Can't go countin' our chickens before they hatch.\" Ricardo was the first to show he understood Subaru's aim, but he also made sure to call for caution. Subaru thumped his own chest in response and immediately followed up. \"Of course I have a plan. I proved I'm not reckless enough to hunt a whale without a fishhook, didn't I?\" \"Man, I already believe you. That's why I wanna hear your reasoning, get it?\" While Subaru was brimming with confidence, Ricardo prompted him to get on with it as he ground his fangs together. Subaru realized his other comrades shared the dog-man's feelings when he saw how they drew closer, eagerly awaiting the details of his proposal. \"Okay, I'll lay this out one part at a time. First, the Witch Cult is targeting the Mathers domain, where Emilia is. This is due to all sorts of background information. We'll leave it at that for now, okay?\" \"So those are the starting conditions? Very well. In truth, we anticipated that it was likely an incident related to the Witch Cult would occur in the Mathers domain. The appearance of the White Whale at the same time cannot be dismissed as mere coincidence.\" \"So what...the Witch Cult used the White Whale to seal the highway with its mist and isolate the Mathers domain, meow? Looks like the Cult is getting serious. Well, considering their dogma, that almost goes without saying.\" When Subaru began going over the situation, Julius and Ferris both added their thoughts. Apparently, though the Witch Cult was still unfathomable in many respects, the fanatics' obscure activities were underpinned by a pervading hostility toward half-elves. Given that, the current attack on the Mathers lands was no doubt due to the announcement that Emilia was participating in the royal selection. That indiscriminate cruelty would eventually result in a massacre of the villagers. Subaru genuinely believed the cultists were beyond redemption. \"The Witch Cult is after Emilia's life. But that doesn't mean they'll ignore the humans near her. They don't discriminate they'll kill women and children without mercy.\" \"There is no room for doubt on that point, however repugnant it may be.\" Seeing Subaru's anger, Julius nodded. His eyes held no surprise in them only furious indignation. The Witch Cult's capacity for evil was common knowledge in this world, after all. \"I want to save Emilia, the people at the mansion, and of course all the villagers. Now, I thought"}, {"text": "about getting everyone in the area to the mansion and holing up there, but...\" \"Against the Witch Cult, whose members can appear anywhere without the slightest warning, sheltering in place seems a poor plan.\" \"Yeah, we're gonna pass that one up.\" The point of holing up was to maintain one's forces and hold out for some kind of impending victory. Subaru's force couldn't count on reinforcements, so it wasn't much of an option. Besides, wasting the fighting strength currently in Subaru's hands on a defensive battle would foolishly squander the one clear advantage he possessed. The information he'd gleaned from Return by Death would be worthless the instant events greatly diverged. If an armed group paraded into the mansion, even Petelgeuse would probably revise his plans. He might change the method of attack, or even call off the attack altogether. Furthermore, if Subaru was to maximize the value of what he'd obtained through Return by Death  \" We need to go after the Witch Cult lurking in the forest before they figure out what we're up to. While they're prepped to strike first, we've gotta strike even before that, and crush 'em.\" \"I appreciate the enthusiasm, meow, but how do we find the Witch Cult in the forest? No one's managed to grab their tail in four hundred years. We need something to go on.\" \"Yeah, about that... Long story short, it's like fishing for the White Whale.\" \"Meow...?\" Subaru's suddenly cryptic explanation made Ferris's big, round eyes bulge even bigger. \"I used my scent to lure the whale in, right? I can do the same thing with the Witch Cult, too.\" *** \"Yeah, this condition I have is scary stuff. It's a real pain in the butt, ha-ha.\" *** \"Ha-ha-ha...\" Subaru's dry laugh was the only sound in the silent atmosphere; when it trailed off, an unsettled air hung over the plains. He looked at the faces of those around him, wondering how they would respond to his long-awaited, long-delayed plan. Subaru himself could not explain it any better; he had no reasoning for why he could lure demon beasts and Witch cultists save his physical makeup. All he could do was recognize the fact and say, That's how it is. Someday the truth behind that would become clear, but even if there was some terrible reason it was so, the best thing he could do right now was rely on it. Hence  \"I figured in advance my story wasn't gonna sound very persuasive.\" Subaru surveyed the silent knights and beast people, speaking the truth in the most honest way he could think of. \"I think calling it crazy talk, unbelievable stuff, is the natural reaction to have. But still...\" \"Sir Subaru.\" \"...Please believe me. I've said a lot of stupid things in my life, but I meant everything I just told you. That's how I decided to be, and that's why I want your help.\" Up to that point, those around Subaru had reached out to him time after time, only for him to reject them and trample on their feelings. He only realized this now that he was facing his first true challenge. Subaru was powerless and ignorant before the task that loomed before him. On his own, it would be impossible. He needed help from others from everyone. \"I only have one head, so it's the only thing I can ask you with. But if this single head won't do, I'll bow it as many times as you like, so please, lend me your strength.\" *** Subaru pleaded with them, lowering his head for all to see. Those around Subaru were silent; the only sound was that of the wind crossing the plains. After several moments, the first to speak was a small beast man, a lieutenant of the Iron Fangs called TB. With an adorable face, he adjusted the position of his monocle and stared straight at Subaru. \"I understand what you are trying to say. However, if you ask us to believe you without any basis for...gah?!\" \"What are you worrying about, TB?\" In the middle of his lecture to Subaru, TB was interrupted by a single blow from his older sister Mimi, who stood nearby. She smacked his back, and as her younger brother groaned, she laughed innocently. \"Mister here worked reaaaally hard to take down that big fish, you know! No one who worked that hard would try to trick us, so it's okay!\" \"S-Sis, could you please be quiet?! This is a very important conver \" \"You're always trying to be crofty... Wait, huh? Cro? Cru? Crufty...?\" \"Crafty?\" \"That's the one! You won't grow big if you're doing that all the time!\" Mimi bluntly scolded her teary-eyed younger brother. Then, turning from the wilting TB, she pointed at Subaru. \"You didn't fight that big fish earlier, TB! So if you can't trust Mister here, just trust in your big sis!\" *** \"Big Sis believes in Mister, so since you believe in Big Sis, you can trust Mister, right, TB? Besides, Mimi will protect TB no matter what happens!\" Mimi puffed her chest out as she spoke, brimming with confidence. Though her words surprised TB, they immediately wore him down. The hostility he'd displayed earlier drained from his face. The sight of the siblings made the others unwittingly break into broad smiles. Amid the unexpected outpouring of laughter, Mimi tilted her head with a curious look and asked, \"What?\" \"Nahhh, don't sweat it. That was perfect. You said it great.\" His eyes softening, Ricardo patted Mimi's head so hard that his huge palm almost looked like it would pop her head right off. \"There's still things that bug me, but havin' come this far, we're not gonna doubt bro now. We crossed that bridge a long while ago.\" \" \" Subaru's eyes widened at the unexpected words. Then, in apparent agreement with Ricardo, Wilhelm stepped forward. \"Sir Subaru, a man should not lower his head lightly. Indeed, to avoid meeting a person's eyes when you ask something of them is unacceptable had you looked, you would surely have noticed it yourself by now.\" The Sword Devil's solemn words urged Subaru to lift his chin and look around. As he examined the faces of those surrounding him, Subaru realized that their feelings had not changed. Not a single thing about them was different since the discussion began  \"You know, meow, it puts us in a bind if you go quiet all on your own like that. It's not as if anyone thinks your story is a lie, Subawu.\" With a subdued look, Ferris passed a finger through his own fur as he spoke. The absence of objections proved that everyone present agreed. Under Subaru's gaze, Julius maintained his usual elegant handsomeness as he stood straight. \"Besides, Subawu, your decoy plan is what decided the fight with the White Whale. It was Lady Crusch who chose to bet on that...which means doubting Subawu is the same as doubting Lady Crusch, and there's no way Ferri could do such a thing.\" \"That is a very Ferris-like thing to say, but Sir Subaru has simply earned our trust through his actions. That is the plain truth known to all who witnessed that battle.\" \"H-hey, Old Man Wil?!\" \"Of course, I am included in that.\" Ferris was visibly nervous, his voice going shrill, but Wilhelm merely nodded strongly in Subaru's direction, paying no heed to the retort. Such unreserved consideration made Subaru's cheeks run hot as he appreciated the surrounding atmosphere. \"I'm so uncool... Guess I'm as bad at reading the atmosphere as ever.\" \"I believe an atmosphere is something to be breathed, not read?\" \"Oh, shut up! I knew that already! And that the less you can read it the more you obsess about it!\" Julius's comment made Subaru's voice go ragged as he swept away all the excess sentimentality within him. He'd unnecessarily embarrassed himself again. All things considered, though, it wasn't such a bad price to pay. \"Our trust in you is the result of your own accomplishments, Sir Subaru.\" Although Subaru could not clarify his reasoning on such an important plan, he'd done enough to earn their trust. Just like Rem had somehow come to believe him, even though the contents of Subaru's words might have given them pause, they did not doubt his motives. It was the proper way for someone who'd Returned by Death, bearing information from a lost world, to coexist with others and at that moment, Subaru felt as if it had all come together, right before his eyes. 2 \"I I wasn't crying! I just felt like all the suffering and regret I felt coming all this way had finally paid off, and when I drifted off, some protein-infused alkaline water spilled out of my eyes. That's all! Don't get the wrong idea!!\" Subaru tried his best to hide his tears. At any rate, he glossed over the conflicted emotions inside him, raising his head and diving into the main topic. \"Anyway, if everyone trusts me, that speeds things up a lot. So my selling point is that the Witch Cult and demon beasts react to my scent. I'll use that to lure the Witch Cult.\" \"So we'll wipe out whatever appears in one fell swoop? If it could become more than an impractical theory, that sounds like a fine plan, but what do you estimate the actual odds of success to be?\" \"Odds?\" \"The probability that they will detect you and willingly reveal themselves.\" Julius, who had not questioned the plan's viability up to that point, voiced his doubts for the first time. By this point, the members of the expeditionary force who had participated in the battle with the White Whale didn't need an explanation for Subaru's peculiar ability. But Julius and the relief force that had just joined them hadn't seen it for themselves. Naturally they wanted to know Subaru's worth as a decoy they were betting their lives. \"Given the nature of this strategy, we cannot allow the matter to remain vague. What do you think?\" \"The probability of me drawing them out is a hundred percent. They'll come for sure.\" \"That is a bold statement.\" \"Those cultists'll come out for sure. It's because they're them, and I'm me.\" Julius received an explanation that didn't really explain anything. When it came to confidence in himself, Subaru was second to none. The facts he discovered via Return by Death were absolute. That certainty was his sole advantage. \"You mentioned before...that you have a history with the Witch Cult, didn't you?\" \"Yeah. Those are the worst memories I have. I won't let 'em get away with anything like it ever again.\" Strictly speaking, that \"history\" was a future that had yet to come. So long as the actions of Subaru and others did not change it, that horrible future would be realized; he was in this place, at this time, to defy and shatter that destiny. \"...I see. Very well. So we'll be using your presence to lure them out then. Is that right?\" \"...You...were easier to convince than I thought.\" \"I never intended to oppose your plan to begin with. I simply wanted to see if you had the resolve to lead such a dangerous operation. If you lacked the determination, it would have been necessary to find a substitute.\" \"Say what you want, but it's way too late for me to be getting cold feet now.\" Subaru snorted at Julius's mean-spirited prodding as he brushed his meager personal worries aside. If he acted timid now, it would play right into Julius's hands. Subaru made a point to stand up straighter. \"I'm saying this loud and clear. The Witch Cult is gonna show up wherever I am. The Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins is no exception. So basically, when they come out, we beat them senseless. As far as that goes, it's a pretty simple plan.\" \"It really does sound simple when put that way... I have to say, Subawu, between this"}, {"text": "and the White Whale, you really enjoy using yourself as a decoy.\" \"Hey, don't say it like I do this every time something comes up. It's only been coincidence up until now. It's not like it's every single...\" Thinking back, his main role during the fight against Elsa in the loot cellar was being a distraction, followed by luring the Urugarum out in the demon beast forest. Then he became the bait for the White Whale. At the present, he was planning an operation against the Witch Cult that centered around his serving as a decoy  \"Huh?! Wait it really is every time!\" \"It would appear you have both ample experience and ample success under your belt. Perhaps we can count on your performance this time as well.\" \"You can...! You can, but...!\" Though Subaru groaned as he listened to Julius's words, he couldn't find a way to respond. \"So now that we've settled on me acting as a decoy, I wanna focus on everything else. First, the Witch Cult is hiding out in the forest around the manor. There's no better place for it. As for the possibility of other places the cultists could be based...the mist takes care of all that. They wanted to use the mist to cut off the Mathers turf. That means they're hiding out in this region somewhere. Closing off all roads leading out works against them, too.\" There was no need to persuade anyone on that point the White Whale had made it clear. Its obedience of the Witch Cult meant that the demon beast's appearance was necessary for whatever the cultists had planned. Of course, the White Whale was no help to the Cult this time, having already been slain  \"The White Whale was taken down pretty much right when it appeared. We'll reach the cultists before they figure out what happened.\" \"Then this will be a battle against time. If we press our blades to the necks of those hiding in the forest, it will come down to a proper contest of strength. With Julius's reinforcements and the Iron Fangs added to the expeditionary force, as well as my modest strength, I do not think we shall lose.\" \"Well, that's how it is.\" Subaru agreed with Wilhelm's assessment. The fighting ability of the Witch Cult disciples following Petelgeuse couldn't be underestimated. However, many of the troops following Subaru's command were fierce warriors that had survived a battle with the White Whale. Even accounting for Petelgeuse, they were more than a match for a fight with the cultists. Even Subaru could put up a fight if it was hand-to-hand combat. But considering Wilhelm's skill, it wouldn't be strange to watch heads fly after a single blow. In other words, everything else came down to how much they could tilt the circumstances in their favor, with victory hinging on a single decisive battle. \"Setting up a big ol' ambush means we'll have an overwhelming advantage...!\" In the first place, Petelgeuse had no idea a force was coming for them. The Witch Cult had always been the attacker. Their name was synonymous with irrationality and contradiction. Without a doubt, they'd never even considered that someone might threaten them.  Subaru would smash that conceit to pieces. \"Maybe everything's been great for you bastards up till now...but we aren't going to let that happen this time.\" *** Everyone who heard the conviction in Subaru's words wore a tense expression. They knew. The battle awaiting them was a chance to strike a blow against the vile existence known as the Witch Cult, which had never been possible until that very moment. \"After we enter the Mathers lands, I'll smoke out the Witch Cult lurking in the forest. But the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins is a sly one. He has a bunch of people under him, split into ten or so groups.\" \"Where did you learn this?\" \"From last time Sloth popped his head out. He called his servants fingers, telling them apart with names like right middle finger, left ring finger, and stuff. He didn't seem to go as far as including toes, so we shouldn't have to worry about twenty groups showing up or anything.\" Petelgeuse had distinguished between the groups under his command according to fingers. Subaru hadn't had the luxury of confirming that the Cult leader had ten fingers, but he surely ought to have the same ten that any human being did. Moreover, the madman's state made Subaru think that his followers were divided into groups equal to that number of fingers. For some reason, though, Subaru's reply stirred unrest within the expeditionary force. Subaru raised his eyebrows at their reaction, but Julius's next question helped him realize what was wrong. \"Subaru, does the prior history you mentioned involve the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins? More importantly, is Sloth masterminding the attack?\" \" Sorry. I didn't explain enough. Yeah, the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins we're gonna bump into is that Sloth bastard. He's the one I have a connection with. In this world, he's the owner of the face I hate the most.\" \"Hmm. Incidentally, I presume your second-most-hated face belongs to me?\" \"Don't get carried away. Don't be trying to make yourself a big part of my life, all right?\" It seemed as if Julius joked to hide his admiration, while Subaru could only scowl in response. When it came to ranking faces he despised, Petelgeuse definitely took the top, with Subaru's own following at the number two spot. Julius was fairly high up on the charts, but it'd take an awful lot to dethrone the leader and runner-up. \"That asshole's put me through hell. But thanks to that, I know for a fact my odor's effective, on top of the knowledge that he splits up his followers into fingers.\" \"Meow, I see. That's why you're so confident... Better not to ask about what happened, hmm?\" \"...Yeah, that's right. Please don't. I'll tell you about anything that's important, though.\" \"Loud and clear. Asking seems like it'll just leave a sour taste anyway.\" Somehow, Ferris seemed sympathetic when he saw the unbridled rage Subaru displayed when discussing the Witch Cult. Perhaps Ferris was connecting Subaru's condition with some kind of tragic past of his own. That would have been a misunderstanding, but Subaru made no move to correct him. \"Also, not to put a damper on our plan of attack, but I've arranged for some insurance, too. I asked Anastasia and Russel for that before we set out to take down the White Whale.\" \"Insurance you asked the lady for? What kind of evil plan is this...?\" \"It was just a normal request! Geez, who the hell do you think your employer is?!\" The genuine look of doubt on Ricardo's face drew a yell from Subaru. \"Actually, what I asked both of them to do was touch base with the villages near the highway I wanted them to hire the dragon carriages from every traveling merchant in the neighborhood. The client is Marquis Mathers, and the condition is that he pays the asking price for everything the carriages are hauling.\" \"...Ha. That should get 'em fired up.\" \"There's no question this is going to break the bank, but it's a necessary expense to save people's lives. It's the obvious call to make since Roswaal is off prancing around somewhere again right when we need him.\" The lure of gold ought to attract plenty of helpers. The money actually belonged to Roswaal, but it was his own fault for not fulfilling the duty of a landlord that he mentioned so often. Either way, Subaru had finished laying the groundwork for the evacuation plan getting Emilia and the villagers out before the Witch Cult attacked though it had failed before. \"This leaves us with a small problem...namely that we don't want the Witch Cult to get wind of what we're up to, so I wanna hook up with the group of hired merchants along the way.\" \"Certainly, it would be wise not to put them on guard when we depend on the element of surprise. We should assign people familiar with the circumstances to guide the merchant group. TB.\" \"I understand. If the lady's involved, I think it's best we send people from our camp. We'll dispatch four messengers. Your instructions, please.\" \"Oh, that was fast. I appreciate it.\" Subaru felt relieved after witnessing Julius and TB's quick decision making. \"Also, I wanna send a messenger from Crusch's to the mansion. If we don't let Emilia know about the alliance treaty and incoming reinforcements, things'll fall into chaos.\" \"Ahhh, a handwritten letter. Meow that I think about it, you wrote one, huh?\" Ferris clapped his hands together. Properly speaking, though, Subaru had merely had a letter written for him. Rem had penned a message with details about the alliance, plus a liberal interpretation of his plans against the Witch Cult. Handling such complex writing was still somewhat beyond Subaru. If that letter reached the mansion, they'd surely be able to deal with any unforeseen situations on their end. It would give them a chance to prepare beforehand, even if they were forced to rely on the insurance policy Subaru had set up. \"That's...probably all there is to say. It's a plan that leaves a lot to be hashed out along the way, but everyone here ought to already know what this fight means.\" \"Meanin' it's our best chance to give the Witch Cult a bloody nose!\" As Subaru finished wrapping up the talk, Ricardo burst into ferocious laughter while he stood with his furry arms crossed against his chest. The fierce beast man's conclusion bolstered the morale of every man in the expeditionary force. \"...Throughout the years, there has surely never been a battle against the Witch Cult that has afforded us such an advantageous position.\" Wilhelm drew his body straighter, channeling razor-sharp hostility as he spoke. To the Sword Devil, the Witch Cult that the White Whale answered to was as despicable as the beast itself. The only thing that accompanied his overflowing will to fight was a strong sense of reassurance. \"To be granted such an opportunity so soon after finally fulfilling my deepest wish... The greatest problem is keeping my blood from boiling.\" \"I'm counting on you, Wilhelm.\" \"As you wish.\" The elderly man who had dedicated himself completely to a life of the sword responded very briefly. His demeanor projected a sense of unsurpassed trust. Subaru took this in, surveying the fifty-odd faces of his comrades. Thanks to them, he could fight. The instant that crossed his mind, words naturally began flowing out. \"The fight with the White Whale was so hard I could've sworn I was a dead man. As a matter of fact, some people did die, while others were erased and will never get to go home.\" During the battle, several lives had been snuffed out by the demon beast menace. Its mist had annihilated the memories of their existence; their very names had been scrubbed from the world. \"Right now, I don't think there's much reason or logic behind why we're standing here instead of them. If I had to say it was anything, we were a little luckier. That's all.\" There had been many sacrifices, and a great deal had been given up for an opportunity to slay the Demon Beast of Mist. Perhaps, as it was with natural disasters, people set aside their personal differences when pointing their blades at the demon beast. Therefore, Subaru thought both those who had lived and those who had died had given their all. *** Though it wasn't what he'd intended, Subaru's words became something like the speech a commander gives before deployment. For everyone listening closely, the address he gave was like a kind of promise that they braced their hearts with on the eve of their coming battle. It was much like Crusch's address before they set off to fight the White Whale. Combat knew no mercy and"}, {"text": "made no distinction between the lives of the highborn and the low-. That was why they should all strive to do everything they could. But Subaru sympathized so much with those he had come to terms with and accepted that he couldn't read the atmosphere. \"If even the tiniest thing were different, we'd probably all be dead. We're all still here after surviving a fight like that. If that's the case, then let's just get past one more.\" *** \"Let's win with such a landslide that not a single one of us dies. Make sure that everyone lives and goes home. We already beat a monster like the White Whale. We ain't gonna lose to the likes of the Witch Cult.\" These were the idealistic delusions of a young man who could not grasp the reality of the situation. No matter who had what advantage, casualties were an inevitable part of battle. Subaru knew this, and the warriors, with all their experience, understood far better than he did. Because they understood that, inside their hearts was something separate from the resolve to march toward death: an acceptance of death. Subaru wanted to challenge their resolve to die specifically because he noticed this lying within them. \"We're gonna make sure no one dies. Dying for the sake of scum like that is just stupid.\" Subaru was afraid of death. Dying constantly trashed his life with an unbearable sense of fear and loss. He thought it was like that for everyone; he assumed that was how it had to be. Subaru, who had experienced death more than anyone via Return by Death, didn't want anyone else to know what it was like. That was why his every action was a rejection of it. His final words to close out the Witch Cult Hunting Made Simple meeting were explosive. Before the shocked members of the group, Subaru raised his hand, opening his mouth as he looked out over everyone's face. After all, he'd been told that a man shouldn't make light of bowing his head and to look people in the eye when making a request. \"On that note, I'm gonna go ahead and ask right out let me cling to you guys while I rely on you for everything.\" 3 \"Among the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, the two most famous are probably Sloth and Greed.\" Julius spoke to Subaru while riding his land dragon alongside him. Even though they rode together, there was a world of difference in how the two sat astride their dragons. Subaru was desperately clinging to the black dragon he had named Patlash, while Julius rode elegantly. \"And that's why I can't stand you...\" \"I shall let that slide and continue what we were discussing. Even among the famous Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, two stand out. In terms of reliable records, information on Sloth is far more prevalent, but in terms of the scale of damage, the unforgivable crimes of Greed are second to none.\" \"So reliability versus how much damage, huh? Nothin' good from either one by the sound of it...\" \"Certainly not.\" Julius seemed deflated whenever the Witch Cult was brought up, as if he had also suffered at their hands. \"The individual you know as Sloth is suspected of being responsible for more than half of the Witch Cult's activities. Considering that the Witch Cult operates on a global scale, one can only say he possesses miraculous mobility.\" \"So the bastard really gets around.\" \"The name itself rolls off the tongue rather oddly for a man who dubs himself Sloth, he must be a rather diligent worker. That being said, applying such energy in a direction no one wants suggests a mind that is far beyond help.\" The features of the madman bony cheeks and fiery, gleaming eyes crossed Subaru's mind. The Archbishop of Sloth, Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, earnestly strove to be the most diligent, and urged others to be as hardworking as he. Even though he called himself Sloth, he bore a rather substantial hatred toward laziness. His rate of activity, unusual for the Witch Cult, must have been an expression of that hatred. \"It pains me to say this, but the knights have learned little of the Witch Cult. Since they are hidden to begin with, it is difficult to expose them during peacetime. When they cause harm, the first witnesses are always doubted even then, all that remains in their wake is something akin to a charred plain.\" \"So the dilemma here is like detectives that don't investigate unless a crime's been committed. I feel you, though...\" Seeing the regret on Julius's face kept even Subaru from poking fun. It would be wrong to criticize the knights' investigative abilities. After all, it didn't change the fact that the Witch Cult was at fault. \" However, this time, it will be different.\" It was Wilhelm, coming up beside them, who interrupted their exchange. Riding his favorite mount, the Sword Devil hemmed Subaru in from the side opposite Julius, staring straight ahead. His eyes were quietly filled with an eagerness to fight as he touched the hilt of the treasured sword hanging from his hip. \"We will take down the leader, allowing none to escape. Just like the White Whale, he will pay for all his wicked deeds. That is the will of every soul in the kingdom, and the earnest desire of the knights.\" \"Exactly as you say. These cowards have fled from the blade of justice. However, this time, we shall not give them the chance. Our swords will find them.\" Wilhelm nodded, and for once Julius's expression hardened as his raw emotion became visible. Subaru wasn't the only one with a reason to despise the Witch Cult. For some people who'd lived all their lives in this world, cursing the cultists came as naturally as breathing. \"Incidentally, since we got fired up talking about Sloth, who's this Greed guy?\" \"Unlike Sloth, Greed is a name associated with few calamities. But the content of those records is more than sufficient. The Empire incident in particular is widely known.\" \"By that you mean the damage was especially huge?\" When Subaru posed his question with a grimace, Julius indicated yes with a nod. \"The Fortress City of Gackler located in the Empire of Volakia, found at the south of the world map. It was known as the most solidly defended city of that nation's border regions. It had a standard garrison of thousands of troops, while the settlement itself was enveloped by a complex set of defensive walls. It was a place truly worthy of the name Fortress City, but...Greed conquered it. Single-handedly, no less.\" \"He took down a whole city?! By himself?!\" This was no mere tale of one knight worth a thousand footmen. Subaru's voice cracked when he heard the shocking account. \"'Soldiers must always be strong' the common people consider this way of thinking to be 'the Imperial Way.' The Empire is a nation that lives and breathes that ideal, and even its basic infantry are fierce fighters. The Fortress City was manned by such soldiers, but it fell to a single Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins who called himself Greed. It is said that even 'Eight Arms' Kulgan, hero of Volakia, was slain in that battle.\" It was Wilhelm who explained when Subaru voiced his surprise. Complex emotions appeared in the Sword Devil's eyes when he spoke the name of the hero defeated by Greed. Wilhelm lowered his head when Subaru noticed. \"I once had an opportunity to cross swords with Kulgan. To avoid an international conflict, we represented our two nations in a proxy match. He was a very skilled man. Though I managed to cut down six of his eight arms, he skewered me through the stomach. The match was called off with us both on the brink of death...and thus the match ended without either side declared the winner.\" \"That was a real casual way to bring up such an intense story...!\" Put plainly, it was difficult for a young man's heart to remain calm after he'd heard a tale about the Sword Devil's prime that was worthy of a novel. He felt a little like digging for more details, but Wilhelm had already mentioned that his worthy rival had landed a blow upon him; even Subaru wasn't insensitive enough to pick at Wilhelm's old scars. That said, the danger Greed presented weighed heavily on Subaru's mind. \"Sloth and Greed...then on top of that, Pride, Lust, and Wrath, huh? Even without a Gluttony, sounds like a pretty grim future to come, huh?\" \" You seem to be looking quite far ahead.\" \"I'm not eager to see it. I think the odds of meeting them are pretty high, though.\" On the eve of their battle with Sloth, thinking about what was coming made Subaru's chest throb. The unavoidable clash with Petelgeuse no doubt meant earning the permanent ire of the Witch Cult. And if the Witch Cult saw Emilia as an enemy, clashes with the other Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins were inevitable. \"Well, the talk about Greed already soured my stomach. Throw me a bone here.\" \"I have nothing good to say about unsettling the heart with discussions of an uncertain future. You should concentrate on the battle that stands before you, for Lady Emilia's sake.\" \"Yeah, I get it already. I'm just a little nervous right before the operation's main event.\" Clicking his tongue at Julius's attempts to settle him down, Subaru shifted his gaze farther down the highway. Far ahead, in the sky to the east, night had begun to give way to light, with the tip of the morning sun still hidden beyond the dimly lit sky. The expeditionary force hunting for the Witch Cult had already entered the Mathers domain. Riders and mounts alike went along in exhilaration, morale high as they traversed the plains. From the looks of it, they were not bothered by Subaru's reckless request, for which he quietly breathed with relief. What Subaru had said earlier was simply his honest feelings. He didn't want to lose a single member of the expeditionary force. There was no reason for there to be casualties against the Witch Cult. Subaru was determined to do whatever it took to bring about that result. \"That said, being the decoy is about all I can manage...\" \"Did you say something?\" \"Nothin' at all! I'm just thinking about if that detachment met up with our 'insurance' or not!\" \"Ahhh...no reason to worry, I'm sure. They are well aware of their roles. We cannot end this operation in success unless we both meet our respective objectives. They are more determined to fulfill their duty than your thoughts of concern appreciate.\" Subaru was just trying to change the subject, but the unexpectedly strong reply left him at a loss. Julius's words showed no hint of concern, making Subaru feel all the smaller. Before he could smooth any of that over, the scenery in front of them changed. \" It's coming into view.\" \"Yeah.\" Subaru nodded when Julius murmured, noticing the change of scenery. Down the highway, in the direction of the approaching dawn, they began to see a thin row of green trees. That line marked the end of the plains while showing them the entryway to the great forest that enveloped Roswaal Manor and Earlham Village. It meant that soon, Subaru would see the combined might of the Witch Cult and that hateful madman once more. *** Just as during the battle with the White Whale, he felt tense, as if something had tightened in his chest. Subaru touched his fist to his abdomen to suppress a pain that he couldn't get used to no matter how often he experienced it. Then, baring his teeth, he brushed his feelings of weakness aside and spat out a laugh in an apparent attempt to stir his soul. \"Now, then. We've done this before, but...let's do this Mr. Fate, you're on.\" 4 \"Here we go...\" Subaru felt the sensation"}, {"text": "of trampling fallen leaves as he trod along the difficult-to-navigate path. He stepped over sludge and tree roots as he made his way deeper into the dimly lit forest. If he looked overhead, the sun and the blue sky peeked through gaps in the leaves; the breeze blowing through was rich in moisture. With the lukewarm wind reminding him of the cold sweat on his brow, Subaru wiped it off with the back of his hand, exhaling deeply.  At that moment Subaru was walking in the forest, isolated and defenseless. Left to his own devices, Subaru was no longer accompanied by the companions he had traversed the highway with; he was not even riding Patlash. Without even a weapon to rely on, he was the definition of helplessness. \"Had to leave Patlash behind. This is one battle I can't have her stand by my side.\" Slightly out of breath, Subaru laughed a little as the words trickled out. He'd already gone a fair distance along terrain wholly unfit for walking. Squeezing through the gaps between skinny trees, snapping the fallen branches as he passed by, and scrambling up lichen-strewn hills, Subaru forged ahead. Though they were called animal trails by some, the ground was so poor for travel that the barely existing paths barred his way. It was the third time Subaru had walked through the forest like this. He'd been carrying someone in his arms both the first and the second time. He'd seemed so much lighter then; he wondered why his current steps felt so heavy by comparison. \"Probably 'cause I'm stunned by my own stupidity that I'm doin' this for the third time. Since it's try number three, I just wanna take it easy and head home... Now, then.\" While he was murmuring, right as he leaped over some mushrooms that looked vaguely poisonous, the atmosphere abruptly shifted. It was different from the reflexive sense of tension he'd felt when confronting Elsa or the White Whale. The unpleasantness of the atmosphere clung to him, making Subaru really feel the sweat he hadn't been heeding. \"Here it comes...almost like when you suddenly see a roach in the corner of a quiet room...\" When encountering a black noxious insect, a strange battle of wills would break out one where it seemed certain that the first one to move would perish. Time seemed to stretch beyond all limits, feeling like infinity. It was a time much like that, with plain, distasteful trepidation crawling over the entirety of his flesh. Abruptly, he strained his eyes. To the left and right, the forest scenery seemed uniform. But he felt as if he'd seen this somewhere before in fact, he actually did recognize this landscape. \"I walk all those paths that ain't worthy of the name and I still get here every time. It's a little funny. I dunno whether to call it a sense of direction or guesswork, but it's too sharp, whatever it is.\" Or perhaps he just really had a good nose for evil. It'd be kind of cool to be known as a hunting dog trained to track down the Witch Cult, but if Subaru was a dog, he was of the beaten variety, having lost every battle to date. He wanted to strip that label off himself this time around. \" Thanks for the warm welcome.\" Subaru squinted, staring into the gloomy darkness ahead of him as he spoke the words of thanks. Of course, there was not even a scintilla of friendliness on his face. But the people to whom he spoke lacked any a smidgen of humanity to care. It was very late to do so, but he wondered who they were. \"I don't suppose you Witch Cultists would tell me even if I asked.\" *** In an instant, several figures had surrounded Subaru, robed in black outfits that blended with the darkness. At some point, the sound of the wind and even the chirps of the insects had vanished. It was a rather clich\u00c3\u00a9 signal that they had arrived. Now that he understood, suddenly encountering them didn't surprise him anymore. He felt an out-of-place sense of relief but that was only because he'd encountered the cultists exactly as planned. \"Sorry, I know you came all this way, but I wanna talk to your leader. That means you guys are in the way.\" *** \"To be honest, it doesn't feel good not to understand any of this, but I probably outrank you, right? Please?\" Subaru waved a hand, seemingly to command them to go away. As he did so, the figures in black robes bowed their heads to Subaru in a show of respect, maintaining the posture as they seemed to glide away, melting into the darkness once more. This, too, was the reaction he had expected. Though it left him conflicted, the Witch Cultists held no enmity toward Subaru. So long as he did not indicate hostile intent toward them, and Petelgeuse didn't command them otherwise, they would do Subaru no harm. He didn't really want to know the circumstances that lay behind that judgment. \"Sure would be nice if I could just order them to pack up their things and head back to the family farm...\" Subaru sighed deeply, his shoulders sinking. Things were never so convenient. Either way, it was clear that he was near his destination. He recognized the scenery around him, and he'd met what he assumed was a Witch Cult patrol. If memory served him correctly, all he needed to do was keep heading deeper into the forest. His eardrums were filled only by the sounds of his footsteps along the ground and his own breathing. He felt like he was walking through prolonged, never-ending darkness, but that sense soon came to an end. \" Ohh.\" The trees obstructing his path opened before him, and Subaru leaped into a rocky place; a sheer cliff filled his vision. A sudden break in the forest spread before the tall, precipitous rock face, almost as if the forest had been gouged by a giant claw. Several boulders lay at the bottom of the cliff; the cave within which the Witch Cult was lurking was hidden behind a particularly large one. The malicious group was surely preparing its cruel schemes within. But it seemed that there would be no need to converse inside the cavern this time around. After all  \" I have been waiting for you, DISCIPLE of love.\" The man in a priestly habit had come to greet him with arms spread wide, immersed in a world of madness and delight. His cheeks were gaunt. His eyes seemed ready to fall from their sockets. His hair was a deep green. His skin had an ashen, unhealthy sheen. His limbs, stretching out from under the black habit, were slender and frail, like gnarled branches. He looked like a man in his midthirties, but his deathly overall appearance made fifties seem hardly a stretch. The only lively part of him was his eyes, but it was with these, and the overwhelming, fiery light of madness within them, that he stared at Subaru. \"I am Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult, entruuuusted with Sloth!\" With spittle on the tip of his outstretched tongue, the madman Petelgeuse laughed, proudly invoking his name as he extended Subaru his hospitality. 5 When, with a very deep bow and lavish laughter, the madman greeted him, Subaru put a hand to his chest. Standing before Petelgeuse, his mortal enemy, he realized that he was exceedingly calm. \"It's strange...\" This was the enemy he had hated so much, cursed with his desire to kill, the despicable foe that was the cause of all his woes. He'd raged that he would snap the man's neck with his own hands, had he not? And yet, with the demonic fiend before him that very moment, Subaru was embraced by relief. \"I welcome thee, beloved child, recipient of Her favor! Spleeendid...ahh, splendiiiid! What depths of love entwined about you! What heights of love wrapped around you! What heat with which love embraces you! I am grateful! I am TRULY, sincerely grateful!!\" In front of Subaru, deep feelings stirring in him, Petelgeuse quickly broke into madness. He plucked at his hair and scratched the back of a hand, drawing blood; the madman was overwhelmed, unable to keep his fierce emotions inside him. The first time, Subaru had seen his madness in fear; the second, in enmity. Subaru now saw him for the third time. Finally, what he felt was not really disgust; rather, he felt this was just how the madman was. At the same time, he was certain Petelgeuse's ways would never be compatible with those of normal people. *** Without thinking, Subaru gave his cheek a tug, then took a deep breath. After calming himself, he waved lightly at Petelgeuse, offering the friendliest smile he could manage. \"Yo. Wasn't expecting such a big welcome. I've gotta say, all this doesn't seem real...\" \"That iiis to be expected! For many, the beginning comes as a surprise. Anyone can realize one particular day, 'I am loved.' And once realizing it for the fiiirst time, you cannot let that love go yes, for love is everything!!\" When Subaru sought a place to begin, Petelgeuse eagerly ran with the conversation. Spreading his blood-smeared arms wide, he extolled his particularly insane vision of love very twisted yet forthright. \"For love! For the love granted to us! I, we cannot fail to reeespond with diligence! Accordingly, we administer the trial, the ordeal! To give meaning to the favor the Witch has granted to this world, to this age, to me! For love, for love forloveforloveforloooove!\" \"So you can't be lazy about it. You've gotta be diligent to faithfully repay that love.\" \"YES precisely!!\" When Subaru picked up the gist and pretended to understand, Petelgeuse laughed maniacally, deeply impressed. The understanding and agreement were strictly on the surface. With Subaru keeping pace on the surface, and Petelgeuse unable to peer into his soul, the words were nothing more than sweet, empty nothings. Truly, Subaru wished he could end the conversation there and then. \"Ah, er, so what should I do now? Can I...join you people? What else is needed? A handwritten letter, a formal document with a stamp? I don't have an actual stamp, so will a fingerprint do?\" But Subaru suppressed all the disgust welling in him and turned to face Petelgeuse. The longer he kept the conversation going, the more likely it was that he could drag useful information out of the madman. \"Hmm, hmm...that spirit, that enthusiasm, that forward thinking, is to be treeeeasured... However...\" As the calculating Subaru stepped nearer, Petelgeuse sniffed the air, as if confirming that the scent of the Witch was really present. Then, as an ecstatic smile came over him, the madman extended both hands, showing Subaru his ten perfectly intact fingers. The slender, gnarled digits that resembled branches quivered. \"...The favor that you have been granted is too thick to add you to my fingers at thiiis juncture... I wonder, just how rich is the love of the Witch I see before me? Even Wrath would be envious of this... Could it be that you are Pride?!\" \"Pride...?\" \"Among the six Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, only the seeeat of Pride is currently vacant! None of this generation worthy of the sin had appeared in this era...but the Witch Factor has suuurely reached the next generation's Pride you have received your Gospel, of course?\" Taking a step, Petelgeuse closed the distance between them. Petelgeuse's question, posed with his head tilted ninety degrees, could not fail to throw Subaru off. He accepted at face value the good news that the seat of Pride among the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins was vacant. But Petelgeuse suspected that Subaru might be the one to fill that vacancy. It was easy for him to claim that he could, but should he do so, and how would Petelgeuse react if he did?"}, {"text": "It was a hurdle he hadn't anticipated at all. And he didn't have a clue about the Gospel the guy was asking about. Was it some kind of code word used among members of the Witch Cult, or a trap for the unwary? If the former, it was hazing the rookie Witch Cultist; if the latter, the madman was engaging in psychological warfare. \"Errr, well, you see...\" He didn't want to clumsily say anything rash, but silence would only make him seem more suspicious. Amid that extreme stress, Subaru strongly closed his eyes once. Behind his closed eyelids, faces rose up faces of the people Subaru had to protect. That was all he needed to harden his resolve. \"Setting aside the Gospel, about this Pride...if it takes a lousy personality to qualify, I just might be who you're looking for. I'm interested, but I'd like to hear a few more details first...about Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, and this trial you mentioned.\" With few avenues for follow-up, Subaru kicked the Gospel issue down the road and pursued the madman's statements about the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, of which much was unclear, and the trial Petelgeuse had spoken of several times over. Trial given the situation, it was probably the current plan of attack. If he could find out details, perhaps even where the fingers were hiding out, it'd be the perfect intel to gather. Naturally, the meddlesome question might send Petelgeuse flying into a rage, but Subaru was already on guard for that. Behind his lighthearted tone of voice, Subaru was already prepared to commence hostilities when he let the question fly. For his part, the madman slowly stuck his right hand's thumb into his own mouth. \" My brain is shaking.\" With a dull sound, he crushed his thumb with his back teeth, sending fresh blood trickling out of the corner of his mouth. There was a slight tremble in his halting murmur, but the mad delight from a moment earlier had completely vanished. His hollow gaze sent a shudder through Subaru, quickening his pulse. His heart beat at such a high tempo it hurt, feeling as if it were slamming against his rib cage from the inside and right before Subaru's eyes, Petelgeuse withdrew his thumb from his mouth and said: \"The trial... Thaaat is fine. I do not mind at all.\" *** \"It ought to be some time until word reaches all regions that the highway is sealed. Similarly, the trial will not begin yet for time is something we still pooossess.\" In contrast to his disquieting actions, Petelgeuse's words to the eager-to-learn Subaru were, if anything, amiable. A smile came over Subaru at the reaction; he strained not to let his cheek twitch. \"Huh...sealed the highway? What trick did you use to do that?\" \"A very simple ONE. The mist. That is eeeenough explanation, I believe?\" \" Yeah, it's plenty.\" Subaru nodded at Petelgeuse's brief reply. The statement, suggesting that the mist and the sealing of the highway were connected, was proof positive that the White Whale and the Witch Cult were linked behind the scenes. Furthermore, from that exchange Subaru learned that word of the White Whale's subjugation had not yet reached Petelgeuse's ears. The cultists hadn't realized Subaru had brought the expeditionary force with him. \"So you sealed the highway so that you could do the trial with no one to interfere. That's a pretty shrewd way to operate, Mr. Petelgeuse.\" \"Yes, the trial is sacred, inviolable! To fail to overcome at all costs, no maaatter the predicament, would be insincerity toward love! Yes, toward love! The love granted to us! The love poured onto us! We must RESPOND to that love!\" \"Yeah!\" Separate from his statements regarding the trial, Petelgeuse got fired up by his personal thoughts on love. The madman bent back, eyes bulging, stretching his tongue as he gazed intently at the heavens, frothing at the mouth as he searched for something intangible. Ignoring Subaru's double take at the unhinged reaction, Petelgeuse did not stop. \"Aaaaaall must be sacrificed for love! The silver-haired half-demon, whose very existence is insolent, must answer for the deep crime of her very life! Those who bear sins must undergo trials! Yes, they must be TESTED! To find whether they are slothful or diligent! And it is my hand that must be FIRST!\" \"So the trials are...to question their sins, to test if they bear sins?\" \"For that purpose, the trials! For that purpose, the sins! The Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins! Accordingly, I MUST test her! If she is not tested to see if she truly possesses the Witch Factor, then whether she is a suitable vessel cannot be \" Gripped by madness, Petelgeuse slipped an arm into his habit. Then, after a little rummaging, his fingertips pulled out a small, case-bound book. Subaru thought it about the size of the pocket dictionaries that were common in the world he came from. Deftly opening the book with one hand, Petelgeuse ran his bloodshot eyes along its pages. \"My duty is recorded within the Gospel, and I must fulfill it as proof of my love! If you are indeed Pride, you will understand my loooofty ideals! After all, it has been centuries since the vacancy among US, the forsaken bearing the titles of sins, has been filled!!\" \"Hold on a sec! I need to hear more about this Pride and this Witch Factor stuff...\" \" Present your Gospel.\" *** Petelgeuse suppressed his madness once more, forcing back a sudden wave of emotion. Subaru, unable to keep up with the shift, unwittingly took a step back when Petelgeuse pressed closer. At Subaru's reaction, Petelgeuse, the crazed zeal still absent from his eyes, tilted his head ninety degrees. \"Present your Gospel. The proof of your favor \" Speaking this, the madman extended his blood-smeared right hand toward Subaru, demanding proof that he was a coconspirator. His undamaged left hand touched the beloved book within it. From his demeanor and actions, Subaru understood. That book was a Gospel. And as if to affirm his conviction, Petelgeuse thrust his Gospel text toward Subaru. \"You are not recorded within the text of my Gospel. Therefore, who aaare you, and why have you fortuitously come to appear in this place?\" \"Ah! So that book is called a Gospel! I see, I see, I get it, I get it. Well, you should have said so!\" On the brink of a decisive rupture, Subaru made a grand show of patting his chest and putting a hand into his pocket. Of course, he didn't have a single page inside it, let alone a book. *** Petelgeuse's pupils contracted slightly as they watched Subaru's pantomime. His madness-filled eyes caused a countdown to destruction to begin ticking down in the back of Subaru's mind. The numbers were proceeding with unusual speed; failure was surely close at hand. Therefore  \"Oh, my bad. So, so sorry.\" \"What IS it?\" \"About my Gospel, you see, I...used it as a pot stand and it got dirty, so I threw it out.\"  Therefore, this was the watershed moment. Judging that it was impossible to drag things out any longer, Subaru instantly brought the conversation to a conclusion. Petelgeuse looked taken aback the instant Subaru's frivolous reply reached his ears. But when the statement immediately transformed to an insult inside the madman's brain, his visage turned fiendish. \"Proof of her favor!! Authority of Sloth!! Unseen HAAAAANDS!!\" The madman screamed with a reptilian look as his shadow exploded no, the shadow swelled up as if exploding, becoming multiple black arms that stretched toward the heavens. These were evil hands, imperceptible to normal people, able to destroy a human body with ease. The hands danced high above like serpentine heads, locking on to Subaru. The black, shadowy, evil hands snapped down like whips, the tips of their fingers aimed at the ground, shooting out at breakneck speed. And a moment before those black tendrils reached him, Subaru beat a hasty retreat from the spot. \"I told you before if you can see 'em, they're not that hard to dodge!\" \"What is this ?!\" Subaru had said it the last time around, so to Petelgeuse it was an assertion ungrounded in fact. However, the madman did not take the time to dismiss Subaru's statement as nonsense. A total of seven pitch-black hands bore down on Subaru to tear him limb from limb. On bad, rocky footing, he leaped over them with legwork that could not be called pretty, even if one was charitable. With Petelgeuse to the front, Subaru leaped heavily to the rear, putting as much distance between them as he could. He did this both to escape the range of the attack and to get out of the way of the counterattack. \"Just now, YOU saw my Unseen Hands \" \"Right now, I'm not the one you should worry about.\" After his all-powerful move was countered, froth rose to the corners of Petelgeuse's mouth as he seemed ready to raise his voice again. To forestall him, Subaru pointed behind the madman's back. That was the signal for the counterattack. \"Wa !\" \"Ha !\" Overlapping bestial howls formed a destructive shock wave that rumbled through the air and tore up the ground. The rocky ground was stripped bare, kicking up a dusty swirl of wind. The wave caused cracks in the ground, leaving crevices resembling a spiderweb; a hole was gouged into the sheer cliff, precipitating a landslide. \"Wha ?!\" Petelgeuse looked back, raising his voice in shock, eyes bulging as the beast person siblings landed, unleashing their combo attack. The sleeves of their white robes fluttered as the brother and sister TB and Mimi roared on all fours. The two had landed behind Petelgeuse, opposite Subaru, ignoring the madman as they pounded a roaring wave into the freshly cut cliff. The ferocious shock wave pulverized the rock face, the blasted pieces flowing downward like an avalanche, clamping shut the entrance of the Witch Cult's hideaway. Rock and earth collapsed into a massive pile, and in an instant the cavern lair had become a tomb. \"Awesome, now they're buried alive you guys can suffer and regret all that you've done!\" It was Subaru who raised his middle finger, teeth bared as he ferociously pounded the insult home. As dust danced in the air, and the impact of the landslide was conveyed by the rumbling ground beneath their feet, it went without saying that the fate of the Witch Cultists inside the crushed, buried entrance was sealed. Their plight sent Petelgeuse gazing toward the heavens. \"How...how can THIS be...?\" The madman's throat trembled; he plucked at his head, causing droplets of blood to begin to flow. His violent gesture tore hair away, and as the skin on his head bled, Petelgeuse stamped the ground in fury. \"My fingers...cruelly, without mercy, without order, without warning, without provocation, without meaning, slain, murdered, slaughtered... Ahh, ahh! My brain is shaaaaaaking!\" \"Woahoo, that old guy sure has a screw loose!\" \"Sis, I think all the Witch Cultists are like that.\" Viewing Petelgeuse's passion with childlike disgust, the siblings, Mimi and TB, exchanged sour looks and lighthearted banter. Of course, their intervention at that juncture was no coincidence or miracle. They were Subaru's reinforcements, coordinating with him according to plan. The two had concealed their presence while accompanying Subaru and had responded to his signal to block the entrance to the Witch Cult hideout. Now the enemy was Petelgeuse alone, putting Subaru and company at an overwhelming advantage. \"...Ah yes, that is right it is fine.\" However, Petelgeuse's tears were just ceasing to flow as he calmly murmured. The madman slowly looked at the faces of Subaru and the others, one by one, and calmly laughed. And laughed  \"IT is fine. It IS fine it is fine! Ahh, fine! FINE! Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes!!\" \"Uhyaa!\" The way the madman's mood rose midway through his words, his voice turning shrill, made Mimi's shoulders jump. Having exposed his madness, and coated with a thin layer of cold dread, Petelgeuse thrust the fingers of both hands into his"}, {"text": "mouth at the same time. Then, one by one, he crushed the fingertips with his teeth. With all ten of his fingertips crushed, a considerable amount of blood flowed as Petelgeuse said, \"It is fine. Now I uuunderstand! Now IS the time for struggle! For love, yes, for looooove!!\" Petelgeuse raked the ground with his fingernails, ignoring Mimi and TB as he declared war on Subaru alone. But Subaru shrugged his shoulders toward the madman, his face displaying none of the same militancy. \"...Sorry to disappoint when you're all worked up like this, but...\" \"What is this?! I shall attend to this trial with love  This! Very! Moment!\" When Petelgeuse thrust out a bloody finger, proclaiming vehemently, Subaru said to him, \"I'm having someone else take you on.\" The answer made Petelgeuse's eyes widen. And the instant he tried to raise a skeptical voice  \"Yaaaaaaaa !!\" Petelgeuse lifted his face in shock as the earsplitting cry crashed down from overhead. And then the Sword Devil's blade bit into the madman from below the shoulder slicing him in two. CHAPTER 2 *** 1 Let us rewind time to just before the end of the Anti-Witch Alliance conference. \"Oh, right! I forgot the important part!\" When Subaru palmed a fist, it was in the particularly quiet atmosphere immediately following his request to the expeditionary force on the verge of setting off with great ardor to enter the Mathers domain. I didn't explain enough, he thought, feeling sheepish as he immediately backed away from his grandiose words, but Subaru could not be negligent about the most critical part. Thus, he addressed one and all: \"I called this plan Witch Cult Hunting Made Simple, but the ultimate target, the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins... I want to pick who goes after him real carefully.\" \"Carefully?\" \"Yeah. After all, whether we take the archbishop down decides whether this plan works or not. I want to pick our best members. What I mean is Wilhelm and some Iron Fangs who're confident about their sneaking abilities. Ah, they have to be okay even if the archbishop's staring straight at them.\" Subaru's condition furled the brows of everyone sitting in the circle around him. Their expressions shifted to bewilderment, anxiety, and unease; the men sitting beside one another differed somewhat individually, but their faces surely added up to a sum total of \"doubt.\" It was a natural reaction. Subaru, knowing he should explain further, scratched his face as he continued. \"Errr, you see. Just like I said, the plan itself is simple I lure out the Witch Cult so we can hit them. That much is the same as with the White Whale, but...I think it's pretty hard to expect their reaction to be as simple as a demon beast's.\" \"Ahh, well, that figures. Subawu's scent made the White Whale lose track, but unlike a demon beast, the Witch Cult won't go grrr quite that much, huh?\" \"Well, that's exactly how the White Whale reacted to me... Anyway, ideally, we hit the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins with a surprise attack and take him down the instant I lure him out. We have to absolutely make sure he dies instantly, so prioritizing that is another requirement.\" Subaru affirmed Ferris's explanation and tied the logic together. The surrounding reactions to his plan turned sour, with disgust visible on the faces of many. The sternest face of all was Ricardo's, bared fangs included. \"Wait, wait. We can't do that. Can you leave us out of this one? We can't be sneakily murderin' people after gettin' all fired up about a proper battle like this. No way. I didn't hear about this.\" \"That's why I'm explaining it now. Besides, I mean just for the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. The I'm-a-lure plan's other ten parts depend on this. You'll have lots of places to make noise.\" Subaru tried all he could to convince Ricardo, the dividing line inside the circle. \"Not that we can underestimate the other Witch Cultists, but the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins is a different story. I want to make extra sure we take him down.\" This time Julius interrupted his explanation to the jeering Ricardo. \"So prepare for all possibilities, is it? I commend that line of thinking, but what of your logic for selecting people? Of course, I have no objection to selecting Master Wilhelm.\" After glancing sidelong at Wilhelm, who sat with closed eyes, Julius touched his own slender knight's sword as he looked at Subaru. \"I wish to hear the reason why I was not among your initial selections.\" \"Seems like you're not unhappy about that, but you're not exactly pleased, either...\" The Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins was the main event, leaving Julius with some objections to being removed from the decisive battle. Ferris, seeing the two clashing in their opinions, patted Subaru on the shoulder before speaking. \"Hey, Subawu. If this is just you still holding a grudge against Julius...\" \"I have no such vulgar suspicions. Such a possibility has never entered my mind...but I would be disappointed to find that you are a human being so obsessed with trivial matters that you lose sight of the greater picture.\" Subaru wasn't sure how serious he thought all that, but he felt Don't give half-hearted orders was the point that Julius wanted to drive home. Subaru, reflecting on having lost sight of the larger picture through obsession with small things in the past, raised a finger and responded. \"The magic of the Archbishop of Sloth...maybe it's not magic. It's not a spell or a spirit, but anyway, he has a special ability. That's one reason I don't want a big gaggle of people rushing him.\" \"...Special abiwity? What? First I've heard of it.\" \"Best I can describe it, it's an ability to extend a bunch of hands invisible to the eye. With one exception, you really can't see 'em, and if they hit you, they can rip your limbs off pretty easily. The range is pretty much as far as he can see.\" \"Wha...?!\" Subaru's off-the-wall reasoning left Ferris in shock, looking as if someone had poured cold water on him while he slept. Julius's brows furled as well, and a not-insignificant shock took hold of the expeditionary force.  The Unseen Hands under Petelgeuse's control were literally an invisible menace. Subaru would never forget the sight of that nightmarish power cruelly toying with Rem's body. And in a large-scale melee, the might of that menace could throw everything into utter chaos. \"That's why I don't want to go with numbers. It'll just raise the number of casualties.\" \"...You're saying that with a completely straight face, huh? I can't check without Lady Crusch here, but...\" \"If Crusch were here my answer would be the same. That ability's the biggest obstacle to taking Sloth down.\" Deep down, he didn't think that was all there was to it, but even so, he was sure of that part. Taking it in, Julius, the first to have spoken up, lowered his eyes, sinking deep in thought before asking, \"Incidentally, you said there was one exception. And that exception is?\" \"Me.\" \"I see. A simple tale.\" Faced with Subaru's simple explanation, Julius could only make that curt reply. Julius sank into thought, but in the meantime, someone else clenched a fist. \"I get it!\" It was Mimi who had spoken, vigorously clenching her fist. With an impetuous laugh, she grabbed the shoulders of TB, standing beside her, and shook them hard as she said, \"All right, Mimi and TB will go with Mister! And the old man, too! That's best! What, not good? You won't go?\" \"Sis, you're being impulsive again...\" TB, accustomed to his older sister's lack of inhibition, made no move to refute her. Subaru was happy for the volunteers, but he wasn't sure they fulfilled his conditions. \"Ya can rest easy. Besides me, Mimi's the best of the bunch at everythin'. She ain't my second in command for nothin'.\" \"I can really trust you on that? She looks like the type who sneezes at the worst possible time.\" \"Subawu, you're not really one to talk, are you? ...Ha, can't be helped, meow. Ferri will go with you, too. That should make you rest a little easier, right?\" \"Seriously? That's a big help, but you're all right with this? To be honest, we're crossing a dangerous bridge here.\" \"To think you would say that...\" When Subaru expressed his surprise at Ferris's declaration, Julius's eyes went wide at Subaru's reply. \"Huh?\" went Subaru, turning his head at Julius's reaction, but Julius said nothing more. Julius let the matter of Subaru's intent lie, proceeding to turn Ferris's way. \"I shall leave Master Wilhelm, Mimi, TB, and him in your hands, my friend.\" \"Yes, yes. Lady Crusch entrusted me with this from the beginning, so don't worry, it'll be fine.\" \"Even so, I must.\" \"...Yes, yes. Then I'll stick a little concern for you in a corner of my heart, Julius.\" Ferris gave a strained smile; Julius's expression was the very image of seriousness as he drew himself up. The easygoing exchange demonstrated the trust between the two friends. Put bluntly, Subaru was a little jealous. Either way, the brainstorming seemed to have resulted in Julius agreeing, too. \"Don't feel like arguing anymore?\" said Subaru. \"Since you are the only one who can see the archbishop's power, it cannot be helped. If the numbers are increased further, you cannot easily instruct others to evade, I take it?\" \"Glad you're quick on the uptake.\" As might be expected, people who fought were quick to understand tactics. Subaru could counter Unseen Hands by dodging the evil hands himself, but beyond that, the asset he brought was seeing the hands' movements and getting other people out of their way. And for purposes of the operation, the fewer people the better. The Unseen Hands power was advantageous against numerous opponents, and that was another reason Subaru wanted to confront Petelgeuse with as few people as possible. \"So that's why I wanted to insist that Wilhelm come with me, but...\" Julius, Ricardo, and others had ceased to object, so Subaru turned the conversation toward Wilhelm, who'd maintained his silence up to that point. When he cautiously checked on Wilhelm, who had neither approved nor disapproved, the man's eyes opened. The Sword Devil trained his clear blue eyes on Subaru, nodding without a single contrary word. \" You do not need to ask about my resolve. I am your sword, Sir Subaru. By your will, I shall cut down your foe.\" *** \"Please, employ me however you wish.\" Granted such highly refined trust, Subaru could only nod, swallowing his astonishment. When he looked back, he saw the siblings quarreling, Ferris's shoulders slumping, and behind them Julius, Ricardo, and the rest of the expeditionary force entrusting Subaru & Co. with this crucial matter. Accepting this, Subaru nodded strongly, this time without worry. \"Yeah, this fight we're gonna win this!\" 2 \"Did we get him?!\" Subaru hastily covered his mouth with his hand after he unintentionally exclaimed out loud. They were at the center of the rock-strewn place in front of the sheer cliff. Wilhelm had just leaped forward, his blade biting into Petelgeuse's slender body at a sharp angle as he sliced it apart. The madman's body had been slashed from shoulder to hip. His posture swayed wildly from the deep, fatal wound. Even so, Petelgeuse's eyes remained wide open, glaring at Subaru until the bitter end. \"This cannot b \" But Subaru would never learn what the madman had intended to say. A horizontal cut traced an arc, sweeping away blood as it parted the wind. That instant, Petelgeuse's severed head spewed blood like a water fountain as it was sent flying. The sight of a person being decapitated before his eyes left Subaru speechless. However, adamant denial seemed to drive the headless form forward, causing it to extend its withered, branch-like arms toward Subaru. \"Inelegant to"}, {"text": "the extreme fall, like a man.\" The Sword Devil's blade mercilessly dismembered the body struggling against its own death. The slice sent both arms flying from their shoulders; the blade returned to directly strike the torso, tearing it from the lower body at the waist, sending the madman-turned-sack-of-flesh tumbling to the ground, innards pouring out. The gushing blood and muscular twitches soon stopped, leaving only the powerful stench of dead blood. The spectacular manner of death, utterly lacking in any respect for humanity, made nausea well up into Subaru's throat. But he somehow managed to avoid actually vomiting as he said, \"I-it's over...right?\" \"If it's not over by now, even Ferri will start believing in this favor-of-the-Witch nonsense,\" Ferris replied from behind Subaru, who was timidly peering at the corpse. He moved beside the unsettled Subaru, examining the remains without hesitation. \"Though it's not much of a surprise, he's definitely dead,\" Ferris observed. \"You have it on the word of the royal capital's greatest healer.\" \"Oh...really...?\" The corpse, no longer retaining the shape of a person, seemed more like a prop than anything else. Reassured by Ferris's words, Subaru felt the urge to vomit recede as he looked toward the forest. As planned, their main target the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins had been taken care of. Those remaining were Petelgeuse's fingers in the forest. \"Hope everyone else is doing all right...not taking too many risks.\" \"Sir Subaru, they are not soldiers who would freelance in violation of your instructions. Even if unavoidable combat does take place, Mr. Ricardo and Mr. Julius are with them. A worst case is unlikely.\" Back from checking the severed head for himself, Wilhelm respectfully stood at attention. The Sword Devil's guarantee was reassuring. Yet, it did not wipe away Subaru's worry to any great extent. The object of his worry was the other detachment those heading off to deal with the Witch Cultists drawn to Subaru until he could make it to Petelgeuse and lure him out in person. They had surmised that Petelgeuse's subordinates were scattered around the forest, ten groups in all. Subaru had commanded the two fingers he'd encountered midway to return to base, and their actual retreat had already been confirmed. The idea was to let them go, follow them with the tenacity of a sumo wrestler's leg hold, and use them to work out the locations of the rest Subaru had strictly ordered his people not to attack, even if they held an advantage in numbers. But if they were spotted by the opposition, combat was no doubt unavoidable. \"I'm seriously afraid of accidents if that happens. This is the plan I drew up, and it has one crucial hole in it...I don't know what the Witch Cult people are thinking, and this unexpectedly large number of people fighting scares me...\" \"Yes, yes, the plan maker must not show worry! Besides, I've heard this talk from Nervous Subawu over and over. It's getting old.\" Ferris sighed with an exasperated face at Subaru, who was worried about the other side now that his side was taken care of. \"I understand you're scared, but with Julius and them, fighting shouldn't be a problem, meow. If Julius is fighting seriously, Old Man Wil's probably the only one here who can take him on.\" \"...That so? He's that strong?\" Ferris had elaborated to address their young leader's inexhaustible worry, but the details still left Subaru conflicted. In terms of his being a reliable ally, Julius's strength was more than welcome but given his deeply rooted sense of distaste to date, it was difficult for Subaru to accept Julius's worth at face value. Even if the physical wounds from their duel had completely healed, untreatable phantom pains haunted Subaru even then. \"It really does run deep... Setting aside whether it's unconscious or not, I do understand your aversion to him, though...\" \" ? What'd you say?\" \"Nothing much. In the first place, Julius and them should be much more worried about us! After all, Ferri thought this plan was reckless all this time.\" Ferris raised his brows and glared at the acrimonious Subaru, who knit his brow in response. \"...Yeah, I get it. But it worked out, didn't it?\" Subaru said as he glanced at the rocky place that had become their battleground. \"Looking at the results only. When the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins suspected you, you were nearly done for, weren't you? It was definitely by the skin of your teeth. Ferri hates people in a hurry to die before his eyes.\" \"I'm not in a hurry to die at all. Well, not that it sounds very convincing right now...\" The sternness of Ferris's gaze told Subaru that apologizing further would be meaningless. It had actually been Ferris obsessing over the operation's little details right up until the end. Ferris hadn't objected to the broad outline of the operation itself Subaru \"fishing\" for Petelgeuse, luring him out as a decoy but he was abnormally fixated on hammering out the specifics to raise their degree of safety. In point of fact, Subaru couldn't deny the low reliability of the plan, given that it greatly hinged on Subaru himself. Everything about luring out the Witch Cultists locating Petelgeuse, the main target; slowing him down; gathering intel was on Subaru's shoulders alone. If even a single thing happened contrary to Subaru's expectations, he would perish. Ferris really, really hated that. In the end, no useful counterproposal emerged, so he hadn't stopped Subaru from carrying out the plan, but  \"Subawu, you know how only going by results leaves a bad taste in my mouth, and still you...\" Ferris's resentful words triggered a memory of other words that had come out of the healer's mouth, spoken close to a half day before at the height of the battle with the White Whale. Ferris had spoken of accepting his role in battle. Just like Subaru, Ferris was decisively unsuited to the field of battle. On top of that, belonging to the knights meant that, compared to Subaru, he had many more opportunities to feel utterly powerless. The last words he'd thrown out had an echo of loneliness, as if he'd been betrayed by someone who shared his powerlessness  \"I'm a little surprised, though. I thought you hated me and all.\" \"Don't be absurd. I don't choose who I heal based on whether I like them or not.\" \"I wanted you to deny hating me, you know!\" Even if your worth was understood, how you accepted it depended on whether you acknowledged it yourself. When Subaru unwittingly gave a pained smile, Ferris had a sullen face when he touched his only weapon the dagger on his hip. \"Whether I like or hate someone has no relation to whether it's worth keeping them alive. It's because...that's what Ferri's power is, that others recognize that power.\" \"Ferris?\" \"Besides, a lot of people died in the battle with the White Whale. When someone's squished flat, or erased by the mists, even Ferri...even I can't heal that.\" The usual composure in his voice absent, Ferris touched the relief carved into his dagger with a finger. This was the family crest of the Lion Rampant the same crest on the treasured sword his master, Crusch, had carried. The touch of Ferris's fingertip seemed to put courage, and more than that, resolve on his face as he glared at Subaru. \"Don't get conceited and think you're the only one who doesn't want people to die in this fight.\" \"...I'm trying to keep that in mind, too.\" He was trying to, but in truth, trying might have been the extent of it. With Ferris's gaze straight on him, Subaru could accept that he wasn't the only one, but he couldn't change his ways. No matter how much Ferris might object, he'd carry out the plan without deviating. If it was Subaru's own life on the line, he'd probably always bet that chip first. \"We've finished checking the cave. The people inside were completely crushed by falling rock. I feel kind of bad for them.\" \"Oh yeah, it was perfect! Perfecto-mundo! They all went booooom!\" Just when the conversation was at a pause, the beast person siblings returned from checking on the buried cave. Greeting the pair, Subaru walked over to Petelgeuse's remains. Uncertain elements had been swept away, and the danger had been completely eliminated. Subaru was no longer feeling tense, and his stiff cheeks had finally slackened. \"Wiping 'em all out in an unexpected outside attack to be honest, it was pretty unsportsmanlike, but don't think badly of me. After all, you're way, waaaaay worse than I am.\" With his opponent already a corpse, all he could do was make a hollow declaration of victory. That the victory had been earned with a surprise attack, practically an assassination, made it baser and hollower still. Even so, Subaru couldn't help but say it, because now it felt real inside him. Petelgeuse had been struck down the result Subaru had redone the world several times over to achieve. \"Wilhelm, thank you very much. Also, sorry for making you push yourself.\" \"Push myself, you say?\" \"Cutting him down with a surprise attack from the rear, it's the worst, right?\" Wilhelm's face became slightly clouded. He was complicit in no mere surprise raid, but a sneak attack. A knight would surely have that on his mind. But Wilhelm's expression immediately broke into a strong smile. \"I abandoned chivalry long ago. It is nothing you need concern yourself with, Sir Subaru.\" \"But I'm the one who made you tag along and help with a surprise attack, so...\" It was a fact that the opponent was a heretic against whom honest, forthright measures were useless. Even so, asking others to cooperate in a cowardly scheme like this didn't sit well with him at all. \"Well, Ferri didn't mind at all, meow. Julius might have hated it...but I think he's shrewd enough to accept it.\" \"That's why I didn't want to tell him to do it. Well, I could sorta predict how you'd react, though.\" \"Isn't it better to be a little cowardly and have your friends live than to stick to chivalry and have them die, meow? Subawu, whether you or Julius is right is just a matter of your point of view.\" Having Ferris intervene was a big help. Wilhelm said nothing, whereas Mimi tilted her head as if she was wondering, Is there a problem with that...? She was a mercenary through and through. And what TB then did deserved mention as even more mercenary than that; having finished looking around the area, the little cat-man walked over to Petelgeuse's remains...and, without a moment's hesitation, began fishing around in his pockets. Subaru unwittingly gawked at the sight. \"Hmm, seems he wasn't walking around with much on him...\" \"H-hey, little guy, you're checking a corpse's pockets like it's no big deal.\" \"I am not 'little guy,' I am TB. And this is simply checking his belongings.\" With a practiced hand, TB searched for the spoils of war deep inside the blood-smeared habit. Mimi did the same. In contrast to their cuddly appearances, the mercenary siblings really did things their own way. The inside of the habit was surprisingly deep, making TB's hand unexpectedly busy getting everything out. That said, the contents taken out were all mundane articles. \"Field rations, lagmite ore... Ahh, he has a money pouch, too.\" \"I'm surprised, his inventory's filled with petite bourgeoisie stuff. So what, is pillaging a part of mercenary culture?\" \"I believe that it's normally 'to the victor go the spoils'? ...What...is this?\" As he made the statement, TB, well-suited to the mercenary trade, had nearly finished his perusal when a black book drew his attention. Seeing this, Subaru went, \"Ah!\" with a start. \"That's probably the book Petelgeuse called his Gospel.\" \"Myuu! This is a Gospel?! Uwaa, I touched it!\" When Subaru pointed it out, TB hurled the book away. He looked very much like a kitten as he bounced nervously, drawing a strained smile from"}, {"text": "Subaru as he picked up the book. \"I know the owner was icky, but you shouldn't mistreat a book. Not even a weird one like this.\" \"D-don't touch it. I think you should let go right now. Touching it might make you go weird in the head...! It it might be better to burn it...\" Ignoring TB's concerns, Subaru opened it and glanced at the pages. However, he was unfortunately unable to identify the characters in which the words were written. They were neither I-script nor R-script, nor even H-script, but some other, mysterious language. They kind of looked like hiragana scribbled way too fast, so much so as to be illegible. On top of that, the latter half of the book was comprised of blank pages; a reasonable person might call it a misprint. \"...Well, I can't read it anyway. I know it was careless of me, so both of you calm down, okay?\" \" My apologies.\" \"Well, it's your fault, Subawu.\" Wilhelm and Ferris dropped the combat postures they'd adopted when Subaru unguardedly opened the book before them. It was for only a brief instant, but the hostility and enmity had been real. With a touch of cold sweat from that, Subaru showed the two the book in his hand, trying to wrap his head around it. \"Does either of you have a clue about this book?\" \"Wait a ! Don't just turn it our way like that! Subawu, don't you do something stupid and try to read a Gospel! I genuinely don't know what it'll do to you!\" Ferris averted his eyes, raging like an inferno toward the book raised before him. Surprisingly, Wilhelm turned his back, displaying his aversion to the book as well. \"I know TB reacted like that, too, but what, the book's seriously dangerous?\" The book was about as big and heavy as a pocket dictionary, with binding that was strictly ordinary. As it was from the Witch Cult, he would've expected a cover made out of human skin, but there was no sign of that. However, the grimaces on the faces of all save Subaru made their sentiments easy to read. \"To the Witch Cult, having one of those books...those Gospels is proof you are a fellow cultist. Yes, I suppose one could say they are like holy scripture to them.\" \"Scripture...?\" \"Rumor has it that the Witch Cult sends them to particular people, meow. And when they arrive, that's it...poof, another pious Witch Cultist is born! Or so they say.\" \"Huh?!\" Subaru's voice went shrill at the unexpected and astounding tale. These Witch Cultists were eerie, creepy people he couldn't understand even the tiniest bit. Yet, they had once been normal human beings, their transformation triggered by the arrival of such a book. A deep reading of Ferris's words suggested that the Gospels were books that brainwashed the human beings reading them. If that was so, many of the Witch Cultists were brainwashed, ordinary people  \"If that's true, then maybe all the people we buried alive in the cave were just...\" \"Sir Subaru, you are mistaken. By the time the Gospel reaches them, they have already passed the point of no return. They are not innocent people brainwashed into obedience that can be saved. Sir Subaru, did that Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins appear sane to you?\" \"N-nah. He didn't, but...I thought maybe he was an exception.\" Brought back from the brink of thoughts of regret, Subaru passively shut his mouth. So Petelgeuse's madness, far beyond the norm, was just one example of the dangerous mental states within the Witch Cult that didn't involve brainwashing. Put bluntly, a part of him was reluctant to take their current conversation as absolute proof it was so. \"Now, Subawu, I know you did a great job as a decoy against the White Whale and the Witch Cult...but I feel like this is putting you in a lot of danger, meow, so don't let the Gospel get you, 'kay?\" \"I must ask that as well, Sir Subaru. Please do not make me cut you down.\" \"I'll try, but is being careful really gonna cut it...?\" It seemed that whether the book \"got\" someone or not depended on the recipient's mood. If the other side was headhunting, it depended on whether Subaru accepted or declined. The notion left him distinctly uncomfortable. Sighing at the various things being said, Subaru looked down at the book, which suddenly felt very heavy. \"I guess I'll...keep it with me for now. Even if I can't read it, it might be useful some other way.\" It had belonged to an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. Just maybe deciphering the Gospel might bring him closer to the truth about the Witch Cult. With that hope in mind, Subaru stuffed the book into his pocket, but no matter how much time passed, the suspicious gazes from the three, looking at him as if he were some crazed daredevil, did not disappear. \"So was there anything else on him that caught your eye? It'd be a super-huge help if he was stupidly walking around with, say, a map with hideouts marked on it...\" \"I did not see anything like that among his belongings. Aside from the Gospel text, he was walking around with exactly what one would expect for a man in his attire,\" TB replied to Subaru's rebound as he checked the confiscated belongings. Certainly, judging from Petelgeuse's attire, it seemed he traveled light. But even if they wrung his neck, dead men told no tales. \"Hey, hey, can't we just leave? No point fussing over everything here, right? Better to finally head back to everyone?\" At that point, Mimi, having stayed out of the conversation so far, spoke up while tossing dirt over the remains. Her tail sticking out from her hem, she pointed at Petelgeuse, now completely buried, and said: \"We've buried the enemy, so isn't it best to check on how everyone else is doing? Hey, we really should! Really!\" \"You say it so innocently, but you're really heartless, wow. With your adorable looks, that contrast's really slapping me in the face.\" \"Hu-huu, calling me cute's gonna make me blush!\" With convenient hearing, Mimi blushed at the part she liked, drawing a strained smile from Subaru. But it was a fact that she referred to a good opportunity. It really was best to ditch the place and regroup with the main force. *** Looking back, Subaru stared at the place, now completely silent. The cave was buried in earth and sand, the minions spectacularly crushed, their trump card rendered useless, Petelgeuse slaughtered before he could pull anything clueless as to what was happening until the bitter end. Via Return by Death, Subaru had seen what future lay before them if he employed his power to its full extent. They'd scored a complete shutout and that meant complete victory against the Witch Cult. It meant that, but  \"Er, no, this is me, right...? There's no way it goes this smoothly. Up till now, no matter how hard I try, there's always a downside. It can't be this good...there's gotta be a catch somewhere...\" \"What's with all the suspicion, meow? Hurry up, there's still a lot to do, isn't there?\" \"A-ah, yeah. That's right... You're right.\" Ferris turned a disbelieving eye toward Subaru, who still couldn't believe the fruits of his labors. Nodding at Ferris's words, he tugged on the back of his hair as he departed the rocky place. Victory. Yes, victory. It wasn't an accident; he'd won. What was wrong with that? \" Maybe he comes back to life as soon as our backs are turned?!\" \"What are you going on about? Ferri is really angry already! Sheesh!\" \"Ow, ow, ow!\" When Subaru looked back, unable to drop his suspicious mind-set, Ferris grabbed hold of his hair and dragged him along. It might have gone without saying, but neither the plugged cave nor Petelgeuse's corpse showed any change. This time, they would truly take their leave. And then, as the icing on the cake  \"Mister's noisy about it, so just to make sure!\" Saying this, Mimi held her cane in her hand. Magic erupted from it and Petelgeuse's grave, along with his corpse, exploded. This time, without exaggeration, Petelgeuse, the Witch Cult's Archbishop of Sloth, was blown to bits. 3 \"From the look of things, it would appear you return with fair tidings.\" With a modest, composed smile, Julius greeted Subaru and the others, who were rejoining the rest of the group after taking Petelgeuse down. They were stationed at an expeditionary-force field camp, constructed outside the forest and somewhat far off from the highway. With the Witch Cultists lurking in the forest, they were avoiding prying eyes from there and the highway to not give away their presence. That said, now that Petelgeuse, their top dog, was dead, it was unlikely the remaining fingers would fail to notice for long. Their future movements required not just caution, but audacious haste. \"What about the fingers' base spotted along the way?\" \"One detachment is still keeping it under watch. They will surely contact us if anything occurs. But the other detachment made inopportune contact and engaged the Witch Cultists in combat.\" \"Serious?! So what happened, then?! Did we lose anyone...?\" Having thought this a routine report, Subaru was stricken with nervousness when he heard it had come to a fight. However, when Subaru pressed closer, Julius gave a strained smile. Hand-combing his slightly disheveled forelocks, he gave his cavalry saber a slight tilt with his hand. \"You may rest easy. Several among the Witch Cultists were formidable, but all were dispatched without difficulty. The base in question was mopped up, so there should be nine fingers left.\" \"...There's no wounded? Also, none of the enemies got away?\" \"Rest easy. We have thoroughly addressed all of your concerns.\" Julius was too classy to conceal his own failures. Hearing there had been neither casualties nor failures, Subaru sighed a breath of relief. Julius gave a slightly pained smile at his reaction as he said, \"And you were not followed? All went according to plan against the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins?\" \"Wilhelm cut off his head, and magic blew his corpse into teeny bits, so that should be it... It should be it, right? Any normal way of thinking, there's no way he'd come back from that, right?\" \"You witnessed it for yourself, so I am uncertain why you look so uneasy.\" Julius skeptically knit his brows at Subaru's lingering suspicions. Then he continued to grimace when he looked at Ferris, standing at Subaru's side. \"...Besides, though I understand the urge to be certain, destruction of remains lacks elegance. And you were with him, Ferris.\" \"Sowwy, Ferri desperately tried to stop them, but Subawu just wouldn't...\" \"Don't say it like it's some tragedy caused by my violent nature!! What's with all the excess theatrics?! I'll have you know, it was the big sis of those kitty siblings that did it!\" When Julius scolded them for violating the dead, Ferris sold Subaru out with a tear in the corner of his eye. Subaru objected to his statement and pointed to the real culprit Mimi, who'd returned along with them. Incidentally, Mimi was sulking from having been scolded for her excess by everyone on the way back. Currently, she was curled over TB's back out of spite, sulking to the point of refusing to walk under her own power. \"I see, Mimi, was it? Then it cannot be helped. She had her reasons, I'm sure.\" \"Her little brothers do it, too, but don't you and Anastasia spoil her a little too much...?\" \"That is neither our intent nor fact. Incidentally, it was Master Wilhelm who struck down the archbishop...?\" Evading Subaru's stare, Julius addressed Wilhelm, looking in the latter's direction. Wilhelm reciprocated, pulling back his shoulders as he said, \"I cut off his head, and without doubt severed the thread of his life. I know of no living creature able"}, {"text": "to live through that.\" \"I am relieved. If Master Wilhelm speaks such a thing, there can be no mistake so this time we have greatly impeded the future activities of the Witch Cult led by Sloth.\" \"What, you didn't believe it when I said it?! I'm not playing around here, so I checked the corpse with my own eyes! Two or three times at that!\" \"I would like you to take my not checking with Ferris as a sign of my sincerity toward you.\" \"Sincerity is based on the word sincere. You knew that, right?\" A vein bulged on Subaru's forehead as he rebuffed the unapologetic Julius. But Julius did not reply to Subaru as he raised an expectant hand toward the other knights and mercenaries. At his signal, conversing voices died out, and with all eyes on Julius, he motioned to Subaru. \"They, too, await your report. It should come from your own mouth. Am I wrong?\" \"You're not wrong, but it annoys me to have you set the stage.\" \"Petty stubbornness, meow...\" Ferris sent an exasperated expression toward Subaru and Julius, arguing regardless of the situation. \"Boys really can be so stupid. And Subawu, especially stupid.\" \"Seen from the outside, a man's pride might often be seen as trivial. Does this ring any bells with you, Ferris?\" \"...Who knows? There might have been someone stubborn like that once upon a time...\" Somehow, Ferris's reply to Wilhelm's words sounded awkward. Turning his face away, seemingly to avoid the aged swordsman's gaze, Ferris made a heavy sigh. With that exchange taking place off behind Subaru, he reported the good news to everyone focused on him. \"So things went pretty much as expected. We took down the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins!\" \"Ohhh \" Narrating with poses and gestures, Subaru made his explanation as vivid as possible, conveying the high points of the success of their operation against the archbishop, bringing joy to the faces of those stewing at having to wait. \"W-wait, wait! No loud voices! They'll hear you!\" *** And they came to the brink of breaking into shouts of joy, which would have made their having camped outside the forest meaningless. No doubt was left that the result was optimal for them all. \"With that done, that leaves moppin' up the stragglers, pretty simple stuff. If we don't hurry, the lady'll be the granny by the time we're done... Ah, that's just a stock joke o' mine.\" \"Somehow, I don't feel like laughing at that one... Well, that's fine, though.\" Setting aside Ricardo's sense of humor, the fact remained that it was best to move nimbly from that point forward. Unfortunately, it was also a fact that the remaining job wasn't as simple as Ricardo made it out to be. \"Just 'cause we beat Petelgeuse doesn't mean everything's wrapped up with a bow, after all.\" \"Won't do any good to be drunk on victory and trip over our own feet, meow. And if they know the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins died, the rest of the Witch Cultists won't be lured out so easily, huh...?\" \"Hey, these are Witch Cultists. Best to stop expecting 'em to have sane, rational thoughts.\" Ferris and Ricardo picked up where Subaru left off, apparently sharing his concerns. The faces of the others seemed to indicate agreement; not a single one seemed slacker at the news of their first victory. \"First off, smashing the fingers under his command is our top priority. Besides that, there's no one here extreme enough to slaughter all the Witch Cultists, right? I'd like us to capture any of them we can...\" \"I have a feeling they'll just kill themselves, though... That's what they've always done to date, after all.\" With Subaru plotting to capture some alive, Ferris's lips thinned in dismay. This was not a rebuttal of the idea, but rather an expression of his disgust toward Witch Cultists who would kill themselves to seal their own lips. To a healer such as him, such craftiness from the Witch Cult was probably a hard thing to take. \"I understand your skepticism, Ferris. But if we can refrain from taking their lives, it is incumbent upon us to do so. I agree that we should prioritize capture when we confront the remaining Witch Cultists. Having said that, we must not lose sight of the fact that our own well-being comes first, to avoid any sudden reversal of fortune.\" With Ferris sullen, Julius was considerate toward him while agreeing with Subaru's opinion. \" And while locating the fingers does come first, we should not neglect that the dragon carriages you arranged should reach us soon enough.\" \"That so? There's that, too, yeah.\" At Julius's declaration, Subaru clapped his hands together, recalling the detachment heading to rendezvous with the expeditionary force. The dragon carriages, which they'd recruited by gathering traveling merchants together from neighboring parts, were for evacuating Emilia and the rest. That said, with Petelgeuse struck down and nothing left of the Witch Cult but remnants, it seemed highly likely that there would be no need for a wholesale evacuation, making all that extra effort for nothing. \"Though that is as planned, it would surely be difficult for the expeditionary force to act in concert with the merchants concerned. We should order them either to remain at the camp, or to go into the village to proceed with the evacuation as agreed. In that case, we should take care not to cause a panic from the arrival of a large force. What do you think?\" \"Think? ...About what?\" \"If there is someone familiar to both the village and the mansion, I believe unnecessary panic can be avoided.\" *** Having blithely followed Julius's lead, Subaru now bit his lips, holding his emotions back. The implicit message was exceedingly simple: now Subaru could return to the mansion in the name of a just cause. Considering that someone had to explain everything, sending Subaru to the mansion as an envoy made even more sense. But  \"Don't make me mix public and private business. I still have things to do out here.\" \"Surely you too are in high spirits. None here would call it mixing the public and private.\" \"I volunteered to be bait against the Witch Cult, and I'm still the best guy for the job... Besides, I don't deserve to go back to the mansion yet.\" Shaking his head at Julius's suggestion, Subaru looked toward the forest and the mansion that lay beyond. The proposal was Julius being considerate in his own way. Even Subaru wasn't suspicious enough to view it as an act of malice. But neither was Subaru dishonest about believing he couldn't show his face there yet. \"You still think so, after all this?\" Subaru's moment of reflection made Ferris's eyes go round as he spoke with a look of disbelief. Ferris spoke the words because he knew all that Subaru had done to that point. He'd formed an alliance with Crusch and her people and cooperated in subjugating the White Whale and crushing the Archbishop of Sloth. Lined up in a row, these successes were more than enough to earn words of admiration. But inside Subaru, their combined weight was not sufficient to wipe away his own stupidity. \"No matter what you do, you can't change the past when you make a mistake, you have to clean it up.\" *** \"That's what Anastasia said to me before. It's harsh, but...I think that way, too. Over in the mountain of things I've piled up to date is a big blob of stupidity. That's why I can't let myself stop halfway.\" In reality, those words had been spoken to him the last time around. Accordingly, Anastasia had never scolded him so sternly in this world. But it was not so inside Subaru. Even if no one else remembered, Subaru would not forget, nor was it something he ought to. \"So I finally can go back when the problem taking care of all of the Witch Cult in the forest is done.\" \"If that is what you say, it shall be so. To begin with, it is a fact that having you is an advantage.\" When Subaru declined to return to the mansion, Julius honored his choice. Almost all those around Subaru displayed an understanding for his assertion. Ferris, the only one with a dissatisfied look to the bitter end, said, \"I'm a little worried you're that hung up about it... I really can't understand why you'd invent so many reasons not to meet the person you really, really, really like. You can just quit if you want to, meow...\" \"Don't harp on people like that. And it's not that I don't want to. You understand, right?\" \"I do not. Ferri's never had a breakup with Lady Crusch like that, meow. Don't blame me if you have regrets for not meeting her when you had the chance.\" \"...Don't harp, geez.\" Perhaps Ferris's anger was that of a healer who'd experienced so much human life and death. His words carried great weight indeed. \"Sir Subaru, there is no need to be overly concerned. When people are young, they are emotional, and their feelings lead them astray. However, these things are not irreparable.\" \"Muuu, Old Man Wil, you spoil Subawu too much.\" \"If I must say so, you are somewhat excessively strict with Sir Subaru though I do appreciate the reason why.\" \"...Don't go talking like you understand it.\" Wilhelm's words made Ferris fall silent with a guilty look. The conversation between the longtime acquaintances conveyed sentiments that only they could understand, flying well over Subaru's head. Though he didn't know the details, Subaru gave Wilhelm a light wave and said, \"Thanks for the follow-up. I feel a little better about it now... It's not like it didn't bother me at all.\" \"At least you seem more at ease. After all, if all it took to solve misunderstandings between men and women were one piece of advice from an old man, far fewer human beings would need worry about such things.\" \"Wilhelm, you felt bad when you argued with your wife, too, huh?\" The way Wilhelm seemed to speak from personal experience made Subaru inquire with renewed interest. When he did so, Wilhelm closed his eyes, seemingly reminiscing about days long past. \"Of course. In my case, my wife was physically invincible when brought to anger. She pounded me into the floor quite a few times.\" \"Sword Saints don't do half measures, geez!!\" \"Afterward, I forced my arms around her, holding her close until her anger abated.\" \"That's like an Easter egg for married life?!\" Somehow, Wilhelm's face looked brighter as he related the tale from life with his beloved. The Sword Devil had plainly come to terms with events in his own past. Subaru, seized by envy, slapped his own cheeks. Awkward as it was, Wilhelm was being considerate to him. He'd be ashamed to call himself a man if he didn't respond to those sentiments. \"I think this is still you thinking too much, Subawu.\" \"Errr, it's not like I made him just spill stuff out about his wife like that...right?\" \" Now then, it would seem we are prepared to depart.\" When Subaru timidly posed the question, Wilhelm pretended not to hear as he looked at the people standing by. Just as the Sword Devil had said, everyone was fully prepared for the next sortie. That Wilhelm's expression was, in a good sense, without tension was the result of the consideration they all showed for him. In a rather banal sense, the large number of adults had bailed Subaru out. \"Man, I sure come off as young and foolish, don't I...?\" It was doubtless small of him to worry about looking that way in the eyes of adults. Even so, it wasn't in Subaru Natsuki not to dwell on it. \"Well, anyway, that's how it is, so...everyone, please and thank you for your cooperation so I can reunite with Emilia-tan on good terms.\" \"It is mildly"}, {"text": "deflating to think of that as our objective.\" Subaru spoke flippantly to gloss over his blush, and Julius responded in kind. Instantly, the faces of all those lined up broke into broad smiles, and that served as their opportunity to head off.  To annihilate what was left of the Witch Cult and claim victory with all members safe. In that moment, Subaru believed without a doubt that they could pull it off. 4 In the immediate aftermath, the Witch Cult hunting proceeded without a hitch. Naturally, when the expeditionary force redeployed, their first stop was where the fingers had already been located. Watched by lookouts from the expeditionary force, the fingers they'd encountered just before taking down Petelgeuse were in a field camp within a grove of trees, a frontline base with excellent sight lines in every direction. But  \"Heya. It's me. Everyone in a good mood?\" *** In lackadaisical fashion, Subaru exposed himself, drawing attention from all the Witch Cultists present. They did not regard him with enmity, but rather with indecipherable solidarity that only ran one way. If Subaru had known nothing of their wicked deeds and acknowledged them as mere enemy combatants, he might have felt pangs of guilt. But Subaru knew the results of the Witch Cultists' vile endeavors, and that their wickedness rendered them unworthy of sympathy. \"Sorry to trick you, but...no, that's a lie. I'm not sorry at all.\" Pricked by their upturned eyes, Subaru tossed such words to the Witch Cultists standing in place. They mulled the declaration over, but it was already too late for them to realize that Subaru was hostile.  A number of silver flashes crossed the battlefield, and the Witch Cultists, reacting too late, tumbled one after another. \"This was more effective than I...\" \"Gah-ha-ha-ha! What the heck?! That's the Witch Cult, and look at 'em! Hey, bro, this might turn into one helluva big achievement for ya!\" The conquest of the camp was finished in a matter of seconds. Julius's eyes went wide at the Witch Cultists, cut down with little resistance, while Ricardo, carrying his great hatchet, grinned in high spirits. By rights, a camp built in a grove like that was to be abandoned at the first sign of an attack. The terrain, open on all sides, made it easy to scatter and escape; worst case, some might slip through and reach other camps, alerting them to the enemy's presence. Such measures had ended before they had a chance to begin. It was all the result of being taken in by Subaru Natsuki, Cult Killer. \"Having said that, even I didn't think it'd work this well.\" The overwhelming results scared Subaru himself more than anyone. It was a perfect victory: the expeditionary force had suffered no casualties, and none of the enemies had been allowed to escape. If anyone there had doubted Subaru was the driving force behind their success, they doubted no longer. However, sowing confusion immediately after contact with the enemy was the limit of what Subaru could do. If he had to put what that meant into words  \" Ah, darn it! This one's done for! And this one! What's with these people?!\" It was Ferris, his tail standing on end, letting up an angry shout as he bound the Witch Cultists. Several black-robed figures rested tumbled at his feet, never to move again. \"They took their own lives?\" Slipping past the indignant Ferris, Wilhelm stripped the hood from one of the fallen figures in black, revealing the face of an ordinary-looking and very dead middle-aged man. Blood had flowed from his eyes, nose, and ears as he expired; if anything stood out, it was his neutral, expressionless look in death. \"The tongue is intact. No sign of using a blade on himself.\" \"They probably all have magic crystals embedded in their bodies, the sort that kill you by sending poison through your system when activated. Antitoxins won't work if the magical elements aren't deciphered prior to death, so they took the time to plant different rituals for each one...the sophistication disgusts me!\" Ferris, mortified, vented as he checked the abdomen of the man-turned-corpse and found a faintly colored magic crystal. Seven Witch Cultists had killed themselves, but Subaru had no doubt that all ten of the cultists at the camp had such crystals embedded in them. \"Maybe it's not just them, and these things are stuck in all of the other fingers, too...? So they killed themselves with poison even Ferris can't stop.\" \"Unforgivable. This is...blasphemy against life. What do they think life is...?!\" As Subaru's voice trembled with shock, Ferris used the back of his hand to roughly wipe away the tears brought on by fierce emotion, transferring blood to his pale cheek in the process. However, viewed from the side, his righteous anger at those who would toy with life itself was covered with both ghastliness and exquisite beauty. It was no doubt because, as a healer, Ferris knew the uncertainties and miracles of life and death more than anyone; he stared at his battlefield, one separate from sword and spell, with a different kind of resolve. *** Standing astride that righteous fury, Subaru couldn't take his eyes off the Witch Cultist corpses lined up in a row. Anyone could see that Subaru lacked the composure to look at them and say, Here are the fruits of my labors, victory without losing a single drop of blood. With the hooded robes stripped from the lined-up Witch Cultist corpses, their faces, hidden in life, were exposed. But the faces that emerged were all those of ordinary men and women. It was hard to believe they'd idolized the Witch Cultist way of life. \"Sir Subaru, it may be best not to pay them so much heed.\" Wilhelm stood in the way of Subaru's gaze, shaking his head. \"You are not accustomed to this, and there is no need to force yourself to be. If you feel responsibility or guilt, these too are unnecessary.\" \"You mean because of the kind of enemy we're facing?\" \"That is correct.\" The firm, unhesitant reply to Subaru was Wilhelm's idea of consideration. Subaru tried to give a pained smile at the harsh show of concern, but he failed. He could only sigh at himself. \"It's not that I sympathize with them, or that I'm beating myself up with guilt. Even I get why I can't be doing either of those things.\" Subaru had no right to lament the Witch Cultists' deaths. He wouldn't even if he did, but it was he who had asked the expeditionary force to annihilate them. Even Subaru wasn't that stupid. But looking at their corpses, Subaru was uncomfortable with the thought that he'd become accustomed to death. \"Not that I'll ever be used to my own death...\" Subaru had already experienced over ten deaths, but he wasn't used to death at all. The sense of loss from his death was always raw, and his fear of it would likely never diminish. In spite of this, Subaru's heart was becoming numb to the deaths of others, and this fact frightened him. \"Seeing their corpses lined up like that makes 'em look like dolls to me... That scared me.\" \"Certainly, they might resemble dolls, doing whatever they are told.\" However, Subaru had not accurately conveyed his sentiment to Wilhelm. This time, Subaru managed a strained smile at the Sword Devil's agreeing with that part. As was exceedingly natural, their view of life's worth differed. Subaru, seized by modern Japanese notions of life and death, accepted death differently from Wilhelm, a man who'd seen countless lives ended on the field of battle. Accordingly, the chasm between their perspectives could not be filled. But Subaru didn't think it needed to be. \"These Witch Cultists...\" When Wilhelm knit his brows at Subaru's strained smile, Subaru continued without switching topics. Aside from matters of death, gazing at their corpses brought a different issue to mind. \"I wonder why they wanted to do all this stuff. The Witch is this weird being hated the world over, so why do they adore her so much...?\" *** His murmur deepened the creases of Wilhelm's brow. Stern looks came over the faces of people around them who'd managed to overhear their conversation. But it was a young boy who broke the silence. \" Perhaps they yearn for destruction?\" It was TB who spoke, his own cane in hand. He did not raise his kitty face, giving his monocle a slight nudge as he said, \"The Witch Cult is infamous the world over, but as you can see, there is no shortage of new converts... Though, I believe such thoughts to be a luxury.\" \"Luxury?\" \"I believe it is a choice to make time for such thoughts when we could be taking action to destroy them. It is not as if they deserve such thoughts.\" Keeping his head bowed till the last, TB fell into silence. The sight of his adorable kitten face rejected further pursuit of the matter. Perhaps he was reminiscing about painful memories from his past. \"Hmm? What? Mister, something happen?\" Though, the fact that Mimi, who ought to have shared his circumstances, did not react to her younger brother's words meant that even she couldn't guess what he meant. But TB had a point. \"Despair at everything and yearning for destruction...huh. I can't say there's no part of me that understands, but...\" Surely anyone pressed by despairing circumstances would have a yearning for destruction, a desire to lash out and wreck anything and everything around them. That inclination was especially strong in Subaru, so he could understand that part. \" You don't need to understand people like them one tiny bit. Don't make me say it over and over.\" Listening to Subaru's comment, Ferris turned stern eyes toward him. Having finished examining the Witch Cultist corpses, he glared at Subaru with a look full of exhaustion and anger. \"You can't give Witch Cultists the benefit of even a single hair of your fur, or else you'll be sucked into the darkness, too... You're particularly vulnerable, Subawu, so be careful.\" \"I get it already, you don't need to keep pounding it into me. So enough with the suspicious gazes, please... It just bothered me a little.\" Responding to Ferris's sharp glare, Subaru raised both hands, excusing himself as he looked at the corpses once more. Now that the Witch Cultists' faces were exposed, they seemed to truly be male and female, young and old alike. He couldn't even guess at what had spurred them to join the Witch Cult. Considering the creepiness of that fact, dismissing them as incomprehensible monsters might be the wisest choice. It was just that Subaru, the trigger for their deaths, felt that dismissing them as incomprehensible monsters was...running from it, somehow. \"Subawu?\" \"Nothin'. Did any of the Witch Cultists have useful info on them?\" \"Nothing whatsoever. They were walking around with nothing but weapons on them, not even a Gospel, like they never intended to return home alive from the start. So stupid.\" They'd reaped neither info nor a sense of success. From the smoldering anger and hostility in Ferris's comment, it'd really gotten under his skin. So Subaru would let him handle raging toward them for the time being. \"Well, I'd better stay calm. Time to get moving and hit a different camp, I guess.\" Subaru did a few squats on the spot, switching mental gears to carrying out decoy duty on a larger scale. Unlike dealing with Petelgeuse and the finger at set camps, luring out the Witch Cultists lurking in the forest would be Witch Cult hunting's main event. Subaru began forging ahead into the forest, searching for a new fishing spot. \"You just watch, you miscalculating bastard. Don't underestimate the power of my posse...!\" \"Real roundabout way of talkin'. I can't tell if yer worked up for this or not...\" Hearing the declaration, a fervent appeal to the power of others, left Ricardo beside"}, {"text": "himself as he grinned. But despite Subaru's fainthearted statement, their advance continued apace. 5 \" Subaru, the traveling merchants you arranged have rendezvoused with the outer camp.\" Julius reported in just after the expeditionary force had annihilated the fourth finger. After the camp in the grove, they destroyed two more camps one on a riverbank, one in a marsh and had determined two things about the Witch Cult: the groups called fingers were organized ten to each camp, and without an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, the groups were more fragile than they'd ever expected. This time, Witch Cultists plotting to assault the mansion and the village had very little ability to respond to unforeseen circumstances. With the scent of the Witch wafting around him, they pretty much did whatever Subaru told them from first sight. The effectiveness of Subaru's decoy operation wasn't a one-shot wonder but, rather, a recurring theme. \"Ohh! They really came!\" Secretly elated as he was that things were going so smoothly, Subaru's voice leaped at the report. He was the one who had arranged for the dragon carriages, but he didn't actually know how many had taken up the offer. Hearing that they had actually assembled eased his feelings of concern. \"Seems like getting 'em all together might prove wasted effort, though. But the fact that they got here safely means that the plains are completely open, then?\" \"There seems to be no mistake about that. The enemy has not realized the mist ended in failure. Accordingly, just as we imagined, they have left the highway unguarded, surely thinking it sealed.\" \"Guess he really didn't have any reason to lie to me. Petelgeuse is the last guy I wanted to take at face value, but that's good news.\" The madman had spoken true. Now that this was clear, he wasn't sure what to say. Either way, Subaru wanted to meet the traveling merchants who had assembled at his behest. He needed to speak to them about the unique situation they'd become involved in, too. \"So we got back to the camp, but...\" Having broken off the decoy operation, Subaru returned outside the forest, scratching his face with a conflicted look. The assembled traveling merchant troupe was the cause of that look. The number of carriages was spectacular beyond his expectations, up to about fifteen. Apparently, the words Name your price had quite an impact. Not that he'd taken an accurate count, but the residents of Earlham Village were under a hundred the carriages were more than enough to evacuate them. \"But they're huddled awfully tight together.\" \"They are intimidated by the turbulent atmosphere. You can hardly blame them.\" The group, clumped together in a corner of the camp, shrank from the sight of knights keeping strict guard. Seeing this, Subaru concurred with Julius's explanation, twisting his neck as he tried to figure out how to explain everything. He was grateful that they'd come together. But whether their mercantile souls were in it was another matter. \"If this is how they are about friendlies, won't they head for the hills if they know this involves the Witch Cult?\" \"Each individual has his own net amount of courage. But you are likely right to be concerned.\" When Julius agreed with Subaru's concerns, the pair's shoulders sank together. By rights, this was where Subaru would clear up the situation, asking them for their cooperation. But looking at them now, he couldn't tell how many had the courage not to flinch from involvement with the Witch Cult. \"Well, having them run off is bad. We'd lose the hauling capacity, but more importantly, I don't want the leftovers to get wind that something's up.\" It was callous, but they were already involved in a callous situation. If ignorance helped them get cooperation on happier terms, it was doubtless better for both sides. \"You don't like what I'm thinking, do you?\" \"I would not call it elegant. But I am not foolish enough to dwell on that in an emergency. Everything has a time and a place. And in this case, I believe the conditions of time and place have been fulfilled.\" \"Roundabout, but that's a yes, huh?\" Accepting Julius's roundabout consent, Subaru met the eyes of the other expeditionary force members to see what they thought of the matter. Fortunately, Wilhelm and Ferris did not raise opinions to the contrary; thus, the proposal to explain the circumstances while glossing over the important parts passed by consensus. \"To begin with, it's possible I have to lie to the villagers to get them evacuated, too, so maybe I should just think of this as a rehearsal...\" Concealing the involvement of the Witch Cult was a necessary measure to avoid needless panic. Subaru told himself that for his own benefit as he stepped in the direction of the nervous merchants. \"Er, thank you very much for coming all this way. Since I'm the one who sent for you, I'll explain the circumstances.\" \"...You did?\" Seeing Subaru step forward as a representative, the traveling merchants looked at one another with surprised faces. Their reaction brought a pained smile over Subaru as he recalled the leading lights in the expeditionary force. With the aged Wilhelm and the chivalrous Julius present, no one had expected Subaru to represent them. Accepting that as the natural reaction, Subaru switched mental gears. When he did so, he realized that the lineup of traveling merchants contained familiar faces, particularly one smack in the middle of them. \"You're...right, I don't remember your name, but you introduced me to Otto the first time. And a bunch of others were helping out when I ran into the White Whale for the first time.\" \"First time? White Whale? What are you talking about?\" \"Sorry, just talking to myself. So about what's gonna happen from here on out...\" His deeply moved words threw the man off, but Subaru papered it over with a smile. Incidentally, he searched to see if Otto was among the traveling merchants, but apparently, he was not. Apparently, the connection between his fate and that of the young man hauling a large amount of oil had been severed. Subaru felt ever so slightly disappointed. \"Either way, this is an important business discussion for all of you, right? Anyway, the offer was name your price for what you're hauling, so I assume you agreed with those terms?\" \"Y-yes, you aren't mistaken. And those terms, your side spoke the truth?\" \"Of course. But the terms were to borrow everyone's dragon carriages. I'm sure you've already been told this, but I want your cooperation in evacuating the nearby villagers during the mountain hunt.\" \"Mountain hunt...?\" Skeptical voices arose, and the traveling merchants all cocked their heads at the discordant ring of the words. It was true that, at present, they were engaged in a mountain hunt to wipe out the Witch Cult. But he couldn't just come out and tell them that, fueling the flames of their cowardice. So this was plan B. \"Demon beasts called Urugarum have built a nest in this forest. As you can see, we've put together a pretty large expeditionary force. I want you to help us get the villagers to safety during the mountain hunt.\"  A brazen, shameless exaggeration of the situation, some two months out of date. \"You put together a rather lifelike tale. Perhaps you have talent as a fantasist, or a writer?\" \"That's not a compliment, is it?\" That was how Julius assessed Subaru, who had eloquently persuaded Team Merchant and secured its cooperation. The details seemed to be resulting in a fight, causing a vein to bulge on Subaru's forehead. \"Cut it out, Subawu. This is just Julius being his normal self. Besides, to be honest, Ferri thinks it was a well-done story, too.\" \"Geez, both of you... In the first place, I didn't have to make up very much. It's a real story from two months ago.\" When Subaru received Ferris's sad assessment, perhaps an attempt to smooth things over (and perhaps not), he let the comment slip with a look of resignation. As he did, the two knights exchanged glances at that particular detail. \"By a real story, were you referring to this forest being colonized by demon beasts?\" \"I'm not sure I'd use the word colonized, but they were here, yeah. But barriers in the forest split the demon beast habitat away from people. This here's a human being area, no problems at all.\" Seeing the wariness in the pair's eyes, Subaru quickly explained why the area around them was safe. The explanation set Julius at ease, but Ferris thinned his lips in Julius's place. \"Subawu, you're not leading Ferri and the others blissfully to their slaughter, are you, meow? We can trust you on that?\" \"That's putting it way too harshly! Didn't you say that Crusch decided to trust me, so you're not going to doubt me, either?!\" \"With all this coming after the fact, it makes me want to start doubting, meow... As for the demon beasts, though, I think Marquis Mathers has a screw loose for building his mansion near a demon beast habitat.\" Subaru grimaced at the sight of Ferris looking toward the mansion and talking like that. To be blunt, to Subaru, life at Roswaal Manor had felt like this world's idea of common sense. Thus, he'd assumed it was normal to have a residence isolated from a nearby demon beast habitat by barriers, but... \"There's no way that could be true, meow.\" \"Without exception, demon beasts instinctively strive to slaughter living beings. They are simply dangerous creatures, unsuitable for domestication or sustenance. Barriers or not, placing residences next to them is unthinkable.\" The pair's instant denials made clear just how nonsensical it had been to place the mansion and village there. Apparently, Roswaal's eccentricity went well past his appearance and personality. \"Along with him not being around this time, I've got way too many things I've gotta say to that bastard...\" Feeling fed up, Subaru shoved the rising sense of weariness to one side. He did so because whether Roswaal was sane or mad, Subaru had experienced firsthand that he always had a convincing excuse. Though Subaru had his doubts about whether such excuses were even necessary, it wasn't the time to think about it. \"Anyway, Team Merchant is happily lending us their resources. That said, we can't bring them on the mountain hunt. So they'll wait at the camp, ready to move any time we need 'em.\" \"Then, we should demand no evacuation, no reward as part of the d \" \"As if I could do something that vicious! Verbal or not, a deal's a deal. We'll keep our promise... That's right, it's important to keep your promises! Understand?!\" \"I I understand, meow, but why are you so worked up about it...?\" Ferris cringed, cowed by Subaru's dramatic overreaction to the issue of the contract. Standing astride that exchange, Julius touched his own forelocks as he looked toward the traveling merchants. \"But it would be careless to leave them here by themselves. Increasing the number of people to protect them all means that we need to divert more people to defending the camp...\" \"Yeah, I think we should leave about half back at camp. Right now, the fishing is going super-well, and if we do find a finger camp, I want to have the option to fight or to run... Hmm, but...\" Julius closed his eyes and shook his head at Subaru's lack of confidence. Just when Subaru thought the reaction meant rejection, Julius continued, \"That is fine. We shall respect your wishes. I believe devoting half our numbers to defense is an appropriate choice. If the fingers are all groups of ten, double their numbers is more than sufficient to deal with them.\" \"The way you act makes it super-hard to know whether you're agreeing or not.\" \"I am often told that it is charming.\" \"It's mysterious, at least. But with that handsome face... Yeah, I can kinda see"}, {"text": "it.\" Though he was compelled to agree, it rubbed Subaru the wrong way. Accordingly, he stuck his tongue out at Julius. \"The Iron Fangs are cut out for mountain hunting, so we'll have the knights defend the place.\" It wasn't exactly a pronouncement from above, but Subaru's declaration reorganized the expeditionary force in short order. As directed, twenty knights remained at the camp to protect the fifteen dragon carriages. The worried expressions on the traveling merchants did not abate, but Subaru gave them an especially cheerful wave, so as not to scare them, before heading for the forest. If things went sour, their cooperation would be indispensable. But the ideal outcome was for all the advance preparation with them to have been for naught. And at that moment, Subaru was convinced that this was no mere dream, but a realistic prospect. 6 \"That makes five down!\" \"Indeed it does.\" Wiping blood from his treasured sword, Wilhelm, having ended his dance of the blade, reacted to Subaru's celebrating shout by drawing himself up. The place was a depression in the western part of the forest, and they had just destroyed the finger camp located there. Dividing the expeditionary force in half had had no effect on the outcome; they had half destroyed the Witch Cultists in the initial attack. That left the enemy with no time to regroup and recover; they fell quickly to the blades of the Sword Devil and \"The Finest.\" \"Ferris, how about it?\" \"...Sorry. Still no good. They got us again.\" But as was now usual, success in preventing them from sealing their own lips remained elusive. Subaru and Julius watched Ferris lower his eyes in abhorrence; neither could find words to speak to him. If Ferris could not do it, no one could but that was no consolation to him. \"Hey, don't get bent outta shape, switch gears. Let's head fer the next one.\" \"Meow?!\" Ferris was still in the dumps when Ricardo roughly rubbed his head, making his slender body shoot to its feet. For an instant, Ferris was surprised by the pushy attempt to console, but he immediately slapped his own cheeks and began walking anew. Seeing Ferris like that made Ricardo bare his fangs, grinning in satisfaction. Seeing him behave that way, Subaru could appreciate that Ricardo had long led his organization. \"Mmm, the wins are too easy, I need more exercise... How do you feel, TB?\" \"I think it is good when jobs are simple. If I make my darling sister do dangerous things, our brother will raise a fuss, so this is preferable.\" \"Nnn! You're such weaklings for boys!\" Despite their clash of personalities the uninhibited older sister versus the intellectual younger brother the beast person siblings made quite a combo in combat. Mimi left no openings on attack or defense, and TB was surprisingly belligerent in his follow-ups. Ricardo was leader of the pack in might and command ability, with the powerful sibling lieutenants following in his footsteps. It had been just as hard to get their cooperation as to get Wilhelm's and Ferris's. As allies, they were incredibly reliable, and so a thought came to Subaru's mind. \"I guess when this is all done we go back to being rivals, huh...?\" \"It seems you have the leeway to worry about the future.\" As Subaru indulged in sentiment, Julius stood beside him, wiping the blood from his cavalry saber. His crisp handsomeness never seemed ruffled in the midst of combat. He brushed the edge of his white mantle with an elegant gesture. Subaru hated to admit it, but Julius's point was sound. He averted his gaze while scratching his cheek. \"My bad. Maybe I'm letting my guard down a bit because it's gone insanely smoothly.\" \"I did not go as far as to call it bad. As a matter of fact, we are functioning so well, none would think we were so hastily assembled. I can understand why you find the relationships between us to be...regrettable.\" \"...Man, I didn't expect that from you.\" Subaru had anticipated barbed sarcasm, but Julius's show of sympathy made him widen his eyes. For his part, Julius's shoulders sank, Subaru's reaction having been an unexpected one. \"The royal selection has begun, and we find ourselves in rival camps. But wherever we stand in the dispute, we can accept the help of others in a common cause. Perhaps we should regard feeling this for ourselves so early after the start of the selection process as our good fortune?\" \"...Can't really think of the Witch Cult going after Emilia as 'good fortune.'\" \"I suppose not. I am sorry, that was inconsiderate of me.\" Julius immediately apologized for his faux pas, touching his own forelocks as he sighed. Subaru felt small for his reflexive indignance in contrast to Julius's forthright remark. Deep down, Subaru and Julius felt the same way. Of course, they couldn't ignore the menace closing in on Emilia and the villagers. With that tragic spectacle in mind, Subaru couldn't call it \"good fortune\" to save his life. But if you set that circumstance aside, the relationships among the people assembled were by no means poor. Enough to make you think it would be a waste for them to go back to being enemies after driving off the Witch Cult. \"Really is careless of me to worry about it, though. I'm being an idiot.\" No matter how smoothly things were going, they were still only halfway to settling the problem. Not that he was putting a wreath of laurel on his own head, but the enemy wasn't even in checkmate; it was far too early to treat victory as assured. In ancient times or modern, Occident or Orient, one rule held true: the danger was always greatest when you thought everything was in the bag. \" Sorry for flaking out on you like that. I'll get back to fishing, so I'm counting on all of you.\" Pressing a fist into his own cheek, Subaru used the dull pain to get himself going again. \"Fishing\" meant casting Subaru as bait for the Witch Cult. In practice, that meant Subaru coming into contact with Witch Cultists without anyone else's intervention. Accordingly, during the time they'd walked around the forest searching, Subaru had acted alone or at least, with his allies nowhere to be seen around him. The expeditionary force was tailing Subaru from a medium-to-long distance behind. His allies needed to leave no trace to find, the better to draw the Witch Cultists to Subaru like moths to a flame. And the next time proved no exception. \"Oh \" When they finished searching deep in the western part of the forest, he immediately judged that they should switch to the riverside. Subaru was just feeling the cool air around him when he saw shadows gliding in front of him. *** Four Witch Cultists appeared, the largest number he'd bumped into. This development, differing from events at the three camps already crushed since the start of the \"fishing,\" made Subaru's heart strongly leap. *** Clapping his hands together was the signal that something unforeseen had happened. But if the \"fishing\" failed once, the other fingers would become suspicious, and straight-up combat with the Witch Cult would become unavoidable. Therefore  \" Heya. Mind if I take a look around?\" Subaru forced his contracting heart to expand, somehow managing to toss a smile their way. The Witch Cult looked fondly upon his smiling face, which they would have judged harshly in normal times. As was typical, the Witch Cultists were still silent; even in numbers, they displayed no enmity for Subaru. \"Good thinking, moving in bigger groups, but there's no problem over here. There's no problem, you can go back to your place. Mmm, yes, do that, please.\" *** \"I outrank you here, right? Best to grease the wheels and do as you're told, I think?\" *** The silence after he gave the directive was bad for his heart. As a matter of fact, stress and unease made its sound and pace skyrocket as cold sweat broke out on the back of his neck. But the suffocating atmosphere did not continue as long as it felt like to Subaru. Within tens of seconds, or perhaps only ten, the Witch Cultists respectfully bowed and did as Subaru had instructed. \" Phew.\" Relieved of the tension making even his lungs harden, Subaru wiped off his cold sweat. With the cultists on the move, he made the hand signal for success and quickly moved in pursuit. Normally, the fingers only moved in a limited range from the closest camp. Most likely, these were not out on patrol, but had merely sensed Subaru's presence and been drawn to it. When Subaru told them to return to their lair, they returned to camp without the slightest suspicion. Thanks to that, it'd take less than five minutes to follow them to the camp. Though the number he encountered had been higher this time, their total would be the same as  \" ?! They split up?\" Subaru gazed in wonderment as the detachment of four people he was following behaved contrary to his expectations a first. Suddenly, the group of four split into two, with three to one side and one the other. They began walking in different directions without the slightest hesitation in their steps. *** With one acting solo and the others in a group of three, the risk of losing the solo one was far higher. After only a second of thought, Subaru immediately called his allies with a hand signal. Mere seconds later, members of the Iron Fangs lined up beside him. \"They split up. I'll go after the one by himself. The other three...\" \"Right on. We got this.\" The fox-man literally a young man with a fox head accepted Subaru's instructions, heading toward where the group of three had vanished from sight. Before their own backs vanished from Subaru's sight, he cautioned, \"Do not lay a hand on them. If you spot their camp, regroup with the others.\" \"You got it.\" Giving his slender mustache a flick, the fox-man leaped into the forest to Subaru's right without so much as a sound. Subaru watched him go but had no time to rest on his laurels. He urgently resumed his pursuit of the Witch Cultist heading off solo. Fortunately, he immediately caught up with the lone Witch Cultist. Gently and carefully, he followed the figure deeper and deeper into the forest. Keeping his head down, Subaru roughly wiped away the sweat threatening to get into his eyes. In point of fact, it was pointless for Subaru to keep his breath down and tail the Witch Cultist in secret. Subaru possessed no ability to conceal his presence, and the Witch Cultist walking before him had probably been aware of Subaru's pursuit the whole time. He said nothing in spite of that because he was obeying the directive of Subaru, who \"outranked\" him. He'd judged that Subaru's inexplicable actions were for the benefit of the Witch Cult. Not that he could see into their minds, but he could deduce it was probably along those lines.  But if that was so, Subaru wondered even more why the four-man team would split up. Not that it was his intention, but Subaru held command authority rivaling that of an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. He didn't know what would make someone go as far as to defy his orders to head off by himself. Subaru's heart beat a little faster as he wondered if this was connected to some kind of fatal oversight on his part. *** He squinted, focusing on the movements of the cultist ahead of him. The surrounding scenery was bothering him, perhaps because he was abusing his eyesight. The forest all seemed the same to him somehow, as if he'd stumbled into a place giving him d\u00c3\u00a9j\u00c3 vu. He felt as if he was stepping into familiar territory   Is that really just a feeling? As he went down a game trail unworthy of being called a"}, {"text": "path, stepped over big tree roots, leaped over a gully at his feet, and walked past mushrooms that looked poisonous, the unease inside Subaru changed to certainty. It can't be! The biggest alarm bell in Subaru's skull went off. He clenched his teeth and ran forward. When it seemed he might stumble, he toughed it out, plunging forward until the forest before him opened wide. Then  \"What the hell are you doin'?!\" When green fell away from his field of vision, he leaped into the ash-gray scene before his eyes. Some several hours before, the rocky place that had become a battlefield had been a caved-in cavern and an unmarked grave. But the writhing Witch Cultists were defiling the grave, seemingly trying to unearth the remains of the madman buried there.  For this was the final resting place of Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti. *** When Subaru spontaneously raised his voice, the Witch Cultists' eyes gathered upon him. The Witch Cultists defiling the grave numbered nine; the lone man he'd followed made ten a finger. They'd noticed Petelgeuse's death. At the very least, this finger had to be annihilated. *** The finger moved as one at about the same time that Subaru internally came to that conclusion. The Witch Cultists who knew Petelgeuse was dead instantly reached out toward Subaru. Subaru didn't know if they were trying to kill him or nab a replacement for their Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. He would never know, for the results were permanently erased by the running silver slash that followed. Blood spatter scattered as the diagonal blow severed a Witch Cultist in half. The black-robed figure spewed dark red as he collapsed. His silent death throes signaled the start of the battle. \"Sir Subaru, get behind me.\" Wilhelm, taking the first kill, lightly pushed Subaru behind him. As Subaru tottered, Ricardo's huge frame and Julius's slender physique slipped past his flanks, with their differing forms of enmity flying. The battle was one-sided. Because of Subaru's blunder in impulsively leaping forward, the battle began under fairer conditions. But the expeditionary force paid no heed to this, crushing the Witch Cultists with overwhelming martial force. In a few tens of seconds, the battle was decided, and the battlefield soon contained only the fallen corpses of the cultists. \"What were they trying to do here anyway?\" Watching the end of the battle, Subaru raised his voice in the barren place turned battlefield once more. No one replied to his question. The Witch Cultists were silent, saying nothing; the last one killed himself in Ferris's arms despite the latter's best efforts. They had no time to be elated at crushing a new finger. \"It is as if they were digging in the earth, searching for something...\" \"What they were digging up is the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins' grave. Well, I call it a grave, but Mimi just buried him with dirt, and it was Mimi who blew him up, too.\" Having been unearthed from the grave, the madman's corpse was on the surface, lined up with the others. In the first place, the remains were nothing but a headless torso; as a result of the explosion, even that had been cruelly changed to fragments. Subaru couldn't even guess what the cultists had been looking for among the fragments, little more than clumps of flesh. But  \"...I've got a bad feeling about this.\" The Witch Cultists had disinterred the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins in search of something. They'd had a reason to unyieldingly persist in the work, even so far as to disobey Subaru's command. There were four fingers left  \"Let's regroup with the other ones following the group of three. Gotta hurry.\" The disquieting worry stirring deep inside his chest would not subside. Pressing a fist to his chest, Subaru forced himself to ignore the ache as he hurried to rejoin the fox-man's detachment. They returned to the forest, following that detachment to a different site. He trusted that the unease would pass once they caught up  7 *** The cruel scent of blood hung in the air. Lukewarm air wafted among the trees, and the stench of scattered internal organs pricked at his nose. White-hooded leather outfits were strewn around the area, each with its \"contents\" still inside. None remained in one piece. Some supernatural power had torn them limb from limb. \"...Don't look like...any survived, huh?\" Subaru was in shock, unable to speak. In front of him, Ricardo spoke with a snort. A dog-man like him, with sensitive smell even among beast people, had sensed something amiss before anyone else, breaking into a run. When Subaru and the others caught up, he looked back and spoke those words. They succinctly summed up the tragic end. \"H-healing... We've gotta...heal the wounded, or...\" \"I told ya. No survivors. There ain't no wounded here, man.\" When Subaru spoke with a shaking voice, Ricardo shook his head, his usual haughtiness muted. He wasn't trying to rub it in; it was simply obvious at first glance. Namely, that the comrades supposed to be there had been slaughtered, leaving not even a single survivor. \" A disturbing situation. The fight was entirely too one-sided.\" \"Agreed. Considering how well the Iron Fangs are trained, it is difficult to think they could be so overwhelmed.\" With Subaru's mind struck by the surreal sight, unable to keep up, the conversation continued without him. When he looked around, he saw Julius and Wilhelm agree that it was disturbing. \"One-sided...?\" \"It is precisely that. There are no corpses save those of Rajan and our other allies here. It is unnatural by any measure.\" *** \"Even against the Witch Cult, it is unthinkable they would be killed without putting up resistance. The Iron Fangs are so elite, it is barely imaginable the enemy would strike down even one... A strange situation, is it not?\" When Subaru stayed silent, Julius mulled over the situation, but Subaru had no time to answer. In the first place, it was something else that bothered him. It wasn't simply the situation disturbing Subaru's thoughts. It was the initial impact, well before that, which he couldn't move on from. \"Why are you acting like this is normal...?\" \"Subaru?\" \"We came rushing and our buddies are dead, you know?! So why are you acting like this is no big...\" \"We cannot change what has happened, just as one cannot change the past.\" Subaru was speechless, and Julius pulled his gaze away, walking toward Ferris. Ferris had said nothing to this point, but unlike Subaru, he hadn't been standing still. He was looking at one beast person corpse after another, examining their wounds.  When joined together, these clumps of flesh would surely turn into their former comrades. Subaru wondered if the young fox-man pursuing the Witch Cultists was the one Julius had called Rajan. Subaru recalled his aloof face and witty phrases uttered in Kararagi dialect. He and the other four beast people had been cruelly ripped apart to the point that they were unrecognizable. \"Ferris, have you learned anything?\" \"...Let's start with no survivors. Based on the state of the wounds, it seems like they were taken down by the same person, but these aren't blade wounds. Of course, it wasn't magic, either. They were torn apart by force.\" \"Some guy was sayin' there were demon beasts around, huh? Gimme a break...\" When Ferris calmly gave his report, Ricardo gave an appropriate sound through his canine teeth. Subaru, brought back to reality by the sound, wobbled into the exchange. \"Torn apart... You're not saying this was by demon beasts?\" \"These aren't bite wounds, so I don't think we need to worry about that. It feels more like brute strength. But it seems like they died pretty much instantly, so I don't think they suffered much.\" \"...Why are you mentioning something like that...?\" \"Because I thought it might put your mind at ease a little, Subawu.\" Unfortunately, Ferris's show of consideration had no such effect on Subaru's mind. There was nothing to death save death. As a result, whether they'd suffered or not was of little import. It didn't change the fact that Subaru and the others had not saved them, or that they had died without putting up a fight. \"I...I should have been...more on top of things...!\" \"Sir Subaru, I understand your feelings of regret. However, this is not the time or place.\" \"Wilhelm...\" \"A Witch Cult site is likely nearby. Since our allies were attacked, we should assume the terrain favors the enemy. We should pull back and regroup.\" With Subaru threatening to be engulfed by the scene, Wilhelm shook his head as he grasped the boy's shoulders, making Subaru set his regrets aside. The Sword Devil's words were heartless, but true. If they persisted in standing still due to the deaths of their allies, they would only put their other allies in danger a foolish exercise. They were already in combat with this finger. Just as with the finger at the rocky place, Subaru was useless, nothing but dead weight. \"Then let's pull back fer now, come back for revenge later.\" With a heave of his jaw, Ricardo announced their departure from the tragic sight. He asked if any objected, but none did, certainly not Julius or Wilhelm, or even Mimi as she consoled a tearful TB. \"...We should at least take something of them.\" \"That's accounted for already. No more than rings or hair, though.\" Ferris quietly replied to the reluctant Subaru. When he gave a pocket a light pat, Subaru realized Ferris had taken care of it while he'd been standing stiff. Having lost all reasons to remain, Subaru seemed to cling to the tragic sight as he looked back at it one last time. *** The remains, lined up atop bare soil, were comrades he'd traded words with tens of minutes before. As he gazed upon that death, Subaru's mind let out a heavy, painful scream. Why was Subaru's mind continuing such frenzied shouts that moment? It was because  \"Subawu, we have to go.\" \"...I know.\" Neither time nor his allies gave Subaru any chance to wallow. Ferris called out to Subaru, still unable to find the words to give to the remains, and Subaru followed the others, the last to leave that place. And then he noticed something. The presence of jet-black hands slipping through the gaps in the trees, creeping closer without a sound. \"Get down !!\" *** When the evil hands seemed to slip out from the darkness, Subaru was in a daze as he shouted. The ones able to instantly respond to the sudden directive were Wilhelm and the other heavy hitters. They didn't ask why like a bunch of idiots they instantly crouched, escaping the hands sailing over the ground. However, the hands caught those who reacted too slowly, displaying their thoroughly wicked might. \"Gya !\" Those who remained standing screamed no, they were not screams; they were death cries. The black-dyed arms stretched the necks of the slow-to-react knights, fatally gouging out their throats. The fingers seemed to move without resistance, rending human flesh with the ease of passing through water. Blood spurted forth, and multiple lives were snuffed out right before Subaru's eyes. Subaru was in shock from this, but immediately after, others unfroze and raised their own voices. \" What is it? What happened?!\" \"I don't know! Blood spurted from their throats all of a sudden...\" They, aghast at the slaughter of their allies, could not see what had created this death. In other words, this was greater proof than anything that they were the black, evil hands known to Subaru. Thus, Subaru thrust aside his feelings of disbelief. \" It's Unseen Hands!!\" he shouted. The black hands that had brought death to their allies these were none other than Petelgeuse's Unseen Hands. But that was impossible. The madman controlling them had died for certain. His torso had been cut in half, and the only things they'd found left of his corpse were fragments. Ferris had firmly"}, {"text": "stated that recovery was impossible. \"So who the hell is using Unseen Hands then?!\" Subaru's voice was raw with surprise. The pitch-black hands dancing in the sky reacted. Multiple hands moved like the heads of snakes, their fingers turning menacingly toward him. Their numbers were probably thirty an invisible menace in numbers somewhat above what Petelgeuse had controlled. \"Sir Subaru! Indicate the arms' locations!\" Wilhelm shouted, sword poised, with Ferris tumbled at his feet. The Sword Devil's request caused those who had initially taken flight to look at Subaru. Their morale was hardly broken, but they had no countermeasure beyond Subaru. Understanding his duty, Subaru squinted at the evil hands. He would not let them add to the corpses of his allies. However, as if to mock his determination, the evil hands... \"They vanished...?!\" The hands made of black mist gently dissolved into dust from the fingertips down. In an instant, the thirty hands dissipated. Subaru, unable to discern his opponent's intent, watched with a stiff face. \"Bro, what happened to the attack?! Where's it comin' from?!\" \"They vanished! They were pulled back! I don't know why!\" Replying to Ricardo's angry shout with an angry shout of his own, Subaru desperately swept his gaze across the area. Subaru was the only one who could detect Unseen Hands, which attacked with neither sound nor aura. The life or death of his allies depended on his actions. That fact made Subaru earnest in his efforts. Accordingly, he neglected to care for himself. \"Ugh ?!\" The bad feeling suddenly arising at the back of Subaru's neck made him raise a cry of pain. The next moment, his neck bones seemed to creak from the powerful grip raising him, pulling his feet off the ground. Floating in the air, he could neither kick at the ground nor stand firm. His limbs writhed and flailed, but Subaru's body was pulled into the darkness in a single swoop. \"No! Subaru !\" \"Julius, don't! The enemy's here!\" Julius immediately reached out, but he was interrupted by Ferris's bloodcurdling cry. The instant before they were separated, Subaru's eyes spotted a group of black figures bursting out of the forest Witch Cultists attacking his wary allies from the flank. \"Shit! Let me go, damn it...!\" As sword began to ring against sword, Subaru alone was being pulled away from the battlefield. As he swung his limbs, they struck tree branches, picking up painful scrapes in the process, but he had no time to care about that. The hand restraining him possessed tremendous physical strength, carrying Subaru with movements impossible for any man-made device. That, and the fact that he couldn't break free, made it easy for him to guess what was pulling him. That very moment, Subaru was being whisked away by Unseen Hands. Therefore, his enemy was  \"Gu aaah !\" The impact forced an interruption in his thought process. The forced floating in midair came to an end when his back was slammed against a large tree. After that, Subaru was pressed against the trunk, legs still off the ground, suspended in midair as he came face-to-face with his foe. \"Geheh! Shit! Who the hell is...?\" \"Ahh my brain is shaking.\" *** When Subaru coughed, turning his eyes toward his surroundings, that phrase froze his heart. The nonsensical line seemed to flow into his ears as if it were teasing him, but it was far too evil to ignore. Slowly, the darkness seemed to dissolve as a slender figure walked out of it. So far as Subaru knew, the Witch Cultists all wore the same hooded black robes, and this figure was no exception. But this individual left the hood down, leaving a face exposed. *** For an instant, Subaru hallucinated that this figure was Petelgeuse's body double. But an instant later, he rejected the idea. The figure resembled the madman yet was different somehow. After all, the person appearing before Subaru was a young, redheaded woman with conspicuous freckles. \"So why...? What are you...? What the what the hell...?!\" With strong pressure over his entire body, Subaru writhed, moaning in pain as he looked down at the woman. The previous finger exterminations had already established that the Witch Cultists were male and female, young and old alike. Having a woman as his enemy was nothing to be shocked over, but Subaru's fright would not abate. The problem was not his opponent's gender it was that the woman and that madman were two of a kind. The woman made Subaru feel disgust and terror rivaling those caused by Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti himself. They absolutely had nothing to do with the fact that the shadows wriggling at her feet were keeping Subaru bound. \"You're...Petelgeuse's...what...?! Get these hands off me...!\" \" A finger, you SEE.\" \"Ah?\" Forcing his shudder back down, Subaru wrung out a raspy voice with which to speak to her. The instant after that voice raised Subaru's doubts, the woman forcefully shook her head like a spring-operated doll. Then she raised her right hand and put a finger into her mouth; this, she violently bit and crushed. The dull sound, the droplets of fresh blood, they were that madman's blasphemous self-harm through and through  \"I am a finger! One rewarded with Her favor! A diligent diiisciple carrying out the trial, faithfully obeying the guidance of Her love! Ahh! Ahh, are you lazy?!\" \"Uu...!\" The woman waved her bloody finger, scattering droplets of blood around as she instinctively unveiled her madness. The sight of the angrily raging woman who called herself a finger made Subaru squirm, forgetting all about how hard it was to breathe. That madness, that insanity, that irritable behavior, repeating that same stupid phrase to vilify his opponent it wasn't just her ability to use the authority. Even setting aside the eccentric mannerisms, the woman had far too much in common with the madman to ignore. Confidant. Successor. A Priest of the Seven Deadly Sins rather than an archbishop. Various possibilities raced inside his head. But she didn't fit any of them. If he had to put a more proper, more accurate label on what he felt  \"A dead ringer...a copy? With Petelgeuse's exact personality...!\" He couldn't help but think of the woman as Petelgeuse himself rather than someone who merely resembled him. Perhaps that itself was what the term finger signified. Perhaps the fingers had literally been part of Petelgeuse... \"If that's so, worst case doesn't even cover it...!\" \"Being able to recover you this early is a great relief! You are troublesome, you are dangerous, you are particularly vile! You can see Unseen Hands, can you not?\" \"...No comment...\" \"You cannot hold your SILENCE with me! You have been captured by Her favor, when by riiights you would be discarded as rubbish! Thiiiis cannot be mere happenstaaance! When it is not once, but twice, it is not happenstance, but inevitability! And inevitability INSTILLS diligence!\" Her inability to listen to others was just like the original's. As she opened her eyes wide enough that her eyeballs threatened to pop out, saliva scattered from the madwoman's long tongue. Ordinarily, that would be bad enough, but the ugliness of her fury ran far deeper than that surface. \"Now, now then, then then then. Although THIS is extremely regrettable, there is something that I SIMPLY must confirm. Who are you, and what is your purpose?\" \"What am I doing...?\" Subaru grimaced at the question, his disgust with his unsightly opponent plain. When he parroted the words back, the madwoman stretched a hand to the sky. \"Yes! That is precisely what I ask! The favor you wear is far greater thaaan that of an ordinary believer, rivaling the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins themselves! If so, are you indeed this generation's Pride? Pride, come here to carry out the trial in the place of Sloth?!\" \"You pull this as soon as you make me think you're gonna take it easy and spare my life...? And if you think I am him, why are you puttin' the screws to me like this...?!\" \"Even if you are an archbishop, it is an unwritten rule we do not interfere with one another! Beyond that, if this is to result in conflict, there is only greater diligence! To push forward and persist against any obstacle in THE way of love! After all, illogical clashes are far from rare!\" The madwoman responded to Subaru's question with a loud, derisive, insane laugh. Sure, fanning the flames of internal competition sounded great in theory, but she'd just proudly exposed her organization as a collection of egotistical maniacs. In other words, as far as she was concerned, if Subaru was Pride, that made him her enemy. \"If you are Pride, the empty seat among the sins has beeeeen filled! Once the trial is completed, we must assemble the remaining sins so that the Witch may display her favor to us! And for that, among other things \" *** \"I must begin the trial early so that you may sever your lingering attachments. Tomorrow? No, beginning right now! Naturally, I ask that you watch until the very end!\" The madwoman gleefully thrust her demand into Subaru's face from a position of absolute superiority. This was a worst-case scenario. She meant to move up the trial in other words, to rush the plan of attack. The madwoman continued to loudly extol her misunderstanding, making her murderous urges all too clear to Subaru. Of course, he couldn't let her go through with it. There was little merit in playing for time, keeping the madwoman tied down in that place. The worst thought to strike him was that it was possible this female Petelgeuse copy was not the only one who could use the authority. Accordingly, Subaru had to convey this to his comrades without a second to lose  \"Even so...shit! Even if I see 'em, I can't do anything about 'em from my end!\" The largest obstacle to regaining his freedom was the Unseen Hands still keeping him pinned. When he felt his neck grabbed and reached back, Subaru's fingers passed through the haze, unable to affect it. As Subaru cursed the wholly unnatural phenomenon, the madwoman nodded. \"So you can indeed see my Unseen Hands. I am exceedingly dissatisfied, disturbed, dismayed, discontented at the absurdity of this, but this proves you are iiindeed Pride!\" \"Don't make me say it twice... Ahh, it's the first time for you, is it? I'm not your Pride I haven't even gotten my special admission book yet...!\" \"What obstinacy! However, even you shall become more cooperative, and s \" When Subaru resumed struggling, the woman's visage twisted in wicked delight as she stared at the sight. But the instant her slender arm subconsciously groped in a pocket, the woman's words were cut off, her expression vanishing. \"...That is right.\" The woman drew her hand out of her own pocket as she haltingly spoke. It held nothing in it. The fact that it held nothing made the madwoman claw at her own face, gouging the flesh as she shouted, \" Gospel!!\" *** Subaru's body went rigid at the reverberation of the throat-splitting scream. It was a sudden explosion of emotion. Her scratch wounds did not fit the rawness of the word, so the woman deepened the lacerations on her cheek as she looked up at Subaru, the object of her rage, flesh under the fingernail she turned toward him. \"Even if this diminutive body offers ten thousand words spent, ten thousand lives taken, ten thousand human laments, it is insufficient! A guide is necessary so that my foolish, immature self MAY properly repay Her favor! And for that purpose, the Gospel! Which is now beyond my grasp!\" \"Uu...\" \"If it was lost, then where?! Ahh, but I understand. My Gospel, the guide of my love! You, youyouyouuu must have seized it!\" When she directed her unstable hatred toward Subaru, the malice thrust through him, chilling his spine. The madwoman, rightful heir to Petelgeuse's spirit, brought her bloody visage close to Subaru. \"Stay back...!\" Her approach made Subaru feel the presence of death,"}, {"text": "something he had not tasted in some time. When death drew near, it had a scent that only Subaru could pick out. It was this death that hovered around the woman's body as she came to seal Subaru Natsuki's fate. \"It is futile to struggle any further. This is as far as youuu...\" Responding to the madwoman's mocking voice, the evil hand's grip made Subaru's neck bones creak. He was on the verge of losing consciousness, sinking into a lethal abyss. \" What is this?\" \" Aah \" The questioning voice led to a slackening of the grip, letting Subaru breathe easier for that single instant. Subaru forced his hazy eyes open to see for himself what had created that time for him. Then Subaru saw it: a wavering, flickering cluster of red light, right before his eyes. \"What th...?\" \"Spirit !!\" Before Subaru could figure out what the light was, the madwoman raised a vivid, hateful shout. For its part, the light responded with vibrant clarity. The light surged, as if about to explode, burning Subaru's and the woman's eyes with white light. 8 *** When the light exploded without warning, Subaru let out a shriek and bent backward. The pain, like needles stuck in his retinas, brought a flood of tears, making him cover his face with his palms and the next moment, he was hurled free. \"Whoaaa!\" The instant Subaru, overtaken by the floating feeling, realized he had escaped from the hand, he moved to break his fall. He rolled feetfirst over the root of a large tree, minimizing the damage from the fall. Thanks to the Sword Devil's lessons, he was an expert at breaking falls after being sent flying. He rubbed his eyes with the backs of his hands and lifted his face. \"That was...er, uh-oh!\" When he lifted his head up to check the situation, the pitch-black hand came at high speed to mow him down. Subaru shuddered at the attack, which would have knocked his head clean off had it hit, and glared at the culprit in outrage. When he did so, the madwoman concerned was covering her face with her palms as she blindly flailed at the surrounding area with innumerable evil hands. \"Spirit...! Spiriiiiit!!\" The woman poured hatred onto the spirit, perhaps simply that aggrieved from the blow it had given her. However, the light was nowhere to be seen. The madwoman was merely wrecking the woods in anger, as if trying to inflict even a glancing blow on the offending spirit. She'd completely taken her attention off Subaru. That moment, he was free to choose whether to attack or flee. \"I'll run, then!\" A greedy choice, like evading the wildly flailing hands and landing a single blow to the madwoman's vitals was beyond Subaru's means. Rather than engage, the better option was to secure combat capability. \"We can't let her be. But I need Wilhelm-level combat strength here! Should be that \" \" You called, Sir Subaru?\" In his haste to rendezvous with the others, Subaru's eardrums were greeted by the voice he most wanted to hear. When he turned around, his eyes were greeted by the sight of a white-haired, elderly man the Sword Devil slipping through a gap in the grove and rushing over. \"Wilhelm!\" \"That was most concerning. I am very sorry I could not be here sooner.\" Wilhelm, carrying his treasured sword in pursuit, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Subaru was safe. Subaru, delighted at the best reinforcements he could hope for, blinked hard when he noticed the red light floating atop Wilhelm's head. That glow was none other than that of the spirit that had just saved Subaru from peril. \"That's the spirit from earlier... Wilhelm, don't tell me you use spirits?!\" \"Unfortunately, I have no talent beyond the sword. It is purely on loan from its proper contractor. However it would seem you are in need of my specialty.\" Wilhelm had stepped in front of Subaru by the time he finished those words. The ghastly aura radiating from the Sword Devil was great enough that the madwoman, eyes seared by the light, noticed and turned toward it. \"Ahh, SO there you are... You, you shall not escape...!\" The bloodstained woman's madness was directed at both Wilhelm and the spirit attending him. \"The enemy's in the same league as an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins! You saw earlier how strong Unseen Hands are. Even you can't just take her on from the fr \" \"No matter. Knowing they are invisible, I have ways to deal with them.\" When Subaru warned him of the seething woman's madness, the Sword Devil made that firm reply as he stepped forward. The sudden move startled Subaru, and even amid her villainy, the woman was dubious as well. \"What is this? Your head, your life...do you come to present these to me? If so, that is a WISE and diligent choice! I would like to respond with all due respect. However...\" \"Invisible hands, is it? A most interesting parlor trick I must experience it at least once.\" \"...Did you call this a parlor trick?\" For a moment, Wilhelm's words made the madwoman's madness vanish. Wilhelm responded to her utterance by lowering his sword, beckoning her with his open hand Come on, he taunted. \" ! This foolish endeavor is to abandon all logic! And to discard logic is lazy!!\" \"Wi \" Mad with rage, the woman thrust both hands forward; simultaneously arms spewed from her shadow, assaulting the Sword Devil. Their ferocity compelled Subaru to instantly shout for him to dodge, but he wasn't in time. The black, evil hands ought to have grasped Wilhelm's limbs, cruelly rending his flesh asunder  But they did not. A silver flash ran across the sky, and droplets of blood spurted from the woman's neck. \"If the human launching the attack is in plain sight before you, it can be anticipated, invisible or not. By watching the movement of her eyes, feeling her hostility, reading how she breathes as she aims, it was all too clear.\" *** The Sword Devil made that frightening declaration having completely anticipated the pitch-black, evil hands, striking them down with his sword. Without exaggeration, his evasive timing was perfect; his talk of reading her breaths was no mere boast. His shocking combat skill had blunted the advantage posed by the invisible hands. \"How, how, how can this...?\" And without doubt, the madwoman's shock was even greater than Subaru's. She pressed a palm to the right side of her neck, taking in the feeling of the blood smearing it from the fresh cut. The very fact that the woman had dodged just prior to Wilhelm's sword strike, the action saving her life, was itself abnormal. \"Damn it, she threw herself with her own power...\" In concert with the sword strike, the woman had leaped backward in an unnatural pose and with unfathomable speed. The shadowy arm had grabbed and tossed the woman's body, narrowly saving her life from the Sword Devil's blade. However, as a consequence, the evil hand's gripping power had crushed her left shoulder. It was a violent emergency evasive maneuver of sorts with no room for subtlety. However, the woman patted her crushed shoulder, glaring at Wilhelm as she said, \"What...what a diligent concept, such diligent skill, aaa diligent way of life!\" Her cheeks flushed, the woman praised Wilhelm with delight in her eyes. Receiving what was, by her standards, unreserved adulation, Wilhelm grimaced in visible displeasure. However, the woman paid this no heed. \"None have ever challenged my love with such a method, such technique, such cunning! What diligence! Ahh, splendid!\" \"Even this world is not so barren that I would waste words upon the likes of you.\" \"Do not say such hurtful things. I want you to show me more! Of you! Your sword! All OF you! Captivate me more!!\" Her body half smeared with blood, the madwoman stretched her hands out to Wilhelm as if seeking his affections. The Sword Devil did not conceal his displeasure at her statement, giving his sword a swing as he charged once more. \"Then then thennnn! HOW about this?!\" Together with her pronouncement, Unseen Hands gushed out from the ground, forming a black wall in front of the woman. It was a wall Wilhelm could not see. If he kept charging in like that, he'd be enmeshed in the evil hands, unable to evade. \"She made a wall of arms in front! Go around!\" \" Understood.\" At Subaru's shout, Wilhelm kicked off from the ground, evading just short of the black wall before his eyes. The Sword Devil proceeded to leap sideways, escaping from the arms' range, thrusting his sword into the ground and swinging it upward. *** The angular sword strike gouged out the earth, sending a shower of dirt pouring onto the madwoman. He had kicked up a completely mundane smoke screen of dust. Naturally, the woman showed no signs of damage from it. \" ? Did that have a point...?\" \"I hoped you would not disappoint me! Come! Come, come! Diligent old bones! You, the beloved child that knows love is the greatest thing in this world! Demonstrate your diligence to me!!\" The Sword Devil's behavior drew comments from both Subaru and the madwoman. But Wilhelm said nothing to either set of words. The aged swordsman simply continued his nimble run as dirt showered down upon the woman over and over. Brushing away the unpleasant downpour, the madwoman turned eyes toward the Sword Devil like a maiden in love. The arms of instant death obstinately pounded down wherever she was looking. \"Are you finished? Is there no more? If so, dismay! Disappointment! Despondency of the soul, despair! Ahh, AHH! Are you lazy?!!!\" \"N-no way?!\" At the woman's shout, shadow exploded; it was a terrifying volley of power that squarely locked on to Wilhelm. The hitherto sporadic evil hands now numbered above thirty, literally filling the sky in the narrow gaps between the trees. Subaru felt dizzy from the overwhelming number of them. Fatally, there were thirty-odd of them, and Subaru could only point out one or two at best  \"Anyway, it's bad, Wilhelm!\" At the same time as Subaru's woefully insufficient cry, the evil hands cascaded straight down onto the Sword Devil. This time, malice that mercilessly destroyed all it touched would trample Wilhelm flat. As he raced across the ground, Wilhelm looked overhead, his blue eyes narrowing as he said, \"I told you.\" The Sword Devil's tranquil voice rode on the warm forest breeze as he easily evaded the encroaching invisible hands. \"Huh?\" Both Subaru and the woman were taken aback; not even they knew which one had spoken the word. The evil hands poured down on all sides, twisting around to assail the Sword Devil's limbs. With superhuman agility, Wilhelm dodged, evaded, and overwhelmed them. When he had finally shaken off all the ferocious attacks, a vicious smile came over the Sword Devil's cheeks as he glared at the woman. \" So long as I know the arms are invisible, I have ways to deal with them.\" Certainly, he had just proven that his earlier proclamation was in no way false. But the results were so majestic that Subaru could scarcely close his wide-open mouth. Even Wilhelm shouldn't have had the super-senses to detect that many arms coming at him. \"Absurd. Absurd, absurd, a?b?s?u?r?d?a?b?s?u?r?d?a?b?s?u?r?d?a?b?s?u?r?d?s?u?r?d?s?u?r?d?s?u?r?d?s?u?r?d?s?u?rd...!\" Stricken senseless as she was by the foiling of her best move, the woman's eyes lost all focus. Trembling, the woman crushed her remaining fingers in true Petelgeuse fashion, but her emotional outburst did not relent as blood flowed from her nose. The nosebleed was still dripping when the woman thrust her blood-smeared right hand at Wilhelm. \"Impossibleimpossibleimpossibleimpossible! How could you escape my Unseen Hands?!\" \"Of course, I evaded them by sight. Once I knew their nature, foiling them was mere child's play.\" Wilhelm tediously made the declaration as he once again made dirt shower with the tip of his treasured sword. Dirt poured onto the madwoman, incomprehension on her beet-red face."}, {"text": "But after seeing it repeated over and over, Subaru finally understood Wilhelm's objective in making that move. At the same time, he was in shock.  The repeated showers of dirt were his opening moves for making Unseen Hands visible. The hands themselves were invisible to the naked eye, interacting with whatever they touched by destroying it. In other words, the evil hands left a trail as they tore through the dirt showers. Of course, even if he could see the ferocious attacks by thirty-plus hands, evading them was no easy task. And yet, Wilhelm's superhuman, godlike combat capabilities made even this seem like child's play. \"Now then, both of our tricks have been sufficiently exposed. I shall obtain vengeance for my comrades.\" Thrusting the tip of his treasured sword forward, Wilhelm threatened with suppressed anger. The hostility radiating from the tip of his sword sent a thrill through Subaru, not even the direct target of that blade. Naturally, his fear was nothing compared to that of the madwoman on the receiving end of that sword tip. In spite of this, the madwoman spread her blood-smeared arms wide, laughing as if granting his bloodlust a warm welcome. \"Ahh, ahh, it is splendid! Your actions are diligence personified! To inflict this situation, this development, this predicament upon meee...! I, always striving to be first among Her adherents, to repay Her favor and love with diligence! And yet, you have...!\" \"To repeat diligence and laziness over and over is foolishness.\" Exhaling once in the face of the woman's unsightly cries, the Sword Devil gazed at her with enmity winning out against the bloodlust in his eyes. \"' If I do this, I will be loved. If I do enough, I will be loved.' The frivolity with which you speak the word rots my ears. It is not love of which you speak. It is merely your own conceit.\" \"What do you know about love?! Love is eeeverything to me!!\" Wilhelm did not reply to the woman's shriek; rather he slammed his sword down and advanced. The dirt shower recommenced, and the Sword Devil put his foot down, carving a wound in the ground as his body shot out like a bullet. Even though, like a whip, like a spear, like a maul, like a sword, the madwoman's evil hands raced to mow Wilhelm down, he saw through them all, and was thus allowed to draw near. And then  \"It is over, heretic.\" As he stated this, the treasured sword in Wilhelm's hand plunged to the hilt, deep into the madwoman's belly. The sword ran through her, coming out of her back; when he yanked it out with a twist, a great deal of blood and entrails poured out. When Wilhelm pulled back, the woman fell to her knees and bent forward as she touched the wound with a hand. \"Ahh, this cannot...\" Her palm was impotent to stop her blood from gushing out, her intestines from pouring out. Wilhelm silently looked down at the madwoman, unable to stem the spillage of her life. Having cut down so many lives, the Sword Devil knew that she had little time left to live. \"It seems you require a mercy blow?\" \" Mercy is unnecessary. My life drains away, my blooood, disappearing... My diligence, the heartbeat that sustains me, is stopping, vani...sh...ing...\" Refusing the Sword Devil's mercy, the madwoman fell onto her side with a smile on her lips. The light proceeded to fade from the woman's eyes. Subaru stood rooted to the spot as he watched her final moments. *** \"Ahh, my brain is shaaa...\" While Subaru stared, the woman left only those final words before her breathing completely ceased. It was the death of the second user of Unseen Hands, the second Sloth. Watching until the end, Subaru let out his breath. The conclusion of the battle had made him practically forget to breathe. His body resumed its life functions, as if remembering that which it had forgotten. \"I-is it...over?\" \" At the very least, this woman has most assuredly ceased to breathe.\" Wiping the blood from his sword, Wilhelm replied thus to Subaru, who was nervously peering at the corpse. Subaru bit his lip, feeling as if the meaning behind those words bolstered his earlier deduction. But Subaru immediately shook his head, switching gears. He knew it was no time to sink into contemplation. \"Setting her aside...anyway, we've gotta head back! I'm worried about everyone else. If we don't link up with them...!\" \" No, Sir Subaru. I have just been informed that they have wrapped up their end.\" \"Informed...?\" With Subaru agitated, Wilhelm offered a hand toward him. A pale light was floating above his hand. The spirit swayed left and right, emitting a faint red light, asserting its own existence. \"That's the spirit from...er, a minor spirit? Anyway, you're saying that this spirit told you the others are safe on their end?\" Subaru spoke toward the flickering light on Wilhelm's hand in hope of a reply. However, the spirit did not reply with words; it merely floated into the air, entering the forest as if to lead the way. \"That means Follow me, doesn't it?\" \" Let us go, Sir Subaru.\" Grasping that it wished to guide them, Subaru and Wilhelm chased after the spirit. They returned to their comrades after repelling a foe rivaling an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins; considering the circumstances, it was good news to return with, but grave emotions were carved onto the pair's faces. \" Shit.\" But that moment, the only thing on Subaru's mind was the state of the allies with whom he would be reunited. 9 \" Who's there?\" \"Hold up! It's us! Sorry to startle you!\" Checked by a sharp yell, Subaru came out of the thicket, showing himself with his hands up. The knights who had sensed them returning from deep in the forest, and thus pointed their swords at them, immediately relaxed their guard, relief on their faces as they lowered their blades. But that relief was marred by sadness and regret. Subaru had a feeling that the result of the fighting in the forest hadn't been a pure victory, something to take joy in. \"It seems you have both returned.\" \"Julius...\" As Subaru and Wilhelm surveyed the area, Julius ran over. Seeing that Subaru and Wilhelm were each without injury, he stood at attention without any change in expression. \"At the very least, it is good that you two are safe... Shall I make the damage report?\" \"...Yeah, please do.\" Having confirmed the other was safe and sound, Subaru granted approval for Julius to shift to the damage report. Accepting, Julius indicated the forest-turned-battlefield with his hand. ...The forest littered with fallen trees and traces of bloodshed, the aftereffects of combat. \"Five died instantly from the initial, invisible attack. Two more died while engaged in combat with the Witch Cult in the attack immediately following our total casualties for this engagement were seven.\" \"Seven...\" Subaru had expected as much, but the number slammed heavily into his heart. They'd lost five in the initial Unseen Hands ambush. It was a most cruel loss. \"...The Witch Cultists that tried to take you down?\" \"All of the nine Witch Cultists here perished. Two were captured alive, but they killed themselves like all cases prior to this point...despite Ferris's strenuous efforts.\" \"So the enemy was completely wiped out. On our side, if we include the five scouts, our losses are twelve in total...\" \"I cannot say that dividing our forces was a...poor move. Had we done otherwise, it is highly likely we would have simply increased our initial losses. Of course, it is also possible that the enemy would hesitate to attack greater numbers, but...\" Though the casualties stung deeply, neither Julius nor Wilhelm gave any hint of losing his cool. For his part, Subaru had been biting his lip enough to draw blood since the damage report began. \"That ends my report. And yours?\" \" ! You don't have anything else to say to me?\" \"Necessary reports come first. I had thought to ask you for your report before all other matters, but...\" In contrast to the emotional Subaru, Julius had a very calm demeanor. But as he replied, his forelocks were slightly askew, and there were traces of blood on his royal guard uniform. Of course, even he had not come through unscathed. Gazing at the vestiges of intense combat, Subaru restrained his scattered emotions. \"...At the very least, we beat the Sloth that attacked us just now.\" \"'The Sloth that attacked us just now'...you say. Not a report to take solace in, it would seem.\" Subaru's gloomy reply contained nominally good news, but Julius immediately homed in on the problem therein. The authority-using madwoman who had launched a surprise attack on the expeditionary force, whisking Subaru away from the battlefield, was an evil on par with the assuredly slain Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins a being worthy of the title of Sloth. \"The first stage of this operation should have taken out the Archbishop of Sloth. You were more confident of that than anyone...yet, in spite of that, you call the earlier foe Sloth?\" \"...Yeah, that's right. The one just now was a Sloth a second Sloth.\" The last part of that statement \"a second Sloth\" made Julius knit his brows in dismay. But given the seriousness of Subaru's gaze, combined with the events that had actually taken place, he offered no rebuttal. \"So the first Sloth defeated was a different person from this Sloth. You are absolutely sure of this?\" \"I'd never forget the look on that piece-of-shit bastard's dead face. Plus, the second Sloth was a woman. There's no way you'd mistake one for the other. There's no way you would, but...\" When Subaru had first encountered the madwoman, he'd hallucinated that it was Petelgeuse. That was because he sensed things beyond their appearances that tied Petelgeuse and the woman together. It felt as if their madness had sprung from a common root  \"The authority was the same, the words and actions were the same. I've got a reaaally bad feelin' about this.\" \"Perhaps the first Sloth we defeated was a double, and the second Sloth was the real Archbishop of the Seven Deadly... No, there is no way to be certain of that. Besides, in this case, the real issue \" \" Might be in a whole different league than which one was the real deal.\" When Julius felt he might have speculated too far, Subaru picked up his conclusion and ran with it. The statement made sweat emerge on Subaru's brow; even Julius's face stiffened somewhat. It was a terrifying prospect. However, in light of current circumstances, it was also a logical conclusion. Given the appearance of Petelgeuse the first time, and the madwoman the second, it was inevitable they would arrive at the same possibility. \"In other words, there are multiple Archbishops of Sloth or perhaps the Archbishop of Sloth is actually a group with the same power, acting toward a common objective?\" \"...The only Sloth I knew of was the sickly-looking bastard that came out first. But now that I've seen the next woman, I can't tell you you're wrong.\" The madwoman had called herself a finger and identified with the Archbishop of Sloth. It fit. That's what they would go with: that Sloth was multiple Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins working in concert. \"So without exaggeration, the fingers are parts of the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. If it is a group composed of multiple archbishops calling themselves Sloth, it would explain the breadth of the upheaval they have caused in every nation.\" \"So Sloth is the part of the Witch Cult carrying out the doctrine of the faith. Just the thought gives me chills.\" That it was the practical arm of a larger religious group was very much a flight of fancy. Subaru wanted to laugh, but even a dry laugh failed to emerge. If Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti was but one Sloth among many, their"}, {"text": "pleasant, orderly advance had been nothing more than a farce. That was a terrifying prospect indeed. \"In the end, this remains no more than speculation. I would like to avoid carelessly spreading unease and unrest among the others.\" When the unpleasant thought closed Subaru's mouth, Julius shifted his eyes toward the expeditionary force, clumped up in one group. \"We lost twelve men, with three fingers to go... This is a rate of attrition we cannot ignore.\" \" Not twelve, eleven.\" When a voice corrected the number of their losses, Subaru and Julius turned toward it to find Ferris walking over to them. His white coat was sullied with blood as he wiped the sweat off his brow and pointed behind him. \"I pulled one of the heavily injured ones back from the brink. It was a really, really close call, though...\" \"That is good news. To stabilize someone in that condition...as expected of you, Ferris.\" \"I said it meowself I can bring back anyone who isn't dead.\" When Julius said the words good news, Ferris gave a thin, wry smile. But his smile soon faded as he shifted his gaze in a different direction. Subaru's eyes, drawn there as well, were greeted by the sight of someone covered with a thin cloth. \"I can't save everyone... Now I really understand the meaning of the captain's words.\" \"You have done well. It is not a role any of the rest of us could hope to accomplish.\" \"Mmm, thank you.\" Ferris replied briefly to Julius's consoling words, but everyone there knew that they were a small comfort. Head bowed, Ferris licked his lips and, after a brief pause, looked at Subaru. \"...So about what you said earlier, where's the body of the second Sloth?\" Immediately after, Subaru grimaced at the sudden change in the conversation. \" In the forest over that way, but why do you wanna know?\" Ferris must have overheard the earlier exchange with Julius. He stared in the direction in which Subaru pointed, narrowing his yellow eyes. \"Just maybe, if I examine it, I might find some differences.\" \"Differences? What kind of differences?\" \"Between the fingers you're worried about and the other cultists, Subawu.\" When Ferris pointed that out, Subaru's breath caught. \"Wait up, 'kay?\" said Ferris, taking several companions with him as he went off to examine the corpse. Perhaps examining the madwoman, the second Sloth, might give them a lead on the repugnant Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, enabling them to form a plan of attack. Subaru wanted to believe that was possible. \"And besides that...\" Having watched Ferris go, Subaru went to the expeditionary force members clustered together. Subaru couldn't look straight at the row of casualties lying right beside them. The lined-up remains were covered with thin cloths, the least they could do for those who would never awaken again. There was nothing anyone could have done for the initial five casualties who had been ripped to pieces. However, the five lives lost in the surprise attack were another story. Subaru should have realized, if no one else. \"I should've known as soon as I heard the first five were torn apart with bare hands. I'm the one who was aware what power we were dealing with. I should've noticed.\" Subaru, of all people, should have recognized the cause of the deaths of those who had been slain without a single sign of resistance. But Subaru, shaken by the deaths of his allies, had let the chance slip, leading to more casualties. On top of that, his own whisking away by the enemy had forced his allies to split their fighting strength, prolonging the combat. Had Wilhelm not pulled out, those lost during the engagement might well have lived. \"Even if it was a surprise attack, the opponent was small in numbers. Barring an exception, such as an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins' authority, there was no chance of defeat. It was precisely for this reason I sent Master Wilhelm to you.\" *** \"Indeed, that authority, defying all logic, is a far greater concern. You did your duty, helping us evade it. The rest was our duty...as knights.\" Listening to Subaru's murmurs, Julius set his disheveled hair in order as he offered his own view. Even Subaru was not so insensitive as to miss the consideration the words offered to him. But it was also a fact that no words of consolation lessened the pain in Subaru's heart. People had died in the fight against the White Whale, too. He remembered grieving over those deaths, but not nearly as much. He'd lamented the fact that, compared to his own deaths, the deaths of others had moved his heart so little, but these deaths weighed heavily upon him. Death was the same whatever form it took, so why did these deaths bother him so much? That was obvious. \"...Because I was involved with these people.\" Only then did Subaru Natsuki realize that he bore responsibility for those casualties. When they'd challenged the White Whale, they had stood on the field of battle against the demon beast as a result of their own free choice. But the fight against the Witch Cult was different. These people had answered Subaru's call, sharing in Subaru's desire to save Emilia and the others; they had been cooperating with Subaru, nothing more. \" So heavy.\" Subaru had used the information gleaned from Return by Death to cooperate with Crusch and the others in subjugating the White Whale. However, put differently, it was Subaru's information that had triggered the outbreak of that battle, too. A battlefield was created, and numerous human lives met their end. Many lives were erased from the memories of others. Subaru shared in that heavy responsibility. It was not only because he'd subconsciously averted his eyes from the burden that he had not noticed. It was more because Crusch had been so magnificent. She led the fight against the White Whale, shouldering the responsibility for everything on that field of battle. She was aware of her own obligations, but her performance was so grand, it made you forget about all of that. And so, Subaru hadn't noticed. Return by Death was not simply a matter of changing fate. Naturally, if Subaru took an action for the sake of some choice, some hope, some purpose, he altered the world around him. *** With that all-too-late realization, he was fiercely angry with himself for being so foolish and worthless. He'd been careless. He'd left himself wide open. The fact that everything had gone too well should have set off alarms in his mind. There had been big talk about making sure everyone got out alive, but he'd underestimated the effort required to make that happen and this was the result. And as a result, eleven precious lives had been lost the lives of people who'd stood by his side. Regret filled his head to the brim. Remorse seethed deep in his gut. The thought that there had to be something more he could have done made him pound baseless rage against his soul. Enough that he wanted to die in a fit of anger that very  \"Sir Subaru.\" *** Subaru was enveloped by rage sufficient to turn his vision red when that voice brought him back to his senses. Wilhelm was standing before Subaru, staring straight at him. For an instant, Subaru's heart shuddered as he wondered if Wilhelm would scold him for his ignorance. But the Sword Devil's eyes immediately told him otherwise. The Sword Devil's eyes were as tranquil as the surface of a lake as he gazed right through Subaru's dark eyes. \"You likely have a number of things running through your mind at the moment, none of them trivial emotions...but forgive my exceedingly great rudeness and allow me to say this.\" *** Wilhelm's words made him unwittingly straighten his back. He didn't know what would be said to him, but whatever it might be, he needed to give it his undivided attention. Then, with Subaru bracing himself, Wilhelm said... \" Fight.\" Spoken in a low tone, that word made the very air tremble. But Subaru also received it as a blade one that bit into his body, his heart, his very soul. The ghastly aura pouring from Wilhelm filled the forest-turned-battlefield, wrenching its way into Subaru's mind and body. The hostility swept over the whole area, and naturally, the knights' eyes all fell on the two of them. At the center of that vortex of gazes, Wilhelm continued, \"Whether you feel regret, or are stricken with remorse, fight. If it is fated that you must do battle, that you must resist fight with your entire body and soul. Do not give in for a second, a moment, a single fraction of time. Gaze at victory and crave it with every fiber of your being. If you can still stand, if you can still move a single finger, if your fangs are not yet broken, stand, stand, stand, stand, fight fight.\" *** The words were very similar to ones Wilhelm had spoken to Subaru before. When he'd been smacked around with a wooden sword in the courtyard of Crusch's mansion, Wilhelm had spoken words concerning girding one's heart for battle; that was the only moment Subaru had been allowed a tiny glimpse into the Sword Devil. At the time, after Subaru had heard those words, Wilhelm pegged him as person with no drive to become stronger. In point of fact, Subaru hadn't faced him with true earnestness. Deprived of willpower, Subaru had had no idea at the time what the Sword Devil thought or was trying to tell him. But this time was different and this time, he thought the message was different, too. \"You're telling me to...become strong?\" \"No I am telling you to be strong.\" The frighteningly lofty and sharp demand thrust through his chest. Subaru had always thought, I wanna be like Wilhelm. I wanna be like steel. But now, with regret and remorse slamming against his heart, he did not think those words were the answer. \"I wanna be that way, too. But it's hard. I didn't want anyone else to die like this, but they did...because I wasn't good enough!\" Once again, he'd made the mistake of getting full of himself as soon as things were going a little bit well. As a result of his mistake, people had died. If he made more mistakes, no one knew who would die for them next. He'd desperately tried to think of a way to avoid that, and yet nothing came. He was out of ideas. \"If I don't do it... I'm the one who started this!\" \"You got them involved, you strung them along, and they died, is that it? You are incorrect.\" With remorse threatening to wrench Subaru's heart out of his chest, Wilhelm spread both arms wide. \"Not a single individual here believes you involved us in this. Even if you provided the spark, we chose this battle ourselves. Everyone is here of his or her own will.\" *** \"Please stop placing responsibility for the deaths on yourself alone. They do not wish you to be burdened by this. Simply make room in your heart so that you do not forget. That is all you need do.\" \"Not forget what...?\" Their deaths? he wondered. But Wilhelm shook his head, putting Subaru's notion to rest. \" That they shared this burden with you. That is all.\" This time, his words made Subaru's entire body numb, as if he'd been struck by a bolt of lightning. With Subaru in shock, Wilhelm nodded to him and touched the sword on his own hip. \"Lending one's strength does not mean merely swinging one's sword. It means challenging the same foes, worrying over the same obstacles, sharing the wounds and the weight of the burdens. This we can do. This is the lesson I learned in the past.\" Wilhelm spoke those words and motioned with his chin. Overwhelmed, Subaru did as indicated, noticing that the gazes of"}, {"text": "all present were focused upon him. Each and every one of those sets of eyes burned with the same emotions as Wilhelm's.  He felt someone had once told him not to try to fight alone. At a disadvantage against a mysterious opponent, not a single person looked ready to cut and run. Not a single gaze said to Subaru, This wasn't the deal, nor did wiser voices condemn him. \"...Having at least one wiser person seems like a good thing, though...\" He let out a sigh. Simultaneously, the dark clouds dwelling inside Subaru's head rapidly brightened. This did not mean freedom from anguish. But he had left the dead end in which he'd trapped himself behind him. Subaru had been reminded of the limits of his own head. \"Shit !\" Subaru roughly scratched his head, gritted his teeth, impulsively stamped his foot, and turned to everyone, bowing his head. \"This is the only head I have to lower. It's low quality, so I'll lower it as many times as I need to.\" Subaru entreated his comrades, whose gazes remained unchanged, saying, We'll fight. Somehow, somewhere, he'd escaped barefoot from resignation and remorse. \"A lot of things...seriously, a lot of things have changed. The Witch Cult's Sloth is seriously tough. To put it bluntly, we can't even see the bottom. I get why they're treated like gods of pestilence the world over. It shook me how much damage we took just taking 'em on. It shook me, but...\" It'd shaken him because he'd mistakenly thought he ought to think, counter, and fight all by himself. Thanks to everyone there, his limbs had finally stopped shaking. Because they thought, Let's fight. \"I still don't have any firm idea what we should do. But I know we've got to do this. We have to beat them. We have to beat Sloth, here and now.\" However mysterious the opponent, it was Subaru's side that had started it. All they could do was defeat the enemy, whatever it took, until the battle was decided. *** Turning, Subaru looked at the remains of the comrades that had fallen in the forest, remains that had instilled such remorse and such a sense of responsibility that he'd been unable to look straight at them all that time. This was Subaru's inescapable sin. However you wanted to dress it up, Subaru was responsible for their deaths. And he would not permit himself to run from his sins any longer. Subaru wondered if he hadn't been arrogant in thinking that borrowing someone's assistance was no heavy thing. Subaru had started this battle, and so he would shoulder it. But he didn't think of it as too heavy a burden. And so, he was determined to carry it, even if he himself knew not how great it would become. \"We'll save Emilia and the others. We'll smash the Witch Cult flat. And to do both of those things...\" \"Let us do that which is needed...not for anyone else, but because you have asked it.\" And for that, our strength is yours, said Wilhelm's nod, and those of the members of the expeditionary force. He still had a mountain of things to think about, and the number of obstacles blocking their way was yet unknown. However, these he could overcome, because he need not challenge them alone. If Subaru had been strong enough to stand alone, he'd never have gotten out of that blind alley. Therefore, for just one moment, he thought that... \"...Good thing I'm weak and puny, then.\" \" Shall we go?\" \"Yeah, let's go. And lend me your strength and wit.\" Death did not lighten. It remained heavy. So long as he knew this, he could struggle against it with his head held high. Subaru Natsuki walked forward, resuming the fight. And so their battle continued. CHAPTER 3 *** 1 The return of Subaru & Co. with the bodies of their comrades was a great shock to those who had remained at the camp. Fortunately, nothing had happened to the camp whatsoever, but the reports of combat and casualties in the forest spread gloom among the faces of those waiting in reserve. All shared the disappointment of not having been able to partake in the battle. Like the others, they too renewed their vows of support toward Subaru. And, having linked up with additional allies, they began to discuss their plan of action henceforth. However, the new issues and obstacles that had floated to the surface were all difficult ones. The existence of the Archbishop of Sloth continued to stand before the expeditionary force as a high wall impeding their progress. \"First, my report after examining the corpse of the second Sloth: As you can see, the corpse is a little different from that of the other Witch Cultists. There are traces of a strange ritual.\" The first to offer information was Ferris, once his examination of the madwoman's corpse was complete. The word ritual brought a grimace to Subaru's face. \"You mean one besides the Witch Cultists embedding magic crystals into themselves for suicide?\" \"Exactly. The fusion was hard to see, but when I compared on a hunch, it became clear as day... I think the same Sloth-like cultists have the same setup.\" \"So this setup, it's the trigger for that authority thingy?\" \"I don't know that far. But when I think of some of the cultists getting this special treatment, it makes me suspect it has something to do with the weird power the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins controls.\" The information suggesting there were multiple Sloths had already been shared within the expeditionary force. Given Ferris's examinations to date, the possibility loomed ever larger. \"If that's so, the problem is how many Sloths besides these two are there, huh?\" \"There have been two to date, but considering what it took to bring them down, the situation is extremely dangerous. Worst case, we should presume that it is possible all the individuals known as fingers are Sloths.\" \"...That's jumping ahead a little much, ain't it? If they could all use that authority, they'd use it to hit back at us, right? But no one's done that.\" \"It would be so if the individuals known as fingers appeared as a group under the archbishop's command.\" Julius's reply didn't really answer Subaru's question. But Ferris and Ricardo registered agreement on their faces. \"I see, I see. In other words, I think Julius means the fingers are like the archbishop's right hand and left hand.\" \" ? Aren't the right and the left hands both part of the same body?\" \"Not that, more in the sense of your confidant or right-hand man. Weren't you the one to guess what the fingers were to the Witch Cult to begin with, Subawu?\" \"...Ah!\" After all that, Subaru finally clued into what the three of them were saying. Subaru knew of several cases where Petelgeuse had referred to his subordinates as fingers, but he'd had to guess heavily as to the details. In point of fact, Subaru had thought that the term fingers was what Petelgeuse used to refer to groups under his command. But what if, instead, fingers was the name borne by several special cultists, and the same authority as Petelgeuse's resided in each of them? \"So that's saying that Petelgeuse was just one Sloth counted by the number of fingers?\" \"If there are a maximum of ten, and each base has a single Sloth assigned to it, that might explain why we have been lucky enough not to give them an opportunity to strike back so far. That is being optimistic, however.\" \"So that means three bases left, and three fingers to go...so we should assume there are three more of 'em.\" One should hypothesize the worst case in any situation. Casually dismissing the threat posed by the enemy came with a stiff price. Subaru had paid the heavy tuition fee for that lesson many times over. And given the worst-case possibility they could hypothesize at present  \" As soon as possible, I want to begin evacuating the mansion and the people in the village.\" \"...To be honest, I was thinking that if you did not propose it, I would myself,\" Julius agreed, closing one eye. \"Now that we are uncertain of having eliminated the menace of Sloth, our greatest concern should be for their future objective to do harm to Lady Emilia and the villagers, I imagine.\" \"There's less than half of 'em left now, so we should assume they're onto us bein' after 'em. That bein' the case, the biggest fear is 'em tryin' to take folks down with 'em.\" With Julius and Ricardo in agreement, Subaru nodded, too, his worry evident in the creases of his brow. There was no mistaking that the Witch Cult was aware of the expeditionary force. The earlier raid had established that well enough. \"The second Sloth was waiting for us. They noticed us at some point. It's fine for us to be exposed at this point, but it's bad if our objective is exposed.\" On a combat level, it hurt to lose any advantage, but the expeditionary force's biggest issue was accomplishing its goal of rescuing Emilia and the others. The Witch Cult ought not to have known just yet why Subaru & Co. had entered the Mathers lands. If the Cult knew that both sides were after the mansion and village, both were certain to become battlefields. \"Right now, the Witch Cult hasn't noticed that the plain is wide open yet. If we can get Emilia and everyone on dragon carriages, they should be able to make a clean getaway.\" \"If Lady Emilia and the others escape, we can concentrate on subjugating the Witch Cult without any worries about the future. It's really hard to fight with a weak point like that on your shoulders, meow. Especially for Ferri and Subawu.\" \"Hurts to hear that...but that's how it is.\" Having received Ferris's dry approval, Subaru asked for any objections to the plan. Fortunately, with time so precious, no objections were raised, so Subaru slapped his knee and made the call. \"Thanks, big help. We'll take the traveling merchants with us and all go to the village. No leaving me behind, okay?\" \"From here, there is no telling when the remaining Sloths might attack. Your eyes will be irreplaceable, yes?\" With Julius's roundabout assent, the expeditionary force's plan was set. \"Ohh. So you're finally calling on us, then. It's a relief to get some work.\" As it turned out, the traveling merchants were unexpectedly eager when they finally received the order to move out. Sitting and waiting seemed to suit them poorly. Everything about the Witch Cult was, as usual, shrouded in mystery. But with the current setbacks, there was no option but to rely on their hauling capacity to fulfill Subaru's long-delayed goal. \"Sorry to keep you waiting, too, Patlash... Hey, don't be that angry, geez.\" *** Patlash, left behind at camp while Subaru walked through the forest without her, was quite miffed at Subaru. The pitch-black land dragon turned her sharp, refined face aside, thoroughly sulking when Subaru called her. \"Er, I mean, it was the middle of a forest? If you tripped and broke a leg there'd be no coming back, you know?\" \"This breed of land dragon, known as the Diana breed, is the highest breed of all land dragons. There are dragons specific to desert or arctic climes, but the excellent Diana breed can handle any terrain.\" \"Eh? Any terrain, what, you mean forests, too?\" \"Forests, deserts, waterside, or glacier.\" Wilhelm's lofty appraisal left Subaru gaping in wonder. He'd picked the land dragon based on his first impression, but apparently, she excelled more than he'd ever imagined. Perhaps that should have been obvious given Patlash's intelligence and ability. \"After all, it takes a pretty decent noble house to buy a girl like her, meow.\" \"Hey, stop that! Don't talk about price! That's gonna stick in my head!\" Ferris smiled as"}, {"text": "Subaru raised his voice, feeling almost afraid to mount the dragon. But Subaru thought that smile was gloomier than one from Ferris's usual self. Subaru, largely able to fathom the reason why, stood beside his land dragon and lowered his voice. \"Sorry, making you act considerate to me like this.\" \" What is it all of a sudden? Did you eat something bad? Should I heal you?\" \"Don't paper over it. You said it yourself. I'm not the only one who doesn't want anyone to die.\" *** Ferris was cowed into silence with a guilty look. Subaru had apparently hit the mark. Subaru wasn't the only one who felt deeply responsible for the deaths of his allies. Perhaps the mental anguish was much stronger for someone with a direct means of saving others such as Ferris. Subaru thought Ferris was strong to hold that inside him and not let it come to the surface, though. \"Maybe my saying this isn't worth much, but...having you here is a big help. Seriously.\" \"Oh, stop it. I know best how useless I've been. I've let eleven people die, and couldn't even stop enemies from killing themselves... I'm all talk.\" \"But you saved one. He didn't die, thanks to you.\" As Ferris berated himself, Subaru motioned to the casualty sleeping in the back of a dragon carriage. His endurance was heavily depleted, and he had not regained consciousness. But he was in a stable condition. That was Ferris's achievement. Subaru knew how hard it was to save even a single person. \"You're a bigger deal than you think you are. No, really, I'm totally serious.\" \"...Wha ? Are you trying to seduce cute little Ferri? Coming to my side of the fence?\" \"I am not, and I'm not seducing you, either! I'm trying to be serious here!\" Subaru knew well enough that he wasn't suited to the role, but the counterattack, harsher than even he'd expected, left him reeling. However, Ferris's lips immediately loosened as he exhaled at length. \"If you meant it seriously, I'll take it seriously. Don't worry, I'm not questioning my purpose in life. I crossed that bridge a long, long time ago, meow.\" \"Th-that so?\" \"Just, well, it might make me feel a little better? They feel like words I've heard before, so I feel relieved, just a tiny little wee bit...\" Ferris glanced sidelong at Subaru, teasingly showing with his fingers just how tiny that relief was. From that reaction, Subaru felt he'd contributed some small part to cheering Ferris up, which left him relieved as well. \"So, this is a good time, so Ferri is going to say it...Subawu, you really should make up with Julius as soon as you can.\" Ferris switched subjects so abruptly that Subaru's eyes popped wide. \"It's not a soon or not-soon thing... You saw, right? It's not making up, but our clashing is water under the bridge.\" \"On the surface, sure. Deep down, you're still snapping at him subconsciously. That's why, when something comes up, you're dropping Julius off the list of choices first thing.\" *** \"You can rely on Julius. Though I grant you that he's hard to deal with and tough to understand, meow.\" Fluttering his palm to indicate the end of the conversation, Ferris concentrated on examining the magic crystals from the Witch Cult. In contrast to Ferris, those last words had unsettled Subaru's mind. Am I subconsciously snapping at him...? When he thought about it, he couldn't conclusively say he hadn't been. Of course, he hadn't judged based on such personal feelings to that point. But he had no confidence that he had his subconscious under control as well. *** He'd turned his still-stern face forward when suddenly, the sweet aroma of flowers leaped into his nostrils. A lovely little flower with blue petals was blooming on the edge of the road, swaying in the wind. Subaru recognized it and its scent, which triggered a memory of a vivid flower garden the flower garden where he and Emilia had once spent time together. \"I really wanted to put an end to all that and have more of a triumphant return, but...\" Emotionally, Subaru wanted to hurry and hesitate in equal measure. If they continued along the highway and entered Earlham Village, he'd begin to urge the villagers to evacuate. Naturally, that meant the people from the mansion as well; in other words, a reunion with her. \"Would've been much cooler to see her again after taking care of it all...\" Partial. Partial. Everything was halfway. The subjugation of the Witch Cult was halfway; so, too, the duty entrusted to him at the royal capital. More than anything else, Subaru's heart was only halfway prepared to face the future, his mind-set not having changed since he'd aired his feelings several hours prior. Subaru had yet to make up for all that he had done in the royal capital. He couldn't puff up his chest while reuniting with Emilia in a situation like that, and the knowledge caused a harsh throb in his chest. Of course, Subaru's discomfort was not something he could weigh against her safety and that of others. \" I committed three sins, he said?\" The words had been tossed his way just before he perished in a world dyed white. The words had convicted him as the fool who had broken his promise to her, trampled upon her feelings, and even robbed her of her life. Such was the curse left from when Puck killed him the third time around. \"Eii, cut that out! Why do I have to feel like that anyway? I'm heading to save her like a prince on a white horse. My land dragon's black and I don't make much of a prince, but I should be more up front about...er.\" Fight. Had Wilhelm not told him this? That mind-set was not only for the battlefield. That mentality was precious strength, bolstering your spirit against any aspect of life threatening to crush you. \"That's how it is, huh, Wilhelm?\" \"Hmm? Yes, it is so.\" When he prodded Wilhelm, riding a little ahead, for agreement, the Sword Devil hesitated for a brief moment before giving his assent. Julius, glancing sidelong at just the right time to catch the exchange, sighed as he said, \"That is not something you should bother Master Wilhelm about. It is natural for you to be thinking of certain things, but would it not be better if you retained a little composure?\" \"...In the first place, the stuff I'm thinking about has nothing to do with you.\" \"I thought you should admit you are in the wrong in this so as to clear the air, but?\" \"Well logic's different from sentiment! Sheesh, that's right. Push comes to shove, that's how it is.\" *** When Subaru berated himself in a ragged voice, Julius inclined his head, watching uncomprehendingly. In the middle of the exchange, Subaru became aware that he was snapping at Julius, just as Ferris had told him. Even if he accepted it logically, accepting it emotionally was a different matter. But as Ferris had pointed out, letting it compromise his judgment was getting his priorities mixed up. \"Ah, er, yeah. There might be something I need to...say to you before we move on.\" Without looking at Julius as he rode beside him, Subaru haltingly and carefully broke the ice. Subaru was at pains to choose the words that would remove the seed of discord between them as soon as possible. Ahead, the highway sandwiched between forest to the left and right was growing narrower, but it would still be a long time before Earlham Village ought to be visible, practically tailor-made to give them time to talk. \"When we linked up on the highway, I thought we'd already made the stuff before water under the bridge...but sorry. It seems that I still haven't been able to digest it.\" *** \"It's not that I don't trust you. It's just, I guess there's still dislike of you in my mind, and that's why I've been giving out bad orders here and there... Well, that's what Ferris told me.\" *** \"No, this isn't because Ferris told me that, but we're in a situation where we all need to work together, and I agree with him that you can't have feelings of mistrust between people like this, so...\" *** With Julius silent, Subaru beat around the bush as he continued the conversation. He was frustrated with himself as much as with the listener's not indicating he was following along. It was beyond absurd if Subaru turned out to be the only one feeling awkward. \"Hey, have you been listening to me? It's just me talkin' like I'm the only \" Subaru, glaring forward with a look of guilt, let spittle fly at that point as he turned to face Julius. The very fact that he made the outburst, scowling as he turned to glare at that handsome face, underlined that he'd lost sight of his original goal of a conversation to clear the air, but  *** The instant Subaru vented, a sudden gust of wind blew, making him subconsciously cover his face with his arms. The unexpected gust, mixed with the scent of flowers, sent his forelocks aflutter, and after a moment of shock, wondering what had just happened, he realized   the long line of land dragons had vanished, and he was alone. 2 \"What the ?!\" He immediately realized he was in an emergency situation. But he didn't know what had happened. Wide-eyed, Subaru surveyed the area, hands still gripping the reins. The scenery around him differed little from before; he was dead center on a highway flanked by trees. The difference was that there was no sight of the allies who had been close to him mere moments before, leaving him all by himself  \"No, I'm not alone.\" *** Drawing the reins close, the stiff-bodied Subaru was still riding on Patlash. The low body temperature conveyed through the saddle was intact; he figured he hadn't been split off from things he was in physical contact with. \"If that's so, some kind of spatial distortion or teleport... Then...?\" He'd been split off from his allies in the blink of an eye, so he figured the method had to be along those lines. The scenery Subaru was looking at had not changed. Maybe it was everyone but Subaru who'd been jumped somewhere else. And naturally, only the Witch Cult benefited from isolating Subaru from the others. \"Shit! This ain't the time to stare into space, Patlash!\" Subaru cracked the reins and sent the land dragon galloping as he berated himself for being so slow to grasp the situation. Patlash neighed, and her strong legs propelled them in an instant Subaru was attempting to use speed, enough to send the wind itself flying, to extricate them from their isolated situation. During that time, Subaru squinted, wary of attack from any direction. If his guess was right, Unseen Hands might well come flying from yet another Sloth. *** But in spite of Subaru's wariness, there was no sign of Unseen Hands coming. Doubts crept in, and simultaneously, uncertainty formed in Patlash's steps. The cause was the same thing that was giving Subaru pause: though they'd sprinted at full speed for tens of seconds, the scenery didn't seem to have changed at all. Mere teleportation could not explain this situation. It made him recall a similar experience. \"This is like Beatrice's infinite corridor...? But there's no doors here!\" Only once had Subaru experienced a similar phenomenon: when Beatrice, a little girl living at Roswaal Manor, had used magic to turn a corridor into a spatial loop. At the time, Subaru's keen judgment had led him to open the correct door, immediately bringing the matter to an end. However, it would not be so simple this time around. They were in the wild, and there were no doors to be had, correct or otherwise. In other words, Subaru's intuition was useless for resolving"}, {"text": "the situation. \"Damn it, just after I stop worrying about things all on my own, this happens!\" He lamented that he had stood and faced one hardship with all his being, only to have this happen immediately. Subaru surveyed the area, clicking his tongue at the unchanging scenery. \"Heyyy! Anyone there?! Is it just me here?! Answer me! Someone !!\" Subaru desperately raised his voice. Worst case, he'd be drawing the enemy to his position, but he didn't care. If he could draw even a single foe away from his allies, it was better than doing nothing at all. However, Subaru's idea was fruitless, with no sign of either friend or foe answering his call. It was odd. It was strange. Had Subaru been sent to another dimension all by himself? He was not thoroughly versed in the rules of magic of that world; was such a thing even possible? \"Hold up, Patlash. Let's be cool... Calm down and think...\" Accepting Subaru's instruction, Patlash slackened the speed of her run and came to a standstill. That instant, when they were stopped, was the perfect moment to strike, but there was no sign of that, either. The forest had returned to eerie silence, with nothing to hear save the wind and the voices of insects. With so many living, breathing humans erased, desolation dominated the world all the more. The situation was truly what the world would be like if it came under the Witch Cult's dominion  ...No? No, this is different. Once he'd thought that far, a palpable sense of wrongness made Subaru jerk his head up. He looked around the area. The scenery had not changed. However, when he focused his ears, he heard his own heartbeat mixed with Patlash's breathing, and something like the sounds of crickets sounds that would have been extinguished if it were a world ruled by the Witch Cult. \"It's not teleportation. Then what the hell is it...?\" He hadn't been transferred to a place under the Cult's dominion. Furthermore, making the same highway scenery loop over and over should have been impossible even for ultra-top mages. If that was the case, something was wrong with his premise. He thought back to what had initially taken place. What had happened at the instant when he thought, I'm alone? First had been a gust of wind. That was strange all by itself. Patlash's wind repel blessing should've been up. If I wouldn't feel shakes or wind normally, where the heck did that gust come from? *** Something happened the moment that wind blew. No, if something was the trigger, it happened before that. If this was an attack, what stood out was...the scent of flowers? The scent of flowers. Yes, the sweet scent of flowers. The thick aroma had mixed with the gust of wind, slipping into Subaru's nostrils, soaking into his brain. And that very moment, the aroma was thick enough to make his chest feel awful.  ?! Uh, eh, what the heck...? The instant he thought about it, the scent of flowers, which he had ignored to that point, invaded his nostrils. He instinctively rejected the clearly abnormal aroma, instantly shielding his nose in the face of the dangerous scent. \"Have we been walking around in this flower scent all this time?\" Subaru shuddered at the indecipherable power that had slipped in without his notice. Simultaneously, he realized that if the scent was the cause of his circumstance, there had to be flowers. Therefore, the scent was coming from  \"These flowers blooming on the side of the road.\" Subaru dismounted Patlash and walked over to the flowers blooming right at the roadside. The flowers, petals gently swaying in the wind, resembled the flowers known as pansies in his world. However, now that Subaru had determined that flowers were the cause, he was suddenly at a loss. If the flowers were the cause, should he uproot them? Stomp them underfoot, maybe? Without any firm idea of how to deal with them, Subaru decided to first snap a flower off with his hand  \"Urgh...?!\" The instant he tried to touch the flower, wriggling vines became like whips, lunging for Subaru's neck. With incredible strength, the narrow vines wrenched Subaru, the power of the unexpected attack drawing out an anguished cry. \"Ack...agh...!\" Falling on his backside, Subaru tore at the vines as they tried to strangle him. Hard. The vines were so tough that you wouldn't think they were plants, rejecting his fingernails, trying to kill Subaru with the bloodlust of an animal. Subaru bent back, reaching out with a hand, calling for aid from Patlash. The black land dragon stood behind Subaru, quietly staring at his battle with the flower. She merely watched, with no sign of making any move. Subaru lamented with a sense of despair. But that despair was overshadowed by the sense that something was off. *** Having served Subaru so faithfully thus far, it was unnatural for Patlash to overlook this situation. Why, then, was this the case? The possibilities were twofold: Patlash had abandoned him, or she didn't see the struggle. Subaru dismissed the former out of hand, concluding it had to be the latter. Patlash didn't see it. Flower scent. Hallucination  \"...There...is...no...flower...!!\" He denied it the flower bringing death right before his eyes. No such dangerous flower existed. Subaru was seeing a world that was not possible. Accordingly, it was a sham. Tears clouded his vision. No, something other than tears was clouding it. Patlash's form wavered, and the fraud that he'd thought was his companion vanished. There was no one else in Subaru's virtual world.  It was all a fraud!! \" Ahu! Gah-ha! Geho, hnnm haa!\" The instant he shook it off, the sensation of the vine wringing his neck vanished. With a chance to breathe at last, Subaru coughed as oxygen filled his lungs, trying to see what had happened with his teary eyes. Right in front of Subaru, the flowers that had put him through a terrifying experience were burning. Petals, vines, roots all were enveloped in crimson flames, burning black and falling to pieces. And the one doing this was a flickering red light floating right above the burning flowers a minor spirit. \"You again...\" It was the red minor spirit that had also saved Subaru earlier when he was the madwoman's captive. While he gasped for breath, the spirit that had rescued him from peril came right before his eyes. Subaru immediately put his hand out, receiving the light's warmth with his palm. \" ! This means...!\" He took in that heat at the same time that the flowers finished burning away. The petals had become ash and the sweet aroma had been swapped for the stench of something burnt; immediately after, the world changed. The highway he had thought infinite began to waver, bleeding into the sky and the forest to the left and right. The world was warping like a painting being dissolved by water. Then, in an instant, it seemed to snap right back. The world had reconstituted itself no, he had been freed from the illusion, and returned to the real world. \" Subaru!\" A voice called out to him. Raising his head at the sharp voice, Subaru returned to the world as it was. Standing right in front of him was Julius, calling to Subaru as the red spirit rested upon his shoulder. 3 \"So it was you...\" \"There is no mistaking that abusive tongue. I do not believe anyone could reproduce your invective toward me this faithfully.\" Subaru was sour at Julius's face being the first he saw upon his return; Julius responded with mild sarcasm. However, Julius immediately pulled Subaru's arm, bringing him to his feet, and motioned with his chin toward the surrounding area. When Subaru followed suit and looked around the area, he stood dumbfounded, gaping at the state of the expeditionary force. All the neatly lined members of the expeditionary force, man and mounted beast alike, were at a complete standstill. \"Someone has attacked us. An illusion-type incantation, but it only sent my mind astray for several seconds. At present, only you and I have returned from it. How did you come back?\" \"A few seconds? On my end it was minutes. Maybe 'cause it was all in my head?\" \"I never would have thought that you possess the power to resist such magic. How did you make it back?\" \"Wait, everyone got trapped by this? Seconds or minutes, at this rate we'll all be stuck in place and make a real nice target. We've gotta do something!\" \"That's why I'm asking you how you came back!\" With their mutual doubts clashing, the lack of headway aroused Julius's anger. The rare reaction shocked Subaru. Realizing it was no time to argue, he switched gears. \"It was burning the flowers inside the illusion that caused it all. Er, when I say burning, it wasn't me who burned them, but anyway, the flowers are the trigger. So by getting rid of 'em.\" \"Flowers...flowers, you say? I see...a suggestion incantation carried by a flower's aroma... But...\" Julius let his words trail off as he surveyed their comrades still under the spell. Then, in front of Subaru who was wide-eyed and at a loss for what to do he slowly raised his arms. As he did, his arms served almost like a perch as several lights emerged into view. They glowed in different colors, six in all; among them was the red light that had saved Subaru. \"You! Then that's...\" \"This is the radiance given off by my little buds. I shall henceforth inform everyone of how to break the illusion In! Nes!\" Julius, indirectly responding to Subaru, spread the fingers of his outstretched hands. The lights that seemingly glided onto his fingertips were colored white and black. The two lights intermingled, growing in intensity, and before Subaru's amazed eyes, their light enveloped the world around him. \"Wh-what's...?\" Going on? Subaru was about to say, but the change jabbed into Subaru's brain faster than he could say the words. \"Nn! Choiya! Choiya! Huh, no one's here! Where is this?!\" \"Huh?\" He heard the girl's faint speech expressing incomprehension of her situation no, strictly speaking, it was not speech. This was not a voice, but rather thoughts; not sound, but emotion, her will conveyed not to Subaru's eardrums, but rather directly to his brain. Nor were the thoughts hers alone. \"I've gotten lost...no, split off. This is bad, at this rate...\" \"Darn it, this is the worst. I keep wreckin' the forest and it don't change a thing.\" \"This sort of trick at a time like this...! Lady Crusch...!\" \"Sis! Sis! Where are you?!\" \"TB might be crying by now!\" \"Gaaaa...!\" They were flowing, flowing into him. The muddy stream of thoughts was merciless, slipping through his ears into his skull, through his skull into his brain, and pressing down upon that brain with a weight beyond what it could handle. The big helping of multiple thoughts and emotions, barbs and all, leaped around inside Subaru's skull, leaving him moaning in anguish. He couldn't really tell if it was pain or suffering. It wasn't really pain. It wasn't really suffering. It was simply...heavy. \" Was the sensitivity too high? I'm sorry. Please breathe deeply and bear it.\" \"Aarrghh, you jerk...!\" \"Right now I have no time to calibrate solely for you. Getting everyone back takes precedence.\" That was all Julius said before closing his eyes and ceasing to move to concentrate on his incantation. Amid his agony, Subaru levied curses upon the handsome young man responsible for that suffering. Even when he did as told and took a deep breath, not even a smidgen of relief was forthcoming. Then, as before, his brain was filled with a multitude of thoughts. At this rate, it would soon liquefy and pour out of his ears. I've gotta put these thoughts in order, thought Subaru. The muddying of thoughts and stirring of minds was Julius's doing. He'd used some kind of magic to produce that situation,"}, {"text": "allowing him to convey the means of breaking the illusion. Think. Someone spread the flowers around inside the illusion. Several people are free of the illusion and are breaking through the vortex of thought. Still so many. So many still captured. Brain waves intermingled time and time again. But like thorns being removed or teeth being pulled, the number of thoughts was dropping. People were returning from the illusion's evil hand to the real world. \"At this rate, everyone shall be freed, and...\" Subaru kept scratching at his thick sweat, enduring the ragged brain waves even the ringing in his ears could not blot out. He brusquely wiped off the cold sweat dampening his brow, panting as he looked up to the sky. The next moment  *** He heard faint breathing. The source was the sky, right above Subaru's and Julius's heads. There was a break in the forest canopy in which the sun was floating in the sky, and with that sun at its back, a figure in white landed at Subaru's side. With Julius focused on breaking the illusion and keeping his eyes closed, the figure proceeded to drag Subaru by his arm. \"Oh, wai...!\" Julius, pouring all his energy into the incantation, did not move as Subaru, caught by the white figure, nearly fell down. The figure in white, face concealed by the white robe covering it from head to toe, was set to drag Subaru off without asking. Instantly, he instinctively realized that the person before his eyes was the caster of the illusion. Of course, the Witch Cult had to be involved. If Subaru was dragged off, the expeditionary force would lose its means of resisting the Unseen Hands. \"Shit! Wait, there's no way anyone's letting you do whatever you... Uu?!\" The instant Subaru braced himself, trying to resist, his planted foot was swept away, sending Subaru flipping over, unable to even cry out. The off-the-charts martial arts skill didn't even let him get a word in. At that rate, the figure in white would try to drag Subaru right out of that place  \"Duaaa !\" But a cloth-rending cry and the unleashing of silver light interrupted the attempt. Stepping forward and pounding home a sword strike was Wilhelm, the first of the others freed from the illusion. With the speed of a god, the Sword Devil unleashed his sword, seemingly to vent his rage at the one who had ensnared him in the spell. The arc traced by the slash was without mercy, set to run straight through the slender figure in white. However  \"Wbah?!\" The figure in white violently tossed Subaru into the grass and, with frightening dexterity, barely evaded the sword strike. The evasion, made with an absolute minimum of physical movement, made Wilhelm, who had been certain of a killing blow, open his eyes wide in shock. \" Fulla!\" As if to blow that admiration aside, the figure thrust a cane forward with an explosion of magic. The target was the ground under Wilhelm's feet, gouging the surface out in a circle, slowing the Sword Devil down. When Wilhelm then leaped toward his foe, slashing upward, something caught him by the chest. \"Guh...!\" Wilhelm's well-honed abdomen creaked as his body was sent flying by force unthinkable for the tiny figure's size. The cane's tip was pointed at the Sword Devil as the air twisted before it. The resulting cascade of air was about to slice deep into the Sword Devil but a slice of steel rent it first, causing its mana to explode. *** In an instant, Wilhelm went from narrowly escaping death to going on the attack, closing the distance with the white figure. Midrange was the range at which an enemy could use magic. Wilhelm would be at a disadvantage for as long as it took to get to close range. But the Sword Devil's disadvantage was overridden by another factor the advantage of superior numbers. \"Doraaa!!\" A great hatchet flew into the air, bearing down on the white figure's rear in a ferocious assault. Accompanied by a roar, Ricardo's blow held enough might to break through even the White Whale's bedrock-like hide. The attack, which could only blow its target away, slammed into the defenseless figure in white, sending its slender body ferociously flying away  \"What the hell?!\" But Ricardo, having delivered a blow of certain death, shouted not in victory, but in shock. The cause of that shock was the white figure sent flying no, the enemy spinning through the air of its own volition. Frighteningly, the figure in white had turned in concert with Ricardo's strike, diminishing the power of its impact. Subaru could only guess at the level of skill required for such a feat, which could only be called godlike. \"Your skill is splendid but...\" \"You're makin' a big mistake if you think you're walkin' away from this!\" Between the Sword Devil's praise and the great wolf's roar, the enemy twirled the short cane in its palms and engaged in combat. The raging great hatchet and vertical and horizontal silver slashes leaped forth, creating a zone of certain death. The white figure seemed to dance while slipping past, weaving magic in the meantime to take both warriors on. It was an unbelievably good fight against the two forming the main striking power of the expeditionary force. But as the battle raged between combatants beyond the ken of man, the third blade to intervene decided the matter. *** \"Though you are our foe, I am captivated by your skill. However, this has gone far enough.\" The white figure held its breath as Julius's sword rested against its neck. During the battle, the entire expeditionary force had been freed from the illusion. Having lost all opportunity to buy time and escape, the white figure ceased to resist. It was not just Julius, but also Wilhelm and Ricardo, from the right and left, holding the figure in check. \"The battle...has been decided.\" There was nowhere to run, a fact their opponent conceded. \"...Kill me. I will not be defiled.\" Surrounded by hostility, the white figure accepted its own demise with extreme apathy. The voice was high-pitched; the shoulders under the robe were slender. From the tone of voice, Subaru knew it was a girl. Wilhelm's eyes widened at the prideful declaration; Julius's and Ricardo's eyes met. Unrest spread as the expeditionary force, now back to reality, grasped the circumstances. \"W-wait! Wait, wait! Wait a sec, please!\" It was then that Subaru, covered with grass from his tumble, raised his hand and his voice. After being thrust into the weeds, Subaru had watched the battle, unable to help in any way, but with the match decided, the sound of the girl accepting her defeat made him come rushing to the spot. He did it not because the opponent was a girl, but because he knew that voice. And when Subaru leaped forward, the opponent recognized him as well. \" Barusu.\" \"Ahh, been a while since I was called that. Wait, it seriously is you?\" Deflated at the unexpected assailant's identity, Subaru let out a very long sigh. At Subaru's reaction, the person in the white robe pulled down her hood. And so, the girl's lovely, stern face appeared, with pink hair and pale-red eyes. \" Ram.\" It was Ram, maid of Roswaal Manor. 4 \"Now I suppose you will explain the meaning of all this, Barusu.\" Having plunged the expeditionary force into unprecedented crisis and spectacularly giving Wilhelm and others the runaround, Ram brushed dirt off her body as her extremely displeased eyes stared daggers into Subaru. \"What's the meaning of this? Isn't that our line...?\" Squirming under the stern gaze, Subaru surveyed the sorry state of affairs along the highway. Along the highway and forest were traces of the recent battle, along with allies now freed from the illusion. Fortunately, the aftereffects from the incantation were limited to light headaches, and there were no wounded, Ram included. However, the lack of casualties did not in any way mean that the issue was settled. How in the world did it come to this? thought Subaru, holding back a sigh as he looked at Ram. \"The gist is, you launched a preemptive strike and people fought back. Fighting your own side really sucks... Wilhelm, you're not hurt?\" \"A small scratch from wind magic. I will ask Ferris about it later. More importantly, I am glad I did not get ahead of myself and slice her down. There would be no taking such a thing back.\" Wilhelm lifted an arm up, showing off his sliced cuff with a strained smile. Responding to the magnanimity, Subaru put a hand to his own chest in relief. \"Wilhelm...Wilhelm van Astrea?\" Ram, arms folded while listening to Subaru and Wilhelm speak, murmured thus when she heard the old swordsman's name. Addressed by his full name, the Sword Devil turned toward her. \"Hmm,\" went Ram, nodding her head. \"I did not imagine the Sword Devil would be my opponent. I can accept having lost.\" \"Compared to my glory days, 'tis little more than a nickname. Each day, I strive to resist decay, but I cannot defeat old age. My skills are two steps behind my former peak.\" \"Having been laid low by such dulled skills, those words feel like irritating sarcasm.\" Ram crisply cast Wilhelm's modesty aside. The Sword Devil seemed to like that attitude from Ram, but Subaru did not. He pressed Ram about the rude tone of her words. \"Hey, what's that attitude you're giving Wilhelm? Setting aside you're always like that with me, you should be politer to other people at l ow!\" \"Receive outsiders in the manner of guests, you say? I see, it is as you say. My, my, there is no excuse for my repeated rudeness, dear guests.\" Flicking Subaru's nose with a finger when he drew near, Ram proceeded to elegantly bow to everyone present. As she behaved like a perfect servant, a cold smile came over her beautiful, doll-like face. \"I apologize for my repeated rudeness, but the mansion of Marquis Roswaal L. Mathers lies ahead. At present, at the command of my master, I am not receiving outsiders, so I ask that you please detour and leave.\" \"Slip the dagger in at the end, huh? Besides that...what the heck's that supposed to mean?\" \"It means what it says. Currently, the environs of the mansion are in a state of heightened alert. I cannot allow outsiders to approach...though I suppose such words are wasted on an ingrate such as you, Barusu.\" \"Ingrate...?\" Subaru's expression clouded over at the appraisal he could not dismiss. \"Yes,\" said Ram, nodding. \"Is it not so? Having received such great favor from Master Roswaal, you curry favor with another master as soon as he seems done with you. Or perhaps it was all an act to enter our good graces to begin with? If so, it would seem that you received your just deserts.\" \"Wait! You're getting this all wrong! You're completely misreading the circumstances!\" \"So this is what a dog that bites the hand that feeds him is like.\" \"Listen already!\" Ram's acrimonious demeanor was a daily ritual, but the hostility included with it was the real deal. The gaze she shot Subaru's way was frigid enough to make his insides tremble, telling Subaru that something was badly wrong. There was a reason for her to be this rigid. It was to prevent this, to not allow for any misunderstanding, that he'd  \"...Right, the letter of goodwill! That's what writing that letter was for. Didn't it reach the mansion?\" \" Letter of goodwill.\" Subaru had taken pains to clear up any possible confusion about the circumstances. When he spoke the words, Ram's eyes narrowed, her reaction demonstrating that she recognized their significance. But her reaction to the ring of those words was absolutely not a favorable one  \"...Ram, what are you angry for?\" \"Certainly, a letter arrived from the royal capital. But it is useless to characterize that thing as written"}, {"text": "in goodwill.\" Ram's voice had little intonation, barely holding back the fires of a burning rage. When Subaru failed to understand the meaning of her emotion, Ram snorted as she spelled it out loud and clear. \"When I think of the letter that pompous messenger arrived with... Calling a blank piece of paper a letter of goodwill is quite a farce. What did you mean by this, Barusu?\" \"It was a blank piece of paper?!\" It was Subaru who was horrified at learning the incomprehensible truth. Ram continued to glare at the bewildered Subaru, anger oozing from her eyes. \"The wax was formally sealed with the Lion Rampant seal of the House of Karsten. In other words, Duchess Crusch Karsten was making a declaration of war against a rival candidate for the throne... Well, that is how we took it.\" \"That's crazy! Why would you decide it was that so fast...?\" Subaru was drowning in Ram's conclusion when Wilhelm intervened. \"Sending a blank letter is a method of conveying to the other party, 'We have no intent to negotiate.' It cannot be helped that they took it in that manner.\" The creases of his brow knotted, a stern face on him as he shook his head toward Subaru. \"As a matter of fact, were a white letter delivered to me, I would arrive at the same judgment as she: a display of hostile intent.\" \"Then what happens if you seal a blank letter and send it by mistake?! If a war starts over that, what does history say 'Oops'?\" \"Then one could only set the heavy burden aside and give up. That said, I did not judge hostile intent by a single piece of paper, either. But there were multiple issues, so...\" \"What do you mean, multiple issues...there's even more?!\" The bad report had been more than weighty enough. Yet, there was still more on top of that? \"Two days ago, the forest around the mansion became unnaturally calm...to the point that even my eyes could catch nothing. Thereupon, an armed group appeared bearing the crest of the House of Karsten, which had declared war with the blank letter... Surely you cannot blame my little bird's heart for being on the verge of breaking?\" \"Ugeh...!\" The sidelong glance Ram shot him put Subaru's flea-size heart on the verge of breaking. Though Wilhelm had a worried look on his face, Subaru raised a hand, feeling the desire to curse Fate for the nightmarish entangling of circumstances. It was the worst diplomatic position ever. In other words, Ram had mistaken the letter of goodwill, the Witch Cult, and the expeditionary force as signs of a hostile camp. Thus did she treat Subaru as a wicked villain who'd betrayed Emilia to Crusch. \"That's a huge misunderstanding! In the first place, do I look that cunning?!\" \"Well, this is what a dog that bites the hand that feeds it looks like.\" \"You're still saying that?!\" \"I have hardly said it enough. But it's fine. It is clear for the most part.\" Though Ram's words were sharp, she'd no doubt gleaned the high points of the situation during the conversation. Perhaps that was also because she hadn't detected the intellect required for wicked scheming from Subaru's replies. \"So...you sent a blank letter by mistake and you are still Lady Emilia's dog... You're fine with that?\" \"I'm not, but it's okay. Dogs are like family, so for Emilia I can be a dog, sure.\" \"That would be a rather base ambition, would it not?\" Wilhelm pointed out what low sights Subaru had, but Subaru, worried that the conversation wasn't progressing, shook his head. At any rate, with the misunderstanding cleared up, he had to get right to the point. \"Wilhelm included, everyone here is reinforcements we're on your side. Anyone making you worry, we're gathered together to send 'em packing.\" The worst of all misunderstandings threatened to bring the hard-won alliance crashing down. Aghast at that fact, Subaru puffed his chest out, establishing his goodwill toward Ram. Ram furrowed her brows, so Subaru got to the point. \"I fulfilled the objective of me staying in the royal capital an alliance between Emilia and Crusch, as equals. The people gathered here are the proof.\" 5 Immediately afterward, they set off toward Earlham Village with Ram in tow. They had no time to waste. The misunderstanding-driven combat with Ram had cost them even more. Subaru endeavored to explain things to her while they headed toward the village. That included the fact that they were allied camps. He was grateful his comrades in the expeditionary force were taking things so well. They'd accepted Subaru's earnest apology and Ram's gratitude for their help after her initial hostility, taking it all in stride. Thanks to the zero casualties, those words had ended the matter. \"You did give Wilhelm some trouble...but he even hid the wound from it.\" \"A fine man, just as the rumors said.\" \"Oh, yeah. He is, isn't he?\" \"What are you so pleased for, Barusu? It is creepy.\" Subaru, gripping the reins, overreacted as he agreed with the words of praise for the Sword Devil. The sight of it brought a genuine scowl to Ram's face; one of the hands on Subaru's hips jabbed him in the flank. At present, Subaru and Ram were riding together on the jet-black land dragon's back. Subaru turned his head just enough to look at Ram, who was sitting behind him, as he thought back to the earlier battle. \"I have to ask...what was with that illusion attack earlier? I thought the only magic you could use was wind magic? No one told me about that part.\" \"It is a mixture of wind-type magic and a hallucinatory drug. I had truly intended only to whisk the commander away while the others were weighed down...but I never imagined you would be able to break free.\" There Ram's words trailed off. She nodded to herself a few times and said, \"You probably gained a resistance to the drug. The drug is derived from the leaves in the tea you always drank, after all.\" \"I was drinking that poison every time?!\" \"I am kidding.\" It hadn't sounded like she was joking, but Subaru did not press the issue further not purely because he was afraid to know whether it was true or false, but also because he felt the trembling in the arms with which she touched him. Realizing that her trying to break the tension had resulted in him blurting something out in plain sight, he said, \"Sorry I made you put your guard up like that. Whatever the cause, you were pretty serious back there, huh?\" \"I suppose... Serious enough to be resolved to take my foe down with me. Can I truly trust the gentlemen behind us?\" \"Or what, they'll seize the chance to march on the mansion? A pretty nasty bunch is after the place, after all. Even Crusch doesn't really want that much trouble.\" \"...So it is outlaws lurking in the forest that are after Lady Emilia, then.\" \"I really did write about that in the letter, y'know...\" With Ram unexpectedly hinting at the Witch Cult's presence, Subaru could only lament the cause of the jumbled circumstances. Upon his opening the lid of his painstakingly acquired insurance, it had turned into the greatest of all traps. However, the singular fact that a blank letter of goodwill had arrived brought a different problem into sharp relief  Namely, that someone out there had swapped his letter of goodwill, aiming to turn Emilia and Crusch against each other. \"What happened with the messenger who brought the letter to the mansion?\" \"We politely granted him our hospitality. After all, I thought that he might prove useful in the event of a prisoner exchange.\" \"Prisoner exchange...?\" Even if a prisoner exchange with the Crusch camp truly came to pass, the only people from the Emilia camp to have returned were Subaru and Rem. When Subaru thought back to the surprise attack, he remembered that Rem's first move had been to try to drag Subaru off without a care as to appearances. Perhaps the purpose of that aggressive operation had been to get the \"imprisoned\" Subaru back. Though even if he asked Ram about it, there was probably no way in hell she'd give him a straight answer. Either way, she already had someone from the most powerful candidate in her grasp. If the messenger proved to be a spy, she would interrogate him, simple as that. \"Anyway, you can relax about the enemies hiding in the forest. We've already smashed seventy percent of them. We have a way to draw out the last thirty percent, too.\" \"...The enemy is seventy percent crushed? Barusu, are you are saying that you destroyed them?\" He'd conveyed the state of the battle with the aim of changing the subject, but Ram was taken aback upon hearing the words. In modern warfare, losing 30 percent of your fighting strength was considered being routed, but even in an age without modern logistics, 70 percent was a considerable number. The Witch Cult was on the verge of being wiped out. \"But where they're concerned, they've gotta be annihilated down to the last man. Besides, the fewer they are, the more time it'll take to find 'em. Plus, it might make them desperate.\" \"So that is why you assembled the transportation needed to evacuate... Holing up in the mansion is a poor plan, I take it?\" \"These guys would set it on fire and not even blink. We have a lot of memories of that mansion, so I don't wanna see it go up in smoke. Easy to understand why running is better, huh?\" Along with the reinforcements he'd brought were the horde of traveling merchant dragon carriages. When he explained the force's various objectives, Ram closed her eyes, sinking into thought. Many of them were the result of Subaru's own independent decision making. It was natural for her to be bewildered by it all and yet: \"Sorry to act out of turn, but this is my decision. As for the right to decide...Roswaal's not at the mansion, is he?\" \" That's right. Right now, Master Roswaal is traveling to Garf's...to the sanctuary. Currently, I am under instructions to obey Lady Emilia's commands.\" \"Did Emilia order you to smack anyone approaching the village with illusions?\" \"That was my independent judgment.\" \"Figures.\" Even if she was backed into a corner, it would have been far too violent an order for Emilia to give. Subaru patted his chest, relieved at the fact. \"...You are naive to be relieved about that part, Barusu.\" \"Ah?\" \"I said, the village has come into view.\" Subaru hadn't caught her murmur the first time, so he thought Ram had repeated her words as she pointed forward. At her urging, Subaru turned his eyes to the road ahead; the entrance to Earlham Village truly was within view. The highway, continuing to infinity within the illusion, had come to an end. To Subaru, it had been a very long road, enough to make the proper return a sight for sore eyes. \"I'm finally back...\" Not once but twice had he returned to find the village a tragic sight. When he had returned to the village before that, Subaru's mind had been whittled down to the bone. So to him, this was a first. \"But...doesn't feel like there's much of a welcome.\" The expeditionary force passed through the entrance, entering the village square. Amid that imposing atmosphere, the villagers poked their heads out of the surrounding homes one after another. However, the expressions on their faces were certainly not sunny; naturally, they were ones of worry and confusion. Subaru could hardly blame them; an armed group had suddenly appeared in the village's midst. \"Ram, how much did you tell the villagers?\" \"...I warned them not to wander outside the village and to stay out of the forest. I did not touch upon any of the details.\" \"Okay. Nice call.\""}, {"text": "If the Witch Cult was even guessed at, the village would surely be in chaos. Perhaps Ram was to be commended for keeping that part a secret, considering that she had thought the Crusch camp was her enemy. \"Hey, isn't that...Master Subaru and Miss Ram?\" \"It really is. So Master Subaru has come back...\" One by one, the villagers began to realize that it was Subaru and Ram on dragon-back. With all eyes upon them, seemingly in charge of the group, Subaru got off Patlash, judging it a good time to do so. He was probably best suited to explain the situation. \"Barusu...\" \"Just wait a minute. I'll talk to 'em Wilhelm, Julius, Ricardo.\" Subaru put a hand up to Ram and addressed the three heaviest hitters of the expeditionary force. He chose them because they would amplify his persuasiveness to the villagers. They weren't just reliable; they looked the part. Subaru brought the three with him as he walked straight into the center of the village square. \"Subaru, it would seem that they are concerned. Do not neglect to be considerate.\" Nodding at Julius's whisper, Subaru took a deep breath before loudly clapping his hands together. Seeing the Subaru they knew so well do this made the villagers widen their eyes, wondering what was going on. Seeing from their reactions that he'd nicely gathered their attention, Subaru opened his mouth to set their concerns at ease. \"Yes, everyone's attention, please! Hi, it's been a while. It's been a few days, but is everyone doing okay?\" *** \"I know coming back like this is really sudden, but today, I'm asking everyone to do something.\" After a modest greeting, Subaru switched to the topic at hand. The way Subaru raised his voice made the villagers, surrounding him from a distance, look at one another's faces. They all knew Subaru, and he knew all of them. Understanding their worry and confusion, Subaru spoke in the gentlest voice he could, but also laid things out very quickly. He wanted to convey the situation with haste, enough to deny them time to think about other choices and enough to make evacuation a reality. \"Actually, the demon beasts in the forest seem to be getting bad again. These are the people brought in to wipe them out...but I want everyone away from the village until that work is done. Of course, I prepared the transportation in advance. It might not be that comfy a ride, but...\" Hiding the lie behind a layer of truth, Subaru selected words that would not startle the villagers as he continued speaking. Their memories of the demon beast\u00e2\u20ac\u201crelated crisis two months before were surely still fresh. He had to be convincing when he told them that the forest beyond the barrier still harbored demon beasts. Behind him, they could see an expeditionary force formed of veterans and numerous traveling merchant dragon carriages to transport them. Even if it felt high-handed to him, Subaru pushed forward while concealing that the Witch Cult was attacking. However  \"The evacuation will be for half a day at shortest, one or two days at most. Sorry to cause trouble for everyone, but please accept this as the safest way to...\" \" Why are you lying to us like this?\"  In the end, that was a judgment formed according to Subaru's notions of common sense. \"Huh?\" Subaru's eyes widened at the sudden interjection. The one who had spoken was a youth with a crew cut. As one of the village's band of young men, he had exchanged words with Subaru numerous times. It seemed that he'd spontaneously blurted it out, but when Subaru met his eyes, he hesitated for a moment before stepping forward. \"You bring a huge group of outsiders...to hunt demon beasts? Why tell us something like...?\" \"Because, hey, it's dangerous. I mean there was the demon beast ruckus not long ago, right? We need to deal with it before it becomes that bad this time around, so...\" \"Don't try to pull the wool over our eyes!\" Subaru tried to correct the precarious atmosphere, but the young man would not lend Subaru his ear. His unsophisticated face had a scowl on it, his fist shaking as he glared at Subaru. Upon it were repressed rage and despair, and irrepressible fear. \"Master Subaru, you said you were trying to clear up our concerns, but...doing it this way is making everyone in the village afraid! We've been thinking the Witch Cult is up to something the whole time!\" \"Uh...\" The young man visibly lost his temper as he shouted, instantly making Subaru's words catch in his throat. The youngster's voice echoed around the village, spreading unrest among the villagers, and, naturally, among the traveling merchants as well. There was no unrest in the expeditionary force, but the turbulent flow of discourse made their faces grow graver as well. \"You're...not denying it, are you...?\" The young man weakly murmured, finding his answer in Subaru's silent demeanor. The sight caused an outburst of unrest among the villagers, making their pent-up worries pour out all at once. \"So the people from the mansion really were talking about the Witch Cult yesterday... Why are they in a remote place like this...?\" \"That's obvious, that's obvious, isn't it? It's because the lord did something like that!\" \"Why must he support a half-elf...a half-demon...?\" The worries spoken by one set of lips after another made it painfully clear that Subaru's efforts to smooth things over had resulted in the opposite effect. The villagers had understood long before: the unrest enveloping their village was not unrelated to Emilia, residing at the mansion of the lord of the land. They were not conveniently ignorant. It was only natural that they would reject Subaru's plan. \"Hold on a minute! I'm sorry! I was wrong, and I apologize! But...\" *** Accepting that his effort to convince them had failed, Subaru voiced an apology. At the same time, he realized something. Among the villagers, some lamented, some raged, some glared. Those negative actions were not caused by their difficult-to-resist fear of the Witch Cult. Their negative energy was trained not toward the Cult, but toward the half-elf who had yet to show herself. \"What makes you think that?! Don't you realize it's got nothing to do with half-elves or Emilia?\" Subaru exclaimed. \"How can it not be related?! The Witch Cult rampages against anything related to half-demons. Even the children of the village know that much! And yet, the lord not only shelters a half-demon, he nominates her to be the nation's king! This is no joke!\" *** The youth's anger shocked Subaru; the near scream cut into him like a blade. His reaction made the youth's eyes freeze over as he looked downward. But he did not amend his statement. When Subaru looked around, he saw, to a greater or lesser extent, the same emotion in the eyes of the other villagers. \"Is that what you all think? You think it's all the fault of the half-elf in the mansion?\" There was no reply. They seemed to think silence was more eloquent than anything they could say. These were the friendly villagers he'd spent so much time with. Though it had only been two short months, so many things had happened that Subaru felt deepened the friendship they shared with one another. That was why he had been so desperate to save them. He'd believed that they would accept his feelings without suspicion or doubt...and yet. \"This was just me getting ahead of myself again...?\" He'd underestimated the deep-rooted fear of the Witch Cult planted in every human being of that world. Even people who believed in Subaru's innate goodness could not defy the scars of history. That fact made Subaru weakly slump his shoulders but the next moment, his shoulders were slapped from behind. From very close, an individual patted Subaru's shoulders, moving parallel to him while exhaling. \"Raise your head after all, Lady Crusch says you should never lower your sights.\" \"You...\" \"Do you think what you're doing is wrong...? If you don't think that, you don't need to look down.\" Ferris's firm declaration surprised Subaru, coming from the last person he would have expected to console him. So, too, was he surprised at the memory that Ferris's words spurred him to recall. They were words Crusch had actually spoken to Subaru, albeit during a different time around from the present. \"Besides, wasn't recklessly picking fights at the castle a lot harder than raising your head here?\" \"...Now hold on.\" Ferris's taunting comment made Subaru's shoulders go slack in a way that was very out of place. Subaru wondered just how long he was going to be made fun of for that single moment. But  \" Yeah. Compared to that, this is nothin'.\" As much as his words had been rejected, he did not doubt that he was doing the right thing. He understood that the villagers had an aversion toward half-elves. That very cruel fact caused a dark shadow to fall over Subaru's heart. But that reality was absolutely not something he could do anything about now. It was something to be changed by Emilia's future actions, with Subaru at her side. \"It's not somethin' I can do anything about just by saying 'I'm gonna change it.' Not when I haven't managed anything else yet.\" As much as he thought their assessment was unfair, all he could do was show them results big enough to make them see her in a new light. And Subaru and the others were acting to create the time necessary for him to do so.  Subaru Natsuki wanted to believe that was the reason he had come again like this. \"From what you've said, I understand how you all feel. I won't tell you, 'Drop everything and come with me.' It's natural you all have your thoughts on it. It hurts, but I get that, too.\" \"Master Subaru...\" \"But for now, please, swallow it down. I really do understand all the feelings you're trying to put into words. So please, do as I say right now so we can speak properly about it later. The village really is in danger.\" When Subaru spoke those words, training earnest eyes toward them, the villagers kept their silence, saying nothing. With silence falling over the village, Subaru thought their reaction very sad. At this rate, all he'd have done was spend time in futility. However, it was Ram who sternly smashed the stalemate asunder. \" The words of a servant of our house are the commands of Master Roswaal, lord of this land. You serfs never had any right of refusal to begin with. Come now, hurry and obey your instructions.\" Having observed on the sidelines up to that point, Ram had stepped out of the ranks of the expeditionary force to stand alongside Subaru as she confronted the villagers. The overbearing glint in her eye and the authority of her statement surprised and unnerved the villagers. \"H-hold on! I get why you're putting it harshly, but you don't have to put it like that. Everyone has their own lives. It's only natural they'd be thrown off like...\" \"It would seem you, like these villagers, are insufficiently aware of the greatness of your lord.\" When Subaru objected to Ram's high-handed statement, Ram glared at Subaru with an exasperated air. \"If you incur issues or damages due to the evacuation, our landlord shall take responsibility and compensate you. If any of you object, come forth and state your names. This is Master Roswaal's decision.\" The way she said it was stern; her meaning was severe as well. But though she had been uncompromising, the contents of her proposal soothed the concerns of the populace, leaving Subaru and the villagers in awe. Everyone understood: by backing up Subaru's words with the authority of the landlord, Ram gave the villagers what they needed to agree. \"Ahh, sorry for Ram's harsh way of saying it, but what I want hasn't changed. Everyone"}, {"text": "needs to evacuate the village. I realize that it's so sudden you can't properly prepare.\" *** \"That's why I'll take responsibility and talk to Roswaal about proper compensation for damages. I want everyone to at least believe me about that. Please.\" Accepting Ram's viewpoint, Subaru appealed not to emotion, but to logic. Between Ram's calm and Subaru's urgings, the villagers were silent for a time. Then they nodded in apparent resignation. They were a long way from liking it. However, they'd given their consent. The evacuation could begin. \"Sigh...\" When, with one thing settled, Subaru breathed out with relief, he was joined by the comrades standing in a row behind him. Everyone had been tense and anxious, but somehow, they'd climbed that mountain. \"I've gotta say, though.\" \"What?\" Subaru shared in his comrades' relief before proceeding to look at Ram, standing right beside him. Ram had a suspicious look in response to that gaze, but there was no question that it had been her words that had given the final push. He thought that was very Ram-like hard edged, difficult to fathom, but kind. \"Having you tell people to do what I say is new. Does this mean you've accepted me?\" \"Hah!\" Ram snorted. Somehow just a little bit he took solace in her demeanor. 6 The evacuation would last for two days at most. So it would begin as soon as the minimum supplies needed for that time were loaded. The conditions Subaru placed on the villagers were very grudgingly accepted. \"There's fifteen dragon carriages. If we put seven people on almost each one, we should be able to get everyone aboard with room to spare.\" Subaru had asked the young men of the village to take a roll call, ensuring every villager was accounted for. Now that they were evacuating, they surely didn't want to cause any extra trouble. Though they still dealt with the expeditionary force rather awkwardly, they dutifully did as they were told. There was just one issue that couldn't be left unresolved  \"Explaining this to Lady Emilia and Lady Beatrice at the mansion, yes?\" Ram said, hands on her hips as her eyes shifted to the path going from the village to the mansion. The issues for proceeding with preparations to evacuate had been resolved. The mansion was another issue. And for Subaru, it posed the largest problem of all. \"I thought the village was pretty agitated, but what's Emilia been up to?\" The time had moved past early morning, finally entering the period one could call \"morning\" proper. Even if most human beings would be asleep at that hour, it was difficult for him to believe that Emilia could sleep soundly given the state of the Mathers domain over the last few days. Ram's testimony had already made clear that Emilia had had no role in Ram's attack. But the fact that Emilia hadn't responded to the unrest in the forest tugged at his mind. Ram responded to Subaru's suspicions by lowering her eyes with a faintly melancholic look. \"She was busy until late evening, so she should still be resting at the moment. Ever since returning from the capital in a state of despair, she has been weary, lacking any time to put her heart at ease.\" \"Unghh...\" \"She has the look of someone who has been put through a distasteful ordeal by a man.\" \"Don't attach distasteful to it, okay?! ...Not that I'm denying it...\" Her third-party opinion magnified Subaru's feelings of guilt all at once. It was natural that the events at the capital had greatly wounded Emilia. He could not disagree with Ram's scornful opinion of him. \"While Master Roswaal is absent, it is up to Lady Emilia to deal with anything amiss at the mansion and the village. But you can understand the villagers' reactions to Lady Emilia from their earlier demeanor, yes?\" \"I can picture it, but I don't really want to put it into words... Rejection, huh?\" \"'Rejection'? A rather simplistic impression, isn't it?\" Ram laughed loudly at Subaru's words, her face immediately turning more cheerful. \" More like repudiation. If you have been rejected, you can always reach out again. If one's outstretched hand has been brushed aside, that means there has been contact. But what if you have been repudiated instead?\" *** \"If it is disgusting to even touch, one must wonder how one closes the distance.\" Subaru made no reply to Ram's argument, seemingly made to test him. Ram didn't seem to be looking for an answer, either. \"I said something mean,\" she said immediately with a sigh. \"Lady Emilia realized there was something amiss in the forest and attempted to have the villagers take shelter in the mansion. Then the villagers repudiated her. She is not someone sensible enough to withdraw immediately after being repudiated, something I imagine you know for yourself, Barusu.\" \"But I also know that she's not a girl who'll get hit with cruel words and not be hurt.\" Emilia had been trying to deal with the Witch Cult unrest in her own Emilia-like way. However, that way was not enough to soften the hard hearts the villagers bore toward half-elves. Or perhaps the villagers' excessive reaction was the result of their speaking with her. \"So what'd Emilia do after?\" \"After repeated attempts at persuasion were declined, she was unable to sit still, so she went around reweaving the barriers around the village. After all, as we had not judged the unrest to be from the Witch Cult, she feared it might be demon beasts.\" \"Well, that wasn't really a bad call, but...\" \"After that, the blank declaration of war arrived last evening, so she was fretting about that until the morning.\" \"So that pops up here, too...\" While Ram spoke as if it were light banter, Subaru could only lament that the letter had done damage on another front. The report on events in the capital, evacuation preparations, Emilia and Ram's concerns, Ram's independent actions the secondary damage was a gift that kept on giving. For such a simple trick, the effects were all too painful. \"In any case, with this much advance preparation to evacuate, Lady Emilia is unlikely to object. If we report to her at the mansion, it should make her agree immediately.\" *** \"Barusu?\" \"No, I get it. Just makes my heart hurt a little.\" With Ram looking suspicious, Subaru shook his head, conscious of his quickening heartbeats. Here, on the brink of a reunion with Emilia, his tension was at its zenith. Just as Ram saw it, Emilia was not the kind of girl who'd reject the cooperation of so many people. Hence, Subaru's stress and worry were an issue of Subaru's own heart. \"Julius, come with me, 'kay? I'm heading to the mansion to convince Emilia and the loli.\" \"Me?\" As he hardened his resolve, Subaru looked around him and called for Julius. Subaru nodded at Julius, whose face showed that the nomination had come unexpectedly. \"Yeah. I'm a lot more convincing with you beside me than not. You'll be my proof that I've behaved and repented after all the stuff at the castle.\" \"I see, very well. If it will make the talk go more smoothly, use me to your heart's content.\" His handsome face indicated consent, elegantly nodding at Subaru's suggestion. The gesture made Subaru grimace. Ram, glancing sidelong at the exchange, sighed as she said, \"A petty and very Barusu-like little trick.\" \"Hey, don't call it petty. Call it paying attention to the little details. Ahh, Julius, besides that.\" \"What is it?\" \"You're the one who stuck a spirit on me, right? I want a proper explanation.\" The offhanded way Subaru made the remark made even Julius look apprehensive. His reaction made Subaru avert his eyes, a guilty look on his face as he continued: \"Now look, I've been saved two times now with my life on the line, so I get that you're a spirit mage whether I like it or not.\" \"I would prefer you called me by the proper title, spirit knight. I employ spiritual spells, of course, but I do not recall skimping on my sword training.\" Giving that reply, Julius stared at Subaru's face with utmost seriousness. \"...You are unexpectedly calm. I was thoroughly convinced you would find my being a spirit user to be distasteful.\" \"Even I can account for time, place, circumstances, and person once in a while. There are times when I haven't, though.\" Subaru, eyes still averted, made a pained smile as he motioned toward Julius's right arm. There emerged the minor spirits that Subaru had seen during Ram's attack, seemingly orbiting the arm. The flickering spirits numbered six in total, each one lovingly nestling close to Julius's arm. However beautiful and fickle they looked, they were beings imbued with supernatural power. \"As you have surmised, these girls are spirits known as common spirits that I have formed a pact with. They are buds yet to bloom into distinct categories of spirits. I borrow their strength through my pledge to become a knight worthy of the beautiful flowers they shall become.\" \"So you had the red one keep an eye on me?\" One of the minor spirits resting on Julius's palm was the red one that had leaped out of Subaru's hair during the illusion. When he thought back, it was that same scarlet minor spirit that had appeared when he had been captured by the crazed woman. All of it was Julius's doing. Twice, Subaru had been saved by him in his time of need. \"It is hurtful to hear you call it keeping an eye on you. She was protecting you from the shadows.\" \"...Incidentally, what was that thing you used when you were breaking the illusion?\" Julius had used some kind of magic to share the method of breaking the illusion with every member of the group. As a result, Subaru's brain had been put through the wringer from the multiple thoughts passing through it. \"That was magic cast through borrowing the power of In and Nes, combining Dark with Light...that is Nekt, an advanced magic spell. It links the Gates of all human beings within range, enabling thoughts to pass between them. Though it seems to have been rather too effective upon you.\" \"Yeah. I thought I wasn't gonna be me anymore.\" \"As a matter of fact, there is no question it is a difficult spell to employ. After all, it is a ritual to thin the boundaries between you and the minds of others. If deepened to excess, not only thoughts but also the five senses can be commingled. I'm sure you experienced the fear of being consumed by others to a fair extent?\" \"That's walking one hell of a tightrope!\" Subaru was aghast at learning far too late that he had crossed a more precarious bridge than he had even imagined. Julius turned a look of deep interest toward him and said, \"But it is rare for the buds to make a mistake when tuning it. Perhaps you possess an unusually high affinity for spirits... Does anything along those lines come to mind?\" \"Sorry, the only spirit I get along with is a mouse-colored cat.\" On top of that, right then, he had no confidence that he could ever approach that cat in the same way as before. \"If you have an opportunity, you should try to learn the basics of spiritualism from Lady Emilia. If she is resistant to teaching you, I would be willing to aid you myself.\" \"I'm not sure what brought on this sudden outpouring of friendliness, but it doesn't sound like an instant process, so I'll pass for now.\" He didn't deny that the suggestion held its attractions, but Subaru reflexively declined the offer. His reaction made Julius pull back, seemingly disappointed, when Subaru simultaneously remembered something. Ferris had told him. Subaru was still subconsciously harboring enmity toward Julius just as he had at that very moment. \"Can't I do something about that?\" The first time, Ram"}, {"text": "had interrupted, but was it not the time to properly clear up the ill feelings between them? With such thoughts in Subaru's mind, his gaze caused Julius to incline his own head. Subaru narrowed his eyes at the handsome young man fluent with words, anguished in the attempt to somehow spit out serious words of his own. But  \"...I understand that you don't feel like putting all your cards on the table, but right now you've gotta put up with it. There'll be problems with our teamwork if we don't know what the other can do, right?\" \" Mmm, understood. If possible, I would like to put Ia on you again. Please grant your consent.\" In the end, hesitation clogged up Subaru's throat, and all he could manage was to keep his statement inoffensive. While Subaru's thoughts were elsewhere, the red minor spirit called Ia circled above his head. It proceeded to land on the crown of Subaru's head, asserting its existence with a faint emission of heat. \"Hey, this isn't gonna make me bald, is it? I'll have you know I'm trying to go through life without becoming bald or chubby...\" \"She's been nestled against you until now without you even noticing, yes? It is especially so for those with a high affinity for spirits. Your Gate will acclimate quickly, and you will cease to notice her.\" In accordance with this lecture, Subaru immediately stopped feeling the heat on the crown of his head. The principles were unclear to him, but she had apparently slipped inside Subaru. That faint heat was the only thing he'd felt from it. \"What should I do to call it out?\" \"She responds to the name Ia. As she cannot respond to commands that are too complex or beyond her power, please do not forget to be as considerate as when approaching any lady.\" Apparently, in other words, read the mood not Subaru's strong suit. \"Now then, Barusu, will you finally put your cowardice aside?\" Ram, looking tired of waiting, cut into the pair's conversation. She was leaning on a fence, and her jaw was firm as she indicated the road running from the village to the mansion. \"Or do you intend to let a defenseless girl, her mana all used up, walk such a dangerous mountain road alone?\" \"More like you ran out of gas doing friendly fire. To be honest, I didn't know you had that in you...\" He was genuinely surprised at her combat ability. She could even take Wilhelm on, if only for a short period. However, he could not wipe away his disappointment including at how a crucial scene had gone up in smoke. \"Had Master Wilhelm been at full strength, I would not have lasted ten seconds. After all, my power has fallen two steps...no, four steps from its peak.\" \"Why'd you make it double Wilhelm's? Stubbornness?\" \"Pride.\" It was an exceptionally Ram-like statement, and for that matter, it was likely the literal truth. Subaru couldn't even imagine how astounding Ram had been before she had lost her horn. \"That probably accounts for why Rem dwelled on it so much...\" \"Did you say something, Barusu?\" \"Nothing at all, Big Sis. If I spill the beans that much, it'll make for more scary people to deal with.\" *** Ram was suspicious about his demeanor, but Subaru avoided saying any more at that juncture. He was hesitating about Rem her little sister and all the feelings Subaru bore toward her. More than any other, it was thanks to Rem that Subaru had overcome his trials at the royal capital and was standing there. In that moment, the importance of Rem's existence rivaled that of Emilia's inside Subaru. But considering the time and place, explaining those difficult-to-describe emotions to her older sister just wasn't happening there and then. He could face that, and all the other concerns, after everyone had overcome the current state of affairs. \"We have to explain the alliance, too, so we should grab Ferris and head to the mansion, huh?\" Someone from the Crusch camp was required for smoothly clearing up the misunderstanding from the letter of goodwill incident. They'd leave most of the expeditionary force to guard the villagers, with several heavy hitters joining him on his way up to the mansion. \"So about Ferris... What's he up to anyway?\" Subaru, searching for any sight of the kitty-eared knight in the village, finally spotted him at a corner of the village square. There rested the merchants' dragon carriages in a line; Ferris was surrounded by their owners, engaged in some kind of argument. \"It is because the circumstances with the Witch Cult have come to light. They might be venting their frustrations about it.\" \"Geh... Well, I suppose they would. Sorry, I'll go mediate a little.\" Scowling at Julius's guess, Subaru headed toward them. Ram seemed beside herself as she watched him go. Ferris was clearly relieved when Subaru wedged himself into the center of the dispute. \"Ah, Subawu...\" \"Okay, that's enough! Can someone explain to me what this argument's about?\" \"They keep saying, 'This wasn't the deal'! Even though I told them again and again that Ferri doesn't represent the group...\" \"That's right, pal. You're the one we wanted to talk to!\" This time, instead of Ferris, whose cheeks swelled up in a huff, the angry voices poured onto Subaru. Breathing raggedly through his nose, the merchants' representative an individual named Kety jabbed his finger into Subaru. \"The deal... Well, I suppose not?\" \"Of course it's not! There's no mistaking what you told us: 'Help us evacuate people while we exterminate demon beasts.' And when we open the lid, what's inside?!\" Kety, his face red with anger, pressed roughly against Subaru's chest and said, \"It turns out to be trouble involving the Witch Cult! This is quite a fraud, you know? What the hell are you up to, dropping that kind of huge lie at our feet?!\" Accosted in such a threatening manner, Subaru was of course taken aback by the sheer force of it. They were right to be angry about circumstances not corresponding to the explanation they'd been given beforehand. That said, Subaru was at a loss for how to apologize to Kety, who was vehement to the point of incoherence. Then  \"If that's the case, how about we make a more tangible apology by raising the reward, meow?\" \" Wha...? You sure got more sensible than earlier all of a sudden.\" Kety's smile toward Ferris, hiding behind Subaru's back as he made the proposal, deepened further. Inside, Subaru breathed a sigh of relief that his demand was so straightforward. If they'd gotten bent out of shape Subaru would be right back to square one. A little extra damage to Roswaal's coffers was no great concern. \"The original condition was to name our price. Can we expect double that?\" \"Because you're greedy, meow... Where is your register? I'll review the contents with Subawu.\" \"Hey! Do we have to do that...? Doesn't human life come first?\" Subaru's eyes widened as Ferris drove the conversation further and further afield. Kety, having just handed the register over to Ferris, gave a mean-spirited look down at Subaru and said, \"This is a huge issue related to the lives we'll be leading tomorrow. But if you don't want to, that's fine.\" \"...I'm just grumblin'.\" Cowed by Kety's downward gaze, Subaru grudgingly climbed into the wagon of his dragon carriage. So far as he could tell, the register listed all the cargo the carriages hauled, as well as personal accessories and jewelry and the like, in an unexpectedly meticulous manner. \"Even though the owner's so violent, meow?\" \"I had the same thought, but why are we doing this together? Go thataway or somethin'.\" \"This'll be done faster if two people are checking, yes? And it's not like he minds, meow.\" Ferris snuggled against Subaru as they checked the cargo in the curtained wagon. Subaru raised his eyebrows at Ferris's pushy demeanor when Ferris narrowed his eyes and said, \"More importantly...making up with Julius? Did you do it?\" \"...Concerning that issue, after much consideration and study, I wish to approach the matter with positivity and discretion.\" \"I thought so, meow. I thought, It's Subawu, so he'll mess it up for sure. And after you said all that cool stuff in front of the villagers, too \" Ferris put a hand on his mouth and giggled, showing no sign of ceasing his teasing look. Subaru, feeling burned at the teasing over earlier events and his lingering resentment toward Julius, continued the inspection, comparing cargo to the register. \"Well, it wasn't a bad try, meow? All you have to do is apologize to Julius with the same intensity...\" \"Why you little...!\" \"Hey now, don't start a lover's quarrel inside someone else's dragon carriage. Get the work done already.\" When he talked back at Ferris for making light of his situation, Kety made his disapproval with both of them very clear. When his tall frame lumbered over, he was even more sour about Subaru and Ferris's lack of concentration. \"I can yell at you more, you know. If you'd rather I don't, get serious.\" \"Y-yeah, sorry. We'll do it right...\" \"Uh-oh, he's angry with you, Subawu. Sheesh, you really are a handful, meow.\" Seizing on Kety's anger, Ferris hopped away from Subaru's side. Subaru had just about had enough of his antics. But before he could raise a coarse voice  \" So careless of you.\" \"Guh ?!\" When Ferris murmured, narrowing his yellow eyes, he touched Kety's exposed arm. The next moment, the tall man let out an anguished cry, his eyes rolling up as he toppled onto his side. \"Huh...?\" \"Subawu, don't just stare like that. Stand watch outside so that no one notices.\" All trace of levity gone, Ferris gave crisp instructions to Subaru, who was taken aback by the sudden series of events. But Subaru was rooted to the spot, unable to understand what had just taken place. Seeing this, Ferris sighed and explained. \"This person is part of the Witch Cult. I touched him to check earlier when all those people were around me; he has the same weird ritual embedded in him as the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins' finger had earlier.\" \" ?! He's a Witch Cultist?! And a Sloth on top of that?!\" \"The possibility is high. That's why I thought I'd get into the dragon carriage to lower his guard.\" As Ferris replied to the wide-eyed Subaru, he checked Kety's fallen body and found something. When he lifted a hand, it was holding a cross-shaped sword furnished by the Witch Cult. \"That's one of the swords the Witch Cultists... They seriously infiltrated the traveling merchants...?\" \"But we captured this one alive. The instant I touched him, I made the water in his body run wild and knocked him out. Though if I've directly affected someone even once, I can do the same thing without even touching, meow.\" \"...Meaning you can do the same thing to me. Kinda gives me the chills to hear that...\" Grudgingly, Subaru did as Ferris directed and checked on things beyond the curtain. Fortunately, no one on the outside seemed to have noticed the skirmish inside the carriage. No one else seemed to be coming aboard. \"But if one of them was a Witch Cultist, that changes everything.\" \"We can't be certain they don't have others among the merchants...but we can check that from here on out, I suppose?\" Subaru was chagrined at the plan backfiring, but Ferris shook his head as if it was no big deal. After that, he gave the unmoving Kety a smack on the cheek, then pressed a palm, glowing with a pale light, to his face and said, \"Now, spill out everything that you're planning, would you? Ferri's hand is the gentlest in the world...but it can do such terrible things, meow?\" *** Subaru's body shuddered when he remembered the phrase Those who know how to heal people also know how to break them. Ferris's request"}, {"text": "made Kety open his eyelids a crack, gazing at Ferris with unfocused eyes. His lips frailly struggled to move, but Ferris's power was supreme. He apparently couldn't move at all. \"Ferris, be careful. If he is a Sloth, even if he can't move his limbs...\" \"He can still use his power, yes? That's why I have you watching, Subawu.\" Just because the flesh could not move didn't mean Unseen Hands couldn't be put into motion. In accordance with Ferris's request, Subaru squared his shoulders and kept the closest eye possible on what Kety was doing. With Subaru and Ferris both hemming him in, Kety breathed out, seemingly deflated. Then  *** \"What?\" When Kety seemed to murmur something, Ferris narrowed his eyes, demanding he repeat himself. Subaru hadn't been able to hear the statement, either. Kety opened his mouth once more  *** \" ! Ia! Protect him!!\" Ferris seemed to leap to his feet the instant the whisper reached his eardrums, calling to Subaru, at the entrance to the wagon no, to the common spirit tethered to him. Ferris's gravity, normally unthinkable for him, made Subaru stare for a second, wondering what had happened, when... \"Ah?\" With a burst of heat, the common spirit flew out, deploying a crimson wall of shimmering light around his entire body. It enveloped Subaru, completely isolating him from his surroundings  \"Now cooomes the beginning...of the end!!\" Frozen stiff, Subaru heard a shrill voice saying that right before his eyes. The next moment, Subaru was engulfed by the flames of the exploding dragon carriage, losing all track of which way was up. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 When Subaru's mind returned to reality, the first thing he took in was the powerful stench of something burnt. It was like meat that had been barbecued to ash, stir-fried vegetables that had been fried black, completely and thoroughly burnt from too much heat inside and outside, a scent that brought one's mood to its nadir. *** He opened his mouth, trying to get his voice out. He couldn't hear a thing. It was not that sound did not reach his eardrums, but rather that too great a sound had slammed into them a moment prior. A sound far too great to be termed ringing echoed through his skull at length, leaving Subaru to expect little from his hearing for the time being. *** Subaru continued instinctively raising his voice as he relied on his other senses. His eyelids were open, but his field of vision remained pitch-black, ruling sight out. His sense of smell was dominated by the stench of something burnt, and there was a strong taste of rust inside his mouth. The fact that he lay faceup, limbs spread wide, meant he'd probably fallen onto the ground. \" Aah.\" During the time he checked to see that his limbs could move, his own voice faintly slipped past the ringing in his ears. As the ringing began to fade, he began to be able to hear himself. At the same time, he began to hear the sound of his own blood coursing through his body, and the darkness in his field of vision gradually brightened. His five senses were functioning. Sight and vision were returning, allowing him to sense the world around him. And then  *** As his hearing recovered, stringent shouts flew his way. Some voices were bloodcurdling; others were those of crying children. Screams. The mansion, burnt instantly, his thoughts came to a boil. \" ! What the ?!\" When his thinking processes recovered, bolstered by his five senses, Subaru sat up with a start and looked around the area. His entire body, covered in burns and scrapes, pleaded for mercy, but the spectacle before his eyes made him forget all that.  Right before Subaru's eyes were the burning remains of a dragon carriage, with several land dragon corpses scattered around it. \"Ex plosion...\" His memory from just before came back, allowing Subaru to properly grasp what had happened. Explosion. Yes, an explosion. Explosion was the only word he had for the supreme might of the destruction wrought. Such was the power of it that the dragon carriages lined alongside had been blown away and a good chunk of Earlham Village completely leveled. The homes bordering the village square had been engulfed by the spreading fires from the explosion, with flames licking at the familiar scenery. The blackened, charred objects scattered around the area were partly the dragon carriages and the corpses of their land dragons, but that none were intact made him unable to differentiate between organic and inorganic matter. It was surely a foregone conclusion that the dense scent of burning flesh invading his nostrils was from the land dragons that had perished in the blast. Aghast that land dragons had been blown away without a trace, Subaru bit down on his back teeth and said, \"Ia! Come on out, Ia! You're here, aren't you?!\" When Subaru slapped his chest and desperately called out, the red common spirit instantly responded. The red light appeared before his eyes, making no complaint at being called on repeatedly as she silently asserted her existence with her heat.  Subaru remembered that Ia had protected him, deploying a wall an instant before the explosion. If not for the common spirit's protection, Subaru would have died in the explosion just like the land dragons around him. However, Subaru had not been the only one in the dragon carriage. It would be meaningless if he had been the only one saved. \"Ia! The person with me... Where's Ferris?! Where's...\" \" I'm here.\" Subaru was on his knees when a frail voice reached his ears. As it was truly the voice he'd yearned to hear, Subaru practically tumbled as he turned toward it. He heard the voice from the shadow of a ruined house. \"Ferris?! Are you all right, Fe \" \"All right...might be a hard sell, meow.\" When Subaru practically crawled in that direction, Ferris, the one he sought, revealed himself out of the smoke. Subaru had feared the worst but was relieved to the bottom of his heart when Ferris emerged. But an instant after that relief, he realized that something was very off. He was happy Ferris was all right, but he was too all right. \"Ia's magic wall didn't deploy in time...? Some sort of super-powerful defensive spell, then?\" \"Nothing of the sort...I died once, that's all.\" Ferris, with one eye closed, bore no wound worthy of the name. Unlike Subaru, he surely didn't have the protection of a common spirit, and yet his fur and flesh were in tidy shape. But his attire was not the uniform of a Knight of the Royal Guard, but merely a tattered cloth wrapped around his naked flesh. Given the little time available, the cloth must have come from a dragon carriage curtain. \"Why are you dressed like...?\" \"Well, I can't help it! Clothes can't be regenerated with magic! And more to the point...\" Ferris thrust his palm forward, interrupting Subaru's question as he turned hard eyes elsewhere. Following his gaze, Subaru clicked his tongue. The situation was even worse than he'd imagined.  In the blink of an eye, Earlham Village had transformed into a battlefield a clash of fire and sword taking place. \"No retreat, push them back! Cut open a path! Evacuating the villagers comes first!!\" On the other side of the village square, one of the knights shouted to that effect as he and an attacker crossed blades. A large number of people were gathered together in the square, knights included. However, the majority were noncombatants villagers and merchants. The expeditionary force was surrounding them in a circle while resisting the enemy. The attackers were dressed in black robes, carrying cross-like straight swords in their hands it was the Witch Cult. \"How did they enter the village...?\" \"That's obvious: they were in the dragon carriage wagons.\" \"Shit!\" His \"insurance\" had backfired in every possible way. Subaru cursed his own stupidity and god-awful luck. They hadn't placed any restrictions on the merchants aiding with evacuation. Realizing that the merchants had ferried the Witch Cult in made the phrase the Witch Cult is everywhere ring painfully true.  Particularly if an Archbishop of Sloth was among them. \"Subawu, you don't have time to get depre \" \"I know! Scrap the evac plan! Anyway, let's get everyone up to the mansi \" Poor strategy or not, they had no choice left but to go and hole up. The instant after he made that judgment, Subaru saw it. Repeated spells by the Witch Cultists tore the knights' circular formation apart, causing the combat strength resisting the Cult to collapse. The black-robed figures proceeded to leap into the village square, waving their swords as they assaulted the helpless villagers. \"Those bas !\" Their short swords reflected the flames; their glints burned into Subaru's eyes as he yelled at the top of his lungs. However, his voice could not halt the vile blades. Nor could the knights halt their wicked deeds in time. Mother protected child. Husband shielded wife. Young stood before old. And crosses would impale them all  \"Al Clauzeria !\" A brief moment before that tragic scene was to unfold, a chant resounded, and simultaneously, Subaru saw light in the sky. Light spawned and swirled about in midair, swelling into a rainbow-colored aurora that poured down onto the village square. The vivid aurora traced a beautiful arc, indiscriminately bathing the knights, villagers, and Witch Cultists with its colors. But a moment later, the effects upon them were at polar extremes. The rainbow softly enveloped the knights and villagers, transforming into a wall for them. The Witch Cultists impaled the rainbow with their daggers, and the next instant, they were enveloped in an unimaginable shock wave that sent them flying. The square upon which the Witch Cultists had intruded was conquered by the overpowering light of that rainbow. And this had been wrought by a handsome young man in white armor, appearing in the square as if he had flown there. \"None shall mar the beautiful radiance of the rainbow this is the truth of the heavens.\" \"The Finest of Knights,\" master of the aurora, snobbishly spoke those words as he thrust his cavalry saber toward the sky. The cavalry saber that had swept the Witch Cultists clean was surrounded by the lights of five common spirits all except Ia, who had been assigned to Subaru. The way Julius had turned the battle around at its darkest moment was truly worthy of his other name. Seeing the result for himself, Subaru clapped his hands as he rushed over to Julius. \"Incredible! Good job, well done! You really let loose! I'm glad you're here for once!\" \"Somewhat vexing praise, but I shall accept. I am glad you and Ferris are safe.\" Julius, thanks to whom the front line had recovered, was relieved to see Subaru and Ferris rushing toward him. But unfortunately, there was no time to celebrate their safety. \"Sorry, I messed up. There was a Sloth with the traveling merchants, but I couldn't deal with him.\" \"It is the result of the enemy outthinking us. I have no intention of criticizing you. Right after the dragon carriage you and Subaru entered exploded, the Witch Cultists in the village went on a rampage. The damage from the explosion and the surprise attack is not shallow, but I had TB and Ram evacuate the wounded to the mansion.\" \"There's a lot of enemies, though. The evacuation didn't go well, I take it?\" Julius had avoided spelling it out, but the authority of Sloth was without doubt the cause of their disadvantage. That power could change the course of battle all by itself, and Subaru's eyes were the only counter. And if he could not fulfill that duty, all they could do was await their fated destruction. \"Anyway, we've got to smash all the Sloths! I'll do the looking! Julius, lend me your strength!\" \"Of course. Ferris, link up with the evacuees and treat them. You are our lifeline.\" Subaru clenched a fist, Julius"}, {"text": "nodded, and Ferris winked. Acknowledging their mutual roles, the three instantly separated. Subaru and Julius were to wipe out the Sloths; Ferris was to bolster the knights and villagers and form a defensive line at the mansion. \"Now then, stand up! We'll head to the mansion and hold out there. Run, run!\" With Ferris's gallant voice at his back, Subaru turned his attention to the clashes of blades he heard all over the place. The combat, far fiercer than what had come before, showed that the Witch Cult had gotten serious. \"How many Witch Cultists are in the village, roughly?\" \"The precise number is unclear. However, there were many participating in the height of the battle. The entire force of the remaining fingers has likely entered the village. Clearly, this is a difficult foe.\" If there were three fingers left, and each had ten people with them, the number of enemies had to be creeping toward forty. Beyond tangling with a force of that size, the expeditionary force had people to protect, a disadvantage that put it in a difficult situation. However, there was hope if the enemy's entire force was assembled in the village, at least. \"If we can take down the last three Sloths, we can win this in one... Ah?!\" Subaru saw a chance to turn things around, but that instant, he saw the sky ahead blotted out by blackness. Directly above the flames in the village, countless black hands were covering the sky. The numbers were straight out of a nightmare. \" Unseen Hands!!\" When Subaru looked up and shouted that, Julius's expression grew graver still. But his eyes were glazed; he could not see the same nightmare. In a sense, that was fortunate. After all, it would not be strange if seeing lethal violence on such a scale caused the heart to falter. \"Probably under there...!\" Subaru had to take Sloth on, but someone was taking Sloth on without him. His intuition soon became firm belief. The black hands cascaded from the sky, destroying trees, houses, and the ground itself with their overwhelming power. It was without cessation, over and over again, destroy, destroy, destroy fueled by the anger of being unable to finish off one's foe. \"We have to hurry! Wilhelm's fighting right near there!\" There was only one human being who could take Sloth on without Subaru. 2 Wilhelm broke through the downpour of invisible attacks by moving beyond the limits of his own vision. He swayed from left to right, suddenly accelerated and decelerated, did as many flips as he could, toying with his enemy and drawing ever, ever closer through each repeated skirmish. The authority known as Unseen Hands would be a dangerous attack even if it weren't invisible. It could freely alter its range and direction, both able to overwhelm the enemy with numbers and destroy him utterly with a single blow. These constituted countless advantages in every kind of battle, making it the ultimate technique for bringing death to one's foe. Only because he was the more experienced fighter was Wilhelm able to manage. \"Accordingly, I shall nail you to the wall here and now, Witch Cultist !\" \"It cannot, cannot, cannot, cannot be! To think you would resist to this extent!!\" To the fore, farther down the road, a tall man stood opposite Wilhelm. His posture, with his head bent at an unnatural angle, resembled that of a doll that oozed creepiness as some human hand toyed with it. In point of fact, the madman had lost free use of his flesh; instead, it was the authority that held his body in its grip and controlled it, but such considerations were worthless to the Sword Devil. What he required was the fact that the man standing there was an enemy, and one of the three Sloths remaining the man, dressed in traveling merchant attire, did not appear to be making the slightest effort to conceal his identity. He'd slipped into Subaru's painstakingly arranged \"insurance,\" craftily manipulating it for his own wicked intentions. Simultaneously, Wilhelm wondered about the safety of Subaru and Ferris, who should have been right by the dragon carriage that had exploded. But in the heat of battle he instantly thrust such melancholy thoughts aside, and the Sword Devil immersed himself in his own fight. It wasn't that he lacked concern. He would never be able to face his master, Crusch, unless Ferris returned safe and sound. However, his heart pleaded that he did not really need to worry too much. They would break through that crisis, Subaru and Ferris both. Such was the great faith he had in them. \"Rrrrraaa!!\" He swung his sword, splitting the earth, kicking up a shower of dirt that allowed him to read the arcs of the invisible attacks. With superhuman evasiveness, Wilhelm broke through the wall of bloodlust burying the path between him and his foe and charged. He didn't need to concern himself with Subaru or Ferris. This had been the only thing he'd wanted to begin with. What he could accomplish was settled from the first moment he'd held a sword in his hand. \"Such favor, to increase the numbers so! Such tenacity in the face of them! Such conviction! As a diligent disciple, I cannot praise it enough! Ahh, ahh! Oh, love! My brain is shaaaaking!\" Different eyes, different face, different voice even so, they shared the same madness-filled look. Though a different being with a different appearance, this Sloth was obsessed with Wilhelm just the same. As he received the repulsive praise, Wilhelm moved farther from the battlefield, pursuing the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins on his own. Given the current balance of forces, he was the only one who could take the madman on. He was the only one who could keep the damage to a minimum and strike the man down. Wilhelm glared at the insane man before him, increasing the speed of his steps. The invisible attacks slammed down, trying to pursue him, but the Sword Devil sprinted like an arrow, leaving them behind. *** Heedless of the shower of dirt, Sloth recklessly repeated the invisible attacks. It was as if not only was he insane, but his tactics were stupid, as well. Of course, the duel would be settled just as stupidly. *** The madman made some kind of lament, but Wilhelm, running straight forward, did not hear. He stripped away all that was unnecessary, charging forward as he became a single blade, the steel that would rend wickedness asunder. Naturally, as he drew closer the obstacles increased. The number of grazes grew greater, and the inside of Wilhelm's body was bathed in sharp heat as he poised his sword, lashing out. The earth split apart, and the madman's posture tilted. Wilhelm turned his sword tip toward the center of the body's mass, driving it home. \" I have you!\" There was not even slight resistance to the tip of his blade. The feeling of rending a life was one the Sword Devil had oft tasted. His treasured sword impaled the madman through the left of his chest, completely destroying the beating heart within. Not even Ferris could have pulled him back from the brink of death. The merciless strike had brought his life to a conclusion. \"...Yes, if it was you, then...\" Failing to die instantly with the blade running through his back, the madman spewed blood as he tried to say something. Wilhelm drew his sword back to cut his last words and testament short. It was then that the madman said into Wilhelm's ear, \"When you focus on fighting invisible arms, you lose sight of what you can see... Lazy, is it not?\" *** His thoughts contorted for a second. An unnecessary crack in the Sword Devil's belligerence was pried open, as if he was trying to think of what the words could mean. An instant later, the madman lunged at Wilhelm, his shaking arm raising a dagger. Then, without hesitation, he employed the dagger to stab his own left eye. Through the eye socket, the tip of the blade invaded his skull, piercing his brain and cutting short his own life. \"Wha ?\" The instant the blade robbed him of his eye, and his life, light surged out  3 The instant he rushed around a demolished house and onto the broken road, the earth shook. *** The shock wave coursed underfoot; the shudder in the air made it hard to breathe. Then, as Subaru sprinted forward, the delayed flames and wind from the blast followed suit, mowing down everything in front of him. \"Whoaaa !\" \"Don't move! Aro! Iku!\" With Subaru frozen in place, Julius raised an arm before him, calling out to the spirits glowing green and yellow. A green blade came to be, and a bulwark of earth and stone rose before them. The wave of heat rushing from ahead was sliced apart before bouncing off the stout wall, protecting the pair from its wrath. \"What happened?!\" \"I do not know. Just before the explosion, I felt like I saw a human silhouette pass through, but...\" As the reverberations of the blast relented, the two rushed past the broken ground toward the center of the blast zone. The surrounding area looked as if it had sustained a ferocious shock wave from the blast, enough to send the rooftops flying off brick homes. Naturally, there was a crater in the ground at the center of the blast, adding poignancy to the sad tale. And when Subaru saw who lay at the center of the blast zone, his voice went cold. \"Wilhelm...?!\" Raising his shaking voice, Subaru rushed over to the white-haired, aged swordsman who was lying curled on the ground. He had sustained grave wounds from blast winds and flames over his entire body; it was almost strange to find his body in one piece. His face was a grimy black; Subaru couldn't tell if it was from blood, dirt, or burns. But he was faintly breathing. Knowing at least that was true, he let out a long, long breath. \"But he's in big trouble at this rate! We've got to get him to Ferris, or \" When Subaru went down on one knee, intending to carry Wilhelm, Julius stepped beside him and said, \"It does not seem things will be quite that simple.\" Sensing the urgent warning embedded in those words, Subaru lifted his head. Julius swept the tip of his drawn cavalry saber around the area. His reason for doing so was simple: the enemies he was holding in check hailed from several directions, not just one. Carrying cross-shaped swords, Witch Cultists blocked them on each of four sides. But that was not the largest problem. A final person arrived with the four, removing her hood as she appeared. It was a small-statured woman, with short hair the color of black tea. The cultist's hands were empty; she stood before them seemingly defenseless and wide open. However, her bloodshot eyes and the way she hurt herself, biting her shorn-nailed fingers, were all the proof they needed that she was the most dangerous of all. After Petelgeuse, the madwoman, and Kety, this was the fourth Archbishop of Sloth. The woman bit the nail of her right thumb, twisting her hand as she tore the nail off. The sight and liquid sound of blood droplets and exposed flesh made Subaru grimace in pain and disgust. \"Comin' out one after another with timing like this... How many of you are there, damn it?!\" \"Why, why, why, why...why is it youuu yet live? All of those measures, and yet...why is it you do not fall before my diligence?!\" \"Well, that's my line! Cut it out already! Doing continues over and over like this! You have some kind of grudge against us?!\" Probably words of complete and mutual hatred, enmity, and vilification were the only ones Subaru and the woman could share. Then Wilhelm stirred in his arms. Perhaps it was due to external stimulus, but the Sword"}, {"text": "Devil was still unconscious when his lips faintly moved. The way his anguished breaths held increasing anger toward their foe felt ghastly to Subaru. It was almost as if he was subconsciously trying to tell them something  \"Wilhelm?\" \"Same...ne per...\" He couldn't completely make out what the trickling voice tried to say. And the Witch Cultists were not merciful or polite enough to wait for him to hear it once in coherent form. Subaru was clutching Wilhelm on one knee when the woman turned a nail-less finger toward him and shouted. \"You! If the lazy you and the diligent you backed away, all would be firm! All would be decided! Everything arriving at its proper conclusion! Thus, scatter here! Scaaatter to the winds!!\" Spewing spittle, the woman put her hand into her own robe. However, she did not find what she was looking for. Pulling her hand out, she gnashed her teeth hard enough to break them. Subaru had a hunch as to why she was in such a mortified rage. That flash of insight let Subaru understand what role was his to play. Witch Cultists were on all sides, whereas Wilhelm was gravely injured and Julius was exhausted. The only one left to take on the fourth Sloth was Subaru Natsuki, useless at anything but decoy duty. But even if his Witch Cult attraction was of no use, there yet remained something he could do. \"Julius, can you fight off the four besides Sloth while covering Wilhelm?\" \"Subaru?\" Shifting his gaze alone, Julius gave Subaru a slight, questioning rise of his brows. However, there was no time to explain the fine details. Subaru glared at his amber eyes and repeated himself. \"Can you do it? If you can do that...I'll do what I can do.\" *** \"Right now, you're the only one I can count on. If you're willing to put yours in my hands...I'll put mine in yours.\" \"Put what?\" It was obvious. Subaru responded to Julius's words by pointing at Sloth and saying, \"I'll smack that idiot. I'll fight and take your life in my hands. In return, I'm putting my life in yours so can you do it?\" Subaru declared his determination to take on the Archbishop of Sloth single-handedly to Julius, his one and only ally. At his words, Julius drew back his sword. His hesitation and silence lasted a second. Julius closed his eyes, opened them, and poised his sword. \"If I did not say I could do it, 'twould be my shame as a knight.\" \"Fair enough !!\" They were still at a disadvantage. Subaru knew it was reckless. But his battles had always been reckless. So once again, his disadvantage was like a tightrope. He'd simply cover his eyes and run across. Subaru, gently laying Wilhelm down on the spot, put a hand into his own pocket. The Witch Cultists were gradually tightening the encirclement, but he detected no sign of Sloth moving a step. Subaru did not underestimate her. Distance and range were meaningless words to Sloth. But that only applied to every opponent who wasn't Subaru Natsuki. \"Now, let us finally end this! Great love abooove all! Exalted love above all! Before my diligence, to repay Her favor! You were born worthy of being the first offered up to...\" \"Hey, chick Petelgeuse  Look at this.\" Subaru called out to the madly raving Sloth with a snort. Then, he stuck his hand in his pocket.  When he withdrew his hand, he was holding a book bound in black. It was the Gospel that Subaru had recovered from the corpse of Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti  \"You're looking for this, right? The thing sent by Miss Witch you love so, so much.\" \"Thief!! So IT truly was you who had it?!\" Sloth screamed, eyes bulging. The way she'd rummaged in her pocket had made Subaru realize something was off. The other two Sloths had done the same thing. They'd searched for something that ought to have been in a certain pocket with their hands, been irritated not to find it, and raged at he who had stolen it. The object of their desire had been the same: that single book. \"Guess you even tried digging up Petelgeuse's corpse to get the Gospel back. I've heard of book junkies, but come on, robbing graves to get a book back?\" \"Silence! Cease your prattle! Give that book back, right \" \"Hey, don't shout. If you get too angry, you know your brain'll shake.\" \" ! You mussst die!!\" No one present could outdo Subaru when it came to taunts and provocations. As Sloth exploded in a rage, the shadow at her feet swelled up. The shadow split into an innumerable horde above her head, seemingly covering the sky in pitch-black hands whose fingertips bore down on Subaru all at once. But if the intent was to kill Subaru, that was the wrong call. \"My favor! The manifestation of my love! Crumble BEFORE them, sinner !\" Sloth shouted, and the black arms pressed toward Subaru like an avalanche. The veritable manifestation of destruction loomed before him like a tsunami as it advanced. To Subaru alone, it was all too visible. And even to him, the attack was far too obvious. \"Ra-aa !\" The evil hands were countless, but slow. Now that he had witnessed, however imperfectly, combat between superhumans, they looked like stopped flies to Subaru. No, that was going too far. They were like flies in flight. But they were by no means impossible to evade. Subaru took a large detour, evading the savagely onrushing horde of Unseen Hands. The Sword Devil would have leaped between them, but such inhuman feats were beyond Subaru. He used his endurance to make up for it. The bombardment of power had missed its mark, the invincible authority wasted by its user. \"My authority...?! Then, you shall die at the hands of my disciples \" \"Unfortunately, I have been tasked with denying you that option.\" By the time the woman, realizing her failure, regained her composure and commanded her underlings, it was too late. Sword in hand, Julius assaulted the Witch Cultists, vividly hindering them from pursuing Subaru. On top of that, the cultist in the direction in which Subaru had fled had been tragically caught in the wave of evil hands and dismembered. \"Huh, huh, huh?! You took out your own guy?! What kind of a sorry villain are you?!\" \"G...gah...! How dare you, dare you, dare youuuu! My disciple of love!!\" \"Don't gimme that, you're the one who mixed us up! Tunnel vision! What, are you lazy?!\" Subaru raised his middle finger as he rearranged the trademark phrase of Sloth. Just as intended, the woman was incandescent with voiceless rage, savagely running after Subaru as he fled. \" Julius! Manage your end somehow! I'll handle mine!\" \"A most vague command. But understood.\" To Subaru, thrusting a fist and raising his voice, Julius raised his cavalry saber aloft. Now that they had divided the battlefield between them, Subaru's and Julius's battle lines were wholly separate. On Julius's side were the wounded Wilhelm and three Witch Cultists. For his part, Subaru had one Sloth, mad with rage the right person for the right fight. After all, Subaru had no chance against the Witch Cultists, and had the best chances of anyone against the Archbishop of Sloth. \"See ya later!!\" \"Fight valiantly!\" Vowing to meet again, Subaru left Julius behind and darted across the battlefield. Evil hands rolled across the ground like a surging sea, but Subaru could see them. He leaped over them and took off, unharmed. \"Wait, wait, waitwaitwaitwait, I say! You despiiicable, foolish knave!\" As Julius began his clash of swords with multiple opponents, Subaru drew the madwoman off to another location. To draw Sloth to a place where her attacks would ensnare no one else, unwittingly doing just as Wilhelm had. Subaru pressed a hand over his heart, seemingly ready to burst, and ran at full strength. He had a destination. He would not go as far as to say that reaching it was linked to victory. However, if he arrived there, he could buy time for victory to come calling. For that reason, he ran and ran toward it. \" ! You can't hit me! You're one heck of a klutz!\" Behind Subaru, the madwoman chased after him on her own two feet. However, her speed was slow. In addition, for some reason, her deployment of countless Unseen Hands was sporadic, allowing him to narrowly evade them even while on the run. He was completely shaking off her ability. The number of arms chasing him was some sixty or seventy, clearly the most of any Sloth to date. In spite of that, her skill in using them was the worst so far. The balance was all off. That being the case, it must have been the first and foremost Sloth, Petelgeuse, who'd used his authority with the greatest skill. \"I guess Petelgeuse really was the main Sloth...not that it matters!\" He could think about that later. It didn't change the fact that all the Sloths had to be wiped out. He didn't have time to reach for anything else. If Subaru's foe wasn't in tip-top shape, all the better for him. He curved around corners, darted down the straightaway, curved around another corner, and leaped. \"Made it ! But...\" Arriving at his destination, Subaru surveyed the area. There were signs of combat all over the place, and the fallen did not stop at one or two people. He saw not just Witch Cultists but knights and beast people among them. Subaru felt blame for his own powerlessness pressing upon him. He closed his eyes and forced it back. The next moment, he leaped sideways and rolled, evading the evil hands striking where he had stood. The ground split open, causing a cloud of dust to rise. Behind it stood the hate-filled Sloth, huffing and puffing. The number of arms stretching from her back was greatly diminished, limited to some twenty or so at present. \"Guess you learned you were wearing yourself out.\" \"And ooonly for making me realize that do you have my thanks! However, your escape ends here! Or do you still possess some way to resist?!\" \"Way to resist...\" When those words trailed off, Subaru blinked for just a moment. Along the line of his gaze was the madwoman, and behind her  However, he immediately hid behind an impetuous smile. \"...love and courage, I suppose.\" Subaru licked his lips and made a big fuss as the madwoman stood with her arms spread wide, her eyes full of bloodlust. His statement sent the eyes of Sloth bulging wide, causing her creepy voice to begin to laugh. \"Very good! Then challenge my faaavor with this love of yours!\" \"I said love and courage!\" Taking a breath, he went into a sprinter's crouch and practically leaped as he rose, shooting his body forward. After having fled so thoroughly, he now charged straight forward, leaping into the woman's flank. Sloth blinked in surprise and, perhaps thinking charging in was the height of idiocy, instantly flew into a rage. \"This is your love?! Your love has this little resolve?! No crafty schemes, simply running like a fool, ahh, your love is so reckless! So powerless! So thoughtless! In other words, lazy!\" \"Ooooh !\" Subaru let out a shout from the pit of his belly, as if to overwrite the despair the woman's shout drove his way. Shout and shout he did, enough to make himself hoarse, calling out love, and calling for courage. \"Then you shall die, and pay for your laziness with your lo \" \"Now, Patlash !!\" \" ! What are ?!\" The impact cut off the latter half of the cry of surprise. Sloth was triumphant one moment; the next, her diminutive frame was caught by the land dragon charging into her side. Its huge frame, several hundred kilograms in mass, slammed right into the defenseless woman's body, blowing it away as if it were a leaf. *** The woman proceeded to bounce along the surface of the"}, {"text": "village square, flipping over as she sailed into a half-destroyed house. The glass window made a sound as it shattered; the house, unable to take the blow, was smashed, and dust slowly rose from it after. The blow, even greater than he had imagined, sent Subaru leaping to glom the land dragon's head and rub her nose. \"You did great, awesome teamwork! Above and beyond the call, Patlash!\" *** With Subaru trying to kill her with compliments, Patlash raised her head and gave a high-pitched neigh. Subaru returned to the village square he'd started from, luring the woman to Patlash, the dragon's valuable legwork part of his escape plan. But having failed to locate her just after arriving, he'd started to worry that he'd been wrong, and she, too, had been burned to a crisp  \"When I saw you'd doubled back behind her that was a seriously devilish move.\" The instant his shifting gaze located the land dragon behind Sloth, he seriously shouted like a girl on the inside. The next instant, with zero prep work, he and the land dragon did a combo attack, pulling it off perfectly. This was the result of trusting everything to love and courage albeit love really meant \"bluff\" and courage meant \"reinforcements\" in this case. \"Now, it'd be great if that settled things, but...\" Climbing onto Patlash's back, Subaru glared at the wreckage of the house Sloth had sailed into. If she'd died from the crushing weight of the mountain of debris, it would be a big help. But life just wasn't that easy. \"...IT seems I was being prideful.\" The mountain of rubble collapsed, and from under the remains of the roof, countless shadows welled up all at once. The wriggling, pitch-black arms writhed like tentacles. A tiny figure rose up from the middle of that black mass. It was the madwoman bloodied and reduced to a state half-living, half-dead. Her head was bleeding from lacerations it had suffered, and her left eye was completely taken out, impaled by a shard of glass. The right half of her body, caught up in the collapse of the house, was dyed crimson, and Subaru doubted her slender arms or legs were now of much use. From the looks of her, there was no doubting that she was wounded all over. And yet, having said all that, the vigor and madness displayed by her right eye was greater than ever. \"You...yes, you certainly are a diligent human being. Yes, diligent! Compared to you, having come so far, using everything at your disposal to challenge your foe, I was so very careless! Architect of my own ruin! Neglectful! Insufficient! I was too prideful! Ahh, I was so lazy!\" *** Her demeanor and the statements themselves did not differ from those of the other mad people in any way. Even if she did have a new thought, he could deal with her the same way provided there was no extreme change in her tactics or repeated attacks. Now that he was riding Patlash, able to dish out speeds far greater than Subaru himself, it was even easier. Having played for time, Subaru would deliver as decisive a blow as possible to defeat this Sloth with neither having a decisive way to win, the fight would come down to whichever found a way to finish the other off first. But the woman cruelly laughed in the face of Subaru's resolve. \"I will show you my favor. That is the first thing you should accept. If you do not acknowledge it, adhering to the only love you know, and as a result sinking into laziness, that, to me, would be the greatest and vilest of acts...and furthermore, one I shall correct.\" \"...Shit.\" As the madwoman continued her murmurs, the countless evil hands moved toward the sky. Watching the spectacle, Subaru cursed, suppressing the shudder in his creaking heart. Before his eyes, each of the many arms took hold of the wreckage of the collapsed house. \"That's her best option, damn it.\" An instant after his rueful declaration, the rampage began. She hurled the wreckage of the house at them, the building becoming shrapnel that poured onto Subaru and Patlash all at once. 4 The means Sloth had chosen was her best option against Subaru because it did not use Unseen Hands. In other words, put briefly, all she had to do was stop Unseen Hands from attacking directly, using the evil hands to attack indirectly instead. The attack speed of Unseen Hands itself was less than that of a punch from a normal arm; if you didn't panic, they could be dodged, even in great numbers. But if the evil hands grasped things and threw them, the speed was incomparable. The pure physical might they possessed went far beyond human norms. The missiles they threw traveled with a speed rivaling that of a major-league fastball. On top of that, what she launched at them was, at minimum, the size of a human head a single solid hit would be fatal. \"Patlash! Out of the village, into the forest! Without cover we're dead!\" *** Subaru clung as tightly to Patlash's head as he could; she accelerated at the same time he gave the order. She had probably come to the same conclusion before hearing his command, but either way, charging into the forest was the right call. In the hands of those pitch-black limbs, broken pieces of the brick house served as fine weapons of murder. Fortunately, thanks to the thrower's lack of technique, the control was awful. In spite of that, the flying rubble unleashed showered down like rain. As with a poorly aimed firearm, a few hits and you were just as dead. *** A ferocious sound arose as flying rubble mowed down trees right beside them, exploding into the ground just behind them as they galloped forward. Bounding over the earth, they wove about as the entrance to the forest into which they had leaped turned to charred plains in the blink of an eye. Impact, destruction, impact, destruction they alternated over and over. \"Guooo!\" Subaru lowered his head to narrow his profile even a little. All he could do at the moment was cling to Patlash. A piece of flying rubble grazed the land dragon's black hide, gouging the hard scales and causing blood to spurt out. But Patlash's speed did not lessen, nor did she raise any outcry. Though they sprinted over poor footing, she galloped with the ease he'd been told about. Patlash's contributions, which were beyond Subaru's expectations, had saved him. But letting her literally shoulder all the burden wasn't a solution. When he looked behind him, the actions of the madwoman pursuing them were burned into his eyes. Even if he regrouped and found a way to fight, it meant nothing if he couldn't predict her actions. At the very least, if she couldn't keep up with Patlash, that'd make things go a lot smoother  \" So much for Patlash's speed!\" \"Yesyesyesyesyeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees !!\" As Subaru made a disparaging shout, it was overridden by the hateful voice repeating itself. The mad voice was launched from a height surpassing that of the trees of the forest, literally right above him. The woman was now far overhead. Her diminutive, beat-up body was curled up with her hands around her knees put crudely, a somersault pose. She remained in that pose as she used Unseen Hands to grab her own body, hurling herself through the sky as in a game of catch, she tossed herself from one hand to another as she chased after Subaru and Patlash. Whatever it looked like, it was disturbingly fast. Sprinting through the forest, Patlash was breaking sixty kilometers an hour. However, if you disregarded her moving only in straight lines at low accuracy, the speed of Sloth, flying like a human cannonball, was butting against a hundred. It wasn't much of a difference, but Subaru couldn't shake her off at that range. At that rate, with her looking down at them, they'd be wonderful targets for her sniping. Furthermore, Subaru lacked the means to reach the madwoman as she moved far overhead. \"Can't go back to the village. With her like that, no way we can draw her back now.\" Besides, Subaru would be at an even greater disadvantage if she linked up with the Witch Cultists. Subaru was the only one who was still a good matchup against Sloth after being backed this far into a corner. \"But at this rate, I'll be hit sooner or \" *** As soon as he said it, \"sooner\" came calling. A flying clump of brick hurled at them squarely connected with Patlash's head, sending the leather helmet covering the top of the land dragon's head flying. Her posture heavily tilted as blood poured from her head. Subaru bit back an anguished cry, earnestly pulling on the reins to keep them from bowling over. \"Patlash!!\" There was no way shouting to her would give her strength. It could not be so, but the way Patlash dramatically slammed the ground with her foot, refusing to tumble, he thought it just might be true. He'd have to praise the land dragon ten times as much for guts alone. But the flying rubble continued, and blood kept flowing. At that rate, victory was out of reach  \"After lasting this long, even if we get deep in the forest, at this rate...\" Continuing the war of attrition had poor prospects, but he couldn't find any leads for a counterattack if they didn't buy some time. However, the damage just now had already stamped a time limit on Patlash. He couldn't expect the same performance from her as before. If he was going to have a flash of inspiration, it needed to be that moment, because if not  But such a convenient turn of events had never happened to Subaru before, and it likely never w  \" Just now...\" Subaru bit his lip in anger at the absurdity of it all. That instant, he saw something out of place in the background of the forest they were passing through. The question of what it was tugged at his mind; the instant suitable information floated up, he pulled back on the reins. If things were as Subaru remembered, it was worth a shot. When a plan to achieve victory offered itself, you bit. \"Patlash, left!\" *** Patlash was bleeding when Subaru gave the order. For a single moment, she shifted her eyes in that direction, as if to ask, Are you sane? and Are you sure about this? It was natural to wonder if he was sane. However, if sanity kept victory out of reach, madness was indispensable. Subaru answered his favorite dragon's silent question as he stood straight, giving the reins a heavy flick. \"That's right! Patlash, head for the light in the woods!!\" He shouted, repeating and emphasizing the command. Patlash glared forward, and hesitation vanished from her eyes and gait. Apparently, she greatly esteemed Subaru's judgment. She had put her life in his hands. The land dragon's feet seemed to scrape the earth as they drove into the forest floor, braking hard as they changed course. The wind repel blessing cut out, and Subaru gritted his teeth to endure the momentum threatening to throw him off. Right after he held on, on, on for dear life, they accelerated, running down to the left at a steep angle. \"No matter where you run, there is nowhere to hide!\" The madwoman did not miss Subaru and Patlash's sharp turn and roaring descent. The angle of the hurled rubble shifted, and the trail of sylvan destruction followed suit. Verdant trees burst apart; the split, fallen trees were immediately recycled, grasped and hurled to spread the destruction further. Death followed close behind them. *** Even as that cascade of destruction pursued them, Subaru ordered Patlash to follow the flickering light he'd seen from the corner of his vision one that might prove a literal beacon of hope. The land dragon zigzagged left and right"}, {"text": "as she ran, making herself a difficult target even without pulling farther ahead. Subaru wondered how arduous it must have been for his steed to go at high speed down a steep incline with a wounded body, but no matter how much his head might ponder, an answer would not be forthcoming. \"Do you not know when to give in? What is ALL this running, running, running? And where does it all lead?! Your actions only prolong the inevitable... No! No, I will not!\" Sloth looked straight down at Subaru and Patlash as they continued fleeing at full tilt. However, the woman's words were cut off at that point as she jabbed a finger into her crushed left eye in apparent self-rebuke. She proceeded to gouge out the flesh, causing blood to flow once more, her voice shrill with bitter resentment and delight. \"I must be neither careless nor prideful. My task unfulfilled, brought to death for the first time, I must part ways with my doubts, my fate, my distracted thoughts!\" Killing carelessness with self-mutilation, Sloth continued her attacks, hurling relentlessly. The ground exploded, and flying rubble ripped through the air; a fragment clipped Subaru's shoulder, making his bones creak. He threw his head back, bit down a cry of pain, and groaned as he endured. He would not cry out before Patlash. But their chase scene was finally coming to an end  \"Gah !\" A blow conveyed through the earth made the ground beneath Patlash's feet disappear. A moment later, the land dragon's huge frame floated skyward. By the time Subaru noticed, he didn't even have time to scream as he rotated hard in midair, holding on to the reins as he thrashed about, and fell hard toward the ground, his entire body slamming fiercely into it. \"Aghh...!\" They vigorously rolled downhill. When they stopped, Subaru had lost track of which way was up. He was hurting all over, but miraculously, he couldn't see any sign of mortal injury. No matter how much his limbs were torn up, his head was still attached to his body. But that good fortune seemed only to have managed to push his death a tiny bit into the future. \"IT seems that finally...the time to end this has arrived.\" *** Subaru lay faceup, watching Sloth descending from the sky. When she landed, the woman dismissed the evil hand that had carried her, standing beside Subaru, still unable to move. Then she gave a bloody smile full of satisfaction and tendered a hand down to him. \"Now, return my Gospel. It is not for the likes of you to possess.\" \"Gos-pel...\" Murmuring in a broken voice, Subaru obeyed the woman's demand, putting his hand into his pocket. His fingers found the cover they sought. Fortuitously, it had not fallen from his pocket during all the time they'd been chased. \"If you want it...take it...!\" Grasping the book, Subaru pulled it out and mischievously tossed it into a thicket. The woman's hand reached out, grasping nothing but air; she opened and shut her fist as she let out a sigh. \"It would seem your attitude regarding my favor, and the things of others, has NOT improved.\" The woman shook her head; her apparent lament had an echo of disappointment. Subaru coughed. He'd never imagined that the madwoman would make an appeal to reason and common sense. The woman went over to pick up the book Subaru had thrown. Meanwhile Subaru moved his head in an attempt to locate the fallen Patlash. He found her; her breaths were labored, but she was all right. And ideally positioned. \"Ahh, guide for my love, proof of my favor...! Finally within my hands... I am deeply MOVED!\" The woman clutched the recovered Gospel to her chest as she shed tears. Holding the written word, her crazed love in tangible form, the woman shifted her head, turning a mad smile toward the barely alive Subaru. \"You fought bravely. You fought well, worthy of such praise! You and your land dragon resisted so well, so diligently! In praise of your actions, I shall grant thee mercy!\" \"...Mercy?\" \"YES! Mercy! If you have any last words, I shall burn your words into my very soul, never to forget them for eternity! Now, say what you will!\" He was surprised that the madwoman would show her opponent compassion after a hard-fought battle. She only made room for it because she'd recovered the book and had victory right before her eyes, but it was an unexpected side of her even so. Then Subaru, taking the madwoman up on her offer, lifted up a hand. It was his left hand, opposite of that which had thrown the Gospel. He was holding something in it. \"Do you know what this is?\" The question made a suspicious look come over Sloth. The words were different from those she had sought, but the woman peered into Subaru's hand. It held a magic crystal, small enough to rest in a palm. Giving off a white light, it was not a one-shot-one-kill trump card. By itself, it held no power to turn the battle around. In the first place, there were things like this all over the forest. And properly speaking, it belonged among the others, not in his palm. \"This is...\" \"A barrier magic crystal. They're stuck on trees all over the forest. You didn't notice?\" *** Subaru wondered if her silence meant that she hadn't noticed, or that she didn't understand what he was saying. He didn't really care which. The plan was already in motion. \"What are you sayi ?\" The woman, her disquiet at Subaru's last words evident, suspiciously reached out with a hand. Just before her hand arrived, the plan went operational. *** Sensing something leaping toward her shoulder, the woman instantly tried to turn around. She never made it. From behind, the fangs of the demon beast breaking through the forest sank deep into her neck. 5 He'd had his suspicions. The possibility had grazed his head several times while they'd been on the march. The kicker was when Julius and Ferris looked as if they doubted their ears when he told them the area around the mansion and village was a giant demon beast habitat. Demon beasts harbored nothing but hatred for all living things. The battle with the White Whale had soaked that terrifying aspect of their nature into his bones. But at the same time, he wondered... The demonic, canine Urugarums in the forest, as well as the White Whale, hated Subaru's physical makeup and saw him as an enemy. If so, didn't the same go for the Witch Cultists, who saw Subaru as an ally?  And now, firm proof of that hypothesis rested right before his eyes. \"Gaaaaaaa!\" Impaled by sharp pain and the sudden impact, the madwoman looked unaware of what had happened as she screamed. With the leaping demon beast's fangs in her neck, the small-statured woman could do nothing to throw him off. The black-furred demon dog was large enough that it made the tiny woman look like a child standing beside an adult. The woman was swung up and down by the demon beast maw clamping down on her, slamming her into the ground several times. The woman went limp, drained of strength. Without hesitation the demonic canine held her down, withdrew its fangs, and went for the final blow. With a growl, it opened its maw, this time aiming for the woman's windpipe. Perhaps it meant to snuff her life out; perhaps its action was pointless, the fruit of its murderous instincts. Subaru could not tell which. He could not, but the madwoman was not one to go down without a fight. \"Filthy beast...! Unseen Hands!\" Pressed against the ground, the woman shouted, and instantly, her wriggling shadow became evil hands that mowed the demon dog down. Bathed in the invisible attack, the demon dog cried out very much like a puppy as it tumbled heavily. But it instantly got back on its paws, howling as it moved anew to rend its prey apart  \"Wait! That's enough!\" But Subaru intervened, barrier crystal in hand, putting a halt to its aggression. The demon beast was in a leaping stance as it growled, glaring hatefully at the white magic crystal in Subaru's hand. The beast slowly backed away, perhaps compelled to do so by the power residing in the crystal. Subaru and the madwoman might have been the pair the demon beast could least overlook. Even so, the demon beast did not leap at them. Its fangs quivered; it growled and drooled as it leaped backward. The demon beast proceeded to mingle with the thickets, its footsteps growing more distant. There was no way it had let them go. It probably meant to watch and wait until he let go of the barrier crystal. Watching the demon beast's retreat, Subaru let out a long sigh before turning his head, looking down at the madwoman. Stopping the Urugarum demon beast from finishing her off had certainly not been an act of mercy. There had been no need. From the way her guts were already spilling out from her belly, the woman must have already known this for herself. \"How can this be? To think, at a demon beast's...\" \"You didn't do your homework. This whole area's a demon beast habitat. They just isolate it with the barrier.\" The back of her neck bitten off, the woman was unable to move, covered in mortal wounds. Perhaps she was already blind; her one remaining eye, lacking any spark, did not turn Subaru's way. The results weren't sufficient to call the operation a success. He'd been saved by happenstance and a flash of inspiration, clutching victory by a hairbreadth. After all their history, to think an Urugarum would appear in a place like that... \"Roswaal, you bastard...you said you'd wiped 'em all out.\" Cursing his all-too-secretive supporter, Subaru knelt on one knee at the woman's side. He picked up the Gospel that lay right beside the woman, bloody and on death's door. Even if Subaru couldn't play decoy himself, the book could still be used as bait in scenes to come. The battle with the woman had proven its worth well enough. \"I don't know what happened to Kety, but at most, there's two fingers left...we'll smash 'em.\" \"Mm-mm-mmm...\" Subaru looked down at her. \"Oh, it's reckless? Undoable? How many of you have I taken down? Learn already, geez. Though no point saying that to you now, I suppose.\" *** On the brink, the woman twisted her lips at Subaru's words. The bleeding from them wouldn't stop. Blood trickled from the corners of her lips as the woman smiled, boldly greeting her impending death. When Subaru saw her like that, it sent the greatest possible chill up his spine. \"Go ahead...hold it, for now. But...soon...\" *** \"Soon, I will taaake my love back.\" At the end, that part came out loud and clear before the woman's smile faltered, her life signs coming to an end. It was death, plain and simple an end from which there was no coming back. It was the fourth, or perhaps the third, death of Sloth he had witnessed. \"Shit...what was she trying to tell me anyway?\" Subaru scratched his head as he looked down at the dead woman's face. The inside of his mouth was dry, and he felt that his arteries had oddly quickened for reasons unrelated to stress and nervousness. For the first time, without relying on anyone else, Subaru had brought another person to death in the midst of combat. That fact made his knees faintly shake. He clamped his teeth down and sighed at length. The woman had set a curse upon Subaru just before her death. It was a curse he could not dispel right that moment. \"...Can't stay standing around. Even if one's down, there's still Sloths left.\" Brushing hesitancy aside, Subaru turned his eyes away from the corpse and rushed over"}, {"text": "to Patlash. The land dragon looked pretty beat-up from the furious tumble, bearing countless wounds over the entirety of her body. And yet, when the land dragon sensed Subaru's approach, she stoutly rose to her feet. \"Sorry, Patlash. I really want to give you a break, but I still need you.\" *** When Subaru declared he would push her further, Patlash silently turned her back to him in response. He mounted, unable to count how many debts he now owed the land dragon after the last half day, the last several hours in particular. Drawing the reins, he ordered the helmetless land dragon to return to the village. The barrier crystal in his hand was warm, steadily continuing to warn of the presence of demon beasts. Perhaps the demon dog was lurking in the thicket, watching them that very moment. He paid no heed as they took off running. \"The Sloths left over, the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins' fingers...probably one left!\" At the height of the battle in the village, Subaru and Julius had headed toward the source of the Unseen Hands. There, they found an explosion, and at the center of that explosion, Wilhelm. Subaru had no doubt Wilhelm had been fighting that Sloth until the instant just prior to that. He was sure the Sword Devil had struck down his foe. He deduced that, just as with the dragon carriage explosion, something in Kety's possession had caused it. If Kety had been defeated by the Sword Devil, he might have blown himself up to try to bring Wilhelm down with him. If that was true, there was one finger remaining and that ought to be the last Sloth left. \"If we can deal with that one, we just need to mop up the regular Witch Cultists and we win!\" He finally saw a beacon of certain victory. But that glimmer was far back in Subaru's mind. To escape the madwoman's attacks, he'd had to flee deep into the forest. He was far from the village, where the battle was surely still raging. Every second spent running uphill felt like a lifetime. \" ?! Shit! He really did come out!!\" Clenching his teeth, Subaru glared up at the sky, shouting with anger and nervousness. The sight was even worse than he'd expected. Once more, black hands stretched from the other side of the forest up to the sky before his eyes, pointed toward the village. Subaru was still far away. His shout could not reach the people those arms were aimed at. If they swung downward, more would die. Knights. Beast people. Villagers. Lives would be snuffed out. Lives that belonged to people Subaru knew. Raising a voiceless scream, Subaru prayed for the black, evil hands to disappear. As if responding to Subaru's lament, Patlash, battered all over, increased her speed. They practically flew over the lip, charged down into the forest, and raced to the village on the verge of being violated once more. \"Sloth!!\" As they galloped, he yelled hard enough to rend his throat. The village bore vast traces of destruction: human corpses were strewn all over the place; flames were raging, mingling with someone's crying voice in the air. Even in a world filled with the sound of swords clashing, he instantly knew who the madman must be. The fifth Sloth was a very thin, balding, middle-aged man, tearing at his bloody face as he laughed maniacally. *** Subaru instinctively knew that this was the last one. The madman turned, seemingly drawn by Subaru's certainty. They exchanged gazes, acknowledging each other as enemies. However, the man played the most horrific of opening moves first. \"Ahh my brain is shaaaaaking!\" Already, countless arms swung up, blocking the heavens before they came crashing down alongside an angry, unhinged shout. The attack became a cascade of death, no doubt intended to violate the village to its roots, crushing anyone and everyone to death by sheer force of numbers. \"Gotta stop him!\" Subaru cried with determination, but it was a cry of despair, for he had no power with which to do so. And a moment before the madman's act of brutality proceeded to repaint the world in black  \"That is far enough, villain.\"  he heard a voice. And that voice took everyone aback. Standing in a daze, they looked up at the sky, unable to move. \"Enough I will tolerate no more violence from you.\" For above the myriad wriggling black hands, the sky was covered in the pale glow of absolute zero. CHAPTER 5 *** 1 The pale light danced violently, covering Earlham Village, crimson from blood and flame, with its twinkle. The frigid air spawned fine fragments of ice, reflecting the light to create a fantastic sight a phenomenon known as diamond dust, robbed of its beauty by the reality of the tragedy beneath it. \"Enough I will tolerate no more violence from you.\" The beautiful voice cut through that surreal scene like light through a clear piece of glass. The battlefield was dominated by that voice, clear as a bell, and everyone's eyes were stolen by the girl who appeared upon it. Her long, silver hair flapped in a warm wind. Her violet eyes were imbued with a powerful will. Her beauty was so great that none who witnessed it could ever forget. Her outward appearance was enough to draw the eyes of others several times over. However, in that instant, her appearance was not why she had stolen the gazes of all present. Everyone's eyes had been stolen for no reason beyond the overwhelming awe of her presence. *** The sound of steel against steel, the cries of anger and sadness, and even the flames burning homes fell into silence, seemingly holding their breath. In such a world, the silver-haired girl Emilia quietly gazed at her foe. \"Emilia...\" When Subaru put her name on his lips, all of his complicated feelings enveloped him. Of course it had come to this. There was a battle raging on the mansion's doorstep. Villagers were evacuating to the mansion one after another. Someone was fighting to protect her. There was no way she would stay quietly shut in. Emilia's eyes contained sorrow and enmity toward the Witch Cult that had created the field of battle. \"Step back, villain. I won't...let you do such terrible things.\" \"Ahh, how can this be...?\" Identifying the madman standing in the square as her enemy, Emilia pricked him with a stern tone of voice. However, the madman was hardly thrown off by that voice; his blood-smeared face registered surprise before beaming with delight. Sloth twisted his body, stretched both hands toward Emilia, and continued to smile as he shouted. \"Ahh, ahhh! What a fortuitous, wonderful day! Such marvelous fate! To think such a wondrous opportunity would come to fruition! Truly, the living image! Never, amid these repeated trials, did I believe I would have the chance to come across a vessel of such magnitude...!\" \"...What are you saying?\" So deeply moved was the fifth Sloth that he wept, a flood of tears pouring out of him. Seeing the madman's out-of-place tears, Emilia raised her eyebrows, bewilderment plain on her face. \"Ohh, ohh, O Witch...the beacon of love that guides me...!\" The madman stumbled forward, narrowing the range between himself and Emilia. Perhaps her reaction was part of what stirred him so deeply. With the distance counting down to ruin, Emilia turned a palm toward him. \"Don't move! I won't warn you again.\" Emilia kept her palm thrust out, making the statement as the madman stepped closer. However, her call for him to halt never reached the madman's ears. He took one step, then another, narrowing the distance  \"This time! Or the next! Someday, someday, I shall...!\" \"I told you, don't move.\" As she had said, this time was not another warning. She coldly switched from an ultimatum to an implementation of force. The light wildly dancing in the sky cracked open, and a surge of mana froze water droplets in the atmosphere. This created a total of four sharp, icy spears and these, she launched in an instant. *** The chill of overwhelming death was merciless. A single blow would sever the thread of life without fail; a being impaled with a solid blow would have his flesh dyed white, frozen down to the soul to become an icy statue. However  \"No hesitation, no pity, no mercy... Truly, truly, truly a diligent decision!\" \"...Aren't they your allies?\" The madman energetically laughed beside the Witch Cultists now frozen beside him, having shielded him with their bodies. The sight made Emilia uncomprehendingly furrow her brow. Responding to her doubts, the madman tilted his head at a ninety-degree angle, stretching an evil hand to a frozen subordinate, shattering him. \"They are disciples! Furthermore, my fingers! However, before you, before the vessel, these things bear no meaning! It is the same even for ME! Right now, now, nownownownownownownownow! My will, my reason for existence! All of it, unto you!\" *** \"Unto you, unto you, unto you... However, that is not where it must end.\" To Emilia, aghast at his madness, the madman opened his eyes wide and raised a bloody finger. He trained the crushed fingertip on Emilia or, more precisely, Emilia's left shoulder. Atop her slender shoulder, a little cat spirit was nestled against her silver hair. It was to this being that Sloth turned his hated. \"Spirit, spirit, spiriiit! Diminutive in stature, knowing neither love nor righteousness! Unaware of just how grave a crime it is to cuddle up to the vessel! Ignorant, in other words, sinful! What blasphemy!!\" Sloth vented excessive rage and hatred toward Puck. However, when the madman addressed him with a torrent of enmity, Puck trained cruel eyes upon him. It was an expression unimaginable on the spirit that had been so gentle and carefree daily no, Subaru knew that look, what Puck looked like with bloodlust honed to a tip. Subaru knew the mighty power resting inside that tiny body, for he had experienced it for himself. \"Unfortunately, being with her is the reason for my existence. I do not need anyone's permission, nor do I intend to seek it besides, you're the unpleasant one here.\" Both were set in their ways, making the hatred they turned toward each other all the clearer. The madman had rebuked Puck with fierce emotion; Puck responded to the madman's disgust with scorn. At that rate, the slightest touch would set them off, and the clash between two beings of immense power would truly begin. \"Wait, that's...\" \"You're the one who needs to wait, Subawu. Settle down, now...\" When Subaru tried to intervene on the brink of hostilities, someone suddenly tugged him back by his sleeve. The force took Subaru by surprise; Ferris, who'd appeared at some point, was the one pulling his sleeve. Ferris, still wearing the tattered mantle from earlier, stroked a heavily wounded Patlash as he sighed at Subaru. \"Subawu, she's terribly wounded, and so are you. You need absolute rest. That's an order, meow.\" \"Like this is the time! I can't just make Emilia fight that...\" \"It was Ram and I who decided to call Lady Emilia trust her a little, okay?\" With a stop put to his nervous feet, Subaru grimaced at Ferris's words. In response to the perplexed Subaru, Ferris closed one eye and said, \"Trust that the person you want to protect isn't only fit to stand back and watch.\" 2 Considering the harsh exchange just before, the battle began in eerie silence. *** The walls of icy mist Emilia had scattered around her were smashed as she leaped heavily backward. Just then, the ground where she had stood until a moment before exploded; she blinked at the clumps of excavated dirt. \"So you really can't see them at all.\" \"This needs extra attention.\" Puck whispered from atop Emilia's shoulder. She straightened herself out as she lightly touched down on the tips of her toes. The invisible blow wielded by the madman as Ferris had informed her beforehand, Emilia's eyes"}, {"text": "could not catch sight of the fists. But she had ways to defend herself even without seeing them. She surrounded herself with a body of icy mist, dodging when she sensed outside intrusion. Puck had suggested the method, and with his capabilities, it was far from impossible to pull off. \"I'll get close and hit him right away.\" As Emilia murmured, the ground tapped by her tiptoes was being dyed white. Centered on Emilia, the frost covering the ground spread farther, turning it into frozen earth for a twenty-yard radius around her in the blink of an eye. It was a familiar sensation under her soles. Influenced as she was by the forest she had been born and raised in, gliding on ice was second nature to her. \"Before my love, such petty moves! Tricks! SCHEMES! Merely futile resistance!\" The man shouted at the gliding Emilia, reaching top velocity from the first step toward her. The next moment, he pressed on with an oppressive cry, ripping away the icy mist floating around her. But by the time the invisible arms broke through the mist, Emilia's body was nowhere to be found. Gliding over the ice, Emilia was running circles around the man to throw off his aim. He tried chasing and getting in front of her, but nothing he tried resulted in a hit. Freely dispersing ice over the ground, she could escape anywhere. And before the invisible arms could hit her, Emilia's reliable protector completed his encircling snare. \"I understand you falling for my beloved daughter. I'm very proud of her. But no pests allowed.\" \"Nn ?!\" The instant Puck made this laid-back statement, thick walls of ice rose up, surrounding the man on four sides. His path of escape blocked, the man's eyes went wide with wonder, leaving him completely defenseless. Immediately, the icy walls let out a creak as they shot spikes from the surfaces within. There was nowhere to run; a lethal attack without any forewarning. Prey struck squarely would be impaled inside the walls, frozen to the last drop of its flowing blood, and shattered. It was an attack that embodied the innocent cruelty under Puck's adorable surface. But  \" Naive!! Naivenaivenaiveveveeeeee, yessss!!\" A bellow rose from inside the icy encirclement. The next instant, the icy walls broke into smithereens with a high-pitched sound. The ice-turned-shards twinkled as the man leaped out of them, unharmed. The instant he was showered in spikes, he'd created a wall of invisible force against the interior of the walls of ice. Unable to withstand the pressure from within, the icy walls had been smashed to pieces. \"That mere tricks could defeat me is absurd! A trial is not so easily \" \"Eiiya!\" \" Kwaa?!\" However, when the man, proud of his victory, trod across the ice, Emilia launched from her powerful glide into a flip. Emilia's kick, slipped in without a sound, drove into the man's defenseless solar plexus. The speed and force of the unexpected kick were of sufficient power to lightly blow the man off his feet. \"This time...eh?!\" Emilia proceeded to beat the man to where he was due to fall and deploy her magical energy, making icy flowers bloom but the spectacle she witnessed made her doubt her own eyes. Tracing an arc, the man she had knocked away halted in midair, flying up in another direction. The movement was unnatural, as if something had caught him out of thin air before hurling him in another direction  \"Using it like that...\" \"Ahh, the repudiation of thought is the essence of Sloth! Apply! Redirect! Reappropriate further!\" When the man, dancing in the sky, reached an arm toward her, Emilia instantly formed a pillar of ice, driving it toward her opponent. But as the icy pillar flew toward the man, it struck something and shattered, failing to reach him. In contrast, with the oppressive force coming from the man undiminished, Emilia glided across the ground, moving forward and proceeded to use the momentum from her glide to sail into the air. *** With both rising into midair, Emilia and the man exchanged glances. Madness met righteous indignation, and once again, it was Emilia who first went on the attack. The next things she created were multiple icy disks that she pounded toward the man, sending them through the air in erratic curves. Stranded in midair, the man could not dodge the icy disks surrounding him above, below, left, and right. \"Yesyesyesyes, YES !!\" However, the man did evade the flying, icy disks, moving unnaturally via the most absurd of methods. He bounced erratically in the sky, and though he was uncontrollably spun round and round, the man escaped the disks, shouting in delight. \"What was...what?\" \"THIS is love!\" When the creepy movements made even Emilia exclaim, the man gave a reply that was not an answer. His ferocious desire to return the favor transmuted into stabbing bloodlust that made goose bumps stand on Emilia's pale flesh. The man's combativeness was more than a match for her wariness. He poured his hostility into the hands he powerfully brought together  \"Be baptized by Her favor, the symbol of my love! Prepare to undergo the trial!!\" *** When Emilia felt the icy mist being destroyed, her face stiffened for the first time in the battle. That was the result of detecting the invisible menace unleashed upon her from all sides, denying her any avenue of escape. She was in the sky, unable to move freely. The difficult-to-evade blow was truly retribution for the earlier attack. *** And then the center of Emilia's chest was impaled, brutally run through. The destructive power gouged out her breasts, punching right through her chest. The man's eyes bulged at the results, the wound so deep that he could see through to the other side. \"This is the result of Her favor! The fruit of my love! The proof that the Witch responds to my love! But there is no cause for despair! Even if what is within is lost, the vessel is ours to \" \"Eiiya!\" \" Kuwaa?!\" The man's declaration of victory was interrupted by a kick. The blow from behind sent his body flying. Beyond the sheer force of the kick to the man's blind spot, completely unexpected from his point of view, he had no idea what had happened. Before him was Emilia, with Puck riding on her shoulder, clapping his paws with no hint of sarcasm. That instant, the ice statue of Emilia pierced through the chest shattered into dust. Even the light had been fine-tuned to create a false Emilia that looked just like the real thing. \"That's no good, looking away in the middle of a fight you'll get sucker punched, you know?\" The man she had kicked into the sky, spinning round and round, had no time to get his bearings. He'd fallen for Puck's fake Emilia hook, line, and sinker, exposing his defenseless back. And with that setting the stage, Emilia couldn't miss. \"You won't get away this time.\" *** The man was hurtling downward from the kick when his arms and legs were buried in manacles of ice. He was no longer able to move, no longer able to resist, and Emilia's blow was already prepared in full. The man slammed into the ground; his frozen limbs pinned his body there. From midair, Emilia proceeded to fall straight down, aimed right at the man's torso. The man's eyes widened as the distance narrowed. Then he laughed at the fast-approaching Emilia. \"Ahh. This is truly diligent!\" \"Thank you now die properly!\" Descending straight down, Emilia thrust the heel of her palm into the laughing man's torso. The force made his bones creak. The man let out a painful cry, stunned by the blow. But the cry lasted for only an instant. The next instant, the place touched by her palm began to freeze over. Not only his limbs but the man's entire body was dyed white, freezing to its core. *** Unable to even raise a death cry, the man became part of an ice flower in full bloom and perished. That was how the battle between Emilia and the man was decided. 3 Watching the outcome of the battle, Subaru was rooted to the spot, unable to make a sound. *** Overwhelming was insufficient to express it. From start to finish, Emilia had soundly engaged the enemy, splendidly succeeding in striking down the final Sloth. \"You see? It's just like I said, meow?\" In place of the dumbstruck Subaru, Ferris, standing beside him, expressed admiration for Emilia's battle. His basic healing magic had closed up the land dragon's wounds; now he reached a hand out to heal Subaru's. The touch of his slender fingers made Subaru aware of the pain of his own wounds once more. He had countless bumps and scrapes all over his body; in particular, the right side of his body really hurt. He'd taken a hard hit when he and Patlash had been bowled over in the forest. \"Ah, Subawu...doesn't this really hurt? Your ankle, your shoulder...\" \"Where's your bedside manner?! Put my mind on the parts that don't hurt or something!!\" \"Ahh, this might be pretty bad. You might die from it, meow...\" When Subaru made a grandiose show of pain, Ferris teasingly poked his ribs. When his teasing hand withdrew, Subaru sighed as he looked toward Emilia once more. It was unclear what Emilia felt concerning the madman's death. But there was a trickle on her pale cheek; Subaru saw a shining tear rolling down it. It must have pained her spirit to take another person's life. If so, that was Subaru Natsuki's sin it was his powerlessness that had drawn Emilia and the Cult together. *** However, Emilia looked surprised at the rolling tear on her face, quickly wiping it off. Perhaps the spirit on her shoulder had said something to her, for Emilia knit her brows with a conflicted look. She didn't even know why she'd shed a tear. That was how it looked to Subaru. *** As Subaru watched Emilia, he suddenly noticed deep emotions strangely stirring in his chest. The multiple thoughts toward her somehow seemed like separate, foreign emotions. For some mysterious reason, he had a deep urge to scratch his brain. It was almost as if  \"My, my, they're all so hasty.\" Ferris, hearing battle cries in the distance from all over the village, gave a slightly pained smile as he spoke. Now that Emilia had struck down the final Sloth, the battle was nearing its conclusion. The Witch Cultists being fought in every corner of the village had largely been slain, and cries of victory filled the sky. The Iron Fangs were particularly boisterous, but it was not only in the beast people that victory bubbled to the surface. The knights who had fought and survived raised their swords, letting up shouts of their own. To Ferris, a healer, the real battle had now begun, for the number of casualties, and the number of casualties who could be returned to health, rested upon his skill. Of course, pouring cold water on his comrades when they boiled with victory was the one thing he could not do, but  \"Ferris.\" \"Yes, yes, Ferri at your servi er, Old Man Wil?!\" When addressed, Ferris turned around with a lighthearted greeting, but was taken aback at who the speaker was. Behind him was Wilhelm, breathing raggedly as he dragged his half-bloodied body around. The heavy burns and countless lacerations on him truly justified the word half-alive. \"Wait a ! You can't walk around with those wounds! If I don't lay you down and heal you right now \" \"I can wait. More importantly, there is something crucial I must say.\" \"You might die, you know?! Don't tell me it's more important than your l \" \"Even so, I must speak it now. Where is Sir Subaru?\" In contrast to his level of injury, Wilhelm's voice was filled with vigor and drive. He would have fallen on the spot, save for sheer will. Both"}, {"text": "surprised and exasperated at the fact, Ferris immediately looked back and said, \"Subawu? He's right h \" He ought to have been rooted to the spot, hemming and hawing over what to say to Emilia. And yet  \" Subawu?\" When Ferris looked back, Subaru Natsuki was nowhere his eyes could see. 4 Clutching his head, he barreled through the thickets, running deeper and deeper into the forest. He had to get as far as he could, as far as he could manage, as far as was humanly possible; far from the village, far from the square, far from his friends and far from Emilia. \"Haa, hu...haa!\" Short of breath, he earnestly, desperately ran across the poor footing of the forest. Sweat was in his eyes, and his heart hurt as if it would leap out of his mouth, but he couldn't be bothered to care. The image of a silver-haired girl turned away from him was burned into the back of his eyelids. She would turn, their eyes would meet, and they would speak words of reunion but that was a moment he could accept no longer. It was not that he was ashamed to meet her face, nor was it timidity of any kind. He had a different reason. A terrible, abominable reason. *** \"Subaru, where are you going?!\" *** Subaru had headed toward the uninhabited depths of the forest, and yet someone had called out to him even so. He stopped; his eyes turned back, watching the slender figure with wonder. He was a handsome young man, with short, light-purple hair and a look of elegance and refinement Julius Juukulius. Julius, wiping his bloodstained uniform with a sleeve, put a hand against a large tree beside him as he gazed at Subaru. \"I am glad that you are safe...but what happened? I hear cries of victory from the village. If you are here like this, that Sloth must have been slain. And yet, why are you here?\" *** \"If something troubles you, please, speak of it. After all that, we are comrades through thick and thin.\" Hand-combing his disheveled hair, Julius spoke patiently to the stiff-faced Subaru. Just as he'd said, Subaru could still hear their comrades' voices from the direction of the village. They were still close enough that he could hear them, even though he needed to be farther, much farther away... After all, if he didn't get farther away  \"Subaru?\" Julius knit his brows at Subaru's persisting silence, saying nothing. Sensing that something was off, the knight took a step forward, approaching with concern in his eyes. It was the look of concern one gave the ill or wounded. However, it was not his body that was the problem. Ferris's no-frills healing let him move without any difficulty.  That was why he was using that flesh to the fullest. \"Suba \" \"Julius, get away fro but it is TOO late!!\" *** Desperately, Subaru resisted with all his body and soul, managing to partially hold it back. But even the fragmented, cut-off words made the knight instantly put distance between them to avoid the risk. \"Subaru\" raised an arm, swinging it in the air, and tilted his head in dissatisfaction at a ninety-degree angle, straight to the side. \"A fine reaction, yes! Though this flesh resists, you evaded WELL. You truly, truly, truly are a diligent person! All the greater the pity...\" \" I had a bad feeling when I was suddenly expelled from Subaru's body.\" On one knee, cavalry saber drawn, Julius murmured with frustration. Complex emotions swirled in his yellow eyes: anger, regret, and inexhaustible hostility and hesitation. Seeing the wavering of his eyes, \"Subaru\" squared his shoulders in approval. \"All the more promising! The way you are, you think, you waver, is all proof of your diligence! The only thing that sullied that was your base, filthy soul...\" \"Truly, it is he who has been sullied by something base and filthy. Namely, you \" Mad hatred and hatred mixed with righteous anger clashed as Julius and \"Subaru\" glared at each other, their fierce emotions at polar opposites. And then  \"Julius! Subawu!\" With a great sound of running feet, a high-pitched voice intervened, riding through the trees. A jet-black land dragon appeared, kicking up a cloud of dirt, and riding on its back were Ferris and Wilhelm. Atop the dragon, Ferris's eyes widened as he saw Julius and \"Subaru\" facing off. Wilhelm leaped down from the dragon, standing at Julius's side. Then he turned to \"Subaru\" with a grave look in his eyes. \"Sir Julius, Sir Subaru...\" \"Master Wilhelm that is not Subaru.\" Hearing Julius's hushed reply, Wilhelm radiated hostility, clenching his teeth enough to make them creak. The atmosphere tightened. Their faces contorted Ferris's with worry, Julius's with righteous anger, Wilhelm's with fierce emotion. \"Subaru\" was the only one having a good time, clapping his hands as a crazed smile came over him. And then  \"Now that you are assembled, allow me to reintroduce myself I am the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins entrusted with Sloth...\" His head tilted at ninety degrees, \"Subaru\" opened the front of his jersey and the madman laughed grandly. \"Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti!!\" Thus did he give his name. 5 He'd been wrong. He'd been mistaken. Subaru had failed to grasp the most important thing about his enemy. He had been mistaken about the evilest, most important part of Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti. The Witch Cult's Archbishop of Sloth was not multiple beings bearing the titles of ten fingers. It was a single spiritual entity named Petelgeuse, attaching itself to the flesh of others. *** \"Truly fine! Truly a splendid body! It has been decades since flesh has felt so comfortable, the perfect resource for supplementing my lost fingers!\" \"How dare you...?! Get out of Sir Subaru's body right now, heretic!\" \"For what purpose, and with what right do you say such a thing? It is because you robbed me of my precious fingers that I must inhabit this body as a last resort!\" Wilhelm grasped Petelgeuse's face, bending his head back while yelling into it. But the madman responded with Subaru's face and Subaru's voice and, for the pure enjoyment of it, scratched at his throat. The painful sight of gouged flesh and blood scattering mortified Julius and the others. \"Your qualifications are by no means poor. Unfortunately, you have engraved too many excess rituals into your fleeesh. This makes you fundamentally unsuitable to be my finger.\" *** \"Diligent old bones! Your flesh, too, is unsuited to be my finger! Even if I must praise the spirit, your flesh is an unsuitable vessel for love...ahh, how tragic!\" To Ferris, and then Wilhelm, Petelgeuse pointed his finger and shook his head. They did not understand the finer details of what his declarations meant. But putting aside that he could mean nothing good, they understood that they were unsuitable in his eyes. And then  \" And above all else, a spirit user. You are the MOST incompatible of all. The hindrance of your impurity aside, you would become a fine finger of mine. Is THIS answer enough?\" \"Unfortunately, I shall not cast the flowers aside, even if they were to abandon me. Perhaps a madman like you cannot understand such feelings.\" Julius responded to that extraordinary malice with a reply of utmost enmity. The contents thereof made Petelgeuse's eyes go wide; the next moment, he slapped his knees, seized by laughter. \"Madman! Truly, that IS the proper term! Yes, I am crazy for love! Love, undaunted love, mementos of love, affectionate love, kind love, warm love, benevolent love, thirst for love, reverent love, love of family, climactic love, private love, pure love, cherished love, gushing love, filial love, trusting love, deep love, virtuous love, sensual love, bitter love, profound love, charitable love, spiteful love, faithful love, gracious love, humble love, biased love, delusional love, fraternal love, romantic love, love, love, love, loveloveloveloveloooooooooovvvvve!!\" \"Damned fool...\" As Petelgeuse made his insanity clear, Julius focused his hostility at him while pleading to Subaru's soul. \"Subaru! Open your eyes! You are too good to be taken over by a madman like...!\" \"It is futile! This flesh is already under the control of my mind! Though it attempts to RESIST, it is fruitless, meaningless! This body is already my finger!\" \"No one is speaking to you! Subaru, think! What did you come back for? Why do you fight? Did you not shout those very words to me?!\" While disparaging Petelgeuse, Julius wrapped his six colored spirits around his cavalry saber, raising it high. The powerful, rainbowlike light repelled the darkness in the forest, its radiance dazzling the eyes for a brief moment. This created a faint gap in Petelgeuse's thoughts, which had completely smothered Subaru's to that point. And then  \"Wh-what is this?! What are...? As if you need it spelled out, you stupid jerk...!\" *** The madman opened his eyes in shock, rocked back by the torrent of emotions surging up from within. Halting as they were, the words that trickled out of his mouth were a glimpse of the mind of the owner of that flesh. In short order, Petelgeuse's look of shock was forced back, replaced from beneath by the look of Subaru breathing painfully. The transformation made Julius and the others raise their voices, seeing a glimmer of hope. \"Subaru!\" \"Subawu!\" \"Sir Subaru!\" \"I am...Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti... Shut the hell up, I'm Subaru Natsuki...!\" Push back, push back. Bury everything in the dark dregs of the mind. \"You are merely...mumbling in my ears...you will soon falter... Do you really think...you can defeat the likes of me, by strength of will...?\" With bluff, a show of pretense, he tried to take back, seize back his own mind. If he didn't, he was on the brink of surrendering to the urge to destroy himself that very moment. Or perhaps of wanting the destructive arms to stretch from his shadow and lay waste to everything around him. *** Was that urge a darkness that enveloped Petelgeuse around the clock? If so, he could, on one level, understand and sympathize with the madman's aberrant actions to date. Immersed in such madness, he injured himself to maintain his sanity. If he was constantly coated in such powerful madness, small wonder he'd become mentally unbalanced. Was this the world as Petelgeuse saw it? \"I do not seek your understanding!\" Those were the first words Petelgeuse spoke when he broke past Subaru's resistance. The voice that had spoken such madness, such crazed delight, such fury, now spoke with a mind that was indifferent, unmoved. It was a darkness that chilled Subaru to the bone more than any of his madness ever had. And then he understood he couldn't let this darkness come to the surface. \"...Do it, Julius.\" With Petelgeuse's resistance slackening, he'd settle it while he was still in control. For that purpose, Subaru chose the method most likely to succeed. That sword held the greatest possibility for beating Petelgeuse. When addressed, Julius was aghast; his eyes widened, and his lips quivered. \"What are...you saying?\" \"Sorry, but...it's only a matter of time. If you...don't stop me now, we can't win...so before that happens...\" \"No! Subaru, you must reconsider! I am both a knight and a spirit mage, a spirit knight who swore to aid you in your objective. I cannot break that oath now!\" \"You swore with me to...protect Emilia... Pretty sick of me, I know.\" The reply Subaru wrung out of himself made Julius grimace in anguish. He'd always maintained his elegance and composure. With that demeanor to go on, Subaru was a little surprised at the expression he was making. Subaru had never dreamed that he'd hesitate after coming this far. \"And you had something to speak to me about later.\" \"...Sorry. But no can do.\" He remembered the words spoken the instant they'd prayed for each other's good fortune in battle at the height of the fight with Sloth. He should have cleared the air before that, but in the end, after dragging his feet, he hadn't said it in time. \"Wilhelm, don't"}, {"text": "do anything rash...\" \"I pushed myself to reach this point. I absolutely will not accept an end like \" Wilhelm was heavily wounded, having delayed treatment for his injuries to rush over with all haste. Subaru could only praise the Sword Devil, forcing a body that should not to move through willpower alone, but this darkness could not be swept away by skill with the sword. Subaru gave a momentary, limp smile before leaving things in the hands of the last person. \"Ferris, please.\" \"You can hate me for this, Subaru I hate me, too.\" At Subaru's words, Ferris the person there who most hated the cruelty of life and death nodded. He seemed to somehow have known he would be called upon. With tears in his eyes, he pointed a finger at Subaru. The gesture triggered an abnormality in Subaru's core namely, a scorching pain, as if his blood were being boiled, burning his entire body with unendurable heat. \"Ga aaaa !!\" Hot. Hot. Hothothothothothothothothothot  His throat was hot. His eyes were hot. His body was hot. His tongue was hot. His nose was hot. His hands were hot. His ears were hot. His feet were hot. His blood was hot. His brain was hot. His bones were hot. His soul was hot. His life was hot. Hot, hot, hot. His blood was literally boiling, his internal organs were simmering, and the high-temperature steam his brain gave off clouded his vision. \"Aaaaaaa ?!\" From somewhere other than his melting ears, he heard the echo of a death cry that was not his own. One body was inhabited by two minds. Naturally, burning the body meant burning the mind of the madman with it. There was no escape. At this rate, that soul, trapped in its vessel, would be sent straight to the afterlife. *** He suffered, he writhed, he convulsed, and finally, his body could move no more. Petelgeuse could try his sore loser act again, but it wouldn't work this time. Inside Subaru, his days were done. \"Ferris! Why...?\" \"No one else could do it, right? This is what Subawu wanted.\" \"Even so, to inflict such pain on Sir Subaru like this \" \" ! Do you think I wanted to?! To use this power, power I have for Lady Crusch's sake, that I promised to use to put her on the throne, like this...!\" The voices of lament, regret, anger, sadness...they sounded so distant. Lacking the strength to even shift his head, Subaru silently apologized for forcing Ferris to stain his hands like this. With Julius hesitating, and Wilhelm beyond reach, Ferris was the only one he could count on. It was the same method he'd used to make Kety faint inside the dragon carriage that later exploded. Subaru's body had been directly healed by Ferris, so Ferris could interfere with Subaru's mana without touching him. The result was plain. The power, and suffering, were beyond Subaru's expectations, almost enough to make him regret his choice. But those feelings were overshadowed by his guilt of forcing such a deed on Ferris. Ferris's power was the power to heal others. That was the source of Ferris's pride, his mission in life, and the part of himself he treasured above all else. Subaru had made him use that power in a terrible way. He just wished he could utter the word sorry. *** Lying on the ground, unable to move, Subaru felt something touching his face. His eyes felt like a haze, displaying nothing. But Subaru recognized the hard, grainy sensation from somewhere. It was not from Julius, nor from Ferris, nor from Wilhelm, but from someone else related to  *** With Subaru's life flickering like a candle in the wind, he felt Patlash, the jet-black land dragon, nestle close to mourn his passing. Probably, these were the top four on the list of people he'd caused trouble for no, Emilia and Ram were missing from that list. And he was truly grateful neither of the two was there. \"Subaru.\" He sensed someone standing opposite Patlash, speaking with a forthright voice. He didn't even have to think about who it was. Full of determination, the voice could be none other than that of \"The Finest of Knights.\" After all, there was no knightly knight in that place save he. \"It was my inadequacy that forced you and Ferris into an unpalatable decision. I shall surely pay for this sin someday.\" Don't dwell on stupid stuff like that, was exactly what he didn't feel like saying. Dwell on it more and more, damn it. Don't you ever forget it. I won't ever forget. This pain, this powerlessness  *** For a moment, there was silence. However, that did not break the knight's resolve. Sensing the feeling of cold steel on his neck, Subaru let out his breath at the apparent fact that he would soon be sent on his way. \"Sir Subaru, I am very sorry.\" \"Lady Emilia will probably cry.\" The voices sounded distant and broken to him. Everything was vague, incomprehensible. There were promises. To never forget. To take something back. To definitely come again. It ends here? Absurd! I cannot...not like this! Right when I have found a suitable vessel! On the eve of the trial's completion! A finger! If I have a new vessel, I cannot be destr...  Shut up and go to hell. 6 He fell, fell to an unknown place far, far away  Somehow, he'd died again. He'd probably lost it all once more. He surrendered everything to the abyss. This was the familiar embrace of failure after he pathetically lost his life. Look back at the world. Look back at your failures. Don't forget. Don't forget. Do not forget. Ferris's tear-filled voice. Wilhelm's lament, shaking with regrets. Julius's resolve and remorse, so great he probably gnashes his teeth over it Don't forget, ever. No matter how low you are, don't ever let go. Thus, another life came to an end. However, nonetheless, even so Subaru Natsuki continued. Whatever happened, no matter where he came back, no matter how much suffering he carried with him, his struggle would not cease. He would repeat and do over, for that was what he swore. With a strike, and a sound, everything plunged into darkness. And so it was interrupted. It was severed. And then  \"I love you.\" Together with that soft, gentle, fleeting, and cruel breath  Subaru Natsuki lost his life, and the world was born again once more. *** It was dark. An entire world of nothing but darkness. He was tossed into a hazy world, seemingly floating in water with no sense of left or right, up or down. His body was unable to move at all. He couldn't feel his hands or legs, and he doubted his eyes and ears were functioning. With his mind so dazed, any thoughts he tried to formulate simply slipped out of his brain. Where is this? Who am I? What happened to make it like this? What little consciousness he held on to resulted only in ramblings that made the darkness flicker ever so slightly. \" I love you.\" In that pitch blackness, a voice penetrated deep into his heart. It hung in his unhearing ears. It reached what should have been his still, unbeating heart. It found his soul, which was still unsure of its own existence. He wailed as the voice touched him directly, its wild, mad emotion pressing in on his heart. The voice was so terribly fleeting. The whispers wrenched his heart, filling it with such longing that it threatened to shatter. Hearing words lovely enough to scorch his soul made him feel like he would go mad. If I had fingers, I would touch you. If I had a mouth, I would call your name. If I had arms, I would embrace you. If I had feet, I would run to your side. If I had a body, you would never be alone again. But none of these wishes could be granted. He had no fingers, mouth, arms, feet, or body to give. The feeling was the same... In fact, it was a passion even greater than what he'd felt before. The warmth he received magnified his yearning, his emotions many times over, until finally they became sins. Sloth, because I cannot wipe away your tears. Lust, because I want us to melt together and become one. Gluttony, because I want to consume you, to take all of you for myself. Greed, because I want to have everything that I love. Wrath, because I cannot forgive the absurdity of it all. Pride, because I scorn everything that is not you. Jealousy, because that is all I feel for the world that embraces you. With this realization, the world shrouded in black was filled with an overwhelming sensation of love. That instant, the supposedly empty space warped, then shattered as irreversible time began to flow backward. It was simple. He understood that he was starting over. Where he had ended in darkness, light was born, and if he walked toward it, the world would greet him once more. \" I love you.\" He turned his back on the voice and walked forward. He wanted to turn toward it, but he held fast. However, surely, one day he would take her hand. \" I love you.\" The lovely voice called out until the very end, when Subaru Natsuki began anew. CHAPTER 1 *** 1 \" Hey, kid?\" \"Ah?\" Subaru's mind was roused by the abrupt calling of his name along with the sensation of his shoulder being shaken. The image of the world around him changed in an instant, almost like someone had switched camera angles in his brain. The sudden influx of information startled him, making Subaru feel dizzy as he blinked several times. The next moment, the unfathomable shock known as comprehension coursed through his entire being. \"No way...\" Subaru put a hand to his forehead as he listened to the sound of his heartbeats pumping blood through his body. Subaru had experienced a blank of several seconds interrupting his thoughts a number of times before. It was the result of \"Death\" the time between the erasure and resurrection of Subaru Natsuki. He'd died. He'd died. \"Death\" had greeted Subaru once more. Moreover, Subaru had lost his life in battle against that wily bastard Sloth. *** After overcoming many hardships, much suffering, in the end he'd still lost his life. He'd defeated the White Whale and, after that, reorganized the expedition force, bringing it with him as he traveled to Earlham Village to fight the Witch Cult. At the end of that anguish, all that joy, sadness, and anger, had all come to naught  \" Nom.\" \"Ugyaaaaah ?!\" Subaru had been covering his face with his hands, cutting himself off from the world, when he was suddenly assaulted by unexpected sensations. The feel of hot breath and his earlobe being pinned between two hard points sent the astonished Subaru tumbling to the ground. Wide-eyed from the exceptionally soft sensation, he noticed yellow eyes gazing down at him with a teasing look. The owner of those eyes touched a finger to their lips coquettishly as a wry, beautiful smile appeared. \"The teasing was because you were staring into space, but what a wonderful reaction, meow. Ferri enjoyed it so much that this might become a habit...\" The sight of his flaxen kitty ears flicking as he continued speaking lightheartedly left Subaru listening with his mouth agape. Eventually he swallowed and called out her or rather his name. \"Is that you, Ferris?\" \"Who else does it look like? Maybe you're not just daydreaming, but hallucinating, too? You could have swallowed some White Whale mist... Should I give you a proper examination?\" \"...Nah, I'm all right. I just felt like asking. Right, what I was asking about...?\" As Ferris peered at him in concern, Subaru shook his head before taking a deep breath and examining the area. Ferris was seated directly beside him, and around Ferris, many others no, properly speaking, they were in a circle with Subaru at the"}, {"text": "center. Beneath his feet lay the grassland. It was clear from the dawn sky above that the sun had not risen yet. With everyone's gaze focused on him, Subaru sensed a ferocious bestial presence hovering to his left. \"...Were you the one who spoke to me first?\" \" ? What are you talkin' about, bro? You had a crazy look in your eyes. Pull it together.\" The dog face of Ricardo, the large-framed beast man, grimaced with a suspicious look. Subaru, realizing from the exchange that Ricardo had seen his face the instant he Returned by Death, scratched his cheek as he looked over everyone's face once more, nodding as he spoke again. \"That was seriously bad for my heart. I mean really, I thought I was back in front of the fruit store again.\" Exhaling like a deflating balloon, Subaru let the tension out of his shoulders as his palm brushed the ground. The cold dirt, fresh grass, and raw earth under him meant he definitely wasn't in the capital. This was the Liphas Highway, where they'd held a general briefing right after defeating the White Whale. In other words... \"The save point...got updated, huh?\" It felt like he had narrowly avoided a terrible fate, but it wasn't something he could laugh at. Still, the silver lining brought him relief. 2 When it came to worst cases, some were worse than others. Having fought the good fight, only to gain an empty defeat and Returning by Death, was undoubtedly a worst case. But there could have been something even more terrible namely having no change in restart point and returning to a moment before he managed to defeat the White Whale. Compared to that, this worst case was not the most horrific possibility. At the very least, they had beaten the White Whale, fulfilling the Sword Devil's fourteen-year ambition. *** \"Sir Subaru, are you all right? Your face appears rather pale.\" Wilhelm, the Sword Devil, stared at Subaru and expressed his concern. \"It's nothing,\" said Subaru, shaking his head immediately, tightening his disjointed thoughts and slackened cheeks. Even though he was still reeling mentally after only just enduring a Return by Death, he couldn't simply use that as an excuse. After all, Subaru and the others were in the very middle of a critical discussion the briefing to decide what countermeasures to take against the Witch Cult. \"If you are no longer distressed, let us review the situation.\" Raising a finger, the elegant knight Julius restarted the meeting. Scholarly wariness and righteous indignation resided in his almond eyes as he requested they carry on. \"From this point onward, we shall proceed to the Mathers domain to oppose the nefarious Witch Cultists lying in wait. Ideally, this will result in their annihilation and the slaying of the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins commanding them. However, what we must prioritize is the safety of the innocent people caught up in this incident, and in preparation for that \" \"For the getaway, we have called on the traveling merchants Anastasia and Russel to help us. The messenger we sent to communicate the alliance and the rescue operation should have arrived at the mansion already... Sorry, I'm all good now.\" Subaru thanked Julius for giving him time to calm down and fully rejoined the conversation. Thanks to Julius summarizing the topics at the assembly, Subaru could grasp exactly how far things had proceeded before his Return by Death. Apparently Subaru had already explained Witch Cult Hunting Made Simple, as well as the insurance he'd procured. However, he had already learned from the last go-around that his attempts to secure insurance would transform into deadly poison. The letter of goodwill they had sent had turned out to be blank, which had sown distrust. Meanwhile, inviting the traveling merchants to participate had left them open to infiltration by Witch Cultists. He needed to implement new countermeasures as quickly as possible, but  \"Your face suggests that...something is amiss?\" \"What are you, a doctor? Stop looking at people's faces and figuring out everything they're thinking, geez.\" \"Want the actual doctor sitting right beside you to examine you from head to toe instead? I wouldn't mind...\" As Subaru sank into thought, Julius and Ferris sandwiched him from both sides as they pointed out his troubled expression. Inwardly Subaru ground his teeth at their persistence. He certainly did have an issue on his mind. However, he couldn't come up with a good way to explain it. He had to warn them about the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins' dangerous Authority, and a number of new problems on top of that, but how could he explain these things in a way his comrades would believe? \" No, this is wrong. It's not good enough. Right, I...forgot some things again.\" \"Hmmmm?\" When Subaru firmly shut his eyes, the words he found within himself caused Ferris to cock his head in confusion. Julius remained silent with his brows knit as Subaru rued the extent of his own stupidity. How many times would Subaru Natsuki make the same mistake before he moved forward? *** He opened his closed eyes and looked around at the faces of the fifty-odd members of the expeditionary force. Subaru's silence had brought tension to their gazes, but they harbored no doubt. What they felt was not fear, but anticipation. There was no sense of despair, only hope. After everything that had been spoken, after all the help that had been given... In the end, Subaru had even gotten this far only thanks to the support Rem had offered him. \"...I believe you have immersed yourself in sentimentality enough?\" Julius sensed the change in Subaru's demeanor, and his lighthearted prompt invited a change in subject. The man really got on his nerves, but for a short moment, Subaru felt nothing but gratitude toward him. He felt equally grateful for the comrades who granted him their own thanks and trust. \"Sorry for being all indecisive earlier. Actually, I have to add to my explanation about the Witch Cult...... No, that's not exactly it. I realized some things for the first time. I want to speak to all of you about those issues.\" He didn't have to worry about how to come up with a good explanation. That was a waste of time. All he had to do was not hold anything back, tell as much of the truth as he could, and they would respond with their faith in him. Even if Subaru could not reveal the nature of Return by Death, he could uncover the things he learned as a result of it. This was the one way he could share what he knew of the future with his comrades. And they would accept his preposterous tales in complete seriousness. All because understanding and trust were the greatest weapons in Subaru Natsuki's arsenal. 3 Subaru had gleaned a number of new facts from his most recent confrontation with Petelgeuse. One was that a Witch Cultist infiltrating the traveling merchants hired for the evacuation had delivered a blank letter of goodwill to Roswaal Manor. Another was that Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti's Authority included the worst power imaginable. In particular, one aspect of Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti's power Possession posed the greatest obstacle to the expeditionary force's efforts to take down Sloth. \"Anyone know about...a power to overwrite someone else's mind with your own, letting you mentally take them over? Some sort of magic that can do something like that?\" Much of the magic in this new world Subaru found himself in had effects beyond anything he could conceive. The basics of magic began with the four elements; then there were a great many other things, like Beatrice's Passage, Roswaal's flight magic, the mutant aberrations of magic called curses, and the special abilities known as blessings, too. In a world where such incredible abilities existed, Possession had to be possible, too. It was with such hopes that Subaru put the question to his lips, but  \"Overwriting another person's mind with your own? That's nothing but a stupid, unbelievable idea, meow.\" \"...Gimme my greatest weapon back.\" \"What are mew talking about?\" Though Subaru had brought up the subject with courage, the way it was laughed off so quickly was a major blow to that foundation of trust. When Subaru pouted and gave Ferris a resentful stare, Ferris was merely baffled. Cutting in, Julius adopted a thoughtful pose and spoke. \"Given the topic at hand, you believe it's possible the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins employs a strange power along those lines... Am I correct?\" \"Yeah, you've got it. I decided to call it Possession, but that's not far off from what actually happens. He survives by moving from body to body. That explains how he shows up in so many places at once, right?\" *** From the long silence, Julius seemed to be mulling over Subaru's explanation. But whether others doubted it or not, it was a fact. Having shared his own body with that very madman, Subaru could firmly confirm that much. His mind conquered people's flesh, stealing control for itself. Without any doubt, Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti was a spiritual entity that grafted itself to the bodies of others a repulsive, wicked ability. \"In the past, I have seen references in old tomes about research on similar phenomena. It was reckless research, but...\" \"Really?\" When Julius, a hand still over his own mouth, offered up that morsel, Subaru bit. The handsome man plumbed the depths of his memories as he deftly summarized what he could recall from the tome. \"It was research on lost magic, or perhaps a related record. The world lost many things in the immediate aftermath of the Great Catastrophe four centuries ago. This variety of magic seems to have been among what was lost. Gone without a trace, save in records, there was a description of an ability similar to what you describe.\" \"Well, don't hold back. What was the similar lost magic?\" \"A technique for soul...transference.\" As Subaru drew closer, Julius revealed something that sounded far removed from magic. However, Subaru did not miss the look of disgust that came over Julius's face as he spoke of it. After firmly declaring the research abominable, Julius closed his eyes and continued. \"The phenomenon itself is exceedingly simple. Everything comprising the caster's soul his memories, experiences, and most likely, elemental character and destiny are seared onto the soul of another person.\" \"Meaning, it...is possible to overwrite the memories and mind of another person, then.\" It was like doing a copy and paste with a computer file. It treated human memory like a file, overwriting it with another person's file-like soul, blotting out the old and saving the new. That way, the discarded soul would be lost, and the overwriting soul would remain. \"But it does not exist in reality. The magic is lost, the ritual is theoretical, and the difficulty is of an almost unheard-of level. Reproducing the feat would require magical genius and tenacity beyond the ability of mortals. I simply cannot believe this Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins possesses such intellect and skill.\" \"Hey, man, not believing it exists isn't a real reason to reject the idea, especially since this is the Witch Cult we're talking about.\" \"Subawu, you're getting too worked up. Julius has things to say, too.\" The influential Julius rejected his hypothesis, which made Subaru snap at the knight until Ferris chided him for it. Subaru proceeded to put on a guilty look and said, \"Go on,\" prodding Julius to continue. \"Sorry. It is a bad habit of mine to take my time reaching a conclusion. Even if we put aside the fact that the ritual has been lost, there are a great deal of obstacles for the technique we've been discussing. First, the souls that the caster can affect are fairly limited. The technique is not the kind that allows the caster to transfer his soul to any random person he touches.\" \"Well, of course not, meow. Memories are a bit out of"}, {"text": "my field, but overwriting individual Gates is no trivial thing. It's probably...limited to blood relations, meow?\" \"A limitation to blood relatives would be extremely desirable. As Ferris said, the soul being transferred would bounce off the Gate if it is not highly similar. Besides, even when one soul is laid over another, the original soul's influence over the body will remain. There would be a constant concern about the body being compelled by the mind.\" \"...It sure does sound like magic that has a lot of downsides.\" Hearing the pair's opinions, Subaru could understand why the objections were numerous. Subaru could not dismiss out of hand the possibility that Petelgeuse was an exceptional magic user capable of employing lost magic, but it was pretty much impossible that his choice of bodies was limited to blood relations. The fact that he had successfully possessed Subaru shelved that premise completely. \"However, it is too soon to dismiss a completely different method.\" \"Will you make up your mind?!\" \"I am offended by your outburst. I stated that I know of similar magic as a prerequisite for further discussion. Besides, even if it is not the exact same technique, there are surely important clues we should consider.\" \"...Such as?\" \"Naturally, I mean the possibility that the conditions for Possession are just as strict as those for soul transference.\" Julius's assertion made Subaru's face scrunch up, but he immediately grasped the point. If soul transference was invariably limited to blood relatives, then Possession might have similar restrictions. \"We could deduce that the technique is limited to fellow Witch Cultists...and a select few at that.\" \"You mean those finger people...?\" \"It is a title in poor taste when referring to spare bodies. I suppose that suits an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins well.\" Julius agreed with Ferris's conclusion, a fact that made Subaru gaze in astonishment. In such an incredibly short time, the two had worked out a plausible theory about how Possession operated. Even if the pair were the brains of the operation as well as the most versed in magic out of all the members of the expeditionary force, the results were beyond Subaru's expectations. And simultaneously, a plan to truly hunt down the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of Sloth took form. Namely  \"If we take away all the archbishop's extra lives...in other words, destroy all his fingers...\" \"...He would lose the chance to possess anyone. That's when the archbishop will face his end.\" The way Julius firmly finished the thought made Subaru feel both deep admiration and a sense of defeat from the bottom of his heart. The difficult situation had made him start to lose all hope, but thanks to them, he could finally see the light in the darkness. After all, it was a solution that was neither contradictory nor disputable. \"In conclusion, we will prioritize eliminating the fingers lurking in the forest, then settle matters with Sloth.\" Julius's declaration drew the meeting to a close. The faces of the expeditionary force members seated around them surged with determination and resolve. Great strength can be found when a person's ability and mission are one and the same. When the members of the expeditionary force rose, their morale was as high as when they had done battle with the White Whale. \" Everyone, there's just one more thing I have to tell you.\" It was then that Subaru called out, drawing the attention of the impetuous warriors who were ready to venture forth. When those intense gazes turned his way, Subaru endured his genuinely apologetic feelings to discuss something he was obligated to explain. Namely  \"Sorry, but it's not just the fingers. I'm probably a target for the archbishop's Possession ability, too. What do you think we can do about that?\" \"Huh?\" It had been the direct cause of his latest Return by Death, and the final hurdle he'd had to overcome. Once he shared that pitiful fact, they began to devise a countermeasure. 4 In the end, their departure time arrived before the \"Witch Cult Countermeasures Conference\" reached a definite conclusion. Subaru wanted to continue hammering out a plan, but if they didn't make it to the battlefield in time, that would be putting the cart before the horse so to avert that, Subaru gave Julius a suggestion. \"Hey, Julius. With the magic of your spirit groupies, you should be able to link together the minds of people within its effective range, right? Can't we use that to discuss this on the move?\" Subaru was basing this query on his experience with Nekt, the mind-sharing spell he had experienced from the last loop, as if it were his own wonderful idea. At the time, Julius had used the spell to link all of the expeditionary force's minds to quickly deal with Ram's surprise attack. It had to be possible to use that to hold a meeting, too. Subaru's proposal made Julius look at Ferris with mild surprise. \"He didn't hear it from Ferri, okay?\" said the kitty-eared knight in response to his gaze, waving a hand as he headed for his land dragon. \"What did Ferris mean that it wasn't from him?\" \"...It's nothing. I did not think that you knew I was a spirit user. I was merely wondering where you might have learned that.\" \"Ah, right. This is where the spirit knight thing first came up...\" That Julius had identified himself as a spirit knight was information Subaru heard close to the end of the last go-around. At the point where he was currently, Subaru shouldn't have recognized Julius as anything more than a first-rate knight. But it was a rare opportunity to take Julius off guard. Subaru put on a smug face. \"You're just more famous than you think. Well, the price of fame didn't have anything to do with me noticing you quietly stuck one of your quasi-spirits on me.\" \"So you were aware of even that?\" This time, a look of unconcealable distress was plain in Julius's gaze. The reaction made Subaru smile, but right after, he turned his head aside. That was because, for an instant, Julius's eyes, which stared at Subaru, seemed to endure a wave of deep pain. \"Certainly, as you have pointed out, I placed one of my flower buds on you  Ia, come on out.\" But he immediately concealed the wave of emotion behind his usual composure. Beckoned by Julius's hand, a red light leaped from Subaru's hair. It was more flicker than flame, more warmth than light, one of the six quasi-spirits accompanying Julius. \"This is Ia, quasi-spirit of fire. I had her follow and watch over you.\" \"That's fine, but tell me about stuff like this. I'd panic if some emergency happened and she jumped out all of a sudden.\" \"There is no need for concern. The buds are quite capable. It would never come to something like that.\" \"Thanks for sharing your sappy love story. Now, setting that aside \" When Subaru complained about planting insurance on him without permission, Julius was slightly apologetic. Subaru took it in stride until he realized something didn't fit. Julius sticking Ia on him matched the events of the last go-around. His memory of the spirit saving him from the dragon carriage explosion was still fresh. But besides that, he remembered something odd where Ia was concerned. And as he realized that  \"Julius. Under what conditions could Ia be shoved out of me against her will?\" \"...I am not quite sure I follow your question.\" \"This is important. The answer has a direct impact on the plan to take on the archbishop.\" Faced with Subaru's firm statement, Julius discarded his momentary bewilderment and answered. \"Attaching Ia to you means, from a spirit user's point of view, a provisional pact. Forcibly breaking the pact would mean that you, the provisional contractor, have rejected her, or perhaps...\" \"Perhaps?\" \"A superior, formal pact displaced the provisional pact.\" In that instant, he gave the answer Subaru truly wanted to hear. Perhaps Julius realized it while speaking the words, because his amber eyes held a glint of comprehension. \"It couldn't be,\" the knight said immediately after, shaking his head as if to deny it. However... \"A famous detective once said, 'Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.'\" \"It has the ring of truth. But if it is so...what is to be done?\" \"This is the final piece. I wanna hear the rest along the way. Like which people fulfill the conditions, and which don't.\" \"Understood. Let us do exactly that.\" Julius nodded, keeping his words concise as he stuck Ia on Subaru once more and headed to his own land dragon. Subaru felt the warmth of the quasi-spirit on top of his head as he mounted his favorite, pitch-black dragon Patlash. \"We've used up a little more time than before. Gonna have to go all out, Patlash.\" *** As the land dragon took in Subaru's words, the side of her refined face made it seem he'd stated the obvious. Then the expeditionary force resumed its march along the Liphas Highway, heading for the Mathers domain. \" Nekt.\" Julius used the mind-melding spell once they were under way, affecting the entire expeditionary force. The results of the spell were truly as Subaru had envisioned. But  \"Ah crap, I completely forgot.\" \"Sorry. I didn't think my tuning with Ia and Nes would be in error... There's also the fact that Ia seems rather fond of you. Perhaps you have a high compatibility with spirits.\" \"Save that stuff for later. We can take our time with that talk once everything's over.\" Subaru accepted the telepathic apology, pressing his fingers to his temples as his ears continued to ring. Just like last time, Subaru was reeling from the onrush of everyone's brain waves the instant Nekt was activated. It was Subaru's own fault for forgetting all about that side effect. Julius adjusted the signal to more tolerable levels, allowing Subaru to focus on the flow of the conversation. \"So for the plan of attack against the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins...how shall we proceed?\" Unlike with speaking out loud, there wasn't a good way to differentiate voices conveyed directly via thought. In spite of this, it was possible to tell the sender of thoughts thanks to their individual character. The thought Subaru had just received was a deep blue, but concealed scarlet passion within it Subaru could instantly tell it was Wilhelm who had spoken. The Sword Devil was riding alongside on his land dragon, the grave look on his face radiating hostility toward an unseen madman. \"If Sir Subaru and Sir Julius's conjecture is correct, we must carefully consider our method of attack. Invisible magic hands and the ability to take over another's body are both major obstacles.\" \"Yeah, they sure are...\" The Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of Sloth had two powers they needed to overcome. He had Unseen Hands and Possession at his disposal, but the expeditionary force had solid leads on ways to deal with both. The main issue at hand was that the method to tackle one power left them vulnerable against the other. \"I'm the only one who can see Petelgeuse's Unseen Hands. That means if we go at him in a frontal attack, it's no good unless I'm around. But I'm also a target for Possession. If I'm there and he takes me over, we'll lose our chance to stop him from getting away anyway.\" \"...Sir Subaru, I actually have a proposal about that. Would you care to listen?\" As Subaru sank into thought, pondering \"out loud,\" Wilhelm interjected with an air of confidence. His words aroused hope throughout the expeditionary force, making Wilhelm give a firm telepathic nod. \"Concerning the archbishop's invisible arms, I thought of a simple way to expose them to the naked eye. First, we would scatter a large amount of dust, or possibly dirt, around the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins.\""}, {"text": "\"Ah, I don't think we can rely on that, meow.\" Though Ferris casually inserted himself into his explanation midway, Wilhelm paid no heed and explained to the very end. Subaru had already seen his plan in action once before: a Wilhelm-style dirt screen to hold Petelgeuse's Authority in check. Knowing the results from the last go-around, Subaru knew that Wilhelm's proposal could work. The problem was that it was such a superhuman feat, only Wilhelm could pull it off. Indeed, all the expeditionary force members found the suggestion too challenging, with even Julius and Ricardo communicating telepathically that the feat was beyond them. \"I believe anyone can do it with enough practice, but...\" \"Yes, yes. But we don't have fifty years to spend practicing. Aside from proving that Old Man Wil is inhuman, what'll we do?\" Callously ignoring the dejected Wilhelm, Ferris prioritized moving the conversation forward. Subaru felt bad for Wilhelm, but Ferris had made the right decision. Subaru mulled over Ferris's question. \"Guess that decides it,\" he muttered. \"Yeah, let's go with the original plan for dealing with the Witch Cult and the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, plus the issues at the mansion and the village. That's probably best.\" *** All the members of the expeditionary force reacted to the conclusion of the telepathic Witch Cult Countermeasures Conference. Sympathy, concern, trust, anxiety there was a crush of various emotions, but the general consensus was to respect Subaru's viewpoint. They would proceed as originally planned. \" To confirm, you are truly all right with this plan? You won't have any regrets?\" When Subaru was still feeling unsure of himself, Julius was the only one to raise the question. Though it was an inelegant method, this exchange served as a necessary ritual to dispel the expeditionary force's hesitance. Plus, that it was Julius, of all people, who brought up the topic meant this was an expression of his knightly beliefs. \"Don't be ridiculous. It's my plan and my idea. I'm not gonna turn around and say, Oh no, maybe we actually shouldn't...though Emilia is probably gonna be super mad at me when we do this.\" With closed eyes, Subaru pictured a lovely girl with silver hair. It had been only a few short hours since he'd left the world where he'd gazed upon her with unrequited love, his wish for a one-sided reunion having been granted. Even so, the serene sight of the her face and the sound of her lovely voice were undiminished. It was because he could still vividly recall those things that he was able to hold firm in his decision. \"I'm happy everyone's worried, but don't give me the chance to say I wanna stop. If you thought that I had managed to squeeze out any courage from myself, you should know that it's actually all on loan.\" The success or failure of the operation would be decided by Subaru's will, but he knew that they would never keep questioning his resolve for such a callous reason. That was why he could bear it. \"Besides, I'm optimistic that everything'll be fine once we reach the last part. The road that leads there is a little treacherous, but that's all. When you think of it that way, it'll be an easy win, right?\" \"...Subawu, choosing the words easy win means you're actually a big shot and I just never realized, right?\" \"Don't be stupid, I know I'm small fry. I might be optimistic, but I need all of your strength so I can share a passionate embrace with Emilia at the very end, all right? Come on, guys, just think of yourselves as my cupids and gimme a hand, okay?!\" \"I am still not quite sure on what basis you made that claim but you have made your resolve clear.\" Julius spoke for everyone when he approved of how Subaru's lightheartedness had swept away the heavy, stifling atmosphere. As that brought the meeting to an end, Subaru shifted his eyes to the road ahead, toward the edge of the plains. Past that boundary, the grassland came to an end, and Subaru would soon be able to make out the treetops of the forested region beyond. Once they left the plains and took a few woodland roads, they would arrive at the Mathers domain. His heart beat loudly, throbbing as if it might crack, yet even so, Subaru continued to look. *** \"Ho-ho? What, you're worried about me? That's adorable.\" Freed of the briefing now that everyone was no longer telepathically speaking, Subaru found Patlash's head turned toward him with a pensive look. Subaru showed her a strained smile as he stroked her neck. Then he rummaged in the sack affixed to the land dragon's saddle, locating something by touch alone. What he found was a tool that would play a critical part during the operation. After all that time, an ache still ran through Subaru's chest when he recalled how it had passed into his hands. In Subaru's mind, it was because of that pain that he could move forward, thrusting his fear and anxiety aside. \"This time, I'll make things right.\" \"Of course, that's what everyone intends to do. It'll be all right. The plan was devised so scrupulously, there is no reason to think of failure. Our preparations have been meticulous. Also, once this is all over, I would like to have a toast with you.\" \"Stop saying so many things that sound like famous last words !!\" Subaru shouted at Julius, who was riding alongside him, presumably ignorant of the concept of death flags. Those yells echoed loudly, ringing in the air as though they could even be heard in the Mathers domain, which was still far, far away. 5 When the light of day reached her sleep-deprived eyelids, Emilia rose with a light headache. \"It's...morning already...\" Emilia sat up in bed, blinking several times. She brushed her silver hair away from her forehead, briefly lingering on the boundary between sleep and consciousness before letting out a frail murmur that mirrored her thoughts as it floated to the surface. She hadn't slept much for the past several days. Last night, she had gone to sleep several hours after sunset again. After entering the forest at night, using her power to reweave the wards that kept demon beasts out, Emilia had probably managed to get only a couple hours of sleep. Her head felt heavy and her thoughts sluggish, as if someone had plunged them into mud. Emilia had never been much of an early riser to begin with, even before the numerous issues that had occupied all her time for the past several days. While fatigue and anguish were constantly whittling her mind away, there was no helping it. It had been a week since the candidates for the royal selection had assembled at the palace, and a week since she had demonstrated her determination. After that, Emilia had returned to the manor and spent five days acting as the representative of her faction. The pressure she'd felt during those scant five days had been more than enough to overwhelm her. \"I thought I understood... I really thought I did.\" Emilia strongly gripped her bedsheet as she lamented her incompetence. In the blink of an eye, she recalled the events of the last week in the back of her mind. She had been called to the capital, faced the other candidates, declared her conviction with all the eyes of the court upon her, and then  \" Subaru.\" As Emilia spoke the name of the boy she'd left behind at the capital, she lowered her eyes, enduring the pain. She thought of that cheerful, sensitive boy who was always desperate to help others, and just a tiny bit delusional, wondering what he was doing at the moment. The intense argument between them at the palace, as well as his pained expression, like an abandoned child's, were seared into her retinas. Those images had been burned into her conscience over and over. In the end, his tortured face, the things that he'd spoken, the words that he hadn't wanted to hear but heard anyway Emilia felt that no one could be blamed for those things...except for herself. \"...But it's for the best, isn't it?\" The clash of their inner thoughts had resulted in the two of them going separate ways. However, Emilia did not think that explosion of emotion was something that should have been avoided. In fact, it was better for them to follow different paths. The place where Subaru belonged was not by her side. After all, Emilia was a half-elf, the object of everyone's hatred. Anyone who stood by her would bear the same hatred from simply being associated with her. That kindhearted boy would be no exception. Indeed, it was because Subaru wanted to be by her side that he had been so terribly hurt, in both body and spirit, during his duel with Julius. She didn't want to subject him to that, to make him go through such a thing again. Over the course of their quarrel, she thought Subaru had to have seen his mistake. Emilia's one regret was that, at the very, very end, she had let her true feelings slip. Namely, the hope that Subaru, of all people, could set her existence as a half-elf aside and treat her as a normal girl...  It had been a fickle, fleeting, futile, selfish hope. \"Subaru can't see me as anything but special... That's what he said.\" She despaired at her own selfishness, pushing him away, hurting him, only to look to him for salvation. Such shallowness was unforgiveable, half-elf or no. \"Lia, you're furling your eyebrows. You're ruining your adorable face.\" A voice suddenly spoke to Emilia as she held her knees while still in bed. When she glanced up, there was a little cat spirit with gray fur. Emilia smiled slightly as she offered a greeting. \"Good morning, Puck. You're up early today.\" \"Good morning, Lia. This morning there was...something to take care of.\" \" ? Did something happen?\" \"Mm, if I said I was making an effort to sleep early and get up early...that would be a lie. It's because I'm really worried about you, Lia. It's been one thing after another, especially yesterday.\" Emilia lowered her eyes at Puck's uncharacteristically awkward reply. ...The events of the previous day had contributed a great deal to Emilia's current mental fatigue and lack of sleep. The bitter memory of the nearby villagers rejecting whatever she had to say or offer bubbled up in her mind. Their fear and disapproval had not been enough for them to hurl cruel words at her, but their gazes alone had already cut deep into Emilia's heart. \"...I knew...that would happen.\" \"You also know what falling is, but you still hurt and bleed when it happens. If you ask me, simply knowing the result isn't the same as actually experiencing it for yourself.\" When Emilia used a childish excuse to push past, Puck mercilessly cut off her escape route. But this wasn't something Puck did maliciously. Puck, in his own way, was urging Emilia to stop running from the truth as well as hiding her feelings. \"Puck...\" \"Mm?\" \"Puck...what do you think I should do? How should I...? No, not just me, how can everyone get along better? How do I get everyone to...?\" \" Lia, maybe you should just do what you like? I'm on your side no matter what happens, Lia, and anyone who gets in your way is my enemy.\" Though it was a promise from her surest ally, in that moment, the words offered Emilia no comfort. It was the answer she'd expected. Puck would support Emilia unconditionally, but that didn't help with her problem. In the end, Emilia would have to rely on her own judgment. Puck's entire value system was centered on Emilia; everything and everyone else came second. \"You're not going to turn your back on that village no matter what, are you? The"}, {"text": "pink-haired girl headed to the village again this morning. Maybe waiting for her report is all you can do?\" \"...Ram went to the village? But she hasn't had any rest for a while either...\" \"I'm telling you, that girl's doing a lot better than you are, Lia. She finds places to take breaks from her work. At the very least, she can handle herself.\" She shrank a little. Puck's rational assessment of Ram of course implied that Emilia was wholly incapable of taking care of herself. As it happened, Emilia found herself relying on Ram that very moment. For the past several days, Ram had been executing a portion of Roswaal's affairs, shouldering his responsibilities dealing with the mansion or Earlham Village, all while Emilia remained in the mansion. Excusing himself to conduct negotiations with a local big shot, Roswaal had claimed he would be away for no more than a few days. The great responsibility brought worry and stress, but if she couldn't cope with that much in the span of a few days, how could she possibly hope to participate in the royal selection and be ready for what would come after? With such thoughts in mind, she'd accepted the duty, shelving her feelings of guilt from leaving Subaru in the royal capital, then readied herself to face the days to come with atypical seriousness but two days prior, the situation had greatly changed. \"A strange presence in the forest...?\" \"Yes. Unpleasant fellows against whom even my Clairvoyance is ineffective.\" Ram delivered the news in her usual calm tone of voice, but her furled eyebrows were an ominous sign. Her Clairvoyance was the unusual ability to synchronize with the vision of others and see through their eyes. However, even this ability, particularly useful for reconnaissance and searching, had been unable to discern the identity of the presence she'd sensed in the forest. \"It's not...related to demon beasts?\" \"The barrier has been redeployed. I believe it is unrelated, but... What do you wish to do?\" \"Well, that goes without saying... We can't pretend nothing's happening. If we can't do anything about it, at least we can keep the villagers from falling into danger.\" \"Prioritizing their safety... You wish to evacuate the villagers, then?\" \"That...would be best. This mansion is big enough to accommodate all of them, right?\" That was the conclusion Emilia and Ram had reached during their discussion about the forbidding presence in the forest. That Ram hadn't objected was somewhat reassuring to Emilia. As Roswaal's proxy, Ram would have mercilessly shot down any proposals she deemed foolish. Accordingly, Emilia had walked to Earlham Village practically next door with some expectations. She'd convince the villagers to evacuate to the mansion, sparing them from peril. But  \"We've heard about the royal selection as well as the fact that you are a half-elf. We refuse to follow you. Everyone has agreed on this.\" An old woman acting as the village's representative spoke these words, rejecting Emilia's offer. The obstinate reply, filled with rejection and renunciation, hurt Emilia. The fact that it hurt surprised her. Rejection was Emilia's natural environment. She had tasted that discouragement countless times before. And yet, she realized at the same time, that pain was still felt sharply in her heart.  Emilia had hoped it would change her. She'd hoped that leaping into the royal selection, a great undertaking, would be the first step to changing her lot in life, and that perhaps the reactions around her that she'd taken for granted might change, too. The points of contact between her and the villagers over the two preceding months had further raised these hopes. But Emilia had continued to deceive them about her true identity using concealment magic. Could anyone truly trust her, or allow her into their heart, when she had never shown her real face even once? When she'd spent those days with the villagers in what she mistook for harmony, those smiles had not been not aimed toward her. They had been meant for the young man leading Emilia to the village by the hand. Emilia had not earned anything herself. And yet, had she misunderstood even so? \"...In the end, what was I even doing?\" Once her offer was rejected, her subsequent pleas fell on deaf ears; she offered three more times, but every time she was refused. The calamity that had come from the royal capital on the heels of that despair had only added to Emilia's suffering. \"I have come bearing a letter of goodwill from my master, Duchess Crusch Karsten.\" An envoy of humble demeanor had arrived at the mansion to present an envelope sealed with the lion's crest of the House of Karsten. When she accepted the letter, Emilia could only guess as to its contents. Crusch was not only a royal candidate, but the person she had entrusted with Subaru's care in the capital. Wondering what might have befallen him, she had opened the letter in great haste  \" But it was blank. The pink-haired girl said the message was a declaration of war. I can't blame her for being upset.\" The letter itself was resting atop the room's desk. When Emilia's gaze drifted to it, Puck had discerned what she was thinking, cocking his head slightly as he recounted their discovery that the sheet was blank. Just as Puck said, the letter had been delivered blank. There was nothing written on it neither front nor back. Sending a blank letter implied that the sender deemed the recipient someone not worth speaking to. However, the letter's contents, and the very act of sending such a thing, clashed greatly with what Emilia knew about Crusch as an individual. Because of that, she had immediately suspected there must have been some mistake. She had asked the envoy what Crusch had truly intended, but he promptly asserted that he'd simply done as he had been commanded. Ultimately, Emilia was unable to find a satisfying answer. \"Let's keep the envoy under watch here at the mansion. If it comes to that, we can use him as a bargaining chip.\" In spite of Ram's extreme position, the envoy was being hosted at the mansion, safe and sound. Even so, the forbidding presence in the forest and the blank letter had only worsened Emilia's mental load. In the end, she hadn't been able to sleep well last night, either, so Emilia did the only thing she could: check the surrounding barriers to make sure they weren't weakening to ward off any potential demon beast attack. After she made her rounds, she returned to her room at dawn, fell asleep, woke, and arrived at the present. Rem seemed to have left her alone at the mansion, heading off to the village in another attempt to persuade the villagers while Emilia slept. Technically speaking, given her position, Emilia would normally be expected to go with her, taking the lead in appealing to the villagers to evacuate  \"But it might actually go better without me...\" A feeling of shirked responsibility prodded Emilia to rise from bed. At the same time, she was deeply anxious about the possibility she would be shunned, which would make the situation worse. As a matter of fact, if Emilia had gone with Ram, the villagers would surely have rejected the proposal out of fear. That was reality of the situation. Emilia continued to slam into the wall that people used against those who were seen as strange and different. But to fight against that, maybe she should go into the forest herself  \"Oh, Lia. Someone's coming up to the mansion.\" \"...Ram, I suppose. I need to ask her how things went in the village.\" Puck's call interrupted Emilia's thoughts. She quickly headed into the changing room. Normally Puck was noisy about Emilia's grooming, but he hadn't been too picky for those last several days. But even this show of consideration became fuel for Emilia's growing self-hatred. \"Ahh, I'm going to visit Betty. Call me if something happens, 'kay?\" \"Err, yes, all right. Say hi to Beatrice for me.\" As soon as Emilia stepped into the corridor, Puck split off to see the young-looking girl who, despite living under the same roof, didn't care much for showing her face. When Emilia thought about it, she hadn't seen the girl a single time since returning to the mansion. \"Maybe Beatrice is angry I left Subaru behind...\" Subaru and Beatrice got along rather well, so maybe she was upset. Negative thoughts seemed to keep bubbling up without end. Emilia sighed and set off for the entry hall at a brisk pace. She put off seeing Beatrice until later. There were many things she had to speak about with Ram. \"Lady Emilia.\" Emilia arrived in the hall just as the doorway to the mansion was opening. She exhaled a little when she saw Ram through the crack of the door. \"Ram, I'm sorry for putting everything on your shoulders. I will make it up to you very s \" \"No need, Lady Emilia. More importantly, you have guests.\" Ram shook her head, interrupting Emilia as she moved aside, clearing a path to the door. \"Huh?\" said Emilia as her eyes grew wide when figures came over the threshold. \"Lady Emilia, please forgive our sudden visit.\" It was a well-aged man with a sturdy physique who addressed Emilia with a bow. Emilia squinted slightly, recalling that she had seen his tall frame somewhere before; the memory came to her right after. \"You were...the gentleman who came with Ferris once, right?\" \"Yes. I am called Wilhelm Trias, humble retainer of the House of Karsten. I have come today representing my liege.\" The old man introduced himself in a dignified voice before dropping to one knee in a display of the utmost respect. Emilia, blushing at the sight, rushed down the remaining stairs that separated them to bid Wilhelm to rise. However, she immediately realized that something about him was bizarre. Smeared in blood and grime, the old man did not have the appearance she would associate with an official messenger. \"Those clothes... What happened?\" \"I apologize for the unsightly display. With some luck, I was fortunate enough to encounter a trifling demon beast while traveling to the Mathers domain. My atrocious appearance is the result.\" \"I don't mind, but your wounds......seem to have already been treated.\" \"There is no need for concern. More importantly, I must properly communicate my master's will.\" When Wilhelm suggested shifting the focus from himself to the topic at hand, Emilia acceded. The old man calling himself Crusch's representative reminded Emilia of the letter that had arrived the night before. \"Actually, last night, I received what was apparently a letter of goodwill from Lady Crusch. However, the letter was blank...... I was concerned, wondering if there was some kind of mistake.\" \"Blank, you say  I see, so it truly was blank.\" \"What do you mean...?\" Wilhelm's blue eyes narrowed at his learning the contents of the letter. Sensing something strange in his demeanor, Emilia remained concerned as she instinctively echoed his words. But he immediately shook his head. \"No, this is highly embarrassing, but that contradicts the letter my master originally sent. I know her thoughts well, and I assure you, there is no need for concern.\" \"The original... I see, it actually was a mistake? I'm so glad that she...doesn't hate me.\" Emilia put a hand on her chest, relieved to hear someone close to Crusch firmly deny any ill will. The letter had arrived directly after the residents of the village had rejected her. On the one hand, she hadn't thought it was like Crusch; on the other, there had been some part of her that worried the head of the House of Karsten was acting out of contempt for half-elves. An anxious heart indulged in unnecessary doubts, which invited vulnerability. That was the state Emilia was in. \"I sincerely apologize for the confusion. My master, Lady Crusch, is not the sort of person to engage in such rash"}, {"text": "acts, nor would she ever deem Lady Emilia worthless or someone to be ridiculed. Try as I might, I can say without reservation that I cannot conceive of such a notion.\" \"Th-thank you very much... Then, um, what was the letter actually about?\" The great amount of praise left Emilia surprised, but also a little happy. Her spirits rose slightly. As they did, Wilhelm retained his exceedingly polite posture as he answered. \"Lady Emilia and Miss Ram...it is Lady Crusch's opinion that those present in this mansion as well as the residents of the village should be temporarily evacuated from the area.\" The announcement made Emilia's small smile freeze on her lips. 6 Once Emilia recovered from the initial shock, Wilhelm continued his explanation. \"Of late, we have received information that a criminal group known to the kingdom has infiltrated the Mathers domain. I have come representing a unit formed for the purpose of hunting down this group.\" \"And those people are hiding in the forest around us... Is that what this is about?\" Emilia blinked in surprise as the truth about the unrest even Ram's Clairvoyance could not discern was revealed. As Wilhelm gravely nodded, Ram, standing beside him, nodded readily as well. Then Ram gave her own pink hair a gentle stroke as she spoke. \"The envoy has already been taken into the expeditionary force's custody and has deployed in the village to prepare against enemy forces. But the enemy is the notorious Bandit King, so if fierce combat breaks out, damage to the surrounding area is unavoidable.\" \"Bandit King...! We're supposed to evacuate, then? That's why even dragon carriages were arranged for us?\" According to Wilhelm, enough dragon carriages to carry Emilia, Ram, and every single villager had already entered the village to ready for their escape. Ram, having confirmed this with her own eyes, gave her seal of approval. \"When everyone has been evacuated, our expeditionary force shall immediately exterminate them. Should the danger be swept away, you have my promise you may return to your peaceful lives.\" The rest of Wilhelm's explanation contained the details of the evacuation plan arranged for Emilia and the others. Emilia admired the unblemished goodwill, but she could not bring herself to politely leave everything to them. Of course, the proposal made perfect sense, and she had no intention of doubting them. But she also had some misgivings. \"But why would Lady Crusch do so much for the sake of this domain?\" This land was squarely within the Mathers fiefdom, plus Emilia and Crusch were political rivals for the throne. The goodness of her heart was probably not Crusch's reason for acting. Emilia suspected there was something else. Wilhelm slightly lowered his voice as he responded to Emilia's doubts. \"This is just between us, but...we have a history with this criminal organization and cannot pretend the Bandit King is someone else's concern.\" \"History...with you, Sir Wilhelm?\" \"Not just me. There are some youngsters who are champing at the bit to get at them as well. Besides \" Wilhelm's lips had slackened slightly into a smile, but it vanished as he continued his explanation. \"My master has been recognized by the marquis as an ally for the duration this royal selection. The terms are the handing over of magic crystal mining rights for the Great Elior Forest... Does this clarify matters for you?\" \" ! ...I see, the rights to the forest. So that's...how it is.\" Even as Emilia accepted the words that followed, they shook her a little. While Emilia had been worrying about things all by herself, Roswaal had already worked in the darkness to prepare the best possible response. It was not that she didn't trust him, but it was something of a shock nonetheless. \"...But evacuating is easier said than done. Where will we go?\" \"We have thought about this as well. This is connected to the earlier matter, but we would like you to head for the royal capital, Lady Emilia. Lady Crusch is in the capital and desires a conference at which to seal the alliance.\" \"That is...yes, that's all right. But is it possible to bring everyone to the capital?\" The capital was about half a day's journey by dragon carriage. It would prove a difficult journey for the elderly and the very young villagers. It was also unclear how long it would take to eliminate the criminal organization, which raised her concerns about who would be able to accommodate them all. If this issue was dire enough to justify their leaving the area surrounding the manor, then  \"Perhaps it would be best if I assisted to drive the Bandit King away sooner?\" \"...Lady Emilia, I am grateful that you would offer. However, that would be...\" \"I may not look like much, but I'm confident in my modicum of skill. I have a really strong spirit with me, so I won't slow you down.\" Emilia was referring to Puck, who wasn't present at the moment, as she offered her cooperation in the coming battle. Her words made Ram close her eyes as Wilhelm fell into thought for a time. She had attempted to propose something helpful, but for some reason, Emilia wasn't getting a very good reaction. \"Is there a...problem with that?\" \"As a matter of...... Yes. Actually, the marquis strictly demanded that I ensure Lady Emilia confers with Lady Crusch as soon as possible. If I fail in this duty, I shall be fired.\" \"Roswaal said that?!\" Hearing that truly horrified Emilia. When Emilia stared toward Ram, questioning if it was true, Ram's light-red eyes bore into the side of Wilhelm's face, staring, staring, staring  \"....................................Yes, that is indeed what Master Roswaal said.\" \"Roswaal, what were you thinking...?!\" Ram had sworn fealty to Roswaal; she surely would not lie where her master was concerned. Apparently, he had earnestly worked to check any possible action, knowing that she could not defy him. The evacuation, the alliance Roswaal probably had everything dancing atop the palm of his hand. Seeing Emilia clenching her fists in frustration, Wilhelm breathed a sigh. The old man kept his eyes lowered as he spoke. \"Certainly, Lady Emilia, as you stated earlier, evacuating everyone to the royal capital is a difficult undertaking. Given the current situation, let us evacuate half to the capital for the time being.\" \"What about the other half, then?\" \"Per my proposal, the other half shall evacuate to the Sanctuary. Master Roswaal is already headed there, after all, and that place has sufficient space to shelter them and should be quite safe.\" \"I...I see. You already have it all worked out, then...\" They had already thoroughly examined every concern and misgiving Emilia might have. They persevered, slapping down one doubt after another, until Emilia had no room left to lodge any objections. This should have been a good thing, but the current Emilia could not help but feel tortured by an overwhelming sense of powerlessness. They had prepared answers to any question she might have, thought through whatever worries she might have, and if she did as she was told, everything would be taken care of through the goodwill of others  \"Hey, doesn't this come off as a little strange? Isn't it too good to be true...?\" \" I beg your pardon!!\" Emilia's voice, seemingly bearing the weight of her doubts, was interrupted by the sound of the door violently opening. When she looked over in surprise, a young man had staggered into the entry hall, looking like he'd just kicked the door in. The figure was wearing a white robe with a hood that covered him up to the top of the head. He cut in front of the wide-eyed Emilia and vigorously saluted Wilhelm. \"There are signs of strange movements from the group lurking in the forest! We no longer have a moment to lose! If they move with the intent to slaughter, this entire area will become a hellish scene, a sea of blood !\" \"Mm-hmm, is that so... They seem to be moving quicker than we expected. With this many people entering the village, it was only a matter of time until they noticed, I suppose...\" \"What shall we do, Captain...er, Sir Wilhelm, the Sword Devil...?!\" \"Lady Emilia.\" Once Wilhelm received the young man's reports, punctuated with unnecessarily grandiose gestures, he stared sharply at Emilia. Emilia understood from his razor-like gaze that time was short. Events were already in motion. Things had become urgent enough to make her think that time spent arguing was time wasted. It wasn't as though she suddenly had no doubts about various parts of the conversation so far. But it was a fact that Ram had sensed an ominous presence in the forest, and Wilhelm had given his word as a man under Crusch's banner concerning the incident involving the letter. More than anything, with Roswaal currently absent, the right to make decisions for the well-being of the mansion and the village fell to Emilia. The outcome would alter numerous human fates, and because of that, she had to see it through herself. That role was Emilia's to play at the moment. Duty had to come first. \"Understood. I gratefully accept your kindness. As for explaining to the villagers...\" As soon as she said that, Ram revealed that the most urgent matter had already been resolved. \"Lady Emilia, this has already been taken care of without much issue.\" Emilia, surprised at this fact, shifted her thoughts to the household. The existence of the final resident of the mansion, Beatrice, tugged at her mind. She had thought that if they were evacuating, then naturally they had to take Beatrice with them. \" Beatrice said she was staying behind, and would use the Passage to isolate the archive of forbidden books, so you can evacuate or do whatever else you like on your own.\" \"Puck?!\" Upon his sudden return, Puck explained the plans of his prot\u00c3\u00a9g\u00c3\u00a9, with whom he had already spoken. However, when the kitty landed on her shoulder, Emilia stared at him, shaking her head in disbelief. \"How can you just accept that? They said this place is dangerous...\" \"In Betty's case, she's much safer inside the Archive. Besides, there's the issue of her pact preventing her from leaving the mansion. You understand, don't you?\" \"...It's really unfair to use that as a reason.\" Puck groomed his whiskers as he responded to Emilia's dissatisfaction. To Emilia, to Puck, and to Beatrice as well, the word pact bore a great deal of meaning...to the point that it left Emilia unable to find the words for a comeback. \"So that's why the girl who's like a cute little sister to me will stay behind at the mansion. It's best if you don't do anything to the mansion, either. Betty may be a sweet, gentle child...but she won't show any mercy.\" \"I shall take your words to heart, Great Spirit.\" Wilhelm solemnly bowed in response to Puck's warning. Watching this with satisfaction, Puck buried himself in Emilia's hair. Then his voice became a whisper only Emilia could hear. \"Do whatever you want to. I'm your ally, and yours alone.\" \" We will evacuate. I do not want to subject the villagers to any danger.\" At her command, Ram grasped the hem of her skirt and politely curtsied, whereas Wilhelm strongly nodded. Then Emilia turned her back only upon the youth who had brought in the report  \"That's just the way you are.\" Emilia did not notice the youth's tiny murmur. 7 By the time Emilia & Co. met up at the village, the residents had already begun preparing to evacuate. The villagers seemed to be politely obeying the expeditionary force, with nary a look of worry or concern on their faces, quite methodically proceeding with the work of loading up the dragon carriages. \"Wilhelm and the others are amazing, aren't they?\" Emilia was surprised at how, in contrast to her, they had deftly gained the trust of villagers they had never before met. But what surprised her the"}, {"text": "most came when she heard how the dragon carriages had been allotted. When she was guided to a dragon carriage for evacuation and was directed to climb aboard  \" Please give us your best regards, miss.\" With a conflicted look on her face, Emilia stood opposite a girl with reddish-brown hair who was bowing her head. She'd seen the face of the girl countless times in the village. The children were friendly with Subaru, but she'd seemed particularly fond of him; Emilia believed her name was Petra. Besides Petra, Emilia was surrounded by other children with faces familiar to her. Every last one introduced themselves to Emilia, who was to ride in the dragon carriage with them. \"Err, this is strange. Is there some kind of mistake?\" As worry crossed Emilia's mind, Ram, standing right beside her, firmly declared, \"No, this is the result of an exacting discussion. It cannot be helped. The balance of dragon carriages and numbers of people makes your riding with these children an unavoidable necessity, Lady Emilia.\" But her reply was so contrary to Emilia's assumptions that it only served to fan her worries further. She would be spending numerous hours with the children in the closed quarters of a dragon carriage. It was less that this worried Emilia than that she thought it lacked consideration for the families of the children riding with her. She wondered if it would simply be hard on both sides. \"You can't assign me a different dragon carriage to ride? I mean, the children would be better off that...\" \"You assume anyone would be disgusted at having to ride with you, I take it?\" *** Emilia's breath caught at having her inner thoughts read. It was the young man in the robe, the same one who'd escorted Emilia and Ram all the way to the village, who had made the borderline offensive remark. Emilia, surprised, drew close to the youth, whose voice sounded faintly nervous and worked up. \"Have you checked with these children to know? Or did you decide you were hated and detested all on your own?\" \"I...know that without having to ask. This is for everyone's sake.\" \"One dragon carriage, six children...how will your desires come true if you cannot even handle that?\" \"How can you possibly \" When she began to speak harshly in a plaintive-sounding voice, the youth shifted his gaze away from Emilia to Petra. He got down on one knee before her, met her eyes, and quietly asked her, \"How about it, Petra? Is the thought of riding the same dragon carriage as the miss hateful to you?\" *** Emilia's cheeks stiffened, her heart pained as the cruel question fell upon her ears. It was a question with a readily apparent answer; his asking it could only be to hurt her. And even if you knew something would hurt, that didn't mean you got used to the pain. Puck had said it. Whatever form a wound might take, the only thing a new wound carried was a fresh helping of pain. Why, in spite of that, had this young man  \"That's not true at all. I don't think riding with the miss is hateful at all.\" \"...Eh?\" But with Emilia frozen stiff, Petra walked over, taking hold of her limp, dangling hand. Hot, her fingertips felt. With Emilia unable to conceal her surprise, Petra smiled bashfully toward her. \"Miss, you're the young lady with the potato stamps, right? I saw you coming with Subaru for morning radio aerobics all the time.\" \"That is...\" \"I could never see your face, but you seemed to be having fun. I know, too, you know? I saw how Subaru had lots of fun talking to you. Subaru, really...... That's why I'm not afraid of you, either, miss.\" \"...Ah.\" Listening to Petra's words, Emilia felt a pain deep in her nose, raising her voice. Heat welled up from deep within her eyes, too, and her throat suddenly caught. Her cheeks reddened, and her ears were so hot, they seemed to be burning. \"Miss, won't you ride with us? Everyone's been saying to leave you alone. But I'll hold your hand, so...\" \" Mm...mm.\" \"You don't have to feel lonely anymore, 'kay?\" \"...Mm!\" That innocent, pure, genuine gaze, disconnected from malice and irrationality, granted her salvation. To Emilia, estrangement was normal, persecution was inevitable, and discrimination taken for granted, so much so that she had been unable to sense the warmth in Petra's eyes and voice. That fact made her chest ache. \"Me too!\" \"I wanna be with the miss, too!\" \"Come on, quick!\" Other children made a clamor, running around Emilia however they pleased. As they did so, Ram immediately stuffed the children into the dragon carriage, a sight that got a little snort out of Petra. \"Miss, let's go, too? The others might be a little loud, though.\" \"...No, that's all right. It's been noisy around me for two months, so I'm used to it by now.\" She shook her head, and she understood how the smile came over her as if by nature. Holding her hand, Petra led her along. The warmth of her hand made Emilia appreciate the closeness of another person. \"Ram, take care of the Sanctuary, please. Protect the villagers well.\" \"As you wish. Be careful along the way yourself, Lady Emilia.\" Grasping her skirt, Ram curtsied politely, nodding with a wry, pleasant smile on her face. After that, Emilia's gaze searched for the one who had made that exchange come about. \"Allow me to express my thanks to you as... Er?\" She searched for the young man whose good offices had allowed her to break the ice. However, the white-robed youth was nowhere to be seen, leaving Emilia perplexed. \"Where did he run off to?\" Of those hearing Emilia's voice, sounding like she'd been left behind, Ram alone sank her shoulders in exasperation. 8 The figure pushed its way through the branches, trampled the grass, and kept its posture low as it mingled with the green of the forest. Concealing himself in the dense, overgrown foliage, \"he\" suppressed his breathing and aura, blending in with the darkness. The residents of the tiny settlement some three hundred feet or so beyond the forest were being evacuated and led away so that they might escape the trial. It was unforgivable. What threatened to occur was unconscionable. To prevent such a thing, the figure had thrown caution to the wind to observe their activities firsthand. The figure endured feelings of unease as multiple shadowy figures, remaining concealed at \"his\" command, gathered close with a slight sound of footsteps. Including the figure, they numbered four insufficient to launch a general attack, but plenty to slow them down. It was ahead of schedule, but like everything else, this was for the sake of their exalted aims. \"He\" put a hand in his pocket and placed the small mirror retrieved from it atop \"his\" palm. However, its role differed from that of the cosmetic mirrors possessed by girls and women; its role was to \"connect\" to different mirrors.  It was a metia, a magical mirror that allowed the user to converse over a long distance with another via the mirror on the other side. Though metia were scarce by nature, conversation mirrors were numerous among them and comparatively easy to acquire. But even among the disciples, only a few possessed them. This was an honor reserved for the fingers those whose faith had been recognized, and who had been chosen as the Lord Archbishop's confidants. *** Remaining silent, \"he\" poured magical energy into the conversation mirror, causing the metia to activate. It was a process the figure had undertaken several times in the preceding few hours, sending detailed reports about the resources he'd accompanied so that preparations could be made for the trial that must come. Accordingly, an emergency situation like this absolutely had to be reported. The figure had to communicate with its brethren about the fact that the resources' movements had greatly shifted. They had noticed the movements of \"his\" brethren, and were nefariously attempting to flee  \" I see. It was a big mystery how you got in touch with the others, but I guess metia are super convenient. Although I think it's important in communication to show your face to the other party, don't you?\" *** Suddenly, one of the brethren crouched alongside peered into the conversation mirror, tossing such words \"his\" way. The figure hastily looked over, and the next moment, \"he\" was stricken by a sense of extreme unease. The other party was right next to him, and yet the figure still could not discern the features of the other person's face. It was as if something was stopping his brain from understanding what he was seeing. \"You don't distinguish by face, you distinguish by physical nature. When it comes to that, you and I are like girls in a knitting circle wearing the same perfume. Gives me chills, you piece-of-shit bastard.\" As the \"white-robed\" brethren spoke, he stood up, practically spitting out the declaration. Then, in front of \"him\" Kety, the Witch Cultist, frozen stiff in surprise the brethren pulled down his hood, revealing rare black hair and foul-looking eyes with the white of the sclera surrounding three sides of each iris three-whites eyes. \"Your sin is grave, y'know getting in the way of my sentimental reunion with Emilia and all that.\" As the black-haired youth prattled on with frivolity, a taunting, impetuous smile came over his mouth. The next instant, the indecipherable enchantment surrounding the youth fell away. Kety's eyes could now plainly make out the youth's features, bringing his identity to light. The features of the traitor who had led the expeditionary force to their doorstep, making a plan that he would oppose them  *** With the most unforgivable of foes before him, Kety reflexively leaped to his feet. There was no need to even look at the two brethren to his sides. They would launch a combined assault on the apostate before them. However  The instant he drew the cross-shaped blade on his hip, a lower-tone whisper grazed his ear. \" Too slow.\" The next moment, a silver flash raced into the corner of his field of vision, and the brethren to his right and left gushed blood as they crumbled. Their necks had been slashed; it was obvious the blows had been fatal. And then it was Kety's turn  \"I recommend that you do not resist. I do not intend to inflict unnecessary pain.\" His efforts had been completely forestalled by the cold tip of a blade against the back of his neck. Behind him stood a slender knight, and the aged swordsman who had cut down his two brethren. In addition, a cat-eared demihuman stood behind them, all of them brought by the black-haired traitor... \"Subaru Natsuki...!\" \"Ohh, I guess it's obvious, but, like, wow, Witch Cultists really do talk. That's a big help.\" Shoved against the ground with his arms pinned behind him, Kety glared up at him the traitor, Subaru Natsuki. The youth on the receiving end had an outbreak of cold sweat on his brow. He turned to the other three and spoke. \"Well, at least it went without a hitch. Thanks for the assist.\" \"I admit to half doubting you, but having read them properly this far, I cannot but admit you were correct. If they have been made to dance as you expect, our advantage shall only grow greater.\" \"Isn't that pretty much a given, meow? We started evacuating the village so much earlier than expected that it made him try contacting them in a big hurry.\" As the knight and the demihuman concurred with the youth's words, Kety's head was in chaos, filled with hatred and incomprehension. He didn't understand the meaning of their conversation. It was as if they'd known every last thing in  \"Your face says you don't get it. Well, that can't be helped. This time we're way too good at running rings around ya. Oh, and thank you"}, {"text": "for helping our disinformation efforts...not that you actually realized you were a double spy.\" *** \"The gist is, we totally knew you were a spy. As for how we found you...trade secret. So we went through the trouble of laying a trap for the Witch Cult's scout, in other words, you.\" Kety was still, eyes wide open, as Subaru Natsuki closed one eye and slowly spelled it out. And then he stated, \"Two hours. You reported to your pals that we were two hours behind schedule.\" Raising up two fingers, he wagged them left and right. Kety's eyes remained wide with shock as Subaru continued. \"During that time, we'll get Emilia and the others outta here. During that time, we'll crush the fingers flat. During that time, we'll prepare to squish your precious archbishop flat.\" At the end of those words, a bold smile came over Subaru Natsuki. And then he issued his declaration of war. \"I'm gonna give you a real good taste of the terror of being crushed by someone three steps ahead of you.\" CHAPTER 2 *** 1 Returning to the time when the expeditionary force continued its moving conference through the use of Nekt... \"We finally know there's a spy in our midst. If we can make good use of him and feed him false info, we can give Emilia and the others time to flee to safety. Don't you think so?\" *** Subaru spoke thus as he divulged a series of information while on the road toward the Mathers domain. During the time the expeditionary force's thoughts were shared via magic, this opinion sent vigorous arguments flying back and forth. While nodding at their various thoughts, Subaru raised a hand and spoke. \"Hey, listen. Just like we talked about, wiping out the fingers is nonnegotiable for kicking the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins' butt. That said, even just taking out those fingers is easier said than done. We have to be smart about this.\" \"Purportedly, making use of your physical condition would allow us to draw out and fight the fingers one by one?\" \"I can guarantee it. But either way, the fact that they have a spy means whatever we do will get passed on to the enemy. Even if we take out the spy first, they'll know something's up when he misses the regular time to call, so it amounts to the same thing. So I was thinking we flip this around on them and leak intel for him to send them fake intel.\" As he replied to Julius, Subaru recalled the sight of the village being raided at the end of his last go-around. At the time, every last enemy had launched a combined attack on the village from the forest. Given the numbers of raiders, he was sure he was right in thinking so, and also that Petelgeuse had possessed the finger hiding among the traveling merchants.  In other words, the traveling merchant named Kety, the Witch Cultist embedded with them. One way or another, he was in contact with the fingers. Likely, unlike the other Witch Cultists accompanying Petelgeuse, he'd been assigned the duty of gathering intelligence about the surrounding area. \"That's why we should turn this back on them. If we fool the spy, we fool the whole Witch Cult.\" \"So that is why you wish to send Rajan and his group to the traveling merchants and tell them the rendezvous will be delayed?\" Subaru's roundabout statement seemed to clear up Ricardo's doubts, bringing him to agree. Just like last time around, a small detachment of the Iron Fangs would be sent to greet the traveling merchants cooperating with the evacuation. But this time, those select few would deliver a rendezvous time with Subaru's ruse attached. Before the Witch Cult's spy could rendezvous with the expeditionary force, they'd dispose of a mountain of concerns he wanted dealt with beforehand, making it a race against time. Incidentally, Subaru had recommended the fox-man and his team, casualties from the last time around, for those select few, hoping to keep them far from the fight. \"So this is less of a proposal and more an update after the fact. You have such a naughty personality, Subawu.\" \"It's like we're talkin' 'bout the little lady... No peaceful death down that path, y'know?\" \"Setting Ferris aside, what's with Ricardo's assessment of his employer...?\" Ricardo was the one working for her, but his appraisal of Anastasia was harsh. The boisterously laughing thought that followed right after made Subaru assume it was simple lighthearted banter. At any rate, the operation to confuse the spy was already underway. And, accepting this  \"Then our counterespionage plan is settled. Incidentally, what is the source of this information...?\" \"How about I say my...nose for the Witch Cult?\" \" That is a thin basis, but I shall take that as meaning you have one. That is my reply.\" Julius responded to Subaru's usual vague explanation with his own difficult-to-decipher inner thought. The thoughts he passed through Nekt were opaque compared to those of the others, perhaps because it was his own magic. But there was no room to doubt the truth of his willingness to cooperate. So it would do for the moment. \"That's fine, but what about the issue with the letter? Leaving it at just the blank page makes things difficult.\" \"Ehh, why? If it's completely blank, you can write whatever you want on it? Seems convenient to  Ouchie!\" \"Sis, please be quiet.\" The cat siblings were the next ones to wedge themselves into the telepathic conversation. Actually, behind the telepathic exchange, a torrent of lighthearted thoughts flowed out from Mimi, but everyone was taking that in stride. For his part, TB was paying serious attention to the operation. Subaru drew his chin in during the kitty siblings' exchange, thinking over how to deal with the blank letter. After all, thanks to that problem, Ram had launched a surprise attack on the expeditionary force, costing it precious time. The operation was in part a race against time, so a loss like that was to be avoided at all costs. \"What should we do, then?\" TB sent over an ashen, nervous thought, wanting to hear a plan to deal with it. Others beside him also turned their minds toward Subaru, waiting for his reply. At the center of that attention, Subaru folded his arms and told them how they would deal with the blank letter. And that method was  2 In the early morning, just as the world began to awaken, Ram lifted her head, sensing an indecipherable presence. She was midway along the road cutting through open fields that stretched from the mansion to Earlham Village. Since Emilia had faced a bad experience with the villagers, Ram had left her back at the mansion on her way to prod and persuade the villagers to evacuate. *** There was a slight rustle in the forest. Ram knotted her shapely brows as she sank into thought for a single moment. Ram was a demon who had lost her horn. By nature, demons were acutely sensitive to changes in the forest and mountains. A sixth sense that differed from the other five informed her of a shift in the wind blowing from the direction of the highway. Her small nose snorted. Ram, confirming that there was no hint of danger in the immediate vicinity, went down on one knee and concentrated on her forehead. She was activating her supernatural ability of Clairvoyance. Clairvoyance was a secret art passed down among the demons that enabled them to synchronize with the vision of others, stealing their vision and seeing through their eyes. Few demons had mastered the art to begin with; currently Ram was probably the only one. While it was activated, her awareness of her own surroundings was greatly diminished, limiting the places she could use it, but it was the crown jewel of reconnaissance abilities. The master to whom Ram had pledged fealty had many enemies. For that reason, too, the supernatural ability was very helpful. *** She disconnected herself from those deep feelings, concentrating the effect of her supernatural ability, and entered the vision of others. Even where there were no people to affect, that was no hindrance so long as there were living creatures with the sense of sight. However, creatures with compatible wavelengths were limited, and in the past few days, she had been unable to grasp anything inside the forest where it mattered most. However, that was not the case this time. She detected multiple compatible wavelengths from the direction of the highway that connected to the village. She entered one of them, seeing through its eyes. *** The creature from which she borrowed that sight was a humanoid riding a giant beast of war a great dog known as a liger. The rider was small in stature, slowly surveying the area with ferocious energy. He was not on guard, but nor was he at ease. It was a power to see through the eyes of others. Naturally, his moving in contrast to Ram's will inflicted motion sickness upon her. Ram immediately shifted to a different set of eyes from the next compatible vision, ascertaining the situation anew. Fortunately, this set of eyes politely stared straight at the road ahead. The height of his gaze matched that of the previous set of eyes, and he too was riding a giant dog. She could scarcely tell the difference. \"...What numbers.\" However, that doubt evaporated when a great throng entered her borrowed field of view. They were a group of forty or fifty people, each and every one armed. They galloped along the highway, tens of minutes away from the village. And she recognized the crest of the lion rampant on the armor of several of the armored men. This was the crest of the House of Karsten, proof they were of the same faction that had declared war via the blank letter the night before. In other words, it was offensive action by a rival in the royal selection  \"Seizing on Master Roswaal's absence to make their move...!\" Ram understood that it was an emergency situation, urgent circumstances demanding an immediate decision. If their goal was to inflict damage upon the Emilia camp, they would surely occupy Earlham Village. She had to strike before that could happen, using every means available to her... And just when Ram gritted her teeth, ready to cut the clairvoyant connection and race to the village  \"...Huh?\"  she let out a dumbstruck voice. Her feet, ready to set off in a sprint, stopped, and Ram's face grimaced extensively at the sight she beheld through the Clairvoyance. It was that painful to comprehend just what she was seeing. \" Barusu?\" A black-haired young man rode a land dragon at the forward tip of the formation, carrying a sign that he turned in every direction as if to ensure it could be seen from front, back, left, and right. Upon that placard was written in large characters: *** 3 Carrying those words in the manner of a white flag, Subaru and the rest of the expeditionary force arrived at Earlham Village without incident. However, when Ram appeared to greet them, she had a sour look on her face, and Subaru awkwardly shrank as he stood before her. Hah! Ram instantly snorted out as she spoke. \"First you send a blank letter, and now you appear at the head of an armed band? You do not appear to comprehend exactly whose domain this is.\" \"But you didn't launch a preemptive strike... That means there's room to talk about this, right?\" \"That sign was a message for me, obviously. I am the only one who would understand such a thing.\" Ram sighed in visible exasperation as she set eyes on the wooden placard Subaru carried at his side. An apology in huge I-script was written on the sign in white paint. This was the master plan Subaru had developed midmarch for countering"}, {"text": "the blank letter of goodwill or rather, he'd responded with the blunt truth. \"I should beat you senseless. The characters are so sloppy that I was nearly unable to read them.\" \"Hey, you taught me these characters! Aren't you used to seeing them by now?!\" \"Unfortunately, I forgot about them as quickly as an ingrate forgets the generosity shown to him.\" \"Unnghhhhh...!\" Ram's characteristically harsh statement left Subaru hemming and hawing, unable to give any retort. Watching his reaction, she folded her arms and continued her lecture. \"So? According to what I have heard, Barusu, you soured Lady Emilia's mood in grand fashion and she abandoned you in the royal capital... How dare you return to show your face?\" \"You really have no mercy, do you?! I'm not gonna argue with each and every point, but here I am, daring to return and show my face! Not that I came back empty-handed!\" With a hand, he indicated the expeditionary force lined up behind him to put his exploits from the royal capital on display. Subaru's declaration caused Ram to narrow her eyes. As she proceeded to survey the expeditionary force, she spoke. \"It is fine to boast, but as your objective is unclear, the humans of the village are on guard. I too am concerned that anything might happen... My songbird heart is nearly ready to burst.\" \"You mean your heart has wings sprouting from it? Doesn't that make it a really strong heart?\" \"If you make too many wisecracks I shall slice that nose off your face.\" \"Man, it's been a few days and this reunion feels really off-kilt  Wait, my nose?!\" The savage declaration sent Subaru covering his face and backing off a step as his gaze shifted from Ram to the village behind her. Of course, the ruckus was such that the villagers noticed the expeditionary force immediately, whereupon they turned concerned eyes toward the knights lined up in the village square. However  \"Hey, at the head of them, that's Master Subaru, isn't it?\" \"It really is. That's Master Subaru speaking to Miss Ram. He's come back?\" \"Ahh, it's Subaru! He's back!\" The villagers' wariness relented slightly when they realized Subaru was acting as the group's representative. Thanks to that, in their eyes, the group was upgraded from \"never before seen\" to \"under the command of someone we know.\" \"And now we have to upgrade that to 'reliable reinforcements brought by someone we know'...\" \"That is no simple matter. In the first place, I have not yet accepted all of this. I cannot readily believe that a letter bearing a wax seal was merely in error.\" \"That's part of the enemy's trap... You noticed the jerks hiding in the forest, right?\" *** Subaru lowered his voice to a whisper. Ram kept silent with a sober look on her face. It was plain as day that both the Witch Cult lurking in the forest and the blank letter incident had put Ram on guard the last time around. Subaru addressed Ram's concerns as he moved the conversation forward. \"Ferris, Wilhelm, over here! Ram, you know both of them, too, right?\" Obeying Subaru's call, the pair came over to his side. \"Yes,\" said Ram, looking over Ferris and Wilhelm as they stood side by side; her expression vanished as she straightened her back. The pair from Crusch's camp acknowledged Rem's posture by granting her their respect. \"I am called Wilhelm Trias. I have come as Lady Crusch's representative.\" \"I'm Ferris, Lady Crusch's personal knight. Old Man Wil's the captain of the group behind us, so that makes Ferri the vibrant flower, meow.\" The austere Wilhelm and the flippant-to-the-last Ferris were a shining example of polar opposites. Ram responded to both extremes by politely grasping the hem of her skirt and making a formal curtsy. \"I graciously accept your polite greetings. I am called Ram. I am employed here, at the mansion of Marquis Roswaal L. Mathers, in the capacity of senior servant.\" Ram's cheekiness in naming herself senior servant made Subaru grimace, but he held his tongue. Ram was indisputably in charge of the mansion while Rem was absent. Personally, he would have preferred she call herself acting senior servant, or if not senior for a day, then at least senior servant for the last week, but oh well. \"Either way, these two and the people behind us are proof that Crusch is cooperating with us. This is what Roswaal wants, too. No complaints, right?\" \"If Master Roswaal wills it, Ram shall obey  It would seem he accomplished his objective in leaving you behind at the capital. Though I believe he shall have your head for the blank letter, Barusu.\" \"Hey, can you cut it with the violent imagery? Why do you have such a brutal thought process?\" He felt like he was back in medieval times, but Ram freshly ignored his complaints. Instead she turned toward the representatives of the reinforcements. \"So you have been traveling with my apprentice servant... My condolences.\" \"Though he is prone to exorbitant actions and showing too much of his emotions, Sir Subaru is a person of high promise. Even at my age, he has aided me many times.\" \"Ferri won't go as far as Old Man Wil, but...well, I'll just take Ram's words as they were offered. I'll say, mmm, I think he's brushed up a little, meow.\" The assessments from Wilhelm and Ferris made Ram sigh with an even more grudging look on her face. Though the topic was a rather uncomfortable one, Subaru scratched his cheek, glossing over how he really felt. Immediately after, he clapped his hands together and started over, explaining the situation to Ram in detail. \"Anyway, leave smashing the enemies in the forest to the expeditionary force. I want you to cooperate with that and something in a different direction. Are you willing?\" \"That depends on the details. I do not wish to make a hasty promise only to have Barusu's filthy, poisonous fangs sink into me.\" \"Hey, the looks I give you aren't that dirty, you know?!\" \"That's a boy for you, not saying it was zero...\" Faced with Ram's poison tongue, Ferris's casual banter, and stern eyes shifted his way, Subaru cleared his throat. From there, having kept them waiting long enough, he elucidated the circumstances required, both in front of and behind the curtain, to make his plan come to fruition. \"I want your help in picking where to evacuate the people in the village and to guide them there. I want to make sure not to involve the villagers while we fight the enemies in the forest.\" \"I understand what you are saying. However, we have no means of escape.\" \"I've arranged the legs to carry 'em out on. From here on out, traveling merchants with dragon carriages will be assembling here, bit by bit from every direction. We'll have the villagers get aboard and haul 'em out.\" \"Assembled from all directions...? How?\" \" Money. We'll just have to eat the costs, okay?\" Subaru's \"insurance policy\" had cost a great deal of money. The treasury paying it was Roswaal's, and on top of that, it was without his having granted permission. Ram sighed deeply when she discerned that from Subaru's manner of speech. \"...Understood. I will support your effort. It is an emergency, after all.\" \"Seriously?! Huge help! Worst case, I was gonna have to promise to pay it back when I make it big!\" \"Only those who are fit to actually rise to prominence may promise such a thing  However, Ram's consent is by no means the end of the matter.\" After giving a stern assessment about his future prospects, Ram shifted an even sterner look over her shoulder. Subaru didn't need to follow her gaze; he knew exactly what Ram was trying to tell him. The people of Earlham Village were behind Ram, still anxious about their situation. Even if Ram was willing to lead them out, convincing them would prove the highest hurdle of all. He had prior experience from the last go-around, but the result of that effort still tasted bitter in his mouth. The closest word he had to describe the emotion summoned by that memory was fear. He'd only scratched the surface of the discrimination and repudiation facing Emilia. *** Time was short precious time gained from feeding false information to the Witch Cult. And yet, Subaru hesitated, wondering what the first words out of his mouth ought to be. \"Subawu, if you can't do it, I'll...\" \" Ferris.\" When Ferris tried to be considerate to Subaru, offering to speak in his place, Wilhelm called his name. A single glance from the Sword Devil halted Ferris's gesture in its tracks. He turned his eyes toward Subaru and spoke. \"Sir Subaru, this is not a duty you may shirk... You understand, yes?\" When Wilhelm asked this in a low voice, Subaru winked once and nodded firmly. Subaru gave Ferris a thankful glance for his concern before stepping past Ram and advancing straight into the village square. To the front were the villagers with worried faces; to his back were his comrades in the expeditionary force. He felt the tension from both stab into him. As for the first words out of his mouth, those very important words, he still hadn't decided. But he would begin with the best word for wiping away the villagers' concerns and fears. \"Everyo \" \" Master Subaru. Please, let us drop all pretenses. Everyone in the village understands.\" However, Subaru couldn't even get that first word out. The one speaking, interrupting Subaru's word-without-a-plan, was the cornerstone of the village a small-statured, white-haired, elderly man. He was the one the villagers called Muraosa, a name in no way related to his occupation as village headman. Normally his demeanor made one suspect he was a senile old man, but at that moment, his voice and gaze held no trace of that whatsoever. Subaru felt overwhelmed by the glint in his eye as the elder touched his beard and continued. \"We understand how dire things must be if you have brought such dangerous persons to deal with it. We have already heard from Miss Ram about the...suspicious presence in the forest.\" \"No, that's...\" \"Stop trying to fool us...! We knew before anyone said a word!!\" Following in Muraosa's wake, the leader of the village's young men raised a bitter cry. The last go-around, his plea had been the trigger for the villagers to put their fears and anxieties on display. This time proved no different. \"So the ones in the forest, they really are...!\" \"What's with our lord? Didn't he foresee that this would happen?!\" \"Why did the lord speak in support of a half-elf...of a half-demon...?\" The young man's cry ripped the bandage off, causing the villagers to look at one another and share their fears and worries. It was the sight Subaru had most feared, and had most wanted to avoid. It was the worst of all spectacles, for even with an intervening Return by Death, and so many valiant efforts to deal with so many things, he still hadn't known how to stop things from getting to this point  *** He probably couldn't eliminate such a deep-seated discriminatory mind-set in that one moment. When he recalled events from the last time around, he thought that a similar compromise would make things easier. Considering the menace posed by the Witch Cult, the right decision was to kick other issues down the road. If he gained their grudging acceptance, prioritizing the evacuation, then  \"The girl I know, she acts tough, she's stubborn, hardheaded...and she worries about anyone seeing that she's lonely.\" *** The words Subaru spoke seemed wholly unrelated to his inner thought process. The villagers gazed in bewilderment, wondering what in the world Subaru was saying. The members of the expeditionary force had similar reactions. However, their expressions of surprise abated as they listened closely. They offered their ears, listening to Subaru's words. \"She always chooses to hurt herself for"}, {"text": "someone else's sake. Even though she gets hurt so easily, she always picks the path that winds up with her getting hurt. She's gentle and kindhearted to the core, she fusses over things like a little kid, she gets teary-eyed even when she hasn't eaten a green bepper, she makes such a cute face when she smiles...\" \"What are you talking abo ?\" \" I'm talking about Emilia, the half-elf up at the mansion.\" When someone interrupted, Subaru replied with a calm voice. His answer surprised the villagers. The little smile coming over Subaru's lips surprised them even more. Given the circumstances, and their words of distress but a few moments before, his reaction seemed very much out of place. \"I understand why you're worried. Also that you think the cause of everything is R...Master Roswaal, your lord, and his support of a half-elf girl in the royal selection that began at the royal capital.\" *** \"That girl's name is Emilia. Really, you all know her already, don't you? She's the girl who's been spending months alongside you.\" Subaru's exhortation made the villagers exchange glances. From their reactions, there had to be recognition remaining within their memories. Even if, all that time, her face and her identity had been hidden, they'd seen her with Subaru in the village many times, and at the very least, they remembered the time they'd spent with her. \"I understand that you're all worried and scared. I also understand that when the chips are down, it feels good to blame things on something that's easy to understand.\" It was human instinct to protect the mind by slamming the emotions into something nearby. Subaru could not criticize them for that. He, of all people, didn't have the right to do so. But he chastised himself. His heart was tormented because he understood this so well. Once upon a time, Subaru had coped with pain the way the villagers were doing in the present. \"I'm sure, though, you all actually understand. Pushing your worries onto someone else won't make things better.\" *** \"That girl is someone who smiled with everyone. That girl is someone who wants to laugh with everyone. I know. She's said so. I want you to stop ignoring that, and stop hurting her.\" He had no confidence that his own voice lacked worry and sorrow. He wanted to punch himself for having the gall to say such a thing. After all, it was Subaru who had hurt Emilia, ignored her feelings, and trampled upon her heart more than anyone. He'd regretted it at the time. The grief had pierced Subaru's chest ever since. Maybe that was why. He regretted allowing her to make that face. He regretted making her put on that face. He didn't want anyone else to go through that. \"Please I'm begging you.\" Subaru lowered his head toward the villagers as he made his earnest plea. The thing he was asking seemed completely unrelated to their most imminent problems, a waste of precious time. Even though Subaru had to speak to them about evacuating, his words were about something completely different. It was as if he was reconfirming for himself just what terrible things had been said to Emilia over and over. *** Indeed, the villagers looked conflicted, at a loss as to what reaction they ought to have to Subaru's words. Even if it had been the topic they were speaking about, the conclusion clashed with the issue at hand. Mutual bewilderment left them perplexed. However, that was not the only thing born from it. \" Petra?\" Hearing the sound of small footsteps, Subaru called out the name of the little girl walking to his side. The girl with reddish-brown hair Petra was a village girl Subaru knew well. She responded to Subaru's call with a nod as she reached Subaru's side, turning around as she stood to face the villagers with him. Then her next words proved that she did not only seem to be taking his side she was. \"Why won't anyone listen to what Subaru's saying?\" It was guileless. It was brutally honest. That was why her chastising tore a hole into their hearts. \"Subaru's so worried, he looks about to cry. Why won't anyone help him?\" \"That's...\" \"When I was in trouble, when everyone was in trouble, Subaru came through, didn't he? He'll probably come through for us today, too, right? Then why...?\" Adults had too many walls up to launch the attack called \"innocence\" that only children were capable of. With the adults cowed into silence, Petra gazed sadly at them before grasping Subaru's hand. \"The older girl at the mansion, that's the girl always wearing white, isn't it? She was the one bringing potato stamps when we did the radio aerobics.\" \"...Yeah, that's right. She was the stamp girl. She wanted to mingle with everyone, but she couldn't just come out and say so. That's just how she is.\" Subaru grinned as Petra's words brought him back to the peaceful days they'd spent together. It became a ritual. Every day, Emilia would accompany Subaru down to the village and do radio aerobics with the villagers. Emilia was always watching when Subaru gave his stamp of approval with the potato stamps he'd carved himself. These everyday scenes were the tangible bonds Emilia had formed with the villagers. That fact made understanding and hesitation rise upon the adults' faces. But no adult grumbling or hesitation had any traction with children. Other hands rose as different children rushed over to Subaru's side. \"I'm okay with Big Sis, too!\" \"If Petra's fine with her, then I'm fine with her!\" \"We won't let Big Bro be the only one to act cool!\" \"Subaru's gonna cry, so we've gotta help him!\" \"Yeah!!\" The children made a ruckus; their voices seemed to blow the previous atmosphere away. Seeing the children lined up against them, the anxiety-ridden adults glanced at each other's faces. They needed one final push. Faced with their indecision, Subaru stepped forward. With both arms, he held on to the children, pulling them in as tightly as he could. \"I don't expect everyone to accept her just like that. But I want an opportunity without you rejecting her at the start. I want you to give her a chance.\" \"A chance...?\" \"A chance to be a girl you can get along with...a chance for you to understand each other.\" As Subaru elaborated on his words, his hands let go of the children he had held, freeing him to get on his knees and show that his resolve went far beyond bowing. *** Even Ram's eyes widened as murmurs spread. But of all assembled, it was Wilhelm, Ferris, and the other members of the expeditionary force behind Subaru who watched his entreaty in silence. It was enough. Though it was embarrassing, he had no reason to hesitate. \"Everyone, there's a lot of things I'd like to say, but right now, this is the only thing I want to ask of you. And one thing more: Let us protect the time needed to make that chance happen.\" *** \"Please... This is why I came back.\" His voice came to a halt. The villagers were silent. That was to be expected as far as they were concerned, Subaru was their savior, yet there he was, pressing his own forehead to the ground as he made his plea...a plea to \"let them\" protect. Their positions were completely reversed. But the sight of the Subaru they knew like that was  \" Oh geez, Master Subaru, there's just no winnin' against you.\" Speaking those words, and roughly scratching his head in the process, was none other than the leader of the young men who had caused their eruption of worry to begin with. He had a guilty look on his face as he walked over to Subaru and reached out with a hand. A dumbstruck Subaru gazed blankly as that hand grabbed his shoulder and pulled him to his feet. Then, with Subaru having yet to say anything, he spoke. \"If you're gonna say you'll protect us and put that much into it...guess it can't be helped.\" The conflicted young man's statement was as contagious as the initial worry had been. His words were the trigger for the villagers to say with quaking voices: \"It is so terrible getting old. I'm driven to tears so easily...\" \"Goodness, he really is so much trouble. It's blackmail, I tell you.\" Complain as they might, the warmth and relief in their voices left Subaru agape. Petra thrust a finger against his forehead, still smeared with dirt, and spoke. \"Subaru, your face is all dirty!\" Petra's words sent the uncontrollable urge to laugh spreading throughout the village. He knew it was a stretch. He thought they'd say it was too far. And yet, they'd accepted his plea anyway. The villagers' smiling faces made Subaru sigh with relief. Truly, the sight was the same as on the days they'd spent to date. \"...Thanks, everyone.\" \"That is our line, Master Subaru.\" This time, the words of Muraosa, representing the consensus of the village, nearly did bring Subaru to tears. 4 And 'twould have been a far prettier tale if the matter had ended there, but... \"Am I mistaken, or did you not actually say anything about the most important part?\" \"A, aa !\" Subaru was trying to hide his half-tearful face when Ram's impartial observation snapped him out of it. Reflecting upon her words, he realized that he really hadn't explained any of the most important part at all. He was so focused on the parts relating to Emilia that he'd completely forgotten about the plan to evacuate the villagers. \"Oh man, I messed up...\" \"Just when I thought you had become somewhat useful. It seems Barusu will be Barusu.\" Feeling Ram's disappointed gaze, Subaru, unable to summon any excuse, immediately turned back around to explain things to the villagers. \"It cannot be helped,\" said Ram to him, shaking her head as she spoke. \"I shall explain about the evacuation and accompanying compensation in your place. Barusu, return to your underhanded schemes.\" \"Uh, that's all right? Er, I mean, you'll be all right?\" \"It is you who are not all right, Barusu. Can you switch to speaking to the village's humans about practical matters in a heartbeat? Your personality is hardly suited to it.\" \"Suppose you're right! It's embarrassing, but I'm counting on you, Older Sis!\" *** Ram was basking in his respectful words when she cocked her head with a questioning look. Then she headed toward the villagers. This was Ram, blessed with a great deal of comprehension and insight. Tossing the rest of the explanation to her would doubtlessly turn out all right. This done, the next issue was  \" Subaru, I would like to finally move the issue forward.\" Julius said that just as Subaru was switching mental gears. Subaru greeted his words with a nod and headed back to the expeditionary force's ranks. They had to shift to the next phase of the operation. Upon his return, Ferris smiled at Subaru and casually sent a wave his way. \"Subawu, you did great with that speech~. You moved even Ferri's heart.\" \"Don't dig it back up! And don't lie! And really don't dig that up! It's embarrassing!\" \"There is nothing to be ashamed of. You very much said it in your own way, and because of that, you moved the hearts of the villagers to such an ext \" \"Don't dig it back up! Leave it in the ground! We're talking about the next operation!\" Subaru yelled both at Ferris, clearly full of malice, and Julius, clearly devoid of malice, as he dragged the topic back. Events to come would proceed as they'd hammered out in midmarch. Once convincing the villagers was taken care of, they'd rendezvous with the detachment with the traveling merchants and evacuate the civilians. During that time, they needed to deal with feeding false info to the Witch Cult and  \"...Deceive Lady Emilia with a forked"}, {"text": "tongue, and shoo her far, far away with the people of the village, meow.\" \"Watch how you say it! Even if it fits the plan, it sounds way too bad that way!\" \"Because I can't agree with it, meow. Why do you need to send Lady Emilia far away? Lady Emilia has both a reason to fight, and the power to do so... Am I wrong?\" Of the entire plan, this was the only point Ferris saw fit to disagree with. Subaru and Ferris didn't see eye to eye on Emilia's place in the plan. When he thought back, Ferris was the one who'd brought Emilia into battle during the final fight in the village. Ram seemed to have helped convince her, but Ferris's assessment of Emilia's power might have proven correct. At least, as far as Emilia's having the power to slug it out with even Petelgeuse  \" Even so, I don't want to let Emilia fight the Witch Cult.\" \"Haah, we're talking past each other...\" Seeing Ferris slump his shoulders with an exasperated air made Subaru feel bad, but he wouldn't take back his view. It was the one thing he would not budge on. Subaru's selfishness or rather, the deep-rooted bad premonition in his chest made him want Emilia kept away from the Witch Cult, by extreme measures if need be. The premonition was probably founded in the look on the side of Emilia's face when she'd defeated Petelgeuse at the end of the last time around. The madman's death had made tears trickle for reasons even she did not understand. \"Ferris. Sir Subaru has his own feelings on the matter. Sir Subaru has his desires where Lady Emilia is concerned, just as you have your expectations for Lady Crusch.\" \"Old Man Wil...\" \"It is doubtless you prefer some outcomes over others. Surely you can understand his earnest feelings.\" It was Wilhelm who interjected, having held his peace during the dispute up to that point. The old swordsman's words made Ferris's cheeks tighten; he subconsciously touched the dagger on his hip. \"Just as you adore Lady Crusch, Sir Subaru wishes for Lady Emilia's well-being  A boy is concerned for the welfare of the girl he loves. It is only nature.\" \"Having it said that bluntly makes me feel a little blushy and pathetic, but...\" Subaru scratched his cheek, welcoming Wilhelm's support with a pathetic look. Ferris had a pouting look on his face, but he did not offer any further rebuttal. The knights around them gave Subaru warm looks as well. \"Anyway! We're gonna do this just like we worked out! We'll set up the scenario so Emilia listens to reason. Ferris, Wilhelm, I'm counting on you for some really persuasive backup!\" \"Understood.\" \"Sure thing~!\" When the two freshly acknowledged their role as persuaders, Subaru cut the conversation off then and there. If Ram pulled off convincing the villagers, the remaining issues were relatively few. Subaru turned around and spoke. \"OK, Julius. About that favor I asked about earlier. How is...\" \" Do you mean me? I've been listening the whole time.\" Everyone's breath caught as a third party's voice interjected at that juncture, the very end of the exchange. Subaru, the only one who realized the identity of the speaker, naturally looked up. And then  \"Heya, long time no see, Puck. How've you been?\" He smiled toward Puck the little cat swishing his tail as he floated in the sky. The presence of the suddenly appearing Great Spirit surprised the expeditionary force, putting it extremely on edge. Puck, glancing at their reaction, accepted Subaru's greeting with a stroke of his own whiskers as he spoke. \"Mm, I'm in a very good mood. Right now, I can easily dispose of an insect pestering my beloved daughter.\" \"This is an awkward question, but this insect to which you refer...\" \"Do you really need to ask?\" Puck's eyes remained round as a ghastly, overpowering aura poured from his entire body. That sense of antagonism made tension run through not only Subaru, but the entire expeditionary force as well. The knights, sensitive to hostility, immediately put their hands to the hilts of their swords, an understandable reaction. Though he was bathed in their wary stares, Puck's ghastly aura did not relent as he continued, \"Subaru, I have a few things to say to you. Do you know what they are?\" \"...I broke my promise to Emilia. On top of that, I came back against her orders. Those are my sins, and I won't make any excuse for them.\" *** Subaru's reply made Puck's cheeks twitch. These were Subaru's answers to the questions Puck had tossed his way for once already he had experienced that pop quiz when he drew Puck's ire. At the time, Subaru had been unable to say anything to the enraged Puck. He'd hurt Emilia through his own selfish actions, and as a result had let her die; he couldn't speak a single word. That was why  \"Of course you're angry at me for all that. If your mind won't be set at ease until you punish me, I'm prepared to accept and face whatever punishment you have to give...but now is not the time.\" He'd broken his promise, trampled on her pleas, and Subaru had added to those sins by coming back. But he absolutely would not permit the final and worst among them letting her die come to pass. \"Danger's nipping at Emilia's heels. I want to do something about it. I want to take her fate of facing terrible things, grind it into sand, and blow it away. Please, work with me so I can do that.\" \"...You sound quite...full of yourself.\" \"Yeah, I'm a man who's full of himself. You didn't know?\" When Puck spoke in a low voice, Subaru closed one eye and replied thus. Hearing this, Puck folded his short arms. Then the little cat made a tiny grunt and spoke. \"Somehow...you've changed, Subaru, but at the same time, you haven't.\" \"That's 'cause human nature ain't an easy thing to change.\" \"I suppose not. Methods aside, it seems you still treasure Lia in your thoughts.\" A moment after he spoke the words, the ferocious pressure that had dominated the entire area to that point abated. Freed from the sense of menace, which had made him feel like his entire body was being frozen, Subaru sighed at length. The same went for the expeditionary force, Julius and Wilhelm included. In particular, Ferris exaggeratedly patted his own chest. \"W-we're all right now? No one's killing us all of a sudden, meow?\" \"Relax. We're brothers in kitty ears, yes? Do I look like that mean and scary a spirit to you?\" Puck responded lightheartedly to Ferris's gloomy words, visibly puffing his cheeks up. His demeanor until a moment before had seemed like a bad joke, but one way or another, the spirit's anger seemed to have been assuaged. \"Well, I wasn't that angry in the first place. I've been quietly eavesdropping on the villagers for a while now, you see.\" \"So that's where you've been?! Then you knew what I was trying to do all along?!\" \"Mm, it makes a nice story...enough that it almost softened me up before I realized it.\" \"Don't flip this around! Talk seriously, would you?! This whole discussion's for Emilia's sake!\" Subaru was happy that they were shooting the breeze like normal, but on the other hand, he was eager to gloss over how much it had gotten under his skin. After that, he looked over his shoulder, grimacing Julius's way. \"And you should've mentioned you managed to call Puck over. I was shakin' in my boots.\" \"I did not surprise you intentionally. I knew the Great Spirit was present at the same time the buds made their return... I am relieved that your conversation ended peacefully.\" \"Well...I do feel the same way...\" Sharing Julius's relief, Subaru slumped his shoulders in exasperation. Calling Puck to the village was one of the tasks Subaru had asked Julius to do to have him send his quasi-spirits to the mansion and bring Puck back without Emilia's being the wiser. This was to gain his cooperation in the skullduggery required to get Emilia to evacuate. \"If Ram, the villagers, and Puck are all on the same page...\" \"Lia won't be able to really put her foot down, huh? I really must say, though, you've scrupulously prepared.\" Puck made a strained smile at Subaru's attention to detail. But Subaru shook his head at the little cat. \"We're facing the Witch Cult. Nothing's too much where those guys are concerned.\" \"The Witch Cult...\" The term made Puck's eyes go slightly distant. It was the reaction of someone who'd encountered them somewhere before. In point of fact, on previous go-arounds, Puck had really hated the Cult. Subaru thought that correlation went even beyond their causing harm to Emilia, but... \" So you want to fool Lia into going with you, but how exactly are you going to do this?\" \"Hey, watch how you say it! Having even you putting it like that gets a guy bent out of shape!\" However, before Subaru could inquire about that connection, Puck, back to his normal self, switched the topic. Puck was right to want the details of the plan. Pushing his misgivings down the road and prioritizing the evacuation plan for Emilia and the others was the proper call to make. \"You know the plan from all your eavesdropping, don't you? After that...my secret weapon comes into play.\" \"Secret weapon?\" Puck cocked his head at the grandiose language. Meanwhile Subaru revealed his trump card: a white robe packed into his bag. Subaru immediately put the robe on; he wasn't built much bigger than its proper owner, so he had no trouble wearing it. \"Plus, that faint whiff of sweet perfume is one hell of a motivator for me...!\" \"I wouldn't really call that a secret weapon, but it seems to be a robe with an odd enchantment on it.\" \"Certainly, one robe's not enough for me to cure Emilia's confidence issues...\" The proper owner of the white robe was, in fact, Emilia. Incidentally, Subaru said \"Emilia's\" because Emilia was an acid burning through his own thoughts. He'd be able to speak with Emilia, touch her, and even savor her lingering aroma. His confidence and emotional stability were both shaky. Either way, the \"Emilia's\" part was a joke, but the power of the robe itself was no laughing matter. \"This robe's convenient goods handcrafted by Roswaal himself, and apparently has a Block Identification enchantment embedded in it. It's Emilia's personal property to begin with...but it's not like I stole it, okay?\" He thought back as the details of the abominable time when he'd obtained the object came rushing back. It was the robe that Emilia had thrown at him when she was arguing with him during their breakup at the royal palace. In the time since, Subaru had always kept the robe stuffed in his bag, never letting it out of his grasp. Now it served a crucial role. \"Whatever its origins might be, what do you...... Ahh, so that is your plan.\" \"Now I don't have to explain, but that knowing face of yours still annoys me.\" \"One's nature is a troublesome thing. In my opinion, your nature is a rather complex one as well.\" The words made Subaru feel like Julius was seeing right through him, causing him to demonstrate his dismay with an exaggerated snort. After that, Subaru shifted his gaze toward Puck. \"So there you have it. We'll be putting on a play for Emilia. You'll be acting, too, and I'm counting on you to help me explain all this after we settle everything.\" \"I'll put on an act, but make up with her yourself. That, Subaru, is up to you.\" \"Gnnn...\" Subaru groaned in frustration at being refused to the bitter end. He couldn't expect any cooperation from Puck in making up with Emilia. It was something he would have to accomplish on his own"}, {"text": "power. Then that meant Puck would cooperate with everything else. Namely  \"So Puck, on that note, I have one favor to ask you.\" \"Mm, what is it?\" \"Isn't it obvious?  Convincing the hermit back at the mansion.\" Subaru winked to Puck as he spoke the words, broaching the final remaining problem. 5 \"Did I think I would ever again have a chance to look upon that stupid face, I wonder?\" The instant he entered the room, the girl in charge of the archive greeted him with a sharp voice. Hearing the poisonous greeting to which he was accustomed, Subaru spontaneously broke out in a smile. This was a mysterious room, dominated by countless shelves and the books packed into those shelves. This was an archive that existed nowhere in the world Roswaal's archive of forbidden books, protected by its librarian, Beatrice. Through use of teleportation magic known as the Passage, the archive of forbidden books was connected to doors in the mansion at random. That, Subaru knew already, but what truly surprised him this time around was  \"I never thought it was connected to doors in the village. You're actually a pretty incredible magic user, aren't you?\" \"...If all you wanted to do was talk, you asked Puckie to do a favor for nothing.\" \"Right now, I wanted to get a little foothold before moving on to the main subject. Sheesh, no patience at all...\" Subaru, receiving an even harsher response than usual, made a very slightly conflicted face as he cocked his head. In contrast to Subaru, the girl in the elegant dress made a weary sigh that was incongruent with her outward appearance. The girl with creamy hair in vertical rolls had a sullen face as she sat upon a wooden footstool. Beatrice that was her name. She was the guardian protecting the archive of forbidden books, though Subaru's image of her as part of his busy mansion life was far stronger. Hence, she too was someone related to Subaru whom it would be unthinkable to leave behind in the mansion. This was the situation engendered by Puck connecting the Archive to a door in the village. More accurately, it was the result of Puck calling and Beatrice employing the Passage to make the connection. At the very least, it gave them a chance to talk. Relieved at that fact, Subaru began to broach the subject. \"How much do you know about what's going on outside? I mean, have you heard?\" \"Have I heard anything from anyone, I wonder? I am not in the habit of casually conversing with the people of the mansion to begin with...but perhaps I understand the gist of it regardless?\" \"The gist being...\" \" The Witch Cult.\" Unlike Subaru, carefully choosing his words, Beatrice spoke the term with disgust from the bottom of her heart. \"I am aware that those miscreants are lurking in the mansion's vicinity. Perhaps I even know that you and Puckie intend to sneak that blockhead of a girl out of this place?\" \"Is that so? Well, if you know that much, it becomes a short conversation. If anything, it's a huge help.\" He was surprised by her unexpected grasp of the circumstances, but he warmly welcomed the fact that he didn't need to make a long-winded explanation. In particular, not having to explain the menace the Witch Cult posed made things a very different story. After all, the Witch Cult was like a natural disaster, a symbol of malice across the entire world  \"Anyway, the situation's just as you said. I don't deny I'm sneaking Emilia out, either. I got through to Ram and Puck, so that leaves getting you to come with m \" \"I am not going with you.\" \"Ah?\" Subaru tried to get things in order as quickly as possible, but Beatrice cut him off with a single sentence. Her declaration made Subaru open his eyes wide. Beatrice's eyes slowly narrowed. Then, with eyes lacking any emotion, she continued her words. \"Did I say I am not going with you, I wonder? I do not intend to leave this archive of forbidden books, let alone leave the mansion itself. Now that you know this, would you get out already, I wonder?\" \"Wait a minute! What are you sa...? You're not seeing the situation! Well, I'll explain!\" \"I do not require an explanation. Betty will stay here. Does she have any intention of debating it, I wonder?\" Speaking bluntly, Beatrice let her eyes fall to the book sitting upon her lap. It was the usual sight of her concentrating on an overly large book, making it plain she was serious about not evacuating. \"Like I'm gonna back down now. Don't you dare cut off the conversation on your own.\" \"Betty has finished speaking. No matter how much you might arbitrarily continue, Betty's conclusion will not change. Do you have any more time to waste than she does, I wonder?\" \"Ugh... If you understand that much, give me a hand and behave while I lead you out!\" \"I refuse. No matter who comes yes, no matter who comes, they shall not enter this archive of forbidden books.\" Beatrice did not even look Subaru's way as she made the statement, a cold, ghastly aura flowing from her into Subaru. He understood that the feeling creeping up his spine was a side effect of the magical energy pouring out of the girl. *** Beatrice was a powerful magic user. That power was not limited to the Passage alone. Perhaps, in truth, she hid such might that the Witch Cult could not defeat her. Her present poise suggested as much. \" ! Even so, I'm bringing you with me anyway.\" \"You are still going on about...\" \"It's not a question of whether you're strong or not! You're a girl, and little, and that's reason enough! I don't need any other reason not to leave you behind where you'll be in danger, damn it!\" Cowed by the feeling of oppression, Subaru shouted and marched across the floor of the archive even so. The sight of him advancing, and the content of his words, made Beatrice's eyes fly wide. Then the girl closed her eyes, her face looking like she was enduring suffering. \"...Betty will not go with you. Could you please stop attempting to bewitch me, I wonder?\" \"I'm not wrong. You're the one who's wrong  That's my answer. We're done here.\" \"So obstinate. I hate that about you.\" As Beatrice made that frail murmur, Subaru walked over, taking her slender arm in his hand. It was the slender arm of a little girl, no matter how powerful a magic user she might be. He didn't want to leave her there alone. It wasn't right. *** Without a word, he pulled on Beatrice's arm, leading her down from the footstool. If he led her through the door of the archive of forbidden books and back to the village, even Beatrice couldn't complain then. \"Because no matter how important this place is, it's not worth as much as your life.\" *** \"Beatrice?\" With the door right before their eyes, Beatrice's feet suddenly came to a stop. Subaru, suspicious of her reaction, looked back only for his breath to catch at the terrified look on her face. Beatrice looked between the door of the archive of forbidden books and Subaru, back and forth, and finally spoke. \"...Can I truly do this, I wonder?\" \"What do you mean, can you...\" \"I have a pact. Betty is the guardian of this room, this archive of forbidden books, and will surrender it to no one...\" \"Talking about pacts again...\" The word pact had barred Subaru's path more than once. Not only was Emilia bound by them, but Beatrice, too, hindering Subaru's actions. \"I'm sick of hearing about them. You stick to pacts too darn much. You've gotta think outside the box!\" \" ! Can a human like you comprehend the weight of this pact, I wonder?! Just how important pacts are to Betty, to Puckie...!\" \"What's this human this, human that... Hey, Beatrice, wait!\" With a face ready to break into tears, Beatrice shook her arm loose from Subaru, turning her empty left hand toward him. The gesture was the one she used when driving the pesky Subaru out of the room. Always she unleashed her magical power the next moment. But this time  \" Keh.\" For a moment she hesitated. Thus, during that time, Subaru grasped Beatrice's arm once again. \"I've got y...\" \"Aa \" That instant, their eyes met. And when Subaru beheld the fear and despair so powerfully displayed by her eyes, the sleeve of her arm slipped through his fingers. A second later, he was enveloped by a shock wave that knocked his feet clear off the archive of forbidden books' floor. \"Bea \" \" Farewell.\" His vision contorted before he even had a chance to call her name. The spatial distortion swallowed up his flesh, sending him beyond the door that ought not to exist as she forcibly severed the link to the archive of forbidden books. *** He raised his voice. But it did not reach her. His vision was covered in light, rendering him unable to see. Not the door to the archive of forbidden books, not Beatrice's crying face, nothing. \" ther.\" She watched as the door shut before her eyes, and the sight of the youth vanished from her vision. Then the girl hugged herself with her quivering arms, haltingly murmuring to herself. \" Mother.\" That was all Beatrice said in her tiny, tearful voice. Her eyes were dry. Her tears had already vanished. Even so, her expression remained one of grief as she spoke. \"How much longer...how much longer, must Betty...?\" Carried by mournful steps, Beatrice collapsed upon the footstool at the center of the room. Then her arms stretched far to one side of the stool seizing hold of the book resting upon it, clutching it in her arms. \"Mother...Mother, Mother...!\" Like a lost little girl trying to cling to her mother, Beatrice continued to clutch the thick book in her arms, calling out over and over in a sobbing, tearful voice. But the black-bound book she clutched in her arms would not give her an answer. 6 His vision contorted, and a shock wave came. The feeling of his back hitting something hard made his breath catch. \" Ha.\" With a short snort, he softened the coming impact. He was now on his back, limbs spread wide, and Subaru's vision was filled by the blue sky; he could feel the ground through his back  Abruptly, something blocked the blue sky in his vision. \"Though you have surprised me from time to time, this has to be the most extraordinary experience among them.\" \"Is that so? I think your fancy-pants comments annoy me more as time goes on, too.\" Subaru bounced the comment back at Julius, appearing upside-down from his point of view, with an extra helping of invective. The place was a corner of Earlham Village, a moment after he'd been shot out of the archive of forbidden books apparently, Beatrice had rejected him and teleported him via the Passage, returning him to the village. Understanding that fact, Subaru got up with a great swing of his legs. Then he turned his head around and spoke. \"Damn that thickheaded loli. I'm the obstinate one? ...If you're gonna make a face like that, why can't you just come with me? ...Shit. If it's gonna be like this, I'll drag her out if I have \" \"It might be best to quit while you're ahead.\" Subaru couldn't pull his mind away from the sad face he'd seen on Beatrice when they'd separated. However, it was Puck, leisurely appearing behind Julius, who poured cold water on his enthusiasm. The little cat spirit touched his own whiskers, looking at Subaru, covered in dirt and fallen leaves, as he spoke. \"Covered in grime, huh? Looks like Betty was pretty rough when she threw you out.\" \"I hate to say this, but I was literally one step away."}, {"text": "But I suppose I have to say that went pretty much as I expected. It really would be best if you \" \"I can't. I cannot persuade Betty. Didn't I mention I have a pact?\" \"Lately, that's taken the number one spot on my list of words I don't wanna hear.\" Puck's face showed no ill will, but Subaru grandly scowled toward him as he replied. A pact made Beatrice stay behind, a pact prevented Puck from persuading her, and a pact had been the impetus for his breakup with Emilia. Pact, pact, pact  \"If you talk, Beatrice'll listen. Even though you know that, it's a no can do?\" \"Mm, I can't. Besides, even if I say it, Betty still won't listen. I told you the first time she sent you out of the archive of forbidden books, didn't I? I cannot save Betty.\" *** Puck turned his eyes down slightly as he replied. Subaru closed his mouth, unable to say a word. Staying behind in the archive to persuade Beatrice; at first Subaru had meant to entrust that task to Puck. Considering the daily interaction between girl and kitty, he was sure Puck was the right cat for the job. But when he unveiled the idea, Puck would not acquiesce, sending Subaru in his place. And sure enough, Subaru had failed to persuade her. And yet, Puck looked at Subaru and continued. \"Subaru, it is likely that if you can't do it, no one can. This is Betty's answer.\" \"I really don't get what you're trying to tell me...\" Subaru couldn't read the emotions hovering in those round eyes whatsoever. The little cat spirit still wouldn't reveal his emotions as his tiny shoulders slumped. \"Well, leaving Betty in the archive of forbidden books isn't exactly a bad plan, anyway. I don't think anyone would breach the Passage without Betty knowing it, and she has ways of defending herself if she's inside the mansion. Trust me, it's all right.\" \"So wanting to bring her out of there anyway is just me being selfish, then?\" \"A selfish thing is something a real man can say and hope to make a reality. How about it, Subaru? Do you think of yourself as a real man?\" \" Great Spirit.\" Julius, watching Subaru's cheeks go stiff in the face of Puck's merciless words, interjected with words of his own. When the knight called out to him, Puck curled his long tail around himself and spoke. \"Sorry, I'm not trying to be mean. I know you want to save Betty, and I am truly grateful for that.\" \"The Great Spirit's words are strict, but they bear the ring of truth... What now, then?\" As Puck apologetically averted his eyes, Subaru knitted his brows at Julius's words. \"Whaddaya mean, what now?\" \"The traveling merchants being led by Rajan should rendezvous with us here at the village anytime now. If your assumptions are correct, the Witch Cult's spy is hidden among them. There is likely no more time available for you to use.\" The plan was to feed the Witch Cult fake intel and buy time for Emilia & Co. to safely evacuate. Having a spy from the Cult in their group was a situation where any misstep would be fatal. He felt regret about Beatrice, but he'd lost the time needed to bring that girl with him. \"Mark my words, Beako. If you'd just come out like a good girl...\" \"You should save regrets for later. I was opposed to your allowing time to slip even when it would not affect the results... However, in my judgment, this is the dividing line.\" When Julius pointed that out, Subaru bit his tongue, clutched his head, and stamped his foot. After that, he wrung out an \"Arghh!\", turning toward the wide-eyed Julius and Puck as he spoke. \"...Let's switch to putting that plan in motion. We'll group up with the merchants and evacuate the villagers. We'll talk to Emilia just as we planned. Puck, I'm counting on you, too.\" \"You're sure about this?\" \"It ain't good. It ain't good one little bit... But there's nothing better we can do.\" As he gritted his teeth in remorse, Subaru's thoughts shifted toward the mansion the mansion within which Beatrice remained that very moment. She was a hardheaded, know-nothing, I'll-do-it-my-way girl and a girl who had once saved Subaru's heart. \"We'll make sure Emilia and the others escape. But we're not letting the Witch Cult lay one finger on that mansion. We're completely shutting 'em down, and then that loli can complain while I drag her out by her curls.\" That's what the new Subaru would do: save everyone and take his revenge on Beatrice. So Subaru swore in his heart, brushing all hesitation aside as he looked up at Puck. \"Puck! Emilia hasn't noticed anything outside for the last close to an hour?\" \"It's all right, she's been sound...well, she's been asleep. I was worried about her mental fatigue, so I drained a few handfuls of mana out of her and put her to sleep. I mean, if I put Subaru on ice upon his return, it'd be cruel to let Lia see that and go into shock, right?\" \"Can you stop saying stuff to make my heart skip a beat all of a sudden?!\" Unable to tell whether Puck was joking or not, Subaru let it slide and looked back at Julius. The look of determination on Subaru's face made the handsome young man tighten his own refined visage as well. \"Ferris, Master Wilhelm, and the villagers are all mentally prepared. They merely await your signal to begin. Of course, the same goes for me.\" With a strong nod, Subaru shifted his eyes to the center of the village. There he saw the villagers beginning preparations to evacuate according to the plan explained to them by Ram and the expeditionary force assisting in those efforts. Standing at the edge of that scene were Ferris, Wilhelm, and Ram, each awaiting Subaru, each with their own role to fulfill. They were who he would bring to the mansion, pulling the wool over Emilia's eyes. \"I won't be able to tell her this was all for her sake. This is totally my own selfishness talking.\" \"I told you, didn't I? If you turn selfishness into reality, it's not selfishness it's hope.\" When Subaru murmured, Puck sat on his shoulder and spoke thusly. The little cat thrust his paw against Subaru's forehead. Subaru laughed a little at the nostalgic sensation. With many hardships and the operation to deceive a lovely girl lying ahead, he thought himself pretty laid back as he spoke. \"Well, let's get this started, shall we? The evil tricks to turn that hope into reality.\" And so, in high spirits, they sent Emilia away, whereupon they began setting the stage to greet the Witch Cult. CHAPTER 3 *** 1 \"May the grace of the spirits be with you.\" Climbing aboard the dragon carriage for evacuation, those were the words of prayer Emilia left the expeditionary force upon her departure from Earlham Village. To Subaru, that grace was as powerful as any blessing. With only the best intentions, Emilia was deceived via an exaggerated performance for her own sake and sent away from Earlham Village along with the villagers themselves. Time continued onward. It was also after Subaru had made full use of Return by Death to capture Kety the finger from the Witch Cult lurking among the traveling merchants. Subaru watched the horde of dragon carriages run off as his eyes shifted to the formation of knights accompanying them. Ten knights had been selected from among the expeditionary force to escort the evacuating carriages. The chance the Witch Cult would detect the evacuation was low, but they'd sent a detachment just in case. The dragon carriages had two destinations: the royal capital and the Sanctuary. Subaru knew nothing about the latter except the name, but the fact that Ram had given it her stamp of approval was proof enough it was safe. Their safety was no doubt far more assured than that of Subaru and the others facing the decisive battle with the Witch Cult. After all, the greatest combat power in the expeditionary force was escorting Emilia and the others. \"Sir Subaru, I pray for your fortune in battle.\" \"Take care yourself, Wilhelm,\" Subaru said after Wilhelm brought up the rear of the detachment from atop his land dragon. Facing the battle to come without Wilhelm was akin to rolling the dice. However, where the impending decisive battle with Petelgeuse was concerned, the Sword Devil's presence was not an indispensable element for defeating the madman. For that reason, fully aware it was a reckless request, Subaru had insisted on entrusting the defense of Emilia and the other evacuees to Wilhelm, to which he had readily agreed. \"Well, Petra and the others did jump at the chance to take care of Emilia...\" The children had merrily accepted Emilia aboard their carriage, just as Subaru had asked. The children had led Emilia by the hand, making her relieved that they had not rejected her. Remembering that scene, deep feelings of warmth arose in Subaru's chest and at the same time, pangs of guilt. \"Using happy feelings to fool Emilia into going along with the situation and escaping... I've become quite a villain, playing with people's hearts like that. That stuff about me not reading atmospheres or human hearts seems like a lie now.\" Grimacing in self-derision, Subaru vigorously scratched his own head. It was too easy to dismiss his deceiving her as his hoping for Emilia's safety. Even so, the fact was, it had put her mind at ease. Besides, asking her to ride with the children had been a calculation by itself. \"Even if the lie's exposed, as long as someone holds Emilia back...\" The gentle Emilia probably couldn't shake off the hands of people concerned for her from the bottom of their hearts. Hence Subaru had intentionally created a situation where the children would bond with Emilia. \"She'll look down on me if that part ever comes out, so I'll keep that a secret for life...\" Puck, too, had agreed that it was better that way. The spirit, his fellow actor cooperating with the performance or rather coconspirator would not be leaving Emilia's side. Emilia's security was guaranteed like never before at least, he wanted to believe that. \"Looks like the village types and the half-demon girl left already. Looks like ya did pretty good, huh?\" As Subaru collected his thoughts, he heard hearty Kararagi dialect tossed his way from behind. When he looked back, he saw Ricardo coming over, carrying his great hatchet with him. Subaru glared at the dog-man's dog face and spoke. \"Stop calling my pretty Emilia a half-demon, you half-mutt!\" \"Ohh! Gettin' called a half-mutt is surprisingly humiliatin'! I'll have to remember that one!\" He let loose a hearty, sarcastic laugh, and his forbearance drained the bitterness out of Subaru's strained smile. However, Subaru's cheeks soon tensed anew as he walked beside Ricardo and turned toward the forest. \"So how'd it go? Got the job done like I asked?\" \"Hey, we split up to hit them by surprise in places they never expected to be attacked, right? If I screwed that up I'd quit my post. Every last part went great. We kicked their asses all over the map!\" Ricardo amiably showed him the blood still stuck to his great hatchet, patting the map on his hip with his palm. \"Meaning we were right the places marked on that map were where their hideouts were.\" \"That's what they get for bein' so methodical with their plannin'. You did good, bro.\" Ricardo bared his fangs. The original owner of the map on his hip was, in fact, Kety the Witch Cultist. Thanks to his capture according to Subaru's scheme, they'd gained both his conversation mirror and his map. The map contained a highly detailed layout of the Mathers domain, and ten places had been marked upon"}, {"text": "it. The markers were probably for Witch Cult hideouts and to find out for sure, Subaru had sent Ricardo & Co. to the closest marker on the map. The results had apparently been as expected. As if to prove that information correct, members of the Iron Fangs leaped out of the forest on their ligers, merrily galloping around the village square and by all appearances unscathed. \"Yahoo! We slaughtered 'em all!\" \"Sister, do not say such foul-sounding things! We took proper captives!\" The smiling banter between the siblings, smelling of blood, made Subaru pat his chest in relief. He was happy about victory, but also that no one had been lost in the process. No matter how high the odds of victory, the one sending people off to battle always had reason to be concerned. Likely those reasons had been greatly minimized because of that map. \"And besides that...luck's really fallin' your way, bro.\" \" ? Whaddaya mean by...?\" \"The hideout you picked me to hit had this layin' around.\" As Subaru cocked his head, Ricardo took something out of the cloth tied around his waist and tossed it Subaru's way. Subaru immediately caught it, and his eyes went wide at the light sensation in his palm. This was a mirror indeed, the spitting image of one he had seen very recently. \"A conversation mirror...and this has to be on the other end of the one Kety had!\" \"Accordin' to our info, the Witch Cultist we captured was communicatin' by mirror. Now that we got this from the ones I just mopped up, they won't be tellin' the other Witch Cultists nothin'... Real convenient, bustin' up their communication network like that. Ya couldn't ask for a more promisin' start!\" When Subaru's eyes popped wide at results beyond his wildest hopes, Ricardo opened his maw in a great laugh. If his deduction was fact, they certainly had gained even more of an advantage over the Witch Cult. But after the feeling of everything going well had been followed by his tasting heaps of bitterness the last time around... *** \"Hey, bro. You don't look very happy.\" \"...No one escaped the hideout you smashed? If even one escaped, it's all for nothing.\" \"Whaddaya think this sharp nose o' mine is for? Of course not. Just...\" Ricardo strongly thumped his chest, but suddenly he awkwardly lowered the tone of his voice. \"I'm sure no one got away, but it's kind of a problem if there are other mirrors.\" \"I knew it! What? What was it?! Some kind of fatal flaw... There's an issue that's gonna knock out the entire foundation of the operation, isn't there?! Shit! I knew things were going too well!!\" \"Hey, hey, what's with the fantasies of damage?! Ya can't be a general and be a worrywart like that! Besides, there's no guarantee somethin' bad happened, so stop assumin'!\" As a pale Subaru clung to him, Ricardo retorted with an overly intimidating face. Then the dog-man wrapped an arm around Subaru's head, choosing his words to rectify the latter's stubborn paranoia. \"Look here, see? It's not like anything bad's happened. Just we can't celebrate till the Witch Cult's smashed flat... Ahh, seeing's faster than talkin' anyway. Hey, bring in that guy from earlier!\" As Subaru grimaced, his head still in Ricardo's grasp, Ricardo indicated for his men to bring something over. When Subaru saw what they carried, his expression shifted first to worry, then to disbelief. Atop a liger, a single human being was being carried in, his entire body bound by rope. *** When the person noticed Subaru and Ricardo, he wrung out a muffled wail. Perhaps it was an objection to the impropriety of his treatment, or perhaps a plea to spare his life  \"We found 'im in the middle of the Witch Cult roost. I think he just got captured by 'em out of bad luck, but... Hey, what's with ya?\" In the middle of his explanation, Ricardo found it odd that Subaru's eyes were nailed to the wrapped-up person. But this was surely the natural reaction for him to have. After all, the bound man wriggling around there was none other than  \"Pfft.\" Unable to contain himself, Subaru let out a small sound. He pointed to the young man bound hand, foot, and even torso, and burst out laughing. \"So you got yourself captured! I thought I was never gonna see your face here, Otto!\" And so Subaru called out the last name in the dramatis personae, excess misfortune having thus far denied him the stage. 2 After letting quite a few laughs fly at his expense, Subaru freed Otto from his bonds. \"Though I am...not particularly inclined to simply say, 'Thank you very much for aiding me...'\" \"Hey, is that how you talk to the group that saved your life? You wouldn't want nasty rumors to spread, would you?\" \"What kind of base villain are you?! What a person! Oh, fine, thank you very much! Thanks to you my life has been spared! Not that living brings any great comfort, damn it all!\" Half in desperation, Otto spoke his thanks to Subaru, who was bullying him with full knowledge of his precarious circumstances. Otto had been discovered when Ricardo & Co. raided a Witch Cult stronghold. Apparently he'd been affixed to a cross in a cave in the mountains, and he had been rescued on the verge of becoming a human sacrifice. \"Well, we can't rule out the possibility he's a Witch Cultist, so we should bring him back tied for now...\" \"We're treasuring him, almost like, 'Let's keep him around just in case. It's nice to have a human sacrifice on hand when you need one'?\" \"What kind of appraisal is that for someone you just met?! I haven't done anything to you, you know?!\" Red faced and bound, Otto moved his limbs around and wailed at Subaru's overly harsh words. \"Well, setting that aside,\" said Subaru, brushing away Otto's frustration. \"So how did you wind up captured? If there's something behind it, go ahead and tell us.\" \"That is, ah...something I truly do not wish to divulge for reasons of personal convenience...\" \"If you don't want to say it, that's fine  Incidentally, changing the subject, most of the traveling merchants gathered in this domain right now are heading toward the mansion of Marquis Mathers to make a little money.\" \"That's not changing the subject, though! I heard that so I know already, you know?! Ahh, that's right! I am the fool who leaped at the fortuitous talk of profit, first in line charging down this treacherous road and captured through his own ill fortune! Go ahead, laugh!\" \"That so... Glad you're all right, then. Tch, you're making me break into tears...\" \"What is with those hollow tears?! Is not grasping at a fishy story explanation enough for you?!!\" Subaru pitied Otto and his wistful, energetic confession, warmly taking in the sight of him lamenting the inhumanity of it all. Apparently, his merchant nature had spurred him into some rather impulsive actions. Subaru was relieved that the impression he'd received from their previous encounters hadn't changed at all. Subaru's mischievous demeanor led Otto to let out a sigh of unbridled dejection. \"Goodness...what a person, after I properly thanked him for saving my life and everything...\" \"Wha  I did save your life, you just don't want me to rub it in? You owe me one!\" \"To be frank, I feel like this 'one' is a particularly large debt, so one I feel little desire to acknowledge!\" Otto's face scowled grandly when Subaru raised his index finger and declared him to be indebted. Afterward Subaru smiled as Otto kept repeating, \"Debt, debt...\" as he took it in with a look most sour. Yet at the same time, his actions established to Subaru that there was nothing suspicious about him, relieving him of the need for extra prudence. *** It went the same for Ricardo, on guard as he watched the two conversing from the side. The mere fact that he'd been brought from an enemy stronghold made Otto's position delicate to the extreme. Considering that Kety, positioned as leader of the traveling merchants, was a spy, Subaru couldn't help but give Otto, who had gotten along well with Kety during previous go-arounds, the strictest of scrutiny. After all, carelessly trusting him only to be betrayed would render Subaru's efforts to date all for naught... \"...Man, I've turned into a pretty disagreeable guy.\" \"What are you saying?\" \"I'm saying I'm glad you're all right. Hey, Mimi, that's great, huh?\" \"Mm? Ahh, okay! I'm happy and super thrilled you're all right, Mister Half-Bawling-My-Eyes-Out!\" When Subaru bounced the conversation Mimi's way, she divulged the circumstances of Otto's rescue. After Mimi voiced that truth, she cocked her head and said, \"Isn't that right?\" as Otto collapsed then and there. \"Ahh, it's no wonder you half bawled your eyes out. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. This is between you, me, Mimi, Ricardo, and after that, the Iron Fangs and everyone in the expeditionary force...\" \"Does that not make it an open secret...?\" \"Anyway, there's no worry about the Witch Cult attacking this village, so you can cool your heels here. Also, my condolences over half bawling your eyes out, and my condolences about the moneymaking talk, too.\" \"Your condolences...? Surely you cannot mean...?!\" Otto looked around the village in shock, looking like his world had come to an end. \"Do not tell me that everyone has already been...\" \"The fact that you're alive after being captured by the Witch Cult means you've been blessed by heaven... Er, no, the fact that you got captured to begin with means heaven has abandoned you. Well, live strong!\" \"If you are going to console me, won't you look after me till the bitter end?!\" With Otto breaking into tears, Subaru gave him a pat on the shoulder and looked at Ricardo. As he did so, the dog-man wrinkled his snout and tilted his head up. Apparently, even his veteran mercenary's eyes judged Otto to be an utterly harmless object of pity. Subaru thought of that as the silver lining in the cloud. \"So from here on, this'll be the front line against the Witch Cult. We've got a lot to do...but I can't think of anything you can do to help with that. Maybe you could sort out the list of the freight the other traveling merchants left behind?\" \"Will you pay me a fee for that?!\" \"Man, even I'm surprised. You're even more desperate than I thought. Yeah, yeah, I'll pay. Someone here tag along with Otto?\" With suspicions about him lifted, Subaru gave Otto a job to do and moved that concern to the back of the line for the moment. Instead, Subaru headed to the expeditionary force, just finished reorganizing its ranks with Julius at its head. \"You reunited with a familiar face, yes? Is that really enough warmth toward an old acquaintance?\" Julius, noticing Subaru's approach, turned toward him before he could say anything. Subaru grimaced at his words, pointing over his shoulder toward Otto, now standing facing the pile of freight. \"Behind the stupid laughs and the stupid conversation, I was suspecting he was up to something the whole time. My personality's gotten so rotten I'm starting to hate myself.\" \"Thanks to that rotten personality, we have come this far unscathed. I believe you should take pride in that rotten personality though perhaps you should not express it in those exact terms.\" \"Your personality is pretty rotten, too. I guarantee it.\" \"Yes, yes, have you two rotten personalities finished speaking yet?\" The exchange between Subaru and Julius made Ferris cock his little head and smile mischievously. In a vengeful mood, Subaru grandly curled his lips and spoke. \"What is it, rotten personality kitty ears?\" \"My, what a way to speak to me, meow. And Ferri tries and tries his hawdest for everyone's sake, meow!\" \"And your earnest efforts have always been of great"}, {"text": "aid. So what have you learned?\" \"Mm. I've managed to learn a few things about the fingers from the captured Witch Cultists.\" When Julius prompted, Ferris's smile vanished as he pointed to a cabin they'd commandeered. Ferris must have been directly checking inside the body of Kety, the captured Witch Cultist held within. During the previous go-around, Ferris had suffered repeated anguish from being unable to stop the Witch Cultists from committing suicide. For that reason Subaru had been somewhat anxious about the examination of Kety's body, but  \"First, the cultists seem to have a magic stone embedded into them that turns into powerful poison for suicide purposes. But the fingers seem to get special treatment... Instead of poison, there's an explosion ritual embedded into them, so that when they kill themselves, they take everyone nearby with them.\" \"Sounds like it's not so much meant for stopping information from leaking out as for the archbishop's Possession, huh? If he needs to die so he can body swap, it's a given he'd counter being knocked out and tied up by killing himself.\" \"For suicide... But surely it is likely a method of external activation exists. What about that case?\" \"I was worried about that, too, so I nullified the ritual and ripped the whole thing out~~!\" Ferris had a simple answer to Julius's concern. But judging from Julius's wide-eyed reaction, that had been no easy feat. Ferris continued. \"Also, about the characteristics of the fingers that Subawu was so concerned about... It's not so much stagnant Gates as having weird clumps of mana. I think the presence or absence of this sets the fingers apart from the regular cultists, and that the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins can only transfer into the ones with this planted in them.\" \"So the condition for Possession is the difference between the general members and the premium members of the club. What happened to that clump of mana?\" \"I melted it and scrambled it all up. So we can't really call him a finger anymore.\" \"You managed all that?! That's huge!\" Subaru, his voice leaping at Ferris's report, grabbed his slender hand and vigorously shook it up and down. He had nothing but praise for Ferris's skill in checking so much in such a short time. \"Meow meow!! Well, it's what you should expect of Ferri, meow? But it's also thanks to your figuring out that the fingers committed suicide a different way, Subawu.\" \"No, all the credit for this goes to you. You would've had a ton of regrets if it didn't work out...\" \"What the...? Ferri would never regret anything where people like that are concerned!\" Ferris stuck his tongue out and pried his hand loose from Subaru's shake. Subaru made a pained smile at Ferris's teasing demeanor. Ferris would never know it, but Subaru was congratulating him for winning the rematch from the last time around. Besides, thanks to Ferris's valiant efforts, he'd largely managed to piece together a hypothesis. \"Besides, if you neutralized the conditions for Possession, that prisoner won't die, right?\" \"However vile his tongue, the Gate inside his body has been set straight... We should bring him back to the royal capital and treat him as a precious source of information. He fainted from the pain of pulling the ritual out, and he's still out cold~~!\" Ferris closed one eye and guaranteed that Kety's life was safe, if nothing else. Subaru couldn't conceive of the pain of having the ritual ripped out of him. And then  \"We've finally managed to take a single proper prisoner. There's no need to take more risks. You see what I'm getting at?\" \"What, you think at this point I'm gonna go soft weighing those guys against the people important to me...?\" When Ferris's eyes questioned his resolve, Subaru nodded to them without showing even a moment's pause. To bring down the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of Sloth, the Witch Cultists had to be wiped out, fingers included. That meant a literal battle of annihilation. And it was none other than Subaru Natsuki who would sound the signal for that battle to begin. \"...Hmm. You really have straightened yourself out, Subawu.\" As Subaru clenched a fist, Ferris narrowed his eyes, murmuring as he gazed at the side of Subaru's face. The contents of that murmur brought a pained smile over Subaru as he slumped his shoulders. \"Hey, now, don't put it like that. It doesn't sound like much of a compliment.\" \"I'm not complimenting you. You've gone from bad to normal. Don't get carried away with yourself, meow.\" With an adorable face, Ferris laid into Subaru until the bitter end. He'd probably been the person to judge Subaru the most harshly of all since they'd departed the royal capital. That was probably because they both lacked the power to do battle by themselves those who can't fight alone are stuck together, for better or worse. While Ferris's appraisal of Subaru's weakness was harsh, it was fair at the same time, and Subaru hated that. \"Don't like that, huh? Right now, you've climbed up to normal. Understand?\" \"Normal, huh? Gotcha. But it makes me kinda glad.\" \" People don't want to have their beliefs twisted out of shape, you see. Subawu, you must not hesitate or go astray. So don't let anything shake your resolve.\" Ferris responded to Subaru's lighthearted words with a statement in a firm voice. It thrust deep into Subaru's slightly relaxed chest, driving home just what was the source of his so-called resolve. No, Ferris didn't have to say it. It was something he had to realize and face by himself. \"Preparations are completely in order  Subaru, we may begin anytime.\" Having put the expeditionary force in order, Julius addressed Subaru to create an opportunity for him. It was not just he everyone from the ranks of the expeditionary force and the Iron Fangs awaited Subaru's voice as one. Their morale was high before the climactic battle, their spirits beginning to soar above the battlefield centered upon the village square. *** Subaru felt that fighting spirit as he slightly tipped his head back, looking up at the sky. He couldn't remove all uncertain elements. Even so, he'd sent Emilia and the others off, entrusting them to Wilhelm, and thanks to Ferris, they'd grasped the true nature of the fingers. Julius was awaiting his signal. He'd done his utmost to put human affairs in order. All he could do now was smile, reel it all in, and await the verdict of heaven. \" Let's do this. Everyone, start just like we arranged.\" He lowered his gaze from the sky, turning it straight toward the members of the expeditionary force standing before him. At his urging, the warriors mounted their beasts of war without a word, acting in accordance with Subaru's words. *** \"Yeah. Thanks, Patlash.\" The jet-black land dragon had been standing close to Subaru's side the whole time, eagerly awaiting her turn. Subaru stroked her hard hide with his palm before mounting up like the others. Julius's and Ricardo's mounts were to their sides, sandwiching Subaru between them. Ferris, left on the ground by himself, nodded to Subaru with a serious look as Subaru took his place in the vanguard. Then he heralded the start of the final battle. \"Now, this time we'll settle this  Sloth, Sir Fate, I ain't goin' easy on ya.\" 3 Subaru had inferred several things about Petelgeuse's Possession. First, it was the power to shift into the bodies of others, stealing them for himself. Second, Petelgeuse's so-called fingers were retainers for him to transfer into, so as a precondition of defeating Petelgeuse, all the fingers had to be destroyed. Third, if Petelgeuse lost all his fingers, he would transfer to a different body instead. Subaru's body was the leading candidate. The parasite of the mind was so powerful, it was virtually impossible to resist by one's own devices  The end. \"Now that I'm writing these down, this is like, kills-you-as-soon-as-he-sees-you-level stuff. Plus he even has Unseen Hands, so you can't just laugh and say, 'Nah, nothing's that evil.'\" The Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins had two powers. Subaru was confident that if you didn't know them, you could challenge him a hundred times and be killed every time. In the course of repeating while keeping his memory, searching over and over for a plan to beat him, Subaru finally saw with clarity the fearsomeness of his foe. Small wonder the Witch Cult had had such influence on the world over the course of four centuries. Such was the scale of Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, the madman specializing in killing at first sight. \"Well, that's what I'm here for.\" The best thing for taking on a kill-at-first-sight enemy was someone for whom it wasn't first sight. Thus it was Subaru Natsuki, he who had Returned by Death, who was Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti's mortal foe. Once again, Subaru cut through the gloomy forest of overgrown trees as his feet carried him to the wall of rock. Green covered the landscape at every turn, a world where even directional sense seemed suspect. However, Subaru's steps were certain. His senses, his feet, the experiences carved into his memory all these things guided Subaru forward. \"Let's get this show on the road.\" Smiling bitterly at the quickening of his heartbeats, Subaru murmured thus as he gave his chest two light slaps. Then he headed forward. The place had come into view. Until that moment, Subaru had never approached that place with the resolve to fight in his heart. The last time around, he'd been buying time as a decoy; before that he'd been drowning in the bloodlust of others and the yearning for suicide. But this time was different. At minimum, this time was different from the others. Subaru had come to that place with the resolve to fight hardened in his heart, all so he could bring a long, long string of karma, a battle repeated over and over, to a final end. \" It is good that you have come, disciple of love.\" Subaru shuddered with joy when suddenly the forest opened and he was greeted with warm words of welcome. When he slipped out of the woods, a sheer cliff spread straight ahead of him, rising high into his field of vision. A slender man was standing in front of the rock face with both arms spread wide. His eyes welcomed Subaru with a fiery glow. Was it now four times he had been greeted by this sight? No matter who it was, when you saw someone's face repeatedly, you let the person into your heart to a certain extent but it seemed that was impossible so far as this man was concerned. \"I AM the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult charged with Sloth \" The madman stretched out his hand, bloodied from self-inflicted wounds, as his trademark line lit the spark. With his eyes drenched in madness, the man arched back, stuck out his tongue, snapping his eyes wide as he said  \" Petelgeuse...Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-CONTI!!\" With a flutter of his black habit, the madman loudly proclaimed his name with a clap of his bloody hands. Petelgeuse proceeded to stamp the ground, breaking into a happy little dance as he laughed with delight. \"It is A fine day, A splendid day! To think that this day, the day of the trial, I would BE greeting a new adherent of love! I AM moved, greatly moved, moved to tears, my chest is on the verge of bursting!!\" The madman let spittle fly as he embraced his own body of skin and bones. Subaru harbored disgust for his eccentricities, but he was accustomed enough to smooth over his facial expressions in the man's presence. On top of that, Subaru executed the operation just as agreed upon beforehand. Namely  \"Lord Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins! It is a pleasure to meet you for the first time!\" These words spoken, Subaru rushed over and knelt"}, {"text": "at the madman's feet. He touched his left hand to his chest, raising his right aloft as he bowed his head with utmost respect and spoke. \"I am truly embarrassed to have made it to you on the very eve of this trial! Lord Archbishop, by all means, please use this body, this soul, to fill any vacancy among the faithful, and add me to your fingers with all haste!\" Thus, with an excess of bombast, did Subaru speak bald-faced lies. He proclaimed his prepared lines with a high-pitched voice, infused his face with maximum reverence that went only skin deep, and silently awaited the madman's reaction. *** Petelgeuse made no response to Subaru's earnest plea. He said nothing. He did not move. The disquieting silence made Subaru swallow his saliva as he increased his caution and alertness concerning Petelgeuse's next move. The silence continued for about ten more seconds before it was abruptly broken by  \"OOOH! Such, such fervent zeal from the very first meeting?!\" Petelgeuse gazed up, extending both hands to the heavens. His voice and his entire body were shaking; he had been moved to tears. \"What a disciple love has called! In all my time cursed as Sloth, I cannot recall one with such clear eyes! YOU! YOU, a pious adherent of love! How unworthy I must be to have overlooked you all this time! I ASK you to forgive my slothfulness !\" Petelgeuse cast his limbs aside as he practically leaped onto the ground in front of the fragile-hearted Subaru. Without hesitation the madman prostrated himself on the rocky ground, banging his head against the surface several times. The merciless self-punishment made his forehead bleed, but he had such a great tendency to inflict self-harm that he probably did this much every day before breakfast. Now that Subaru knew it was someone else's body, the disgust he felt when seeing Petelgeuse act that way was stronger than ever before. Either way, it would not do for him to self-punish to the point of dying. Behind the scenes, the operation was quietly proceeding messing up by letting Petelgeuse switch bodies would waste everything. \"Please stop, Lord Archbishop! Such actions bring no joy to the Witch Cult!\" \"Ahh, but! Butbutbutbutbuuuuut! My very own sloth! My sin! The ugly fact ONE such as I have not repaid Her love! I possess no other way to REPENT!!\" \"That is not so! The Witch Cult would rather its cherished followers repay her favor than see them hurt themselves! It is the will to carry out the trial that will surely bring it joy!\" Petelgeuse was continuing to thrust his head against the ground when Subaru used rambling speech to stop him. But suddenly the words brought Petelgeuse to a halt; he stared at Subaru, eyes wide open. With those parched eyes upon him, Subaru strongly nodded, not that it meant anything to special to Subaru. When he did so, Petelgeuse's obsession seemed to fall away. A single tear trickled down his face as he spoke. \"Yes, it is just as you SAY.\" *** He said it in an uncharacteristically gentle way. The next moment, Subaru found Petelgeuse strongly embracing him. Subaru's throat caught as powerful, instinctive repugnance hit him, but the madman paid his reaction no heed. Petelgeuse grandly wept, wiping away neither his flowing tears nor the blood on his forehead. \"Ahh, I am wrong, I am deeply mistaken! Yes! The trial! What I require is not to punish, judge, or slay myself, but the trial! What terrible slothfulness, forgetting that while wallowing in the joy of my own wounds! I thank you! I thank YOU!!\" When Subaru turned in Petelgeuse's arms, he faced upward as Petelgeuse showered him with one-sided gratitude. Petelgeuse wiped the blood off his brow and thrust his right hand's fingers into his mouth, the same mouth that bespoke the foolishness of self-injury, crushing the thumb, index, and middle fingers one by one. \"I am worthless if I am slothful! Diligence is the most valuable thing in this world, and in this world, sloth is the worst vice that I must abhor! Ahh, AHH, ahh, I must repay Her love!\" He was in a precarious, incoherent state in which word and deed were no longer aligned. He reflected upon self-harm as he crushed his own fingers, only to lament his rash actions the next moment. Subaru, feeling the need to bring his mad, nigh-unbearable nature to a quick end, put his hand in his pocket. However, his palm was not greeted by the hoped-for reaction. More time was needed for the operation to proceed. \"Lord Archbishop may I speak to you about the trial?\" Fearful of an ugly silence taking hold, Subaru took a deep breath, concealed his inner thoughts, and spoke those words. The last time around, he had failed to get anything out of Petelgeuse regarding the trial, so he was still in the dark about the particulars. A trial meant a test of some sort. The Witch Cult was subjecting Emilia to some kind of test in accordance with its dogma. If fate bound Emilia to the Witch Cult going forward, he wanted to dig up something... \"Lord Archbishop, now that I have joined you, I would truly like to ask you about the trial.\" \"The trial...\" When the words haltingly trickled from Petelgeuse, his expression suddenly lost all emotion. Perhaps his mania from before had vanished into thin air; as the madman gazed at Subaru with hollow eyes, he put the remaining fingers the ring finger and the little finger of his already-bloody right hand into his mouth, crushing them with his teeth. And then  \"Yes, the trial! The TRIAL!! THE trial! We must carry out the trial and test her! We cannot fail to test this half-demon, and learn if she is a suitable vessel for the descent of the Witch!\" Subaru was bathed in a strange, shrill voice and stinky breath as Petelgeuse broke into a little dance. Subaru grimaced in shock and disgust as the madman's declaration sank in. \"A vessel for the Witch's...descent...?\" \"If she passes, embrace her! If she fails, eliminate her! We must test the half-demon's capacity to accept life, whether she is suitable for the Witch, whether the Witch's love can be sealed within! And the TRIAL is how we determine this!\" The madman responded to Subaru's doubt-instilled voice with his own mad voice, raising his hands above his head in the process. The words struck Subaru like a revelation; he was horrified by the comprehension he had gained. Vessel. Witch. Descend  If he could take the meanings of those words at face value, then... \"If the trial determines she's a suitable vessel for the Witch, the Witch will descend into her body...\" \"Someday that fateful day shall arrive when the Witch is resurrected into this world ! We exist to bear witness to that moment! And for this purpose I, and my fingers, shall exhaust all efforts... This is MY love!\" Petelgeuse was moved to tears, for in his world, it was the most blessed occasion conceivable. The sight of the madman before him made Subaru sick to his stomach. Based on all that, all the acts of savagery Petelgeuse had engaged in, all the slaughter he had perpetrated, and his pushing Subaru's heart to the breaking point had been because  \" You people don't see any value in Emilia herself, do you?\" To them, \"Emilia\" was nothing more than a box into which they could stuff the soul of the Witch. They were after a container. Their great objective the revival of the Witch loomed large before them. The girl's aspirations, how gentle her heart was, how hardworking she was...these things simply didn't matter. This was at once bottomless contempt for Emilia as an individual girl and, to Subaru, whose heart was greatly swayed by her existence, a humiliation difficult to endure. \" Monster.\" Petelgeuse did not notice that for a single moment, a single word, Subaru let his true feelings slip. He did not think of burning a village to the ground as excessive in the slightest if it was for the sake of his villainous goals. He could casually dismiss the life story of each and every person he laid hands upon, brushing their dreams and futures aside. That was why Petelgeuse and the Witch Cult were Subaru Natsuki's enemies. \"...Lord Archbishop, I have humbly heard your esteemed views. Hearing the ideals of the Witch Cult, and your determination to win, I am truly, deeply impressed. Let's make certain this trial succeeds.\" \"Ohhhh! You are indeed splendid! Yes! We shall become as one, and wholeheartedly hurl ourselves toward my long-cherished desire! Since the day I accepted Her favor, my entire being, my entire spirit became rubbish devoted solely to repaying Her love... Ahhh, Satella! I BELONG to you!\" Petelgeuse approved of Subaru's superficial praise, accepting it with great delight rather than doubt. \"It is YOU, an ideal disciple, who should truly be exalted! With the favor so rich within you, should you intend to join the fingers. I shall bestow the Factor upon you without DELAY!\" \"Then by all means, please make me one of your fingers!\" \"I am truly delighted by your unexpected offer! BUT, BUT...the numbers of my fingers have already been filled. There must be something more suitable for the likes of you... Yes, that is IT!\" Petelgeuse was counting on his bloodied fingers when he put a hand into his habit like he'd just remembered something. What he took out of his pocket was a single black book his Gospel. The madman lovingly touched its cover; his breath went ragged as his eyes perused its contents. \"The words recorded in the Gospel, its entire tale of love, is what guides MY future! Accordingly, all that I am...all that I ever shall be, is recorded WITHIN!\" Froth came into the corners of Petelgeuse's mouth as he browsed the pages with a laugh. Subaru, who had once stolen that Gospel from him, knew that the strange contents of the black book were indecipherable. But to its owner, Petelgeuse, the characters constituted a legible tale. And his actions were in accordance with its passages. If that was true, Subaru's real enemy was whoever had written that Gospel's passages to begin with. \"Present thy Gospel.\" Petelgeuse, audibly closing his Gospel, spoke that single phrase. The madman cocked his neck at a ninety-degree angle, twisted his hips to the same extent, and stared at Subaru with a neutral expression. These were the words Subaru feared most. According to previous experience, even if a conversation had gone well up to that point, that question served to sever the flow. If someone was a Witch Cultist, they had a Gospel no exceptions. The black books, their origin and method of creation unknown, served as proof of identity among members of the Witch Cult. Accordingly, Petelgeuse was asking Subaru to show his ID. Whatever answer he might come up with would greatly influence the course of circumstances, but  \"What is THE matter?\" In contrast to the silent Subaru, Petelgeuse left his head bent at that angle, his long tongue drooping out. All he had to do was show off his Gospel. A disturbing air began to waft around Petelgeuse as Subaru failed to prove himself even to that extent. Amid that bone-chilling aura, Subaru slowly put his hand into his pocket. Then he thrust what he had taken out before Petelgeuse's eyes. But  \"What...is this?\" \"As you can see, it's a metia, Lord Archbishop.\" Petelgeuse's eyes were wide in surprise, for that which had been thrust before him was a mirror a conversation mirror, to be specific. There was no doubt that the madman recognized it; after all, it had been in the possession of one of the madman's very own fingers. The fact that Subaru had it was throwing the madman off. But his surprise did not end there. Before his eyes, the surface of the mirror began to faintly glow. \"Ah, it's turning on. Wow,"}, {"text": "your face is scarier than I heard!\" The adorable voice they heard over the mirror was very much out of place in the current situation. Subaru couldn't see the mirror's surface, but Petelgeuse was no doubt seeing the speaker, a certain kitty-eared knight. It was like playing a really bad joke but this constituted the signal for the operation. \"What have YOU... No! What have YOU people done!!\" \"Now, then. Ahem. Tora-tora-tora!\" *** Ferris suddenly stated those words to an uncomprehending, angry Petelgeuse. The madman did not know the meaning of the words. Accordingly, Subaru explained them. \"It means, 'The surprise raid was a success' \" Subaru pointed to the mirror in his hand, laughing at the wide-eyed Petelgeuse. This was not the made-up smiling face from earlier, but the real Subaru smiling like a little punk. \"Wh-wha ?\" \"You don't look like you'll understand no matter how many times I say it. Well, don't worry about it.\" With Petelgeuse thrown for a loop, Subaru continued his full, beaming smile as he raised a hand above his head. And then  \"I can't understand what the hell you're saying, either!\" \"What a ?!\" Subaru spoke fighting words as he snapped his raised fingertips. Responding to the aggression, Petelgeuse instantly shifted to a combat posture. But the movements of the sprinting figure rushing in from the side proved quicker. \"Ga, haa \" Raising a shriek, the madman was sent flying head over heels, crashing and rolling over the rocky ground. *** Watching this, the pitch-black land dragon neighed, as if to spurn the madman for having made her wait for so long. The dragon judged the unproductive conversation to be at an end. Her roar echoed across the forest sky. 4 He felt heat from the conversation mirror as he returned it to his pocket. The operation was proceeding to its second phase. That fact spurred Subaru to harden his resolve once more, raising a middle finger toward the madman's astonished eyes. \"As for everything we were discussing, my answer is no.\" \"Wh-wh-wh...?\" \"If you don't get it, I'll say it so it's easier to understand: After careful consideration of your offer, there is an insurmountable clash of organizational culture between us. Therefore, though this is highly arbitrary of me, I am removing myself from consideration. I pray for your continued activity and growth hereafter...and stuff.\" Subaru indicated that talks had broken off with a kind and careful explanation that was even harder to understand. With Patlash close by his side, he proceeded to gallantly mount her, taking the reins as he looked down at the madman. Petelgeuse, confused as he looked up, belatedly came to understand, whereupon he became filled with anger at Subaru's act of violence and shouted, \"Do you comprehend what you are doing?! I am an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins! An Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins granted the grace of the Witch! I have received Her favor, the same as y \" \"Sorry, but I'm tired of hearing about all that. The Witch can go eat shit, Petelgeuse.\" \"Why! Why, I ASK! Why, do you refuse Her love?! The favor of the Witch! What is YOUR reason for rejecting Her grace? I, who have abandoned all things for Her, cannot compreHEND!!\" Petelgeuse tore at his head, letting spit fly as he spoke with intense emotion. He actually seemed intent on convincing Subaru with those desperate cries. If so, exchanging words with Petelgeuse truly lacked even a single shred of worth. \"When I look at you, I sympathize with you a bit, too. But let me tell you this.\" Subaru paid the madman's delusions little heed as he recalled the intricacies and rampages that had arisen from his own heart. He'd professed that he was right, asserted that everyone around him was wrong, and had spent his time wailing and engaging in temper tantrums like a child. I see. It really is unbearable to watch. This is like the horrible example everyone should learn from. \"Right now, you're the one who's crazy, and I'm the one who's right  It ends here, Petelgeuse!\" And so he bade farewell to his own mistakes. There had been nothing tying Subaru and Petelgeuse together in the first place. The madman, too, instantly understood that it had all been a performance and a fraud. The next moment, his decision was cruel and severe  \"Violence, heresy! You shall pay for this I shall rend YOU limb from limb and offer your soul to the Witch!!\" Petelgeuse's laments cut off in an instant. His shadow seemed to explode, spreading and swelling as it became a multitude of pitch-black arms. These objects of overwhelming density cascaded toward Subaru like a waterfall to rip him limb from limb, wring his neck, and violate his soul, just as Petelgeuse had declared. But  \"Why ?!\" \"Hey, I was playing tag, you're it with demon beasts in these parts just two months ago!\" Patlash surmised Subaru's intentions through his unskilled use of the reins, moving more than she had been commanded. The wise dragon's movements deftly evaded the evil hands pursuing them as she leaped, escaping beyond the area of effect. The distance between them widened. Petelgeuse could not conceal his shock at his perfect opening attack being foiled. His eyes and mouth opened wide, so much that they nearly tore, and he wailed, \"Just now! Those movements! You evaded! The Favor granted unto me?! Impossible, insufferable! Why can you see my authority?!\" \"Who knows? The Witch left her scent on my body, so go ask her. Oh, did I mention that unlike you, the Witch gave me a meet-me-anytime permission slip?\" \" ! What do you mean by... You blaspheme the Witch, Satella, by feigning closeness to Her!\" \"Hey, we're so close she reaches out and grabs me by the heart literally.\" Subaru added a wink, taunting Petelgeuse with a maximum of ridicule. That moment, the madman's tolerance instantly reached the boiling point; his face went red with rage as he bit his own fingers to the core. A dull sound rang out as his teeth snapped the fingers, crushing nail, flesh, and bone alike. Responding to his intense emotions, the shadows swirling around the madman increased in density. Their total number increased, and even for Subaru, able to see the invisible evil hands, the difficulty level had just been jacked up. However, the one most surprised by the increase in the evil hands' numbers was Petelgeuse himself. \"The Factor granted to my fingers has returned...?! Why?! What has happened to my...?!\" \"As the Witch Factor you handed out comes back, the number of hands you can control increases. Well, the answer's obvious, isn't it? Hey, do the math, Lord Archbishop! Or maybe you're just too lazy!\" *** Petelgeuse was at the mercy of consternation and rage when Subaru redoubled his taunt. When it came to getting under other people's skin, Subaru Natsuki came second to none but an opponent like this, with zero resistance against instigation, was practically dancing on the palm of his hand. Exactly as planned, Petelgeuse was so angry that his face was dark red, thrusting his bloodlust-infused fist toward Subaru and sending the arms to bluntly smash him flat and rip his very life out. \"Patlash !\" The land dragon grasped Subaru's intent, continuing to evade the carpet bombing\u00e2\u20ac\u201clike Unseen Hands offensive with frightening accuracy. She was so dependable that Subaru truly couldn't bow his head enough to her. Subaru judged that they could continue to hold out against the first wave of attacks. \"Operation Stage Three, let's go!\" \"Just how many petty games do you intend to play...! Against my diligence, this is all futile... Aa?!\" Petelgeuse readied himself for a counterattack, but the next moment, Subaru's action made his words choke in his throat. \"Turning your back to me... Just how much do you intend to mock me?!\" \"Sorry! But your stinky breath is making my eyes burn, so I have no choice!\" With a command to Patlash, Subaru moved away from the rocky area and made a beeline for the forest. Patlash violently trampled the grass, blowing open a makeshift road like the wind itself as they distanced themselves from their foe. \"Do not think that! I shall allow you! To ESCAPE!!\" Petelgeuse shouted, but in contrast to his words, he crouched down then and there. The instant after he did so, he sat holding his knees like a gym student as a shadow grabbed hold of him, hurling the madman toward the heavens. As if in a twisted game of catch, his body sailed with ease until another evil hand caught him. Catch, throw, catch, throw repeating this over and over, Petelgeuse was hot on Subaru's and Patlash's heels as they fled. It was nightmarish pursuit, and it was not only he who pursued the pair. \"Now, now, now, come forth! He mocks and scorns the exalted Witch, violates Her trial and Her favor! Rend his flesh into tiny pieces and offer him to the Witch! When Petelgeuse's command fell from the sky, Witch Cultists hidden in the cave under the cliff appeared in the forest without a sound. They had not attended Subaru and Petelgeuse's conversation, but now that they knew Subaru was their foe, they had no reason to hesitate. Their steps seemed to glide along the ground as they pursued Subaru and the land dragon. Petelgeuse was above the treetops, and at their backs, the Witch Cultists were ferociously chasing them  \"Here they come here they come here they come! Patlash, hang in there!\" *** At Subaru's highly imprecise command, Patlash dealt with the crisis using her own judgment. She opted for speed, crashing through the slender trees that impeded her large frame. She trampled upon roots, vaulted over a depression, and snapped leafy branches apart as she charged straight forward, heading for their destination by the shortest possible route. \"Futile! Meaningless! I shall catch up to you! Even that diligent land dragon's resistance shall be blotted out, overridden by diligence of my OWN!!\" From afar, mad shouts poured down upon them, and the tyrannical evil hands poured down like a waterfall. They aimed at the sprinting Patlash, each landing in the forest with all the force of a cannonball. Huge trees were broken at the trunk and sent flying, with dust clouds swirling up from the ground being pulverized over and over. But, despite that waterfall, the dust cloud, and the madman's hatred pouring down, the land dragon ferociously burst through. *** Patlash, neighing loudly, was not unscathed. Even so, the land dragon had slipped through the attacks, protecting Subaru and herself. She had faithfully seen all Subaru's clumsy commands through. \"Sorry for leaning on you this hard... You're the best, Patlash!\" \"Howeverhoweverhoweveeeer! It ends HERE!\" Petelgeuse's cackling, laughing voice interrupted Subaru's praise for his favorite dragon's valiant efforts. Pointing beneath him, the madman was not speaking of Unseen Hands. Rather, he indicated the group of black figures chasing them. *** With cross-patterned swords in hand, the Witch Cultists pursued the land dragon with unthinkable speed. The menace they posed far exceeded that of Petelgeuse's clumsy attacks. At that rate, the Witch Cult's blades would slice apart the land dragon's scales, whittling her life away. But a moment before that could happen  \"Wah !\" \"Ha !!\" A high-pitched double roar made the air tremble, becoming a shock wave that bore through the world. These very particular voices formed a roar wave that enveloped large trees and boulders in a straight line, rocking the atmosphere as it slammed into the Witch Cultists. Bloody mist danced in the air where the shock wave had slammed into the group. So far as Subaru knew, only three people in that world were capable of using such voices. \"Whoaaa! You were in a super-tight spot, mister! You were totally gonna die just now!\" \"You were in danger of slightly missing the rendezvous point. This is thanks to Sister's intuition.\" With a great and silly laugh, the beast people siblings, Mimi and TB, lined up alongside"}, {"text": "Subaru riding their large dogs. Their roar wave having rescued him from peril, Subaru looked over to them and raised a fist. \"Hey, I was going all out back there! But thanks, I thought I was gonna bite it!\" \"Ohh, thank you! You are very welcome! Yaay!\" \"I understand your feelings of confusion... The man above is an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, correct?\" Ignoring Subaru and Mimi's banter, TB glared up at the sky and inquired in a tense voice. The little cat's monocle-covered eye caught sight of the madman, his habit flapping in the wind, and narrowed. \"What's that, that's amazing! That old man's all balled up and flying! Amazing!\" \"I have never before seen such a creepy method of flight.\" \"Ohh, right! That's what it looks like to you two!\" Subaru, able to see Unseen Hands, and Mimi and TB were viewing reality differently. To the two of them, Petelgeuse, balled up like a gymnast, must have seemed to be flying all on his own, but Subaru beheld the nightmarish sight of tentacle-like evil hands throwing him again and again well, both were awful sights, really. \"Either way, I'll deal with that one! Take care of the rear just as planned, 'kay?\" \"Understood. Let us go, Sister!\" \"Oh yeah! Ah! Mister, mister!\" Subaru would continue his dramatic escape from Petelgeuse while leaving subsequent Witch Cultists to the two of them. But just before changing course and departing, Mimi raised her hand to Subaru  \"If you win, it'll be really cool!\" \"Yeah! Leave it to me!\" At Mimi's words, Subaru gave the little cats a thumbs-up as he leaped forward, praying they would have good fortunes in battle. Split apart by the roar wave they'd eaten, the Witch Cultists bore down on the pair, weapons in hand. At that point other members of the Iron Fangs Rajan and company leaped in from all directions, whereupon general combat began. Subaru turned his back on the clashing of swords and pointed tauntingly at Petelgeuse high overhead. \"Come on, Lord Archbishop! If you get distracted by kitties and lose track of me, you'll never live it down!\" \" You, you, how far, how far will you go, how, why?!\" Naturally, even Petelgeuse's cheeks stiffened as his attacks were thwarted over and over. Having arrived in the current situation from having lost himself to rage, the madman finally realized that he was in a disadvantageous circumstance. His fingers lurking in the forest had been destroyed one by one, his Unseen Hands, in which he'd held absolute confidence, had been seen by another, and that very moment, his disciples had been ambushed and split apart, and Petelgeuse was alone. Did that situation not mean he had been dancing on Subaru's palm in every way? \"That cannot be! There is nothing! Nothing recorded of this in my Gospel! What are you, then?! YOU receive favor, and yet you belittle the Witch! You resist, you obstruct the trial I conduct, thwart my PLANS...!\" In midair, Petelgeuse clutched his Gospel, holding it high as he shouted. His fingers had been taken away, and his authority was ineffective. He did not know it yet, but Emilia and the others had already been evacuated, so his vile acts to bring about the trial had failed before they had begun. Perhaps, to Petelgeuse, this was what a nightmare looked like. \"What...what are you...?!\" Petelgeuse screamed at the absurdity of it all, froth rising to the corners of his mouth. Subaru calmly replied, \"I'm doing this for the fourth time when it comes to nightmares, I've seen enough to kill me.\" He didn't care about Petelgeuse's confusion or his laments. Deny it all he could, it was useless. The instant before his eyes was the future he'd crossed multiple nightmares to reach  \"You truly, trulytrulytrulytrulyyyy! You are Pride \" \"My name is Subaru Natsuki.\" When Petelgeuse shouted tenaciously, teeth creaking, Subaru invoked his own name. \"Knight of the silver-haired half-elf, Emilia.\" *** \"I don't know about this Pride business, but that's the only title I need. The rest can go to hell!\" He silenced Petelgeuse with a point of his finger and his caustic words. The next moment, the forest opened all at once. Ahead, another rocky place appeared but this was not the rocky place where Subaru and Petelgeuse had faced off earlier. That said, it was not Subaru's first visit to the spot. There, once upon a time, Subaru had lost his life. \"What is this place...?!\" \"Earlier I came to an end here. So this is the place that'll be your end  It's that kind of spot.\" Arriving at their destination, Subaru commanded Patlash to slow her pace. Chasing them through the sky, the change in scenery, and Subaru's statement made the madman wary, causing his vile visage to contort. *** Petelgeuse released himself from the evil hand grasping him, carrying him through the air, and fell to the ground. The madman landed, slowly lifting his face as he stood opposite the precipice, straight toward Subaru. \"If it was YOUR goal to invite me to this place...what is it you have prepared?\" \"That goes without saying. A mortal enemy yours and mine alike.\" When Petelgeuse asked in a low voice, Subaru dropped from his land dragon and declared as such. His words made the madman grimace. Subaru closed one eye. When he did so  \" Mortal enemy? Once again, it is quite something, the ways that you address me.\" The interrupting voice of a third party made Petelgeuse's head practically bounce as it swiveled around. Petelgeuse already realized that he had been lured. On guard against a surprise attack, the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins stuck a finger into his mouth, strongly biting it as he surveyed the area. But his caution against a surprise attack was utterly meaningless. \"I did not believe I would ever have another opportunity to hear such words again.\" Saying this, the speaker leaped straight down from the top of the precipice to the rocky ground below. A surprise attack seemed unthinkable to him as he landed lightly, using a finger to set his handsome hair, askew from the wind, in order. *** Petelgeuse stifled his voice as his eyes widened, gazing at the handsome figure. However, the handsome man merely stood at Subaru's side, saying nothing of the madman's threatening gaze. Subaru glared at the side of his calm, collected face, grimacing in pronounced annoyance. \"What, you've got a problem with my announcement?\" \"No, I was concerned that you might be recalling previous events of which you could not be unashamed... It seems you are truly audacious. I am impressed that you would say such a thing in front of me, even now.\" \"How about I repeat it in your sleep so you see it in your dreams, hmm?\" \"I shall pass. Once is quite enough. Should I hear such a statement a second time, it shall be difficult to sear from my memory.\" Drawing his slender sword, the knight answered Subaru's biting sarcasm with sarcasm of his own. Subaru couldn't even remember how often the sight of his perfectly kempt royal guardsman uniform and his purple hair swaying in the wind had annoyed him. It burned him that that abominable sight was so dependable that moment. \"Julius Eucleus, assigned to the Knights of the Royal Guard of the Kingdom of Lugunica.\" Identifying himself, Julius poised his drawn knight's sword, pointing its tip toward the madman. The next instant, lights of six different colors rose up and swirled around Julius, demonstrating their power to the wide-eyed Petelgeuse. \" I am the sword of the kingdom, the sword that shall strike you down.\" \"A spirit knight, IS it...? Just how far, truly, just how far will you...\" Petelgeuse's teeth clenched as he received those spoken words. His anger was not so much directed toward Julius for joining to battle as toward the quasi-spirits nestling close to him. On top of that, the madman glared at Subaru and spoke. \"So this, too, is YOUR doing...! Never before have I been so humiliated...!\" \"That so? Well, do enjoy this is your just deserts, y'see.\" Subaru replied to Petelgeuse, in whom so much hatred seethed that he clenched his teeth hard enough to split them. Then Subaru patted Patlash on the head, commanding her to depart from the battlefield. \"You've been a big help this far. We'll settle the rest.\" *** Patlash rubbed Subaru's head with her nose in apparent concern before slowly shifting from the rocky place to the forest. Seeing her go, Subaru took a deep breath. \"Let's do this, Julius.\" \"You're fine with this?\" Julius inquired. Subaru threw his shoulders back at the question. Unshakable determination rested in Subaru's eyes as he opened his mouth and spoke. \"I won't retreat, I won't bend, I won't lose. I don't wanna lose anyone else.\" \"I am the man who beat you terribly. Though I swear even now that I had significant reason for doing so, that is no more than self-righteousness so far as you are concerned.\" Julius answered Subaru's resolve by speaking of the unforgettable karma that existed between them. Those words suddenly stirred bitter, out-of-place memories. The humiliation and anguish of that time came vividly rushing back, as if something sharp bit deep into his chest. \"I am not digging up the past in the hopes of washing away the shame. Your resolve is weighty, formed by each decision and action you have taken along the road to this point. Accordingly, I ask you: At this juncture, can you carry out your long-cherished desire with me at your side, not dispirited in any way?\" *** \"Can you trust in me?\" Julius's question was extremely vague, coming off as out of place and even vaguely immature. But his meandering drew Subaru's attention to the barbs continuing to assert themselves in the deepest parts of him a necessary ritual, so that he might turn and face them. At the royal selection conference, Subaru had put on a disgraceful display; at the training ground, his good name was not restored, but rather smashed all too perfectly at Julius's hand, his infamy redoubled. The devotion of one girl had continued to motivate Subaru, enabling him to rise to his feet again. And now that he stood and faced forward, there was a different girl he wished to support. Guided by these twin lights, he struggled against fate. He wondered, how could he put the feelings from back then into words now? What kind of passion did he hold, what fierce emotions scorched within him, what colors of light burned bright within Subaru at that time, in that moment? \"I really hate you.\" \"Yes, I know.\" \"That graceful air you give off annoys me, the way you talk sounds stupid and shady, and on top of that you clearly look down at me, and now that I think about it, you kissed Emilia's hand the first time I set eyes on you. When someday I'm lavishing kisses over Emilia-tan's entire body, what, that's gonna be an indirect kiss with you? Gimme a break!\" When he thought back, he'd hated Julius even before they had exchanged words for the first time. The entire sequence of events leading to Emilia's treating him cruelly began with Subaru's antagonism toward Julius. At the royal selection conference, it grew significantly; at the training ground, it exploded; and the ashes continued to smolder thereafter. Even that very instant, they remained very hot, never ceasing to scorch Subaru's breast. \"You broke my hands and feet, cracked my skull, you even chipped my permanent teeth. Even if they all got healed up, you'd expect the trauma to be real for anyone. Do you even know what holding back is?\" \"I would like to point out that was still a great deal of restraint.\" \"Seriously, that's 'holding back' for you? I really do hate you the most.\" Subaru, the self-declared knight, had known repeated shame for his powerlessness, ignorance, and recklessness. Julius had beaten Subaru to"}, {"text": "demonstrate what a knight was, fulfilling his role with capability and force. Subaru couldn't help but pity himself for playing the role of comic relief, but if he set that aside, the man remained, well and truly, the knight Subaru had always wanted to be. \"I really hate you, 'Finest of Knights.'\" *** \"Because of my shame, I know that you're one hell of a knight. That's why I trust you.\" More than anyone in that place, more than anyone in that place in the past, Subaru intimately knew Julius's sword. Hence, it was him to whom Subaru entrusted his fate. For at that time, Subaru had come to know the weight behind his sword. \"I'm counting on you, Julius everything I have, I give to you.\" *** Subaru spoke those words to Julius from close enough for two people to shake hands. Upon hearing those words, Julius closed his eyes. He slowly opened them a few brief seconds later. Julius beheld Subaru in his yellow eyes, nodding strongly toward him. \"Then I shall answer that shame with all my spirit.\" When his sword rose, pointing to the heavens, the quasi-spirits granted their blessing to Julius's decision. The vibrantly colored quasi-spirits seemed to revolve around the sword as they danced in the sky. Among them, the two quasi-spirits colored white and black emitted the strongest light and this increased still, strengthening and rising until Subaru's vision was practically burned away. Then, when the light shining on the battlefield with the precipice at its back finally relented, the madman moved. \"...Has your farce finally reached its END?\" Petelgeuse, who had kept his silence while watching the exchange between Subaru and Julius, inclined his head. His eyes were bloodshot as he pointed two bloody fingers toward the pair, creating countless vile, pitch-black hands in the process. \"And just what can you do with the addition of a single spirit knight to the fray? It is absurd that any mere spirit could hinder ME, MY path, MY love, MY diligence! You shall fall! I shall tear the others to pieces! I need only commence the trial anew! For my diligence knows no slothful surrender, nor demise!\" *** \"Ahh, AHH, ahh, Sloth, Slothslothslothslothslothslothslothsloth !!\" His tongue stretched so far that his throat seemed unable to contain it. Petelgeuse dug wounds into himself deep enough to reach bone as he shouted his premonition of death, sending his Unseen Hands to smash the pair flat in one blow. The evil hands rushing toward them exceeded a hundred, resembling a tsunami capable of covering the whole world, one that would swallow Subaru and Julius up like two pieces of driftwood, crushing them and tearing them into a thousand pieces  \" Al Clarista.\" A rainbow-colored glimmer flashed forth, mowing the onrushing Unseen Hands down in an instant. The aurora borealis danced wildly, reflecting light at seemingly random angles to create blades tracing shimmering arcs. Bathed in that glimmer, the black phantasms dispersed like mist down to their roots, and the savagery they were to wreak was permanently halted. \"...What?\" \"You should not act so surprised.\" Julius, who had swung his rainbow-imbued blade, elegantly replied to Petelgeuse's dumbfounded utterance. \"If they can touch us, we can touch them. If mutual interference is possible, a rainbow aura imbued with the six elements can cut it.\" The six types of quasi-spirits contracted with Julius all rested within the cavalier's sword, giving off rainbow hues. The glimmering aurora of his blade turned it into a beautiful and frighteningly powerful enchanted blade. However, that wasn't what was bothering Petelgeuse. The madman resentfully shook his head, his feelings of consternation causing bloody tears to flow as he pointed at Julius and spoke. \"You, YOU cannot see them. Surely you cannot. That exceeds the fact that my Unseen Hands have been cut...! That is the problem! You, you cannot, you cannot possibly see them, and yet...beyond me, they are seen by T-TWO!!\" The fact that after Subaru, Julius could also keep his Unseen Hands at bay made his teeth shake down to the molars, his face stricken less by anger and confusion than by deep, powerful fear. It was the fear of having his final refuge, the very foundation of his faith, ripped away from him. For the first time, the sight of Petelgeuse like that made Subaru feel sympathy toward him as a human being but this was overridden by a sense of accomplishment. Take that, will you? He truly, finally, had found an edge. \"A base villain like you who knows not the favor of the Witch cannot possibly see the grace granted unto me alone...!!\" Visibly spitting blood as he screamed, Petelgeuse was denying the reality before his eyes. Accordingly, Subaru taught him just what was happening, further pounding that reality home. \"I'm the one who sees them, Petelgeuse.\" \"...! What?!\" \"I'm the one who sees your Unseen Hands. Julius is just seeing what I see. It feels even ickier than I expected, though.\" This was the quintessence of Nekt, the magic to share one's thoughts. Normally the magic was used to link together the minds of human beings within Nekt's area of effect, enabling simple telepathic conversations. However, it required careful use, as befitted high-ranking magic. Once Julius had explained the dangers thus: \"If the empathy level is too high, the boundaries between the self and others become blurred, and beings become mixed with one another.\" If you mixed two minds together enough, in other words, synchronized the senses, raising the effectiveness to its highest extreme  \"It is possible to mentally maintain two persons' senses joined as one though I had certain doubts about your sanity when you first made this proposal.\" \"But we pulled it off, didn't we? When you put men and courage together, they can do anything.\" Through the power of Nekt, Subaru's and Julius's senses were completely synchronized on a deep level. That moment, through Subaru's sense of sight, Julius had to be seeing it, too the sway of Petelgeuse's countless Unseen Hands seemingly dyeing the forest black. Subaru was also aware of the mana coursing through Julius's entire body, and of the warm pulses imparted by the quasi-spirits that flowed into him. The input from the five senses was doubled in the process, creating the incredibly discordant feeling of having ten senses. \"Just to get this out of the way, I don't think we can keep this thing going for all that long.\" \"I completely agree. Even if you beg, I shall never do this for you again.\" As Subaru twisted his lips, Julius gave his words an ironic laugh as he poised his blade. With the aura-imbued cavalier's sword, even Unseen Hands, Petelgeuse's trump card, could be opposed head-on, but neither of them had any room to send a shred of pity or mercy the madman's way. \"Why you...why you, why you, whyyouwhyyouwhyyouwhyyou whyyouyouyouyouuuuuuuu!!\" Petelgeuse wailed as his unfocused bloodlust made the shadows explode. Evil hands beyond count scattered and flew in all directions, forgetting even to aim as forest, ground, and boulder were destroyed, shorn, and sent flying. The shameful sight of the madman surrendering to his basest impulses was so repulsive, it made one want to turn away, but Subaru clenched his fist tighter, not averting his eyes in the slightest. He absolutely could not avert his eyes for the remainder of the battle. From the opening to the conclusion, Subaru had to burn the battle into his eyes for both their sakes. \"Doesn't feel too good to have my fate and yours be one and the same  Let's get this over with.\" \"Yes, so we shall.\" The knight sliced away the pitch-black evil hands pouring down upon them; with a horizontal slash, he neatly sliced one onrushing hand in two. Julius watched as the arms thus burned away turned into black specks, scattering only to be swallowed by the wind and carried away. He laughed and said, \"With your eyes, I shall strike him down, Subaru Natsuki my friend.\" CHAPTER 4 *** 1 The black, overwhelmingly violent torrent bore down on them head-on, but the rainbow aurora slashed it apart. *** The sword's wielder lashed out, slicing down the oncoming evil black hands one after another. The process repeated dozens of times over. Julius's rainbow-gleaming sword was an enchanted, certain-death blade imbued with the magic of the six elements. It could even rend Petelgeuse's Unseen Hands asunder; dispersed into mist, the shadows dissipated and vanished. Subaru didn't understand the principles at work. But perhaps it was difficult to reconstitute Unseen Hands severed by the rainbow, for the shadows grew thinner as the sword blows swept away the evil hands; Petelgeuse's rage grew thicker in their stead. \"This is not amusing. This is not a joke. This is something that cannot be! For such a method, a ploy, a child's trick! To impugn! My love! My devotion...!!\" \"Not a very nice way to recruit someone...and your organizational culture looks pretty awful to me.\" The madman frothed at the corners of his mouth as his inexhaustible shadow arms pounded away. However, Julius countered the evil hands with his rainbow or evaded with his movements alone. With elegant steps the knight danced across the rocky ground, performing a sword dance as he dominated the battlefield. Even so, the evil hands knew no limits, over ten constantly bearing down upon him, pounding their malice upon him. A single sword swing could not defend against them all. Naturally, Julius's limbs took glancing hits, and a number of lacerations were carved into him. \"Ngg \" Though he was willingly on that battlefield, Subaru's shoulders leaped several times at the sharp pain. The graze of a black finger made the pain of his thigh splitting burn into his brain. For a moment he nearly let out a cry of pain, but he bit into the flesh of his cheek and endured. He strongly clenched a fist in response to the burn of his shoulder splitting. At that time, Subaru and Julius's five senses were completely synchronized via the magical sharing of their thoughts. Accordingly, Julius was able to see Unseen Hands through Subaru's vision; for his part, Subaru had become able to trust in the might of the magic sword in Julius's grasp. *** However, putting that goodwill aside, the makeshift partnership was extremely precarious. Thanks to their synchronization, both had been seeing double. When partnered as such, their vision would be constantly blurry, as if the left eye and the right eye were looking at completely separate scenes. And, as touch was included in the shared senses, not only were Julius's fighting ardor and exhilaration of battle acutely engraved into Subaru, but the pain he felt as well. There was the sight of the wind grazing his skin, the touch of his leather soles trampling the soil, the taste of blood and saliva mixed together inside his mouth, the ear-ringing sound transmitted to his brain, the smell of risking his life to the utmost, living on the edge between life and death. The numbers didn't add up. If both were bathed in the experiences of two people nonstop, it simply meant the burden was double. Taste, smell, hearing, pain, touch, sight right then, they were all a chore. The dilemma was like having an itch in a place your hand simply could not reach. Perhaps it was better described as having an itch on the back of someone else's head. \"To tell you the blunt truth, I really wanna end this right here, right now...,\" Subaru murmured, as his body pleaded for an end to the ill feeling and he wet his tongue. The dryness from the prior moments had probably been passed on to Julius. He couldn't let other physiological responses rear their ugly heads. It was hard to endure the awful feeling, even though he'd been the one to propose the plan. To think blurring the border between yourself and another meant randomly clawing away at the core of your humanity to such an extent. But"}, {"text": "he did not plead for mercy. It was impermissible. And it was no one and none other than Subaru who refused to permit it. After all... \"It seems you have grown somewhat accustomed, Subaru. Shall I increase the pace?\" \"Yeah, don't worry, I'm with you all the way!\" Countless evil hands leaped at Julius before Subaru could even reply. With a posture so low you'd think his chin would chafe against the ground, he slipped under the hands, and with a lash of his rainbow mowed all the shadows away. As those became mist, the madman sent evil hands threading the dispersing shadows, headed for Julius. But even these fell to the blow of the leaping knight's sword, beautifully blasting them apart. *** Julius elegantly proceeded through the battle, but his brilliant movements slightly faltered. Of course they did. As the handsome man flung away the remnants of the shadow coiled around his cavalier's sword, the eyes of his gallant face were closed; they had actually been closed while he was engaged in battle, unlike before combat had begun. This was to narrow the sets of vision from two to one, to achieve victory through Subaru's eyes alone. If they'd kept sharing their synchronized vision, the world's contours would have become vaguer and vaguer. Accordingly, Julius had closed his own eyes, entrusting Subaru with all visual information. Julius had made that judgment without consultation. Subaru understood that his judgment was correct. But at the same time, the true motive behind that action left Subaru indignant. \"Crazy, crazy, you've gotta be kidding me! You really are a disagreeable bastard!!\" Abandoning his own vision and making Subaru his eyes on the battlefield was putting his own life on the line, proving that he trusted Subaru not to avert his eyes from the battle. On top of that, inserting Subaru's vision into his nervous system was not nearly as simple as it sounded. One way of putting it was that it was like a third-person shooter, fighting on TV while watching himself from behind. \"This isn't a game, and it's lunatic difficulty, one hit and it's game over! Putting your life on the line like this, gotta be nuts... You and me both!\" \"I do not believe you have the time to flap your lips!\" As Subaru kept his eyes wide open, Julius kicked off the rock wall, leaping back to rejoin the boy right at his side. With a swing and a thrust, he prevented damage not only to himself, the main target, but from the stray evil hands headed for Subaru. During that time, all Subaru could do was sit tight, not averting his eyes, and gasp at the vivid display of skill. A wry smile came over Julius, eyes still closed, at Subaru's state. \"You are quite a bit of trouble. I understand you are desperately trying, but perhaps you could defend yourself a little more? I cannot face the enemy head-on like this.\" \"I'll take those words and throw 'em right back in your face! I can barely watch you cutting it that close! Or did you miss the desperate knight I was seein' through my own eyes?!\" \"I see a fine young man sad at having to keep his eyes closed. He appears to be handsome and of good upbringing.\" \"I'm starting to suspect you and I aren't looking at the same world here!!\" The two exchanged banter as they leaped away from the evil hands rushing upon them the next moment. Subaru's feet clumsily slipped, whereas Julius split the wave of shadow with his sword, elegantly slipping through the gap to advance upon the madman once more. \"Amazing.\" Rising up after falling on his backside, Subaru spontaneously voiced his admiration at the sight of Julius in battle. Midbattle, Julius had grown acclimated to the unnatural physical sensations with frightening speed, raising the accuracy and sureness of his sword to new heights. It was not a feat that knack alone could achieve. This was the experience he had gained through the pain of ferocious training, cruelly using his body to its utmost limits. This was the end result of clashing with swords and lives in the midst of battle, honing his own skill and conviction to a fine edge. Hence, without the slightest fear or doubt, he could swing his sword confident in himself. *** Unable to avert his eyes, Subaru stared at the battle, clenching a fist in fierce regret. He felt remorse at his incomparable powerlessness in that place, and at having spent day after day in idleness. That feeling joined the pile of regrets that were the difference between Subaru Natsuki then and Subaru Natsuki as he had become. It was because he was ashamed, because it burned him so, that Subaru could not avert his eyes. \" I'll be going now.\" \"Yeah, get goin'.\" It was not that he heard the whisper. But Subaru responded to Julius's words nonetheless. Grazes from the hands sent pain from the gouge in Julius's back, from his thigh, and from his dislocated shoulder slamming into Subaru's brain. Subaru gritted his teeth enough they nearly broke, for he could not avert his eyes. Rush, leap, slide, slice back, step, jump, advance, slip under, stop on a dime, glide past, circle inward, leap sideways, twist and evade, turn around, charge in, leap up, kick, leap about refined motions all. \"Impossible...\" Slice away, slice down, charge in, slice up, kick away, gliding slice, slam, sweeping slice, thrust, cleave, lash, swing down, knock down, slice away, charging slice, slice in with repeated sword blows and slices, the Unseen Hands turned to dust. \"Impossible, impossibleimpossibleimpossibleimpossible...!\" Eerie black covered the whole of the sky, yet the sight of the knight carrying on his aurora-shrouded sword dance was so beautiful, Subaru lost track of reality. The scene was so surreal that it could make you forget this was a deadly duel. That was probably because the thoughts of the quasi-spirits passed through Julius and were conducted to Subaru as well. Those girls loved Julius and in contrast, they hated the madman. They found the madman intolerable to such an extent that they could never accept him as one of their own. \"This cannot be! It cannot possibly be so! Why is it! How can this be?! MY Authority...! I am loved, I know I am loved, I am assuredly loved! And yet, to this extent, I AM being !\" \"You persist in illogical thoughts and actions. The fitness of your so-called Authority has diminished. More importantly, I have become sufficiently accustomed to this manner of fighting through Subaru's eyes.\" As Petelgeuse vented his fury, Julius thrust his sword forward, eyes still closed. \"It is finally time to cut you down in earnest. Here, I shall strike you down with my blade, and bring the long-standing menace Sloth has posed to the kingdom nay, the world to an end!\" \"As if you can! As if I will let you! I...I am! ONE such as I who has been bathed in the Witch's grace! Four hundred years! Striving diligently to make Her will a reality! Do you really think a fool like you and your fledgling spirit flunkies can defeat me...!\" Petelgeuse bared his blood-tinged teeth as he raged at Julius's words. But the madman's very rage gave Subaru conviction that the final piece needed for his anti-Sloth strategy had fallen into place. Petelgeuse's abnormal hatred toward spirits rivaled his infatuation with the Witch in fact, Subaru was counting on it. \"Julius !\" \"Understood!  Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, prepare yourself!!\" Julius stepped forward, advancing with the speed of an arrow. Petelgeuse opened his mouth, deploying his Unseen Hands with an incoherent shout. The evil hands spread through the sky, along the earth, through the forest, as they enveloped Julius to impale him from all directions  \" Al Clauzeria!!\" Circling around the chanting Julius, a swirling vortex of rainbow-hued light erased all the pitch-black evil hands from existence. The aurora burned through the world for only a second but that second was enough. In an instant, like the blink of an eye, the encircling net Petelgeuse had wrought had completely vanished. And, in so doing, opened an unobstructed path between Julius and the madman... \"Bahaa!\" Petelgeuse, struck by vestiges of the aurora and caught in the explosions of his shadows, tumbled to the earth. His crushed fingers clawed at a boulder, and the madman looked like he was about to spit up blood as he rose to his feet. Right before his eyes, Julius drew near, unleashing a sharp thrust aimed straight at the madman's breast. \"I shall...not...let YOU!  Ul Doona!\" Petelgeuse spread his arms wide, intoning a spell as he took a counterattack posture. The next moment, the earth burst upward, and stone walls, a mix of boulder fragments and black soil, enclosed the madman on four sides. The sword bounced off the rock wall. Mad laughter welled up from the other side, and Petelgeuse let Unseen Hands fly over it, slamming from Julius's blind side to deliver a serious pummeling. *** Dealing with the evil hands meant giving Petelgeuse, on the other side of the wall, an opportunity to escape. However, if he pursued Petelgeuse, he would be slain by the Authority. Either way, Julius's sword could not reach him. That is, if Julius had been waging that battle alone. \"Blaze, fighting spirit! Howl, demon ball! I've got fifty pounds of will, right here!!\" Twisting his body, raising a leg, taking a great step forward, shoulder rotating in a full swing with a speed not exactly that of a fastball, Subaru hurled the crimson magic crystal in his hand. The youth was no baseball prodigy. But he had once had a burning craving for strikeouts at the nearest batting center. His pitch control, at least, amounted to second rate. When this was combined with his concentration ability in his state of extreme observation, hitting the center of the rock wall with the magic crystal was downright easy. \"What IS...?!\" The crimson magic stone imbued with destructive energies sailed past Julius and crashed into the wall of stone and exploded in a flash of light and great heat, burying Petelgeuse's field of vision with the vermillion flames from the detonation. \"It cannot be that this, too, was your plan from the...\" \"Scorning him as powerless is the cause of your defeat!\" As Petelgeuse froze in shock, Julius's voice reached him from the other side of the flames. The next instant, Julius broke through the flames in a flying leap, burying the tip of his sword in the immobile madman. \"...aa \" His breast thus run through, the inside of Petelgeuse's entire body was charred by the rainbow aurora. Slammed into the rock wall behind him, impaled against it, Petelgeuse flailed his limbs. The madman spit out bloody froth, wept, and bared his teeth, as if unable to believe it. \"Ab...surd. Absurd, absurd, absurd...! This cannot...be happening...to ME...!\" \"The rainbow aurora has bitten into your very soul. No matter whose body you reside in, the wicked soul within shall find no escape  Now, fall to pieces at the rainbow's end!\" At Julius's voice, the glow of the cavalier's sword increased. Bathed in that light, Petelgeuse could not unleash Unseen Hands; he could only groan in agony and writhe in the unsightly manner of an insect on the brink of death. However, as Petelgeuse struggled, the madness in his eyes was undiminished. He had not given up on living. \"It ends not here! It cannot! It shall NOT!! My efforts are diligent! I shall not permit any thoughts of surrendering to laziness or sinking into SLOTH! That's why, by any means necessary...!\" The madman wailed, struggled, wriggled, and opened his tattered mouth wide as he tried to escape from the sword. Julius gazed in wonder at his implacable tenacity while twisting his sword, pouring destructive energy into the heart of his foe. If his heart was destroyed, death was inescapable  Before that point, Petelgeuse made his decision. \"Having lost all my fingers,"}, {"text": "my destruction is inescapable...BUT...BUT! BUT! There is still, one vessel, that remains for me...!\" They'd gone all over the place and preemptively taken out Petelgeuse's fingers the spare physical bodies he had brought with him. Consequently, he had to select a replacement on-site. *** His madness-suffused eyes opened wide and moved around. He looked past Julius and caught sight of Subaru. A chill ran down Subaru's spine. Simultaneously, Petelgeuse's mad laughter grew louder, deeper  \"Ahh my brain...is shaking.\" The moment after his murmur, Petelgeuse's Julius-impaled body crumpled like a marionette with its strings cut. Light faded from its eyes, and its limbs drooped, all signs of life falling from them. The time had come. Subaru thrust a hand into his pocket and shouted to Julius. \"Julius! Release!\" \"Acknowledged!\" Responding to Subaru's call, Julius released Nekt just as they had arranged. As a result, Subaru was instantly freed from the ill feeling of two layers of five senses but didn't even have time to breathe. For next, in place of Julius's five senses, came a foreign existence, overwriting the impudent Subaru. Stuffed into his chest, the invisible entity robbed him of his right to control his own body and its shrill, earsplitting laughter echoed inside Subaru's own skull. Subaru proceeded to bend exaggeratedly backward, opening his eyes and mouth to their utmost in acclamation. \"I. Knew. It! This flesh is a vessel with the capacity to hold ME! And with no way to stop ME! No way to impede my path! AHH, ahh, you, were LAZY!\" Petelgeuse's existence felt so close, it was as if they were sitting side by side in the same brain. This was the final stage of Possession with his fingers lost, Petelgeuse had moved to take over Subaru's body. Subaru had no way to resist that savage blow. He'd lost the freedom of his body as the madman consumed his mind. \"Now this is the body of YOUR friend, yes! Can a knight aspiring to noble virtues bring himself to cut it down?!\" Having taken Subaru as a hostage, Petelgeuse licked Subaru's face with his own tongue. The words caused Julius, looking ready to rush over, to halt his feet as he spoke. \"Certainly, I cannot bring myself to cut him down.\" \"Then !!\" \"Accordingly...\" As Julius spun the quiet word, he showed the madman his own left hand. He held a glowing conversation mirror in the hand opposite to that gripping his cavalier's sword. Subaru had passed Julius the mirror in his pocket the instant Subaru was being possessed. Its glowing surface displayed a cat-eared knight who had been observing the battle since the outset. \"Now it is your turn, Ferris!\" \"Subawu, you big fat idiot for making me do this! I'm going to rip you to pieces later!\" When Julius addressed Ferris through the conversation mirror, the latter's voice sharpened to a point. The ill omen made Subaru/Petelgeuse's eyes open wide, and in accordance with that premonition, Ferris carried out the attack. However, with his actions having been read through Return by Death, there was nothing he could do  \"Unseen......?! GaAaaaaaH?!\" The instant he tried to unleash the Authority, Subaru/Petelgeuse screamed so much, it seemed his throat would burst. The cause was an explosion inside the body that released a torrent of unfathomably vast heat and anguish. With a wobble, Subaru's body lost its strength and, still feeling hot all over, collapsed onto the ground. His skull felt like a sauna within which his brain was boiling, with his scalded mind cutting in and out over and over. And Petelgeuse, sharing his flesh, had shared that very bitter taste. \"A...ga...haa... What...what...happ...?\" Having experienced the novel anguish of having his brain sterilized through boiling, Petelgeuse moaned, his confusion plain. Subaru, clawing together his mental strength, stuck his tongue out at the abominable soul that was his roommate as he answered. \"If the body you take over ain't...in good shape, you can't...do a thing, can you?\" \"It cannot be...it c?a?n?n?o?t?c?a?n?n?o?t?c?a?n?n?o?t?c?a?n?n?o?t?c?a?n?n?n?o?o?o?o?o?o?t?t?t?t?t?t?t?tt...be! YOU, you expected ME to shift to your body?!\" You bet! Subaru grandly stated as Petelgeuse expressed shock inside his brain. They were two minds in one body. It felt odd for Subaru's declaration to leave Subaru speechless. On the inside, Subaru apologized over the conversation mirror to Ferris for foisting such a distasteful task upon him.  For it was Ferris, on the other side of the conversation mirror, whose spell had robbed Subaru's body of its freedom. For the purpose of healing, Ferris had interfered with Subaru's Gate, making it possible for him to make the mana inside Subaru's body go berserk through use of water magic. Indeed, it was he who had delivered fatal damage to Subaru the last time around when Petelgeuse had possessed Subaru's body. He'd made Ferris, proud of his power as a healer, use that power to take a human life. And yet, Subaru had asked him to use that power in such a fashion once more, so as to lay the final trap. \"So thanks to that last request, this body's no good, either... So ready to give up yet?\" \"Give up? Give in? As if I would surrender! At this rate, I will rob your flesh, and it will be me, by me, for me, only me me, me, ME?!\" Beyond his normal madness and fury, Petelgeuse, in a true sense, had begun to go insane. To so great an extent his moves had been read in advance, his plans thwarted, yet even so, Petelgeuse wailed while tenaciously clinging to his delusions; and Subaru, even as he tasted the suffering of his blood boiling within his body, hardened his resolve. \"At this rate, I'll die...and that'll be traumatic for Ferris... I don't wanna die, either, so I'm gonna settle things with you. We're just gonna do it my way...\" \"What, are...more, unto me! What more, DO you seek from me?!\" Petelgeuse's voice shook; he was aghast at Subaru's words, words that foretold what was coming. That moment, with Petelgeuse sitting right next to him in his brain, he knew. The madman was closer to him than he needed to be, conveying his fear and denial so much that it hurt. The same went for him. Hence, he knew that Subaru's resolve was the real deal. \"Are you scared? Now, after all the things that you've done?\" \"All unto love! All to repay Her favor! What do you know about ME?! All YOU have done is interfere and obstruct my path! What is it with YOU?!\" Petelgeuse knew not Subaru's true identity. He was simply afraid. The madman did not understand whence sprung the hatred Subaru bore toward him. Subaru and Petelgeuse's lives had never crossed, not even once. At the very least, that was true as far as he was concerned. \"Your actions are simply out of irrational resentment...misplaced to the EXTREME!!\" \"...There's no point talking to you anymore. Even among human beings, there are people you can't have a frank conversation with. That goes double if you're not even a human being.\" *** Subaru's voice, tinged with disappointment and understanding, sent Petelgeuse into shock. The madman's reaction was raw, for Subaru's declaration had penetrated his stupor to strike at the truth. \"What. Are. You... Are you saying...you know about ME?!\" \"The fact I lured you to this rocky place should've made you imagine a nut being cracked  It's a place only for proper spirit mages and this is flattering myself people qualified to become 'em.\" This was the final condition for Possession that the conversation between Subaru and Julius had uncovered  \"Forcing a pact onto a human being qualified to be a spirit mage and takin' over their bodies. That's the truth behind your Possession, Archbishop of...no, spirit, Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti!\" \"You dare !!\" When his true nature was exposed in a loud, brash voice, Petelgeuse, lurking inside Subaru, forgot his fear and shouted back. Subaru had realized Petelgeuse's true nature when in thought in the middle of the Possession incident the last time around. The real tip-off was Ia, the quasi-spirit. Last time around, Ia ought to have been residing in Subaru's body, but the instant Petelgeuse possessed him, she was shot out of Subaru. That unnatural occurrence led him to broaden his speculation. It was for this reason Subaru began to suspect that his hatred of spirits and of the spirit mages employing them was hatred of his own kind. Petelgeuse's Possession was an irregular pact, the effect of Petelgeuse himself being an evil spirit. Accordingly, he saw spirit mages, which already had formal pacts with spirits, as his enemies. Even if he could hijack a provisional pact, he could not do so to a formal one. That was why spirit mages were his mortal enemies. It was because of Julius's sword, and the power resting within it, that Subaru had selected him for the decisive battle  \"Wow, getting ticked at me hitting the bull's-eye. Maybe while possessing people their humanity rubbed off on you?\" \"Silence! Do not! Do not compare ME to spirits! Do not put me together with such lowly beings! I am a being beyond that of spirits! I am a chosen being surpassing mere spirits, abandoning vague self-consciousness and granted an objective through Her favor! What do YOU know about me?!!\" Petelgeuse vented, forgetting all about the flesh he had taken over as his rage and hatred exceeded all limits. Ironically, the contents of his words only bolstered Subaru's deductions, and the more he denied it, the deeper he dug his own grave. \"Love has changed ME! Love has given me will, a reason to exist! This, and everything, is by the grace of the Witch! The Witch's favor! Thus! Thusthusthusthusthusthus! I must offer this body, this soul, everything to the WITCH!\" \"You can save the sermon, Lord Archbishop I'll grant you an audience, then...just for you.\" \"What?! With whom?! Of what do you speak?!\" \"Why, the great Witch you've been waiting for.\" Root and branch, Subaru's statement blew Petelgeuse's fierce emotions away. What remained was shock and bewilderment, and for the first time, Subaru had a glimpse of the underside of Petelgeuse's madness. As the mad thoughts went blank, Subaru turned toward them, choosing that moment to be the one to draw near. \" I've Returned by Death...\" The instant he spoke the forbidden words, the world lost its color, and all motion came to a stop. And then it came for Subaru. 2 The world that greeted him was dominated by darkness, and darkness alone. It was a hazy space, a world of nothing, an empty vacuum where even his own body did not exist. Whether his body existed or not was unimportant; it was a world where existence or nonexistence held no meaning, a world where you knew not if you even had a soul. There was a sense of oblivion alone, and there was a blissful, familiar feel to that oblivion. If he could feel anything at all in that place, he could somehow make out his own existence. Within that darkness, where even his mind was hazy, there suddenly came a change, and the world's ambiance shifted. *** In that world without light, there was a pitch-black figure blotting out even that darkness. It was a woman. He could grasp that at least. Her face and the contours of her body were so uncertain, he could not be sure of anything about them. And yet his heart seethed. This chance meeting with her no, not a chance meeting; this was a reunion. This was blessing, this was grace, this was gospel this was true love. His lack of fingers irritated him. He wanted to walk over and take her hand that very instant. His lack of a mouth irritated him. He wanted to lavish words upon her to express his feelings. His lack of a body irritated him. If she so desired, he would offer her blood, bone, flesh all of it. His being only a soul irritated him, for he had but that single thing to offer her. *** As before, she continued"}, {"text": "to hold her silence. But her mind had certainly shifted in his direction. That was enough. Being in a world where she paid heed to his existence felt as good as if he had ascended to heaven. And his soul, yearning for love for so long, would be hers, forever  \" This is wrong.\" The voice was tinged with disappointment and despondency. He had prepared to receive her first words with supreme bliss, whatever they might be. Yet the instant he heard her voice, it created a shadow of worry that made his entire being tremble. Why did it feel like this? Here, in the place that would surely grant the love that he sought... \" You are not him.\" Her disappointment deepened, her ardor dissipated, and finally her despondency changed into another emotion anger. \"Why is someone not him here, in our place ?\" The voice shook with anger. The angry, hateful, accursed words rejected the soul, ripping it into pieces. Unable to grasp the reason for her pushing him away...unable to accept the reality that she truly detested him, and that his love could never reach her...he desperately sought words of sadness and lament, a voice that he could exhaust to assuage her heart. But he had no mouth to use to form such words, nor fingers nor a body to act out his will. All he had in that place was his soul and she had rejected him, not permitting him to offer even that. \" Begone.\" The bewilderment, consternation, and grief of his thoughts never reached her. They were meaningless, for to her he was worthless, meaningless, and idle. Bathed in rejection and repudiation, he accepted his despair; the misery shattered his soul. Torn away from the framework of the world, his mind was cut from it; and so he sank far, far away, the reunion he had so yearned for...severed. The sight of her grew distant. She, whom he had so much, so greatly, so earnestly yearned for, vanished into the ether. But she no longer cared about such laments. She merely gazed silently, earnestly, into the pitch blackness  \"I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you \" It was not to anyone present, but someone elsewhere, to whom she continued innocently whispering her love. 3 \" Aaagaah! I'm baaack!!\" Liberated from the agony he'd thought would last forever, Subaru's mind caught up to the speed of reality. The pain of his heart's being mercilessly squeezed was the strict penalty for speaking that which was taboo. The hands wrought from black shadow they greatly resembled Petelgeuse's Authority, a fact likely related to the Witch. Return by Death probably had something to do with some fated connection between Subaru and the Witch of Jealousy. Or perhaps it had something to do with Subaru's being summoned to another world in the first place. \"Either way, I'll find an explanation someday... But right now...!\" Brushing his misgivings aside, Subaru moved his cramping limbs and rose to his feet. He vigorously used a sleeve to rub grimy drool off his cheek, practically gluing himself to the boulder right next to him as he climbed upward. Then, as the foreign element purportedly in him vanished, he shifted his eyes toward the rock face. \"...How...can...this...BE...?!\" Subaru saw Petelgeuse there, crawling in a pool of blood. Having returned to his own corpselike body, Petelgeuse dragged it forward as he wept, leaving a trail of blood in its wake. He had abandoned Possession of Subaru, breaking the forced pact, his mind returning to his own body. Having shared Subaru's body, he had to have suffered the same penalty from divulging Return by Death. In a possessed state, pain was shared, too. Subaru had identified his comparative endurance as his final trump card against Petelgeuse. \"Worst case, I was ready to do that over and over till you tapped out...but you gave up after just once. No guts, huh?\" Wheezing while boasting of victory, the bluffing Subaru felt strength drain from his legs. But he used a branch behind him to support his tottering body, giving a snort toward the side of the face of the man standing beside him. The knight Julius gave a pained smile at his demeanor, swinging his sword and turning it toward Petelgeuse. \"This time, we finish this.\" There was a pale glow along the blade of his bloodied cavalier's sword as the quasi-spirits shrouded the edge in a rainbow aurora once more. With the rainbow sword, able to cut all things, resting in his hand, Julius stared straight at Petelgeuse. \"I love...love, my love... My love is...\" Mumbling words over and over, now lacking the strength even to crawl, Petelgeuse did not notice Julius. Even if he had, it surely would not have changed anything. Blood did not stop coming out of the wound where his chest had been impaled, and the ashen-pale look over his face was that of despair and death. *** Finally, in front of the sheer cliff, the madman set his back against a boulder and turned his head. Having lost the willpower to even act disturbed, Petelgeuse looked at Julius with a dumbfounded expression. His gaze proceeded to lower, shifting toward Subaru, standing behind the knight whereupon he suddenly exploded into emotion. \"Why, why...WHY?!!\" Tears flowed from his wide-open eyes. The hot droplets drenched his cheeks. These were not the tears of joy Subaru had seen from him several times; they simply reflected the extent of the rage and remorse pouring out of him. They were proof of an unsalvageable delusion proof that the madman's dream had been shattered. Petelgeuse wept, looked up to the heavens, tried to clench something that could not be seen, and shouted  \"O Witch...O Witch! O Witch!! I have given this much to YOU! I have done so much for You! Why, why have You forsaken ME?! Why?! Why is it?! O Witch! If it is so, then MY love... Your favor...?!\" \"What you offered her wasn't your own love or faith, or even your own body. You were just offering up the people who happened to be passing by you.\" Petelgeuse lamented as if clinging on, searching for salvation, when Subaru's words cut him down. It wasn't worth listening to a word from him. Petelgeuse was just a self-righteous creep indulging in unrequited love. Wilhelm had said as much that it was absurd to call this love. Shiii ! Julius sprinted, his sword homing in on Petelgeuse's slender frame. The only things Petelgeuse turned toward the swinging, rising sword were teary, misty, wistful eyes. A rainbow-colored sword blow struck his chest for the second time, and the torrent of light burst within him. The accumulation of mana that was the true body of Petelgeuse the evil spirit grafting itself to the bodies of others, feasting upon their Odo was scorched to the core by the brilliantly colored glow. When the cavalier's sword came out, Petelgeuse looked down, dazed, as hot blood poured out of his chest. Then, he trained his unfocused eyes overhead, stretching a hand toward the heavens. \" My brain...trem...bles.\" From his slender shadow, he unleashed a single Unseen Hand toward the heavens above. It stretched farther and farther, as if aiming for the dazzling sun above. However, that hand grasped nothing, heading for thin air before finally leaving a large gouge in the sheer cliff, sending large cracks running along the rock face. He probably hadn't done it on purpose. To Petelgeuse, it was a meaningless act. It was an impulse driven by one final delusion. *** A rock slide occurred above Petelgeuse's head. Giant fragments of the gouged rock face split off and fell. Directly below was Petelgeuse, seeking the heavens, and in the end unable to grasp anything  \"She never loved m \" The mass of rock crushed his flesh, and there was a grand sound of flesh and bone being squished. There was a string of rumbles as dust was blown upward from the impact, and in an instant Petelgeuse was crushed, buried by his own hand under the rubble that would serve as his tombstone. Having escaped from the peril of the rock slide, Julius walked over to where Petelgeuse surely lay. At the end of his gaze, a large quantity of blood was pouring out from under the boulders. Upon seeing this, he shook his head, returning the cavalier sword in his hand to its scabbard. *** Subaru too walked forward, not speaking a single word. Then, when Subaru stood in front of the tombstone, he made a small sigh. It was not a sigh of admiration, or a sense of achievement, or satisfaction. He knew that the only thing spreading within his chest was a deep sense of emptiness. Subaru would not sully that time and place by speaking of crude concepts such as victory and defeat. But he did voice the words that came to the back of his numbed brain. \"Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti.\" That single phrase would serve as the marker for the end of that battle. Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult, charged with Sloth. He who had battled Julius Eucleus, \"The Finest of Knights,\" and Subaru Natsuki, the Self-Declared Knight. Before the rubble that was his tombstone, Subaru exhaled a little, and said this: \"Man, you were lazy.\" CHAPTER 5 *** 1 Having tossed his final words toward the tombstone, Subaru turned his back upon the madman. When he turned around, he saw Julius, one eye closed, and Patlash, standing beside him with a composed expression. Both were wounded all over, but their considerable mental strength meant they didn't let it show. That said, their mental and physical depletion was severe, and that sense of fatigue was beyond their capacity to conceal. \"Well, not like I'm one to talk. Even if it was for just a second, I let him get in my body and all.\" The side effects of Possession by Petelgeuse the evil spirit were utterly unclear. He dearly hoped he wouldn't suddenly wake up covered in blood from subconsciously self-inflicted wounds. In contrast to such absurd thoughts, Subaru was surprised at the oddly despondent feeling within himself. This was Petelgeuse, the most fearsome foe he'd faced since being summoned to another world. Even with him defeated, the sense of loss inside Subaru's chest outweighed any sense of accomplishment. \"This has to be just burnout. I don't feel sad for him biting the dust one little bit... Stupid, stupid.\" After those words to himself, he slapped his own cheek, using the pain to switch gears away from such soft thoughts. They had defeated Petelgeuse. However, Subaru's goals did not end there. The largest task remained: patching up his relationship with Emilia. Starting with the breakup in the royal capital, he'd allied them with the Crusch camp, defeated the White Whale, battled the Witch Cult, and used a white lie to get Emilia and the others to evacuate once he finished all the follow-up, including explaining after the fact, only then would this string of affairs be concluded. Beyond his overusing his body, the various events had left him mentally depleted. \"But no one's been maimed, no one's been killed. This is way better. You realize for the first time how precious peaceful days are when you lose... Nah, I thought that from the start, actually.\" Even Subaru, who thought peace and security came first, could not escape irrationality's ire. That said, the turbulent times had largely calmed. When Subaru turned his head, he shifted it from Julius and Patlash toward Petelgeuse and then his feet stopped in midstride. The reason: a single"}, {"text": "book resting atop the blood trail Petelgeuse had left while crawling. \" His Gospel, huh?\" He must have dropped it in his dying moments, for the pages of the Gospel were sullied by blood and grime. Subaru picked it up and flipped through the pages to be sure. Just like before, the contents looked like a bunch of hieroglyphics to Subaru's eyes. The latter half was filled with blank pages, and at any rate, there was no way to ask Petelgeuse about the contents now that he was dead. \"Best to just grab it and talk to Crusch and Roswaal about it later, huh?\" Furthermore, his goodwill toward Roswaal was insufficient to give him the first crack at it. His current absence spoke volumes, so in spite of Roswaal's being an ally, Subaru's trust in him was at its nadir. He wanted to hope Roswaal would make up for it later. \" Subaru.\" As the boy contemplated how to deal with the Gospel, Julius approached him. When Subaru lifted his face at the voice, Julius's brows were knotted with a grave expression. It was an ill omen. And, as if to bolster Subaru's premonition, Julius straightened up and spoke. \"I know we just settled things here, but let us return to the village immediately. A problem has arisen.\" \"...I've got one hell of a bad feeling about this. What happened?\" \"I have received word from Ferris.\" As he spoke, he lifted up the glowing conversation mirror. The mirror's surface was connected to Ferris on the other end. Julius glanced at it, wariness evident in his handsome yellow eyes as he spoke. \"There is apparently something disturbing about cargo aboard the dragon carriages used to evacuate Lady Emilia is in danger.\" And thus, he spoke the explosive words that turned every presumption on its head. 2 When Subaru and Julius arrived back at Earlham Village, the returning expeditionary force had already assembled inside the village. They noticed the approaching pair, thanking them for the feat of striking down the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. However, even as they grandly lifted their fists in celebration, thick tension remained in the air around them. \"Not exactly the mood for a victory party to celebrate the mission's success. If something happened, tell us already!\" \"Yes, yes, of course. But first, I need to check both of your wounds.\" Responding to Subaru's search for an explanation, Ferris slipped past the ring of gathered men. Ferris was smiling, but there was sweat on his forehead, and his Royal Guardsman uniform was terribly stained with blood. When his attire took Subaru by surprise, Ferris said, \"Ahh...\" and nodded as he explained, \"It's all right, it's not Ferri's blood. It just got messy during healing. Besides, no one here's as badly wounded as he looks. We had wounded, but no fatalities.\" \"That's good news... Anyway, leave me for later! Do Julius first.\" \"I can handle your wounds with one hand, meow. Looks like I need to take Julius's seriously, though.\" Asserting that Subaru's wounds were light, Ferris waved a hand over them and activated his healing magic. With a ticklish feeling, the wounds were healed, and even the pain taken away, in the span of a mere ten seconds, the sort of feat expected of him. \"Okay, we're done, Subawu. As for Julius... Oh my, that looks painful. Come on, strip off your coat.\" \"Please be gentle.\" Julius's reply was crisp, but his wounds appeared deep. It was clear from the grimace on Ferris's face as he examined the wounds that convalescence would take a fair bit of time. \"Your job's finished. Be a good boy and rest... Anyway, Ferris, the other thing. What happened with that cargo...?\" Subaru glanced at the start of Julius's treatment, his feelings distant as he changed the subject. Ferris, receiving the question as he employed his healing magic, straightened up. \"Mm, I know. But I think it's best you speak to the one who noticed first... Oh, Otto!\" Subaru's eyes went wide at Ferris's mention of the unexpected name as the crowd parted in front of him. A young, ashen-haired man practically fell forward as he leaped, slipping through the gap between the knights... \"Otto?\" \"Mr. Natsuki! I have been awaiting your return!\" Otto rushed over, his breath labored. He seemed rather agitated as he looked between Subaru and Julius, patting his chest in relief that both were safe. \"First, it is good that you are safe. To be frank, I believed fighting a Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins to be nothing short of suicide, but... Ah! More importantly, there is something I must speak with you about!\" \"Calm down! Take your time and explain. But keep it to a brief summary of the main points.\" \"Such difficult conditions...! Anyway, this is about the cargo. Actually, I found something odd when checking the list.\" \"List, you mean of the traveling merchant freight that was left in the village? What was odd about it?\" Otto lowered his voice as he hastily unfolded the list of trade goods he was holding against his chest. Then he flipped to a certain page and spoke. \"Sir Kety...I do not know if that is his real name, but the traveling merchant, Kety Muttat. It would appear he was captured as a spy for the Witch Cult, but...\" \"Yeah, I know about him  I see, you knew him personally, didn't you?\" Subaru knew from previous go-arounds that Kety and Otto had come into contact with each other any number of times. Otto had to be in shock that someone he knew had been in the Witch Cult. But Otto did not linger on that part; rather, he moved forward, drawing even closer to Subaru. \"Sir Kety being a Witch Cultist surprised me, and it is most unfortunate. But that is not the issue  You used his dragon carriage to evacuate the villagers, yes?\" \" ? Yeah, I used it. Owner aside, the dragon carriage did no wrong. I didn't have the luxury of leaving a usable dragon carriage behind, so I had to use it to get everyone out.\" \"And the cargo unloaded from the dragon carriage is as I see recorded on this list, yes?\" \"It should be...\" Subaru nodded as misgivings crept in about why Otto was so focused on the minutiae. \"I thought so,\" said Otto, certainty on his face as he continued to speak to the nervous Subaru, his voice hardening. \"When I compared the list to the freight, there is something missing that ought to be in the village.\" \"Missing?\" \"A large quantity of fire magic crystals Sir Kety's dragon carriage was hauling is missing a quantity sufficient to blow seven or eight dragon carriages apart cannot simply vanish into thin air.\" 3 Kety's dragon carriage was headed to the Sanctuary. Rather, it was being used by the evacuation group taking Emilia and others to the royal capital. When Subaru confirmed the distribution of dragon carriages after his talk with Otto, he came to a conclusion. There had been three Witch Cultists hidden among the traveling merchants. Once they'd lost their owners, expeditionary force members had taken their carriages; Subaru distinctly remembered that the carriage Emilia had boarded was one of those three. \"Those magic crystals on the list...they were really loaded aboard? I just have to say, relying on a list from a Witch Cultist is a little...\" \"The frightening thing about Witch Cultists is that they melt into everyday life only to become poison when you least expect it. They act as is appropriate for their false identities... You are merely closing your eyes because you do not wish to see, Subaru.\" \"Even here you whip out the logical...... I know. I'm in the wrong.\" Julius sternly thrust reality into the nervous Subaru's face. Ferris glanced at Subaru as he prudently abandoned a reflexive retort, turning his eyes toward Otto as he spoke. \"It was Otto who noticed the discrepancy between the list and the freight...but he had another reason, too.\" \"Yes. All the other freight matches except for the magic crystals, after all...and actually, I have seen the crystals myself.\" \"You saw that there were magic crystals loaded aboard?! When?!\" When Otto named himself as a witness, Subaru pointed a finger at him in disbelief. \"It was...back when dragon carriages were being recruited for the evacuation. I was with Sir Kety when I heard the offer. Then everyone was in a great hurry to be the first out of the gate, and as they made predeparture plans for the journey......I sneaked a peek at what he was carrying.\" \"Man, can't take my eyes off you for a second... You really had it coming, didn't you?\" \"Isn't that a little too mean?! Anyway, I saw them with my very own eyes. As for the quality...because they are absent, I am the only one who can attest to the menace they pose, but...\" As the explanation came to a conclusion, Subaru grimaced as he looked at Julius and Ferris. However, even their expressions were grave; in particular, Julius's anger toward himself was evident. Subaru, too, understood well the anger he bore. \"Shit, I missed it! This is what I get for being a cheapskate and using whatever I can lay my hands on!\" \"I checked to make sure they had no trigger via enchantment...but I overlooked that a physical trigger might have been left in the dragon carriage itself. I am sorry, this is my mistake.\" \"It's not your fault...it's mine for not realizing.\" Julius's caution regarding magical traps was no doubt impeccable. If he was taking care of that end, Subaru had to be the one to realize there was a physical trigger. But what hurt more than anything was that Subaru had personally experienced that dragon carriage's explosion the last time around. Back then, Kety's true identity came out when Petelgeuse used Possession on him, and Subaru and Ferris were caught in the explosion. After, when he learned that the fingers had an explosion enchantment embedded in them for killing themselves, he'd assumed that the explosion had been that enchantment at work  \"That explosion wasn't an enchantment, it was the dragon carriage's trigger...and this time, it's a dragon carriage used in the evacuation.\" Rigging his dragon carriage with magic crystals was a highly effective emergency measure in case Kety was exposed as a Witch Cultist. He'd be able to inflict great damage on the expeditionary force, turning the tide of battle in his allies' favor. Considering the monomaniacal malice of the Witch Cult, it was a scenario that was easy to accept. \"Ferris! If we rush over by land dragon, can we catch up to the evacuation group heading for the capital?!\" \"That might be difficult. It's been an hour and a half since Lady Emilia and the others left... To ensure the Witch Cult wouldn't spot them, they didn't kick up a storm, but they're not moving at a leisurely pace, either.\" Of the two evacuation groups, the one making a run for the Liphas Highway was relying on speed. Once that group left the Mathers domain and reached the highway, it would be even harder to catch up to it. But if they didn't do anything about the booby trap, Emilia and the children would pay the price  \"It's still not enough? After all this, and I still can't...\" Would the fates of people precious to him be decided in a place beyond his reach? No matter how much effort Subaru exhausted against Fate, snares were laid by this hand or that hand. It was as if all the paths for Subaru to walk had been meticulously paved with thorns. But just as Subaru felt himself entwined by the irrationalities of Fate  \"May I speak to you for a moment, Mr. Natsuki?\" With a serious look on his face, Otto raised a hand and interrupted Subaru's unease. Determination rested in his eyes; the frail words of before seemed to have come"}, {"text": "from a completely different person. But Subaru remembered that look on his face. On a previous go-around, when in a true sense he had met Otto for the first time, and Subaru had brought the thoroughly plastered Otto a business offer, he'd put on his merchant face just as he was doing now. In other words  \"This means you want to make some kind of deal with me, Otto?\" \"What a perceptive man, something I do not mind at all. Mr. Natsuki, right now I am on the edge of a considerable precipice. The cargo on my dragon carriage is now worth less than dirt! And tragically, the opportunity to turn it all around has slipped through my fingers! To be blunt, I cannot laugh off a deal upon which I wager my life.\" From what Subaru had heard, the disastrous circumstances afflicting Otto were more comedy than tragedy, but he had no time to poke fun at them. Subaru nodded, prodding Otto to continue. Subaru's demeanor made Otto close his eyes for a single moment; then he made his proposal. \"Let us make a deal. If you accede to my conditions, I promise to exhaust all my spirit to get you to your destination and catch up to the dragon carriage at issue.\" \"You can catch up to them if we leave right now?! How?!\" \"Before we speak of that, I want your firm pledge that you will accept my conditions. What I am offering is my trump card, so I cannot easily speak of it...even under duress.\" \"Just say what your conditions are! If they're in my power I'll do whatever you want!\" After Otto carefully selected his words, Subaru grasped his shoulders, demanding to hear further. He'd already repeated that world four times over. He'd struck down the White Whale, dispatched the Witch Cult, cleared most of the conditions for getting what he was after; having come this far, he refused to let it all go to waste. If it was only one more step, he'd overcome it with a pinch of guts and grit. \"You decide quickly. I do not mind this, either.\" Cold sweat broke out on Otto's brow as he formed a smile at Subaru's immediate decision. The negotiations taking place that instant were a seminal event that would determine the course of his life. Subaru's snap decision after the briefest of pauses surprised Otto, but he immediately tossed his conflicted feelings aside. And then  \"As my reward, I want you to arrange an audience between me and Marquis Mathers. Also, you will purchase all the oil I am carrying...and I shall name my price. How about it?\" Narrowing his eyes, Otto put on his merchant's face as he spoke, seemingly testing Subaru. Coming out with your maximum demand at the outset and haggling down from there was Negotiation 101. Taking advantage of exigent circumstances was playing the merchant by the book. From there, Subaru and Otto began their fierce battle of negotiation  \"You're still hung up on that?! All right, I'll buy all your oil or whatever, and if you wanna meet that perverted clown, I'll do whatever it takes! It's a deal!\" \"Eh?! What the ? You're scaring me!\" The negotiations began on the same note as the previous time around, and ended the same way as well once more, Subaru fully accepted the terms of the deal upon which Otto had wagered their fates. Whether he would think of an unearned win through the opponent's resignation as something to be proud of was another matter entirely. 4 \"I shall have Ia accompany you. She should be able to locate the magic crystals the dragon carriage is rigged with.\" With those words, Julius once again handed his red quasi-spirit companion to Subaru. Just like before, the faintly glowing quasi-spirit synchronized with Subaru's Gate and vanished from sight. \"That's a big help, but won't she get angry at your lending her out that easily?\" \"It appears that Ia is quite fond of you. Besides, I wish to avoid any regrets from sending only one as ill-versed as you. I really would like to go myself, but...\" There, Julius's words cut off as his refined face bore an air of regret. But Ferris, right beside him, puffed up his cheeks in exasperation as he continued casting healing magic. \"Sit tight and stop saying stupid things. You're completely out of mana, so you're useless anyway!\" \"This is what I get for borrowing the buds' power. I can only rue the limits of my abilities.\" \"Coming from you, that's just sarcasm. Anyway, I'm grateful you lent me the spirit. Beyond that...\" Having accepted the spirit on loan, Subaru thrust a finger at Julius, fully immersed in the last of his treatment. \"After all this is done, we're having a banquet to celebrate busting the White Whale and the Witch Cult. You're invited, so don't go dying on me.\" \"So if I am murdered here, you and Ferris are the culprits. It is an easy-to-understand situation, then.\" \"Well aren't you two getting along, meow. Hey, get going and catch up to Lady Emilia already!\" Glaring at the lighthearted exchange, Ferris pointed toward the entrance to the village. Taking the hint from the pair, Subaru gave a thumbs-up and set off running. \"I expect your utmost efforts.\" \"Just watch out, okay? I can heal you if you don't die, but if you bite the dust there's nothing I can do.\" Subaru waved a hand toward the voices of support and met up with Otto at the village entrance. Otto was preparing for the pursuit by hitching Patlash and his favorite dragon to his own dragon carriage. It'd be a midsize dragon carriage with a canopied wagon with two heads drawing it that was how they'd catch up to Emilia and the others who'd left first. \"You have not forgotten anything? Time is precious, so let us set off.\" \"Yeah. I'm counting on you for route navigation and all the other little stuff, Otto!\" The two nodded to each other and climbed into the driver's seat together. In front, there was a fair bit of a size difference between the two land dragons drawing the carriage. Subaru was concerned about the slender Patlash's inferior size, but... \"Land dragons have the wind repel blessing, so a certain difference in size is not a hindrance. They are also both females, and I have not heard any particular friction between them.\" Seeing the doubts on the side of Subaru's face, Otto explained thus as he took the reins. The way he used the word heard made Subaru let out a little \"Hmmm.\" \"What is it?\" \"Ah, nothing, I just thought that blessings are amazing things. I was thinking of them kinda like talents, but I was surprised there was a Dr. Doolittle one, too.\" \"A veterinarian? I see what you are saying, but blessing bearers go through considerable difficulties of their own. In particular, I could not control my language blessing very well when I was at a young age.\" When Subaru voiced his admiration, Otto made something of a pained smile as he spoke of his own blessing. The language blessing essentially allowed a person capable of conversing with any living thing. He would employ the power of his blessing to catch up with Emilia and the others that was his end of the deal. \"At first, I was wondering how the heck you'd use this blessing to catch up with them, but...\" \"I will speak to the birds and insects along the way to determine the shortest route. It will be hard on Fulfew, my land dragon, but we will charge through, be it game trails, poor roads, cliffs, or swamps.\" Otto had reached the Mathers domain ahead of other merchants by plowing through paths that were not paths. As he was extremely short on luck, this had resulted in his becoming a prisoner of the Witch Cult. Regardless, borrowing the power of his blessing  \"We'll catch up to Emilia and the rest up on ahead. Easy win.\" \"No, I would not deem it an easy victory...... It is quite possible we will catch up. In the first place, there is actually nothing in the terms agreed to earlier that guarantees we will catch up to...\" \"We'll catch up to Emilia and the rest up on ahead. Easy win !\" \"It really puts me a bind if you say it with a smiling face like that, you know?!\" Though Otto shouted under the weight of that trust, nothing was served by weak musings at that point. Subaru's smile vanished as he bowed his head to Otto with a serious expression. \"I'm counting on you, Otto. You're the only one I can rely on.\" \"...Those truly sound like last words, damn it.\" Faced with Subaru's meek demeanor, Otto spoke with chagrin and sighed with an air of resignation. Then he gripped the reins and strongly issued a command toward the two land dragons. They picked up speed. \"Oh, fine, I'll do it, I'll do it! I'm making money from this, so if I work myself to the bone, I owe you that much !\" In accordance with the desperate Otto, the dragon carriage ran at extraordinary speed, onward and onward. Subaru, strongly sensing that speed, began to hallucinate, seeing Emilia and the others on the road ahead. It was their backs he was racing to catch up to. But then  \"Er ?!\" With a sudden start, the dragon carriage left the road, plunging into the forest down a game trail. The ride was so bumpy that even the wind repel blessing could not wholly protect him. Subaru stared at the trail as the dragon carriage barreled down it, beginning to take a series of literal shortcuts. Afterward, Subaru resigned himself to death numerous times as they ran along bad road after bad road. Having already died ten-odd times since being summoned to another world, Subaru knew, without a single speck of exaggeration, his rocky ride with Otto was reckless, grazing past death at every turn. They engaged in the thoroughly suicidal behavior of running down a nearly vertical cliff, charged across an old rope bridge that seemed on the verge of falling at any moment (which, in fact, fell just after they had crossed), and when barreling through a demon beast habitat zone were pursued by a particularly fierce pack of ferocious beasts; Subaru had no time to count the number of times they'd wagered their lives. \"I'm a goner... This is finally gonna kill me for sure... End of the road...!\" \"What is it? We are moving at an incredible pace. To be honest, even I did not think I could come this far... So this is the latent power of a human being with no tomorrow...!\" Beside Subaru, who was clinging to the driver's seat with a blue face, Otto was completely in a trance. His statement sounded rather precarious, but Subaru said nothing, fearful of an unnecessary question breaking his concentration. \"Besides, setting the process aside, we're making awesome time.\" Punching out of the forest, they at long last leaped back onto something that resembled an actual road. There was a sign right at the edge of Subaru's vision marking the border between the Mathers domain and the highway. It had taken them half the normal time to arrive their repeated travails had brought tangible results. Not that he ever wanted to do it again... \"The highway... Rather, cutting through the grove to the left is faster, isn't it?! That is the shortest route!\" \"By grove, don't you mean forest?! Is that way really all right?! It doesn't look like there's even a game trail...!\" *** \"Hey, answer me!!\" Otto did not respond to Subaru's shout as he sent the dragon carriage charging headfirst through the entrance to the forest. With the die cast, all Subaru could do was hold on with both hands and pray no accident would befall them as they headed into the forest."}, {"text": "The dragon carriage leaped as it rolled over tree roots; Subaru clenched his molars as they headed down an atrocious path once more. The whole of his vision was buried in thick trees; one false move and they would be crashing headfirst. But the way Otto was delighted in contrast to the pallid Subaru made the latter reassess his view of peddlers. \"Is being a traveling merchant this dangerous?! Making a name for yourself in the capital's market is a lot saf \" \"Mr. Natsuki!\" Subaru was trying to distract himself with small talk when Otto suddenly interjected with a shout. The voice, infused with a sense of urgency, made Subaru look over, wondering what was up. As he did so, Otto put a hand to his ear, surveying the area around them as his cheeks stiffened. \"The forest is astir... No. The birds and insects have left in a great panic! Even Fulfew is tense... Something...something is coming!\" Otto's wary voice made Subaru gasp and look around the area. But atop a rocking dragon carriage traveling through the forest at such speed, he'd never make out anything even halfway bizarre. Yes, if it had been halfway bizarre  \"Ugh, time is precious, but we should take measures for safety. Mr. Natsuki, please watch over the rea \" \"Nah, ain't no need for that.\" As Otto tried to switch policies, Subaru spoke in a ridiculously calm voice. Subaru's gaze was trained behind the dragon carriage, glaring at the forest scene they were leaving behind. As it grew more distant, the forest seemed to vanish from his vision, as if \"it\" was swallowing the forest whole. *** Trees were snapped and sent dancing in the sky, brutally devastating the forest's foliage. Just after the destruction arose, the dragon carriage raced up an incline, but it was ferociously heading straight toward them, heedless of the damage to the surrounding area. \"Let her fly, Otto do not let him catch us!!\" \"Mr. Natsuki?!\" When Otto started to look over, Subaru checked him with a hand as he transferred from the driver's seat to the wagon. Then he stood as the guardian of the wagon, baring his teeth as it pursued, right behind them. \"Why you  Just how stubborn are ya gonna be, you shitty bastard!!\" Subaru let out an angry shout as pitch-black shadows swelled and wriggled before his eyes. The evil black hands stretched and erupted from a corpse, no longer a person, but a collection of delusions. The remains of Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti consumed the forest as it pursued the carriage from behind. 5 It was repulsive. It was hair-raising. It was sinister beyond measure. The body had been crushed under a rock slide; its right arm and the right side of its torso were both gone. Hair and scalp had been torn from its skull, leaving it dyed red, and the lower body being dragged along had nothing under both shins. Its limbs drooped, their vitality meager; this was already a mere corpse. But the corpse had not ceased its morbid defiance, drowning in delusion as it continued its pursuit of Subaru. \"Giiiiive...thaaaat...boooody...baaaaack!\" \"Man, you're stubborn. Don't you remember the rough time you had inside me...?!\" Petelgeuse's shout was like a voice from the grave, chilling Subaru to the bottom of his heart. With the body he had possessed already dead, Petelgeuse's own \"death\" lay right before his eyes. However, appearances aside, the use of Unseen Hands imbued the madman's movements with explosiveness. If he was left to his own devices, they'd probably collapse on their own, dissipating far away, but  \"Not easy to just wait for time to run out, huh...? Damn it all!\" Subaru gritted his teeth and glared as the madman pressed closer to the rocking wagon. The dragon carriage was already hurtling at nonsensical speed, but Petelgeuse moved even faster. Like a lit candle on the verge of burning out, he was radiating his final, wicked delusions. \"This is a spirit? How? Aren't spirits supposed to look more holy or something?\" \"Mr. Natsuki! What is going on back there?!\" Subaru's lament was overshadowed by Otto's shout. He could not see the nightmare behind them, for it was located directly behind the carriage leaving Otto the better for it. \"We're just being chased by a slightly huge dark monster. I think we probably ran over its tail halfway through the forest. It makes a lot of noise and its face is scary, so I recommend you don't look.\" \"That makes not seeing it really trouble me?! And that description was full of troubling details!!\" \"Just let 'er rip! Next time you snap at me I'm taking a bite outta you!\" \"Whaaa ?! How terrifying!\" Otto handled the reins as Subaru intimidated him and made him focus on the horrid path. But the speed of a land dragon had limits. They were done for if, God forbid, they smashed into even a single tree; consequently, the land dragons could not be hastened any farther inside the forest. In other words  \"The job of slowing you down falls to me. It's time to put on a grand finale... How many grand finales are you gonna have, anyway?! What about you makes you Sloth? You're a freaking workaholic!!\" \"Wiiitch SATELLA! Give me me her love, love, loooooooove!!\" \"She doesn't love either one of us!! There's no romantic comedy where you crush the heart of the person you like! With a heroine like that, no thank you!\" Petelgeuse lifted up his head and screamed, looking like his eyeballs were about to fall out of his skull. He had been betrayed, turned into a dead body, yet even so, Petelgeuse continued to shout his \"love\" toward the Witch. For the first time, Subaru genuinely saw him as pitiful. He tenaciously yearned for a body, deluding himself with his lust for \"love\" from the Witch and behind it all, he was a spirit without a body of his own, with a craving for affection and physical contact that could never be fulfilled. Gradually rotting away from a craving that could never be sated, Petelgeuse's mind fell into madness. No one would ever accept a being like him in the first place. \"I don't have a special attack or a super spell, but I'm taking you on anyway. I ain't letting you get past me, and no way am I letting you get to the one behind me...!\" \"Mr. Natsuki, I didn't know you cared...!\" \"Will you shut up a second?! I'm trying to act cool here!\" Whether Otto was flippant or serious, Subaru shut him up and turned back to face the madman. Thanks to the amount Julius's sword had burned away, the total number of Unseen Hands was barely enough to propel his own scamper. The number of arms waving above his head, available for attack, was seven the exact amount he'd started with. Petelgeuse savagely clawed at the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust as he drew nearer to the dragon carriage. The evil hands swung upward, making tree limbs fly, and pounded down from the sky above, each blow splitting the earth. Black fingertips lightly grazed the rearmost parts of the wagon, digging deep wherever they touched regardless of their strength. Subaru calculated the range was such that the next blow would land for certain. If a direct blow of identical force landed in the center of the wagon, the dragon carriage would roll onto its side, killing Subaru and Otto both. The next move would decide the match. \"Mr. Natsuki, we are coming out of the forest !\" At the same time Otto spoke, Subaru's field of vision, covered by green, suddenly brightened. The dragon carriage flew out of the forest as if punching through a wall and slid down a grassy incline. Petelgeuse chased them out, clawing the ground as the mass of shadow seemed to swallow rocks and fallen trees, all becoming a twisted spirit set to consume the rear of the dragon carriage as well. They cut through the forest and onto the highway. Emilia and the others they were chasing were not far beyond. Subaru couldn't lead Petelgeuse before them before Emilia. The Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins couldn't appreciate his goal, but he would not permit Emilia's heart to be wounded. Therefore, accordingly, Subaru Natsuki would set his life ablaze then and there  \"We're out of the forest no more holding back!\" \"LOVE! LOVE! Love is everythiiing !!\" Tears of blood streamed out as Petelgeuse opened his toothless mouth, laughing maniacally. Subaru listened to his cackling voice as he sprung loose the cargo inside the wagon. He dragged one of the heavy, lined-up containers forward as the pungent scent of the liquid within clogged up his nose. He wrapped his arms around it and picked it up. Then he hurled it at the mad, bloody laughter. \"Burn in hell, Petelgeuse!\" *** Simultaneously, the Unseen Hands stretched into the sky swung downward in a cascade of destruction. But Subaru moved faster, before the evil hands could reach. As the vile laughter floated in the air, Subaru hurled the pot he carried the oil pot toward the madman. The ceramic vessel crashed and shattered, the contents within spectacularly smearing the madman's corpse. The preparations were complete. The pitch-black, evil hands were falling to blow the dragon carriage asunder, and Subaru with it. Heedless of that, Subaru stretched his right arm straight forward, pointing with his fingers arranged like a pistol. At the end of his fingertip was a red light for it was there that the red quasi-spirit he had borrowed from Julius resided. \"Gonna borrow your power, Julius Juukulius.\" \"Whyyyyy YOUUUU !\" \"Rental Goa !!\" It was an incomplete chant by a novice magic user to an uncontracted quasi-spirit, two incomplete things piled upon one another but his will was focused upon that single point, granting the incantation strength. And for it to interact with the world around him, only a spark was needed. His mana, like a gas tank running on fumes, connected to the power of the quasi-spirit, sending a tiny spark of minimal destructiveness rushing toward Petelgeuse. And then his wicked mouth, covered in blood and oil, opened wide. \"AaaaaaAAAAA!!\" That instant, Subaru's vision was enveloped by vivid, soaring flames. Petelgeuse's entire body was bathed in ignited oil that burned with incredible heat. Billowing waves of flame scorched the inside of his flesh, and Petelgeuse's wordless scream clawed at the air around them. Against the spirit that was Petelgeuse, Subaru had inflicted the greatest blow possible. The elements were Otto's cargo of oil pots and Julius's quasi-spirit, granted as a safety net. All of it was borrowed he'd simply patched them together for a very Subaru Natsuki\u00e2\u20ac\u201clike attack. \"It's over for  Gahh!\" A moment after he saw the end of the match, Subaru noticed the existence of a pitch-black, evil hand lashing above his head. The evil hand was being swung like a grim reaper's scythe, its course reckless and its target undefined. However, the arm collided with the wagon, instantly sending it flying, grazing Subaru in the process. The dragon carriage violently bounced from the impact, and the wagon that had taken the direct hit was wide open, looking like some beast had taken a bite out of it. With the carriage gouged, Subaru was among flying pieces of wood as he tumbled deeper into the wagon. His calf was torn in the process, making him clench his teeth as the pain felt like it was setting his brain on fire. \" Gahh! Shit, that hurts! Aw, damn it!\" Subaru's voice went ragged as he pressed a hand on the bleeding wound. But Subaru had the time neither to bandage it nor to curse his misfortune. The reason was simple: Black fingertips were grasping the rear end of the wagon that very moment  \"Giiiive MEEE, haaand it OVERRR...\" The dragon carriage heavily rocked as the fiendish, burning face of Petelgeuse crawled up into the wagon. *** The thing that climbed into the wagon had abandoned a complete human form. The missing parts the lost right"}, {"text": "half and torn-off lower extremities had been replaced by wriggling black hands. Of his original body, only his head was not charred red and black. Though the fire had spread to even his habit, he somehow managed to hold his body in one piece, but even so, the sheer ugliness of the being shone through... Almost as if to assert beyond all doubt that this was a repulsive monster wearing the skin of a human being. \"You look awful...not that I'm really one to talk, I suppose.\" Grimacing from the spasm-like pain, Subaru bore it and rose to his feet. The bleeding of his leg had not stopped, but the opponent was far closer to the brink of death than he. Petelgeuse's entire body had been decaying even before being set on fire; he was already at death's door. He wasn't seeking a war of attrition, either. The next instant would settle it for both of them. Subaru did not have many trump cards to play; indeed, they were few. All that Subaru had left for a weapon was cunning. \"Bo...dy CANNOT vanish... Cannot...allow...to vanishhh...\" \"Hey, I told you already, come into mine and you'll have a really bad time! Who cares about the Witch?! She's just taking us for a ride, you and me both!!\" Petelgeuse spoke with difficulty, craving Subaru's body as he repulsively crawled forward. As he raised his voice, refusing to give in, Subaru tried to break the madman's spirit. But Petelgeuse showed a reaction to that shouting voice that he had not shown to that point. \" Witch, Satella...\" Suddenly Petelgeuse murmured with lucidity as he lifted up his face. His visage was half-destroyed, his cheekbones raw and exposed, yet reason returned to the madman's eyes. His disjointed eyes wavered, and one caught sight of Subaru, then the other. Together they blinked with madness. \"You are...dangerous. Danger, danger, dangerdangerdangerdanger dangerdangerouuuuss !\" \"Aaah?!\" \"YOU receive, receive ceive ve her Favor, yet deny her love! And YOU have driven me, me, me, meeee! This close to the point of death, death, deathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeaaaath!\" Petelgeuse's head swayed and trembled as he ranted incoherently. But behind that fury, the power of the evil hands steadily spread, consuming the wagon and stealing Subaru's foundation out from under him. If the evil hands were unleashed with nowhere to run, Subaru had no chance of victory. The madman's intelligence had returned; he was chasing Subaru out of intellect, not instinct. With the cards stacked against him, Subaru inched away, and at the same time, a single possibility came to mind. And then  \"The Witch, Witch, Satella...SATELLLAAA! Love, love, looove! I was loved! I WAS loved!! Satella, me Satella loved me! I shall not forget, for even an instant! Even if YOU forget, I shall not!!\" Tears flowed. These were not tears of blood, but real tears. Truly, since their first chance meeting, this was the first time Petelgeuse had shouted about love while sane. Be it affection or passion, it had dragged Petelgeuse from the brink of madness back to reality. Petelgeuse's stagnant eyes shone with the firmness of will as they glared at Subaru. \"You are dangerous! You shall someday pose a threat to the entire Witch Cult! Before that! Before your hand can reach Satella! Here! Now! By my hand! By my diligence! To sunder myself from Sloth, and repay Her love...YOU shaaall DIE!!\" Petelgeuse shouted, and his body, unable to withstand the unleashing of the power of the evil hands, burst open and broke apart. But Petelgeuse was no longer bent on taking Subaru's body, but rather, on killing Subaru, so that a threat to the Witch Cult would not be left to fester and thus protecting the Witch he worshipped. These were the actions of a beast, but performed with will, with intellect... \"I'd probably have lost if you'd stayed a monster, you know.\" When Petelgeuse saw what Subaru had taken out of his pocket and held in his hand, his eyes went wide. His reaction made something in Subaru's heart cry out. But he bit back the sentiment that momentarily reared itself, hoisting his arm aloft. Swinging his arm high, he flung the small, black book the Gospel at the tip of Petelgeuse's arm. \"Ahhh...Satella!\" In a daze, Petelgeuse let a low, quiet voice trickle from his mouth. It was a voice immersed in tranquility, calling out the name of someone lovely beyond measure. Desiring the heavens, Petelgeuse raised his left and only remaining arm toward the sky. Obeying his will, the evil hands stretched toward the Gospel, the black fingertips reaching for the book dancing in the air and the next moment, it came. He caught the Gospel just as it was enveloped by wind, just on the verge of blowing away. It was affected by the wind. Meaning it was beyond the blessing. In other words  *** As Petelgeuse grasped the book, his body heavily bent back, bathed in ferocious winds. His feet were dragged, splitting the already gouged-out floor of the wagon; half his body was cast beyond the dragon carriage. And, as a result of being cast beyond the wind repel blessing, he was wholly immersed in turbulence. Once upon a time, Subaru had fallen into a similar circumstance during horseplay on the way to the capital. Without the wind repel blessing, he was taking all the wind and shaking of a dragon carriage running at full speed over horrid footing. He couldn't possibly have held out. \" Aaah, AAAAAAH!!\" Subaru let out a great shout and put his foot down the instant Petelgeuse's balance greatly faltered. He forgot the pain of his torn leg and leaped, bouncing into the air. He had no tremendous power to turn the tide of a battle that's why he had to make his move when it counted most. *** Petelgeuse shouted something as Subaru rushed over. Subaru couldn't hear a thing. He threw caution to the wind, lowering his head for a charge, and leaped toward Petelgeuse's flank. Unseen Hands shot out. The speed of the hands thrust out had slackened; with Subaru's concentration at its zenith, they might as well have been standing still. As he cocked his head and violently swerved his body, a fingertip grazed Subaru's cheek as he closed with his foe. The sense of oppression from the powerful evil hands was such that Subaru almost unwittingly shut his eyes. \"Wilhelm taught me two things.\" Hands grazed him. Pain ran through part of the skin of his neck, cheeks, and ears, which felt like they'd been touched by hot steel. The bursting heat scalded his thoughts, and he bit down a painful cry that threatened to tear through the inside of his throat. He dodged. He breathed. He wasn't done yet. \"That I don't have one smidgen of talent with a sword...\" The pain was scorching, but he became relaxed, at ease. These twin elements intruded upon Subaru's mind as he looked straight before him. On the other side of the hand Subaru had dodged was another hand, snapping toward his face  \"...and the courage not to shut my eyes when I'm being smacked!!\" He shouted and ducked his head. The hair on the back of his neck got a shave as he evaded by a hairbreadth. Dead ahead, Petelgeuse's face stiffened in shock, and into the side of that face, Subaru slammed his fist. *** The haymaker struck Petelgeuse's cheek, causing him to greatly snap backward. His body lost its footing, and Petelgeuse was hurled out of the dragon carriage. And then  \"Oooooo !!\" Petelgeuse hung upside down in the air before being dragged back to the dragon carriage. A piece of his habit had snagged on the wagon, and his body, connected to the dragon carriage, was being dragged along the ground. Blood scattered. Flesh exploded. As the damage piled up, even the Unseen Hands came unmoored as the being known as Petelgeuse was undone. Even so, Petelgeuse raised his decaying face and glared at Subaru, his inverted gaze brimming with hatred. \"It is not o-ov-over it is not...o-overrrr?!\" \"Nah, this is as far as you go.\" As Subaru spoke to the excessively tenacious Petelgeuse, he revealed the Gospel he held in his hand that which Petelgeuse had dropped when Subaru struck him, and the last thing the madman's heart clung to. Subaru flipped to the latter, blank half of the tome, pressing his finger against it. He had touched the finger to a wound, covering it in blood. With this, he placed his imprint upon the Gospel. \"Your end is right here!\" In red I-script, Subaru wrote the word END on the open, blank page. When Petelgeuse beheld the sight, his tongue trembled from the blow. The fierce emotions spreading like a wave through his eyes were so complex that Subaru could no longer read any of them. And then, before he could put his emotions into words, the end came. *** The dragon carriage bounced high up, and Petelgeuse, dragged by the wagon by the sleeve of his habit, came loose... Then the tattered habit was caught by a wheel of the dragon carriage, turning at high speed. Pulled in by the snagged habit, Petelgeuse's body, stripped of limbs and blood, was pulled straight toward the wheel. The end was in sight. Mixed with the sound of a habit tearing, flesh and blood bursting, in his last moment, Petelgeuse looked up at his foe and shouted. \" Subaru Natsukiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!\" His scream echoed and became his death cry. Petelgeuse shouted Subaru's name as body and voice were swallowed by the wheel; and thus ensnared, they were pulverized, with bits of blood, flesh, and bone scattering out as his life was trampled away. With the loss of its body, the essence of the evil spirit dwelling within was drawn in until it, too, dissipated. *** One last, final Unseen Hand stretched toward the tip of Subaru's nose  Just on the verge of grasping Subaru's head, the hand stopped; from the tips of its fingers, it fell apart and vanished. This fact revealed that Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti well and truly was no more. \"This time, rest in peace forever...Petelgeuse.\" It was over. Certain of that, Subaru flopped onto the wagon. Instantly, the pain he had been ignoring to that point came rushing back, and Subaru moaned as he rolled around in the wagon. \"Oww, this is bad, it's so bad, I'm gonna die. Oww, this is bad, this is bad...!\" Tears welled up, and the sharp pain would not relent. His bleeding wounds throbbed, and he felt like needles had been thrust inside his body. Only the physical pain of his wounds racked his chest. He did not pity Petelgeuse. Madman, evil spirit, Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins there was no point on which he could sympathize with Petelgeuse, aka Sloth. He'd run amok all on his own, and this was the result. He'd shouted delusions of love, arbitrarily imposed them on others, and ended up secluded and alone. No one needed to nurse pity for a man such as Petelgeuse meeting his end. No one, save Subaru, needed to be tormented by such sentiments. \"No one was ever gonna understand you. Of course you're dead. You had it coming. No one no one will forgive you  That's why...I feel for you...that much, at least.\" He was understood by none...unloved by the one he loved...a lonely monster. This time, Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti was truly no more. Nothing left of him remained in anyone's chest, anyone's heart. ...None, save the nail called \"pity\" driven into Subaru's chest nonetheless. 6 \"Mr. Natsuki, are you all right? You are wounded to no small extent.\" \"Hell no, I'm not all right. I used to bawl my eyes out when the anesthesia ran out after dental work.\" Subaru moved from the half-destroyed wagon to the driver's seat, mumbling thus as he smeared salve on his wounds. Bandages and homemade salves seemed to be necessities of travel; he'd helped himself to what the dragon carriage held. As Subaru, done treating his wounds with teary eyes, handed the salve back to Otto, he"}, {"text": "pointed to the dragon carriage's wagon and spoke. \"I'll put the word in to have Roswaal pay for dragon carriage repairs, too... So how much time have we lost?\" \"None whatsoever. If anything, we have gained time, thanks to having two land dragons earnestly fleeing... Something really came after us?\" \"Yeah, a sloth. Never heard of 'em? They're animals with long hands that make funny noises.\" When Subaru played dumb, replying with a deep sigh, Otto abandoned pursuing the matter further. Subaru shrugged at the sight; then he glared at the Liphas Highway's horizon. What Subaru yearned for was beyond that horizon, its silhouette not yet within sight, but  \"I'll catch up to you. This time, I'll save you.\" \"You think we will make it in time?\" \"We'll make it!\" It sounded like Otto asked not out of concern, but to gauge what Subaru's resolve was made of. Hence Subaru put on a smile, baring his teeth as he replied with a hearty voice. \"Besides, I have to finally bring Rem some good news. A man has to live up to expectations.\" \"That is the name of a woman you've fallen for?\" \"It's the name of the girl who's fallen for me!\" Subaru said it not with ardor or a blush, but simply as a matter of fact. For a brief moment, Otto was taken aback by Subaru's reply, but that expression immediately crumbled. \"Ahh, then we cannot fail to look good for her, can we?!\" With a joyful shout, Otto snapped the reins, and that sharp sound made the land dragons increase their running speed. They ran, they ran, and the dragon carriage went, seemingly flying, down the highway  Almost as if to reel in something precious over the horizon as it threatened to pull away. All Subaru Natsuki could do was pin his hopes on the future. 7 The dragon carriage's speed increased, and the sounds of the wind and terrible rocking echoed inside the wagon. \"Wah !\" \"It's okay. Hang on tight. There's no need to be scared.\" As the children huddled in a clump to endure the shaking, Emilia sent a strong smile their way. Seeing her smile, the anxious children muttered, \"Yeah\" and nodded several times over. Such strong children, thought Emilia in admiration. Any child had worries in its chest, yet these desperately clenched their teeth, continuing to fight against fear with nary a whimper. It was enough to make Emilia think, I can't put on a shameful display in front of them. By rights, a dragon carriage was protected by a wind repel blessing. But currently, the blessing of their dragon carriage was not functioning. There were various conditions that might cause the effects of blessings to lapse, but for the wind repel blessing, it was very simple: either the land dragon's legs had come to a halt or it had gone outside the area affected by the blessing  In this case it was the former. Once stopped, it took time for a dragon carriage's blessing to be restored. And currently time was what they lacked. *** As the wagon ferociously rocked, Emilia braced herself, strongly grasping them with her hands as she shut her eyes. She focused her ears beyond the dragon carriage's curtain-covered rear, listening to the fierce swordplay in the distance. About two hours had passed since they'd left the village, evacuating because of a criminal group said to be lurking in the environs of the village. Midway, they'd split from the group Rem was leading to the Sanctuary, and Emilia's group was set to make good time evacuating to the capital but the situation had rapidly changed a short time ago. \"...Lady Emilia, may I have a few minutes of your time?\" From beside the dragon carriage, then taking a short break, Emilia heard the voice of the aged swordsman guarding them speaking to her. The individual calling himself Wilhelm Trias was a retainer of Crusch's, and even Emilia could tell that he was a man of exceptional swordsmanship behind his gentle demeanor. The fighting spirit Emilia sensed from his hushed voice was all it took to make her brows buckle with concern. \"Has something happened?\" \"It is of minor concern. Accordingly, I wish to take several men with me and eliminate that concern. I ask that you forgive my rudeness in leaving your side.\" \"...It's all right. What's wrong?\" \"It is only driving off wild dogs, a trifling matter. We shall catch back up with you soon enough.\" When Wilhelm made that statement with a polite bow, Emilia sensed that something was off. Immediately after, she realized that he had been speaking out of consideration for the children all around her. Considering Wilhelm's duties, she could guess what he was trying not to say, and what these \"wild dogs\" amounted to. \"Am I not needed?\" *** She knew that the question she posed was an impolite way to repay Wilhelm's considerate words. Wilhelm narrowed his eyes when, even so, Emilia could not refrain from asking. I've gotten on his bad side, thought Emilia. However, unexpectedly, the old man's lips formed a smile. \"Lady Emilia, please continue evacuating in the dragon carriage. Please take good care of the children.\" The emotion contained in the smile was neither disappointment nor disdain. He clearly longed for something dear to him. To Emilia, perplexed and unable to understand the meaning of what she saw, Wilhelm quietly turned his back. \"With a lapsed blessing, I expect the dragon carriage shall rock rather fiercely. Make sure not to let go of the children.\" \"Sir Wilhelm, I...\" \"Lord and retainer truly are alike your eyes are just like his.\" Wilhelm parted with that deeply felt murmur, breaking off from the dragon carriage column with other guards. Emilia did not know the true intent behind the murmur. But she had no time to pursue the matter. Immediately, at the instructions of a different knight, the dragon carriage convoy resumed its evacuation. And with the blessing no longer functional, the dragon carriage set out, its rocking robbing Emilia of the luxury of immersing herself in thought. And so, back inside the ferociously rocking carriage... The children huddled with Emilia in the canopied wagon of the dragon carriage. She tossed several blankets over the children, held their trembling hands, and continued to pay attention to the situation outside, ready to act immediately no matter what was coming. And explaining the situation outside to Emilia was  \"That old man and the others are clashing with someone behind us. A battle is breaking out.\"  a voice, reverberating in Emilia's head as it relayed the tactical situation outside. Somehow, Puck sounded very laid back, floating unseen as he watched the situation unfold. \"Do you know how many there are?\" \"Twice as many as we have, but...mm, it's completely all right. That old man is incredibly strong, so there's nothing for you and me to do, Lia. Wow, he cut another one down...\" Emilia kept her fighting spirit and kept the tension off her face, nodding at her telepathic exchange with Puck. As a spirit, Puck had ways to know what was happening outside even without materializing. Emilia was using a minute amount of power to listen to his words and keep apprised of the situation. \"It would be no laughing matter if I materialized for no reason and was out of energy when you really need me. Besides, if I come out now, I'll end up a toy for the children.\" \"I think that'd be a good thing. Your cuteness would make them forget all their worries.\" \"Hey, don't say such scary things, daughter of mine. Anyway, that's how it looks outside.\" Even as they exchanged lighthearted telepathic banter, Emilia was a bit grateful to hear Puck's report. But the corners of her lips rose stiffly as she painfully rued her own powerlessness. Puck had guaranteed Wilhelm's strength with the sword, but Emilia had power to fight with, too. Wilhelm had declined Emilia's aid out of consideration for her position. Even though she understood that, Emilia was still chagrined over merely being protected by others. She was unable to bring about the results demanded by her station. Her authority was a paper tiger; she was seen as a figurehead candidate from inside and outside the kingdom, and no one would claim her capabilities were up to the task, even as fiction. And in spite of that, she was shackled to her position, her authority placed in a yoke, the decision to wave her power around denied to her. Then what in the world was she there for? \"...Subaru.\" When, in a small voice, her lips invoked the name of the black-haired youth, Emilia shook her head at her own weakness. She had no right to call that name, almost like she was pleading for aid. If, that moment, she was calling out his name, it was not for want of power. It was  \"Hey, everyone, don't worry! No matter what happens, your big sister will protect you!\" It was for want of courage, so that Emilia might do what Subaru would in her place. When Emilia spoke those words to them, the huddled, curled-up children lifted their faces. Her words sent the children, shoulder to shoulder with tears in their eyes, looking at one another's faces, and their voices came all at once. \"W-we're all right!\" \"Don't you worry about anything, Big Sis!\" \"W-we promised, so it's okay! We're not letting go, so...!\" It was instantly obvious the children were putting on a brave front as they clung to Emilia's arms and legs. They wrapped around both arms, both legs, and even her hips and shoulders; Emilia's body went rigid from the heat from being touched by others. But it was by no means a disagreeable sensation. It was just that, at the same time, something felt off about their words. \"Promised... Who did you make a promise with? To do what?\" \"He said not to let go of Big Sis.\" \"He said you'd do reckless stuff if he's not with you, so...!\" \"He said he's worried if no one's watching out for you!\" As each reply came in turn, Emilia was shocked by her own reaction. Emilia felt like it was extremely overprotective, and even that she was being looked down upon...but she felt strong consideration pouring out of the words. *** That way of speaking sounds like... Emilia felt a throb in her chest the instant she had the thought. Once she noticed it, she could ignore the throb in her chest no longer. Its assertion grew stronger at an ever-increasing pace, and Emilia's eyes wavered with bewilderment as it gently clawed against her heart. Led by that throbbing, Emilia opened her mouth to ask, \"Who said...he's worried about me?\" \"Ah, no, that's...!\" The question immediately made the color of Petra's face change. Her adorable cheeks reddened as she shouted, interjecting with a desperate voice, but she was not in time. \"Subaru!\" \"Subaru said it!\" \"He was worried you'd feel lonely!\" \"Subaru said... Ah, right, we weren't supposed to say that...\" The children scrambled to be the first to say his name, but the last speech resulted in a hand going to the mouth. Then they all realized they had misspoken. \"Oops,\" Petra said quietly, clutching her head. But as Emilia blinked her eyes, she didn't even notice the looks on the children's faces. \"Suba...ru...?\" She'd had a feeling. Emilia could sense him from the words out of the children's lips. But it can't be, said her feelings of denial, and they had won out. After all, Emilia had hurt him, speaking terrible words and leaving him in the capital, far away. There, where Subaru's greatest desire was to reach out and offer Emilia his hand, she had turned her back on him. That had to have been a great betrayal. Why, when Emilia yearned for someone to save her, had Subaru's name come out? It couldn't be. It wasn't possible. Emilia"}, {"text": "had lived a life of disappointments. She had been betrayed, repudiated, estranged; to her these were natural, expected things. She wanted to be trusted, accepted, sought; but to her these things were impossible. That was why, when Subaru behaved kindly to her, she'd rejected even him, and all the kindness he offered. It was not that she couldn't believe he was being considerate to her. That she was worthy of his compassion this Emilia could not believe. If she piled expectation upon expectation, the blow when it all came crashing down would be unfathomable. Therefore, if he would someday distance himself from her, it was better if she distanced herself from him... ...before the pile between them climbed high enough to come crashing down. And yet, why ? \"Subaru...came to the village? He...came back?\" With the children maintaining an awkward silence, Emilia could only let out that dumbfounded murmur. Even then, the dragon carriage rocked ferociously as the battle between the knights and the pursuers continued. Emilia had a duty to protect the children, and that duty came first. Yet Emilia's heart was being rocked far harder than the carriage, swaying greatly to and fro. If Subaru had returned to the village, a number of mysteries began to make sense. It explained why Ram knew so much about the expeditionary force rendezvous. It explained why the villagers had been so cooperative with the order to evacuate. It explained why the members of the expeditionary force had so deftly handled the affairs of a domain of which they should have known little. The simple presence of one person, Subaru Natsuki, neatly tied these mysteries together. If Subaru was with the expeditionary force, she understood why Ram did not go against his word. To the villagers, Subaru was the savior of the village; it was natural that they would not reject his proposal. More than anything, evacuating the villagers and Emilia, sending them ahead while he stayed behind with the expeditionary force to deal with the threat, was very Subaru-like. Too like him. The actions were too like the Subaru Natsuki that Emilia knew  \"Why...?\" Her murmur was tinged with incomprehension and sorrow. The emotions welling into her violet eyes made them faintly tremble. If this was all the result of Subaru's actions, they had changed little from before far too little. She'd hurt him, pushed him away, and yet, even so, Subaru had stayed the same. \"I hurt him that much, and put that sad a face on him... Why did Subaru come again to...?\" She didn't know why he'd tried to save her. She'd tossed the question his way after Subaru was deeply wounded in both body and heart at the royal selection conference and the training square. At the time Subaru had not given her an answer. And so Emilia still didn't know. Even though she'd given up, breaking the relationship between them, bringing it to an end without ever knowing... \"Why...?!\" \"That's obvious...!\" Emilia spoke, her voice breaking and on the verge of tears; it was the wild voice of a red-faced Petra that answered. The reaction, which made it sound like the girl knew the answer to the question she harbored, made Emilia look at her, hanging on her words. But before the two could open their mouths any farther, the dragon carriage was assaulted by the largest jolt to that point. *** The dragon carriage wended its way forward with incredible force, flinging around the bodies of Emilia and the children within. Instantly Emilia grasped hold of the wagon, stretching her arms and wrapping them around the children to the greatest possible extent. However, the dragon carriage continued wending its way, not leaving her a single moment to calm down; the movement was as if they were fleeing from something. Simultaneously, a voice echoed inside Emilia's brain. \"Lia, someone's coming from the rear at incredible speed \" Prompted by Puck's warning, Emilia shifted her eyes toward the dragon carriage's rear. Beyond the curtain flapping in the wind, she caught a glimpse of the cause of the dragon carriage's meandering movements: Something was chasing them...and drawing nearer. \"I'll...!\" I have to face this, thought Emilia, instantly trying to move. But when she tried to stand up, her body was held back by light weights, unable to move. When she lowered her gaze, she saw them: the children grabbing her arms and clothes, not letting her go for anything. \"We won't let go!\" \"You can't go!\" \"We promised!\" Emilia, firmly grasped by the children, could not escape. They were bonds she could have shaken loose, but Emilia did not move. When Emilia hesitated, Petra glared sharply at her face, shouting with a tearful look, \"Are you going to make Subaru cry this time?!\" *** The girl's shout sent a ferocious tremor both through the meandering carriage and through Emilia's heart. The dragon carriage braked all of a sudden, and centrifugal force struck, sending Emilia, still linked to the children, flying into the air. Reflexively, she oriented herself onto the blankets, safely protecting everyone from the impact. Swallowed by the rocking and the blankets, Emilia somehow managed to shake her head loose and sit up. \"Just now, what was th ?\" \"Lia, it's right behind us!\" Puck materialized beside her head, pointing behind the tilting dragon carriage. Heeding Puck's voice and motion, Emilia swiftly rose up, shielding the children behind her. At the same time, she unleashed her magical energy, and cold air dropped the temperature inside the carriage with incredible force. Just as Puck had said, someone had caught up to the dragon carriage. The next moment, someone raised the dragon carriage's curtain. Then, when she saw who was standing there, Emilia was dumbstruck. \"Why...?\" With ragged breaths, his shoulders heaving up and down, a lone young man climbed into the dragon carriage. The sight made Emilia's eyes shake fiercely in bewilderment. Her lips trembled. Emilia forgot the circumstances, and with a frail, minute voice, she spoke his name. \" Subaru.\" She spoke his name. 8 When Subaru thought back, it was a horrible way to meet someone. It hadn't even been an hour since Subaru had been summoned to another world, adrift and unable to tell left from right. In that state, he'd walked into an alley, and according to script, he'd been surrounded and half-killed by punks. His trip to another world was about to end in death within the first few hours. Subaru remembered every little thing from that time: her words, her demeanor, her grandeur. He'd never, never, never, never forgotten. It was because of her that Subaru Natsuki could live in that world, standing on his own two feet. \"Mr. Natsuki, that's !!\" Having dispatched Petelgeuse's delusions earlier, the dragon carriage had been racing down the Liphas Highway when Otto, watching the horizon from the driver's seat, shouted to Subaru as he caught sight of their target. When Subaru followed his gaze, spotting the wriggling silhouette at the edge of the horizon, he too shouted. \"There!! Otto, give it everything you've got!!\" \"I've been giving it everything this whole time!!\" With a powerful flick of the reins, the two land dragons picked up speed. The jet-black land dragon stared straight ahead, wringing everything out of her spirit as she raced to fulfill Subaru's wish.  After she saved him in that first encounter, he learned about her as he forced his way into her life. He knew she was stubborn, she was obstinate, she put on a strong front, and she was kind. He knew that he was unworthy to gaze at the side of her face. The very shame of it rang shrill within his chest. He knew that his own incorrigible foolishness had made those sweet feelings go to waste. Back then, he'd sworn. Subaru had certainly sworn it. \"I'll...save you.\" He'd striven to uphold that promise. The deaths had piled up, he'd cut a hole open in Fate, and somehow making it past all that pain and suffering, Subaru had reunited with her, reforged their bonds, and earned her smiling face once more. Subaru would never forget the flood of emotions that had struck his chest at the time. \"Wilhelm!!\" \"Sir Subaru?!\" By the time they caught up with the silhouettes on the horizon, it was already a battlefield where knight and black figure clashed. Already a number of corpses lay upon the ground. The gallant figures riding around responded to Subaru's voice. Wilhelm blinked hard at the sight of Subaru, for the speed of the dragon carriage atop which he rode did not relent. The Sword Devil gripped a bloody blade, and the question of what Subaru was doing in that place nearly came to his lips, but  \"Where's Emilia?!\" Subaru's next shout, and the emotion filling his black eyes, made Wilhelm instantly cast the question aside. Then Wilhelm pointed the tip of his sword ahead of the galloping dragon carriage and spoke. \"There! Straight ahead! Toward the Great Tree!!\" Lifting his face, Subaru set his sights on an even more distant horizon. He realized that they'd already made it halfway across the Liphas Highway, reaching as far as the Great Flugel Tree, where they'd waged the decisive battle against the White Whale. *** That much having been confirmed, the dragon carriage sped through the battlefield, never lowering its speed. He didn't stop. He needn't inquire about their safety. That would be an insult to the brave fighting of Wilhelm and his men, and more importantly, they were words Subaru should have spoken when they'd parted ways. Subaru had asked Wilhelm to put Emilia and the others' safety on his shoulders. Wilhelm was acting in accordance with the trust Subaru had placed in him. Accordingly, there was no need for Subaru to stop, nor for Wilhelm to question why he raced forward. Their exchange of glances was over in an instant, whereupon Subaru and Otto's dragon carriage left Wilhelm behind. However, the Witch Cultists were not about to simply let him go. Several of the figures kept the knights busy while others kicked off the ground, chasing after the dragon carriage, when  \"I am your opponent.\" Caught by surprise from behind, a Witch Cultist was sliced in half like a tall stalk of bamboo. Bathed in blood spatter, the Sword Devil swung his treasured sword as he shot the dragon carriage a satisfied smile as it raced into the distance. \"It is a perfect opportunity to repay my debt of gratitude. And even though he did not say the words, I am pleased the one who asked it understands indeed, I am...honored.\" With the treasured sword granted by his liege in his right hand, he accepted a cavalier's sword tossed by one of his men in the left. The Sword Devil poised the swords crossed as his glare shot through the Witch Cultists. \"As if I would let anyone stop a man who wants to meet his woman. You and I both stink too much of blood to be present at their reunion  You will all remain here...as corpses.\" His pronouncement of their sentence of death made the Witch Cultists, purportedly shorn of emotion, tremble all over. Amid that sense of tension pulled taut, the Sword Devil bent forward, racing onward with a smile carved onto his lips. The expression was a complex one both that of a happy devil bathed in blood and the strained smile of an old man reminiscing on the sins of his youth. \"Mr. Natsuki, I see them! The evacuating dragon carriages are over there!\" With the battlefield left behind them, Otto, in the driver's seat as the dragon carriage picked up speed, raised his voice. As he pointed forward, Subaru, sitting right beside him, caught sight of the dragon carriage convoy moving off in the distance. The throbbing in his chest strengthened as Subaru clenched his fist, his emotions astir. As they closed the distance bit by bit, the dragon carriage convoy was thrown into confusion when it sensed Subaru's carriage catching up. The"}, {"text": "column of dragon carriages began to weave around, and Subaru earnestly raised his voice. \"Stop! It's me! Not an enemy! Stop, please stop !\" \" ?! Mr. Natsuki?!\" \"Please stop! It's an emergency! I need to check inside the carriages!\" The knight in the driver's seat of the leading carriage realized it was Subaru pulling alongside and shouting to him; he rushed to bring his carriage to an urgent halt. At his command, the land dragon neighed, and one by one, the dragon carriages behind him lowered their speed with such force, they nearly rolled onto their sides. And then  \"Ia, come on out! Otto, get Patlash loose from the dragon carriage, please!\" Time was precious. Subaru didn't even wait for the dragon carriage to stop before leaping down. He broke his fall with a pathetic-looking roll that was a far cry from a graceful landing. He instantly rose to his feet, the red quasi-spirit Ia floating right before his eyes. \"Ia, can you tell which dragon carriage is booby-trapped?\" The quasi-spirit did not reply. But she asserted her existence with an increase of heat, rushing ahead of Subaru toward the column of dragon carriages, and flew circles above a carriage with a canopy. From Ia's reaction, Subaru rushed to the dragon carriage without the slightest doubt in his mind. He violently stripped away the curtain covering the wagon, squinting as he peered into the poorly lit interior, and  \" Subaru.\" When he realized a voice, clear as a bell, had called his name, Subaru was struck by a wave of anxiety that threatened to make him break down then and there. Inside the wagon was a beautiful girl with silver hair and violet eyes, staring dumbfounded at Subaru. It was the sight of the girl he had pursued over and over, hoped for over and over, bent and broken himself over and over in the process, yet even so, he had never once managed to give up. He was overflowing with emotion. Irresistible urges welled up within him. However, Subaru gritted his teeth, instantly cutting his indecision away. \"Ia! Where is it?!\" Trailing behind Subaru, the quasi-spirit emerged within the wagon, flying around inside like an illusion. Scattering her mana like tiny specks of fire, the red quasi-spirit strongly illuminated one of the wagon's corners. \"Puck! Can you let me strip only this part off without setting off what's behind it?!\" \"An unexpected reunion, and already you're making dema...... Mnggh, so that's how it is?\" Puck, eyes wide at Subaru's presumptuous call, realized something was wrong under the floor. The little cat narrowed his eyes at the area indicated by the quasi-spirit, swishing his tail as he made use of his power. Gathering his mana, he froze the floorboards, whereupon Subaru violently stomped on them, shattering them. Then he thrust an arm into the hole thus created; when he felt his fingertips wrap around it, he yanked it out. \" Found it!!\" With a shout, what emerged from under the floor was a sack made of unusual material with complex symbols written upon it. It seemed to be made of some creature's hide, but the repulsiveness of the feel of it instinctively made him ill. \"A sack of demon beast hide \" As Puck put into words the cause of his distaste, Subaru opened the sack. The inside was jam-packed with glowing magic crystals, corroborating Otto's testimony. But that very moment, the magic crystals grew hotter, like they'd just begun a countdown sequence. \"What timing...! Puck, can you stop this?!\" \"I don't think I can. I can contain the blast, though.\" Puck looked at Emilia as he shook his head, seemingly offering a glimpse of his final trump card. The gesture made Subaru realize that it probably meant Puck manifesting in his true form, overcoming the problem by brute force. It was a crude measure, but certainly it was possible for Puck to minimize the damage. It was possible, but... \"No, you can't!\" Subaru turned that plan down. Certainly that method would do to keep everyone safe. But it would come at the cost of revealing Puck's form as a Great Spirit, and awe at the sheer enormity of that power made the rupture of Emilia's relationship with the villagers inevitable Subaru couldn't even stop himself from shuddering as he protested. After all, just then, Emilia and the villagers were finally on the same stage, coming closer together bit by bit  It wasn't like at the royal selection conference. Showing her power off like she had there would only be a hindrance to her relationship with the villagers. That was why he could rely on Puck like that only if it was truly the only way, the most final of final resorts. \"Think. Think, think, think...!\" If the magic crystals he'd retrieved lived up to their billing, they'd turn the entire prairie into a sea of flame when they exploded. There was practically no time left until they exploded. It would be difficult to toss them somewhere far away. But if he relied on Puck, it would leave a dark shadow over Emilia's prospects in the royal selection. He wrung all his cunning to think of something before he'd have to redo things at the cost of his life. This time, there had to be something he could do for Emilia  \" That's...it.\" He let out a murmur. Exactly one way had come to mind. It was a ridiculous, laughable conclusion. He wasn't sure he could actually pull it off. However, within the current limitations, it was the one possibility he could think of that had miraculous prospects of victory. The instant he thought of it, Subaru's body practically leaped into motion. With difficulty he picked up the heavy sack, his arms and chest scorched by the incandescent magic stones. Subaru ignored the pain and leaped out of the dragon carriage. And behind him  \"Wait...!\" In a shaking voice, Emilia called for Subaru to stop. His legs, which had no time to stop, stopped. His body, which had no time to turn around, did. He stared straight at the eyes into which he could not look. They did not have the time to exchange words, yet exchange words they did. \"Subaru, why...?!\" This why included the various whys apart from that moment. There was the why of that instant, when he had come aboard the dragon carriage; there was the why toward his creation of this situation; and from long, long before... She was likely repeating the question she had posed in that room in the royal palace, too. At the time, Subaru had been unable to give Emilia an answer to her question. At the time, numerous emotions had surged within him that he had yet to sort out. Taken individually and separately, it was not that they were mistaken...but they were not correct, either. It was the place where he had been given only one chance to reach out to her, and he'd let it slip through his fingers. That place was the one chance he had earned, and he'd lost even that, kicking everything down the road. He'd reunited with Emilia, gaining the chance to talk with her, and he had a mountain of thoughts and feelings he wanted to share. No matter how much he tried, it would never be enough to cover it all. Many, many words floated into his thoughts, filling his throat, but that's where they vanished. Contained with him was a flood of emotions and ideas, but in that moment his entire body and soul yearned for one thing. What to talk about? What to tell her? What words to choose? How would he face her? \"Why...?\" She asked him once again. He took a short breath. And then, in a single phrase, Subaru told her. He told her the one and only thing that gave his life meaning, even when covered in all those wounds. \" I love you, Emilia.\" 9 In one go, they passed through the curtain of the dragon carriage, practically ripping it as they leaped out. The instant the dazzling light of the sun burned Subaru's eyes, a huge black frame stood before him, blocking the sun's rays. It was Patlash. Subaru's favorite dragon had predicted everything before he had even called her, offering him her back. Subaru leaped on, placing the leather sacks emitting high temperatures between his own belly and Patlash's saddle. He proceeded to take the reins, and the land dragon galloped on a path in the direction of the sun. Behind him Otto was surprised by Subaru's actions; the knight in the driver's seat was shocked as well. The children leaping out from behind the curtain raised their voices, as did Emilia. Subaru heard them calling out to him. But he didn't look back. There wasn't time. Every feeling he wanted to convey, every word he wanted to speak, it had all been summed up in that single phrase. There was nothing left for Subaru to do there. In that moment there was only one thing he needed to follow through on. *** Patlash became the wind, instantly leaving the landscape behind them. The effect of the wind repel blessing had expired, so the shaking and gusts assailed Subaru without mercy. But the land dragon's agile movements protected her master, and Subaru, trusting his favorite dragon in equal measure, left everything to her. He could feel through the leather bag that the magic crystals were becoming white-hot. Quietly, that heat increased with every passing instant. They were on the very brink of exploding. Subaru's belly, and Patlash's back, sensed this as they desperately dashed forward. As his eyesight darkened from pain, he saw their destination coming into view at the edge of his vision. It was the legendary Great Tree, snapped at its base and lying on its side. Lying beside that legendary tree was the headless corpse of a demon beast that had grown over the course of a long, long time. The expedition force had probably had its hands full just hauling the head of the enormous demon beast away. Due to their freezing the massive fallen body to hold back the onset of rot, there was a chill in the air all around it. Patlash ran toward the frozen carcass as Subaru ran his eyes toward the center of the White Whale. There rested the fatal sword wound inflicted by the Sword Devil. *** Drawing up right alongside the corpse, Subaru leaped off Patlash. Then, without hesitation, he raised the powerfully hot leather sack high and stuffed it into the demon beast's wound. The giant corpse's wound was large enough that, even in its frozen state, there was plenty of space to pack the leather sack into it. *** Having disposed of the leather sack, he instantly turned back. Subaru leaped back onto Patlash and grabbed the reins to immediately turn away, then the two of them circled around the corpse, slipping under the fallen Great Tree's shadow. Subaru was practically dangling from the saddle as Patlash raced onto the grasslands. By the time the land dragon had taken a second or perhaps third step, the magic crystals reached the point of ignition, and light surged up from them. All Subaru could feel was the shaking and wind from their mad dash. With his body shaken all around, he lost sight of which way was up, but he knew from the impact he felt that they'd escaped to where he'd intended. Subaru fervently clung to the trunk of the tree while Patlash curled up her body, covering Subaru with it. Immediately after that  *** There was a ferocious shock wave and blast of wind, along with the sound of the explosion, which echoed over the highway so fiercely that Subaru thought his eardrums would burst. A torrent of heat streamed past the White Whale's remains and the Great Tree, singeing Subaru and Patlash's flesh. The light from the explosion passed through his closed eyelids, searing his eyeballs."}, {"text": "But Subaru clung firmly to his handholds, gritting his teeth as he endured the pain. The shock wave churned up his internal organs, and it felt like even the powerful roots of the Great Tree would be ripped from the soil. However, the tide of destruction finally began to abate  *** Subaru, realizing that at some point he'd stopped feeling anything, lifted his head. He tried raising his voice, but his ears were ringing so badly he couldn't hear a thing. When he opened his eyes, he couldn't see anything through the hanging blast cloud. He reached out with his hand and felt the hide of the land dragon right beside him. He couldn't tell from warmth, but his palm felt the movements of a living creature. She was alive. His shoulders eased in relief. *** The next moment, he felt something moist touch the surface of his unseeing face. When it repeated over and over, he wondered if it might be Patlash's tongue licking his face. He made a strained smile at the doglike show of affection. Also, her tongue was so coarse, he felt like his face was being filed. However, he didn't lift a finger to stop it, nor did he raise his voice. It figured that he was tired. He was completely out of endurance, no longer able to move a single step. He wondered if it would be such a sin if he gave his body a little break. *** When he felt the faint stirring of the air against his skin, Subaru somehow managed to move his head. He could see nothing. He could hear nothing. But for some reason, it felt good. He could hear nothing. At that moment, nothing at  \" Subaru!\" Ahh, whaddya know. Turns out I can hear something. The sigh of relief was the last thing Subaru did before his mind fell into a deep, deep sleep. 10 When Subaru came to, his mind had entered a world of darkness once more. Having lost his body, Subaru Natsuki continued to hover in that vast, empty space as nothing but consciousness. As usual, the world had neither ground nor a discernable sky. Nothing but darkness spread out before him in an ephemeral dream, one he would forget when he awakened. \" I love you.\" But in that blank, hollow world of nothingness, there was an charming \"someone\" he couldn't meet anywhere else. Always it gave Subaru a soft, numbing throb, as if he were filled with joy at a painful embrace. \" I love you.\" The darkness unwound, the shadow formed, and the captivating \"someone\" appeared, approaching Subaru as she whispered her love. He could not see the expression on her face. However, that \"someone\" was likely spinning words of love with a face drenched with anguish. He wanted to be touched. He wanted to be longed for. Reflexively, Subaru's heart was drawn in. He wanted to respond to her love, to repay her for it. He would never be able to repay love granted to him with anything less than love of his own. And yet  \" Subaru.\" He heard it. A lovely voice from other than \"someone\" was calling his name. His thoughts alone understood. A lovely voice apart from the \"someone\" filling the dream with black shadow was calling him to the world of white light. As he understood this, a white light, something that should not exist in the land of darkness, was born. \" I love you.\" \" Subaru.\" Simultaneously, the voices were tossed his way. He wanted to respond to the shadow's love. He absolutely had to respond to the love of the light. He realized that his mind was being drawn away from the voice of that \"someone\" toward she whose voice reached him from the land of light. The voice of that \"someone\" held grief at the state of Subaru's heart, for she was being left behind. Two arms woven from shadow stretched out, but they did not reach his incomplete body. As Subaru grew distant, he heard the voice tremble, sadly calling out as it sought him over and over. \" I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you.\" \" Subaru, please.\" The whispers of love repeated over and over, whereas the call of his name contained a simple plea. Remember who you are. Remember what you have to do. Remember the words you must exchange, in the world where you belong. He couldn't stay there. So  \"Next time, I'll probably come to meet you.\" With nonexistent lips, surely unable to convey his feelings, he spoke his farewell to the \"someone\" fading in the distance. They were words of departure, an oath that they would meet again. That \"someone\" let out a small gasp. Then Subaru's mind was enveloped by a light that blotted out the world of darkness as he slowly melted away. \" I'll be waiting.\" That echo was the only thing left as Subaru Natsuki was torn from the ephemeral dream... 11 His mind floated up through the sea called sleep, breaking the surface called waking as his eyes opened. The tears of his waking eyes stung them like poison. His blurry vision saw thin, wavering violet. Her breathtaking beauty was so close that they practically breathed the same air, truly close enough for the hot breath from her pink lips to reach him making him nervous enough to die on the spot. \"Isn't your face a bit close?!\" \"Wah! Ah, Subaru! You're awake! I'm glad, really I am.\" The violet that was so near turned out to be Emilia's eyes; the realization that it was her face that had been close enough to breathe on him snapped his mind awake. As Subaru flew into a panic, Emilia watched him, patting her breast with a look of pure relief the angle was odd. \"Emilia-tan was super close while I slept. So this heavenly feeling against my head is...\" \"You don't need to say it out loud. It's a lap pillow. Not bad for...a good sleep?\" \"How can I complain? There's no pillow that's more luxurious than this. It's a pretty nice reward for working so hard.\" Subaru shot her a teasing smile as he let his head rest upon her without complaint. As he did so, Emilia pursed her lips in a small smile, quietly gazing upon Subaru's smiling face. The mood had shifted. It had changed from each making sure the other was safe...to their exchanging the feelings lying beyond that. \"Errr, can I ask you about a few things? For instance... Right, is Patlash okay? I remember I felt like she was licking my face right before I passed out...\" \"Goodness, and there's so many things I want to ask, too... That land dragon was licking you quite awhile after you passed out, too, Subaru. She really, really raised a fuss when people tried pulling you away, and if Otto hadn't had a word with her, she might never have left your side.\" \"Whoa, Patlash, how far are you gonna take this loyal dragon thing? I'm falling in love.\" They'd known each other for only two days, but the number of ordeals they'd been through together was already unmatched. If Crusch was going to give him a reward for helping deal with the White Whale, he couldn't even conceive of one besides Patlash anymore. \"She was badly burned, but her life doesn't seem to be in danger. I conducted the initial treatment, but Sir Wilhelm is having Ferris examine her right now, so...\" \"Eh? Ferris caught up, too?\" Subaru was both relieved and surprised to hear Ferris's name come from Emilia's lips. The kingdom's greatest healer having joined up with them was good news. And the fact he was there meant  \"Does this mean I've been sleeping for a long while?\" \"Two or three hours, maybe? Don't worry, thanks to conversation mirrors, Ferris and them were able to link up, so all the wounded people are all right.\" Emilia smiled pleasantly. One of the conversation mirrors originally owned by the Witch Cult rested in her hand. It was the one Subaru had kept for communicating with the expeditionary force left back in the village. She'd used it to converse with Ferris and the others, which accounted for the smooth rendezvous. \"So everyone's gathered around here, huh?\" \"Ferris is still treating people... Julius, too. I was surprised. I mean, I would never have imagined you and Julius together, Subaru.\" \"I had a reason for that bluer than the mountains and higher than the seas. Explaining the circumstances of that subject from part one would get really long and messy, y'see...\" The relationship with Julius that had surprised Emilia was difficult to explain with words. Or rather, that very moment, even Subaru didn't know how to describe it. If he had to put his complex emotions into a few short words that represented his overall appraisal of the man  \"I will hate that guy forever.\" \"What's with saying that all of a sudden?\" \"I was trying my best to express the feelings I have for him that are hard to put into exact words... So where is everyone right now?\" Not wanting to talk about that any further, he switched topics. \"Let's see,\" said Emilia, making a small, strained smile at Subaru's demeanor as she spoke. \"Ferris told everyone to take a break until he finished healing people, but he should be right about done. Once that's over, we'll be heading for the capital again. There's a lot of things I have to speak to Crusch about, after all. That's thanks to your hard work, Subaru.\" \"Yeah, it totally was hard. Seriously felt like a game as the away team. I got through it with bluff, bluster, and guessing right about some little things. Just thinking about it twists my stomach!\" \"Yes. Really...thank you.\" Emilia's sincere gratitude made Subaru, attempting to hide his blush, able to hide it no longer. But credit was credit. There was no point hiding it any longer. \"That's, right...I've, finally gotten back, haven't I?\" When he finally looked around, Subaru saw that he and Emilia were all alone inside the canopied dragon carriage's wagon. The surrounding area held no sign of people; only the sound of the wind broke the silence. It was as if they were the only two people in the whole world it was just like back then. Wounded all over, his mind hazy, he'd awakened to find the two of them all alone. \"I feel like I've been seeing a long dream...\" As a matter of fact, the events from the moment of their departure to that time around the final loop seemed unreal, very much like he'd been dreaming. That was how extreme and prolonged a situation it had been. It had been nothing but a veritable nightma  \"A bad dream...... No, not that.\" \"Was it a good dream?\" Emilia cocked her little head slightly, and her question prompted Subaru to continue. The question made Subaru close his eyes, reminiscing on the time he had nearly declared a nightmare. He remembered the many despairing situations that had visited him, places that he wanted to drive out of his head many times over. His string of foolish acts. His self-serving behavior. His overbearing arrogance. How he'd cruelly betrayed expectations. How his spirit had been pummeled and broken by loss and despair. How he had once been ruled by madness, enough that when he sank into clarity, he sought to throw everything to the wind and how, at the end of that, someone saved him. He couldn't pretend it hadn't happened. Were it not for all those things, the Subaru of that moment would not exist. Therefore, even if those days had been like a nightmare, inflicting nothing but hardships upon him... \" It was good, really.\" That long, long, nightmarish time remained nowhere, save for inside Subaru himself. He could treat it as the past. But he could not allow himself to treat it as a dream. The"}, {"text": "tragic results created by his own actions, and the horrific results they'd courted, were all his to bear. Subaru was prisoner of the supernatural power of Return by Death. He had used that power to blaze open a new future. So this cross was his to bear. \"...How much have you heard?\" \"Almost nothing. Julius said I should hear it from you.\" \"That meddling piece-of-shit bastard.\" Was this his idea of being considerate? Inside his brain, Subaru spit invective at the handsome young man. Then Subaru gently sat up from Emilia's lap, meeting her gaze with his own... ...as if to continue his words where they'd left off back then. \"That day, you asked me why. Why did I come save you? Why did I try so hard for you with this and that? Why, you said.\" \"Yeah, I asked that. And also, why you claimed I had saved you... I never did anything like that. I haven't at all. It's been only you saving me... I haven't given you anything. And in spite of that, you get so hurt for my sake...\" \"Nah, back then I was all messed up...\" A part of him could not dismiss himself as just messed up. It wasn't that he was messed up at all. At the time, thinking of himself only in terms of foolishness and frailty, the human being called Subaru Natsuki had honestly believed those words. He had been pushing his own conceited emotions onto her, and wanted only for her to accept them. Subaru knew of a man who had loudly asserted such self-serving love in his final moments, for it was Subaru himself who had watched this while leading the man to his demise. Properly speaking, the sight of the Sword Devil offering up proof of his love had also been burned into his eyes. \"At the time, I was thinking only about me. I accept that. I was saying it was for your sake, but I was just drunk with the idea of 'I'm doing this for you.' I put into my own head that if I acted drunk on that, you'd accept me.\" \"Subaru...\" \"Sorry. I was using you, and drowning in my own joy. Everything you said back then was true. I was wrong...but I wasn't wrong about everything.\" He conceded that he'd used Emilia for his own benefit. But there was one thing that he would not concede. \"I want to help you. I want to be there for you. That's serious, that's true, not a lie.\" \"...Yeah, I know.\" Emilia nodded at Subaru's words. Then her violet eyes greatly wavered and, blinking once, she stared at Subaru. And then  \" Subaru, why do you help me?\" They were the words she had spoken then. It was a question she had also posed several hours before. Then, like before, the words were offered in search of an answer. Subaru had but one to give. \"I want to be there for you, because I love you, Emilia.\" Subaru looked straight back into Emilia's eyes and stated it plainly. In the end, the summary of the basis of Subaru's actions was exceedingly simple. Wanting to be there for her, to stand by her side, to render her aid, to see her smiling face, to walk beside her, to live with her from now on  Every last part of it was because he loved Emilia with all his body and soul, from the crown of the head to the tips of his toenails. That was why, even at the risk of death, and in fact numerous deaths, no matter how hurt or hated or anguished he might be, even if he had to crawl to do it, he'd come back. Just how many opportunities had he missed, only belatedly coming up with that simple answer? He was truly in awe at the extent of his own stupidity. *** Listening to Subaru's reply, Emilia opted to close her lips and keep her silence. But that silence did not last long. Abruptly her composure crumpled; she bit her closed lips, and her wide-open, violet eyes grew moist. It was the look of a girl who might break into tears at any moment, a girl who didn't know how to cry. \"I...I'm...a half-elf...\" \"I know that.\" Emilia earnestly shook her head, replying in a shaking, halting voice. \"I'm a half-elf, with silver hair... I'm hated by all kinds of people because I look like the Witch, they hate me. They truly, truly hate me.\" \"I've realized. I know. And those guys are blind.\" Judging from appearances alone, and on top of that, basing everything on a resemblance to an arch-criminal from the distant past was ridiculous. How did anyone who didn't know a single thing about Emilia's true nature have any right to hate her? \"I have almost no experience interacting with people, and I don't have any friends. I have no common sense, and I'm ignorant of how the world works. That's why I say weird things from time to time...and because of my pact with Puck, my hairstyle practically changes on a daily basis, and my reason for wanting to be queen is...really, really selfish...\" She lined up her shortcomings one after another, even including things she didn't need to mention, offering a glimpse at her deepest vulnerabilities. Yet that timidity, that frailty, that lack of confidence in that moment, Subaru thought it was all lovely. Hence, Subaru gently shook his head. \"Emilia, whatever anyone says to you, whatever you think of yourself, I love you. I really love you. I super love you. I want to be together with you, always. I want to hold your hand, forever.\" \"Ah...\" \"If you tell me ten things you hate about yourself, I'll tell you twelve that I love about you.\" When Emilia seemed to try to pull back into herself, Subaru wouldn't let her escape, keeping his eyes glued to her as he stated how he really felt. Emilia closed her little lips, looking at Subaru, and as she continued to look, tears welled in her eyes. When they grew to the point of overflowing, she blinked, letting droplets fall, tracing paths down her white cheeks. \"That's the special way I want to treat you.\" \"...This is the first time since I was born that I've been so happy to be treated as special.\" He reached out with his hand, gently suppressing the flow of tears. With Subaru's hand touching her cheek, Emilia put her hand over his, and the body warmth exchanged between the two felt intensely hot. \"Why...twelve?\" \"Because one hundred percent ain't enough to express how I feel.\" When Subaru laughed, face brimming with a wide grin, Emilia answered with a tearful smile. Her face was dazzling, as if each and every falling tear were a diamond. Subaru felt so satisfied from seeing just one charming smile that he had to laugh at himself for how easily content he was. And so they smiled together, as Emilia rubbed her cheek against Subaru's hand. \"I'm so happy. Really happy. I never once thought the day would come that someone would tell me they loved me.\" In the days until that point, special had meant something entirely different to Emilia. That was why she was extremely frightened of receiving special treatment from anyone. Subaru knew how she felt about it, but had given her special treatment despite it all. Even if it wasn't from anyone else, even if it was only Subaru in that whole world, the way he treated her truly was...special. \"Is this really fine? For me...for someone like me to be this happy, to have such happy feelings, it feels like an indulgence...\" \"It's absolutely fine. Let's indulge ourselves. No matter how happy you are, it doesn't bother anyone else, and you can always give some of the excess to other people.\" Which was why  \"You can take it slow, Emilia. Slow, gentle, take your time falling in love with me. After all, I'll be walking right by your side, doing my best to make you weak in the knees.\" *** \"Eep,\" went Emilia, making a little sound from her throat. She proceeded to grow red in the cheeks, lowering her eyes. Then she touched a hand to her breast, quietly staring at Subaru as he smiled at her. And then... \"Thank you, Subaru. For helping me.\" ...Emilia smiled pleasantly as she said those words to Subaru. They were words she had spoken once before. Realizing that fact, Subaru laughed. Emilia, realizing the same, laughed, too. She laughed and laughed, and suddenly, tears began to flow from the corners of her eyes. Subaru reached his hand out to Emilia's long, beautiful silver hair, gently stroking it as if combing through it. He remained by the adorable girl's side as she gently continued to cry. *** Under the sky of the approaching dusk, a boy from another world and a silver-haired half-demon drew close to one another, sharing their mutual feelings. There had been repeated tribulation and despair continuing for a very long time. Having overcome these, they had finally earned a quiet, tranquil time for them alone. This was a tale about earning that time, and nothing more. This was a tale about missed opportunities, continuing along different paths, remaining lost, and nothing more. Everything had happened so that a single insecure boy could share his feelings with a single insecure girl. This was a tale of striving to do exactly that one thing   and nothing more. *** With a rattling sound, the dragon carriage quietly advanced along the highway. Protected by the blessing, Subaru was truly able to enjoy a tranquil journey in a dragon carriage for the first time. Subaru's dragon carriage experiences had always been messy, so it was the first time he was able to travel in such peace and quiet. The first \"peaceful\" journey to the royal capital had been ruined by Subaru's selfish excesses, so it didn't count. And amid this first experience  \"Hey, Petra...aren't you kinda...close?\" \"Isn't this fine, Subaru? After all, Big Sis has been hogging you the whole time until now.\" Subaru strained a smile as Petra said that to him and looked up with big, round eyes. She was sitting to Subaru's left and had been nuzzled against him, never leaving his side, since they'd set out again. \"Er, that's not true, Petra. Earlier, Subaru and I had...yes, we had something really important to talk about, so...\" \"Pfft. Just so you know, Big Sis, I am definitely not losing to you!\" A red-faced Emilia tried to make excuses, but Petra didn't heed her one bit. But they weren't acting like they seriously scorned each other; if anything, they looked like they'd been teasing each other forever, which brought a big grin to Subaru's lips. \"Emilia-tan, you're talking with a child. You need to laugh and let these things slide with a smile on your face.\" \"I will not. Even with a child, I cannot behave in such an off-the-cuff manner.\" \"No one uses off-the-cuff anymore...\" \"Grrr, playing that game again...!\" Emilia's lips tensed in displeasure, and Petra, unhappy to be treated like a child, tugged on Subaru's sleeve with a look of dissatisfaction. \"Sorry, sorry,\" begged Subaru, giving a little, pained smile as he apologized to both of them. At present Subaru and the others were heading to the capital with the children in a carriage after they'd had to change from the one that had been booby-trapped. Other than Petra, the exhausted children were asleep, and to be blunt, their snores and Petra's pressing up against Subaru were like his salvation. After all, he couldn't handle being alone with Emilia after what had happened earlier. He'd confessed to her, making all kinds of embarrassing statements in the process. Now that he calmly thought back upon making all kinds of cool-sounding statements, like about patiently waiting for her answer, he was about ready to expect jets of"}, {"text": "fire to sprout from his face. \"Subaru, what is it? You're making a strange face.\" \"I was just thinking that Petra's been a big help. I mean, she kept her promise not to leave Emilia-tan alone. She's been a very good girl!\" \"Eh-heh-heh-heh.\" As Petra looked up at him, Subaru gently stroked her hair and explained the second thing he was grateful to her for. If, by some chance, Petra and the other children had let go of Emilia, she might have done something reckless and gotten herself hurt again. This had been avoided, and Subaru was able to see all his efforts come to fruition thanks to Petra and the other children around them. Truly he had been blessed; perhaps too much, even. \"Once things calm down, there's way too many people I need to thank...\" He owed Crusch's followers a big thank-you, then another to the Anastasia faction for the aid of the Iron Fangs, and though it pained him, Julius's assistance had been a godsend as well. Russel had helped out in regard to the White Whale, plus he still owed a debt to Otto for his aid at the very end. Subaru had a lot of things to do. \"There's a mountain of stuff I've gotta think about, huh...?\" There was the issue of credit being due to the expeditionary force for taking down both the White Whale and Sloth, plus the alliance that had been struck with the Crusch camp. There was also the matter of pressing the absent Roswaal to take responsibility for compensating Earlham Village and dealing with various other matters that remained. Many difficulties lay before Subaru especially the talk that loomed largest on that mountain-like pile. \"Um, er, Emilia-tan... There's...something really important I have to talk to you about.\" \"Mmm, what is it?\" As Subaru gingerly brought the matter up, Emilia looked over to him with eyes full of trust. When Subaru gazed at those eyes and the emotions resting within, the task he had to carry out truly sunk in. At the same time, to be blunt, it frightened him to ponder whether the look in those eyes would change after he cleared the air. Naturally, the matter he could not avoid telling Emilia about concerned another girl Rem. During the current loop, there was no one who'd aided Subaru as wholeheartedly as Rem. It was Rem's deep love and devotion that had gently healed Subaru's broken heart, allowing him to summon the will to rekindle the fight against fate every time he had to start over. Had it not been for Rem, the Subaru sitting before Emilia would not have existed. That was why Subaru harbored deep feelings for Rem that were special in their own way. Even if they were different from those he felt for Emilia, nothing else could compare to their strength and size. Accordingly, Subaru settled on framing it around that he knew full well that it was an awful way of thinking. \"This is really hard to say, but please, listen to me. Of course, I'm resigned to Ram kicking my ass when I tell her about this, but...I wanted to tell you first, Emilia-tan.\" \"...Mm-hmm?\" Subaru's odd, halting preamble left Emilia with a perplexed expression on her face. Seeing that nearly dulled his determination, but he hardened his resolve, feeling his courage bolstered by the battle with the Witch Cult. He worked the wheels in his brain at maximum speed, multiplying everything by Return by Death to reach the most optimal way to explain  \"Actually, I wanted to talk about Rem. Where I'm concerned, Rem, um...well, you must have figured it out, right? I mean, well, she said a fair bit about it...\" Sweat oozed from Subaru's brow as he desperately tried to find the next words. Now that he was faced with giving the most awful confession in history, his courage, resolve, and experiences from Return by Death all failed him. With Subaru already devolving into rambling excuses, drenched with cold sweat as he found it hard to speak, Emilia raised a hand. \"Hold on a moment. Subaru, calm down. I don't understand what you're trying to say, and I know that you're trying really, really hard, Subaru. Be a good boy and take it slow.\" \"I'm not sure what to think about the good-boy part...! No, wait, I'm not being very manly here. Okay, I'll just spit it out! See, Rem told me that she loves me just as much as I love you, Emilia, so...!\" He meant to build on the momentum from where he had just left off, but his words died out. Having put his feelings into it with all his strength, he was sure that Emilia would be shocked at exactly what he was confessing to. The mere thought of how she might react terrified him. Very, very tenderly, he watched for her response. *** However, Emilia's reaction was completely different from what Subaru had expected. Subaru's words made Emilia's brows draw up. She touched a finger to her lips as she silently sank into thought. Was she mulling over his words, her anger building toward Subaru? It didn't seem like that at all. \"Subaru.\" \"Yes?\" When Emilia called his name, Subaru looked straight her. Emilia resolutely faced Subaru's determined eyes head-on. However, her gaze also contained bewilderment, and Subaru couldn't understand why. Then, the next words she spoke were literally beyond Subaru's comprehension  \"Who's Rem?\" *** 1 A loud, crying voice echoed under the clear, blue sky. It was the crying voice of a baby girl. Already she was crying with all her heart and soul. Displaying emotions with every bit of available strength was a privilege reserved for babes. As he embraced that sentiment, he was shocked with himself, for it was not the thought of the young. \"So this is longing for youth... Maybe I should cry like Spica and return to the innocence of childhood?\" \"If an adult acts like that on a public street, there's nothing I can do to help, you know?!\" When Subaru, feeling the weight of his years, made that murmur, the boy beside him played the straight man. Upon that exchange, the baby in Subaru's arms the girl named Spica took a deep, deep breath and went, \"Aa !!\" \"Whoa! Spica's crying! Hey, uh, Rigel, you're her older brother! Do something!\" \"You say that, but the fact you yourself aren't doing anything about it is a lot worse!\" The two males of the household batted responsibility back in forth with the baby between them. The uproar attracted the attention of nearby pedestrians, but when they saw which three people were making the ruckus, they all thought, Same as usual, and promptly lost interest. As a result, the crying baby girl and the two caretakers remained as they were. Subaru, dead center amid that noisy, passingly amusing scene, covered his face with a hand. \"So we have a little girl crying like this, and not a single person offers a lifeboat... Shit, have people's hearts hardened that much?!\" \"This ain't the time to philosophize about the world! At this rate she's gonna give us a lecture when she gets back...\" \"When who gets back, Rigel?\" \"Well, that's obvio \" The young man named Rigel cut off his words there as he looked over his shoulder in shock. Subaru went, \"Ohh\" as he followed Rigel's gaze, raising his eyebrows as he arrived at the figure standing behind him. \"Done with your shopping?\" \"Yes, there were no problems... It seems things did not go so well for you.\" \"Nah, Spica's super lively. This one's growing up to be the type who runs all around and keeps men wrapped around her finger. She'll grow into a little devil before you know it. My heart's all aflutter. I can't wait!\" As Subaru flapped his lips, Spica, the girl he held in his arms, extended a little hand toward the woman standing there who was no larger than a leaf. Subaru desolately realized she seemed to be saying, Change me. \"Well, all that being said, we can't have her crying again. With that, I'll leave her to you.\" \"Yes, leave her to me.\" Though his tone remained mischievous, Subaru handed the baby over with exceptional gentleness. The woman made a charming little smile as she took Spica, handling her like a precious treasure. Then she hugged Spica snugly against her chest, gently rocking the baby's body to put her at ease. \"Yes, Father and Big Brother are helpless, aren't they? Spica, you need to grow up soon so you can give them the proper scolding they deserve.\" \"Hey now, she can't understand words yet, so can we not give her the special tutoring?\" An image of the future came to mind: his mischief being followed by her and Spica sandwiching him, hands on their hips in a pronounced huff. That scene, with them angry at him and Rigel both, was just  \"Er, now that I think of it, that's not as bad as I thought, it's really not! If anything, it comes off as one hell of a happy image of the future, doesn't it?\" \"Leave me out of it. Having a little sister angry at me makes me look bad as an older brother.\" \"Well, it wouldn't make you look bad if you're lumped in with me. Your future... I can see it, I can see it...! Too soft to the little sister you like too much, kept under her thumb forever...you will be the Siscon King!!\" \"Hey, you're the one who's wrapped around a woman's finger! I'll never, ever be like that!\" Subaru wagged his finger to fan the flames; a vein bulged on Rigel's forehead as he protested. But Rigel's statement made the blue-haired woman holding Spica knit her brows together. \"Rigel what is this manner of talking you've been using outside? It's intolerable,\" she said. \"Uh, but, I mean...\" \"Mother hates hearing but and I mean. Besides, your earlier words are mistaken.\" As Rigel hemmed and hawed, she scolded him without mercy; then she pressed her lips to Spica's cheek and spoke. \"Mother does not have Father wrapped around her finger. After all, Father is always Mother's Number One.\" Her cheeks reddened as she uttered something far more embarrassing than a baby crying on a public street. This time, confronted with a mother able to say that out loud, Rigel raised both hands in abject surrender. Even Subaru couldn't do anything but awkwardly scratch a cheek. The reactions from her beloved family sent her happily passing a hand through her long hair. The stroke left Rem's hair, blue and pretty like the sky, swaying gently in the wind. 2 In a corner of Banan City, part of the city-state of Kararagi, Subaru sat on a bench at the corner of a public park dotted with playgrounds, gazing absentmindedly at affairs inside the park. Directly in front of him, Rigel, his blue hair combed backward and spiky, was running around the public park, having fun with his friends. He might be cheeky to his own father, but he was an adorable kid, as befitted his age. \"Now if only we could do something about those awful serial killer eyes...\" \"We will do nothing of the sort. That nasty look is part of who Rigel is. No matter how much fun he has, no matter how joyful he may be, his face will still make first acquaintances flinch with discomfort that's our Rigel.\" \"Hey, I can hear you. And Mom, your attempt to help hurt even more, you know?!\" Rigel was caught and frozen in a game of freeze tag passed down by Subaru himself as he raised his voice in anger. Subaru and Rem both waved to their adorable son, seemingly to fan the flames like a proper husband and wife. The foul, vein-bulging look of dissatisfaction on Rigel's face made him a dead ringer for a young Subaru. \"In other words, I can already expect his future to go something like"}, {"text": "mine. I'd be in shock too if I were him... I mean, in twenty years he's gonna turn into me.\" \"Would that not mean...a future where he marries a valiant wife, skilled in cooking and capable of all domestic affairs, who is also a wonderful and ideal bride?\" \"Hey, what's that normie sellout garbage about? That can go jump in a... Wait, you meant me!\" When Subaru put a hand against his head and stuck out his tongue, Rem couldn't keep herself from sighing a little. \"If you don't deny it even a little, your wife will get carried away from being smothered in praise.\" \"What this about smothering you in praise? It's just the truth. I seriously am a real-life sellout.\" If Subaru were seriously trying to kill her with flattery, he would go much, much further. But they were in a public park in broad daylight. If he started saying sweet nothings to her, the idle chatter around them would drown out everything else. That wasn't such a bad thing, but he wanted to fully enjoy the moment. His son was playing; his wife was gently holding their baby daughter. Subaru felt like falling asleep beside them. Sitting beside her was somehow making Subaru sleepy. \"Er...\" \"If you wish to sleep, I will lend you my shoulder. Spica has monopolized my arms, after all.\" When he opened one eye, he found that his head had come to rest on Rem's shoulder as they sat side by side. With Rem so close, he could smell her sweet scent and feel her warmth. Subaru's cheeks slackened as he looked Spica's way. She had her father's black hair and her mother's adorable face. Her life was innocent, delicate, and so very lovely. \"Damn you, Spica. Beloved daughter you may be, you're one frightening schemer, taking over my holy ground like that.\" \"My breasts are occupied until evening, so please wait.\" \"Right now, we're in a park in the middle of the day, so we'd better watch what we say, you know...\" When Subaru's eyes bulged at the audacious statement, the woman who had said it turned beet red. \"Man, my family's super adorable.\" \"Because you love them all each and every day.\" Their gazing at each other made him feel funny, so Subaru accepted Rem's offer and rested his head on her shoulder. The feel of her blue hair brushing against him felt amazingly good, making Subaru rub his face against it without thinking about it. \"Someone wants to be tickled.\" \"Ah, sorry, it just felt sooo good. I'll just learn from Spica and behave. Rigel can be the only one who can't calm down. Wow, Rigel's such a little kid!\" \"I can hear you, stupid dad! Don't compare me to you!\" \"Rigel, your sister is sleeping, so please be considerate.\" \"It just ain't fair!\" The still-frozen Rigel shouted at the absurdity, but no one in the family backed him up. Adding to his woes, no one came to rescue Rigel from his frozen state. He was in quite an isolated position. Though he resembled Subaru in appearance and mannerisms, the surrounding children did not tease him about that, which Subaru thought was incredibly kind on their part, but... \"You can't turn out like that, Spica! Only Big Bro acting like that is enough. Well, you take after Mother, so your future is bright. I only pray you don't get caught by a no-good man like me.\" \"There is no substitute for you. My darling is the greatest in the whole world.\" Subaru gave a strained smile at Rem's enthusiastic seal of approval. Silence fell between them for a time; but this was not an uncomfortable silence in any way. With the sun's rays behind them, he gazed wistfully at his son being teased by his friends as he cuddled up to his wife, holding their daughter in her arms, and rested it was a sweet, happy time. \" Subaru.\" The abrupt calling of Subaru's name made him open his closed eyes. When he glanced upward, Rem's clear, light-blue eyes were gazing into his. Her moist eyes loosened Subaru's tongue. \"...It's been a while since you've called me that. It's been 'darling' and 'Father' for ages.\" *** The words Subaru spoke upon waking made Rem purse her trembling lips. He was looking at the face Rem had often worn several years ago, right after they ran away. Subaru could tell even when Rem tried to hide it. After all, he'd always had his eyes on her. Bathed by the wind, Subaru narrowed his eyes. It had been Rem who'd invited him on a family outing that day. He'd guessed that she had a reason for that. After all  \"Today...it's been eight years since that day, huh?\" \"...You noticed?\" \"Well, to me...no, to us, that was the day everything changed, right? It's not that I noticed or remembered, it's that I can't forget there's no way can I forget.\" It was the day he had submitted to fate, the day he had thrown everything away and fled with Rem. It was a day when he'd meant to give everything up, but there was one thing only he hadn't given up on. On that day he'd had her love and the Subaru sitting there existed thanks to that. \"Subaru, do you...?\" Rem had consciously stopped calling him by that familiar name since they'd fled to Kararagi. It was no doubt a ritual by which she'd left their old lives behind. All that time, Subaru hadn't asked her to divulge the true intent behind it, nor had Rem told Subaru on her own. As for what led her to depart from the ritual she had continued for so long, that was  \"...regret it?\" \"Regret?\" \"Yes, that you ran away. That you gave up. That you threw everything away. That you \" \"If you're gonna say, picked me, I'm gonna be ultra mad. I'll grab Rigel and Spica and head back home right now! Ah, nah, I'll leave Rigel here.\" He saw that Rigel was giving him a foul look, but Subaru spoke anyway \"Mother and I are having an important discussion\" thrusting his son's concerns into a bottomless pit. \"Now look here,\" he said afterward, turning back toward Rem as he spoke. \"That's quite something to ask all of a sudden after eight years, and I'm not sure how many dozens or hundreds of times saying this is gonna help, but...\" \"Yes.\" \"I love you the most in the whole world. You're the only bride for me, and I'm the only man for you. You're not a cheap woman...a guy like me doesn't settle for someone like you.\" As they gazed at one another, Subaru's fingertip gave Rem's forehead a light flick. Then he drew close to the surprised girl's face and spoke. \"It's like I swore that day. I'm yours through and through. I'll do anything for you. I'll give anything to you. I live for you alone  Well, nowadays I have to add our kids to that.\" With Rem's eyes closed, he crinkled his nose and stole a kiss from her lips. A smile came over Subaru just from the touch of their lips and being close enough to feel her breath. No matter how many years passed, that childish mischievousness of his always stayed the same. \"Can't you stop worrying now?\" \"...I am sorry. I always worry. I mean, I love you more and more, Subaru. Even though I keep thinking...there can never be a happier time than this...I become happier and happier. I love, I rejoice, and so I worry.\" Tears appeared in Rem's eyes. She shook her head a little, even as she professed her own happiness. After shaking her head, she touched her cheek to Subaru's, allowing their mutual warmth to flow between them as she spoke. \"I worry that you'll go away, and I won't be able to touch you like this anymore.\" \"Relax. I'm not leaving your side and I'm not going away. As long as you love me, I'm never pulling away from you.\" \"My love for you will never run out, Subaru \" \"We'll be together forever, then. I love you, Rem.\" Rem didn't know what to do with her own feelings as Subaru kissed her again. Frozen in surprise, she sank deep inside herself as their hot tongues intertwined once more. When she felt his tongue depart, savoring the sensation of his saliva on her front teeth, her breath was slightly ragged when Subaru continued, \"Don't make me say stupid stuff like maybe I settled for you in the first place. So what then? Instead of love for Rigel and Spica I should pity them? Spica's the crystallization of our love all according to plan, and Rigel's the kid born from our youth and burning love running wild.\" \"...It was quite a time when Rigel was born.\" When Subaru put a hand on his hip and lectured her, Rem smiled softly as she looked back at him, reminiscing. \"Even though we needed to find a house and a job here in Kararagi and set up a calm, stable life...\" \"Well, um, hey, we were young, so we couldn't just hold off.\" \"And even though you were tired from work, you became very energetic in the evening, Subaru.\" \"Er, um, hey, when you're young you have energy to spare, right?\" \"I got pregnant almost at the same time as getting full-time work, so my head was pretty much a haze at the time...\" \"A man really doesn't like acknowledging the so-called mistakes of his youth...\" Subaru deeply felt Rem's vigorous counterattack as he gazed into the distance and murmured. On the other end, Rigel grimaced at being treated like Subaru's mistake, but he apparently read the mood and refrained from intruding. Not bad for a son of his. \"Well, um, I was happy, too. When you told me, at first I had just a little bit of blood dripping from my nose, and then when I tried to check if it was a dream or not, it was actually bleeding from after you slugged me...\" Rem had lost her temper a fair bit, too, so the haymaker punch he'd received had sent him crashing into the wall with enough force to make their temporary residence tilt. It had been bad enough he had resigned himself to possibly experiencing Return by Death once again after a long hiatus. At any rate, Subaru was able to recall every detail of when Rem had informed him of her pregnancy, including the warm feelings welling up in his chest at the time... However, Rem responded to Subaru's words with a shake of her head. \"You are mistaken. My happiness is likely a different happiness from yours. What I think of happiness is...happiness that I did not have to lose you, Subaru.\" *** \"Rigel is the tangible bond born between Subaru and Rem. It may be a poor way to say it, but a child born between us firmly tied you to me so that you would never leave my side... That made me happy.\" Perhaps he'd been leaning on her ever since those days of uncertainty. He'd thrown away anything and everything until that point, the two of them fleeing to a new land with nothing but each other. Back in those days, with nothing to cling to but each other, Rem had always been shaken by the irrational fear that she would someday lose Subaru again. In Rem's lack of confidence in herself, Subaru had met his match. To Rem, worth much more than her minimal appraisal of herself, her life with Subaru was one of maximal happiness and anxiety, nurturing both fortune and fear as two sides of the same coin. And it was the new life between them that had served as the marker to put an end to that time. \"You didn't believe?\" \"No. I believe you more than this entire world, Subaru.\" \"Not that. I don't mean believing me...I mean, you"}, {"text": "didn't believe in yourself?\" Subaru's words drew a small gasp from Rem; then she nodded toward him. Inside her, Subaru loomed disproportionately large. Rem, thinking she was very tiny in comparison, must have felt anxious on account of that. Enough not to notice that Subaru had harbored the same worry all that time. Subaru couldn't help a pained smile at how they were intensely self-deprecating, husband and wife both. The sight of that made Rem's cheeks puff up. \"It is fine. I am an idiot. You cannot be faulted for laughing...,\" she said. \"No, no. I was just thinking all over again that our personalities are a perfect match, that and yes, my wife really is the cutest in the whole world.\" For but a single moment, the surprise confession made Rem blink and brought a flush to her cheeks. Subaru's breast warmed at the response; he had managed to make Rem truly feel his love for her. He liked, and loved, Rem most in the whole world. He was capable of yelling that in a loud voice. In fact, from time to time, he did just that. It had made them locally famous as a particularly passionate husband and wife. \" Rigel, Spica.\" \"Mm?\" All of a sudden, Rem spoke the names of their two adorable children. When Subaru cocked his head, Rem said, \"It's nothing,\" gazing at Subaru with upturned eyes. \"Both are the names of stars, yes? Stars in your homeland, Subaru?\" \"Yep. My dad had a fundamentally lousy personality, but I straight-up admire him for naming me Subaru. I like this name. Subaru's the name of a star, y'see.\" When, during his elementary school years, he brought up the topic of the origin of his name, Subaru had learned that he was named for a star cluster in the nighttime sky. Subaru had held an interest in illustrated books about stars ever since. So he knew a whole bunch of star names, and when he needed to stick a name onto something  \"I was always taking names from stars. I used the name of a star for my handle on the net, and if I used an alias I'd usually take one from a star. So even in that sense, these names really shine!!\" \"I am uncertain what you mean by that, but I do think names of stars are wonderful. If a third child is born, I am sure it shall be the same.\" \"Isn't it a little soon to talk about a third? Spica's not weaned yet.\" \"I was thinking I could leave everything but breastfeeding to Rigel. Why do you think I was so careful not to have the next child until he got bigger?\" \"Hard to notice with me around, but you're pretty hard on Rigel, too, aren't you, Rem?!\" Subaru made a strained smile at Rem's routine treatment of their son as he got up from the bench, brushing his rear. Then, as Rem looked up at him, he extended a hand toward her. \"Let's head back. A man can only do so much flirting with other people's eyes on him, you know,\" he said. \"I suppose so. Right now, I feel like you want to flirt with me with all your strength in a way that you haven't in a while.\" \"Oh yeah. Right now, my libido might be enough to keep up with even a demon's endurance...\" With that nervous murmur, he used the hand Rem was grasping to pull her into his embrace. \"Wah!\" she exclaimed in surprise as Subaru hugged her, Spica and all, deftly conveying his warmth to his family. \"Well, let's head back, then to our house.\" \"Yes, darling.\" Subaru walked forward, a basket of groceries in one hand, Rem's hand in the other, with Rem, carrying Spica, cuddled up against him as she followed half a step behind. That was how they walked close to their still-frozen son at the center of the public park. \"Hey, son, still stuck in WinterFest on your own? This is slow even for freeze tag, and I'm bored, so Mother and I are taking your sister back home. You can sleep over at a friend's house tonight.\" \"That's blatantly ditching me, damn it! And this is after having my parents be all lovey-dovey in a public park in broad daylight.\" \"You jelly? Sorry, Rigel. Rem here is all mine.\" \"Shut up!\" Subaru fanned the flames, drawing an angry shout from Rigel, but he didn't play the jilted son for long. He immediately took a deep breath and spoke. \"Stay calm, stay calm. Don't let Dad fling you around willy-nilly. Calm, I'm calm... OK, I've calmed down. So what were you and Mommy talking about?\" \"Where your name came from. Come to think a bit, I think Vega was my first candidate for your name.\" \"That sounds strong! Why'd you drop it?\" \"Nah, when I thought of the original backstory it seemed pretty rough for a name. No way am I raising a son who can only meet his lover once a year. Lovers are important...especially my bride, the cutest of all.\" \"Yes, I am Subaru's Rem.\" \"Would you stop using topics about me to act all sappy like that?!\" His parents' sweet marital exchange drove Rigel to stamp the ground as he vented. The other children playing freeze tag noticed Rigel's antics. \"Aah, Rigel moved! You can't break the freeze tag rules!\" \"Geh!\" The children who had abandoned Rigel to that point showered accusations of rule breaking upon him. As Rigel froze, his throat tight, Subaru patted him on the shoulder. \"He who breaks the taboo of freeze tag must be punished. You must face the hell of being tickled by demons until you are unable to either laugh or cry  Be strong.\" \"Don't make up rules as you go with a serious look on your... Hey, what do you guys think you're...! Wait a sec! Don't just take what he says at face value! Wa, uwaaa !!\" Rigel desperately ran away as the various children pressed upon him. However, they headed him off. They proceeded to press Rigel to the ground as several sets of fingers closed in... \"Farewell, my son. Father and Mother have something very important to discuss, so don't you dare come back until nighttime. Also, use of your horn is forbidden. And make sure you don't tear your clothes.\" \"Y-you heartless parents, I'll remember this !\" Fingers pressed upon Rigel from all directions, toying with him as they pleased; his laughing voice echoed through the public park like a cry for help. The laughs of her older brother made Spica go, \"Kya-kya,\" laughing in obvious delight. Subaru sensed fine future prospects. Probably Spica's growth would further solidify Rigel's place in the Natsuki family. Having displayed his boundless love for their beloved son by tweaking his nose just a little, Subaru walked forward, leading Rem by the hand. And so he headed toward his own house, the place where he lived with his precious family in tranquility and happiness  \"Subaru.\" \"Mm?\" When he abruptly felt his arm tugged, Subaru stopped and looked back. That instant, a powerful gust of wind blew between Subaru and Rem. He unwittingly closed his eyes, slowly opening them again when the wind relented. Rem's long, blue hair was fluttering in the wind, glittering as if it were making the sunlight melt. Rem had grown her hair long. The current Subaru somehow understood that this was due to her rivalry with someone. And so too did he understand that when he thought of a woman with long hair, the first image that came to mind was the one before his eyes: that of the girl most precious to him in the whole wide world. The long hair silently flowed as Rem smiled at Subaru, reembracing their beloved daughter in her arms. To Subaru, that loving smile was the loveliest thing of all. \"Right now, I am...the happiest woman in the world.\" *** 1 As they traveled along the highway, Rem let the dragon carriage rock her as she thought of him alone. Rem was lying down, eyes narrowed from the dazzling morning sun and the moist breeze, when she gently lifted her head. Straight ahead of her was the convoy of dragon carriages in military formation as they headed back to the royal capital. The carriages were carrying the wounded from the battle to defeat the White Whale; many of them were gravely wounded and had received only the bare minimum of treatment. But the atmosphere of the unit was far from somber; it was that of an overflowing sense that their earnest desire had been achieved. To them, the current trek to the royal capital was a triumphant return. The pain of their wounds did not hold a candle to their sense of fulfillment from achieving the wish they had waited years for. Indeed, their hauling the severed head of the White Whale to the royal capital would surely be greeted by praise from the masses for their valiant efforts. In contrast to their deeply held sentiments, Rem was concerned with a young man not present. \"Your face is downcast, Rem. It seems your worries indeed know no bounds.\" \"...Lady Crusch.\" When Rem looked toward the voice, she saw Crusch Karsten sitting right beside her. Though she was bandaged under her light armor, Rem did not sense that her demeanor was affected by her wounds in the slightest. But there were traces of fatigue upon even her gallant face. She was in precarious enough territory that she was riding a dragon carriage, not on her favorite land dragon. However, as Rem nodded toward her, Crusch cast her fatigue aside in the blink of an eye. \"Ferris, Wilhelm, and the expeditionary force accompanying them are brave, highly trained warriors. He shall surely have Ricardo and the Iron Fangs aiding him... Besides, it is difficult to believe that Anastasia Hoshin does not have other measures prepared. The Witch Cult's numbers are unknown, but it is not a losing battle.\" \"I wonder if it is selfish of me to worry, even so?\" \"Once the seed of worry has taken root, stepping on it is not helpful. If you are the cause, you must overcome yourself with devotion and resolve. But one finds the self to be a difficult opponent  Forgive me, helping others find peace of mind is not my specialty.\" Seeing the gloom on Rem's face deepen, Crusch lowered her eyes, realizing that she had misspoken. That instant, Rem broke into a small, spontaneous smile at how the woman who had felt so detached to date suddenly felt very close to her. \"Very good,\" said Crusch, drawing her chin in upon seeing that smile. \"Subaru Natsuki said it well. That a smiling face suits you better, Rem. Hearing it from the side, I thought it mere flattery, but it is less idiotic than I expected.\" \"If you were to smile, Lady Crusch, the air you give off would surely change as well. You are always so imposing... I believe you would display a wonderful smile.\" \"...I wonder. I am a woman poor at smiling. I have always regretted it, and do so even now.\" Rem's suggestion caused Crusch to avert her gaze and murmur thusly. There was a smile carved upon her lips, but this was a slight smile, one plainly at her own expense. Rem was surprised to see Crusch display such disgust with herself. To Rem, lacking in confidence, Crusch, always valiant and composed, was one of the ideal images of womanhood. Though as far as Rem was concerned, Ram, her elder sister, was the most ideal of all... But before she could press the issue, Crusch hid her smile and changed the topic. \"Concerning Subaru Natsuki and the others... This revolves around Emilia's lineage. I anticipated the threat of the Witch Cult from the beginning. Surely Marquis Mathers has prepared measures of his own?\" \"I do not understand Master Roswaal's thinking. For"}, {"text": "that reason, it shall do you no good to pry.\" \"How strict. Now that we are allies, he surely would not mind your letting a few words slip.\" Likely, her jesting manner of speaking was her being considerate toward Rem. As a matter of fact, Rem had managed not to sink into a swamp of worry thanks to Crusch's speaking to her like that. Besides, Crusch's hypothesis made perfect sense. It was a certainty that Roswaal, of all people, would have some kind of countermeasure for the current incident. After Subaru's having fallen into misfortune, his actions to assist Roswaal would surely restore his good name. No, his cooperation in the battle against the White Whale had already made his name echo far more than that. The hero, Subaru Natsuki. To Rem, it was natural to assess the man who had saved her heart and her future thus; there was no other appraisal fitting Subaru, who would surely perform other shining exploits thereafter. And if Rem could exist beside that shining light, have it turn toward her from time to time, Rem sought nothing more. Rem would be fulfilled by that alone. When Rem thought about Subaru, her heart was always filled with complex emotions. It always made her feel warm and at ease. And yet at some point anxiety crept in, bringing anguish; she felt like worry was tearing her apart. It was Subaru, and Subaru alone, who gave her heart such joy and distress, ceaselessly alternating between one and the other... \"Subaru...truly is a very vexing person.\" With a small, wry smile, Rem whispered loving words toward the image of the man rising in the back of her mind. Crusch watched the side of her face in visible relief. She let her long hair flow down her back as she silently shifted her eyes toward the dragon carriage on the road ahead but her amber eyes abruptly narrowed. \" Mm?\" Crusch let out a tiny murmur. Rem lifted up her face, for she had detected a jarring sound at nearly the same instant. The dragon carriage in front caught by the amber eyes was in the same direction as the discordant sound Rem had noticed. The two discrepancies were linked to the same event, which occurred a moment later. Namely, the sudden destruction of the dragon carriage directly in front of Crusch. It was destruction in its purest form. Out of the blue, the dragon carriage's entire frame was swallowed up by an overpowering shock wave, which blasted it away in pieces. To Rem, the sound of the devastating blow was like that of rainfall. Red mist spewed out as the dragon carriage was instantly transformed into a bloody spectacle. The land dragon, the carriage, and surely the wounded inside the carriage as well, had been pulverized by wholly merciless destruction. \" ! We're under attack!!\" Instantly, Crusch shoved all distress from the blow aside and called the formation to arms. The expeditionary force's warriors, immediately sensing something was very wrong, raised their weapons, girding against enemy attack. Rem, too, ignored her physical fatigue, rising up with an iron ball in her hand... Then she saw a figure on the other side of the bloody mist. Unarmed. Unguarded. Unconcerned. Unmoved, unmerciful, unreserved malice  \" Trample them!!\" Crusch shouted toward the driver's seat. Hearing this, the knight loudly snapped the reins in lieu of a nod. The neighing land dragon accelerated, and the dragon carriage became a weapon, charging to run over its foe. And so they would score a direct hit on their target, the figure standing rooted to the spot, making no move to avoid it, sending him flying  \"Lady Crusch !\" Rem shouted as she grabbed Crusch by her slender hips and leaped, escaping to the dragon carriage's side. The knight on the driver's seat was beyond her reach. Rem clenched her teeth in regret, and just after, she heard a voice. \"Goodness, could you not? I think running over someone who's done nothing is slightly beyond what decent people would do.\" It was a gentle voice speaking with all the urgency of someone taking an early-afternoon stroll in a public park. In fact, if she'd heard such words in a public park, Rem would have been far less shocked. Yet that voice had unleashed the destruction that had shattered a dragon carriage in a tragic spectacle of blood spatter. At a glance, he was an utterly unremarkable individual. He was of medium height, with a medium build, and he had naturally white hair that was neither short nor long. The white suit that he wore to match the hair on his head was neither extravagant nor shabby, nor did his face have any defining characteristics; he looked like a completely average man. Yet as a matter of fact, the land dragon coming into contact with him forcefully cried out as half of it was torn asunder; the knight on the driver's seat and the smashed dragon carriage were destroyed together to the point that it was impossible to tell them apart. And what shocked Rem the most was not the man's demeanor as he treated the awful spectacle like it was nothing, but the fact that the man who had assuredly destroyed the dragon carriage had simply stood there. The man had done nothing. Merely by standing, he had taken a head-on collision from a dragon carriage, and won. \"I thank you, Rem. You saved me...but it seems the situation has improved little.\" As Rem stood frozen, Crusch, embraced in her arms, rose to her own feet. She remained wary of the still-unarmed man as she turned a painful eye toward the bloody remnants of the dragon carriage. \"How dare you inflict such cruelty on my retainers...? Who are you?\" Razor-sharp will to fight rested in Crusch's eyes as she posed the question to the man in a hard voice. Upon receiving Crusch's question, the man touched his own chin, nodding multiple times as he spoke. \"I see, I see. That means you do know nothing about me. But I know all about you. Right now, the royal capital...no, the entire nation is astir where you are all concerned, candidates to become the next ruler. Even if I have little interest in titles and the affairs of the world, I can imagine it takes a great deal of resolve to bear such burdens. It must be so hard for you.\" \"Enough idle chitchat  Answer my question or I shall strike you down.\" \"What a terrible thing to say...but perhaps arrogance of this level is mandatory if one is to support a nation on her shoulders...not that I can understand even a smidgen of that emotion, mind you. Well, I suppose I could never understand the thoughts of someone who actually wants the throne and having that responsibility piled upon her. Ah, not understanding does not mean I am putting them down. You see, unlike you, I simply lack such arrogance...\" The man continued to ignore Crusch's demand as he spoke glibly at length. But  \" I told you there would not be a third chance.\" Crusch made that calm statement at the same time that she waved her arm, unleashing a blade of wind. This was Crusch's technique, One Blow, One Hundred Felled the product of wind magic and her blessing of wind reading. The man was slashed by the invisible cutting attack, able to slay a person, before he even realized he had been sliced. It was this might with the sword by which Crusch had protected the Duchy of Karsten in her first sortie, preventing damage when the demon beast known as the Great Hare appeared, causing rumors of the Valkyrie to quickly spread. It was a hearty sword blow that could even rend the thick hide of the White Whale, sending a beast of that size crashing to the ground a man's flesh, with a mass greatly inferior to that of the demon beast's, could not possibly withstand such a blow. And yet  \"...Who raised you to cut a man down in the middle of a pleasant conversation?\" Tilting his head, the man stood there, his body showered with the slicing blow, only to easily shrug it off. The cutting attack that had rent even the White Whale hadn't even made him twitch. There was no sign of the man's flesh no, not even of the man's clothes having been cut. It was thanks to an unknown phenomenon that did far more than merely defend against Crusch's invisible blade. Crusch gasped; Rem's body froze up from the work of a different abnormal phenomenon. Looking at the two in front of him, the man sighed and pushed up his forelocks in annoyance. \"Now hold on, I'm speaking. I'm speaking, okay? Isn't it strange to interrupt a man when he's speaking? Not that I feel like asserting the right to speak, but it's common sense not to bother a man when he's trying to say something. Now, you're free to listen or not, so I won't complain about that part, but you deciding not to let me speak, that's just...I mean, how self-centered is that?\" The man spoke rapidly as he began to scuff the ground with the tip of his shoe. The pair maintained an awkward silence as the man pointed at them, clicking his tongue in further annoyance. \"And now silence. What's up with you people? You heard me. I know you heard me. I asked questions, didn't I? Then answer me. That's how it works. And you won't even do that. You don't want to. Ahhh, liberty. This is your liberty at work. This is how you employ your own liberty. That's fine, do as you please. But you know what that means, don't you?\" The man leaned forward as the mad glint in his eyes grew stronger. Then  \"It means that you're belittling my rights...the very few things I personally own, yes?\" A chill raced up Rem's spine. The next moment the man moved. Without warning, he listlessly raised his dangling arms, and a faint vortex of wind erupted. Right after, in a line directly above the man's arms the ground, the air, the world, broke. *** Around and around, around and around, Crusch's left arm, severed at the shoulder, danced in the air. The arm, still posed as if it were holding the invisible blade, flew, scattering blood droplets all around as it fell to the earth. The blow sent Crusch's body crumpling down; she began to convulse from the bleeding and intense pain. \"Lady...Crusch \" After spending several seconds dumbfounded, Rem snapped back and leaped toward Crusch. Putting her hand against Crusch's bleeding wound, Rem wrung out the scant mana she had to stop the bleeding and treat it with all her strength. Crusch's arm had been cleanly severed flesh, bone, and nerves sliced through. No matter how out of place, Rem couldn't help but admire the terrifyingly perfect cut. \"Ferr...is... Uaa...u?\" In Rem's arms, Crusch's vision wandered as she spoke those words. Her right hand gripped Rem's foot hard enough to make her bones creak. Rem bit down, enduring Crusch's struggle to live. She glowered at the wicked deed of the man before her. Rem had absolutely no understanding of the indecipherable man's means of attack and defense. As she pondered how to shield the wounded Crusch and get her away from the man, Rem suddenly realized that something else felt off. During all of this, the other knights had strangely not joined the battle. \"Aaah... No matter how much I eat, it's still not enough! This is why we can't stop livin'. Eat, eat, bite, chew, swallow, swallow more, tear, crush, drink! Gorge! Aaah, that was a feast!\" The same time the insight hit her, the high-pitched voice of a youth reached her from behind. A chill equal to that caused by the man before her caused Rem to look back in fright. And behind her, at the center of the stopped convoy of dragon carriages, she saw"}, {"text": "a blood-smeared youth kicking the knights who had fallen before him. He was a short youth with light-brown hair that went down to the knees. His height was equal to Rem's or even lower; he was probably twelve or thirteen years of age. Under his unkempt hair, he wore tattered clothes over his diminutive frame. His bare limbs were covered in dirt and grime, and stained from large amounts of blood spatter. Not one of the knights tumbled at his feet was moving. The youth had wiped out the surrounding knights while Crusch was battered in the white-haired man's attack. \"You...are...?\" Rem's lips quivered, for she was dumbfounded that she had not even sensed the combat taking place. Hemmed in by bizarre opponents to the front and the back, Rem picked Crusch up and slowly backed away. Blood flowing from Crusch's wound was staining the grassland red; the air felt chill, as if to mock Rem's fearful heart. Rem's trembling question prompted man and boy to glance at each other's faces. Then the pair nodded, as if giving each other a signal, whereupon devilish smiles came over both, as if such violent acts were deeply familiar to them; then they introduced themselves. \"Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult, Regulus Corneas, charged with Greed.\" \"Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult, Lye Batenkaitos, charged with Gluttony.\" 2 They were members of the Witch Cult and archbishops at that. Ignoring Rem, who froze when their titles reached her ears, the excitable-looking youth Lye Batenkaitos looked around at the fallen knights, fondly licking his lips. \"Oh yeah, coming here for a bite like this was a great idea. Considering that they took out our pet, this is...a rich harvest. It's nice, it's great, it's neat, it's all right, it's good, it's good, it's great, isn't it, of course it's great! It's been a while since we've been able to eat our fill!\" \"To be honest, I just can't understand that part about you. Why can you not be satisfied with what you have right now? You know, people can only carry what will fit in the two hands they are born with. Why can't you understand that and hold your own cravings in check?\" \"We hate lectures, and we don't need any. We don't care if what you say is right or wrong, either. To us, nothing matters besides the feeling of an empty stomach.\" Batenkaitos of Gluttony slurped his saliva as Regulus of Greed let his shoulders sink. With two Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins having appeared simultaneously, Rem desperately searched her nearly stalled head, earnestly hammering out a plan to break out of the situation. With the combat ability present, it was impossible to crush the two men who had appeared before them. Crusch's bleeding had stopped, but she was in nearly as precarious a condition as before. As it was unclear if the knights were dead or alive, Rem could not count on them to bolster her fighting strength. Rem herself had depleted her tiny reserve of mana by treating Crusch; even if she went into demon mode, she could not picture an outcome where she was triumphant. *** When she glanced around the area, she could not see any sign of the Iron Fangs. One of their units was transporting the wounded beast men and hauling the recovered head of the White Whale. Likely their commander, Hetaro, had seen an opportunity and beat a hasty retreat. Perhaps, if she bought some time, they might return with reinforcements. Even if that was true, she doubted they would arrive in time. \"Are you here because...we defeated the White Whale? To avenge the demon beast...?\" \"Ahh, don't misunderstand. We're not interested in the dead White Whale. We're interested in the people who killed the White Whale. Somehow it did whatever it liked for four hundred years, but you managed to kill it. I hoped you all would be ripe for the slaughter...but it turned out even better than I expected!\" Batenkaitos bared his very sharp teeth as he wildly shook his head in vigorous excitement. \"Love! Chivalrous spirit! Hatred! Tenacity! Triumph! All bottled up and simmering for such a long, long time! Just having them passing down my throat makes me feel full! Is there a more beautiful food in the entire world?! No, no, nay, nothing, surely nothing, certainly nothing, absolutely nothing!! Drink! Gorge! That is what brings joy to our hearts, and our stomachs!!\" Rem couldn't understand anything he said. Batenkaitos continued to writhe as if he'd dined to excess. As his laughs reverberated for a time, Rem silently shifted her gaze; that gaze caused Regulus to wave a hand with an exasperated look. \"Relax. I'm not anything like him. I'm just here by pure coincidence. You think I hunger and thirst like that? I have nothing to do with such vulgar behavior. Unlike him, always pathetically unfulfilled, I would be satisfied with, well, you, even as you currently are.\" Regulus motioned to Crusch's lopped-off arm, wearing a sunny expression as he stood before Rem. \"I dislike...conflict and the like. If times remain ordinary, peaceful and gentle, that is enough for me. That is best. I have no ambitions greater than what I can reach with my meager hands. As an individual, my hands are full simply protecting what little I call my own.\" Regulus closed his fist, drunk on his own performance. Rem wondered how someone who could take the lives of a land dragon and several humans, or inflict a grievous wound on a single woman, could speak like that. On the one hand was Batenkaitos, who writhed from incomprehensible hunger, immersed in self-satisfaction while waving around his pet self-serving theories; on the other was Regulus, a strange man through and through. They truly had to be Witch Cultists. Simmering anger welled up within Rem as she rose to her feet. Rem laid Crusch, sleeping like the dead, down on the ground; she lifted up her own weapon in Crusch's place. Rem's little remaining mana swirled around, and a number of icicles rose in the air around her. Seeing this, the expressions on Batenkaitos and Regulus changed. \"Have you listened to a single word I said? I told you, I don't want to fight. After hearing that, if you're going to act like this, that would be...ignoring my opinion. That would be infringing upon my rights. That is something even my unselfish heart cannot forgive.\" \"Is that all you have to say, Witch Cultist?\" As Regulus inclined his head, Rem spoke thus, her demeanor resolute. In contrast to Regulus, taken aback by the sight, a strong glint rested in Rem's eyes as the chain of her iron ball rang out. \"Someday a hero shall appear a hero to destroy you all. However self-serving you are, however much misfortune your self-satisfaction creates, that man, the only hero Rem loves, shall surely bring you what you deserve.\" \"Heh, a hero? Well, that's more fun. If you trust him that much, that'll make him all the tastier for us!!\" Batenkaitos clapped his hands in delight as he stared at Rem, seeming to assess her. He was looking at her neither as an enemy nor as a woman. There was but a single, undiluted sentiment resting in that gaze: that of a hungry beast licking its chops in front of its food. They were an ego run amok and a violent hunger demon. Rem boldly faced them both with pride. \"I am a senior servant of Marquis Roswaal L. Mathers...\" As Rem made her introduction, she stopped halfway after speaking her title, shaking her head. At that moment, for that instant only, Rem introduced herself the way she truly wished her name to be known: \"Now I am but a woman in love I am Rem, the woman assisting Subaru Natsuki, the man I love most, the man who will become a hero.\" A beautiful white horn jutted out of Rem's forehead, granting Rem vigor as it collected the mana stored in the air around her. Power filled her entire body as she moved the hand gripping the iron ball's handle in a rhythmic motion and called forth more and more icicles. Her eyes were wide open. She was aware of the whole world around her. She felt the air around her. But the only thing traced by the back of her mind was an image of him. \"Prepare yourselves, Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins Rem's hero shall surely come to strike you down!!\" Raising her iron ball high, Rem leaped, her body shooting out, pounding the icicles home the same instant. Batenkaitos seemed set to strike them down as he opened his fang-filled mouth wide and spoke. \"Ahh, that's the spirit... Then, without holding back, let us feast!!\" Something struck her. Something struck her. And in that instant, she thought... I hope that when he learns that I am gone, it sends a ripple through his heart. In her final moment, that was Rem's only wish. CHAPTER 6 *** 1 As she lay on the bed, her face was tranquil, enough to make someone think she was merely asleep. When he looked at the lashes on the borders of her closed eyelids, he could absentmindedly think, Wow, it's been a while. Her expression while awake was usually taut, but one could catch a true glimpse of her age on her face when she slept. Now that he thought of it, he'd never once had a chance to see her sleeping face. She was always waking up Subaru, always being strict with him, and only now did he realize just how lovely she looked when she let that hardness soften. He'd seen her surprised face, her blushing face, her pouting face, her crying face, and the smiling face she showed him when they'd made up. He'd had so many chances to realize it before. \" Rem.\" Rem was not sleeping in the maid uniform she usually wore. There was no flower adornment for her pretty blue hair. To a maid, those were armor for battle now she needed those things no longer. \"So this is where you were.\" Subaru was idly spending his time in that quiet, unmoving room when someone spoke to him. When he slowly turned around, he saw a woman standing at the room's entrance wearing a light-purple dress. The woman had long, beautiful hair, and behaved with refined elegance as she walked over. But there was a faint bewilderment to her gait, as if she sensed something awry that did not match the nobility she had been born with. And when she approached, that discordant feeling spread to Subaru as well. \"Is she...?\" \"Nothing's changed at all. It's not like I can do anything, so I'm just sticking around. It's kind of pathetic how I'm clinging to her like this...\" \"I wonder if that might not...make her happy, somehow.\" As Subaru hung his head, the woman timidly offered words of consolation. But those words, which could not possibly put his mind at ease, made Subaru unwittingly glare at her. \"...I am sorry. It seems I went too far and offended you.\" \"...I'm sorry, too. I'm just frustrated. Rem would be angry with me. She'd say, 'Subaru, you must not take things out on other people' or something.\" Subaru lowered his head to the apologetic woman, weakly smiling as he mimicked Rem's manner of speech. In the back of his mind, he could hear her voice saying those exact words. And yet her voice reached no one. There was no one to point out that Subaru's act was nothing like the real thing. Subaru's hollow, farcical action made the woman before him don a pained look, covering her eyes. Without thinking, she shifted that right hand to her own left arm holding it as if to support the freshly reattached limb. Silence descended on the room, and Subaru shook his head, knowing he could not allow it to continue."}, {"text": "When you're feeling despondent, continued silence becomes comfortable, and it is easy to become apathetic and stop your legs. But that was not what the man Rem believed in ought to do. \"Did you...need something from me?\" \"Yes. The others have assembled in the office for some kind of discussion. It would be good to have...uh...\" The woman looked like she'd been rescued by his prompting as she continued her words about the business he'd surmised. But halfway through those words, her cheeks awkwardly tensed. Seeing this, Subaru pointed to himself and spoke. \"I'm...Subaru Natsuki.\" \"...I am sorry. Master Subaru Natsuki, is it? I shall properly remember. I am very sorry to have been so rude to you after all I have heard you have done for me.\" \"It can't be helped. There's way too many things you have to keep track of right now, so don't worry about it.\" The woman's demeanor was genuinely apologetic but the ill feeling from that very graceful, feminine behavior tore at his chest. He wasn't rude enough to actually say that, though. \"Well, I'll see you later, Rem.\" Turning his head back, Subaru gave the sleeping Rem a gentle pat on the head. Her chest faintly rose and fell; her body was warm to the touch. Her living, physical body was firmly present. For her, lost to the memories of others, that was the only thing that remained. \"The office, you said. It's bad to keep everyone waiting, so let's go, I guess?\" \"Yes, let us do so, Master Subaru Natsuki.\" The woman smiled charmingly as she addressed him by name. The fleeting femininity of the gesture really rubbed him the wrong way. Recognizing his distaste, Subaru turned his face aside, making an amiable smile to conceal what truly lay in his heart as he spoke. \"Sorry to make you come all this way to get me...Crusch.\" He addressed her by name, even though she already seemed to be another person entirely. 2 It was all over by the time Subaru arrived back at the royal capital. \"Who's Rem?\" Emilia had spoken those words to Subaru, turning her head to the side quizzically. Perhaps, if the words and gesture had given the slightest hint of Emilia making a bad joke, Subaru would have followed suit and said something flippant in turn. But Subaru had not seen even a single smidgen of such hope from Emilia's demeanor, and as shock overtook Subaru, Emilia never broke into a Just kidding! no matter how long he waited. It was the same for Petra and the other children. None of them remembered Rem. Faced with that fact inside the dragon carriage, Subaru desperately had it race to the capital. It can't be. There has to be some mistake. That was what he believed. After all, everything should have turned out all right. Subaru ought to have grabbed hold of the best possible outcome. He'd accomplished his objectives, protected the people precious to him, and overcome sadness and anguish, carrying on the struggle in spite of his heart being scarred many times over. And yet  *** When Subaru's feet stepped into the office, the gazes of those already in the room gathered upon him. He imagined the uncomfortable feeling he got from them was damage wrought from the blame they harbored toward themselves. The three people in the office were Emilia, Ferris, and Wilhelm. Adding the recent arrivals Subaru and Crusch, that made five people participating in the discussion. \"...Ah, I'm glad you're back. Lady Crusch, sorry I made you run an errand.\" \"Not at all. It's quite all right, Master Ferr \" \" Ferris is fine. We've been together far too long, it'll make me feel lonely if you add Master or anything else at this point, meow. No labels, okay?\" Greeting Crusch upon her return, Ferris spun his words with a reassuring tone of voice. He'd stripped off his royal guard uniform in favor of a feminine outfit with a short skirt. Led by Ferris's hand, Crusch looked conflicted when she sat beside him and spoke. \"I cannot guarantee it will be like before, but I shall try, Ferris... Mm, Ferris.\" \"You don't need to rush. Ferri will always be your ally, always by your side. Besides, it feels like the current Lady Crusch has discovered a new way to be beautiful.\" Ferris held her hand just as he had always done with the more valiant Crusch before. Ferris's behavior made Subaru harbor complicated feelings inside himself. Even though Crusch had changed so much, Ferris's approach to her had not. He couldn't even begin to imagine how much melancholy Ferris was hiding underneath that smile. \"Subaru...\" Then, as Subaru stood still, Emilia shifted her considerate gaze toward him. The sorrowful gaze made Subaru's breath catch; he sat beside her as if it was the only natural thing to do. \"It's all right, Emilia. I've calmed down now I'm all right.\" His voice sounded all right. He maintained his calm. But he could not meet Emilia's gaze; he was so busy acting nonchalant that he didn't notice his hands were shaking. \" Now that Sir Subaru and Lady Crusch have returned, let us begin our discussion.\" In a low voice, Wilhelm spoke, cutting short the awkward silence about to fill the air. It was rare for Wilhelm to lead a discussion. Ferris, deducing that this was the Sword Devil clumsily trying to be considerate, reluctantly took up the role of guiding the conversation and spoke. \"Well, let's do as Old Man Wil said... First, how about we go over the situation again?\" With those words, they began to discuss the events that had occurred after the fall of the White Whale and the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of Sloth. The situation that had befallen Rem, Crusch, and the expeditionary force members with them had been very simple. Having split from Subaru and his group, Rem and the others were in the middle of returning to the royal capital with the head recovered from the defeated White Whale when they had come under attack by separate Witch Cultists. As a result, half of the expeditionary force had been slain during its return journey and according to the tale, the Iron Fangs, instantly separating at the direction of their lieutenant, had managed to escape losses of their own. \"The Iron Fangs that had fled returned with reinforcements from the capital, but...the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins were gone, and all that remained were the dead and...\" \"...Those in circumstances similar to mine, yes?\" Crusch finished off Ferris's words, furling her brow with chagrin. The anguish of the expression that came over her was doubtless caused by how helpless she felt inside. After all, she couldn't help but feel like what they were talking about had happened to someone else  \"Their own memories erased...was it. You think this is the work of the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, too?\" \"I'm all but certain of it. There've been all kinds of reports of people with memory damage long before Lady Crusch and the others. They stated that the victims' memories had suddenly vanished, and even healing spells could not restore them. The cause had been unknown until now, but considering Sloth...\" \" There is surely no doubt this is the Authority of a Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult.\" Wilhelm crossed his arms as he nodded grimly. The old man had a grave look on his face as he shifted his blade-like gaze toward Crusch. The gaze made Crusch unintentionally cringe. \"No, Lady Crusch, you are blameless. I am very sorry to have frightened you.\" \"...It is I who am sorry for being such a timid liege. Master Wilhelm, I have striven to remember you as well, but...\" A faint tremor of pain passed through the side of the aged swordsman's face when Crusch called him Master Wilhelm. No doubt he felt responsibility as the shameful retainer causing the lord to which he had offered his sword to put on such a painful display. Subaru felt similar regret, for now he knew painfully well just how deep Wilhelm's loyalty ran. \"We finally took care of Sloth, only to have other Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins appear right after. That's just the worst, meow. Well, we knew the Witch Cult would make a fuss as soon as Lady Emilia entered the royal selection, though...\" \"...So it really is...my fault...?\" Emilia cast her eyes down slightly when Ferris pointed the conversation her way. \"I suppose it is,\" said Ferris, agreeing with Emilia's faint murmur without the slightest hesitation. \"Lady Emilia is a half-elf, so there was no way the Witch Cult would let this go. After all, they went from their usual creepy quiet act to causing this huge ruckus, so it's definitely linked to that.\" \"These people...hurt others because they hate half-demons...?\" \"Hatred is painting it too softly. They're obsessed with exterminating Lady Emilia...with exterminating all half-elves. This was just...a fraction of it.\" \"A fraction, and they did such terrible things. Subaru, do you ?\" Emilia's voice shook as she called Subaru's name; her words caught in her throat. However, when her eyes met his, the interrupted words were conveyed to him nonetheless. Emilia was probably going to ask him... Subaru, do you hate me too...? \" ! This is ridiculous. Ferris, think more carefully about how you phrase things. Don't say it like Emilia's at fault. It's those scumbags at fault through and through.\" Seeing Emilia racked by guilt, Subaru felt hurt by the implication and rose to defend her. He glared at Ferris, rebuking him for his barbed demeanor toward Emilia throughout. \"Don't blame the wrong person. Hurting your allies by mistake doesn't help anything.\" \"Hmm, that sounds convincing when Subawu says it. Guess you have prior experience?\" *** The sarcasm contained crystal clear malice toward Subaru. Hence Subaru grit his teeth and unwittingly began to get up. But a moment before he did so  \"Ferris I cannot ignore what you have said just now. Apologize.\" Before Subaru could put strength into his knees, it was none other than Crusch who scolded Ferris. Wearing her dress, Crusch, who was so frail until that moment, tightened her expression; she sternly rebuked her own knight for his rudeness, training a bold, sharp gaze upon him like the Crusch of old. \"As Master Subaru Natsuki has stated, it is clear who should bear the blame for this matter. Also, you have no standing to mock him for stating an opinion that is correct. You understand, yes?\" \"...Yes, Lady Crusch.\" The current Crusch softened her stern speech slightly at the end. Her words and actions were very much like her, something that surprised Subaru. Ferris, not yet able to hide the surprise on his own face, bowed his head toward Subaru and Emilia. \"Lady Emilia, I apologize for my rudeness. And Subawu, sorry, 'kay?\" \"You litt  Nah, it's fine. More importantly, let's get back on track. I pretty much understand Crusch's...memory-loss incident. That leaves Rem......the people wiped from other folks' memories.\" Subaru responded to Ferris's apology, farcical to the bitter end, by moving on to Rem's situation, the main issue or at least the main issue to him. \"Mind you, Rem's not just some delusion on my part. She's a...very important girl to me. We wouldn't have beaten the White Whale without her, either.\" \"Sir Subaru...\" Wilhelm, too, lowered his voice as Subaru rued the difference in how the memories had been consumed. Unlike Crusch, who had lost her own memories, Rem had been erased from the memories of others. The memory damage of the attacked expeditionary force's victims was split between those two symptoms. But where the latter case was concerned, Subaru and the others knew of similar previous cases. \"Like the effect of the White Whale's mist, meow. The people erased by that mist are erased from everyone's memories.\" \"According to Sir Subaru's information, the White Whale is associated with Gluttony. If that demon"}, {"text": "beast could do it, the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins that attacked Lady Crusch and the others are connected to Gluttony as well.\" \"So the Authority of an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins...huh... Ferris, you've examined Rem's body, I take it?\" Rem, sleeping in bed that very moment, had already had all her external injuries healed. When Subaru asked if Ferris had diagnosed anything other than external wounds, Ferris shook his head. \"To put it bluntly, I found nothing unusual even though the result certainly is. The same goes for how the body continues to sleep, not waking no matter what anyone does. It's Sleeping Princess symptoms through and through.\" \"...What'd you say?\" Subaru raised an eyebrow at the abrupt metaphor. But in Ferris's place, Emilia lifted up her face and spoke. \"I've heard of it before. Certainly the symptoms are sleeping and never waking up...aren't they? Also, the people affected never hunger, nor do they age.\" \"It is an illness rarely seen even in this large a kingdom. There have been various reports of people falling into a Sleeping Princess state, but I have never heard of any of them awakening. Besides the issue of disappearing from memory, the symptoms match.\" Wilhelm added to what Emilia had to say, but his voice sounded far more grounded in reality. Perhaps an acquaintance of his had fallen into a Sleeping Princess state. Either way, nothing related to the Sleeping Princess condition, or Rem's situation in general, was beyond the realm of speculation. \"So short of asking Gluttony, there's no way to know the details. In the end, there's no avoiding slamming into the Witch Cult again. I was prepared for that, though...\" Subaru glanced at the side of Emilia's face as he verbally renewed his determination to oppose the Witch Cult. The Cult's obsession with half-elves would doubtless cast a shadow on Emilia's path thereafter. Even without the Rem issue, they couldn't avoid clashing again. Hence, in his own thoughts, he became even more resolved than before. \"So, Subawu, your side is planning to be all gung ho and face the Witch Cult, meow... I see.\" Ferris seemed tired somehow as he sighed. And then  \"In that case, can we just...forget about that alliance agreement, meow?\" *** Ferris's nonchalantly tossed words brought a silent chill to the air. For a moment Subaru didn't understand just what had been said. However, the instant comprehension caught up inside him, his insides grew hot with rage. \"What do you mean by that? How does what we were talking about lead to talk of scrapping the alliance?\" But despite his anger, Subaru asked the question in a calm voice that belied the burning in his chest. Ferris was not someone who would speak out of turn without a thought. At the very least, Subaru trusted that he would not do such a thing. Subaru hadn't shouted in anger, and Ferris put on a surprised look as he spoke. \"I said exactly what I meant. An alliance is formed out of mutual benefit...but the pros are now outweighed by the cons, right? So I thought that cooperating now is meaningless, meow.\" \"What about the mining rights for the forest? Maybe you think that all debts are paid for helping with the White Whale and the Witch Cult, but...\" \" You're telling us to cooperate even when the Witch Cult will keep going after Lady Emilia? Subawu, can you promise me that Lady Crusch won't be hurt even more in the process?\" \"Th-that's...\" When Ferris asked him that, Subaru hesitated to continue. Seeing the drastic change in Crusch, he could not reject Ferris's concern out of hand. After all, Subaru bore wounds at least as deep as his. Accordingly, the task of telling Ferris he was wrong did not fall to Subaru. \"Ferris, I must disagree.\" Still sitting in his chair, Wilhelm glanced at the side of Ferris's face as he spoke. Ferris glared at the Sword Devil for raising a dissenting voice from within. \"Why are you against this, Old Man Wil? With Gluttony attacking Lady Crusch like this, what's the point of cooperating with Lady Emilia's side any longer?\" \"In doing so...an opportunity to avenge our liege against Gluttony shall surely come.\" \" ! Are you saying that's more important than Lady Crusch's life?!\" Wilhelm, calm in his rebuttal to the end, caused Ferris's emotions to finally explode. Ferris looked down at his own palm as he bit his lip in regret before he continued. \"If we involve ourselves with the Cult again, more things like this will happen. When that time comes, the current Lady Crusch won't be able to defend herself and I won't be able to help her.\" \"Ferris...\" Subaru understood that Ferris felt something close to hatred when he looked at his own pale fingers. Coming into contact with a small portion of that anger had made Subaru finally comprehend the feelings of remorse behind them. Subaru harbored a sense of powerlessness just like the one tormenting Ferris. Ferris hated himself for not having the strength to protect Crusch, someone so dear to his heart. Even his healing magic, purported to be among the best, was unable to aid Crusch as she was now  \"It must be very hard for Lady Crusch, too. Not being able to remember anything, understand anything...so she wouldn't even think of fighting like this. Right? ...Right?\" When Ferris looked back at Crusch, seemingly clinging to her, his expression crumbled. He lost the usual, everyday look he'd maintained until moments before, having hidden the frailty of that face, on the verge of tears at any moment, behind a paper-thin shell. Everything he did, he did because he wished with all his heart not to let Crusch get hurt  \"When it comes to your memory, I'm sure I'll manage to fix it somehow. Even if my magic is useless at the moment, I'll figure it out eventually. So please, don't do anything dangero \" \"Ferris, thank you for worrying about me.\" When Ferris pleaded with her, showing how he truly felt, Crusch smiled gently toward him. However, what lay behind that smile was not the look of a liege acceding to her retainer's request to pull back from danger. What lay behind it was firm will and resolve. Faced with Ferris's heartfelt plea, she still had the will to gently but strongly reject it, and the resolve to fight. The memories inside her might have vanished, but the will of Crusch Karsten persisted. Even Subaru could tell. There was no way that Ferris, her very own knight, could not. Crusch put her own hand over Ferris's shaking hand; then she firmly looked at Subaru and the others. \"There is still much I do not understand. I cannot remember a single thing about who I once was. I believe that you will all find contact with me to be bewildering... Even so, let me first thank all of you for holding me so dear.\" \"Lady Cruuusch...\" \"Ferris, I understand that your words are founded in genuine concern. I understand the path you wish to lead me down by the hand... To follow your words means to walk a path of safety...but...\" One by one, Crusch looked between Subaru and the others, finally gazing gently at Ferris, whose voice was tearful. \"I do not wish to know nothing, understand nothing, and simply be swept away. If a choice must be made, I want to make it on my own, and not do as others say I intend to continue striving for that.\" Even without her memories, she still had the utmost respect for free will. Perhaps a person's will and character rested not in memories, but somewhere else. Crusch had lost her past, yet even so, Subaru couldn't help but think that the Crusch he saw before him was strong. Perhaps this was the soul that the old Crusch had once spoken about. \" Uu, ngh, haafh!\" \"Now that Lady Crusch has spoken, it would seem we do not desire to break off the alliance.\" \"Correct. Lady Emilia, Master Subaru Natsuki, we have caused you a great deal of trouble.\" Ferris, who had broken into tears, was no longer in any state to continue the conversation. In his place, Wilhelm carried on, Crusch apologizing as she cradled Ferris in her arms. \"No, that's all right... We are in no position to complain. We must reunite with Ram and those who evacuated to the Sanctuary and discuss things thoroughly with Roswaal.\" \"You have my thanks. Master Subaru Natsuki, are you satisfied with this conclu \" \" Yeah, it's fine. Besides that, what's happening with Anastasia and her people?\" Subaru agreed with Emilia and Crusch that they should uphold their alliance; at the end he invoked yet another name. This was the name of someone not participating in this final meeting, even though she was directly involved with both the White Whale and Sloth for dealing with Anastasia Hoshin was a difficult issue for both camps. \"...Julius is one thing, but there's no way Lady Anastasia won't use this to her advantage, meow.\" Ferris sniffled, and his eyes were red as he murmured resentfully from within Crusch's arms. In point of fact, Crusch's position in the royal selection she had been deemed the most powerful royal candidate by the public had been deeply shaken. That was an enormous issue, even compared to the honor of defeating the White Whale, and there was no way Anastasia would not exploit it. \"But she wants to share the credit for the White Whale, too, right? How about hiding what happened with Crusch?\" \"That's what...I was going to say. Subaru, can you...keep things secret until we decide how to deal with this? This is an extra condition for the alliance, okay...?\" Ferris said the last part rather quickly, as if trying to shoo Subaru away. Subaru almost felt like complaining about how self-serving he was, going from trying to erase the alliance to adding new conditions, but  \"Yeah, got it since you asked with a crying face and all.\" That invective was probably fitting, given the relationship between Subaru and Ferris. For Subaru knew painfully well how it felt to be powerless and consoled by the person most precious to you. 3 \"Wilhelm, thanks a ton for the supporting fire earlier.\" With the conversation in the office complete, Subaru left the sobbing Ferris and the consoling Crusch behind as he flagged down Wilhelm in the corridor. \"No,\" said the Sword Devil as he looked back, unable to conceal his fatigue from the string of battles as he continued, \"It was nothing at all. If anything, I was of little help at critical junctures.\" \"That's not true at all. We couldn't have beaten the White Whale without you, and after, there was no one I could trust to keep Emilia and the others safe more than you. I'm grateful, Wilhelm.\" It wasn't that everything had gone off without a hitch. But these were Subaru's true feelings. However, Subaru's gratitude made Wilhelm's expression darken. He was the type of person who had a deep sense of duty and felt responsible when others got hurt. Subaru somehow managed to form a smile toward the all-too-kind Sword Devil. \"The situation hasn't calmed down that much, but you're going to visit your wife's grave or something, right? It's too early to relax, but you did avenge her, and that's important, right?\" *** Subaru's words, an attempt to change the topic, made Wilhelm's cheeks faintly stiffen. As the reaction made Subaru's eyes go wide, his bewilderment was redoubled when Wilhelm did something even more surprising he suddenly bowed his head deeply in Subaru's direction. \"Sir Subaru, I must thank you again.\" \"H-hey, hold on a sec! I'm seriously trying to thank you here, Wilhelm...\" \"No, truly I must. Until now, I have not thought of you as my ally. At the very least, in stating we should continue the alliance with Lady Emilia, my viewpoint was founded upon my own personal reasons. After the"}, {"text": "fact, I am ashamed at my own audacity in hiding my true thoughts.\" Subaru, not understanding the reason for Wilhelm raking himself over the coals, could only watch as a question mark rose over his head. In front of Subaru, Wilhelm abruptly pulled an arm out of the sleeve of his jacket. His left shoulder was bandaged; blood slowly oozed out of it that very moment. \"That looks painful. But Ferris should be able to heal a wound like...\" \"This wound cannot be healed. It is an untreatable wound inflicted by the blade of one with the blessing of the grim reaper.\" \"Untreatable... But, Wilhelm !\" As Wilhelm shook his head with a grave look on his face, Subaru gaped at him in disbelief. Even Subaru could imagine the terror of a wound that would never close. If gradual blood loss was not stanched, it was the same as putting a countdown on a person's life. Subaru was racked with feelings of nervousness, but Wilhelm appeared quite calm. \"My life is not in any jeopardy from this.\" \"There's no way that it isn't! What the hell can you do about a wound like...?\" \"This is not a wound borne from the events of today or yesterday. It is an old wound from much longer ago that has simply reopened and that fact weighs very heavily upon me.\" Subaru listened to Wilhelm speak in a quiet voice when he realized that his own body was shaking. The shaking had begun with his limbs, but at some point it had spread to even the roots of his teeth. Then he immediately realized the cause: the frighteningly dense aura of hostility given off by the Sword Devil before his eyes. The Sword Devil continued in a quiet voice. \"The power of a wound inflicted by the blessing of the grim reaper increases the closer the victim is to the one who carries the blessing. If they come near one another, even a closed wound will reopen... Such is the nature of the injury.\" \"Then the one who gave that wound to you was close by...\" \"The one who wounded my left shoulder is the previous Sword Saint.\" Those words made Subaru's breath catch as he looked at Wilhelm. A quiet fire was burning in the eyes with which he looked at Subaru. He continued, \"This sword wound was opened by my wife, Theresia von Astrea. I must continue to pursue the Witch Cult in order to uncover the truth.\" 4 He'd meant to walk without thinking of anything, but before he knew it, he'd once again ended up standing in front of the room where Rem slept. His feet took him toward her whenever free time allowed it. He knew full well that he was just indulging himself, clinging to Rem as she continued to slumber. \"You told me to be strong, but...it's like, now that you're gone, Rem, I can't find that strength anywhere.\" Morning, noon, or night, the sight of Rem lying there never changed. She breathed in her sleep. Her heart continued to beat. But beyond those things, there was not even a single proper sign that she was alive. She was there, and yet she was not. By that time, Rem didn't exist except in Subaru's heart. *** Subaru sat at Rem's bedside, looking at her sleeping face as he thought back... ...and remembered when, in an effort to bring Rem back, he'd used a dagger to pierce his own throat. He could not remember the exact instant in time. But the fact remained that he'd overcome various obstacles, grasping the best possible result for everyone with both hands and hadn't hesitated to throw it all away. If it meant losing Rem, if it meant advancing into a future without her, he didn't care how many times he had to fight Sloth, how many hells he had to go through...or so he had thought. After the dagger punched through his throat, he felt himself fading in the face of blood, pain, passion, and loss  Then, when Subaru came to after Returning by Death, the sight of Rem sleeping in bed lay before him. \"...Shit. I never thought there'd be an auto-save just before committing suicide. That's really messed up.\" Subaru, thinking that the change in restart points must have been some kind of mistake, tried to take his own life again. But when the paradox sank in that, even if he Returned by Death, he could not save Rem, he stopped his impulsive behavior; the dagger fell from Subaru's hand as he crumpled to the floor. Even if, via Return by Death, he somehow managed to return to the point before the decisive battle with Petelgeuse, Rem and the others would have already gone their separate way hours before which meant that no matter what he did, there was no way catch up with Rem before they were attacked on the return journey. And supposing, by some miracle, he had caught up to them, he had no plan for defeating new Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins. Besides, if he went back and left Petelgeuse to his own savage devices, it would mean losing Emilia. If he tried to save Rem, he'd sacrifice Emilia; if he tried to save Emilia, he'd sacrifice Rem without sacrificing one, he couldn't even put his finger on the merest possibility of saving the other. When Subaru realized the cruel choice facing him, he couldn't even kill himself anymore. And so he remained without a plan, doing nothing but lingering close to Rem in the time since  \" So this is where you were.\" A voice, clear as a bell, abruptly reached Subaru from behind; his shoulders jumped as he looked back. There stood the girl precious to him gazing at him with a thin smile on her lips a girl he'd left alone for the last several hours. Even he wasn't pathetic enough to say something like, What are you doing here? I'm busy. \"Emilia...? You need something?\" \"Do I...need anything in particular to come? I'm supposed to be close to that girl...to Miss Rem, as well, right?\" \"Miss Rem, huh?\" Emilia walked to the bed and peered at Rem from Subaru's side. It felt odd hearing Emilia add an honorific to Rem's name as she stroked her own silver hair. \"Ah, that's right,\" murmured Emilia in response to Subaru's words. \"I called her just by her name, didn't I?\" \"You were Roswaal's guest, Emilia-tan. She's Ram's little sister, so no need to explain, right?\" \"Mm, I understand that much. I mean, she looks just like Ram. There's no way you could be wrong.\" The image of Ram was probably in the back of Emilia's mind as she gazed at Rem's sleeping face. The twin sisters were two peas in a pod. Aside from their hair and eye colors, facial expressions, and the sizes of their breasts, they looked exactly the same. The very late realization that Ram had no doubt forgotten Rem as well tore deeply at Subaru's chest. \"Subaru, you haven't slept at all, have you? You really should rest a little.\" \"I'm not tired, really. It's not like I'm actually doing anything.\" \"But you really want to do something, don't you? If you keep your mind tense like that, your body will be the next to go. So please.\" The echo of her heartfelt plea finally made Subaru look in Emilia's direction. When their gazes met, for the first time since she had entered the room, Subaru's breath caught at the sullen look in her violet eyes. Then he finally understood just why Emilia had come. \"I'm pretty pathetic, huh?\" \"No, not at all. You've been a reeeally huge help to me. Really-really.\" Emilia shook her head at Subaru's self-deprecation. From the beginning she'd been concerned about Subaru running himself ragged. With Subaru pushing himself too hard, she'd come to give him a gentle touch. With Subaru seated in his chair, Emilia sat down herself; their gazes met as she earnestly tried to weave her words. \"I won't say something like I'm sure it'll all work out. I can't promise such a thing. I want to understand your feelings, Subaru...but I don't know anything about a girl I've forgotten, so if I say anything, I think it'll just hurt you.\" *** \"But I do know this you can't worry about Rem and shoulder that burden alone. Subaru, let me share that burden with you.\" \"Emilia...\" Emilia's surprising words made Subaru's eyes widen in astonishment. To Subaru, Emilia was truly speaking completely beyond his expectations. \"But you don't even remember anything about her...\" \"Is it wrong to want to do something, even if I don't? She's a precious-enough girl to you to give you such a sad face, isn't she? Subaru, is it so strange that I want to help?\" *** \"I want to help you in the same way that you helped me. If you're hurt, I want to do something for you. That's normal, isn't it?\" He could trust those feelings and approach them without hesitation; that affection needed no doubts. For the first time, Subaru's stubbornness fell away, dissolved by the words Emilia had gone out of her way to speak. When he realized that, he thought himself a real idiot for having been so obstinate in the first place. \"...You really are something, Emilia-tan.\" \"Really? I feel like you're reeeally amazing, too, Subaru.\" \"Nah, no way  I'm glad you're here, Emilia.\" Emilia's face went blank when Subaru slipped that last part in. Subaru made a strained smile at her demeanor, looking like she almost understood, but not quite. And when it dawned on Subaru that his lips were forming a smile, he finally realized...  This was the first heartfelt emotion he'd experienced since he learned that Rem was asleep. \"Emilia, there's something I'd like to ask of you...\" \"What is it?\" \"Can you turn around? I'm gonna cry a bit.\" \"Mm-hmm, got it.\" Emilia asked nothing more, turning her back to Subaru as he had asked. Her consideration was a relief to Subaru as his gaze fell to his own knees. He gave in to the emotions surging inside him; he sniffled, and tears fell. As Rem continued to sleep before him, he'd wasted time, beating himself up over his own powerlessness. Emilia, too, was concerned for Rem, yet he'd never even noticed. Because he was the only one who remembered Rem, he'd convinced himself that he was the only person concerned about her, and that only he could save her. Subaru continued sniffling at his own stupidity. And then... *** In that quiet room, filled only with the sound of his own sobbing, Subaru's throat caught from the abrupt sensation of warmth. From behind, over the back of the chair, Emilia embraced Subaru, gently stroking his head. *** She said nothing. She didn't have to. Saved by her simple act of kindness, Subaru stanched the flow of both his tears and his whining. And then, in that moment, he made an oath. \"I'll bring you back. Count on it, Rem.\" He had told her before. He, the man she'd fallen in love with, would stand before her as the greatest hero of all. Wasn't he still only partway down that road? \"I'll definitely... Your hero is definitely coming for you just you wait.\" This was both a promise to himself, and his declaration of war against the enemy called fate. Any who stood before Subaru Natsuki while doing evil, encroaching upon that which was not theirs to sully, would be pounded flat. And it would be Subaru Natsuki who would do it. \"There's no doubt no doubt!!\" In the time starting from zero, losing someone precious like you...is unthinkable. That's why I'll get them back. The days lost. The time I spent walking with you. The time I wanted to spend walking with you. I'll bring them back again with my own two hands, so just wait, Rem... *** The cool, placid air in the ruins"}, {"text": "greeted Subaru with a strange tranquility. The clack of his shoes rang out with each and every step. The rather jarring echoes of his footsteps were causing Subaru's unease, but they also helped him stay grounded. When he couldn't even see anything right in front of him, those sounds were the only things that reminded him he truly existed. *** The place was completely shrouded in darkness. Quite some time had passed since he'd lost track of the wall he'd found by touch earlier. He walked and walked along a path without end; for Subaru, it was almost as if he were actually standing still, as though his movements were mere hallucinations. Hearing his footfalls abated that concern. More importantly, Subaru's reason for being here urged him onward. He continued to walk, relying on the echoes of his shoes. He couldn't stop he wouldn't allow himself. No matter how deeply resignation had rooted itself in his heart, no matter how heavy his burden weighed on his shoulders, he had to grit his teeth and keep walking. If he didn't, how could he ever face her ? \" I see. This is the desire that drives you. How curious, I must say.\" Suddenly, a voice rang out. The moment he heard it, Subaru froze. The unending eternity he had felt suddenly fell away. In the blink of an eye, the darkness he'd thought would continue forever quickly faded while the world that had been drained of color now seemed painted in a dazzling array. There were tufts of green beneath his feet and a cloudless, blue sky stretching out far overhead. Subaru realized he was standing on a grassy plain that should not have been there. He felt a gentle breeze stroke his hair, and then his throat constricted in shock. \" Ngh.\" \"Would you please stop playing around and come here?\" As Subaru stood there frozen, a voice called out to him from behind. When he turned around, his noticed a slightly raised knoll. At the top, a parasol had been set up to provide shade for a white table and chair underneath and in that seat, he saw a girl. *** Her figure filled his mind with thoughts of white pure white, as if all color had been bleached from her existence. The long hair reaching all the way down her back and her barely exposed skin were like porcelain, more than enough to seize attention; a pitch-black dress veiled her slender limbs, like an outfit someone might wear to a funeral; her black eyes shone with an extraordinary intellect these were the only things that seemed to prove the ephemeral girl was actually there. White and black: her extraordinarily stark beauty was expressed by those two hues alone. It would only take a glance for her captivating appearance to put anyone under her spell but the sight of this girl injected overwhelming fear into Subaru's soul, the likes of which he had never felt before. Even his first encounter with the White Whale had not struck him this way. \"Oh my, have I surprised you?\" *** Subaru didn't say a word to the girl who had come so close to him. When she saw his reaction, her eyes filled with amusement. The girl paused before nodding, seemingly taking stock of the situation. \"Ahh, I see. I have yet to introduce myself. How embarrassing. It has been so long since I've spoken to anyone, my emotions seem to have gotten the better of me.\" Unlike the tone of her voice, the girl's expression barely changed at all as her tiny shoulders dipped slightly. She turned to Subaru, who was still silenced and frozen in utter terror, then touched a hand to her breast as she calmly introduced herself. \"My name is Echidna...\" The girl's lips softened into a thin smile as she added: \"Or perhaps it would be better to call myself the Witch of Greed?\" CHAPTER 1 *** 1 To Subaru, the cloudy sky above seemed to be an accurate reflection of his mind. \"This place shall feel emptier without you.\" As Subaru stood in front of the mansion's gate, a woman in a dress spoke those lonely-sounding words. The woman was distinctive, with long, flowing green hair and amber, almond-shaped eyes. Subaru still couldn't set aside his unease at the delicate way Crusch Karsten faintly lowered her eyes like a stereotypically proper young lady. All in spite of knowing full well why this was happening. \"Crusch, I'm grateful to hear you say that, but...\" Subaru scratched his head as he averted his gaze, looking straight ahead instead. Multiple dragon carriages lined the grounds of the Karsten estate; aboard were the villagers who had evacuated to the royal capital to escape from the cultists under Petelgeuse's command. The Archbishop of Sloth had since then been defeated, meaning it was safe to return to the mansion and Earlham Village now. For that reason, they were scheduled to traverse the highway back to the village with Subaru accompanying them back to Roswaal Manor. Put bluntly, a mountain of problems lay before them, even setting aside the Witch Cult. Crusch's sudden change was one of them, but  \"I hate leaving at a time like this, but nothing's gonna get solved if I stay here. I don't want to abuse your hospitality, either.\" \"If it is Master Subaru Natsuki and Lady Emilia, I hardly mind if you stay at my residence as long as you desire... But it seems that is not an option.\" \"I'll accept your kind words and leave it at that. We both have a lot of issues to face right now, yeah? Especially you, since there's that greedy merchant's crew to deal with. If you don't handle it well, they'll steal all the credit for the White Whale and Sloth right out from under you.\" Shaking his head at Crusch's request, Subaru urged her to be wary of Anastasia's followers. It would be most accurate to call the victory over the White Whale and the Archbishop of Sloth a joint operation by the forces of three royal candidates. However, at the moment, Anastasia was the only one to have emerged as a clear victor. The Crusch faction had established supremacy over enemies who had gone undefeated for over four centuries but the price their leader Crusch had paid was not low. Subaru and the rest of Emilia's supporters who had led the way to Sloth's defeat had taken casualties as well. Subaru wouldn't say that his loss was as critical as what Crusch and her people were enduring, but at the very least, Subaru had suffered a grievous wound that agonized him at that very moment. Meanwhile, Anastasia's faction had both candidate and knight intact even after playing a large role in dispatching both foes, taking minimal damage while reaping great rewards. Accordingly, everyone would need to keep an eye on Anastasia's movements from then on. That was simply one more reason to maintain the secrecy around the alliance between Emilia's faction and Crusch's faction. \"We need to head back and get our ducks in a row before we discuss anything. We gotta have a little talk with Roswaal, Emilia's sponsor, and I wanna bring the worried villagers back home, too.\" \"It must be a trying time for the families that have been separated. It would be best if you could help them.\" Crusch showed him a slight, fleeting smile as she turned her gaze toward the villagers aboard the dragon carriages. Half of the village had been evacuated to the royal capital; the other half had been evacuated to another safe area by a separate route. Just as Crusch had mentioned, families had been separated in the commotion. Subaru wanted to reunite them as soon as possible. \"I'll come back to the capital once we have that settled. I guess this is goodbye for a little while, then.\" \"Yes, I shall be waiting. When that time comes, I will be pleased to finally repay the great favor I owe to you.\" \"Aw, you're making a big fuss over nothin'. We're helping each other out, that's all. Plus, I already have my reward.\" Subaru put on an awkward smile for Crusch as he pointed to the dragon carriage at the head of the column. This carriage seemed of a higher class than the rest, and a beautiful, jet-black land dragon was hitched to the front. The black land dragon was what Subaru had received as his reward for his part in the hunt. \"You ask for too little. To think you would ask for a single land dragon as a reward for defeating one of the three great demon beasts.\" \"Hey, I owe this dragon my life. I haven't been with her for long, but I've been on the brink between life and death with her more than anyone...and maybe the reason for that is 'cause I'm one hell of a nuisance to Patlash, but...\" \"An unnecessary concern, I believe.\" As they spoke, Subaru and Crusch watched over the land dragon, Patlash. That was the moment the aged swordsman, Wilhelm, walked over and gently voiced his disagreement. Having finished checking on the state of the carriages, the Sword Devil bowed as he joined the conversation. \"The Diana breed is said to be the most temperamental of all land dragons, and few grow this fond of someone in such a short time. It would seem Sir Subaru and this land dragon are most compatible.\" \"I suppose you're right about that. When I was picking a mount before the fight with the White Whale, I only picked her on gut instinct, but...\" The compatibility part was likely a fact. Subaru felt like it was a match made in heaven. He didn't think he could have made it past both the White Whale and Sloth with any land dragon besides Patlash. Subaru had been saved by that wise dragon so many times he was convinced. \"In other words, I won't be satisfied with any land dragon other than you...!\" When Patlash nestled close, Subaru stroked her neck with renewed gratitude. As he did so, she rubbed the side of her proud face against him, which unfortunately made her hard scales feel like a file sliding against Subaru's hand. \"Guaaah! Those scales hurt more than I figured! Now I know what radishes must feel when run against a grater!\" \"Hmm, land dragons find such playing to be quite pleasant. This is simply another way to deepen mutual trust.\" \"Are you serious?! Won't that make the power in this relationship like when a cat keeps toying with a mouse?!\" Perhaps, even with the land dragon shaving away his hand, this was mere child's play to Wilhelm. The Sword Devil's pleasant composure made Subaru scratch his head with a guilty expression. \"Well, setting aside the issue of how Patlash and I should get along for now... Wilhelm, it's sad, but I have to say goodbye to you for a while, too. Take good care of that wound, okay?\" \"Thank you for your concern judging from how the bleeding has now largely ceased, it would seem that I am farther away now. It is difficult for me to speak about that as a fortunate thing, but...\" They were discussing Wilhelm's left shoulder the spot where his wife, the previous Sword Saint, had wounded him. The fact that his old wound had opened up filled the Sword Devil's eyes with a maelstrom of complex emotions. As to what it meant, there was no way to find out except through questioning the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins who had attacked Crusch. The Archbishop of Gluttony if something other than the White Whale had been responsible for the death of the Sword Devil's wife, that archbishop was the prime suspect. And considering the doctrine of the Witch Cult, Subaru and his friends were sure to clash with them again someday. The cultists were the true enemy of their alliance. They had to defeat the Witch Cult and take back what"}, {"text": "had been lost: Crusch's memories, and more  \"Subawuuu, I've secured Rem to the bed. Come see for yourself.\" His thoughts interrupted by the calling of his name, Subaru turned toward the speaker. It was Crusch's knight, Ferris, his iconic flaxen-colored kitty ears visible as he leaned out of a dragon carriage. Obeying his beckoning hand, Subaru walked over and peered into the interior. Upon examination, he realized that seats had been removed from within the wide carriage and replaced by a simple bed. A lone girl slept in it. Seeing her made Subaru's heart ache. Instead of her usual maid attire, the blue-haired girl's body was wrapped in a thin, water-colored blanket. She had been left unconscious by a slumber from which she would never awaken, her very existence forgotten by the people around her  \"Rem isn't going to fall out the back or anything while we're moving on the road, right?\" \"I'm telling you that I made preventing that a priority already. Believe it or not, Ferri is a genuine healer, so I'm kind to all my patients... Though I'm not sure if calling Rem a patient is...accurate.\" He gazed at the girl's face as she seemingly slept in peace, and Ferris's shoulders sank. Though his tone of voice was lighthearted, Ferris's face bore deep, unconcealable grief and disappointment with himself. Subaru wasn't the only one who resented being powerless. Here was another who felt great pain at not being able to do anything to help. Ferris still regretted his inability to protect his master when it mattered most. \"You're really returning to the mansion?\" \"Yeah. It's not like Rem's going to be cured by staying in a place like this... Uh, I didn't mean that to sound rude.\" \"It's okay, Subawu. I get it. You're just that terrible of a person, meow.\" Ferris forced a smile when Subaru tried to explain his poor choice of words. After that, his eyes immediately grew more serious as he thrust a finger at Subaru. \"More importantly, it's not just Rem who needs rest. You do, too, Subawu.\" \"I do?\" \"Yes. Did you forget why you came to the royal capital in the first place? This time, all the commotion with Sloth that made you abuse your gate... Does your body feel...sluggish at all?\" \"No, not especially, but...\" When Ferris posed the question, Subaru stretched his neck and shoulders as he replied that there were no apparent problems. His external wounds had already been treated, meaning his body felt fine. As for Ferris's concern about his gate... \"In the first place, I didn't rely on magic for day-to-day life, so I'm not really gonna miss it.\" \"Something only a non-magic user would say. Speaking for myself, I think using magic is a good thing, including for emergencies... Well, if you're not concerned about it, that's fine.\" Ferris sighed with a look of resignation at Subaru's indifference and his lack of a sense of danger. \"But I will say that nothing has changed. You must not abuse your gate by using magic. Mark my words, the poison inside the gate has been cleanly drawn out, but that doesn't mean it's healed. Let's see. You should rest your gate for...two months.\" \"Two months, huh? Pretty low hurdle for a human being who's lived for seventeen years of his life without any magic.\" That was when Subaru remembered that technically not even two months had passed since he'd been summoned to this new world. Though he'd personally experienced something like four months' worth of time, chronologically speaking, it was right around two  When he reflected on all that had happened during those months, he wasn't sure whether two months of rest was a low hurdle or a high one. \"Well, there's no way incidents like that will just keep on happeni  Wait, was that an event flag just now?!\" \"Unfortunately, healing the inside of your head is outside of Ferri's specialization, meow.\" While Ferris was verbally laying into him, Subaru shuddered. His physical reaction made Subaru realize that they needed to bring the chitchat to an end. He reached out a hand toward Ferris. \"Meow?\" \"You've been a big help. I don't think I've ever addressed that properly. You healed my wounds and my gate, but more than that, I never would've made it past the White Whale and Sloth without you... Thanks for Rem, too.\" \"...You probably didn't mean that in a mean or sarcastic way, but that's what it sounds like, meow.\" \"The moment I said it, I thought it totally came off that way, too.\" But he genuinely felt grateful. Certainly, Subaru had his differences with Ferris, and each had posed an existential threat to the other at some points. But when Subaru added it all up, his gratitude to Ferris far outweighed any hard feelings. For a while, Ferris remained silent, looking down at the hand Subaru had offered. Then  \"...Your fingers are thin! Your hand's super-small! Guess I can't say, 'Oh, your fingers are the only manly thing about you!'\" \"Ferri is adorable, so why would you be hung up on something like that?!\" After a moment's hesitation, they shared a handshake that left Subaru surprised by the feel of Ferris's hand while Ferris wore a suspiciously charming smile. It was adorable. When you added in his slender limbs and light skin, Ferris seemed like the ideal beautiful maiden  \"But, you're still a guy. Damn it, what the hell...\" \"Hey, it's Lady Crusch who wanted Ferri to wear this. She said the outfit suits me and makes me shine the brightest... Besides, it reflects my entire body and spirit.\" \"But that's...\" Subaru had been about to say, not something this Crusch knows, but he stopped himself midway. Ferris knew that without Subaru's having to say it. It wasn't something for which mere words sufficed. Subaru flapping his lips and acting as if he understood would only upset Ferris. \"Regardless of what happens with the royal selection, I will protect Lady Crusch no matter what.\" \"...Huh?\" The unexpected cold words that rang in Subaru's ears drove him into silence. It was a quiet whisper, echoing emotions that had frozen over. Even though he had been talking with Ferris right up until that very moment, it took a moment for Subaru to fully realize who had spoken those words. Ferris's head was lowered; Subaru couldn't see his eyes past his hair. But the palm in Subaru's grasp was very hot. \"Ferris...?\" \"And thaaat's why you have to keep your promise, right, Subawu?\" However, that ominous presence lasted but a single moment. Subaru was still at a loss for words when Ferris's head seemed to bounce back up, his demeanor the same as usual. His eyes had a mischievous glint to them as he continued. \"You'd better, or I'll make you suffer before killing you by making the mana inside your body go craaaazy.\" \"Could you stop saying stuff scary enough to kill people with such a cute voice and that pretty face of yours?!\" Ferris pulled back his hand, laughed as he disembarked from the dragon carriage, then bowed. Subaru felt weary just watching him, though that brief instant where he'd seen an unknown side of Ferris still weighed heavily in his chest. Those intense words had to be how Ferris truly felt, an expression of both his tenacity and his resolve. And Subaru was no bystander in the matter that was what both believed. \"Ah, Subaru. Is Rem's bed all ready?\" It was just after Ferris hopped out of the dragon carriage that Emilia appeared at the front gate. When the dragon carriages were ready to depart, Emilia came over. Her silver hair was bundled into a triple braid. \"Does everything seem fine? Will it hold up until we make it back to the mansion?\" \"No problemo. Patlash and I are pumped up and ready for some stunt driving. I'll pop a wheelie.\" \"I don't really understand why, but I have a reeeally bad feeling about this 'wheel-ee,' so I forbid it.\" \"Aww, that's too bad. And I was planning to use some risky driving to set Emilia-tan's heart aflutter with the suspension bridge effect.\" Replying with typical jokes like he usually would, Subaru gave the dragon carriage a tap to knock on wood. His reply made Emilia's violet eyes slightly worried, but she didn't say anything. \"Yep. Anyway, though with some lingering regrets, it's time to get this show on the road, meow?\" With a clap of his hands, it was Ferris who brought an official end to the awkward pause. When all eyes gathered upon him, attention immediately shifted to Crusch, standing right beside him. \"Now, Lady Crusch. If you have any final things to say to Lady Emilia...\" \"Yes, I suppose I do.\" With Ferris ceding the stage to her, Crusch took a step forward. With the men who served her Ferris and Wilhelm at her back, she stood at attention as she turned toward Subaru and Emilia. \"First, though I have said this many times, I am deeply grateful to both of you. I may have lost my memories, but I believe it is thanks to your cooperation that our lives have been connected, intertwined with my desires from before I lost my memories. Thank you very much.\" \"N-not at all... There is nothing you need to thank me for with such words, Lady Crusch. I spent most of the last several days out of the loop rather than doing anything.\" \"It's a fact that you were out of the loop for the main events. But, relax, 'kay? I got a lot of stuff done right. Any credit I earn belongs to you, Emilia-tan.\" \"All Subawu's sins belong to Lady Emilia, too, meow.\" \"Don't pick at my scars!!\" When Subaru moved to reassure the apologetic Emilia, Ferris swiftly inserted himself into the conversation, poking fun at him for what had transpired at the royal palace. Laughter erupted in front of the gate the instant Subaru raised his voice. A few days prior, Subaru wouldn't have even dreamed of laughing those events off. Of course, that didn't mean he could just forget about how and why he had acquired those scars, but  \"It's all right. From here on, I have many things I need to properly talk about with Subaru.\" *** Emilia, the only one not to laugh, spoke those words with a sincerity in her eyes. They seemed to say that whatever the results of Subaru's actions, she would face them head-on. This was proof she had truly accepted Subaru. In name and fact, Subaru truly stood by her side. \"Let us be sure to meet again in the near future. Lady Emilia, Master Subaru Natsuki, I believe we shall maintain friendly relations for a long time to come.\" Crusch smiled pleasantly as she offered those words, turning a gaze toward the pair that left no room for deceit. Even after she'd lost her memories, her nobility remained undiminished. Crusch, whose existence radiated honesty, did not deal in lies or conceits. Perhaps that had been conveyed painfully clearly. Emilia lowered her eyes, her lips trembling. \"I...am a candidate in competition with you, Lady Crusch. Even with an alliance, we will someday become enemies again.\" \"Yes. I must strive to do my best so that I do not lose to you, Lady Emilia.\" \"Besides that, I am a half-elf, with silver hair at that... You're not...afraid of me?\" \"Emilia, that's...\" Subaru tried to stop whatever she was trying to say, but when he saw Emilia's expression, he said no more. Emilia had posed that question with a desperate, serious look in her eyes. At that point, no one who understood even a tiny fraction of her feelings could thoughtlessly intervene. Besides, Subaru knew Crusch and knew that even now, her soul remained unclouded. \" The worth of the soul is determined by the worth of a person's actions. Whether for themselves, or for others, we should all live in whatever fashion makes us"}, {"text": "shine brightest, to live in a way that brings no shame on our souls.\" *** \"Or rather, I apparently used to say that often. Hearing it now...from the perspective of the listener, the words sound rather pretentious, do they not?\" Unable to help herself, Crusch let a smile slip as she talked about her own past statement. While listening to the words, Emilia had pursed her lips in silence, likely considering them emblematic of a deeper truth. \"Lady Emilia, do you believe the way you live now is shameful?\" \"...I...do not. I have lived this far believing that whatever others may think of me, at the very least, I must not hate myself.\" \"Then there is nothing for you to fear or regret. Hone yourself, strive harder, and walk straight and true on your own path you possess a...wonderful soul.\" Once she had finished speaking, Crusch unflinchingly offered Emilia her hand. \"I am pleased to have had a chance to come to know you. I feel no fear.\" *** As if she felt pain in her chest, Emilia's cheeks stiffened as she stared down at Crusch's hand. Crusch quietly awaited Emilia's response without any attempts to hurry her. Finally, Emilia very, very gently touched Crusch's hand, exchanging a handshake with her. \"I hope you remain in good health. I look forward to meeting you again soon.\" \"I... No, I do as well. Most likely, I will be able to stand firm before you when that time comes, Lady Crusch. Until then, please be well.\" The two royal candidates swore to do their best, exchanging promises to meet again. As he watched them share those oaths off to the side, Subaru's chest was filled with a sense of accomplishment. Subaru had suffered, struggled, and endured much agony. This was the moment they had finally gained something tangible for it. He hadn't been able to manage a perfect finish, but  \"I don't wanna regret anything I've done, or forget what I've accomplished and make you feel like it's somehow your fault.\" Subaru glanced back at the dragon carriage before he closed his eyes, imagining the sleeping Rem. This was a place for celebration. He couldn't use Rem as an excuse to feel sorry for himself. She wouldn't want something like that, either or perhaps he was selfish to think that. \"Master Subaru Natsuki, I hope you remain in good health as well. I pray from the bottom of my heart that...your future exploits help this girl recover as soon as possible.\" \"It's not really a good thing if it requires my exploits in the first place... I'm a useless man except for extreme situations, when I'll borrow anyone's help to get things done... What happened to Rem, and what happened to you, Crusch, aren't someone else's problem. I'll make sure to find a way.\" Crusch smiled pleasantly, seeking a handshake from Subaru as well. Too embarrassed to place his hand over the one she offered, Subaru did not shake her hand; instead, he briefly met her palm with his. A small, dry sound rang out, and with that, the touch between Subaru and Crusch was over. \"Let us certainly meet again.\" These words spoken, Lady Crusch and retainers bowed, seeing Subaru & Co. off on their way. 2 A delicate, stifling atmosphere filled the dragon carriage on its way back to the mansion. *** Crusch had added the large dragon carriage to Patlash as part of his reward from her. Wide enough to seat ten passengers, it was total overkill, with plenty of room to spare. At present, the only occupants were Subaru, Emilia, and Rem, who slept on the simple bed. With Subaru sitting beside the Sleeping Princess, and Emilia sitting a short distance removed in silent consideration for the unconscious Rem, a rather awkward air had spread throughout the carriage. \"...Feels like it was a mistake to put the brats on a different carriage, huh?\" The village children who had ridden in the dragon carriage with them on their way to the capital were in a different one for the return trip. He'd arranged it out of consideration for the villagers, thinking they wouldn't want to hear talk related to the royal selection, but this had backfired on him. There certainly was a lot they needed to talk about. But a trigger was nary to be  \" Um, by any chance, is the absence of a topic putting you in a bind? This oppressive silence, this heavy atmosphere, I simply cannot bear it.\" \"Why are you butting in all of a sudden? Wait, you were here?\" \"I was indeed! Of course, I have been here the whole while! In the first place, how do you think I ended up cooperating with you and getting abused by the Witch Cult, Mr. Natsuki?!\" \"Personal hobby of yours?\" \"Not even a cat has enough lives for that kind of hobby!!\" Peering in through the intervening window from the driver's seat and letting a grandiose amount of spittle fly was a young man the merchant Otto Suwen, who had cooperated in the final battle against the Witch Cult. Subaru smiled mischievously at Otto, who'd volunteered to accompany them as their coachman for the return trip. \"I'm kidding. Your objective is to talk with Roswaal and have him buy up all your cargo. I didn't forget.\" \"I am truly counting on you. Truly, my very life depends on it!\" Otto was all worked up for a big showdown, but Subaru could see no future for him save Roswaal leading him around by the nose. Having been aided by him, Subaru wanted to lend a hand, but... \"I can't speak for the man himself, but your odds are pretty slim...\" \"I can hear you, you know?! You meant to hide it, didn't you?!\" When Otto, eyes bulging, overheard Subaru speaking to himself, Subaru's shoulders sank. When she witnessed this exchange between the pair, Emilia's big eyes went wide as she spoke. \"I'm so surprised. Somehow, you two reeeally get along with each other.\" \"I don't get along with him at all. He's just someone who saved my life, that's all.\" \"You can't deny it, so don't explain it away!!\" When Otto had been captured by the Witch Cult and was on the verge of becoming a human sacrifice, Subaru was the main person behind his rescue. Strictly speaking, it was the Iron Fangs who had saved Otto's life, but that was something of a tangent. Either way, thanks to Otto, the awkward atmosphere inside the carriage had greatly abated. \"And while I thank you for the current mood, it is time to bid you farewell for a while.\" \"Hey, wait a ! You keep treating me like a pest at the drop of a h \" Subaru closed the shutter, cutting off Otto midshout. With Well, that job's done on his face, Subaru looked back. Emilia wore a surprised look as their eyes met. And then  \"Pfft.\" \"Ha-ha-ha.\" Unable to take any more, the two abruptly broke up in laughter. For a while thereafter, the pair's laughing voices echoed inside the dragon carriage. When their laughter finally died down, Subaru said, \"Reading the awkward atmosphere and keeping quiet, that's really not like me, huh?\" \"No, it really isn't like you, Subaru. The Subaru I know is more...a boy always full of energy and doing reckless things, stirring up trouble with almost no regard for my feelings at all.\" \"I feel like that translates to a braggart who can't read the mood to save his life!\" In point of fact, this was without doubt an assessment he could not refute. Laughing awkwardly as he scratched his face, Subaru slowly sat down beside Emilia. She narrowed her eyes toward him. \"...Subaru, you sit next to me like it's a natural thing.\" \" ? Huh? Something strange about that?\" \"No... At first, it made me nervous, but for some reason, it doesn't now, so it's all right.\" Emilia shook her head as her thoughts on Subaru's sitting beside her trickled out. For meals at the mansion and the conversations with minor spirits that were a daily ritual for Emilia, and in many other everyday settings, Subaru had stood and sat by Emilia's side as was his wont, but... \"All that hard, painstaking work finally paid off. I'm so moved...!\" \"There you go making light of things again... Even though I don't want you to do that weird bluffing.\" When Subaru clenched a fist and murmured, Emilia's cheeks puffed up in dissatisfaction. Then, after ever so slightly moving her hips away, she turned her eyes to the simple bed at the back. \"You've been thinking about Rem the whole time. You don't need to hide it.\" \"Ta-ha-ha...\" With Emilia's sullen gaze sealing all avenues of retreat, Subaru conceded with a listless laugh. \"Yeah, I have been. I've been thinking about her a huge ton. I think she's been on my mind this whole time because I felt I've gotta do something. I want to think of Emilia-tan first and foremost, but...this time I just couldn't keep things in the right order. Sorry.\" \"I'm not upset about that at all. I said it back at Lady Crusch's mansion, too, didn't I?\" She'd said she wanted to understand all the concerns and worries Subaru harbored. Yes, he remembered Emilia had spoken those words to him. He had been so happy, he'd cried. Even so  \"She's very precious to you, isn't she?\" \"Precious, super-precious. As precious as you are to me, Emilia-tan.\" \"...Do you realize that's a reeeally selfish thing to say?\" \"I do. To be honest, I feel so bad about it I wanna roll over and die. But I'm super-serious, so...\" He conveyed his honest, undisguised feelings to Emilia loud and clear. Scoundrel though it made Subaru, Rem's presence inside him was simply that large. Without exaggeration, it was every bit as large as his feelings toward Emilia. Hence, he continued praying for Rem's recovery, glad that he had not upset Emilia in the process. To find a way to make that recovery happen, Subaru Natsuki would take on any trial. \" I'm sure you'll find it. A way to bring her back.\" \"Emilia-tan?\" With Subaru engaging in that extremely selfish reasoning, Emilia gave a thin, charming smile and nodded. She ran a finger through her silver hair as she stared straight at Subaru's raised face. \"I think, in the sense of being motivated by selfish reasons, you and I are probably very alike, Subaru... I'm well aware I joined the royal selection for a selfish reason of my own.\" \"A selfish reason... You mean, a world of equality without any discrimination that reason?\" Subaru reminisced about the desire Emilia had spoken of when she declared her beliefs at the royal selection conference. As a half-elf, Emilia had been exposed to discrimination like few others. Was it not natural for her to want an egalitarian world? However, Emilia sadly shook her head in the face of Subaru's understanding of the matter. \"Not that. I started this with something that was reeeally personal...\" *** \"...I'm sorry. I can't really explain it with words. I don't want to hide it from you, Subaru. But I'm not sure what I should say.\" Emilia was at a loss for words, vexed that she could not speak well about what was in her head. If there was no tangible answer to be had, Subaru didn't want to try to force her to give him one. If the details about the emotions welling in her breast were secretly related to why she had entered the royal selection to begin with  \" We'll talk about everything after we catch up with Roswaal.\" \"You'll forgive me, then?\" \"You haven't done anything wrong, so I don't need to forgive you. If anything, the stuff I talked about is more of a problem... Besides, Roswaal might know something about the Rem issue, too.\" So far as Subaru knew, there was no one in that world better connected to both the top"}, {"text": "and the underside worlds than Roswaal L. Mathers himself. Considering the detail that the clown-looking eccentric had nominated Emilia for the royal selection, it was about time they got him to spill his guts. There was also the matter of what the hell he had been thinking, not even lifting a single finger during the Witch Cult attack. \"But if we're putting that off until after we get back to the mansion...\" \"Yeah?\" \"If you don't mind, Subaru...I'd like you to tell me about Rem.\"  For one moment, the suggestion sent pain running through Subaru's chest. But this was not because he rejected Emilia's suggestion. It was from pure worry and hesitation. Could Subaru speak words that could truly suffice about Rem, the girl who had saved him? \"Ahh, yeah, that's gonna get a bit long, but I'll tell you all about it. To me, memories of Rem are as precious as my memories of you since meeting you two months ago, Emilia-tan.\" Hiding his sentiments behind his words, Subaru began to speak of day-to-day life during those two months. When, after meeting Emilia in the royal capital, he'd awoken in the mansion, greeted by Rem and Ram  *** Once he started telling the tale, he couldn't stop. Emilia continued quietly listening to Subaru's story. And in the end, he continued without pause until they arrived back in the Mathers domain. 3 \"Hey, you two, we've finally arrived at our destination.\" When Otto shared that news from the driver's seat, it was evening, half a day since they'd departed from the royal capital. The report through the shutter made Subaru break off his story and turn his eyes to look through the side window. \"Oh, really? Faster than I thought.\" \"It seems you were caught up in your story. We made excellent time down the highway as well. Perhaps, thanks to departing in the early morning and arriving before nightfall, everyone from the village will be that much more relieved.\" \"I'm so glad. Otto, thank you very much. It's a relief we made it to the village safe and sound.\" As Subaru leaned forward, Emilia was right beside him, gazing through the same window as she thanked Otto. \"I am honored that you would say so, Lady Emilia... I wish Mr. Natsuki would praise my endeavors in a more straightforward manner.\" \"Hey, don't be that way. My personality means I say a lot of things that don't match what I'm actually thinking. Catch on already.\" \"How can those words come from your mouth after all the things you've said to date?!\" Otto's voice rose at Subaru's poor treatment. \"Now, now,\" said Emilia, scolding Subaru for his attitude toward Otto. \"I'm sorry, Otto. It's Subaru's bad habit to tease the people he is fond of...\" \"Wait, wait, you've got it all wrong! I don't do that to you, Emilia-tan!\" \"But you do it to Beatrice, don't you?\" \"Considering how much of a loli that girl is, that statement's all kinds of wrong!\" In terms of experiencing Subaru's teasing, Beatrice and Otto certainly had something in common. But how he felt about either of them wasn't related in any way to his being nice. It was simply an issue of the company he kept. \"Mr. Natsuki, Lady Emilia.\" \"What? Right now, I'm busy clearing up Emilia-tan's grievous misunderstanding...\" \"We've arrived at the village... But there seems to be something amiss.\" *** The abrupt call in a low voice made Subaru and Emilia make eye contact. When they hurried to follow Otto's gaze, they were drawing near Earlham Village, their destination right down the road. The village was a familiar sight. The lack of human presence made this eerily similar to the last time Subaru had seen it: an uninhabited village, right after the villagers had been evacuated to flee from the Witch Cult. In other words  \" Ram and the villagers in the Sanctuary haven't come back?\" That was the conclusion they reached after Subaru and the others split up to check out Earlham Village. Concern stood out clearly on the faces of the returning villagers after they failed to find any sign of the others the ones who had split off and fled to the Sanctuary midevacuation, and who should have long returned by now. \"According to Ram, the Sanctuary is a seven-to-eight-hour trip from here. To not have returned ahead of us after we spent three days in the capital...\" \"We mustn't be hasty. It might be simple prudence until they're certain the village is safe.\" \"Would Roswaal act that passive once he heard the circumstances? During the demon beast incident a while back, he immediately ended it with brute force. It's just weird that he hasn't done anything this time.\" Roswaal possessed magic that gave him the ability to fly through the sky. That was a simple and effective way to reconnoiter his own territory, even if he was being cautious. Even discounting that, Ram, with her Clairvoyance, would be right by his side. It was obvious he had already learned about their victory over the Witch Cult. The fact that he had not returned to the mansion despite that meant  \"There's a reason he didn't come back... Did something happen in the Sanctuary?\" Subaru and Emilia turned their faces toward each other, both having arrived at the same point of view. The pair's concerns were shared by the remaining people of Earlham Village. They had hoped to be reunited with the family members who had returned to the village ahead of them. Considering the villagers' mental state, they all had to find out what had happened as quickly as possible. They had to, but  \"So, Emilia-tan...do you know where the Sanctuary is?\" \"Eh?! S-Subaru, don't you know where it is?\" Emilia's surprise at Subaru's question raised a fundamental issue. It was simple, and large: they didn't actually know where this Sanctuary was actually located. \"It's kind of late to be asking this, but this Sanctuary, what sort of place is it?\" \"I don't know... Roswaal said it was kind of like a secret hideout. Besides...\" \"Besides?\" \"...No, it's nothing. Sorry, I wish I'd asked him more properly at the time.\" When Emilia made that rather awkward-sounding apology, Subaru shook his head and reflected on his own sins. However much in a hurry they'd been to evacuate the villagers, it was Subaru's fault a thousand times over for being careless. Worst case, they'd probably find some sort of clue about the location of the Sanctuary inside the mansion, but... \"For that, too, we'd better go to the mansion for now. I want to put Rem where she can have proper rest... Otto, you don't have a place to stay, do you? Come with us.\" \"Ueeeh?! T-to the marquis's mansion?! I-I would be more at ease sleeping in the dragon carriage!\" \"Oh, shut up and play along.  Sorry, everyone! Just wait a little longer!\" Squishing Otto's tearful words flat, Subaru called out to the people of the village. His appeal to them could not wipe away all their anxiety, but they sent spirited voices back Subaru's way nonetheless. With the villagers watching them go, they had the dragon carriage gallop once more and ten minutes later, they saw Roswaal Manor in all its familiar splendor. \"It is even larger than it appears to be when seen from afar... I feel even more out of place...\" \"Don't chicken out after coming this far. Even if you do, you'll never make it all the way back home.\" With Otto struck by the majesty of the mansion, Subaru offered those words of persuasion as they headed through the front gate onto the manor grounds. They proceeded to stop the dragon carriage outside the front door, inside which, in a sense, the mansion of old times awaited. \"It's supposed to be three days for me, same as Emilia-tan, but...\" When Subaru looked up at the mansion, deeply moved, he murmured as he felt complex emotions in his chest. As a matter of fact, Subaru had returned last to the mansion four days prior, engaging in an elaborate act to get Emilia to flee. However, emotionally speaking, he didn't want to think of that as coming home. It was at this very instant that he felt he had finally returned. \"Well, that's what I think from the bottom of my heart...\" \"Mr. Natsuki, setting aside whatever you may have thought, shall I put the dragon carriage in the stables? As for Miss Rem sleeping in the bed in back... \" I'll carry Rem. You don't need to do anything.\" Subaru closed his mouth, realizing he'd unconsciously let out a hard, barbed voice. Otto, who had no doubt his own suggestion had been a good one, appeared stern at the sharpness of Subaru's reply. Subaru couldn't help having an exaggerated reaction where Rem was concerned, even though he knew that Otto and Emilia had shown plenty of consideration for her to that point on their journey. \"...Sorry. Please put Patlash and the dragon carriage in back of the mansion. I'll get things ready on the inside.\" \"Understood. Think nothing of it, Mr. Natsuki.\" Otto accepted the apology, heading for the stable without any sign of offense. Subaru disembarked from the carriage with Rem on his back, headed toward the mansion's front doorway along with Emilia. \"Come to think of it, I don't remember locking the door when we left. Could burglars get in?\" \"Not that...it's her job, but I don't think we need to worry with Beatrice here. I wonder if she'd...come greet us at the door if we knocked?\" Without touching on the exchange with Otto, Emilia voiced a very un-Emilia-like joke. It was rather difficult to picture that Beatrice greeting Subaru and Emilia at the door with a face full of joy, particularly considering the way she and Subaru had last parted. Even so, there was no harm in trying. \"Maybe she'll rush out to set eyes on Puck...\" \"It really would be odd of her, though.\" Half-jokingly, Emilia smiled as she made the door knocker resound. The sharp, hard sound reverberated inside the mansion. Naturally, there was neither master nor servant in the mansion to repl  \" Yes, please wait a moment.\" \"Eh?\" Subaru and Emilia were both dumbstruck by the reply that ought not to have existed. Then, before the pair could recover from being frozen stiff, the entry doors to the mansion slowly opened. \"Welcome back, Lady Emilia. I have been eagerly awaiting your arrival.\" Standing on the other side of the open double doors was a woman greeting the pair with perfect courtesy. She had long, gleaming blonde hair, and emerald eyes that seemed as transparent as gemstones. Her tall figure was clad in a classical maid outfit; she carried herself in a splendidly tidy, feminine manner. Her age was twenty years, more or less, and any way he looked at her, she was a maid through and through the problem being, she was not either of the two maids who had been assigned to Roswaal Manor. Subaru was frozen solid at the sight of the unfamiliar maid. But his tension soon eased. Emilia, standing stiff at Subaru's side, furled her refined eyebrows and said, \"...Frederica?\" She knew the other party's name. When addressed, the woman replied once more. \"Yes,\" she said, and the woman Frederica released her hands from the hem of the skirt they had held as she said, \"I am Frederica Baumann, returning to duty from leave granted by the master.\" Slowly lifting her face, Frederica sent a warm, amiable smile the pair's way. When that smile struck Subaru's eyes, he opened his mouth wide. \"You must be tired from your long journey. First, allow me to show you inside the mans \" \"Scary face !!\" Subaru's very, very loud shout echoed across the sky of Roswaal Manor. Frederica's smile was completely ruined by the bizarre fangs filling her mouth. 4 When looking at her as a maid, Subaru found the woman named Frederica to be perfect."}, {"text": "She dressed in a maid uniform that was not gaudy in any way, her words and gestures were exceedingly refined, and her behavior bore not a single trace of waste. Seeing her standing straight like it was natural made one's own body straighten up. In all functional matters, she scored a perfect 100 as a maid appearance-wise, too, that mouth excepted. \"Subaru, you idiot! You can't go saying that to a girl! Apologize properly!\" \"P-please cease, Lady Emilia. It is fine. I am accustomed to people being surprised the first time they meet me. I do not mind it whatsoever.\" \"No, I will not! When you do something bad you need to apologize, especially when you've hurt someone. Isn't that right?\" Frederica, the aggrieved party, had a conflicted look on her face at Emilia's red, anger-filled expression. Emilia's point of view was good and proper, something Subaru deeply acknowledged when he went down on his knees on the entryway's floor. Subaru proceeded to bow his head deeply toward Frederica to show he had reflected on the error of his ways. \"No, what Emilia-tan's saying is right. I was completely in the wrong just now.\" \"Err...\" \"I'm sorry I said something terrible all of a sudden when meeting you for the first time. Boil me, fry me, do whatever you like...though I'd prefer it be as painless as possible.\" Subaru apologized in a manner that was more effeminate than manly. After he'd said such rude words to a woman he'd just met, he couldn't blame Frederica for any reply she might wish to make. \"Um, Frederica, listen, Subaru's not a bad child. It's just, he has a bad habit of saying things without thinking from time to time...\" Emilia added her own words to bolster Subaru's apology. The oddly maternal words weighed on his mind, but Subaru was happy she'd spoken up nonetheless. Frederica fell into silence at the look of the pair for a time, but  \" Tee-hee. Lady Emilia, Master Subaru, you are both quite amusing...\" \"Frederica?\" \"I said I am not upset in the slightest, yet you did this anyway. And Lady Emilia, acting so maternal in making Master Subaru apologize like this... Oh, this has become so amusing.\" Frederica forgave Subaru while hiding her mouth behind her sleeve as she smiled. Even with Subaru kneeling in proper Japanese fashion, she cut his feet right out from under him. \"Besides,\" she continued, \"I cannot put off asking about the circumstances forever. There is the reason I have been recalled, the absence of the master...and that girl, the spitting image of Ram.\" *** Frederica's gaze shifted toward a sofa the sofa upon which Rem had been laid down to rest. The words she used \"Ram's spitting image\" proved that she had a prior association with both sisters, Ram and Rem. \"Oh, now I remember. There was a maid who quit a little before I came to the mansion.\" \"Quit is not quite accurate. I was given leave so as to attend to personal matters... It is just that I have ended up returning sooner than I expected.\" \"If it's before Subaru came to the mansion... Three months ago, then? I'm happy to see you again, though.\" Emilia and Frederica smiled at one another, pleased to be reunited. Even then, Frederica hid her mouth behind her sleeve; maybe Subaru's rude words had given her something of a complex about it. Subaru was even more ashamed of his slip of the tongue, but Frederica spoke nothing of it as she motioned to the mansion with a hand. \"After being called back, I found the mansion an empty shell... I was completely at a loss. Fortunately, I was able to grasp the situation from a letter in the master's office.\" \"Letter?\" \"Yes, a letter penned by Ram. Even though she had called me back, this was the only word she left... Perhaps I am being too soft on her in saying it is just like her?\" Frederica gave a strained smile. From that smile, Subaru felt the weight of years of familiarity and trust between her and Ram. Likely, she'd had a similar relationship with Rem. \"And the reason Ram called you back, Frederica?\" Subaru brushed aside the budding sentiment in his chest as he prodded Frederica onward. That said, the question had an obvious answer. The mansion had been on high alert with the Witch Cult aimed straight at it only a few days ago. In other words, Ram had called Frederica back as emergency reinforcements for battle. \"By the time I returned, the mansion's kitchen and garden were in a rather terrible state.\" \"There was a compelling reason for that! Right, Emilia-tan?!\" \"Wait, Subaru. It's not like this is Ram's fault. It's just, an odd breeze seemed to blow through the mansion for some reason, more as time went on... I wanted to help, too, but...\" \"A-ahh, that's okay, it wasn't anything you could have coped with, Emilia-tan...\" \"Yeah... And Ram said, 'This is nothing. Leave it to me. I shall manage somehow.'\" \"Man, she really isn't all she makes herself out to be! ...No, when she said she'd manage somehow, she meant to throw it all onto Frederica's shoulders from the start, didn't she?! Ram, not that your self-assessment is wrong, but geez, try, damn it!\" It was a decision so like her, Subaru could practically see her snorting \"Ha!\" in the back of his mind. Emilia gave a pained smile at Subaru's reaction and said, \"But it's so strange. Ram should have been working hard all the time you were gone, Frederica. I wonder why she was all a mess for only those d  Ah...\" After speaking about it that far, Emilia found her own answer. She'd surmised what had been happening at the mansion during Frederica's absence. That there was \"someone\" working with Ram to maintain the mansion. \"And without that, Ram couldn't keep the mansion going by herself, so she...asked Frederica for help?\" Subaru sadly accepted the natural conclusion. The very fact that Ram had gotten into contact with Frederica was proof she didn't remember Rem.  No, he had more than enough reason to deduce as much. He didn't need direct confirmation. \"I'll take Rem to her room and explain to Frederica along the way. Emilia-tan, Otto's waiting outside... Can I get you to go invite him in?\" \"Mm, understood... You'll be all right?\" \"If Emilia-tan shows me a smiling face, I'll give even a Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins a butt kicking.\" Emilia had a downtrodden expression on her, but Subaru spoke flippantly with a little smile. She proceeded to do as asked, heading out of the room to invite Otto, most likely waiting at the mansion's entrance, inside. Watching her back as she left, Subaru said, \"Now, then...\" and turned back toward the sofa as he said, \"This is Rem, Ram's little sister... You probably don't remember her, right?\" \"Unfortunately, I do not. However, there really is no room for any doubt.\" When Subaru, adjusting the sleeping Rem's position on his back, posed that question, Frederica drew in her chin. Subaru sighed at her reply, indicating the corridor with a motion of his chin. \"We'll talk on the way. I want to let Rem...sleep in her own room.\" \"I understand. This way, please.\" Keeping her words to a minimum, Frederica opened the door as if to lead Subaru out. Together with her, Subaru headed to the mansion's east wing toward Rem's bedroom. \"As far as I could tell, Rem and Ram are sisters that really get along...\" On the way to that room, Subaru told Frederica about facts lost to her: what kind of girl Rem was, what she'd been doing to that point in her life, just how lovely she was. He spoke much like he had to Emilia on the road back to the mansion  *** As Subaru spoke to Frederica, he stated, and replied to, a number of thoughts inside his own head. There had to have been a better way. During the battle, he'd thought I've done the best I can. Somewhere, though, there had likely been a better, a more perfect outcome, one with the greatest possible results. And yet, Subaru had let it slip through his fingers. If only he was smarter, surely Subaru would have noticed it. As one example, the letter of goodwill that Crusch's envoy had brought to Emilia. Subaru had concluded that this letter, the root of much misunderstanding because it was blank, was a plot by the Witch Cult, but in that, he had been mistaken. At that point the Witch Cult surely hadn't caught on to Subaru's actions, and no opportunity had presented itself to swap one letter of goodwill for another. In the first place, sleight of hand such as swapping missives wasn't the Witch Cult's style; it favored more direct acts of violence, something Subaru knew better than anyone. In that case, there could only be a single truth behind the blank missive. \"The contents of the letter of goodwill were written by Rem. I'm the one who asked it to be sent, so if Crusch handed it to the messenger...only the fact that it was handed over stayed the same, and only the contents were erased.\" That was the sloppy adjustment to the erasure of the memory of Rem from the world. If only he'd noticed, if only he'd stopped to think more seriously about why the letter of goodwill was blank, if only he'd seen the truth behind it, he would have realized the tragedy that had befallen Rem. Even if it was a tragedy occurring at a time when there was no turning back. \"That is a rather difficult story to believe.\" He arrived at the usual answer to his own question at the same time that Frederica, having finished listening to his story, quietly spoke those words to him. The words held no ring of denial behind them. She looked around the area. \"So this is her...Rem's room. It is completely tidied up, but...\" When the two entered the room Rem's bedroom it looked like a guest room, with all personal possessions removed. It was the same sight Subaru had seen previously, on the go-around when he had returned powerless after the White Whale had stolen Rem from him. That time, too, Rem's existence had been forgotten. Her bedroom had been just as clean and empty then as it had now become. \"Ram was probably dealing in her own way with the unnatural gap left by Rem being erased.\" The faint hint of her breath and the warmth of her body were the only proof that she was alive. The symptoms of a Sleeping Princess were to require no food or water simply to breathe and to sleep. \"Master Subaru, if she must be cared for in any way, I shall...\" \"I want to do it. Let me do it. It's Rem's first return to the mansion like this, so I have to...no, I want to do it. Sorry to be so selfish.\" Subaru put on a brave face and tucked Rem in bed, determined to do whatever he could for her. Subaru's words made Frederica pull back the outstretched hand she had offered him, narrowing her eyes. \"No, it is not selfish in the least. If anything, it makes my chest get a little tighter. For someone with eyes like a murderer, you are very kind, aren't you?\" \"Hey, don't casually dis me like that, it really wounds my heart!\" When Frederica pointed out the look of Subaru's eyes, his voice went shrill as she smiled mischievously. He immediately realized that she was paying him back for the rude words he'd spoken to her earlier. In a true sense, the exchange just then had fulfilled the conditions for reconciliation between them. \"To begin with, you won't need to care for Rem. She doesn't need food or even baths... But please, pay her as much mind as you can. That's the only thing I"}, {"text": "ask.\" \"I shall take that to heart. If she is Ram's little sister, she might as well be my own. I wonder what kind of reaction the master and Ram shall have when they return?\" \"I can't read Roswaal's... I don't really want to think about how Ram will react.\" The sisters truly got along well. The older sister doted on the younger; the younger revered the older. It was a relationship filled with love. He didn't want to see that scene fracture before his eyes, even if its fracturing was a fact from which there was ultimately no escape. \"I understand about the master and Ram. As for the reason for their absence from the mansion, if it was the Witch Cult going on the move due to Lady Emilia's entry into the royal selection...it is the natural decision to make.\" \"Did you hear about the royal selection stuff before you stopped working?\" \"Lady Emilia came to the mansion about half a year ago. I was still here at the mansion at the time. My being given leave was related to it as well.\" While Subaru put things in order at Rem's bedside, Frederica continued preparing everything besides the bed. Subaru knit his brows, sensing that something was off about the conversation he was having with her. \"What do you mean by, your stopping working and taking a leave of absence was related to the royal selection...?\" \"My duty was essentially to tidy up the master's personal affairs for the royal selection.\" \"Personal affairs?\" \"It was clear that nominating Lady Emilia, a half-elf, as a candidate would invite troubles. Before that, the master sent those around him away. Even here at the mansion, he left only Ram, capable of defending herself... Ram and most likely Rem, making two.\" That answer accounted for the weird feeling Subaru had experienced upon first arriving at the mansion. Considering the sheer size of Roswaal Manor, it would be nigh impossible to keep only the sisters Ram and Rem as servants. In actuality, Rem's skill kept the mansion afloat, but still. \"Upon the master's instructions, many servants were sent off to perform duties elsewhere. As a senior staff member, I assisted in this. In the end, I, too, left the mansion...though I ended up returning, as you can see.\" *** Frederica's return to the mansion had been an effect of losing Rem. Subaru had already arrived at the answer to that question, but at the same time, hearing her words then and there made doubts sprout inside his chest. Namely, Roswaal's steps to prepare for the royal selection had been a far cry from his actions ever since. \"Hey, Frederica. How much has he actually told you?\" \"Master Subaru?\" \"From what you're telling me, Roswaal made all kinds of preparations for the royal selection. It's common sense that half-elves and the Witch Cult are connected, so he had to know it'd be dangerous. In spite of that...\" There, Subaru's words trailed off as he continued to stare at Frederica. \"Where are his countermeasures against the Witch Cult, then? Rem and Crusch both said he had to have 'em. But I don't think he was relying on me. And if not, why'd it come to...\" The sights of the people of Earlham Village, slaughtered and tormented by the Witch Cult, and Rem and Ram, casualties in the battle against the cult, came rushing to the forefront of his mind such was the tragedy that had befallen the Mathers domain. Where were the countermeasures in those scenes? Roswaal wasn't anywhere to be found. \"If you know there was something, then...!\" \"Unfortunately, I have no way to know the master's thinking in its entirety. There are most likely only two people in this world that he deems worthy of trust.\" \"Two people...? Who? Who are these two people Roswaal trusts?\" \" Ram, and the Great Spirit in the archive of forbidden books.\" According to Frederica, as far as she knew, there were two people who might know Roswaal's intentions. He had no room to doubt the first. Ram, offering Roswaal her undivided fealty, was surely worthy of that trust. However, the second possibility was a bolt out of the blue. \"The Great Spirit, in the archive of forbidden books...\" \"A room inside this mansion separated from the rest via magic. Exactly how the Great Spirit separates the archive of forbidden books from the outside world via her own magic is...especially secret.\" Frederica's respectful explanation left Subaru wide-eyed and at a loss for words. It was too far removed from his own recollections. But, unable to form any other reply  \"Her name is?\" With decisive certainty, Subaru posed that question to Frederica. Perhaps the reaction was not what she had expected, for Frederica seemed taken back for a moment. Finally, she replied: \"Lady Beatrice. That is the Great Spirit serving as the librarian of this mansion's archive of forbidden books.\" 5 The instant he turned the doorknob, somehow, he was sure. As he walked around the mansion, his attention was abruptly drawn to the presence of the door. When he walked over and touched the doorknob, the suspicion that something was off about it instantly changed to certainty. When he reacted to the open door that was simply \"there,\" peering inside it  \"Heya. Been a while.\" As Subaru lightly waved a hand, the archive of forbidden books spread before him, not changed whatsoever from before. The large room packed with bookshelves was filled with the aroma particular to old books. Neither the thin gloom of the windowless room nor the serenity of the air had changed one iota. That applied not only to the room itself, but to the girl who guarded the archive as well. The girl Beatrice sat on a stool instead of a chair, eyes lowered to the book resting on her lap. \" Considering the ruckus in the mansion, is it from your return, I wonder?\" Beatrice glanced upward, beholding Subaru in her blue eyes as she murmured in apparent boredom. Then the girl seemed to lose interest, her eyes returning to the book once more. \"If you have returned, I should presume that the uproar of late has finally abated.\" \"Yeah, thanks to y  Or rather, you sure gave me a hard time. Do you have any idea how scared I was to have you not listen to me and run during the operation?!\" \"Do I know or care, I wonder? I never asked you to worry about me in the first place.\" \"I'm pretty sure I said I have a reason to worry about you. I don't think I'm wrong, then or now.\" Beatrice's words were unapologetic. Nor did Subaru retreat a single step with his reply. When, on the eve of the Witch Cult's onslaught, Subaru's words urged Beatrice to evacuate, she had rejected them. As things turned out, the mansion had not incurred any damage, but going by that would be nothing more than argument by hindsight. \"A lot of people worried about you, Emilia and Ram in particular. You can do it later, but you should give them a proper apology.\" \"Apologize? Betty should apologize? Am I at pains to understand why it is necessary to do such a thing, and to whom?\" \"Don't get all stubborn for nothing... If you're gonna be that stuck up about it, I'll go apologize to everyone in your place. I'll tell them you were bawling your eyes out with tears of gratitude when you told me to thank them.\" \"Do not speak such falsehoods! Do my tears truly flow for that long, I wonder?!\" His provocations with a flippant tongue raised the volume of Beatrice's voice, just like usual. Oddly, this filled his own chest with deep emotion, which made Subaru narrow his eyes. There he was, exchanging words with Beatrice like that once more. Even after they'd parted ways in such a deeply meaningful manner, even though he still had a mountain of things he desired to ask her, things were as boisterous as before. Exceedingly relieved by that fact, Subaru let out a listless sigh. \"You can dial back the drama a notch. It's not a bad thing to bawl your eyes out once in a while, you know?\" \"Coming from a man who cried like a little baby on the lap of the woman he likes, those words do bear a certain weight.\" \"Can't you just forget about that already?!\" Once that had happened, when impassable hurdles piled higher and higher, sending his emotions crashing against a dam until they smashed apart. When he thought back to that time, his face burned so much he felt like it might catch on fire. All the same, though, the glow of the precious memory burned in his chest just as much. Trying to paper over those complex emotions, Subaru loudly cleared his throat and changed the course of the conversation. \"...Anyway. I'm glad we're both safe and sound. Now is the time to come to an understanding.\" \"Understanding? Were you not the one to speak on your own, I wonder? Always so self-serving.\" \"Yeah, I suppose I always am self-serving. Most of the times I talk to you go like that. Do you remember? When we played tag here in the mansion, when we had the snow festival...\" Beatrice narrowed both eyes as Subaru began talking in a whimsical fashion. As her blue gaze shot through him, Subaru made various gestures as he reminisced out loud. It was as if he was choosing his words with great care, diving deeper and deeper into their memories so that they touched upon the truth. \"It was like that during the demon beast uproar, too. Back then you helped me a ton when you lifted that curse.\" \"Stop it.\" \"As a result, I sucked up an even bigger curse, which backed me into a seriously bad corner. After that, to heal me it'd take going after the Urugarums in the forest, so !\" Subaru's rapid-fire speech was powerfully cut off by an explosion of dry sound. When he looked, he saw that the source of that sound was Beatrice's lap or rather, the open book upon it she had so sternly closed. Sensing Beatrice's irritation from that gesture, Subaru awkwardly pursed his lips. With Subaru falling silent, Beatrice glared at him with a sharp glint in her eyes. \"Would you get to the point already, I wonder? Spineless coward.\" \"...Sure.\" He couldn't summon a rebuke for the insult. That itself was proof the girl had judged him correctly. He'd used this trick and that to prolong the conversation, keeping it lukewarm while putting off the conclusion, for which Subaru could only blame his weak heart. He already had the words he ought to ask inside his chest. He required nothing more than the courage to put them on his tongue. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and took pains to listen to his beating heart. After that, he opened his mouth. \"How much do you...do you and Roswaal know about what happened this time around?\" *** Upon receiving the question coming from Subaru's lips, Beatrice concealed her eyes under the edges of her long eyebrows. The resulting silence weighed heavily. When it felt very long, Subaru exhaled as if he were breathing hard. \"...Beatrice.\" She made no reply. Even as that fact burned him, Subaru realized his own hypocrisy. What exactly did he want Beatrice to say? Even within himself, no answer was forthcoming. Did he want her to be a mastermind with a grasp of everything? An ignorant girl who knew nothing about it? Someone who was neither of those things? Even he didn't know. Finally  \"For the sake of argument...what reply do you desire from Betty?\" \"Th-this ain't some what-if! Besides, it's got nothing to do with what I want you to say. What I want is an answer to my question. I want an answer deeper than just yes or no!\" The unexpected counterattack made Subaru"}, {"text": "unintentionally coarsen his voice. But Beatrice's cool demeanor toward Subaru did not falter. \"Betty finds it unfortunate you are so worked up, but perhaps she does not understand what you mean? Betty is not your instructor. If you expect her to politely educate you on every topic, you are sorely mistaken.\" \"Ugh...! Don't gloss this over! Someone told me that if I want to know what Roswaal's thinking, I should ask you. Sorry, but seeing the attitude you're giving me, I agree.\" \"Who said such a... Ahhh, you saw the half-beast girl who recently returned?\" When Beatrice spoke the word half-beast, a word he could not unhear, she made an adorable face as she clicked her tongue. The girl proceeded to close one eye, pointing a finger at Subaru. \"That girl's opinion might have some merit, I wonder? But though Betty and Roswaal are certainly connected, that has nothing to do with this latest affair. Might Betty know nothing of it at all, I wonder?\" \"But he left you in the mansion. Here, in this mansion, alone, without any plan to deal with it.\" \"He left Betty because she is at least capable of protecting herself. Is that unrelated to Roswaal, I wonder? ...But Betty does not think that he did so without a single thought.\" Beatrice's reply made Subaru go over his memories once more. But when he thought back, he could not recall any countermeasures by Roswaal whatsoever during the battle. Rem, Crusch, Frederica, Beatrice they'd all said there must be some, yet he couldn't find any. \"It's not just that you, me, and everyone thinks too much of Roswaal? Everyone says a guy like that had to have a plan against the Witch Cult... Right, that's it!!\" That instant, he remembered something as if the very heavens had spoken. In accordance with his revelation, Subaru rummaged through his pocket in great haste, presenting to Beatrice the other thing he wanted to ask her about. And that was  \"Beatrice, here. Look at this.\"  a black-bound book, its pages and contents sullied with blood. Subaru had the worst history possible with its original owner. He figured that some kind of weird enchantment kept the contents illegible, making it little more than a paperweight unless the reader shared the owner's personality. \"This should be deeply connected to what that Witch Cult bunch is thinking. If you're not gonna show me what Roswaal's really thinking, at least you can tell me something about this b \" \" A Gospel?\" Increasingly nervous about the lack of response, Subaru spoke rapidly until his words caught in his throat. Beatrice's dramatic reaction when she stared at the Gospel in Subaru's hand included a look of fright in her eyes. Her lips trembled weakly, almost as if she could not believe her own eyes. \"...A war trophy I took from the ringleader of the Witch Cult bunch that had the mansion surrounded.\" \"And...the owner?\" \" He's dead. Crushed by a carriage wheel. I killed him.\" When Beatrice posed that delicate question, Subaru spoke the truth firmly without averting his eyes. Strictly speaking, Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti had not been a person. He had been an evil spirit employing the bodies of others as hosts under his control. Accordingly, the cause of death Subaru gave might not have been precisely accurate. But it was Subaru who had dealt Petelgeuse the final blow, robbing him of life. Knowing in his soul that nothing short of that would defeat him, Subaru had calculatingly killed him. Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti was the first being Subaru had personally slain  Subaru wouldn't claim he'd never hesitated, or that he had no regrets about sullying his hands. He had not bluffed about it to anyone else because he couldn't lie to himself. The fact he had killed Petelgeuse and the fact he had been killed by Petelgeuse were engraved into his own heart, never to be forgotten. *** However, though Subaru had poured many thoughts into those brief words, Beatrice had given him no reaction. Still staring at the book in Subaru's hand, she seemed to whisper to it instead of responding to his words. \"Geuse...have you also...left Betty behind, I wonder?\" \" ? Who's that?\" \"...No one at all. More importantly...if you killed him, what happened to the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly...to Sloth's Witch Factor?\" \"Witch...Factor...?\" The words Beatrice mentioned meant it was Subaru's turn to show his incomprehension. He remembered having heard the term Witch Factor several times to date. However, the term had come from Petelgeuse's mouth each time; he'd never thought it would retain any meaning after the man's death. Subaru's bewilderment made Beatrice lower her face, confusion resting in her eyes once more. \"Hey, you can't just toss jargon onto a guy who doesn't understand the circumstances. What the heck is that Witch Factor stuff? Honestly, I have a feeling it's nothing good.\" \"You do not know? Could you truly not? If that is so, for what purpose did you kill Sloth...? Furthermore, what was Roswaal doing...?\" \"All I did was smother the embers someone tossed my way! As for Roswaal, that bastard's in the Sanctuary! What's he thinking? That's what I wanna ask you, damn it!\" Subaru shouted, practically bellowing in impatience as they talked past each other. When his fierce emotion slammed into Beatrice, all emotion was instantly gone from her face. The resulting silence threw Subaru off. Her expression was shorn of ferocious anger and sadness, and perhaps confusion and everything else. The sight made Subaru's breath catch as if he were out of air; Beatrice gave a long, deep sigh. \" Are all the answers you seek...in the Sanctuary, I wonder?\" \"What?\" \"Roswaal's scheme, the meaning of the Gospel, even about the Witch Factor...if you desire answers to all these, go there. Will the half-beast girl show you the way, I wonder?\" \"Wait a sec! What's this all of a sudden? You were acting so high and mighty all that time, what made you decide to talk all of a sudden? Besides, even without going to the Sanctuary, you could...\" \" Betty shall not speak of it. Betty has a right...not to speak of it.\" The obstinate answer silenced Subaru. He remembered her adopting a stance of rejection like this previously. It was the exact same rejection she'd given him when she shook off the hand he offered when he wanted to lead her out of the mansion to safety. In other words, the result was exactly the same. \" ?! You're planning to push me away again?! Again, just like before?!\" From behind, in the direction of the door to the archive, he felt a supernatural force twist the air to create wind pressure. The distortion became a wind that took Subaru into its grip, dragging his body toward the portal to shove him outside. It was an exceedingly compelling use of the magic power known as Passage. \"The path to your answers has been made clear. Will Betty stop indulging you any further, I wonder? Your high-handed arrogance is truly irritating.\" \"Beako... Beatrice!!\" he shouted, stretching out his hand. But, with rejection in her gaze and posture, Beatrice rebuffed the gesture. The girl atop the stool closed her eyes, weakly shaking her head from side to side. \"Perhaps Betty is not a tool for your convenience.\" *** \"I am not such a convenient being...that is here to say what you want to hear, at a time you wish to hear it, in the manner that you prefer.\" Beatrice seemed to wring her voice out. Subaru could not offer any denial or complaint. It was not that her words had resoundingly hit the mark. What he felt was shock, as if he'd been smacked from a completely unanticipated direction. The gaping hole in his thoughts robbed Subaru of his power to resist. He would soon be sucked into the door, hurled beyond, and locked out: from the door, from the archive of forbidden books and from the heart of the girl known as Beatrice. \"Why...are you making that crying face again?\" Eyes lowered, there was no reply from Beatrice to Subaru's final question. \" Daa!!\" \"Gyaah!!\" Shot out from the open door, Subaru spectacularly toppled backward. The place was a corridor in the mansion, the result of his having been indiscriminately teleported via Passage. But this time it was not Subaru alone who was wrapped up in Passage, but  \"M-Mr. Natsuki, how did you come out of the washroom I just left...?!\" *** \"A-and how long do you intend to sit upon me?! Could you please move?!!\" Otto pleaded with a pathetic expression on his face as he lay on the floor with Subaru's butt upon him. However, the only thing in Subaru's head that moment was the final instant with Beatrice. Why had she made such a sad face? Perhaps that answer, too, was  \" If I go to the Sanctuary, will I find that out, too?\" \"I do not know of what you speak, but I would truly like for you to move as soon as possible!!\" When Subaru murmured thoughtfully, Otto raised his voice from below, bitter at Subaru's continuing to ignore him. 6 \"But really, why did you tumble out of the washroom? Please do not tell me something frightening like there is a hidden door or a hidden passage connected to it...\" \"That's not it, you moron. It's a one-time miracle brought about by my wanting to do a two-man comedy routine with you.\" \"That's not an answer, though for a reply that is not an answer, it is quite frightening!\" Having been reunited with Otto via Passage, Subaru bit back his feelings of futility over the fruitless conversation with Beatrice as he engaged in suitable conversation with Otto on their way to the guest room. Just as Beatrice had said, she had made his path to arrive at answers clear. Though the forceful manner in which she had done so had only added to his worries and misgivings. \"Haa... Grim prospects, huh?\" \"What is with that sigh...? Is that sigh suggestive of good fortune slipping from your grasp?\" \"Your prospects are just that grim. I'm sighing in your stead.\" \"Then it is my good fortune you have let slip?! Could you not do such things behind my back?!\" Unable to clear up the complexities inside his chest, Subaru's flippant tongue could still pull the wool over Otto's eyes just fine. At any rate, the pair arrived at the guest room over the course of such trivial conversation. \"Oh my, I see Master Subaru is with you. I shall immediately prepare tea.\" Frederica, who had thought Otto alone would be returning, began pouring a fresh cup of tea when she noticed Subaru was with him. Subaru, making a sound with his nose at the warm aroma of the tea leaves, sat down beside Emilia on the sofa at the back of the room. He glanced sidelong toward her, just in time for their eyes to meet. \"Subaru, I see you were with Otto. You two really do get along.\" \"I keep having to say this, but you have it wrong. My relationship with him ends as soon as I fulfill my promise to buy up all his oil. So don't make anything more out of it!\" \"What, you cannot remain forthright till the end, so you add an insult? What a futile performance.\" Otto was tired and dispirited at Subaru's averting his face and engaging in tsundere comedy. During that time, Emilia brought the tea that had been poured for her to her mouth, taking a sip and giving Subaru a little smile. \"Subaru, you must be reeeally stubborn to act like this even though you became friends with Julius after everything that happened.\" \"Boys should be stubborn. I'm kind of old-fashioned about that. Also, allow me to point out, Julius and I are not friends. I will hate that guy forever.\" \"Yes, yes.\" Subaru's lips tapered as a certain handsome young man arose in his mind's eye, but Emilia saw"}, {"text": "things differently. He grasped with a certain reluctance that the more he said about the matter, the deeper the misunderstanding became. \"Is it quaint to think that the more you argue, the closer you are?\" \"No one says quaint anymore... Besides, I thought people who argue a lot get along poorly, with pretty much no exceptions?\" \"Well, Subaru, when you and I had a big argument, did we end up getting along worse?\" \"...Emilia-tan, you've gotten good at this.\" Subaru had an awkward look on his face; Emilia had him dead to rights. Subaru's reaction made Emilia narrow her eyes, her voice practically a whisper as she continued. \" So, were you able to speak properly with Beatrice?\" Emilia had not asked if he'd met her. She'd asked if they'd spoken. She posed that question because she had no doubt Subaru had arrived at the archive of forbidden books. He wasn't sure he should call that trust, but one might say he would only respond to her trust halfway. \"I met her. I met Beatrice. But as for speaking properly with her...I'm not really sure.\" \"...I see. But you were able to meet her, Subaru. In the time I've been at the mansion, Ram and I hadn't managed to go meet Beatrice even once. I'm just a little miffed about that.\" Emilia spoke it with the air of a pout, adorably sticking out her tongue. But the lack of strength in Subaru's voice had apparently conveyed something, because her violet eyes seemed hesitant about her continuing her words. In place of Emilia, a response came in the form of the faint sound of ceramics. \"So you truly are able to enter Lady Beatrice's archive of forbidden books...\" \"What, you doubted me?\" Subaru's shoulders sank as he acted just a little wounded at Frederica's deeply moved murmur. She shook her head. \"Considering the very few encounters I have had with Lady Beatrice during over ten years of service under the master, I could not but doubt. When you told me, 'I'm gonna go chitchat with Beako for a bit. I'll be back soon!' or the like and rushed off, I had no way to confirm for myself.\" \"Ahh, err, can't really excuse myself for putting it that way, huh?\" \"To be honest, I thought it would take hours until you would be able to meet Lady Beatrice...\" Subaru, remembering how he'd given a threadbare explanation and rushed off, cringed and reflected on the matter. As Subaru did so, Frederica put significance behind the look she gave Emilia as she continued her words. \"However, afterward, Lady Emilia took the time to speak exhaustively about how reliable Master Subaru had become, so I awaited you half in expectation and half in concern.\" \"Huh?\" \"Wait a  Frederica?!\" Frederica's unexpected statement left Subaru bewildered and Emilia beside herself. Emilia jumped to her feet, cheeks red, vigorously waving a hand back and forth toward Subaru. \"Errr, it wasn't like that. Certainly I spoke to Frederica about you, Subaru, but she's blowing it out of all...\" \"No, I heard her speak as well. To be honest, I was thinking Mr. Natsuki, you lucky scoundrel...\" \"Even Otto now!\" Sold out not only by Frederica, but also by Otto, Emilia was red to the tips of her ears. Then she slapped her hands against her flushed cheeks, furtively glancing in Subaru's direction. The reaction from Emilia, one she rarely permitted to be seen, made Subaru strongly clench his fist. \"Why don't you talk like that when I'm around...?\" \"I can't talk like that in front of you, it's embarrassing... Sheesh, Frederica! Move on already!\" \"Oh my, even though you glossed it over previously, that childlike charm of yours is falling by the wayside.\" Frederica hid her mouth as she smiled, shifting her gaze from the eyebrow-twitching Emilia toward Subaru as she said, \"Master Subaru, I heard plenty about you from Lady Emilia... No, more than plenty.\" \"Fred er i ca!!\" \"Yes, yes, I understand  So let us speak, Master Subaru, so that whether you found the archive of forbidden books or whether you did not, it does not become a roadblock.\" \"Become a...roadblock?\" Unable to get the gist of the mystery phrase, Subaru knotted his brows in incomprehension. As he did so, Emilia gently touched Subaru's shoulder, nodding as she continued. \"Subaru, we didn't doubt you'd meet Beatrice, but whether that girl would answer your questions is another matter, yes? I mean, both you and Beatrice are reeeally stubborn...\" \"The excessively cute way you put that bothers me a little, but you have a point. So?\" \"I made a promise to the villagers, and I have a lot of things I want to ask Roswaal about myself so I asked Frederica to tell me about the Sanctuary.\" *** Subaru's throat caught over the fact that Emilia had acted for the sake of achieving their original objective. The Sanctuary Emilia sought was the very same Beatrice had revealed as his path to answers. With such a sad face and voice, she had told him that the answers to all his misgivings were there in the Sanctuary. So, too, had she said the \"half-beast girl\" would show him the way, namely  \"And did Frederica tell you about the Sanctuary?\" \"I lost to Lady Emilia's persistence. I had been told to disclose as little about that as possible...but it seems strange to conceal it from the two of you.\" \"Um, I happen to be here as well...\" \"It seems strange to conceal it from the two of you.\" \"Would you please correct that line?!\" Setting Frederica and Otto's remarks aside, Subaru was surprised the issue had moved forward in his absence. As he had the thought, Emilia kept her hand on Subaru's shoulder, lowering her brows. \"Subaru, was that all right? You're not upset I decided without you?\" \"N-nah, I'm not upset at all. I whiffed it on my end, so if anything it's a huge help.\" \"Really? I'm so glad. So, Subaru, there's a favor I wanted to ask of you...\" Subaru was still off balance as Emilia looked relieved, lowering her eyes as she continued. When he heard the word favor, Subaru suddenly felt a bad premonition. The word favor had precipitated something once before in precisely the same fashion  \"Wait! Don't tell me that favor is...me staying here at the mansion?\" \"Eh?\" \"If so, time out! Let's talk this over! Certainly, I can't call myself in tip-top physical condition, and Ferris stopped being my doctor, but it's not like I live a life of combat alone! If anything, fighting with the mind is where I really shine, well no, that's a little off, too, but...!\" Emilia's eyes went wide as Subaru desperately tried to make his case. But it was a place where such fervor was necessary. The situation certainly resembled when they'd headed to the royal capital for purposes of the royal selection. However, what was decisively different from then was the readiness in Subaru's heart. He wasn't following Emilia without a plan or a care. This time was different from what had taken place before. \"Don't even try to stop me. I'm going with you. I can't let you just leave me...\" \"Of course I'm not leaving you here. Come with me.\" \"If you tell me you're leaving me, just no, no way, no h  What did you say just now?\" As Subaru's ferocious emotions reduced the breadth of his vocabulary, her words seemed to slap his face, knocking him back to his senses. As that sank in, Emilia took the hand in contact with Subaru, touching it to her own breast as she spoke. \"I told you, come with me. I'd be worried sick on my own.\" *** \"Subaru, I'm...relying on you. Subaru, I...need your strength.\"  Subaru could not put into words the impact of Emilia's quiet plea upon his own heart. His mouth hung open. With Subaru unable to say a word, Emilia's expression clouded over with concern. Her violet eyes wavered as she stroked her own long, silver hair and said, \"Err...did I say something strange?\" \"...My motivational switch is all yours, Emilia-tan. Whether you're flipping it on or flipping it off, one word from you and everything's on auto. I seriously can't get enough of you.\" Covering his face with his palms, Subaru extolled Emilia's graces with a deep sigh. \"Eh? Eh?\" went a confused Emilia, buffeted by the deeply meaningful statement, to which Subaru replied, \"Back at you,\" sticking out his own tongue. After all, Emilia was throwing Subaru for an even bigger loop than he was throwing her for. \"It would seem you have put your differences in order.\" \"Yeah, sorry for the lovey-dovey stuff. I just couldn't help myself.\" \"Lovey-dovey...?\" When Frederica tried to revisit the topic of conversation, Subaru turned to face her once more. Off to the side, Emilia seemed to have a question mark floating over her head, but she immediately regained her composure and gazed Frederica's way. Frederica nodded toward their gazes, and her emerald eyes beheld the pair as she spoke. \"As has been conveyed to you, I have no objection to speaking about the route to take to the Sanctuary. It is just, a little time is necessary to prepare... Two days, perhaps?\" \"Prepare... Ah, that figures, it'd be leaving the mansion empty. That shouldn't take...\" \"No, I shall be remaining here at the mansion. It is Lady Emilia and Master Subaru's duty to head toward the Sanctuary. Managing the mansion is mine.\" \"Wait, you won't come with us?! How are we supposed to get to the Sanctuary, then?\" Subaru was taken aback, never having expected her to refuse to go with them. Frederica's cooperation was limited to her telling them about the Sanctuary rather than actually leading them to it. Now he understood the source of Emilia's worry during the earlier exchange, but Subaru simultaneously noticed something else. Namely, the sight of Otto Suwen leaning back, arms crossed, exceedingly confident, even cocksure. \"Hey, you over there, what's with that self-confident, puffed-up look? We're in the middle of an important conversation.\" \"Ho-ho-ho. You are a poor guesser, Mr. Natsuki. In the first place, should you not have wondered just why I am in attendance during such an important conversation?\" \"You have a point. This isn't something an outsider should hear. Say, does this mansion have a dungeon?\" \"Such statements are not where I meant to steer the conversation, you know?!\" \"The mansion has a cell, yes. I can assure you that it is reasonably comfortable.\" \"Miss Frederica, could you please leave such questions unanswered?!\" Subaru had meant it as a joke, but it had brought the existence of a cell, and Roswaal Manor's dark underside, to light. Either way, Otto's shoulders sank in dejection at his being tag-teamed when  \"Hey, cut it out, both of you. You mustn't treat Otto like some kind of outcast.\" In Otto's stead, it was Emilia who rose to her feet in righteous indignation. Putting her hands on her hips, she glared at the comedic combo in question, Subaru and Frederica both. \"What a terrible thing to say to someone who went out of his way to offer his cooperation. And without Otto's help, it's going to be reeeally hard going to the Sanctuary, won't it?\" \"Ohh...! Did you hear, Mr. Natsuki? Now this is how you should have reacted!\" \"Ahhh, it's been a while since I've said E M D, so I'll say it now. E M D !!\" \"E, M...eh?\" When, in high spirits, Subaru invoked the old phrase, Otto registered the highest bewilderment score of that day. Setting his confusion aside, Subaru had grasped the circumstances from Emilia's statement. \"In other words, Otto said he'd go with us as far as the Sanctuary. To be blunt, I'd have had to leave all the dragon carriage driving to Patlash, so it's a huge help, but...\" \"But what? That method of speaking implies something. Does my goodwill sit ill with you?\" \"Sorry, the only merchant I"}, {"text": "expect freebies from is a guy with a fruit store and a scary face. That might be nicer on a human level, but it's a lot simpler to believe a merchant wants more than goodwill for collateral.\" Cadmon, Anastasia, Russel names and faces of merchants he'd come into contact with in the capital came to mind. In terms of personality, Otto was the closest to Cadmon, but in terms of mercantile tendencies, he was closer to the last  \"I can read your ulterior motive. The gist is, be cooperative with Emilia to get as close to her as possible and make a good impression on her backer Roswaal. Even more than getting your oil bought up, the point of coming with us is to get close to Roswaal, right?\" \"Er, um, having my deepest secrets brought out into the light is a little...\" \"Otto...is that true?\" \"Lady Emilia's sincere eyes are painful, painful, painful! I am very sorry! It is for the most part exactly as he said! But believe me, I did not mean for any harm to come from it whatsoever, so please forgive me!!\" Though Otto tried to be defiant, he did not quite manage it, confessing as he conceded defeat to her sincerity. Subaru wearily shook his head at Otto's demeanor; this time it was his turn to pat Emilia on the shoulder. \"Well, let's not be too hard on Otto. You make it look easy, Emilia-tan, but it's really hard for people to act on someone else's behalf out of goodwill from the heart alone.\" \"I don't think I'm really such a good person...but doesn't that go for you, Subaru?\" \"I exhaust all my efforts for Emilia-tan for my own personal reasons. Hmm, if it's one hundred percent impure, does that make it pure...?\" You want other people to think well of you. When you boiled things down, that was the starting point for actions taken in the course of interpersonal relations. That said, human life was not so dry that you could declare it an iron rule. It was merely a matter of degree. Human beings were simply too complex to express in a single sentence. \"Even with your ulterior motive plain to see, we actually think pretty well of you. So relax already.\" \"That does not sound very reassuring coming from you, Mr. Natsuki, but...\" Subaru responded to the dejected Otto with a teasing smile before turning back toward Frederica. \"OK, Otto's helping. So the three of us get to hear you talk about the Sanctuary.\" \"Understood. Incidentally, has the master spoken to either of you about the Sanctuary?\" With Subaru & Co. sitting side by side on the sofa, ready to listen to her speak, Frederica posed them that question. Upon receiving it, Subaru and Emilia glanced at each other's faces as she said, \"To be blunt, he said almost nothing about it to me. From the snippets I heard, it sounded like some kind of secret base several hours away... The fact that it was the first suggestion for evacuating people makes me think I wasn't wrong.\" \"Once...Roswaal told me that it was a place that would someday be...necessary for me...\" \"Necessary for you someday...?\" The unexpected statement left Subaru looking toward Emilia with surprise in his eyes. That gaze sent Emilia apologetically lowering her own eyes. But before Subaru could ask a follow-up question: \"It sounds like something the master would say.\" Frederica closed her eyes, her tone sounding faintly amused. Then she grasped the hem of her skirt, curtsying deeply. And then  \"I shall now speak of how to enter the place called the Sanctuary of Clemaldy. You must not speak a word of this to anyone else. Also, upon going to the Sanctuary, there is one name you must not forget.\" *** \"Garfiel. You must pay heed to the individual by that name. In the Sanctuary, that individual is the one you and Lady Emilia must approach only with the greatest of caution.\" Complex emotions resided in Frederica's open emerald eyes as she put that name upon her lips. CHAPTER 2 *** 1 As a result of the conversation with Frederica, they set off for the Sanctuary in the morning two days after. \"To be honest, I'm gettin' restless just waiting around, but...\" Arms crossed, Subaru made a sound in his throat, the impatience in his heart unavoidable. But, according to Frederica, two days of preparation were necessary to get to the Sanctuary. Subaru could not dismiss her opinion. \"The Sanctuary is protected by a special barrier...the Lost Woods of Clemaldy. The barrier keeps outside presences away by leading them astray, hence why it is called the Lost Woods. Two days of preparation are required to nullify that barrier.\" Thus had Frederica explained, intuitively calming Subaru so that he was not tempted to let haste make waste. Though at first, Subaru found the talk of the \"barrier\" rather fishy, Frederica's explanation after the fact made him accept that it was the case. \"It's a place with a history of accepting demi-humans... Huh.\" When he voiced the special way it had been expressed to him, Subaru vigorously scratched his own head. It was something of an iron rule in fantasy worlds that there was friction between human and demi-human races. This world apparently was no exception. In the Kingdom of Lugunica, too, scorn against demi-humans was customary with many people. Subaru's experiences to date had led him to form a particular conclusion. The prejudice and scorn toward demi-humans was likely an extension of the deep-rooted enmity toward half-elves. Even so, perhaps due to some kind of conciliatory policy in the capital, he'd seen quite a few demi-humans in the Merchants' District and in the slums. However, he'd seen none in the Nobles' District  \"From what I read in a history book, they had this civil war called the Demi-human War in just the last century, too. Come to think of it, I heard a song related to that from Liliana, too, didn't I...?\" Liliana was a bard who had stopped by at Roswaal Manor during one of her journeys. He was certain that one of the songs she had sung during her stay at the mansion touched on that historical event. \"Kind of late to realize it, but...'The Ballad of the Sword Devil' sounds a lot like Wilhelm's nickname. Maybe that song's why he came to be called the Sword Devil in the first place...\" Subaru gave a satisfied nod as the manly sight of the swordsman he imagined melded with the heroic tale inside his head. As a matter of fact, Wilhelm was indeed the main character of \"The Ballad of the Sword Devil,\" but Subaru, petty man that he was, dismissed out of hand the idea that he personally knew a man whose name was recorded in the annals of history. \"Ah, Master Subaru, so you were indeed here.\" Subaru was thrown off his train of thought when the door quietly opened and a voice spoke to him through it. When he looked back, he met the eyes of the girl peering in through the gap of the door. The girl with reddish-brown hair and a ribbon on her head entered with an adorable smile as she addressed him. \"It's almost time to leave, so I thought if you weren't in your room, you might be here...\" \"Servant lifestyle got me used to waking up bright and early... Wait, properly speaking, I still am a servant, so I'd better stop talkin' like that...\" \"But I think... I believe those odd clothes suit you better than a servant's uniform, Master Subaru.\" \"You're payin' attention to your words, but you need a little more practice choosing them, I guess?\" The girl gave a pained smile as she quickly corrected her own words as Subaru rose from his chair and gave his back a stretch. The young girl in the servant's outfit Petra Leyte gazed at Subaru with her round eyes. Petra was one of the children living in Earlham Village who'd long befriended Subaru. There was a reason she was dressed in a maid outfit that very moment. \"Gotta say, it's only two days since asking for maid applicants in the village, and only one since you've actually been in the mansion... I'm impressed you were able to find me without getting lost. That's almost too good for a girl your age away from your parents like this.\" \"I'm already twelve years old, plenty old enough to be a working g I mean, an adult. Master Subaru, please treat me like a proper adult.\" \"I'll think about it when you master polite speech and get Frederica's stamp of approval. Until then, you're an apprentice maid in on-the-job-training, so I'm gonna treat you as cute as I feel like!\" Subaru shot the precocious Petra a smile as he mussed her hair with strokes of his hand. Petra gave an enjoyable kya! sound as she squatted, perhaps certain she was making a clean getaway. Either way, it had been a simple process to get Petra into the mansion as a maid. Frederica was keenly feeling the limits of a single person's power to manage the vast mansion. When she'd sought applicants from the village to help her, it was Petra who had responded. At first, there was concern about her young age, but Petra's personality and suitability for the job had both proved exceptional. \"Compared to you, Master Subaru, she is highly proficient, and her future prospects are bright. She stands out among all the girls I have taught to date... Ah, Master Subaru, please sit down and relax.\" That was the assessment Frederica had given after instructing Petra over those last two days. As a matter of fact, it was difficult to recruit someone like Petra who could grasp the details of the mansion and its environs in such a short time. It was enough for her to understand exactly where Subaru had unconsciously let his feet take him  \"You came to say goodbye to Miss Rem, right?\" \"...Well, somethin' like that. I don't plan to be away that long, but I wanted to see her face. I'm countin' on you to take care of her while I'm gone, Petra.\" Subaru conveyed his words in a joking tone as he gazed within the bedroom and at Rem lying on the bed within. Her appearance never changed no matter how many times he came, or how many hours he spent at her side. Even so, he visited when he had time. \"...Master Subaru, it's almost time to set out, so...\" After Subaru fell silent, Petra tugged at his sleeve, indicating that it was time for him and Petra to part ways. Indulging in her generosity, Subaru said only one final thing: \"...Well, I'm off, then. Be a good girl and wait, 'kay?\" After saying goodbye to Rem's sleeping face, he brushed his hair back as he left the room. \"Master Subaru, it must be pretty hard for you, having so many people in your thoughts...\" \"I feel that's like what people say to describe a playboy... Ah, well, it's not like I'm splitting my feelings into two prongs or something, but I have to admit...\" Subaru, heading for the rendezvous point at the mansion entryway, cringed under Petra's exasperated-sounding verbal assault, despite the fairly indirect way she put it. That being said, Petra was not referring only to such things, but also to the context of the pair's current actions. \"I kinda figured I wouldn't find anything, but no luck here. You?\" \"I checked every room, too... Is there really a mysterious room like that here? You're not playing some kind of trick on me?\" \"I can't fault you for doubting me, but you know that Beatrice really exists, right? That's the loli in drills you were playing tag with in the mansion a while back.\" \"She was in a dress, not 'in drills'...\" Petra made a stern face toward Subaru's assertion as she closed the"}, {"text": "open door of the final room. With that, they had finished checking every door on that floor. Unfortunately, they had not found one that led to the archive of forbidden books. \"When she really wants to hide, it gets seriously rough... What's up with her, sheesh.\" Looking like he was chewing a bitter insect, Subaru disparaged the girl who had not shown her face whatsoever. Even though he and Emilia had decided to set off for the Sanctuary, Beatrice's demeanor in their last encounter was another matter altogether. Over the last couple of days, he'd gone around the mansion searching for her room as much as he could, but the results had not improved. So he remained in the dark both about her relationship to the Sanctuary and about the truth behind the sad face she'd made  \"I can't talk to Rem. I can't meet Beatrice... What the hell have I been doing?\" \"Master Subaru?\" \"Well, keep an eye out for Beatrice for a bit, would you? Maybe you'll have a random encounter with her from opening one of these doors once in a while.\" Naturally, even Petra grimaced at Subaru's unapologetic request. There were a lot of things for her to learn in a new environment. Subaru felt guilty about adding to her burdens, but... \"Sorry, I get it. But you're the only one I can count on, Petra. I'm really sorry about this.\" \"...I'm the only one you can count on?\" \"Yeah, that's right.\" Frederica was devoted to Rem, but having her pay extra attention to Beatrice was too much to ask. He couldn't help but think that she was an unsuitable person to entrust Beatrice to at the moment. But Petra seemed a similar age to Beatrice, so excess politeness ought not to be any barrier to contact. Those were the various factors he'd taken into account when entrusting Beatrice to Petra, but  \"Tee-hee-hee. I guess it can't be helped... If you put it that way, just leave it to me.\" \"Oh, really? Seriously, big help. You're such a good, goooood girl, Petra.\" Petra's demeanor suddenly softened. Subaru stroked the smiling girl's head as he breathed a sigh of relief. Now no night would pass without anyone paying Beatrice any mind. Though Subaru would truly have liked to have had a chance to exchange words with her one more time... \"Master Subaru, Petra. This way, please.\" As they engaged in such conversation, Emilia and Frederica were already waiting at the entry hall ahead. When Frederica bowed, Petra hurried to her side. \"Petra, you did well to find Master Subaru. A job well done.\" \"Thank you, Miss Frederica. Anything about Master Subaru, please leave to me.\" \"My, she's reeeally full of confidence.\" Petra proudly pushing out her chest made Emilia and Frederica look at each other's face with a smile. When Subaru immediately walked over, Emilia tilted her head a little and offered a greeting. \"Good morning, Subaru. Did you sleep properly?\" \"I'm glad you didn't oversleep from having way too much fun on that picnic, Emilia-tan. Feels like the other guy might've done something that stupid, though...\" \"Ah, you mean Otto? It's all right. Otto woke up a long time ago and has been preparing the dragon carriage in front of the mansion.\" \"The hell? Sorry I worried, then. But, oh yeah...his life is riding on this, too.\" Talking business with Roswaal would make an enormous difference in Otto's life as a merchant, be it for good or ill. His drive was that of a man taking up the opportunity of a lifetime, and Subaru felt his high motivation reassuring. \"Plus, I'd better think up some words of consolation for when he's kicking himself at having come up short...\" \"Could you not speak such awful things the moment I come back to call you?!\" Just that instant, Otto's eyes were wide as he returned, barging into the hall. Subaru listened to the pleasant sound of the morning breeze, taking a deep breath before he made a declaration. \"Well, now that we've had our clich\u00c3\u00a9d banter, let's be off!\" \"Do you not feel even a single shred of guilt?! Well, ahh, not that it really matters!\" Otto, splendidly swept up in the flow, was drawn along as everyone headed out to the mansion's courtyard. The dragon carriage was already parked in front of the entrance, with a jet-black land dragon and a blue land dragon perfectly in order. In particular, the black land dragon Patlash stretched out the tip of her nose when she noticed Subaru. \"Just like usual, you really act all friendly toward me, huh?\" \"However, it seems the lady concerned is merely saying, 'You may stroke me if you wish'...\" \"Her breed's supposed to be really proud. Is that really the only thing left from her rearing...?\" Subaru put on a skeptical face at Otto's cross-species translation, an effect of his language blessing. Everyone's lips treated Patlash as if she was temperamental, but in truth, from the time he'd first met her, Subaru hadn't felt any such thing, only great amiability. Even now, when he reached out his palm and rubbed her neck, the corners of her mouth were relaxed, and she was fond of people as far as he could tell. \"I really don't understand why. What, did I save you in a past life or something?\" Putting aside the notion of reincarnation, he was in a different world, so it wasn't likely a past life had anything to do with it. It's probably just simple compatibility, thought Subaru, and he left it at that. And that was one of the few strokes of good fortune that had bounced Subaru's way. \"Of course, to me, the number one stroke of good fortune was meeting Emilia-tan!\" \"Eh? I'm sorry, I didn't hear quite right. Can you say that again?\" \"It's pretty embarrassing, so I can't force it out a second time! I'll say it tomorrow!\" When Subaru hung his head, playing dumb as a defensive measure, Emilia went \"Really?\" with a mystified look. However, she immediately switched mental gears and turned to face Frederica. \"Well, please take care of the mansion...Rem, Petra, and Beatrice included.\" \"You can count on me, Lady Emilia. Please take care on your journey  Also, take this...\" Just as Subaru had done, Emilia freshly entrusted matters to Frederica. Frederica accepted the responsibility with a bow; finally, she offered something that came from her pocket. This was a necklace a necklace adorned with a glimmering, blue, transparent crystal. \"With this, you will be able to penetrate the forest barrier and enter the Sanctuary. After that, I have instructed the land dragons as to the location, so they shall surely lead the way.\" \"So that crystal is the condition for passing through the barrier, huh...? That's what took two days to arrange?\" Subaru peered at the glimmering crystal in Frederica's hand, twisting his neck slightly in artless skepticism. The crystal looked rare. She hadn't left in those two days, so how had she obtained it? Frederica covered her mouth and laughed in response to Subaru's skepticism. \"Strictly speaking, the two days of preparation were not for this alone...but the two are not unrelated. At any rate, the place and qualifications are in order. The rest comes down to resolve and a strong will.\" \"Pretty exaggerated way of talking. Not that I mind...,\" Frederica said gravely. \"Mm, I understand that it's reeeally precious to you. I will take proper care not to lose...Frederica?\" Emilia said, knitting her brows and nodding. When Emilia's hand took the crystal offered to her, Frederica strongly grasped that hand. *** Instantly, emerald and violet gazes intertwined, and Frederica's cheeks faintly stiffened. But she followed the impulse to harden her cheeks by closing her eyes, quietly letting go of Emilia's hand as she spoke. \"Lady Emilia, please take care of the Sanctuary. And do not forget about what we discussed.\" \"Y-yes, it's all right. Just what kind of place the Sanctuary is, and...\" \"Please...be mindful of Garfiel.\" \"Mm, I get it. I'll give Garfiel my attention. Count on it.\" Emilia gravely accepted the repeated warnings as she stuffed the crystal handed to her into a pocket. Subaru was watching the exchange to its conclusion, at which point they were just about ready to head out  \"Um! Master Subaru...could you take this with you?\" Red-faced, Petra held up a hand as she offered something to Subaru. She was trying to emulate Frederica as she offered a plain, white handkerchief with her hand. Subaru, suspicious concerning Frederica's demeanor, went \"Err?\" as the gesture caught him completely by surprise. \"A white handkerchief to see you off on your journey. You can clean yourself with it along the way and return it when you get back I understand it's not done much these days, but it's an old custom to wish for someone's safe return from a journey.\" \"Ohh, that sort of thing. Got it. Thanks, Petra. I'll bring this back to you safe and sound.\" Having been taught the meaning of the handkerchief being given to him, Subaru wrapped it around his wrist. His reply made Petra lower her red face; she gracefully slipped behind Frederica's back. \"Ah? What's with that reaction all of a sudden? That difficult-age stuff's leaving me out on a limb here.\" \"From the looks of it, Lady Emilia, Master Subaru has no right to criticize you.\" \"Me? Did I say something strange?\" Frederica sighed deeply as both Subaru and Emilia twisted their necks, wondering what was amiss. In the end, they went without an answer to that question as Frederica stuffed the pair into the dragon carriage, all preparations to depart complete. \"Yes, yes. Both of you hurry along now. The Lost Woods of Clemaldy that the Sanctuary is in becomes a dangerous place when night falls.\" \"We get it, we get it, geez. On your end, take care of the villagers, 'kay? Also, make sure to dispose of the mayonnaise in storage before it goes bad.\" \"I really have to wonder about lining up those two issues in the same sentence...\" With an exasperated voice, she pushed on their backs, and Subaru and Emilia boarded the dragon carriage. When Subaru looked back out the window, two maids, short and tall, stood straight side by side as they looked up at the carriage. \"I pray for your safe return. Please give my best regards to the master and to Ram.\" \"Master Subaru, take good care of Big Sis, okay? Also, to the noisy person, good luck.\" \"Is that not a horrible assessment of me?!\" Heedless of Otto's reaction, Frederica and Petra quietly gestured, giving Subaru and the others a completely courteous send-off. With that send-off pressed to their backs, the dragon carriage powerfully set off. \"Well, all aboard! Otto, we're counting on ya!\" \"I really cannot approve of this treatment...!\" Otto left behind his lament at his treatment, poor to the bitter end, as they departed from the mansion. 2 \"And just who taught you about that old custom?\" Right around when the departing dragon carriage vanished from sight, Frederica posed that question to Petra, still bowing right beside her. The young girl's big eyes went round at the question as she bashfully said, \"I heard about it from Mother. She said it was how she won over Father.\" \"So you get that tenacity from your mother, do you? However, it seems the man concerned did not realize its significance.\" \"It's fine. Even if he doesn't know, if he thinks of me when he looks down at his wrist...\" The reply was more forceful than expected. Frederica gave a strained smile at Petra's positivity. Truly, she was a precocious girl at a mere twelve years of age  It made Frederica think of Ram. \"She was a woman starting at a young age, too...in great contrast to her ability as a servant, however.\" \"Miss Frederica? Is something wrong?\" \"Not at all. I was simply thinking of your senior. She should be at the"}, {"text": "Sanctuary right now, dealing with a particular problem child.\" Thinking back to the girl who accompanied her liege, offering her life to him, Frederica exhaled in melancholic fashion. Her hand reflexively touched the breast pocket of her servant's uniform. \"Now then, even if Lady Emilia and others are absent, there is still Lady Beatrice here at the mansion. I will have you learn all the basics within a week's time.\" \"Yes! Ready and willing!\" \"What a wonderful reply this girl gives...\" With an invigorated look, Petra raised her hand and happily ran into the mansion. Frederica smiled and observed her positive demeanor before finally turning in the direction of the dragon carriage one last time. Frederica's beautiful emerald eyes faintly wavered, seemingly resisting the emotions filling her chest as her slender fingers took stationery out of her breast pocket. Then  \"With this, I have done as the master instructed. It all comes down to whether Lady Emilia can overcome the Sanctuary. There is nothing I can do now, save pray.\" Her fingers traced the edges of the letter she had read many times over. Finally, those fingers turned toward her own neck. However, the sensation she sought was nowhere to be found... \"Please, Lady Emilia...be heedful of Garf.\" 3 \"So that Puck guy really hasn't shown his face all this time?\" \"...Yeah, that's right. I've called out to him over and over, and I can feel the link of the pact...but I'm reeeally worried. It's not often he doesn't show his face for a long time like this.\" The interior of the dragon carriage racing toward the Sanctuary in good order echoed with Subaru and Emilia's conversation. Thanks to the intervention of the wind repel blessing, neither loud sounds nor shaking were conveyed to the carriage interior. In that quiet atmosphere, they were not trading words about their enthusiasm at approaching the Sanctuary rather, they were discussing an anomaly that had occurred during the last several days: Puck's absence. In those several days, Subaru hadn't seen any sign of him, Emilia's contracted spirit and self-declared father figure. Beatrice's plan had been to conceal herself through the use of Passage; this was different. \"Come to mention it, I hadn't seen him before getting back to the mansion, either. Since we left Crusch's, maybe?\" \"Mm...since we returned to the mansion, maybe. I really wanted to talk to him about the Sanctuary, but I don't feel like my voice is reaching him.\" \"Does Puck normally disappear from time to time?\" \"Errr, it happened a lot before he and I formed our pact...but the frequency's reeeally gone down since then. Not meeting him for several days makes me a little concerned.\" Subaru folded his arms as Emilia broached the subject of Puck prior to their pact. It was obvious, but there had been a time before Emilia and Puck were linked. He'd always seen the two together, so imagining them acting separately really didn't seem right to Subaru, but  \"Do you know where Puck goes when he's not by your side?\" \"I think he's probably doing something for the sake of world peace.\" \"Sounds like a little girl with fantasies about her dad's work, but if he ain't here, that's the least of our problems.\" Setting Emilia's exaggerated expectations aside, she was the most precious thing to Puck in the entire world. The idea of him abandoning her to run off and do stuff somewhere sounded downright strange. \"Plus with Puck not here, I'm straight-up worried about our combat strength. Otto isn't exactly a master of the fighting arts, and my insides are all rattling around. Emilia-tan, it's tough for you without Puck here, right?\" \"Subaru, it's reeeally hard to set aside hearing that your insides are rattling around, but...\" When Emilia gave him an exaggerated stare, Subaru gave a vague smile and waved her off with a hand. \"Goodness...! But relax. Even if Puck isn't with me, I have my contracts with the minor spirits. Those children can fight, too, so I'll protect you no matter what happens.\" \"Whoa, that's a real man's line...! Just wait, someday I'm gonna be able to say that with a straight face.\" \"I know. I'll wait, I'm reeeally looking forward to it.\" She raised a finger, and faintly glowing minor spirits floated all around Emilia. Subaru figured that, compared to Puck's, their power was like Earth compared to Heaven, but even so, they had fine combat strength on their own. All the same, it was pathetic to be relying on the only girl in the group, and the one he had his eye on, to do the fighting. \"As for 'no matter what happens'...Frederica warned us, didn't she?\" \"About Garfiel, yes.\" Emilia shared Subaru's concerns, lowering her voice as her lips spoke the name. Garfiel was the name that they'd heard repeatedly from Frederica's lips over the last two days, the person they needed to be wary of. As a matter of fact, Subaru had heard the name itself several times before that. \"Bunch of times it came up that Roswaal was off to have a chat with the guy. On top of that, Ram spoke the name when the plan to evacuate to the Sanctuary came up, didn't she...?\" Ram had spoken the name as if he was someone she could trust. But the contradiction with Frederica's warnings made Subaru question his own judgment. It wasn't simply a question of which one, Ram or Frederica, he wished to believe... \"I've been around Ram a lot longer, but her usual attitude makes me wanna shove that aside...!\" \"I wish Frederica had told us about it in more detail, but...she said she was constrained by a vow not to speak about the Sanctuary, so it couldn't be helped.\" \"All the same, I sure have been hearing a lot about vows and stuff...\" Subaru leaned back in his seat as he made a sound of dissatisfaction in his throat. In fact, Frederica hadn't really said much about the Sanctuary. What she'd conveyed to Subaru and the others had been limited to the special characteristics and dangers of the place, where it was located, and the name of a particularly dangerous individual. She'd helped them pass through the barrier, but her cooperation had ended at that. \"Compared to that, she sure said to watch out for Garfiel a lot, including right before we left... Do people at the mansion have some sort of quota for cryptic statements?\" \"I don't think there's any such thing, but that was Frederica doing all she could. We should be grateful she warned us as much as she did without breaking her vow.\" \"I'd be even more grateful if she wasn't bound by that vow, though...\" \"Don't sulk. A vow is a holy, inviolate pledge, not something one should breach for any reason. Vows, pacts, and covenants may bear different weight, but they should all be treated with equal respect.\" Emilia wagged a finger left and right as she spoke those words, seemingly for Subaru's benefit. It went without saying that Emilia was obstinate when it came to oaths of any kind. To Subaru, vows, pacts, and covenants were simple wordplay; the two appreciated their importance in very divergent ways. \"I'm not saying you should break pledges every which way, but...there's a time and a place for everything, right?\" \"Absolutely not. Oaths...promises are very important. Properly speaking, there's nothing forcing you to uphold a promise, but people uphold their promises anyway. They work hard to uphold them, don't they? Even if no one's watching, even if no one notices, they do it, because the other party believes they will do so.\" Emilia touched her chest, staring at Subaru in dismay at his words. Her tone of voice was gentle, with no hint whatsoever of reproach. The words hurt all the more for it. \"It's because people believe in you that you strive to uphold the promises you've made. A promise is like a ritual tying two people together through mutual trust, isn't it?\" Subaru crept onto the carriage's seemingly rock-steady floor and bowed his head straight down. When he apologetically touched his forehead to the floor, Emilia went \"Ah,\" touching a hand to her own lips. \"Um, I'm not trying to criticize you, Subaru. Certainly, you didn't uphold your promise with me, and if you do it again I'll be rather annoyed, but...\" \"The pain, the pain, my ears hurt!!\" \"Also, I've reflected on being too emotional about it. I needed to make up with you right away, Subaru, but I was being stubborn. Sorry.\" \"The pain, the pain, my chest hurts!!\" \"Hey, um, I am a spirit mage, so oaths hit reeeally close to home with me. To a spirit mage, pacts with spirits are extremely important, so...yes, promises are really important. Subaru, you should reflect on that more, after all.\" \"The pain, the pain, my heart hurts!!\" As Emilia began to sulk, perhaps from the deep melancholy of the time coming back, Subaru lay prostrate before her. At that moment, he could truly appreciate why Emilia had flown into such a rage in the waiting room at the royal palace: unaware of just how insensitive he was being, Subaru had been trampling on the most important parts of Emilia's psyche. \"You've reflected on the error of your ways?\" \"I've reflected. Deeper than the sea, taller than the mountains, wider than the sky, vaster than outer space.\" \"Then it is fine. I forgive you... I'm not sure what you mean by outer space, though.\" As Subaru wore a pathetic look on his face, Emilia nodded toward him and smiled pleasantly as she touched a finger to her own lips. The charming smile bore no hint of anger; the adorable gesture made the look on Subaru's face crumble. He was deeply grateful to Emilia for smiling and forgiving him for the way they'd parted ways in the capital. At the same time, he thought anew that she was not the only one he needed to apologize to for his behavior that day. \"It seems that we've entered the forest.\" As Subaru immersed himself in thought, Emilia's voice suddenly pulled him back. Her eyes were turned toward the window; the change in the landscape had apparently told her they were nearing their destination. The Sanctuary was said to be protected by a special barrier well within the deep-green forest. There, in that place, were Rem and Roswaal, two other parties to whom Subaru needed to apologize. \"Well, setting Ram aside, I might have a duty to apologize, but I think I have just as much of a right to smack Roswaal in the side of the face.\" \"...Yeah, I suppose so.\" \"I'll start with 'Do you have any idea what I had to go through because you weren't around?!' And then, I'll make him spill his guts about everything! I have a right to that much, don't I?\" \"...Yeah, I suppose so.\" \" ? Emilia-tan, the side of your face is cute when you're thinking. Can I give you a hug?\" \"...Yeah, I suppose so.\" Subaru didn't have the courage to go \"I'll help myself, then,\" at her cut-and-pasted reply. The stiffness of Emilia's cheeks and the stress in her eyes drew his attention. \"Emilia-tan, are you nervous by any chance?\" \" ! That's amazing, how could you tell?\" \"I'd love to say I can tell everything about you, but I think anyone could in this case.\" Emilia's look of surprise brought a strained smile out of Subaru as he prodded his own cheek with a finger. Emilia followed suit by touching her own cheek, whereupon she realized just how tense her own expression was. \"Sorry to worry you. I was thinking, we'll be in the Sanctuary soon...a village only for demi-humans.\" \"...Ahh, that so? I'm sorry, too. I hadn't thought about that.\" When Emilia divulged the reason for her nervousness, Subaru felt pathetic for not realizing it himself. According to Frederica's explanation, the Sanctuary was not merely a"}, {"text": "settlement for demi-human races. It was a settlement where \"demi-humans in particular circumstances\" came to settle. So it was possible that  There might be half-elves who went through the same stuff Emilia did... \"...I've...never met any half-elves besides myself. I hadn't really...thought about it very much. But in the Sanctuary, it might be possible...\" Emilia's voice trembled with nervousness. But he couldn't tell if that nervousness was from worry or hope. Emilia probably couldn't tell, either. The only way to get a solid answer was to go to the Sanctuary and see. But  \" ! Emilia?!\" \"Eh, ah... What's this...?!\" The next moment, Subaru and Emilia simultaneously raised their voices at the strange occurrence inside the carriage. The source of the occurrence was none other than Emilia, herself quite nervous. A blue radiance was welling up from inside her chest, instantly tinting the interior of the dragon carriage with a bluish glow. Startled by the light, Emilia thrust a hand into her pocket and pulled out the shining blue crystal emitting that light. \"The crystal's shining... Subaru!\" \"The hell... I have a really bad feelin' about this! Emilia, I'm borrowing that!\" Thinking that the ferociously shining blue crystal looked much like a magic crystal on the verge of exploding, Subaru instantly snatched the crystal away from Emilia. Then he rushed to the dragon carriage's window  \"If it's nothing we'll pick it up later! For now, I'll toss it outs wait, wha ?!\" \" aa...\" Just as he was about to throw the dangerous object away, the faint moan made Subaru look back, aghast. \"Emilia?!\" When he looked back, his gaze was met by the sight of Emilia listlessly collapsed onto the dragon carriage's floor. Emilia was prone, limbs spread out and unconscious. It had happened suddenly without any forewarning  \"No, the forewarning was this?! Shit, Emilia, are you all ri ?!\" For an instant, Subaru hesitated in deciding whether to prioritize Emilia or the crystal. Prioritizing Emilia's safety, he was attempting to rush to her side when  \" Ah? Hey?!\" The instant he stepped forward, the blue, shining crystal emitted an even stronger light that enveloped Subaru's entire body. He had no time to regret his choice of priorities. The next instant, the world vanished. \"Emilia !\" He stretched out a hand and shouted. However, neither his voice nor his arm reached the fallen girl before the air connecting him to her was severed. *** It was over in an instant. Feeling the shine of the light, Subaru swiveled his head, but he couldn't see a thing. The world had been erased no, rather, it had been temporarily blotted out by being bathed in a light too strong for his sense of sight. Blinking repeatedly, he finally realized that contours were gradually forming within his indistinct vision. But regaining his sense of vision did not put his confusion to rest. After all... \"...Where is this?\" He was not in the dragon carriage's interior, where he should have been. Rather, Subaru was standing in an unfamiliar forest, alone. 4 \" ! Not the time to say that! Where's Emilia?!\" Setting aside his momentary daze, Subaru surveyed the area, desperately striving to grasp the situation. Trees suggestive of being deep in a forest stood left, right, and center around him. Moss and grasses stretched unhindered at his feet, without the faintest trace of human passage. \"Cheek... Ow, it hurts when I pinch! Meaning this isn't a dream...!\" Ruling out the choice of avoiding reality, Subaru largely grasped just what had happened to him. It was the shining crystal in his hand. The powerful light that had shone until just prior had already vanished, but there was no way it was unrelated to his circumstance. It was probably the blue, shining crystal that was the cause to begin with. \" Teleportation. Kinda like Beatrice's Passage.\" The mechanism was unclear, but Subaru, having been shifted by similar incantations in the past, made an educated guess. He'd experienced Passage a number of times during his dealings with Beatrice. The problems were the reason and purpose behind the shift, and how to rendezvous with Emilia and the others. \"Plus, Emilia was on the floor when I left. I've gotta get back ASAP...!\" If the shift was from something similar to Passage, Subaru's jump couldn't have been that far. At the very least, it ought not to have been to some far-flung place on a map of the world. At the very least, he must be in the same forest. \"I mean, it was all Beatrice could do to send me as far as Earlham Village. There's no way this rock has enough power to send me farther than that.\" Coming to that conclusion, Subaru smoldered with impatience as he gazed down at the crystal in his palm. The crystal had been the cause of the shift. Having momentarily hesitated to throw it away, he'd ended up stuffing it in a pocket instead. Though walking around with it was dangerous, he was scared of throwing it away in case he might need it later. Besides, he didn't know Frederica's intentions in handing them the crystal.  Or even whether Frederica was related to the shift. \"Shit! Right now, gotta save the thinking for later. If I can at least figure out direction from the location of the sun...\" Brushing excessive thoughts aside, Subaru racked his brain to raise his chances of a rendezvous by any extent he could manage. Then, when he was about to begin walking in search of any clearing in the forest  \"...aa?\" The next moment, Subaru lifted his head, coming eye to eye with the figure appearing right before him. *** The unexpected jolt of meeting the unemotional eyes brought Subaru's thought process to a complete halt. If the other party had intended him harm, the opening would have proved fatal. But, fortunately, the opponent made no reaction. Save for backing away slowly, Subaru was the same. \"And you...are?\" When Subaru took a step back, the other person's entire body entered his field of vision, and he comprehended this was a girl. The young girl had long, rose-colored hair and looked like she was in her early teens. Her visage had almond-shaped eyes and a long, refined nose; her skin had a pale, fleeting look, as if it would break apart the moment you touched it. In height, she did not even reach halfway up Subaru's chest. Her small body was clothed only in a white, poncho-like garment. A doll that was the impression he received, not from her beautiful appearance, but from the air hovering all about her. She had emotionless eyes, an emotionless, unchanging face, with a muted presence and so little apparent willpower that it felt insufficient for a person. But she had one feature that strongly tugged at his attention. Namely  \"Those long ears... Are you an elf?\" *** When Subaru asked the question, the girl's doll-like expression remained intact as she said nothing. However, the tapered ears, longer than those of a normal human, poking out of her rose-colored hair told Subaru that the answer to his question was, without doubt, a yes. Subaru had been speaking to Emilia about the possibility of encountering half-elves besides her just moments before. Subaru's thoughts were exceedingly thrown off by the surprise of encountering an elf in the flesh so very quickly. Furthermore  \"Aa...! W-wait! Where do you think you're going?!\" Moving like an apparition, the girl turned her back on Subaru and ran off. It was so sudden that Subaru reacted late, and began pursuing the girl in great haste as she widened the distance. \"Wait! Please, wait...! Are you...are you someone from the Sanctuary...?\" The agile girl practically flew as she raced into the overgrown woods. Subaru, desperately pursuing her over bad and unfamiliar footing, felt pain rising as his breath rapidly grew louder. \"S-shit... Damn it all!\" How was the forest related to the Sanctuary, and to begin with, who was that girl ? Knowing that asking would only deplete his endurance, Subaru gritted his teeth and focused his strength into his legs. For several minutes, Subaru proceeded to chase the girl's fleeting back as if his life depended on it. Then his field of vision suddenly widened. \" ! I got through the woods...but where the heck is this?\" Coming to a stop in the clearing, Subaru bent his knees as he breathed raggedly over and over. He wiped off the sweat coursing down his brow. When he raised his agonized, grimacing face, Subaru found a strange structure ahead of him. The structure, constructed from stones piled onto one another, was a ruin of particularly primitive architecture. Most of the outer facing was covered in green moss and vines; the few exposed portions of the rock face were spectacularly cracked. It was unclear how many centuries had passed since its construction, but, considering that the structure was half-overrun by the forest, it hadn't been buried to start with, making it at least several centuries old. The ruin, standing in the tranquil forest air, seemed like a temple, or perhaps  \"It kinda feels like a tomb. For a sec, I thought it was a pyramid... Hey, wait a...!\" Thrusting his admiration for the ruin aside, Subaru hastily looked for any sign of the girl he was pursuing. He'd arrived by following the girl there; she was the real priority. But however much he surveyed the area, the girl who ought to have been there was nowhere to be found. Her presence, her lingering scent, and even her footsteps were absent. It was clear as day that he'd lost track of her. \"This is the worst... After I get teleported, I let my only lead get away...!\" Roughly scratching his head, Subaru despaired from the bottom of his heart at his own ineptitude. But he had no time to be down in the dumps. Even if the girl, his one lead, had vanished  \"Maybe I can hope for something from this ruin...? It kinda feels like a temple, so I can't call it unrelated to someplace called the Sanctuary...\" Wishful thinking though it might be, Subaru cautiously began walking toward the ruin. Even when he saw it up close, his initial impression of the stone structure didn't change all that much. There was no sign whatsoever of human presence, of human handiwork, or any sense that a living soul dwelled there. \"Heyyy, is anyone here? If this is the Sanctuary, someone answer, please !\" Though he called out to the ruin and the surrounding forest in a loud voice, it echoed fruitlessly in the air. Sighing deeply when he did not get the hoped-for response, Subaru grudgingly walked around the ruin  \" Well, there's an entrance...\" About halfway around the ruin, Subaru spotted a set of moss-covered stairs. When he climbed the stairs, careful not to slip, he found an opening with a dimly lit passage within no doubt continuing into the ruin. He'd found his entrance. Naturally, the interior of the ruin was not lit, and the corridor he saw from the entrance continued into darkness. Even when he timidly called out, he heard nothing but the lonely echo of his own voice. Put bluntly, he didn't have a good premonition in the slightest, but it is said that one can only get a tiger cub by going into a tiger's den. \"Not that I really want a tiger cub...but if it's the girl who brought me here earlier, turning back now would be giving up the store.\" Having come that far, Subaru did not doubt that the girl and the ruin were related. If the teleportation via the crystal was related to the girl as well, the ruin had to be related to the Sanctuary. In the first place, it should have been Emilia, the one possessing the crystal, who was teleported. \"Then it being me instead of Emilia wasn't part of the plan... Whether snake or Oni, only way to know is to see what pops out...\" The very fact that he'd been teleported"}, {"text": "had already limited their options. With no clear way to rendezvous with Emilia, Subaru decided it was best to accept the invitation and play along for the moment. *** Breathing deep, Subaru clenched his teeth and stepped into the ruin. He employed the trick of keeping his right hand constantly against a wall to never lose his way in the dark. The sensation against his hand was less of a stone wall than of the slender, delicate vines covering it. The vines had overgrown the passage so thickly that it was hard to tell where the original wall stood, and it felt more like the artery of a living entity the bizarre atmosphere of the ruin itself made him feel like he was entering the body of some giant creature. *** The only things he could hear in the darkness were his own breathing, his loudly beating heart, and his shoes. He had lost his sense of sight due to lack of light, and the cold, serene air robbed him of all use of his nose. His sense of hearing loomed large in his mind, but at some point, he'd lost track of the wall that he'd been touching. The feeling on his tongue was that of air mixed with sand and dust. Tasting nothing despite the sensation, Subaru relied more and more on his sense of hearing. The sounds of his shoes, his heartbeats, and his breathing were the only things he could depend on. These things proved to him that he was connected to the world, not adrift for all eternity. His sweating increased, his heart quickened, and his soul raged, pleading for release. Where he was, what he was doing, whom he sought these things grew vague. But he was seized by a powerful drive not to stand still. Someone kept pleading with him not to stop, to grit his teeth and bear the weight he carried on his shoulders. At some point, his mind became churned. The still-echoing voice, the warmth of a touch, an earnest plea, all mingled together when  \"I see. This is the desire that drives you. How curious, I must say.\" Amid the darkness, Subaru Natsuki heard the amused voice of a Witch. 5 Returning to the moment in the story when Subaru found himself facing the Witch on top of a hill... *** A faint wind tickled the back of Subaru's neck, rekindling the chill that traveled up his spine. His back was moist from a great deal of cold sweat, and the overwhelming pressure he was under had not abated at all. He stood opposite the girl Echidna as she sat in a white chair, doing nothing besides tilting her teacup. \"It hurts to see you so on guard. However I seem to you, am I not but a single, innocent maiden?\" \"...Sorry, but lowering my guard for a girl I just met declaring herself the Witch of Greed is seriously not happening.\" \"Ah, I see. Certainly, that was another oversight on my part.\" Echidna touched the back of her hand to her lips as she giggled and smiled in an amused fashion. The sight of the nonchalant girl did not drain the tension from Subaru, who remained ready to rush her at any moment. He opened and closed his sweat-drenched hands, as prepared as he could be to instantly overwhelm his opponent. The problem was that such preparations, full or not, were likely futile before Echidna. \"There are a mountain of things you wish to ask. However, you do not know what may cause me to take offense. Therefore, you watch how your opponent moves in silence... The demeanor of a bird watching its prey, is it not?\" *** \"And you ignore me? Goodness, that wounds me on a fundamental level. As you can see, I am nothing more than an innocent maiden. I cannot help but wonder when a boy gazes at me with such eyes.\" \"You being a maiden on the inside is like a piece of paper with death flag written on the backside. Just so you know, my internal danger alarm is ringing like crazy.\" Having experienced death repeatedly since arriving in that world, Subaru had an acute nose for danger. It hadn't diminished the number of his deaths at all, but it at least allowed his mind to keep functioning. According to his senses, the danger posed by the girl before him rivaled that of the White Whale and Sloth no, it exceeded them. \"It is natural for you to be on guard, but a coward like you can do nothing to me, can you? At the very least, I would like you to sit before the tea goes cold.\" Speaking these words, Echidna offered Subaru the empty seat opposite her. On the white table between the two rested a cup of steaming tea, likely poured for Subaru's benefit. Sit down, drink her tea, speak with her that was what Echidna requested. Nothing would improve even if he refused. Indeed, the odds things would get worse were higher that way. Subaru had virtually no choice but to accept. \"Let me ask you one thing... I was inside a ruin that was completely dark. Where is this, and when did I get teleported here?\" \"Teleport... Ah, you mean that Dark spell. Unfortunately, you have misunderstood. What you experienced was not physical movement through space. I simply invited you into my castle for tea.\" \"Into your castle...for tea...?\" Subaru knitted his brows at Echidna's words, turning his eyes to the hill's surroundings once more. The hill stood at the center of grassland rustled by the wind that seemed to continue infinitely. In all four directions, the world was completely flat with no obstacles to be seen, full of a sense of liberation. It was downright surreal. The fact that this didn't seem like a real place lent weight to Echidna's claim that he hadn't been teleported. \"But there's no castle here. If this is your territory, did some debt collector walk off with everything except two chairs and a table?\" \"Tee-hee-hee. You are amusing. Except for fellow Witches, I cannot even count on my hands the number of those who would speak with such impudence before me. I never thought the number would increase after my own death.\" With a lighthearted laugh, Echidna counted the memories on her fingers, delighted with Subaru's reply. Subaru grimaced. He couldn't simply ignore her demeanor, nor the significance of after my own death. In the first place, he had to consider her self-declared title. When he combined it with the current supernatural circumstance, he had no reason to doubt Echidna's identity or her power. \"Aw, shit! All right, all right already! I'll sit! I'll drink your tea!\" With no way to advance or retreat, Subaru did the only thing he could out of visible despair, sitting across from Echidna and practically snatching the steaming cup from the table, draining its contents all at once. It was neither water, nor green tea, nor black. The drink had a mysterious flavor that wasn't unpleasant. For the first time, Echidna's eyes went wide in apparent surprise at Subaru's disdainful actions. \"To drink something offered by a Witch in one gulp... You are quite a brave soul.\" \"Hah?! Like chickening out at this point is gonna do me any good. For starters, if you wanted to kill me, you'll probably turn me to ash the next instant. No point being on my guard about one cup of tea.\" Subaru waved off the smiling Echidna's words, saying \"Thank you for the drink\" as he put the teacup down. \"It wasn't particularly good- or bad-tasting. What kind of tea is this...?\" \"It is generated from my castle. I suppose you could call it my body fluids.\" \"Damn it, why'd you make me drink that?!\" Subaru leaped from the chair to his feet, then went down onto his knees in what seemed to be an attempt to vomit what he had just imbibed. Echidna giggled and smiled at Subaru's exaggerated reaction. \"You wound me. When I examine my appearance, I do not think I seem quite that evil.\" \"No matter how beautiful the girl, I don't wanna drink anyone's fluids without being ready for it! Wait, I can't drink anything called body fluids, prepared or not!! I'm not a damn pervert!!\" At the very least Subaru didn't think he was inclined toward becoming aroused by secret ingredients like saliva and sweat. \"Shit, can't vomit it out...! Hey, this isn't gonna make me sick, is it?!\" \"You may rest at ease. They are body fluids, after all, and thus readily absorbed by the flesh.\" \"That isn't exactly good news, so quit it with that face!\" Echidna's demeanor came off as proud for some reason, which made Subaru wince. Echidna carried on. \"Putting that aside, you are indeed a mysterious individual. The fact that you can stand unaffected before me like this is proof enough.\" \"What? Are you so beautiful that people normally shut their eyes when they see you? Just to make it clear, my eyes are fed a steady diet of the most beautiful girl around as far as I'm concerned. When I look at you, I can only go 'Wow, she's cute' so many times.\" \"No, a normal person in my presence would vomit. Amusing, isn't it?\" \"What's amusing about that?!\" These exchanges, filled with concerning thoughts since the beginning of their time together, made Subaru feel exhausted in body and spirit as he slumped into his chair. He took another glance at the Witch before his eyes. She had white, seemingly bleached hair, and a black dress that seemed like something a person would wear at a funeral. Somehow, she seemed at once fickle and baby-faced, yet also mysteriously seductive. She certainly possessed a face that stirred the heart. But he felt pressure from her that was wholly undiluted, marking her as no normal being. \"Now then, while I am most pleased to have a fresh conversation partner like this, that is not the case for you, is it? You have things you wish to ask me, yes?\" \"...That, that's right! I got swallowed up by the mood, but that's right. You're... No, before that, where is this place? I should be in some weird ruin. How'd I end up in your castle?\" After the teleportation, Subaru had entered the ruin in search of clues about the Sanctuary. Somehow, he'd blindly stumbled into Echidna's castle the realm of the Witch of Greed. \"In the first place...are you really a Witch? According to what I'd heard, aside from the Witch of Jealousy, every other Witch in the world had been killed...\" \"Whatever doubts you might harbor, you are not mistaken in that assessment. Jealousy destroyed the other six Witches, and I am no exception. This is merely my tomb.\" \"Tomb... You mean I'm inside your grave?\" Echidna's collected reply made Subaru recall the sense he'd had before entering the ruin that the solemn atmosphere was suggestive of a temple, or a tomb. His gut feeling had been right. The ruin was, properly speaking, a tomb. But it was the tomb of a Witch. \"After my death, my soul became a captive of this place, the Witches' Tomb. It is not my body but my spirit that has invited you into my castle. Put one way, you are inside my dream.\" \"Just the spirit, is that even possible? Meaning my body's sleeping outside somewhere?\" \"Why is it not possible? You know of a space similar to this, do you not?\" *** Echidna's probing question caused Subaru's breath to catch, a reaction even he found suspicious. Nothing came to mind. Yet, why was there a strange hesitance in his heart? \"...I don't know what you're referring to, but what you're saying isn't wrong.\" Echidna's words were not lies. However, nor was Subaru's answer any kind of deceit. When told that he was inside a dream, Subaru was both surprised and quick to accept...as if his heart"}, {"text": "alone instantly understood the impression that world gave off. As to why he thought so, he could not find the reason anywhere within his memories, but... \"I get that this is inside a dream and inside of your tomb. So how do I get out of here?\" \"The method of awakening from a dream is simple. You must either strongly will yourself to awaken, or be awoken from the outside. Though it must be said, mine is a special dream. You might not be able to awaken unless I will it to be so.\" \" ! Then don't tell me you...!\" Subaru's gaze sharpened as Echidna's emotionless statement shocked him. The words inside a dream and Witch's castle suddenly weighed heavier in his mind. If Subaru's spirit was a prisoner there, both Subaru's flesh and his soul were in the palm of her hand. \"You don't intend to let me escape, then...?\" \"Ah, it's not really like that. If you really want to go back, I'll send you back. I mean, it's not that I called you here. You intruded all on your own, you know.\" \"Can't you do something about my sense of tension? Mr. Serious can't breathe like this, okay?\" \"That is because, unlike you, Mr. Serious is not standing before me. Perhaps he is vomiting behind a tree?\" Mentally exhausted from Echidna smoothly spewing poison, Subaru was completely thrown off his stride. In the end, he still wondered just why Echidna had made contact with him. Or was it really nothing more than the Witch responding to the arrival of a guest  \"You said you didn't call me. In other words, the elf who was outside isn't involved in this? Or this crystal?\" Subaru rummaged in his pocket, locating the blue crystal with his hand. Since she'd told him he was invited in spirit only, he was worried about what he was carrying, but Subaru had apparently arrived with everything he'd had on him. However, when Echidna received Subaru's question, she put an elbow to the table. \"Unfortunately, though my complexion is in good order, I am quite dead. I know little of the happenings outside of my tomb. Therefore, I am not related either to the elf you speak of or to that blue crystal. Are you satisfied?\" \"I'm unsatisfied 'cause it means everything's still a big mystery. But that's the stuff I wanted to ask.\" Subaru nodded at Echidna's reply, returning the crystal to his pocket as he rose to his feet. He was unsure whether the crystal's teleportation was truly unrelated to the Witch or not, but he had no reason to stay there any longer. Staying and chatting over tea left his primary objective, rendezvousing with Emilia, unaccomplished. \"At any rate, if you're gonna send me back, then send me. I'm super-worried about the girl I got split off from on the outside. If I've got the time to drink your body fluids, I wanna meet back up with her at the earliest second possible.\" \"I do not mind, but are you really fine with that?\" \"With what...?\" \"Leaving my little tea party others wishing to speak with the Witch of Greed rarely have the opportunity, even if you do.\" When she said it, Subaru realized it for the first time. He realized the true nature of the malaise he'd felt from the being called Echidna since arriving in that place the strange oppressive feeling that continued without any hint of gradually abating. *** Echidna's deep, black, bottomless eyes had a suspicious glint to them, as if they knew everything about Subaru. The true nature of that ill feeling was Echidna's inexhaustible curiosity. It was her deep interest in the existence before her eyes that made her scrutinizing gaze feel so oppressive. \"What are you? ...Do you know the things I want to know?\" \"And so you ask me the nature of my knowledge  Truly, you are an amusing one.\" Subaru made his rapidly drying mouth move, wringing out his voice for the question he tossed her way. The words made Echidna giggle and smile, and Subaru's entire body was wrenched by a sense of oppression even greater than before. \"There is no need to reflect deeply upon it. All that is required for questions and answers is for two beings to be present.\" That instant, the air warped, and the landscape the vast, blue sky and the grassland suddenly began to fall apart. The sky cracked, the grassland melted, and the horizon of the world was smashed into tiny pieces. As the world crumbled without a sound, Subaru touched the table, seemingly clinging to the one certain thing left. The table, too, crumbled into dust, and Subaru closed his eyes, seemingly girding himself against a nonexistent tremor. \"All we need are words. Your curiosity, your hunger to know I acknowledge your greed.\" Then he realized it: All that remained of the castle of dreams was the hill, and chairs for the two of them. Subaru gingerly opened his eyes and sat in the opposite chair as he gazed at the Witch. Aside from her and the white chair, the world had been stripped down to its barest essentials, with nothing but gloomy, stagnant darkness spread over where the grassland had been. The one thing he was certain of was if he fell into it, there would be no coming back. That sent a chill running up Subaru's spine as Echidna, in high spirits, joyfully clapped her hands toward him. \"Now, what do you wish to ask about? Daphne, the Witch of Gluttony, creator of beasts in defiance of the will of Heaven to save the world from starvation? Camilla, the Witch of Lust, filled with love for the world, granter of emotions to they that are inhuman? Minerva, the Witch of Wrath, who, lamenting a world filled with conflict, sets people straight through her fists? Sekhmet, the Witch of Sloth, who, wanting a moment's peace, drove the dragons beyond the Great Waterfalls for that reason alone? Or Typhon, the Witch of Pride, the young, innocent, merciless one who continued to render judgment onto sinners?\" He'd never heard of these no, these were lost vestiges of history unrecorded in the present world. Hearing her speak the name of one Witch after another, Subaru was speechless. Echidna smiled all the more as she continued. \"Or perhaps Echidna, the Witch of Greed, the embodiment of craving for knowledge, whose search for any and all wisdom lingers even after unto the afterlife?\" Touching a hand to her own breast, Echidna said the words in a self-depreciating fashion. \"Or perhaps,\" she continued, \"the Witch of Jealousy, the abominable woman who destroyed and consumed the other six, and made the whole world her enemy?\" 6 Subaru Natsuki felt a powerful aura of death in the form of the girl seated before his eyes. That was the desolate insight Subaru had gained about Echidna, proven by her own witchy ways. She was a being nothing like him. It had nothing whatsoever to do with her enmity, or lack thereof. In the face of truly inescapable terror, it was easy for a person's emotional responses to go on lockdown. \"Awww. It seems I have intimidated you too greatly. It has always been thus; my lips grow too loose when I become interested in something. A Witch's nature is truly a troublesome thing.\" With Subaru cowed into silence, Echidna remained seated as she voiced words of self-reflection. However, there was not a single trace of actual reflection. The wall separating the two remained absolute. The true nature of the malaise he'd subconsciously ignored until he realized its presence was laid bare a second time. \"Knowing that makes me feel rather lonely. But you should begin to adjust to it soon. I hope that this circumstance, where you cannot even look directly at my face, changes somewhat...\" Echidna's bizarre statement made Subaru grimace; the fear he tasted froze him stiff. But Echidna tilted her head, the black eyes she trained upon the uncomprehending Subaru indicating anticipation of some kind. Her white, bleached, beautiful hair fell down onto her shoulders. As Subaru gazed at it, he felt as if the agonizing seconds would extend for all eternity but this came to a sudden halt. \"Haaa ah?\" \"Mm, faster than I thought. That is a compatible person for you. It is helpful that you acclimated so quickly.\" \"What...are you...talking about?\" As Echidna nodded and smiled in satisfaction, Subaru broke out in a cold sweat and restrained his chest with a hand. His heart was loud, as if it had forgotten how to beat for a while, and his painfully numb limbs pleaded for mercy. However, he had escaped the fear that had held him in its grip until a moment before. It had vanished like magic. \"You drank my tea, yes? That activated your Witch Factor and strengthened your resistance. Now you and I can speak. My, my, a very good thing for both of us, is it not?\" \"Wait, wait, wait... I've heard that term before... I can't just let it go. What did those body fluids from before do? What did you to do my body?\" \"Please do not misunderstand... I did not have you drink it with ill intent. If anything, I think rather fondly of you... That is a little embarrassing to say out loud.\" Echidna's cheeks reddened a bit, and she looked shy at having spoken so affectionately of him. But at that point Subaru was well past reacting to her games. What he wanted was her true intent. \"You have killed someone possessing Witch Factor in the last several days, yes? Upon his death, the Witch Factor selected you as its new bearer. It is thanks to this that you were able to safely enter my tomb.\" \"So you're saying...the Witch Factor is the condition for being invited into this castle of dreams?\" \"No, it is merely what qualified you to enter the tomb itself. You are an exception among exceptions. To begin with, you seem to have leaped quite a bit ahead of schedule by rights, you should be aware of far more than you are...about me, about the tomb, and about the Sanctuary.\" \" ! You know about the Sanctuary?!\" Pouncing on the term lobbed his way, Subaru closed the distance and grasped Echidna's shoulders. When Subaru touched her slender shoulders and drew his face near, the beautiful Witch averted her gaze. \"...I have little experience in such matters, so I cannot decide if you are brave or simply brazen.\" \"Don't make light of this! If you know about the Sanctuary, that makes this simple! Is this...no, do you know about the forest outside of the ruin? Should I think of that as the Sanctuary?\" \"You're so cold. But you asked, so I shall answer: It is so. As you hoped, the area outside the ruin is the Sanctuary. Properly speaking, the Sanctuary is the name given to the place that protects this tomb.\" \"Then...!\" If he got out of the castle of dreams, raced out of the ruin, and cut through the forest, he could rendezvous with Emilia and the others. Even if he didn't meet Emilia, he ought to be able to meet those dwelling in the Sanctuary and get out of his predicament. All that meant the elf who'd led him there was indeed a resident of the Sanctuary. \"All of a sudden, I wanna go outside even more. You said you'd send me there, right?\" \"Eh? Ahh, I guarantee it... I guarantee it, but I would be very lonely if you simply rushed off like that. Um, is there nothing else you wish to ask me?\" \"Sorry, but Emilia should be outside. I wanna link up with her more than I wanna talk with you. Besides...\" Echidna furled her brows in dismay, her words causing Subaru to scratch the tip of his nose as he carried on. \"You don't know about things on the outside, right? It's tough saying this after all that"}, {"text": "sound and fury, but to be honest, there's not really anything I want to ask you...\" \"...Eh? You're kidding, right? That cannot be. I mean, I am the Witch of Greed, you know? People all over the world seek me to grasp at my knowledge: knights, people of privilege. You sit before me, permitted to ask anything to wish, and you say that?\" Taken back as she was by the unexpected reply, Echidna's expression distinctly faltered for the first time. The Witch flailed about as she exhausted all the words she could to prevent Subaru from leaving. \"Calm down, let us speak. Certainly, I am ill versed regarding the present era. But in turn, I possess vast knowledge about the older era, to the point I can boast there is nothing I do not know about it. I possess historical truth no one remembers, undiminished after four centuries...and you possess an opportunity to gain that knowledge.\" \"But I'm not all that interested in Witches. Even if we talk about them, they're all dead, and there's a lot of other things besides that I need to think about...\" \"Ehhh...!\" As he made his farewells in earnest, the unsatisfied Echidna's eyes grew tearful. Their positions had been completely reversed, with Subaru shrugging off the Witch who had felt so oppressive before. The image of the Witch of Greed had thus been ruined. Without malice, it seemed she was just an ordinary girl. Certainly, there was no lack of information he wanted to know. He'd like to know about the Witch Factor she'd spoken of, or the Sanctuary there to protect her tomb. Or perhaps, perhaps, perhaps  \"For example, that. Do you know details about the Witch Cult's Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins?\" \"Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins? Hmm, unfortunately, I do not know the term. Could you tell me about them in more detail?\" \"Our positions really are reversed, sheesh... Well, if you don't know, that's fine.\" A smile came over Subaru at the sight of Echidna being thrown off it hid the pain in his chest. \"Yeah, it's fine.\" He'd hoped. But those hopes had been easily dashed. So there was no point staying there any longer. If she knew nothing of the archbishops, she knew nothing of their Authorities, the damage they did, or ways to repair it.  Meaning she didn't know how he could save Rem. \"Can you send me out already? I'll come chat with you over tea another time, okay?\" \"Is that really a promise you can easily make with a dead person, and a Witch at that...?\" With Subaru in a hurry to make his escape, his words made Echidna sigh, all poison seemingly drawn out of her. Then, in a resigned fashion, she waved an arm, and Subaru felt wind behind him. When he looked back, a single door had appeared in the world of bottomless darkness and a broken sky. \"Pass through that door, and you shall awaken outside. Goodness, I have never had a tea party such as this.\" \"Sorry for not indulging in your hospitality. Incidentally, about this ruin... Can I ask, when I leave the tomb, where should I go to head toward the residents of the Sanctuary?\" \"I told you before. I know little about the outside. Quite naturally, I do not know the location of the settlement, either.\" \"Man, for a calm, collected know-it-all character, you really come up short...\" He meant to needle her, but Subaru's shoulders sank at how Echidna amply puffed out her quite average breasts. After that, he raised a hand toward her in lieu of words of departure, thus announcing he was taking his leave. Though he had been fiercely on guard at the beginning, it was a surprisingly gentle way to end a tea party with a Wit  \" Now then, since you are heading back from a tea party with a Witch, it is about time I take the compensation due.\" Most improperly, it was a demand tossed toward him at the very, very end. Subaru, feeling horror as the echo of her words terribly clawed at his spirit, turned his head alone toward her. Echidna, the Witch, said not in malice, but with nothing more than a quiet, gentle smile  \"...It bears mentioning that I'm a pauper up there with the best of 'em. A Witch's compensation is not paid in coin. What I seek from you is a pact. My terms are that you are forbidden from speaking to others about what took place at this tea party. You are bound by a similar pact, so it is a simple matter for you, is it not?\" \"A similar pact...\" What Echidna described facts known to him that he was forbidden to divulge to others it was almost as if she was talking about Return by Death. \"The invitation to the tea party, the Witch Factor taking root... Considering my good fortune in getting to know someone deeply interesting such as yourself, I too have gained greatly. That's right, I shall grant you one final souvenir...\" Stroking her white hair, Echidna stood up and stretched a pale finger toward Subaru's chest. For some reason, Subaru found himself gazing at her slow movement, unable to budge an inch. To a bizarre extent, he could neither reject nor rebuff the finger that seemed to glide toward him. \"I grant thee the qualification to challenge the trial of this Sanctuary.\" \"The trial of...the Sanctuary?\" \"Even if you do not understand now, you will realize the value this place holds. I wonder what emotions you will bear toward me when that time comes... I very much look forward to finding out.\" Pulling back the finger touching his chest, Echidna gently licked its tip. The gesture was seductive enough to give Subaru a chill, reconfirming in his mind her witchy nature. However amiable her behavior toward him, however teenage her smiling face, what was before his eyes was  \"You really are a Witch, huh?\" \"Yes, it is so. I am a very bad magic user, you see?\" Along with those words, Echidna used that finger to give Subaru's forehead a very light nudge. Subaru seemed to fall back, tumbling downward; the next moment, the open door swallowed him whole. *** He fell into the darkness. Then the darkness vanished within the light. Cast out of the dream, the being called Subaru Natsuki floated upward and outside, his consciousness awakened. 7 The instant Subaru awoke, the first thing he felt was a hard sensation against his cheek. \"...aa, uu...\" Moaning with a half-asleep voice, Subaru became aware that he was lying prone. He blinked several times, and reality poured into his vision, awakening him over the course of several seconds. Pressing his arms to the ground, he slowly lifted himself up  \"This, is... errr...?\" He brushed off the dirt on his cheek with his fingers and squinted into the darkness. When he looked, Subaru saw that he had fallen inside an old ruin to be precise, several tens of meters into the corridor leading into it. To his back was the entrance to the tomb, and it was from there that light entered into his eyes. Thanks to that, his escape route was plain to see, but it made for a pretty crummy ruin exploration. \"Anyway, I'd better get out and hook back up with Emilia and Otto...\" Shaking his heavy head, he placed a hand against the wall, wobbly as he rose to his feet. He had no business inside the ruin. The Sanctuary lay outside. Having gone astray, he needed to be outside to rendezvous with Emilia. He couldn't quite put his finger on why he was so certain of that, but  \"I feel like, someone said that to me...\" \"Yo. Ya sure got some guts, comin' straight out from a place like that, outsider.\" \"Ah...?\" As he exited the ruin with fragmented thoughts, a voice called out to him the instant his eyes narrowed from the light. His vision, accustomed to the dark, was hazy. As it gradually adjusted, Subaru found himself looking down at the surrounding landscape from the modestly elevated ruin. In front of the ruin was a single dragon carriage, and a young male driver with a most pitiable look on his face. \"M-Mr. Natsuki...\" \"Otto? What are you doing in a place like... No, before that, where's Emilia?!\" \"Inside the dragon carriage! I-it has been most terrible since that moment! I-I...!!\" When Subaru raised his voice at the unexpected reunion, Otto shouted back even louder. But thanks to that, Subaru was able to confirm Emilia's presence, and this made his shoulders sink in relief. Otto was pleading about something, but that concern could wait. The immediate problem was  \"Hey, forget the whiny guy. I come first here, damn it!\" The individual standing right beside the dragon carriage spoke to Subaru with a voice that issued seemingly through clenched teeth. Turning his face toward the speaker, Subaru shrugged. \"What a coincidence. I was just thinking the same thing.\" \"Hah! That's 'ganglion before you think' for ya!\" \"Gangl... Ah?\" As Subaru knotted his brows at the mystery phrase mixed in with the reply, the other party took a step forward. With a coarse manner of speech and a hostile glint in his eyes, the speaker's external appearance in no way betrayed Subaru's first, ferocious impression of him. He had short, combed-back blond hair and a highly visible white scar on his forehead. There was ferocity in his sharp green eyes, and he was dressed in crude clothing Subaru could only call that of a country bumpkin. For a man, he was fairly short, especially in a stooped posture, but the dense, ghastly aura coursing from his entire body made certain others would not underestimate him due to his small stature. More than any of those things, the individual had one external feature that set him apart. And that was  \"Hey, are ya shakin'? Well, yer luck definitely ran out. Here ya are in a place ya shouldn't be, and now I caught ya!\" As the man spoke, his eyes narrowed, and he laughed with a mouth full of sharp, extremely distinctive fangs. Subaru had d\u00c3\u00a9j\u00c3 vu. He'd seen a smiling face just like that extremely recently. \"Well, if yer gonna curse yer bad luck, do like 'Bazomazo swept away right and left'!\" \"Wait! Hey, you, listen to us bef \" \"'Tear and tear but Kalran's skin's still blue'... I ain't listenin'!\" Lending no ear to the voice urging him to stop, the fanged man stepped forward; the next instant, he vanished from sight. An impact made Subaru's breath catch. Before he realized it, he had been caught by his collar. When he turned his head to the side in surprise, the man's ferocious glare was right beside him, close enough to share a breath and his own feet were rising into the air. \"Oowaa !!\" His view of the world was flipped upside down as he was hit by a powerful sense of floating, from which he understood that he had been hurled. Subaru proceeded to soar toward the dragon carriage in a powerful straight line. If he was to collide with it, he would suffer injury, be it light or heavy, but  \"You're kidding ?!\" \"Da, huu !\" The voice of utter shock was not that of Subaru, but that of Otto as he watched through the fingers of the hands with which he covered his own face. With no way to stop it, Subaru thought he'd collide with the dragon carriage, breaking every bone in his body. But, by seemingly miraculous coincidence no, it was an inevitable reaction that rescued him from peril  \"Patlash is simply too incredible!\" The pitch-black land dragon neighed proudly as Otto's voice praised her exploits. It was none other than Patlash's benevolent decision that had saved Subaru from crashing into the dragon carriage. The land dragon had adeptly set the dragon carriage in motion on her own, thus ensuring that Subaru crashed into the door of"}, {"text": "the carriage proper. As a result, Subaru punched through the carriage door, sailing in only to have a seat bring him safely to a halt. \"Shit. That one was a little too... Hey, Patlash, wait!\" Tumbling out of the seat, Subaru looked out of the carriage to see the land dragon roaring and charging the man. With a twist of her body, Patlash had unhitched herself from the dragon carriage, seemingly consumed with rage toward the man who had injured Subaru, baring her fangs to bring them to his neck. \"Ha! That decision gave me chills. Yer a good land dragon...nah, a good woman.\" However, the land dragon's biting attack missed its mark, and the left arm the man thrust out stopped her in her tracks. Even so, Patlash put strength into her jaw, moving her head as if to bite the man's arm off. But that head, and that jaw, stopped cold, her power inferior to the man's simple brawn. \"I won't hurt ya. Just put ya to sleep a bit.\" As the land dragon's pupils contracted in fright, the man proudly made that statement. Then, with the land dragon still biting his arm, he tucked a hand under her broad head and hurled her huge body. With a softness that belied the heroic image, he tossed down her large frame, quietly rendering the land dragon powerless. \"He threw Patlash...?!\" \"H-his skill is no joke... Eh?!\" Subaru and Otto doubted their own eyes as the man before the pair leaped very high, onto the driver's seat of the dragon carriage. With the assailant so close, Otto adopted a combative pose in great haste. \"D-do not underestimate me! I may not look it, but I too am a merchant! I have ways to deal with midjourney violence! Fear the power of Suwen School violence repulsion ar dahuu!\" \"Shut up, amateur. Thanks to your land dragon, I'll settle for half killin' ya. Go to sleep.\" Otto was in a worked-up pose, but fainted in anguish as soon as the man flicked his forehead with a finger. It was less of a finger strike than a forehead poke, but its might was such that Otto went down in the blink of an eye without so much as a groan. Now that he was past Patlash and now Otto, no obstacles remained between him and the dragon carriage. \" Ugh!\" Biting his lip, Subaru looked back inside the dragon carriage. Where one section of seating had been removed in favor of the simplified bed used to carry Rem, right then a different girl Emilia slept upon it. Otto must have laid her there after Subaru teleported. Even now, Emilia had yet to return to consciousness. Subaru had to protect her no matter what it took. \"Thank yer land dragon for fightin' so hard. I'll half kill ya and toss ya outside the forest. After I make ya swear that ya won't tell anyone else about this place, ya hear me?!\" Just as Subaru hardened his resolve, the man bared his fangs and boarded the carriage. The sharp glint of his fangs at the tip of his upward swinging arm cleanly robbed his declaration about half-killing of all its persuasiveness. Before the man's wicked deeds, Subaru raised both arms wide to shield Emilia and shouted. \"Wait! You're Frederica's... You're involved with Roswaal and his people, right?!\" \" ! Huhhh?\" With a loud voice and a scowl on his face, the man stopped his blow right before it connected with the tip of Subaru's nose. From there, the man gazed at Subaru for a while, surprise and anger residing in his eyes in equal measure. \"...What the hell is that name doin' comin' outta your mouth?\" \"Hmm, I wonder why? Think about it nice and hard.\" \"Already did. I dunno. I'll think about it more after I smash your face in!\" \"Cut it out with that nasty way of thinking!! We're with Roswaal, geez!!\" When his opponent took a step toward him in earnest, Subaru hastily raised both hands high and pleaded his case. His words made the man's sharp fangs audibly clench. After thinking it over for a while, he said: \"Aah? Wait, you're sayin' the one sleepin' is that Lady Emilia chick?\" \"You know...Emilia's name?\" This time, it was Subaru's turn to be surprised, because the man had referred to the sleeping Emilia as Lady. His reaction made the man cross his arms, nodding with a smug face as he answered. \"Oh yeah, heard all 'bout her. The silver-haired half-demon that bastard Roswaal's taken in, right?\" \"She's a half-elf. Don't call her that in front of her ever again.\" \"Hah! Well lookie here, guess you can put some backbone into your voice.\" The man gave Subaru a sharp, scornful gaze before making a sound through his fangs and turning his back. Then, when he left the dragon carriage, Subaru suddenly rushed over, gripping the door and forcing it closed. The man's shoulders jumped at Subaru's violent action. He shrugged, looking back. \"Relax already. I ain't worked up no more. I don't wanna have Ram yellin' at me.\" \"I really relate to how you feel about that, but...that doesn't answer my first question, you know?\" \"Ahh?\" Though the man spread both arms wide, asserting that he had no intention of fighting, Subaru did not lower his guard. Such behavior made the man sink into thought briefly, finally making an ahhh noise and nodding as if he finally understood before he spoke. \" Me, I'm Garfiel. Haven't you heard of me?\" \"So you're Garfiel...!\" Garfiel was the name of the individual he'd been told over and over again to be wary of back at the mansion. Subaru's brow furled at the gobsmacking development of having encountered the man himself so soon. His reaction made Garfiel click his tongue, then stare intently at Subaru. \"I've got somethin' to ask you, then. How'd you know I'm related to Frederica?\" \"...You're...seriously asking me that?\" When Subaru batted the question back, Garfiel audibly bared his fangs in visible displeasure. Taking his silence as a yes, Subaru felt energy draining from him as he scratched his face and replied. \"Anyone could tell just by looking at your face, sheesh.\" The shape of his fang-filled face was undoubtable proof that he was related to Frederica by blood. CHAPTER 3 *** 1 \"I have been thoroughly molested. Where, exactly, should I direct my anger?!\" \"Oh, shut up, coachman. It's just a little bump, so whatever. I apologized, right?\" \"When did you apologize? Surely, you cannot mean your earlier statement of 'Sorry for smackin' ya, I got ahead o' myself'? That was more abuse, not an apology. Am I wrong?\" With the dragon carriage resuming its trot, Otto stubbornly vented at Garfiel from the driver's seat. Perhaps Otto's change in demeanor after having undergone such a painful experience so recently revealed he was surprisingly tough. Though Subaru was deeply impressed, Otto disregarded this as he gazed up at the heavens and lamented. \"There was a flash of light inside the dragon carriage, and Lady Emilia collapsed, with Mr. Natsuki nowhere to be found! Do you understand how terrible I felt when I was at the end of my wits?! And then to be captured by a man dressed like a brigand!\" \"I'm really sorry about that. You were a huge help. Emilia's safe thanks to you. I'm really thankful.\" \"R-right... Ah, well, if you feel properly thankful, all is well, really...\" \"Super easy to please, wow...\" With Otto telling his tale of woe from right after they were separated, Subaru spoke respect infused with pure thankfulness. In point of fact, it wasn't hard at all to imagine Otto's panic at being attacked. That he had protected Emilia afterward, keeping her safe pending Subaru's meeting up with them again, had earned Subaru's thanks and enormous gratitude. \"Waaait, what's this brigand thing, you don't mean me, do ya?\" \"Whom else could I be referring to?! You forced the dragon carriage to a stop, bullied me with your claws, and forced us to proceed with you until we reached Mr. Natsuki...\" \"Right, I was wondering about that. How the heck did you end up where I was?\" Considering how he had been teleported via the power of the crystal, Subaru had assumed it was difficult to discern where he was located. Subaru didn't remember sending up any smoke signals, so how had they met up with him at the ruin? Subaru's question made Garfiel, riding in the dragon carriage with them, rub his own nose with a finger. \"Me, I just caught the scent of an outsider. Didn't think you'd snuck in all the way to the tomb, though. I'm tellin' ya, I was pretty nervous.\" \" My scent, you reached me following your nose? A special scent?\" Subaru lowered his voice a little, unable to let the remark slip by. Subaru had a special scent wafting around him the strange physical condition that had been pegged as the lingering scent of the Witch. Rem and the Witch Cultists had been able to sense it, so if Garfiel could sense it as well... However, Subaru's suspicions were belied by Garfiel's shaking his head and the words that followed. \"It ain't good or bad. The scent comin' from ya is just plain normal. I found ya 'cause it ain't a scent I've smelled before, that's all. It's like, 'Sometimes, even Meimei is busy.'\" \"...Sorry, I think there's a bug in the translation between you and me from time to time.\" Subaru tilted his head as the enigmatic phrase flew right over it, his nose crinkling as he wondered just what Garfiel was saying. There'd always been words that didn't mesh well from both sides, but he felt like he'd suddenly hit the limits of otherworldly translation. Either way, Garfiel's nose apparently had not caught what Subaru suspected. That being the case, his next question would have concerned either the ruin or the teleportation but then something changed inside the carriage. \" a, huu \" With a faint exhalation, the girl sleeping on the simplified bed awoke. \"Ah...Emilia!\" Emilia sat up in bed, velvet eyes blinking. Subaru hastened to her side and took her hand, as if to check Emilia's body temperature to make sure she was real. \"I'm glad you're all right. Man, you really had me going for a while there...\" \"Su...baru...? Er...\" Emilia looked up at the relieved Subaru, looking like she had no idea what had happened. But when she looked around the interior of the dragon carriage, she noticed the presence of an unfamiliar man and leaped to her feet. Then she stood opposite Garfiel, shielding Subaru behind her. \" Who?! I'll say this once, you won't lay a single finger on Subaru!\" \"Wait, wait, Emilia-tan! I'm happy, but it's really complicated, everything's all right, so just...!\" \"Hah, quite some lip for someone who was sleepin' all this time. Interestin'...!\" \"Hey, don't you get all worked up, too! Calm down! Let's talk this through!\" Emilia, taking an unusually aggressive, worked-up stance, triggered Garfiel's combative spirit in turn. Subaru wedged himself between them, grasping Emilia's shoulders. \"Please, Emilia-tan, just relax. Some stuff happened while you were asleep, but it's been worked out already. He's Garfiel. You get it now, right?\" \"Garfiel... Wait, you mean the one Frederica talked about?\" Blinking several times over at the name, Emilia looked at Garfiel. When she did so, he puffed out his chest and answered. \"Yeah, that's me Garfiel. The world's strongest man.\" \"Right, right, the world's strongest... Huh? What did you say just now? You said world's strongest? With a straight face?\" \"I said it, yeah. What's so strange about that...?\" He meant it as an explanation to Emilia, but the unexpectedly grandiose statement surprised even Subaru. Garfiel crinkled his nose, seemingly offended by their reactions. \"You've heard my name, so you heard about all that from Roswaal, right...?\" \"I heard your name with the nuance that you were a powerful person, but...that didn't mean physical power, did it...?\" If it"}, {"text": "meant martial might, the term powerful was being used in an unusual way. But, given the present circumstances, the chances of that seemed rather high, and they still had no certain proof he was an ally. Subaru had never thought Frederica's telling them to be wary of him would come to fruition like that. \"I'll ask this again, but you're Garfiel who lives in the Sanctuary. You've got a relationship to Roswaal, and right now Ram and the people from Earlham Village are here, too. We can believe you on that?\" \"You're free to doubt me, but either way, you've crossed the barrier. It's not like you can turn back now, right?\" \"Eh? We crossed the barrier? Since when?\" Emilia's eyes widened in shock at the surreal fact. Incidentally, Subaru was just as surprised as she was. \"Hey, hey,\" said Garfiel toward them, and continued his words: \"Gimme a break. In the first place, didn't you fall asleep when you got close to the barrier?\" \"I slept because of the barrier...? Now that you mention it, the crystal got bright then, too...\" \"The timing was the same. Meaning they were both reactions to the barrier!\" Subaru snapped his fingers. The crystal's radiating light inside the dragon carriage matched up with the facts. Subaru got the crystal out of his pocket and rolled it on his palm; Emilia nodded deeply as well. Then  \" ? What is it, Garfiel?\" Hearing Emilia pose the question all of a sudden, Subaru followed suit, lifting his face. When he did, he followed her gaze to find Garfiel staring at the crystal with a conflicted look on his face. He looked like the blue glow made him recall some kind of painful memory. \"Something about this? You probably went through some scary stuff on account of this rock. Besides, I'm kinda wondering why the barrier that made Emilia-tan collapse didn't do anything to Otto or me.\" \"The rock's nothin' to me. And of course the barrier reacted to Lady Emilia. The barrier's a test that reacts to dirty blood.\" *** \"Hey, Garfiel. What's this business about dirty blood?\" Garfiel's statement sent pain running across Emilia's cheeks. Angry at that fact, Subaru probed to determine the true meaning behind Garfiel's words. \"Don't make me repeat myself. She's a half-elf. Get it into your...\" \"Hah, don't get bent out of shape about it. I'm not tryin' to single out Lady Emilia by sayin' it. Dirty blood don't mean just half-elves. It applies to me, the others... She ain't no exception... She's mixed, just like we are.\" \"Mixed...mixed blood, you mean?\" Without a word, Garfiel indicated yes to Emilia's question. Receiving his answer, Subaru realized just why he'd heard the Sanctuary was special beforehand and what was meant by \"particular\" demi-humans. \"In other words, the Sanctuary is where demi-human people with mixed blood live...\" \"Correct... Gotta say, though, you came to the Sanctuary without Frederica even tellin' you that much...?\" \"She kept saying she couldn't tell us the details. Within what she could say, she kept saying to watch out, but...because of some vow, she couldn't say much more than your name.\" \"Vow this, vow that... Huh? Ha, excuses from head to toe. Just like her master, huh?\" Clicking his tongue, Garfiel gave an answer that was closer to a cursing than an expression of malice. There was no doubting he was related by blood to Frederica, but it was no atmosphere for asking anything him about it. Maybe Frederica refused to speak of him because  \"You don't really get along well with Frederica?\" \"Emilia-tan?!\" \"If you're gonna ask if we get along well or not, we don't. Besides, everythin' from here on don't concern her. Everythin' from here is about us, and you people who came through the barrier, nothin' else.\" Emilia's straight-to-the-point question took Subaru by surprise, but Garfiel replied in a surprisingly calm fashion, sinking his hips deeper into his seat as he indicated the outside of the dragon carriage with his chin. Subaru understood what his gesture meant: They would soon arrive at their destination, the Sanctuary. \"We welcome you, Lady Emilia and her two servants.\" The words of welcome had a title of respect attached, but there was not a shred of respect or warmth in them. Having spoken them, Garfiel replied to Subaru's and Emilia's suspicious gazes with an audible clenching of his fangs. With that, he spread his arms very wide, indicating the entire area. \"For whatever reason, Roswaal calls this the Sanctuary, but...it ain't a place suited for pretty-sounding words like that. It's a place where rejects gather and live together, a dead-end laboratory.\" \"Laboratory...?\" \"Rejects.\" Subaru and Emilia knit their brows as different words tugged at their respective minds. For his part, Garfiel laughed, not concealing his mouth like Frederica did. \"As for me, I think it's more accurate to call it the tomb of the Witch of Greed!\" \"The Witch of Greed?!\" As Garfiel continued, Subaru tilted his head at the never-before-heard statement; in his stead, it was Otto, overhearing the discussion inside the dragon carriage, who had an exaggerated reaction. In a fierce panic, Otto peered into the carriage from the driver's seat and said, \"Um, ah, er, excuse me... You don't mean to say this is genuinely related to the Witch of Greed, yes...?\" \"Wait, wait, WAIT! 'Cause you got super surprised I'm reacting late, but what's the Witch of Greed to begin with? When people say Witch, they mean the Witch of Jealousy, right...?\" The Witch of Jealousy had plunged the world into the lowest depths of terror; even in the present, she was feared as the most awful of calamities. Subaru knew only of the Witch bearing the title of Jealousy. He'd never heard of any others. Despite that, the term beyond his expectations sailed overhead, bringing the worst of possibilities rushing to the forefront of his mind. \"Don't tell me the Witch Cult has one Witch for each of them? Seven Witches, so seven archbishops in total?! How hard do you think it was defeating even one of them?!\" Subaru exclaimed. \"Having to defeat all of them would be an especially harrowing prospect, but there is fortunately no concern about that. It is just that for a Witch besides Jealousy to become an issue is a very, very great problem in itself...\" Subaru was relieved to have his worst imagination rebutted, but Otto's concern had not been wiped away. Subaru found himself suspicious when Emilia, sitting beside him, took up where Otto had left off. \"Well, you see, a reeeally long time ago, and this would be four hundred years ago...there were six Witches other than the Witch of Jealousy. But the Witch of Jealousy killed them all, supposedly...\" \"Seems like she ate 'em. Matter of fact, there ain't much for records left of the Witches the Witch of Jealousy killed. But there's exceptions to that.\" \"So you're saying this is one exception? There's something odd about the names of other Witches?\" With Garfiel bolstering Emilia's words, Subaru pulled what was left of his question back toward Otto, who sighed as he continued, seeming to detest even speaking the words. \"It is not a topic I enjoy speaking of, but it concerns the traits of Witch Cultists. As you already know, they are adherents of the Witch of Jealousy, but...they do not acknowledge the existence of other Witches. Even merely hearing the name of one is enough to drive them into terrible rampages.\" \"That's awfully oversensitive...\" \"In the Volakia Empire to the south, rumors spread of the name of a Witch besides the Witch of Jealousy. A metia supposedly related to the Witch emerged, but there is no telling whether it was true or false.\" The empire to the south, and the Witch Cult those two elements coalesced in Subaru's memory. He remembered a story Julius had relayed to him while they were traveling together at the height of the campaign to subdue Petelgeuse. \"You mean the story that a single Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins wiped out a city?\" \"That is the one. Perhaps the rumor of a metia was fact, or perhaps it was merely a convenient scapegoat after the fact... Either way, the cost was the downfall of an entire city. Speaking about Witches has been strictly prohibited everywhere since.\" With Otto concluding his harrowing tale, Subaru nodded in sympathy. Subaru hated the Witch Cult and everything surrounding it, but the current conversation had added one more reason to hate it. \"Isn't it dangerous to spread around scary trivia like that?\" \"It's not like it's gonna leak outside. But the old hag says it's the tomb of the Witch of Greed, so there ain't no mistake. It's just like, 'Peromio festered from the point he heard it.'\" \"Not that I'm really interested in what was festering, but I take it you don't know the fine details?\" \"If you wanna know details, pry 'em outta Roswaal  At the moment, I ain't sure you even could, though.\" \" ? What do you mean by that? Has something happened to Roswa \" \"I'm sorry. We seem to have arrived at the vill is this a village? The settlement. Shall we enter?\" Emilia probed deeper to discern Garfiel's meaning, but before she could get anywhere, Otto announced from the driver's seat that they had arrived at their destination. His words made her look outside, whereupon she said... \"So this is the Sanctuary...\" Emilia's whisper-like tone made Subaru let out a similar breath as he narrowed his eyes. There, after taking so long to cut through deep forest, was cleared space, with a lonely settlement lying within. When it was compared to the image given by the name Sanctuary, it was impossible to wipe away the impression of an undignified, dirt-poor habitation. Stone towers at the settlement's entrance lay fallen and mossed over. They could see stonework pillars in the distance, all of great age, covered in moss and vines so far as they could tell. The impression was much like that given off by the ruin, but the settlement gave off a fragment of that only, something Subaru could only call... \"Feels like a pretty run-down place...\" \"Just to say it, the people are pretty run-down, too, okay? They're all wrinkled hags and old men. It's got that 'Man or Kegelmo, we all grow old' feel to it.\" \"That's the first time I understand what one of your sayings means, but man, you aren't pulling any punches.\" Garfiel's words about the settlement he himself lived in were absolutely merciless. Some people liked to talk poorly of their homelands out of modesty, but Subaru didn't sense a shred of that from his voice. It seemed to be a fact that he was alienated from this place, the Sanctuary. Either way  \"Let's keep going until we find a good spot to park the dragon carriage...\" \"I see you're back, Garf. You certainly took your sweet time.\" \"Yeah.\" Putting everyone's impressions of the Sanctuary on the back burner, they made the dragon carriage run to the center of the settlement, where Subaru was surprised to hear a familiar voice. It was tossed their way from the center of the settlement, right along the route the dragon carriage was following. There, a lone girl revealed herself, her demeanor cool as she stood tall. The sight of the girl made Garfiel dash right out of the dragon carriage; he leaped down, waving a hand with a smile. \"Yo. Pretty rare for you to come out and welcome me back like this. Did the bastard finally kick the bucket?\" \"If that were the case, Ram would be turning this entire place into a sea of flames. You should be most grateful to Master Roswaal that it is not so.\" \"I don't know what ya mean, but geez, that's some thinkin'!\" Garfiel approached her, seeming very amused by the abuse from the girl in the familiar-looking servant's outfit. As he watched from a distance, Subaru's lips"}, {"text": "slackened in visible relief. \"Hmmm, so that is the older sister of the girl whom you were speaking of. I see... It is quite obvious, but she looks just like the sleeping Miss Rem, yes.\" Otto, laying eyes upon the girl for the first time, was deeply moved as he murmured. Just as he'd said, in appearance she and Rem were two peas in a pod, but the individuals on the inside were completely different. Subaru was reuniting with Ram, the nonworking servant of Roswaal Manor, after several days of separation. \"Ram!\" Ram noticed Subaru leaning out of the dragon carriage and waving toward her. Her pink eyes narrowed slightly, followed by an easy-to-understand sinking of her shoulders. \"I know not where you were, Barusu, but I am disappointed at your late arrival. If only you had noticed something was wrong and come running... Ah, I was a fool to expect such a thing.\" \"If you don't know where I've been, then follow that part to the end, damn it! Also, this goes mainly for Roswaal, but it's hard to figure out what you people are up to. Also, I need to talk to the man himself face-to-face!\" When Subaru rebutted, Ram replied with a \"Ha!\" that was the same as it had ever been. From there, her gaze turned toward Emilia, who was right at Subaru's side. \"Lady Emilia, I bid you a warm welcome. As Master Roswaal is awaiting you within, I shall escort you to him. Garf, please guide the dragon carriage and coachman to a suitable place.\" \"Man, you're rough with people! That's fine, though. Hey, driver bastard. Come with me, I'll show ya in.\" \"Do you mean me by that?! That is the worst thing you have called me to date, you know!\" Even though he'd introduced himself by name, it was \"driver bastard\" now. On top of that, the prospect of being all alone with Garfiel made Otto look toward Subaru and Emilia in search of salvation. Subaru responded to his clingy gaze with a deep, knowing nod. \"I'll bury your bones later!\" \"Those are not words ever used with a good connotation, are they?!\" Leaving that lament behind, Otto was led off by the overbearing Garfiel, dragon carriage and all. Upon their separation, Subaru gave Patlash a concerned rub of her nose, but Otto was no doubt safe under her protection. Perhaps it was strange to entrust a human being to a land dragon, but oh well. \"That Patlash, she's reeeally trustworthy and dependable, isn't she?\" \"Plus, where Otto's concerned, I feel like there'll always be uncertain elements no matter how much I'd worry about him.\" Watching driver and dragon carriage depart, Subaru said, \"Well, then,\" and turned Ram's way. Having gazed in silence at the previous exchange, she turned her face away from Subaru's gaze with a neutral look and said, \"What?\" \"...Nothing, I've just been wondering if you were all right. I mean, given how we parted ways, and not being in touch with you at all after, to be honest, I was really nervous.\" \"I suppose you were. As you can see, today Ram is as robust and adorable as ever. No harm has come to pass for the villagers evacuating to the Sanctuary with me. You may rest easy about that.\" \"That so? That's, yeah, I'm relieved to hear it... That's comforting.\" *** Subaru's shoulders sank with relief, but the odd wording at the end of Subaru's sentence made Ram look at him suspiciously. Her reaction made Subaru grit his teeth, locking down the emotions that had surged as far as his throat before he made them into words. *** \"Ah, Ram. It's odd for us to just stand here and talk like this, right? Could you show us in?\" With Subaru sinking into silence, unable to immediately speak, Emilia spoke those words to Ram in his place. Ram slightly knitted her brows at the words, but she immediately said, \"As you wish,\" bowed, and turned her back. Not probing any further and immediately marching off was very Ram-like, but... \"Subaru, are you all right? You're not angry I butted in?\" \"Nah, it's fine. I was just being pathetic... I was just scared of asking Ram about Rem right this moment, you see.\" Subaru listlessly shook his head, giving a pained smile at Emilia's consideration for him. He was afraid to be certain. Several times over, he'd already experienced a sense of loss through Emilia, Petra, and others but it wasn't something he'd gotten used to. For that matter, hearing it from Ram would probably have the greatest weight of all. The fact she hadn't asked about Rem's whereabouts under those circumstances was more than enough proof that she had forgotten her younger sister. \"Emilia?\" \"It's natural for you to be afraid. I don't think that is pathetic at all, so...\" As Subaru hung his head, Emilia took hold of Subaru's hand, meeting his eyes as she spoke those words in a sincere voice. Floating in her purple eyes were deep worry and a great deal of affection those feelings gave him some consolation. Gathering the scraps of his nearly lost courage, he thought he just might be able to find the words to ask her next time. \"Let's go and make everything better. Rem, and lots of other things, too.\" \"...Roger that. Whatever happens, I'll protect you as your meat shield, Emilia-tan.\" Subaru and Emilia were still holding hands as they walked behind Ram, going deeper into the Sanctuary.  Subaru did not realize that it was he alone who gained courage from it. 2 The house was the most intact structure in the Sanctuary. The residence formed of stone material was about the same size as an average stand-alone house from Subaru's world. The interior was divided into simple corridors and rooms, feeling like a reasonably comfortable place to live. Between Roswaal Manor and the Nobles' District in the capital, Subaru had seen extravagant structures, but one of this size felt much closer to home. But ignoring Subaru's impressions  \"Myyy, Lady Emilia and our good Subaru. It feeeels like it has been quite a loooong time since I have seen you.\" Roswaal waved to the pair with a fishy smile, something that felt out of place to the extreme. His eccentric clown makeup, his exaggerated words and gestures, and the very aura of his presence were so unbefitting an ordinary person, it simply felt wrong for him to be inside an ordinary house such as that. However, now that they were before him, feelings of things being wrong or out of place were trifling affairs. \"First, it is good that you are saaaafe and sound, Lady Emilia. I heard the circumstances from Ram, but it would be difficult to liiiive with myself if anything should have happened to you.\" \"If you really think so, you could cough up a more proper reaction to... No, more importantly, what the heck happened to you?\" Roswaal expressed relief at Emilia's safety, but Subaru and Emilia were left as perplexed as before. As for why, Roswaal was a painful sight while greeting the pair, lying in bed and wrapped in bandages stained with blood coming from his own body. His unclothed upper body lacked a single space unwrapped by bandages; he had multiple deep wounds and was in a grave condition. That the makeup on his face was unmarred felt like a sign less of robustness than of a bizarre level of obsession. But he did not give off the slightest hint of being injured, acting completely normal. \"My myyyy, you ask me that? I, too, am but a man. It truly pains me to be seen in such a shameful state. I suppose you are not so geeentle as to refrain from asking why?\" \"As if I could! Truly, Roswaal, what happened? To get hurt this badly... And on top of that, you're...\" His flippant tone about something impossible to gloss over put the genuinely angry Emilia in a bind. Indeed, the wounds were so grave she hesitated to press the point. She wanted to ask, but she didn't want to force the issue. Roswaal responded to the discord with Emilia by closing one of his differently colored eyes, specifically the blue one. \"I wonder where I should begin the taaale? In regards to my wounds...perhaps I should call them a baaadge of honor, or the unavoidable consequences of my actions.\" \"Please do not paper over things like that. I am asking a serious question. I want a serious answer from you.\" \"Hmmm... It would seem Lady Emilia is not in good humor, either. Considering the place, I do not believe that can be...helped.\" It felt wrong to Subaru that Emilia was taking an interrogatory tone. When Roswaal, apparently agreeing with him, pointed out that very thing, Emilia exhaled with an air of resignation. \"Since I came here no, since I came in contact with the barrier, I think my chest has been astir. I can't calm down. What is this place? Even though it's called the Sanctuary, it doesn't feel like any such thing to me. If anything, it's the opposite...\" \"Perhaps you can accept that the tombs of Witches have aaaalways been referred to thus?\" *** Emilia's breath caught strongly when Roswaal invoked the other name of the Sanctuary. Hearing the term from a mouth other than Garfiel's lent it greater weight. However, since that only added to the information they needed to ask him about  \"Wait, let's put what we want to ask about in proper order. I feel like we're just gonna be running around in circles at this rate. We need to get to a conclusion.\" \"Myyyy, a most sound suggestion. It seems that our good Subaru's mental state has changed since last I saw him.\" \"That story's gonna get seriously long, so I'll brag properly about it later... Ah, one thing, though.\" As Roswaal prodded him, trying to make light of the matter, Subaru stared straight at him before continuing. \"I succeeded in forming an alliance with Crusch. Satisfied with the results of leaving me there now?\" \"Ahh, I am most saaatisfied. Truly, truly, you have acquired something difficult and long yearned for.\" \"...That so.\" The affirmation felt more sincere than Subaru had expected. While surprised, he accepted it in good grace. He'd expected as much for a while, but Roswaal really had left Subaru in the royal capital with the expectation that he'd fight hard. Roswaal's having used that to his own advantage wasn't amusing to Subaru. The fact that his countermeasures against the Witch Cult had been conspicuously inadequate amused him even less. Setting aside that dissatisfaction for the moment, Subaru ordered the more immediate questions in his mind before starting. \"First, the people of Earlham Village. Ram said they were safe and sound, but is that really true?\" \"Please rest at ease. The state of my body may make that diiiifficult to believe, but I aaaam a lord, after all. I negotiated earnestly upon their behalf and had the cathedral opened to give them shelter.\" \"Cathedral, huh? I'll ask for more details about that later. Next...\" \"Tell us what you meant by 'Witch's Tomb' earlier.\" As Subaru moved ahead, Emilia intervened, choosing the next topic for herself. It was one of the issues on Subaru's list, so he had no objection. But Subaru didn't think the hard voice and the way she asked felt very Emilia-like. Roswaal responded to the tense Emilia's question with a wry smile and closed one eye. \"It means exactly what it says. This is the final resting place of the Witch named Echidna, once known as the Witch of Greed and to me, these grounds are holy.\" \"The Witch Echidna...\" The tone with which Roswaal replied to the question, and put the name to his lips, made Subaru's breath catch. His reply was quiet and gentle, yet filled with sharpness that clawed at the mind. There was no echo of his normal"}, {"text": "clownish demeanor; what filled his voice was emotion that pounded hard into Subaru's chest. The instant Roswaal invoked Echidna's name, his expression looked softer for what might have been the very first time. *** Seeing the side of his face, Ram, attending at his bedside, gently lowered her eyes. Subaru did not notice her reaction; rather, he touched a hand to his own chest. For some reason, the name Echidna a name he shouldn't have known strangely churned within him. \"Subaru, are you all right? Is something wrong?\" \"Nah, I'm fine... More importantly, we know this is the place a Witch died. But, Roswaal, why are you safekeeping a place with a history like that? Do you have some kind of connection with this Witch?\" \"The reason is simple. This land has been under the care of the Mathers family, passed down from generation to generation. It began under the lord of this house at the time...the Roswaal from which I inherit this name. In other words, it is from this Roswaal in history that this Sanctuary has been passed down.\" When Subaru broached the issue of his relationship to the Witch, Roswaal followed suit, filling in the blanks. The explanation left Emilia touching her own lips, knitting her refined eyebrows. \"'In history'... Then the Mathers family has been involved with the Witch of Greed since long...\" \" Echidna.\" \"Eh?\" Emilia's eyes opened wide when the name alone was abruptly slipped in. Roswaal trained his eyes toward Emilia. \"Echidna,\" he repeated, making certain she heard him. \"Pleaaaase, employ her name when referring to her. Calling her the Witch of Greed implies all sorts of nefaaarious things, does it not? And it is somewhat looooong.\" \"Errr, I understand. Then can I take this to mean...this is Echidna's final resting place, and the Mathers family has taken care of it because it was involved with her for a reeeally long time?\" \"Yes, that is correct. Having said that, 'taken care of it' is somewhat exaggerated. Echidna's barrier means that outsiders cannot pass through the Lost Woods without the proper formalities. On top of that, the barrier has a special effect on those whose blood fulfills a particular condition. You have experienced this as well, Lady Emilia?\" \"It's true, I lost consciousness when I came into contact with the barrier. But, according to Garfiel, the barrier only causes trouble when half-bloods like me come into contact with it. It didn't do anything to Subaru, right?\" \"Er, actually, I can't really say it did nothing to me...\" \"Eh? What do you mean by that?\" When Subaru scratched his cheek and murmured, Emilia lifted her face in surprise. She didn't know that once the barrier had knocked her out, Subaru had been teleported while she slept. Along the way, Subaru hadn't found a good time to bring it up, but also, he had hesitated greatly to do so. After all, he couldn't discuss it without discussing its connection to Frederica's crystal. If Frederica had conveyed that Garfiel was a dangerous person, entrusted Emilia with the crystal, and on top of that, plotted to have that crystal teleport her, he wondered what objective Frederica had in doing so. \"Subaru, if something happened, tell me. We decided we'd discuss important things, didn't we?\" \"We did, but this is...\" \"Subaru.\" The earnest gaze and the plea of her voice made Subaru's shoulders sink in resignation. From there, he took the blue crystal out of his pocket and explained the circumstances to all present. He explained that the crystal had reacted to the barrier, teleporting Subaru alone to a different location in the Sanctuary. There he'd met a girl, been led to the ruin, and lost consciousness while inside. Later, he'd been caught by Garfiel and brought along, bringing them back to the present. \"Frederica handed over this crystal before we left the mansion. There's no question it reacted to the barrier and made the teleport happen. Emilia was the one carrying the crystal to begin with, so...\" \"Barusu, what you are trying to say is that Lady Emilia must have been the target?\" As Subaru spoke of the circumstances, Ram summarized the last part in his stead. Her assertion made Subaru draw in his chin. The image of the young girl he'd met in the forest came back to him. The girl had been emotionless, doll-like. She had done Subaru no harm, leading him to the ruin and running away and he had to wonder, had that been intended for Emilia instead? \"If that is true, it was Lady Emilia who would have been teleported by the crystal during the time the barrier had robbed her of consciousness. If so, it is most fortuuuitous it was Subaru who was sent in her place.\" \"And then I hooked back up safe and sound. Body doesn't have...anything special wrong with it.\" Subaru rotated a wrist, smiling at Emilia as he asserted his robustness of health. But, as he smiled at Emilia, she lowered her head and gingerly posed a question to Roswaal. \"Frederica said the crystal was necessary to pass through the barrier, and why she was giving it to me... Was that true?\" \"...Unfortunately, the proper formalities for passing through the barrier do not involve an object. I suppose that is proof Frederica was up to some kind of scheeeeme.\" Roswaal's reply made Emilia's words catch in her throat as her listless shoulders sank. Of course they did. The talk just then had established Frederica's infidelity as a virtual certainty. \"Frederica's worked for you a long time, right? Over ten years is what I heard.\" \"...Yes, that girl was still veeeery young when I first employed her. She is a very capable girl, and not once has she acted in defiiiiance of my will...\" When Subaru posed a question in Emilia's stead, Roswaal shook his head in apparent dismay. Then he glanced meaningfully toward the edge of his vision, whereupon Ram accepted his gaze with a solemn nod. \"And so Frederica's scheme has ended in tears... That just now was a joke.\" \"Was it really a joke? It sounded pretty serious to me...\" \"It was. But the punishment will not be now we know that Frederica is deeply related to the present circumstance here in the Sanctuary.\" To Ram, Frederica was a coworker of particularly long standing. Knowing her coworker had been unfaithful, she nonetheless spoke calmly, her face betraying no unrest concerning that fact. \"What do you mean by the circumstances in the Sanctuary? What is happening here right now?\" \"Lady Emilia, did you not think it strange? That Ram and I, and the villagers fleeing to the Sanctuary, remained in this place rather than return to the mansion?\" he asked. \"Eh? That's... I thought it must be because of your wounds, Roswaal,\" she answered. In point of fact, Roswaal, lying on the bed, bore wounds that were quite deep. Even if he was to return to the mansion for treatment, he couldn't be moved without having recovered to at least some minimal degree. But Roswaal shook his head, seemingly telling her that was not the reason. And then  \"Currently, all present fiiiiind ourselves imprisoned in the Sanctuary... Ram, the villagers, and myself... Ah, now that you have entered, that includes the two of you as well.\" \"Huh?\" Subaru and Emilia were both dumbstruck at the casual yet explosive statement. 3 \"...Imprisoned? That doesn't, well, have a very nice ring to it.\" Somehow, Subaru managed to recover from the initial shock and wring out those words. Emilia managed to swallow down her own surprise, giving the injured Roswaal a painful stare as she said, \"Then, Roswaal, don't tell me that those wounds were from...\" Emilia was in shock as she combined the sight of him wounded with his earlier statement. Neither could Subaru, having arrived at the same thought, conceal his own shock. \"There's someone in this village who can overpower Roswaal, hurt him this much, and keep him captive? That's no laughing matter.\" Subaru touched a hand to his chin, nervously pondering a foe powerful far beyond his expectations. Roswaal was the kingdom's preeminent magic user; the demon beast disturbance had proven that in earnest. Subaru could not believe that anyone could easily put Roswaal through this much pain and suffering. Who in the world had done this to  \"Wha ? You're still doin' chitchat? You shouldn't push a wounded guy too much. 'Make a mottled Kuchibashi run and it turns black,' you know?\" *** Surprised by the sudden voice, Subaru turned around in a hurry. At the end of his gaze was Garfiel, who'd appeared at the entrance to the room. He took a look around the room and whistled toward Emilia. \"Hey now, what's this greeting all of a sudden? Wha ? Are you that ticked off with me?\" \"I'm being on the safe side, since the earlier conversation made me think the most dangerous person here is you.\" Garfiel audibly clenched his teeth in amusement. Emilia stood on guard with Subaru and Roswaal at her back, seemingly to shield them from him. Being shielded by Emilia was a thing in itself, but Subaru blinked hard at a separate issue. Namely  \"Hey, what'd you do with Otto? He was with you, right?\" \"Ahh? What, that noisy guy? Him, well... You get it, don't ya?\" Garfiel nodded defiantly, and his sharp gaze turned even sharper. Subaru, sensing bottomless hostility from his statement, felt the hairs on his back stand up. Emilia lowered her stance, as if she had the same sense from Garfiel as he.  The atmosphere grew strained. At the drop of a pin, combat between the two would become unavoidable. \"Ha! Fine, if you want a piece of me, I'll be happy to... Daaah?!\" \"It is not fine at all. Know your place, stupid Garf.\" But the atmosphere primed to explode was smashed apart by the powerful impact sound of an iron tray. Circling around his back during the exchange, it was Ram who had brought Garfiel down with a single, merciless blow. As Garfiel writhed in agony, Ram looked down at him, sighing as she addressed the others. \"Lady Emilia, Subaru, it is equally unsightly of you to jump to conclusions so quickly. Garf has nothing to do with Master Roswaal's injuries... He may look like a simpleton, but he is not quite that thoughtless.\" \"...Is that so?\" \"Yes, Lady Emilia, he had nooothing to do with it. I was about to say so that very moment.\" Roswaal's utterly shameless exaggeration left Emilia lowering her arms, astonished. Then she rushed over to Garfiel, kneeling upon the floor, in great haste. \"I-I'm very sorry! I completely misunderstood... I was certain you'd eaten Otto or something...!\" \"Wow, Emilia-tan, your ideas are really something! Even I didn't think he'd gone that far!\" Though it was certainly true Subaru suspected Otto's life had been in danger, he hadn't suspected Garfiel of doing such a thing. Following in the flustered Emilia's footsteps, Subaru checked to see how Garfiel was doing. Garfiel, shaking the head Ram had struck with that hearty blow, opened his mouth wide at the pair's assertions. \"As if I'd munch on a guy like that. He's noisy, and he says stuff a guy ain't emotionally prepared for, so I ditched him back at the dragon carriage.\" \"You're being pretty vague there, and you kick up a ruckus even without Otto...\" His suggestive demeanor had caused a misunderstanding that had nearly led to a great disaster. That disaster had been averted by Ram. \"Thanks a bundle, Ram. Don't want any unnecessary bloodshe  Hold on, your tray's all bent out of shape!\" \"A necessary loss to stop Garf. Next time, it would seem I should use the corner, not the flat of the tray.\" Ram took inspiration from the bent tray for how she would deal with him next time. Setting Ram's demeanor aside, Garfiel, the victim of her pummeling, plopped himself into a chair in a corner of the room. Then he rubbed"}, {"text": "his head as he looked at Ram and said, \"Ram, if you feel sorry 'bout that at all, how 'bout some tea?\" \"Please wait while I head out briefly to gather fallen leaves.\" Making a sound from her nose at the grandiose request, Ram really did head out of the house. Subaru had to wonder just what she intended to do with fallen leaves. Though that tugged at his mind, what also tugged at it was the ardor with which Garfiel watched Ram's back as she departed. \"I was wondering this from the exchange at the village entrance too...but what? You have a thing for Ram?\" \"She's a fine woman, ain't she? Ain't exactly weird for males to be attracted to strong, capable females.\" \"We're not dividing chicks by male and female, so stop chirping about that, sheesh...\" Garfiel had replied openly to Subaru's question, but his road to romance was treacherous. Ram's affection for Roswaal ran deep, hanging over his prospects almost like a curse  That was an unmistakable side of romance in any world, but  \"Well, then. Based on that reaction, you don't look like ya talked about the important stuff yet. You're free to turn into pieces of garbage if ya want, but...you should talk 'bout it to Lady Emilia, at least.\" \"To me?\" With Ram absent from the room, Garfiel tapped his foot as he refocused the conversation. Emilia was surprised that her own name was in his statement, but Garfiel paid her surprise no heed, sending his dangerous look stabbing right through Roswaal. \"The fact she got past the barrier means she's wrapped up in our business. What the hell's with this peaceful, pleasant conversation? You people playin' around or somethin'?!\" \"I'm not sure why you have a bee in your bonnet, but...this business we're wrapped up in doesn't sound unrelated to this whole imprisoned business.\" Garfiel, as snippy as ever, narrowed his eyes at Subaru's assertion. Feeling as if he was facing off against a fierce, overbearing beast, Subaru put the conversation to that point in order in his head and said: \"According to Roswaal, this isn't imprisonment by brute force. Regardless of how you look and act, you can't be short-tempered and violent enough to...\" For an instant, being hurled by Garfiel reemerged in his memories. \"...to do that kind of thing.\" \"Subaru, you seemed reeeally unsure just now...\" Subaru, on the receiving end of a rare quip from Emilia, looked straight at Garfiel. Receiving his gaze, Garfiel said, \"Go on,\" urging Subaru to continue. \"I'll listen. If you ain't the dirt stuck to a half-demon's foot, that is.\" \"Half-elf. Next time I'll get Roswaal to light your butt on fire.\" Garfiel lowered his head as Subaru shamelessly proclaimed he would borrow another's power for his retribution. At his reaction, Subaru lifted a finger, turning that finger to indicate the Sanctuary outside. \"I'll continue. Now that imprisonment by force has been crossed off the list, what other way can I think of? To be honest, I don't have much information to go on...but there's one thing that sticks out in my mind.\" \"...You mean the barrier?\" \"That's right. You're so smart, Emilia-tan.\" Coming up with the answer on her own, Emilia had sounded unsure in her answer, but her view was in line with Subaru's own. If neither Garfiel's brawn nor Roswaal's injuries was responsible for the imprisonment in the Sanctuary, it left the barrier as the only possibility the barrier with a special effect originally meant to protect the Sanctuary. If it had been a simple barrier, Subaru might not have come to such a farfetched idea, but at any rate... \"When she came in contact with the barrier, Emilia fainted. According to Garfiel, that's not an effect limited to Emilia it's like that for most of the people living in this Sanctuary, he said.\" \"In other words, Subaru...you think that it's the barrier's effect that's keeping Roswaal and the others in here and preventing them from returning to the mansion?\" \"There you go again! Exactly. Wow, Emilia-tan and I are in perfect sync today!\" Elated that they were thinking along the same lines, Subaru went for a high five. But, when Emilia tilted her head rather than play along, Subaru gently eased his hand down and looked at Garfiel. \"So, that's what I was thinking, but...am I right?\" \"...Sorry, I've gotta drop my assessment of ya. Three steps down from a piece of mud.\" \"That assessment is pretty out there, but, mm, I'll aim to gradually raise it back up.\" Taking that as a roundabout way of saying yes, Subaru nodded and looked over to Roswaal. As he did so, Roswaal closed one eye at Subaru's and Emilia's thought processes, amusement resting in his yellow eye. \"My myyyy, there truly has been quite a change in the span of several days. The optimism in both Subaru and Lady Emilia is quite reassuring. It was well worth making my heart that of an Oni and letting matters be.\" \"I have a mountain of things to say to you later about that 'letting matters be' part. Keep in mind, if you weren't wounded, the iron fist of my anger wouldn't be a soft thing.\" \"Myyyy, how frightening.\" With Roswaal in such high spirits, Subaru brandished a clenched fist. Whether he'd have seriously let Roswaal have it was another matter, but his irritation at the previous statement was no act. He'd give the man a tongue-lashing later for his lack of countermeasures against the Witch Cult's attack during his absence. \"But right now, talking about the barrier comes first. Is that reaction the cause of the imprisonment?\" \"I cannot call it correct in the strictest sense. However, it is not far off from the truth. It is a fact that the cause of our being hindered here in the Sanctuary is a circumstance involving that barrier.\" The barrier had the power to rob mixed people of their consciousness and make intruders get lost in the forest. But it did no harm to those of mixed blood already inside it lacked the power to hinder Roswaal and the others on its own. \"So the fact you've been stuck here anyway means...\" \"That's 'cause the people under the barrier's effect are gettin' in their way.\" The answer to his question was bluntly revealed from the mouth of one of the people concerned. When he turned toward the speaker of that ferocious declaration, the sharp, green eyes of the golden-haired man of mixed blood glared back at Subaru and the others. \"Garfiel...\" \"Way I see it, it's a simple story. As long as the barrier's up, we can't get out of the Sanctuary. The barrier's got nothing to do with ya...but that ain't very fair, is it?\" \"...Then because you want to get out but can't, you're holding Roswaal and the others captive? Even to the point someone gets hurt like this?\" Subaru, feeling like the issue had just become very petty, felt anger toward the short-tempered act. However, when he pressed the issue, Garfiel grimaced unpleasantly. \"Say whatever you want about it. But it's not like it don't have anything to do with ya?\" \"...So, for the same reason, you don't intend to let us go, either?\" \"No, no! It ain't that, it's way simpler! Your precious little princess can't get out of the Sanctuary for the same reason me and the grannies can't, damn it!!\" \"Ah...\" Subaru gaped when Garfiel laughed loudly and pointed at Emilia as he made the statement. Truly, he was fed up with himself for not having realized such an obvious possibility. It was exactly as Garfiel had said. It was already proven beyond doubt the barrier's effect was active upon Emilia; she, too, was a prisoner of the Sanctuary. \"Can't anything be done about that? Like... Right! If the barrier knocks people out when they touch it, how about having them carried out by people not under its effect...\" \"Ah, Subaru, amazing! We could use that method to get people o \" \"An amusing suggestion, but 'tis best avoided. If you do not seek to leave us as soulless husks, at least.\" Yet again, a third party intervened in Subaru's conversation that day. The intervention of an unfamiliar voice caused Subaru to turn toward the entrance. Just like Garfiel had done earlier, a small figure was standing there whereupon Subaru let out an \"Eh?\" She had long, pink hair, doll-like beauty, and pointed ears, all things he had seen before. The features were without doubt those of the elfin girl Subaru had encountered in the forest  \"You're that... Agh hot-hot-hot-hot-hot?!\" \"Here, Barusu. Tea, as requested.\" Subaru, surprised by their reunion, instantly began to speak, but the sudden feeling of a hot, steaming drink pressed against his cheek made Subaru yell from the burning pain, tumbling onto the room's floor. The clumsy servant having returned, Ram gazed down at Subaru's state with a look of scorn. \"Such a big fuss. How unsightly for a man.\" \"That has nothing to do with being a man or not! You burned my cheek, you know?! What were you thinking?\" Sitting up in the face of heartless, merciless abuse, Subaru vented his grudges with tearful eyes. It was hardly Ram's first act of violence toward him, but this was the least logical of them all. Subaru was enraged at the high-handedness toward him. \"Goodness,\" said Ram, and pressed a damp cloth to Subaru's cheek as she said, \"Please keep quiet about the elf from before.\" \"Huh?\" Subaru said, dumbfounded and wide-eyed as Ram was so close that she was practically touching his ear. However, Ram said nothing about that and handed a different steaming cup to Garfiel and said, \"The very essence of crude tea.\" \"Ain't that usually said with more, oh, modesty?\" \"It is the juice from fallen leaves. You should be grateful it was poured by Ram's hands and drink it to the bottom.\" Subaru put his own thoughts aside as he watched the terrible treatment she gave the man. \"Subaru, are you all right? Should I cool your cheek with ice?\" \"A-ahh, it's okay, I'm all right. I'm used to Ram doing crazy stuff. It's like an everyday ritual.\" \"I-is that so... When did things become like that while my back was turned?\" That prompted Subaru to reminisce about the tragedies of his life as a servant. But it was not that upon which Subaru's mind was focused; rather, it was Ram's whisper into his ear. She'd told him to keep quiet about the elf. But his questions about that were soon answered. \"I'd heard Young Gar brought in humans from the outside again... Quite a rambunctious youngster.\" Speaking those words, the elf concerned lowered her eyelids. The voice, the expression, the emotions lacking from the earlier individual they felt as if they came from someone very old, something that threw Subaru off. \"Err, and you are...?\" \"I apologize for my late introduction, Lady Emilia. I am Ryuzu Bilma. I suppose you might call me this village's representative. As you can see, I am a tottering old woman.\" \"R-right... You are as old as you look...\" When the girl calling herself Ryuzu bowed and named herself, her declaration made Emilia seem conflicted. Subaru's reaction was the same as hers. Apparently, he wasn't the only one thrown for a loop at Ryuzu, who looked like a young girl, declaring herself a tottering old woman. On the outside, she looked like an adorable early teen. She was dressed only in a white robe, one that made it impossible to see her limbs past her cuffs and hem. Furthermore, her words and actions from her years of maturity clashed with her appearance  \"It's a loli hag in the flesh...! I thought I might see that stereotype here someday...\" \"To think I would be called 'hag' upon a first meeting. The youngster is ruder than even Young Gar and Young Ros...\" \"When you add loli to the pejorative hag, it goes from an"}, {"text": "insult to a badge of honor. It is a status highly esteemed back in my homeland. No, I'm serious.\" Replying with appropriate flippancy, Subaru tried to somehow put a lid on the chaos inside his own mind. Ryuzu was the spitting image of the girl in the forest, but the air she gave off was clearly different. And Ram had forbidden him from speaking of the other girl's existence. Something's goin' on here, said Subaru's instincts, ringing like an alarm bell, but... \"Hmm... Very well, then. So you must be Barusu... Young Su, in other words.\" \"Paired with the 'Young Gar' thing, calling me that makes it sound like we'll start getting treated as brothers, but that's fine. Just please at least remember that my proper name is Subaru Natsuki.\" Subaru introduced himself to nip the mistaken name, obtained via Rem, in the bud. His line caused Ryuzu to slap her hip, saying, \"I get it, I get it,\" in an elderly fashion before she said, \"Now, Young Gar, would you be a sensible boy and yield your chair to me?\" \"Ya get ticked off when I treat ya like a hag, but you turn into a totterin' old woman when it's convenient, damn it...\" \"Did you say something?\" \"Nuttin'...\" Garfiel clicked his tongue and yielded the chair in which he sat to Ryuzu. As he did, he brushed some dust off the chair and, in deeply devoted fashion, lent Ryuzu a hand so that she could sit in it more easily. \"Somehow you seem like some hick from the countryside whose rudeness is all mouth...\" \"Oh, shut up, third rate! What are you comparin' me t ? Whoa! This tea's awful! It tastes like grass!!\" Garfiel grimaced spectacularly at the fallen leaf tea Ram had poured for him. Subaru took advantage of that interlude to get the topic back on track again as he said, \"So, now that Ryuzu is with us, let's get back to the earlier topic... What's your basis for saying my idea's bad?\" \"Earlier, Miss Ryuzu said something reeeally scary sounding, but...\" Emilia glanced sidelong at Ryuzu. Subaru nodded at her words. \"She said 'soulless husks,' right? What did you mean by that?\" \"I meant exactly what I said. When the mixed come into contact with the barrier, they lose consciousness. But I cannot call that impression quite correct. The souls of the mixed are repelled by the barrier, it is more correct to say.\" \"The souls are repelled...? Err?\" Emilia didn't seem to quite get that explanation for the mechanism by which the barrier knocked people out. Subaru gawked at Ryuzu, somehow managing to digest her words. \"In other words, if the mixed force their way across the barrier, body and soul will be separated from each other? And that'll leave the soul inside the barrier without a body... That's how I should interpret 'husk'?\" \"Ho-ho, the boy understands rather quickly. That is the long and short of it.\" When Subaru replied with his own interpretation, the impressed Ryuzu smiled. After she saw that smile, Emilia's eyes were still wide with surprise when she looked at Roswaal. \"B-but how is that related to Roswaal's injuries? If the barrier's power does not function for anyone except those of mixed blood, someone else inflicted those wounds on Roswaal...and it wasn't Garfiel, right?\" Emilia asked. Roswaal's shoulders sank. \"As Ram said earlier, he is not quite thaaat thoughtless of a man  Though I do not denyyy that Garfiel is capable of inflicting such pain upon me.\" \"Serious...?\" Subaru was aghast. \"He is serious.\" Ram's brief words affirmed they were true. It meant a great deal coming from Ram, both a realist and someone placing Roswaal at the summit of her mental pyramid. Apparently, Garfiel had the might to back up his claim to the title of world's strongest man. The exchange was another way of saying, There is no escaping this imprisonment by force. \"Me, I feel like I should be kind of insulted by the way you're talkin', th  Ram, don't make a scary face like that! Anyway, it wasn't me. He got hurt like that 'cause the trial rejected 'im.\" Whether he knew the depth of their surprise or not, Garfiel violently dragged the conversation forward. Subaru gaped and gulped, calming his mind down somewhat as he voiced his thoughts. \"...First the Sanctuary has a barrier from a Witch, and now there's a trial. Just gets better and better.\" New problems only added to the number of topics. When Subaru scowled at that fact, Roswaal replied, \"I suppose soooo,\" and stroked the bandages over his chest as he continued. \"Howeeeever, this is most likely the final piece of information to be added. Those who are qualified obtain the right to take the trial to lift the barrier. My wounds are proof of what happens when that precondition is disregaaarded.\" \"Disregarded the precondition? For the trial...?\" \"The precondition is to have blood affected by the barrier in other words, to have mixed blood. If anyone else undertakes the trial, their flesh is repelled and shredded.\" *** Subaru and Emilia simultaneously gasped in surprise. So that was the cause of Roswaal's own body being bandaged to such an extent. Were it not for the bloodstained bandages, Roswaal's wounded body would be naked such was the cruel state he was in. Countless lacerations ran across his upper body, almost like a bomb had exploded inside him, with blood oozing out that very moment. It seemed like perhaps healing magic had little effect, or perhaps something was continuing to wound him afresh  \"So let me get straight to issuin' ya our demands.\" Speaking those words, Garfiel pointed straight toward the shocked Subaru no, toward Emilia. He seemed to be saying that Emilia was needed to resolve the circumstances involving the Sanctuary. With Emilia's breath catching as she gazed at that finger, Garfiel continued, saying, \"Lift the barrier around this Sanctuary. To do that, take the trial. Until that's lifted, no one leaves not that you personally can leave anyway.\" 4 The instant Subaru stepped into the place called the Cathedral, he felt a change in the air. It was not a bad change. Surprise registered where, until that moment, a quiet atmosphere without conversation had reigned, followed by a cascade of attention and the onrush of joy. \"Master Subaru!\" \"Ohh, thank goodness you are safe!\" \"Is everyone else all right?!\" The ones welcoming Subaru when he showed himself were the people lodging in the Cathedral the people of Earlham Village who had evacuated, fleeing from the Witch Cult to the Sanctuary together with Ram. They looked happy to see Subaru, but their situation was little different from when they had left the village. Subaru was relieved that they had not been treated poorly in the Sanctuary, though. \"I'm the one who told you to take refuge here, after all. I'm glad you're all safe.\" \"Master Subaru, it is we who are glad you are safe... How is the village, and the others?\" \"Yeah, relax about that, okay? We drove off the dangerous folks, and the people evacuating to the royal capital are back in the village. No one's hurt, they're all in great shape.\" \"Ohh !\" When Subaru pounded his chest, giving the villagers his metaphorical stamp of approval, all the villagers' faces brightened. Subaru responded to their reactions with a smile as he finally took a look around the Cathedral. The stonework structure had a high ceiling, and was filled with a solemn, serene air that lived up to the name. So far as Subaru knew, the atmosphere was probably close to that of the chapel of a church. Because the temple site was fairly large, it was able to comfortably accommodate the fifty-odd residents who had evacuated. Put frankly, there had to be many inconveniences involved, and they did raise such dissatisfactions with Subaru as they said, \"We're worried about the fields and livestock we left behind. Besides, we're separated from our children, too, so...\" \"But are the lord's injuries all right? Such terrible wounds, for our sakes...\" Their statements, showing less concern about the disorder in their daily lives than pure concern for the future, hurt Subaru's heart. Here they were, far from their families, with their own lord bearing wounds. The seeds of their anxieties were inexhaustible. But Subaru's feet had brought him there to bring an end to their situation. For that reason, among others, Subaru loudly cleared his throat, drawing all eyes of the villagers upon him. \"Err, listen to me, everyone! As you know, the dangerous elements threatening the village have been driven off! The other group that evacuated has returned to the village, and they're waiting for you to return as we speak!\" The moment Subaru reached \"waiting for you to return,\" shadows of anxiety came over the villagers' faces. Naturally, they too knew why they remained in the Sanctuary. They also knew Roswaal had sustained his wounds with the aim of liberating them. However  \"Looks like you all know that getting out of here won't be easy. But it's all right! After all, there's a girl right here to undertake the trial to free everyone!\" \"Master Subaru...you can't mean?!\" \"Whoa, whoa... Nah, it isn't me. If I could, I'd do it in a heartbeat, but...\" Subaru scratched his head with a pained smile at the reaction from the freshly enthused villagers. His words were no lie. If he could be the challenger, he'd take the trial without a moment's hesitation. But Subaru did not fulfill the conditions to challenge the barrier. Accordingly, the one who would undertake the trial would be  \"I'm sure you all know her the royal candidate, Emilia. She's facing the trial.\" *** Subaru's declaration sent the villagers gasping once more. Nodding back at their reactions, Subaru reached a beckoning hand toward the entrance to the temple and the girl waiting there for him. After a moment's hesitation, Emilia slowly revealed herself, silver hair flowing behind her. Her cheeks were stiff from tension as Subaru stood at her side and surveyed the villagers. Those gazes had rejected her once before. Now, she had the courage to face them without the \"identification scrambler\" robe. Even so, Emilia bit her lip, bowing her head deeply then and there. \"I I am sorry to have made you wait. In place of your lord, Roswaal L. Mathers, I shall undertake the trial of this Sanctuary. I may not seem very formidable...but I'm sure I will overcome and liberate everyone from this barrier.\" At first, she was timid, with little confidence, but by the end, she was speaking more quickly and fluently. Emilia's proclamation left the villagers perplexed as they looked at one another's faces. Once before, Emilia had extended her hand to them only to be rebuffed. That rupture had hardly been repaired. All Subaru had done was slam a lid on top of it so that you couldn't see the cracks and punt the can down the road. As far as the villagers were concerned, Emilia was stuck in their stereotypes of half-elves. *** Emilia kept her head lowered as she awaited the villagers' response. Her lips were tightly pursed, and on her face, Subaru saw resolve, and a hint of fear, about the prospect of rejection. But a figure walked closer to Emilia the old woman who was both the head of Earlham Village and someone who had often touched Subaru's butt. Sensing her presence, Emilia lifted her head; the old woman nodded and spoke. \"A few days ago, you lowered your head to us, and we rejected your assistance. In spite of this, you reach your hand out to us once more. Why? For the sake of the royal selection?\" *** \"To maintain the support of the populace, you lower your head and say that you shall save us. That is natural. I have no complaint about this, if that is indeed the case. But what we find frightening...is that we do not understand the reason why.\" \"You don't understand"}, {"text": "the reason why...?\" Emilia asked, eyes shaking in bewilderment at the old woman. \"We rejected you because you are a half-elf. We do not understand the reason why you, a half-elf, would do this again despite that. That is what we wish to know.\" \"And that you are not a Witch beyond our ability to comprehend.\" Emilia was surprised. She was being compared to a Witch to her face, and yet, she'd been asked to deny she was one. It was probably something she was experiencing for the first time. No doubt Emilia had been always tormented by discrimination that permitted no rebuttal, the conclusion simply forced upon her. *** For an instant, Emilia shifted her eyes toward Subaru, who was standing by her side. Her gaze clung to him, apparently in search of an answer. Subaru tucked in his chin, nudging her forward without a word. It was Emilia's own words they were seeking. Borrowed words would be meaningless. \"I...have no confidence that I can give an eloquent reply to your question. Right now, I do not have any reeeally convincing words to make you all accept what I say.\" Reluctantly, and with Subaru's affirming nod pressing her onward, Emilia began to speak. With her own clumsy words, she sought to explain why she wanted to do this. \"It's just... It may have been a short time, but I spent the last several days with the family members who aren't here with you. So I thought all over again...families need to be together.\" Emilia touched her own chest as if looking for something, stroking the dim crystal hanging from her neck. Inside it was surely sleeping family of her own, family she could not speak with at the moment for reasons unclear. However, believing that her feelings about family were not different from theirs, Emilia surveyed everyone's face. \"I want to return you to your families. That is...not a promise I made in that village, but it is something I swore to myself. That is what I want to fulfill. That's all.\" *** \"I haven't really thought much about...maintaining your support and so on. But, if possible, I'd like everyone to...no, err, rather, I want to...get along with all of you.\" At the very, very end, Emilia's words weakened, and the pace of her speech slowed. Once she had spoken her piece, she and the villagers were mutually silent. The silence continued for seconds, perhaps tens of seconds... \"Lady Emilia.\" \"...Y-yes?\" \"We know this is very selfish of us to say however, please take good care of us.\" For a moment, Emilia looked like her thought process had ground to a halt, unable to digest the meaning of those words. But when she saw the old woman's head bowing before her, she finally grasped their meaning. \"Ah...I I may be a greenhorn, but please bear with me!\" \"No one says greenhorn anymore.\" Subaru gave a pained smile, instantly tossing his own quip on top of the obsolete language sailing out. Emilia had no time to deal with it, for she was busy dealing with other villagers' follow-up comments, engaging in scattered conversation. Satisfied at the turn of events, Subaru distanced himself from the throng and headed to the entrance of the Cathedral. And there stood  \"Lady Emilia seems to have...changed somewhat. Did you put her up to this, Barusu?\" \"This is something she came up with on her own. You shouldn't go crediting someone's determination to someone else, you know.\" \"...I suppose not. Ram is at fault this time.\" Ram apologized for the somewhat cold impression she gave from the entrance concerning the exchanges taking place at that moment. The apology, rare coming from her, surprised Subaru, which made Ram narrow her pink eyes. \"What? Even Ram apologizes when she feels she has done wrong. It simply does not happen very often.\" \"From time to time, I'm seriously envious of that brimming-with-confidence attitude you have.\" \"It is not a matter of confidence whatsoever. It is natural providence that Ram is correct so often.\" The way Ram crossed her arms in self-affirmation grander than mere overconfidence ever could be made Subaru's shoulders sink. \"With this, Lady Emilia shall undertake the trial. She has received voices of support from the villagers...just as Master Roswaal wished.\" \"Hey, stop saying it like that. Emilia doesn't calculate things like that, you know.\" \"And you intend to shoulder the burden of the dirty work yourself, Barusu? How heroic.\" Ram's slender lips eased up a little as she bantered with Subaru in sarcastic fashion. But Subaru didn't feel genuine scorn for him from either her eyes or the tenor of her voice. Perhaps what he sensed was distress. He couldn't say That's not like her. Ram's kindness just happened to be difficult to see on the surface. \"So you're worried about Emilia, too, huh? I'm a little surprised.\" \"...Ram is the epitome of kindness and benevolence. Besides, if Lady Emilia can perform as Master Roswaal hopes, there will be meaning to his body's having been whittled down like that. Of course I am concerned.\" \"Roswaal went pretty far, putting his own body on the line...\" Ram's morose statement put a pained face on Subaru as he let those words trickle out. As to what Roswaal's true intentions regarding the Sanctuary were, Subaru could only sigh. Roswaal, lacking the proper qualifications, had undertaken the trial only to be rejected by the enchantment, suffering grave wounds that left him at death's door. Such a reckless challenge could only have calculations bordering on madness behind it, things no normal person could even conceive of. Passing the trial was unavoidable if the barrier of the Sanctuary was to be lifted and, faced with this fact, Roswaal had taken the initiative, sustaining wounds as a result. That even Roswaal, in an attempt to fulfill his duties as lord, was unable to succeed in the trial had established to all his people the difficulty of the matter. He had acted without hesitation before his people, wounding his name, reputation, and even body in the process  \"And here comes Emilia out of the blue, galloping in to undertake the trial and liberate the Sanctuary...\" \"The residents of this Sanctuary and the refugees held captive... Either way, they shall have a great deal for which to thank Lady Emilia. It would be good if they thought of her being a half-elf as a trifling matter...\" \"People's hearts don't dance in your palm that much... Besides, Emilia doesn't weigh things like that. You and I both need to have that fact sink in.\" Subaru watched from a distance as the villagers interacted with Emilia at the center of the Cathedral with hard, smiling faces. He understood Roswaal's thinking. This was a necessary challenge if she was to make it to the end of the royal selection ahead. He could appreciate the true intent behind Roswaal's telling Emilia this place would, at some point, be necessary to her. But he could not raise both hands high in approval. This was Subaru's stubbornness at work. \"Incidentally, Barusu...there really is nothing wrong with your body?\" \"Ah, yeah, no problem. I wasn't lying when I said as much when I talked about the teleport. Even though Roswaal got all beat up like that, I only fainted... Dunno what to say.\" \"I suppose you should be grateful to have such a puny Gate.\" \"It's the truth, so I can't argue, but geez...!\" Raising his voice at the very blunt remark, Subaru gave his hips a big twist on the spot before continuing. \"Um, I was surprised that the ruin I teleported to was the place for the trial. Plus, there's the thing about bad stuff happening to unqualified people trying to get in... Totally a trap that kills on first sight.\" \"You saw from Master Roswaal's wounds, right? Even someone blessed with only an average Gate should receive a rather stiff punishment. There is no telling what would have happened to Lady Emilia if she'd entered unawares, either.\" \"...You think Frederica planned it like that?\" Subaru lowered his voice and aired the suspicion he'd been harboring for a while. Ram sank into thought for a brief moment, then closed one eye as she said, \"I wonder. The circumstantial evidence suggests Frederica planned something. In point of fact, Lady Emilia only avoided such a fate by a hairbreadth, escaping by Barusu's noble...relatively noble sacrifice.\" \"Hey, don't correct that. Well, I don't mind you correcting the 'sacrifice' part because I got through it fine, but if I had sacrificed myself, call it noble even if it's a lie!\" \"I shall take it under advisement. In regards to Frederica, there is something I ought to tell you, Barusu.\" Following that preamble, Ram confirmed the state of the area around her with a sharp gaze. It was as if she wanted to be careful that no one overheard their conversation  No, it was not \"as if\" at all. Ram approached a half-step closer to Subaru, her voice a whisper as she spoke. \"Not everyone living in the Sanctuary supports being liberated from it.\" \" ! What do you mean by that?\" \"There is also the matter of the elf being hidden from Miss Ryuzu and Garf, as well as Frederica's actions...but Miss Ryuzu is only the titular leader, guiding the militants like Garf. Among the residents, there are also those who do not desire liberation from the Sanctuary and who choose to remain sheltered within the barrier.\" \"Sheltered inside the barrier... What's up with that?\" Subaru, knitting his brows at Ram's warning, indicated incomprehension toward the behind-the-scenes maneuvering. If all was according to Garfiel's explanation, everyone living in the Sanctuary was of mixed blood. Naturally, that meant they were affected by the barrier and unable to leave...so long as the barrier existed, at least. \"They're fine with this. To those who wish to stay, the current state, with minimal interaction with the outside, is ideal. And thus, to break this state is...highly troublesome to them.\" \"You think Frederica's working with folks like that?\" \"It is possible. At present, it is mere supposition based on the available information.\" With Ram's subtext sounding like Do not even suggest I am being emotional, Subaru backed off and dropped the subject. However, the words left Subaru twisting his lips, his internal nervousness undiminished. Reflexively, his hand touched the white handkerchief tied around his own neck. \"And that is? A rather old-fashioned protective charm, yes?\" \"Petra... Ah, a cute girl in the village. She gave this to me before I left. She was hired as a new maid to help Frederica out at the mansion... That's why I'm worried.\" If Frederica was operating from a position of malice, it was quite possible she'd take Petra hostage. He'd never forgive himself if something happened to the girl who'd offered her cooperation in such good faith. Even more than that, Rem was back at the mansion. He'd spoken exhaustively to Frederica about just how important the girl was, both to him and to the other people at the mansion. But Ram exhaled and said, \"Ah, that,\" in reply to Subaru's misgivings, then continued. \"Rest at ease. Frederica would never do ill to a new worker at the mansion. She has surely not fallen into heresy such as that. You need not be concerned for the girl.\" \"...Do you trust Frederica, or do you not trust Frederica? Which is it...?\" \"I know not what she schemes. But that Frederica is indeed Frederica, I do not doubt.\" Having asserted the point with such force, Ram averted her gaze from Subaru's face. She folded her slender arms and motioned with her chin indicating Emilia at the center of the Cathedral. \"Be careful, Barusu. The most certain means for those opposed to liberating the Sanctuary to achieve their aims is to cause Lady Emilia harm. We do not know who our enemies are. Remain ever vigilant.\" \"So this is secret from Ryuzu and Garfiel, too, huh...? Those two being opposed"}, {"text": "to liberation is too far-fetched, I suppose?\" \"Even if those two are not involved, someone related to them might be. It is best that as few people know as possible...even if one of them has very loose lips, yes?\" Subaru couldn't even manage a groan as she drove the implication in like a nail, making it painfully clear just whom she meant. Either way, now that he was in the Sanctuary, Ram's warning was exceptionally important. In particular, he'd never have known there was an antiliberation faction if she hadn't told him. \"Man, that girl really did look just like Ryuzu...\" Ryuzu herself might disagree, but he couldn't imagine they were unrelated. There was a mountain of things he wanted to ask her about, not least of which was her own lineage. However, this was not the time to question her about his various misgivings. \"Master Roswaal made time for you this evening. Be satisfied with that.\" \"After seeing those wounds I'm not gonna complain... I still feel like suspecting that was part of his scheme, though.\" \"That is even more farfetched. Garf came to see how Master Roswaal was doing... Does he look like the kind of man who would cooperate with Master Roswaal's plans?\" \"You're pretty harsh with the guy who's fallen for you!\" \"Even though he knows it is hopeless.\" That last comment was the harshest of all, enough to make Subaru sympathize with the absent Garfiel. \"This evening, huh?\" Once his sympathy ran its course, he murmured to himself about the time pledged to them for conversation. Unlike during the day, when they had been able to ask little about the circumstances surrounding the Sanctuary, Roswaal had set time aside so that they could speak about those matters. However, the time promised to them would come after Emilia undertook the trial. \"It would seem the sun is finally setting.\" Ram murmured as she turned her head outside the temple, looking up as the sky of the setting sun was repainted in the colors of the night. Night was coming. A night when people would be tested by the trial so as to set the Sanctuary free. 5 The atmosphere of the Sanctuary underwent a great change after sunset. The settlement had been little more than a lonely, destitute village to begin with. It had only the minimum lighting necessary to ward off the darkness of the night; except for the weak lighting coming from houses, there was no aid for a nighttime stroll save the light of the stars. That was why a bonfire had been lit in the center of the settlement to illuminate the path toward the tomb, making that night an exception. \"Thanks to that, we were able to hook up safe and sound. Thank goodness for fire! Right, Otto?\" \"Look me in the eye once and try saying that one more time! Damn it all!\" There in the Sanctuary, in the clearing illuminated by the bonfire, Otto's face was red with anger as his outraged voice echoed. He stamped the ground with his foot, thrusting a shaking finger at Subaru as he ranted. \"Do you think this is something that can be papered over with a little light conversation?! You completely left me behind at the dragon carriage, unable to move away from it, since morning, you understand?!\" \"Having said that, you're the one who told Garfiel you'd stay with the dragon carriage, right? Patlash, my fave dragon, was here, too, so you shouldn't have been lonely... Well, it's a fact that I forgot you, though.\" \"That fact sinks deeply into my empty stomach!\" Subaru's brazen reply left Otto fuming amid the bonfire light breaching the darkness of night. After arriving in the Sanctuary, he'd been on the same page when stabling the dragon carriage was left to him, but, having been completely forgotten over the course of furious conversation, had only just reunited with Subaru under his own power. Incidentally, it was already the dead of night, with supper at the Cathedral long over. \"I can't really call it an awesome-tasting meal, but beggars can't be choosers.\" \"So I am not only a chooser, but a beggar as well?! I really am holding a grudge over this!\" \"My bad, my bad. I'll apologize properly later... Right now, I've gotta focus over here.\" When Otto drew close, Subaru nudged his forehead back, giving a pained smile as his gaze shifted elsewhere. When Otto followed suit, he narrowed his eyes, gazing at the girl at the center of the clearing surrounded by faint points of light. \"Lady Emilia and minor spirits, yes? Just how many difficult issues arose while I was unaware?\" \"'Difficult issues'... Don't say it like anything and everything's all troublesome stuff we've got on our shoulders.\" \"Am I wrong to call these issues difficult, then?\" \"They're difficult issues. Ultradifficult. On top of that, Emilia has to take 'em on all by herself.\" Humphing at the knowing look on Otto's face, Subaru proceeded to walk over to Emilia. With her eyes closed as she received the blessings of the minor spirits, she sensed his presence, lifting her face and pursing her lips. \"Get enough cheers of support from the minor spirits to satisfy you?\" \"Mm, it's all right. But I suppose I do want one final push.\" \"May I?\" \"If you want to, Subaru. Please.\" \"Good luck, don't lose! E M D !!\" Emilia let out a little laugh at Subaru's enthusiastic cheer, briefly adding \"Thank you\" before shifting her gaze toward the tomb she was to challenge. Standing beside her, Subaru licked his lips and looked up at the ruin, which gave off a very different impression compared to during the day. \"It is a tomb, so it's waaaaay creepier at night than daytime. You're all right, Emilia-tan?\" \"I'm a little worried, but it's nothing. This is something I have to do.\" Clenching a pale fist, Emilia took a deep breath infused with plenty of vigor. At the same time, Subaru began to worry that she looked a little too worked up. \"Hah! Well, she's full of pep. Ya'd better be, not that I'm expectin' anything from ya!\" \"Garfiel and Ryuzu.\" Turning toward the voice, Subaru saw two short figures walking through the entrance to the clearing one a young-looking girl, and the other a teenage boy. Though very different people, the pair without doubt represented the Sanctuary. In addition, Ram came in, following in Garfiel and Ryuzu's footsteps. It seemed they were the only ones who would be watching Emilia undertake the trial. \"It's a little lonely having this be the entire audience.\" \"The humans of Earlham Village have been forbidden from venturing out at night. There is no proper lighting for them at this hour, after all...\" \"Besides, we do not want to kick up an unnecessary ruckus. The elderly are very sensitive at night.\" \"Ya sure wake up bright and early in the mornin', though!\" Ram and the others replied to Subaru's musing in sequence as they lined up before the tomb in good order. Ram was a proxy for the injured Roswaal; Garfiel and Ryuzu represented the interests of the Sanctuary. Subaru, Emilia's retainer, and the outsider Otto filled out the roster. Otto was the only one whose presence seemed tentative and not strictly necessary, but setting that aside... \"I'll watch you take up the challenge in place of the people from the village. I'm sure they really wanted to cheer you on.\" \"Mm, thank you. I'll work hard to fulfill your expectations, those of the villagers...and everyone else watching.\" *** It was only when Emilia added the part at the very end that her gaze shifted beyond the clearing. Subaru wondered what her gesture meant, but he had no time to pursue the matter. Emilia exhaled briefly and turned back toward the tomb, walking toward the stairway at the entrance. The next moment, there was  \"A light, from the tomb...\" It was Otto who murmured it, but his surprise was shared by everyone present. The five watched as the surface of the ruin Emilia was to challenge glowed with a faint light, seemingly welcoming the challenger, illuminating the Witch's final resting place with a green, phosphorescent glow that seemed to sink into the darkness. \"This is proof that the tomb recognizes Lady Emilia as being qualified to undertake the trial.\" Ryuzu looked up at the phosphorescent light surrounding the tomb, putting into words the reason for the beautiful scene. Subaru and the others were speechless as they stared at it, with only Emilia unhesitant as she climbed the stairs. Then, when she reached the top of the stairs, she was greeted by the entrance to the deep, dark ruin biding its time. \" I am off.\" Subaru felt like he heard her speak those words in a little voice. He watched Emilia proceed into the tomb's corridor until he could no longer see her back. The entire ruin remained enveloped in the phosphorescent light; the trial had surely begun. The ruin had rent Roswaal's body into tatters and had caused Subaru to faint and lose consciousness. When Emilia stepped within, worry welled in Subaru, almost as if someone were grasping his beating heart  \"Do not be concerned, Young Su. The tomb has firmly welcomed Lady Emilia into it. The light you see is proof of that. You need not worry that she will bounce off like Young Ros.\" \"The image of him bouncing off is bouncing right off of me... Er, sorry. You're just being concerned for me...\" \"Ho-ho. I do not get upset when someone apologizes. Perhaps that is why I was too soft in raising Young Gar.\" Subaru put on a strained smile, struck by the great contrast between her little-girl appearance and the elderly smiling face she presented. As Ryuzu spoke, she glanced sidelong at Garfiel, watching over the tomb some distance away. He crossed his arms, audibly clenched his fangs, and kept scraping the ground with the tips of his toes, unable to calm down. \"I was just thinking...\" \"Mm? About what?\" \"The trial of this tomb only those of mixed blood affected by the barrier can take it, right? Now that I think about it, Ryuzu, have you or Garfiel done it already?\" \"Logically, it is possible to merely undergo the trial. However, we cannot liberate the Sanctuary. This is because of the never-ending pact that binds us residents to this place.\" \"...Another pact, huh?\" Subaru's distasteful tone and the bitter look on his face made Ryuzu raise an eyebrow. \"Ohh? Young Su, you dislike pacts?\" \"I don't have a good impression of them. I have bad memories of trials over the last few weeks, too. The guy I hate most in this whole world talked about them a bunch.\" \"My, my, what a poor impression indeed. It must cause the spirit-user girl no small amount of trouble.\" Spirit mages took all oaths very seriously. Ryuzu's words were proof this was a publicly known fact. As a matter of fact, pacts and oaths were among the reasons Subaru and Emilia had once split up. It went almost without saying that Subaru had internally concluded it was his own fault. All the same  \"Accepting it and liking it are two different things. I'll keep putting a red line through them in my lexicon going forward.\" \"Obstinate, aren't you...? Well, a little stubbornness in a young one like you is adorable, too...\" It was really hard to wrap his head around the young one part. At the same time, Subaru saw a whiff of chagrin rising onto the side of Ryuzu's face. Perhaps it was nothing more than her having been robbed of the opportunity to challenge the trial for herself and having to rely on an outsider to lift the barrier. She might have quietly felt powerless on the inside. Thinking along those lines, he could understand Garfiel's irritation, too. Considering the grasp of his personality Subaru had arrived at in a short time, there"}, {"text": "was no doubt he was the type who'd rather die than leave his problems for someone else to solve. *** From there, time proceeded to flow. Subaru did nothing and said nothing as he waited for Emilia to return. There was no visible change in Garfiel. Ryuzu continued to stand beside Subaru in silence. When he shifted his gaze a little, he was surprised to see pleasant-looking conversation passing between Ram and Otto. To Subaru, who had experienced little pleasant conversation with Ram, this was an alarming development. He was about to think fruitless things, such as I'll have to get him to spill conversation tips for Ram later but something happened first. \"Ah?\" When the change met the eyes of all others present, they instantly gasped as one. Reflexively, Subaru blinked and looked back, by which time the source of light over all that time had already been lost. In other words, the almost dazzling phosphorescent glow surrounding the tomb...had been extinguished. \"The light's gone?! Hey, is everything all right?!\" \"The light of the tomb should not cease so long as the trial continues...\" \"Meaning something went wrong?! Emilia!\" Raising his voice at the sudden disaster, Subaru raced toward the tomb without a first or second thought. Ryuzu reached toward his back, shouting with urgency in her voice. \"W-wait, Young Su! You are not qualified to enter the t !\" \"Aaah? What the hell?!\" Ryuzu's voice trailed off in shock, leaving a bewildered Garfiel to send spittle flying as he picked up where she'd left off. Ram and Otto were just as surprised; even Subaru's breath faintly caught. The tomb lit up the instant Subaru's foot hit the steps, beginning to radiate a green, phosphorescent light. \"The same as Lady Emilia... Er, Mr. Natsuki!\" \"If I can get in, it's the answer to my prayers! Everyone stay outside! I'll call if anything happens!\" \"Barusu!!\" Shrugging off the voices trying to stop him, Subaru raced up the stairs and dived into the tomb. The ruin's air was cold and dry. The corridor in which his steps echoed was enveloped by the same green, phosphorescent light covering the outer walls, giving him a pretty good view of the moss- and vine-covered interior. The strange sensation accompanying each and every step clawed at his chest. The scene, the location somehow seemed familiar to him, the inside of his head anguished as if being violated by some unknown memory. \"Of course I know this place... I came here before, in the dayt !!\" Deciding that his memory from that time was the culprit, he impulsively stomped on the thought in his head with a shoe as he dived deeper. The air deep in the ruin was stagnant, invading his nostrils with a dusty scent. He felt his lungs worsen with each and every breath. He shook his head as he went deeper, deeper, deeper  \"A room?\" When he finally reached the end of the corridor, Subaru beheld a door before his eyes that led into a small room. The grimy stone door was already open, having abandoned its duty of warding off intruders, so Subaru slipped in without resistance. *** He raced into the room, a cramped chamber surrounded by stone walls. Strangely, the vines and moss had not encroached upon it, and it had deteriorated only insofar as the ruin's age would suggest. In back of the not-particularly-large stone room was another closed door that likely led deeper still, and in front of it  \" Emilia!!\" A silver-haired girl was spread out on the floor, seemingly having sprawled her limbs when she collapsed upon it. Unable to see her face from the entrance, Subaru desperately ran to her side. He didn't know what had happened. All he knew was that he had to pick her up and escape from the tomb as soon as poss  \" First, face your past.\" The next instant, Subaru gasped when a voice seemed to whisper right into his ears. *** Strength drained from him, leaving him no time to ponder what the voice might be. His knees buckled, and Subaru's body went down like a doll, making no move to break his fall. Since he was in midrun, he tumbled onto the floor with limbs sprawled like a snow angel, ending up right next to Emilia by pure chance. *** I've fallen right beside her once before, haven't I? he suddenly thought. Before he could recall the memory, his first memory of death, Subaru's thoughts were swallowed up by the darkness  6 As he always did, when Subaru awoke from slumber, he felt short of breath, as if his head were breaking the surface of the water. The feeling was much like that of floating in a sea of unconsciousness, floating upward in search of the air called reality. Then, when his awakening lungs had breathed in enough of that reality, Subaru's mind awo  *** \"Hmrabhttnn?!\" That cool, refreshing morning, his poetic rise from slumber, was smashed to pieces by an incredibly destructive impact. From above, something heavy squeezed the air out of his body, forcing Subaru to let out a cry much like a frog being squished. He batted the top of the futon away as he hacked and coughed. \"Hey, hey, heyyy, what's the matter? That's just my diving press to wake you up with love! Same as usual. Really gets those carelessness-is-your-greatest-enemy fires burning, huh?\" \"Koff! Koff!... That's expecting way too...much from a guy who's asleep... Wait, just now...\" What the heck happened? he wondered, lifting his face with tearful eyes. As Subaru brought half his body out of bed, the other party pointed a finger to the ceiling right before Subaru's eyes. And then  \"What is it with you? You've got the look of a guy looking at his father buck naked in the morning!\" It was his father Kenichi Natsuki as he posed half-naked there in the morning, blessing his son's awakening with a cackling laugh. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 The annoying cackling, laughing voice made Subaru appreciate that yet another normal morning had arrived. He was in his own, very familiar room. There was a bookshelf stuffed with manga and light novels on the wall, and the student desk he'd been using since a young age held a variety of small tools and the fruits of various hobbies scattered over it. In the back of the room was an old television used exclusively for gaming, and before that was the very familiar sight of his half-naked father. Such was the morning scenery surrounding Subaru Natsuki atop the now-unmade bed. *** But amid that very familiar scenery, he felt an odd stirring in his chest  \"Heyyy, are you ignoring me?! If you ignore me I'm gonna cry! I'm your real daddy related to you by blood and no spring chicken. Do you really think I can take that? There's no way. I'll die from embarrassment!\" \"Same goes for me, then! Or rather, the press just now killed me. Now I will sleep forever.\" Subaru responded appropriately to his half-naked father's statement and ducked under the futon. Faced with his son's cold demeanor, his father Kenichi groaned out in dissatisfaction. \"Well, whaaaat is this?! Is this your rebellious phase?! Shit, I thought it'd come someday, but I never expected it'd be this morning. I should've spent less time preparing breakfast and more time preparing to speak with my own son...!!\" \"You say that, but what are you tryin' to do with a guy's legs... Hey, wait a  Ow! Owwww!\" \"Okaaay, I've decided that today, I'll have a heart-to-heart talk with you! First, let's talk with our muscles! You just try breaking out of my figure-four leg lock infused with looove! Oh yeaaah !\" With Subaru's legs bound in a lock atop the bed, Kenichi lay down facing the opposite direction as he applied pressure to the joints. Unable to resist, Subaru let out a painful cry, which Kenichi greeted with a laugh as he mocked his son. \"Gwahahah! What's wrong, what's wrong? You work out every day so you can grow big and strong, so aren't you ashamed of having such a hard time against one middle-aged ma  Ah, wait a second! Ow! Owwww!\" \"You're a fool to pick a figure-four leg lock, it's weak against reversals. You're getting old, Dad! All I have to do is reverse my body and the damage flies the other way! Here's my revenge for you putting a figure-four leg lock on... Ah, wait! You can't reverse my reversal... Owow! Owowowow!\" As the victim shifted that morning, painful cries arose, boisterous voices filling the Natsuki residence to the brim. Thus did the horseplay resembling a father-son dispute continue until  \"Put a sock in it, you two. Your mom is getting pretty hungry over here and wants to eat breakfast.\" When an uneven knock and a casual voice flew into the room, the pair engaged in a war of holds came to a complete halt. Both of them teary-eyed from pain, they looked at the entryway, where a single woman stood a middle-aged woman with a foul look in her eyes. At first sight, one might think the look grave, filled with considerable displeasure, but in truth, she wasn't the kind of person to think anything of the sort on the inside, something Subaru knew from seventeen years of being acquainted with her. Subaru could derive all that from a single glance at her foul look, for the woman appearing was his mother, Nahoko Natsuki. Nahoko's words made Kenichi go \"Whoopsie!\" He stuck his tongue out while leaping to his feet and said, \"Sorry, sorry. I lost myself scuffling with Subaru there. You could've eaten without us, you know...\" \" ? Why would I, when we can eat as a family? It's better to eat with everyone together.\" When Kenichi turned his attention her way, Nahoko inclined her head with a mystified look. There was neither sarcasm nor resentment in her speech; it was simply how she really felt. His wife's reply sent Kenichi nodding strongly several times over. \"That's right, so very right. That's my bride! You really get it. Breakfast is much tastier when everyone's faces are gathered in one place! \" \"The taste doesn't change. Everyone eating together means I can wash all the plates at once, though.\" \"Ah, you were talking about the cleanup? Sorry, I guess I got overly worked up by my lonesome.\" Kenichi said a rather nice line, but Nahoko's statement bluntly shot it down. Nahoko looked curious as the blow sent her husband's shoulders sinking. Then she looked in Subaru's direction and said, \"You're coming for breakfast, too, Subaru. Your mom worked hard for your sake today, after all.\" To this, she added a thin smile, which only those close to her understood meant she was in a very good mood indeed. 2 \"Whoa, this is amazin', Subaru. It's a super-special course. It's like a green forest.\" Thus spoke Kenichi, gone from half-naked to clothed, as he went down to the first floor with Subaru. Standing by his father, who wore comically eye-catching glasses, Subaru gazed at the dining table and sighed. \"I'm straight-up grateful. Mm, I seriously feel that way...but what's up, Mom? Why is my plate the only one with a big pile of green peas plopped on top of it?\" Just as Kenichi had pointed out, before Subaru's spot on the dining table was a special course, a large heaping pile of green peas. Incidentally, Subaru really didn't like green peas. He was bad with green vegetables in general, but especially these. \"Hey now, you're always saying how you hate green peas, aren't you, Subaru? It's not good to be picky about your food, so I thought I'd take this opportunity to make you eat lots and put that whole business to rest.\" \"So you relied on a memory you'd eventually forget anyway and decided to correct my likes and dislikes. But what do you mean, this opportunity...? Is today some kind of special day or something?\" \"Heh,"}, {"text": "you're so naive, Subaru. The day that is today...no, any day, any hour is precious time that will never return again in your life, so today may not be special, but it's special in its own way...\" \"You can, um, stop now.\" When Kenichi wedged himself into the conversation, throwing him for a bit of a loop, Subaru sat down with resignation on his face. Then the first thing he did was push the plate packed with green peas away from him. \"Anyway, I'll accept the feelings you felt for me on their own merit...but I'll pass on the green peas. I'm not eating these things even if it's Armageddon.\" \"Sheesh, that kind of like-and-dislike stuff will be a big hindrance to life down the road. Ah, Mom, there's some tomato in my salad. I hate tomato, so give me something else to eat.\" \"That's my father for you, damn it...the first part of what he says has nothing to do with the second.\" The husband passed the tomato in his salad on to his wife, stealing the boiled egg from her salad in turn. Such trades between husband and wife were always occurring in the Natsuki residence. Glancing sidelong at that, Subaru pressed his hands together over everything on the menu except the green peas, which that morning consisted of tofu, miso soup, and honey toast heavy on the honey. \"I think you're always doing this, but why the eclectic Japanese-style food?\" \"Mom used seaweed as an ingredient in the miso soup. I like strawberry jam on my toast, too.\" The reply was not an answer, nor was it consistent with that day's menu. If he pointed that out, Nahoko would no doubt simply give him a mystified look. Accordingly, Subaru didn't trouble himself with pointing it out. \"Mm, this miso soup... That's Mom for you. You've gotten better at this behind my back, haven't you?\" \"You can tell? Actually, I recorded a thirty-minute cooking channel video yesterday over lunchtime.\" \"No way she watched it.\" Kenichi's statement felt strongly appropriate to the moment, and Nahoko's reply felt incongruous with equal strength. Furthermore, if Nahoko's statement were dragged in line with the truth, it would likely go from her having recorded the show to her having only recorded it, most likely never to consider it again. \"Setting that aside, what are you gonna do about this plate of green peas? I tried to pass it to Daddy, Daddy passed it to Mom, and Mom passed it to me, and we've been going around in circles...\" \"But Mom hates green peas. I hate even looking at them.\" \"And you were trying to overcome me being picky?!\" \"Ah, don't misunderstand me, it's not just green peas that Mom hates, it's all food that's little and round like that. It feels icky to put them in my mouth.\" \"That's not a misunderstanding, then if anything it just sounds even fishier than before!\" Deflated by his mother's impactful statement, Subaru grudgingly pushed the plate of green peas Kenichi's way. \"Well, it's the husband's place to take responsibility for the wife, so I'll leave it to Daddy to reap the fruits of defeat.\" \"Hey, don't make me feel all lonely here, Subaru. We're family getting along like few do these days, right? In other words, if Mom hates it, Daddy hates it, too.\" \"Man, I really feel for this forest of green, nobody's happy with it!\" In the end, Kenichi made a face like a mischievous brat as he said, \"Guess we'll have to plop 'em into pilaf until they're all gone. Heh-heh-heh...\" And thus, how to dispose of them was settled. No longer having to solo the green peas, Subaru readily promised to cooperate in their disposal. For her part, Nahoko declared, \"I hate even looking at them,\" completely rejecting them in every way. In the end, it became a competition between the two men to dispose of the green peas, and the family breakfast finally came to an end. \"It was a feast.\" \"Oh, it was nothing special. OK, let's wash all the dinnerware in the sink, then it's a race to school to help with digestion, Subaru!\" \"I keep telling you, give it up with this clich\u00c3\u00a9 rushing-me-off-to-school routine. I'm gonna sleep till noon.\" As the dinnerware was piled into the sink, Kenichi made the offer with a glint of his teeth, leaving Subaru to listlessly shake his head. Then, as he watched both parents head off, Subaru scratched his head as he went toward his bedroom then his feet stopped. \" Ugnh!\" A throbbing pain ran across his temples, making Subaru strongly rub his head and eyes. The light flashing on the backs of his eyelids made him blink, and he felt like he could hear something hot smoldering inside his chest.  Something was off. Something about that morning was odd. \"Subaru?\" From the back of his head, the halted Subaru felt the gazes of his parents. Subaru knew just what emotions were infused into his father's gaze, his mother's gaze, the gazes of both his parents. He didn't turn around. He silenced his head, practically fleeing no, literally fleeing to his own room. \"What? Why, why am I getting these weird feelings like this...?\" Touching a hand to his own breast, Subaru sensed his rapid heartbeats, and even fear. Practically crumbling, he knelt on top of the futon, focusing his restless mind on the clock mounted on the wall. The time was eight AM school started at eight thirty, and it was a twenty-minute jog from home. If he changed clothes, he could just make it without being late. *** But Subaru made no sign of changing clothes as he stared at the movement of the clock from atop the futon. Gradually, the second hand notched forward, and the minute hand moved to ten crossing the deadline. From then on, he would not make it in time for school to begin. However he might struggle, that was absolute. \"...So it can't be helped. Yeah, it can't be helped.\" Perhaps, if there'd been just a little more time until he could harden his resolve, he might have made it to school. But reality had imposed its time limit on Subaru to an exceptional extent. He'd gone beyond it. Therefore, no more would the choice press upon him that day. And yet  \"...Usually, this would calm me down, wouldn't it? What gives...?\" His breath was ragged, his heart rate wouldn't settle, and Subaru desperately tried to suppress the shaking of his body. This was the time for his daily ritual of fear to come to a close. Even though he knew that the same fear would come every day at the same hour, that day's had exceeded all bounds. That morning, no one would censure Subaru any longer. No one would hurry him, or back him into a corner. Whether to go to school the time that tiny question would cause such powerful pain to Subaru had come to an end. It had been several months since he had rejected school and become a delinquent. Though this had given root to a powerful sense of inferiority and self-revulsion, he became relieved every time he confirmed that the time to go to school had passed. This was something Subaru had repeated many times over. Thus, the palpable sense of relief should have been well ingrained in Subaru's flesh. And yet... \"What is it, today of all days...?\" The sense of guilt and self-hatred, the clinging sense of unpleasantness...they just wouldn't vanish. He didn't know where the sense of nervousness plucking at his chest was coming from. Without understanding how to set his breathing straight, Subaru agonized on top of the futon, smeared in disagreeable sweat. Now that he thought back, something had been off from the moment he'd awoken that morning. His father, Kenichi, hatching schemes like that to wake Subaru up was a daily fact of life. Once Subaru stopped going to school, becoming a good-for-nothing in name and fact, his father's approach toward him hadn't changed from before. And yet, the physical contact, the conversing, the holds from his father, now hurt for a different reason. Even if his mother, Nahoko, had all kinds of harebrained ideas that strayed from the mark, with those that misfired, like the one that morning, far more common than those that did not, she'd always put Subaru first always, for seventeen years. Even so, his mother's gaze that morning had instilled a sense of loneliness and thoughts of self-reproach well beyond the norm. Everything was the same as usual, not a thing out of place. And yet, he'd sensed something off about his parents, and about himself. \"The heck. What the heck, what happened? Yesterday wasn't anything spec  Ugh!\" When he thought back to the day before in search of the cause of that morning's change in tone, fireworks scattered inside his head. The pain interrupted his thought process, feeling strangely as if it was preventing Subaru's attempt to touch on his own memory. To prove whether it was so, Subaru would have to challenge the sea of his memory once more and this he did not do. There was no special reason for the odd pain that morning. That day, his feelings of guilt had simply decided to assert themselves as pain. Probably he had been unable to look either of his parents straight in the eye because  \"Subaru, can I come in for juuust a bit?\" A voice came through the door, but the door opened before he could reply. When he let out a heavy breath and turned his head toward it, Kenichi was moonwalking his way into his own son's room. Subaru spontaneously smacked his forehead. \"...Coming in before I answer kind of defeats the point of asking me, doesn't it?\" \"Hey, now. With the hard bonds tying me and you, father and son, together, that's not really nece  Er, it kind of is! Sorry, I wasn't considering that you're in puberty. I'll come again after you've taken care of things.\" \"Don't go back to form and lob weirdly realistic conclusions out like that! I wasn't even doing anything!\" When a crack was evident in the chain between father and son, he made a show of consideration. When Subaru spoke with a ragged voice, Kenichi went \"Reaaally?\" with a suspicious air and entered the room once more. Then he sat on the futon and crossed his arms in Subaru's direction. \"Well, it's fine. We'll leave what just happened as a secret shared by the two of us alone.\" \"There's nothing that needs to be a secret! Just be honest, sheesh! All you're doing is assaulting me before I get back to sleep again!\" \"I get it, I get it  So, then. Let's get to the point. Actually, Subaru, I took time off from work today. Surprised?\" \"...Yeah, I figured that. Daddy's not at the house on a Monday morning very often. And?\" \"Don't be hasty jumping to conclusions. A father-son conversation is like boxing. The jab comes first.\" Kenichi's laid-back smile and demeanor made Subaru feel like he was just drawing out the conversation. He was dancing around the main issue, using words and gestures to make light of things and giving himself and his opponent time to harden their resolve. This was a kind of habit in interpersonal relations Subaru knew well. It was not simply because the apple did not fall far from the tree there was a separate reason, one steeped in incorrigible idiocy. \" Ow!!\" The instant he embraced that sentiment, a sharp pain ran through Subaru's head once more. He began to vaguely suspect just what was causing the pain. But Subaru averted his gaze from Kenichi as he said, \"...And? Now that you've landed the jab, what's Daddy's right-handed punch, your conversation topic, gonna be?\" \"Yes, let's see. Subaru, do you have a girl you like?\" \"What is this, middle school?!!\" \"Ohh, that overreaction is like making a confession, don't ya know?\" \"What gives with you"}, {"text": "saying that with that smug look on your face? Exasperated sighs of lament don't mean anything, you know.\" He'd meant to paper over the sentiment, but that blow had been an unexpected one. But, as a matter of fact, the assertion was off the mark, because Subaru didn't have any interest in such things at that time. He had neither the interest nor a belief that he ought to have one. \"Keh, well, aren't you boring. I laid it all out when you were little, didn't I? Girls have a weakness for promises that happened years ago and situations like that, so go make some and set up some flags, damn it!\" \"If I sincerely took that as truth, I'd have every girl in town pointing me out as a dishonest bastard. I already have too many sins to deal with...you trying to drive me down into a living hell?\" \"...If only you'd inherited my gentle mask. You've got Mom's I-don't-give-a-damn look, plus Daddy's short legs and bad jokes. Your status points are pretty low, huh?\" \"I've been sayin' that since I had a umbilical cord...\" The tension dropped between father and son as they bantered about their hardwired genetic situations. As the diversion ran its course, Subaru returned to \"So?\" once more and asked, \"What was the issue at hand, anyway? After this, I have an important duty to fulfill: sleeping two to three more hours. So if what you want draws a total beeeep, then talk to Mom downstairs, okay?\" \"Don't brush me off all natural like that. Besides, this talk would just fly over Mom's head. My wife and your mom is the worst woman at guessing in the whole world. That's why I can't let her out of my sight, but...\" The natural way he tossed out fond phrases bored Subaru, his adolescent son, to tears. When Subaru hung his head, Kenichi went \"Hmm,\" then twisted his neck a bit and smiled mischievously as he said, \"Well, it happens to be nice weather out how 'bout we dress up and have a little father-son talk outside?\" 3 \"Ohh, Ken. Not often I see you in the morning. They finally fired you, huh?\" \"Don't be stupid. Nothing's getting done in that place without me. Felt bad to work so much that I'm stealing everyone else's job, so I've gotta lay off once in a while.\" Kenichi lobbed his insult with a raise of his middle finger, smiling toward the owner of a nearby bakery as he passed on his bicycle. He proceeded to toss warm words the store owner's way as the latter vanished around a bend, adding afterward, \"Sheesh, everyone talks like I got fired just 'cause they see me taking a day off. Is it so bad I'm nurturing a loving family here? And if I was fired, I'd get a new job before I got busted.\" \"...As a person you're nurturing, I'm praying you don't toss any heart-stopping surprises like that on me.\" Hands thrust into his tracksuit pockets, Subaru watched the conversation with the baker from a distance, with sinking shoulders. \"Hey, hey,\" went Kenichi at his son's demeanor, adjusting the position of his highly conspicuous glasses as he said, \"It's bad enough in your own darned room, but there you are, making that suspicious face when I've dragged you out and the sun's shining this bright on a nice crisp morning like this. You might get stopped by a cop like that.\" \"If I got stopped by a cop, it'd be because Daddy dragged me out at a time like this!! I...said I didn't wanna, but you twisted my arm anyway.\" \"What are you sayin'? That foot dragging was just goin' through the motions. You really love everything about Daddy, don't ya, Subaru? Relax, I love you, too. Next after Mom, that is!\" Their stroll recommenced, and Kenichi's feelings didn't seem all that hurt as he gave Subaru a slap on his back. Subaru grimaced at the force of it, but that moment, his thoughts were stolen by an even greater ache in his breast. After all, simply walking close to his father instilled so much pain, he felt like it would crush his chest. \"Don't be all guarded like that. It's not like I'm gonna talk about anything scary. It's an actual legit father-son talk.\" \"'Legit father-son talk,' eh?\" \"Yep, legit father-son talk  Incidentally, Subaru, which would you rather have...a little brother or a little sister?\" \"Being asked that at seventeen is nothing but scary!!\" He'd lost count of the unexpected blows, but this one left Subaru aghast, voice coarsened. Seeing his son like that, Kenichi went \"I'm kidding, I'm kidding,\" showing off his teeth with a smile. \"Well, Mom and I are certainly still on lovey-dovey terms, but at our age we really don't wanna see more than one of you. So be happy. You're monopolizing my and Mom's love.\" \"Ahh, right, right. Happy, happy... You really are joking, right?\" \"That sounds like the lead up to Nooo, do you hate me that much? and that kind of stuff, huh?\" When the possibility it wasn't merely a joke finally surfaced, Subaru wordlessly reflected on that possibility. Taking in the insecure, objecting gaze, Kenichi laughed keh, keh as he nodded. Subaru and his father were walking on a footpath a short distance from home. Subaru lived in a place with a mildly famous riverside doubling as a spring tourist spot, with cherry trees growing along the embankment. It was currently the wrong season for cherry blossoms, so the embankment was in full leaf instead. Subaru glanced at the trees as he walked with his father around town. \"Ken, what are you doing here in the morning? It's a late hour for starting pachinko, don't ya know.\" \"Oh my, Kenichi. By any chance, were you seduced by the aroma of curry in the daytime?\" \"Oh wow, you're here, Ken? Now that's really funny. Isn't this bad for you? It's funny, though...\" The bright, sunny, average day made the time fly as father and son walked around town that morning, with numerous voices tossed their way.  No, the voices were not being tossed their way. They were limited to the father, Kenichi, alone. Regardless of whether male or female, young or old, there seemed no limit to the people who knew Kenichi's face. That went for the store owner in the shopping district, the housewife taking out the garbage, the senior high school girl with the ganguro look that was rarely seen nowadays, et cetera, et cetera  \"Kenny, it's been a while. You still hanging out with Ikeda, hmm?\" \"That Ikeda guy? He won big at horse racing and used the money to retire and vanish ten years ago. He still sends New Year's cards, summer greeting cards, winter greeting cards, Christmas cards, and cards on his mom and pop's birthdays, though.\" \"I wouldn't call someone in touch that much 'vanished'...\" When Subaru inadvertently interrupted with a quip, he quickly covered his mouth. Overhearing his murmur, Kenichi and the solidly built old man he was speaking to looked over. The other man was wearing green overalls and a tag with the name of the riverside on it, so he seemed like a caretaker of some sort. The old man spurring the conversation must have gone way back with Kenichi, his eyes going round as he looked at Subaru. \"Kenny, it's not often you bring someone along with you... Could that child be...?\" \"Ahh, yeah. This is my son. Nah, I should correct that, my beloved son!\" \"Ohh, I knew it! Somehow, he seemed like the spitting image of you when you were... Ahhh, maybe not so much. He takes after his mother, perhaps?\" \"Errr, ha-ha... I get that a lot. Especially about the look of my eyes.\" Amid the very average construction of his face, he'd inherited Nahoko's extremely characteristic three-whites-eyes look. In terms of outward appearance, about the only thing Subaru had inherited from Kenichi was the somewhat limited length of his legs. When Subaru gave that noncommittal reply, the old man eagerly nodded. \"I am surprised, though. That Kenny got old enough to have a boy this big? Guess I'm getting old, too. If Ikeda was drowning, I don't have any strength in my body left to go swim and save him.\" \"Well, I don't think even that Ikeda guy is enough of a kid to go play in the river and drown...\" \"I certainly hope not. Ikeda and your father just won't settle down like they should at their ages... Did you know they both used to be brats who walked around town kicking up all kinds of ruckus?\" \"...Well, kinda.\" Subaru's reply was on the awkward side. Receiving this, the old man knotted his eyes with a somewhat suspicious look. However, the next moment, the creases of his brow deepened further. \"Come to think of it...today's Monday, isn't it? What are you doing with your father at this hour?\" *** The question he did not want asked, the words he did not want to hear, made Subaru's heart strongly jump. Next came the sharp, stabbing pain like that which had visited him in his own bedroom. Spontaneously, Subaru clutched his painful head and closed his eyes, wringing out \"I'm sorry\" as he turned his back upon the old man. \"Ah, hey, Subaru! Sorry, pops. I'll come again when we can take our time!\" \"R-right... It seems I shouldn't have said that. Apologize to the lad for me, would you?\" The conversation exchanged behind him did not enter his ears. At any rate, Subaru tried to run from the pain threatening to crack his skull, seeking a place where he could get the pounding heartbeats in his chest to calm down, fleeing from the embankment with rapid steps. \"It's nothing you need to apologize for and the rest is his problem.\" While he fled, he never heard Kenichi utter those words behind his back. 4 \"Here, a cold, tasty cola packed with loooove. If you give it a nice, good shake, it's even tastier... Well, I'd like to say that, but this doesn't seem to be the time.\" \"...No one has time to pack anything with love on the way back from the vending machine.\" Accepting it, Subaru felt the coolness of the can on his palm as he put his fingers on the pull tab. Then, after a moment's thought, he pointed the can's lid toward no one in particular before putting strength into his fingers The instant he opened the lid, the contents spewed out with incredible force, reducing its contents by about a third. And, witnessing this  \"Tch.\" \"Don't click your tongue! I've seen this movie before! Aww, my hand's all sticky now!\" Shaking off his cola-bathed hand, Subaru clicked his own tongue at Kenichi's childish prank. Then he put the lightened can to his lips, swallowing down and healing his parched throat in one sitting. He savored the carbonic acid bouncing down his throat, wishing it would wash away even the discomfort welling in his chest. \"So, you've calmed down?\" \"...A little.\" Replying with a sober look, Subaru sank his weight into the bench upon which his butt rested. As his son proceeded to heave a deep sigh, Kenichi, standing right in front of him, opened his can of cola and brought it to his own lips. After fleeing from the footpath, father and son had ended up at a desolate public park for children. Naturally, it being morning on an ordinary weekday, there was no sign of anyone in the park, which liberated Subaru from the strange feeling of being backed into a corner. Even then, the headache was asserting itself, but it had abated to the point that he could converse. He wanted to change the subject, and soon. \"...Incidentally, it took you a bit of time just to go to the vending machine and back. Did something happen?\" \"Mm? Ah, nothing big. I just met a"}, {"text": "high school girl skipping class on my way to the machine. I lectured her about going to school, treated her to juice, traded e-mail addresses, and sent her on her way.\" \"There's no way I'm believing you got to trading e-mail addresses in that short a time!\" He had no words for the notion his father had gotten an e-mail address from a high school girl who was probably just going to the ladies' room for a few. \"Is that so?\" Kenichi asked Subaru, and he inclined his head as he said, \"It doesn't take that much for a girl to give out her e-mail at least. My cell phone's address book has almost three whole pages full of high school girls' addresses I've picked up on the way.\" \"Even if I went to a government office or something I'd probably only get two. Daddy, you're not gonna get caught for some weird offense, are you?\" \"Moron. I'm not interested in doing anything indecent with high school girls. They're children. The destination for my love was set long ago. My passions are for my family alone.\" \"Categorizing it like that makes it sound like I'm included, you know?!\" \"...Well, I do love you. Like a puppy!\" \"Like hell you do! Which one's the moron here?!\" Kenichi responded to Subaru's angry voice with a vulgar, cackling laugh. That laughing voice left no refined echo upon the ear. And yet, for some reason, people didn't find it unpleasant at all. All Kenichi's actions were like that. Everything he did was over the top, deprived of common sense, excessively theatrical, completely the sort of thing other people shunned you for, but for some reason, everyone took it in a really friendly way. It was just that, merely by their going outside for a walk, the decisive difference between Subaru and his father was driven home to a distinctly painful extent. *** \"Looks like you're in pretty bad shape across the board. That being the case, Subaru, how 'bout I carry you home on my back?\" \"I don't need that, and I don't need to go back... Even if I go back, it'll be together and all.\" If anything, his mother, Nahoko, was home, so Subaru's condition would probably get even worse. He was coming to understand the cause of the pain arriving without cease. If his guess was right, the pain began to assert itself whenever he was in the same place as Kenichi and Nahoko, his father and mother. In other words  \"So what, even my body decided to finally chew me out?\" Did it mean his body had finally begun to cry out at the sense of guilt racking him from continuing to flee? He spent day after day holding his knees inside his room as the hands of the clock reproached him for remaining inside his shell. He had an unpleasant feeling, almost as if someone were railing at him over his procrastination in a loud voice from inside his own head. I dunno who you are or from where, but what the hell do you know about me? \"Hey now, Subaru. Let's change the topic you have a girl you like, or something?\" With Subaru cowed into silence, Kenichi repeated the question Subaru had blown off once before. The flippant way he asked it wasn't funny. The first time, Subaru had replied with a strained smile, but now that the question came a second time, it really got on his nerves for some reason. With the aid of the unceasing headache, he felt like replying to the question with extremely crude language  \"Subaru.\" \"Huh?\" Lifting his face, he tried to locate where the whisper in his ear had come from. But, however much his gaze wandered, he could not locate the speaker. The only person in the park besides Subaru was Kenichi. Subaru's making that sudden, idiotic-sounding voice put a suspicious look over that very same Kenichi, who said, \"What's wrong? You look like a guy just about to blurt out the name of the pretty girl he's not supposed to have.\" \"I really do look like that, so I can't say anything about it...but did someone call out my name just now? Daddy, don't tell me you've been practicing mimicking a pretty girl's tone of voice?\" \"Daddy has a variety of little tricks, but that one is not among them. OK, gimme about a month.\" \"I wasn't giving you suggestions! Really, the heck was that?\" The voice had a beautiful echo to it that resonated in the bottom of his heart like a silver bell. It was exceedingly gentle, its reverberation making his chest grow warm, and had such power to it that it made Subaru forget the headache that continued intermittently. Subaru didn't know whence it had come, but the voice had saved Subaru. \"So, back to the earlier question. Have a girl you like?\" \"...What is it with all this? Even if I had one, why ask her name? Not like you'd know who she is, Daddy.\" \"You're the one who doesn't know that. For all you know, maybe I have the e-mail address of the girl you like on my cell phone?\" \"Even a century-long love grows cold.\" To that blunt retort, Kenichi went \"Whaaat?\" raining \"Boos\" upon him in dismay. Glancing at the behavior wholly inappropriate for a man his age, Subaru drank the rest of his cola in one gulp, leaving the can dry. \"You don't need to put it off anymore. You can come right out and say it: 'Why aren't you going to school?' and whatever.\" \"And here I was actually being considerate to someone for once. You're a son who can't read the mood  Well, it's not like you're wrong, that actually is what I wanted to talk to you about...\" \"...I think I'm doing a bad thing to both of you.\" \"You don't really need to think about that. I had a vague idea you had something on your mind, and even if you weren't thinking, well, I can overlook a decent amount of that, so no need to dwell.\" With Subaru airing his side of things a little, Kenichi drank his own pop can dry and sat on the bench. A gentle, refreshing breeze blew between father and son as they sat side by side. The two proceeded to stare ahead, neither looking at the other's face as they wove their words. \"This might not exactly be the prevailing view, but I don't think school is everything. I mean, you won't hear that out of my mouth when I didn't take school seriously, either. I even skipped my graduation ceremony.\" \"And that's why, when you got your high school graduation certificate, you were with a woman two grades below you when she was graduating. My ears are octopuses from hearing that one over and over.\" \"Well I'll make you listen to it till they turn to squids. Since this is me talking, if you don't want to go to school, I don't really think you need to. Now that I'm my age, I do think Sure would've been nice if I'd taken school seriously, but that's not something you're gonna get for a while.\" Kenichi seemed to be gazing somewhere far off as Subaru stared at the side of his face, internally cursing his father for being underhanded. Even though he normally played dumb and showed only his flippant side, he'd set the clownish behavior aside in a place like that. It wasn't fair, not fair at all, enough to make him feel like crying. \"These days, human beings seem to live till they're eighty years old. Isn't that great? If you have eighty years, you can get one or two of 'em back while you're still young. Luckily, I earn some pretty decent money. Like this,\" went Kenichi, tracing a circle with his finger as he laughed with a vulgar look. Subaru didn't even make a sound to Kenichi to show he was keeping up, but his father nodded several times, showing no sign of caring. \"Going through life, you bump into questions without answers that leap out at ya. In my case, I move around and go looking for 'em, but for all I know, maybe you can find answers to some questions rolling around in your room. If you're mulling something over, I ain't gonna complain. If you give up, though...then I might give ya a piece of my mind.\" \"...Why?\" \"Hm?\" \"Why did you feel like talking about this all of a sudden today? It's not like it's some kind of special day, right? It's just a...green peas commemoration day.\" \"That plate sure was full of 'em, huh?\" Though he'd emptied the cola just moments before, it suddenly seemed very dry inside Subaru's mouth. As Subaru seemed to gasp for air, his father patiently waited for a reply. Watching from the side as Subaru became agitated, Kenichi went \"Hmm,\" twisting his neck several times before saying, \"Why, I wonder. I just happened to be off work, and I was wiping myself with a dry towel this morning, and I was like...the horoscope said Aquarius would have a great day, plus there was the look on your face this morning... Somehow, you looked just a little better, so I figured you might be up to talking about it.\" \"My face looked better? \"I'm talking about the expression on your face. Your face itself is the same, and you still have that villainous look in your eyes just like your mother.\" Setting the three-whites-eyes business aside, Subaru touched his own face with a hand as he mulled over Kenichi's words. There was no proof for what his father had said. That his face was better meant that there had been a change. But whence in Subaru's way of life to date had such a change come about? Nowhere. Therefore, Kenichi had to have misread him. Nothing had changed yesterday, nor would it tomorrow. That was fine, and that was what he intended. If he kept it up, no doubt at some point Kenichi and Nahoko would realize it just what, exactly, Subaru was really after. \" Nhhha!\" The moment he thought it, an impact shot through his brain enough to make him think fireworks had gone off in front of his eyes. His heart rate became like an alarm bell; he could hear the exaggerated sound of blood flowing through his eardrums. The world going hazy before his eyes and his having a rising urge to vomit had a common cause: the unpleasant feeling inside his chest had begun to assert itself once more. The sharp pain in his head, the uncomfortable feeling in his chest both were trying to tell Subaru something. \"Hey now, you seriously look like you're having a hard time. Are you all right, Subaru?\" Naturally, Kenichi couldn't ignore the sight; he reached out a hand to Subaru's shoulder with a worried look on his face. When Subaru felt the touch of his palm, he lifted up his face, sweat on his brow as he tried to think of some kind of reply. \"It's been hard for you, hasn't it?\" *** Subaru's entire body ran hot when the silver bell voice made his ears quiver once more. It was a voice full of affection and sympathy. The voice seemed to melt Subaru's strained heart, impeding his suffering as the swelling heat swallowed up the pain and the cracks therein. The voice was scorching him. He chased after it. Without restraint, he clung to it to take back  \"Thank you, Subaru.\" \"You're...\" The sight of silver hair dancing in the wind was seared into his vision. She gazed straight at Subaru with eyes like radiant, violet gemstones. The words she wove with her lips were all filled with loveliness. \"For coming to save me.\" What, what, what, what, what the hell? Who, who, who, who, who, who, who was this? \" Subaru.\" His breath caught. His throat was"}, {"text": "hot. Something was welling behind his scorched eyes. \"May the blessings of the spirits be with you.\" His fingertips trembled. He couldn't put strength into his legs. His lungs convulsed, and his soul began to scream. \"I think you're the one who's reaaally incredible, Subaru.\" He covered his face with his shaking hands, holding back the sobs in his trembling throat. The welling heat was trickling from his eyes... \" Subaru, why do you come to save me?\" The answers to his questions were already inside him. The instant he found them, the ferocious emotions and the sense of discomfort inside Subaru both vanished. The skull-splitting pain, the rising urge to vomit, the dizziness making the world grow hazy, the heartbeats growing more urgent as a decision seemed to draw near where all of them converged, Subaru Natsuki found his answer. He lifted his face, wiping away the tears that seemed due to trickle down any moment. As if to shake off the tears of regret on that sleeve, he strongly, strongly clenched his fist. And then  \"Sorry to make you worry. I'm all right now.\" \"That so? If you're just down in the dumps, that's fine, but don't make me worry so much.\" \"Yeah, my bad. Besides, about the question from earlier...\" Shrugging off the hand of his father supporting his shoulder, Subaru turned toward him. As they sat closely on the bench, his father's face was peering into his own with a look of concern. Now that he thought about it, he realized that even though they'd exchanged words many times that day, he had not looked straight at his father's face even once. Wanting to flee even then, he smiled bitterly at his own weakness. \"I found a girl I like so I'm all right now.\" With the sight of the silver-haired girl still fresh in his mind, Subaru Natsuki confronted his own past. 5 \"I found a girl I like.\" When he put the words on his lips once more, Subaru had the palpable sense of his heart walking forward. The inside of his head was clear. The pain, like a prolonged curse, had vanished. As he was then, Subaru had resolve sufficient to face his father and tell him everything. Before his eyes, Kenichi blinked several times over, surprised by the confession disconnected from the conversation to that point. \"...Is that so?\" With a quiet voice, he lent the words of Subaru, the words of his own son, his ears. His demeanor was a blessing to Subaru. Even though Subaru ought to have always known he was the kind of man to lend an ear like that, Subaru had continued to hold his tongue. But that had come to an end. That was because there was someone gently pushing on his back, urging him forward. \"What might've shaken me up, what might've made me curl up in a ball, I remember it all now no, I knew everything all along. I knew it, but I just pretended to not see the weakness in me that I thought only I noticed... But while I was pretending, someone...\" He couldn't hide it by saying someone. He knew who that someone was. \"I wanted...Dad and Mom to smack me.\" *** \"I was an unsalvageable little good-for-nothing idiot, a complacent piece of garbage, so I wanted you two to smack me...to make me give that up.\" Without a word, Kenichi gazed at Subaru, his eyes never wavering. The face Subaru saw reflected in those eyes was altogether too weak, unworthy of pity, and thus, he continued. \"I've used any petty little tricks I could since a long time ago. Whether it's studying or athletics, I easily pulled off stuff that not many people can do, leaving the people who can't do it all mystified.\" Thinking back to his youth, he could have called what he'd had an adorable sense of omnipotence. At a young age, Subaru had been quicker on the uptake with both athletics and academics than the average person. As if by nature, he was more clever and fleeter of foot than those around him, inevitably becoming the center of attention among children his own age  \"He really is that man's son.\" Thus was Subaru appraised; thus did the adults close to home praise him frequently. Since that him was his father, the young Subaru had been proud to be valued as his son. For in the eyes of the son, the father Kenichi Natsuki was an attractive individual. He laughed a lot, he smiled a lot, he cried a lot, he got angry a lot, he moved a lot, he worked a lot. There were always a great deal of people around his father. He was adored by many, and his smiling face was the axis around which they revolved. And that very father announced in public that the two members of family Subaru and his mother were the most precious things to him of all. Subaru took pride in that. He felt it gave him a special right to a boastful sense of superiority. Someday, he wanted to be like his father to Subaru, that was a natural wish. \"But at some point down the line... I don't remember it, but I lost a footrace to someone. I went from being number one to not being number one. Faster, smarter guys than me came out of the woodwork, and I dropped from number one bit by bit... I thought There's gotta be something wrong with this.\" The more the wrongness got to him, the more the star above his head seemed to move away, with each and every glimmering star between him and it forming the path he needed to take to get closer. He harbored nervousness that the star might disappear. But even with that impatience within him  \"He really is that man's son.\" Those words alone were Subaru's salvation, the hope to which he clung. Even if he was not as fleet of foot, even if he was not as good at studying, those words bolstered the young Subaru's dignity. More than training to run fast, more than doing his homework, he came to put stupid things first. He sneaked into school at night with his friends, wandered aimlessly around the town, chased a famously dangerous stray dog from everyone's hangout spot in this way, Subaru ran around protecting his pride to keep everyone from being fed up with him, thus protecting the meaning of his own existence. \"It's stupid to work hard. Having fast feet is nothing to be proud of. How I made everyone laugh was a lot stronger, a lot more impressive than that.\" What others feared, he made his priority; what others detested, he made his own desire. Thus, he continued to challenge himself with precious care, with bold recklessness, so that he did not lose his place. \"But of course, the longer that continued, the next thing I was gonna do had to be even bigger. I couldn't do anything that was smaller than what came before it. I didn't want anyone to think I was boring.\" Thus, Subaru's actions had to be more and more extreme. Subaru Natsuki had to be braver than anyone, more extravagant than anyone, more liberated than anyone he had to be someone everyone could continue to look up to. That was the veneer he adopted. Using the veneer, he hid the fact that it was a veneer so even he couldn't notice it, and he had to do more, more, more, to deceive himself and the people around him. After all, he was Kenichi Natsuki's son Subaru Natsuki. \"I thought I can do anything. I made myself think I can do anything. That's how what I did got stupid, just me flailing around without any thought...\" And so he was like a moth drawn to the flame, seeking light, never realizing that it would burn him. However, Subaru was not a moth, and the same went for Subaru's friends. His friends had gotten it a long, long time ago. There hadn't been any particular trigger for it. The number of friends associating with Subaru's recklessness dwindled. \"I thought Those guys are dimwits. You'll never have this kind of fun if you aren't together with me. I'd make those guys regret it. They could just idly pass the time away with boring stuff. I was aiming for even higher places.\" If he continued chasing the star like that, he'd lose sight of the other stars above his head. Unable to see all the stars filling up the sky, Subaru desperately chased after the glimmer of the one star that remained, gazing at that star alone as he continued running after it when he suddenly realized. \"There was no one left around me but me.\" Naturally. With Subaru continuing to do things his own way, heedless of everything around him, even the people who'd thought it was funny at first would not follow as he escalated his exploits to new heights. Not noticing this, he distanced himself from them, laughing derisively at them and calling them dimwits, but Subaru, now the only one left, found his thoughts harboring worry and doubt, and thus, he distanced himself even more. And thus did the cycle repeat itself until  \"Even though the sky has so many glittering stars, I lost sight of every last one.\" Having lost sight of the starlight, and having lost all the friends around him, when Subaru was left all alone, enveloped by darkness, he finally came to realize it for himself.  He wasn't a special person at all. \"He really is that man's son.\" Those were the magical words that the young Subaru had embraced with pride. But somewhere along the line, the words transformed into a curse. The curse rotted his heart. When he lost his place, he felt as if someone was chasing him, making him unable to breathe. \"By going outside, walking around town, I understood. Wherever I went, whatever I saw, there were traces of my dad everywhere... Of course there were.\" In Subaru's confined world, he had come to admire his father. He'd wanted to see the same sights his father had. To Subaru, who sought the same things his father had found everywhere he went, there was nowhere he could look within that confined world and not sense traces of his father. In stages, the world became a scary place to Subaru. What simultaneously rotted Subaru's heart was the realization he himself was mediocre, and the realization he didn't want either of his parents or any of the people who knew his father to know this; in other words, shame. Subaru Natsuki, the son of Kenichi Natsuki, could not become known as a person who shrank in timidity from the public's gaze, a coward whose head harbored misconceptions and fear about a widening world. From late elementary to middle school, through strenuous effort, Subaru managed to pass the time without standing out whatsoever. Classmates who knew Subaru from his lower school years couldn't wrap their heads around the change in Subaru, but even they, children at an emotionally sensitive point in their lives, never noticed the darkness enveloping their fellow classmate's heart. And what put him beyond salvation was that Subaru was crafty where the issue was concerned. Though he passed his school days without standing out, he continued to behave in the same old uninhibited manner at home. \"Even just remembering it, I shudder at how I passed the time back then. But that's how I managed to get through middle school... Even though we lived in the same town, most of my classmates stopped going to the same school as me. Guess because of test results?\" Even Subaru, who'd spent several years in such a backward-thinking fashion, harbored a faint hope from the radical change in environment. When he advanced into high school, the environment, one where no one knew his past, might generate new relationships and if that was to happen, no one would see Subaru as"}, {"text": "Kenichi Natsuki's son. Mustering all the meager courage inside himself, Subaru decisively stepped off the beaten path. \"Even for me, I totally blew my grand high school debut. A guy who couldn't have proper interpersonal relationships in little and middle school was never gonna cut it in a place with all new faces. I did bold and reckless stuff to shake off the tension, and the result was... Even an idiot could guess.\" Even though it would be plain to an idiot, to Subaru it was not. The result hardly needed to be spelled out. Subaru had never seen examples of how to approach other people beyond those of his father. He had nothing save his father as a reference for how to build relationships in a new environment. Even if he knew stuff to make people laugh at a young age, to classmates undergoing psychological changes on the way to the second stage of their lives, it was nothing but poison. From the first step into a new environment, he had gone badly astray. Thus, Subaru established his isolated position as a dork, someone who couldn't read the mood. He wasn't ostracized. He simply spent his school life being treated like thin air. And then, as the days passed, one morning, he thought... \"I just don't wanna go to school today. It was a morning when errands meant Dad and Mom were both out, so even when it was past the usual wake-up time, I turned over and nodded back off I was super surprised when I realized it was just before noon. After that, when I got up to change in a huge hurry...\" Subaru realized that his own mind and body were exceptionally at ease. \"After that, it was just a drag. I skipped one day a week, then it was once every three days, then once every two... It didn't take even three months before I stopped going to school altogether.\" The days that followed hardly needed to be spoken of. Once he stopped going to school, Subaru's heart was filled with a sense of relief. Yes, he was liberated from the painful times he underwent while at school, but that wasn't the main reason. It wasn't a big reason, either. He'd become Subaru Natsuki, smug juvenile delinquent. Looking at that Subaru, no one would think He really is that man's son anymore. But more than that, the exceedingly pathetic sight of Subaru like that would make both his father and mother stop loving him. No matter how unsightly, how deplorable Subaru had become, both his parents had loved him. That's what scared him the most. Nothing frightened Subaru as much as that fact. And then, to Subaru Natsuki, Kenichi Natsuki and Nahoko Natsuki would say  \"'I don't love you. I hate you. You're...not my child.' I wanted you to do that, to say that, to throw me aside. I wanted to make you...give up on me.\" With fleeting hope, he'd looked up at the sky, expecting to find the star that could never have been. A human being as pathetic and mewling as Subaru was a fool unworthy of being Kenichi Natsuki's son. And thus, he wanted to be cast aside. Not even Subaru himself realized that was what rested within Subaru's heart. Unable to accept how weak and stupid he was, pushing onto others the task of cleaning up the mayhem that appeared in his wake, he averted his eyes, hating himself all the same. In spite of all that, Subaru had not ended up shunned and abandoned by all, because someone had been there to support him. \"It is easy to give up  However...it does not suit you, Subaru.\" The image of the silver girl imprinted on the backs of his eyelids now had a flickering blue radiance superimposed upon it. With that, a warm breeze blew into Subaru's heart, making him pledge to move his listless limbs once more. \"Subaru, I love you.\" With those words, she had given Subaru a push right when he should have been finished. Because he realized that, because he remembered that, he set his heart on walking forward from zero and to do that, he had to settle things with the past, the minus that came before zero. \" Yes. My hero...is the greatest in the whole world.\" *** Having listened to Subaru's long monologue to its completion, Kenichi closed his eyes, sinking into thought.  In the end, the same as before, Subaru was forcing someone else to clean up after him. Because he lacked the courage to identify his own flaws, because he didn't want to become the greatest villain in his own world, because he wanted to be the heroic main character, he kept making someone else play the villain. He'd believed that if he did that someday, Kenichi would break the door down, bringing it all to an end. He'd spent day after day in foolish sloth, expecting that someone else would handle things. It was with that deadlocked mental state that he had arrived in that other world. And, even in a place like that, Subaru had continued his conceited ways, until finally  \"Subaru.\" Eyes closed, Kenichi stood before Subaru and addressed him by name. When those words brought him back to reality, Subaru looked up at his father. To Subaru, ready to accept whatever Kenichi might say, whatever Kenichi might think, in its full, unvarnished form, he  \"Father head!!\" \"Gahhh?!\" Taking an unexpected blow to his cranium, Subaru reeled as fireworks scattered in his eyes. Toward his son, eyes tearful from the sharp pain, Kenichi powerfully thrust a finger and said, \"You see that, Subaru? That's my angry blow, the father head move I've filled with love.\" \"Wasn't that a heel drop?! What 'head'?! Was that just to throw me off?!\" \"That's what stretching after a bath does for you. Got my leg pretty high up there, didn't I?\" Kenichi began stretching his supple hip joints on the spot. His father's demeanor defied his expectations, leaving Subaru half in tears, unsure what he should say. Subaru had been expecting something else  \"Gotta say, though, Subaru. You're, well...a pretty big moron.\" \"Uhh...?\" Insulted by the rather disconnected words, Subaru couldn't get a single word out when Kenichi crossed his arms and continued. \"In the first place, there's a lot that rubs me the wrong way, but there's one thing that's the biggest. You're the one who thought you'd get me to hate you. The way you did it was by rejecting school. And you thought, somewhere along the line, your dad would blow a fuse and yell at you... That's stupid on a fundamental level, you know?\" \"I can't really say I disagree, but...\" \"I mean, if you want me to abandon you, you've gotta be more proactive about it. Who abandons his own kid just because he crawls into his own shell? If you want me to hate you, you should commit genocide on half of humanity for no particular reason. Then I'll hate you.\" \"That's a crazy thing to ask for!! You don't see many villains like that even in shonen manga!!\" \"To me, what you wanted me to do is just as crazy.\" The blunt retort silenced Subaru. \"Got it? Even if you were as slow-witted as a snail, a big idiot who can't even pick a banana hanging in front of his face, or even someone who bragged about harming yourself on some big high-profile blog...\" \"I ain't that slow-witted or stupid...\" \"But even if you were slow-witted, an idiot, or a moron, I wouldn't hate you or abandon you. That's how it should be, right? I'm your father, and you're my son.\" Exhaling in exasperation as he spoke, Kenichi made a nggh sound as he stretched his back. When he sat, and Subaru, dumbfounded, gazed up at his father, Kenichi closed one eye. \"It's my son's twisted nature to be just short of dumb, just shy of an idiot, and on a straight line toward being a moron. If you really want, I can smack that out of you by force, but...\" *** \"It seems like you got up again after breaking down to the point that I don't need to.\" Perhaps Kenichi had seen something in Subaru's face. His words made Subaru slowly get up. When father and son faced each other head-on, the son's expression made the father moisten his lips. \"This morning, I thought You've changed from before all of a sudden. What happened to your face?\" \"...I told you. I found a girl I like.\" A silver radiance led Subaru Natsuki by the hand. \"Besides, there was a girl who said she would love even a guy like me.\" A warm, blue light gently pushed on Subaru Natsuki's back. \"Those girls, they don't know me as the son of Kenichi Natsuki. When I'm with them, I'm just Subaru Natsuki... No...\" Shaking his head, he gazed firmly at the father before him and went on. \"I was Subaru Natsuki in front of everyone. All on my own, I worried about being some poster child and ended up crushed by a weight that wasn't even really there. I finally get that now.\" \"Took ya long enough. I'm the central pillar of the family. A guy who didn't inherit the job had better not carry any social burdens like that till you're a full member of society. I'll slap you silly otherwise.\" \"This coming from a guy who dropped his heel onto my head just now?!\" When Subaru complained again about the painful blow, Kenichi went \"Sorry, sorry,\" smiling without a shred of guilt. Then Kenichi's eyes became tense. \"More importantly, you said you found a girl you like, and you said there was a girl who said she likes you... What's up with that? Are you two-timing them? A guy like you...?\" \"Whaddaya mean, a guy like me?! To be honest, even I think I'm not qualified! But I can't help it! So I have two number one stars, what's the big deal?!\" It was unforgivable no matter how he might frame it, but at the moment, those were Subaru's honest feelings. He loved Emilia. He loved Rem. They had given Subaru the strength to stand, to walk, and to face his own past, even in front of Kenichi. The light that the pair gave off rivaled the starry sky Subaru had once had above his head. When Subaru was outside his room, unexpectedly invited to another world, he became desperate, suffered pain and anguish, cried out in tears, lamented and raged, laughed in delight, and finally obtained a new sky filled with stars. \"Well, it's fine if you can get by without making the two of 'em cry... By the way, don't make 'em cry. If you can manage that, I won't object. Looks like you've got your own way with people.\" \"If I had that, my high school debut wouldn't have been such a black stain on my past. I can't do it like you, Dad.\" \"Do you really think that? You're my son, y'know. Besides, seems like you've got a bunch of misunderstandings about me, but that one's the worst, I figure.\" \"That?\" As Subaru inclined his head, Kenichi wagged a finger atop his crossed arms. \"Yeah. I'm all bouncy like this in front of you and your mom, but Daddy completely behaves according to time, place, and occasion, okay? Maybe you wouldn't know it because I'm always in full-throttle family-love mode in front of you, but what, you think Daddy can pull an act like that and it'll just work on everyone...?\" \"Wait, wait, hold on...\" \"Ain't it obvious? No one wants to get close to a guy who's that high tension the first time you meet him. That's why you've gotta keep your collar straight until you get along better. You've gotta wait a while before you undo the buttons. If you start in April, gotta hold out until the end of June for"}, {"text": "that.\" The Shocking Truth: Father Revealed to be a Man of Common Sense and Appropriate Conduct. Ignorant of this until now, Subaru had been shallow enough to believe he could just mimic his father to become a popular guy. \"Why'd I agonize for all that time, then...!\" \"Aww, don't worry about it. It's my fault for not noticing how much you looked up to me because I'm simply that awesome. Sorry that I'm just too big a presence in your life!\" \"Even though it's true, I really don't feel like acknowledging it!!\" Patting the lamenting Subaru on the shoulder, Kenichi did what he always did: step on the naive parts of Subaru and grind them underfoot. As he quipped at his father, Subaru felt something hard and heavy inside his heart fade away and vanish. The dark recesses were brightening with the approach of daybreak, and his vision opened to greet the dawn. Subaru had confessed that he was conceited and self-serving, and yet the result was only relief. Facing his past like that was making a statement: parting ways with his weakness and embracing what he wanted for himself in the future, his current self could walk forward with pride from now on. That was why  \"Ha-ha-ha. Don't blush so much. You're still my son with my blood in ya. I'm sure you've got it in you to be half as cool as I am.\" \"Only half, eh? Normally, your genes get refined as you spend time in the world, right?\" \"But half of you comes from your mom, y'see. Even if you've got my coolness in ya, the Nahoko part cancels it out, so I don't feel like I can expect much from the final judgme \" \"Sorry, Mom, he's got me there!\" Unable to stand up for his mother, who wasn't present, Subaru put his empty hands together and apologized. Laughing at the sight, Kenichi let his shoulders sink in exasperation as he moved on. \"This should lessen the burden on your shoulders a bit. The rest is talk about the future. It's all ahead from here.\" \"Ahh, yeah. Err, I really am sorry for causing you all that tr \" \"If you feel sorry for it, just spend a proper amount of time paying us back. You're the oldest son, so you'd better take real good care of me and your Mom later in life.\"  When those words were spoken to him, Subaru was unable to move. *** He'd had the resolve to apologize for how he had been to date. He'd had the determination to confess his current feelings. These things, he had accomplished, finally dissolving that which had haunted Subaru for many long years, making him think he could face his father and mother again with sunny feelings. He'd confessed everything about himself to date  \"Ugh!!\" But the instant the conversation broached \"from there on,\" what permeated Subaru's entire being was  \"...I-I'm sorry...\" \"Subaru?\" \"I'm s...I'm so...I'm sorry...s-sorry, sorry...shorry...!!\" From in front of him came Kenichi's bewildered voice. But Subaru didn't see his face. The flood of tears pouring forth clogged Subaru's vision, making the contours of the world vague. He covered his face with his palms, desperately trying to wipe the overflowing tears. However, as much as he tried, the tears were unending. They wouldn't stop. He couldn't stop them. \"I'm sorrrryyy... I-I...can't be together with... I'm so...s-sorry...\" He'd realized it. Somewhere in his heart, he'd realized it long before. He'd been invited into another world. The first instant the dazzling light of its sun shone down on him, making him squint, it had been like a revelation, and somewhere deep inside, Subaru had known. He'd probably never return to his own world again. His parents had raised him well enough for him to find the strength to repent before his father like that, confess the dark emotions roiling inside his chest, and yet gain forgiveness. All that was underpinning his resolve to walk forward once more. \"But in spite of that, I...haven't given anything back... I'll probably never see you again... I'm sorry, I'm sorry. \"...I'm sorry. I'm shworry. I'm sorry.\" The tears would not stop. There, that moment, ferocious emotions seemed to churn inside him. Yet even so, Subaru remained standing, not crumbling to the ground. Here, there was someone who held Subaru as he cried. Supporting his son, now almost as tall as he was, he patted Subaru's back with his big, strong palms like he would for any crying child. \"...Goodness. No matter how much time passes, you're still a high-maintenance son.\" 6 \"You've calmed down?\" \" Yeah, sorry. I really caused you a lot of trouble.\" \"Ya sure did. Look at my shirt. I've got tears and snot all over the middle of it. I can't walk around and have the neighbors see me like this, it's embarrassing.\" Subaru was no longer crying when Kenichi flicked his forehead with a finger, the corners of his mouth curling into a smile. With that grin on his face, he gazed at Subaru who, after bawling his eyes out, wore an expression that was equal parts sad and apologetic. Kenichi sighed as he spoke again. \"I'm not sure what you were sobbing like that for, but it's embarrassing, so I'll keep it a secret. Be grateful to me for that at least.\" \"...Yeah. I'm grateful. Truly, from the bottom of my heart, more than anyone in the world.\" \"If you put it that way even I'm gonna blush...\" When his father scratched his own face with an embarrassed smile, Subaru lowered his listless gaze. Kenichi's shoulders sank when he saw his son's demeanor. Then he waved as if shooing a fly away as he pushed on. \"OK, crybaby, head home already. Daddy's still in the mood to stroll around a bit, so I'll head back after a little detour. I'll get weird looks if I'm walking around with a guy crying like you.\" \"...They'd wonder what in the world that father and son are doing at their age, huh?\" \"Damn right they would. If I go back home with you together now, I'll get embarrassed by weird rumors between my friends, so...\" \"You know, those are, like, famous last words, so watch out, okay?\" Poking fun at his father's statement reflexively, Subaru felt painful nostalgia running through his heart. Gritting his teeth and biting it back down by force, Subaru went, \"Later,\" raising a hand Kenichi's way. \"I'll head back first, then. Just make sure the cops don't stop you for anything, 'kay, Daddy?\" \"Sorry, I ain't biting on that joke. Everyone round these parts knows me already.\" \"I wasn't joking.\" Once again, he was saved by his father's unchanging demeanor. Subaru hated himself for that. Just how much did he crave the chance to depend on and wish to be indulged by others? He really was incorrigible. *** He didn't want to show Kenichi such weakness any longer. Taking a single, deep breath, Subaru then turned his back on his father, setting his mind on becoming a stronger person. At that rate, he was set to walk out at a rapid pace, departing as quickly as poss  \" Hey, Subaru.\" From behind, Kenichi's voice brought his feet to a spontaneous halt. \"I'm sure you've got a lot of stuff goin' on, so I only have one thing to say to you.\" *** \"Hang in there I've got high hopes for you, Son.\" Subaru had always clenched a worry of betraying his father's expectations without ever letting it go. So to Subaru, his father's expectations were fear itself  \" Yeah, you can count on me, Daddy.\" His back still turned, Subaru extended an arm. He thrust a finger toward the heavens, speaking in a loud voice. \"My name is Subaru Natsuki. Son of Kenichi Natsuki I can do anything, and that's how it's gonna be. Your son's hot stuff.\" \"Yeah, I know. I made half of ya, after all!\" \"Hee-hee,\" went Kenichi, his faith-filled, laughing voice showering Subaru from behind. When he heard this, Subaru's own lips broke into a smile. Back still turned, he set off. His knees weren't shaking. His heart wasn't wavering. He simply stared straight ahead as he walked forward. Behind him was the man he had looked up to for so long. This time, Subaru would let that man watch his back as he walked on. He did that while thinking to himself how much strength he had needed from others to achieve that one simple thing. Then Subaru Natsuki continued walking forward, never to stop again. 7 With his arms through the sleeves his freshly ironed white shirt, Subaru put his legs through his good-as-new slacks. Waging a difficult battle, he tied his deep-green necktie in front of the mirror before finally putting on his navy-blue blazer. \"Student Subaru Natsuki, complete... Man, it's been around three months, huh?\" Checking his completed version reflected in the mirror, Subaru breathed out, his face proclaiming that one task was done. There hadn't been a Subaru wearing his long-sleeved student uniform reflected in the mirror for quite a while. He recalled that tying the necktie of his blazer-type high school uniform every morning had been a real pain in the butt. Flicking a finger off the flat knot of the necktie, he turned his back to his reflection and picked up his schoolbag. For all appearances, that much, at least, looked well within the realm of perfect preparation by a student preparing to attend high school. \"Unfortunately, it's about time the third homeroom period started. Ain't well within at all.\" Scratching his head with a bitter smile, Subaru stretched his hand out a little on his way out of the room. Stopping just before he left, he looked back. To Subaru, who'd never experienced a change in residence, that room was the only place he could call \"my own room.\" Since entering middle school, he'd spent over five years in that room. It would be the last time he saw that place, too. *** Subaru said nothing. He merely lowered his head in silence. That single gesture contained five years' worth of feelings in it. When his long, long period of bowing ended, Subaru lifted his head and departed the room with sunnier feelings. He proceeded to head down the stairs to the first floor, pushing open the living room door. And then  \"Oh my, when you asked me where your uniform was, I thought you might burn it, so I made all kinds of preparations...all for nothing, it would seem.\" \"Your son asks where his uniform is and the first thing you think of is burning it? Wait, when you guessed I'd burn it, your 'preparations' meant getting sweet potatoes and sausage skewers ready...?\" The reclothed Subaru was met by his mother, Nahoko, who seemed quite disappointed her off-the-cuff prediction had not borne fruit. Behind his mother, he saw that she was done preparing for a barbecue in the cramped kitchen. After parting ways with Kenichi, Subaru had returned home and asked Nahoko where his uniform was. Having shaken free of his past, her son had made the statement with a sunny look on his face and this had been his mother's reaction. \"I give up on whether it's good guessing or bad, but this angle is definitely not what I expected...\" \"Yes, yes, it looks very good on you. The outfit cancels out the foul look in your eyes. You look rather calm...\" \"Mom, your current approach is taking all my serenity away from me!\" \" ? What are you all riled up about? Hey, want to glug down some mayonnaise with Mom?\" With a mystified look, Nahoko presented the mayonnaise she'd placed on the table. The mayonnaise in the Natsuki residence was somewhat famous to all local mayo lovers. Kenichi, Nahoko, and of course Subaru employed various mayonnaises, and glugging mayo was a daily sight during mealtime, getting out of the bath, and sometimes even in the middle of the night. Indeed, when Subaru fell"}, {"text": "into distress from lack of mayonnaise in that other world, he'd used modern knowledge to successfully re-create mayonnaise on that end. Mayonnaise was inseparable from the Natsuki family. It was a must-have item. \"But right now, I don't feel like...\" \"I suppose not.\" The mayonnaise had SU written on the lid, marking it as belonging to Subaru. When he gently pushed the mayonnaise offered to him away, Nahoko gave a knowing nod. \"I mean, Subaru, you really don't like mayonnaise that much, do you?\" *** \"You were just licking it with Dad and Mom because we like it so much, weren't you?\" Placing the mayonnaise marked for Subaru on the table, Nahoko murmured thusly in roundabout fashion. Hearing this, Subaru gasped in surprise. He breathed in, virtually wringing out his voice before gingerly posing a question. \"Wh-what basis do you have for...?\" \"Well, Subaru. If it was the world or mayonnaise, which would you choose?\" \"Er, probably the world...\" \"You see?\" \"That's a really bad example! Don't go 'You see?' with that smug look! Anyone picking mayonnaise there isn't picking out of love for mayo, but hatred for the world!!\" As he raised his voice at Nahoko's rather off-the-mark view, Subaru's shoulders heaved with heavy breaths as he glared at the mayonnaise on the table on the inside, he wasn't calm in the slightest. Whether he was a card-carrying member or not, Subaru had pride as a mayo lover, enough that if someone asked him to pick between it and a deserted tropical island, he'd pick mayonnaise in a heartbeat. But if asked the reason he was so hung up on mayonnaise in the first place, he'd have to say  \"I guess I hard-core have a complex for a happy family...\" \"You'd slap super on it?\" \"That'd make it a Super Family Complex aka Sufami, and that just sounds wrong.\" Having engaged in such absurd conversation, Subaru let out a long breath with a pained smile. Then he slowly picked up the mayonnaise atop the table. \"Ah...,\" Nahoko began. \"Mmm, delicious! Genuine mayonnaise really is way different! Can't enjoy this taste anywhere but my homeland! Over there isn't bad, either, but it's a pale shadow compared to the real deal!\" Wringing off the lid from the nearly full mayonnaise jar, he guzzled it down in one go. The tasty acidic flavor atop his tongue raced through him, with heat shooting down his throat that seemed to burn his chest. This was the supreme, a-mayo-zing taste that mayo addicts could not help but love. \"Maybe I don't love mayonnaise as much as you two do, but I'm still a genuine mayo lover. I swear on the mayo lids of all the mayo I've licked to this day.\" Incidentally, Subaru had kept the lids from his old mayonnaise jars, stuffing them into a corner of his room. They actually numbered 776  \"And this makes triple sevens. I'll have to stick it in my collection later.\" \"Ohh, congratulations on your third seven. Your father was really happy when he got his fourth a little while back.\" \"My love's literally incomparable to his!\" Nahoko accepted the empty mayonnaise bottle with an amused look. His mother's comment made his sense of accomplishment feel somewhat tarnished, but Subaru immediately smoothed over his feelings. \"Well...guess I'd better head off, then.\" \"Ah, if you're going to the store, I want some cream puffs, so make sure to buy some.\" \"You see me like this, put your guessing gears in motion, and you say that?!\" As he spread both arms out to show off his school uniform, Nahoko went \"I'm kidding, I'm kidding\" and smiled at her son as she said, \"Ah, you're going to school now? Mom's happy for you, but...won't you stand out in a bad way? If you can put it off till tomorrow, why not put it off?\" \"Hey, stop putting a damper on your son's enthusiasm like that. Even if others are strict with me, I'm soft on myself and a slacker to the core, you know.\" \"If you were really like that, your mother wouldn't have such a hard time, Subaru.\" When Subaru quipped at his own expense, Nahoko pretended not to get it as she shook her head. Her reply made Subaru narrow his eyes, but Nahoko went \"All right then\" and straightened her back as she said, \"Well then, hold on a second. Mom's going to get her coat.\" \"What do you mean, wait... Hold on, you're coming with me?! Having a parent go with you to school when you quit being a hermit is, like, a level worse than a humiliation game!\" \"I'm not going all the way to school. I'm just going out to the store to buy mayonnaise and cream puffs. What, I can't indulge you that much?\" \"Huh?! That makes it sound like I was asking you to come with me?!\" The incomprehensible flow of events made Subaru's eyes bulge. \"Yes, yes,\" said his mother in a perfunctory reply as she headed to her own room. It felt like a prelude to having a parent chaperone him to school for sure. \"No, no... Man, gimme a break here.\" As he spoke those words, Subaru's cheeks faintly relaxed from relief. At that point, even Subaru was aware the reason for his relief was that the time when he'd have to say goodbye to his mother had been pushed a little farther down the road. 8 \"It's been a long time since I've walked side by side with you, Subaru.\" \"I suppose so. We were together when you went shopping at night quite a bit.\" \"Sigh. You know, given the flow of the current conversation, I'm speaking about daytime, not nighttime. You really must pick up on the context and the literary intent.\" \"Where that subject's concerned, you're the only one I can't accept hearing that from, Mom!\" Nahoko Natsuki was truly bedeviled by one of the world's dullest senses, possessing world-class bad guesswork. This was well understood by both men in the Natsuki family; indeed, it was virtually 100 percent certain that hypothetical or humorous conversations wouldn't work on Nahoko. That said, she herself was unaware of how complete her obtuseness was, which exponentially increased the stress arising from speaking with her. Even understanding all that, though, Subaru happened to like speaking with his mother. \"I'm glad that it's warm today. What did you talk to your Dad about?\" \"Ohhh, there it is, Mom's beginner-level 'first half disconnected from the second half' conversation topic! I know you don't mean anything special by it, but ummm...\" As they walked side by side on the way to school, Subaru tried to wrap his head around the question his mother had posed. The details of his conversation with Kenichi involved Subaru's confessing his embarrassing internal complexes and bawling his eyes out, but that didn't amount to a proper explanation. Also, he didn't want to say it in those words. It had been a necessary conversation, but he'd cut himself off from the emotions he imagined were unique to that place. No way in hell was he going to start crying again on a public street. \"Ahh, it wasn't really anything major. Actually, we talked a bit about old times with Mr. Ikeda.\" \"Ahh, Ikeda, yes. He moved after winning at the horse races, and his young wife there swindled the shirt off his back, so he had to do manual labor until the sun scorched his skin pitch dark, didn't he?\" \"The tragic development in the second half of that is news to me!\" \"Ill-gotten money really is no good for you. His heart may be in sorry shape at the moment, but his mind is still holding up, so he sends letters.\" \"So you experienced being stripped bare in an unfamiliar land, Mr. Ikeda... I can relate!!\" Though Subaru had been in a different world rather than a different country, he'd experienced things not so different from what Mr. Ikeda had been through. Though Mr. Ikeda was little more than an acquaintance whose face Subaru had known when he was little, for some reason, he harbored a strong feeling of fellowship with the man. Subaru inwardly prayed for his good health. Beside him, Nahoko made a mmm sound, then said, \"So, talking about old times made you want to go to school?\" \"Ahh, well...that's the simple version, yeah. There were a whole bunch of triggers making me look back, and that led to it.\" \"So you stopped trying to do anything and everything just like your Dad, then.\" *** When Subaru tried to keep things vague, Nahoko spoke with a gentle tone that did not permit him any escape. A wry smile came over her, making it look as if she was about to break into a hum. The look in her eyes was the only sharp thing about her, but you could never tell what his mother was thinking by looking at her. However, Subaru had the distinct feeling she'd cut him off at the pass. \"You're a hardworking type, Subaru, and you do all kinds of things in haste. Thanks to your father blindly taking interest in so many things, you've had plenty of opportunities... It wore you out, didn't you?\" \"M-Mom...how much did you realize I was...\" \"Now, now, Subaru.\" The true feelings Subaru had continued to conceal, even to himself, had been plain to Nahoko all along. Subaru was still at a loss for words when Nahoko, pulling slightly in front, turned back to face him. \"It's often said the child looks at the parent far more than the parent thinks.\" *** \"But the reverse is also true. The parent is also always watching the child, much more than the child thinks. Subaru, even your mother has been watching over you the whole time, you see?\" Truly, he could do nothing but gape dumbfounded. He'd been so convinced he'd kept his inner feelings hidden, but in truth, it had all been in vain. This in spite of the fact that he'd thought himself lonely and miserable with not a single person the wiser. \"I had to put suppositories in you when you were little, so I've seen everything, including the hole in your butt. Mom's even seen your body's intestines, something you've never seen, Subaru.\" \"Umm, I'm sorry, the conversation was flowing in a good direction, so I really didn't need that information.\" Where one's intestines were concerned, that wasn't something one had many chances to see, let alone those of parents or siblings. Though Subaru had been graced with the occasional opportunity to see his own intestines... But in any case  \"About the mayonnaise, and the reason for not going to school...\" \"If your mother could have done something about that, you can be sure she would have. Mom felt that no matter what she tried, it probably wouldn't work. But...\" Nahoko tossed in a little smile as she stared straight at her son's face. \"It seems like you managed somehow with the help of someone besides your mom or your dad. I think that's a very good thing. I really must thank that person.\" \"...Yeah, I suppose so. That person saved me from my incorrigible ways. She's the one who told the incorrigible me I wasn't incorrigible. That's why I can walk forward like this now.\" When Subaru awakened to his own foolishness, she'd accepted him even so, so Subaru was able to stand there and face his past and his father and mother with it. \"She's an amaaaazin' girl. Almost to the point she really is wasted on me.\" \"But you're not giving her to anyone, are you?\" \"Damn straight. It ain't an issue of being the other's equal. If anyone's gonna do it, equal or not, it's gonna be me. I'll just raise my own worth from here on out.\" \"Yes, yes you really are that man's son.\" To Subaru, just how much meaning did those words carry? This was the mother who knew the"}, {"text": "things inside Subaru of which he'd never spoken a word to anyone. Probably Nahoko had seen right through him. If she knew, and she was speaking those words with that knowledge, then... \"I wonder, if I can really do it right...if I can really have kids with her and do things right...\" \"It'll be fine. I mean, your mother may be half of you, but if you act half as cool as your father, you'll do all right, yes?\" \"You're acknowledging your own genetic inferiority in my body's makeup?!\" \"I said you can act half as cool as your father...the other half, why don't you just be yourself, Subaru?\" Unmoved by what Subaru blurted out, Nahoko indicated that the path forward was very simple. Upon hearing her words, Subaru was dumbfounded, thoroughly beside himself. \"So, Subaru, your mother thinks you will hang in there in your own Subaru-ish way.\" *** \"Incidentally, what happened to your father after the stroll together? Did you ditch him?\" \"You ask that now?! Uh-oh, we're up to Mom's intermediate-level 'question that resurrects the past midconversation'!\" If Subaru cordially indulged her and ended up explaining the circumstances under which he'd parted with Kenichi, all his prior work would be undone. In the end, before being forced to speak about his bawling his eyes out, Subaru ignored the context surrounding the words and echoed his mother's words. \"In my own way, huh?\" \"Yes. Over the course of thinking, I wanna be just like Dad, you'll end up just like Subaru.\" Even though he'd ignored the question, Nahoko acted quite satisfied with the conclusion Subaru arrived at. Then his mother headed forward, but her feet suddenly came to a halt. Having arrived at a fork in the road, Nahoko indicated the path to the right. \"Well, the convenience store is this way, so this is as far as Mom's going with you... Will you be all right?\" \"I haven't been...maybe I have been wounded deeply enough for you to worry, yeah.\" He couldn't laugh it off as Nahoko's overprotectiveness. Even if Subaru wasn't pathetic enough to completely lose heart, the concern with which his mother gazed at him did not cease. Therefore, to put his mother at ease, Subaru said, \"I'm all right. There's some things I need to do and some things I want to do, but I'll chew on 'em all. I don't have even one reason to shut myself in anymore.\" \"That so? I'm glad to hear that. Good luck, then.\" Apparently pleased with Subaru's reply, Nahoko nodded, then headed down the right path with a visible skip in her step. Subaru went down the left path, parting from his mother. They were going their separate ways. Probably for far, far longer than his mother thought, at that  \"Mom!\" Unable to bear silently gazing at her back and watching her go, Subaru brought his mother to a stop with a loud voice. His mother's feet, skipping as she sought more mayonnaise, came to a stop; she twisted her hips and looked back. Subaru seared the ever-normal, never-changing image of his mother into his eyelids. \"Ah...\" Goodbye. He needed to say goodbye. But Subaru hesitated to speak the words. Even if he said goodbye and parted ways there, his mother still had no idea just how long she and Subaru would be apart. With his mother not knowing they would never meet again, Subaru would be spared seeing her cry. He didn't want his final memory of his mother to be her crying face, so was it not best that he leave his mouth shut? Pulling the wool over her eyes out of consideration for her, and himself  \"There's something I have to do. So it'll be a long goodbye.\"  was something the heart of Subaru Natsuki would not permit. *** Nahoko greeted the spoken words with silence. There, before she could react in some way, Subaru continued his words. \"It's kind of far away, so I won't be able to stay in touch. I think you'll probably worry about a bunch of things. I...can't firmly say I won't do anything dangerous. If push came to shove, I'd say it's all pretty dangerous, because the girl I've gotta save gets herself in all kinds of dangerous messes.\" His mouth moved rapidly. The information he wanted to enumerate, the words he wished to speak, poured out of him. \"I think Dad and Mom are both gonna worry about me a lot. You've worried enough about me where you can see me, and now I'll be somewhere you can't. But I'll be thinking of you no matter where I am, and I'll never forget about either of you...\" \"Subaru.\" \"I'll never think I don't wanna be Mom and Dad's child ever again, and I'll never hate myself again. I know those words don't really let you send me off with peace of mind, but...\" \"Subaru.\" Even Subaru no longer understood what he was saying when Nahoko called out to him from very close. When he looked up, his mother was standing right before his eyes. And then  \"Subaru it's all right.\" \"...Wh-whaddaya mean, all right?\" \"I know exactly what you're trying to say, Subaru. So you don't need to try so hard to find the words.\" \"You...know...? But how...!\" \"Because...I'm your mother, Subaru.\" There was not a single shred of logic behind the statement. So why did it feel irrefutable? The backs of his eyes grew hot. He'd sensed the same thing only a few hours before. Just how many times would Subaru need to bawl like a little child? How many tears had to flow before he could regain an unshakable heart of steel? \"I-I'm like...a little kid here... So lame...\" \"If it's lame to cry when you need it, then that makes every single baby born in the world lame as well.\" \"That's not...what I mean...\" \"Yes, yes, I told you, I get it. From Mom and Dad's point of view, you'll be our child no matter what your age, Subaru... When you want to cry, go ahead and cry.\" The world began to blur. Tears came running out. Subaru hid his face behind the sleeve he used to rub it so his mother wouldn't see it. Out of respect for Subaru's stubbornness, Nahoko didn't peer any closer. All she did was slowly stroke the short hair on Subaru's head. As she stroked him, Subaru straightened his back. \"...Sorry, Mom. In the end, I can't do a damn thing for either of you.\" \"You know, I didn't give birth to you because I wanted something from you. I gave birth to you because I wanted to give. Subaru, your mother gave birth to you because she wanted to give you love.\" How much of this, the very definition of love, Subaru had already received from her was simply incalculable. \"If you really want to do something for Mom, take those feelings and give them to someone else. And if you happen to give that love to a girl you like, Subaru...isn't that wonderful? \"...Yeah, it's wonderful.\" \"Of course it is. What your mother says is never wrong.\" With a satisfied smile, Nahoko toyed with Subaru's forelocks with her fingers. The feeling of those fingers tickled Subaru, making him smile back at her with his tear-marred face. \"Aw man, I'm super pathetic, just crying and crying...\" \"It's fine to cry. Subaru, you cried so much when you were born. At first, everyone cries in an ugly way. A lot of things happen, and you cry in lots of places.\" *** \"But if, after crying a lot, you end with a smile, everything's all right. What's important is not where you start, or what happens midway, but how it ends.\" \"So if the results are good, everything's OK, then?\" \"You're taking that the wrong way. Consider this homework from your mother.\" An opportunity to revise his answer would likely never come. In the name of homework, she had offered him words of farewell. Accepting them as such, Subaru took them to heart. Surely, the day would come when the answer would emerge, and he would understand it, as if by natural design. *** It was neither a very manly nor a very valiant farewell scene. Neither father nor mother faced with a son who'd holed up for so long before saying goodbye while unable to even say where he was going had spoken a word of resentment; instead, they were able to send him off with smiling faces. For him, this place and his parents who were both too good for him they were things he loved. \" Well, I'm headin' off.\" \"Mm-hmm, go ahead.\" Turning his head back at the end, he forced his cheeks to move and make a smile. Leaving that awkward, smiling face behind for his mother, Subaru turned his back to her and walked forward. The commute to school would be anticlimactic. After the fork, all he had to do was go straight down the road, then up a hill, and then the school campus would come into vi  \"Ah, that's right. Subaru, Subaru, I forgot.\" Then, just when he was all hyped up to get going, a scatterbrained voice called out to him from behind. Subaru, worried about what the very, very end might bring, turned to see his mother raise a hand as she said, \"Come back soon.\" Then, with a little wave of her hand, his mother spoke those words with a pleasant smile. The last night before he had been summoned to another world, before heading out to the convenience store, his mother had surely seen Subaru off the exact same way. But at the time, Subaru, perhaps being in a sour mood, had said nothing, simply opening the door, and... *** This was the last chance for him to wipe away his regrets from that day. His mom's advanced-level conversation piece was, \"No matter how many detours you may take, you will always arrive at the right answer in the end.\" The instant he remembered that, a genuine smile, not a forced one, broke out as he called out to her. \" Be back soon!!\" 9 At the school campus, he didn't see a single student, or teacher, or anyone. When he headed from the entrance to the foot locker, he opened the ill-fitting door that had remained closed for a while. He switched from outdoor shoes to indoor shoes, then walked into the linoleum-floored corridor. Third year, sixth class, seat twenty-two. That was Subaru Natsuki's spot in school. The classroom for third-year high school students, the senior class of the school, was on the first floor. His own footsteps echoed down the silent corridor as Subaru wasted no time heading to his own classroom. Then he stood in front of the door and took a deep breath. *** Putting his hand on the door, he slid it sideways, opening it wide in one go. That instant, Subaru, blatantly arriving so very late, had reproachful stares converge on him from all over the classr  \" I must say, you came far sooner than I expected.\" No such thing happened. When he surveyed his classroom after so long, the seats, including Subaru's own, in the back row and against the window, were empty everywhere he looked save a single seat filled in the very center. Then the individual sitting in that seat turned toward Subaru, seat and all. \"Welcome  Tell me, what did you gain from the time you spent facing your own past?\" Stroking her own white hair, such was the question that the Witch of Greed posed to him, her eyes filled with inquisitiveness. CHAPTER 5 *** 1 The white-haired girl remained seated in her chair in the middle of the classroom as she gave a wry, charming smile. Receiving her gaze upon him, Subaru leaned his upper body into the corridor, checking until he reconfirmed there was no one else around. Then he turned back toward the classroom once more, scratching his head. \"First,"}, {"text": "there's something I want to tell you...\" \"Mm, you may speak it. I am very interested in whatever you might be thinking.\" \"That school uniform really looks good on you.\" The Witch's eyes had an inquisitive glint as Subaru pointed and conveyed his impression. For a moment, the Witch blinked at that impression, and then she gave a burst of irrepressible laughter. \"Ha-ha! Thank you. That makes it well worth rummaging through your memories to reproduce it. These clothes are seared into your memories particularly strongly. Perhaps you are rather fond of them?\" The girl Echidna rose from her seat, grasping the hem of her skirt as she twirled around on the spot. The sight of her white hair swaying down her back made her look like nothing more than an attractive teenage girl. She wore a gray skirt and a navy-blue blazer. The red ribbon adorning her breasts marked her as a student of the same grade as Subaru, providing a vivid contrast to the white shirt underneath. \"It's just that I like longer skirts more than short, personally. Long skirts twirl around for longer, so it tugs at your thoughts even stronger that way.\" \"I see. Well then, I must ensure that my skirt twirls for longer the next time.\" \"Not that there's gonna be a next time! Also, it's not as if I really like everyone wearing that outfit. Here, it's just what you have to wear. It's as obligatory as a knight's dress uniform.\" Echidna giggled at him, looking like she only took his explanation half seriously. Humphing through his nose at her, Subaru sat down in the empty chair in front of Echidna, turning to face her. \"I really thought you would be more surprised...\" \"If you meant to hide it, you should've put more effort into the background. This goes for the commute to school, too, but there isn't a single adult or child inside the whole school, and that's impossible.\" Even if he'd reasoned it was late afternoon of a normal day, the world simply felt too bereft of human presence. It was as if the world had been stripped of everything that was not useful information from Subaru's perspective. \"This world's way too convenient from my point of view... What's with this place? I was just entering the place called your tomb, and then...\" \"You entered my tomb, possessing the qualifications to do so. Therefore, the trial began. That is all. Did you not hear the words? 'First, face your past.'\" Echidna, replying to confirm Subaru's impressions, crossed her hands behind her back as she tilted her head. The beautiful girl's hair swayed with the wind, a gentle, cool breeze blowing into the classroom as the school uniform on her casually melted away. Sensing that each of her nonchalant gestures was a trap she had laid around his heart, Subaru consciously averted his gaze from her. \"It's gradually...coming back to me. What did you do to the memory of when we first met? I completely forgot about you until the moment this trial was underway.\" \"I told you, did I not? You are forbidden to speak of having met me at my little tea party to anyone else. It was faster and more reliable to affect your memory than trust in the tightness of your lips. Ahh, I would like you to relax... I did not play around with any other memories. I would never do such a banal thing.\" \"...What basis do I have to believe what you just said?\" \"Perhaps your understanding of a Witch's true nature? I am the Witch of Greed, lust for knowledge incarnate.\" Echidna crossed her arms as if embracing her own elbows, leaving Subaru unable to read what rested within her black eyes. Whether to trust the Witch felt like a stupid question that did not require any elaborate thought. He'd already undergone terrible ordeals at the hands of the Witch of Jealousy and the Cult that worshipped her. The same went for Echidna. \"But first I want to set you straight about something. The fact is, you're the one who gave me the qualification for the trial.\" \"Set me straight, you say? Somehow, that sets my heart just slightly aflutter. How strange... I feel slightly elated that you would speak to me in such a manner. \"All I did was to upgrade you from an unpalatable thing to a maybe-unpalatable thing.\" When Echidna's smile deepened, Subaru responded by tossing words her way that seemed intended to fend her off. \"Tch,\" went Echidna, tapering her lips as her almond-shaped eyes gently narrowed. \"Everyone harbors regrets from their past. Living day to day makes it impossible to exist without regret regret is a function built into all people.\" \"Don't put it pessimistically like that. That regret thingy turns into reflection, reflecting on yesterday lets you scrape by today, reflecting on today lets you bust through tomorrow. That's a function built into people, too, isn't it?\" \" Precisely!\" The air audibly leaped; this was caused by Echidna, speaking in a strong voice, bringing her hands together in a powerful clap. She drew close to the surprised Subaru, her face approaching so close that they could share breaths, opening her mouth as if to press him for more. \"Such a simple observation engenders what is, in the end, a minor difference. But which answer one chooses greatly affects whether one views the past optimistically or pessimistically. Most view the past pessimistically, repudiating the path that has led them to the present. And in that repudiation, they avert their eyes, never closing the lid upon what has happened.\" \"Um, your face is...close...!\" \"Such a thing cannot be helped, for the you of yesterday was infinitely ignorant compared to the you of today. The you of now is at an absolute deficiency of knowledge compared to the you of tomorrow. In the sum amount of knowledge, and in the total number of memories, the past is inferior to the present, and the present is inferior to the future. That is a fact!\" Paying the overwhelmed Subaru no heed, Echidna spoke exceedingly passionately, punctuating her speech by strongly slamming both hands onto the desk. \"Accordingly, when people face the past, they sift through hesitation, bewilderment, anguish, and sorrow, all in search for an answer. I shall affirm whatever answer they arrive at as a result. I shall find no fault in any answer, for it is proof that you have faced your past, absorbing it and using it as your cornerstone as you overcome it.\" \"...So that's the objective of this trial? Huh, mission accomplished, I guess?\" \"Facing your own past can mean accepting or rejecting it. What is important is arriving at an answer. One cannot overcome the trial with fear, anger, or cowering. However, I extol those who have either accepted their past or made a clean break with it. For that, I shall offer as many opportunities as one might desire... That is this trial!\" When Subaru took this as meaning he'd passed, Echidna made that powerful declaration, raising her clenched fist. Immediately afterward, Echidna audibly gasped as she came back to her senses, her cheeks reddening as she cleared her throat and said, \"I became a t-trifle too excited. I am sorry for the unsightly display.\" \"I don't really mind. I did get to smell your breath a lot, but it smelled like citrus fruit. More importantly...from what you're saying, I passed the conditions for clearing the trial, right?\" \"I believe you have displayed sufficient results for me to declare that this portion is finished.\" Echidna touched a hand to her chest, her face full of satisfaction, like one savoring the aroma of luxuriant black tea. \"In regards to your trauma and your lingering feelings of guilt toward your past, you have found an answer to both. This, I wish to praise with thunderous applause.\" \"One portion... Wait, you saw me bawling my eyes out, didn't you?!\" \"So sowwy, before I knew it, even my eyes were moist.\" \"Shaddap!! Don't tell a soul, it's embarrassing!!\" Subaru couldn't keep his cool at her being a Peeping Tom in regards to his farewell with his parents, both longing and regret bared. Her inquisitiveness that instant was a slight against Subaru's family. \"But what a pity...it seems you already had your answer for facing your painful past.\" \"Ahh?\" \"I welcome any answer. But it is my belief that an answer means more when one must take an excessive time to arrive at it. I was hoping that you would arrive at your answer as a result of racking your brain...but it would seem the trial unfortunately came too late for you to amuse me to the fullest, more's the pity.\" Echidna made a morose sigh. Knotting his brows at her words, Subaru slowly realized it for himself. If Echidna's desired outcome for the trial was for Subaru to face his past trauma in the form of both his parents, overcoming that past after much agony, he could only give his condolences. \"A girl told me, a totally helpless no-good guy, that I'm her hero. That's why I've already accepted how much I come up short. I don't need to face my past now to teach me that.\" \"So you resigned yourself to it in a different manner. It is not at all amusing that this has gone contrary to my will. Should you meet that girl on the outside, I would like you to convey that a Witch bears a grudge against her.\" Subaru's breath caught at the way she so casually stated that extremely frightening complaint. He knew he was at the limit of his ability to avert his eyes from comprehension he did not wish to accept. Echidna's presence, the world without people, and her saying she was reproducing a school uniform from his memories even an idiot would realize that... \"Not that I even need to ask. This world, it really is...\" \"Yes, that's right. This is a fictitious world reproduced using completely faithful reliance upon your memories. Therefore, naturally your real parents remain with no knowledge of where you are and what you are doing, and are no doubt worried about their son, vanished without a trace.\" \"Really faithful in every way, though? They talked about a whole bunch of things I didn't know about...\" \"Did you truly not know these things? Perhaps you saw a letter sent by an acquaintance of your parents once? Did you not meet an old man who knew your father when he was young? Did you truly not suspect even once that this image of your father was at odds with what you believed?\" When Subaru seemed to cling to her, Echidna indulged him, pounding home point after point. \"You thought they didn't know, but in your heart, did you really want to conceal it? Can you truly say you didn't want a fictional father and an idealized mother to know all along, out of the self-serving desire to be loved in spite of them knowing?\" With Subaru cowed into silence, Echidna drew her face close to his, the tenor of her speech gradually diminishing to a whisper as it gained an ever-more-suspicious-sounding ring. Then, when she was close enough to breathe on him, she said, \"That is a little too idealistic, a little too convenient do you not think so?\" *** Echidna gracefully smiled as those soft, seemingly adoring words dug deep into Subaru's heart. At odds with the age-appropriate appearance she had displayed to that moment, this was the malevolent smile of a Witch. In the face of that captivating smile, infected with a Witch's seductiveness, Subaru closed his eyes and  \"Don't mock my parents out of some half-baked resentment, Echidna.\" \"...What?\" \"I gave my entire answer to them. Both my mom and my dad accepted it. I told them everything I hadn't said, and they said everything I wanted them to say: Hang in there, come back soon.\" Subaru stood up, put his hands"}, {"text": "on the desk, and put his forehead to Echidna's. Subaru watched the Witch's black eyes blink in surprise as he pounded his own chest. \"Those voices, those smiling faces...every last bit was what my imagination poured into them they're not vases for you to pour your half-baked ideas into. Don't look down on them. Those are my parents.\" *** \"I told them everything I had to say. I'm not gonna be led astray by words from someone like you.\" Turning her bladelike words back upon her, Subaru snorted and set his hips down on the chair once more. His brusque crossing of his legs, rough nasal breathing, and hard glare made the Witch look taken aback as she exhaled. \"Goodness, to not leave any room for doubts in the answer you have given... You truly know how to make a little Witch cry.\" \"Sucks to be you. I reeeally love Mom and Daddy.\" He puffed out his chest as he asserted it, though he couldn't quantify just how long it had taken before he could do so. Echidna greeted Subaru's stance with a resigned shake of her head. \"In a true sense, this trial is over. I hope for great things for the next question.\" \"Yeah... Er, next question?! The hell, the trial isn't just one thing?!\" \"My, did I not tell you when you first entered the tomb? 'First, face your past.' You should have paid more attention to the first part...\" \"Stop talking like a Japanese language teacher!! And that deceptive face really annoys me!!\" Subaru was shocked at the notification that it would be a longer fight as Echidna leaned an elbow against the desk, forming a mischievous smile. \"The condition for liberating the Sanctuary is to pass the tomb's trial, three parts in total. I am pleased I was finally able to speak to you about this. My chest is aflutter that I have surprised you to quite this extent.\" \"Yeah, I've got a real lively look on my face 'cause you didn't tell me about this back at the tea party, damn it...\" She'd no doubt been full of frustration concerning the uncooperative visitor arriving for tea with far too little information. Unlike that previous time, he had more he wanted to ask her about, but  \"Either way, you're not gonna hand out cheat sheets on the contents of the trials or how to answer, are you?\" \"Of course not. Stealing my fun from me after my death would simply be far too cruel.\" \"Don't talk about this like some geezer's fun, sheesh...\" Wincing from the witchy reply, Subaru slowly rose from his seat. There was no longer anything he wished to speak to Echidna about. Nor was there any reason to stay in that place, that fictional world, for long, save for lingering attachment. He'd said his farewells to the regrets in his heart; that was enough. \"Hey, Echidna.\" \"What is it? Ahh, a grudge to vent, or perhaps you wish to punch me once? Certainly, you have the right to do that much. I know my amusement comes at your expense. But I am a woman. At least avoid the fa \" \"Thank you.\" *** Echidna's face froze when she heard those words. The sight of Echidna in shock, eyes wide open and taken aback, felt a little creepy to Subaru as he spoke. \"Even if it wasn't real, even if I didn't really say those things to the two of them, thanks to you, I was able to say out loud what I wanted to tell them. To put it bluntly, even if it's the result of your shitty curiosity, I was able to say goodbye to them  If nothing else, I'm grateful for that. So thank you.\" \"...You are an incredibly interesting person, one I am no longer able to understand to a degree that is...frightening.\" Echidna's reply contained neither jest nor falsehood; rather, it felt as if she was speaking from the heart for the very first time. After hearing her reply, Subaru shrugged, smiling like a mischievous boy. \"I'm honored to have frightened a Witch. So how do I get out of this world?\" \"This world has served its purpose. It has already begun to disappear. Nothing save this building still holds its proper shape exit the building, and you should find yourself in the tomb where you started.\" \"Well, that's pretty convenient.\" When Echidna's answer prodded him to look out the window, the distant sky was indeed warped like some kind of mirage. Having fulfilled its duty, the false world was vanishing back into a distant dream. With it went the father who had given Subaru a push forward, and the mother who had sent him off. \"They already taught me the important stuff, though.\" The emotions filling his chest and the hot sensations in the backs of his eyes made Subaru rub his eyes once with his sleeve. Then he lifted his face, and there was room for tears no more. Subaru turned his back to the Witch and faced the classroom's exit to bring that world to an end and  \"That's right, one more thing. It seems like you want me to challenge this trial again going forward...but I can't do it.\" \"...Meaning what?\" Echidna knitted her refined eyebrows as Subaru paused on the verge of leaving the room, turning only his head back toward her. Subaru lifted a finger toward her, wagging it left and right as he spoke. \"It's not my job to clear the trial and liberate the Sanctuary. This is a commemorative exam, just 'cause I happened to have an exam ticket on me. It'll be a different kid who'll fulfill your expectations.\" He remembered Emilia, who had challenged the tomb and had surely undergone the same trial. It was her duty to liberate the Sanctuary. Subaru's challenge had been completely unplanned; he couldn't raise Echidna's hopes. So he said that last thing, waving his hand toward the Witch he was probably seeing for the last time... \"Will that truly be the case, I wonder?\" Subaru Natsuki never noticed Echidna's deeply suggestive whisper as he was enveloped in white light. Then he left the world of the trial  2 The instant he awoke, the first thing Subaru felt was the bitter taste of sand and dust inside his mouth. \"Blargh!! Ptoo, ptoo! Some weird rock's in my mouth... Bleh!!\" Feeling drool and something else shaped like a rock on the tip of his tongue, Subaru retched as he instantly sprang up. When he surveyed the area around his dirty body, he saw an empty room shrouded in thin darkness. The cold, chilly air and musty, acrid scent they reminded him that he was in the tomb. \"That's right, I completed it...\" Now that Subaru was awake, his mind finally caught up as he recalled all that had happened since he collapsed. He'd been pulled into the trial, had been reunited with his parents, spoke with them, then returned to reality. There didn't seem to be any gaps in his memory from start to finish. He remembered it all. \"Not like I can forget bawling my eyes out like that... Ahh, I'm glad.\" Leaving his father and mother was a sad, nostalgic memory, but also the ritual that had hardened his resolve. Relieved he had not forgotten it, he clenched his teeth as he belatedly recalled why he had rushed into the tomb in the first place the answer was sprawled on the floor right next to him. \"Emilia!\" Kneeling, Subaru saw Emilia lying on the cold floor beside him. Peering at her face, he confirmed she was breathing. He was initially relieved by that fact, but the pained look on her sleeping face stabbed into his chest. \" ah, ngh...\" Emilia was moaning, with sweat on her brow, as her face twisted in anguish and fear. Every so often, she shook her head in denial, as if she were desperately trying to run away from something  \"A past you don't want to look at...something you have to face and deal with, huh...?\" Subaru didn't know how much time had passed, but Emilia had entered the tomb long before him. That Subaru had come back first in spite of that meant she was having an exceptionally difficult time with the trial. Emilia moaned faintly, like she was begging for help, as if ready to break into tears at any moment. The sight of her like that made Subaru's breath catch. Wanting to somehow ease her suffering, he touched her cheek with his finger. That instant  *** \"Emilia?!\" Emilia's slender body sat up fast, almost like she'd been zapped with a jolt of electricity. The dramatic reaction made Subaru reach out with his arms, hugging Emilia against his own chest. Then, when she shuddered like she was having spasms, he called out to her over and over. \"Emilia! Get it together, Emilia! Emilia!\" \" Wuu... Su...baru?\" \" ! Y-yeah, that's right. You can tell it's me? I'm so glad.\" Subaru's arms had been wrapped around Emilia while he desperately cried out. After some time, the anguished expression on her face finally eased as she slowly opened her eyes. She seemed to be coming to her senses, letting Subaru breathe in relief after calling out her name since the episode started. \"This is... Er, I was...\" \"Take it slow, don't panic. We're inside the tomb in the Sanctuary. You came in here to fulfill a very important duty...and, er, sorry for taking so long!\" Remembering that he was embracing her, Subaru abandoned his explanation midway and pulled back from Emilia's body. When Emilia hazily turned her head toward him, Subaru scratched his cheek and tried to pick up where he'd left off. \"Emilia?\" \"That's right... I began the trial, and then...\" Emilia's thoughts returned to the moment right before she'd lost consciousness, to the test. But her reaction had clearly been abnormal, and the sight of her set Subaru's heart deeply astir. Emilia embraced her own shoulders, as if remembering the shuddering from mere moments before. Her face was pale, drained of blood, and he could hear her teeth chattering. \"I-it...wasn't me...! I...said it wasn't...me...but...\" \"Wait, Emilia? Calm down, please. Emilia, look at me, Emilia!\" \"No...don't look at me like that... No, no, no, you're wrong... Don't...blame me...!\" Subaru's voice never registered as Emilia cowered on the spot, covering her face with her palms in denial. Her tearful words turned into sobs, and her crystal clear voice was so full of grief that it pained his heart. When Emilia crumpled onto the floor, Subaru still had no idea what had happened. \"It's all right, it's all right. I'm here. You're not alone. It's okay.\" As Emilia shuddered in tears, Subaru tried his best to console her, to protect her, to care for her. He gathered her in his arms and gently stroked her back. During that time, Emilia continued to sob, seemingly unable to hear Subaru's voice. \"...ve me, Dad. Save me... Puck, Puck...Pucckkk...\" It was not the man at her side consoling her, but the absent spirit whose name she continued to call. 3 \"She finally calmed down a short while ago and is now sound asleep.\" Ram whispered the news when she came out of the room after Subaru had questioned her with a glance. Given her considerate demeanor, what had happened inside the room behind her must have been something else. While relieved at her reply, he wasn't relieved enough not to turn his worried eyes toward the closed door. \"That expression isn't like you, Barusu. Normally you have such a sloppy face. Now that I have seen that somber grimace of yours, I truly have no wish to see it ever again.\" \"Nobody asked you... Sorry, making you worry about me like that.\" Ram reacted to those words with a \"Ha!\" and walked away. Before following in her footsteps, Subaru bit his lip as he turned his eyes toward the door one last time. Perhaps repeated regrets over his"}, {"text": "insufficient strength, his weakness causing failure to pile upon failure, had steeled his heart. \"Ohh? I wonder, is Lady Emilia already weeeell?\" Cutting short his lingering sentiments at the closed door, he chased Ram deeper into the building. When he stepped into the room farthest back, he was greeted by Roswaal, lying upon the bed. The place was at the back of the building in the Sanctuary devoted to Roswaal's convalescence. From what Subaru had heard, it was actually Ryuzu's house, but it was currently on loan, the needs of the lord of the land being the highest priority.  Thanks to being able to use that room, he had ended up carrying Emilia, fallen into disarray at the tomb, into the very same building. \"Yeah. Right now she's sleeping in her room. Thanks to Ram, she shouldn't have to see any nightmares.\" \"I used aromatic tea that acts as a sedative. Normally it would not work, but the Great Spirit is not currently at her side, so...\" After Subaru replied to Roswaal, Ram put a hand on her pouch as she added her words to his. The tea ingredient seemed to be a different one from what Ram had previously used to lead Subaru astray with an illusion; that there were multiple types rather surprised him. It went without saying that he ought not to be concerned about bad effects inside his body, but  \"I still have this nagging suspicion you've been serving me poison all that time...\" \"Too large a dose of any base ingredient for tea will become poison, nothing more. You are a petty man to hold a grudge all this time.\" Speaking those words with a composed expression, Ram stood right at Roswaal's bedside. For all intents and purposes, the room was host to a one-on-one meeting between Subaru and Roswaal no other connected persons were welcome. \"Garfiel dragged his feet, but Ryuzu being so sensible was a huge help.\" \"Due to her age and seniooority, she has learned the value of discreeeetion. Even Garfiel understands that they cannot achieve their objectives without our cooperation, you see.\" Roswaal's words made Subaru recall how they'd looked when Subaru had parted ways with them at the tomb. The liberation of the Sanctuary was Garfiel & Co.'s cherished desire. If their side didn't cooperate, the other side might resort to force, but  \"If we intend to liberate them, they'll lend us a hand, huh? Damn complicated situation to be in...\" \"Because Lady Emilia is with us, our interests are aligned. The obstinacy their side has displaaayed to date should ease... Incidentally, I heard that a follower of yours was preeesent?\" \"Follower... Ah, you mean Otto? He's, well, we stuffed him in the Cathedral for tonight. He actually came to the Sanctuary because he wanted to meet you in the first place, Roswaal, but...\" \"Buuuut what?\" Roswaal had one eye closed as Subaru scratched his head. The reason for Otto's absence was exceptionally clear. \"We're talking internal camp business from here on. I don't intend to drag a half-outsider like him into our problems past the point of no return.\" \"I see, a wise decision. It would seeeem that you do not enjoy involving friends of yours in your troubles.\" \"I wouldn't exactly call us friends, but...well, pretty much, yeah.\" Having mulled over and accepted the circumstances, Subaru shrugged his shoulders, making no great effort to deny the point. From there, despite the absence of Emilia, the subject of their discussion  \"How about tonight we hammer out important stuff for this camp that we've been kicking down the road?\" 4 \"You were the instigator behind the hunt for the White Whale, you dispatched the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult taking aim at the mansion and the village, you formed an alliance with Lady Crusch, candidate for the throne. That seems to be your meritorious seeervice record.\" Roswaal's white-painted brow wrinkled as the detached tone of his voice deepened. When Subaru attempted to speak about their internal affairs, it was Roswaal's mouth that summarized the ferocious combat occurring in his absence that Subaru should have spoken about first. When they were enumerated like that, even Subaru thought his exploits sounded unreal, but he made no effort to deny them; all of it was pure fact. \"I had not asked in detail before the evacuation...but I cannot think the contents anything but fiction.\" \"I thought you might say that, but there's no point hiding it, and I hadn't boasted about it before! Now come on and praise me!!\" \"Yes, yes, good boy, good boy.\" \"Put some heart in it!!\" In contrast to the serious Subaru, Ram treated him as flippantly as ever. However, the dull edge to the sarcasm behind her words was likely due to her surprise that Subaru had truly done all of those things. And the same seemed to go for Roswaal, silent as he strove to comprehend those facts. \"These are unexpected, unanticipated results.\" Lowering his eyes with extremely deep feeling, Roswaal spoke thus as his breath trickled out. Subaru, utterly convinced Roswaal would praise him in some halfway frivolous manner, was dumbstruck by his reaction. Then Roswaal fixed Subaru in his differently colored eyes as he said, \"Subaru. Do you recall the declaration you made at the beginning of the royal selection?\" \"Like I could forget it. Like I should ever forget it. I remember each and every word.\" Suddenly, he recalled the abominable memory, and the shame and self-loathing of it scorched his breast. Even if the numerous people of power and influence in that place had laughed it all off, Subaru alone was not permitted to forget, so that he might never repeat the recklessness, naivete, and stupidity of forgetting what was really important ever again. But Roswaal responded to Subaru's reply with a solemn nod. \"In that light, I think your meritorious service should be rewarded. You have proven the words you spoke in that place upon our safe departure from this place, I shall appoint you knight.\" *** \"Subduing the White Whale with the duchess and taking down an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins are exploits that should be commended. You shall be known as Subaru Natsuki, knight. No one will laugh at you anymore.\" In the name of helping Emilia, he'd opened his big, fat mouth as a youth ignorant of his position. His naive dreams were broken on harsh reality time and time again. He had fallen first into despair, then madness; then he'd cast everything aside as he raced forward with vengeance in his heart, only to be saved by deep feelings of love  These were the events that had brought him to where he was now. The prestige Roswaal promised would demonstrate all that time had actually meant something. It would mean everything Rem had done would also be rewarded; though memories of her actions existed in the minds of none, save Subaru himself. \"...If doing so gives meaning to that battle, I...gratefully accept.\" \"You should be proud of these exploits. With your own power, you have won the right to stand at Emilia's side.\" \"...It wasn't...my power alone.\" Subaru murmured it quietly enough that only he must have heard it. When Roswaal knitted his brows as a result, Subaru tightly closed his eyes for a moment, audibly cracked his neck, then continued. \"You acting serious really throws me off. I'm grateful we can move this talk along, mind you.\" \"You wouuuund me. Am I not always serious? Besides, I promised, did I not? That I would face you directly the next time.\" \"...You as in me and Emilia. Emilia really should be here, but she's not...\" \"Oh myyyy. You are quite mistaken.\" When Roswaal averted his face, apparently uncomfortable at being misunderstood, Subaru's breath caught a little. Roswaal closed one eye as he corrected Subaru's correction, leaving the gaze of his yellow eye alone that was his tell when he was hiding something deep within himself. Subaru got a bad feeling when he looked at Roswaal's eye and considered the earlier statement. \"What do you...mean by that? Why did you go out of your way to leave Emilia out of this?\" \"Is it not rather oooobvious? Dirty matters should be discussed only between trusted coconspiiirators. I am not so gracious as to include someone I do not fully trust in such a meeting.\" \"You mean you don't trust Emilia? What the hell are you talking about out of the blue like that?!\" When Roswaal, resting his back against the bed, calmly revealed his opinion, it drove Subaru into a rage. Of course it did. He was practically saying Emilia was not worthy of his trust. He Roswaal L. Mathers, none other than Emilia's backer in the royal selection. \"You're the one who nominated Emilia for the throne! Where do you get off saying that you don't trust Emilia...!\" Giving in to his anger, Subaru closed the distance between them to say what was on his mind. He violently rubbed his brow with his fingers over and over as if it were a spell meant to convince his head, flush with blood, to calm down. It was his bad habit to suddenly lose it in the middle of a conversation. Just how much had he run in circles at the royal capital because of that short temper? He focused on deep breathing. Breathe in, breathe out. He did this a second time, and then a third. \"...Let's...talk about everything in order, starting with this coconspirator business.\" \"Very well. Once you understand that point, it should serve as a reply to your earlier misgivings.\" Subaru chained down his anger, which made Roswaal appear quite satisfied. Subaru crossed his arms and glared at the man, silently prodding him to continue. \"Now then, first, the true meaning behind my use of coconspirator in regards to you...it is quite simple. I wish you to continue providing Lady Emilia aid as you have done to date. Do as much as your feelings dictate until the day she sits upon the throne.\" \"That goes without saying...but what the hell will you be doing?\" \"Naturally, I shall do the same. Lady Emilia shall have my full support for victory in the royal selection so that she may become the ruler of this kingdom. You see, you and I share the same goal. Thus, we are coconspirators.\" \"If that's all you were planning, I'd just call you an ally. Coconspirator means something different.\" Gritting his teeth as Roswaal presented his terms, Subaru controlled the tone of his voice. He didn't think Roswaal would invoke the word coconspirators if his motives were limited to the proper ones he had just presented. In the first place, there would be no reason to exclude Emilia from the conversation if that were true. Besides  \"What you're saying is full of contradictions. If you seriously wanted to put Emilia on the throne, what's your excuse for slacking off before coming here to the Sanctuary?\" \"What do you meaaan by slacking off?\" \"That's obvious! It was common knowledge Emilia publicly entering the royal selection would set the Witch Cult off on a rampage! Everyone said, 'Oh, Roswaal has to have prepared countermeasures,' so where the hell were they?! If that's not slacking off, what is?!\" Subaru replied to Roswaal's feigned innocence with anger as he pounded home the suspicion he'd wanted to express for some time. Once he'd reached a boiling point, his dissatisfaction had only grown and grown without pause  \"For starters, you hid info on the Witch Cult from Emilia, didn't you? Emilia didn't know a damn thing about the Witch Cult. She didn't understand at all what would happen when she joined the royal selection. If she'd known, everything could've gone differently! None of that would have had to...!\" As Subaru spoke, those hellish scenes came rushing back to mind, hells he had peered into several times over. The villagers slaughtered, the children cruelly put to death, how"}, {"text": "Petra's corpse had stripped his mind bare, how Ram's dead body had carved a hole out of his soul, how Rem's death had robbed him of even the ability to mourn, and how Emilia's death  \"...You should have been there. If you'd been there, none of that would have happened. So why...weren't you there...?\" \"Barusu...\" The unconcealable pain and anguish in his voice made even Ram's cheeks stiffen. No tears flowed from him. However, with a disheveled face, Subaru accused Roswaal. Only Subaru, who had seen those hellish scenes, had the right to accuse him. \"If you'd stayed behind and protected everyone...I...\" \"But while I was absent, you fulfilled my duty in my place, exploits that would make even a knight's heart swell in pride...\" \" ! That's not the point!\" His gratitude for being honored with the prestigious title of knight rapidly diminished. Certainly, being awarded the knightly title gave firm meaning to that battle. However, to the Subaru of the present, that battle, in and of itself, was a symbol of his mistakes. If that battle had never happened  \"Barusu, please, calm yourself.\" \"Ram...!\" When Subaru unwittingly took a step forward, Ram glared at him from right up close. She shielded Roswaal behind her back, quiet anger resting in her pink eyes. \"Master Roswaal is injured. Even so, he can surely put a stop to any violence from one such as you with a single finger... I shall permit no rudeness when I am present, Barusu.\" \"You're okay with this? It's the same for you, he left you behind like a sacrificial pawn! Roswaal curled his tail and ran from the Witch Cult! Are you telling me I'm wrong?!\" \"I accept that without reservation. Ram forgives all Master Roswaal's deeds, including however she might be treated, or even eventually cast aside.\" \"Then you forgive Rem being sacrificed for stupid stuff like this, too?!\" The incomprehensible loyalty in Ram's reply set off Subaru like nothing else. He had avoided the issue several times, telling himself it wasn't the right time, putting off the truth he needed to speak to her about Rem and how her memory had faded from the world, now existing only within Subaru's heart. With the master she had served for many years, even with her older twin sister who was her other half, Rem  \" ? I know not of whom you speak, but no other name means anything to me. To Ram, Master Roswaal is everything, and all others come second.\" The words Subaru had spat out, giving in to his emotions, were cut down by Ram without the slightest hesitation. Though Subaru had not planned it that way, her words were solid proof there was no memory of Rem within Ram, presenting him with the painful reality he had repeatedly ignored and avoided. *** Drained of strength, Subaru retreated a distance greater than the step forward he had made. The sight of Subaru's shoulders sinking made Ram knit her brows, whereupon Roswaal weightily shook his head. \"Ram, stand aside. This conversation is between him and me only. I permit you to attend, but I do not permit you to speak. You understaaand, yes?\" \"...Yes. I have no excuse for intruding.\" Ram bowed, then attended Roswaal's bedside once more. As Subaru watched the exchange, he felt something like a breeze blowing through his exceptionally empty chest. Both of Roswaal's eyes narrowed at the sight of Subaru hanging his head at that desolate reality. \"Tonight, I respond to you in earnest. This is what I have decided. Thaaaat is why I shall respond to the doubts you toss at me with the truth.\" *** \"Why did I conceal information from Lady Emilia that I should have disclosed? Why was I absent from the mansion when the Witch Cult was coming to attack? These questions have a single answer.\" Subaru put strength into his neck and lifted up his head. When accepting someone's reply to your suspicions, you at least had to look him in the eye. As Subaru did so, Roswaal closed one eye and said... \" I guided events so they would be resolved without me needing to confront the Witch Cult.\" \"...Huh?\" Subaru was dumbstruck, unable to digest the meaning of the words Roswaal had spoken openly while looking him in the eyes. When he crunched, chewed, and swallowed the words down, tasting their meaning with his brain, the contents permeated his very soul. \"I don't...get it. Then you mean...what? You ran? You actually did get cold feet when the Witch Cult was coming, and then...? How...could you!\" \"Is it truly incomprehensible? That I, among the kingdom's sages, a prominent man of influence...I, capable of a violent rampage even greater than the menace of the Witch Cult, would avoid battle with the Cult?\" \"Damn right it is! You of all people could've easily taken care of all of \" \"That is precisely why I did not. Had I resolved the matter, no credit would have gone to Lady Emilia, nor would there be any fame to be won by you, would there? That would have rendered it meaningless.\" \"Wh-wha...?\" Subaru genuinely couldn't comprehend what was being said to him. The statement would have been a hundred times better if it had been a joke or Roswaal toying with him. But Roswaal's face showed nothing that could fulfill Subaru's wish; Roswaal kept one eye closed as he continued. \"The effect was tremeeendous, was it not? Indeed, ever since the Witch Cult was driven off, the attitude of the residents of Earlham Village toward Lady Emilia has been the complete opposite of what it once was. She has gone from a Witch beyond their comprehension to the savior whose efforts protected their very lives...and their assessment of you has similarly risen, yes?\" \"Y-you... Do you even understand what you said just now...?\" The jolt inside Subaru's throat made his voice quiver indistinctly. However, the sounds that were not garbled made Roswaal cock his head, his lack of comprehension clear. It was that demeanor that gripped the bottom of Subaru's heart in incomprehensible fear. Roswaal had essentially said this: His understanding of the menace of the Witch Cult had been in no way deficient. He had anticipated that the Cult would launch an attack. And, so forewarned, he had used the expected disaster for public relations purposes. But  \"That's just judging by hindsight. It ended up that way, that's all. If you'd resolved it all, Emilia definitely...maybe Emilia and the villagers would still be in the same place. But !\" He recalled the scene from the previous evening Emilia exchanging words with the residents who had evacuated to the Sanctuary, where they had entrusted their hopes to her. Certainly, that scene might never have become reality if things hadn't gone as Roswaal had planned them. \"But that's all hindsight!! Did you even think about how many people would die because you weren't there to save them?! Certainly, the casualties were minimized. I worked my ass off for that! But they weren't zero. People died!\" \"Allow me to express my regret for the harm that befell our allies. It is, of course, only natural that our enemies are dead. The Witch Cult force was laid to waste, not a single member surviving. I could not have done it better myself. For this, you seek to apooologize to me?\" \" !! No! No, no, no, that's not it! That's not it at all!\" In revulsion, Subaru weakly shook his head, rejecting Roswaal's words. Why wasn't he getting through? Why didn't he get it? Roswaal's intent had been just too cruel, too heartless. It was fine to charge straight toward your goal, but couldn't he just listen? But this wasn't simply charging forward. It was as if he was ignoring every obstacle that had fallen upon the roadway before him. \"...If I'd stayed a piece of garbage that couldn't accomplish anything, where would you be then? The result would be that nobody was saved, not Emilia, not the villagers.\" As a matter of fact, Subaru had laid eyes upon that result multiple times over. If anything, that result was inevitable. In most worlds, entrusting the matter to Subaru Natsuki had led to the worst-case scenario. \" I left it in your hands...because I trusted you.\" Subaru wanted to know if that reply was sincere. When he heard it, all he could do was laugh out loud in despair. \"...That means you don't intend to give me a serious answer.\" \"Perhaps it is not the answer you hoped for, but I have stated the truth. I decided that tonight, I would not deceive you in any way. If I cannot speak of something, I shall say so, and if something is inconvenient, I shall hold my tongue, but I swear to you that no words I have spoken are lies.\" Roswaal's words were solemn. However, they invited too much distrust for belief. From the conversations they'd had to date, Subaru had no faith left over to take his words at face value. Despite Subaru's silent distrust, Roswaal's expression did not falter as he continued. \"I say again: Where this matter is concerned, I made the decision to trust you. I trusted that you would strive for Lady Emilia's sake, that you would exhaust all efforts to achieve an alliance with Lady Crusch, that you would put your life on the line to successfully fend off the attack by the Witch Cult, and thus increase your renown.\" \"What do you know about me?! You've known me for only two months. Do I look like a man who can accomplish things like that?!\" Subaru was indignant. He was fed up with eloquent, pretty-sounding phrases that only made his ears hurt. His teeth were bared, his beady eyes grew tense, and Subaru pointed straight at Roswaal as he howled. \"There's no way in hell. When you parted ways with me, I was a piece of garbage through and through. It was only after that I changed from garbage to something halfway decent. What came after was only because it was the only thing left to find inside of me  What did you see that lets you trust me like that?\" It wasn't a discussion. If the other party had no intention of being serious, conversation was futile. Roswaal's demeanor toward the raggedly breathing Subaru had not changed one iota. Therefore, that gaze itself was his reply. He intended neither to correct Subaru's view nor to state the objective truth. \"...It would seem our conversation for this evening is at an impaaasse.\" Roswaal declared the conversation over, almost as if he could see straight into Subaru's inner being. Subaru had no objection, either. At the very least, not until he was ready to engage in a real conversation. \"Though your esteem of me has plummeted, I cannot call that a pure disappointment... Incidentally, I think I hardly need to confirm, but concerning tonight, Lady Emilia...\" \"I'm not saying a word. Like I could tell her anyway. Besides, whatever you're planning, whether you're laughin' behind whatever face you make or not...what matters now is the result of Emilia's own choices.\" Her determination to challenge the tomb's trial, her promise to liberate the villagers urging her onward from the barrier, her resolve toward the royal selection from that point on Emilia had chosen all these things for herself. It was absolutely not because she was dancing to Roswaal's tune, manipulated by his shady schemes. \"Though you are governed by anger, within your mind, you correctly grasp the situation. For the sake of Lady Emilia's royal selection, there must be no discord created between her, myself, and the villagers.\" *** \"Meaning you have become an adult you are a worthy coconspirator indeed.\" \"...There's no good death waitin' for you.\" \"I am aware of this. I shall without doubt fall into hell. Therefore, I must exhaust all efforts to bring my ambition to fruition in this era before that day comes.\" Subaru breathed hard at the stifling situation as"}, {"text": "Roswaal gave him the adoring gaze a predator had for his prey. Subaru returned that gaze in enmity before turning his back. The conversation was over. He didn't want to spend another instant in the man's presence. But  \"I have one last thing to ask you. I'm not sure you'll want to give me a straight answer, though.\" \"What is it? My earlier promise, to answer truthfully, remains in effect. Ask whatever you wiiiish.\" \"It's about Beatrice.\" The instant Subaru invoked that name, all composure vanished from Roswaal's face. \"Beatrice,\" he murmured to himself, regaining the aloof, clownish demeanor that had reigned until the moment before. \"You pay a great deeeal of attention to that girl. What is it you wish to ask?\" \"I had a chance to speak with her before coming here to the Sanctuary, and though she wouldn't tell me much...she said all the answers to my doubts can be found here. If you're in a mood to speak seriously, what do you think she meant by that?\" When their conversation in the archive of forbidden books drew to an end, Beatrice had spoken those words to Subaru with a tearful face. Frederica had also said Beatrice was one of the very few people related to Roswaal with whom he shared his thoughts. If that was so, then Roswaal might understand just why Beatrice had had that sad look on her face. \"Before I reply to that question, there is something I wish to ask for myself.\" \"...What, then?\" \"To aid Lady Emilia, you entered the tomb. By whatever twist of fate, it seems the tomb's punishment did not go into effect... Did you meet someone within the tomb?\" The question Roswaal posed made Subaru sink into thought for one brief moment. Despite hearing that it was dangerous, Subaru had rushed into the tomb to rescue Emilia. Though Subaru had, in fact, undergone the trial, he hadn't spoken a word of that to Roswaal. One reason was that the flow of conversation hadn't given him much of a chance, but the biggest reason was Subaru's lack of trust toward him. Roswaal had decided to use even the Witch Cult's onslaught to increase Emilia's popularity. If he knew that Subaru had challenged the tomb, Subaru couldn't even fathom what schemes he might come up with this time. In the first place, it was unclear to whom he was referring. Subaru hadn't metin the tomb, or anyone else. \"What are you talking about? It was inside a tomb. Like there was room to meet anyone. A zombie, maybe?\" \"I do not know what you mean by 'zombi,' but...no, that answer is suffiiicient. Thus, my reply to your question is simple: it is not yet time to speak about the matter.\" \"Ha! So that's your story in the end. When will you be able to talk about it, then?\" \"That depends on you. Though, if possible, I would like tonight's pact to be invoked as soooon as possible.\" *** His manner of speech was deeply suggestive, but Roswaal did not seem ready to explain any further. Thinking back, Subaru felt deeply despondent at how evasive Roswaal had been from start to finish. Everything, even the prestige that came with the title of knight, had been for the purpose of setting up a favorable conversation with Subaru. \"Well then, Subaru. Let us share pleaaasant conversation again.\" *** Subaru, showered by Roswaal's sarcastic-sounding words even on the eve of his departure, vengefully slammed the door shut. 5 \"Subaru?\" Subaru scratched his head at the fact that he'd been addressed by name despite entering the room with great care. When he quietly closed the door and turned around, the girl on the bed Emilia seemed to have just awakened from a deep sleep as their eyes met. \"Sorry, did I wake you?\" \"No...I woke up a little earlier. I was surprised you were sooo quiet, Subaru.\" \"Keeping the noise down when I walk has become a habit. But my scheme has been foiled. I was actually thinking I'd play a prank on Emilia-tan while she slept...\" \"A prank...? You mean like writing on my face?\" \"You got me! I definitely don't have the courage to try a worse prank, either...!\" The way Emilia tilted her head, the thought of other things between boy and girl not even crossing her mind, took the wind out of Subaru's sails. Regardless, now that she'd awoken, he sat by her side and checked the state of everything else. The color of her face and her breathing were both normal. Her face was cute, too. She'd returned to her normal self without any noticeable issues. \"I'm sorry, Subaru. I reeeally lost it when I woke up in the tomb.\" \"Eh, ah, that's fine, that's fine. More importantly, I was worried you might have bumped something when you first fell down. It really is a lot easier on both of us if I can watch you without being separated.\" \"...Yeah, it might well be.\" \"Mm?\" Subaru, replying in what he thought was his usual flippant tone, narrowed his brows at Emilia's reaction. She lowered her eyes, looking as if she was thinking about something as she clutched Subaru's sleeve. It was as if she were unconsciously grasping his hand to allay her worries. Subaru stared at the gesture when  \" ? Ah!\" Following Subaru's gaze, Emilia was startled when she realized her fingers were grasping the sleeve of his tracksuit. She proceeded to release her fingers, her face reddening as she waved her hand to and fro. \"I-I didn't mean to. Huh, that's strange. Why did I do something like...\" \"My, my, Emilia-tan finally wants me enough to subconsciously reach out her hand. Hey, if you want to rely on me for everything, you can just come out and say it.\" \"That's...totally not it. My hand probably just...slipped.\" \"You sure denied that fast, and what do you mean by slipped?!\" Emilia shook her head at the half-joking assertion, wearing a strained, embarrassed smile. Subaru did not press the issue. After all, she didn't seem to want to talk about the worries subconsciously connected to her actions just then. And naturally, those were related to the trial that night... \"Can I ask you something about the trial? What kind of past did you see inside?\" \" !! Subaru, how do you know about...?\" \"If it's tough to talk about, I won't ask about the details. I have a past I don't wanna talk about, too.\" \"Th-that's not what I... How...do you know that the trial showed me my past?\" As Emilia's violet eyes opened wide, her words made Subaru let an ah! out of his throat. Certainly, no one was supposed to know the details of the test within the tomb before entering, and even then, they would only find out if they were challengers themselves. Of course, Subaru could have just told Emilia that he'd undergone the trial just like she had, but  *** Looking back at Emilia's trembling eyes, Subaru swallowed the words with which to convey that fact. Given that she was already shaken and discouraged, he feared that telling Emilia he'd taken the same trial, but had overcome it, might push her farther into a corner. Nor was this the only reason not to tell her. Accordingly, Subaru closed his eyes, pushing the role of the villain onto someone absent from that place. \"That jerk Roswaal was keeping quiet that he knew about the trial. He said something about facing your past, but, ah, I don't really know the details past that...\" \"Is that so... Did Roswaal...say anything else?\" \"Err, maybe that it's three parts in all, and seeing the past is the first one?\" A barefaced lie, Subaru's reply made Emilia look dispirited. \"Three parts...,\" she echoed. At least she didn't question Subaru's assertion that Roswaal was the source of the information. In reality, he'd heard it from, but he avoided such a problematic explanation. \"Setting the number of problems aside, today's challenge...didn't go all that well, did it?\" \"...Mm. So it would seem. I tried hard, but it suddenly ended midway...\" \"Sorry, I think that's because I woke you up. Seems being touched from the outside wakes you up. Come to think of it, I feel like I got told that from the start.\" \"Who...told you that?\" \"...Who was it, I wonder.\" The creases of Subaru's brow deepened as he tried to wrap his head around it. The thought easily rolled off his tongue, but where had the idea come from? When he thought about it, nothing came to mind, so he put off forming a conclusion. \"Let's switch topics. Tonight was no good. But that just means you can take it again. You can take it as many times as you need to... So the rest is up to how you feel, Emilia-tan.\" \"How I...feel?\" \"I could tell from the look on your face as you slept that it wasn't a warm, fuzzy past. But if it's not you who liberates this Sanctuary, there's no meaning to it... That's what I think, anyway  For that, are you going to challenge it again?\" *** When pressed to choose, Emilia took in a deep breath and fell silent. Her trembling fingers went to her own neck, touching the green crystal that dangled from it...but her only family made no response. Emilia was hard-pressed for an answer as Subaru watched her, silently awaiting her decision. If, for example, by any chance, Emilia recoiled from challenging the trial again, too afraid to face her past, Subaru did have an idea. It just took someone else qualified to do it instead. And that would be Subaru Natsuki. But  \" Subaru, you idiot.\" \"Hey, I'll accept any answer you... Wait, what's with the sudden insult?!\" \"If you say that with gentle eyes and a gentle voice, there's no way I'll say I can't, is there? I'm not a very smart girl...but even I know that this is my duty.\" \"Emilia...\" \"Don't pamper me. Trust me... Maybe I don't sound very convincing saying that after today, but...\" Right after speaking with such strong resolve, Emilia flushed as she lowered her eyes. However, her words made Subaru exhale at length. \"That's not true at all,\" he said, shaking his head. Emilia had said she'd do it. Then she certainly would. From all the time he'd seen her, not just that night, Subaru genuinely trusted her. \"Hey, I'm with you for makeup tests or anything else. I trust you. I'll wait.\" \"Mm, thank you.\" When Subaru smiled at her, Emilia finally regained the strength to send a charming smile back at him. It was a small, fleeting smile, but the resolve it contained made Subaru lose himself in the sight of it for a moment. \"But the one thing that pains my heart is...the trouble it must be for the people of Earlham Village...\" She'd promised them she would definitely liberate them from the barrier and return them to their village. She hoped that they were not people to shun someone upon learning of her failure, but she couldn't help its weighing on her mind. But Subaru had an idea where that was concerned. \"Can you let me handle that part?\" \"You have something in mind?\" \"I do. I don't plan on causing Emilia-tan or the villagers any trouble.\" \"...Understood. I trust you, Subaru.\" When Subaru thumped his hand on his chest, Emilia narrowed her eyes and immediately nodded. Subaru was a little surprised at the instant decision, whereupon Emilia gave a tiny, pleasant smile. \"As if I'd doubt you now, Subaru I trust you.\" *** Those words left Subaru quietly closing his eyes, thinking hard in his own mind. Emilia's trust was a product of Subaru's actions to date and even if those had proceeded according to the sketch drawn by Roswaal's own hand, it would not be that way from here on. \" No way I'm gonna let everyone dance on top of your palm.\" He would not"}, {"text": "permit Roswaal's will to intervene as it had so far. And, there in the Sanctuary, it was Subaru Natsuki's job to prove it. 6 Three days later, Subaru executed the plan that he had mentioned to Emilia. \"I must say, I am impressed you managed to persuade Garfiel.\" Otto shared his thoughts while Subaru checked the condition of the dragon carriage with Patlash, his favorite land dragon, hitched to it. Subaru's back was turned as he responded with a \"Yeah\" before continuing. \"It took a little time, but it's a big help that I somehow got through to him.\" \"Though from my perspective, it was difficult to believe he would listen to what we had to say...\" \"...You might be a merchant, but you're not a good judge of people, are you?\" \"I suppose not! Having associated with all kinds of company to date, and never earning even the slightest bit of profit without a great deal of toil, it's enough that even I doubt my own eyes!\" Otto responded to Subaru's barb with a shrill, resentful comment of his own. But Subaru understood why he felt that way. To begin with, the point of taking Otto to the Sanctuary was that Subaru could fulfill his promise of granting him an audience with Roswaal. \"And yet, to think I would go three, no, four whole days without meeting him once, only to return to the village where we started...\" \"I'm sorry about that. But you won't be able to talk to Roswaal until the heat dies down. If you want me to introduce you with a ton of sparks flyin' in the air, I can force the issue, but...\" \"No, no, no! Please, there's no need! I do not want to become involved in a strange situation like that!\" Otto's recoiling like that had been partly responsible for the delay in introducing him and Roswaal. Scratching his cheek, Subaru focused on what lay ahead of their dragon carriage the other carriages for evacuating the villagers assembled at the entrance to the Sanctuary. There were a total of fifty villagers and cooperating traveling merchants in seven dragon carriages, all moving in one rather large convoy. Subaru and Otto had arranged to bring them along on their return to Earlham Village. The condition that was required for it to happen that the barrier enveloping the Sanctuary be lifted remained unmet, but... \"Lady Emilia ain't got a choice. From the moment she stepped inside the barrier, she either lifts it, or she ain't leavin'. They ain't got no value as hostages no more, so go ahead and return 'em to their village...\" \" Garfiel.\" As Subaru watched the villagers prepare to embark, a figure with blond hair and a bad attitude approached. The man who always had a dangerous look in his eyes glanced over, glaring at Subaru and Otto as they stood side by side. \"Waaah!\" That gaze made Otto let out a small cry as he meekly retreated to the other side of the dragon carriage. Even considering the impact from their first meeting, it was quite an attitude. \"Don't boss him around too much. He's a super-important... Wait, why is he important again?\" \"If you're wonderin' out loud, how the hell am I supposed to know? Besides, him actin' like a chicken is his problem.\" Garfiel crinkled his nose as he sourly folded his arms. But though his actions were frequently crude, Garfiel was a man unexpectedly attentive to details. Subaru had learned that thanks to having come into contact with him repeatedly over the last few days. \"Who'd have thought you were taking care of the villagers who'd evacuated...\" \"What's that? Can't be helped, damn it. Not like I can have the old hags pushin' themselves too hard, and a lot of 'em don't wanna get friendly with strangers either... The less trouble the better.\" \"Meaning my suggestion put us in the same boat?\" \"Pretty much. 'It's the Maringo Island way' and stuff.\" Subaru was tempted to ponder how he was managing to hold such a normal conversation with Garfiel. But Subaru ignored that and lightly bowed his head to Garfiel once more. After all, without Garfiel's cooperation, the freeing of hostages wouldn't have been possible. \"Cut that out, it's embarrasin'. I told you not to bow your head an' stuff.\" \"Even if you say that, I have to do this much. I know you guys have your own circumstances, and you accepted this because it suits your own interests, too, but...\" Welcoming strangers into the Sanctuary meant exhausting some resources. The settlement did have its own fields, and Roswaal had arranged for the regular delivery of supplies, but a prolonged emergency situation wasn't good for either population. That was why Subaru had brought the matter up with Garfiel, who had in turn spoken with Ryuzu and the other residents, resulting in that morning's freeing of the hostages. \"That's why I'm grateful. The villagers, their feelings are a little mixed, but they're happy, too besides, we really stuck it to Roswaal.\" \"Yeah, that makes me feel good, too. I'll accept yer thanks, then.\" When Subaru gave a mischievous grin, Garfiel revealed his fangs and let out a hearty laugh. Not only had the proposal been Subaru's idea, but Roswaal had approved when he had been informed after the fact. From what Subaru had picked up through Ram, that had to have given Roswaal plenty of heartburn. Ever since the nighttime discussion a few nights earlier, Subaru had stubbornly resisted meeting Roswaal again. At the very least, he didn't intend to forgive Roswaal until the latter made a proper apology. That was unfortunate for Otto, but  \"Subaru!\" Just when there was a tiny break in the conversation, a voice clear as a bell called out Subaru's name. When Subaru looked back, Emilia was waving as she walked toward them. \"...We'll talk again later. When we're on the road.\" Noticing her approach, Garfiel whispered only that into Subaru's ear before moving off from his side. He walked off with an exaggerated swagger as Emilia arrived, cocking her head to the side as she posed a question. \"Err, did I butt into your conversation with Garfiel?\" \"Oh, that's all right. It's not like it was anything important, and Emilia-tan's my top priority.\" \"I'm reeeally happy to hear that, but right now the villagers should be your top priority.\" When the corners of Emilia's eyebrows lowered as she gave a conflicted smile, Subaru nodded in reply to her request. Then she turned her mind's attention toward the villagers' dragon carriages, where preparations to return were underway. Subaru had a strong grasp on the complex feelings Emilia harbored inside. \"I really do think lifting the barrier and heading out like a big parade would be great, but...\" \"...I'm sorry. It's because I haven't overcome the trial even after several days. But I don't think it's right they shouldn't be reunited with their families because of me.\" Her voice full of feelings of self-reproach, Emilia bit her thin lips in apparent regret over her own powerlessness.  In the three days since they'd first challenged the trial, the tomb's methodology had become clearer bit by bit. Just as Subaru had remembered, it was possible to undertake it any number of times. However, it could only be undertaken once per night. Emilia had made an attempt every night without rest only to be met with failure each time. When night fell, Subaru watched Emilia confront her past at the tomb, and he saw the pain break her heart, causing her to return tearful and haggard. Repeated painful experiences had resulted in a rising pile of failures. Moreover, he couldn't even begin to imagine how much her spirit had been worn down in the process. \"Anyway, you can't get impatient and force yourself. Since ancient times, no one has managed to accomplish anything good with those two things. I'll get the villagers back home and come back here right away...but it still won't be till tomorrow that I can make it. You can put off tonight's challenge if you want, you know.\" Subaru couldn't remain in the Sanctuary to be at Emilia's side that night. Because of that, Subaru had proposed several times already that she take a break from challenging the tomb. But Emilia firmly shook her head this time as well. \"It's all right. It's true I'm...a little impatient...but I'm the one who said I'd do this. I don't want to disappoint the villagers or the people of the Sanctuary.\" \"...Gotcha. All right, then. I won't say any more.\" \"Thank you. Also...though you should also be mindful of the villagers, be mindful of Frederica.\" Now that they'd checked off what each had to do, Emilia worriedly added that at the end. Her worry was rooted in their lack of knowledge about where Frederica stood. If Ram's warning was anything to go by, Frederica was involved with those opposed to the liberation of the Sanctuary. Subaru hadn't the faintest idea how she'd treat him and Otto upon their return to the mansion. \" If Frederica bears Lady Emilia ill will, the mansion should be an empty shell right about now.\" \"...Huh? Ram? What'd you come here for?\" Ram, slipping through the line of dragon carriages, came over and promptly joined their conversation. Much like with Roswaal, Subaru wasn't feeling particularly positive about her. Considering the issue of Rem and her behavior namely her taking Roswaal's side Subaru was standoffish with her. Ram feigned ignorance of the discord with Subaru, narrowing her almond-shaped eyes as she spoke. \"Greetings, Barusu. I have merely come out of my way to see you off in Master Roswaal's stead. As a lord, it pains him greatly to not be present as his people begin to depart.\" \"You've got some nerve to be...\" \"In addition, he sends a message to Barusu for his return to the mansion. If Frederica concerns you, I believe it is all the more important you should hear it.\" When Subaru clicked his tongue at the preamble, Ram dangled the existence of information he could not afford to dismiss in front of his nose. Truth be told, it was very difficult for Subaru to endure going along with it, but... \"What should I do, then, if Frederica is a concern?\" \"Lady Emilia is so forthright. You should learn from her, Barusu.\" Ram employed Emilia to sarcastically pester Subaru, clapping her hands with excessive glee. Then, as they caught their breath, Ram continued in a quiet tone of voice. \"He said that if you are concerned about confronting Frederica, rely upon Lady Beatrice.\" \"Rely on Beatrice? Hey, listen closer when people explain stuff. That's a majorly high-difficulty thing in itself. In this situation, just meeting her isn't simple at...\" \"It is you who should listen, Barusu. Please be quiet until I am finished  Certainly, it is not easy to speak to Lady Beatrice. That is where Master Roswaal's message should come into play.\" The grave accents of her voice made Subaru swallow his words and indicate for her to continue. His gaze made Ram lick her lips before she spoke. \"He instructed, upon returning to the mansion, to say this: 'Roswaal said ask your questions.'\" \"Questions...?\" \"Ram does not know the details. However, Master Roswaal stated that once this reaches Lady Beatrice's ears...the situation shall change. I came only to deliver this message to you.\" Ram made that declaration with a composed look, showing that she was not of a mind to entertain any questions about the matter. Subaru mulled over her demeanor and the words she had spoken. In the end, he grimaced because he didn't understand their meaning. \"So if I tell Beatrice that, she'll listen to what I have to say...is that it?\" \"Who knows? That surely depends on you, Barusu... See the villagers home safely, please.\" Placing a very strong emphasis on that last part, Ram turned her back to him and left, her business concluded. Taken aback by her attitude, Subaru scratched his head."}, {"text": "\"Ram...no, Roswaal's probably hiding something, damn it.\" *** \"Emilia?\" \"Eh? Ah, yes, nothing. No worries.\" In the blink of an eye, Emilia's gloomy expression vanished as she straightened her back and turned to face Subaru. Then she smiled pleasantly at Subaru once more before she continued. \"I don't know how far we should trust the advice from Roswaal that Ram gave us, but...don't be reckless  May the blessings of the spirits be with you.\" To a spirit mage, this was an important phrase, special words to send others off. Subaru answered with a solemn nod. \"Though that might not sound very convincing coming from me right at this moment.\" \"That's not true  I'll be back. You hang in there, too, Emilia.\" Instead of telling her not to be impatient or reckless, he tried to say something else. Rather than reinforce her worries, he tried to convey his trust to bolster her spirit, even if it only helped a tiny bit. \"...Mm-hmm. You, too, Subaru.\" Emilia nodded, and it was right around then that the preparations to depart were complete. 7 With Emilia, and subsequently Ram, seeing them off, Subaru and the others set off from the Sanctuary in their dragon carriages. At a steady pace, it wouldn't even take a half day to reach Earlham Village. The main concern on the road ahead was the barrier that blocked the passage of those who were mixed and led people astray, but  \"If ya know the right path and yer a pureblood who doesn't trigger th' barrier, ain't no problem. Ain't like either o' us wanna keep more people with grudges than we need.\" \"Beyond that, I'm grateful that you offered yourself as a guide to make sure we don't get lost, but...\" Garfiel was inside the dragon carriage, sitting in his seat at an angle and having a great time. Sitting opposite him, Subaru leaned on an elbow and sighed. \"You're not guiding us. Hell, you're practically falling asleep. Did you ditch the job?\" \"Naw. It's just, that black land dragon of yers is too damn good. She's got a perfect grasp of the road from just runnin' down it once, so there ain't nothin' for me to do.\" \"Aside from her taste in men, my Patlash really is perfect, isn't she...?\" Subaru was very fond of his favorite dragon whose specs were so high they had earned Garfiel's seal of approval. But that she'd picked Subaru as her owner might have been indicative of a certain flaw in her character. Either way, her amazing performance was why Subaru had ended up one-on-one with Garfiel. Over at the driver's seat, Otto made a point of having nothing to do with the conversation. And so their chatter naturally drifted to the topic that they had set aside until now. \"So. Before ya head out, there's somethin' I wanted to talk to ya about. Unless yer real bad at guessing, I think ya can imagine what it is.\" \"...Sorry, setting aside opinions on whether I'm good or bad at guesswork, there's a whole bunch of problems I can think of. Unless you tell me the specifics, no way I'm gonna understand what you mean.\" \"Well, ain't that rough. In that case, I'll lend ya a hand in solvin' yer problems.\" Garfiel spread his thighs where he sat, turning a sharp gaze toward Subaru. Subaru's breath caught as he recoiled from those eyes that were not so much piercing as they were cutting. \"The way you say that doesn't sound like a good omen to me... In other words...?\" \"Hey, third rate you took the trial, didn't you?\" *** The question Garfiel posed in a low voice, like the guttural growl of a beast, ran right through Subaru. When Subaru narrowed his eyes at the question, Garfiel shook his head. \"Don't hide it. I ain't picking on ya. I'm wonderin', like, people not qualified take the punishment once, and then they're free to enter the second time an' after... That's just a guess, not like anyone's tried it.\" \"If you wanna tell Roswaal to try it, I'm not gonna stop you.\" \"Me, I'd love him to try, too, but Ram'd smack me to death, so I'll pass.\" With a pained look and a flippant tongue, Garfiel bared his fangs and laughed a little. As he'd pointed out, he'd come to the conclusion that Subaru had been able to enter the tomb because it was his second time. There was no way for Garfiel to be sure, but it seemed he intended to make something out of it. \"Let's say for the sake of argument that's true... What do you plan to do about it?\" \"Now, hold on. I figured ya wouldn't cop to it. That's just a what-if, so I'll talk about somethin' easier for ya to agree to. This is 'Gam and Gum Bridge Building'\u00e2\u20ac\u201clevel stuff.\" Garfiel unleashed another one of his trademark mystery phrases, and while Subaru felt his mouth go dry from the incredibly not-casual level of pressure it suggested, he drew in his chin, indicating he would at least hear out the proposal. Accepting this, Garfiel continued. \"It's real simple. If yer qualified...then you take the trial in Lady Emilia's place. Lift the barrier for me and my people.\" \" !! Wait, I can't do that! That assumes Emilia's gonna fail!\" Garfiel was proposing that Subaru challenge it in Emilia's place. Certainly, the thought had grazed Subaru's head several times over. As a matter of fact, Subaru had already passed one of the three parts of the trial, leaving two obstacles to go. If pressed, he would admit he held a strong desire to challenge it. But that was something he wanted to avoid. If he did that, all Emilia's struggles to date would be for  \"Don't get me wrong. Me and the old hag wanna be freed from the Sanctuary. An' we don't much care who does it.\" \"That's...\" \"You wantin' Lady Emilia to do it so she can have the old hags and the hostages thankin' her that's your problem. Includin' wantin' her to overcome a hateful past and take the sting off it, that's all your problem it ain't got nothin' to do with us.\" Subaru couldn't summon a rebuttal to Garfiel's words. Looking at it from Garfiel's point of view, of course that's how he saw the Sanctuary situation. Just as he'd said, having Emilia undertake the trial, and hoping that she would overcome it, was essentially the solution to a personal problem. When Subaru hung his head at this sound argument, Garfiel sighed as he added more. \" Is the past really something ya gotta overcome in the first place...?\" \"Eh?\" \"For three days I've been watchin' Lady Emilia challenge the trial, same as you. It's breakin' her. Seein' her come out all messed up like that I can't stand to watch.\" Crinkling the skin of his nose, Garfiel brought up the heartbreaking sight of Emilia right after emerging from the tomb. The number of times Emilia had failed to overcome the trial were adding up. But it wasn't just that it was the sight of her turning back: broken, panicked, calling for Puck, then finally sleeping as if her strength was exhausted. The ordeal was excruciating. But what lay beyond her after she overcame that was  \"I believe Emilia will overcome it. That's why I'll...\" \"And yer free to hope she does. But can Lady Emilia really overcome her past? Could it be that crying and going all I'm scared I'm scared is what she really wants to do? Me, I can't really tell.\" \"What Emilia...really wants...\" The words Garfiel threw out struck Subaru like a shower of cold water. Subaru had meant to respect Emilia's wishes and devotedly support her until the matter was resolved. However painful it was to climb that wall, as long as Emilia challenged it without fail, he would continue lending her a hand.  Emilia, challenging the tomb in spite of her trembling legs, heedless of the cry of her heart. *** Right then, when Garfiel said it out loud, Subaru arrived at the possibility for the first time.  The possibility that she wanted to be rescued, that she was searching for salvation.  If, in her own heart, she truly wanted someone else to fight in her place...  Then who should be that someone, if not Subaru himself? \"...That's one more thing I've gotta really talk to her about when I get back.\" \"Huuuh?\" \"Nothing... Setting aside whether to accept your proposal or not, it sure does sound like it'd help solve my current problems. Gotta say, you really are a surprising guy.\" \"Ha! Don't say stupid stuff. Me, I just wanna improve my odds even a lil' bit.\" Clenching his fangs in annoyance, Garfiel turned his face away from Subaru. Rather than this being a cute reaction in the vein of concealing a blush, he seemed genuinely irritated, which brought a pained smile to Subaru's face. But when it came to his assertion about improving the odds, there was a lot there Subaru could agree with. \"What do you wanna do when you get out of the Sanctuary?\" \"...Well, ain't that outta the blue. What I wanna do once I'm out, huh?\" \"You've been twisting arms left and right to get the barrier lifted and escape, right? I was thinking you had to have something you wanted to do on the outside...\" *** He'd innocently raised the topic, but Garfiel looked completely taken aback. It was as if he found the question unexpected, or even as if it was something he'd never thought of before. \"...That's somethin' only a person who can freely come 'n' go would say. If ya can go wherever the hell ya want, ya can understand how me an' the old hags feel, right?\" Finally, Garfiel slowly spat those words out. Subaru felt like he'd been insulting, but Garfiel stood up, giving him no opportunity to apologize. \"We're close to the barrier. This is as far as I go with ya. Take care of the rest, ya hear?\" \"You bet... Er, I'll be coming back real soon. Not like I have zero worries about stuff, though...\" He was worried about returning to the mansion. On top of that, he felt a duty to make sure of certain things. Petra's safety was obviously one concern, but even more than that, making sure whether a certain sleeping girl was safe  \"...Well, crap. Can't be helped.\" \"Garfiel?\" Garfiel scruffed up his blond hair as he harshly clicked his tongue. Surprised by the gesture, Subaru turned toward him as he put a hand into his own waistcloth. Then  \" Take this with ya.\" \"This crystal...it's the same as the one Frederica had.\" The piece of jewelry Garfiel took out of his pocket and offered Subaru was a necklace of a blue crystal on a string. The gem looked identical to the one Frederica had possessed. The twin blue crystals were undeniable proof that Garfiel and Frederica shared some kind of bond. \"I don't intend to talk about our circumstances. Just...it's trouble for us if ya don't come back. So I'm givin' this to ya. In a pinch, show it to Frederica.\" \"...Taking this before I head off makes me worry I'll get teleported by the barrier all over again...\" \"If ya don't need it, just give it back. But havin' it might help ya in a pinch.\" When Subaru turned the crystal over in his palm, Garfiel reached out like he wanted to take it back. With a grand gesture, Subaru escaped from his hand and stuffed the crystal he had received into his pocket. He didn't know what lay between Garfiel and Frederica. They were likely blood relatives the barrier that supposedly rejected the passage of anything considered mixed seemed like a literal impassable wall between the pair. If, perhaps, the barrier was the reason Frederica had been scheming  \"I have to find out what Frederica meant to do. So, well, wait for good news, 'kay?\""}, {"text": "\"Ha! What's this good-news business? If it ain't like 'Balulumororoi makes the sun go down,' then no way I'd ever tell the difference.\" Subaru, in his attempt to bid Garfiel farewell on a positive note, drew the first smile from Garfiel he had seen that wasn't related to his ferocity. However  \"I still have no idea what makes the sun go down.\" Subaru remained ignorant of just what the mystery phrase pressing against his back meant. 8 Eight hours after setting off from the Sanctuary and six since parting ways with Garfiel Subaru arrived back at Roswaal Manor, just before sunset. \"Will you really be all right without me there with you?\" Otto spoke with a concerned, subdued voice from the dragon carriage halted in Earlham Village. Now that the refugees had been safely transported back to the village, Otto and Subaru watched as moving reunions broke out between family members who had been temporarily separated. Otto was no doubt keeping his voice down because he didn't want to interrupt the reunions. \"Yeah. I'll head back to the mansion by myself for now. If nothing happens, I'll send my thoughts over to you straightaway, so hook up with me after getting that, 'kay?\" \"Mr. Natsuki, you have so many distractions, I am concerned that my accepting your precious thoughts might leave you in dire straits... I'm joking, but let me speak seriously. If you are trying to be considerate toward me, then...\" \"I won't say that's completely inaccurate, but...you're my insurance.\" When Subaru scratched his cheek and spoke those words, Otto tilted his head and asked, \"Insurance?\" Nodding back toward him, Subaru explained. \"At the very least, you're the only other person here who knows our circumstances. If you figure something really did happen to me, I want you to avoid doing anything crazy and report back to the Sanctuary.\" \"...I would rather not speak of such things, even if it's only just in case, but...\" \"Well, since you're our crew's Mr. Dependable Merchant, I'm countin' on ya!\" \"Yes, leave it to... Wait, since when have you arbitrarily lumped me in with your faction?!\" When Otto went shrill at being entrusted with a job he didn't remember accepting, Subaru forced a smile and set out from the village. Straddling Patlash, he raced like the wind up the road from the village to the mansion. *** \"What, are you worried about me? It's all right. I'm not gonna cause you any trouble.\" When they arrived at the front gate, Subaru dropped off Patlash's back and rubbed the tip of her nose. His favorite land dragon responded with a lively gesture, rubbing him with her head, and accompanied Subaru on his way to the mansion's entrance hall. The day had stretched into dusk. The orange sun shone on Roswaal Manor, nestled between the mountains; gradually, he sensed night approaching from the sky to the east. \"...First, door number one.\" Subaru spoke those words as he stood before the doors and put his hand on the knocker. Taking a deep breath, he strongly knocked with it, announcing the arrival of a guest to all within the building. For a time, he waited for a response from inside, but  \" Door number one, no good. Proceeding to door number two.\" When the supposedly present servants didn't reply, Subaru suppressed a sigh as he gently pressed his hand to the doors. When he applied a little pressure, he found that they had been carelessly left unlocked. Without much difficulty, he slipped through the gap between the doors and trespassed on the mansion. *** The worried breath given off by the land dragon at the very end, a moment before the doors separated them, weighed heavily on Subaru's heart. Steeling himself, Subaru turned his eyes toward the interior of the mansion he hadn't seen for three days. At the very least, the broad entry hall was quiet, with no sign that anyone was near him. The words Ram had shared prior to his departure abruptly rose from the back of his mind if Frederica did bear any ill will, she was no doubt already gone from the mansion. If the worst case was that Frederica had gone off somewhere, he didn't care. The problem was  \"Whether she left by herself...or took Petra and Rem with her.\" He wasn't thrilled with either possibility, but he especially didn't want to think about the latter. He had the handkerchief on his wrist and the crystal Garfiel had entrusted to him. Relying on the presence of those two things, he advanced, stepping farther into the mansion. *** His brows scrunched up at his sense of foreboding. Subaru was on the verge of calling out to the occupants in a loud voice. Without the sight of the people who ought to have been there, the familiar mansion corridors felt like unknown territory. When Subaru walked into the hallway of the main wing and peered within, he was greeted by a strange sight. As far as he could see, every single door in the corridor had been opened. \"...Doesn't seem like someone did this to air the place out.\" From what Subaru could tell, only the doors had been thrown wide open; there was no sign anyone had touched the windows. All the rooms were impeccably tidy. Though that served as proof of Frederica and Petra's capabilities as servants, the empty tidiness clawed painfully at Subaru's chest. Something was wrong. Something felt off. Something was very...unnatural... *** A detestable feeling, a foul timidity crept around inside Subaru's body. With a deep breath and a hand to his chest, he held it in check by force. He'd already noticed that this was a bizarre emergency situation. After the many dangerous situations he'd found himself in, Subaru's survival instincts were currently ringing loud and clear: there was some kind of issue there in the mansion. If he'd followed his initial judgment call, Subaru would have immediately left the mansion and rendezvoused with Otto. The best plan was to tell his allies of the strange occurrence in the mansion so that they could devise a way to address it. If the mansion hadn't contained so many people he wanted to save within its walls, that's exactly what he would've done. *** He understood it was reckless and irrational. Even so, he had to be sure. Subaru didn't know how long it would take to return here with allies. The more time passed, the greater the chance the girls inside the mansion would be spirited away. He couldn't weigh them all on a scale. He just couldn't. \"Who...to put first...?\" Gripping the handkerchief on his wrist, as if to make sure it was still there, Subaru's brain tossed and turned enough to bring it to a boil. The people in the mansion related to Subaru in some way numbered four, all girls. Among them, Frederica was the lowest priority. At the moment, it was unclear to Subaru where she stood. Besides, she probably possessed combat capabilities. If any of them could deal with problems as they arose, it was her. As Subaru stepped forward with trembling, wavering knees, he realized if he had to go over them one by one and decide whom he had to check on first then he could only think of Rem. *** He had any number of excuses he could cite. Asleep and immobile, Rem was completely defenseless. With her existence forgotten, there was no way to be sure what value it held to a potential enemy, so he couldn't simply leave her alone. \"In her own room...!\" She had to be asleep. There was no reason she would have moved. Rem ought to be sleeping in the same room that very moment. With so many conditions piled together, wasn't it natural he would check on her first? Subaru repeated unnecessary excuses over and over inside his head as he headed to the east wing of the mansion to where Rem's bedroom was located. His breathing in disarray as his lungs convulsed, he clutched his chest as his loudly beating heart protested in concern. He abused his knees with rapid, tottering steps as he carefully hurried to catch up with the anomaly. *** Along the way, every door in the main wing had been flung open. This continued into the east wing, remaining the same as he reached the floor that contained Rem's bedroom. Rem's room was at the end of the corridor. The doors of every room before it remained open. \"Shit...Rem!!\" Clicking his own tongue as he climbed up the stairs, Subaru ran toward the back of the corridor. The color of the evening sun thickly filled the corridor through the windows. Some kind of sweet aroma was mixed in with the serene air. Breathing hard, Subaru's own body was dyed orange as he quickened his ragged steps. His heart beat louder and faster, sending painful throbs and a feeling he could not describe racing through his eyes. Horror poured in, intruding upon his brain and leaving him able to think of only one thing. He had...to find out...if Rem...was safe  \" Wh-whoa?!\" As Subaru's thoughts raced, his feet suddenly tripped two rooms short of his destination. Subaru's chest slammed into the corridor's floor, leaving him gritting his teeth at his own folly. Clenching the fist that had landed on the carpet, he tilted his head and came back to his senses. His feet had snagged on something that's what had tripped him. He'd been focused solely on the doors of the rooms he'd been passing when something slender at his feet had made him fall. With everything dyed in the glossy light of the setting sun, it was difficult to tell what its original color had been. But the thing was slender and long, stretching out without interruption, and when Subaru's eyes followed it to its end point he realized where it came from. It was no great mystery.  It had simply tumbled out of the rent side of Subaru's abdomen. \" Huh?\" The right flank of his track suit had been cut clean. That was where the yellowy intestines had tumbled out. A large amount of blood was pooling beneath him. He wasn't sure if his right foot had stumbled over his small or large intestines, but at any rate, his innards had been expelled, seemingly clinging to their owner. \"...Oghu.\" The instant he confirmed this fact, his throat was blocked by a rising clump of blood, and the world was dyed crimson. His trembling fingers tried to stuff back in the innards pouring out due to the pressure exerted by his belly, but he didn't have the strength. Then his knees failed as well, and before he realized it, he had tumbled forward onto the carpet. He didn't know what had happened. Only that his belly had been fatally slashed  \" I told you, didn't I? I promised you, yes?\" Suddenly, there was a voice. Straight ahead, from the direction that Subaru's fallen head pointed, someone was talking to him. He couldn't lift up his face. His consciousness was draining away with his organs, mixing with the coursing blood and spreading thinly across the floor. Subaru desperately gurgled, as if trying to cling to a world that was growing more distant. It's over, his instincts proclaimed. He understood that, but somewhere in his heart, Subaru rejected dying for nothing. It wasn't over, it couldn't be over, not until he gained something, obtained something. If he didn't return with something, anything, somethinganythingsomethinganythingsomethinganything  *** There was the high-pitched echo of shoes striking the floor. A shadowy figure stood in the corridor, dyed crimson from the spring of fresh blood. She wore a black outfit on her slender physique. Her long, black hair was tied back in a triple braid. Adoringly, with a coquettish look, she gazed down at his dying moments. When he sensed those things, along with the sensation of having his belly cut, Subaru understood.  Why...are you here...in front of Rem's room? \" I told you to"}, {"text": "take care of your bowels until the next time we meet.\" It was a declaration of love that had gone astray, the pure affection of a murderer that no one else could understand. As Subaru Natsuki's consciousness grew hazy, that was the only thing that grazed the fingertips of his soul. Hazy, hazy, hazy. Dark, dark, dark. And finally... Everything vanished. It was the end. And then...they began anew. The curtain of Subaru Natsuki's fourth loop...had risen. *** Yes, yes, yes, hiya, I am Tappei Nagatsuki! I am also the Mouse-Colored Cat! This time, I wanted to thank you very much for buying and reading Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-, Vol. 10! Huh?! I'm getting d\u00c3\u00a9j\u00c3 vu, like I've somehow written a greeting like this very recently?! So, while I was stricken by a sense of familiarity, it is not d\u00c3\u00a9j\u00c3 vu. It's that Volume 9 and Volume 10 are being published back to back in November! With the anime broadcast ending in September, it's a treat to be able to read about the immediate aftermath in Volumes 9 and 10, but not so great for the author. Truly, the days were spent going from the frying pan into the fire. From start to finish, this was the fault of the author for blithely saying \"Hey, once the anime's finished I'll be able to pick up the publication pace!\" No, that is not the case! If anyone would be at fault, it would be you readers for saying \"That sounds really fun, please do it!\" And I would never lay blame like that! The delight of all the readers at back-to-back publication in November is the fruit of Nagatsuki's soul as an author! Also, the fruit of the senior editor saying in a great burst of hot energy, \"We can do it, we can do it! Mr. Nagatsuki can do it!\" And you see? We did it! Back-to-back publication in November was pretty hard to pull off, enough that I forgot about that silly conversation until just before going to print. Back-to-back publication added various burdens, which of course included Nagatsuki's own workload. Furthermore, this time, with Volume 10, Re:ZERO enters a brand-new arc! By a new arc, I obviously mean changes in the scenery and the characters appearing onstage. So that means Otsuka has designed plenty of new characters. Of course, I would call all the characters he's designed gems, so it was quite an ordeal, even for a superhuman like Otsuka! Yeah, who was that guy who mouthed off on his own to the tune of \"Once the anime's over I'll raise the production pace\"? Who, me?! It was me. Mr. Otsuka, I'm so sorry. Maid Petra and School Uniform Echidna are soooooo cute. As this is the general consensus of everyone who has read Volume 10, best regards for Volume 11 and beyond! Also, the story has changed from the web version, where it got fairly gnnnnh, so if readers also have fun with things besides the illustrations, that is a very good thing, yes. Even if what precedes them is more of a jumble than usual, things tighten up once the words of praise and thanks begin, so let us begin. Senior Editor I, thank you sooooo much for your work on Volumes 9 and 10 following the anime! You were a huge help in so many areas! For Volume 9, it related to how to portray the climax of Arc 3, and for Volume 10, how to set up Arc 4 going forward. I intend to race forward at high temperature that is in no way inferior to Arc 3, so let's look forward to Arc 4! To Mr. Otsuka the illustrator, I mentioned you in the middle of the afterword already, but thank you very much for the many character designs this time around. The Witch, the punk, the girl, the maid you gave them all such adorable touches that I can't help but gush. I'm counting on your fine service during their hardships and exploits hereafter! To designer Kusano, this marks the fourteenth Re:ZERO-related book you've done, but where rankings are concerned, number 10 is right there at the top. Kusano, I've come this far because of your sense of how to attract people's eyes. Thank you very much. Let's strive to aim even higher in the future! To Daichi Matsuse and Makoto Fuugetsu, who are in charge of the comic versions, thank you very much for sticking with me all the way to Re:ZERO's anime finale event. I think it was a really good thing to get us all together right on the verge of it ending. Best of luck on the way to completing Arc 2 and Arc 3! To others in the editorial department of MF Bunko J, the various bookstore and enterprise-side persons, and the anime staff and cast for whom my feelings of gratitude have yet to diminish in the slightest, and everyone else involved in Re:ZERO, thank you. And last but not least, my greatest of thanks to all you readers who have followed this tale thus far. The long third arc is over, and with this volume, the fourth arc begins. If the theme of Arc 3 is \"self-awareness,\" the theme of Arc 4 is \"self-reliance.\" New hardships block the characters' paths, so by all means, watch as they aim to do whatever it takes to overcome these obstacles. Thank you very much for your time, and I hope to see you again for Volume 11. September 2016 Tappei Nagatsuki (Written while challenging the sudden cool spell with a Hawaiian shirt for as long as possible) \"Ha-ha-ha! So there you have it, this is Kenichi Natsuki, magnificent previewer!\" \"I am Nahoko. Ah, I'm Ken's wife... Also, did something happen to you?\" \"Suddenly hearing what you called me before marriage threw me off, but you said what you needed to say so it's all OK, my bride. So let's get down with this preview stuff!\" \"Errr, concerning the next volume of this story...Re:ZERO, was it? This is where you talk about new information, I think. Also, this is Subaru's story? I wonder what kind of story it'll be...\" \"Ohhh, you really got it, which is a totally super-rare thing! You can do it when you really try, Nahoko!\" \"Tee-hee, I can certainly do it when I try. Today was nonflammable garbage day, wasn't it?\" \"There it is, Mom's beginner-level 'the first part's disconnected from the second part' conversation piece! Let's set aside talking about the garbage for now and try to keep the conversation focused.\" \"Okaaaay. The next book after this one is Volume Eleven, expected to come out in December...the month before New Year's? Others came out in September and October, too, so it seems to be a rather busy schedule.\" \"Well, that just means they're in that much demand. \"And at about the same time as Volume 10 comes out, disc Volume 5 of the Re:ZERO anime will be out with a novella, and on top of that, there's talk of a book on the setting called the Re:ZEROpedia, too! Even with the anime finished, there's lots and lots to do. Feels like Subaru's won't be gettin' a chance to rest anytime soon.\" \"Come to mention it, Subaru's written it's his dream to become an author, and that 'I'll become like Dad, and then marry Mom.' So adorable.\" \"There's Mom's intermediate-level conversation piece, 'sudden resurrection of the past'! All of a sudden, that Subaru guy gets his dark past revealed when he isn't even here!\" \"I just thought, the more everyone knows about Subaru, the more they'll like him, and the harder that child will try.\" \"...Yeah, I suppose so! I think that, too! Why, you truly are perfect, bride of mine! 'No matter what detours you may take, the final answer is always the right one!' Right?\" \"Of course I am perfect. I am Subaru's mom and Ken's wife, after all.\" \"That's my wife for you, and that's my son. Better keep at it, Subaru... I have high hopes for ya.\" \"Yes, hang in there, Subaru.\" CHAPTER 1 *** 1  The restoration of Subaru Natsuki's lost life came with the usual, nigh-unbearable agony. The power of Return by Death caused no lag between death and resurrection. Subaru's mind didn't perceive a pause or transition from his final moments, as only time itself and his body reverted to their previous states. This inconsistency between his mind and reality disturbed his soul deeply. The instant return to a cold, hard floor made it was clear this time was no exception to the usual rules. The first thing that broke into Subaru's consciousness was a revolting sensation. \" Ueegh?! Geho!! Oegh!!\" Before his mind could catch up to reality, he violently retched from the foreign matter he found in his mouth. A bitter taste and the stench of soil lingered on Subaru's tongue; he coughed as he desperately forced open his eyes. \"Th-this is...\" A hoarse breath escaped Subaru as he sat up, squinting at the gloom. After blinking a few times, his eyes grew accustomed to the darkness, and he could make out the interior of an old stone room one familiar to him. He realized he was in the ruin. \"Inside...the tomb...?\" The peculiar putrid air stood out in his memory. There was no mistaking that this was the tomb in the Sanctuary. Placing his hands on the rough floor, Subaru pushed himself to his feet while connecting the tangled threads of his memory to piece together what had happened. Fresh back from Return by Death, his brain couldn't cope with the amount of information flooding into it. He was sure he'd gathered the Earlham Village residents that had evacuated to the Sanctuary and brought them back to their homes on his way to Roswaal Manor. He'd planned to confront Frederica once he arrived, only to find the mansion abandoned, causing worry to stab at his chest. He was concerned about the others who were supposed to be there: Beatrice, Petra, and above all, Rem  \" I told you, didn't I? I promised you, yes?\" With a shudder, Subaru's throat went taut as the lush voice brushed directly against his nerves. It was a bloody voice, the very essence of vulgarity and pleasure. The speaker had reached her climax when she witnessed the loss of life, heaving a satisfied sigh as she spoke of her one-sided promise. Subaru touched his stomach where it had been slashed and his innards had spilled out. Naturally, after Return by Death, his body was unharmed; however, the deepest scars had been carved not in his flesh but his soul. No  \"Getting my gut sliced open was the biggest reason I was brought to the mansion, wasn't it?\" Pulling his finger away from his right flank, Subaru gently traced the center of his abdomen. The wound was nowhere to be found, but in Subaru's true history, it was a cold, hard fact that he had been sliced wide open. And for Subaru, the culprit was the first obstacle he had faced after arriving in his new world  \" So the Bowel Hunter returns to the stage... Gimme a break... geez.\" He used the back of his hand to wipe the sweat beading on his brow. In the back of Subaru's mind, he could see a beautiful woman of pure darkness with long hair every bit as black as his own. Brandishing a vicious blade, that butcher had taken Subaru's life twice over and her name was Elsa Gramhilde. \"Why was that woman at the mansion...? Forget it. Not that isn't important, but...\" Having reviewed what had happened since his Return by Death, Subaru's mind focused back on the present. Where had his ability brought him? As far as he could tell, since he was in the ruins, there could only be two possibilities and given the cramped, stone room, he narrowed those down to one. \"This must be right after I took the tomb's 'Trial'...or right"}, {"text": "before? Which one it is...doesn't matter! More importantly, if this is after the Trial, then...\" When Subaru's mind and reality connected with the speed of a blitzkrieg, his head practically snapped back to look over his shoulder. Inside that claustrophobic chamber, the figure he sought was lying on the floor right behind him. \" Emilia!\" There lay Emilia, her silver hair fanned out around her head and her pale cheeks twisted in anguish. Subaru knelt at her side and was about to touch her sleeping face when...he hesitated. *** If he touched her, Emilia's Trial would end right then and there. Outside interference would cause whatever vision she was seeing in the Trial to instantly vanish, like popping a bubble...regardless of how hard Emilia was working to overcome her past. \"But I know that tonight it won't do any good...!\" Shaking his head, Subaru pushed away his uncertainty. He embraced the tormented Emilia, sitting her up and holding her against his chest. That instant, Emilia's body heavily arched back. And after trembling for a while  \"Su...baru...?\" \"Yeah, that's right. It's me, Emilia. You all right?\" Subaru shot Emilia a small smile when she recognized him and called out his name though she was still dazed. The warmth of his smile and embrace stalled Emilia's grasp on reality for a time. Soon, the situation she'd been placed in and the result of the Trial would crash down upon her. After that, she would cry like a child. He waited for it in silence. \" aa.\" The least Subaru could do was to gently embrace her so that her heart would not break in the process. And so until Emilia calmed down, he held her firmly in his arms, not allowing her to leave his grasp. 2 \"I-I'm really sorry... I-I've calmed down, so...let's talk.\" Now in a guest room in Ryuzu's house, Emilia's voice was choked as she spoke. A faint redness tinged her eyes, where heavy traces of the confusion and sorrow she felt a short while ago were still visible. Still, she was doing her best to be strong, so Subaru didn't want to interrupt. \"Well, sorry...for causing you trouble in the tomb. Really, I'm still...\" \"Emilia-tan, it's okay. When you send trouble my way, it's not a bother. Helping you is what I want to do. More importantly, you didn't hit anything when you fell down, right? If you did, I can give it a really gentle rub.\" \"Mm. Seems like I hit my butt a bit when I went down. It feels a little numb...\" \"Gulp. Th-then, I'll be very caref  Miss Ram? Is that you jabbing your cane into my back?!\" While Subaru was being particularly silly, Ram drove the tip of the cane she was gripping directly at him. When he pointed this out, she twisted the cane, causing Subaru to yelp with pain and leap away. \"H-hey, you?! Th-that's a little too much, isn't it?! Look at this blood's oozing and everything!\" \"Lady Emilia, how's your condition? Don't leave out a single detail.\" \"Are you seriously gonna ignore me after all that, Ram?! You really are a piece of work!\" As Ram respectfully checked on Emilia's health, she responded to Subaru's complaint by glancing at him as if he were an insect, snorting \"Hah!\" in an amused sort of way. The exchange brought a weak smile to Emilia's face. \"...Thanks, both of you. I'm feeling all right... So we should...talk about what happened inside.\" Her lips made a small smile, but she could not conceal the worry and fatigue dragging down the corners of her eyes, pulling on her cheeks, and filtering into her voice. Surrounding Emilia was everyone who had gathered at the tomb for the Trial in addition to Subaru and Ram, there was Garfiel and Ryuzu, and, for some reason, Otto, who made five. With everyone's eyes upon her, Emilia held her emotions in check to properly convey the details of the Trial and to announce that it had ended in failure. Most of the conversation was identical to the previous time around. The only difference was  \"Then why is Mr. Natsuki safe and sound after having gone inside?\" Raising his hand, Otto posed the question that Subaru had managed to wiggle his way out of answering the last time. He had hidden that he'd actually taken the Trial and kept quiet about the fact that he was qualified to take it. That had been out of consideration for Emilia, to avoid putting extra pressure on her when she was facing the same Trial, but...  This time, after some thought, he changed his reply to the question. \"The reason's simple. Just as you saw from the light in the ruin, I was qualified to take the Trial, too. So I took it...and I passed.\" \" Huh?\" At first, Subaru's declaration left everyone taken aback. Then, fierce unrest ran among them. In particular, Emilia's shock was tremendous; she'd taken the same Trial and failed. Her purple eyes opened wide, looking like trembling gemstones as they focused on Subaru. Subaru nodded toward her as he continued to survey the other surprised reactions in the room. \"Sorry to surprise you like that. But to be honest, I was only lucky. The details of the Trial just happened to be something I'd made my peace with beforehand... I wouldn't call it an easy win, though.\" \"Hmm. Is that so, Young Su? However, that...complicates things.\" A throbbing pain returned to Subaru's chest as he reminisced about meeting his parents in the world known as the Trial. It was Ryuzu, representative of the Sanctuary, who mulled over Subaru's words and furled her brows. The youthful-looking elder's grave voice made Ram fold her arms, narrowing her pink eyes. \"This has gotten complicated... There's no doubt about that. But if Barusu isn't spouting nonsense, then it's a great achievement. If his story is true, the barrier should be lifted now. Garf, what is the state of the barrier?\" \"...All I can say is, the pact feels the same way to me 'n' the old hag.\" \"So that was all a lie. Please die.\" \"Damn, you decided that way too early!!\" Reeling from the sting of Ram's uncharacteristically hasty judgment, Subaru was clutching his head when he belatedly realized something. \"...What's wrong, Garfiel? Why you making a scary face like that?\" \" It's nothin'... Barrier ain't down yet, right? What did you expect?\" \"I was just about to explain that stuff. Man, you guys are so impatient.\" Garfiel, who'd been glaring at Subaru, crinkled his nose and averted his gaze. Put off by his demeanor, Subaru turned back toward Emilia. Just as before, Emilia's eyes were filled with worry and bewilderment as she said, \"...Tell us, Subaru. What...did you see when you...overcame the Trial?\" \"Probably more accurate to say what I learned rather than what I saw. The Trial's a real bully... And there ain't just one. Apparently, even after you finish the first, there's still two left, for three in total.\" \"Two more...\" The worry in Emilia's eyes deepened, which made Subaru's chest tighten so much it hurt. The first challenge, the Trial of the past, provoked unspeakable anguish for her. The thought of two more was simply staggering. \"This might be going too deep into the weeds, but who exactly did you hear all this from while you were in the tomb?\" \"Who...? Er, I didn't talk to anyone... When I started the Trial, I heard my own voice in my head. I think it probably affects different people in different ways.\" It was close to the truth for him to say that he'd simply come to understand the information rather than hearing it from someone else. Subaru had no memory of meeting a person in the tomb, so it was a natural assumption to make. \"It is said that in rare cases, one can understand how to use a metia merely by touching it. This could be something similar.\" \"Ahh, I have not yet had the opportunity to touch something as precious as a metia...\" \"I suppose you wouldn't. You have the look of a pauper.\" \"It hasn't even been half a day since Miss Ram and I first met, has it?!\" Ram had quickly decided how she was going to interact with Otto. Setting aside their exchange, Subaru sat right beside Emilia on the bed she was resting in. Then, he locked eyes with her as he addressed her directly. \"Emilia, there's something I want to suggest. You might not like it very much, though...\" \"Suggest? What...do you mean by that...?\" \" Can I challenge the Trial in the tomb in your place and clear it?\" *** The words Subaru had uttered fiercely unsettled Emilia. From her perspective, they were completely unexpected; from his, they required courage and resolve to say.  Subaru would take the Trial, liberating the Sanctuary in her place. It was a thought that had occurred to him during his conversation with Garfiel on the way back to Earlham Village the last time around. Mid-trip, Garfiel had questioned Subaru, who was sending Emilia to the Trial in spite of the agony she had to endure because of her repeated failures. Garfiel had wondered whether overcoming one's past was truly necessary. Naturally, Subaru couldn't simply accept that idea without any thought, but it had undoubtedly been a bolt from the blue. He acknowledged it was worth suggesting as an option, at least. \"I want to be there for you. I don't know what you're facing from your past, but if it's enough to make you cry like that and bring out so much suffering on your face... I want to reach out to you.\" \"...Subaru.\" \"It should be fine even if it's me taking the Trial and liberating the Sanctuary. There's nothing that says you have to go through a hard time and face up to your past.\" The way Subaru slowly shook his head and spoke gently to her made Emilia's gaze wander. He understood Emilia's inner turmoil. Facing her past had been excruciating. If there was some way to avoid it, some part of her must have wanted to do exactly that and leave the rest to Subaru. It was her strong sense of responsibility and nobility that did not permit her to abandon a burden once she had decided to carry it on her shoulders. Moreover, her gentle nature left her afraid that Subaru might have to endure a pain comparable to hers in the Trials that would follow. If that kindness was the shackle binding her, Subaru had to tell her it wasn't necessary to  \" Man, I shut up and listen for one minute, and you suddenly think you can decide every damn thing on your own, huh?\" Before Subaru could say anything that might have broken those shackles, someone in a particularly foul mood called him out from behind. The speaker growled through his fangs, crinkled his nose, and curled his back in a catlike posture as he unleashed another stream of words. \"Me, I'm opposed to anyone besides the Princess...besides Lady Emilia takin' the Trial. At the very least, I'll be damned before I let the likes of you lift that barrier.\" \"Wha ?!\" From Subaru's perspective, this was the second time Garfiel had struck him with a bolt from the blue. However, the impact of the first paled in comparison to that of this one. Subaru, unable to reconcile the words with their speaker, was completely dumbfounded. Seeing his apparent confusion, Garfiel pounded the incomprehensible reality home. \"Let me say it again. If you ask me, no one but the Princess should take the Trial. I ain't lettin' the old hag get it twisted either. Think of this as my rule.\" \"Wait! Wait, wait, wait...!\" Subaru desperately rambled in response to Garfiel's sudden declaration. Inside his mind, he was unspeakably shocked and baffled. Of course he was. The source of Subaru's suggestion was none other than Garfiel from the last time around. \"Why the hell"}, {"text": "are you the one who's against it...?\" \"Huh? That surprised I'm not all for this plan? Ain't you an optimist.\" \"Hey, don't get all bent out of shape. If anyone should be frowning and complaining here, it's me...\" Last time around, Garfiel was the one who had browbeaten Subaru to take the trial. Yet here he was, shooting down the very same plan. He couldn't figure out the true intent behind Garfiel's change of mind. \"I'm not doing a great job reining in my whirlpool of emotions right now...but can you tell me exactly why you're against it? As far as you're concerned, the faster the Sanctuary is liberated, the better, right?\" \"It ain't a question of sooner or later. This is one of those, ya know, issues of status. Ain't that right, old hag?\" \"Though the way he put it was unbearable...I cannot refute what Young Gar says. That said, there is an issue with how he phrased it.\" \"Hell, even Ryuzu is against it...\" Subaru was bewildered that not only Garfiel was stubbornly opposing him, but the elder was as well. Considering how emotional and temperamental Garfiel appeared, it was at least understandable how his opinion could change at the most inopportune time and place. However, Subaru wouldn't have guessed Ryuzu would react this way. In response to Subaru's earnest gaze, Ryuzu waved an oversized sleeve as she picked up where she had left off. \"I understand Young Su's point about lifting the barrier because the sooner that happens the better... However, I wish to follow Young Ros's plan as closely as possible.\" \"Roswaal's plan...\" \" Lady Emilia should obtain the Sanctuary's freedom by her own hand.\" *** Emilia's breath caught as soon as she heard those words when Ryuzu narrowed her eyes and spoke. Emilia touched a hand to her own breast, her long lashes hovering over downcast eyes as her voice quivered. \"I I have to do it... It's no good if it isn't me... I...need to do this...\" \"No, Emilia, there's no...\" \"I-it's all right! Subaru, you don't need to force your way into going in my place. I'm just...I'm just a little surprised because this is all so sudden. But now that I know what needs to happen...\" Knowing the Trial was about facing the past, she could emotionally prepare for it. That's what Emilia insisted, but it was already a proven fact that no matter how strong her resolve, it wasn't the same as a foolproof plan. If nothing else, letting Emilia continue like this would mean watching the past devastate her for the next three days. This foreknowledge was what brought such sorrow to Subaru's eyes. That was why  \"Subaru... A-are you thinking that you can't trust me with this?\" \" Wha?\" Right as his mind drifted off for a second, Emilia posed a question to him, her voice quivering with worry. When he let out a surprised breath, Emilia weakly shook her head side to side and continued. \"It's because you saw me fail... That's why you think you can't trust me to complete the Trial... That's why you want to do it in my place.\" \"No, Emilia, that's not it. It's just... It isn't like you absolutely have to deal with the past and...\" \"But I ! If I don't face it, then I can't pass the Trial! I-if I can't do even that much, there's no way I can become King... I have to help the villagers and the people of the Sanctuary get out of this place.\" Emilia firmly embraced her own shoulders as she swept Subaru's words away. Her slender nails dug into the skin, as if she meant to hurt her timid self. \"I...can't keep relying on you all the time, Subaru. It was just the other day that you became so badly hurt for my sake...and now it's about to happen again. I won't put you through that...\" \"...It's fine that way, Emilia. This might be the wrong way to say this, but this is one of those, you know, give-and-take situations. Wait, would it make more sense to say giving the right person the right job? What I'm trying to get at is that I just so happen to have a better matchup when it comes to this Trial. Since it seems I can handle this, might as well have me take care of it. That's all. You'll definitely have great opportunities to give it your all in the future.\" \"Isn't this one of those important opportunities? If I avert my eyes simply because I don't like what I see, then push everything onto you, Subaru, before running away...what does that make me?\" How good would it be if he could simply yell back, And what's wrong with running away? If running from something awful was possible...if someone had a chance to not look at something bitter or to turn away from suffering, and in so doing, they could breathe easier, then that's exactly what they should do. That was how Subaru had lived his life up to that point. Even if people looked down on that way of living as the weakling's path, he could almost certainly say with conviction that it was not something to be ashamed of. *** And yet, Subaru was unable to affirm Emilia's weakness. He didn't understand why he couldn't bring himself to say the words. But when she noticed that Subaru had fallen silent, Emilia shut her eyes with all her might, casting them downward as her lips tightened. Seeing that stabbed at Subaru's chest, and when he tried to say something even though he hadn't been able to think of anything meaningful  \" For now, let's leave it at that.\" It was neither Subaru nor Emilia who punctuated their discussion with that brief statement. The speaker had quietly circled around Emilia's back, gently touching a pale palm to the young girl's mouth. An instant later  \"...Ah\" Emilia, her strength suddenly draining out of her, lost consciousness, tipping forward as she crumpled. Subaru hurried to catch her. Laying in his arms, tranquil breaths slipped from Emilia's sleeping face. Then he turned to another Ram's and asked, \"What did you do?\" \"I gave her a whiff of incense to help her relax. Perhaps you're upset that I used such a forceful method.\" \"That was definitely aggressive... But you did the right thing. Sorry for making you go through the trouble.\" \"Receiving an apology about Lady Emilia from you, Barusu, is strange indeed. When did you inherit Lady Emilia's guardianship from the Great Spirit?\" \"That wasn't what I...\" Meant, he wanted to say, but his shoulders drooped instead. Subaru knew the retort wasn't very convincing. It was a fact that, whatever the reason, Puck's refusal to show himself made Subaru even more protective of Emilia than usual. His knowledge of how the Trial would wear her down made him rash as well. What's more, it seemed Emilia was well aware of this tendency of his. \"Ha. Either way, looks like we're done talking for now.\" Subaru was at a loss for words, and Emilia was unconscious. Seeing the two of them like that, Garfiel snorted as if he was bored. Though Subaru took issue with his attitude, he couldn't bring himself to snap back with a retort. The conversation for that evening was over. There was no denying that fact. However  \"It'd be nice...if we could talk to the Princess again tomorrow.\" Subaru had no reply for the murmur that Garfiel added, either. 3 \"Can I talk to you for a minute? There's something I wanna ask.\" There, in the settlement, illuminated at night by a bonfire, Subaru called out to the figures walking ahead of him. \"What's that? Ya got somethin' more to say?\" Two individuals Garfiel and Ryuzu came to a halt so they could turn around. Garfiel was in a foul mood, while Ryuzu's expression was unreadable. Subaru scratched his cheek as he spoke to the pair. \"Hey, don't be so combative. I just have a little question.\" \"A question, is it? If it's something we can answer, then I don't see why not. What is it you wish to ask?\" Garfiel loomed with his fangs bared, though Ryuzu held him back and gave Subaru permission to proceed. Grateful for her demeanor, Subaru abruptly puzzled over something. \"Come to think of it, this house used to be where Ryuzu stayed, right? Then where is Ryuzu staying while Emilia and the rest of us are staying here?\" \"...Hey, why are you even askin' a question like that? Lemme make this clear. If you even try and do somethin' to the hag, you can bet I ain't gonna forgive...ow, ow, ow! What gives, lady?!\" \"It's time to give the stupidity a rest, Young Gar. Do you think a youngling would want to do anything with a fossil like me? It's obvious he's simply curious.\" Ryuzu sighed with an exasperated air as she dug her nails into Garfiel's hip. Certainly, Garfiel's suspicion was way off the mark, but it still felt kind of strange to hear Ryuzu describe herself as an old lady. Either way, Subaru had come to talk about his idle curiosity, so he cleared his throat and continued. \"You opposed my suggestion back there. I wanna know the real reason why. Mind telling me?\" \"...Like we said before, liberating the Sanctuary should be something Lady Emilia accomplishes on her own. That's what Young Ros desires, after all.\" \"You said that it's Roswaal's plan. Meaning...\" When Subaru suddenly recalled the heated debate he had shared with Roswaal the last time around, his ignorance caused wrinkles to break out on his brow. Dealing with the menace of the Witch Cult and liberating the Sanctuary Roswaal claimed he'd set everything up so that Emilia would be credited with the success of both. Subaru could agree that Roswaal's plan presented unique advantages for Emilia's bid for the throne. However, he felt that line of thinking was too heartless. \"...Do the two of you agree with that guy's methods?\" \"Hey, don't get the wrong idea. Me? I hate the bastard, too. But things ain't that simple.\" \"Young Su, I understand how you must feel. I hardly find it a pleasant topic either. But as the settlement's representative, my position also requires me to think of what will come after the barrier is lifted.\" Prodded by Ryuzu's statement, Subaru grimaced in bewilderment. Garfiel observed Subaru's state and went, \"Now look,\" scratching his head in irritation as he went on. \"Even if the barrier's lifted, that don't mean the people livin' here just go poof and vanish. If how and where they live changes, who do ya think is gonna take care of geezers and hags who can't even tell left from right?\" \" I get it now. Even if the barrier's lifted and everyone formally moves into the fiefdom...you're still under Roswaal's care. That's why Ryuzu and the others are...\" \"We do not wish to risk our relationship with Young Ros. I am sorry for you and yours, Young Su.\" \"...You know, this is making me trust Roswaal less and less...\" Considering how low Subaru's opinion of Roswaal had dropped the last time around, the current conversation was a truly bitter pill to swallow. Subaru's reply elicited a pained smile from Ryuzu, while Garfiel gave a single, strong click of his fangs. \"Aaanyway, we've laid out our demands. The Princess takes the Trial. Me, I won't let you take it, whatever qualifications you've got.\" \"Stop calling her Princess. It sounds like you're making fun of Emilia.\" \"Can't call her half-demon or Princess? Man, you complain a lot. Besides, Sir Knight, if she ain't a Princess, then who the hell have you been protectin' this whole damn time?\" Twisting his hip, Garfiel peered up at Subaru as he spoke in a provocative tone. Subaru fell into his thoughts a short while, before coming to his senses and lifting a finger to thrust toward Garfiel. \"The part where you called me Sir Knight just now,"}, {"text": "could you say it one more time?\" \"The hell you gettin' all worked up for...\" Garfiel seemed fed up with Subaru's unexpectedly bashful reaction when Ryuzu raised a hand between them. Then she brought that hand to her mouth as she let out a little yawn. \"Young Su, could we leave it at that? The late hours of night are hard on the elderly. Let's continue this tomorrow.\" \"Given your appearance, it feels super-weird hearing that from you...but roger that. Sorry for keeping you.\" \"Hah! 'The Abengam comes on thick.' Don't you dare go anywhere even near the tomb.\" \"Not sure what that phrase is supposed to mean, but I get the gist of it. I've had enough of the tomb for one night, anyway.\" After seeing off the sleepy Ryuzu and the thorny Garfiel, Subaru, by his lonesome, lifted his head and gazed up at the starry sky. The night sky was full of clouds, but since there were barely any light sources on the ground, the starlight was incredible. He felt like nature was cleansing his heart. \"The situation's too dire for a warm and fuzzy mood, though...\" After a dizzying day and Return by Death, Subaru's body and spirit were both laden with fatigue. But he slapped his cheeks to energize himself and turned toward the group's temporary accommodations. And then  \"So what'd you think of that discussion just now? I'd like to hear an outsider's opinion.\" \"...Normally, wouldn't one call it a third-party opinion? When you call it an outsider's opinion, you make both my position and opinion feel overly estranged...\" \"This is my way of being considerate of your position. If you're just an outsider in the end, it gives you a chance to save face, right? Damn it man, don't make me say it out loud.\" \"Such consideration is pointless when you already involved me in the earlier conversation!\" As they bantered, Otto slowly emerged from the temporary accommodations. He'd probably eavesdropped on the last conversation from beginning to end. \"However,\" he prefaced without the barest hint of shame, \"if you were asking for my honest opinion, then I'd have to say that what Garfiel and Ryuzu said makes perfect sense, doesn't it?\" *** \"They understand the Marquis's aim, and there is Lady Emilia's standing as a royal selection candidate to consider as well. Mr. Natsuki, you no doubt believe that even if you overcome the Trial in her place, the prestige of the exploit would still belong to Lady Emilia...but would something like that be accepted by all the involved parties present here? In other words, would doing things that way win their support?\" \"Even I get the logic behind that. However you think about it, Emilia liberating the Sanctuary would be the ideal move. But...\" As Subaru trailed off, a third party smashed right through his hesitation. \" Lady Emilia cannot overcome the Trial?\" When Subaru turned toward the voice, there stood Ram, who had supposedly been tucking Emilia into bed. Subaru reacted with a bitter expression and shook his head. \"I'm not saying it's impossible. But anyone can tell it's hellish to make any progress in a short span of time, right? The barrier isn't a problem we can leave alone for a long time.\" \"I suppose not. At the very least, I would like to conclude it within three years, before the royal selection is decided.\" \"That's way longer than I was thinking!\" At first, Subaru thought this was another display of Ram's peculiar brand of flippancy, but her frank expression made him seriously consider the possibility. Meanwhile, Otto silently crossed his arms and nodded before adding his thoughts. \"I actually understand why Mr. Natsuki is so concerned. Considering the burden on the evacuated villagers and the current living conditions in the Sanctuary, food stores included...the day it all breaks down does not seem far off to me.\" \"Suddenly being forced to live as refugees puts a lot of stress on people. And then there's the inhabitants of the Sanctuary who have to give out all their food. Their dissatisfaction is probably about to explode any moment.\" \"Which is why you would like to do something before that happens. So what's your plan?\" \"Feels...kinda unsettling to have the conversation move so quickly... If possible, I'd like to propose freeing the villagers from the Sanctuary before there's an irreparable breakdown in relations.\" With Ram and Otto, Subaru brought up the idea of releasing the hostages just like he'd done the previous time around. His proposal had been accepted once before, but he didn't know if that would happen again. After all, the condition for agreeing to the proposal last time had been for Subaru to take the Trial. This time, the representatives of the Sanctuary had precisely forbidden him from doing that. He expected negotiations would not be easy. \"I'm sure they have no desire for mutual destruction either. Given the nature of the barrier, Lady Emilia cannot depart until someone brings the Trial to an end... It would seem most of the proposal's premise has already been fulfilled.\" Otto nodded as he interpreted the parts of Subaru's proposal that hadn't been elaborated on enough. Seeing Otto logically break things down, Ram went \"Hmm,\" narrowing her eyes as she spoke with a hint of praise. \"I'm surprised. The pet you took in is worth more than I presumed, Barusu.\" \"Isn't he? I found him tied up on the side of the road. I'll take care of him, so can I keep him?\" \"Only if you take proper care of him.\" \"Could you two stop referring to me like I'm a dog or a cat?! Both of you are seriously in tune, aren't you?!\" When Otto bit back, Subaru and Ram both let out a hearty sigh. This was solid proof they were truly in sync, but Subaru sank into thought about something weightier. Based on the earlier exchange, he didn't think Garfiel would simply go along with his proposal to free the villagers. That said, Subaru had a reason why he couldn't take things slow.  He had to seriously start thinking ahead, to the situation that had caused his Return by Death. \"All things considered, it would seem that this proposal will become the focus of the conversation to follow.\" \"Yeah, I suppose it...wait, what conversation?\" \"...He really is hopeless, no?\" \"What are you talking about?! It's a bad habit of yours to decide things all by yourself!\" Ram seemed like she seriously felt sorry for him, which made Subaru stamp the ground as he asserted the unfairness of it all. His childlike reaction caused Ram's shoulders to sink as her pity deepened. \"Since Lady Emilia was haggard after the tomb's Trial, and the ongoing situation has been hard on Barusu's small head, I am trying to be considerate, but I cannot have you forgetting a most important promise.\" \"You know, I have a bit of trauma about not keeping promises. Remind me what this one was again?\" \" That after the Trial, Master Roswaal would make time for you.\" The words, which Ram said in a rather sour tone, made Subaru go \"Ah\" as his mouth fell open. Folding her arms at the stupid look on his face, Ram continued nonetheless. \"That's where you were supposed to speak about circumstances to date, and what's to follow. Isn't that right?\" 4 The important points of the latest Return by Death were completely different from those of previous times. During a normal though it was difficult to use that word in these situations or usual instance of Return by Death, Subaru often presumed that the situations instigated by various assailants and the labor required to counter the threat they posed were the most important. Using the previous loop as an example, the hostile party that had caused the Return by Death situation was the Witch Cult, and Subaru had borrowed the power of other factions, such as Crusch's, to deal with them. In a similar vein, the attacker this time around was Elsa, the Bowel Hunter, and his options for dealing with her would probably come down to fight or flight. But this time, there was an issue he clearly needed to prioritize above that. Namely  \" What had happened to Frederica and the others by the time Elsa killed me?\" In the current loop, after he'd returned to the mansion, Subaru had felt extremely wary toward Frederica. The crystal she had given Emilia was the reason he had been teleported while they were on their way to the Sanctuary. He later went back to the mansion fully intending to figure out her true motives. \"Who would've ever thought it'd be Elsa's blade greeting me. Thanks to that...well, crap, thanks to that I got a Return by Death without learning a damn thing.\" Subaru wouldn't say he had truly come away with absolutely nothing at all, but what little information he'd gleaned was not enough. Now that he knew there was an enemy lurking, the largest pending issue was the uncertainty of who her victims would be. Besides Frederica, there were three others at the mansion: Petra, Beatrice, and Rem were the girls at the mansion all right? If Frederica was in fact hostile to Subaru and the others, did that mean she was connected to Elsa? Either way  \"I doubt that insane woman would have any reason to hold back against Rem and the others...!\" His memories bubbled up unbidden: the pain of Elsa's wicked blade and his sense of helplessness at being unable to stop her vile deeds. She'd killed Emilia. She'd killed Felt. She'd killed Old Man Rom. She'd killed Subaru himself. There were few things Subaru had greater faith in than the tastes of the butcher known as the Bowel Hunter. Elsa would never let her prey at her chosen slaughterhouse slip away. That was why  \" I've gotta get back to the mansion without a moment to spare. I have to figure out what happened.\" Along with the liberation of the Sanctuary, this was a challenge Subaru had to take on. \" I seee. Now I graaasp the situation.\" After hearing Subaru's long explanation, Roswaal, lying on his side in bed, nodded deeply. The room set aside for Roswaal's convalescence contained only him and Subaru. Setting Otto's thoughts aside, Ram seemed unhappy she couldn't also be in attendance, but this was how it had to be. After all, when men met to plot wicked deeds, the fewer of them, the better. \"I must say, these are results beyond anything I could have hoped for. Not only was the Witch Cult driven off, to think you eeeven participated in the hunt of the White Whale at the Liphas Plains...\" \"We can discuss that again when invitations for an award ceremony get thrown around. My exploits weren't exactly small, so I figure some prestige is coming my way.\" \"I get the seeense that some prestige is hardly enough to accurately describe the acclaim you've earned. Moreover, I wish to thank you on a personal level for your cooperation in subjugating the White Whale... And what of Sir Wilhelm?\" Closing one eye, Roswaal posed the question with only his yellow eye open. It made Subaru gulp down. \"I didn't think I'd hear Wilhelm's name out of your mouth... He was there. Wilhelm was the one who finished off the White Whale. It was incredible... He's seriously something else.\" \"I see. That is most splendid.\" *** Subaru knitted his brows, suspicious of the intensity in Roswaal's murmur. The fact that Wilhelm had avenged his wife, achieving his long-cherished desire, had delighted Roswaal. \"Roswaal, do you know Wilhelm?\" \"...No, I have neeeever met him. One of my ancestors did, briefly. Therefore, I choose to toast the Sword Devil's tenacity from a distance, entiiiirely on my own whim. That is all.\" That is all, Roswaal had said, but the emotions surfacing in his expression seemed conflicted. Subaru couldn't bring himself to blindly trust what he had just heard, but he also"}, {"text": "had no time to pursue the matter any further. \"This really, really bugs me...but let's move on to the main issue. You've read my proposal, right?\" \"I haaad intended to discuss rewarding you for your exploits as well, but...no matter, let's continue. You wanted to discuss your plan to request the freeing of the Earlham villagers from the Sanctuary, yeees?\" When Subaru urged him onward, Roswaal smiled back and touched the bandages wound around his chest as he nodded. \"Certainly, the fact that Lady Emilia has entered the barrier means Garfiel and the others' aims have already been realized. Lady Emilia cannot depart unless the barrier is lifted. Suuurely it is not necessary for other hostages to remain within the barrier as...insurance.\" \"Seems like a rational plan to me. It's not kicking the Sanctuary's problems down the road or abandoning them. This is a reasonable proposal, so the other side ought to be willing to compromise.\" \"A reaaasonable proposal, you say. It is not that you actually have a diiiifferent concern? For instance, when Lady Emilia's heart is crushed by the Trial, the people of the Sanctuary might use the presence of the villagers as a shield, using them as leverage to force her to challenge the tomb against her will. Which would make this your way of nipping that in the bud...or something like that?\" Closing one eye, Roswaal stared at Subaru with only his yellow eye, something Subaru was used to seeing by then. Subaru folded his arms, then leadenly drew in his chin as he replied. \"Nah, sorry. Never thought of that. In fact, just imagining it is scary. Gimme a moment.\" \"Oooh my? Perhaps I overthought it? How rude of me. I'm sooorry to surprise you.\" Roswaal smiled, glossing over what was either bottomless pessimism or a vicious thought process. While those disinterested eyes and that smile were still trained on him, Subaru mentally refuted the possibility Roswaal had raised. Purely as an option, it was certainly one potential course of action. However, no one involved in the current events was the kind of person to carry it out. It had only been a few days, but Subaru was confident he knew where Garfiel, Ryuzu, and the other residents of the Sanctuary stood on this. \"...Either way, I understand your proposal, so...what is it you deeesire from me?\" \"I want this proposal to go to Ryuzu and the others through you, not me. This time, it seems like...they're not gonna compromise with me.\" \" This time, hmmm? And why is that?\" \"Seems like that Garfiel bastard's taken a disliking to me. I don't have the time to get through to a moody guy like that. That means it's better to have the idea come from someone other than me.\" Opposition to Subaru taking the Trial included, Garfiel's demeanor had clearly changed from the last time around. His stubborn demeanor and the almost outright hostile glint in his eyes were things Subaru didn't remember encountering before. He wondered if it was something he'd said, or if he'd done something to rub the guy the wrong way. Either way, Subaru decided it was best for him to avoid coming into contact with Garfiel this time around. \"If he gets hard-headed about my point of view for emotional reasons, that'll put everyone in a bind. It's a little scary how Ryuzu just goes along with whatever Garfiel says, too.\" \"And thus, my turn has come. Okay, very well. I shall speak to the elder. But Garfiel hates me as well, so I am concerned I may not be able to bring him around riiight away.\" As a fellow person whom Garfiel hated, Roswaal readily consented, leaving Subaru to make a pained face as he entrusted his hopes to the man. The plan itself would likely be accepted by the other party after considerable grumbling. They would probably promise to free the villagers within the next several days. However, this was only the first step of Subaru's ultimate plan. \"Noooow then, is your business with me at an end?\" \" Not yet. If anything, this business is more important than that proposal and everything that's wrapped up with it.\" That preface made Roswaal's cheeks harden for just a moment, but that stiffness soon morphed into a smile as he ran a finger through his long, indigo hair. Then  \" Tell me. What is it that you desiiiire?\" \"I want to go tell the people back at Earlham Village that the hostages will be released from the Sanctuary just like we discussed. I want to tell all the worried folks that their families are coming home.\" \"Hmmmmm. In other words, you wish to go before the hostages are freed and the barrier is lifted...\" \"I'll return to the village alone. Of course, I'll be heading to the mansion, too, where Frederica's scheming something or other.\" With his shrill voice and heated gaze, Subaru transmitted his exact thoughts to Roswaal. Subaru had thoroughly reviewed the circumstances surrounding Return by Death, had shown consideration to Emilia, who was giving it her all to face the Trial, and had been wary of Garfiel, resident of the Sanctuary. At a glance, it seemed as though Subaru had handled everything quite calmly. However, even at that very moment, an undeniable impatience threatened to tear the inside of his chest asunder. How was Elsa connected to Frederica, one of the few remaining at the mansion, and what in the world had happened there? Subaru desperately wanted to find out as soon as possible, to the point that he couldn't bear to sit around and wait for however many days it would take to persuade everyone. \"I understand your concern. However, to the extent of my knowledge, Frederica is not one prone to rash...\" \" The hell do you know?\" *** Somehow, Subaru's interruption silenced Roswaal's attempts to alleviate his worries. Dark, heavy emotions were infused within the young boy's low voice. Of course there were. Roswaal's private opinion of Frederica was entirely irrelevant. What Subaru had seen was the truth. In the future, something would occur, and that reality held far greater weight to him than anything Roswaal thought. \"Don't say stuff like that. It doesn't suit a smart guy like you. Frederica's the one who put that crystal in Emilia's hands. That's evidence she's up to something. You said as much, didn't you?\" \"...Even so, she isn't one to intentionally bring harm to others. She has not the couraaage to do so.\" \"I don't have much courage either. But that's doesn't guarantee she wouldn't try something desperate.\" There was no firm, clear answer what exactly prompted humans to take dramatic actions in extreme circumstances. It certainly wasn't courage that drove Subaru forward. It was nothing more than a sense that something bothered him. \"Roswaal, the trip will only take half a day. If it's just me going with Patlash, I can be back in a day's time. Please, give me the permission I need to do just that.\" \"Even assuming I do permit it, if it becomes clear that Frederica bears enmity toward you indeed, if she takes hostile action against you...what will you do?\" *** \"The girl has demi-human blood flowing within her. The circumstances of her duties at the mansion mean that she has learned a certain degree of martial arts. Uuunfortunately, I do not think you stand a chance against her.\" \"Th-that's none of your business...\" The straightforward problem Roswaal pointed out made Subaru's throat tighten. Depending on how events played out, it was possible Subaru would have to face both Frederica and Elsa at the same time. Opposing them would be Subaru alone; Petra and the sleeping Rem couldn't be considered ready for a fight. He had no confidence he could even get in touch with Beatrice. All things considered, the only combat strength he could bring from the Sanctuary back to the mansion was  \"Emilia can't go because of the barrier, Roswaal's heavily injured, Otto's definitively a noncombatant...wait, is this checkmate?\" \"I suppooose it is, though with a single exception.\" When Subaru blanched, Roswaal spread his fingers toward Subaru's pale face. The fingertips stole Subaru's attention, as Roswaal smoothly wiggled them around and continued. \"I shall add a condition of my own to your proposed plan of action. As I was just saying, I cannot send you alone to a ceeertain death. Therefore, to ensure that does not come to pass...\" \"To ensure that...?\" Roswaal clapped his hands together, opened them, then spoke. \" Take Ram with you and go. I am quite ceeertain she shall be of aid to you.\" 5 \" To put it bluntly, I am not thrilled with this situation.\" \"...You're saying that after we've come this far, Big Sis?\" The next morning, Ram was the first to open her mouth when they arrived at the settlement's entrance. With a sour look on his face, Subaru followed suit. It was a rather Ram-like thing to say, eliciting a wry smile from Subaru as he scratched his head.  As a result of the discussion the night before, Subaru had swallowed Roswaal's terms. It was plain fact that Ram was the only one who could be relied upon for combat, making her the sole countermeasure against Frederica. Ram had indicated her disapproval but relented and came along obediently in the end. That said, it didn't mean her chagrin had simply vanished  \"With Master Roswaal's poor condition, I can't help but feel concerned about leaving his side.\" \"I mean, it's not like you can do anything by staying here either, right? Also, I was speechless when I heard it was Garfiel who bandaged those wounds and not you.\" \"Don't be ridiculous. If I did it and Master Roswaal's injuries worsened, where would we be then?\" \"You should feel a little worse about the fact that you'd make it worse!!\" Subaru's voice rose as he took in Ram, who was utterly shameless about her poor ability. He sighed deeply, hearing his voice echoing in the distance as morning embraced the Sanctuary. It was the start of the day after the discussion. Their preparations had been as quick as humanly possible. But considering his unease over his Return by Death, Subaru truly wished they could have departed the preceding night. \"At night, the Forest of Cremaldi is quite dangerous. Even without the barrier, those woods form a natural stronghold that bars the entry of humans.\" \"...Don't be reading a man's mind, sheesh.\" \"It was written all over your face. Are you that worried about the girl you left at the mansion?\" Ram had a sharp intuition and had handily discerned the reason for Subaru's unease. Ram was referring to Petra, freshly employed at the mansion. If Frederica turned out to be hostile to them, the girl's presence was Subaru and Ram's Achilles heel. He wanted to avert a situation like that at all costs. But that wasn't all. \"It's not just Petra I'm worried about.\" \" ? If you mean Lady Beatrice, she should still be in the Archive.\" Ram regarded Subaru's sullenness with a questioning look, not mentioning the other person left in the mansion namely, Rem. That was natural; Ram didn't remember Rem, and Subaru hadn't spoken about her yet. The nice way to put it was that he hadn't had a chance to bring it up, but in truth, he was simply afraid. Of course, he believed that it was absolutely necessary for him to bring it up during their trip to the mansion. \"I'm not super eager to talk about it, but...emotionally, it'll be better to bring it up when it's just the two of us, huh...\" *** \"Er, sorry, that's my bad, Patlash. It's not like I forgot that you're here, too.\" Overhearing Subaru's murmur, the land dragon rubbed her nose against Subaru's shoulder in apparent objection. Patlash, Subaru's beloved land dragon, would play the most important role in their journey from the Sanctuary back to the mansion. He was relying on Patlash's grasp of the"}, {"text": "way home, and this time, no one would be riding a dragon carriage; it'd be him and Ram mounted on Patlash's back as she ran for the entire return trip. \"She's a good land dragon, making up for her all-too-lacking master. I pity her taste in men, though.\" \"I can't say anything back about that. I really can't, but it still bugs me...\" \" Headin' back snuggled between two fine ladies, huh? Just showin' off at this point, ain't ya?\" When Subaru's shoulders sank in misery, he heard a voice coming from behind, causing him to turn back with a scowl. The speaker, who was the very person he had expected, walked over while trampling the grass before stopping right beside the two riders and one mount. \"Didn't think you'd be seeing us off at this early hour. Real polite of you.\" \"Geezers and hags get up stupid early. Me, I live here so I picked up the habit... Wait, none of that's important right now.\" \"You were the one who started talking about it, Garf.\" When Garfiel came into view, Ram looked genuinely surprised. However, that was true for Subaru as well. He'd seriously never expected Garfiel to give them a proper send-off. \"Are you that worried about me and Ram riding together? Just so you know, it's not like my back's touching anything. And even if it did, all there'd be is something hard as a board.\" \"Oh shut it. Me, I know that more than anyone in the whole wor ow?!\" \"You certainly do not know that. I'll slap you silly.\" \"Don't say that after ya slap someone!!\" \"Incidentally, stop smacking me, too!!\" Ram simultaneously slapped the vulgar pair's cheeks as her shoulders sank in exasperation. Then, with handprints plastered on them, Subaru and Garfiel's faces met. \"Anyway, thanks for coming to see us off... Also, does that mean...you've heard?\" \"The talk about lettin' that lot of outsiders leave? I heard it straight out of that bastard Roswaal's mouth last night. I don't like you holdin' talks without me but...I ain't got any problems with it.\" \"Yeah? That's a big help. I couldn't help thinking that in the worst case, you were here to stop us by force. If that happened, I'd be forced to throw Ram as far as I could and use her as a decoy.\" \"Hey, I'd never fall for that! ...I wouldn't, right?\" \"Hell if I know!! Ram, say something to him already...\" After shouting angrily at Garfiel, who'd suddenly lost his confidence, Subaru called out to Ram, who was right beside him. And it was then that he noticed Ram was knitting her brows, apparently contemplating something. \"Ram? What is it?\" \"...I am merely getting a headache from Barusu and Garf's idiotic conversation.\" However, when Subaru asked to see if everything was okay, Ram shook her head and replied in her usual manner. In so doing, she cut off that line of conversation, leaving Subaru unable to pursue the matter. With that concluded, Subaru reoriented toward Garfiel to speak with him. \"Well, we're off for a little bit. I intend to be back tomorrow, so take care until then.\" \"...You're fine with not greetin' the Princess first?\" \"I'm even more surprised you're worried about Emilia and me... But it's fine. I left a letter, and I asked Otto to stay with her if she's having nightmares or anything.\" \"That guy's got it rough, too. He's going through the middle of Temtem Manor for sure.\" When Garfiel rattled off one of his mystery phrases, Subaru accepted his concern with genuine gratitude. He hadn't gotten a chance to debrief Emilia about the discussion he had with Roswaal the night before. He was setting out before she even woke up. Subaru didn't have time to offer explanations, arguments, or excuses. Since, of course, his leaving would make Emilia worry, he'd left a letter behind  \"But when I'm not by her side, I can't stop worrying... So I'm leaving her in your hands, Garfiel.\" \"Wha? The hell are ya thinkin', entrustin' the Princess to me...?\" \"I suppose because you're strong, you're thinking of the Sanctuary, and you're well aware it's gonna be a problem for you if anything happens to Emilia.\" *** \"Also, worst case, I can try asking Ram to seduce you into going along with...guaaaa!!\" \"It seems you haven't done any reflection yet, Barusu.\" \"Don't smack me right in the same spot you did earlier!! Are you a demon?! ...Wait, you are!\" Teary-eyed, Subaru raised a complaint about his punishment, which Ram met with an amused \"Hah!\" Garfiel was completely lost, having gone from mid-conversation a moment before to speechless. But after a brief silence, he audibly clenched his sharp fangs and said, \"...Fine. For now, I'll go along with all this madness...\" \"Really? That's great... I'm so happy my face's swelling up...\" \"Ram, I'll take care of that bastard's wounds, too, so quit looking so damn worried. This ain't like you.\" As Subaru rubbed his cheek, Ram seemed to show no outward emotion when Garfiel made his comment. Ram's cheeks tensed ever so slightly as she responded. \"What an impertinent thing to say, especially coming from you, Garf.\" Having said her piece, she turned her back to him. She was no doubt signaling that the conversation was over. It was true that taking too long before departing would be a problem. Subaru also wanted to leave the Sanctuary right away, but... \"...Come to think of it, do you have anything to hand to me this time?\" \"Huh? What are you talkin' about?\" Right before mounting Patlash, Subaru asked a question that left Garfiel perplexed. He acted like a question mark was hanging over his head as Subaru idly reminisced about his old world. Last time, when Garfiel had accompanied him for a portion of the journey back to Earlham Village, he had handed over a crystal to Subaru, who had been anxious about his reunion with Frederica. At the time, Garfiel had said he didn't know if it would be of any help. In the end, Subaru had perished without ever meeting Frederica face to face  During the previous series of events, three more days had passed before his return trek, but this time, no more than half a day had gone by. It was natural that Garfiel had no reason to be generous with Subaru. However  \" Garf, will you show any consideration to your dear Ram as she heads off to meet Frederica?\" \"What are you sayin' I should do...?\" \"You should do your duty for the woman you have fallen for. Do you not wish to be of aid to her?\" \"Actin' like a woman only when it suits ya... Damn it all.\" Ram maintained her brazen demeanor. Garfiel clicked his tongue and tossed something her way. For an instant, the morning sunlight reflected blue off the crystal, just like Subaru remembered. Guessing what Subaru had been aiming for, Ram forced Garfiel to cough it up. All Subaru could say was that it was completely in character for her. Internally sighing in admiration at Ram's skill, Subaru mounted Patlash and reached out to her with his hand. Unexpectedly, Ram politely accepted, and with that, the pair finished mounting the land dragon. After that, Subaru waved a hand to Garfiel, entrusting the Sanctuary to him once more. \"Take care of Emilia. And as much as you can, let her know I apologize with all my heart and mind, 'kay?\" \"You can tell her crap like that using the mouth you were born with, damn it!!\" As though Garfiel's angry shout was a starting signal, Subaru commanded Patlash to set off. The pitch-black land dragon accelerated, tearing through the serene air as they cut through the forest. As they continued to go faster and faster, Garfiel quickly receded from sight. \"So, Barusu? Do you think that thing of Garf's will be of any use?\" The effect of the wind repel blessing meant the riders didn't feel any shaking or wind, even on the back of a running land dragon. As they sped on, Ram, sitting behind Subaru with her hands around his hips, tinkered with the crystal she had just received. It was a crystal pendant tied with a string, and it really did look a lot like Frederica's. \"I have no idea what effect it'll have. What do you think? You've known him a lot longer than I have.\" \"I didn't even know he had this, so of course I have no clue... But the fact that the two have similar objects does make one wonder, doesn't it?\" Frederica and Garfiel, connected by blood, though their views on liberating the Sanctuary diverged what role did the crystals play in their relationship? *** \"...You know, you've had a pretty somber expression for a while now.\" Around the time Subaru had reached that conclusion, he noticed Ram had gone silent and her face was unusually gloomy. Subaru remembered seeing the same look when he'd tried to sweep things under the rug during the earlier conversation. \"I'm no Garfiel, but it's true that this isn't like you. If there's something on your mind, you should talk about it.\" When he prodded a second time, Ram's pink eyes narrowed, and after a moment's hesitation, she spoke. \"...Barusu, something felt amiss earlier.\" Her statement caused Subaru to tilt his head as he asked, \"Amiss?\" \"At the height of your ridiculousness, you mentioned throwing Ram somewhere as a decoy, yes?\" \"I did...or at least I think I did? It was mixed up with a lot of other stuff, so I don't remember too clearly...\" \"You did. And for some odd reason, those words tugged at my chest. It's as if \" Her words trailed off, but after a pause, Ram continued. \" as if such a thing had actually happened before.\" *** For a brief moment, Ram's murmur made his brows furl, but then Subaru realized something. It dawned on him so late he wanted to strangle himself. Subaru hurling Ram was indeed something that had actually taken place. The only catch was that fact probably didn't exist anywhere save inside of Subaru after all, it was a memory that was related to Rem. At the height of the commotion surrounding the Urugarum demon beasts, Subaru had used Ram as a decoy to stop Rem's rampage. When all trace of Rem vanished from the world, established facts connected to her were sloppily rearranged to maintain consistency. \"Barusu?\" A world where Rem did not exist was slowly settling into place. By all rights, there was probably no way to stop such a thing. But it was possible the existence of Subaru Natsuki might keep it at bay...perhaps by driving in some nails fastening Rem's existence to the world. \" Ram, I have to talk to you about something important... To you, it's probably the most important thing in the world.\" \"...Beyond Master Roswaal, I do not believe any such thing exists.\" \"Nah, there is something That's what we're gonna talk about.\" Subaru was embarrassed that he'd chickened out and avoided this conversation for so long, considering how important it was. There was still a fair bit of time until they reached the mansion. There were countless things that he had to ponder. Even so, he could at least take the time to  \"There was...a girl named Rem.\" And so he spoke to build a place for that girl in her beloved older sister's heart. 6  His second return to Roswaal Manor went off without a hitch. \"That said, the awful experience I had took place inside the mansion...\" Scratching his cheek, Subaru murmured to himself as he dismounted Patlash before the gate. His other objective reporting to the residents of Earlham Village had been taken care of beforehand. He'd told them that their families remaining in the Sanctuary would soon be released, and their reunion would occur within a few short days. They had been delighted at the news, but Subaru felt guilty for using it as the justification for"}, {"text": "his return. Still, this was to make sure everyone made it through the coming danger safe and sound...or at least that was what Subaru told himself. \"You seem stricken by pangs of guilt, almost like a proper adult. Take care to remember that feeling in the future.\" \"Future, huh? You're thinking about Frederica just as much as I am...\" \"I'm not speaking of today's future, but far beyond that. Considering Lady Emilia's royal selection, the opportunities for Barusu to engage in wicked deeds shall only increase...though I am probably wasting my time bothering with you.\" Subaru couldn't even muster a groan of complaint at her harsh appraisal. Ram dismounted the land dragon like he had. Gazing at the mansion from beside Subaru, she appeared calm and ready. Her face didn't reveal a trace of the gloom and frailty Subaru harbored. He was genuinely envious about that. \"Well, excuse me for being unable to leave that boorish lower middle class mindset behind...\" \"You have served but a few months, Barusu. Ram has served ten years. Our degree of loyalty and length of service differ. It is impertinent for you to think you can stand upon the same stage... More importantly, have you managed to harden your resolve?\" \"I'll turn that question right back at you.\" Ram, putting their differing mindsets on the back burner, asked him whether he was ready for something far more immediate. Subaru closed one eye. With their destination, Roswaal Manor, right before their eyes, Subaru couldn't exactly back off. Compared to the previous loop, he'd arrived back two entire days early, but  \"Please don't let anything have happened yet...\" Put bluntly, his latest return to the mansion was more or less the fastest option possible, given the current point of Return by Death. The only way to get back any faster would have been to drop everything and run back the moment he got out of the tomb. Subaru wondered if Patlash would even cooperate if he had tried that. Unfortunately, that course of action was not something that Emilia, Roswaal, or the others involved would have understood. Of course, if it meant he'd make it back in time to do something, Subaru would have charged forward regardless, but... *** As Subaru sank into thought, a hand moved to his right arm as if by nature touching the white handkerchief wrapped around its wrist. This charm symbolized a prayer for his safe journey...and the promise Subaru had made with Petra that he would come back safe. \"Even if Frederica is an enemy, whether she intended to start something right away matters a lot. The fact that she showed her face at the village yesterday doesn't eliminate the possibility she did something right after we left, but...\" \"Barusu.\" \"Attack or run away. It's a hard choice to make, huh? This time, Ram's here, but if it comes down to a fight, it'll be a drop in the bucket... When we're up against Elsa, running for the hills is way smarter. The problem with that is Beako still holed up here...\" \"Barusu.\" \"What? Can't you tell I'm desperately tryin' to put my thoughts in order right now? If I don't work things out well enough, we'll seriously pay for it later. Could you put up with me talking to myself for a litt \" \" If you are going to do that, I think you should do it inside of the mansion, right?\" Subaru, turning when Ram tugged at his sleeve, pleaded with her about the importance of his fevered mumbling. But then a cute, amused giggle brushed against his eardrums, making Subaru look toward the gate in surprise. When he did so, he saw a maid standing on the other side of the gate with a demure smile on her face. She had reddish-brown hair accented by a big ribbon on her head. Her adorable smiling face convinced Subaru that an angel had appeared. He was taken aback when he finally laid eyes on the girl  \"Pe...tra...is that you?\" \"Welcome back, Master Subaru. You are back far sooner than expected, no?\" \"Y-yeah, I'm back... Er, ah. I'm uh, happy to see you.\" In front of the surprised Subaru, the girl Petra elegantly grasped the hem of her skirt and politely bowed. After staring intently at her, confirming that she was safe and sound, Subaru let out a deep sigh. *** Subaru's strange demeanor made Petra cock her head to the side, completely mystified. Then, she let out a little \"Ah!\" as she nervously turned her back to Subaru, carefully arranging her clothing and hair. Then, saying to herself \"Okay,\" she turned back around and smiled adorably once more. \"Is there something wrong, Master Subaru?\" \" ! Aw, geez! You. Are. Soooo damn cute!\" \"W-wah?!\" Petra's unbearably charming behavior drove Subaru to impulsively embrace her and stroke her head. The complex, unreservedly adoring motions of his hand made Petra's eyes go wide as she raised a bewildered cry. \"Wh-what are you?! S-Subaru...th-this is embarrassing...!\" \"Gahhh, you really have no regard for people's feelings... You really don't, damn it all...!\" \"...Subaru?\" The girl's cheeks reddened as the brows on her blushing face furled with a questioning look. Still buried in Subaru's chest, Petra examined him with worried eyes as she asked in a low voice, \"Does it hurt somewhere...?\" The worried girl's fingertips brushed Subaru's trembling cheek. \"Nah,\" he replied, gently taking into his hand the slender fingers touching him as he shook his head. Breathing deep through his nose, he stopped for a moment. Then, he slowly met the girl's gaze as he answered fully. \"I'm just relieved from the bottom of my heart. Hi Petra, I'm home.\" 7 \" To put it bluntly, I am not thrilled with this situation.\" \"That's the second time I've heard that today.\" \"I suppose it is. It's sarcasm after all adorable sarcasm from dear Ram, who's at a loss from being thoroughly forgotten.\" Ever since Subaru's reunion with Petra, Ram kept shooting off sarcastic remarks. Moved by the mere sight of the girl being safe and sound, Subaru had unwittingly gotten quite emotional, but Ram's silent anger at having been ignored in the meantime ran deep. Subaru was on his knees as he apologized. \"I'm sure you already understand, but I was worried about her. I'm just relieved that she's all right.\" \"How indecent.\" \"You're way more indecent for saying that about a tiny girl like this!\" Subaru deflated as Ram folded her arms and snorted with a \"Hah!\" But as she watched the exchange between the pair, Petra gingerly walked closer to Ram. The big ribbon on her head swayed. With a fair bit of tension on her face, she asked  \"Errr, you're Miss Ram, right? This is the first time we have properly spoken, so... I am Petra, new servant here at the Master's mansion. I am pleased to meet you.\" \"My, you aren't calling me Ramchi today?\" Raising an eyebrow, Ram teased the girl about the nickname that had spread among the children of the village some two months prior. Her reply brought a blush to Petra's face. \"B-back then I...\" she panicked in her embarrassment. \"I was still just a child. But please watch me. I will be different from now on.\" \"...Unlike Barusu, you are quite discerning. Very well, you pass.\" \"Hey, who do you think you are?\" \"Incidentally, Barusu fails. As he is, I cannot allow him stay at the mansion.\" \"Then what was the point of me coming back?!\" Naturally, seeing Subaru and Ram mess with each other like they always did helped relieve the tension from Petra's face. Seeing this effect on her made Subaru think that Ram's way of being considerate was as hard to understand as ever. He never raised it though because he soon focused on the mansion and changed the topic. \"Uhh, so Petra, has anything changed while I've been gone?\" \"Mhmm, that's what I wanted to ask you. Why have only Subaru and Miss Ram come back? What about Lady Emilia and the noisy guy?\" \"Emilia-tan is in the middle of an important job. Otto... What is Otto doing, anyway?\" \"I do not know, nor am I interested in knowing.\" Ram's dismissiveness aside, even Subaru wasn't aware what Otto was up to from day to day. Within the Sanctuary, he had been approaching people as a traveling merchant who'd simply accompanied the other evacuated villagers. Other than that, there wasn't any particular job Otto had been entrusted with, but  \"I expect he can help ease Emilia-tan's heart for a short while, though I doubt that'll work for long.\" \"I suppose not. His face betrays a lack of endurance, so he'll likely break down in no time.\" \"It's not like I left him behind to be a punching bag, you know?!\" In the first place, Emilia wasn't the kind of person who could cheer up by directing her resentments at others. If things stayed reasonably simple, consoling her when she was crestfallen was a simple matter as well. Subaru's and Ram's replies made Petra go \"Hmmm,\" accepting them for the time being. Accordingly, questioning rights shifted back to Subaru, whereupon he repeated his earlier question. \"All right, rematch time. Has anything changed during the time you've been holding the fort? Especially with Frederica...\" \"Miss Frederica? She's very gentle, and she's so thoughtful about teaching me things. Besides that, nothing's really happened...except maybe, once in a while, she looks outside with a worried look.\" \"Outside?\" \"Sheesh!! She's worried about you and Lady Emilia! At least figure out that much.\" Subaru deflated when he was scolded for being a blockhead. What he gleaned from his current conversation with Petra was that she and Frederica got along curiously well, and Frederica had not engaged in any obviously suspicious behavior. Also, since he failed to properly appreciate the feelings of others, he was in danger of Petra hating him. \"If anything, it's that last bit that's the most serious problem... If I don't quietly patch things up, I'll be in a real bind.\" \"Setting Barusu's nonsense aside, Petra, where is Frederica right now?\" \"Miss Frederica went into the forest to check on all the barriers. She said that until all the villagers are back, it's her job to make sure the barriers are properly woven. It should still be...a little while before she's back.\" \"I see. I wonder if that is for better or ill... Barusu, what will you do?\" Ram posed that question to Subaru, secure in the knowledge that Frederica was absent. Reading between the lines, Ram was posing a choice. Withdraw? Advance? At the very least, if they evacuated Petra to Earlham Village at the current juncture, she wouldn't become involved even if Frederica did resort to drastic measures. However  \" I want to check on something else. Let's head to where Rem is.\" \"...Rem.\" The circumstantial evidence seemed to point to Frederica harboring an intent to betray them, but it wouldn't be possible to discern her true intent until they exchanged words. Subaru held high hopes for that talk, and in turn, made a choice to take things in a favorable direction for Ram.  On the way back, he'd told Ram about the existence of Rem as well as their relationship, as time permitted. He couldn't possibly speak about her as thoroughly as he would have liked. At the very least, he had managed to explain that they were sisters and what circumstances had caused her to forget the person who was her other half. *** She would reunite with the sister she had been forced to forget. Understandably, even Ram could not fully maintain her composure; her cheeks were stiff, and her pink eyes were filled with worry. Subaru peered at her from the side. \"...What?\" \"I thought you looked tense.\" \"I am not tense at...\" \"Nah, you're definitely tense. I figured you would be, and I'd rather you be.\" This wasn't anything like an emotional reunion between sisters who had been living far apart. Rem would not"}, {"text": "awaken from her sleep, and to Ram, the reunion was one that genuinely didn't bring back any memories. Even so, Subaru, as the one person left who knew them both, had a single wish. If nothing else, when they reunited, he wanted Ram to feel a pang in her heart, however tiny it might be. \"Petra.\" \"Yeah...whoops, I mean, yes. Rem is...in the same room as before.\" When Subaru called out to her, the quick-witted Petra said, \"This way,\" and began guiding them. Following her petite back, Subaru and Ram both stepped into Roswaal Manor for the first time in several days. Their destination was the bedroom devoted to Rem on the second floor of the eastern wing. They proceeded through the mansion interior, meticulously maintained by Frederica and Petra's work; after a short while, the three arrived at their destination. \"I'll...go back to cleaning the west wing some more. Please call me if anything comes up.\" Not wanting to be insensitive in any way, Petra courteously bowed and excused herself. Subaru watched the newly minted maid depart, shrugging his shoulders at Ram, who was staring at the door. \" A very well-mannered child. She is a suitable candidate for serving Master Roswaal.\" \"I agree that she's no mere village girl... So you're mentally prepared?\" \"I am, always. Unlike you, Barusu.\" When Ram replied with a demure look, Subaru forced himself to smile as he slowly put his hand on the doorknob. He hesitated only for a single moment. The door creaked slightly as it opened up. And inside the room  *** There was a blue-haired girl, quietly sleeping atop a well-kept bed. She looked just like he last remembered her. It was as if the room had been frozen in time. The slight rise and fall of her chest and her faint breathing were the only outward signs that she remained alive, meager proof that they were. \"Rem.\" Subaru said her name. Anyone could tell there was a great deal infused within that single, brief murmur. It held an unceasing torrent of emotion, one that was directed toward only a single person in the entire world. He had steeled his heart, determined never to waver, no matter what struggles he might have to face.  But her sleeping face easily shattered that resolve and determination. \"...So you were...safe and sound.\" He hesitated to say \"safe and sound,\" given her condition as a helpless sleeping beauty. Even so, Subaru's heart did find some measure of peace from seeing with his own eyes that she was the same as how he left her when he had departed. He felt like someone had told him, There's no such thing as something that you can never make right.  He also felt like someone had told him, Don't give up on making this right. *** His emotions were too intense for true relief, but they also weren't enough for him to come to a final resolution. Completely unrelated to what was rumbling in Subaru's chest, Ram was completely at a loss for words as she stared at Rem, asleep in bed. She unconsciously took half a step forward. Subaru couldn't see her face, but  \"Barusu.\" \"......What is it?\" \"Could you...leave us alone for a little while?\" \" Sure.\" It was neither an order nor a demand from Ram. It was a simple request. With no reason to go against it, her request made Subaru draw in his chin. After brushing the hair out of Rem's sleeping face a tiny bit, he quietly left the room, leaving the sisters by themselves. He proceeded to look back, leaning against the door as he sighed deeply. He'd confirmed that Rem and Petra were safe. \"Only for the moment... For the moment.\" In the worst case, he would find himself in checkmate, unable to arrive in time to make everything right no matter how quickly he left the Sanctuary. He still had to find out what cards his opponent was bringing to the table, and which hand she would play. To discover that, he had to  \" Master Subaru, what a surprise. I did not expect you to return so soon.\" \"...I don't see much surprise on your face, though.\" \"Please do not speak about my face. I am quite self-conscious about it.\" The jesting tone Subaru heard made the corners of his lips twist as he tried to smile. Though his expression couldn't be considered friendly by any means, the only other person present decided to interpret it that way as she glanced at the door behind Subaru. \"You paid Rem a visit?\" \"Yeah. It's only been two days, but each one felt like ten lifetimes... Right now, the sisters are meeting.\" \" Sisters...I see. That girl's existence is...very complicated for Ram, isn't it?\" The woman's eyes looked quite concerned for the girl past the door. Her seemingly genuine distress made Subaru feel uneasy at the increasing discrepancy with the conclusion he had drawn from circumstantial evidence. The fact that she hadn't instantly launched an attack, let alone taken Rem and Petra hostage, and was even freely engaging in a friendly chat, was wholly inconsistent with Subaru's assumptions. \"It is best to leave them by themselves for a while longer. Let me pour tea for you in the reception room, Master Subaru. We can speak at greater length there.\" \"I guess that's fine. Going ahead without Ram isn't the wisest thing I've ever done, but...\" He'd brought Ram along in case of emergency, yet he was about to go alone to a place where such an emergency might very well arise. It seemed suicidal, but Subaru dismissed that for two reasons: There probably wouldn't be an emergency, and he didn't want to be the idiot who intruded on someone's special moment. \"Don't betray my expectations, okay? I'm trusting you, Frederica.\" \"Then I shall strive to do my very best to live up to them I have taken to heart that this is a maid's duty.\" With that reply, the woman Frederica hid her sharp fangs behind her hand as she smiled softly toward Subaru. 8 \"The fact that Lady Emilia is not with you must mean affairs in the Sanctuary are not yet settled, I take it?\" After relocating from Rem's bedroom, the pair sat down on sofas in the reception room. Spread out between them was a table and cups of freshly poured black tea. Having finished setting the table, Frederica made the first comment. Subaru confirmed her inference with a \"Yeah,\" nodding as he gazed at the steam wafting up into the air. \"I'm grateful for you coming out and saying that you understand what's going on...especially after I had to talk with a guy who apparently knows everything but won't be straight with you about any of it.\" \"When you say that, Master Subaru, I believe we have the same person in mind.\" \"I'm sure you're also thinking of a certain...hard-core eccentric who won't let his makeup slip even when he's badly hurt.\" Subaru's sarcastic reply brought an \"Oh my\" out of Frederica as she met his words with amusement. After that exchange of minor jabs, Subaru leaned forward quite a bit as he got directly to the point. \" When we were setting off for the Sanctuary, you deliberately withheld a fair bit of information, but...that was the vow at work, right? And that's still in effect even now?\" Frederica had told Subaru and Emilia about the Sanctuary, but she had hidden a number of facts from them, saying \"I cannot speak of it.\" Frederica had strenuously insisted that this vow of hers was the reason why. When Subaru questioned whether that yoke was still on her neck, Frederica shook her head side to side. \"Unfortunately, I cannot respond as you wish me to. The vow is still in effect...in the first place, unlike a pact or a covenant, a vow has no compulsory power by itself. This is simply what my heart has settled upon.\" \"If there's no compulsion, then can't you bend it just a little? Even if it's against your beliefs, you understand the situation we're in here, right?\" \" Ten years, seven months, thirteen days.\" As Subaru pleaded his case, Frederica suddenly rattled off those words. The span of time didn't mean anything to Subaru. While he was thoroughly perplexed by this tidbit of information, Frederica gently brought her cup of black tea to her lips and explained. \"That is how long it's been since I left the Sanctuary and began serving Master Roswaal. That is also when the vow went into effect... Master Subaru, are you asking me to throw all that time aside?\" \"...Ram was just talking to me about time, actually.\" Scratching his head over the quiet statement, Subaru took a single, deep breath before pressing on. \" If it's necessary, then yeah, throwing it aside is exactly what I want you to do. I'd like to respect the time and emotion that went into keeping your vow. But if it's in the way of something truly important, I think it's something that should be broken and tossed.\" \"You say that rather lightly.\" \"I'm not saying that you should be super-excited to break your vow and throw it away. But if you're up for doing that...\" Subaru made a paper-ripping gesture, which made Frederica's jade-colored eyes tense up. With neither side willing to concede any ground, this was nothing but crashing their opinions against one another. No one would call this a negotiation. Subaru knew nothing good could come from continuing this. Accordingly, he came at her from a different direction. \"...I get that you're dead set against the idea. Let's try talking about something else, then. Frederica, please look at this.\" \"What is it, Master Subaru?\" Putting a hand into his pocket, Subaru presented Frederica what he had been given: the blue, glimmering crystal. Her first glimpse of it only made Frederica put on a questioning face, but soon enough, she realized its identity. \"That is...the crystal I handed to... No, it's not? That necklace... Ah.\" \"It looks just like that one but it's different. Take it and see for yourself, please?\" Frederica blinked, her hand trembling as she accepted the necklace. She stared at the crystal resting in her palm, feeling it in with her hand over and over, after which... \"This is...Garf's stone, isn't it?\" \"Yeah, that's right. When I was heading out, he... Well, technically, he handed it to Ram, but...\" Garfiel no doubt had never intended for Subaru rather than Ram to hand it to Frederica. No way am I telling him about this, Subaru firmly decided in his heart. \"Either way, the only people who call him Garf are people close to him. That's true whether it's Ram, Ryuzu...or you, Frederica. Though I kinda figured you two were related, even without that revelation.\" \"...Then it isn't as if you heard about it from Garf.\" \"I can tell from your faces that you're related by blood. Besides, you give me the impression of an older sister. In the end, it was just my intuition based on your attributes.\" \"I am uncertain what attributes you might be talking about, but you are correct. There's no mistake, for I am Garf's...Garfiel's older sister by blood.\" With a wry, pleasant smile, Frederica lightly touched the corner of her eye with a fingertip. Subaru averted his eyes because the gesture seemed like she was wiping away a tear, which made him feel like he was watching something he ought not to. \"My, Master Subaru, you are unexpectedly timid.\" \"Sheesh, any man has it tough when he makes a girl cry. Here's a handkerchief to wipe that off.\" \"A different handkerchief than the one Petra gave you... How surprisingly gentleman-like.\" Walking around with a handkerchief was a habit he'd learned from when he lived back with his own family. Thanking his mother for having instilled the practice in him, Subaru blushed when Frederica teased him about it as she accepted the handkerchief. She was dragging the conversation"}, {"text": "in an odd direction, but the last thing he wanted to do was simply go along with it. \"Anyway! I didn't expect the necklace to change anything. In the end, I only wanted it to trigger a different conversation. I'll get to the crucial point.\" \"A crucial point, you say?\" \"Yeah, the main thing I wanted to discuss  What did you set up a teleport trap in the Sanctuary for?\"  Plunging straight into that topic was a large gamble on Subaru's part. The crystal Frederica had handed them had triggered the teleportation upon Emilia's and his arrival in the Sanctuary; in other words, it was proof that Frederica had intentions of some kind regarding Emilia. Frederica was familiar with the Sanctuary, so she surely knew that Emilia would lose consciousness once she came in contact with the barrier. What was she scheming, teleporting Emilia when she was unconscious? Subaru cut straight to the meat of his interrogation. \"Answer me, Frederica. Or is it that you can't talk about this either 'cause of the vow?\" *** \"Even if that's the case, I can't let you be quiet about this. I'll make you talk, no matter what.\" The moment he said that, he felt the interior of his mouth instantly run dry. The tension in the air sped up his heart rate. With his gaze, he pinned Frederica where she sat, assessing her every move and gesture. He knew it was a risk to approach the crux of the matter without Ram present, but Subaru was seen as weak and underestimated by many. At the very least, if he could wring out a little information so he could piece everything together  \" Master Subaru.\" While Subaru studied her, stiff all over because of his enormous gamble, Frederica curtly called out his name. Subaru's only response was to watch her even more intently. His black eyes met her jade eyes head on, when  \"...What do you mean by 'teleport'?\" \"Eh?\" The sincerity of Frederica's question made it seem like a question mark floated above her head. Her reaction left Subaru flabbergasted. \"E-even if you look at me like that...I honestly cannot tell you something I do not know.\" \"Wait, wait, wait, you can't fool me! If you don't know anything, then my whole premise goes out the window! Dunno if I should call them the conservative faction or the stay-at-home faction, but you're cooperating with people from the Sanctuary, right?!\" \"Conservative? Stay-at-home? What...are you talking about...? Could you please explain from the beginning?\" \"Me, explain to you what's happening with the Sanctuary?!\" For Subaru, seeing Frederica not understanding a single thing he had mentioned so far was truly a thunderbolt from a clear blue sky. To begin with, the whole point of this conversation had been to question Frederica about various things in the Sanctuary that she had to have known. And yet, Subaru realized their positions were reversed. \"Th-this isn't...an act...right?\" *** Seemingly clinging to hope, Subaru stared at Frederica, but she shook her head with a look of pity. Her gesture destroyed the last footholds Subaru had remaining. Of course, he couldn't take everything Frederica said at face value. But even with that in mind, it really didn't seem like she was lying at all. \" Barusu, meeting Frederica one on one without Ram suggests you truly have no need for your life.\" The door to the reception room opened in grand fashion at the same time they heard that remark. Crossing the threshold was Ram, haughtily folding her arms. After sighing slightly, she addressed an astonished Subaru. \"In the end, your speculation was wildly off the mark. You are so pathetic, I can barely stand to look at you.\" \"Yeah, sorry about... Hey, wait! Didn't that wild speculation about Frederica maybe cooperating with the stay-at-home faction in the Sanctuary come from you to begin with?!\" \"I said it was a possibility, nothing more. You really should find more constructive things to do than fixate on finding fault in others.\" \"It just ain't fair!!\" Subaru clutched at his head, forcibly trying to sweep away his embarrassment, but Ram paid no heed whatsoever. She boldly sat at Subaru's side, bringing his untouched black tea to her lips. \"...It would seem that your skill at making tea has not improved in my absence.\" \"My, even though pouring tea is my specialty. What an uncharming girl you are.\" \"I do not need to be charming. Ram is plenty cute enough. Any more so and the world would be imperiled.\" \"Truly, your tongue is as sharp as ever! Goodness...how very like you.\" Though she showed her fangs as she shouted angrily, Frederica's final words oozed with softness. And while Ram's face was unchanged from always, it was instilled with just a faint whiff of affection. This conveyed to Subaru how they had been colleagues for a long time, or perhaps it reminded him more of people who had been friends from a rather young age. \"Though you may not have been away for very long, you are still in good health?\" \"Yes, Ram is always... I suppose I cannot lightly say that this day.\" \"...Did you spend enough time with Rem?\" Frederica lowered her voice to a whisper and posed a question that was no doubt difficult to ask. Subaru wanted to know the answer, too. To these paired gazes, Ram slightly lowered her head as she said, \"It's mysterious. Just as I heard from Barusu, that girl is the spitting image of Ram. When I touch her forehead, I know that blood of the same tribe flows through her, and yet...\" *** \"Inside of Ram, that girl's existence is still nothing but a blank.\" Suppressing her emotions, she strove to speak in a normal tone of voice to maintain her normal, steady self.  The loneliness and desolation Ram carried, the sadness that made her voice tremble; her attempts to hold them in check made their effects on her stand out all the more. It was not Ram's fault. Of course, it wasn't Rem's, either. Fault lay with the sinner that had consumed Rem's very being, tearing her away from the world. If, beyond that blasphemer, there was anyone else to blame  \" Sorry.\" \"...Barusu, why are you apologizing?\" \"I didn't...want to make you meet Rem like this. But...\" Subaru was insufficient. He was fatally, idiotically insufficient. That was why he was helpless to help the sisters meet except this way. If Ram was hurt as a result, it was none other than Subaru who ought to bear that blame  \"So I'm sorry. It's not something that you'll forgive even if I apologiiiiii-iiiii-iiiiiiiiiii?!\" \"Stop making such a suspicious face. It degrades an already almost worthless man, though I suppose I am too late to do anything about that.\" Mid-apology, Ram's hand stretched forth and mercilessly pinched Subaru's cheek. When Subaru let out a lament at the amazing pain, Ram snorted \"Hah!\" and let a laugh slip out. \"Do not go making that face. It is as if you decided you were something important to Ram and Rem, lowly Barusu.\" \"Y-you said it yourself. I really am a lowly...\" \"Ram has no interest in Barusu's feelings of guilt. At the very least, she doesn't blame Barusu in the slightest. Do not insult Ram and her little sister by wallowing in tragedy all by your lonesome.\" Thrusting a finger at his forehead, Ram made a truly Ram-like statement as Subaru's mouth flapped open and closed. \"...Y-you don't even remember her, but you act like Rem's older sister all of a sudden?\" \"It is quite mysterious. Though I have no memory of her, I am very firm about holding such a position. It would seem Ram is an elder sister much respected and loved by her younger sister. This is natural, of course.\" \"That way of thinking is seriously Big Sis of you!\" Even though Rem's existence had fallen away, Ram's authority remained undaunted. Subaru, conflicted as he was about whether this was a happy or a desolate thing, admired Ram's nobility of spirit regardless. \"Yes, yes. It is quite clear, even to me, that you two get along very well.\" Frederica, intervening in the pair's exchange, offered Ram fresh tea as she said, \"I, too, think an unchanged Ram is a happy thing... But the main issue at hand was something else, yes?\" \"I suppose so. Let us return to the conversation that strayed due to Barusu the issue of the teleport.\" \"The one Master Subaru was speaking about just earlier, I take it?\" The atmosphere had been relaxed, but with one word out of Ram's mouth, it tightened anew. Seeing the grave look on Frederica's face, Subaru pointed to the blue crystal she was holding. \"Let me get to details, then. The crystal you gave to Emilia reacted to the barrier, triggering a magic teleport in the dragon carriage...one that rather conveniently launched its victim directly to the tomb.\" \"Teleport to the tomb...?! A-and was Lady Emilia all right?\" \"Fortunately, she was, thanks to Subaru's sacrifice. A noble deed by his standards.\" \"...In other words, I was teleported in Emilia's place. I'm all right, though.\" Ram accepted more tea as Subaru did a little dance on the spot, demonstrating that he was in good health. The sight made Frederica forget to cover her mouth with her hand, openly displaying the shock on her face. With this, it was finally established that Frederica really hadn't been involved with the crystal causing the teleport. \"But if that's so, what'd you give her the crystal for? According to Roswaal, what you need to get into the Sanctuary is the correct path. Having an object doesn't make you qualified.\" \"That's...\" \"You can't speak because of the vow, I figure? If so, that is a poor excuse, Frederica.\" Anticipating Frederica's hesitation, Ram unleashed words so cold, they made Frederica bristle. But she immediately nodded. \" It is true, as you say. That is not a topic of conversation that may pass from my lips.\" \"So you chose to rely on that poor excuse anyway  Still that cannot be the end of the matter.\" \"H-hey! Ram, wait!\" Frederica stubbornly refused to relent. Seeing Ram's reaction to this made Subaru nervous. After all, Ram had stood up, her hand gripping her cane. It was short and slender, apparently made of wood. The cane was her weapon, which she lovingly employed when she was casting magic. \"Don't get ahead of yourself! We were just talking peacefully... What gives, all of a sudden?!\" \"You are too lenient, Barusu. Frederica will not respond to the question. Her rebellious intent is clear.\" \"Frederica wouldn't do something that stupid! And you're the one who said that!\" Her conclusion was too hasty to be called decisive. In fact, it was Ram herself who had most trusted and defended Frederica's nature as a person. \"Then why are you...\" \"We shall restrain Frederica and bring her with us to the Sanctuary. By doing this, we shall flush out the one giving Frederica instructions. Actions are more certain than words, and produce faster results, too.\" \"Well, you've got a point, but you can't think it'd go that smoothly...\" With an unyielding posture, Ram was essentially saying, we'll tie her up if that's what we have to do to find answers. But if Ram resorted to such measures, Frederica would surely resist. If it came to that, it might not be the way he'd imagined it, but they would indeed be unable to avoid an undesirable battle nonetheless. Faced with Frederica's silent posture, a part of Subaru wanted to do just that, but  \"Even so, I don't want any bloodshed! Frederica! Your being quiet is part of the p \" \"If you wish to take me with you to the Sanctuary, I shall not resist.\" \"You see! Even Frederica's saying stuff like...er, wha?\" Subaru, his face pale from the explosive situation, was flabbergasted at what had just entered his ears. However, to an astounded Subaru, Frederica calmly kept her"}, {"text": "posture straight, as she explained further. \"I am saying, I shall yield to Ram's judgment. If you wish to take me to the Sanctuary, that is fine. Though I do not understand how this would accomplish your objectives.\" \"Y-you won't resist...? Why? What's the meaning of...?\" \"Quite a slow learner you are.\" Standing beside Subaru and bewildered to a comical extent, Ram sighed, pointing her rod at Frederica before continuing. \"Frederica cannot break her vow of her own will. Therefore, if Barusu drags her off by force, it cannot be helped... Such an excuse is required.\" \"The part about me dragging her off by force sounds unlikely, but...you're fine with this?\" The suddenly cooperative attitude that had sprung up between Ram and Frederica had thrown Subaru for a loop. After all, until just moments before, Frederica had done a fine job of setting her heart on that \"vow,\" speaking as if leaving it unbroken was a question of her beliefs. And yet  \"With the excuse that she was forced, she's not going against it... Is that it? To be honest, there's an opposition party inside me complaining that's too arbitrary of a plan to resolve things, but...\" \"Then simply silence that voice. This is the best of all possible plans to put this matter in order.\" It didn't sit well with him. But it would be meaningless for Subaru to whine and groan about it. Just as Ram had said, this was a three-person consensus. He need only shut his ears to the moderately discordant sounds in the background. But he did want to say just one thing about it. \"Even though you didn't arrange it in advance, you two sure were on the same page...\" \"But of course.\" \"We have known each other for nearly a decade.\" Hearing those perfectly matching replies, Subaru completely took his hat off to them. And with that, the situation had well and truly been sorted out. First, barring the possibility of her being an actress of exceptional skill, it seemed that Frederica had absolutely no involvement with the teleportation incident. Her circumstances for remaining silent because of the vow would surely become clear if she went to the Sanctuary. In so doing, they would also be able to expose the mastermind trying to infiltrate through cracks in the camp's framework. \"Hiding the teleportation and then instructing you to keep it secret... When I put it like that, the guy you made a promise to has the worst personality ever.\" \"I...suppose so... Even I cannot willingly obey instructions that make a fool out of me to this extent. It is said, 'The Empire makes you carry lead as heavy as your deceits.'\" \"...What'd you say?\" \"It is a Volakian Empire saying. It expresses that nation's cold view toward decep  What is it?\" \"Nah, it's nothin'. Just thought that blood will tell, huh.\" Frederica seemed proud of her knowledge, but Subaru's reply was only accompanied by a lukewarm expression. He felt like he'd gotten the answer he wanted, if not quite in the way he had intended. \"Either way, getting Frederica's cooperation...even if in a roundabout way, is a big win for us. Thanks to that, I think I can toss away the extra misgivings I had inside of me.\" \"Extra misgivings?\" \"Ahh, basically, I thought that if Frederica did turn out to be hostile and the mansion was under attack, that'd be a huge disaster.\" Frederica inclined her head, looking like she had not the faintest idea pertaining to this \"disaster\" he spoke of. That state held, with nothing of the disaster not even \"E\" for Elsa escaping her lips. Based on the reaction of the Frederica before his eyes, it seemed safe to assume there were no ties between her and that butcher. If that was so, they had to get away from the mansion with all haste and draw up a plan to deal with that black-robed butcher. Subaru knew her attack was coming. That would let him seize the initiative, giving them time to concentrate their forces, encircle her, and take her down. \"That's another reason I want to pull out of the mansion. There's no time to lose. We march Frederica along, grab Petra, and go. And if we pick up Rem and one Beako whose current location is unknown, then...\" At least for the moment, they could escape the peril that was about to befall the mansion. Seeing that beacon of light, Subaru felt like he'd found a compass pointing a way out of the darkne  \" Oh my, I would prefer if you weren't so cold.\" Right as Subaru was counting on his fingers the various things he ought to do, a glossy voice violently brushed against his eardrums. Instantly, Subaru's heart beat louder, accompanied by pain that made it feel like his heart was being rent asunder. Looking like he'd been slapped, he turned toward the reception door entrance and there stood a figure he knew well. She had black hair in a triple braid, lavish black clothes that exposed a scandalous degree of skin, and deep, captivating jet-black eyes that seemed to pull you in black, black, black; she was the very epitome of pitch-black bloodlust. Her familiar beauty, and a devilish face he'd never wanted to see again, suddenly blotted out the light of day with her dark presence. \"Now, let us fulfill our promise, shall we?\" These words spoken, the Bowel Hunter charmingly licked her red lips, a prelude to the slaughter to come. CHAPTER 2 *** 1  Instantaneously, Subaru got the sensation that time had simply stopped. It was an odd feeling, but he remembered having that sensation before. When his life was in danger, his brain's survival instincts kicked in, urgently trying to keep its body alive from there, things would be decided in seconds. Why was Elsa there? He had no time to ponder such a question. It was not why he needed to think about, but rather, how? Calmly, to the extent possible, he tried to grasp the situation he was in. On the one hand, the black-robed butcher was in the doorway; on the other hand, inside the room, Subaru and Frederica were sitting on sofas, and Ram was standing rooted to the spot, cane in hand but they were not the only ones present. ***  Petra was there. Elsa had made the young Petra stand right beside her as she opened the door. A blade rested against the girl's throat, and her round eyes had large tears welling up in them. He understood. She'd led Elsa to the room. Elsa forced her to, forbidding her even from crying. Right then, there was surely a vortex of fear wildly swirling within Petra's heart. Her life was in danger; she'd been made to lead Elsa to Subaru and the others; she wanted so desperately to cry out, \"Help me\"  \"...Frederica, Ram, Subaru...\" With a quivering voice, Petra called out their names. What could he do for that voice? He wanted to nod to let her know to rest easy, to tell her it was all right for her to cry  \" Run!!\" *** Instantly, Petra shouted not \"Help me\" but \"Run,\" stoking a searing-hot fire in the trio's hearts for Subaru, it was because he recognized the great threat; for Ram, it was the butcher's ghastly aura; and for Frederica, it was seeing the girl's tears. \"El Fulla !!\" In a show of force, Ram raised her cane and unleashed a blade of wind at maximum velocity. Mana coalesced into an invisible slash, tearing its way toward the leisurely standing Elsa. The blade of wind could not be stopped with physical force. However  \"What a refreshing breeze. But the sunlight is gentle today... You needn't be so considerate.\" Elsa maneuvered her nimble upper body, evading the wind blade of certain death. The figure in black dodged a continuous series of attacks with great ease. It was as if she could read the wind no, it wasn't merely a figure of speech. Ram had launched her attacks in such a way as to avoid Petra, who had been taken as a hostage. Elsa took advantage of that, slipping into the blind spots between her and the wind to dodge the blades of air. \"If you were willing to hit this little maid along with me, it might be a different story...\" \" Unfortunately, it is an ironclad rule in this household that servants support and aid one another!\" \"Oh my.\" From behind, Elsa raised an eyebrow, stroking Petra's cheek, which made something catch in the girl's slender throat. Both of Frederica's arms whipped out as she leaped into close combat, apparently aiming to tear Elsa's torso asunder. The five-fingered strike was similar to the martial arts move known as a Tiger Claw. But there was one simple difference: The two arms Frederica was attacking with had transformed into genuine bestial claws. Her slender, pale fingers changed shape and became the talons of a tenacious, ferocious beast, and both of her arms were now wicked implements for the rending of flesh. With a cacophony of furious creaking sounds, sparks flew between Frederica's bestial claws and Elsa's kukri. \"Partial transfiguration...! Demi-human blood, yes? Delightful!\" \"Thank you for the unwanted praise... I can do this, too! Petra!\" With Elsa overjoyed by the unexpected clash, Frederica lowered her stance in front of the butcher. The instant she called out Petra's name, the girl's round eyes flew open. As the girl stood still, a golden sash seemed to stretch before her. It was a slender animal tail covered with golden fur stretching from the back of Frederica's skirt. *** The instant she understood that, Petra leaped toward the tail. At the first touch, Frederica used the tail to yank Petra close, pulling out of the butcher's range with the girl in tow. When Petra leaped away, Elsa tried to close the distance with her blade, but Ram wouldn't allow it. \"Fly into pieces!!\" Robbed of her hostage, and thus her safety zone, Elsa was enveloped by wind. Spherical wind blades expanded to cut off her escape route, converging on their prey in the center all at once, the surrounding gale blowing savagely. *** It was certain-death timing. Fresh blood spattered about, and there was no doubt the wind had bitten into Elsa. But  \"Her arm...!\" \"Ahh, ow, ow... I thought I was going to die.\" Lifting her cruelly gouged-out arm aloft, Elsa licked the blood trickling from the terrible wound. It was a painful-looking injury, but that single arm was the only damage she had taken. Elsa must have used her arm as a shield while the blades of wind flew in, minimizing the damage. At a glance, it seemed like a reckless choice, but it had very much been the optimal course of action  \"You are a detestable woman.\" \"I rather like you, Miss Medium-Size Maid.\" When Ram spat a scathing comment, Elsa shifted her kukri around with her intact arm. One by one, the dully gleaming knife blade displayed the faces of each of the four in the room besides Elsa when she said, \"A man and three women, maids large, medium, and small. I shall line you up on the table and compare what is inside your bellies.\" \"A pick-up line even worse than Garf's. In that case  Barusu!\" \"I'm on it !!\" Petra, in Frederica's embrace, landed behind the others. That instant, at Ram's signal, Subaru heartily thrust his right arm toward Elsa. His silent observation of the situation up to that point was not because he lacked the power to intervene. Of course, that was a plenty good reason, but more importantly, he had been calculating the right time.  Time to play the trump card he'd decided to use in advance should he encounter Elsa. \" Shamaaaaaaak!!\" He was weaponless, with no means of striking back, with inadequate preparations and resolve, and he was engaged with an enemy defying all expectations. However, the least he could do was take advantage of the best card in"}, {"text": "his very meager hand. He fired up the imperfect magic reactor inside of him, causing the blood coursing through him to light up from its heat. \"Don't use it,\" warned Ferris's voice in the back of his head. The instant he crushed his hesitation between his molars, black mist explosively flooded out of his right hand. Less a shadow of the light and more a thick, all-consuming darkness, the black-attired woman that was his target was swallowed whole. Through the power of magic, the spells victim would plunge into incomprehension, robbed of its powers of thought and movement. \"How's that...! If you can climb over that wall of oblivion, then...\" Managing to cast his magic exactly as intended, Subaru let fly with some caustic words and the next moment, it arrived. \" Giii?! Gaaaah!!\" With the sound of something being sliced apart, nearly unendurable pain exploded in the center of his skull and torso. The excessive pain blew Subaru's thoughts away. As he screamed, his vision was dyed in a mix of red and white. Wringing mana out of his incomplete Gate made him feel parched and numb at the same time. Agony came crashing down on his soul. His vision went blurry, and strength drained out of his knees. At that rate, he'd lose his grip on reality, and with it, his mind  \"Subaru!\" A moment before plunging into darkness, a distant voice and the touch of a palm connected to his mind. His dimming vision beheld a teary-eyed Petra right in front of him. Her voice was making his heart burn hotter. He had no time to yield. For a brief moment, he forgot the pain that was shredding his nerves and chipping away at his soul. During the time that the \"bluff\" was effective, Subaru grasped her hand back. \" We're pulling out!\" \"This will get a little rough!\" \"Hyaaa! M-Miss...?!\" When Ram swiftly decided they must retreat, Frederica put a hand around Petra's waist without hesitation. Then, her remaining arm pulled the wobbly Subaru against her chest as well. It was a soft sensation. \"A-at a safe time I'd like to appreciate this more thoroughly...!\" \"As if I'd let you touch me normally! Anyway, out from the window \" Subaru, still moaning from pain, made a joke that earned a blunt reply from Frederica as she headed to the back of the room. If she broke that window, they'd be able to jump down all the way to the mansion courtyard. The Shamak smoke screen wouldn't postpone things for long. Instant assessments, instant decisions, and instant actions were required at that moment  \"uu?\" When Frederica crouched down, Subaru realized something soft had hit his back. Something felt wrong from around his left shoulder and shoulder blade. Breathing hard, he twisted his neck to check. Something like a skewer was sticking out of it. The lingering shudder of the long, slender object was proof that it had hit only moments ago.  Countless similar objects came flying from the direction of the black haze all at once. \" Fredericaaa!!\" He shouted. It didn't come in time. A flurry of sounds followed as the sharp, glimmering surge sank into soft flesh  \"!!!!\" \"El Fulla!!\"  The roars of a demon and beast layered atop one another as a blast of wind blew them out of the reception room. 2 Clearing the reception room, Subaru and the others fell straight toward the mansion courtyard. The expected blow from the fall never arrived thanks to an exquisite performance by Frederica, landing on the grass from the second story with Subaru and Petra under her wing. But the cost of the retreat had been unexpectedly high. \"Miss Frederica!!\" Thrown by the landing, Petra raised her voice into a near-shriek as she rolled on the grass. Her gaze was on Frederica, down on one knee in the yard with skewers stuck in her bloody back. \"I...underestimated our opponent...!\" Frederica was making labored breaths as slender skewers rose from her back like a mountain of swords. The skewers were nearly eight inches in length, and more than a few had doubtless reached her internal organs. Frederica wasn't the only one who understood their might, for Subaru had gotten a taste as well. \"Ow......! Shit! She's like Julius: an enemy that Shamak doesn't work on...!\" \"Surely not. She simply threw them past of the cloud of darkness. She has exceptional intuition.\" Subaru wailed at the skewer impaling his right shoulder as Ram stated her thoughts. Examining Subaru and Frederica's wounds, her refined eyebrows gently formed a scowl. \"There is no one here capable of using healing magic. If I remove the skewer, you will die of blood loss.\" \"I don't have the courage to touch or even look at it twice, let alone pull it out... Did you get Elsa?\" \"I blew the entire room away, but I didn't get the sense that I hit her. We cannot be optimistic.\" \"Damn it all...! I thought I'd bought us a little time at least...\" Gritting his teeth at Ram's reply, Subaru quietly lamented that no one present was suited to treating their injuries. Previously, Rem had healed his wounds, and Beatrice had healed graver ones still that was when he belatedly realized it. \"Rem and Beatrice are both...!\" Both were still in the mansion, and Elsa was right there with them. At that point in time, the idea of running vanished. He couldn't distance himself from the mansion with both of them inside. \"If we don't save the two of them...!\" Burning with the pain of his wound, he thought at full-speed, examining their options. One thing for certain was that Rem was in the mansion's east wing. The problem was that Beatrice was constantly running her Passage spell. At that critical juncture, the peculiarities of the Passage became poison.  If, then and there, he prioritized saving Rem, could he hope for Beatrice to deal with the matter herself? Considering the capabilities of the Passage, that was without a doubt another potential plan. As a matter of fact, at the height of the battle with the Witch Cult some days before, Subaru had failed to bring Beatrice out of the mansion; she'd remained behind, trusting in the power of the Passage during the decisive battle. If the conditions were identical to back then, the possibility harm would befall Beatrice was  \"Am I...stupid? No, I am stupid. The situation's totally different from last time...!\"  The Witch Cult's objective and Elsa's objective were fundamentally different. In the end, the Witch Cult's target Petelgeuse's target had been Emilia. Since they had no information about the occupants, leaving Beatrice behind at the mansion was a viable option because she was wholly unrelated to their objective. However, Elsa was different. That butcher's objective was clearly to slaughter everyone in the mansion. She'd targeted Subaru, Frederica, and Petra; naturally, she'd try to kill Rem and Beatrice, too. *** He couldn't leave them behind. He couldn't. There was no way he could just let them die. So even without a flash of inspiration for a way to save everyone, he had to act before his useless brain burned out completely  \"Barusu.\" \"What?! Right now, I'm thinking of a way to get Rem and Beatrice out of there somehow...\" Subaru was desperately trying to think when Ram abruptly called out to him. When he looked at Ram, it seemed like his burning brain was leaking out of his earlobes while he desperately searched for a way out of their predicament. As he prepared himself to hear a proposal for a comeback from the brink of certain doom from her pink lips  \" Given our current situation, the best thing to do is leave those two at the mansion while the four of us escape.\" \"Wha?\" Their equal-height gazes met, and the declaration, delivered with great firmness, blanked out Subaru's thought process. His eardrums trembled, conveying the words to his brain, his mind immersed in the words as he arrived at comprehension of what she had said to him. Then, the instant he achieved understanding, his emotions came to a boil. \"Wh-what are... What, are you ! What! The hell are you saying!!\" \"Angry shouts get us nowhere. Please compose yourself. I believe it is an exceptionally natural thought.\" \"Like hell it is! Rem's in the mansion! Your little sister!! She loves you, and you love her! She's your little sister; it's natural for you to protect her!!\" The moment he shouted, the pain of his wound increased. But he didn't care. Filled with agony and rage, he spat blood as he slammed his ferocious emotions into Ram as hard as he could. However, though showered by Subaru's voice, Ram continued with a serene look on her face. \"It is the correct decision under the circumstances, nothing more. Losing Ram and Frederica, and, more to the point, Barusu, will be a heavy blow to our faction. Such sacrifices must be avoided.\" \"But! That means sacrificing...!\" \"I suppose so. She may well be Ram's little sister  But if she is Ram's little sister, she would surely say this.\" To Subaru, at a loss for words due to fierce emotion, Ram paused. Then, she pressed on. \" Please, sacrifice Rem for Master Roswaal's sake.\" *** The instant he heard those words, Subaru felt something inside him being smashed to dust. It was a blow rivaling the cracks in his incomplete magic user's Gate no, it caused a greater impact than even that, shaking the soul of Subaru Natsuki to its very foundation. \"I-I didn't... This isn't why I...\"  He hadn't brought Ram and Rem together so that she could speak such words to him. All memory of Rem had been erased from the world, and nothing of her was left inside of anyone. Even so, if the twin sisters, sharing mutual love and even their souls with one another, yet existed, something of her had to remain. That was the faint expectation Subaru clung to, something he could not even call a hope. That was what he carried within him when he brought Ram back to the mansion.  He didn't know the result would be Ram saying to him the words he never wanted to hear. \"In this world, Ram... Even you won't be on Rem's side...?\" This was perhaps the greatest sorrow he had known since Rem's existence had been taken away. After all, Subaru knew just how much affection the sisters, Ram and Rem, held for each other  \" Both of you, this is no time for us to be arguing!\" Subaru was reeling while Ram's pink eyes were utterly lucid. One shout from the gravely wounded Frederica interrupted their exchange. In the current situation, allowing a verbal argument to chew up even a couple of seconds could prove a fatal loss of time. \"Cool your heads, both of you! How can you argue at a time like...!\" \"...Ram is perfectly composed. Barusu has merely worked himself up all on his own. Frederica, surely you, too, understand whose view is justified and whose is not.\" \"Certainly, Ram, you are correct. I shall not say you are mistaken.\" Speaking quickly, Frederica acceded that Ram's assertion was properly justified. When she took that position, it seemed Frederica, too, was of a mind to leave Rem and Beatrice behind, putting Subaru on the brink of despair. But before he could cross that precipice, Frederica continued, saying, \"However, I think we should rescue both of them.\" \"...Are you sane?\" \"Yes, of course. You are the one who brought up losses our faction would incur, yes? Based on that, it is indeed best to rescue both Lady Beatrice and Rem are both important.\" Frederica's assertion brought a dubious look over Ram's face. Subaru, too, was taken aback. But with the others at a deadlock, the final person present slowly raised her hand and spoke up. \"I-I also... I also agree with going to save, to save them...!\" \"...Please be quiet, child. This is not a majority vote.\" \"E-even a child can be a proper adult!"}, {"text": "Miss Frederica says I'm more helpful than Miss Ram!\" Under Ram's cold glare, Petra did not retreat even one step as she pushed her own view. Pressed into silence by the teary-eyed retort, Ram shifted her gaze toward Subaru and Frederica. \"Are you saying we have a chance?\" \"! We know where Rem is! Finding Beatrice is my job!\" \"I suppose so. Barusu and Lady Beatrice do get along so very well.\" \"Since I'm trying to persuade you, I'll let that one go this time...\" Though hardly at her wits' end, Ram made a show of carefully considering the trio's views. Of course, at that late juncture, even Subaru could not help but acknowledge which plan held the greater odds of survival. However, what meaning did survival have if Rem and Beatrice were sacrificed for it? It was meaningless. If that was the form the updated world took, it was better if  *** \"...We are undermanned. We must search for Lady Beatrice and extricate Rem. The enemy interferes with both.\" \" It was I who spoke out, so that is my duty to bear.\" When Ram listed the pending concerns, Frederica, breathing in intense pain, patted her own chest. Her self-recommendation took Subaru and Petra by surprise, leaving Ram the only one who sighed in understanding. \"There you go again, too stubborn to back down when dealt a bad hand. Exactly like Garf.\" \"You are both my adorable junior coworkers. Besides, it is not I who resembles Garf. Garf is the one who is imitating me.\" Frederica said it with a wink, hiding the fangs in her mouth as she smiled. Subaru unwittingly sucked in his breath, sensing the resolve and determination behind that sunny smile. And as Subaru drew his breath in, Frederica did something even more surprising right in front of him. \"Miss Frederica...?!\" Petra was struck with wonder, but that was a natural reaction. Frederica put a hand to her blood-ridden maid outfit, violently ripping it apart. Her pale flesh, bloodstained and covered in a light sweat, became exposed. The spectacular force of the move made Subaru see a part of her underwear, something that made his eyes bulge in spite of the emergency situation. \" This may surprise you, but please do not raise your voice.\" With those words of warning, the half-bare Frederica knelt onto the lawn. Then, she put Garfiel's necklace around her own neck an instant later, the very air grew taut. \"aa\" Had there been no warning beforehand, Subaru might not have been able to keep himself from crying out in surprise. First, he saw Frederica's long, beautiful, golden hair shrink. Next, golden fur began to sprout over her exposed flesh, and her skeleton ferociously creaked as it changed shape and grew larger. She set four paws on the ground as the fangs that defined the inside of her mouth became something sharper, more powerful a transformation taking but a few, brief seconds that made him doubt his eyes. \" So this is transfiguration, huh?\" As Subaru murmured, there was a ferocious, golden beast standing before his eyes the bestial Frederica. It was a slender, supple feline predator with a stature nearly six feet in length. Of the animals Subaru knew, she resembled a cheetah or a leopard, but her body had no black spots upon it; he could only call the form beautiful. Were it not for part of that lustrous, golden mane being marred by blood, he truly would have been enchanted by that beautiful beast. \"So it's not Beauty and the Beast; the Beauty is the Beast... Ahh, I want to get her in the bath and snuggle.\" \"I categorically reject the idea of bathing with you.\" \"! Y-you can still talk like that?!\" Subaru, trying to conceal his unrest with his flippant tongue, gaped at the face of a ferocious beast seemingly ready to roar. Subaru was surprised on two levels that the tone of voice was that of the pre-transfiguration Frederica. \"I remain myself. Though my appearance has changed, I am completely rational... In addition, thanks to this, my wounds have closed to a fair extent.\" Taking in Subaru's surprise, Frederica's body twisted, and numerous skewers fell away. Simply changing forms had closed some of her wounds, expelling the skewers from her body. But the wounds themselves still remained. She needed complete healing to fix those. \"Frederica...\" \"Please do not ask me 'Can you do it?' I can, and I will.\" \"...Yeah, I get it. Please do. You're the only one we can rely on right now.\" Frederica clawed the ground in high spirits as Subaru ceded the battlefield to her. Accepting Subaru's request, the ferocious beast turned her eyes toward the two remaining, Ram and Petra. \"Petra, I'm sorry for scaring you. You did very well not to shriek.\" \"Yes... Yes, Miss, take care...!\" \"You're a very good girl Ram, I entrust the rest to you. Worst case, use the Master's office.\" \"That goes without saying. Frederica, if you are late, we shall have words.\" The few words exchanged between them told just how much trust lay between Ram and Frederica. Finally, Frederica looked overhead at the freshly broken reception room window through which they had fallen. With the crystal necklace hanging from her large neck, the ferocious beast bared her lion-like fangs, ferociously crouching down  *** She let out a very brief growl. The next instant, Subaru saw the ferocious beast crushing the smashed windowsill under her paw. Subaru's eyes gaped at the blink-of-an-eye speed. Her outside appearance brought to mind the cheetah, the fastest animal on land, but Frederica's sprinting easily put its speed to shame. Passing through the breached wall, the ferocious beast raised a roar as she charged into the mansion interior. The black mist's effect was soon to expire. Not long in the future, the battle between the two would resume  \"We cannot just stand here! We must go and make the best of this opportunity while Frederica buys us time.\" \"Y-yeah! That's right! First, Rem in the east wing!\" Elsa's combat ability was terrifying, but Frederica's speed was superhuman, too. With her swiftness, she ought to be able to get away safely if Subaru and the others accomplished their objectives sooner rather than later. With Frederica headed off to act as a decoy, just how quickly could they move  \" No complaints about property damage, okay?!\" Charging through the front yard, the three raced to the east wing as one. And after climbing over the east wing wall, Subaru picked up a shovel for yard work, smashing a window before leaping into the building. Sullying the carpet with dirt, he rolled onto the mansion floor and lifted his head. The stairs to the east wing, and Rem, were right before him. But the instant he lifted his head, Subaru was struck by the odd sense something was wrong. Namely  \"...The doors are open?\" In front, so far as the murmuring Subaru could tell, all of the doors of the first floor were open. Turning his head around, the doors behind him were the same; every door in the entire corridor was open. \"Simple forgetfulness cannot account for leaving this many doors unclosed. Petra?\" \"I-I haven't done anything weird like this!! Miss Frederica hasn't either!!\" Entering the corridor just as Subaru had, Ram gazed at the same sight and questioned Petra about it. Petra was equally bewildered as she denied involvement, but that was nothing compared to Subaru's strong suspicion that something was horribly wrong. Open doors weren't the problem the problem was that he remembered this scene. \"The doors were open like this last time around, too...\"  Subaru had seen something similar in the mansion just prior to Return by Death. At the time, Subaru hadn't been able to decipher the identity of that bad feeling prior to his \"death.\" Now that he was seeing the image again, he still didn't know what it meant. But he was certain it was an ill omen. \"If it wasn't Petra or Frederica, then...\" Naturally, it wasn't Subaru or Ram either. Rem, still asleep, couldn't have done it. Perhaps that left Beatrice as the only possible suspect, but she had no reason to do it. The only possible reason would be  \"!! R-Rem's! Rem's in trouble! Second floor, quick!\" The only kind of person who had a reason to open rooms one after another was an outsider who didn't know where anyone might be. At that moment, that description corresponded to only one person in the mansion. And if that individual had already opened every door in the mansion's east wing  \"Calm down, Barusu! Frederica is pinning down the enemy! There is nothing...\" \"What are you saying at a time like...\" Even when her little sister's life in danger, Ram maintained her cool. Rather than being impressed at how reliably steady she was, Subaru felt angry. However, Subaru's raging emotions vanished and flew away in the next instant. *** Howls resounded from outside the building, in the direction of the yard from which Subaru and the others had leaped in. The next moment, the window no, the window and the windowsill were broken apart, seemingly gouged out along with the wall itself. With a high-pitched sound, the glass shattered in a violent dance, and heavy footsteps intruded upon the mansion interior. There, filling up the corridor, stood a bizarrely shaped monster, its wicked visage resembling that of a lion.  The second floor, where the Sleeping Princess awaited, felt far, far away. 3  The situation kept moving. It was bewildering, something far beyond Subaru's imagination, and now leaping far, far beyond his comprehension. *** Its stout, bizarrely shaped frame, twelve feet long, trod upon the carpet as it pushed its way into the cramped corridor. It had black fur and a head resembling that of a lion. It had a horse's hindquarters, and its long, slender tail greatly resembled a snake. A ghastly aura befitting its brutal nature brimmed from the entirety of its body and on its forehead was a misshapen white horn. \"Demon beast...?!\" Even if the creature was unknown to him, that characteristic, evident from a single glance, made Subaru reel. Hearing his voice from the side, Ram clicked her tongue and pointed her drawn cane toward the demon beast and said, \"Fulla!!\" Without hesitation, Ram pounded a single attack into the demon beast at maximum velocity. But in spite of its great size, the black demon beast agilely leaped within the corridor to evade the blade of wind. The slash of raging wind grazed past, minimizing the damage before it tensed, bellowed, and charged. \"Subaru! This way!\" Subaru was frozen stiff before the charging demon beast when Petra pulled him by the arm, practically throwing him into the room right next to them. A moment later, Ram leaped into the same room, violently closing the door  \"Stand back!\" Her sharp voice and her arm shoved him deeper into the room. The next instant, a monster claw broke the door with ease. The hinges blew apart, and the door split into two pieces as the demon beast leaped into the room; Subaru instantly held Petra close. *** The room's doorway was for human use, not something the size of the black demon beast could use to get in. However, the demon beast paid no heed, swinging a claw and demolishing the wall as it pushed into the room. \"Whoaaaa?! Waitwaitwaitwait! Wh-why is a demon beast...?!\" \"This isn't the time! It's here and that's that! Petra, the window!!\" As Subaru raised his voice at the menacing demon beast that had savagely widened the entrance, Ram ordered Petra to open the window. They would escape outside of the east wing they had only just entered. *** The situation, from which they could only flee, made him nervous. But amid the chaos, a question outweighed that. It was a strange, unnatural situation. The last time around had had no such turn of events. Over the course of his various experiences with Return by Death, Subaru had"}, {"text": "changed circumstances a number of times. Along the way, no matter what actions he had taken, the events that were to unfold were the same each time. He thought that was a hard rule. For example, no matter how many times he repeated events, the Witch Cult never stopped targeting Emilia.  For the calamity at the mansion not to have been caused by Elsa Gramhilde was simply...bizarre. \"El Fulla!!\" \"!!!!\" As the irrationality clawed at his thoughts, behind Subaru, Ram's magic sliced into the demon beast's face. It was so focused on enlarging the entrance, it forgot to defend itself as its black lion-like face was smeared with black blood. Reeling, the demon beast abandoned its destruction midway. But shocking resiliency made it extremely difficult to slash to death. \"Humiliating, having to run from a dim-witted foe like this...!\" Ram insulted the demon beast and rued her own lack of ability as she rushed toward the window. Then, she grabbed Subaru by the collar, leaping out the window Petra had opened in one go. He felt grass. Having entered the east wing from the front yard, they'd gone out the opposite side of the building, into the back yard. \"Geh! Th-that demon beast back there...\" \"A blockhead...or rather, a Giltirau. Without its eyes, it shouldn't be able to follow us.\" \"B-but...that demon beast, it had a horn!!\" Ram named the demon beast, and Petra continued, pointing out something that shouldn't have been there. \"Yeah,\" went Subaru, nodding at both statements, particularly Petra's. \"No way a demon beast like that just wandered in here from the wild. Someone set it loose on the mansion...!\" Demon beasts were enemies of all living things, manifestations not of the instinct to fight but the instinct to slaughter. However, each one had a horn growing from its head; it was said that they learned to obey the person who broke that horn, and only that person. Using that characteristic, perhaps it was possible to make a simultaneous attack by Elsa and the demon beast a reality, but... \"But this time the horn ain't broken... How the heck did someone bring that demon beast in here?!\" \"It couldn't be...\" \" ?! Ram, you know something?!\" Ram reacted as if something had come to mind. Subaru bit down hard, training a sharp eye on her. \"Surely you did not think the previous Urugarum incident was merely a rampage by wild beasts?\" \"At first I did think that... But now that the royal selection's started, it's hard to think that way.\" He thought back to the curse from the demon beasts, and the mansion loop that had begun as a result. Just like the crest theft incident in the royal capital, that incident was clearly sabotage directed at Emilia, a participant in the royal selection. In point of fact, a girl involved in that incident had vanished without a trace  \" You don't mean that girl controlled the demon beasts, and she's come to attack again? If that's so, this is...\"  A simultaneous attack, by the perpetrator of the crest incident, and the perpetrator of the mansion incident both. *** \"...Ah! Subaru, are you all right?\" The instant he realized the true awfulness of the situation, Subaru wobbled, and Petra held him up. The odd heaviness of his head felt annoying, but that was largely the effect of blood loss from his right shoulder. They'd left the skewer stuck in him, but the bleeding hadn't been sufficiently stemmed while they'd been running all about. \" Barusu.\" \"D-don't...! We just...can't leave both of them and run...!\" \"I have not yet said a word... I understand. I shall bring the land dragon from the stable.\" \"Bring, Patlash...?\" Ram looked to the rear, and Subaru, his breath ragged from anemia, followed suit. At a distance, he caught sight of the stables indicated by the direction of her glance. Going around the back of the mansion put them close to the stable at the back of the grounds. Patlash was tied there, and she would definitely be of service whether they resisted or fled. \"The bleeding hasn't stopped at all... Subaru, this needs treatment!\" \"I-I gave my handkerchief to Frederica...\" \"Then I'll use this one!!\" Ram raced toward the stables; in the meantime, Subaru obeyed Petra's earnest instructions. She untied the handkerchief wrapped around Subaru's right wrist, shifting it to his shoulder wound. \"This will hurt, but just bear it! Three, two !!\" \"Gigui !!\" Midway through the countdown, she drew the skewer out, the intense pain causing Subaru to raise an odd voice as he writhed. But Petra promptly tied the handkerchief over the wound, using it and the sleeve of his tunic to deftly stop the bleeding. \"Y-you saved me... but what happened to saying 'one'...!\" \"You were more relaxed that way... I'm really glad I gave you that handkerchief, Subaru.\" Petra's deeply relieved voice drew a long exhale from Subaru. The pure white handkerchief she'd given Subaru as a protective charm was now pure red from Subaru's blood. Petra showed no sign of caring about that, but instead, it was Subaru who was stricken by pangs of guilt. \"Sorry... I'm always getting you into trouble like this...\" \"Don't say weird things like that!! I'm very grateful to you, Subaru. You're the one always saving me when I get into trouble!\" Shouting in anger at Subaru's attempt to apologize, Petra's face remained red as she indicated the forest. Then, she continued. \"When Ryuka, me, and the others went into the forest, Subaru, you came after us by yourself. I was really worried later when I heard you'd been bitten so badly all over...\" *** \"That's why it's all right!! This time, I'm the one saving you. We'll rescue Beatrice and Miss Rem, and with Miss Ram and Miss Frederica, we'll get out of this together.\" He wondered if she talked so much because she was frail. Petra earnestly raised her voice to encourage Subaru, who was becoming weak-willed from blood loss and distress over the situation. The sight made Subaru want to lament the extent of his own foolishness all over again. \"...Petra, you're incredible. I'm being pathetic.\" \"Not at...\" \"Nah, I'm not feeling sorry for myself. I'm saying, since you're so incredible, Petra, I've gotta be, too.\" He shook his heavy, stooped head, raising it as if to sweep away his weak-mindedness. If he tried to devise some scheme to raise his spirits, he wouldn't have enough wisdom left for the hopes he should have been still striving for.  This time, Subaru Natsuki would put it all on the line to offset everything he lacked. Subaru calmly rose to his feet, extending his left hand toward Petra. For an instant, Petra hesitated to take hold of Subaru's bloodstained hand, but  \" Petra, let's go. We're going to escape with everyone, just like you said.\" \"...Yeah!!\" Subaru's declaration made Petra's face brighten in an instant as she took his hand. Then, a moment after he sensed her gripping his hand, the girl went \"Ah,\" seeming vexed as the ends of her eyebrows fell. \"What's wrong?\" \"It's not 'yeah'; you gotta say 'yes'... I mean, you should have said yes.\" Saying this, Petra mischievously stuck out her tongue. The girl who had spoken so bravely under such circumstances had forgotten to keep speaking politely. Subaru, feeling saved by her valor, let his tongue slacken just a tiny bit as he clapped back. \"After all this, I've gotta get Ram and Frederica to scold you for th \"  That instant, a roar and a blow from right above him blotted out Subaru's mind with red. 4 His mind was distant. *** Scrape, scrape. Something was being dragged. Scrape, scrape. Scrape, scrape. Scrape, scrape. He was being dragged over the ground, in a state of not knowing whether he was faceup or facedown... \"A Rock Pig...! Barusu! Can you hear me? Barusu!\" He couldn't hear very well. Someone was desperately calling out to him. Be it to reply, be it to respond, he couldn't do either very well at the moment. \"It wasn't just that blockhead... This is my failure. I should have seen it sooner...\" *** \"Do what you must. Ram shall as well  Yes, that's a good girl.\" Scrape, scrape. The speed increased. The force with which he was being dragged increased, resulting in faster scraping. He searched for someplace somewhere that was free. Head, neck, hip, foot, hand left hand. Only his left hand was gripping something. He felt something. He was gripping something, something important, from which he must not let go. *** At the same time as he poured his remaining strength into his left hand, not letting that something go, the speed accelerated faster. His body was floating higher. Something was tightly sandwiching him around hip level. The sway, the breathing, these things conveyed the devotion of the being from which they came  \"Paa...rach...\" The delicate touch, as if handling a fragile object, told him exactly who the unseen party was. Though he meant to call out her name, only a hollow moan trickled out of his throat. Froth was bubbling up from the corner of his mouth. The froth tasted like iron. Why was he spouting blood froth? It had to be related to why his body couldn't move, why his entire body's senses were so delicate, why his mind was still hazy  \"aa\" His mind connected one dot to the next, and he remembered who he was. He was Subaru Natsuki. He'd returned to the mansion to save everyone from impending calamity. Elsa, demon beast, Frederica, Ram, Petra, Beatrice, Rem, Rem, Rem  \"Gnh, oo......!\" With a coughing sound, a large volume of blood flowed out of him, seemingly along with his life. Having his stomach wrung out was too weak a metaphor; he hurt as if all of his insides were being whisked around. The outpour from his throat would not halt, and his liquefied inner organs seemed to be drooling out of him. Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough hard cough hard cough, and finally  \" I'm...\" He remembered how to open his eyes. After several blinks, he was freed from the world of darkness. Tears flowed together with the sharp pain of reality jabbing into his eyeballs. He couldn't determine whether the tear droplets were clear or the color of blood. One thing, however, was clear.  Namely, that the world enveloping Subaru Natsuki was dyed the color of blood. *** Subaru's body swayed. Up, down. Left, right. The pitch-black land dragon had Subaru's hips in its jaws while it raced away from the mansion grounds. *** Next, when his eardrums came back to life, the sounds of explosions pressing upon them all at once made him want to doubt his ears. There were high-pitched, earsplitting leaden noises, combining to make him feel physically ill. Resounding around him were high-octave voices, roars, neighs all the cries of the demon beasts hot on their tail. There was a giant mouse with black fly wings spread. There was a ferocious frog that featured black spots. There was a multi-headed serpent with innumerable necks sprouting from its torso. They were surrounded by misshapen creatures beyond all description.  Beast Master was the term that popped up into the back of his mind. *** With Subaru in her jaws, Patlash was desperately searching for a way out. However, even a land dragon, the fastest of ground creatures, could not overcome such numbers; the roads were blocked, the skies were dangerous, and she was surrounded with no way to break free. Already, there were lacerations beyond counting on her pitch-black scales, from which she was bleeding profusely. Not far in the future, she would reach her limit  No, her limit had already arrived. Patlash was simply exceeding that limit, burning the remaining fire of her life away for Subaru's sake. *** Right after a conspicuously huge roar, the land dragon's speed was dulled as a creature with over twice her bulk pulled alongside. The black lion had a wound on its"}, {"text": "face, with blood flowing from the sockets of its smashed eyes the demon beast from earlier. He'd forgotten its name. But even if he tried, he would never be able to forget the blow from its claw. *** Its vision was compromised. It had unleashed a wild strike. And yet, that blow was aimed directly at the land dragon's right abdomen. This creature was not relying on sight but something else smell. The demon beast was drawn by scent. Faster than he could register the impact, penetrating with the force of an explosion, the world was dyed red with fresh blood. But it was not Subaru who was affected by that impact. That was because, a moment before the claw strike landed, the land dragon's neck swung up, hurling Subaru's body into the air. \"Patl \" In her final moment, she did not let out a single cry. Such pride suited the sublime land dragon well. As he spun, a flower of blood bloomed beneath his eyes. Subaru had no time to avert his gaze as his body's back collided with something, breaking through it with a spectacular sound, before finally smacking the floor, hard. \"K-kha...!\" He was racked by a coughing fit; his right eye had closed from the blood coursing from a cut on his forehead, but even so, he immediately realized it. He'd been hurled to the second floor of the mansion the second floor of the east wing, exactly where he'd been heading. *** Subaru no longer knew what to think about his beloved land dragon's final act of devotion. He'd shed too much blood. It was as if his determination and resolve had flowed out of him with it. He couldn't summon any energy. His head wouldn't turn, either. His mind was slowly dying, too. Even so, even with Subaru like that, there was one, and only one, place that had not lost its strength. He felt a sensation in the grip of his left hand. Even though his mind was dead, the part telling him not to let go was still alive. He remembered that, right before everything collapsed, he was holding someone's hand. \"Pe...tra...\" His gaze arrived at the hand he felt, the wrist, the elbow and there, it came to an end. *** Though he was holding her hand, the girl who should have been there did not go past the elbow. She had been smashed, crushed, torn away  \" oooaaAAA!!!\" Subaru Natsuki had managed to protect...nothing. 5  Just how much time passed as he stared at that arm, torn off at the elbow? *** His thoughts were still as he stood in a daze. Ironically, during that time, his senses of sight and hearing gradually recovered. They helped Subaru understand just how desperate the situation he was in truly was. Subaru's state was so terrible, the wound on his right shoulder seemed cute in comparison. His left leg bent in two more places than it should, and his left arm was flattened, crushed by something. Petra had probably been struck by the same blow. Accordingly, there was nothing of her past the elbow. *** That was all his eyesight could tell him of the terrible spectacle. But the information conveyed from his hearing was more terrible still. Beneath the second floor corridor in which Subaru had collapsed, he could hear the roars of demon beasts around the building from every direction. He couldn't be bothered to count their numbers and types. But a voice kept pressing into his mind, There's nowhere to run. He'd let Petra die. Patlash had been ripped apart before his eyes. He didn't know what had happened with Ram afterward. Perhaps she was still fighting hard. Perhaps the cunning girl might even survive, but  \" Ahh, I've finally found you.\" These words spoken, he tilted his head, seeing and hearing the presence of a raven-haired woman. From Subaru's position, in the middle of the corridor and kneeling on the carpet, the woman was standing straight ahead. It was the butcher whom Frederica had stayed behind to slow down. If she was there, that meant... \"Fre...derica's...\" \"The big maid? Relax. She amused me quite a bit. If possible, I would have liked to see whether transfiguration changes the contents of a person's belly, but I was unable to confirm that with my own eyes.\" \"...I didn't...ask you about that.\" He wasn't asking. However, she made him acknowledge what he knew without needing to question her further. That she had put up a good fight was no doubt true. Elsa had lost her mantle, and her black clothes were ripped all over the place; her pale skin was splattered with blood Even so, she was in such a good state that it would be fair to say she was in fine health. \"I must praise you. You have done well coming this far with wounds like those.\" \"Throwing me a bone, are you... If it's your life, I'll take it...\" \"I wonder, should I interpret that as, 'I want your life'?\" \"If I...get to trample it right now, then yeah...\" Venting at Elsa's off-the-mark answer, Subaru leaned his weight against the wall and lifted himself up. With his left leg wrecked and his left arm twisted, he had wounds running across his entire body. \"Even so, there is a whiff of anger accompanying the scent of your blood... Your intestines are probably sublime.\" \"You're messed up... I don't, get what you're sayin'.\" As Subaru rose to his feet, Elsa embraced her own body and let out a hot breath of ecstasy his way. Whatever he said and did, it only brought greater delight to the ravishing butcher's mind. \"Who hired you to come after us...?\" \"I shall not speak of my employer. I owe him that much courtesy, at least. Your return was earlier than expected, so things worked out a little differently than in the contract, though...\" \"Worked out...different...?\" \"It was supposed to be two maids and one 'shut-in,' and everything was supposed to be timed to coincide with your return...\" A wry, blood-colored smile came over Elsa as she pointed the tip of her kukri toward Subaru. Her verbal summation of the plan fit with the tragedy that had occurred in the mansion the last time around. At that time, Petra and the others' corpses were probably waiting for Subaru and the others' return to the mansion  \"I've heard enough...\" Shaking his head, he rebuffed Elsa, pressing only cruelties upon him. Subaru's reply made Elsa's refined eyebrows grimace. \"Is that so?\" she murmured in visible disappointment as she started to wrap up. \"I suppose so. Let us finish this. If this carries on any further, Meiri might be captured, and we cannot have that, so I shall console myself with your hot stuff before that happens.\" *** \"All done, are you? Then I shall send you to meet your angels.\" This spoken, Elsa's posture sank. Running with her posture so low she seemed to crawl across the corridor, the black figure charged, making a beeline toward Subaru. She was so fast. One wouldn't even think counterattack was possible. But  \" Like hell I'm gonna just let you kill me.\" Dragging his smashed leg along, Subaru reached the door beside him quicker the door to Rem's bedroom. His decision made Elsa knot her brows. Even if he fled into the room, it would only prolong the amount of time until the end. Even so, seeing his reaction made her tone down her gloating smirk just a little.  There was no longer any way to break through the encirclement. It was impossible. Accordingly, he abandoned the thought. His wounds were deep. His life was pouring out. He was on the verge of expiring without having saved any of the people he had to protect. Then, at the very least, he'd get back at Elsa just a little, so that everything would not have gone as she pleased. *** Neither the Bowel Hunter nor the Beast Master had reached Rem's bedroom. He absolutely would not allow them to defile the girl who slept within. Even if the world was soon to end, he would not lose Rem a second time, not to anyone  *** He opened the door wide and leaped into the bedroom. Lifting his head in search of the bed where Rem slept, Subaru was taken aback.  Subaru, resigned to his end, was greeted by the bookshelves of the archive of forbidden books. 6 The choking musk of old tomes seemed like a rebuke presented to its noisy visitor. The room's interior was packed with bookshelves that were chock-full of books. When that aroma and visual information finally hit home, Subaru realized he had stepped into a different place than that he had desired.  And the late realization of that fact courted a most fatal result. *** Subaru's head was dominated by one question: Why?! That instant, Subaru felt he was enveloped by wind. That wind peeled Subaru away from the door, forcefully drawing him toward the middle of the room. With the feet he had planted down nonfunctional, Subaru, unable to resist, tumbled into the room's center. The very next moment, he heard the great sound of the door slamming shut straight behind him  \" W-wait, please!!\" Lunging for the firmly closed door, Subaru desperately tried to open it. But his will couldn't reach his half-destroyed arms; the ferocious creaking sound only served to fuel his frustration. And as Subaru, smeared with blood all over, turned toward the door, behind him was  \" Struggle as you might, you are not leaving this room.\" When he heard a voice and footsteps, he turned to see a girl slipping past a gap in the bookshelves and walking toward him. She had long, cream-colored braids and a gorgeous, extravagant dress. She had a young, adorable face, but at that moment, a terribly cold expression rested upon it as she glared straight at Subaru. \"Bea trice...\" \"Are you in a simply horrid state, I wonder? Do not walk around; you will only sully the archive's floor...\" \"Open the door!! Right now!! Let! Me! Out!!\" When the girl Beatrice gazed at his wounds with a chilly look, Subaru shouted unsparingly at her in anger. The admonition not to sully the room never even entered his ears. Blood dripped from his bleeding arm as he screamed. \"Why did you come out now?! Why this of all times?! Send me back! Send me back right now!!\" \"...And what would you do if I did? What can you do in your current state, I wonder?\" \"I know better than anyone I can't do anything!! But even so...!\" He had to return to that place, to the second floor of the east wing, to the bedroom where Rem slept. The Passage had activated at the room he had presumably entered. The door leading to the bedroom became the entrance to the archive of forbidden books, whereupon the door immediately cast that duty aside. In other words, the door had resumed its normal duties: those of the door leading to Rem's bedroom. \"That's why!\" \"It is too late.\" \"What do you mean, too late?! There's no such thing as too late!! I have to get there, right now...\" \"Did I not say 'it is too late,' I wonder?\" Subaru's angry voice, straining upward to resist the horror racing through him, fell silent. In contrast to Subaru, eyes wide and blinking while unable to speak a word, Beatrice continued. \"Just now, the reason you wish to return to that room became no more.\" The proclamation left Subaru at a loss for words  Any means of putting it into words...had vanished. Beatrice had said it in a calm, composed fashion, but the sheer cruelty of her words asserted their claim to reality and truth. \"aa\" Before he realized it, Subaru had crumpled to the floor right there. His shoulders fell, his head bent down, and there was a ferocious ringing in his ears echoing throughout his skull. He wanted it to be louder, noisier."}, {"text": "He wanted it to tear at his brain until it split in two. He wanted it to be bad enough that he couldn't think, so he wouldn't have to understand. He wanted it to tear his life away with it. And yet  \"...What are...you doing?\" Haltingly, his voice trickled out. He heard a whisper-like, delicate voice from right beside him. \"Perhaps I cannot stand to see you in pain. Therefore, I am healing your wounds, out of disgust and nothing else.\" The girl who murmured her reply was incredibly close. Her palm had a faint glow around it as she held it over his wounds. The light asserted its own existence, gradually softening the unrelenting pain that had been eating away at him. He felt it carry heat into his body bit by bit, mostly his horribly injured left side. The bleeding stopped, the bones returned to their proper positions, the gouged-out muscles attached to them, the slashed nerves  \"Are you kidding me?!\" *** With his remaining strength, Subaru howled, wholly rejecting Beatrice's healing light. While Beatrice was still reeling from his threatening attitude, he rolled away to put distance between him and the girl. The carpet of the archive of forbidden books was marred by blood. Blood frothed from the corner of his mouth, and in that ghastly state, Subaru glared at Beatrice. \"I don't...need you to heal my wounds...! Why are you trying to save me...?!\" \"That is because...y-you are simply too pathetic; I cannot stand to look at you...\" \"Why me?! If you wanted to save someone...why didn't you save Petra or Frederica?! Or Ram, or Rem!! You could have saved everyone...!!\" With Beatrice's power, she could have escaped and helped others escape with ease. \"They should have been saved...! I'm stupid, I'm weak...even if I couldn't do anything, you could have reached them...! Why didn't you......!\" \"Wh-why, should Betty do such a... Perhaps Betty does not have a single reason to save anyone? I do not know. I do not have any such reason...!\" \"If that's true...then you didn't have any damn reason to save me either, right...?!\" Shaking her head in disgust, Beatrice denied Subaru's entreaty. Adding his denial to hers, Subaru slowly raised his crushed left arm aloft. He painfully squeezed Beatrice's throat.  His emotions were exploding. \"Who the hell...asked you to save anyone...?!!\" \"aa\" \"Do you even know what you've done?! Thanks to you, everything might be completely ruined now!! All of this might've overwritten the possibilities, and this piece-of-shit present might be set in stone......!\" Why had she showed herself then, when it was too late? Knowing that Subaru had been teleported, Elsa would recognize the Passage for what it was. She was getting closer to Beatrice. Why, in spite of that, was she trying to make a half-dead Subaru live? Why had she saved Subaru the instant he'd given up instead of allowing him the death he desired? \"I...should have died there...! You...should have killed me......!!!\" When it was his time to die, but he let the opportunity slip, Subaru Natsuki was worthless. The only way Subaru could gain the right to redo things was to use his life without a care. When, spitting blood, he shouted from his very soul, the girl, bathed in his pleas head on, opened her eyes wide. \"I-I do not understand... Can I understand, I wonder...?\" Incomprehension, and perhaps even fear, crossed Beatrice's face as she shook her head side to side. The reply made Subaru clench his teeth. If that was how it was, fine. He wouldn't cling to her. \"Fine, then. If even you... If you won't save me, then...!\" From the beginning, relying on someone hadn't been an option. He should have understood that. His gaze shifted, and his eyes caught sight of a stool near the entrance. It was the stool Beatrice was always sitting on. He kicked it over and then slammed it against the wall with all his might. \"What are you...?!\" Beatrice let out a shriek, eyes bulging at Subaru's act of violence. A hard sound reverberated, and the wooden stool was cruelly smashed apart, scattering in a number of fragments. From those fragments, he picked up the biggest, sharpest one. *** It wouldn't be his first suicide. Even a piece of wood like that was enough to easily end a person's life. If, in a single breath, he stabbed his own throat, his life would come to an end, and Subaru Natsuki would surely be granted another chance.  In another world, it would be the third time Subaru had chosen suicide. The first time was in the middle of the mansion loop. He had been determined to fix something that couldn't be undone. The second time was at the very end of the loop that had started in the capital. It was from remorse, to save Rem after she'd been taken from him. And now, the third time would be from indignation, after giving into rage and cursing his own powerlessness to take everything back. It was a \"death\" with meaning. It was a \"death\" with value. Everything besides \"death\" was worthless  \"Don't!!\" And yet, the instant he had committed himself to stabbing his throat, a tiny body leaped at him to get in his way. The hem of her dress fluttered as Beatrice raced through the middle of the archive, impeding Subaru's suicide by force. She grappled his arms, bit into the right hand containing the fragment, and attempted to wrest the vile implement away. \"You...! Why...!!\" \"I won't let you! I will not...let you die here......!\" \"!! Quit it! Let me go, already!!\" His voice grew ragged as they jostled with one another. However, in his current state, Subaru could not easily get even a helpless little girl off him. They desperately grappled, violently bumped their bodies against a bookshelf, and finally, furiously collapsed onto the floor. He didn't know if it was the impact that made a moan trickle out. But it had been Beatrice who had accomplished her goal. \"Haaa-haaa......!\" After Subaru had fallen onto his bottom, Beatrice cast the fragment far aside and moved away from him. Glaring at the girl in resentment, Subaru collapsed faceup, unable to move any farther. \"Wh y...\" For what possible reason had she stopped him from killing himself? Regardless, the end result wouldn't change. His blood loss was severe. Subaru would soon perish. Beatrice's action was completely irrational. He didn't have a single clue what purpose she had in mind. Maybe she hated him dying before her eyes? Maybe she just didn't want him to kill himself? She didn't want anything to do with it? He didn't understand, not at all, not one little bit, but even though he didn't understand that  \"eh?\" Beaten senseless with incomprehension, Subaru tried to avert his eyes from everything: from Beatrice, from the archive of forbidden books, or perhaps from his own powerlessness, or even his impending \"death.\" But when he averted his gaze to do so, Subaru noticed the presence of... it. ***  \"It\" had fallen at the edge of the wreckage from the destroyed stool. It was a thickly bound, simply covered book, as large and inconvenient to carry around as a dictionary...yet the malevolent aura emitted by the black book bore not the slightest resemblance. Subaru had seen \"it\" many times over. He'd seen \"it\" in the hands of a madman. \"What's that...doing here...?\" Was it actually a copy of the Witch Cult's Gospel? The volume once possessed by Petelgeuse ought to have still been packed in the dragon carriage they took to the Sanctuary. It certainly wasn't there in that room.  No, he had to face facts. The stool had been hiding the evil black book. *** As if affirming Subaru's shock, the girl in the dress picked up the book. The girl hugged the book to her chest, letting out a seemingly relieved sigh as she stroked a finger across the cover. Her touch was tender and loving. With gentle eyes, Beatrice embraced the Gospel. \"...Why...are you treating that book...like it's so important?\" *** \"It's not one of the books the Witch Cult has...is it? It just looks like one, right?\" *** \"You hid it because I'd jump to conclusions... Jump to conclusions, get angry, and then...\" *** \"Why...won't you...deny any of it...?\" For that moment alone, Subaru forgot the anguish of blood loss and his impending \"death\" as he wove the words together. If she said only one thing, that would have been enough. That would have been plenty to clear Subaru's worries away. Subaru's words, pleading for nothing more than that, were answered, and just as he had hoped, Beatrice said but a single thing. \" Betty has not been instructed to answer that question.\" Beatrice spread the book she clutched to her chest, scanned its contents, and emotionlessly spoke those words. He'd heard that for the Witch Cult, a Gospel was like their Bible. Petelgeuse had said the text functioned as a book of prophecies, showing the future to its owner. Accordingly, the Witch Cult obeyed the Gospel, doing as the text instructed. If he matched that fact with Beatrice's reply  \"What's written in that book... What is it telling you to do...?\" \"Perhaps that question is not in the book, I wonder?\" \"You can't do anything if it's not in the book...? Then, you sheltering me here before was...?\" \"That question is not written in the book, either.\" \"And talking to me right now? Saving me, when I was on the verge of dying...!\" \" I wouldn't know.\" Eyes still cast down at the book, Beatrice continued her empty replies without looking Subaru's way. She sent replies that weren't answers back at him, her obstinate mind closed within the tome. Her doll-like appearance, her eyes with emotions locked away, sent a tremor through Subaru that seemed to make his lungs convulse. Assaulted by dizziness, seemingly forgetting even to breathe, he raised his voice. \"Are you saying...you can't do anything...anything, if it's not according to what's written in that book?!\" \"...I wonder? Yes, it is so. Perhaps the Gospel's guidance must be obeyed in all things, for that is Betty's reason for living, and the sole reason for Betty to exist.\" \"Did you...try to save me because the book told you to?! That time you saved me when I was cursed, too! Lending me a hand when I couldn't stand on my own! All the time we spent fooling around, yelling at each other, having fun like a couple of idiots, all that time...was all thanks to that book?!\" \" Is that not precisely what am I saying, I wonder?!\" When Subaru, who had been criticizing Beatrice, now tried to appeal to her emotions for his own convenience, she exploded. Beatrice's face was red with anger, her round eyes glaring at Subaru as she raised a finger and screamed. \"It is as you have seen, and as I have told you! Everything Betty has done until now, all of it was written right here. Is there any way you, the likes of you, could move Betty's heart, I wonder? Do not be so full of yourself, human.\" *** \"All of Betty is for Mother's sake. For Betty, her connection to Mother is everything...! The likes of you, the likes of you...human, human, human......!!\" It was as if a dam had been breached. Emotions poured out of Beatrice. The vast torrent of fierce emotions instantly rendered Subaru speechless; there was nothing he could do but be swept away. Facing the wordless Subaru, Beatrice very, very tightly clutched the book. \"Do not touch Betty, human. Do not come close, human. Do I even know you, I wonder, human? I hate you. I hate youI despise you!\" This time, the girl's teary-voiced shout clearly rejected Subaru's entire existence. The inside of his chest was filled to the brim with confusion and dismay. That was how great the rejection was for Subaru.  He'd stubbornly believed, without any basis, that there"}, {"text": "was a bond between them. Even if neither he nor she would acknowledge it openly, he believed there was something. After all, Beatrice had saved Subaru a number of times during the loop that started at the mansion. It was her presence that had saved his mind, on the verge of breaking as he repeated those days over and over. And whatever form it took  \"Back then...I...was happy...\" Once again, words Subaru had never spoken aloud slipped out at the very end. \"uu\" His vision warped badly. He vomited something up. It was neither blood nor bile, but life itself. He instinctively knew it his time had run out. Blood loss, useless. Grave wounds, worthless. Betrayed, a dog's death. Gospel, butcher, Beast Master, dying in a rage. There, having achieved nothing, Subaru Natsuki would perish. *** Then, on the verge of death, Subaru heard a miraculous sound. His ears, on the verge of death, probably picked up the sound of a door opening. Footsteps; someone was entering the room. The footsteps beheld the fallen Subaru, and exhaled. \"How disappointing.\" The murmur was distant. The footsteps advanced farther ahead, seemingly losing interest in the dead man. The owner of the voice, a black-clad Grim Reaper, leisurely walked toward the little girl clutching the book.  Just what would result from this chance encounter between the girl and the butcher? \"Oh my.\" The surprised voice belonged to the woman. A bloodied hand was entwined around the butcher's long leg. Meaninglessly, Subaru, on the precipice of death, acted to slow her down with all of his body and soul. \"...eaa, triii...\" \"How marvelous. Truly, you are treasured.\" Instantly, a wind blew. The next moment, the right hand with which he grasped her came off and the wrist along with it. No blood came out. The wicked blade reversed, and a black glint went...somewhere. Subaru's head, his neck, his torso...somewhere. Wherever it was, it would surely impale him in a critical location  *** In that final scene, he saw the face of the little girl as she sucked in her breath. There was sadness and pain upon it.  But as death came for him, that had nothing to do with Subaru Natsuki anymore. CHAPTER 3 *** 1 He heard a deluge-like sound, like that of a muddy stream. It was a ferocious watery sound. It coursed downward, obeying the power of gravity, obeying the flow, obeying its destiny: a waterfall. Inside his ears, or perhaps his skull, it echoed with a ceaseless roar. The ferocious muddy stream seemed to churn his very brain, even as it led Subaru's consciousness from oblivion to awareness. \"a, eh, goho!\" Subaru retched, feeling like his throat was clogged, which was totally throwing off the rhythm of his breathing. Breathe in the air, blow it back out. Having completely forgotten how to repeat those alternating actions, he convulsed like a fish on land, and as drool trickled out, Subaru returned to life. \"Gahu! Aha!\" He was in a facedown position, collapsed on the ground. Putting his arms on the hard floor, Subaru was seemingly prostrate as he forced oxygen and comprehension into his lungs, remembering the procedure for breathing once more. The pain softened, and he spat out the saliva that no longer had anyplace to go. Then, when his body calmed down and recovered its grip on reality, his oxygen-deprived brain came around his mind was restored. \"D-did I...die...?\" Wheezing as he murmured, he confirmed a fact that needed no checking: he had Returned by Death. No, he didn't need to check whether he had Returned by Death, for that was Subaru's worth. It wasn't important that he had gone back rather, when and where he had gone back to were the most critical. \"Ah...\" Lifting his head, Subaru squinted at his surroundings when he immediately realized it. It was a darkness he remembered, a darkness he knew. It was the stone room of a tomb, the cold air holding an otherworldly ambience. The darkness hovering over the roughly constructed stone floor extended to a stone door leading deeper within.  And lying on her side, collapsed right beside Subaru, was a lovely, silver-haired girl. \"Emilia...\" Wiping the light sweat off his brow, he stared in the dark at Emilia's sleeping face, her suffering clear upon it. Having confirmed that much, Subaru finally managed to accept the situation. The time passed, the life lost, the impending calamity, the unbelievable betrayal one after another, everything that had happened crashed against him like waves, driving Subaru's heart into a corner. \"No change in the restart point...!\" It was the place right after he had overcome his past and there, Subaru Natsuki had returned. In exchange for being unable to take anything back, he had returned to a place where he had not yet lost everything. \"H aa.\" The moment he abruptly came to understand that fact, relief spread through Subaru's chest. The left hand he'd unwittingly touched to his chest wasn't crushed. It was fine. When he looked at his right wrist, Petra's pure white handkerchief was still wrapped around it, not a trace of blood to be seen. Knowing this, he let out a long, deep breath, patting his chest with relief and then, he was shocked. \"You've gotta be kidding me.\" \"......nn, aa\" He was shocked at his own nerve, checking that he was all right, not at all concerned by the sight of Emilia suffering. That very moment, Emilia was being tormented, crushed by the past from the Trial. No matter how long her pain continued, nothing good would come of it. Subaru knew that it was a time of hardship, and nothing more. And yet, just then, setting his eyes on the girl's pain, he had patted his chest in relief.  As if the fact Emilia was suffering at the time of his return was a good thing. \"That's, not...the thought process of a sane person...\" Swallowing back his lamenting voice and gritting his teeth, Subaru flared in anger at his own ugliness and fragility. If he put the people precious to him, the things precious to him, the things he ought to prioritize, on the back burner, how could he save anyone? Had not that foolish way of living invited the calamity at the mansion? \"Anyway, Emilia first...\" Right then, putting the situation in order, confirming that he'd Returned by Death, and devising countermeasures against issues and obstacles could wait. Right then, he had to wake Emilia from her nightmare, console her as she cried, and bring her outside. That was the right thing to do  And by doing so, he would preserve the sequence of events. \"Deal with things the right way, one at a time...\" He had to rescue everyone from that terrifying, calamitous fate. Setting his heart, hardening his resolve, he was filled with determination as he reached a hand out to wake Emilia up. As he did this, there was something that Subaru himself still did not realize... His face was entirely devoid of any emotion. 2 After Emilia awakened in the tomb, developments differed little from what had come before. Tormented by the past, Emilia was confused by grief and remorse as Subaru brought her outside. There, he met with Ram and Garfiel, both of whom were present when they had entered the tomb together, and returned to their temporary lodging. \"? What is wrong, Barusu? You're staring at Ram's face.\" \"...Nothing at all. I just think you have a pretty face.\" \"How indecent.\" Taking Subaru's apology for staring at her during the walk back from the tomb, Ram snorted with a reproachful gaze. Having Returned by Death, it went without saying, but Ram looked fine upon their reunion. Without anyone knowing, that fact brought him relief, and the gaze and sharp-tongued reply she sent back at him brought further relief still. *** Carrying Emilia to her bedroom at the Ryuzu residence, their temporary accommodation, was the most he could do as a man. With Emilia's heart in pain from the nightmares she had seen, he gently laid her in bed. \"aa\" Emilia was lying on her side when Subaru took his hand away. Her voice trickled out at the loss of his touch. With worry on her face, Subaru smiled at her to set her at ease, after which he left everything to Ram. That night, it was fine to leave Emilia to Ram. She'd do a good job calming Emilia down. During that time, there was something Subaru ought to be doing. And that was  \" The discussion that Roswaal promised.\" Roswaal had established a seat for Subaru to speak with him on the first night Emilia challenged the Trial. Last time, Subaru had used that opportunity to propose returning to the mansion in the morning. In accordance with his request, he'd returned to the mansion at maximum speed, and the result was a calamitous failure. Subaru had saved no one. Subsequently, he'd returned with a number of pressing questions  \" Mr. Natsuki? Mr. Natsuki, are you listening?\" \"...Sorry, wasn't listening.\" He was leaning his back against a building, concentrating on his own thoughts, when his mind was summoned back to reality. When he looked over, it was Otto, brows furrowed in a questioning look, who had called out to him. The place was outside the Ryuzu residence. In the middle of the night, with no light save that of a bonfire and the stars, Subaru was putting his thoughts in order for the coming conversation with Roswaal. \"So what did you want to talk to me about, using up valuable time like that?\" \"The way this man speaks really takes the wind out of one's sails...! ...I just wanted to ask you something.\" \"Ask me what?\" \"I simply mean, right now, are things...all right?\" When Otto repeated his question, that time it was Subaru's turn to put on a questioning look. He thought it was obvious that if someone was listening to you, it was, by definition, all right to ask.\" Perhaps surmising what was in Subaru's mental space, Otto went, \"Ah, not like that,\" waving a hand as he continued. \"By 'all right,' I am not asking about the time. I mean, Mr. Natsuki, you seem very...busy, so I imagine your time is very precious at the moment...\" \"Yeah, you hit the nail on the head. Right now, I don't even have time to worry about Emilia-tan. So I don't really have time to shoot the breeze with...\" \" That is precisely what I wish to speak with you about.\" Tapering his lips at Otto's roundabout speech, Subaru tried to swiftly cut off the conversation. But instead, Otto bit on Subaru's words like a hook, continuing with his own. \"If I may, Mr. Natsuki? You brought Lady Emilia out after something happened inside the tomb. I imagine your head is something of a mess from things I know nothing of, but I shall ask nonetheless.\" \"? Yeah, ask away.\" \"Then, without further ado  Mr. Natsuki, are you all right?\" All that lead-in and that's your question, thought Subaru, seriously perplexed. That said, it wasn't that he couldn't understand Otto's concern. Emilia had gone into the same tomb and had fallen into a panic as a result. He could understand Otto suspecting some anomaly befalling Subaru as well. Hence  \"Of course, I'm full of pep and in super-duper condition. With Emilia like that I understand why you'd be worried, but I'm fine. Besides, does anything look wrong with me?\" \"...No, nothing looks wrong with you. You appear very calm.\" \"You see? Then...\" \"Particularly, with Lady Emilia in that condition. Does that not suggest a particularly grave state?\" When Subaru tried to assert there was no problem, Otto's follow-up put his words on lockdown. *** Otto narrowed his eyes, peering intently into Subaru's black pupils. He was concerned for Subaru's current mental state. Certainly, in his current state, knowing future circumstances gave Subaru a sense of the past being prolonged that Otto could never share. Where he was seeing things for"}, {"text": "the first time, Subaru was seeing them for the third, and the effect of that gap was that Subaru took things far more mentally calmly than he. \"So you think I'm too calm about this, then.\" \"Yes, exactly. I do not think it is a bad thing. Just...\" \" Nah, thanks to you I feel more confident about this. Thanks, Otto.\" \"Eh?\" Interrupting Otto, Subaru leisurely shook his head side to side. Considering the situation Subaru had been placed in, the composure Otto had drawn attention to was something deserving a warm welcome. \"It's proof I can still have composed thoughts about things after everything that's happened.\" \"Er, I believe there is an exceptionally large and deep chasm between seeing things calmly and taking composed actions...\" Otto seemed left in the dust as he said it; perhaps the conversation had gone awry from what he had sought. But for Subaru's part, the exchange with him had deepened his own confidence. Even after that tragedy in the mansion, with anger burning in the deepest depths of his mind, his head was still working. \"I'm going up against Roswaal. This time, ain't no place for letting him give me the slip.\" He'd had it with how Roswaal ducked and weaved, concealing the things he knew during their conversations. At the very least, he had innumerable things he wanted to ask Roswaal that time around. He absolutely wouldn't let Roswaal behave like last time, holding back about Beatrice, among other things  \" Heya, got a moment?\" Just when he was determined anew, someone interrupted his conversation with Otto. Holed up in the entrance of the de facto boarding house, poking his head out their way, was Garfiel. When he clacked his canine teeth and walked over, Subaru rubbed his own nose and said, \"Garfiel, huh... You really just don't stick to one pattern, do you?\" \"Ahhh? The hell ya talkin' about?\" \"Talking to myself. About how it's tough dealing with someone who has as many whims as a kitty cat.\" Subaru's attempt to gloss things over made Garfiel sourly crinkle his nose. Subaru had assessed Garfiel to be as whimsical as a cat, and that was not wholly untrue. That night was taking place a third time for Subaru, and Garfiel's attitude had changed each time. Of course, alterations in the actions committed by Subaru changed others as well, such as Emilia, in subtle ways. However, Garfiel's changes deserved special mention. His opinions reversed course, his like or dislike flipped on its head, and reasonable positions in conversation were replaced with obstinate ones. The changes were such that Subaru almost started doubting that he was dealing with the same person. This time, Garfiel's going out of his way to come over and speak to him was further evidence. \"And there last time you'd have headed right off if I hadn't called out... Besides, what'd you wanna talk to me about? I have important business after this.\" \"Business, ya mean wicked schemin' with that bastard, don't ya? Don't think that'll be fun.\" \"I'm offended you're treating it as wicked scheming. Well, I won't argue about the not-fun part, though.\" \"I must say, you two are saying quite some things about the Marquis...\" As far as distrust of Roswaal was concerned, Subaru and Garfiel held a mutual opinion. Subaru could sympathize with Otto, who had yet to have his first contact with Roswaal, seeing them both take that attitude. Subaru's shoulders slumped in exasperation at the naivet\u00c3\u00a9 of Otto's view. \"You just don't get it, Otto. This Roswaal guy, he's a man who pokes you in all kinds of places. If you don't understand that, his pokes'll wear you down to death.\" \"Right now, you are speaking seriously? Or is this something safe to ignore?\" \"You wanna talk seriously about that bastard Roswaal...? Bro, are ya all right in the head...?\" \"And this time you are concerned for me?! The problem is not with the Marquis?!\" \"I'm telling you, that's just the kind of guy he is.\" Having been told so much, Otto was finally beginning to worry seriously about just whom he was trying to gain an audience with. He folded his arms, mumbling this and that about preparing to encounter the genuine article. \"My worries grow and grow, and this is the only way for a turnaround with one blow... No, no, but my very life depends on facing this man, yet the people who are his allies say such things about him...\" \"Well, take your time worrying, okay? You're not talking to him tonight, at least.\" Considering the issue of Roswaal's scheduled conversation with Subaru right after that, it was a virtual impossibility that he would allow Otto to greet him at that juncture. Besides, Subaru didn't really have any time to spare for that. He probably didn't have the time to loosen the corners of his lips and forget his worries about the future just a little, as he was doing right then, either. \"So then. It's not bad for three guys to talk stupid stuff, but what did you want? What'd you wanna talk about?\" \"Ohh, forgot 'bout that. It's like, 'Kukuruu was so thoughtless.'\" Garfiel clapped his hands together when Subaru dragged the straying conversation back and prodded him toward the real topic. However, he went, \"But y'know,\" his jade eyes shooting a meaningful glance Otto's way as he carried on. \"Ahhh, you want the Bro here to hear this too? I'll leave that up to whatever judgment ya make.\" \"...If you're leading in like that, it's something related to the Sanctuary, right?\" \"What else did ya think I'd be talkin' to ya about...?\" \"I thought you might've wanted to do some research on Ram... How she likes guys that have the three heights: high back, high station, high education. Also, makeup like a clown.\" \"Stop it... I don't wanna hear it, and if I do it'll depress me...\" As the man seemed genuinely distressed, Subaru relented in his verbal assault, granting him a warrior's mercy. Either way, he was grateful for Garfiel's consideration. It wasn't as if he could forget on the verge of a huge appointment, but the prospect of involving Otto in their faction's issues left him feeling uneasy. At the end of the day, Otto was someone who'd simply been caught up in these events, a bystander who was supposed to be eventually returned to his normal life safe and sound. \"So we're gonna be talkin' love stories from here on out. The night's late, so go on ahead and stay at the Cathedral, 'kay? Your business rivals are there with the villagers they evacuated, y'know.\" \"Uu...if someone who knows me saw me acting so impertinently, I would be mocked for sure...! Er, that is not the point! Now listen here, Mr. Natsuki, I...\" \" Wait.\" Otto's face flipped from pathetic to clingy as he advanced a step. But Subaru cut him off, taking the wind out of his sails. Subaru could understand Otto's desire to get involved in Subaru and company's circumstances to make a better impression upon Roswaal. But  \"Please, Otto. See you again tomorrow.\" \"Gnnnn... U-understood. I shall behave, sleeping as my small-fry competitors laugh at me!\" Discerning that Subaru's obstinate posture would not falter, Otto ruefully took off his hat, gently squishing it in his grip as he walked off in the Cathedral's direction. The sight of him from behind, shoulders slumped in dejection, somehow came off as well-done heart-tugging acting. \"That lonely-looking back suits that guy pretty well...\" \"Me, I think that, too, but are ya all right with this?\" \"It's fine. I'd sleep worse if anything happened to him.\" When Subaru, watching Otto recede in the distance, made that reply, Garfiel twisted his neck. Then, he went, \"Well, fine,\" tossing the thought aside as he gave Subaru's shoulder a light pat. \"Something I wanna talk to ya about. I'm switchin' places, so come on.\" With that, and an attitude that wouldn't take no for an answer, Garfiel walked off without waiting for a reply. Watching his back, Subaru scratched his head, reluctantly following as he murmured to himself. \"Gimme a break... Another different development, geez.\" 3 As Garfiel walked ahead, Subaru followed in his wake and trudged deeper into the woods. It was common knowledge that forests were dangerous at night. And among them, Subaru had heard that the Lost Woods of Cremaldi were particularly perilous. That alone made him somewhat apprehensive about the stroll. \"Just don't leave me alone out here, 'kay? I'm begging you.\" \"Hey don't say depressin' stuff like that. It's just a damned forest at night.\" \"There's a lot of people who think 'just a damned forest at night' is a lot more dangerous than you do. This goes for holding up in a fight, too, but I don't have a nose that can pick up outsiders from a long range like you do.\" \"Ha, you mean during daylight? Who'da thought ya still had a grudge over that?\" \"Nah, not particularly. Otto's forehead was the only thing that took real damage anyway...\" Besides, from Subaru's perspective, the events during the daytime were days and days ago. Even if Otto was a close friend of Subaru's, it would be too long a period for Subaru to sustain his anger. \"Besides, he's not a close friend of mine. I'm the guy who saved his life; that's about it.\" \"That bro's had it rough, too, huh...\" Subaru let the comment, sympathetic to Otto for some reason, slide as he took a good look at Garfiel. He was short in stature, and while he looked slender, his flesh was supple and well honed. In the end, his stature wasn't radically off from what made sense for human beings, but Subaru couldn't put much stock in that personal perspective. In the first place, in that world, shape and form didn't correspond with physical ability whatsoever. After all, even Rem, with her small frame, could whip around an iron ball. Accordingly, at that juncture, Subaru had a different thought aimed at Garfiel's back. \" How long has it been since you've met Frederica?\" When the sentence suddenly sliced in, Garfiel's shoulders made a visible jump of surprise. He'd already confirmed that Frederica and Garfiel were related as older sister and younger brother. He'd also heard from the people concerned that their relationship was not harmonious. It was just, he understood next to nothing about Frederica's stance toward the Sanctuary. At the very least, she'd engaged in a duel to the death with Elsa. The possibility of Frederica having invited Elsa into the mansion was zero  More importantly, there was definitely some other mover-and-shaker who ought to be topping his suspect list. So to chalk up Frederica as an ally to a very firm extent, among other reasons  \"...And why the hell do I gotta talk to someone like you 'bout somethin' like that?\" \"I just thought I'd ask and see. Figured if I did, you might actually give me an answer.\" \"Ha! Thought I talked about that to ya this mornin', too. That one ain't got no relation to anyone here on the inside. She left this place. Ain't related in any way.\" \"Yeah, about that.\" What Garfiel, without turning in his direction, seemed to chew up and spit out, Subaru picked right back up. Ever since he'd learned of the relationship between Frederica and Garfiel, it kept tugging at him. \"Garfiel, I know you and Frederica are brother and sister.\" \"...Shit, someone's loose-lipped. The bastard, or Ram maybe?\" \"Not something worth hiding, is it? Besides, it's thanks to that I'm wondering about something now. If you and Frederica are siblings, Frederica has to be mixed, too. So why is she outside?\" *** The barrier that enveloped the Sanctuary sealed demi-humans of mixed blood the so-called \"mixed\" inside. Accordingly, Emilia, Garfiel, and the others were held captive by the barrier, and it was in search of liberation from this that the scheme to challenge the Trial was"}, {"text": "hatched. At the very least, that was how Ryuzu's explanation portrayed it. Therefore, it was strange that Frederica, related to Garfiel by blood, was not held captive by the barrier. \"The fact that she isn't means that there's some kind of loophole. If you know of one, can you tell me about it?\" \"And what if I told ya? The barrier ain't openin' up unless the Trial's beaten. That ain't changin'.\" \"I just want to know. If I know, our choices increase. I'm the type of guy who wants to cram every bit of info in his head to figure out a way to clear stuff.\" *** During the time they spoke, Garfiel never looked back, so Subaru could not read his emotions. It was just the oppressive sense conveyed by his back that told Subaru the expression on his face was not a pleasant one. Even so, the fact that Garfiel, a man of short temper, had not cut the conversation off meant he was unsure  That thought was probably Subaru's bias at work. \"...Here we are.\" Rather than replying directly to Subaru, Garfiel said that while shoving aside vines blocking his path. During their conversation, the pair had continued to walk, apparently reaching their destination before Subaru could get an answer to his question. That said, leaving the current back-and-forth with an ambiguous finish put Subaru in a bind, but  \" Could you please not tease Young Gar too much, Young Su?\" Subaru opened his mouth, but before he could press for an answer, a young voice was cast his way. When he looked, he could tell there was an open space in the forest beyond the vines Garfiel was moving aside. This place, a natural spectacle of light from the waning moon and the stars pouring down, engendered a surreal, almost phantasmal air. The beautiful girl standing under the moonlight and starlight only added to that sense. \"...But I will comment that your outward appearance is too young to be my type.\" \"For a lad, you have quite a venomous tongue. Are you trying to compete with Young Ros for Most Uncharming Child?\" \"Come on, that's going too far. Not giving up on being charming is one of my charms.\" Subaru made a pained smile at the various harsh assessments, as he stepped into the moonlit clearing. If he was facing just Garfiel, lowering his guard seemed a poor move but  \"If there's a guarantor with him, that's a different story, huh.\" Clicking his tongue with the air of a pout, Garfiel cut past Subaru's flank and went straight to the center of the clearing. He went beside the girl standing there the ephemeral individual called Ryuzu. Subaru smiled a bit at how both stood at seemingly prearranged places, but that was when he sensed something was off. Ryuzu's clothes were not the black outfit she wore at the inn, but a white, hooded robe. \"Er, Ryuzu, did you change your outfit?\" \"This is a difficult time for someone my age, you see. Unfortunately, I am not a night owl like you, Young Su...\" \"I watch late-night anime, so I'm not suffering, but...you wanted to see me, Ryuzu?\" \"I do not mind if you take it as such. Young Gar is serving as my escort.\" When Ryuzu nodded in apparent confirmation, Garfiel stood still, arms folded. Closing one eye, his demeanor seemingly broadcasting that he wouldn't butt in, Subaru lightly tilted his face up. Overhead, a gentle breeze blew. He heard the sound of the leaves shaking, and the stars glimmered in the clear sky above. \"...This is a nice place. It's like a secret base here in the forest.\" \"'Tis merely an open field. It is altogether too empty to be called a base, is it not? ...Though perhaps that is why I feel so comfortable in this place.\" \"Anyway, it's a relaxing place for you, Ryuzu? Guess we're getting along really well in half a day for you to be inviting me to a place like this. Guess I'm close to a chance for you to divulge your secrets?\" \"You are speaking in a rather good mood.\" With a neutral look on her face, and only her choice of words showing her age, Ryuzu was gentle during the exchange. That said, Subaru and the two of them had experienced a far different period of time. Considering only half a day's time had passed for Ryuzu and Garfiel, it was far too optimistic to think they had opened their hearts to him. There had to be some reason behind their actions. \"Garfiel's whims...ended up relieving his suspicions of me...maybe?\" That was about all he could come up with as a cause for the change in Garfiel's response. Garfiel had changed each time around, but each being a change for the worse had really put Subaru in a bind. This time things were turning in the right direction. If that was so, he wanted a suitable return on his investment. \"Either way, I'm happy we're having a meaningful conversation...a friendly match before the war of words with Roswaal that's coming.\" \"The baggage Young Ros bears is heavy by its nature. Well, I suppose I shall strive to live up to your expectations.\" Ryuzu said it with the nuance of a pained smile as she slapped her own hips. Naturally, Subaru didn't think she needed to play the part of an old woman that far, but he set that aside and proposed a different matter for debate. Namely  \"Earlier, I asked Garfiel this question, but maybe you could answer, Ryuzu?\" \"...The reason Frederica could depart the Sanctuary, was it? You heard this from Young Gar as well, but what do you intend to do with the knowledge, Young Su?\" \"I don't think my answer's changing either, namely that I'll think about that once I hear it. But...maybe this, then?\" Frederica, who'd slipped out of the barrier using some kind of exception, showed no special signs of bearing any penalty from it. If it was possible to create a loophole he could make applicable to all residents of the Sanctuary, then... \"I'd use that to bring all of the Sanctuary's people outside the barrier. During the day it got rejected because it'd leave people soulless shells, but if this worked, it'd be okay without having to take the Trial, right?\" \"According to logic, perhaps. However, the Trial is obstinate. Evading it is...\" \"I don't want to make Emilia take the Trial. That's completely me being selfish, though.\" *** When Subaru lightly scratched his cheek and made that reply, the ends of Ryuzu's eyebrows fell in apprehension. Tormented by the past, Emilia would continue to face the Trial and suffer, unable to surpass it. At the very least, Subaru knew that would continue for several days, if not longer. \"From the looks of it, I really don't think she can overcome her past. So I don't want to let her do it.\" \"In terms of the Trial, perhaps that is for the best. But one does not choose the time and occasion for one's troubles. Days of tranquility are not necessarily fated to continue. One cannot continue to flee from facing one's troubles forever...\" \"I'm not talking about forever. I'm talking about a retreat to prepare for facing it properly...one of those so-called strategic retreats. Ryuzu, just as you said, there's times when you have to face trouble on disadvantageous ground...but shouldn't a person work hard so you don't have to?\" As Ryuzu continued her explanation, Subaru replied to her words to justify running away. This was because, at the very least, Subaru didn't think there was any shame in turning your back on something. More than that, if, for instance, Emilia turned her back on her current troubles, there was absolutely no way that was enough to finish her. \"Even if it's not now, Emilia will definitely be able to face her past someday. The Trial made her remember that stuff. So Emilia has to make a choice, whether to overcome it or to forget it. That being the case, it's my role to knock down as much stuff blocking her way as I can.\" \"...Even if one tries to run, one can never escape the most trying times of all.\" \"I'm saying this 'cause I totally believe she can beat this without running away.\" He didn't know if it was a suitable conclusion to the conversation, but Subaru smiled as he said it nonetheless. His smiling face, teeth on display, made some kind of deep impression on Ryuzu as she narrowed her eyes. Perhaps the elder who didn't look her age was laughing at the idealism that smacked of youth. \" Old hag, ya got bad taste.\" The one offering those blunt words was Garfiel, standing there with his arms folded, silent last Subaru had checked. He opened the eye he had previously kept closed, glancing at the youthful elder right beside him as he said, \"I'm tellin' ya. It's just like Gaddgii Guaddzeadd the Hermit.\" \"I'm grateful, but same as usual, I don't have one clue what you're sayin' to me.\" \"What Young Gar wishes to say is, there is no such convenient loophole. I was in the wrong to allow you to jump to such conclusions, a bad habit of the elderly.\" Breaking down the mystery phrase, Ryuzu twirled her pink hair around her finger. Taking in her reply, Subaru gave her a look that pressed his request for a more detailed explanation. \"In the end, it is because Frederica is an exception that she was able to go outside the barrier. She does not fulfill the conditions for being held captive by the barrier. Accordingly, she was able to leave. That is all it is.\" \"Conditions for being held captive by the barrier? Is there something besides being mixed?\" \"No, it is not so. That is the only condition to be held captive by the barrier. There are no exceptions.\" Even though Subaru was reflecting on her first roundabout statement, Ryuzu made an even more roundabout one that made him knit his brows. Unraveling her statements, there was no change in the condition for the barrier encircling the Sanctuary. In other words, it wasn't an issue with the barrier; it was an issue with Frederica. For it to be true that Frederica wasn't caught by the barrier... \"That means Frederica can't be mixed?\" \"Strictly speaking, the barrier fundamentally discerns mixed blood based on the 'thickness' of the blood. If one thickly carries both human and demi-human blood, he or she is held captive by the barrier. However...\" \"If you're less than half...like, a quarter or something, the barrier doesn't work on you? Meaning...\" Breaking off his words, Subaru looked Garfiel's way. His lips were twisted, and making a sour face, he clicked his fangs and went, \"That's right,\" continuing his words with, \"Me an' Frederica have different fathers Me, I'm Garfiel Tinzel. She oughta have called herself by a different family name.\" The family name that Garfiel had not invoked even once before bolstered Subaru's deduction. The family name Garfiel claimed was certainly different from that of Frederica, who had introduced herself to Subaru and others as Frederica Baumann. \"So Frederica's blood is thin... That's why she could get outside the barrier.\" \"She was the child of a human mother and a mixed-blood father. Accordingly, she is free to enter and leave the forest.\" \"Ha! Free to enter and leave? Don't make me laugh!\" When Ryuzu nodded gravely and murmured, Garfiel snarled in annoyance. He touched his fist to the white scar on his forehead, the pupils of his jade eyes narrowing. \"Enters and exits, my ass. She ain't come back once in ten years, right? Frederica abandoned this place. That's why that woman has nothin' to do with it anymore.\" \"Young Gar...\" Spitting the words out, Garfiel averted his eyes with a bitter look on his face. The youth curled his back, reducing his short frame even further,"}, {"text": "whereupon Ryuzu stretched and gave his shoulder one good smack. After that, Ryuzu turned toward Subaru anew and spoke again. \"That is how it is. I am sorry to have dragged out a fruitless conversation.\" \"...Nah, that's fine. Certainly it wipes out one choice, but it beats keeping one on the list that can't ever be used. But that leaves the Trial in the end, huh?\" He couldn't claim not to have been disappointed. But his current words were no mere bluff, either. There was no disadvantage to learning more about the complicated situation between Garfiel and Frederica. But having made a loop around that issue, he'd ended up right back at the topic with which they had started. Breaking through the Trial was indispensable to liberate the Sanctuary when he saw that, he felt like amorphous Fate was laughing down at him. However, this time wouldn't end with Fate laughing at his expense. \"Ryuzu, Garfiel. Actually, I have a proposal.\" \"...Proposal, meaning what?\" \"I have to talk to Roswaal, too, and I need Emilia's consent for this also...but I'll talk to you two about it first. It's a really important issue, so I'd appreciate if you didn't talk about it to anyone else.\" Touching a raised finger to his lips, Subaru implored Garfiel and Ryuzu. That preamble brought questioning looks from the pair, but he owed them at least that much advance warning. *** Last time around, the attack on the mansion had proven Frederica's innocence. However, she had yet to reveal the mastermind who had brought about the teleportation. Frederica didn't know of the existence of the \"militants,\" but it was difficult to think that the manipulator was unrelated to that faction. Accordingly, if Subaru's proposal leaked, that would provide an opening the mastermind could take advantage of. For that sake, he wanted to divulge the information only to the Sanctuary's two representatives in absolute confidence. \"Can you promise me that?\" \"A promise, you say? Did you not say that this was a difficult word for you, Young Su?\" \"Various circumstances have made me hate stuff like pacts or vows more and more, yeah. But promises are different. Someone's convinced me those are things you have to uphold, so... Both of you, please.\" He didn't mind if it was an oral promise. Subaru trusted that neither of the two would say no. To Subaru, the seeker of that promise, the pair fell silent for a time. But in place of the wordless Garfiel, Ryuzu made an elderly-sounding sigh and nodded. \"Understood. As you wish, we shall not speak of it to others. Speak of what you will.\" \"Big help. Thanks.\" Thanking Ryuzu for her acquiescence, Subaru shifted his eyes toward Garfiel as well. He remained wordless, but he did not object. Taking his demeanor as acceptance, Subaru continued. \"I want to talk about the Trial. When I said earlier that I don't want Emilia, I meant it. I want both of you to accept that.\" \"Ah? Like hell. If the Princess ain't takin' it then what happens with the barrier, huh? Cryin' scared of old stories as much as ya want, the barrier ain't gonna yie...\" \"I get that. So I'll take the Trial in her place  How about that?\" *** As Garfiel bared his fangs, Subaru interrupted him and showed the card in his hand. The contents made Garfiel's eyes open wide, and though Ryuzu had a neutral expression, her cheeks seemed to harden. Faced with the pair's reactions, Subaru explained what had happened at the tomb. \"When I went into the tomb to help Emilia, I was safe and sound, right? That's because I had the qualifications to take the Trial...and more to the point, because I broke through the Trial.\" \"Ya overcame the Trial...?!!\" He was reproducing the conversation they'd had after carrying Emilia to the Ryuzu residence. That time, too, Garfiel had been similarly surprised at Subaru's qualifications. Given that, Subaru also anticipated the reaction coming from Ryuzu, standing right beside him. \"You're thinking this makes things complicated, Ryuzu?\" \"I cannot dispute a single word, let alone the entire sentence. However, I do understand what you are saying, Young Su.\" Unlike Garfiel, who had yet to recover from his surprise, Ryuzu looked like she'd quickly absorbed the impact. Even so, she seemed to be mulling a variety of things as Garfiel glanced toward her, bewilderment in his eyes. It was a glance seemingly in search of a judgment. Receiving this, Ryuzu exhaled slightly. And then  \"Young Su, I too have something important to speak with you about.\" \"What is it?\" \"That, here and now, I must ask you to behave yourself, Young Su.\" \"Huh?\" Yes? Or no? Having been given no responses other than those, Subaru was catastrophically late in comprehending the words making his eardrums tremble. No, it was not that he was late simply that he didn't understand in time. After all  \" G, uu?!\" \"Don't thrash around, 'kay? Or I'll just have to hurt ya more.\" As Subaru stood still, it was Garfiel who grasped his neck, hoisting him aloft. Garfiel used his exceptional strength to leave Subaru's legs floating in the air, and his grip put enough pressure on Subaru's throat that he could barely breathe. \"K, a, ku...na, a...!\" \"'Why,' you seem to be asking. However, I do not ask for your forgiveness.\" Slowly shaking her head from side to side, Ryuzu somehow seemed lonely as she spoke the words. He didn't understand the reason why. Why, all of a sudden, was this act of violence being committed against  \"I shall uphold my promise. I shall tell no one  This, I swear upon the name of Ryuzu Shima.\" She grew distant. Both what Ryuzu was saying, and the voice with which she said it. In its place, his mind focused on the heat from Garfiel's hand, evaporating along the border between reality and dream. It was as if the strings holding him up were snapping one by one  Where had he gone wrong? Within the darkness, still comprehending nothing, Subaru's mind flipped over and fell. 4  The first thing that tugged at the edge of his mind was the repeating sound of water droplets. *** The water drops fell at regular, rhythmic intervals, which, in that soundless space, seemed like a roaring cacophony. In accordance with that hallucination, his sleeping brain resumed activity, and he keenly felt blood coursing through the entirety of his body. As that blood coursed, he strongly felt numbness in his hands and feet, and when he tried to squirm around he could not. *** That was the moment his mind instantly awakened, and Subaru reclaimed his own existence. At the same time, he reconfirmed that which was not natural: he could not see the presumably visible world, and his presumably mobile limbs could not move.  Had his eyes been mangled, and his hands and feet lopped off?! The worst of possibilities rose into the back of his brain, but before he could despair at the hasty conclusion, he noticed the oppressive sensation over his head. The tightness he felt around both of his eyes was probably a blindfold. Similarly, his hands and feet were likely tied to render them unable to move. He felt the backs of his hands were tied; his ankles were firmly bound as well. And there was a gag in his mouth. At that point, he could comprehend it, like it or not He was imprisoned. *** Though confused at the sudden circumstance, Subaru used his brain to somehow understand the present situation. Unless the Return by Death point had changed, he would begin again at the same restart point: the stonework room in the tomb. In other words, his current predicament had nothing to do with Return by Death. Therefore, it was related to the events that had occurred just before he blacked out  *** He'd headed for the woods with Garfiel, and in the middle of conversing with Ryuzu, he'd been mugged  \" From the looks of it, ya just woke up. Lucky, ain't ya.\" It happened right after Subaru's memory came back, allowing him to grasp the present circumstance. A voice descended from right above, almost as if it had been waiting for that exact moment. Subaru, belly down on the floor, lifted his head, and though unable to see, he was able to guess the other party's position as he called out. \"A i u...\" \"Not sure what ya even sayin', but it's probably my name. Hold on a sec. I'm takin' the gag out right now. I'll tell ya in advance, ain't no point callin' for help.\" He felt footsteps drawing near. Someone right beside him audibly squatted down, touching his hand to Subaru's mouth. The hand undid the tightly tied gag, freeing Subaru's jaw and tongue. \"There we...\" \" Anyone!! I'm over here!! Save me!!\" \"Gah?! Why you, I told ya not to shout!!\" When Subaru broke the admonition the instant he was free to do so, his jaw was closed by force. His cheekbones creaked under the strength of Garfiel's grip. Subaru managed not to moan from the pain as he said, \"L-like there's one prisoner told not to call for help who wouldn't......!\" \"Shout in anger or scream, it'll do ya no good. This is a hideaway, no one in the Sanctuary is comin'. Of course, it ain't nowhere close to the settlement. Look, keep yer mouth shut or I'll gag ya again.\" Right up close, he butted foreheads with the presumably blindfolded Subaru while delivering the warning. Subaru gasped, taking his words as meaning that even if Subaru struggled, no one would come to his aid. \"Looks like yer gonna behave now. I don't wanna hurt ya.\" He clicked his tongue, and the enmity coming from Garfiel stabbed into him. Showered in it, Subaru clenched his teeth, still needing to ask as to his true intent. Why had he imprisoned Subaru? He had to ask, and that went for what Ryuzu was thinking, too. \"...First, can I ask where this is, in detail? I'd like to use it for reference when I escape.\" \"Ha!! Man, ain't you composed! I thought ya'd be shakin' in yer boots. I think a tiny bit better o' ya.\" \"That's 'cause I learned lately that chattering teeth get you nowhere. I'll broaden my questions bit by bit until I make you answer one... How long did I sleep?\" \"...That, I can answer. 'Bout half a day. It's the middle of Fire Time.\" With Subaru negotiating from the palm of his hand, Garfiel lowered the tone of his voice as he replied. With the state of his stomach, he could believe that half a day had passed. If that was the case, on the outside, Emilia ought to already have noticed Subaru's absence and grown concerned, but  \"I have confidence I stand out enough no one would forget me in half a day. How did you fool everyone?\" \"That ain't a problem you need to worry about. Ya got somethin' more important ya need to worry about  Or, maybe ya don't?\" Abruptly, the tone of Garfiel's voice grew graver. Behind his blindfold, Subaru knit his brows. The power behind Garfiel's words just then felt...off. They carried conviction, certainty. Garfiel was sure of something about Subaru, yet Subaru had no idea what that was. Hence, Garfiel's current statement felt very off to Subaru. \"Don't play dumb at this point. Where are yer heroics now, huh?\" \"...Sorry, but I seriously don't know what you're saying. If you've got something against me, could you just come out and say it? Just like Ram would.\" \"Cheap trash talk there, damn it  And I just loooove cheap trash talk.\" Spitting out a sharp breath, Garfiel grabbed Subaru by the collar and lifted him up. Subaru remained unable to move as his back was pressed against the cold, hard wall. He remained like that when he felt something sharp probably one of Garfiel's claws touching against his throat. \"Not afraid o' death, huh. You"}, {"text": "guys are all famous for bein' messed up in the head, y'know.\" \"W ait... This seriously doesn't add up... What are you accusing me o...\" \"Don't act dumb!! With that much miasma comin' from inside yer body, you wanna say ya don't know? Think that excuse'll work, huh? Like hell, Witch Cultist!!\" \"H uh?\" The claw strongly pressed in, and Subaru's throat slightly tore. There was a faint, sharp pain to it, and he felt blood bubble up from the laceration, but Subaru had no mind to spare for pain. Surprise and impact greater than it pounded into Subaru's brain, exceeding his comprehension. \"The scent's been thick on ya since the moment ya came out of the tomb. Buuuut, sometimes even normal guys have thick miasma. 'The suspicious Pitero was acquitted.' So I meant to do nothin' to ya...but then, take the Trial for the Princess, huhhh?\" *** \"That ain't funny. Who'd follow heartless words like yours, ya bastard fool!!\" \"Heartless...?\" \"Hell yeah. Ya used all those big fancy words, made this excuse 'n' that, but where was there any concern for Lady Emilia in that attitude, huh? Ya got the same eyes as the jerk I hate the most.  Ya got eyes that don't see anythin', except yerself.\" He wished he could have shouted in a large voice, It's all a big misunderstanding. But the deep emotion he'd felt just following Return by Death at the fact he'd put his own relief upon ascertaining he'd Returned by Death before thinking about Emilia prevented him from refuting Garfiel's suspicions. Furthermore, the searing words he had hurled made the back of Subaru's mind recall a prior event: a past situation greatly resembling the present scene  \"A-a Witch's miasma from my body...?\" \"Thaaat's right. Don't ya dare try and act like ya didn't know. It's real bad in yer case.\" \"...And when I...came out of the tomb, it was thicker...?\" It had changed because he had taken the Tri no, because he had Returned by Death. Over the course of being revived by the power of the Witch, its color, its scent, thickened as it entwined around Subaru's existence.  Rem had called it the aroma... \"The lingering scent of the Witch...!\" \"Ha!! An interestin' name for it. It's the stench of one smelly Witch!!\" The moment after he wrung out his voice, Garfiel violently hurled Subaru onto the floor. Unable to break his fall, Subaru slammed shoulder-first with the floor. The dull pain would have made him let out a moan, but he forced it back inside, cursing the awfulness of his situation anew. Once upon a time, it had been the trigger for Rem to suspect Subaru, and this had caused his death more than once.  Once again, the lingering scent of the Witch reared its ugly head before Subaru to impede him once more. *** \"What do ya wanna go into the tomb for? What are you plannin'? It's a Witch's tomb. Ain't nothin' good, that's for sure.\" Every time he'd returned, he'd decided Garfiel's shifts in attitude were based on whim. He was wrong. The changes in Garfiel's demeanor were based on the changes in the density of the miasma enveloping Subaru. That was why, the first time around, when the miasma was thinnest around him, he'd proposed that Subaru clear the tomb, and why, ever since, as the density of the miasma increased, he became visibly distrustful of Subaru. It was also why, that time around, he had landed in a cell.  And for Subaru, that fact meant his situation was bad to the extreme. *** His relationship with Garfiel had worsened because of Return by Death and would worsen further according to the number of times he did so. On top of that, with the restart point being the tomb, he was overwhelmingly short on time to improve that relationship. When they'd first met, Rem had likewise viewed Subaru as dangerous due to the miasma, but even so, she deferred judgment while she kept him under her eye. But the short-tempered Garfiel would do no such thing. If he saw the miasma enveloping Subaru as a danger, he wouldn't flinch from instantly eliminating that danger. \"W-wait... if that's so, why did you lock me in here...?\" \"Huhhhh?\" \"You said I'm abnormal... If you decided it's dangerous to let me in the tomb, it's...weird that you'd lock me in here like this. Why didn't you get rid of me...?\" \"Get rid of you! Hah! Man, stuff like that just rolls off yer tongue!!\" Subaru's query drew a sharp exhale as Garfiel clicked his tongue in disgust. \"Me, if I could, I'd have done it already. But no can do.\" \"Can't do it...?\" \"Because ya did a good job of wormin' in with other people, that's why. If I get hasty 'n' lay a hand on ya, it'll be an explosion like the Fall of Fort Tesla. No thanks.\" He used one of his frequent mystery phrases, but this time, he was able to understand the content based on what preceded and followed the statement. The outburst Garfiel feared was from people learning Subaru was not safe and sound likely meaning Emilia and the people of Earlham Village rebelling against the Sanctuary. But his seeing the danger in that meant  \"Your home's not as whipped as you want, huh... To you, I'm a dangerous ingredient and a way to keep them in line, then?\" \"A crafty lil' bastard, ain't ya. I suppose if ya weren't, ya wouldn't be acting so cunning either.\" The voice was very close. With Subaru on the floor, Garfiel must have crouched and brought his face very close. He continued to feel very close when he grabbed Subaru's head and continued. \"Ta be honest, the Trial stuff shook me up. But I got over all that. There ain't no change in the barrier. Plain as day yer lyin'.\" \"Ahh, that... Actually, the tomb's Trial is three parts in all.\" \"Got some guts, in the situation yer in. I'll praise yer shitty courage at least.\" \"Guess you don't believe me, huh... I completely messed up the order of that conversation...\" He should have spoken of his having the qualifications for the Trial, stated he'd overcome it, and brought to light that there actually was more than one gateway through which to pass. It was no exaggeration to say he'd disclosed that to a distrustful party in the worst manner possible. \"...What'll happen to me?\" \"Suppose I'll say, depends on Lady Emilia. For now, ya stay locked up. I'll make sure ya don't die on me...but how 'bout we have a little chat after the barrier's down?\" In other words, I won't kill you. Garfiel's announcement of Subaru's continued confinement made him swallow his spit. While he was stripped of the ability to move, various issues arose in the back of his brain.  Emilia was dealing with the Trial, Roswaal was off duty with Ram attending to him, Puck was unresponsive, Elsa was assaulting the mansion with her probable coconspirator the Beast Master, the puller of Frederica's strings remained hidden, Petra would be swallowed by the tragedy, Rem continued to sleep that very moment, and Beatrice was clutching that magic tome. And amid all that, Garfiel viewed him as dangerous because of miasma; Ryuzu concurred and was on Garfiel's side; plus the people of Earlham Village were primed to explode in Subaru's absence. \"Ha.\" The hell was this. What the hell was this? What could what should he do, and how...? What the hell did he need to do to break through, to smash apart the situation with so many obstacles in his path? From the very point he'd entered a confined state, he was caught in a state of \"check\"  *** \" Oh no ya don't.\" A foreign object was stuffed into Subaru's mouth, making him fiercely retch in shock. But having done the deed, this did not make Garfiel hesitate; as Subaru writhed, he swiftly repositioned the gag. Now he couldn't raise his voice. And simultaneously  \"I don't know what the hell yer thinkin', but I ain't gonna let ya kill yerself either.\" *** When he'd impulsively tried to bite his tongue, Garfiel had obstructed him from doing so. Having the gag stuffed in robbed his jaw of its freedom; nor could he wipe away the drool spilling out of the corners of his mouth. Suicide, and thus, Return by Death, were locked away from him. Garfiel had a reason to keep him alive. Accordingly, he couldn't let Subaru die. \"Me, what I can't stand the most is that attitude.\" \"A i u......!\" \"It ain't just the miasma  Those eyes, they're just like that bastard Roswaal's.\" Lobbing those words, Garfiel kicked the moaning Subaru. Subaru rolled onto the hard floor, slamming into the wall, and remained faceup afterward, while desperately exhaling raggedly over and over. \"Just leave food 'n' stuff to me  And don't try anythin' funny.\" With those threatening words as his last, Garfiel's footsteps grew distant. \"Aeee! A i u! Aeeee!!\" Squirming his body, he lobbed his voice at the receding presence. His incomprehensible voice did not make the other party halt. Subaru's desperate voice continued to fall on deaf ears until he could sense the presence no more  \"a i uu!!!\"  To Subaru, the worst of all prison lives had begun. 5 The hollow passage of time slowly whittled away at Subaru's mind. *** It had been several hours since Garfiel had departed, and he had fallen into a full-blown state of captivity he was vague as to whether it was really a few hours, but he could only wonder what was going on outside in the Sanctuary. Thinking back to his exchange with the now-absent Garfiel, there was no way the situation was sweet and rosy.  The heck am I doing at a time like this? Gagged and thus unable to even speak to himself, he mostly sucked up the drool as it dripped, and berated himself. Subaru had a veritable mountain of obstacles he had to overcome. And yet, that very Subaru was unable to do anything, writhing around like a potato worm as he was at present. *** Could he resolve anything by trusting someone and explaining the problems? He wanted an answer to that. He held love for Emilia, distrust for Roswaal, remorse for Beatrice, anger for Garfiel, hatred for Elsa, and these swirled and swirled, further muddying Subaru's heart. The blindfold was tied so tight it hurt. Unable to see anything, Subaru could only direct his questions at his own heart. His interior was packed full of suspicions and mysteries; in other words, he was at a stalemate. All of his thoughts were deadlocked, actions held in check, and Subaru, not permitted even to kill himself, felt a sense of impatience eating away at him. As time passed, the countdown to the calamity that would inevitably arrive advanced, one second at a time. *** With the fires of impatience burning away at his heart, the horror show at the mansion played anew in the back of Subaru's mind. Though he had saved no one from that tragedy, that didn't mean his gains from it were zero, either. He learned that Frederica was unconnected to the attack, and the attackers were Elsa and the Beast Master. More than anything else, his greatest gain was learning that the day of the attack on the mansion changed according to his own actions. Between the last time around and the time before that, there had been a gap of around three days between the attacks on the mansion. Besides, Elsa had clearly stated that the timetable been moved up. That information was a big deal. Subaru had hard evidence he had at least until the evening of his return to the mansion the first time around the fifth day from the starting point. *** But at the same time, that fact raised a different issue. Given the mansion would be attacked upon his return, evacuating Rem and the others wasn't realistic. There was no option besides repelling the"}, {"text": "attackers, Elsa and the Beast Master, on site. As fighting strength for the sake of that, Frederica and Ram just weren't enough by themselves. In the present circumstances, the only people besides that pair that could be relied on for combat power were Emilia, Roswaal, and Garfiel. Roswaal had his wounds, Emilia had the barrier, and there was a wall stopping Garfiel from trusting him. Or, perhaps, if he could borrow the strength of the final person left in the mansion  \"ea, oiu...\" He seemed to weep as he murmured the girl's name.  In the end, Subaru still didn't understand where Beatrice stood. Beatrice had shouted that she'd obeyed everything written in the Gospel in her hands to date. They'd slammed invective into one another, glaring with mutual disgust. When Subaru pondered if anything could be nurtured amid such a relationship, every part of him felt very alone.  Was it really like that? That's right, affirmed a loud voice within him. A tearful voice declared firmly that Beatrice had made it all up. Even after everything that had happened, Subaru wanted to believe that Beatrice's words were lies. What he had seen on the verge of death, her tearful eyes and tearful voice, made Subaru doubt Beatrice's words. \"A, oe...\" Even if everything to date had been according to what was written in the book. Even if the tragedy at the mansion had come to pass because of her obeying what was in the book.  Right now, I want to hear your voice so much. *** No one was coming. No one could hear him. He'd been left behind in that place, all alone. Amid that unrelenting darkness, Subaru gradually traced that very faint hope and continued clinging to it.  And so more time passed while Subaru remained in the dark. He was having a nightmare from which he could not awaken. Over and over, he experienced his moments of remorse at things beyond his reach. Petra, reduced to only an arm. Frederica, sliced to death in a place beyond where Subaru's eyes could reach. Ram, whereabouts unknown. Rem, of whom all he knew was the statement that he was too late. And in the final instant, Beatrice. *** More, more, over and over, the red-dyed scenes repeated. Emilia, collapsed on the floor in the loot cellar. Old Man Rom, his throat rent apart like glass. Felt, cruelly sliced apart in a single blow. Rem, dying from wasting away. The people of Earlham Village dead at the hands of the Witch Cult. The children stuffed into the storage shed. Petra, with her eyeballs gouged out. Ram, wearing the makeup of death. Rem, her entire body defiled. The villagers slaughtered a second time over. Ram, impaled as she shielded them. The subjugation force members, crushed by the White Whale's giant body and erased by the mist. The beast men torn to pieces by the hands of Sloth. The villagers and subjugation force members swallowed up by the deadly blast Corpses, corpses, corpses, surrounded by death, regrets piled atop each other as far as he could see. *** His body squirmed, seeking the pain from the ropes tying his legs and hands. Pain was good. Right then, it was what he wanted. In that pitch darkness, unable to see anything, he saw images of scenes of regret over and over and over. Unable to hear a thing, he heard the death cries of the people he had failed to save, replayed countless times. His despair at how his hands were unable to reach them came back again and again, wearing away at his soul. *** It wasn't the first time he'd been left behind in the dark. He'd been abandoned in a cold, lightless cave, once. But at the time, his heart had been ruled by anger and hatred, and Rem, in a near-death state, was present, so in a real sense Subaru had not been alone. This time, he was alone. In a real sense, this was the first time Subaru had tasted isolation rotting his heart away. *** During his state of confinement, it was not literally true he had no contact with anyone. Just as Garfiel had stated, he had a reason he couldn't let Subaru die. Because of that, he brought food to Subaru and ensured Subaru's other bodily functions were accounted for. Though neither pleasant nor polite, he had a caretaker nonetheless. For the victim of confinement, it was nothing praiseworthy whatsoever. After all, the existence of such care did absolutely nothing to help cure Subaru's isolation. *** He heard the putter of bare feet walking on the floor, thus sensing someone's approach. It was the second time, or perhaps the third, Subaru had sensed his caretaker coming to bring him food. *** His caretaker remained wordless, likely having placed the metal tray on the floor. Then, he slowly lifted up Subaru's head, removing the gag. That instance constituted a chance to bite his tongue, but  \"aghh\" With a robotic movement, a small fist thrust into his mouth. The fist blocked the motions of his jaw as the other party used an open hand to retrieve a plate from the tray. The contents of the tray were poured through the gap in his mouth, conducting a forced feeding. The food was closest to chilled-over soup. He had no time to taste it, desperately swallowing it down as it invaded his throat, gasping as it fell into his stomach. It was not so much eating as simple oral intake. Once this was done, the gag was contemptuously shoved into the coughing Subaru once more. Making no move to wipe the soup from his dirty face, the caretaker checked Subaru's underwear to see that they were not soiled, whereupon the caretaker swiftly departed. During that time, the caretaker had not spoken to Subaru even once. The first time, Subaru had tried to speak through the gag, but the other party had not responded in any fashion. The caretaker gave off the impression of an unthinking doll. *** Coming into contact with such a caretaker drove Subaru's heart deeper into a corner. Knowing that someone was there had only deepened Subaru's isolation. Time was passing. It wasn't simply in his head; it was time he could not take back. What time was it, then? What day was it? What had happened, what hadn't happened, what was going on?  When, and how, would he die? Subaru thought in that fashion as he experienced the unpleasant sensation of the soup drying on his cheek. A man's heart was weak to darkness and isolation. He'd heard something like that from...somewhere. When he'd heard that talk, Subaru had probably given it a good laugh. In terms of mental strength, he couldn't really compare to a lot of people, but even so, he must have found being broken by isolation and the dark to be absurd. He didn't know what experiment that talk resulted from, but he'd never end up that way. Without any empirical basis, he simply figured he'd be all right. What a little fool that made him. *** And left in actual darkness and isolation, a fair bit of time came to pass. Right then, all Subaru could think of was death. He was thinking of ways to die. He yearned for \"death.\" Perhaps, even, that desire might not have been related to Return by Death. He was afraid of the dark. He was terrified of isolation. He hadn't known. If he stopped breathing, wouldn't he die? If he kept chafing his arms against the ropes, might he die of blood loss? If he rammed his head against the floor, how about that? What if the next moment, an earthquake happened and he tumbled into a crevice? There was food that had fallen all over the place. What if worms came and ate Subaru whole? He'd heard that mice gnawed on the fingers and ears of the sick. Why didn't he make himself bait and find out for himself? If he forgot that he was even himself rather than just a simple collection of meat, then  *** He was so thick with love of death; he was late in noticing. Footsteps. He sensed a human presence approaching. Was it time for his care again? Another opportunity to deepen his isolation. He heard the sound of something pounding on the hard floor. Slowly, it was heading for the prone Subaru. It drew nearer, even as Subaru had lost track of whether he was faceup or facedown at the moment. Death from hunger. How about starvation? If he obstinately refused to eat, death would approach, slowly but surely. Thinking it worth a try, he tried to reject the hand his caretaker stretched toward him  \" I imagined you would be in a terrible state, but this is even graver than I presumed.\" For a moment, Subaru didn't understand what it was. In that world, a sound beyond his own filthy breathing and his beating heart that could make his eardrums tremble? He felt like it was something beyond his knowledge. Very, very late in the process, he comprehended it was something called a \"voice.\" Someone's voice. The voice of another person, something he hadn't heard in how many centuries? And of someone known to him. \"a\" \"Oh, please do not raise your voice. We are crossing a rather dangerous bridge, so I would rather not be caught here by a guard. Neither of us is very good at giving up, you know?\" With an easygoing tone, the other party replied to the fallen Subaru's lamenting voice while doing something to his body. The light sound made Subaru comprehend the bindings on his hands and feet had been untied. His arms, his legs they could move freely. Rolling his body over, he faced upward. Why was it so hard to breathe? \"I shall take out the gag. Incidentally, the blindfold, too.\" *** With the cause of his difficult breathing removed, saliva flowed out from the corner of his mouth. Along with that, the blindfold tied around his head all that time was undone. It was a liberating feeling. His tear-coated eyelids moved around. With a sound like starch being ripped off, his eyelids opened. The darkness, and time itself, brightened  \"In any case, I am relieved to have found you alive, Mr. Natsuki.\"  These words spoken, after what seemed like centuries had passed, Otto Suwen smiled. 6 To the face before his eyes, Subaru was speechless, reduced to staring in astonishment. \"What is it? You have the look of a man in complete disarray, seeing the seemingly impossible, unable to believe the work of your own brain, and as a result, suspecting it may be a dream or illusion?\" \"...That's not...\" Otto had a hand on his hip with a fairly indignant look on his face. Subaru looked up at him, somehow managing a murmur. His throat was a mess, his entire body fatigued from wasting away, enough that the air itself felt heavy. Just moving his body and his previously bound hands and feet a little sent pain running through them, multiple ills he hadn't noticed during his confinement. Even so, he was alive. And so too  \"You coming is the last, last thing I expected.\" \"Well, I can understand that. To be honest, I do come off as rather unreliable...\" \"More like, on a level it just flows out of you from head to toe... I'm not exaggerating here. In all that time...you coming here didn't enter my mind the tiniest little bit...\" \"Even in this situation, this person really knows how to mercilessly shave one's spirit down...!!\" \"Hey, you're the one who said...not to talk loudly...\" When Otto raised what seemed like a voice of lament, he made a face unaccepting of Subaru's admonition. This exchange, too, brought back old times. It seemed the man there was the real Otto. \"All that isolation, seeing hallucinations... What state would I be in if you were"}, {"text": "the first guy popping up in 'em...\" \"It is remarkable you can say all that with your throat and body in such a difficult state. Here, water.\" Otto tendered a metallic canteen to silence Subaru's sharp tongue. Taking it, he practically bathed in it, drinking the remaining water, amounting to half or so of the container. As a matter of fact, he did shower a portion onto his face. After dampening his throat with the cold water and crudely washing his dirty face, his mood improved a fair margin. \"So finally ready to speak?\" \"Geho! ...Just barely, yeah. Can I ask something first? Right now, how many days have passed?\" \"If by that, Mr. Natsuki, you mean in reference to the night of your disappearance, three days have passed since then. Outside this structure, it is night...the time of the Trial.\" \"Three days......!! And the Trial is still continuing?!\" The answer to his question, and the information appended to it, abruptly changed the look on Subaru's face. If it was nighttime three days later, the time was half a day after the time limit regarding to the mansion. And the continuation of challenging the Trial had a direct bearing on the situation in the Sanctuary after Subaru's confinement. Subaru's reaction elicited a tired shake of Otto's head as he spoke. \"Mr. Natsuki, I understand how you feel, but Lady Emilia has her own ideas. Lifting the barrier remains just as much a necessity as before, for one thing...\" \"...Mind if I ask what's happened in the time I've been gone?\" \"Due to the circumstances, I cannot speak about it in much detail, but...\" Thus, inserting that odd preface, Otto began slowly speaking about what had happened since. The real issue was what had happened the night Subaru had disappeared in other words, what had been triggered by Subaru's disappearance. \"Quite naturally, of course, news of Mr. Natsuki vanishing immediately spread. It was said that you had a promise with the Marquis for that night, and even without that, Mr. Natsuki, you are a rather famous individual, so...\" \"You can ditch the flattery. Go on, please.\" \"I did not particularly intend it as flattery, but...at any rate, Mr. Natsuki going missing stirred up the settlement considerably. In particular, Lady Emilia seemed to be in a rather large panic, enough that she did not challenge the Trial the following day.\" \"Emilia did that...\" Hearing the word panic made him imagine Emilia's mental state had been in a pretty bad state. Without Subaru there at her side, she had to do without his emotional support on that first day. Well after the fact, he regretted being unable to encourage and console her with gentle words. \"...Shall I continue, Mr. Natsuki?\" \"...Yeah, please.\" In a composed manner, Otto explained the happenings in the Sanctuary that followed from an observer's perspective. Subaru's disappearance had been blamed on having entered the Lost Woods at night. Ram had been unable to locate Subaru even with her Clairvoyance, and for a time, Emilia had gone into the forest to search. Volunteers from the people of Earlham Village gathered together as well, forming and dispatching search parties that searched around the forest. And without any foot-dragging, Garfiel had cooperated unreservedly with their efforts  \"Lights the match, then comes running with a water bucket......somehow, he's managed pretty well on the outside.\" Though his comment suggested Subaru's disappearance was covered up nicely, opening the lid of the barrel could not have revealed any sloppier method. Garfiel's actions seemed completely random. \"But in point of fact, Emilia did call off the search for me...\" \"That was at once Lady Emilia's thinking, and the Marquis's voice at work.\" When Subaru lowered his head in doubt, Otto raised a finger, wagging it left and right. \"It was the Marquis who made the suggestion to Lady Emilia. If searching the forest with small numbers was to no avail, a large-scale search party was the only viable means. For that sake, the liberation of the Sanctuary needed to take precedence.\" \"A search party for the forest... And Emilia swallowed that down?\" \"The Marquis made a solemn, formal vow that he would in no way slight Mr. Natsuki, whose meritorious service had subjugated the White Whale and destroyed an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Witch Cult.\" Otto awkwardly lowered his eyes, but inside his heart, Subaru was outright stupefied. Setting aside however Garfiel may have explained things away, there were far too many mysteries behind Roswaal's attitude. In the first place, Subaru had meant to pin Roswaal down with questions that time around. He wanted to inquire about the tragedy at the mansion; how Beatrice, with a Gospel in her hands, was connected to it, and what she, a spirit, was thinking; and the one most knowledgeable about all of those things had to be Roswaal, who'd promised to answer his questions. This time, Subaru's objective was to get Roswaal to divulge the relationship between the pair, allowing nothing to remain hidden. Though Garfiel and Ryuzu's interference had gotten in the way of that  \"With that vow made, Lady Emilia was challenging the Trial yesterday and today with great intensity evident. Her heart seems quite pained at being unable to overcome the Trial even so...\" \"...Something's been bothering me a little since earlier, actually.\" \"Yes? What is that?\" Breaking off from his tale, Otto raised an eyebrow. \"It's just,\" said Subaru as a preamble before continuing to say, \"that really sounds like a chat between other people. How do you explain that you heard it, too?\" Setting aside the crux of the story, Otto was himself one of the people concerned when it came to the various issues happening in the Sanctuary. Why did his story since earlier sound so much like something overheard from another group's discussions? \"Ahhh, that is what you are asking... This is somewhat difficult for me to say, but...\" Receiving Subaru's query, Otto behaved in a blatantly suspicious manner. Scratching his own cheek with a finger, he made a pained smile with an awkward look on his face. What the heck did he mean by \"difficult to say\"? wondered Subaru, girding himself a little. \"What? You've made one shocking report after another. Throwing something else in might stand out less than you imagine. I think you should reveal whatever secrets you may have, like the amount left in your bank account.\" \"If you were to see my bank ledger, you might end up frightened out of your wits, Mr. Natsuki.\" \"Don't try to gloss things over.\" Subaru was the one who started the flippant comments, but he wouldn't let Otto escape through playing along. Discerning Subaru's will from his gaze, Otto sighed with an air of reluctance and finally answered. \"Er, actually, you see...just like you, Mr. Natsuki, Garfiel has set his eyes on me, and I am currently in the middle of fleeing this way and that throughout the Sanctuary.\" \"Huh?\" \"I mean! If you are a victim of imprisonment, Mr. Natsuki, then I am a fugitive being pursued! All of this information, I gathered while on the run... That is why, as a matter of fact, they are things I have heard.\" With Subaru taken aback, Otto looked him over as his shoulders sank with an exceptionally tired expression. Blinking several times at his explanation, Subaru stared at Otto more intently. Then, he belatedly realized that Otto, standing right before his eyes, was in a grimy, tattered state. Given his standing as a merchant, Otto, mindful of visual impressions, was always very nicely groomed. He'd also heard directly from Otto that this was part and parcel of his preparedness as a merchant. It was this Otto who, at present, had sweat and soil marring his face, his hair all a jumble. His hat was squished, his clothes were damaged from snagging all over the place, his boots were grimy with mud, and appended to all of that was  \" Man, you reek! It's getting into my eyes!\" \"That was exceptionally blunt of you, but you realize this applies not only to me, but to you as well?!\" \"Ahh, well, I suppose so... I suppose you're right, ha-ha.\" Subaru made a listless laugh as he put his nose to his own sleeve. He indeed smelled terrible. Thanks to being blindfolded and isolated, his vision and hearing had grown exceptionally sensitive, but his undamaged nose seemed to have been wildly thrown off as well. But the largest reason for that was that it was not his body odor at work. It was a more distinct, sharper stench that filled the area around him, seemingly piercing his nose. \"This really bad smell, it couldn't be... It's not the scent of miasma, right...?\" \"I do not know why you are speaking of miasma all of a sudden, but you need not be concerned. We are indeed near a Witch's tomb, but nothing that dangerous is hovering about. That is not to say the cause of this scent is a completely safe thing, but...\" \"You know about miasma?\" \"Enough to know that my head would be acting strangely if it was miasma lingering in the air...\" For an instant, his statement that he could sense miasma put Subaru on guard. But Otto's subsequent testimony cleared his wariness away. Either way, the scent had nothing to do with miasma  \"Meaning, this place must really smell. I don't wanna stay here for long.\" \"In a quite different sense, I concur. I would like us to distance ourselves before the guard returns.\" \"The way you keep mentioning guard this, guard that sounds real scary. But before that...\" Otto kept his expressive voice down, trying to advance to the actual escaping part. However, before following his plan, Subaru had something he had to make certain of first. He had to get Otto to continue talking about his standing in the Sanctuary. \"Let me ask this. How did Garfiel end up after you? Running around from him is why you look all messed up like that, right?\" *** \"I'm genuinely grateful you came to help me. To be honest, before I saw your face, I was backed into a corner so hard I thought death was better. But...\" There, Subaru's words trailed off as he gazed at Otto, pressed into silence. For once, Otto received Subaru's gaze head on with an expression close to dead seriousness. Subaru continued. \"I can't figure out why you'd lend me a hand. Logically, I can see the possibility, but...\" It wasn't that he was doubting Otto, but Subaru couldn't put a finger on his motives. If things were bad enough that he was in a serious mess, having made an enemy out of Garfiel, the strongest fighter in the Sanctuary, then why help Subaru? Of course, there were a few potential reasons. By gaining Subaru's favor and laying the foundation for dealing with the Sanctuary's other various problems, he would gain a lot of goodwill with the Emilia faction. Even Roswaal, the greatest contributor to the faction, would surely remember his deeds. That would be sufficient for Otto's original objective of gaining favor with the Marquis. But it was merely sufficient. In terms of profits, big scores, and any other mercantile affair, the odds were stacked against him. Total defeat seemed inevitable. With no clear means of victory, it was no gamble; it was suicidal conduct, simple as that. If he had a reason for that act not to be suicidal conduct, that might have been a different story, but  \"You don't seem the type who likes getting himself killed.\" \"...Is there any person who does like getting himself killed?\" To Otto's question, Subaru twisted his neck and went, \"Who knows?\" At the very least, there was one man in the room who'd spent the last three days thinking of nothing but death. Yes, during those three days, Subaru had begged for death a number of times. Even as he begged for death,"}, {"text": "he saw once more all the deaths he had experienced to date. He had told Otto the truth. It was not in jest whatsoever: In those entire three days, he had not remembered Otto even once. In one sense, this was the trust Subaru held toward Otto. With so many terrible situations piled atop one another, he didn't want there to be any reason to be on his guard even against Otto. It was a very evasive kind of trust. \"So answer me, Otto. Why did you come help me?\" The quiet question was the watershed dividing the pair standing in that place. With bated breath, Subaru awaited Otto's reply. Receiving Subaru's inquiry, Otto swallowed for one brief moment, staring back with his own black pupils. \" Mr. Natsuki, it is your fault Garfiel has a reason to come after me.\" \"...My fault?\" \"Mr. Natsuki, that night, you know for a fact I was the last one to meet with both you and Garfiel, yes? When Mr. Natsuki disappeared afterward, naturally I suspected him. He surely found my eyewitness testimony to be inconvenient, so he wanted me to keep it to myself.\" The explanation resonated deeply inside Subaru's chest. In other words, Garfiel was after Otto to silence him. That being the case, it was entirely natural for Otto to decide that rescuing Subaru was ultimately the best way to break out of his dilemma. \"However, he stated that if I was to keep his meeting with Mr. Natsuki secret, he would do me no harm. He showed me some kind of crystal, offering it as compensation.\" However, it was Otto himself who poured cold water on Subaru's premature conclusion. Garfiel had not attempted to silence him by force, but with words and compensation. Now his earlier acceptance made no sense. Otto had a choice that would have ensured his safety. \"And in spite of that, you turned him down? And that's why Garfiel's after you?\" \"Well, it might have been a compelling choice, but not a particularly palatable one...\" \"Don't joke at a time like this! Are you an idiot? Why did you do something like that?! What...\"  What reason did he have to cross such a dangerous bridge? What could have possibly been the impetus to make him do so? \"What were you th...\" \"My goodness, Mr. Natsuki.\" With Subaru at his wits' end, Otto interrupted his words, passing a hand through his own ashen hair. Then, he fixed his squished hat as he finally answered. \" Is it really that strange to help out a friend?\"  For an instant, time came to a halt for Subaru, unsure just what had been said to him. It was several seconds before time moved again a slow, slow restart. However, even when it moved, his confusion did not cease. The meaning of the words would not sink in. At that moment, just what magic spell had Otto cast upon Subaru?  Friend? What was this word, friend? What, was this person saying to him? \"Wh-why is this person's face frozen in such a look of surprise...\" \"Nah, someone I don't recognize just got mentioned... Mr. Fred, you said?\" \"That conclusion is wrong from head to tail! Not Fred, friend! As in friendship!\" \"Friends... Friendship?! Between whom?!\" \"Between me! And Mr. Natsuki!!\" Stamping his foot, Otto pointed at both Subaru and himself. But his action left Subaru's eyes even wider. Subaru's reaction made Otto go, \"Oh, good grief!\" as he plucked at his head, seemingly to drive the numbness away. \"Certainly! Our mutual interests coincide where my coming here is concerned! It is so I can meet with the Marquis, and through such business, aid and support Lady Emilia. And in the first place, Mr. Natsuki, it is you who saved me when I was captured by the Witch Cult!\" *** \"But setting all these troublesome matters aside, I simply believe I am Mr. Natsuki's friend. There is the normal manner in which you treat me but also the sense of a friend's distance between us.\" Scratching his head, Otto averted his gaze from Subaru, perhaps getting blushy midway. And having heard the entire story, Subaru made no reaction whatsoever. His silence drew a questioning look from Otto's face. There was a fair bit of concern in his eyes, for Subaru displayed no reaction to his words at all. Perhaps Subaru was reflecting upon the high-pressure friendship sales pitch. Otto's pupils seemed to represent a hundred faces at once. And what this brought gushing up from Subaru's heart was  \" Pfft.\" \"Pardon?\" \"Wahahahahah! F-friends? Friends, huh!! Ahhh, so that's it, that's it! Otto, you actually wanted to be my friend!\" \"Wha ?!\" Unable to take it anymore, Subaru broke down laughing as he rabidly slapped the red-faced Otto's shoulder. Even so, the mirth had not vanished from him; Subaru stamped the ground and squirmed, still clutching his belly. \"Bwa-ha-ha, friend! Awww, damn it! Otto, damn you, you bastard!\" \"Ow, ow! What was that for?! Ahhh, I was such a fool to say it! I can understand why you are laughing, Mr. Natsuki! But surely it is not that funny!\" \"No, no, no, I have to laugh at it. You're not the weird one here... I'm laughing 'cause my foolishness is so huge and awful, I amaze even myself.\" Wiping away with his left hand the tears surging up from his outburst of laughter, Subaru was still struck by it all as he straightened his posture. To his front, Otto wore a face that revealed regret that he'd spoken the word friend. But toward the sight of him like that, Subaru bore gratitude...and near-bottomless derision for himself.  He couldn't understand Otto. He didn't know what to believe; and yet, here was Otto, coming to Subaru's aid for no more reason than being Subaru's friend. Faced with such a man before him, it was less that he trusted his feelings than he rued his own idiocy in suspecting what might lie beyond. He'd been too buffeted by the situation, rendered too unable to understand the feelings of the people around him. He'd believed in malice so strongly, he'd forgotten goodwill even existed. He'd truly been an enormous fool. He'd come to feel like having crossed through death to redo things a few brief times had taught him something.  The battle wasn't over. He didn't have to abandon anything, not yet. \"Mr. Natsuki?\" A question mark floated over Otto's head. He did not understand the meaning of Subaru's self-derision and self-admonishment. Subaru shook his head at the man's reaction and somehow feeling brighter, breathed in and spoke up. \"Sorry. You're my friend, Otto Thank you for coming to help me.\" To his friend, he conveyed the thanks that should have been the first words out of his mouth. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 The place Subaru had been confined was removed from the settlement, deep into the woods a remote place where the Lost Woods of Cremaldi very much felt like they lived up to their name. The instant they exited the structure, Subaru took deep breaths over and over as he felt his skin bathed in outside air for the first time in three days. \"Really have to say, though, what a stench... What's actually making that smell, anyway?\" \"Who knows? It differs from the stench of flesh or rot, but its ill effect upon the nose is no different. It feels like some sort of oil or aromatic, but...\" \"Considering how active a smell it is, maybe ammonia or something like that. Nah, let's think that one over later...\" As he looked back at the building in which he had been imprisoned, he set aside the issue of the scent that had made such a deep impression. It was a white weathered stonework building. In terms of materials and apparent age, it felt akin to the tomb, but seemed far better preserved in Subaru's mind. That was probably a by-product of the environment...smell included. \"I felt this while I was captured, but man, there's not one bug or mouse here?\" \"There is no mistaking it is a strange environment. I meant to use my blessing to search everywhere for you, Mr. Natsuki, but I would have been in dire straits if I had not noticed the ill feeling in this place.\" \"Ill feeling?\" \"When I am seriously employing my blessing, there are few places in this world untouched by the rhythmic voices of bird and insect. It is human nature to find such rare places suspicious, is it not?\" When Otto winked, Subaru crossed his arms in response. Then, quite earnestly, he said, \"Hmm, you're a pretty useful guy. I seriously don't understand why you come off like such a flake.\" \"Could you decide whether you want to praise me or insult me, and just pick one?!\" \"Why are you such a flake? That's, like, an incredible, unspeakable flaw for someone?\" \"Why did you pick insults?!\" When Otto grumbled about the insufficient praise for his exploits, Subaru responded with a wry smile and a sigh of admiration. According to Otto, his blessing the blessing of the spoken word enabled him to achieve mutual understanding with any living creature. Thus, he was able to converse with the land dragon in his service, and contact birds and insects to tell him which routes were safe. \"So that blessing is how you searched for me and gave Garfiel the slip, then. You really are a hell of a convenient guy to have around.\" \"It is hardly all a good thing. All it does is bring them to the table. The result of the negotiations is on my shoulders. If I put them in a sour mood, they shall lead me not to a road but to a cliff.\" \"Natural wildlife is scary!!\" He who had the blessing spoke, admonishing him who did not. Carving the words upon his breast, Subaru put his interest regarding the white building back on the shelf for the time being. The place tugged at him, but thinking about it wouldn't get him any answers no matter how long he spent. Right then, there was a more pressing issue in need of an answer. \"What if, for instance, we went back to everyone, and exposed what Garfiel's done?\" \"...Actually, I truly cannot recommend acting upon that thought.\" \"And why's that?\" \"Ahh, I did not sufficiently explain during our earlier conversation, but your disappearance has caused even larger effects than are apparent on the surface, Mr. Natsuki...\" Averting his gaze as if he found it difficult to say, Otto brought all five fingertips from both hands together in front of his own chest. The feminine gesture gave Subaru a bad feeling that tore at him. Subaru began with the preamble, \"Man, you're scarin' me...\" and continued, \"You're scarin' me, but talk. Really, what's been going on while I've been gone?\" \"Errr, it was a factual explanation, I assure you! Simply, the situation is a little more difficult, perhaps more extreme, than a dry explanation can convey...\" \"Spill it already!\" \"Lady Emilia has been backed into a corner, and the concerns from the evacuated villagers are coming to a head, so if they heard, at this point, Mr. Natsuki had been imprisoned, they might...explode!\" Raising both hands in an act of surrender, Otto seemed desperate as he revealed the current state of affairs. The contents just exposed left Subaru opening and closing his mouth for several moments before he managed to get something out. \"It's that bad?\" \"...Mr. Natsuki, it would be best if you gain a little more self-awareness of how much you are the mental pillar of support for the people around you. Though I do not know the details, Lady Emilia still has not heard from her contracted spirit, and you have saved the people of the village twice over, have you not?\" \"That's, well, it's true, but...\" \"A rather unreliable, halfhearted reply, yes?\" Goodness, seemed to say the slumping of Otto's shoulders, but Subaru couldn't just come out and nod"}, {"text": "his head. He understood Emilia being worried. With Puck not there for her, Subaru was her only absolute ally. That said, if she could make it through the Trial, it probably wouldn't have been reason enough to shake her up that far. For the people of Earlham Village, he'd resolved the demon beast uproar and the Witch Cult issue. He didn't mind the gratitude, but this was too much. Subaru had let them all die over and over. It was an extreme over-appraisal. But if either part was true, it meant the situation was exceptionally perilous. \"If finding me means a huge explosion in the Sanctuary... Seriously, why'd you come looking for me? If it's like this, finding me doesn't solve a thing.\" \"Well, if I hadn't found you, you would have died! Is that not reason enough?\" *** \"Ow, ow, ow! What?! Why are you slapping me without a word?! Could you stop?!\" With rock rather than paper, Subaru punched Otto's shoulder, each blow packed with emotion. At any rate, he kissed goodbye the plan to expose Garfiel's scheme. Subaru didn't want relations in the Sanctuary to worsen, either, naturally. Nor did he intend to cry himself to sleep... \"Exposing the truth here and now is a bad plan, huh? Can't be helped, then. Let's go with Plan B.\" \"What is this Plan B?\" \"Ah? There isn't one. I was just trying to think one up while I said it.\" In the first place, he'd been thinking of nothing but death until just prior to his escape. Even if he'd dragged his thoughts away from giving in to his fate, his head hadn't done much for thinking as of yet. \"But unlike me, you look like you have a proper plan. That's the friend who came to save me for you. It's not like you just charged in with an empty head, no thought about what comes next?\" \"Uwa! Uwaaah! Goodness, you really know how to lay into someone out of the blue! Although it is not the case that I came without any thought, I assure you!\" Wanting to live up to expectations, Otto spoke along the same lines as Subaru had. An impish smile came over him as he lowered his voice to a whisper. \"Mr. Natsuki, your existence is a source of great worry to Garfiel. The fact he has kept you alive without any means of using you is proof enough... Therefore, I wish to use that worry as a bargaining chip.\" \"Meaning what exactly?\" \"Mr. Natsuki, you shall escape past the barrier. With the barrier still up, the residents of the Sanctuary, Garfiel included, cannot pursue you. When the barrier is lifted, the conditions shall stabilize, dousing the embers, yes?\" As things were, without the Sanctuary being liberated from the barrier, any explosion inside of it would be fatal. Otto's proposal was simple. To avoid that explosion, Subaru, the ember in question, would be sent outside it. This done, negotiating the release of the villagers held hostage would not be particularly difficult. \"The problem is whether we can do it. As they say, 'easier said than done.'\" \"You say that as a quote, much like Garfiel. Either way, I shall state you need not be concerned about that matter. I already have a highly reassuring sympathizer.\" \"Sympathizer?\" \"Yes. Thanks to this, I am able to learn many things even while on the run. Even if I hear things from other living creatures, complex human relations and changes in emotional states are a bit much, you see.\" It was less even blessings have their limits than the difference in priorities between different living things. However, he was a little surprised by the existence of a sympathizer. The Sanctuary apparently wasn't all on the same page. He could understand the sentiment, though wanting to spectacularly hurl the ember away before it set off the powder house that the Sanctuary had become. \"Just escape, huh?\" \"Yes, that is best, I think. I understand your wanting to tell Lady Emilia you are safe and sound in person, but...\" \"I do feel like that, of course...\" He had no objection to Otto's plan. He could even endure Otto's worry and consideration for Emilia. However, the reason he hesitated to simply run for it was something else entirely. \"At any rate, I'd like to meet this sympathizer. If I'm gonna make a run for it, it has to be while Emilia challenges the Trial... In other words, it's now or never. That's the idea, right?\" \"That makes it a short discussion, Mr. Natsuki...truly rare for you. The sympathizer is waiting for us outside of the forest. First, let us proceed that way. Please do not stray.\" Acknowledging Subaru's judgment, Otto listened attentively as he headed toward the forest. He had no doubt activated the power of the blessing of the spoken word, lending his ears to the words of the living creatures in the area. *** From time to time, Otto's mouth let slip sounds of a sort that should never have come from a human being. The blessing seemed to function by matching his wavelength with those of the other parties when he spoke. It was like communicating with bats via ultrasonic waves, something that tugged at him a fair bit. They moved to rendezvous with the sympathizer as he awaited Otto's negotiations. The thought of traversing a forest in the deep night, relying on the words of insects and small animals with very different points of view, depleted his morale far more than he'd expected. \"Don't tell me they're guiding us to burrows people can't pass through...\" \"Certainly they are not people. But this toil has come to an end.\" As the tired Subaru took long breaths, Otto, his hair smeared with leaves, replied thus. When Subaru responded to the optimistic words by lifting his head, he saw a faint bonfire straight ahead of them and made out the presence of the settlement. If the bonfire was there, Emilia was conducting the Trial at the tomb. By rights, he wanted to race over there to be at her side, but  \"...Can't do that, huh. So where's this sympathizer you spoke of?\" \"This is the rendezvous point. She is exceedingly punctual, so she should already be here...\" \" You certainly took your time. I thought I would become an old woman while I waited.\" \" Eh?\" Subaru gasped when a voice suddenly interrupted their conversation. He felt the grass part as a person approached. When he turned his face that way, a pink-haired girl emerged, pushing her way through a thicket that very moment. She brushed the hem of her short skirt. And then  \"Though even an elderly Ram would be adorable, I am sure.\" These words spoken, Ram turned toward Subaru and Otto, snorting in her usual manner. 2 When they arrived at the rendezvous point with the sympathizer, it was none other than Ram who appeared. Stunned by that fact, Subaru was frozen in place as Ram's pink eyes narrowed. The dangerous look in her eyes made him swallow his saliva, whereupon Subaru quickly glanced at Otto, standing beside him. \"...Otto, on three, we split up and run. Your job's to cry out in a loud voice and draw her off. Mine's to be quiet, wordless like a snake. Any objections?\" \"I have nothing but objections! For that matter, why are you taking such a guarded posture...\" \"Idiot, you were followed. Look at Ram's eyes. She's planning to kill us, no mistake. Trust me. They're the same eyes as when I messed up back at the mansion.\" \"Trust you, because you're a man that people regard with bloodlust on a daily basis?!\" In a small voice, Subaru contrived to flee, but Otto's reaction was far too dulled. Against Ram, his poor intuition was a fatal flaw. Unfortunately, Otto would perish. \"And when you die, I will carve your dying will upon my breast and see that the people of the Sanctuary are freed...\" \"May we set the games aside and advance the conversation? Wasted time leads to a wasted life.\" \"This useless treatment makes it sound like I am already dead either way!\" Otto persisted against Ram's bluntness, but her response to his behavior was a frighteningly cold gaze. Torn apart by that gaze, Otto tragically sank in an instant. Watching the one-sided interaction, Subaru went, \"At any rate,\" and continued his words with, \"Even with his life in extreme peril, I don't see Otto nervous...so what, you're the sympathizer?\" \"I object to the ring of the word 'sympathizer.' I am the instigator.\" \"Man, Otto really comes off like a familiar here...\" The familiar concerned seemed dissatisfied with being treated as such, but Subaru took his lack of objection as assent. Whatever you wanted to call it, Ram apparently really was lending Otto a hand. In other words, she didn't want an explosion in the Sanctuary either, and thus intended to let Subaru escape outside  \"I can't say I ever expected Ram and Otto to team up...\" \"I suppose you did not. However, facts are facts. Accept them.\" \"I could do that, but it's more natural for me to see this from a different point of view.\" *** \"You letting me escape, that's an instruction from Roswaal, isn't it?\" When Subaru's question pressed further, Ram was silent as her expression froze over. Ram independently cooperating with him would have made his chest heat up quite a bit, but Subaru knew intimately that she wasn't prone to acting in such a convenient manner. Ram's actions were fundamentally based on her loyalty toward Roswaal. Accordingly, it was proper to think that Roswaal's intentions always rested behind her every action. *** \"No denial, huh? Not sure if Otto knew that, though.\" \"I have made a deal regarding you, Mr. Natsuki. She shall not send your head flying.\" \"Meaning it's Ram who approached you, huh? If that's Roswaal's instruction, too, did he tell you to do anything else? What's his thinking behind sending you?\" \"...For Barusu, blood flows through you rather quickly, doesn't it?\" Accepting Otto's defense of himself, Subaru's certainty deepened, which caused Ram to sigh deeply. He thought the sigh contained a whiff of both exasperation and exhaustion. \"This behavior really ain't like you.\" \"That is Ram's line. It is strange that you can be this calm after being confined somewhere beyond everyone's knowledge...or rather, quite creepy.\" \"Don't say creepy; that hurts. Besides, I can only look at it calmly 'cause it came after a big, hard laugh.\" He had to grudgingly admit that the exchange with Otto just prior did much to restore his spirits. Between pep and bravado, Subaru was without doubt on the pep side of the coin at present. So while the pep lasted  \"I want an answer to my earlier question. I'll base what I decide on that.\" \"What to do? Here, is not fleeing the only option? Mr. Natsuki, to put it bluntly, if someone spots or finds you, the situation becomes worst case, does it not?\" \"I get what you're saying. I'm incredibly grateful that you came to help me. But I'll never win anything if I let things end with only the other guy landing a punch.\" Otto's opinion hadn't changed since the outset: He should wholeheartedly flee. However, Subaru knew the situation would only deteriorate. He had to gamble in order to break the deadlock. And, as dealers for wagers went, the Ram standing before him worked just fine. Faced with the resolve in Subaru's gaze, Ram's long-lashed eyelids gently fell. And then  \"...Yes, it is as you say. Assisting Barusu is Master Roswaal's instruction. Setting eyes upon Otto for that purpose was Ram's own personal judgment, however.\" \"So he fit the bill in your eyes, huh.\" \"I merely reasoned that without a competent handler, Otto would die for nothing.\" \"Ugh... Can't deny that!\" \"Well, deny it anyway!!\" Otto shouted in anger, but in light of the background circumstances, Ram's guess was correct. Having blown off"}, {"text": "Garf's demand, he saw no path for Otto to survive without Ram's cooperation. In that case, prolonged confinement would have probably left Subaru crippled. \"It would seem Ram's greatness has sunken into you.\" \"Accepting it is off in another dimension, though... Besides, I want to ask you something more. If you're obeying Roswaal's instructions, were they to get me outside?\" \"...His instructions were, Aid him. But, in the present Sanctuary circumstances, you understand that getting you outside is the optimal plan, Barusu?\" \"You're certainly right about that  How did you plan to get me out?\" If the powder house was on the verge of an explosion, just how did you plan to carry the ember out? At Subaru's question, Ram folded her arms. \"It is simple,\" she prefaced before saying, \"Garf cannot leave the tomb during the time Lady Emilia challenges the Trial. We need to simply mount Barusu on his land dragon and get him beyond the barrier while still outside of Garf's sight.\" \"That really is simple. Sure you want to pull that without a double for me or something?\" \"Do not complain. At times like this, simple is best.\" Immediately turning her back on him, Ram meant to lead Subaru in the direction of his escape. Obeying her instructions and breaking away from the Sanctuary as soon as possible was the right call if the Sanctuary was the only issue, at least. But it was not so. Therefore, to arrive at other correct solutions  \" Ram, change of plans. Running comes later.\" \"Mr. Natsuki?! What are you saying?!\" \"I'm not saying I won't run. But with Garfiel at the tomb, it's a chance to do something besides just running, ain't it? A chance to do something else without anyone butting in.\" When Otto let out a shriek, Subaru strongly thrust a finger toward him. The gesture pressed Otto into silence; in his place, Ram looked back toward Subaru. \"And just what do you intend to do?\" With a calm, collected tone of voice and eyes betraying no emotion, she questioned the intent behind Subaru's statement. Subaru exhaled deeply at that gaze, and the corners of his mouth twisted as he replied. \" I want to pick up where we got interrupted three days ago.\" 3 \" Roswaal, this time, let's talk without you hiding anything.\" Subaru was the first to open his mouth, letting those words fly. Roswaal narrowed his pair of heterochromatic eyes. His injured body resting on the bed in his bedroom at the Ryuzu residence, Roswaal betrayed no sign of surprise at the sudden arrival of this rare guest. It was almost as if he knew Subaru would come. Indeed, his deep nod seemed only to support that conclusion as he spoke in greeting. \"A reunion after three days a miraculous return at that there is a rather dangerous air about you, is there nooooot?\" \"No jokes. Right now I don't have any time for foolin' around. I don't care how badly you're hurt. I'm ready to use force if I have to.\" \"I see. I suppose three days of suffering will do that to someone. No, no, noooo, even if I speak words of praise for this, it shall only disgust you, I am sure. Let us get to the point, shall we?\" The sight of Subaru clenching his teeth with no margin for error made a smile come over Roswaal as he shook his head side to side. After that, his eyes shifted to the closed door behind Subaru as he said, \"Ram let you through, yes? I did give that girl instructions to aid you, but...\" \"Yeah. That's why she brought me here without any fuss. If you ask me if I wanna run, I'd probably tell you yes, but I pushed that choice down the road.\" \" Really.\" Roswaal closed one eye as he replied. Under the gaze of his open yellow eye, Subaru lightly moistened his lips.  He'd come to speak with Roswaal, putting fleeing the Sanctuary on the back burner. Naturally, Otto had objected vociferously, asserting that it would only put Subaru in greater danger, but Ram had set the stage at Subaru's request. Paying due attention to the fine details, she had brought him there, to the stage built for a conversation with Roswaal beyond the Sanctuary residents' prying eyes. \"I'll ask you this, Roswaal. It's three days late, but are you gonna claim you changed your mind about your promise?\" \"Strictly speaking, I had intended for the promise I made to be effective for that night alone...but it is fine. I am not a spirit mage, after all. I have no interest in nitpicking the fine detaaaails.\" Originally, Roswaal had promised to speak no lies in the discussion they were to have had that night. He had sworn that, though he might remain silent about matters inconvenient to him, the words he spoke would be the truth. He'd make use of that. Ironically, it was just like the Roswaal from the last time around had said. \"I understand the situation in the Sanctuary, and the danger of me being here. That's why I want to ask you about the mansion as a major precondition of my leaving here.\" \"Hmm, about the mansion, you ask? If it is something within my understaaaanding...\" \"More like you're the only guy who can give me an answer  What I wanna ask about is Beatrice. Why is she in the mansi  No.\" There, Subaru cut off his own word, interrupting his question. He couldn't ask it that way. Roswaal had already given a similar question the slip once before. He hated to follow Roswaal's words of advice once again, but he needed to pose his questions \"well.\" Things were decisively different than the last time around. He needed a question Roswaal couldn't gloss over  \"...I'll change how I phrase the question. Is she, is Beatrice...a Witch Cultist?\" Choosing his words, Subaru paused, endured the palpitation of his heart, and posed the question. The decisive difference from the previous time around was that Subaru knew Beatrice possessed that magic tome. Namely, he harbored a suspicion that she might be connected to the Witch Cult. *** Roswaal, receiving Subaru's question in silence, sank into thought for a time. That silence felt detestably long, further accelerating Subaru's heart. Finally, before the nervous Subaru, he exhaled and said, \"Why do you think that Beatrice be a Witch Cultist?\" \"...Because I've seen her room.\" \"And by seen, you mean...?\" \"Because! She... The book! Because she has a Gospel...!\" Subaru's voice was tinged with anger. He was angry at having to say aloud even the part he did not wish to speak. The raw bitterness in his shout revealed the real reason Subaru wished to pose that question. Beatrice, clutching the Gospel to her chest, shouting that she obeyed its notations as she rejected Subaru; if she was truly a mad devotee of the Gospel, instigator of the tragedy at the mansion  \" If that time comes, she'll be our...my enemy.\" He'd see Beatrice as an enemy, as an obstacle that had to be removed. \"Strong words. Truly words of resolve.\" Roswaal nodded deeply at Subaru's declaration. Then, he closed his open eye. \"...Though the pain upon your face makes such words less convincing.\" *** \"You having to be pitted against the girl is such a terrible tale. Certainly to me, having seen you two smile and play together so. Therefore, I wish to extend a hand of salvation.\" \"A hand of salvation? You, to me? ...That's like, top-level worldwide fishy.\" Feeling something raging inside of him, Subaru's cheek twitched as he wrung out his voice. Roswaal no doubt saw right through the bluff, yet he said not one disparaging word, merely raising a finger as he said, \"Certainly, the book you saw is very similar to the Gospels that Witch Cultists possess. It is no fault of your own that you suspect Beatrice as a result. But I guarantee this \" \"Guarantee...?\" \"That girl is not a Witch Cultist. She has nothing to do with those hurling themselves over the Great Waterfalls in search of love that does not exist. Though it is true that the book is of a similar nature.\" \" !! Not the Witch Cult...! You mean it?!\" Gazing with eyes open wide, Subaru leaped at Roswaal's response. It was pretty much the first piece of good news for Subaru that time around. Though the fact that it was Roswaal's guarantee bore its own whiff of concern, his vow to speak the truth made up for that. \"If Beatrice isn't part of the Witch Cult...then...\" Then, there was no reason it was an irreconcilable conflict. He didn't have to give up on her  \"W-wait! I don't wanna get happy over just that. The problem isn't what flag she's under. If she's not part of the Witch Cult, what is that book? Why does she have a Gospel?\" \"I suppose saying it is from an archive of forbidden books where numerous magic tomes are gathered...would be too much of a stretch. So I shall reply plainly... That book is not a Gospel.\" \"It's not...? But she definitely called the book a Gospel.\" \"Because it does not have a proper name. Hence, she called it via the name used for the inferior product.\" Even then, Beatrice's rejection lingered in his ears. Subaru refuted Roswaal with that difficult-to-forget shout in mind. With a knowing look, he said to Subaru, \"If I may?\" and continued his words with, \"I do not know how much of which you are aware, but the Gospels possessed by Witch Cultists are incomplete. The number of notations is limited, their contents vague, varying depending upon the interpretation. To have such an unfriendly tome determine the path of the possessor's fate...is rather arbitrary, is it not?\" \"...You're crazy detailed about this. All I'd heard was that it was holy writ that prophesized the future.\" \"Witch Cultists can gush forth from anywhere, particularly Sanctuaries connected to a Witch such as that which I administer. It is not merely once or twice that I have skirmished with them. I have found traces of their tomes amid the cinders of their corpses. However, I know they are frauds because only the possessor may read their contents.\" \"I've had that experience once...\" Subaru, too, possessed a single Gospel, but he wasn't able to understand its contents. It was like staring at cursive handwriting from a foreign land; the character information wasn't being conveyed to his brain. Even at present, when he tried to remember the single page he had seen, not even a portion floated into his head. \"It feels a lot like the ID-blocking robe's effect... In other words, it might not be common, but books like that aren't super-rare either. So, you're saying it's not strange that Beatrice has one, too?\" \" No, the tome Beatrice possesses is a complete edition. It is a magical tome that records the true future, of which only two volumes exist in the whole of the world. It is the closest thing to a Tome of Wisdom that currently exists.\" With his eyes closed, Roswaal spoke the name of the book, which Subaru didn't recognize. Then, a moment after it became clear exactly what book Beatrice possessed suddenly, Subaru's body stiffened, feeling like the air in the room had suddenly gotten colder. The cause was Roswaal, head hung just before him. The ghastly aura emanating from him made Subaru draw in his breath. \"Ros...waal...?\" \"Sorry. It seems I was recalling an amusing memory for a short while.\" \"...I-if that just now was a funny memory, slipping up and asking about old stories seems like a really bad idea.\" \"There will be other opportunities to speak of unamusing old tales. At present, time is limited, is it not?\" Abruptly, his mood seemed to soften, his smile dispersing the strained air about them. The relaxation of the atmosphere made strength drain from Subaru's body as well, but his horror at the abnormal demeanor did"}, {"text": "not vanish. However, Subaru bit down the persisting horror with his back teeth, forcing his mind to right itself. Every moment that passed brought the Trial closer to an end, and so, too, Garfiel's return. A sense of duty to finish the discussion before that happened burned within Subaru as he turned to face Roswaal once more. \"I'd really like to ask for the details about this Tome of Wisdom, but right now the gist will do. What I need to know is how do I convince the Beatrice with that book to back down?\" \"Perhaps if you broke into tears and begged, she might listen to you?\" \"I said no joking around! I'm not asking you to be funny. This is a serious question.\" \"I did not intend it as a particularly frivolous reply, mind you...\" Bringing the obstinate Beatrice around was an absolutely irreplaceable component of breaking through the calamity arising at the mansion. Even if the option of taking her and fleeing had vanished, he'd be at a marked advantage if he had her cooperation. They could shelter the noncombatants, Rem and Petra, in the archive of forbidden books and jump them to Earlham Village. \"Beyond that, even if Frederica were to become hostile, that girl would surely fend her off without difficulty.\" \"...I don't particularly suspect Frederica as an enemy.\" \"Oh my, you seemed to suspect her due to the crystal incident. Your opinion changed at some point?\" \"...Yeah, that's right, it did.\" \"A rather uncertain reply, no? If you are concerned, take Ram. Surely she will not refuse.\" Subaru had only cleared up his suspicions of Frederica based on the memories of the Subaru who had returned to the mansion. From Roswaal's perspective, Subaru's two worries for his return to the mansion surely appeared to be Frederica's rebellious intent and Beatrice's possession of a certain book. Accordingly, proposing that Ram accompany him was a natural decision. Aside from the point that Subaru had already tried that and failed  \" Roswaal said, 'Ask your questions.'\" \"...Huh?\" As Subaru sank into thought, the abrupt statement made his jaw fall open. Roswaal sat up from lying on his side in bed, looked up at Subaru, and repeated himself. \"If you remain concerned about the matter, upon your return to the mansion, tell her, 'Roswaal said, Ask your questions.' When Beatrice hears this, she will surely respond.\" \"That's...\" He blinked. Subaru remembered hearing those weighty words before. The first time around that loop, just before setting out from the Sanctuary to return to the mansion, Ram told him those words, hailing from Roswaal after their relationship had worsened. The shock of death had caused him to forget them, and he had not remembered the words on the last, and second, time around, but  \"...I see. You do not believe these words are sufficient.\" \"W-wait. Insufficient, that's... Nah, before that, it's just...\" \"Then I shall continue. Or perhaps, this way of speaking it would be surer footing?\" Roswaal ignored Subaru's confusion; indeed, a smile came over him. Then, in his usual manner, he closed one eye, seeing right through Subaru with his yellow eye and speaking thus: \" Simply tell her you are That Person.\" \"That Person...?\" \"Make Beatrice ask this of you, and affirm that it is so. Do this, and she will most certainly be your ally, sure to lending you her power without reservation.\" He firmly declared this, his words infused with powerful conviction. When that conviction caused Subaru to look back into Roswaal's eye, the tranquil yellow glint therein betrayed none of his thoughts. Still, if that all turned out to be true, then the words he'd been told to speak were simply that powerful. \"What's...up with that? How can you say that so confidently?\" \"Because to that girl, to Beatrice, it is a pact she is unable to defy.\" \" A pact.\" When the word made his eardrums tremble, Subaru felt his smoldering anger rekindled once more. Pact, vow, covenant, promise just how much, how far did these bind one's heart? \"Her staying in the mansion...in the archive of forbidden books, was all due to a pact, I heard? What kind of pact did you two form...?\" \"You misunderstand, Subaru. No pact has been formed between Beatrice and me whatsoever.\" \"...What?\" To Subaru's question, posed as he trembled with anger, Roswaal refuted with a sideways shake of his head. Then, as Subaru stood dumbfounded, Roswaal touched the bandage wrapped around his chest as he said, \"I shall repeat myself. No pact-based relationship exists between Beatrice and me. She is under the same roof because our mutual interests coincide... Her pact to protect the archive of forbidden books was formed between her and a different individual.\" \"Someone else...?! Then, who the heck was it!\" \"It is best you ask her. That is a question for Beatrice herself. It is not for me to speak of.\" Roswaal's reply, in contrast to Subaru's rage, gradually caused the latter to lose its heat. Roswaal's demeanor and reply made Subaru go \"Shit!\" as he strongly kicked the floor. \"This again! She tells me to ask you; you tell me to ask her! Stop making me run around in circles! I want to know the answer, damn it!\" \"I have handed you the key so that you may arrive at your answer. All that remains is for you to place it into the keyhole and turn it. I shall not permit crudeness such as peeking into the box...rather, the archive, on the sly.\" Unexpectedly, Roswaal asserted his own view in a most straightforward manner. Clenching his teeth at the obstinate stance, Subaru forced his resentment down to the bottom of his belly. \"...Based on the state of affairs up to yesterday, Lady Emilia should finally be exiting the tomb...regardless of her success or failure. So what shaaaall you do?\" Perhaps he'd consciously put a lid on it up to that point, but now, Roswaal spoke in a blatantly jester-like tone. It annoyed Subaru, but he had a point. Timewise, he was right on the edge, a half day left until the deadline when the mansion would be attacked. Any longer, and he wouldn't make it even with Patlash running full-speed. The forces available for repelling the calamity of the twin raiders consisted of Frederica back at the mansion, Otto and Subaru set to return to it, and if they added Ram  \"...Is it true that Beatrice will go along with what you said just now?\" \"I made a vow that I would speak no lie. At the very least, it is what I believe.\" \"If it doesn't work, I don't care what anyone says, I'm punching you in the side of your face. Remember that.\" For once Subaru's one-sided promise made Roswaal's eyes go round. Of course, if Subaru failed, his life was forfeited. It was a promise that would be gone the next time around. But Subaru would remember. That was what he was declaring, then and there. \"Understood. Do as you like. Should you and Beatrice pair together, it shall likely be of great aid for the issues enveloping the Sanctuary as well.\" \"Don't lay deep stuff like that on me when I'm leaving. Not like you plan on talking anymore either way.\" \"Surely you can allooooow me this much  After all, it seems I am not up to the task.\" Averting his gaze, the tone of Roswaal's voice fell slightly as he whispered. When Subaru, unable to clearly make out the latter half, prompted him with \"What was that?\" he shrugged his shoulders. \"I was speaking to myself. Ah, please set your reluctance aside. If you fail due to being late, you cannot fulfill your promise to punch me?\" \"...Roswaal, let me ask you one last thing.\" \" Please do.\" Subaru refused to go along with the jesting demeanor, straightening his back as he stared right at Roswaal. Receiving that sharp gaze, Roswaal beheld Subaru in his differently colored eyes. Beholding Roswaal in return, Subaru posed the final question of the evening. \"You're not...our enemy or anything, are you, Roswaal?\" *** After a pause, Roswaal answered... \"Of course not  You are all...my allies.\" 4 With the secret talks concluded, Subaru headed for a rendezvous point outside the Sanctuary. There, the arrangement was for Subaru to meet Otto and Ram, with Patlash in tow, other preparations for his escape already at an end. Sometimes sneakily, sometimes boldly, Subaru hurried along his path. \"Haaa... Shit, my side hurts...\" However, it was a stretch to say Subaru's hurried gait was in good form. His three-day imprisonment was the cause. Both the environment and the food were poor, leaving his debilitated body more weakened than he had thought. But he'd save his sob stories for later. If he returned to the mansion, a far harsher situation awaited him. \"Even if it's as Roswaal said...\" Even if Beatrice responded to Subaru's call, it was incalculable whether she could truly oppose Elsa and company. Either way, Subaru's duty wouldn't come to an end just by getting back to the mansion. If anything, there he could finally begin to fight. *** When he looked at his right wrist, there was a handkerchief tightly tied to it. Never having been removed during his confinement, the handkerchief had been blackened, and the fraying and bloodstains really stood out. Even so, his promise to return it remained unblemished. Strength surged within him. Once again, the effect of that promise lent him strength. \"...Just from that.\" Even as pacts and vows rubbed his mind the wrong way, Subaru's own promise was a pillar of strength to him. According to the talk with Roswaal, Beatrice was bound by her own pact. To her, not a human but a spirit, a pact likely held far stronger, weightier meaning than it did to Subaru  \"What the hell are 'pacts' to me anyway...\" The various promises that had reached Subaru's ears to date rose in the back of his mind: the pact between Emilia and Puck, the pact binding Beatrice to the archive of forbidden books, the vow Roswaal had made that very evening, the Covenant between the Kingdom of Lugunica and the Dragon, the promise between Subaru and Petra  And what Subaru had said to Rem, and what Rem had cast upon Subaru like a curse  \" Mr. Natsuki!\" The voice hurled at him from the side brought Subaru, running like a madman, to a halt. When he looked over, out of breath, Otto was waving him over, and Ram was standing beside him. Apparently, he'd gone past the rendezvous point while astray in his own thoughts. Wiping off his sweat, he headed over to them, and between them was Patlash, too, with luggage on her back. When Subaru saw that preparations were already in order, he let out a long breath. \"What is wrong? When I thought, he's finally here, I was concerned when you ran right past us.\" \"...S-sorry. A lot on my mind. My bad.\" \"Barusu not playing mischief upon Otto? It is worse than I feared.\" \"I would like to object to the basis of that judgment!\" When Subaru linked up with them, the pair greeted him in their usual manner. But with no time to spare, Subaru did not play along, which made both knit their brows in suspicion. \"You were speaking with Master Roswaal, were you not? Why, then, is your face so clouded?\" \"Can you quit it with the assumption everyone's happy to talk to Roswaal...?\" \"But you are making a rather dissatisfied face. You resolved to meet with the Marquis in spite of the danger. Can you please stop acting as if nothing was gained?\" \"There was a lot gained. There was, but...\" Is what I dug up a good thing? he pondered belatedly. But when he thought about it, there had been gains, too. Of course, one was the possibility of breaking open the stalemate. Now that he had gained a countermeasure plan, Subaru wouldn't have to face giving"}, {"text": "up without being able to accomplish anything like the last time around. He might be able to prevent the calamity at the mansion, rescue Rem and Petra, and even fulfill his goal of improving relations with Beatrice. And yet  \"...Why does my chest feel this queasy?\" If he made an ally out of Beatrice and saved Frederica, they could deal with the Sanctuary's issues, too. If she exposed the mastermind behind her actions, all they had to do was beat the Trial to take care of the other problems. \"The logic's sound. So why am I...\" \"Sorry to interrupt when you are so troubled, but time is an issue. We cannot wait any longer.\" Mercilessly, Otto sliced Subaru's indecision apart. His judgment was heartless, but his words were correct. Subaru hesitating at that juncture wouldn't resolve anything. Everything else hinged on first slipping out of the Sanctuary and returning to the mansion. \"Bringing the dragon carriage would attract too much attention. This means I shall be riding Patlash with you, Mr. Natsuki. You do not mind?\" \"It'll be real bad for you if you stay, so no obje...ah, wait.\" When Otto was ready to beckon Patlash by hand to adopt a mounting posture, Subaru made him wait. Then, when Subaru looked behind him, Ram, standing right there, asked \"What?\" as she narrowed her eyes. \"When we get out of the Sanctuary, we're heading straight for the mansion. We can't leave Frederica as things are. But Otto and I aren't really...\" \"You're really lacking in combat capacity  In other words, you want Ram with you?\" \"I talked to Roswaal about it. He said you'd come...which is very reassuring.\" If he managed to persuade Beatrice, and Frederica lent him her strength, and he added Ram on top of that, Subaru was fairly confident that would be the maximum possible fighting strength he could prepare. When Subaru made his request, portraying it as the best option, Ram fell into thought briefly, immediately exhaling. \"It cannot be helped.\" \"You're sure?\" \"Master Roswaal did command me to aid Barusu.\" Her acceptance, far easier gained than he had expected, bewildered Subaru all the more for it. But Ram folded her arms. \"However,\" she said, continuing, \"I am fine with going with you, but how? With Ram, that makes three people for one land dragon.\" \"...Ah...\" \"Even if Barusu and Otto are only half a man in human terms, your physical weight is that of full men. Even for a land dragon, it is difficult to carry three people.\" \"You called me half a man?!\" Ignoring Otto's lament, Subaru clutched his head, seeing that Ram's view was sound. He hadn't thought about the physical means. Given Ram's light body weight, adding her probably meant Patlash could still run with ease, but in that case, the way they'd be riding was  \"Considering safety, it'd be a Ram Sandwich between me and Otto...then?\" \"Incidentally, there is also the option of one of us running rather than riding.\" \"In that case, considering fatigue and physical endurance, it'd definitely have to be Otto...\" The choice would make for a particularly tragic scene. Of course, Otto vociferously would protest Subaru heard no such voice. Finding this quite unnatural, Subaru and Ram gave him a suspicious look. Receiving the pair's gazes, Otto's cheeks were hard as he glared in the direction of the next day's sun. At the end of his gaze, there was the bonfire that illuminated the settlement  \" Ain't you all havin' a nice lil' stroll 'n' chat. Why don't ya include me after I've come all this way?\" An orange-hued figure walked between them and the flickering red flames.  A figure audibly clenching his sharp fangs, a smile coming over him, as a ferocious, ghastly aura emanated from him. *** Instantly, Patlash let out a low growl, her anger toward the figure clear. The sight of the proud land dragon preparing for battle deepened the figure's smile, his delight deepening still. \"Ha! Got whipped that much and not even a flinch. Fine woman, that land dragon. It's that whole 'The more she shines, the farther she is from Magrizza' thing.\" \"Garfiel...\" Subaru wrung out the word as the appearance of the figure of Garfiel made his body tremble. Why was he there? Such a basic question clawed at his trembling heart. The sight of him, the direct cause of his confinement, made him remember the darkness of those three days. The fear came back again, too. He touched his shoulders; he clenched his teeth; and driving back his terror, he lifted his head. \"...Right now, you're on duty as a representative. Should you really be wasting time in a place like this?\" \"Me, I'm the protector o' these people of the Sanctuary. So if there's someone threatenin' 'em, of course I'm doin' my real job. Ya never shook off the eyes of the Sanctuary.\" \"The Sanctuary's eyes...?\" \"I'm sayin' stuff comes right to me. So where the hell d'ya think yer goin', huh?\" Crinkling his nose, Garfiel asked Subaru what he was up to. Subaru hesitated to give the question a straight answer. But  \" From here, we are getting Barusu out of the Sanctuary. Having him here is as much trouble for you as for us, so is this not more convenient for you, Garf?\" \"...Ram.\" \"I shall say it once: this is your mess, Garf. Enough that I would appreciate hearing thanks for cleaning it up in your place.\" Puffing up her chest, Ram provocatively conveyed the plan to Garfiel. For an instant, Subaru felt that was a very dangerous posture, but he held his tongue, judging that she'd probably chosen correctly. Ram's point of view was correct. Surely, Garfiel, too, understood that Subaru's presence in the Sanctuary could only lead to an explosion. Getting him outside without an explosion was therefore a good plan. Accordingly, Garfiel plucked at his own head in annoyance and responded. \"So ya see right through me, huh. Not a cute woman. Well, nothin' wrong with that...\" \"...Meaning, you're considering letting us go?\" The words spat out along with a sigh made Subaru's eyes widen as he saw a glimmer of hope. The way he took that made Garfiel go \"Aa?\" with a sullen growl. \"Ya don't just smell o' the Witch, ya smell of trouble. Me, I do get why leavin' ya here ain't convenient. But put another way, I gotta consider 'Hoshin was Banan's setting sun'.\" \"Is that so? Another mystery phrase that doesn't make sense to me, but what you're getting at is...\" Erasing the fact of his imprisonment aligned with their mutual interests on that single point alone. But when Subaru was relieved, taking Garfiel's words as a statement that he'd let them go the other two, stepped to the fore, interrupting his thoughts. \"Wh-what's with you two...?\" \"I suppose your poor education means you do not understand, Barusu.\" \"'Hoshin was Banan's setting sun' refers to an anecdote about the legendary trader Hoshin bringing the small nation of Banan to ruin  It refers to giving the opponent two choices: surrender or face all-out attack.\" \"Surrender or face all-out attack... You don't mean!\" Along with the pair's statements, the vivid guardedness from Ram and Otto brought an abrupt change in Subaru's expression. Seeing this, Garfiel folded his arms, loudly cracking the bones of his neck. Then, he bared his sharp fangs, militancy gleaming from his jade eyes. \"Garf! What's the meaning of this? Are you too stupid to understand the meaning of Ram's words?\" \"Ya better watch how ya say that stuff, Ram. I might be in love with ya, but that don't mean I won't twist yer arm. Look, just get 'im back to where he was before, 'kay?\" \"M-man, you really want me in a cell. Maybe this sounds like begging for my life, but I really am a coward. Me being here is nothing but bad news, and letting me go is going for the low, low price of free, so shouldn't we aim for that?\" \"'Confusing price for bargain brings ruin.' That was one of Hoshin's sayings, too.\" Saying something similar to there is nothing more expensive than something offered for free, Garfiel refuted and rejected his proposal. He couldn't understand the obstinate posture. For what reason was Garfiel so obsessed with Subaru? \"Me, I can't let a shady guy like you outside. Better ya stay inside with me, the strongest guy around.\" \"That decision might court Master Roswaal's displeasure. After all, to Master Roswaal, Subaru is \" Cutting off her words there, Ram suggestively glanced sidelong at Subaru. Subaru, ignorant of the gaze's meaning, was perplexed, whereupon Ram looked back at Garfiel and carried on. \"A useless servant... It is best to discard him, yes.\" \"I'm pretty amazed you can say that in this situation, Big Sis...\" The way Ram was covering for him before abandoning him midway made Subaru forget his situation as it depleted his morale. However, the target of the statement took it in a completely different way. \"Worsen Roswaal's mood...?\" *** That instant, Subaru's entire body went tense, feeling goosebumps all over his flesh. When he looked at them, Ram and Otto's cheeks had hardened as well, eyes looking forward, warily watching as Garfiel stood before them. \"And just how much is that bastard thinkin' of here and of the old women? He ain't. That bastard only thinks of himself! Ram! Even you know that!\" \"Garf, Master Roswaal...\" \"Shaddap, shaddap, shaddap! The hell do you know about the bastard! Last warning! Hand him over! I'm gonna tie him up, and you two are gonna shut up and wait \" Flying into a rage, Garfiel had no ears with which to hear as he unleashed an angry shout. His ferocious fighting spirit proceeded to surge upward, and along with it, Subaru sensed Garfiel's very flesh growing all at once. But that instant, as if on reflex, the situation broke into motion. \" Miss Ram!\" \"Go!!\" \"Whaaa?!\" The same time as Subaru heard the hard-pressed voices, an arm wrapped around Subaru's body. It was Otto's. Without asking permission, he hoisted Subaru right up. \"Patlash ?!\" Patlash ferociously broke into a run, practically scooping Subaru and Otto up onto her back. With Subaru's eyes wide open from the unexpected turn of events, Otto paid no heed to him, gripping the reins and Patlash, squatting to raise her speed, darted out of the night-shrouded settlement. \"Damn it, ya lil' minion !!\" \"You have no time to be distracted, Garf!\" \" !! Won't let ya get in the way of my vow!!\" The voice, bellowing with anger, was snuffed out by the howling gale. Subaru sensed the two forces powerfully exploding, bouncing off one another, but his mind couldn't catch up. Right next to him, cheeks hard, Otto kept hold of his torso, nothing more. He raised his voice. \"W-wait, Otto! Why leave Ram in a place like that?!\" \"Any longer and you would be in peril! This is my and Miss Ram's decision!\" Shouting back in an angry voice, Subaru gritted his teeth as he squinted behind him. The bonfire had been bowled over, rendering his vision vague. But he could hear angry voices mixed with the sound of ferociously whipping wind. Considering fighting strengths, it was the best choice for holding off a Garfiel turned hostile. But the logical issue wasn't something his emotions were capable of endorsing. *** His brain was tied into knots from doubts and confusion when a sharp, high-pitched sound slammed into his eardrums. The source of the sound was very close; in tangible terms, from Otto through his own fingers. The high-pitched sound reverberated throughout the night-shrouded Sanctuary, only to echo twice and then a third time. \"Is that finger-whistling some kind of signal?!\" \"...It is a means I had rather hoped not to employ. I would rather have done without.\" \"Don't say deeply suggestive stuff like that! Ram's still there; any more chaos and...\" Colluding with Patlash, Otto had contrived to escape without Subaru's input. Though he wondered what Otto"}, {"text": "was still hiding, Subaru, his voice ragged, immediately realized just what it was. \" Aa\" It was not to the back but the fore that one light after another was lit along the sprinting land dragon's path. These were not the red lights of torches but the white lights of crystal lanterns. They were guiding lights, showing the way through the Lost Forest. And the people carrying those guiding lights amid the darkness were  \"The people of Earlham Village...\" \" I told you. We have reassuring sympathizers!\" The blow from the words spoken by Otto made Subaru's chest tighten. Sympathizers, this was what Otto was calling the people lending a hand to help Subaru. Subaru had thought that Ram was that sympathizer, and that it was Ram alone offering her aid. \" Master Subaru! Please be safe!\" The instant he passed one of the lights, the man holding the crystal lantern raised his voice. Naturally, it was a familiar face. It was one of the villagers at the Cathedral, who was yearning to be reunited with his family and placing his hope in Emilia breaking through the Trial. He wasn't the only one cooperating by any means. The settlement, the forest, held as many allies as it held lights. \"You said if they knew, they'd explode...\" \"And as a matter of fact, they did! So they had me keep quiet to you about it! With Mr. Natsuki escaping, they did not wish to become shackles!\" *** He couldn't tell what it meant. Otto's shout, the villagers' consideration...he couldn't tell what any of it meant. Why were they doing such a thing? Shackles, who, on whom? There were countless lights floating amid the darkness. *** Patlash made a short neigh, seemingly to display respect for the devoted villagers that had made the path of light. Even Patlash, who knew the correct path through the Lost Woods, had no guarantee of not being swallowed by the darkness. The white light wiped away that uncertainty, and as she followed it, the land dragon's speed gradually outstripped that of the wind. \"This way! Farther in, Master Subaru!\" \"Mr. Otto, take good care of Master Subaru!\" \"Please stop trying to die before us elderly folks, Master Subaru...!\" Both bodies and hearts were crouched as many, so many, voices were tossed in Subaru's direction. The voices reverberated as the villagers desperately, earnestly, wholeheartedly called out Subaru's name. \"Why are you all doing something as stupid as...\" \"That is not very convincing coming from you, Master Subaru!\" Unable to put the emotions filling him in order, the near-lament Subaru let out brought pained smiles. When he looked up, straight ahead was a large, distinctive tree with multiple villagers standing at its roots. \"Go straight from here and you'll cut straight through the barrier! Then you can get away!\" \"And you all?!\" \"We'll slow down the pursuit! Why, giving Master Subaru time to get away is the least we can do...\" The figures numbered five, a group of male youths. The five men were poorly equipped, but even so, they had decided to hold Garfiel off for as many seconds they could with stubbornness and guts. In staying behind, Ram had probably calculated along the same lines as they  *** A roar bellowed across the forest, and the next instant, Subaru was swallowed up by a ferocious shockwave. 5 \" ..aa\" Ting, went the ringing in his ears. Subaru slowly opened his eyes. The instant they opened, his head heavily swayed. He'd fallen to the ground. And yet, his semicircular canals had lost track of the world, and he kept rocking right and left, as if swaying on top of a wave. The world was covered in a dense cloud of dirt. With a heave, something flowed backward from his stomach. It was liquefied food, water, and stomach fluid. It tasted bitter and acidic. He wiped it with his sleeve, laid his head down, and... \" Aa\" In the world inclined at ninety degrees, he saw a hole gouged out of the ground, a great broken tree, and a crouching figure.  Subaru saw a single giant tiger covered in golden fur. *** The ferocious tiger's body was crouched low. Its jade eyes were looking down at the fallen Subaru. Its body length was about twelve feet long, far larger than the tigers Subaru knew. Its four legs were very thick, and its closed mouth could not contain all the fangs growing therein. At a glance, the visual broadcast the menace that the tiger's very presence presented. \"...uu\" The blow, the circumstances, made him think of something very similar he'd recently experienced amid the tragedy at the mansion the last time around when he'd lost Petra to the attack of a demon beast. *** Desperately pivoting his head, Subaru turned his eyes to the area around him. At the base of the broken tree lay the young men, sent flying from the shockwave. From very close, he heard Otto's groaning voice; he sensed Patlash, too. Everyone was alive, if only barely. They hadn't been allowed to die. After all, their opponent was  \"Gar, fi...el...\" A distinctive loincloth was still tied around the lower half of his enormous frame. He immediately realized that this was one and the same as that Garfiel wore around his hips. The sight of Frederica's beast form was in the back of his mind. Simultaneously, the truth of the blood connection between her and Garfiel was laid thoroughly bare.  The ferocious tiger before him was the transfigured Garfiel. In a matter of seconds, Garfiel had broken past Ram, ferociously chasing Subaru and Otto down. As for how much combat strength his bestialized form possessed, all Subaru knew for certain was that no one could help him. It was over, he thought. He could escape no further. But he was strongly determined about one thing alone. \"I'll do as you, say...but just don't...\" Don't hurt anyone else. Don't kill anyone else he declared, just not that. Frederica had proven that however ferocious a bestial form appeared, it was still possible to think logically in that state. He knew Garfiel, having exposed that form to them, was serious. However, Subaru was serious, too. Even if he had to return to that darkness, he didn't want anyone else to get hurt.  This, from Subaru Natsuki, who could fairly say he feared that darkness more than death. *** Without a word, he sat up and rose to his feet. The large tiger received his gaze, equally wordless. The tiger simply stared and narrowed the distance. Subaru swallowed, close enough to feel the breath coming from the beast's snout. He proceeded to await Garfiel's decision, for him to release the transfiguration and return to his normal fo  \" Eh?\" Gently, the world slowed down. In that extreme situation, his brain awakened, moving beyond the limits of comprehension. In that sluggish world, he saw the ferocious tiger raise a front paw high, unleashing its razor-sharp claws. Even if he tried to immediately move his body, the thoughts of his awakened brain would have no effect upon his body. The talons sharper than naked blades would lethally mow Subaru's torso apart  \" You big idiot!!\" The loud voice slammed into his side, and simultaneously, a blow sent Subaru flying. Before his eyes, crimson scattered. The world was still in slow motion. Red blood mixed in with the black of night, and a silhouette cried out in agony as it fell. The silhouette that had shielded Subaru, Otto Suwen...fell. The claw gouged out his chest and abdomen, sending blood gushing out onto Subaru's cheek. \"Wha...\" Wound. Fresh blood. Shielded. Great tiger, surrender, darkness. Garfiel, Otto, talons, Return by Death, Petra, transfiguration, demands, why, why, whywhywhy  \"Gaaaarfiiiiellll !!\" Subaru, howling with the emotions exploding in his gut, witnessed the ferocious tiger's wicked deed with bloodshot eyes. His brain seethed with ferocious emotion, fury changing the blood in his body to gasoline. Coursing through his entire body, they poured onto the fires of his rage, causing a chain reaction of hot explosions burning his thoughts, his emotions, and his life away. He shouted, he howled, in an incoherent voice. That moment, there was only anger and hatred within him. He wanted to burn the monster before his eyes to cinders. If anger and hatred became power, he would have ripped the monster asunder. *** But his voice was not imbued with the power to change fate. Subaru's scream was blotted out by an even greater roar, and it seemed he would be the one to be killed instead. In fact, the voice accompanied the ferocious tiger raising an arm, slamming down with a blow identical to the one launched at Otto. It would penetrate his skull, rip out his rib cage, gouge out his inner organs, and with it, his life he would die a squishy death. *** He closed his eyes. With impending death before his eyes, Subaru swore to make him pay in the next world. He would get revenge. The flames of his anger would not abate. I'll chew you to pieces. Carving hatred upon his soul, Subaru awaited the moment. And yet, the surely approaching end failed to arrive. The timing of his death had been thrown off. Why? He opened his eyes, glaring at the great tiger. The ferocious tiger remained right there, arm still raised. The single point of difference was that the beast's jade eyes were aimed not at Subaru but off to the side. Subaru followed that gaze. Something was flying in from the end of that gaze, striking the ferocious tiger's head. Making a light sound, something fell to the ground and rolled around. It was a completely unremarkable rock. The thrower of the rock was one of the young men of the village, blood flowing from his forehead as he wobbled to his feet. \"Get away from...Master Subaru, you, filthy monster...\" Wringing out his voice, groaning in pain, the young man strongly demonstrated his own intent. It was clumsy, weak, ephemeral resistance against a ferocious beast he could not defeat. The other young men stood up, picking up the rocks and branches at their own feet, wielding them as weapons. \"H...ey...\" What do you think you're doing? he tried to say, to halt their recklessness. Where do you think you're looking? he tried to say, slamming his deep resentment into the ferocious tiger. He didn't understand  But it was so simple to imagine the result that would follow, even a child could do it. *** The ferocious tiger swung his claw, and fresh blood gushed. This continued a second and a third time. There was the agonizing sound of death cries, the watery sound of the sharp gouging of flesh, the scream enough to ruin Subaru's throat  Why. Why. Whywhywhywhy. Why. \"Whyyyyyy !!!\" He grabbed hold of the beast before his eyes. He bit into its thick hide. It threw him off. The blow had taken his front teeth with it. His thought process was overheated. He spat out blood and teeth, and leaped again. The tail slammed him from the side, easily blowing him into the air, and he landed on the ground, limbs spread out. It was no time to sleep on the job. Stand, stand, if anyone's gonna die here, you die first. \"W ait, up... If anyone dies, it should be me... Let the others...!\" If he was going to kill anyone, just kill Subaru first. In the first place, Subaru had to be Garfiel's target. There was no reason to take the lives of such gallant, kindhearted men. He categorically rejected that. There wasn't any reason at all, and yet  \" U, aa?\" As Subaru clenched his teeth and coughed out blood, his body was hoisted upward. There were blood-ridden black scales right next to him Patlash. The profuse volume of blood coursing from her was visible proof that she had shielded Subaru from the ferocious tiger's initial attack. Her wounds were deep; she was half alive, half dead. Just like back at the mansion, Patlash"}, {"text": "was protecting Subaru even at the verge of death. \"That's...enough... That's enough. It's enough, Patlash...\" He begged her to stop. As Subaru clung to her, the deeply benevolent land dragon rejected his plea. As she took Subaru in her mouth, there was a powerful will residing in Patlash's yellow eyes. With reserves of strength unthinkable for one near death, she rose on two legs. To protect Subaru, to get him off the battlefield, the land dragon left behind those desperately fighting, ferociously breaking into a run once more. *** Don't leave everyone behind, he tried to shout. The instant he forced himself to look back, he saw the last person sent flying into pieces in the far distance. With a roar, the twin jade eyes swayed in the darkness, chasing after Subaru and the land dragon as they fled. He was too fast. The distance was closing. Even if they ran, it was meaningless. Why was Patlash running? \" Aa\" Putting strength into her jaws, Patlash's head twisted as she hurled Subaru as hard as she could manage. She hurled him forward, to get him even a little farther away from the menace, putting every inch of devotion into the act. Then, as Subaru danced in the air, he realized that there was something, a light, twinkling in his pocket. *** The crystal. Frederica's crystal. The stone in his pocket was shimmering blue. Instantly, he understood. Patlash hadn't grabbed Subaru and run without a plan. She was sending Subaru as far as the barrier to a place the menace of the ferocious tiger's fangs, the menace of Garfiel, could not reach. \"Patlash!\" As the world spun around him, he sought her, called out her name. Miraculously, they exchanged gazes. In her yellow, narrow, reptilian irises, he saw a glint of impossible compassion. *** The claw of the pursuing ferocious dragon slammed into the pitch-black land dragon's side. Patlash was severed in two. Without even raising a death cry, the loyal dragon perished, doing her utmost for Subaru until the very end. *** That was the same, too. It was completely the same result as at the mansion. His friends had died, his beloved dragon had died, his brain and his blood boiled. He rolled onto the ground. A light glimmered. Had he gone past the barrier? Like he cared. The ferocious beast, the wild creature, rushed toward his eyes. It leaped, passing through the barrier, killing intent undiminished. *** There was a crash. Instantly, light welled up, and Subaru Natsuki was bathed in blue.  He had teleported. 6 When he regained consciousness, the first thing Subaru felt was a fiercely stimulating, repulsive stench. *** The foul stench, one that was impossible to forget, thrust itself into his nostrils. The scent was like some kind of chemical. It made Subaru grimace as he sat up from the cold floor. He coughed as his body creaked with pain. Coughing more, he slowly put a hand on the wall and stood up. The handkerchief on his wrist was grimy with dried blood and vomit. With that, he confirmed the passage of time and the fact he had not Returned by Death. He had not died. The world had continued after the tragedy.  In the back of his mind, images arose of people felled by the claws of a ferocious tiger, one after another, and of his beloved dragon's final moment. \"...Ugh.\" He had survived. For whatever reason, he had survived. His chest was choked with remorse that made him want to die that very moment. Subaru resisted the impulse to sever his tongue with his teeth, putting his weight against the wall as he unsteadily walked forward. The stench made it easy for Subaru to understand just what that place was. Groping through his memories, dragging his feet, he grudgingly dragged himself forward, heading for the exit. He was in the building in which he had been imprisoned. He didn't know why he had made the jump to that place. But he instinctively understood that the crystal was the cause and that it had come in contact with the barrier. *** He grasped the crystal in his pocket and hurled it away. The stone made a light sound as it tumbled somewhere far away. The stone had no value any longer. Not in that world. Not then.  It was a finished world. It was a world he had to bring to an end. *** Before granting himself death, he went to gaze at the world he had to bring to an end. He had to take a good, hard look, drink it down, and smash it into dust. After all, it was the duty of Subaru Natsuki to die when it was his time. Straight ahead, the exit of the small building was near. The white wall his fingers were touching was so cold, it made them numb. The light filtering in from the outside made him narrow his eyes. During his time unconscious, night had ended, and morning had come. It seemed that Garfiel had not realized he was there. Lazy bastard, thought Subaru, exhaling a white breath, walking outside when  \" Ah?\"  The snow blanketing the world was a blow far beyond his expectations. 7 Comprehension and despair, layered atop one another, canceling each other out over and over.  Subaru's soul blazed, for the painting was a portrait of hell. Subaru had meant to exhaust himself to the brink of death to overwrite such a scene. In point of fact, he had crossed death twice, something that surely put him in reach of the painting's brush. Little did he know that the instant he touched the brush, the details of the painting had morphed into a different hell. \" Ha-ha.\" The wintery world made his breath a white cloud, and as he trod through the snow, Subaru put his hands on his seemingly gasping knees. It had already been several hours since he had left the structure, walking aimlessly ever since. Subaru safely reaching the settlement the night before had been thanks to Otto leading the way via his blessing. At present, he was without that, in the heart of the Lost Woods of Cremaldi the landscape changed abruptly by the falling snow, with not a single thing to aid him present. \"Sh it...!\" His endurance was depleted, the snowy landscape's low temperature robbing his body of warmth. To prevent a drop in body temperature, even to a tiny extent, Subaru tied Petra's handkerchief around his forehead before resuming his walk once more. \"My promise with Petra...\" The sun had risen high. There was no longer any way to prevent the tragedy from befalling the mansion. He'd been unable to do anything. He hadn't saved Petra or Frederica. Probably not Rem, either. Beatrice was still clutching that magic tome; Otto was dead; Patlash was dead; what had happened to Ram? Garfiel, Roswaal, what were they thinking? Emilia was  \"But I'll...\" He'd take it all back. He'd redo everything. It was his duty to walk the path where everything was right. Only Subaru could do it. It was something Subaru had to do. For that reason, the memory of everything that had been lost had to continue in Subaru alone. For that reason, the sacrifices paid for it had to continue on inside of Subaru. For that reason, Subaru, and Subaru alone, had to pay a commensurate price. He'd pay the commensurate price. He'd let the casualties pile up. And then, he'd bring everything back. *** The instant his responsibility to do what had to be done burned within him, the forest opened before Subaru's eyes. The landscape he thought would continue forever ended, and he rushed into the settlement, which was also buried in snow. He wasn't surprised. He was already resigned. There, a giant tiger would suddenly blot out his vision, as he died laughing with nothing but hatred burning within him. His heart had long frozen over. However, contrary to his resignation, the ferocious tiger did not appear. No, rather than that  \"No one's here...?\" The fallen bonfire had vanished in the snow. He couldn't sense that anyone was present in the Sanctuary whatsoever. He couldn't pass it off saying it was a low-population settlement to begin with. It felt like an uninhabited wasteland. Indeed, he couldn't see even a single footstep on the accumulated white snow. There was no sign of anyone walking around. \"Snow fell... No one's here...\" Touching a hand to his forehead, he dug his nails into his forehead as he began to doubt his own sanity. The Sanctuary was filled with tranquility. There was no sign of human presence, nor the sound of any insect. From time to time, he heard only the sound of the leaves swaying in the wind, a change announced by the faint shift in his eardrums. He heard nothing in this world  \" Aa?\" In that soundless world, that white-marred hell, he was taken back by a change within. At first, Subaru sensed something like a white ball of wool tumbling in the wind. However, he immediately understood that it was no ball of wool at all. It rolled to Subaru's feet, and there, made a tiny tremble. Then Subaru, eyes wide, realized it had two long ears protruding from it. It had long ears, a soft white pelt, short legs, and two red eyes. With a tilt of its head, its mouth moved in unhurried fashion as it made a high-pitched kii. \"Rab...bit...?\" Subaru's eyes beheld a rabbit and a particularly small one at that. The rabbit was as small as Subaru's closed fist, a creature no larger than a mouse. The long ears characteristic of a rabbit were fairly short and, combined with its round tail, all of the parts were in order, if at a very compact size. In the Sanctuary, where insect, animal, land dragon, man, and all others had vanished in the snow, a rabbit had suddenly appeared. \"Why is a rabbit here...? ...Should a rabbit be here?\" An inexhaustible supply of mysteries was born, and the crush of information made Subaru feel like even his brain wanted to retch. Was the rabbit at his feet a clue for learning what had happened in the Sanctuary? Clinging to that thought, he stretched a hand toward the rabbit  The next instant, from the wrist down, Subaru's hand was ripped off. \"...Aeegh?\" Blood gushed out of the raggedly cut wound; his reddish-black arteries drooped downward. Perhaps the thin white threads pulled out were muscle fibers or nerves. Either way, the spectacle of human flesh being destroyed was particularly grotesque. Such evasion of the reality of his lost hand prevailed for exactly two seconds whereupon his brain was wrecked by the ferocious pain from another dimension. \"G, aah?! Uoaa! Aaa, gaggaaaa !!!\" The world blazed white. His mind, dominated by pain, had lost all pain ability to recognize pain reality. What pain had happened that pain he had to endure such pain? What was the cause of pain? What had pain happened? Why this pain? Pain, painpainpain  Agonizing further and further, he pressed his blood-spilling left wrist against the ground. Unwittingly, he bit into the snow, a seemingly meaningless mixture of ice and mud. He tasted the soil, crunched down the ice, and his vision whirled in search of what had happened  At his feet, the white ball of wool had red spots scattered over its pelt. It was moving its mouth. It was chewing. Subaru could see his fingers hanging out of its moving little mouth. He understood. It had been eaten. His hand had been eaten. \"G  Gaaaaa !!\" An understanding he didn't want to be aware of, a pain he didn't want to feel; the agony dragged his spirit toward madness. His mind was like stained glass as it cracked, shattering and turning into vestiges of fine sand. \"Gi iihigiiii!!!\" And yet, pain had roused his shattered mind. He felt a burning sensation in his calf. His eyes reeled from a stimulus like flesh and"}, {"text": "bone being mercilessly raked by a file. Reddish-black bubbles poured into the middle of his throat, causing him to convulse like a fish out of water. He didn't faint. He couldn't. The pain was too strong for that. The pain was too strong for that. The cruel pain forced his mind to remain awake. Kii, kii, went the countless cries that his eardrums picked up. The number of these high-pitched voices was vast, and he was surrounded by presences he couldn't bother to count. His eyeballs were already derelict in their duty, having giving up on looking at his surroundings. That was a mercy. He was glad it was only his ears still working. He could not have borne the sight. *** Fangs tore into his entire body. From the feeling of the fangs biting into him, he knew it was a horde. He screamed. He rolled onto his back, sending his voice toward the heavens. That very moment, he sensed something furry enter his mouth, ripping out his tongue. His throat was violated, opening a path from his windpipe to his stomach, from which his viscera could be voraciously eaten. He was being chewed away. Fangs invaded from his anus, crashing inside his body against those that had entered from the mouth. As if in a contest, they raced left and right to consume his inner organs, making mincemeat out of Subaru Natsuki. He was alive. He was being eaten alive. He could feel his flesh being torn into fragments. He wasn't afraid. He couldn't feel pain anymore. He didn't even know where his mind was. He was being eaten. He was being consumed. His left eye was eaten. His ears were gone. His inner organs had been torn away, and just then, the skin of his face was ripped off. A hole was opened in his skull, and fangs thrust into his brain  *** aa . 8 His flesh...had been rebuilt. The torn, consumed flesh of his cheeks, the ripped-off skin of his face, his bitten-apart skull, his chewed-away nerves, his lapped-up blood, and his fiendishly violated, ravenously consumed soul were restored to their former state. \" aa\" Blood passed into his fingertips, and Subaru's entire body ferociously convulsed. On the cold, hard floor, Subaru moaned as froth gushed out, his eyes rolling in every direction. There was no pain. There was no sense of loss. His four limbs were connected to his torso, and his chest had all of the viscera required to sustain life. His flesh and blood had been returned to him. But what of the spirit that had been eaten apart? Whose mind could return to the world of the sane, when the memory of being \"devoured\" was still fresh? \"B, b, b...!\" Subaru slammed his head against the ground as if he was having a seizure. His brain bounced back from the hard blow, making his brain shake. For a moment, the vestiges of having been chewed away eased. In search of this, he repeated the act.  Why. It was not his spirit or his flesh, but his soul, which refused to acknowledge reality. With the most critical part of his decision-making systems refusing to reboot, Subaru Natsuki could not return. But his soul repeated the word why over and over again, searching for an answer. What had occurred? Just what had happened? Why had such a thing taken place? Why did it have to be that way? What was happening with him now? What to do? What should he do?  Why, why, why, why, why. No answer came forth. Before that vague thesis, not even a written problem, his soul simply broke into lament.  Why! Why! Why!! Drowning in reality, haunted by a nightmare, having lost sight of the path of life, all he could do was ask himself, \"Why?\" For that was  \" Once more, you have gained the qualifications.\" As Subaru made little trembles, he heard a whisper-like voice in his ear. \"I invite thee  Come to the Witches' Tea Party.\" The next instant, the soul of Subaru Natsuki returned but moments before, was once again severed from reality. CHAPTER 5 *** 1 Atop a small hill jutting up from a verdant plain, a gentle wind reminiscent of spring blew. Subaru's forelocks and the tall, green grass swayed in the wind as cumulonimbus clouds danced, racing toward the blue yonder. *** Subaru touched his forehead, tickled by the wind, and narrowed his eyes at the dazzling sun rays. Then, he slowly brought his gaze down from the sky, reorienting it straight ahead. At some point, Subaru had come to sit in a white chair. It was large, resembling an easy chair, and before his eyes, there was a small pure-white table. Across from the table, in an identical chair, sat a figure with her long legs crossed. She was a beautiful girl with long hair, precious little of her white skin exposed, and beyond that, everything was covered in black clothing  \" That's not quite accurate. More like, you're a bound spirit that's spent four centuries unable to move on.\" \"Quite a greeting, such short shrift the very moment we are reunited? In the first place, where I am concerned, I was nineteen years of age at the time of my death therefore my outward appearance is that of a young maiden much the same age as you?\" \"Dying at nineteen is straight-up heavy stuff... Sorry. I shouldn't joke about the dead.\" \" ? Quite a laudable response. I suppose we have not known each other long enough for me to say that is not like you?\" As Subaru leaned forward, his fists opening and closing, the girl the Witch Echidna narrowed her eyes in apparent deep interest. She rested an elbow upon the table, and her cheek against her palm, provocatively looking back at Subaru with a sidelong glance as she spoke. \"It is rare for the same guest to be invited to a tea party twice. It does not happen often at all. You should be proud!\" \"A host shouldn't be so blunt to the guest. If I stop being honestly thankful, where will you be then?\" \"Oh, my! Then you intended to be honestly thankful to me, yes?\" \"Ugh...\" When Echidna hit the bull's-eye, Subaru averted his gaze from her suppressed laugh. Thanks to his mental state just prior, he'd blithely let the words slip. But that \"mental state just prior\" was the very issue at hand. \"I...was in the tomb...\" The words he was too frightened to add were, going crazy. As a matter of fact, Subaru's spirit had completely broken down. That was how much death that time around had carved indelible wounds into his soul, combined with how repeated Return by Death experiences had beaten him down. He'd rather have his mouth rent than ever speak the words accustomed to death. But he thought he was prepared for it. So very easily, that assumption had been ripped away  \"But right now, I'm fine. So normal it feels bad.\" \"You don't like that? You would rather lose your cool, fall into a panic, pathetically bawl your eyes out?\" \"...I'm not saying I want stuff like that. I thought you understood, Echidna.\" \"I suppose so. Right now I'm being an evil tease. Sorry, I just wanted to smack you around a bit.\" Sensing the rebuke in his voice, Echidna raised both hands as if to declare surrender. Then, with a flutter of her palm, she went, \"It's just,\" tilting her head as she said  \"I did not invite you to this tea party merely to tease you. Had I not done so, your mind would have shattered... You are aware of that, perhaps?\" \"That's why I was honestly going to thank you out loud, sheesh. Then you...\" \"I see. It seems my words and deeds carry the same faults as they did in life. Now then, I would like to properly hear your words of thanks right now  Well, knock yourself out.\" With a wry smile, Echidna puffed out her chest, a posture for accepting words of thanks. Staring at the smug, proud look on her face, Subaru took in a deep breath, exhaling at length. If he had to break it down into raw terms, she was being a very witchy witch. \" ? What is wrong; anytime is good?\" \"...Is the reason I returned to form the instant I came here that I drank your tea before?\" \"Ahhh, I would suppose so. The tea set your Witch Factor into motion to promote stabilization. Leaving and entering the tea party does not cause it to lose its effect... Incidentally, the words of thanks?\" \"That so? I'm just a little relieved. Should I understand that to mean it'll continue when I go outside?\" \"Because we are discussing your mental state. Since you have regained your cool...... I suppose if you were to remember about this place, you might retain your peace of mind even outside of the dream. So hey, the thanks?\" The reply, including how she said it like it didn't concern her, made Subaru's breath catch. If he were to remember this place, Echidna had said. As a matter of fact, that made things very difficult. The fact he'd come into contact with the witch twice, forgetting both times, proved the vow was at work. The vow had made Subaru forget Echidna. As a result, Subaru had lost sight of even himself. \" Echidna, is there a way to rewrite a vow?\" \"Huh?\" \"Is there a way to leave here without forgetting about you? As long as the vow makes me forget you, my mind will break. Isn't that right?\" \"Well, it is, but...\" \"Besides, it's not just an issue of my mind. Even setting that aside, I want to remember you.\" \" Eh?\" Yes. It was not an issue of Subaru's mind alone. Remembering Echidna's existence was a necessary piece to unravel the mysteries of the Sanctuary and prevent it from changing into that hell. That was why Subaru thrust his hands onto the table, drawing near enough to the Witch's face he could feel her breath, and made a firm declaration. \"If you need compensation, I'll pay anything else. In return \" *** \"Don't hide my memories.\" \" O-okay...\" In the face of Subaru's strong demand, Echidna acted particularly awkward, nodding meekly. Her demeanor gave him an odd feeling, but the reply was a yes. I did it, thought Subaru, clapping his hands as he celebrated. \"Got you to say it! Big help! No taking it back!\" \"I would not do such a shameless thing. I would not, but...you are somewhat underhanded, I think.\" Subaru cocked his head in confusion at the sudden accusation. His response made Echidna turn her face with a fairly sour look. Then, the Witch indicated the opposing chair to Subaru as she said, \"Anyway, I understand what you have said. For now, do sit. Let us take our time and speak.\" \"Yeah...er, I don't have time for all that. More importantly, gotta take care of the vow business...\" \" I prefer you do not misunderstand, Subaru Natsuki.\" Her lackadaisical demeanor quickened Subaru's mood. Echidna called out to him when he tried to hurry things up. The words brought him to a halt. For some reason, her tone of voice carried a power that was difficult to defy. Then, as Subaru swallowed, Echidna or rather, the Witch continued. \"Rewriting a vow is not a difficult thing in itself. Nor do I mind how you are boldly stating things that are difficult to say. But I will not have statements ignorant of your position.\" *** \"In the end, you are a guest invited to this tea party. And this castle of dreams is my territory. \"Under my rule. If you say things that are simply too selfish, it becomes an issue of my honor.\" Her voice was quiet, with no change in its tenor; only the voice's power had changed. Having changed the atmosphere to such an extent, her eyes of bottomless darkness gazed up at Subaru."}, {"text": " Therein rested the supernatural being known as a Witch. \"...a, uu\" The feeling of oppression grabbed firm hold of his soul, making Subaru recall the initial impression he'd had of Echidna: namely, his terror toward an overwhelming menace outstripping even the White Whale and the Witch of Sloth. And that Echidna, the Witch of Greed, the Witch of white and black before his eyes, lived up to both name and title. \"Having been invited to this tea party, you have a duty to behave politely. That only makes sense, yes?\" With Subaru's spiritual body marred with an unbecoming level of cold sweat, the Witch stroked her own white hair as she continued. With his throat and tongue feeling dry and his breathing ragged, Subaru barely managed to wring out a reply. \"Politeness as a guest, you mean...\" \"It is quite simple. I am the hostess; you are the guest  Let us behave as such.\" The feeling of oppression was intact as Echidna slowly reached out with a hand. The Witch's slender fingers touched the table, tapping upon its surface thrice. Her fingertips indicated a point atop the table upon which rested an untouched, steaming cup. \"...Ah?\" \"If you are a guest to a tea party, you should begin by accepting tangible proof of your invitation. Is that not proper?\" \"...! You're not easy to understand.\" \"I am a Witch, after all. It would be a shame for normal girls if you were to lump me in with them, would it not?\" Smiling as if she'd pulled a fast one on him, the sense of oppression from Echidna's demeanor dissipated. Subaru felt like the mental anguish she'd inflicted as revenge for his rudeness was completely over the top, but at any rate... \"Shit... I get it, geez!\" Clicking his tongue, he snatched the cup from the table and poured the liquid down the hatch. Even though time had passed since its pouring, its temperature had not diminished at all, as might be expected of tea served by a Witch. Subaru strongly gulped it down, concerning himself little with the taste, and raggedly wiped his lips with his sleeve. \"Well, I swallowed it down. Now you'll accept me as a guest of the tea party?\" \"Having my bodily fluids swallowed down with such fervor... Mmm, it makes me blush a little.\" \"Gehhh! I forgot about that !!!\" The Dona Tea Trap was at the first tea party, and upon his second arrival, Subaru had fallen hook, line, and sinker for it once more. The sight of her guest earnestly retching on the spot made the Witch hostess's shoulders sink in chagrin. After that, the Witch abruptly clapped her hands together, seemingly just remembering something as she spoke up. \"Come to think of it, your words of thanks? I feel as if I have not heard them yet...\" \"Thank you for pouring me tea that tastes like shit! You damned Witch!\" Though he thanked her just as she told him to, Echidna was less than thrilled with the words of gratitude he provided. 2 Beginning with Subaru and Echidna sitting on opposite ends of the table once more, the tea party recommenced. Just like the previous time around, he had been unable to expel the Dona Tea he had absorbed no matter how desperately he retched. Pretending that nothing had happened, Subaru sought to blot out his sense of nausea with his sense of duty as he attended the tea party. \"Having the bodily fluids I offered rejected to that extent wounds my maidenly heart.\" \"A maiden wouldn't talk about offering bodily fluids once in her whole life. More importantly, I want to continue talking about important stuff. About the vow issue, you promise to... Nah, you'll do it, then?\" \"You have an aversion toward the word promise, do you? This, too, I accept.\" The joking exchange weighed on his mind, but Subaru was relieved he'd gained a firm promise from her: that even when he woke from the dream, he would not forget Echidna's existence. This would surely prove a necessary key to finding the answer to the Witch's laboratory known as the Sanctuary. Having gained confirmation on that point, there was one other thing he wanted to confirm with the Witch  \" Echidna, how much do you know about my circumstances?\" \"What I know is how much I want to know about you. And how much I want to know is all there is to know in the entire world.\" \"Don't kid about this. I'm sure you've realized how weird it is that I'm here at all.\" \"That is not so. You fulfilled the conditions to be invited to the tea party you reached my territory, and in that place, you were filled with such longing for some reason. And that desire aroused my Greed \" Echidna made a play on words, whereupon Subaru placed his hand on the table once more. By this he indicated he didn't mind playing along with the tea party...but he had no intention of playing along with a farce. \"It is strange. I mean, from your point of view, I only just left, right?\" *** \"I returned from the Trial...from overcoming my past. And here I am, right after that.\" The reference point for that loop was set to right after he'd overcome the first Trial. Even though Subaru had returned, he ought to have been in the stone room in the tomb. That was both immediately after his conversation with Echidna had concluded, and to the Witch, an extremely quick reunion  \"You're so smart, there's no way you wouldn't find that strange. If you don't, that could only mean...\" \"...Could only mean?\" Hesitating to continue his words, Echidna gave his hesitant back a proverbial shove. He breathed in, then out. If Echidna did not harbor suspicions about their reunion, that meant  \" You know the circumstances that caused it.\" *** When Subaru pressed onward, Echidna made a tiny smile and maintained her silence.  The basis for his suspicion was the words he'd exchanged with Echidna in the virtual classroom at the height of the first Trial, when she'd stated that world was nothing but a charade. Even that very moment, the answer he'd conveyed to his parents in the past had not changed. They rested strongly in his chest. Accordingly, it was not that which weighed on Subaru's mind, but how that world had been constructed. Echidna had created a different world using Subaru's memories as a reference, recreating even his school's uniforms. If that was the power of the Witch of Greed, sleeping eternally within the tomb, then  \" You have the power to see my memories. So, you don't think this situation's strange.\" If she had the power to use his memories as a reference, she knew that from Subaru's perspective, their reunion was not directly after parting inside of that classroom. She also knew he had spent several days since then, letting everything slip through his fingers as \"death\" greeted him once more.  And so, too, did she know that Subaru Natsuki had Returned by Death, going back in time. *** Subaru hesitated, sealing his words away. His heart beat ferociously, as if to tell him that going any further was dangerous  That if Subaru revealed much more, he would most certainly brush up against the taboo. He would expose Return by Death. That would violate the one inviolate rule that the Witch had laid down. And should Subaru break it, he would taste agony to his very limits as punishment. Or perhaps he would invite a different tragedy, and those evil hands would take the life of someone precious to Subaru, as they had with Emilia. \"Haaa...haaa...!\" His spiritual body's brow was drenched with sweat. The droplets fell onto his cheek, rolling down to his jaw. The state of his soul vividly reflected that of his body. That was how far he was backed into a corner. That moment, what backed Subaru's mind into a corner was not fear of the taboo, but fear of the unknown. Subaru's tongue rejected spinning the words in that unknown state. After all, the current situation was different from any other situation he had encountered relating to Return by Death. If Subaru spoke, willingly breaking the taboo, his heart would be crushed. If Subaru pleaded from his heart that he wanted to reveal the truth the evil hands would take the life of someone he cared for. Then what happened if he said aloud that Return by Death had been exposed via a completely different tangent? It was a complete unknown, a circumstance beyond all imagination  \"Why do you not try it?\" *** To Subaru, afraid of the taboo and the unknown, Echidna casually tossed those words. Taken aback by the casualness of it, Subaru was indignant next. Echidna didn't understand. She didn't comprehend what might arise if he just tried it, how horribly unprofitable the prospect. But in the face of Subaru's anger, Echidna shook her head and said, \"To test in hope of a result is an action to be praised. We only covet that which has value.\" Without even knowing if she herself might be harmed, she criticized Subaru's inde  No, that wasn't it. The Witch Echidna had seen right through to Subaru's reason for indecision. She knew it was possible that it would be her, not Subaru, who might be in peril. And, knowing this, she had said to do it nonetheless. She said this, because her conviction was unshakable. The \"Witch of Greed,\" the very epitome of hunger for knowledge, would gamble even her own life on an action with no way to foresee the result. \"You might not have time to regret it...?\" \"If that time comes, may I expect that you will break down in tears before my remains?\" To Subaru, hesitating until the last moment, Echidna replied in a tone that was sunny to the bitter end. Her position was one she adopted out of consideration for Subaru, so that her personal feelings might not excessively sway his decision. That was less sympathy toward Subaru than the Witch's sincerely not wishing for an external impurity to skew the result wrought by his decision. There were no expectations, nor wishes, attached. He saw that it was her way as a Witch to seek the purity of the result. And that gave his back a shove. He felt like her way of life, not harboring the slightest of doubts, was mocking his own smallness  \"Echidna. I Return by Dea \" He spoke the words that were taboo. Just as he had done many times before, he spoke the words, the special phrase, that walked across the prohibited line. Several times had he done this: to serve as a decoy for the demon dogs, to lure in the White Whale, to deceive the Witch Cultists. In the course of doing so, he was robbed of words, and the world's time came to a halt  \" th.\" Firmly closing his eyes, Subaru gritted his teeth against the ferocious pain he expected to come. However, his touching resolve amounted to nothing. \"...Eh?\" He opened his eyes. The world had not changed. Time had not stopped. There was no pain. And this being the case, he shifted his gaze toward the Witch sitting directly in front of him, who went... \"Hmm...\" Sitting in her chair, the Witch recrossed her long legs as the eyebrows of her refined visage grimaced ever so slightly. However, that was her only reaction. Even when he glanced at the area of her breasts, there was no change in the Witch. \"...If you keep staring at me like that, I shall be embarrassed. Though I am rather proud of my outward appearance, I have no such confidence about my figure. Unlike Sekhmet and Daphne, that is.\" \"I ain't starin' at you for a reason like that. No, more importantly...\" Subaru responded to her misdirected demeanor, his thought process still at a halt. No punishment of the taboo had"}, {"text": "been applied within the chest that Echidna hid from Subaru's gaze with her arms. In the face of that fact, his thoughts slowly began anew as he touched a hand to his mouth. The roots of his teeth, and his voice, were shaking. \"When, when I die, I go back in time, and I restart the world. I Return by Death.\" \"I heard you. And I perceived it before I heard. I see it is an exceedingly rare circumsta...\" \"I! Return by Death! Return by Death! Return by Death! Return by Death!!\" \"W-wait a ?!\" Echidna was horrified at Subaru repeating the forbidden words over and over. Her composure from the moment before was lost; the Witch's eyes opened wide as she hurriedly urged Subaru to calm down. \"C-calm yourself. I understand how you feel, but...\" \"I've! Returned by Death! Over, and over, I die and restart! I! Return by Death...\" \"I get it already! So let's advance the conv...\" \"I...! Return by Death, starting things over, over and over......!\" *** He shouted numerous times, unable to contain himself. As Subaru shouted, hot droplets poured from his eyes. The droplets trickled down his cheeks, rolling down to his jaw, and fell  This was not sweat. These were tears. \"All this time... I've...!\" He'd seen this dream so many times. He'd anguished so many times, wanting to shout it out. He'd probably begged for it many times over. Yet he could reveal Return by Death to no one. He thought he was forced to defy it, alone  *** \" I understand.\" His revelations became lamentations, and his shout scattered into sobs midway. Faced with Subaru's voice, the Witch quietly nodded. As Subaru wept, the Witch stood at his side. Her fingers touched his black hair, seemingly ready to enter it. Then, her slender, delicate hand gently stroked his head. \"I know, the footprints you have made until now. I saw them, after all.\" *** \"But, I have merely seen them. If possible, I would like you to tell me about them from your own lips. I want to know what you thought, what you felt, how much you embraced.\" Stroking his head, the Witch added, \"I mean,\" and continued, \" I am Echidna, the Witch of Greed, she who craves knowing everything in this world.\" 3 Bit by bit, Subaru spoke the words in what had to be an exceptionally plodding process. However, as a long period of time passed, the Witch lending her ears to Subaru's clumsy tale did not speak unnecessarily even once, nor had she done anything to hurry him. Until the very end, she simply listened in silence as Subaru spoke. Then, seeing from Subaru's lowering of his head that he had finished his tale, she offered a short remark. \" How awful.\" The voice with which she spat out the words was tinged with unconcealed disgust. For a single moment, the words made Subaru concerned. He feared the Witch was disparaging the footsteps Subaru had laid down up to that point. But his reaction made Echidna go, \"No,\" shaking her head sideways as she said, \"I am sorry to have misled you. I was not speaking of your tale just now. I simply feel anger that is difficult to bear toward the being that made you walk such a path of suffering.\" \"The being that made me walk a path of suffering...\" \" The Witch of Envy.\" When Echidna's voice became like a whisper, Subaru came to a complete stop. Amid the sense that his body, his breathing, and even the beating of his heart had come to a halt, Echidna's black pupils narrowed. \"I am sure that you, too, understood long ago. The power to rewind death... No, the power to deny you the peace of death, could only come from Envy.\" \"...That's because I've heard so much about the Witch from so many different people. I've never met this Witch face to face, but I figured as much from the 'outstretched hands' that appeared once in a while...\" The shadowy woman who appeared in the world of stopped time to inflict the punishment for breaking the taboo  On the one hand, the shadow granted him agonizing pain; on the other, it touched him lovingly. At first, it was only one arm, but now he could see two arms and the contours of a torso that was progressively drawing nearer. He suspected that, as he Returned by Death more and more, a time of reckoning was approaching. \"I have absolutely no idea why she's infatuated with me, though. Do you know the reason?\" \"Not really. After all, understanding that thing's way of thinking is beyond not only me but all others as well. Even if I could, I would prefer not to.\" Averting her gaze, Echidna spoke with invective. Subaru raised an eyebrow at her attitude. \"Man, for someone who declares she wants to know everything in this world, you sure have a thing against the Witch of Envy. Well, she is the one who killed you, so that is kinda natural...\" Echidna was purportedly a supernatural existence in a different dimension than what mere mortals could ever achieve. Even if 'castle of dreams' was an exaggeration, the Witch had transcended death to construct an entire world while only a soul, yet she bore personal likes and dislikes the same as any normal human being. Seeing a glimpse of humanity like that, Subaru felt an odd sense of closeness to her. However, Echidna herself noticed nothing of Subaru's sentiments, sighing as she said spoke again. \"I believe you harbor no small grudge either, but speaking of her depresses even me. Therefore, let us discuss something else. If there is something you wish to ask, ask it, whatever it may be.\" \"Something else, huh...\" When she sought a change in subject, Subaru fell into thought. Put bluntly, he was disappointed. By divulging Return by Death, Subaru had broken free of the sense of being besieged that had plagued him for so long, filling him with a sense of liberation at his confined world opening right up. Accordingly, Subaru had gotten his hopes up for a dramatic change. But Echidna had affirmed that the Witch of Envy was the cause of Return by Death like it was nothing, opening her heart to other conversational topics. The complete lack of dramatic developments made all those tears seem like they were just his imagination. \"For example...yes, how about, if there was a way to remove the powerful Authority that inflicts the never-ending agony of repeating death, would you be curious at all?\" \"...Even if a way did exist, that's a problem. Not interested.\" With Subaru at a loss for words, the Witch made a proposal, but he shook his head, refusing her statement without hesitation. Certainly, the power of Return by Death brought Subaru great agony. But even so  \"It galls me to say it, but I need Return by Death. There's a lot of results I couldn't have gotten without it. There's also a lot of people I wouldn't have been able to save.\" *** \"Without that power, there's a lot of people I want to save that I couldn't. So I need it.\" Putting it into words made him aware of the fact all over again; Return by Death was Subaru's only weapon. At the same time, it gave rise to something he wanted to ask, making him think of a question he'd always harbored. \"Echidna, do you think there's a limit to the number of times I can Return by Death?\" \"...I see. That is a logical question for you to arrive at.\" Since arriving in that world, Subaru had already experienced over ten Returns by Death. Tasting agony and a sense of loss, Subaru had restarted the world via death. The fear he harbored, that this time might be his last, was a natural emotion. \"I mean, that figures, right...?\" He'd already overturned the bounds of death many times over, something that by rights happened no more than once. Over the course of each death, Subaru tasted the sense of despair from perishing with his objective left unfinished  Just how terrifying would death be, if it could erase that sense of despair along with everything else? And just how long would that power of heresy against death postpone that moment for Subaru  \"Let me precede this by saying this is, in the end, purely my own speculation. My knowledge of the principles of your Authority is too vague for me to do anything but extrapolate. So I first wish you to forgive the vagueness of my reply.\" \"...Yeah, please tell me anyway.\" \"Your Return by Death, as a power that triggers according to specific conditions, I believe it likely has \" He sucked in his breath as he awaited her reply. Echidna's eyes were looking straight at him. The brief pause in her modest words made Subaru feel like he was waiting for an eternity. And at the end of his nervous waiting, she said  \" No limit.\" *** \"Your deaths will never end. No matter how many times you die, no matter what results, your soul will go back in time, seeking to restart until such a time as you break past the fate that led to your death, no matter how cruelly you might be slain, or how mind and body might be broken.\" For a time, the inside of Subaru's head was wholly occupied by a blank space that resisted comprehension of Echidna's conclusion. Then, the conclusion spread forth, pushing into that blank space, causing it to break down little by little as comprehension permeated him. At that point, he finally let out a quavering breath as words trickled out of him. \" That so.\" \"You accepted that surprisingly easily.\" \"The thin reaction wasn't to your liking? Sorry 'bout that.\" He finally returned to a state of mind that could manage a strained smile. That strained smile was still on Subaru's face when he assented to the Witch's view, running his thoughts over Return by Death being unlimited. It was the most favorable conclusion among the hypotheses inside of Subaru. But  \" Strictly speaking, what you said wasn't unlimited; you said subject to specific conditions. What are those specific conditions?\" \"...Though it vexes me, the Authority that allows you to Return by Death is rooted in the Witch's wild delusion. If the Witch's delusion were to expire, you would cease to reject death  I do not know what would occasion such a thing, but...\" \"We don't even know the reason she's obsessed with me, so it wouldn't be weird if she suddenly dropped me like a hot potato, you know?\" \"Perhaps you have somehow picked up on that being utterly impossible?\" Subaru could not summon a retort to her teasing banter. In point of fact, he was oddly certain of it. The Witch would not permit Subaru to truly die. By the same token, she would not permit Subaru to leave her grasp, either. That baseless yet absolute confidence had been driven into the innermost reaches of Subaru's being like a nail. \"...What do you think this power is for? What do you think about it?\" \"The power is for not allowing you to die, for not allowing you to do wrong.\" \"Why would the Witch...the Witch of Envy hand me that kind of power? It might disgust you to guess, but do you know the...meaning, of my power?\" Gradually speaking faster and faster, Subaru feared the sense of evasiveness toward the odd certainty dwelling inside his chest. Subaru gradually lost the composure in his demeanor, or perhaps it had never been there to begin with. At this, Echidna knit her brows and said, \" I do not understand what you are afraid of. What has you so frightened?\" \"I'm afraid? Yeah, I am afraid! I'm afraid of! I'm afraid of...\" Echidna's inquisitive bent mercilessly sliced open the part of Subaru covering his fears. In place of red blood, her slice resulted in"}, {"text": "the emotions stuffing his chest gushing out instead. Fear, regret, unease, sadness nothing but negative emotions flooded out. \"Even if I die, I'll come back... I didn't want to indulge in thinking I can die any number of times. I didn't want to think it... but if it's the only thing I can rely on, I'll rely on that. But...\" Even if death was without limit, gradually the Witch's shadow would take shape, and Subaru would inevitably have to confront it. Besides, Return by Death was not omnipotent. It could leave situations where something could never be regained. And the greatest thing that he was unable to get back was  \" I...couldn't get Rem back.\" The biggest problem Subaru had with Return by Death was that it had not returned Rem's existence to him. Subaru could never forget, knowing Rem was lost to him, the impulse to stab his throat before her as she slept; nor could he forget the despair when, immediately afterward, he'd returned to the point just before stabbing his throat. \"Why couldn't I get Rem back? If Return by Death is the power for me to restart my fate, why'd it put me in a place where I couldn't get her back...!\" \"So that is the reason for your fear? ...It is both the fountainhead of your remorse, and the source of your desire, I see.\" Gripping his fist so much his nails dug into it, Subaru spoke through clenched teeth. Echidna narrowed her eyes. The Witch's words made him raise his head. When black pupils crossed with black pupils, the Witch said, \"I am about to tell you something that is very cruel.\" With that preamble, the Witch's expression hardened as she continued speaking to Subaru. \" That thing does not take into consideration your regret at not saving the girl from her fate.\" *** \"What it seeks is that your fate is not held captive to a dead end. The Authority is a means to that end and thinks nothing of the harm to anyone beyond you. Employing this power to save others is strictly your own doing, your own desire... The Witch of Envy has nothing to do with it.\" \"aa...\" \"Therefore, I shall declare one more thing.\" Subaru was still reeling from the blow, but Echidna continued speaking of cruel things. That moment, it was what Subaru needed. The Witch of white and black closed her eyes but once, her expression seemingly enduring pain, whereupon the black eyes beheld Subaru within them. \"Hereafter, no matter what damage may occur, you will likely challenge fate without limit, breaking through its deadlocks. However, even if you do change fate, the numerous sacrifices that permitted you to do so...\" \" You're saying a chance to get those sacrifices back will never come my way.\" \"...That would be the end result, yes.\" Echidna thus firmly declared that the Witch of Envy held regard for Subaru's fate alone. So long as Subaru overcame his fated death, everything else was trivial. She trusted that no matter how much things looked like a stalemate, Subaru, challenging without limit, would break past his destiny. And someday, as he repeated, her shadow would thicken, become complete, and then the time of their reunion would  \" Fine. If that's how you want it, being partial only to me, I've decided in my gut.\" *** \"This favor, the Return by Death you gave me... I'll use it till it breaks.\" As a result, he'd arrive before the Witch, not allowing a single thing to fall from his grasp. That's what he'd show her. \"Yeah, I've decided. I've decided  There ain't a soul under heaven who can betray other people's expectations like I can.\" Turning supposition into conviction, the flames of anger, resolve, and decisiveness were lit within him. Subaru Natsuki was back. If Return by Death saved nothing but Subaru, Subaru would save everything else himself. If the Witch showed no such discretion, Subaru would...and he'd use the Witch's love to do it. Obsession, obsession: he'd grab onto it and never let go. He'd pile it higher and climb over it, carrying everything with him.  This would be Subaru Natsuki's first act of payback toward the Witch of Envy. \"...You certainly recovered rather easily...so, too, your recklessness in regard to this despairing situation.\" \"There's nothing easy about it. Maybe I'm just duct-taping my own heart, same as always, desperately stopping my heart from breaking like it did this time. But...\" That moment, the fact that he was not alone loomed large. He no longer had to bear Return by Death alone. Somehow, that fact alone had been of great relief to Subaru's psyche. And, considering just who was responsible for that  *** \"Mm? What is it? I mean, what? Hey, go on, won't you?\" \"You totally know as you're saying it, don't you...?\" Subaru clicked his tongue in irritation as Echidna, talkative and in a jovial mood, prodded him to continue. The Witch saw completely through him, even as to what that click of the tongue meant. Namely, that in having listened to him reveal the forbidden, Echidna's existence had been of great relief to him. That was something he had absolutely no intention of saying to Echidna's face. \"Anyway! I'll take your opinion to heart, and the help with my resolve. I'll thank you for that.\" \"That is all? Those are all the words of thanks you wish to speak to me? Hey, really-really?\" \"Shaddap! Be quiet! Yeah, that's it! Let's talk about the next thing!\" Yelling in anger at the pesky Witch, Subaru furiously pressed his hips down upon his chair. Then, as the Witch went booo, he looked up at her, went \"Please,\" and continued his words with, \"Lend me your wisdom. I can't rely on anyone but you.\" \"What convenient words. Though you say this, I believe I have entertained you more than enough as the hostess of this tea party. If you seek any more from me, then...\" \"I get it. I'm sure I said it at the start about the vow. If you need compensation, I'll pay whatever it takes. So please, that included, lend me your strength.\" Putting his hands to his knees, Subaru bowed his head deeply. Of course, if that proved insufficient, he was resolved to scrape his forehead against the ground, too. At a point like that, what value did pride have? He needed a Witch's wisdom to break through a Witch's scheme  To save everyone, that was the best hand to play. *** Echidna gazed down at Subaru, silent for a time as he conspicuously bowed his head in request of her aid. But finally, the Witch let out a sigh, seemingly unable to endure her own silence any further. And then  \"...It may well be that you have a talent for sweet-talking Witches.\" Her lips loosened, and a charming smile came over the Witch, the words trickling out as she reluctantly gave in. 4 There was no end to what he wanted to discuss with the Witch. But, at that juncture, there was something Subaru first wanted to confirm that was completely separate from the rest. \"I know you called me to the tea party right after Return by Death. But what's happening outside during the time I'm here talking with you?\" \"Did I not speak to you of it previously? This is my castle of dreams, and you and I are merely souls at present. During your time here, you are isolated from the outside, even the passage of time thereof. I will not say that time does not pass whatsoever, but the effect on the outside world is meager at best. Therefore, it is unlikely to the extreme anything is happening outside at all.\" \"That so... If that's the case, at least I'm not leaving Emilia on a cold floor for long hours at a time. That's good news.\" Since the restart point had not changed in any way, Subaru's body was on the floor of the stone room that very moment. Emilia, challenging the Trial, lay right next to him, presumably writhing in a nightmare from which she could not wake. He was worried that his chance encounter was prolonging that nightmare, which would be tragic. \"Such charming consideration for your Princess is unnecessary for the time being. So what is it you wish to borrow my wisdom about? Surely it is not the Princess's sensitivity to cold that is on your mind?\" \"Well that might be true, but that's a pretty thorny way of putting it.\" \"Not really? It is simply, from a normal person's point of view, is it not poor form to pay attention to a different girl immediately after seducing a Witch?\" \"I don't remember seducing you, and in the first place, you're the one who said it's rude to compare a Witch to a normal person.\" He already had his hands full with obsession from a Witch of Envy he didn't remember knowing. Where would he be if he let Echidna's banter just then intimidate him? It was high time to set the teasing aside. Just as Echidna had said, it was time to seriously discuss something about which he had to speak with her. \"This time around, there's so many things I don't understand. But among them, the biggest comes last... The stuff that ate...ate me to death.\" *** \"It's pathetic, but I was killed by fist-size rabbits. They seemed omnivorous and acted like they were raised by someone who starved them. Thanks to that, they cleaned me right off the plate...\" Subaru used frivolous words to describe the experience, which was horrifying to even remember. He'd used a gentle expression, but it was just plain difficult to express the sheer gruesomeness of it. Having fangs bite into his entire body, the memory of having his flesh, bones, and blood violated left a deep mark on Subaru's soul. It was so bad, he was virtually certain that had it not been for the tea party, for Echidna's intervention, his mind truly would have shattered. \"'Raising' is overstating it. As a matter of fact, Daphne did not train the Great Rabbit Horde whatsoever.\" \"...Great Rabbit?\" \"Correctly speaking, the Great Rabbit is plural, not singular. Great Rabbit Horde morphed into Great Rabbit. The demon beast Great Rabbit is considered one of the three great demon beasts, the negative legacies left by Daphne, the 'Witch of Gluttony.'\" \"So that was the Great Rabbit of the three great demon beasts that Julius talked about before...\" He remembered hearing about it. The name of the demon beast had popped up during the conversation when Julius had met up with them after the subjugation of the White Whale. From that, it posed a menace equal to that of the White Whale, worthy of being named among the three great demon beasts. From Echidna's words, she knew that a Witch had created the legacies that had gone on to cause much trouble for others. \"Three great demon beasts...? This, right after the White Whale was beaten? Gimme a break...\" \"Even I cannot help but sympathize with your plight. Furthermore, the Great Rabbit is the worst of foes.\" Subaru clutched his head at the peril being beyond all expectations. Somehow, Echidna's expression seemed very dark. \"I have a bad feeling from the look on your face... Between the White Whale and the Great Rabbit, which is stronger?\" \"In terms of pure combat power, the White Whale wins by a substantial margin. However, what should be prioritized under the circumstances is not combat power but the difficulty of subjugation. In that, the Great Rabbit is overwhelmingly victorious.\" \"Difficulty level of subjugation...? You mean it's hard to beat.\" It seemed the best result would be subjugating the Great Rabbit as had been done with the White Whale. As Subaru had such thoughts, Echidna went, \"Now hold on,\" and raised a finger as she said, \"It seems that you humans think the three great demon beasts are merely"}, {"text": "a little more problematic than normal demon beasts.\" \"Nah, I know they don't really fit a lovely assessment like that, actually...\" \"The appropriate term for the three great demon beasts would be 'natural disasters.'\" When Echidna continued after his interruption of her words, he couldn't laugh off her statement as an exaggeration. It was precisely because Subaru had directly confronted the White Whale, and thus knew how frightening it was, that he could not laugh the Witch's words off. \"The Great Rabbit always operates as a horde, fueled by an insatiable hunger that makes them consume all. To the Great Rabbit, all other living things are food. Aside from eating others and sating that hunger, it has no other desires whatsoever. It simply eats. There is nothing in its wake save uninhabited wasteland. You have surely seen this firsthand.\" \"An uninhabited wasteland, you don't mean... You're talking about the Sanctuary from then?!\" When Echidna spoke of the damage characteristic of the Great Rabbit, the look on Subaru's face changed as he shouted. In an uninhabited Sanctuary, those rabbits had consumed Subaru's entire body. What if those demon beast fangs had been turned against the people of the settlement and that desolate scene had been the result? Then Emilia, Roswaal, Ryuzu, and the bestial Garfiel were no exception. With no one left out, they too had felt the agony and sense of loss from that horde of fangs shaving their lives aw  \"O, ee...!\" The instant the thought came to mind, Subaru was assaulted by a stomach-wrenching sense of nausea. Precisely because it had happened to him, he vividly sensed, and understood, just what pain everyone had experienced. Locust plague as Subaru retched, that was the term arising in the back of his mind. A locust plague was said to be the phenomenon of a huge explosion in locust numbers. Strictly speaking, it wasn't referring to the locusts themselves so much as their sudden appearance as a horde, and that enormously large horde became a calamity that devoured cultivated fields, ruining the farmland and causing outbreaks of famine. What Subaru had just learned about the Great Rabbit greatly resembled what he knew about locust plagues. Though, unlike locusts, this was a true natural disaster that consumed not fields but the flesh and blood of animals. \"Isn't there...some way to drive them off?\" \"It is very difficult. Each individual Great Rabbit is not all that powerful, but the problem is its power to survive... Each individual is able to multiply without limit. You can hunt them to no end and it still won't be enough.\" \"Individuals...multiply without limit?! What are they, amoebas?! N-no, wait a minute! They're a horde, right? You can't take down the boss of the horde and they'll scatter?\" According to the rules of the human world, take down the head and the group will crumble. In the animal world, it might mean the top one or the top two of a horde, but which living creatures did demon beasts take after? Faced with Subaru's hypothesis, Echidna went, \"Unfortunately,\" shrugging her shoulders as she said, \"I did call them a horde, but the Great Rabbit does not fit that concept. I said it, yes? It is a demon beast that can infinitely divide from a single individual. In other words, they all began from the same individual creature. The countless Great Rabbits share the same sense of hunger, and if they have no prey, they make do by eating each other. That is their nature.\" Even cannibalism was not beyond them. Their terrifying ecology left Subaru aghast. Certainly, it was an iron law of living creatures that life was linked to consuming other life-forms. But infinite division and propagation from a single individual, then consuming each other to satisfy their hunger, was an insane concept.  The Great Rabbit was a monster completely devoted to eliminating the very possibility of life. \"If you were to destroy the Great Rabbit, it would require destroying the thing in its entirety. I believe that would be an act on par with vaporizing the lot of them, not allowing a single droplet to fall.\" It was exaggerated talk for the sake of argument. But that simply represented the scale of the problem. Accepting Echidna's explanation, Subaru felt dizzy at just how difficult it was to beat the Great Rabbit. With subjugating it so difficult, the only realistic option to deal with a Great Rabbit attack was to flee. But if the horde of Great Rabbits appeared inside the Sanctuary  \" There's the barrier. As long as that's there, Emilia and the others can't go outside.\" It was almost like a cage, meticulously set in order to obstruct those within. The Great Rabbit's ecology and the Sanctuary's environment could not mesh in a more horrible manner. There was a murderess coming to the mansion, the Great Rabbit coming to the Sanctuary, and both menaces would arrive in five days hence. Before that, the Sanctuary's barrier had to be lifted so that Emilia and the others could flee. Before that, he had to assemble the combat strength to drive Elsa and company from the mansion.  In that loop, that was Subaru's duty, one only he could accomplish. *** He absolutely would not vent weak words like, Can I do it? It was Subaru himself who decided as much, for he had sworn to overcome, no matter what travails might stand in his way. However, in contrast to that determination and that vow, just what ought he do to address the situation  \" Echidna?\" Subaru, plunged into a labyrinth of thought, abruptly realized that something about the Witch sitting opposite to him had changed. Echidna, so leisurely exchanging words with Subaru as she sat in her chair, had a faint crease on her brow. Subaru thought it was an expression of hesitancy about something in regard to him. \"Did you think of something?\" \"...To be quite honest, it is not something I particularly wish to recommend.\" \"But it's something meaningful for breaking this situation open...isn't it?\" Closing her eyes, Echidna neither affirmed nor denied Subaru's words. Her demeanor was tacit confirmation in and of itself. The Witch boasting vast reserves of knowledge had come to a possibility Subaru had not realized for himself. When Subaru leaned his body over the table, Echidna instantly thrust out her palm to hold him at bay. Then, as she squished the tip of Subaru's nose, the Witch continued, \"Please hear me out.\" \"I do not wish to recommend this means. It is truly dangerous.\" \"I'm aware of the dangers. That's why...\" Of course, he couldn't come out and say, That's what Return by Death is for. However, that prevarication aside, Subaru had no doubt conveyed his true intent. Receiving this, Echidna shook her head from side to side. \"The danger is not external. It is here. Danger would befall you in this place.\" \"Here...? What the heck are you trying to tell me...?\" \" What if I said I could grant you an opportunity to speak to Daphne, the Witch of Gluttony?\" *** Offered an impossible proposal, Subaru felt the rhythm of his breath thrown awry. Before this Subaru, the seriousness on Echidna's face did not falter. It didn't feel like a joke. That being the case, the contents from the Witch's mouth were genuine. And if that was true, then  \"All the other Witches are supposed to be dead. There's no way I can speak with that Witch.\" \"If that were true, how are you speaking with me right now? How do you explain this circumstance? Surely you know quite well the fact that I am already among the departed, and yet you claim there is 'no way' you could be speaking to me.\" \"That's, well that's true, but...\" \"Sekhmet, Minerva, Typhon, Camilla, Daphne \" As Subaru hemmed and hawed, Echidna touched her chest, reciting the names like she would for those dear to her. From their previous chance encounter, Subaru knew that these were the names of Witches from long ago. \" They are dead, but their souls are here with me in this castle of dreams. So that I might not lose them, I gathered them all into my own flesh before Volcanica destroyed my body and sealed me away.\" \"You gathered their souls...so you can call them here...?\" \"Yes, albeit by allowing myself to serve as their avatar. During that time, I would be literally replaced by them.\" \"That's...!\" If that happened exactly according to her words, it would be quite an incredible thing. And more to the point, if he could speak to the Witch of Gluttony, he might be able to get a hint as to how to defeat the Great Rabbit. However, in contrast to Subaru leaping at the ray of hope, Echidna had a truly unenthused look on her face. \"...For the one who proposed this, you really don't look thrilled with it, you know.\" \"I told you, it is dangerous. You probably harbor a misconception as to what kind of being a Witch is. You only know of me and that thing, neither holding any animosity toward you.\" \"You're saying the other Witches will hold animosity toward me?\" \"...If you treat them the wrong way, it can be dangerous, safe, very dangerous, extremely dangerous, or absolutely dangerous.\" \"The fact that 'safe' is part of that lineup actually makes it sound worse... So what about Gluttony's case?\" \"Absolutely dangerous.\" Closing her eyes, Echidna rubbed her brow at just how temperamental these Witches were. But her demeanor toward those Witches had been friendly just before. It wasn't as if the Witches got along poorly with themselves. Subaru had a number of cases where friendships and positions were badly mismatched, too. It had to be something like that. \"I understand why you're concerned. But can I ask you to do it anyway?\" \"If you truly desire it, I cannot stop you from doing so. Besides, if I may say something extremely personal I am not disinterested in what you might think after meeting the other girls.\" Speaking thus, Echidna beheld Subaru in her own black pupils. The dark glint in her pair of eyes was inquisitiveness that knew no bottom but this did not overwhelm Subaru as he twisted the corners of his mouth. Faced with that witchy smile, he, as a guest to a Witch's tea party, responded with his dignity intact. \"Incidentally, what happens if I die here?\" \"Only your spirit has been invited into this world. It is a world unrelated to death. Naturally, however, if your spiritual body suffers wounds enough to make you believe you have died, those cracks in your mind will remain even after returning to your body.\" \"In other words, I'd be a complete wreck? That's, like, a lot more risk than anything external?\" \"So do you wish to stop?\" When Subaru raised his voice, the risk of becoming a wreck was pointed out to him, and Echidna sent a provocative smile his way. That smile lit a fire in him. He couldn't back down. \"Do it.\" \" I pray for your good fortune in battle.\" It wasn't set in stone that her final smile was really meant as a prayer for his good fortune. The joyful craving in it that of a girl waiting expectantly in ultimate delight for the result was too strong for such an assumption. Besides, Subaru immediately lost the free time with which to pay any heed to such a thing. *** Echidna's charming smile suddenly melted into the air. The particles from which Echidna was composed unraveled, and her very being was dismantled...only to be reconstructed into a completely different shape. Right after that veritable blink of an eye, appearing across the table from Subaru was  \"Ohh, we finally meet...\" \"...Huh?\" \"Huh? What do you mean, 'huh?' Huh, what? Wow, aren't you a rude one?\" These words spoken, bare feet wiggled in front of Subaru as the other party's cheeks puffed up. There sat a little girl maybe ten years old a being"}, {"text": "one would never think a Witch. 5 The little girl had brown skin and a bright, adorable face the very image of youth and innocence. Her deep green hair mixed with big round red eyes. She wore a lovely white dress with blue flowers at its hem and similar blue flower decorations on her head. The young girl was the epitome of the words pure and innocent, a sight that made Subaru's breath catch. If what Echidna had said during their exchange a moment before was true, the little girl before him was  \"You're...er, you're a Witch, too, right?\" \"Mm, you heard from Dona, right? And you're... I know, you're Baru! Baru it is!\" Dona had to mean Echidna, and Baru had to mean Subaru. The way her reply came off as young or younger than her apparent age threw Subaru for a loop. Certainly, Echidna had portrayed making contact with the other Witches as a difficult battle. \"She didn't mean in the sense of having to deal with kids, right...? So uh, do you know what Echidna and I were talking about?\" \"Kinda-sorta? I heard from inside Dona, so yeah.\" \"The inside Echidna part of that info kind of weighs on my mind but...anyway, I'm glad we at least have some basis to go on. So to get right to the point, about the Rabbit...\" Subaru leaned forward with every intention of asking about the Great Rabbit. But his action made the little girl tilt her head. \"Incidentally,\" she went, bringing him to a halt. \"Baru, are you an evildoer? I've been wondering about that the whole time, you see.\" \"...Evildoer?\" The question, from a completely unanticipated angle, made Subaru unwittingly drop his jaw. As he did so, the little girl swayed her legs, which did not reach the ground, and her chair rattled as she began rocking it back and forth. \"I'm asking if you're an evildoer or not. Which is it...?\" \"You mean like a bad guy...? Er, I'm not sure what you're getting at with that question, but...\" \"Hmm, I get it! I'll check something out, then!\" She turned him an innocent smile, making painfully clear just how difficult it was for Subaru to converse with this Witch. Ignoring that sentiment, the little girl leaped off her chair, trampling the grass with her still-bare feet, and walked over to Subaru. Then, going \"Nn!\" she showed her teeth as she smiled at him and put out her hand. \"...You wanna shake hands? You'll know something if we shake?\" \"Nnn!\" \"I-I get it. I get it. If that makes you happy, hear me out, 'kay?\" He truly felt like he was touching a little girl. Nervous from how she gave off an air younger than the kids of Earlham Village, Subaru took the little girl's hand. Her hand was small, and her palm was soft. But the body temperature was high, like a baby's hand. He thought idly, So spiritual bodies have body temperature, too, huh  \" I take this in compensation for your sins.\" \"What?\" Failing to pick up what she'd said, Subaru initially tried to ask her to repeat it. But before he could, he felt a light blow. Together with the feeling of his arm being ripped off, he felt a sense of liberation, as if freed of some heavy burden. He gazed down at the girl, wondering what had happened. The little girl had a smiling face as she clutched a single arm to her chest. It was an adult male's arm, the area where it had been torn right from the shoulder fully exposed Subaru's right arm. *** \"Ohhh, the fact it didn't hurt means you're not an evildoer. I'm so glad...\" In that emergency situation, Subaru looked at his own right shoulder and the wound left from his stolen arm. The jagged surface of the severed arm was exposed, but just as the little girl had said, he'd felt no pain from his arm being torn off whatsoever. There was no pain, no bleeding, no sense of anything different from before. As he gazed at the bone and arteries marking the fresh, bloody flesh of the wound, it was like looking at meat in the window of a butcher shop. Faced with the abnormality of what had occurred to his own body, Subaru screamed. \"A aaaaaaaaa! M-my arm...my aaaarm?!\" \"Hey, it didn't hurt, right? If you rant in a huge voice like that, Dona's gonna hate you!\" \"Y-y-you?! What are you sayin'...? G-give it back! Give it back!!\" The little girl's easygoing and bizarre worldview blew a hole in Subaru's unaccepting brain. He instantly determined that he needed back the arm she was clutching to reattach it to his shoulder immediately. A human body was not a simple enough thing that this alone would heal it, but he was too confused for that to sink in. Anyway, I've gotta get my arm back, went Subaru, attempting to grab hold of the girl when  \" Thou shall not be among the condemned.\" The next instant, both of Subaru's legs shattered from the knees on down. Having lost his right shoulder, then both his lower legs, Subaru lost his balance, tumbling forward. The blow cracked his hips, sending a fissure into his chest, and his face was flattened at an angle. \"K aa...!! Wh...ut dud...\" \"Oh, you're not an evildoer, but you have a guilty conscience anyway! Awww, Baru, you're so nice, you poor thing. It must be so haaard...\" There was no pain from his shattered legs, his cracked torso, or his head. They were simply broken and lost. Squatting, the little girl gently stroked Subaru's head as he lay on the ground. The earnest benevolence in the stroke of her hand, and the voice she cast toward Subaru, became frightening. He could not comprehend. It didn't compute. He couldn't cope with the abnormality. \"Typhon's completed her goal  After that...eh? Ahhh, I get it!\" Standing up, the girl brushed off her knees and said something, but his mind wasn't paying attention. The little girl seemed to have lost interest in Subaru, too. In the view from lying faceup, the little girl vanished, and in her place, he saw the clear blue sky. *** Perhaps Subaru felt no pain because his body was a spiritual one, formed from his soul alone? He'd been advised that if it was wounded enough to make him think that he had died, it would be something that couldn't be undone. It's all right, I'll endure it, you'll see, he thought, and this was the result. The cracks on his limbs, his hips, his torso, his head, were growing, until finally, within the dream, he would become fine particles of dust  \" Oooone! The absurdities of the human world must be punched!\" There was a voice. The voice strongly reverberated through Subaru, on the verge of shattering to dust. The voice continued. It was imposing...imposing without a hint of shame. \" Twooooo! Nefarious misdeeds can go to hell!!\" The voice echoing in the distance gradually grew nearer. Moreover, it was a voice with a high-pitched echo. \" Threeeee! Be it unsightly or beautiful, all is part of this transient world!!\" As he broke, Subaru listened to the voice. As his limbs turned to dust his torso having already lost its shape and his soul received wounds rivaling death itself, there was a great rumble as something stepped close. With wide-open eyes, Subaru saw something twirling around. \" Do not think! You'll just! Get away with this!!\" As Subaru lay faceup, the fist made a direct blow to the bridge of his nose, penetrating to the back of his skull and making the ground behind it explode. A crater was formed in the grassy plain, and a plume of dust rose from the destructive force of the explosive blow. *** He didn't understand what had happened. But with his psyche on the verge of death, he was caught by his neck and forcefully swung about. It was as if he was being dragged away from death...as if it was too soon for him to die. He was dragged up and pummeled. Fists punched wildly, continuing to dig into Subaru like rain. Engulfed by the impact, he completely lost his bearings. His psyche was dyed white. His field of vision beheld only the unrelenting fists and the side of the face of the girl hurling them, drenched in sweat and tears. The girl's tears glistened as they scattered into the sky. The girl wept as she swung one fist, then another, pounding the nearly dead Subaru over and over and over and over again. \"Through my fists, the world is reborn! Through my anger, the world is cleansed!! My wrath! My healing fists! This is my answerrrr !!\" Putting her hips into what truly deserved the wording, she slammed a mighty blow into Subaru's face. I'm gonna blow, thought Subaru, utterly certain the impact would do just that. \"Eh?\" However, the blast he was certain would come never arrived. His skull was intact, as was his life that was surely disintegrating, the fists affecting nothing at all.  No, they had an effect. His arm, his legs, his torso, his head, his face the cracks had vanished from them all as they returned to their former state. Subaru's soul, breaking apart to become dust of the dream, had been pieced back together. \"Th-this is...\" \"Arm and both legs are fine, huh! That's me for you. My work is awesome!!\" As Subaru sat cross-legged on the ground, confirming his limbs were safe and sound, he heard a powerful force come at him from behind. When he nervously looked over his shoulder, he saw that the speaker truly was standing close enough to touch. When he looked up at the other party, what immediately leaped into Subaru's eyes were  \"...Breasts?\" \" !! Wh-where the hell are you looking?!\" The other person was so close that he saw not her face, but the breasts that obstructed his vision before it. Subaru's dumbstruck voice made the owner of the breasts go shrill as she leaped backward. Finally, he could see her entire body. \"P-please look at someone's eyes when you speak with them. Eyes! Goodness! Men are always like this, that's why I can't trust them!\" Yet another unfamiliar girl raged, venting her naked anger at the male gender. The beautiful girl had gleaming golden hair, worn in a side ponytail that rubbed against her face, and vivid, nearly transparent blue eyes. She wore a short skirt that prioritized ease of movement, wearing a white-based tunic over her torso. She looked similar in age to Subaru, though she was a fair bit shorter and she had big breasts and a large butt that lent her a very appealing figure. Combined with the person's demeanor, Subaru felt he ought to call it a healthy sex appeal. The girl's hostile demeanor and actions put Subaru at a loss as to what he ought to say to her first. During that time, a change came over the girl. Her blue, fairly slanted eyes moistened dramatically. \"Y-you're crying...?\" \"I am not crying at all! I'm simply angry! That's right, I'm angry! It's Typhon's fault! Hurting you this much when I hadn't had any intention of coming out...! Stupid Typhon! I hate the world that makes her do these things! I really hate everybody!\" Stamping her foot upon the ground, her tears flowed profusely as she made the ground tremble beneath her feet. When Subaru looked with greater care, this, plus the blow to him earlier, was causing extreme damage to their surroundings. The hill upon which he'd had the tea party with Echidna had been flattened, and the table and parasol had been sent flying. It was abnormal for there to be such damage yet for it not to have any effect upon Subaru. Between the exchange just prior and the girl's current behavior, he somehow guessed what the girl before him was. \"Th-thank you for saving me? But this must mean you're also a...\" \"I am Minerva, the Witch"}, {"text": "of Wrath! No one is worthy of invoking her name!!\" \"You did it just now, didn't you?!\" \"Anyway! I healed your wounds! My duty is finished! You no longer have so much as a trace of a bee sting on you! That is a Witch's promise, so there!\" \"Don't talk so casually about Witches and promises! Do you even know how much both of those things scare me?!\" Averting her face, the girl the Witch Minerva vented her anger in adorable fashion. However, the abnormal claim was true after all. He'd felt the effects of literal \"tough medicine.\" After receiving a thrashing that left the area around him destroyed, his wounds had been healed. As far as mysterious phenomena went, this was something else. But he could only think of events up to that point as having been broken and healed according to the whims of others  \"Gaaah...! I get it!\" Minerva abruptly glared at the sky, looking like she was exchanging words with an invisible person. When this made Subaru grimace, the girl finally pointed right at him as she delivered a scolding. \"Now see here, don't do anything rash from here on out! Or next time I'll heal everyone!\" \"Don't say that like you're gonna slaughter everybody...\" With that finger thrust toward him, he was overwhelmed by her voice and the powerful will infused within. When Subaru somehow managed that mumbling reply, before his eyes, the sight of Minerva swayed like a mirage  \"...Seeing your face makes me feel so relieved it's like I'm back at my own house.\" \"...That appraisal leaves me somewhat conflicted. I was somewhat nervous that we would not be able to converse anymore.\" Before the exhausted Subaru, Echidna appeared with displeasure upon her face. The Witch twirled her long, white hair around a finger, not looking in Subaru's direction very much. Subaru sighed at the Witch's timid demeanor. \"Your warning was correct. I almost died and got zero to show for it... Pathetic.\" \"That could not be helped... More to the point, an issue came up, which forced that result. Even though my objective was to let you speak to Daphne, the instant I relinquished my body, Typhon ran on ahead and...\" \"Mm? Wait, that was Typhon, not Daphne?\" When Subaru, seeing that the name was off, tilted his head, the interrupted Echidna nodded. \"The first Witch to appear before you was Typhon...the Witch of Pride. I believe you know this from your contact with her, but she is such a child. She set off running, wanting to meet you with all her heart.\" \"Meaning I almost got killed by a girl not even related to this stuff...?\" Strictly speaking, he was in peril not of death but of becoming a wreck of a man, yet the effect was the same. Besides, had she mistaken wanting to meet him for wanting to kill him...? \"She named herself, but the one who saved you from the verge of death was Minerva, the Witch of Wrath. In terms of what I explained earlier, that girl is the Witch you would be 'safest' with.\" \"Yeah, she came off like a, hmm...a fresh-feeling explosive, Tsundere, big-breasted loli healer. Thanks to her, I didn't have to die but...\" Subaru broke off his words and looked around the area. There was no little hill left anywhere to be seen on the grassy plain. Sensing from Subaru's gaze what he was getting at, Echidna flashed a strained smile and snapped her fingers. Instantly, there was a puff of wind. Simultaneously, for a brief moment, the world was enveloped in darkness as if a curtain had fallen. Then, when the curtain lifted everything was back as it had been for the tea party of dreams. \"Ohhh...man, you really are a Witch.\" \"I am shocked you would doubt such a thing after all of our conversation together. Well then, what now?\" \"What do you mean, what now?\" \"Do you wish to continue? I can firmly state that this time, I can grant you an audience with Daphne for certain, without interruptions...but Daphne is more dangerous than Typhon.\" Subaru audibly gulped. Naturally, Echidna's words had given rise to fear. \"...If Wrath was safe, where did Pride land on the scale?\" \"Typhon was 'very dangerous,' I suppose? Just not as much compared to Camilla and Daphne.\" \"Hearing that really makes a guy think, huh...\" When he was told he'd spoken to Typhon, conversation seemed like a distant memory to him. If he dealt with someone even less inclined toward proper speech, his life truly would be in danger. Even if that was not the case, she was still the creator of demon beasts, which were collections of murderous instincts. Perhaps it truly had been a reckless challenge that Subaru had been doomed to lose from the beginning. Then, just as he began to think of his battle as one with no chance of victory  \" That's why I have to pry the door open, damn it.\" If it was just a matter of victory or defeat, Subaru Natsuki couldn't win against anyone. It was Subaru's manner of fighting to challenge so that odds of victory might be born. \"Your determination is firm, then? Understood.\" Before Subaru's eyes, Echidna's provocative stance gave way to a sigh with an air of resignation. However, the Witch then went \"However,\" raising a finger as she said, \"I do want to make this much very clear. You absolutely must not free Daphne of her restraints.\" \"Restraints...\" \"Moreover, I forbid you from touching her. If possible, I would like you to avoid meeting her eyes as well.\" \"If I upheld all that I'd be a guy so creepy I'd wanna die, you know?! \" In the first place, she hadn't explained the word restraints, something he could not dismiss. But before he could pursue the matter further, Echidna had finished preparing on her end. The Witch's form slowly wavered, her existence unraveled, and the world melted as she switched places with a different Witch. Then, with Subaru's body hard and tense, it slowly emerged before his eyes. \"...Come on, isn't this a little excessive?\" Drawing back his chin, Subaru let those words out in a quivering voice. If it was truly the Witch of Gluttony that had appeared before his eyes, the sight of her was truly difficult to ignore. \" Subaruuu, is there something youu want to ask Daphnee?\" With a sweet voice, Daphne the Witch of Gluttony asked with a sniff of her refined nose.  The Witch was inside a coffin, firmly bound by chains, both eyes sealed by a black blindfold. 6 It wasn't that there was nothing distinct about her. Rather, the Witch's external appearance was peculiar in very awkward ways. The coffin was shaped closest to the torture device known as an iron maiden. The Witch, packed into the vertically standing black coffin, outwardly looked thirteen or fourteen years old. She wore her ashen hair back in two tails that reached down as far as shoulder level. A pitch-black straitjacket worn over white clothing was affixed to the coffin with chains. Both of her eyes were covered by a blindfold wrapped to cross over the center of her face, lending her appearance an ominous witchiness greater than those who had preceded her. \"I came out because Donadona said to, even though sleeping felt really goood... I don't want to be up that looong, so don't talk about anything boring, okaaay?\" \"Y-yeah, thanks for the trouble of coming out. That statement sounds more like Sloth than Gluttony, so...you're the Witch of Gluttony, right?\" The other party was blindfolded and surely not at liberty to step back. But there was Echidna's warning just prior, so Subaru carefully closed the distance by only a single step. But that move made Daphne, inside the coffin, murmur \"Ahh,\" humming through her nose before saying, \"...This might be poison for Daphne's body Centipede Coffin.\" *** She called out, and Subaru's surprise at the subsequent spectacle made his throat catch. To put it matter-of-factly, all Daphne did was move backward, seemingly to maintain the distance with Subaru. However, it was how she moved that was beyond Subaru's expectations. *** The lower part of the coffin binding Daphne suddenly floated up off the ground. The cause was the legs that sprouted on the bottom of the coffin legs moving like those of a crab or a spider. With these legs, the coffin moved backward. It was like a mobile iron maiden or, more accurately, it moved like a living creature. \"Can I...ask you what that is...?\" \"Meaniiing? Daphne cannot see, so say it in a way Daphne can understand.\" \"That um...super-aesthetic coffin you have there. From what little I know, coffins don't have feet, and they definitely don't move like insects at amazing speeds like that.\" With a creaking sound, the coffin set itself down, as if having reached its destination, drawing the legs it had sprouted back inside again. The action was like a turtle hiding in its shell, but vastly more repulsive. \"Daphne cannot move freely, so Daphne made the Centipede Coffiiiin for thaaat. It moves from Daphne's sweat and pee, very convenient, yeees?\" \"Suddenly I feel like that's waaaay too much information.\" The gist was that it was a creature living off its host's waste products. Inside his head, he mulled whether it was just poorly phrased, but the abnormality of it was conspicuous indeed. The greatest abnormality was surely the part about her having \"made\" it. \"When Subaruu is by Daphne's side, Daphne's body throoobbbs... It's a scent that Daphne really, reaaaally likes... It makes Daphne want to eat youuu.\" \"By eating you mean, ah...swallowing me up?\" \"Swallowing youuu...\" Daphne replied with a red face, almost like someone drunk. The words probably meant something different to her than they did to him. Her expressions were adorable, but the Witch had said without hesitation she wanted to \"eat\" Subaru. This indicated that she meant nothing beyond the literal meaning of consuming food in other words, cannibalism was not too far for her. Common sense or ethical considerations would be of no aid to him. Seizing hold of the pace required a preemptive strike. \"I get that neither of us wants the conversation to drag too long. I get it, so I'll get right to my question. It's about the three great demon beasts you made.\" \"Three...great?\" \" !! The White Whale, the Great Rabbit, and the Black Serpent, those demon beasts! You made them, right?!\" Her demeanor, like she didn't remember them, set Subaru off, making him shout the names of the demon beasts. At those names, Daphne tilted her head left and right a number of times as she answered. \"Ahhh, you mean Whaley, Buuunny, and Snakey?\" \"That's what I'm telling y...\" \"But you called them by strange names. I don't knoooow the names other people giiive them. I mean, those children just picked uuup and left Daphne all on their ooown...\" Squirming inside the coffin, Daphne seemed to try and evade Subaru's anger. Apparently, she didn't have much self-awareness about creating life being a veritable act of God.  Meaning that in creating the demon beasts, Daphne wielded power rivaling that of proper deities. \"Geez, why did you create guys like that, anyway...?\" \" ? Whyyy?\" \"Why! Did you let! Guys like that loose on the world!\" Unable to bear her attitude any longer, like it was someone else's problem, Subaru rang out an angry shout at the mother of demon beasts. Wrath made his face red, as he pointed a finger at Daphne and howled. \"Even if you're dead, it's been four hundred years! How much rampaging do you think those demon beasts have done?! All the people, tens of people, hundreds of people! The casualties are still increasing even now!\" The ferocious clash with the White Whale on the Liphas plains rose to the back of his mind. He remembered Wilhelm's tenacity, his shouting the name of his slain wife, the days of lament and anger spent by the knights"}, {"text": "participating in that battle and the source of it all was the Witch in the coffin before his eyes. \"What for! What did you make a monster like the White Whale for?!\" \" ? The bigger a creature is, the more people it can feed, riiight?\" \" Uh, wha?\" The thoroughly mystified look on Daphne's face brought Subaru's forceful, sharp recriminations to a halt. When, as her demeanor rendered his vigor fruitless, he murmured, Daphne inclined her head even farther as she said, \"The White Whale, it's big, right? A lot of people could be satisfied from eating it.\" \"What are you...\" \"The Great Rabbit, weeell...they just multiply more and mooore. As long as it's around, no one will go hungryyy. Isn't that wooonderful?\" \"That's because the Great Rabbit ate so many of them!!\" Daphne's speech was incoherent. If he took the words at face value, the reason she created monsters was to resolve the problem of hunger. To save people from the anguish of starvation, she'd created monsters as a source of food  And yet, so many people had fallen victim to those monsters. \"You got everything totally backward! The number of people taken by monsters is way higher than the people whose bellies were filled by...\" \"You're going to eat the other oooone, but you don't think it's possible you'll be eaten yourseeelf... Isn't that a little too unfaaair?\" As Subaru wore a bitter face, Daphne smiled charmingly, speaking the words as if they were the most natural in the world. *** Drinking down her statement, Subaru strived to understand, and he finally understood that he could not understand. He'd been mistaken. From her appearance and her capacity for words, he'd thought he could speak to her person to person. But he was wrong. The girl before his eyes was not a \"person\" at all. \"That's animal logic...\" The strong eat the weak this was truly the concept behind Daphne's actions. Furthermore, it was not that she saw value in a world where the strong ate the weak; her eyes were solely focused upon eating. Now he understood Echidna's explanation: Daphne really was dangerous, someone who could not be reasoned with. Subaru and Daphne had different values. She was a Witch. Even among the Witches, of which there were only seven in the world, she was a true Witch. \"Subaruu...don't you think about easing everyooone's Gluttony, toooo?\" *** \"In liiiife, Gluttony is the most important craving of all, you knooow? I meaaan, if you can't satisfy thaaat, you can't live, can youuu?\" *** \"Even if you have no peaaace, even if you are not loooved, even if you can't vent your emoootions, even if you can't respect yourseeelf, even if you can't get what you cooovet, even if you can't get excited about aaaanything, that won't kill aaanyone. But...\" *** \"If you can't eaaaat, you die, riiiight?\" Of all the seven deadly sins, only the sin of Gluttony was directly connected to life itself. In a proper sense, Gluttony meant a craving for food beyond that which was necessary. But in this case, Daphne truly believed it to mean the craving for food that was necessary to sustain life. She had a point, one he could not refute. However  \"What you're saying is partially right. I acknowledge that. But that's just...\" \"Subaruu, you should try hunger up to the very limit ooonce. Then you'll understand what Daphne's words meaaan... What kind of world Daphne and Buuunny live iiin.\" Certainly, when she referred to starvation in the utmost extreme, Subaru lacked any words to speak in reply. Subaru had never experienced hunger to the point that it had threatened his life. In a normal household in modern Japan, a lack of food to the level of starvation basically didn't exist, and even once summoned to another world, he'd been blessed with the good fortune of meeting Emilia in short order and being taken in by Roswaal Manor.  Even if hunger pangs assailed him that very moment, inflicting difficult-to-endure anguish, it wouldn't make him understand the Witch's psyche. \"So that monster, the Great Rabbit, was created out of your own hunger, then...\" \"All those childreeen took after Daphne after they were born, especially Daphne's empty stomaaach... You can understand how they feel when they eat each otheeer...\" \"...Doesn't that make your conscience hurt? How you made the monsters you created feel that emptiness in their stomachs.\" \" ? Even if Buuunny's stomach is empty, it doesn't make Daphne's stomach emptieeer?\" \"...I was stupid to ask.\" They were talking past each other. No matter how long he tried, he'd never understand this Witch. To Daphne, even the monsters she had created were nothing more than emergency rations there for the nabbing whenever her belly was empty. She gave birth to them, she ate them. It was the ultimate in self-sufficiency truly, this was the mother of the Great Rabbit. Perhaps it was pointless to exhaust words upon Daphne any longer, but  \"If I said I want to send that Great Rabbit packing, any hints you could give me?\" \"Ehhh, you want to destroy Buuunny? That child, it's weak but easy to eaaat and spreads so easy, tooo. It's Daphne's masterpieeeece.\" \"If you're gonna push that weak-eats-the-strong, eat-or-be-eaten stuff, then I'd like you to acknowledge that killing so you can live is basic survival instinct.\" Toward Daphne, who was stubborn in her off-the-wall judgment, Subaru framed his rebuttal in sophistry. Their values were different, so they couldn't communicate in the same realm. Trying to play ball and establish space between Subaru and Daphne where they could see eye to eye was a long shot, likely fruitless for both parties. However  \" The Great Rabbit relies on mana to search for prey, you seeee.\" \"...What got into you all of a sudden?\" \"I meaaan, if you have to eat to liiiive, you have to accept you have to kill to live, tooo, or it won't make seeense?\" Subaru was suspicious about Daphne coming right out and telling him about the Great Rabbit as he'd asked. As he did so, Daphne nodded over and over, apparently accepting Subaru's sophistry from earlier. He'd expected some kind of instant counterargument, but he'd apparently filled the chasm between his and Daphne's values from different realms. Ignoring Subaru's surprise at that, Daphne spoke about the characteristics of her child as the mother of demon beasts. \"It's attracted to large amounts of mana, sooo you could use a strong magic user as a decoy to lure them togeeether. Then you could take them out all at oooonce?\" \"...I heard they increase with no limit. Won't there be guys away from the pack?\" \"No matter how many bodiiies, there is only one miiind. So it's liiiike, one set of thoughts is shared across the whole hooorde. It doesn't have any smarts for keeping it from being destroooyed.\" \"That so. So if we do take them out, it won't be like, they all come back from one survivor like something out of a clich\u00c3\u00a9 horror movie ...\" It was an obligatory plot in a monster panic movie, but combined with the Great Rabbit's characteristics, it wouldn't be funny at all. But the information from just then was a huge contribution for how to deal with the impending Great Rabbit. It didn't mean he'd worked out a sure way to eliminate it yet, but the data was plenty to make all that worth the effort. He saw a tiny glimmer of hope. \"Fuwaah... Is it all right if Daphne rests noooow?\" To Subaru, his head pondering how to subjugate the Great Rabbit, Daphne yawned and spoke thusly. To the bitter end, she did things at her own pace or rather, was heedless of all around her. To Daphne, just like the Great Rabbit, all began and ended with her individual existence. Accordingly, the Witch had utterly no interest in the results; not for Subaru, not for the Great Rabbit. Perhaps the only thing that interested her was insatiable hunger. What did that even mean for a Witch who was no longer alive? \"Yeah. Took a while, but I'll keep that tucked away. Thanks also.\" One was alive, and the other was dead; the eras of their lives were different. Had it not been for such a fashion, Subaru and Daphne were two lines that would never, ever have crossed. Hence, there was no issue whatsoever with giving up on their different values and parting ways. There was no issue, but  \" I will destroy the Great Rabbit. I already killed the White Whale. I won't accept any complaints from their mommy dearest.\" *** \"Four hundred years ago, you might have thought you did a good job. If you didn't, well, setting that aside, they've rampaged on and on. They've done enough  I'll erase them, with no trace left.\" There was a vast chasm between their values and, fully aware of this, Subaru spoke. Not knowing whether it would reach, he'd wanted to fire off at least one arrow at the Witches toying with him until the bitter end. Faced with Subaru's declaration of war, Daphne showed him a reaction like none before it. \"...Uppity human.\" The murmur that trickled out was utterly bereft of the sweet atmosphere up until that point. The Witch's mouth opened broadly to one side, and for the first time, he caught a glimpse of tangible will beyond mere Gluttony. \" Do iiiit, if you can.\" Baring her all-too-sharp fangs and sticking out her red tongue, the Witch of Gluttony laughed with delight. 7 *** A powerful wind blew, and Subaru unwittingly threw up his arms, obstructing his field of vision. His eyes followed as the gust buffeted the grassland, and a swirl of wind made the petals of wild flowers dance aloft in the sky. He watched until they were swallowed by the light of the sun, whereupon his gaze returned. And then  \" Sorry for insisting, Echidna.\" \"I need no thanks. In this place, it is good for the girls to exchange words with someone besides me once in a while. Of course, if it was not a being like you, he or she could not stand before us.\" \"...You pulling my leg?\" \"It would be great if all could be solved by pulling legs, but many things cannot.\" Echidna, manifesting in Daphne's place, spoke in a jesting manner as she shrugged her shoulders. At the very least, though Subaru felt the same sense of oppression from his first meeting with Echidna, he did not receive the same urge to vomit. He'd felt the same when meeting the other Witches. He'd felt fear due to the girls' abnormality. But there had been no instinctive sense of rejection. That was the difference. \"So did you pick up anything from that talk with Daphne?\" \"I suppose so... First, I picked up that among the Witches, you're incredibly sane.\" \"Ha... Goodness gracious, this will not do. I cannot have you look at me more lightly from such lovely-to-hear words putting me in a good mood.\" At Subaru's deeply felt reply, Echidna made a sound through her nose, plus some small jest. After that, the Witch hummed a tune as she put fresh tea and cookie-like treats onto the table. The tune wasn't very good. At any rate, she was an easy-to-understand Witch. \"But I'll pass on your body fluids and cookies with who-knows-what mixed into them.\" \"I have not put any hair in them.\" \"At this point I've gotta second-guess each and every thing you tell me!\" From that moment forward, Subaru firmly swore in his heart that he would not eat or drink again at that tea party. In contrast to Subaru's determination, Echidna made a pained smile and narrowed her black eyes. With those dark-colored eyes staring at him, Subaru grimaced, feeling distinctly uncomfortable. \"I don't really like how those eyes seem to see through everything.\" \"If I could understand everything about someone by staring, I would stare at you until you burst into flames... Besides, I really must say,"}, {"text": "you have little self-awareness, do you?\" \" ? What are you talking about? Self-aware of what?\" \"Perhaps the distorted situation? For instance...if you had a mind to, you could calmly exchange words with even Typhon, provided she said she wants to speak with you. Am I wrong?\" With Subaru tilting his head, Echidna tossed him a question. Accepting it, Subaru twisted his head one way then the other, pondering. What did the Witch want to say, or what was she trying to make him say? \"...If she wanted to talk I think I'd hear her out. What of it?\" \"After Typhon did all that to you? Normally, a person could never accept someone who shattered his arms and legs and nearly killed him, not even if those wounds had been completely healed.\" *** The instant she pointed that out, Subaru's breath caught. His reaction made the blackness of Echidna's eyes thicken in ever-deeper interest. During that time, Subaru slowly remembered something he had forgotten how to breathe. \"It seems you were not wholly unaware of it.\" \"...I wonder if it's an issue with how my mind's working right now. Certainly I'm self-aware that my thinking is a little less than sane. But I can't just come out and say certain stuff, right?\" What would happen if he said in anger about Typhon, who'd nearly taken his life, that he couldn't forgive her? Even Rem had killed Subaru once upon a time. And once upon a time, Ram had helped her do so. Even so, Subaru had forgiven them both. Love toward them had won out against anger. He'd chosen a tomorrow he could spend with them over a tomorrow without them. \"Of course, it's different with Witches I only just met than with Rem and Ram. I'm not gonna put up with talking to Typhon unless she apologizes. Tell her that.\" \"...Understood. I do not know if she will listen or if she will desire to speak with you again, but I shall have a firm word with her about the matter.\" Puffing out her chest, Echidna undertook to do as Subaru said in a most commendable manner. Nodding at her reply, Subaru abruptly looked down at his two hands. He had an odd sense that something was off. He opened and closed his fists, knitting his brows with a questioning look. \"The heck? I'm getting this weird, creepy feeling...\" \" It would seem that the time for you to awaken draws near.\" \"Awaken? ...Meaning...\" Subaru felt dizzy as his upper body swayed. Tasting something like dizziness from getting up too fast, Subaru, still seated in his chair, blinked, as he wondered what was going on. Awakening meant liberation from the castle of dreams. But what was strange about that was  \"According to what you told me, I can't leave here so long as you haven't given permission?\" \"That should be the case, but there are exceptions. For instance, in the case that your flesh and blood is being urged to awaken from without......but that is odd. Certainly this time we have spoken at length, but even so, this is not a common occurrence by any means.\" \"Woken from the outside...? Don't tell me, that means...\" Subaru's eyes opened wide as Echidna's explanation made him think of something. In his present condition, Subaru was only a soul invited into Echidna's dream. The flesh and blood meant to contain it ought to have still been lying on the stone floor in the tomb, limbs spread like a snow angel. Time flowed differently between inside and out, so he figured it was basically impossible someone had sensed something wrong and entered the tomb. In other words, there was only one person who could be waking Subaru up. \"Emilia's trying to wake me? No, wait, in the first place...\" That was when Subaru realized a strange fact. There was no mistaking that Emilia was challenging the tomb's Trial. Subaru had entered there during that time, after all. But if those events were happening in the castle of dreams during that Trial, then  \"Weren't you playing the part of the examiner for the Trial? What are you doing here, then?\" \"Mm?\" \"I mean, Emilia's challenging the Trial, too, right? What are you doing here instead of supervising that? Isn't that weird?\" \"...Ahhh, that is what you mean. But I already see the result, so...\" \"You see the result...?\" The terribly blunt reply left Subaru unable to continue to the next phrase. This was because Echidna's apathy about Emilia's trial came from referencing Subaru's own memories. So far as Subaru knew, Emilia would be unable to beat the Trial for three days hence. Even if one thought she could do it with more time, the Great Rabbit would rob her of the time required. \"Therefore, I am no longer interested in the result of her challenge. I surely cannot expect her to have a breakthrough in three days, even through trial and error. Or perhaps you could do it?\" *** \"Would you, he who has decided to redo over and over, spread your wings for the cowardly Princess's sake?\" The sarcastic, teasing way she said it made Subaru shut his eyes. On the back of his eyelids, all that floated up was the image of Emilia crying, her heart broken by the Trial. To make her overcome the Trial, would he die over and over, to avoid making her wear that face? His heart strongly implored him not to behave in a manner so cruel. \"I hate to be a sucker for your taunt, but I can't let you make Emilia cry anymore.\" \"Er...mm, it is not as if I am the one making her cry, however.\" \"For that sake, I'll challenge your bad-taste Trial. I meant to do that last time around, anyway. People got in my way, so I couldn't then, but I'll make it happen next time.\" \"You really did not have to say it is in bad taste...\" Echidna commented with a pout, but that did nothing to dampen Subaru's resolve. Either way, the declaration he had made to Echidna was genuine. This time, Subaru wanted to take the Trial. He'd already overcome the first Trial. If he broke past the second and the third, the Sanctuary would be liberated from the barrier. After that, he could race to the mansion and, borrowing Beatrice's power, send Elsa and the Beast Master packing. For that, he'd challenge as many times as he needed to. The last thing to tug at his mind was  \"...Garfiel.\" Even then, having restarted, he couldn't pin down how he ought to act toward the man who could bestialize into a giant tiger. The fact was, the more he Returned by Death, the more the miasma thickened, prompting unnecessary disputes between him and Garfiel. If so, in spite of the overwhelming power gap between Garfiel and others, he wound up turning his claws against Ram, Otto, and the villagers. Even if he survived, the other guy wouldn't listen even if the circumstances changed, how could he reconcile with such a man? \"...There's no way.\" At the very least, Subaru was incapable of forgiving Garfiel in his current mental state. Of course, it wasn't someone he ought to be antagonizing, either. He'd have to avoid confrontation as best he could. There was no chance of victory through arms. He could not yet bring himself to imagine Garfiel becoming an ally, but... \"Shit, not good... My mind's really breaking down.\" In the middle of such thoughts, his mind swayed. He was struck by the sensation that he was falling asleep. From the sight of Subaru, Echidna said, \"It seems our time is at an end,\" and continued, \"From my perspective, this time was particularly fruitful, and this after not even being asked a question last time. Have I lived up to the name of the Witch of Greed, at least a little?\" \"I suppose you have... Yeah, to be honest, it's a big help...both for making a plan and for my psyche.\" Compared to the previous occasion, when he'd indeed exchanged words with Echidna for only a short time, they had spoken long. During that time, a number of people who had not shown themselves before Subaru to date had revealed themselves. Most of all, he'd divulged Return by Death. His eaten-to-death psyche's wounds had also apparently healed. Even if the outside world would doubt his sanity for the thought, he didn't find being aided by a Witch to be so mysterious. \"One Witch's power makes me redo from death; another's saves my psyche, huh?\" \"What was that?\" \"Nah, just talking to myself  Echidna, what should I do to come here again?\" *** Through Return by Death, Subaru would be certain to return to the tomb. But an invitation into Echidna's territory required qualifications beyond that. Opening the door of dreams required a key, just like his desperate struggling had acted as a trigger that time around. \"I know it's selfish to ask. But down the road, a time will come when I want to borrow your wisdom again. You know a lot of stuff, and besides...\" \" Because I know about your Return by Death, yes?\" \"...Yeah, that's right.\" Until that point, Subaru had no one who knew he Returned by Death that he could also actually converse with. But that was possible with Echidna, the Witch before his eyes. Echidna was sharper-witted than Subaru. Her power was necessary to overcome the current loop. \"I do not mind the feeling of being relied on. However, the living should not so easily welcome the dead into their thoughts or lend them their hearts...particularly when dealing with a Witch.\" \"You mean, it's no good?\" \"I am not saying it is no good. But I believe it will probably be more difficult from here on.\" With dejection and hope both dwelling in Subaru's eyes, Echidna's cheeks went taut as she made a strained smile. \"The conditions for inviting a guest steadily become more difficult. The first time, I am free to call someone, but from the second onward, it is not so. This is the second time you have been invited. Your voice and its heartfelt craving to know reached me. The third time requires it be even greater than the second  Do you think you are capable of this?\" \"A bigger voice than this time around, meaning I have to die with a bigger impact than being eaten by bunnies? ...Even if I could, I would, um, prefer not to.\" In the first place, when he'd died this latest time, it was enough to spark madness. He'd been in a veritable oblivion, his soul shaken to the very core of his being as he cried out, why  Just what kind of pain and loss would he have to arrive at to one-up that? \"Since you have rejected it, this may well be the final time you and I come face to face. But if you engage with the Trial according to your plan, that might not be so.\" \" ? Ahh, I get it! So that's how it is!\" He palmed a fist. He understood what Echidna was getting at. He'd have a chance to speak with her outside of a tea party. Just like during the first Trial, if Subaru challenged the Trial in Emilia's place, his desire for reunion would be granted when he met the Witch during the second and third Trials. \"So if I do that, then? That said, there's more to that than a cup of tea...\" \"If you insist, I am willing to pour you some there as well...\" \"Nah, the more I see of what goes into it, the less I wanna drink that stuff.\" When he thrust out the palms of his hand, rejecting her offer, Echidna wore the most dejected face she had to date. He had no idea why the Witch was trying to supply him with her own bodily fluids to that extent. Maybe it aroused"}, {"text": "her to have part of herself become part of another. That would be sinful indeed. Either way, he'd put the next opportunity on his to-do list. There was one thing left to do before he departed. \"Feels like I'm about to wake up for real. So Echidna, please, before that.\" *** \"Hey, don't leave me hanging! Compensation for the tea party! You're the one who said it!\" \"A-ahh, compensation. Of course, obligatory for a Witch's tea party. It would be bad if I forgot such a thing.\" For an instant, he was nervous that she had genuinely forgotten, but Echidna spoke those words with a suspicious-looking smile. Normally, Subaru would have wanted her to forget about making him pay compensation before being swept outside, but this time, the \"vow\" business was included in the compensation. He couldn't omit it. The vow would be rewritten, and he would return outside of the dream with his memories of Echidna, and the tea party, intact. Worst case, if he forgot about the conversation with Daphne, the only future waiting for him was being eaten by the Great Rabbit a second time. \"Last time, I forbade you from speaking of the tea party. This time, you desire that I unbind you from that vow, and I have given you a warm reception in other ways still. I must have appropriate compensation.\" \"Just thinking of it all makes me nervous about what I'm gonna pay for it.\" \"Perhaps after you die, I shall collect your soul, and you may enjoy an eternal party with us...\" \"Sorry. I can't die, remember?\" \"I suppose not. I find that thing's obsession even more detestable than before.\" He thought it was a joke nonetheless, but as penultimate choices went, it was frightening compensation indeed. Just thinking about spending all eternity there with the Witches left him unable to stop shaking. If I have to offer compensation on the same level as that  Just as Subaru was worrying along those lines, Echidna went, \"In that case,\" stretching out her hand as she said, \"I really had my eye on that one, but I suppose this will do?\" As she spoke, Echidna's fingers touched the white handkerchief wrapped around Subaru's wrist. Given to him by Petra, the proof of his promise to her to return safe and sound had followed him even to the world of dreams  \"This will do...? It's just a handkerchief, right? There's nothing special about it at all.\" \"Then there's no harm in giving it to me, is there? If there is nothing special about it.\" \"Er, well that might be true but...this is...\" Echidna's behavior, clinging to obstinacy, made Subaru shield his wrist as his words grew awkward. The handkerchief was infused with a promise, one that would carry him back to Petra without fail. It carried Petra's thoughts wishing him safety on his journey. He couldn't simply hand it over. After all, returning it to Petra safe and sound was one of Subaru's goals. \"Besides, how can compensation be something physical like this? This is a mental world. You can't actually keep something from the world outside, right?\" \"How perceptive of you. Certainly, even if you hand it to me here, the handkerchief will not vanish from your wrist when you return to the outside. But there is the wish infused within.\" \"The wish, in the handkerchief?\" Unlike with Subaru's figurative thoughts, Echidna nodded with a completely serious look of conviction. \"The one who conferred this to you has heartfelt concern for you. The feelings behind her wish for your safety become a power that protects you. Such charms existed even in my time, but you must not mock them.\" \"Had no intention of doing so... But, that so, huh?\" When Subaru gripped his wrist, handkerchief included, he felt the consideration from that adorable girl within. Gradually, his chest was filled with warmth. In his heart, he vowed anew. He would rescue the girl from her tragic fate. \"This may be my territory, but that does not mean I am completely free to do as I please. Just as I cannot deny you your freedom, I cannot do with the feelings infused within the handkerchief as I wish. Therefore, no concern is necessary.\" \"I'm a bit concerned about that preamble, but in that case, how does the handkerchief become compensation for you?\" \"It lets me be certain of the existence of those feelings, and perhaps...interfere, somewhat?\" Replying thusly to Subaru's question, Echidna touched Subaru's handkerchief with her supple finger. The Witch proceeded to gently close her eyes, lowering her head as she stood right beside him. The feeling of proximity and the Witch's scent made him uncomfortable. Internally, he prayed for her to hurry up, but Echidna, unaware of this, took a full ten seconds before going \"All right\" and pulling back from him. \"With this, I have collected my compensation. There is a new vow between us. Do not forget this!\" \"...Um, my old vow was to forget this stuff, you know.\" Using invective to paper over his embarrassment, Subaru took a step away from Echidna. Already, Subaru's vision had warped. The world lost its shape, save for Echidna alone. \"Well, big help. See you next Trial, I guess?\" \"It would be nice if your challenging the tomb went smoothly, but...\" Subaru made a pained smile at how she could lob mental millstones with such ease. Then, it felt like this time he was truly being cut off from the dream  \" Subaru Natsuki, if you ever come for a third tea party...\" \"Eh?\" The instant he was enveloped by a floaty feeling, Echidna, fading from view, said something to him. When Subaru spoke back, the Witch, growing misty, smiled as she continued. \" If such a time comes, it shall be I who wishes to speak with you about something.\" *** With those final words seemingly tugging at the back of his hair, the Witch vanished from Subaru's field of vision. A misty feeling remained in his chest. But Subaru turned his way, facing overhead. He lost the floaty feeling. He did not know if he was rising or falling. But the dream was ending. And as the dream ended, the determination he embraced was  \" Next time, there won't be any mistakes.\" The murmur accompanied his resolve. The next moment, he heard a sound like ice cracking, and all at once, his vision went white. CHAPTER 6 *** 1 \"Uegh! Geho! Gehh!\" The instant he awoke, Subaru spat out the bitter taste of dirt inside his mouth in spectacular fashion. Kneeling on the cold floor, he desperately retched until there were tears in his eyes. He earnestly spat out saliva reeking of mud and gravel. \"This gonna happen every time...?!!\" When he finished spitting out the foreign substances, Subaru cursed as he shook his head, urging his waking mind to fully awaken. Slowly, he reflected on what had happened while he slept, and a fog seemed to lift as his memories came back to life  \"The Great Rabbit got me... I came back and got invited to the tea party...\" Tea party and Witch when those keywords floated up, a rich variety of memories about the Witches played on the back of his eyelids. The fact that he remembered made Subaru comprehend that Echidna had fulfilled her part of the vow. Without thinking, he touched his wrist with his hand. He felt cloth; Petra's handkerchief was there too, safe and sound. \"...So Echidna kept her promise, huh? For a Witch, she really doesn't seem that bad.\" Subaru made a little sigh. Perhaps it was a sigh of lament; perhaps a sigh of praise. Echidna, not as witchy as her title suggested, was one of his precious few allies for that loop. She had both intellect and wisdom. The tea parties and the Trial provided limited opportunities to rely on either, but  \" The flip side is, they bring the biggest advantage. That's a big deal.\" Touching a hand to his chest, Subaru mentally trembled anew that he'd been able to confess Return by Death. The conditions had been limited to that place, where it was only him, Echidna, and the other Witches. But being able to reveal Return by Death to someone and talk to her about it was something he didn't dare wish for by that point. Thanks to that, he'd gained information on the Great Rabbit and hypotheses about Return by Death's characteristics. Perhaps the most disturbing piece of information he'd returned with was that the Witch of Envy was the cause of the Authority dwelling in Subaru and that, one day, he would most certainly come to face the Witch. \"But right now, I'll rely on that power of yours. I'll use the lives you give me as many times as I need to.\" If this put him closer to the answers, he was all the gladder for it. It was a small price to pay for the sake of the future. Subaru crudely wiped his lips with his sleeve and stood up then and there. He wore a strong expression full of determination, but then it flipped; an ill feeling changed it to apprehension. \"Emilia had to have been the one who...woke me up, but...\" Properly speaking, Subaru's mind had been called awake through external interference. But in this case, it was a slight and trivial difference...one that evaporated in light of the larger current issue. Namely, there in the tomb's stone room where the first Trial took place Emilia was nowhere to be found. \"...No way, right?\" Murmuring in astonishment, Subaru looked all around the dimly lit stonework room. However, there was no sight of Emilia anywhere within the Trial room. Emilia, who should have been in anguish from the nightmare she was having until the moment Subaru touched and awakened her, was gone. \"So she woke up before me, then tried to wake me up, and then...and then?\"  And then, with Subaru not awakening, she just left, leaving him there? That would not have been a very Emilia-like act. It was more likely that Emilia would carry the unconscious Subaru out of the tomb than go outside to call for aid. Or perhaps her mental state was so much at odds with its normal condition that she'd commit such an un-Emilia-like act. *** It was then that Subaru realized he had come far too late. As he repeated events, it was the fourth time he had awakened in that place. But until then, never once had Emilia awoken before him; this was the first time. Now, he was unable to console the brokenhearted Emilia, a hole bored in her heart by nightmares from the past. \"Don't tell me she ran outside all in a panic...!\" Thinking back to how much Emilia was flustered by the past, he couldn't say with any certainty that it was impossible. Ram and Otto were outside of the tomb. Even if Emilia did leave in tears, they ought to have been able to skillfully calm her back down. Besides, outside were  \" Garfiel and Ryuzu are there.\" When he turned around, about to make a run for the tomb's exit, his legs came to a halt. Right after Return by Death, Subaru's miasma had probably increased in density again. He still hadn't been able to work out countermeasures for that. If his miasma was thicker than the previous time around, there was no telling when Garfiel and company would come after him. It wasn't certain they wouldn't attack him right after he left the tomb. \"...Nah, I have to go.\" He was concerned for Emilia's safety. There was no way he could put that on the back burner. Besides, if his miasma thickened the more he repeated, every error in judgment made the situation worse. Subaru's excuses might only pass muster while the count was still low. That time might have been his last for that. Subaru's emotional state also made the short-tempered Garfiel difficult to persuade. But"}, {"text": "he might get somewhere with Ryuzu by pleading that the miasma business was a misunderstanding. \"This time gotta bet on that conversation !\" Betting everything on a possibility limited to that time around, he forced his once-stopped legs to move. After the first step came down, there was no more hesitation. He ran across the hard floor full-force. The sounds of his shoes echoed throughout the cold tomb, mixing with Subaru's breathing as he hurried outside. A lukewarm breeze blew in from the entrance, rubbing Subaru the wrong way, something he brushed aside as he ran. As Subaru clenched his teeth tightly, the moonlight filtering in straight in front of him brought the entrance into view. Subaru leaped over the vines covering the corridor's floor and walls, determined to move even if he could see nothing on his way outside. When he raced out of the tomb, he wondered if it would be Emilia, or perhaps Garfiel, first entering his eyes. \" Huh?\" Instantly, he hit the emergency brakes, crudely bringing his body to a halt. He pitched forward, then righted himself. However, his heart, struck by surprise at the unexpected, could not be righted so easily. *** In his mind, he traced two scenes Emilia in tears, Garfiel turning with enmity as Subaru raced out of the tomb that represented his worst-case scenarios. But the result was neither of the two. There was neither Emilia nor Garfiel nor, for that matter, Ram or Otto or Ryuzu either. What was there was  \" A shadow.\" Haltingly, without thinking, Subaru let the murmur trickle out, bluntly describing the scene. Outside the tomb, the Sanctuary, surrounded by both forest and barrier, was entirely engulfed in pitch-black shadow. 2 Shadow truly, there was no other way to express the spectacle before his eyes. A change had come over the landscape he surveyed from the entrance of the tomb. The clearing in front of the tomb, the settlement visible in the distance, and the bonfire for illuminating the nighttime path...none of these entered his vision. He turned his face skyward. There, the waning, pale moon and the countless stars glimmered, giving off their light. Neither the moonlight nor the starlight had any effect upon the shadow smothering the Sanctuary in darkness. *** Swallowing his breath, Subaru hardened his will and stepped down the tomb's stairs, setting his feet upon the clearing before his eyes. His soles came into contact with the shadow. He felt the soles stepping on grass and soil, though his eyes could not see either. There was no sign that he was sinking into the shadow like quicksand. But he was engulfed by shadow up to ankle level. Instantly, the creepy shadow felt repulsive. Subaru's throat shuddered as he yelled. \"E-Emilia! Emilia, where are you! Where are you?! Please answer me, Emilia!\" The uncertainty about the world that was present, the warping of the world shown through his eyes these sent fear running through Subaru. His resolve in the face of come-what-may was blotted out by the absurdity of not even understanding what had happened. Emilia did not respond. There was no sound or sight of her to be found. \"Ram! Ryuzu! Even Otto! You're here, right?! Come on out, please!\" If that moment was right after taking the Trial, all of the people he named ought to have been present in the clearing. What ought to have happened was Subaru soothing the panicked Emilia and being greeted by those people when he brought her outside. That was what ought to have happened, but this time, nothing was going according to Subaru's experiences. \"Am I stupid...? No, I am stupid. This ain't the time to get cold feet. Whatever happened, I've gotta be as cool as if I was wearing a watercooler over my head...!\" Biting his lip, blood coursing to his jaw, Subaru strived to maintain his calm in the face of the anomaly. He'd wasted enough time in futile things like his mind going awry, getting emotional, and being buffeted by events; no more.  Hadn't he only just hardened his resolve at the tomb, at Echidna's tea party? However indecipherable the circumstance, if he faced it resolutely, even if he didn't arrive at the right answer but simply took a step forward closer to where his hand could reach, a step closer to payback, such a death would have meaning. \"...I have to find out where the heck Emilia and the others went.\" Speaking aloud that which he must do, Subaru settled on challenging the shadow before him as his interim plan. He was walking toward the settlement. His options were the Cathedral that had taken in the people of Earlham Village and the Ryuzu residence where Roswaal was convalescing the Cathedral was closer and had more people. So he headed there. Pursuing that thought, Subaru lifted up a foot from the shadow to break into a run  \" Uh?\" The instant he tried to run, Subaru stopped moving at the very first step. It wasn't out of timidity. The reason he stopped was that the wind was suddenly blowing right before his eyes. It was a lukewarm wind, and there was a color to it. Its black color greatly resembled the shadow enveloping the Sanctuary. *** The wind brushed against Subaru as if licking his entire body, passing behind him. Feeling the skin on the back of his neck tickle from the graze, Subaru slowly, slowly turned around. His eyes followed the wind. It was a foolish act, but there was a tangible reason why he did it. \"Aa\" In the Sanctuary, befallen by darkness, shadow shrouded the surface of the clearing, in which there was no one besides Subaru. But there, close enough to breathe upon it, that shadow silently stood. He hadn't noticed until it was very close. He hadn't noticed it getting very close. Even having come so very close, it had raised no voice, though it gazed at him. He could not see the other person's face. And yet, it was that face he could not see, more than anything else, that revealed who this was. *** The next moment, the shadow blanketing the ground swelled up in explosive fashion, and the fragile landscape known as the Sanctuary completely collapsed, swallowed by a sea of shadow that blotted out the darkness-covered forest, the settlement, and the world. But faced with such an enormous anomaly before him, Subaru could not spare a thought for the world being swallowed by the shadow. His thoughts were stolen by the being before his eyes and remorse that should not have existed. \"You're...\" His voice trembled. He could not continue further. With Subaru's voice caught in his throat, the shadow whispered in his stead. It could not have expressed what it intended in a fashion easier to comprehend. \" I love you.\" Thus did the shadow whisper, infused with hot, passionate affection, enough to set the entire world aflame. 3 Before the shadow's erosion, physical barriers such as doors and walls held no meaning. Stonework walls, weathered wooden doors, metal tables...they were placed here and there like a child's toys of questionable value. They became dyed in shadow, along with the time and thought that had gone into piling them up. \" Goodness. I truuuuly have no luck. To think I do not even know if the Trial was overcome or no.\" The individual lying upon the bed let such deeply sentimental comments trickle out while he gazed absentmindedly at the residence being eroded thus from the center of the room being engulfed by shadow. The voice was not nervous. There was no surprise at the presence of the shadow whatsoever. It simply felt hollow, with an air of resignation. Hollowness and resignation: these were the emotions lingering in the individual's differently colored eyes. However, to a degree others could not even begin to surmise, he felt deeply and at great length the pondering weight of months and years as they passed. He had kept up the struggle for such a long period of time, only to ultimately arrive at hollowness and resignation. That was exactly how he felt. \"Lady Emilia went to challenge the Trial, and you go to save her. This, and eventually, inevitably, the situation shall change... But it seems it is not I who shall see it.\" Sighing, the individual slowly sat up and then gently moved from the bed down to the floor. The room's floor had already been engulfed by shadow, and that erosion began to reach his feet as well. The shadow was merciless, grabbing hold of his slender ankles. It writhed as it climbed higher and higher, blotting out his existence. There had to have been pain accompanying erosion by shadow. However, as the shadow pervaded the flesh of his legs, the color of the individual's face did not change whatsoever  No, his face was concealed under white makeup. Therefore, his expression would never falter. Perhaps such mental strength was wondrous...or simply mad. When the shadow swallowed his legs in their entirety, the erosion arrived at his hips. During that time, the individual unbound the bandages wrapped around his upper body, revealing the painful wounds remaining on his supple flesh. He dropped the blood-smeared bandages to his feet. Not watching as they were engulfed by shadow, the individual stretched a hand toward the bed. He moved the pillow aside and picked up that which lay beneath. Then, very, very tenderly, he held it to his chest: a black-covered, title-less book. He embraced it like a loved one. It was as if the book itself was someone he cared for very deeply. His crimson-smeared lips took on the shape of a strange-looking smile as his voice trickled out like a whisper. \"If it is hell that you have chosen, it is there I shall greet you. If you walk the path of hell, I shall gladly accompany you. If it is in hell you live, then it is that hell I desire.\" His whisper reached no one. It was simply a fruitless, meaningless act to kill time, a soliloquy that would be eternally unheard. But he continued those lonely words, that lonely charade, as he tightly clutched the book. In a place none could reach, with a voice that could reach no one, with only himself around to hear, he stated... \" Next time, make no mistakes, yes, Subaru Natsuki?\" It was then, finally, that the smile was consumed by shadow. The book fell to the floor whereupon all sank into darkness and vanished. CHAPTER 1 *** 1 The whisper of love echoed. It sweetly, gently echoed against his eardrums, his brain, his heart, his soul. \" I love you.\" The whisper of love was muffled. Did it come from a man or a woman ? Even this was left vague. But beyond any doubt, this whisper of love was directed at Subaru Natsuki and he alone. A black wriggling shadow spoke to him softly. It took the shape of a person, clad in a dress the color of darkness, with long raven-black hair. The shadow stared at him with an inky sable face. Everything composing the shadow ensnared Subaru's mind and body, smothering him in sweetness. \" I love you.\" His thought process had ground to a halt. Subaru had even forgotten how to breathe. All he could manage was to simply gaze forward, unable to make the slightest move. A dense miasma made his skin prickle as the terrible spectacle of the Sanctuary sank into shadow. Like a small animal encountering a menace so overpowering that it struggled to breathe, Subaru was trapped in a world that had lost its vitality, ripped out by its very roots. Subaru knew this place. He had tasted its agony and despair over and over again. This was the world that always appeared whenever he broke the taboo, a place where time stopped and the Witch  \" I love you. I love you.\" As Subaru was frozen in silence, the shadow slowly extended a finger toward his cheek. He couldn't avoid"}, {"text": "it. The issue wasn't the shadow holding him down or anything like that. His inability to move was because Subaru's own flesh and blood would not permit it. Subaru's soul refused to offer any resistance against the shadow. Accordingly, the shadow touched Subaru as it pleased. \" I love you. I love you. I love you.\" Subaru couldn't sense any malice from the shadow. There was no animosity. But this wasn't because it was indifferent toward Subaru. Indeed, quite the opposite. The shadow inundated Subaru with an overwhelming level of adoration that bordered on madness. It was blind, almost stubborn devotion enough to make a person ask, Why go to such lengths? Subaru felt like he was being blotted out by the inescapably crazed passion in that moment, the shadow had no interest in anything besides Subaru. \" I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you.\" The whispers of adoration swirled around inside Subaru's skull like they were caught in a vortex. Love stirred his eardrums. Love drenched his brain. As love filled his consciousness to the brim, love was also boiling his soul until it fell to pieces. It was an assault by love, a slaughter by love, a violation by love. \"I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you.\" Love controlled Subaru. Love had enslaved Subaru. Love was robbing Subaru of every drop of love he had  \" Hey, stop screwin' around!!\" Suddenly, an unspeakably destructive force wedged itself between Subaru and the shadow's loving embrace. It crashed violently into the shadow, shattering the blackened earth. As a dark shock wave erupted, the impact sent Subaru flying directly backward. \"Whoaa ?!\" Tumbling across the hard ground after landing, Subaru finally came to a halt when he slammed into an old graveyard wall. Once he gave his head a good shake and looked up, he noticed his mind had been freed from the supernatural fever that had gripped him only moments earlier. Now that the static in his thoughts had cleared, he forced his eyes open to see what was happening. Then  \"This is seriously the worst-case scenario. Hey, can you move, damn it?\"  there was a voice. Subaru spotted golden hair and a short person backing away from the shadow. Subaru recognized that abrasive tone and overflowing readiness to leap into battle. He remembered the sight of the peculiar stance that kept the body low to the ground and those bared fangs. The realization that he knew this person shook Subaru to his core. Even in his wildest dreams he never would've guessed who would come to shield him from peril. \"Garfiel... Why are you...?!\" \"You serious? In this situation? Don't make me laugh. Definitely not my first choice, but no way I ain't pickin' ya up.\" Garfiel reacted to Subaru's shock with annoyance. Still wary of the shadow before him, he grabbed Subaru's collar even though the boy was still in a heap on the ground. \"We're jumpin'. Might break your neck but just grin 'n' bear it!\" \"That really isn't somethin' you can just grin and b ?!\" Before Subaru could finish his quip, Garfiel tensed his knees and launched upward, drawing a \"Gwah!\" of agony out of Subaru as they escaped into the air and a moment later, the shadow on the ground swelled up and exploded. Rapidly gaining mass, the black shadow billowed into a wave that chased the flying pair, threatening to smash them flat. The black wave engulfed everything nearby, scattering destruction over a wide area with dreadful force and scale. The cascade was so fierce that the forest, the houses, and even the Witch's tomb were indiscriminately swallowed whole. \"Don't go bitin' ya tongue now!!\" Subaru could only gape at the apocalyptic spectacle, but Garfiel didn't falter. Obeying his instincts, Garfiel continued bounding ahead in search of a foothold where they might find refuge from the wave. As the encroaching darkness cracked open the muddy ground and knocked over one tree after another, they leaped and leaped and leaped  \"C'mon! C'mooon! Hoaaaa!!\" As the black wave mowed down the forest tearing up the very earth and blotting out the ground wherever it passed everything Subaru could see was churned up and consumed by the shadow as it seemed to grow large enough to envelop the entire world. That was when Garfiel finally arrived at their destination. There was a lone stonework house left standing at the edge of the settlement in the Sanctuary. The moment he touched down onto its roof, Garfiel tossed Subaru some distance away while continuing to draw ragged breaths. \"Aww, damn it all!! That bastard...!\" \"Th-thanks for saving me...\" \"The hell? You sure don't seem like the type who'd say thanks. Ya got a problem or somethin', huh?\" Garfiel bared his fangs at Subaru, who was crawling along the roof. Looking up at the ferocious darkness forming overhead, Subaru grimaced. The discomfort he felt was showing on his face as well. \"I ain't complaining... It's just...I didn't think you'd save me, so...\" \"Ha! Treatin' me like I got no heart or somethin'. The Rose Knights of Tileos have no need for cradles, y'know? If ya don't like it, go ahead and jump right into that thing's bosom.\" \"Sorry, I've already settled on a favorite bosom, so I'll pass.\" Sighing at Garfiel's jab, Subaru gently placed a hand on his chest. Besides the incomprehensible situation, there was another reason that made his heart leap. Getting saved by Garfiel was a shocking development. After all, Garfiel was supposed to be his greatest foe within the Sanctuary. The last time around, after rejecting Subaru's declaration that he would challenge the Trial, he was the one had who incarcerated Subaru before training fang and claw on Ram, Otto, and the people of Earlham Village who had helped him try to escape. He hadn't forgotten the anger he felt. It had been unforgivable. This was his mortal enemy who he needed to defeat. That was why Subaru had no idea why Garfiel was doing his best to save Subaru... \"Garfiel, don't you...?\" \"Don't make me repeat myself. Can't ya see the situation we're in? Who gives a damn about our differences? Right now, what's important is figuring out how to tear out that thing's neck. Nothin' else matters.\" When Subaru pressed the point, Garfiel brushed his idle concern aside with a quiet comment. His tone had been calm, but that's exactly what instilled Subaru with the greatest fear he had felt that day. It was then that he belatedly realized the fire blazing in Garfiel's jade eyes... Rage, indignation, fury the intensity in those eyes immediately brought those words to mind. As Garfiel nursed those emotions, Subaru finally found the words to ask the question he ought to have brought up earlier. \" Garfiel. What happened to Ram and the others?\" *** \"By the time I came out of the tomb, the surface of the whole area had been swallowed up already. You're here in perfect shape, but where's everyone else...?\" \"...They're inside the shadow.\" After Subaru raised his fears, hoping they would be laid to rest, the only thing that came back to him was a cruel reply. As Subaru's breath caught in his throat, Garfiel made a growl of remorse and said, \"It came out of nowhere. By the time I noticed what was happening, everything was already covered by the darkness. As for me, if Ram hadn't sent me flyin' with her wind, I probably would've gotten caught up in it, too.\" \"...You mean...Ram just got caught by that thing? Ryuzu and Otto, too?\" \"Yeah, that's right. The old hag, the noisy dude everyone.\" \"And...Emilia...?\" *** Garfiel offered no reply for the trembling Subaru. That was all the answer he needed. Below where they stood, the ominously undulating shadow continued its encroachment upon the Sanctuary. Stunned to see the treetops of the forest steadily sinking, Subaru forgot to breathe. Everything was being engulfed by the pitch-black body. What happened to everything that was swallowed by that darkness? The hope that the people inside were only unconscious was dashed the moment he took a good hard look. Subaru could only imagine that the chances of finding survivors inside the shadow were despairingly bad. \"Wh-what the hell's going on...? How could...at a time like this?\"  The Bowel Hunter, the Beast Master, the Great Rabbit...and Garfiel. Subaru had come flying out of the tomb ready to defy any disaster that threatened to befall him. After obtaining Echidna's cooperation, he had hardened his resolve to face and overcome any obstacle that stood in his way. ...Naturally, he had decided all that completely unaware of the incomprehensible entity before him now. \"Why here, why now...?!\" Subaru glared at the center of the swirling shadow that was devoid of rhyme or reason. He screamed with everything he had. \"Tell me why the hell you're here Witch of Jealousy!!\" His ears had heard the name over and over. He'd felt the being's existence countless times before. The stories handed down for generations named her as the worst of all calamities. She was the one responsible for Subaru's suffering. She was the root of all evil the shadow that had engulfed Emilia and the others was none other than the Witch of Jealousy. \"Think. Thinkthinkthink. If I don't do something, figure something out and and and defeat it somehow...\" Pounding his dull-feeling head, Subaru desperately searched for a path to victory. He had to drive back the shadow and retake the Sanctuary now enveloped by darkness. What for? You've already lost Emilia and the others in this world. \" Ah.\" Subaru, slammed by the internal thought, made a slight sound in his throat. In contrast to Subaru's roiling emotions, his inner voice had delivered an exceptionally cold-blooded judgment. It was mocking him for stubbornly clinging to a doomed world that had already gone past the point of no return and demanding that he take logical, decisive action. What would we do even if we did manage to overcome this? There's no way to go on. Not in a world like this. \"...Bastard. Tryin' to say there's no point in comin' after me?\" \"Wha...?\" With one murmur from Garfiel, Subaru's deep introspective thoughts vanished. Not bothering with the young boy right beside him, Garfiel turned his sharp, jade-colored eyes toward the shadow. \"Scratch that. This bastard isn't even looking this way! After doin' all this, now ya head outside and ignore me, huh?!\" Garfiel roared, practically spitting blood at the humiliation. But the shadow paid him no mind. Like he had said, it was already attempting to leave the Sanctuary, exiting the forest. After displaying such obsession earlier, the shadow suddenly wasn't even acknowledging Subaru's existence as it proceeded out of the Sanctuary. Unable to discern what the true intent might be, Subaru was left confused then he shuddered, as if struck by a thunderbolt. A sudden flash of inspiration came to him without a single factual basis. And yet, he knew there could be no mistake. He could declare with absolute certainty that... \" To the mansion.\" \"Ah?\" \"The mansion! That Witch, she's trying to head for Roswaal's mansion!\" The memory of the Witch's whispers of love as well as how that it had intruded upon his thoughts even as it violated his mind and soul all came roaring back. The goal hadn't been to love Subaru. The purpose was to dive deep inside of Subaru in search of everything that he cared about, to understand those things. The ultimate goal was to rob the world of everything Subaru might turn his love toward, monopolizing his affections. \"As if I'd let you do whatever you want... We gotta we've gotta stop her...!\" Stop her how? asked the cold, whispering inner voice, but he stubbornly flung it aside. Stop her how? Figure out a plan; then just stop her, obviously. He had to find"}, {"text": "a way to strike down that Witch. It wasn't pointless. There had to be some meaning in trying to stop her. \"Garfiel! Can't you attack her?! Slow her down somehow?!\" \"Now the idiot asks... Stop runnin' your damned mouth! Me, I've been slammin' every attack I could think of into that thing for ages! Nothin' gets through that shadow dress. Doesn't even leave a scratch!\" \"If Garfiel can't...\" Even what seemed like a surprise attack hadn't inflicted any damage to the Witch. If even Garfiel's mighty blows had no effect, it was very possible that the shadow dress nullified physical attacks. If that was the case, only magic would work. And the top contender for that was  \"I'll tell ya right now, there ain't a single reason to look for that damn Roswaal. The only ones left in this forest are me 'n' that legendary lady Witch.\" \"Even Roswaal?! You're sure?!\" \"The old hag's house and the Cathedral are both gone, down to the last brick. Can't rely on the loon. It's just us.\" Even if he was far from full health, Roswaal was unmistakably a powerful man. Unfortunately, Garfiel curtly cut down the optimistic image Subaru had in mind. If they couldn't even rely on Roswaal's aid, the overwhelming power required to win simply didn't seem to exist. This was the worst Witch, the one who killed even the other Witches of the Deadly Sins and swallowed half the world. \"Can't we...do anything? At this rate, even the mansion is gonna get...\" Everything would be engulfed, stolen by that shadow, mercilessly trampled. Was there something, anything, Subaru could do besides despair ? \" Wait.\" Watching the Witch grow distant, Subaru had the odd sense that something was wrong. Was there really no way to stop her? Was there well and truly no move that might come to mind? Think, remember, consider, recall. Find the one thing that only applies in this particular place  \" There's the barrier.\" \"...What?\" \"The barrier! The Witch of Jealousy has to fulfill the conditions to pass through the barrier covering the Sanctuary! The tomb's Trial hasn't been cleared and she's a half-elf!\" It was said that Satella, the Witch of Jealousy, was a silver-haired half-elf. This fact had caused Emilia to endure irrational discrimination from a great deal of people. At the same time, it was the stories about those notorious features passed down from four centuries ago that made him certain the Witch of Jealousy would be bound by that forest. That said, if the Witch turned out to be something like a vestigial mind with no physical body, things might not go the way he hoped  \" No need to worry 'bout that.\" The certainty behind the murmur made Subaru raise his eyebrows. After seeing his reaction, Garfiel clicked his fangs together. \"The Witch has a physical body. Right now it's just like the root of Balgren's left wing, ain't it?\" \"...You mean, like, it's a weak point?\" \"Ain't got no other meanin'! Yeah, yeah, yeah, I got it now!\" Slapping Subaru's shoulder as if praising him for his insight, Garfiel smiled ferociously and carried on. \"She'll be beggin' under that disgusting veil when I finally tear her head off!!\" 2 The Witch of Jealousy brazenly advanced straight toward the boundary of the Sanctuary, dragging shadow behind her. Chasing after that vast body of shadow, Subaru or rather, Garfiel carrying Subaru set out, traversing the treetops and circling around the Witch's path. \"Don't know how much effect the barrier'll have, but if she weakens even a little...\" Garfiel's claws would have an opening. If that was the case, even the Witch of Jealousy would not escape unscathed. Subaru was confident because he had personally experienced what it was like to face Garfiel when he was in his beast form. He needed no explanation to know that a single blow from the bestial Garfiel contained overwhelming raw power. The only other thing they needed was a way to guarantee the two would clash. And for that  \"Garfiel, she's drawn to me. So...\" \"Hey, if you're tellin' me to use ya as a decoy, I'll bite your fingers off one by one.\" Leaping through the forest from branch to branch, Garfiel chewed out Subaru over his proposal. Faced with his standoffish attitude, Subaru was daunted for a moment; then he lobbed an angry retort. \"I'm not sayin' this as some kind of joke! Barrier and decoy! They'll make our chances better, even if only a bit! Isn't that right?!\" \"Oh, shaddap. If you're gonna be that ignorant, I'll throw ya overboard right now.\" \" !! You should know already! About the miasma coming from my body that attracts it...\" Irritated by Garfiel's stubborn attitude, Subaru brought up the miasma swirling around him on his own. Surely Garfiel could not refute an argument made on that basis. However... \"The old hag! And Ram! And everyone else... They all got swallowed up right before my eyes...!\" *** \"Like I'm gonna live with the shame of lettin' even a bastard like you join 'em! The scars of Pararagurara never fade! No way, no way in hell I'd accept that! These scars'll be carved on the Witch's heart!!\" Eyes bloodshot, Garfiel vented his raging emotions as he adamantly pushed away Subaru's plan. Garfiel's anger stemmed from stubbornness the pointless kind, at that. Subaru understood why the inner voice of his cold, callous side spat out that Garfiel's insistence was worthless. But the rest of Subaru couldn't laugh at him at all. After all, unlike Subaru, who had arrived late to the scene, Garfiel had witnessed the horrors with his own eyes. Watching Ram, Ryuzu, and all the other people he cared about get swallowed whole, vanishing within the shadow. But even after so many precious people were stolen from him, Garfiel refused to use revenge as an excuse to throw all decency aside. He wouldn't tolerate any talk about a victory that involved sacrificing Subaru. If this was indeed the rationality and conviction at Garfiel's core that guided his actions  \"Then how could he be capable of doing that to everyone ?\" How had he ended up killing the brave villagers and Otto when he shielded Subaru in such a cruel manner? When he, too, knew full well the pain of losing something precious, the sadness of loss... \"We're here.\" With no answer to that question forthcoming, the pair arrived at their destination. They had chosen a tiny open space within the forest as the site of the decisive battle. The forest had been clear-cut there, leaving the waning moon and the stars overhead as the only audience to witness the Witch of Jealousy's return to the stage. Behind them was the barrier; ahead of them, Subaru sensed the wriggling shadow drawing closer. The Witch was headed straight toward them. All that remained was to counterattack but there was a simple problem with that. \"Garfiel, what are you gonna do? The barrier affects you the same way, right?\" Half-bloods mixed-blood demi-humans could not go past the forest's barrier. That applied to both Garfiel and the Witch. If he was weakened, it wouldn't matter how much power the Witch lost. In response, Garfiel took something out of his loincloth. And that something was  \"...A crystal? That's yours?\" \"I don't owe ya an explanation. Just shut up and watch. Gonna put this early risin' Witch back to sleep so fast that we won't need decoys or anythin' else.\" The crystal glimmered blue a glimmer he had laid eyes upon several times amid the twists and turns surrounding the Sanctuary. He knew that Garfiel possessed one identical to the one Frederica owned. In earlier laps he had been through in the current time loop, Subaru had seen those crystals change hands several times over. Even now, he still didn't know the finer details surrounding the items, but  \" ! Who's there?!\" The faint sound of footfalls landing on grass made Subaru instantly turn around. It was not the Witch. The direction and the mental pressure were far too different to be her. However, that alone wasn't a reason to lower his guard. \"...Huh?\" And yet, the instant he set eyes upon the newcomer, Subaru's caution was blotted out by shock. *** A thicket parted and a young girl emerged. He had seen her before. The long pink hair and a white poncho-style outfit. Her ears were a little longer than those of the average person, making her impossible to mix up with someone else. This was Ryuzu, the representative of the Sanctuary who had allegedly been swallowed up by the shadow. But there was no way this was Ryuzu. What Subaru saw next completely refuted that possibility. \"Is this...some kind of joke...?\" Multiple figures stepped barefoot onto the grass and made their way through the underbrush. Every single one wore the same clothing, the same expression, the same demeanor in fact, all of them were perfectly identical. More than twenty perfect copies of Ryuzu appeared from all directions. *** The great throng of girls bearing the same face as Ryuzu were silent, not speaking a single word. Their expressions unchanging, the girls gathered together and stood in a loose row at Garfiel's back. There was no way Subaru could call it a sight for sore eyes. It was like something straight out of a nightmare. \"Didn't wanna show ya this if I didn't have to.\" Unlike Subaru's obvious astonishment, Garfiel reacted with only a slightly bitter comment, showing no sign that he was amazed. This wasn't something worth gaping over for him. As Subaru slowly overcame his initial surprise, a realization dawned on him: He had probably met one of the people in this group face-to-face already. \"...The moment we got here, I was teleported to the forest out of the blue...\" It had occurred right after the magical relocation Subaru experienced upon arriving at the Sanctuary. The crystal had reacted to the barrier, and the power of the stone had sent Subaru flying into the woods. It must have been one of the perfect copies of Ryuzu that had led the stranded Subaru to the tomb. Once he reunited with Emilia, Otto, and the others, Ram had admonished him to conceal the fact that he had encountered the elven girl. Until that very moment, Subaru had shoved the girl into a corner of his memory. However, given this unexpected reunion, he understood for the first time that it had been a mistake to overlook that first encounter. As the doll-like girl no, girls stood in silence, it was evident that they were identical beings. \"Don't tell me these are...clones? Copies...? Is that even possible...?\" Seeing the girls easily evoked those words in the back of Subaru's brain. They were terms deeply associated with stories that had science-fictional themes, but they were a poor fit for his new world, a place dominated by swords and spells. In the first place, who could have reproduced that kind of technology ? \" Sorry to interrupt ya thoughts, but it's time.\" Giving the confused Subaru a shove on the shoulder, Garfiel reoriented himself toward the forest. The impending pressure was making the hair on Subaru's back stand up as he glanced back and forth between the forest and the girls. \"Garfiel! Don't tell me your plan is \" \"Crush her with numbers. Reid always fights head-on, y'know!\" Bringing both fists together in front of his chest, Garfiel revealed that his plan followed the doctrine of \"simple is best.\" There was no hidden twist, but there was no argument that it wasn't the most suitable choice. Of course, it was an operation that accepted there would be casualties. \"Don't get bent out o' shape worryin' over them. They ain't like the old hag. This lot is totally empty on the inside. Still, they should be able to follow orders, no problem. We'll make an openin' and take that bastard's damn head!\" There was no time to lodge any complaint about the operation nor to ask the girls the copies what they thought. \"...As for you, lemme say"}, {"text": "sorry in advance.\" That was all Garfiel said in the final moments before Subaru was thrust into the heart of a new battlefield. Not comprehending the meaning of the words, the powerless Subaru was relegated to the rear. Garfiel stood at the head of the formation with the twenty-odd copies lined up behind him while Subaru brought up the rear. With their formation decided, an eerie moment of tranquility settled into place, filled only with his breathing and the beating of his heart. Slowly, the menace showed itself as it trespassed upon the world. The forest was being slain before his eyes. Swallowed by a shadow of immense mass, the trees lost their shape like something dissolving into water, leaving no trace behind as the very concepts of tree and forest were contaminated by shadow. This was heresy. This was violation. This was a slaughter. The Witch blotting out the world with her love noticed Subaru standing in the path of her advance. And then  \" I love you.\" Subaru was beset by an unending revulsion; his instincts kept clamorously ringing an alarm bell to shout Danger! After uttering that lone phrase, the Witch leaped over Garfiel and the Ryuzu brigade, whispering her love to no one but Subaru. In that instant, the Witch directed all her interest and concern onto Subaru and Subaru alone  \" Gaaaaaaa!!\" Garfiel, who was their only hope for victory, raised a great howl. A moment later, the ground exploded. Kicking up plumes of dust, Garfiel leaped up like he had been launched from a slingshot. Garfiel's mouth was open wide, fangs bared as he hurtled toward the shadow. As Subaru watched, he saw Garfield's entire body swell up as his clothing ripped from the inside, unable to endure the expansion of his flesh. His entire body became covered in golden fur, and his hands and feet transformed into bestial claws Garfiel the great tiger, the ferocious beast Subaru was hard-pressed to forgive, had reared his head. *** Roaring as he went, the savage tiger's speed exceeded all normal bounds. Given how his beastly movements were unchanged, it was apparent that Garfiel had nullified the effect of the barrier somehow. Accordingly, with neither hesitation nor sorrow, he brought his fangs down to bite into the pitch-black dress and rip it apa  ***  Instantly, shadows stretched away from the Witch's feet, coiling around the leaping great tiger. The shadows bound the great tiger's limbs, stealing away his momentum and trapping the growling creature. As dark tendrils sank into animal limbs as thick as Subaru's hips, the sound of tearing flesh rang out, accompanied by the spurting of a bloody mist. There was a scream. The raging great tiger heaved as the shadows tightened their hold and cruelly tore into his body. \" Ah \" While Subaru could only watch helplessly with wide eyes, the Ryuzu copies that Garfiel had summoned and left on standby began to join the battle. Letting out unemotional voices devoid of intelligence, the young girls sprinted toward the shadow all at once. Moving with surprising swiftness, they pursued the great tiger held captive by the shadow, drawing closer to the Witch all the while. A pair of copies leaped in with arms spread wide as if inviting the Witch into their embrace. Just before they could close the distance, shadows burst outward in the shape of spears, impaling them in the abdomen and hoisting them aloft. Two girls with identical faces, impaled through their abdomens, were lined up at the same height as Garfiel, his four limbs still bound. The shadow swayed their bodies back and forth as if to mock him. It was excessively vicious. However, the Witch's overconfidence had caused her to make a mistake. There was barely any warning before the change occurred but it was the change itself that was grand and terrible. \"Wha ?!\" The two impaled Ryuzus began emitting a pale light, and a second later, scattered in every direction like an explosion. Their battered bodies transformed into particles of light, blowing away the shadow surrounding them. For a single moment, this breathed life back into the world steeped in shadowy darkness and started a chain reaction. Following the two who had been blown away, the remaining copies shouted at the Witch all at once, launching a suicide charge against her. It had already been demonstrated that an all-out charge with no thought for survival would prove effective. In response, the Witch didn't hesitate to direct all her shadows to meet the girls rushing at her. The shadows welled up, dividing into groups to crush the girls trying to overwhelm the Witch with sheer numbers. There were five razor-edged shadows for each of the girls, a mass of about one hundred raging limbs dancing madly as they fell upon the girls who tried to take evasive action. The shadows impaled and rent skulls and bodies alike as they sliced the girls to death. Leaping all at the same moment, the remaining copies launched a simultaneous attack from numerous directions. Now that their little schemes had all been defeated by brute force, the Ryuzus used their last option, transforming into pale light and exploding one after another in a staggered, rhythmical fashion which temporarily thinned the shadows spawned by the Witch, prying clear a path to the pitch-black dress behind. That was when  \" Rrrrrrraaaa!!\" The fierce beast that had been riddled with wounds flew into the gap that had been wrenched open. Escaping the shadow bindings during the replica suicide attack, the ferocious beast crouched low to the ground, and immediately following the pale blue explosions of light, a roar seemed to break through that dazzling glow as the claws of a wild animal swung at the Witch. *** The great tiger became a torrential gale that surged forward as the Witch bundled a few remaining shadows to form a blocking wall. However, the great tiger swung an arm toward the bulwark of shadows, pulling a silhouette forward with its front paw slamming the last of the replicas home, pulverizing the wall and his own arm. Then fang and claw pierced the veil of pale light, sinking deep into the dress of shadow.  He got her, thought Subaru. The setup had been so perfect that he was certain of the final outcome. Without any regrets, the twenty-one Ryuzu replicas had expended themselves in a self-destructive suicide charge. Against a blow delivered at such a high cost, even the Witch of Jealousy had to be  \" I love you.\" The firm belief to which Subaru clung was rebuffed and smashed to pieces, along with Garfiel, who turned to bloody mist. 3 Speechless, all Subaru could do was watch as the golden-colored great tiger was eviscerated. His claws should have torn the Witch's body apart, and his fangs should have crushed her skull. The tiger's murderous intent could have pulverized a human body with ease; not even a Witch would have been able to endure it assuming the attack struck home. What had robbed Garfiel of his life were shadowy blades that had slipped into his body through the wounds on his limbs. The shadows that had initially bound Garfiel used his wounds as an entryway to race around, cutting his body to shreds from within. In other words, Garfiel's death had been decided the moment he suffered his first injury. His life had been whittled down relentlessly. There were no words for the cruelty of that act. The fragments of flesh that were once Garfiel were mercilessly scattered about the murky black ground. Even these were swallowed by shadow, all traces of his existence erased. The Ryuzu replicas had also been annihilated, so only Subaru and the Witch remained no, that wasn't right. \" I love you.\" From the beginning, the Witch had no eyes for anyone but Subaru, rooted to where he stood. Not Garfiel, slashed to death; not the Ryuzu replicas, slaughtered; not the people of the Sanctuary and Earlham Village, no doubt engulfed by shadow at a time unbeknownst to him; not Ram; not Otto; not Ryuzu; not Roswaal; not Patlash; not Emilia anything and everything else was a distant afterthought. \" I love you.\" \"Shut up.\" \"I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you.\" \"I said, shut up...!\" As Subaru stood still, the Witch walked along a path formed of shadow, moving past the clearing to approach him. Her contours were hazy. He couldn't even put a finger on her height. Just as before, he could not distinguish her voice. And yet, her clingy zeal alone touched Subaru's heart without reservation to an abominable extent. \"I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you.\" To the immobile Subaru, the Witch whispered her love as it if was a curse. She acted more out of place and was worse at reading people than even Subaru. Not only did her whispers of love inspire anger in him, the adoration she was offered was completely selfish. Her love was repulsive. But in that moment, what sent Subaru into even more of a rage was  \"I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you Subaru.\" \" You don't get to call me that!!\" That sweet, enchanted form of address made Subaru explode in anger. The charming voice, the sweet gesture, the feverish way in which she said it rubbed Subaru the worst way possible. \"Who gave you permission to call me that name?! Don't screw with me! God damn it!!\" It was a form of address filled with trust, with pride, with mutual love meant for those who stood at each other's side. In that world, there was only one person Subaru permitted to address him by his first name imbued with such affection. \"This ain't a joke!! That's for one person alone. Who the hell would...? No! Letting you go for what you've done, forgiving even one lock of your hair or one part of a single cell of yours, is too good for you !!\" Indignant, Subaru let his anger reign, mercilessly driving home the maelstrom of emotions swirling inside his chest. He had no chance of victory. He had no chance of survival. Besides, that world held no reason for him to live on anymore. Even so, he absolutely could not simply stand and watch her trample on that bond as she pleased. \"I love you I love you I love you I love you.\" Her love was relentless. That was why Subaru absolutely refused to respond to that love. \"In this world, when I heard 'I love you' spoken seriously to me for the first time...it gave me, an unredeemable bastard, enough power to make me think I could become a hero.\" He was a piece of garbage, twisted down, broken, and ready to flee from everything, but those words had made him believe he could face the future head-on, never giving in to challenge it once more, over and over, however many times that it took. Compared to that, the substance of the Witch's love was insultingly weak. \"I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you.\" \"The number one and number two spots in my heart ain't changin'. There's no place in there for the likes of you.\" She started it; he finished it Subaru's visage contorted vilely as he flatly enumerated those he loved. \"So I'll roll up your love and toss it aside. And if I've gotta compare...\" He had no way to mount a physical attack. But he still had verbal attacks. Getting on other people's nerves was a particular specialty of his. What could he say, what should he say, that would rub the Witch the worst way? There was no one better armed to get under someone else's skin than Subaru. So"}, {"text": "he knew. Accordingly, Subaru gave a shallow, cruel laugh, turning a look of scorn toward the Witch. \" I'd rather love Echidna and the other Witches than you.\" *** The instant he made the statement, the Witch's curse-like words of love halted for the first time. And then  \" Ah.\" In an instant, Subaru's field of vision and the world itself was swallowed by shadow. 4 \"I love you. I love you. I love you.  Love me.\" Amid the darkness, he heard a voice. Swallowed by shadow, he was upside down and shaken around. Not only his body but the inside of his skull was being ransacked as the shadow whipped Subaru Natsuki about. Within, as Subaru Natsuki dissolved into the shadow, he heard a whisper. \"Love me. Love me. Love me. Love me. Love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me love me.  Love me.\" It was horrifying. He trembled in ecstasy. He shuddered in fear. He cried tears of joy. He spat blood in a rage. He cried out in exultation. His emotions were being sliced apart, bounced around, as what was right became wrong and what was wrong became right  *** Subaru Natsuki's field of vision was growing hazy. He knew his body was being dissolved. Why did he know that? Was it Subaru Natsuki who knew or was it something else? *** Inside the shadow, he sensed some kind of separate presence beyond the whispers of love.  No, he did not sense them, for they were not separate at all. It was Subaru. It was Subaru Natsuki. If he was dissolved, mixed, and combined with one mass, there would be no boundary between him and others. Everything that had been swallowed would become Subaru Natsuki. There was warmth, sadness, hatred, generosity, dejection, ecstasy, despair, relief, lamentation, satisfaction. Yes, there was satisfaction. Amid the many despairs and many laments, there was satisfaction. That satisfaction was a part of Subaru. If that could fill Subaru, then  *** He reached a hand out toward the satisfaction no, it was not a hand. He had no body to be found no, that was not so. His body had been swallowed by shadow, so it was all there: his dissolved heart, his crumbling consciousness, the remains of Subaru Natsuki's soul. There they were all gathered together. And in gathering them, he comprehended the reason why they were gathered. There was heat. Subaru Natsuki felt heat in the midst of his return. And so to a place completely different than that false satisfaction, he extended an arm, a right arm, a right wrist. And then   in that darkness-colored world, a prayer-imbued handkerchief glimmered vividly. 5 His consciousness floated upward. As if in struggling to reach the water's surface in search of oxygen, he frantically clawed against the darkness, desperately moving higher, higher. His consciousness was enshrouded in darkness. It was as if he had sunk into a swamp. His mind was immersed in weight and weariness, yet Subaru earnestly pressed on even so  At the end of his struggling, his field of vision suddenly opened. Subaru's mind had floated back up to the real world. He had returned from the world of shadow alive but that did not mean he had escaped peril by any stretch. \"Hagh...! Haa...ah? His breathing was clumsy. There was some kind of shadow stuffed in his throat. His feet were not on the ground. Bound by shadow, his body was being held aloft at an angle. He could not move. He was not being allowed to move. But as if clinging to it, he touched the handkerchief wrapped around his right wrist with his left hand. \"...Petra's handkerchief.\" In that world covered by shadow, Subaru's field of vision was dyed the color of darkness. Amid that pitch-blackness, Petra's handkerchief alone dazzled, radiating a white light as if trying to drive off the dark. The feelings with which Petra's handkerchief was imbued had granted this miracle to Subaru no, such a thought was hard to justify. Subaru had a different culprit in mind for the crafty trick that had saved him.  Namely, the Witch of Greed who had touched that handkerchief upon the occasion of his departure, leaving words of deep import with him. \"That damn Echidna... Did she know this would happen, damn it...?\" It's insurance. Just to be safe, he could almost hear the Witch's face say as it floated up in the back of his mind. That one time, he was well and truly grateful for that inconsiderate, boastful Witch. If not for that light, Subaru would surely have been engulfed by the shadow, vanishing without a trace. What was happening inside that shadow?  It was a blender. The shadow was dissolving Subaru's very being. It was melting him and mixing him into something else: everything that had been swallowed by shadow.  Mixed with all the many, many things that had been swallowed whole by the Witch's shadow. Becoming one with those who had been melted before him had exposed Subaru to a great many emotions. Coursing into him were sensations, feelings, memories, knowledge that was not his own. It became natural to be instantly aware of those things as they let themselves in, carving into his body, his mind, and his soul. He'd escaped by a hair's breadth. He'd escaped with his life with only fractions of a second to spare. Being engulfed by that shadow was not death. Subaru Natsuki would be stirred into something else, erased through becoming part of a heterogeneous whole. That was an intolerable defeat, one from which even Return by Death could not bring him back. Had it not been for Echidna's aid, Subaru would have come to an end, unable to slip out of the shadow's embrace. It was because he could feel that in his bones that he wanted to call the Witch right back to thank her. \"Guu...agh...\" But delaying the inevitable with Echidna's aid had gone as far as it could. Slowly, Subaru's body was being engulfed by the shadow once more. As if his lower body was sinking into the ground, as if his extremities were being meticulously digested bit by bit, the Witch's shadow was consuming Subaru. He was gradually losing himself. Not only was the sense of loss frightening but the relief. There was relief. There was joy that he would be swallowed, dissipated, and erased, his fate arriving at its end. Accordingly, he was certain in his belief. He could not die from being engulfed by shadow. He would continue to be \"loved\" forever. \"Damn...it all...\" The light created by the Witch had bought him tens of seconds, but that postponement would not save Subaru's life. It was only a brief matter of time until he was pulled in and erased. Just what did Echidna want there? \"That...shitty Witch...!\" The instant he arrived at his conclusion, Subaru cast aside his gratitude from the moment just prior, tearing at the light with his left hand. The single saving grace was the light that had saved Subaru, brushing aside the shadow engulfing him and it was here that Echidna's desire rested. Echidna had a goal. Echidna had left in Subaru's hands the means to accomplish it. It was a lifeline. A lifeline not for saving Subaru but to let him take his own life. *** As if sensing his tragic resolve, the light changed shape, transforming into a radiant dagger. She had no doubt thought it would be difficult to accomplish with nothing but a single handkerchief. Her polite consideration brought tears to his eyes. It was just, though they were tears, what coursed out were tears of blood. He closed his eyes, let out his breath and with that impetus, he thrust the dagger of light toward his own throat. \" gh.\" Though the sharpness of the blade of light was unclear, it penetrated his windpipe with ease. Blood coursed backward into the fatal wound, and as it flowed from his throat down to his lungs, his consciousness began to drown.  The protective charm of light was not a weapon. Echidna had put it in his hands so that he could take his own life. That was what the postponement of tens of seconds was for, so that he might realize, so that he might carry it out, so that he might Return by Death. Echidna had most likely anticipated that the Witch of Jealousy would appear outside of the tomb. The reason why remained unclear to Subaru, but he had to pay for it with his life. *** For the first time, Subaru's suicide caused the Witch of Jealousy to shout something other than her love. However, drowning in his own blood, already having let go of his consciousness, Subaru did not comprehend the words. But he stretched his hand toward the face of the Witch covered in shadow as if it was the natural thing to do. It seemed right. The dagger of light fell away, and the fingers of the final vestiges of light touched the shadowy veil. The veil came apart, and the half of the Witch's face hidden by the shadow was exposed to him. She had purple eyes that were like gemstones. She had shimmering silver hair that was like moonlight. And she had a lovely and familiar face  Seeing that face twisted in grief, he felt not so much surprise as pain within his chest. Sadness had impaled his chest. With his throat filled with blood, he could not form proper words. Nonetheless, to the one before his eyes, the sad girl who spilled countless tears, he made a declaration... \"I will \"  I will save you. The instant he stated it, Subaru Natsuki lost his life. 6 When he straddled \"death,\" the first piece of reality to arrive was the bitter taste of dust. \" U-geh!\" Coughing violently, he spat out foreign substances tasting of dirt along with his saliva. After that, Subaru sat up and confirmed that he had been lying on a floor in a cold, dark room. The stone walls were very faintly glowing blue, and it was tranquil enough to rattle your nerves he was inside the tomb. \"I've re...turned...\" With a raspy voice, opening and closing his hands right before his eyes, Subaru made the result of Return by Death sink in. His memory from just before was still fresh, both from having been swallowed by shadow and having ended his own life.  So, too, the violent pain in his throat. \"Not the first time I've killed myself, is it...?\" The sharp sensation boring into his throat, the feeling of it being gouged out this made Subaru breathe hard. There was the suffering of drowning in his own blood and the sense of loss from his consciousness slipping away. No matter how many times he'd tasted death, the horror never dulled. No matter how many times or instances he felt death, it never got easier. He was afraid of death. Death was terrifying. It was painful, agonizing, yet even so  \"Even so, coming back...beats the hell out of ending with everything lost...!\" He'd chosen to come back. In that place, he'd chosen death without hesitation. This way, Subaru could still fight. He could resist. He could fight to win his future. \"But I can't get all mushy about death all the same... I still have things I have to do.\" Gazing anew at those things he had to do, Subaru tried to calm the sound of his heart as he checked around. Having returned to the tomb, there was a silver-haired girl lying right at Subaru's side. This was the tomb, the starting point of Return by Death where Emilia was continuing her nightmare about her past. He had to shake her slender shoulder and awaken her from that nightmare. Tell her she didn't have to go through those terrible thoughts"}, {"text": "anymore, gently embrace her those were the first things Subaru ought to do. Hence, as Emilia gasped in anguish, Subaru gently stretched a hand out toward her  \"...The hell?\" There was a tiny tremble in his fingers as he tried to touch Emilia with them. Wondering what was up, he tried to stop the shaking in his fingers. However, though Subaru was aware of the trembling, his fingertips disregarded his will; if anything, the trembling increased. And that was not all. A strange clattering sound was echoing off the stone walls. The annoying sound and the trembling fingers left Subaru confused as to what in the world was going on, but belatedly he realized. The clattering was coming from Subaru's teeth. Without his teeth pressed together, his jaw was trembling, causing the miserable rattling. It was as if Subaru was hesitating out of cowardice. His fingers continued to tremble, and his teeth kept clacking.  The cause behind that trembling was the face he had seen on the other side of that shadowy veil. \"Why am I shaking...? Don't tell me I'm afraid of...\" He had seen the Witch's face in the moment just prior to Return by Death and it was the same face as Emilia's. After straddling death to come back, he had dragged along a fear of the Witch that stuck with him. Enough fear to make his soul forget a very basic thing... Emilia was not the Witch of Jealousy. \"A stupid trick like that... Come on, I know better than that, damn it...!\" Subaru didn't know what had brought on the sudden revival play. However, he did have an idea of why the Witch had taken that form. There was one possibility he could think of. The Witch had probably manifested in the Sanctuary through taking possession of Emilia's body. Petelgeuse, an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, had been an evil spirit able to possess the bodies of others. Knowing of that madman, Subaru could easily accept the possibility that the Witch could take over other people's bodies as well. What had convinced him the most was that it perfectly explained everything Garfiel's demeanor had implied. For the plan to use the barrier, Garfiel had been absolutely certain the Witch had a physical body. Subaru's memory was also fresh that he had said he was \"sorry in advance\" just prior to the decisive battle against the Witch. In other words, Garfiel had seen the Witch possess Emilia. That was why he hadn't given a clear answer as to whether Emilia was dead or alive and why he'd apologized to Subaru for striking down both the Witch and Emilia-turned-avatar. It added up. It explained everything. That was it. Wasn't it nothing more than that? It had nothing to do with Emilia. It wasn't any knock against her. There was no reason to be afraid of   Quit it with the bald-faced lying, his inner self coldly spat. Bald-faced lying. His inner self's words made Subaru aware that he was deceiving himself. He was not afraid of Emilia. That was the truth. But that was one thing. His fear of the Witch was in another dimension. ***  Subaru's Return by Death was through the power of the Witch of Jealousy. That was Subaru's opinion, and Echidna's had affirmed his own. And understanding this meant that the Witch of Jealousy possessed the power to roll back time. Therefore, it was not unthinkable for her to employ the same power with which she made him Return by Death to go back in time herself. Subaru couldn't firmly declare that she wouldn't or couldn't. The possibility terrified him. There was no answer to that question.  In its place, there was an answer lying right at his side. *** Touching Emilia and making her awaken would make everything become clear. If Emilia opened her eyes, smiling softly as she always did, all those things would become a needless worry. But if that wish was not to be granted  \" Emi...lia.\" Whether he sought to save her or sought to be saved himself, he no longer could tell even that. But he thought that the fact that his voice called her name and the finger touching her cheek did not shake was miracle enough for him. *** Her pale cheek transferred enough warmth to his fingertip that he thought it would melt. Her long eyelashes trembled slightly, and light came to rest in her downcast eyes. Her purple eyes blinked several times as they beheld Subaru in them. And then  \"...Suba...ru?\" When he heard her whispered voice, something heavy dissolved inside of Subaru. One word, hearing that single call, let Subaru make the fear up to the moment before into a thing of the past. Everything about it was different from the false love that had been showered upon him. \"This is... Until now, I've been...\" Subaru let out a long, long breath. Slightly perplexed by the lack of a reply, Emilia slowly sat up, knitting her brows as she looked around the room in which they were. Awakening from her nightmare, her comprehension was belated. However, she gradually caught up to reality. \" Ah.\" That tiny voice probably trickled out from remembering something about the dream she saw. He knew that Emilia would immediately descend into a panic. He had already seen Emilia's heart crushed by her past three times over. He had to offer her gentle comforting. For the sake of that, without hurting her in any way, he had to call out to her, to tell her it was all right  \" Subaru.\" And yet, in spite of Subaru having prepared to do just that, Emilia engaged in an action completely contrary to his expectations. Her panicked eyes had already regained their calm; her lips, on the verge of trembling, were now pursed with a strong will. To a surprised Subaru, Emilia proceeded to gently reach out with her hand as she spoke. \"Why do you have such a pained look on your face?\" Hgh, went the broken breath that trickled out of him. Subaru was frozen in surprise as Emilia's finger gently stroked his cheek. Her white fingertip gently wiped the corner of his eye, pulling down the dam holding back the tears welling up, letting them fall freely. There were tears. Only then did Subaru realize that he'd been on the verge of completely breaking down. \"Ah, uh, I?\" Once he realized the fact, it only took him a moment to crumble. The tremors that hit him were in a totally different dimension from what had afflicted his fingers and teeth from moments before. The trembling robbed him of his body's internal strength, and Subaru, who had been on his knees, lost his balance, sinking onto his rear. \"It's all right, it's all right, Subaru. I'm here, I'm right here...\" As his crumpling body leaned forward, a delicate touch embraced him from the front. Emilia's temperature was hot enough that he could feel it through the thin fabric of his clothing. A gentle beating came through the chest where he laid his head; he could tell that relief was filling the cracks of his broken heart. Relief.  Yes, this was beyond all doubt relief: that Emilia had remained herself, that the Witch had not stolen her body away. And pathetic as it was, Subaru's body had chosen quivering and crying as its way of expressing that relief. \"I'm so sorry, making you worry like that. It's all right, it's all right...\" As Subaru trembled and cowered, Emilia gently consoled him, calling out to him over and over as if pitying him. Ever so quietly, Emilia continued to console Subaru in that fashion. CHAPTER 2 *** 1 \"So that is how Lady Emilia returned with Crybaby Barusu in tow...\" \"Somehow, that sounds like the title of a fairy tale or something...\" Subaru had bawled his eyes out, and Emilia had consoled him. The time of warmth and being pathetic had come to an end. When their legs brought them out of the tomb, Ram was there to greet them, and having listened to the circumstances, she made the aforementioned kind words. Unfortunately, Subaru, well aware of how pathetic he was, had no mental energy left with which to refute her. \"After having raced inside in such dramatic fashion, he faints just like he did during the day, causing trouble to the Lady Emilia he was supposed to save... Why are you alive exactly?\" \"I said I have no mental energy; that's not a reason to come after me even more, you know?!\" \"That's right, Ram. Subaru was worried about me. Those feelings are precious.\" Ram, unable to conceal her scorn, emitted a heavy sigh as her shoulders fell. When Subaru lodged an objection about her demeanor, Emilia, completely recovered, offered him reassuring support. Emilia stood at Subaru's side, angling her refined eyebrows in a dignified manner as she continued. \"Though given that he went out of his way to help me, it is really disappointing that he ended up collapsing all of a sudden and broke down crying from worry after \" \"Emilia-tan? Emilia-tan? I'm going to cry all over again.\" \"But ! Lately, Subaru's done nothing but help me...so a part of me is relieved that Subaru showed me his weak side like that...\" Touching a hand to her chest, Emilia's words caused Subaru to unwittingly catch his breath. Emilia had an overinflated view of Subaru's worth. Up to that point, Subaru had showed her his pathetic side on more than one occasion this time was only the latest example in the long list of embarrassing moments since they had first met. \"I'm both happy and embarrassed to hear you say that, Emilia-tan, but I don't really want to show you stuff like that much...\" \"Eh, why not?\" \"That's because I always want to show Emilia-tan my cool side. I want you to forget that I'm really a weak, pathetic, totally unsalvageable guy.\" \"Sheesh. I won't hate you just because you show me a few moments of weakness, Subaru.\" Emilia put her hands on her hips, cheeks puffing up in indignation. Subaru tried his best to smile to gloss things over. Emilia's words were kind, but Subaru's vanity didn't let him gain any comfort from them. His displeasure was completely unrelated to Emilia's personality and it certainly wasn't because he was worried about disappointing her this was simply Subaru's stubbornness talking. \"Ha! Aren't you full of yourself? Seeing you act this pigheaded makes it difficult to believe you are fresh from bawling your eyes out.\" \"And there Big Sis goes pouring cold water on right when things were going nicely...\" \"Now, now, do not say that, Mr. Natsuki. Miss Ram's demeanor belies her concern. When she had no idea what was occurring inside, Miss Ram was particularly worried out of... Hiii!\" Otto looked quite pleased with himself, but one cross look from Ram instantly made it fade away. No way she's seriously acting sour because of an adorable reason like that, thought Subaru as he squinted at Ram. \"What?\" \"...No, ah, nothing at all.\" But her sharp glare made him beat a hasty retreat as well. Unlike Otto, the damage to him was light because he was more accustomed to facing off against Ram. Either way, Ram and Otto had been there to warmly greet Subaru and Emilia upon their return. That being the case, the remaining issue became quite simple  *** His averted gaze fell upon a golden-haired youth standing nearby with his arms folded Garfiel. The sight made Subaru's cheeks harden, and he strove to conceal his emotions behind them. Subaru's feelings toward Garfiel were exceptionally conflicted. It was a fact that he had temporarily cooperated with Subaru in the battle against the Witch. The memory of his gruesome death was still burned on the back of Subaru's eyelids. And so Subaru accepted that fact.  But he also remembered the great many he had cruelly killed in the world prior to that. That was the reason"}, {"text": "Subaru couldn't lower his guard. Especially not right after a Return by Death. The reason for Garfiel's hostility, the Witch's miasma, would currently be at its thickest. How would he move? With Subaru under that tension, Garfiel clacked his fangs and spoke up. \"When ya charged in there, I wasn't sure what was gonna happen, but I'm relieved ya made it out safe 'n' sound. I can't laugh at ya for it; 'the wind can't bring down Gafgari on fruit' 'n' all!\" \"Ow! Hey, wait a  Ow! Owww!\" Garfiel laughed heartily as he violently swatted Subaru's shoulder. The slap was hard enough to make Subaru's entire body go numb, which made him shudder and think, He's gonna do it with everyone watching?! But he sensed no malice coming from Garfiel's smiling face. He was simply welcoming Subaru and Emilia back after they returned safe and sound. The reaction was a little no, absolutely beyond his expectations. \"That's...it?\" \"Aah? Wha...? Are ya such a crybaby ya need me to rub your head and say it's all right?\" \"Like that'd make anyone feel better. That's not what I meant but...nah.\" Subaru pulled back his tongue, on the verge of saying something that risked stirring up a hornet's nest. After all, the current Garfiel didn't seem to bear him any ill will. That, at least, was something to be welcomed. \"I was kinda worried if I'd stuck around you, you'd look down on me for my body odor...\" \"The heck are ya...? Me, I really don't like bein' associated with body odor like that.\" \" . Just take that as meaning it's an issue with my body, would you? More importantly, let's sit down somewhere before discuss all the fine details. Talking while we're standing like this isn't great, right?\" \"That's true. Subaru must be tired from crying so much, after all...\" \"Emilia-tan!\" Emilia agreed with Subaru's point of view while adding further fuel to the crybaby fire. She responded to Subaru's sorrowful voice by sticking out her tongue. \"I'm sorry,\" she offered in a cutesy apology. Forgiving her teasing because of how adorable she was, Subaru harbored a different set of thoughts within his chest.  This time, unlike all prior runs, Emilia had not become terribly despondent due to failing the Trial. The trigger for that change was the pathetic reality of Emilia recovering from panic faster than Subaru, but either way, this time she had confronted her past but still retained a strong heart. It was not set in stone that her mental state would have a positive effect on the Trial going forward, but  \"It's worth giving it a shot, huh?\" \"Mr. Natsuki? Is something the matter?\" \"Nothin' really.\" As the group started to change locations, Otto called out to Subaru when he began lagging behind. Responding with a shrug of his shoulders, Subaru quickly caught up to them. Emilia's heart was still unbroken by the Trial and Garfiel remained neutral. The circumstances surrounding the Sanctuary had shown him different faces upon every repetition. This time proved no exception, but Subaru was keenly aware how this was the most solid starting situation to date. \"After that, it comes down to what I try and what I get out of it, huh?\" To hell with dying for nothing. I have to use death more effectively. All the death until that point had meaning to it...even the repeated deaths of the world and the Sanctuary. Hence  \"Making it back from inside that shadow has gotta be worth something.\" His head complained of slight pain. In a corner of his mind rested a lingering memory of being mixed with other people. Surely something in there could provide some meaning to his death and that chance encounter with the Witch. 2 The party left the tomb, heading toward Ryuzu's residence, which served as a de facto inn. Where the conversation passing between them in the guest room was concerned, there was no great change in the issues regarding the Trial. But unlike before, there was the exceptionally major difference that Emilia was participating in that conversation. Up until the last run, Emilia had been wedged between her sense of duty and her fear toward her past, with the seemingly insurmountable weight causing her to waste away. But this time was different. \"I'm sorry about today. I made everyone worry, and I really caused trouble for Subaru...but I think it's plain to see that I have to do this.\" Subaru could not tell what everyone thought of Emilia proclaiming her determination at the end of the meeting. But for his part, Subaru was proud of her, feeling a desire to applaud. In fact, he did. On that note, the day's meeting came to a conclusion, adjourning so that people might prepare for the morrow. \"Emilia-tan, make sure you bundle up; take your time and rest, okay? If you don't feel sleepy anymore, I can stay by your bedside from 'good night' to 'good morning' but...\" \"Mmm, I'm completely all right. You need a break as much as I do, don't you, Subaru? Noon and night makes twice you've collapsed in that tomb today, so...\" \"Ahhh, I guess it does. Yeah, you're right. I'll take care, too.\" As Subaru gave Emilia her send-off to bed, her observation made him scratch his head and give off a vague smile. Having accepted this change in Emilia, Subaru hadn't told anyone about him and the tomb in other words, the fact that he had taken the Trial and overcome the first part. This was out of consideration for Emilia, for if she knew Subaru had overcome the Trial she had failed, it would make her harbor unnecessary thoughts of self-reproach. If this time, Emilia could preserve a strong mental state, then the results of her second attempt might change as well. He remained hopeful. And even if the result was the same, the knowledge of that was still something worth obtaining. There was value in trying.  More importantly, this time Subaru wouldn't be overly focusing on clearing the tomb. If he challenged the tomb, he could meet Echidna within the Trial once more. There was no mistake that this would be of aid to him, but at the moment, Subaru lacked the qualifications sufficient to meet her. His preparations were insufficient. He was still lacking new information, new results, new everything under these circumstances, even if he met Echidna, it would only amount to her indulging Subaru. He would rather avoid that if he could help it. Accordingly, Subaru needed to accumulate something that was merited another meeting with the Witch. For that sake as well, Subaru's current top priority was proving that the \"memories\" resting inside of his head were not mistaken. \"Ram, I need to talk to you for a second. Is now good?\" \"How indecent.\" \"You jump to bad-sounding conclusions fast!\" After parting with Emilia, Subaru addressed Ram as she tidied up the guest room. Staying in the Ryuzu residence were Emilia and Roswaal, and Ram, who was tending to their needs, for three guests total. By rights, Subaru ought to have been spending the night with the people of Earlham Village in the Cathedral but  \"But today I have something that comes first. You remember the promise we discussed before challenging the tomb, right?\" \"Of course. But I am surprised that you remembered, Barusu. You had quite a busy time in the tomb, I am sure.\" Though she was obviously referring to him collapsing inside and crying his eyes out, Subaru kept his mouth shut about that. This was after having been laughed at for the Crybaby Barusu incident aplenty. Right now, Subaru had more important things to talk about. \"Anyway, the promise...by which you mean Master Roswaal making time to speak with you, I take it...\" \"Because of extenuating circumstances, I want to defer that promise until later. In exchange, Ram, I want a favor from you.\" \"How indecent.\" \"Don't make this a running gag!!\" He sighed at the scowl Ram was giving him. He hadn't gone as far as scrapping the promise completely, but from her demeanor, Ram didn't think much of Subaru's arbitrary request. Even so, she shrugged her shoulders. \" Fine. Master Roswaal did tell me to put myself at Barusu's disposal. And should this be some manner of vulgar scheme, it is Barusu who will regret it later.\" \"Can I just point out that I'm not looking at you with indecent eyes or anything?!\" \"I suppose not. What Barusu turns toward Ram is not a gaze of carnal desire but something vaguer.\" The sudden statement perplexed Subaru. However, he immediately realized what she was really getting at. And from Subaru's perspective, it amounted to being sucker punched from a blind spot. After all, Ram was asserting that Subaru was looking right through Ram and seeing \"someone\" else instead. Even though he'd been trying his best to be careful and avoid this  \"What a pathetic face. It is not a repulsive gaze, though, so I won't speak of it any further...\" Noticing that Subaru was unsettled made Ram narrow her eyes. This was not exasperation or scorn but an emotion of gloom so thin it was almost invisible to the eye. That made it stab at Subaru's chest all the more. Though their personalities differed greatly, that gentleness was commonly shared by the sisters who looked like two peas in a pod. *** He thought it his true desire to divulge to Ram every last thing about Rem. He wanted to tell her that she had a doting little sister at the mansion trapped in a slumber from which she could not awaken. Subaru wanted to speak about the feelings, the memories he had for the two of them until he could speak no more.  But Subaru knew of a world where this had led to Ram's attempt to sacrifice Rem. The despair and dejection of that moment kept Subaru from speaking of Rem. A world where Ram abandoned Rem, where the elder sister abandoned the younger, would undoubtedly drive him mad. \"...You had something to ask of Ram?\" \"Uh, er?\" \"Please close your mouth and stop making that idiotic face. It was not my intention to make you feel bad, Barusu. Ram wishes to carry out Master Roswaal's instructions. To do that, all that is required is for me to listen to your story.\" \"That's a big help... Er, actually I wanted to ask a favor having to do with Garfiel.\" Graciously going along with Ram's rare generosity, Subaru finally reached the main issue. The name he brought up as the topic made Ram narrow her eyes just a tad. \"Has something happened with Garf?\" \" . It's about what's gonna happen. The odds are pretty high that he's going to get in the way of my covert activities. If I could have you keep him occupied, I can \" \"Seize the opportunity and give his head a good wham from behind, yes?\" \"Even if I did that, wouldn't it just end with me being sent packing? Geez...\" In fact, Garfiel's strength was so great that an ordinary person like Subaru wasn't even in the right dimension required to consider delivering a knockout blow. He'd already seen Garfiel fight three times during their initial encounter, later in his bestial state, and of course, the battle against the Witch, and that was plenty. Even if Ram actually did charm him, the results of a fight would no doubt be the same. Ram seemed to agree with his assessment. \"While it is true that Garf is rather taken with me, but the one has nothing to do with the other. I assume you require no explanation for how absurdly strong he is.\" \"Yeah, if it came to violence, I'd go down in one blow.\" \"You would hardly be worth the time. How cheeky of Garf.\" Ram's manner of speaking was belied by the gentleness in her eyes whenever she spoke about Garfiel. It was impossible to tell precisely what emotions"}, {"text": "lay behind those pink eyes, and Subaru, failing to glean anything, abandoned the attempt. Garfiel was an obstacle. He was a wall that needed to be climbed over. There was no room to see him as anything more than that. He'd determined Garfiel to be his foe. If Ram was the most appropriate means for overcoming him, he just needed to make her trust him. \"...There is a disagreeable look in your eyes, Barusu.\" But when Subaru fell silent, Ram murmured as the temperature of her cruel gaze dipping. \"I do not know what you have seen on the way h  No, what you saw in the tomb, but it is unlikely to have been anything good. Compared to the gaze that clearly sees someone else when you look at me, this is far viler.\" \"...Quit it with the weird suspicions. All I did in the tomb was sleep. The dream I had wasn't all that bad.\" The dream his passing encounter with the white-haired Witch, Echidna, floated up into the back of his mind. Having conversed with Echidna three times already, he wouldn't say he knew everything there was to know about the Witch, but her existence was a very big deal so far as Subaru was concerned. Amid those precious few opportunities, his mind had been saved, he had obtained the strength to move forward, and she had even saved his life. She was someone he could reveal Return by Death to, someone he could speak to about it that alone was unspeakably precious. *** For a time, Subaru's black eyes and Ram's pink eyes stared at each other. He almost felt like she was reproaching him for having been saved by a Witch, but Subaru denied that with his gaze. It was not clear whether his intent had been properly communicated, but Ram abruptly averted her eyes. \"...I shall draw Garf off. Do whatever wicked deeds you have planned.\" \"Thanks, I'm counting on ya... Sorry. You're not in the wrong. I get that.\" As if to paper over the awkward atmosphere, Subaru appended those words and, not waiting for a reply, made his way out of the room. When he left the building, the warm breeze filtering through the Sanctuary tickled Subaru's bangs. Smelling the scent of grass mixed in with the nighttime breeze, Subaru's legs slowly took him in the direction of the forest. The settlement's bonfire had already been extinguished, but thanks to the moonlight, his footsteps were steady. After walking for a little while, he abruptly heard the sound of finger whistling coming from the direction of the Ryuzu residence. \"...Don't tell me that's her way of calling Garfiel over?\" Guessing that it was Ram doing whistling, he pictured Garfiel being called over by it in his mind. It made him think that the relationship between them was owner and pet and definitely not that of a man and a woman. Either way, he was grateful for Ram keeping Garfiel occupied. At the moment, he had bigger worries and priorities than their relationship.  To determine whether it was true, Subaru arrived at a path that was not a path and entered the heart of the forest. 3 Subaru breathed deeply to endure the powerful, throbbing pain of the memories. Biting down on his back teeth, thick sweat came onto his brow as he forced open his field of vision, matching the scenery with the memories. He used his arms to part the overgrown vines and branches, advancing into the heart of thick green that even beasts disliked, heading deeper and deeper. The throbbing memories he gained when he was swallowed by shadow, and his very being had been on the verge of dissolving into the murky water, he saw a ray of hope. Murky water that was the only thing he could call that situation. When his existence was whisked into the shadow, melting into the darkness, Subaru was merged with the numerous \"consciousnesses\" within. These were probably the minds of the victims who had been engulfed by the Witch's shadow. Subaru had managed to escape only moments before he would have shared their fate. What followed was fruitlessly losing his life despite fighting his hardest, but Subaru's living or dying was not important.  Having touched upon the memories of others held in that shadow's embrace, the fact that he had returned with a part of those thoughts was crucial. From a fragment cut off from the memories, he had deduced he'd been seeing things wrong, coming up with mistaken answers for important questions. This came via the vile practice of mixing with numerous other people, but even so, the return on investment was exceptionally large. After all, he'd managed to come back with a great deal, even if it took one of Subaru's lives to fish it out. \"That leaves confirming what those memories say... The details kinda give me the willies, though.\" With the scenery around him all the color of green, he just couldn't find the hidden facility inside the forest that was his destination that hard-to-find white building that Subaru had unwittingly arrived at twice. The first time was when he'd been incarcerated by Garfiel; the second time, he'd arrived at the place through a teleport via the crystal's power. Subaru did not know the truth behind the building. But the memories were urging him onward. They kept urging that this was one of the Sanctuary's secrets, and believing in this, Subaru continued walking until  \" Found you.\" In the depths of the forest, Subaru spotted the weathered white structure. He wiped the sweat off his brow. The building, standing quietly amid the deep green, had an air about it that seemed to reject the entry of people no, it was not people alone whose entry it rejected. It was animals, insects...everything. The proof of this was the strange odor prickling Subaru's nose the instant he spotted the building. \"Ughh...this scent's still going strong, too, huh?\" Wiping his lips with his sleeve, he didn't think anyone would enter that structure without a very good reason. \"But I'm going in... Can't get a tiger's cub without going into a tiger's den and all.\" Slowly, carefully, Subaru approached the building's entrance. The stonework building was fairly weathered, but just like the tomb, there seemed to be no need to worry about it collapsing. Seeing that there was no door, leaving him free to enter and exit through the entrance, he confirmed that there was no sign of human presence as he began his infiltration. It was fairly dark inside the building, but moonlight filtered in through cracks in the ceiling. Relying upon this to ensure he could still see, Subaru scrupulously inspected the floor and walls as he headed deeper inside. Subaru had been to that place twice before, once through confinement and once through teleportation, but neither occasion permitted him any leeway to scrutinize the structure, so he'd put studying the place on the back burner. He had come to regret putting many things on the back burner in that fashion. This, too, he now had cause to mourn, but  \"This cavity in the wall... This is from the memory... Gii?!\" Sparks scattered across the backs of Subaru's eyelids, his eyes becoming teary as he became certain that this and the memories matched together. As he looked around the facility, there was a room in the farthest reaches that was twice as large as any along the way. This was the room in which Subaru had been held during his captivity. The back wall of the room maintained an unnatural whiteness, as if it had been bleached, and it was here he discovered a strange cavity. The cavity had clearly been purposefully created, and when he timidly peered closer, Subaru thought it looked like a place where you'd hide something.  No, he did not \"think\" it. The memories knew. This was where the crystal had been placed. \"Placed but why?\" He took out of his pocket the blue crystal that Frederica had possessed. Having been teleported by it twice over, Subaru handled the stone with great care as he placed it within the cavity. Maybe something will happen or maybe nothing will happen but the instant after he had the thought... *** The instant the crystal left his hand, light gushed from it. The dazzling blue made Subaru's breath catch as he instantly shielded his face with his arm. Then he slowly squinted toward the light, and... \"...Oh come on.\" He unwittingly let his voice trickle out. The blue light generated from the center of the cavity gradually waned. In the place the light vanished from was  No, rather, the issue was what wasn't: the white wall that ought to have been there. The wall with the cavity vanished, and so came to be an entrance to another room hidden behind it. Then, when Subaru looked at what was in the hidden room, he was at a loss for words. At the center of the room was enshrined a huge crystal large enough to just wrap his arms around it.  On the inside of the beautiful blue light was a curled-up girl, her body sealed inside the crystal. \"Th-this...is...\" Wobbly, Subaru entered the room with a precarious gait, drawing nearer to the crystal. The sight stole his eyes away. Such was the extent of the surreal beauty before him. The blue transparent crystal put on display a girl so beautiful it was tragic. The impression given was near to that of a block of ice, but unlike ice, which could be melted to free someone from it, the crystal was eternal so long as it remained unbroken. And breaking the crystal would be the same thing as breaking the girl's life. It was a cruel work of art, with the crystal girl as the centerpiece and her face was familiar to him. \"...Ryuzu, is that you?\" The person inside the crystal had long pink hair. The still-young physique was clad in a simple one-piece dress. Her body was curled up like someone sitting with folded legs in phys ed class, and the girl's long-eyelash-bearing eyes were closed as if she was asleep. This was, without any doubt, Ryuzu Bilma, the representative of the Sanctuary. Or more precisely, he ought to have called her a girl who was Ryuzu's spitting image. \"It's not just the crystal. What's with the whole atmosphere of this room...?\" The metallic pedestal supporting the crystal gave off a faint light, granting dim lighting to the entirety of the room. Subaru's eyes, then accustomed to darkness, found the light sufficient to survey the entire layout of the room. The impression the scene gave Subaru was that of a bizarre experimental facility. Of course, this was a world far removed from mechanical technology. That place was no exception, and he could see no extravagant devices within it. And yet, Subaru had without doubt received the impression it was an experimental facility. Perhaps that impression had come not from Subaru but through the memories within him. And the answer was likely  \"Something you only get from coming here. That's the sense I get. Close enough?\" \"...I wonder. I am not confident I have the answers you seek, Young Su.\" \"That excuse stopped working the second you showed up here, I gotta say.\" Turning around, he offered a strained smile to the figure that spoke after appearing at the entrance. The familiar face seemed tired somehow as it pleasantly returned the smile and moreover, there were two of them. The one with the staff with whom Subaru had exchanged words was Ryuzu Bilma. And the other one was  \"This is the...girl who guided me after the teleportation?\" *** Without replying to Subaru, the girl looking exactly like Ryuzu maintained an expressionless silence. Unlike Ryuzu, she did not have a cane, and the simple poncho-style robe matched up with the girl who'd guided Subaru to the tomb. However, that did not mean it was the same girl for certain. As if"}, {"text": "to underline Subaru's guess, Ryuzu shook her head. \"Probably not. This girl is one of those who stand watch over this place. The one who you met in the forest, Young Su, was a different...was no more than one part of the Sanctuary's eyes.\" \"The Sanctuary's eyes, huh...? It sounds like some kind of surveillance net. So a group of multiple Ryuzus keeps watch in the forest. No wonder you know everything that goes on around here.\" Subaru's words, spoken with complete confidence, caused Ryuzu to slightly raise her eyebrows, whereupon she nodded. The eyes of the Sanctuary Subaru now had an answer for the question about that metaphor he'd carried over from a previous time around. It was two runs prior. Having escaped his confinement at that facility, just how had Garfiel seen through the plan to escape the Sanctuary the plot hatched by Ram and Otto? The answer to that question was the Sanctuary surveillance net employing multiple Ryuzus. \"I had never thought Young Su would uncover this place a mere half a day after arrival. I have lived here many years, but I have rarely been surprised so.\" \"The credit doesn't go to just me. It's thanks to the memories that brought me here.\" \"Memories, a strange answer indeed. Just whose memories were they?\" \"I wonder.  I think they're probably from someone who knows about this place.\" Ryuzu skeptically furrowed her brows, but Subaru did not disclose the secret of the memories. This was not maliciousness on his part but because he had judged that revealing any more would be dangerous. This information had been gleaned from falling deep into the Witch of Jealousy's shadow. If he explained where he'd gotten them from, the odds of breaking the Witch's taboo were rather high. Accordingly, he chose to not tell Ryuzu anything else. But what had developed from that, namely Subaru acting based on his belief in those memories, was another matter. He believed that by going there and asserting these memories, he would draw closer to Ryuzu's secret. \"And in point of fact, I turned out to be the bait drawing Ryuzu out. Wasn't far-fetched or reckless at all, was it?\" \"It was certainly a gamble for you. Did you think about what Young Gar might do if he spotted you?\" \"I did think about it, so I asked Ram to keep him occupied. In the meantime, it's a date between you and me, Ryuzu.\" \"I am unsure what it is you mean by dayte...but I cannot defy you at this point, Young Su. You may do with me and the girl here as you wish.\" \"That's giving in a little too much! In the first place, I just want to ask you some things. If possible, I'd like to ask you for your cooperation afterward, but...\" This was hardly his first choice but if push came to shove, it was entirely possible that he would have to confront Garfiel. As a matter of fact, he didn't know for sure that Ryuzu agreed with all of Garfiel's positions. Subaru needed to think of inflated hopes or easy trust as dangerous things. \" There is no need for concern. It is as I said. I cannot defy your words, Young Su.\" However, in the face of Subaru's concerns, Ryuzu repeated herself as if trying to remind him of something. The weight of those words left Subaru downright perplexed. Ryuzu wore a thin, pleasant smile that confused Subaru as she glanced at the girl standing right beside her who bore the same face as she did. Then she picked up from where she had left off. \"We cannot defy the Apostles of Greed.  This is the pact that has been imposed upon us, the replicas of Ryuzu Meyer.\" Somehow, resignation seemed to cross her powerless smile as she spoke. 4 They exited the facility and led Subaru to a single house in a place that was isolated even by Sanctuary standards. They could not simply return to the settlement, and Subaru was reluctant to hold a conversation in a place with such a caustic odor, so this suited him just fine. It seemed a little too good to be true, but  \"Such a deeply suspicious child. With that personality, you will die of mental fatigue at a young age.\" \"That's unexpectedly unfunny, and sometimes things get to you whether your suspicions are deep or shallow.\" When Subaru was looking around the room in dead seriousness, Ryuzu gave off a sigh with the air of a strained smile. Then she set her cane aside, picking up a pot for pouring tea in its place. \"Sit somewhere suitable. I will pour the tea.\" \"I know how to pour tea at least. Ram taught me so I'm a bit confident in my skill.\" \"A great part of me would be grateful for that, but now is simply not the time, is it?\" With the smiling, eyes-narrowed Ryuzu watching him, Subaru sat down on a bed, and the Ryuzu look-alike girl grasped Subaru's tracksuit, as if trying not to let him escape. Subaru was at a loss as to what to call the girl who Ryuzu herself had called a replica, until finally  \"She's really clingy... Er, no, that can't be it. Piko doesn't plan on letting me escape, I take it?\" \"Nicknames aside, she bears no ill will. Apostles must be welcomed with special favor. I assure you, she will not mind if you give her a little slap for being naughty.\" \"Calling it naughty makes it sound a lot less like a bold confrontation, you know...\" Ryuzu's elderly advice brought a look of dissatisfaction from Subaru. With Subaru like that, Ryuzu handed him a steaming cup, then proceeded to sit in a chair and turn to face him. \"It is hot tea. 'Tis it not best to blow on it first?\" \"I'm not a little kid, so I'm not gonna bring it to my mouth all nervous and give myself a big burn, okay?\" \"There is a restless one close to me with a cat's tongue, so I am in the habit of giving warnings.\" From the teasing way she said it, the one with the cattiest tongue, least able to take the heat, had to be Garfiel. Bringing the poured tea to his lips and finding it fairly hot, just as Ryuzu had said, he wet his dry lips and took a breath. When he thought about it, this was the first moisture he had received since his Return from Death in other words, since awakening in the tomb. His throat was craving that moisture beyond what he'd expected. And so Subaru promptly drank the cup dry, audibly placing the cup on the table as he spoke. \"There we go. I know this is right after an unsettling conversation, but can we get to the point?\" \"How impatient of you. But I have no reason to refuse or the personality to do so. Do as you please.\" \"You being cooperative is a big help... And I take it that this Apostle of Greed is kind of the reason you're so cooperative?\" As they began the Q&A session, Subaru efficiently cut straight to the most recent question on his mind. It was the first time he was hearing the term, but it was the sort of thing that required little in the way of imagination after hearing it. After all, there was just too strong a whiff of a connection to the Witch of Greed. The question made Ryuzu close her eyes and sink into thought. By no means was she rejecting his first request of the conversation. It was just that the silent girl was displaying a quite gloomy expression. Finally, Ryuzu let out a sigh that sounded far older than suited her appearance as she said, \"...Young Su, surely you know whose hands first established this land?\" \"Whose hands? That'd be Roswaal's fami  No, it wouldn't.\" Answering reflexively, Subaru shook his head midway, realizing his answer was wrong. The Sanctuary had purportedly been administered to by the Roswaal family for generation after generation, and the current Roswaal had inherited that role. However, it sounded like the administrator and the creator were two separate parties. \"Meaning the one who built this place was the Witch of Greed... Echidna.\" \"Yes. A certain Witch built upon this soil a place to accomplish a certain Witch's purpose. It is a testing ground to fulfill a dream traced by that certain Witch.\" \"Testing ground... Garfiel said something pretty close to that.\" Garfiel had made the statement when Subaru and the others arrived at the settlement in the Sanctuary. He had called this deadlocked testing ground the tomb of the Witch of Greed. At the time, the word Witch had seemed most important, so he'd let the testing ground part slide, but now that he had seen the girl in the crystal, the impression given by that facility made him unable to forget those words any longer. \"If this is the Witch of...Echidna's testing ground, what kind of test is she running?\" \"The details of the test, you ask? Where that is concerned, the examples of success are right before you, Young Su.\" The corners of Ryuzu's lips twisted as she spread both arms out in a theatrical gesture. Her behavior made Subaru's breath catch.  When he guessed the true meaning of her words, he sent his gaze toward Ryuzu and Piko. \"So Ryuzu and this girl are the results of the experiment being conducted here.\" \" There was a girl who looked exactly like me shut inside the crystal, yes?\" \"...Yeah, your spitting image. Ryuzu, are you, Piko, and her triplets of some kind?\" \"If you wish to treat those with the same faces as sisters, three is a number that is just a little insufficient.\" \"Just a little, huh?\" \"Just a little, yes.\" By joking around \"just a little,\" Ryuzu delicately evaded the truth. But Subaru already knew what Ryuzu was trying to gloss over that there were over twenty replicas. That said, there was nothing to be gained from pointing that out. The important things were the fine details about the relationship between that facility and the replicas and the experiment being conducted in the Sanctuary. \"That crystal...or a magic crystal rather? That girl inside of it, what's her relationship to you, Ryuzu?\" Switching his wording from crystal to magic crystal, Subaru unhesitatingly cut to the heart of the matter. Receiving his question, Ryuzu shifted her gaze toward the wordless girl. \"The answer to that question is not an issue for me alone. This girl and I stand in identical positions.\" \"The girl in the magic crystal included, right?\" \"No, that girl alone is different. That girl alone is the exception, for that girl alone is the real one.\" Having been told this yet being unable to digest the contents, Subaru skeptically knit his brows. \"Real one? What do you mean by 'real one'...?\" \"Now, now, do not be hasty. An elder's tale is constructed by sifting through old memories. One must be prepared to come along for the ride.\" \"I've come this far, so can you stop appealing to your age, which aside from tone of voice doesn't show at all? I've got tasteless, odorless Pico right beside me already, so if there's nothing but that old granny scent for seasoning, I'm gonna split in two right here.\" \"Hmm...this has given rise to a rather unfortunate misunderstanding. To me, everything I have constructed about myself is precious, for that is how I gained my individuality.\" \"Gained your individuality?\" Having heard the turn of phrase, he repeated it, unable to simply let it go. Subaru desperately tried to make his brain digest it, but Ryuzu, paying no heed to his mental anguish, added, \"That's right,\" before continuing her tale. \"Tasteless and odorless... It is as you say, Young Su. That girl is empty on the inside. And I began the same. The 'me' that you see today is"}, {"text": "no more than the contents poured into an empty vessel over the course of long months and years.\" \"Wait, wait, wait! This conversation's developing really fast! Created? Still empty? We skipped over somethin' really important there. Saying the girl in the magic crystal is the real one isn't enough of an explanation!\" \"The girl within the magic crystal is the original, the first Ryuzu.  Ryuzu Meyer.\" Subaru drew in his breath when that name was stated. Ryuzu greeted his hesitation with a single nod and said, \"That is the real Ryuzu. All other Ryuzus, me included, are replicas of Ryuzu Meyer...which would make us imitations.\" Thus did Ryuzu declare that she like the others was a duplicate. Subaru had no immediate follow-up to that explanation. Her explanation just then matched up with the vague theory Subaru had inside of him from having seen many Ryuzus for himself. The reason he'd averted his eyes from that theory was none other than Subaru not wanting to believe it. The prejudice in his mind came from physiological disgust toward the fact that an \"acquaintance\" of his was a clone. \"Does knowing I am an imitation change how you see me?\" \"...Dunno. I want to say it doesn't. I want to, I really do...especially when the person concerned asks that right in front of me.\" Since he was in a different world than his own, it was not appropriate for him to call Ryuzu a clone. The way she had been born was probably fundamentally different from Subaru's imagination. Besides, even if it was a fact she was a replica, all life was equal. It had to be equal.  Yes, even though he understood it in his head... \"I don't have any confidence I could nod and say that with a chill look on my face. So I'm not gonna say those words lightly.\" \"You are kind, Young Su. That is also being soft, naive...excessively honest to the core.\" He'd been absolutely certain it was not an answer that would leave her pleased. But Ryuzu nodded, apparently satisfied with Subaru's reply. The gesture tugged at Subaru's thoughts, and he came to stare at the girl sitting right beside him. The girl he'd dubbed Piko as a matter of convenience gazed at the room with emotionless eyes. She continued to keep hold of Subaru's sleeve, almost looking like a doll.  Even though it was impossible for a doll to have her physical warmth. \"That you feel something like physical warmth is no more than a function of a false body.\" \"A false body... Whaddaya mean, false? I can touch it and everything.\" \"Producing a vessel of flesh from nothing is no easy thing. Can you even imagine the principles by which the girl and I are able to exist like this, Young Su?\" She said it like she was testing him. Subaru restrained his mind's craving for an immediate answer and sank into thought. With Ryuzu taking such an earnest posture, he wanted his own demeanor to be in kind. For that sake, he brought all mental hands on deck. \"Could it be mana...? So making a body like that of a spirit?\" Abruptly, the existence of a little kitty Great Spirit quite familiar to him broached that possibility in his mind. Normally, Puck was inside a crystal; when he materialized, he formed a physical body out of mana. Was it not possible that a physical body, a false body that held warmth, might follow along the same lines? Ryuzu responded to Subaru's idea by clapping her hands, acting quite impressed. \"Well done. You did well to think of that, even though no one told you the answer.\" \"That's because you gave me a hint that led me to the answer. All I did after that was realize from a spirit that's close from time to time... So should I take that as meaning I'm right?\" \"It is very close to the mark. Our physical replica bodies are created by a ritual, using artificial odo at its core. Enshrouding mana around this core materializes these bodies into being.\" \"Odo, that was the power in the body, as distinct from the mana that floats in the atmosphere, wasn't it?\" \"Odo rests within all that lives. Accordingly, it is even said that odo is proof of the soul.\" The mismatched gravity with which the young voice spoke the words made Subaru unwittingly draw in his breath. If odo was proof of the soul, then using a ritual to create it was surely  \"This is kind of putting it lightly, but ain't that...creating life?\" \"Of course, rather special conditions must be in order to make such a phenomenon possible. Unfortunately, I was unable to comprehend the details.  You may simply think of the formula's creation as the result of a Witch's quest and the result obtained via experimentation.\" \"This is pretty far-out stuff... She was really something, huh?\" Becoming the creator of life was a feat that rivaled God himself. Setting aside the pros and cons of accomplishing the feat, it was surely worth praising the talent behind bringing it into fruition.  Yes, the talent itself was praiseworthy. However, the impression that the feat of creating life was violating a sacred taboo was another matter entirely. \"I wonder what she did an experiment like that for? I suppose that's the next topic for discussion.\" \"Mmm.\" \"Put bluntly, magic's totally out of my expertise. I can't even begin to understand how incredible what Echidna did is. Even so, I can tell it's really something else.\" As Ryuzu folded her arms, adopting the posture of the listener, Subaru continued his words. \"Where'd the motivation come from to do something that incredible? What brought it on? Why did Echidna make the replicas of Ryuzu...of Ryuzu Meyer?\" As mysteries of the Sanctuary went, the girl named Ryuzu Meyer stood in the number one spot. The Ryuzu Bilma before his eyes called herself the Sanctuary's current representative. Her family name differed from that of the original. From the conversation to date, he could tell that she had arrived at that position over the course of a prolonged period of time. In that case, where Ryuzu Meyer's relationship to the Witch was concerned  \"...I thought I'd float a possibility that came to mind.\" \"Oh-ho. Do tell?\" \"This is the time-honored way these stories tend to go my theory is, for some reason, the girl named Ryuzu Meyer lost her life, and she tried to resurrect the girl in the form of replicas.\" The eternal search for how to bring back a life that had been lost, realistic or not, was a difficult issue. There were all kinds of ideas proposed to deal with that difficult issue, including reproducing the dead via clone technology, which led to constructing substitutes in their place. And in the vast majority of these fictional circumstances, this was greeted by numerous failures along the lines of Even if you bring the physical body back, you cannot bring back the soul. \"Given what you said, Ryuzu, and the state of Piko here, the possibility this experiment ended in the same kind of failure seems pretty high. It feels like, even if the appearance is completely the same, you can't reproduce what's on the inside.\" If Echidna stubbornly kept creating more replicas without giving up, that was truly an act of madness. Even after over twenty failures, had she continued hoping for the possibility the soul might be resurrected? But the one thing Subaru couldn't do was dismiss that as mere obsession. He absolutely could not think of wanting for, struggling for someone to be brought back to life as wrong. Not Subaru, racing in search of an optimal future that very moment  \"Although I think you and the others are probably qualified to blame her, Ryuzu.\" \"And say, we did not ask to be created like this? I have lived a little too long to make such a naive plea... Besides, it seems you have an overidealized view of the Witch, Young Su.\" \"'Overidealized view of the Witch'?\" Subaru's eyes went wide, as if he'd never expected that to be said to him. To that Subaru, Ryuzu said, \"It is as if you are watching a dream,\" forming a smile that gave off a rather desolate air as she gently shook her head. \"I take it, you are thinking along the lines of...if the Witch went to the extreme of such experiments to bring Ryuzu Meyer back to life, the girl must have been an irreplaceable being from the perspective of the Witch?\" \"Well, yeah... I mean, is there any other answer?\" In point of fact, no other answer came to mind. The Witch had tried to bring the girl back to the point of drawing up a ritual to create a soul. So the girl must have been that important to her what other answer was there? \"Ryuzu Meyer was a mere village girl. The circumstances of her birth were just a little special, but...she was certainly not close to the Witch nor were they related by blood. Ryuzu Meyer and the Witch were such strangers that the times they had spoken could no doubt have been counted on one hand.\" *** \"Incidentally, Young Su. Earlier, you deduced that the experiment in this land had failed, yes?\" \" ? Y-yeah.\" Subaru was perplexed at how she had put the current discussion on hold and had gone back to a matter from a little earlier. But Subaru being thrown off did not make Ryuzu hesitate to land an additional blow. \"The experiment in this land failed not. I told you before I am an example of its success.\" \"Ryuzu, you're an example of success...? No, wait! Something's weird about that!\" Overwhelmed, Subaru thrust a palm out and second-guessed what had just been said. Ryuzu's wording was strange. After all, had she not explained previously? \"You said you were born empty. I know you said you were born the same as Piko is now, and you came to be as you are now. How does that make you a success?\" \"My, my. Having that said to my face is rather hurtful, you know?\" \"Please don't make light of it! I'm seriously... I'm seriously asking this!\" He accepted that his statement was inconsiderate. But it wasn't a situation where he could tread lightly. The force of Subaru's words brought a rather strained smile from Ryuzu. She gently touched a hand to her chest. According to the explanation to that point, there was no heart beating behind her diminutive chest. However, Piko conveyed warmth to him as she sat by his side. Where was that heat coming from? he wondered. This was the proof of the soul, the result created by Echidna's experiment to create life  \" That girl and I, born empty, are successes of the Witch's experiment. Those words are no lie.\" As Ryuzu repeated her earlier words, Subaru calmed down his quickened heart and nodded. Ryuzu was saying that their being born as dolls in an empty state and not as reproductions of the original, Ryuzu Meyer this was by the Witch's intent. What was the meaning behind this? \"Back then, the girls leaping at the Witch were all the same as Piko...\" Obeying Garfiel's commands, the replicas had sacrificed themselves against the Witch enshrouded by a vast shadow without the slightest fear. They'd been made that way...like dolls, merely obeying the commands issued to them. Was that what that white-haired Witch wanted? Was that what she was after? \"You could pass it off as curiosity to that point, but what could she learn from that? If she wanted that, brainwashing someone appropriate would've been a hell of a lot faster. Don't tell me the motivation was madness of some sort like, I thought of making them, so I did...\" And if it was so, that would be that. But for some reason, he was certain that it was not. Why would Echidna make something from nothing, an empty vessel,"}, {"text": "something you could pour anything into  \" Ah.\" Instantly, he saw it in the far distance, a possibility pieced together from various fragments. It was simply a preposterous thought, the sort that one ought to forget about with a single shake of the head. But once the thought was given life, Subaru's brain grabbed hold of it and would not let go. This was the Witch of Greed, curiosity incarnate. She had a logical objective that lived up to that lofty title. She had a reason for constructing an empty vessel with nothing inside. After all, what is an empty vessel for  \" It's obvious. It's for pouring something into it.\" If the empty vessel was the completed form, the objective was to fill it. Just what would fill such a vessel? What could possibly be the ambition of someone called a Witch, a person who had a bottomless craving for knowledge and wanted to know all there was to learn in the world? What was that something the Witch wanted to pour into an empty Ryuzu Meyer  \" She'd pour personality, memory, knowledge...in other words, a soul.\" The deduction made Subaru feel like his throat had suddenly gone dry. In his place, Ryuzu picked up where Subaru left off. Her blue eyes narrowed, and though the old woman seemed to be peering far into the distance, her gaze rested on her own offshoot standing right at his side no, this was no offshoot. She shifted her eyes toward the doll that was like her own little sister. \"The Witch was supposed to pour herself into the body of Ryuzu Meyer. This was, in other words \" \" one type of immortality.\" It was this conclusion that unveiled the truth about the experiment conducted in the Sanctuary. 5 Immortality. There were many legends about such a thing stretching from ancient to modern times, from Occident and Orient alike. Life reaching that point formed an ideal. For eternity, one would never grow old or wither, and the \"self\" would be tied to the world without passing through the great cycle of death and reincarnation. Even knowing that this violated the defining rules of life, there was much that was attractive about arriving at the pinnacle of living  Yet, an exceedingly decrepit ring of truth rested behind those grandiose words. \"Immortality, that's...a greedy thought even for a Witch. Immortality... It comes off as the goal of a small person obsessed with her own life, I've gotta say...\" \"Whether being reluctant to part with life is a sign of poor character is open to personal interpretation, but at the very least, the Witch does not seem to regard her own life as a trivial thing. Fear of death is natural, as is searching for a way to keep it at bay. In most circumstances, it is the sort of desire one might laugh off, but...\" \"Echidna was someone who had the ability to make it into a reality. And this is the result of that line of thinking?\" Looking down at Piko as she sat at his side, Subaru had the annoying sense that he couldn't say anything bad about that. Piko did not react to his gaze, either. She simply had a vacant expression, as if simply awaiting his command. \"...If these girls really are empty, even making them cry like little babies would've been way better...\" \"Apparently, that was not the Witch's desire. What the Witch wanted in the end was a vessel...not one with a personality such as I but one beginning with the minimum intelligence required to obey instructions. To a certain extent, that would also give the Witch the option of keeping or discarding the memories of the girl from which they were extracted.\" Memory and intelligence were installed and saved within the empty vessel. Those were the easiest words he could use to describe it, but they weren't talking about data. They were talking about a single person's personality, memories, knowledge...a person's soul. \"It'd let her implant her own memories into a new vessel. By doing that, when one body became old, if she kept creating new vessels, that'd definitely become one form of immortality. But...\" Maybe you could call passing down the personality and memory one sure way of conquering death. If you saved a personality like data, even if one vessel was destroyed due to some mistake, you could be resurrected through installation into a new vessel. You could copy the personality, and you could copy the physical body that was the immortality Echidna had theoretically established. And when he unraveled the method behind the immortality Echidna had aimed for, he realized something. \"Ahhh, so that's it... So that's how it is.\" \"Young Su?\" Suddenly, a sense of acceptance calmed the inside of his chest, and a dry smile came over Subaru. The smile made Ryuzu's brows grimace, but Subaru did not give her any reply. After all, it was meaningless to speak about it. There was no one who could understand what was inside Subaru's chest that moment. \"Finally, I get it... I get the reason why you acted all chummy with me.\" To the smiling Echidna on the back of his eyelids, Subaru quietly let out what seemed like admiration. Echidna's objective was to prepare multiple replicas to inherit her own life and the personality and knowledge therein immortality achieved through transference of the soul. This was, in other words, none other than her method of preparing for what came \"after\" life. \" Just how different is that from my Return by Death...?\" From their very first meeting onward, Echidna had harbored a great deal of goodwill toward Subaru. She'd been his confidant, speaking to him at great length, and through the conduct she had displayed, the distance between them had been reduced, and she had obtained his trust. Now he understood the true intent behind those actions. This was the Witch's joy...a joy akin to that of discovery. \"I understand how you felt at the time... I mean, I was happy enough to cry...\" When Subaru had revealed Return by Death, it had saved him. Truly, he'd looked at the world a different way since. Probably she'd had the same feeling from the first time she and Subaru had met. That's why Echidna... *** Because he understood that, there was no way he could harbor ill will toward her works. If anything, it made him feel closer to her. The emotion Subaru harbored for the Witch really was genuine gratitude...gratitude at having met someone cut from the same cloth. Echidna desired immortality. Subaru continued to pile on death to win his future. The methods did not change that both were engaged in rebellion at the single \"life\" that they ought to have had. If that was so.  If that was so, in a true sense, was not Echidna the one being who could truly understand where he was coming from, and Echidna, him? \"...Ryuzu, I understand your position...and what Echidna was trying to do, too. So knowing this, I ask you...did Echidna succeed in her goal?\" \"Her goal, in other words...\" \"She prepared the vessels. All that was left was to overwrite one with her. Did that overwriting succeed? No, if I was to put it more bluntly...\"  Was Echidna alive somewhere in that world that very moment? He'd cut off his words halfway because he felt like his tongue was going numb. But as if she sensed what was in his thoughts, Ryuzu shook her head. Slowly, she shook her head. \"I imagine it is to the chagrin of the Witch, but her plan was a failure... Echidna was not passed down.\" \"Wh-why not? Did the personality installa  Etching fail?\" \"It was not a complete failure. However, from the Witch's point of view, her wish was incompletely granted.\" \"Whaddaya mean, incompletely?\" \"It is a simple matter... If the amount poured is too great for the vessel, of course the rest spills out. If one portion spills out, what remains is already something different from the original.\" Blinking at the echo of the word vessel, Subaru looked at Ryuzu, then Piko. \"When you say the vessel isn't enough to hold it, you're not talking about physical size, are you?\" \"Perhaps it is better to say, the capacity for the soul. People are suited to the various souls that are inside of them. The vessel of Ryuzu Meyer was simply insufficient to accept the Witch of Greed.\" \"Didn't she...know that beforehand somehow?\" \"I cannot know the entirety of a Witch's thoughts. But the vessel chosen by the Witch, Ryuzu Meyer, was insufficient for the Witch's hopes. As a result, her plans went awry...and a terrible failure came to be born.\" \"Goodness,\" went Ryuzu, a tired look on her as her shoulders fell. Subaru felt the same way. Echidna had overlooked something in the fine details, an unfathomable error for a Witch. Knowing the person concerned, Subaru thought such an error was eminently understandable and predictable but  \"So the plan failed...but she still made replicas after that, right?\" \"...However, those replicas were born from filling the magic crystal in that facility with a certain level of mana. The Witch designed it so that the magic crystal itself forms them.\" \"The magic crystal itself... You mean she made it make the replicas automatically?\" \"As a result, after the Witch's death, only the facility remained, and even today the number of replicas continues to grow... It is all a matter of mana. That we require no material resources to live is the single saving grace.\" These words spoken, Ryuzu audibly sipped her tea with the same mouth that had just announced she required neither food nor drink. \"...You seem to drink tea just fine, though.\" \"This is a hobby of mine. It is an individual quirk I acquired over the course of a long life.\" Subaru's listless jab made Ryuzu's little throat ring out with laughter. Feeling a little rescued by that laugh, Subaru let out a long sigh and put a question onto his lips. \"So what about this first 'failed' replica? Even if you couldn't stuff the entire soul in, she must've inherited part of a Witch's memories, right? Even if it wasn't all the way, she'd still end up pretty witchy, right?\" \"When poured liquid spills, one cannot pick and choose which part spills out? If it is minor memories that spill out, there might be no hindrance to everyday life, but if parts with a crucial impact on personality spill out, it is already beyond salvaging.\" Subaru thought Ryuzu's roundabout explanation must apply to the first failed replica. In other words, she became something far from the Witch's expectations  \"Thanks to that replica having a completely bankrupt personality yet having inherited a fragment of the power of the Witch of Greed, it was apparently quite the uproar. Though she was disposed of, it caused the Lady Ros of prior generations quite a bit of anguish.\" \"Disposed of... I see.\" \"Of course, if she was one to give up after a single failure, she would not have pursued immortality to begin with. Reflecting upon her failure, the Witch's next thought was perhaps the net volume of the soul could be modified.\" \"Takes one hell of a soul to come up with that!\" In other words, the idea was nothing short of compressing the data before transfer. Subaru could understand because he had a passing familiarity with computers and the concept of moving amounts of data around, but Echidna was quite something to arrive at the same idea without that knowledge and apply it to the soul at that. \"But it sounds like...that failed, too.\" \"It did not. The Witch did not make it in time. The Witch of Jealousy swallowed her up before she could do so.\" After the last of that statement, of how the great hope harbored by Echidna the Witch had gone to waste, she let out a distinct sigh. Subaru, too, knew how the six Witches bearing the"}, {"text": "titles of the other Deadly Sins had met their end. Already destroyed by the seventh Witch, the Witches in the false, transient encounters within the castle of dreams were nothing more than vestiges of their souls. Or perhaps remaining in soul form alone was simply a matter of Echidna's stubbornness. \"So Roswaal's family has been administering the Sanctuary since Echidna passed away. Ryuzu, can I assume...you live here for the same reason?\" \"It is so where Young Ros is concerned, but I live here because I am bound by the pact.\" The word pact brought a dramatic rise from Subaru's eyebrows. He didn't have any good memories of that or similar words since arriving in that world: pact, vow, covenant the whole bunch. Not noticing the state Subaru was in, Ryuzu made a very deep sigh. \"As the replicas go, I was one of the first four. I was granted the knowledge and personality required to administer the Sanctuary as the number of replicas continue to increase. That duty continues even now.\" \"So you were given a personality and a role from the time you were born?\" \"My quirks come from my upbringing after the fact, but it was quite a hardship at first. I had a duty, yet I had no memory. Many years would pass before I could truly appreciate living each and every day.\" Somehow, her words had a pained echo to them, no doubt from thinking of the months and years that had passed to date. Only Ryuzu could know the hardships she had faced on the long road she had walked. It had been four centuries since Echidna's death it was a span of time that Subaru couldn't even begin to imagine. \"I am grateful for your consideration, but you need not wear that painful look. I believe there is deep meaning behind the duty I fulfill. Their circumstances are varied, but because I was here, I was able to save a great many brethren. Maintaining this place has tangible meaning.\" These words spoken, Ryuzu smiled, and Subaru felt pressure inside of his chest. By brethren she had saved, she meant the demi-human people living in the Sanctuary had been exposed to bias and discrimination, unable to stay in any one place for long. Whatever the Witch's intentions, this had become a place of peace to them, a homeland they had attained at long last.  But several days hence, even that land where they could live in peace would be cruelly eaten apart by the fangs of demon beasts. *** He had to do something. That was something Subaru and only Subaru could do. For if Subaru didn't do it, a great many lives that he had to save would be lost. \"I believe we have finally spoken about all there was to speak of. It became a longer conversation than I had expected.\" \"There just isn't enough time at all to hear about all the hard times you've been through, Ryuzu... Er, actually, I haven't heard anything about the really important part yet.\" As Ryuzu took another sip of her now-cooled tea, Subaru raised a finger. The final question was actually the first, the issue to which the answer had been kicked down the road. \"The conversation flew away a little so I forgot, but can you tell me about this Apostle of Greed business?\" \"Ahhh, that's right. It is something I took so much for granted, I failed to realize.\" \"Please. If I don't understand that, I won't be able to relax 'cause I won't know the reason this girl's acting so fond of me.\" Glancing sidelong at Piko, she remained wordless and unreactive from beginning to end, never leaving Subaru's side.  And that term, the Apostles of Greed, was the answer. \"Answer me, Ryuzu. No need to gloss anything over. Just tell it like it is.\" \"Let me see... Put simply, the Apostles of Greed are the beings who have the right to command us, the replicas of Ryuzu Meyer. As fellow pawns of the Witch Echidna, our positions are similar...but your authority places you above us, Young Su.\" \"Wait, wait, wait! I can't let that part just slide! Whaddaya mean Echidna's pawn?!\" \" ? It is strange that you are unaware of it. The fact that you stand before the magic crystal is proof you have been acknowledged as being qualified to do so.\" Cocking her head, Ryuzu looked genuinely mystified. Her reaction left Subaru opening and closing his mouth like a fish. Calming down after several seconds like that, he spoke up again. \"...Explain it to me from the beginning. I found that place relying on the memories of other people. That's why I can't agree with what you're telling me. I don't have anything to do with the Witch...with Echidna.\" Fearful of breaking the taboo, Subaru became selective about his words midway through his sentence. The explanation sent Ryuzu sinking into thought, her childish brow creasing as she made an mmm murmur. \"And yet, I feel compulsive power from Young Su's words. This is unshakable proof that you have become an apostle, Young Su. At the tomb, did you not receive something from the Witch that acknowledged you as her apostle?\" \"Something I got from Echidna at the tomb...?\" Thinking back to his passing encounter with Echidna, he couldn't put his finger on anything that fit the bill. He had no memory whatsoever of words acknowledging him as an apostle nor of any kind of appointment ceremony. What Subaru was granted in that dream was a fair bit of knowledge and reassuring and terrifying experiences. And  \"...Wait, don't tell me it was the Dona Tea?\" \"Dona Tea?\" \"Twice the Witch made me drink what she said were her body fluids disguised as tea...\" \"So you took a portion of the Witch into you, then? Without humor or irony, 'tis surely that.\" \"Why, that little  She really did make me drink one hell of a thing!!\" As the indignant Subaru unwittingly rose to his feet, Ryuzu went, \"Now, now,\" as she chided him. While Subaru's heart and head filled with anger, she smiled at him. \"When all is said and done, it's thanks to that you've come this far. It's not all bad, yes?\" \"I'm upset that she set me up and kept quiet about it! What does she think someone's body is? My relations with Witches are complicated as it is, and now I've got Greed and Jealousy all over me...\" First was the Witch of Jealousy, granting Subaru the power of Return by Death without asking; then there was the Witch of Greed, arbitrarily adding him to the ranks of her apostles. Witches really did do things as they damn well pleased. The instant he also thought of Wrath, Pride, and Gluttony, he was assailed by resignation. \"I mean I knew that... Witches do as they please. I can't really expect much from the last two, either...\" \"At any rate, Young Su, you have gained command over the Sanctuary's replicas of Ryuzu Meyer. You may make even me obey any order you please. Quite thrilling for a healthy young man, is it not?\" \"I might be a grown young man, but you don't exactly look like a grown young woman...\" Those with particular...tastes might drooled at such an opportunity, but it was a treasure wasted on Subaru. Still, when it came to taking advantage of it, this treasure was certainly a useful one for fulfilling Subaru's objective. \" If I have the mark of an apostle with command rights, there's an Apostle of Greed besides me here in the Sanctuary, right?\" The question made Ryuzu fall silent. However, her expression told him what wanted to know. More than anything, Subaru had already seen the answer with his very own eyes the apostle who had given orders to over twenty Ryuzu replicas, employing them in the battle against the Witch. \"Garfiel. He has to have qualifications as an Apostle of Greed, too. And if my guess is right, qualifications to be an apostle aren't something you get unless you meet with Echidna.\" And with the Witch having already passed away, that world had only one remaining way to meet her. \"Garfiel's been inside the tomb. He's taken the Trial... Ryuzu, you said yourself that anyone can take it. That's gotta be why he's an apostle.\" It wasn't difficult to imagine Garfiel challenging the tomb. He'd probably raced recklessly into the tomb, full of confidence and spirits high, hoping to liberate the Sanctuary.  And there, Garfiel had no doubt faced his own past. Subaru didn't know what Garfiel thought of the results. But given the fact that the Sanctuary's barrier had not been lifted, Garfiel's challenge of the Trial must have ended in failure. And yet, he had become an apostle. After taking the Trial, he must have been invited into the castle of dreams. There he engaged in conversation with Echidna, and then they must have formed some kind of pact. Exactly what kind of pact had been exchanged between them? Reasoning by analogy, Garfiel's objectives all fit the role of a guardian of the Sanctuary. That was the only point on which there had been no inconsistency between all the runs Subaru had been through so far. However, once that was removed from the picture, inconsistencies in his words and deeds had appeared between each attempt. Perhaps, for whatever reason, Garfiel's actions had begun to go haywire? Did that have something to do with him being an apostle no, that was overthinking it. He couldn't get overly sympathetic for Garfiel. He didn't have the leeway for that. He, Garfiel, is my enemy.  It's better that way. \"Ryuzu, are command rights broadcasted to other apostles?\" \"There is no outward sign of it, so no. We might feel the compulsive power ourselves, but surely Young Gar would feel nothing of that. Nor do I intend to go out of my way to tell him of it.\" \"Then let me bind you on that one thing. Even if Garfiel asks, don't answer him.\" *** Subaru's command made Ryuzu narrow her eyes. He felt an odd throbbing in his chest. Belatedly, he realized that this was a sense of guilt of having ignored the will of another being and his aversion to forcing another to obey him. It wasn't something he wanted to get used to. But this one time, he ignored those feelings. \"I can't tell you all the details, but this is the best road for everyone to travel. Ryuzu, my relationship to you girls is secret. Piko and the others can just do the same things they've always done... To make sure Garfiel doesn't know there's anything between us.\" \"After all, Young Gar would not be silent if he knew that our relationship was one of adulterer and harem.\" \"On top of being one evil metaphor, that makes my sins sound waaaay too dark...\" Be it sarcasm or complaint, Ryuzu's reply left Subaru drained of energy as he gravely accepted it.  Don't forget. Remember this. Even if you get a pardon, even if this becomes a lost world...  The crimes committed by Subaru Natsuki had to be remembered, even if by Subaru Natsuki alone. \"Young Su?\" \"...Nah, this is a really huge help. For the moment, I'm good for everything I wanted to ask. I figure I'll be asking for your cooperation from here on out, so counting on you for when that time comes.\" \"Of course, for I cannot defy you. Use me as you please, be it to evade Young Gar or as your own personal hugging pillow...\" \"And can you stop treating me like my demands aren't greedy enough?! I'm really not used to it!\" Responding to Ryuzu's teasing, Subaru proceeded to give a command to Piko at his side. For several seconds, he mulled over what he ought to say, but  \"Please continue working as the eyes of the Sanctuary just like you have to date. I'll call you when I need"}, {"text": "you.\" *** Having received her command, Piko did not nod as she quickly rose up, heading out of the house in a small run. \"When I wanna talk to you in secret, Ryuzu, should I just use this hideaway?\" \"Yes, for this is where I am sleeping while I lend my house to Young Ros and the others. I am here most of the time between morning and night. A house without a master is slighted if one does not use it once in a while, after all.\" When Ryuzu slapped her thighs, Subaru nodded a fair bit and lightly surveyed the room. He'd thought this when they'd first brought him in, too, but this really was an average house with no defining characteristics. But if he was to point out one thing that made it stand out from the other house, it would be the two shields on the wall both spherical and polished a silver color, decorated with images as if to powerfully assert themselves. \"They are the toys that Young Gar and Frederica played with long ago.\" \"...Children playing with shields. Different culture, huh?\" Seeing in which direction Subaru's gaze faced, Ryuzu made a pained smile as she spoke. It was hard for Subaru to imagine the sight of kids playing with shields. It was just as difficult to imagine Garfiel and Frederica as little kids. \"Thank you, Ryuzu. See you later... Er, that wasn't a command, okay?\" \"I will not be quite that much of a tease. Worry not. As representative of the Sanctuary, I shall cooperate with you hereafter.\" The oddly roundabout phrasing on the occasion of his departure made Subaru tilt his head. But unrelated to that tilting, he waved a hand and headed out of the house. And just before actually leaving, Subaru abruptly looked back. \"Come to think of it, Ryuzu, if the original family name is Meyer, why is your family name Bilma? Where'd that come from?\" The question made Ryuzu, watching him head off, flash a wry smile. Somehow, that expression was incredibly fleeting smile, like something so fragile that would crumple if you put your finger on it. \"The name of Ryuzu is assigned as part of our role. Accordingly, we can only demonstrate our individuality in other places. Hobbies, tastes, and names... Ah, Young Su.\" \"...Yeah?\" \"If you do not mind, perhaps you could ask the same question to me again?  From tomorrow and thereafter.\" Subaru was silent in the face of Ryuzu's request as that fleeting, brittle smile crossed her face. However, it did not take very much time for him to agree to her earnest plea. 6 Parting with Ryuzu, Subaru walked to the settlement in the dead of night. Ahead of him lay the Cathedral the place where the fleeing people of Earlham Village had been given refuge and the place that served as Subaru's sleeping place. Most were simply dozing in a huddle, but the villagers did as they were told without complaint, and that courageous spirit greatly bolstered Subaru's willpower. \"Somehow, I've gotta get everyone to the village safe and sound...\" As Suburu murmured, in the back of his mind, the smiling faces of people familiar to him were dyed with blood in an instant. The sights of them being cruelly slain by claw and fang that came from a future that might not be long in coming. Be the culprit Garfiel or the Great Rabbit, the difference in the form of death offered no salvation. But if it was just a matter of liberating the villagers from the Sanctuary, Subaru had a way. He merely needed to ask that they be released on the firm promise that Emilia would undertake the Trial. They wouldn't refuse. \"Besides, if they're here...they might do something reckless again.\" On a previous run, the villagers had metaphorically broken their bones to cooperate with Ram and company in aiding Subaru. Then that metaphor became far too literal with the unfolding of a tragedy far worse than the figure of speech could account for. A tragedy that could not be undone. Subaru didn't want to go through that again. And it was something he absolutely could not allow to repeat itself. Accordingly, he planned to have the people of Earlham Village peaceably released from the Sanctuary. Getting Roswaal to offer such a proposal made it possible. This was an issue he'd already cleared once before. As for what remained, the next problem he needed to deal with was  \" Subaru? What are you doing in a place like this?\" \"Wah-yaah!\" Suddenly, Subaru was taken by surprise by a voice calling out to him from out of the blue. He'd been concentrating so hard on his thoughts that he hadn't noticed her presence whatsoever. Subaru's reaction also seemed to surprise the girl who'd called out to him. \"That preposterous way of being surprised can really startle someone, you know?\" \"N-no one uses the word 'preposterous' anymore...\" As the surprised girl Emilia pursed her lips in protest, Subaru somehow managed to respond with his usual flippancy. In response, Emilia put her hands on her hips and said, \"Goodness, Subaru, that mouth of yours never quits. And to think I was worried.\" \"I didn't do anything that you had to worry about, so it's all right... But since I'm happy that Emilia-tan was thinking about me, I'd like it if you keep me in your thoughts all the time. We could even meet in a dream.\" \"Sorry, I don't really follow.\" Quickly recovering emotionally, Subaru entrusted matters to his gilded tongue as he walked closer to Emilia. Unlike when they had parted, Subaru noticed that Emilia, framed by the waning moonlight, was wearing thin one-piece pajamas. Without exaggeration, she bore an air of mystery like a fairy spotted on a moonlit night. Subaru felt his cheeks growing warmer at the thought. \"You look like a fairy there, Emilia-tan.\" \"Ah, you mustn't. You cannot speak badly of people like that. Even I will get upset.\" \"Calling you a fairy was meant to be a compliment, though!\" \" ? But fairies are a type of evil spirit, right? You can't fool me by calling those words of praise.\" \"Gah, my wooing was foiled by cultural differences...\" Emilia, refusing to lend her ears to Subaru's excuses, puffed up her cheeks. After that, she glanced at the downcast Subaru and let out a long, exasperated sigh. \"Yes, yes, let us leave the jokes there... Subaru, what were you doing at an hour like this?\" \"That's my line. I told you not to stay up tonight, and here you are on a nighttime stroll... If Puck was here, he'd say your beauty would be going to waste.\" \"That's, er...mm, I might not actually have an excuse.\" By piling a question onto Emilia's own, Subaru hid from her the information he had gleaned that night. She didn't need to know about the circumstances of Ryuzu's birth or about the Witch. It would just be an extra burden to bear. But Emilia's nighttime stroll bugged him on a mundane level. His question made her cast her eyes down. \"Um, having you say that to me makes this a little embarrassing, Subaru, but I couldn't sleep at all since... So I went out for a stroll with the night breeze hitting me. It helped calm me down a little.\" \"...Really are uneasy about the Trial, then?\" \"It's not that... Well, it might be that. But I don't really understand it myself. I thought, maybe by walking around I could find out what it was. Really, if only \" Cutting her words off there, Emilia lowered her eyelids, donning a gentle self-deprecating smile. Even without saying them, Subaru understood the words that lay ahead of where she had cut them off. Emilia probably wanted to say this: Really, if only Puck were here. \"...I guess I'm a stand-in to the very end, huh?\" \"Eh?\" \"Nah. Emilia-tan... Emilia, you're doing great. You really want to run from it, and there's nothing wrong with that. I really respect you for not letting that keep you down and standing up to face it.\" On her one opportunity to do so, Emilia would continue her challenge, undaunted by the allure of running away. The result might still be unpalatable, but even so, Subaru saw her trying to fulfill her duty with all her might. That was why Subaru's words were true, no falseness to them whatsoever. He respected Emilia, Ram, Otto, Petra, the villagers. He thought similarly of Puck, Roswaal, Ryuzu, and Frederica. For that sake, he had to overcome the obstacles known as Garfiel, Elsa, the Beast Master, and the Great Rabbit. \"Wh-what's with you all of a sudden? You saying that out of the blue...it's startling.\" \"It's not all of a sudden. I always think that; I'm just taking the time to say it. I wish I could say it in a more romantic way, but I guess you'll have to settle for a moonlit night.\" Hearing Subaru's words made Emilia furiously blink her violet eyes. Smiling at the sight, Subaru spread his arms wide as if trying to hug the night sky itself. \"I don't know how much strength my words'll have, but I'm saying it 'cause I feel like it. Emilia, you'll be all right. I'm sure you can do it. I'm here for you.\" \"Subaru...\" \"My words might not be much compared to the real deal, but if playing the role helps, great.\" He truly did not know how much his words could support her in the stead of what she truly wanted to hear from her family. Even so, Subaru's words made Emilia give the crystal lying against her chest a squeeze. \"...Mm, thank you. That really gave me the courage I need. Really.\" \"So I managed to help Emilia-tan a little bit?\" \"Don't say weird things like 'a little bit.' Subaru, you've always been helping me... Even today, I failed, and still you...\" \"But tomorrow'll probably be different. You'll make sure of it, right?\" In the face of Subaru closing one eye in a wink, Emilia closed her eyes and let out her breath. Then, after Emilia maintained her silence for several seconds, she nodded. \" Yeah, I'll do my best. Cheer me on, okay?\" \"You know I will.\" Subaru responded to Emilia's soft smile by baring his teeth and giving a thumbs-up. The response deepened Emilia's smile, and after a little bit of mutual laughter, the pair walked toward the settlement. After a bit of quiet time together, they came to a fork in the road. This was where they would part for that night Subaru going left to the Cathedral, Emilia going right to the Ryuzu residence. \"Well, you'd better get some sleep this time, Emilia-tan. Any loss of your beauty is a loss for the world.\" \"That way of talking is a lot like Puck. You too, Subaru. You won't get taller if you keep staying up at night.\" \"I'm at the end of my growth period anyway, so you don't need to worry about that...!\" With a bitter smile on him, the pair waved as they parted ways then and there. He truly wanted to escort Emilia all the way, but it was unclear just how long Ram's sabotage keeping Garfiel tied down would last. Blithely running into Garfiel would only be trouble, so with great regret, he abandoned the role of the wolf in gentleman's clothing.  Besides, if he was together with Emilia any further, his resolve would be dulled. \"...Looks like everyone's fast asleep, huh?\" Passing along the nighttime path to bring the Cathedral in sight, Subaru cautiously stepped inside. The interior of the building had a large hall reminiscent of a place of worship with only candles to illuminate it, and the villagers' sleeping breaths arose from a communal space. Most of those sleeping in the open space were the village's menfolk. The women and children and the elderly were sleeping in rooms too frugal to be properly called bedrooms, but"}, {"text": "they were the closest thing under the circumstances. Rather than complain about their accommodation, they acted to make the best of it. Subaru greatly admired their ability to do so. He did feel apologetic toward the several traveling merchants wrapped up in similar circumstances. \"That's why I can't let them treat me as more special than they are...\" Paying consideration to those asleep, Subaru meticulously made his way to the back of the hall. There lay the space kept open for Subaru, which at first the villagers had kindly furnished with not only a rug and a blanket but also the immense luxury of a pillow. That was something he just could not allow, so he'd firmly refused in favor of sleeping accommodations like everyone else's. \" So you're back, Mr. Natsuki?\" \"Ew, ew, sorry, did I wake y ? Doesn't seem like it.\" Looking back toward the quiet voice, in the sleeping space immediately beside him was a plump bla  Correction, Otto with a blanket pulled over him. Under the blanket, he was relying on a lagnite ore's light to read a book. \"I was worried that you were so late in returning. I feared you might have carelessly gotten lost in the forest and fallen into distress.\" \"Like hell I would... Wait, don't tell me you were waiting for me to come back?\" \"I will not for I did not. I am merely adjusting the calculations for how much the merchants here with me need to demand from the Marquis for compensation for the loss of business during our time here. Though as it has taken quite a bit more time than I had thought, I was thinking I should finally get some sleep.\" As he spoke, Otto closed the book in his hands and returned the luminous ore to its leather pouch. This made the light even more meager, and the expression on his face grew less distinct as well. But even without being able to see his face, Subaru could manage to see through such a clumsy lie regardless. \"What are you, an overprotective mother...?\" \"At least make me out to be the male parent... Er, I actually have no idea what you are referring to.\" After trying to gloss things over in various ways, Otto curled up in the blanket and turned his back toward Subaru. Maybe he thought he'd be found out if he said any more. His thinking he hadn't already been found out was kind of pathetic. Sighing at the sight of his back, Subaru lay on the rug of his own sleeping space. Pulling the blanket up to chest level, he felt sleepiness close at hand, contrary to expectations. He had no intention of sleeping for particularly long. Even so, his body apparently craved sleep more than he had appreciated. \"Mr. Natsuki, I believe this is very forward of me on various levels, but if anything happens, I am here to listen.\" \"...This guy says some weird stuff in his sleep. Gives me the creeps...\" \"Is that the kind of reply to give to someone worried about you?!\" Riding his emotions and raising his voice, Otto looked like he was immediately covering his mouth with his own hands. Fortunately, there was no sign of the sleep around them being disrupted by that single blow. \"Behave and go to sleep. If the villagers explode because of your jabs, there'll be no stopping it.\" \"Um, I was not saying that as a joke...\" \"I know, I know. I know already.  And that's why I can't tell you.\" The latter half alone was a murmur that seemed to vanish inside of his mouth. After that, Otto fell into silence, apparently dissatisfied with Subaru's lack of further words. He soon lost his battle against sleep. Subaru heartily sighed as he sensed that from Otto. He did not doubt Otto's offer in any way. If Subaru asked, no doubt Otto would cooperate. He really was far too good to other people to be cut out as a merchant. He'd seen that benevolence for his fellow man get him killed. That was why he absolutely wouldn't ask the man for help. He wouldn't have Emilia or Otto or the people of Earlham Village save him. Subaru would wager his own life and save them all. 7 After several hours of sleep at the Cathedral, Subaru was there when daybreak came to greet the Sanctuary. Shaking his still-sleepy head, Subaru spurred his mind to awaken. Even that short sleep had somewhat softened the fatigue of brain and body. At the very least, he did not need to worry about falling off a dragon in the near future. \"Well, in the end, I'm relying on your running technique to help with that part.\" This said, Subaru stretched a hand out to his favorite pitch-black land dragon Patlash standing right beside him. Upon this, their first reunion since the day before, Patlash fondly brought the tip of her nose over to Subaru. Making a little smile at the adorable gesture, he savored the ticklish feeling and stroked her head. \"I know I'm waking you up like this, but I'm counting on you to get the job done.  It'll be one run all the way to the mansion.\" Patlash responded to Subaru's request with a sound from her throat. It sounded to Subaru's ears like, It can't be helped, leaving him very grateful for the depth of his beloved dragon's fondness.  Very early in the morning, away from prying eyes, Subaru was trying to leave the Sanctuary. His objective was to take on affairs at Roswaal Manor, for prioritizing that over the tomb was the plan Subaru had decided on that time around. In complete secrecy, his aim was to get a grip on the situation arising at the mansion, develop firm countermeasures, and return. In the present circumstances, Subaru remained far more ignorant of the events set to occur at the mansion than the situation in the Sanctuary. He couldn't save anyone like that. Accordingly, he would proceed to the mansion to learn about those things. Besides  \"If I know the circumstances, I can rely on Echidna, too. Right now, I still don't have enough data to hold a conversation.\" He could lament his ignorance and powerlessness after he had acted. Subaru didn't deserve to have such laments yet. His preparations were insufficient for conversing with the Witch. But that did not mean he was without hope. \"Beatrice, isn't part of the Witch Cult... That I know for sure.\" This was something Roswaal had spoken to Subaru about during the go-around before last. Roswaal had declared that the book in Beatrice's hands was an inferior version of what might otherwise be called a book of knowledge, but that book had nothing to do with the Witch Cult. If Beatrice was unrelated to the Cult, she was not his enemy. He could save Beatrice. That, to Subaru, was hope. Of course, there were many unnatural aspects to Beatrice's demeanor toward him. But the biggest issue had been held at bay. For the moment, that was enough. \"If there's a way to save Beatrice and then Rem and Petra 'n' Frederica, that clears the mansion side.\" Touching the handkerchief wrapped around his wrist, Subaru crisply put his objective into words. If he knew how to deal with the issues at the mansion, he could pour all his efforts into taking on the tomb and liberating the Sanctuary. If there were firm ways to take on both sides, he ought to be able to break through even those twin towers of suffering. Just how many times Subaru might have to sacrifice himself for that end was an unknown variable, but  \" That's the only value I have here.\" Flicking a finger off his own forehead, Subaru put his own resolve into words, carving them into his chest. This time, his return to the mansion was the morning of the second day, the fastest timing yet. He'd beat out last time's speed record and return to the mansion, spurring Petra and the others to evacuate. Everything would begin with that. Before he set off, Subaru dealt with his one lingering regret sliding a letter under the door into the entrance to the Ryuzu residence. The contents were addressed to Emilia, expressing on paper his desire that she not worry about him. \"Not that this makes any logical sense, since my premise is that I'm redoing this world...\" This time, Subaru wasn't telling anyone in the Sanctuary about his return to the mansion. All he'd done was write that letter, an effort to inform Emilia and those immediately around her. He'd firmly cut down the possibilities of liberating the villagers and taking Ram and Otto with him. This time, Subaru would return to the mansion alone. What he needed to guard against the consequences of that surely had a very simple answer. Leaving the letter behind even so was to guard against unnecessary accidents. If Subaru clouded the reason for his sudden absence, at a minimum he could avoid chaos in the Sanctuary. He wanted to avoid an undesirable change occurring to the greatest possible extent, passing it off as his running some kind of errand to the mansion and so forth.  That was his ostensible reason, at least. When you ripped that facade away, his real reason was terribly simplistic. He didn't want to make Emilia sad. That was all. Even in a land fated to vanish in a world fated to be erased, Subaru did not want to make Emilia sad. For that reason alone, Subaru left a letter behind. Truly, the best thing would be for Subaru to stay. Her smiling face from the previous night rose into the back of his mind. \" Let's go, Patlash. Sorry to make you wait.\" Shaking his head, Subaru severed himself from lingering regret as he mounted Patlash. When he gripped the reins and spoke to her, Patlash made a little sound, turning her head to the way out of the Sanctuary. Her running feet already had the blessing of wind repel deployed around them, so that Subaru felt neither the sway of the land dragon nor the resistance of the wind. At a speed outstripping the wind itself, Patlash raced through the forest at daybreak. Even the Lost Woods of Cremaldi was all for naught before this all-too-clever land dragon. She continued her sprint with no sign of getting lost in the Lost Woods. At that rate, they'd get out of the forest in another hour  \" Aww, too bad. It's just like the story o' one should be suspicious of Berbe's different sweat.\" When the voice poured down from overhead, Subaru instantly pulled back the reins. Receiving this command, Patlash kicked up a cloud of dust as she slammed the brakes. With the land dragon standing at a halt, her wariness toward the figure standing straight before her as one of the guardian deva kings was laid bare by her neigh. But if anything, the opponent bared his fangs in amusement at the hostility. \"Ha! Ain't you all worked up early in the mornin'. That land dragon has some serious guts, don't she?\" \"...That's because, aside from her tastes in men, Patlash is a completely perfect lady.\" \"Real adorable of her.  Unlike your land dragon, you're nothin' but a stupid bastard, though.\" Ferocious vigor poured out, and from a single step on the ground, Subaru felt as if the forest itself was being shaken. Such was the oppressive feeling that the youth who had shown himself Garfiel was thrusting in his direction. The prickly sense of oppression made Subaru swallow his saliva as he raised both of his hands up. \"...There's a misunderstanding between me and you. I think that's something I need to clear up.\" \"Misunderstanding...? Like hell there is. You're runnin' away in the middle o' the night with your tail curled between your legs. That's the small of heart for ya. 'Cause if it ain't that...\" On that note, Garfiel"}, {"text": "audibly clamped his fangs down, a distinct grimace appearing as he said, \" Then that just leaves a guy stinkin' of the Witch headin' out to do wicked deeds, am I right?\" Crinkling his nose, he spat the words out, making his hostility clear. What he had said made Subaru close his eyes for a moment; then he stroked the agitated Patlash's neck, dismounting so that he would stand at the same eye level as Garfiel. He sighed at confirmation that the Witch's stench the miasma clinging to his body was indeed the cause of Garfiel's antagonism toward him. However, he simultaneously felt that something was a little off. Amid that vagueness, Subaru formed words for the purpose of giving that amorphous ill feeling a tangible form. \"Just now, you mentioned the Witch's stench, but I've had a fair number of people point that out to me before.\" \"...Heh, that so? I dunno about what other people think. It's one helluva stench, though.\" \"Setting my body odor aside, those people decided based on my actions. It'd be a big help if you did the same. At the very least, you let me go right after I came out of the tomb, right?\" *** Seeing Garfiel go silent made the bad feeling that had been bothering Subaru grow more distinct. Simply put, the timing with which Garfiel pointed the miasma out was unsettling. Why had he chosen this moment rather than right after he'd come out of the tomb? Of course, it was possible that when he'd noticed Subaru acting away from prying eyes, he'd linked that to his suspicions about the miasma, giving him justification to be hostile  \" If that's the case, just say the word and I'll give you a sincere and honest apology from the bottom of my heart.\" *** When Garfiel heard Subaru's question, his mood clearly shifted. At his back, Patlash gave off a slight growl, perhaps the work of a land dragon's acute sense for danger. Even without such instincts, Subaru could tell that Garfiel's annoyance was at dangerously high levels. \"I asked something inconvenient for you. That's written all over your face, Garfiel.\" \"...Stop it. Don't annoy me any more than ya have.\" \"No can do. This is your reward for getting in my way. If you hadn't shown up, I'd have let it go, but since you did show up, I'm taking the opportunity.  Garfiel, your face will give me my answer.\" Garfiel's voice grew quieter; in its place, the ghastliness residing in his expression grew hotter still. Keeping his eye on that, Subaru raised three fingers. And then  \"I have three guesses for what's put you in a sour mood. The first is the miasma...but I have my suspicions about that. If your nose is for real, I can't square it with your actions yesterday.\" He started by raising his doubts concerning the miasma. Garfiel's cheek twitched slightly. \"The second is you spotting me as I ran out this morning. It's true that was wildly suspicious...but that's weird, too. Unless you've been tailing me the whole time, it's like you have someone else keeping an eye on me.\" His next shot was a bluff, since he'd already heard as much from Ryuzu. Garfiel's pupils narrowed. \"The third and final guess is what links the first and the second together. It's the girl who looks just like Ryuzu that I saw in the forest. That girl oof.\" With the third assertion, he had clearly succeeded in getting under Garfiel's skin something that became obvious when the world Subaru saw was suddenly flipping upside down when he was only midway through his sentence. \" Gwaa!!\" The next moment, his back was slammed against something hard, wringing out an anguished groan along with all the air from his lungs. He felt something extremely hard pressing against his back which turned out to be a fat tree trunk. The palm digging into the center of his abdomen was holding him so far up against the tree that his feet didn't even reach the ground. As Subaru moaned in pain, the culprit, Garfiel, glared at him from up close and said, \" And where the hell did you see that?\" \"Whaddaya mean where...? Inside, the forest...was right there for the seeing.\" \"Ain't no way ya could have been there. Stop tryin' to fool me if ya don't wanna end up squished flat.\" An audible creak accompanied the increase in pressure, causing drool to spill out as Subaru writhed in agony at the churning his internal organs were going through. Twist as he might, he couldn't even make Garfiel's hand twitch. \"Don't move a muscle, land dragon. You do and I'll crush your precious master.\" Garfiel moved to check Patlash, who was about to make a move to rescue Subaru from his suffering. The land dragon snarled in frustration, lowering her center of gravity as if waiting for an opening. Upon reflection, these two foul-tempered personalities one man and one beast had been at odds ever since their first meeting. This explained why Garfiel had been the cause of Patlash's death during a previous run. Of course, neither of the two concerned knew anything about that and when Subaru thought about it, he felt his agony ease somewhat. \"...The hell's...wrong with you? Why are you smilin' at a time like this?\" \"S...orry, just...remembered something... Made me laugh...\" \" You're off your rocker, damn it.\" \"Whoa?! The heck are you...?\" With a low murmur, Garfiel suddenly let Subaru go. Unable to break his fall, Subaru tumbled to the ground, immediately glaring at Garfiel as he wondered what the big idea was and then he realized it. Resting in Garfiel's eyes was disgust and a faint trace of fear. \"Garfiel, you're...\" \"Shaddap, madman. This ain't funny. Damn it, you were testin' me, weren't ya?\" *** Pressed into silence, Subaru touched a hand to his throat as he let out a light cough. He sensed Patlash rushing right over to his side; during that time, Garfiel moved a fair ways back. \"You knew ya might be killed then and there, damn it. This ain't no joke. How can ya can smile when your own life is on the line? Ya lost your mind!\" \"When you put it like that, it's kinda hurtful, you know... I'm not exactly calm and composed here.\" Smiling weakly at Garfiel's statement, Subaru scratched his head. On one level, what he'd said was correct; on another, it was not. Fact was, Subaru's hands were shaking, and his stomach hadn't stopped crying out from convulsion-like pains. Mistaking his demeanor for composure was a considerable misreading. But it was also a fact that he'd intentionally provoked Garfiel fully knowing it put his life at risk.  After all, he had to be certain of what drove Garfiel to anger, what was making him explode. This was an investigation Subaru had purportedly kicked down the road when he previously decided to prioritize the mansion. But it wasn't a move he would refuse to play if granted a golden opportunity. There was no denying that his life had been in danger as a result, but  \" If my life's payment enough, I'll use it to get the results I want.\" If the only sacrifice that needed to be paid was in Subaru's heart, he might as well buy something worthwhile with it. If he could cheaply obtain a piece of the puzzle that eventually led to an optimal conclusion, he'd risk his life as many times as it took. No doubt his determination had been conveyed to Garfiel. Looking revolted from the bottom of his heart, his teeth groaned as he spat a reply. \"I know a bastard who has the same eyes as you do. Me, I hate his guts. Hell, I should crush your head right now while I have the chance.\" \"I think that'd end up being a problem for both of us. If possible, I'd like you to let me go with a generous heart.\" \"What proof do I have that lettin' ya go here won't be bad for us lat \" \" I won't betray Emilia. I won't do anything that'll harm the Sanctuary, either. Believe me.\" Brushing dirt off his body, Subaru declared his innocence to Garfiel's suspicious heart. This was a gamble. If Garfiel suppressed his hesitation and decided to eliminate Subaru then and there, his life could be forfeit at any moment. But from Subaru's point of view, there was still time before that moment arrived. *** Garfiel was unsure what to do. There was no doubt that if Subaru crossed the line, Garfiel's fangs would mercilessly fall upon him. But this time, he hadn't crossed that threshold yet. Accordingly, Garfiel was at a loss as to whether he should put away his fangs and his claws or not  \" So you're letting me go. Fine if that's how I take this?\" \"Don't get cocky. Get lost before I change my mind.\" Lowering his arms, Garfiel spat out his decision as he moved to the side, seemingly yielding the path to Subaru. His demeanor brought a low growl from Patlash, but Subaru held out a palm to stop her. Some might say that he had both won the gamble and lost. Either way, this time he'd apparently managed not to cross the line with Garfiel. \"Now that you're letting me go, mind answering my third question from earlier?\" \"I said don't get cocky. Geluugel does not forgive twice, damn it.\" \"That so. Guess it was too much to ask for, then.\" That sour reply made Subaru's shoulders sink as he promptly backed off. Subaru proceeded to mount Patlash as Garfiel kept regarding him with suspicion. \"You don't wanna talk. I have no way of forcing you to talk. Betting on tears to sway you has bad odds, so I won't push it this time. I'm saving you for later.\" \"This time...? Later...? What the hell are ya talkin' ab ?\" \"Don't act all mystified, Garfiel. I know you're hiding something. But I'm going to expose it. That's an absolute certainty. Because that's what needs to be done.\" Subaru's plainspoken announcement made Garfiel open his eyes wide. His gaze met with Subaru's. However, this time Subaru was not afraid of that sharp stare. The power behind Subaru's and Garfiel's eyes as well as the pair's standpoints had been reversed. Garfiel ought to have been overwhelming with his clear advantage in brute force, but he was being held in check by Subaru's bottomless determination. As if refusing to admit what was happening, Garfiel clacked his fangs once more. \"...Shut up. If I silence you right here, right now, then that 'absolute certainty' goes poof, too.\" \"Sorry, but this won't change. As long as I don't give up, the moment I know someone's hiding a secret, it's not a secret anymore. If you're gonna blame something, blame your carelessness.\" Garfiel, not knowing the meaning behind the cumulative weight of Subaru's words, was beset by total confusion. He had no way of knowing the meaning of Subaru's choice of the word \"carelessness,\" because it wasn't him, but another Garfiel from a previous time that was responsible. And this was both a future him and a him that already was destined never to arrive.  They were looking at different realities. They were seeing different numbers of possibilities. That was what separated them. \"Do you still want to try and stop me, Garfiel?\" *** \"If you do, all it's gonna accomplish is waste time. It'd be helpful if you don't anymore.\" If Subaru lost his life at this very moment, he'd have to restart from last night in the tomb. Re-creating the exact same conditions to make sure he reached the same point again would be back-breaking work.  Not that he couldn't do it. \"Damn it...curse you! Why are you here?! What are you trying to do to us?!\" If he didn't plan on stopping them, then Subaru was just about ready to order Patlash to go right around him. Garfiel's voice, which sounded pathetic as it echoed through"}, {"text": "the forest, made Subaru sigh deeply. \"I told you my objective is to save Emilia. I don't have any intention of doing harm to the Sanctuary... I'm not trying to do anything to you and your people.\" Far from hurting anyone, Subaru's only goal was but to extend a helping hand. First and foremost, he was thinking of Emilia and company of course, but it applied to Ryuzu and the residents of the Sanctuary, too. He had no qualms about adding Garfiel to the list. Just  \" In the time before I get there, I'll probably make you hate me a few times more. Let me apologize in advance for that. Really, I'm sorry.\" \"I don't get it, I don't get it, I don't get it, I don't get it... I don't get it!\" Garfiel rejected everything he could not understand. Subaru was intimately familiar with that behavior. If only I could make him understand somehow, he thought. But he acted the way he did because he didn't think that was possible. When Subaru emitted a sigh heavily laden with resignation, it sparked Garfiel's indignation and made him explode  \"The hell do ya think you are, lookin' down on us?! Who the hell asked you to do anything?! It's none of your... You don't know anythin' about this place, anythin' about the old hags; you don't know nothin'!!\" \"I know I don't know. Actually, it's precisely because of that thought that I'm doing this.\" \"Whaddaya think ya can do just scratchin' the surface and coming around with nothin' but pretty words?! Smilin' all frivolous, talkin' only about stuff like it's a dream, foolin' people with words to make 'em comfortable you're nothin' but a charlatan son of a bitch!\" *** \"Someone who ain't known pain and ain't known suffering shouldn't run his mouth like he understands!!\" Unable to tear down Subaru's knowing face, Garfiel remained indignant as he shouted. Garfiel's jeer was swallowed up by the far reaches of the daybreak sky. Faced with the distant echo of those bladelike words, Subaru gripped his reins. Patlash changed direction and began to walk. Leaving Garfiel behind, Subaru turned his back to the Sanctuary to look ahead toward the forest's exterior.  Garfiel had said Subaru looked down on him, pretending like he knew things, butting into things he didn't understand. Everything Garfiel said was true. Subaru was probably wrong about everything. Nonetheless, he would say one thing. \" I do know.\" *** \"I know Hell.  I've already seen it, over and over.\" If there was a Hell to be found here, then it must have been in many of the worlds Subaru had seen so far. Countless times, when the end of the world arrived, Subaru had seen Hell again and again, enough to make him want to avert his gaze; it was burned into his eyes, seared into his body, and forever lodged into his mind. That was why he said that to Garfiel. He said it confidently, hoping to put him at ease. He left behind a smile, so that he might find some courage  \" I'm the only one who needs to know what Hell is. That's what I'm here for.\" CHAPTER 3 *** 1 When Subaru passed through the gate, slipping through the front courtyard, he looked up at the sun overhead. Its position in the sky was a bit inclined to the west. Based on that, the time seemed to be a little past noon. Roughly half a day since leaving the Sanctuary, Subaru emitted a light sigh as he finally arrived before the majestic facade of Roswaal Manor. It was a sigh of relief that he'd at least made it safely that far. \"Could you not show me such a flabbergasted-looking face?\" \"...I am not flabbergasted whatsoever. I am merely surprised at your exceedingly quick return.\" Saying this was a tall, golden-haired woman whose jade eyes were open wide Frederica. Coming out to receive the arriving guest, she was beside herself when she noticed it was Subaru in the entryway. From her point of view, he'd returned after only a single day, a virtual somersault. It was natural for her to be surprised.  However, to Subaru, his time away had been one of repeated upheaval. \"I have a reason for the quick turnaround... It relates to you, too.\" \"...And so you have returned alone? You did not bring Lady Emilia with you?\" \"You know full well why Emilia can't leave the Sanctuary, right? You don't need to put on an act. I think you'll find I've returned a lot better informed than you might assume.\" Tension was gripping Frederica, something Subaru intended to relieve as he raised both of his hands. He didn't want to spark any fruitless arguments. His suspicions about Frederica had already been cleared up once before. He believed she was positively uninvolved in both the raid on the mansion and the calamity occurring in the Sanctuary. All she had done was give Emilia that crystal, offered several false pieces of information about the barrier, and refused to explain who had commanded her to do so.  That said, the secret she was keeping close to the chest was one he absolutely had to expose... \"...Come to think of it, I've sworn to expose the secrets of brother and sister alike. Man, I'm a disagreeable guy.\" \"Are you speaking to yourself? Also, the way you are staring at my breasts... Y-you mustn't...?\" \"I won't go so far as to say I'm not interested in them, but that's not what I'm thinking, okay? Anyway, let's...\" \" Huh?! Subaru?!\" When Frederica noticed the inappropriate place he had let his gaze linger, she reacted by hiding her cleavage and squirming away. Right as Subaru started claiming that it was a misunderstanding, a lively, high-pitched voice rang out. He could hear energetic footsteps approaching as a small, adorable girl in a maid outfit Petra raced down to the pair. \"Wah! You came back really fast, didn't you?!\" Lining up beside Frederica, Petra looked up at Subaru, her eyes sparkling with delight at his return. Her reaction made Subaru cross his arms and turn his eyes toward Frederica. \"Hey, see that? This is what a maid's supposed to be like.\" \"Petra is a special case. I am simply not as charming... Ahhh, so cute.\" \" ? Su... Master Subaru, Miss Frederica, is something wrong?\" Petra tilted her head, looking puzzled by the exchange between the pair. Glancing at Frederica, who was enraptured by the adorable sight, Subaru patted his own chest in relief. Petra and Frederica. He was truly glad that he was able to reunite with both of them safe and sound. Getting to meet Petra again was making the corners of his eyes particularly hot.  After all, Subaru's last memory of Petra was from the height of the tragedy at the mansion, when he grieved at seeing her reduced to only an arm. \"...Master Subaru?\" \"Nah, I was just thinking, seeing Petra heals my heart sooo much. Seeing your face is a serious relief. Come to think of it, Petra, this time around, you're the only one I can talk to without worrying about anything.\" As Petra watched with upturned eyes, Subaru flashed a smile and stretched a hand toward her. He proceeded to stroke her reddish-brown hair as if he was combing it, something she happily accepted. \"Master Subaru, let us put that envia  That charming cuddling for later. You wanted to speak with me, yes?\" \"Sounded like a bit of your true feelings slipped through for a second there, but not dragging things out is a big help... Is talking in the lounge okay?\" \"I shall be there with tea. Petra, show him in.\" \"Yes, Miss Frederica. Master Subaru, this way, please.\" Briskly dividing their duties, Frederica headed to the kitchen while Petra pulled Subaru's hand as she guided him along. *** The moment Subaru began walking into the mansion, the urge to head to Rem's room instantly sprouted inside of him. However, Subaru suppressed that impulse out of a sense of duty. At that moment, he felt that if he prioritized his desire to meet her, something precious to him would break. For a short while, he would carefully, carefully hide Rem deep within the confines of his consciousness  \"...Come to think of it, there's something I have to say to you, Petra.\" \" ? What is it?\" \"Thank you for the charm, Petra. It saved me. Probably in a different way than you intended, though.\" As Petra walked not so much ahead of him than in a more normal side-by-side manner, Subaru showed her the handkerchief wrapped around his right wrist as he conveyed his gratitude. That handkerchief had truly saved him in an unexpected way. \"Really? I helped Subaru?\" \"Yeah. It saved my li  Well that's not quite exactly how it saved me but pretty close.\" \" ?  ? I don't really get it, but I'm glad! That makes me really happy!\" Easily accepting even Subaru's vague, half-baked reply, Petra's face broke into a brilliant smile, something that brought a great measure of peace to Subaru's mind.  Enough to make Subaru firmly swear to his heart that this smiling face was one of the things he had to protect. 2 When Subaru returned to the front entrance, Petra was staring at him with her cheeks sourly puffed up. There was not even a hint of the smiling face that Subaru had vowed to defend just under an hour before. With her red face and wet eyes projecting dissatisfaction with all their might, Subaru felt distinctly ashamed of himself. \"Petra, how long are you going to sulk like that? If you keep this up, you'll be causing trouble for Master Subaru, yes?\" \"But but, Miss Fredericaaa...\" \"No buts. You heard what Master Subaru said. And yet, you are being unreasonable as a maid... No, the issue precedes being a maid. You understand, don't you?\" \"Uughu~~.\" Chided by Frederica, Petra hung her head in chagrin. He felt sorry for Petra as he watched her get a scolding, but Subaru knew that any intervention would only fan the flames. Though he felt bad about it, this was one point that Subaru could not yield, even if he had to become a demon in the process. In the lounge, Subaru had proposed a plan to the pair based on his experiences from all the failed attempts he had made so far. The contents of that plan were the cause of Petra's sour mood, for he had proposed that  \" We shall leave the mansion empty, temporarily concealing ourselves in the village. That is what you require of us?\" \"Yeah, I'm counting on you. Sorry for the unreasonable demands.\" \"It was only just the other day we had the Witch Cult affair, so if that is your reasoning, then I cannot refute you.\" The basis behind Subaru's plan made Frederica sullenly cast her eyes downward. It had only been one short week since the Witch Cultists under Petelgeuse's command had mounted an attack on the mansion and the village. The still-fresh memories and scars from what they had done were tremendously effective for persuading Petra and Frederica.  His goal was to evacuate the pair from the mansion and distance them from Elsa's imminent attack. This was the strategy Subaru had decided on when he returned to the mansion with maximum possible speed. For the sake of persuasiveness, he'd explained that it was a precaution against Witch Cult remnants rather than assassins. For that reason, they would flee to the village not in maid outfits but outfits any village girl might wear, so as to conceal their connection to the mansion. To be blunt, Petra notwithstanding, whether Frederica would do as he asked was a real gamble, but  \" I cannot shirk this duty. After all, Master Subaru, you are entrusting me with your beloved dragon and a woman most precious to you.\" \"...I really didn't mean to bring that up as a way to persuade you. I'm leaving them in your"}, {"text": "care because I trust you.\" \"My, such killer words. Master Subaru, you are truly skilled at tickling a maid's heart.\" \"I! I think that, too...!\" Petra raised her hands up, hopping as if declaring she was also present, drawing a pained smile from Subaru as he shifted his gaze to his arms and to the sleeping face of the lovely girl he held within them. Wearing thin blue pajamas over her upper body, it was the girl who continued to sleep without making even the slightest sound Rem. Subaru had picked her up from the bedroom in which she slumbered, carrying her all the way out of the mansion like that. She was no exception  \"Rem, Petra, Patlash I'm entrusting them all to you, Frederica. I plan on rendezvousing with you as fast as possible, so...\" \"I hope that you are able to come to terms with Lady Beatrice so that she might join us as well.  Truly, I do.\" \"...Yeah, me too.\" Subaru replied to Frederica as his back teeth bit into his cheek. When would he actually be able to fulfill that vow? Even Subaru did not know if it would be this time around or at some point in the future. But he would most certainly fulfill it. That he swore on his life. Casting that vow into a future with no guarantees, Subaru hoped he could be forgiven for doing the best he could along the way. \"Could you cheer up for me, Petra? It's tough to be hated like this.\" \"Muu, in that case... Subaru, you said earlier that I saved you, right?\" As Subaru raised the proverbial white flag, the sulking Petra looked like she had suddenly recalled the thanks she had received earlier. When that elicited a nod from Subaru, she held a finger up and said, \"Then, an expression of gratitude, please! I'll let you off in exchange for one dayte!\" \"A date? Where the heck did you hear about...? Must be from that time with Emilia, huh? You really have a sharp memory, Petra.\" The adorable proposal made Subaru recall his first date with Emilia, his reward after the demon beast incident. At the time, they'd gone together from spot to spot around Earlham Village, meaning the villagers and the children had seen them. Apparently, Petra had remembered the word from way back then. \"Got it. If that'll do, then consider this escort job accepted. I'm honored to be Petra's first date, so I'm looking forward to it.\" \"Yes! It's a promise!\" Petra's face brightened with the appearance of a beaming smile, her foul mood seemingly forgotten. That face offered nothing short of salvation. Through one girl's sympathy, it felt like even his failures could be swept away. \"Well, I'm going to go call Patlash over!\" Straightening her back with a spring, Petra energetically raced for the rear of the mansion. She seemed almost too worked up, but her consideration for others was probably a large part of that. The astute girl had probably sensed that Subaru still had more to discuss with Frederica. \"...Let's make this promise again someday, Petra.\" Watching the girl receding in the distance, Subaru whispered those words for his ears alone. This was a world that would likely vanish. The promise they exchanged would not remain within her. However, Subaru would never forget.  All so that they could make the same promise again when it was time to choose the correct future. \"She is a good girl, isn't she?\" \"Yeah. Let me be the one to brag about her sometime, all right? I'm the one she chose for her first date after all.\" After watching Petra head off, only Subaru and Frederica remained. With the exception of Rem, asleep in Subaru's arms, the two were alone making this the ideal opportunity to speak openly. Surmising what was to come, Frederica's body was slightly stiff as she reoriented herself toward Subaru. And then  \"I know you're about to set off and all, but can I ask you a ? Actually, make it three questions.\" \"That is incredibly sudden and exceedingly shameless of you. It would depend upon the specifics.\" Adjusting how he held Rem while he broached the subject, Frederica knitted her brows. There was a twinge of unease that came over her jade eyes. For a time, Subaru mulled over just what he ought to probe at before he finally asked, \"I want to ask about Garfiel. He's been inside the tomb. Did you know?\" \" . Is there something between you and Garfiel?\" \"You're the one who warned me to watch out. Harsh words, you know? I know about your relation to Garfiel, too. That's why you don't have to cover anything up.\" \"In but a single...really, in half a day, you would seem to have gained a great deal of the master's trust.\" Gazing in wonder at the breadth of Subaru's knowledge, Frederica voiced that conclusion as if speaking to herself. She apparently thought that Subaru had obtained the information from Roswaal, something he made no effort to correct.  After all, information nigh impossible to learn in a single day was a weapon Subaru and Subaru alone wielded. Using that as leverage, Subaru wanted to discover Garfiel's true intentions, an irreplaceable piece of information for him to devise a way to clear Sanctuary. Given the fact that he had the qualifications to be an apostle, his bias toward the Trial, and the slight measure of sympathy he had shown Emilia as she challenged the tomb, there was no mistaking that Garfiel bore special feelings toward that tomb. If this was the core component of the differences in his actions from each of Subaru's runs, then that was how he would unravel the thread. \"Did you hear anything about me from...my little brother?\" \"...I don't really want to say this, Frederica, but most of it was bad. Garfiel said that you abandoned your birthplace and left.\" *** \"Ah, er, but since it's him, it could just have been his foul way of ta \" \"No, it is fine. Thank you for your consideration, but I am all right.\" Firmly shaking her head, she left Subaru choking on his words, unable to continue. During that time, Frederica narrowed her eyes, averting her gaze almost as if to stare into the distance as she began to explain. \"It has been over ten years since I departed the Sanctuary. I have not spoken to my younger...to Garf, once in all that time. The gap has remained unbridged ever since.\" \"...Frederica, is it all right if I asked why you left the Sanctuary?\" He already knew the reason why she was not held captive by the barrier enveloping the Sanctuary. The barrier, which bound those who carried mixed human and demi-human blood, did not activate if that mixture was too weak. She was not a half-blood but a quarter. This was the reason Frederica could leave the Sanctuary. \"Still, being able to leave and leaving are two different things. I tried asking Garfiel what he wanted to do after the barrier was lifted, too...but he didn't answer.\" \"I...see. I probably wanted to create that for him.\" Subaru put on a puzzled look when he heard the vague explanation, one focused around the word that. Not noticing his reaction, Frederica seemed to be trying to coax an answer out of something amorphous that rested deep inside of her. \"Someday, the barrier will be lifted. I was absolutely certain of that. Perhaps that was simply wishful thinking on my part. If the barrier was lifted finally, the people living inside the Sanctuary would be freed...and they would come outside, having no more idea what to do than Garfiel does right now.\" \"So you wanted to create that 'something' for them, Frederica?\" \"Close. It is very much like that. A place for them, perhaps something to give courage to those dependent on the Sanctuary, a spark for them to step outside.\" Frederica seemed satisfied with this explanation as she touched a hand to her chest. Subaru had never seen her act this way, like a bud gently blooming into a flower. The people dependent on the Sanctuary were those with nowhere else to go due to irrational ostracism and discrimination. When the barrier was lifted and even the Sanctuary was lost to them, where would they go?  To answer that question, Frederica had been working toward a new place they could call home. With such conviction roaring inside of her, an earnest light shined in Frederica's jade eyes. Coming back to Subaru's question, \"As far as the tomb is concerned,\" she offered as a preamble, before saying, \"to the best of my knowledge, Garf entered the tomb only once. If he took the Trial, it could only be then... I do not know whether he challenged it again thereafter.\" \"So what was the result at the time? I imagine that he failed, but...\" Shaking her head, Frederica had a grave look on her face. \"At the time, I was unable to rush into the tomb after him. Grandmother simply told me that Garf had not returned, and it was Grandmother who entered the tomb and brought him back...\" \"So Ryuzu is the one who brought Garfiel back, huh?\" The natives of the Sanctuary could not lift the barrier. Ryuzu had previously told him that she was bound to the place by a pact. For that same Ryuzu to enter the tomb was akin to defying the Witch's commands. Considering the circumstances of Ryuzu's birth as a replica, this was truly on par with an act of rebellion against her creator. Small wonder, then, that Garfiel revered Ryuzu, who had gone that far to rescue him and thought of the Sanctuary as a precious place. But for the result of that trial to be Garfiel becoming an Apostle of Greed, he had to have wanted something. \"When she returned, Grandmother kept their trip to the tomb a secret. And ever since, Garf stopped saying he was going to enter the tomb. He'd said he was going to liberate the Sanctuary by his own hand and show Grandmother and the others the outside world.\" From Frederica's lonely words, Subaru realized a truth that she herself had not. Frederica had departed the Sanctuary in order to build a new home in anticipation of the day liberation would come. She was waiting.  Waiting for the time when Garfiel would free the people of the Sanctuary. Frederica had ventured to the outside world to support the hope her younger brother once embraced  And yet, that hope had been dashed midway, and now Garfiel took great pains to protect the Sanctuary. So that's what it was. This was the true motive behind Garfiel's actions. Grieving for a future he could no longer see, he protected the present instead. This explained the apparent contradictions in his actions to date. \" Master Subaru, I ask that you somehow take good care of my uncouth younger brother.\" \"...Even if you say that to me, there's not much I can do.\" As Subaru sank into thought, Frederica bent deeply at the hip as she made her request. Subaru was at a loss for how to respond. But Frederica slowly shook her head side to side and smiled. Making no attempts to hide her mouth and leaving her sharp fangs on display, her beaming face was beautiful enough to captivate him  \"Master Subaru, the reason I ask is because I now believe you are up to the task. I will have you know, I have some confidence in my ability to read people.\" Frederica's statement, somehow coming off as playful, made Subaru avert his gaze. He wanted to answer her expectations. But could he really say he was prepared to fulfill them this time around? It was because he had no such conviction that Subaru could not bear to meet her gaze and hesitated in his reply. \"I humbly ask that you take good care of my younger brother.\" Even so, it"}, {"text": "was this Subaru with whom Frederica spoke once more, repeating her request with a smile still on her face. \"Master Subaru, please allow me to take Rem. Your arms must be at their limits?\" \"...Yeah, actually I've been really been pushing it. It's not like I can afford to just drop her, after all.\" Frederica opened her arms, which also signaled the end of the conversation. Indulging in her benevolence, Subaru handed over the sleeping Rem. He had heard once unconscious people were supposed to be far harder to lift than anyone who was awake, but her body didn't feel heavy to him. It was as if having her name and memory stolen away had left her diluted, almost like she was going to fade away. *** When Frederica's arms embraced Rem, he brushed aside the slumbering girl's hair, burning her face into his eyes, as if this would ensure his hope, his vow they would be reunited might reach her even as she dreamed. \" Have you already thought of a method to find Lady Beatrice?\" If there was any time to spare, he'd have spent all of it caressing Rem like that. As if to discard that lingering regret, Frederica asked Subaru, who was staying behind in the mansion, about what his next move would be. How did he plan to find Beatrice, presumably in the archive of forbidden books even at that very moment, and bring her out with him? \"If she really wants to hide, there's no way I'll find her no matter what plan I come up with.\" \"Then what shall you do? It is necessary for Master Subaru to meet with Lady Beatrice, after all.\" \"I told you. That's if she really wants to hide.\" As Subaru repeated himself, the Frederica's arched in doubt. Faced with her questioning gaze, Subaru finally pulled his fingers away from Rem and turned back toward the palatial building. It was a big, overly broad manor. Beatrice had as many hiding places as it had doors. But  \"There's no one who plays hide-and-seek who doesn't wanna be found. I always find her because she's hiding with the hope that someone will find her.\" And it was probably that single loophole that tied Subaru and Beatrice together. \"Take care of Rem, Petra, Patlash, and yourself too, okay?\" With that, Subaru bid Frederica farewell one last time. In response, Frederica, with Rem still in her arms, bowed respectfully. 3 The instant he touched the doorknob, Subaru wore a pained smile as he had the sense that he'd grasped \"correctly.\" After all, once seeing Frederica and company off, he returned to the mansion, did a few light stretches, and walked off to search for Beatrice, whereupon the first door he selected was a bingo. If the words he had exchanged with Frederica at the entrance were true, this game of hide-and-seek was rigged. To begin with, the timing of just when she began that game of hide-and-seek would greatly alter how he interpreted this series of events. To find out for certain, Subaru took a breath and twisted the doorknob  \" You finally showed up, I suppose?\" Alongside that single phrase greeting came a current of air mixed with the unmistakable musk of old books. That unsociable tone of voice, that grumpy way of speaking hearing that Subaru instinctually release the tension in his shoulders. The worries that hounded him just moments before, the travails he had endured up to that point for a brief moment, he was able to forgot them as he raised a hand in greeting. \"Heya, Beako. Haven't seen your face in a while, but you haven't changed one bit.\" \"It has only been three days, and yet somehow the way your flippant tongue irritates me has not changed at all, either.\" It was the mistress of the archive of forbidden books and its rows of bookshelves who responded. At the center of the room, surrounded by those old books, a young girl was sitting on a wooden stool with her cheek resting upon her palm Beatrice. While gazing at her, Subaru abruptly realized that she was always sitting on that stool. The Archive had proper desks and tables. And yet, she was always there, ready to receive guests. That was how she was when Subaru first met her, and the numerous, many times Subaru had visited since  \"...Could you cease and desist with that unpleasant gaze, I wonder? There is no reason for you to look at Betty with such eyes.\" \"If you're talking about my mean mug, then unfortunately the same one I was born with. I hate to admit that, but I've got no intention of getting a replacement now. Putting that aside... I came here today with a different reason in mind than all the other times before.\" Subaru's words heavily implied the reams of information he'd gained about Beatrice during that loop. And it was she herself who had told Subaru that if he wanted to understand, he ought to change places and obtain that knowledge in the Sanctuary. In fact, Subaru had learned why Beatrice continued to obsess over the archive of forbidden books and about the magical tome she possessed. He would not claim that he had discovered everything there was to know about her. But it was still enough to be a thread he could follow. Subaru's gaze, imbued with determination, made Beatrice's cheeks stiffen slightly. \"...In the Sanctuary, did you find out, I wonder?\" \"If you're asking just how much I know, that's hard to say. I learned a bit, but definitely not everything. I'm using the power of guesswork to fill in the parts I don't have.\" \"Then do as you please... It is an ironic idea either way, I suppose.\" She let out a sigh, and right after, Beatrice's expression abruptly relaxed. When she took off her mask of obstinacy, what rested beneath was the gentle, charming smile she was born with and a forlorn blue glimmer in her eyes the sight unwittingly left Subaru at a loss for words. Her fleeting, fragile beauty left him unable to draw in his breath. That charming smile was just too lonely  \"The long, long pact is coming to an end.  This time, the end of the end shall come to an end, and Betty can finally be freed from stagnation. Though I must say \" Cutting off her words there, Beatrice's eyes narrowed teasingly as she continued, \"...For Betty, having you be the one to do it is an exceptionally ironic conclusion, I suppose?\" 4 Mesmerized by her words and her charming smile, Subaru blinked hard for a moment to regain his bearings. \"Ironic...ironic, huh? I guess being able to talk like you know it all is another benefit of your precious book?\" Beatrice's charming smile and the annoyance he felt made Subaru a tiny bit aggressive. When he sent a glance her way, Beatrice sighed deeply and sent a hand behind her stool, and from there, pulled out a single tome a black-bound book of knowledge and held it against her chest. Such a book of prophecies recorded the possessor's future and guided that possessor to a better path Beatrice's fingers grasped this book, what Roswaal had described as falling somewhere short of a truly complete product. Indeed, the girl had said to him that her actions to date had been in accordance to what was written in that book. Having saved Subaru, smiling with him in the mansion, stubbornly continuing to say this was her own place everything was as recorded in the book. However  \"If everything was according to the book, your own will had nothing to do with it. That's what you're saying, right?\" \"...So many questions. If you know about this book, no explanation should be necessary.\" \"I told you, I'm filling in the gaps with guesswork. You and Roswaal hide way too much stuff. That's why it's been such a pain in the rear to bring you out of here.\" \"Bring me out...?\" Beatrice's murmur bore the echo of her having heard an unexpected phrase. Receiving this, Subaru said, \"That's right, I've come to bring you out of this archive of forbidden books. We can call it a temporary evacuation but...if I'm being honest, I don't wanna bring you back here. This place, it's unhealthy.\" \"Wh...what do you think you are saying, I wonder? Bring me out of here? What self-serving...!\" \"Your face says this wasn't what you had in mind. Isn't everything I do written in that book of yours?\" Pointing at the book, Subaru posed the question to the unnerved Beatrice. His assertion sent the girl's face flying into shock, her fingers trembling as she opened the book and flipped through its pages. As if clinging to the book, as if trying to reel the future in, her big eyes were filled with gloom as she flipped the pages. \"Why...?\" The girl's attitude toward the conduct Subaru himself had pointed out rubbed him in a very bad way. Perhaps it was irrational of him. And yet, a smudge of anger welled up within his chest. In the blink of an eye, the instantaneous relief he felt when he got his wish for a reunion with Beatrice was blotted out. \"Why are you clinging to that book? That's not something you need to do.\" *** Subaru suppressed his anger at the feeble gesture and murmured. During that time, Beatrice was desperately flipping the pages, her eyes running through the book in search of salvation. She looked so very frail. She was always full of confidence, sitting haughtily upon her stool, greeting Subaru as if he was nothing but trouble, grudgingly lending him her aid  Was that not the librarian of the archive of forbidden books, Beatrice, who Subaru Natsuki believed in? \"You're right here in front of my eyes.  When I'm talking to you, look at my eyes, not the book, damn it!\" \" Ah.\" Stomping his feet, Subaru stood in front of Beatrice. When his shadow was cast over the open book, Beatrice looked up, realizing for the first time that Subaru was standing right next to her. Subaru felt anger at the sight of himself reflected in her pupils. He had the face of a child abandoned by his parents. It was both Subaru and the actions of the girl bound by the book that had left him with that expression. If that pensive face, that sullen face, that frail, fleeting face, if any and all of those things had been recorded in the book, then where was the girl Subaru had been meeting until now?  What face did the girl named Beatrice truly make? \"Gimme that !\" \"Ah...!\" Extending his arm, he seized the magic tome Beatrice was clutching by force. Instantly, she attempted to resist, but her trembling fingers had no strength in them, and Subaru easily tore the book away from her. It was lighter than he had expected. That fact, too, irritated him. A single tome this light had cast such a dark shadow over Beatrice's entire way of life? Just how much power did the notations within possess? And how much of Beatrice's actions, words, emotions, were all done according to the book  \" Eh?\" Grasping the book he had torn away, he violently flipped the pages with his fingers. His eyes ran across the contents to read what was written therein. In so doing, he meant to discover Beatrice's true thoughts. And yet, Subaru gazed in blank astonishment as his eyes leaped across the book's interior. There was nothing written on the page he had opened. He flipped the page. There was nothing on the back side, either. He flipped the page. Flip. Flip. Flip, flip, flip as he might... There was not a single sentence or even a single character on so much as a single page. It was blank pages with nothing written on them over and over  \" It has been like that for a long time now.\" Addressing the bewildered Subaru, whose eyes were bulging"}, {"text": "in surprise, Beatrice murmured almost as if uttering a soliloquy. With the book stolen from her two hands, the girl used them to cover her face instead, so that Subaru would not see the expression now resting upon it. With nothing more than a broken voice, she put her withered emotions to her tongue and continued. \"It has been many years since that book has shown Betty's future...\" Pulling her knees close, Beatrice curled up and shrank atop of the stool. Realizing that was a posture that would not yield to interference, Subaru endured his impatience and waited for her next words. From this halting silence, Beatrice began her confession with a lecture on her duties as a librarian. It was a lecture about the true nature of the archive of forbidden books and unraveled the history behind it. \"The role granted to Betty is to maintain and preserve this archive of knowledge, to continue and protect this place until the time we shall someday be reunited... I suppose?\" \"Archive of knowledge...\" Standing up, Subaru surveyed the array of bookshelves that entombed the room. His legs had brought him to this place many times over, and a great many times his eyes had perused a number of the books found within. It was from this that Subaru knew that the archive contained a huge variety of books, including texts that even he could understand and most likely various types containing forbidden knowledge as well. This collection was impossibly vast, lacking rhyme or reason, almost as if books of any and every type had been stuffed into the place. \"It was established by someone who loved storing knowledge above all else.\" The murmur was full of fondness, of cherishing, of yearning. It was those words trickling out of Beatrice that made the image of someone Subaru knew float up into his mind. \"...I had a vague suspicion...ever since I found out that Roswaal was connected to that Witch.\" The first clue was the administration of the Sanctuary, passed down through the Roswaal family generation after generation. Roswaal had said this was a role entrusted to them by the Witch. Based on his extraordinary obsession with the Witch and his behavior to date, Subaru had somehow managed to guess. There was a spirit in that very Roswaal's mansion, one who had come to dwell there long ago. There was no pact between Roswaal and this spirit. This, too, was something Roswaal had openly declared. Who, then, had been at that mansion and made a contract with the spirit to protect the archive of forbidden books? \"Beatrice. You're Echidna's contracted spirit.\" *** The breath that trickled out of her was reply enough. That small thing was sufficient to know what rested within her heart. Beatrice was a spirit contracted to Echidna the Witch. It was Beatrice's duty to serve as guardian of the essence of knowledge of the Witch who styled herself as greed for knowledge incarnate, craving to know all there was to know in the world. Perhaps she had granted the girl her book of knowledge as a reward or as a tool necessary for her duties. Even if that was so, it had already ceased to function  \"...You said earlier that the book's been blank for years now?\" \"It is the truth.\" \"It's not like I'm doubting you. Actually, I really am doubting you. I mean, come on. If not, you... Without anything being even written in that book...\"  For that meant she had granted Subaru her aid several times over...of her own free will. *** The confirmation that he could not put into words was the greatest hope Subaru had discovered in that entire loop. Previously, he had begun that loop with the knowledge that Beatrice possessed that magic tome. When she told Subaru that all her actions to date were simply what was recorded in that book, it had been a heavy blow to him. He had known Beatrice for scarcely two months but during those two months, Subaru had talked with her many times, they had been involved in many events, and sometimes they had laughed together. When he was told that had all been a sham, it had been a time of agony and disbelief but he had checked the magic tome of blank pages because he'd suspected it would confirm his suspicions. By healing the gut wound he had received in the royal capital, by letting Subaru be close to her when the tragedy at the mansion drove nails into his heart, by cooperating with the investigation into the cause of his curse Beatrice had saved Subaru many times over. He believed that all that was unrelated to what was written in the book, and so, too, the days of fun they had spent thereafter  \"Without any relation to the book, you...\" \" Did I not tell you last time, I wonder?\" As Subaru's voice broached the subject of gentler things, seemingly clinging to hope, Beatrice interrupted. Her voice did not tremble. In front of Subaru, his breath catching as she interrupted him, Beatrice slowly lowered the hands covering her face and what emerged was emotionless, like a Noh mask. Her face, unfeeling like something completely artificial, made Subaru shudder, gripped by a strange sensation. For some reason, the impression she gave off at that moment was like the Ryuzu replicas the same as that of a copy. As Subaru's lips twisted in horror, Beatrice remained expressionless as she continued. \"Someday, That Person will come to the archive. Betty was told her duty is to wait until then.\" \"...!! For That Person you said?\" The term that suddenly leaped into his eardrums made Subaru open his eyes wide in astonishment. That Person, the words Subaru had heard several times over during that loop Roswaal had told him to say those words to Beatrice, as if it was a deeply suggestive term. Having missed his opportunities to say it himself to Beatrice, some twist of fate had made him hear those words from Beatrice herself, leaving Subaru bewildered. Beatrice, interpreting his confusion as a sign that he simply didn't know what she meant, explained further. \"It is as I said. Betty is to continue to protect the archive of forbidden books until That Person appears. It is Betty's duty to protect the stored knowledge so it may be handed to That Person, I suppose.\" The complicated emotions with which Betty spoke of That Person stabbed him in the chest. The tone of her voice was complex, at once full of loveliness, hatred, impatience, resentment, and exhaustion. Those reverberations made Subaru stuff his heart full of hateful words toward Roswaal, who had so lightly told Subaru to bring up That Person to her. And more than that, he could not fail to sense an ominous disquiet in Beatrice's demeanor. \"Someday, someone will fulfill the promise of the archive of forbidden books. Betty has always awaited the day That Person would arrive as written in the book.\" \"Wait, Beatrice. Calm down a little. You and I are both too worked up. Let's calm down a bit, and \" \"But That Person never came. Nor will the book say who That Person is. And so time has passed, and so too much time has passed, and that is why...\" He couldn't let her say any more. Even though he was certain of this, the words refused to come out. What should he say that she might not speak the words? If he said the wrong thing, there would be no stopping her. He didn't know what the correct answer was. Hence, all that trickled out was a broken breath. \"I do not care if you are not That Person. I shall bear it if it must be you.  Are you the one who shall end Betty, who shall bring an end to the pact, who shall take this life, I wonder?\" This was Beatrice's desire. Her earnest wish was for a way to end the end of the end. *** Subaru could not pull his look away from those eyes brimming with sorrow. Beatrice's greatest wish slid into his eardrums, but its contents would not sink into his head.  No, it was not that they couldn't enter. His brain was merely rejecting them, doing everything it could to prevent him from understanding. But even so, he did comprehend. It was conveyed to him. The eyes, the voice, the thoughts of the girl before him were screaming it at him.  Her desire to end the end of the end at the far side of a very long pact. \"You're saying...because of that you...want to die?...\" \"Strictly speaking, it is different from 'wanting to die.' Betty desires the end of the pact. Perhaps desires freedom from the pact to which she has been eternally bound.\" \"If the only way to do that is taking your life, how is that different from wanting to die?!!\" Subaru wrung his voice out at the girl who refused to understand. He was shouting in anger. He slammed the magic tome in his grasp onto the floor. Just like that, the blow unraveled the old tome. Its blank pages fluttered and danced within the archive. Blank pages scattered, flitting back and forth in the space between Subaru and Beatrice. Sweeping them away with an arm, he howled. \"You wanna die? Cut the crap! Saying you wanna die... Even if others would let you say it, I... That's the one thing I won't let anyone say in front of me!\" If you died, your life could not be brought back. That was an iron rule. That alone was absolutely inviolable. Only Subaru Natsuki was different. That was why there was value in him and him alone casting away his life. Even if he died, it had meaning, something he had been able to demonstrate with tangible proof. Beatrice was different. Everyone else was different. This was something he absolutely could not allow. \"That is a very self-serving thing of you to say.  What do you understand about Betty, I wonder?\" However, her reply to his irritation was so very cold, as sharp as any blade. Spreading her skirt, Beatrice set her feet onto the stool and hopped onto the floor. Then she gestured toward the archive with a hand. \"Betty has spent many years here, obeying the pact...four hundred years.\" \"Four hundred years...\" That phrase again, thought Subaru, grimacing. He felt tempted to click his tongue. Many of that world's important historical events were clumped up together four hundred years prior. That had been the era of the Witch, the end of destruction and the beginning of prosperity, the patronage of the kingdom, the contempt for half-demons it was an abominable era that was responsible for the fates of so many. Beatrice, too, was born in that era and had lived since then until the present day. \"Obeying the pact, I lived under the same roof as the Mathers family, who stood in the same position as I, spending my days in accordance to what was written in the magic tome. I would hardly consider those first several decades to be suffering at all, I suppose.\" Subaru felt a chill as he listened to her voice and the grandness of the details she spoke of. \"But even during that time, the world shifted. The first Roswaal that Betty knew passed away, and the next generation inherited the duty. Betty has been watching this act of replacement the whole time.\" The girl explained calmly. This reflected the blandness of the passage of time, the frayed nature of the reality she had experienced. \"I waited day after day for That Person who was supposed to come someday...but was I at all anxious, I wonder? After all, Betty had the book. As long as she trusted and waited, as long as there were amended pages, then surely, one day.\" \"But that's...\" The remains of the magic tome were scattered all over the floor. Subaru knew that from Beatrice's perspective what"}, {"text": "was written on those blank pages was very cruel indeed. To Beatrice, that whiteness denoted despair. At some point, the book of knowledge, which to her was a symbol of hope  \"No matter how many times I checked each and every day, there was no change in the text... The span of time until I became certain was incredibly trying.\" *** \"I have seen the revision to the final page in my dreams over and over. Perhaps I continued to yearn for That Person, who I did not know, face unknown to me, opening the door so that I might receive the blessing of a duty fulfilled.\" \"...Beatrice.\" \"Each time someone's hand reached for that door, Betty's heart was betrayed.\" In other words, whenever someone had opened the door, entering the archive of forbidden books, yet was not That Person. Subaru was probably included as one of those who disappointed her with every visit. Beatrice's despair only ever continued to piled higher countless times. Subaru had only added to the wounds she carried within her.  Wounds he had unreservedly, rudely, thoughtlessly gouged into her, over and over, never healed and were still oozing blood. \"As I spent my time like that, I realized... No, perhaps I knew it all along?\" \"Realized what?\" Knowing of her suffering, knowing that he had added to her wounds, his voice trembled. And as his own sins tore at his chest, Beatrice softly smiled. It was a forlorn, frail smile, just like when she had stated she wanted someone to end it all. \" When no more is written in the book, it means that the owner's future has come to an end.\" \"You're wrong...!\" The fitful denial that flew out never reached Beatrice. It simply bounced right off her immovable, resigned heart. A baseless emotional argument was not what she sought. She wasn't looking for someone to console her either. The answer to her question had already come out from inside her. Out it came, into the open. \"Why...do you have to...?!\" Even so, Subaru's emotions would not permit it. He refuted Beatrice's surrender, her desire for death. \"So you came to a conclusion all by yourself!! This is what happens to everyone when they're worried and mull things over all by their lonesome! That's when things go in bad directions, just like this! You start thinking, This is the only way, and you agonize over that thought... That's when you think the only road in front of you is the worst one possible!\" Because he was Subaru, someone who'd railed against his own powerlessness as he threw himself against hardship over and over, he understood. A senseless destiny pushed people into isolation. And with the compulsion to continue to stand and face it alone, black fingers would entwine around any heart fighting that lonely battle. But that was a rule that didn't need to be followed. He wanted to convey that to her. If only he could return to Beatrice the power of the similar words she had once spoken to him, Subaru could  \"If what you want is someone to do something to help, say it so people can understand. One sentence is enough. Say that you're sad. Say that you want help. If you can say that...even I...!\" If she did that, surely she would notice.  There was no need to give up at all. \"A whole bunch of times, you... That's why this time I'll...!\" \"...Do something to help?\" \"That's it... Call out for help, just like that.\" \"Do something to help...\" \"That's it! That's it, that's it, that's it! If you say that and reach out with your hand...\" \"Betty, wants to be saved from this...sadness, this suffering...this darkness...\" \"Yeah, leave it to me. I'll \" Her tiny, shaking fingers reached out toward Subaru. He reached a hand out toward hers. His blood was rushing to his head. That moment, all he wanted to do was to embrace the girl before his eyes, to shower her with kindness. That moment, Subaru had completely forgotten the reason he came for a visit to begin with. But that was for the best. Thanks to that, he had discovered this girl tormented by loneliness. Then and there, Subaru was being driven solely by the burning sense of duty residing in his chest. If he took her hand, Subaru would be accepting another weighty burden. He didn't care. Beatrice was someone he could not abandon to begin with. All he had done was confirm that in his heart. His soul was shouting as loud as it could. And Subaru simply obeyed its call. Save her. Rescue her. After all, that girl is to you. \"Is that why...?\" The fingers she had stretched out indeed reached Subaru's own. He grabbed hold of her frail, trembling fingers, strongly joining their hands so that neither could let go. He looked into Beatrice's eyes, unsure if he should smile or send a nod her way instead. Her blue eyes were filled with a great many tears  \" Betty wants you to kill her, I wonder?\"  She flung Subaru's hand aside. The salvation she sought was nothing so cheap. \" Ah.\" His hand cast aside, his fingers grasping nothing at all. The rejection made his heart go numb. He could not raise his voice to ask, Why? Beatrice's eyes would not let him. *** It was too late for that. Those eyes were filled with too much despair with too much that could not be undone. \"I have spent four hundred years...always here alone.\" \"B-Beatri...\" \"I continued protecting this place always alone, while That Person who's certain arrival never came, I suppose.\" He could not look away from Beatrice's two eyes. He called out her name. But the current Subaru hesitated to do even that. \"I do not know how many times I thought of throwing it all away. I do not know how many times I wished I could forget everything. A hundred times, a thousand, ten thousand, a hundred million, and still it was not enough...\" In that dimly lit room, Beatrice had spent a very, very long time steeped in loneliness. Holding her knees, sitting on top of that stool, she had continued to cling to hope and despair for someone whose name she knew not. Just how many times had loneliness killed this girl's heart? \"You want to save me...? You want to do something to help me...?\" \" Ah.\" \"Just how many times do you think Betty has asked exactly that? Did you think Betty simply gave up, not once thinking of such a thing, I wonder?\" The words were halting, but they were imbued with steadily increasing heat. Her eyes held an intensity light. Anger, disappointment, sadness, dejection Subaru didn't see any of that. It was simply the glimmer of her tears. \"Are you saying that if I reached out with a hand, you would pull Betty out of this darkness that has no end in sight? Are you saying that you would teach me the correct answer for this never-ending blind alley, I wonder?\" *** \"If you were going to do that...then why...then why...?\" As Beatrice lowered her face, she breathed in, leaving a brief pause in time. This was the final opportunity, the only moment left where he could get a word in. It was that or nothing. And yet, Subaru hesitated out of fear. Afraid of hurting her, he said nothing. Beatrice lifted her face. She was glaring at him. She opened her mouth, baring her teeth  \" Why did you leave Betty alone for four hundred years?!\" *** \"I was alone! Always! Always, always, always, Betty was here alone! I was lonely! I was scared! I felt abandoned; I felt like I could not fulfill the single duty assigned to me, uphold the promise I made... I thought I was going to be alone here forever!!\" Tears spilled out, coursing down from Beatrice's large eyes. Passing over her cheeks, a deluge of sorrow fell from her chin onto the floor. As her searing tears struck the floor, Subaru's heart was struck by an incredible blow, cracking and smashing it to pieces. \"You came to save me?! You came to rescue me?! Why didn't you come sooner?! Why didn't you embrace me from the beginning?! Why?! Why did you leave Betty by herself?!\" Her words became a blade, became fire, became steel, wounding Subaru's heart one after the next. In various forms, in various meanings, she tormented Subaru with every suffering she had endured. And Beatrice was only showering him with the tip of the iceberg of four hundred years' worth of pain. Just how much did the words of someone like Subaru Natsuki ring true compared to Beatrice's four centuries of isolation? \"Words, like, save me, do something to help me...! Over four centuries, have I not exhausted such pleas long ago, I wonder...?\" *** \"It is not as if no one came during those four hundred years. Among them were humans who attempted to bring Betty out. They sought Betty's power as a high-ranking spirit...\" \"D-don't lump me in with people like that! All I want is to \" \"It has nothing to do with Betty's power. You merely wish to save the person before your eyes... Did I claim there were no naive sorts like you among them, I wonder?\" \"A...uu...\" \"But they did not bring Betty out. Of course not.\" After all, Beatrice continued her words, making a very forlorn smile as she said, \"Half-hearted resolve cannot erase the pact that binds Betty. It is impossible for mere humans.\" \"What should I...?\" \" Make Betty number one.\" The words tossed his way were so very quiet and yet so very sharp. Subaru felt like fine needles had been thrust through his eardrums, sending a blow shooting right through him. \"Make, Betty your number one. Think of Betty first. Choose Betty first. Overwrite the pact. Blot out the pact. Bring me out of here. Draw me to you. Embrace me.\" *** \"That is absolutely impossible for you, I suppose?\" Beatrice's sincere, earnest plea was enough to clamp down on his heart. The request was unspeakably heavy, one that did not permit a thoughtless nod. \"Your number one has been long decided. Therefore, you cannot save Betty.\" Emilia was inside him. Rem was inside him. Both were inside him. Betty's words were clear. When he thought of both of them, Subaru's heart leaped and grew hot. This was the answer carved upon his soul. Beatrice's words were the truth. It was probably beyond Subaru to make Betty his number one priority. \"That is why I wish you to destroy Betty...the worthless girl who desires to destroy her pact, to turn her back on her duty as a spirit, who has accomplished nothing and no one for four hundred years.\" \"That's...how important the pact is to you? If you don't like it, if you want to stop, why don't you just stop, then? If it's not something you do out of your own will whatsoever, then \" \" Is it not the one thing that gives Betty's life meaning, I wonder?\" Subaru couldn't find an answer for that. Instead, Subaru posed a different question, and in so doing, he committed a base sin. Instantly, despair filled Beatrice's eyes as she stated her words in a thin voice. \"Betty is a spirit who lives for the sake of this pact. It was the first role I was granted in this life. Selfishly cast this aside and live... That is what you are telling me to do?\" \"It's not selfish at all, damn it! You've already hung in there for four centuries!! Who'd blame you after you protected a single promise for all that time! Who could?! You've done enough...\" \"No one would blame? That is not so... Betty would! Betty absolutely cannot permit it! Beatrice the spirit cannot permit such a haphazard way of life!!\" Stepping forward with a trembling foot, Subaru attempted to grasp the little girl's shoulder. But Beatrice"}, {"text": "angrily rebuffed his attempt, thrusting his touch aside and putting distance between them. He stepped back and coughed. He felt weak. What meaning was there in having a voice if it could not reach her? *** She was glaring at him. Her eyes were filled with tears. Biting her lip, she grasped the hem of her skirt. She's far too small, he thought. How could everyone have abandoned this little girl for all that time? \"You... are not That Person spoken of in the pact, I suppose...\" *** \"But would you become That Person? Would you make Betty your number one?\" Subaru had no words. This was not something he could easily agree to nor could he impulsively refute her words. He could not heal Beatrice's loneliness. Four centuries were too much for his mind to even grasp. Unless he spent an equal amount of time alone, there was no way to truly learn what was in her heart  \"Betty knows best of all that there is nothing you can do.\" \"Beatrice...\" \"Therefore, kill Betty by your own hand. Suicide is the same as violating the pact. Is it something a spirit absolutely cannot do, I suppose. I cannot even choose to die by myself.\" \"Why me...?\" Beatrice stretched both arms toward him in an earnest plea. Unable to look directly at the hands she haltingly stretched forth, Subaru covered his face with both of his own. \"Why are you entrusting me with your final your four centuries' final end...?\" \"Why...I wonder?\" They were tearful words. They were words making excuses, evasive words merely spoken to block things he disliked out of his ears. Beatrice did not scorn Subaru for his cowardice. She simply sighed. Then, after a momentary pause, she slowly nodded and said, \" Ahhh, I understand now. Betty is probably entrusting you with her final moment because...\" Once he heard the answer, there was no going back.  He was certain of it. And yet, his decision came too late. He had realized too late. It was too late for everything. \" Sorry to intrude mid-conversation, but...\" A voice he should not have heard spoke. Hastened by a terrible chill, Subaru flipped around. Then he saw her. \" Is it all right if I become That Person for you, I wonder?\" Carrying a black curved blade in her hand a kukri knife the black-clothed Bowel Hunter stood at the archive's entrance. 5 To Subaru, the voice of the woman he heard behind him was the backing track to his very first death. Since being summoned to that other world, Subaru had experienced a great many perils, sometimes losing his life to them, but that black-clothed woman's existence remained a symbol of death to him nonetheless. Wearing a black mantle, clad in an outfit unsparingly exposing her curvaceous physique, her black hair, as rare in that world as Subaru's own, tied in a triple knot, the woman had a lustrous, sensuous beauty to her that far exceeded the norm.  There stood Elsa Gramhilde, aka the \"Bowel Hunter.\" \" Oh my, so you were here, too. So tell me, how did your body fare after that? Did the insides of your belly get all prettied up again?\" Noticing Subaru, frozen from shock, Elsa slightly opened her eyes wider and tilted her head, almost like greeting an old friend. She posed that question, but from the beginning, she had not come in order to hold a conversation. Speaking and acting in ways no normal person could understand, the person before his eyes, speaking things like that as if they made perfect sense, was a dyed-in-the-wool madwoman. \" Whose permission did you obtain to step into this archive, I wonder?\" As Subaru stood rooted to the spot, a voice abruptly slipped past his flank, aiming the question directly at Elsa. It was Beatrice, with cold hostility trained upon the insolent intruder. Her posture remained the same as when she had confronted Subaru earlier, but she was glaring at the trespasser without the slightest hint of tears on her face. Elsa responded to the girl's question while slowly stroking her own long hair. \"It wasn't locked, so all I did was open the door and come in. If you want to have an important conversation, I think you really should remember to lock the door first...\" \"Such a frivolous reply... This is Betty's archive of forbidden books. None may enter without permission.\" \"Ahhh, that is what you mean. It is quite simple, really.\" When Beatrice questioned her further, Elsa nodded as if finally understanding the meaning of the question. Then she indicated the still-open door with her hand as she explained. \"Your magic to isolate a space...it uses doors as catalysts, yes? Now-lost Dark magic that links doors to other doors, was it?\" \"...That is correct, I suppose. But just because you know that...\" \"Oh my, once you understand that, it's quite simple. When facing magic that affects closed doors...as long as I go ahead and open every last door, I eliminate all your options, don't I?\" *** Elsa indicated a very simple method indeed for breaking Beatrice's Passage spell. Those words made Beatrice eyes go wide, unshakable proof that this was the correct answer. Simultaneously, Subaru realized that this was the reason for the inexplicable sight he saw earlier in the loop when he discovered all the doors in the mansion flung open. That was not a ransacking a violent means of searching every nook and cranny for people within the mansion but the vestiges of a search completely and solely devoted to finding Beatrice. \"I told you, yes? It's a very simple matter. It did take a little time, so I'm rather relieved to have finally found you.  I'm truly glad to have reached you before Meili returns from the village.\" \" Village? You said 'village' just now?\" As Elsa patted her chest in relief, words rolled out of her mouth that Subaru could not ignore. She said \"village\" and a person's name. Meili Subaru remembered that name. He was sure it was the same name Elsa had mentioned when appearing at the mansion on a previous run. Considering the situation, it was probably the Beast Master attacking the mansion with her at the time  \"What's that Beast Master doing at the village...?!\" \"Well, of course she went there; her targets fled into the village after all. When you're hired to do something, it's only right and proper that you do your utmost to achieve optimal results, yes? So we divided our labor.\" \"Div...ided...?\" \"You may have the advantage in quantity, but I have the advantage in quality. Most of all, I have been granted an opportunity to open a spirit's belly. I've always wanted to try that.\" As she spoke, Elsa licked her lips. Taking in the meaning of her words, Subaru felt the fact that his judgment had been fundamentally mistaken plunging into him like a stake. His plan to have Rem, Petra, and Frederica take shelter in the village had failed. Now he knew that Elsa and her allies would continue chasing after their targets even if they were no longer at the mansion. No matter how soon Subaru acted, the scent of blood would be invariably reach the archive of forbidden books, just like this  \" Shielding this child, are you?\" \"Damn right.\" Changing where he stood, Subaru stood right in front of Elsa, as if to shield Beatrice behind his back. If Elsa's target was Beatrice, there was no way he could allow that wicked blade to reach her. Besides, he couldn't leave the village as it was, either. The Beast Master was doing something at the village. If he raced there that very moment... No, idiot! The enemy's standing right in front of you... But over there, death was closing in on the village, on Rem  \"...For you to do such a thing, preoccupied as you are with idle thoughts, is nothing but a nuisance. If you will not do it, does Betty really mind if it comes by her hand, I wonder?\" \"Shut the hell up. I told you what my answer is. I'm dragging you out of here.\" \"More importantly, how about the two of you spend your final moments together, exposing your bellies to me like good, obedient children?\" With despair written all over Beatrice's downcast face, Subaru made an urgent plea to her. Elsa offered a totally unwelcome suggestion, but he had no time to deal with that. He inched back, moving toward Beatrice. Simultaneously, Elsa advanced. His brow steadily grew hotter, the heat increasing gradually like the quickening beats of his heart  \"You get along so well. I'm so jealous.  I'll make sure to pose you side by side like little angels.\" Elsa stretched a thin smile over her lips, and the next instant, she lowered her stance and shot forward like an arrow. Using the momentum, she moved toward the pair in the archive of forbidden books with her first step; by the second step, she was already closing the gap in the blink of an eye; and by step three  *** His eyes could not keep up with her speed. Subaru's thoughts coalesced into an instant decision even faster than that. He'd decided that if he met Elsa, he had to use it. Once again, he chose to use  \"Sha  \" Shamak!\"\"  With simultaneous chants, darkness suddenly sprung out of the thin air. Ceaselessly pouring out, the shadowy murk swept across the archive, obscuring everything in a field of incomprehension. The bookshelves, the stool, and the onrushing butcher were no exception. If exceptions had to be named, they would be  \" ! Come on, Beatrice!\" Instantly, Subaru, an exception to the magic's effects, clenched his teeth as he grasped the arm of the girl who had been chanting Beatrice sweeping her light body into his arms as he ran straight ahead. There was darkness woven by magic before his eyes. However, he leaped into the gap on the left that he had intentionally created slipping past the butcher. He'd already confirmed that Shamak was effective on Elsa. With Elsa trapped for the moment in a sea of incomprehension, he left her behind as he fled out of the butcher's range as fast as he could. \"...Let go of me.\" \"Just be quiet! If you seriously wanted me to, you wouldn't have done that!\" As he held Beatrice in his arms, he smothered her words of rejection from above. Subaru had tried to abuse his incomplete Gate to chant a spell to drive Elsa off. It was Beatrice who had interrupted midway, activating her spell on a scale incomparable to what Subaru was capable of. With the same tongue that had said, \"I want to die; leave me be,\" she had taken action so that someone might live. He wondered exactly who the chant was meant to keep alive  *** As Subaru ran with her in his arms, Beatrice's hands firmly grasped Subaru's clothing over his chest. Seeing this in the corners of his eyes, Subaru said nothing. He did not press the point. For in that moment, he thought, it was enough. \"Beatrice! How long will Shamak hold her?!\" \"Not for very long, I suppose. It was never particularly effective magic to begin with... What will you do?\" \"What'll I do? What'll I do? It's obvious what I'm gonna do!\" He practically tumbled as he raced out of the archive. The place he emerged into was a corridor on the first floor of the mansion's main wing. Fortunately, the front entrance hall was close by. From there, he would head outside and rush toward Earlham Village  \"Is it all right to leave that woman in black, I wonder?\" \"We don't have time to mess around with her! It'll take awhile for her to bust out of Shamak. Right now, we've gotta \" Beatrice's words went in one ear and out the other. Adjusting his grip on the girl he carried, Subaru sprinted with all his strength. At any rate, that moment, he had to get to Earlham Village."}, {"text": "With unease still racing through him, Subaru's breathed hard as he desperately, desperately ran.  For he had seen the black plume of smoke hovering over the landscape on the other side of the windows. 6 Rushing past the front gate, Subaru continued to run down the street, riding his ragged breaths. \"Haaah, haah, haah!\" Beatrice did not feel heavy in his arms. This was neither because her body was small nor because she was a spirit. It was because he was single-mindedly running. For the burning urge that drove his body into motion was so powerful that he paid no attention to himself. Normally, the distance between the mansion and Earlham Village took fifteen minutes of walking to cross far less if at a run, let alone an all-out sprint. And yet, it was slow, much too slow. It was as if his body simply could not keep up with the speed of his quickened thoughts. It was as if he was already too late. It was as if he had been too late before he'd even set off. And yet  \"...Even if you go now, it will achieve nothing.\" \"Don't say stupid things! It's it's possible what she said was just a pack of lies...!\" \"That is nothing as lofty as hope. Is it merely regret or avoidance of reality, I wonder?\" The heartless words Beatrice murmured from so close he could feel her breathe pierced his brain no, the thrust had come from reality. Forcing his eyes open, he gazed upon the rising black plume in the distance. Ironically, as he had gone back in time on multiple occasions, it was now a very familiar sight. This was proof. That very moment, a tragedy that could not be undone was taking place beneath that plume of black smoke. \"And even if we could do something, Betty is already...\" Those words, foretelling the end, made Subaru's head heavy with anger and sadness. Was this anger directed at Beatrice for holding her life in such contempt? Was this sadness directed at himself, the fool who had failed despite so many opportunities? He no longer knew which. What was right, what was wrong? Subaru knew where he had gone wrong. Therefore, what he craved was an answer as to how he might be right. As for what he wanted to do by confirming what rested beneath that black plume of smoke, that was already  \" Huhhh? What are the two of you doing in a place like this, Mister...?\" *** With his face lowered in an attempt to hold back the stuff welling up behind his eyes as he ran, Subaru was slow to notice. When he looked toward the voice straight ahead, he saw that a petite figure was standing midway on the road that continued toward the village. It was a young girl, hands crossed behind her back as she calmly walked along the path. Her dark blue hair was tied in a triple braid, and the girl of the same age as Petra wore a black outfit over her entire body. Her eyes and nose seemed quite refined, and her yellow-green eyes gave her a mysterious air. Someday, she would grow into a demon that was the impression, the foreboding that Subaru felt when he saw the girl. Of course, there was also the creeping realization that no innocent little girl would be standing there. However, that bad feeling was sparking an altogether different sensation  \"Oh, Elsa, so sloppy of you to let someone escape. Let me guess, she was all overconfident and careless again, like usual?\" \"You're... Wait, you're that...\" \" ? Ahhh, maybe you don't recognize me. I had my hair dyed a different color before.\" Bewildered, Subaru came to a halt and all the exhaustion he had been ignoring came rushing back all at once. However, Subaru forced it down with long breaths, focusing his mind on the little girl before him. The girl toyed with her triple braid, performing a pirouette that made her black mantle flutter as she said, \"That day, it was a lot of fun when we played together. Let's play some more today, shall we?\" \"Th-the Beast Master...!!\" \"Meili Portroute. There's no need to call me an uncharming name like that.\" The girl the Beast Master introduced herself as Meili, drawing her lips in as she visibly pouted. It was precisely because the gesture was so childish and innocent that it was all the more frightening to behold. Behind the girl's adorable gesture loomed the plume of black smoke, proof that a tragedy had occurred. There was no mistaking that the little girl before his eyes was the very cause of that tragedy. \"You're...a monster just like Elsa!! What did you do to the village...to Rem and the others?!\" \"Errm, I don't know which one was this Rem person, but I'm very passionate about my work, so I always make sure to complete the task I've been assigned. Namely the big maid and the little maid from the mansion it's too bad the little maid turned out to be Petra, though...\" \"Too bad? What do you mean, too bad? Too bad, too bad... Wh-what have you done...?\" \"It's all right; she was a friend of mine you know. So I made sure it was settled with one bite so she wouldn't feel the pain...\" Putting her hands together, Meili nodded, smiling as she spoke as if this was her idea of mercy. \" Ah.\" Learning from this report that the girl he had exchanged the promise of a date with had already met her end drained the strength from his knees. Before he realized it, Subaru had crumpled to the ground, sinking down to his knees in bewilderment. *** Deep down, he had already known. The moment he looked out the window after eluding Elsa, Subaru realized his own mistake. Beatrice had even pointed out he was avoiding reality, but even so, Subaru had stubbornly made his way toward the village, if only to scrounge one extra second before he was forced to gaze directly at cruel reality. He'd pretended to see a glimmer of hope, but that was only his miserable self-defense instincts at work. \"...What a buffoon you are. If you were going to give up in the end, should you have resisted to begin with, I wonder?\" *** \"You said such grandiose things to Betty, yet this is the result. Would I not truly like to show you your miserable face in the mirror, I wonder?\" The abusive words came from right beside him as he rested on his knees. Before he realized it, his arms had been brushed aside, and the little girl who he had been carrying in his arms stood upon the ground. Her face showed nothing less than utter disappointment. Everything she said was true. He'd arrogantly flapped his lips to say this and that, yet in the end, he hadn't saved anyone  \" I have changed my mind. Betty's life is wasted on the likes of you, I suppose.\" \"Eh...?\" There was a sound of footsteps. The figure standing beside him turned to look forward. Beatrice advanced a step, putting the kneeling Subaru at her back as she and Meili wound up glaring straight at each other. That demeanor elicited an \"oh my?\" from Meili, her voice trickling out in surprise. \"You wanna fight? From what I heard, you shouldn't be fighting this...\" \"Perhaps that would be convenient for others, but it is a terrible misunderstanding. Betty is the guardian of the archive of forbidden books...and does not forgive those who would disturb the archive. That's all there is to it, I suppose.\" \"...Hmmm.\" With a hard voice, Beatrice invoked once more the position she had already tried to abandon. For her part, Meili gave an unenthused reply. However, somewhere in her narrowed eyes was a glint of annoyance. \"I really hate it when a plan goes sideways, you see. Thanks to Miss Big Maid bringing the others along, I'm well behind schedule as it is, and I don't want to fall behind any further \" \"How terrible for you. Incidentally, regardless of how much time you save, the likes of you cannot...\" \" That's why I'm going to stick with the division of labor and leave you to my partner...\" Tilting her little head, a cruel flicker remained in Meili's eyes as she stated those words to Beatrice. There was a sound of a blowing wind as Beatrice slightly raised her eyebrows, wondering what those words might mean. The sound of the wind no, that was not wind. It was death approaching, heralding a slaughter. \"Beatri \" When he noticed, Subaru tried to raise his voice to convey that as soon as he possibly could. But it was too late. A figure in black seemed to glide as it thrust down the street in a straight line, slipping above Subaru's head as he knelt still, seemingly dancing toward Beatrice's turned back as she said, \"I came all the way here to visit you isn't it rude to run away?\" There was not even a moment of difference between when she announced her bloodlust and when she lashed out with her black blade.  Subaru thought for certain that her blade would impale the little girl's chest as if sucked into it, with nothing she could do to stop it. *** Shaking off incomprehension, the pursuing butcher launched her surprise attack, landing a direct hit with her merciless blade only to be greeted by the echo of a tinny ring. The sound in no way resembled that of metal severing flesh and bone. \" If you believed Dark magic cannot be used as a means of attack, you were far too naive.\" The arm swinging the blade bounced back, throwing Elsa heavily off balance as Beatrice stated those words. It was clear that this statement was no exaggeration when shots of lights surged toward Elsa one after another. Elsa evaded with backward leaps, avoiding them with acrobatic evasive maneuvers. \"How surprising. To think that you could do such a thing. How delightful.\" \"Minya mana arrows of stagnant time. You should have a good taste of them, I suppose.\" As both Elsa's eyes glimmered with fury, Beatrice taunted her as she continued gathering magical energy. Crystal arrows radiated purple as they hovered and rotated above the little girl's head. They quickly became too many to count, and the missiles seemed to lock on to Elsa as if they had minds of their own. \"Outside the archive of forbidden books, this is the utmost I can muster...and yet, it is sufficient to hunt down the likes of you!\" The big guns had come out. A moment later, Beatrice launched the purple arrows in a single volley. With no need for a bow, the arrows of magical energy shot through the wind, bearing down upon the butcher, who had lowered her body in the manner of a spider. \"Certainly, it was a surprise seeing this the first time, but now that I have seen it once \" Elsa intercepted the countless arrows bearing down upon her with swings of her black blade, filling the air with wildly dancing sounds of crystals shattering. The fragile arrows fleetingly shimmered as they scattered apart, unable to reach Elsa  \"Was I not clear, I wonder? That you should not take me lightly and that this is enough with which to hunt you.\" \" This is an error on my part, it would seem.\" Licking her lips, Elsa's cheeks reddened in arousal as she replied. The right arm she used to grip her bladed weapon shattered at the wrist, and the severed remains fell onto the ground. The damage continued to spread in a wave across her shoulder and leg, engulfing her entire right half, leaving Elsa's body cracking as if it was made of delicate glass. Dark magic: Minya, arrows of stagnant time having demonstrated their true worth, victory and defeat had been completely decided. Beatrice showed no futile compassion, such as asking to hear her final words. She thrust an"}, {"text": "arm toward Elsa, clenching her open hand. That was all it took for countless arrows in the sky to converge upon Elsa, impaling the entirety of her body. Repeated destructive impacts caused a cloud of dust to rise from the street. When the dust settled, what remained was a remorseless and cruel yet somehow overwhelmingly beautiful work of lethal art. Crystal arrows were thrust through her entire body, half of it shattered like inorganic matter. Such was Elsa's death. \"Aaaah. Oh, Elsa, how truly, truly stupid of you.\" With the menace dispatched, Subaru gawked, unable to process what was happening. In Subaru's place, it was Meili who reacted, having observed the same battle. Taking the death of her comrade in stride, Meili showed no sign of pain or loss, wearing only an exasperated look on her face after seeing the result of the battle. Exactly as she had stated, there was no emotion upon it save disappointment toward Elsa. It was twisted. It was strange. This was a place filled with death. To show such contempt for it  \"Now then, with your companion like this, is it your turn next, I wonder? Even the opponent is a child, Betty shall show no mercy.\" \"Oh, don't say that... You and I don't look much different at all. We could have been such wonderful friends...\" \"A bald-faced lie. Is such a convenient thing even possible with the likes of you, I wonder?\" Though Meili was blatantly taunting her, Beatrice's emotions remained undisturbed as she replied. Above her head, the purple arrows that had so thoroughly pierced Elsa took aim at Meili. Considering what had befallen her partner, Meili had to have noticed that she was in imminent and extreme peril. How was it that she could remain so calm despite that fact? She was not afraid of death. She thought nothing of death. Perhaps this was the reason why Meili and Elsa could toy with the lives of others as they had. *** Beatrice's eyes narrowed, seemingly seeing right through Meili's demeanor. From the tiny wavering of the purple arrows' tips, Subaru knew that they were ready to be loosed. If launched, Meili would die, just like Elsa. She was their enemy. It was the right thing to do, and yet  \"She's a...child.\" \" An enemy is an enemy, child or no. There is nothing to be gained from allowing her to live.\" \"That's... But...what about making her say who...asked her to do this or something...?\" \"You mean today's job? Well, you see, that'd make my client angry, so nope. I won't say a word.\" At the last minute, Subaru voiced an idealistic argument in an attempt to counter Beatrice's sound logic. And it was not even Beatrice but Meili who sliced it down as a foolish notion. Of course she did. Even Subaru himself had no idea what he wanted to do. Perhaps he simply didn't want to witness the death of a child. Or perhaps  \"Killing a kid, that's just...\" \" ! You, saying such things again \" With a broken voice, he offered his feeble thoughts of revulsion. His murmur made Beatrice twist her lips and look back. Then she turned a tiny palm toward Subaru, stretching it out toward him when  \" Eh?\"  a light impact pressed into Subaru's shoulder, sending him falling onto his side. With that unexpected act leaving him unable to remain kneeling, Subaru's eyes opened wide with incomprehension as he gazed up at Beatrice, the one who had pushed him. Her anger toward the stupid exchange from a moment earlier ran stale, and then, somehow, her expression shifted. Beatrice's eyebrows fell as she let out a breath of instantaneous relief, forming a thin smile in the process.  The tip of a black blade was poking out of her chest. \" My, what an odd feeling in the hand. A spirit's belly really is different.\" The blade penetrating from behind and peeking out of her chest slowly slid downward, as if to widen the wound. Beatrice's body gave a heavy shudder. Subaru, dumbfounded, could only watch. \"...With this.\" Haltingly, abruptly, something was woven by Beatrice's lips. That instant, Beatrice's expression and eyes spoke the feelings coming and going through her heart. \"Finally...\" \"Wait...!\" He didn't know what he was trying to say to her. He didn't know what she was trying to say to him. And these were things that Subaru and Beatrice would likely never know for all of eternity. Weakly, Beatrice's body leaned forward and crumpled to the ground. The force of the movement drew out the blade. There was no bleeding from the wound. In its place, light gushed out, as if dislodged from the little girl's flesh. Subaru could tell from her extremities turning into particles that her very existence was melting into the world around them. \"W-wait...\" He didn't know to whom he made that earnest plea. All he could do was beg as he stretched a hand toward the light. Please don't take her away. Please don't take this girl away. Don't carry her away. The light scattered. He desperately tried to gather it back together. And yet, the motes passed through his hands, vanishing in the blink of an eye. In the span of a single second, Beatrice had become insubstantial. He couldn't reach her. He couldn't save her. How did this happen? Who could do this to her ? \" Elsaaaaa!!\" \"You don't need to shout. I can hear you just fine.\" As he ferociously howled, the side of his face was slammed hard by the tip of the kukri knife. The hard impact jostling his brain, Subaru rolled violently across the ground. His eyes rolled, his thoughts raced fruitlessly, and his heart could not catch up to the speed of the world spinning around him. \"You took your sweet time. I was getting worried. She was about to kill me, you know...\" \"Such a cheeky girl, even after I saved you. As for taking my sweet time, I'm offended at how easily you can say such a thing.\" As he lay faceup, a pair of figures leaped into his field of vision against the backdrop of the sky. The spectacle horrified him. Standing right beside Meili, flippantly running her mouth, was none other than Elsa Gramhilde. The woman who had been blanketed by purple arrows all over, with half her body shattered, was calmly standing right there. There were no visible wounds on her body, but the side effects of the damage had wrecked her clothing, leaving her exposed and half-naked. There had been a battle. Without doubt, fatal wounds had been inflicted upon her. And yet  \"Don't tell me, you're...you're not gonna say you're immortal or something...?\" \"No? That would be incorrect. I merely live a tad filthier than most. A boon granted by a malicious soul. Though I am fresh from being broken to such an extent, I can count the occasions on one hand.\" Implication oozed out of that crazed memory as a lustrous, wicked smile came over Elsa. After that, she shifted her eyes to Meili, standing at her side, and said, \"One spirit and two maids... Meili, you're finished with everything in the village?\" \"Yeah, but my shadow lion lost to the big maid and the black land dragon...\" All three targets had been at the mansion it was Subaru's thoughtless decision that had made the villagers into victims. Put more bluntly, Subaru had killed them; just as he'd killed Rem, Petra, Frederica and Beatrice.  This was as far as I go this time, huh? \"What unsightly eyes you have.\" \"Ga...gyaaa ?!\" The instant his mind recognized impending death before him, a scalding sensation shot through his left eye. Just before the heat burned him, the last thing he saw in the left of his field of vision was a dull black glint from that, he gathered that the kukri knife in Elsa's hand had gouged out his eyeball. His brain wailed at the terrible sensation of having lost a part of his body, and Subaru reeled from the pain and the bleeding. His right eye could see his optic nerve getting pulled out like a string. His right eye had witnessed the death of the left. His face had an impossible cavity, a blank space, a meaningless hole in it. His left eye had been lost forever. \"Oh my, Elsa, you're so cruel... What a poor thing.\" \"One must struggle to live until the very last moment. Otherwise, what meaning is there to life?\" Elsa replied to Meili with a cold voice. Among the short and few occasions he had come into contact with Elsa, this was the first time she had looked upon him with an emotion that could be called...scorn. \"The spirit was the poor thing. To think she sacrificed herself for the sake of a child like this.\" But ironically, it was none other than Subaru Natsuki who agreed most with Elsa's words. Beatrice was an idiot. Why had she done such a thing? She was the one who'd said she wanted to die, wanted someone to kill her.  Why? *** Wanting to know the answer to that, Subaru held back the blood coursing from his left eye socket as he moved his remaining right eyeball, looking in Beatrice's direction. Beatrice was lying on the ground, light gushing as she faded away. There was no longer anything left of her little body from the waist down.  Her vanishing arm was turned in Subaru's direction, hand open. \"No way. Bea \" The change in Subaru's eyes told Elsa and Meili that something was wrong. However, it was already too late, even for them. At the cost of her life, Beatrice the Great Spirit, Librarian of the archive of forbidden books, cast her final spell  The blue crystal, still in Subaru's pocket, glowed.  A teleportation occurred. 7 When he came to, the first thing he did was confirm he was not dead. *** The existence of a cavity where his left eye had been told him he continued to live. It was one hell of an easy way to tell. Even Elsa had her moments. The loss of one eye was a remarkably easy-to-understand indicator of a human being who was missing something. Subaru treated the wound left by his lost eye by wrapping the sleeve of his ripped jacket over his head. It was pretty crude as first aid went. He'd stopped the bleeding, but there would be no subsequent care whatsoever from a trained nurse or anyone else. That was for the best. If he wasn't dead that very moment, he didn't care about whatever happened after.  Subaru had already decided. He would pay for the crime he had committed in that world with death. He'd already lost too much. That world was already wrecked, far too painful to continue living in. Just like before no, more so than before, Subaru had committed a sin that made him lose so many things. If at the cost of his own life, he could get those things back, he would not even hesitate. This was a world that had to end. He had to undo Rem's death, Petra's death, Frederica's death, Beatrice's death all of it. His regrets at Rem dying in a place he could not even reach, the promise he exchanged with Petra, the words he had vowed to Frederica, his reply to Beatrice's laments he would carry them into the next world. If there, he could find an answer, everything else could probably be written off. \"It won't... I won't let it... I'll remember...\" He murmured his self-awareness. He repeated his self-admonishment. He could not escape the fact that Subaru Natsuki was a criminal. His powerlessness had caused many deaths. His worthlessness had caused many laments. His recklessness had caused many torments. His inconsiderateness had trampled many a world underfoot. He was an apostle of atrocity. *** In that room filled with a vile stench, Subaru wobbled as he rose to his feet, placing a hand against the wall. With his left"}, {"text": "eye gone, the vision of his right hand alone lacked a sense of depth, making grasping things an ordeal. He had no intention to deal with such inconvenience for long, but he would not permit himself an easy death, like a quick slice to the neck. Only after he returned with something that rivaled his sin could he begin to be forgiven for the death he carried with him. \"This is...\" Looking around, he saw a white floor and white walls in his narrowed field of vision. The unnatural white space, the foul stench hovering in the air these he remembered, allowing him to form a guess before he could know it for certain.  This was the Sanctuary. It was Ryuzu Meyer's experimental facility, hidden deep within those Lost Woods. \"Ha.\" His breath trickled out. He couldn't really call the broken breaths that trickled out either dry or wet. He'd been teleported to the same spot again. His connection with the place ran far too deep. As if it was testing him. Testing, experiment the experimental facility was laughing at him.  Was this the power of the stone? Or was it the final flicker of Beatrice's life? He didn't know. There were far too many things he didn't know. He couldn't leave things like that. Regrets, regrets were limitless. He could not allow those regrets to shackle his legs, to pin him in place. \"Right now...\" He sank his sense of loss, his sense of despair, down to the lowest depths of his psyche, as his legs slowly stepped forward. He'd go back with the knowledge of what happened to the Sanctuary when Subaru was absent. If he could at least do that much  *** Was that a vow or was it a wish? Subaru did not understand even that much as he headed outside the facility. He left the room, went through the passage, breathing white breaths, trusting his weight to the wall, dragging his feet. After some time passed, he finally arrived at the entrance that led outside, and then Subaru saw. A silvery world dyed wholly white the landscape of the Sanctuary enveloped by snow. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 From the cold air pricking his skin, he had been fairly certain. Even so, seeing that sight with his very own eye sent an unfathomable blow running through Subaru's heart. That was how much Subaru's lukewarm assumptions were exceeded by the Sanctuary's extreme cold. \"This isn't funny... It's still the second day...\" Grasping his own shoulders and exhaling white breath due to the cold, Subaru clenched his teeth. Without matching up his teeth, he put strength into his jaw, ignored the throbbing of his left eye, and earnestly forced his freezing right eye open. The wind felt cold enough to slice into his body, and the powdery snow was slamming against him rather than merely falling and piling up. Both intensely robbed him of body heat, a white nightmare that killed off your vitality second by second.  Snow was falling on the Sanctuary. Subaru knew this landscape. \"But why is it...as soon as this?\" Subaru had seen this powdery landscape before. During the go-around before last, Garfiel was on the verge of killing him when the power of the crystal teleported Subaru to that experimental facility. When he exited the facility, the world was already dyed white.  But at that time, the snow had already fallen. That was why Subaru had not seen the snow itself as of such great importance, but  \"So the snow fell this hard...\" He ought to have guessed. In the span of a few hours, a half day at longest, the Sanctuary had been completely blanketed in snow. The tremendous snowfall in such a short time should have made its force easy to imagine. In the present, just like back then, the cold was extreme enough that Subaru's flesh seemed ready to freeze over. \"Any way...the settlement is this way...\" Shaking off the snow accumulating on his body, Subaru trained his mind toward the settlement, seeking to grasp the situation.  The throbbing of his left eye made him think of the various tragedies that had occurred just before. Don't forget, don't forget, it said to him. For that moment alone, he would put it on the back burner. He'd definitely have time to think about it later. For the moment, he focused on what was before him. If Subaru did not do so, his feet would stop moving. That was a certainty. \"If you're getting this, answer me, please...\" Wiping the flickering figures from the back of his mind, Subaru felt something hard in his pocket and drew out the crystal. Grasping this, he focused his thoughts. If Subaru was still qualified, surely she would come. That eye, watching the Sanctuary, would respond to the desire of the Apostle of Greed  \" Ah.\" Enveloped by wind, he did not hear any sound. But slowly, a figure appeared. Walking barefoot over the accumulated snow, Ryuzu or rather, a replica thereof finally came. As one of the individuals assigned near the lab site, it might well have been Piko. \"I should've made some way to tell you apart from the rest...\" Perhaps at the time he'd been too stunned to wrap his mind around such a thing. Or perhaps the fact that he'd noticed it only then, when so hard-pressed, indicated weakness and aversion from reality that was impermissible. \"Piko, I think it's you anyway... I have a request. Guide me to the settlement. I don't have time for getting lost.\" *** Having been asked to guide the way, the replica Piko neither nodded nor replied but simply turned her back to Subaru. Heedless of the snow covering the path, she proceeded to break into a nimble run, and Subaru chased after her with all haste. The authority that he had unwittingly obtained was still valid, but using the rights the Witch had arbitrarily granted in accordance with her expectations put him in a vexing mood. Of course, he was enormously grateful, but  \"Just how much of this did you see coming, Echidna...?\" She'd planted a Witch countermeasure into Petra's handkerchief, and Subaru had received from her the means to make Piko cooperate with him that very moment. He didn't understand her true intent. He did not doubt that she was cooperating with him, but still... There was too much he did not understand. If it was possible, he wanted an answer to that nonsensical circumstance that very moment. The mystery of the Sanctuary, Beatrice's lament surely, Echidna had the answers to those things and everything else  \"Shit. Right now... I'll deal with her later. This is just...!\" The tremendous snowfall smothering the Sanctuary, that world of extreme cold that seemed ready to freeze his body solid, dyed life and everything else in white. Subaru had seen that spectacle before. He had lost his life to it, as well. If this was like back then, if anything and everything about it was the same, then  \" What the heck happened to you, Emilia?\"  Having apparently made it snow like this, what was she really thinking? 2 It took Subaru's legs over an hour before he arrived at the settlement. With the white world already throwing his sense of distance terribly awry, Subaru's having freshly lost one eye made the trek a terrible ordeal. Snow robbed him of body temperature, his thinking ability had decreased and become leaden, and his legs felt as slow as a turtle's crawl. \"Even so...\" Pulling his shoes out of the snow burying him up to the ankles, Subaru murmured with numb, quivering lips. Ahead of him, on the other side of blowing snow, he could vaguely make out a simplified stonework building. He had somehow managed to make it back to the settlement where the residents of the Sanctuary dwelled. But what tugged at him was there was no sign of people in the settlement whatsoever. \"There's no lights on in the houses... Isn't anyone inside...?\" So far as he could survey, there was no light from crystal lamps or candles to be seen. That said, amid this cold, not lighting a fire was nigh suicidal behavior. Surely, as signs of life went, the existence of fire was an absolute. Instantly, the silence made Subaru's intestines clench. What floated into his mind was that this was indeed the Sanctuary enveloped by snow and from there, a terrible white monster would emerge. Had the Sanctuary already been defiled by the attack of the Great Rabbit  \" Hey, you're back, ain't ya? Dunno what stupid face ya brought back with ya, though.\" The voice leaping into his eardrums made Subaru reflexively turn around. At the end of his gaze was a figure rudely trampling through the snow Garfiel walked casually, batting the tremendous snowfall aside. He came to a standstill at a distance of several yards right in front of Subaru, grimacing with apparent dismay. \"Ah? Seriously, the hell's with that face? Ya dropped your left eye somewhere or somethin'?\" \"A lot happened after I left... It isn't like you to be so thoughtful, coming out of your way to welcome me back.\" \"Ha! This ain't sympathy. Besides, seems ya noticed the power that's in the crystal, too.\" From the sight of Piko standing at his side, he'd apparently guessed that Subaru had gained command rights. The combativeness enshrouding Garfiel rose a notch higher, and the enmity stabbing into him made the pain of his left eye ooze all the greater. But behind that strengthened pain, Subaru's heart did not fear Garfiel's combativeness. It was not that the cold distracting him from the pain or some such thing rather, the issue was the nature of Garfiel's enmity. \"...Setting aside the being thoughtful part, it's still true this isn't like you. I don't think the you that I know would just stand here casually talking with me at a time like this.\" \"Now you're creepin' me out. I ain't got time for your nonsense. If you're seein' this snow, shouldn't need no explanation why I can't have a chitchat with ya over tea, damn it.\" \"Meaning, you have something to talk to me about that isn't chat over tea.\" *** With Garfiel pressed into silence, complex emotions arose in the back of his jade eyes. He was angry. His anger was strong. But at the same time, he was afraid. When he thought about it that time around, his and Garfiel's relationship had worsened in a way different from when he'd resorted to killing. Garfiel's bewilderment over Subaru's actions, ones that calculated death into them, remained. But that bewilderment had created just enough space for the two of them to hold a conversation then and there. \"The fact that you're still rational and not attacking out of the blue...means that the other people are safe, I take it?\" \"I dunno how far ya define other people, but our old men 'n' women and the bunch from your village are all in the Cathedral. The noisy guy came up with the idea.\" \"Otto did? He's the one who proposed that?\" \"In a situation like this, there ain't no enemies or allies, he said. No reason to bite each other blindly. And to think he's just some guy wrapped up in all this.\" As Garfiel clacked his fangs, Subaru nodded toward him. Amid this snowfall no, this situation in the Sanctuary he was internally grateful that Otto had come up with a typical good decision. Thanks to him managing to speak to Garfiel, the villagers' safety had been assured. The remaining issue was something he had to confirm for himself. \" The snow. Did Emilia do this?\"  To Subaru, the question had a ring much like a bald-faced lie. He knew the answer to the question. He did not ask it despite that because he optimistically expected to find a ray of hope. Probably he was just...frightened. Frightened of his own conclusion: that Emilia had created this spectacle herself. Subaru's question, posed with a voice that somehow seemed raspy, made Garfiel spit out a \"ha!\" \"Dunno"}, {"text": "that, either.  The Princess has been holed up in the tomb since last night, see?\" \" . Huh? Holed up in the tomb...?\" \"Guess ya don't realize that you're the damn cause. Your disappearin' like that hit the Princess's heart pretty darn hard. It threw her way off, and then she went into the tomb...and she ain't come out since.\" \"That's crazy! I mean, I left a proper letter and everyth...\" \"Letter...?\" What letter? was the reply's subtext, one that made Subaru draw in his breath. He'd certainly slid a letter under the Ryuzu residence door. Subaru had properly written and left behind a letter saying he was leaving the Sanctuary. If Emilia had read it, she shouldn't have been shocked to the point of making her fall into distress. Even without that letter, there was no reason for her to hide herself from others  \"...Seems like a scheme's at work that ain't from you or me.\" \"Eh?\" \"Leave that for later. Follow me. Izolte's decision put history back on course an' all. Annoys me to heck, but you're the only one I can use.  We're headin' to the tomb.\" Motioning with his chin, Garfiel indicated for him to come along as he walked out. The great difference in power of their legs meant his kicked the snow aside, never stopping for anything. Subaru somehow caught up to him with a small run. \"The tomb, meaning...you're gonna let me meet Emilia?!\" \"Ain't you an optimistic bastard. I ain't letting ya meet her. I'm getting ya to get your Princess to stop this snow from fallin'. You're goin' inside. That's your damned job, not mine.\" \"...! Yeah, that's fine with me. If you're not gonna butt into me talking with Emilia, then...\" It was a brusque request, but Subaru had no objection, accepting it with grace. Neither Subaru nor Garfiel had lost their enmity for each other. But just like when they confronted the Witch, this momentary request put them on the same page and so they walked together for the moment. \" Garfiel, how much did you hear from Ryuzu?\" Abruptly, as he squinted at the snow, Subaru posed that question to the back walking in front of him. The words did not make Garfiel look back. \"Ha?\" he snarled sourly as he said, \"...I see. Ya forced the old hag to talk about the crystal's power against her will, did ya?\" \"People would get the wrong idea hearing that, but most of that chat was voluntary... Well, since the person concerned said there was compulsory power, suppose there's reason to doubt how much was really voluntary, but...\" \"Ha, I wonder. Me, I didn't hear nothin' from the old hag. Just you came back with one of the 'Eyes' with ya. Hearin' that was enough to send me comin' out to see it.\" \"Eyes... I see, so stuff's conveyed from Piko to Ryuzu, then.\" The tongue click mixed with an explanation made Subaru nod in acknowledgment. Glancing backward and at an angle, he saw Piko following, saying nothing in particular. The sight irritated Garfiel. \"I dunno about this Piko business, but don't you go stickin' names on 'em. They're dolls without minds of their own. Ain't no point feelin' sorry for 'em.\" \"...Like hell I can, especially when they look just like Ryuzu.\" \"That's exactly why. We've got an old hag. We don't need any more. Those are fakes.\" The wording and tone of voice behind the coarse conclusion ascribed great meaning to it. Though the statement seemed harsh, to Subaru, it sounded almost like Garfiel was insisting on that to himself. \" We're here. Fair bit o' snow piled up even here at the entrance, too.\" As Garfiel came to a halt, Subaru peered past his shoulder at the silhouette of the large building obstructed by a blanket of billowing snow confirming the presence of the tomb. His breath caught just a little. \"Emilia's inside. Knowing that, you didn't just rush in there yourself?\" \"Me, I... The residents o' the Sanctuary can't go in. That's the rule. And me, I'm a resident here.\" \"I heard from Ryuzu that they can't lift the barrier, but wasn't going in and out separate? Given the circumstances, you could've... Guu?!\" \"Hey, stop with the long, whinin' preamble, you bastard.\" Subaru was saying that Garfiel could have trampled on that rule and gone inside himself. Garfiel interrupted Subaru's words by grabbing him by the collar, slightly lifting his body off the ground, and drawing his now-clawed hand close to Subaru's face while showing off his fangs. \"Me, I protect this place. What's your role? It's to protect the Princess. Galganchua second-guesses a comeback not. Or should I gouge out your right eye, too?\" Showering Subaru in ferocious combativeness, Garfiel made his gripping hand relent. Subaru lightly coughed as he glared at Garfiel. But all Garfiel did was nod with his chin. \"Go.\" No ifs or buts about it. Having come this far, that was the only word Garfiel had to offer. Turning his back, Subaru trod on snow without a single footprint upon it, heading for the entrance of the tomb buried in white. The only two seeing him off, watching Subaru's back, were Garfiel and Piko, standing side by side.  One was emotionless. The other had an indecipherable emotion welling up in the deepest depths of his anger. 3 The cold, serene sensation of the air was unrelated to the extreme cold outside, almost as if time had stopped. Amid the gloom, the sound of Subaru's shoes echoed as he advanced down the corridor, asking his heart but one thing.  That moment, was he sane or had some mental disturbance befallen him? Already, several tragedies that could not be undone had befallen that world. He had lost Rem, Petra, and Frederica, and he had seen Beatrice die. Returning to find the Sanctuary in this state, his striving to maintain calm could only strike him as absurd. A man aware of that absurdity could not fail to be disturbed. There was no way he was sane. Even so, he could not allow himself to stop thinking. He smacked away all thoughts of surrender. He had to crave a future ahead of him, above him. For that, he'd pay whatever it took, including paying with his life. If not for that, then why was Subaru still ? \" Subaru?\" The voice he heard from the gloom freed Subaru from what felt like a long time trapped in a cage of thought. Straight ahead, the corridor came to an end, and he could see the stonework room that gave off a faint blue glow. There stood a single figure. Her silver hair glimmered in the faint light. Her purple eyes seemed to pull you in. Subaru did not think of those characteristics as a murmur trickled out of him. \" Emilia.\" \"Yes. That's right, Subaru... It's me. It's me, Emilia.\" The four brief syllables became a name, and the fact that there was a reply crashed through Subaru like a bolt of lightning. His knees wavered and crumpled. Perhaps others would think this grandiose. However, he could endure no more. Fatigue, loss, despair, relief countless sensations stuffed Subaru's limbs with lead. Subaru had glossed over these things through willpower, but when his ears heard that voice like a silver bell, he reached his limit. With those taut strings cut, he tumbled forward. As he tumbled, arms instantly reached out to support him. He felt something soft and warm. The warmth of the touch from right before his eyes made Subaru's body go rigid.  That moment, he was being gently embraced by Emilia. \"Ah, er, sor... My body just let go...\" *** \"Emilia?\" Instead of responding to his apologetic excuse, Emilia pressed harder with her arms to make them embrace Subaru even stronger. It was by no means great strength. But somehow, he felt like she was almost clinging to him. It immediately became clear that this was not a misunderstanding on Subaru's part. \" I was lonely.\" \"...Eh?\" Subaru was struck numb. Her beautiful face was gazing intently at him from up close, close enough to share their breath. Adding further to Subaru's surprise, Emilia hauntingly lowered the ends of her eyebrows as she said, \"I was lonely, Subaru.  I mean, you left me and went off somewhere.\" \"Th...at's... Y-you're wrong. I didn't mean to just leave you like that...\" Subaru spoke awkwardly when the fact that he'd left the Sanctuary was pointed out to him. He tried to excuse it as something that should never have happened like that, if only the letter had reached her. Yes, the letter. \"The letter...that's right. I wrote a letter. I wrote everything on it, that's why. I really meant to tell you about everything, but...\" \"Tee-hee.\" As he groped for where the precaution he'd left ought to have led, he gaped. In the middle of their conversation in that tension-filled situation, Emilia made an adorable laugh. She laughed. It was as if everything was normal, as if Subaru's tongue had spun another joke during the days when nothing was happening at the mansion.  As if she had forgotten her sense of duty in regards to the Trial. \"Even without working that hard to make an excuse, I won't get upset. Oh, Subaru, you don't need to be so pale. You really are just careless.\" \"E...milia...?\" \"It's fine. It's all right, no excuses needed. I mean, you came back, Subaru. I always believed you would. I said, Subaru will come for me. If I work hard and properly fulfill my own duty, he'll come and save me... That's always, always how it's been. Right?\" As she sweetly spoke the words, Emilia drew near to Subaru's chest. She had an adorable, bewitching smile, and her sweet murmurs were simply enchanting. Subaru gazed at the heat rising from her lustrous breaths and the moisture in her eyes; that witchiness was wrapping around his heart. Then, bathed in so much passion that it made his throat feel parched, Subaru's instincts cried out. Wrong. Something was wrong. The ill feeling he'd had from the start of their reunion had never been revised. Something was wrong. Something, somewhere, felt off, even though Emilia was that adorable. Even though Emilia was that adorable as she responded to Subaru... \"C-come to think of it... I heard that you've been here since yesterday...\" With that ill feeling still lodged in his throat, Subaru changed the topic with the worst possible performance ability, even by his standards. At that rate, he'd drown in her sweet voice. Straw or no, he needed to grab onto something before he was fully submerged. \"You being here means you were in the Trial, right? But right now you're...\" As he spoke the words, Subaru put his finger on one of the tips of that ill feeling. This was the tomb, and the room for the Trial at that. The Trial definitely began as soon as Emilia arrived there. Invited to the Trial of her past, her mind would not escape until the very end. And yet, Emilia was there awake, meaning that her Trial had ended in  \"...Emilia?\" In the middle of his question, Subaru stiffened from an unexpected sensation. It was the sensation of fingers being inserted into his black hair, gently stroking his head. Emilia was stroking Subaru's head. Her cheeks were red as she grinned. \"Oh, Subaru, you stroke my hair once in a while, don't you? So I should return the favor.\" *** \"To tell you the truth, I was really scared. I was scared Subaru didn't love me to the bottom of his heart, that he'd come to hate me. So I was scared, came here, but it didn't work out after all... That's why I'm truly, truly happy that you came, Subaru.\" It wasn't an answer to his question. But Emilia was staring at Subaru with sincerity. There was nothing reflected in those eyes save Subaru; there was only Subaru and Subaru alone. That was why "}, {"text": "\"Stay with me forever? As long as you're with me, I don't need anything else \"  In his wildest dreams, he'd never imagined how frightening the eyes of an Emilia blind with love could be. \"At first, I was really scared, you see. It was really hard. I mean, I wasn't able to do anything right at all, and I thought, Subaru's going to get fed up with me like this.\" \"But I thought right after, this is no good. I can't just be soft, shake in fear and let someone else take care of everything... This was really stupid of me, too, huh? I mean, I finally realized that you've always been taking care of everything, Subaru.\" \"I remembered your words, Subaru. They've come up over and over till now. You've been telling me them ever since the first time we met. You've been giving me courage, urging me onward, supporting me... I remember, that you've said you love me...\" \"I finally realized that you've always come through for me in really big ways. But in spite of that, you not being here made me worried; I felt like it would crush me...\" \"That's why when I saw Subaru coming to me now, I felt my chest squeezing... It got hot, too hot to endure, I thought; this might be a dream, but no, it's not... I'm sorry, I don't even know what I want to say anymore. Er, erm... I want to say this properly, so...\" \"I'm sorry for everything up to now, Subaru. I, did a horrible thing to you. It has to be really something to have someone always thinking of you like this... I'm so self-serving. Even though I thought I want to understand Subaru more, I don't understand you at all.\" \"But it's different now. I've been thinking about you all this time, Subaru. I've been feeling all these things. Now I want to say all the things to you that you've been saying to me... Mmm, I'm so sorry. This is really unfair of me. I I need to properly say these things.\" \"I need to properly...mm, properly convey them.\" \"Hey, Subaru. I love you. I really love you. When I think about you, when I think only of you, I want to be with you forever. That's what I think.\" \"I'd be happy if...you think about me the same way, Subaru...\" \"Eh-heh-heh. Yeah, yeah... I love you. Subaru...I really love you.\" 4 \" What, the hell do ya think you're thinkin', aaah?\" When Subaru stood at the entrance of the tomb, he was greeted by Garfiel's voice, brimming with rage. The menace of the snow had not abated. The strength of the wind blowing it had increased, mercilessly piling up the snow that progressively blotted out the Sanctuary's original landscape. As a resident, it was natural for him to harbor anger at the spectacle. And it was unreasonable for him to not harbor anger toward Subaru as well.  For having left the girl, presumably the cause of that snow inside, Subaru had come out alone. \"Alone, alone...alone?! What about the Princess...the half-demon?! What about the damned snow?!\" \"Emilia ain't comin' out. She's sleeping inside right now.\" \"Sleeping ya say? This ain't time for slackin' off like...\" \"She's exhausted. Since last night, she's been repeating the Trial over and over. Her body and mind are... Her mind in particular is worn down. Right now, I want to just let her rest.\" Stubbornly believing it to be the best way to break the situation open, Emilia had challenged the Trial a number of times. Unable to surpass it even so, it wasn't hard for him to imagine her mental state as the number of those challenges piled up. After all, Subaru had felt the same sense of powerlessness as many times as he had tasted death.  Inside the stone room, with Subaru's jacket over her, Emilia was peacefully asleep. His memories of her whispers of blindly devoted love and the heat of her body's clingy embrace were still fresh. These filled him with enough feelings of love to make the blood plasma in Subaru's body boil and enough regret to make him want to die. The memory of the redness of Emilia's cheeks, the quivering of her lips, and her whispers of love to Subaru came back over and over. No one could understand how Subaru had agonized over the prospect of falling into that softness, drowning in it, and sinking down with Emilia together. There was no reason for anyone to blame him. This was a world that was already done for. It was a platform of bubbles set to disappear. Just who could blame Subaru for choosing comfort and pulling the curtain down over them? \"So ya left the half-demon, and the snow ain't endin'. Ya come back empty-handed with your head down, and what, ya think I'm just gonna accept that, huh? Hey, hey, just who do ya think ya are, huh?\" Still angry, Garfiel clacked his fangs, storming his way up to the tomb. With Subaru standing right before him at the entrance, the pupils of his jade eyes spoke of danger as they narrowed. \"So what kind of excuse did ya bring to tell me, aaah?\" \" Emilia. She said that she loves me.\" *** As Garfiel emphasized and asserted his anger, Subaru's rebuttal was way out in left field. It was so unexpected that Garfiel could only gape wide-eyed at him. However, he immediately bared his fangs, the notion that he was being mocked igniting his anger. \"Looks like it ain't just the half-demon; ya just love gettin' on my nerves, too, don't ya! Got a lot of guts talkin' about stupid, shitty sweet nothin's of love in a situation like this, don't ya, aaah?!\" Filled with heat from his swelling anger, Garfiel was making the snow touching him evaporate. His fangs made a creaking sound as they elongated, and his body, on the verge of transfiguration, swelled to twice its size. Though his eye caught that harbinger of transfiguration, Subaru's expression did not waver. All he did was stare at the angry Garfiel with his right eye alone as he continued to speak. \"Emilia said she loves me. She said to me if I was there with her, it was enough.\" \"Why you...\" \"She said with a cute face, a sweet voice, right by my side... Enough, it was enchanting.\" \"I'm sayin', what of it?! One glance was all it took to tell the half-demon had a thing for ya! The hell does it matter now! Ya want me to crush your head in my fa \" \" There's no way Emilia would tell me she loves me, goddamnit!!\" *** As Garfiel howled, Subaru thrust his face into Garfiel's and shouted. The explosion of emotion made even the angry Garfiel forget himself and shut his mouth. Glaring at the reeling Garfiel, Subaru's face fell apart as he screamed. He cast the words exchanged in the tomb, the heat from their touching, the affirmed feelings of love to the wind. He felt their loss. There was no way he could not. He couldn't help but regret the loss of the words, the heat, and the emotions of love he had received. But Subaru could not become deft enough to pretend to be deceived by a false gemstone.  If he was deft enough to play the fool and call it quits, his chest would not be filled with such pain. \"Like hell she'd say that to me. Emilia telling me she loves me...relying on me, leaving everything to me, say if I'm there she doesn't need anything else... No way in hell.\" \"Th-the heck are ya tryin' to say...\" \"Telling me 'everything' like that... There's no way. And if Puck was by her side, there's no way she'd rely on me in a way like that...!\" He did not know just how much he desired to be Emilia's number one. But he was not so self-conceited as to believe he was Emilia's number one that very moment. Her number one, the place in which she laid her greatest trust, was the little cat spirit, even then her one and only family. With that same Puck absent, Subaru had stepped up to serve as his stand-in, nothing more. That confession of love, those hot fingertips, and her trembling breaths he didn't want to think that they were all false.  But they were not genuine. If they weren't genuine, he couldn't accept them. \"Someone's driven that girl...driven her into a corner until she ended up like that. Drove that girl's heart into a corner enough to make a situation like this, where she has to depend on someone like me...\" \"Y-you're the one who decided to do that, damn it...! So what, she made it snow like this for payback for all her failures?! She's sayin' it's me and the old hags' 'n' geezers' fault?!\" As if chewing down on Subaru's words, Garfiel brushed the snow aside and grabbed Subaru by the collar. He shoved him against the wall behind him by brute force, and an anguished groan trickled out of Subaru's throat. \"Like I know or care what made her lash out! Bring the half-demon out! If ya can't even do that...\" \"Bring Emilia out and make it stop snowing...? No can do. I mean...\" \"Ya mean what?!\" \" I mean, it won't help because Emilia's not the one making this snow fall.\" Subaru's confident declaration made Garfiel's grip on his collar relent. With Garfiel gazing straight at him with a dumbfounded look, Subaru continued. \"The situation's all wrong. The snow and Emilia... If she was holed up in the tomb, the timeline for making the snow fall is all messed up. If Emilia did make the snow fall, what's her reason?\" \"Th-that's...payback against me, the old hags, and geezers...\" \"Why would Emilia want payback against you? That's just weird. You hold animosity for Emilia right now because the snow's falling. The snow, being backed into a corner... The timing doesn't match up.\" The situation had been warped from the beginning. He could only think that someone had set it up that way. Someone in the Sanctuary was controlling the situation, hiding Subaru's letter, inducing Emilia to hole herself up in the tomb, and stirring up Garfiel's anger against her. And as for who that someone was he had a single guess. \"When it comes to people who can make it...who can control the weather, I have two suspects only. But Emilia can't do it. Without Puck here, she can't do something on that scale.\" \"You're sure of that...?\" \"...A deduction with my own optimism mixed in, I suppose. I want to believe it, that's all. Even if she's desperate, Emilia's not the kind of girl who can do something like this. That's just what I want to believe.\" \"Just want to believe...\" Subaru's repeated pleas made Garfiel close his eyes and sink into thought. But his internal conclusion was soon in coming. Garfiel removed the hand gripping the collar, freeing Subaru from his grasp. When Subaru's feet touched the ground, he lightly stroked his throat and nodded toward Garfiel. \" Where's Roswaal?\" \"The bastard's in the old hag's house. Ram was supposed to go there and get 'im, but...can't expect much from her at a time like this.\" When one searched for suspects fulfilling the same conditions, only one name fit the bill of a mastermind. Garfiel had easily accepted the notion, perhaps because doubts about Roswaal had been growing inside of him as well. \"Ram's...\" \"Shaddap. Even against the girl I've fallen for, what I gotta do don't change.\" If Roswaal was the mastermind, the loyalties of Ram, his faithful retainer, came into question as well. With a low growl, Garfiel's statement interrupted Subaru voicing his concerns about that. Subaru envied that resolve. Unyielding before the possibility the girl he'd fallen for might prove his enemy, he had the heart of steel Subaru wished he had. Besides, setting"}, {"text": "Roswaal aside, it still wasn't clear where Ram stood in Subaru's book. Going by his relationship with Ram to that point and her actions during those repeated worlds in the Sanctuary, he had a deduction that bordered on hope, but  \" Hearing the answer is the last thing on my to-do list in this world.\" Subaru murmured that quietly, so that the spirited Garfiel might not hear it. 5 \"My, my, it is quite rare to see such faces put together with such interesting tiiiiming, is it not?\" Roswaal smiled amusedly at the unexpected arrival of his guests. His heavily wounded body wrapped in bandages, Roswaal was lying sideways on his bed in the room allotted to him, his face bearing the makeup of a clown as per usual and before this man they had eyed as the mastermind stood Subaru and Garfiel side by side. The expressions on both their faces were fairly severe, and anyone inside the room could tell that a palpable sense of tension was filling up the room. In spite of this, Roswaal was calm; if anything, he was in a rather good mood as he spread both hands apart. \"So a pair of youths have come to cart off a heavily wounded man during such a tremendous snowfall... Although I must somewhat question your choice of personnel. Judging from that left eye, you are quite a gravely woooounded man as well?\" \"Cut the taunts, Roswaal. This guy and I both know darn well that's the kind of guy you are...but under certain circumstances, whether that's allowable changes. Like now.\" \"Seeing the two of you standing side by side, such words become truly persuaaasive...\" Saying this, Roswaal shifted taunting eyes toward Garfiel, standing right beside Subaru. He, standing in front of the room's entrance to seal it off, crinkled his nose sourly. \"Like he just said. Changes with the circumstances. Me, if I don't find out for sure who's my enemy and who ain't, I won't know who to grind into mincemeat.\" \"What a barbaric thing to say... In the end, Garf is Garf, I suppose?\" As Garfiel made a low growl, Ram, standing in a corner of the room, sighed toward him. Just as they'd figured at the tomb, she was indeed waiting at Roswaal's side, even amid that snowfall. And from the very fact she was there, Ram was a partner in Roswaal's schemes perhaps not all of them, but there could be no doubt she shared in part of them. The problem lay in the true intent behind those schemes. Just what was Roswaal's objective, and why was Ram cooperating with him? \"Don't butt in, Ram, not this time. Me, I don't wanna turn my claws against ya.\" \"Should there be rudeness toward Master Roswaal, Ram will stand before him. It all depends upon you, Garf.\" \"Calm yourselves, both of you. That of course goes for Garfiel, but you too, Ram. For the moment, do as he says and be silent.  Those are words that should be saved for the proper moment.\" \"He has spoken. Be grateful for Master Roswaal's benevolence.\" With a haughty, audible snort, Ram took a step back, suspending her role as attending servant. Garfiel went \"Keh,\" clicking his tongue as he said, \"Puttin' Ram aside, me, I've got no reason to listen to your words and calm down or anythin' like it. Watch how ya talk to me. Dependin' on what ya say, my claws might end up turned against one of ya.\" \"Can you stop including me as a potential target for violence like it's supernatural? Geez, you're still doubting me?\" \"Ya've got your own mountain of suspicious things to spare, damn it. Witch-smellin' lunatic.\" They harbored suspicions toward the same person but whether they shared comradery was a different issue altogether. Subaru didn't trust Garfiel on all fronts, either. They both had claws pointing at each other. Then, upon the exchange between the pair, Roswaal closed one eye, the world reflecting in his yellow pupil as he said, \"Setting a bedridden man like me aside, you should not look upon good Subaru too lightly, Garfiel. If the two of you clash, it is by no means guaranteeeed that the odds of victory are invariably in your favor.\" \"He's missin' one eye. How could he win? Ya got holes in your eyes? If he heard all the fights I've won, he'd be smacked senseless.\" \"Is that so? If the proper conditions were aligned, I do not think his chances of victory are quite so poooor...\" As Roswaal narrowed his eye, Subaru could only agree that he must have a hole in it. Since being summoned to that other world, Subaru's individual combat exploits were limited to one victory by three surprise blows. Of course, it was futile even trying to compare Garfiel to three punks in a back alley. \" !! Enough of this! I didn't come 'cause I wanted to talk about crap like that! Are ya both asleep?! The old hags are out there, shiverin' and waitin'!\" To cut off that futile line of conversation, Garfiel stomped the heel of his shoe onto the wooden floor. As the impact sent wood dust spreading within the room, Subaru closed his eye to the angrily snarling Garfiel. Garfiel was right to be angry. Subaru had left Emilia at the tomb. Surely everyone present knew there was no time for taking it easy. Accordingly, Subaru took a deep breath, opening his right eye. Catching Roswaal in his field of vision, he  \"You're the one who made the snow fall here in the Sanctuary, aren't you, Roswaal?\"  cut straight to the heart of the matter. *** Roswaal was silent in the face of Subaru's question. But the smirk vanished from his lips. He'd caught a glimpse of the true face under the mask of makeup that he'd kept up until the moment prior. Coming from him, that was more proof than anything that Subaru was on the money. A silence fell for a time, and the only sound reverberating inside the room was that of the wind and blowing snow smacking the window. That silence, in which not even the sounds of breathing could be heard, seemed to course for eternity until it abruptly ended. \"Subaru.\" After his name came up, gazes turned toward him, and Subaru waited in silence for what would follow. With Subaru taking that posture, Roswaal left a pause before he continued. \" You heard that from me, I take it?\" Subaru did not understand what the question meant. Subaru had anticipated a number of responses from Roswaal. Excuses, being shaken, attempts to gloss things over, violence but this result was different from everything he'd surmised. Naturally, faced with a question he did not understand, he could not even imagine what answer was being sought. \"Mm-mmm... I see. I see. I seeee...... How disappointing.\" Facing the suspicion swirling in Subaru's black eyes, Roswaal nodded, his face giving an answer that went far beyond words. From his sunken face and voice, it was immediately clear that this was not the answer he yearned for. The sight threw Subaru off. It felt to him like the man known as Roswaal despite being heavily wounded, face pale had literally fallen from his standpoint and clear through the realm of normal men. But  \" Ya ain't gonna deny it, are ya?\" The angered Garfiel paid no heed to the change in Roswaal. To him, the important thing was not Roswaal's sentiments but the identity of the culprit behind the menace assailing the Sanctuary. Faced with that blame, Roswaal seemed numb to it, letting a heavy sigh trickle out. \"I could assert my innocence, but you are hardly one to politely accept that at this juncture, yes? You came here because you possess more than adequate reasons for doing so. Should I not pay this the proper respeeeect?\" \"Respect! Respect, huh?! Ha, well ain't I grateful. Milkiss had no line of retreat! Maybe it's high time I paid that excess of stupidity proper respect, yaaah?!\" To Roswaal, who acknowledged the suspicions against him, Garfiel unleashed a sharp exhale and stepped forward. In the cramped confines of the room, it was only a few paces from the entrance to the bed. He easily closed the distance in a single second. Riding that momentum, Garfiel moved to grip the self-possessed Roswaal's throat. Was restraint really going to hold back strength whipped up by anger? Fearful of this, Subaru tried to raise his voice. But faster than Subaru could speak, a figure circled in front of Garfiel and spoke up. \" I told you, Garf. I shall permit no rudeness toward Master Roswaal.\" Now directly in front of the outstretched arm, Ram pushed out her modest chest, blocking its path with her body. For an instant, the prospect of hurting someone he cared for made anger and hesitation rise up in his eyes and then some form of determination. Guessing that this determination was, in truth, the will to remove even Ram from his path, the color of Subaru's face changed. In fact, in a previous loop, he had seen Garfiel take Ram's life once already  \"Ram. You are truly a fine servant.\"  Accordingly, Subaru's reaction to that sentence was thoroughly late in coming. Wary of Garfiel's violent actions and concerned for Ram's safety, Subaru knitted his brows, perplexed. There was nothing odd per se about the sentence just now. Just as he stated, Roswaal was praising Ram for her attempt to defend her master. That wasn't the problem. Roswaal, lying on his side on the bed last anyone checked, was not trying to get up. He was not glaring at Ram and Garfiel, either. But Subaru felt like something strange had entered his eyes. Not finding a reason for why he was getting a bad feeling, Subaru's bewilderment deepened his irritation as he desperately groped for some kind of answer. And finally, that ill feeling took tangible form. *** Huh, the heck? There's a person's arm sticking out from Garfiel's back... He could see a human arm, complete with five wriggling fingers, thrusting through the center of his torso and out his back. \"Go-fu...!\" Garfiel's body shuddered greatly, seemingly moving while time had stopped. The back of his vest was dyed by a creeping vermilion as his knees buckled, crumpling then and there. When Garfiel's knees hit the floor, the arm vanished from his back. Instantly, blood gushed out from the wound that it had been plugging. \" Eh?\" As Garfiel went down on his rear, Ram and Roswaal were looking down at him. And as Ram watched Garfiel collapse in a pool of blood, coming out of her chest was... \"Ros...\" \"I have not reneged on my promise. I offer this soul to you.\" When frailly, Ram attempted to call out his name, Roswaal interrupted her, speaking those words in an exceedingly gentle voice. From behind, he preciously embraced Ram's thin body, softly stroking her pink hair with his left hand. Ram seemed entranced by his touch, her cheeks reddened as a charming smile came to rest upon her face.  From the corner of the lips forming that charming smile came out a delayed spill of fresh blood. Of course it did. Her chest had been run straight through from the back. *** The spectacle made Subaru recall another he had seen up close. The sight of Beatrice impaled was superimposed over that of Ram. The arm was pulled back. Without anything to support it, Ram's body tumbled forward. It was Garfiel who caught her, profusely bleeding himself. The blood-ridden pair embraced each other. \"Gah... Ros...ra, mm... Ram, Ram, Ram, Ramramramramrammm...!!\" In an instant, a heart governed by hatred was smashed to pieces by the sight of wounds on the his beloved. Calling out the name of the girl in his arms, Garfiel let up a bloody roar as his arm emitted a pale light. Subaru discerned that the flowing energy, enveloped by vivid luminescence, was healing magic. But that fact was inconsistent"}, {"text": "with what he was seeing, and more than that, the dizzying situation had thrown his thought process awry. His impression of Garfiel was that he was wholly unsuited toward using any magic, let alone healing magic, but to pull it off instantly at a juncture like that displayed considerable mastery of healing techniques. Despite bearing mortal wounds of his own, he put everything aside, pouring all his strength into healing Ram. All of it was beyond Subaru's expectations, so far beyond his imagination that he was unable to move a single foot. \"Gah-ah-aaahhh...!\" Employing healing magic, the snarling Garfiel's flesh bounced, enlarging much like a pulsing vein. Golden fur covered his exposed flesh, his sharp fangs creaked as they began to lengthen, and his body, which Subaru had guessed was on death's door, was instinctively urging him to transfigure in order to avert that death. If he transformed into a giant tiger, it might well save his own life. However, if that happened, his healing would be interrupted. Ram would die. His rational mind rejected that, clashing ferociously with his survival instincts. If he stopped healing their wounds before he transfigured, there still existed some chance both of them might survi  \" It would be troublesome to let you transfigure, yes?\" Roswaal took a single step forward. His right leg bent and then lashed out. With a vividness that made it impossible for Subaru to tear his eyes away, wind entwined around his bent leg as it scored a direct hit to the back of Garfiel's skull causing a heavy sound, much like that of an egg cracking, rupturing his target and smearing that blond hair with such ease it didn't seem real. \" ll.\" With his skull half-smashed, Garfiel lay on his side, glaring at Roswaal with his one remaining eye. In a twist of fate, he and Ram fell together almost as one, both lying powerlessly on the floor. Garfiel was dying, and in his arms, Ram did not move a muscle, either, a thin smile still on her lips. No healing magic existed that could be effective on people with dead faces like this. None would even activate. By the time Roswaal drew his arm out, Ram's life had already been lost, for her heart had been destroyed. Not realizing this, Garfiel struggled to save her, but that was as far as it went. \"Even I would find it extremely difficult to weave magic without Garfiel noticing. Accordingly, for but a brief moment, I relied upon means that are heretical for a magic user.\" Wiping his bloodstained hand and foot with the sheets, the Roswaal that had murdered the pair turned toward Subaru. During that entire time, Subaru had stood rooted to the spot, unable to move a step, unable to speak a word. Inspecting Subaru, Roswaal narrowed his eyes before shrugging his shoulders with a casual air as he spoke again. \"Now then in accordance with the vow we have exchanged, let us speak, Subaru Natsuki.\" 6 Subaru stood in a daze amid that incomprehensible scene. Ram had sunken into a pool of blood; Garfiel had lost his life from his skull being crushed. As the two lay atop each other, Roswaal he who had murdered both stood astride their corpses, calmly gazing Subaru's way. The incredible physical feat he had witnessed left Subaru unable to even speak. Realizing that Subaru was gawking, Roswaal stared at Subaru with his yellow eye alone as he said, \"To believe a magic user cannot engage in unarmed combat is to fall prey to prejudice, you seeee. It is the sort of pitfall even Witches are known to miss. You should remember for future reference.\" Perhaps he meant it as honest advice, but Roswaal's lecture, made with a raised finger, left Subaru horrified. Certainly, he was shocked. That Roswaal's unarmed combat technique was eye-catching was the simple truth. Comparing that shock to what he felt at seeing the pair's sudden deaths was difficult. And yet, he could not comprehend how Roswaal could smile pleasantly, not letting it bother him. \"Wh-why...?\" \"Mm? Why what?\" \"Why did you kill th......? Why did you kill Ram...eh? Even Garfiel's...\" \"Because Garfiel was an impediment to speaking with you. I did a terrible thing to Ram...but her cooperation was indispensable for getting Garfiel out of the way. Had she not created an opening, even my odds of victory would have been quite poor.\" \" Huh?\" Shrugging his shoulders like it was no big deal, he came right out and plainly confessed his murderous intentions. The contents flew into Subaru, sailing right over his sentiments of anger, drawing out an unconscious breath. It was an absurd answer for an absurd situation. It was an absurd comment about an absurd fate. What the hell was going on? \"An unexpected reaction. The Subaru that I know is a boy who would see nothing beyond this situation, fly into a rage, and even try to grab hold of me.  Am I wrong, Subaru Natsuki?\" \"What are you trying to say? You're a shitty, psychopathic bastard... There's no way in hell I can...!\" \"Forgive me or the like? You do not require language such as that. You should be more honest in facing your own heart. That is the 'you' I desire, the 'you' that I have always, alwaaaays desired.\" \" !! Stop, looking at me with that eye! The hell! The hell is wrong with you?!\" During those words, Roswaal had continued looking at Subaru with his left eye alone. The intent gaze of that lone yellow iris made him feel queasy, like something was clawing at the core of his psyche. Hence, his voice had gone ragged. \"You murdered two people! And that ain't all! I'm not talking about just this! Before, that's right, before when you were talking about the Witch Cult, too! You've been giving me the slip over and over \" \" Over and over. Yes, over and over, Subaru.\" Subaru shuddered, feeling an awful chill, almost like a wet fingertip was stroking his spine. Subaru had given in to his violent storm of emotions, venting about all the things that had been agonizing him to date. The expression that Roswaal trained upon Subaru was exceedingly out of place. He was smiling. The sides of his face were cracked by his thin lips, and Roswaal wore that pleasant expression full of welcome, the grin of a demon, as he kept staring at Subaru. This was not sarcasm or anything of the sort. He felt genuine delight at seeing Subaru's demeanor. All Subaru could feel for that flow of incomprehensible emotion was disgust. He feared it, for it was something he absolutely could not comprehend. As he peered into Subaru's trembling eyes, Roswaal made what seemed like an affectionate nod. \"Very well. Since you do not understand, I, someone who assumes he understands, have decided to arbitrarily enlighten you; specifically, I'll tell you the reason why you, despite witnessing the deaths of these two and now confronting me, the one who slew them both, are not acting out of emotion.\" *** \"It's quite simple.  You are not sad about their deaths. You are surprised. However, you are not sad. That is why you have not hurled yourself at me in anger.\"  It really was the arbitrary statement of someone who assumed they understood. What do you understand! As if I'm not sad that they're dead! I'll kill you!! Inside Subaru's heart, one phrase after another floated up, all candidates for what he should shout in response. They were countless. In truth, Subaru had multiple violent emotions swirling around inside of him. They cried for him to chew out the clown with the all-knowing face. Anger, despair, grief, shock his emotions were ready to make him explode and say those things at any moment  \" It is because you do believe these things can be undone, is it nooooot?\" *** The blow made his blood freeze. Subaru went rigid, feeling like his heart had been clenched. It was not a metaphor. He truly felt like his heart was in a death grip. The impact was simply that great. Whatever Roswaal meant by it, his statement's wording was all too close to Return by Death. The Witch's court was strict and severe. That very moment, the world might stop and those black arms emerge to impose their sentence. Or perhaps the arms would be insufficient, and the Witch might descend once more, drinking the Sanctuary dry  \"...Not...coming?\" \"This wariness... I see. So you and that have exchanged a pact. In light of that, I can now accept how you came to so many of your words and actions to date. She is quite a mean one.\" \"Accept, you say...? No, before even that, you...!\" Subaru's face went pale as Roswaal put a hand to his chin and nodded. There was no mistake: Roswaal's statement that moment had most certainly touched upon the taboo at Subaru's core  \"You...you noticed what's been happening with me...?!\" \"To explain, it is likely faster to show you than to tell you.\" \"Wait! That feels like you're just giving me the slip aga \" When Roswaal turned around and headed toward the bed, Subaru tried to close the distance. However, he hesitated to touch the pool of blood at the tips of his toes and the corpses of Ram and Garfiel within. During that time, Roswaal arrived at the bed. He reached a hand under the pillow, groping under it, and  \"...Wait, don't tell me that's ?\" \"A Gospel? Rest at ease. This is not any such knockoff but one of the only two genuine articles.\" When he lifted what was in his hand, Subaru recalled hearing similar words from Roswaal before. When the topic had come up previously, the man had stated that these were the real deal, that only two volumes existed, and that one was in Beatrice's hands. As for the other  \"So you had it...!\" \"It would seem you require no explanation as to the book's contents. It would also seem you do not require an explanation of who possesses the other, either. In that case, you require no further answer to your query, I take it?\" *** As the black-bound book held his attention, Subaru heard a very loud ringing in his ears. When he concentrated, working to match what he was seeing with his memories to date, he found his proof. Leaving the reality of the present behind, overusing his brain to the point of meltdown, he finally arrived at a meaningful conclusion. In Roswaal's hand rested the second book of knowledge. This tome prophesized the future, and just like Beatrice, whose blank book had reinforced her isolation across four centuries, Roswaal too had read the book's contents over and over  \"From the look of you, it would appear that Beatrice somehow fulfilled her duty.\" \" . Duty? Duty, what do you know about her...?\" The interjection brought his thought process to a temporary halt. As it continued the work of verifying background information, the sense of loss etched into Subaru's chest made him flare up at Roswaal for the sake of the girl at the center of that pain. Did this man know the true feelings of Beatrice, the girl who had cried out in such loneliness? \"Didn't you know about what she was going through?! Always bound to that room, always clinging to a promise from a long time ago... Didn't you know about her tears?!\" \"Of course I knew. To me, she is someone I have known since the time of my birth. The sense of desolation she harbors within her chest, her desire to move on... These are things I have always known.\" \" !! Then...\" \"I hope you do not say, Why did you do nothing about them? or the like. Do you know what that girl desires someone do to relieve her sadness? You have heard her plea, have you not?\" Skewered by Roswaal's sound logic, Subaru's heart reeled, like it was spitting up blood. It was the truth."}, {"text": "It was very much the truth. Subaru had heard Beatrice's plea. He'd reached out to her, wanting to save her. His hand had been rejected, his voice had failed to reach her and in the end, Beatrice's life had been taken by a vile blade. The power and the knowledge to heal four centuries of isolation was too much to hope for from Subaru. Going back in time, using his means of redoing things, Subaru could create a \"final\" chance to exchange words with Beatrice any number of times.  But how should one heal four centuries of sadness? He couldn't turn back the clock on the four centuries of time Beatrice had spent in the archive of forbidden books. \" Though I must envy her.\" Almost as an afterthought, the murmuring voice crept its way into Subaru's battered eardrums. Unable to believe what he just heard, Subaru lifted his face, staring at the mouth Roswaal had used to speak the words. But Roswaal did not notice his gaze, and together with a vague sigh, he carried on. \"Beatrice was able to vanish, granting her long-cherished desire. That is the meaning behind the fact that you are here, am I riiiiight?\" \"Long-cherished...desire? A-are you?! Are you trying to tell me dying like, like that was her long-cherished desire?!\" \"That was the girl's wish. Whatever end each person hopes for is not something others should belittle, and her desires were her own. It is impermissible to sully that girl's demise, for you and for me.\" \"You killed Ram and Garfiel, and you get to say that to me?!\" As Subaru shouted in anger and raised his finger in accusation for the slaughter, Roswaal shook his head side to side. It was as if to say, And were your own actions so noble that you can act so high and mighty? Subaru had heard Beatrice's plea, her lament. And yet, why was Roswaal, the man who had done nothing for her, able to put on that face like he understood Beatrice?  After all, there was no sympathizing with Beatrice's wish, her plea for death. That wish was not what she had wanted at all.  If it was, then why had Beatrice shielded Subaru in the end? \"Like I said, I envy her.  After all, it would seem that my long-cherished desire shall not be granted.\" *** Until that point, Subaru had been unable to comprehend a single word out of Roswaal's mouth. There was only chaos in his mind. But even so, what he just said left a particularly strange and queasy feeling in Subaru. Granting a long-cherished desire. Fulfilling a wish. These felt wrong, discordant. As for his wish  \"What...do you want, then? What the heck is your wish? Why why do all this...?\" \"I shall not speak it. I have a vow to uphold, much like you. What has come out of my mouth so far is the greatest concession I am capable of giving you. But allow me to say this.\" *** \"I always do my utmost, always acting in the best interests of my long-cherished desire. My various schemes, blasphemies, aid, and support are all for its sake. I have never once turned my back on that.\" Blatantly, boldly, and proudly, Roswaal affirmed every last one of his own actions to date. How could he say it with a straight face like that, shamelessly, brazenly? Pitch-black anger welled up in Subaru. For Subaru's part, his anger seemed selfish, if not wholly disconnected from the contempt for the feelings and emotions for which he had come so far. But he couldn't help himself. \"What best interests?! Never turned your back on that, my ass! You...you too, it's that book, huh?! You're acting according to what's written in the book, aren't you?! Are you gonna tell me the same things that Beatrice did?! That what you've done until now, that what you're doing in the Sanctuary is all...!\" The first run when Subaru had discovered that book, Beatrice had told him she was doing everything as written within. That had been a lie. This time around, Subaru had learned her book was filled with blank pages. So what about Roswaal's book, then? Was the future accurately detailed therein? \"Is this snow according to the book, too?! Did the writing in the book tell you to make the snow fall? What the hell for?!\" \"That should be obvious.  To isolate Lady Emilia.\" \" H...uh? \"I suppose I must repeat myself. Making the snow fall like this inflicts harm upon the residents. This isolates Lady Emilia, causing her to fall into an unstable mental state. Without this snow, she would not, yes?\" Roswaal's conclusion accurately described the state of Emilia, left behind at the tomb, as if he could see it for himself. The situation had advanced precisely in accordance with Roswaal's prediction. But the issue was not the effects. Subaru did not comprehend the meaning behind the thought process of Roswaal's that had arrived at such an extreme. With Subaru perplexed, Roswaal spread his hands out a little. \"This is a land connected to a Witch, and Lady Emilia is in the position of confronting the Trial to liberate the Sanctuary. For a great, unseasonable snowfall to arrive out of season in a place she is located...one can imagine what would happen?\" \"Wh-why, you...\" \"At a time like this, Garfiel's lack of guile proves most useful. His suspicions would naturally jump straight to Lady Emilia, blaming her with a loud voice. This is where the memories of the people of Earlham Village would come into play. They know of the wave of localized cold that Lady Emilia...well, more precisely, the Great Spirit, can trigger.\" Roswaal's statement made a chill run through Subaru. The \"wave of localized cold\" he spoke of referred to the sight of out-of-season snow occurring alone in the environs of Roswaal Manor. It was a fun, peaceful time between the people of the mansion and the villagers. Roswaal was using that memory.  In point of fact, every last thing had gone in accordance with Roswaal's scheme. Garfiel had suspected Emilia, and his voice propagated that suspicion through the residents of the settlement. The people of Earlham Village would want to believe in her. But they had memories that associated snow with Emilia. It was Emilia who had made the snow fall and every plot of soil in that land, that world, carried a reason to pin every crime upon her, regardless of who might have committed it. This was the demon named Prejudice, which had caused Emilia so much suffering over many years. \"And do what by isolating Lady Emilia, you ask? Lady Emilia is truly a weak person, you see. It is by no means mysterious for her to entrust herself to the hands of 'someone' who can accept her... And if that someone wished to support Lady Emilia with every fiber of his being, all the better.\" \"Wait, wait...wait, wait, wait, wait...!\" As Roswaal continued his confession, the words triggered an instinctual fear, prompting Subaru to raise his hands. He felt like at that moment some preposterous tale, some outrageous fact, was being spoken to him. As if that moment, he had heard Roswaal's true intent, and having heard it, there was no going back  \"Once Lady Emilia depends upon you, you shall never push her away. Of course not... You love her, after all. If your beloved Lady Emilia entrusts everything to you, you will be unable to brush her aside.\" \"That's not...\" No. It can't be true. That very moment, the present Subaru had resisted giving in to Emilia when she had clung to him back at the tomb. He had come this far after enduring it. Knowing that those were not Emilia's true feelings, he could not allow himself to drown in feelings of love that were a pale substitute for the real  \"Not today is surely your answer. That is an unfortunate development for me. It would seem that the current you is overly invested in extraneous things.\" \"Extraneous...? Wait, this is why you did something to my letter...?\" \" Letter?\" Suspicion slipped into Roswaal's question to himself. Though he knit his brows, he immediately cast that suspicion aside. When Roswaal stepped forward, taking a single step into the pool of blood, Subaru's body subconsciously flinched back. Roswaal, shaking his long arm, flashed a lonely, pained smile at Subaru's reaction and said; \"The current you is insufficient to bring about the future indicated in the text. Any discrepancy with that recorded requires a correction.\" \"You plan to kill...me?\" \"Killing you would be putting the cart before the horse, would it noooot? I would be inconvenienced were you to perish. I mean, I simply must have you seize the next opportunity, no matter what might befall you.\" \" Eh?\" For an instant, the words Roswaal said as he approached threw Subaru for a loop. But he immediately grasped what the words meant and, at the same time, recognized their variance with the facts. Based on some kind of notation in the book of knowledge, Roswaal had caught on to Subaru's looping. However, he did not know that death was the trigger to activate Return by Death. Accordingly, Roswaal believed he could not kill him until Subaru activated the looping of his own free will. If it was like that, he had a chance to w  \" I shall not kill you. However, I can do anything to you besides that. Am I wrong?\" The next instant, Subaru was struck by a blow that seemed to go straight through his solar plexus, slamming him into the wall. \"G-ahh...\" \"Considering how our relationship will develop after this, I would not consider this course of action to be suave of me. Did I use the term correctly?\" \"Goaa! G-gyaaa!\" Driving his fingernails into the fallen Subaru's flank, Roswaal cocked his head like this was any other regular moment. Rather than the force of his kick, he was using precise gouging at weak points to meticulously increase Subaru's suffering. And as Subaru writhed in intense pain, Roswaal rained more one-sided acts of violence upon him with punches, kicks, and sometimes a stomp to the head, causing tears of blood to flow out of his left eye cavity once more. But he didn't die. Therefore, there was no Return by Death. The looping did not occur. \"...I have done all this, and still you will not try again? You are quite obstinate.\" *** \"Ahhh, or is this already after you have made another attempt? Now that I think of it, I have no method of recognizing whether you have done it or not. Quite the miscalculation.\" The pitying look Roswaal directed toward Subaru was a spiteful sight indeed. But what tugged at his chest even more than that, something that always had, spilled out of Subaru's mouth. \"Ros...waal... Y...you talk like I've tried again a whole...bunch of times...\" \"Oh my? This is becoming a rather important discussion? Do tell.\" \"I'm...the one asking you... What's...with you...acting...planning on the premise that I...that someone else...can redo things? Do you actually...?\" Finally, the terrible premonition that he'd dragged around with him all that time coalesced into a tangible suspicion.  And that suspicion was that Roswaal had a way to inherit memories. Just like Echidna, inside the tomb, who spent her time cut off from reality in her castle of dreams, did Roswaal also inherit memories of a prior world even after Subaru Returned by Death? For if not, Subaru couldn't make sense of his plan that hinged on redoing things. \"If that's so...that's fine. But if that's really what it is, then I can't...\" Can't forgive you. If they had both inherited those memories, their relationship could be extended no further. Roswaal had committed a great many heresies for the sake of an objective unknown to Subaru. This was not limited to the current run but was this man's policy for every time moving forward as well. If that was"}, {"text": "so, the optimal future Subaru was aiming for and his goal were  \" It would seem that the conversation is at an end...\" However, as Subaru's broken words trailed off, Roswaal turned his head toward the room's window. Then, in the corner of the fallen Subaru's eye, he slightly narrowed his eyes and spoke a single word. \"Goa.\" In contrast to the whisper-like volume of his voice, the result created by that chant was an all-too-dazzling red. He unleashed the fist-size crimson fireball created via chant with the speed of an arrow, melting and breaking through the intervening window and scoring a direct hit on the silhouette seemingly trying to leap into the room through it, burning the target completely. The silhouette, of a similar size to the fireball, was unable to resist the flames, burning to ash in the blink of an eye. But just before it completely burned away, it left behind only one thing: the sound of its kii, kii death cries  \"Just now... Agh?\" \"I see, I see.  So this is how it ends?\" Subaru gasped as Roswaal grabbed hold of the front of his neck, easily lifting up his body with one slender arm. Subaru groaned and thrashed, but Roswaal paid no heed to his resistance, dragging him to the door. At a rapid gait, he passed out of the house's interior, violently dragging Subaru out of the building and into the cold, buffeting winds outside. Hurled into the snowy landscape, Subaru shook off something cold touching his head, somehow managing to sit up. And then he noticed it and gaped. *** He heard a skrtskrt sound, a discordant noise like that of hard things rubbing against each other. This was the song of fangs meant for tearing prey to shreds, a sound that Subaru knew from personal experience. The pure-white fur blended in perfectly with the snowed-in landscape of the Sanctuary. Their tiny bodies, small enough to fit into one's palm, quivered as their round eyes surveyed the landscape. They were adorable animals and indiscriminate weapons of slaughter. \"Th-the rabbits...!\" Subaru shivered, raising a shout at the arrival of the Great Rabbit, one of the three great demon beasts. As Subaru did so, just as his fright foretold, the hopping demon beasts leaped onto the snow one after another. \"Kii, kii,\" they cried out, and skrtskrt went the sound of the demon beasts' fangs, their numbers already beyond counting. These monsters, left with no instincts save insatiable hunger, the demon beast horde known as the Great Rabbit, had arrived in the Sanctuary. \"B-but...this is ridiculous. I mean, it's only the second day... Why is this...?!\" Subaru was sure that according to his memories, the Great Rabbit had attacked the Sanctuary on the fifth day. There should have been plenty of time to spare. Why were they in the Sanctuary with timing like that? \"This snow is no doubt the cause.\" \" ! Daphne said the Great Rabbit eats magical energy; the bigger the mana the better...!\" During his fleeting encounter with the Witches, the Witch of Gluttony, Daphne, creator and mother of the Great Rabbit, had told Subaru that about the creatures' ecology. He had yet to turn the information about that trait of the Great Rabbit, its attraction to mana, into a means of opposing the menace of the demon beasts, but  \"The snow... There's no reason they can't munch down on the great magic controlling the weather. That's why...!\" \"To the Great Rabbit, this is a desirable feeding ground. From birth, those residents with demi-human blood are blessed with bountiful mana... And more important, they and the evacuated villagers are all gathered in one place.\" \"The Cathedral !\" As if the conclusion was propelling him, Subaru forced his creaking body to stand. Then, wiping his nosebleed with a sleeve, with the attack of the Great Rabbit imminent, he drew close to Roswaal. \"Roswaal! Right now...just for now, a cease-fire! Anyway, let's get to the Cathedral! Can we hole up there...? No, gotta rendezvous with Emilia at the tomb and flee outside...\" \"Flee? To where? There is the barrier. The residents of the Sanctuary cannot escape.\" \" . Th-that's...\" \"There was not enough time, Subaru. So long as the Trial remains unfinished, the residents cannot leave the Sanctuary. In other words, the future you desire will never come to pass.\" As Subaru hemmed, Roswaal pushed his chest away and calmly walked forward. Ahead of where he advanced, walking over the snow the Great Rabbit pressed forward as an uncoordinated line of death. With his might as one of the kingdom's preeminent mages, they couldn't ask for anything more ideal than a target-rich battlefield; numbers meant nothing to him. Surely, with his overwhelming magical strength, he could mow down the horde and open a path. However, Subaru did not have any sense whatsoever that Roswaal had the willpower to resist. As he continued to advance, his very demeanor was clearly that of a man going off to his death. \"Wait, wait, damn it, Roswaal...! We aren't done talking yet!\" \"No, we are finished. At the very least, I have no more words to speak to you. Nor any reason left to live.\" \"E-even if I redo it, this way is the worst! If we talked more, talked properly...or maybe you just think you can do it next time, but...!\" \" You seem to have a misconception about something, Subaru.\" \"Wha?\" The term misconception made Subaru's words catch. Standing still, Roswaal turned only his head toward Subaru. And with Subaru frozen, Roswaal continued speaking to him. \"Even if you can try again, I cannot. The me waiting for you after a redo is not the me you see here. This is my end.  But that is fine.\" Bewilderment, amazement, shock slammed into Subaru all at once. Roswaal himself was saying that redos applied only to Subaru; everything else in the loop was unrelated. In other words, Roswaal knew of Subaru's looping and was trying to use it for some kind of objective, but what he was doing was no more and no less than that. For the Roswaal that died there, in that world, his life was over, his consciousness at an end. He knew that even if Subaru redid things, the current Roswaal would not be waiting on the other end. But that way of thinking was just too  \" That's not the thought process of a human being.\" With Subaru, whose consciousness continued on, the prerequisite conditions differed. With Roswaal, whose consciousness did not continue on, if he died it was the end. And so understanding that end, he accepted it as a matter of fact, inserting it into his plan. That was abnormal. \"At any rate, the time will come when, in a genuine sense, you catch up to me, Subaru.\" \"Roswaal...?\" \"Listen well, Subaru.  You have something that is important. One thing that is truly, truly precious to you. Strip away all other things. Let go of everything else and think only of protecting that one thing that you hold dear.\" *** \"Do this and \" Somewhere amid that much urgency, with an air of so much sincerity, Roswaal smiled at Subaru. The Great Rabbit that had already come so very close tore into that Roswaal's neck. Blood scattered, and the sound of gouged flesh heralded the beginning of the tragic spectacle. Late to appear, the next rabbits bit into his arms, his knees, his rump. \"Roswaalllll !!\" \" You can become like me.\" The jester's smile could no longer be seen, buried under the gleeful horde of rabbit bodies. As if craving it, the Great Rabbit covered the whole of Roswaal's body. Falling to his side, the unresisting Roswaal was gouged out by the rabbits' fangs. Hungrily, they fed, eating their fill. Fresh blood sprayed onto the white snow, drawing a picture of Hell upon that great natural canvas. Even that bloody sketch went to waste, for the demon beasts slurped the blood-smeared snow, erasing every remaining trace. Without a word, Subaru watched the spectacle of Roswaal ceasing to be Roswaal. He watched, as the being known as Roswaal was lost to the world, his life gnawed away.  He watched. 7  A finished world, an unreachable future, lost hopes, and trampled bonds: They all tasted of blood. Upon those, Subaru bit down. He bit down on the rising bitterness. He bit down on his decision. It was time. This time he would truly give up on this world, for it was time that he let go. From hither and yonder, he heard the kichikichi sound of the monsters' fangs, captive to their own obsession with hunger. The Sanctuary was no longer anything more than the Great Rabbit Horde's hunting grounds. Screams and angry shouts alike were drowned out by the demon beasts' cries and the sounds of their gnawing as countless cruel deaths were playing out across that powdery landscape. Subaru single-mindedly raced past the horrors, running in a beeline to his destination. Surrounded by the sounds of fangs, the flesh-craving rabbits delighted at having new prey enter their feeding grounds. Subaru drew the crystal from his pocket and made one reckless prayer. Employing his rights as an apostle, Subaru assembled the replicas remaining in the Sanctuary. Leaving it to them to leap in and intercept the demon beasts, Subaru somehow managed to escape with his life. The remaining replicas dwindled even as he watched. A moment after Piko, the first to come to his side, was sacrificed to the rabbits and torn apart, they ceased being effective as expendable speed bumps. He made them fight until they were being shredded, finally causing them to self-destruct, taking as many as they could with them. This he repeated over and over  \"Ha-ha-ha-ha...\" Coming to a halt, a dry laugh trickled out. Before his eyes was a fire-enveloped building, burning with brilliant flames. It was the Cathedral. Between the people of Earlham Village and the residents of the Sanctuary, there ought to have been nearly a hundred souls housed inside. Their bastion, the place where survivors should have been waiting for aid, was engulfed by flame. Possessing nothing save hunger, the Great Rabbit lacked the presence of mind to set its prey on fire. Who, then, had set the fire? For what purpose had ? Without having to think about it, he knew. The people inside had chosen suicide over being devoured by demon beasts. That was all. Hell this was a portrait of Hell itself. The people from the village, the residents of the Sanctuary, and even Ryuzu and Otto had probably all been inside. How could they do something so hasty? But Subaru had no right to blame them. They had simply exercised a natural right. They had the right to choose their end a right Subaru did not possess and so they chose. That was all. It was Subaru Natsuki who ought to be blamed. It was he who had made them choose how to end lives that, unlike his, would never return this was the crime of Subaru Natsuki, a crime he could never undo. \"...Put yourselves on the line and protect me. Once I make it to the tomb, do what you want.\" The Great Rabbit began to surround the Cathedral as it burned and collapsed. Sensing their approach, Subaru left only those orders to the remaining Ryuzu replicas of which there were six. Shifting his head, Subaru looked not at the scene of the fire but across the snow to where the tomb was supposed to be. With one step and another, he walked, casting his hesitation aside as he broke into a run. Behind him, the demon beasts identified the racing Subaru as more prey, their little bodies bounding in pursuit. The replicas did as ordered, fighting without self-regard as they protected him from the beasts. He heard a chaotic mix of sound from the cries of demon beasts and of the horrifically wounded replicas turning into light and exploding. Leaving all of it behind, Subaru covered his ears with his hands, continuing"}, {"text": "to run into the blowing snow. Countless sounds reached the eardrums of Subaru Natsuki, berating him as they did. He did his best to ignore it and shook them off.  He continued to run. 8 By the time he arrived at the tomb, Subaru's body no longer felt the cold. He had a cavity for a left eye, and the vision of his right was dying bit by bit. But he thought nothing of the pain. In his dull, leaden thought process, the image of a single girl flickered. Stepping into the corridor of dry stone, Subaru headed deeper, deeper within. And there he found  \" Subaru?\" At the back of the corridor was a stone room filled with a faint blue light. From there, someone called his name. Invited by the voice, his legs dragged him forward, and the person standing in the center of the stone room gazed at Subaru and said, \"Subaru, it really is you! Goodness, where have you been? I was worried!\" As she spoke, Emilia rushed over in a small run and grasped both his hands. Wearing a pouty look, Emilia proceeded to pull Subaru's hands against her own chest. As gentle softness and body temperature blended together, she gazed at him with upturned eyes. \"...Are you tired by any chance?\" \"Yeah... I might be just a little tired...\" \"Tee-hee, is that so? Well, in that case...\" Nodding, Emilia smiled with redness dying her cheeks. From there, she bent her knees on the spot, leaned on her hip, folded her legs under her, and gave her white thighs a couple of pats. \"...A...lap pillow, huh?\" \"Yes. Subaru, you just love my lap pillow, don't you? You've told me as much. I remember.\" Emilia proudly made the proposal with only a tiny hint of a blush. Though it took Subaru a little longer, he also sat down on the spot, indulging in her generosity as he laid his head upon her soft thighs. Right away, the sensation of his hair elicited a sweet murmur of \"mmm,\" but Emilia immediately began stroking Subaru's head. \"How many times does this make that I've offered Subaru my lap as a pillow anyway?\" \"Who knows...third time, maybe? I think I was a real wreck every time.\" \"I am happy to indulge Subaru like this, but you know, spoiled children get their hair teased...\" Teasing his forelocks, tickling his forehead with her fingers, Emilia was in high spirits as she did as she pleased to Subaru. Because Emilia wore that adorable expression, not even a smidgeon of an urge to brush her fingers aside arose.  Besides, he had neither the willpower nor physical endurance to do so. Most of what should have been in his belly had already spilled out anyway. *** Subaru was in a sorry state that was almost unbearable to look at. The bite wound in his hip had reached his intestines. Of the fingers on the right hand he'd used to swipe away a leaping rabbit, only the thumb really remained. Below his waist, countless deep gashes had left the bone visible, and from which too much blood had escaped. That he'd made it that far with his fraying mind was the result of tenacity bordering on obsession and the freezing cold slowing the metabolism of his body. But even that bargain-bin miracle had finally reached its limit. \"Subaru, are you sleepy? \"Just a...a tiny bit, yeah. Ahhh, it's all right, it's all right... I can do this, I can do this...\" \"Really? You're not forcing yourself? I mean, Subaru, you always do reckless things for someone else's sake... I mean, even Subaru understands that about Subaru, but it really makes me worry.\" \"I'm...all...right...\" \"I'm a little conflicted about it. I want Subaru to do reckless things just for me...but I don't want to see Subaru pretending not to see other people... Sorry, I'm very selfish, huh?\" Emilia piled words upon words in quick succession. Her voice grew distant. Unlike the snow-buried grounds of the Sanctuary, the tomb interior retained a moderate amount of heat. This thawed Subaru's still-battered flesh, and his bleeding commenced once more. The pool of blood on the stone floor broadened, and the blood Subaru was coughing splattered onto Emilia's cheek. But Emilia paid the blood no mind. \"Hey, Subaru, are you listening? There's so, so, soooooo much that I want to talk to you about. So please let me be by your side. Listen to my voice. Let me speak, 'kay?\" She wasn't ignoring him. Emilia hadn't noticed not Subaru's state, nor the blood on her cheek. Subaru was firmly reflected in her violet eyes. But reality didn't show up in them. Emilia didn't see what was wrong with Subaru. Nor did she notice the change in the Sanctuary, the gradually approaching end, or much of anything else for that matter.  However, perhaps the same was true of Subaru. *** Subaru should have been doing his best to get Emilia out of the Sanctuary. The Great Rabbit was already burying the exterior of the tomb. It probably would not be long before they surged inside. If they did, just like with Roswaal, not even one scrap of Emilia would be left behind. That would mean Emilia's death but even knowing this, Subaru did not tell Emilia to run. He could not escape from his self-centered desire to be at Emilia's side for the little time he had left. Roswaal's words and grand death, the regrets he harbored for Ram's and Garfiel's deaths, the uncertainty of how Petra and Frederica had been taken, his inability to save Rem and Beatrice; these were killing Subaru.  Trapped between a sense of loss and a sense of loneliness, Subaru wanted to vanish, and not a moment too soon. As the world began to go white, his consciousness and his soul were being whittled away from it, bit by tiny bit. Strength drained from his limbs, and sensation vanished from his dying flesh. Emilia, not realizing that Subaru was dying, would be the only one left.  Here, he was going to leave Emilia behind? Emilia, who no longer had anyone else on whom to depend. \"Ah \" Even if he wanted to regret it, it was too late. It was too late for everything. His voice refused to come out. Light vanished from his black eyes. Not noticing this, thinking Subaru had merely fallen silent, Emilia tilted her neck in adorable fashion. Then she abruptly smiled, gently bringing her face closer, and  ***  kissed the silent Subaru's lips.  The taste of her first kiss was the cold taste of death. CHAPTER 5 *** 1 Subaru's consciousness was greeted by the same sensation of a cold, hard floor. *** Still lying faceup, Subaru opened his eyes and coughed out the dirt inside his mouth. When he grimaced at the stench of dirt and looked around the area, he saw he was in a dimly lit stone room back within the tomb. Subaru returned to the world in the exact same place right after the old one had ended, going back only in time. His eyeball had returned to his left eye socket, restoring his vision. Though on the one hand, he was relieved by this, the fear that this left eye would see Hell and a sense of inescapable confinement made him feel an ache from a wound that surely no longer existed. The main thing holding back his sense of despair and the creeping feeling that he would only reach another dead end was the presence of the girl lying by his side. There, beautiful silver hair spread over the floor, moaning in anguish, was Emilia, the girl with whom he had surely met his demise here she was tormented by the Trial, seeing a nightmare of the past from which she could not awaken. *** Quietly, with his fingers, Subaru gently touched not Emilia but his own parched lips. In the back of his mind arose the sight of Emilia just before Return by Death when, putting the dying Subaru on her lap, she did not notice his loss as she kissed him. He could not imagine what Emilia's mental state was like the moment she kissed Subaru's bloody lips. Nor was Subaru, then on the verge of death, able to bring with him the sensations or feelings from the final moment of his passing. It would have been the first kiss with Emilia in Subaru's life, and it was death that had gotten in the way. *** But if Subaru had to answer whether he regretted feeling the touch of her lips, he would resoundingly say no. Reminiscing about the kiss in that final moment was to reconfirm his sense of crisis at seeing Emilia becoming wholly dependent on Subaru as she fled from reality after her mental state had deteriorated so much... Unable to rely on Puck, enduring the pressure from those around her, losing the support of Subaru's consoling words must have pushed Emilia's mind to its limits. He'd taken pride in the best start to date, but if Emilia's collapse was the result... \"If I'm not at her side...then that happens. I don't want to...make her sad...\" Even if she'd temporarily recovered from the tomb, the nighttime conversation, the letter, it all backfired. Swallowed up by a tremendous snowfall, a great many became victims to the Great Rabbit's invasion. Roswaal had slain Ram and Garfiel in a fit of madness. And finally, having Emilia kiss him on the lips was Subaru's final moment as he went to his death  \"I knew. I should have known.\" To Subaru, that world had offered the cruelest, the most senseless of fates. Therefore, as if by design, Emilia, Beatrice, and even Elsa and Roswaal were arranged in the most formidable configuration possible. \"I'll save...Emilia, the Sanctuary, the mansion. I'll save them all. If I don't, then...\"  Can you do it?  It's not a matter of whether I can. I have to. I will. Me. Subaru bared his fangs and silenced the inner voice that he'd heard many times already. He would permit no excuses, no lifelines. He swore a vow, one that would absolutely never be rescinded. All he had to do was list the problems, obstacles, issues, and walls in his way; clarify his victory conditions; put them in chronological order; then challenge them with trial runs over and over, as many as time and his mind would permit. Even if Subaru's mind was whittled down with every failure, he would be satisfied so long as a future worth holding on to still existed... No matter how many horrific things he had to see, like what he had already bore witness to. And so  \" Emilia, are you all right?\" He stretched out his hand, shook the shoulder of the adorable girl lying on her side, and gently brought her back to reality. As Subaru watched her long eyelashes tremble and her purple eyes slowly open, he decided. All over again, he made a vow inside of himself, making it hard and strong so that it would never be broken.  I'll protect Emilia and save everyone else. Even if it costs me my life. 2 In his head, he organized the information he never got a chance to digest at the end of the last run, given the chaotic events and his impending death. The most crucial of this was the man who knew of Subaru's Return by Death Roswaal L. Mathers. Subaru had to consider his position and how to best confront his schemes. Roswaal did not know that dying was the condition for activating his ability, but he knew that Subaru looped. It was unclear whether he learned this since Subaru's arrival in the Sanctuary or perhaps long before, but the way he found out had to be the magic tome in his possession the book of knowledge. This magic tome had the same origin as the blank one Beatrice possessed, one of only two volumes in the world. Subaru had no"}, {"text": "idea whether the contents of the tome accurately foretold the future or not. But if he took Roswaal's words at face value, Roswaal had to be acting in accordance with the magical tome's notations. His words and deeds in the Sanctuary and even his offering his body to the Great Rabbit at the end were the results of his strict observance of the magic tome the ideology motivating his actions was similar to what drove the Witch Cultists from Petelgeuse on down. However, there was a clear difference between the two. An unbridgeable gap existed between the positions from which they obeyed their magic tomes. Petelgeuse interpreted incomplete prophecies on his own, following the tome's notations while adjusting to changing events on the fly. Roswaal strictly observed the notations in his tome, permitting no inconsistency with them, not even if events had to be redone as a consequence. Both fully intended on obeying their tomes, but their motivations and methodologies seemed completely different. And with Roswaal willing to use even Return by Death for the sake of his tome, Subaru was in an even worse position with him than Petelgeuse.  Just what was Roswaal's objective, making him resort to such extremes? If Roswaal's magic tome said to bring the current incidents in the Sanctuary and at the mansion to an end, he'd repeat those tragedies any number of times until things went to his liking. If that was so, why not just kneel on the ground and have Roswaal tell Subaru what was in the magic tome? Why not just make a firm promise to obey the notations, exhausting his strength until Roswaal's wish was granted? But as a result of obeying the notations of the magic tome, Roswaal had made the snow fall on the Sanctuary. The snowy landscape had made people suspect Emilia, and her isolation was what caused her so much distress. If that was Roswaal's...if that was the magic tome's desire, then Subaru absolutely could not obey. Subaru's and Roswaal's goals were incompatible. To Subaru, risking his life to carry everything in his arms, Roswaal had spoken.  Strip away everything except that which is truly important to you, he'd said. He had also said that in doing so, Subaru would become like him. Not that Subaru wanted to resemble the man even slightly, but it was clear that Roswaal was acting in accordance with those words, up to and including throwing away his own life. Strictly obeying his book, he'd isolated Emilia, and Roswaal was firm in the belief that if he reached the conclusion the magic tome desired, he'd be able to protect the one thing that was truly important to him. All of Roswaal's actions were for the sake of that. If so, Subaru had but one reply. \"Let everything else go, my ass. No way in Hell.\" He wouldn't let Emilia be hurt nor Rem, nor Ram, nor Petra, nor Otto, nor Frederica, nor the people of Earlham Village, nor the residents of the Sanctuary, nor Ryuzu, nor even Garfiel. If even one of them were to fall, Subaru's small world would become a dreary one. To the greedy, self-centered Subaru, that was something he could not endure. \"Roswaal, I won't become like you.\" To make this declaration true, Subaru had to find an answer that defied the magic tome. He could rely on no one. Subaru worried, lived, and struggled alone. But if there was someone somewhere Subaru might rely upon  \"Can I depend on you again...?\"  There was only one Witch in that world to whom Subaru could confide his troubles. 3 Subaru quickened his legs, his impatience difficult to endure. After returning with Emilia, who finished her attempt to clear the Trial at the tomb, the usual review meeting at the Ryuzu residence had also been concluded. With the Sanctuary sunken deep into the dead of night, Subaru was earnestly running alone. Put bluntly, Subaru didn't remember much of the contents bounced around the review meeting. But he probably didn't need to remember to have a full grasp of the contents. This time, Emilia was distraught over the past. Therefore, with clumsy explanations and it being clear at a glance she was forcing herself, she tearfully vowed to challenge her nightmare again tomorrow and thereafter. Subaru respected her sense of duty and the nobility of her resolve.  But she would fail. This he knew. Accordingly, Subaru consoled the hurt Emilia, gently encouraged her, and saw her off to bed. After that, when Ram went to call him for his promised talk with Roswaal, Subaru brushed her off and rushed out of the house. Breath ragged, brow sweaty, he headed straight toward the Witch's moonlit tomb there lay the key to dealing with the situation, and even if not, there rested an ally with whom he could resolve some of the issues that troubled him. He was worried that he'd be stopped as he ran to the tomb, but fortunately neither Ryuzu, nor Garfiel, nor Roswaal had interrupted his decisive move.  That night, for the second time, the third if counting during the day, he charged toward the tomb. *** Arriving at the entrance, Subaru got his breathing under control in the corridor filled with cool, serene air. With the Trial having already finished for that evening, it was no longer illuminated by the light that welcomed the qualified challengers. Even so, he squinted, searching for the entrance to the castle of dreams that ought to have been there. His vision was too poor to locate the door to that place. But the Witch had certainly spoken those words... \"If you have the desire to know...\" Echidna had said that this was the condition to be invited to the Witch's Tea Party once more. Also that his voice had to be not only equal to but rise higher than at the time of his second invitation, when his entire body had been bitten away by demon beasts. Did pain and fear even exist that could exceed what he had experienced then, enough to drive him mad?  It did. The voice with which he cried out this time, for liberation from that dead end, rivaled that. *** The things he wanted to know, to ascertain, to mull over together were as innumerable as the stars. As bottomless emotions smoldered quietly in his eyes, Subaru's footsteps echoed as he advanced down the corridor. With the chill permeating his body, it was dozens of seconds later when he arrived at the stonework room enveloped in a pale light. Nearly one short hour before, he had left this place, Emilia in tow and it had also been nearly one short hour since Subaru had died in that place and that the world had restarted through Return by Death. In that place of Subaru's anguish, Subaru's death and resurrection, he yearned for an audience with the Witch. \"Please call me, Echidna...!\" He'd thrown his life away over and over. If casting away his pride as well was sufficient, he'd offer even that. For displaying his pathetic nature with all his strength was all the ignorant, powerless Subaru Natsuki was capable of. *** Kneeling in the center of the stonework room, Subaru offered up his prayer, his wish to be reunited with the Witch. In the back of his mind, he drew a portrait of a white-haired Witch, lining up his own emotions to make them a chorus with which to call out to her, fervently seeking the optimal possibility to bring those intertwined futures close. Desperately, he sought her out. With all his spirit, he craved. And as he continued doing nothing but wish, droplets of sweat dripped from his brow.  A moment later. \" Uu.\" Abruptly, Subaru saw a white light in the back of his closed eyelids. The hallucination no, this was no hallucination. Before he realized it, his kneeling body had come to lie on the ground. Unable to move his limbs, his lips were not even free to gasp at whatever might be happening. His consciousness was being peeled away from reality. It was the situation he'd desired. He was invited to the castle of dreams and so Subaru felt gratitude toward the unexpected omen. As Subaru's consciousness grew hazy, he was relieved that there was a finger pointing the way to a heretofore closed future  \" Behold the unknowable present.\" The instant his consciousness vanished, he felt like he heard such a whisper. 4 Subaru's emotions rocked back and forth in a way that made him feel drunk. He didn't know what had happened. His consciousness had given out, and after that, his awakening was sudden. It resembled the confusion linked to the sudden shift between times present and past when Return by Death activated. His brain was in chaos when suddenly dealing with the difference between the world from the moment prior and the world that instantly appeared at that moment. When he realized it was a confusion that he was already familiar with, recovery was an easy feat. Taking a long, deep breath, he first told his racing thoughts and beating heart to calm down.  But he did not feel the mouth, the throat, or the lungs necessary to take that deep breath. *** With a hand, he tried to confirm that the parts he couldn't feel were actually there. He could not touch them. The reason was simple: He couldn't feel his hand, either.  No, it wasn't just his hand. His head, his body that moment they did not exist for Subaru.  All he had was his consciousness; he existed as consciousness alone. Subaru's consciousness was alone in the sky, an existence that retained only his vision from his commanding view of the world. The unnatural lack of his flesh and blood generated a new kind of confusion. However, by thinking of the nonexistent organs and remembering the concept of a deep breath, he instilled an imitation of calm into his heart. Brushing aside his bewilderment and his sense of intoxication, he earnestly strove to grasp the present circumstance.  Beneath those thoughts, Subaru sought to ascertain where he was and what he was doing. \" aru.\" Abruptly, there was a voice. It was a broken, small voice. It was such a frail voice that it was difficult to hear just what it had said. And yet, Subaru instinctively knew.  This was a voice to which he must not listen, must not notice: a voice he must ignore. However, that was not possible. Without a body, Subaru was not permitted to turn his head aside or even to close his eyes. He was permitted nothing, save to watch the scene from so very close, to burn it into his consciousness. He was a fool. He should have welcomed the confusion. That intoxication was the mercy of God himself  \"Liar...liar, liarliarliarliarliarliar...!\" As the word repeated itself, he heard clearly what he initially could not; the voice became more apparently tearful. It was a painful sight. He could hear the unendurable misery in the voice. Among the sufferings of that world, to lend his eyes to this, for his ears to hear this, that was what he had feared most. Why was he here? Why did he notice that he was there? He'd failed. He'd miscalculated. He'd made a mistake. His judgment had been faulty. He should not have noticed. It was not for him to know. It was not something he ought to have learned. After all   If only I hadn't thought there's no way that could happen. \"Liar, liar! Subaru...you liar! You liar !!\" Tears poured out of her purple eyes like a faucet, Emilia crumpling as she yelled in a shrill voice. She shouted as if accusing him of betrayal, as if a nightmare had appeared before her very eyes, her long hair swaying about like that of a child. Emilia cried and shouted as if she had gone mad. On the bed, lying beside Rem, was Subaru, dead from running a short blade through his own throat. 5  What the"}, {"text": "hell am I seeing right now? *** Crying and crying, Emilia continued calling out Subaru's name over and over. Her laments were futile, for Subaru, blood-ridden and lying stomach down on the bed, did not even twitch. Of course not. That Subaru was already nothing save a corpse. The dead Subaru had become a ghost, looking down upon the Subaru that was no longer anything but an empty shell. It was immeasurably repulsive. Never had he known a more terrifying scene. Even Subaru, whose deaths had already exceeded ten, never once had such a commanding view of his own death. He was experiencing something as never before: Emilia grieving over him. *** He gazed upon the furniture of the room, the various people assembled in that place, and at the sight of him pathetically dead and the cause of that death. Urgently tying those things together, comprehension struck Subaru like a lightning bolt as to exactly when this scene must have taken place. It was after Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, the Archbishop of the Deadly Sins, had been dispatched and Emilia saved from the Cult. This was the outcome of Subaru's quick-tempered action when he first learned that Rem was lost to him. After riding to the capital, only to learn that all memory of Rem, attacked by the Witch Cult, had been lost from the world, Subaru impulsively thrust a knife into his own throat, wanting with all his heart to bring Rem back.  Subaru's rash wish was not granted. He tasted despair when he went back in time to a few scant seconds prior. The starting point for Return by Death had changed, which meant Subaru lost his means of saving Rem. Vowing not to give up on Rem even so, he swore in his heart to cheer Emilia on. But  \"I didn't know... I've never seen this before. I didn't know... There's no way I could have known!\" It was a scene he had never beheld. After all, in that world, Subaru was already dead. Even with the power of Return by Death granted to him, he could knew nothing of what took place in a world after he had died.  No, he thought; that wasn't true. To Subaru, who went back to do things over at the cost of his life, repainting the most awful of conclusions, a world where he had died represented nothing except a midway point on his journey toward the future that was his final destination. After all, if he didn't think that way, if he didn't see it that way, Subaru would...  Subaru Natsuki's world would shatter. \"Stop it. S?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?s?t?o?p?i?t?p?l?e?a?s?e?s?t?o?p?i?t...!\" Unable to accept the scene playing out before his eyes, Subaru sent up an incoherent scream. However, his voice did not project from his throatless form, and he could not turn his eyeless face away, nor block out sound from his earless head. The end of that world was being inscribed into Subaru, now nothing save a consciousness.  This was punishment for the rash act Subaru had committed. \"Lady Emilia! This is \" As he listened to Emilia's voice cry and shout, someone rushed into the room with a sharp voice. He had white hair and wore a black butler's outfit. This was the Crusch manor in the royal capital. Wilhelm the \"Sword Devil,\" who very much belonged there, took in the tragic scene, his eyes widening in horror. For his part, the consciousness-only Subaru was almost beside himself at the sight of the aged swordsman in shock. That was how much Wilhelm was thrown off balance by Subaru's corpse lying before him. \"Subaru... Subaruuu...you liar... You said we'd be together...\" \"What has happ  No, Lady Emilia, forgive me!\" Emilia blamed him for his betrayal like she was casting a curse. Her sobbing voice pulling Wilhelm back to his senses, he gently peeled Emilia away as she clung to Subaru's body. Emilia proceeded to wobble and fall onto the floor. But Wilhelm was more concerned with resuscitating Subaru than with her. \"Ferris! Felix! Come quickly! It is urgent! Utmost urgency!!\" Quickly stripping his jacket off and pressing it to the wound, Wilhelm forcefully shouted with a grave look on his face. Slamming Subaru's chest in an attempt to coax his still heart to beat again, droplets of blood smeared his terrible visage. Too much blood had coursed out. A man who had seen as much death as the Sword Devil surely knew Subaru's soul was no longer present. Even so, his efforts to resuscitate Subaru did not relent. \"Old Man Wil, why're you raising your voice like... Eh?\" \"Felix, hurry! A blade has pierced his throat! Not a second to lose!\" When Ferris appeared, Wilhelm instantly conveyed the facts in a sharp voice. Ferris enshrouded his palm with a blue luminance, and this great quantity of mana became healing power that he poured into the prone Subaru's wound. As he attempted treatment, desperate concentration gripped Ferris like never before. Subaru's consciousness lamented as he looked down, watching them attempt to resuscitate an empty, soulless shell. \"Just stop already... It's no use. It's just no use. He's already dead...\" The result was already obvious. Subaru had died there. No matter how desperately they might try, no matter how much Emilia might cry, Subaru was dead. Thinking nothing of what would happen after his death, forgetting everything else, he'd selfishly died. \"You will not perish! Absolutely not... As if I could let he who aided me die like this?!\" \"How could you, at a time like this...? Stop messing around, just stop it...!!\" Wilhelm shouted as he compulsively applied pressure on the wound; Ferris's voice trembled with anger as he employed the kindest magic in the world. The scene and the waves of emotion from both of them continued to crash against Subaru's heart. But no matter how earnestly the pair might strive  \"Felix! Why?! Why have you stopped the treatment! At this rate, he'll...\" \"It's over, Old Man Wil.  There's nothing of the soul left here.\" As Wilhelm drew close, Ferris shook his head, gently wiping with a handkerchief the wound that the jacket had plugged. The scar had been sealed so neatly that, as he wiped it, there was no sign of there ever having been a wound at all. But a great quantity of blood had flowed out, and the soul that had slipped out was nowhere to be found. \"Why...why?!! Why, Sir Subaru...how could you do this so easily...!\" Looking down upon Subaru's dead face, Wilhelm formed a fist of regret, pounding it against the floor. The floor split and fragmented, blood mixing with those shards Wilhelm's fist had split along as well. With blood dripping from his hand, Wilhelm raised his face to the heavens in lamentation. In contrast to Wilhelm's raw, ferocious emotions, Ferris let out a little exhale and said, \"...Weakling, coward. Everyone has precious people leave them, don't they? ...Pushing all your pain and hardship onto everyone else... Are you satisfied with that?\" As sarcasm, it was harsh. As an accusation, it was all too charitable. Having abandoned all comprehension, Subaru's consciousness could not decipher such a complex state of mind. But from Wilhelm's and Ferris's demeanor, one thing was perfectly clear.  Subaru had carved deep, lasting wounds upon their hearts. *** Notwithstanding his absentminded daze, he was a being of consciousness alone yet that fact thrust very deep indeed. Subaru was seeing something. He was being shown something. What was this supposed to be?  He was being shown his crime. \" Even though you told me...\" It was low. It was thin. And as her voice reverberated hollowly in the silence the two had created, it struck into Subaru like a stake. As Wilhelm and Ferris succumbed to resignation, Emilia continued clutching her knees behind them, still sobbing. Her cheeks displayed tracks of dried tears, but without paying this any heed, she carried on with a trembling voice. \"Even though you told me that you love me...!\" He did. Yes, he had certainly said that. He'd only just managed to say the words he'd wanted to for so long. It was Emilia, who flashed a tearful smile when she heard those words, that Subaru had left behind.  Suddenly, as if someone had turned out the lights, the world he was watching snapped out of existence. 6 \" T-t...\" The pain of his face slamming against the ground woke Subaru. Groaning from his chin hitting the cool floor, Subaru shook his head. Realizing that he had the sensation of his hand touching his bumped chin, he was certain of his own physical existence.  Nothing was out of place. \"T-tomb. Inside the...\" Murmuring with a trembling voice, his gaze wandered as he confirmed his own location. Suddenly, he was there in the room of the Trial he had surely been in until just before losing consciousness, having in no way leaped beyond it in either time or space. Emilia wasn't there, either. He hadn't Returned by Death. He was there right after his wish had come. \"But that was...no daydream or anything close...\" Putting a hand to his mouth, Subaru felt every inner organ spasm at once at the scene burned into the core of his mind. It was an unanticipated scene, an impossible world, a nonexistent stage that he had surely left behind that was unmistakably the \"Scene After Subaru's Death.\" \"U...bu \" The instant his comprehension redoubled, his trembling intestines reached their limit, and the contents of Subaru's stomach were expelled. A supper of which he had only a distant memory of eating spewed onto the floor along with his stomach fluids. It was no great amount. Even so, wringing his stomach repeatedly made him feel a small easing of his nausea. \"Haah, haah... Th-this is...\" After vomiting repeatedly, Subaru moaned from the burning pain of stomach fluids in his throat as he sank into thought. What the heck had happened? Had Subaru, seeking an invitation to the castle of dreams, fallen into some sort of aberrant situation? Given the place, if he had to put his finger on a possibility, the only one that came to mind was  \"Wait, don't tell me that was the Trial just now...? Not the one of the past but the second one...?!\" This was the room of the Trial inside the tomb of the Witch so having cleared the first gate, it was natural for there to be a second. It was only natural, but to Subaru, this natural thing was exceedingly unexpected. Of course, that went for not just the Trial starting; the most frightening thing of all was the Trial's contents.  If what he'd seen earlier was the second Trial, to Subaru, it was the worst development possible. When it came to Hell, Subaru had seen it repeatedly. He was well aware of the fact. And to grasp an optimal future, he'd resigned himself to seeing that Hell as many times as it took.  But how could he maintain his determination after learning of something that went beyond Hell, something more terrifying than Hell itself? \" Behold the unknowable present.\" \"Wha ?!\" Subaru could practically feel his blood freezing as his body trembled. Someone's whisper had suddenly grazed his eardrums. Raising a cry at that fact, his body stiffened and that instant the loss of consciousness came once more. He thrust out his arms, but they could not hold on to anything. Falling shoulder-first onto the floor, he could not force his eyelids open. His consciousness proceeded to rapidly fall into the abyss and vanish.  So that the Trial and the world beyond Hell might chastise Subaru Natsuki. 7 Shallowly, sharply, the blade that brought his life to an end was so elegant it was enchanting. The minimal bleeding was proof of the precise skill with which the single fatal blow was landed. But specks of that minute blood spatter remained on his white mantle, which looked akin to proof of the knight's crime. As Subaru's remains lay faceup, a purple-haired knight looked down upon them. To"}, {"text": "his side, Ferris had sunken down to the ground on his backside, and it was clear at a glance he was in an exceedingly haggard state. *** As Subaru gazed down upon that scene what lay beyond Hell he felt his consciousness fraying. With nothing but his consciousness, Subaru had no means to stop the scene or even avert his eyes. The crime he had committed remained undiminished, and the resentments of the world he had left behind served as a rasp that filed down his very soul. And this scene, too, kicked Subaru when he was  No, the blow that came was even greater than what had preceded it. \"...Su...baru?\" With a sound of footsteps on grass, someone was approaching the encirclement formed by the knights. With wobbly steps, this individual walked closer to the boy lying fallen at its center. In a daze, Emilia stood beside the deceased Subaru. Beside her stood a knight Julius. \"Lady Emilia, please wipe his...Subaru's face.\" *** \"I believe he would have desired that it be you rather than I who does it. At the least, it should be by your hand.\" Offering a white handkerchief, Julius spoke to Emilia, who was lost in a daze. However, Emilia did not give any reply. She simply stood there, her round eyes bewildered, filled with emotion. Sluggishly, Emilia touched Subaru's face with her trembling fingers. Heedless of her hand being sullied, Emilia wiped the dried sweat and a slight amount of blood that had come from his mouth with her very own palm. And when by doing so, she was tidying up Subaru's dead face bit by bit, Emilia haltingly murmured, \"Why...? Why did Subaru come back, only to end up like this...?\" As if there had to be some mistake, Emilia murmured the question asking someone eternally unable to answer. A dead body had no ears with which to hear it or a mouth with which to reply. And Subaru's consciousness, being chastised for his crime, had no way of interfering with their world. *** He understood just which death was being reenacted in this new world beyond Hell. This was the scene of the death brought about by the battle with Petelgeuse. After defeating the White Whale, in the first battle in which he and the expeditionary force had challenged Petelgeuse Subaru, having failed to see through his Possession ability, had his body stolen by the madman. And to defeat the worst-case scenario, where he would not even be permitted to Return by Death, Subaru had borrowed the strength of Julius and Ferris, opting for his own death. Ferris's magic had greatly disrupted the circulation inside his body, and Subaru's demise had left a terrible expression on his face. It was thanks to Julius's intervention that Subaru had averted a horrific appearance in death. But if the question was whether this was any comfort to those left behind, that was a different story. \"Sir Subaru... I am so very sorry...!\" Wilhelm, his entire body covered with wounds, fell to his knees and lowered his head in shame. Pushing his wounded body, Wilhelm wept grandly over Subaru's death. As he lowered his face with an expression of regret, aged knights stood around him, wearing similar faces of silent pain. Each was one of the comrades in battle with whom Subaru had challenged the White Whale. Having struck down the Witch Cult, they had promised each other a triumphant return to the royal capital, and the hearts of all were pained to be unable to fulfill that promise; some among them were driven to tears. Subaru gaped at to just what extent they were afflicted by his death. Or perhaps those tears struck Subaru so hard because he was seeing them from the world after death. \"Why did Subaru come to help me, only to end up like this...? Why did this happen?\" With Subaru saying nothing in return, Emilia kept a hand pressed to his cheek, continuing to call out to him in a voice that could not reach. From that sad and painful sight, Subaru knew very well what was within her chest. In that world, Subaru had not given an answer to Emilia's question. In death, it had been postponed for all eternity.  Accordingly, going forward, Emilia would never know the reason for Subaru's devotion. \"The Witch Cult has long brought suffering to this world. Its vanguard, the Archbishop of the Deadly Sins of Sloth, has been slain. To the world, this is an exceptional victory.  But.\" Speaking to Subaru's remains, Julius used his fingers to rap the scabbard of the knight's sword on his hip. He repeated the gesture over and over, the intervals between them gradually shortening. \"That does not mean all the sacrifices for its sake are pardonable.  I had hoped to exchange more words with you, Subaru Natsuki.\" With that painful murmur, Julius averted his face from Subaru's dead visage. Lifting his face toward the sky dyed by the setting sun, gloom rested in the knight's eyes as he said, \" I wanted to call you friend.\" Julius's whisper in a powerless voice trickled into the forest in vain. 8 The world's stage lights suddenly turned off, and his consciousness returned. He awoke with a start. \" Bwha, whaa! Whu, ah, ahhh?!\" His body writhed. When he came to, he found his body atop a cool, hard floor. In that room, filled with air chilly enough to make his nostrils hurt, Subaru lost himself as he rolled around. There was no meaning behind the action. Through actions made in a frenzy, he wanted to reject having to think about anything. He could not allow himself to think about what he had just seen. He could not allow himself to comprehend. He rolled and rolled, making his inner ear hurt as he scraped his head against the floor, as if trying to escape the storm spawned from his own internal organs. He tried to reduce the possibility of conscious thought by even the tiniest degree. \"Gah...!!\" But as he evaded reality in that manner, he bumped into the wall, and his bounce off it brought that process to an end. The hard collision by his back made his bones creak, and his forehead was oozing blood from all the scraping against the ground. Yet, as he lay facedown, it was most certainly not the pain that had caused Subaru's tears to flow.  Subaru's sobs were for the shame he felt toward his spineless self. Just how often, how many times over, would Subaru Natsuki's weakness continue to torment him? Just how could he obtain a heart of steel that would never, ever waver, no matter the predicament, no matter the ordeal? It was because Subaru was so weak, so frail, that so many times before he'd... \"The stuff I pretended not to see, the stuff I turned my back on... That's what this is...?\" It wasn't...that he had never thought about it. The possibility had floated up in a corner of Subaru's mind a number of times. The fact that he'd made no attempt to seriously come to grips with it was nothing save himself subconsciously rejecting any verification of the possibility, any inquiry into it, all out of fear. The idea that when Subaru Returned by Death, the worlds continued after his demise if he openly considered the possibility, if he even suspected it, the foundation of how Subaru fought would crumble under his feet. That Subaru, wishing to save others, had been left behind by everyone.  No, it was Subaru who had left them behind. Shamefully, selfishly embracing his own death, Subaru left the world behind, as only he escaped into a brand-new world. His irresponsibility had borne terrible fruit. That was the truth behind those scenes, what had created Hell beyond Hell itself. \" Behold the unknowable present.\" You can't escape, the whispering voice close to Subaru's ears seemed to declare. The forced estrangement of his consciousness that differed from sleep made Subaru fall into a world of white. When the whisper ended for the third time, he wondered why the voice sounded familiar then he realized the answer.  Without the slightest doubt, the voice he heard...was his own. 9 There was a girl. She was kneeling in front of a corpse with its skull smashed apart. Unable to withstand a fall from a great height, the corpse had bloomed upon the ground as a flower of blood. From the fragments that had cruelly flown apart, it was barely discernible that this had once been a black-haired boy. *** Subaru was no longer surprised to awaken as a consciousness alone. Once again, his consciousness had been forcibly switched; once again, Subaru was being shown what came after his death. The only thing Subaru's consciousness couldn't expect was just which reenactment of death he had been called to  \"Right up until the very, very end, you kept saying the most nonsensical things...\" In front of the Subaru who had tumbled to his death, a pink-haired girl spat out the words it was Ram. Her physical appearance was askew, and her uniform was torn in several places. The expression of Ram, a girl who normally strove to maintain her cool at all times, bore the color of complex, unpalatable emotions, as well as burning anger. Her expression was not so much regret at Subaru's death...as nigh-unendurable anger toward it. \"Is this, too, all according to your expectations, Lady Beatrice? Is this why you obstructed Ram's path...?!\" In a way unlike her usual self, Ram lobbed accusations one after the other before interrupting her words midway. Ram's pink eyes beheld Subaru's corpse and Beatrice standing at his side. Caring nothing for the grime that marred the hem of her skirt, she stared at the smashed Subaru and spoke one word. \" Why?\" Haltingly, a melancholic voice spilled out. The presence of Ram, right beside her, didn't even register; Beatrice's gaze was trained upon dead Subaru alone. He could see transparent droplets falling from the corners of her blue eyes onto her cheeks.  Beatrice...was crying. That fact filled Subaru with a sense of guilt, an agony that felt like he'd swallowed molten lead. The pain gouged a hole in his heart, filling the back of his nonexistent eyes with an unbearable heat. That very moment, he wanted to rush to the girl's side, to speak some kind words to her. He wanted to make the tears stop. But Subaru lacked the legs, the arms, and the mouth with which to do so  \"I knew that...at the least, you weren't That Person...but...\" With all expression vanished, Beatrice seemed delirious, teardrops continuing to fall as she murmured. Apparently the sight was so painful that it convinced Ram to abandon pressing Beatrice any further. She simply let out a quiet sigh, turning scornful eyes toward Subaru and murmured softly as she took in his spectacular demise. \"What 'love.'  Truly, this is a helpless tale.\" 10 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 11 The atmosphere was dyed white. The world was ruled by such cold it seemed as if the very nighttime sky might freeze. As the wind blew, frozen trees cracked and broke apart, returning to dust as the mana required for maintaining the forest's existence was sucked from it. The trees, the buildings, the living creatures, the world itself were slowly vanishing into that white end. *** The next scene Subaru laid eyes upon was the end of the world itself. Enveloped by cold, compassionate destruction, the world progressively sank toward its end as if falling asleep. But  \" So...you have come.\" That low voice made the very air rumble as his acknowledgment echoed with a roar. The next moment, the ground shook like an earthquake had struck as a gargantuan impact raced through the ground and altered the landscape in the blink of an eye. Raging winds mowed down the trees, their fallen trunks collapsing as if they were pillars of snow, and an entire section of forest was transformed into a snowy plain. The frozen"}, {"text": "forest was leveled until there was only flat soil, and the cause of this destruction was a four-legged beast, with long gray fur suggesting the creature was some kind of feline, with a body size so great, he actually had to look up at it. However, the fangs set in the giant beast's maw had been snapped and broken, and its repeated, heavy breaths carried a heavy air of fatigue. However, it glared straight in front of it with the eyes of brilliant gold, the only part that still retained tremendous vigor. \"How unfortunate... Even knowing it would come to this, I cannot alter the result?\" \" I have a general grasp of what must have happened... The pity is all the greater.\" As the great beast's voice seemed to lament aloud, a serene, beautiful voice replied, unhesitant even amid the blowing snow. It was but one corner of an ending world, yet the voice was in no way lacking in vitality. The speaker's tall frame stood with a straight posture, a youth whose burning-red hair swayed in the white wind. The youth stared at the beast with eyes that evoked a clear blue sky, faint sadness dwelling in that gaze. \"Neither Lady Emilia nor Subaru are anywhere to be seen.\" \"Ria sleeps for eternity. A world without that girl is a world I do not want to exist. Thus, in accordance with the pact, I will make this a world of frozen soil. I and that man share this crime \" \"So that is your reason for trying to destroy this world?\" \"I knew you would try to prevent it. But if I do not do this, that girl cannot be saved.\" When the beast made that ferociously growling reply, the youth shook his head a little, grasping the hilt of the sword on his hip. Its white scabbard bore claw marks engraved into it, proof this was the legendary sword left behind by the Dragon long ago the Dragon Sword. In that world, there was but a single person who could draw, who could wield the dazzling, gleaming Dragon Sword. The Sword Saint, Reinhard von Astrea, raised the Dragon Sword, boldly training it toward the enormous beast. \"I understand your regrets. I feel the same way. However, I cannot allow you to blindly lash out because of those feelings. Your vow wounds the world itself.  That is something I absolutely cannot forgive.\" \"Because it is not just?\" \"Yes, because it is not just.  Justice is my standard. My sword...exists to right wrongs. For that reason, I shall cut you down here and now, O Great Spirit.\" There was an overwhelming difference of mass between the great beast and the youth between Puck and Reinhard. In spite of this, even Subaru knew from a single glance, which possessed the greater combat strength between them. Even Puck with his true power unleashed could not cause the serenity of Reinhard's face to falter. With a single slash from the Dragon Sword, the Sword Saint could sever even this spirit in half. The sheer immensity of the swordsman's spirit gushing into the surrounding area made that loud and clear. \"If you do not move, I solemnly promise you will not suffer.\" \"That I cannot do. I will struggle for the sake of my vow until my life expires...for as long as I live.\" The Dragon Sword audibly vibrated, letting up a terrifying aura that seemed to make the frozen air crack and cry out for mercy. Before that overwhelming power, the fallen, enormous beast stood up on its front legs, forcing its body up onto its paws, baring its fangs. Together, they both adopted a stance to land a single blow, one final duel, the result of which was already clear  \"I must prevent you from inflicting any further damage. If you must hate someone, hate me.\" \"I do not resent you, Reinhard. You...you are a hero. A hero has only the role of a hero to play. I neither blame nor resent you for resigning yourself to that fact.\" *** \"You are a hero, Reinhard.  And a hero is all you can be.\" It was only in those words, at the very, very end, that there was pure malice disconnected from anger or regrets. The next instant, Reinhard raised the Dragon Blade above his head, and there was a single flash of light the sky split, cracks running through the very air; the ground crumbled; mana swirled in a vortex; and along the arc of his slash, the world...slid. *** The moment after that cascading slash settled down, the white, cold air covering the world...recovered. The slide in the world was repaired, the parts that had become a swirling vortex of mana reverted to their proper forms, flowers budded forth from the shattered ground, and peace spread through the cracked air. From the sky, dazzling sunrays poured down. The slash of the Sword Saint had both ended the world and simultaneously brought about its re-creation  And the enormous beast that had been bathed in that slash had been annihilated from the world without a trace. There were not even side effects of destruction to be seen; that a battle had even taken place seemed like nothing but a dream.  With a rasping sound, Reinhard sheathed the Dragon Sword within its white scabbard once more. As the passing breeze rustled through his red hair, Reinhard narrowed his eyes at the sunlight and lifted his face to the sky. His lips faintly stiffened, and as he exhaled, he whispered too faintly for any to hear  \" Lady Felt shall surely...be sad.\" The Sword Saint closed his eyes with a final whisper. 12 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 13 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 14 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 15 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 16 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 17 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 18 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 19 \" Behold the unknowable present.\" 20  He beheld the unknowable presents. Shown one finished world after the next, Subaru could do nothing but lie flat upon the floor. He did not know at that moment where he was. Was he in reality? Was he within the dream? Was he consciousness alone? Did he have a body? Having repeated those nightmares... Was it right to even call them nightmares? Or was this his crime, the reality he had to accept? Were they mere hallucinations of possibilities? Or had he truly seen a Hell beyond Hell itself? Or maybe convenient worlds had been created from Subaru's memories once again? Then how had information from after Subaru's death, which Subaru clearly did not know, trickled into them? Were they really false worlds borne from delusions? Or was his reality being consumed by a different reality? No matter what the answer might be, Subaru had taken a tremendous blow to his psyche enough that he was unable to face it head-on, to stand, to even lift his head. That was why  \" Goodness, can you even stand anymore? Subaru.\" He heard someone standing beside him, someone gently trying to rescue his battered mind. It felt like a lovely voice, one that belonged to someone precious to him. \" Ah.\" Subaru's cheek felt a hot teardrop, one that should never have flowed, trickling down his cheek.  How long had it been since he had heard that voice ring in his ears? In terms of actual days, the time that she had been asleep was not truly so great. At most, it had been a week's time since acquaintances and family had laid eyes upon her face.  And yet, it did not seem that way to Subaru. It felt like they had parted eons ago. To Subaru, who had gone back at the cost of his life over and over, the actual passage of time held no meaning. What was important was the moments experienced by his soul. And it had truly been a great deal of time since his soul had heard her voice. \"Subaru, are you all right?\" The voice whispered lovingly, consolingly, compassionately. The familial love, the passion with which her call was infused, quickly quenched Subaru's parched heart. The vessel of his heart, empty and surely sinking into the void, became filled with warmth. All it had taken was a single sentence just how much strength did she grant him? \" It's a lie.\" \"No, it is not a lie.\" \"You can't be here.\" \"If you want me to be, I will always be at your side, Subaru.\" \"As if, just when I most think, I want someone to do something, anything...as if you'd always be there for me... Things aren't convenient like...!\" \"Because I am always thinking, I want to be the most convenient woman of all for Subaru.\" With a sobbing voice and unsightly, weak sounds, he fell to pieces. And yet, even with his hollowness laid bare, that voice would never look down on Subaru, never lose faith in him. Because she knew. She knew that Subaru was weak, helpless; so fragile and lacking in confidence that he had to cling to something just to get by; someone who continued to hesitate. For she was the girl who knew Subaru was not strong yet had said to him anyway, \"I love you.\" \" Rem.\" \"Yes. I am Subaru's Rem.\" He lifted his face. In his tear-blurred vision, the color blue filtered in. Violently rubbing his eyes with his dirty sleeve, wiping away his tears, Subaru saw perfectly clearly. He saw, standing before his eyes the sight of Rem that he had yearned for so desperately. \"Remmm...\" \"Yes, I am Rem. Subaru's personal, dutiful, all-purpose maid.\" \"Why, you...\" With a little tilt of her head, Rem's playful manner blindsided Subaru. Faced with such behavior from her, before Subaru could say anything, he felt something heavy fall out from inside his chest. His breathing eased, and the pessimistic voice inside of him vanished. Subaru was dumbfounded at how easily so easily indeed he had been saved. His mind, battered and broken down, thinking that he was at a dead end, had been freed of its bonds with such ease from nothing more than one girl's smile. \"Rem, you're incredible...\" \"Thank you very much. You are wonderful too, Subaru.\" With that smiling reply, the way she spoke out of sync was so familiar that it was if she was perfectly in tune, just like always. That nostalgic exchange left Subaru near tears, seemingly unable to hold them back no matter how hard he tried. Still lying flat on the floor, Subaru's cheeks twitched as Rem knelt before him. \"Are you all right? Are you tired?\" \"I wonder...am I tired...? Even though...I still haven't...accomplished anything yet...\" He had accomplished nothing. He had done nothing. He had no right to say he was tired. Everyone was suffering more. Everyone was going through more agony. Why did everyone have to suffer like that?  The answer was clear. \"It's because I'm weak.\" *** \"Because I don't have enough strength.\" *** \"If I was stronger, if I was wiser, if I was a man who could do more...no one would have to suffer, to be sad, to go through hard times like that...\" It would have been so much better if Subaru had been strong enough to do everything, all of it, alone. Emilia's sadness, Beatrice's loneliness, the calamity befalling Petra and Frederica, the menace of the Great Rabbit, Garfiel, who was desperately protecting something... He should have been able to do...something. Everything, all of it, every last bit of it was Subaru's fault. That was why, to balance out his weakness, Subaru had to pay by shaving away his life.  That was what he'd thought, and yet... \"Have I saved...anyone...?\" \"Subaru.\" \"If those worlds continued after my death, how many times I have I abandoned everyone to die?\" \"Subaru.\" \"How many times...did I make you die? How many times...do I have to kill you?\" With rapid words, with fear from the depths of his body making him tremble, Subaru confessed his crimes. He wanted to vent it all,"}, {"text": "to lay everything bare that very moment. Before he whittled away his mind, he wanted someone at his side someone qualified to do so to pass judgment on his crime. Deciding in his heart, no more mistakes he'd marched off on his path mistaken from the very first step. He wanted that great and foolish bastard, that fool beyond redemption, to get a walloping. \" Subaru.\" \" Ah.\"  And yet, Subaru, seeking punishment, was granted a gentle embrace of forgiveness. \"Re...m.\" \"It's all right. It's all right, Subaru.\" \"What is...? What's all right...? No way, it's...!\" Subaru had accomplished nothing. Not one single thing. There were many people who could not be saved unless Subaru saved them. There were many with terrible ends awaiting them. Even Rem was someone Subaru had to save. It was she who had the right to blame Subaru Natsuki that insufficient, weak fool for falling short. \"You're...you should be...!\" \" I love you.\" Touching their foreheads together, she simply whispered her love. *** It sealed his words away. He could say...nothing. From very close, those light blue eyes, those eyes filled with benevolent love, seemed to be trying to drown Subaru in kindness. \"I love you, Subaru.  That's why everything is all right.\" \"That's not...an answer...\" \"Yes, it is. Why is Rem here? Why does Rem forgive Subaru? Why does Rem embrace Subaru?  It is the answer to everything.\" With firm arms, the charmingly smiling Rem held Subaru tight, close enough to feel her breath. He could not move. He could not even twitch. Rem's arms were strong, so strong that he could do nothing. \"You've had a really hard time, huh, Subaru?\" *** \"For one person to be hurt this much...it must have been hard, Subaru.\" *** \"It's all right. You don't need to go through only sad things anymore.\" Desperately working to hold out, Subaru was unable to reply as the sweet sound of Rem's voice continued, as if trying to gently unravel the chains around Subaru's heart, to dissolve the hardened emotions within. \"Rem will take the place of all Subaru's feelings.\" *** \"There is no reason anywhere for you to bear anything and everything on your shoulders, Subaru.  Leave all of them to Rem. Rest well now. It is all right to sleep. And then...\" *** \"Show Rem the Subaru she loves so much one more time.\" Placing a hand on Subaru's forehead, Rem peered right into his black eyes from up close. There was a momentary hesitation, and then Rem's face slowly drew closer. Even Subaru's sluggish consciousness could understand what she was trying to do. He wondered if it would be right to let her do it, to let her fasten him, laden him, for him to drown, to dissolve, to sink...  Whether it was right or wrong, Rem would forgive it, wouldn't she? His emotions were frayed, his confused soul wanted someone to reach out to him, and in that moment, Rem, who understood everything about Subaru, was saving him once more. To Subaru the powerless, Subaru the fragile, Subaru the foolish, Rem was lending her strength. If by indulging in that, clinging to that, nestling against that, he arrived at the correct answer, then... He'd been worn away, no longer knowing which path to walk, not even knowing which way to turn. So he'd yield; he'd give up on anything and everything  \"It is easy to give up.\" \"However...\" \" It does not suit you, Subaru.\" He heard a voice. \" Subaru?\" He heard Rem's coming from the front, seemingly questioning him. In addition, her face, presumably on the verge of closing the gap between their lips so that they might touch, was being obstructed by Subaru's hand. Gazing at the flicker in her wavering, light blue eyes between the gaps of his fingers, Subaru spoke. \" Who are you?\" \"...Eh?\" \"I'm asking you, who are you?\" \"S-Subaru, what are...? Who, that's just...\" When Subaru asked that in a low voice, Rem shook her head defensively, seemingly out of fear. The hurt look that had floated into her eyes thickened, and she clutched at Subaru's chest with a pained expression. As if to twist that pain deeper, Subaru put a hand to his own chest, baring his fangs. With a fleeting encounter that should never have been, rescue that should never have been granted, the entirety of Subaru Natsuki's soul was  \"If ever I...got in a jam I couldn't get out of, if I seriously wanted someone to do something, anything for me, when I wanted to give up... From the bottom of my heart, I thought that you would be there for me.\" *** \"I figured, when I was in a dead end like this, when I kept on hugging my knees worrying about the past, I thought, you'd cuddle up and be nice to me.\" *** \"And then you'd listen to me talking weak, make me spit out my tearful words, wring out every tear and everything else out of me till I run dry...\" *** \" And then you'd say stand up.\" Under that clear blue sky, those were the words she had spoken to Subaru Natsuki, who had been crushed by despair. With his entire body and soul, Subaru remembered how slender her fingers were, how warm her skin was when she nestled close, and also the enormity of the love she had granted him. That was why he could say, firmly, that the Rem before his eyes was a fake. \"She'd never tell me rest well now.\" *** \"She'd never tell me to give up and leave all those things to Rem.\" *** \"Because by liking me, she made me like myself, because she's gentle to me, because she loves me in this world, there's no one stricter, no one who's less soft on me than Rem!!\" Seemingly bouncing to his feet, Subaru howled, putting distance between him and the Rem in front of him. Still on her knees, Rem looked up at Subaru, speechless. But her expression was filled with sadness at Subaru's rejection of her, seemingly ready to split apart at any moment. \"You are wrong. Please listen to me, Subaru! Rem Rem is different. Rem just couldn't watch Subaru in pain like that and wanted to help him... That is all!!\" \"I'll show you my weakness. I'll show you my vulnerabilities. I'll even show you how I'm a petty, irredeemable bastard.  But the one thing I won't show you is me giving up.\" Rem had once said...Subaru was her hero. And Subaru Natsuki had decided to be Rem's hero. Ever since the moment that promise was exchanged, Subaru Natsuki had decided.  In that world, Subaru Natsuki would show his weakness to Rem alone. Only before Rem, who knew Subaru was weak and yet believed he would overcome that and be strong, would Subaru display his weakness, concealing nothing. He would not show that to anyone else, not even to Emilia, not even to Beatrice. Subaru, who had to be strong, could not show his weakness to anyone save Rem. \"That's because my weakness belongs to her. It's because my Rem has my weakness covered up so tight that even if I might flirt with giving up, it never comes out.\" *** \"Get lost, fake.  Don't get sweet on me with the face, with the voice of my Rem!!\" Declaring this, Subaru thrust a fist out toward Rem toward the fake. Subaru's statement left the other party at a loss for words. She proceeded to lower her face, slowly, silently standing up then and there  \"Th-this isn't...how it was...supposed to be?\" Tilting her little head, the girl's blue hair swayed as she haltingly wove together the words. The unfamiliar voice made Subaru's breath catch when... \"Ah...?\" ...before his eyes something occurred, like a television breaking into static in the dead of night. Off in the static, Rem's form grew vague and melted away.  Standing there was a girl he did not know. 21 What greatly resembled Rem in appearance alone vanished, and the face of an unfamiliar girl appeared in its stead. The girl had long light pink hair and somehow gave off a fragile impression. Her face was very refined, but rather than standout beauty, what she possessed was an uncommonly adorable appearance. A muffler was wrapped around her neck, long enough that its end seemed to touch the ground, matching the white clothing with sleeves long enough to cover her up to the wrists; from this, he inferred that she was highly averse to exposing of her skin. In fact, Subaru's gaze made her lower her face, as if she was fearful of the eyes of men. \"Who...the heck are you?\" \"I'm C-Carmilla...? Th-the Witch of Lust... P-pleased to meet...you.\" The reply the girl Carmilla gave to his question made Subaru unwittingly suck in his breath. Not that the absurd phenomenon hadn't made him think it, but  \"This nonsensical space...it's Echidna's dream?\" \"Close but...incorrect...I think. Echidna is watching the Trial, so...the Trial is always like a dream, so......yeah.\" *** Carmilla had politely confirmed his speculation, but the gaze with which Subaru regarded her was harsh. Of course it was. She had done something beyond the pale. Shying from the stern gaze, Carmilla pleaded in worry. \"S-stop... Don't hit me...\" \"I won't. I won't, but...what were you tryin' to pull back there?\" \"Back...there?\" \"Standing in front of me looking like Rem! Is that your power?!\" With Carmilla, this was the fifth encounter he'd had with the Witches bearing the titles of the deadly sins. Based on each Witch bearing some off-the-wall Authority, he could guess that the earlier transformation could be counted among them. However  \"Impersonating other people, that's pretty simple stuff compared to the other Witches.\" \"I I did not t-transform...? Wh-when someone else sees me, th-that...... It it is because you looked at me?\" \"What?\" \"I I didn't...want to do this, but Echidna......sh-she lied to me...\" As Carmilla murmured in a broken manner, Subaru realized just what was ticking him off about her. The way she spoke, how her gaze wandered, the frailty with which she lowered her eyes as she looked back at him... All of it rubbed him the wrong way. What was she pulling with the clumsy words and the pouty demeanor? \"Did you...did you realize what you were doing to me...?\" \"Echidna...said it was all right to pamper you, but...d-don't...\" \" !! Listen to me!!\" \"Th-this is why everyone...b-bullies me... That's that's right. Echidna did it, too. Making me do this terrible...so terrible...\" \"Didn't you get it the first time when I said to listen ?!!\" Anger dyed his vision. He wanted to make the woman before him pay. The fury filling his chest was roasting him. His angry voice was raspy, his lungs hot. He was fed up. Subaru wanted to shut up by force the squeamish, squirmy mouth continuing to spout those tearful words, to pound the anger he harbored into her, to make her understand what she had done  \" Any more, and your life will be in peril.\" *** That instant, that voice, seemingly whispering into his ear, brought him back to sanity. \"Gagh...?\" Instantly, he was assaulted by the anguish of lack of oxygen from a prolonged lack of air and the ferocious pain of his heart seemingly remembering how to beat and make his blood flow once more. \"Eha, ngh... Gogh, haagh...!\" \"Rough treatment, but at least it has brought you back.  Carmilla's Faceless Bride makes its victims forget how to breathe. By the end, their hearts forget how to beat as well.\" As the difficulty in breathing caused Subaru to writhe and cough, his thought process blinked white and red. The serene voice making his eardrums tremble seemed to soothe his nerves, making his breathing and heartbeat gradually calm down. Had the voice saved him? Even if it did, should he just politely accept that? With that thought, Subaru, now on all fours, lifted his face. He glared straight ahead at the face of the individual sitting there, the very one who had engendered that situation. \"What the hell were"}, {"text": "you scheming Echidna?\" Seeing that hate-imbued gaze, the white-haired Witch calmly stroked her own hair. Sitting in a white chair at a white table on a field of grass, she laid her cheek against her palm with a charming, suggestive smile as she said, \"Isn't it obvious? Wicked deeds.  I am a Witch, you know.\" Echidna winked as she spoke. CHAPTER 6 *** 1 As Subaru writhed, his breathing painful, he realized that at some point the scenery had shifted to a grassy plain. His nostrils were filled with the thick scent of grass coming from the ground where he squatted. Like just after a rainfall, the sun poured down from above; Subaru's entire body was enveloped by natural aromas, the scents almost chokingly cloying. Atop that green hill, Echidna waited in her natural state of being, preparations for the tea party already complete. In her natural state, just like usual.  Just like usual. \"I am guessing you have various things you wish to say, things you wish to ask me...but first how about we begin with you sitting and having a cup of tea?\" \"...Do you really think I can just shrug off what you did to me just now and sit over there?\" \"I do. You are capable of putting calculated rationality first, as opposed to allowing anger to throw your opportunity to waste. You would rather speak with me than push me away... This is the internal decision you have already made, yes?\" *** From above, like an adult easily seeing through the schemes of children, Echidna easily struck the mark resting in Subaru's chest, using that confident demeanor to make him submit. Her assertion was correct. But he was not such a doormat to just listen and take it with good grace. \"Echidna...if that wasn't your real intention, say so.\" \"Mm?\" \"From earlier...if that was Lust doing her own thing, not what you actually intended her to do, say it. Say you're sorry. If you do that, I won't find fault with you.\" He presented his case to Echidna. To go any further, Subaru required her intellect, her cooperation. Even so, he could not forgive the unforgivable. After all, the fact remained that Echidna had used Carmilla to trample on an inviolable Sanctuary of Subaru's own. Hence, it was necessary, both for the sake of forgiving Echidna and to bring himself to sit at her tea party. \"...I wonder how to best put this...\" And in that single instant, she no doubt fully comprehended the weakness and conflict inside Subaru's heart. Echidna let a faint exhale trickle out, and as Subaru awaited her reply, she narrowed her black eyes and said, \"It is as you said. That was all Carmilla running amok. I tried to stop her, but she refused to listen to me. She used the Trial as an excuse to begin a stage play in an attempt to ensnare you.\" *** \"Though I must say, you escaped that perilous juncture under your own power. And using the opening from Carmilla failing to ensnare you, I seized back the initiative, narrowly resulting in this reunion with you.\" *** \"...Now that I have said all this, are you satisfied?\" Having laid out, in a rush of words, the reply Subaru desired, Echidna undermined it all with that final sentence. When that reply made Subaru bite his lip, Echidna's shoulders sank with visible exasperation. She proceeded to bring a cup resting on the table to her lips as she continued. \"I'm sure you understand. I directed Carmilla to head to you and disguise herself as the woman who rests in your heart. Though you seeing through it because of insufficient resemblance is her fault.\" \"...Why do something like that?\" \" Because it was the method that was likely the most effective, carrying the greatest possibility of working.\" As Subaru's expression evaporated, Echidna continued her words without the slightest hint of guilt. \"To be honest, your being pulled into the second Trial was unexpected, even for me. You may take this as a confession that the Trial thrusting that deeply into you was beyond my imagination.\" *** \"Oh, please close your eyes where my peering into the Trial is concerned. I said this after the first Trial, but these Trials are of my own design. It will be awkward if you were to complain.\" \"...Go on.\" \"As thou wish. At any rate, while watching you from the sidelines during the Trial, I had this thought.  If I just left you like that, the Trial would wear your heart down to nothing.\" Echidna's prognosis was no exaggeration. Indeed, there was little doubt that's how things would have ended. Subaru was not so unable to gaze beneath his own feet as to blindly deny it. In the second Trial he'd seen a number of Hells. They had thoroughly deprived him of any bluffs, stubbornness, or misunderstanding he could use to shield himself. \"Therefore, I interfered. I did so because I saw the possibility of the Trial breaking you, making you give up on the future.\" \"But that's weird. It's a contradiction. I know you said you're not hung up on the Trial's results. You said it yourself: You're someone who wants to know everything in the world, greed for knowledge incarnate. It was like that for the first Trial. If someone's gonna fail, that failure is still one of the results you want to know.\" \"It is not inconsistent at all. Certainly, your mind breaking would constitute one result.  However, I am not such a heartless woman that I have no regrets regardless of the result.\" \"What...?\" When Subaru pressed the point, Echidna lowered the tone of her voice as she replied. For the first time in that conversation, the echo of her words made him knit his brows for a reason besides anger. He was groping for the true intent behind Echidna's remark from just then. If he was to take her words at face value, then  \"You're saying you did that to...stop me from being broken down as a result?\" \"...I have no excuse for having wounded your heart. Therefore, your anger is just. I will accept your disparagements with grace. You are correct. I was mistaken. That is all.\" Averting her gaze, Echidna entwined her white hair around a finger as she spun her reply. Subaru drew in his breath at her demeanor and voice, which somehow came off as acting...stubborn. And then the anger he had harbored for the Witch in his mind until a moment before seemed so shallow and misplaced. In point of fact, without Echidna's aid though he hesitated to use that term for an impersonation of Rem Subaru's mind would have no doubt shattered and carried away by the winds. Surely, once his mind was ruined, he would completely lose all means with which to resist and become unable to fight. Echidna had prevented that beforehand.  He could not convey gratitude toward her. However, this was not behavior that warranted being showered in vitriol and insults. This would serve as their common ground. \"...Let me say just one thing.\" \" Ah.\" Standing up, Subaru went over and took a seat at the tea party atop the hill. Seeing this, Echidna let a tiny breath trickle out, and from the very slight slackening of the corners of her eyes, he knew. Relief was the water that had washed a little of the worry off her face. Therefore, Subaru glared at the Witch's face and spoke. \"I won't drink any Dona Tea.  But I'll take you up on a conversation.\" 2 \"I understand what it is you most wish to know. Shall I explain about the Trial, then?\" With Subaru having sat down for the tea party, Echidna proposed a topic, seemingly to demonstrate her sincerity to him. He had no objections to the contents. When Subaru nodded in assent, Echidna gently lifted up a finger. \"Just like the first Trial, the second Trial is, to put it bluntly, a construct. Those worlds are reproduced from your memories, gathering together various conditions that exist within your memory, and from information about past, present, and future, a fictitious 'now' is created, nothing more.\" \"In other words, those were...\" \"However well fashioned, they were not reality. Their cohesiveness ran far ahead of my expectations, but those worlds are 'constructs' nonetheless. It does not mean that, in fact, such worlds exist.\" \"Then!\" \"However \"When Subaru tried to see hope in her explanation, Echidna's logical gaze immediately obstructed that glimmer just coming into view, sealing off Subaru's path of escape. As Subaru choked on his words, Echidna closed one eye and said, \"Your Return by Death is a Witch's Authority. Only she knows the principles by which it functions. As for whether your death triggers the rewinding of time, or shifts to a parallel world the existence of which I find doubtful or if 'you' overwrite a 'you' that exists in that world, I can only say there are nothing but possibilities. The facts are unknown.\" \"Parallel worlds...\" Echidna had deduced that parallel worlds might exist so-called parallel world theory. By that way of thinking, when people in the world acted and made a choice, a reality branched off with each possibility, leading to countless planes of existence. It was this very possibility of which Subaru, he who Returned by Death, was most afraid. \"Isn't there...isn't there any way to...to make sure?\" \" There is not.\" \"Ah...\" As Subaru clung to hope, Echidna cut him off with that heartless assertion. The Witch's assertion slammed into Subaru, leaving him speechless, powerlessly sinking into his chair. Gazing at Subaru's state with a pained look, Echidna tapped the table with her fingers. \"All that worries you, only the Witch of Jealousy knows.  I am exceptionally upset that I cannot relieve you of this pain here and now.\" In a form that differed from consoling, Echidna spoke with Subaru in a way that seemed to bring her closer to his heart. If this was her being considerate, he was probably grateful enough to burst into tears. But at that moment, it was no salvation to Subaru.  Even Echidna, one of the Witches of the Deadly Sins, could not expunge the crimes Subaru had created. He'd hoped for a firm denial. A denial that the worlds Subaru had seen after his death did not exist. If that was no good, he'd hoped for an assertion. An assertion saying, Your conceit has come at the cost of numerous sacrifices. With either reply, Subaru could fight. The reply would surely chastise him, drive the truth home so that he might never forget, and he would grit his teeth, tears of blood would flow, and his very soul would wail as he stepped forward. \"But in spite of that, there's not even...an answer...?\" With neither assent nor rejection, with the worlds dangling in the sky above, how could he resist? Not even knowing whether he was the one doing the violating or the one being violated, he couldn't even cast aside the feeling of being discarded. Was it Subaru's punishment that he could not even acknowledge his crime? No one could pass judgment on Subaru. No one could blame him. He understood that.  But was even Subaru himself prevented from doing so? \"I think it is a terrible thing. But I also think there is no choice save to break with the past.\" \"...Break with the past?\" With sluggish movements, Subaru lifted his head and turned his face toward Echidna. Nodding toward his gaze, she adopted the most serious look she had to date as she said, \"Certainly, the choices you have made to date might well have come with many casualties. What you may have left behind, what cannot be undone, is surely incalculable. But to simply count the things you have lost and to be a prisoner to them is very hollow indeed. Don't you think so?\" \"Cut with the simple psychological arguments, would you? Gotta say, are my experiences something a little counseling is"}, {"text": "gonna solve?\" He didn't need consolation. Echidna's words were comfortable to the ears, but they were only to set him at ease. If Subaru was a better human being, those words making his wounds shallower, making the crime he had committed lighter, might have had the greatest effect of all.  But he couldn't let himself think that way. \"If those worlds really do exist, there's absolutely no way to make up for what I've done. That can't be refuted not by you, not by me. I absolutely can't be forgiven. It's not something that should be forgiven.\" *** \"If I do X, I can forgive myself... How can I accept embracing something like that? Even though I rejected your helping hand...the hand of that fake Rem...\" Pausing to breathe, Subaru's face twisted and crumpled as he put the possibility he feared most into words. \" If I get Rem back someday, is she really going to be the Rem I wanted to save?\" He'd left countless worlds behind. Among them, Subaru had left behind many people whom he had saved and many people who had saved him. Among them were the Emilia he first met in the royal capital, the Rem who told him he was her hero, the Beatrice who supported him when his mind had been worn away, the Ram who had fought alongside him for Rem's sake; he had so many memories of the days he had spent together with them, and those memories, and the people who had woven them, were fading away. Even though this was so, even though a nigh-unendurable sense of loss was being pounded into him... \"Even so...you're telling me to break with the past?\" *** \"...You're telling me, instead of counting the people I couldn't save, live for the people I have saved... ?\" The words Echidna had offered Subaru out of consideration should have constituted hope. If he could rely on them, cling to them, walk with them as his foundation, how much better would it be? But he could not. It was not possible. After all, Subaru's anguish was nothing that shallow  \"With that plain old psychological argument, you're telling me...to resist...?!\" \" I am.\" *** \"That is what I am saying to you.\" When Subaru dismissed the consoling words, his voice rising to the edge of despair, Echidna spoke. Slowly, so that he might fully digest it, Echidna looked straight at Subaru as the words came out. \"Rather than count the many you might not have saved, you should count the many that you have. That is what you did as you walked the path that brought you this far. I have seen it.\" \"What do...you know about me...?\" \"This is my dream, and I am the Witch of Greed. I know that in your own fashion, you have lived with all your strength, survived with all your spirit. That is why I say it. That is why I must.\" *** \"You have not taken a single futile step on the path you have walked to this day. No one has the right to say the whole of your spirit was not good enough. You did everything you were capable of, putting your life on the line, and even this very instant, you walk forward.  That is something you should take pride in.\" Echidna's sincere-sounding words pounded into Subaru's empty chest. Something powerful resounded in the hollow space therein.  But it was not enough. He could not stand back up from such words alone. Even though she told him to take pride, the fact remained that Subaru let many things slip out of his grasp. He ought to have been able to manage. Someone not Subaru, operating under the same conditions, would have surely pulled it off. Yet despite this, because it was Subaru who was there, many had gone unsaved. That was Subaru's crime. That was Subaru's sin. It was a sin Subaru had to acknowledge and pay for. \"No one can forgive me.\" \"I do. Knowing these things, I forgive you.\" \"No one can judge me.\" \"I do. Knowing your crimes, I judge you.\" \" No one can approve of me.\" \"If I cannot approve of you, then I shall reject the you that cannot forgive yourself.\" *** \"If you accept your crimes, then I reject your crimes.\" As Subaru spoke various words, Echidna persisted, brushing them aside. Why was the Witch this strong, strong enough to cast aside Subaru's crimes? Why was the Witch so heavy she could bolster Subaru's broken heart? \"Why are you...trying to do all this for someone like me?\" \"...Is it not a bit too mean to make a girl's mouth speak such words?\" It was then that Echidna, who had not hesitated in her words a single time up to that point, began to prevaricate. And with the Witch's face still faintly red, she consciously cleared her throat before continuing. \" Would you form a pact with me, Subaru Natsuki?\" Her voice was quiet, but it made him sense a powerful will. The words made Subaru blink his eyes. It required several seconds of time before he understood them correctly. \"Pa...ct...?\" \"We were speaking about something just before you left the last time around, yes? I was referring to this.\" To Subaru, having a hard time following her words, Echidna flashed a very slight smile as she spoke. The words made him go back in his memories to the time just before a series of upheavals, and he remembered that such an exchange had indeed taken place. Certainly, at the end of the previous tea party, Echidna had said it.  That should there be a third tea party, there were things she wished to speak to Subaru about. \"By pact I mean a formal pact with the Witch of Greed.  Would you do this and form a bond between you and I?\" \"Exchange a... What does that mean?\" \"It is a simple matter.  Hereafter, when you slam into a wall that you can do nothing to overcome, you and I shall inspect that wall together. When you desire to hear someone's words, when you desire to convey words to someone, I shall make every effort. When you are ever on the verge of being crushed by your crimes, I shall bear them upon my shoulders.\" Pausing her words, a bashful-looking smile came over Echidna. \"Would you not exchange such a pact with me?\" \"...Wasn't the story since you're already dead, you can't interfere in the real world?\" \"I suppose I am exceeding the remit of the dead. But we have already come this far, so I think there is no harm in it now.  If you will permit this, then...\" When Echidna put a hand to his chest, lowering her face, her voice made Subaru's eardrums tremble. The trembling spread within his body, progressively becoming tinged with heat, which together with the circulation of his blood traveled across the whole of his body. Sensation returned to his numbed limbs. A strange heat was surging into the tip of his dry tongue and the back of his eyes. He was at a loss at how to respond to the hand, the request, the proposal offered to him by the Witch. He had vowed to continue to struggle. When he was on the verge of losing sight of what that meant, it was she Echidna the Witch who had bolstered his fracturing will. \"Oh yes, not to brag, but I have confidence in the extent of my knowledge. I should be able to provide plans to deal with the majority of problems you face, and no matter what preposterous difficulties may befall you, unlike the other people around you, no explanation will be necessary. After all, Return by Death is something shared between us.\" \"...The hell? Don't tell me, you're giving me a sales pitch for forming a pact?\" \"I thought that raising the merits of forming a pact with me is a natural attitude for the proposing party to take. I am gambling that this may tilt your heart toward forming a pact even a tiny little bit. Calculations, you see. Calculations.\" The aura of mystique she maintained until a moment before vanished as the Witch turned a smug face toward Subaru. That such a witch could appear so intimate made Subaru unwittingly slacken his cheeks. Listlessly taken aback, short of breath \"Yeah,\" went Subaru, his voice trickling out. Giving his body over to the grassland breeze, he slumped back in his seat as he gazed up, narrowing his eyes at the white clouds in that constructed blue sky, and as he gazed at that relaxed scenery, Subaru breathed easier. When he hit a dead end, when he no longer saw an answer, when the time came to confront his troubles...  If he could meet and exchange words under a blue sky like that, then... \"Maybe that's a good thing...\" \" Meaning?\" Spontaneously, or at least acting as such, Echidna knocked her chair back, leaning forward as she peered intensely at Subaru. When his eyes bulged at her excessive reaction, the Witch's cheeks reddened a bit as she replied. \"Ah, er...yes. If you strenuously insist, I would be willing to form such a pact with...\" \"Bit late to smooth that over now. Wait, I'm not the one asking, you... No, that's wrong. In any case, it's pretty cheap to talk about who went first.\" Echidna had done the proposing, but this was ultimately to save Subaru's mind. If he had to put it bluntly, this was the Witch's kindness. She was engaging in such clumsy theater for no reason save consideration for Subaru's mental state. He was incredibly weak. If Subaru Natsuki was unable to stand alone, then with someone's aid, he might... *** Sitting up from his slumped position, he rode the momentum to rise to his feet. Echidna, standing at handshake distance, lifted her gaze due to the minor height difference, a faint hint of worry on her face. The Witch was crafty with every expression.  Though that had been his salvation. \"So how do you form one of these pact things anyway?\" \" To form a formal pact, a bond must be tied between your soul and mine. The fine details are handled on my end...but at any rate, let us begin by joining hands.\" Echidna lifted her right hand, turning its white palm toward Subaru. She most likely meant for him to place his palm upon hers. Straight in front of him, Subaru saw the subtle but undisguised grin of delight on the Witch's lips, audibly exhaling as he felt like all the poison was being drained from the air. \"If with this, it'll make things turn a bit for the better, then...\" Yes, he moved to place his own palm upon Echidna's, with no small amount of hope for the future imbued within   Impact. An earsplitting sound echoed. From out of nowhere, the white table was blown into the air. The blow that smashed the table apart was continued traveling straight into the hill, causing the grassland to spectacularly cave in. The ground shook ferociously with an earthquake-like roar and shuddered, throwing Subaru onto his backside. And there stood  \" I'm putting that pact on hold.\" Smashing her fist into the ground, the blond, blue-eyed girl made that declaration with an imposing air. The Witch of Wrath was glaring at the pair, her eyes filled with powerful anger. 3 Squatting on the impact-flattened ground, Subaru squinted up at the bearer of that angry gaze. With bottomless anger in her blue eyes, the beautiful face of the Witch Minerva had a crimson hue. It was not toward the frozen stiff Subaru but to Echidna, standing at his side, to whom she turned a grave look as she said, \"I repeat, I am putting this pact on hold. I do not approve of this pact.\" \"...Hmm. To me, this is quite an unexpected development.\" The way she spoke held familiarity as well as enmity, displaying an attitude far too bloodthirsty to"}, {"text": "be called friendly. As she trained that toward Echidna, Minerva stood at the center of the crater, crossing the arms with which she had used to make the mighty deformation, making her bountiful breasts bounce as she bit her lip. \"This is the occasion of a pact and a Witch's pact at that. Even you are surely not incapable of understanding what an important ceremony this is. Or perhaps you had your eye on him, too... Is this envy?\" \"Do not make light of this with your petty jokes. Do you not understand the reason I am angry like this? I am indignant. I am in a rage. You have driven me into a fury!\" When Echidna tried to sidestep with frivolities, Minerva shouted with anger, her face growing redder still. She was so high-strung that her eyes were filled with tears, with clear droplets trickling down the sides of her tender visage. This was the very different sense of presence that Minerva no, what was odd was not the sensation but the fact that she was there at all. \"...How are you here?\" \"What?! Are you saying it's wrong for me to come here like this?!\" \"Not that. I'm not saying that...but I mean, Echidna's, like, right there.\" As Minerva's cheeks puffed up with dismay, Subaru pointed toward Echidna. The pointing finger made Minerva cock her head, but Echidna went \"Ah\" in apparent understanding, clapping her hands together as she said, \"Now I know the cause of your bewilderment.  You find it strange that she and I are together in the same place.\" \"Th-that's right. Before when you let me meet with the other Witches, you said you were lending yourself to let them borrow your existence, but this would mean that talk was \" \"She lied to you, then. This girl has a foul personality, prone to evil pranks for no good reason.\" When Minerva smacked down his rebuttal, Subaru went, \"No way,\" and looked at Echidna. \"Please do not misunderstand,\" Echidna stated as a preamble in response to his gaze. \"Certainly, when I explained substitution was necessary, I lied but only about that single point. But their manifesting here presents a danger to me. If I, a soul alone at present, am defeated, the right to rule this place will be transferred. There is no guarantee that they would not angle for that.\" \"That's, ah, but just on account of that...\" \"For example, if Sekhmet, the Witch of Sloth, was of a mind to do just that, I have no chance of victory. Though in the first place, if I made an enemy of her, she could slaughter me and the other four Witches put together in one second.\" To Subaru, slow on the uptake, Echidna was revealing what had happened without a single shred of guilt. There were parts that he could accept and parts that, emotionally speaking, he could not. But as that complicated mental state made Subaru grimace, Echidna continued, \"Besides, perhaps I dislike other Witches crawling out of the woodwork out of concern one might whisk you away?\" \"Er, um, what?\" \"I find myself liking you more with every return. Not in life or death has a conversational partner made my heart leap so. Therefore, I want you all to myself. If you must declare me a fool for making one shallow lie for that sake...go ahead and laugh, if you like.\" For her craving to monopolize ran very deep a powerless smile came over Echidna as she revealed her true thoughts. Left speechless, Subaru's thoughts wandered over Echidna's excuse and in search of the reason for her obsessive spirit toward him. It wasn't just her; the Witch of Jealousy also saw Subaru as  \"What do you think you're doing, swallowing everything she says so easily?\" \" Dah?!\" As Subaru sank into thought, a powerful blow struck his head from behind. The impact made his eyes spin. It seemingly had enough power to rip his head off and yet, what occurred was not pain but a feeling of excessive exhilaration that blew lethargy out of his entire body. The blond Witch who had done this made an exaggerated grimace with her adorable face and said, \"And, you, stop letting Echidna take you for a ride with her flattery! That lightweight decision-making and empty-headed attitude is really ticking me off!!\" \"Flattery makes it sound so underhanded. I am creating an opportunity between him and I only so that we might strive for greater understanding together. If I do say so myself, a pact is simply the result of having formed a bond of trust...\" \"I'm telling you, change that 'I explained it properly already' attitude! Certainly, you've spoken with the boy about the good points of a pact. But as for the bad points of being in a pact! You haven't! Said! A single! Darn! Word!!\" Giving in to her anger, Minerva stamped her foot on the ground, making the grassland explode in a spectacular cloud of dust. Setting aside her overwhelming state of agitation, Subaru was aghast at the meaning of Minerva's words.  Certainly, he had no memory of touching on the downsides of a pact during his back-and-forth with Echidna. He became self-conscious of how careless he'd been in not realizing that fact. \"W-wait. Whaddaya mean, downsides? There wouldn't be some huge exaggerated thing like...\" \"You don't think there'd be any? You look on pacts too lightly, particularly where the Witch of Greed is concerned she who came into contact with the most humans among all the Witches, whose words interfered with history.\" \"All of those were acts taken in life... Though I cannot say that all of those who formed pacts with me found happiness.\" Minerva was thrusting before Subaru's eyes a side of the Witch he didn't know. Furthermore, as if to bolster the validity of the words, Echidna was, in the end, asserting that she meant no harm to Subaru. Subaru was tormented by the pair's words, but emotionally he wanted to believe Echidna. Of course he did. Ever since associating with Echidna at the tomb like that, they'd met several times over. She was also someone to whom he could divulge the circumstances he couldn't to anyone outside the dream, someone who understood Return by Death. That was why, through the offer of cooperation that went by the name of pact, Subaru had found salvation. As Subaru mulled it over, he stared at the white-haired Witch and the blond-haired Witch in turn. Emotionally, he doubtlessly tilted toward Echidna. However, Minerva's presence had him concerned. Why had she leaped out? Previously, Minerva had leaped out to deliver healing via punches and save Subaru from impending death. This was the Witch of Wrath's reason for being. That same Minerva had gone out of her way to cut into the conversation, something that had to give him pause. \"Echidna. When a pact is formed, there has to be a demerita...no, compensation.\" \"...I suppose there is. A pact requires compensation. Just as I am to provide you with my knowledge, you must offer me something to serve as compensation.\" \"If that's so, what do you want from me?  What do I have to offer you?\" That question was one that needed to be asked and answered before a pact was formed. Indulging in Echidna's benevolence, Subaru had sincerely forgotten that he had to offer her something, too.  And just what compensation could a Witch extract from a fool at an impasse in a blind alley of fate? \"There is no need to be tense. There is no need for concern. The compensation I seek from you is not a difficult thing. For that matter, among the pacts I have formed to date, I would call it exceptionally forthright.\" \"...What, then?\" \"It is a simple thing. What you feel, what you think, what is left in your heart, the futures you know, the things you do, the possibilities you create, the fruits of all the 'Unknowns' that hail from your existence I...wish to taste them.\" Her cheeks faintly reddened, Echidna confessed as if she was a young maiden in love. The fruits of the Unknowns the poetic, roundabout wording made Subaru knit his brow. \"That's... Are you saying you'd pull my emotions and memories right out of me?\" \"You say the most provocative things. You are mistaken. I simply want to see the scenery you see, to hear the music you hear, to stand in the place of knowing the Unknowns that spring forth from you. That is all it will take to satisfy me.\" As if to wipe away Subaru's concerns, Echidna clarified what it was that she sought. All that she wanted was to see Subaru walk off toward his destination and to gaze at the same scenery he did along the way. She wanted to know what Subaru felt, what Subaru knew, and the results of Subaru's actions. \"That's not a lie, is it?\" \"The occasion of a pact is no place for lies. So that I may remain myself, I vow that I shall absolutely never turn my back upon these words. Even at the cost of my life.\" Touching a hand to her chest, Echidna added, \"Though I am already dead,\" concluding with a lighthearted demeanor. He did not think that those words were lies. Perhaps that was simply what he wanted to believe. But if it was just him wanting to believe, that was enough. If Subaru were to think that way, then  \"It is all...true, but...she has not...said every...thing?\" Just when Subaru was about to accept Echidna's confession and try to send Minerva away, his shoulders jumped. It was a voice he had heard only tens of minutes before, and the sound anything but pleasant. \"The Witch of Lust...Carmilla!\" \"S-stop... I'm not, doing anything... So don't make such scary eyes... No...\" \"I was born with this mean mug. This ain't some kind of special glare meant just for you.\" With broken grassland separating Subaru and the pair of Witches, a third Witch appeared from a position a short distance removed. Carmilla, dressed no differently from earlier, timidly stared down at her own feet. She did not look toward Subaru. She did not meet anyone's eyes. But that did not mean she was silent. \"E-Echidna is...not lying...but she is hiding lots of things, okay?\" \"She's hiding things...?\" At that late stage, no anger rose within him at successive Witches coming to stand before him. However, the Witches successively standing before him were making assertions one after the other that he could not simply let pass in silence. The same went for Echidna. Toward the suddenly appearing Carmilla, she closed one eye and said, \"Suddenly appearing and lobbing insults is very rude. In the first place, why are you giving him warnings? Unlike Minerva, you have no reason to give him your backing. You must despise him.\" \"A...r-reason like...Minerva? I have a proper... Mm, I don't. But, Echidna, you...deceived me...didn't you?\" Echidna's statement was orderly; in contrast, Carmilla's words were halting and broken. Eyes downcast, the Witch's speech pattern was frail. However, in contrast to her voice, her assertion was uncompromising. Even as Carmilla's gaze timidly wandered, her demeanor stared straight at Echidna. \"I don't...l-like this boy. But...Echidna because you...deceived me... People who do things to me I don't like are...absolutely unforgivable.\"  Only the last phrase was so clear that he heard it distinctly. It took some time before Subaru could comprehend what this meek Witch was saying. That was how much at variance that last phrase was from his image of the Witch to that point.  In silence, without averting her eyes whatsoever, Carmilla stared at Echidna. A vortex of emotion hard to put into words rested in her eyes laying within was a somber darkness resembling hatred for those who bore enmity for her or who turned similar emotions toward her; this she absolutely could not forgive. She was love of self-personified that was the thought that rose in the back of Subaru's mind. \"Good grief. Even"}, {"text": "if it was necessary, making Carmilla do something contrary to her will was a blunder on my part. Making an enemy of you is exceptionally troublesome, after all.\" \"That is...because everyone is my ally... Being hated by me is...terrible, you know...?\" By no means were meekness and militancy necessarily exclusive. Carmilla might have been introverted so frail of personality that she could not even meet other people's eyes while conversing with them but she would show no mercy to her enemies. The former was unrelated to the latter. \"What have you...? What have you people been talking about all this time?!\" And surrounded by the Witches' perilous atmosphere, Subaru finally exploded. Feeling the gazes of the three Witches turn toward him, Subaru had a desperate look as he pleaded his case. \"Quit cutting me out of the conversation already! It's my...it's my choice, damn it! Say it so I can understand! What's Echidna hiding?! What do you know?!!\" \"Please do not lend your ears to these girls, Subaru Natsuki. I have made my vow. To waver here would be akin to doubting that vow. That would be simply too cruel...\" As Subaru raised his voice in anger, Echidna spoke with a calm, collected voice to the last. Once more, Subaru began to feel like something was off about that calm, collected tone. Moving past the rising passion of his earlier mental state, he gave her words fresh scrutiny. Why were the two Witches interrupting Echidna's words? Something was odd. She hadn't said anything odd. She'd vowed that she was not lying. The other Witches acknowledged that, too. Then just where was the problem ? \"I shall repeat myself, Subaru Natsuki. Once you choose me, once you form a pact with me I will, without fail, bring you to the future you desire.\" \" Sigh. Bringing out 'without fail' at the very end is so clich\u00c3\u00a9...\" \" !! Who is it this time?!\" As Echidna stretched a hand out toward him, her assertive words were weighed down by a languid voice. When he looked over, he saw a bizarre creature opposite Carmilla, a mass of purplish-red tumbling abo  No, this was no bizarre creature. This was a person, a human being with such a great amount of hair, it looked like a giant ball of fur. She had hair reaching down as far as her toes, a sultry outfit that was primarily black, and a voluptuous, feminine physique. Her skin was so pale it was beyond notions of white; her sultry, beautiful face could not shake off that unhealthy impression. The beautiful woman sat on the ground leaning on her hip, gazing at the scene with purple eyes he knew at a glance she was a Witch. \"So what, you're the sixth...\" \"Sekhmet, the Witch of Sloth, sigh. I thought I should at least introduce myself, sigh. In the end, I am simply insurance...of this place's equality, phoo. So I'm on watch duty to keep things in line, sigh.\" \"Equality? Insurance?\" \"I will kill anyone who resorts to force, phew. I am the, sigh, restrictive force for that purpose, phoo.\" Regularly peppering her speech with sighs, the Witch of Sloth Sekhmet told her story with a very personalized manner of speaking. In contrast to the tone of her voice, the contents were savage, but none of the Witches moved to object. Echidna had said it just prior: Sekhmet could kill all the other Witches there put together. But what of it? In that moment, just how many Witches were going to appear in that  \"Ohhh? Baru came? And everyone's together? That's rare, huh?!\" One after another, uninvited Witches crashed the already broken tea party. With Gluttony and Pride now joining Greed, Wrath, Lust, and Sloth, this amounted to a reenactment of the nightmare that occurred four hundred years prior, and at the center of it, Subaru cried out. The only one there to face the gathered Witches, the foolish, ordinary person named Subaru Natsuki shouted. \"Stop it! Stop screwing around! What do all of you want with me?! I just... I only wanted some way to get by! You're in the way of...!\" \"I think I told you, sigh. The pillow talk at the end is very clich\u00c3\u00a9, phoo.\" \"At the end...?\" Sekhmet's languid words weighed down Subaru's raspy shout. The other Witches said nothing about what Sekhmet spoke, save one, for Echidna slightly narrowed her eyes. \"Sekhmet, you're \" \"I am not taking anyone's side, sigh. I just want to be courteous to the lad, phoo.\" What she meant by courtesy or what coursed in the silence between Echidna and Sekhmet, Subaru did not know. However, from what Sekhmet had said, the words of the Witches to that point, and from Echidna's responses and demeanor toward them, Subaru's contemplations finally led to a single hypothesis. *** The hypothesis that floated up drove none other than Subaru himself into silence. It was extremely difficult to accept; accordingly, Subaru hardened his cheeks and looked at Echidna. \"Echidna...you said, without fail, you'd bring me to an optimal future, right?\" \"Yes, I did indeed. That is a fact. There is no mistake; I shall fulfill this pact. Between my intellect and your special nature, it shall be accomplished without fail.\" Echidna's response to Subaru's question was exactly what Subaru had hoped to hear, a full hundred marks for the reply. This pact, properly fulfilled, would put Subaru on the path to the optimal future. It was just that  \"Your cooperation will help me arrive at the optimal future...but will that be by the optimal path?\" *** \"Why aren't you saying anything? Answer me, Echidna... Answer me, Witch of Greed!!\" As if biting, as if tearing away at that stifling silence, Subaru howled. Subaru stepped forward, heedless of the overpowering, ghastly atmosphere that came from being surrounded by six Witches. There was but the Witch Echidna before him in his eyes; he had eyes for none other. And faced with that sharp gaze, Echidna let a little sigh trickle out as she said, \"To grasp the future you desire, you must accept sacrifices along the way.  You simply lacked the resolve for that, Subaru Natsuki.\" \" !! Wait, wait, waitwaitwaitwaitwait! Wait, Echidnaaa...\" \"No, I will not. This is something you should know better. Think about it.\" Faced with Subaru pressing the point, Echidna's reply went far outside his desires. Her words were most certainly not ones that would clear up the doubts that Subaru harbored. As Subaru shook his head side to side, repulsed by the warped nature of those words, Echidna spread both of her arms and continued, so that Subaru might comprehend her own thoughts, her own feelings  \"The Return by Death that you possess is an incredible Authority. You do not comprehend how it is truly to be used. You can redo the world any number of times before you arrive at the result that you desire. To a researcher, this is the ultimate ideal manifesting in physical form. Is that not so? By rights, you should only be able to obtain one result for any particular thing. You can make excessive amounts of varied deductions and suppositions about the results. But there is usually but a single result. You can never repeat the exact same conditions in search of a different result. The conditions all shift: time, environment, memory, procedures. 'Back then, if I'd only changed one thing, the results would be different.' This is not in the realm of ideals but of dreams and delusions. Because I have the heart of a researcher, your Authority truly makes my mouth water. With 'identical conditions' and 'verification of differences' secured, one can identify a 'proper result' and a 'variant result.' How could I not covet that? With it before me, how could I not test various possibilities? Of course, I will not coerce you to use Return by Death. You will use that power for the sake of the result you desire. And I shall lend my wit as much as you please so that your desire might be granted. I have high hopes that the great many results that shall be borne from this shall serve to satisfy my inquisitive mind. No one would punish a girl for wanting such a small thing, surely? Your desire for a future and my curiosity shall be satisfied together. Perhaps this makes you uneasy, for I do not know the future, either. I will not purposefully lead you to a mistaken future in order to test the results. All Unknowns are equal before me. By mulling and struggling against the same problems, the answer will come. This makes necessary the highest form of relationship between us. I swear I shall protect you with all my heart. But that does not change the fact that I cannot interfere with reality. If a physical obstacle stands before you, I can expect that challenging it will break your mind and body many times over. If it comes to that, I genuinely intend to exert my every power to protect your mind. I will not tell you there are no ulterior motives involved in that. But I don't want you to think that I am calculating everything because of my inquisitive mind. I do think fondly of you, and it is a fact that my maidenly heart wishes to be of aid to you. I am repeating myself, but you and I are ideally compatibility. I can say it plainly. I will use your power, and you will use me for the sake of your 'optimal future.' It is my genuine desire to be a woman used for your own convenience. Though it would only be in this dream world, should you desire it, I do not mind using this body of mine to comfort you. I shall happily grant it to you. Oh my, that might not be the best thing for the people you care for, that silver-haired half-elf and that blue-haired demon...they who you have sworn to save and protect without fail. Not that I can claim any particular opinion toward them, but at any rate, please take it as expressing how strong, how unshakable my feelings are. Many difficulties shall befall you in the future as well. Your resolve shall lead you to challenge them, but that is tragic. I will become the beacon that lights your path. So, too, will I be the bonds you wish to protect. Your questions, your burdens, your feelings, your hopes...unexpectedly, through the Trial, you have taught me just how much value these things hold. Certainly, to you, the scenes you saw might have been Hell itself. But given the choice between knowing beforehand and ignorance, I wish to praise the will to learn even such tragic facts. With these serving as your gruel, you shall stretch a hand toward the future, even at the cost of your life. That Trial was necessary so that you might learn there might be sacrifices made for that future's sake. As you use Return by Death more and more, perhaps your emotions might fray, perhaps the deaths of people precious to you might fail to move your heart, but most of all, you might have to lose some part of yourself in order to arrive at the place at which you are destined to reach. The Trial prevented that end. I did that, in order to protect you. If those scenes pained your heart, putting you on the verge of breaking, I do not exaggerate in saying I did it for that sake. Because it would serve as the linchpin for your moving forward, I accepted it. With my words, I shall grant you the strength to advance forward. I will console you, I will scold you, I will even love you. Or if it is hatred you require, I will devote that to you, all for you. You like girls who devote themselves to you, yes? You need me. By yourself, you cannot grasp the future. It is none other than"}, {"text": "I who is the most suitable girl for you.  You need me. And I need you. Already, there is none other than you who can satisfy my curiosity. I mean, I've already discovered you. You broadened my world. Through you, I, said to be the Witch bearing the greatest intellect in the world, have tasted the fruit of the Unknown once more. If you want to use that power to save someone, then save me. Having even the crumbs of that noble thought is enough for me. Please. I want you to trust me. Perhaps you think I deceived you because of the fact that I did not expose enough of what I truly thought beforehand. I wanted to get the timing right. If I exposed these feelings while our relationship was still shallow, you would probably have pushed me away. I did not want that. I could not endure that. That goes for you too, yes? If you lost me as a collaborator, your heart would surely be broken. We are both working toward our optimal ends. And I know what that optimal end is. I can help you. Through infinite trial runs, you will arrive at the future, albeit with your heart worn down and scarred by the ordeal. Let me do this. I will never betray your trust. Certainly, my heart might be attracted to the resulting choices, and my inquisitive heart may waver toward paths other than that which is optimal. I cannot hold my own greed in check enough for me to tell you that will never happen. I acknowledge that. But I will gloss over nothing. I will speak openly and honestly. Even if the result of that will damage your trust, I will expend no effort to win that trust back. No matter what might happen, I will, without fail, bring you to the future you desire. I absolutely, absolutely will. So as the choices necessary for that become clear, would you not let me be the one to choose? It will be precisely according to the preamble for the pact: I will grant what you desire, what it is that you seek. It will be no more and no less than this. After that, how much you permit your body to be sliced for the sake of that which you desire and crave is up to you. I have conveyed my resolve. Next, I want to hear yours. I want you to demonstrate that you, who would form a pact with me, who would benefit from my cooperation, have the enduring spirit required to arrive at the future without fail. It is you, the first and only one to overcome the second Trial, who can puff out your chest and speak these words with pride. Do this, please me, and I shall release you from the tomb and guide you to the third Trial. Beyond that rests the liberation of the Sanctuary. In so doing, the precious people most important to you, the people you care about held captive in the Sanctuary, will be saved. For the sake of this, you will undergo a true Trial. For the sake of that, seize me, use me, do with me as you please as you let your greed rage, and we shall grasp the future together. This is everything I have to offer to aid you and find what you desire, what you seek. I intend to peel back everything honestly and earnestly. I will not allow the other girls around us to interfere any longer. It is as you said: This is a matter between you and I alone. I want you to give me your answer. I have told you everything... Truly the naked truth. Passionately. This might be close to love. A vow of love. So how will you respond to my love? I want a reply. This reply, after all, will be another thing serving to satisfy my curiosity.\"  With that, Echidna smiled adorably. Her fleeting, snow-like hair rustled, her cheeks faintly red from excitement, standing there with the look of a maiden at her most vulnerable, fresh from offering her confession, waiting with all her heart for Subaru's reply. With upturned eyes, she gazed toward him, Subaru's face reflected clearly in her black eyes. Subaru slowly shifted his gaze from them, looking at the other Witches gathered around. The five Witches besides Echidna were each in various states, watching and awaiting the result of Echidna's confession in their own way. Sekhmet, languidly; Carmilla, disinterestedly; Daphne, with a repulsive smile; Typhon, tilting her head with a mystified look; for some reason, Minerva alone had a face ready to burst into tears. It was funny. He was tempted to laugh.  Not that he actually did. \"Echidna.\" \"What is it?\" \"You'll be...using me?\" She'd be using him. Such words were repeated over and over as Echidna had spoken. Echidna nodded unreservedly in response. \"I will. You should simply use me back. That is the purpose of our pact. If you wish to rebuke me for using it as a means of not letting go of you, I shall gladly hear it. This is the truth, after all.\" \"It's not as if I didn't think about it. That's how relationships based on pros and cons work. I expected I was resolved to your intentions not being a hundred percent benevolent. But.\" In front of Echidna, Subaru covered his face with his hands. He turned his face toward the sky in a simple...lament. \"But this is just too much...\" *** Echidna had an aura of bewilderment at the tenor of Subaru's trembling voice. That settled it. Everything that had accumulated between their first chance encounter and that very moment lost its color and collapsed. Across their introduction, the tea party upon their reunion, the false classroom in the Trial, and the obstructions in reality her presence and her words had saved the brokenhearted Subaru many times over. It was those bonds that had brought him to the determination to form a pact.  Cruelly, all those things had come back to mock the foolishness of Subaru Natsuki. \"I do not really understand what your problem is. If you are to arrive at the optimal result, you must resign yourself to a certain degree of injury. That is your decision to make, something I believe I have already acknowledged, so...\" \"Me resigning to... Not that I've resigned to it, but that's dancing to your tune, ain't it?\" \"Unsurprisingly, you find that hard to accept. In the end, it is you who must draw the conclusion. I am merely aiding you to do so. If you wish to place the responsibility for that with me, that would put me in a bind. That's a horrible thing to do, don't you think?\" Pursing her lips, Echidna made a pouty face as she protested. It seemed like a childish display of emotion, out of place enough to make one laugh, but it only served to deepen Subaru's misgivings. Those doubts had been there from the beginning. Now they had only grown stronger. She acted so unwitchy, and many times, the gap between the subjective and the objective had instilled ease rather than discomfort. However, at the present, that foreboding he felt strengthened, enlarged, and took definable form  \" There's no sense of seriousness anywhere in your attitude. Everything you do and say feels...superficial.\" *** \"When you laugh, even when you're angry, your attitude is frivolous and childish. Even right now, when it's time to be angry, you're just pouting... It's not an issue of being open-minded or something. That attitude of yours...your attitude is strange. I...mistook that for you being someone easy to get along with, but...\" *** \"That's not actually it. Echidna, you're someone who can't understand other people's emotions.\" His fleeting encounters with Echidna to that point, the words they had exchanged, all of them changed to the color of sepia. He'd believed all those traits made her likable, but as a result of those shallow displays of emotion, he'd come to know better. And faced with such disparaging words, Echidna's expression still did not change. It was not the proper response. \"This is another place you should be getting angry, see.\" \"...Is that so? I should have taken this moment to make my voice coarser and shower insults upon you, then? I see, I will make a note of that. If we should meet again, I shall put that knowledge to good use.\" When Echidna replied with those words, all emotion vanished from the Witch's face. All emotions worthy of the name vanished, and a Witch appeared in their stead. For the very first time, Subaru truly set eyes upon the Witch of Greed. *** In front of Subaru, cowed into silence, Echidna snapped her dry fingers. As she did so, the purportedly destroyed hill and plain were restored, and the chair and table smashed to pieces returned to their original form. The tea party had seven chairs arranged. Having provided one for Subaru and each of the Witches, Echidna closed one eye. \"First, would you sit? I would like to speak a little more about pacts.\" \"...In a situation like this, you're still optimistic I'll form a pact with you?\" \"Don't tell me you would reject me over such a minor difference in outlook? I cannot call being temporarily carried away by emotion a wise thing. You should make the realistic, rational choice.\" Echidna's sound statement made Subaru close his eyes and breathe deeply over and over. Echidna's words rang true. Subaru was being emotional. He was being swallowed up by the course of events. In the end, Echidna had done nothing more than conceal her true intentions. He could believe that all the other parts were sincere and that she would act in the manner she had claimed. Forming a pact here was a reliable key to the future. The key was in the palm of his hand. All he had to do was to clench it  \"I just remembered that there was something I wanted to ask if I met you again.\" \"...Mm, I wonder what?\" \"I feel like if I hear the answer to this, I'll be able to decide.\" Echidna was waiting for Subaru to present his question. And so Subaru asked the Witch a question relating to Echidna that, during the loop that had begun with the Sanctuary, remained a mystery. Namely  \" You know Beatrice, don't you, Echidna?\" \"Of course I know her. I am deeply related to that girl's birth. What of it?\" There was nothing hidden in Echidna's reply. She simply could not guess what Subaru's question was getting at. He closed his eyes. On the back of his eyelids, he traced his last glimpse of the girl as she vanished. There was nothing sadder than the thin expression of relief on her face. Subaru had been unable to save Beatrice from the centuries she had spent in loneliness. When he'd shouted to the girl at the time, her final smile of relief was seared forever into his eyes. That was why  \"Beatrice, has been waiting all this time for That Person to arrive, according to the pact. That pact has to be one you made with her. You tied her to that mansion. That's about right?\" \"I did not specify the place, but it is indeed I who commanded her to protect the archive of forbidden books and wait until someone came.\" \"Then...then who is this That Person? What has to be done to free her?\" For four centuries, Beatrice had continued to await That Person, alone in the archive of forbidden books. A promise had made her do so. A pact had strengthened her isolation. Even Beatrice did not know who That Person was. Subaru hadn't found any clue, either. But Echidna, the Witch who had commanded her to wait for That Person, surely knew the answ  \"I wonder, just who might it be?\" \" H-uh?\" \"Er, I am not making"}, {"text": "some kind of joke. I think that from the bottom of my heart. Who do you think That Person who Beatrice waits for might be?\" As Subaru gaped at her, Echidna shrugged her shoulders, appearing genuinely mystified. Subaru was aghast at her demeanor, but he immediately shook his head. He couldn't accept this. \"Y-you're telling me you don't know who Beatrice is waiting for, either?\" \"Mm, I do not. I know not who That Person Beatrice awaits might be.\" \"Why n...? You're the one who told her to wait, right? So how can you not...?\" Subaru was dumbfounded at the one thread he clung to having been snipped like it was nothing. That Person Beatrice had been commanded to wait for had to exist. Was it even possible that Echidna did not know? Or was some third part going to suddenly pop up and  \"You are wrong, Subaru Natsuki. You misunderstand. It is most certainly I who made Beatrice promise to wait for That Person. But you have a fundamental misunderstanding about this.\" \"'Fundamental misunderstanding'...?\" \"You misunderstand the reason behind the pact I formed with Beatrice. You believe I made Beatrice promise for the sake of handing the archive of forbidden books to That Person, I take it?\" He didn't understand what Echidna's assertion meant. It was natural, even obvious, to take it that way. She'd been told to hold on to something and to wait for someone. Therefore, the objective was obviously for her to hand that thing over. However, Echidna met Subaru's thought process with a sideways shake of her head. \"That was not my objective. You see...I made Beatrice promise to wait for That Person because I want to know who that girl selects to be That Person.\" *** What? \"That girl, you see, was created for a particular purpose. But I decided to use her for a different purpose than that originally intended. That is why I sent that girl far from the Sanctuary. Since a substitute objective was required, I granted the archive of forbidden books to that girl and gave that empty girl a purpose for living: to administer my knowledge and to await That Person who would someday come. I did not set a time limit. After all, it is not an issue with one set answer to begin with. As arranged, that girl's life was linked to it, enabling her to live outside of the Sanctuary. And I was able to engage in a new inquiry: that girl's choice. Logical, isn't it? Of course, spending four centuries without selecting anyone is one result in itself. Having been unable to comfortably select anyone she had met to date, continuing to obey the pact while full of worry, and desiring her own death is another result.\" \"And what do you think about that?\" \" ? I think that it is a marvelous thing?\" As if asked a question to which the answer was obvious, Echidna tilted her head without a single hint of shame. Her reply, her demeanor, and the expression on the girl in the back of Subaru's mind gave him his answer. He'd decided. He understood. He grasped it, loud and clear.  Then and there, he would confront her and make perfectly clear exactly who was mistaken. \"Echidna, you are...a Witch.\" *** \"You are a monster beyond human knowledge, beyond human understanding.\" He told her. He voiced the reply that had spawned within him. He would reject the hand he had once decided to accept. This time, he would decide for himself who he would reach out to with his hand. \"I...I can't take your hand. I've decided whose I will take.\" *** \"Your inquisitive mind, the words you spoke without malice have bound a girl for four hundred years.  I've decided. I'm choosing that girl's hand. I can't leave her with you.\" This was a farewell. He was brushing away the hand of the one who once surely would have become his partner, with whom he would have walked forward and drawn a future together. He'd go wipe away that final expression off the girl traced on the back of his eyelids.  She'd been afraid of death, her face ready to break into tears, but having protected Subaru, her expression was one of relief. He would save Beatrice, who had grieved over Subaru's death. He'd decided. *** That decision made Echidna narrow her eyes. Countless thoughts ran through her black pupils; she was perhaps meaning to say something to Subaru that would make him change his decision. However, before she could, a change arrived. A sudden change desired by none present had occurred. \" So she's come.\" \"H-hey...this doesn't...concern me anymore...so, ahhh...\" \"At a troublesome time, a troublesome girl has come to make trouble, sigh.\" \"Ahaaa. My stomach's reaaally, reaaally throbbing. We really have the full lineup now, huhhh?\" The spectating Witches displayed various reactions to the change taking place. One bit her lip; one clutched her head; one gave a sigh; one licked her lips. The Witches' gazes shifted behind Subaru and from there, an overwhelming, impossible-to-ignore presence sprang forth. As Subaru was facing her, Echidna caught sight of \"it\" straight in front of her. Her eyes widened slightly, and within them, Subaru saw a complex vortex of emotions be it before or after her true nature had been exposed, this was the first time he saw hatred in them. *** Seeing that hatred made him belatedly turn around. For a second, he hesitated, and then matching breath and heartbeat, he moved. Looking behind him, Subaru's own eyes finally beheld the new arrival. From her black dress, long hair, and white skin, he imagined she must have a most beautiful face yet though he was certain of this, he saw not the Witch's face but a veil of impenetrable darkness that covered it. Greed, Wrath, Lust, Sloth, Gluttony, Pride with each of these attending the tea party, the seventh Witch, Jealousy, had finally joined them. \"Ohhh! It's Tela! Wow, it sure has been a while!\" Only one, the child Witch, greeted the Witch of Jealousy with a wave of her hand.  The Witches' Tea Party had only one invited guest. Having become a banquet, it hurtled toward its final act. CHAPTER 1 *** 1  Atop a little hill rising out of a green, grassy plain that smelled of wildflowers, the Witch's Tea Party was about to commence. The Witches in attendance were all notorious figures who had rampaged across every corner of the world four centuries ago. Joining them was a single boy from a foreign land in a foreign world plus one final participant, who had just arrived. This last-minute appearance elicited a variety of reactions from the six Witches already there. One clenched her fists with a forlorn look. One shrank back in palpable fear. One closed her eyes with a languid sigh. One drooled in ecstasy. One spread both arms wide in an innocent, welcoming gesture. And the last of the six  \" Crossing multiple boundaries to intrude upon even my castle of dreams. Her rudeness truly knows no limits.\" Echidna the Witch's gaze and voice grew pointed as she spat out those words, directing them toward the detestable shadow approaching the table. The sheer hatred and disgust reflected in those eyes made the boy Subaru Natsuki gaze in wonder. Subaru had been roundly criticizing Echidna for lacking proper human emotions just moments earlier. It was only natural for him to be shocked by her display of such vehement feelings. Even if those emotions were incredibly negative rather than positive. \"But right now...\"  There was an issue that took precedence over Echidna's raw emotions. Subaru and the Witches watched as the shadow slowly came up the hill. The shadow was clad in a pitch-black dress, with a veil of darkness concealing her face. The oddly hazy impression she gave off was impossible to ignore. No one had any doubt about her true identity. She was the one who had slain the six Witches now gathered once again in this place. She was the worst of calamities, and one who had nearly destroyed the world.  This shadow was the Witch of Jealousy. *** Cheeks stiff from tension and wariness, Subaru could feel every beat of his heart. In the back of his mind, he could see the Sanctuary vanishing into shadow, swallowed by the madness and obsessiveness of the Witch who had already caused such devastation once before. What would happen if the same thing occurred in this dream world...? The thought alone left him aghast. Of course, there were six Witches besides Jealousy in this place. Perhaps these Witches, who bore titles of similar power, would be able to resist her in some way. However  \"...Why...isn't anyone...making a move?\" Subaru seemed short of breath as his confusion trickled out of him. Jealousy was right in front of them, just now reaching the crest of the hill. Only a few scant yards remained between them; the looming apprehension he felt rivaled that terrible moment back in the Sanctuary. But that was all. Jealousy wasn't fanning out her shadows. Her old acquaintances, the other Witches, were also not doing anything besides waiting quietly in place. Not a single one of them budged. Not a single one tried to avenge themselves. \"The fact that no one is doing anything means...\" Abruptly, someone stepped forward, breaking the silence. She crossed her arms, emphasizing her bountiful breasts in the process. A terrible anger was visible on this Witch's adorable face. It was none other than Minerva of Wrath. \"Is...this the you I know? Can I trust you?\" *** Without flinching, Minerva called out to Jealousy. There was no reply. But her act made Subaru open his eyes wide and gape. That was only natural. As far as Subaru knew, Minerva was the only one of the Witches besides Jealousy who lacked any means of directly attacking her opponent. She was the weakest Witch of all. This was because her power to transform any kind of violence into healing was the least suited for combat. \"...So why isn't anyone trying to stop her?\" Every last one of them had to have some kind of grudge against Jealousy, if not hatred that was comparable to what Echidna harbored toward her. And yet, no one made any move to prevent Minerva's attempt at conversation. Just as shocking was Jealousy, who had no answer for Minerva's words. The Witch stood there, paying no heed to her whatsoever. The sight of such defenselessness left Subaru confounded. In terms of brute force, magical ability, and Authorities, if the six Witches challenged her then and there, Jealousy would easily be  \" I understand how you feel. I raise both hands in sincere approval. If we could erase her in an instant without leaving even a single fragment behind, it would settle so many of the problems swirling around you. Truly, it would.\" \"You...\" Subaru felt utterly disgusted at how Echidna nodded with a knowing look. But as much as he hated to admit it, if there was anyone who could ease Subaru's doubts at this moment, it was the Witch of Greed. \"Then why aren't you doing anything? This is a chance to get payback after all these years?\" \"Simple. If I attempt to eliminate her, I will expose my back to all the other Witches. Even if we ignore Minerva, I am not strong enough to survive making an enemy of Sekhmet or Typhon.\" \"What...?\" The incomprehensible logic of Echidna's explanation baffled Subaru. \"I just...don't get it. Why would trying to kill the Witch of Jealousy mean that you'd end up fighting the other Witches? You might have a particular thirst for vengeance, but isn't she an enemy to ev...\" \"Th-that's not...true...\" It was Carmilla of Lust's halting words that interrupted Subaru's question. She ignored Subaru's gawking, keeping her eyes on the standoff between Minerva and Jealousy. \"A-all of us hold a...grudge against Jealousy... That is true. But this isn't true...for that g-girl, you know?\" \"The hell are you...?"}, {"text": "All of you hold a grudge against Jealousy, but this is different?\" \"Thaaat's right. You're just overthinking it, Subarun.\" When Subaru failed to follow what Carmilla was saying, Daphne of Gluttony spoke in her stead, laughing with a sweet voice. She turned her blindfolded face toward Subaru, smacking her lips as she savored his delectable anguish. \"Everything comes down to whether it's Tella-Tella ooor Jealousy who came. If we don't know that, there's nothing Daphne and the others can do. A candidate to be a sage should know that much.\" \"Let him be, Daphne, sigh. He doesn't know, phew. About any of that yet, sigh.\" \"Ohhh, is that right? Daphne made an oopsie...\" Daphne wore a smile that seemed devoid of any malice as Sekhmet chastised her. The Witch of Sloth lowered her eyes, which were rimmed by long eyelashes, before emitting a particularly lethargic sigh. \" ! Why you little...\" Subaru felt rage welling up when it became incredibly obvious from the exchange and their knowing looks that he had been left out of the loop. He'd gotten this far by being completely and utterly swept along by recent events: a harrowing Return by Death, an undesired second Trial, and learning about Echidna's true nature on top of everything else. It felt like the Witches had toyed with his heart one after another until finally, he found himself face-to-face with the Witch of Jealousy herself. Daphne's and Sekhmet's exchange was the last push that sent Subaru's head reeling. Just how much were they going to make a fool of him? \"Cut the crap already! I...I ain't got the time or the patience to be messing around!\" \"Wow, Baru, so scawwy. Are you mad? You'll get tired, y'know?\" Typhon of Pride poked a finger into her cheek, tilting her head as she innocently questioned Subaru. \"Also, get it right. We're not mad at Tella. But we are mad at the Witch. And y'see, Typhon likes Tella, so...\" \"Tella... You mean Satella? That's...the name of the Witch of Jealousy, ain't it...?\" \"...To put it in simple terms, the world remembered Satella as the Witch of Jealousy. However, what was not recorded in history was that Satella had a type of personality disorder.\" Echidna picked up where Typhon's explanation left off to fill in the blanks with words even Subaru could comprehend. Unfortunately, he had no idea how he should interpret the words personality disorder. That could be  \" Something like a split personality? That would mean Satella and the Witch of Jealousy are...\" \"Perhaps it would be clearer to say that she absorbed a Factor that was incompatible with her, causing a mental abnormality that ultimately created the Witch personality within Satella...not that I personally have any inclination to distinguish between the two.\" Echidna was disgruntled, but Subaru could not conceal his shock at the new fact that had come to light. He couldn't recall ever hearing a word about Satella and the Witch of Jealousy being two distinct personalities. It was natural this information couldn't be found anywhere in the legends. At the same time, this revelation finally allowed him to comprehend the current standoff. Was the person standing before them the Witch of Jealousy or Satella? Even the other Witches apparently didn't know. \"Accordingly, I cannot recklessly go on the attack. If I cross the other five just to eliminate her alone, there will be no hope for victory. After all, if my soul dissipates, even I cannot escape death.\" \"...But this is a big risk for the other five, too, isn't it? You were lending your soul out to them, right? If you vanish, won't they go up in smoke, too?\" \"They've already accepted their deaths. They have no lingering attachments to a prolonged existence as mere souls. Rather than struggle to remain, they would rather perish while living according their beliefs. It is because we are only capable of this destructive way of life that we are Witches.\" Not a single one of the other five disputed Echidna's statement. Subaru could not approve of the Witches' way of life, for it was too focused on living in the moment for him to consider it pure of heart. Such fanatic devotion to a singular purpose, both in life and in death, was far from normal. Moreover... \"I get you're all like that. It's...hard to accept, but I can at least understand where you're coming from. But that only goes for you guys. For Sate...for that Witch, it's different.\" He had managed to grasp the Witches' perspective. However, this was ultimately an account from the victims. He had yet to hear the offender's story. If that was even possible. *** Without a word, the pitch-black figure watched on as Subaru spoke with the Witches. No, it was more accurate to say that Jealousy watched Subaru alone. \"It's better than her attacking without a word like last time we met, but only barely. What did she come to...? What does she want to make me do? What did she...?\"  What did she do to me? What does she want to make Subaru Natsuki to do in this world? \"If you want to know the answer...then ask her yourself.\" *** Minerva interrupted Subaru's thoughts with a voice that was mixed with both irritation and a sense of grief. Standing at Jealousy's side, she kept her blue eyes wide open, which were brimming with tears as she glared at Subaru. \"I don't want to hear your lame excuses. This girl came here to meet you. Speak to her directly... If you can't manage that, then you aren't the man we thought you are!\" \"Aren't the man you...? The hell are you going on about?! Who asked you to pass judgment on me?! I'm not about to just roll over and do whatever you want!\" \"If you aren't going to talk to her, sigh...then what would you rather do, phew.\" Lying on her side, Sekhmet suddenly tossed a question toward the emotional Subaru. Not moving from the slovenly posture that was worthy of her title, Sloth turned her pale face until she was looking directly at Subaru's reddened one. \"As you can see, sigh. We are in a stalemate, phew. At this point, the key, sigh...literally rests in your hands, phew. For better or for worse, that is, sigh.\" Subaru could feel on his skin how Sekhmet's words drew the gazes of all the Witches to him. Everything had been entrusted to Subaru Natsuki, the weakest, most foolish, and shallowest among them. The relationship between Jealousy and the other six Witches was just as they had told him. The Witches kept one another in check, while Jealousy's attention was focused on Subaru alone. \"Echidna, you don't have any intention of letting me out of here, do you?\" \"It is meaningless to neglect this situation, after all. I am a maiden suffering from a broken heart after a certain someone cruelly dumped me. At the very least, I want to see what you will choose in your current position. If I dared to wish for more, I would be very gratified to see you cruelly dump another girl.\" \"You really are a Witch...\" After hearing that malicious reply, Subaru closed his eyes, exhaling slightly. Then he steeled himself and slowly began approaching Jealousy, the Witch shrouded in shadow. \"...Took you long enough to decide.\" What sounded like an insult slipped out of Minerva as she took a step away from Jealousy's side. With this, there was no one left to intrude between Subaru and Jealousy. The two faced off against each other, close enough to touch. *** Though they were but a few short yards apart, Subaru felt the pressure increasing with every step. Even looking directly at her like this, he could see nothing of her face, hidden as it was behind a veil of darkness. This was not because the shadow was so thick that it obscured everything from sight. His primal instincts had chosen to not see. \"Everyone would prefer to avert their eyes from their most unsightly delusions.\" *** \"If you cannot see her face, the issue lies within your own mind.\" From somewhere behind him, someone gave welcome advice that cleared some of his doubts. He wanted to suck his teeth, but he resisted the impulse. More importantly, Subaru didn't have enough composure to bother with Echidna. Whether it was Satella or Jealousy before him, he could not take his eyes away from either. If his gaze wandered for even a split second, there was no telling what might happen that very  \" Ah.\" Suddenly, Subaru found two hands being offered to him. His throat froze over. Subaru had been on guard, not taking his eyes off Jealousy for even a single second. And yet, in an instant, all his efforts were for nothing. It wasn't that he failed to see. He saw her move from start to finish. It was simply that when Jealousy raised her hands toward him, all he could do was watch in silence. \"Seriously...what's with you? What do you want me to do...?\" Subaru shook his head from side to side, refusing the outstretched hands. Seeing Jealousy's actions and knowing that she was standing right there in front of him made Subaru feel something hot inside his chest. It would have been easier if what he felt was hatred or disgust. But this was something else. What Subaru Natsuki's soul felt was relief when he looked at the Witch of Jealousy. \"i\" \"Wha?\" Subaru was mostly occupied by the chaos that gripped heart. That explained his delayed reaction to the faint sound that reached his eardrums. His comprehension was delayed as well. It took him a moment to realize that it was Jealousy who had made that sound. Veiled by shadow, Subaru was unable to see Jealousy's expression as both her hands still reached toward him, as if she was slowly attempting to convey something to him. Swallowing hard, Subaru waited for her. Finally, the Witch of Jealousy spoke: \" I have always, always loved you. You, and you alone.\" 2 The instant he heard that confession of love, an indescribable impact shot through Subaru's whole body. From the crown of his head to the tips of his toes, he felt like a bolt of lightning had passed through him. Every hair on his body was standing up, and every pore was open. All the blood coursing through his body seemed to be boiling and steaming. His chest beat so loud and hard that it hurt. Subaru breathed unevenly as he backed away. Subaru knew: He could not stay here. If he didn't leave, her breath would reach him. Her fingers would touch him. Instinctively, Subaru understood that if he did not flee to a safe place, he would be swept away by \"love.\" \"Stop it...\" \"I love you.\" \"Please stop...\" \"I have always loved you, and only you, with all my heart.\" \"I told you to stop, damn it !!\" With a hoarse voice, he spurned her. Still, the fire in Subaru's chest didn't abate at all. His mind rejected her, but his soul found her a source of comfort. This inconsistency set Subaru's heart aflame as he wrestled against the contradiction within himself. If he didn't do so, he was absolutely certain that the very core of his being would become totally warped. The very first ray of light Subaru Natsuki had found in this world was his love for Emilia. Summoned to a foreign place with no one to depend on, she was the one who reached out to him in his time of crisis. How much had her existence been his salvation? During the dark days when he died over and over again, his feelings only grew as his soul cried out for her. He could no longer say that his feelings for Emilia were the only reason he continued forging ahead. Subaru had gained a great many things since his arrival. He had met"}, {"text": "many people whom he now cared for deeply. However, the Witch of Jealousy's compulsion was so powerful that it rivaled all those emotions put together. The conversations and warm touches he had shared, the time he had spent with others, the many bonds he had forged all the love contained within these moments were in danger of being stripped from him despite the fact that there was nothing real between him and this Witch. If this wasn't the definition of repulsive, then what else could it be? \"You're insane...you and Echidna both! This place...it's filled with people who make no sense! I've had it! I'm done, damn it!!\" Subaru scattered angry shouts with a frenzied face, making his refusal as clear as possible. He didn't want to be by Jealousy's side, in front of Echidna, or stay in the company of the other Witches for a single second longer. Subaru had countless other things he ought to be doing. There was nothing he needed here.  This is a waste of time. I want to get out of here, right now. Please, release me... \"I won't take help from any of you! I'll deal with all the problems outside by myself. That's fine, isn't it?! That's what I should've done from the start!\" \"And then? You'll die again, repeat the cycle, and make everyone cry time after time? Then you'll excuse it by saying their tears are an unavoidable sacrifice? Wow, how admirable of you.\" When Subaru bid them farewell, Minerva applauded him with a sour look on her face. Subaru turned his bloodshot eyes toward her, yelling \"So what?!\" and flaring his nostrils as he glared at Minerva. \"What does it have to with you? You got a problem with Return by Death? The pain, the suffering, the trauma those are all my problem and no one else's, damn it. Either way, it's none of your business.\" \"Must be nice to say you're resigned to pain and suffering. No matter what the people watching you think, you can keep making excuses by saying you're the one who has it toughest.\" \"What did you say...?!\" \"If your suffering is the most obvious, no one around you is allowed to say a word. You're the one suffering the worst, after all...so the weak voices around you just stay silent. Of course they do.\" As Minerva spoke, the tone of her voice steadily grew stronger and angrier. Subaru could not remain silent. \"Are you Are you trying to say I'm drowning in some self-made tragedy just to shut up everyone around me?! That I'm only at a dead end right now because I want to star in my own tragic drama?!\" \"That's not really what I'm getting at. This it's fine if I'm the one who's hurting the most idea is low and unfair. I think Echidna's a blackhearted schemer, too, and I know exactly how underhanded she can be...but I think you're twisted in a way that's creepier than any Witch.\" *** \"More than anything, as someone who hits everything that's hurt to heal it, your way of living isn't just the direct opposite of mine it makes you my natural enemy. Something like that is just too cruel for her.\" After airing all her grievances and slamming them against Subaru's feelings, Minerva finally looked toward Jealousy. Jealousy had gone silent ever since Subaru shouted at her, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with Minerva, or showing any sign of reacting to the conversation at all. The faint tears in Minerva's eyes told Subaru that she found it a lonely sight.  But that didn't matter to him at all. \"Creepy...? Cruel...?\" Subaru bent forward, his shoulders trembling. The trembling gradually grew stronger until finally, Subaru lifted up his face and laughed. It was so overwhelmingly stupid, he couldn't help but laugh. \"The hell is that supposed mean? Creepy or not, why do you think I decided to do things this way? How do you think I ended up becoming 'twisted'? The way I see it, my methods and my way of thinking are just a natural result of what I've been through. Am I wrong?\" *** \"You! You made me like this, goddamnit!!\" Subaru shouted his anger at Jealousy, who seemed to stand there in silence to escape all responsibility. Through accepting and using Return by Death, Subaru had overcome many challenges. The despair he tasted from embracing death again and again was carved into his soul. That was how Subaru had gotten this far.  This was the road of scars that had led Subaru Natsuki to his current way of thinking. \"The pain, the suffering! All that should be for me! If I'm the only one who gets hurt, that's better for everyone, ain't it?! No matter how hard it gets, I'll just clench my teeth and bear it... That way, no one else has to go through what I do! As long as no one but me gets torn up from start to finish...well, what the hell's wrong with that?!\" \"Shouldering everything by yourself without saying a word to anyone else... It's as if you think no one besides you is capable of doing anything.\" \"If I didn't do anything, what would have changed? Wouldn't we just end up with horrible futures? If not me, then who?! Who else could've gotten this far?!\" Through trial and error by repeatedly using Return by Death, Subaru had discovered the optimal path. It was just like Echidna had said. He wasn't thrilled to agree with the sweet whisperings of the Witch who was taking advantage of his resolve to fulfill her own selfish desires, but he could still stay the course regardless. If a scarred Subaru could find a path to a future where no one else had to get hurt, then  \"Earlier, I said I can't understand you and that I'm sick of all this. Sorry about that. Yeah, I'm sorry. I don't take even one bit of it back, but it's true I'm grateful to you, too. It was real shitty of me to forget that in the moment.\" *** \"I'm grateful to you for one thing and one thing only. Thanks...for giving me Return by Death. That's all I'm thankful for. Without that, I wouldn't have been able to protect a fly. I'll keep relying on this power from here on out as well. So for that alone, I'm thanking you.\" He was determined to continue making progress through trial and error. The option of running away had disappeared long ago.  Ever since the moment he'd grasped a certain girl's hands and asked her to run away together, only to be rejected. Running was not an option. His only choice was to keep fighting. That was what he'd sworn to do. She expected that from Subaru, too. She trusted that Subaru wouldn't give, wouldn't run away. She trusted that Subaru was a man who could climb back onto his feet. If he couldn't do that, he'd never be able to face her again. \"That's why I'm thanking you only for the power you gave me. Even a guy like me with no redeeming features can bust through a hopeless dead end like...\" \" Don't.\" \"A dead end...like...\" With one phrase, Jealousy stopped Subaru in his tracks, keeping him from venting the dark emotions dominating the inside of his chest. That faint, whisper-like murmur dulled his momentum. His cheeks hardening, Subaru breathed hard as he blinked. What did she say to him just then? After a momentary, silent pause, Jealousy spoke to Subaru. \" Don't cry. Don't hurt yourself. Don't suffer. Don't...make such a sad face.\" Jealousy pleaded with Subaru, as if urging him or maybe even praying. Her words clouded the fierce emotions in Subaru's heart; part of it was anger, part of it was surprise, and the rest was a mix of various emotions that made no sense whatsoever. \"Wh-why are...you saying...\" His throat caught in shock. He didn't know how he should respond. All he could do was stare at Jealousy, bewildered... Subaru was already shaken, but Jealousy was not done yet. \"Love, please.\" \"I-in the end, that's what it's all about...? You twist my feelings, then tell me to love you? Who'd love someone like...\" \" No.\" When Subaru tried to reject her through his trembling, Jealousy engaged him in conversation for the first time. Even then, he could not see her face. However, in his soul, he knew what expression Jealousy was making as she gazed at him from the other side of that curtain of darkness. He knew what face Jealousy no, Satella was looking at him with at that very moment. \" Love yourself more.\"  She was surely gazing at him with a look of affection. Even though the meaning of her words had already permeated Subaru's brain, it still took a fair bit for them to register. The moment understanding spread through his mind, Subaru's heart was overwhelmed by a wave of indescribable sensations. \"What the hell...are you even saying?\" \"Don't hurt yourself. Don't be sorry. Take...better care of yourself.\" \"Shit, you're the one who gave me Return by Death. You're the one who gave me this power that lets me move forward, damn it!\" \" I love you. That's why...I want you to love and protect yourself.\" \"If you take away the way I cope, the way I defend myself, then what the hell do I have left?!\" Rejecting Satella's whispers of inexhaustible love, Subaru shouted, pressing his hand hard against his own chest. \"You know, don't you?! I don't have any power! No smarts or special skills, either! I don't have a single advantage of my own! I don't have anything but the Return by Death ability you gave me! That's why the only thing I can pay with is my own life!\" \"Don't be sad.\" \"If I'm hurt more than other people, if I see more things than other people, if I can run around protecting everyone, then no one but me has to go through this awful stuff! That's all I want!\" \"Please don't cry.\" \"You don't really care what happens to me, do you?! Whatever happens to a guy like me, no one's gonna shed a tear! No matter how beat-up I get, if everyone can reach the future safe and sound, then that's...!\" After all, if Subaru didn't stay on the front line, continuing to be hurt like that  \"If I can get to tomorrow without losing anyone, that's...\"  There was a chance he might lose someone in a way he could never undo. \"...Rem's...gone.\" *** \"It never would've happened if...if I was smarter, if I had any power, if I'd cared less for myself, if only I'd laid my life on the line in the first place...\" The sense of loss and despair from that time still weighed heavily on Subaru Natsuki. That was why Subaru chose to rely on no one but himself while continuing to fight his painful battles alone. If choosing to rely on someone else or seeking out aid meant he would lose another person dear to him, then  \"If I don't believe that...if I don't believe that there has to be a way to make this work...\" If he could master how to use it, Subaru wouldn't have to lose anything. He could solve everything with Return by Death. If he lost faith in that idea, if he stopped telling himself his suffering was necessary and he couldn't convince himself anymore, then how could he ever confront that despair again...? \"I...! I don't wanna lose anyone else like how I lost Rem !!\" Clutching his head, Subaru screamed in denial of anything and everything beyond himself. He realized that at some point, he'd slumped to the ground. With Satella right before his eyes, he was cowering inside his shell, shutting out her soft, tiny whispers. She was poison. A deadly substance. Satella's very existence was like a sweet venom that melted Subaru's hardened heart. As it melted, frigid despair seeped into the cracks that had"}, {"text": "opened up, dredging up the crushing loss he felt that day. \"You're not a child, are you?\" Out of the blue, he heard a voice murmur. As Subaru tearfully shouted while stubbornly clinging to the conclusion he'd reached all alone, one of the Witches who had been silent so far looked directly at Subaru as she muttered, shaking her head in disapproval. \"Crying, mewling, throwing a tantrum, taking on everything by yourself...that's just like...\" *** \"...a sad, lonely child, no?\" With a pitying voice, Sekhmet passed judgment on Subaru. Not one of the wordless Witches present uttered a word of denial. Everything she had said rung true. In this moment, Subaru was nothing but a small, frail child. It was too painful to even watch. \" Baru, are you crying...?\" As he remained on his knees, Subaru abruptly felt his head being enveloped by something soft. Through his teary vision, he saw Typhon, the olive-skinned little girl who governed Pride. Standing at his side, the little girl was gently embracing Subaru's head. Then, without moving from her spot  \"It's so sad seeing you cry like this... Who's the one who made you cry?\" Pitying Subaru, Pride surveyed the Witches gathered at the tea party with her red eyes. He sensed that the dangerous look in her gaze was slowly but surely causing the strained, tenuous equilibrium between the Witches to crumble. \"Was it Tella? Daffy? Milla? Sigh? Or was it Nerva who...well, I guess probably not. Then was it Dona who did something bad to you again? Who was bad?\" \"Wh-why did you take me off the list right away? Even I can h-h-hurt someone, you know.\" \"Your face goes pale just from imagining it. You're not capable. More importantly, why was I the only one who came out as a firm suspect, I wonder? It makes me want to meet the parents who raised you and question them in great detail...\" \"Because that is a daily affair for you, sigh.\" Typhon vigilantly watched the Witches as they reacted. She was eager to root out the \"bad person who made Subaru cry.\" The fact that the suspects were her fellow Witches was no reason for them to be exempt from her punishment. Still, these women all possessed supernatural powers that could destroy whole nations or perhaps even the entire world itself. With all of them gathered in the same place at the same time and ready to lash out at the slightest provocation, this tea party was more dangerous than playing with matches next to a powder keg. Pride, clutching the head of the crying boy, was keen on punishing whoever had sinned. Wrath, siding with her own murderer, was adamant on making sure the quiet Witch's feelings were heard. Sloth, keeping an eye on everyone equally, was lazily waiting to instantly smash whoever would make the first move. Gluttony, showing no interest in the changing circumstances, was craving to take advantage of everything going on to satisfy her hunger. Lust, maintaining her neutrality, was clutching at her own head as if to protect herself alone. Greed, with a faint trace of hatred remaining in her glimmering eyes, was inquisitively watching for any shifts in the balance of power. And finally, the Witch called Satella, who was apparently not the Witch of Jealousy  \" I...love you. Because you...gave me light. Because you took my hand, and you taught me about the world outside. Because...when I trembled on lonely nights, you never stopped holding my hand. Because when I felt lonely, you kissed me and said that I wasn't alone. You gave me so many things... That's why I love you. Because you...you gave me everything.\" She showed no intention of cutting short her whispers of love for the kneeling Subaru, who didn't seem to register anything she said. He couldn't understand. He didn't get any of it. He'd never met Satella before, nor had he ever exchanged words with her. Everything she was saying had to be the product of her delusions. She wasn't any different than Petelgeuse, another person who had gone mad with love. All that should have been true. And yet, Subaru Natsuki knew. \"What the hell...? What's this...inside me? I don't want any of these feelings. Don't...tie me to memories I don't have... How could... How could I...for someone like you...?!\" I hate you is what he wanted to add. The word hate did not truly suffice. He detested this person. He didn't feel a single shred of good will toward her. If she was going to force such self-centered feelings of love onto him, he might as well see what kind of face she was making. It would be something to behold, no doubt.  How can you do this to her...? *** Having reached the pinnacle of a supposedly impossible contradiction, Subaru's mind went blank. The next moment, Subaru \"addressed\" the confusion. There could be no more direct way to do so. \"...Baru?\" It was Typhon, touching Subaru, who was the first to notice the change. The little girl's eyes went wide as she realized that strength had drained from Subaru even as he remained kneeling within her arms. She immediately noticed something else. A large quantity of blood was dripping from his mouth. Subaru had bit his tongue. \" Ahh, so this is another option you have, Subaru Natsuki.\" As the various Witches reacted to his decision, Echidna was the only one whose cheeks slackened in joy. \" Gh, puh.\" This was Echidna's castle of dreams. Subaru's real body wasn't here. Accordingly, dying in this place was a death of the mind, which ran the risk of leaving his body an empty husk. Even after considering the possibility, Subaru tried to end it nonetheless. Death was Subaru's only hope  \"You...absolute idiot !!\" The moment Minerva noticed Subaru trying to take his own life, her face reddened as she flew into action. She raised her fist, brimming with the power of healing, and prepared to slam it into Subaru. But before she could, Typhon stood in her way. The young Witch spread both arms wide, shielding Subaru behind her as much as her little body could. \"Baru chose this himself! Don't get in his way, Nerva!\" \"Hurting yourself, killing yourself, hurting others, killing others I won't allow any of it! Mental suffering is beyond me! If I can't see it, there's no way for me to know when someone's hurt! So that's why instead, I never ignore any wounds I can see, even it means destroying the world!!\" With one determined step forward, which left a crater in the hill, Minerva slammed her fist into Typhon's face. It wasn't an exaggeration to say it hit like a cannonball that could crush whole boulders. However, the instant her fist came into contact with a living thing, the force of her blow changed from being destructive to healing and so, only the momentum of the impact remained. With an explosive roar, Minerva's strike sent the young Witch's childlike body flying. However, while she had managed to overcome the obstacle, it was not just Typhon who'd taken damage. The right arm Minerva had swung with cracked like a shattered glass window. The Witch of Pride had deemed her actions evil; this was the result of being touched by her judgment. The pain of having lost her arm made Minerva turn her face up toward the sky, opening her mouth wide in  \" Piece of caaaaake !!\"  what was decidedly not a scream of pain. The Witch of Wrath was so sensitive to the suffering of others that she put her own aside no matter what. Her calling Subaru's methods twisted while stubbornly adhering to her own extreme ideals was truly the pot calling the kettle black. \"Anyway! With this, I'll...!\" \"Sigh...the next one to interfere...is me.\" An instant later, a blow that came from straight above knocked Minerva off the hill. After her entire body was forced into the ground, Minerva left a human-shaped indentation on the grassy plain. Lifting up her head, she looked toward Sekhmet with a face marred with rage and shouted: \"Don't interfere, Sekhmet!!\" \"I can do no such thing, phew. Emotionally, I am on the boy's side, sigh. You could probably say I'm also on Typhon's side, phew. So you see, I have no reason not to interfere, sigh.\" Faced with Sekhmet's declaration of opposition, Minerva resentfully bit her lip and scanned the area. Unfortunately for her, Daphne and Carmilla were maintaining their neutrality in this dispute, while Echidna was nothing but a detached observer awaiting the results. And Satella was  \"Agh, aghhh...\" Subaru continued heaving up terrible amounts of blood as the Witch knelt in her black dress, her voice shaking as she spoke to him. The frothy blood pouring from the boy's torn tongue was blocking his throat. Subaru was drowning in his own blood as he caught sight of Satella. Finally, I'll be free, he thought. But the moment he noticed her grieving, his relief evaporated like ephemeral mist. \"Why haven't you realized...? That somewhere among all the things you wish to save, shouldn't there be a spot for you, too...?\" Why did she think about Subaru that way? Just how much had Subaru soothed her heart during those delusions she must've had? \"Just like many other people, fate has led you to many dead ends. But just because you have the chance to change those... Why can't you see...that you're someone who deserves to be saved, too...?\" There had to be...some mistake. Subaru was an unredeemable person, unable to take care of even the things that were within his reach. He couldn't even save just the people he wanted to save. He couldn't break free from his inadequacy, his immaturity. Hadn't he sworn to change? To stop being such a fool? Hadn't he decided to act cool? The part of him that was weak and the part of him that didn't want to be weak anymore warred inside him. He'd made a vow a vow to the girl who had chosen him to be her hero. He could not go back on that vow. He had to challenge death, to desire death, to face death head-on.  If she knew of this, would she be happy? Would she be sad?  What would she think of Subaru, who she'd wished to be her hero? He couldn't think about it. He couldn't know about it. This was a dangerous line of thought. Subaru Natsuki was fine with that. He did not think of himself as a person anyone would miss. He was not a human being with that kind of worth. Subaru's life was an expendable commodity. And so, like any other resource, all he needed to do was use it, and use it as much as necessary to make sure he reached the end. It was simple. In order to gain something valuable, something worthless would be exhausted. It was only natural. The decision was so obvious, anyone would do the same, wouldn't they? All Subaru had was his life. He would save the lives of precious people who needed to be saved, lives that would never return. If he could manage that at least, Subaru could  \"What happened in the second Trial...? What did you see...?\" Trial.  Trial. Trial, \"Trial.\" Trialtrialtrial, Trialtrialtrialtrial, Trial ? Shock and insufficient oxygen had severely dulled his mind. His vision was finally becoming indistinct, and the world began to flash red. White noise like television static filled his thoughts. Subaru hazily considered that the end was near. The end would finally come. With this, how many times would he have greeted death? It was annoying to count, but that was fine. Sooner or later, he would confront death so many times that he'd be tired of counting anyway. He didn't think the human mind could withstand remembering the number of deaths it had experienced. He readied his heart into steel. A heart of steel that would not be swayed by anything  Finally, Subaru's consciousness slowly, gently"}, {"text": "melted into the darkness  \" I've got high hopes for you, son.\" There was...a sound. From somewhere on the other side of the white noise, from the chaotically reflecting noises, he heard...something very clear. \" Come back soon.\" There it was again. He heard a different sound. But this resonated in his chest in the same way. \" I...wanted to call you my friend.\" A different sound, a sound that carried another feeling. The sounds were far from calming. But still, they were comforting. \"Why...why?!! Why, Subaru... How could you do this so easily...!\" A different sound again. The sound of parting filled his chest with a sense of desolation and something resembling longing, a feeling that made him want to say he was sorry. \"I knew that...at the very least, you weren't That Person...but...\" A new sound made his chest tighten. It was impossible to remain detached and unemotional. This was a tearful sound. It was the sound of someone who he shouldn't make cry. Who he had to protect. Who he had to save. Sound. Sound. Sound. \"Please show me your good parts, Subaru.\" Reacting to the sound, a kind of thump rang out. The inside of his body grew hot. A sense of duty stirred within him. That sound had always supported him. And then  \"Thank you, Subaru.\" There was...a sound. \" Thank you...for helping me.\"  A sound that heralded the beginning of...everything. 3 He wondered if they would cry. Subaru wondered if the people important to him would be sad about his death. In the world he would leave through selfishly experiencing death, would the irreplaceable people he left behind miss him? Would they be sad at his passing? As Subaru repeated Return by Death, would they, too, be chagrined? There were people who he thought of as precious, who he believed he had to protect, who he yearned to save.  Did he have enough worth to make these previous people miss him? Is it fine to be that conceited? Do precious people think of a guy like me...as a precious existence? Is it all right for me to believe that? To believe I'm needed by the people I want to protect, enough that they want to protect even a guy like me? Is it forgivable to even wish for it? To wish that even a guy like me is worth enough that people would cry if they lost me, that they'd reach a hand out because they want to save me?  Is it all right for me to even think it? To think I don't wanna die. To think I don't want to give up, to say this is the only way. To think I don't want to become the cornerstone that protects the future of the people precious to me, and then disappear. To think I want to be with those precious people in the future I've protected, together. Is it all right to think like that? Do I have that kind of worth? If I really do  \"I don't...wanna die...\" A clump of blood made a sound as it fell. There was a sound of air leaking out, and it brought along a different sound. His breathing eased. His consciousness was returning. His hazy vision had begun to return, and with it, color returned to the world. And then  \"I knew that's how you really felt all along...you jerk!!\" ...As he tenaciously crawled, the face of Wrath came into focus, right as she healed him with a headbutt. 4 Subaru coughed, spitting out clumps of blood. He rolled onto his back, faceup as he looked at the sky. He made repeated, ragged breaths, earnestly gasping in search of oxygen, the fuel needed for life. His heart had no time to feel shame at how lowly and pathetic he looked as he clung to life. Just... \"Am I...?\" *** \"Am I...worthy of living...? Me, who can't die...do I have...any value outside of dying...?\" Through Return by Death, he had saved people he held dear from horrific fates. Subaru Natsuki had believed his only value was in the results he had obtained at the cost of his life. But was it right to think that this was not so? \"Can I think that...a human being like me has value outside of Return by Death...? Is it all right for me to think that...the people I care for...care for me, too...?\" \"...I wouldn't know any such thing.\" Minerva gave Subaru's frail question that very curt reply. She was in a terrible state. Her arm was shattered, and there were bruises from blunt trauma all over her body. But she calmly rose to her feet, gritted her teeth at those wounds, and regenerated herself. Doing this, the Witch of Wrath stood solidly on her own two feet, crossing her arms as she looked down at Subaru. And then  \"Don't ask me what worth you have. But that girl wants you to live so much...plus, you saw in the second Trial yourself, didn't you?\" \"...But the second Trial showed me the mistakes, the sins I committed...\" \"What are you, an idiot? That wasn't to make you take responsibility for worlds gone wrong. That was to show you just how sad people got because of the results of your mistakes.  That's your answer right there, isn't it?\" \" hh.\" They returned to the back of his mind. He remembered. He remembered crying voices. He remembered voices clenched in regret. He remembered strong voices sending him off. He remembered all the people sending him off so kindly. He remembered whispers of love from those who'd believed in him. He remembered the genesis, the trigger of his struggle against fate. He remembered a life that supposedly had nothing awaiting him. Subaru remembered he'd been invited into that world with nothing, with the things he was supposed to have falling from his fingertips. To prove that someone like him had worth, he had to keep struggling. And as he kept struggling to protect those precious things he had gained, he thought he had no choice but to walk an even lonelier path. I'd thought to myself, it's all others giving unto me. Is it all right for me to think it's not so?  People will cry for my sake?  People will lament their powerlessness for my sake?  People wish to see the future with me, together?  Precious people will give me the privilege of standing and smiling at their side? Surely it was impossible for someone stubbornly walking a lonely path to the very end, as Subaru had been doing, to receive such a privilege. With a heart of steel a mental state that swayed before nothing he was disconnected from the softness that would've allowed him to smile. Then was it all right to believe? That the choice to whittle away his own heart, deciding it was the price he had to pay for the future of those precious to him... That the choice to desperately struggle to protect his own heart, thus becoming unable to walk his chosen path... To believe that neither need be taken, and that there was another, greedier choice?  Was it all right to believe and to want it? \" I permit it.\" These were Subaru's thoughts, thoughts he had in no way spoken aloud. And yet, there was a reply to those thoughts. Still flat on the ground and faceup, he let his head tumble sideways. Over where Minerva was standing still, someone was kneeling on the grassy field. Her face was drenched with tears, but still she smiled. Even then, Subaru could not see this face, which was covered by shadow. Obstructed by that curtain of darkness, he could not see the expression turned toward him. And yet, he knew she was smiling. \"I was saved by you. That is why I permit that you can be saved. And it is my hope to be saved by you.\" Satella's words, her voice, and her smile permeated the cracks in his heart. Subaru covered his face with his hands. Tears flowed. Sobs spilled out. He continued to hide his weeping face. That moment, he didn't want anyone, especially her, to see him like that for the sake of his meager stubbornness. \"...I was surprised that Minerva broke through Typhon and Sekhmet's obstruction, but I find this action by the two of you even more unexpected.\" Echidna made that small comment, ignoring Subaru as he covered his weeping face.  After all, before Echidna was a spectacle of talons stretching from the black, lacquered coffin to restrain Typhon while the coffin's mistress, Daphne, faced off against Sekhmet. Daphne responded to Echidna's words with a low, throaty laugh. Released from her restraints, she stepped barefoot onto the grassy field, tilting her hips as she stuck out her tongue. \"There's no mistaaake that Daphne's compatibility with Ty-Ty is number oooone. The Centipede Coffin has no head for thinking because it's Daphne's arms and leeeegs. And its compatibility with Ty-Ty's Authority is the woooorst.\" \"Uuugh! Daffy, out of my way! Nnnn! Uuu!\" \"So...sigh. That means you are holding me back yourself, phew. I'm not Echidna, but, sigh. Why are you doing something like this, phew. Unlike Minerva, I do not understand your reason for getting involved, sigh.\" Glancing as Typhon writhed under the coffin, Sekhmet made another weighty sigh. With Typhon taken hostage, the mightiest of the Witches apparently could not act rashly. Responding to Sekhmet's words, Daphne shook her head, braids swaying as she said \"Nahhhh\" and laughed. \"Subaru, you seeee, killed the White Whale, then talked big and told Daphne that the Great Rabbit was neeext. Sooo I figured I wanted him to last at least long enough to chaaaallenge it.\" \"A most fascinating opinion. Certainly, if he puts his mind to it, he can achieve such a feat. You must understand this as well...but Daphne, do you want the Great Rabbit to be destroyed?\" \"Not reaaaally? From the moment they were born from Daphne, those children's empty stomachs and Daphne's empty stomach weren't related anymooore. Where and how it's destroyed makes no differeeeence...but all the same, Daphne might be interested in just how the Great Rabbit, Daphne's own inexhaustible hunger, reaches its eeeend.\" You see, she seemed to say, sipping her own drool. \"If Daphne is satisfied at how it eeeends, that would be a happiness unknoooown to Daphne...\" To Daphne, who was tormented by an inexhaustible sense of emptiness, satisfaction was a dream eternally out of reach. And if the Great Rabbit was a reflection of her own endless hunger, it existed as the incarnation of her cravings.  Not that Daphne herself held any sentimentality toward it. But Daphne harbored an interest, a curiosity beyond hunger. To Echidna, this was a most satisfying answer. Smiling at this, Echidna nodded, turning her gaze to the other person to whom she had referred to the Witch of Lust, standing apart from the group. \"Carmilla, what about you? Do you have a reason like Daphne's, I wonder?\" \"Wh-what are you...trying to say, E-Echidna...?\" \"It is very simple.  You were the one who called him back from the brink of death, weren't you? I do not understand the reason you would go as far as employing your Faceless Bride Authority.\" *** \"You must have called forth countless bonds for him. I thought you were not fond of him. And so, I wish to ask: Why have you done this?\" When Echidna posed her question, Carmilla hid her mouth under the stole wrapped around her neck, glancing around in search of aid from the Witches around them. She wanted someone other than herself to come rescue her. However, there was no Witch in that place who would fall under the lovely Carmilla's charms. Left with no other choice, Carmilla leaned forward, gazing at Echidna with upturned eyes. \"N-no r-reason, really? I'm satisfied with that boy refusing Echidna's...mm, advances...so even if others fight, as long as I'm safe, then...just...\" \"Just?\" \"L-love is important...r-right? You mustn't hold it in...contempt... You mustn't. That boy...he"}, {"text": "thinks he doesn't want to see it, when 'love' is right there, so...I won't let him...deny what's there. And besides, I......really hate not repaying a debt.\" Her words were halting and plodding. However, only at the end did Carmilla assert herself loud and clear. Receiving this, Echidna dropped her shoulders as she looked at the faces of the various Witches in turn. \"Sekhmet and Typhon tried to honor his will. Minerva, honoring his life, healed him. Daphne cooperated, extending his life so she might watch his battle. Carmilla, who'd kept her back turned to him, used her Authority to make him understand 'love.'  Now then, putting each and every person's various assertions together...all of you were trying to help Subaru Natsuki.\" The Witches stood still, neither affirming nor denying Echidna's assessment. Sloth, Pride, Wrath, Gluttony, Lust all stood still. Seeing the Witches like that, Greed twisted her cheeks in amusement. And then  \"This is indeed most interesting.  Do you not think so?\" She posed this question, casting it toward Subaru, looking haggard as he wobbled to his feet. *** His head was terribly heavy. His entire body was languid as if he had a high fever. Even then, his tears had not fully dried. Wiping from his cheek what remained of his tears with his sleeve, Subaru, somehow managing to stand on his own two feet, surveyed the faces of Echidna and the other Witches with insipid eyes. \"Really...the hell is wrong with you all...\" It was a question a natural question for a puny human to have after meeting a Witch. \"Curiosity. Sympathy. Compassion. Sense of duty. Expectation. Hatred... Can't say I really understand or agree with the reasons you had to take my side. I get why they call you all Witches.\" \"From this insulting attitude, I take it that your willpower has returned?\" \"...Dunno.\" From the words that had trickled out of him, Echidna winked and bluntly laid out Subaru's mental state. \"I decided there were things I had to do. That hasn't changed, even now. And I'd...resolved that...to accomplish them, this was the only way. But...\" Haltingly, Subaru spoke not to anyone else in particular, but to himself. \"My resolve...when I came to this place, the Trial...broke it. Just when I thought you were lending me a hand, I found out what you really thought, then even Satella appeared...my head's all a mess. You're all self-serving... I decided what it is I had to do. But then...\" After coming this far, if he clung to his supposedly expendable life, what then? After coming this far, if he yearned for life when using it was his only option, what then? After coming this far, if he internalized that he was loved, what was it he ought to do? \"Now I...don't know what I should do anymore.\" Logic pleaded that if he did not desire death, he could save nothing via Return by Death. His memories told him that as death piled higher, the flood of tears from those who had lost Subaru grew greater. Without his death, someone would be sad, and yet with his death, someone would be sad also. \" Now, I ask you once more, Subaru Natsuki.\" With Subaru unable to sew his thoughts together, Echidna lowered her voice, speaking solemnly. When he lifted his face, Echidna was standing right in front of him, slowly nodding. \"If I cooperate with you, the people you absolutely wish to save will arrive at a future in which they are saved. You will have no more reason to worry. In extremis, I will find the answers to the problems that you must directly confront. All you need do is put them into effect, thus climbing over the walls. If you are afraid you must continue to worry, one choice you have is entrusting those worries to me. I will not fault you for this. I will welcome it. Therefore, I now ask you once more.\" *** \"Since you do not understand what to do, how about letting me lead you by the hand? I promise, I will bring you to the future you desire without fail.\" This spoken, Echidna stretched her hand out to Subaru. If he took that hand, a pact would be formed. Echidna would cooperate with Subaru in accordance with her words. It was an idea he'd rejected out of emotion a short while before. But Echidna's proposal hit the mark. If he truly wanted that future, he ought to sacrifice himself in a true sense and use her for that purpose. He ought to take that hand. If he did not fear being hurt and resolved to swallow down thoughts of pain and suffering as he continued to fight, he ought to take that hand. Hence  \"Echidna.  I'm afraid of being hurt.\" *** \"I hate pain, suffering, and sadness. I don't want to go through painful times, and I don't want to watch someone other than me go through bad things, either.  I don't want to die.\" *** \"So because it's predicated on sacrifice, I won't take your hand anymore.\" Not even Subaru knew what he might be able to do. But he could not walk the path Echidna had presented. He could not choose it.  For he was aware that he did not want to die. He, who had thought dying was the only service he could contribute, had learned that there were people who would accept him without him having to die.  Subaru Natsuki was not a man who had value only in death. For the people who regretted Subaru's death would not have done so had they seen value in his death. No, what they regretted was  \"I don't know exactly what everyone felt like they lost yet.  But I think I want to find out. If I understand that, I think I can repay everyone in a way besides death.\" \"...But that is a path of thorns. The shortest way to the future is to choose to use your life as a tool and cut it open. It would have been better if you offered your heart alone. To reject this, and to preserve both your own heart and someone else's future in your hands at the same time, is most difficult, and moreover \" Echidna cut off her words with a pause of her breath. Then the most charming smile he had seen on the Witch to that point came over her. \" it is greed.\" Affirming its greed, the Witch of Greed joyfully accepted Subaru's judgment. Subaru did not understand the thinking of the Witch, who seemed so happy even though he had rejected her proposal. But. \"What is true is that you came and saved me a bunch of times over... Even if in the bottom of your heart, you think of me as nothing more than a lab animal, that much is true.\" It was undeniable that for some travails, Echidna's existence had lent support to his heart, allowing him to overcome them. Therefore, his gratitude for the times when she'd saved his heart was also definite. \" Foolish, pitiable Garfiel fears the outside world.\" \"...Eh?\" \"What he saw during the first Trial has bound his heart ever since. If you are to get through this situation with your own power, it will surely be necessary to break that curse.\" \"Echidna?\" \"What, just sour grapes from a busybody. I would rather you did not think All those other Witches are good people deep down, but that Echidna is a bad person to the bitter end or the like. Whatever your thoughts, I am a girl, and it is the truth that I have some degree of fondness for you.\" Speaking rapidly, Echidna gave Subaru's chest a light poke with the hand he had not taken. Then she turned her back, her white hair swaying as the Witch of Greed put distance between them. During that time, Daphne was using her coffin to cuddle Typhon up to Sekhmet, and Carmilla had returned to the fold as well. Seeing the Witches like that made Subaru sigh. \"You really are incomprehensible monsters. I don't think I could ever come to like or understand you.\" These were his true, unvarnished thoughts. The values each Witch harbored never wavered, something that would never sit well with Subaru no, that was true for any normal person. Thus Subaru could not understand the Witches, nor could he cooperate with them. But just like he thought with Echidna, understanding and gratitude were wholly different things. \"Thanks for trying to let me die. Thanks for not letting me die. Thanks for making me hear the voices that are precious to me.  Thanks for all that.\" He bowed his head to the Witches one by one. Pride smiled, Sloth sighed, Lust grimaced in disgust, Gluttony licked her lips in arousal, and Wrath turned her face aside. Then he turned around toward Satella, who was kneeling on the hill, and began walking to her. As Subaru walked over, Satella looked up at him, her breath catching. Her body trembled in fear and unease. Why was it that someone he had so dreaded filled his chest with such warmth? What were these emotions he continued to harbor for someone he'd never come in contact with? It was a mystery with no answer, but this dream castle had already given Subaru too many. With not a single answer to that question, Subaru opted to keep worrying about it as he crouched down, extending his hand to the Witch. Seemingly bewildered, Satella stared at the hand offered to her. \"I...don't know who you are. I don't know why you told me you love me...and I don't know the meaning of...you telling me that I saved you.\" \" Ah.\" \"But it's still a fact that you saved me by giving me Return by Death. It's also true that I've relied on it to get me this far.\" *** \"To me, Return by Death is...one choice, I suppose?\" *** \"And you're telling me...not to depend on it, but to love myself...right?\" *** \"I'm not saying it's as cut and dry as that.  But there's no mistaking that you gave me Return by Death because you don't want me to die.\" That was why... \"Just like you said, I'm going to...try loving myself, just a little more. I'll take better care of myself. I don't know what'll happen because of it, but that's fine.\" \"...It's all right?\" \"Yeah...compared with death, it ain't nothin'.\" Responding to Satella's concerned voice, Subaru made a smile, frail as it was. Seemingly relieved by that expression, Satella took Subaru's hand. The next moment, Subaru's eardrums caught a sound as if the very world had cracked. The colors of the blue sky and the green, grassy field faded. Subaru Natsuki was being freed from the castle of dreams. \" I'm returning outside, huh?\" Even then, it was unclear how, and why, he had arrived at that place. What should he do first when he got back? His mind was in chaos over even an issue like that. \"Don't worry all by yourself. Do it together, with the people who consider you precious...\" *** \"Struggle together with the people who you do not wish to die, the people who do not wish to let you die.  And when even that fails, do not forget to fear death when you die.\" *** \"Do not forget that when you die, it makes people sad \" The world made a sound like it was breaking. Satella's voice grew distant. And yet, it clawed terribly at Subaru's heart. The palm connecting him to her was hot. He felt a longing that told him he mustn't take his hand away. *** He called out to her, but his voice would not come out. His voice could not call her...Satella. If he called her that, he wouldn't be able to reject her any longer. He would lose to his wanting to accept her. His soul kept on screaming at him, asking how he should deal with that emotion."}, {"text": "The sky was falling. The earth was splitting. Light flooded in, and the scene around them had already completely changed. All signs of the Witches had vanished, too. The world consisted of Subaru and Satella alone. There was a vanishing. And then, there was a beginning.  Still unable to speak, Subaru stared at the Satella right in front of him. *** Suddenly, the curtain of darkness lifted. The subconscious veil that had hidden from Subaru what he had not wished to see became transparent, making visible what rested across it. And then, when he saw the face peering at him from below, Subaru drew in his breath. Looking at Subaru, Satella made her silver hair sway, narrowing her violet eyes. And as tears coursed from the corners of those eyes  \"And someday you will come to kill me, yes?\" She vanished. She was gone. The world was being erased, and he could no longer see even the girl who was right before his eyes. The only thing that was still certain was the warmth within his palm. And so, Subaru gripped it tight. \" I will save you. You'll see.\" That was all he said to the lovely girl whom he could no longer see. CHAPTER 2 *** 1  The first sensation he became aware of was something rough rubbing against his cheek. As he regained consciousness, his entire being was dominated by a sense of extreme languor. His body felt sluggish, as if it was sand coursing through his veins rather than blood. When he opened his mouth in search of air, his parched lips refused to let go of each other and tore apart. The pain and the taste of blood on the tip of his tongue startled him. His slightly bleary eyes rolled around as he forced open his heavy eyelids. His vision cleared, and the world gained color and then, the sight of a pitch-black land dragon leaped into his eyes. \"...Oh, it's you?\" There by his side, heaving rasping breaths and watching him with two narrowed, amber eyes, was Subaru's beloved land dragon, Patlash. She extended her head, continuing to lick the sleepy Subaru in an apparent show of concern. \"So that rough tongue belongs to you, huh... Where...are we...?\" Subaru suspended the touchy-feely wakeup call, rendering Patlash silent. Lying at his favorite dragon's side, Subaru looked around the area, drawing his brows together when he saw he was outside the tomb.  He remembered the encounter with the Witches that had occurred just prior in the world of dreams. The condition for being invited to Echidna's tea party was to enter the tomb. According to previous experience, he should have woken up in the stonework room within the tomb. Instead, Subaru was resting his body against the stone wall at the entrance to the tomb. \"Someone brought me out...? But who...\" \" W-wait! Please wait, dear! Patlash...! Wait a...huff, huff... If you run off and I lose track of you...I'll be in such trouble...!\" The question Subaru murmured aloud was interrupted by a pathetic voice echoing through the nighttime forest. The speaker was out of breath, tripping as he earnestly ran up the stone stairs of the tomb. Then, when he spotted Patlash on the steps above, he was clearly exhausted as well as relieved. \"Ahh, I'm so glad! To think you were in a place like...er, ah? Mr. Natsuki?\" \"...You sure are in high spirits on a night like this, Otto. What are you up to? Burglary?\" \"I shall return that very same question to you. What are you up to? For that matter, you are hardly unrelated to why I am in these dire straits to begin with, Mr. Natsuki.\" Otto's shoulders dropped as he addressed Subaru, who was sitting on the ground with his legs spread out. Seeing Otto, Subaru had reflexively joked around like usual, but he got down to business in short order. \"I'm not unrelated? Wait, what happened?\" \"I mean our dear Patlash. In fact, Patlash went wild back at the stables. As these are unfamiliar surroundings, I untied her thinking I might take her for a refreshing stroll...and poof! Off she ran.\" Otto made a gaze of protest toward her, but the land dragon in question had her face turned away from him, her expression one of lofty indifference. \"...She literally has no eyes for me... At any rate, she rushed out of the stables, and I was nervous that if she ran off entirely, my situation would become grave, bringing us to the present, you see.\" \"So she came right to me, then. Well, well, Patlash. You must be the sort to get lonely quick.\" \"It did not appear to be...mere longing for you, Mr. Natsuki. I mean...\" Crossing his arms, Otto narrowed his eyes, suggestively turning them toward Patlash. Subaru followed suit, squinting as he gazed at the land dragon's scales, which seemed to melt into the night. That was when he realized it. Patlash's black scales had wounds that oozed with blood. Surely, the hard scales covering her body could not be easily harmed, and more than that, her injuries looked like they were inflicted internally rather than externally.  Instantly, the stated rules for entering the tomb rose in the back of Subaru's mind. \"When someone not qualified enters the tomb, they get rejected...\" As a matter of fact, that rule was the cause of Roswaal's grave injuries from when he had entered the tomb. There was no mercy for any violators of that edict, and it was effective not only against people, but even against land dragons. \"Don't tell me you...got all hurt like this to pull me out of there?\" Murmuring, Subaru touched his own shoulder. There were traces of saliva left on his sports jacket. There was dirt on his back and hips from being dragged, too. It was Patlash who had brought Subaru outside. In spite of her wounds from the penalty for entering the tomb, Subaru's beloved dragon had brought him out. \"Why'd you do something stupid like...when I woke up, I could've just come outside on my...you didn't need to drag me out and get all hurt like this...\" Unable to keep looking at her seeping wounds, Subaru hung his head. Patlash reached out once more, rubbing the tip of her nose against Subaru. Subaru couldn't tell what she meant by it. Unable to exchange words with her, the flow of thoughts and feelings ran only in one direction between them. He was always the one being saved. \"Otto.\" \"What is it? If I am in the way, perhaps it would be best if I went somewhere for the...\" \"Can you...ask Patlash why she saved me?\"  There was only one way to find out what Patlash truly thought. Otto's blessing of language. This power allowed him to converse with birds and animals, both of which could not normally engage in human speech. Surely, with this, it was possible to find out how Patlash felt. However, faced with Subaru's request, Otto twisted his lips and put on a disagreeable look. \"Er...to be honest, I cannot wrap my head around it. Mr. Natsuki, are you trying to be funny?\" \"...Do I look like I'm trying to make a joke right now?\" \"Even in such a sorry state, I feel like Mr. Natsuki of all people might make some sort of unfunny jest, and I must admit that I do hope you are joking.  You truly cannot tell?\" When Otto replied in a low voice, Subaru tried to respond only to be overwhelmed by Otto's gaze. Otto was looking at Subaru with an incredulous look, as if he was watching something ridiculous. Subaru felt like he was overlooking something rather big, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Seeing Subaru's confusion, Otto let out an exasperated sigh as he touched his hand to his cheek. \"My blessing is not as omnipotent as you believe it to be, Mr. Natsuki. Mere transmission of thoughts differs from translation, so asking me to bridge the gap in this exchange is asking for the impossible.\" *** \"Your eyes say to try anyway. Very well...though I wonder if there is a point, really...\" Though his sullen dismay trickled out, Otto grudgingly accepted Subaru's request. Otto gently stroked Patlash's back as she snuggled up to Subaru.  A high-pitched, raspy breath came out of that very Otto's throat. Through the power of the blessing of language, he had converted human speech into land dragon speech. Patlash responded to his call, turned her head toward Otto, and emitted a similar, high-pitched call. Otto responded to this with a high-pitched call, and so it went, back and forth. \"I am finished...but, mm-hmm, it is difficult. How do I translate this into human terms...\" \"Don't keep me in suspense. Just tell me, I'm begging you.\" \"I am not attempting to keep you in...ahh, this really puts me in a bind! Then again, would conveying this message be considered an extremely strange form of kindness?!\" Scratching his head, Otto repeatedly searched his thoughts for words that he would find acceptable. Finally, after noticing Subaru nervously clenching his teeth, he sighed with what felt like an air of resignation. \"It is closest to Don't make me...say something like that, I believe.\" \"...Eh?\" Scratching his cheek with a blush on his face, Otto averted his gaze as Subaru widened his eyes at those words. Though Subaru waited for him to continue, Otto offered nothing more. Or so it seemed, but Otto raised his eyebrows toward the speechless Subaru. \"I mean, she said Don't make me...say something like that. I thought she might say as much...\" \"Not making her say...what's that supposed to mean...?\" \"Exactly what it sounds like. If I was to add my own personal impression, it'd be with an air of Do I really need to say it for you to understand?\" Otto's statement only further perplexed Subaru. Though he was being asked Don't you understand? he really didn't. What was it, exactly, that Subaru didn't understand, then? \"...Overcome with worry whether a certain person is in peril and unable to hold still, she comes rushing out to mount a rescue regardless of what wounds she may sustain, staying right at his side until he awakens, smiling at him in relief when he opens his eyes in such a case, be it human or land dragon, I believe the feelings behind those actions are much the same.\" \"Ah \" \"And even if it wasn't Patlash, you would still get Don't make me say it. To not notice when her demeanor demonstrates so much is something beyond being merely dense... I suppose that ignorance is bliss?\" Otto looking exasperated from the very bottom of his heart made Subaru appreciate the depth of his own foolishness. Next, when he looked at Patlash, who was right by his side, the land dragon stared at Subaru with a gentle gaze, drawing her nose close to rub against his neck once more. By nature, he stroked the land dragon's head, gently petting her hard, rocklike scales. \"I see...you love me, don't you?\" *** \"So you're in love with me... I see.\" Thump, he felt, as something that'd been caught inside his chest seemed to fall away. Subaru's acknowledgment brought a neigh out of Patlash, and the strength of her rubbing increased as if she was trying to conceal a blush. The sensation scraped his skin, but when Subaru tried to open his mouth to protest  \"Uh, ah...?\" Abruptly, hot droplets coursed down Subaru's cheeks.  Tears. They were tears. From somewhere in the very back of his consciousness, something urgently welled up and came pouring out. He rushed to touch his hands to his cheeks, but he was too late to hide it. Otto gaped right at him. \"M-Mr. Natsuki? Breaking into tears from realizing your land dragon is fond of you is a little...\" \"You're wro...this isn't...it's just, the timing is too darn perfect...shit, right when I was having doubts, the answer came"}, {"text": "flying into my face...!\"  It wasn't fair. This came at the perfect time. That was Patlash for you. Too crafty, too cunning. Internally papering things over with such foolish words, Subaru desperately fought to hold back tears. He recalled how at the Witch's Tea Party, he had confessed his true desire of not wanting to die. He confessed, too, his greed: His desire to be with the people precious to him was just as strong as his desire to protect them. And how he yearned to know if the people important to him thought he was something precious to them. \"Who'd have thought you'd be the first one to tell me?  Thanks, Patlash.\" As if to reply to the faithful love trained toward him, Subaru poured his feelings into his palm as he stroked his beloved dragon. Satisfied with his touch, Patlash lifted her head in a ladylike manner. Moreover, the swaying of her tail showed without a doubt that she was in a good mood. \"Now that you have reaffirmed your bonds with Patlash, are you all right?\" \"Yeah, thanks to her. Sorry to cause you a lot of trouble, too... Whaddaya mean 'all right'?\" \"Mentally, but also physically. I can tell just by looking that you entered the tomb. You collapsed when you went in to save Emilia, so what was it this time? It is more than enough to make one worry.\" \"So you were worried about me...by any chance, are you in love with me, too?\" \"Could you please not say something creepy such as that?! Surely, you are not so unsatisfied with being loved by Patlash that you feel like asking this of all your acquaintances?\" \"Some reason I can't? To be honest, right now, I'd love even one extra message of support and consolation, but...\" \"Yes, yes, I am quite happy to see that you have returned to your usual form... I believe that for the sake of my future, I will be supporting you, Mr. Natsuki. Even to the bitter end.\" Shuddering in the face of Subaru's eccentric advance warning, Otto thrust both hands forward in a visible attempt to stop him. It was so very mercantile of him to use the roundabout phrase for the sake of my future. \"But if that precondition should come into question, and I find myself in peril, I shall flee with all available haste. Please keep that in mind.\" It certainly was a heartless statement, but drawing a line was a necessary ritual for tacit consent. Even though he'd said it like that, Otto's good nature was on full display. \"Yeah, I get it. You're \" Subaru, about to give a nod to Otto's realistic point of view, stopped. Something felt off. And immediately realizing just what it was, he let out a little \"Hah.\" \"...What is it?\" \"Mm, just remembered something. Yeah, that's right...\" With Otto giving him a suspicious look, Subaru nodded several times over, lifting his face toward the night sky. Amid the loop that had begun in that very Sanctuary, Subaru had cooperated with Otto several times over. And during that time, Subaru had many opportunities to observe him. Hence  \"If you find yourself in peril, you'll flee with all haste...is it right?\" \"Yes, but of course. I bear no duty to Mr. Natsuki and others to go quite that f...\" \"You won't run.\" \" Eh?\" Subaru murmured to Otto, who was trying to lightheartedly adopt the role of a realist. Then, when Otto widened his eyes, Subaru faced him directly as he continued. \" You won't leave me and run, Otto.\" This was the man who hadn't faltered in the face of Garfiel's threats, who had come to rescue Subaru from imprisonment. This was the man who had shielded Subaru from a bestial Garfiel, resisting him together with the villagers. However unfeeling he might act, Subaru knew the truth. \"Otto.  That's because you're my friend.\" 2 Having received encouragement from Otto and Patlash, Subaru gained a moment of mental respite. To be blunt, he still couldn't entirely digest what had happened in the castle of dreams. Even so, he chewed it over bit by bit, using it as fuel to drive himself onward. \"I shall take Patlash back... Goodness, this is really throwing me off my stride.\" Otto had continued to let out little grumbles as he departed, with Patlash somehow looking like a girl dragged off by her hair as they left the tomb. Seeing off the two people (or rather, one person and one steed), Subaru, left behind after claiming to want to feel the nighttime breeze, slowly turned back toward the tomb.  Same as before, the tomb of the Witch of Greed stood there, illuminated by the pale moonlight. Parting ways with the Witch who he'd sought to rely on was a deeply painful matter to Subaru. The words serious blow did not quite suffice. But cutting ties with the Witch had been necessary, however heavy a blow. He couldn't pigeonhole her as an \"evil\" being. However, she was someone with whom he could not see eye to eye. The same went for Minerva and the other Witches, and so, too, for Satella, aka Jealousy  \"It's fine that she told me to love myself more, but...\" Subaru recalled what she'd told him just before the parting promise he'd made to her, but the words left him at a loss. \"How the heck should I go about relying on the people precious to me...?\" He wondered if that was asking him to be honest with them. Yet, it was none other than Satella herself who had forbidden him from doing this or rather, if he went by what he had learned in the conversations within the dream, it was the Witch personality that had forbidden Subaru from speaking of Return by Death. Everyone there had asserted there was a discrepancy between Satella and the Witch of Jealousy. If that was so, then the promise at the very end had been with  \" I've gotta put that on the back burner for now, damn it.\" It was then that Subaru slammed the brakes, keeping his thoughts from coursing in Satella's direction. What he needed was a way to break through this stalemate of a situation, or at the very least, he needed to grab hold of a single strand that would lead him to a way out. \"The trigger at the mansion is based on when I return...in which case, I have to get a handle on the issues in the Sanctuary first. That means the Trial, Garfiel, and Roswaal's book of knowledge, huh...\" Each of the individual issues raised before him were troublesome in and of themselves, but the greatest difficulty was in how closely each related to the others. In particular, he still couldn't forget his shock at how Roswaal's grandiose plans factored in even death. Roswaal knew of Subaru's Return by Death or more precisely, he knew Subaru could loop. Knowing that Subaru had the power to turn time back, he sought to employ that for his own objective. His goal was to make what was written in his book of knowledge a reality. For that, Roswaal made snow fall on the Sanctuary, turning the place into a feeding ground for the demon beast known as the Great Rabbit. Beyond that, there was the barrier that would not be lifted until the Trial was overcome, preventing the residents of the Sanctuary from evacuating; and Garfiel, whose thinking grew more obstinate with each repetition. Every time Subaru had looped, he found Garfiel standing in a different position. Once, he had pressed Subaru to take the Trial, displaying a cooperative stance toward resolving the Sanctuary's issues. In hindsight, that had all been an act so as not to convey that he himself was opposed to resolving those problems. The more Subaru pursued the Sanctuary's liberation, the sterner Garfiel's measures became. It was difficult for Subaru to forget his anger from when Garfiel had bared his fangs toward Otto, Ram, and the people of Earlham Village. But Garfiel had also saved Subaru's life. Accordingly, the discordant sense he felt toward Garfiel's true thoughts had deepened with each new start of the loop. Having received Echidna's final words of advice, those feelings had grown stronger, and deeply barbed. \"Foolish, pitiable Garfiel fears the outside world...was it?\" It was already clear to him that Garfiel must have taken the Trial at some point in the past. As a result, Garfiel had become an Apostle of Greed, gaining command rights over Ryuzu and the other replicas. If it was his past that made Garfiel fearful of the outside world...if that was the curse that bound him to the Sanctuary it was an issue that Subaru had thought of once, only to discard it. He'd told himself it was not necessary to delve too deeply into who Garfiel was as a person. In so doing, he had once again averted his eyes from a pressing issue in front of him. \"In the end, it really is important to learn, huh? But knowing nothing but that still gets me a failing grade.\" It was not possible to overcome the wall that was Garfiel without knowing his true intent. But even if he could do so, the problems of the Sanctuary's barrier and Roswaal still remained. And to break through that worst of all combinations  \" In the end, clearing the tomb to secure our line of retreat is the most pressing business, huh?\" When he put everything in order, he inevitably wound up back at the very beginning. Clearing the tomb was an indispensable condition for resolving the issues of the Sanctuary the real problem being the number of remaining Trials. \"With the horrible time I had in it, did I end up clearing the second Trial or not...?\" Under the rubric of the event he'd come to know as behold the unknowable present, Subaru arrived at the worlds where he had chosen differently experiencing what one might call a series of parallel worlds.  These were glimpses into worlds beyond hell, impaling Subaru with particular cruelty. After driving Subaru to lamentation with various second guesses and countless regrets, how exactly had the Trial graded him? *** Audibly cracking the bones of his neck, Subaru powerfully exhaled as his footsteps echoed through the corridor in the tomb. His largest reason for sending Otto and Patlash back ahead of him was so he could do this and check for himself which Trial the tomb would guide him to: the second or the third. In other words, he was challenging the possibility he might have to behold the unknowable presents once more. The scenes frightened Subaru more than anything in this world, and his mind shuddered at the possibility of seeing them again. Even so, he could not ignore them. Forgetting them, or running from them, was out of the question. He had no choice but to face them. He bore a duty to do so. And to fulfill that duty  \"Uugh?\" He stepped strongly, his movements in line with his resolve.  But the very next moment, his vision swayed. \"Agh, guh!\" Losing his balance from the sudden dizziness, Subaru bumped into a wall and fell right to the floor. An intense wave of nausea hit him, stirring his brain. Unable to resist it, he got on all fours and vomited onto the floor.  Alarm bells kept ringing. Ringing. Ringing. Ringing. \"Ugeh...hah, ach, ugh...!\" His thoughts were all tangled. He felt as if a hole had opened in his skull, and an electrode had been thrust into it, frying his brain. No matter how much he vomited, he didn't feel any better; instinctively, Subaru rushed outside, tumbling through the corridor as he did so. \"Wh-what was that just now...?\" Wiping tears from his eyes, Subaru looked back up at the tomb in a daze. The tomb was unchanged, as was the tranquility in the air.  Aside from the fact that it seemed oddly malevolent. When he tried to"}, {"text": "crawl closer to approach the tomb once more, Subaru's limbs were constrained by a painful sense of aversion.  He was being rejected. That sensation brought him to a different realization, linking the two like a bolt of lightning. It was a simple explanation. This was what had happened to Patlash's body but a brief time earlier. It simply meant the same rejection that had hurt Roswaal was now hitting Subaru. A simple thing, but it demonstrated a most crucial fact. Namely that  \" I've...lost the qualification to challenge the tomb? You're kidding me, that can't...\" Standing up, Subaru gazed upon the tomb as if trying to reject that conclusion. However, his feet would not take the single step that would lead him inside. He instinctively understood both the tomb's rejection and his loss of qualification.  From the back of his mind arose the image of a white-haired Witch clad in a black dress for a funeral. \"Why that malicious little...!\" Certainly, the Witch had posed the question to Subaru on their parting. She asked him to choose which hand he would take: hers or Satella's? And Subaru had chosen Satella. If this was payback for his choice  \"Damn you! Just how much of a rotten personality do you have, Echidna the crappy Witch !!\" Subaru wrung out an angry shout into the night sky, howling at a Witch who could surely could not hear him. But however much he yelled, wailed, or raged, it would not change what had happened.  Subaru Natsuki had lost his qualification to challenge the Trial, and thus, could no longer liberate the Sanctuary. 3  To Subaru, it was a decision that required courage identical to that for challenging the tomb. The Trial that thrust his mistakes before him in the worst possible manner, making even his legs recoil in fear. It was enough to make him question whether it wasn't just his fear that had prevented him from going back into the tomb. However, that was not in fact the case. Fear had not been the reason why his legs refused to move. And his decision was fueled by the same desire to overcome the deadlock that had made him push past his fear to begin with. If the possibilities of challenging the tomb and gaining the cooperation of the Witch, had both been exhausted, the remaining choices dwindled to one  \"Visiting so late at night such as thiiiis is an unexpectedly haaaappy thing.\" Lying in bed, speaking these words, and greeting Subaru with a smile in his clown makeup was the man no, this was the devil Roswaal L. Mathers, a creature harboring plots and an obsession so great that Subaru likened him to a monster more than man. Propping his back up with a pillow, Roswaal was sitting up, his white-dabbed face illuminated by the flame of a burning candle inside the room, giving rise to a bizarre atmosphere that emphasized his inhumanity. With that devil before him, Subaru dry swallowed and forced down his nervousness.  The only choice left for Subaru was to rely upon the Roswaal before him. However, that didn't mean he intended to break through every issue facing the Sanctuary together. Given Subaru's mental attitude, and his ultimate objectives, that was impossible. Subaru could not forgive Roswaal for slaying Ram and Garfiel with his own hands, nor his sacrificing the villagers. Roswaal was similarly unlikely to abide by Subaru's way of life when it ill-suited his own objectives. Accordingly, what began from there was an elaborate ruse between two people whose hearts could absolutely not forgive the other. \"And? You have come out of your way to sneak in at such a late hour. Whaaat is it that you bring? Perhaps some seductive, persuasive phrases that might arouse my iiiinterest?\" \"...Well, you're not wrong that I'm trying to sweet-talk you. There's something I want to ask you.  Is there a way to slip out of the Sanctuary while ignoring the tomb?\" Faced with Subaru's difficult-to-articulate opening move, Roswaal's smile gained a frosty air to it. He cracked open the side of the lips, which formed that clownish smile, and with his yellow eye, Roswaal beheld Subaru as he spoke: \"Subaru.  Is this the first tiiiime you have asked me this?\" The simple act of asking of that question established they were fully aware exactly where the other stood. Roswaal knew that Subaru looped. Subaru knew that Roswaal knew. Now that both understood this, it was possible to play the conversation card. With this in mind, Subaru shrugged his shoulders in a provocative gesture. \"It's the first time I've asked 'this' question. At this point, it's stupid trying to count how many times we've been feeling the other out like this, though.\" \"Is that...so. I see. From your demeanor...may I take it as meaning that...?\" \"Well, who's to say?\" Averting his gaze, Subaru delayed revealing the conclusion Roswaal sought. Subaru did not let the faint whiff of hope residing in Roswaal's eyes during that exchange escape his notice. Noticing a change that slight was an advantage that Return by Death provided him. Roswaal, who knew only the fact that looping existed, had no way of understanding what emotions Subaru brought with him from having looped previously. Hence  \"I'm still in the middle of trial and error. Cooperation from you would be a big help, though.\"  Even if Subaru pretended to be moving in accordance with Roswaal's will, there was no way for Roswaal to know it was an act. The book of knowledge in his possession did not account for the finer details of Subaru's actions. He was able to deduce that from Roswaal's statements prior to the assault by the Great Rabbit. In the end, Roswaal only had the gist of things spelled out for him. In other words, if Subaru played his role perfectly, he ought to be able to deceive Roswaal and lead him around by the nose. That was certainly a possibility. \"And part of that trial and error involves breaking past the Sanctuary while ignoring the tomb? If so, that is quite timid of you. With the Authority you possess, surely you can challenge it an infinite number of times and overcome any difficulties. To cast that aside midway is an deficiency of resolve, is it noooot?\" \"Being flexible is definitely an advantage. Just like you said, I have an infinite number of chances. But what we need now is results, not quibbling about the process...so long as Emilia gets the credit for liberating the Sanctuary, it's all good, right?\" Forcing a calm, composed look onto his face, Subaru's nerves frayed as he tried not to let anything slip. His heartbeats were rapid, and the sweat on his back was far from modest, but he had to pull the wool over Roswaal's eyes no matter what. He had to give a cruel explanation for that was how Roswaal wanted Subaru to be. By putting Emilia first, he was playing the role of the brave knight, faithful to a fault. For her sake, Subaru would choose methods that hurt him in the process something he imagined would please Roswaal. \"I seeee... Certainly, that is the sort of answer I prefer to heaaar.\" Roswaal's intimidating gaze had a glint that welcomed Subaru as a kindred soul. Physiological revulsion welled within him at having such a devil with incomprehensible thoughts acknowledge him as a comrade. Subaru resented the label despite being well aware of how twisted he had to be for Roswaal to think of him that way... \"I am pleased at the change within you. But it is difficult to answer your question. After all, it has been four centuries since the barrier was first deployed. There is no precedent. There is no reason to doubt how it was woven, and when I think of who wove it, it iiis difficult to conceive she might have made such a blunder...\" \"So it's Echidna's barrier, huh?\" \"My, you are already acquainted with her?\" There was no way the faint whiff of envy in that seemingly teasing sentence was his imagination. Roswaal clearly had an obsession with Echidna. But this time, Subaru would make use of that. \"Yeah, of course I am. Just to mention, I've already picked up a bunch of things already, like about the Ryuzu Meyer facility in the forest and Garfiel being an Apostle of Greed.\" \"Ahaaaa, that is most spleeeendid of you. I am graaaateful this speeds our conversation.\" As Subaru unveiled crucial pieces of information one by one, he could feel Roswaal's suspicions begin to loosen. At this rate  His feelings of haste for success caused a tardy response to the words that followed. \"But if that is so, my doubts grow greater still. Why are you searching for a loophole out of the Sanctuary? Having resolved to act, it is most indecisive to probe for that possibility.  Indeed, your current proposal cannot but make me think...this is you before your resolve is at its zeniiiith.\" \"...Well, take it as you will.\" For a single second, his reply to Roswaal's counterattack stuck in his throat, but Subaru raised a finger and continued. \"As you know, I've had plenty of opportunities to earn fame for Emilia. Plus, I have to say, there's not many people involved with the Sanctuary, so it's a small-time event. Newsworthy moments, like the White Whale or the Witch Cult, take precedence.  This place holds no value.\" \"Therefore, you are searching for a loophole?  I cannot heeeelp but find your answer suspect.\" \"Suspect?\" Right when Subaru thought he'd snuck through, Roswaal surprised him, shaking his head from side to side. \"I have not confirmed your Authority with my very own eeeyes. This being the case, I am not obligated to go along with your foolishness. Therefore, we must draw a line we can mutually accept.\" \"An acceptable line, huh?\" \"I wish for this to be the liberation of the Sanctuary. Not through a back door, but rather, liberation in a true sense. If you achieve this, my suspicions will be allayed, and you and I shall be coconspirators striving for a common goal...two men working to place Lady Emilia upon the royal throne. A rather profitable relationship, I truuuust?\" This time, Subaru hardened his cheeks as Roswaal's words cut off any hope of retreat. His words carried a power to them that was difficult to resist. Even if he was making liberal use of Subaru's Return by Death, Roswaal was an irreplaceable force in making Emilia's wish come true. Roswaal's patronage was a prerequisite for making Emilia's dream attainable. To secure the royal throne for her required Subaru and Roswaal both.  He'd jabbed at a very sore spot. But though the logical argument was a severe blow to him, Subaru had the odd feeling that something was off as if a different scheme was being hidden behind an opinion that only seemed righteous at first glance. Subaru probably noticed it because he was attempting to deceive Roswaal with precisely the same logic. \"Something's bugging me a little...you're really hung up on liberating the Sanctuary.\"  Almost as if he had a reason for wanting to do so that overshadowed the rest. Subaru's statement, containing that implication, made Roswaal's smile deepen in an even more suspicious manner. *** It was that smile that made Subaru feel intensely wary toward Roswaal. In other words, within his chest, there was an instant of clarity rivaling when Roswaal had murdered Ram and Garfiel just prior to being savagely consumed by the Great Rabbit...a moment when the blackest depths of his obsessed mind, thinking nothing of sacrificing the lives of others, poured out. \" Why do you think this?\" But it seemed that Roswaal had no intention of opening his own heart at that point in time. Faced with the return question, Subaru clicked his tongue. \"It's not very complicated. To be honest, I think your plan doesn't seem very like you. Of course I'd notice how every word from you from start"}, {"text": "to finish lists liberating the Sanctuary as a condition.\" \"I believe I already explained that. You are to exhaust all efforts for Lady Emilia. I am having you deal with the nearest problem at hand so that you might prove to me that this is your true stance. You take issue with this?\" \"I don't think forbidding every answer besides liberation is very fair. There's plenty of other proof to be had.\" \"We are speaking past each other. Indeed, there is something I wish to ask you insteaaad.\" This time, it was Roswaal who raised a finger, one eye closed as he spoke to the stubborn Subaru. \"You appear quite tiiiimid where it comes to the Trial. It almost feels to me as if you have a reason to not desire the liberation of the Sanctuary.\" \"As if I don't want this place freed! I'd just love to pry that barrier open and drag all the unresolvable problems outside! ...But.\" \"But?\" He was being carried away by the intensity of the conversation. Realizing this, Subaru instantly shut his mouth. If he spoke without thinking at this point, everything would be for naught. He strove to calm himself and choose his words with care. \"I don't...I don't want to see Emilia hurt herself challenging the tomb's Trial any longer.\" \"That is why it must be you. If Lady Emilia stumbles in the Trial, you need only do it in her place. Who lifts the barrier is not an issue, precisely as you yourself have said.\" \"Nghh...\" He'd never imagined the conversation would go in this direction. Subaru clenched his back teeth at the resistance he faced left and right. Seeing Subaru pressed into anguished silence, Roswaal narrowed his eye. \"Surely, you are not finding it too hard to take the Trial in Lady Emilia's place? It cannot be that you are seeking a way out to spare yourself? If so, then that means your feelings for Lady Emilia are meager indeed.\" \"Don't mess with...! It's not like...\" \"It is not like that? How can you be certain? Who would believe such a thing? If you are truly thinking of Lady Emilia, suffering any agony for her sake is only natural. If you truly love Lady Emilia, is it not most natural for you to do so? If it is for Lady Emilia's sake, you should set your own heart aside...but can you?\" It seemed like an interrogation. Subaru felt like he was being swallowed up as Roswaal pressed him. Those words constituted an extremist argument. However, it was a conclusion anyone comprehending Subaru's Return by Death would arrive at.  There was a time when Subaru had clung to that very conclusion himself. Probably, had Subaru taken the hand Echidna had offered, he, too, would have trivialized everything save for the person most precious to him. He'd endure scars and pain both for the sake of the future. But he could no longer live like that. He'd realized... he didn't want to. \" It would seem that your resolve has not been suffiiiiciently honed.\" Seeing something in Subaru's black eyes, Roswaal abruptly let those words trickle out, making a sad-sounding sigh. \"I had hoped...yes, just a little, I had placed hope in you that by some chance, I might see what I yearn for with my very own eyes. But it seems things shall not go so well indeed.\" Roswaal did not conceal his disappointment as strength drained out of his body, whereupon he lay on the bed once more. His demeanor indicated that the conversation was over. Subaru was upset that the meeting had failed. Based on his statement just then, Roswaal was conveying that he had no further reason to live this time. Having tested Subaru's mental state and found it wanting, he intended to lie down, content to merely watch Subaru's struggles, and end his own life. But if the current Subaru allowed that, all his efforts would have been for nothing. \"Why do you have to...throw everything away all of a sudden like that?! Nothing's over yet!\" \"It is indeed over. No, perhaps I should rather say, it has not even begun. You have yet to even stand at the starting line of resolve. So long as your feet do not find it, you shall never overcome these troubles.\" \"The starting line of resolve?! I don't get you!! Just how far do you want to push m...\" \" I had hoped you possessed the will to pursue your own objective, even if it tramples Lady Emilia's will underfoot.\" With Subaru standing rigid, Roswaal went \"Now see here?\" as if teaching a little child. \"If you truly think it is for Lady Emilia's sake, you should ignore what Lady Emilia herself thinks. Like a little child dreaming of paradise, you do not possess the resolve to choose to walk through the cruelty of hell. To save her life, you should readily choose to ignore her wishes.\" \"Th-that's putting the cart before the horse, ain't it?! What's with that thinking, saying as long as it's for Emilia's sake ...\" \"There is life. So long as there is life, there is a future. If there is a future, there is hope.\" With Subaru's words catching in his throat, Roswaal continued his own. He spat them out meticulously, cruelly; like lead bullets, they shot directly into Subaru's heart. \"If there is hope, there is possibility. If there is possibility, a person can be saved.  Am I wrong?\" You're wrong, Subaru wanted to speak in a thunderous voice. However, he did not have another answer. Unable to make an emotional argument, Subaru's stranded feelings made him want to wail. *** \"No response, hmm? How many more times will you disappoint me?\" When Subaru clenched his fists, his lips trembling, Roswaal turned his eyes toward him with a look of pity. Following this, he sat up once more, clutching a black book his book of knowledge to his chest. Then, Roswaal stroked the book's cover with a finger as he spoke toward the rigid Subaru. \"Therefore, I shall hone your insufficient resolve. I shall back you into a corner once more.\" Subaru was aghast. What more could he do? What would force him to even greater limits? \"Already, you must have come face-to-face with the issues occurring in this Sanctuary. You are likely better versed with them than I. But the problems before you are not within this Sanctuary alone.\" \"Y-you mean the mansion...? You know about that, too...?\" Subaru was horrified at the reference to the assault on the mansion coming from Roswaal's own lips. Was even that written within the book of knowledge? Or was Roswaal simply illustrating the issue with a hypothetical? The next instant blew away Subaru's such thoughts without a single trace remaining. After all  \" But of course, for it is I who contracted the assassins to attack the manor.\"  He had just confessed that the mastermind of the incident, the one pulling the strings of the tragedy at the mansion, was none other than Roswaal himself. 4 It was crumbling. The ground beneath his feet was crumbling. Having lost the firm footing that should've been there, Subaru felt like he was falling into darkness. Roswaal's confession was simply that shocking. \"Wait...wait. Wait a minute...you did what?\" \"I sent assassins to the mansion.  To hone your resolve, you see.\" \"Resolve? What do you...mean by 'resolve'?\" \"That is simple. Even with your Authority, you cannot save things precious to you that are imperiled in two places at once. You must choose what is most important to you. Once you make that choice, you can never take it back. Then, you will finally be complete.  A being who can save but one, single thing.\" Subaru's words refused to come out. It was not that he was unable to face the unpleasant evidence, or had faltered before the argument. It was simply that words did not suffice to convey the ferocity of his emotions. That was all.  Never to that degree had he experienced something that was truly unspeakable. Frederica, Petra, even Beatrice...had they died for such a preposterous scheme? For the sake of a banal plot to shape Subaru, had they been betrayed by and lost their lives to the master they trusted completely? \"Roswaal...you...are truly mad...\" \"I am indeed. I went mad long ago.  Since I was bewitched by those eyes four centuries ago, I have been mad ever since.\" \"Four hundred...?\" Not understanding the meaning of the words tossed out, Subaru could only repeat them like a village idiot. Once again, an issue arose from a time four centuries prior. However, it was unnatural for such words to have come from Roswaal's lips. He, a man living in the present age, had no way to know of things four hundred years before. And yet, Roswaal had spoken as if he had experienced those events firsthand  \" Subaru Natsuki.\" \"Ah...\" \"Why are you not yet mad? Why are you not yet sufficiently insane? You should be just as crazed as I...no, more. When walking upon the lonely path through territory uncharted for the sane, a human heart is nothing but a hindrance.  That is what I shall strengthen in you.\" As a means of shattering Subaru's heart, which was supposedly already hardened in resolve, the declaration struck all too true. He'd underestimated Roswaal's knowledge of the loop. The advantage of his experiences via Return by Death had made him arrogant and presumptive. Roswaal had devised a sieve so tight that not even Return by Death could break through. \"So what do you intend to do?\" Roswaal's chilling voice showered down upon him from overhead. Even though Roswaal lay in bed at a height lower than him, Subaru went down on all fours on the spot, scraping his head against the floor. He prostrated himself... There was nothing else he could do. In an unsightly manner, Subaru touched his head to the floor, pathetically making his earnest plea. \"Please, wait... I'm begging you, please forgive me. I-I'm the one at fault. So please, save everyone... I-I'll...\" \"Goodness, please raise your head, Subaru. You have nothing to apologize for. You have done nothing wrong. That is why I must...\" \"Y-you're wrong... I can't do what you're saying. My feelings have nothing to do with it. I can't...take the Trial. I've lost my qualifications.\" \"...What?\" As Subaru sniffed his nose, the words he haltingly conveyed threw Roswaal off for the first time. Unsurprisingly, the fact was outside his expectations as well. With Roswaal seemingly sinking into thought wondering why, Subaru smacked his head against the floor once more. \"Please! I'm begging you! I can't do it. Even if the mansion's attacked, it's no use! There'll be no meaning to anyone's death...so please stop. Please, stop this...!\" \" No, I cannot. Indeed, hearing this, the necessity has grown stronger still.\" But his earnest plea earned only that cruel announcement. Shocked, Subaru raised his head. Roswaal beheld Subaru with both his eyes. A gaze of black eyes intertwined with one of blue and yellow. \"To be blunt, your loss of qualifications is outside my calculations. However, that does not constitute a dead end.\" \"Why...no matter how much you whittle me down, those qualifications aren't coming back! The sacrifices won't have any meani...\" \"Is that truly the case? Deep down, you yourself surely understand?\" Subaru's entreaty was rebuffed by Roswaal's frigid voice. Thump went the powerful leap of his heart. His surprise was not directed toward those unexpected words, for Subaru, too, understood what Roswaal was saying and his true intent. His qualifications had been stripped away. They had been taken back. They had been lost. But that also meant  \"If she wishes it, Echidna could reissue your qualifications or anything else. If you have put her in an ill mood, you need merely reconcile with her. Such is the nature of her Greed.\" In other words, Subaru needed to change his mind and take Echidna's hand. But that  \"Do not grow"}, {"text": "conceited, Subaru Natsuki. You are not the oooonly one who understands Echidna.\"  Roswaal pounded these words, and the envy accompanying them, into the very bottom of Subaru's heart. \"You will regain your qualifications. You will rectify the situation. Accordingly, my actions will not change. By not changing them, I shall back you into a corner, hone your resolve, and make you whole.\" \"Ah...\" Knowing that even his earnest plea was futile, Subaru, still on his knees, sank into despair. But his dry lips moved, and slowly, he spoke: \"If you...if you hate me, then make it me, and no one el...\" \"Hate you?\" What other feelings could he have that would make him act like this? However, Roswaal seemed genuinely put off by Subaru's words, raising his eyebrows and then, he smiled. \"It is impossible for me to hate you. You are my hope. If I harbor the emotion one might call expectation anywhere in this world, it is with you and Ram, and none others.  I trust you, from the bottom of my heart.\" Their resolve...was nothing alike. The sheer weight of Roswaal determination was on a different scale than his own. Without the slightest altruism, Roswaal had crushed underfoot the tiny bit Subaru had learned from his experiences. He'd put Subaru in checkmate, leaving not so much as a gap for Return by Death to slip through. At that point, even if Roswaal was killed, the attack on the mansion could not be stopped. In the first place, so as far as Roswaal was concerned, his life was not something up for negotiation. Without his existence, Emilia could not win the royal selection. Life, royal selection, plea, compromise...everything was in a jumble. *** Without realizing it, Subaru had wobbled to his feet, bumping his back against the wall. He slid along the wall toward the exit, pouring his strength into leaving that place without a moment to spare. Conversation was meaningless. No concession was forthcoming. All he could do was exhaust the limited time he had. *** They were not thoughts he consciously put into words. His voice simply tumbled out of his mouth. \"I won't become like you.  I'm a human being. And I'm staying one.\" Leaving only those words behind him, Subaru left Roswaal's room. At the very end, Roswaal said nothing. Subaru rued how pathetic he was that this brought him some small relief. 5 Distancing himself from Roswaal's place of repose, Subaru walked unsteadily under the moonlight. \"...What should I do?\" Trickling out was a question toward a situation with no future in sight. However much he went over it, the very same words echoed back toward him, as if no other reply was possible. The situation was already a stalemate, but he felt that even the smallest hope, as fine as grains of sand, had been lost to him. With this, all possibility of anyone cooperating with him had been exhausted. He could not comprehend them, Witch and devil both. But oddly, he found Roswaal's confession easy to accept. \"The timing of the attack being when I return to the mansion, too...\" If the assassins were acting under Roswaal's instructions, that explained a lot. How they knew to encircle the mansion, how to invade the mansion with great ease, even the method to breach Beatrice's Passage. Roswaal surely knew these like the back of his hand. That was not all. It was likely this was the second time that Roswaal had hired Elsa. \"Making Felt steal Emilia's jewel back at the royal capital, too...\" Had all of it been done knowing Subaru would intervene to save Emilia? Everything on that day, from earnestly running about to dying three times to save Emilia, to Emilia's smiling face and her telling him her name had he been dancing atop Roswaal's palm all along? \"If everything has gone according to the book of knowledge...then was Rem being robbed of her existence and the Sanctuary being sealed up...did all this happen exactly as someone predicted...?\" If that was so, had Subaru's free will merely been an extension of a string someone else pulled? In ensuring everything proceeded according with the prophecy, Roswaal put a stop to any developments contrary to what was recorded. If the path was crooked, he corrected it by force so that without fail, prophecy became reality  \" Huh?\" That moment, he felt like something was...off. Slowly, putting everything in order, he went over his conception of Roswaal's book of knowledge. He had a definite sense that something was off. Something was nagging at him. But he couldn't remember what. \"What? What...is wrong? Something's...not right. Something's wrong...!\" It was a mystery lacking an answer. It resembled the prior situation, but this was different than the dead end. This haze had a path leading forward. And he felt like this path was linked to the hope he had thought lost. Roswaal's book of knowledge, making its contents reality, Beatrice's book of knowledge, the Witch Cult's Gospels, blank pages, prophetic pages, results according to prophecy, correction, future  \" Subaru?\" *** Suddenly, a voice intruded upon that vortex of thought, making Subaru's shoulders jump. He looked back. Behind him, standing a short distance away, was a girl standing in the gloom, with moonlight showering down upon her  Emilia, her silver hair sparkling as it swayed, gazed upon Subaru with her violet eyes open wide. This unexpected encounter caused a dull ache in Subaru's chest. But Subaru swiftly schooled his expression. \"Ah...Emilia-tan. What are you doing in a place like this? It's already pretty late, isn't it?\" \"The same goes for you, doesn't it, Subaru? I couldn't sleep so I went on a stroll.\" \"...That so. Ah, that's right.\" *** When Subaru nodded in acceptance, Emilia cocked her head with a mystified look. This was not the first time he had encountered Emilia at night. On one previous occasion, he had met Emilia during a moonlit stroll and had spoken with her then. This situation surely differed from that time, but to bump into her here even so meant Emilia's action must have been inevitable. Subaru had been invited to the tea party, reaffirmed his bonds with Patlash, heard Ryuzu's secret deep within the forest, learned Roswaal was the mastermind, and amid those various actions, Emilia had not been sitting still either. That was an obvious thing, and yet, at that moment, it struck Subaru with great clarity. \"...Subaru, you're not feeling well, are you?\" \"That so? I thought I was feeling fine...\" \"Liar. I can tell just by looking at you. Something happened, didn't it? You can tell me if you like.\" Emilia walked close, seemingly examining the color of Subaru's face as she spoke. Subaru's supposedly smooth facade had been seen through with ease, making him truly resent his own weakness. \"It's...my problem. I...don't want to bother you, Emilia.\" \"It's no bother at all...\" \"It's fine, I'm all right. You've got bigger problems than me right now. You were pretty panicked after the Trial...are you all right now?\" \"Mm, I'm fine. I'm sorry I caused you trouble back there...I'm really sorry, 'kay?\" When Subaru averted his face, desperate to avoid the subject, Emilia flashed a smile with no mirth behind it. Afraid of being hurt, he'd touched upon Emilia's own unhealed wound the worst thing he could have done. Failing to notice his self-deprecating thoughts, Emilia gently touched a hand to her own chest. \"Seems like I butted into these issues without being prepared for them at all...really, it made me feel like I don't have any resolve. I really, really want to just run away...\" \"If you...if you want to run, isn't that fine?\" \"Subaru?\" Latching onto Emilia's words, Subaru instantly tossed out a response. Emilia's long eyebrows jerked; she looked perplexed. Subaru glanced at her, digging his nails into his palm. \"If you don't want to do it, what's wrong with running away? By forcing yourself to face something you don't want to, will you conquer it someday? Do you have to overcome it? If you see a path leading somewhere after you run that's different from before you run...is choosing that something you should be criticized for...?\" The words poured out in a rush; he wasn't even sure what he was trying to say. Praised unconditionally for challenging, scorned unconditionally for fleeing wasn't that wrong? What good came of facing something head on if it broke you? Even Emilia's determination, Emilia's will, and Emilia's nobility were toys in someone else's game. \"Echidna, Roswaal, Garfiel, they're all self-centered. Stop getting jerked around by them. They're all telling me do something. Even though I'm trying to deal with it my own way, they all complain, saying not this way, not that way \" His emotions rising, it was then that he felt dizziness along with his senseless rage. *** An arm wrapped around the back of his head, pulling him forward before he had time to think. He felt something soft and hot, bringing Subaru's breath and thoughts both came to a halt. A warm touch pressed against him, and he realized that the gentle echo from the other side was a heartbeat. That was when he figured it out Emilia was hugging him against her chest. \"Emi...\" \"Take it slow. Take it easy. Just take it slow and listen to the sound of my heart.\" Her voice was like a silver bell, tickling his eardrums. Unresisting, Subaru did as he was told. A pleasant, ticklish feeling on his back made his breaths grow shallow, and a hot sensation emerged from behind the corners of his eyes. His banal depression faded, washed away by a tide of much greater emotion. For a while, he let Emilia's heartbeats soothe his stricken heart. \"Have you calmed down?\" Emilia slowly took away her arms, freeing Subaru's head from her chest. Facing the concern in the violet eyes before him, Subaru exhaled slightly. \"Sorry to get all flustered like that. I didn't wanna cause you trouble like some little kid, but...\" \"I've told you, I don't find this troubling at all. You're really stubborn, Subaru.\" Giggling, Emilia touched a hand to her lips as she smiled just a tiny bit. However, the smile was too strained for him to feel like smiling himself. Rather, it made him want to apologize until he ran out of words. He didn't want to make Emilia worry. He wanted to reassure her, to tell her it was all right. \"Really, nothing's going right at all...actually, I was in a meeting with Roswaal just now, trying to see if there wasn't some way to get out of here without the Trial.\" \"Eh?\" \"Really, it'd be best if I could just take the Trial in your place, but it doesn't look like that's possible. So I thought if I could at least find......sorry for being so useless.\" He lowered his head. Even though he wanted to reassure her, he had obtained nothing that could offer her any comfort. Even after repeating Return by Death over and over, he hadn't found even a single answer. His regrets on how he could've he'd done better were influenced by his memories of the second Trial as well. Subaru's tragedy from birth was that he was lacking, even though that, too, should never have been the case. \"But I'll probably manage something. I'll manage somehow, because I don't want to make you go through hard, bad things. So I want you to trust me.\" He didn't want to bare his weakness. So Subaru issued his declaration of war toward a darkness with nothing in sight beyond it. He hadn't found a way, not yet. Even so, he would not fail Emilia, or everyone e  \" Subaru.\" As Subaru conveyed his resolve, Emilia turned her moist eyes toward him. When he saw himself in those damp eyes, Subaru encouraged his own, pathetic self so that, within his swaying heart, at least the most important part of him would not become warped. He would protect Emilia, overcome the Sanctuary, rescue"}, {"text": "the mansion, and save every  \" I am happy for your feelings, Subaru. Really, I am. But I can't accept your kindness.\" And yet, it was none other than Emilia herself who repudiated that resolve head-on. \"...Eh?\" For a second, Subaru let out a dumbfounded voice, not comprehending what had just been said to him. Subaru was astounded, eyes completely wide. Emilia gazed at Subaru as he remained like that, piecing together the thoughts inside him word by word, trying to arrange them into a recognizable shape. \"I'm really happy you think and work so hard for my sake like this, Subaru. Really, really happy. You're really reliable, really dependable... But I can't let you look for a loophole or an easy way out.\" \"Wh-whaddaya mean you can't...this is just something other people forced onto you!\" \"Even so, I'm the one who decided to do it. I have my own goal, and I have to work hard to achieve it...that's why I'm here right now. I don't want to make excuses.\" With her lips pursed tight, Emilia's display of determination left Subaru at a loss for words. Her resolute face glimmered, filled with a powerful will. It was not the look of a weak girl, one who could not walk down her path unless Subaru reached his hand out to her and dragged her along it. \"Besides, somehow, I get it, too.  The Trial in that tomb probably doesn't have a shortcut or a loophole anyway.\" *** \"It's strange, but somehow, I just know. Even if I spend more time thinking about it, if I don't really get my heart in order before challenging the Trial, the result will probably stay the same. I get that, too.\" He could offer no words to deny her. He'd looked for a loophole. But Subaru knew, too, there was none to be found. He knew there was no way the Witch who had set up the barrier would permit such an illogical result.  In the first place, why was Subaru desperately trying to refute Emilia like that? \"Hey, Subaru.  Subaru, why are you trying to help me?\" *** With Subaru hesitating amid a vortex of doubt, Emilia seemed to circle ahead as she tossed that question at him. It was the same question she had posed once before, one that held deep meaning to both of them. Just how much time had Subaru desperately spent so that he might tell her his answer? Just how many difficulties had he overcome so that he could convey it to Emilia? Therefore, without hesitation, Subaru could give her the very same reply. \"I want to help you because I because I love you.\" \" Mm, I know. I can do my best because I know.\" Touching a hand to her breast, Emilia's cheeks reddened just a touch as she backed up a step, closing her eyes. She continued, her words infused with myriad emotions. \"So don't think like you have to do something. Just having you watch me means I can work hard, Subaru. If you want to do something for me, if you're willing to listen to my selfish words, then I want you by my side. I want you cheering me on. I want you there, pushing me forward.\" \"Emilia...\" Emilia's words made emotions well up inside his chest. He could not stop it, nor could he put it into words. It was difficult to comprehend, and Subaru did not know just what it was. But it asserted its existence ever stronger, seemingly trying to rob him of all thought, which Subaru, clenching his teeth, continued to resist. \"You've been spoiling me nonstop, so...this time, I want to try and do without. The only thing that pains me is making you and everyone worry as I fail...but I'm trying to overcome the Trial as fast as possible so that no one has to worry anymore.\" With Subaru unable to string words together, Emilia sent his way the stout smile that came over her. It looked very beautiful. \"Please, watch over me as I do my best.  That's what I want you to do for me, Subaru.\" 6 *** Subaru forcefully kicked the ground, slicing through the wind. His heart remained restless. He still didn't have a destination. He raced down a slope with bad footing, seemingly about to take flight. Branches scraped his cheeks, leaving marks, and even as he tumbled repeatedly, he kept running so long as he had breath. He raised an incoherent voice, screaming so much that his throat seemed ready to burst, and looking up at the sky, Subaru ran. To the crisp, cool air, to the pale moon floating in the clear sky, Subaru cried out in shame.  The final sight of Emilia's strong smile was burned into the back of his eyelids. That charming smile, and the resolve it conveyed, drove Subaru's misunderstanding home. Finally, he realized the true nature of the urge welling up within him, charring the inside of his chest to ashes. And because he now understood, Subaru had parted with Emilia, impulsively racing into the forest, rushing through the underbrush as if he were some kind of beast. Deep within his chest, the emotion asserted itself, growing hotter, hotter, fiercer this was what people called shame. ***  How conceited! How prideful! How utterly foolish! He recalled his anger at Roswaal's words and actions for looking down upon, even pitying Emilia. He'd been indignant. He'd sworn upon his unforgiving heart, then he met Emilia immediately after, baring his thoughts to her only to be gently rebuffed. That was when Subaru realized it for the first time.  That the one who believed least in Emilia's resolve, Emilia's determination, and Emilia's strength was none other than Subaru himself. He had to protect her; he didn't want her to go through bitter thoughts or sad feelings under the guise of such words, Subaru had decided that Emilia was incapable of doing anything. Even while Subaru had contrived various schemes out of his desire to keep her under his protection alone, Emilia had hardened her own resolve and determination in her own, Emilia-like way, deciding to face the Trial. In making that determination, Emilia had asked Subaru to support her more than anyone else, and yet   It had been none other than Subaru Natsuki who had underestimated Emilia the most. *** The instant he realized that, unendurable shame slammed into Subaru, enough to make him want to die. And so, without giving Emilia's determination a clear reply, he had turned his back to escape from her and her concern, fleeing into the forest with the same feet that still carried him. Once before, Subaru had hurt Emilia in a similar attempt to monopolize her at the royal capital. Of course, he had regretted it. Of course, he had reflected upon his sins. That was why he had returned, remaining by her side up to that point.  And still, Subaru had made the same mistake once more. He'd hurt himself in Emilia's place, taking her burdens for her to pave a road for her to travel. He hadn't changed. He'd just become better at hiding his wounds. He'd simply discarded his pride in taking her burdens for himself. In terms of inflating himself and putting himself first in line, not a single thing had changed. \"I...I just...waah?!\" Out of breath, he lifted his head seemingly to gasp for air. That instant, he lost his balance, and his planted foot sailed into the air. Immediately losing his balance, Subaru slid down a slope in the forest. Tumbling onto the ground, which was marred with dirt and fallen leaves, Subaru rolled and fell, spreading his limbs as he lay there on his back. *** With his back pressed against ground so cold, it seemed to rob him of all heat, his breathing remained ragged as he looked up above. The sky was only visible through the gaps in the forest, yet even so, he beheld the light of countless stars.  The heavens were filled with gleaming stars, seemingly mocking Subaru, their stray comrade lying upon the ground. Surrounded by unfamiliar constellations, puny little Subaru was melting into the night. Fatigue suddenly pressed upon him. Once again, even more than his body, his psyche had been terribly worn down.  Return by Death, the Witch's Tea Party, Roswaal's true intent, Emilia's resolve, and his very own shame. Too much time had passed. Limited time, the time left to him, precious, precious time was slowly ticking away. He'd been enmeshed in a labyrinth of swirling doubts, his heart eaten away by the gloom at finding no way out. Betrayed on every level, everything had backfired and been thrown back in his face. What to do  What should I do, what should I do, what should I do, what should I do, what should I do, what should I do what should I do whatshouldIdowhatshouldIdowhatshouldI  \" Perhaps I can tell you what you should do?\" *** The voice from above his head made Subaru sit up with a start. There was a figure standing with his back against the night, atop the slope from which he had fallen. Slowly, the figure glided down, his contours gradually growing more definite. \"...Otto?\" \"Yes, indeed. Good morning. Yes, it is I.\" \"Morn...? With that out-of-place greeting tossed toward him, the perplexed Subaru noticed it, too, albeit most belatedly. The aura of dawn had already spread throughout the world, announcing the impending end of the night. Just how many hours had he wasted in a daze, gazing at an empty sky...? \"It is morning. So you did not even realize that fact? Serious symptoms indeed.\" \"Can't deny it...but what are you doin' here?\" \"For the moment, I shall set aside what brought me here. More important is the situation you have been placed in, Mr. Natsuki, looking like you are dreaming as you mumble things to yourself over and over.\" Ignoring Subaru's surprise at the hours having passed, Otto placed his hands on his hips and made an exasperated sigh. Subaru wobbled to his feet, using his sleeve to wipe away the dirt on his cheeks. Only a short time had passed since Otto had seen him at another strange place the night before. Not only had Otto seen him crying when Patlash was consoling him, but he also saw him in a place like this, covered in mud and shame. \"Is that really something to care about at this point? In the few days since I have met you, Mr. Natsuki, I have only seen you clean at the Duchess of Karsten's manor, I believe.\" \"...I'm not really feeling up to joking around. More importantly, you...\" \"You have reached a dead end? You wish to know what to do? Yes, I understand.\" Prompted by Subaru's words, Otto patted his own chest in a rather flippant manner. Subaru was taken aback by the sight of him being so carefree. But he wanted to cling to that humorous sight. At a time like this, he didn't mind if Otto just wanted to put him at ease. If there was even a slight chance to improve the situation, he wanted to hear it. \"Please do not rush me. All right? This requires preparation.\" \"P-preparation...\" \"Yes. First, take a big breath, nice and slow...\" Presenting a hand toward him, Otto indicated to Subaru that he should breathe deeply. Subaru didn't know what meaning it held, but he did as he was told, putting his breathing in order, closing his eyes and letting oxygen fill his lun  *** Instantly, a hard impact pummeled the side of his face, and Subaru collapsed to the ground once more. Unable to break his fall, Subaru tumbled and fell face-first into the dirt, eyes spinning. He shook his head, lifting it, and wondering what the heck had happened; seeing Otto shaking a fist, he realized he'd been punched. Then, as Subaru drew in a breath, Otto shook his hardened, reddened fist toward him once more"}, {"text": "and spoke: \" Stop trying to keep up appearances in front of your friends, Subaru Natsuki.\" 7 Subaru could only gape, forgetting even the pain of being punched. As Subaru lay upon the ground, Otto glared at him with a sharp look. Normally, he would seem pathetic, or laugh amiably, his facial expression always seeking to avert conflict with other people, but at that moment, it blazed with anger. With fury residing in his eyes, Otto Suwen gazed down upon Subaru. \"Rather than not knowing what to do, I imagine the inside of your mind is simply all a jumble.\" *** \"I expect you are in a position where you must extend a hand to others, yet your own limbs and head are insufficient for the task, so you desperately flap your arms around, accomplishing nothing but wasting time.\" With Subaru pressed into silence, Otto threw words at him as the distance, and his patience, dwindled. Subaru remained on the ground, immobile. He grimaced, the pain and heat of his left cheek belatedly becoming clearer, as he was unable to do anything but stare at Otto. \"I take your silence to mean you have no objections. In the world of us merchants, at the very least, such an imposition is the vilest of all conduct.  Are you listening?\" When Subaru made no reply, Otto grabbed him by his collar and pulled him upward. \"If you're listening, then answer me!\" \" Gah!\" A sharp, hard blow struck his forehead, sending stars scattering across Subaru's vision. It was a headbutt. Otto had reared his head back, vigorously slamming both their brows together. His eyes were spinning. But Otto did not relent. He delivered one more headbutt, sending the wobbly Subaru reeling. Forehead, forehead heat, pain. He reeled but did not fall. His legs came to a halt. \"Whaddaya think you're...!\" \"Oh my, knocking you back brought you to your senses, did it? The thought that you might be asleep forced me to engage in a violent manner to which I am not accustomed.\" \"What'd ya say, you bastard !\" Teary-eyed from taking a headbutt to the bridge of his nose, Subaru recklessly charged toward Otto. But Otto evaded his outstretched arms, sweeping his feet out in return. Subaru crashed magnificently to the ground. \"Just when your blood rushes to your head, you find yourself at my feet. Truly, Mr. Natsuki, there is only one word for your conduct: pathetic.\" \"Is that...right?!\" Hopping up from his tripped position, Subaru hurled a handful of dirt toward Otto's head. However, Otto covered his face with an arm to block. With Subaru surprised that his effort to blind him had been foiled, Otto grabbed his collar and proceeded to hurl Subaru over his back, slamming him upon the ground. The blow to his back made him lose his breath. Subaru, gasping, could not stand up. \"Gh, agh...\" \"Hey, Mr. Natsuki. This is the strength you possess. It cannot hold a candle to a knight or to Marquis Mathers, let alone one such as Garfiel. Even I can do this to you.\" As Subaru desperately tried to draw oxygen into his convulsing lungs, he beheld Otto, his vision upside down as the latter walked over. Otto shook his head with an air of exhaustion. \"To even think you faced the White Whale and the Witch Cult. Mr. Natsuki, you are so weak, they could crush you with but a single finger. Surely, you too are well aware of this.\" \"Haa, haa...\" \"You supplement your strength with intellect, then? So far as my eyes have seen, Mr. Natsuki, you have made fervent use of the puny head at your disposal...but in terms of planning and decision-making capabilities, you certainly do not rise to a level that one could take pride in. Indeed, your common sense is quite lacking.\" What was Otto trying to say? Subaru breathed raggedly as irritation began to mix with his confusion. The convulsion of his lungs, the impact of being punched, the pain on cheek and brow...all these were fading. Slowly, in their place, he regained the ability to think and strove to understand. \"You lack both strength and intellect. When I ponder what you might supplement these with, I can think of nothing. Mr. Natsuki, you are a puny, ordinary human being, the sort one can find on any street. And yet, you are living far beyond your means.\" \"What have you...been tryin' to say all this time...\" \"I imagine that, knowing full well you are lacking with things beyond your reach, you gradually attempted to come up with various plans, driving yourself further and further into a corner...truly, I understand how Patlash feels.\" \"Patlash...?\" Subaru was more surprised than perplexed at the sudden mention of his beloved dragon. She was an excellent land dragon who was practically wasted on Subaru, and in his time of need, she had told him exactly what he needed to hear. He owed her a great deal. Otto was saying he understood her feelings. He blinked his eyes. It was incomprehensible. Noticing his continued ignorance, Otto spoke with irritation. \"It is perfectly understandable to want to look good in front of a woman you're smitten with. As I believe such vanity is a necessity, I respect it. While I might find fault with aiming above one's station, let us set that aside for the moment.\" He must have meant Emilia. He must have meant Subaru's attitude toward Emilia. \"Trying to look good in front of a girl who likes you, let us forgive this as well. This is a necessary thing. After all, I believe responsibility is shared in a romantic relationship between both the cherisher and the cherished. Showing off for the sake of someone who likes you this, too, is important. Quite understandable.\" He must have meant Rem. Once upon a time, Subaru had spoken to Otto about Rem in such a manner. He was striking at Subaru's core, the treasured feelings he felt toward both girls  \"But you see, that is as far as it goes.\" Breaking off his words, Otto suddenly drew his head close. To Subaru, who was on guard against a renewed headbutt, Otto looked like he was clenching his teeth as he continued. \"You are lacking. I am sure you understand this. You cannot do much of anything. I am sure you know this. You want to show off for the girl you like, I am sure. I am sure you want to be someone the girl who likes you can be proud of.\" *** \"Then, for the sake of those girls, to at least supplement the portions beyond what their eyes can see, surely it is fine to have someone lend you a hand?  A friend, perhaps?\" Otto pulled his face away, placing one hand on his chest and the other on Subaru's as he spoke those final words. They left Subaru in a momentary daze, after which he audibly pulled in a breath.  To be blunt, Subaru's thoughts were Wait, that...? Subaru had once thought like that: wanting to ask for aid, to cling to someone. Of course he had. Just as Otto had said, Subaru was well aware of his own deficiencies. That was why he'd been running around, even humbling himself, to get Echidna and then Roswaal to cooperate with him. The results of his efforts were that he'd gained the cooperation of neither. Subaru had that unpalatable truth rubbed into his face. Hence, Otto's words were way off base. That path had been long closed to him. \"I tried asking people. I looked for help... But it was no good.\" In the end, the arbitrary, overbearing If I don't protect her... feelings he'd harbored were rejected by Emilia, and he'd realized he himself had been looking down on her. Having his expectations betrayed yet refusing to give up, he'd spent the rest of the night lamenting to the stars. Despite Subaru's various experiences, despite Subaru's numerous encounters, he was neither able to advance nor retreat. Subaru was even out of dry laughter as his own shame tormented him. To Subaru, there in quiet despair, Otto's lips trembled. \"But...but Mr. Natsuki, I do not yet recall you ever asking me.\" *** \"Perhaps you think I am not worth asking, that it is meaningless to ask, or otherwise dismissed the notion in a similar fashion. Perhaps, Mr. Natsuki, I appear to you as one among the great throngs of people you must protect, or something along those lines.\" His voice trembled in an effort to suppress his emotions, though it only brought them into sharper relief. This was Otto's anger, Otto's sadness, and only a fraction of more roiling emotions left with no place to go. He'd hurt Otto very deeply.  Comprehending this, Subaru instantly lifted his face. \"Y-you're wrong.\" \"How am I mistaken? Otherwise, it would be very strange indeed. With what reason do you have to cower here by yourself without a single word to me?\" \"I haven't looked at you like...not telling you things wasn't because I didn't trust you...it's not like that. You're wrong.\" Shaking his head, Subaru denied it. Otto pressed him further into a corner with a wordless stare. Its power made Subaru lower his eyes, running dry on words as he desperately sought a reply. It wasn't that he didn't trust Otto. If anything, it was the reverse. He trusted Otto. Just how many times over had Otto aided Subaru that loop? It wasn't about money; Otto had saved him before out of benevolence, putting his sense of obligation and humanity first. When he'd called Otto a friend, there was no falsehood behind it. But how could Subaru speak to that very Otto about his circumstances? *** Instinctively, he knew.  The penalty for speaking of Return by Death remained in place. Subaru could not divulge any information carried across the boundary of death. He could engage using fragmentary information if someone had knowledge of Subaru's circumstances, like Echidna or Roswaal. But Otto was different. It wasn't just Otto; Emilia, Ram, all the other people involved with the Sanctuary Subaru could not speak to them about a single part of the unimaginable circumstances that surrounded him. And those not knowing of Return by Death would dismiss Subaru's words as nothing but delusions. \"I can't explain any of it right. The inside of my mind's all a mess...it's a big jumble, just like you said. I can't logically explain a single thing.\" *** \"Even if I told you, it's all stuff no one would believe anyway... I don't know what to even say...not to you, not to anyone, nothing...!\" \"...Please, just say it.\" \" Eh?\" To Subaru, murmuring that he could not offer up proof to make anyone believe him, Otto spoke those words. When Subaru spontaneously lifted his face, Otto crossed his arms. \"I said, please, just say it. Even if it isn't logical, even if it is all a jumble, even if it is not in chronological order, I will listen to it all without jumping to conclusions, so please.\" \"Er, but that's...\" \"This...this is what I have been talking about! I told you to stop keeping up appearances!!\" Otto howled, as if this time he had truly reached the limits of his patience. Otto's outburst left Subaru astonished, only to find a finger pointed at his black eyes. \"This you have no proof to make people trust you, no one will trust you without proof, you cannot explain things in a proper order... I tell you, if you have the time to think up such petty excuses, it would be far healthier for you to spill out everything inside your mind than cower like this!!\" \"Even if you say that... I...! Don't have anything to make anyone believe this messed-up...!\" \" Tell me everything! Then, at the end of this messy tale, just say Believe me!! We're friends, after all!!\"  He felt like a great many thoughts and feelings inside his mind had been torn away"}, {"text": "at the root and sent flying. There was no basis to those words. They made no logical sense. They weren't convincing in the slightest. And yet, with Subaru unable to move a muscle, they had enough of something to give his back a shove. \"You might not believe me, but...\" Even though, in that halting manner, he spoke of all the issues he had been carrying alone until there was no more to tell, it did not take him all that long. 8 \" So Roswaal's ordering assassins to attack the mansion basically to...push Emilia and me into a corner, leaving no place for either of us to run.\" Subaru finished his explanation, heedful of the minor details for fear of violating his taboo. All the while, Otto had been creasing his brow, silent as he lent Subaru his ears. \"At this moment in time, this's...all the information I have. There's nothing more to hide.\" Of course, his explanation had left out the things he couldn't speak of: the Witch's Tea Party and Return by Death. As that left crucial gaps in his story, it was fair to say his explanation was chock full of holes. The logical threads connecting various pieces of information were so frayed, even he thought they sounded strange. That was how much he was waiting with bated breath for Otto's reaction to the explanation he had received: the reaction of the same Otto who had declared that all he had to do was just stick Believe me!! onto the very end. Would this become hope, or turn into despair? Such worries and expectations had his eardrums on edge. \"Mr. Natsuki.\" Finally, after a long period of silent thought, Otto uncrossed his arms and spoke: \"Would it be so wrong to turn tail and run without a word to anyone else?\" \"What...the hell?!\" His reply, which came from a completely unexpected angle, elicited a foul and uncouth voice from Subaru. Faced with that reaction from Subaru, Otto's voice went shrill as he replied: \"I mean, we are trapped in a hunting ground for the Great Rabbit, escape depends on Lady Emilia breaking through the Trial, a prospect that seems doubtful; even evacuating the people not held captive by the barrier is being obstructed by an ignoramus, and even if somehow we arrive back at the mansion, there are assassins coming on the lord of the manor's orders...just how many sins have you been committing on a daily basis for things to turn out like this?!\" \"That's what I wanna know! Why does this senseless situation have to barrel down on me like this?! I already knew, but God must seriously hate me! I hate me, too!\" If there was a God who governed fate, that deity most definitely hated Subaru, detesting him as if he were a venomous snake. But resenting that made the situation neither progress nor withdraw, nor its level of difficulty rise or fall. \"Nah, before all that... Otto, I understand why you're getting all worked up...but you actually believe this preposterous story?\" *** \"A horde of demon beasts way beyond 'trouble' is coming our way. Even if we try to run, we can't do anything without Emilia being up to the job, Garfiel's in the way of everyone escaping, and Roswaal's gone insane and betrayed us... You actually believe all this?\" To any objective person, the bad situations lined up one after another constituted an unfolding nightmare. It seemed far more realistic to think that Subaru alone had become touched in the head than believe everything he said was fact. That's why he hadn't even thought of divulging all this. Even Otto had to  \"Now see here, Mr. Natsuki.\" Otto raised one finger as he responded to Subaru's question. \"In the course of my travels across many lands, I have been involved with a rather considerable number of people.\" \"...Don't tell me you can just look into someone's eyes and know whether you can trust them or something...?\" \"No, and you should not believe in such superstitious nonsense. In my time as a merchant, I have experienced far too much firsthand of just how capable people are of shrouding their gazes in order to deceive others. It is nothing to boast of, but I have some experience with being deceived myself.\" It really was nothing to boast of, so the fact that he was doing exactly that made it hard to respond. This conversation was too important to make light of any part of it, so Subaru pursed his lips as Otto continued onward. \"I left my parents' home at fourteen, firmly believing in my abilities as a merchant like any other. The results of that choice were scarcely good...or rather, the unbelievable difficulties I encountered when taking chances, thinking I had a shot at winning, made for results that were quite poor, but...\" \"Now just a...\" \"Setting aside whether the results were fair or foul, I intend to live without regretting the decisions themselves. I am the one who placed my trust and made those wagers something I believe I should remain well aware of.\" Between them, only Otto knew what choices he was using as the basis of his argument, but he surely meant he had engaged in some rather high-stakes financial battles of his own. Accompanying Subaru to the Sanctuary and seeking to connect himself with Roswaal was one such idea. In contrast to expectations, Otto had been acting in a sound, realistic manner. That was why Subaru had doubted Otto would lend his ears to such a baseless tale with scarce odds of victory... \"That is why this is a first for me, Mr. Natsuki.\" \"...Eh?\" Subaru let his mouth fall open, staring as he wondered just what Otto was trying to say. To that, Otto spoke with a stupidly cheerful look on his face.  It was a crisp declaration. \"Ignoring the odds and joining a side with no visible chance of winning...this is a first for me.\" 9  He hurried. He was short of breath. He raised an incoherent voice. Subaru ran across the grass, irritation in tow, seemingly chasing his own emotions as they rushed ahead of him. He cut through the crisp, morning air, kicked the soil, and leaped over rocks, each and every stride grand and powerful. Finally, having run in a straight line, the building that was his destination came into view. Unintentional exultation made Subaru bare his teeth. He bared his teeth and laughed. The door practically flew when he opened it. He powerfully barreled his way into the building. And then  \" Roswaal!\" Racing through the entry hall and the living room, Subaru vigorously kicked the bedroom door open so hard, it seemed a wonder he did not break it. In the room were Roswaal, sitting upon on the bed, and Ram, in the middle of changing the bandages on Roswaal's body; both wore expressions of surprise as they watched Subaru's arrival. It was rare to see such expressions on either the perpetually made-up Roswaal or the usually calm and composed Ram. An unprecedented occurrence was a good omen for the sake of changing the future. A smile gushed from him. Then, jabbing a finger straight at the surprised pair, he announced in a loud voice: \" Let's make a bet. You and me. And the chips will be our wishes.\" CHAPTER 3 *** 1 Subaru's breathing leaped, and he felt like gloating as he received shocked stares from both of them. The two people inside the room, Roswaal and Ram, were a pair that Subaru never expected to see with surprise on their faces. As if to project that sentiment, Subaru twisted his lips, a wicked smile coming over him. \" Bet?\" Recovering from his initial shock, Roswaal narrowed his differently colored eyes. Roswaal, having his bandages changed atop the bed, gave off a visual impression that was slightly different than normal. The reason was that the makeup on his face, the makeup he always wore, was off, leaving his bare face exposed. The flesh under the white makeup was pale, making the look in his eyes feel gentle rather than sharp, which gave Subaru the polar opposite impression from the usual. Still, he was quite handsome whether he did anything to his looks or not. \"Yes, a bet. I'm challenging you to a big, serious match...with what you and I want on the line.\" \"Wait, Barusu.\" Subaru raised a finger, boldly making his statement to Roswaal. Roswaal narrowed his brows as he pondered the proposal, but Ram interposed herself between them. Ram shielded Roswaal behind her, sustaining Subaru's gaze with a reproachful look in her eyes. \"What do you think you are doing, suddenly forcing your way into the room and spouting random things? Do you intend to burden Master Roswaal during his bed rest? This is too rude, even for you.\" \"You know as well as I do that he's not the kind of guy to just sit and wait to get better. Besides, the situation doesn't allow it. This problem is everybody's problem, so I'm gonna be a little pushy and reckless.\" \"Barusu \" \"No matter what anybody says, I don't have any reason to stop.\" When Ram exuded a dangerous aura that was mixed with obvious irritation, Subaru thrust a palm straight at her. Then, anticipating just where her actions might lead, he tilted his head and called to Roswaal, sitting behind her. \"What about you, Roswaal? You're not gonna sulk about your schedule going a little out of whack, now are you? Do you have the guts to push yourself a little for the sake of your successor?\" \"...What a roundabout and deeeeply interesting turn of phrase. For the sake of my successor, you say?\" Without directly touching upon the truth of Return by Death, Subaru made his proposal to Roswaal in a deviously indirect manner. Its contents brought a suspicious look over Ram, but Subaru's intent definitely got through to Roswaal. His face still ghastly and pale, Roswaal slowly sat up higher. \"Ram, wait by my...no, for a brief time, could you leave young Subaru and I alone?\" \"...Are you certain?\" \"Do not worry; there is no concern that Subaru might cause harm to me. He is not here for payback, but for a quite diiiifferent matter, yes?\" \"Well, even if I was here for that, I wouldn't be able to do a thing. You'd just nail me back. Pathetic, but yeah, don't worry, 'kay?\" Waving both his empty hands, he asserted to an anxious Ram that he had no hostile intentions. Not that this was the slightest bit convincing, but Ram let a sigh trickle out, then bowed to Roswaal. \"Please do not overly exert yourself.  And Barusu, please do nothing rude.\" \"Man, you're really only worried I'm gonna start something. Worry about him starting something, would ya?\" Exchanging these words as Ram headed for the room's exit, Subaru slumped his shoulders as Ram snorted. Then, after the door was closed, there were but two people, Subaru and Roswaal, remaining in the room. It had been just a few, scant hours since his heart was thoroughly broken, and yet, Subaru found himself in the same situation once again. \"I had not thought you and I would meet again face-to-face in this lifetime, and so quickly at that...did something happen to alter your state of mind?\" \"Alter my state of mind...well, you're not wrong. My shame was exposed, I got lectured a ton, I traded blows of friendship...nah, the punching was too one-sided to spin it like that.\" Recalling how Otto had pummeled him, Subaru smiled wryly over his complete defeat. But it was a good loss. Over and over, Subaru had lost a variety of battles since arriving in this world, but never had defeat tasted so sweet. \"A most cheerful face... It was only last night that you became aware of your own lack of commitment, yet you seem to have put your thoughts in order. I grandly congratulate"}, {"text": "you for your swift return.\" \"When it comes to the meaning of grand, you've got me beat, the thickness of your face included... You know, borrowing someone's hand to get back on your feet ain't so bad. Especially if it's a friend's.\" Upon receiving Subaru's reply, Roswaal slowly shook his head. Despair rested within his eyes; his expression crestfallen, obvious pity projected by his demeanor, Roswaal sighed deeply. \"So soft. So weak, and so very young... Ultimately, you can only solve the suffering in this world by yourself. Relying on a friend is a foolish plan, betraying only your own weakness.\" \"Depending on people, connections, feelings...what, that's no good?\" \"No goooood at all.\" \"That so.  Then there's no way to settle this except a bet.\" With that one sentence, Roswaal's expression changed. Subaru took a step forward toward the center of the room. He walked closer to the bed, closing the distance between him and Roswaal, and thrust a finger toward him once more. \"Just like I said, let's make a bet. The chips are what we want most, and there'll only be one wager.\" \"...I shall hear you out, at the very leaaaast.\" Rather than dismissing the proposal as out of hand, Roswaal prodded Subaru to continue speaking. Having vaulted over the initial hurdle, Subaru exhaled, turning his finger toward the heavens as he formally stated his preconditions. \"What you and I want are on parallel lines. After yesterday, I'm sure of that. I want to save everything. You can't forgive me for that.  Am I right?\" \"Yes, you are indeed. Nor can you forgive me. However, you cannot distance yourself from me, either.\" \"...You got me there. If we lose you, Emilia can't fight going forward. I hate to say it, but you have the power here, no matter what you're scheming, no matter how bad you and I get along.\" \"And? Knowing that much, what is it you wish to do? With your naive reliance on others, you are incapable of resolving the situation. Compromise or honing there are no other paths before us.\" \"If it was just me, I'm sure you'd be right.\" Faced with Roswaal's words, Subaru bluntly acknowledged the weakness of his own heart. Even if he stubbornly persisted, clinging to Return by Death, at some point, he would surely be worn down, just as Roswaal was saying. Certainly, if it was Subaru alone, still relying on no one, clutching his knees and cowering, then...  But that was no longer the case. Because it wasn't, he could lift up his head. \"Roswaal, let's have one final showdown between you and me, here and now.  This time around, I will save the Sanctuary and the mansion. I'll blow away each and every one of your schemes.\" \"You say you will recover somehow from this dire position? And that you will relinquish your one and only Authority?\" \"...Redoing and telling you about it are two separate things. I had that ground into me. We got too conceited, you and me both. My thing...isn't convenient like that.\" In the second Trial, Subaru saw scenes from worlds where he had chosen poorly. The more Subaru faced death, the more such tragedies unfolded; this was no way to find salvation. Besides, the search for salvation was the curse that haunted Subaru's and Roswaal's hearts. \"And you will confine your final chance to this life, hereafter doing as the Sanctuary...no, as I fondly desire?\" \"Yeah, that's what it amounts to. I'm sick and tired of feeling each other out like this. I'm making this the last time.\" \"And what guarantee do I have that you will uphold your word?\" Roswaal sought confirmation regarding Subaru's assertion as if it was the natural thing to do. \"Given your Authority, you could surely make it so that the instant you said 'final' never happened. You are free to rescind anything inconvenient to you. The validity of a promise from such a person is rather...\" \" Roswaal.\" With Roswaal concerned Subaru might go back on his word, Subaru quietly called out his name. His words stopping the moment he heard that voice, Roswaal widened his eyes as he found Subaru's gaze trained upon him. Then, without changing his tone of voice, Subaru continued. \"Do you think I'd do that?\" *** \"If you think I would, we have nothing to discuss. I'll end this conversation here.\" He declared it strongly, strong enough that many opponents would break off the discussion in a fit. Such words from Subaru made Roswaal close his eyes; from there, he lightly raised both his hands. \"...In proposing to make this time your last, what is it you seek from me?\" \" What I want is pretty simple. If I do manage to resolve the situation my way, that'll mean a result different from what you want, right? If that happens, this unwanted development would make you lose your will to live and your drive to do certain things... I want you to set that aside.\" \"Aside, you say? To not lose my drive, you say? Yet, I cannot help but call that a most difficult thing to achieve. After all, it is a matter of the heart. Of course, it is possible to engage in pretense on the surface, but...\" \"Not really, Roswaal. It's not like you and I are always going to be wrestling with each other.\" \"...Hmm?\" With a doubtful look on his face, Roswaal was voicing dissatisfaction with the terms Subaru proposed. Seeing that Roswaal clearly did not understand, Subaru rubbed his own nose with a finger as he spoke: \"I know if I win, it'd lead to an unwanted development for you. But for the sake of my future, and for the sake of putting Emilia on the throne, you need to keep on staying close by. There'll probably be times when she'll have to rely on the power only I have. Setting aside the issue of priorities, I'll still be working toward your goal in the end.\" *** \"Roswaal, my demand is simple. If I can save both the Sanctuary and the mansion...throw the book aside and join us. I'll make Emilia King. And I need your power to make it happen.\" \"What foolishness.\" When Subaru extended his hand and spoke those words, Roswaal's reply was brief, practically spitting out the words. It sounded less like scorn than rejection and bewilderment. \"Your proposal is twisted, even for you. You will engage in your own methods, yet you will forgive me, whose thoughts are incompatible with yours? My actions are exceedingly wicked. Surely, those who I have sacrificed would hate me and curse me for what I have already done. Are you not at the very toooop of that list?\" \"If the issue is forgiving you or not, there's no way in hell I'm forgiving you. What you've done to me, to me and to Emilia, isn't something that can be forgiven.  But that's an issue of my heart.\" There was no way he could fail to hate the man. Many of the hardships Subaru had suffered were crafted and set into motion by Roswaal, courtesy of the poison fangs he had meticulously prepared. That venom had wounded Subaru in mind and body both, even robbing him of his life, making him taste despair many times over. But  \" You won't be kicking up anything fatal like that again. Not if I resolve things, see?\" \"Even if I cease to commit such crimes, wicked deeds are wicked deeds. Surely, this is not so convenient a tale?\" \"Me, I just love convenient tales. Emilia's gonna work hard and become King, and I'll live happily ever after right by her side, so get on the bandwagon, damn it. Let me make clear: I'm not taking no for an answer.\" *** When Subaru closed one eye, winking as he spoke those words, Roswaal was literally agape. From there, Roswaal's silence continued for a while, until finally, he covered his face with his own hands. \"Succeeding in your goals, while letting go of nothing? On top of that, taking in even me, a man with thoughts irreconcilable with yours, and counting me as one of the cornerstones upon which to build your future? Do you even understand, Subaru?\" \"Do I even understand, what?\" \"To just what extent your answer is infused with greed.\" Roswaal's words made Subaru's expression shift...not into surprise, but a smile of remembrance. Just prior to leaving the castle of dreams, Echidna had told him the exact same thing. Witch and devil alike had identically appraised his greed.  And that was just fine with him. \"You're the one who said it, Roswaal.\" His smile of remembrance became twisted as Subaru Natsuki responded with a wicked look. \"Backing me into a corner will make me the strongest card of all.  It won't be the way you wanted it, but I'll be the strongest card you can play against your enemies. Still not satisfied?\" \"...And if this strongest card is ineffective...?\" \"I won't have any more hands to play. Your victory will be complete. I'll be your minion or anything you want.\" If Roswaal won, his scheme would be fulfilled. This time, the terms proposed sent Roswaal into prolonged, silent thought. Subaru quietly waited for him to voice his reply. And then  \"No matter how much you struggle, you cannot hope to achieve a breakthrough. Lady Emilia cannot overcome the obstacle before her, and the barrier will not be unraveled. The Sanctuary will be buried in snow, and the mansion will sink into a tragic spectacle of blood.\" \"Yeah.  It'll be worth it to see how you react when I screw all that up.\" Subaru raised his middle finger in a fit of annoyance. The gesture made Roswaal sigh, whereupon he lifted a finger of his own. \"Just as you will run around attempting to fulfill your victory conditions, I shall give one more push to fulfill that which is written within my book of knowledge. You have no complaints, I trust?\" \"Well, can I take that to mean you're going along with my proposal?\" \"As you say, it is not a bad thing to do something for my successor... Nor do I lack interest in whether the results will be in accordance with what is wriiiitten.\" In a world already contradicting the book, Roswaal was declaring he would act according to its contents even so. Before all was said and done, Subaru had to wreck Roswaal's plans, saving everything and everyone. \"Now that this is decided, time is precious. If you'll excuse me, I'll get started.\" \"Subaru.\" As Subaru turned his back on the bed, seemingly about to leave the room, Roswaal called out to him. When Subaru looked again at him, Roswaal averted his gaze ever so slightly. \"The snow in the Sanctuary, and the attack on the mansion, will occur in three days.  I expect a valiant battle from you, and an ignominious defeat.\" \"Say what you want.\" Roswaal's mundane sarcasm made Subaru click his tongue and come back with a retort. Then, Subaru pinched his own cheek a little. \"Roswaal, you're throwing me off my game here. Get that clown makeup back on, would ya?\" \"Hmm. Come to mention it...this is the first time you have seen my bare face, is it not?\" \"I suppose in this world, it is.\" Once, in a world long left behind, they had entered the bath together. Subaru made a pained smile as he recalled the sight from back then that Roswaal knew nothing of. \"This is a bout between you and I, two clowns toyed with by fate.  Let's do this fair and square.\" Leaving behind only those words, Subaru left the room. They had come to terms on a wager over their incompatible desires.  And so, it began. This was the start of Subaru Natsuki's final challenge, to liberate the Sanctuary and save the mansion. 2 \" Barusu, you look like you are engaged in wicked deeds with your friend. What happened?\""}, {"text": "Having formed a promise over the wager, Subaru was just leaving the building when a voice came from behind. The bitter comment was all he needed to identify the speaker. When he turned back from the building's entrance, Ram was leaning against the wall to the side of the door, hugging her own elbows as she stared intently at him. \"Stop talking about wicked deeds and stuff. That makes me sound super shady. You'll scare people.\" \"It aptly describes two little men quietly plotting about this and that, does it not? Master Roswaal permitted it so I did not interfere, but you should know your place.\" \"...Sorry, Big Sis, but I'm not facing an opponent I can beat with halfhearted moves on the game board.\" As Subaru shrugged his shoulders, his reply made Ram narrow her eyes in a sour mood. \"You have done it several times, but please cease addressing me as Big Sis. Ram does not recall becoming Barusu's elder sister. It is repulsive.\" \"Saying repulsive is overkill, geez... Well, it's like a bad habit. Forgive me, 'kay?\" \"How self-serving of you. Why should Ram forgive such a...\" Right as she was about to strongly admonish him, Ram's words came to a halt. This was probably because she noticed the deep, forlorn look in Subaru's eyes.  It was not on purpose that Subaru called her Big Sis. He unthinkingly sought out her kindness. In his moments of weakness, he leaned on Ram...because Ram let him. \"...I have no interest in your strange hobbies, Barusu.\" Just as planned, Ram accepted Subaru's words as a joke without pursuing the issue further. \"I shall return to my initial question, then.  What is this conspiracy you are up to?\" \"You really don't beat around the bush, do you? You shouldn't have been listening to me and Roswaal talking anyway...\" \"Certainly, I was not listening. But I do have the means to peek.\" \"...Clairvoyance, huh?\" When Ram pointed to her own eyes, Subaru remembered that she possessed the power of Clairvoyance. That ability allowed her to synchronize with another person's eyes, pilfering their vision for her own it was through this power that Ram had learned of the pair's wager. \"You're a serious housemaid to the core, but those poor manners are gonna make your master hate you.\" \"It is the cute selfishness of a uniquely faithful spirit and a wavering maiden's heart. Overlook it, please.\" Her statement was truly brazen in how it placed her on a pedestal, but Subaru hardened his cheeks. In that moment, he wanted nothing more than to continue this fruitless conversation with her. He forced down such personal greed. \"Right now, is Roswaal accepting that cute maiden's heart and faithful spirit?\" *** When Subaru posed his question, it was clear that Ram's emotionless expression had grown frostier. The edge of her pink gaze grew sharper still, but Subaru boldly took a step forward, closing the physical and psychological distance between them. \"You're the one taking care of his needs. You've seen his black book, haven't you?\" \"If I told you, what would you do with the answer?\" \"I'm taking that as a yes, okay?\" Subaru interpreted her demeanor as a clear attempt to evade a direct reply meaning Ram knew of the book of knowledge. Indeed, Ram had not denied Subaru's assertion. Ram knew of the book of knowledge. It was unclear whether her eyes had perused its pages, but... \"What's written in that book decides whether Roswaal takes a left turn or right. But letting him do as it says is no good. All hell will break loose in the Sanctuary. And if that happens, everyone'll...\" \"Do you think speaking such words will move Ram's heart? If so, how shallow you are, Barusu.\" When Subaru tried redoubling his words with an explanation, Ram crisply and sternly cut him off. The light in her eyes did not waver, not even as Subaru suggested Roswaal's actions would lead to a dead end. \"To Ram, there is only one thing that can be placed above all else. This is absolute. It will never waver. Therefore, if it is your hope to change Ram's heart, please stop.\" \"...There's no such thing as absolutes, Ram.\" \"Watch what you speak.  I shall not warn you again.\" When Ram took Subaru's suppressed words as mocking her loyalty, her voice grew barbed. But Subaru's denial was not about Ram's feelings toward Roswaal. It was directed at Ram herself, who had forgotten her other half, the most important thing to her in life. It was toward her using the word absolute. \"Barusu.  Do you really...expect something out of Lady Emilia?\" That was why, while turned toward a door, Ram continuing the conversation over her shoulder was truly unexpected. Her emotions remained hidden as Ram tossed the question Subaru's way. He immediately realized this was revenge having questioned Ram about her loyalty, she was now questioning his own. \"Yeah, I do. I trust her. She asked me to support her and everything.\" Subaru replied to Ram's question honestly and without reserve. Even while respecting Emilia choice to challenge the Trial herself, he'd schemed to push the matter away several times over. However, this was not because he viewed it as impossible for her and had given up. He'd never questioned whether she could overcome it, not even once. Subaru had arbitrarily judged that time did not permit it, and nothing more. \"...Lady Emilia being unable to overcome the Trial is through no fault of her own.\" \"Ram?\" \"There is a reason she stumbles without knowing why herself. Being unaware of this, she merely repeats herself, to no avail.\" Without touching upon Subaru's proverbial question mark, Ram said only this before opening the door. Before her petite physique vanished into the building's interior, Subaru instantly opened his mouth. \"Ram, the situation's already contradicting what the book says.  Roswaal is free.\" He didn't think of it as returning the favor for her words of advice. But he put the words on his lips all the same. The events had already strayed from what was written in the book of knowledge, and the world proceeded apace toward a new future. It was yet to be determined whether this was linked to tragedy, with all laid to ruin, or to breaking through fate itself  *** When Ram receded from sight, closing the door behind her, Subaru let out a sigh. In the end, Ram's position had not changed, nor had she spoken of things beyond her personal opinion. \"But she gave a lot more advice than I expected. Maybe she likes me, too...\" \" Are you still speaking such things? I believe the person concerned would be quite angry if she overheard you...\" \"This Feel-the-Love Campaign is still ongoing. Go ahead and give me more good news to celebrate if you'd like.\" As Subaru shot the breeze, Otto, with leaves stuck to his hat, emerged from the shadow of a nearby tree, which he had been hiding behind. The sight made it hard for Subaru to deny Ram's assertion he was engaging in \"wicked deeds.\" \"Hiding 'cause you're scared of Ram? She won't bite. She's not as scary as she looks.\" \"I think that would also make her angry if she overheard it...! ...At the moment, Ram is cooperating with the Marquis, so that makes us enemies of a sort, yes? It's only natural to be wary of her.\" \"Ram, an enemy?\" Subaru was fairly surprised when Otto made that assertion with eyes of reproach. In return, Otto gave him a questioning look, leaving Subaru agape at his own self. Otto's thinking was certainly correct. Given her position, Ram was on the opposing side. He should have thought of it in those terms from the beginning. Though he knew she couldn't be counted on as an ally, he'd still arbitrarily assumed she was a neutral party in this contest of wills. \"Haa... Mr. Natsuki, I understand just how much you have trusted Miss Ram in the past. There are also your feelings for Miss Rem remaining back at the mansion, to be sure.\" \"Just lay off for a second, all right? I'm still reeling from how naive I've been.\" \"That is fine and well. Self-awareness is important.  But more importantly, what of the Marquis?\" Having finished with his opening jabs, Otto cut straight to the point. Subaru twisted his cheeks as he jutted a thumb straight up. \"Negotiations were a success. The bet's been made.\" \"I am relieved to hear it. Well, I certainly thought he would go along, but tripping up here would have made all the plans for what follows come to naught.\" \"You're quite an optimist...it was plenty possible Roswaal wouldn't go for it, right?\" \"Very little, really.  The Marquis appears to lack experience with losing.\" As Otto sank his shoulders, Subaru went \"Aha,\" accepting his view. Certainly, just as Otto supposed, Roswaal seemed strong in a fight. He was cunning, and he had guts, too. In fact, 80 percent or so of the crises Subaru had been placed in were schemes of Roswaal's devising. \"A human being who schemes that much will not back down, for if he did, it would be none other than himself who he betrays. There is also the fact that it would seem like weakness...\" \"Ohh, somehow, you feel really dependable... You haven't died by any chance, have you?\" \"I am quite alive! Besides, please stop flattering me. When I let compliments go to my head, I am bound to trip up somewhere soon. I speak from vast experience.\" \"Not that I'm one to talk, but that's some sad experience...\" Both of them lost often enough that they could not relax, even if the circumstances seemed to be running smoothly. Either way, Otto had made his own proposals, which had set the stage for the showdown with Roswaal. Of course, in the end, this succeeded only in creating the preliminary conditions, but  \" At least I avoided having to play this game all by my lonesome.\" \"For the moment...however, this is still only the first game board. And we must discuss the next...\" No temporary sense of accomplishment arose in Otto as he immediately switched over to the next issue at hand. At this point, Subaru crossed his arms and donned a grim face. The creases of his brow displayed his inner discord. The cause was  \"...Garfiel, huh?\" Otto led the conversation toward a single answer namely, the conclusion that Garfiel's cooperation was necessary and irreplaceable for breaking free of the Sanctuary. To date, Subaru and Garfiel had borne enmity toward each other several times; at times, this descended into killing. Subaru could not forget how his fangs and claws ripped the people dear to him to shreds. Naturally, he had not forgotten his anger, either. \"Certainly, he is a moody opponent, but in the present situation, he is the easiest to bring onto our side. His position is different from that of the Marquis, whose views are absolutely irreconcilable with yours. Surely, you understand this, Mr. Natsuki?\" The explanation came from none other than Otto, who had been a murder victim himself once. Subaru nodded solemnly. If Subaru ignored his own reluctance, it wasn't impossible to fight alongside Garfiel. Indeed, Subaru had cooperated with him twice already. The first was against the Witch, and the second was to confront Roswaal. Both had resulted in tragedy, but... \"So the only problem is how I feel, isn't it...\" \"Well then, please forget about that here and now and let us speak of it no more.\" \"Forget and speak of it no more...man, that's easy for you to say.\" Subaru was less angry than taken aback at how bluntly Otto had put it. However, he said \"Now see here?\" as he thrust a reproachful finger forward. \"Mr. Natsuki, we have no time for this. There is no time to worry about such sentiment. As we speak, time is steadily passing us by. It is the same as merchandise growing"}, {"text": "stale. Before irrevocable damage is incurred, we must set aside our personal feelings. They are unproductive, unproductive!\" \"I I get it, I get it... Really, you're a lifesaver.\" To Otto, who was urging him to use all of his head rather than part of it, Subaru let the last part of his sentence trickle out in a small voice. He needed to cut off his emotions and deal with the top priorities. In terms of cutting things away, Otto's demand differed little from Roswaal's. And yet, it felt like a world of difference to him. \"Guess whether it's looking forward, backward, or sideways, the speaker makes a big difference...\" \"We have no time for idle banter. That is not your job, Mr. Natsuki.\" \"Yeah, I know.\" Against Garfiel, the key would be the Witch's advice that he was afraid of the outside world. He hated relying on Echidna, but in this current situation, he couldn't let himself get hung up on that. If he wasn't going to depend on Return by Death, he needed to use anything he could, be it a cat's paw or the words of a Witch with a foul personality. \"I will do as we planned. As for Emilia...\" \"That's the one thing I won't let you stick your hand into. I suppose I can't exactly stick mine in, either.\" Subaru was unsure whether he should have nodded his head or shaken it from side to side in response to Otto's worry. Having lost his qualifications, Subaru could not aid with the Trial. The tomb's barrier could only be undone by Emilia challenging the Trial. At the very least, if he only could find a clue... Even though he knew that clue was to be found in Emilia's past, a past she feared, filled with excessive grief  \"I still haven't asked Emilia about it. In the end, I guess I chickened out.\" Unable to watch Emilia shed tears after she was crushed by the Trial, he had not confirmed anything beyond that. He'd danced around the issue...it was the price of having a weak, loving, tender heart. \"Because I didn't have the courage to stare straight at her scars, I gave her a pat on the head to console her and pretended to not notice. How many times do I have to repeat that before I learn...\" \"My goodness. I have to question your love if you can't even handle this much. Please stop playing innocent all the time. It is quite ridiculous.\" \"...Why, you...\" Subaru twisted his lips over Otto's rush of words, making light of the somewhat embarrassing exchange. Sighing deeply at his reaction, Otto lightly stretched on the spot. \"Well then, have you resolved to treat Lady Emilia's wounds?\" \"Resolved to ask if it's okay for me to, at least. Unlike with Garfiel, I'm not afraid it's gonna get me killed.\" \"I am somewhat torn whether it is all right to laugh about that.\" If he carelessly picked at Garfiel's wounds and earned his ire, that would simply put him mortal danger. Compared with that, he had no concerns about asking Emilia, save a fear of being intrusive. What spurred him to do so was Ram's words of advice: that Emilia stumbled without even realizing why. \"So for that, too, it all comes down to my Emilia...huh?\" \"She is not yours yet, Mr. Natsuki. I suppose that is me telling you in Lady Emilia's stead?\" \"Oh, shaddap.\" Glossing over his worries with a frivolous tongue, Subaru turned a clenched fist in Otto's way. Seeing this, Otto scratched his head, then answered in kind, meeting Subaru's fist with his. \"Anyway, we gotta do this. Let's have one hell of a party when everything's settled. Don't screw up, man.\" \"Indeed. For the sake of not just yours, but my own sparkling future, I'd certainly like it if everything goes nicely.\" \"Don't talk about stuff like your own sparkling future. You're worrying me.\" \"Just what do you mean by that?!\" After wrapping up their exchange, the two bumped their fists together and turned away from each other. Otto had his role to play and Subaru had his. With this in mind, he took the first step toward fulfilling his role and headed for the forest his feet hastening to the place hidden within. 3  When he placed the crystal into the white wall, the dazzling light gushing forth filled his vision. \"...Even when you know it's coming, it's still a surprise.\" Covering his face with an arm, Subaru commented idly as he waited for the blue light to abate. Then he timidly lowered his arm, looked at the brightly lit wall, and was relieved to find what he had sought. \"The fact the wall opened up means that even if I'm stripped of the challenger status, I still haven't been expelled from the Apostles. Is this Echidna's scheming or a simple oversight...? I'll bet Otto's soul that it's just an oversight.\" Speaking such words, Subaru used the crystal as a key to a hidden room and stepped into the Ryuzu Meyer replication facility, which was hidden deep in the forest of the Sanctuary. Inside, Subaru eyes found a giant crystal and the girl sealed within it. Arriving to find the sight utterly unchanged from before, this served as proof that Subaru's status remained similarly unchanged. This was one method for Subaru to confirm his status as an Apostle of Greed. He had paid this place a visit with that exact intent. Besides, coming here meant that  \"I can meet the people involved, too. But the smell here is just awful. Wouldn't it be better to clean this out?\" \" I am of the same opinion, but it is a measure to prevent insects and small animals from approaching. If you wish to complain, I would prefer you lodged it with its wily designer.\" \"Nah, I'll pass. I don't want to meet her ever again if I can help it.\" With this, Subaru trained a pained smile toward the figure who had appeared at the entrance to the hidden room. It was a girl with long, pink hair Ryuzu, an individual with an elderly air about her. Walking over, the girl stood beside Subaru, gazing up due to their height difference as she peered into his black eyes. The air felt parched as she squinted at him with her round eyes. \"Now then, from the fact that you are here and the statement just now...it would appear you are already rather well versed concerning us?\" \"It's pretty much what you suspect. I already have a general idea about that...and the purpose of this place.\" \"I see. I had wondered if that might be the case when you went into the tomb to bring out Lady Emilia last night...there is now no question that you are a qualified Apostle.\" Ryuzu was surprised by Subaru's reply but immediately nodded in acceptance. Somehow, she had a tired expression on her face; the look in her eyes was rich in deep sentiment. \"So it is you, Young Su, who Young Ros was waiting for...\" \"Ah, sorry. That plotline's been scrapped. The editors said the readers don't want to see that.\" \" Huh?\" \"Also, I want to confirm something about what you said just now. Somethin' really important.\" The way he ignored her solemn discovery with a lighthearted demeanor took Ryuzu aback. But while she was still reeling, Subaru placed a hand on her shoulder, earnestly meeting her eye to eye. \"Ryuzu, how much do you know about Roswaal's thinking?\" \"Young Su...?\" \"Tell me, Ryuzu. I don't want to think of you as an enemy.\" Staying in place, Subaru bowed his head as he pleaded to Ryuzu. His intensity brought a conflicted look over Ryuzu. Finally, the corners of her eyebrows fell. \"If you wish to ask, you need only exercise your rights as an Apostle and ask away. I am sure that at your age, you must love being able to do with a girl as you please, Young Su.\" \"I might be a young man, but your outward appearance is outside my suitable age range, Ryuzu. Besides \" \"Besides?\" \"I don't want to rely on command rights to talk to a replica. I came to talk to you, Ryuzu.\" Subaru's words made Ryuzu's breath catch. Her somewhat long ears trembled in surprise. If all he cared about were results, Subaru should have brandished his rights as an Apostle right then and there. But if he treated Ryuzu as a replica a doll Subaru felt he would end up damaging something important to him.  As long as there was life, a future, hope, possibilities. Yes, that was what Roswaal had said. Subaru didn't think he was mistaken about that. But that was all. Roswaal was not correct, either. The proper path surely rested elsewhere. That was why Subaru wanted to speak to Ryuzu the proper way. \"...All I know is that Young Ros inherited a book from Her Lady the Witch.\" Perhaps his sentiments had gotten through, for the surprise in Ryuzu's eyes faded as she haltingly began to speak. \"Surely, one part of what is written within the book is to administer the Sanctuary. This, and all else, is for the sake of greeting the awaited one...yes, it was a previous generation of Roswaals from which I heard this.\" \"That's it, huh?\" \"I swear, that is all. Or do you wish to question whether it is true or false as an Apostle?\" \"...I'm gonna pass. I trust you, Ryuzu.\" Perhaps it was more precise to say he wanted to believe her. Drawing in her chin, seemingly satisfied by Subaru's reply, Ryuzu looked at the hand resting on her shoulder. \"I must say, though, this is quite passionate of you. It makes even my heart beat a little faster.\" \"That's painting a problematic picture, but still, this is a big help. I mean, Ryuzu, if even you turned out to be a devil, I would've been this close to ordering you as an Apostle to go sink into a smelter or something...\" \"You are a boy who likes saying very scary things with that childish face of yours, aren't you...?\" When Subaru removed his hand from her shoulder, Ryuzu tut-tutted as she slapped her hip. It felt like an act of consideration to brush the stifling atmosphere aside. Going along with it, Subaru let his cheeks slacken. And then, having finished checking up on the initial scare, Ryuzu inclined her head. \"Now, from the look of things, this is no trifling matter. Young Su, are you in some kind of argument with Young Ros?\" \"It sounds more impressive to call it a match than an argument. The results will be better for everyone if I win, so I wanted you to cooperate with me, too, Ryuzu...\" \"Young men resort to posturing so quickly... So what kind of dispute is it?\" \"The easiest way to put it is: What's the best way to liberate the Sanctuary, I guess?\" So far as their relationship with Ryuzu and the others was concerned, the conflict between Subaru and Roswaal began and ended with that. Both wanted the barrier lifted; the only difference was in how to bring that about. Subaru pinned his hopes on Emilia; Roswaal pinned his hopes on Subaru. \"And I know that while you support liberating the Sanctuary on the surface, you're actually part of the opposition. And that Garfiel holds the same opinion.\" Finally, Subaru cut to the heart of the matter, which he hadn't had a chance to directly confirm to date. Previously, he had heard from Ram that not all residents of the Sanctuary supported its liberation. Some residents were part of a faction that wanted to remain. Subaru was already confident that Ryuzu and Garfiel formed the vanguard of this remain faction and were the ones wielding the most influence within it. Once before during that loop, Subaru proposed that he liberate the Sanctuary on his own. But the proposal courted Ryuzu's ire and resulted in Garfiel"}, {"text": "crushing his plans by force. It could mean only one thing: Neither of the two desired the liberation of the Sanctuary. \"I understand how you feel. I don't intend to stand here and say heading outside is the absolute right thing to do. I understand the feeling of not wanting to change your environment. But...\" Opening a path to the outside created change, like it or not. It was instinctual to disdain this and seek to protect the present status quo, which was familiar. He didn't want to force that sentiment down. However  \"But it'll inevitably bring misfortune, and that's something I can't let happen. This once, it's necessary, by hook or by crook.\" In the near future, disaster would strike the Sanctuary. When that time came, the only thing remaining would be death. To avert this catastrophe, the barrier had to be lifted. He needed to liberate this place. But the decisions did not end there. \"If it comes down to it, you can make a choice then and there. Whether one stays or goes can be left up to each person. But I won't let you keep the door locked. On that, I won't budge.\" \"Young Su.\" \"I don't want to resort to it, but I will if I have no choice. So please don't make me. Let's settle this by talking to each other.\" He didn't want to depend on his right of compulsion as an Apostle or anything like that. That was why he desperately wanted to settle things through dialogue. \"That's why...er, um, Ryuzu?\" When he raised his resolve-imbued face, Subaru furrowed his brows, perplexed. In front of Subaru, contrary to his expectations, Ryuzu listened to his words with what felt like a very conflicted look. Then, her face still conflicted, Ryuzu audibly cleared her throat. \"Ahem. I am sorry to interrupt when you are being so heartfelt...but where did you hear that I oppose liberating the Sanctuary?\" \" Somewhere that's not quite here. You don't need to hide it.\" \"Don't go spouting something vague like Young Garand give me a serious reply. Where did you hear such idle gossip?\" \"Idle gossip...er, um, I heard it myself, with my very own ears...\" Faced with Ryuzu's souring demeanor, Subaru's voice gradually lost its strength. After that, Subaru gulped, his eyes faintly avoiding Ryuzu's gaze. \"...Ryuzu, don't tell me you're actually not opposed to liberating the Sanctuary?\" \"As far as whether to lift the barrier, I have no intention of obstructing its removal. Just as you said, Young Su, whether one stays or goes should be an individual choice...that is what I believe.\" \"The hell?! That's crazy!\" This unanticipated comeback sent Subaru reeling. He had come here with the intention of persuading Ryuzu, who apparently held Garfiel's reins. And that was supposed to put him one step closer to dealing with Garfiel, the lynchpin to all his plans. Her reply had shaken those plans to the core.  No, disrupting those plans was far from the only issue. \"Then, that time, why did you...? I was sure I was being imprisoned so that I couldn't liberate the Sanctuary. If I'm wrong, what was that all about?\" Clutching his head in confusion, Subaru desperately tried to make sense of all the inconsistencies. Ryuzu, watching Subaru with narrowed eyes, let out a delicate sigh. \"This is all quite a jumble... But I cannot dismiss your doubts as pure delusion.\" \"Ryuzu? Do you have any idea what...?\" \"Before that, Young Su, I wish to ask you something.\" Interrupting the hasty Subaru's flustered thoughts, Ryuzu's serene eyes seemed sincere as she spoke. What is she going to ask me? thought Subaru, blinking his eyes in surprise as Ryuzu hesitated ever so slightly. \"...Young Su, what do you think of Young Gar?\" The question came out of the blue, but Subaru immediately understood the reason for her unease. \"Ahh, I see...that figures, huh.\" Subaru's acceptance of what was natural became a sigh that trickled out from his lips. It wasn't complicated. Ryuzu was worried about Garfiel. From their conversation to this point, anyone could tell that there was antagonism between Subaru and Garfiel. That would no doubt have an impact on relationships after the Sanctuary was liberated. To Ryuzu, it was unmistakably a major issue that went well beyond her personal affairs. That was why  \"To be honest, I don't have a good impression of him. At this point, he's my closest potential enemy.\" Thinking that hiding it was futile, Subaru offered Ryuzu a crisp answer. His reply made Ryuzu lower her eyes. \"I see...\" was her faint response. However, seeing with that sunken expression, Subaru continued, \"But. \"By closest potential enemy, I mean that he's the one I'll clash with first. Once that's taken care of, I won't know if we can get along well or not until everything's said and done.\" \"Ah...\" \"To figure that out, among other things, I'd want to learn more about him, see...\" Scratching his cheek, Subaru resigned himself to coming off as someone spinning a convenient tale. But these were not words he had chosen because they sounded good; they expressed Subaru's true views. Just like Roswaal, he didn't harbor a good impression of Garfiel. But he'd confirmed for himself Garfiel did not have a wicked heart on Roswaal's level, leaving Subaru with no reason to make an enemy of him. \"...You are good at pulling the wool over your elders, Young Su.\" \"Ryuzu, you're seriously trying my reputation in the neighborhood, aren't you?\" Ryuzu shook her head with a muted smile. Then, taking a step forward, she placed a hand on the blue crystal before her the object that touched her very own roots. \"It seems you heard about us from our mistress the Witch...that we are replicas of Ryuzu Meyer...or perhaps, the objective for which the replicas were created.\" \"...I know that it was an experiment in immortality, and you and the others are the products of that experiment.\" Strictly speaking, it was not Echidna, but Ryuzu herself from whom he heard the explanation on a previous lap. That briefing included how the Sanctuary containing Echidna's tomb was a laboratory for her search for immortality, that Ryuzu was an example of its success, and that the replicas' roles were to serve as vessels in which to pour a soul. Also, that even among the replicas in that place, Ryuzu held a special, individual role. \"I am one of the original four. Even now, I watch over the magic crystal as more replicas continue to be born. I bear the duties of administrator and overseer. The four of us were to bear these duties in sequence.\" \"I heard the part about being one of the first four. So besides you, Ryuzu, there's three other people?\" \"Four...people, is it. It is likely inappropriate to count us, born by unnatural means, as people...\" \"I don't want to treat you, who's currently living a full life as a loli hag, like some doll. Don't try to convince me otherwise, okay? The other three people...wait.\" Breaking off his words there, Subaru licked his dry lips once. Instantly, a sense of d\u00c3\u00a9j\u00c3 vu arose. Something stood out in his memories. Subaru carefully selected his words for the question that needed to be asked.  On a previous time going through the loop, Ryuzu herself had made a request to him. Her role had been assigned. They sought individuality in all other things: in tastes, in hobbies, and in names. Therefore, what he needed to ask at that point was  \"My name is Subaru Natsuki... Ryuzu, what's your name?\" *** Ryuzu narrowed her eyes at the question, looking like she was gazing at something that dazzled bright. \"My name...is Ryuzu Arma. I am...one of the first four replicas.\" \" Arma.\" As Ryuzu gave her personal name, Subaru repeated it, closing his eyes. He nodded but once. \"The Ryuzu I first met named herself Ryuzu Bilma, I'm pretty sure. Meaning you didn't have any intention of hiding it at the start, did you, Ryuzu?\" When he asked for her name, she answered.  For hiding it meant repudiating the very individuality she had gained. Finally, Subaru understood, too. The four Ryuzus, the overseers of the Sanctuary, shared their role with one another. The four had been pretending to be a single person. \"But why go through all that trouble? Couldn't you have just acted like quadruplets?\" \"Our replica bodies are not of flesh and blood, but false Odo shrouded in mana. Mana depletes according to how active the body is. It is insufficient for even a full day's worth of activity.\" \"I see, it's just like with spirits! So to make sure your job doesn't go unfilled during the time you can't materialize, a substitute Ryuzu does the job for you!\" Subaru snapped his fingers; it all made sense. But he did think it was an awkward way to live. Ryuzu's role of overseer was being performed by multiple people. One could also say that four people's lives were chained to that single role. That was  \" That is a matter for the ones in question to take on. To interfere in that would be an act of arrogance, Young Su.\" \"...I get that. I won't say a word if you don't have a problem with it, Ryuzu. But.\" \"But?\" \"If you don't accept it, please tell me. Then I'll have Roswaal put you four girls...or maybe it should be dozens of sisters...on a family register, even if I have to smack him.\" If the replicas of Ryuzu Meyer, numbering over twenty, who existed in the Sanctuary intended to search for a life beyond that of a replica, Subaru wanted to help. \"Young Su...mm-hmm, you are a good child.\" The term family register probably didn't get across, but Subaru's intent must have been conveyed nonetheless. Ryuzu smiled, her eyes filled with the same affection as if gazing at a baby. This was doubtlessly the glimmer of individuality that Ryuzu Arma had gained over the lengthy passage of time. \"...Ahem. Anyway I get it. I get it, so let's get back to the original discussion.\" \"You may blush all you like. That said, it is I who began this discussion... The four originals fulfilling the role of overseer, myself included, shared the same intent. Had we not, we would have been unable to act as if we were a single person. However, this only remained true until ten years ago.\" \"Ten years ago?\" \"Ryuzu Shima.  She who has strayed from the original four, and the one and only exception to this rule.\" She named the person that ought to have shouldered the same role as her. Ryuzu Shima the one from the original four who had strayed from her duty as overseer. Subaru remembered hearing her name. The first one he had met was Bilma; the one before his eyes was Arma. And  \"I shall uphold my promise. I shall tell no one.  This, I swear upon the name of Ryuzu Shima.\"  On that problematic night, those final words had been the trigger for his imprisonment. The Ryuzu who had been together with Garfiel in that place had named herself Shima. And Subaru had most likely been incarcerated by Garfiel on this Shima's orders. \"Ryuzu...Shima...\" \"Yes. The issue arose roughly ten years ago. She was relieved of her duty as an overseer and has lived in the forest like the other replicas ever since. Accordingly, it is now three people who fulfill the role of overseer.\" \"What was the issue that got this Shima stripped of her duty?\" When Subaru asked about the details from ten years prior, Ryuzu hesitated. However, it only lasted a single second. Ryuzu sighed, perhaps thinking that silence came off as insincerity. \" She defied our vow to our creator, the Witch. Accordingly, she was stripped of her duty.\" \"By vow, you mean...\" \"Ryuzu Shima defied the vow by entering the tomb. She went against the Witch's command, entering the tomb to bring back Young Gar...Garfiel,"}, {"text": "who had not returned from the Trial.\" *** Upon receiving that explanation, Subaru felt a jolt run through him as disparate pieces of information inside him were linked together. Garfiel had challenged the Trial, only to fail and become an Apostle of Greed. Ryuzu Shima, who had brought him back, had been stripped of her duty as overseer. And multiple replicas were playing the role of Ryuzu the overseer. So the reason Garfiel opposed liberating the Sanctuary, even resorting to force to do so, was that  \"Shima put the idea in his head? She was stripped of her duty for rescuing Garfiel from the tomb, and that became her reason for being against liberating the Sanctuary?\" \"That, I know not. I have never met Shima since she was stripped of her duty. But it would not be strange for Young Gar to have...met with Shima, for they share memories in a fashion we do not.\" \"Memories that you other Ryuzus...don't have...\" \" What Young Gar saw in the Trial at the tomb was the past.\" When Ryuzu lowered her eyes and replied, Subaru went \"Ah,\" letting his voice trickle out like a village idiot. And he felt the hazy connection between Garfiel and Ryuzu grow stronger and more distinct. Garfiel knew it was Shima who had saved him. And as for Garfiel's past, what Garfiel felt toward that past, and what feelings he harbored about it up to that very moment only Shima knew. \"Young Su, do you know of Young Gar's family?\" \"Only a bit. I know that Frederica is Garfiel's sister through a different father, and that's why their family names are different. Also, how only Frederica, who's thin-blooded, left the Sanctuary ten years ago...\" After getting that far, the ten years ago time frame made Subaru open his eyes wide. What if the events of ten years prior made up the barb deeply embedded in Garfiel's heart...? \"Don't tell me the past that Garfiel saw was the sight of Frederica leaving?\" \"No, it is not so. Fuu...Frederica left the Sanctuary after Young Gar took the Trial. Therefore, what he saw was surely...\" After correcting Subaru's mistaken assumption, Ryuzu trailed off at the end. It was the hesitation of a human being who had a strong suspicion. Then, after a pause of several seconds, Ryuzu voiced her thoughts aloud. \" What that child saw was most likely when he parted with his mother.\" With a shudder, Subaru felt like something had torn into his own chest. Leaving your mother and in the Trial, at that hit Subaru close to home. \"If that child of ten years ago had seen something powerful enough to leave scars upon his heart, it must be parting with his mother. I cannot think of anything it could be, save for when Young Gar and Fuu's mother left them here.\" \"Parting with his mother...and being left behind...\" When Subaru put the possible past on his lips, to be blunt, he felt a little disappointed. It would be wrong to quite call it hope. But he'd imagined a much grander past than that. But if Ryuzu's guess was correct, and Garfiel separating with his mother was the barb driven into his heart... \"Him obstructing the Sanctuary's liberation isn't caused by negative feelings for the outside world so much as...for the mother who chose it over him...?\" \"Perhaps he hates it. There is also Fuu leaving after the fact. The outside world stole his mother and his elder sister from him. Even if he wanted to go after them, there is the barrier blocking the path. He cannot bring us outside with him. Surely, the child anguished over who is more important to him...his family or us.\" \"I'm sure he's still doing it...Hey, does he actually resent or hate his mother?\" Garfiel's anguish was one that was impossible for Subaru to understand. Through thick and thin, Subaru's parents had never abandoned him or given up on him. It was because he had been so blessed that the notion gave Subaru pause. \"That child came to call himself Garfiel Tinzel. That is the family name of the child's mother. I believe Garfiel calls himself this so that I do not forget about her.\" \"So that you...don't forget...\" Nodding at Subaru's words, Ryuzu looked up at the crystal, narrowing her eyes. She had her own issues that were difficult to forget. She gazed at their core, seemingly thinking of Garfiel as she did so. \"He did this so that the feelings he harbors for his past are not forgotten.  Whether this is out of anger or sadness is something known only to him and Shima.\" 4 He knocked on the room's door, waiting for several seconds. But there was no response. When he turned the knob and easily let himself in, Subaru knit his brows at the carelessness of it. \"This is a security issue. Have to tell her to properly lock up...\" He grumbled to himself as he peered into the room through the gap made by the opened door. His intent was not to peek out of inquisitiveness, but to confirm whether there was a person inside sleeping defenseless. Fortunately, there was no one present on the bed at the back of the room. He was relieved by this, but also a bit conflicted. \"Dang, I heard she was in her room. Where is sh...\" \"...Subaru?\" \"Er, ah? Emilia-tan, you're here?\" Subaru was struck by surprise to hear only a voice, with the girl herself nowhere in sight, whereupon a white hand slowly emerged from the other side of the bed. It belonged to an individual sitting on the floor there. \"What's wrong, Emilia-tan, sitting on the floor like that? You'll get your butt dirty.\" \"Er, I was tossing and turning in my sl...sorry, that's a lie. Really, I was having a bit of trouble sleeping.\" \"That's an odd thing to lie about. I'll pretend I didn't hear it...but I see.\" Hugging her knees as she sat on the floor, Emilia greeted Subaru with a guilty look on her face. The whiff of gloom upon her comely, lovely features had likely been caused by a lack of sleep and overwork, just as she had stated. There was no mistaking the mental strain. Subaru knew, having had plenty of experience sitting alone on a sleepless night. \"Did you sleep a little after meeting me last night?\" \"...Mm.\" He did not take her frail nod to mean yes, but merely as conveying that she was listening to him. This was hardly the only loop that involved greeting the morning without having slept a wink. All-nighters caused a gradual collapse as both mind and body were worn away. \"...Sorry. Making you see me in a sorry state like this.\" \"Emilia?\" \"And it was only yesterday I asked you to watch me do my best, Subaru. I can't have you seeing me weak like this, can I? It's all right. I'm going to sleep properly until nightfall, so...\" Emilia pinched her own cheek as if to show an obviously worried Subaru that she was trying to bolster her spirits. This somehow adorable expression of resolve made Subaru spontaneously loosen his lips. \"Emilia-tan, it's almost noon. Announcing you're going to sleep from now until sunset...that's sloth.\" \"Ugh...somehow, the way you worded that makes me feel really weird. Subaru, you meanie.\" After Subaru's flippant words made Emilia smile, the two proceeded to spend a few brief, relaxed moments together. He admired Emilia's determination and resolve. Emilia's words from the night before had not only smashed Subaru's conceit but also showed she, too, had courage. It was an important realization. Emilia had said she wanted him to support her. Subaru had come to do just that. \" Emilia. Are you willing to talk to me about...what you saw in the Trial?\" *** When Subaru shattered the gentle, lingering atmosphere, cutting straight to the point, Emilia's breath caught. Grief spread across her violet eyes. Before she could wipe it away, Subaru pressed the issue further. \"I heard from Ryuzu and the others, so I know that you see your past in the Trial. You see your hardest moments from the past...and I know that's the reason you're suffering.\" The only reason Subaru was passing it off as hearsay was to conceal that he had his own experience challenging the Trial. Having already lost his qualifications, talking about his encounters with Echidna would only court confusion. Besides, in that moment, he wanted to devote all his feelings for Emilia's benefit. \"I was happy when you told me you want me to support you. That's why I want to help you...properly, and not just try to keep you all to myself. So I want to know what's worrying you.\" \"Subaru...\" \"I won't claim anything like talking will make it easier. But if you talk about it, we can at least worry about it together. I don't know how dependable I'll be, but won't you let me fight the same enemy you are?\" He had lost the qualifications to take Emilia's place, to fight the suffering pouring down onto her in her stead. Therefore, Subaru hoped to come close and give Emilia a shoulder to lean on when she was tired. *** Perplexed, Emilia fell silent. Subaru quietly awaited her reply. The sway of Emilia's eyes bespoke of her profound gloom. A vortex of various agonies raged within Emilia: bewilderment, hesitation, guilt, self-loathing. But finally, Emilia closed her eyes tight. \"Subaru...Subaru, you'll believe me...\" Won't you...? were the words surely to follow, but Emilia did not voice them. Her nobility would not permit the unfairness of doubting someone who was asserting his sincerity. ...The very unfairness that Subaru had once beaten into Emilia, unable to resist trying to monopolize her for himself. \"I...I think that the past I see is probably from before I slept.\" Opening her closed eyes, Emilia haltingly began to tell her tale. ...The tale of the wounds of her past, the memories she had harbored all alone that she'd kept Subaru from touching all this time. Drawing in his breath at her confession, Subaru took Emilia's hand into his own. \"Thank you for talking to me... This could get long, right? We should sit.\" \"Mm, yeah.\" Nodding, Emilia sat upon the bed, with Subaru sitting down right beside her. When Emilia deepened her brow, seemingly unsure of what to speak of, Subaru glanced at the side of her face as he spoke: \"Hey, I don't want to interrupt, but what do you mean 'before you slept'?\" \"...I haven't told you about being in the ice all that time, have I, Subaru?\" \"Inside the ice...wait, do you mean while frozen?\" The unexpected words made Subaru blink. For a moment, an image from the facility in the forest the crystal in which Ryuzu Meyer was sealed came into the back of his mind. Strictly speaking, that differed from being frozen, but the images were terribly similar. Provided that Subaru had not misunderstood... \"I was frozen in the forest for a long time. A very, very long time until Puck found me...he said I'd been sleeping within the ice.\" After a pause, Emilia's confession established that Subaru's striking mental image...had indeed been true. *** Touching the crystal at her neck in which Puck was sealed, Emilia closed her eyes. No doubt the memory of the spirit at her side when she had awoken was playing out on the back of her eyelids. That was probably when the loving bonds of trust between Emilia and Puck had begun. While he certainly felt envy for that, the keywords ice and forest stimulated Subaru's memory. \" I see, the Eternally Frozen Great Elior Forest! Come to think of it, back at the royal selection meeting...\" His memories of the opening speech conducted at the site of the royal selection returned to him. With a great throng of people surrounding them in the royal court, Emilia had most certainly spoken of herself: that she had lived in the forest, spending"}, {"text": "a long time within it...  And how she had lived in the frozen forest and had been called The Freezing Witch. \"Emilia, if you were in ice in the forest all that time...exactly how long were you there?\" \"...My memories are really hazy. I was probably...six or seven at the time.\" \"Six or seven...do elves count years the same way humans do?\" As Subaru counted on his fingers, Emilia meekly nodded. Being frozen solid during your childhood and waking up years later was tantamount to a time slip. Emilia had probably been hurled into a new era like a distant cousin of the mythic Taro Urashima. It was only natural that the time she subsequently spent together with Puck made them just like family. \"So the memories you see in the tomb are from before you were frozen...and the forest was frozen when...?\" \"Apparently, it was about a hundred years ago.\" \"I see, a hundred yea...eh, a hundred years?\" As he tried to put the timeline in order, her casual reply took Subaru by surprise. Noticing his reaction, Emilia asked \"What is it?\" as she tilted her head. \"Er, ah, I was imagining a span of ten years, so I wondered if it was off by a digit... I mean, uh, Emilia-tan, you look like you're the same age as I am, so I figured the time frozen was...\" \"I...kept growing physically while I was inside the ice. That's why, right after I woke up, it was like being in another person's body, enough to make me trip and slip up all over the place...\" \"A-ahh, I see. Errr, so putting everything together...\" Emilia was around seven years old when she first slept, and it had been a hundred years or so later when she awoke. In other words, Emilia's chronological age was a hundred and seven years old at this point in time. \"So Emilia-tan, how many years has it been since Puck woke you?\" \"...I think it was probably six or seven years ago...\" Emilia's reply was not very precise, but the response convinced Subaru that his doubts were true. She was a hundred and seven years old after emerging from the ice. From there, she had lived seven years, making her a hundred and fourteen.  Emilia was a hundred and fourteen years old, eighteen years old going by outward appearance, and mentally, fourteen years of age. \"R-real age, apparent age, and mental age...they're all disconnected.\" The elven blood Emilia had inherited made her age a vague concept in ways not normally possible. At the same time, it resolved many doubts Subaru had about Emilia's behavior. For someone who had lived for over a century, she was fairly ignorant of worldly affairs, often used phrases and gestures that stood out as childish, and from time to time, she liked using words that seemed oddly archaic. All of these things could be attributed to the fact that Emilia had spent most of her life sleeping within the ice. \"Fourteen that's no different than Felt...so why...?\" Why did this girl have to bear such heavy responsibilities? The competition for the throne, the frozen forest of her homeland, the Sanctuary with four centuries of stopped time the sufferings pouring down upon her were so numerous, so illogical, that he wanted to yell Why?! \"Subaru?\" \"...Sorry, and I said I wasn't trying to interrupt...\" With Emilia growing concerned, Subaru forced himself to smile as he responded. Her sufferings with the royal selection only made his ire for Roswaal grow within his chest. But had it not been for that, Subaru would have never met Emilia...hence, his irritation. \"...Emilia, did you live a normal life before the forest froze?\" \"I...probably did...when I lived together...with everyone in the forest...\" When Subaru tried to get the conversation back on track, Emilia touched a hand to her forehead as she replied haltingly. It looked suspiciously like she was enduring some kind of pain. Subaru touched her slender shoulder with a hand. \"Emilia? Are you all right? If it's hard to talk about...\" \"I-it's all right. It's just, um, my memories...aren't very clear. Even though I saw my past at the Trial, I...really didn't understand what I was seeing.\" \"You can't remember the memories you saw? Is that even...?\" Whether it was possible was beyond Subaru to judge. Subaru had challenged his past but once, and with that one time, Subaru had overcome the Trial. Accordingly, his memories of both his parents were clear, but he didn't know what would have happened to those memories if he'd failed. There was no guarantee the Trial hadn't been wickedly put together to make repeat challengers suffer. \"How about trying to remember one bit at a time? For example...who did you live in the forest with?\" \"...There was...a tiny settlement in the forest. All the elves lived there together.\" \"Emilia, what about your family?\" He wondered about both her parents and any siblings. It was with that intent that Subaru asked the question, but he instantly realized his error.  Emilia had always spoken of Puck as her only family. That she'd lost her entire birth family was something he should have deduced without thinking. \"Don't worry about that. My family wasn't living inside the forest. Everyone was really nice to me, and I liked everyone...but, mm, family.\" With Subaru regretting his slip, Emilia resolutely smiled and shook her head. \"There was someone like a mommy to me. She was really gentle, beautiful, amazing...\" \"Mommy?\" \"She had a look in her eyes like you have, Subaru. Just a tiny bit. That...er?\" Still smiling, Emilia was finding something in common between Subaru and her memories of her mother. However, that smile abruptly stiffened, and Emilia blinked her eyes several times. \"Uhhh...why Mommy...Mom...my? Why did I...call her that...\" Seemingly in disbelief, the shaken Emilia touched a hand to her own lips. Emilia's gaze began to wander around the room, as if searching for an answer, yet it was unable to find one. But there was no reason a lost fragment of memory would be found fallen on the floor of her temporary abode. \"Emilia, calm down. Take it easy. There's no need to rush.\" *** Emilia was on the brink of panic when Subaru wrapped an arm around her head, pulling her close against him. Her long, silver hair flowed down her back as Emilia found, in her surprise, that her forehead touched Subaru's chest. He let her hear his heartbeat. Just like Emilia had done for Subaru the night before. \"...What happened to everyone when the forest froze?\" \" . Just like me, they were inside the ice...they're still frozen even now. I was living inside the forest with Puck, waiting for everyone...\" \"I see... That's really kind of you.\" The days she had spent together with Puck, living in that frozen forest that was time truly and literally spent alone with the spirit, among the ice statues who had once been like family. Even just picturing it in his mind, it was a forlorn, lonely scene... \"I waited for everyone to wake up...but that day never came. That's why... That's why I...left the forest and participated in the royal selection.\" \" ? Why is the forest related to the royal selection?\" \"I made a promise with Roswaal.\" His breath caught. That one phrase, promise with Roswaal, sent a shudder through him. What kind of promise had Emilia, tormented by loneliness in the forest, made with the devil that was Roswaal? \"He made me hold the crest he had...after he made sure the Dragon Jewel was glowing, he spoke about the royal selection, but, I didn't understand a single thing about the Kingdom of Lugunica.\" Of course she didn't. There was no way a girl who had lived in the forest since infancy would know about the outside world. So just how had Roswaal lured Emilia out of the forest? That was  \"To me, who understood nothing, Roswaal said this.  If you are able to gain the throne, surely your wish to melt the forest's ice shall be granted.\" *** Subaru imagined his seething blood blotting his entire vision red. Roswaal had used Emilia's pure, innocent wish to lead her out of the forest. That Emilia held the qualifications to join the royal selection was probably written in the book of knowledge. Not because he held any hopes for Emilia, but merely so that he might add the strongest card fated to appear under Emilia a card named Subaru Natsuki to his own deck.  If he were honest, it made him loath the idea of keeping Roswaal in Emilia's party once all the issues were taken care of. \"Subaru, do you think less of me?\" \"...Huh? Why would I?\" As soot-black anger burned in Subaru's chest, Emilia, her face still buried against it, posed that delicate question. \"All the other candidates...they're participating in the royal selection with all kinds of wonderful goals, but my reason is really, really personal \" \" So that's what you meant by your own selfish reason, huh?\" After parting ways right after the opening speech, when Subaru was reunited with her and conveyed his feelings for her, he firmly recalled that Emilia, spilling out her words while bewildered by his goodwill, stated that her reason for aiming for the throne was very selfish. Perhaps it really was a wish that did not consider the future of the kingdom, or the welfare of all its citizens. However, it served as no more than the trigger.  Her wish was her starting point, but that was no reason to belittle it. \"There's nothing wrong with your motive of wanting to save your family and the people precious to you. Saving people isn't any less legitimate just because it's the few and not the many. Besides, that's not the only thing care about, right?\" Whatever the initial reason for leaving the forest might have been, Emilia undoubtedly changed in the days that followed. Had she not, she would never have been able to speak her wish so boldly at the meeting place of the royal selection. She had said she wanted to be seen with fairness, with equality. That was something Emilia had surely gained in the outside world. \"...Yeah. I'm really grateful.\" Still resting her head against Subaru's chest, Emilia nodded several times as she spoke. As he felt her squirmy movements, Subaru was pensive as to whether he'd been able to support her as intended, even just a little. But infusing his hand with his undiminished love, he continued gently stroking Emilia's head. \"...Emilia?\" Just how long had he been doing that? Midway through their wordless embrace, Subaru called out Emilia's name. Exhausted, she made no reply; instead, he heard faint sounds of sleep. Given her mental fatigue, it was only natural Emilia had quickly fallen asleep the moment she found even a tiny measure of peace. Seeing that her face bore the hallmarks not of nightmares, but of sleep to recover from fatigue, Subaru sighed. Thinking back to the night of the Trial, he should have asked her about her past in more detail. However, in the end, Subaru had not. That was not because she had been tormented by nightmares, and though it was partly to let Emilia rest when she had been worn down mentally and physically, it was not just that, either. The biggest reason was something else.  Clearly, something strange was affecting Emilia. Emilia had revealed to Subaru her birthplace and her reason for participating in the royal selection. The decision to do so must have required a fair bit of courage, but her memories related to the actual Trial had lost their vibrancy. It showed on her face that she didn't want to talk about it but that wasn't the only reason. She had gaps in her memories. The Trial had likely shown Emilia happenings from a hundred years prior, before the forest was frozen. And yet, she did not properly carry those memories with her.  She was stumbling, and she did not"}, {"text": "even know why. Truly, it was just like Ram had told him. Properly speaking, she could not recall the memories that were causing her to stumble. And this was fatal to her efforts. If things proceeded like every time before, Emilia would challenge the Trial in a fresh state each night. It would be as if Subaru didn't retain his memories after a Return by Death and only knew of the events in the current instance of a loop. He would be able neither to reflect upon nor improve on his prior efforts. It made perfect sense why she kept failing. If this was a trap Echidna had set up, it was the worst kind possible, but  \" She's not the type to watch and laugh as you challenge an absolutely insurmountable wall, is she?\" Echidna's rotten personality was an established fact, but he trusted in the fact that there was a certain aesthetic to her wickedness. That Witch would never establish a Trial that could not be overcome. In that, the malicious Witch no doubt put on airs of godhood. Then again, there she was, resting in a world of dreams even after death. Maybe her power really did rival those of a god. \"Even if you are some deity, I'm not praying to you. If I'm gonna pray, I'll pray to my own goddesses.\" But at the moment, both of Subaru's goddesses had their hands full. That left Subaru to put his meager brain to use in both their steads. \"If Emilia has no means to search her own memories, then...\" Laying the audibly sleeping Emilia upon the bed, Subaru looked inward in search of an answer. Had something in the past broken Emilia's spirit when she took the Trial?  The question made him recall the completely similar thoughts he'd had toward a different individual a scant few hours before. Garfiel was haunted in the same way Emilia was. If there was a difference, it was that Subaru couldn't ask someone who had the means to know his past  \" Wait.\" Having thought it through that far, Subaru's brain came to a halt. Subaru had contacted Ryuzu in order to learn of Garfiel's past. It had resulted in a failure that took a wholly unexpected form, but the idea itself continued to have merit. And since he was facing a similar situation in Emilia's case, couldn't he try to adopt the same approach there as well? \"Even if Emilia herself doesn't remember...if I ask someone who does know...\" There were precious few who could possibly know what had happened in the Great Elior Forest. The first was Roswaal, but their hostile relationship made getting an answer out of him rather difficult. Even where Ram was concerned, he couldn't expect her to know all the fine details. Given her position, just approaching her was difficult. But there was one person or rather, one creature who did. He was a being who had been right by Emilia's side and whom she considered the same as family...a being who had spent a very long time with her. \" Puck.\" Surely, Puck Emilia's contracted spirit, professed as her only family, that little cat who'd been present when Emilia awoke from the ice would know the circumstances. The problem was that, at present, there was no way to contact the spirit since several days before traveling to the Sanctuary, Puck had neither shown himself nor answered Emilia's calls. Puck's absence weighed heavily on Emilia's mind. Even setting that aside, it was necessary for Subaru to speak with Puck personally. \"Think, think, thinkthinkthinkthink. Think, damn it...\" Covering his face with his palms, Subaru desperately searched for a way. He wasn't responding to Emilia's call. It was meaningless to attempt to set Puck in motion through any normal means as a spirit mage. Therefore, he needed some other way to forcibly wake up Puck.  He dug through all his memories of Puck to date. They included his first meeting with Emilia in the capital, their reunion and fighting side by side at the Loot Cellar, the repeated exchanges of words between them during the mansion loop, and the times, after the start of the royal selection, when Puck had even taken his life  \" How many times was it that you killed me?\" Murmuring to himself alone, he was referring to fact that Puck had been the cause of Return by Death more than once. Subaru was not rekindling his grudge; he was purely confirming to himself what had happened, and how deeply their fates were connected. Three times, an angry Puck had taken Subaru's life. And in each of those cases  *** Subaru's breath caught, arriving at the possibility as he looked down at Emilia's sleeping face. Emilia was peacefully sleeping, too deeply to dream. There was nothing more Subaru could offer her than that tiny measure of peace.  Or so he had thought. \"Sorry, Emilia.\" With that brief apology to her sleeping face, Subaru drew close to Emilia. Then he put both hands on her slender neck. Feeling her smooth skin on his fingertips, Subaru felt like he couldn't breathe. His heartbeats were so noisy. Sensing the fierce flow of blood with his eardrums, Subaru followed where that possibility led. If Subaru's expectations were correct, this would summon Puck. All he had to do was put strength into his fingers  \" As if I ever could.\" Immediately after, Subaru seemed to be enduring pain as he wrung out his voice. The sensation was real. Feeling the sharp sting of clamping his molars together, Subaru breathed raggedly as he backed off. The palms of both of Subaru's hands were covered in white frost. His hands burned like they had been immersed in a bucket of hot water; but in reality, the effect was the polar opposite. This was not agony from an excess of heat, but a biting ache from overwhelming cold. And the one who had made it happen was  \"You knew what I was aiming for so you didn't need to go that far, damn it...!\" \" Hmm, I wonder. There's no guarantee that a certain mix of love and hate wouldn't result in harm to Lia, is there? And your love runs deep, Subaru.\" \"Hey, how did you know about my day care teacher's reply to the love letter I wrote her in kindergarten...\" \"Ehhh...it really is scary to leave Lia by your side. Should I erase you, maybe?\" \"Don't casually use the word erase, geez. Besides \" Waving both his aching hands, Subaru trained his gaze directly before him in resentment. His gaze arrived at Emilia's neck or rather, at the green crystal hanging from it. The crystal was giving off a faint, pale light.  The voice reaching Subaru was most certainly coming from it. Though, just as before, there was no tangible sight of him, for he had not materialized. \"Emilia-tan's all sad that the family pet ran away from home.\" \"Rather than leave, I have been right here the entire time, though. But, mm, yes, I should say this.\" Replying glibly to Subaru's biting sarcasm, the crystal or rather, Puck would have probably been floating there with a big smile if he had taken physical form. In this strange atmosphere, he spoke: \"You have done well to call out to me.  I am happy, Subaru.\" CHAPTER 4 *** 1  The first thing she felt when she awoke with her right hand empty was loneliness. As she woke up, her head feeling blood-deprived, she had a hazy thought. Before she slept, and even while she slept, she felt like someone had been holding her hand. Realizing this was an extremely selfish sentiment to have, she rose. \"...What a terrible girl I am. That's incredibly selfish of me.\" Her face reddened from shame and self-derision, the girl Emilia curled up in the center of the bed as she let those words slip. The sensation on her palm was that of the boy who had spent time together with her until she slept. Just how self-centered was she to feel lonely because that sensation was gone when she awoke? He'd stayed close to her all that time, yet she was still trying to cling to him. This, right after speaking of such lofty ideals the night before to Subaru. She was always relying on him. She was truly relieved when he'd asked about what really happened in her past, wasn't she? Once again, she harbored the selfish hope that Subaru that someone would come save her while she did nothing. *** Pursing her lips at the weakness of her own heart, Emilia subconsciously touched the crystal on her neck. That faint sensation was connected to the spirit that had been at her side for all that time the part of her family whose face she hadn't seen in these last several days. That moment, she thought very strongly, I want to hear his voice. \"Maybe it was a dream... I thought I heard Subaru speaking at my bedside like he was talking to Puck...\" If her weak self really had hallucinated what she'd heard, her ears were being terribly convenient. It was not as if her ears, a little longer than those of others, were somehow deprived of the blood coursing through her body. It was just that she thought  \"...Why can't I remember properly?\" \" You mustn't blame yourself too much, Lia. I am partly responsible for this.\" \"Eh...?\" She suddenly someone speak, not with her eardrums, but through the echo of telepathy directly to her mind. Even though there was no audible voice to accompany it, Emilia immediately knew who it must have been. \"Puck...?!\" Emilia practically shot up as she placed the crystal upon her palm. Within Emilia's field of vision, a faint green light grew, taking form little by little, its power manifesting into a tangible shape. \"Hmm, this is a little smaller than usual? Well, I'm pretty like this anyway, aren't I?\" Speaking in high spirits, a gray-colored cat twirled around on top of Emilia's palm with a long tail, round eyes, and a pink nose, this was the adorable spirit, Puck. \"Puck...ahh, Puck...!\" \"Heya, Lia. It's been a while, huh. I forced myself out so we could have a little family discussion.\" \"Family...discussion...\" Their reunion after several days spawned joy, surprise, and a little bit of anger in Emilia's heart. But though she yearned for an explanation, the teary-eyed Emilia immediately realized something was wrong. The Puck on her palm was smaller than his usual size, and moreover, his existence seemed ever so fragile. \"...Tee-hee-hee. Seems I'll hit my limit faster than I expected. Well, I willingly broke the pact, so it can't be helped that my perks as a spirit got yanked back.\" \"Broke the pact...? Wh-what are you saying? ...No, never mind that. More importantly, where have you been until now...and after that...\" \" Then, as now, I've always been by your side, Lia. I couldn't speak because of my own personal circumstances and your own issues, Lia. But from here, I...\" Putting his paws on his head, Puck's blushing smile went away. His innocent, adorable face turned serious, sending a distressing chill down Emilia's spine. This was a face she had not seen once from Puck in all that no, she had seen it before. This was the face he had shown when Emilia, frozen in ice, awoke. It was the face he had shown Emilia right before her life came under threat, and when the pair formed their pact. And for Puck to show Emilia that face in that moment  \"Eh...what, eh...? Wait a minute...\" Emilia's voice stiffened out of shock. Beneath Puck's feet, the crystal upon which Puck's tail rested had a crack running down it. This crevice was slowly, but inexorably, expanding. \"Oh, oh no! This is terrible, Puck! The stone, the icon...at this rate!\" \"I'm sorry, Lia. I really want to properly explain, but I don't have time. That's something I truly regret, but I'm entrusting you to...the child who holds you most precious after me.\" \"What are you talking about...?"}, {"text": "Such a person...! Such a person doesn't...!\" Even as she shook her head in denial, the crystal's destruction would not relent. Accordingly, little by little, Puck's entire form grew indistinct. The way he was vanishing didn't come off as a prank. Puck really was vanishing, so very suddenly, and his bond with Emilia went with him. She didn't know what had happened, or what was happening. Nor, with acceptance on Puck's face, did Emilia understand just how she looked to those black eyes that moment. \" Lia. The pact between you and I is rescinded. I'm really sorry it's so one-sided.\" *** Emilia was overcome as a fear she had never even imagined turned into reality. To be separated from Puck, for a day to come when the pact would end, was something Emilia had never thought of. After all, Emilia and Puck had made a promise. \"If I'm gone, the lid covering your memories will come off. I'm sure that will cause you a great deal of sadness, Lia. You might cry even more than you are right now.\" She didn't understand the meaning of Puck's words. Puck softly floated up from Emilia's palm. Swaying his long tail, he hovered at the tip of Emilia's nose. His little, white paws touched her cheek. It was as if he was gently trying to wipe away one of the teardrops coursing from the corner of her eye. If she was going to lose this much warmth, even the frozen forest of her homeland was  \" Emilia. I reaaally love you.\" \" No!!\" As she tried to stop their bonds from fading away, she thought the unthinkable when a voice echoed in the back of her mind. The voice came from \"someone\" speaking to Emilia from her indistinct memories. She was being made to choose. That instant, she was being forced to choose between the warmth before her eyes and the cold past sealed within the ice. And the right to choose rested in Emilia's hand. That moment, if she reached out her hand, Puck would  \" Yeah. This is for the best, Lia.\" Her arm would not move. Her shaking fingers would not reach Puck, even as he wiped the tear from her cheek. She could not prioritize the warmth of that instant if it meant ignoring the voice that tied her to the past. She had spent time together with Puck in the forest, watching over her neighbors, who had been frozen into ice statues, day after day. In all that time and in all the days that had come since then, he never made Emilia face her memories of the past.  This was the moment those days came to an end. \"Lia.  In this whole world, you're the one I love the most.\" *** They were the words with which, in the past, he had conveyed his affection, and so, too, his love. Instantly, the little cat's contours became a phosphorescent green, scattering as he seemed to melt into thin air. The crystal on her palm was split into two.  Already, it had completely lost its light. There was no room for doubt. The crystal had split, Puck was gone, and the pact between them had been undone. She felt no connection. The connection that she could always feel was gone, almost as if it were a dream. \"...But it's not a dream.\" Training her fingers upon her own cheek, Emilia pinched herself. It hurt. She didn't wake up. She had been left behind in a silent room. \"...i...ar.\" She released her cheek, her fingers covering her own face. She raised her head toward the heavens, almost so none might see it. But such concern was unnecessary. There was no one by her side. Only her quivering voice filled the air. \"Puck... Daddy, you liar...!\" 2 The first thing he felt when he awoke was irritation toward the hollow, empty feeling inside his chest. \"...Tch.\" Clicking his tongue, he sat up, violently clawing at the short, blond hair on his head. He was not the sort to wake up badly. But the nightmare had been bad. This, and everything else, was doubtlessly the fault of those uninvited guests who had disturbed the peace of the Sanctuary. \"Young Gar, are you awake?\" Then, as he sat cross-legged on the bedding with a curled back and a foul mood, a familiar voice addressed him. When he turned, she was visible at the back of the small, crude cabin and was wearing a white poncho Shima, his grandmother. Garfiel, his cheeks twisting at the sight of her, slowly rose from the bed. \"Sorry, dozed off there. Nothin' happened while I was asleep?\" \"You worry too much over a few short hours. You'll lose your hair at an early age at this rate.\" \"...I ain't the type to strain or get too tense or nothin', but this is rattlin' even me, old hag. I mean, I heard straight from ya that the guy with the stupid smile on his face is drippin' with miasma.\" Garfiel replied to his grandmother's teasing tone with a dead serious voice. Lowering the corners of her eyebrows at the sight, Shima said in an apologetic tone, \"Sorry.\" It was Shima who could literally smell the miasma coming off of Subaru Natsuki the miasma that came from interacting with the Witch. Shima had been concealed in the woods, performing her duty as one of the \"Eyes\" of the Sanctuary. Unlike other replicas, she possessed individuality just like Ryuzu and met with Garfiel regularly.  He had first heard that someone tainted with powerful miasma was mixed in with Emilia's party on the first night of the Trial following their arrival. Ever since, Garfiel's eyes bore a glint of wariness and enmity toward Subaru and those with him. No matter who it was, he would not forgive anyone who brought calamity to those Sanctuary. \"...However. I have spoken of it already, but that boy...Young Su does not appear to bear any relation to the Witch. Besides, from what I have heard, there are much larger concerns.\" \"Much larger concerns...the princess, then? Ya heard somethin'?\" Shima's assertion made Garfiel twist his neck and look outside the window up into the darkened, nighttime sky. Properly speaking, Garfiel had no time to be catching a nap at a time like this. With Emilia having entered the Sanctuary, he was supposed to be one of the observers for her Trial at the tomb each night. But there would be no such Trial that night. The schedule had suddenly been changed. And the reason for that was  \" So the spirit mage lost her spirit. No good to us while she's in a panic, huh?\" Garfiel clacked his fangs, sighing deeply at the reason behind why the challenge of the tomb was being put off. \"Do not say that. You should have compassion where someone's mental foundation is concerned... Young Gar, you would cry like a baby if I were gone, would you not?\" \"I would not!! I'm not a little kid. I wouldn't cry. I wouldn't, but...\" I ran my mouth without thinking, thought Garfiel, lowering his eyes. He did not care for the gentle eyes with which Shima gazed toward him. \"Hah!\" he snorted, standing fully. \"Young Gar?\" \"Nothing's gonna happen tonight. Me, I'm gonna go check things out. Get some sleep, you old bag o' bones. Stay-up-late Rudy came to regret his short legs and all.\" \"And yet, it seems to me it is you who should not be up late, Young Gar.\" Shima saw Garfiel off with a pained smile as he left the cabin. He hated being treated like a child, but his grandmother only Shima and Ryuzu was special. In terms of outward appearance, they were peas from the same pod, and they behaved nearly identically. Even so, Garfiel firmly separated Shima from Ryuzu as an altogether different person. He considered the empty replicas to be different beings as well. As an Apostle of Greed, he had the right to issue commands to the replicas. He felt no pangs of guilt from employing that right to make the replicas do as he told them. They looked the same, but they were different. He considered Ryuzu and Shima to be his grandmother while the other replicas were nothing more than dolls. This was a firmly held thought inside Garfiel. He told himself that one's true nature was on the inside. He told himself that this was the truth.  That was why, when he spotted Ram leisurely loitering in the middle of the night, Garfiel's heart beat fast. As far as Garfiel knew, it was she who had the most beautiful core of all. \"Heya, Ram. It's dangerous goin' for a nighttime stroll at an hour like this.\" \" I suppose so. There are many dangerous nocturnal beasts roaming about, such as Barusu or Garf.\" \"What a sharp-tongued girl. That's good about you, but...\" When Garfiel called out to her, Ram, enveloped by the moonlight, turned around and narrowed her eyes. The place they met was the path leading from Shima's cabin, which was concealed in the forest, back to the settlement. Normally, there ought to have been no reason for her to be in the area, so of course, it was unnatural for him to run into Ram here. \"Out for a stroll. After all, Barusu should be right at Lady Emilia's side right about now.\" \"...All right to leave her to him...? Isn't takin' care of her part of yer job, Ram?\" \"A job consisting only of holding her hand on a night of worry is something even Barusu can handle. Besides, he wants to do it, so I pushed the responsibility onto him. Win-win. Is there a problem?\" With her facial features composed, Ram boldly shrugged her shoulders. Unable to summon a retort to her gesture, Garfiel copied her and shrugged his shoulders, too. Emilia had lost her spirit, the center of her mental support. Staying by her side was the black-haired boy with the Witch's miasma hovering about him.  It certainly did not give him a good impression of either, but... \"...Looks like this ain't gonna work out, huh...\" Judging from the abandoned Trial and from her state the night before, Garfiel didn't think Emilia could overcome the Trial. He sympathized with the sight of her breaking into tears, crushed by her past. Of course she had failed. The past was something you regretted, but could not change. There was no way to win against regret. \"Ram, do you have any regrets?\" \"Why, all of a sudden?\" Abruptly, Garfiel put into words something heavy that rested inside him. That hateful Trial was a collection of malice that made you vividly relive the regrets that haunted your heart. But would that even work on someone who had no regrets? Maybe it wouldn't work on R  \"Of course, even I have my regrets.\" \" ! Y-you regret something...? Wh-what do you regret...?\" \"I regret having to stand here answering Garf's trivial questions. In addition, my shoes have become dirty from entering the forest. This, too, I regret.\" Letting out a sigh, Ram patted her chest as she lamented such things. This left Garfiel gawking at her, but he soon accepted a fact she really didn't have any meaningful regrets. Her lack of regrets made Ram pretty. This, her typical strength, was what charmed him. \"Something is missing.  I am unsure of just what, but perhaps that would constitute a qualm.\" \"Ahh?\" \"Nothing at all. More importantly, walk me back. Or do you intend to make me travel this path at night alone?\" Declining to touch upon what he had heard her murmur, Ram immediately began walking toward the settlement. It was extremely self-centered behavior, but Garfiel walked after her without a single word of complaint. Along the way, for a single moment, his thoughts lingered on Shima, left back at the cabin. But Ram's unhesitant gait spurred him onward. There was nothing going on that night. He was certain this quiet night"}, {"text": "over the Sanctuary would continue, unchanged. 3 \"Emilia...are you really all right? It might be better to let all the hard stuff...\" \"Mm-hmm, it's fine. Really...really, I'm all right.\" With Subaru gloomily sitting in a chair at her bedside, Emilia shook her head. She smiled to try to put him at ease, but her trembling lips failed her. The sight made Subaru's face cloud over even more.  It had been half a day since the crystal had cracked and Puck had vanished, his pact vanishing with him. When she touched her neck, her attachment to the cracked crystal remained. Though it had completely lost its warmth, and her fingertips only drove the loss home, she could not part with it even so. \"I'm sorry... I keep apologizing like that, don't I. But I'm sorry... Even though I really have to take the Trial tonight, too...\" She ought to have hardened her resolve, determined to make up for the prior night's failure at the Trial. Of course, being unable to make up for that, or even challenge it whatsoever, was disheartening to her. However, as Emilia apologized, Subaru said \"It's all right,\" gently smiling at her. \"No big deal! It's not like any of this is your fault, Emilia. The fault's with the guy who decided...\" *** \"A-anyway. You need to take it easy on yourself. If there's anything I can do...my hands aren't very big, but I'll lend you anything I can.\" Hesitant to touch her wounds that was how Subaru showed his consideration. Accepting this, Emilia sat on the bed as she lowered her eyes, making a little \"Mm-hmm\" in her throat. It had been several hours since Emilia had lost her pact with Puck and was left alone before Subaru realized something was wrong and during that time, over and over, Emilia had gone over her conversation with Puck before he had vanished. It's been a while, he had said, yet the final conversation exchanged between them had not lasted all that long. Even so, the anguish of remembering the moment of their parting ways throbbed in her chest time and time again.  That was not all, for the memories she had touched upon displayed scenes unfamiliar to her. She heard a voice. A gentle voice, a soft voice, a voice full of love was calling Emilia's name. This was  \" Emilia? You really are tired, aren't you?\" Leaning forward, peering into her face, Subaru spoke, his voice echoing alongside the voice in her memories. \"Emilia?\" Subaru's voice was a little surprised. That was because Emilia had suddenly held onto his hand. Numerous times, Subaru had been the one to hold hers, but the opposite was rare. And right that moment, it was the other way around for once because Emilia wanted to be sure.  Not about Subaru. Emilia wanted to be sure about herself. \"I'm sure...in the morning... I want to think that by morning...I'll be all right.\" \"Y-yeah. That's, mm-hmm, I get it. So...\" \"Hold my hand. Would you stay here until morning? If you do that, I'm sure I'll...\" Entwining her fingers with Subaru's, Emilia infused the sensation with that prayer. It was a different sensation than the last time she had touched Puck's paw. But she felt like there was something there between them. \"Please, Subaru. I'm sorry. I'm sorry... Please.\" \"If that's what you want, granting your wish is easy. You don't need to apologize over and over.\" Drawing his chair close to the bed, Subaru smiled as he continued holding Emilia's hand. With his other hand, he stroked her head, making Emilia close her eyes from the ticklish feeling. \"Morning...if it's till morning, okay. I believe in you.\" To those gentle words, Emilia closed her eyes, the sensation on her palm calming her heart. Instantly, she finally felt sleepy.  For what she would surely see from that point on was her past. Before dreaming of her past, she wanted that feeling on her palm from that moment to be the last thing she remembered. 4  She truly looked small as she walked amid the snow. Her feet caught on the snow, and she tumbled forward, landing flat on her face. She was clumsy, with a look on her face like she was seeing snow for the first time. In fact, it was. That was the first time she had seen snow. It was beautiful enough to make anyone tremble, yet so fragile that it crumbled to the touch, and cold enough to elicit tears.  Emilia understood that this scene from her dream was a fragment of her memories of the past. Puck had said the lid on top of her memories would be lifted the instant their pact was no more. Indeed, but a few scant hours later, Emilia was visited not only by pain, but by countless scenes unknown to her. There was a humid, green forest with smiling people and girls with hair as silver as Emilia's, and those girls had happy conversations with men unfamiliar to her. Her homeland was daubed white those were the moments of time within the dream. \"Emilia!\" Amid the dream, amid the snow, amid the past clawing at her heart, the young Emilia heard a voice call her name. A woman with silver hair and violet eyes practically leaped through the air as she raced over. Besides these features, the same as Emilia's, she had short hair and almond-shaped eyes. The sight made her heart powerfully, audibly creak. \"I'm sorry, Emilia. I'm sorry. I never taught you any of the important things. I hid everything from you... I just wanted our princess to be happy...please forgive us...forgive me...\" The woman embraced the young Emilia tightly, pleading to her in an earnest voice. \"I love you. I wanted to protect you. I spoke white lies so that no one would hate you.\" She desperately pleaded, but the young Emilia of the past shook her head from side to side. She rejected the desperate plea. The woman loved her and wanted to protect her. Yet she had spoken lies, to avert hatred. Emilia hated lies. She detested lies. Lies brought nothing but sadness. Lies left Emilia alone. Lies ruined anything and everything. That was why she hated lies. \" Emilia. I really love you.\" This, too, was a lie. All of it was a lie. Lie. Lie. It was a lie.  It was a lie. Not that she wanted to believe that everything had been a lie... \"Mommy Fortuna, you liar.\" Opening her eyes, Emilia spoke those words to the lovely woman seared into her memories. \"Puck, you liar.\" Touching the split crystal with her left hand, Emilia spoke those words to the spirit who had rescinded the pact made with Emilia. And then  \" Subaru, you liar.\" Staring at her empty right hand, Emilia spoke toward the boy who had made a promise to her before she slept. She spoke to the boy not there. \"...Liar.\" There was a moon outside the window, tracing a half-crescent.  It was still in the sky, with the promised morning far-off. 5 It was when Garfiel visited Shima's cabin in the morning on a whim that he realized something was wrong. The great number of human outsiders currently present made the Sanctuary's situation different from the norm. Because of that, despite Shima being little indisposed due to her secluded life in the forest, he figured he ought to have another word with her at least. \"Old hag? Hey, where the hell'd you go?\" When he looked around the cabin interior, Garfiel twisted his neck, for Shima was absent. It was very early in the morning, but the bedding had already lost its warmth; there was no mistaking that she had left at quite an early hour. Since going out on a stroll at a rather odd hour ran a high risk of strangers spotting her, Garfiel was internally conflicted. He didn't want to restrict his grandmother's movements. He didn't want to, but  \"...Right now, there's Roswaal and the miasma bastard here...\" Touching the white scar on his forehead, Garfiel twisted his cheeks. Touching his scar when he was thinking about something was akin to a force of habit. He'd borne the scar ever since the moment he entered the tomb in his youth. He behaved like an idiot who did not know fear, but that memory was of the single most foolish thing he'd done. Haunted by the presence of the scar, he touched it to make himself remember to regret and reflect. Hence, it had become a habit. \"A stroll, huh? Days sure get long when ya get old. Maybe I should pour some tea 'n' wait...\" Spotting the teacup placed on the table, Garfiel felt a sense of thirst rising in his throat. Where are those tea leaves, he thought, but something struck him as wrong.  There were two teacups on the table. Garfiel hadn't had any tea when he'd been there the night before. *** The sense that something was wrong made Garfiel put his nose to work, practically shooting out the cabin as he rushed outside. There were no footprints remaining on the forest floor. There was virtually no trace of Shima's replica scent, either. If it was nothing, fine. But if it was something  Almost flying as he raced through the forest, Garfiel made a beeline back toward the settlement. There were two potential destinations: the Cathedral, to which the outsiders had been exiled, or perhaps  \"Tch! Like there's any doubt!\" Garfiel clacked his fangs as his feet carried him straight toward the back of the settlement. Then, just as his destination was coming into sight, Garfiel raised his voice in a \"Hey!\" \" ! Garfiel?!\" With a pale face, it was none other than Subaru who turned around. There were two others at his side: Ram, and that third-rate guy whose name he didn't remember. The trio was standing in front of an empty house the house currently being used as Emilia's place to rest. \"The hell are all of ya doin' out...\" \"Hey, do you know where the heck Emilia is?!\" \" The...hell?\" Garfiel, all worked up trying to find Shima, was about to ask if they had any idea where she was when Subaru's words took him by surprise. This instantly left him at a loss. Garfiel's reaction brought an irritated look over Subaru's face. \"What gives? Do you know where...you didn't abduct her, did you?\" \"Don't talk stupid. Why'd I go abductin' the princess? What's goin' on?\" \" Lady Emilia has gone missing. It happened this morning, right under our noses.\" In place of the uneasy-looking Subaru, it was Ram who laid bare the circumstances. But the explanation did not induce Garfiel to close his mouth. Emilia was missing.  That made two people missing. \"It seems Mr. Natsuki was holding her hand during the night. When morning came, Mr. Natsuki apparently went to switch with Miss Ram so that she might get a change of clothes...\" \"...Well, that's your mistake, ain't it?\" When Third-Rate added more detail, Garfiel let that comment slip. Subaru hung his head with a pathetic look on his face. To be blunt, Garfiel had suspected it might all be some kind of scheme, but he didn't think Subaru being shaken by Emilia's absence was a ruse. Who could put on an act with a face that pathetic? If that was so, Shima and Emilia both being missing made this an emergency situation. *** No choice, thought Garfiel as he took the blue crystal in his loincloth into his hand. He didn't want to employ his rights as an Apostle of Greed, but if there was ever a time to use the replicas' power, this was it.  He just needed to mentally order them. Order them to search for Shima, and next, Emilia... For one second, he was tempted to order Shima to come to his side, but Garfiel forced the notion back down, throwing that option away. He didn't use his rights on Ryuzu or Shima."}, {"text": "That was the moral code Garfiel had to protect at all costs. \"...So what, you lookin' for her with other people?\" \"We only just found out! We're gonna ask the people from Earlham Village to...\" \"You do whatever ya want. Me, I'll do it my way. Ram!\" If they had their own ideas, he wouldn't object. When Garfiel called her name, Ram nodded deeply, seemingly guessing what he had in mind. Surely she could make use of everyone in the Sanctuary, native and stranger alike. Garfiel would leave the matter of Emilia in their hands, for he had to search for Shima himself.  He would not divulge Shima's existence to Ram or the others. It was a secret of the Sanctuary, after all. \"If ya find somethin' out, lemme know! And don't do anythin' stupid, ya hear?!\" Driving that one thing home, Garfiel kicked the ground, leaving Ram and the others behind. Activating his explosive leaping strength, he made a full turn, this time racing back to the forest in one go. He'd rendezvous with a number of the replicas, leading them in an organized search. As he resolved upon this  \" Damn it all! What the hell's goin' on here?!\" He couldn't get the others to search for Shima. Even the residents of the Sanctuary did not know of her existence. Ryuzu was the exception, but Ryuzu and Shima...he thought it would be cruel to make his two grandmothers meet each other. He hadn't heard the particulars of the situation. But the gist was that Shima had once been Ryuzu but had stopped being Ryuzu somewhere along the line. Given the sad way she talked it, he didn't need to hear anymore. All Garfiel needed to do was keep it to himself. That would protect the secret. In that moment, it was for that sake, for the sake of secrets, for the sake of the Sanctuary, that Garfiel ran. 6 \"This is...\" Wiping the sweat on his brow, Garfiel grimaced at the disagreeable scent. Garfiel did not like this place. Better put, he hated it. The pungent scent hovering in its environs was akin to a mortal enemy to his sensitive nose, but the largest reason was the purpose of the facility's existence.  The Ryuzu Meyer replication facility. That was the white building's role. \"Why would the old hag come here...? She hates this place as much as I do, damn it.\" Muttering curses as he entered the building, Garfiel squinted in its dimly lit interior. Garfiel had met with the replicas at Shima's cabin to receive their reports as Eyes. The replicas lurking in every corner of the forest bore the duty of being Eyes, observing the Sanctuary to find intruders from the outside or anomalies that might occur within. When he made proactive use of his rights as an Apostle of Greed, it was usually for that. Ryuzu and Shima laughed it off, but in actuality, the Eyes had been very useful. On the first day that Subaru and the others had visited the Sanctuary, it was thanks to them that he'd been able to capture the group so quickly after they'd crossed the barrier. Finding out that Shima was at the facility right then was another result of their work. The Eyes had not spotted Shima. But that meant by implication that Shima had gone to a place where no replica was on duty. That strongly pointed to the facility and its surroundings. Of course, he'd made the replicas continue the search, but  \" It's open. So this is the place.\" Having arrived at the spacious room in the back of the facility, Garfiel clicked his tongue in certainty. At the tip of his gaze was where a white wall ought to have been but the entrance to the hidden room behind it was wide open. Garfiel pretty much dragged himself there only once in several months to a year's time to pick up a new replica created from the device within the chamber. And only those with the same status as Garfiel bore could enter that place.  For the conditions to enter were twofold: to bear a crystal and to be an Apostle of Greed. Garfiel knew of only one person beyond himself who could possibly fit those two conditions. \"Old hag! Are ya here?! Can ya hear my voice?!\" Shouting loudly, Garfiel advanced to the back of the chamber with ragged-sounding footsteps. He was halfway certain. He was being lured there. Some kidnapper had brought Shima into the facility, lying in wait as he came searching for her. Knowing that much, he ought to have been cautious, but Garfiel was nothing if not bold and impetuous. If it was a trap, he'd crush it underfoot; if a scheme, he'd clamp his jaws and shatter it.  His conclusion was plain and simple. \"Old hag! Old hag !!\" Surely, there was no reason to inflict harm upon her. He could surmise no reason to do so. At the very least, she'd served the other party tea. Even if the opponent was some strategist with a devilish mind at work  *** Hearing no reply, Garfiel set foot into the chamber, resting his eyes upon the so-called magic crystal. In its blue light, there was a girl hugging her knees sealed within. This was the girl from which all the replicas originated Ryuzu Meyer. Garfiel felt bad about the presence of the girl, one he took for granted, which he could call neither materials nor a corpse. He felt himself reflected in that presence: already ended, yet continuing to exist. Perhaps it was because her existence jabbed deeply into his chest that he was slow to respond to the footsteps behind him. \"Who ?!\" Turning around and raising his voice, he immediately scolded himself for the stupid question. There was only one sort of person who would show up at that time and place. In other words, the presence belonged to Subaru Natsuki  \" I am terribly sorry I cannot live up to your expectations.\" *** The whisper in his ear and the pat on his shoulder sent Garfiel into shock. In other words, this was proof he had been approached from the opposite direction of the footsteps he had heard. And the one who had done this was  \"The host of the banquet is absent. May I serve you in his place?\" Speaking these words, the gentleman with delicate features bowed, touching his hat to his chest. He remembered his face. His face was all he remembered. He did not remember his name. That was why Garfiel called him Third-Rate. \"Why are you...where is that bastard...?\" His surprise over the young man's emergence undiminished, Garfiel searched the room for any sight of Subaru. The young man was unexpected, but he could guess who'd set this up. Of course, the uproar over Emilia's absence was a pack of lies, too; the shaken look on his face, and all the rest, was purely the product of acting  \"Actually, this circumstance truly was unexpected.\" \" Huh?\" \"It truly was our blunder to let Lady Emilia slip out while our eyes were turned. To be blunt, I am tempted to wonder if even my fortune is so poor. However...\" Cutting off his words at that point, the young man returned the hat in his hand back to his head. After that, he rubbed his own nose with his finger, making what seemed like a blushy smile. \"My friend asked me to, you see. Knowing full well 'tis a minor role, I shall play it to the fullest regardless.\" 7 Dragging her feet, she walked toward the pale glow with darkness hovering all around it. The exhaustion of her willpower robbed her of endurance as well. Even though she was moving but a short distance, her body felt heavy. Even so, the girl Emilia was unwilling to halt, forcing herself to move forward. Puck's prediction had been correct. The lid on her memories had been lifted, and recollections came back to her one after another. She didn't know what connected the two. She did not know why Puck's absence was related to her memories. Was it Puck who had sealed her memories? If so, why would Puck  \" Mommy Fortuna.\" Instead of that doubt, what she put on her lips was the name of the woman who had been like a mother to her and was strongly carved into her memories. She was not her birth mother. She was sure she'd heard that from the woman herself. Those memories, too, would surely come back to her in short order. Her memories of Fortuna were gentle, warm, and strong to Emilia, she was the ideal woman.  The mother who should have been turned into a statue of ice was somewhere in the frozen forest that very moment. \"Ugh...hkk...\" The memory of the sin she could never undo throbbed. A sob trickled out from Emilia's lips. Not everything had come back to her yet. And yet, a feeling of guilt welled up from deep inside her chest. Even without her memories, surely her body, her blood, and her soul remembered. It had always been like that. Always. Desperately, earnestly, with all her strength, she didn't intend to hold back in the slightest, yet Emilia's hands could not even glance across the surface of that which she truly wished to reach. That was probably why Puck, why Subaru, why Fortuna had slipped through her fingers  \"That's why I...\" Even as she sobbed and cried tiny tears, Emilia pressed on. At the speed of a crawl, she headed for a particular place in the dense sea of green. She did this because in her present state, that was the final stronghold in which Emilia could place her trust. \"...Liar.\" There was no one to hear the word of blame that fell from her slender lips. Nor was there anyone who clearly understood who the word was for. 8 \" Ya ain't got what it takes for this role, Third-Rate.\" Immediately after recovering from the initial shock, Garfiel seemed to chew on the words before spitting them out. The tone of his voice was intimidating. The young man on the receiving end of it made a pathetic-looking face. \"...Well, I imagined you might say as much. I, too, believe I am behaving rather recklessly in courting this circumstance. Truly, I had intended to settle this with dialogue between us.\" \"Dialogue, ya say?\" \"Yes. Ryuzu...no, Shima should have been here. At Mr. Natsuki's initiative, we wished to have Miss Shima in attendance while we were to speak with you... However...\" Scratching his cheek, the young man let a weary sigh trickle out. \"The incident with Lady Emilia has completely thrown off my plans. Having said that, I have already engaged in wicked deeds all over, so I must adjust appropriately to changing circumstances...\" \"...What of the old hag?\" \"As I could not read the situation, I had her distance herself. There is no one here save you and I.\" \"That so.\" He'd asked what he wanted to. If neither Shima nor Subaru, who had hatched the scheme, were present in this place, he was done here. Coming to this conclusion, Garfiel glared at the young man. However  \"That bastaaard...playin' his little games...!\" Putting his fierce, seething emotions onto his tongue, Garfiel raggedly vented his rage toward Subaru.  Since the beginning. Yes, from the very beginning, Garfiel couldn't stand Subaru. With sharp eyes in contrast to the soft look of his face, he always behaved flippantly and frivolously. Yet, in spite of that, from time to time, he had a look in his eyes like someone who'd gone through crises that Garfiel could not even imagine. That gaze of his, as if he was staring off into some place far away, struck Garfiel the same as that of the man he liked least in the entire world. Of course it had annoyed him. If he'd used his own hands to pinch and crush him sooner, none of this would have happened. \"I am"}, {"text": "inclined to thank you for not being quite that rash.\" \"What the hell did you stay behind for? The guy in question ain't here so there's no talk to be had.\" \"You have a point. And yet, right now...I wish to buy time for a man and a woman to have a moment with each other.\" The young man raised a finger to his lips, winking with one eye. The gesture brought a questioning look over Garfiel's face. But as soon as he understood the meaning of his words, and just which man and which woman he meant, the impact ran through him. *** That instant, what shot through Garfiel was intuition beyond anything he could explain. Hence, Garfiel, a man who judged things in accordance with his instincts, was certain it was fact. That moment, Subaru was searching for the supposedly missing Emilia so that he might meet with her. Meet her, and do what? What could that man, qualified to be an Apostle of Greed, do  \"Oh my! I cannot let you go as you please. I told you, did I not? However minor, I have a role I must play.\" *** \"I feel obligated to warn you, I may not be much for direct combat, but I have a bounty of tricks up my sleeve. For instance, employing water and wind magic to cast the sound of my footsteps into the distance...\" \"Yeah? Here's what I gotta say, Third-Rate.\" When Garfiel turned, seemingly intent on leaving the hidden chamber, the young man stood to bar his path. And as that young man attempted to recite some list, Garfiel said it in one, brief sentence and one alone. \"Ya ain't got what it takes for this role.\" \" Guh, ugh!\" The blow to his solar plexus elicited a trickling moan from the young man as he proceeded to crumple. He swooned, spewing the contents of his stomach. The punch had avoided his vitals. That was Garfiel's show of mercy and restraint. \"That's payback for the little trick with the footsteps earlier. See ya.\" Leaving the fallen young man those words, Garfiel hurried, racing out of the facility. He had to return to the Sanctuary.  No, it wasn't the Sanctuary he needed to head for: It was the tomb. He knew intuitively. Garfiel trusted his intuition that letting Subaru and Emilia meet, and giving them time to exchange words, would bring a bad situation forth. Besides, Garfiel sympathized with Emilia. He pitied her. His memory of Emilia looking heartbroken, the cruelty of the Trial pounded into her, was still fresh. Garfiel had tasted the same fear himself long ago. They were similar. Even setting aside the blood that flowed through their veins, of course he'd harbor empathy for her. That was why Garfiel thought he shouldn't let Subaru meet Emilia. It had nothing to do with their fondness and attraction for each other.  If you challenged the past, you got hurt. He'd put a stop to that. \"The replicas...!\" Garfiel thought that, in the time between leaving the temple and returning to the settlement, he ought to give urgent commands for the replicas to search for Subaru and Emilia. Shima weighed on his mind, but at this moment in time, the other two came first. In particular, he needed to mercilessly twist Subaru to the ground by force, even if he needed to use the replicas to do it. With that thought, he rummaged through his pocket and it was then that Garfiel realized that the crystal wasn't there. *** The instant he realized it, the blood drained from his face. He kicked a tree to kill the momentum of his sprint. He searched inside his loincloth once more. However, the crystal was not there, either. There was no way he'd have dropped something so precious. After all, to Garfiel, it was part of a memory he could not afford to lose  \" ! That...third-rate bastard!\" Garfiel howled as his guess set his thought process ablaze. In the hidden chamber, he'd deliberately thrown the sound of his footsteps with the aim of getting close. The various exaggerated gestures were all distractions so that Garfiel would not notice Third-Rate pickpocketing his crystal. Garfiel hesitated for a moment. But then he immediately cast it aside, turning back toward the facility. It was not that he was afraid of being unable to give commands to the replicas. In the end, the crystal was a tool; all he needed to make a new one was to break a piece off of the magic crystal sealing Ryuzu Meyer within. Objectively speaking, there was no reason to be nervous. But to Garfiel, it was not so. To Garfiel, and to one other  \"Third-Raaate !!\" He returned to the facility with enough force to break through a solid wall. But there was no sign of the man he had punched in the gut, the man who ought to have been lying there. He realized that the swooning had been an act as well. He'd been had. Garfiel had been completely, utterly ensnared and was still being toyed with that very instant...! *** He raced out of the facility, whipping his head all around. His nose wasn't working. It was useless. The foul odor of the place violated his nostrils, rendering them unusable. He squinted, acting like a beast in search of even the slightest change around him. Casting all dignity aside, he went down on all fours and crawled. Footprints. Footprints from leather boots. These he followed. Ferociously breaking through the forest, he trampled all manner of foliage, eyes bloodshot as he pursued traces of leather. Finally  \"I found ya!! Don't ya dare think about gettin' away from me!!\" Leaping, Garfiel twisted in midair, throwing up dust as he landed. His eyes were trained upon a gap in the trees standing straight before him. He'd caught sight of the young man in question. From the nimble way he fled, the earlier punch had taken little out of him. \"You con artist...!\" \"Calling me a con artist is quite offensive...er, no, perhaps I should puff my chest out in pride at my opponent claiming he was deceived, for such are my long-cherished goals as a merchant...\" Spinning worthless words, the young man calmly stood in defiance of the angry Garfiel. Garfiel straight-out admired his nerve. He admired it and, while admiring it, would crush it with his fangs. \"Give back the stone. That's my stone. I know that you stole it, you thieving bastard...!\" \"Third-rate, and now thief...it is truly difficult to be appraised in line with my own ideals.  I understand how Mr. Natsuki and Lady Emilia feel.\" \"I ain't askin' about that! And I got no intention of playin' along so ya can buy time!!\" When the young man murmured disconcertedly, Garfiel glared at him, unreservedly yelling in anger. He understood. He finally understood. These were enemies, and mortal enemies at that. The more the young man before his eyes, and Subaru, made Garfiel talk, the more these mortal enemies backed him into a corner. Just as he entrusted his life to fang and claw, they entrusted theirs to words, tongues, and schemes. That was why he had to settle the conflict right then, right there. *** The sharpness of the glint in Garfiel's eyes increased as he paid conscious attention to the young man's each and every word and action. In the earlier battle, all his gestures had been a trap. He could not lower his guard, not relenting for even one moment, one second. \"Finally...you are looking at me, Garfiel.\" Seeing right through his hostility-filled eyes, the young man laughed. Shudder went Garfiel, feeling a chill run up his spine. Why was this man laughing? \"Third-rate, thief, all that is fine. People like me do not even enter the vision of people like you. You are prejudiced toward opponents such as Mr. Natsuki and I. That is why you never paid me any heed.\" He had no objection to the rambling words the young man spoke. It was all fact. Garfiel had never considered the young man someone he should pay the slightest heed to, let alone be wary of him as a potential foe. And look where it got him. He'd been led by the nose, extensively toyed with, and reduced to his current state. That was why, that moment, he was being so wary, absolutely not turning his eyes away for a single instant  \"A merchant reads his chances for victory, acting several moves ahead. I am no exception.\" \"Huh...?\" \"Last night, it was Mr. Natsuki who spoke with Miss Shima over tea. I do not know what occurred in the immediate aftermath, nor does Mr. Natsuki know of my actions, I am sure.\" Shaking his head side to side, Otto backed up bit by bit. Seeing this, Garfiel realized he had once again been slow to decide due to indignation at what he was being told.  He needed to ignore the words. The man before him was his enemy. Whatever the scheme, he simply needed to make his enemy submit. \"I'll deal with ya here and now. And next...\" \"Yes. That.\" One instant, he made that assertion, stepping forward in pursuit of the young man the next, he was assaulted by a floating feeling. His right foot plunged through the ground he'd stepped on, causing him to lose his balance. Instantly, he stretched a hand to a nearby tree. Tree trunk and all, Garfiel was swallowed up by a frighteningly large cave-in. \"Uooaaaa ?!\" He made an anguished cry as the blow of the fall came immediately. He fixed his posture, glaring immediately upward. The depth of the hole was several yards; going back was trivial. But in that case, why had he made a hole like that?  What was this hole, at a size and depth completely beyond human strength to dig, doing here? As he had the thought, he squinted at the hole. It was then that Garfiel realized that something was off: not with the top, nor the bottom, but with the earthen walls. They contained countless points of light; these were countless winged insects enshrouded by phosphorescent light  \"Since long ago, I have had few human friends. Instead, I get along quite well with my friends beyond humans.\" Garfiel was taken aback by the voice coming down at him from overhead. He could not instantly comprehend the meaning of those words. But his instincts rang an alarm bell warning him of danger. And once again, even that very instant, Garfiel was listening to his enemy's words. Accordingly, the next moment, his just rewards blew up in his face. \"Now, the forest itself is your enemy.  First, have a taste of the Zodda bugs' warm welcome!\" Drowning out his sentence was the sound of wings, raging like a gale inside the hole. Garfiel raised an angry yell in response. Yell and roar. The reverberations echoed. And so the Battle of the Lost Woods of Cremaldi commenced. 9  When it felt like he heard a roar far off in the distance, Subaru's breath caught. For an instant, he looked back; the urge to run there and confirm the situation raced through him. But he somehow managed to resist. The die had already been cast. Garfiel had to have realized by then that Subaru was involved in Shima's disappearance. It was not difficult to imagine his anger over the number of covert activities and dirty tricks, which must have been driving him mad. He'd truly have liked to settle things nice and properly at the discussion table beforehand, but that was no longer possible. \"Counting on you, Otto. Just don't do anything really crazy...\" Fully expecting Garfiel to be in an agitated state, it was Otto who had volunteered to take responsibility for explaining things. At the replication facility, Otto had made arrangements to await Garfiel's arrival. Surely, Otto would be able to soothe his anger. In contrast to that thought, Subaru was fiercely uneasy as well. \"After all,"}, {"text": "that Otto bastard is a total idiot with surprising disregard for his own life...\" He was worried about the fact that Otto often risked his life for the sake of others. He'd said if he came into contact with Garfiel, he'd tell him everything and let himself be taken prisoner. But with the plan already thrown well off track, it was crucial for both of them to adjust to the changing circumstances thereafter. \"Don't make me pay for the incense at your funeral, Otto.\" Even if it came to that, Subaru wouldn't be sending any money. It'd get sent to him and Otto both. He didn't want it to come to that. And partly so that it never would  \" Right now, I need to fulfill my role.\" Spitting out words of resolve, Subaru stood boldly before his destination. The entrance before him was open, dark, and filled with cold air. The instant Subaru stepped inside, his entire body felt languid, and he was seized by the alien sense that his blood was flowing backward. \"Nggh...\" Putting a hand to his mouth, Subaru forced himself to ignore the rising sense of nausea within him as he advanced further still. His eardrums were violated by the hard echoes of shoes, sounds of his own making. The air licked at his eyeballs. Subaru put his hand to the wall, heading within as he struggled against the sense that the very world was rejecting him. Fortunately, he'd kept his stomach empty in preparation for this. He became accustomed to the feeling of his innards being wrung and forced the sensation down with willpower, lightly closing and opening his eyes as he crept forward at a turtle's pace. And then  \" Ahh, I'm so glad. Finally found you.\" After passing through a corridor that seemed to stretch for all eternity, Subaru let his shoulders drop in relief. Before his eyes, leaning against a weathered wall, there was a girl clutching her knees in the dry corridor. When the girl noticed Subaru, she opened her violet eyes in a daze. \"Suba...ru...?\" Even though it was a faltering voice, he was satisfied knowing she had called his name. After that, Subaru sat as well, right by the cowering girl's side. \"All right, Emilia-tan. Let's talk, okay?\" CHAPTER 5 *** 1  To the young Otto Suwen, the world was a cradle straight out of hell. \"xxxxxxx\" \"\" \"***! **** !!\" Unceasingly, twenty-four hours a day, Otto continued to hear incomprehensible voices. Sometimes, they were weeping aloud; sometimes, they were crazed with anger; sometimes, they sounded like songs; sometimes, they sounded like death cries. Little by little, the voices forced Otto to be their audience. No matter where he was in the world, the voices would not release the young Otto from their grip.  How did everyone else live while taking such a noisy world for granted? Such was the question Otto lived with in that hell, where he could not even hear the voices of the people next to him as he pleased. When his parents picked him up, he could not hear whatever it is they said along with their smiles. No matter how deep the affection in their words, their voices were swallowed up by background noise, never reaching Otto's comprehension. The reason Otto had grown up without a smile, without anger, without tears, and with virtually nothing worthy of calling an emotion was because to Otto, everything happening on the outside sounded like the exact same thing. His parents struggled to understand their son's abnormality. They had him assessed by various healers, who strove mightily to ascertain the cause. But Otto's abnormality was a listening deficiency because he was hearing too much something utterly incomprehensible to those who did not possess his blessing. Hence, it was only natural that his parents' love shifted away from Otto and onto his older and younger brothers. Unlike Otto, his two siblings grew up without difficulty, thriving as they were raised with love for three. He did not resent his parents or his siblings for this. One might say that he did not have enough concern for others to resent them, but even he was able to understand that his family had tried their best. Even if he could not understand it in words, he was grateful particularly to his older brother.  If voices could not reach, perhaps he could express his thoughts through writing? Realizing this, it was his older brother who began trying to read aloud to Otto. Taught by his brother, Otto began to learn the written word. However, learning proved exceptionally difficult. After all, he could not use sound to comprehend the meaning of words. Even though Otto came to understand what individual words meant, it took ten times longer for him to learn than for a normal child as he spent day after day facing a desk. Fortunately, this did not seem like suffering to him. Ironically, it was not because Otto was desensitized to hard work; to the young Otto, unable to live a normal life, study was a way to kill time. \" Thank you for everything.\" Otto remembered the day when his parents broke down in tears at the page upon which he'd written his clumsy words of gratitude. He couldn't claim to have understood the emotion of gratitude. It was just that he was aware he was being treated in a way he ought to be grateful for, so it was his youthful judgment to put together an obligatory display of gratitude. And yet, his parents were brought to tears, their hearts shaken. What was this? Why were these two people crying? What was it they were feeling?  When he raised his voice and cried, it might well have been the first time he had cried since birth. If so, to Otto, it was the cry of his second birth. \"Berukubikinodomesaesere\" \"NRTMKMEEIAA\" \"mi mi mu me mi \" It was soon after that he discovered that the hellish, incomprehensible chorus did have a rhyme and rhythm. By the time Otto became able to separate the countless noises he heard unceasingly and could completely able to isolate human words from the rest at will, Otto had greeted his eighth year of age. Otto's life was still behind that of others of his age group, but his growth after conquering his blessing dazzled the eyes; he greedily absorbed all kinds of things like how parched sand absorbed water. He soon caught up to the rest of his age group nay, the youthful Otto displayed talent beyond that.  And he became isolated from that age group, grandly failing at human relations. \"Why does everyone take living in a difficult world like this for granted?\" He'd already made up for his supposedly lagging education. However, his problem was now human relations Otto, who lagged behind his age group in terms of growth as a person, made a string of blunders that should have played out in early childhood. And the biggest problem of all was indeed the blessing that had shadowed Otto since birth. \"There was a big light.\" \"I came, I saw, I won.\" \"Hey, a monster's coming.\" When he reached ten years of age, Otto realized there was a change in the voices he was consciously filtering. Noises that had once been meaningless had changed into something that did hold meaning. And as he verified the change in the voices more and more, Otto learned he bore a blessing, and so, too, he learned the true nature of the hell of his youth. Having discovered the existence of his blessing, Otto immediately spoke to his older brother about this power. When anything happened, his older brother, who had taught words to the young Otto, had become the one he could most rely on for guidance. \"Mm, I see. Mm...well, you see. Otto, this power, mm, it's amazing. Because I think it's amazing...you, ah, see. You really need to stop speaking to Zodda bugs where people can see.\" When Otto revealed his blessing, his older brother's face went pale as he earnestly spoke those words of advice. I see went Otto, greatly appreciative. A blessing was a boon from the world, but there were people in this world that might use such a power for evil purposes. As expected of his older brother, his words of advice, spoken to protect him from such malice in the world, were right on target.  It was three days later when Otto's blessing was exposed to those around him, making him hated by all others his age. The trigger was his little brother seeing him secretly conversing with the family land dragon. Seeing no other option, Otto spoke to his younger brother about the blessing, whereupon his brother carelessly let word slip to a friend of his. Boys and girls gathered around. To prove that his younger brother was not a liar, Otto had no option but to prove that the blessing's power was real. To illustrate this, he called over every Zodda bug in the city.  In a single instant, the name of the Zodda bug bastard who could not read the mood spread far and wide. Thereafter, Otto concealed his blessing, determined never to make use of it again. Over the course of several years, he covered up his foul reputation, succeeding at erasing the abominable darkness in his past by the time he reached the tender age of fourteen.  And during the wet season of his fifteenth year, Otto made an enemy of the daughter of a powerful figure in his city and was exiled from his homeland. The extremely short version of the circumstances was this: He had become entangled in a love-hate drama between a man and a woman. On the night of a birthday party for the girl in question, her lover hurled angry shouts into Otto's house over her being with another man along with insults of You Zodda bug bastard!! Accused of a crime he did not remember committing, with his dark past dredged up at that, Otto lost his presence of mind. Accordingly, Otto released the seal, seeking the cooperation of the living creatures in the city so that he might clear himself of suspicion. And having established that on the night in question, the aforementioned girl had actually fooled around with seven other men, he stated loud and clear to the poor man, It seems you were the eighth! On top of being punched by the man, he was targeted by an assassin hired by the girl for his exposing her relations with the opposite sex. Otto finally abandoned his homeland, and his father used his connections to get a merchant who was a friend of his to hire Otto. After training under that man, he was sixteen when he set off as a traveling merchant this marked the start of Otto Suwen standing as his own man. His subsequent journey as a traveling merchant was truly a chronicle of one hardship after another. It seemed Otto was born under a star with a great love of calamity and misfortune. If he hauled fruit, foul weather would come calling; if he took a shortcut through the mountains, bandits would attack him; if he camped with other traveling merchants, he and he alone would suffer insect stings all over his body. Even as such days of misfortune befell him, Otto had managed to live on without going bankrupt because he was blessed with mercantile talent as great as his luck was poor. Even when making great gambles, he rarely lost, and while maintaining that noxious balance, four years as a merchant passed in the blink of an eye. \"Lad, go get some sleep already.\" Such were the nighttime exchanges Otto had with his Fulfew, his beloved dragon and only traveling companion. It had been five years since he had been exiled from home. Fulfew's presence loomed large in keeping Otto from returning home with a broken heart. Since it was the land dragon, Fulfew, who had been the trigger for his blessing"}, {"text": "being exposed to his little brother, they had, in truth, been a pair for the last ten years. \"If you don't, it'll hold you back. You have a large deal to make tomorrow, yes?\" Fulfew's considerate words made Otto nod with a smile. Otto was certain the big job waiting for him the next day would turn his fortunes as a merchant around. And so, the momentous day came.  He'd been completely had and laden with a vast debt to boot. The oil he'd hoarded became unsellable; in contrast, the metal wares he'd relinquished had precipitously climbed in value. Having misread the market trends, Otto knew his life as a merchant had fallen into grave peril. If he did not turn things around in a single blow, he would inevitably have to let Fulfew go. Not only that it was even possible he would be forced to return to his birth family in tears. To Otto, that was something that had to be averted at all costs. Otto loved his birth family. He was aware of their love for him. And so, too, was he aware that his younger self had brought his birth family trouble over and over. In that span of a decade and a half, Otto had already caused his family an entire lifetime's worth of trouble. He needed to use the remainder of his life to make up for those fifteen years. He would properly pay his debts in full. After all, Otto Suwen was a merchant's son.  When an acquaintance told him of a lucrative offer, Otto immediately raced toward it. The contract was not to secure merchandise, but to use his dragon carriage as transport. Otto hastened to arrive before anyone else. \"Lad, stop this already,\" said Fulfew, but he would not listen, employing his blessing to make a beeline to his destination. And then  \"My, my, my...where are you going in ssssuch a hurry?\"  And then, he landed in quite a mess. Captured by a group with strange looks in their eyes, Otto firmly believed that his misfortune had reached its zenith. Separated from Fulfew, Otto was rolled up in a mat in a cold cave, despairing amid its tranquility. Despair. Yes, he despaired. For the first time in his life, Otto despaired. After all, at the time, the power of Otto's blessing had completely abandoned him. He rested his hopes on his blessing, seeking the aid of living creatures in the forest and the cave so that he might search for a way to escape, intending to use that nostalgic hell to find a way out.  But in that place, he could not hear a single word of the hellish chorus he had found so irritating. It was an overwhelming quiet of a sort he had never before tasted. In that silence, Otto, resigned to hell, found out what hell truly was. It was then that he understood that true silence was the sound made by the footsteps of impending death. This is the end, he thought. Strength drained from his limbs, and light vanished from his eyes. Without having accomplished a single thing, he would pathetically meet his end in a cold cave.  And then, that despair suddenly came to an end. \"The hell? Thought them Witch Cultists were indiscriminate! They playin' around or somethin'?!\" A great voice echoed through the cave, bringing Otto, on the edge of oblivion, back to reality. Lifting his face, he called out for aid with a raspy voice. The one who heard this and emerged was a large-framed dog-man who spoke in the Kararagi dialect. \"Bro, ya got some good luck! If we hadn't come 'ere, those guys would've killed ya for sure! Ya better give our boy general a big ol' thanks!\" \"B-boy general...?\" \"Our commandin' officer's still a kid, so boy general! And your savior, bro!\" \"R-right...u-understood. Thank you very much. Then, I must also offer my...\" Thanks to that person, Otto was about to say, but when he lifted his face, he realized. The dog-man before his eyes had a look of surprise trained toward Otto. Without Otto understanding what the reaction meant, the dog-man pulled a white hand towel from his pocket and tossed it over. \"Hey, if ya gonna cry, cry where people can't see. A man can't be cryin' in front of people.\" \"Er, erm...c-cry?\" \"Tears are what ya use to clean yer heart! They say that in Kararagi a lot. Gah-ha-ha-ha-hah!\" That was all the dog-man said before turning his back to Otto out of consideration. Clueless, Otto touched the towel he had received to his own face it was then that he finally became aware of his tears. His tears were trickling, falling out. The instant he became aware of that, their force began to increase all at once. \"Ah, da...wh-what why is...why is...!\" Otto pressed the hand towel to his face, desperately resisting the ceaseless torrent of tears. He did not know why they poured out.  No, this was untrue. He actually knew. \"I-I'm glad to...b-be alive...!\" He still hadn't accomplished anything. Otto had nearly met his end without even having found meaning to his birth. Surviving like that had made him able to appreciate that.  Otto felt that, as his tears flowed, his life was being reborn. He had cried for the first time on the day he was born into the world. He had cried for the second time on the day he learned the love his family had for him, discovering his own heart. And on that day, he cried for the third time, for his brush with despair and death had taught him the meaning of the goal called living.  On that day, Otto Suwen cried for the first time all over again. 2 \" Not that he really asked me to buy time for him like this.\" Otto made a pained smile as he kicked the surface of the ground, exerting himself in physical labor for which he was not suited. He would have liked to forget the unsightly memories of him bawling his eyes out, but unfortunately, his memories of crying were all precious to him, so he could not forget them if he tried. At the time, the beast man named Ricardo, who had saved him, had kept Otto's bawling secret, not telling a soul. That debt was one he had to repay someday in full. And  \"A debt must always be repaid.  I am a merchant, after all.\"  So, too, the debt to the boy general who had saved his life. Otto Suwen had a debt he had to repay to Subaru Natsuki as well. He would make up for that obligation by wagering the life that Subaru had saved. As a merchant, seeking to repay all his debts was only natural. And more importantly  \" It's for my friend, after all!!\" As a merchant, and as a single human being, Otto wanted to step forward then and there and add himself to the ranks of men. Accordingly, Otto Suwen, on his own initiative, had challenged a battlefield upon which his chances of victory seemed slim. He'd made the gamble by ignoring the odds and piled up every chip he had, including his own life, to bring about Subaru Natsuki's victory. With his mercantile spirit, Otto would prove his friendship true. ***  In the distance, from the direction of the trap he had left behind, he heard an angry, bestial roar reverberate through the sky. With that as the prompt, Otto continued to run as he unleashed his own blessing devoting himself to that familiar hell to wring out the entirety of his power. 3 \"Something incredible is coming.\"  I understand. Yes, I do understand. \"Behind, incredible, coming, right now.\"  I told you, I understand! This is exactly as I predicted and expected. \"You'll die. You'll die, mm. Poor thing.\"  I'm begging you, would you please stop with the pessimism already?! With his blessing of language unleashed, countless voices flew into Otto's ears as he raced through the forest. To take the voices of the various sentient creatures within the forest birds, insects, small animals and separate them from the voices directed toward him, while carefully discriminating between each one, was a punishing act that whittled away at the soul. The time Otto spent with his blessing perfectly lined up with the twenty years of his own life. But even in those twenty years, never once had he attempted something so reckless. The quantity of voices Otto's eardrums picked up from within the forest's expanses was...vast. Countless living creatures existed in the sky, in the trees, in the soil, in the rocks. He heard all their voices. The problem was that he could not simply listen to the great throng of voices and nothing more. The blessing of language compelled Otto to understand them. In other words, Otto's brain was working to process and interpret all the voices of living creatures coursing through it. This, too, was beyond its limit  \"Bhh...!\" A sharp pain ran through Otto's head. He immediately leaned against a tree that was standing right beside him. When he wiped the sweat off his brow, he found there was blood upon his sleeve. A nosebleed. The oozing nosebleed might have been from pushing his brain beyond its capacity. Come to think of it, the ringing in his ears was continuing at a vociferous rate. \"Ahh, I didn't know. So this is what happens when I keep on using my blessing like this. So this is what they mean by being difficult to use...not being convenient really places the user in a bind, doesn't it.\" In the brief span of time since the preceding night, he'd continued using his blessing virtually without cease. He'd conversed with the creatures of the forest, implored them for aid, set traps, and formed plans with all his strength, enough to make him heave blood. Gruffly wiping his nosebleed, Otto let his grumbles trickle out as he set off running once more. His gait was unreliable. But he could not stop using his blessing. Without his blessing to create not sea of people, but a sea of creatures, his chase scene would not continue for long. Relying on the eyes and the voices of creatures within the forest, he could do nothing except buy time. \"Mr. Natsuki...this will let you speak with Lady Emilia, won't it...?\" He was buying time so that Subaru could exchange words with Emilia, whose whereabouts were unknown. Everything that Otto desperately endured, from his splitting headache to the alarming nosebleed, was for this sake. This action of his was linked to victory no, victory did not loom large among his motives. In the end, he wanted to give Subaru time to meet Emilia face-to-face. That motive was strong in him. He was not worried that Subaru would not find Emilia. He probably would find her. Whatever he would do after finding her was up to him. All Otto could do was help.  Why was he taking Subaru's side to this extent, he pondered? Perhaps it was due to the distraction of the headache and the ringing in his ears that this question wedged itself into Otto's thoughts. It was indeed fact that he wanted to cooperate with Subaru so that he might repay his debt to the savior of his life. Nor was it a lie that he was doing this for the sake of his friend Subaru, lending his own power as a friend. However, he wondered: Was he such an earnest human being to ignore profit and loss, seeking nothing more as he labored out of care for others alone? \"...Ahh, I see.\" Otto suddenly smiled, feeling like a path had opened amid his worries. He realized it. He realized just why he was desperately taking Subaru's side like that. \"Incomprehensible suffering...that's something I understand better than anyone, isn't it?\" The blessing of language, which made him hear voices others could not, had forced Otto on a lonely path. The blessing had made Otto"}, {"text": "temporarily distance himself from his family's love, created a chasm between him and many friends, and had landed him in predicaments others could not comprehend. He bore the suffering of not being able to convey to others words known only to him. He had become resigned to this, which eventually coalesced into despair he felt toward himself.  This was the same anguish Subaru had harbored before revealing his troubles to Otto. That was why Otto trusted in Subaru, and why it was both the sight of him and his past self that had sent him running. That moment, he understood. He finally understood. It wasn't complicated. Otto did not want to save just Subaru Natsuki. Otto wanted to save his past self. He wanted to save Otto Suwen. \"Found ya...!!\" *** The instant he realized the other true intention inside himself, an impact sent Otto flying. He'd sustained the blunt attack while his headache had set his ability to concentrate awry. He fell down face-first onto soft soil. \"Bah, ptoo! Is this as far as I...nghh!\" \"Won't let ya! Won't let ya do anythin' ever again!!\" He was spitting out a fallen leaf and trying to get up when claws dug into his flank. His breath caught, and he let out an anguished cry as the contents of his lungs were wrung out of him. Otto tumbled onto the surface of the ground, faceup. His limbs were sprawled as he gazed up at the sky. He felt the rays of the sun through the gaps in the forest canopy whereupon Garfiel's sour, upside-down face thrust into Otto's field of vision. Garfiel pushed up his soil-stained forelocks, scratching his nose with his finger. \"...Man, ya really laid into me with all those lil' tricks. Nose wouldn't work, bugs made my eyes not work, hid yer sound with all the bugs yappin'...was rough. But it's all over now.\" \"I I wonder about that...the match is not yet deci mnff!\" \"I told ya, I ain't lettin' ya do anythin'.  Takin' ya too lightly is how I got into this mess.\" Not even letting him air sour grapes, Garfiel put his foot on the fallen Otto's stomach. He proceeded to put strength into that foot; this strength, which was completely at odds with his small frame, made Otto's entire body cry out. The creaking of his bones made Otto himself cry out in agony as his limbs flailed against the ground. \"Gu, ugh, gahh...!\" \"I don't wanna be rough with ya. I ain't got no time. Gimme my stone back now. This is enough, ain't it?\" Increasing the strain bit by bit, Garfiel was trying to seize the stone back from him. Otto was in agony, froth bubbling from the corner of his mouth, rummaging in his side pocket and grasping hold of the crystal he had pickpocketed. Who was strongest was so clear, it was laughable. As living beings, they stood on different platforms. After such terrible pain, what was wrong with acknowledging defeat? He'd fought hard enough to buy time. If he only returned the stone  \"Hhah!\" \"...Why are you laughing, damn it?\" Garfiel grimaced as Otto, who was being stepped on with his face marred by a nosebleed, suddenly laughed. He'd seen that creeped-out reaction when he was a little boy. Otto concurred with the eyes viewing him as a foreign entity. What was wrong with him? He had spent so much time in a cold cave in so much despair that he'd wanted to die. It had only been several days since then, and here he was cheerfully placing his own life into peril. \"It would be a waste to give up here... For at long last, I have a thrilling role to play...\" Garfiel immediately realized that the exchange at the facility was the cause behind Otto's words. Otto was paying him back for saying he didn't have what it took. \"Why you little...!\" It was just as Subaru had said. He found it amusing to do things people firmly thought he could not. It was the mark of a bad personality, but there was no mistake: It felt so good, it hurt. When Otto laughed, deeply appreciating what a bad friend he was, the air Garfiel gave off completely changed. The coarse anger in his jade eyes was stripped away. In its place rested polished, refined hostility. This was proof that Garfiel had acknowledged Otto as his foe. It was proof that Garfiel regarded Otto as someone he had to take down without delay. \"...May I say one last thing?\" When Garfiel removed the foot on his belly, straightening his posture in a display of respect, Otto addressed him. Receiving his words, Garfiel went \"Ahh?\" and quietly scratched his head. So Garfiel had enough mercy in him to listen to Otto's last words. Had he been savage to the core, he would have simply finished Otto off. Garfiel was a warrior.  Hence, he'd fallen for it, giving Otto enough time to lay one final trap. \"I may have induced you to...but you have disturbed these woods quite a bit on your way here, Garfiel.\" \" The hell?\" \"The residents whose homes you have disturbed say this.  You must be punished.\" He touched a hand to his belly as he sat up. Then, as Otto spoke, the air around him was enveloped by light. This was an accumulation of mana so vast that it became visible to the naked eye. Those cooperating with Otto had allotted him the building blocks of magical energy all for the sake of a single, grand blow. Garfiel realized that something was wrong. He bared his fangs. He moved. But it was too late. \" Al Dona.\" Otto chanted, relaying the mana filling the forest through his own Gate, causing it to interfere with the world around him. The explosively welling magical energy sank into the earth, creating a flow of sediment with enough intensity to pulverize the trees. This incredible force danced toward Garfiel, who was standing atop the ground, smashing him all at once with the violence of its sheer mass. \"Gaaghhhhh !!\" His howl echoed into the sky until even this was swallowed by the wave of sediment and crushed. As a result of employing magic that should have been beyond his reach in this lifetime, Otto was out of breath. This. It was this that was his final trap, triggered by the ace up Otto's sleeve. Having been in contact with the living creatures in the forest for an entire day, alongside ascertaining where Shima had holed up, he'd laid numerous traps all laying the groundwork for this final, great magic. He had not immersed himself in the blessing of language to merely to use it as a tool for his escape. Nor did he use it only as a trap, revealing his hand to put his opponent off guard. He had combined tool and trap to create a weapon. Garfiel had swallowed Otto's scheme hook, line and sinker. Scorned as small fry, Otto gained his recognition with a layer of traps, only to use Garfiel's acknowledgment of him as a warrior itself to create an opening for his true attack at the very end. All of it had gone according to Otto's plan. In other words, this time, it truly meant that  \" All out of schemes now, ain't ya?\" \"Give me a break, would you...\" When the torrent of earth abated, a cloud of soil erupted. Clawing his way out of the dense curtain of dirt and trampling the disturbed ground of the forest was Garfiel, messy but quite intact. Seeing Garfiel like that caused Otto to sigh in grudging respect. \"T' be honest, I'm surprised.\" \"That I resisted you with little regards as to the means?\" \"Not that. Even after ya did all that, I didn't think ya were serious. Not only that, I looked down on ya and assumed you'd just give up.  Forgive me. That's bad o' me to do to a man.\" Otto greeted the meek look on Garfiel's face with a shake of his head. No apologies were necessary. What he wanted to hear was Darn it. However, even when Otto was committed to fulfilling his role with his entire body and soul, it was not enough to overcome Garfiel's raw strength. He had no moves left. Otto's defiance had come to an end. \"I did everything I could...didn't I...?\" So he murmured. He'd played every card he had. He felt it in his bones. That he could not reach all the way even so could not be helped. Not anymore. That was why  \"See ya.  It'll be all over by the time ya wake up. \" \"Let us hereby put my solitary battle to rest, shall we...?\" When Otto drew in his breath and murmured, Garfiel snapped his eyes wide. The statement did not sound like it came from a man throwing away victory or bearing any sense of defeat  \"Don't tell me that...\" There's still something more, thought Garfiel, aghast as he searched the surrounding area for any presence. Every hair on his body was standing up, his wariness plain as his eyes roamed the area. There was no presence on any side around him. Just paranoia... Rather than lazily dismissing it as such, Garfiel looked up. And there  *** Garfiel bared his fangs, moving as if to howl at the approaching figure. But his reaction instantly slowed. Shock left his howl stuck in his throat and even impeded his actions thereafter. He bellowed. Not enmity, not bloodlust but a name. \"Why are you here?! Raaaaam !!\" \" El Fulla!\" The chant from the girl descending from the treetops Ram overlapped with Garfiel's cry. The next instant, an explosive blade of wind mercilessly slammed onto Garfiel. 4 The chant rewrote the world around it, weaving wind into a blade that bore down upon its intended prey before it exploded. The invisible blade of wind raged up and down, left and right as it pleased, grandly slicing through forest, earth, and flesh. It was a decisive, well-aimed blow that would inflict a mortal wound on anyone it struck. However  \"Ain't no way !!\" The howling Garfiel slammed his foot down, his heel pulling up a block of the forest floor. This became a wall, dulling the wind blade's advance as it bore in on Garfiel. Of course, this was not enough to completely fend off magic of such force, but it created a momentary opening sufficient for him to evade it. Leaping powerfully behind him, Garfiel distanced himself from the impact point of the wind. Seeing this as she landed upon the ground, the girl Ram made a small hmph through her nose, glancing sidelong at him. It was then that Otto, driven into a beat-up state as a result of his valiant fighting, wilted. \"I expected as much, but such a pathetic sight is unfit for my eyes.\" \"Even for you, that is a little too harsh a thing to say to someone fighting to the brink of death...\" \"The brink of death? Even though Garf has the blessing of earth spirit, you chose an earth-element Dona spell as your trump card? ...That is no good.\" \"Never before have I seen a maid as little comforting as you!\" Ignoring Otto's laments, Ram kept her attention to the front, the tip of her wand never wavering. There, as he glared at the pair's exchange, Garfiel was crinkling his nose and keeping his guard up. He audibly clacked his sharp fangs together, staring at Ram in anger. \"I'll come right out and ask, Ram. Why are you takin' their side, ahh?\" \"Is there something strange about that?\" \"Don't ya get it? Goin' with them means turning yer back on what that Roswaal bastard wants. At the very least...the bastard has no intention of lettin' the princess take the Trial.\" \"You have grown quite impertinent, speaking to Ram of what Master Roswaal thinks. Surely, you have known me long enough to know? Ram never lends her ears to such attempts at persuasion.\""}, {"text": "Puffing out her chest, Ram proudly proclaimed her own obstinacy. \"I know you were a hardhead to the bitter end. That's what I love about ya. That's why I can't understand it. You're that bastard Roswaal's maid, ain't ya?\" \"Of course. That is why I shall exhaust all efforts for my master's desire.  However, I will do it in my own way.\" Ram had no intention of cordially replying to Garfiel's question. She sighed heavily, turning her gaze toward Otto and leaning against a tree as he stood. \"So weak in the knees. Do you intend to make a woman fight by her lonesome?\" \"Y-you're a slave-driver! Terrifying! ...Is this person's younger sister, the sleeping girl, truly so kind? I am tempted to think Mr. Natsuki has lied to me...\" \"Such a noisy complainer.\" His body was wobbly; his nosebleed had finally stopped. Of course, he was in no condition to stand, let alone meaningfully participate in battle. Even so, Otto stood, which Ram considered only natural. Garfiel clicked his tongue in annoyance at the pair's attitude. \"Don't get carried away, ya hear?! What are ya tryin' so hard to slow me down for? What's he plannin' to do while you keep me here?! And more importantly...that bastard got enough value for ya to trust him?!\" \"Mr. Natsuki's value? Ah, if we are discussing whether he has worth, the answer would be no, I suppose.\" \"...Huh?\" Garfiel was dumbfounded at the unexpected reply. But when Otto scratched his now hatless head, he brushed his hair off his forehead as he made a rather smug smile. \"I am saying, at this time, Mr. Natsuki does not hold all that much value. But I am a merchant. I think of this as an investment. Ensuring the future of one's investment is not ruined, brushing the insects aside and pruning the flowers, eagerly awaiting how they shall bloom that is how I feel at the moment.\" He is truly a time-consuming person, Otto seemed to say, his shoulders sinking as he gave off an air of fatigue from the bottom of his heart. Otto's words brought an audible snort out of Ram. \"Hah! To be honest, Ram cannot understand why he expects so much of Barusu, either. Barusu is weak, useless, and his talent is insufficient even for pouring a single cup of tea. My opinion is the same as yours, Garf.\" \"That is going too far......though, on second thought, perhaps not...\" \"But when he is most needed, Barusu is a man with oddly good timing.\" Ignoring Otto's nervous attempt of support, Ram maintained a casual tone as she made that firm declaration. Her words made Otto widen his eyes, and Garfiel grimace. \"It's timing. A man who's there when you need him. That is Barusu.\" Even though, in normal times, he was a useless man with seemingly no redeeming features whatsoever, the human being named Subaru Natsuki was a man who was mysteriously at exactly the time and place you wanted him. There was nothing attractive about him, and he was without a single shred of charm as a member of the opposite sex. Ram didn't understand what part of him was any good; indeed, she found him irritating.  When was it that...? At the moment, it didn't matter. Either way, that was all there was to the man called Subaru Natsuki. That was why, once more, Ram did as he'd asked.  When Otto had revealed Subaru's plan to her the night before, she made the decision to trust him. \"Barusu's good timing is reason enough to believe in him.  If Barusu sees an opportunity and has taken action in order to seize it, then it must be the one and only chance to obtain victory.\" \"...After all that, it seems you trust Mr. Natsuki as well, Miss Ram.\" \"That is Lady Ram to you.\" \"Are you hiding a blush with incredible aggression?!\" Not caring for the grin that had appeared on the face of the man standing beside her, Ram shot a scolding gaze at Otto to silence him. But their views were one and the same. They had formed a pair, comrades in the common pursuit of Subaru's aim. They had mutually agreed to keep quiet to Subaru about their fight to buy him time. Many would say they had already bought sufficient time, but  \" Ya don't intend to move aside, do ya?\" *** When Garfiel posed his question, Ram and Otto replied to it without a word. Otto brushed off his knees. Ram made sure her wand rested comfortably in her hand. With neither lowering their guard, Garfiel shook his head from side to side. The hard clattering of his fangs was the only thing echoing through the forest. Then, gloom fell over Garfiel's face. \" Enough.\" He wove that single word with a raspy voice. Otto and Ram simultaneously knit their brows. In front of the pair, Garfiel seemed to hug both his shoulders as he balled up his body and howled. *** The bestial roar, which seemed to echo across the entirety of the Sanctuary, made the very air shudder. *** The sudden appearance of a fiendish beast, its entire body covered in golden fur, struck Otto with the force of a gale. But his body did not tremble. Nor did he shudder. Perhaps he was simply all out of fear. Moreover, right beside him, he saw a pleasant smile come over the face of Ram a girl smaller in size than he. \"Garf's easy-to-understand decision is mistaken.  In this match, victory belongs to us.\" You Serious...? internally retorted Otto, forgetting his usual formal manner of speech. At that very Otto's side, Ram lightly hopped from heel to heel, repeating the warm-up exercise several times over. After that, she walked straight ahead toward the enormous beast, her gait looking as if she was out on a pleasant stroll. \"Wait a ! Miss Ram?!\" Her bold action made Otto's eyes bulge. However, Ram did not cease her feet as she moved in front of the ferocious tiger. Garfiel, transformed into a fiendish beast, had no glint of reason left within his eyes. To the beast, she was not a lovely girl standing before him, but a weak, fragile being a walking mass of soft flesh. The beast reacted accordingly, smashing its upraised claw onto the small, pathetic figure. That instant  \"Too weak, Garf.  Who do you think you are facing?\" As Ram crouched, evading the bestial claw, she spoke words of pity as she slammed her fist into the beast's wide-open lower jaw. It was a slender, delicate girl's fist and with this, she sent the ferocious creature flying high into the air with all the force of a cannonball. *** \"I wonder, have you won against Ram in a fistfight even once?\" The beast turned over in midair, landing upon the ground. The beast understood that the girl was not helpless prey. Raging wildly, it leaped, four limbs lashing out...only to sustain another punch to the face, crashing to the ground once more. \"No way.\" The astonishing scene left Otto unwittingly gaping. Even to an amateur's eyes, Ram clearly had the upper hand, using their difference in physical stature to circle into her opponent's blind spots; the terrifying beast was waving its burly arms without the slightest technique, hitting nothing but air as the one-sided pounding continued. \"It...it's working! With this, Garfiel can be...!\" Never mind buying time did this development not bring outright victory within sight? As if to bolster that glimmer, Ram plunged her fist into the side of the tiger's face. Snapping back from the sheer force, the beast kicked up a cloud of dirt as it was sent flying in spectacular fashion. And then  \" Pff.\" Along with a moan of being able to endure no more, a ferocious torrent of blood scattered into the air from Ram's forehead.  Her limit, which had been reached far too soon, made Ram grit her teeth, halting her steps there. With her horn long broken, she knew making her blood awaken would instantly bring her to the brink. Even so, having waited for the conditions for a short, decisive battle to align, she'd intended to win nonetheless. \" You've grown strong, Garf.\" Haltingly, Ram murmured, her voice flowing with emotion that she rarely let others hear. Still smiling softly, Ram leaped in and drove a knee into the great tiger's torso. She bounced off hard; the damage to her kneecap was severe. She'd already run dry of the mana she'd used for physical enhancement; now, her body was only as strong as her petite appearance suggested. She relied on intuition and talent to evade the countless claw swipes coming her way as she leaped backward. \" Ngh, phew.\" She took a deep breath and coughed. The next moment, the clot of blood made a sound as it fell to the ground. As if that had been all the strength her body had left, her posture crumbled as she went down on one knee. This time, the ferocious tiger did not let the opportunity slip. Opening its maw wide, fangs bared, it leaped to the front. And then  *** Otto, his fist clenching the crystal, let up a ferocious roar unthinkable from his slender throat. It was the same roar a fiendish beast erupted with at the moment it began to consume its prey. This was the power of Otto's blessing, which Ram had heard of beforehand. The power of his blessing allowed him to converse with any creature; with it, Otto was using bestial words to speak to the beast that had lost its mind. Ram did not know what meaning the roar held. For but a single moment, there was hesitance in the ferocious tiger's movements, with that slight pause giving Ram just enough opportunity to evade the blow. The great exploit made Otto smile in admiration of his own achievem  \"Er, whoaaaa ?!\" Faced with the fiendish beast's charge, Otto was sent flying by the fierce collision. He spun as he plunged into thorn bushes, vanishing from sight. At that point, whether he survived or perished was completely up to Otto's resilience. Ram expended no thought on the results of his decision or action, for she had judged that this was the best way to repay Otto for what he had done. And Ram used the time provided by Otto's honorable death to draw her wand once more. The tip of that wand glowed with an aura from the mana she had poured into it even at the height of the fistfight. *** The ferocious tiger realized it might too late. It charged toward Ram. Too slow. \" Al Fulla.\" Incredible light gushed forth. Bathed in wind, the fiendish beast opened its great maw, its roar echoing through the sky.  And so, the Battle of the Lost Woods of Cremaldi came to its conclusion. CHAPTER 6 *** When he found Emilia, cowering and clutching her knees, Subaru felt relief, which seemed out of place. Having found Emilia was the first part of it. That Emilia was here was the second. As he had firmly believed she could be nowhere else, her being here had fulfilled both his wishes. \"Though, I have to say, you really thought about this, Emilia-tan.\" *** \"Sure, here's a place you can hole up without anyone finding you...especially since the people who can enter are limited in the first place, and none of the ones who could were likely to do it.\" At the very least, besides Emilia, there were three candidates to enter this place Echidna's tomb. One rejected the Trial with every hair on his body, one had lost her role as the price for going against her creator, and the last had been stripped of his qualifications after earning the Witch's ire. Beyond those three, the others possessing qualifications were forbidden to enter under the terms of the pact they upheld. Truly, it was the perfect place for Emilia to hide in. Emilia hung her head at Subaru's words of"}, {"text": "praise. Then, with her head still lowered... \"Subaru...why are you here?\" \"If you have to ask why, that's a tough one. Probably because I'm always thinking of Emilia-tan, so I'm the one with the best grasp of Emilia-tan's feelings?\" Though, if that was truly the case, none of this would have happened to begin with. Emilia wouldn't have passed the night with enough worry to wind up so backed into a corner that she was cowering in a place like this. And this time, too, Emilia replied \"No\" to Subaru's answer, shaking her head. \"That's not what I... Subaru, I don't mean the reason you're here... Subaru, you're in a place people without qualifications can't enter, you know?\" \"Oh, you mean why my body didn't get thrown back like Roswaal's? Fact is, even without being thrown back, I had to put up with a lot. It wasn't bad enough to make me collapse, thanks to my Gate being so puny. I suppose I should be grateful that I have no talent for magic.\" \"Is that how it is...\" When Subaru replied that he'd put up with a lot, Emilia's eyes became filled with gloom. Tilting her head as she rested her chin in the gap between her knees, Emilia turned her gaze toward Subaru. Her gaze bore the colors of uncertainty and resignation an un-Emilia emotion he had never before seen on her. \"...I half believed and half hoped that you'd be here, Emilia-tan.\" \"Half, half...\" \"Since I ran around here, there, and everywhere and couldn't find you, I had to turn my thinking on its head...not where, but why. Then, after I figured you were probably here, I'm relieved I actually found you.\" \"...You were relieved?\" \"Hm?\" As Subaru smiled to try and put her at ease, Emilia posed that brief question. Her voice was quiet, ready to vanish at any moment. When Subaru raised his eyebrows, Emilia stared straight at him. \"You're saying that finding me here makes you relieved? That's all? ...You're not angry?\" \"What, Emilia-tan? Don't tell me you were scared you'd made me angry?\" Emilia's meek, trembling voice made Subaru loosen his lips without thinking. Having set off without telling anyone where she was going, she was scared of being scolded the instant she was found, just like some little kid. \"I'm not angry at all. I was nervous, and to be honest, it didn't exactly make me comfortable, but I'm not angry. I'm just really glad about everything, finding you here included, I'm just really glad.\" \"...That so?\" Subaru had exhausted all the reassuring words at his disposal, trying to loosen Emilia's tense heart. \"You're...not angry.\" And yet, there was no relief infused into Emilia's murmur. \"Emilia?\" \"You're not angry with me.  You won't even get angry.\" Her small, raspy voice was trembling. When Subaru, suspecting something, drew his eyebrows together, he had already realized too late. Emilia was looking down, biting her lip, her eyes wide open. It was as if she was trying to keep the tears filling her eyes from coursing... \"Why won't you get angry with me?\" \"Ah \" \"I did something selfish, didn't I? I bothered you, didn't I? I left without saying anything, so you worried... I made you unsure if I'd run away...that's what I did. That's what I did, right? It's natural to be angry, isn't it? Subaru, even you must be...\" When Subaru tried to interrupt by calling out her name, Emilia poured out her emotions with a rapid flood of words. Emilia was asserting her own selfishness, apparently to draw blame to herself. Overwhelmed by the sheer force of her negativity, Subaru came to realize the error in his thinking. Emilia hadn't been afraid of angering Subaru. Emilia was afraid he would not blame her for her actions. After all, that meant  \"Why won't you get angry...? Are you not angry because you d-didn't expect anything in the first place? You being kind to me when I fail like this means...my failing didn't disappoint you at all? Isn't it because you...thought I wouldn't do well?\" Perhaps, just perhaps, this was an insecurity that had always rested at the bottom of Emilia's heart, one she had never before put into words. Over and over, Subaru had greeted Emilia with warmth when she failed in her challenge of the Trial, crushed by her own, cowardly heart. As he did so, he had both aided Emilia and instilled anxiety within her. She was despondent over betraying his expectations. But Subaru had never showed that to Emilia, not even once. As the failures added up, continuing to gently console her might have saved her heart temporarily, but only by searing ever-greater anxiety upon it. All that time, Emilia had been frightened of Subaru and Puck's kindness. \"You're wrong, Emilia. That's not how I think of you.\" Subaru earnestly tried to reach out to the great ripple arising in Emilia's heart. If he let go of her heart there, it would be lost for good; he would never be able to capture it again. \"It's not because I think that way that I'm not angry with you...\" \"Then...! Then why...why didn't you...keep your promise?\" She instantly raised her voice. The word promise held him in its snare. When Subaru, who was hit right where it hurt, was cowed into silence, Emilia shook her head in rejection. He could offer no response.  It was a fact that Subaru had let go of Emilia's hand the night before. \"I asked you to hold my hand until morning...! Subaru, you promised ...! Why did you let go of my hand? Why didn't you keep your promise...?\" Her tearful voice strictly levied blame on him for not keeping his word. He could have listed reasons if he wanted. To liberate the Sanctuary. To learn more about Garfiel.  But those words were thin, light. Besides, it wasn't just that. Subaru's reasons for breaking his promise, for leaving Emilia's side, were not limited to those things. \"Subaru...Puck...you all break your promises and go off somewhere else. You go off somewhere and leave me behind...liars. Subaru, you liar. Puck, you liar. Liar, liar...!\" Face lowered and tears flowing, Emilia bumped her head against Subaru's shoulders, her hands powerlessly pounding his chest. There was virtually no force behind them. And yet, the pain felt like it was enough to tear his body asunder. That was probably the same pain Subaru's insensitivity had caused Emilia. \"I I told you before how important promises are to me...! How to spirit mages, to me, promises are so important... That's why I wanted you to keep them... Subaru, you apologized for not keeping them before...so why did you break your promise again...\" \"Emilia...\" \"You mustn't break promises...you mustn't lie. You have to keep your promises... I mean, if you don't...if I'd only kept mine, I... Mother and Geuse wouldn't have...\" Her face still pressed into Subaru's shoulder, Emilia slammed emotions into Subaru that had nowhere else to go. Her upsurge of sadness and anger over his betrayal had sliced her thought process into thousands of tiny pieces. \"You mustn't lie...you mustn't...!\" The grief-filled voice that spilled out tore at Subaru like a claw to his heart. Promise that was a word that had passed between Subaru and Emilia, bearing different meaning to each. He'd hurt her before by taking their promises too lightly, and the memories of that were still fresh. And yet, once again, the word promise held no gentle echo but instead a crippling weight that bound them both, enough to make Emilia bury her head between her clenched knees and continue crying even that very moment. With every second that passed, seeing her like that carved feelings of guilt into Subaru's heart. As he listened to her sobbing voice, he desperately pondered what he should say. Was it right to apologize? Was it right to act as if he understood? Should he earnestly console her? The thoughts went round and round inside his head, but try as he might, he could not grasp which answer was correct. What should he ought he did he need to do? What he needed most  How could Subaru best convey how he felt? Subaru thought and thought, searching for the best words he knew, the ones that could reach the heart most  \"Emilia.  I love you.\" What he voiced was a confession that was clashed enormously with the time and place. \"...Eh?\" Subaru's confession made Emilia lift up her face, as if wondering if she had misheard him. She beheld Subaru with her violet eyes, which were dotted by tears even then. He saw himself distorted by the droplets and yet, he held something strong within him that absolutely would not waver. For then and there, he bore no uncertainty whatsoever about the words he needed to convey. \"You're trying to take the same Trial over and over, night after night. I don't know what past you're seeing, but the past isn't something to squirm about forever.\" \"...Agh, gah.\" \"And instead you're all like I'll try my best, I have to do it, all stubborn and everything. If you cleared it, that'd be one thing, but the result was that you failed after running your mouth, wasn't it?\" \"S-Subaru...\" \"In the end, with your pet and your guardian gone, you can't even walk properly by yourself. So what, you're gonna drown your worries in tears, abandon your duties, and go to sleep? I can't watch you like this.\" The abuse Subaru seemingly spat out made Emilia open her eyes wide and still. Her surprise was such that he could see few tears left in her moist eyes; she trembled weakly, her lips unable to speak even a single word. Without doubt, never had Subaru hurt Emilia's heart more than he did that moment. This was the malice and disgust that Subaru Natsuki had never once turned toward Emilia to date. Receiving this, Emilia's expression slowly dried up as a smile came over her. \"That's...right. E-even Subaru...thinks about me that way. It's only n-natural...\" *** \"I've done...terrible things, even though I was told better, haven't I? Ever since I came here...no, since long before...I've caused nothing but trouble...that's why I...\" Without a word, Subaru accepted the trembling Emilia's self-deprecation. Emilia's throat contracted, seemingly swallowing down her sobs, yet a pain-filled smile remained upon her even so. \"That's why it's natural to...abandon me...Puck and Subaru both...\" \" Got that right. After failing this many times, I still don't see any sign of improvement. It's only normal to think that this is less I'll manage somehow and more Who cares what happens.\" At the end of her self-denunciation, Emilia tried to conclude that she was hopeless. With bitter words, Subaru was in full agreement, stealing the conclusion from right under her. And then  \" But.\" One step before coming to that exact conclusion, Subaru cut off his words. Emilia lifted her face. Subaru understood the emotions hovering in her eyes so much that it hurt. He understood, for this was the same despair he had once harbored toward himself. That was why  \"Emilia.  I love you.\" Subaru would not let Emilia escape, using the same words that had once cast an inescapable curse upon him. *** Subaru made his confession, staring into her eyes, bordered with long eyelashes, which shuddered from the impact. \"I love you. I love you I love you I love you. I'm hopelessly in love with you.\" \"Why are you...all of a sudden...?\" \"I love your super-pretty silver hair, I love those purple eyes that are like glistening gemstones, I love that voice that makes you feel good just from hearing it, I love those long, slender limbs, the white skin, the height difference and stuff is so ideal I can't stand it, I mean, just being with you makes my heart beat like crazy, and it's really bad.\" \"Agh, aah...\" \"I love the fact that you're a little ditzy, it's cute how you try so hard at everything, I"}, {"text": "really respect how you're so frantic to help other people, I think how you put others before yourself is adorable, and I want to see all your emotions right by your side, forever.\" \"A-at a time like this...stop messing around!\" The words seemed to slide out of his mouth as his feelings for Emilia poured out. Subaru passionately confessed, but Emilia loudly and angrily shouted back. \"Why are you saying this all of a sudden?! This isn't what we were talking about! S-Subaru, even you think I'm no good! You can't watch someone like me...that's why!\" \"Yeah, I suppose so. By rights, seeing you failing and giving up like this would make anyone's love run out. Normally, even I'd abandon you, turn tail, and run. And if you weren't Emilia, I would.\" \"Why?!\" Even as Subaru concurred that the results were hopeless, he denied the most important part at its root. As if to say it settled nothing, it was unforgivable, Emilia rose her eyebrows anger. \"Even though you know I'm no good and unsalvageable...why do you forgive me despite that?!\" \"If you're looking for an answer, I'll say it as many times as you want. Because I love you!\" When Emilia pressed close with a tearful voice, Subaru once again raised his own, their foreheads close enough to touch. Overwhelmed, Emilia recoiled, but this time, it was Subaru who closed the distance. With the two close enough to breathe each other's breaths, black eyes mingled with violet as he threw his words at her. \"I love you. That's why no matter how sorry you look, I only feel like I've discovered a new side to you. The way you keep trying even when you don't stand a chance makes me wanna cheer you on, and no matter how much you get disgusted with yourself, I will never hate you.\" Subaru absolutely would not allow Emilia's wavering eyes to escape. \"Even if you hate yourself for your own shortcomings, even if you worry that the people around you can't help but hate you...I'll keep expecting things from you, and I'll never use your weakness as a reason to hate you, or ever abandon you. Never.\" He understood how Emilia felt. But he also knew how to take her hand and pull her out of it. For once, someone had refused to abandon him, even when Subaru tried to abandon himself. \"My love for you runs deeper than you'll ever know. All of you is like a shining light to me. Of course, parts of you are no good. You're not an angel or a goddess; you're just a normal girl...you'll cry when things are tough, and you'll feel like running away when things happen that you don't like. I get all that.\" But. But even so. \"But even with those weak parts, even with the parts I said terrible things about, I love all of you, Emilia. That's why...even now, I'm not disappointed in you.\" \" ! That's! That's so self-serving, isn't it?!\" Emilia stubbornly refused to listen to the myriad claims that feel from Subaru's lips. Unable to push her confusion aside, she kept on tossing out words of denial, and therein lay his hope. \"After saying I'm no good in a way like that, you say you love me even so...that's unbelievable! Why do you believe in me like that, Subaru...? I don't understand it at all!\" \"You're wrong! You've got this wrong from head to toe. It's not I love you 'cause I believe something.  It's not like that. I love you. That's why I believe in you!\" \"Love alone isn't a reason to believe in someone!\" \"! If love wasn't enough for me to believe in you, then why else would I go through such horrible shit just to save a troublesome girl like you!!\" Their voices loudened as their mutual feelings clashed. When Subaru put his hand against the wall and rose to his feet, Emilia did the same, standing so that she might face him. At a range close enough to butt foreheads, both had furrowed eyebrows as Subaru and Emilia vented their feelings at each other. Never before had the pair launched spittle, faces red, as they exchanged ragged words that all amounted to You're wrong! \"I love you! I love you enough to make my head go nuts, enough to be happy to die for you! That's why I'm putting up with the pain and suffering, standing in front of you even though I wanna hurl right now!\" \"That's...! I never asked you to! I never asked you to say all those selfish things... Subaru, you're not thinking of my feelings at all, are you?! This is how you...take the brunt of everything, always getting hurt because of me...you don't understand anything about how that makes me feel!\" \"Like I could, like I've even thought about it! What I think of all the time is just ways to look good in front of you! I think about what I should do that'll make you think the best of me, what I should do that'll let me see your happiest face ...it's hard work, damn it. Put on a cute face like I want a little more often, would you?!\" \"Don't talk about me like I'm some sort of doll! If you're thinking of my happiness...wh-why do you break your promises?! I asked you to keep them and everything! Why? Why won't you?! You actually hate me, don't you?!\" \"I love you!!\" \"Liarrr!!\" Subaru's desperate attempts to slam how he truly felt into her overlapped with Emilia's loud voice. Just how much had he once told himself to put off conveying his feelings to her? Just how many obstacles had Subaru overcome so that he could tell her the words that would convey them? He piled on his confessions of love so much that they must have come off as cheap, empty words. But to Subaru, they were his true feelings, a confession that came once in a lifetime with his entire body and spirit the real deal infused with all of his being. \"I'm not lying! I love you! What do you think about me anyway?! You always act like you know it all! How much do you think you've shaken my heart, stringing me along with that cute face of yours like I've got a chance?! Stop toying with me!\" \"I-I'm not toying with you! All I did was act normally. Don't say weird things about it! Even though I have so much to consider right now, you're asking me how I feel about you... I can't think about that, Subaru! Stop it! Don't make this hard for me!\" \"Who's making this hard for who?! You're making it hard for me!!\" \"You're the one making it hard for me, Subaru!!\" Like little children having a tantrum, both were reduced to emotional arguments without a shred of logic between them. With irreconcilable force, Subaru and Emilia slammed their fierce emotions into each other with loud voices. Inside the tomb, purportedly a place of tranquility for many years, the pair's irrational arguments continued to echo without pause. \"I don't know how many times I've said it! Subaru, you're a liar! You break your promises, but you come to me with a calm look on your face... Y-you thought I wouldn't notice, didn't you?! I've been watching you! I've been watching to see if you keep your promises with me, Subaru!\" \"That's a bad personality right there! Testing people like that... What are you, a Witch?!\" \"A liar who breaks his promises has no right to talk!\" \"This and my breaking promises are two different things!\" The unconcerned way Subaru changed the subject left Emilia so angry, her words caught in her throat. She was so seized by emotion that she couldn't give voice to her thoughts. She made ragged breaths. Breathing in and out multiple times, Emilia's eyes were in tears as she asked him. \"Why...why did you break your promise...?\" \"...I feel bad about breaking my word. I really wanted to keep holding your hand and stay with you until morning. That's the truth.\" \"That's not what I asked.  Why did you break your promise?\" \"...I can't tell you.\" Clenching his teeth, Subaru responded to Emilia's question with a low, anguished groan and a shake of his head. Subaru refusing to give her an answer at this point made Emilia cover her face with her hands. \"You won't keep your promises. You won't even tell me why you broke them... What do you want me to do now? If you have something to tell me...just come out and say it! If you don't, Subaru, even I can't believe you...!\" \"Emilia.\" \"If you'd only kept your promise and stayed with me until morning, I'd probably believe you, Subaru! I'd believe you and probably have given you everything! Instead, you broke your promise...\" Her face disheveled, Emilia embraced her own, slender shoulders. Anxiety and fear rested in her quavering, violet eyes, for Emilia was speaking not to Subaru, but herself. \"After Puck was gone, my memories...they're coming back, little by little. Inside me, scenes I don't know and conversations I don't remember are gushing up one after another.\" *** \"All these things I didn't know until now, things that by rights I should have remembered...just how much have I forgotten? I forgot them and then acted like they never happened...!\" These were the memories Puck had called back in exchange for his pact with Emilia: the true memories kept under a lid that she had turned her back upon long ago. The lid had been removed, and scenes of a past she did not wish to remember had been restored. However, to Emilia, this came with the fear that she would no longer be able to be certain what was her true nature. \"When all those memories come back...what will I do then? Is who I am right now really me? I forgot so many precious things, I forgot about Mommy...is who I am right now wrong?\" Nature dictated that everyone accumulated memories over the course of their lives, binding each person to others around them. If that was so, was a life underpinned by false memories not wrong in every respect? If the point of origin was wrong, did that not make the path walked and the destination reached all wrong as well ?  What's important is not where you start, or what happens midway, but how it ends. Suddenly, a voice reverberated in the back of his mind. The distant voice, one that was very familiar to Subaru, was the voice of someone who was very close to him yet would never meet again. When they were parting, at the very, very end, in the name of homework, she had given Subaru a gentle present.  Yeah, you're right, Mom. However it started, whatever path one walked, who had the right to decide what was right or wrong until the very, very end? \"Emilia, no matter what memories you remember, nothing's gonna change. I love you. I'll always love you.\" \" ! I can't...believe you. Subaru, the version of me you say you love...m-might not be here anymore. You can't...say something like...\" \"I can. No matter what happens, you're not going anywhere. I...love you.\" \"...Those are...the words of a liar. Coming from someone...who can't even make me believe him...\" \" Then...I'll make you believe.\" With trembling eyes and a trembling voice, Emilia rejected Subaru. Words weren't getting through. His demeanor couldn't convince her. But words weren't the only way to convey feelings. That was why  \"Suba...\" \"If you don't like it, dodge.\" They were at a distance close enough to breathe each other's no, there was not even a breath's distance between the pair. Reaching his hand to Emilia's shoulder, Subaru brought his face close to her. When Emilia saw Subaru approach, bewilderment rose into her eyes as her body went rigid. For one second, he waited. It was the only chance"}, {"text": "he gave her to throw him off. *** But Emilia closed her eyes. Whether this was surrender or the product of hesitation, Subaru knew not. \" Mm.\" Their respective breaths became one. Emilia's breathing caught as Subaru knit his brows in pain. For the tiny sound that resounded was that of the pair's teeth forcefully bumping against each other. The first thing they tasted was a faint, throbbing pain. However, the powerful heat that followed erased it even from the most remote corners of their heads. Her lips were so soft. It was a kiss where they simply touched. To Emilia, it was her first. To Subaru, it was the second time he had kissed her. It was not like the first time, which carried the cold taste of death. The second kiss...bore the hot taste of life. \" Ah.\" \"I love you.\" When their lips mutually pulled apart, blood rushed to Emilia's cheeks as Subaru unhesitatingly spoke those words. \"No matter how sorry you look, no matter how we argue like this, I'll still love you the same way, Emilia. No matter what happens, that'll never change. It'll probably make me love you even more than before.  That's why I'll believe in you, forever. And if you have to ask why... \"Because you love me...\" In a daze, Emilia finished Subaru's sentence as she touched her own lips. She stroked her soft lips with her fingers, as if the touch of what had been there yet lingered. White tears coursed down her cheeks. \"It's natural to be anxious when memories you don't know about come gushing out. I understand why you'd feel scared that a version of you that you never knew is coming out. But it won't erase the path you've walked. You'll be all right, Emilia.\" \"How can you talk...like that...?\" \"Because it's not important where you start, but where you end.  The woman I respect most in the world said that.\" Normally the worst guesser that could be found around the globe, his mother had taught him the most important thing he would ever learn. It wasn't that he truly understood the answer to her homework assignment, but she'd made him want to understand. At the very least, he wanted to show Emilia his good side when anxiety was making her stand still. \"It's all right, Emilia. No matter what you remember, I'm on your side. Whether you forget or remember, it's all fine. If you're still scared even so, we'll find it.\" \"Find...find what...?\" \"Just like I sent you my feelings of love full speed, I'll send your worries packing full speed, too. That's how we'll find your precious feelings.\" Emilia did not fear any choice that hurt her for the sake of others. Through these, she prioritized the people around her, a stance that was noble and beautiful and that Subaru deeply respected. But though the words It's for someone else's sake were gentle, they were also sad...because how she felt for someone whose face she couldn't see did not even come close to how she felt about those she could see. \"All that said, I was kinda hoping you'd turn some of those precious feelings my way...\" \"My...precious feelings.\" Perhaps Subaru's words had not really sunk in as Emilia touched her hand to her breast. Her fingertips were touching the crystal where Puck had once been, cracked with its light long lost. It was a vestige of a bond that should have been there. However, Emilia grasped it firmly nonetheless. \"If I get all my memories back...will my precious feelings be among them?\" \"Yeah. I'm sure they will. Along with a reason to keep on walking.\" \" Mm.\" He wouldn't call it half trust and half doubt, but Emilia certainly didn't agree completely as she nodded. Seeing Emilia like that, Subaru closed his eyes and turned his face skyward.  He felt like the words that had previously saved him the same way had been...gentler. He felt like he was saved by words that were gentler. Harsher. Stronger.  Can I really be there for Emilia like that? *** Asking that out loud would have been too uncool, though, so he didn't actually say it. He exhaled, exhausted. Then, the very instant he forgot about it, the tomb's rejection slammed directly into Subaru's spirit. Putting his hand to a wall without thinking, he barely managed to avoid tumbling to the floor. \"Subaru! A-are you all right?\" \"It's nothin'...well, that's what I wanna say, but it's definitely somethin'. It's pretty bad right now. For the time being, if we're gonna continue this lover's quarrel, I'd like to do it outside.\" \"Goodness...as if I have any intention of that.\" When Subaru, blue in the face, tried to put on a strong front, Emilia faintly smiled. It was a strength bereft of strength, but the sight of Emilia returning to normal was a sign to Subaru that she had become more positive, if only ever so slightly. She was still anxious, and answers were yet to come. Even so, she smiled. *** When the wobbly Subaru rested his weight against the wall as he walked down the passage, Emilia hesitated to lend him a supporting hand. Perhaps this was an aftereffect of having earlier touched each other's lips. Thinking back, the sheer boldness of it made his face run hot. But for that one moment, he set a number of such deep sentiments aside. *** At the end of the passage, orange-colored sunlight was entering at an angle. And there  \" Heya. Sorry we kept you waiting.\" \"Tch.\" When Subaru spoke those words, there, raising a hand  \" Not like I was waitin' for you.\"  and clicking his tongue in annoyance, was Garfiel, waiting for the pair, his entire body drenched in red by blood and the setting sun. CHAPTER 7 *** 1 Garfiel stood in front of the tomb with wounds all over. His entire body was smeared red with blood, and his shoulders rose and fell with ragged breaths. His head and body showed traces of blunt trauma all over, and only his loincloth remained upon his honed physique, leaving him close to naked. Without even shoes on his feet, he stood barefoot and still before them as Subaru lowered his hand. \"...That's a pretty primitive style to go with. Took a bit too much of a liking to war paint?\" \"Never mind 'bout that. Only place that'll get ya is rollin' on the ground.\" When Subaru shot the breeze with him, Garfiel snorted through his nose and gave him a sour look. Jokes aside, the fact remained that Subaru was surprised to see Garfiel wounded. He'd expected Garfiel to show up at the tomb, but being covered in injuries was beyond his expectations. And the cause was  \"That stupid bastard Otto. I told him not to do anything crazy...\" \"I underestimated 'im. I never thought he'd put up that much of a fight. On top of that, he sweet-talked Ram...that's how I ended up like this!\" \"Ram, with Otto?\" Garfiel twisted his cheeks in disgust as he nodded and confirmed what Subaru had guessed. If his words were to be trusted, the wounds carved into his body were the results of Otto and Ram's exploits. Just how hard had those two noncombatants fought him? They'd probably done it simply to buy time. They'd made time for Subaru and Emilia to talk. That was what the pair had fought so hard for. \"But if you two die, it doesn't mean anything...\" Subaru imagined the worst possibility as cold sweat trickled down his brow. Given the state Garfiel was in, it would not be strange if the difficult battle of which he spoke had resulted in him putting an end to their hard fighting with his claws. This, Subaru feared deeply. \" Subaru.\" When Subaru clenched his fist and bit his lip, a voice like a silver bell called out to him. When he looked, Emilia, standing right beside him, was touching his shoulder, her concern-infused gaze peering into his black eyes. Those eyes of hers had not yet come to terms with the emotions inside her. Emilia couldn't have had any way of knowing what the situation meant. Of course it would throw her for a big loop. Even so, Emilia was more concerned than doubtful, putting her consideration for Subaru first. \"...Sorry I looked pathetic. Now that I've remembered who's standing beside me, I'm all fired up.\" \"Mm, I understand. Don't do anything rash.\" Replying to her gentle words with a nod, Subaru once more looked at Garfiel, who was standing on the grassy field in front of the tomb. With the stone steps between them, Subaru looked down at Garfiel as the latter crinkled his nose. \"Garfiel, what happened to Ram and Otto?\" \"Ya don't think...me bein' here is answer enough?\" \"Unfortunately, I'm considered a poor guesser. I'd like to hear it straight from your own mouth.\" Garfiel clacked his sharp fangs, his fierce response making Subaru grimace. The two exchanged sharp gazes. Garfiel made a low growl in his throat. \"It don't matter what y'all are plannin'. I'll cut off whatever stupid things ya want right here.\" It was not a reply to his question, but rather, he was making plain that he had no intention of giving a straight answer. In its stead, Garfiel was referring to the real reason he was baring his fangs toward the pair. If the man named Garfiel was the man Ryuzu and Shima said he was, then  \"You didn't kill them, did you?\" \"I said that's got nothin' t' do with this! Livin' or dyin'...livin' or dyin' has nothin' to do with it. If I smash the entrance to the tomb and end it all right here...\" Irritated, Garfiel put a hand to his forehead and spat out his words. His blunt, violent conclusion was the optimal method of putting an end to the Trial for good. But to Subaru, it sounded like nothing more than an excuse. Garfiel was searching for an excuse not to have to kill Ram or Otto, or Subaru, either. \"If you do that, the Sanctuary will be a closed, fenced garden for eternity. You all right with that...?\" \" It's fine. Every other option's worse.\" Brushing Subaru's words aside, Garfiel put a foot against the tomb's stone steps. His advance, seemingly to cast aside all doubt, made Subaru feel he could see the gap between the determination and anxiety inside Garfiel's stubborn mind. His body bloodied, covered in wounds, Garfiel was determined to destroy the tomb, seeking nothing beyond a definite conclusion. But  \"...What do ya think ya doin', ahh?\" Halfway up the stone steps, Garfiel halted as his pupils narrowed. His feline gaze, reminiscent of a beast's, shot right through Emilia, the one standing before him to bar his passage. To Garfiel, Emilia's strength as a combatant was unknown; and so, seemingly by nature, he strongly clacked his fangs and gave off a wary growl. \"Outta my way. I'll get rid o' what's worryin' ya with my own bare hands. Once I do that...\" \"Garfiel.  What are you so afraid of?\" Pheeew went Garfiel, Emilia's assertion leaving him short of breath. For a second, he was taken aback; however, Garfiel immediately reddened with anger. His fangs were shaking. \"Me, afraid...?\" \"You're afraid, aren't you? That's why you're speaking so loudly, stretching your arms as far as you can, stomping the ground with your feet... You're pushing yourself, aren't you?\" \"What are you ?! You! Don't know nothin' about me...!\" \"I do know.  I mean, I've lived in fear of so many things for all this time.\" Because she was weak, because she was afraid, she knew. Putting a hand to her own breast, Emilia touched the broken crystal to make sure it was still there. Her violet eyes did not conceal her sorrow for the past, even as she pleaded to Garfiel, his eyes wide open. \"Up to today, I've lived in fear. When Puck was with"}, {"text": "me, I put all the bad things onto him, relied on him, and forgot... I think I understand a little now that I finally remember them.\" \"Shaddap.\" \"Right now, I only just started remembering everything I wanted to forget. I don't really know what it is I really need to do. But there's something there. I have to find out what that something is. Most likely, to me, it's something to be found inside the tomb...that's why I cannot move aside. But.\" \"Shut up. Get lost. I...I'm not listenin' to any of this.\" \"But you've already found that something for yourself, haven't you?\" When she posed the question, Garfiel's endurance was already nearing its limit. An emotion beyond anger rested in his two eyes; it seemed like Garfiel was ready to train his claws on Emilia. But  \" Everything you do is half-hearted, Garfiel.\" With Emilia's assertions stabbing him, Garfiel was left with violence as his only resort. Subaru slowly shook his head from side to side at the immaturity and shortsightedness of his actions. Subaru meant for Garfiel to turn the brunt of his anger toward him.  No, such intent was not necessary. There was no plan or calculation involved. It was something Subaru wanted to say, something he needed to say; and so, he did. \"If I can't do it, no one can. That's how I think, and there's no mistaking he's someone like that, too.  Just how much of a conceited brat are you?\" *** \"Certainly, it's just like you said. Emilia's failing at the Trial over and over. I can't deny she's all crying and sobbing over being made to see a past she doesn't want to. It was hard to watch her lose herself after Puck was gone. I can't even say with a straight face she's bounced back yet.\" Standing right beside Emilia, Subaru motioned to her with his chin, mercilessly critiquing her disgraceful behavior. It was a sudden topic, one that put a suspicious look on Garfiel's face, but Emilia received it with dignity. The assessment was certainly not one that was pleasant on the ears, but it was correct nonetheless. She would stand, face her own shame, and take it head-on, for that was what she thought would make Subaru proud of her  \"If she challenges the Trial right now, the results might not change. She might fail again, too, coming back in tears once more.\" \"If ya know that already, why make her do it over an'...?\" \"But Emilia will challenge it, as many times as it takes.  Unlike you, who lost and ran.\" She had recoiled from her past. She feared the Trial. Her legs cowered from it over and over. But he could not lie to his own heart. He believed that whatever it was Emilia wished for, it was not a wish beyond her reach. \"That's just you glossin' things over with words o' hope, makin' the girl ya love see Hell over and over...!\" Declaring thus, Garfiel's teeth creaked, and he chipped a fang. Heedless, he howled. \"Who the hell can win against yer own regrets?! The Trial was set up by a foul-minded Witch to teach people that! Don't ya get it?!\" \"...Regrets are hard, painful things. I think they're pathetic things you can't face, either.\" \"Ahh?!\" \"The pain of looking at the past is real. But that said, I intend to swallow it all down. Just like you said, the Witch has a foul personality. I'll never forget my grudge for her betraying my trust.\" Even though it was a fraudulent farewell, with his parents fabricated from nothing but his memories in an illusionary world... Subaru had faced the greatest regret inside himself; from it, he had gained one farewell, and one answer.  His grudge toward the Witch who had granted him this would never fade. But these feelings, too, were real. \"I'm grateful to the Witch. I'm glad I faced my past. I ran, and I ran, and I kept running from it...but I'm glad I couldn't run from it.\" Neither Emilia nor Garfiel could comprehend Subaru's gratitude toward the Witch. Perhaps they took his words as wild delusions. It was fine even so. For at the very least, inside Subaru, his stance toward the past was set. And  \"Garfiel.  Do you hate your mother who left you behind?\" \"Wha...?!\" Subaru's question caused the color of Garfiel's face to change dramatically. From red with anger, it turned pale with shock, and finally, when it lost all color, he closed his eyes. \"From the old hag...? Damn you, buttin' into other people's pasts...!\" \"Sorry. Even though we take off our shoes when entering someone's house, we keep them on when stepping into someone's heart. It's a Natsuki family tradition.\" There were the words of the Witch, the words of his biological sister, the words of his grandmother, and the words of yet another grandmother. The night before, Subaru had heard straight from the lips of Shima, who held Garfiel dear to her, confirming that Arma's speculation was correct.  The past Garfiel saw had indeed been the moment he and his mother parted. He openly confessed to trampling all over Garfiel's heart in order to learn more. \"I have some notion of what past you saw. Frederica and your mother left you both in the Sanctuary and went out into the world. So you saw that, and then what?\" He told him of what he'd heard from Shima. However, he left the conclusion blank as he tossed the question. The question Subaru posed made Garfiel shake his head, repulsed. Subaru heard his fangs clattering nonstop. This was no act of intimidation, but simple shaking from fear. Seeing this, Subaru took a step forward, not allowing any escape as he redoubled his question. \"Frederica left the Sanctuary. She believed you'd open the Sanctuary someday, so she left to make a place in the outside world for the people here. So what have you been doing on the inside?\" Garfiel had rejected the warmth of the hand his sister had offered him, continuing to cower within the Sanctuary instead. Feelings of guilt sprung up for digging into the scars on another person's chest. Subaru forced down the feeling, pressing Garfiel for the truth, his fingers digging into the wounds, drawing blood in the process. \"Was it that your mother abandoned you, so you hated your mother, so you hated the world that had stolen your mother from you, so you stayed shut inside the Sanctuary? Here, because you didn't want to get hurt!\" \"That ain't...! What do you know...? Don't flap yer damn lips like ya understand!\" \"That's right! All I'm saying is my own arbitrary guess, flapping my lips like I know what I'm talking about. Only you know what you really think. I'm not your family, so I'm not gonna know unless you come out and say it!\" When Garfiel retorted on reflex, Subaru harshly scolded him, pummeling him with words. \"If you don't say it, we won't know! If it's not in words, no one'll get it!\" *** \"If you hate your mother for abandoning you, go outside and get revenge or whatever right this minute! Don't pin this on us people on the inside! That's what it is, isn't it? You're just lashing out?!\" Garfiel's expression contorted. He went down the stone steps, as if trying to put distance between them. There was no escape. Grasping Garfiel's arm, Subaru brought his face close enough to take a bite out of him. At breathing distance, he glared into that sad, blood-smeared face and asked. And kept asking. \"You hate your family. If you didn't, you wouldn't be...\" \"No!! Me...I...!\" In Ryuzu's words, the truth about Shima, Echidna's advice, Roswaal's and Frederica's behavior, the soft gaze Ram sent Garfiel's way there, Subaru had found a different answer. There was a basis for Garfiel's actions. This basis was hatred toward his mother and fear of the outside world. He raised that conclusion aloft. He raised it, so that Garfiel's objection might strike it down. Even that very moment, he was not killing Subaru or Emilia but trying to destroy the tomb in order to prevent the liberation of the Sanctuary. He wanted to keep Emilia from taking the Trial, because his fear of the Sanctuary being liberated was exceeded by his inability to watch Emilia being tormented by her past.  If there was a basis for Garfiel's actions, it was not hatred or estrangement toward his past. \"What is it you really think?! Tell me, damn it!!\" \"Me...I...want Mom to...!\" Swallowing his breath, Garfiel turned his face to the sky, his fangs quivering and voice tearful as he spoke: \" I wanted her to be happy...!!\" 2 \"We were in the way, right?! Sis and I, we were in the way of her being happy, right?!\" They poured out the feelings that had been resting inside Garfiel for ten years. \"I got it, of course I did! She abandoned Sis and me. Isn't that right?! We were kids she never wanted, and half-bloods at that. Of course we were in the way of a better life on the outside! What's strange about abandoning us...she wasn't wrong about anythin'...!\" Unable to hide the trembling in his voice, he tried to at least conceal the trembling in his eyes, covering his face with his hands. \"Of course she abandoned us. That's why I don't hate Mom for it... Of course she did. Sis and I were in the way, so she went outside to be happy!!\" On that day, when he was still very young, Garfiel watched his mother leave them in the Sanctuary. And then, when he challenged the Trial, Garfiel saw his mother abandon them once more. Garfiel had been abandoned by his mother twice. Who could blame him for the cracks in his young heart? But what truly left Garfiel feeling helpless was not the sight of his own mother abandoning him. \"But I saw. When I went into the tomb without telling Grandma, I saw...Mom, who left us...right after she left, she got caught up in a landslide, and then...!\" *** \"Sis doesn't know... Sis still believes Mom's living somewhere far away... But that's not really true! Right after abandoning us, Mom...died!!\" In a tearful-sounding voice, Garfiel proclaimed the fragmentary truth he had seen with his own eyes. That cruel truth slammed into Subaru, who already knew, and Emilia, who did not. \"She died...she never got to be happy...\" Garfiel kept his face covered with his palms, sobbing raggedly as he continued: \"Why? Didn't she go to the outside world so she could be happy?\" Subaru gave no reply. \"Didn't she leave us so she could go off and be happy?\" Emilia gave no reply. \"If she abandoned us, only to die right away without ever being happy, then...\" Garfiel kept tossing unanswerable questions to a pair unable to answer them. This was likely a question that Garfiel had kept asking, echoing at the bottom of his heart  \"What should we do with the loneliness and sadness from her abandoning us...?\"  In those ten years, he had continued searching for the answer to that, finding none. \"I wanted Mom to be happy...!\" He put his strength into that tearful voice. Removing his hands from his face, Garfiel made his fangs creak. Clenching his teeth enough that it seemed they might split, blood dripped from his tattered lips as he howled. \"This sadness! The loneliness from being abandoned! I wanted to believe that if they made her happy, there was meaning to them! I wanted to make Mom hate me...!!\" His feelings for his mother had nowhere left to go. Garfiel had shut his heart inside the Sanctuary. With nothing left to slam them against, his ferocious emotions had kept on burning like a flame, consuming his soul as its fuel. Amid the flames of his smoldering heart, Garfiel vowed to himself. \" I ain't lettin' anyone leave anymore.\" His voice"}, {"text": "was shaking. There was anger, sadness, and the vestiges of fierce emotions forming a fire that continued blazing that very moment. \"Just changin' doesn't mean you can be happy. There's lots of people around who can't do anything like that! What are they supposed to do?! Should they just become sacrifices and take on all the sadness so others can be happy? Are they all supposed to become changed like me and Sis?!\" Garfiel spread both arms wide, hoisting the Sanctuary, isolated from the outside world, onto his own shoulders. \"Me, I'll protect.\" Powerfully pressing down with both feet, Garfiel stopped howling, calmly stating his words. \"I'll protect. I'll protect everything as far as my hands can reach. Protect, protect, I'll protect them... I won't lose anyone else... I won't let anyone go through what Mom had to...\" It was not anger that made Garfiel's heart tremble. It was not sadness. Ten years' worth of resolve, ten years' worth of determination, ten years' worth of desires: It was these that infused Garfiel's shout. \"I'll be the barrier!! A real barrier that separates inside from out!!\" \"Garfiel!!\" \"That's why! I'll! Protect everyone in the Sanctuary! Protect Grandma! I'm the only one who can do it! I'm the only one who knows! I'm the only one who has to know!!\" Spitting blood as he raised a mighty shout, Garfiel made a great leap backward. Abandoning climbing the stone stairs, Garfiel landed on all fours in the middle of the grassy field. With a shudder, every hair on his body stood up. Subaru understood what he intended to do like it was the back of his own hand. \" Subaru.\" \"It's all right, Emilia.\" When Emilia addressed him, Subaru nodded, heading down the stone stairs on his own, turning toward the grassy field. In that grassy field, dyed in the color of the setting sun, Subaru faced off against the gradually transforming Garfiel. \"You ignorant, blockheaded bastard.\" Garfiel could no longer be stopped with words. So that only left one thing to do. \"I'll put you on your back and drive it into you.  That you're a kind and really stupid jerk!!\" \" Oooooo!!\" A howling voice accompanied the ground cratering as Garfiel, on all fours, transformed. His bones audibly creaked as his body swelled, and he bared his fangs as golden fur appeared all across his skin. Having turned into a ferocious, mindless beast for the purpose of killing Subaru Natsuki, Garfiel roared. \"Gaaaaaaa !!\" This was a decision to kill. Garfiel deemed he had no choice but to kill Subaru. Subaru could not be stopped short of killing him. The last ten years had left Garfiel unable to sheathe his fangs. Hence, Garfiel transformed as a last resort, for the sake of taking a life.  Turning into a mindless beast so that he would not avert his eyes at the critical moment. \"But that's your mistake, Garfiel.\" Not wanting to slay his foe, to thrust his claws through his opponent, was kindness. The decision to use his body to protect the hearts of those around him, to protect the Sanctuary, was kindness. But making excuses for supposedly unclouded wishes and feelings in order to kill someone who couldn't be left alive, averting his eyes to his own actions, and going as far as to stop thinking at all that was not kindness. It was weakness. And Subaru Natsuki did not hesitate to take advantage of that weakness. \"I'm counting on you, body of mine. Don't break down on me when we're inside the ring!\" The transfigured Garfiel bent all four limbs, widening his fangs as if to bite Subaru with them. Instantly, Subaru pictured a gate above his navel that was connected to the very center of his body and chanted. \" Shamaaaaaaak!!\" Just before the great tiger leaped forth, Subaru shouted with all his spirit, and the world shouted back. An incomprehensible darkness explosively spewed forth, swallowing the fiendish beast, who was extending his sharp claws whole. Those claws, which should surely have shaved away Subaru's life, never reached their target; the fiendish beast's bloodlust was erased somewhere in that abyss. The next moment  \" Ah.\" Subaru realized that a fateful impact had destroyed something in the deepest part of his body. He'd abused the Gate he'd been told not to use. He'd used the magic that he'd been forbidden from using. He'd gone against the warnings of his personal healer, the greatest healer in the kingdom. The cost of betraying those words might have been to never be able to use magic again. The Gate that had been at Subaru's core collapsed. Violently, chaotically, oblivion clawed at his mind. \"Thanks.\" The cord he had relied on so many times to date had been cut. To this feeling of losing something he could never regain, Subaru spoke words of parting. The magic he had relied upon several times over had finally had enough of him. It could not be helped. But he was grateful nonetheless. With gratitude in his chest, he took a powerful step forward. *** His goal of landing a single blow had been met. The darkness magic he activated did not even cover the whole of the beast. Subaru had no talent for magic. This was all he could do with the final spell cast under his own power in his lifetime. Thanks to that, he made a beeline toward the beast's wide-open right shoulder  \" Come step onto my turf, Garfiel.\" With all his strength, Subaru pounded the blue crystal he gripped in his hand into that right shoulder, which was as thick as a log. Light gushed forth. \" Gnn!\" Incredible particles of light surged forth. Subaru felt something akin to wind pressure as he fell backward. Landing on his butt, he backed away. Before his eyes, the fiendish beast, who had been swallowed by the black cloud, had yet to comprehend what had occurred. But the light-emitting crystal was consuming all the mana around it, turning the impenetrable darkness enveloping the fiendish beast into its own fuel. And with that crystal pressed into him, Garfiel himself was no exception. \"Wha ?\" Freed from the incomprehension slammed into him, he was assaulted the next moment by chagrin. When the black cloud lifted and the light gradually abated, what was there was no great, ferocious tiger.  His transformation undone, Garfiel had returned to his human physique, both in size and internal bone structure. Having regained his human form, Garfiel wore the most incredulous expression of all. Lifting up both hands, he stared at the bestial fur shedding and falling from his white fingers, seeing for himself with his own jade eyes. \"Wh-what...why did I turn back...huuuh?\" Patting his own body as he searched for the cause, Garfiel noticed the crystal in his shoulder. It was a crystal that marked one as an Apostle one Garfiel knew well. The blue crystal from Frederica that Subaru had carried seemed stuck, unwilling to leave Garfiel's body. \"This is...Sis's stone...but why is it...drainin' my strength like...? What trick did ya put into this stone...?\" \"Who's to say? Maybe there's a very hungry kitty inside it?\" Perhaps transformation had taken much of his endurance; Garfiel was out of breath as he clawed at his shoulder. But the crystal rejected his fingers, biting into his flesh and showing no sign of coming off. \" This is all the help I can give you.\" As light faded from the stone the blue crystal he felt like he heard a laugh coming from it. Having kept silent, the incomplete communication had made him keep worrying all that time, but... \"If you're gonna be quiet, keep quiet, you noisy, glimmering jerk...\" With that listless comment, Subaru saw with his own eyes that the assist from the crystal his trump card had worked. \" Watch this, Emilia.\" Slowly standing up, Subaru took a deep breath, then spoke to the presence he felt at his back. Behind him, atop the stone steps, Emilia was watching over the pair's fight. It probably looked like a fight that Subaru had no hope of winning. There was no mistaking that in her head, she wanted to stop this. Even so, she didn't; Emilia, who had so angrily tried to stop Subaru from engaging in repeated fights out of unsightly stubbornness. Subaru, too, knew there was something that he could not quite call trust. There was no need to put a label on that something; at the very least, not then, at that instant. \"Look at me, Garfiel.\" \"Ahh...?\" \"If you wanna stop me, stop me with your own hands. Don't chicken out and rely on your blood, you coward. How long are you gonna treat me like an idiot?\" He stepped forward, bringing him to stand and face Garfiel, who was rooted to his spot. They were both within arm's reach. Garfiel was in a state of exhaustion; Subaru was in tip-top shape. It made for a pathetic tale, but at that time, in that moment, Subaru could stand on the same ground on equal terms  \"No matter what you say, we're heading to the outside world. If you want to stop us, stop me first. Emilia will challenge the tomb. The Sanctuary will open...whether you want it or not.\" \"Don't decide all that shit on your own! Who asked ya to?! Who gave ya permission?! This place this place should stay as it is, never changing!!\" \"Of course it can't stay like this, always the same, stopped and never changing. Someone ought to have said it centuries ago before it turned out this way.\" \"There's people who! Who want it to never change, damn it!!\" \"If you could stay here and protect this place forever, that'd be one thing, but...\" Someday, the time and the era would leave Garfiel behind. It was inevitable that this never-changing Sanctuary would one day be forced to change. \"A day when you drive all of us together into the same corner, when you can't do anything about it by yourself, is definitely coming. It might be tomorrow.  It might even be today.\" Cutting off his words, Subaru raised his arms, adopting a fighting pose. Talking wasn't going cut it. After the pushing in the crystal part, his plan was pretty much blank to begin with. Knowing that each other's words would settle nothing, his means were reduced to one. When the opinions of two men differed like that, the only way left was to fight until their souls were spent. \"I'm gonna knock you on your ass, Garfiel.  Respect the power of numbers.\" \"Ain't ya got a different way of sayin' that?!\" Garfiel howled at Subaru's line, their fists both unleashed simultaneously and landing in each other's face. Letting out anguished groans from the sharp pain, the pair backed heavily away from each other. Setting Subaru's fist aside, Garfiel's blow was tragically weakened. The crystal embedded in his shoulder was absorbing his mana even then; thanks to its aid, they were able to have a good, honest fistfight. If not for Otto, for Ram, for the crystal for Puck Subaru could not have climbed onto that stage. \"He-he, thanks to them I'm managing to make this a fi bwah!\" He took a direct hit to the wide-open side of his face. His vision swooned, which he put a stop to with a stomp. In return, he kicked upward into his opponent's gut, sending a straight punch right into his opponent's lowered face. He was hit back. The hard blow made his eyes spin, and nosebleeds oozed from Subaru and Garfiel both. Both their faces marred with blood, the objectively awful and clumsy brawl continued. Each and every blow was weak, but they reverberated in each other's core because of the feelings infused in their fists. Subaru was physically exhausted; Garfiel was exhausted in both body and spirit. Thus, the damage spread further. \"E...nough of...this!!\" When both sides were depleted in strength, what separated victory from defeat in a fight was skill. Evading Subaru's attack, Garfiel spun his body, plunging an elbow strike into the pit"}, {"text": "of Subaru's stomach. When Subaru moaned in agony, his movements coming to a halt, Garfiel delivered a hard chop to the back of his head, and when Subaru fell down, Garfiel kneed him in the face. Subaru's vision ferociously shook. He proceeded to move backward and not fall. \"You still...! Just sleep already! Give up, and I'll end this!!\" \"Don't make me look uncool in front of my girl...not giving up makes me look way better than giving up, damn it. If you're a man, let me look cool, you stupid jerk.\" Garfiel probably hadn't been able to look good in front of Ram, the girl he longed for, not even once. Snorting out the blood blocking his nose, Subaru put a smile on his awful-looking face. His expression made Garfiel swallow his breath, from which Subaru understood how creepy he must have looked. *** Subaru felt like praising Garfiel's strength. You've done well coming this far. Simultaneously, Subaru felt sadness about his strength. Why did you push it this far? There was a future coming that Garfiel could not change, no matter how stubbornly or valiantly he fought. Perhaps by telling him about the future assault on the Sanctuary, Subaru might have been able to move Garfiel off that spot. But that would not settle the issue within him. Even if his body moved for a time, his heart would remain in the same place. Garfiel would ignore all those watching over him, all those extending a hand toward him, and continue to cower, grieving for his dead mother. \"Take a good look, Garfiel. There's no wall here for you to be afraid of.\" \"There is a wall! There is for me! An absolute wall, separating inside from outside for me! For me, Grandma, and all the others! We're standing still! We're shut in! It's over for us!\" \"Don't you dare go and say it's over...don't you dare lose hope!\" In anger, Garfiel lamented that by giving up, his own future was closed, finished. Something burned inside Subaru's chest. Amid that war of fists, amid that war of words, nothing made sense anymore. Something was wriggling around inside his belly. His Gate was dead. He could use magic no more. Then what, in the deepest part of his body, was beginning to assert its existence that very moment? \"No matter when! No matter the time! If you wanna do something! If you wanna change! When you think it, that's your starting line, damn it!!\" When you're frustrated, with nothing left, immersed in resignation, stopping your feet, clutching your knees, and cowering... When you're despondent toward yourself, disappointed with others, despairing from feelings of loneliness by being abandoned by those precious to you... \"When someone says Lift up your face and walk forward again, who the hell replies Why don't you just give up?!\" Give up, go off and die, cower somewhere.  Garbage. All of it was worthless nonsense. If you're clutching your knees and someone has the courage to speak to you, respond, would you? Hang in there. Do it. You may not know how or why, but if you stand and run, you'll get somewhere.  The inside of his chest was hot. \"Isn't that right, Garfiel...?!\" He called out the name of the small-looking man before him, eyes swaying weakly.  The inside of his belly burned. \"Isn't that right, Emilia...?!\" He called out the name of the girl watching them from behind, the one who was sandwiched between weakness and the threshold of something yet unknown.  Something from the back of Subaru's eyes flooded out. \"Hey isn't that so, Rem?!!\" He called out the name of the one who'd made him lift his face, open his mouth, open his eyes wide, and stand tall. The one who had taught him that even when your feet were stopped in surrender, that didn't mean it was over. Subaru Natsuki desperately wished for the power she had given him then to somehow reach all the others. *** A power that was not Subaru's wriggled inside his body, making its first cry of birth. As if to bless its arrival, as if to celebrate its birth... \"Damn it all...! I I !!\" Once more, Garfiel swung his claw upward. It was no longer with words, but with actions that Garfiel denied all that Subaru claimed. Lacking anything else to say, unable to give up on his feelings, Garfiel had no other option. Having closed his eyes to so many things and averted his eyes from the future, he could not face Subaru; hence, he had not noticed.  That where he leaped, invisible hands were waiting. \"This new move sure gives off a bad impression.\" The world moved in slow motion. Subaru could clearly see Garfiel leaping at him. His hostility had grown to its limit. And yet, his face was in tears, like a child throwing a tantrum. He aimed at the tip of Garfiel's chin. That's enough, he knew not with words, but with his heart.  And then he pounded that spot with all his strength. *** The power he released exulted with joy, striking the unwary Garfiel directly below its unseen form. The invisible blow took the form of a fist, smashing into Garfiel's face and driving him toward the sky. \"Gu, oh...!\" The moment after seeing it through, Subaru, too, went down on one knee. He violently retched from the sense that he had shed something from inside him, with agony as if his very soul had been whittled. Not a single drop of spit or blood came out. That one blow had truly taken everything out of him. This time, even that stubborn Garfiel  \"Hey, hey, you gotta be kidding me...\" He was sure he saw Garfiel fly skyward, with nothing to break his fall as he was slammed into the ground. Covered in wounds that were mostly there before clashing with Subaru, he'd endured a string of battles without any rest. On top of that, there was a spirit in his right shoulder sucking his mana right out of him. How did he explain this? \"Just how tough are you...?\" \"Don't...look down...on me...me, I h-haven't broken...yet...\" His fuzzy head was swaying, but even so, Garfiel was standing on his own two feet. His gaze was unfocused. But he stood out of pure tenacity, rejecting Subaru's final push. \"Hah. Well, this sucks... Having come this far, I've got to face facts.\" Subaru had exhausted all his schemes, played his one trump card, and even used a hidden trick that had suddenly sprouted up. Even with Otto and Ram's valiant fighting, Puck's assistance, and all the rest, he had still been unable to defeat Garfiel. Garfiel was strong. Even when he was weak, he was strong. This Subaru acknowledged from the bottom of his heart. That was why  \"Now, no one else'll...!\" With wobbly footsteps, Garfiel walked forward as Subaru rested on his knees. Garfiel was at his limit, but so was Subaru. His consciousness probably could not sustain even one blow, no matter how little strength was behind it. Accordingly, Garfiel poured his entire nervous system into his claws, intent on beating Subaru with them. That was why Garfiel never noticed the approaching sound or the shaking of the ground.  The final blow that would drive Garfiel to defeat. \"This...is the...end for...yaaaah?!\" *** His announcement of the final blow was blotted out by the piercing neigh of a slender and tall land dragon. Shaking the ground, the charging, jet-black land dragon heartily slammed into Garfiel, sending him hurtling into the air. \" Goeh?!\" The blow, which carried his entire body away, made Garfiel's eyes roll back, his body thrust away as if he weighed no more than a pebble. He bounced on the ground twice, then a third time, ending in a sprawl. This time, he did not move a muscle. Upon seeing this, the leading actress who had delivered the final blow looked toward the sky, letting out a roar. \"How about that, Garfiel...?\" Standing beside Patlash, loudly taking pride in her victory, Subaru spoke to Garfiel, who was prone upon the ground, in a voice so raspy, he couldn't even tell if it was really him that was talking. Both had used up all their strength and played every card they had in their hands. What was the decisive thing that separated victory from defeat? It was simple.  The powerful Garfiel had fought alone. The weak Subaru had not. \"Like I said the power of numbers.\" \"There's...other ways of...sayin' that, damn it...!\" The immobile Garfiel resentfully responded to Subaru's words. His voice made Subaru lightly scratch his cheek. \"Then everyone's feelings bundled together to form bonds of victory.\" \"Haa...so this is, like, none can lift the quain stone alone...ngh.\" Leaving those words behind, Garfiel finally fell silent. Watching this, Subaru waited several seconds. Certain of victory this time, Subaru turned his head upward. \"Finally, one of those sayings made sense...\" Those satisfied words slipped out as he collapsed, bringing his torso to the ground, and his consciousness along with it. 3 Loudly, the land dragon's neighing voice echoed across the Sanctuary' sky, announcing that the battle was decided. For once, Patlash, the one who had delivered the final blow unto Garfiel, held a triumphant look on her noble face, jubilant from her feeling of achievement at having redeemed herself for past humiliation.  To Patlash, Garfiel was a mortal foe who had inflicted a mortifying defeat upon her. On the initial day of their arrival in the Sanctuary, Patlash, who was pulling the carriage, fought Garfiel, who had come to capture the intruders that had crossed the barrier. Though she did her best to protect Subaru, she had lost. Patlash, eagerly awaiting her chance to avenge herself, had splendidly achieved her aim. *** Having witnessed Patlash's joy at restoring her honor, Emilia let out a deep sigh. It had been a battle so fierce that she had genuinely forgotten to breathe. Just as Subaru had asked her to, Emilia had continued watching that grand battle until its conclusion. The sight of the two clashing had no doubt made her want to rush over and stop them many times over. But over the course of that, Subaru's voice and gaze had held Emilia's weak heart in check. It was a scene where she was permitted neither to lend a hand nor speak. It was torture. It was a terrible thing to endure. Yet, it was a scene where the one thing she could not do was to avert her eyes. The scene, the pair's argument, and the pair's clash made something burn inside her chest. Subaru had been so stubborn. Garfiel had cried in such a tearful voice. Two men smelling of mud as they pounded each other to settle their dispute Emilia did not understand even a fragment of what drove them. Even so, something that was hot, ebbing, and flowing inside her chest probably served as answer enough. \"Er, oh no! Subaru's going to die if I don't heal him!!\" Snapping back to her senses, Emilia practically flew down the stone steps, seemingly gliding as she raced to Subaru's side. Standing beside Subaru, Patlash gave Emilia an almost wary glare. \"Ah, you don't need to make a worried face like that; it's all right. Without Puck, my control is a little shaky, but I can borrow the power of minor spirits for something like simple healing, so...\" As she said this, the minor spirits of which Emilia spoke gave off a pale glow as they lent her their strength. Soft light enveloped Subaru and Garfiel and began to slowly heal their wounds. Subaru's pained expression softened bit by tiny bit. Making a thin smile at the sight, Emilia gently brought his head onto her lap. Somehow, lending Subaru her lap like this had become a very familiar development, even though she would have much preferred fewer opportunities to give an injured Subaru her lap pillow. \"When you wake up, there are so many things"}, {"text": "I really need to ask you, so...\" But perhaps the things she wanted to say to him numbered more just then. As she murmured, Emilia gently combed through Subaru's hair as he slept with the face of a child. Subaru grimaced for a moment. Then his lips truly slackened.  It was soon after that Otto met up with them, carrying Ram upon his back. CHAPTER 8 *** 1  Deep inside the being known as himself, something set down roots, asserting its own existence. Subaru did not even know if the heat it bore was hot or cold. Yet, the strange feeling of something black and stagnant circulating in Subaru Natsuki from corner to corner gave him some idea as to what it was. Therefore, he asked not why or how, or even what for. There was no reason to ponder such things. That left only one matter for him to worry about.  Invisible Blow. Unseen Palms. Blindside Impact. Each sounded atrociously derivative. They weren't stylish at all. These were arms that none save Subaru could ever see, and none save Subaru might ever control. Accordingly  \"A divine will unseen by the eye...therefore, I dub thee Invisible Providence...\" \"...Er, what did you, say just now?\" When Subaru weakly opened his eyes, murmuring with his mind still vague, a questioning voice called out to him. Leaping into his vision, her eyes open wide, was a beautiful, upside-down face not an angel's, but Emilia's. Slowly comprehending this, Subaru blinked several times, realizing he had awoken from a dream. Simultaneously, he took in the sight of Emilia before his eyes and the soft sensation under his head. \"Ahh... Emilia-tan's giving me a lap pillow again...\" \"Mm, that's right. How many times have I given Subaru a lap pillow by now?\" \"I'm a little hazy, but this is the third time, maybe? It's a reward for getting over the first big hurdle, so...\" \"Yes, yes.\" Emilia let Subaru's playful words of savoring his reward glide over her in her familiar manner. From there, Subaru accessed his memory from just prior to losing consciousness, recalling he had been punched extensively. \"Hey, Emilia-tan. How's my face? It's not in a state you'd never want to look at again, is it?\" \"Ahh, it's fine. It's not that weird.\" \"And she's not even trying to be mean!\" Subaru gazed at Emilia's mystified expression as he lightly tried to move his own limbs. Somehow, he managed to budge them. His bones creaked, and he was bruised all over his body, but he didn't mind it enough to complain. \"Ah, goodness, don't be rash. It's no good unless you rest.\" \"I really don't want to leave the paradise that is Emilia-tan's lap, either...but I have to go searching quick. Otto and Ram could be out there dying in the woods.\" From his restored memories, Subaru recalled that it was Otto who had driven Garfiel into a corner. According to Garfiel, Ram had assisted him, but he remained concerned for the pair's safety. Judging from Garfiel's personality, he shouldn't have actually taken their lives, but  \"Before they expire in the forest, I've gotta save Ram at least...\" \"Stop imagining us expiring and worry about me a little more, would you?!\" \"I-I'd recognize that fierce comeback anywhere...\" When Subaru tried to put life into his wobbly body and sit up, he widened his eyes hearing the voice immediately beside him. When he shifted his gaze from Emilia to the direction of the voice, a filthy-looking young man sitting on the tomb's stone steps entered his vision. Though marred by soil, mud, and blood, the sight was, beyond any doubt, Otto Suwen. Seeing Subaru's gaze, he raised his clasped hands, his lips loosening into a leer. \"This applies a fair bit to me, but it seems you went through quite a terrible time as well, Mr. Natsuki. But...\" \"Why, you !\" \"Gyaah ?!\" As Otto exuded a casual air, Subaru leaped at him, delivering a headbutt. Taking the blow in the gut, Otto fell at Subaru's feet as he raised an anguished moan. \"Wh-what is this all of a sudden?! I was praising our shared experience in a hard fought battle just now!\" \"Shut up, you stupid moron! Don't go acting all cool! You freelancing almost blew up the whole plan! But without your assist, I wouldn't have been able to nail Garfiel, either, so it's not like I don't feel grateful, okay?!\" \"I don't even know what you're saying anymore!\" Though relieved he was safe, and grateful for his aid, Subaru's blushy, contradictory expression of that gratitude left Otto shouting in a loud voice. That truly Otto-like reaction made Subaru pat his chest with relief. \"Either way, glad you're safe. If you died, I figured you'd turn into a ghost and haunt me at my bedside... Is Ram all right, too?\" \"Yes, though my liver went cold when I awoke and found Ram lying on the ground. I was quite relieved to find her state was not as bad as it looked. If anything, the poison she spewed after I carried her on my back was worse.\" \"She talks super-strict to anyone but the people closest to her... How'd you convince her anyway?\" \"One of the conditions for her cooperation was that I would not to speak about it to you, Mr. Natsuki.\" Covering his mouth with both hands, Otto's demeanor made it clear he had no intention of explaining further. To be blunt, it was probably futile to try and make Otto spill the beans, not that he had a chance even if he wanted to. Surely, such a sensible human being wouldn't be foolish enough to risk his life to go along with Subaru's crazy demands. \"Damn it.\" \"Ow! What did you punch me for just now?!\" \"He's hiding his embarrassment, Otto. That's all.\" Emilia smiled as she joined Subaru and Otto's exchange. Then Subaru saw Patlash, who, at some point, had come to Emilia's side. When the land dragon brought her nose close, Emilia gently stroked it with her white fingers. The interaction was most unexpected. \"My Emilia-tan and my Patlash are getting along so well...what a nice scene.\" \"Don't say stupid things. This girl has been worried for you this entire time, Subaru.\" \"Mm, I get that.\" Subaru smiled wryly at Emilia's scolding, walking close to Patlash on his own two feet. Then he reached a hand out to her black scales to give her some gratitude-infused petting. However  \"Gwah?! Wh-why?!\" When a blow from her tail made him pull his hand back, Subaru objected to Patlash with teary eyes. But rather than relent, Patlash glared back at him with reproach in her yellow eyes. She even raised a sour growl that made Subaru cringe. \"Shall I interpret?\" \"Nah, even I don't need you to interpret this...\" When Otto offered some consideration from behind, Subaru shook his head, letting out a small sigh. \" Don't make me worry like that, right?\" \"Also, addendums with a sense of Don't get cocky, There won't be a next time, and Become mine already with a fair hint of anger.\" \"That's some serious heroine power at work. Jumping into the race to be my leading girl?\" With a content face, Subaru extended his hand once more. This time, when he did so, Patlash accepted Subaru's hand, acting as if it couldn't be helped as she took it as an apology. Otto and Patlash in the Sanctuary, these two had done nothing but save him. Just like usual, he had to borrow the strength of many in order to overcome a mountain that his strength was insufficient to overcome himself. Would a day truly come when he could pay it all back? \"Now that I'm thinking of the mountain I'm indebted to you all for breaking past, where's Garfiel?\" \"Ah, Garfiel is over there. I think it's best not to get in the way, though.\" \"Whaddaya mean, get in the way?\" As Subaru inclined his head, Emilia touched a finger to her lips. \"You see...right now, Ram is looking after him, so...\" 2 \"Garf, are you awake?\" The first thing he saw when he awoke was a girl's lovely face. He felt conflicted. It was the first thing he'd wanted to see, and also, it wasn't. The fact that his chest was faintly beating louder made Garfiel avert his eyes as he cleared his throat a single time. \"Yeah...I'm awake.  Dah?!\" \"Then move already. My legs are getting numb.\" Instantly, Garfiel was thrust from a soft sensation down onto the grassy soil. When he shot her a resentful glare, Ram, sitting her hip on the grassy field as she brushed off her thigh, went \"What?\" as she made a sour face. One would never think it was the demeanor of a girl who'd lent the unconscious Garfiel her knees up until moments ago. \"Just like usual, a girl without one shred o' kindness...\" \"Ram believes that kindness is something one must give to a person worthy of receiving it. If Ram fails to give any, Ram did not believe that it was appropriate.\" \"...I ain't worth it, huh?\" \"From that sentence, it is obvious you prefer I had said something else. This is why you and Barusu are both hopeless. You must be smoother than that if you wish to hear a girl's true thoughts.\" \"Ow!\" As he lowered his eyes, Ram flicked a finger off his forehead. The blow was inflicted upon the scar on his brow, which he had a habit of touching. Rubbing that white scar, Garfiel rested his eyes on the sight of Ram in her filthy clothes. It was none other than he who had made them that way, yet Ram was exerting herself for him nonetheless. \"Ram, ain't no scars left on yer body? If there are, be my bride and I'll...\" \"I shall not. Take responsibility for my scars some other way.  In the first place, you had a lot of cheek to do that, Garfiel. How you dare leave an injured Ram behind back there.\" *** Ram's harsh, overbearing gaze cowed Garfiel into silence. The anger in her eyes also held criticism for the end of their battle. Having knocked Ram to the ground and thrust Otto into a thicket, Garfiel, out of weakness, had not sought to settle things with their deaths. He'd hesitated against someone he cared for. There was that. But Garfiel hadn't been serious against Otto, who he didn't care for, or even Subaru.  Because he lacked the most important thing for a warrior: courage. That was why he'd tried to rely on his blood, turning into a mindless beast to avert his eyes from the consequences. His hypocrisy, for relying only at times like that on the blood he normally detested and cursed, made him sick. How could Garfiel protect the Sanctuary with one deceit piled upon another  \"Garf...you're an idiot, so thinking about it is useless.\" \"...Wha?\" \"I am not saying to turn into a beast and abandon all logic. I am saying that transforming makes you even stupider than when you try to think. It is far better to fight thinking of nothing with a completely empty head.\" As Garfiel sat cross-legged on the ground, the irritated Ram's assertion made his eyes bulge in astonishment. It was better to say that Ram, the victor, was gazing down upon Garfiel, the vanquished. He didn't mind her talking like that, but was it really necessary to speak to Garfiel about things that might lie ahead? After all, he was the vanquished. A suitable punishment was sure to be forthcoming. \"Watch out next time. After all, you will be fighting for Ram and Emilia hereafter.\" \" Whaa?!\" At a juncture where he expected her to pass judgment on him, Ram's words shook him to his core. Garfiel's face reddened. He clacked his sharp fangs as he digested the statement. \"Stop messin' with me! After doin' all this, bein' your enemy, stompin' all over what you people think...you're sayin'"}, {"text": "you'd forgive me and take me as one of yer own?!\" \"Don't be absurd. I'm saying you need to work for it because we don't forgive you. You cannot beg for forgiveness without offering something in return, can you? Ram won, and Garf lost. Be a good boy and do as I say.\" \"This is so messed up!!\" Hopping to his feet, Garfiel stomped his heel against the ground. Instantly, his body wobbled, but his wounds were largely healed. He tightly clenched a fist. \"I accept that I lost! But acceptin' and yieldin' are two different things! Me, I'm in fightin' shape even now! If ya wanna do things I don't want, ya shoulda just killed me! If ya wanna pick up where we left off right...\" \"Enough whimpering!\" It should have been an angry, awe-inspiring shout, but one rebuke from Ram laid Garfiel's efforts to waste. Her pink eyes looked upward. The raw intimidation in them made Garfiel draw in his breath. \"You lost, didn't you, Loser Cat Garf? Just how long do you intend to dawdle and look pathetic in front of the girl you like? The instant you lost, you went from blaming others to blaming yourself, pointing your fangs inside instead of outside. That's all, isn't it? So, so stupid.\" \"Uh, um...\" The barrage of words hit the bull's-eye so accurately, Garfiel's words caught in his throat. \"...J-just because I lost, what, I should make some stupid smile and line up on your side? There's no way I can do that! I accept I lost, but I ain't acceptin' I was wrong!\" This was neither desperation nor an attempt to wiggle out. It was how Garfiel truly felt. \"Yeah, that's right, I accept I lost... Losing 'cause of numbers ain't no excuse. But me, I don't think I was wrong. This feels half-done.\" He could not betray himself from up to that moment. It was impossible for him to submit to Ram and the others, even for pretense's sake. \"If you do not wish to stay half-done, prove that you are not standing still.\" \"...What did you say?\" As Garfiel breathed raggedly, Ram spoke those words in a quiet voice. Unable to grasp what they were meant to convey, Garfiel knit his brows and the next moment, his eyes widened and froze. Sitting on the grassy field, Ram lifted up a hand, turning its white fingers toward him.  When he realized what those fingers were showing him, Garfiel's heart froze solid. \"I can largely imagine what Barusu would say. Also, you do not need to be afraid, Garf.  So you should go see with your own eyes.\" \"The tomb's Trial...\" The instant he put the words to his tongue, Garfiel's back was drenched with cold sweat. His breaths quickened, and his heartbeats became ragged. He heard his youthful self's sad crying ringing in his ears. \"Garf, can you change? Or will you remain a cowering, unmoving little boy?\" \"Cut that out. The way ya said that makes even me wanna deny it...\" Garfiel rang out in protest at Ram's words. Tensely, he realized he had not firmly told her I won't go, remaining in the chasm between the two choices: I'll go and I won't.  He was being completely taken for a ride. By Ram. By Subaru Natsuki. Even though he remembered that fear, a part of him did want to make sure. His body was stiff with fright, his body was letting out wails of rejection, and his soul howled fiercely. Even as he spat blood, Subaru had stood before Garfiel and shouted what he believed namely, that he needed to find out if he could win against himself on that day of his childhood or not. \"Your face says your resolve is set.\" He realized that the trembling of his fangs and the cold sweat over his entire body had eased. When Garfiel turned around, Ram was brushing leaves from her hip as she stood up beside him. Gazing at her face, Garfiel suddenly had a thought. Deep down, he felt that Ram didn't regard getting Garfiel on her side as all that important. Why, then, had Ram cooperated with Subaru and the others and scolded him then and there?  Wasn't Ram simply putting her foot on her childhood friend's back to give him a push? If that was true, the woman he loved was quite a woman indeed. \"Well, it'll be fine, Garf.\" Garfiel was pressed into silence. Taking that silence as unease, Ram, for once, spoke with a warm tone of voice as she peered at Garfiel, giving his bare shoulder a light pat. \"If you see something scary enough to make you cry, Ram will console you.  A favor to an old acquaintance.\" 3  When he entered the tomb for the first time in ten years, the air was as stagnant as the last time. Passing through the cramped, stonework corridor and walking amid a cool wind, Garfiel grimaced at the scent of settled dust in his nostrils as he advanced toward the back to the sound of his own bare feet. \"Don't wanna stay long in this place.\" Garfiel murmured as, within his chest, the sound of his heartbeats gradually sped up. Go to the back, and the Trial was there. As a half-blood, Garfiel held the qualification to challenge it; as night came, the tomb's lighting came on, as if to welcome its challenger. Go to the back, and the Trial was there. So, too, the past that had inflicted an indelible wound on him in his childhood. Go to the back, and the Trial was there. Would touching it one more time change anything? \"...Pathetic. That's what I came all this way here to find out, damn it.\" Dwelling on that sound logic, he scorned the timidity of his own heart. He'd been angrily yelled at by Ram, beaten to a pulp, and treated as a tiny fool before yielding like a little girl. He hadn't wanted to realize or understand just how cowardly he truly was.  Then and there, it was within his power to destroy the tomb's corridor, rendering everything else moot. The recuperative power of the blessing of earth spirit was extraordinary. Already, he had regained enough strength to destroy the tomb. Ram and the others waiting outside had no means of stopping him. He could spoil the results of such an agonizing battle, rendering it all for naught.  Hadn't she and the others realized that much? \"Damn it all.\" Of course they had. Setting aside Emilia, who knew too little about doubting people, and Otto, who was short of a few important components, there was no way the highly observant Ram or the very calculating Subaru would fail to see that possibility. In other words, they firmly believed that Garfiel would not destroy the tomb. Perhaps they thought he was too chicken to do it.  Or perhaps, they trusted him. The answer to that question, too, likely lay beyond the moment he overcame the Trial. *** In all bluntness, Garfiel had kept inside the Sanctuary, worrying about everything with his woefully insufficient head. In only a few days, ten years of that had been turned on its head. He never dreamed his own feet would carry him to the tomb's stone room once more. \"...Ahh?\" He arrived at the innermost chamber, a stonework room enveloped by a faint, blue light. Having visited this place after ten years, Garfiel crossed his arms, sensing that something was off. Something gave off some kind of strange impression. A difference in the stone room entered his keen nocturnal vision. Garfiel squinted his eyes at this  \" First, face your past.\" That instant, his vision swayed, and something indistinct covered his thoughts. The past was coming  4 One might call it a mysterious feeling to awaken within a dream. *** Crinkling his nose, Garfiel slowly stood up and surveyed his surroundings. What flew into his vision was a most familiar forest but compared with the scenery Garfiel knew, this forest was over ten years \"younger.\" Garfiel, who was in contact with the forest on a daily basis, knew as much. This was the past. The Trial had begun, and he was in the Sanctuary of ten years past. \"No doubtin' it now, huh...\" Clenching a fist, Garfiel let the words trickle out as he made a bitter face. It was obvious that this was the past. It was expressed more eloquently than any words, more obviously than seeing how the trees were young again and it was thanks to the scene spread immediately before Garfiel's eyes.  It was a scene of three women exchanging words in a place close to the Sanctuary's barrier. One had youthful features with long, pink hair Ryuzu. Another was ten years of age, give or take, and she was a girl with delicate, silky, beautiful golden hair his older sister, Frederica. And standing facing the two of them was a woman with golden hair in a triple braid, her eyes downcast with a gentle look on her face. She was holding a young child against her chest. \" M-Mom.\" The sight of his mother and Garfiel's younger self made a weak voice trickle out of his throat. However, the tiny voice with which he called his mother did not reach, failing to affect the scene in any way. Of course it didn't. No one could change or interfere with the past. *** As Garfiel trembled and stood rooted to the spot, his mother and Ryuzu exchanged words. And yet, the contents of the words and the reactions to those words nothing reached Garfiel at all. Ryuzu's sense of loneliness, Frederica's feelings as she held back tears, the thoughts of their weakly smiling, seemingly conflicted mother, or even his innocently smiling, idiotic younger self none of it was conveyed to him, for this was Garfiel's memory of the time. The conversation could not be replayed, because the young Garfiel had no memory of it. The silent projection repeated itself over and over, as if to rub in that he was powerless and far too late. \"...Either way, no doubtin' it was a stupid argument in the first place.\" Considering what happened afterward, he could guess what they were talking about. His mother was trying to abandon the forest to go to the outside world, and Ryuzu and Frederica were trying to stop her. Garfiel was the only one with a blissfully ignorant look, thinking only of his happiness at being embraced by his mother. Youth was his excuse for not realizing he was watching his mother go off to her death  \" !! You shitty brat!!\" Seeing the smile on his younger self's face, Garfiel angrily thrust his claws forward. He wanted to rip the guy to shreds his past self that was ignorant and powerless to do anything but watch. And yet, his claws passed right through the young child, and right through the arms of the mother who held him. He stomped the ground, trying to send it flying as if to kill off his past. The blessing did not activate.  He could not interfere with the past. That was the absolute rule of the Trial. \"Then...then why?! Why show me this scene, damn it?!!\" What Trial? What past? What Witch of Greed testing ground? Nothing changed. Nothing could change. His mother was dead. He was weak, able to save nothing. Nothing. Was that just how it was? Was this all there was to the world? Was the Trial there to teach him that? *** He went down on one knee. The actresses playing out the tragedy of the past did not notice Garfiel kneeling. He'd come to gaze directly at his never-ending regrets, digging into his wound from ten years prior and making it bleed. Was this fine? Was this to be the conclusion of his challenging the Trial after being kicked around by the girl he yearned for? \"No...\" He clenched his teeth so much that they creaked. Glaring at the soil, Garfiel's"}, {"text": "desires trickled out from his lips. No. No. No, no, no. He would not have it end like this.  After all, Garfiel had hoped that something would change, that something would change him. He knew it was convenient talk, but Garfiel had hoped. Having held for ten years that never changing was right, he'd hoped for a change, for turning over a new leaf. After all, a powerless man had shouted it to him. A man strong enough to defeat even him had shouted. The past. The barrier. The Sanctuary. His family. Just like them, he stood still, never changing. Yet, even though he stood still, never changing, it wasn't over.  The guy said it, didn't he? If he wished I want to start, he was free to start again. \"Then...!\" \" You are leaving no matter what?\" Abruptly, as Garfiel leaned down, a familiar voice struck his ears. However, by rights, it was a voice he should not have heard. It was a voice from the past, one that surely could not reach him. \"Yes, I shall go. Though, it shall cause you a great deal of trouble, Lady Ryuzu...\" \"I do not particularly mind. The issue is how these children feel.\" Words were exchanged between family he was used to hearing from, and family he was not. Ryuzu wore a grudging look as his mother spoke to her. For as long as he could remember, it was the first time he had heard his mother's voice. Drawing in his breath, Garfiel's thoughts were stolen what was unfolding. Gazing lovingly at the Garfiel in her arms, his mother gently rocked his body. Gazing up at that same mother, Frederica grasped the hem of her skirt and wrung out her voice. \"M-Mother...I I...\" \"I am sorry, Fuu. I'm sure I will make you worry a great deal, too.\" \"That's fine. I am all right...but I feel sorry for Garf.\" \"I want to go together, but your Mommy is a klutz, so I am sure it would be very hard for Gar. Fuu, though you are Mommy's child, you are very responsible, so please.\" Lonely as she felt, Frederica was dutifully seeing their mother off. For the first time, Garfiel learned that his older sister had agreed with his mother leaving the Sanctuary. For her part, Ryuzu embraced the trembling Frederica's shoulders, respecting her will. \"Give these to both of them. One to Fuu and one to Gar.\" Their mother took off the two necklaces that hung from her own neck. Both of them had blue, inlaid crystals hanging from them. It had nothing to do with qualifications as an Apostle or anything of the sort. She simply wore them because they were pretty. And because she loved pretty things, she handed them to her adorable son and daughter as gifts. That was all it was. That was all it took for Garfiel to never, ever let go of his stone. \"Gar, your mommy is heading out now.\" As she addressed him, Garfiel's mother lifted up the necklace and smiled toward him. His mother's resolve unbeknownst to him, the little child innocently smiled. His mother gently kissed him on his forehead. She'd kissed him on the same part of his forehead where his scar now was. \"I'm sure I will bring your father back. Wait for me until then, yes?\" *** Her eyes were filled with kindness and love, her words overflowing with sympathy. Then, finally, she handed the young Garfiel over to Ryuzu. Firmly embracing Garfiel's body, Ryuzu nodded and smiled to his mother. From there, his mother and Frederica embraced each other; she kissed her beloved daughter's forehead in the same manner she had her son's. Garfiel slumped to the ground, gazing at that in a daze.  What was happening? What was this scene? Whose memory was this? The Trial of the past he'd seen ten years prior, when he knew nothing about anything, was more irredeemable than this, wasn't it? It was a memory of despair that bit into his very flesh, wasn't it? After all, his own mother had abandoned him and his older sister, leaving in search of her own happiness, hadn't she? She cast away the lives that inconvenienced hers, walking toward a life of her own. Now everything, everything, had turned on its head, wasn't it? \"Mother loved us. She loved me, and she loved you.\" Reflexively, Garfiel lifted his face toward the voice that was directed toward him just then. It was his young older sister who had spoken to the kneeling Garfiel. Staring at him with the same jade eyes as his, the past that Garfiel could supposedly never interfere with was staring right through him. The world had come to a halt; so, too, his mother, Ryuzu, and his younger self. That left only his older sister, and the current him. In that stopped world, his older sister inclined her head, posing Garfiel a question. \"Mother left the Sanctuary for the sake of her family. Are you dissatisfied with this?\" \"D-don't mess with me like this! What's up with telling me she loved me?! What are you tryin' to do to...?\" \"I suppose this would be easier on you if she did not love you.\" The young Frederica spoke to Garfiel, whose voice was caught, as if pitying him. The difference in their heights was literally that of an adult compared with a child. And yet, regardless of his sister's physical height, she mercilessly showered words unto her troublesome younger brother. \"If you think love goes only one way, you can justify your own scars.\" \"You're wrong...!\" \"If you come to know you both love and are loved...that leaves you unable to justify your choice to remain in the Sanctuary, does it not?\" \"No!! No, no!! You...you don't even know nothin' about...what happened to Mom next!\" \" How could I not know?\" Garfiel, shouting as he gave in to anger, instantly lost his voice as if impaled by ice. Frederica hardened her young cheeks, her expression holding back tears as she stared at Garfiel.  What was his big sister telling him that moment? Was she saying she knew? \"Of course I would know. If Mother was visited by misfortune immediately after distancing herself from the Sanctuary...of course I would not fail to hear of it.\" \"Then...then why...?!\" \"Surely, you understand why I would not tell you that at such a young age? Garf. You are not a child anymore, so...\" Frederica knew what had happened to his mother. Ryuzu and the other residents likely knew as well. Only the young Garfiel, persistent in his youthful ways, did not know. If he had not seen it in the tomb's Trial, he likely still would not know, even to that very moment  \"Really, you remembered that Mother loved you, didn't you?\" Garfiel had become obstinate in order to trample many feelings underfoot. \"Your forehead wound you did that to yourself so you could forget Mother's kiss, to act like it never happened, didn't you?\" The white scar on his forehead a wound he did not have when his mother held his younger self. The wound had happened in the immediate aftermath of his first Trial. Knowing his mother had died, Garfiel fell into a panic, bashing his head against both wall and floor to carve an indelible wound. His wound was his proof of innocence.  It allowed him to forget and distort his mother's feelings, and so feel sorry for himself. \" The past...is ending, isn't it?\" Frederica murmured. Before he realized it, the contours of the world of the past were growing indistinct, gradually losing their shape. The past was ending. Did the end of his visit to the Trial mean some kind of results had been achieved? \"Wait. Please, wait...\" But that moment, it was all the same to him. All he wished from the vanishing, collapsing world was for his slowly fading mother, Ryuzu, and his young older sister not to go. \"What...should I do?\" \"Goodness...must you rely on a tiny older sister like me to arrive at an answer?\" \"I know it's pathetic! But, Sis, you're the only one I can count on. Hey, tell me... Sis, why'd you go outside? Should I go outside, t...\" \"Garf, what do you want to do?\" Frederica interrupted her pathetic younger brother, who wanted to hold her hand. For a second, Garfiel was at a loss for words. He wasn't talking about what he wanted to do. That moment, he wanted to hear a response, a compass needle pointing to what he should want to do. \"Garf, what do you want to do?\" As her younger brother prevaricated, the older sister gave him an exasperated, benevolent smile, repeating the same question. That was why Garfiel drew in his breath, and... \"I want to be wanted.\" \"Who do you want to want you?\" \"I want...I want to be wanted by people who need me.\" \"Why do you think that way?\" \"Because they...they helped me remember.\" His older sister did not speak the words Remember what? But her jade eyes, the same as his, posed the question more eloquently than any words could. \" That my mother loved me.\"  The next instant, the world of dreams faded into white. The past, and his family, receded, vanishing into the ether. 5 A mere hour had passed since they had seen Garfiel off to challenge the Trial. During that time, Subaru and the others remained seated in front of the tomb, tensely continuing to await his return. \"If he breaks his promise and destroys the tomb, I am not sure what we are going to...gyafnn!\" As Otto made that statement, intending to ease the tension but failing to read the mood, Ram bluntly sent him flying with her shoe. Fortunately, the luckless Otto's worries ended then and there. \"...Young Gar!\" The loud shout came from Shima who was there as part of Team Ryuzu, watching over the tomb. After the battle with Garfiel concluded, Subaru used the time spent waiting to give a shout out via the crystal, getting the group to meet back together there. That same Shima had rendezvoused with Ryuzu Derma, the current Ryuzu. Emilia, unfamiliar with the circumstances, was surprised to see two Ryuzus in one place. To wit... \"So is Miss Shima Miss Ryuzu's older sister or younger sister?\" That being her level of comprehension of the matter, a detailed explanation would have to wait until after various things were settled. Either way, Shima's voice made everyone present look at the tomb.  There, at its entrance, stood Garfiel Tinzel, having returned by coming through the corridor. \"He's...\" Garfiel, eyes narrowed as he bathed in the wind of the Sanctuary, showed no sign of being flustered. To Subaru, his face gave off the impression of someone who'd cast some kind of burden aside. \"Hah!\" With his face remaining like that, Garfiel leaped from the top of the stone steps toward the grassy field. Then, he landed in front of Subaru and the others no, in front of his two grandmothers, Ryuzu and Shima. Standing up, Garfiel looked from one to the other. One was a grandmother he had spent a great deal of time with; the other was a grandmother he considered the savior of his life. \"Y-Young Gar. I...we, ah...\" \"Don't make faces that don't suit ya, old hags... Sorry to make ya worry.\" \"Young Gar.\" \"Still, I gotta say, I'm used to different old hags with the same face standin' next to the others, but I sure ain't used to the same two old hags standin' next to each other.\" As the grandmothers stood side by side, Garfiel spoke quite bluntly as he simultaneously put his hands on both their heads. His hands made both Ryuzu and Shima go stiff. However, with faces ready to break into tears, they accepted his hands nonetheless. Their family relationship was a complicated one. That was particularly true because the \"First Four,\" all the Ryuzus, were one and the same grandmother from Garfiel's"}, {"text": "perspective. It was a difficult issue with no easy answer. But in the moment that he watched the three of them, Subaru thought, Might not need to worry about them after all. \"Garf, how was it?\" Gazing at the exchange between that family, Ram clutched her own elbows as she posed Garfiel that question. In the end, it was Ram who'd given his back the final push toward the Trial. Her words brought a tiny growl out of Garfiel. \"Way my eyes see it, ain't no results to celebrate. Felt more like, wha, that's it?\" \"That sounds like an impression from a proud middle school shoplifter... But you did it?\" \" Far as I'm concerned, it's a clean break.\" Responding to Subaru thus, Garfiel made a deep exhale from his nostrils. Those words made everyone present draw in their breaths for a moment, but different deep sentiments immediately poured out. In other words, inside the Trial, Garfiel had come to terms with his own past. This was proof not only that he had passed the Trial, but that the Sanctuary was one step closer to liberation. \"So how about you take that momentum into the two Trials left...\" \"Don't mess with me.  And that ain't my role, is it?\" \"Yes, that's right. What comes after is my job. I won't have anyone go and snatch it away.\" Clicking his tongue, Garfiel gave Emilia a nod of his chin. Accepting this, Emilia puffed out her chest at the torch passing to her. The firmness of her enthusiasm made Subaru slacken his cheeks. Then, to that very Subaru, Garfiel went \"Ahh\" toward him, awkwardly scratching his cheek. \"Besides that...the hell is this?\" \"Is what? This touchy-feely stuff doesn't suit your character at all. You're clearly a zero ingenuity, muscle-brain type, so just be a barbarian about it.\" \"Hey, I know ya makin' fun of me with that. Ya askin' fer...nah, that ain't what I wanna say.\" He began to lose his temper, but Garfiel lowered his arm without doing a thing. Subaru tilted his head at the atypical action. In his stead, all by herself, Ram made a little smile with an air of exasperation. \"Garf.\" Then she gave Garfiel a gentle little poke in the vicinity of his hip. In the face of Ram's lethal attack, Garfiel exhaled in apparent surrender. \"Me, I probably...accepted what was in the Trial 'cause of you. Thanks.\" \"...Did you just say thanks?\" \"I ain't sayin' it twice! Just, it made me remember somethin' important. That's why...aw, crap!\" Perhaps both his anger and embarrassment had risen during the time he spoke, for Garfiel bared his fangs. Then he thrust a finger toward Subaru with so much force, it seemed he might bite Subaru's head off. \"Listen here, 'kay? Yeah, I lost! The Trial's results changed, too! But that sure don't mean everything comin' out of ya is right! The proof is in what happens from here, or else! If you open this place up and bad stuff happens to the old hags, no mercy!!\" \"R-right. Of course, that's what we...\" \"I'm sayin', I'll watch with my own eyes whether ya jerks are all talk! I'm seein' this through to the bitter end, ya hear?!  So ya better get this done right, General!!\" *** Roughly shoving Subaru's shoulder away, Garfiel cut off his words and twisted his cheeks into a smile. His demeanor and the unexpected manner of address left Subaru taken aback. During that time, Garfiel instantly turned his back to Subaru, turning his feet toward his two grandmothers. \"Just now, Garfiel made a really red face.\" Having witnessed the same thing, Emilia spoke to Subaru, her voice infused with a giggle. If Emilia saw it, too, it was no hallucination. Of course, he hadn't heard the statement incorrectly, either. \"General...? The commander in chief here is Emilia-tan, not me...\" \"You're the one who smacked Garfiel down. It was a clash between men, right? Because he acknowledges that, you're Garfiel's general, Subaru. General that's so amazing.\" Emilia's honest, not-sarcastic-whatsoever praise made Subaru wryly twist his lips. As Subaru bore a conflicted look, Ram came right beside him, shrugging her shoulders. \"Just give in. He is in such high spirits, it cannot be helped. Let him do as he pleases.\" \"Incidentally, I'm waaaay weaker, so it's not like I set out to be some kind of accidental main charac \" \"It feels more like you have made a brother. You are the elder, so be magnanimous.\" \"Well, if it's like that, it is what it is......wait.\" Subaru raised a stop sign with his hands, having heard one portion of the statement he could not let pass. Gazing at the back of Garfiel's head with exasperation and affection in her eyes, Ram went \"What?\" and turned back toward Subaru. \"What did you say just now?\" \"Which part?\" \"The part where you said Garfiel's younger than I am?\" \"Ahh,\" went Ram, nodding as she seemed to grasp Subaru's question. \"This year, Garf finally turned fourteen.\" *** This information, which was opposite Subaru's expectations, left him aghast. Incredibly disturbed, he closed his eyes, turning his face up to the sky. He recalled a number of incidents. How Garfiel called him General, a variety of his statements and actions to date, and how Garfiel advocated himself as the World's Strongest Man all these began to sink in. And as they did, Subaru shouted: \" That makes him a delusional eighth grader!!\" 6 \"...Staying here too long will only dull your resolve, won't it?\" With Garfiel having come to terms with his internal conflict and Subaru having felt the impactful blow of his actual age, things had calmed down a notch whereupon Emilia, brushing off grass as she stood up, retightened that relaxed atmosphere with a single sentence. As Emilia gazed at the tomb with a sober visage, Subaru posed a question. \"Going, huh?\" \"Yes, I'll go... Just watch. I'll do as Garfiel did, then go farther.\" \"Sure you can do it...?\" \"I'll do it...because I'm not afraid of changing anymore.\" Her forceful reply was made possible from having experienced her argument with Subaru at the tomb. Garfiel clacked his fangs at the reply; Subaru's chest burned with pride. Then, as she began walking toward the tomb, Subaru lined up right by her side, heading as far as the entrance with her. He could not go inside and hold her hand from beside her. Therefore, he at least wanted to be with her until she set off. \"Hey, Subaru. About what happened inside the tomb...\" Abruptly, as they walked shoulder to shoulder, Emilia broached the subject like thus. Subaru imagined it was something related to the Trial. Thinking this, he waited for the words that might follow, but it was difficult to read what they might be. Emilia made little glances as she looked at Subaru uneasily. For some reason, her cheeks were faintly red. \"Emilia?\" \"I I mean, what happened inside the tomb! Y-you know, that...\" \"That...? Ah, er, um.\" Emilia's slightly anger-tinged words made Subaru's face redden as he recalled the preceding events. The grand developments that followed had washed away the initial momentum, but now that he thought back to that moment, he'd incredibly brash enough to spontaneously set him on fire from the facedown. He came to belatedly realize that having stolen her lips, practically biting them in the process, was a pretty big deal. \"Inside, er...Subaru, you and I...you know?\" \"A-ahh...yeah, we, ah, we did.\" \"I mean, I think it'll be really rough from here. But this is important, so...when the Trial and a lot of other things are taken care of, we'll have a nice, long talk, okay?\" Subaru nodded to Emilia's proposal, the motion making his head rattle from the already precarious state inside it. To Subaru, this was his first experience; to Emilia, it was probably her first experience, too. Having mutually slammed their feelings into each other, they had a mountain of things they needed to discuss. \"But you're pretty confident if you're talking about having a conversation after all this, Emilia-tan.\" \"Is this confidence? I wonder. It might be just bluff and bluster, you know?\" \"But that means you ain't ready to blow it, right? I'm sure it'll go well. I'm willing to bet on it.\" When Subaru raised up his thumb and flashed a grin, Emilia tilted her head, looking mystified. \"Bet? Bet what?\" \"Dating rights! If I win, I get a date with Emilia-tan, and if you win, you get a date with me.\" \"Yes, yes, whatever you say.\" Just like usual, Emilia elegantly parried Subaru's advances. By the time they finished bantering, the two reached the entrance to the tomb. The place of the Trial welcomed its challenger. The dimly lit corridor, which was filled by a pale light, invited Emilia within. If she continued forward, the Trial of the past awaited her. Despite this, Emilia smiled at Subaru, not tense at all. \"Well, I'm heading out for a bit.\" \"Come back soon. Watch out for carriages and strange men.\" \"Don't say foolish things.\" She shared a wry smile and after that, a lovely smile. Leaving this behind her, Emilia went into the tomb, vanishing from sight. The faint light that wrapped around the tomb did not reach the back of the corridor. Watching her back as she boldly strode away, Subaru brought his hands together once, going down on one knee as if to pray. From there, Subaru could do nothing. The rest was Emilia's battle alone. \"Now Giltirau takes one step... Gonna look less of a man with a worried face like that, General.\" \"Huh, it's easier to absorb those peculiar sayings when I know they're coming from an eighth grader. I had a phase like you, quoting all sorts of sayings from important people.\" As Subaru saw Emilia off, Garfiel came to the stone steps below. He stood beside Subaru, hesitating only slightly before chiming in. \"Hey, ah, General, I gotta apologize to ya for just a teeny tiny bit.\" \"Well, isn't that admirable of you? You can talk to your general about anything. It's embarrassing if you put it that way.\" The lack of defiance made Subaru scratch his cheek in a blushy manner. Then, Garfiel let out a heavy sigh. \"Well, I went inside, okay? So I was in the back there, too...\" \"Ahh, so you were.\" \"That's why I saw. The, uh, product of all the general's hard work.\" Garfiel prevaricated, finding it hard to put it into words. Subaru, not grasping what he was trying to say, made a questioning look. But he immediately realized it. He had a guess. His face turned deep red.  He saw it! He saw it, he saw it! He saw it!! \"N-nooooo...! I forgooot! I mean, I mean... I didn't expect you'd actually go into the tomb yourself...s-so, if you went in, you...aaaahhh!\" Covering his face with both hands, Subaru squirmed as he fell on the spot. Shame. Shame strong enough to want to die. Few were the souls who could live with so much shame. That moment, he detested Garfiel, perhaps hating him more than when they'd come to deadly blows. \"You glarin' at me like that puts me in a bind! ...But...my bad for seein' it. General, you're a huge stupid bastard, but I'm glad you're the general I lost to!\" \"Shaddap, forget you saw it! You can just pretend you didn't see it, damn it! You're not a little kid...wait, you are a little kid! Damn it all!!\" When he tried to call Garfiel a brat, Subaru immediately realized it was he who was at an overwhelming disadvantage, what with his soft spot in his opponent's grip. The resentful shout sent Garfiel bursting into laughter, slapping his knees. As he rested, exposed to lukewarm gazes, Subaru prayed for Emilia's good fortune, simultaneously praying that she would not notice the \"graffiti\" he had left behind. Now that someone else had seen them, those little love letters had become quite a farce. 7"}, {"text": " And of course, Subaru's second prayer went unanswered. \"...Subaru, you...idiot.\" Tense as she passed through the corridor, Emilia entered the stone room where the Trial was undertaken. She traced the faintly glowing stone walls with her finger as words trickled out of her in a giggly tone. After being so frightened, Emilia had fought her fear, challenging the tomb with resolve and determination in her breast. And yet, when Emilia arrived at the stone room in question, she was greeted by an unexpected sight. \"...I mean, this really is stupid.\" In contrast to her words, Emilia's expression softened, filling with affection.  Who could blame her? Anyone seeing it would surely have the same thought. The walls Emilia traced with her fingers had marks on them that they should not have had. Every single one of the four walls of that cramped, stonework room was buried in many, many markings. The shadows from the glow gave those marks tangible shape. Emilia touched her hand to them as her chest grew hot.  Carved into them were pictures, characters. Emilia was surrounded by many words, many feelings. The pictures were the adorable Pucks that Subaru had drawn many times before. The drawings of Puck had various expressions on them, and surrounding these were writings in I-script, as if they were written by little children. \"Hang in there, you can do it.\" \"Puck and I are both cheering you on.\" \"Once this is done, let's go on a date.\" \"I'm counting on you, Emilia.\" \"I love you. That's why I believe in you.\" \"Idiot...idiot, idiot, idiot... Subaru, you...dunderhead.\" Even though she had to challenge the Trial, even though painful, sad memories surely awaited her, his efforts to cheer her up nearly had her in tears. What a terrible person he was.  Something dawned on her. That moment, she understood. Since Emilia had come to this place two days prior, the only chance to engrave these characters and images was the night before. Subaru had taken the time. Subaru had distanced himself from Emilia's side during that time. And what he'd done during that time was the one thing which Subaru absolutely would not speak to her about.  What a very stupid thing to break a promise for. \" I am absolutely, absolutely not forgiving you until you apologize for this, you know.\" Adoringly touching the characters, she voiced her thoughts for the boy who had carved them. The next moment, she felt like her consciousness was being lulled to sleep and sensed the world's contours growing vague. The Trial was coming. The past she had feared so much was coming.  And yet, a smile remained on Emilia's lips. 8  Emilia did not understand if the experience of being invited to her past ought to be called a dream. Dreamlike might have been appropriate to describe sinking into the familiar forest in the innermost part of her memories and stepping into it with her own feet. Surrounded by tall trees, she felt the tranquil breeze and the warm soil beneath her soles as she breathed in deeply. This place, inside the Trial, was not the snowy landscape dotted by white-laden trees that loomed large in her memories. This place had not yet reached that point. That said, it was undoubtedly on the path that would arrive at the snowy landscape Emilia so deeply regretted. And then  \" My, there has been a flood of guests of late.\" *** Without a word, Emilia turned her gaze toward the person who had abruptly spoken so glibly. Deep in the forest reproduced from Emilia's memories, which was filled with the green scenery just as she remembered, one figure decidedly not from her past stood askew in the shadow of a tree. Leaning upon the trunk, the white-haired woman casually studied Emilia. There, clad in black clothing and bearing a face beautiful enough to bewitch any onlooker, stood Echidna, the Witch of Greed. When Emilia noticed the Witch's gaze, the latter smiled charmingly at her, slowly stepping out of the tree's shade and walking over. \"Truly, a flood of guests. Both guests who ought to be welcomed and guests who surely were not invited.\" As she walked over, Echidna turned a casual voice and a frigid gaze toward Emilia. This was no sarcasm; they were pure, unadulterated feelings of disgust and scorn. \"It's quite something for you to crawl back here after putting on such a shameful display. Even I am shocked at your audacity and refusal to quit.\" Her frigid black eyes both resembled those of the one closest to Emilia, and yet did not. This malice was directed not toward half-elves, but toward Emilia personally.  It was raw hostility. \"No matter how dejected and teary you are, you get to curry favor with a man who'll console you and forgive you. You defile my personal world over and over. Selfish in the extreme you are a loose woman, shameless and immoral.  What do you have to say about that, Witch's daughter?\" The sheer ferocity of her words would have torn the old Emilia's heart apart, utterly smashing it to pieces. Without mercy, without hesitation, the Witch hurled insults to whittle down Emilia's spirit. It was not the only reason she'd been broken by the Trial before, but her challenge began there. The Witch neither wanted Emilia to challenge the Trial, nor to overcome it. The Witch did not expect Emilia to overcome the Trial whatsoever.  Ahh, I see. Here, I have to do that thing Subaru told me to. Now she understood. It really was exactly like Subaru had told her. When throwing down the gauntlet, when forcing courage to well up from deep in her heart, she needed to be like Subaru Natsuki. \" My name is Emilia...just Emilia. The Freezing Witch who hails from the Great Elior Forest.\" Emilia could tell that naming herself rubbed the Witch the wrong way. Privately satisfied with that reaction, Emilia jabbed a finger toward the Witch, seemingly shooting right through her into the sky. \"Another Witch's malice will not affect me.  I am a troublesome woman like that.\" CHAPTER 1 *** 1  Memories came rushing back. The beginning felt far, far away. \" I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.\" A sobbing voice was apologizing. Tormented by sorrow, the voice begged for forgiveness out of an unendurable sense of guilt. \"Why?\" she recalled asking the voice. \" Because I left you all alone.\" \"You did?\" \" Because all this time, I couldn't find you.\" \"But I'm right here?\" She wanted to tell that tearful, grieving voice something. She wanted to explain there was no reason to say sorry or be so upset. That's why, in place of those things, there is something I want you to tell me. \"What's...your name?\" \"My name is...\" In the past, she had seen this dream over and over. The end of the dream was swallowed up by light; it was a dream she'd had over and over, time and time again, never hearing what came next  To her, knowing how that dream ended and finding her family was the beginning of everything.  But the memories that reappeared went even further into the past than those frozen bonds. Bit by bit, bit by bit, she retraced her steps, deeper and deeper into her past, which had been sealed away  2 Surrounded by tall trees, Emilia calmly advanced down an almost nonexistent path, carrying an unshakable sense that she'd been here before. Stepping across the carpet of grass, she took care to avoid the flowers hidden in the shadows of the trees as she pressed forward. Feeling the hard soil through the soles of her shoes, Emilia tilted her head in confusion. It was a mystifying feeling. After all, this was the inside of a dream, an imaginary world based on the recollections of a homeland that slept in Emilia's memories. \"But I can smell the wind here and feel the soil... Somehow, it's really mysterious, huh?\" *** \"Echidna? Hey, are you listening? ...Ah!\" Wondering why there was no reply, Emilia looked back to check on the woman. Turning around, she saw a beautiful Witch with voluminous white hair, lagging behind as she struggled to traverse the woods. As the Witch placed a hand on a tree, dragging the hem of her too-long skirt, Emilia rushed toward her. \"I'm sorry, are you all right? Did I walk a little too fast?\" \"Do you really think such a transparent display of sympathy would change my opinion of you? How utterly naive.\" The Witch Echidna lifted her face in response, brushing back her snow-white hair as she offered a blunt rebuke. Emilia puffed up her cheeks, annoyed by the snide attitude. \"Hey, is that how you talk to someone who's just worried about you? If your shoes aren't good for walking here, it might be better to go barefoot. The forest grass is soft, so you should be fine.\" \"...Could you be any more mistaken? Your concern is completely unnecessary. I merely entered the dream a tad too deeply. Adjusting it should only take a moment like so.\" \"Wow.\" Emilia had removed her shoes as a helpful demonstration, but Echidna simply flashed a cold smile. The Witch touched a nearby tree to show how her hand could now pass right through its thick trunk. In a similar fashion, her feet phased through the grassy ground that had given her such trouble earlier. Emilia's eyes went wide at this apparent violation of the laws of nature. \"Concerning your earlier, uncouth questions, referring to this as a dream world is nothing more than a figure of speech. To be precise, this is a dimension more accurately described as an alternate plane of existence that resides solely within the mind, replaying the memories of the person undertaking the Trial. Since it reproduces your experiences, is it not natural for this place to have color, shape, and taste?\" \"I don't really get it, but...does that mean if I go on a rampage, the forest will get messed up real bad?\" \"That is truly a thought befitting an uncivilized Witch. However, what you are imagining is impossible. Right now, you are a being half a step removed from this world, meaning you are unable to interfere on a level sufficient enough to affect it. Nor can you make contact with the people within the memory. Though, I suppose if you could, it would be a Trial in a different sense.\" \"Hmm... And what sense would that be?\" \"Instead of asking endless questions, why not try using your own head for a change? Or perhaps that is too much to ask of you, a spoiled child used to getting whatever you desire.\" Echidna snorted in a scornful manner as she phased out her presence more and slipped effortlessly through the forest. Even though she was being mocked for her ignorance, Emilia chided herself, because the Witch's words rang true. If she did nothing but ask questions, it was a sign she couldn't help but depend on others. She needed to do more thinking for herself  \"I thought about it, but I still don't understand. Could you tell me the answer?\" *** \"What's wrong? Does your stomach hurt?\" \"What a repulsive attitude... Besides him and my friends, you are probably the only one able to rouse my emotions to this extent, though they are distinctly feelings of displeasure.\" \"So even you have friends, Echidna. That's so nice,\" murmured Emilia, full of envy, causing Echidna to click her tongue in irritation. It didn't seem like she took that as a compliment. \" The regrets that might surface in the Trial are myriad, so numerous that attempting to classify them would be absurd.\" \"Huh? Oh right, got it.\" \"There are moments in life that become seeds of regret and take root in a person's heart. At the same time, they can be the bedrock of a relationship. The way to confront lingering regrets will change depending on such circumstances. There are some pasts that cannot be overcome without making connections"}, {"text": "and talking things over with another.\" \"...I see... So that's how it is.\" Emilia took Echidna's explanation to heart. It made sense that regrets couldn't be easily summed up in a nice, simple package. For instance, if someone's regret stemmed from a past argument, remaining on bad terms with whomever they argued with could become a source of agony. Even if people went through the same phenomenon, how they overcame their pasts varied depending on the individual. \"Mm, thank you...for the explanation...and for answering my question even though you hate me.\" \"The last thing I want is for you to mistake me for some kind of really good person, as you would put it. Nothing I have ever known before could come close to such humiliation. Answering your question is simply in my nature.\" \"Yeah, yeah.\" Echidna was being thorny and standoffish, but the fact that she replied at all meant Emilia didn't find it particularly hard to get along with her. Even if she hated Emilia, Emilia didn't hate Echidna. After all, Emilia hardly knew the Witch well enough to have such strong feelings one way or another. This incompatible pair advanced deeper and deeper into the forest that resided in Emilia's memories of her homeland. Emilia was certain that whatever lay ahead was linked to the regrets she continued to harbor. \"Do you remember that your previous Trial ended in a pathetic, agonizing defeat?\" \"I remember I was so useless that I can't even deny what you said.\" Refusing to walk side by side with Emilia, Echidna disparaged her from behind. This was the second time Emilia was challenging the Trial, but her previous attempt had failed so spectacularly that she had just wanted to hide her face in shame. The worst part was she couldn't even remember what exactly had gone wrong.  Emilia couldn't actually remember what she had seen in the previous Trial. \"I probably sealed away the memories I don't want to see. That must be why I can't remember them on my own. Even now...I'm still not ready to see them.\" \"So if you fail again, then it's just inevitable? What a cowardly thing to say.\" \"No, that's not what I meant. This...is where I start getting myself ready.\" Shaking her head in response to Echidna's condemnation, Emilia firmly refuted the claim that she was looking for an excuse. Those words made the Witch knit her brow. Right around the same time, the underbrush fell away as they slipped out of the woods they had been walking through for so long. Coming within view was a massive tree, larger than anything else in the Great Elior Forest  \" It's more than just an oversize tree, right? There's a door at the roots. Is something inside the hollow of the trunk?\" Setting her gaze upon that giant tree, Echidna astutely noticed there was something peculiar at the center of the tree's roots, which rose out of the ground. The hollow at the center of the giant tree was about as large as a decent-size room. The door at the entrance was firmly closed. It had a bolt on it, which could be used to keep it firmly shut from the outside. \"It seems as though someone really wants to keep whatever's inside locked away.\" \"...Echidna...do you know something?\" \"Such a vague question is nothing but a bother. What could you possibly be referring to?\" Emilia stared at her with upturned eyes, but Echidna simply shrugged, her face professing ignorance. Did she really have no idea, or did she know what was going on here after all? Probably the latter, thought Emilia. \"This is the Princess Room it's where they always made me play when I was very young.\" The moment she described the place aloud, vivid memories resurfaced. This was a special place where Emilia, who was treated like a princess in this forest, could play by herself in safety. She had been brought here many, many times and spent so, so much time here alone. \"Oh, that's right; I can't touch the door. Can I just pass right through it?\" \"Yes, because of how the world perceives you. Of course, a person lacking flexibility in her thinking might...\" \"Wow, it's true. I passed right through... Coming, Echidna?\" *** Echidna narrowed her eyes in silence at the sight of Emilia phasing halfway through the door. The Witch seemed dour, but it also seemed she had no intention of explaining why. Deciding to move on, Emilia crept through the door ahead of her. As she entered the interior, she spotted the tree's occupants in the thin, diaphanous light. \"Ah...\" Before her were an adult and a child staring at each other, engaged in conversation. The instant she caught sight of their violet eyes, Emilia made a slight sound in her throat. The young girl turned toward the entrance had long silver-colored hair and round violet eyes. Recognizing that face from her memories, Emilia instantly grasped that this was her own past self.  Emilia had long since stopped looking into mirrors. Her mental image of herself had never changed in all that time, even to the present day. \"I presume that child is you. Even though she knows nothing of what's to come, her carefree face still makes me want to sigh.\" \"Don't start complaining about my younger self, too. Besides, right now, there's someone else...\" More important than Echidna's insults more important than running into her young self was the other person who was in the room. *** Drawing in her breath, Emilia finally circled around the figure. Then she looked squarely at the person speaking to her younger self at an elf with an elegant appearance and ears a little longer than a human being's. Just like Emilia, the woman had silver-colored hair and violet eyes. However, she'd cut her glistening silver hair short for convenience, and her beautiful, gemstone eyes were almond-shaped and sharp. Even though the woman always described herself as grotesque, Emilia really liked the way she looked. She was gallant and awe-inspiring. Emilia's memories of her were so striking that it almost hurt. After all, this person was  \" My mother, Fortuna.\" This was the woman who had lived with Emilia in the Great Elior Forest as her surrogate mother. At the very least, to Emilia, she was family as much as any real mother could be. ***  That instant, a memory that had been resting in the depths of oblivion gently floated to the surface. It was a memory of what she and her mother had been speaking about in the Princess Room at that time. 3 \" Emilia, I have something very important I need to do right now, so behave yourself in here, okay?\" Yes, young Emilia was enormously upset over being cooped up in that Princess Room. From time to time, the adults of the elven settlement in the Great Elior Forest would set out to take care of some important business, leaving Emilia behind. The same grown-ups who normally doted on Emilia were absolutely unwilling to compromise on this every time it came up.  It was important to uphold your word, respect others, and honor that which had been decided. These were the precepts that Emilia had been taught by her mother figure, Fortuna. Mother figure was a rather roundabout turn of phrase, but it was none other than Fortuna herself who always described their relationship that way, persistently insisting she was nothing more than a replacement. \"I'm the younger sister of your father, Emilia. My brother...your father, and your mother are very busy, so they can't be together with you right now. That's why they trusted me to take good care of you.\" That was how Fortuna had first explained it. The initial impact Emilia felt at the time was difficult to forget. But it wasn't because she felt hurt or abandoned. In fact, it was the exact opposite she was ecstatic. Whatever the facts, Fortuna was Emilia's mother as far as she was concerned. And yet, she supposedly had another mother. Most people lived with one father and just one mother. Emilia had two it surprised her that something so happy could happen. \"You get your silver hair from my brother, huh. It seems this eye color of ours runs in the family as well... But that gentle face comes from your mother. Everyone on my side of the family has a foul look in their eyes.\" \"...But I really like your eyes.\" Fortuna's eyes were as sharp as a beast's fang. From time to time, Emilia pushed her over the edge by breaking one rule or another, and those eyes would become even fiercer. Whenever that happened, Emilia trembled with fear. Those stormy moments aside, Emilia thought Fortuna was an ideal mother. She found even that piercing gaze lovely and heartwarming. As a mother, Fortuna was strict but gentle. Even her strictness had a soft touch to it. \"I have plenty I really regret. I should have been kinder to a lot of people. If only I'd thought that way sooner, I probably wouldn't have relied on my brother to the very end.\" When she emphasized the word really by force of habit, a very lonely expression crossed Fortuna's face. It was because this impression stayed with Emilia so very strongly that she deliberately mimicked her mother's mannerisms years later. She chose to use them not when she was sad but when she was happy and when she was smiling. Not wanting her mother, who she loved so much, to bear burdens like sadness and loneliness, Emilia carried a childish hope that associating Fortuna's favorite phrase with good memories would help paint over all the bad ones. \"Grrr... Boooring.\" Returning to the earlier scene, young Emilia had been left behind all alone in the Princess Room. The adults adored Emilia as if she were an exquisite butterfly or a flower. They spared little expense in their attempts to keep her entertained, filling the Princess Room with picture books, dolls, and a variety of drawing materials. Even so, boredom was boredom Emilia was not fond of spending time in this room. \"And Mom is the one always telling me it's wrong to lie and hide things, isn't she?\" Adults weren't fair. They would teach children one rule, and then using this or that excuse, they would turn around and immediately break it themselves. She wanted to go and see what game they were playing and join in if she could. But what would put a stop to the wish in Emilia's thoughts was that her mother always came back for her when she waited like a good girl. Still... \"I want to go outside...\" Her muted words were not meant for any other person; she was merely muttering her wish aloud. But the desire Emilia had murmured reached not the adults but something else instead. *** In the corner of the room, a pale glow abruptly floated upward. It was a flickering, fleeting, faint light, and Emilia gaped at its sudden appearance. As the phosphorescent glow stole Emilia's gaze, it cut across the room, sinking into the wall as it vanished. \"No fair! Wait! Wait!\" Youthful jealousy won over surprise. Pattering toward the corner of the room, Emilia gingerly touched the wall that had absorbed the light. She felt a little uneasy, but her inquisitiveness handily won out. \"Ah!\" Emilia discovered a little hole in the wall that her arm could easily slip into. There was no mistaking that this was how the light had slipped outside. It seemed like if she tried hard enough, she could widen that hole, which was a gap created by the tree roots entwined together at that spot. \"Ngh \" With her arm still thrust into the hole, Emilia suddenly entertained a rather large worry. The entrance to the Princess Room had been bolted shut and would absolutely not open until Fortuna returned. In other words, to Emilia, this hole could become her escape route to freedom. However, her"}, {"text": "mother had told her to wait in the room no matter what. Her heart ferociously swung between her personal curiosity and her mother's admonition. \"...Well, Mom and the other grown-ups are doing something secret, too, so that makes us even.\" In the end, with this one final excuse, Emilia inserted her body into the gap between the tree roots. She was small, but the gap was even smaller. Forcing herself into the tiny space, she got her face and clothes dirty with mud as she somehow managed to crawl her way outside the hollow of the tree. \" Ah.\" As Emilia felt the wind on her cheek, her eyes glimmered with an odd sense of achievement. Even though she'd just broken a rule, she wanted to go straight to Fortuna that very moment and brag, saying, Eh-heh-heh, I did it! Of course, if she did that, the scolding she'd get would be akin to a firestorm, so Emilia stopped herself just short of rushing out. It was a close call. With a light step, Emilia broke into a happy run, leaving the Princess Room in the dust. To Emilia, this forest was her backyard. Somehow, she simply knew where Fortuna and the other adults were located. In no time at all, Emilia found the adults, who had gathered in a forest glade. Mixed in with the adults was Archi, the next youngest after Emilia. The elven boy, who was much like an older brother to Emilia, was just as guilty as the adults for leaving Emilia out despite being a kid himself. It was practically unforgiveable. But what caught her attention even more than the traitorous Archi was the group of individuals in the clearing wearing black clothing they were guests unfamiliar to Emilia. \"I'll be sneaky...\" Aware she was doing something bad, Emilia opted to hide and peek from behind cover. To avoid being seen by anyone in the clearing, Emilia selected a large tree, nimbly leaping up and climbing its branches. Tree-climbing was her specialty, something that constantly worried Archi and the others. \" You always, always do so much to take care of us like this.\" Emilia heard a voice at virtually the same moment she lay upon a large tree branch. From her vantage point, she could see all the elves from the settlement had gathered in the glade. Excluding Emilia, the population was around fifty people total. In contrast, the people in black numbered fewer, at around twenty. The representatives from each respective side were discussing something right in the center of the glade. The elven representative, Fortuna, seemed like she was trying to hide something. Having spoken up first, she continued keeping a firm grip on the conversation thereafter. \"These are things that are difficult to obtain in the forest, so everyone is grateful.\" \"We happily accept your kind words. Indeed, it pains me to say that this is the only way in which we can provide any support. Lady Fortuna, we always place such a burden upon you.\" \"That goes for both of us, Geuse.\" With but the tiniest flutter of her long ears, Emilia strained to pick up the pieces of the conversation flitting between Fortuna and the other speaker. Even though she could hear them, she did not really understand the meaning of their words, but somehow, she detected affection in her mother's pained smile. Her mother's affection was for the tall man in the black robe, whom she called Geuse. The robe was a loose fit, but Emilia could instantly tell that his physique was supple and honed. Elves were often slender, so this was very new to her. Under his coiffed green hair was a watchful face, but his downcast eyes professed the deep humility he held while addressing Fortuna. The sight made Emilia proud. Her mother was incredible enough to make such a large man curry her favor. \"Also, as I must confirm each time...is the seal intact?\" Emilia had puffed her chest in a strange sense of pride, but the man's next words blew that all away. She could sense the weighty, complex emotions brimming in the man's voice. \"I'd like to joke that you worry too much, but I don't really feel like laughing. It's all right, though; the seal is holding firm with no change whatsoever. No matter what happens, I can't let it be lifted for even a moment I would never be able to look my brother or sister in the eye otherwise.\" \"About your older brother and his spouse...\" \"It's fine. I understand. It's just...I will absolutely never forget the weight of the responsibility entrusted to me. I don't intend to ever abandon it, nor fulfill it half-heartedly. The same goes for you, right?\" \"I... This is the only thing I have. My sense of duty and responsibility surely differs from yours, Lady Fortuna. Compulsion, lingering regrets... I cling to them almost obsessively. That is all.\" When Geuse flashed an empty smile, Fortuna lowered her eyes, her expression pained. Behind the pair, the other adults were working to unload some baggage from the wagons that the black robes had apparently brought with them. From a distance, the cargo appeared to be clothing, foodstuffs, books, and so forth. Everything that was hard to find in a forest. \"Thanks to the blessings of the spirits, the changing of the seasons has little effect upon this forest, but even so, getting clothes and books is a really big help. We're grateful as always.\" \"By rights, your people deserve far better than this. It is not proper that you have been forced to live in such an inconvenient place like this.\" \"Come on don't talk like that. We love the forest, you know.\" Fortuna softly smiled as she spoke those words with a joking tone. Her kind expression carved a thin smile onto Geuse's lips. For a while, a gentle atmosphere seemed to surround the pair  \" Lady Fortuna, the unloading is complete. I would like to thank all the disciples.\" \"Yes, thank you, Archi.\" The one who offered the report was a youth who had his golden hair tied back in a triple braid. Bowing once to Fortuna, this young elf, who was clad in a white garment, turned to face Geuse. \"Lord Archbishop, on behalf of everyone in the forest, you have our thanks for always supporting us.\" \"This is the least I could do. I see that you have become a bit more reliable, Master Archi.\" \"The next Guardian cannot let himself be treated as a child forever.\" Their exchange contained respect but also envy. The pair didn't seem very friendly, considering how distantly they addressed each other. \"Do remain in good health, for the sake of the forest, the seal, yourself, and your family as well.\" Using these words as Archi's send-off, Geuse reluctantly gave the glade one final glance and bowed. Those dressed in black followed suit. Then Archi, Fortuna, and all the other adults touched a hand to their chests and closed their eyes, an elven gesture that conveyed their respect. At the end of that exchange, the black-clothed visitors began to lead the wagons out of the glade  \"Right, one last thing is Lady Emilia in good health?\" *** Geuse, on the verge of leaving, paused to ask a question that practically brought Emilia's heart to a stop. She'd never imagined her name would suddenly appear at a time like this. She hurriedly covered her mouth, holding back a yelp. \"Don't worry. Emilia is a lively kid, and she's growing up to be a really good girl. Such a good girl is almost wasted on us... But I'm sorry. I cannot allow her to meet you yet.\" \"It is fine. I wish for nothing more. If Lady Emilia is being raised well, that is enough. A sinner such as I cannot hope for anything greater than this.\" This was not merely a show of humility. It was obvious the man's voice carried a deep sense of shame and self-reproach toward himself. As Geuse lowered his eyes, Fortuna did not offer any cheap words of consolation. He nodded, as if her silence was a form of salvation. \" Lord Archbishop Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, are you ready?\" Addressed by a single man at the very end of the train of departing wagons, Geuse warmly spread his arms wide. \"Yes, this is sufficient. Now, let us grave sinners depart. Lady Fortuna, I shall see you again soon.\" \"...Even if no one else says it, we are grateful to all of you. I really mean it.\" \"Surely, it is for those words alone that I have given myself over to a century of anguish.\" Leaving after one last pleasant smile, Geuse set off from the glade. Watching them go until they were no longer in sight, Fortuna closed her eyes but once, exhaling deeply. \"Lady Fortuna, are you tired? If this is hard on you, we can handle the rest from...\" \"...How cheeky of you. Don't go treating me like an old woman just yet. I may be older than someone like you, who's young through and through, but I'm still very much in my prime.\" \"I I wouldn't dare! It's simply that the role of Guardian must be very arduous...\" Archi flew into a panic, his face going pale at the thought that his attempt to be considerate might have been misunderstood. However, once Fortuna burst into laughter, even the young boy realized she was just making fun of him. \"No matter how capable you are, you're so gullible that I'm worried you might not cut it as Guardian. You have to be really dependable if I'm going to entrust my precious treasure to you.\" \"P-please do not joke about that, Lady Fortuna...\" \"Yes, yes, sorry. But can I take you up on your offer and leave this to you? I'm rather certain I have a very bored princess who I need to let out soon.\" *** The various questions Emilia had been mulling over up to that point were all blown away by Fortuna's words. Emilia almost tumbled down as she leaped from the tree, hurrying back to the Princess Room. Somehow, she used the same gap she'd escaped from to roll her way into the room. All good, she thought as she rose, but she immediately despaired when she realized her entire outfit was all muddy, like that of a child who'd been playing outside. \"What should I do, what should I do, what should I do...?!\" Initially, she thought she might be forgiven if she apologized. However, now that she'd eavesdropped on the conversation in the glade, she no longer thought it was possible. She was almost certain Fortuna hadn't wanted her to hear that conversation. If Fortuna came to hate her, Emilia would be ruined. It would be the end of the world. If she didn't at least hide the scrapes on her body, Fortuna would realize right away. She was afraid of even sinking into the bath with all these scratches. \"Eh...?\" If I don't do something soon... Her mind was racing, but then Emilia saw something that interrupted her frantic thoughts; the pale, phosphorescent glow had come once more. This was the same light that had masterminded Emilia's escape plan. Emilia was perplexed when it flickered and swayed as it moved closer. Then the light's luminosity gradually grew stronger  \" Amazing.\" When Emilia touched the pale light, she felt warm as the scrapes on her body were healed. In several seconds, the marks were gone without a trace. Now, if she could only do something about the muddy clothes, she'd be all right. Turning over a pot filled with ink for drawing, she thoroughly marred the clothes she wore, staining them black. Her clothes were so dirty that even a wash wouldn't clean them completely; if she smeared her clothes so that the mud was no longer obvious, then  \" Emilia, are you awake?\" \"Myauh! I-I'm awake! I'm awake, Mom! B-but...\" \"Hmm? Why are you in such a hurry...?"}, {"text": "Huh?\" The bolt opened audibly outside, after which Fortuna poked her head in through the open door. Fortuna had a gentle smile on her face, but she grimaced the moment she entered the room. \"It really smells of ink in here... What happened?\" \"Errr...I-I'm sorry! I spilled the pot for drawing all over the place...\" \"This is a mess, all right...\" Fortuna put a hand to her forehead at the inky scent filling the room and the spilled pot, which had rolled onto its side. However, though first seemingly at a loss, she eventually smiled at Emilia. \"Well, there's no use crying about it now. We need to get you out of that outfit and wash the ink off you. As for a change of clothes...ahhh, here we are. If I didn't find any, I'd have to take a naked Emilia back home with me.\" \"Um, Mom, I...\" \"Oh, you're such a worrywart, Emilia. You don't have to be so scared. It's not like you did it on purpose, so of course I'm not angry with you. More importantly, you're not hurt, are you?\" Walking over, Fortuna stripped away all the dirty clothes off Emilia. Then, after confirming her daughter had no noticeable injuries, the mother embraced her beloved daughter. \"Mom?\" \"Mm, it's nothing. It's just, I really...wanted to see you, Emilia.\" Fortuna continued to embrace Emilia like that as she brought her cheek close. Normally, Fortuna never said such things that would make herself blush, which Emilia found so rare; she thought her mother seemed very forlorn. Hence  \"...How cheeky.\" Fortuna opened her eyes a crack and murmured as Emilia, who was in her embrace, stroked her short silver hair. However, she did not tell her to stop. The mother quietly accepted the feeling of her daughter's palm stroking her. Gently, gently, Emilia continued stroking the head of her beloved mother. \"Hey, Emilia.\" \"...Mm?\" \" I love you.\" There were many things she wanted to ask, many things she wanted to know.  But at that moment, the young Emilia thought hearing that one phrase from her mother was plenty. 4 \"I imagine your memories and the emotional scenes that had been locked away at the bottom of your heart are starting to overlap with each other little by little, yes?\" It was Echidna who spoke in this manner as she gazed at the mother-and-daughter pair embracing each other in the center of the Princess Room. There was no malice in this simple question. Emilia thought it was rather unexpected. \"I'm so surprised. I thought for sure you'd say much pricklier things about my younger self and my mother.\" \"...Even if one thinks such things, 'tis not recommended to actually convey them to others. As it is, my already low opinion of you is about to plunge even further.\" \"Ah, that's all right. Don't worry. I wouldn't say anything like this to anyone but you, Echidna.\" \"...For better or worse, you seem to be gradually getting influenced ever more strongly by him.\" \"Really? Thank you.\" Echidna was twisting her lips in disgust. But understanding the him she indicated meant Subaru Natsuki, Emilia puffed her chest out just a tiny bit. \" Then again, your impudence seems more an issue of your nature than anything you might have picked up from that boy. I have become quite sure of this after watching the actions your younger self was so proud of.\" \"That's... I kind of can't excuse the way I behaved, either, but...\" Echidna's assertion made Emilia reflect on her younger self with the benefit of hindsight. She'd broken a rule, slipped out of the room, eavesdropped on a conversation between adults, and had even contrived a trick to cover up the deed. \"The vulgarity of your character has such incredibly deep roots. Even with a fine mother showering you with love, you were incorrigible.\" \"...Thank you for half of that.\" She was glad to hear Fortuna being praised as a good mother. Yes, Mom was splendid. Emilia revered her, simultaneously recalling those feelings of love while despairing over her own obvious shortcomings. And those weren't the only things she remembered. \"Geuse and Fairy...\" Lowering her eyes, Emilia murmured the two names that had played such key roles in her past. One was the green-haired man in the glade, Geuse. The other one was  \"The lesser spirit of healing that taught you about the gap in the wall... How ironic that you called it a fairy.\" Echidna's teasing statement also seemed to express pity that she called the lesser spirit a fairy. That was a term for an evil spirit. No spirit would be pleased to be referred to as a detestable, abominable fairy. Even so, Emilia had a reason why she referred to the lesser spirit that way. \"There was a story about that in a book I read in this room. The book said fairies weren't bad but were actually good. I can't remember the details, though.\" She was sure she remembered a book conveying a fairy tale from another land. At present, she could remember neither the title nor the contents of the tome, but it had left a strong impression of fairies as being gentle, reliable creatures. \"So you have remembered your mother, an acquaintance, and this fairy. Is this the past you wished to see?\" \"No, not yet. There's still... I haven't remembered enough yet.\" Shaking her head, Emilia replied to Echidna's question as she left the cavity under the giant tree. She was walking not to a scene that lived in her memories but deeper into the forest, to a path barred by countless trees. There rested something that she had to remember. Ahead lay  \"What's there?\" \" The seal.\" 5  The first time the young Emilia became aware of the seal was after one of her now-numerous and dramatic escapes. \"There we go! Yay! It worked this time, too!\" Hmm-hmm, Emilia went, puffing out her chest, her hair full of leaves as she spoke with satisfaction. The place was the Princess Room or rather, outside it, right where she exited her lifeline to freedom. This was yet another day when she'd been left behind in the room, but she'd deftly escaped while Fortuna's attention was occupied. The impact from falling from the hole was softened by the leaves that had accumulated underneath, and Emilia had completed yet another customary and felonious escape. \"Lately, Archi's really been a worrywart, so I've got to be careful.\" Warily surveying her surroundings, Emilia exercised prudence in confirming that Archi, her watcher, was not around. The traitor, Archi, who was in league with the adults, occupied a position much like Emilia's overseer. It was fun playing with him, but these were two different stories. I absolutely can't let my guard down, she thought, clenching her fists tightly. \"Okay, come out, Fairy.\" Confirming the enemy's absence, Emilia called out to the phosphorescent glow floating overhead. Ever since their initial encounter, Emilia and the glow had become the best of friends; at that point, Emilia fondly referred to it as Fairy. With the fairy's cooperation, Emilia felt like the ruler of the forest. She could peek at conversations between adults, eat people's snacks without permission, and shuffle the ornaments in other people's houses, making her a grand criminal indeed. \"I wonder if Geuse and the others are coming today, too...\" Emilia hammered out her plan of action from that point forward as she plucked leaves off her head. Thanks to her repeated crimes, Emilia had ascertained she was always left behind in the Princess Room when Geuse and the others visited the forest. Each time, Geuse and his people came with a train of wagons carrying foodstuffs and clothing. Everyone assembled at the glade to receive those things. \"I thought Mom and the others were hiding something a lot more fun and exciting.\" Now that she knew their secret, it held much less appeal for Emilia, leaving her bored. Even so, she frequently went to eavesdrop because from time to time, Emilia's name, as well as terms that seemed related to her parents, cropped up during the conversations between Fortuna and Geuse. Fortuna didn't talk much about Emilia's real parents. She hesitated to bring them up. That was why her conversations with Geuse were a golden opportunity for Emilia to discover more about them. \"Not that they talk about it much, but... Up! We! Go!\" Her scheme kept missing the mark, but she remained undaunted, climbing the tree and taking her usual position once more. Below her was the now familiar scene of the adults in the glade. Fortuna and Geuse were there, too. At a distance, the pair seemed engaged in pleasant chat, but she felt Fortuna's expression looked particularly relaxed. \"Lately, Emilia has been really energetic. She always comes back with mud on her clothes. I wash them and wash them day after day, but I just can't seem to catch up.\" \"If she is in good health, all is well and good. I have brought as many changes of clothes as I could. Beyond the forest, the winter season is finally ending, so many of these garments may prove unnecessary.\" \"I'm sorry; even though we rely on you for so much already, I always seem to ask for more... Are there clothes for adults, too?\" \"Yes, of course. Surely, there are some that suit you nicely as well, Lady Fortuna.\" Right in the middle of their discussion about Emilia, Geuse replied to her question with a soft expression that made Fortuna go rigid, as if he had slipped through a gap in her armor. After that, she seemed rather blushy as she glared at Geuse with upturned eyes. \"...Goodness. We've known each other this long, but I never realized you were the sort to make those kinds of jokes.\" \" ? I merely intended to speak my mind. Did I say something odd?\" \"...I know you are a man without guile. That makes it even worse, you know.\" As Geuse cocked his head in confusion, Fortuna averted her eyes with an exasperated air. The gesture brought a look of consternation to Geuse's face, whereupon he gently reached his hand out toward Fortuna's forehead. His palm touched her brow. \"...Geuse, what are you doing?\" \"No, ah, come to mention it, once quite some time ago, Lady Fortuna, you were speaking sourly to me when you had a fever... It seems you do not at the moment.\" \"How many decades ago was that? Goodness, you really do treat me like such a child.\" Fortuna pouted at his misplaced concern. However, the corners of her lips were smiling, making it obvious that she did not find their exchange unpleasant. No, far from it Fortuna was clearly enjoying her time with Geuse. \"...Muu.\" Somehow, Emilia did not find the sight of her mother like that very amusing at all. The impression she had of Fortuna was that she was sharp-eyed, gallant, and strict to others. Her gentle, caring face was supposed to be her beloved daughter Emilia's exclusive privilege. \"Hmph, stupid Geuse. And Archi's stupid, too.\" She took out her anger on the acquaintance who had never met her and on the boy helping unpack the cargo. Then Emilia decided in her heart that if this day, too, proved fruitless, she would let Geuse have a taste of her wrath. I'll clog up the wagon wheels with cloth and spill oil all over them, thought Emilia, tracing out the ingenious, devilish revenge plot in her mind. But her machinations ended before they even began. \" So is the seal still in place?\" Lowering the volume of his voice, Geuse raised what Emilia now recognized as a customary question. She'd become so used to this exchange that Fortuna's reply came as no surprise. \"Same as always. You really do make sure to check each and every time, don't you?\" \"Such is my duty... Besides, though I do not wish to impart unnecessary concern, this time, there is some kind of"}, {"text": "suspicious air outside the forest. Perhaps it is needless anxiety on my part, but do keep this in mind.\" \"...Understood. I, the Guardian, will keep watch over everything here, seal and Key included. Please take care of the outside.\" \"I leave it in your hands for Lady Emilia's sake and for those two as well.\" As Geuse bent his hips, Fortuna nodded back with a serious look on her face. \"...Seal.\" As the pair's conversation made her ears tremble, Emilia murmured a single word to herself. The word seal came out without fail at the end of Fortuna and Geuse's conversations. Up until then, she had little interest in the word. But this day was different. The seal and Emilia had been mentioned in the same breath. Besides, she was also curious about the words Geuse had spoken at the end.  Maybe, just maybe, those two referred to Emilia's father and mother? \"Seal...\" Uttering the word once more, Emilia returned to the Princess Room. Tumbling into the cavity, Emilia moved with great haste, busily creating evidence that she'd been spending time in that room. In a short while, she made a drawing, changed the clothes on the dolls, and helped herself to a variety of snacks. With that job finished, she was just wiping the sweat off her brow when she heard Fortuna's voice calling to her from outside. \"Emilia, sorry for the wait. Have you been a good girl today, too?\" \"Ugh... I-I've been a good girl? I was good. Mm, yes, I was a good girl.\" *** \"Wh-what is it, Mom? Don't look at me like that; I haven't done anything. I ate snacks, I drew pictures, and I played with my dolls, too. I really haven't been outside or anything.\" \"...I see. That's good, then...\" It seemed like Emilia's acting ability had all but fooled Fortuna's eyes. A sense of guilt weighed upon Emilia, but she powered through, telling herself she could not falter there. What she'd overheard in the glade today absolutely needed to stay secret. In particular, the seal was very important. Emilia was sure she remembered that a seal meant a hidden place of some sort. And maybe, just maybe, could her own parents be hidden away in that seal? And if it was somewhere in the Great Elior Forest, then  \" Please, 'kay?\" Closing one eye, Emilia coaxed the phosphorescent glow she had befriended to search the forest for her. Even at this point, the young girl's exceptional beauty had begun to sprout by the time she'd grown up, she would be able to charm people with her smile alone. Her adorable coaxing had employed but a small fraction of this. 6 Something seemed to be guiding Emilia's feet as she and Echidna advanced deeper into the forest. Strangely, she did not feel lost. For some reason, she simply knew where she needed to go, and she pressed on with a sense of certainty. She made full use of being disconnected from the world, walking straight through an awful path that was better described as a dense thicket. The muddy ground, the large, tightly packed trees after overcoming these obstacles, Emilia beheld a scene of white. It was not snow here, the trees, from leaf and branch to root, were pure white. Both the sacred forest and the elven settlement were protected by numerous lesser spirits yet, even within the Great Elior Forest, the anomalous air filling this place was conspicuous. It was solemn, holy, a space exempt from the laws of the world. And at the center of this space was  \" A door. A curious sight indeed.\" Right in the center of this space, ringed by pure-white trees, stood a \"door,\" which seemed to stand out from the rest of the forest. The door was not strange in its outward appearance; it was how the door stood. The double door was standing all on its own, right in the middle of this space. Though it was a door, it was not attached to any building, its appearance unchanged even if one circled behind it. \"This is the seal.\" As Echidna questioningly set her gaze upon the door, Emilia spoke to her. The seal this was the holy secret hidden in the depths of the Great Elior Forest. Fortuna and the residents of the settlement were protecting it, and Geuse never forgot to check that it was safe. It was the same in Emilia's memories and in the world reproduced from her present memories. There was no mistake. It was a door connected to nothing, a door with no way of opening it, a door called a seal  \"But if this is the seal, what...?\" \" It seems the answer has arrived.\" Emilia placed her hand to her forehead as a wave of nausea hit her. More memories oozed out of her, like they were gnawing at old wounds. Echidna quietly let a soft sigh trickle out as she stood behind Emilia. Emilia turned around. Ahead of her, a faint, phosphorescent glow leisurely floated by, and past it  \"This is the seal?\" She beheld the sight of her younger self, tilting her head with an innocent face as she gazed upon the door. 7 Young Emilia blinked her wide-open eyes repeatedly at the mysterious door standing right before her. She'd finally ascertained the location of the seal that Fortuna and the others had been hiding. Even together with Fairy, it had been quite an ordeal to haphazardly search a large forest. But  \"Thanks to everyone, we cracked the case. Yay!\" Emilia grinned broadly at the phosphorescent lights twirling around her. There were more than before, but they weren't so numerous that she couldn't count them on her fingers. Through tenacious negotiations with the countless fairies scattered throughout the forest, she had gathered these fellows under her banner, building up a rather large host. \"Why isn't it falling down with a fwomp?\" The seal, which had been successfully located with the fairies' cooperation, wouldn't budge no matter how much she pushed or pulled. To the naked eye, the door appeared to be made of wood, but it felt cold, almost icelike to the touch. Rubbing the surface produced a pleasantly smooth sensation that was like stroking a polished gemstone; she thought that each and every thing about its existence was mysterious. There was a lock right in the center of the closed door, looking old and bearing a keyhole around the size of Emilia's palm. She wondered whose pocket could contain such a large key. The keeper must be a large person indeed. \"I don't really get any of it...but we sure did find it. Clap, clap, clap.\" Hoping in her heart that her parents were hidden within the seal, she'd just gotten her first tangible lead. However, after satisfying her curiosity once, she was absolutely not content with stopping here. She'd expose what everyone was hiding by working with the fairies. There was still much to be done. \"Hmph. It's Mom and everyone else's fault. Geuse's fault, too.\" Thinking of the tall man dressed in the black habit and not currently present, Emilia stuck out her tongue. He was an enemy who'd seen a side of Emilia's precious mother that she didn't show to anyone else without Emilia's permission, to boot. Girding herself for an inevitable showdown, Emilia devoted herself fully to crafting a plan to defeat Geuse. \"I'll surprise Geuse with Fairy and, while he's in a big panic, stomp on his foot. I'll stomp on both his feet, and with my heels, too! ...That seems like it would hurt a lot, so I'll keep it to just his toes.\" Even in her most heartless scheme, she didn't neglect to add some measure of kindness. Anyone who insisted on fighting a cold-blooded battle who cared little for blood or tears would eventually lose the trust of their allies. She needed to treasure her bonds with the fairies. \"Okay, let's head home. For today's masterpiece, I feel like doing a red sky and a snow-white forest!\" Having achieved her latest objective, Emilia raced down the path home in a patter together with the fairies. It was a fairly treacherous path, but the nimble Emilia hopped right over any obstacles. Really, Fortuna had told her she was forbidden from entering that area. That was what kept her from discovering the seal for so long. Mom is too shrewd. \"But we got one up on her, didn't we...? What's wrong?\" In the middle of treading down a poor and unfamiliar path, Emilia abruptly halted her feet as the fairies signaled her. They were blinking in and out in an irregular pattern, darting across her field of vision before drifting into a thicket off to the side. \"Mm? Mmmm? This...this smells like an adventure!\" The fairies' state reminded Emilia of when she'd first met them in the Princess Room. That had laid the foundation for Emilia's strong relationship with them. This time probably held some kind of meaning, too. \"Yahoo!\" Chasing after the fairies, Emilia energetically leaped into the underbrush. Pushing her way through the tall grass, she resolutely advanced along an animal trail, her silver hair getting snagged by branches several times along the way. And then  \"This is quite worrisome... She has strayed from the promised hour.\" \" Ah!\" Just when she was coming out of the thicket, she happened upon a black back standing in the forest. Letting out a voice of surprise, Emilia hurriedly covered her mouth and hid in the thicket. But it was too late. \"Oh my? To whom does this adorable rump belong to?\" A familiar voice addressed Emilia as she hid in the thicket with her butt in plain sight. The voice made Emilia twitch and tremble. He did not know her, but she knew him, the accursed villain. \"I I request gentle treatment as your prisoner...\" Resigning herself that there was no fooling him, Emilia spoke words of surrender that she barely understood. As she raised a white flag, a smile came over the man over Geuse. \"My, my, a rather adorable young lady has come to vi... Eh?\" The child's adorable resistance put a relaxed expression on him, but in the next instant, that expression froze over. Cutting off his words in shock, his tranquil face stiffened and went rigid. Seeing Geuse's eyes wide-open startled Emilia, too; the pair faced off as a wave of complex emotions sloshed between them. \"Y-young lady... No, you could not be...\" Geuse's voice trembled as he shook his head, seemingly in disbelief at what he was seeing. Looking up nervously, Emilia felt concern plucking at her tiny chest. The man she saw was frail and forlorn, like a child who'd lost his way but been found by a parent, like a traveler always walking in darkness who had found the light, with an expression that was a mixture of fear and expectation.  Someone had to speak to him. Someone had to hold his hand. The instant she thought that, Emilia completely forgot all about the grudge she'd harbored for so long. \" Geuse, are you all right?\" \" ?! Ah, aah, ah, aaaah...!\" When she spoke to him, Geuse's expression, Geuse's emotions, broke down. Feeling struck by Emilia's gaze as if it were a thunderbolt, Geuse fell to his knees on the spot, his back trembling. A flood of tears coursed from Geuse's eyes as he gazed at Emilia with rapt attention. Geuse, the first large adult she had ever seen cry, drew his body back and shook his head toward Emilia.  As if it was a prayer. As if it was a plea. As if simply giving thanks. \"All right... Yes, yes! I am indeed all right. There is no problem. After all, I... I, now, just now, have never known a greater sense of salvation than this...!\" \"Really...? If that's true, then why are you crying?\" \"I am not...weeping out of sadness... My tears are from joy, from jubilation, from happiness... They are tears of warmth because I cannot contain such happiness."}, {"text": "This is for no other reason than...how y-you...how your people have saved me... That's why I !\" Listening to Geuse's weeping voice, Emilia held his hand. It felt like the natural thing to do. The touch of his fingers conveyed his emotions to her. Emilia firmly clenched his hand in return. She dearly wished her own feelings might reach him as well.  As Geuse sobbed over and over, what he had described as tears of happiness flowed without end. \"Crying because you're happy...\" As Geuse continued to weep, Emilia somehow understood. Emilia herself sometimes spent nights feeling lonely and unable to sleep. Whenever that happened, she crept into Fortuna's bed, resting easy in the warmth of her mother's embrace. Inside her mother's arms, Emilia was freed of worry, and somehow, she often felt like crying. Geuse might have been experiencing similar feelings to what Emilia had at such times. Emilia wondered if she could grant him happiness the way her mother had done for her. \"It's all right, Geuse. It's all right. It's okay.\" Consoling him, Emilia stroked Geuse's head with her free hand. When Geuse went rigid at the first touch, Emilia embraced his head against her tiny chest. The tremors of his sobs shot straight to her heart; it felt like she could feel the warmth of his body reaching deep inside her.  Despite her grand plan to stomp on his feet, this was how they ended up together. What a helpless person. What a weak foe. Of course she couldn't do anything mean to someone who was crying. She had no choice but to help him feel better, so surely, Mom would forgive her, too. \"It must be lonely, crying by yourself.\" When Geuse was finished, they went to where her mother was, hand in hand. Now she had to tell Mom. She had to tell her about meeting Geuse, about heading off to play deep in the forest, and that even though he was an adult, Geuse had cried his eyes out.  She had to, now that the pair had shared their secrets and were no longer enemies but something akin to friends. 8 *** For an instant, the torrent of resurrected memories made Emilia feel incredibly dizzy. She blinked several times over and got her breathing back under control. The impact had left her heart thumping hard against her chest. By reliving memories as seen through her younger self's eyes, Emilia had regained her precious past. \"I can't believe I forgot so many things that'd happened...\" Emilia found no joy in those gaps getting filled. Rather, she felt remorse as she realized just how much she had taken for granted. They were warm, precious memories enough that she felt deep and sharp regret for having forgotten them in the first place. The time she'd spent together with Mom; how Archi and everyone in the village had been so kind to her; Fairy, who had helped her with the seal and the Princess Room; and that she'd met Geuse, the man she was not supposed to meet, then befriended him they were all precious and forgotten memories. \"But...I probably wouldn't have been able to accept it all until very recently.\" The journey toward those lost memories was linked to the regret that ate away at Emilia's heart. If she'd come unprepared to face her past, she probably would have never recovered. It was because Puck understood this that he had used their pact as a reason to bottle up Emilia's memories. In that state, even if she was to meet someone she should have remembered in some kind of tangible way, then surely, the sealed memories would have prevented her from understanding. Instead, there would only be pain and sorrow.  All to protect Emilia's heart from her own memories. But with that pact broken, the lid on her memories had been lifted, and the path to her sealed past had been cleared. By revisiting her memories, Emilia was finally ready to challenge her past the origin of the regrets she'd been unable to face until now. She had what she needed to confront these regrets that remained unconquered. Last time, she'd been unable to do anything in the Trial except break down and cry. But now  \" I'm scared, but I won't cower.\" \"Could you keep your decisions from sounding like they come from the disagreeable, weepy, clinging to a man whom I substitute as a father figure woman you are?\" When Emilia voiced her feelings toward the Trial, Echidna, standing behind her, simply poured on scorn. Emilia responded to the sarcasm infused into those words by boldly puffing out her chest. \"I'm sure Subaru will forgive me for that...but I don't want him to lose faith in me, nor do I want to lose faith in myself. I'm weak, but I don't want to dig in my heels and stay that way.\" Besides  \"I don't want to turn all the words Subaru wrote for me into lies.\" He'd carved numerous cheers and countless feelings into the stone walls of the tomb for her sake, as she was challenging the Trial. It was receiving these words, and being sent off by them, that had brought Emilia that far. \"I trust Subaru. That's why I want to be a girl who will not bring shame to those feelings.\" \" Do as you please. All I'm doing here is gloating over your anguish.\" No matter how much malice Echidna might pile on, Emilia's current mindset could not be swayed with words. Perhaps realizing as much from the exchanges between them on their shared journey through her memories, Echidna lowered her shoulders and withdrew her poison. Emilia understood what the Witch's demeanor meant. \"The preliminaries are over, aren't they?\" \"Indeed, they are  The opening skirmishes are over. This time, the Trial that broke you will truly begin.\" Echidna's words made Emilia nod and instantly, the scenery around them changed. After the meeting with Geuse, the pair left the sealed woods using a forest trail, making their way hand in hand to a surprised Fortuna, whereupon she flew into a conflagration-like rage at both of them. Then the three of them walked to the forest settlement side by side. Such was the scene. It was as if this scene had waited for Emilia to fill the blanks in her memory no, it was exactly that. Her memories, her homeland, and Fortuna and Geuse had surely been waiting for her...to watch gently over them all, the same way they had watched over young Emilia back then.  They'd been there to welcome Emilia tenderly upon her return to the homeland in her memories. \"That's why \"  Emilia had to accept in full the Trial that yet awaited. \" Please wait, Lady Emilia. Running around like that is dangerous...!\" \"It's not dangerous, not one little bit. You're the one who keeps falling and scraping his knees, Geuse.\" \"No matter how injured I may become, I care not. Lady Emilia's body comes first. If your jewellike skin was to be damaged, even if I died, it would not be death enough!\" \"Geuse, somehow, that way of speaking sounds really indecent.\" Emilia was jumping around the woodland trail recklessly, while making fun of Geuse like he was a very frail child stumbling around sights that brought a pained smile over Fortuna as she pointed out how strange he sounded. Geuse hastily shook his head. \"N-no, no. I was not even thinking such insolence! I am purely concerned for Lady Emilia... Ahhh, Lady Emilia! You must not go that way!\" \"Well, I wanna! Come and catch me if you can !\" As Geuse frantically switched from trying to defend himself to being overprotective, Emilia leaped into a thicket in high spirits. Seeing Geuse at his wits' end made Fortuna burst into laughter. \"My, my, I knew it. That girl's mischief is a handful even for us.\" \"It is good that she is energetic. However, I would prefer if she avoids danger as much as possible... If she could live healthily inside the house, bathed in the light of the sun, she can leap around, then, without concern of breaking anything...\" \"Geuse...that's a really strict way to live...\" \"Mnhhh... Is is that so? But if it is for Lady Emilia's sake, I I...!\" Trapped between parental love and concern, Geuse gravely clutched his head. Seeing his reaction deepened Fortuna's troubled smile, but it was parental love and envy that rested in her narrowed eyes. It was as if that very instant, the scene made her feel a sense of happiness that should not be possible. \"Sheesh!! Mom, Geuse! Why won't you chase after me?!\" It was then that Emilia returned, tumbling out of the thicket as she reached the limits of her patience. Emilia's young cheeks were red and puffed up as she accused the two lazy adults one after the other. \"This isn't the time, okay?! We were in the middle of a chase!\" \"Ahhh, I am very sorry! I shall regret this blunder for the rest of my days...!\" \"Geuse, you mustn't spoil her like that... Emilia, come over here for a moment.\" \"Whaaat, Mom...? Sheesh, Mom's such a softie... Grrr!\" Despite Emilia's angry face, she walked over when Fortuna beckoned her by hand. Then, just as she came close, Fortuna easily scooped her up. \"Awww, too bad. Emilia's been caught by Mom.\" \"Ah, no fair! You can't do that, Mom! This doesn't count! You cheated! You should think about what you did!\" \"Oh my, if you've thought that far, maybe you should also take some time to think on what I told you, hmm? I wonder, why are Mom and Geuse chasing little Emilia?\" \"Fwah!\" This poke at her sore spot made Emilia cover her mouth with her hands. \"Y-you're wrong, Mom. Fairy wanted to go outside, and then...\" \"Your mother hates girls who blame fairies for the things they do. Understand, Emilia?\" Fortuna spoke to her daughter in her arms with eyes both gentle and strict. Emilia, squirming under those words and that gaze, hung her head. \"I'm sorry, Mom. Since I became friends with Geuse, I wanted to tell you about it...and also that Geuse is a big crybaby so someone has to help him.\" \"Those feelings are really important. That's very good of you, Emilia. But in the first place, you became friends with Geuse because you went somewhere I made you promise not to go to, didn't you?\" \"Y-yes...I did...\" \"And that was really naughty, Emilia.\" Fortuna lowered Emilia, whose eyes were still focusing on the ground, before cupping her daughter's cheeks with both hands. She brought Emilia's face up to meet her own; their violet eyes reflected in each other's. \"You mustn't break your promises. Keeping them is very important. A promise is an expression of trust, so you mustn't break them and betray the feelings of trust someone placed in you.\" To Emilia, who was nearly in tears, Fortuna spoke gravely yet gently. \"Emilia, I want you to promise Mom right now. Promise you'll always keep your promises.\" \"Yeah... Yes, I will keep them. I'm sorry, Mom.\" \"Good. Then everything's fine.\" After hearing Emilia's teary-eyed vow, Fortuna embraced her beloved daughter in both arms. Squeezing her daughter close and tight, she stroked Emilia's hair as teary sobs escaped from the girl. \"So, Geuse, are you all right?\" \"I I am...so overwhelmed by this d-dazzling sight, I cannot restrain my t-tears...!\" As Fortuna regarded him with an exasperated face, Geuse squatted in the shadow of a tree, using his sleeve to hide his own weeping. He seemed to have been deeply moved at seeing the exchange between mother and daughter up close. She really couldn't refute Emilia's appraisal of him as a crybaby. Setting this aside for the moment, Fortuna turned her head back toward Emilia. \"Besides all that, Emilia. You spoke of a fairy...\" \"Ah, yeah. The fairies have been helping me since a while back... Come on out.\" Not realizing that Fortuna was concerned about her having invisible friends, Emilia gently called"}, {"text": "out to them. That very moment, countless lights flooded in all around Emilia, causing Fortuna and Geuse to gaze in wonder. \"It can't be... Lesser spirits...? And in such numbers...\" \"I am most surprised that she is served by so many lesser spirits at such a young age. It would seem Lady Emilia is a naturally talented spirit mage.\" \"Spi...rit? Spirit...mage?\" The pair's reaction and the unfamiliar terms made Emilia blink hard and tilt her head in apparent confusion. Geuse nodded deeply at Emilia. \"Lady Emilia, the beings you call fairies are actually lesser spirits. They exist everywhere throughout the world. A spirit mage is one who can convey their heart to them, borrowing the spirits' power through forming a pact.\" \"And I can become one?\" \"If you grow up healthy and remain beloved by the spirits like this, Lady Emilia, then surely...\" Geuse's words made Emilia's face visibly brighten. If a spirit mage means someone who gets along nicely with the fairies, then I wanna be one, thought Emilia with a spring in her chest. \"Hold on, Geuse. You mustn't put strange notions into her head. Just because she can commune with lesser spirits doesn't mean she can be a spirit mage... It isn't something this girl needs.\" \"Lady Fortuna, Lady Emilia shall not remain young forever, either. The time will come when she cannot stay confined to the hollow of a great tree. There will surely be times when she cannot be kept from standing alongside Lady Fortuna and everyone else. When that time comes, the spirits shall lend Lady Emilia their strength.\" \"But I don't want to subject my sweet Emilia to something that could be so dangerous...\" The issue of Emilia's education had shifted into an argument between the pair. Upon seeing this, Emilia swiftly circled behind Geuse and stuck her tongue out at Fortuna. \"I'm on Geuse's side today! I'm definitely gonna become whatever a spirit mage is!\" \"Now look you've gotten her all worked up about this. Geuse, how are you going to take responsibility?\" \"Ah. What should...? Um...well, this has gotten rather serious...\" Emilia was headstrong; meanwhile, Fortuna was wiping her hands of the whole thing. Caught between the pair, Geuse seemed overwhelmed, a sight that made Emilia go \"hmm?\" as she narrowed her eyes. \"Somehow, Mom and Geuse seem like a mom and dad...\" \"Wha ?!\" When Emilia spoke those words with a guileless face, her statement made Fortuna's face flush beet red. Nervously waving a hand, the woman then stroked Emilia's head seemingly at random. \"N-now, just a minute, Emilia, don't say strange things like that. Geuse and I have known each other a long time already, that's all. We don't have a relationship that could be described in those words, all right?\" \"That's correct, Lady Emilia. Lady Fortuna and I have both lived long...... To one as long-lived as I, even Lady Fortuna is like a little child to me.\" \"Hmph...\" Geuse gently covered for the rapidly speaking Fortuna. However, Emilia could tell that for some reason, his words had put Fortuna in a sour mood. Geuse didn't notice. \"No matter how you slice it, little child is excessive. Do you even know how old I am right now?\" \"Er, ah, it was a figure of speech. Of course I have a firm and accurate grasp of your age, and Lady Fortuna has grown too tall and beautiful to be called a young child, but...\" \"Hmmmm... Very well, then. I forgive you. But you should really reflect on it.\" \"Haaa...\" As Geuse inclined his head, Fortuna folded her arms and pressed him to reflect on his actions. But Emilia realized that Fortuna had brightened again. Geuse really wasn't keeping up. And still wearing a face that showed no clear understanding, Geuse nodded Emilia's way. \"The topic strayed somewhat, but Lady Fortuna and I have been acquaintances for quite a long time now. Indeed, ever since the time Lady Emilia's father and mother were in good health...\" \" Geuse!\" \"...I am so sorry.\" When Geuse tried to return to a gentler topic, the color of Fortuna's face changed as she scolded him. The peaceful exchange from just before had vanished. Geuse's expression became pained in reaction to his own slip of the tongue. \"Father and Mother...?\" \"I'm sorry, Emilia. We'll speak about that another time... More importantly, it's time for you to return to your room. You haven't finished reflecting on your behavior, after all.\" \"Another time... Will you really, though?\" Emilia puffed up her cheeks, making plain her dissatisfaction at the conversation ending partway. However, Fortuna pressed a finger to one of Emilia's cheeks, making the air leak out with a puu. \"Be a good girl and wait patiently, 'kay? You'll have other chances to meet Geuse again. I'll...make sure of it...\" \"Really, really? You promise? You will, right?\" \"Oh, this girl. I wonder where she learned how to quibble like this?\" It was only just moments ago that she'd been told how important it was to keep your promises. When her beloved daughter brought it back up, Fortuna reluctantly flashed a troubled smile, embracing Emilia. \"Yes, it's a promise. It's a really important promise between Mom and Emilia.\" \"...Mm. All right. I'll go back to my room, then.\" Promises were important. That's why Emilia nodded, trusting in Fortuna's promise. When she was released, Emilia then raced over to Geuse. As Geuse watched her, Emilia extended a hand, smiling. \"See you later, Geuse. You mustn't cry so much, so......promise until we meet next?\" \" Yes. We shall most certainly meet again. I look forward to it.\" Taking the tiny hand extended to him, Geuse made a small smile as the two exchanged a handshake. Their hands, exchanging the warmth of their palms, served as a greeting upon their parting. Just as Emilia was about to proceed back to the Princess Room  \" It seems he has come.\" This was no voice from the past. It was a voice from the present, calling out to Emilia from behind. It was the voice of the Witch, the only person experiencing time in the same way as Emilia was in that world of the past. The murmur from Echidna, who had watched events in silence up to that point, drew Emilia's attention, too. Then she immediately realized what Echidna's words meant.  There was a boy who seemed the epitome of the color white. He had white hair that was neither long nor short and white-colored skin lacking even a hint of a tan. He was clad in attire that was pure white, with not a single other color upon it; he felt sickly, as if he avoided all external interference from color itself. His face was modestly handsome, but it was average with no eye-catching features. His appearance overall seemed extremely lacking in any kind of individuality; he gave off the impression that he would immediately be forgotten as soon as he melted into any crowd. But that impression was itself firm proof that he was an anomalous being. \"...Who are you?!\" Both Fortuna and Geuse instantly noticed his strange presence. Fortuna immediately pulled Emilia close, extremely wary of the boy who had appeared without warning. Sensing this, the boy slipped out of the forest with a calm gait, stroking his own white hair. \"When you wish to ask someone's name, is it not polite to first state yours?\" The reply made Fortuna's emotions chill over all at once, amplifying her wariness even more. However, the boy lowered his shoulders, regarding with exasperation the wind of enmity blowing toward him. \"My reply just now was nothing short of clich\u00c3\u00a9d, but that said, I think anyone can appreciate the temptation to react that way in this kind of situation. Even though we are meeting each other for the first time and we stand on completely equal ground, why must you arbitrarily look down upon me and demand my name like this? Do you even realize the fact that you have subconsciously, inconsiderately, carelessly, and one-sidedly classified me as inferior?\" \"...For a man, you certainly like long-winded speeches.\" \"Stating for a man is nothing less than comparing me with the men you know simply based upon my outward appearance alone. In the first place, the creatures known as men are innumerable throughout the world, so by what standard can you judge me? That attitude... I just can't let it go. It is excessively lacking in manners. It flies in the face of my individuality, my rights.\" In contrast to Fortuna's concise sentences, the madness in the boy's rambling gradually increased as he spoke. Sensing danger from his words, his actions, and more importantly, his attitude, Fortuna put Emilia behind her and shielded her, sternly glaring at the boy as she shouted in anger. \"Enough with your self-centered babbling! Who are you?!\" Lending no ear to the boy's words, Fortuna asked him for his name once more. These words brought a change in the boy's expression. His face blanched at the interruption in the conversation, yet his cheeks, so unenthusiastic before, slowly drew back in a gloomy smile  Then, addressing the Emilias frozen in both past and present, he spoke. \"I am a member of the Witch Cult, the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins who has been entrusted with Greed Regulus Corneas.\" CHAPTER 2 *** 1  Let us go back in time a trifle, to the place outside the tomb where Emilia was currently holed up. On the grassy clearing in front of the entrance, the group that had seen her off as she went to face the Trial was currently awaiting her safe return, but  \"l broke a promise to write my love out, but it got seen by someone else first... I'm done for...\" \"No matter how ya cut it, you're bein' way too far in the dumps. Man up already, geez. Gotta get it together.\" A half-naked Garfiel sighed at Subaru, who was cowering as if the very world were coming to an end. As the victim, Subaru had plenty he wanted to say toward the culprit's undaunted attitude, but the ultimate cause was Subaru's own lack of caution. His only option was to endure the shame of it.  To cheer Emilia on and bolster her determination to take the Trial at the tomb, Subaru had spent the previous night carving all his thoughts, great and small, into the stone room's walls. There, he wrote down everything that could be expressed with words and then kept going even when words would never be enough to relay everything he wanted to say. \"But I never thought Garfiel would head in to settle his stuff first...\" \"Goodness, for someone who normally tries to sweet-talk her all the time in broad daylight, what is this embarrassment over putting your feelings in text? Mr. Natsuki, is your sense of shame not rather misplaced?\" \"Usually, I'm mentally prepared for her to brush it all off, so when she actually does that, I'm fine! But this time, I was serious! And this is literally a love letter I wrote in the deep of night...the most embarrassing kind of all!\" When Subaru ruefully covered his red face with both hands, Otto lowered his shoulders with a weary look. It was not uncommon for people to get oddly excited in the middle of the night and use words that would ordinarily never come to mind. It was an established clich\u00c3\u00a9 to spend the next morning looking back upon it with groans of agony. \"Don't worry 'bout it, General. It's not like ya did anythin' weird. If anythin', it makes me wanna do somethin' like that. Love for the Lingdon man is first come, first served and all.\" \"Whether you intend it or not, hearing that from the culprit only makes it worse!\" Without malice, Garfiel's words indicated he wanted to launch his own romantic campaign for the one he cared about Ram. Of course that would likely end with his feelings bouncing off the iron walls Ram"}, {"text": "had put up around her heart. It was with such exchanges that Subaru and the others awaited the end of the Trial. With good cheer and resolve buoying her, Emilia had entered the tomb. Though the Trial had broken her heart once already and reduced her to tears, they believed she would surely overcome it this time. \"When it was Garfiel, it took around an hour. Wonder if it'll take the same time.\" \"In the case of success, I would imagine so... Ow?! And ow again?!\" \" Read the mood a little, would you?\" Just as Subaru drove an elbow into the insensitive Otto, Ram had also come over to pile onto the poor man. Ram flicked Otto's forehead, coldly narrowing her eyes. \"You are so dense when it comes to understanding others... Are you really a merchant?\" \"The way you said that hurts more than anything else...\" After a taste of those sharp words, Otto was stunned from both mental and physical pain. \"Incidentally,\" started Ram, glancing at his pathetic face before turning back toward Subaru, \"Lady Ryuzu...or rather, Miss Shima, because that is what she herself wishes to be called, wanted to speak with you, Barusu. It would seem she wishes to continue last night's conversation.\" \"Last night's conversation, huh...?\" As he listened to Ram, Subaru folded his arms and furrowed his brow. Then Garfiel's jade eyes opened wide as a thought occurred to him in the middle of the conversation. \"Come to think of it...I never got a chance to ask about the details. What 'n' how much did General and Grandm...the old hag end up talking about last night?\" \"Whether you correct yourself or not, everyone can still tell you're one hell of a granny's boy... Mostly, I asked about what you were like before going into the tomb. You were on my mind a lot yesterday.\" \"...That so...?\" Garfiel turned away with an awkward look on his face. Though he'd tried to cut ties with his past after overcoming the Trial, that didn't wipe away the days of continued regrets. It couldn't be anything but awkward. \"Anyway, my hands were full with planning yesterday on how I should go after you. That's why I got Shima to promise me to save the important conversation until after I give Garfiel his spanking.\" \"The now-spanked Garf seems dissatisfied, but what is it you postponed exactly?\" \"That's...\" \" An unavoidable conversation if this Sanctuary is to be liberated.\" The one who picked up where Subaru trailed off was Shima, speaking in a low voice. Her spitting image no, one of the Ryuzus she herself was born as  was lending her a shoulder as she approached. Her expression was hard, and her labored breathing sounded quite weary. \"I believe you were told, Young Su. Just like spirits, our bodies are constantly depleting.\" \"...Ahhh, I see. Ryuzu has three people to swap places with, but Shima's been kicked out of the rotation, so there's no substitute for her. That's why she's this tired, huh...\" \"Normally, sleeping and rising at a set schedule keeps me from deteriorating too much...but I have little confidence I can last until Lady Emilia returns. As such, we should speak while we can.\" Even while leaning on Ryuzu's shoulders, Shima lifted her face and nodded toward Subaru with determination. \"Wait. Ya don't need to do anythin' reckless. Just have a healthy old hag take the old hag's place and \" \"It's impossible to tell who you're talking about, so let's call them Granny Shi and Granny Ryu from now on. Besides, we can't swap them around like that. This is something we can only hear from Shima's lips.\" Garfiel seemed to snap out of familial concern that Shima was forcing herself to speak. Subaru wanted to respect his opinion, too, since it was sensible. But he could not say that here. What Shima wanted to talk about was the Sanctuary's past. These were things that only Shima and the people directly related to the Sanctuary's creation could know, and that was because  \" Only I, who entered the tomb and took the Trial, can speak of this.\" \"Ah...\" Bewildered by that fact, Garfiel let out a breath of realization. Previously, when young Garfiel had gone into the tomb, it was none other than Shima who had gone in after to bring him back. As a result, Shima had seen the past there. Namely  \"The memories of the ancestor of all us replicas... Ryuzu Meyer.\"  she'd seen the girl who was hidden in the replication facility in the forest, continuing to sleep within a crystal. She was Ryuzu Meyer, the original upon which Shima and the other replicas were based. In the tomb, Shima, the replica, had experienced the memories of Ryuzu Meyer while she still lived. Consequently, the story she would share was about the regrets Ryuzu Meyer harbored about her past, memories related to the creation of the Sanctuary itself  \"They concern the cherished hope harbored by Young Ros's family, the Matherses; the existence and objective of Her Lady the Witch, who created the Sanctuary and they concern her daughter, Ryuzu Meyer's one and only friend.\" \"The Witch's daughter...?\" The implications of what Ryuzu had shared made Subaru alone raise his eyebrows, for he was the only one who sensed a special meaning behind her words. Neither Garfiel nor Ryuzu, nor Ram nor Otto, understood; only Subaru had a suspicion that turned out to be true, a reference toward which, like it or not, he felt a longing aching in his heart. While Subaru was still reeling from his most recent realization, Shima softened her voice, speaking as if telling a fairy tale to a child. \"It all began here, before this place was called the Sanctuary.\" Her eyes held distant hope as she began to speak of memories that would surely arrive at regret   and yet, her gaze was filled with a longing, tender love. 2 \" What is it, I wonder? Even if you gaze at me with such eyes, I shall grant you nothing.\" The unfamiliar memories began with a glare from a girl in a sour mood. The girl had an adorable face. She had creamy hair, as if light had been dissolved, and her skin was so white, you could almost see right through her. Her round eyes were a pale blue; if her appearance exemplified one word, it was lovely. Her hair was parted in two large, long twirls, and the flaring dress she wore made her look like a princess out of a picture book. As a matter of fact, the position she occupied was not that far off in terms of esteem. When this girl turned such keen eyes toward her, Ryuzu wilted completely. Though it was presumptuous to even compare the two, the girl before her eyes was far classier than she. Ryuzu was deficient in appearance and attire both, and their apparent ages being similar only invited greater embarrassment. \"Hmph. Silent again. Are you a boring, cowardly girl, I wonder?\" The girl gave a snort of dissatisfaction to Ryuzu, who was squirming with her face cast downward. This sour demeanor clashed with her adorable appearance, but her words still thrust into Ryuzu's heart like needles. It was not the abuse that pained her but the disappointment. Ryuzu could hardly breathe. \"Beatrice, what is with that attitude? Did I teach you to behave like that?\" The gentle tone of his voice made the girl's expression stiffen. Aah, went Ryuzu as she let go of the breath she was holding. Someone had called out from behind the girl, which was to say, directly in front of Ryuzu. Coming out of a hut in the back of the settlement was a woman who exuded a pure-white aura. She had long, glossy, naturally white hair and skin that seemed untouched by light. Only her eyes, lips, and the long-hemmed dress she wore barely managed to add color to her, yet she possessed beauty requiring nothing more than that. \"Lady Echidna.\" Ryuzu hastily bowed her head as she spoke the name of her patron Witch Echidna. Glancing at Ryuzu, the girl named Beatrice turned around in great haste. \"Ah, er...y-you're wrong, Mom! Betty didn't do anything... But this girl, she !\" \"If you are guilty of nothing, there is no need to be all flustered. You need only accurately convey the facts. If you truly did nothing wrong, it would not be necessary to hesitate, would it? Am I mistaken?\" \"Perhaps that's true...\" Echidna was not emotional, but she was quiet, firm, and strict. Ryuzu would have interpreted this as being hard on her daughter at first, but the pouty look on Beatrice's face made her believe otherwise. \"Betty was quietly waiting outside, just like you asked, Mom. And then this girl was watching Betty from afar...so Betty called her over, wondering if she had any business with Betty.\" \"I see. So, you there, what do you have to say?\" \"Eh...! Um, er, yes, I have no excuse. I behaved most rudely...\" Beatrice's childish explanation was the truth. When Ryuzu saw Beatrice at the edge of the settlement, she stared at the girl in a daze. Beatrice took issue with that, which was what led to the current situation. \"I was smitten with the sight of Lady Beatrice in the twilight... I am sorry.\" \"Smitten, is it...? Beatrice, do you acknowledge Ryuzu's version of the story?\" \"Ummmm...\" \"It would not be proper to tell you, a child, to behave more like an adult, but your attitude is lacking in tolerance. You are indeed special, but that is not for the sake of looking down upon others. I seem to be saying this a lot.\" Upon receiving Ryuzu's reply, Echidna sent some sort of stern admonition Beatrice's way. Though Beatrice seemed quite crestfallen, Ryuzu was in too great a panic to notice.  She'd never thought that the great Witch Lady Echidna would personally remember her name. Ryuzu lived in a tiny village, but her existence was the tiniest of all. As an apostle, she felt the joy of having the Witch of Greed herself remembering her name send a tremor running through her heart. \"I shall leave things to Geuse from here. I am sure he will work hard to give you proper guidance.\" \"...Betty does not like Geuse very much.\" \"Considering his role, being disliked by you is exactly the appraisal I wished and hoped for.\" Smiling at Beatrice's disgusted face, Echidna then turned to Ryuzu. This made Ryuzu's heart leap. She always let opportunities to speak slip and kept finding some suitable reason to distance herself from such places out of hesitation, so Echidna paying any attention to her once again was a surprise. \"That must have come as quite a shock for you, yes, Ryuzu? This girl, Beatrice, is my... She is like a daughter to me. As you can see, she has yet to learn proper manners, I am embarrassed to say.\" \"I am not like a daughter I am your daughter!\" \"Well, it is something like that. I believe I shall be coming here with her more frequently hereafter. Both of you will likely see each other more often, so I would like the two of you to get along nicely.\" \"Y-yes. Leave it to me, Lady Echidna...!\" Honored to receive a request from the Witch, Ryuzu nodded, her eyes sparkling with delight. Ryuzu's acceptance elicited a satisfied nod from Echidna. From behind, Beatrice murmured ruefully in a tiny voice. \"...Is Betty not completely fine even when all alone, I wonder?\" 3 \"You there, girl. I am sorry; Lady Echidna was supposed to be here, but I do not see her anywhere.\" \"Yes?\" Ryuzu was carrying a laundry basket when the inquirer called out, bringing her feet to a halt. When she slowly turned around, she set eyes on the one who had called her to a stop. \"Wah!\" she went, eyes bulging. Out of surprise, she unwittingly slackened the strength in her arms, and she"}, {"text": "almost dropped the laundry basket then and there. \"There you go.\" \"Whoa... Aah, I-I'm very sorry!\" Ryuzu bowed her head to the boy, who had closed the distance with one long-legged stride and put his hand under the laundry basket. Flashing a troubled smile at the sight, the youth with blue-colored hair shook his head. \"Think nothing of it. I am sorry for speaking to you in the middle of your work. It was inconsiderate.\" \"Not at all...! You are too kind, Master Mathers!\" \"One must not forget to be kind to ladies, regardless of our respective positions... If I may ask one thing of you, I do not particularly like being called by my family name. Could you address me as Roswaal?\" After speaking to the apologetic Ryuzu, the boy Roswaal gave her a wink. His age was around four years greater than Ryuzu's twelve, and his height was a full head taller. Even so, it seemed like he still had room to grow, and his melodic voice was well on its way to that of an adult. The boy possessed a wicked charm possible only during the brief period between being a boy and an adult, and he was brimming with natural elegance. At that young age, he was also the current head of the Mathers family, which governed multiple domains, and the learned man who administered the forest settlement together with Echidna, making him Ryuzu's supervisor. To Ryuzu and the other residents, he was someone to whom respect ought to be paid on par with Echidna the Witch. \"So, erm, as for Lady Echidna...I have yet to see her today. Beatrice does not seem to have come to her usual place, either.\" \"I see; their arrival may well have been delayed. Setting Lady Echidna aside, I find it difficult to believe Beatrice would not have come here to meet you.\" \"Errr... Beatrice only comes to speak to me once in a while...\" \"You say once in a while only because that is what Beatrice insists on calling it, no?\" Echidna threaded gaps in her busy schedule to visit this land, with Beatrice accompanying her. Somehow, they'd had numerous opportunities to come into contact and see each other's faces during the time before Echidna finished her business. Pfft, went Roswaal, barely containing his laughter over Ryuzu's reply. \"Beatrice is not an honest girl, you see. It is good that you do not think of her as difficult to deal with...\" \"Perish the thought. She treats even someone like me extremely well. In fact, I am always making Lady Beatrice angry...enough that I was worried that she might come to hate me.\" \"Then you have nothing to be concerned about. Beatrice's 'hate' carries no credibility whatsoever. If she genuinely hated you, she would not create all these excuses to spend time with you.\" Faced with Roswaal's toothy grin, Ryuzu half believed him and half not. Beatrice often puffed her cheeks up at Ryuzu, voicing voluminous complaints about anything and everything all the while. This was far softer than what Ryuzu knew as rejection, but in contrast, Ryuzu thought Beatrice had made unmistakable displays of hate. \"I hope that at some point, you might pick up on that girl's true feelings as well.\" Seeing that Ryuzu had been pressed into silence, Roswaal murmured a comment, somehow sounding forlorn as he did. His smile became ever so slightly pained, and this caused Ryuzu's chest to tighten. However, quicker than she could apologize over it, Roswaal's expression became one of realization. \"Teacher! I heard that you were here today, so I flew right over!\" Roswaal's eyes brightened and glimmered, his face like that of a child as he broke out into a run. With his grown-up impression thoroughly erased, the boy raced toward Echidna, the Witch in question, who sighed at the sight. \"Roswaal... I do not recall permitting you to address me as Teacher.\" \"This is not a day I may call you anything less. I have gained a complete comprehension of the homework you spoke of previously, Teacher. By focusing mana of the four colors at a uniform rate, one makes them into magical energy without elemental attributes. At that point, by adding the remaining two colors, one arrives at a rainbow-colored attribute how is that?\" \"I am certain I assigned only the four colors as homework. So you have arrived at six colors through self-study? What terrifying learning speed and desire to grow...or more accurately, obsessiveness? Goodness, you have surprised me.\" Echidna was praising him, a fact that made Ryuzu's eyes bulge. Echidna was a Witch through and through; something exceeding Echidna's imagination was far beyond Ryuzu's own. Hence, she could not help but smile at Roswaal's proud look over such an accomplishment. Even to Ryuzu's eyes, it was plain that Roswaal was very fond of Echidna. Even Echidna seemed overwhelmed by the love and respect her self-described apprentice showered onto her. \"And just what are you standing around in a daze for, I wonder? As always, you are quite a lax girl.\" \"Ah... Lady Beatrice...\" While Ryuzu gazed upon teacher and student, Beatrice peered in from the side. Beatrice folded her arms, snorting at Ryuzu's surprise with the grimacing face that Ryuzu was accustomed to. Ryuzu was so used to this scowl that she didn't even apologize for causing it. \"Do Mom and Roswaal have something to discuss, I wonder? The two of them no longer have time to mind the likes of you. Also, that laundry basket is annoying, so shouldn't you return to work promptly, I wonder?\" \"Y-yes, I shall do just that. Then if you will excuse me.\" Cringing and bowing her head to the acrimonious Beatrice, Ryuzu departed in a hurry. Roswaal may have said Beatrice did not truly hate her, but Ryuzu found it a little hard to believe. Then she had a sudden realization. \"Um, Lady Beatrice?\" \"I'm not here for any particular reason. Merely killing time, I wonder?\" When Ryuzu resumed carrying the laundry basket, Beatrice followed right behind her. She responded to Ryuzu's obvious confusion with a composed look on her face, and when Ryuzu resumed walking, Beatrice indeed followed suit. Ryuzu thought about it a little. Then she decided to firmly believe in Roswaal's words. \"Lady Beatrice, if you like, could you assist me in folding up the laundry?\" \"...Hah?\" Beatrice was taken aback by Ryuzu's gracious proposal that she assist in doing the chores. Her reaction made Ryuzu regret having relied upon Roswaal. \" If it is too much for your hands alone, then there's no other choice. Betty shall assist you.\" \"Eh?\" \"Should Betty say it again, I wonder? Now, move already. Are you going to just stand around all day, I wonder?\" Beatrice overtook Ryuzu, who had unwittingly frozen in place, rushing right past her. The instant Beatrice passed by, Ryuzu saw her expression was half-exasperated and half another entirely different emotion. \" Ah.\" Flushing, Ryuzu felt the inside of her chest heat and something well up in her eyes. Somehow holding that emotion back, Ryuzu broke into a little run, coming up alongside Beatrice and peering at her face. \"Um! ...If it is all right with you, could I leave the laundry with you for a brief moment?\" \"Don't get too full of yourself I could for a little while, I suppose.\" With these words, Beatrice extended her hands toward the laundry with a reluctant look on her face. 4  The days passed peacefully. Various things had happened to Ryuzu before arriving in this land, both good and bad. The good had been somewhat outweighed by the bad, but it was by resiliently carrying on that she had lived to this day. There were others who came from similar backgrounds, and they were kind, taking care to keep young, frail Ryuzu out of harm's way. Once, when their homelands came up in conversation, and Ryuzu said she did not have any good memories of her own, someone responded with, Same here, and laughed. After that, they continued with, Let's make this everyone's homeland. She didn't remember the speaker. But Ryuzu had always remembered those words since. Recently, Echidna visited the settlement with ever-increasing frequency. Everyone was fond of the Witch, for she was the savior not only of Ryuzu but everyone in the settlement. No one could thank Her Lady enough for the salvation of being granted a homeland. Inconveniences in their day-to-day life were swept away, their needs were well met, and she asked for nothing in return for all she did for them. It was but once, when Echidna had replied with Pay it no mind to everyone's thanks that Ryuzu saw her making a little smile. From that faint smile, Ryuzu felt she understood why Echidna went to such great efforts: so that she could continue to smile just like that. Whenever Echidna visited, her daughter, Beatrice, would invariably come along with her. Echidna, surrounded by a large throng of people when she came to the settlement, always ordered Beatrice to act freely. In the majority of cases, Beatrice spent her free time close to Ryuzu. Child or not, being a member of the settlement meant Ryuzu had a lot of work to do. On occasion, Beatrice would grudgingly aid her with laundry and sewing. She grumpily complained she was not particularly skilled in doing laundry, but she concentrated on the work even more than Ryuzu did. When not helping with Ryuzu's work, Ryuzu often saw her pounding away at her magic lessons. Beatrice was clutching a book too large for her small frame and honing her mana through trial and error, in all sorts of ways. To Ryuzu, who lacked any connection to magic and was unable to even read, it seemed like anguish beyond her comprehension. It was at those times that Roswaal, who came to meet with Echidna, would inevitably interrupt, invariably angering Beatrice and igniting her temper. Roswaal, who was normally dedicated to behaving in a most aristocratic manner, acted his own age only when he interacted with Echidna and Beatrice. Suffering Roswaal's teasing, it was common to see Beatrice go red in the face as she launched her counterattacks. Whenever Ryuzu caught a glimpse of the pair's magical duels, she always smiled at the sight of them fighting like siblings. From time to time, Echidna would happen upon their quarrels, making both Roswaal's and Beatrice's faces go pale, a sight that made everyone in the settlement laugh. Echidna, Roswaal, Ryuzu, even Beatrice everyone laughed a little.  For Ryuzu Meyer, these days in her new homeland were happy, happy, happy times indeed. 5 \"These are fragments of the memories I have gathered together... I had meant to organize them in chronological order in my own way, but I have found that telling a story from the memories of another person even when they belong to the person closest to me above all others is still quite a difficult thing.\" Shima was carefully choosing her words and memories as she spoke of Ryuzu Meyer's past. Perhaps she was accustomed to drawing on memories, for her relaxed tale flowed smoothly. From her pause in that tale of the past, the cast around Ryuzu Meyer seemed to be complete for the moment. However  \" Perhaps I should say Lady Beatrice has not changed at all?\" \"My opinion about that's the same as yours...but there's something...before that... Way before that.\" Beatrice Subaru had received a shock just from discovering that she appeared in Ryuzu Meyer's memories. But at the same time, it wasn't difficult to come to terms with. He'd known to begin with that Beatrice was Echidna's contracted spirit from four centuries prior. Echidna had worked with Roswaal's ancestor to build the Sanctuary and ordered Beatrice to stand watch over the archive of forbidden books at Roswaal's mansion and await That Person after Echidna's own death. As a consequence, he could accept that Beatrice had entered and left the Sanctuary prior to that time. \"This Lady Beatrice... Certainly, she would be the"}, {"text": "one at the marquis's mansion, of whom I have heard nothing but her name? I have not yet had the opportunity to meet her...\" \"Yeah, that Beatrice. So she really is connected to the Sanctuary... Plus, she transported me to the Sanctuary back then...\" Nodding after Otto checked with him, Subaru mulled over a memory from a previous iteration of the loop. The last time around, when he'd gone to rescue the mansion, Subaru had been unable to save a single person from Elsa's vile blade, going right down to letting Beatrice die before his very eyes. And when it was Subaru's turn to have Elsa rob him of his life Beatrice had transferred Subaru to the Sanctuary. \"Even if she was using the Passage, it bothered me when I tried to figure out how she could spirit me all the way to the Sanctuary. If the Passage can only send people flying to places familiar to you, then to her, the Sanctuary has to be...\" For Beatrice, it was surely a place filled with memories. Perhaps it was essentially her homeland. That was how, in that emergency situation, Beatrice had enabled Subaru's escape to the Sanctuary. \" I dunno about the little shrimp, but I'm payin' more attention to the Witch. I knew this was the testing grounds of the Witch of Greed, but I never had a chance to hear about the Witch herself.\" \"Wait, what? Garfiel, you've never met the Witch?\" \"Er, I hate to put it this bluntly, but is your question not rather unusual, Mr. Natsuki?\" Otto was dubious about Subaru's reaction, but Garfiel's murmur from a moment before wasn't something Subaru could let go. The tomb was Echidna's resting place, and Garfiel held the qualifications to challenge the Trial within as an Apostle of Greed. Subaru had assumed those weren't qualifications anyone could obtain without meeting Echidna first. \"But from the way you put it just now, Echidna never came out during your Trial, right? So how did you figure that you'd overcome the Trial?\" \"General, the way ya put that makes it sound like you met the Witch... As for me, I settled it, that's all. I didn't meet the Witch. Won't talk about what happened inside no more.\" Garfiel avoided speaking clearly about the contents of his Trial while answering the question relating to the Witch. When Subaru nodded in response, Ram abruptly posed a question. \" In other words, Barusu has met the Witch of Greed?\" Slowly narrowing her pink eyes, she quietly stared at Subaru. \"...Happened on the first day, when I went into the tomb to bring Emilia back. I asked her about Ryuzu and...some other stuff.\" *** \"Hey, what gives?\" Without revealing the details of his own Trial, Subaru explained his fleeting encounter with the Witch. Subaru was dubious about Ram's silence over the contents thereof, but she immediately gave a brief exhale. \"I see. I simply thought, it all makes sense now. For someone who had come to the Sanctuary for the first time, you have made very deft arrangements, Barusu. If anything, I am relieved to know that it is not through Barusu's proper talents.\" \"Wait, is there something wrong with me being a capable man...?\" \"Ha! Barusu, a capable man? Do not say that even in your sleep. It is disturbing.\" \"Do you have to go that far?!\" As Ram snorted, Subaru's voice went shrill. But oddly, he could not wipe away his suspicions toward Ram's demeanor. He felt like he had a little bone stuck in the back of his throat. \"Let us return to the topic at hand. This is how I understood it, but it seems there was indeed a Witch in this Sanctuary. I shudder at the thought of a time when a Witch's presence was taken for granted.\" Otto sought to put the conversation back on track but ended up hugging his own shoulders as he involuntarily shivered. \"The era in which Her Lady the Witch existed was certainly long ago. Perhaps that is why you know not of it. In fact, even for me, these are memories from another, not anything I know directly myself.\" \"Hearing that from someone with the same face as mine makes me feel like I've gone senile...\" \"This just sounds like bad clone humor... So I take it that Echidna came here from time to time? And Beatrice came with her?\" Subaru interrupted Shima and Ryuzu's low-tension exchange with a question. Shima nodded deeply in response. \"A great many of Ryuzu Meyer's memories are of Lady Beatrice. Just as I have told you, they seem to have gotten along very pleasantly together.\" Shima's memories, which accompanied a slight softening of her expression, contained within them a version of Beatrice that Subaru knew. That girl's personality, unable to deal honestly with others, had remained unchanging since four hundred years prior. Hence, she had obstinately refrained from showing others her true thoughts, keeping various feelings stuffed inside her tiny body.  Subaru felt sadness welling up in his chest as he thought back to Beatrice, clinging to her pact and the archive of forbidden books. \"To be honest, I'm surprised that Echidna walked around with Beatrice alongside her. So far as I know, you wouldn't think she had one shred of love for Beatrice as if she was family.\" \"I wonder just what conversations Young Su has had with Her Lady the Witch to make him go that far...\" \"I, too, concur with our opinion. In the memories I have seen, I do not think of Her Lady the Witch as lacking in humanity as Young Su suggests...toward her daughter, her apprentice, and Ryuzu Meyer as well.\" \"That's... I agree with you on that.\" Subaru could say it didn't match with the Echidna he knew, but that was as far as it went. It had been four centuries since her death; perhaps a period so long brought tremendous changes even to the mind of a Witch possessing such great power. Perhaps that had resulted in a twisting of the Witch's personality, rotting her core nature. \" Please continue your story. Up till now, you've only spoken of heartwarming memories of the past. But all of us know that a Trial doesn't end with just that.\" Subaru's words made everyone present nod with various feelings in their chests. \"Life in the Sanctuary, peaceful on the surface, continued like that... So what happened?\" \"What happened, you ask...?\" All by herself, Shima, the teller of the tale, lowered her gaze, murmuring with a weary voice. Then she slowly surveyed the faces of all present. \"Ruin is what happened. And the true reason for the Sanctuary's existence came to pass.\" \"The real reason this place exists...?\" The energy she gave off was far from gentle, and Subaru could feel it from the cold sweat on his brow. After watching that sweat form a droplet, which then fell from his chin, Shima closed her eyes, peering under the lid of her memories once more  \"That day also, Her Lady the Witch, Lady Beatrice, and Young Ros's ancestor were in the Sanctuary. The settlement was the same as always...and I thought those days would continue onward, peaceful and unchanging forever.\" 6 \"Truly, how can Roswaal be such an annoying person, I wonder? He is almost impossible to forgive.\" Clutching her knees and red-faced as she made an adorable huff, Beatrice murmured with a whiff of anger. Seeing the girl in the dress sitting on a stump and hearing her words, Ryuzu formed a vaguely pained smile. \"Does that face of yours irk me, I wonder? If you have something to say, come right out and say it.\" \"...Is it not because Lady Beatrice played a prank upon me in the first place that Master Roswaal had an excuse to take revenge?\" \"C-could you not refer to it as a prank, I wonder? That was a more, yes, a more refined thing than that.\" Once Ryuzu pointed out the source of the conflict, Beatrice clumsily tried to justify her actions. Since she was honest to the bone, the girl was terrible at coming up with excuses. Though Ryuzu thought that, too, was cute, the prank the adorable girl had played on Ryuzu made it something she could not simply dismiss with a laugh.  After all, she'd twisted space, trapping her in a meandering, looping corridor. \"Opening door after door only to find the same room each time was a rather terrifying experience for me.\" \"...Was it using but a trifle of Dark magic, I wonder? There is no reason to be so sore about it.\" \" I see. In that case, Beatrice cannot be sore whatsoever over my using countermagic to return the favor in kind. Good to know.\" \"Nghhh...!\" Beatrice, taken by surprise by the voice coming from behind, found her own caught in her throat. When she looked, Roswaal was there smiling as he stood behind the stump upon which both girls sat side by side. Beatrice's rueful expression got him to nod with an especially satisfied expression. \"What a fine face you're making, Beatrice. After Teacher's reaction, I like that look the most.\" \"What an impudent manner of speaking!! You are nothing more than someone blessed with a wealthy family and a smidgeon of talent, fortunate to have access to the greatest teacher in the world! Do not get carried away!\" \"Lady Beatrice, I believe you are only praising him...\" Beatrice flared up, but she lacked the talent to get the better of someone who was an expert at teasing, such as Roswaal. Just like with their magic duels, Roswaal always seemed to have the upper hand. Hence, the exchanges between the pair, which flew right over Ryuzu's head, had become a daily fact of life. \"Ryuzu, do tell me if Beatrice troubles you in some way again. I shall immediately chastise her and give her butt a good spanking.\" \"Ha! Would this girl depend upon you in the slightest, I wonder?! Go on, you tell him.\" \"Thank you very much, Master Roswaal. I shall surely report to you if anything happens.\" \"Like what, I wonder?!\" Seeing Beatrice's shoulders droop and a betrayed look appear on her face, Ryuzu's expression softened. Roswaal nodded, looking like he was fully aware that Ryuzu would report no such thing. After that, he pensively inclined his head to the side. \"All that said, I am sorry to have interrupted your reading. Allow me to apologize in Beatrice's place.\" \"No, that is too gracious of you. Besides, I hesitate to call it reading just yet.\" Shaking her head at Roswaal and his apology, Ryuzu stroked the pages of the book on her lap. This was one of the books Echidna had provided for the residents of the settlement who were unable to read but wanted to learn. She had yet to have a firm comprehension of I-script, but she was right in the middle of learning that bit by bit. \"Hmm... Can reading books be anything but good, I wonder? Reading leads to a more bountiful life.\" \"Beatrice has truly taken the words straight out of Teacher's mouth Actually, Beatrice, since you're already with her often, how about becoming Ryuzu's teacher?\" \"You mean Betty would be this girl's...?\" For an instant, Roswaal's suggestion made Beatrice widen her eyes, reacting as if he was teasing her. But Ryuzu was more surprised than Beatrice. \"Th-that is simply ! I could not impose such trouble on Lady Beatrice, who is very busy...\" \" Is it a real problem, I wonder? This much is child's play.\" Perhaps out of her sense of rivalry toward Roswaal, Beatrice crossed her arms and accepted the role of Ryuzu's teacher. When Ryuzu was agape at her reply, Beatrice asked, adding a snort at the end, \"What, I wonder? If you do not like it, Betty has no intention of forcing it upon you. It is not as if Betty is particularly enthusiastic about \" \"No, if Lady Beatrice will teach me, I would"}, {"text": "be very happy.\" Beatrice had been the impetus behind Ryuzu wanting to study how to read in the first place. Having fallen in love with the sight of her always carrying around that large book, Ryuzu came to hold an interest in reading all her own. If she could ask Beatrice to teach her, that would be a great honor. \"I-if you insist, what choice is there, I wonder? You are a truly fortunate girl.\" Instantly, Beatrice averted her face, blushing happily as she responded to Ryuzu's plea. Toying with her extravagantly curled hair, Beatrice seemed set to continue rambling  \"Lady Beatrice?\" \"...Is Mother calling, I wonder?\" Abruptly, the nature of Beatrice's expression underwent a great change as she hopped down from the stump. Glancing at the perplexed Ryuzu out of the corner of her eye, she proceeded to motion her hand toward a house close by. \"Roswaal, Mother is calling for you as well. Is this an emergency situation, I wonder?\" \"I understand. You do as Teacher instructs. I shall...\" With that exchange of few words, Beatrice smoothly glided through the open doorway. But she was not seen on the other side of the door; she had surely crossed over to a distant place the moment she passed the portal's threshold. \" The circumstances have changed somewhat. For the moment, come with me to where Teacher is.\" The look on Roswaal's face allowed no second-guessing. Without a word, Ryuzu could not help but obey.  She felt as if she sensed some kind of disquieting wind at the horizon of the cloudless sky. 7  The atmosphere had grown heavy and strained. Ryuzu felt like her own blood was drying up. \"We should flee from here immediately. We are not prepared yet; if he appears in this place here and now, the project will be ruined. Rebuilding will become impossible.\" *** \"Teacher! The time we are spending here is precious! He...he has already come this far!\" In the hut, Roswaal pounded the table, his voice ragged. The boy normally placed such an emphasis on behaving with composure, but in this moment, he sounded stressed, nervous, and frayed. Echidna the Witch closed her eyes, not responding to his pleas. Seeing his teacher pressed into silence made Roswaal beg even more earnestly, his voice high-pitched, that they should evacuate. \"We must not hesitate. His power is too overwhelming! I cannot be of service to Teacher just yet. If you tell me to be your shield, I shall gladly be your shield. However, without countermeasures planned, we cannot...\" \"It is not that I lack for methods. To a certain extent, the Sanctuary already meets my expectations.\" \"Eh...?\" Opening her eyes, Echidna glared at the grainy table. Judging from his expression, Roswaal was flabbergasted by her words, causing Echidna to sigh at her apprentice's surprise. \"The theoretical structure is complete. Sufficient amounts of the necessary blood that's requisite for the barrier should already have been assembled at the Cathedral.\" \"Th-then...!\" \" However, there is not yet a sufficient 'core' with which to activate the barrier.\" Roswaal was on the verge of seizing a new hope, but Echidna's chagrin-tinged words made him draw in his breath. \"Without the all-important core, the barrier cannot be activated. Without the barrier, it is impossible to repel him. If we cannot maintain a complete security net, he will surely destroy us.\" Roswaal, ruefully hanging his head, pounded the table with his strongest fist up to that point. The legs of the old table creaked, and Roswaal's torn fist oozed with blood. Silence filled the interior of the cabin. The passage of time slowed, and the weight of the air could be felt on one's skin. It was then, as if to defy that gloomy atmosphere, that one timid girl Ryuzu raised her hand. \"Regarding that insufficient core...might I be of service?\" \"Ryuzu...?!\" As Roswaal gaped, Ryuzu slowly shook her head and looked at Echidna. \"I heard of this some time ago. Namely, that I meet the conditions for the core of the barrier that Lady Echidna is building...and that this is why you set eyes upon me.\" \" From Beatrice, perhaps?\" \"Yes.\" With quiet resolve resting within her, Ryuzu nodded in response to Echidna's question without fear. Her bold demeanor made Echidna the Witch open her eyes wide. Ryuzu recalled when Echidna had been surprised by Roswaal. She took a small measure of pride at having been able to do the same. \"According to Lady Beatrice, Lady Echidna had told her that I am extremely suitable for meeting these conditions. Also, I heard that Lady Beatrice has taken samples of my mana several times during these last months for this purpose.\" \"If that is what Beatrice told you, then I suppose it must be so.\" With an ever so slightly hostile manner of speech, Echidna sincerely inspected Ryuzu before continuing. \"Certainly, the possibility you could function as a core for the barrier is high. With you as the core, the establishment of the Sanctuary is theoretically complete. However, that would have to wait until after your mana becomes more accustomed to this land.\" \"So it cannot yet be done right now?\" \"This is no ordinary barrier. This barrier must not be broken. For that sake, I have moved things forward meticulously. Over the course of years, I have gathered people with both human and demi-human blood in this land, establishing the scale requisite for this barrier. You could become the final push. But...\" Breaking off his words, Roswaal gnashed his teeth. Ryuzu did not understand such difficult language. But if it was so difficult that even Echidna and Roswaal collaborating had not brought success, the wall that blocked their path was stern indeed. However, though Ryuzu did not understand these complexities, there was one thing she did comprehend. \"The two of you surely have some way of overcoming this, do you not?\" Sensing their breaths catch, Ryuzu felt encouraged to go on. \"...I was saved by Lady Echidna and Master Roswaal. I have been happy coming to this land and having the chance to live without being shunned or despised. If there is a way to repay you for such precious time, I believe it will grant meaning to my life.\" Bit by bit, Ryuzu put the feelings welling up inside her into words. Echidna coolly peered at her with her black eyes as Ryuzu clenched her fists so tightly that her hands turned white. In her stead, the expression on Roswaal, standing beside the Witch, ran thick with anguish. \"T-Teacher...\" Roswaal called out to Echidna, seemingly gasping for air. This was not an address out of trust for his teacher's judgment. It was an address carrying the implication, You cannot mean... But Echidna did not give her apprentice his desired reply. She kept her black eyes trained upon Ryuzu. \" We will build the Sanctuary's core by placing your Odo into a catalyst. By doing this, the time you will require to acclimate to the soil's mana shall be shortened, allowing us to render the barrier functional.\" \"If this is done, this land...this Sanctuary can be saved?\" \"That would depend on the definition of salvation. However, it would surely become possible to fend off the menace closing in on us at this very moment. Per my original aim, with a long enough reprieve, we can refine our countermeasures as well.\" Echidna's reply was not to put her mind at ease. The Witch did not deal in optimistic assessments or sugarcoating of any kind. If Echidna declared she could do it, she could make it a reality. In other words, Ryuzu could repay the favor shown to her at the cost of her own life. \"...When can you begin?\" \" We can begin right away. A facility has been prepared to accept the core. What remains is the purification of the magic crystal that will become the catalyst and readying the ritual linked to the blood of the residents gathered at the Cathedral. The problem is buying time against the menace...\" \"That...is my duty. Isn't that right, Teacher? I shall strive to give everything until my dying breath... Ryuzu.\" Concealing the grief deep within his eyes, Roswaal turned toward Ryuzu. There was no hint of frailty in the youth's expression only respect for Ryuzu, whose resolve was as firm as his own. \"I am sorry. I lack the power to save Teacher all on my own.\" \"Not at all. To me, Master Roswaal, you, too, are my benefactor, granting me time I would not replace for anything. I am grateful for this. There is nothing to resent you for whatsoever.\" Placing a hand over her meager breasts, Ryuzu slowly shook her head side to side. Roswaal exhaled at her reply, whereupon he shifted his gaze toward Echidna. \"I will depart immediately. Teacher, take care of preparing the barrier...and please summon Beatrice back.\" \"...Would it not be better if Beatrice does not know?\" \"If you do not call Beatrice now, that girl will resent you and me both for the rest of her life... Albeit, perhaps it will be so even if you do summon her.\" \"I see... Understood. I shall call her shortly.\" Seeing Echidna nod, Roswaal headed toward the entrance to the cabin. Midway, he placed a hand on Ryuzu's shoulder, putting substantial strength into it for only a moment. The trembling of his fingers was more proof than anything that Roswaal would miss Ryuzu's presence. \"...Lady Beatrice.\" Closing her eyes, Ryuzu murmured the name of a little girl. As Ryuzu thought of that obstinate girl who was not present, her heart ached terribly. 8  Once more, the scene flipped upside down. \"Ga, hu...!\" With an anguished cry, the young man coughed up a clump of blood as he flew parallel to the ground. The sight of him ferociously kicking up a cloud of dust as he rolled made Ryuzu unable to do anything but gape, forgetting even to breathe. Overwhelming. It was truly an overwhelming spectacle. At the young age of sixteen, he wielded the six colors of magic, attaining the excellence of what was essentially the highest sorcery mankind was capable of reaching. He had gained a Witch as a teacher, yet he had not lost his drive to improve further still. He was a true genius there was no more suitable word in that world than genius to describe Roswaal A. Mathers. It was this Roswaal who lay upon the ground, out of breath and spewing bloody froth. Could one call such a spectacle anything but a nightmare? Was there any option but to be aghast? \"...You still want more?\" Gloomily, a languid-seeming man peered down at Roswaal as he spoke those words. His age was twenty, more or less. His hair, colored a charred brown, was tied in the back, and the unhealthy-looking bags under his eyes were those of a sickly individual. The color of his face was poor, and his posture was crooked. He gave off the impression of one wholly divorced from the word vitality, seeming so lethargic that he barely managed to put on clothes and walk around. However, that outfit was the only thing striking and eccentric about him. He was clad in clothing reminiscent of a jester's, yet his posture contained not even the slightest shred of cheer. As the man walked forward, he kicked Roswaal as if amusing himself with a pebble, blood spattering up as Roswaal was sent flying in agony. \"Gahhh! Guhhh! Goah...!\" \"Shut up. You're annoying me. Depressing. Irritating. Pathetic. Dismal.\" Seemingly grumbling to himself, the man murmured, apparently without any intention of actually speaking to others. However, with each word, each step, the damage to Roswaal's flesh increased. His bones creaked, his flesh exploded, and Roswaal's body crumpled, seemingly being crushed by the air as bloody tears spilled out from him. \"Well done. Very well done. You've tried very hard. You didn't beat me, but you tried very, very hard. The fact that you tried so hard is good, right? ...It's useless to"}, {"text": "try anymore, you know.\" \"What nonsense are you...? If I do not stop you here...gu, ah! Aaaaagh!!\" \"That stuff weighs down your spirit the most. It makes your chest go bad. Makes your mood all gloomy.\" When Roswaal would not obey his words to give in, the man bent a knee with an attitude of disgust. Letting out a sigh, seemingly in a dismal mood, the man poked a finger against Roswaal's chest.  The next moment, Roswaal let up a scream as his limbs crumpled and twisted, his blood and flesh ruined. \"I really hate this. It really gets me down. Me doing twisted stuff like this is really the worst. It's dismal. It's lame. It's disheartening. It's dreary. It's withering. It's the worst. Worst of the worst of the worst so depressing.\" \"Ah \" As Roswaal listened to those melancholic words that seemed to seep into his heart, the final murmured word seemed to land a decisive blow. Unable to withstand the additional pressure, Roswaal's torso was \"crushed.\" He coughed up a great quantity of blood, enough to convince anyone his torso had been pulped right at its center, his internal organs pushed up through his mouth. The whites of his eyes were bared, his limbs convulsed, and Roswaal fell silent. \"Ahhh, ahhh, aaah, what. What, what. What's with thiiiis. I really hate this, my chest feels bad. My mood's sinking. My head's heavy. It's depressing. Depressing, depressing, depressingdepressingdepressingdepressing \" As Roswaal sank into a sea of blood, not moving a muscle, the man continued to vent gloomily. Roswaal's grand demise and the unorthodox man who had inflicted it unable to do anything but watch the scene to its conclusion, Ryuzu, who had forgotten even to breathe, belatedly remembered how to do so at that late moment  \"Ahhh...? My heart is heavy, but it seems like there's someone over there?\" *** The instant a slight bit of air passed into her lungs, the man's attention turned in her direction. That fact left Ryuzu astonished. Ryuzu had been peeking at the battle from a cabin some distance away. The man had noticed her from her gaze through a gap in the crude wall and the slightest of breaths she had taken. \"Hey, you know, I'm noooot doin' all this 'cause I want to. Taking lives pains my heart. Hearing shrieks ruins my mood. Being cursed by other people means a dreary life... Would you save me some time?\" \"Eep.\" \"...Depressing.\" With Ryuzu unable to move, unable to speak, the man turned a palm toward the cabin where she was frozen in place. She did not understand the principles behind it, but Ryuzu took this as the man serving her a death sentence. Roswaal had been crushed by some kind of incomprehensible power. And now Ryuzu's body would be contorted by this same  \"Al...goaaaaa!!\" There came a roar that literally spat flecks of blood as it summoned explosive flames, dyeing the world crimson. An enormous amount of heat emerged from the fallen Roswaal's raised hand. The mysterious man was assaulted by flames that seemed intent on reducing him to ashes. This was scarlet hellfire spawned from a plane of scorching heat. The tall, thin man, a menace beyond human comprehension, was suddenly assaulted from behind, his very soul burned to a  \"Breaking a sweat is so depressing.\" Murmuring melancholically, the man pounded the hellish flames into the ground before they arrived. The incandescent red sphere should have scorched the man to ash, searing him out of the world altogether. Yet, it had failed to singe even a single strand of the man's hair, turning into a tiny red clump that tumbled onto the ground. \"I'm rather surprised that you haven't vanished yet. Having to use my power is so depressing, I just want to die.\" When the grumbling man clenched his upraised hand, the gesture caused the sphere that had fallen to the ground to burst apart. The sound of scalding heat scorching the air echoed but once then it dissipated, its mana completely exhausted.  It was magic that Roswaal, on death's door, had cast with the whole of his body and spirit, hoping for a miraculous turnaround. He'd wrung his dying breaths, and all he'd accomplished was making the strange man break a sweat. The only matter that remained was whose death Roswaal's or Ryuzu's would precede the other's by a few scant seconds. \"Damn you, Devil of Melancholy !\" \"What a terrible nickname. It dampens my spirits. Do you think I ended up this way by choice, hmm?\" \"Even if your life has been twisted or corrupted somehow...you became your current self through the choices you made, no matter how limited they were. Don't try to pass yourself off as a victim...Devil of Melancholy, Hector!\" \"A sound argument. My ears hurt. It makes me feel bad. Hmm. Truly, I do not get along well with you. That's why \" Cutting off his own words, the man Hector turned his palm toward Roswaal. \" Rgh, ghh!\" \"Your bones are clattering. Your internal organs are squishing. Your heart's cracking. What are you gonna do now, hmm?\" The instant Hector spoke in a low voice, an anguished cry resounded. It was the cry of Roswaal's impending death. This time, Roswaal truly ceased to move. Hector paid him but a glance before languidly turning back around. He looked toward the cabin Ryuzu was in and without warning, it was crushed under the strain. \" Uuugh, aah?!\" She was not able to endure it for even a single second. She was smashed from above by a force that was far greater than her own mass. By some miracle, she fell forward as she collapsed to the floor; had her posture been even slightly different, her joints would have surely been bent backward and snapped. However, that miracle achieved nothing beyond mitigating some of the agony prior to her death. \"If she isn't resisting, she's not Echidna. And if she's not Echidna, who cares about her, hmm?\" \" Wha?\" Her entire body enveloped by some inescapable strain, she felt as if she were being crushed by the air. Right after she thought Hector's distant voice would be the last thing she knew in this world, that strain suddenly vanished. Her breaths were ragged. Her face was marred by tears and drool. Ryuzu wheezed as she lifted up her face. \"Given the situation, it is most difficult to say I've arrived on time.\" There, behind the collapsed cabin, stood a white-haired Witch. Somehow, someway, the Witch had caused the summoned force to vanish. The sight of this made Hector raise his eyebrows. \"...No, you came just in time. Your apprentice slowed me down, gallantly delaying me as a result, you see. Thanks to that, not a single thing has gone according to schedule. It dampens my mood. Really, it does.\" \"That style of speech... You have not changed at all. You're exactly the same as you were when we parted ways.\" \"Your manner of talking is the same as always, too. How did you end up with such an uncute way of speaking, I wonder? Even though you were so cute back then...\" Echidna removed her gaze from the lamenting Hector, looking at Roswaal, who lay motionless, jumbled in a pool of blood. Echidna narrowed her eyes slightly at the sight of her apprentice having fulfilled his duty to the bitter end. \"...My chest hurts more than I expected. I cannot remain objective in regards to this result...\" \"In a case like this, remaining composed and without emotion would be far creepier, would it not? If you want to cry, take at least enough time to do so. I am not that heartless.\" \"You are the very one who harmed him so. How dare you speak such words?\" Their exchange was barbed. This pair of apparent acquaintances most certainly did not have a friendly relationship. In contrast to Echidna, who kept her distance, Hector behaved how he normally would. There was no room to doubt Echidna's might, but Hector was also a being who exceeded all bounds of sense. Ryuzu could not even conceive of another getting the better of him in battle. \" Just how long are you going to lay there pathetically like that?\" \"...Eh?\" Suddenly seized by the collar, Ryuzu, who had been prone, found herself hauled upward. Surprised by this turn of events, she noticed by her side was a familiar girl, looking down on her with a sour face. \"Lady...Beatrice...\" \"This isn't the time to lay about in a daze. All you are doing here is slowing others down... Would you leave with haste while Mother is buying time for you, I wonder?\" \"B-but...Master Roswaal and Lady Echidna told me to wait here.\" \"...That Roswaal is now a mess on the floor. Look here, will Betty go with you, I wonder? This is doing as Mother told her the one method through which this situation can be turned around.\" Unsurprisingly, even Beatrice could not maintain her cool at the sight of Roswaal fallen and the presence of that unfathomable Devil. She was putting excessive strength into her cheeks, her expression one of scolding as she looked toward Ryuzu. Even so, Beatrice was far stronger compared with her, who was able only to shrink and cower. \"The preparations are complete. Did Mother inform you of this, I wonder? Even you would fully understand, she said.\" \" I understand.\" Receiving Echidna's verbal message, Ryuzu's breath caught as she nodded. In contrast, Beatrice did not look like she understood the true meaning of those words, but this was not a place where Ryuzu had the luxury of explaining. Behind the pair, the air grew strained as the excited mana within eagerly transformed into power. Hostilities had already commenced; a battle had begun between supernatural entities beyond the ken of normal human beings. To reel victory in from that battle, which was beyond the realm of human comprehension, they had to leave. \"Let us go, Lady Beatrice. Where have the preparations been made?\" \"...In the forest, at a building that's emitting a disgusting scent. All Mother said to do was to take you there, through the bothersome means of Betty's Passage, I wonder?\" Even as her implicit dissatisfaction over this slipshod explanation oozed out of her, Beatrice led Ryuzu away from the battlefield by hand. As Witch confronted Devil, they needed to make it to their destination before they were enveloped by the pair's mutual battle. *** One final time, Ryuzu bowed her head toward Echidna's back. The Witch paid no heed to Ryuzu. But she had to do it anyway.  After all, no opportunity to exchange words with her, or to convey her thanks, would ever come again. 9 The crystal was blue, transparent, and so beautiful that it made Ryuzu tremble. \"Do not become so charmed that you touch it by accident. Would you become part of the crystal, I wonder?\" Beatrice was warning Ryuzu not to be so enraptured, so enthralled by the crystal that she would do something rash. The magic crystal held such magical energy as to ensnare the mind, enough to instill one with the desire to do something that would be considered rash. Coming back to her senses, Ryuzu hurriedly went \"I'm sorry!\" and bowed her head. To be entranced by a magic crystal at a time like this... \"It contains such a great amount of mana that it is no wonder for you to be intoxicated by it... Now, what do we do from here? All I heard from Mother was to bring you here.\" \"Even so, Lady Beatrice, you faithfully did as Lady Echidna told you.\" \"Is that not par for the course, I wonder? To Betty, Mother is absolute... You and the residents here are blessed to have her. Once we safely resolve all this, will you work diligently to repay her, I wonder?\" Beatrice responded to Ryuzu's words with a snort and what came off as a rather haughty attitude. Ryuzu looked back fondly upon the time she took such statements at"}, {"text": "face value, rendering her deeply apologetic. Albeit, by that time, she understood this was a form of the girl's difficult-to-discern gentleness and an expression of her deep affection.  It would have been so wonderful to continue spending time with Beatrice like that. \" Right now, you are smiling with a rather disconcerting look on your face.\" The sharp-eyed-as-ever Beatrice pointed out the deeply sentimental face Ryuzu had shown her. But Beatrice had known Ryuzu long enough to recognize that this differed from her usual smile. The instant Ryuzu realized this, tears filled the corners of her eyes. \"I I am very sorry...! I have a little dust in my eyes...\" \" Worry not. Do you not realize that even Betty understands you would be anxious in such a situation, I wonder? You really should keep quiet and stay right here.\" Showing concern for the tearful Ryuzu, Beatrice shifted her attention beyond the facility, toward where Echidna and Roswaal had been left behind. Then she nodded to Ryuzu several times over. \"Once Betty takes Mother's side, will all be as it was, I wonder? That jerk Roswaal is on the brink of death, so I must save him quickly as well. Then after tomorrow, once more, we can...\" At a slightly rapid pace, Beatrice presented Ryuzu with a list of all the reassuring things she could think of. For but a single moment, this honest display of sympathy took Ryuzu aback in a way that was very out of place. Immediately, the inside of her chest ran hot. Her words had provided strength. In that moment, Ryuzu was proud of Beatrice for that. That was why  \"Lady Beatrice, thank you for looking after me for such a terribly great length of time  This is farewell.\"  she rejected that solace, deciding to step barefoot toward an ordeal of thorns. \" Eh?\" Beatrice's voice was weak as she blinked, not understanding. Ryuzu looked back as Beatrice stared straight at her in astonishment. Hesitation and pain were welling in Beatrice's round eyes. But Ryuzu, knowing the girl's kindness, did not falter. Up until that point, Ryuzu had immediately apologized for whatever might have displeased Beatrice. But this time alone, she absolutely could not. \"What do you mean, farewell...? Do you mean you're running away?\" \"No, you are mistaken. If I ran away, I might hope to be reunited with Lady Beatrice again someday. However, this is farewell for life... I shall never be able to speak to Lady Beatrice again.\" Tightly pursing her lips, Beatrice gazed deeply into Ryuzu's eyes in search of her true intentions. This was the first time Beatrice had allowed Ryuzu to see her so desperate. Ryuzu quietly chose her words. She chose them from among all the words within her, for this was the single most important moment of her life. \"This facility...was designed to deploy a barrier over the forest. Eventually, I was meant to become the core of that barrier...but now, there is insufficient time for the original plan.\" \"Time for the barrier...and that man is in the way? Then we need to...\" \"He cannot be beaten merely through fighting. That conclusion was the reason for creating the Sanctuary in the first place. I imagine the reason Master Roswaal was so devoted was because he understood that if he was not, Lady Echidna could not be saved.\" That was how overwhelming a being the Devil of Melancholy was. Not even Ryuzu understood what effect activating the barrier might have against that Devil. But it was the one and only firm promise Echidna had ever made to Ryuzu. \"If the barrier is activated, this place will become a Sanctuary. It will be protected. Lady Echidna promised this to me... Therefore, I will offer up my body for its sake.\" \"A-are you not speaking stupidity, I wonder?! Offering up your body... What are you saying you can do?! You know nothing of magic! You know...aaa...\" With a loud voice and a rapid mouth, Beatrice closed the distance to Ryuzu. But in the middle of her own words, the clever girl arrived at the answer to the question that came from her own lips. Aghast, Beatrice looked up at the blue magic crystal right beside them. \"With this crystal as the catalyst, you would make your Odo the core of the barrier...? If you do that, you can overwrite the mana of the soil without any delay in time and make this forest a Sanctuary...\" \"Yes. That is what Lady Echidna said.\" That was the conclusion Echidna and Roswaal had agreed upon prior to the Devil launching his assault. Beatrice stood still, already at a loss for words. She had transported the magic crystal herself. And she knew full well Ryuzu's suitability to serve as the core of the Sanctuary  \" By your reaction, you have guaranteed this is how it will turn out as well, Lady Beatrice.\" \"You are wro...! Betty... Betty had no such intention...\" Voice trembling, Beatrice lifted her face as if she'd been slapped, unable to mend her composure. \"I did not do that with Mother with the intention of... Wait, no, will you wait, I wonder? Wait. C-can Betty make a personal appeal to Mother, I wonder? Mother is soft on Betty; she will surely listen...\" \"There is no time for that. A decision is required this very instant.\" \"Then Betty has decided to go to Mother's aid this very instant! If Mother and Betty are together, will someone like that go down in one hit, I wonder?! Betty will heal Roswaal swiftly, too, and then...\" Beatrice shook her head in denial, but her words trailed off at the end. She herself knew more than anyone how unconvincing her agonized declaration sounded.  Beatrice was incredible. Ryuzu respected her from the bottom of her heart. Ryuzu had always been watching her. She knew that the girl adored her mother, that her quarreling relationship with Roswaal was like one between siblings, and that she nonchalantly sent a great deal of attention Ryuzu's way. She studied magic with the utmost earnestness, undaunted despite all Roswaal's teasing. She loved her mother, Echidna, so much, and the smile she let Ryuzu see from time to time was adorable. \" If Betty uses Passage so that everyone escapes from here, all will be well.\" *** \"Right? Shall I do so, I wonder? Such a crowd is troublesome for Betty, but Betty can make do. Pick up Roswaal when there is an opening, bring Mother along, too... Hey, and then !\" \"And after fleeing in that manner, live in fear of that man pursuing us again? Thanks to Lady Echidna and Master Roswaal, we have finally obtained a place of peace... If we abandon this, I can't help but wonder how long will it take to build a new Sanctuary?\" When Beatrice desperately tried to wring out a substitute plan, Ryuzu responded with words that were gentle but harsh. When she saw a hurt look spread across the girl's face, a bitter sentiment ran through Ryuzu's chest as well. Beatrice was simply being kind. Ryuzu was trampling her kindness underfoot as she asserted her own opinion.  She was betraying all the things they had done together, all the feelings they shared together, day after day. How cruel, how selfish, how ungrateful an act was this? \"Lady Beatrice. I love this place. I truly believe it was wonderful to have been allowed to live here. I love very much the smiling faces of everyone who lives here. This place must not be lost.\" *** \"I have had my fill of warm memories. I, an unwanted, taboo child, was taken in and given happiness that I did nothing to deserve... Therefore, I am satisfied.\" \"Can that even be possible, I wonder...? N-no matter what you think of it, the true meaning of this place was never for your sakes...!\" \"Yes. I understand.\" Interrupting Beatrice's words, Ryuzu nodded deeply, for that was something she already knew. She understood the true purpose of the Sanctuary. \"This place is a place for Lady Echidna to deal with the man who pursues her.\" Of course, even she understood that Echidna and Roswaal had not searched for her and others of mixed blood out of the goodness of their hearts...even though it had nonetheless granted them a new homeland and a new hope. \"Right now, I understand this is what this place, what I am for.\" \"Then...if you understand, then why ...?\" Unable to comprehend, Beatrice weakly shook her head side to side. Faced with Beatrice's imploring gaze, Ryuzu made a bright, cheerful smile. \"It is fine. Perhaps that was how this place began, but all the time we have spent here surely changed things. Living here, being able to speak with Lady Beatrice, being with everyone...these are all choices that I made.\" Until she had arrived at the Sanctuary, she had lived a life without ever having decided anything for herself. Cruelly treated as a half-demon by the world, Ryuzu had gone through innumerable bitter experiences despite her young age. However, this place was different. Here, for the first time, Ryuzu had chosen how to live her life. The gracious encounters she had experienced, the days she had spent resolved to make new friends they were all decisions she had made herself. So, too, was getting as close as possible to the girl clutching her book and trying to be just like her. So, too, was learning from that girl to better the imitation, tracing out a future where she would ask the girl to teach her even more things. \"I am not losing anything. I carry everything right here with me.\" Even if she would never see the future she'd planned out, Ryuzu still treasured its happiness, its warmth. \"I have lived happily here. That is why I must go. I will protect that happiness. Lady Beatrice, I thank you very much for the compassion you have shown me many times over and many times today.\" Far away, roars from beyond the building echoed. The ground trembled, an aftershock of the battle between superhuman beings shaking the very atmosphere itself. The change was gradual, but the roars were without question drawing nearer, as if fate itself was demanding that the pair come to a true decision. For a single moment, Ryuzu closed her eyes. She deftly concealed the faint unease within her. Directly in front of her, Beatrice put her head to work, desperately searching for words...for the magic words that would make Ryuzu's will yield, Ryuzu's feelings waver, and make Ryuzu go back on her view.  Such convenient magic existed nowhere in the world. \"Lady Beatrice.\" When her name was called, Beatrice lifted her face, seemingly clinging to the faintest of hopes. She anticipated Ryuzu herself weaving the magic words that had not come to Beatrice herself. But  \"Make sure you do not eat too many sweets.\"  in place of magic words, Ryuzu made a final request to Beatrice. After all, when they had tea together, Beatrice was a girl who simply could not keep her hands off the sweets. She was too cute to have it go to waste by getting fat. Ryuzu wanted her teeth to stay pretty, too.  Not that Beatrice let others see it much, but when she smiled, she was truly an adorable girl. Turning back, Ryuzu looked at the deep, glimmering, seemingly bewitching magic crystal. All she had to do...was to touch it. Surely, there would be neither pain nor suffering. Though she resigned herself to her end, she did not know how it would come. Ryuzu thought she was pathetic for finding that just a tiny bit scary. When she was swallowed up by that light, she could make the Sanctuary real. *** Abruptly, she felt a tug on her sleeve. When she looked back, she saw that it was Beatrice there. With a face Ryuzu was seeing for the first time, she was grasping Ryuzu's sleeve with unsteady fingertips. Even Beatrice probably didn't understand why she"}, {"text": "wanted to hold her back. But even without an explanation, Ryuzu saw the earnestness residing in Beatrice's round eyes. \"I I...promised to...teach you how to read...\" The fact that at the very, very end, the future traced in both their thoughts was one and the same gave Ryuzu's courage the final push it needed. Gently, Ryuzu removed Beatrice's fingers from her sleeve. At the end, with their touching fingertips conveying each other's warmth, Ryuzu smiled like a flower in bloom. She was afraid of nothing Beatrice had blown all trace of it away. \"Thank you  Good-bye, Betty.\" Having shared her affection with the one she had loved most in her life, Ryuzu's consciousness was enveloped by blue light. 10 \" These are all the memories of Ryuzu Meyer that I saw within the tomb.\" Shima bowed her head deeply, concluding what was a brief, but seemingly lengthy, tale of the past. Subaru and the others, listening to the end with rapt faces, had no comments about Shima's gesture. She must have endured anguish for many long years over what she had spoken about: the origin of the Sanctuary and the weight of the hidden truth about Ryuzu Meyer, the girl who was her ancestor. \"The memories end there. I have no way of knowing what happened thereafter. But from the fact that the Sanctuary continues to exist, Ryuzu Meyer's decision does not seem to have been in vain.\" \"However, this is...far too different from the existence of the Sanctuary as I know it...\" Most shaken of all of them was Ryuzu, who had been born in the same way as Shima. Occupying the same position, yet unaware of what knowledge her kin had kept locked away, the shock she felt from learning the truth was incalculable. Though not on the same level as her, Subaru could not help but be surprised by the truth, either. \"Young Su and others know where the magic crystal as well as Ryuzu Meyer ended up.\" \"Yeah, it's right there in the replication facility... But the purpose of the facility, including the crystal, is completely different from what I'd heard. Echidna didn't say one word about the barrier, either...\" During his encounters with Echidna in her castle of dreams, she had never broached the purpose of the barrier. Once, Echidna had falsely claimed that the Trial was unrelated to her, but his view had made an about-face. To avoid being caught by any more lies, Subaru decided that for investigating the Sanctuary's creation and the nature of the barrier, he would check not with Echidna but instead with  \"Where did Shima...or rather, the Ryuzus hear about Echidna's objective?\" Echidna's objective was immortality by transferring her memory to one of the replicas, she could establish a false eternal life. Then some kind of failure had occurred; only the construction of the replicas and would-be vessels remained, and even to the present day, their numbers continued to increase. That had been the story. \"I... We are the initial replicas assigned the duty of administrator. Intelligence...and the objective...were in our heads from the beginning. That is why we never once thought to question...\" \"At first, I swallowed that hook, line and sinker myself. As a result, my thoughts and actions lost their normal functionality, and thus, I was removed from the Ryuzus' duty of administrator.\" Shima nodded to the bewildered Ryuzu, having overcome that very same shock some ten years prior. It was clear Ryuzu had not taken it all in yet. However, Shima had no time. They could not afford to wait for Ryuzu to regain her bearings. \"I'm sorry, Ryuzu, but let's move the conversation forward. I'm not surprised that Echidna hid her real goal. That's very normal of her. So about that hidden objective...\" \"Mr. Natsuki, this has been on my mind from time to time, but you speak most recklessly about Witches, don't you...?\" \"That's because I have a grudge against 'em. So who is this Melancholy who came out in the story?\" Subaru pressed about the term Melancholy, which had played such a prominent, conspicuous role. If it was just something Subaru didn't know out of ignorance, just like the seven Witches bearing the names of the Seven Deadly Sins, then fine. But if not  \"This is the first time Ram has heard of this Melancholy as well. Even concerning the Witch of Greed, I know little but the name... However, I have not heard a single thing of this Melancholy.\" \"I dunno of it, either... If it ain't Granny Shi gettin' senile, what gives?\" Faced with Subaru's question, Ram and Garfiel respectively shook their heads side to side. When Subaru looked, Otto was also shrugging, wholly at a loss, his state of confusion over the circumstances only deepening. But Subaru had a single idea that came to mind, though it was not one he particularly wanted to believe. \"The Seven Deadly Sins are Pride, Jealousy, Wrath, Sloth, Greed, Gluttony, and Lust...but I've heard that in the past, it was different, and there were other Deadly Sins included with the ones currently recognized.\" \"Where did you...? I suppose it is futile to ask... So what were these other Deadly Sins?\" \"I'm...pretty sure they were Melancholy and Vanity, I think.\"  Stripped out of the Seven Deadly Sins, Melancholy and Vanity could be called the \"old\" Deadly Sins. If this was related to the Melancholy that was connected to the Sanctuary's past, then a Vanity might also exist. \"However, this is not only vexing but a terrible thing indeed.\" At that point, no one present had any room to doubt Subaru's information, which came from uncertain origins. \"Is that not so?\" said Otto, at the top of the list of believers, surveying the various faces of those present. \"Just by existing, the Witches of the Seven Deadly Sins left their mark upon history. And yet, there are Deadly Sins unrecorded in history? Furthermore, just from hearing of them, they seem to be brutal beings indeed. Something is definitely strange.\" \"In the first place, even the purpose behind the Sanctuary's creation was hidden from Lady Ryuzu. In other words, the existence of Melancholy was deliberately erased. We do not know for what purpose, but...\" \"Having people with good heads on their shoulders really speeds up the conversation...\" Sighing in admiration at the speed of Otto's and Ram's respective thought processes, Subaru then looked at Shima. From the group's conclusion and everything Subaru knew based on the current state of the Sanctuary, the story of what had occurred in the Sanctuary was  \" The whole thing is fake. The duty assigned to Ryuzu, the process to give birth to replicas it was all camouflage to cover up the countermeasures Echidna made to deal with Melancholy, huh?\" \" It would seem that Melancholy's existence was something she had to go through such lengths to conceal.\" \" ! Granny!\" Subaru announced his final conclusion and when Ram agreed, Ryuzu blanched and wobbled. Instantly, Garfiel supported her by her shoulders, gently sitting his grandmother down on the tomb's stone steps. \"Sorry, poor way to say it. But I'm not sure how I should put it...\" \"No, it is fine. I have come to the same conclusion as you, Young Su... I am merely a little tired.\" Lowering her eyes, Ryuzu spoke in a heavy voice. One could hardly blame her. Nor was there any reason to make her push herself. The duty she had continued believing in for her entire lifetime had been exposed as a complete fraud. Neither Subaru nor anyone else could imagine how bitter it was to know that. \"Do you think it was all futile, Lady Ryuzu?\" \"Ram...?\" Amid that silence, Ram tossed her voice toward Ryuzu as the latter hung her head. Ram crossed her arms, glancing at Garfiel, who was right beside Ryuzu, with her usual penetrating gaze. \"I am guessing you feel dejected from knowing that the duty you long believed in was a false one. However, Lady Ryuzu, was the time you spent in the Sanctuary that of duty alone?\" *** \"No matter how it may have begun, surely, it was not duty alone that spurred you on. At the very least, that's how it was for Ram.\" It was a barbed way to console someone and a scolding way to be soft. It was very in character for Ram. Ryuzu's lips trembled slightly as she digested those words. Then she used her slender hand to grip Garfiel's. Without a word, Garfiel held her hand in return. That was plenty. It was just as Ram had said. However it may have begun, false that it might have been, that did not need taint everything that happened thereafter. Ryuzu had firmly taken those words to heart. And the more he thought about it, the more Subaru felt emotions of painful longing claw at his chest. \" Beatrice lost a friend, didn't she?\" Because Ryuzu Meyer was so timid and Beatrice was so obstinate, neither had made plain the friendship the pair felt for each other until the absolute, final moment. The tender love Ryuzu Meyer had left behind when she was enveloped by the magic crystal had probably eaten away at Beatrice's heart like a curse, continuing to throb with the pain of a wound that would not heal. He finally understood why Beatrice had rejected Subaru and why it was her true and honest wish to be allowed to die. The wound in Beatrice's heart from having lost her one and only friend had remained a scar ever since. The hope she had clung to afterward, of meeting That Person just as her mother had commanded, had gone unfulfilled, and time had worn away her soul.  The four hundred years Beatrice had spent was a blank, with her empty hand still extended toward what she had lost. \"...Ryuzu, has Beatrice ever met you or the others?\" \"No, she has not. Lady Beatrice has not set foot upon this land ever since we replicas have been born. I, too, have always wondered: Is she not someone we should meet?\" So spoke Shima, acting as a representative for the replicas. Subaru partially concurred with her opinion. In the end, replicas were different from the original, and even if Beatrice met Ryuzu and the others, it would not be a reunion with Ryuzu Meyer. Her wound would only widen. But. \"That was Ryuzu Meyer's final wish, right? That this place would become a Sanctuary, where everyone can smile...and she wanted Beatrice to be part of that.\" \"I suppose so. That was not what happened, but...\" \"Certainly, four hundred years is a bit overdue...but it's not too late, either.\" Beatrice's wound hadn't healed because for her, time had remained stopped. No matter how small the wound, it would not heal if time did not advance. That was why  \" This time, I'll smash her stopped time apart.\" Subaru clenched his fist, thrusting it out as he spoke with firm resolve. A fire had been lit inside his chest. In the back of his eyes, he saw the light. Ahead of his arm was a girl he wanted to reach. \"...I have been ever fearful that lifting the barrier might trample upon the wishes of our ancestor Ryuzu Meyer.\" Hearing Subaru's declaration, Shima slowly shook her head as she spoke. The sway of her long light-pink hair came off to him as a tangible display of the unease inside her. \"With the passage of time, eras change as well. There was a time when our brethren, once called Cursebloods, were driven to this place...but those of mixed blood have been treated better of late. I was deceiving myself, using my ancestor's wish as an excuse.\" \"...I understand why you're worried. This isn't completely separate from the issue of blood, but there's still discrimination based on outside appearance here and there. Even if you go outside the forest, you might have some bitter experiences. But.\" Arising in the back of Subaru's mind was the sight of the royal"}, {"text": "selection candidates assembled in the palace. In that court, Emilia had put her own will into words, facing and enduring the malice directed toward her head-on. Her ideals had begun to blaze a path to the world Ryuzu Meyer wished for. At the very least, that was what Subaru believed. And he believed Emilia would succeed. \"When Emilia brings that about, the finished Sanctuary will begin again. When everything is set right, anyone will be able to call the whole world a Sanctuary.\" Emilia would spare no effort for that sake. He couldn't speak firmly for all the other candidates, but he figured at least half of them were the sort of people to work for the greater good. It was Subaru's role to support her from close by until someday, her ideals were extolled far and wide. \"A fantastic tale that is comfortable to the ear... They are fine-sounding words and nothing more.\" \"But me, I'm all in!\" When Shima loosened her lips, making that listless murmur, Garfiel vigorously pounded his chest. Smiling with a show of his sharp fangs, Garfiel nodded to Subaru, his face clear of all doubt. \"Don't let it end with just words, General... Even if ya have to give the Princess...Lady Emilia a good kick in the butt!\" \"I won't treat Emilia-tan's cute butt roughly like that. But I get you.\" Shima seemed dazzled by the enthusiastic exchange between Garfiel and Subaru. \"The whole world beyond this Sanctuary...will become a Sanctuary itself, you say?\" \"When that time comes, it'll be a crying shame to stay cooped up in here. As for the people giving off those disbelieving looks, you can bet I'll be right there with a smug look on my face telling them I was the first guy on board.\" \"Fu, kuku. I see... No doubt you will.\" Shima humored Subaru's comedic manner of speaking with a smile. Judging from Shima's expression, it seemed as if she had set down a heavy, long-carried burden no, that was indeed fact. She had finally laid it to rest. And in setting down the heavy burden she had always carried alone, she could begin walking forward anew. \"Looks like we'll all be walking side by side going forward... Er, Shima?\" \"...Oh, I have hit my operating time limit, nothing more. I've worked a little too hard for someone my age.\" Wobbly, Shima made a flippant reply as Ram supported her frail frame. From Shima's words and the sleepy way she hung her head, Subaru could tell she had certainly reached her limits. She'd reached the limit of a replica, relying on a faint supply of mana and being able to be active only at certain times. Talk of the past was over. They would let Shima sleep, her duty fulfilled. The rest had been entrusted to Subaru and the others. \"Sorry to push you so much. But you told us the things I wanted to ask and more. Thank you.\" \" It's in your hands, Young Su.\" When Subaru thanked her, Shima offered only a vague reply. After that, she placed her weight on Ram as her consciousness gently let go. The next time she would awaken was likely the next day, after everything had been decided. \"Yeah, those hopes from four hundred years ago are in my hands now... And they're really heavy...\" They were not something he could entrust to another and of course not something he could drop at his feet. He carried them in both arms, and if even that was insufficient, he'd beg and borrow other people's hands. \"Either way, I want to let Shima rest... Ram, can I leave this to you?\" \"Garf's run-down shack...or rather, Lady Shima's hideaway is closest.\" \"Hey, if you're headed there, then I can go with...\" \"Ahhh, please wait. Garfiel, it is too soon for you to push yourself. If you wish for Miss Ram to have an escort, let us ask Miss Ryuzu to do so.\" \"Ahnnn?\" As Ram embraced Shima, Garfiel tried to volunteer his assistance when Otto stopped him. That action made Garfiel growl, but Ram went, \"I suppose so,\" casually agreeing. \"If crude, rude Garf comes and interferes with Lady Shima's rest, we would be putting the cart before the dragon. I would have a guilty conscience if I left insensitive, inconsiderate men at her side instead of Lady Ryuzu.\" \"Yes, preci... Huh?! When you said men just now, did you include me as well?!\" Ignoring Otto's shout of disagreement, Ram took Shima and Ryuzu with her and left. As these three people with similarly colored hair departed, Otto went, \"Hmm,\" cocking his head pensively. \"I imagine it is likely that Ram still suspects us.\" \"Well, Ram's intuition is real sharp, so it's completely possible. But the fact that she let us go means...no, the fact that she cooperated with us in the first place means she's on our side, I'm pretty sure?\" Nodding deeply at Otto's comment, Subaru bowed his head toward Ram's already vanished back. He couldn't hold a candle to her. \"Hey, don't go leavin' me in the dark! What gives? Explain already. If ya let stuff like this go, it's just like Morglello's Ten and One, damn it!\" It was there that Garfiel, completely unable to keep up with the conversation, howled in a loud voice. \"About that,\" said Subaru to the angry Garfiel, \"you getting ticked off puts us in a bind, which is exactly why I wanted to keep that wild card Ram out of this. It doesn't feel like that meant all that much, though... She's probably hiding how run-down she is, too.\" \"Keep Ram out of this? Hey now, I still don't understand what the heck you're talkin' about...\" \" From this point, we shall be intruding upon Marquis Mathers's abode, you see. With Garfiel's two hands, and two people who are deadweight, I am sure we can manage somehow.\" As Garfiel fell silent while struggling to decide how he should react, Otto winked at him. Glancing toward the pair, Subaru kept thinking about the tomb and Emilia's Trial. \"Really gotta get back here before Emilia-tan comes all chest out and proud...\" CHAPTER 3 *** 1  The tale now returns to the forest of a hundred years past, the time of the Trial that was being visited by a single girl. \"I am a member of the Witch Cult, the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins who has been entrusted with Greed Regulus Corneas.\"  The way the boy introduced himself with a laugh was the quintessence of an anomaly. At a glance, the boy had assumed no discernible stance, instead looking full of openings. His eyes were filled with composure and conceit that would be nonexistent in a wary person. His face projected that he could not even conceive of the slightest harm being done to him. In peaceful times, or if he was inside a formidable fortress, there would be no problem with that whatsoever. However, the boy was an uninvited guest, and right in front of him was Fortuna, her enmity high and a grave look in her eyes. To maintain that posture even under such conditions blew right past composure into the surreal. But the man Regulus was anomalous in having forced others to accept his existence. And Emilia also remembered the title this man bore. \"An Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins from the Witch Cult...that's like the people who attacked the mansion and Earlham Village...!\" She'd heard that Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins was a title granted to the leaders commanding the Witch Cult the group that had turned its enmity toward Roswaal Manor and Earlham Village, and thus, the trigger for the villagers taking refuge in the Sanctuary. The other thing she'd learned was that one of those Archbishops had been personally after Emilia and that another was a bitter foe responsible for Rem's unnaturally long sleep. \"Why is a person like that in this forest...?\" \" Archbishop Regulus Corneas! Why are you here?!\" It was Geuse, standing in the forest of the past, who shouted in a shrill voice the question Emilia also desperately wanted to ask. His expression was grave, as if he were a wholly different person than the one who had shown such benevolent love toward the young Emilia and Fortuna. \"I was promised that no one save me would involve themselves with this forest and this incident!\" \"Promised? That's an arrangement you arbitrarily declared and started with an arbitrary decision, right? Quite a conceited little spirit, aren't you, trying to push that onto other people and make them obey it. There are limits involving other people's wills and thoughts, so would you stop intruding upon my mind and body already?\" \"That is not an answer! If you do not like the arrangement, then you should have raised the issue at the church! Yet, you showed your face here! To start with, who told you about this pla...?\" The angered Geuse and the sour Regulus seemed to be mutual acquaintances of some sort. But there was not a single shred of affection between them, nor did their conversation hold any hope of compromise. However  \" That is because I instructed him to do so.\" Abruptly, the gentle, bell-like voice of a woman interrupted the heated exchange. A look of fright appeared in Geuse's eyes, and Fortuna's were filled with anger. Inside her mother's arms, young Emilia's teary eyes became clouded, and Regulus's lips curled into a vile, malevolent smile. And as she viewed the past, Emilia gasped in shock; Echidna merely gaped.  Slipping through gaps between the trees of the forest, the sight of a single girl appeared at that place. The girl came to a halt, lining up side by side with Regulus to face off against Emilia and the others. She was a girl with inhuman, terrifying beauty, enough to make those who set eyes upon her unable to stop themselves from trembling. Her long, seemingly transparent platinum hair gave off a soft glow like sunlight personified, creating a waterfall of light that traveled from her slender shoulders down her back. Her eyes, rimmed with long eyelashes, were deep blue, almost like they were trapping the world within. Altogether, her facial features were excessively lovely and seemed like the ideal image of \"beauty\" harbored by human beings. Her small body seemed so delicate that the thought of carrying her felt precarious. She was clad in but a single sheet of fabric, yet the very idea that anything was permitted to touch her bare flesh seemed unreal. If, truly for instance, it was possible to kill through beauty alone, it was such \"beauty\" she possessed. \"What is the matter, Archbishop Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti?\" The girl with looks that could kill inclined her head, posing that simple question. Her tone, the casual glance, the mere fact this girl had made time for him these things had the potential to give a normal man such an overwhelming feeling of happiness that it wouldn't be strange if his heart simply stopped. Anyone could understand with one glance this was a dangerous being who could not be allowed to exist in that world. \"Why...why are you here...Regulus Corneas?! Why have you brought her?!!\" Geuse gritted his teeth, seemingly to reject the difficult-to-resist urges welling up within him. This blood-tinged rejection made Regulus snort with a thoroughly exasperated look on his face. \"Are you saying I brought her here? Now, just hold on a minute; I resent people who arbitrarily decide those kinds of things. You know I despise coercing someone more than anything else, right? Her accompanying me is of her own volition. Do you have a grudge against me to make anything and everything my fault?\" \"Archbishop Corneas, our friend seems confused. Do not be too hard on him.\" It would not have been strange for such a statement of rebuke to set off Regulus's temper. In spite of this, Regulus respectfully bowed, and the corners of his lips curled in enjoyment. Written or spoken words were no"}, {"text": "longer sufficient to describe the abnormality of the vile man. \"This is... Is this not too cruel even for you, Lady Pandora...?!\" Geuse's voice, nearly out of breath, made the girl break into a thin smile. The girl's charming smile encouraged a feeling of happiness that rivaled all the blessed things in the world. The forbearance of the girl named Pandora, forgiving all that surrounded her, was a boon to the world. She spread her slender hands, as if her dainty arms could embrace anything and everything. \"Now, bring the Key and the seal here so that the Witch Cult's greatest desire may be fulfilled at last.\" \"Pandoraaaaaa !!\" The girl's gentle declaration overlapped with Fortuna's harsh cry. Shielding young Emilia behind her back, Fortuna howled as she summoned blue lights around her. These bright points transformed into long stakes of ice, in such great numbers that they filled Emilia's vision, their sharp tips aimed toward Pandora. \"Oh my.\" \"I'll make it up to Brother by turning you into a pincushion!!\" As Pandora casually stood there, Fortuna mercilessly launched a magical barrage at her. The ice stakes, each as thick as an adult's arm, bore down on Pandora with incredible force. The sharp tips impaled the astounded girl's face; fragments of shattered ice daubed the forest white. \"With this, you will be no more !!\" Furiously contorting her beautiful face, Fortuna cruelly brought the glimmering scene to an emphatic end. The forest sky parted, and a giant mass of ice fell, directly striking Pandora. The cold gravestone smashed into the earth. The spectacle left young Emilia, and the Emilia of the present, unable to make a sound. Even borrowing Puck's power, could Emilia employ magic to rival what her mother had just done? She hadn't intended to underestimate Fortuna, yet her combat ability was far above her expectations, shocking her. But  \" Now, hold on. Right now, you're not even paying attention to me, are you? Yet, the fact is that despite this, you attempted to involve me in your attack regardless... What's with that? That's trampling on my life, my existence, my rights, and my very humanity, is it not?\" They heard deeply resentful lines emanating from within the white haze. The next moment, the fallen glacier broke apart. The sight of Regulus standing leisurely in the middle of that surreal scene of glimmering ice fragments was terrifyingly abnormal. And Pandora, standing behind him unharmed, was similarly disconcerting. Though Regulus lightly brushed off his jacket, not only was he unharmed, but his clothes were not marred in the slightest in spite of the tremendous attack. All Pandora did was fix her hair, askew from the wind. Regulus had likely stepped in front of Pandora to shield her, but the phenomenon was not a matter of defensive ability alone. Emilia couldn't even begin to grasp what had happened. \"So that is the Greed of this age. When I consider this encounter is normally impossible, it is deeply interesting indeed.\" \"...Echidna, do you know what happened just now?\" Emilia posed the question to Echidna as the latter departed from the shade of the trees, shifting to a location from which it was easier to observe the battle. Echidna lifted the corners of her lips as she frowned at Emilia, who'd moved right beside her like it was the natural thing to do, but she immediately sighed and spoke. \"I can hazard a guess, but I am far from certain. I would have liked to observe the situation a little longer before speculating about his Authority...but it would seem the circumstances will not permit it  They are on the move.\" Emilia felt vexed by how authoritatively Echidna seemed on everything they were watching but decided to focus her attention on the past. Fortuna gritted her teeth at her initial attack being fended off. Geuse stretched an arm before her. \"Lady Fortuna! Please take Lady Emilia and retreat from this place! At present, we are entirely too powerless against Regulus Corneas!\" \"No...! Are you telling me to back off with that woman in front of me?!\" \"Please think of the situation! Who are you protecting right now?!!\" \"Urk...!\" Geuse scolded Fortuna for her aggressive position. His comment made her open her eyes wide; Fortuna remembered that her beloved daughter, right behind her, was clinging to her clothes. \"M-Mom...\" \"Emilia...\" As Fortuna picked young Emilia up into her arms, Geuse spoke with a calm voice. \"Please withdraw. And immediately seek aid from the settlement. I and the believers who came with me share a common wish. They will surely be of aid to you.\" \"But if we do that, what will become of you?\" \" Rest at ease. I do not intend to simply stay behind without a plan.\" Countering Fortuna's morose gaze, Geuse responded with a smile, even while tension oozed from every pore he had. In response to that proudly smiling face, Fortuna closed her eyes tight, as if severing all reluctance asunder. \"I will come back to save you  I will.\" With young Emilia in her arms, Fortuna raced into the forest, leaving those words behind. Writhing within her mother's arms, young Emilia desperately shouted toward the fast-receding Geuse. \"Geuse !!\" That youthful, tender love brought a peaceful smile to Geuse's face as he raised his hand. From there, Emilia receded deeper into the forest, from where she could see Geuse's slender figure no more. In spite of that, the scene, which Emilia surely had no memory of, continued on. This threw her into confusion. \"Geuse got separated from us... What's going to happen to the Trial now?!\" \"Naturally, it will continue. This is a past you did not set eyes upon, but the book of knowledge is working to adjust the course of this replicated world. Considering this is a Trial, however, you should pursue your own self. What will you do?\" Replying to Emilia's question, Echidna unexpectedly stated she should go after Fortuna. That option tempted Emilia's heart. Of course, Emilia's objective was to break past the Trial. She had no room to doubt that she should pursue her own past for that sake. However, this was where Geuse had fought so boldly, a battle for which he had put everything on the line so that Fortuna, and moreover, young Emilia could escape. Besides  \"Heh, you're staying?\" \"Echidna, from how you spoke just now...it feels like you are saying there isn't a particular reason to do so.\" *** \"Perhaps I'm overthinking this, but it's almost as if you want me to go that way...\" \" You are free to think as you please. Besides, even as you linger, events are already in motion.\" Echidna took a step back, putting some distance between them without replying to Emilia's question. This was so that she might occupy a position with a commanding view of the battleground that the space had become. And as Geuse stood still in the battlefield that spread before the Witch's eyes, the fiendish, white-haired man uttered a mocking laugh. \"Hmm, putting on a decent show, aren't you? But you know, who are you rejecting in allowing them to escape? Any way you think of it, my business is with them, not you. In other words, your interference is a violation of my actions, of my rights.\" \"Put it however you please, Regulus Corneas. I shall wager my very existence. I will not allow you to advance any farther toward them!\" \"Don't say that. You might have been one of the founders of the Witch Cult, and you may have your seat because of a few past services you contributed, but if the question of who deserves it more was to come up now, that seat would be mine! Do you think you can beat me if you try hard enough? What kind of head do you have on those shoulders?\" \"That...I will show you from this moment forward.\" To Regulus, who was whipping himself into a frenzy with self-serving logic, Geuse gave a simple, quiet reply. \"No... Geuse, what are you...?!\" Geuse put his hand into his habit. Recognizing that his expression was that of a man resigned to death, Emilia instantly reached a hand out toward the past. But she had no way to interfere with a tale recounting a past already long over. The hand that had once held hers slipped away. Her outstretched hand stood untouched, unable to halt his determination. \"Hey, don't tell me that you...!\" Geuse had taken out of his habit a small black box. Setting eyes upon that little box, Regulus momentarily knit his brow, but he immediately gazed in astonishment as he realized just what it was. Geuse shot Regulus, all his initial composure fallen away, a look of determination. \"Surely, you feel it? After all, this is something you, too, once held in your hands.\" \"I can tell what it is. It is because I can tell that I have no words for the level of your stupidity. Did you convince yourself that this is your trump card? I wonder why you don't get it......given that you are the one who said, who decided, that you aren't qualified to have that!\" \"Certainly, I lack compatibility. Accordingly, I have always simply carried this on my person, protecting what I was entrusted with. However, doing so was for the sake of a time like this.\" Unlike the aura of indignation Regulus had borne up to that time, Geuse was composed as he shook his head side to side. It was as if black, stagnant anger and determination like a blue flame were smashing together inside him  \" Archbishop Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti.\" Pandora, having not moved a step from her initial location, smiled as she spoke to Geuse. That was his name. Addressed as such, he lifted his head. Pandora spoke gently to Geuse. \"I bid you a pleasant journey.\" They were words of blessing, filled not with malice, not with enmity, not with ulterior motives but with goodwill. That strange dissonance was why Emilia could not stop shuddering from the ring of those words. It was the same for Geuse. With an expression revealing the pain he tasted as Pandora's blessing sliced into his heart like a blade, Geuse opened the black box in his palm  There was a wriggling black something within the little box. \" Master Flugel. Please forgive me.\" Speaking this, Geuse pressed that black something against his chest, tiny box and all. Instantly, the mysterious murk scattered as if water had splashed on Geuse's chest, explosively increasing in volume until it enveloped Geuse's entire body. The sight of Geuse seemingly engulfed by a slimy living creature made Emilia raise an incoherent cry. Something was mercilessly blotting out Geuse's very existence. \"Fool.\" For the first time, Regulus spat out but a single, brief word of disparagement. At the tip of his reproachful glare, Geuse raised both arms to the heavens, screaming from his open mouth as something swallowed him whole. It was as if his existence were being clawed away, giving way to agony, delight, and indescribable feelings that were neither.  Abruptly and eerily, the sound of out-of-place clapping mixed with that of the scream. \"Marvelous.\" With a murmur of admiration, Pandora's eyes were moist, like those of a maiden in love. Staring at Geuse, gasping as his very existence fell into chaos, she surreptitiously let out a heated, excited breath. \"Lady Pandora?\" It was not only Emilia and Echidna who found this abnormal. Even Regulus seemed to feel the same. The white-haired young man shot her a questioning look, to which Pandora responded by interrupting her applause, pointing at Geuse. \"Archbishop Regulus Corneas.\" \"Yes?\" \"He's coming.\" The next moment, Regulus found his body suddenly inverted as he was hurled high into the sky. \"Huh ?\" It was as if some angry child had grasped a doll by its feet before hurling it with all the force a child could muster. Sent flying, Regulus made it clear on his face he had no idea what had transpired as"}, {"text": "he flew past the tops of the trees, instantly reaching a zenith, and from there on, he precipitously fell toward the ground. Cast down as if his feet were still in a child's grasp, there was nothing Regulus could do as he was slammed headfirst into the ground, kicking up a large cloud of smoke. With a roar and a tremor, the ground exploded, and one tree fell after another, caught up in Regulus's point of impact. The man was crushed under the additional impact of the great trees, and silence befell the boisterous forest. \" Ah.\" Emilia lost her voice as she desperately tried to piece back together the string of scenes that had just happened.  She hadn't seen any of it. But there was a single thing she did understand. \"It is aaaas...I told you.\" She saw the front of the man in the black habit kneeling on the ground, tears of blood flowing from his eyes. Glaring at the cloud of dust kicked up between the gaps in the trees, that single man raggedly coughing at the victory he had won in exchange for all his resolve rose to his feet, pulling away from the agony of the black something eating away at him. His breaths were shallow, his legs unsteady. However, his soul burned hot from the flames of unyielding determination. \"Here lies hope...and the great, unforgettable debt of gratitude I owe to the people of this place...\" Mixed with his blood-tinged coughs was a sense of solemn duty that seemed to claw at his mind even as he spoke. Over many years, his feelings must have grown and grown; just how deep they ran, none could see. None save the man himself, who gave himself over completely in service of that wish so that he might not forget what was dearest to him for even a single moment. \"Those days, that bond, that wish...these, they gave, granted unto me. No matter how much time passes, I shall forget nothing... That is why, this moment, if I am still fit enough to cough blood...\" Tears of blood flowed freely. His blood and flesh were at their limits, and the man heaved up a clump of blood as he stubbornly clung to blessings beyond his reach. His eye sockets were vivid crimson. Drenched in blood, his pupils were unfocused; even as he gazed straight ahead, it was doubtful whether he truly saw the world as it was. \"Just what do you see with those scarlet-hued eyes, Archbishop Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti?\" \" Love.\" It was none other than Pandora, standing at the receiving end of that gaze, who gathered astutely that his crimson eyes were not looking at her. When she paid no heed to this and posed her question, the man replied without hesitation. Ironically, it was an exchange between two people who had been brought to the same place, two people who could absolutely not accept the other's way of thinking. \"In this world, at this moment, it is likely me who loves you most.\" Enraptured, Pandora made her confession with heated breath. Those words made the man close his eyes but once, whereupon the man bared his fangs toward the woman who dared to act like she understood him most in the world. Geuse no, this man's name was Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti. \"You will not go after them. You...shall...not...pass!!\" 2 Crying tears of blood and having let a black something take up residence inside him, Geuse howled. That ghastly sight combined with the solemn determination beyond anything she'd imagined sent a chill running up Emilia's spine. Though Geuse had absorbed that something mere moments before, he had by no means tamed it. He'd merely allowed it to violate his being from the inside rather than the outside. \"Geuse...what ? What have you done? What did you...?\" What had he taken inside him? What was the power he had used to bury Regulus with a single blow? It was as if something had happened that she could not see, and yet, Emilia had a feeling of d\u00c3\u00a9j\u00c3 vu nonetheless.  Somehow, it resembled the blow with which Subaru had settled his duel with Garfiel. \"You have splendidly proven your resolve, Archbishop Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti.\" However, Emilia's thoughts were interrupted by a bell-like voice. Watching Geuse as he panted and literally coughed up blood, Pandora remained aloof as she voiced her praise. She hadn't even batted an eye at the death of Regulus, who'd stood right at her side; her natural beauty had not been blemished in the slightest. \"You, without qualified flesh, have done well to accept the Witch Factor into you. In the name of the Witch of Vanity, I hereby honor your resolve and resolute will by granting thee the seat of Sloth.\" \"Did you think I desiiired such a seat? This moment, I desire but a single thing without a shred of doubt...tranquility for that mother and daughter !!\" Thinking of Fortuna and Emilia, who had departed from the battlefield, Geuse poured the blood of his heart and his very life into his resolve to give the pair a chance to escape, thrusting both his arms toward Pandora. \"Love. Such a marvelous thing...\" \"It contains warmth that your falsehoods will never attain!\" When Pandora murmured with an expression of ecstasy, Geuse yelled as he turned his thoughts toward offense. The next moment, Emilia could sense an abnormal pressure materializing from thin air, but she could not see anything. Nothing had happened. Nothing could have happened. And yet  \"The forest is being torn away...?!\" A wave of destruction spread, almost as if giant, transparent serpents were writhing all around Petelgeuse. Trees were mowed down, the earth was split, and clumps of dirt, flowers, and grass were scattered all about. In accordance with Geuse's will, this gradually transformed from indiscriminate destruction into destruction of a more targeted kind. The forest's collapse, as if some giant were trampling upon it, thrust forward in a straight line toward Pandora, who was standing still. Accordingly, the destruction would proceed to transform Pandora's little body into a cloud of blood  \"Now, just a minute.\" *** \"I came here. I am here. What is with this line of thinking, advancing the conversation while ignoring me? I think it's time even someone as generous and unselfish as me should get a little...angry.\" Just before the invisible blow was to reach Pandora, a white figure intercepted the strike. The next moment, there was an explosion. The air rebounded, and the aftershock seemed to reshape the forest's very topography. In spite of this, the young man bearing the brunt of that might from the front the supposedly dead Regulus made no move to retreat. His body displayed no wounds from events prior or even a single blemish. \"You're kidding...\" Emilia could force herself to accept the fact that he had shrugged off Fortuna's initial blow without a scratch. If the gap in strength between two fighters was far enough apart, perhaps fending off ferocious, lethal attacks was indeed possible. But Geuse's invisible attack was another matter entirely. Emilia had most certainly seen Regulus being slammed into the ground, unable to do a thing about it  Why wasn't he wounded? He wasn't even dirty. Regulus had some kind of trick that kept attacks no, something preventing everyone from affecting him at all. \"Regulus Corneas...!!\" \"How unpleasant. You, the one who refuses to acknowledge the Witch Factor, ignored its cost and forced it into yourself, yes? Is this not showing contempt for we who rightly hold our seats? Does this not wound my tiny yet unshakable self-esteem?\" \"You may say it is futile, but I !\" As Regulus spoke provocatively, his head violently snapped back from some invisible blow. But when Regulus returned his twisted neck to its previous position, once again his face showed no trace of the strike. The vile man merely grimaced in open displeasure, standing defenseless as he continued to be showered by Geuse's attacks. Standing still and unguarded, he made no attempt to defend himself, yet even as his entire body sustained blow after blow, Regulus did not fall. The power Geuse had wagered some undefined thing to obtain was ineffective, yet he showed no sign of being daunted, either. Even if Geuse could not advance, he could slow his opponent down. He continued launching his attacks so as to pin Regulus in place. \" This is going nowhere. During this time of stalemate, there seem to be developments where 'you' have gone.\" The battle consisted of Geuse's valiant onslaught and Regulus's ruthless rebuff as Emilia observed the fighting, Echidna spoke to her from behind. Her emotionless statement made Emilia raise her refined eyebrows and grit her teeth. \"Are you telling me to leave this place? Even though Geuse is fighting with everything he's got?!\" \"There is room for me to argue that the strength of one's feelings bears no effect upon the results, but unfortunately, I have no intention of debating that with you. I have little interest in bullying the weak, and I find your voice extremely unpleasant.\" \"Then why don't you just shut up and watch?! I...!\"  She wanted to remain in that place and watch over Geuse. *** When she tried to speak those words, Emilia froze, stopped by none other than her own heart. Instantly reaching her hand up, she touched the cracked crystal at her neck. The sensation reminded Emilia of her objective. Emilia had come to challenge the Trial and to come to terms with her regrets about the past. Perhaps this moment was her one and only chance to watch Geuse's battle until its conclusion. But she would be betraying both Subaru, who had seen her off at the tomb's entrance, and Geuse, who was sacrificing everything to let young Emilia and Fortuna escape. There was a past beyond Geuse's valiant struggle, a true past that Emilia had forgotten. \" Surely, even your deficient mind can understand which course is wiser.\" \"...I think you were right after all. Let's go after Mom and me. Geuse is...\" \"This is a battle between two Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins. The scales shall not be so easily tipped. That said, if the remaining person became involved, that would be a different story...but it is inconceivable that she would join in.\" Emilia had lingering regrets as Geuse's one-sided offensive against Regulus increased in ferocity before her eyes. His tears of blood continued, and blood also flowed out from Geuse's nostrils and the corner of his mouth. The more that something infringed on the inside of his body, the more the force and the accuracy of the invisible destruction rose by leaps and bounds. But in contrast, Regulus's inexplicable defensive might was unwavering. It was a total stalemate. \"Haaa...\" Then just as Echidna had pointed out, she noticed how enraptured Pandora was while watching the fighting continue; she did not show even a smidgeon of intent to join in the battle. The abnormality of the scene made Emilia feel a shudder. \"Echidna?\" \" . Let us switch locations and go after you and your mother. They were fleeing into the forest, yes?\" For a moment, something else seemed to have captured Echidna's attention. However, it was truly momentary. When addressed, her consciousness switched back, and Echidna snapped her fingers right before Emilia's eyes. The next instant, Emilia's vision swam, and the scene shifted. Then, as they were split off from the battlefield of such fierce combat, the first thing that reached Emilia was  \"No! Mom, no! Please don't leave me!!\" Hearing the high-pitched, tearful voice of a child, Emilia reflexively turned around. Right before her, Emilia saw a familiar, great tree and in front of the door that led to the Princess Room, Fortuna was trying to get the sobbing young Emilia to listen to her. \"I'm begging you, do as I say, Emilia. It's all right; very soon...yes, very soon, everything will be over, and I'll come back for you. So please, just for a little while, stay here and hide.\" \"No! Absolutely not! Mom, you"}, {"text": "have the same face as Geuse! Why do you look like you're not coming back?! Wh-what are you going to...leave me here for...?!?\" Using the entirety of her tiny being, Emilia desperately clung to her mother so she wouldn't slip away. Considering that she was a young child, shrugging her off should have been a simple thing. Even so, Fortuna could not bring herself to be callous to her own daughter. The reason why was right there, filling the woman's eyes. Fortuna was Emilia's mother. That was why she could not simply cast aside her tearful daughter's hand. \"Don't leave me! Let me go with you! I won't lie anymore! I won't break any more promises!! I'll be a good girl! I'll be a good girl, so...please don't leave me...!\" \"Emilia... Emilia, Emilia, Emilia...!\" Wanting to stay with her mother no matter what it took, Emilia offered up everything she could think of. Her voice made Fortuna spontaneously hold her daughter tight. Had she not done so, Emilia would have seen the state her face was in.  Her daughter would have seen her mother sobbing a flood of tears. \"Mom...\" And so with clear eyes, the Emilia of the present beheld the scene that young Emilia could not. To Emilia, Fortuna was eternally admirable, imposing, strong... Her mother was someone she revered, and she'd believed without a doubt that there was not a single weak bone in her body. She'd never imagined seeing Fortuna this hurt, this stricken by nigh unendurable grief as hot tears flowed freely. Through the prism of the past, her mother's crying tore open Emilia's heart. Though she instantly brought both her hands to her face, she could not stop her own tears. Seeing that scene, witnessing her mother's face from the present, Emilia keenly understood. She had never doubted it, but in that moment, she gained renewed conviction. \"Mom...you're my real mother...\" It didn't matter any longer who'd actually given birth to her. No matter how much Fortuna had claimed to be nothing but a stand-in for her mother and however much she asked Emilia to not forget her real mother, this would never change. Even though she treasured and respected Fortuna so much, those words alone, she could never accept. \"Mom...I love you...!\" \" Lady Fortuna! And Emilia, too!\" Fortuna was still unable to peel Emilia off her when a voice called to her from behind. The voice made Fortuna vigorously wipe her tears away and rise to see who was there. It was Archi, the young man with swaying triple braids. Nervousness rested in his green eyes, but the sight of Fortuna and Emilia together made him say, \"I'm so glad,\" visibly relieved. \"Archi! The forest... Is everyone in the settlement safe?!\" \" . No, I am sad to say. Those who came with Lord Archbishop are engaged in combat with a group of men!\" No doubt Archi noticed the traces of Fortuna's tears, but he did not press the issue, prioritizing his report. Hearing the details made Fortuna lower her eyes, which conveyed her worries to Emilia as well. In an attempt to comfort the young girl, Archi reassured her. \"Emilia, there is no need to be so afraid. It's all right. Believe in me and everyone in the settlement. Plus your mother is a very strong and scary person.\" \"O-okay...\" \"Archi, scary is excessive. Goodness...\" As Archi smiled at Emilia, his words made Fortuna indignantly cross her arms. Having regained a portion of her usual composure, Fortuna exhaled sharply at Archi's show of consideration. \"I suppose that even if I return Emilia to her room, it won't keep her hidden for long...\" \"It pains me to say it, but if she is in this forest, they will eventually find her. Their objective...\" \" Is the seal, I imagine. I don't know how they heard of it, but even that woman came crawling out...\" Fortuna's anger toward the assailants in particular, Pandora was incredible. Something must have happened between them to cause Fortuna to lose her calm like that. Even if that was not the case, combat was breaking out in every corner of the forest. Emilia's homeland had already been turned into a battlefield. \"Fine. At any rate, I'm heading out. I have the greatest fighting ability of anyone in the forest, so this is not the time to dawdle in a place like this.\" \"No! We will fight! Lady Fortuna, please take Emilia out of the forest!\" \"If we run from here, what then? All that will accomplish is allowing this peaceful land to be stolen. If we lose, it means the seal will fall into their hands. This time, the world will be destroyed!\" When Archi tried to get her to reconsider, Fortuna silenced him with an even stronger tone of voice. After that, seemingly embarrassed by her angry retort, he added, \"I am sorry.\" \"You resent me, don't you? You should never have been caught up in all this. All because you took Emilia and me in... This is a hardship you never needed.\" \" !! No one  There isn't a single person among us who thinks that way!!\" \"Archi...\" Archi met Fortuna's regretful voice with a fierce retort, as if that was the only thing he could not allow her to say. Archi was indignant, his face red up to the tips of his long, pointy ears, a trait distinctive of the elves. \"Please stop treating us like strangers! It's true that compared to our long life spans, the time we spent here may seem as brief as the blink of an eye! But but even so, have you forgotten the time we have spent together in this forest?!\" *** \"Who could think of you...of family as unwanted?! You, your older brother, and... Do not make us out to be ingrates who would forget the debt of gratitude we owe to Emilia's mother!\" Archi's emotions exploded, his voice tearful and pleading. The young elf, still a boy at heart, went down on his knees, sniffing as he gazed at Fortuna. His face left Fortuna wide-eyed. \"I'm sorry I came very close to once again rejecting my family.\" \"Lady Fortuna... I I said too much...\" \"No, you helped me remember something very important. I have always disappointed those who love me. Even though I have regretted it many times, I forget again soon after. That's why...\" Shaking her head to the kneeling Archi, Fortuna slowly went down on one knee before Emilia. \"Emilia, listen carefully. Mom has a duty to protect everyone. It's very important. That's why I'll be away, just for a tiny bit.\" \"N...no, Mom. I I...!\" \"Please. Do as I say, just for a little while. I want you to go with Archi and head outside the forest. This forest...is really dangerous, so please.\" Fortuna spoke to Emilia, who shook her head with teary eyes, then looked back to Archi. Seeing the resolve resting in those violet eyes, Archi felt his slender body stiffen. \"L-Lady Fortuna... I !\" \"Archi...it is a little soon, but I entrust the duty of Guardian to you. Please take Emilia with you out of the forest. It is a difficult world to live in, but surely, there is hope. I know there is. So...\" \"Please don't speak as if this is the end! I'll stand with you and everyone until the very...\" \"Take care of Emilia. For my brother, my sister-in-law, and me, she's our precious, irreplaceable daughter.\" Fortuna spoke in a frail, fleeting voice, so removed from her usual strong and sublime self. Hearing Fortuna, both as a mother and as a woman, brought Archi to tears. He sobbed, covering his face with both hands. \"That's low...! You know that if you say it that way, there's no way I can refuse... I I want to fight with everyone, too...! Yet...!\" \"I'm sorry, forcing so many burdens onto you children like this. Forgive us for being so unfair.\" Placing a hand on the crying young man's shoulder, Fortuna painfully asked for his forgiveness. Archi said nothing, but his unceasing tears were proof that he had already accepted her request. \"Emilia.\" \"No!! Mom, I wanna be with you! Please! Pretty please! I'm asking nicely! Please let me be with you!! I don't want... I don't want to be alone!!\" \"You're not alone at all. Listen to me.\" Weeping and wailing, Emilia covered her ears, trying to block out her mother's parting words. Seeing this made the Emilia of the present want to go and pinch her younger self on the cheeks. It was not that she wanted to scold her unwillingness to listen. It was because she wanted to convey that all the words Fortuna was saying, every word and every phrase, were things the girl absolutely had to remember. \"Emilia.\" Fortuna bent down low, gently embracing Emilia and pulling her close. She grabbed Emilia's arms, though the girl was desperately trying to cover her own ears, and nestled her head in her daughter's silver hair. Then she brought their faces close, rubbing cheek to cheek with a gentle touch, as if she was taking care to not damage a thing more precious than anything else in all of existence. \"Mom is always by your side. When you close your eyes, I'll be there, inside your memories. When you hug yourself, I'll be the warmth inside your chest. When you call, I will be the echo under the sky. Mom is with you. Always, always, forever and ever, together.\" \"Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar... Mom, you liar...!\" \"Emilia I promise.\" Emilia refused all her mother's reassurances, but that last word made her breath catch. Her smiling mother offered a palm right in front of her, seemingly drawing in Emilia's palm until they finally touched. \"Mom and Emilia will always be together. I promise you.\" \"W-we'll really...be together...?\" \"Yes, really. Emilia... Lia, Mom really loves you, more than anyone in this world.\" The gentle voice with which she called her Lia made Emilia, and Emilia's emotions, fall apart. Sobs spilled out, and the two Emilias, past and present, collapsed into tears on the spot. \"Mom... I I love you, too... I love... I love...!!\" \"I love you. I love you, Mom. I really love you so much...\" Present and past, the two Emilias' emotions overlapped, desperately trying to return those feelings of love. They strained their voices as much as their bodies would let them, as if they knew that if they failed to pour it all out now, if they didn't share with their mother everything they felt, they would never have another chance. \" Lia, I love you.\" Fortuna gently touched her hot lips to her daughter's cheek, eyelid, and brow. They touched. They embraced. At that late stage, Fortuna did so to display her motherly love this was the only moment Fortuna allowed herself to be Emilia's mother. \"...Archi, please.\" \" Yes. I understand.\" Having expressed her undying love to her beloved daughter with all her being, Fortuna stood up and addressed Archi. The tearful young man accepted Emilia from Fortuna, firmly holding that tiny body in his arms as he deeply bowed his head. \"You will probably get away safely...\" \"Yes......I understand! Emilia...this girl will absolutely not be harmed by anyone!\" As Archi shouted it like a vow, Fortuna relaxed, her relief visible on her face. After that, she pointed in the direction that led outside the forest. \"Please. Go.\" Archi, who no longer had words left to speak, broke into a run in the direction Fortuna pointed. Held tight by the young man racing through the woods, Emilia looked back over his shoulder one last time  She looked at her receding mother, raising an incoherent voice. That voice made the sharp look in Fortuna's eyes truly soften gently. \" I love you, Emilia.\" 3 Held by Archi, Emilia desperately gazed in the direction of her mother, who was no longer in view. Perhaps if she kept staring over there, the sight of her unseen mother might pop out somewhere without warning. Perhaps her mother was"}, {"text": "chasing after her. Those were the hopes she clung to. \"Emilia...!\" The little girl's earnest hopes reached even Archi as he clutched her tiny body. What could anyone say to a little girl who'd been separated from her beloved mother? No one had a good answer to that. \"Why...why...?! Why did it end up like...this...? I-is it because I broke my promise...because I left the room...?\" \"No. You're wrong, Emilia. Emilia, it's not your fault! It's not Lady Fortuna's fault; it's not anyone's fault! There's no reason for you to blame yourself!\" \"Then why...? Why are they leaving me...? Mom, Geuse... Is is it because they hate me...because I did all kinds of bad things...?\" The all-too-sudden separation had pushed young Emilia's heart right up to the breaking point. She looked back on her own actions, trying to find some way she was responsible, the reason why everything had gone so badly. She'd broken her promises. She'd left a room she wasn't supposed to leave any number of times. She'd gone to a place deep in the forest she was forbidden from going, discovered a seal she wasn't supposed to know  She couldn't help but think all these things put together had brought this about. \"Would it be better if I'd been alone...alone locked in that room the whole time? If I'd done that, could I have been with everyone...not losing anyone...?\" \"Emilia...!\" \"Was I a bad girl...? Is that why everyone hates me...why I'll be alone?\" \"You're wrong... You're wrong, Emilia. No one  No one hates you at all. This world doesn't exist to make you suffer. This world, and everyone in it, is here to make you happy...!\" The girl's tears kept falling as Archi desperately tried to get through to her. Part of it was because he wanted Emilia to stop crying. More than that, it was also what he so dearly wanted to believe in. It wasn't just Fortuna or Geuse. Everyone related to Emilia in the past loved her, protected her, and would do anything to help her. \"You, youngster there !\" As Archi sprinted through the forest, there was a sharp voice as someone leaped out onto the path. Archi immediately shot a wary look toward the individual in a black habit who had slipped through a gap in the trees. But the other party greeted him by lifting both hands up. \"Wait! I am one of Lord Archbishop Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti's 'fingers'!\" \"The Lord Archbishop's...\" \"Yes, be at ease. You are safe he... Wait, could that be...?!\" The man in the habit identified himself, bringing Archi some measure of relief. It wasn't long before the man noticed him carrying Emilia in his arms and reacted with shock. Archi solemnly nodded at him. \"Lady Fortuna entrusted her to me. She is assisting the others in battle. It shouldn't be long before she sweeps the forest clean of enemies ...\" \"...It pains me to say this, but that will be somewhat difficult.\" The man made a bitter face, which caused Archi to go, \"Eh?\" \"We have confirmed the presence of one of the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins: Greed, head of the radical faction. The Lord Archbishop has engaged him in combat, but the situation cannot be resolved by simply driving him off.\" \"An Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins...but what problem is there beyond him?\" \"The demon beast Black Serpent has been released into the forest.\" \"Th-the Black Serpent ?!\" The man's words rocked Archi. He gazed back toward the forest with a look of disbelief. \"That's crazy it's not possible! The Black Serpent is a pure calamity, even more than the White Whale and the Great Rabbit a natural disaster that obeys no one. The timing of its arrival, right as this attack is going on that's...\" \"A being...a Witch, who can make that possible, has come to this forest.\" \"Witch? Witch, you say? That's even crazier talk! The witches besides the Witch of Jealousy are long destroyed, and the Witch of Jealousy should herself be sealed in the sands of a far-off...\" \"There was a hidden Witch  Her name is Pandora. She is a part of the Witch Cult, the world's forbidden Witch.\" The man spoke as if he were wringing out every word, leaving Archi agape, like a bucket of water had roused him from his sleep. An Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, and even a Witch he had never heard of before, had arrived and what kept Archi's heart from crumbling into despair was the small heartbeat he could feel through his own chest. He'd been entrusted with something. Archi could not back away from it. \"...Lady Fortuna entrusted me with Emilia so that she might escape. Whatever happens to our homeland, I must at least protect this girl...protect our hope!\" \"...I shall accompany you. Old as I might be, I am still part of the Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti family.\" The man was roused by Archi's words and he bowed deeply to the young elf who literally nestled his bundle of hope against his breast. With a flutter of his habit sleeve, the aged man leaned forward and impressively kicked off the ground. Then he trained his eyes toward the path leading out of the forest, intending to guide them  \" No!\" The instant they broke into a run, the man suddenly shouted, and the urgency in his voice made Archi immediately stop. As Archi opened his eyes wide, wondering what was going on, the man stood, both arms spread wide. \"What a blunder... To think it would come so quickly...\" \"What has...? Wha, huh?!\" The man murmured in anguish, bewildering Archi a moment later, the man's arms fell from their shoulders. Like a doll with bad stitching, his outstretched limbs detached completely, just like that. No blood spewed from the fallen arms or from where they had been severed. In fact, the arms were shriveled in an unnatural way that had nothing to do with age, rotting like tree roots starved of water. \"The Black Serpent's vicious tongue...! Please flee!\" \"But!\" \"It is too late for me...\" Forcefully shouting for Archi to run, the man looked back, his face rapidly losing all color. Red and black spots came over his neck, which poked out of his habit, and his face was collapsing to the point where it seemed his eyeballs might fall out. \"Bu, bubu...aaa, bu...!\" Moaning in anguish, the armless man collapsed onto the ground, his upper torso writhing. Black blood gushed out of his eye sockets, nostrils, earlobes, and more places, until finally, he stopped moving at all. The man's final moments left Archi, let alone young Emilia, in a panic. \"The crucible of disease...the plague-bearing demon beast the Black Serpent...!!\" In a raspy voice, Archi covered young Emilia's eyes as he invoked the name of the enemy that had slain their companion. Of course, it did not react to his voice. However, in the gaps between Archi's and Emilia's ragged breathing, a distinct sound echoed, like a gigantic creature licking its lips. It felt like a hunter, waiting for its prey's fear to heighten before it  \" Sh-shit!!\" Realizing the approaching danger, Archi yelled a curse and fled. He did not know which way to run. This was the enemy's hunting ground. They'd been herded into it unawares. He'd put as much distance as he could between him and the man's corpse. If possible, he'd leave the forest entirely. Focusing only on the rigid presence of Emilia pressing against his chest, Archi desperately fled from the menace. Flee, flee, the young elf continued to flee, resisting with all his might  \"Ah \" While getting ready to launch himself forward, he felt a scalding heat run up his right ankle. The instant he realized he'd been licked, his willpower crumbled. The wicked tongue was slithering up his bare flesh. The illness it caused spread across his skin, manifesting as reddish-black burn scars. The instant he saw what was taking place, Archi turned a palm toward his own right leg. \"...Fulla!\" Without hesitation, he used a blade of wind to send his diseased right leg flying off from the knee. Needing support to remain upright, he angled his falling body against a tree. Archi, breaking out in a thick sweat at the excruciating pain of losing his leg, gritted his teeth, enduring the sensation of his brain catching on fire as he continued to chant. \"Hyuma...!\" With the sound of air cracking, he froze the stump of his own severed leg. White steam rose from his wound, and Archi raised up a renewed scream over his extremely crude method of stopping the bleeding. It had been a bold, drastic decision. The speed and the means he employed proved the depth of his resolve and his skill and then there was the fact that he had not let go of Emilia once during that entire process. \"Archi...?\" With her face firmly pressed against his arm, Emilia could not see what had happened. Archi forced a smile onto his face, sitting up as he downplayed the greatest agony he had ever experienced. \"It's nothing... It's all right... It's all right, so...!\" His words fragmented, Archi lied to Emilia that nothing had happened. His actions were worthy of respect and yet, cruel fate would greet his determination, no matter how incredible, with scorn. The remaining part of his frozen right leg was losing color above the knee, desiccated like a baked stone. It was as if the very earth was drying up. The remainder of Archi's right leg had begun dying; the disease would not stop there. \"...Emilia. Um, you see the white flowers on the other side of those two trees?\" \"...Y-yeah.\" Released by Archi, who sat with his back against a large tree, Emilia put both her feet on the ground and looked in the direction he pointed. Gazing at the pair of trees and the white flowers beyond, she nodded. \"Can you run in the direction of the flowers? Past the flowers...straight ahead...\" \"R-run... I can run. But...\" \"Then run...\" Staring at the white flowers, young Emilia caught her breath as Archi spoke those words to her. They were brief words with which to send her off. Even as hesitance hovered in her eyes, it dawned on her that Archi's state was nothing like normal as she looked between him and the flowers over and over. If she ran, she would be alone. Once again, someone would disappear from her life. \"It's all right, Emilia. You won't...be alone...\" \"Archi...\" \"Now, run. No matter what you hear, don't turn back... Run!\" Archi's sharp voice made Emilia jump. She took one step forward, then broke into a run. She forced herself to not look back because Archi said not to. Archi's voice, Fortuna's voice, Geuse's voice all reverberated in the little girl's mind.  She wanted to believe that if she did as she was told, everything would go back to how it used to be. \"That's right. There you go. Run, run...just like how you always ran around and gave us so much trouble...\" Archi spoke those words through a thin smile, staring at the back of the girl who was already hard to see in the distance as he stripped off the sleeves of his tunic. The shriveling corruption had already reached his lower chest. He no longer felt like he could move either leg. His flesh had lost its color, its texture becoming like stone, thoroughly reminiscent of some kind of repulsive demon beast. He heard a sound. Sss, sss. It was the sound of a demon beast licking its lips after spotting its prey right before it. It came as if to steal away the escaping girl, the forest's hope, and to rob all meaning from the tiny, remaining flicker of Archi's ending life. \"As if...anyone would let you pass...\" Eyes burning with the will to fight on, Archi ignored his immobile legs, using the strength of his arms alone to sit himself up. The ominous sound stopped...as if the beast was taking"}, {"text": "renewed interest, captivated by the prey it had presumed stricken down. It was because he sensed his own impending death that he'd sent the girl as far as possible away from her own. \"Lady Fortuna...that girl...will probably be all right.\" Sss, sss, was the sound that heralded the approach of the end. Hearing this sound, knowing that it represented nothing less than the greatest peril to his life, Archi proudly smiled. *** Exhausted as that smile might have been, it never faded. 4  The forest had already changed so dramatically that it seemed to have forgotten its original form. It was a land in a mournful state, as if some angry, rampaging, giant serpent had violated the earth in its passing. Numerous trees had been mowed down; many rested upon their sides, snapped at the roots. A number of great holes with no visible bottom pockmarked the surface of the ground. If someone claimed that this was the aftermath of some unnatural being purging the surface world, the overwhelming destruction would have convinced many of the preposterous explanation. A single man the one who had wrought the shocking spectacle stood at the center of the destruction. His face marred by fresh blood, out of breath but his spirit undiminished, he was the great sinner who had embraced inside him a Deadly Sin that suited his body not, gaining power at the cost of whittling away his own life Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti. With sheer force of will, the man named Geuse forced down that unnatural power as he stood. The Authority one perhaps ought to call invisible arms had given Geuse the means to defy an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins  \" You know, it really is time for you to acknowledge this is useless.\" Even having obtained power at such great cost, his target Regulus was completely unharmed and even scornfully laughing at him. Standing amid a hovering cloud of dust and unnatural destruction, Regulus seemed bored. The sight of him unaffected by any of it was so warped that it was as if someone had put a sticker onto a finished painting. \"Even after doing...this much...!\" \"It's time to face up and realize it already, yeah? We're different. You and I are actors meant for different stages. It's not an issue of whether you can beat me. No one can beat me. No one can hurt me. Sword Saint or dragon, it's all useless. All of it, every last bit...useless.\" Speaking bluntly to Geuse, who was coughing up blood, Regulus nonchalantly waved an arm. The gesture, as if shooing a fly, instantly put Geuse on guard, offering his flesh to the black power wriggling inside him. He prepared to deal with it, come what may then his right arm was sent flying. \"Wha...?!\" \"I'm bored stiff of seeing that reaction, too. I went through the trouble of giving you time to spend with your wife and all. I wanted at least some kind of reward for that, but it looks like I got my hopes up for nothing.\" \"Ngh...what are...? Guh, agh! Whoaaa!!\" Pressing down on the remains of his severed arm, Geuse tumbled spectacularly. Upon closer inspection, he had also been wounded in both his legs, where ugly gouges marred his thighs as if beasts had hungrily torn the flesh off them. He endured the pain, blood frothing at his lips all the while. The pitiful sight made Regulus grimace. \"In the end, see, this is all your resolve and determination and all that stuff amounts to. But don't mind that too much. It's not you; it's everyone. No one can hold more than their own two hands can carry. You have to live within your means. That's normal. You understand, right?\" \"Gah, aah, aah...\" \"Really, I hate all this. Maybe you think I like hurting other people out of some kind of sadistic hobby, but you would be mistaken, and I would take great insult at that mischaracterization. I'm not doing this because I particularly want to. It only seems like I'm bullying you because you're weak. I don't have any desire to do things like this any longer. For good or ill, I, a satisfied man, do not want to interfere with anyone else. I am content, without want. You need to accept that.\" The force of the bleeding had weakened, and Geuse's voice had grown too meager for yelling. His raspy, ragged breaths and the spasms of his body invited pity, like an insect on the verge of expiring. With Geuse thus on the brink of death, Regulus looked down at him, speaking without malice or enmity or anything else. He felt there was no need for personal emotions to come into play when he was merely listing off facts. To Regulus Corneas, Geuse's desperate actions were the same as a breeze no, such a gentle wind would have at least rustled his forelocks. Accordingly, his actions did not even amount to that. As she stood in the destroyed forest, Pandora showed no more sign of change than Regulus did. The very embodiment of beauty, her lovely visage, let alone the white cloth that enveloped her small, slender torso, remained utterly unaffected. \"Among the masses, not everyone can think like you, and certainly not everyone will reach the same lofty realm. You are more special than others. You should be content that you are so. Your completed form is marvelous. And they, the incomplete, are marvelous in their own way.\" \"I do not seek your praise, nor do I endorse your opinion that they are marvelous or anything of the sort. At any rate, neither I nor the Black Serpent needed to show up, Lady Pandora. You could have handled this much all by yourself.\" Showing no sign of joy over her words of praise, Regulus indicated the forest with both hands as he spoke to Pandora. She gracefully acknowledged his words with a nod. \"Yes, that might well be the case. However, I needed to see with my own eyes just how earnestly people strive for their revered goals and just how lovely they can be while doing so.\" \"The gist is, you wanted to see the desperate faces of people backed into a corner, didn't you? Ha-ha-ha, if that's all, you should just put it simply so people can understand. Making a needless excuse feels like it only wastes my time.\" \"I find that way of taking it to be quite adorable.\" As a smile that could charm the heart came over Pandora, Regulus replied with a wicked smile of his own. From there, he turned his eyes toward the collapsed Geuse, walking over to inflict the final blow. \"Well, even if this body dies, it's not like you don't have spares. Dragging what's inside you and keeping a grip on the scruff of your neck will make dealing with you easier. For someone who made me use up all this time, you really are a talentless hack.\" As he spoke, Regulus lifted his foot over Geuse's head. It was clear he would squash Geuse's head like an overripe melon  Just before that, a voice interrupted. \"Al Hyuma!!\" In accordance with the chant, the world accepted the transformation of mana; with a cracking sound, it became destruction made manifest. The sound of the atmosphere crackling made Regulus lift his head, scowling in disgust. \"If it's not one thing, then it's another...!\" Regulus clicked his tongue  The next moment, a mighty spear of ice sufficient to blot out the sky slammed into his face, and the resulting quake, having nowhere else to go, became a ferocious shock wave that enveloped Regulus, completely crushing his slender frame. There were blasts of wind and tremors of the earth, repeating so much as to completely lose count. Fragments of shattered ice scattered all across the ground, changing the scenery to the point that one would doubt it was ever a forest to begin with. Light reflected off the glimmering ice, and in that chaotic, luminous world a silver-haired woman stood at the fallen man's side. \"Geuse! Geuse, hold on! What did they...? Ahhh, what should I do...?!\" \"Lady Fortuna, is that you...?\" Responding to that voice, light returned to Geuse's eyes, though he was barely breathing. It was unmistakable that his life was in peril even so, but as Geuse barely kept his consciousness tethered, Fortuna nodded to him several times. \"Yes, yes, that's right, it's me. Geuse, to see you like this...\" \"It iiiis fine... A body of flesh must someday perish... The finger who entruuusted this body to me surely understood as much... More importantly, is Lady Emilia...?\" \"I left her to Archi...the next Guardian, so she could have a chance to escape outside. I'm sure they're all right, thanks to you.\" \"Iiis that so...? That iiis very...good.\" \" It's not remotely good whatsoever!!\" As Geuse relaxed his blood-ridden face in relief, his words made Regulus cry out with an angry voice. Blasting apart the ice-covered soil, Regulus brushed away white mist with both arms, his expression indignant. He plucked at his head, enmity resting in his eyes like nothing before. \"Who do you think you are, coming back and pulling that out of the blue? I was about to stomp and crush his head just now! With what right, with whose permission, do you dare! Interfere! With me...me me me me me me me me me me ME?!!\" In a fit of rage, Regulus squatted and plunged both his arms into the ground. He proceeded to swing them upward, tossing soft soil toward Fortuna and Geuse. His demeanor was truly like that of a child, throwing a tantrum and scattering earth about  \"No! That debris... You must evade all of it...!\" \"Eh?\" Fortuna was ignoring the shower of dirt and trying to refine her mana for a counterattack when Geuse pushed her down. The action he chose over counterattack, over defense, was to push her straight to the ground without even breaking her fall  Fortuna raised her voice, questioning Geuse's decision...and then she saw. The sand and pebbles Regulus threw had opened \"countless holes\" in the surface of the ground. These were literally countless holes. Almost like the marks raindrops left upon parched soil, the dirt Regulus had thrown gouged the ground with such penetrating power that she could not see where they bottomed out. The might of the attack was obvious from one glance at the fallen trees caught in its area of effect. They had been turned into wood chips from the countless, tiny holes punched into them; a human body subjected to the same would have surely turned to bloody mist. It was nigh unbelievable destructive power, and most frightening of all was  \"Hey now! What did you go dodging it for?! Just soak it up and turn into mincemeat! That goes for the talentless hack Petelgeuse and that woman over there, too! I would've been fine adding you as my seventy-ninth wife, so what's with this stupid behavior, huh? Huh?!\" Whining loudly, Regulus thrust his arms into the ground's surface once more  He could do this consecutively. He was a being who could not be harmed by some of the deadliest spells in existence yet could kill by scattering some dirt and pebbles. In spite of this, his mental state was as immature as an infant's, destructively egotistical beyond anyone's reach. This dangerous being, like a badly raised child who was liable to bite anyone depending on his mood, had been granted power on par with a dragon that was how Fortuna appraised the vile man before her. \"If you don't like me taking one limb off, I'll take all four! I'll make you regret making a fool out of me...out of Greed!!\" \" Please wait, Archbishop Corneas.\" \"Aah?\" Just when Regulus was about to resume his attacks, the platinum-haired beauty urged him to wait. Still squatting, Regulus looked back at Pandora. His eyes were still thickly colored with anger, and it seemed even his ally, Pandora, was in danger"}, {"text": "of winding up on the receiving end. With that dangerous look still in his eyes, Regulus spoke to Pandora, his lips trembling. \"...What is it, Lady Pandora? Right now, I am in the middle of punishing the louts infringing upon my rights. What do you want from me? Whatever you intend, watch your words and answer me right now...!\" \"Please restrain your anger, Archbishop Corneas. I will not permit you to kill him, or her, in this place. Do you not feel anything when you gaze upon them?\" *** Pandora's words were unexpected to Fortuna and Geuse alike. It was unthinkable that she, an enemy to both of them, would plead with Regulus to spare their lives. Yet, in response to her words, Regulus, who had given himself over to rage, stopped moving. Then he looked at Fortuna and Geuse, finally turning back to Pandora. \"Did you just...order me to restrain my anger?\" His tone was quiet, sounding emotionless to the ear. However, that calm crumbled a moment later. \" You've got some nerve butting in where you're not wanted, woman!!!\" In that situation, where everyone was trying to have their own way, Regulus's short temper hit its limit and exploded in the worst way possible. Though they had been both on the same side, though he had paid respect to his superior, Regulus hurled sand toward Pandora without hesitation, seemingly having forgotten their relationship entirely. The might of the earthen shrapnel was immense. The dirt he scattered ravaged any part of the forest that was in its line of fire with overwhelming force, bearing down upon the beautiful girl and this girl, a goddess of beauty, a living masterpiece, was cruelly transformed into a cloud of blood. \" You're kidding me.\" Defenseless and showered by the soil, Pandora was flayed apart, leaving Fortuna agape. It was a natural reaction. Her reviled opponent had died a dog's death at the hands of a former comrade. Her supernatural nature was rendered meaningless, the girl's dead flesh fated to be eaten amid a ravaged forest. \"This is what happens when someone gives me lip. Why can't people just treat me with the consideration anyone else is due? Don't get in my way. Don't interrupt when I'm talking. Don't object to what I do. Is that so hard to ask? Hey, you two over there...what do you think?\" Having murdered Pandora, though the madness residing in his eyes remained unexhausted, Regulus turned back toward the other two. There was no room to appreciate that the number of their enemies had been reduced by one. Even if they no longer faced two mighty foes, they could not overcome their predicament without some means of dealing with their seemingly impervious enemy. Twice, Regulus had endured Fortuna's surprise attacks unharmed. She hated to admit it, but she could not defeat him nor could Geuse, and any further attempt to do so would put his life at risk. \"Let us buy time so that Emilia might escape...\" \"In that case... Lady Fortuna...leave this to me...\" Geuse had arrived at the same conclusion as Fortuna yet continued onward to a different choice for bringing that outcome about. \"No matter how much blood I must shed...until this flesh of mine yields, I...I will buy time...so please, Lady Fortuna, escape...\" \"Don't say stupid things.\" To Geuse, who lay within her arms and had resolved to be a stone to cast away, Fortuna spoke in a gentle voice, her cheeks softening. Despite the situation, she found the fact that she could smile even so somewhat mysterious and something to be proud of. \"Are you saying to leave you here and run? If I was going to do that, I'd never have come back. I even parted ways with Emilia to return. How can you tell me to run now?\" \"But...why iiis it, then, you have returned...? I am...\" \" To not let you die...and if you must die, to be at your side.\" With Fortuna's violet eyes staring at him, Geuse's eyes, misty with blood, opened wide. Fortuna held Geuse, who was lighter from the loss of one arm and so much blood, pressing him close to her as she spoke. \"What awaits me in a world without you, in a forest where you will never come? I am too weak to live long in a world that doesn't have you in it.\" \"You, weak...?\" \"I am weak. All I did was put up a brave front for you and Emilia.\" Fortuna lifted Geuse up, looking at him with a face that somehow seemed freed of all burdens. Trembling, Geuse leaned on her arm for support, the two embracing each other as they faced forward. Gazing at the pair, Regulus clicked his tongue, disgusted from the bottom of his heart. \"Not only do you ignore my question for a prolonged period of time, but now you've gotten yourselves all worked up? Makes me wonder what in the world could you be thinking? What's the meaning of this? I've already shown you the superiority of my power, explained everything in easy-to-understand ways, so why are you going We can do it over and over? What the hell are you thinking?!\" \"What a tiresome and noisy man. Get a clue already. For us, there is only one answer.\" \"Yeeees, I suppose so...\" Fortuna and Geuse exchanged glances, their voices in tandem as they spoke to the indignant Regulus. \"\" Who knows and who cares, moron?\"\" Their voices overlapped, and Fortuna stuck up her middle finger for good measure. Uttering those biting words together, Fortuna and Geuse gathered their power in their taunt, making Regulus's face red with rage. \"Fine with me! I'll make both of you indistinguishable puddles of blood and use you to fertilize this filthy forest \" \" I told you to wait, did I not, Archbishop Corneas?\" For her own convenience, Pandora impeded Regulus for the third time  Dancing softly in the sky, she pressed her slender hand down upon Regulus's head, forcing the disturbing man's body to sink without any apparent resistance from the ground. In an instant, he was buried from the tips of his toes to the crown of his head. As Pandora landed right beside him, Regulus stared up at her from directly below. \"Over and over again... What does it take to kill you...?!\" \"I forgive your violent actions, your violent deeds, all these things. You have already fulfilled the purpose for which I brought you here. It is fine for you to go now.\" \"After calling me here, you tell me to go now that you're satisfied? Just how much do you think you can make a fool out of me...?\" \"Is it that unacceptable? Then I shall take care of it. Archbishop Corneas cannot possibly be here. He is spending time at his mansion, surrounded by his wives.\" \"Wa \" The instant she made that one-sided argument, Regulus tried to shout something as he suddenly vanished from sight. It wasn't that he sank deeper into the ground. His very presence had truly, suddenly disappeared. As a matter of fact, the place where he had assuredly been bore no trace of burial at all. It was as if, when Pandora said, ...cannot possibly be here, the very world had affirmed her words. \"At my request, the boisterous one has departed the stage. Now we can take our time to chat, yes?\" \"...Before that, may I ask one thing? You should be dead and in pieces, yes?\" Fortuna posed that question to Pandora, who was smiling gracefully and standing there like it was the most natural thing. Surely, that smile, along with that graceful body, had been turned into fragments of bloody flesh and scattered around the forest in its entirety. And yet, the tragic state Fortuna was certain she'd witnessed was gone, and the dead had unnaturally come back to life. To Fortuna, who was unable to conceal her shock at that fact, Pandora tilted her head. \"Perhaps...you are 'mistaken' about something?\" *** Pandora's words, spoken without malice, sent a deep shudder through Fortuna. Though it should not have been so, the world had changed out of respect for Pandora's opinion. The scene Fortuna herself had seen with her own eyes had been denied, and history had been supernaturally rewritten with a scene she had no recollection of seeing.  A corpse had been erased, and Pandora had returned to life. Regulus had vanished, along with all traces of his presence. Moreover, the consequences did not end at Pandora being safe and sound, with the hole Regulus had been in now buried. When she first realized the effects, Fortuna nearly let out an unwitting yelp. Opening her eyes wide, Fortuna moved her trembling fingers toward Geuse, who was assuredly on the brink of death  His torn-off arm and the grave wounds to his legs had been healed and restored. \"It is a simple matter. If Archbishop Corneas was never here, it follows that all the results of Archbishop Corneas's actions would also vanish. Although, you may consider the healing of your wounds a gesture of goodwill on my part...\" \"G-Geuse, that arm...\" \"There's nothing amiss. My body...is sound, aside from what resides inside it.\" \"I have not gone so far as to overwrite the fact that you incorporated the Witch Factor into yourself. I wish to praise your actions and the actions of the woman who returned for your sake. Please think of this as a kindness from me.\" Geuse was bewildered by Pandora's elegant smile even as he acknowledged that his own body had been healed. Fortuna heard the words from a distance as she felt the ground crumble under her own feet. Pandora, her hated foe, was not an opponent Fortuna could take on. Everything that had happened in the forest that day had far exceeded Fortuna's puny imagination. Or perhaps, at that rate, everything that had happened would simply vanish into thin  \"Lady Fortuna, please get ahold of yourself!\" \" ! Geuse!\" As Fortuna wavered, Geuse used his restored right hand to pinch her cheek. Fortuna was surprised by the pain as Geuse grasped both her shoulders and continued. \"I am sure you have doubts. I am sure you are bewildered. However, these are thiiiings we must leave for another time. Right now, what is important...is that we do what we can for Lady Emilia's sake!\" Little by little, his desperate plea restored Fortuna's waning vigor. Yes. It was just as Geuse had said. She was afraid, not knowing what this incomprehensible foe might do. But surely, she already knew the most frightening thing of all.  If this woman's objectives involved her own precious, beloved daughter... \"Whatever happened, I don't care. Right now !\" \"Iiiit falls to the two of us to strike her down! If she iiiis defeated, the militants assaulting the forest will surely retreat!  We wiiiill save Lady Emilia!\" Geuse's words, and her feelings for her beloved daughter, made Fortuna's internal hate grow white-hot. Before, she'd resigned herself to never seeing Emilia ever again. Up until a moment before, she'd intended to see that resolve through. But now, her hopes and her ideals resounded powerfully in her chest. She'd save Emilia. She'd return home to Emilia. She would be together with Geuse and Emilia again  \" O ancient, mystic ice, so cold and white even time shudders, ice so great the soul sleeps eternal.\" The mana she had gathered up to strike down Regulus whirled about, seeking a place to explode. She gave that latent energy form, purpose, duty; it took shape, ready to freeze the world. The sky, the very air moaned, giving birth to spears of ice so enormous, a giant might have wielded them. The tips of these spears, exceeding ten in number, pointed toward their foe, like a bouquet of flowers inviting the opponent to split asunder and rest in an eternal, icy grave. \"My life, my duty, my love... For all their sakes, I...!\" At Fortuna's side, Geuse embraced his own shoulders with both hands as"}, {"text": "he spun those words of bloody resolve. Power raged under his tattered habit, and his healed body began falling into ruin once more. Blood gushed, bones cracked, and life dissolved. Seeing the pair's resolve, Pandora merely spread her arms wide, her cheeks flushed. \"Now, come  Let me taste the embrace of your tenacity until the bitter end.\" Intending to rip that smile off her face, the pair's power made the world tremble. And then  5  She had already gone well past the white flowers Archi had pointed out. And yet, her legs did not cease. She was told not to stop running, so she kept doing as she was told. Her breath leaped. Emilia earnestly stretched her tiny gait as far as it would go as she ran through the forest. \"Uu...uuuu!\" She shook her head. Tears were flowing. She desperately held back the sob that was threatening to leak out from the corner of her mouth. What was going on and why was all this happening now? Everyone probably knew something that she did not. She didn't know anything about what she should do. Was there really nothing she could do? Who was the one bullying Fortuna, Geuse, and Archi? What did she need to do to get those people back? What were they after ? \"Se...al...\" Back where she'd gotten separated from Geuse, the frightfully beautiful girl had said that word. Hadn't Fortuna and Archi both mentioned the same seal? *** She'd been told to keep running, but then she stopped. Even if she looked back, she'd long left behind the place where Archi was. She could not see him. Nor Fortuna. Nor Geuse. \"But...if if I don't do...s-something...\" If the seal was connected to the people who had come into the forest, Emilia knew where she should go. If everyone was being hurt because of a thing like that   If they wanted such a thing, why not just give it to them? She didn't know how to open the door. She didn't understand what meaning the seal held. She didn't know if it would change anything for the better. But the term seal was plenty. Wanting to believe she could do something was not what drove the little girl to action. It was hope the hope that by going there, then surely, something would change that pressed against the girl's back. \"If I go to that place... Ahhh, but...\" Thus deciding, Emilia tried to dash off but hesitated before taking the first step. She'd done too much running around blindly. Already, this forest, the forest that Emilia had grown up in, was not the forest Emilia knew. She'd lost track not only of where the seal was but also the settlement and the locations of her mother and Geuse. \"Uh, hu...!\" Confronted with her pathetic powerlessness, young Emilia could restrain her sobs no more. Even though she had something she needed to do, she lacked the power to do it. Her mother was not there to rescue her in her time of need. She needed to do something for that very mother, and yet...  It was then that Emilia's wholehearted, earnest feelings set into motion the being watching over her young, valiant spirit. As Emilia wiped her flooding tears with a hand, her eyes widened as a faint light abruptly passed before them. When she lifted her face, she saw that her body was surrounded by countless glowing lights. \"Fairy...?\" Emilia called out to the fairies, the supernatural beings that Fortuna and Geuse had termed lesser spirits. They did not possess words, yet they responded to Emilia's will, gently moving deeper into the forest  After a slight delay, Emilia grasped the intent of the phosphorescent lights, which were blinking seemingly to guide her. \"You'll tell me where...?\" There was no reply. The lesser spirits only formed a trail of light leading deeper into the forest. \"If I go that way, I'll get to the seal? I'll be able to save Mom and everyone...?\" The trail of light grew brighter. Emilia wiped her tears away with all her might. She couldn't stay there sobbing forever. She had her mother and Geuse and all kinds of other people to save, and when she'd broken down crying, the fairies had come to help her. How could she keep hanging her head? \"Yeah... Yeah, yeah!\" Nodding with a mix of thanks and determination, Emilia broke into a run, following the belt of light. She earnestly followed the brilliant path that was created by the phosphorescent glows, believing it was the sole hope she could cling to. Leaping over holes and climbing over inclines, she made herself smaller as she raced through the gaps between tightly packed trees. There were many paths where the lesser spirits could pass but Emilia could not. She tripped, branches scraping her cheek, and she fell, spitting out the dirt in her teeth as she rose once more. \"Huu, huu...!\" Her lungs hurt. Fluid dripped from her nose. She wiped off her teary and muddy face, getting angry at her scuffed knees as she ran. With insufficient oxygen, Emilia found her vision wavering, and her consciousness was like a daydream as memories resurfaced. Emilia remembered all the time she had spent in that forest, in that settlement, loved as she was.  She remembered Fortuna's love. She remembered days when she'd been scolded. Emilia also remembered crying and apologizing and Fortuna spending the whole night holding Emilia in her arms, continuing to stroke her head until morning, seemingly so that she would not wake alone. Fortuna had not spoiled her and had been strict, but she had also given her such precious things. Even though she had a habit of saying she was not Emilia's real mother, Fortuna was Emilia's mother, her first and most important mother.  She remembered how Archi and everyone else in the settlement were kind to them. She understood there was just the tiniest bit of distance between them. She knew they were hesitant, now knowing exactly how to approach her. But everyone had always been gentle to her, and they had absolutely never hurt Emilia or Fortuna. Even the Princess Room was something everyone had worked hard to improve so Emilia would have an easier time. It was difficult being in that place, but she'd liked it anyway.  She remembered hating Geuse so much. He was related to the things the adults were hiding, and he'd gone and drawn out the smiling face that was for Emilia alone, so she thought she could never forgive him. Yet, when they'd met by chance, he'd cried the moment he set eyes on Emilia. He cried and cried, crying out of happiness, and so Emilia forgave him. After all, those were kind tears. Remembering how Fortuna had put her at ease when Fortuna was hugging her, she'd stroked Geuse's head. She wanted to be at his side so that the crybaby wouldn't be lonely. She'd thought he was so helpless. She'd thought she just couldn't abandon him.  She remembered she loved everyone so much. Fortuna. Geuse. Archi. Everyone. They were Emilia's precious, precious people. \"I can...still save everyone...!\" She wanted to sleep in the same bed with Fortuna again. Next time, she wanted to invite Archi and everyone to the Princess Room. Next time, she wanted to stomp on that impertinent crybaby Geuse's foot with all her strength. She wanted to meet everyone again. \"I'll be a good girl, so...\" Her vision hazy with tears, she slipped beyond the usual branches and trees of the familiar forest, her feet halting where the forest turned white. Her breath was ragged and her face was red when she finally reached the seal she'd been seeking  \" Welcome. I have been waiting for you.\" The girl with platinum hair stood waiting before the seal, spreading her arms wide, seemingly to welcome her arrival. CHAPTER 4 *** 1  In that phantasmal scene, with everything dyed pure white, a beautiful girl stood, wearing nothing but a single piece of cloth. It looked as if an artist had exchanged not only his own soul but that of many others, making a deal with some devil to attain the pinnacle of painting for the very first time. \"I am so glad that I found you. I've located the seal at long last, but I had no idea where the Key might be. But I have managed to find you, so I am deeply relieved.\" \"Why...are you here...?\" The smile the girl Pandora wore on her beautiful visage was like a fragrance that toyed with life itself. Posing a question to the girl with such an obviously abnormal presence made Emilia's voice tremble. In response, Pandora brought her palms together before her, smiling broadly like someone about to reveal a secret as some sort of grand finale. \"Tee-hee, surprised, aren't you? It's quite simple, actually. This seal is our goal. We came to look for it... Therefore, my being here was inevitable.\" The reply Pandora gave was not the answer Emilia sought. Emilia was trying to ask how Pandora could be here. The last time Emilia had seen her, Geuse had been keeping the strange white figure and her from going anywhere  \"Why...are you here...?\" \" ? Ahhh, I am sorry. I gave a rather odd reply, didn't I? What you want to know concerns Archbishop Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti and your mother, doesn't it?\" *** Pandora's belated comprehension made Emilia audibly clench her teeth. A proper answer for a proper question. She wanted to ask. She wanted to know. But at the same time, she didn't. After all, if Pandora was there, what had happened to Geuse? \"Please rest easy.\" To young Emilia's distress, Pandora spoke that one phrase as a preamble, her charming smile deepening. Her expression flooded with what seemed like simple consideration, wanting to wipe that gloom from Emilia's face. \"The Archbishop Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti and your mother you are so concerned about are both quite safe and sound.\" \"R-really...?\" \"Yes, really  my believers and I have tried to avoid hurting everyone as much as possible. Just as I told you earlier, this seal is our goal. It is not necessary to sacrifice anyone for it.\" Pandora's deluge of words, spoken in the kindest possible way, softly melted Emilia's unease and tension away. Relief slowly permeated her chest. If she could believe Pandora, Fortuna and Geuse were safe, and perhaps things for everyone in the forest had not gone as terribly as she had imagined. If that was true  \"Once you finish with the seal, you'll leave...?\" *** \"O-once you're done dealing with the s-seal, you'll leave the forest? You'll leave without doing anything horrible to everyone?\" \" Yes, of course. It is not my desire that there be unnecessary casualties.\" Responding to Emilia's clumsy plea, Pandora made a promise, deeply bowing her head. After that, Pandora pointed to the sealed door, causing the teary Emilia to cock her head. \"Therefore, would you kindly hand over the Key? Once I am finished with my business, I will immediately withdraw from this forest.\" \"K-Key...?\" \"Yes, the Key. This seal takes the shape of a door because it cannot be opened without the Key. And surely, that Key is in your possession.\" \"I don't know anything about that...\" When Pandora made that firm assertion, the clueless Emilia shook her head in denial. As a matter of fact, she couldn't remember any such thing. Emilia did not recall ever carrying something like a key, and in the first place, the seal itself had been kept secret from Emilia. She couldn't think of any possible way for her to have this Key to a seal she didn't even know about until just recently. And yet  \"I cannot call hiding it from me very wise.\" \"Y-you're wrong...!! I really  I really don't know! I don't have anything like a key! No one gave me a key! I can't open this seal!\" \"Is that so?  Well, I will have to rummage through every corner of the forest to search for"}, {"text": "the Key, then.\" Seemingly disappointed in Emilia's reply, Pandora lowered her eyes, looking very sad. Her words and gesture made Emilia's body tremble. Pandora seemed genuinely sympathetic toward Emilia. But no matter how she felt, she undoubtedly intended to \"rummage through\" the forest, and its people, until she got what she wanted. Instinctively understanding that Pandora was fully capable of following through, Emilia desperately tried to think of something. \"I-I'll open it! I'll open it!!\" \"Ohhh, really? I'm so glad. You really do have the Key, don't you?\" When Emilia raised her voice, fear racing through her, Pandora's expression brightened like the sunrise. Not noticing how the abrupt change frightened the little girl, Pandora continued. \"But of course you do. You must have the Key  After all, whatever you may look like, you are still a Witch's daughter.\" \"Witch...?\" \"Now, please take care of the seal. If you open this door, I will depart, immediately at that.\" Pandora's face was filled with joy, looking like she could barely contain her impatience as she yielded the stage to Emilia. Even as Pandora's words set her mind astir, Emilia approached the door in her stead. Firmly closed and so tall that she had to crane her neck to see it all, the door felt very weighty and oppressive. *** She already said she would open it, and here she stood before the door. However, she had no idea how to open it. The one time she investigated the seal, Emilia had tried getting past it. No matter how much she pushed or pulled or even climbed over it, the door never budged. That wouldn't change now. The door, as cold as ice, silently and emotionlessly rejected Emilia's tiny palm. \"Ha! ...Haaa...ha!... Ah.\" Her heart rate quickened abnormally, and she could hear the noisy sound of blood flowing in her head. The inside of her chest grew hot, and the depths of her belly grew cold. Her leaping heart threatened to jump right out of her mouth, and yet, the tips of her fingers felt heavy, as if packed with lead. Though she willed them to move with all her might, they would not.  If she didn't open this door, something terrible would happen to everyone, she was sure of it. As fear and despair made her mind a blank, Emilia's consciousness moved further and further away  \" Think of yourself as the Key.\" When Emilia sought something to cling to, that voice smoothly slid into Emilia's earlobes.  I am...the Key. Doing as the voice commanded, Emilia's mind settled on a single answer. That instant, Emilia felt something heavy in the palm of the hand she used to touch the door. She looked at her hand. There, she saw an old, large silver key that had appeared at some point unknown to her. \"Can you see it? If so, you are indeed the Key.\" Standing right beside Emilia, Pandora spoke in what seemed a whisper. Her words brought a sound out of Emilia's throat, but she realized the girl could not see the Key herself. \"You don't see this...?\" \" . No, I do not. This Key cannot be entrusted to anyone who does not possess the proper qualifications. There are likely only two people in the world who may hold this Key.\" When Pandora murmured with a look of envy, Emilia saw something resembling emotion in her for the first time. But the impression the girl gave off that moment was meaningless. Lifting her face, Emilia turned back toward the door. Surely, the key in her palm would match the keyhole of the lock in the center of the door. It was something Emilia understood without having to try and see. Mysteriously, her hand felt accustomed to the key. It was as natural, as obvious as a key she might use to enter her own bedroom. \"Now, open it. Do this, and your wish shall be granted.\" When Pandora's voice came to her from...somewhere, Emilia took a single step forward. If she put the key in the keyhole and willed it to \"open,\" then open it would. That was all it would take for the seal to be released from its long, long, truly so very long duty. If she did that, Geuse, Fortuna, and everyone else in the forest would surely be saved...and yet  Emilia I promise. As she was about to touch the seal, the words whispered by her mother upon their parting echoed in Emilia's head. They were words exchanged in a promise unrelated to that seal. However, Emilia remembered. She remembered her mother had promised to protect her. She knew nothing about the seal. She'd made a prior promise never to go to this place. Emilia did not know about this place, and she was not supposed to know. She was not supposed to have anything to do with it at all. She and Fortuna had made a promise. And she had to put keeping her promises above everything else. A promise was a creation of trust and she couldn't betray those feelings. If she became a bad girl, no one would forgive Emilia anymore. She would become unforgivable. That was why opening the seal would mean breaking a promise. \"I I can't open it...\" \" Why?\" When Emilia reluctantly shook her head, Pandora spoke briefly, her voice hard for the first time. Not noticing the change in her tone of voice, Emilia shook her head even more reluctantly. \"I...I made a promise. I don't know anything about the seal. I mustn't open it.\" \"Is that so? Promises are important, aren't they? I think your attempt to uphold yours is very righteous and commendable. However, such things have a time and place.\" Gently, Pandora hugged Emilia from behind. Embraced by those slender, gorgeous arms, Emilia trembled from the warmth of someone who was not her mother. \"You made that promise with your mother, didn't you? Your mother is a most commendable person. She raised you to be proper and good. Such aspirations should be treasured.\" \"Th-then...\" \"But sometimes, the time comes when you must decide to break a promise. Perhaps it is cruel to ask that of a child so young. However, fate does not take personal circumstance into account. What fate loves most is the struggle against the tides and embracing hope, come what may. What kind of hope do you seek?\" \"What kind...?\" As Emilia spoke in a broken voice, Pandora went, \"Yes,\" smiling like a benevolent mother as she nodded. \"One choice would be the hope that you can keep the promise between you and your mother, not opening the seal and thus antagonizing us, but then overcome these tribulations in spite of that.\" Pandora lifted up her right hand to indicate that invisible hope. \"And the other is the hope that by defying your mother's promise and opening the seal, we can both fulfill our objectives and harmoniously bring this entire affair to an end.\" Lifting up her left hand, Pandora similarly presented to Emilia another invisible hope. *** Presented with these two options, Emilia stiffened, unable to raise her voice. Her throat seemed so frozen that she couldn't even tell how to breathe. If she said something rash, would Pandora snatch back both hands that very instant? Would Emilia lose both options without coming close to touching either one? \"What kind of hope shall you choose?  Your fate depends upon it.\"  The hope on the right. The hope on the left.  Choosing the hope that upheld her promise. Choosing the hope that broke her promise. The sweet, enchanting voice was dissolving her brain. The gentle tone of voice with which Pandora argued her case seduced Emilia's spirit. That moment, she could not hear her own heartbeats, which had been so noisy before. All sound had vanished from the world. Even color had been erased, leaving Emilia lost and alone. Unable to hear even her own beating heart, what remained was her brain no, her consciousness alone. She couldn't choose. She couldn't choose. She couldn't choose couldn't choose couldn't couldn'tcouldn'tcouldn'tcouldn't. Which was the right choice? What should she do to rescue everyone? What did she need to do to help? She wanted someone, anyone to tell her. Hope, salvation, her mother's teachings  \" Ah.\" \" So you've made your choice. This is your decision, isn't it?\" Amid her white-hot thoughts and her hollow, nebula-like vision, she heard Pandora's voice. Looking down at the hand the child's palm had reached, Pandora cast her eyes, rimmed by long eyelashes, downward.  Emilia had touched Pandora's right hand. She had chosen the hope that did not break her promise, that did not open the seal, that saved no one. \"I...made a promise with Mom. I have to keep my promises... I have to, so... Mooom...\" \"You believed the words of the mother who raised you until the very end. At the end of your struggle, this is the answer you arrived at, the conclusion reached by your soul. I respect that.\" As a steady flood of tears flowed from Emilia, Pandora nodded in what seemed like acceptance. Then she gently brushed away Emilia's hand, which touched her own right hand, gazing at the young girl with apparent affection. If Pandora wanted to, she could force Emilia, the key holder, to open the door. That she showed no intent of doing so must have meant there was some kind of tangible goodness inside Pandora. If so, then  \" However, please respect the decision I made to teach you the means to open this door.\" It was an expression of her false benevolence. She had no qualms about completely ravaging anything that she didn't find valuable or worthy of respect. \" Eh?\" In a daze, Emilia let her voice trickle out toward the smiling Pandora. She saw that Pandora was looking not at her but at the woods behind her. From the grove of white trees, a single figure leaped, charging toward them  \" Pandoraaa!!\" Howling with every fiber of her bloodied body was a woman with short silver hair Fortuna. Just how ferocious had her battles been after returning to the forest? Fortuna appeared there, wounded all over, yet the glint of fierceness in her eyes was undiminished as she unleashed tremendous magical power to impale Pandora. It sounded like the air cracked as long, massive spears of ice materialized in the area around Fortuna. Their aim was true, and with speed greater than an arrow, they streaked toward Pandora all at once. \"Take this !!\" \"Launching an attack without looking around first is quite dangerous.\" Speaking calmly, Pandora stepped forward as if to shield Emilia. A moment later, a spear of ice pierced her chest, the next ones going through her hips, her arms, and her legs, shooting through one after another, with the final missile sending her head flying. \" Aaaah!\" Watching that cruel death unfold right before her eyes, Emilia let out a high-pitched shriek. Having lost its head, Pandora's corpse fell backward, knocking Emilia down with it. The surreal experience of being pinned under a headless corpse made Emilia scream long and hard. \"...Emilia?\" With that scream bringing her back to her senses, Fortuna was dumbfounded as she called out the name of her beloved daughter. Her violet eyes showed less a feeling of accomplishment from having felled her mortal foe and more surprise at finding Emilia somewhere she ought not be. Fortuna raced to Emilia's side. \"Why are you here, Emilia...? You should have left the forest...\" \"Is it not cruel to ask why? This girl was thinking of you, her mother, as she sped here with no thought other than wanting to save you. If a mother cannot respect and praise the purity of such thoughts, what will the world come to?\" *** As Fortuna wavered, Pandora, right beside her, arched her brows in visible reproach. Both sets of violet eyes opened wide Fortuna reacting to Pandora's elusiveness and Emilia because the corpse, supposedly having just died a terrible death, vanished before her very eyes. \"And when you"}, {"text": "make the same faces, you really do look alike. That's a mother and daughter for you.\" \" ! I'm not Emilia's mother! It's my sister-in-law whom Emilia resembles!\" \"Ahhh, her. How so very rude of me.\" Fortuna unleashed an angry cry, and right as Pandora was in the middle of apologizing for it, a sword of ice mercilessly slashed her apart. Her torso was cut in half by a diagonal slice, and fresh blood spilled out as Pandora collapsed backward onto the ground. \"Then I suppose that makes you the mother who raised her. If so, you should be proud of yourself. Your daughter possesses a heart most worthy of praise. I am sure that her real parents would be overjoyed.\" \"Don't speak of my brother and sister-in-law with your filthy mouth!!\" The fallen corpse vanished, and Pandora stood at Fortuna's side as if it was the most natural thing. Fortuna lopped her neck off with her sword of ice, skewering her torso and shattering it into fragments. The next moment, when Pandora revived behind her, Fortuna closed the distance and impaled her, and when the beautiful visage appeared again farther away, she hurled the sword toward her. The second the tip of the sword caught her slender body, Pandora became a statue of ice, cracking and falling apart an instant later. \"Are you not tired of always rejecting conversation with violence like this? I've been waiting for a moment of calm to have a proper conversation, so how about we start over?\" \" !! I told you not to run your mouth!\" Glancing at the shattered ice statue, Pandora patted Fortuna on the shoulder. As a shudder went through her from the nightmarish sight, Fortuna slammed an open palm into the side of Pandora's face  \" Agh!\" \"Emilia?!\" Emilia, knocked flying by her mother, skidded across the ground's surface, unable to break her fall. Fortuna, going pale at having inadvertently struck her own daughter, hurriedly raced over to her side. \"No!! Emilia, I'm so sorry! Oh no! I didn't mean to...!\" \"It hurts that much to be struck. I'm sure your own heart feels pain at least equal to that. Now do you understand just how callous your behavior is?\" When Fortuna picked up Pandora, she yelped loudly and thrust the girl away. When she stood up and looked, she saw Emilia standing right by the seal, same as before. There was no sign that her cheek had been slapped. \"Are you relieved to know nothing happened to her? Could you not share just a little of that sentiment with an opponent you detest? I am not telling you to love everyone as if they were your own daughter. I am merely asking that you be slightly more considerate. You should keep at least a tiny bit of this in mind.\" \"What stupidity are you...? Who?! Who would listen to a single thing you say...?!\" \" Then how about this? Convince your daughter with your very own mouth. I have confirmed that the girl possesses the Key, but she refuses to open the door even so to uphold a promise made with none other than you.\" The negotiation she'd conducted with Emilia made Fortuna's breath catch. Emilia, trembling under her gaze, hardened her own cheeks, desperately turning her tear-clouded eyes toward her mother. \"If you rescind that promise, there will be no chains left to bind her obstinate heart. All I require is for the seal to be lifted. Once it's done, I promise to distance myself from this forest without doing anything else. Promise... Such a wonderful word, yes?\" She had no apparent intent to ridicule; no doubt these were her true thoughts. There was no malice in Pandora's affection- and envy-filled words. It was that very lack of malice that made them so powerfully, wickedly sarcastic. Within Fortuna's vision, Emilia clenched both her hands, awaiting her mother's words. Her hands were bulging from grasping something because she held the Key that could unlock the seal. If Fortuna spoke a single word, Emilia would open the sealed door. If that action would save the forest, her young heart was determined to offer everything for it  \" I'm sorry, Emilia. I'm sorry I made you go through all this.\" Fortuna walked toward the door nay, to her daughter, embracing Emilia tightly as she spoke. From this hug, she could tell that the young girl was shaking. Parent and child rubbed their silver hair against each other's cheek, sharing warmth as if to confirm the other's presence. \"Emilia, I'm truly and very... You came here alone? What about Archi?\" \"Archi...told me to run as far as the white flowers... That's why...I ran...\" *** Hearing from Emilia what Archi had told her, Fortuna realized that the young elf's life had reached its end. The unfortunate end of the young man who had told them that they were family filled Fortuna's chest with sadness. However, Fortuna did not show a tearful face to the daughter she embraced. Just how many lives had the minion of that vicious Witch stolen around the forest...? Even so, Fortuna was proud of the decision her daughter had made. \"Emilia, Emilia...you did well to keep your promise. Good girl. Good girl.\" \"Mom...! Mom, I I !\" \"Emilia...you are my pride. You are my treasure...\" As her daughter nestled close, Fortuna gently embraced her. Pandora's face grew hot, seemingly entranced by the sight. Her expression was as if she wanted to monopolize the world's most beautiful scenes all for herself. \"I have had my fill of beautiful love between parent and child. To love and be loved is marvelous indeed...\" \"I don't feel very warm and fuzzy hearing that from you  I won't break the seal. I won't hand over this girl. My reply is the same as Emilia's. Turn into an ice statue and wither here, would you?\" \"Do you not think such a cruel statement is bad for your daughter's education?\" \"Nothing can be worse for her education than having a conversation with someone like you.\" Rejecting Pandora's very existence, Fortuna channeled the mana around her once more. Sensing that renewed hostility and increasing magical power, Pandora pursed her lips with a forlorn expression.  The next moment. \"After sooo long, I have finally caught up with you !\" His voice was tinged with madness, yet the man held on to an even greater sense of duty as he rushed onto the battlefield. Leaping over the tall, pure-white trees was a man wearing a habit Geuse passing through the sky high, fast, and with enough force that one might think a giant had hurled him. \"Geuse!\" \"Lady Fortunaaa!\" Fortuna and Geuse called out each other's names, and that was all it took to link their wills together. With Pandora standing by the sealed door, Fortuna and Geuse were in the perfect position to conduct a pincer, unleashing maximum firepower from front and rear. Fortuna gripped Emilia's trembling right hand with her left. Emilia stared up at the side of her mother's face.  As she gazed straight ahead, ready to boldly confront her opponent, she was beautiful enough to make one tremble. \"Al Hyuma !!\" \"Unseen Haaands !!!\" The unparalleled destruction woven by Fortuna combined with the maximum amount of heresy Geuse could derive from the power of the Witch Factor. As such incredibly devastating power swelled, the sky of the Great Elior Forest cried out in agony  \" Mom?\" An invisible hand pierced Fortuna's chest, bathing Emilia's entire body in her mother's fresh blood. 2 Emilia felt the hand holding her own grow limp as Fortuna's body collapsed before her eyes. \"With thiiiiis it is over!!\" Howling, Geuse landed as he waved around his blood-soaked hand. Seemingly pulled by his gesture, Fortuna's body traced a similar arc as it danced in the air. Strength drained from Fortuna's limbs as she was cast away like a doll and tumbled across the ground  Blood poured ceaselessly out of her body. \"I felt that striiike her... After sooo many tries, thiiis time...\" His breathing ragged, Geuse murmured as he knelt on the spot. Emilia did not hear his voice, nor did she see the state he was in. Emilia saw Fortuna alone. *** With a wobbly gait, she headed toward where Fortuna had fallen. Holes had opened in Fortuna's body from both sides, chest and back, and a great deal of blood flowed from her broken flesh. Even the spurts of blood began to grow weaker by the time Emilia knelt down in the pool of blood. Embracing her pale mother's head, she somehow brought it onto her own lap. Fortuna's pretty silver hair was speckled and drenched with blood as Emilia desperately tried to keep it unblemished, cleaning it with her fingers. However, as she did so, Emilia's own fingers were marred with blood; the more she touched, the less pretty Fortuna's hair became. \"Lady Fortuna! Do not drop your guard! Be careful. I will check...\" \"Geuse...?\" *** Incredibly wary, Geuse turned a palm toward Fortuna. Emilia sluggishly raised her head; Geuse's tense expression changed when he heard her voice. For an instant, he blinked, his face like that of one looking far in the distance. \"Lady Emilia?\" Geuse murmured, looking like he was noticing the sight of the little girl kneeling in a pool of blood for the very first time. Then he slowly shifted his gaze to the individual whose head rested upon Emilia's knees. His eyes opened wide. \"...This...cannot be.\" Shocked by the scene before his eyes, Geuse could only mutter that single phrase. He looked to his side. Calmly standing beside Geuse was a woman with a beautiful visage, not a single blemish upon her. That beautiful figure, of the Witch named Pandora, flashed Geuse a smile. \"It cannot be helped. You were merely 'mistaken' in what you saw.\" \"Ah, aah... Aaaaaaaaaagh ?!\" Understanding everything from that smile, Geuse plunged his fingernails into his own cheek as he screamed. The power of it stripped his nails, gouged his flesh, and stained the man's face crimson. \"Absurd, absurd, absurdabsurdabsurdabsurd! What have I ? What iiis it I have done?! What have I...? Why, whywhywhywhywhywhy?! This... Then what have ? For what purpose have I been...aaa? Aah?! AAAAAAAH!!\" Geuse had taken the Witch Factor into himself, using sheer willpower to keep an incompatible Deadly Sin in check. The most important part of him that kept this indomitable willpower going had snapped. Geuse could almost hear the sound of it breaking as everything that had been holding him together fell to pieces inside him. With the power he had gambled his life to obtain, he had himself destroyed the life he had made the gamble to protect. \"I... For what purpose have I...?!\" \" All was for love.\" Having lost his mind to madness, a lament echoed through Geuse's despairing soul. With a quiet voice, Pandora replied to Geuse's mournful question. \"You offered your own soul to save the one you love. That is something few people are capable of. For so very, very long, you supported the Witch Cult day after day for the sake of love. All your actions are the product of love. The path of love is marvelous indeed.\" \"Love... Love, love...love, love... Love...!!\" \"Yes. There is nothing you need be afraid of, nothing you need regret. All was inevitable; the path of fate led you here. Having come this far, you must continue down this path  'Your love is not mistaken.'\" \"For love...!\" Repeatedly jamming such sweet nothings into his ears, Geuse felt his mind well and truly shatter. Dropping to his knees, light fading from his eyes, he fell into oblivion, unable to move. Gazing at the sight of Geuse so stricken, Pandora smiled, quite satisfied with herself. \"Emi...lia...\" And at the same time Geuse's mind had been smashed, the fires of another life were going out. \"Mom...\" Hearing her name spoken by such a faint, fading voice, Emilia called out again in a daze. Embracing her mother with trembling arms, she found it heartbreaking how much lighter Fortuna's body had grown."}, {"text": "At some point, her blood must have flowed in such great quantities that it stopped coming out at all. If the bleeding had stopped, was her mother's wound all right, she wondered? Emilia's mind was so young; there was no way to protect it without holding on to some kind of hope. Anyone could see that Fortuna, no longer retaining any power to move, was on death's door. \"...Bro...ther...I'm...sorry.\" \"Mom.\" \"I couldn't...protect anything...you told...me to...\" She voiced her regrets, her tone like that of an apologizing child. With nothing left to bleed, the only thing that came out were Fortuna's tears. Feeling the heat of those tears with a touch of her finger, Emilia tried with all her might to gather them up. She did this thinking them the sum total of her mother's life force at that moment. \"My sister...will be a-angry, huh...? She won't forgive me...for this...will she...?\" As she listened to her mother's words, Emilia belatedly realized. The light had long faded from her mother's violet eyes. Those eyes could only shed tears; they could not see Emilia's face. She didn't realize Emilia was at her side. No matter how much she touched her, no matter how much she held her, nothing was getting through. To her mother, Fortuna, who was crying and begging for forgiveness like a little child, Emilia  \" Mom, I forgive you.\" *** \"Mom has...Mom has always taken care of me... You loved me, every bit as much as Father and Mother...\" *** \"So there's nothing to be sorry for. There isn't. Emilia has always, always...always loved you so much, Mom. I love you so much. I love you, I love you... I love you...!\" Her emotions were falling apart. Her voice lost all composure, and the teardrops she could no longer hold back fell onto Fortuna's face one after another. If teardrops truly carried the power of life, there was no doubt Emilia's tears brought about a miracle. \"...Mom?\" \"Lia.\" A slowly rising hand touched Emilia's cheek. A hand that shouldn't have been able to move felt Emilia's cheek, stroked her ear, tickled her hair. She gently caressed Emilia like she was touching something unimaginably valuable, something impossibly fragile. But above all, she touched lovingly. Lovingly. Lovingly. \"Such a crybaby.\" *** \"I really love yo...\" Her strength drained away. Her arm made a soft sound as it fell. In her lap, Emilia felt the body of Fortuna, who had reached up to stroke her face, grow lighter still. Even though her whole body losing energy should have made her heavier, Fortuna became tangibly lighter in Emilia's arms something that must never come out had left. Fortuna was no longer there... Even Emilia understood that. *** Her mother, Fortuna, was gone. Geuse's Petelgeuse Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti's mind was broken. And Emilia was  \"Now then, are you prepared to choose the hope of lifting the seal?\" Pandora walked over, addressing Emilia as she embraced Fortuna's remains. With a gentle face, Pandora quietly awaited her reply. Emilia lifted her head. \"...Open the seal?\" \"Yes. Unfortunately, the mother with whom you made that promise has passed away. No longer do the fetters called a promise bind you. So how about it?\" When Pandora presented that heinous argument like it was perfectly normal, Emilia understood everything. She understood for what purpose this demon, standing before her in the form of a person, had done such things. This demon had acted for no reason other than to make Emilia break her promise. For nothing more than that sake, she had caused Fortuna to die and Geuse's mind to break and had thoroughly trampled the forest underfoot. \"Oh yes, I forgot something  Come on out.\" As Emilia adopted an emotionless expression, Pandora made an inviting motion with her hand toward the air in front of Emilia. When she did so, faint, phosphorescent glows floated up all around Emilia, and these countless lights slowly moved toward Pandora, gathering as she beckoned. The lights added a surreal beauty to her already enchanting visage. They were fairies or rather, lesser spirits. They were the fairies that had led Emilia to the sealed door, showing her the way. Why had they gone over to Pandora...? \"I was not convinced you would come here if left to your own devices, so I asked them to help, you see. They are such dependable children.\" When Pandora smiled, conveying her thanks to the lesser spirits, her words made the lights happily sway about.  When had it all started? Emilia no longer knew. Wobbly, Emilia's own head swayed as she looked up at the sealed door. The door leisurely looked back down at Emilia, as if waiting expectantly for the moment it would be opened. She belatedly noticed the heavy sensation of the Key firmly in the palm of her hand. At some point, the Key had reappeared within it. \"The Key... I'm so glad; it seems you still had it. You understand what to do, then?\" With Pandora smiling in front of her, Emilia quietly trembled. She gently slid her mother's head from her lap, lightly resting it atop the grass. With a finger, she toyed with her mother's hair before carefully arranging Fortuna's beautiful face. Her hair was short, colored silver like Emilia's own. She gently removed the floral accessory from her mother's beautiful hair, replacing it with Emilia's own. Finally, she put her mother's floral accessory into her own hair. With that, she and her mother would be together...always. And then  \"Die.\"  surging cold welled up to form seemingly innumerable blades, turning Pandora's flesh into bloody mist in a single instant. The gushing blood instantly froze. Vivid flowers of red ice bloomed in a chaotic pattern. A single pillar of ice stood at the epicenter, petals of fresh blood scattered all about. It was a sculpture of ice and death. \"What a violent thing to have done to me. What has gotten into you all of a ?\" \"Die.\" Stakes of ice poured down, drilling into Pandora's limbs, and a spear of ice thrust out of the ground's surface, impaling her from her waist to the crown of her skull. Her frozen body, bathed in impacts from above and below, made a high-pitched sound as it shattered into tiny pieces. \"Please calm yourself. Surely, we can understand each other if we only speak.\" \"Die.\" Mighty blocks of ice closed in from left and right, crushing Pandora's body and cruelly transforming it into a pathetic lump of flesh. \"You are a gentle girl deep in your heart. Doing this will only make your mother sad.\" \"Die.\" A spinning blade of ice rose from below Pandora's feet and sliced her to ribbons, sending crimson lumps of ice flying. \"You are betraying the numerous wishes placed in you...by your parents, Archbishop Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, and your mother, as well.\" \"Die !!\" A white cloud enveloped Pandora, transforming her body into an ice statue. A mighty sword of ice swung downward a moment later, not slicing but rather, smashing the statue, scattering it in chunks across the ground with tremendous force. Pandora was slain again and again in a tempest of bloodlust and countless, inexhaustible, violently creative means of destruction. And yet  \"How troublesome. It seems this has caused the opposite of the intended effect.\" \"Die, die, die, die...!!\" As she sobbed and wailed, Emilia poured icy destruction upon Pandora over and over. However, even as Pandora assuredly died each and every time, she instantly revived just as quickly. \"D-die... Die...\" Each time Emilia strained her young body to cast magic, she drew closer to her limit. She cast spells one after another even though her body couldn't support it, her face turning red as her lower half began to freeze over. She wasn't expelling it fast enough and the increasingly vast store of mana she had drawn into her body was beginning to go out of control. \"Such an incredible amount of mana...and a Gate that can manage all this... It would seem a Witch's progeny cannot flee from fate  Perhaps you were brought to this forest to make sure your blood continued to slumber.\" Emilia did not understand the meaning of Pandora's comment, but she shook her head to reject it all the same. Her right leg had completely frozen over; it was difficult for her to even stand straight. She went down to one knee. Her murderous violet eyes shot right through Pandora; the sight of bloodlust in one so young made Pandora lower her own gaze. \"This is most unfortunate considering my greatest desire is right before me, but I shall leave it at this for today. Any more, and it seems I will only make you push yourself further.\" \"Die, die, die, die...!\" \"We have accomplished much today: learning of your bloodline, confirming the existence of the Key, and the birth of a new Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins  More importantly, taking the seal and leaving is more than sufficient... Oh my.\" Her arbitrary conclusion that left no room for discussion was the very epitome of conceit. But as Pandora put her spin on the situation, white crystals suddenly entered her field of vision.  Snow. Emilia's absurd level of mana had gone berserk, warping the climate itself to the extreme and causing snow to fall. At first, it was a flake here, a flake there; however, the force and strength of the snowfall soon increased, growing powerful enough to be properly called a snowstorm. \" From the looks of things, you are about to enter a rather long slumber.\" Looking up at the falling snow, Pandora then turned to Emilia, the cause of the dramatic shift in weather. Already, the frost had reached Emilia's hips; she was no longer able to move either arm. \"Your power will cover this forest in ice that shall never melt. At some point, your mana shall reach its very limit, or perhaps it shall be offset by someone whose power rivals your own. Until then...\" \"Die, die...!\" \"Unfortunately, I shall not. When the snow melts and this icy winter comes to an end, we shall inevitably meet again. But I would feel very lonely if you were to hate me when that time comes.\" As Emilia spat curses, Pandora gently touched the young girl's forehead with a fingertip. Emilia's violet eyes seethed with hatred as Pandora smiled at her with an innocent face. \"You will 'completely forget about my existence in your memories up to this day.'\" \" Ah.\" \"Go ahead and fill the gap however you like. Ah, yes. You kept your promise with all your heart and soul. Carve this deeply into your heart. I would be pleased if you remain just as you are now.\" Frozen up to her chest, Emilia's head reeled, her unfocused gaze lingering on the world around her. Her eyes were spinning, drool spilled from the corner of her lips, and the inside of Emilia's head had been all stirred up. Randomly, unwittingly, the pages strewn over the wall of her memory rearranged themselves as they pleased, creating innumerable inconsistencies. The words that had been exchanged vanished into the distance, and she forgot the love she had been given, leaving only fear and a sense of guilt behind   The important thing that did not vanish...was her promise. She absolutely did not forget she had upheld her promise. Nor had she forgotten she had to uphold her promise.  She'd kept her promise. The promise had been kept. \"I wonder just what colors shall greet your heart and what kind of smile you will show me the next time we meet? I look forward to the day when we shall see each other again.\" Even amid the ferocious snowstorm, Pandora's voice carried clearly as she walked forward, stroking her own platinum hair. Geuse, still in a daze as he knelt, was buried up to half his body. When Pandora whispered something into his ear, he stood up with an emotionless face. The pair, Pandora and Geuse, departed the snowy forest, walking side by"}, {"text": "side. All Emilia could do was watch them go. Her body had continued to freeze, the ice already reaching a part of her face. Only in her eyes did Emilia's consciousness remain. Abruptly, Emilia realized she was gazing downward. There was an unnatural clump of snow on the ground right in front of her. It was as if someone was being embraced by this pure, snowy-white landscape. *** She could not move her mouth. She could no longer close her eyes. Her body, her heart was freezing over. And so, too, was Emilia's consciousness  \" om.\" The girl would proceed to sleep in never-melting ice for a span of a hundred years, until a spirit who sought her, who had received life for her sake alone, found her.  Emilia continued to sleep within the ice, ever, ever alone. 3  Emilia stood still in front of her frozen young self. She'd watched everything to the end. *** Under the commanding view she'd had of her entire raging past, her memories had at some point melted away. Scenes she could not possibly have seen, events she could not possibly know, the last moments of her homeland she could never have witnessed, all of it Emilia remembered more than the memories she had lost.  She remembered everything that had happened. Through this journey, which had filled the gaps in her memory, she had walked the path that led to her regrets. Just how sinful was the tranquility she gained by forgetting her regrets? She had seen for herself all of young Emilia's days, all she had forgotten in order to go on living up to this day. Fortuna's death, Geuse's madness, the reason her homeland had been encased in ice, everything  \"If you wish to blame yourself for the falsification of your memories, I believe you would be in error.\" Abruptly, as Emilia drifted in the chasm between memory and consciousness, a voice addressed her. It was the Witch standing beside her Echidna. She turned her cold eyes toward Emilia as the girl hugged her own knees. Just like Emilia, Echidna had witnessed these regrets from beginning to end. She gazed at Emilia's younger, frozen self. \"You and your family faced off against the Witch of Vanity. Brandishing her flimsy, self-serving logic, she employed her power to 'rewrite' phenomena as she pleased. There is no question that it was the Authority of Vanity that caused your warped memories.\" \"The Witch of Vanity...\" \"An exceedingly filthy Authority. Your younger self outstripped Pandora in simple terms of power, but that was due to her being particularly ill-matched against your strengths and nothing more.\" Apparently, Echidna looked down even upon Pandora. Perhaps Emilia ought to have said, As expected of a Witch. Echidna's barbed demeanor since coming into contact with Emilia was unchanged, but never before had Echidna replied so readily to one of Emilia's questions. \"Can I ask you about Pandora?\" \"...I tend to be fond of conversing with others, but where you are concerned, I decline. I don't like the cheeky thought process behind such questions: It might be too much to ask, but I'll ask anyway and their ilk.\" \"Is that how it is...? Well, thank you anyway.\" Hearing Emilia give thanks despite being insulted, Echidna twisted her lips in disgust. Emilia actually found Echidna's unchanging attitude incredibly comforting at the moment. That was how staggering Emilia's past had been. In a true sense, the restoration of her memories had turned her entire life upside down.  She'd committed body and spirit to the royal selection to save everyone in the frozen forest, and yet... \"I'm the one who made them all ice statues... Everyone who tried to save me...\" Unable to respond to their feelings, she'd ended up shutting everyone under the snow, freezing them completely. Once freed from the ice, Emilia had spent her time in the forest without any memories of her regrets. She'd spent every day continuing to speak to the people who had become ice statues never realizing she was trying to atone for her own feelings of guilt. Now she understood why her memories had been sealed away. Even had Pandora not interfered with them, she might have wanted to forget them regardless in a moment of weakness. \"You have remembered the past and seen your regrets to the end. However, the Trial is not yet finished.\" The memories that led to her regrets had finished playing out. Echidna made a comment as she stared at the silent world's snowy landscape. \"The past has been revealed without difficulty. You challenged the Trial, and your journey to reach your worst, most terrible mistakes, which gave rise to your regrets, is at an end. Now you must provide your answer.\" \"An answer to the Trial...\" \"The first Trial is to see if you can succeed in breaking from your greatest past regret. You can accept or deny your own past. Rejection is another choice. I respect whatever conclusion you may choose.\" Emilia deeply exhaled hearing Echidna's words, which somehow sounded rather passionate. By climbing onto the stage known as the Trial, Emilia had finally confronted the past she had wondered about so many times. Having lost her pact with Puck and reclaimed herself after he had indulged her for so long, Emilia had uncovered her own memories at long last and made it this far. \"All that said, perhaps you are even more at a loss. After all, the starting point of your resolve has been tarnished. The sin that turned your mother, your friend, and your family into ice statues belongs to none other than you.\" Echidna's words sliced into Emilia like a blade. The frozen forest, her people who'd been turned into ice statues, the forest being corrupted by the plague-bearing demon beast, the loss of her mother, and the breaking of Geuse's mind  Emilia had left the forest because she wanted to save everyone in the village to save her mother. And yet, the motivation for that decision had turned out to be a fairy tale that misled her starting from the first and most crucial step of her journey, leading to nothing but pain and disappointment  What was left for such a girl to do? \" I've been taught the answer to that already.\" When Emilia's heart flirted with self-doubt, there was one thing that gave her the strength to steady herself.  Don't give up. Look forward. Raise your head high. Look straight at me. Over and over, time and time again, he'd told Emilia those things. He'd scolded Emilia for being weak, for giving up. Without any basis, he'd declared, You're the best. Their teeth had hurt when they'd clumsily butted together, but the heat of their tongues meeting had lit Emilia's heart on fire. \"Mom loved me.\" *** \"I wanted to help Mom...my mother, Fortuna. I wanted her to hold me again, to sleep with her in the same bed. Over and over, I told her I loved her so much.\" \"Do you regret it, then?\" The Witch posed a question without a defined subject, and the time had come for Emilia to choose her hope. Pandora had presented her with two hopes. At the time, had Emilia chosen to break her promise, would Fortuna and Geuse and everyone really be safe and sound? If it was possible to redo the past, then perhaps she could look at it with what-ifs and what-might-have-beens. Even so  \"I regret nothing.\" *** \"I don't regret keeping my promise and not backing down. What I regret is that I didn't have enough power to do anything at the time. I regret not being clever enough and not trying hard enough. But I absolutely don't regret following Mom's instructions and refusing to do whatever Pandora told me.\" After all, hadn't Fortuna said it right at the very end? She'd said she was proud of Emilia for keeping her promise. She'd said Emilia was her treasure.  Those words themselves were a treasure that would stay with Emilia forever. \"You cannot save your mother. Does that not make your struggle meaningless?\" \"That isn't so. Mom... I couldn't save her. But I don't know if that's true for everyone else yet. The others might still be waiting even now, sleeping inside the ice. And I'm the only one who can save them and bring them out.\" \"They've been ice statues for over a hundred years, and the forest was contaminated by the Black Serpent. Even if you manage to undo the freezing, what if their bodies have been eaten away by plague? What if nothing remains of the land of your ancestors?\" \"That's speculation, and horrible speculation at that. Everyone's waiting inside the ice to be rescued. If I don't wake them up as soon as possible, they'll definitely have a good reason to be angry with me. If they live well after that, I'll smile and be glad.\" \"A foolish delusion.\" \"No, it's a prediction of a happy future!\" When Echidna tried to cut her off, Emilia stepped forward, firmly making her own declaration. Boldly facing the white-haired Witch, Emilia gestured toward the vast, snowy landscape with her hand. \"I won't let anyone deny a possibility just because they haven't seen it yet! I won't accept that everything Mom left me will meet such a tragic end! I will make Mom's ideals a reality!\" \"Ideals? Just what is it you claim that your mother sought?\" \"Mom told me. Someday, we'd all leave the forest and live normal lives. A world where Geuse and his people could get along with all the villagers, where Subaru can tell me he loves me, where Geuse and Mom can walk side by side I'm sure it exists!\" \"And do you see the frozen villagers in that world? Villagers frozen by your very own hand!\" \"I'm so, so sorry about that. I'll apologize over, and over, and over until they forgive me! And if they do forgive me, I'll introduce the world to them then. I'll tell them there's no need to live in seclusion anymore. I'll tell them this is the world Mom talked about!\" Drawing in her breath, Emilia shouted out the words brimming in her chest. At some point, the pair had begun to stand amid not a landscape of snow but a world of enveloping white light. The cold wind pricking their skin was gone; the scene dominated by so many regrets had faded away. Not noticing even that, Emilia puffed out her chest, speaking in a loud voice. \"I'll preach her dream until my voice gives out and keep saying this until Mom up in the sky can hear me!\" \"I'm happy to be in the world Mom loved !\"  That instant, the world split open with a roar. Seeing cracks running across the white space, Emilia finally realized the scenery around her had changed. As she opened her eyes wide in surprise, Echidna, now standing right before her, breathed a deep sigh as she brought her hands together before her own chest. \" I see. I understand now. I had thought I understood, but you are more of a pushy, insolent, conceited, and arbitrary proponent of hypocrisy than even I imagined.\" \"I suppose I am. Is that bad?\" \"Not exactly. I do not particularly care, after all. It is merely that in those respects, you are exactly like your mother.\" As Echidna grimaced, furrowing her refined eyebrows, Emilia raised her own in surprise. \"You know my mo... Not Mom, but my other mother?\" \"I know her, yes. It would be false to claim she isn't partly responsible for why I become so emotional when I interact with you. She always did have that Why is it always you...? jealousy about her...\" Echidna turned away in a huff, the sight of which threw Emilia terribly off as she opened her eyes wide. Simultaneously, Emilia's vision became cloudy, and her consciousness felt heavy. Slowly, she felt heat passing into her limbs, and in her heart, she understood she was waking from"}, {"text": "a vague, ambiguous dream. \"With this, the Trial is at an end. However conceited your conclusion, there is no mistaking that you have come to terms with the past. Considering you've used your mother's sacrifice to bolster your resolve, do try to see your selfish, arbitrary wishes through.\" \"Say whatever you like, Echidna. I'm used to your insults by now.\" Placing a hand on her hip, Emilia turned straight toward Echidna, who was venting hateful things until the bitter end. The boldness of her demeanor made Echidna wearily shake her head. \"Two Trials remain. I would like to expect much pathetic anguish from you, but...\" \"Eh, wait! There's still more Trials to go? Two more? Three in total?\" \"It does amount to that, yes. Your surprise makes me want to gloat a little...but I must say, with considerable regret, that I do not think the remaining Trials will hold out for long against you.\" \"Really?\" \"An irreverent attitude is self-doubt's greatest enemy. The Trial, meant to pick at what lies inside you, is particularly ill-suited against who you are now. In one sense, you have abandoned logic, after all.\" \"Hey, you're kind of making it sound like I never use my brain, which is really rude.\" Echidna's lecture caused Emilia to puff up her cheeks in a show of clear dissatisfaction. However, there was no time for further exchanges. The Trial, and her opportunity to converse with the Witch, was reaching its end. Echidna was enveloped by light, and in that brilliance, Emilia's consciousness began to disperse as well. At the very end, as she dissolved in the light, a malicious smile came over the Witch of Greed. \" I hate you.\" \"I don't hate you all that much, though.\" Even without seeing, Emilia had some idea of what kind of face her reply had provoked.  The Trial was over. 4 When she regained consciousness, Emilia made a small groan as she felt something hard pressed against her back. Apparently, the cold sensation was from a wall that her back was leaning against. Having lost consciousness against it, she seemed to have rested her weight there while traveling in the dream. Reaching a hand out, she touched the wall. The wall bore scars from the crude carvings upon it, and the very part she was touching had I Love You written in I-script. The nice coincidence brought a smile over her. That moment, she wanted to be greeted by Subaru's words more than anyone's. \" I'm really grateful.\" Though there was no way for Subaru to hear it, Emilia quietly thanked him. The Trial was over. The forgotten past had returned to her, and she had set eyes upon her sealed regrets. It had no doubt been Subaru granting her courage over and over amid those scenes. She finally realized for herself just how much she had been protected by the feelings of others. In the past, it was Fortuna, Geuse, and Archi who had protected her heart. After, she had always relied upon Puck. In the present, Subaru, Ram, and Otto were the ones who supported her. Terrified of her sealed past, she could have been convinced she could rely only on herself, refusing to show any weakness only to spend all night sobbing, her frail heart crushed. It was thanks to everyone that it hadn't come to that  In both past and present, Emilia was blessed. Emilia had never once been alone since that fateful moment. That was why. \" I'm sorry, Mom.\" Her slightly loosened lips tensed, and a seemingly suppressed voice trickled out of Emilia. Her words of apology echoed in the dimly lit stonework room and were immediately followed by the sound of a nose sniffling. Tears poured out one after another, unceasing. She could not hold them back. She could endure it no more. In the tomb, with no concern about anyone seeing the tearful face she'd absolutely refused to show the Witch out of pure stubbornness, Emilia pressed her head against the wall with loving phrases carved into it, letting her emotions all come to the surface. \"Mom... Mom...!\" A flood of tears and a wave of nostalgia toward her gentler memories continued to spill out. They were tears that should have flowed before...a full century before. In that stone room, no one could see Emilia finally getting a chance to grieve for the mother she couldn't remember for so long. This way, when she left in plain sight, none need know of her crying face. She wouldn't have to show her weakness to the person who'd told her he loved her despite her weak faults. She cried, she cried, she wept... She sobbed. And then... As she mourned her mother's memory, her mother's love, all the things she was grateful her mother had given her...  Emilia continued to cry, her face pressed against Love the entire while. 5 She wiped her tears and smacked her cheeks. Putting her disheveled hair in order, she diligently smoothed out the creases of her sleeves. She wondered if she wasn't making a shameful-looking face that moment. Puck, who was normally so fussy about Emilia's grooming, was no longer present. She could not feel the warmth from the cracked crystal at her neck, which had always been by her side. \"...But I'll definitely find him myself, so...\" No matter where he might be, there was no sign that the cat spirit had vanished from this world altogether. She was sure her contracted spirit, and her surrogate parent for all that time, was out there somewhere. \"Plus, without Puck here, I really seem to be wasting excessive amounts of mana...\" As she murmured, Emilia was getting dizzy from the vast quantity of mana welling from her entire body. Now that she had regained her memories, there was no room to doubt this was all her mana. Emilia's power was sufficient to single-handedly freeze the forest that had been her homeland. Puck had most likely put in a fair bit of effort from the shadows to keep Emilia unaware of that power. All of it had been to keep her from confronting the memories she subconsciously kept sealed. \"Oh, Puck, you really are overprotective...\" With a thin smile, Emilia lightly flicked the crystal with a finger. After that, she took a big, deep breath. Filling her chest with cold air, she thrust out all the weak feelings lurking inside her body. \" Okay!! I'm all right now.\" Emilia made this powerful declaration, speaking it for her own benefit. Her chest hurt when she thought of Fortuna and Geuse. Even at that very moment, she felt like she might break into tears if her guard lowered even slightly. But she couldn't bawl her eyes out forever. Emilia had so many things she had to do. And surely, by doing these things, she would fulfill Fortuna's and Geuse's expectations, continuing onward to the future they had wished for. She touched the floral accessory adorning her hair. In her heart, she'd always remembered this was a most precious heirloom from her mother. Just as she'd wished back then, Fortuna had stayed with her always. \"After this, there are two more Trials...but first.\" As she spoke, Emilia headed outside the stonework room for the time being. She didn't understand how to begin the second Trial, but she wanted to go to Subaru and the others waiting to hear from her outside. She'd made everyone worry so much, to the point of getting into a big argument with Subaru and finally making even Puck distance himself from her  But she'd faced her past. The things she'd remembered about her past were far from completely kind. She didn't have a firm grasp on it just yet, but there was a good chance those memories had greatly shaken the foundations of her being. But for that moment, at least, she wanted to return and face the others with a simple sense of accomplishment. At the end of the stonework corridor, a breeze blew in from outside the tomb. The time was past evening, and the tomb glowed blue to welcome its challenger. Silver moonlight poured down from the sky. The moon's illumination was bright enough to make Emilia narrow her eyes. She slowly looked down onto the grassy clearing when  \" Welcome back, Lady Emilia.\" The fact that Ram, greeting her with polite formality, was standing all alone made Emilia blink and tilt her head in confusion. CHAPTER 5 *** 1  Let us rewind the tale once more. Having been told the true past of how the Sanctuary had come to be and the truth hidden behind that past, a group of individuals, who were now aware of everything, had fulfilled the conditions required to march onto the stage and ask a certain man his true intent.  It was time to confront the schemes of Roswaal L. Mathers head-on. Their spirits high, Subaru and the others charged down the path from the tomb to the settlement with hasty steps. At their destination, the mastermind who had created the entire plot awaited them. \"In terms o' wicked deeds, I think ya ain't half-bad yerself, General.\" \"You make me sound so bad... Forget winning or losing; being cunning the way Roswaal is is definitely a bad idea. What if people started pelting me with eggs on my way home all the time?\" \"Just what kind of concern is that supposed to be? Throwing eggs at a person would be quite a waste.\" Even as they spoke oddly past one another, Subaru and company reviewed their situation and what they knew. In particular, sharing information with their newest companion, Garfiel, was an urgent priority. Since they could not leisurely take their time, the explanation was fairly rushed, inevitably making it confusing. \"Actually, Garfiel, how much have you been cooperating with Roswaal anyway?\" \"Me and that bastard? ...No way in hell. We've talked about you and Lady Emilia for maybe a hot second, max. Also, haven't talked with 'im since the first day you 'n' the others arrived, General.\" \"That's some pretty extreme dysfunction there... Ah, no, I get it, I get it... I just didn't think you'd hate the guy so much, even if he is your romantic rival...\" \"...Not like that's the only reason. Me, I just don't like the bastard.\" Averting his gaze, Garfiel murmured in a low voice. Garfiel and Roswaal had to have been acquainted for over a decade. Subaru couldn't understand the complexities of the feelings between them from an outside glance. But Subaru sighed hearing Garfiel's reply, which he felt confirmed his concern. Because if Garfiel's antagonism toward Subaru wasn't due to any direct orders from Roswaal... \"He had the Ryuzus and Shima, then there's Ram obviously, even Emilia would count... Geez, just how many hooks did Roswaal have in you, Garfiel?\" \"His prior preparations put us at a complete disadvantage, and on top of that, he's made meticulous preparations to strike his foes down. Wouldn't the time to run be now?\" \"Sorry to disappoint, but this party's current policy is Safety First While We Let 'Em Have It.\" Subaru replied to Otto's appeal with a flippant remark of his own. Seeing that Garfiel was left perplexed by their exchange, Subaru elaborated. \"In other words, the covert activities spearheaded by Roswaal, the mastermind behind the current situation, are no joke. It would've been simpler to take care of it if you'd simply made a deal with him to oppose liberating the Sanctuary, but...\" \"No way I'd strike any deal with him! Me, I tried to tear out your throat outta my own free will, General!\" Howling as if ready to bite then and there, Garfiel gripped the crystal dangling from his own neck. This subconscious action seemed motivated by a need for physical reassurance of where exactly his will stood. Garfiel was most likely racked with worries of his own. Just like how Ryuzu had been bewildered by Shima's story about the Sanctuary's true role, the revelations served as the"}, {"text": "starting point of Garfiel's defiance. Anguished, Garfiel was caught between Subaru and Otto as the latter glanced at the others' faces. \"If we are to believe Garfiel's own statement, the marquis enjoys an advantageous position because of his astoundingly good fortune.\" \"That's way scarier. If there's one stat the three of us are short on, it's luck.\" Subaru and Otto exchanged grim faces as the pair let out a sigh. Garfiel knit his brows, less out of surprise and more because he was feeling creeped out by their gloomy behavior. \"Hey, why are you and Bro all calm about this, General? If you two are right, the bastard's the one completely controlling everythin' in the Sanctuary, right?\" \"So you really were keeping up. That's right. If it's like that, it's seriously bad.\" By using the people who had started on his side to begin with as much as he could and manipulating those who were not with crafty rhetoric, Roswaal had inextricably tied the events surrounding the Sanctuary and the mansion together. If Subaru had to name names, it was doubtlessly Subaru as well as Emilia who topped the list of pawns Roswaal had deftly led around by the nose. And he'd even woven into his strategy the wild card named Garfiel who'd caused Subaru to suffer time and time again just how much planning had Roswaal put into this scheme?  The obsessiveness and tenacity to carry such a thing out truly was in the realm of a monster a devil. And Subaru and company were heading to the location of that very devil. Seeing Subaru and Otto bantering a bit right before they confronted that devil, it was quite natural that Garfiel felt confused. \"In the first place, General, why'd we come all the way just to see the bastard...?\" Suspicion rested in Garfiel as he voiced an entirely natural doubt that he had. However, unfortunately for him, there was no time for a reply. After all  \" We've arrived.\" Subaru's brief phrase brought all three pairs of feet to a halt. Straight before them stood a small stonework residence the temporary abode where Roswaal, the mastermind of the situation and the enemy they had to defeat, awaited them. \"Not that we have an appointment...\" Amid tension that could not be expunged with one flippant comment, the trio stepped inside the building. The air within the structure was dry. They could sense a person behind the door at the back of the building that was where Roswaal was. Standing before that door, Subaru hesitated for a single moment. And then  \" Come in, young Subaru. After all, I only finished preparaaations just now.\" *** The voice reaching them through the door caused all three of them to hold their breath. Looking over and seeing the tension in Otto's and Garfiel's eyes, Subaru checked with them with his gaze. \"Preparations, the bastard says...\" \"I wonder what preparations he might mean at a time like this? ...Maybe to turn us all into bits of partly burned charcoal, perchance?\" \"Relax. When you turn to ash, I'll be cinders. I won't let you die alone.\" \"That is impressively lacking in reassurance, I'll have you know!!\" That single word, preparations, tugged at their minds. However, their opponent was not so crude as to launch an attack without bothering with words first. Oddly trusting Roswaal on that score, Subaru put his hand upon the door. And then  \"Ahhh, so that's what you meant.\" Now realizing Roswaal's intentions, Subaru let a sigh trickle out along with his comment. Upon hearing that sigh, his two companions belatedly peered into the room, each seeing the same thing as Subaru and reacting in turn. Garfiel clicked his tongue, and Otto's eyes widened in surprise. Now that Subaru thought of it, this was Otto's first time seeing such a view. \"To think your feet would carry you to me at this very moment. Now then, what is it that briiings you here? Perhaps you have judged your prospects dire and come in search of peaceful terms?\" Speaking with a jesting tone, Roswaal gazed upon Subaru and the others standing at the room's entrance.  His face was daubed white, with suspicious-looking eyelines and reddened lips. It was the clown appearance that Subaru was accustomed to. Standing up from the bed, Roswaal hid his painful, bandaged body under his eccentric outfit, the tenor of his voice and his actions lending him an aloof air. He stood there as a devil who had no need to conceal his own obsession. The sight of him was so striking that Otto, who was seeing it for the first time, visibly shook. Glancing at that, Subaru slumped his shoulders in Roswaal's direction. \"You were so worked up about us coming that you dressed your best to welcome us. I'm gonna blush.\" \"Why, it is nothing that need conceeern you. After all, I have told you, have I not? That I would face you in a suitably prepared state once more.\" \"Ah, you did, come to think of it.\" Roswaal certainly had said something to that effect as Subaru departed upon the conclusion of the conversation where he'd challenged the man to one final contest. Of course, Subaru never thought he would actually greet him with full makeup on. \"In the first place, to me, putting on makeup is nothing less than preparing for battle. When girding myself for a contest I cannot afford to lose, makeup is a means of self-motivation, you seeee.\" \"I see, so it's literally war paint to you...... Wait, for real? You're not saying that to pull my leg?\" \"Well, I shall leave to you whether to believe it or not. Preparing myself properly for battle and greeting you with this appearance...I believe this amply demonstraaates my resolve to you?\" Subaru took Roswaal's low and deeply suggestive voice to mean that to him, it really was his equivalent of war paint. Just like Subaru was betting everything this time around, Roswaal was pouring all his strength into this battle. It was mutual understanding that made the two of them stand before each other as true competitors on the same stage. \"Now, let us return to the first question, Subaru  Why have you come here?\" This was the first serious question Roswaal posed to Subaru upon his arrival to this room, but it was also what Garfiel had wanted to know earlier as well. Prompted for an answer, Subaru caught his breath. They had come here with one objective. Namely  \" I'm here to demand your surrender.\" 2  A demand for surrender meant nothing less than a formal acknowledgment of defeat. *** The single phrase spoken by Subaru left the air inside the room filled with silence. There was no surprise from Subaru or from Otto, who was there with a shared purpose. Accordingly, it was only Roswaal, whose gaze grew cold, and Garfiel, disquiet entering his own eyes, who reacted with uncertainty. \"Whaddaya mean, demand your surrender...?\" \"It means what it sounds like. You wished to ask why Mr. Natsuki came to see the marquis? This is the answer.\" Garfiel made a feeble clack of his fangs as Otto replied to him with a calm voice. Following up, Subaru stared at Roswaal and picked up where Otto had left off. \"That's how it is. I've taken to heart just how meticulous you are. To be honest, I've seriously thought I'm done for! all kinds of times. But I'm sure you of all people get it. The setup you created...is falling apart.\" \"Certainly, it is. Certainly, it is juuuust as you say. The situation has most certainly changed. Those accompanying you are proof enough. With that said, what weighs upon my mind is...\" Cutting off his words, Roswaal closed one eye as his gaze shifted behind Subaru. Naturally, he would look straight at Garfiel, the embodiment of the change in the situation, with his yellow eye yet, he did not. \"You mean me?\" Coming under Roswaal's attention for the very first time, Otto's face faintly stiffened. His words made Roswaal draw himself up, twisting his neck with a rare expression of simple confusion. \"I have wondered this since you first entered, but...just who are you, and from whence do you haaaail?\" \"You're really something, Otto. Looks like you weren't included in his future-seeing book of prophecy, either.\" \"I am not pleased whatsoever by that, and I cannot conceal my surprise at such utterly incomprehensible comments!\" Otto genuinely flared up at Subaru for making a comment that was totally inappropriate for the mood. The original reason Otto had come with Subaru and Emilia was because Subaru had promised to introduce him to Roswaal. From there, he would no doubt negotiate over the value of his cargo of oil and discuss the nature of his contributions in defeating the Witch Cult. Given that starting position, it stood to reason that Otto would be angry that Roswaal didn't even know who he was. But  \"Such an individual's presence in this place cannot help but determine which way my contest with Subaru will sway. I see; in other words, he is 'that.'\" \"Yeah, I suppose. Otto is 'that.'\" *** Roswaal was certain of something, and Subaru nodded in affirmation. It was only Otto, the subject at hand, who looked completely at a loss as to what topic he apparently stood at the very center of. Otto didn't understand. He was completely unawares. It was Otto's very existence that was  \" The first slip of the gears.\" Surely, Roswaal had painstakingly constructed his game board as if assembling a precise machine. Using all the wisdom and knowledge at his disposal, the devil had plotted out the movements of every pawn placed in advance so as to invariably drive Subaru to Return by Death, no matter what course the events might take. An unknown piece from outside had leaped onto his game board, which had been carefully arranged like a precise machine  \"The flow's been altered, all thanks to my friend, who's too insignificant to be recorded in your book of prophecy.\" \"...Allow me to formally ask you for your name.\" Roswaal quietly asked for the name of the laborer who had created the distortion in his meticulously calculated machinations. Subaru took a step back and gave his friend a shove. The force made Otto advance a step. He took a single breath, after which he bowed to Roswaal. \"My name is Otto Suwen. I am honored to have this opportunity to set eyes upon the noble marquis in person. Though I am nothing more than a humble traveling merchant, I hope to become your acquaintance.\" \"I shall remember you, Otto  Next time, I absolutely will not lose sight of you.\" After Otto invoked his own name, Subaru was the only one who gleaned the true meaning from Roswaal's reply. That was how keenly Subaru understood that the wariness Roswaal directed toward Otto was dead serious. \"Oh man, Otto. Just like you planned, you left a serious impression on Roswaal!\" \"This is not exactly the way I hoped to be remembered by him!\" He'd most certainly left an impression, but it would have been better to remain little-noticed and easily forgotten. Either way, Roswaal's internal wariness toward Otto had risen precipitously. At the same time, it had become considerably clearer how exactly the situation had changed and why they demanded his surrender. \"Thanks to young Otto, you managed to regain your footing, making you inclined to challenge me to one final contest, I take it?\" \"That's how it is... But isn't this a little strange? Usually, it'd be the main heroine who has a scene to get me back on my feet. Won't it betray audience expectations if we have a male character telling me to hang in there instead?\" \"Even if you look at me with such reproachful eyes, I have no idea what you want from me!\" \"I'm kidding, kidding.\" As a matter of fact, if not for Otto, the entire faction would have collapsed by"}, {"text": "this point. It was emotionally impossible for him to thank Otto for that up front, but his gratitude was genuine nonetheless. That, and  *** It was faint, but Subaru caught a slight whiff of uneasiness in both of Roswaal's eyes. That was probably the unease from having an unknown element pointed out in what he'd been certain was a winning scenario. What had driven Roswaal to this was far from Otto's existence alone. This time, Roswaal shifted his gaze toward Garfiel, the individual truly embodying change. Seeing that his gaze did not alter the color on Garfiel's face, Roswaal opened his lips with a look of dejection. \"I suppose I must say you have finally been well and properly tamed, Garfiel.\" Garfiel, who was disappointing him so, was standing behind Subaru and Otto. He'd taken a position that was prepared for any unforeseen circumstances, as he could shield the two simultaneously at any moment. This was what brought a sigh tinged with reproach out of Roswaal. \"And so you, who have been so strongly set on tearing into outsiders, now find yourself gladly on young Subaru's siiiide. I am surprised you would have a change of heart so quickly  You had protected what is precious in your heart for so very, very long, and yet, you discard even your love for your mother with such ease.\" Roswaal's words were a blade he used in an attempt to stir up what lay at the center of Garfiel's core. Like a surgical instrument for opening one's chest to extract the internal organs within, his wily words were meant to expose Garfiel's desire to all. These were the feelings of love toward his mother and enormous regrets toward the past that he'd continued to harbor for so long  \"Stop it, Roswaal. What the hell do you understand about Garfiel's feelings?\" \"Of course I understand nothing of them, nor do I wish to. Losing a fight and the cheap words you replied to him with were all it took to sway his feelings. What can I call them, then, save shallow?\" As Roswaal piled insult upon insult, it was not Garfiel but Subaru who flew into a rage. Subaru had slammed into Garfiel, traded punches with him, and directly heard the cry of his heart. He would never let anyone dismiss them as light or cheap. \"Hold on a sec, General.\" However, it was none other than Garfiel himself who halted the angry Subaru. Surely, it was Garfiel who was most hurt by Roswaal's words of scorn. Subaru tried to intercept them rather than let them wreak havoc on the boy's heart. But. \"It's your words that are cheap as dirt, Roswaal.\" Crossing his arms like he was bored, Garfiel clacked his fangs and spat those words at Roswaal. His demeanor took Subaru by surprise. Noticing this reaction, Roswaal slightly raised an eyebrow. If Garfiel had been the person he was just a short while ago, such grave insults would have triggered a fit of rage. Yet, there he was, ignoring it as if brushing a warm breeze aside. \"Me, I ain't denyin' I'm half-hearted about things. It's true I teamed up with the general just a few hours ago. Guess you saw that as a real quick change of heart.\" \"First a change of heart and now defiance? The feelings you dwelled upon for so long to date... The time you devoted to your wish, day after day for ten long years, is by no means a brief span. I wonder, where have those feelings vanished to?\" Shrugging at Garfiel's reply, Roswaal narrowed his eyes, growing ever colder. His handsome, differently colored eyes looked clouded by stagnant emotions that did not suit their beauty at all. With those emotions still hovering in his gaze, Roswaal continued his verbal attacks on Garfiel. \"Desires do not simply vanish into thin air. If you truly loved her, your feelings would surely never change. Are your ten years of work something that can be changed with such ease?\" The tone of Roswaal's voice, seemingly full of lament, grew hotter and darker still. \"Just how much contact have you had with young Subaru over a mere few days? Have you and he amassed a bond to rival that love? Surely not. As if anything could rise as high or reach the same depth of your love for that is how it is when you put one thing above all else.\" His voice was quiet, yet heated all the same. What had begun as censure for having a change of heart had become a plea, an earnest wish; merely listening to it struck one's heart with sadness.  To him, what was most precious to you was what you stripped away everything else for. Previously, Roswaal had said as much to Subaru. And this was the nature of Roswaal's love. To Roswaal, this was the only way to love something; he recognized no others. \"...Or perhaps, you did not love her at all, Garfiel?\" Hence, Roswaal attempted to deny Garfiel's change, which violated his life philosophy. He denied Garfiel, who had nurtured his love for ten years, yet determined his conclusion had been mistaken and required something new. \"Do you not love your mother, your family? Is that why you can devote your heart to something else so easily? Rather than employ the strength you honed for so long, merely having your fangs broken was sufficient to bend the feelings you kept for a decade? If that is so, then the one who made your love a brittle, fleeting forgery is none other than yourself.\" With no change in his expression, it was with words alone that Roswaal castigated Garfiel for his change of heart. These words of blame, which seemed like they'd claw a wound into Garfiel's heart, made Subaru regret bringing him along for a single instant  Yes. His regret lasted for only an instant. \" Man, your words are so weak, Roswaal.\" Garfiel did not reply with emotion, though his demeanor was barbed. Somehow, there seemed to be pity in his gaze. \"Like I care if ya wanna scold me. Just don't misunderstand me.\" \"...Misunderstand?\" \"For me, it ain't like I follow the general just 'cause I lost a fight. Yeah, losing hit hard, but I ain't soft enough to flip sides from somethin' like that.\" Garfiel audibly tapped his forehead with a finger as he clacked his fangs. In contrast to Roswaal's quiet, smoldering zeal, Garfiel's tenacity was serene. \"It's just like ya said, Roswaal. I was hung up on the past all these last ten years... I don't exactly remember tellin' ya all that, but at this point, I ain't gonna act surprised about ya knowin'.\" *** \"I slammed against that past those ten years. The general...nah, Ram, was it? Ram said this to me. Go into the tomb, face your past......and that's why I'm standin' here now.\" Pointing to his own feet, Garfiel expressed the reason he stood in that position. \"You confronted your past, Garfiel?\" The declaration made nervousness come over Roswaal's two eyes once more. Just like when he'd acknowledged Otto's existence, Garfiel's words had disconcerted Roswaal. He was staring straight at the fact that Garfiel had willingly challenged the tomb to face his past once more. \"Ya don't 'win' against your past. That's what I thought. That's why I ain't laughin' at you for bein' stuck, thinkin' the same way I did back then. What's there to laugh at?\" *** \"I don't have no intention of talkin' about what I saw inside or why I'm with the general. But I'm gonna tell you one thing, a big-ass reason why I'm with him and not with you.\" As if delivering payback for earlier, this time, it was Garfiel who sent a blade of words Roswaal's way. Then he flashed his fangs and declared his feelings to Roswaal, not as his rival in love but as an obstacle blocking his path. \" Instead of someone tellin' me to stay weak as hell, of course I'd much rather stick with someone tellin' me he needs me 'cause I'm strong!\" Garfiel's simple words were his reply to Roswaal's appeal. Having finished speaking, Garfiel snorted, brazenly crossing his arms. \"...Wha?\" \"Nah, nothing. You've gotten dependable.\" When Garfiel growled in irritation, Subaru only shrugged and told him what he thought. There certainly had been a change in Garfiel's mental state. But this was not a change that had come easily; it was a distinct possibility he could be swayed by Roswaal's words of reproach. Accordingly  \"Roswaal.\" Turning toward Roswaal, who'd fallen into silence, Subaru pressed the attack in earnest. Otto was there. Garfiel was there. These two things alone had changed the situation. \"Garfiel's seen his past. Him standing here as a result doesn't mean his feelings for his family these ten years have weakened at all. I'm sure the strength of his feelings hasn't changed. They didn't change, but he did. Is that so unbelievable?\" Even if Garfiel's stance was no longer one of obstinate, continued obsession with the Sanctuary, it definitely didn't mean his feelings had weakened. Only Garfiel knew just how much he'd changed. But what was weak about Garfiel as he was now? What did he need to be shaken or to grieve about? \"It's gotta be the same for you. I told you, Roswaal. I... We don't want to keep butting heads with you forever. If we just aim our ways of doing things in the same direction, we'll get where we want to go together. There's still time to pull back.\" At that moment, the game board Roswaal had carefully crafted was heavily crumbling away. With the plan shifting beyond his control, he could still stop being Garfiel, Subaru, and everyone else's enemy. He could still  \" Stop the assassins you sent to the mansion. Then we can hammer out everything else.\" Roswaal's scheme had crumbled, and the problems enveloping the Sanctuary and the mansion were beginning to reach their conclusion. If Roswaal accepted Subaru's demand for his surrender, they could bring everything to an end. Accordingly, believing there was value in trying regardless of the danger, Subaru had come here to make his play. It was Subaru's silver ray of hope. And Roswaal  \" I refuse, young Subaru.\" *** \"I have not toiled for four hundred years only to be swayed by such a minor shift in circumstances.\" Bluntly, Roswaal shook his head side to side, rejecting Subaru's demand. With unmistakable anger residing in both his eyes, Roswaal declared that the war would go on. 3 The change in Roswaal's emotions made the air in the room heavy. Anger flared in both of Roswaal's eyes as he thrust Subaru's ultimatum aside. But a smile came over Roswaal's war-paint-dabbed expression, his antagonistic emotions giving rise to a brutal aura of dread. A vortex of vile emotions permeated the entirety of the room. At its center, Roswaal laughed scornfully at Subaru. \"A demand for surrender, is it? Yes, I seeeee. Certainly, you cannot be faulted for misunderstanding a dramatic change as predetermining victory or defeat, I suppoooose.\" \"You're saying I misunderstood something?\" \"Indeed I am. Just from bringing in a piece from beyond the game-board and removing Garfiel as an obstacle, you believe yourself to be in a superior position? Yet, as before, I have the upper hand.\" Touching a hand to his breast, Roswaal repudiated Subaru's assertion, declaring it completely off the mark. \"Everything at present is as you spoke. And so long as that remains true, my advantage does not change. You have no means to stop me. This very moment, you hear the familiar footsteps of defeat drawing near, do you not?\" *** Roswaal was implicitly referring to his own scheme of dispatching assassins to the mansion. He was claiming that so long as the attack on the mansion and the existence of the assassins remained, Subaru had no chance of victory. Not in the Sanctuary, not in the mansion, would Subaru lose anyone."}, {"text": "There would be no casualties those were the conditions for Subaru's straight bet with Roswaal. \"That is the challenge you yourself proposed.\" Roswaal advanced a step, unerringly striking Subaru's inner feelings with his words. Given the height difference between the pair, Roswaal looked down at Subaru, peering into the boy's black eyes as he continued. Mercilessly, cruelly, as if declaring a just and proper verdict, he continued. \"What of the conditions of your wager? You have limited your greatest weapon to become an ordinary person.\" Roswaal ploddingly continued his advance. \"As ordinary as you are, what more can you achieve? What more can you undermine?\" Roswaal continued even further, his words gradually growing more heated. \"You will do nothing. You can do nothing. After all \" Cutting off his words, his two differently colored eyes contained identical rage within them as he continued. \"After all, you are garbage, lower than an ordinary man!\" He raised an angry shout. Roswaal slammed simple anger against an incompatible existence. As a man who constantly lived with the apparition of his own death nay, a man who could calmly carry on even while standing within a swirling vortex of death Subaru Natsuki's decision to avoid death seemed irrational to Roswaal, which only fed his anger. \"In the end, you've made it this far because of that power that you've used as a trump card against whatever might come. In willingly tossing it aside to become ordinary, what can an untalented man like you do?! I will not suffer any who try to violate the sanctuary of feelings that have been carved out over countless days and months! No one! However many you bring with you, this cannot be changed!\" Garfiel's obsession with the Sanctuary was the distortion of ten long years' worth of love toward his family. Emilia had a hundred years' worth of sins enough that she wanted to forget them, with feelings of guilt for having abandoned them piled on top. And  \"A decade, a century, and then my four centuries as if all this could be overturned by none other than an ordinary man like you!!\" \"...Because feelings don't change?\" \"That's right!\" \"Because you've kept on believing in those feelings for a really long time?\" \"Yes, indeed it is!\" When Subaru inquired, Roswaal acknowledged everything. He was saying that feelings were something no one could overcome. He was saying that feelings were not something that could be changed or altered. *** That moment, Subaru felt like he finally understood. He finally felt like he understood Roswaal's true thoughts.  Roswaal wanted affirmation of his own feelings. He believed this was how feelings should be. He wanted to believe the feelings of others beyond himself would affirm his own. That was why Roswaal wanted Garfiel to wallow in his weakness. Garfiel had continued obsessing over his own feelings, desperately trying to protect them so that they might never change. Roswaal had wanted him to stay that way he desperately wanted others to desire this, just as he did. \"The hell's with you, Roswaal?\" His feelings were single-minded, aimed at the person he cherished. Hoping that his own feelings might be affirmed, he was supportive of people who were devoted to their loved ones. Come to think of it, that had always been so. The feelings Subaru held toward Emilia, the feelings Rem had held toward Subaru... Roswaal was always accepting of those things, wasn't he? That was because Roswaal had a belief. He believed in the strength of feelings, the preciousness of bonds. More than any of them, Roswaal believed in the concept of cherishing someone else. And yet  \"Why do you have to see feelings as nothing but weakness? You understand how strong and powerful it can be for someone to treasure another person for a long time. Why do you have to focus on how it's weak?\" \" Because that is what I believe.\" Roswaal's voice bubbled with emotion as he replied to Subaru's words. The glint in both his eyes, blue and yellow alike, intensified into an incredible glower of fiery indignation.  Before challenging him to their final wager, Roswaal had said this to Subaru. It is impossible for me to hate you. I trust you, from the bottom of my heart. At the moment, Roswaal's eyes seethed with anger, glaring with a killing gaze at the man he hated most in the world. \"Just like how you believe in others' strength, I believe in remaining weak! Because I believe people are weak, frail, puny beings able to accomplish nothing unless they cling to a single, important thing!\" *** \"For four hundred years my feelings have been dedicated to a single woman. The time I have spent unable to touch her is far longer than the days we spent together, yet the sight of her is burned forever in me. My soul has been in ashes ever since. Ever since the day we parted, my heart has remained shattered, and I have never changed!!\" Roswaal's voice had a dreadful force to it, enough that the cramped room itself seemed to shake. Subaru had never seen him reveal his own emotions to this extent. He'd never even conceived of it. But that was why Subaru found the sight so very painful. Four hundred years if Shima's story was to be believed, this was the span of time over which the Mathers family had administered the Sanctuary generation after generation, just as Echidna the Witch had asked. The same way each subsequent head of the Mathers family bore the name of Roswaal, each also inherited the duty of administering the Sanctuary. Roswaal had confused the name and the duty with the meaning that rested behind them. He'd made his family's long-cherished desire his own, and it was for this reason that Roswaal had always lived. The genius Roswaal walked a path that any normal person would have abandoned without compunction. Simple respect and love toward a benevolent mentor had been distorted to become a curse binding an entire family line, giving birth to a single devil. This was the man who inherited the Mathers family's long-cherished desire four centuries long Roswaal L. Mathers. \"...The advantage remains on my side. Part of what is written is in error, but what of it? What I desire is results. The conditions have not shifted meaningfully, and you will never achieve your goals without changing them, powerless as you are.\" After he took some time to breathe, his voice regained its composure. Even so, his assertion had in no way changed. He did not accept the demand for surrender, and he didn't see the balance of power shifting in the near future. And the greatest proof of Roswaal's claim was  \" The contest is not over so long as the one who is the cornerstone for both of us remains.\" Roswaal implicitly indicated that the basis of his certainty in his own victory was the girl challenging the Trial that very moment. Just like he believed in human weakness, in Garfiel's weakness, Roswaal believed in hers. He believed that Emilia was weak. That Emilia was fragile. That Emilia would remain a weakling lacking the strength to overcome her regrets. \" Don't underestimate Emilia, Roswaal.\" Once cowed into silence from sheer momentum, Subaru spoke, his heart roused by Roswaal's argument. He could not stay silent. Just like how Emilia had chosen to stop cowering. \"Emilia won't do as you planned anymore. That girl will overcome everything in her way.\" \"As if she could. With no one to rely upon, she shall be crushed by her regrets. Her great hope that she can change will end in sorrow, and she shall cling to you in tears... That is what suits her.\" \"There ain't a woman out there suited to a crying face. Have you seen Emilia's face when she cries...?\" The flame had been lit. Roswaal's statements had enveloped Subaru's heart in crimson.  Roswaal had made him remember how Emilia acted inside the tomb just before their argument. He'd seen Emilia stricken by her weighty responsibilities and by grief for her lost connection with Puck. He'd seen the expression on her face when she'd glared at Subaru with tears of unendurable emotions  \" She's so awful at crying, I never want to see her do it again!!\" \"She will be hurt. She will be ensnared. That is the destiny of a half-elf. That is the curse she bears for being born of the same bloodline as the Witch of Jealousy. It is inevitable for her to be despised as a Witch.\" \"Oh, stuff it. What about that girl makes her a Witch? Where the hell is this Witch you people keep talking about?\" Once, it was Roswaal who had howled, his ferocious emotions bare. This time, it was Subaru's turn. Lifting his head, Subaru grabbed Roswaal's collar. Opening his eyes wide in anger, he glared point-blank into Roswaal's differently colored eyes, making full use of the foul look he'd inherited from his mother. I don't like it. Yeah, I don't like it at all. Right now, I don't care for a single part of this world. \"If you're gonna call that girl a Witch ! If that's what you all want, then you'll make that girl into a Witch, damn it! If you keep saying of course she's weak, of course people despise her, it's all her fault for being born as something she can't change, you'll turn her into a poor little Witch yourselves!!\" In the back of his mind, he thought of the Witch's Tea Party to the seven Witches of the past bearing the names of the Seven Deadly Sins. Typhon, Daphne, Minerva, Sekhmet, Carmilla, Echidna. And before that world had broken apart, there was Satella, who'd doted on him to the very end. As if he could forget. That face it was the spitting image of Emilia's. \"Has even one person told her that it's all right?! That when you're sad, when you're suffering, that it's all right to cry?! And that if you can't wipe off the tears rolling down your cheeks, ask someone close to do it for you... That you have people who'll do that for you. Have even one of you said that to her?!\" No one had let Emilia cry, even though she'd been piling up so much bitterness, suffering, and sorrow. That's why when that girl cried, she was so awful at it. Restraining your sobbing voice, hiding your crying face...these were things you did to protect yourself when crying, things you learned from people making you cry over and over. She'd spent her days in ignorance of that, which was why that girl was so bad at crying. \"If no one's gonna do it, I will. These feelings...this curse! You don't think there's any room for them ever changing? We'll beat that right out of you!\" Thrusting Roswaal away, Subaru pointed a finger toward the heavens. Mysteriously, it was the same pose Emilia adopted that very moment, displaying it to the Witch slamming malicious words at her inside the Trial. \" My name is Subaru Natsuki! Knight of the silver-haired half-elf Emilia!\" Once, Subaru Natsuki had spoken these words without resolve behind them, causing a great throng to laugh in mockery at his rashness. Looking back on himself at the time, he was even more lacking then than he was now. But there was one thing that was different from back then.  No matter who laughed, Subaru Natsuki would never feel ashamed of his determination. \"Emilia's coming, Roswaal. The girl you stubbornly believe to be weak is coming to cut off your last ray of hope.\" *** \"That's how she'll strip you of all the weakness you're clinging to, and when you've hit rock bottom and you finally let us talk to you... At long last, you'll be willing to listen then. That's what I believe.\" Roswaal's obstinate heart did not crumble, even though he'd witnessed Subaru's resolve and determination. It had been as he'd asserted over and over to that point. Time amassed across"}, {"text": "four centuries was not something that could easily be changed with one word or one deed. It was just like how amassed words and deeds made Garfiel's ten years and Emilia's hundred begin to move. It would be through Subaru's and the others' actions that their words would reach Roswaal's four hundred.  That was what he wanted to believe. \" You really are as I judged you to be, Subaru Natsuki.\" \"What?\" With Subaru having finished, Roswaal quietly called out his name. They exchanged glances. The vehement emotions had vanished somewhere; Roswaal's eyes were serene as he looked at Subaru. Then, faced with Subaru's questioning look, Roswaal's lips trembled. \"You and I are alike. I mean this, in terms of bending ideals for those we cherish.\" \" You believe in weakness. I believe in strength. That's the only way I agree that we're alike.\" Subaru and Roswaal, rejecting each other's incompatible philosophies, put distance between them. Beyond that, it would be through actions, not words, that they would prove their claims true. \"Let's go.\" The talk was over. Subaru called out to the pair in attendance with him and left the room. Otto followed behind him without a word, and Garfiel, last to leave, looked back at Roswaal but once. Roswaal was left all alone. Perhaps Garfiel saw some significance in that as he murmured in a little voice like an afterthought. \" Stupid jerk.\" 4 With negotiations thus ending in failure, Subaru and the others left the building and butted heads together. The prior exchanges had slammed their respective resolve and true feelings against one another. Roswaal's motives were clear, and that brief span of time was so intense, he had made them accept that he'd reset the game board to an even playing field. As a result of those exchanges, there was one thing that Subaru could say for certain. \"This is bad. I wanted to stop the attack on the mansion, but it was like he was saying, Go away there's no pulling back now.\" \"I cannot really deny it felt like our original objective had turned to half-baked negotiations midway...\" \"Hey, Bro. Don't blame the general too much, all right? By the general's standards, he really laid into the guy. Me, I felt good just listenin' to it.\" \"Were it not a place for negotiations to resolve matters peacefully, I would agree with you...!\" When Subaru tried to reflect on things blowing up, Garfiel irresponsibly cheered him on. The sight of the pair made Otto clutch his head, genuinely in a bind. \"Not that I expected that the marquis would truly surrender, but why did talks break down so badly when a quiet end would have been preferable...?!\" \"Certainly, Garfiel and I did bad things there, but the responsibility's yours, too, right?\" \"My responsibility? I did nothing to warrant anything so great as...\" \"Well, I mean you were there, right?\" \"I'm responsible just by merely existing?!\" That was somewhat inaccurate. More precisely, Otto was responsible for triggering the situation that had led to him joining Subaru at that meeting thereby fatally ruining Roswaal's setup. Though, since Otto himself had no idea that was going on in the background, telling him of his responsibility left him sure it was a scurrilous accusation. \"Anyway, this isn't the time to trade jokes with one another. Roswaal won't stop the attack on the mansion. That means we need to go running back there without a moment to spare. That's what it means, but...\" Their negotiations falling through meant the various problems surrounding the mansion would continue unabated. Just as Roswaal had said, if they didn't prevent the attack, the contest would inevitably end in Subaru's defeat. There was virtually no time left until Elsa and Meili, the assassins dispatched by Roswaal, would assault the mansion. As Subaru nervously gritted his teeth, it was then that Garfiel went, \"Now hold on,\" and clacked his fangs. \"I ain't really had a proper explanation, but the gist is that the bastard's got some scheme that puts the bunch at the mansion...including my older sis, in danger. That 'bout covers it?\" \" . Yeah, that's right. He's sent assassins to the mansion, and they're super skilled. I don't stand a chance against 'em. That's why I need combat power to...\" \"Short talk, then. Let's stop shootin' the breeze here and get to the mansion right now.\" \"Hey, listen to me! Even if we go back, we don't have the combat power! It'll just jack up the body count!\" \"Ahhh?! What are you talkin' about, General?! You sayin' I'm not enough...?!\" \"Yes! Please halt a moment right there!\" Wedging himself into the pair's increasingly loud exchange, Otto stopped their arguments midway. After, he went, \"Now, look here?\" as he stared at their faces respectively. \"It's clear the flow of the conversation has shifted, but do you understand, Garfiel?\" \"Understand what?\" \"Going to the aid of the mansion requires leaving the Sanctuary. Lady Emilia is in the middle of her challenge, but the tomb's barrier remains intact, so if the barrier stops you...\" The issue is moot, implied Otto, revealing the gap in Garfiel's line of thinking. But when this was pointed out to Garfiel, he crinkled his nose, undaunted. \"Barrier...? Ain't no problem. The barrier don't affect me 'cause of my makeup, y'see.\" \" Huh?\" When Garfiel touched one of his canine teeth with his finger and tossed out a brief explanation, Subaru and Otto both voiced the same reaction. Faced with their questioning gazes and voices, Garfiel went, \"I'm sayin',\" clicking his tongue. \"I'm an exception the barrier that keeps 'mixed' people from passing through don't work on me. Same as my older sis, I'm a kid from a mixed-blood dad and a human mom. My blood's too thin, so the barrier don't work.\"  Accordingly, there was nothing stopping them from going to the mansion's aid right that minute, even without the barrier being lifted. With Garfiel so bluntly divulging the circumstances of his birth, Subaru was completely at a loss. He'd most certainly heard previously that Frederica had slipped out of the Sanctuary due to the thinness of her mixed blood in other words, because she was a quarter-blood. However. \"It's the same for you...? B-but I heard you and Frederica have different fathers?!\" \"...Well, ya know. My mother, she ain't got any luck or any eye for pickin' men. You figure it out.\" Garfiel looked away. From that, Subaru felt his words rang true. In other words, Garfiel and Frederica's mother had given birth to children from two different mixed-blood, demi-human men. As a result, both siblings could pass through the Sanctuary's barrier unhindered... \"Ah? What gives, General?\" \"Whaddaya mean, what gives? Say that earlier, damn it! If you knew that, you...youuu!!\" \"Well, I didn't know 'cause you didn't tell me all this, so it's your own fault, General! It's just like how Ipshiz was ruined through too few words!!\" \"Yes, yes, yes, yes! That is quite enough! Quite enough!\" Just as the pair was about to come to blows, Otto intervened once more, intercepting Subaru before his inevitable pummeling. \"You can both reflect on explaining too little hereafter. Right now, we should think of this as good fortune indeed, seeing as how the greatest obstacle before us has been removed  Mr. Natsuki, we can do this.\" \"I know! If we can all cross the barrier, this boils down quickly!\" With Otto's shout flipping a switch in his mind, Subaru made an instant decision based on this change in conditions. If they could all cross the barrier, they could take Garfiel with them when returning to the mansion. If Garfiel was with them, it became possible to confront Elsa and Meili. But in turn, it was necessary to employ a variety of countermeasures for the numerous problems that remained in the Sanctuary. He'd already arranged all the preparations, but  \"After that... Garfiel!\" \"Aah?\" \"We'll graciously handle everything except brute force. But where brute force is concerned, even if we stand and fight, we can't beat these people. That's why...\" Trailing off there, Subaru stared squarely at Garfiel. Garfiel had been dissatisfied over not being able to follow the conversation, but his expression switched in the blink of an eye. \"To be blunt, I still don't get a lot of what's goin' on, but...\" Garfiel's two jade eyes gave off a fiery glow as he smiled, baring his fangs. \"Leave all the fightin' to me  Me, I'm the best there is.\" 5 \"So what do you intend to do now?\" Returning from the forest to Subaru and the others, only to find some ruckus happening in front of the Cathedral the building where the evacuees from Earlham Village had grouped up it was Ram who spoke first. The people of Earlham Village had clustered here, busy murmuring and holding different conversations. In front of the assembled gathering of evacuees were Subaru and his companions, and if she could put what they were doing into words  \"You are preparing dragon carriages to slip away during the night? Now, at a time like this?\" \"You're making it sound bad. But you're not wrong about the call late at night and then again first thing in the morning feeling  From here, Otto, Garfiel, and I are heading toward the mansion. Re... Frederica and company are in danger.\" Subaru replied to Ram as he hitched his beloved pitch-black dragon, Patlash, to a two-dragon carriage. The reply made Ram raise an eyebrow. \"To the mansion...,\" she murmured. \"The result of Lady Emilia's Trial is still pending. What will you do?\" \"Emilia'll clear it. Echidna's not gonna get her bent out of shape. How are Ryuzu and the others?\" \"Caring for Miss Shima. Ram is to remain on watch until Lady Emilia returns.\" \"Got it... In that case, I'll leave that role to you. Counting on ya.\" \"Counting on me, are you, Barusu? You are such a...\" There was sharpness mixed in Ram's voice; perhaps she thought him irresponsible. However, it was natural for her to see it that way. Abandoning them during a situation like this would make Emilia angry, let alone Ram. Even so, he had to go. Rem, Frederica, and Petra were waiting. Besides  \" General, sorry for the wait! I'm back!\" \"I have completed preparations as well. We can leave any moment!\" In high spirits, two voices interrupted Subaru and Ram's conversation. Then both respectively leaped onto the dragon carriage: Garfiel onto the roof and Otto onto the driver's seat. When performing the final checks for Otto's plan, they'd headed to the cabin to collect something Garfiel had forgotten. \"I was the strongest before but now I'm even stronger, ha. Now I ain't losin' to anyone, not even you, General.\" Garfiel seemed extremely enthusiastic, his words bringing both surprise and a wry smile out of Subaru. Then Subaru looked behind him toward Ram and the people of Earlham Village arrayed at her back. Of course, Ram still had an unconvinced face on her, but the people of Earlham Village bowed deeply in response to his gaze. \"It's like you heard, everyone! From here, we're heading back to the mansion a step ahead of you! Sorry for this all being out of order, but...\" \"You need not be concerned, Master Subaru.\" A voice interrupted Subaru's words; it hailed from an old woman with a stooped hip the head of Earlham Village. She trained her hoarse voice and her eyes, which were filled with a bounty of kindness, toward Subaru. \"All of us have already heard about it from the Administrator. And have you forgotten?\" *** \"Just who was it who took on the responsibility of liberating us, I wonder?\" The village head's question left Subaru perplexed for a single moment, but he immediately widened his eyes. He remembered. It already felt so long ago, for it was on the first day they had visited this place  There, at the Cathedral, Emilia had promised to liberate the other villagers from the Sanctuary. The village head no, not her alone but everyone from"}, {"text": "the village believed in her. \"You worry needlessly, Master Subaru. More importantly, you have your own duty that you must fulfill, yes?\" \"Don't get cold feet in a place like this. Please go quickly.\" \"Ahhh, you'd best wipe off what's left of that nosebleed midway, though. Don't wanna disappoint Petra.\" Following the head of the village, the other villagers offered their own voices of support one after the other. What they said varied, but all were meant to bolster Subaru and the others' decision. That was of great help to him. \"Thanks, everyone. But don't forget what I said. Wait until...\" \" Right up to the limit, and only until then. Why, if the barrier is lifted before that, all is well.\" \"That's why, Master Subaru, you should give up already and let us help you this time.\" Their powerful, imposing words completely stopped Subaru from saying anything. Let us help you. The person who spoke communicated the united will of the villagers. To add anything more would be crude of him. When presented with so much resolve, what could one say? Subaru had no way to put his feelings into words. Accordingly, he bowed his head. Then the remaining problem was  \"Ram, there's no time to explain every fine detail. But all of them understand their own roles. Emilia, too. So for you...\" \" Fine, then. Do as you please. Ram shall do as she pleases as well.\" Seemingly out of other words, Subaru offered a final parting remark to Ram, who snorted in return, her arms crossed. Wincing from her reply, Subaru scratched his cheek with a finger. \"Hearing you, someone who normally does as she pleases, say that is super scary for some reason...\" \"Ha. Yes, do be afraid  Barusu, you're really all right with this?\" \"Yeah. I already told Emilia all the words I wanted to tell her.\" \"The carvings on the wall, you mean.\" \"Why do I feel like I'll never live that down?!\" Replying to Ram's teasing in a loud voice, Subaru then rummaged in his pocket, touching something that felt hard with the tips of his fingers. He exhaled a light breath. \" Ram.\" Addressing her, Subaru drew it out and tossed it toward Ram. She softly caught the object. \"Don't do anything crazy.\" \"Who do you think you're talking to, Barusu? Don't make me laugh.\" Smiling wryly at Subaru's words, Ram quietly put the caught object into a pocket on her maid outfit. From this point, no more words were spoken between them. Everything that needed to be exchanged had been. All that was left was for each of them to work their hardest toward their respective best outcomes. \" Let's go! We gotta reach the mansion before the crack of dawn. I'm counting on ya, Patlash!\" Climbing into the dragon carriage, Subaru shouted, bringing a loud neigh from Patlash, who was hitched to the wagon. Spurred by that neigh, Otto's beloved dragon, hitched alongside, gave off a low growl in turn. Slowly, the two-dragon carriage began to move, and their sprint out of the Sanctuary had begun. \"Um, incidentally, I heard a term earlier that I cannot easily dismiss. Who is this Administrator of whom everyone from the village spoke...?\" \" We're leaving!!\" Overwriting and obliterating Otto's question, the dragon moved, deploying its wind repel blessing. Inundated by the villagers' cheers of support, the dragon carriage raced through the night toward the forest, the road...and the mansion. CHAPTER 6 *** 1 \" And so three fools ran off to the mansion in a dragon carriage pulled by two wise land dragons.\" Having finished giving Emilia the details, Ram seemed exhausted as she put a hand to her brow. Emilia was just a little surprised that Ram would visibly show how she really felt for once. That said, her surprise was hardly with Ram alone but with Subaru's and the others' chaotic ways as well. \"Mm, I understand what you have told me... Goodness, he really is incorrigible.\" \"Sheesh,\" Emilia went, sighing deeply, after which a thin smile came over her. Her gaze firmly fixed upon the expression Emilia was giving off, Ram narrowed her pink eyes with a questioning look. \"...Is that all you have to say?\" \"I think so? Ah, of course, his leaving without waiting for me makes me just a little...yes, really just a little, tiny bit annoyed, but...\" After all, he'd seen Emilia off to the tomb with such grandiose fanfare. So what was up with him slipping away instead of staying to greet her and see things through to the end? \"But I guess he didn't think there was any way I'd fail, huh.\" Really, if Subaru was more worried about Emilia than anything else, he surely would have been there. And yet, he was not, which meant there was someone, in a place not here, who he needed to worry about more than Emilia. There was someone he could not help but go galloping off toward.  It was because she knew that Subaru Natsuki believed in her that she could think that way. \"I really am a little angry, though. I wonder, does Subaru really love me?\" \"...Barusu cares more about Lady Emilia than any other.\" \"Mm, thank you.\" Unknown to Subaru, Emilia was currently trying to confirm his feelings toward her. Seeing that same Emilia smiling pleasantly made Ram lower her eyes, somehow pleased with how things had turned out. \"Lady Emilia, since you've returned, does that mean...?\" \"You mean the Trial? Yes, that was... Er, it might be a little difficult to call it resolved. I properly faced my past...but it doesn't seem to be over yet.\" \"What do you mean?\" \"The Trial doesn't end at one. There are two more...and it seems the barrier is only lifted after that. So I'll need to go back into the tomb afterward...\" The truth spoken by Echidna was shocking, but it didn't change what Emilia had to do. Setting aside the fact that Subaru and the others had ridden off on a separate mission, Ram, the residents of the Sanctuary, and the people from Earlham Village might have to wait a little longer, but Emilia wouldn't stop moving forward until she reached the end. \"You really have become strong, Lady Emilia.\" Perhaps Ram murmured thus because she saw the resolve in Emilia's eyes. Feeling an odd hesitance in her tone of voice, Emilia quietly waited for Ram to continue her words. The quiet continued as Ram fell into silent contemplation for a time. Finally  \" Lady Emilia, I am very sorry.\" \"...It's really rare to hear you apologize. What is it all of a sudden?\" \"Ram thinks so as well... This will be the first time Ram bows her head to Lady Emilia in earnest.\" Emilia made a pained smile as Ram forthrightly stated that her formalities had been perfunctory to date. Taking in this smile directly, Ram gazed at Emilia, her pink eyes boring straight into Emilia's violet ones. And then her apology, or perhaps her confession, began. \"Up to this point, Ram did not believe that Lady Emilia could stand on her own two feet. Your heart was broken by the Trial, and you lost even the Great Spirit, who was your foundation... I had wondered, how could you possibly find your footing now?\" *** \"However, this moment, Lady Emilia stands here on her own feet...head held high and ready for whatever comes. I deduct only minor points for the traces of tears remaining on your cheeks.\" \"Ah, oh, sheesh...!\" Rubbing her sleeves against her cheeks, Emilia diligently eliminated the traces of tears Ram had pointed out. After that, she turned toward Ram once more, softly tilting her head. \"So is Ram cooperating with Subaru and Otto because I'm such a crybaby?\" \"Surely, you jest. Ram is not lending a hand to those two whatsoever. Ram is lending a hand to Lady Emilia, after concluding that such cooperation holds value.\" \"Is that what it is? ...Yeah, I suppose it would be.\" Emilia had challenged the Trial because Subaru's voice had called out to her. And it was necessary for Garfiel's laments to be halted for Subaru's words to reach her. For that purpose, Otto's and Ram's cooperation was necessary and as a result of all that, Emilia had managed to step forward. Certainly, one might call all Ram's actions grounded in diligent service toward Emilia. \"But why? Why did you want to help me, Ram?\" \" Because when one has something to ask, it is necessary to display one's own sincerity.\" Those words, and the action that followed them, made Emilia's breath catch. Emilia watched as Ram knelt before her, reverentially lowering her head to the ground. This was what one called a show of the greatest respect. It was the highest of formalities, meant to demonstrate who deserved the highest esteem of all. This was not the perfunctory respect Ram had previously shown Emilia but a display of genuine respect  \"Please, Lady Emilia  I beg you, save my liege, Master Roswaal.\" \"...Save Roswaal?\" \"He is completely possessed by obsession, obsession that has bound his heart like a curse for a very, very long time. Perhaps, Ram was fine with him like that even so. Perhaps, Ram was fine even if he did not look her way, even if he thought of Ram as nothing more than a useful tool with which to satisfy his obsession.\" Still offering the deepest bow, Ram candidly revealed what lay hidden within her chest. Perhaps, as she constantly gazed at Roswaal, this was the hope Ram had continued to nurse at the bottom of her heart, under an emotionless mask... It was the hope that she was fine with being a useful tool alone. However, now Ram refused that way of being. \"But his obsession has already strayed far from the path. He has lost sight of the objective that is the foundation of all his hopes, and Master Roswaal clings to his text in name alone... I beg you, break his obsession.\" \"Will Roswaal be all right with me breaking it?\" \"He will not. He will most certainly panic. He will lose his reason to live and might well collapse completely. However, Lady Emilia, you are the only one who can do this. Perhaps, by moving Master Roswaal away from his way of life that has buoyed him all this time...my feelings might succeed in reaching him.\" This was an earnest plea. Bowing her head, Ram kept the tone of her voice normal, but she was earnestly pleading. Emilia did not properly understand even half the words her plea contained. But Ram's wishes, Ram's feelings, were genuine. That, she understood. And that was enough. \"What should I do?\" \" Please sit upon the royal throne.\" *** \"Lady Emilia must sit upon the royal throne of Lugunica. When that occurs, Master Roswaal's desire shall be fulfilled. Even as he continues to walk off the beaten path, the day shall come when his feelings are fulfilled. Yes, please offer Master Roswaal this salvation. Please give his life meaning, today as well as tomorrow.\" With Emilia pressed into silence, Ram piled word upon word without a pause. For the first time, Emilia received Ram's feelings, which were spoken with such eloquence. Maybe that was why. Maybe that was it. Deep inside Emilia's chest, she felt emotions that defied description as they bore down on her like never before. That moment, Ram, who'd thought she stood alone, unable to rely on anyone, was now depending on her. The hot emotions that bubbled up as a result were barely containable. \"Please, Lady Emilia.\" In front of Emilia, who spoke not a word, Ram slowly bowed her head.  Her pink eyes were moist from all the love packed into that tiny frame of hers. \" Save him.\" That quiet plea sent a tangible tremble through Emilia's entire being. That feeling shot straight to her core, with enough impact to make her hands shake. She felt the heat conveyed by the blood coursing through her"}, {"text": "entire body. And once those feelings had run their course, there was only one thing remaining within Emilia. In her chest, a single sense of duty burned hot and bright  \"I'm not really sure how my becoming king is connected to saving Roswaal.\" *** \"I probably don't understand Ram's feelings yet. Not really.\" *** \"But.\" Silently, Emilia looked back at Ram, taking in a single breath. Bewilderment was vanishing from her swelling chest. Worry no longer remained in her mind. Never before had her soul burned this hot. \"This is the first time Ram's asked me for anything, isn't it?\" So it wasn't necessary to be difficult about this. \"All right, Ram. Now that you believe in me, I want to give something back.\" It was probably because at that moment, what Emilia wanted to do and what Emilia needed to do were one and the same. No hesitation was necessary. Emilia simply smiled and nodded. \"This is probably something I have to start working on from here on out.\" Boldly, she stated her wish to fulfill not only her own desires but someone else's as well. \"Ah,\" replied Ram, opening her mouth a little as she bowed. Somehow, the tension seemed to ebb and her worry, too, judging from her lips, which trembled in relief. Seeing Ram's expression relaxing, Emilia felt a slight sense of satisfaction. At the same time, she thought it was very in character to see Ram refuse to cry despite her teary eyes. And then, just as Emilia extended a hand to the kneeling Ram to help her back to her feet  \" I hope you do not mind my fiiiinally speaking my own words of congratulations?\" *** Feeling a tremble in the hand she touched, Emilia lifted her head toward the voice, which came from behind Ram in the direction of the settlement. There, she saw a figure calmly standing on the grassy clearing. The voice was familiar. Their demeanor was aloof. More importantly, it came from the individual who was the veritable center of their conversation  \" Roswaal.\" And so with faint wariness in her chest, Emilia called out his name. 2 \"It seems you were in the middle of conversing, but it feels like the matter came to an end... You do not mind?\" Addressed by his name, the person, who was none other than Roswaal L. Mathers, stepped forward toward them. He was clothed in his usual eccentric attire, and for the first time in a while, he showed off the white makeup he often wore on his face. This was the Roswaal who Emilia knew a far cry from the injured, bedridden patient she had seen of late. \" That is far enough.\" \"...Hmm.\" Emilia's call brought Roswaal's feet to a halt. It was not the hard emotions infused in her voice that forced him to a stop but the palm Emilia turned Roswaal's way. Emilia had drawn Ram close with her right hand, turning her left toward him. Of course, this was no simple bluff, something the surging mana Roswaal detected made plain. \"My, myyyy, is this not quite a harsh welcome? Even though, upon hearing Emilia had challenged the Trial, I came running over with this gravely injured body of miiiine.\" \"I would dearly like to believe that is really what you think, but...\" Deflecting the truth with her words, Emilia narrowed her neat eyebrows. By rights, Roswaal was Emilia's chief ally and patron in the royal selection. He was also the savior who'd brought Emilia out of the glacier that used to be the Great Elior Forest, which she'd only just set eyes upon in the past revealed by the Trial and the one who'd taught her it was possible to save her frozen kin. It was this Roswaal of whom Emilia was wary because she felt Ram's palm tremble in her grip. \"Please do not make such a fearful face, Lady Emilia. Even I am genuinely concerned for you... Or perhaps I should say, I sympathize with you.\" \"You sympathize with me...? What do you mean by that?\" \"I mean what I said. I sympathize with you from the bottom of my heart for this situation where you, knowing no way to be loved save through fulfilling the expectations of those around you, were inevitably forced to confront the past against your will.\" As he shook his head in disapproval, Roswaal's declaration made Emilia open her eyes wide. He spoke the word sympathy as if he pitied Emilia's circumstances. However, the cold, melancholic emotions differed from simple sympathy  It was something bordering on malice. \"Allow me to formally convey my congratulations to you, along with sentiments of sympathy and pity  You have done well to overcome the Trial. I had truly thought it was beyond you.\" \"...A compliment like that makes it hard to just come out and say thank you. Besides, I have not yet properly finished the Trial. I was told that there are two more.\" \"Yes, I am aware of this. Besides, I am somewhat relieved  Naaaamely, that even an airhead like you is able to understand that my congratulations just now were not words of goodwill.\" Roswaal laced his words with sarcasm as he continued addressing Emilia, who was perplexed and unable to discern his intent. His hostile emotions were complex, feeling like equal parts lament and joy. But it was clear that his self-wounding and his self-mockery were just scratching the surface of his suffering. \"Roswaal, what did you come here for? Did you really come just to say this?\" \"Mostly for that. Also, I wished to see for myself.\" \"See... You mean, the results of my Trial?\" Roswaal closed his eyes and pulled back his shoulders. In confirming the result of the Trial, perhaps he wished to see what answer Emilia had gleaned from confronting her past...or whether it had broken her heart once more. \"You said you thought I couldn't do it... Have you changed your opinion a little?\" *** \"Yeah, I think you had a lot of things to worry about. Until just a teeny little while ago, I was always pulling back from everything... I caused Puck, Subaru, and everyone all kinds of trouble.\" If he thought Emilia probably wouldn't be able to overcome the Trial, it was only natural. To be blunt, even that very moment, she found it mysterious that someone as weak as she had challenged the Trial. Her heart easily wavered, her thought process was shallow, and she was fragile and pathetic, yet still. \"But even though I caused them so much trouble, everyone helped me. I'm such a no-good klutz, but everyone still lent me a hand. So I thought, I can't lose heart here...\" Drawing back her left hand, which she'd trained toward Roswaal, Emilia tried to grasp on to all the passionate feelings in her chest. It was not with mana but with words that she wanted to reach out to Roswaal that moment. But as Emilia spun such words, Roswaal, his eyes closed, let out a faint sound from his throat. *** Roswaal laughed, low and prolonged, suppressing his voice so that it came out as a trickle. Then he opened a single eye earnestly training his yellow-colored eye on Emilia. \"You say the same things as young Subaru. Is that something you also learned by copying him?\" *** \"Master Roswaal!\" As Emilia's voice caught in her throat, Ram loudly rebuked Roswaal in her stead. Ram, having maintained her silence up to that point, stood at Emilia's side as she powerfully slammed her pink emotions against her master. However, Roswaal ignored this, seemingly receiving them like a refreshing breeze, and continued speaking to Emilia. \"Those are borrowed words on a stage prepared for you. Even challenging the Trial here was a choice made possible by everyone's goodwill... I find no fault with you. It is I, and the others around us, who desired that you do so. But though he understands this perfectly well, Subaru has forced such a cruel thing onto you.\" \"That isn't so! Subaru was just...\" \"That is his way. After all, he merely shouted encouragement at you that was shorn of all logic and reason, did he not? He summoned all the emotional arguments he could, forcing his ideals onto you alone. I understand, I understand; indeed... After aaaaall, we are the same, he and I.\" \"Subaru and you are the same? What is that supposed to mean?\" \"In that we force our ideals upon the women we love.\" When he made this firm statement, Ram gripped Emilia's hand harder with great force. Understanding the feeling in her palm, Emilia looked straight back at Roswaal's yellow eye. A listless smile continued to adorn the corners of his lips as Roswaal shook his head side to side. \"Just what did he say to you? Words that sounded comfortable to the ears, I am sure. You are soft, Lady Emilia, gently crumbling with ease, which makes you easy to handle as long as one remains polite. Truly, Lady Emilia is weak and fragile, someone embracing such forlorn hopes. You have considered what it would be like to live as a normal girl, I imagine? He has no interest in the real you, not in the slightest. What he loves is the ideal of you that rests within him is that not so?\" Piling insidious words upon one another, Roswaal lowered his gaze, his eyes seeming desolate. At first, his words appeared to intentionally insult and scorn, yet, for some reason, Emilia felt like the emotions he revealed were laments that cut into him instead. Perhaps Roswaal himself could no longer clearly differentiate between whether he was speaking about Subaru or about himself. Even as his presence overwhelmed her, Emilia took a short breath. Certainly, Roswaal was compelling enough to bowl most people over. But there was something that had to be said. More than anything else, he wasn't there to say it, so the trembling girl had to say it in his place. \"...That's all you have to say?\" *** \"Is that the only reason why you think you and Subaru are cut from the same cloth?\" The question Emilia posed made a questioning air hover in both of Roswaal's eyes. However, he suspiciously made no reply. Roswaal had no words to follow that could match Emilia's question. Therefore, there truly was something that needed to be said. \"If that really is all you have to say...\" *** \"You and Subaru are nothing alike.\" After all, Subaru, who had chased after Emilia all the way into the tomb, certainly had argued with ideals, and it was not with reason or the importance of liberating the Sanctuary that he persuaded Emilia. All the same, what he'd vehemently argued were by no means whatsoever soft, pretty words alone. \"You see, Subaru told me that I was a troublesome woman.\" \"...What?\" \"He asked who I thought I was, doing all kinds of things and causing nothing but trouble. He asked how long was I going to keep doing things like this and make him wait with nothing but hope. He said that I was all talk, that I was so lacking in everything, he couldn't even look at me that's what Subaru told me.\" In the tomb, in that cold stonework corridor, Subaru had pressed his forehead to Emilia's, angrily shouting at her. That instant, Emilia remembered the jeers that had shaken her heart. \"It was just as Subaru said. I'm a weakling, all mouth, coming up short all over the place.\" Emilia had even forgotten that she was a weakling, all talk, lacking in this way and that. She'd thrust away her memories and acted like those parts of her didn't exist, but Subaru had understood. He'd seen right through her.  To Emilia, now that she'd recovered her past, this was something to take deep, immeasurable joy in. \"Subaru saw me as I really am. And I thought, I don't want to show Subaru just my bad sides anymore. That's why"}, {"text": "you and Subaru are nothing alike.\" If Subaru Natsuki was someone who couldn't accept anything less than the ideal Emilia, she'd probably still be in the tomb clutching her knees that very moment. Even where Garfiel was concerned, she had no doubt that if Subaru, knowing things beyond his ideals, hadn't spoken of idealism, Garfiel would have never lent his ears to such words. Subaru, knowing Emilia was weak, had told her he loved her nonetheless. Subaru, knowing Garfiel was kind, had told him to change nonetheless. Subaru came running to everyone whose feet stood still, scolding them, shoving their backs, making them run as well. You can do it, he said. You can fight, he said  You don't have time to stand still, he said. \"When my memories returned, I was anxious. With Puck gone, I felt like I was being crushed... When I remembered everything, I felt like I wasn't myself anymore, like who I was up until now had been a lie.\" What she believed in had been demolished, and as a result, she had ceased to move. Cowering in the face of such thoughts, the reason Emilia could stand there having confronted and overcome her past was  \"When you think you want to do something... When you want to change there are people who will help you, who will give you a helping hand. He taught me there are people like that out there.\" \"Is that not merely a fraud? A fraud's act meant to convince you to stand once more so...\" \"No, it's not a lie. It's not nonsense with no basis at all. Subaru said he believed in me. Those feelings will not become a lie... I won't let them be a lie. That is my answer.\" Emilia boldly dismissed Roswaal's rebuttal. She would never let the words that he...that Subaru had spoken to her when she was helpless and hapless be called a lie, a nonexistent hope. She would not allow it. The words Subaru Natsuki had firmly declared to Emilia I know you can do it were no lie. Emilia had broken out of her own shell, and by doing it, the lie had ceased to be. It was what people called a wish...a wish that it would cease to be a lie. That was why  \" I'll turn lies into wishes. Right now, that's what I want to do and what I need to do.\" This was what Subaru had so earnestly, so desperately taught her. Once, Emilia could not draw her answer out in a concrete form, but at that moment, she'd finally pieced it together.  She would make this wish come true. That was what Emilia had to do. *** Roswaal had not interrupted Emilia, nor had he replied. Still, it took only one look at his eyes to know that her words had not simply rolled off. His gaze was trained toward both of Emilia's eyes, as if trying to keep the keen emotions under his makeup, under his ornamental smile, from reaching his face. That was how she knew. Roswaal's mental state was far too conflicted to decipher. He was wise, and Emilia felt he'd lived in a world utterly beyond her comprehension. But that instant, she realized something. That perhaps the true reason that had caused Roswaal to come to this place might be  \" Roswaal, could it be that you wanted to make me do something horrible?\" The possibility abruptly came to her mind. The instant she put it on her lips, she could think of no other reason. Pushing himself to come while deeply wounded, intermingling words of congratulations with insults, speaking maliciously that he had expected nothing of her, and on top of that, mocking Subaru it was one uncharacteristic behavior piled upon the next... \"It's like you want to make me angry so that I'll punish you.\" \"...Purely to get this out of the way, I happen to dislike pain.\" \" ? I would think everyone dislikes that?\" The reply tugged at Emilia's mind, making her incline her head, but he had not denied Emilia's words. He wanted to be hurt, to be punished. Had Roswaal come to this place in hopes of that? Even Emilia could understand such destructive impulses, despising oneself to the point of wanting to be put through the wringer. The only difference was whether one directed that inwardly or outwardly. Emilia was the sort to direct it inwardly. Perhaps that was true of Roswaal as well? \"And so you have changed again  To me, this is exceedingly difficult to accept.\" \"Roswaal?\" \"I respect your decision, and the will to walk forward is praiseworthy. I can comprehend how you discern there is hope after accepting your pain and wounds. That is why I sympathize with you.\" Sympathize. Once more, Roswaal brought up the word he had begun his speech with to Emilia. But Emilia thought she had already asserted that his sympathy was misplaced. There was no reason to view her as pitiable, for Emilia had already found hope. Finding that hope fleeting, Roswaal shook his head side to side. After all  \"Even your virtuous decision to be hurt is already meaningless, for this is a finished world.\" \"Finished world...?\" \"Properly speaking, this is a world approaching its end, perhaps? It is a world that has veered off its proper path, a world astray from its proper destination. This Sanctuary and the royal selection are already meaningless.\" Slowly shaking his head again, Roswaal spoke those words, seemingly finding this acutely regrettable from the bottom of his own heart. Emilia could not conceal her bewilderment at the inconsistency between his demeanor and the emotions precipitating it. Even though deep in his heart he still felt frustration, Roswaal was letting everything go. \"Roswaal...what are you trying to cast away? You...you and I started this together, right? Casting it aside midway...that's absolutely wrong!\" \" Then...what is it you wish to do?\" \"I don't know! But wrong things are wrong! I don't understand what you're trying to give up on, Roswaal, but don't give up! That's too selfish of you, isn't it?!\" Knowing full well she sounded like she was lecturing a child, Emilia extended an accepting hand toward Roswaal. If Roswaal was going to try and let things go, she'd grab him and drag him back in his stead. \"There's no need to abandon anything  Not anymore.\" \"...You truly do speak like young Subaru.\" As Emilia thrust her chest out, firmly declaring her beliefs, Roswaal sighed. From there, he let his shoulders droop, as if all energy had slipped out of him, and shifted his gaze to the tomb behind Emilia. \"Just how well can you change grandiose language into reality?\" \"That's what I'm going to prove from here on out, in the tomb...no, even outside the Sanctuary.\" Emilia was firmly declaring to Roswaal that she would challenge the second Trial. Then she shifted her gaze toward Ram, whose hand she had not let go of the entire time. \"Lady Emilia.\" Ram, having maintained her silence as she witnessed the pair's replies to each other, addressed Emilia with trembling lips. Nodding to her call, Emilia gently let go of her hand, which had linked the two together. \"I'm going, Ram  Somehow, I will make your wish come true.\" *** Nodding as Ram lowered her eyes, Emilia turned around, shifting her gaze toward the tomb's entrance. With her words to Roswaal and her words to Ram, Emilia had surely exhausted all the words she possessed. The rest had to be proven with the answer Emilia arrived at not through words but actions. Putting a foot upon the stone steps, she desired once more to enter the tomb she had just left. Behind her  \" You are wrong about one thing, Lady Emilia. Everything began between Teacher and me.\" There was an exceedingly nostalgic twinge to his voice. His voice seemed fiendishly adoring, as if to gently trample one underfoot. With that voice at her back, Emilia advanced into the tomb, which shone with light. She headed for the stonework room she had once departed. There, the second Trial waited.  A Trial to make the lying words someone had spoken into a wish come true. \"I saw the past. So next would be...\" Just what awaited her? With the painful battle of the first Trial fresh in her chest, Emilia headed straight back into the stonework room. When she reached her destination, the faint, pale radiance of the place illuminated the words of support Subaru had left for her. The remaining Trials numbered two. When the third Trial was overcome, the Sanctuary would greet its future. The moment she had the thought... \" Behold the unknowable present.\" The instant she realized the voice she heard whispering in her ear was her own, strength drained from her body. Her consciousness blanked out, and Emilia had the powerful sense that her soul was being shorn from her body, whisking her off to a place in the yonder. \"Subaru...\" Not even certain what her own lips had spoken at the very end, Emilia knew the second Trial had begun. 3 Having watched Emilia enter the tomb, Roswaal and Ram were left alone on the grassy clearing. Ram gently pressed her left hand, which Emilia had held, against her chest. \"...Rather unexpectedly, her resolve seems to be extremely hiiiigh. Subaru is indeed a formidable foe.\" As Ram did so, Roswaal, having also watched Emilia leave from a short distance away, murmured thus. There was little emotion infused in his tone of voice. He did not seem to be particularly disappointed by what he had spoken. In fact, Ram was certain of it. Roswaal did not have the heartfelt interest shown by his demeanor just moments before. The proof was how Roswaal was completely unruffled by a result that was surely contrary to his will. \"I am sorry to have put all that goodwill you painstakingly built to waste. To not launch her own outburst after enduring so much vitriol... She truly is weak to the bitter end.\" \"...Master Roswaal, from what point did you observe Ram and Lady Emilia's conversation?\" \"I had some rather sharp words with young Subaru and the others, you see. I wanted to see Lady Emilia's state for myself...and so I saw you bending your knee before her  You are quite the actress yourself.\" Roswaal seemed quite impressed when he replied to Ram's question. In other words, Roswaal had seen Ram give her respects to Emilia and ask for her one, precious wish to be granted. And having seen it and engaged in his exchanges with Emilia as a result, he was now thanking Ram for her efforts. \"Had Lady Emilia given in to provocation and attempted to inflict harm upon me, victory or defeat in the contest would have been determined in short order...but perhaps the circumstances seemed somewhat too favorable?\" He'd meant to stimulate Emilia's anger and turn it toward him. Emilia had interpreted it as a desire for her to hurt him. In that, she had been correct. Where Emilia was wrong was that he did not desire this because he wished to receive his punishment.  Roswaal merely wanted to do his utmost to fulfill what was recorded in his magic tome. The royal selection existed for that purpose. The Sanctuary existed for that purpose. He existed for that purpose. Garfiel's grief, Ryuzu's and Shima's long-standing desires, Frederica's devotion, Subaru's melancholy, Emilia's sense of guilt, even Ram's feelings these were all things he used to accomplish the magic tome's desired result. \"Young Subaru and the others head toward the mansion, leaving this Sanctuary to Lady Emilia. At a glance, this action appears skillful, but it is a poor move. Seeing nothing but what one wishes to see is a habit anyone would term a vice. It is not one I would wish for young Subaru to acquire.\" \"What do you mean by this?\" \"I did not expect that Garfiel would join Subaru's side. But this also means his removal from the Sanctuary"}, {"text": "side of the board. If his troublesome eyes are closed, I will draw nearer to my objective in a way that hasn't been possible until now.\" *** \"I heard you cooperated with them on the Garfiel matter. Of course, I understand that you believed this to be a good thing. Your feelings run deep. I have taken them into account as well, of course.\" Ram was hanging her head as Roswaal walked over, gently patting her shoulder. Through his palm, Roswaal conveyed an immense amount of trust toward Ram. The touch of his fingertips sent Ram's heart beating faster within her chest. Touching him, exchanging words with him, doing whatever he commanded these actions filled Ram with feelings that were the pinnacle of happiness. It was no exaggeration to say that they were what gave meaning to her life. It was what she lived for.  The instant she had the thought, Ram ignored the slight gap it created in her heart. That moment, she could not humor that hollow sensation. \"Master Roswaal, what do you intend to do from here?\" \"What I seek has not changed from before. I merely need overexert myself a trifle.\" \"Ram will...\" \" You should wait here for Lady Emilia to return. After aaaall, even I will feel pangs in my chest if that valiant girl arrives with no one to greet her.\" From the faint lowering of the corners of his eyes, his statement was not one of sarcasm but of consideration toward Emilia. Even as he schemed to ruin Emilia's efforts, he acted with warped concern for her heart. It was not limited to Emilia; the same applied to Subaru, to Garfiel, and to everyone else. Hence, Ram bowed to Roswaal, the only one to whom she had opened her heart, and watched him go. Roswaal slipped out of the grassy clearing, not toward the settlement but toward the forest. She watched him with her pink eyes until he was no longer in view, after which Ram gently closed them. And then  4  And then, relying on the scenery displayed within those closed eyes, Ram arrived at a certain place. It was a building that maintained an abnormal white color, with a foul stench that repelled visitors. It was the Witch's laboratory, lurking in the deepest part of the forest, at the end of a path unworthy of the name a place she had been told of several times, yet had never reached. And so Ram stepped into that place, one to which she had never been invited. *** She did not conceal the sound of her shoes. If anything, she purposefully made her steps loud, as if trying to carve her presence into his eardrums. In doing so, she announced she had chased after his vision, followed in his footsteps, in order to reach this place. It was as if to say, in response to so many questions, her appearing here in such a manner was her answer. \"...I see. So by using Clairvoyance, arriving here was an easy feat for you?\" Accordingly, the presence of the visitor nay, the intruder was immediately made known to the devil. The devil at the entrance to the room looked upon Ram with a questioning air and a faint whiff of bewilderment dwelling in his differently colored eyes. Ram was keenly aware that this rare reaction from him made her chest leap with a sense of maidenly exultation. The secret art of Clairvoyance, passed down among the Oni, did not function unless the wavelengths of the caster and the target were compatible. Naturally, if Ram exerted herself, she could match her own wavelength even to that of demon beasts, but it was a different story where a high-rank opponent was concerned. If such an opponent closed his heart, synchronization was utterly impossible. In other words, had Roswaal not truly opened his heart to her, Clairvoyance could not function upon him. In point of fact, Ram had not attempted to overlap her own vision with that of Roswaal's even once to this point. And so she had finally arrived at this place really, how could she fail to feel joy? \"I believe I asked you to wait for Lady Emilia?\" \"Yes, you did.\" \"Then I bid you: For what puuuurpose have you come to this place?\" \" That is very simple.\" When asked, she suppressed the passion that made her heart beat loudly, replying with her expression still neutral and tranquil. Ram's pink hair swayed as she drew her wand from under the hem of her skirt. It was her beloved wand, granted to her by Roswaal personally when she had only just begun to serve him  It was a magic wand employing Ram's own, broken-off horn. Twirling it within her hand, she thrust its tip toward her beloved master  \" I have come to rob you of your obsession with the Witch.\" To the man she cared for, who was mad with love, she confessed her own love, hoping to sear it into him. 5  Ram had gone along with the gamble because she viewed it as her best opportunity to fulfill her own wish. \" Greetings, Miss Ram. The wind is serene tonight. A fine night, isn't it?\" When a certain man addressed Ram, it was the night before Emilia overcame the Trial of the tomb, the night before Garfiel broke through his ten years of stagnation, the night before Subaru trembled from the humiliation of having his verses of love read by undesired parties, and the night before Ram placed her wager for her own long-standing desire in other words, it was the previous night. *** In a cranny of the settlement, Ram stood still in a place that felt bereft of humanoid presence as she stared squarely at the individual. \"...Er?\" \" . Ahhh, I wondered who it might be, but you are the man who was with Barusu, yes? Without Barusu beside you, your presence is so faint that I was unsure what manner of creature you are.\" \"So I'm not even human now?! Er, I do understand why you would treat me as an appendage to Mr. Natsuki, but...\" \"A man improved by being someone's appendage has no worth of his own. Begone.\" \"This maid is extremely harsh!!\" Ram's attitude left him without an island to cling to, and the young man's voice went shrill as he turned his face toward the heavens. Ram exhaled at his reaction, embracing her own elbows as she looked at him squarely from the front. The young man tensed his shoulders, seeming uncomfortable under the gaze of her narrowed pink eyes. \"Do you mind if I have a word with you?\" \"Setting aside whether I remember you or not, shouldn't you speak your name first? Setting aside whether I remember you or not.\" \"I am not certain why you repeated that part twice...! ...I am Otto Suwen. I may be a mere traveling merchant, but I would dearly appreciate you remembering my name and face even so.\" \"That depends on whether the conversation you bring is interesting, and to what extent, I suppose I must say.\" \"Then with candor could we have your cooperation on Mr. Natsuki's wager with the marquis?\" Having meant to assert that the initiative rested with her, Ram caught her breath a little. That was how easily the young man how easily Otto had nonchalantly crept into her flank. When she glanced over, Otto was smiling as he keenly scrutinized Ram with his gaze. Ram grasped that this, in contrast to his frivolous expression, constituted his true worth as a traveling merchant. \"You seem to be quite a fraudster.\" \"I am merely a man midway through chasing a dream. Perhaps that is why I get along with Mr. Natsuki and his reckless pursuits. Errr, I have digressed.\" \"Ha! Bald-faced liar. Also, you have set your hopes in the wrong place. Ram's desires align with Master Roswaal's wishes. How did you come to believe I would lend Barusu a hand?\" \"I trust you are well aware that where the destination of his wishes is concerned, the flow of events has already strayed from the marquis's desires? I believe Mr. Natsuki has spoken to you of this as well.\" Otto had approached Ram once he was certain beyond a set extent. Feeling that this was an unamusing fact, Ram slid one hand down to her thigh. The wand holstered there under her skirt was her beloved weapon for the employment of magic. Even as she thought it was overkill against the likes of Otto, the means to instantly overwhelm him was a precious treasure indeed. \"As I see it, this seems to be my time to excel.\" \"Your what?\" Seeing Otto twitch a cheek and moisten his lips with his tongue, Ram raised an eyebrow toward him. \"This is a critical moment, or something along those lines. It's nothing to brag about, but my winning percentage for excelling is rather good.\" \"Such exaggerated confidence. I wonder, do you truly think such confidence is enough to seduce Ram to your will?\" She had no ears to lend to half-hearted invitations. Compared with how she was previously, Otto could only think that Ram's position had also grown precarious... This was a veritable critical juncture indeed. If he could at least \"excel\" properly, then perhaps  \"For whatever reason, Mr. Natsuki does not think of Miss Ram as an enemy, come what may  If he is correct, I believe we should cooperate with Miss Ram's own true desires.\" \" . What a pity.\" \"Eh?\" Otto had an idiotic look on his face as Ram sighed deeply, sliding her hand up from her thigh. Then she used that same hand she had drawn back to gently stroke her own hair. \"I said, what a pity  Please go into detail.\" Even if she listened to his explanation to the end, it would still not be too late to decide whether to use her wand or not. At the very least, Otto offering negotiations was not a bad thing. Yes, she would humor him with a show of acceptance.  And so in response to Ram's urging, Otto proceeded to explain in detail. \" So what do you think of all this?\" \"Are you an idiot?\" Ram was declaring that her eyes beheld an idiot, and the word one should turn upon an idiot was idiot itself. It was only natural she had the urge to say that. After all, Otto's explanation was no summary or outline but closer to divulging every last card in his group's hand. In other words, he'd exposed their entire scheme to her. \"Do you lack the imagination to grasp what would happen if Ram told Master Roswaal all this...?\" \"If you must put it that way, I can imagine nothing good. However, I am a merchant, so I must spare no effort required to succeed where business is concerned  Were failure to result from cold feet, I would bring shame to the House of Suwen, you see.\" Otto was stuffily asserting that he could not bring shame to his family. Such determination could not reach Ram's heart, as she already had no family of her own at least, it should not have. \"Miss Ram?\" \" . Nothing at all. More importantly, at the beginning, you behaved as if you approached me in Barusu's service...but this is your own decision, isn't it? At the very least, you have not spoken to Barusu where Garf is concerned.\" \"Ah, er...you really could tell, couldn't you?\" \"I do not think Barusu would approve such recklessness. Ram also views this as an extremely stupid thing to attempt alone enough that calling it a personality flaw does not seem to do it justice.\" Of course, Subaru and Otto's plan incorporated countermeasures against Garfiel. And the radical contents thereof required the drafter of that plan to exhaust himself right to death's door, casting such a precarious net that only a thin ray of hope could be seen. \"It truly is a personality flaw. Not that I would say this"}, {"text": "to anyone, but the planner is absolutely not cut out to be a merchant.\" \"Do you really intend to hide such a thing when you are looking straight into my eyes like this?!\" Male pride or something of the sort. How trivial, Ram thought disdainfully with a snort. However, setting aside Otto's concealed determination, the plan was not a bad one. The elements of the gamble were not few yet, it was far more forward-looking than waiting for inevitable defeat, wasn't it? Accordingly... \" If Ram is to cooperate with you, there are three conditions.\" Ram held up three fingers as she spoke. Otto hardened his expression as he nodded deeply. \"I am listening.\" \"First, Garf. Giving him a knuckle sandwich is just fine. Ram enthusiastically concurs where it comes to breaking the bridge of Garf's nose  However, after the bridge of his nose is broken, you are to leave him to Ram.\" \"As I hope you will play a large role where Garfiel is concerned, those words sound quite ominous...\" \"That depends on Garf.\" She was not particularly concerned. She'd known Garfiel for nearly a decade. So long as he was the same as he'd always been, it was highly unlikely she would be the one to yield...though it was still stupid. \"After that, Lady Emilia. I cannot bear seeing Lady Emilia so haggard now that she has lost the Great Spirit. Tell Barusu he needs to do something  It may be outside of Master Roswaal's intentions, but even so, if we are to move forward, having Lady Emilia get back to her feet is unavoidable, whether I like it or not.\" \"This time, it is up to Mr. Natsuki and Lady Emilia where that is concerned, yes? Well, it might be the most up-in-the-air portion, but this plan does hinge on the premise that it will work out in the end.\" Otto scratched his pathetic face in response to Ram's statements. Just as he himself was aware, the basis of the plan put exceptionally heavy emphasis on what was expected out of Subaru and Emilia's relationship. It was a plan built on the premise and the belief that there was something tangible between them. Emotions included, it was a plan largely reliant on logic, yet that specific part rested on emotional hopes in particular. \"Either way, I expect you to accept these two conditions. As they are necessary and the minimum conditions for the success of your plan, it is not particularly a hindrance to you, I trust?\" \"I suppose not. Put bluntly, I had considered it possible you would propose far more difficult and less achievable things... Ah, er, ummm, I imagine the third is quite something, so I should be quiet and wait before saying such things.\" \"What a fool.\" She could understand Otto's wariness. But his concerns were needless. Certainly, there was no mistaking that Ram was hopping on board the plan for her own objectives. But that was something Otto, who had proposed as much, had no doubt already woven into his schemes. It was only natural that Garfiel, Emilia, and after them, Subaru and Otto would fight valiantly. It was a good thing for Ram to cooperate to a lesser or greater extent. But Ram would yield the final scene to no one else. Therefore, the final condition Ram sought from Otto was a simple one. And that was  \" You will not speak one word to Barusu about why Ram wishes to join his wager.\" 6 And having arrived at the final scene of the plan she had joined, Ram stood across from Roswaal. The place was the facility covertly placed in the forest the place that appeared in Shima's story of the past, and in one sense, the place that served, along with the tomb, as the central pillar of the Sanctuary. The hovering stench and the abnormally white walls threw portions of her five senses into chaos. However, it was not a problem. For the man who stood in front of Ram's eyes had robbed Ram of her consciousness, down to the furthest corners of her soul, long, long before. \"Obsession, you saaaaay.\" Roswaal murmured in a low voice. He said it both to repeat the claim Ram had spoken aloud and to classify the objective for which she herself had appeared in this place. That very instant, Roswaal browsed through a variety of possibilities in his mind. Most of them were widely at variance with the truth. Then he came across the possibility he thought most likely. \"I think this is unlikely, yet...could it be you are truly minded to turn your wand against me?\" Raising his eyebrows in apparent surprise, Roswaal had come to a single conclusion about Ram's behavior. By stripping away all the clearly wrong ways to take her words, he had finally arrived at the proper answer. When he asked her this, Ram stood straighter, which made Roswaal's shoulders sag. \"I see. It has been years since you have turned your wand upon me...but for that time to come now is unfortunate. It also pains me that someone who knows my feelings, and my objective, would call them an obsession...\" \"I may not have said it aloud, but I have always thought so. It is only natural.\" \"Natural... Weeeell, I suppose it is, given your long, long days of humiliating submission.\" Even as he slumped his shoulders, Roswaal beheld Ram, who stood resolutely, with his two-colored eyes. From there, he gently ran his fingers through his indigo hair. \"Seeing nothing save that which you wish to see... How truly ironic that I appraised this to be young Subaru's vice, when it occurs right under my own nose. I had thought your actions an expression of devotion in your own way.\" \"Giving Garf a knuckle sandwich was both for the sake of Ram's objective and for setting Garf's stupidity straight... What is it you intended to do to that group without Ram?\" \"I cannot deny the sense that you plaaaayed them very well as a result. For this final contest, young Subaru elected to gamble and cast out his net  I do not trifle with such gambling.\" He spoke as if Subaru's decision was ironic, whereas his own thoughts were logical. In point of fact, she agreed with Roswaal's opinion not once but a hundred times over. Many of Subaru's actions were haphazard, and Otto's plan merely had the heaven-sent fortune of including Ram's cooperation on its side. Ram's assessment of Subaru was unchanged: He was a man with good timing, and that was all. \"But having good timing alone is Barusu's sole redeeming feature. I was not mistaken in wagering on that single redeeming feature  You have the book, I take it?\" *** \"At a point dubbed the final contest, at a juncture pushing Master Roswaal to make a move himself, it is inconceivable you would not have the book of knowledge in your possession, considering you rely upon it the most.\" Roswaal told no one where he kept his book of knowledge. Ram knew only that the book of knowledge was certain to exist, but he always kept it in a place beyond her reach. This was a golden opportunity where she was certain Roswaal had the book of knowledge in his hands, and thus, she had come.  This was the moment Ram had been waiting for for a long time. \" I have not forgotten. It is, after all, the one and only vow made between you and me.\" \"A sword, to he who would wield it; magic, to he who would cling to it; flame, to he who is devoted to it.\" \"And an Oni, to he who desires it, one that shall destroy his very foundation, goes it?\" The words of the vow they had exchanged took them back to the very beginning of the pair's relationship. When Ram was still very young, those were the words of the vow they made after she had borrowed Roswaal's aid to wreak retribution upon the scoundrels who had destroyed the Oni people. It was an oath that showed both her loyalty to Roswaal and her commitment to destroying his wish. This was the vow sworn between Ram and Roswaal, undiluted in the nine years since its forging  \"So the time has come, then. Certainly, the flow of this world goes astray of my desired path. And thus, the vow comes into force...meaning that I, having lost my desire, am to offer myself to you as promised.\" Roswaal was resolved to offer up the entirety of his very long life in order to arrive at the result recorded within the magic tome so much that, if he should fail, living would lose all meaning. \"If I was to become a hollow shell, you may do with me as you please. Such I did promise, yes?\" \"Whether you live or die is up to Ram.\" \"Yes, that was it... After the passage of nearly ten years, you might finally fulfill your retribution.\" Reconfirming the vow he could not possibly have forgotten, Roswaal drew a black book out from his pocket. Setting eyes upon the black-bound book, Ram knew with one glance that this was the abominable book of prophecy. This was the book of knowledge, the continued pursuit that was Roswaal's very reason to go on. It was the magic tome she had sworn to destroy long ago. \"To you, this must have been a long, long, bitter time, I imagine.\" *** \"After all...you were forced to pledge loyalty against your will and spend your days with the man who caused the destruction of your homeland. Even if, without your horn, your body required my support in order for you to live, it must have been exceedingly agonizing. I am sorry to have acted as if it is not my affair.\" His tone of voice was dry of emotion as Roswaal defined Ram's very existence. The cause of her homeland's destruction those words revived a memory and, with them, pain within Ram's chest. She recalled her home village set aflame, the wails of her brethren, her family seeking rescue as they perished. The Oni, said to be the mightiest of demi-humans, had no way to resist the power of brute numbers. Her people, few in number and assailed with malice that far outnumbered them, met their end in a single night, leaving none but Ram and \" \" behind. Her vow with Roswaal was necessary in order to live thereafter. This was something that \" \" never knew and something that Ram never told \" \". *** Ram narrowed her eyes, feeling disquiet over the throb in her mind and the gap in her memories. It was like a strange form of amnesia, like losing a memory she'd had until a short time before. She felt like she'd lost something she could not afford to, but Ram glossed over the feeling, acting like nothing had happened by sheer force of will. \"Covering your vengeful heart with a shell of loyalty, you hid the flames of retribution that you nurtured within you while you served me. Even so, there was no more excellent pawn than you. Until now, even within this Sanctuary, just how precious a treasure have you been?\" Roswaal continued his soliloquy, even as Ram prayed for the ill feeling from her memories to go away. Many of his words were praise. Understanding the true intentions Ram had long kept hidden, he was giving faint praise for overcoming a number of tribulations to arrive at this point for the sake of fulfilling her desire. This was a very warped form of love. It was the love with which one celebrated a child advancing in days and months, reaching out as her desire was about to be granted. But  \" And that makes it more the pity. Your decision is but a tiny trifle, premature.\" In the span of a single instant, the sentiments of praise infusing his voice turned to disappointment. A smile came over"}, {"text": "Roswaal as he shook his head side to side, grimacing at Ram as she gripped her wand. \"You have done well to create an opportunity where I am compelled to have the book of knowledge on my person. If Garfiel ceased his obsession with the Sanctuary, if Lady Emilia ceased relying solely on young Subaru, whatever the result, there would be no way to preserve that which has been written except for me to move personally.\" One by one, the conditions required for the fulfillment of what was written had been abolished. The problematic knots that had prevented the liberation of the Sanctuary had been untied one after another. The pawns who served him were gone. \"Though, I suppose saying resolved, rather than abolished, better reflects the depth of your feelings.\" \"The simplest means is usually the poorest. Ram does not care for losing wagers, either, you see.\" \"This time, are not the nets cast by your hand rather nuuuumerous? Of course, it is worthy of praise that your Clairvoyance ability enabled you to tail even me. That was splendidly done. However.\" Cutting off his words at that point, Roswaal closed one eye, the gaze of his yellow eye shooting right through Ram. \"You should have let me do what I have come here to accomplish and could have accomplished with but one more step. That alone is a pity.\" Spreading his hands wide and still holding the book in his right, Roswaal turned his attention to that which stood behind him. In the deepest part of the facility, a cavity was formed out of the white walls, and from this concealed room trickled out a blue light. Squinting to follow the light to its source, Ram saw an unusually large crystal enter her field of vision no, a magic crystal, within which a young girl was sealed.  This was Ryuzu Meyer, the true identity of Sanctuary as Shima had explained it. \"This is the commendable girl who offered up her body for the sake of her friend, becoming the core of the Sanctuary. But this instant, she is not my objective. What I require is this magic crystal.\" \"You intend to use the magic crystal as a catalyst to employ Great Magic?\" \"Enough to alter the weather, yes  Earlier, I said this world had gone astray from my intentions, but that is not quite precise. The most critical part yet remains. It is in this sense that you were...overeager.\" \"...I thought events had strayed from the ones written in the book of knowledge?\" \"Quite a bit, yes. However, that is not so for the ending. One cannot speak of success or failure until what is written in the book for the Sanctuary arrives at its conclusion  If snow should fall here, what shall become of the Sanctuary? What is its future?\" In accordance with the book of knowledge, Roswaal would make snow fall on the Sanctuary. He had come for the magic crystal to employ it as a magic catalyst. And to employ that spell  \" Requires an enormous amount of concentration and the very deft use of mana. That instant, you would have been able to achieve your retribution with certainty. Even without your horn, had you attacked by surprise, my wounds are deep and my trust great enough to slow my reactions... You would most certainly have struck me down.\" \"...I did not, for to do so would be meaningless.\" \" ? In the sense that you wish to conquer me when I am whole? Or that you wish to destroy me without a single second to spare? I can somewhat understand such feelings, but...\" \"No. I was right... You truly understand nothing, do you?\" Ram's reply left a genuinely questioning look all over Roswaal's face. That fact made Ram close her eyes. *** On the back of her eyelids was a vortex of complex emotions she absolutely never allowed to reach the surface. Ram closed her eyes so that her own way of living, something she had sworn never to reveal to any other for her entire life, might be shown to her alone. Opening her eyes, she lifted her face. Then she trained her usual, impetuous look toward Roswaal. \"Your wish shall not be granted. For you to strictly observe the terms, offering yourself to me as an empty shell, is meaningless. Greeting a broken version of you will not satisfy me.\" \"My, my, how greedy of you. However, what shall you do about it? Even if the Oni once called you the chosen one of the gods, you are now far from that without your horn. Even though I, too, am wounded, I can employ quite sufficient magic before establishing the ritual. Can you defeat me?\" \"No, it would surely be foolish to think so. I understand full well that Master Roswaal's power is second only to his teacher.\" When Roswaal claimed she had no chance of victory, Ram nodded, making no effort to refute him. As a matter of fact, Ram had no chance of victory...even if she hadn't been worn down from the recent fight with Garfiel. Ram did not have even a slight chance of barely eking out a win if she fought Roswaal. \" Then what purpose could you seek to accomplish, I wooonder?\" Giving the raised book a light toss, Roswaal caught it with his opposite hand and theatrically stuffed it into his pocket. Flickering flames floated up from his pair of empty palms. Red, blue, green Roswaal narrowed both his eyes as he showed her flames of one color after the next. At the tip of Roswaal's gaze, Ram infused power into the wand she held in her hand, sliding her empty, opposite hand into her maid outfit. And then  \"Ram has no chance of victory. That much is clear. However \" \" If it is two against one, perhaps the advantage is ours?\" *** The voice came from neither Ram nor Roswaal. Within the white-colored building, the sound of this voice echoed across the cavity farthest in back, causing Roswaal's face to contort dramatically. It was not anger but surprise at the unexpected and delight at being surprised that made him smile. \"So this is the greatest reason you went along with young Subaru's plan...!\" \"I told you, Master Roswaal: I have come to rob you of your obsession with the Witch.\" Responding to Roswaal's loud voice, Ram grasped the hem of her skirt and bowed. In the time the pair exchanged those words, a light shone. This gradually took definable form  \" And I am a passing, wild spirit... It's been a while since I've had a long fight. Let's start, shall we?\" With gray-colored fur, a long tail, and excessively, intensely adorable gestures, a little cat the Great Spirit appeared. In Ram's hand was the magic crystal that Subaru had given to her along with an uncontracted Great Spirit, lending its aid for a single night on a whim. \"Yes, I see  In that case, certainly!\" \"Heya, Roswaal. Come to think of it, I never did get a chance to settle things with you, did I?\" As Roswaal offered his acclaim, the Great Spirit groomed his face as he replied. Then Roswaal nodded deeply at the situation that had been wrought via Ram's schemes. \" Come.\" \"As you wish.\"  The bewitching, colored flames blazed higher as colorless blades of wind flew with wild abandon, and the world was plunged into explosively freezing cold. In that one instant, shock waves spread across the Sanctuary, and a macabre dance began between Oni, devil, and spirit. CHAPTER 7 *** 1  Keeping her breath low in the darkness, Petra did her best to suppress everything from her body that could be defined as sound. She made her small body even smaller, mindful even of the crinkle of clothing rubbing against air. She walked with her hand over her mouth, for if she did not, her breaths, more chaotic than she could remember, would make a sound from her throat. She nearly wished she could stop her heart so that its noisy thumping might pause for a minute. *** Petra's light-brown hair swayed as she walked unsteadily in the mansion, which she had begun to get used to, almost like she was lost in an unfamiliar world. She was glad that the floor had a soft carpet over it. Thanks to that, she was spared from having her trembling toes hitting the floor. She vowed to gratefully wash the carpet the next time she had a chance. Were it not for such silly thoughts, her legs would have stopped obeying her completely. As it was, her tottering gait was slower than that of a baby. If she stopped, she likely would never walk forward again. She was in a long corridor with no end to it. This one time, she was tempted to hate the vastness of this large mansion she had grown so fond of.  How, and why, had things turned out that way? Until a few brief hours before, the mansion was an ideal workplace to Petra. She'd been in awe of the mansion to begin with, and the maid outfits were cute and wonderful, too. Frederica, the one instructing her, was kind, and the mansion was connected to someone she was faintly fond of. It was perfect. That perfect world, enveloped by admiration and dreams, was now so frightening that it nearly froze Petra's heart. The night when everything changed had been just like the previous day until darkness fell. After the evening meal, she'd tried to bring Beatrice's untouched meal to her; wiped down the girl named Rem, who continued to sleep in her room; and went to Frederica's own quarters to hear her assessment of that day's work. After that, she bathed, returned to her own assigned personal room, and slept in preparation for the next  \" Petra, please wake up. Petra.\" \"...Miss Frederica?\" Feeling that someone was shaking her body and hearing a voice speaking to her, Petra gently awoke in the middle of the night. When she looked over, Frederica was in uniform, standing by the bed, which made Petra blink her round eyes wide in surprise. It was not surprise that she had been awoken at that hour. Rather, it was the obvious tension that Frederica exuded. She remembered that sensation. It was an aura that Petra had felt several times some months ago  \"Miss!!\" Immediately wiping away her drowsiness, Petra jumped right out of the bed. Frederica was a little surprised by the sight, but when Petra, grasping the situation, leaped into her arms, she gently held the girl. Then she stroked Petra's head with her free hand. \"Petra, listen closely  Head outside through the dining hall's kitchen door. Do it quietly, without a sound, but as quickly as you can. You can do it, yes?\" \"I can do it... But, Miss Frederica, what about you?\" \"I will follow soon enough. Once you are outside the mansion, run as far as the village. Once I meet up with you safe and sound, how about I let you sleep in a little tomorrow?\" Speaking as if making a very slight joke, Frederica let Petra go. Petra was still smiling at Frederica as she felt a tangible sense of tension spread across her entire body. Something something was happening at the mansion. And Petra was helpless to do anything about it. \"Petra.\" With that brief call serving as a signal, the pair left the room. The night sky was covered with clouds, and the mansion was submerged in darkness beyond moonlight's reach. Faced with the gloom of the unlit corridor, Frederica squinted, and Petra gently followed behind her. When Frederica narrowed her jade eyes and caught her breath, Petra simultaneously broke into a run in the opposite direction. \"Dining hall... Dining hall...!\" She repeatedly murmured to herself what Frederica had told her. The dining hall was on the first floor of the main wing. Fortunately, by going straight down that particular passage, she would immediately reach it."}, {"text": "She'd already memorized the interior of the mansion. Even in the dark, it was an easy win. But just as she reached the passage that stretched from the east wing to the main wing, Petra came right to a halt. If she raced to the main wing, she could rush straight to the dining hall's kitchen door. Frederica's instructions were to flee as far as the village from there. However  \" Miss Rem is...\" The Sleeping Princess remained in the mansion, lying on her bed on the floor above. The passage was right next to her. Petra hesitated as she stared at the landing of the stairs below. She felt fear as her instincts begged her to do as Frederica told her. But Subaru had entrusted Rem to Petra. The forlorn look with which Subaru had stared at the side of her sleeping face was seared into Petra's eyes. If Petra escaped alone then and there, what would become of her promise to Subaru? *** Tightly gritting her teeth, Petra roused her timid heart and put a foot on the stairs toward the floor above, where Rem's room was located. She revered Frederica. Going against her instructions left Petra riddled with guilt. She was afraid, too. But with the mansion feeling so dangerous, she couldn't leave Rem and run. It was just like during the forest with the demon beasts  Back then, Subaru hadn't abandoned Petra. \"I'm stupid... Really stupid...\" Her reminiscence at an end, Petra slipped back into her initial melancholy, letting a sound of weakness out as she seemed ready to break into tears. Her heart was noisy. Her steps advanced slowly. Frederica would be angry. Her emotions were a jumbled mess. \"Agh, darn it... I already have this cute face going for me, so why do I need to do something this stupid...?!! But, but, but...!\" She was scared, she wanted to cry, she wanted to yell. But she did not. She could not. After all, Subaru didn't. He wouldn't. Even if he was afraid and wanted to break down and cry, he wouldn't. \"I mean, this is absolutely what Subaru would do... That's why  That's why for Subaru, for him only, I have to look good even if it kills me...!\" When her fear became nearly unbearable, Petra whispered to herself to bolster her spirits. In that dark corridor, she caught sight of her destination, Rem's room. It was a mere eleven yards away, enough to make her heart leap out and run to it. However, her feet could not catch up to her heart's unrest. Just a few more steps, just a few more feet, just two bedroom doors ahead   I've arrived, thought Petra, lifting her head. That instant, beyond one of the corridor's windows, the wind blew, moving a cloud covering the moon, and silver light shone into the corridor. Color returned to the world that had been nothing but darkness. Narrowing her dazzled eyes, Petra saw . \" Oh my, what a pretty young girl.\" A woman in black stood right before her, seemingly blended into the darkness. \" Ah.\" There was a woman standing between her and the door to the room, which was a mere three steps away. She had glossy black hair that was tied in a triple braid and a pitch-black outfit that accentuated her voluptuous physique. Even Petra could detect the scent of sensual charm wafting around her, and the vile knife she held in her right hand was eerily distinctive  \"According to what I was told, there are two targets and one bonus target. You would be the small maid, yes?\" *** \"Are you shaking? It's all right I am certain that your innards will prove very pretty indeed.\" She couldn't understand what the woman was saying. She just understood that the approaching footsteps of this smiling stranger were synonymous with the footsteps of death. Even though she understood this, Petra's legs were held in place by fear, unable to move, even though the vile weapon unsuited to the woman's slender arm was about to cut away her life without any fanfare. \"Good girl... I will introduce you to an angel.\" Heartlessly, the woman raised the knife toward the trembling girl. The blade sliced through the wind, aimed to mercilessly bite into Petra's torso. Then  \"Petra !!\" Crashing through the corridor window, a shadow filled the space between Petra and the knife. A high-pitched noise echoed, and the sound of metal grazing metal was accompanied by flying sparks and a shock wave that threw Petra onto the floor. She was showered in blond hair right before her. A back she had looked up at many times over had shielded Petra from the wicked-looking blade. Petra instantly recognized that back, much broader than her mother's. It could have belonged to only one person. \"Miss Frederica!\" \"You've been a bad girl, Petra. I distinctly told you to flee. I will punish you later.\" \"Yes! Yes!!\" Leaving Petra behind her, Frederica confirmed her safety with a glance as she spoke sternly. That kind strictness made Petra reply multiple times in a tearful voice. Watching the exchange between the pair after her knife had been deflected, the woman contorted her glossy lips. \"Marvelous. You must be the large maid. I am so happy to see both maids together and getting along so well. I must line up both your bowels side by side and compare to see how your innards complement each other.\" \"I cannot make heads or tails of such taste. I cannot even dignify calling it a hobby.\" After listening to the woman's disturbing threat, Frederica replied sharply as she thrust both her arms out. Her arms made a creaking sound, one that grew progressively more extreme as her skeletal structure shifted. Her pretty nails changed to bestial claws, and golden fur sprouted from the skin of her arms up to the elbows. \"Demi-human blood? If you transform, do the contents of your belly differ from when you're in your usual form? Or are they the same?\" \"I have never been curious enough to find out for myself.\" \"Is that so? In that case, can I ask you to show me after I slice you open? All you need to do is transform back when you're on the verge of death.\" \"You certainly are confident...\" Even though Frederica's two arms had turned into deadly natural weapons, the assailant showed not the slightest concern. When her attitude was pointed out to her, the woman said, \"I suppose so,\" tilting her head slightly. \"A little while ago, I had a near-death experience in the capital, so I improved my skills. You cannot match me.\" \"...I feel like holding a grudge against whoever didn't finish you when they had the chance.\" Frederica's sense of duty and the crazed ghastliness leaking out of the woman these would not determine victory or defeat, but even to Petra, it was clear that one was head and shoulders above the other. \"Petra, this time, head straight out of the mansion  Use the evacuation tunnel.\" \"B-but, Miss...!\" Her voice catching, Petra looked toward the door of the room that was so very close. Inside was the reason Petra had been so reckless. Frederica could guess what it was from that glance alone. Accordingly... \"I do not know who hired you to do this, but it seems that Petra and I are your targets.\" \"Yes. Two maids and one spirit girl. I was a little disappointed about the numbers, but I have high hopes for opening a spirit's belly. Last time, I fell one small step short, you see.\" *** The conversation made her head hurt, but Petra widened her eyes at Frederica's quick wit. Through offering a little casual conversation, Frederica had learned the woman's objective straight from her lips Rem wasn't among the woman's targets. The Sleeping Princess had vanished from the enemy's memory as well. \"Go!\" \"Yes!!\" A moment after they signaled their mutual understanding, Frederica's voice sent Petra running off to her rear. Simultaneously, she turned her back to the fleeing girl as the attacker flipped her body and threw something. A total of four silvery iron skewers, glimmering in the moonlight, raced toward Petra in an attempt to snipe her legs. \"Your stubbornness is worse than your taste!\" With a single swing of her mighty arm, Frederica struck down all the iron skewers with a bestial claw. During that time, Petra did not look back even once. She raced down the corridor, placing the entirety of her trust in Frederica. \"Such a good girl.\" \"She's my pride!!\" The woman's obscene voice and Frederica's howl echoed throughout the mansion along with a sound of clashing steel. Frederica collided with the woman, beginning a deadly battle with her life on the line. \"Hagh!! Hagh!! Haaagh!!\" Petra's breath was ragged as she raced through the corridor, practically flying down the stairs. A chain of high-pitched echoes rang out, and a tremor reached her from the corridor being destroyed. Frederica had judged that her opponent was superior to her. She was fighting valiantly so that Petra might escape. She had already failed once. Frederica had told her to flee down the evacuation tunnel if all else failed. If she did as told and fled  If she fled, Frederica would die. The instant she thought that, a single possibility floated into the back of Petra's mind. \" Lady Beatrice could...\" If it was the final person remaining in the mansion, who she'd heard was a supernatural being... \"Here...! Maybe over here?!\" Running along the downstairs corridor, Petra flung open whichever door she put her hands on. She'd heard that the power of Beatrice's spell made it possible to move from room to room within the mansion. Even when searching for her with Subaru, even when trying to bring her dinner, she'd never found the girl, but she was definitely there. That moment, what Petra needed was a magic user of great power. If Beatrice was around, Frederica could probably be saved. Petra could protect the mansion and her promise... \"She's not here... She's not anywhere here. Miss...!\" Out of breath, ready to collapse any moment, Petra let her tears flow. She'd opened every single door on that floor in the west wing. And yet, Beatrice was not there. The battle was still raging. Petra had to find her soon, so very soon. If she didn't, Frederica would... \"Miss Frederica...!\" Even though she had to keep running, strength drained from Petra's feet little by little. Using her hands, which were shaking so hard that she could not clench them into fists, she struck her own legs over and over. She needed to rouse her battered spirit and continue the search for Beatrice. And yet, her courage was insufficient. Her tears kept flowing. \" Subaruuu!\" When her weakness slipped out, Petra spoke a single boy's name, as if clinging to it for dear life. To Petra, this was the name of the bravest person in the whole world. He was someone with incredible courage, who forced his trembling legs to face an opponent he knew he could not defeat. When Petra and the others from the village were truly in danger, when they really might have died, he was the one who'd rushed off first and saved them and so she called his name. Even though, in that moment, she understood he wasn't there to save her. \"Subaru, Subaru... Save me, Subaruuu!\" \"You got it. Sure thing, Petra.\" \" Eh?\" Covering her face with her hands, Petra was trying to stop her tears when she unwittingly held her breath. Between her fingers, in her teary, hazy vision, there was someone right in front of her. This person was kneeling to match heights with Petra, who was crouching, meeting her at eye level. \"Sorry I'm late. But I'm here to help... I'm glad you're safe, Petra.\" The person, who had a face with a familiar foul look, shot her a reassuring smile. As much as he tried to be considerate, his expression was not"}, {"text": "gentle in the slightest which was why it relieved Petra to the very bottom of her heart. \"Is that you, Subaru...? You came?\" \"It's me, and I came. I'm back safe and sound, all thanks to your charm, Petra.\" Nodding, Subaru lifted up his right hand showing the white handkerchief tied around his wrist. It was pretty dirty, but it was the same charm Petra had entrusted to Subaru on the day he had departed. It was neither a hallucination nor a dream. Subaru had come back. When Petra reached out to touch his cheek, he gently guided her hand to his face and rubbed her back. His touch calmed her heart. She wanted to gently let her consciousness yield to the relief. But she could not not yet. \"Subaru, Miss Frederica is on the floor... There's a scary person in black with a really big knife...\" \"A scary person in black with a big knife. Yeah, got it.\" This fragmentary explanation of her features left Subaru nodding like he understood everything. Both understood the gravity of the situation. Within Subaru's arms, Petra desperately pointed toward the ceiling. \"Please save Miss Frederica! Subaru, get that woman!!\" \"All right, leave it to me!! ...That's what I'd like to say, but if I go up against someone Frederica can't beat, I'll be a corpse in one second!!\" *** \" Which is why I brought superstrong reinforcements to help me out.\" When Petra was momentarily at a loss for words, Subaru stroked her head as a smile crossed his foul-looking face. From there, he turned his gaze upward, and as feelings of relief and worry mixed together in his black eyes... \"Lot of uninvited guests in the way of tonight's dramatic reunion scene, though...\" 2 It was too crude a battle to be called a duel to the death. \" Shiii!\" Waving her right arm around, she repeatedly slammed through the opening created by one of the iron-skewer attacks. The woman swung her body up and down, left and right, leisurely evading the flurry of attacks with the elegance of a leaf swaying in the wind. When she leaped back to evade the black blade that had appeared, iron skewers flew at her in midair, giving her no chance to evade them. Frederica's arm, wrapped in thick fur and muscle, was easily penetrated by the sharp iron skewers. Gritting her teeth at the pain, which felt like she had just been burned, Frederica swung her arm, sending the iron skewers flying. It was not a fatal blow. Still, her wounds were gradually increasing, and her endurance was being whittled away. Compared with Frederica's labored breathing, the woman with the long, swaying triple braids was not even slightly out of breath. The difference in their fighting strength was crystal clear. The fact that Frederica was still alive simply meant her opponent wasn't being serious, and  \" What is this compulsion of yours to aim only below my breasts?\" \"If you must ask, it's my hobby, or perhaps, I should call it my way of life. I am the Bowel Hunter, after all. Spilling your innards is my creed.\" She had not spoken in jest. She was completely serious, something that made Frederica's body shudder. This was no joke. The woman was serious. Nor was her calling this abnormality her creed a lie. The fact that Frederica had barely managed to stay alive was because the woman had been aiming only for her abdomen. \"However, I do not have too much time to play. If possible, I must strip you of your limbs and go capture the girl from before. You get along so well; I think it would be nice to open you both side by side.\" \"Unfortunately, your benevolence does not resonate with me whatsoever !!\" She knew the woman was toying with her  Therefore, she had to settle this while she was still in a mood to play around. Explosively launching off her hind legs, Frederica barreled toward the woman with speed she hadn't revealed yet. She'd hidden the transfiguration of her legs up to this point. If she sprinted seriously, Frederica could outpace the wind itself. Approaching at breakneck speed, she would claw out the woman's vitals. Or if she could merely graze the body with her claws  \" I believe that charging straight in is a little simple of you.\" \"Wha...?\" The instant she thought her bestial claws had hit their mark, the woman vanished into thin air. Slamming down hard enough to shred the carpet, Frederica then looked up to the ceiling and gaped. Having leaped straight up, the woman attached herself to the ceiling and proceeded to begin jumping from there to the corridor wall, to the ceiling again, and then to the floor, all however she pleased. \" Damn spider woman!!\" \"I was called that in the capital, too. I thought it rather rude at the time...\" Raising a voice of dismay, the woman approached from up and down, left and right. Frederica could track motion far better than the average person, but she could not even follow the woman's shadow as it flitted around in the moonlight. Then  \" After you fall, I would appreciate you showing me what your innards look like in your current form.\" The moment after she heard that whisper, Frederica resigned herself to death. Various feelings raced through the back of her mind in the span of a single instant... They were about the Sanctuary, about her coworkers, about her pretty junior, about the people she had served, about her family. About her little brother. These  \"Oh my.\" This dejected voice was accompanied by a clash that sounded like thunder. The roar of steel colliding with steel rang out, and a shock wave shot through the corridor, cracking its windows. Then as the shock wave passed without stopping down the corridor, a single man's voice echoed through it. \" Accordin' to the general, there's a sayin' that goes offense is the best defense.\" It was a low voice, yet it held irrepressible anger within. As he spoke, both his arms or more precisely, the two silver shields covering his fists intercepted the woman's knife, sending it bouncing back spectacularly. The force sent the woman leaping far to the rear. The man did not pursue her as he powerfully pounded the two shields together in front of his chest. \"If ya can use shields to defend and attack...that means puttin' the best offense and the best defense together, givin' the best of both worlds, huh?\" It was simple, even infantile, and furthermore, it was the sort of logic a naughty child would think of. But the man had used that childish logic to great effect, equipping both arms with one shield each, employing them as his own weapons. The man with short, combed-back hair boldly thrust his chest out as he turned toward Frederica. \"Don't ya think so, Si ? Whoa, you're huge?!\" Instantly, the gravitas of a full-fledged warrior dissipated, and the man nay, the boy opened his jade eyes wide, his inner turmoil plain as he gazed at Frederica from head to toe. \"S-seriously?! Is that really you, Sis?! The Sis I know was supposed to be this smaller, thinner, gentle, and delicate li'l thing, wasn't she?! This is closer to a big bro than a big si... Ogoah?!\" \"You should not say such rude things upon meeting someone!\" Frederica rammed her knee into the boy, who'd given her one glance before he started ranting. The single blow sent the boy to his knees. As Frederica saw him wail with a gueh, she noticed it...the white scar on his forehead. \"You're... Are you Garf?\" \"Don't kick people before ya figure that out. That's how the real Frederica would...gueh!\" \"Do not go casually addressing your older sister by name.\" In the middle of moving to get up, Garfiel sank once more from a backhanded blow to the rear of his skull. The sight made Frederica remember her younger days. Back in the Sanctuary, the siblings amused themselves not with toys but by fighting each other. With a nine-year age gap between them, Frederica's larger frame let her win handily against Garfiel. It was as if nothing had changed since then. \"No. Garf, you've grown so big...\" \"Right now, hearin' that from Sis sounds like sarcasm! I'll have ya know, I'm definitely gettin' bigger from here on out! Ya won't be lookin' down on me forever!\" \"Tee-hee, let me correct myself. Your body has grown a little larger, but you remain very small inside.\" \"What was that?!\" Baring his fangs, Garfiel seemed ready to fight to prove his sister wrong. Despite the timing, this exchange with her younger brother after a separation of ten years left Frederica with an almost unbelievable sense of happiness. She'd always hoped that someday, the day would come when she could meet Garfiel outside the Sanctuary. This was probably someone's doing. Ram? Emilia? Or perhaps Subaru? \"Also, there was Master Otto, wasn't there...?\" \"Ha! Don't even bother mentionin' that bro. The Migredo family's bridge falls all the time. He's in such a tough spot, even I feel for 'im.\" Not that he was one to talk, but Otto's face, dejected from so much being said about him, came to mind. He somehow grasped that the man had talent, but he just gave off an aura that made you want to mouth off. \"Well then, may I finally interfere with your reunion, I wonder?\" \"Well, ain't that considerate of ya to wait this long. At the rate we were goin', I was about to forget about beatin' your ass and just go home. I don't like poundin' women much, see.\" \"Oh my, how kind of you.\" Interrupting the sibling conversation from another part of the corridor, the woman smiled thinly. Garfiel made a gesture toward her as if shooing away a fly. The sight made Frederica raise her eyebrows. \"Garf, underestimating that woman due to her appearance will only get you hurt.\" \"Ha! When it comes down to it, the only one I treat in this world as a woman is Ram.\" \"I am certain you think that sounds manly, but it would make Ram laugh out loud.\" \"What'd ya say?!\" Frederica had a look of disbelief as Garfiel turned toward her indignantly. That instant, a pitch-black disc flew from the murderous woman's hand at incredible speed no, this was no disc. This was a large knife spinning with incredible speed. Leaving even the sound of ripping the air trailing behind, the blade sailed toward Garfiel's head. \"Now, hold on.\" A mere instant before it split his head apart, Garfiel agilely used his left arm to deflect the disc. The skillful alteration of the disc's angle sent the knife gliding straight up, making a high-pitched sound as it impaled the ceiling above. \"Me, I said I wanted to head back straightaway, ya know?\" \" Yes, and this is my reply.\" Drawing a spare to replace the knife she had thrown, the woman advanced, her posture making it seem like she was crawling over the floor. Gripping the knife in a different way than the one she had hurled, the woman aimed to sever both Garfiel's ankles. But watching the combat unfold from behind him, Frederica caught sight of another threat.  A string attached to the hilt of the knife impaling the ceiling drew taut, pulling it straight toward the back of Garfiel's head he couldn't even see it coming. \"Garf \" \"Oh no ya don't!!\" It was a roar from none other than Garfiel that blotted out Frederica's shriek. Garfiel howled, and he instantly moved his left hand with explosive, overwhelming force. His arm, thick and covered with golden fur, was a savage thing on a clearly different level compared with Frederica's transformation. \"I'm sendin' ya packin', bastard!!\" Surprise ran across even the assailant's eyes, and Garfiel did not let that opportunity slip. He tilted his head in response to the blade from behind, just enough to get his vitals out of the way while prioritizing offense. With"}, {"text": "the shield on his mighty arm, he blocked the woman's blade, and a creaking sound arose as the woman was sent flying. Letting out a painful yelp, the woman rolled. Glancing at that, Garfiel pulled the knife out of his shoulder. \"Ha! Even without his arms, Kurgan felled his foe, ya know! If ya think I'm shakin' in my boots over one arm, ya got another thing coming, idiot!\" \"You're the idiot!\" \"Adahhh?!\" While Garfiel was celebrating his victory, his older sister angrily slammed her fist into the back of his skull. \"Fighting as if you're trying to get yourself injured... Grandmother would cry if she saw this!\" \"Ugh...n-not like I care what the old hag thinks of this...\" Frederica's lecture made Garfiel look away as he excused himself. Sighing deeply at her own younger brother's attitude, Frederica was also surprised at his strength. One might even say she was moved by it. Garfiel had studied hard over these ten years they had spent apart. And it was not Frederica alone who was moved by that strength  \" Nicely done. Nicely done indeed. A truly active child. Quite marvelous.\" Her voice shuddering with admiration, the woman stood up with blood trickling from the corner of her lips. However, the woman merrily licked it, smiling, her cheeks reddening as if enamored. \"Hey, Fre... Sis, you know this chick named Rem?\" \" ? Y-yes, she is here at the mansion. I heard from Master Subaru that she is Ram's younger sister.\" Garfiel's sudden shift to a completely disconnected subject left Frederica bewildered. From the girl's external appearance, there was no doubting she was Ram's younger sister, yet she existed nowhere in Frederica's memories. The still-sleeping girl had fallen out of her recollections, as had whatever relationship she might have had with her. \"She looks like Ram?\" \"Exactly like her. However, you may not use her as a substitute.\" \"Like I'd do some scumbag thing like that. Just wanted to check for sure Sis, I got a favor to ask.\" Cutting off his words, Garfiel continued glaring at the woman as he spoke to Frederica. \"When ya see the chance, take this Rem chick and go. Me, I'm gonna have my hands full with this one.\" \"Wh-what are you saying?! I will fight also! The two of us together can...\" \"I wonder. Can you, really?\" Garfiel was trying to fight alone. Frederica attempted to convince him otherwise, but the assailant's voice interfered. Frederica sternly glared at her. \"I would rather you not make such a scary face, though. Besides, I believe your younger brother can attest that my opinion is not off the mark.\" \"...Garf?\" The woman's words brought a questioning look over Frederica's face as she called out to her younger brother. Once she did, Garfiel spoke. \"Sorry, Sis. This ain't some half-hearted opponent ya can take on while watchin' out for someone behind ya.\" \"Wha...?!\" \"Hey, don't misunderstand, Sis. It ain't like I'm sayin' you'd be in the way or anything.\" There's no other way to take it, thought Frederica, but Garfiel kept glaring at the woman as he responded to Frederica's dubious gaze. \"I figure if she 'n' I get serious, the area around us is gonna take one hell of a beatin'.\" Garfiel pointed to himself and then toward the woman. The joyful smile that came over the woman seemed to agree with his words as she toyed with her long, triple-braided hair and leaned forward. \"I suppose so. I'm sure it will be so... Therefore, I think it is best that you step back.\" *** Both of them could sense it. This was a battlefield for the strong alone, for those possessing strength that separated them from others. Frederica, understanding her power excluded her from that realm, felt her body seemingly catch on fire with regrets.  To have spent ten years for the sake of reuniting with her younger brother, yet be unable to give him any help when he needed it most... \"Don't go thinkin' about no silly things like that, Sis.\" \"Garf...\" \"Ya see my arm, right? These shields, they're the ones I used to play with you when I was a li'l brat. Back when I was runnin' round with you all day long that was the startin' point of me becomin' the greatest.\" This time, Garfiel's words truly surprised Frederica. His tone of voice, which betrayed no consideration, no consolation, no such emotions whatsoever, set Frederica's chest ablaze, for she felt a tangible sense that her younger brother had grown in her absence. \"The general taught me the power of numbers the hard way, but unfortunately, this is where the other extreme comes into play...\" With his elder sister's gaze still on him and maintaining the brunt of his enemy's focus, Garfiel stepped forward. \" So come get some. I'm celebratin' leavin' the Sanctuary. The party starts now and lasts till I smash apart the first wall standin' in my way!!\" 3  Let us briefly go back in time, switching to a scene where a dragon carriage was heading to Roswaal Manor. \"Okay? The people who need to be rescued in the mansion number four in total, all girls.\" From the driver's seat of the dragon carriage, which was running at full speed, Subaru lifted up four fingers as he gave his explanation. The landscape sped by as the dragon carriage took advantage of its wind repel blessing to race along a neglected road. Relying once more on the land dragon who had saved him over and over, Subaru nodded toward his fellow passengers with a dead-serious face. \"There's basically no time to spare...or rather, whatever the timing, the assassins will definitely launch their attack the moment we arrive. We've got to rescue every last one of the four.\" \"So for buyin' time...there's Sis, and that's about it, huh? Man, already been ten years since I've seen her face...\" Garfiel crinkled his nose, with Subaru's words leaving him in an awkward state. He had stayed in the Sanctuary, remained there out of stubbornness for many years. No doubt he felt plenty guilty for having pegged Frederica a traitor when she had been busy trying to create a place for him in the outside world. \"Well, just gotta ask you to put that aside with a poof and make up real fast with a pshaw.\" \"Poof and pshaw... General, c'mon!\" \"But on a more serious note, we really must defer our complaints. That said, you truly have not spoken to her even once since the separation? According to Miss Ram, there did seem to be some comings and goings with the Sanctuary, so have you sent a letter, perhaps?\" \"Me, I didn't send any, and the ones that came... I handed 'em all to the old hag without readin' 'em.\" As Garfiel made a pouting face, Subaru and Otto went \"Ah!\" and covered their faces. His attitude toward his sister was completely, 100 percent that of a child. Their reunion would surely be quite a moving thing to see. \"I am worried about Miss Frederica, but the one in the most danger would be Petra, yes?\" \"Yeah, I think so. Petra is Roswaal Manor's new maid... She's a sharp cookie with a bright future. Special attention required.\" Subaru concurred with Otto's opinion. As a matter of fact, Petra's projected death rate was 100 percent unless they did something. Of course, the other three were also in peril, but in Petra's case, her lack of combat ability was a fatal flaw. Though, in terms of being unable to fight back, there was one other in identical danger  \"There's Rem... Ram's little sister. I'm sure Garfiel doesn't remember her, though...\" \"Me, I still half don't believe it. Ya said she's exactly like Ram, like a twin? If I've known her for a long time like that, would I really forget?\" He understood why Garfiel found it difficult to swallow. But the attack Rem suffered obliterated her existence, causing even her older sister, Ram, to forget her. Thinking about that made Subaru's chest tighten as he continued. \"But there's a silver lining to this. I'm just guessing, but Rem probably isn't a target of the assassins. Just from the fact that they were hired...because Rem...\" Fell off the edge of the world. Subaru couldn't bring himself to finish. Otto continued in his place. \"...However, if they find Miss Rem at the mansion, she will not escape unscathed. Is that not so?\" Otto's words made him listlessly nod. Subaru understood what he meant. The assassins Elsa and Meili were not good-natured professionals. They were morally bankrupt people who thought nothing of involving innocents. Rem and the people of Earlham Village were thoroughly unsafe around them. \"We must pray that the opponent does not begin by opening the door to the room where Miss Rem sleeps... To be honest, I cannot call depending on the enemy a sound plan.\" \"...I'll be depending on you and the enemy both. That's Subaru Natsuki's Reverse Fuurinkazan tactical doctrine.\" \"S-so cool...!!\" Subaru couldn't deny that the conditions were pretty desperate, but Garfiel's eyes were glimmering. This all-too-fitting reaction pained his heart, but after all the current business was taken care of, he really needed to make some time and give Garfiel a lecture about real tactics taught by Sun Tzu. And while it was fine and well to imagine a happy, peaceful future  \"I've gotta say, this has been really freaking me out hard. Is this actually helping?\" \"We're in a hurry, right? Me, I ain't doin' this 'cause I wanna.\" Subaru's words and oddly indecisive attitude made Garfiel clack his fangs in dismay. Subaru understood Garfiel's point, but he wanted him to appreciate how it made others feel. After all, that moment, Garfiel was outside, leaning into the dragon carriage, participating in the conversation as he held on to the windowsill. Under the windowsill, Garfiel was running at full speed immediately beside one of the dragon carriage's wagon wheels. The soles of his feet were pounding hard into the ground. Of course, this wasn't something he had come up with for no purpose, but... \"Look, I defeated an enemy before by dragging him into a wagon wheel, so I'm scared about accidents... If you make one false move and end up getting scattered across the countryside, I'm gonna have PTSD for sure, and then I'll be out of options for the mansion, too...\" \"Wha? General, you're a worrywart, aren't ya? It's all right, sheesh. See, seeee!\" \"Stop it!! You're killin' me!! I'll die before you do!!\" Garfiel started to play around while still hanging alongside, making Subaru raise a wail in complaint. The beastly boy's grip was strong enough to warp the windowsill. Even knowing there was not even a remote chance of an accident, Subaru felt it was still bad for his heart. \"Either way, Garfiel's blessing of the earth spirit has no effect unless his feet are on the ground, so let us pass this off as a necessary measure to ensure Garfiel's as close to tip-top condition as possible.\" \"But from the outside, this looks like we're doing our best to shake off a guy who's desperately trying to get inside the carriage. Plus we actually are dragging along a delusional fourteen-year old.\" \"You do realize that if anyone saw this, neither the truth nor what it seems like would save my reputation, yes?!\" Otto, holding the reins, wailed; Subaru nodded, too. It was a supremely strange sight that could get someone reported and pulled over yet, there was meaning to Garfiel's acrobatic feat. Emilia had used her magic to heal the wounds he'd incurred during his violent battle with Subaru and the others. However, one could not call the mana and blood inside his body that he'd lost, or other measures of endurance, fully recovered. This seemingly unjust treatment was an improvised way to supplement those things during the time they traveled between the Sanctuary and the mansion. This was to make Garfiel's blessing of the earth"}, {"text": "spirit the trump card for their mansion strategy. \"Also, one last thing, General. We stopped the talk midway only heard 'bout three people so far.\" \" Yeah.\" Garfiel lifted up his body and peered into the dragon carriage. He directed the question toward Subaru, but he also sent Otto a questioning look. Otto shook his head, though. \"Unfortunately, I have not met the final person, either. But according to what we heard from Miss Shima, she is someone in a somewhat difficult position, it would seem.\" \"Bro, did ya somehow make someone hate you before you even met them? You all right?\" \"I'd like to believe that's not why we haven't had a chance to meet yet!\" Seeing the disquiet in Garfiel's eyes, Otto put on a desperate look as he made his rebuttal. The noisy exchange between the pair was probably an attempt to be considerate toward Subaru. Perhaps yes, most likely, they were trying to discuss a topic that was difficult for him to talk about. \"The last person...is Beatrice. I have to be the one to bring her out.\" Turning toward the pair, Subaru did not use the timid word probably. It was unthinkable to even say it out loud before he acted. He would bring her out. And Subaru had to be the one to do it  Upon learning of her past, that was what Subaru had firmly decided. \"I'll bring Beatrice out. I'll drag her out. I have to do it.\" It was none other than Subaru who absolutely had to be the one. Even if Beatrice refused it, even if she acted like she didn't want it... \"If that's what the general says, that's how it's gonna be.\" \"We really must deftly evacuate the nearby villagers, too, to avoid unforeseen circumstances. I suppose it would be best if I was in charge of this.\" Presented with Subaru's resolve, Garfiel and Otto promised their own cooperation. Subaru had his role to play. And they had roles of their own. Geez. I have two seriously dependable people on my side... \"Thanks, you pair of idiots.\" \"You are truly incapable of giving even simple thanks, you single idiot!!\" 4  The thick musk of old books emanated from the other side of the opened door. Perhaps this odor had accumulated from the long days and months the books had spent in this place. Or if he could believe that it was a room where time had stopped, the passage of days and months had nothing to do with it at all. \"The Sanctuary made me think of a lot of little things like that. As the librarian, what do you think?\" \" Why...?\" Without permission from the custodian of the room, Subaru bluntly stepped into the archive. Just like usual, there was an atmosphere equal parts tranquil and gloomy. There were no glass windows to let in rays of sunlight or even the smallest of shutters for ventilation. Staying for any length of time would dampen his spirits and most certainly be bad for his heart. That was probably why Subaru had always wanted to bring the girl out of this place. \"...Why have you come here, I wonder? I do not remember inviting you.\" \"Sorry, but I'm a man who shows up whether he's been invited or not. Back in middle school, I popped up at a classmate's birthday party uninvited. Can't forget how awkward that was at the time.\" Naturally, even Subaru had endeavored to pay more heed to the atmosphere after an experience like that. But of course, he was the most boisterous of anyone that day by far, and no one ever invited him to a birthday thereafter. \"That actually hurt me so much that it was almost like my chest got cut open, so I'll set that story aside for another time.\" \"This time or next, will you begin speaking of it whenever it pleases you, I wonder...? You are an arbitrary man in every respect.\" \"Yeah, I am. That's why I came here whether you like it or not.\" He knew that the girl before him had drawn in her breath. With a theatrical gesture, Subaru bowed, seemingly to work himself into the girl's blue eyes. And then  \"I'm getting you out of here, Beatrice  This time, my hand's gonna lead you right out under the big ol' sun, and we'll play around until that dress is totally black from mud.\" Faced with Subaru's provocative words, the girl Beatrice remained seated on the same stool as she always did, clutching her own book. With those arms still wrapped tight around her black-bound book, she stared at Subaru, trembling. CHAPTER 1 *** 1  Even now, recalling that moment, she found herself stricken with regret. The fingers she had extended were brushed away, even as she lovingly called out the girl's name. The girl's parting words were caring. There was happiness, as well as determination, in those tearful eyes of hers; seeing that, her voice died in her throat. Even now, she couldn't remember what went through her mind back then. Even now, she didn't know what she should have said. Even now, she had no answer to the question What should I have done differently?  That was why, even now, she was alone, cowering in the archive of forbidden books, unable to leave. \"...Ryuzu.\" The fragment of an old memory from the far reaches of her mind made that word spill from her lips. She had spent those empty and stagnant months and years the same way, averting her eyes from that painful past. Why now, of all times, had she remembered that regret, that memory, that girl's name? The most likely explanation was her premonition. A premonition that was much like how she had been refused long ago  I'm getting you out of here, Beatrice This time, my hand's gonna lead you right out under the big ol' sun, and we'll play around until that dress is totally black from mud.  though this time, it was her turn to brush aside the offered hand. 2 The battle only continued to grow fiercer. The refined solace of the mansion was utterly shattered by the destructive powers at work. \" Oaaaaaah!!\" In the wake of a roar, steel met steel. A dance of sparks punctuated the ringing echo. Moonlight beamed into Roswaal Manor, the stage where the waltz was reaching its climax. \" Marvelous. You are truly marvelous. Just stunning.\" One impact shattered a window. Another cracked the floor. The aftershocks shredded a painting on the wall. The sultry voice that reached the ears of the ferocious golden beast seemed utterly amused by the mortal combat that was unfolding. \"I ain't happy hearing praise from anyone but Ram!!\" Blotting out the lovely voice with an angry cry, Garfiel threw his mighty fist, which sailed over the head of his foe and punched through the wall behind her. The woman tried to use the opportunity to slip into his blind spot until he came at her again with a lethal follow-up. His arm ripped through the wall he had punched clean through, bringing a whole chunk of it with him. \"Ah...!\" Seeing the incoming attack boasting a surface area a hundred times larger than a fist, the woman Elsa let out an aroused sigh of admiration. The next instant was so crucial to the outcome of this battle that even blinking would have been fatal. As Garfiel's attack lacked any openings, much like the wall he was wielding, instead of trying to fall back, Elsa opted to press forward. With superhuman agility, she minimized the damage she sustained as her black blade flitted toward his neck. A blow with the force of a gale sent Elsa flying back. However, she was certain that in the exchange, her blade had reached  \"Marvelous.\" \"Praase frmm you dnnt mke me hppy, dmmnit!\" Elsa murmured in wonder as she remained crouched, one hand on the floor. It took only one look to realize that Garfiel had caught her kukri with his fangs. He shattered the arrested blade with one bite and spat out what was left.  From the first exchange, he knew this woman was someone he couldn't afford to be careless with. Faced with an opponent so powerful that normal methods were useless, Garfiel glanced over his shoulder and behind him. There, standing stiffly while observing the clash between the pair, was a woman with jade eyes Frederica. \"Hey, Sis. What are ya doin', just starin' at me like that?\" \"Eh? Ah, well, I had not intended on...\" \"Sorry, but it really don't look like I'm gonna have time to show off. The general put me in charge of keepin' you safe, so please.\" Garfiel chomped his fangs as he called to his hesitant sister. However, Frederica's reactions were dull, and her legs remained motionless, though it was no fault of hers. The battle between Garfiel and Elsa had reached a level that left Frederica unable to intervene. Assistance was out of the question; simply moving required courage. That being the case  \"It's time to show what a good little brother I am!\" \"Garf?!\" Seeing Frederica hadn't moved, Garfiel decided to act first. When he ferociously leaped toward his foe, Elsa smiled charmingly, already knowing what he intended to do. \"Thinking of your sister at a time like this? What a kind boy.\" As she spoke, the killer parried a bestial claw with her knife and leaped backward, clearing a great distance. Garfiel followed after her, shifting the battlefield to somewhere deeper in the mansion. This cleared the path to the Sleeping Princess Rem. If Frederica took Rem with her and left while her brother kept the enemy occupied, then there was nothing to fear. \"Garf!\" As he rained a flurry of punches, a clear, unwavering voice called out to him from behind. There was no time to look back, but his sister had only one thing to say to her little brother, whose back had grown far wider than the one in her memories  \"I believe in you!\" It was a reunion of mere minutes after ten years apart. But it was enough. She trusted in her little brother's strength, and he was determined to live up to his older sister's expectations that was all they needed. \"Damn right you do!!!\" His strength surged as a fire roared to life in his belly. Elsa twisted her body to dodge a swing of his bestial claws, but she was too slow. Garfiel snagged her black braid and slammed her into a wall before proceeding to race down the corridor with her. \"Ooooaaaaahhh!!!\" Roaring, Garfiel charged straight into the mansion, with Elsa still pinned against the wall. Dust and debris flew from the wall as it broke, leaving her unable to resist the heavy impacts. All he had to do now was snap her neck, cave in her skull, and grind her against the wall until she was reduced to paste. Then he'd regroup with his friends and  \"Letting your mind wander in the middle of our dance? What a naughty boy.\" Faster than his mind could think, he miraculously flinched away out of sheer instinct. A moment later, what should've been a direct hit grazed his left ear instead. Now off-balance, Garfiel completely lost his footing in fact, the floor itself was missing. He fell right through the gaping hole that Elsa's swing had produced. The slicing attacks kept coming even as he entered a free fall. Garfiel relied purely on intuition to deflect them with the shields strapped to both his arms defense, defense, defense. Ultimately, he couldn't intercept every strike. Blood flowed freely from fresh wounds that appeared all over him. The moment he made contact with the floor below, Garfiel rolled away to escape the zone of death. He rose from the carpet on all fours while glaring straight ahead. A white cloud of dust parted to reveal his opponent, as though she stood atop a moonlit stage. The beautiful assassin smiled, gripping her kukri with both hands. Her upper body"}, {"text": "was smeared with blood. \"...Looks like Sis is on her way. The rest is up to the general.\" Sensing the presence still on the floor above had already set off, Garfiel sighed in relief at the completion of his first objective. According to Subaru's plan, the remaining objectives were... ...Wait, what were they again? \"Awww, crap. I can't remember... Oh well.\" No doubt there was a backup plan in case Garfiel didn't win a plan for keeping everyone alive as they sought shelter in the Sanctuary. That didn't matter, though. It was fine even if he forgot. As long as he won, there was no need to remember that plan. With that final thought, he slammed both his shields together in front of him. Garfiel steeled himself with the clamor of metal scraping against metal. Elsa licked her lips at the sight. \" Elsa Gramhilde, the Bowel Hunter.\" \"Garfiel Tinzel, the Sanctuary's Ultra-strong Shield.\" The assassin's bloodred smile melted into the darkness right as she started freely bounding in all directions, awaiting his pursuit. Just before they collided, Garfiel crinkled his nose, bared his fangs, and howled: \"This is one hell of a first battle, General, so ya better hold up your end!\" 3 Just how many times had he visited this oh-so-familiar room to meet her like this? The first time they'd met was in the evening of the day Subaru had first arrived at Roswaal Manor. He had no trouble breaking through the illusion she'd cast on the hallway with ease, setting foot into this very same archive of forbidden books. There was little doubt that both of them had made the worst impressions imaginable during their first encounter. After she robbed his still-recovering body of mana, Subaru went down without even putting up a fight. Burning with the need for revenge, he later went on to prod and annoy her at every opportunity, continuously interfering with her alone time. He spent two months at Roswaal Manor like this. During that time, Subaru and the girl Beatrice argued and fought on numerous occasions, getting along rather childishly. When they saw each other, a commotion was bound to occur. Yet, curiously, their likes and tastes matched in the strangest and most unexpected of ways. Why? Somehow, it constantly bothered Subaru that she seemed alone. Even now, he thought of those days and the time they'd spent together as something irreplaceable that bonded them together. Subaru had returned to see Beatrice once more, and this time, he would never, ever let go of her again. \"You want to take Betty away from this place...?\" Bewildered, Beatrice repeated the declaration Subaru had made upon entering the room. Still seated on the stool in its customary position, she hugged the black book to her chest all the tighter. She clutched the book of knowledge entrusted to her by her mother, its pages of prophecy blank. \"Is that...any of your business, I wonder? No one asked you...to do such a thing.\" \"I figured you'd say that, but I don't have time for a long debate. I'm bringing you out of here with me one way or another.\" \"What a self-serving... Would you leave this instant, I wonder? Leave and have a good cry on that girl's lap.\" \"You trying to start a fight...?! You keep that up, and it's gonna be war...!!\" Subaru's lips trembled in shame as she brought up memories of him making a fool of himself. If anything, Emilia's lap pillows were an enormous blessing, but he couldn't rely on her at the moment. Emilia was currently giving her all in the Sanctuary. It was Subaru's job to do the same at the mansion. \"Anyway, there's no time for chitchat. You know what's going on outside, don't you?\" \"...I understand there are intruders in the mansion, I suppose. Still, why should Betty get involved in this dispute? Anyone who wishes to scuffle in the dirt should do as they please.\" \"Unfortunately, the situation isn't friendly enough to be called a scuffle. I left the fight against Tough Enemy Number One to a promising newcomer, but...he's too much of a softy.\" Shaking his head at Beatrice's words, Subaru racked his brain as he mulled over how their allies had been deployed throughout the estate. The greatest asset they had Garfiel was almost certainly already engaging the main threat Elsa. Both possessed superhuman strength, so they could be considered evenly matched or at least, Subaru hoped so. He couldn't be certain. It was less that Garfiel was too soft and more that he was incredibly kindhearted. That was the proper way to express it. Subaru and company had strategically relied on that kindness to defeat him during their confrontation at the Sanctuary. How his deeply emotional personality would influence the current combat situation at the manor was anyone's guess. Subaru couldn't dismiss the possibility that Garfiel would, instead of pitying his opponent, be so concerned for his allies that it'd end up dulling his claws and fangs. To get everyone in the mansion out safe and sound, Garfiel had to be in peak fighting condition to draw off their powerful foe. \"Basically, that means I have to eliminate any obstacles that get in the way of our Lethal Weapon so he can go all out. I've left Petra in Otto's hands, and I'm relying on Frederica to secure Rem, so...\" \"That leaves just you and Betty... Is that what you are trying to say, I wonder?\" \"Yep, that's pretty much it.\" If there was nothing holding him back, Garfiel could unleash his full power. That was why the top priority was getting Petra and the others out of the mansion first. He was sure Frederica would secure Rem and meet back up with everyone else in short order. \"And the last piece of the puzzle is me getting you out of here. If you don't wanna run hand in hand, I'll carry you in my arms or on my back, whatever you like. Just so we're clear, I'm not budging on this.\" \"Don't make me repeat myself. Is your help even necessary, I wonder?\" When Subaru tried to take one step closer, Beatrice refused him in a low voice. She swiveled her head about, as if meaning to address the room instead of Subaru. \"Betty is in control of the Great Spirit's archive of forbidden books, a place isolated from the fleeting outside world. No matter what menace lies beyond those doors, does it even matter, I wonder? Your concern is unnecessary.\" \"Nah, I can't let this slide. Your archive of forbidden books is awesome, all right. No argument there. But it's got a fatal flaw. More importantly, the other side knows exactly how to beat it.\" This critique of her Passage ability, the foundation of her confidence, made Beatrice raise her eyebrows with displeasure. Certainly, when it came to staying hidden, the archive of forbidden books offered countless advantages. However, Subaru had seen for himself on previous runs that these advantages were not absolute. \"Your Passage is only effective on closed doors. If someone opens all the doors in the mansion...\" The last one would lead straight into the archive of forbidden books without fail. In a prior run, Elsa had used that method to trespass upon the archive, attacking Beatrice in an attempt to take her life. The archive wasn't safe. He was doing his best to explain, but  \" Why does the enemy know of this weakness, I wonder?\" Beatrice's question made Subaru catch his breath. \"Roswaal told them...that must be how they know.\" She'd arrived at the conclusion so quickly that Subaru had no chance to offer up any excuse. He could only gaze in astonishment as Beatrice's certainty deepened. The assailants had come to the mansion on Roswaal's instructions, and it was necessary to defeat Beatrice's Passage in order to achieve their goals. Roswaal must have had a reason for why that had to come to pass. In other words  \"Is Betty's death recorded in Roswaal's book of knowledge, I wonder?\" After voicing that musing, Beatrice briefly let out a breath. Phew. Like a spontaneous sigh of relief. The sight sent Subaru into a fit of rage. \"You...! What was that sigh just now...? Why do you look like you're okay with all this?!\" \"...If you have come this far, surely you understand. Roswaal is simply upholding what is written in the book of knowledge, I suppose. If this is the result, Betty's fate is already sealed.\" \"What the hell are you...? Roswaal's book is his, and your book is yours, right? Or are you telling me that book you're hugging says at some point he's going to have you killed?!\" Subaru jabbed a finger toward the book of knowledge, which Beatrice clutched as if hoping to shatter her resignation. The truth was that he already knew Beatrice's mystic tome was empty. Not once in four centuries' time had any prophecies of the future appeared within its pages. When Subaru shouted at her, Beatrice cast her gaze downward and slowly opened the book in her arms. Then she turned its contents toward him, revealing there was indeed nothing written inside. \"There isn't anything in here, I suppose. Betty's fate is a blank page.\" \"Then that means you don't have any reason to let Roswaal have his way! You should decide what you wanna do for yourself the way you always have!\" \"...The way I always have?\" Beatrice's eyes went wide, blinking as she softly repeated those words. Her voice, sounding as if it was devoid of all emotion, left Subaru speechless. However, those blue eyes of hers glinted with something unmistakable a cavernous sorrow. \"Just what did Betty decide on for herself in all those days?\" As she murmured, Beatrice meticulously turned the pages of the tome with her slender fingers, as if she thought those pristine pages represented the sum total of the long years she had spent blank and empty. \"I have continued to protect this mansion, all alone, because Mother asked me to... When did I ever make a choice of my own? Who is this Beatrice you speak of, and what has she done for herself?\" \"...Beatrice...\" \"Is Betty's life not as barren as this book, I wonder? Is it not as empty? I have decided nothing for myself. No accomplishments or achievements... I have nothing at all...\" Softly, she closed the book of knowledge. Beatrice slowly stroked the front cover of the tome that bore no title. She caressed it gently, enviously. Then she quietly spoke again. \"Truly...it would have been better if Betty were simply a book.\" Unable to indulge in even fleeting fantasy, Beatrice confessed her sad, painful wish. If only she could be a doll without a heart, a storybook unshaken by the passage of time, then she wouldn't have to suffer. But she couldn't. And so she grieved. \"Sadly, Betty does have a heart. After waiting for so long that all hope and faith faded away, certain thoughts came unbidden. Were these fears and worries, I wonder? Many a night have I gathered my memories and clung to them, anxious that I might one day forget my mother's face or smile.\" Digging her nails into the book she clutched to her chest, Beatrice bit her lip as she glared at Subaru. \"There were times when I was afraid of being alone and desperately wanted to be with someone, anyone. But as the years went by, everyone eventually left Betty behind. They all said something incomprehensible about how it was for something so important... Mother left! And so did Roswaal! Even Ryuzu!\" Beatrice shouted, on the verge of tears as her face contorted. The names she shouted struck Subaru as he recalled everything he had learned about Beatrice back in the Sanctuary. In the short time the two girls spent together, she had undoubtedly formed a bond with Ryuzu Meyer, the girl who had become a sacrifice to protect the Sanctuary something that scarred Beatrice's heart to this day. \"Betty...the"}, {"text": "spirit Beatrice...has always been alone, destined to be left behind by everyone else... But now I can rest a tiny bit easier, I suppose.\" \"...Why? Why would you feel relieved that you might be killed by someone you know?\" \"The reason is obvious.\" Beatrice responded to Subaru's strained voice with a single nod. A fleeting smile came over her lips; it was one that showed a yearning for something that lay deep in the past. \"Even if it's only within Roswaal's book of knowledge, the fact that Betty has been recorded... Does that mean Mother has not forgotten about her daughter, I wonder?\" With a little smile, Beatrice spoke those words, as if they were some kind of salvation. The girl seemed happy, as if a death sentence written in the mystic tome left by her mother was exactly what she hoped for. As if she could find peace by dying at the hands of a man who belonged to the same household she had treated like family for centuries. After four hundred years of faithfully waiting and wishing, Beatrice was happy to finally fulfill her mother's wishes, even if it meant death. It was precisely because she'd insisted on following her mother's instructions with blind devotion that Beatrice couldn't do anything but accept her fate. She believed in Echidna the Witch like a martyr ready to sacrifice herself for the faith. This much was plain to see in the pure liberation that suffused her smile  \"Give it a rest already.\" That unsettling, intolerable smile made the fire in Subaru's chest burn all the hotter. The tragic happiness Beatrice felt after seemingly confirming her mother's love was a twisted thing. It was utter garbage. As if condemning her daughter to death could ever be considered a form of motherly love. \"...What do you...intend to do?\" Subaru was so consumed by righteous indignation that he had stepped forward without even noticing. The disconcerting expression on his face made Beatrice stiffen warily. \"Were you even listening, I wonder? What is it you plan to do? Does it need to be explained that whatever you intend, Betty shall show no mercy, I wonder? I have...already accepted my fate.\" \"What a load of bullcrap. You're just like Roswaal. You haven't changed a bit. Actually, you're a lot worse. At least Roswaal knows what he's doing. Why do you have to make everything more complicated, damn it?\" Boundless anger began welling up within him. When he thought about it, ever since he had become involved in the events surrounding the Sanctuary, Subaru had been wrestling with his wrath over and over. He had been angry with himself during the Trials; angry at the Witches, who toyed with him; angry at Garfiel, the stubborn kid who looked down on him; angry at Roswaal, the man who was trying to prove the frailty of Subaru's beliefs by doggedly adhering to what was preordained; and angry at Emilia, who refused to believe in not only Subaru's love but also herself. And now he was angry at fate itself after seeing Beatrice abandon all hope. \"Beatrice, you're an idiot. Dumb as rocks, that's for sure! It hurts just looking at you!!\" \"Wha...?!\" Subaru's sudden outburst of anger and the abrupt segue left Beatrice speechless. The irritation and confusion she felt prevented her from immediately raising her voice. Subaru took advantage of that bewilderment to pile on her even more. \"You had four hundred years to figure this out! Why is the only thing you ever came up with so extreme...?! Why'd you think of only one plan?! There are so many other things you could've done, damn it!!\" \"O-of course I thought about it! Betty tried checking if there was anything on these blank pages again and again...but nothing ever changed!\" \"That's why you're an idiot! What about trying to heat them to see if anything was written in invisible ink?! These days, no one falls for that trick anymore, even when it's a novelty New Year's card! Consider some more possibilities, would you?!\" The persistently blank pages of the tome had convinced Beatrice that her fate simply led to a dead end. But if that wasn't necessarily true... If there was another possibility, then  \"Like what if your mother messed up and gave you the wrong book by mistake?!\" \"Huh...?\" The latest theory Subaru proposed was so haphazard that Beatrice didn't even know how to respond. That surprise quickly gave way to anger as Beatrice's ire only grew. \"Do you intend to insult Mother, I wonder?! Mother would never make such a stupid mista \" \"Can you say for sure it absolutely couldn't happen? You don't have even the slightest doubt? Are you so certain the only possible explanation is that your mother deliberately handed her own daughter a book with nothing but blank pages?\" Subaru used fallacies and questionable logic to massage and obfuscate the truth. It was still a mystery to him what Echidna's true intentions had been when she gave Beatrice the book of knowledge. He wouldn't put it past the foul Witch to entrust someone with it just to mess with their head. But after hearing about the past of the Sanctuary from Ryuzu, he felt like the Echidna in that tale was different than the twisted person he met. The truth continued to elude him. That said, the truth wasn't important here. What he needed to do now was knock down the walls surrounding Beatrice's heart and say the magic words that would pull her toward him. \"Why...would you put it that way...?\" Overwhelmed by Subaru's force of will, Beatrice's voice wavered, her eyes losing focus. She firmly believed in her mother. The mother she loved and respected would never try to ensnare her on purpose. And yet, Beatrice stubbornly shook her head. When she weighed blind faith against love and respect, she chose blind faith. It was as if she wanted to continue clinging to her mother's words, which she never once doubted over the course of four hundred years. \"M-Mother surely would never make such a mistake. I-is that not obvious, I wonder? This is Mother we're talking about! Would you doubt your own mother's words?!\" \"Of course I would! The times I can trust her don't come along all that often! My mom's the same person who heard a report about a satellite falling into 'the atmosphere' and somehow thought it was 'Aichi Prefecture.' I stopped believing any news that came from her mouth after that! It'd be mega-embarrassing if I spread around something that stupid again!\" It was impossible to forget how he'd been mocked by his classmates and neighbors for taking that story seriously and sharing it with everyone. To top it all off, the original culprit herself forgot she had started the whole thing and even asked him, Why on earth did you tell people that? Ever since that series of events in his third year of primary school, Subaru had staunchly refused to blindly believe what either of his parents had to say about anything. In fact, he'd learned to doubt his father's words even earlier on in life. That was why Beatrice's unshakable faith in her mother as an infallible existence irked Subaru to no end. \"Even if I had twice as many fingers, I wouldn't be able to count on my hands how many times an argument between my dad and me ended with a fistfight, and that's in the span of less than twenty years. You've had twenty times that. You're telling me you never had doubts like that even once?\" \"I simply do not understand... What is it you want Betty to say, I wonder?! I cannot understand at all! Your desire, your objective... They make no sense! None at all!\" \"Fine. I'll say it straight so that even idiots like you and your mother can hear me loud and clear!\" As Beatrice started clutching at her head, Subaru drew near and grasped both her hands. From above, he brought his face close to Beatrice's, coming so close that he could feel the teary-eyed girl's breaths. \"Stop letting an empty book and a verbal promise you made four centuries ago control you. Beatrice, what you want to do is your choice.\" *** \"Four hundred years... Isn't that more than enough time to justify at least one rebellious phase?\" Because she loved her mother, Beatrice had stayed bound by loneliness and emptiness. Perhaps Echidna considered even her own daughter's mental anguish to be an exquisite delicacy. But what was left of a person's heart when they'd forgotten what it was like to want to cry, or even how? It made Subaru want to hurl from the bottom of his heart. With both her hands still in his grasp as she sat atop the stool, Beatrice averted her face from Subaru. Considering the height of the stool, her eyes were roughly at the same height as Subaru's. Beatrice cast her gaze downward, her lips trembling as she looked at the book on her lap. \"No matter what you say...a pact is a pact. And a pact is absolute... That's why...\" \"Big talk from a girl looking for a loophole in that same pact, ready to go straight to her death so long as that pact isn't broken in the process.\" Beatrice shied away from his piercing stare until his comment made her eyes shoot wide. It seemed he had hit the mark. After having her inner thoughts laid out so plainly, a shudder ran through her as she began to tear up. That was only natural. Subaru had heard those exact laments straight from Beatrice's own mouth once before. Now, across time and space, he'd make up for how helpless he felt and for everything he had been unable to convey. \"What you're saying is all messed up, Beatrice. Haven't you noticed the inconsistencies? There's no way you haven't. You got a good head on your shoulders.\" \"Would you...just be silent, I wonder...?\" \"No, I won't. You want to stop upholding the pact? That'd be fine by me. You're the one who hates keeping your promise so much that you literally want to die. No one would blame you for wanting to break it.\" \"I would blame myself! Why can you not seem to understand this?!\" \"You're the one who doesn't understand. If keeping that promise you made means dying, you should just break the promise and live. That's what I'd do; is it so weird I'd make that choice?\" Beatrice, who continued obsessing over the pact, looked at Subaru like he were some kind of monster beyond all comprehension. Subaru found it pretty baffling to be perceived that way. Of course he knew keeping your word was important. He'd been scolded by Emilia more than once for breaking his promises, and he'd learned that the hard way after enduring quite a few painful experiences. That's why even someone like him had taken to heart how important it was to not go back on a promise. Despite that, Subaru didn't feel any reluctance whatsoever in telling Beatrice to break hers. He'd already explained his reasoning. It didn't even merit a second thought. \"H-how can you be so impudent and devious, I wonder...?\" \"I know I'm the brazen sort, and I've reflected on how that's gotten me into trouble before. Still, I'll never budge on the important stuff.\" Subaru's answer would not change. From the beginning, the issue at hand was Beatrice's heart. She could not conceal her shock and confusion as he told her to ignore her pact. That much was expected. In this world, pacts bore enormous weight to the beings known as spirits. He was in love with a spirit mage himself, so Subaru was well aware of the gravity of the situation. He understood completely. And even so, Subaru told Beatrice to prioritize herself over the pact. \"I-if you were...the one I've been waiting for...then maybe...\" As Subaru continued to stand close"}, {"text": "by, Beatrice gazed at him, slowly shaking her head side to side. A single duty had remained entwined around Beatrice's heart, chaining her down for four hundred years even as the blank pages of her mother's keepsake whittled her heart away. This mission of hers was the greatest reason she had not relinquished the pact despite all her suffering. If she only completed this duty, Beatrice could finally be free. Accordingly, Beatrice peered into Subaru's black eyes, as if clinging to them, as if giving her heart to them. \"Would you...?\" As if out of breath, she exhaled slowly, seemingly trying to forgive herself... \"Would you...become That Person for Betty?\" This was tantamount to asking him to finally bring an end to Beatrice's four centuries of emptiness. He recalled Echidna's words. This was precisely the reply that the Witch of Greed desired. Given that there was no right answer as to who That Person was, would Beatrice eventually select one of her own accord? This was the question the Witch had entrusted to her daughter in order to satisfy her own curiosity, forcing Beatrice into four centuries of loneliness in the process. The question Beatrice just uttered was the fruit of all that time, the end result after four hundred excruciating years. *** Beatrice swallowed, awaiting his reply. Gazing straight back into the girl's eyes, Subaru answered loud and clear. \"You really are an idiot. There's no way in hell that I'd be this stupid person or whatever you've been waiting for.\" 4 Subaru slammed into the wall, swooning in agony as he crumpled from the impact. After he hit his side hard on a column in the hallway, he raised a soundless cry as he writhed around on the floor. \"Gaaaghhh... I I can't believe it...! That idiot... We were still in the middle of talking...!!\" Seeing the door slam shut right before his eyes, Subaru leaped toward it and tried to open it as fast as he could, but once he did, all he found on the other side was a simple guest room. Passage had already activated, and Subaru had been barred from the archive of forbidden books once more. The moment he forcefully announced his true feelings on the matter, Subaru had been locked out. \"I had more stuff to say... Damn that short-tempered toddler...!\" He'd chosen his words poorly. His chest ached as he recalled how the last expressions he'd seen Beatrice make were ones of sadness and anger. He hadn't told Beatrice everything he wanted to say to her yet. If he didn't find a way back into the archive of forbidden books right away  \" Mr. Natsuki?!\" A voice held Subaru in place just as he was about to run off in search of the archive. When he turned to check behind him, his eyes met those of someone peeking in his direction from the next room over. It was none other than Otto, who had accompanied Subaru to the mansion and should have been operating independently. And just like Otto, Petra was also sticking her head out to see what was going on. Subaru widened his eyes in surprise as realization dawned upon him. \"Damn it, you guys... Why are you still in the mansion?! You only needed to open the doors on the first floor, and the plan was to run as soon as that was taken care of, right?\" \"That is true, but unfortunately, a problem has arisen within the mansion...\" Though initially surprised by the unexpected reunion, Subaru's face went pale when Otto mentioned some trouble was afoot. Securing an escape route out of the mansion and using it to elude the enemy was the crux of their plan. Accordingly, Subaru had entrusted that duty to Otto. If he couldn't do it, no one could. If even Otto had deemed it too difficult, then there was no choice but to accept it was an impossible task. \"What happened? The short version, please.\" \"This is the work of the Beast Master you spoke of, I presume. The interior of the mansion is already filled with demon beasts.\" \"That must mean Meili's here, huh...but she already should've been accounted for.\" Otto's hushed report left deep creases in Subaru's brow. The two assailants Elsa the Bowel Hunter and Meili the Beast Master were basically sisters of slaughter. The danger Elsa posed was painfully obvious, but Meili's command over demon beasts was something that could not be taken lightly if they wanted to make it out of this encounter in one piece. So of course, he'd readied a countermeasure  \" But there are demon beasts the repel stones don't work on at all!!\" Even in the darkness, he could tell Petra's face was red as she shouted and beat Subaru's question to the punch. The girl was gripping a glowing blue crystal a phosphorescent stone for warding off demon beasts. This was what Subaru and the others had prepared to neutralize the Beast Master. \"Wait, seriously?! I was sure that if we had these demon-beast repel stones, they'd keep them away like during the Urugarum incident... Why isn't it working?!\" \"I don't know! Perhaps the ones that appeared here are exceptions, but at any rate, assuming these demon beasts have appeared throughout the entire manor, even reaching the marquis's room will be...\" Extremely difficult. Otto left this part unspoken as he finished explaining how the odds had abruptly turned against them. Then  *** Subaru felt an impact come from below his soles, instantly drawing his attention. He quickly noticed there was an odd warping underneath the red carpet covering the corridor floor. It bulged further, and then it burst. The tremors and deformation of the corridor had merely been a harbinger. The real show of destruction was occurring on the floor below, causing the entire west wing of the mansion to collapse, taking the corridor they were in along with it. The windows cracked, the wooden beams flew apart, and the whole mansion seemed to groan under the strain. As he lost his footing, Subaru found his body suddenly floating in midair. Reflexively, he reached out and yanked a tiny body toward him. As he fell toward the center of the hole, he tried to at least shield the small child pressed against his chest before they hit the ground. \" Make sure you don't let go!!\" When that thunderous voice rang in his eardrums amid all the destruction, Subaru did everything he could to obey. A moment later, he felt his body being pulled by the scruff of his neck. Then he was unceremoniously tossed to the ground, which made for an admittedly much softer landing. He felt his cheek brushing up against grass. When Subaru looked around, he saw he had rolled onto the green, open yard outside the mansion. \"J-just now, that was...\" \"Miss Frederica!\" When Subaru shook his head and looked up, Petra leaped out of his arms. Her gaze was focused on someone whose blond hair was beautifully flapping in the wind; it was none other than Frederica herself. Petra's eyes glimmered as the older maid elegantly brushed the young girl's hair back and gently wiped the grime off her cheek. \"Even if this is an emergency, please forgive my impropriety. Frederica Baumann has returned.\" \"Frederica!!\" Overcome with emotion, Petra threw herself toward Frederica, who smiled as she gently caught her adorable junior and held the girl close to her chest. Consequently, Otto, who Frederica had been supporting on her right side, was unceremoniously dumped onto the grass. \"Ow!! Wait a minute! I'm grateful you saved my life, but what is this rough handling?!\" \"I I am very sorry, Master Otto. She was simply higher on my list of priorities...\" \"Women and children, the elderly, men, and then Otto, huh?\" \"Have I been exiled from even the ranks of men?!\" Setting Otto's complaints aside, their group quickly confirmed they were all unharmed. Thanks to Frederica, everyone present had emerged from the manor safely. This was not limited to Subaru, Otto, and Petra, either. \"Master Subaru I have brought her here with me, as requested.\" Still holding Petra, Frederica turned around to show Subaru what she meant. There, firmly secured to her back with bedsheets, was a sleeping girl Rem. Instantly, Subaru's breath caught in his throat. But that initial stiffness almost immediately gave way to relief. \"You did... Thank you...for getting her out safe and sound. I mean it.\" \"It was the natural thing to do. More importantly, we have a pressing problem to deal with...\" Subaru brushed a finger against Rem's cheek as she continued to sleep. While he did that, he looked intently at Frederica to convey his thanks. Then he followed her gaze to the west wing of the mansion, which was spectacularly wrecked. The sheer extent of the damage made it seem like a giant truck had crashed right into the building. To be fair, that metaphor wasn't that much of an exaggeration. The only difference was that instead of a truck  \" What...is that?\" Otto stood up and brushed off his knees as he posed the question. It was something everyone present wondered, with the exception of the sleeping Rem. If Subaru had to guess... \"It looks like a really huge hippo to me.\" The creature they were staring at was enormous. The color and texture of its hide resembled a boulder, and the four limbs it boasted seemed as thick and stout as millstones. It had a dreadful, vile face, red eyes that brimmed with hostility, and a broken horn perched on the tip of its nose. Moreover, this demon beast had a tiny figure riding on its back. \"Huh. That's amazing. I'm kinda shocked our attack just now didn't take anybody out.\" Straddling the back of the enormous demon beast, the little girl waved her legs all about as she addressed them with an amused voice. The cruel, innocent ring to her words was familiar to Subaru and to Petra as well. She was clad in black clothing, while her deep-blue hair was tied up in a braid  \" Meili!\" \"Oh? None of you folks seems to be all that surprised. I'm just a little disappointed.\" When Subaru shouted her name, Meili drew her lips back, unhappy that she'd failed to surprise them with what was supposed to be her big reveal. Unfortunately, Subaru and company had no reason to humor her. \"You busting up the mansion like this is a way bigger deal! The hell you think you're doing?!\" \"Well, I couldn't find the maids who were our target. So I had Rock Piggie pitch in. And thanks to that, I ended up finding all of you, right?\" Meili touched a finger to her cheek, showing not a single shred of guilt as she sized up her prey. While it certainly had been the fastest way to draw them out, they would have all been annihilated if Frederica had not been there. \"But you really surprised me. I mean, this job should've been easy. Now everything's behind schedule.\" \"That so? If you're off schedule, you should report to your superior and await further instructions. If you use your own on-site judgment, there's no telling what huge and terrible problems might happen.\" \"Tee-hee-hee. Nooope. You can't trick me.\" Despite the alien encounter and being cornered by demon beasts, Subaru carried on an exceedingly normal-sounding exchange with Meili. Compared with Elsa, Meili was an improvement she didn't take potshots at his innards midconversation. But unsurprisingly, she was similarly immune to his attempts at persuasion. Even as they shared what seemed like a friendly chat, he could sense demon beasts gradually closing in on the yard. The group had successfully gotten out of the building, but it'd be a mistake to call it an escape. It had not changed the fact that they were surrounded by demon beasts if anything, their situation seemed far more precarious than before. \"I feel sorry for Elsa, but I'm going to take all the maids for myself. Ah, no need to worry. I'll"}, {"text": "be gentle to Petra. We are friends, after all.\" \"Y-yay, I'm so happy If we're friends, that means you'll let us go, right ?\" \"Tee-hee-hee. Of course we're friends. That's why we'll get along until the veeery end, right?\" \"Uh, Subaru, sorry, but I tried my best, and it still didn't work...\" Their ways of expressing friendship were simply too different. Petra bravely attempted to negotiate, but that ended in failure. Meili was still young, but she was already thoroughly versed in the ethos of a hired killer. Her moral values had already been deeply twisted. To her, evil and good were indistinguishable. They would not find any common ground. \"Master Subaru...\" \"Frederica? What are...? Whoa!\" Suddenly, before Subaru could come up with an escape plan, the older maid stood directly in front of him with Rem still on her back. Frederica did not respond to his call and instead undid the knots, freeing Rem. Subaru instantly moved to her to catch Rem's sleeping body before it fell. And then  \" I shall provide that girl, no, that assassin with the proper hospitality. During that time, all of you...\" \"M-Miss Frederica! Y-you mustn't!\" Petra clung to Frederica, who had boldly declared she would act as a rear guard for the party. Subaru had simply gone silent. Frederica gently turned her gaze toward the young maid, who refused to let go of her waist. \"Stop, Miss Frederica! This is exactly the same as before... We've only just met again, and...\" \"No, it's different now... After all, last time, I was resigned to death.\" *** \"So much has changed. After ten years, I have reunited with Garf...with my younger brother. And I have you, my unspeakably adorable junior. I have never been happier. And that's why I refuse to be defeated here.\" Frederica spoke to Petra while gently stroking her head. Seeing the will residing in those jade eyes from up close, Petra said no more. But surely, she understood these were not empty words to make her feel better. The woman she looked up to refused to compromise on what she believed in, and she was ready to see it through with force. Frederica was truly Garfiel's elder sister. \"Frederica! We'll head for Roswaal's room!\" \"Please do. I shall join you once I have given this girl a proper spanking.\" Subaru called out to her after securing Rem to his back. Offering a graceful reply in turn, Frederica readied herself for the imminent battle. Garfiel versus Elsa; Frederica versus Meili having the beast person siblings handle the sisters of subterfuge was probably the best outcome they could have hoped for. Now they just had to survive the attack. \"Otto! Take Petra!\" \"Loud and clear!\" Grasping the barked instruction, Otto set off running with Petra in tow. With Rem on his back, Subaru raced ahead of them, guiding them to the entrance into the mansion from the yard. \"Hey, hold on a...! Don't decide stuff on your own like that! Petraaaaa!\" \"Thbpttt!\" The sight of Subaru and company fleeing at full speed made Meili cry out from atop the demon beast. Though teary-eyed, Petra gave an immediate reply, sticking out her tongue tauntingly. With that, Subaru and the others fled into the mansion. Meili moved to pursue them, but  \" Dear guest, from here on, I will have to insist you remain with me and enjoy the Mathers family's hospitality!\" \"Gaaah! I'll make you regret this! Get her, Rock Piggie!!\" *** Looking down at Frederica, who was blocking her path, Meili puffed up her cheeks as her temper flared. Heeding the command of its master, the enormous, boulder-like demon beast issued a roar that echoed across the entire grounds. With a flutter of her skirt, Frederica's arms creaked as they transformed. \"Now, come closer. I'll be teaching you some harsh lessons today! Prepare yourself.\" 5 Splitting up from Frederica, Subaru and company made a beeline for the mansion's main wing, aiming for the topmost floor. \"Otto! Anything to worry about from behind?!\" \"Miss Frederica is managing somehow! However, we still have no good way to deal with demon beasts!\" As they raced down a corridor, Otto asserted the demon beasts were a pressing issue that remained unresolved. Subaru didn't have a new plan ready yet. What could they use against demon beasts that were immune to repel stones...? \"How about we use your blessing of language and your pro bargaining skills to negotiate with the demon beasts and convince them to let us escape? You'd get all the glory!\" \"Most demon beasts only go, Me swallow you whole. That does not constitute a conversation...\" \"This isn't the time for joking around!! If...if we don't do something fast, Miss Frederica will !\" Petra's desperate plea made Subaru and Otto cut the banter and focus their thoughts on coming up with a plan. At present, their goal was to reach Roswaal's study and the secret escape route leading outside, which was concealed behind a bookshelf in the room. That would allow them to circumvent the demon beasts surrounding the manor. However, it was inevitable that those monsters would impede them prior to their arrival  \"Mr. Natsuki! There's some black-winged mice in front!\" \"Whoa!\" While Subaru was deep in thought, some black shadows had flown toward him in the moonlit corridor and were already right before his eyes. These were demon beasts with round bodies, about the size of puppies, that resembled flying mice with black, bat-like wings. Two of the creatures, worthy of the name black-winged mice, aimed their sharp fangs at Subaru. \"Go away!!\" Petra raised the repel stone aloft, instantly driving off the black-winged mice. \"You saved my bacon, Petra! ...But this means the stone isn't completely ineffective, doesn't it?\" \"Against normal demon beasts, it works just fine! For the moment, it is ineffective only against a single demon beast. So long as that beast is not...\" \"Meaning that one is \" Special, he was about to say, but two things happened before he could the sound of an impact ringing out, followed by high-pitched death cries. From the back of the corridor, in the darkness where the moonlight did not reach, a monstrous claw flashed, drawing out screams and fresh blood simultaneously. The fearsome blow tore the wings off the black-winged mice, leaving them helplessly falling and rolling onto the carpet. Pitch-black blood coursed from their wounds as the two demon beasts convulsed. An enormous maw reached forward to snap up their bodies, chewing on them. The murderous sounds of snapping bones and bloody flesh being consumed reverberated across the corridor. Then he saw it. The creature had the head of a lion, a torso like that of a horse, a tail resembling a serpent, and a fearsome twisting horn protruding from its face a sovereign among demon beasts, with the entirety of its being embodying the word danger.  This was the demon beast that Subaru had once seen slay Petra. And its name was... \"Totally forgot it, but... So we meet again, you shitty demon beast...!\" *** As if responding to Subaru venting his rage, the black demon beast raised a roar that seemed to shake the entire mansion. Bathed in a sense of awe like being buffeted in blast winds, Subaru adjusted Rem upon his back and clenched his teeth. \"Otto! Give that bastard a taste of the repel sto \" \"No! It won't work, Subaru! That demon beast is a...\" Petra shook her head side to side, her face pale as she pleaded with Subaru. Her words brought him to a sudden realization. He'd already guessed what Otto was about to shout. \"A Giltirau! The repel stone will not work on it! The beast is our worst enemy right now!\" Instantly, the demon beast the Giltirau lowered its body, aimed itself toward the group...and charged. Its claws rent the carpet. Its roar made the very foundations tremble. With a snarling battle cry, it came barreling toward them.  With this, three battles had erupted simultaneously. The Battle of Roswaal Manor...had begun. CHAPTER 2 *** 1 \" Heeey, Lia. Don't wobble your head like that and sit still, would you?\" Before she opened her eyes, the first thing she heard was a soft, lovely voice. Slowly, as if guided by the voice, her consciousness floated to the surface. Her vision was hazy. In the span of several blinks, she realized she was sitting in a chair and this was her own house. It was their house, built from the hollow of a great tree in the forest. She was sitting in her own chair in the living room. \"Goodness, how long are you going to be such a spoiled little child? You're really incorrigible, you know.\" From so close that she could feel her breath, she heard a voice so gentle, it seemed to embrace her. It caused such a stirring in her chest that the girl Emilia hurriedly looked over. She immediately spotted a woman with short silver hair, a foul look in her eyes, and who, to Emilia, was the ideal woman. \"Mom...\" \"You turned so quickly, it surprised me... Did you doze off? Were you catching a nap while leaving me to do your hair...? We truly have a lazy Princess on our hands.\" As Emilia's eyes went wide, her mother Fortuna smiled with an air of exasperation. She did not understand why she felt so deeply moved by simply seeing the sharp eyes and soft expression of her mother. \"Mom...\" \"Mm? What's wrong? If something happened, you can tell me anything.\" \"You're really dressed up today, huh, Mom? It's really cute.\" \" ! Is that all? And here I was getting worried only for you to tease me.\" With just a hint of a blush, Fortuna flicked Emilia's forehead with a finger. Putting a hand on her forehead, Emilia went \"eh-heh-heh\" and grinned. Emilia was always proud of her mother, but she thought Fortuna looked especially beautiful that day. This was because she was actually wearing a skirt for once instead of her usual easy-to-move-in attire. Though her clothes had minimal adornment, the color-matched, fresh-looking outfit suited Fortuna very well. \"Oh, look at you. Even though you have such a cute face, it's quite a mess today... You really do seem like you're still half-asleep. I thought I sent you to wash your hair at the watering hole earlier. Did you just have a drink and come back?\" \"Hmph, Mom's making fun of me again. There isn't even the tiniest smidgen of carelessness in my whole body. Everyone else always says that I'm really well-behaved, too.\" \"Even though you still use such ridiculous phrases, I'm really worried other people are filling your head with silly ideas. I'd better have a little chat with Archi after this.\" The way she pressed her lips together seemed to indicate dissatisfaction, but the way Fortuna pressed a palm against her forehead clashed with that image. Her mother proceeded to move in front of the sullen Emilia and resumed doing her hair once more. She had long hair, silver just like Fortuna's. Her mother braided it up with practiced ease like she used magic. \"Okay, now it's all nice and beautiful. Go look in the mirror.\" \"Mm-hmm, thanks, Mom. The mirror...\" When Fortuna patted her on the shoulder, Emilia stood up with a big grin to do as she was told. The little girl proceeded to turn toward the full-length mirror but then she stopped. \"Emilia?\" Fortuna called out to her daughter with a questioning voice. But Emilia did not reply. For some reason, she could not approach the full-length mirror. Even she did not know the reason why. Her legs were cramped. As Emilia stewed in melancholy, salvation came to her from a different direction. She heard the sound of someone knocking on the door to their home. Lifting her head with a gasp, Emilia went, \"A guest!\" and whirled around, her legs hastily taking her in that direction. And then  \" Good morning to you, Lady Emilia. I am overjoyed that you came to greet me.\" When she opened the"}, {"text": "door in a fair bit of a hurry, Emilia's breath caught as the tall visitor on the other side greeted her. The man, with green hair and soft features, smiled at her. Seeing the tranquil benevolence residing in this individual's eyes, Emilia could not help but break into a broad smile. \"Geuse... G-good morning to you.\" \"Yes, it has been some time, Lady Emilia. I hope you will treat me kindly today.\" \"Today...?\" Hearing words of greeting from the visiting man Geuse made Emilia tilt her head in confusion. That curious reaction elicited an \"oh my\" from Geuse, who raised a curious eyebrow. \"Are you not aware? I had thought we had sent word beforehand...\" \"Geuse, don't take her seriously. Lia's just being a sleepyhead this morning.\" \"Grrr, I can't believe Mom's still saying stuff like that...\" Fortuna's exasperated voice made Emilia look over, but her words caught in her throat. Fortuna was not dressed like normal, and she was holding a basket clearly meant for going out and about. Emilia could faintly smell herb-grilled meat sandwiched between cuts of her mother's handmade bread. In other words  \" Ah! We're going to the lake?\" \"Why, this girl looks like she only just remembered even though she's the one who asked to go...\" \"Did I really? ...Maybe I did ask. If that's true, then I just get to be twice as happy.\" When she thought back on it, she felt like she had made a request just like that. And having forgotten it, the instant she remembered made her feel like she'd gotten to enjoy it two times over. \"...Geuse, what do you think of her?\" \"It is rather in character for Lady Emilia, I believe. She specializes in doubling her happiness. Perhaps we have a thing or two to learn from her.\" \"You spoiling her irresponsibly puts me in a bind, though. Goodness...it must be Sister's blood in her.\" Fortuna sighed as she touched a hand to her forehead. Then when she noticed Geuse training his gaze firmly upon her, she gave him a sharp look as if asking, What...? \"No, it would be better not to worsen your mood...\" \"We've known each other long enough. There's nothing you can say that will shake me now, Geuse.\" \"Then I shall speak the words. Lady Fortuna, your clothing choices this day are dazzling. I find myself rather enchanted by the sight of you.\" When Geuse spoke his mind with a guileless look on his face, Fortuna stiffened for a brief moment. *** Then Fortuna's face turned red. An instant later, with a powerful punch to his shoulder, she sent Geuse flying. Forgotten in the commotion, the basket was in danger of falling onto the floor, but Emilia caught it just in the nick of time. 2 \"Did I truly say something rude I should not have...?\" \"No, it's not that. Mom gets embarrassed really easily, so she couldn't help but blush when you said that to her, Geuse. Tee-hee, Mom's so cute.\" \"Don't go around making things up! Geuse is... He is a man wicked to the core.\" With the quarrel at home out of the way, the three amicably strolled along Fortuna marched ahead in a huff, with Emilia and Geuse walking side by side as they headed for the lake in the forest. The incident upon their departure had Fortuna in a mood, and Geuse had gotten worked up over that, but from Emilia's point of view, Fortuna wasn't really angry she was just shy. Emilia was a little aggravated that Geuse seemed to be the only one who wasn't picking up on that. But the relationship between Geuse and her mother was close, if a bit prickly, and certainly a happy one. \"Oh my, Lady Fortuna.\" \"And Emilia and Geuse, too.\" \"Good to see parent and child getting along.\" The housewives living close by commented and called out as they watched the trio heading down the path toward the lake. Before Fortuna could whip out a snappy retort, Geuse said, \"You are obviously very loved,\" and the happy smile on his face made Fortuna swallow her words. \"...I I suppose,\" was the only reply she could muster. Then as Fortuna inconspicuously matched her walking pace with Emilia and Geuse, Emilia quietly waved back to the housewives, whereupon the wives smiled with mischievous looks on their faces. They walked in that manner for a while until the forest abruptly fell away and their destination, the lake, came into view. \"As usual, the air here is very refreshing. I feel like I'm in a better mood already.\" \"That is because you are always carrying such weighty burdens, Lady Fortuna. You must stretch your wings once in a while. By all means, allow me to aid you in doing so.\" Fortuna put her things down on the lakeshore and made a little stretch as Geuse expressed his consideration for her. When he busily set aside a place for them to sit and made preparations for the picnic, Fortuna narrowed her eyes; then, as she gazed upon the scenery, she called out to Emilia. \"Today, I'm being treated not as the leader of my people but as an old little girl. I can't relax like this. Hey, Emilia, say something, would...?\" *** \"Emilia? What's wrong?\" Fortuna extended a hand toward her beloved daughter, who was immobile as she stared intently, pouring her gaze into the scenery at the edge of the lake. \"You've been really odd this morning. If you don't feel well, we can go home and...\" Then, just as she offered a voice of concern... *** ...Emilia's tummy made a cute sound as it pleaded in hunger. Instantly, the concern on Fortuna's face crumbled. All she could do was heave a deep sigh. \"Mom, I'm really hungry...\" \"It's obvious even if you didn't tell me and didn't show me such a tragic face. Goodness, you make people worry only for it to turn out like this. You truly are a child who keeps other people busy.\" As the corners of her eyes fell with relief, Fortuna flicked Emilia's forehead, then pulled her close against her own chest. She did not crouch for this; Emilia was simply leaning forward they were, after all, roughly the same height. \"The two of you always get along so well. Watching it up close is truly enough to put a smile on my face.\" \"...Want to join in, Geuse?\" \"Don't say stupid things. Geuse, go ahead and open the basket. It's a little early, but we shall have our meal, for our Princess demands it.\" With that declaration, Fortuna kept holding Emilia close as they walked over to join Geuse. The basket's contents were spread atop a flat, grassy spot. Her mother was good at cooking over a fire, and this was her specialty. Food grilled with herbs was one of Emilia's favorites, as well as  \"I am always humbled that you would share this with me... The flavor is simply irresistible.\" With a munch, munch and a happy-looking face, Geuse stuffed his cheeks full of grilled-herb food. Fortuna's cooking specialty was nothing short of a feast to him, so it was guaranteed this was what they would have every time the trio went out for a picnic. It was undeniable. Something was...stirring in her chest. \"Geuse, if you love Mom's cooking so much, you should just...live in the forest with us.\" Emilia pushed that feeling back down and raised the possibility of a life together for the intimate couple. Instantly, Fortuna's face reddened. \"E-Emilia...!\" she cried. \"D-don't say such thoughtless things. It's very hard for Geuse, too. He has to thread his way through a busy schedule just to poke his head over here at all...\" \"I am greatly pleased to hear you say this, Lady Emilia. Were it only possible. I, too, desire this from the bottom of my heart.\" The nervousness on her mother's face was in stark contrast to Geuse's calm demeanor. But the echo of Geuse's words were it only possible  left Emilia dissatisfied. \"If you want to do it, then just do it, not because it's 'possible.' If neither of you has a problem with it... Besides, no one's going to get in the way... Or am I in the way?\" \"Not at all.\" \"That is not so.\" She voiced the concern that her being there was the reason the amiable pair could not be with each other. And since Fortuna and Geuse both denied it was so, she blurted out her next words without thinking. \"You two sure get along really nicely.\" \"Oh, there you go again... Geuse, say something, would you?\" \"Yes, you mustn't, Lady Emilia. Lady Fortuna is someone with a very important duty. If one such as myself remains for too long, ill rumors shall arise and cause her trouble.\" \"Rumors of Mom and Geuse...? I feel like it's too late to stop those...\" Geuse's poor defense made Emilia put a finger to her lips as she replied. Geuse looked like he had no idea to what she was referring. \"I mean...,\" went Emilia as she continued. \"The aunties near home said we look like a happy family that gets along really well.\" \" ! I was quite certain this was referring to Lady Emilia and Lady Fortuna only...\" \"I expect nothing less from you, Geuse... But Mom understands, right?\" *** Emilia's assertion made Fortuna avert her eyes with a red face. Even Emilia could see right through her mother. Surely, Geuse felt the exact same way. \"I think it's a really good idea. I do. So both of you think about it, okay?\" *** \"No one in the forest, including me, thinks there's anything weird about it. And I absolutely won't stand for it if anyone says anything bad!\" With some half-eaten grilled-herb food in hand, Emilia realized she'd become rather worked up about this. Even so, she'd wanted to say it; she had to say it. She didn't want Fortuna and Geuse to be afraid of being happy together she wanted them to be happy. Stuffing her cheeks with the remaining half of the grilled-herb food, she chewed it down, swallowed, brushed her knees, and stood up. \"I've said what I wanted to say. I leave everything else to the young couple. Go right ahead.\" \"Emilia, truly, where did you learn of such things?\" When Emilia spoke those words with her hands on her hips, Fortuna wore her familiar exasperated look. However, that expression immediately fell away, changing into a smile she could not hold back. \"Tee-hee, ah-ha-ha. Oh, Emilia... Truly, you are a really cute girl.\" \"Ha-ha, Lady Emilia has... I see, she has grown up sound and well. Truly, a joyful thing.\" \"Well, of course she has. She's my daughter, my pride and joy. It goes without saying.\" \"Yes, so I see.\" Watching the two laughing and looking at each other's smiling faces filled Emilia's chest with a palpable sense of warmth. From the bottom of her heart, she wanted to gaze at the scene for a long time, immersing herself in it.  Probably because there was no greater happiness than this. \"...Emilia?\" When Fortuna suddenly called out to her, Emilia hurriedly covered her face with her hands. She belatedly realized she'd spontaneously broken into tears. \"Aa,\" came her voice as she desperately tried to hold them back. \"I might've gotten a speck of dust in my eye. A really big speck of dust.\" \"That big? Are you all right?\" \"I-I'm fine. I'm in completely tip-top shape. As much as that rock over there.\" \"That enormous boulder?! Are you truly all right?!\" \"I said I'm fine!!\" Responding to the concerned pair, Emilia rubbed her eyes as she turned to face the lake. \"I'm going to wash my eyes out a bit. After, I think I'll go around the lake once.\" \"Make sure you don't drop your eyeballs by mistake. They're such a pretty color... Pretty violet eyes, just like Brother's.\" \"Well, Mom's eyes are just as pretty.\" Perhaps Fortuna never considered"}, {"text": "that, for Emilia's reply took her completely by surprise. Seeing that the unusual side of hers made Geuse laugh, Emilia laughed as well. She kept laughing as she advanced toward the lake. Then she glanced back, looking at Fortuna and Geuse. \"Get along nicely and wait, okay? And always, always reaaaaally get along.\" \"Yes, yes, you worrywart. But don't make us wait too long. That would put me in a serious bind.\" \"No, there is no need to hurry. Take your time. We shall wait for as long as is required, Lady Emilia.\" With the smiling pair With her parents seeing her off, Emilia took a deep breath. Then, unable to hold it in any longer, she turned around, looked straight at the two of them, and parted her lips once more. \" I love you both.\" 3  From a plateau with a view of the entire lake, Emilia stood, gently caressed by the wind. *** She was closely watching the intimate couple on the distant shore at the other end of the lake with her violet eyes, which her mother always praised so much. Geuse said something without realizing the impact of his words; Fortuna went red in the face as she refuted him. Emilia pursed her lips as she watched the lightly amusing scenes. And then  \"Emilia, isn't it dangerous for you to be here all by yourself?\"  hearing a familiar voice call out to her from behind, Emilia looked back. She was standing atop a sheer cliff with the lake spread out below it. Facing her was a handsome young man with golden hair and green eyes Archi Elior, one of the elves living with them in the Great Elior Forest and, to Emilia, practically her own brother. \"Archi...\" \" Somehow, your voice and face seem different, Emilia. Did you leave your usual head-in-the-clouds-ness off by the wayside? You're starting to worry me.\" \"Hmph. That's a terrible thing to say. Stupid Archi. I don't know you. Go away.\" \"Sorry, sorry. If you're seriously worried about something, then I'll seriously hear you out, all right?\" Faced with Emilia's sullenness, Archi flashed a pained smile as he raised both hands in surrender and walked in her direction. Then he stood alongside Emilia upon the cliff. \"What's wrong?\" he asked, tilting his head. \"Today Lord Archbishop was supposed to come to the forest, yes? Weren't you with...? Ahhh, isn't that him over there? Er, did you give them some time alone, by any chance?\" \"...Mm, that's right. What do you think of them, Archi?\" \"I think they're a good match. Everyone in the forest thinks so, too. Lady Fortuna is so strict with herself, even though we would prefer it if she thought of her own happiness more...\" As he shared those thoughts, Archi reeled in shock, for he had caught sight of Emilia's wet eyes and the tears ready to spill out from them. \"Ah, um, Emilia, it's not... It's all right! Even if Lady Fortuna and Lord Archbishop were joined together, they would never forsake you!\" \"...It's not that, stupid.\" \"Not that, huh...? Ahhh, then, er, how about this? Certainly, it might be difficult right now, and I do not know how many years must pass in the meantime, but someday, both of them will \" \" Time.\" As Archi hurriedly tried to comfort her, Emilia lifted her head, lips quivering. If they'd had time, the distance between Fortuna and Geuse would have narrowed. To be blunt, the current speed of progress seemed no faster than a snail's pace, but eventually, the day would surely come when they would be together. When that day came, everyone in the forest would celebrate. Of course, Emilia would celebrate most of all, and if possible, she wanted not only the people of the forest but the people of the entire world to celebrate the couple. That would be a world of peace, of tranquility, of freedom in all things, where everyone could smile together  \" But that world doesn't exist.\" Lowering her eyes rimmed with long eyelashes, Emilia touched her hair ornament as she murmured the floral hair ornament she had inherited from her mother, of which two should not exist in that world. Her mother, all dressed up and waiting for her on the lakeshore, wore the very same hair ornament. In other words, this was a place apart from the forest that had already met its snowy end, an unknowable, idealized future  \"...Looking at this unknowable present, have you not thought, I want to live here?\" \"Archi...\" \"Here, I, Lady Fortuna, Lord Archbishop, and everyone else are living safe and sound. No tragedy will ever befall this place. It is a happy world. Emilia, you could have a good life here, too, free of worry and hurt.\" To Emilia, who had realized this was a false world, Archi raised a gentle plea for her not to make such a sad face. That he found nothing suspect with his own theory was proof itself that this world was a sham. It would have been a lie to claim his plea, Archi's plea, didn't sway her heart. \"Surely, you want the two of them to be happy. Surely, you want to live here to see it. After all, this is your ideal present...the future you yourself desired.\" \"The future that I... Yes, I think you're right. I'm sure you are.\" She wanted Fortuna to be happy. She wanted Geuse to make her mother happy. If only everyone in the forest could smile together, if only she could get along nicely with Archi, to always be in such a world of happiness.  If only she could pretend not to know, to somehow forget her mother's tragic demise and Geuse's unspeakable grief. \"Lady Fortuna has already passed away. Lord Archbishop's well-being or lack thereof is unknown. Everyone in the forest has been turned to statues of ice.\" \"...Yeah.\" \"Our homeland has been frozen over, blocked off to all outsiders, and now you have even parted ways with the spirit who was like family to you.\" *** Emilia closed her eyes as she digested the words Archi was speaking to her. It would have been easier for her if that voice reproached her. It would have been easier if it had blamed her for her errors in judgment, berating her for her poor thinking, to insult her for her shameful lack of gratitude but Archi had puffed out his chest and said he would do no such thing. What infused his voice was not anger. Instead  \"Even though you could be happy here... Even though you wanted this world... You poor thing...\"  all he wanted was for Emilia to be happy, to be at peace. It was exactly as he'd said. This was a world that existed for no reason other than to make Emilia happy... \"...Sorry, Archi.\" \" Why do you desire a future that will hurt you so much?\" \"I don't want to be hurt. I'm searching for a future where I don't have to be hurt, where I don't have to run, hide, or push things away, where I can hold hands with others.\" \"And the wounds you suffer? The pain? What you have lost will never return. Will you search for such a thing even so?\" *** Even Emilia had thought of what it would be like to have no one think of her as detestable. Many times over, she'd wanted to cast all the pain and suffering by the wayside. The earnestness in Archi's words gently and deeply touched upon scars that covered Emilia's weak heart. \"...I want people to think I look cool.\" \"Emilia?\" Doubt crept into his voice. Archi seemed like he did not believe his own ears. Emilia lifted her head, staring straight at her kin, at the man who was practically a brother to her, and spoke with the determination she felt. \"I want to be like Mom, who I look up to so much. I want to be gentle and strong, like Geuse. I want to be like Granny Tanse and the others, who were never mean to me even once. I want to be like Archi, who smiled to the very, very end so that I wouldn't get scared.\" *** \"I want to be like Puck, who kept protecting me so I wouldn't be alone. I want to be like Ram, who wants to work harder than anyone else for the person she holds dearest. I want to be like Otto, doing his utmost for the sake of his friend. I want to be like Garfiel, who refuses to speak one timid word or complaint.\" \"Emilia...\" \"And I want to be like Subaru, who suffers and gets all beat up, who's always reckless who told me he loves me.\" Emilia was weak and pathetic and always failing, but even so, she wanted to do everything she could for the people she wanted to be with for the people inside and outside the forest, for those who once walked alongside her and for those who would stand by her from now on. \"I want those people to think I look cool. I want to reach my hand out to the others the way so many people assured me that things would be all right.\" It was time for the girl who had always been saved by others to start saving them. The boy who always endured so much for Emilia's sake had put his trust in her, promising that everything would turn out all right in the end.  That was why Emilia would live in the outside world. \"I'm all right. I'm not afraid of the outside world. I'm not afraid of the future.\" *** \"Thank you for worrying about me. I'm...all right, Big Brother.\" Being called that made Archi open his eyes wide. Emilia smiled, seeing his surprised face. She'd always thought of him as a brother, but shyness and her defiant heart had kept her from calling him that even once. But now there was no reason to be embarrassed by those sunny feelings. She could boldly say what she had always felt. In Emilia's forest homeland, she had a mother, a father, and an older brother she had a family. \" You...\" Faced with Emilia's charming smile, Archi kept trying to say something. But the flood of complicated and mystifying emotions within him dissipated without taking any definite shape. After all  \"Emilia, you're so stubborn. Once you've decided on something, you never listen to anyone. I wonder if you have any idea how hard that was on Lady Fortuna and the rest of us?\" \"Wahhh... I'm really sorry about that.\" \"It's fine. I mean...\" Then Archi's words trailed off as he smiled. His face contained not worry but a beaming smile. \"It's an older brother's place to indulge his little sister's selfish ways.\" *** The way he spoke with a smile on his face made Emilia truly feel the depth of his love. Just how many times had she been protected, and just how much love and tranquility had she received? \"Thank you, Big Brother.\" All of Emilia's and Archi's feelings were encapsulated in the smiles they exchanged. Then she turned her back to him, standing atop the cliff once more. From that vantage point, she could see Fortuna and Geuse in the distance, as well as the surface of the lake immediately beneath her. *** Suddenly, the two noticed Emilia in the distance and waved to her. She waved back. Burning the sight of them happily together into her eyes, her mind, her soul, and her memories, she left it all behind. \" Thank you for showing me this world, Echidna.\" She was speaking to Archi, standing behind No, this was not Archi. She spoke to Echidna the Witch. *** Including Archi, who was aware of far too many details that he should've never known, this entire world was an illusory space to begin with. Remembering the Trial, Emilia understood this was not reality. Perhaps the mother, father, older brother, and everyone else she saw here"}, {"text": "were all nothing but fabrications. Even if that was true, Emilia still felt gratitude in her chest. \"Maybe this is a world that could never exist, but I never thought I'd see the day that Mom and Geuse...that Mom and Dad could be together like this, smiling side by side. So thank you.\" It scared her to acknowledge this as an unreal, fleeting dream. However, even if it was a world that would never come to pass, Emilia had gotten a chance to see the happiness that had been possible. In this world, she had felt joy, love, and a happy sadness that sent shivers through her whole body. She was glad from the bottom of her heart that she got the opportunity to bear witness to everything she had seen here. \"...You...\" Responding to Emilia's words of thanks, Archi No, the voice was feminine; it was the voice of the Witch. Emilia's memory of being hated by her during the course of the first Trial was still fresh. She'd half given up on hearing her voice in that world, let alone seeing her face. But there, the Witch appeared in that transient world at the very, very end, and her voice trembled. \"Echidna...?\" Turning around, Emilia faced the Witch head-on. That same moment, Emilia wished she hadn't. When she turned around, there stood Echidna, her expression so raw, it made Emilia regret seeing it.  For Echidna was simply standing there, staring at Emilia with a face ready to break into tears. \"I hate you I just...hate you.\" *** Emilia didn't comment on the hesitation she detected in the words Echidna wrung out. Then, right before Emilia's eyes, Echidna's body became hazy. Like a ripple moving along the water's surface, her existence became distorted, and the Witch's form seemed to melt as she retreated from the world of illusion. There was nothing left behind. With the one who had supposedly been Archi gone, wind and time began to flow once more. \"Echidna...\" Having instilled such bitterness that she had wanted to say nothing, Emilia clenched her own chest with her hand. From there, she put her breathing in order; then she turned back toward the cliff one more time, peering into the water below. She saw her reflection on the distant surface of the clear, shallow lake. Her heartbeats grew stronger, faster. Simultaneously, she instinctively understood how to bring the second Trial to an end. *** Between this world and the one she really belonged to, what part was different yet the same? The only answer was Emilia herself. She was the only foreign element in either world. The way to end the Trial was for Emilia to find herself and seek out a way to acknowledge, accept, and understand that self. Her memories of the past ended when her homeland froze over and she fell into a deep slumber. Until the present day, over a century had passed and in all that time, Emilia had never once set eyes upon her grown-up self. The reason was simple. She was simply...afraid. She was too afraid to look. When she awoke, the aging her body had undergone conflicted with the memories she had lost. Her clumsy, unfamiliar body terrified her immature heart, and the way the people living close to the forest treated her drove that fear deeper still. Her features inevitably drew comparisons to the Witch of Jealousy, and Emilia spent that time in misfortune. This made people uneasy, so they persecuted her, causing her to harbor even greater fear than before. She deliberately avoided mirrors, and she'd trained herself to not even look at the reflective surface of water.  As part of her contract with Puck, he picked how Emilia would groom herself each day. Normally, he hid everything under his aloof, frivolous demeanor, but this, too, was actually all to protect Emilia's fragile heart from reopening old wounds. \"Truly, just how much have people been protecting me...?\" How much had she failed to notice while she'd been sulking all on her own? The time she'd spent ignoring the love others gave her had finally come to an end. *** With resolve in her heart, Emilia closed her eyes, and moments later, her feet left the ground. In an instant, gravity dragged her floating body downward, pulling her into a fall upside down. The rushing wind entwined her long silver hair around her body. Her figure was perfectly straight as she plunged headfirst hurtling toward the water below. She felt goose bumps on her skin. Sensing the surface of the water was close by, Emilia opened her eyes. It was just in time for her to drink in the sight of the silver-haired, violet-eyed girl reflected by the clear lake's surface. It was as if she was resolved to greet the end of the world head-on. Then, quietly, she widened her eyes further. \" Huh.\" A disappointed voice trickled out. Her face reflected in the water, the face of the little girl who had grown so big, drew nearer and nearer with every passing moment. Emilia let out a soft sigh and muttered. \"That's too bad. I look less like Mom than I thought...\" An instant after that sulky murmur, Emilia crashed into the watery mirror. She would never let go of the happiness she found. However, the world of dreams from which she had to depart had finally come to an end... 4  Neither the cold nor the impact of breaking the water's surface receded when Emilia's mind returned to reality. When she came to, the first thing she saw was the small, cold room in the dimly lit tomb. Lying upon her side, Emilia blinked again and again, thinking back to the Trial that had ended a moment before. Perhaps it had been an illusion. The scene was one that could have existed, and that fact made her chest throb. \"My feelings for Mom, for Dad...for Big Brother and everyone else I hold dear those haven't changed.\" If anything, her feelings for them had only deepened and grown stronger. She kept these emotions stored away in her heart, and she would carry them with her forevermore. Her resolve had crystallized. Both of Echidna's Trials had given her something precious. The words of thanks she offered the Witch were not false in any way. \"...With this, the second Trial is over. That's good, right?\" As she rose to her feet, Emilia set aside her questions about Echidna's final actions for later. There was a tangible sense of accomplishment, and judging from the look of the Witch as she departed, it was no mistake to think the second Trial had indeed ended. She had not so much overcome it as she had seen things through to the end. *** Even with the sight of her father and mother, an illusory emotional scene she'd supposedly put behind her, tugging at the back of her mind, Emilia turned her back to the room, heading outside the tomb to prepare to challenge the third Trial. Just as it had been for the second Trial, exiting and reentering the tomb was no doubt a condition for switching to the next Trial to come. Even were that not the case, she had to inform Ram, who was waiting outside for her success or failure in the Trial, and put her worries at ease.  Save him. That was the plea Ram had stated to Emilia, when the strong girl had shown her what lay deep within her heart. Emilia wanted to respond and act upon that from the bottom of her heart. And for that sake  \"Sorry to keep you waiting, Ram... Er, huh?\" Accompanied by that powerful resolve, Emilia tried to convey the results of the latest stage of the Trials, but she ended up cocking her head instead. Under a night sky with the silver moon high above, waiting for Emilia at the entrance to the tomb was not a lone maid but a great throng of people. \"Ah, she's come out!\" Someone noticed the surprised Emilia and raised a cry. Instantly, the crowd shifted their gazes toward her as one, and the sheer force of it made Emilia wince. But she recognized them instantly. There stood the people of Earlham Village who had evacuated to the Sanctuary and taken shelter at the Cathedral. Their return to their homes had been delayed, now hinging on the lifting of the Sanctuary's barrier. It was none other than Emilia who had promised she would definitely free them. Still unable to make good on her promise just yet, Emilia held her breath. She fully expected them to accuse her of being all talk and no substance. And yet  \"It's good you are safe and sound!\" \"Were you hurt at all?\" \"Simply going in there put our lord at death's door!\" *** The first words she heard were filled with nothing but reverence for Emilia, which made her brain seize up. However, Emilia immediately shook her head to clear it, and then from the stairs, she deeply bowed toward them. For an instant, the people murmured. But they immediately fell silent as they awaited Emilia's words. \"...Thank you for worrying about me. I am completely fine and not hurt whatsoever.\" \"Ohhh, I'm so glad.\" \"Good. That's what's important.\" \"Master Subaru got all worried for nothing, huh...?\" \"It's just...I am very sorry. I still have not completed all the required Trials...but everyone here must have already heard from Subaru and the others, right?\" Emilia kept harboring apologetic feelings toward the group of worried people as she continued: \"There is no longer any reason for you to remain in the Sanctuary. I will definitely lift the barrier, but it would be best for all of you to return to your families...\" *** As part of the negotiations, the villagers were originally supposed to remain in the Sanctuary until its barrier was lifted. But now that Garfiel had rescinded his previous demands, there was not a single reason for them to remain. The villagers already knew that. Emilia had heard from Ram that Subaru and company explained it to them prior to leaving for the mansion. Therefore, there was no reason for them to await Emilia's success or failure in the Trials. However  \"Master Subaru? Hey, what did he tell us anyway?\" \"Oh? I wonder. Lately, I have been quite forgetful. I simply can't recall.\" \"Goodness, the way you said that seemed so real that it honestly scared me for a minute. Well, not that it isn't true...\" Looking at one another's faces, the villagers began exchanging unbelievable words. It was not simply one or two people, either. Every last person had joined in on the act, pretending like they had no idea what Emilia was talking about. Naturally, Emilia was agape at such transparent behavior. They were all clearly playing dumb, acting as if this was the first they'd heard of it. As for the reason why, Emilia just couldn't understa  \" And so, Lady Emilia, we will wait here as promised.\" *** \"We cannot return to the village until Lady Emilia has lifted the barrier. We're not budging from that one bit.\" The old woman with a stooped hip who served as head of Earlham Village spoke those words with a smiling face. Emilia drew in her breath. By this point, even someone as slow on the uptake as Emilia could understand what their intention was. All of them were waiting for her to fulfill her promise. No doubt they wanted to return to their families without a moment to spare, but they were suppressing that urge in order to honor their promise to her. That was because Emilia had sworn to do the same for these very people. \"Besides, we are not the only ones expecting much from Lady Emilia's efforts.\" \"Eh...?\" As Emilia, deeply moved by the unexpected turn of events, felt her chest grow hot, the elderly woman made a mischievous smile as she nodded. When Emilia looked over, drawn by the"}, {"text": "gesture, the people of Earlham Village were all lined up and behind them, with a swaying of the thickets, she saw even more people entering the clearing. Somehow, the group seemed to be walking hesitantly, and at their head stood a girl with long pink hair, a black robe draped over her, and a staff in hand. \"Miss Ryuzu and...the people of the Sanctuary?\" \" From the looks of things, it would seem that you have returned after completing the second Trial.\" Lining up beside the head of Earlham Village, Ryuzu sighed as if to say, We made it in time. Everyone present gathered together into two groups, dividing the open ground up between them. Emilia, who had a view of the whole scene from her vantage point atop the stairs of the tomb, was deeply moved, letting out an \"ah.\" \"There were this many people living in the Sanctuary?\" She'd heard there were maybe fifty Earlham Village evacuees who had taken shelter here. The residents of the Sanctuary in the clearing numbered just as many, about as much as a very large family, bringing the total number of souls gathered in this place to about a hundred. Yet, despite that, in all the time Emilia had spent here, she had practically never come face-to-face with any Sanctuary residents beyond Ryuzu and Garfiel, let alone spoken to any of them. \"Please know that is no fault of yours, Lady Emilia. It was the residents' will... Really, it was my own stubbornness that prevented me from allowing you to meet the residents.\" \"Miss Ryuzu...\" \"Lady Emilia, you have done well to have overcome the Trial. We are grateful for this. And...\" Bowing her head deeply, Ryuzu had said exactly what Emilia had guessed she would. Then Ryuzu glanced at the elderly woman standing beside her. \"...After hearing from Young Gar and the villagers here...listening to both the residents of this place and outsiders alike, I, too, have finally been able to rouse these old bones. I suppose you might fault me as an opportunist.\" \"...I'm not one to talk about anyone having doubts and being stuck in place. I spent about a hundred years dozing off, after all.\" \"Still, our obstinacy has lasted generation after generation across four centuries, so I will call us even.\" Unable to bear the sight of that downcast face, Emilia offered some joking words, which seemed to help Ryuzu relax. She was acting like Subaru. This was how he usually lightened the mood during weighty occasions. \"I understand what Garfiel probably spoke about...but was everyone else able to hold discussions with the people of the Sanctuary as well?\" \"Nothing quite so grand. Just living in the same place naturally leads people to build relationships. We elderly often have spare time to exchange words while doing the cooking and the laundry.\" \"And so we elderly with too much time on our hands spoke about various things. I have long lived in the Sanctuary...yet, I have never had a chance to exchange words with an outsider quite like this.\" Musing out loud, Ryuzu and the Earlham Village head turned to each other, wearing little smiles. Externally, they didn't look even remotely the same age, but to Emilia's eyes, it seemed like an exchange between old friends. And Emilia thought this was a powerful, deep, and most precious thing. \"Lady Emilia... May we have a few words with you?\" \"Y-yes.\" Then someone raised their hand and stepped forward. He was a resident from the Sanctuary, a man with a head full of bestial hair and ever-so-slightly-canine teeth as someone who lived here, he was undoubtedly a half-blood himself. The man, whose age she would put at thirty thereabouts, bowed his head with a rather tense expression on his face. \"To be honest, I... No, we...still haven't decided in our hearts.\" *** \"We aren't sure whether to trust you or not. We who know nothing about the outside world can't help but be scared of leaving the Sanctuary. That goes for me, too. I was born and raised here.\" Just as Garfiel had asserted, this was the Sanctuary in its present state. Many of the people dwelling here had undergone persecution for having blood that differed from both humans and demi-humans, causing them to seek this land as a place where they could find some peace. Others were born here, spent their entire lives in this place, and then returned to the soil. That was the way of life that had continued since the establishment of the Sanctuary four centuries prior. Lifting the barrier meant losing something that they had always taken for granted. How much did this mean to them? In terms of taking something for granted, Puck had been the closest comparison Emilia had. To Emilia, his sudden departure was the last thing she wanted. It was only natural that the residents of the Sanctuary were just as reluctant to have such a thing imposed on them by others. \"If Master Roswaal is looking after us even on the outside, how would that be any different from us living here? I'd always thought maybe we don't need to change.\" \"...Yeah.\" \"However.\" Lowering her eyes, Emilia took in the man's words. She awaited more with a gloomy heart. When she looked back, the man had stretched and straightened his back, his tense cheeks hardening as he continued. \"However... All of us heard Garfiel's heard that little kid's angry voice.\" *** \"We know exactly how that hardworking kid feels...and it makes me feel pathetic.\" When his face grew tearful and his gaze turned rueful and reproachful of himself, Emilia's chest tightened. \"He's still a child of fourteen. How many years has he spent stuck in his ways like that? He's...a good kid. And you are, too, Lady Emilia.\" \"I'm not. Until tonight, I was a totally good-for-nothing girl...\" It wasn't like she'd accomplished anything. Not yet. Though Emilia denied she had anything to be proud of, the man said, \"Even so,\" shaking his head. \"Master Roswaal told us it was futile, and everyone was afraid, cowering from the Trial...but even so, here you stand. You entered the tomb, and you came out. That's why...\" \" Yes?\" \"...whatever happens in the end, what you are trying to do is already incredible and worthy of praise. I won't go so far as to say every last person here shares those feelings, and even I can't say I'm completely on your side just yet. But please allow us to watch over you to the end.\" Emilia was silent as she received the man's No, it was not the man alone, but the gazes from all the various people behind him were trained upon her. Receiving these, Emilia stood straight and strong. \" I understand. I'm certain I will see this through. When that time comes, we can speak properly.\" \"Yes, it's a promise. Actually, for me and the rest to be shunning anyone based on their looks and position without even talking ain't exactly the best Wahyah!\" As the man deeply bowed, something sent him leaping into the air. When Emilia looked harder, the cause was Ryuzu, who was standing beside him and had suddenly dug her nails into his side. The man gave an objecting look as Ryuzu laughed at the top of her lungs. \"Too long, too serious, and midway through, you switched from us to me. Shame on you, shame.\" \"...I-I'm very sorry, Elder.\" \"Either way, our current point of view is as he said just now. This, too... Mm? What is the matter?\" Ryuzu was in the midst of lightly teasing the man when the wide-eyed Emilia tilted her head. \"Er... Miss Ryuzu, it's a little surprising to hear someone call you Elder like that.\" \"Ahhh \" \"And I was thinking, Wow, I really haven't seen her speaking with anyone except Garfiel, have I...?\" Think about that, went Emilia, sticking her tongue out. Ryuzu, taken aback, looked at the man's face, and he, hers. From there, they let up voices of \"Kwa-ha-ha-ha!\" and laughed. The laugh was not merely between Ryuzu and the man; it spread to the various people of the Sanctuary and even the residents of Earlham Village. For a time, the entire clearing was filled with laughter. \"Somehow, it doesn't seem quite right to laugh...but, mm, Miss Ryuzu, thank you. Also, Miss Milde, it seems like you really put some work into this.\" \" Lady Emilia, you remembered my name?\" As Emilia spoke words of thanks, the elderly woman beside Ryuzu Milde Earlham made a surprised face. Seeing this, Emilia went \"mm-hmm\" and puffed out her chest. \"I may not look like it, but I am in the middle of studying to become king. Remembering names is the least I can do.\" \"I do not believe a king needs to remember the name of each and every subject, but...\" \"You've probably been dealing with kings with poor memory. I'm very good at learning things.\" Hearing Emilia's reply, Milde slightly narrowed her eyes; then she offered a deep bow. Glancing sidelong at this, Ryuzu went, \"Now then,\" indicating the tomb with her chin. \"Lady Emilia, I am pleased that we could be of service to you... Next is the final Trial, but...\" \"Yes, I intend to challenge it immediately. Well, I was intending to... Miss Ryuzu, do you know where Ram is?\" The impact of being greeted by such a large throng the instant she exited the tomb temporarily forced it from her mind, but as far as her eyes could see, Ram was nowhere to be found. Emilia had wanted to inform the girl who'd motivated her to break through the Trial that she had finally found some success, but... \"...Ram is attending to a duty she cannot afford to shirk. She left a message, praying for your good fortune. She said, Lady Emilia must do what only she can do, and Ram must do the same. Let us do our very best.\" Ryuzu mimicked Ram's way of speaking, drawing a strained smile onto Emilia's face. It was just like her to say something like that. Ram's duty was no doubt connected to the feelings that she had conveyed in her request to Emilia. And when she thought how Ram might fulfill that duty, there was a slight throbbing in her chest. Pushing that feeling down, Emilia chose to trust Ram, just as Ram had chosen to trust Emilia. \"...I have to say, though, no one waited for me to come back at all. Not Subaru, not Ram...\" \"Oh-ho, I see how that would sour your mood. It is a pity those you care deeply for are not present. If this pitiful old face is good enough for you, I'll wait right here until you return again.\" \"Okaaay I guess it's time.\" Emilia had begun to pout, but after hearing Ryuzu's response, she smiled and then turned. Right before her, the entrance to the tomb awaited. She entered without any hesitation. \"Well, I'm off.\" Various voices, from the residents of the Sanctuary and Earlham Village alike, called out after her. There were so many expectations pushing her forward more than the first time and more than the second. Carrying these alongside the powerful resolve now residing within her, she walked toward the back of the tomb. And then  \" Face the calamity that shall come.\"  the third Trial came. CHAPTER 3 *** 1  With every clash of steel against steel, there was a string of high-pitched sounds that seemed to be a woman's cries. \"Gaaaaaa !!!\" \"Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Marvelous! Marvelous! Marvelousmarvelousmarvelous!\" Flipping her body around like she was dancing, she aimed a curved blade at his vitals with no fixed path, flashing from up, down, right, and left. It almost seemed like some sort of extreme training, but every blow landed without any warning, infused with enough power to instantly end his life. The tip of the bent blade rent the air, surpassing sound as it swung with godlike speed. The seemingly supernatural, murderous technique was being countered by Garfiel's own superhuman skill."}, {"text": "Using the silver-colored shields attached to both arms, he chose to deflect rather than block the incoming blade. He kept redirecting the force of the woman's attacks skyward, creating openings for counterattacks so he stood a chance at reeling in victory by force. Even that very moment, he guided a powerful blow aimed at his neck off to the side before sending a kick straight into the woman's torso. Had Garfiel's kick connected cleanly, it would have undoubtedly ruptured all her internal organs. But  \"I've already seen that one.\"  the woman's eyesight was truly frightening, surpassing all common sense. Her whisper was not a joke or a taunt, either. Every technique she witnessed in battle did not work a second time. Having already foreseen this second straight kick, the woman avoided it with minimal movement as she lined up her next attack: a backward slash with her blade. That blow, apparently intended to serve as punishment for foolishly resorting to the same technique a second time while fighting a powerful foe, hit its mark. \"Rrrrraaa!!\" In that same instant, Garfiel's foolish kick slammed right into the woman's face. \" Ngh!\" She bit down to suppress the groan of pain that threatened to escape from the back of her throat. Her knife had entered his right foot, carving his flesh all the way up to his femur. If he'd been even slightly slower, she would've no doubt sliced off the entire leg. But for that price, Garfiel had landed a clean blow on the woman. In the battle up to that point, Garfiel had grown to admire and trust the skill of Elsa, his foe. The excellence of her technique, her overwhelming combat intuition, the physical abilities she'd honed, and the impossibly fine control over her own body few could claim to be as strong as this woman. He was certain that if he showed her the same technique twice, she'd definitely see right through it. It was this absolute trust in her ability that allowed Garfiel to land a direct hit on her. He was sure he'd torn the woman's sultry face. Even if it did not end her life, it would leave her gravely wounded and unable to continue combat. But Garfiel did not let his guard down. After all  \" Aaagh, that hurt, and quite a bit. Makes me appreciate being alive.\" \"Damn it, this ain't no joke. What is that body of yours made out of?\" As Garfiel sighed, Elsa let out a heated breath of excitement. She was touching her left hand to her face as if to suppress the bleeding, and when she slowly lowered it, anyone watching would have expected a wound underneath terrible enough to make the faint of heart avert their eyes. But it was not so. When she removed her left hand, Elsa revealed her face didn't even have a scratch, let alone any bleeding. \"The general called ya a woman who wouldn't die even if one killed her...but this is just messed up.\" \"I suppose it is. Even I feel slightly apologetic about my physical nature. It seems to be robbing everything you do of all meaning... I wonder, do you hate women like me?\" Hearing how disconcerted Garfiel was made Elsa slightly incline her head. The tone of the question made Garfiel abruptly furrow his brows. It was slight, minute, but he felt some part of Elsa's tone of voice was filled with sadness. \"Even as I move about, my wounds heal, and I feel neither pain nor fatigue, allowing me to continue fighting without limit. Do you feel fighting such a woman lacks any meaning? I wonder, do you really think of me as someone you can test the results of your training against?\" \" Hell if I care.\" The throwaway tone of Garfiel's voice made Elsa widen her eyes in apparent surprise. She blinked hard, which momentarily made her seem much younger. Garfiel crinkled his nose as he spoke again. \"You're my enemy. And me, I'm the super-strongest shield who's been assigned the toughest enemy. I got the general and the woman I fell for expectin' a lot from me. I ain't givin' up from a little setback like this.\" \"You...\" \"I'm gonna blow you away, Elsa Gramhilde. Don't matter how many times ya come back.\" Baring his fangs and keeping his legs wide apart, Garfiel adopted a fighting stance as he howled. Garfiel's caustic words left Elsa silent for a time. She let her refined eyelashes fall just a tiny bit as she touched a hand to her own mouth he heard a laughing voice. \"Huh? The hell are you laughin' at?!\" \"Tee-hee...! Ah, er, I am quite sorry. I heard some unexpected words, so I could not help but find them amusing... Yes, you seem to be a very good boy.\" \"Don't treat me like some little kid. Me, I'm a fine man. A grown male.\" \"Oh really now? You hardly look fully developed to me, either as an adult or a man...\" As Elsa relaxed her cheeks, her ridicule drew a sour snort out of Garfiel. Garfiel couldn't read Elsa's emotions. To be blunt, he wasn't interested in them. That moment, what was important to him was fulfilling his role by beating the opponent before his eyes to a pulp.  In so doing, he would prove the Sanctuary's mightiest shield could fulfill that role even in the outside world. \"You truly are marvelous... But that makes this more the pity.\" \"The hell you talkin' about?!\" \"Right now, your attention is directed toward me and nothing else. I wonder, how are your older sister and the others faring? You've been wondering the whole time, haven't you?\" Elsa's comment concerned Frederica as well as Subaru and Otto as they scurried across the mansion. She wasn't wrong. Certainly, Garfiel was worried for his friends. He could not deny that they'd remained in the corner of his mind throughout the fight. \"I wonder, if the cause of your fear was cut away, would you look at me and only me?  In any case, your friends cannot escape from this mansion. You've realized this, too, haven't you?\" \"...Seems like there are demon beasts crawlin' all over this place. The work of your little helper, huh?\" \"My little sister. So long as her perimeter is intact, there is no way to escape. She worked hard and brought an entire horde of demon beasts. At this point, everyone could very well have been eaten down to the last morsel.\" The entirety of Roswaal Manor was buried in disgusting scents and auras. He'd heard beforehand of the existence of a Beast Master who controlled demon beasts. Subaru and company must have tried using that repel crystal for barriers as a countermeasure, but the beasts still remained in the mansion that very moment. He knew from the faint tremors reaching his eardrums and what he could pick up from their auras. In other words, some kind of unforeseen problem had arisen. It no doubt had something to do with Elsa's little sister, the Beast Master he had yet to personally lay eyes on. The more he thought about it, the deeper he sank into worry. \"Really, you want to rush over to your friends this very moment, don't you? Not that I'll let you...but if the nervousness is dulling your fangs, that is very, very disappointing.\" Garfiel, too, understood a warrior's desire to battle an enemy at their finest. But Elsa was different. She thought like a huntress, using every power at her disposal to take down her prey. Considering her way of thinking, she probably thought the current situation put Garfiel at a disadvantage.  But that was completely off the mark. \"Don't get the wrong idea, lady.\" \"Am I wrong?\" \"You just don't get it. Demon beasts are wanderin' around, yeah? And what, you think I gotta go save 'em or somethin'? Stupid crap like that ain't gonna stop the general.\" Garfiel, supposedly unable to fight at full strength out of worry for his friends, seethed with an uncontainable heat that blazed within him. He boldly stepped forward, baring his fangs as he closed the distance between him and Elsa. \"The general and his crew are the ones who gave me a royal poundin'. No matter how many demon beasts get in their way, they'll just laugh and kill 'em all!!\" 2 \"Nowaynowaynoway seriously no way seriouslynoway, we're totally done for...!\" Practically out of breath, Subaru collapsed as he rambled in a tearful voice. He put Rem, who was on his back, over his knees, breathing raggedly as he lay low on the first floor of the mansion. Otto and Petra were right beside him, both completely exhausted.  In that moonlit corridor, their group had encountered the demon beast Giltirau, and combat had ensued. Combat was a poor word to describe it. There was no way that Subaru and his current companions could land a blow on such a beast, so there had been no option but instantly fleeing. They'd tumbled into the nearest room, and seizing the opportunity when the monster's huge frame got stuck in the entrance, they fled out the window into the yard, putting some distance between them and their hunter. From there, they'd returned to the mansion via a different room, but  \"Th-that demon beast... Is it biding its time and patrolling the entire building...?\" \"It may have been assigned to guard this position... When we poked our heads out earlier, it was right here in the main wing. Combining the magic stones I had on hand with a spell to muffle our footsteps allowed us to somehow get away, but...\" Even when resorting to such tricks to throw the monstrous guard off their trail, it would be difficult to avoid encountering the creature if they wanted to secure a reliable escape route. In addition to the abominable Giltirau, there were numerous demon beasts milling about the mansion. These lesser creatures could be driven off with repel stones, but if they encountered any opposition, the Giltirau would undoubtedly notice leaving them in a vicious cycle. \"This is what I get for operating separately from Garfiel, huh...?\" \"Please do not speak such timid words. After all, this very moment, Garfiel may well be howling in high spirits that we must be all right. We should at least respond with expectations equal to his.\" \"You're so big on returning favors. You really aren't cut out to be a merchant...\" Hearing these words from Otto, who was in the best physical condition among them, Subaru flashed a wry smile as he stood up with renewed resolve. Returning Rem to his back, he found her body despairingly light. Carrying an unconscious person was a heavy burden, a fact that he'd personally experienced in this world several times over, but in her current state, Rem was the exception to the rule. He couldn't feel her warmth or weight or much of anything at all. Her tenuous hold on existence even affected her physical body. Only the faint sounds of her heart and her sleeping breaths told him that she truly existed in her current state. If she fell off his back, he probably wouldn't even notice. Fearful of this exact possibility, he put even more strength into supporting Rem's body. \"Subaru...\" Petra moved closer to him, gently tugging on his sleeve with a somber expression. Petra, still so very young, had resolutely raced alongside them throughout the night of their lives without a single word of complaint despite the great danger. \"A-are you all right?\" Her pink lips were pursed as she posed a question not out of concern for her own life but with words of concern for Subaru, so earnestly bearing Rem on his back, even as his own breaths ran ragged. Petra's feelings were like a healing salve to Subaru. Without such salvation, he would never have been even half as determined to go on. Despair wouldn't get them out of their predicament. Subaru Natsuki rose back to his"}, {"text": "feet. \"Have you thought of something?\" Perhaps seeing something in Subaru's expression, Otto closed one eye and questioned him so. He didn't even consider disguising the expectations and trust in the tone of his voice and his gaze. *** When Subaru looked over, he noticed Petra's eyes, peering up at him, held the very same expectations and trust. Feeling those gazes on him, trusting without doubt that he must have thought of something, Subaru's breath caught. Then he wore a pained smile. \"Hey, come on now... Just what do you two expect me to do here?\" After deeply exhaling, Subaru rocked his body, gently adjusting Rem against his back. Expectations if he was to invoke that word, it was Rem who expected more from Subaru than anyone. That moment, he was carrying her on his shoulders. That moment, Otto and Petra were staring at Subaru, expecting something from him. He breathed out. Then he decided with his gut. \"We were trying to run from this mansion, but that means blowing past that demon beast...that something-rau thing.\" \"However, it is difficult to defeat the beast with what we have at our disposal. What should we do?\" Otto posed his question. Considering the capabilities of each person, the resources and techniques they possessed, and the mansion that served as the stage, how could they meet all the required conditions? Think, think, think  \"We're short on martial and magical ability so it's finally time for me to put my unparalleled modern knowledge to good use.\" 3 At first, the demon beast Giltirau, the Black King of the Forest picked up a faint noise. *** It was a quiet, seemingly fearful sound...the sort of sound prey made as it clumsily attempted to sneak around. Hearing this, the Giltirau lifted its lion head upward, then almost seemed to sigh with raw disappointment. To the Giltirau, hunting was the very reason for its existence. It could think of no greater joy than to catch fleeing prey with its claws, plunge in its fangs, and drain the life from its mark to sate its empty belly. What mattered for the hunt was whether the prey was worthy of the fangs of the king. Hunting strong, sturdy, able-legged prey, taking it down through brute force the current hunt completely failed to live up to those standards. Having its expectations dashed put the Giltirau in the most terrible of moods. Of course, it did not even think of defying the orders of its master. But it would obey those orders and nothing else. It simply owed a debt to the master, who had liberated it from the Curse of the Horn. Accordingly, it had listened to her request. Moving its nose around, the Giltirau pursued the sound of the footsteps as its prey tried to slink away. Defenseless. Thoughtless. Unrestrained. Futile. They were the footsteps of the weak, lacking any elegance whatsoever. *** The Giltirau sprinted with shocking agility that contrasted with its huge frame. Its four thick limbs did not make a sound as they trod upon the floor, a feat that brought into sharp relief why it was also called the Shadow Lion. Like an assassin, the Black King of the Forest was a silent nightmare as it raced, seemingly leaping through the halls of the moonlit mansion. The footsteps it followed gradually became less guarded, betraying no sign of noticing the death stalking so very close. The one making the footsteps was right around the corner. The king swung a claw just beyond that corner, a single blow that would rend the prey's back apart, throwing its corpse to the ground, and expose its humiliation in full. However  *** Right after swinging its claw, the Giltirau paused, sensing something was off. The presence it was certain was there had vanished, and the only one standing in the corridor was the great and dignified king. The foolish, fragile, disgustingly weak prey had vanished, nowhere to be found.  A moment later, another sound of shoes reached its ears, and the Giltirau ferociously took up its pursuit once more. Its target was using the stairs, heading for the floor below. The sound of fleeing, running footsteps made the Giltirau reassess its prey ever so slightly it had gone from intolerably weak to a fool worthy of killing. If its quarry had merely been running wildly, the beast would have settled for ending things with a single claw swipe, cruelly slashing the fool apart. However, this prey had refused the king's mercy, willingly rejecting a quick death and so it would die a thousand deaths instead. The Giltirau kicked off the wall of a landing, its huge frame seemingly dancing as it leaped down the stairs. The hulking monster gave chase, reaching the second floor before going down one more, pursuing its prey to the lowest floor. In the distance, somewhere beyond the building, it heard the voice of its master trying to call it back. *** For an instant, the Giltirau pondered that voice, but it prioritized the prey right before its eyes. It was this very prey that had earned the master's ire. It would swiftly dispose of the fool and then rejoin her.  Die, foolish prey. This is the greatest glory for those who defy the master. Feeling a surge of emotion, the king forgot even to suppress its own sound as it sprinted. The thunder of its very powerful footsteps announced to its fleeing prey: The king, death itself, has come for you. Go ahead. Try to run. Flee pathetically in a panic. Show me your back, so that I may flay it open for you. Up ahead, it heard the sound of a door closing. The Giltirau did not hesitate to force it open by slamming its body home. This sent the door flying with great ease, and the Giltirau was greeted by a particularly spacious room. It was not a small, cramped room like the stupid, ignorant prey had fled into earlier. It was a spacious room where the Giltirau could swing its claws and leap around with its giant frame to its heart's content. Perhaps the prey was finally invoking the last of its spirit to challenge the Giltirau to a duel. However, the prey was nowhere to be seen, and at the back of the room, the monster heard the sound of yet another door closing the door of an entrance separate from the one it had destroyed, and connecting the guest room to a smaller one, had shut. In the end, that is all you have, thought the Giltirau, genuinely disappointed. The guest room came with a large table with a white cloth over it and, atop that, a row of lit candles. The flickering flames illuminated the king's red face as, with heavy steps, it headed for the little room in back. Its vile tail, like a great serpent, sharply swung about, easily slicing the wooden door apart. Savagely springing its forelegs up, the Giltirau drew in its breath; it then pushed in with a roar. *** Devastation. If there was a word worthy to describe what occurred in this sad tale, that was it. Absolute devastation. As the Giltirau swung its tail about, wildly raging with its bestial claws, the interior room was dominated by destruction worthy of the name. The cupboards storing foodstuffs and the cold storage were destroyed, while smoke erupted from the sacks and boxes lining the wall. The floor, struck by the heavy impact of paws, broke apart, and the carpet covering it was destroyed a moment later, the Giltirau's vision was blanketed with white smoke. A vast quantity of dust sprang up, clouding the air and irritating the great beast's nostrils. It was enough to rob it of its eyesight and even prevent it from breathing in enough to roar. \"You fell for it!\" Then a voice rang out, as if someone as if the prey was shouting in victory. Then it heard that voice, not from the small room but from the previous, wide room. \"Eat the power of science, baby Dust Explosion!\" After a brief noise, it threw something into the small room. Something flickered red within the Giltirau's nearly all-white field of vision it was one of the candles from the guest room. The candle struck the wall, and for a moment, the reddish flame glowed brighter as it landed upon the floor. \"H-huh...?\" But...that was all that happened. The candle remained on the floor, showing no further sign of change. The one who had thrown it was frozen in place and sounded like there'd been a miscalculation.  The Giltirau's regal instincts screamed this was a golden opportunity. Something had put its opponent into a disadvantageous state. Even if that had not been the case, surely this trick would have been insufficient to put the Giltirau in peril Nay, it would not underestimate its foe further. It would utilize every store of power. It would rend its prey apart, flay its skin, and feast in victory on the flesh and blood  \"Aghhh, that's why we told you! We shouldn't have tried this nonsensical method!\" \"Normally, it's faster to do it this way!!\" The instant it leaped out of the little room, the Giltirau picked up a high-pitched voice and an even higher-pitched voice. Clearly different from the prey it had spotted earlier and the instant after it had that realization, a large quantity of something poured down from overhead. It was a liquid. Certainly not water, and it felt slippery to the touch. Bathed in the yellowish fluid, the king felt its fangs trembling at having its proud black mane tarnished. However, it had the luxury to consider this for but a single instant. \"This is the personal merchandise of Otto Suwen oil bought with the entirety of his life savings!  How do you like my wares?!\" As the prey shouted with joy, the king the Giltirau had no way to stop what came next.  The candles ignited the oil that had drenched the entirety of its body, wreathing the king with abominable flames. *** The Black King of the Forest had left the wilds, gaining a master, and, to the very end, wondered about the throne it had left vacant. Still unaware of what had defeated it, the demon beast was enveloped by flame the same color as its burning humiliation, scorching its body black, torching it until it had been reduced to ash. 4 \"So you can throw the sound of just footsteps, eliminate scents... Little tricks like that are all your magic can do?\" \"...Having you belittle them weighs upon my mind, but I am impressed you remember such a thing. That said, will these spells prove useful? At most, they can make an opponent turn their head for but a single instant.\" \"Super-useful. We can use this to lure it into the trap... After that, I'll use the power of science to blow it away.\" \"You certainly seem extremely confident, but this so-called power of science...\" \"A dust explosion, the strongest trick in the book. Using foodstuffs makes it really simple to boot. With a bit of flour and an open flame, it'll work great. From what I know, it's guaranteed to send a single monster flying.\" \"We went along with your plan because you sounded so confident, and now look at what's happened!\" \"Oh, shaddap! Scientific progress comes with sacrifices, you know! Damn, why'd it fail? Not enough dust, not enough flame... Or do the laws of physics in this world just not work the same way?\" \"Arghhh! Stop talking about that and keep up! Ack, it's no good! Nooo!!\" With Subaru and Otto angrily yelling at each other, Petra scolded them with a desperate look on her face. The noisy trio was being illuminated by the brilliant light of red flames. That was only natural, for at present, they were doing their best to put out the fire in the dining hall however, the flames seemed to be only getting stronger. \"You used too much oil, damn it! You sure as hell spread"}, {"text": "it around enough. How'd you plan on putting it out?!\" \"As if anyone can hunt down such a huge demon beast while holding back! In the first place, it'd be the same result whether I used it all up or not! You're buying every last drop either way!\" \"Both of you, this isn't the time!! We can't put it out! Let's run!\" With a frustrated look on his face, Subaru hurled the tablecloth, which had also caught on fire, into the quickly growing flames. There was no sign of the inferno in the pantry burning itself out. It had already spread to quite a bit of the dining hall, and black smoke began to seep out. \"We managed to defeat the demon beast, but the cost we paid is too high...\" The source of the flames was the black and charred demon beast the Giltirau. Just as they'd planned, Otto's sneaky magic had led it downstairs, where they used a dust explosion in the pantry to bring it down or not, since the dust explosion had failed. Instead, Otto had secured their victory by using his stock of oil to burn the thing to death. The beast was a muscle-brain befitting its enormous frame, especially considering how it never suspected a thing as it fell into the trap. But because it flailed around wildly as it died, the flames had transferred to everything around it, completely setting the mansion on fire. \"This isn't a repair job anymore. It's a tear-down-and-rebuild job...\" \"Is this really the time?! Let's run! Before we lose the stairs!\" \"Quickly! Quickly!!\" Subaru found it surreal to watch the familiar sights and spaces catch on fire as the other two grabbed him by his sleeves and dragged him off. Pulled by the pair, Subaru readjusted Rem on his back as they ran from the burning dining hall. Otto and Petra used repel stones to drive away any demon beasts that appeared along the way. There were also signs that demon beasts were fleeing the building, instinctively fearful of black smoke and fire. \"But what if Garfiel burns to death from this?!\" \"Without the Giltirau prowling around, Garfiel can escape, too! Besides, surely he can send demon beasts packing and leap out of the building all by himself, even without using the escape route!\" Subaru was trembling from unwittingly wrecking the entire battlefield, but even in that situation, Otto remained as clever as ever. Thanks to that, they arrived at the upper floor in good order. Fortunately, no other demon beasts immune to the effects of the repel stone appeared. Subaru and company fled into the study, and Petra operated the mechanism on the bookshelf on the wall slowly, making a sound, the bookshelf moved, and the hidden passage heading underground, linked to the outside, revealed itself. \"We did it! Subaru! It's the hidden passage... With this, we can get out of here!!\" \"Yeah, I suppose so... If you head down to the bottom of these stairs and follow the passage, you can escape outside. The exit will be well outside the perimeter. That just leaves...here, Otto, take Rem.\" \"Yes, I understand. I will take very good care of her.\" Nodding to Petra, who was overjoyed they had made it, Subaru turned his back to Otto next. Then he slowly, gently passed Rem from his back onto Otto's. His movements were careful, so as not to let her fall. \"Do not drop her. Do not let her get hurt. And do not touch her in strange ways.\" \"Setting your concerns aside, your possessiveness comes across as quite bothersome!\" \"H-hey, you two... Why are you...talking like that?\" With Otto now carrying Rem on his back, Subaru flippantly warned to be careful. Hearing this exchange, Petra raised a question with a worried face. \"From the way you're talking right now...it sounds like Subaru isn't coming with us...\" \" Mm, that's just how it is. Sorry, but I can't run with you. From this point on, I gotta go it alone.\" \"Why?!\" When Subaru confirmed her suspicions, Petra's face paled as she clung to him. \"Let's run already! The mansion's on fire, and it'll just make more trouble for Miss Frederica! There's still a lot of demon beasts, and it's not like you can beat them if you fight them, Subaru! So let's run!\" \"Er, well, that's all totally true, but I can't run from this. I can't run... Not yet.\" Even though he was happy seeing Petra try to stop him, Subaru gently took her fingers off him one by one. As he did so, the sadness in her big eyes spread even further. In an effort to chide Petra, Otto, standing right beside her, tossed his voice her way. \"Petra. Mr. Natsuki still has something he needs to do. Until he accomplishes it, Mr. Natsuki will not falter. You understand this well, yes?\" \"But...Subaru's weak!! It's dangerous! You should stay with him, Mr. Otto!\" \"The way you said that doesn't make it sound as if you have much faith in my strength, though!\" Otto's voice made Petra shake her head. There were tears welling in her eyes as she looked up at Subaru. Subaru got onto his knees so he was on her eye level and then gently stroked her head. \"Sorry, Petra. I'm getting you, Rem, and Frederica out of this mansion safe and sound. But it's not just you three. There's one more person I have to bring out of here.\" \"Y-you mean Lady Beatrice...?\" \"...Even though she hates trouble and acts all lonely, she's a total busybody, always trying to do everything by herself, suffering 'cause of the dumb answers she comes up with and cowering 'cause she won't settle things herself.\" When Subaru described the girl, the loneliness of her existence made Petra widen her eyes. \"I mean, Beatrice is pretty much the same age you are, Petra. Your heights might be a little different... Come to think of it, Petra, you might be a lot like her first friend.\" \"First...friend...?\" Beatrice's first and foremost friend had been Ryuzu Meyer. There had to have been a tangible friendship between her and Beatrice. If Beatrice carried the scars that remained all that time, then maybe... \"After I come back with Beatrice, you'll probably become friends with her. I'm sure you'll like her, Petra. She's awesomely fun to tease.\" \"M-more than Mr. Otto?\" \"Yeah. Fun enough that you won't have use for Otto anymore.\" Judging from Otto's expression, he wanted to say something, but Subaru deliberately ignored him. Then Subaru stopped stroking Petra's head and rose to his feet. \"I'll go look for Beatrice. I plan to try hard enough that I don't burn to death, but if I do, carve on my tombstone that I died because of the fire from Otto's oil, okay?\" \"Inscribing tombstones being too much trouble, I will give you a smacking if you do not return safe and sound. Truly, I will.\" Otto seemed to wince as he made his declaration. Then he tilted his back, turning Rem's sleeping face Subaru's way. The princess, still asleep as always, couldn't even bear witness to Subaru's resolve as he prepared to depart. That was fine. It wasn't Rem's place to see Subaru off. It was Subaru's job to go to her. \" Subaru! Be careful, okay?!\" Petra offered up her very own repel crystal. Accepting this, Subaru set off. He did not reply to Petra's voice as she called out behind him. Petra didn't need him to do so, either. Bit by bit, the flames were covering the mansion, and the place he had spent many days in was quickly turning to ash.  Would the fire reach even the archive of forbidden books? As he looked for the door to reach her, Subaru could not help but wonder. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 Sensing that the Trial had begun, Emilia's mind instantly awakened. This Trial felt closest to the first one. She was aware of her own existence and firmly conscious that she was undertaking a challenge. It wasn't like the second Trial, when her own existence was far more indistinct. However, there was clearly one point that differed from before here, Emilia had no body. Her five senses had vanished, and her body had been lost. What was present was her consciousness alone it felt like her consciousness was floating in the sky. Perhaps this was what it felt like to have one's fickle soul cast into the water by its lonesome? In spite of this mysterious circumstance, Emilia felt no sense of danger as she strove to slowly grasp the situation. Her nonexistent brain seemed to understand this place posed no danger and that her mind here was able to have such realizations. Her surroundings were dark. A space of nothing save darkness spread forth, within which Emilia's body did not exist. That she did not lose herself even so was due to the multiple lights that were floating in the darkness. These faint lights of various colors were hovering around Emilia. The glow they emitted resembled that of lesser spirits, but Emilia felt no life force coming from these lights. They were inorganic; perhaps they were closer to magical crystals that gave off light? Either way, she and the lights were the only things in that world. *** They continued swimming in that space, with nothing moving but the flow of time Nay, in that circumstance, she could not firmly grasp whether even time was flowing or not. The Witch who normally served as a guide had not appeared. In the darkness, Emilia hesitated over the unchanging situation into which she had been cast.  The situation being what it was, her consciousness naturally ended up drawn to the lights. *** Selecting a silver-colored one from the multitude of lights, Emilia was just a tiny bit apprehensive when she tried to touch it. The very notion of touching assumed you had a body in the first place. Was that even possible here?  Rather than ponder, it was faster to try it and see. Reaching that conclusion, Emilia immediately tried it out. Her consciousness overlapped with the light, and this indeed was not touch. It felt more like she was intermingling with it  \"Hate, hate, I hate you. I really hate you. Really. All of it is true. Always, since the moment I met you...I have hated you. I cannot stand the sight of you.\" The instant she came into contact with the light, a voice echoed directly into her consciousness. Simultaneously, a powerful, reddish scene leaped toward her. She'd switched spaces, and a moment she had never witnessed played out before her. The sun was unnaturally large. Smoke was rising from the scorched plains, and standing right beside an enormous, decrepit structure, bathed directly in the scarlet sunlight, was a silver-haired girl marred with blood Emilia. The grown-up version of herself she had only just seen in the second Trial was standing there, blood-ridden. \"I've thought this many times, and I've denied it many times...but the nightmare truly has come, so I will say it.\" A smile came over her bloodied face. It was a smile toward the person she hated most in that world. \"Perhaps it is true we should never have met.\" At the corner of one of her purple eyes, a tear formed a single line as it gently fell. The drop coursed down her cheek, and just before it fell from her chin onto the blood-marred ground, the world burst apart and vanished. *** Her consciousness, lacking a body, could not draw in its breath. All she could do was endure the desperate urge to do so with all her might. As Emilia returned to the darkness once more, she found herself in a world with nothing but her consciousness and the lights floating around her. What was that blood-ridden Emilia in the scene she saw beyond the light just then? Thus far, she had seen her own appearance only twice, but she had definitely seen herself in"}, {"text": "that moment. The problem was that she had no recollection of anything like that ever happening. Or perhaps that was some kind of future that would never exist?  No, Emilia instinctively thought. Calming her chaotic consciousness, Emilia searched within her memories, turning back toward the very beginning. The Trials had always indicated at the start what the challenger was to accomplish. In the first, it was, First, face your past. In the second, it was, Behold the unknowable present. And this third time it was, Face the calamity that shall come. The calamity that shall come  Did that mean it was the future? The Trials first showed a past linked to one's greatest regret; then they showed a present that did not and could not exist; last, the challenger was shown a future she would inevitably have to confront head-on. These were the entirety of the Trials the tomb had prepared for her. Would that future, of a place enveloped with some kind of twilight, a future where she would tearfully hate someone, actually come to pass one day...? *** After a time, neither accepting nor rejecting it, Emilia's thoughts were interrupted as she realized something. The light Emilia had touched earlier was gone, leaving only a palpable void. Even so, the lights numbered twenty, so there were still plenty to go. This was the moment she suddenly grasped the meaning behind the phenomenon. The lights. Each and every one of the lights hovering in the darkness was a future that awaited Emilia. This Trial probably would not come to an end until she had witnessed them all.  Were the futures she would bear witness to all different from one another? Or would they be continuations of the one she just visited? The answer would come once she touched another light and saw its future. When she moved to the next light over from the blank space, it became a clear blue passage, like an azure sky  \"It's just like you said. That kid's our enemy, and our wounds run deep. I can't use healing magic, so even if we back out now, I might not be able to save you.\" \"Then...\" \"But that kid's still a kid Isn't this enough?\" The scene differed from the one before, with two figures standing atop sheer cliffs with a commanding view. One of them had his back turned toward the deep forest behind him she could not see his face. But she remembered his voice. It was one of the people closest to her. Perhaps not as much as the other person, but she definitely remembered him... The person atop the opposite cliff was on one knee, and as he knelt in this position, he was looking down at the other. Though she could not see his expression, Emilia could tell both of them were making terribly melancholic faces. \"You're...you're a hero. You can't be...anything but a hero...!!\" *** \"Thank you...for saving me, damn it!!\" When the other figure reached out with his hand, the figure with his back turned lobbed words of gratitude his way.  It was a parting of nigh-unbearable sadness. It was a moment of parting marred by indelible despair. *** The projection had run its course. She returned to the world of darkness. She had...pathos and melancholy both. But more than that, she held a question toward this Trial. She did not see herself anywhere within the world she had just visited. Neither of the people in that place was Emilia. She could guess who they were, but why had she witnessed a scene, a future without her? Was she being shown a \"future\" that was the result of her own choices? Then how was she supposed to face the calamity that would inevitably come? *** Amid that silence, the blue light vanished. Just like the initial silver light, a void had been born. Nearly twenty more lights continued to surround Emilia.  Awaiting within each and every one was a tragic future that was the result of her choices. Determined to accept them all, she stretched her consciousness toward the next one. In one future after another, Emilia's choices, and the calamity they would invariably bring about, awaited her. 2  She saw the future. \" without that, have you not even a sword to swing, you damn thief?!\" \"Subaru and Emilia are both tired, right? Sorry. And yet, even I've become a burden on you. I always, always wanted to say I'm sorry for never measuring up...\" \"Mm, mm... My granddaughter, my pride and joy...has grown to be...a good child...\" As she touched the variously colored lights, Emilia continued to see different futures. \"Sorry. I'm so sorry I can't kill you because I'm weak. Sorry. Even so, I'll keep you to myself for all eternity. I'm sorry I'm so weak...\" \"What, you feel like this is fulfilling your promise? If so...then you should have left me to die wrapped in a mat in that cave! If... If you were going to show me a dawn like this, it should all have ended there! Damn it! Damn it all!\" \"I absolutely will not allow you to die for some nonsensical reason like a curse!\" There were wails. There were angry shouts. In different forms, they indicated endings, renewals, meetings, and partings. \"Oh look, I won again.\" \"To think someone I want to kill this much turned out to be such a gentle person...what a nightmare.\" \"You have bent your knees before irresistible despair, and you have lost even your sword... Just what is it you still cling to?\" She asked herself whether the things awaiting her, the futures at which she would arrive, were not some kind of mistake. \"Am I really that greedy? Do I really ask so much? I just don't want to be alone. I don't want to become alone... Is that so hard to understand?\" \"I'll kill you, just as I promised!! Got that, Subaru Natsukiiiiii?!!\" Was there really nothing but despair in these futures? Was there anything beyond the sadness, beyond the suffering? \"I merely realized something... The days I've spent until now were by no means days I walked aloooone.\" \"In the end, 'twould seem we must atone with every last drop of our blood, does it not?\" What had gone wrong? Did she wish for the wrong things? \"Why...why won't the soul take?!\" \"Whether it's with justice or villainy, ya can't solve every problem under the sun. That's what you just stepped in. If you block my...our path, I don't care if you're a Witch or a dragon. I'll crush you.\" She was being shown untold tragedies and calamities. Amid that deluge of despair, which was enough to make her want to cry, she came to doubt everything she had done. If all that awaited the end of her journey was tragedy, that was simply  \" I believe praying for one's desires is arrogance. Prayer is for seeking forgiveness.\" In the future of the final light, a girl her waking self should never have set eyes upon spoke those words. It was not fleeting enough to be hopeful and too bold to be despairing. Her nonexistent pulse quickened. After all, she'd seen nothing, nothing but sad, agonizing futures in all that time.  I want to have a proper conversation with you, no matter what the future holds. She thought if a certain boy was with her, they could speak together and laugh about the futures they hoped for. Even if all that awaited her were worlds of tragedy, she felt in her heart that if she could at least have that much  3  When her vision opened up, Emilia was standing right in the middle of grass rustling in the wind. She had arrived immediately after the darkness, and the continually switching worlds had stopped. At first, Emilia thought she was being shown yet another future but she immediately realized this was something else. \"I have actual hands and feet...and my voice is coming out. So this must be...\" Clenching both hands into fists, Emilia confirmed she possessed physical flesh. Then she surveyed her surroundings, realizing this grassland was unfamiliar and the presence of a little hill right behind her. Atop the hill, a large parasol was spread; naturally, this drew her to go closer. Climbing up the hill, she found a white table and chairs under the parasol, and the faint whiff of warm tea wafted in the air. Naturally, she surmised Echidna might be here, so Emilia was on guard, but  \"No one's here?\" There were six chairs arranged by the round table. Set atop the table were confections and cups, equal in number to the chairs, leaving the distinct sense that she had shown up right before some kind of tea party. Yet, it seemed as if everything had been abandoned midway without even cleaning up, leaving nothing of the participants but empty seats. *** When she touched a cup, which still had some tea in it, she felt a faint trace of warmth it felt like anyone would be shaken if they saw what Emilia was up to. \"Echidna was having tea with someone. And then?\" She understood as much already, but for a dead person, Echidna sure had considerable freedom of action in this place. She was amazed that beyond her work as the administrator of the Trials, she'd go as far as to invite her guests to tea. Here, the dead or their ghosts were, to the greatest extent, free. Deeply moved by that fact, Emilia reached a hand toward one of the sweets without particular thought  \" You might be trying to act like a Witch, but put so much as a finger on those, and you'll regret it.\" *** Shocked by the unfamiliar voice suddenly calling out to her from behind, Emilia tried to instantly turn around and her shock deepened further, for a finger touch to the back of her head rendered her body completely immobile. \"...Ah.\" It wasn't that she was being restrained by force she was held in place by the sheer overwhelming pressure. The person standing right behind Emilia was a being beyond her comprehension. Gleaning this just from her aura and the touch of her finger, Emilia felt her entire body rapidly go numb. She sensed if she turned around, or at the slightest whim of the person behind her, she would be instantly and utterly annihilated. \"Good girl. You are correct not to look back. For I...\" \"Y-you are...?\" \"I am, well, you know A Witch so terrifying, she makes every hair on your body stand on end.\" Witch that single word entwined tightly around Emilia's heart, making it even harder to breathe. Emilia, often slandered as a Witch because of her appearance, had complex feelings where the term was concerned. However, even so, the being she was standing in front of seemed completely beyond all her preconceptions. Were all the beings worthy of being called true Witches shrouded in such immense miasma? \"...Hmph, I guess that's that, then. It really is the boy with the foul look in his eyes who's the strange one.\" \"Foul...look? Are you...talking about Subaru?\" \"Heh...\" Letting out a snort, the Witch admired Emilia's ability to wring out her voice. \"The instant you hear that boy's name, you perk up? That's marvelous, but you don't really have a good grasp of the situation, do you? And...and what do you think of that boy anyway?\" \"Subaru told me he loves me... He's a very precious boy to me, but...\" \"O-oh...? Heh, hmm, so that's it. Well, really it's all the same to me!\" To Emilia, it was not at all clear why she would dismiss with ragged breath the question she herself had just posed. However, at the same time, she felt her fear toward the Witch at her back faintly diminish. She did not know the reason. Perhaps she could simply tell the being was not impervious to dialogue. Relying upon that sense, Emilia swallowed once; then, hardening her will, she began to speak. \"You're a Witch, aren't"}, {"text": "you...? Does that mean you're one of the friends Echidna spoke of?\" \"Hmph. It's not like that girl ever called us frie... Wait, I bet she did! And with a smug face, too, I'm sure!\" \"I don't know about a smug look...but if you're here, where's Echidna?\" In the first place, Echidna had been in a foul mood every time she'd come into contact with Emilia. Therefore, she felt when Echidna had let slip about her \"friends,\" it hadn't been with pride or with a boastful face at all. Hearing Emilia's reply, the Witch went, \"Now hold on,\" the tone of her voice lowering just a bit. \"She said she doesn't want to meet you. It looked like she had a pretty rough time in the Trials.\" \"...It seems that way. Echidna seemed really hurt the last time I met her.\" Emilia couldn't forget the hatred that filled Echidna's voice and expression at the end of the second Trial. If that was truly the last time she would speak with Echidna, Emilia would be left with terrible regret. Even so, the relationship between Emilia and Echidna had been one of accepting the results head-on without anyone else's intervention. Even if Emilia ended up being hated, she wanted to take responsibility for her choices. \"It's not that she doesn't care. It's that she's accepted the results... You're quite admirable, you know. Even though that rascal said nothing but mean things to you...\" \"That's because Echidna spoke with me. I find it much harder to deal with the people who won't talk to me. If I could, I'd love to face you and talk with you, too, but...\" \" You absolutely cannot do that. If you do that, my fists, which have let so many people die, will cry out.\" She spoke in a hard voice, but it was one that betrayed no hint of fabrication. Goose bumps broke out over Emilia once more. The Witch's words truly did carry the weight of having let a great many people die. That weight remained as the Witch led off by saying, \"One really should fulfill her duty, though. Echidna tossed the duty of administrator away, so I am taking it up in her place What did you see in the third Trial?\" \"I saw...many sad worlds. The voice said this was the calamity that would inevitably come. Are these...? Will everything I've seen really happen? Are they really the future?\" \"In Echidna's view, it is possible they might happen.\" The Witch made a heavy sigh as she replied to the question Emilia harbored. It was close to confirmation, yet vague enough that one could not say for sure. If they had been mere fabrications, it would have been easier on her heart, but... \"The futures you saw could all come true one day. Or you might not see a single one happen ever. However, they are not fabrications. That girl is very fair about these kinds of things. Well, the fact that she showed you only futures that'd leave a bad taste in your mouth is definitely because she has a bone to pick with you.\" \"Fair, but... Echidna is a really naughty girl, isn't she?\" \"Does naughty even cover it...?\" The Witch offered a wry comment in response to Emilia's assessment of Echidna but said no more of the matter. Also, from Emilia's perspective, the current Witch's explanation was good news. \"Why do you seem so relieved?\" \"Eh?\" \"I'm asking, how can you act relieved after what you just heard? That's strange, isn't it? I mean, you've been shown nothing but terrible futures, yet, in spite of that...\" \"But they're not certain, right?\" Emilia had seen nothing but tragedies. It had been an unrelenting series of lamentations and tears of blood. It had been enough to make her question whether she was making the right choices. But  \"The futures I saw were a result of choices I've made. But there are also futures that won't turn out that way. Now that I know that, I'll be okay. I can clench my fists and fight.\" *** \"Someone really insisted that I have to do that, you see.\" They might have all been painful futures, but even then there was still hope. That was what she had learned. If Emilia seemed ready to falter, her memories of her parents and her older brother would sustain her. And if she was ever inclined to give up, the feelings scribbled on those walls would ignite a fire in her heart. \"If sad futures await, I'll run around them. If that doesn't work, I'll leap over them with all my might. If people have fallen along the way, I'll pull them up. If I keep doing those things, I'm sure I'll wipe away all those tears from before.\" \"You say that so full of confidence, so recklessly... You might end up broken in no time flat.\" \"If it was just me, maybe but I'm not alone.\" Emilia puffed her chest out in response to the Witch's provocation. Just as in the past and present, Emilia surely wouldn't be alone in the future. And she had a large group of dependable people around her. That wasn't to say it was good to blindly depend on them. But if they relied on her, and she on them, they would be together always. Even as she depended on others, Emilia would develop her own self-reliance. It was a choice she could never have made before, what with her lacking confidence and fear of the future. \"...You're strong. That part of you isn't like your mother at all.\" \" ! You know my mother?\" The unexpected connection surprised Emilia, leaving her voice slightly hoarse. Her reaction made the Witch hesitate for a time, after which she let out her breath. \"Yes, I know her well. But I will say nothing of her I've promised not to.\" *** The depth of emotion and the echo of unhealed wounds infused into the Witch's voice made Emilia's words catch in her throat. If she was honest, she did want to know about her mother. But... \"Mm, I understand. I won't ask anything, then.\" \"...You're fine with that?\" \"I can tell it isn't that you don't want to tell me. It's that you can't. Besides...\" For a moment, she paused and closed her eyes and pictured her mother. \"My mother...is Fortuna. The Trials helped me remember her. That's plenty for me.\" In her younger days, she was proud of having had two mothers. Even in the present, she might be able to say she had two no, three fathers. Even so  \"I remembered Mom, I remembered Dad, and I remembered my big brother and everyone in the forest. That's plenty... This was all because of Echidna's Trials, so...\" \"I see... So even that girl's... Even Echidna's wicked deeds result in something good once in a while...\" As Emilia touched a hand to her chest and reminisced about her family, the Witch's voice seemed to almost crack for a moment. Perhaps Emilia had misheard, but it sounded like a sob. \"...Could it be that you're...crying?\" \"...! I'm not...crying! I don't cry. I don't have the right to cry...not anymore.\" \"No one needs a right to...\" Cry, Emilia was about to say as she turned, wanting to wipe away the Witch's tears. She no longer felt the grand, overwhelming presence that had dominated her first meeting with the Witch. She wanted to stand with her on equal footing. But when Emilia tried to turn to face her, the Witch  \" Mnfff!\" As Emilia turned, an arm wrapped around her head, holding her face close against something soft. She immediately realized she had been pulled into a hug. Her face was pinned against the Witch's chest, completely preventing her from moving. \"I told you...not turning was the right choice. What a badly behaved girl you are.\" \"...You hate the idea of me seeing you cry that much?\" \"I don't want you to see me at all! I can't face anyone with... Ahhh, good grief! If only Echidna had taken care of things properly! And Sekhmet, and Daphne, and Typhon, and Carmilla, too!\" The Witch's yelling made her ears tremble. It sounded like angry shouting, but it wasn't. Emilia felt undiluted love for each of the unfamiliar names spoken by her. \"Are you...done crying?\" \"I'm angry; my tears dried up. But now I just feel indignant. I'm so furious, every hair on my head is shaking.\" \"That's really scary.\" \"I'm serious. We're done here.\" Her voice was gentle. Emilia could feel no anger from it. But something happened that proved her words were no lie. As the Witch hugged Emilia against her chest, Emilia realized a change had arisen in the place right behind her where a tea party should have been set up as a powerful wind blew through the space. \"That is the way out of Echidna's castle. Turn and walk forward, and you will be able to go back.\" *** \"You don't have time to hang around in a place like this, do you? You...you still have things you need to do. Why not try taking the first step?\" She felt the Witch's voice right above her head fade. There was warmth within the arms hugging her and a faintly audible heartbeat coming from the chest her head rested against which was strange, given that the Witch was dead. \"...Hey, are you listening to me?\" \"Eh, ah, I'm sorry. I felt oddly calm just now...\" \"That part of you is so...\" *** I made her angry, thought Emilia, but the Witch's words softened. They felt nostalgic for some reason. Before she could press the point, the Witch declared, \"Okay, time to go!\" \"Wah!\" \"Walk straight forward. With this, the Trials have ended... The barrier will open.\" Something grasped Emilia's head and turned it right around with such swiftness and precision that she never got a look at the Witch's face Instead, what she saw before her was a single door. Standing right there atop the hill between her and the tea-party preparations was a door all by its lonesome. \"If I...leave through there...\" The Trials would end, and the barrier would be lifted. These were the results that Emilia had sought. Then, whether they liked it or not, a choice would be forced upon the residents of the Sanctuary. She did not know how many of the people gathered in the clearing would leave in the very end. Nor did she know if doing so would bring uncertainty to their lives or if all this was truly in their best interests. But just as Subaru had told Garfiel, Emilia had something to tell them, too. Time was ever in motion. And amid that passage of time, everyone needed to come to terms with themselves. And if no solution presented itself, Emilia wanted to join with them and search for one together. If pulling people by the hand or pushing them forward was too difficult, she could still walk with them side by side.  Even though she was unreliable, gutless, and had only barely begun to demonstrate she was suited for the throne. \"It's fine.\" *** Emilia had not voiced any of the swirling emotions in her chest. Despite that, the Witch's affirmation carried power. \"Mm, thank you. I think that's how I prefer to live anyway.\" After smoothing out her silver hair, Emilia stepped forward. That she did not turn around, never seeing the Witch's face to the very end, was her way of respecting the Witch's will. She no longer felt any of the fear that came unbidden when first encountering the Witch. She simply puffed out her chest and walked with pride. Then, when she moved her hand toward the door leading outside, she said the thought that suddenly came to mind. \"Hey, Miss Witch. If you run into Echidna, can you tell her something for me?\" \"What is it?\" \"If we meet again, next time, let's have tea together. Even if she haunts my"}, {"text": "dreams, I'm sure I'll welcome her If possible, I'd like to have it with you and the other Witches, too.\" *** For a moment, Emilia's request made the Witch hesitate. And then  \"Yes, I'll tell her exactly that. And if she doesn't like it, I'll grab her by the scruff of her neck and drag her along anyway!\" The Witch confidently spoke those words with conviction. The tone of her voice made plain that she was being quite serious. Emilia smiled pleasantly as she received the reply. She pushed the door open, stepping into the unfolding darkness beyond. She did not hesitate. Emilia understood precisely where it led.  Having overcome her past and selected the present, this was the door that continued into the future. 4 When she awoke from the Trials, it felt different than coming out of sleep. Her body had not been sleeping; rather, her soul had been separated from her body. With the soul split from the body, and the consciousness remaining awake, one might say it was natural that it would feel different. If she was sleeping normally, Emilia, never a morning person, would have been in peril of losing precious time. In the past, she had Puck, but she would have to deal with such things herself thereafter. \"...Ah, oh no. It feels like I'm about to cry.\" Clenching her teeth, Emilia shook her head, as if to ward off the sense of loss she had yet to recover from. From there, she rose to her feet, stroked the writing on the wall with her palm and then turned her gaze toward the back of the stone room. The stone room in which the Trial was conducted, one she had already passed through several times over, had another door at the back leading farther in. It had been firmly closed and seemed completely impassable. Yet, now  \"...It's open. Is this saying, Come on in?\" The Witch atop the hill had said going through the door would lift the barrier. But though the tomb had changed, Emilia did not see any sign that the barrier had been lifted. Yet, at the same time, she felt something else: In a true sense, what awaited deeper within was the key to lifting that barrier. \"I mustn't get all worried. Anyway, I'll go, see, and do. Okay, let's go.\" Pushing back against the faint unease in her chest, Emilia spurred herself on and passed through the door. Inside was a path that was more cramped than the one that led from the entrance to the stone room, which Emilia could pass through because of her relatively low stature. It was not long until she arrived at a new stone room. This was a little chamber substantially smaller than the one in which the Trials had been conducted. The other stone room had by no means been large, but a scant two of the large beds from Roswaal Manor would have left no legroom whatsoever. But such stray thoughts vanished as soon as she saw what was placed in the center of the room. To Emilia's eyes, it looked like a coffin. The coffin was transparent, probably made from magic crystals of some sort. The purity was so high, it made her shudder from a single glance, rivaling or even exceeding that of the stone Puck had used as his icon. Within the coffin constructed from magic crystals of such abnormal composition rested a single woman naturally, she was not breathing. Her pallid face bore no signs of vitality; this was an empty shell devoid of life. She had long, glossy hair as pure as any snow. Her skin was reminiscent of porcelain, and her face was so lovely that just seeing it was enchanting. Her torso and limbs were covered in a dress that seemed pitch-black, making her a woman of black and white, the extremes of the world, with her ethereal beauty unmarred by anything extraneous. Without thinking, Emilia let a sigh of admiration trickle from her lips. If she looked in a mirror, she would be greeted by one of the beauties of the age, but Emilia had little appreciation for her own face. However, her heart was now trembling from the immaculate beauty of the woman before her. It was a face she had met many times over in the Trials, that of the Witch of Greed  \" She looks like Echidna, but who is this?\"  Though reminiscent of the Witch, Emilia had never seen this woman before. *** Accompanied by faint surprise, Emilia's thoughts strayed from the coffin as she surveyed the room's interior. It was a cramped room. She hardly needed to look around to tell the coffin was the only notable object within. There was no sign of a door or a path leading deeper. This was the innermost part of the tomb the room in which its mistress ought to have been laid to rest. \"And yet, this isn't Echidna...but she does resemble her. An older sister, maybe?\" Her memories of the Witch's appearance were still fresh; there were many commonalities between her and this woman. With her eyelids closed, her face, from her eyes to the bridge of her nose down to her lips, seemed constructed in a similar fashion. But in contrast to Echidna, who looked to be in the latter half of her teens, this woman was old enough to be in her midtwenties though there seemed no doubt they were connected by blood. \"It's really weird for an older sister to be resting here even though it's Echidna's tomb, but...\" With no other conclusions coming to mind, Emilia tilted her head at the mysteriousness of it. Then she tilted her head further as she noticed the ritual that spread throughout the entirety of the tomb, with this coffin as its center. \"Ah...,\" she went, her voice slipping out unconsciously. Both the scale of the ritual and the level of its complexity were impressive. Accordingly, Emilia was certain this was the key to the barrier constructed in the Sanctuary. \"Incredible... It's amazing; I don't have any idea what to do...\" Though she was a spirit mage, Emilia strove to have a decent understanding of magic beyond her specialty. However, the complexity of the ritual before her eyes was far beyond anything like the fundamentals that Emilia was familiar with. If it was stopped once, it would never activate again of course, there was no need to do so regardless... \"This. If I stop the flow here, that should break it...\" Touching a hand against the coffin, Emilia found the core of the precisely crafted ritual. It matched up with where the woman sleeping in the coffin folded her hands over her chest that was the nucleus. For one brief moment, she hesitated. If she broke the ritual, the barrier would be lifted, and the tomb, bereft of its duty, would become dormant. If that happened, she would lose her only means of going to the tea party as well as all leads about the Witch who knew her mother  \"...That has nothing to do with any of this!\" Emilia slammed a fist against the coffin, seemingly to drive her hesitance away. That instant, the core of the ritual shattered, and cracks spread across the crystalline lid of the coffin like a spider's web. The shattering of the core made the flow of mana go completely out of control, sending a torrent of dazzling light surging within the room. This light disturbed the serene atmosphere, making Emilia's silver hair glimmer, before finally, it suddenly vanished. The tomb's functions had come to a halt that was what Emilia read from the shift in the air. \"This time, it's over... Mm, it has to be.\" There was no change visible to the eye. Yet, something was unmistakably different. Clenching her teeth, Emilia was certain that the room had become a simple resting place for a coffin that the tomb itself had become a mere structure. With this, the barrier imprisoning the residents of the Sanctuary was gone. The choice whether to accept that result and live outside the Sanctuary was now theirs. Of course, with Roswaal's support at her back, Emilia intended to respect the decision the people made, no matter who they might be  \"Come to think of it, Roswaal mentioned a teacher... Is this person his teacher?\" Roswaal had spoken the word when he'd directed biting sarcasm and ferocious insults at Emilia just prior to her challenging the tomb. He'd said, in the beginning, it was just him and his teacher. She didn't know any details about what it was the two of them had started. But if he meant the Sanctuary itself, the ties between this woman and Roswaal ran deep. \"On that note, I need to speak to everyone...to Ram and Roswaal especially.\" The woman in the coffin was secondary. Her top priority was to tell everyone the fact that the barrier had been lifted and to get the people remaining in the Sanctuary out Subaru hadn't explained the fine details, but he had said this was necessary. And that probably had something to do with Roswaal's odd behavior. She needed to hurry. Turning, Emilia slipped through the passage with urgent steps, heading through the stone room on her way outside. The people of the Sanctuary and Earlham Village should have still been in the clearing, with Ryuzu and Milde representing them. Then, as Emilia raced out of the tomb  \" Eh?\"  the skin-stabbing cold and the ferociously blowing snow covering the Sanctuary made Emilia let out a white breath. CHAPTER 5 *** The scent of smoke and fire filling his nostrils stole Garfiel's attention for only an instant. He had a vague awareness of scorching heat in the distance. Slowly but surely, the burning was spreading, which meant the fire was gradually consuming the mansion. Just who had unleashed it? \"Getting distracted again?\" Not letting a single moment of stagnancy slip by, Elsa closed in and swung, pursuing Garfiel with her blade. Seeking to take his life as the price of looking away was a rather greedy thing, even more so where Garfiel, onetime apostle of the Witch of Greed, was concerned. But having severed all ties with the Witch of Greed, he was unmoved by such avarice. \"As if!!\" \"That's too bad.\" Once more, Garfiel caught a slashing knife by his fangs before biting down and shattering it. Having lost her weapon to the power of his jaws, Elsa instantly let go of the handle and leaped backward. Garfiel remained planted at a medium distance as she put a fresh kukri into her hand, tilting her head. \"You pretended to be distracted. Quite an actor you are. Or perhaps that was an invitation?\" \"You don't need to make every single thing ya say suggestive... Would ya stop playin' dumb already?\" \" ? Hmm? About what...?\" The smile on Elsa's glossy lips only deepened Garfiel's suspicions. From her reaction, he concluded there was no connection between Elsa and the fire. The time they'd spent together in mortal combat had established she wasn't one to rely on trickery or seduction. In that case, the chance that someone on his side was responsible for the fire probably spawning from one of Subaru's plans was high. \"That's pretty extreme...but it sure as hell is effective. Way to go, General!\" \"I am a little unsure what this is about, but don't you put a little too much stock in him?\" \"Ha, save the sour grapes. I told ya, those demon beasts standin' in the way ain't no match for the general! Piece of cake!\" If Subaru was the mastermind behind the fire, the objective was probably to drive off the demon beasts. Whether the proposal came from Subaru or Otto, it was exactly the kind of thing they would resort to. Demon beasts feared fire, too. They'd probably succeeded in securing the escape route. Which meant  \"If I smash ya flat, that'll complete our victory!\" \"You certainly talk a good game isn't that easier said than done, though?\""}, {"text": "As Garfiel psyched himself up, a bloody smile hovered in his field of vision as Elsa's form grew indistinct. As she entered the realm of pure speed in a single step, Garfiel opted to lower his stance and charge as well. With the space between them gone in a single instant, the two collided in the middle of the corridor  ***  or rather, just before they were to do so, one kicked off the ceiling and the other from the floor as both respectively bounded away from that place. The next moment, the wall facing the courtyard was destroyed by an impact that seemed to make the entire building shudder. The impact had struck the first-floor-turned-battlefield, but clearly the floor above was not spared as it began to cave in. All this was due to the enormous, boulder-like demon beast that had so grandly crashed into the building. Naturally, the appearance of a beast so huge that it shocked the imagination was an unexpected development even to Garfiel. This was followed by something more unexpected still a cutesy voice levying objections from atop the mass of boulders. \"Awww, I can't believe you're doing this! Stand up, Rock Piggie! Quick!!\" \"Ahhh? Some runt's ridin' that thing?\" The rambunctious voice he heard coming from atop the beast left Garfiel with a grimace. When he looked closer, there was a girl with blue hair in a braid straddling the back of the mass of boulders so this was the Beast Master in the flesh? And the reason this Beast Master was intruding here was  \"Garf! So this is where you were!\" \"Sis?!\" With a flourish, a blond maid Frederica slipped through the shattered wall and landed in the half-destroyed corridor. The reunion with Frederica, who was supposedly fleeing, made Garfiel rush over, eyes bulging. \"What the hell are ya still doin' here?! What happened to Ram's sis, the general, and the rest?!\" \"I fulfilled the duty entrusted to me. You understand the reason I remained behind, don't you?\" Seeing Frederica close one eye as she spoke these words shut Garfiel right up. He could see a number of wounds Frederica had sustained. Of course he could. In keeping the Beast Master at bay, she must have taken on countless demon beasts in the process. Unlike Garfiel, who'd trained and trained as he kept struggling to become stronger, his elder sister had no doubt spent many days that had nothing to do with fighting. Just how deeply had this battle cut into his sister's flesh and bones? \"...Don't make such a pathetic face.\" Noticing Garfiel's gloomy expression, Frederica landed an open-palm chop right on his wide-open forehead. Though it didn't hurt, Garfiel let out a reflexive \"ow,\" glaring at his older sister. \"Garf, I understand you are being considerate, but I, too, am a servant of the Mathers family... For better or worse, I have had the fundamentals of self-defense drilled into me.\" \"Ya say that but... Ah, then again, Ram's damn strong. Aight, you've convinced me.\" \"The fact that you chose her as the most relevant point of comparison puts me in a slightly awkward position...\" Frederica put a hand to her forehead as she clacked her fangs, seeming a little troubled. Perhaps it could be chalked up to them being siblings, but Garfiel and Frederica were exactly alike in certain habits. And apparently, Garfiel and Frederica weren't the only ones around with this kind of relationship. \"Meili, are you all right? I hope you're safe, but I do wish you didn't interfere.\" \"Sheesh, Elsa, you're so self-centered! The main reason I have to work this hard is because you ran off ahead! You'd better reflect on that!\" \"Once we're done here, I'll make it up to you now, do your job.\" Elsa's reply made Meili pout as she obediently got to work. The moment the young girl clapped her hands, the boulder-like creature instantly swung its body around and then slowly turned its head toward Garfiel and Frederica. Garfiel sensed other demon beasts drawing near from both inside and outside the mansion. She truly was a Beast Master. However, Elsa quizzically cocked her head to the side with a questioning look. \"The number of demon beasts seems rather low...\" \"The big maid nailed a bunch of them before we got here! Besides, the mansion's been set on fire. On top of that, it seems like the shadow lion died.\" Meili, answering Elsa's question with a sour look on her face, continued: \"It was a rare one that obeyed me despite still having its horn, but its short temper was the flaw in that jewel. And it failed me right when I needed it most...!\" \"I have trouble understanding why you brought such a difficult demon beast along to begin with.\" \"Because no one else could keep the others in line! ...Anyway, Elsa, what about your opponent?\" Looking down at the corridor from atop the demon beast, Meili caught sight of Garfiel. \"Hmm,\" she went, letting out a breath of deep interest with a passionate smile that was extremely strange for a girl of her age on numerous levels. \"Elsa has her eyes on you, Mr. Scary Face. You poor, poor thing.\" \"If it's a nasty face you want, there's no topping the general. So what, you sisters gonna come at me together?\" Garfiel's reply earned him a look of surprise not only on Meili's face but Elsa's as well. They weren't shocked at being called sisters. Certainly, the two didn't seem connected by blood. The pair might have been similar in appearance, but it was far more difficult to claim a family resemblance. But they were most definitely sisters that was what Garfiel's intuition told him. \"Sisters? Yes, I suppose you're right... So now that we have sisters gathered on one side and siblings on the other, I think it's time we got back to business. Don't you?\" Standing beside the demon beast, Elsa posed the question as she pointed the tip of her kukri toward him. With a quick glance, Garfiel checked on Frederica's state as she stood beside him. Her breathing was ragged, her face was pale from blood loss, and her visible wounds were, on average, ones that could not simply be shrugged off. \"Garf.\" Noticing his gaze, Frederica called out to him. Garfiel could not help but force out a smile at the emotions infused within her simple mention of his name Don't be disappointed in me, Frederica's gaze begged. Quietly, Garfiel stepped forward this was where everything would be settled. \"The mansion's on fire, we got a horde o' demon beasts outside, and my older sister behind me is tryin' to put up a strong front, as battered as she is.\" *** \"Got a bunch of people I gotta save and some powerful enemies whose teeth I gotta kick in. The general said he's counting on me. And the girl I love chewed me out real good, too.\" \"What in the world is Mr. Scary Face getting at...?\" \"Ain't it obvious?!\" Strangely, Elsa and Meili both had their heads tilted at the exact same angle. In contrast to their questioning looks, Garfiel clacked his fangs with a radiant look on his face. \"With a situation like this, what man in the world wouldn't be burnin' up?! It's time to do this! This is basically before the Dragon, Sword Saint Reid drew his sword and laughed!\" \"That's an idiom for someone who's seriously messed up in the head, you know?\" \"Yeah, and? I'm about to take on the both of ya, so how's that the wrong thing to say?\" Garfiel bluntly acknowledged the level of his own recklessness. Elsa blinked hard, temporarily at a loss. However, this lasted for only a few moments. Elsa broke into a smile as the light of madness flared in her eyes. She licked her lips in anticipation. \"Yes. You're absolutely right.\" Garfiel slammed his shields together as he prepared to face his eager opponent. \"Wait a second, Elsa have you already forgotten what we came here to do? Mama's gonna scold us.\" \"I suppose so. You deal with the other one, then. I want to focus on this child.\" \"Boo. You always do this, asking me to do stuff at the drop of a hat. I mean, really \" Meili complained about how Elsa was abandoning the job, but before she could finish her thought, Garfiel drove home why it was important to not get distracted. \" Oooaaah!\" Suddenly raising a battle cry, Garfiel poured his strength into the sole of his foot. Instantly, it punched through the half-destroyed mansion and straight into the ground, kicking up a square of soil. Thus, he launched it forward with a tremendous kick. *** Elsa dropped into a low stance that verged on crawling on all fours as she evaded the hurtling missile of packed earth. But the boulder-like demon beast behind her, unable to dodge as quickly with its enormous frame, sustained a direct hit. The impact bowled it over, sending it spinning and crashing into the wall. \"Ahhhhh!\" Meili, who had been riding said demon beast, was thrown off it by the sheer force. Elsa slid in to catch her just before she would have hit the ground headfirst. \"G-Garf, what in the world did you do just now?\" \"That's the power of my blessing, As long as my feet are planted on the ground, I can hit whatever I can see. I'll say this only once: I won't let ya interfere with this fight. Not you, and not the little sister over there, either.\" Garfiel bared his fangs as he made his declaration. But the blessing of the earth spirit wasn't nearly as potent as he claimed. Beyond heightening his healing abilities, his power was fully capable of churning up the ground or causing it to cave in. However, the range of this was limited to where his limbs could reach. In other words, he was bluffing. But precisely because it was a bluff, Garfiel smugly smiled. He had learned from Subaru and Otto these were the times where a smile was absolutely necessary. \" Meili. Leave the bare minimum outside to maintain the perimeter. Call the others and rouse that demon beast over there.\" \"...You're gonna make Mama angry.\" Freed from Elsa's arms, Meili murmured in a low voice. However, she had already grasped that the situation didn't leave them with many options. Sighing, Meili blew a finger whistle. She quietly waited as the shrill, high-pitched sound echoed throughout the manor grounds. The demon beasts would be coming. A large force was on its way, gathering to crush Garfiel and Frederica. His lust for battle flared even brighter. His soul howled he could not lose here. \"I will pluck your limbs off to lighten you and take you home with me. I will love you longer than your cherished person.\" \"Ain't there even one option to make ya give up on the whole bowel thing?\" Speaking in exasperation as he cracked his neck, Garfiel adopted a forward-leaning stance as he prepared to intercept his foe. Her upper body swaying, Elsa lowered both hands and let her kukri knives fall to the floor. In their place, she held a pair of vile, malevolent blades one white, one black, both gleaming in the moonlight. \"Sis, just focus on protectin' yourself.\" \"Meili, you mustn't move a single step forward.\" Without any signal, they clashed head-on, leaving their respective sisters behind. The battle between the Bowel Hunter and the Sanctuary's Shield entered its final scene. Then the corridor of the mansion exploded into a confused, chaotic battle, a banquet of blood, flesh, and bloodlust. *** When a green tail passed before his eyes, Garfiel opened his fangs and bit down without a second thought. Purple fluid sprayed, and the noxious liquid burned as it spattered across his flesh. But he cared not. With a mighty swipe of his arm, he smashed both of the two-headed snake's skulls. An instant later, malevolent death in the form of a curved"}, {"text": "blade grazed just past the tip of his chin. Following in the wake of that slash, a gust blew the remains of the ruined demon beast away. After his momentary brush with death, Garfiel advanced instead of giving ground, smacking the face of impending doom away. Both his arms were spread out wide, catching his opponent by the torso and flank. Her bones and viscera squelched as powerful hands twisted wherever they found purchase. *** In his ears and before his eyes, a cacophony of bestial roars came from every direction. Anguished cries, screams, and his own yells mixed together. These overlapped with the sounds of metal crashing and scraping against steel. Sound and light were so muddled that it was hard to tell what was even happening. But Garfiel didn't care. The resistance he felt, his gnashing fangs, and the bloody smile he caught glimpses of were all genuine. The brute force of his attacks were making the killer before him spit blood, staining her pleasant smile so much that it was more black than red. Yet, even as she weathered those brutal attacks meant to rob her of life, the pleasure never left the woman's black eyes. Garfiel instinctively felt that more than her combat ability, more than her vitality, it was her mind that was the most dangerous part of her nature. \" Yah!\" \"Gaaaaah!!\" A short breath was answered by a howl. The woman's left arm was removed, and the wicked blade it held vanished from Garfiel's field of view. Immediately after, there was a series of high-pitched sounds first behind her, then reflecting off the wall, bouncing off the ceiling, striking the floor, and from there, the wicked blade flew right at Garfiel's back. After a moment of indecision, Garfiel decided against turning around as he focused his attention on the woman as she prepared to attack with her right arm allowing the deadly blade to bury itself into his right shoulder, momentarily locking him in place. The lethal attack was about to land. *** That was when he kicked up the remains of the two-headed snake between him and the blade aimed at the back of his head. The corpse kept the keen edge from slicing into him, but the blunt force was still effective. The blow dazed him and knocked him into a spin, creating a fatal opening or at least it would have had he not poured all his strength into his feet beforehand. With the blessing of the earth spirit, he propelled himself off the floor in a single leap. Garfiel's unexpected behavior and counterattack caught the woman by surprise. In the span of a few moments, he swung his left arm in a low arc to grab the woman's face a left arm growing explosively as it became a monstrous limb. Using partial transformation, he tore at her face as if to rip it right off. \"Gyahhhhh !!\" The clawing left intense gouges, stronger and deeper than the one that had once smashed her face. The five finger-blades carved deep inside her skull, making even that woman scream and slowing the movements of her feet. \"Raaaagh!!\" The woman took a direct kick straight to the torso, sending her body flying backward with ease. With her ribs already broken and her internal organs already crushed, it would not have been strange had she died from the pain from being slashed and pounded like that alone. But even as fresh blood coursed from the prone woman, a broken, laughing voice also escaped her.  Her life had not been extinguished. Her fighting spirit was undiminished. Her nature was unsalvageable for all eternity. \"Tch! It's just one thing after another!\" Just as Garfiel was preparing to launch a follow-up attack, demon beasts cut across the battlefield to bear down upon him. Mice with black wings, large ferocious dogs with mottled patterns on their bodies, and a horde of two-headed snakes burning with rage for their slain kin plus one back-in-action enormous pile of boulders aptly called a Rock Pig all came rushing at him. \"Garf! I'll handle those!\" Right as Garfiel braced himself against the demon beasts aiming to land a surprise attack, the monsters were ripped asunder somewhere behind him. There was no time to turn around, but he could still tell that Frederica's ferocious attacks were mowing their foes down. All that remained was for Garfiel to deal with the one charging at him with a frame large enough to rival the whole mansion. \"Get pancaked!!\" Receiving Meili's command, the Rock Pig bounded forward with its woefully short four legs, leaping toward him. No longer was this simply a charging beast; it had transformed into a projectile with the mass of a falling building. No single person had the power to withstand such a blow which was precisely what the monster's instincts cried out. Spreading and firmly planting both feet, Garfiel called upon the full force of his blessing of the earth spirit. The blessing of the soil conveyed through the soles of his feet made the tendons and muscles of his entire body swell and throb the blood lurking within him burst forth as his flesh changed form. \" Ooooooo!!!\" The booming roar of his soul was not directed outward; it reverberated within his own flesh and blood. His abominable, difficult-to-accept bloodline had been a constant and not always welcome part of his life. Now, of his own volition, he summoned it forth, seized control of it, and turned it into raw power to carve out his own destiny. His skeleton creaked and groaned as it transformed. His neck, his torso, and his head were changing into those of a beast. A great golden tiger's mane sprouted as his clothes burst apart, unable to withstand the pressure. But the shields attached to both his arms remained in place, now looking like bangles on swelling arms that appeared to be violence incarnate, rivaling even the Rock Pig in stature. *** The two males or rather, the beasts collided. The impact was felt across the mansion, spawning an explosive sound that ripped through the air. The rocky demon beast's ramming attack was stopped cold as the ferocious tiger pounded its greatsword-like claws into the pig's face. Some of the claws were ripped off at their base by the thick, formidable hide; though not slain by the force of the charge, the great tiger was nonetheless forced back, reeling as its enormous opponent followed up by stomping down on its chest from straight above, driving the tiger into the floor and drawing sprays of blood. \"Keep it up, Rock Piggie!!\" Even though she heard the sounds of its bones breaking and its flesh being crushed, the demon beast's master did not let her guard down. Obeying its master's almost-tearful command, the Rock Pig issued a roar as it raised both its front paws upward, coming down for a second stomp that was aimed at the great tiger's skull.  But before it could, the ferocious tiger used the strength of its abdominal muscles to launch its body upward; the demon beast took the blow straight in its wide-open gut. The demon beast with boulder-like hide normally never revealed its belly, where its defenses were thin and fragile. Sharp fangs pierced the tough skin, which the tiger's claws had failed to penetrate, cutting deep into the flesh. \"Grrrraaaaggghhhh !!\" While keeping its mouth lodged in the Rock Pig's gut, the ferocious great tiger rolled its body sideways. This tore at the prey's flesh, which was still caught on the fangs and was the predatory behavior characteristic of the water dragons. The great tiger's fangs rent flesh not to consume but to kill without mercy. There was a vast amount of blood and viscera that poured out, proportional to its prey's enormous frame. The gore flowed out in a veritable wave, flooding the mansion corridor. \"oo.\" The whites of its eyes bared, the Rock Pig uttered a frail death cry as it collapsed. \"No way... U-unbelievable... I don't believe this!\" Meili backed away as Garfiel spat out blood and entrails, pushing the enormous corpse away. She'd whistled with her fingers to gather a horde of demon beasts together, but now that all the big ones like Rock Piggie had been wiped out, only small- and medium-size ones were left to answer the call. Her advantage had crumbled in mere moments. \"Ughhh! Look what you've done! Elsa! Elsaaa! Do something!\" \"...What a slave driver you are.\" Tousling her braid, the killer responded to Meili's tearful cry for help. Slowly, Elsa Gramhilde's raven-black hair swayed as she approached, her savage face having already regenerated. Exuding seductive charm and a murderous beauty, she shot Garfiel a passionate glance. \"You tore into a woman's face without hesitation. You truly are marvelous...\" \"Gargh, raaagh...!!\" The smiling woman's vile, blood-marred visage made the great tiger growl with a fierce shake of its broken shoulders. The trembling tiger's massive frame grew taut as the enlarged flesh gradually returned to human form. A few seconds later, a half-naked boy reappeared on the field of battle. \"Argh... Crap, looks like I'm back. Head freakin' hurts...\" \"I see... So that makes you a half-beast. I thought you were merely a human with a foul look in his eyes.\" \"Gotta say, if that was the rule, no way our general'd be human.\" Shaking his head, Garfiel checked how his body felt upon his returning to human form. The process of compressing his skeleton back into a smaller body had joined his broken shoulders enough that they could move at least. That said, even slight movements made creaks and white-hot pain shoot through him. It would be a long time before he would move at full strength again. \"You said it didn't bother you...but you must be thinking it is rather absurd by now?\" *** \"Even though you are injured all over, my wounds are simply healing. The gap between us grows greater as time passes... Do you not think it is unfair?\" There was not a single scratch to be seen on Elsa's long, slender limbs. If the blood was wiped off, the luster of her white skin would be unmarred underneath. In contrast, Garfiel's wounds were only becoming graver. Perhaps it was logical to condemn that so-called immortality as an unfair advantage. \"Me, I ain't ready to give up. And I ain't takin' back what I said.\" Shaking his head, he rejected such timid thoughts. He never needed them to begin with. \"You ain't immortal. It's that ya won't die till someone kills ya, right? Ain't that right, vampire?\" \"...You knew.\" \"I had a hunch. Me, I loved readin' books since waaaay back. I knew there were special sorts like that. Didn't think I'd meet one right after leavin' home, though.\" From time to time, books from the outside world found their way into the Sanctuary, though Garfiel had no idea who the sender might've been, nor could he tell from the types of books what they hoped he might learn from them. Garfiel read anything he could, so that he might one day find a way to butcher whatever it was that saddened the woman he'd fallen for. It was in the course of those studies that he had read somewhere that the beings known as vampires possessed special characteristics. \"Apparently, one of the old Witches was one, too. That Witch is dead. And that means you can die, too.\" Garfiel had already dealt Elsa what were supposed to be fatal wounds four times and counting. Even if she'd inherited that characteristic from an immortal monster of legend, her regenerative power had to have limits. It'd take probably one or two more times, and that'd settle things. But before it came to that  \"...If your little sister swears to never do evil ever again, I ain't unwillin' to let her go.\" \"...You truly are an adorable child.\" With a smile, she dashed the final bouquet of compassion he offered her. That was his signal. With an explosive step, Garfiel"}, {"text": "leaped straight forward. A wicked blade sliced directly down to intercept him, aiming to cleave his head. The force of the attack tore the mansion corridor apart. Catching the attack on his shield, the blade cut shallowly into his breast. Heedless of the spatter of blood, he pressed on, continuing to advance  \"Gusteko, where I was born, is a very, very cold land far to the north.\" They continued to exchange blows when suddenly, words woven like a song slipped into his eardrums. He shouldn't have heard it. His consciousness was ablaze, intercepting and dealing lethal strikes with every passing moment, leaving no room for such a voice to slip through. That should have been the case, but it sneaked in regardless. \"It is a country with a vast chasm between rich and poor. Children abandoned by the destitute are not a rarity. I was one myself, without parents for as long as I can remember, living off what stagnant water and scraps I could find.\" \" Raaagh!!\" \"I stole, and I hurt people. Days spent like that blended together... What was I living for; what was happiness? In those days, I had no time to think about such things.\" Garfiel gave a mighty swing of his arm to blow Elsa's face away. She sidestepped the attack. A silver arc flashed. He tilted his body to dodge it. Evasion became counterattack, only to be foiled. Distance opened between them. \"That day was a particularly cold day.\" \"Shaddap! I ain't listenin'!!\" \"On that day, the wind blowing down from the sacred mountain was cold, and it was freezing inside the city. Amid raging snow so cold it froze even your breath, I was working as a thief when a shop owner caught me.\" Elsa let out a tender sigh, speaking as if she were watching a dream. The fury of her blade grew wilder, carving into Garfiel as his shoulder injuries dulled his defenses. \"No one would have complained had he killed me then, but I was a woman. Even now, I remember the vulgar smile on that man's face as he started to tear off my clothes.\" \"Gaaagh...!\" \"As that cold, freezing wind blew, he stripped off my tunic and even took my underwear... When I thought it was better to freeze to death than to suffer whatever indignities he would subject me to, I picked up a piece of glass that just happened to be close by.\" She raised one of her long legs and kicked at the side of Garfiel's head, sending him crashing into the wall. The impact stunned him, rattling his brain, but he'd also shattered the arch of Elsa's foot in the process. Her expression of ecstasy sent a shudder straight through him. \"It was not as if I meant to do it. It just so happened that I thrust the piece of glass into his belly.\" *** \"I felt no hesitation at taking another's life. I felt nothing as I listened to the man's scream. But in that cold wind, one thought occurred to me.\" As Garfiel's breath caught, Elsa flashed a vacant, engrossed smile like a maiden in love. \" Why are blood and intestines so warm?\" He escaped from the reach of the lashing blade, which practically crawled across the ground, nearly shearing off his ankles as he unleashed a kick. Elsa evaded his attack with a leap away. Garfiel clicked his tongue as the killer distanced herself. He wasn't simply irritated by the difficulty of taking her down. \"If there is anything that can be called true happiness in this world, it must be found in the warmth that lets you forget the cold. It was that day I, a person born with nothing, finally gained something that truly belonged to me. For the first time, I was happy. I suppose you cannot understand that?\" \"I don't wanna, either.\" \"That's fine. I wasn't hoping for you to sympathize with me anyway.\" \"Then why'd ya have to tell me all that crap? It's disgustin'.\" \"I wonder why myself.\" Looking at Garfiel, whose eyes contained nothing save hostility, Elsa curiously tilted her head. Then she narrowed her mystified eyes, her cheeks faintly blushing as she gazed at Garfiel. \"Most likely because I am quite fond of you.\" \"...Sorry, but I've already fallen for a woman. I ain't got time for some chick messed up in the head.\" \"How cold. But that's fine. I only have business with what's inside you, after all.\" She almost seemed to make sense, but in the end, Garfiel couldn't understand a single thing about her. Having listened to Elsa's personal tale, Garfiel came to one conclusion. Of course, he had no intention of understanding her, nor did he intend to forgive her. The only thing he could do was end her. \" I'm gonna kill ya, Elsa Gramhilde.\" \" It is because you will kill me that you are my first love, Garfiel Tinzel.\" Calling each other by name was the one and only connection they shared. The rest, they entrusted to violence. The wicked blades became light, raging, carving, slicing the half-destroyed mansion corridor apart. Amid that shower of blades, Garfiel dodged No, he defended with the minimum amount of movement with his shields, holding his ground. Blood flowed as a blade nicked his shoulder, his belly, his leg, and his head, but Garfiel was unshaken. The distance shrank to six paces. Garfiel swung his left arm, sending the shield atop it flying straight forward. At five paces, the shield struck Elsa's arm, shattering her fingers, causing her to drop the weapon in her left hand. At four paces, countless slicing attacks came at the now-defenseless left side of his torso, drawing blood. He did not stop. At three paces, he stomped with the sole of his foot. The ground exploded and rose up. The mansion uttered its death cry and broke apart. At two paces, the Bowel Hunter struck with a spinning attack at maximum speed, which she aimed at his torso with more force than he'd ever witnessed in his entire life. At one pace, he covered his chest with his right shield, the arm underneath breaking as he parried the Bowel Hunter's blow. \" Do you think you blocked it? Don't be careless.\" Garfiel heard that laughter-filled voice as she dropped a long leg toward his face. The descending heel and the dully gleaming blade embedded within were aimed right at the center of Garfiel's head  \" Elsa!\" Suddenly, a shriek-like voice made Elsa leap back. The east wing of the mansion, after being engulfed in flame and withstanding repeated blows, was finally collapsing. Meili, right under one of the falling fragments, clutched her head and called out to her elder sister. It was there that Elsa leaped. She slammed her blade in, carving apart the falling rubble overhead. She sliced, gouged, and penetrated the plummeting pieces one after another. And yet, the cascade of debris never ceased  Without warning, a gust rushed past her feet. The wind, sporting a beautiful and supple beast with a golden mane, grabbed the girl in danger of being crushed by falling rubble, carrying her to safety. \"Elsaaa!\" Whisked away by the beautiful four-legged beast, Meili desperately called out to Elsa as the creature leaped outside. Elsa did not turn toward her. Garfiel had already come. *** The blade in Elsa's right hand clashed with the bestial claws of Garfiel's left. With a destructive sound, Garfiel's left arm was ruined, while Elsa's right wrist was left in ugly tatters. Fresh blood scattered all about as Elsa thrust her useless arm forward to shove Garfiel down. They jostled, practically embracing each other as they bit into each other's necks, then separated as if repelled. \"Urgh, nghhh...\" The left side of her neck was hot. Elsa was unable to even put a hand on the wound, which was bleeding freely, but her cheeks were flushed nonetheless. Her breath was so hot that it almost seemed like it changed color. Her eyes were filled with unquenchable passion.  Then she watched as Garfiel hoisted up the Rock Pig's massive body and hurled it. The boy's eyes blazed with ferocious emotion even as his neck bled from the wound her teeth had left behind. Though she knew where the arc of the hurled mass of rock would end, Elsa continued to gaze at the man she longed for until the very end. Her labored breaths came unsteadily. As she gazed at the golden-haired boy who aroused such excitement deep in her chest, she said only one thing. \" So thrilling.\" The woman, the murderess, the vampire, the Bowel Hunter was completely and utterly crushed by the incredible mass. Fresh blood splattered, mixing with the demon beast's bodily fluids. There was no sign of revival only the aroma of death. Garfiel let up a war cry, one that reached high into the sky, reverberating throughout the burning and crumbling mansion.  So ended the battle between the Bowel Hunter and the Sanctuary's Shield. CHAPTER 6 *** 1 Despite what the dramatic display of colors may have implied, the conflict unfolding was a highly advanced magical battle of precise technique. With a staff swing, blades of wind were created and loosed at their target. The invisible attack bore down on the intended victim's legs with enough force to slice apart steel. She had deliberately cast the spell out of sync with her gaze and breathing, even adding in a feint attack for good measure. These were  *** \"Surely, this is not all you are caaaapable of?\" With great ease, her enemy Roswaal stopped the invisible attack with a flick of his toes. Seeing that happen and realizing the level of skill that was required to make it possible made her throat freeze over. Dispelling magic by simply stomping on it was a feat far easier said than done. With the tips of his toes, Roswaal had rewritten the composition of the spell. Through his Gate, he had altered the mana cast by another person without interfering with their Gate directly. Performing such an act in the middle of a battle with one's life on the line was not the action of a sane person. The one who had done this was Roswaal L. Mathers famed magic user, current lord of the House of Roswaal, and the man who still desired the title of the greatest court magician of the age. \"Now I'll send one right back at you.\" Speaking in a casual tone, Roswaal moved both his hands and his mouth deploying a trio of incantations from his fingers and lips alike. This was not a simple combining of elements but simultaneously casting three different spells at once a technique that verged on the realm of gods. It was an insane technique that all but required three brains to accomplish and even this was not the true limits of his potential. It was because she understood this more than anyone that the girl Ram was filled with energy as she evaded the resulting downpour of flames. It was then, when he was still not taking this seriously and using the full extent of his powers, that she had a chance of victory. Ram responded to the three incoming fireballs, respectively colored red, blue, and green, by leaping backward and then intercepting them with more blades of wind. She would slice them away before shifting to a counterattack but before she could, something upset her plans. *** The red flame accepted her wind, acting as if she had poured oil onto it; the force of the flames increased as it transformed into a pillar of fire. The wind split the blue flame apart, scattering it in all directions, which only further spread its destructive reach. The green flame absorbed her wind, transforming into a snake of fire that crawled across the earth, causing havoc in its wake. She responded to every one with all her strength. She vaulted over the intense flaming pillar, kicked off a large tree to evade the curtain of blue flames,"}, {"text": "and as the green flaming snake opened its jaws to catch Ram with its fangs once she landed  \" Goodness, what petty tricks, Roswaal. You should know better.\" A moment before being engulfed by the flaming snake, a calm voice slid into Ram's eardrums. In contrast to those quiet words, what occurred next was virtually overwhelming. With its mouth still open, the burning snake froze over. The flying flames and the blazing pillar met similar ends. This was the antithesis of employing multiple spells simultaneously using a single unstoppable spell to snuff everything out. And the one who had accomplished this was the little cat floating in the sky, short arms folded the Great Spirit, Puck. The little cat cocked his head, turning his tail, which was as long as his body, toward Roswaal as he laughed. \"You might have learned a lot of tricks, but you'll need to go big to deal with the likes of me.\" \"How harsh. I take it that Lady Emilia developed her tendency to favor brute-force approaches from you?\" \"No comment.\" Crossing his arms in front of him, Puck did not give Roswaal's inconvenient assertion a reply. After that, Puck slowly lowered his altitude, landing on the shoulder of Ram, who was breathing hard, as he lined up right beside her head. \"Are you all right? Pushing yourself too hard will be bad for your body.\" \"...You may save your concern. After all, it is thanks to the Great Spirit's assistance that I can now manage this battle.\" \"No need to act tough. But when push comes to shove, manage is putting it nicely. You're an Oni girl without a horn, and I'm a handsome wild spirit without a host, but even with both of us at half strength double-teaming him, he's still toying with us.\" Wiping some soot from her brow with a sleeve, Ram internally concurred with Puck's analysis. Earlier, she'd considered counterattacking while he was still toying with them, but she was a long way from even that much. Yes, she was depleted from the battle with Garfiel, and Puck was in poor condition to assist, but more importantly  \" You're strong, Roswaal. I have to admire how far a mere human has come after honing themselves.\" \"I am honored to receive your praise.\" Roswaal offered an elegant bow in response to his assessment. It was a theatrical gesture, but by showing that he still had the poise to put on such a display, Roswaal demonstrated that even in this situation, the advantage was still very much his.  The battle that had kicked off at the Witch's experimental facility deep in the Forest of Cremaldi had shifted, moving away from the building and into the woods. The traces of the battle had already left the area around the facility a sorry-looking wasteland. There were scorch marks all over, blades of wind had toppled one tree after another, and countless trees had been flash-frozen. Looking at all this, Roswaal then turned one eye his yellow eye toward Ram. \"I was indeed correct to bring this outside. If we had rampaged like this inside, that facility...or rather, that magic crystal would have been broken, which would have been quiiiite inconvenient.\" *** \"Of course, you would have accomplished your goal even so, for was that not your aim?\" \"Are you claiming I asked the Great Spirit to delay you while I destroyed the facility...? Surely, you jest.\" Ram laughed off the assertion, causing Roswaal to raise an eyebrow in surprise. His reaction made Ram loosen her lips. \"After all,\" she went, spinning her words, \"by doing such a thing, Ram's objective would go forever unfulfilled.\" \" All that said, continuing this indefinitely will work to no one's advantage, yes? You strove for a means to fill the gap between our combat capabilities, but the Great Spirit you have beseeched is far from peak condition.\" \"...Yes, I suppose so. He is more useless than expected. Not even Ram can conceal her disappointment.\" \"You really don't sugarcoat your words, huh? Not that I dislike that part of you...\" Puck wore a wry smile as he endured Ram's sharp tongue. \"Though, I have to admit,\" the little cat remarked, his long tail swaying as he looked Roswaal's way, \"I'm impressed by how meticulous you are. How and when did you cast that spell on Lia...?\" \"Spell...? Great Spirit, to what do you refer...?\" \"Well, just listen. It got really hard to come out of my icon ever since we returned from the royal capital. If that was all, I would've pegged it as some kind of scheme by the Witch Cult group that attacked the village and the mansion, but I was stuck in there even after reaching the Sanctuary. So the spell had to come not from an enemy but from one of our own.\" Ram furrowed her shapely eyebrows, unable to grasp the meaning of Puck's words. But Roswaal made no effort to interrupt the little cat's words, quietly soaking them up until the last. \"There's a set period when I'm not able to come out of my icon that's related to the pact, you see. It was a little early, but at first, I thought that's what it was. Well, there's also the memories Lia sealed away herself, so I thought it might be more convenient not to talk to her about them. But I was wrong.\" As he spoke, Puck's voice lowered but slightly. The tenor of the little cat's voice, from which no emotion could normally be detected, held a perceptible timbre of deep indignation. \"You used my oaths to remove me as Lia's guardian, didn't you? That has to be why you cast a spell on Lia when we returned from the capital. That girl adores me, after all.\" \"...Strictly speaking, is it not better to say you are a smothering father who cannot leave the girl's siiiide?\" \"When you put it that way, it's hard to deny being overprotective, huh?\" As Puck gave a shrug with his tiny shoulders, Roswaal did not deny it as he closed one eye his blue eye. \"Fortunately, Lady Emilia was in low spirits from her argument with young Subaru. A little sabotage of your pact with Lady Emilia before departing for the Sanctuary was a trifling affair.\" \"On the other hand, a pact between spirit and spirit mage is sacred... It's not something that can be toyed with from the outside.\" \"Even so, I have lived with Beatrice for quite a long time, you seeee. For better or worse, creating loopholes in predetermined things is a specialty of mine though that girl is too obstinate for such things.\" As he spoke about pacts, Roswaal seemed to gaze into the distance for just a moment. The sight made the corners of Puck's black eyes fall ever so slightly as he crossed his short arms. \"You wanted Lia to stay depressed, didn't you?\" \"Yes. That is why you needed to be removed. It is not an exaggeration to say that hindering you and young Subaru has caused me the most trouble of all. Subaru is a wild card; you are the only one who actually stands a chance of defeating me in a head-on battle.\" \"I don't like saying this, but it seems like both you and I expect a lot out of Subaru.\" \"Perish the thought the expectations you and I have of him cannot possibly be comparable.\" Instantly, Roswaal's tone hardened, seeming to lose a small amount of his composure. As Roswaal expressed his expectations for Subaru, he pressed a hand to his chest, clenching it into a fist. The gesture left Ram narrowing her eyes as she felt a throbbing pain in her own breast. She knew how out of place it was, but Ram could not help but be jealous at how much he placed his hopes in Subaru. \"To me, he is the final key to bringing my greatest desire into reach. You, on the other hand, intend to put him to the grindstone to see if he is worthy of your beloved daughter. Your thinking is very different from mine.\" \" Don't bark at me, Roswaal.\" As Roswaal's voice became infused with fierce emotion, the cold hostility pouring down became frigid, glacial. Puck's mouse-colored hair was standing up, bringing his presence into sharper relief as he continued: \"Just like you and your desire, I offered myself to Lia, the reason for my existence. Are you suggesting it's easy for me to entrust Lia to someone else? Don't get cocky, Witch's apprentice.\" \"...From that last part, I taaaake it you now remember things from prior to your pact?\" \"I'm deducing a lot from the situation, you see, but considering whose forest this is, I have a pretty good idea who imposed this pact on me. I remember a man who spoke a lot like you, too.\" *** \"Is it to remember your wounds or to punish yourself? Either way, it's very backward-looking of you.\" Puck's words gradually sounded more like words of pity than of reproach. Receiving them, Roswaal went, \"Backward-looking, is it?\" twisting his lips in what seemed to be self-mockery. \"Indeed it is. I have always been looking backward...looking at the past. To me, the only wonderful things that have ever existed are in the past. The present is merely what rests atop their bones.\" *** \"So that's why you obey the book of knowledge. You're struggling to take back the past that you've lost...\" Roswaal's claim made Ram clench her cheeks as she glanced at Puck, who sighed. Then Puck wearily shook his head side to side. \"I won't belittle your way of life. It's just...\" \"Just what?\" \"Betty would be sad, Roswaal.\" *** Roswaal's expression faintly stiffened. Just how much terrible significance did that single sentence possess? And then  \" Ul Goa.\" \"Because I hit the bull's-eye? How childish.\" Without preparation or word of warning, fiery missiles shot forth. A towering wall of ice immediately intercepted them. The sound of their collision rang out. A white shock wave flattened the trees of the forest, heralding that combat had recommenced. 2 \" Guess we're done buying time. Did that give your horn a breather?\" Puck's words, spoken with a deft wink the moment before she leaped, left Ram mentally clicking her tongue. She'd told him that she did not want him to worry about her; the little cat proved a poor listener. What annoyed her more than anything was the frailty of her own body that made the short rest just now a lifesaver. But what of it? She would never breathe a single word of complaint about her body not being in tip-top condition. What gave her any right to complain if she did not give it her all? If she lost without her feelings ever reaching him, she could whine and make excuses as much as she liked in the afterlife. \" !! El Fulla!!\" Tightly clenching her teeth, she swallowed her frustration and readied her staff. Timed with an explosion of the ground, she flew into the air, touching her feet against a large tree's trunk to invert her posture as she converted her mana, unleashing it as blades of wind. There was no lethal intent behind her attacks. However, even if she aimed to kill, it would not have resulted in as much as a scratch regardless. Roswaal's response to the mighty blow was skilled and delicate. He rewrote the composition of the incoming magic, disassembling the wind blades into mere mana and capturing it with his own Gate to assign it a different form. There was the threefold magic using both his hands and his mouth that he had displayed earlier and on top of that, he used a step to activate the magic he had internalized, unleashing four spells simultaneously in an outrageous display of magic. \"Grgh.\" Twisting her lips, Ram put strength into the soles of her feet, which rested against the tree trunk, leaping away at full power. Instantly, the magic, which seemed sure to"}, {"text": "bite into that large tree, changed its course, curving to tail her as she fled. \"How...persistent!\" Spitting out those words, she slammed more wind into the pair of approaching fiery missiles, landed on the ground, drew them in before rolling backward at the last moment. This forced the one flame that did not keep up with the turn to slam into the ground, and she thrust her staff straight forward into the final, flaming shot. \"Now burst!!\" Using the tip of her staff to shred the mana apart, Ram moved so the blast from the fiery missile passed behind her. It was during that momentary opening that she  \" It is too soon to relax.\" Advancing with long strides, Roswaal drove a punch toward Ram's torso. This was a steel-like fist he had honed through extreme training completely unrelated to magical study. Its destructive power was so great that if it connected, it would affect not only bone but the internal organs as well; the instant it struck, a layer of ice caught the blow. With a tremendous sound, the frozen shield shattered. Puck, the one who had created the instantaneous defense, whistled. \"So you've trained a whole lot in more than just magic!\" \"I do whatever is necessary. If there is ample time, the only cost is the wearing down of the soul. Accordingly \" Opening the fist that had struck the ice shield, Roswaal twisted his hips and lunged with a thrust of his palm. Of course, the ice kept him from reaching Ram and yet, the impact shot through Ram's body nonetheless. \"Gah...!\" \"That is a combat technique I learned from a ninja who hailed from the west long ago to strike from afar, reaching even past defenses. Effective, yes?\" Struck not by a direct hit but by a shock wave, Ram staggered backward. Her bones creaked, and her innards cried out. It was better than suffering a clean blow, but her body had a fatal weakness and could not risk sustaining any injuries to begin with. Her breathing was ragged, and her vision blurred. Ram's footing was unreliable. She lifted up her face when  \" Get down!\" When she heard the voice, Ram forced down her rising head. Overhead, Puck who had circled behind her thrust out both hands, unleashing a giant pillar of ice toward Roswaal. The magical attack, with a mass rivaling that of the trunk of a hundred-year-old tree, forced even Roswaal to leap a good distance backward. \"It has been half a year since you first forced me to use this !\" His voice rising as he offered a word of praise, Roswaal demonstrated the true worth of his unparalleled magical skill. With both hands, his lips, and alternating stomps of both his feet, he began casting fivefold magic. Unleashing five different spells at once, he melted, sliced, and pulverized the mighty pillar of ice to neutralize it. Scorching heat and absolute zero collided, enveloping the forest in white steam once more. As he employed this, Puck said: \"Can you stand? If you cannot, we will lose after the next move.\" \"...You say that like it's so easy, don't you?\" Wiping the blood spilling from the corner of her mouth, Ram braced herself with a sigh. The fact that her condition had begun to deteriorate was proof that she had already gone beyond her limits. With his pact with Emilia rescinded, Puck's power was greatly reduced. In the first place, he required a vast amount of mana just to stay corporeal. Without a contractor, all he could do to remain in their plane of existence and employ magic was to somehow make do with his reserves. Even under these conditions, Puck was doing very well due to the skill he possessed. Part of her was tempted to rely on his brute strength to resolve this situation, but if Puck had really gone all out, the situation would have escalated to something unmanageable. \"I think it would have been beeetter for you if you had broken the taboo and used astral transformation.\" \"If I could absorb mana from the surrounding area without limit, this would end pretty quickly...but if I did that, I'd make Lia sad. If I don't protect what she wants to protect, that's putting the cart before the dragon.\" \"Bold words after having rescinded the pact yourself.\" \"Do you think my temporary partner is any less brave?\" When the curtain of steam parted and Roswaal revealed himself, Puck flippantly responded to his sarcasm. The words made Roswaal glance at Ram, now all alone and in a tattered state, causing him to narrow his eyes. \"Brave, you say? Certainly, in terms of being ready to throw away everything for the sake of her objective, one might call her brave...but what she has done is too foolish to be worthy of the word.\" *** \"This is a golden opportunity for her to avenge her kin. This, she has wasted with impatience unlike her, and she may well fall as a result... I am extremely disappointed in you, Ram.\" *** \"I wanted you to fulfill your desire and be...happy.\" Both of Roswaal's eyes were tinged with sadness and a faint whiff of melancholy. This was proof that he was genuinely disappointed that Ram would not complete her objective and that he regretted she did not stand beside him. Roswaal genuinely believed Ram should dedicate everything to accomplishing her goal taking revenge on him for her kin and he had hoped, until that day came, Ram would walk the same path as he. Just as Roswaal had hoped Subaru would play the role of coconspirator, he hoped Ram would be the one who would bury him. Truly, just how much would this man refuse to ? \" Ram?\" \"Over and over, you touched me so many times, yet even so, not once did you realize my true wish.\" Exasperated with pity, anger, and self-mockery, Ram seemed to have reached the end of her wits. This was no longer even in the same dimension as obtuseness or a mere difference in ways of thinking.  The notion that Ram's feelings were not of revenge but of love did not even exist inside Roswaal. \"It would have been so much better had my body smoldered only with hatred and the desire to avenge my kin. Had I been but a vengeful Oni, my chest would not ache so. However \" Unable to fathom where her words were going, Roswaal merely furrowed his brow with a questioning look. She let a pained smile slip. Truly, she thought, it was as if this man did not see anything beyond his own feelings. Therefore, surely, these words, too, would be completely astray from his expectations  \"Master Roswaal, Ram loves you.\" *** Receiving that blunt, straightforward confession of love, Roswaal widened his eyes and froze. He was agape, shaking his head at the reply, one that he had genuinely not imagined in the slightest. \"Is something amiss?\" \"Amiss, you ask... Are you playing a prank on me? Trying to rattle me at a time like...\" \"You think I would expect such petty tricks to work on you? Ram is merely stating how she truly feels.\" \"If not, all the more reason it cannot be true!!\" Roswaal's voice was ragged as he shouted in anger. He thrust a finger forward, trained toward the stiff expression on Ram's face. \"Love me? What are you saying?! You hate me. I am the man you hate. To you, I am a man linked to the cause of your homeland's destruction. Surely, the truth is that you hate me enough to kill me!\" \"In the beginning, it was so, but now it is not. Now Ram loves you.\" \"That is absurd...! Who who, I ask, would believe in such cheap emotions?!\" Feelings that began with vengeance must continue to remain of vengeance. Only feelings that began with love could arrive at love. He, who had stubbornly held to his feelings without a single deviation from them, could not believe Ram's change of heart. He could not. For if he understood them, it would undermine everything he had done. \"What about your revenge?! Did you not swear upon it?! Did you not swear before your burning homeland and the souls of your dead brethren that you would avenge them?!\" \"I do feel bad for my kin, and my chest hurts when I think of my homeland. However, now that I have fallen in love, it cannot be helped. Ram prioritizes her feelings before the dead.\" Brazen and defiant, Ram pushed Roswaal into silence, leaving him unable to speak another word. Therefore, with him silent, unmoving, and unable to believe her change of heart into love, she spoke. \"Ram will not allow you to become an empty shell. Obtaining you in that state is...meaningless.\" \"...You are contradicting yourself. Even if your feelings are as you say... No, especially if they are, I cannot comprehend your reason for turning against me at this juncture. If events deviate from the book, I... So why?!\" \"That is why it must be now. It is only now that Barusu, Lady Emilia, and Garf have shaken Master Roswaal's heart to the point that I have a chance, likely to never come again.\" Garfiel had strayed from Roswaal's predictions, Subaru had rejected his search for a coconspirator, and Emilia, who had conquered her own past, had made a promise with Ram this was the one and only opportunity Ram would be provided in her lifetime. \"Using this one, final opportunity, I shall steal you from your obsession with the Witch \" Roswaal clearly did not comprehend. Ram mentally mocked herself when she realized she loved even that expression of his. There was no cure for this disease called love. The only path left to her was to forsake her passion until the moment of her death. \" Great Spirit!\" \"Very well after all, in addition to my beloved daughter, I'm also the ally of all maidens in love.\" Puck responded to Ram's call. Ram howled, not bothering to listen to flippant words unworthy of her ears. Instantly, a freezing windstorm whipped around the forest. The time of the final gamble had arrived. 3 When the wind relented, Roswaal, whose reactions had been slow, held his breath, gritting his teeth at the spectacle. Countless mirrors constructed of ice were floating in the air in the forest around him. The reflections of light and landscapes that filled Roswaal's field of vision weakened his situational awareness on the battlefield. \"Petty tricks !!\" The countless mirrors were reflecting countless Rams and countless Pucks around the forest. Judging he could not bide his time, Roswaal instantly decided to deploy five instances of magic simultaneously, casting spells to manipulate the world around him. The resulting flames licked at their surroundings as the forest with the mirrors of ice was turned to ash. But such incantations were insufficient to break up the coordination of demon and spirit. As Roswaal unleashed more explosive flames, a shadow appeared overhead. He intercepted the flying figure with a fist, finding it surprisingly fragile. Roswaal blinked hard at the sensation of shattering. It was ice. One after another, ice sculptures shaped like people were being hurled at Roswaal from all directions. He steadied himself and dug in his feet. The next moment, a ferocious gale blew, enveloping ice sculpture and ice pillar alike, blowing them all skyward. During that momentary opening, Roswaal wove his next spell as he leaped backward. Something caught him. \"From beneath...\" \"It's not like I tossed them all for meowthing.\" Drawing someone's attention upward to strike from below was a small, roundabout trick, but it was terrifyingly effective in a high-end magical battle. With his movements momentarily but fatally limited, Roswaal focused on his surroundings. What would settle things here was a well-polished and wary mind but it was then that he sensed something rapidly expanding. It cannot be, thought Roswaal in shock. But even as he doubted it, the aura swelled larger. Mowing down the trees and crushing the forest-turned-ash underfoot was"}, {"text": "a majestic creature so enormous that it seemed to reach the heavens. Its gargantuan frame, boasting fearsome fangs and claws, seemed on par with a small mountain. Astral transformation this was the nightmarish trump card of Puck the Great Spirit, known as the Beast of the End, one of the Four Great Spirits, and the one who destroyed Melaquera the Conciliator long ago. Not allowing him to play that card was one of Roswaal's victory conditions. For certain reasons, Roswaal was currently unable to employ his own trump card sixfold magic. If he had to face Puck at full strength, his odds of winning would quickly crumble, and he would most likely wind up being overwhelmed in short order. In this situation, Roswaal opted to attack with everything he could muster. Turning to his rear, he glared toward the ferocious visage of the spirit that had undergone astral transforma  \" What?!\" \" Boo! All I did was get bigger!\" He met the eyes of the enlarged spirit, who had retained his adorable face, and it was at this point that he realized it was a trap. However, it was too late. Having never canceled his spell, Roswaal launched a flaming missile at the enormously expanded spirit that had become a giant target before him. The scheming spirit was naturally blown away. It would be impossible for him to return to the front lines immediately. All that remained was to use that opportunity to  \" El Fulla!!\" The incantation caused concentrated winds to churn the ground, blanketing Roswaal's vision in rising clods of soil. Brushing the curtain of dirt aside with one arm, he used a long swipe of his leg to kick down one of the hurled ice statues that had been left standing. Pushing the heavy object to the ground, Roswaal readied his mana once more, forging a new spell. As he saw it, his greatest enemy, Puck, had been sent flying, and Ram's following, ferocious attack was overcome and finished. Without lowering his guard, he surveyed the forest, searching for wherever Ram was lurking   and Ram knew the exact moment Roswaal had looked away from her thanks to Clairvoyance. \" Aaaghhh.\" Concentrating on her forehead, intense pain dyed her vision pure red. Bloody tears flowed from Ram's bloodshot eyes as she stripped off the ice covering her and leaped up from her hiding spot beneath Roswaal's foot. Impersonating an ice statue and being knocked down was all according to plan. Flesh and bones alike groaned throughout her entire body; a number of her tendons were torn. She ignored all this as her Oni blood seethed. *** In that blistering battle, Roswaal realized what Ram's plan was and turned a fist on her. It was too late. Evading with nothing more than a twist of her head, she gently touched his right hand and shattered the bones within. Even as she burned into her eyes the expression of him biting back the fierce pain, Ram brushed his torso. Roswaal drew in his breath. It was an incomplete Oni transformation lasting less than two seconds but in that moment, Ram's brute strength far surpassed that of a human being, granting her the strength to break bones with the slightest touch or even rip out his innards if she so wished. That instant, Roswaal surely foresaw his own defeat. However  \" What?\"  He let out a dumbfounded voice when he failed to feel the pain and impact that should have come. Leaping with one leg to a distance of some ten yards from Roswaal, Ram came to a sudden stop. Blood flowed from her forehead as she bent over, followed by coughing up a large amount of blood as she fell to her knees. Victory and defeat had not been settled despite the passing of a decisive moment. That decision left Roswaal narrowing his brows when he finally realized something. Though Ram was near collapse, she was grasping something that was not hers to hold. \"That's !\" \"To Ram, this is...the root of all evil.\" Roswaal's face went pale as he raced over to Ram. Smiling faintly at his action, Ram did not hesitate she hurled the book of knowledge into the green flame still clinging to a fallen tree. *** Roswaal raised an incoherent shout, but the book of knowledge, engulfed by emotionless flame, burned up nonetheless. Making a dreadful little sound, the aged book ignited by the green flame blazed even stronger. This was Ram's only goal, for which she had awaited her golden opportunity  \"With this, finally...\" Ram slackened as she sighed with satisfaction.  The very next moment, a fiery missile hurled in anger sent the girl's tiny body flying. 4 A snowy landscape spread out in all directions. Her breath was white. The cold stabbed at her skin. Setting eyes upon the falling snow, which blew almost horizontally, Emilia blinked hard. What in the world had happened? \" ady Emilia!\" Hearing a voice over the roaring and howling of the cold wind, Emilia darted out. She gingerly put a foot on the snow-covered steps before racing down toward the clearing. In this world hidden by so much white, she could barely see anything else, Emilia desperately searched for any sign of the people who were supposed to be here. With the persistent flurries of snow buffeting her, she hoped everyone had taken shelter, but based on that voice she had just heard  \"Everyone! You shouldn't be out here like this! You need to stay in your...homes?\" When Emilia caught sight of people huddled shoulder to shoulder in the heavy snowfall, she raced over. Right as she began scolding them for foolishly deciding to remain outside in this weather, her words caught in her throat. These were the people of the Sanctuary and Earlham Village the hundred people who had patiently awaited Emilia's return. The situation was simply far beyond what she'd expected.  They were surrounded by walls of ice on four sides, protecting them from the blowing snow. \"This is...\" \"Lady Emilia has returned! Lady Emilia! Does this mean the Trials are over?!\" When Emilia came to a spontaneous halt, a youthful voice called to her from within the icy walls. Noticing this, the people awaiting Emilia's return looked at one another's faces, then let out an exultant shout. \"Th-thank you! I was able to come back safe and sound thanks to all of you! I'm...really grateful, but this is terrible! What happened? What's with this snow?\" \"It began falling but a short while ago. This much accumulated in no time at all.\" Initially overwhelmed by their intense greetings, Emilia finally managed a response and asked a question of her own. That was when the face of Milde poked out from the press of bodies. She bowed quite deeply. \"We have endured the wind and snow thanks to these walls of ice. Therefore, I judged it was best we should remain in place. Please forgive me.\" \"That's... Mm-hmm, yes, I think you were right. In this kind of weather, there's no telling what might happen if you move around carelessly. But...\" \"Even with the barrier lifted, this makes movement rather...difficult, I imagine.\" Emilia gritted her teeth as Milde offered her assessment and let out a white breath. It would've been best if they started ferrying these hundred people out of the Sanctuary after lifting the barrier. But this was impossible, since the wheels of the dragon carriages wouldn't allow them to travel in such heavy snow. That said, remaining in place was not an option. If they could at least reach a place that sheltered them from the wind  \"If it's too hard to return to the Cathedral, how about the tomb? The mana inside keeps it fairly warm, and there's no concern about it collapsing even if the snow piles really high.\" \"Go...inside it?\" \"Yes, it's all right! All the dangerous mechanisms have stopped, so going in is no problem. Everyone, please head inside. Beyond that You! I have a favor to ask!\" As the surprised Milde gave a nod, Emilia pointed to one of the men. This was the last individual she'd exchanged words with before challenging the final Trial. His eyes went wide, but he immediately stood straighter. \" ! U-understood! I'm Tokaku! Say whatever you wish!\" \"Thank you, Mr. Tokaku. There have to be people who aren't here yet, right? I want you to gather them together. Have all the merchants and land dragons meet up at the tomb!\" Besides the hundred in front of the tomb, there was a small number of stragglers remaining in the Sanctuary. She could not abandon them. She judged that if anything happened, it would be easier to protect everyone if they were in one place. \"...Leave it to me. I will see this task through!\" Tokaku nodded deeply in response to her instructions. Emilia had determined him to be the right person for the job after noting how he was physically stouter than anyone else present. Then Emilia addressed the remaining concern, namely  \"Where did Miss Ryuzu go? Also, where are Ram and Roswaal...?\" She did not see the youthful-looking elder, who should have been at Milde's side. Ram, who had left to attend to her duty, had not returned yet, and Roswaal's absence left Emilia concerned for Ram's well-being. \"When the snow first began to fall, the elder left, saying she had to go see her family. We tried to stop her, but...\" \"Family? Family... Did she mean Miss Shima?\" The mention of family left Emilia with the mental image of Ryuzu's seemingly identical twin sister coming to mind. Ryuzu and Shima were not sisters, strictly speaking, but that was how Emilia conceptualized their relationship. And according to what she'd heard from Ram, Shima was supposed to have been resting at home at the moment. \"But Miss Ryuzu's so little herself. She should have just asked someone to help her instead of going alone...\" \"Er, pardon me, Lady Emilia...but who is this Shima of whom you speak?\" \"Ehhh?! You don't know her?! Why not?!\" It wasn't just the people of Earlham Village cocking their heads at the mention of the unfamiliar name but the residents of the Sanctuary as well. It seemed not a single person present had even heard of her. Emilia sensed there had to have been some reason behind this strange confusion, but the unexpected development left her feeling anxious nonetheless. \"I've actually met her, so she must be... Anyway! I'll go look for both of them! Or is that three...four people now? Anyway, I'll look for them!\" On top of Ryuzu and Shima, Ram and Roswaal further added to Emilia's list of people to question. Their circumstances no doubt differed, but Emilia wanted to speak to all of them in a safe place. \"After that... These walls of ice! I want to speak to whoever made these. If there's someone who specializes in magic, I'd be happy if that person would help Mr. Tokaku, but...\" Pointing to the snow-repelling walls of ice, Emilia let her gaze wander as she searched for the person responsible. Had it not been for those ice walls, it would have taken her far longer to ascertain the situation, and organizing everyone's movements would have been exceedingly difficult. This led her to think more aid from this person would be a huge help. But her words made the people in particular, the people of Earlham Village look at one another's faces. \"...Lady Emilia, was this not your doing?\" \"Eh? Me? I didn't do it, but...\" The assertion blindsided Emilia, who widened her eyes in shock. She remained surprised as Milde continued to speak. \"However, that spirit said to thank Lady Emilia...or Lia, rather.\" Being called Lia made Emilia's breath catch. \"Just as the snow began falling, a tiny spirit flew over the clearing, making these walls in no time at all. As Lady Emilia is a spirit mage, I was completely convinced that...\" \"Puck...\" The only one who called Emilia Lia was that adorable spirit. He was the sole one she could think"}, {"text": "of who would have tried to help in a place like this whether he liked it or not. Emilia's heart was trembling from Milde's explanation as she touched an icy wall. She thought if he was the one who had made them, there might be some trace, some lingering feeling that she might sense through her touch. But the instant she touched the wall, the sensation shooting through Emilia's hand was not adorable at all. \" Ah.\" Something flowed into Emilia through the palm she'd set on the wall. That instant, in a gap between the roar of the cold, blowing wind, she lifted her head, hearing something that sounded like the very world had split apart.  With snow-blurred vision, Emilia saw a tower formed of ice standing in the white-covered forest off in the distance. The tower of ice, manifesting that very moment, was an invitation, a guidepost for Emilia. You still have a job to do, don't you, Lia? She clenched her teeth tightly, feeling as if she heard the voice of family who should have been forever by her side. Realizing intuitively that she needed to rush over to that place, Emilia turned back toward the hundred present. \"Seems like I have to head that way could you wait here where it's safe?\" \" We will do as we promised before the Trial. Lady Emilia, be careful.\" With those words as her send-off, Emilia smiled, then turned toward the tower of ice in the forest. There was no hesitation in her steps. Of course there wasn't. Puck would never lead Emilia astray. 5 The unconscious Ram looked like she was merely asleep. \"...Ram?\" Picking up her listless body from the ground, Roswaal called out the girl's name. There was no reply. Normally, Ram would make Roswaal's words her first priority, putting all other things aside, but now...  Now she was on death's door, and the one responsible was none other than Roswaal. \"So you lost your temper when she burned the book. Not like you at all. But she was prepared for even this. I think she really is a strong girl.\" Puck looked down at Ram's charred form as he spoke, his oversize form having long since dissipated. After taking a direct hit from a fiery shot, his mana-composed body was faintly thinner than before. But the respect in his voice was genuine, and he surely retained enough power to flatten the dazed Roswaal. However, Puck did no such thing, seemingly content to hover silently as the battle was postponed. \"...Ram.\" Roswaal paid Puck no heed as he embraced the girl's slender body and called her name. He could not remember what he had been thinking until he had picked up Ram's prone body a moment before. He still could not comprehend why Ram had confronted him, exhausting her strength until she was on the brink of death. To Roswaal, Ram was a useful and convenient pawn. She was invaluable in terms of strength and mental prowess; more than anything, her vengeful heart, which was aimed at Roswaal, made her flawless. He'd genuinely thought he was fine granting another control over his final moments...as long as it was her. With her vengeful heart unceasingly continuing to blaze within her, she would obey him until the very end, at which point he would offer himself to her, no longer caring that his soul would be seared away by the fires of her revenge. She had betrayed him in a way he had never fathomed and for a reason he did not comprehend. \"Ram, why did you...?\" Had she changed? Had her feelings taken a new shape? He could not understand. All of one's emotions ought to continue in the same manner from the moment when they glimmered at their strongest. If you truly loved someone, if you truly hated someone, that passion, that radiance, should remain constant for eternity. It was holding on to hopes and desires for a long, long time that made them truly genuine. Over long months and years, feeling hardened so that nothing and no one could undermine them. That was the ideal. Garfiel's hateful heart toward what rested beyond the Sanctuary should never have been broken. Time should not have healed Emilia's aversion and regrets toward the past. And that went for Ram's inexhaustible hatred and vengeful heart toward Roswaal all the more. Master Roswaal, Ram loves you. \"You've lost, Roswaal.\" The confession of love had been burned into his ears like a curse. Even that moment, in his arms with her eyes closed, the girl's lips were pursed with an expression of emotion that should not have existed. Roswaal made a faint noise in his throat as he mulled and deciphered these things in his mind. \"She has fulfilled her goal, albeit by the barest of threads.\" *** \"Soon, Lia will also finish the Trials. You lost the book you depended on. I understand why you were so obsessed. But...\" This is the end, the spirit was saying. It was the second demand for surrender Roswaal had received that day. The first came from Subaru Natsuki and the second from the Great Spirit. But the difference between the first and the second was the power to resist that remained within him. Roswaal found he could not bear to even move his limbs. Even if the reason for his condition was unclear, facts were facts. That moment, he lacked the strength with which to defy the spirit's words.  But this applied only to the Roswaal at that particular moment in time. The cold wind carried the stench of flames and the thick aroma of something scorched. Vestiges of battle raged through the forest as Puck watched Roswaal hold the weakened Ram in his arms. It was then that the spirit suddenly noticed. A sprinkle of white snowflakes crept into his field of vision, melting and vanishing before they even fell to the ground. \"Snow...? It can't be. I mean, you're right here...\" As he looked up at the flurry of snow, Puck's voice quivered at the presence of heavy clouds filling the sky.  Using a magic crystal as a catalyst, the weather had been changed, causing snow to fall upon the Sanctuary. This had been Roswaal's aim, the act he had intended to perform in adherence to what was written in his book of knowledge. Preventing this from happening was why Ram and Puck had joined together, and they had even succeeding in consigning the book of knowledge to the flame. But their plan had fallen one step short of catching up to Roswaal's meticulousness. \" You got us good. You'd already made preparations to call the snow clouds before the battle had even begun, didn't you? All you needed to do after was to drag it out.\" Before the battle had kicked off, Roswaal had etched the spell's formula directly into the magic crystal, then pulled the pair away and diverted their attention while it activated. Since the spell needed to be kept active full-time, this prevented Roswaal from using his trump card, sixfold magic, which had made the battle far more arduous for him. But  \"The snow will fall. It'll be just as Subaru feared. I'm going to head off and postpone the worst.\" *** \"Roswaal, you're really something. You're an amazing magic user. So far as I know, there is probably no human who has honed himself as much as this. But you know what, though?\" The floating spirit rose higher, turning his back to Roswaal, the harbinger of the snow clouds. He left one final comment. \"No matter how far you go, you're still human you'll never be like that devil.\" As the spirit flew off, his voice became distant, and his presence vanished, leaving behind only a soft glow. What remained was the scattering snow and a girl carried by a devil Nay, there was only a clown. He was a wretched fool who had tried to become a devil and failed. *** Roswaal put strength into the arms in which he held the sleeping girl. But the girl's breathing remained faint, distant, and there was no doubt her life was coming to an end. His heart beat faster, yelling at him that this could not, must not continue. His left eye throbbed. It throbbed so much that he was tempted to gouge it out of its socket. Stop. Don't throb. I will stop being me. What should he do? What could he do? There had to be something he could do, something he needed to do. He did not understand what was wrong. He couldn't remember. He couldn't think. *** He looked around him. There was nothing he sought anywhere he looked. The book in which the future was written, surely leading Roswaal to the promised day, was scorched from flames, all in pieces. There was no one to tell him what to do. In that moment, what choice was best? There was no one to turn to, no one to guide him. The clouds grew thicker, and snow steadily covered more of the forest flake by flake. The world was being repainted in ever deepening layers of white, and Roswaal, his breath frosting, didn't know what to do about the increasingly cold body that lay within his arms. \"In accordance with the book of knowledge, I have made the snow fall... What do I do now?\" At this point, Roswaal had fulfilled and finished his role for \"this time around.\" In the first place, it had been an attempt he would have abandoned long before if not for the wager with Subaru. From the very beginning, there had been no special objective worthy of the word even that gamble occupied but a fragment in the corner of his mind. To Roswaal, it was no longer necessary to do any more. What was important was the conclusion that the events in the Sanctuary would reach: The snow would fall, and the barrier would be lifted. If these were achieved. If these were achieved what was supposed to happen, exactly? \"Ram... Ahhh, that's right. Ram.\" The sound of Ram's breathing had already vanished. Half out of habit, Roswaal touched her forehead. Her forehead was drenched with blood that flowed from the white scar where her horn had once been. This was the result of forcibly entering her demonic form. Wiping it clean, Roswaal subconsciously poured colorless mana into the wound. It was a ritual he had continued all that time, for Ram's body required mana to circulate within her every bit as much as her Oni blood. It was not out of any conscious thought. It was simply that Roswaal subconsciously understood the only way to keep Ram's life tethered was to gamble on Ram's own Oni vitality. He never questioned whether to save her. Ram had to live. She was Roswaal's fate. His last moments needed to be ended by her hand. For the sake of fulfilling his objective... For the sake of what would come after he fulfilled his objective...Ram had to live. \"Teacher... I...\" His mind felt completely lost. Only the sight of the Witch who had taught him filled his mind. \"I...I! What should I do, Teacher...?! Teacher...please tell me. I still don't understand anything... Please show me the way, Teacher...!\" Even as he tried to sustain Ram's tenuous hold on life, his anger toward her betrayal had not faded. Even though he understood there was no longer anything left to guide him, he still yearned to see that promised day. The falling snow mercilessly daubed Roswaal's and Ram's bodies with fresh powder. The white was all-encompassing, causing everything to vanish.  Yet, at no point did he think that he would be satisfied with such an ending. 6 Emilia earnestly raced down the snowy path as she headed toward the tower of ice standing tall in the forest. Letting out sharp white breaths, her speed was unthinkably fast given the poor footing, but Emilia was not running on the poor footing. With"}, {"text": "each step, her foot made contact with an icy platform; then she would use her heels to launch herself to the next one. This way, she made considerable progress in a short amount of time. \"I! Did it! There we go!\" Of course, the icy footholds resting on top of snow made for quite a slippery path. But to Emilia, raised in the frozen Great Elior Forest, this was nothing. He knew that, too. Armed with this knowledge, the spirit had created this footing without the slightest hesitation. Steadily, she crept deeper into the white forest. Emilia did not think of this as cause for concern. She would believe in what she wanted to, rely on what she wished to. With those thoughts in her mind, she was invincible. Subaru. Otto. Garfiel. Frederica. Ryuzu. Shima. The villagers. The people of the Sanctuary Ram. Puck. Herself. She believed in them. Hence, it was not long before she arrived at a white structure deep within the forest. \"There are eddies of mana here... Is this the cause of the snow falling?\" Emilia let out those words along with a white breath as she faced the snow-buried ruin before her. Standing beside the white ruin was the spire of ice that had led her to it. Like a person awaiting the arrival of his guest, it instantly shattered, the mana returning now that its goal had been fulfilled. As the scattering mana glittered and danced in the sky, she was drawn to the open, yawning entrance leading into the structure. Furthermore, as if to guide Emilia within, instead of words, she felt Puck's feelings urging her onward. \" ! It's really smelly. Animal repellent...? Besides that, this thick mana is a spirit repellent... Someone really didn't want anyone going inside.\" The pungent odor pricked her nostrils as the concentrated mana, something she had no resistance to, clouded her consciousness. The thorough means to keep people out was proof enough that this was the nexus of the disturbance. \" Puck's waiting. I have to go.\" After hesitating for one moment, Emilia steeled herself and stepped into the ruin. Snow was coming in from the cracks in the ceiling, and so, too, was the air indoors bitingly cold. There were a number of small rooms along the path, but Emilia headed to the back without paying them heed that was where she felt a precious spirit's presence. Then, at the very back of the structure, she made a slight sound in her throat when she spotted a room from which a faint blue light trickled forth.  For it was there that contained an unbelievably large magic crystal and a throng of girls all around it. \"...Miss Ryuzu?\" \"Lady Emilia?! Why have you come here...? No.\" When Emilia called out, it was...probably Ryuzu who turned toward her with a nervous look. She could not say for sure only because the other girls in attendance all of them bore the same face as Ryuzu. There were twenty or so, and Emilia could not conceal her inner turmoil from seeing a line of girls with the same face. She was just now discovering that not only did Ryuzu have Shima for a sister, but she also had so many, many others... \"So many... Miss Ryuzu's mother must have had it really tough...\" \"I'll save the replica explanation for later! At any rate, please hold me back!\" \"Stop you, Miss Ryuzu...?\" It was taking Emilia a while to grasp the situation. But then she noticed the throng of Ryuzu sisters was impeding Ryuzu's actions, preventing her from moving forward. Then Emilia realized the girl standing in front of the giant magic crystal looked like Shima. Shima's expression, somehow sad and tragic, sent a chill up Emilia's spine. Recalling the Trials of the past, the future, and the unknowable present, Shima's face bore the same resolve as the people she had seen in those visions, determining their own fates  \"That's you, Miss Shima, right? What in the world are you doing? What is this place?\" \"Lady Emilia, the fact that you are here safe and sound means the Trials have ended, yes? In other words, all is prepared for us to fulfill our final duty... Young Gar's gamble has paid off.\" \" ! There's a Miss Ryuzu inside the magic crystal?\" As Shima heaved a heavy sigh, there was a person resting within the magic crystal behind her. It was a little girl with her eyes closed and clutching her knees yet another who looked just like Ryuzu. Except for Emilia, there was no one present except a group of girls with the same face. Being seized by the abnormality, the creepiness of the situation would have been normal. But Emilia stepped to the fore. \"Did you come to bring the girl out of the magic crystal? Can I just take all of you to the tomb with me?\" \" I am utterly amazed that you could look at this situation and have those be the first words out of your mouth.\" Emilia's words made Shima's eyes bulge. She was so taken aback, the tone of her voice changed slightly. \"Mm, it's all right. I may not look it, but I have a lot of power, so if I make an ice sled to ride, I think I could pull all of you with me.\" From what Emilia could tell, the magic crystal was rather large, but with the proper preparation, transporting it was surely possible. With this many people helping, even if they had been ordinary children, they could get it moving with some hard work and planning. If that's what it took to wipe that tragic, forlorn look off Shima's face, she'd work as hard as it took. However, Emilia's suggestion caused Shima to say \"no,\" shaking her head with a slight smile. \"Your feelings make me happy, but that will not be necessary. I have not come here to take our sleeping ancestor inside the magic crystal with us...but to bring her duty to an end.\" \"Duty to an end...?\" \"This magic crystal is the core of the barrier enveloping the Sanctuary. The ritual was activated from the tomb, and this core acted as the catalyst to give the barrier form. In other words, when both sites have ceased to function, the Sanctuary's role as a place of shelter shall end; it shall be set free, so to speak. Lady Emilia, you have broken the ritual. Therefore, what remains is...\" Emilia, who had destroyed the ritual in the coffin with the intent of lifting the barrier, was taken by surprise. If this was true, this ceremony was necessary and unavoidable, but  \"Er, does it have to be done right now? Right now, snow is falling really heavily outside, so I wanted to assemble everyone at the tomb...\" \"If, by any chance, this facility was to be destroyed or its administrators lost, it would become an unsalvageable situation. That is why we, the administrators of the Sanctuary, the personalities representing the replicas, are also its keys.\" Shima was dubbing herself a key that they could not afford to lose. Emilia intuitively understood this was likely an undeniable fact. People had their roles to play, just like the roles Emilia had there in the Sanctuary and in the Kingdom of Lugunica. The same went for Shima, and she was attempting to fulfill hers. \"Lady Emilia, take this.\" Detecting a shift in Emilia's expression, Shima tossed something her way. Instantly catching it, Emilia let out an \"ah...\" at what had fallen into her palm. This was a piece broken off from the magic crystal, a tiny fragment containing tremendous power. More than anything, Emilia felt a pulse run through the high-purity magic crystal: that of the precious spirit who had led Emilia to this place where they ought to have met each other... \"Puck, is that you?\" \"The Great Spirit preceded your arrival, destroyed the seals, and apparently delayed the spell's activation. He used all his strength to save the people in the settlement.\" Shima's explanation made Emilia notice the vestiges of an extremely complex formula at the center of the magic crystal. Its overwhelmingly dense magical composition rivaled that of the spell with the coffin at its core. Ordinarily, a magical bulwark sufficient to burn one to a crisp would have prevented all entry into that room. The fact that she could read the composition of the unraveled formula was not due to the caster's lack of skill but because it had been constructed in a rush. Indeed, a surprised gasp escaped her when she realized it had been hastily assembled yet still possessed such vast power. The being who had removed the magical bulwark, leaving her a path forward, was doubtlessly the Great Spirit who continued to sleep in the magic crystal fragment in Emilia's palm. \"You opened up the magical barrier, protected everyone from the falling snow, and did something reckless just to tell me about this place... How many other unreasonable things did you do besides that...?\" There was no reply to her question. Having ensured Emilia's arrival, Puck had fallen completely silent. He had arbitrarily rescinded their pact in order to wrench open the lid on Emilia's memories. She'd already come to terms with him vanishing somewhere far off and for any reunion to be a long ways down the road. However, Puck had used his vanishing existence to keep pushing, lending her a paw until the very, very end. As a result, he had lost his power and had fallen asleep a long, long sleep inside that fragment. \"...Lady Emilia, you and Young Su have borrowed much outside power besides his. If this opportunity has been granted as a consequence, it should fall to me to bring our duty to an end.\" Emilia, closing her eyes as she clutched the tiny magic crystal against her chest, lifted up her head. When she looked, Shima was touching a hand to the large magic crystal with a soft, pleasant smile on her face. Somehow, when she looked at that smile, it overlapped with that of the now-departed Puck's and the one Fortuna showed in her final moments. The tragic resolve she had sensed earlier was because here, Shima had found meaning in the fulfillment of her duty. \"Duty, duty... I understand our duty! But why must it be you?!\" That instant, while Emilia stayed silent, Ryuzu's voice cried out raggedly. Shima's smile drove her to make her earnest plea even as the other girls held her arms and legs tight. Tears were welling in her blue eyes tears that spoke of compassion, regret, and a powerful sense of responsibility. \"We have forsaken you for these past ten years. You were removed from your duty as administrator, leaving you to live alone this whole time...and yet, after all that, now you take this duty upon yourself?\" \"...I suppose you have a point. Were I truly alone for ten years, I might well have borne a grudge.\" Lowering her eyes, Shima reminisced about the long months and years to which Ryuzu referred. Emilia did not know what passed between the two. However, as she reminisced about those ten lonely years, Shima smiled. Ryuzu had called them ten years she had spent each and every day alone, yet Shima had found sufficient reason to smile. \"But I was not alone. I was with my adorable grandson and grew to know him well. I was able to watch him grow up and become strong, bit by bit. And now that child... Garf, our grandchild, has gone outside, standing tall and proud.\" *** \"I gave that child a push in the back already. Please watch over him from now on. Arma, Bilma, Derma...my sisters, my other selves.\" Narrowing her eyes, Shima looked straight at Ryuzu as she spoke. Ryuzu acknowledged those words and that gaze; her delicate shoulder trembled as Emilia gently placed a hand upon it. Emilia wanted to stop her. However, she could not. All she offered was a simple"}, {"text": "nod. Gazing into Shima's eyes, Emilia stood straighter. She knew that what she had to do...was watch her fulfill her duty. \"...You can leave the rest to me.\" \" It is surprising how much you have grown in a mere half a day. This is what brings us elders joy.\" The corners of her eyes fell. Her elderly smile seemed misplaced on her youthful face. Leaving this behind, Shima turned toward the magic crystal and the spitting image of herself within, gently nodding toward something. That instant, a pale, dazzling light filled the room's interior. The flash of white seemingly melted the world away, blotting it out. After so very, very long, that pale, warm light heralded the Sanctuary's true end it was the final demise of the cradle of the gentle Witch. *** Then, when the light cleared, surprisingly, there was nothing at all. All signs of Shima and the giant magic crystal on the pedestal were completely gone. Within the room, only Emilia, Ryuzu, and the many girls who had no one left to rely on remained. Emilia wasn't sure exactly what had happened. She could not bring herself to ask for details. She had merely been in attendance during a pivotal moment, bearing witness until the end. And with that complete, Emilia had a duty of her own to carry on. Puck and Shima had both done what they had to do. Then, having arrived at this point... \"Let's go, Miss Ryuzu. There are things we need to do.\" \"Lady Emilia...\" \"We've been entrusted with important thoughts and hopes, so for now...\" Turning around, Emilia set eyes upon the entrance leading outside the room. Ryuzu followed suit, glancing at her sisters to confirm they did the same before giving a determined nod \"We'll save the tears until later that's what the people I love always tell me with a smile.\" 7 Ryuzu offered an explanation that the girls' duty was to serve as the Sanctuary's \"eyes.\" *** It certainly weighed on Emilia's mind to know that the sisters would silently carry out her every order. But she set that aside for the moment. Just like how Shima had fulfilled her role and how Ryuzu had her own duty, these girls also had their own roles to play. However, that didn't mean there was nothing for them in life beyond that. They would get many wonderful opportunities after everything happening in the Sanctuary was finished. Emilia was sure of it. Therefore, for that instant only, Emilia wanted to rely on them to fulfill their responsibilities, so that she, who was lacking in so many things, could reach the place she so dearly wanted to go  \"Ram! Roswaal!!\" There were gaps between snapped-off trees, furrows of overturned earth, and the unnatural snowfall when she saw the man and woman nestled close in front of that backdrop, Emilia raced over without a moment to spare. With the silent girls in tow, Emilia slid over frozen snow and bounded toward the copse of the trees. When she reached her destination and examined Roswaal, she realized he was half-covered in snow, not making the slightest movement as he gazed into the distance. Emilia violently shook his shoulder as she harshly called out to him. \"Hey, Roswaal! Are you listening? Roswaal, I'm talking to you! You can't stay in a place like this! You need to get to the tomb right away... This isn't the time to freeze!\" When she shook him, snow that had accumulated on Roswaal's head fell away. When she caught a glimpse of the side of his face her shaking had uncovered, it stole Emilia's breath away. She sensed no life in those eyes, no gravitas from his expression... He looked so very frail. \" ! Ram?\" Frightened by Roswaal's lack of reaction, Emilia called out to the girl sleeping in his arms. But seeing her slumbering face, she immediately sensed something was wrong. There was no sign of the snow accumulating on her cheek melting away... \"Ram? Ram!\" Emilia desperately called out to that sleeping face, trying to see if that would wake her. However, there was no response. Of course there was no reply, but her eyelids didn't even twitch. When she touched the girl, her cheek and her lips seemed abnormally cold. It was almost as if  \"That can't be...!\" Brushing that grim possibility aside, Emilia put a hand into Ram's clothes. When she touched the girl's diminutive, cold-feeling chest to make sure, her palm felt a faint reaction...the weakest of heartbeats. \" She's alive! It'll be all right! We can still make it! Roswaal!\" Having found a ray of hope, Emilia looked back at Roswaal. His hand still touched her forehead, but his eyes remained vacant and distant. That same moment, she understood. A vast amount of mana was coursing from Roswaal's palm into Ram's forehead. By feeding her considerably weakened body that mana, he had helped maintain her weak hold on life, if just barely. \"You saved Ram, didn't you...?\" Recognizing this, Emilia sank into thought. Ram's condition was poor. Under normal circumstances, it would most likely not be a good idea to move her at all. But there was a reason she could not simply leave them there. Ryuzu had informed her of the terrifying demon beasts closing in on them. The heavy snow was a foreboding omen, and with each moment that passed, danger drew closer to the Sanctuary. Emilia truly had made the right decision to gather everyone together at the tomb. There, she could set up a defensive perimeter and secure the people who she had to protect. It wasn't an issue of whether she could. She'd do it no matter what. Even if she could not borrow Roswaal's strength, Emilia possessed the combat capability to do it alone. \"Anyway, Roswaal, let's bring Ram with us. These girls will help, so we'll evacuate you both to the tomb. Roswaal, don't give up on treating Ram...\" \"...s fine.\" \" Huh?\" Emilia gazed in astonishment, doubting whether she'd correctly heard the raspy voice her eardrums had caught. To Emilia, that was how unexpected those words were. That was to what extent she found them unbelievable. Emilia stood there dumbfounded as Roswaal repeated them. \"It's fine...\" The voice seemed ready to vanish. As a matter of fact, the words were immediately taken and swept away by the cold wind, scattering them aside. He seemed to be muttering under his breath. It was not even clear if Roswaal himself heard the words. But that weak, chafed voice of resignation certainly reached her. Hence, Emilia  \" Don't you dare decide something like that on your own!!\" Emilia grasped Roswaal's collar, her voice shaking with anger. The force made him cry out in pain. Emilia glared at his face as if she was ready to bite it off. Indignation rested in her violet eyes as she howled: \"It's fine?! What do you mean, fine?! There's nothing fine about this! There's not a single thing here that's fine! Don't you dare give up and try to end this on your own! For me, Ram, and you, Roswaal, there's no way any of this is fine!!\" \" Uagh.\" \"I finished the Trials! The past I was afraid of seeing! The happy future that could have been! The miserable future that might come who-knows-when! I saw it all! Even so, I decided to walk this path... Yes, I decided! And I'm walking it now!\" She howled. She kept on howling. Uncontainable anger bubbled up from deep within Emilia, an anger beyond anything she had ever known. Yes. That was it. What a weak voice she had and what pathetic answers. She'd been spoiled to the core. Could it really be called living life if it ended the moment someone gave up? Roswaal's cheeks stiffened. He squirmed in an apparent attempt to avoid her gaze. This was not out of anxiousness for Ram as she rested in his arms; he simply wanted to escape the look in her eyes. This, she would not allow. Grasping his chin, Emilia turned him to face her. \"When you're having a conversation, look who's talking to you in the eye!\" *** \"If you don't look someone in the eye, you can't tell when someone's desperately trying to think of something. If someone's not looking into your eyes, they can't tell why you want to do something. So look into my eyes, listen to my voice, stand up, and come with me don't give up.\" Roswaal blinked. His differently colored eyes seemed to have realized something. His small lips twitched. However, they did not form a sound. Nonetheless, they possessed tangible...will. \" Ah.\" \"I won't let anyone say it's fine. As long as we're alive, there'll be none of this it's fine stuff that's why I don't want to give up on anyone, not anymore!\" She stood up. That instant, Emilia whirled around, thrusting her arm toward the forest behind her. She froze to the bone the demon beast leaping toward her, enveloping it in blustering snow and glacial cold. The creature she had caught was white, small enough to fit in her palm. However, this was a ferocious being with gleaming red eyes.  It had arrived. The demon beast known as the Great Rabbit had finally come. \"They're here... Yeah, because I'm a Witch. Or is it because Puck is here?\" The Witch who had frozen the Great Elior Forest or the Great Spirit who had served as her father figure either one made delicious feed for the horde of demon beasts raising a racket with their teeth gnashing as they steadily drew nearer. Touching a hand to her chest, Emilia said a prayer on the new magic crystal fragment that hung from her neck.  Not a prayer yearning for deliverance but a vow that she would see things through. \"Take care of Roswaal and Ram. Everything will be fine as long as you can make it back to the tomb... I'll protect everyone without fail!\" As Emilia decisively issued instructions to Ryuzu's sisters, the girls immediately did as they were told. It was their role to obey this temporary master, who just so happened to have the qualifications to order them but it was up to Emilia to play the role assigned to her more valiantly than any other in the four centuries of the Sanctuary's history. Using magic to scatter the pursuing demon beasts, Emilia cut open a path toward the tomb and raced ahead. The girls followed close behind her, looking like retainers who had sworn fealty to their king.  For in Emilia's footsteps and her gaze, there was no hesitation. Not anymore. CHAPTER 7 *** 1 It was immediately after being separated from Ryuzu that Beatrice began waiting for That Person. Having lost Ryuzu Meyer, who had established the Sanctuary at the cost of her own existence, they had endured against Hector, Devil of Melancholy. Her wait began immediately following that. \"Beatrice. I entrust you with administering the archive containing my knowledge. Until the appointed hour comes, I want you to protect the archive's store of knowledge as its guardian so that none may ransack it.\" \" Eh?\" Called to her mother's study, Beatrice opened her eyes wide, bewildered and shaken as she was commanded to keep watch. She'd been certain that her mother the Witch Echidna would command her to risk her life fighting to support her in a coming battle. Beatrice could only widen her eyes at being handed a role she'd never even conceived of. \"Fortunately, as a master of Dark magic, you wield Passage, which connects an isolated space to familiar places... Yes, let us call this space the archive of forbidden books. Therein, the writings that contain all the knowledge I possess shall be collected and preserved. This is what I want you to protect.\" \"W-wait...\" \"You may link the archive to Roswaal's mansion. That child... It's more than likely his Gate was crushed in the previous battle and he'll never be able to demonstrate his genius again. Even so, I am certain"}, {"text": "he will be of great assistance to you. I want both of you to get along nicely and await my return...\" \"Wait just a... Could you hold on for a moment, I wonder?!\" As Echidna ignored her shock and kept pushing on with the conversation, Beatrice desperately asked her to slow down. She could not comprehend Mother's words No, her instincts screamed she could not allow herself to comprehend. Echidna's farseeing, far-reaching plans were well beyond the ken of any normal person. Her words were always absolute, so never once before had Beatrice even considered interrupting them. That was precisely why she interjected now. If the words ahead were also absolute, she would forever regret allowing them to be spoken. \"Mother...what are you saying? D-do I even understand what this archive of forbidden books means, I wonder?! Betty...wants to go with Mother!!\" \"Unfortunately, even if you are with me, I can do nothing against a foe even Roswaal could not handle. If you and I are both destroyed, what will happen to the knowledge I have accumulated? I have a duty to see it inherited.\" And having someone inherit this knowledge was the duty she was leaving to Beatrice by entrusting her with the archive of forbidden books. Instantly, Beatrice came to a realization. She finally understood the meaning of the Dark magic she had so passionately studied, the purpose of her affinity for it. \"It cannot be... Betty's power...was for this?\" *** \"Mother, from the beginning, you knew this would... Then not only this so-called archive but the Sanctuary...and Roswaal, and Ryuzu also...!\" Resentfully, with tears in her eyes, Beatrice shook her head. Echidna fell silent, narrowing her black eyes. Then the Witch stood up, gently offering her daughter the single tome that had been resting on her desk. \"This is...\" \"An imperfect copy of my Authority. This is the book of knowledge. I have not completely analyzed the methodology behind that magic tome, but it should suffice as a simple guidepost in showing the way to the bearer's future.\" The ring of those words, a magic tome guiding the way to the future, made Beatrice draw in her breath as she accepted the book. If she'd had this before, leading her onto the proper path, would the words she was hearing from her mother that very moment, and what she should do next, be written within? \"There are two copies. The first, I give to you, and the second, I will give to Roswaal. He should make the proper arrangements henceforth. I am sorry this is so arbitrary, but I want you to do as I say.\" When Beatrice took in all of Mother's words, she realized it was already too late. No matter how much Beatrice cried, clung, and wailed don't go, her mother would not change her ways.  For Echidna, the Witch of Greed, had chosen to be a Witch ahead of being a mother. \"Let us speak about your term as guardian of the archive. Even if I do not return, the archive must be opened to someone at some point. The one suitable to inherit my knowledge will surely come one day. You will know when the time has come.\" \"Come for Betty...?\" \"As a placeholder, let us use the words That Person. Your term will last until That Person arrives at the archive of forbidden books and tells you that your duty has come to an end this is my final request.\" Her final request the ring of those words made Beatrice look up at Echidna's black eyes once more. Her mother's...expression was ever-unchanged. And yet, for the briefest of moments, an unknown emotion passed over it. \"Betty be well.\" 2 After parting ways with Echidna, Beatrice's losses and farewells continued. Just as Mother had told her to, Beatrice took up residence at the Roswaal family's home. There, she used her mastery of Dark magic to construct the archive of forbidden books, filled it with her mother's knowledge, and called herself its librarian. Immersing herself in that role, she turned a blind eye to all the despair remaining in the world around her. \"Copying the soul... Overwriting the vessel...\" At some point, Roswaal began to frequently visit the archive of forbidden books. But his only interest was the bookshelves of knowledge within, so he and Beatrice exchanged hardly any words. Beatrice wondered when the youth, once too lanky and stubble covering his face, had become an adult? He bore a staff and looked like he had trouble walking he had suffered unhealed wounds during the battle with that devil, putting Roswaal's body into a state that made even day-to-day life arduous. In spite of this, ever since he had become able to walk again, he had terribly abused that inconvenient body, whittling his life away as he remained turned toward the bookshelves. \"Hellooo, Beatrice. I shall intruuude upon you today once more.\" \"...Do as you please.\" By rights, the archive of forbidden books was a place she shouldn't have allowed anyone into. Echidna's request was for That Person to eventually come and inherit her knowledge. It wasn't an open library that just anyone could peruse until That Person came. Everyone else belonged in the Sanctuary. But even so, Roswaal, and only Roswaal, was the exception. He alone was special, the only other one to whom, like Beatrice, Echidna had entrusted a vital mission. And to Beatrice, he was the only reminder that the days she treasured existed without a doubt. Yes, to Beatrice, only he  *** He had come to the archive again. Roswaal threw himself into the sea of Echidna's knowledge with wild abandon, seemingly gambling his life on finding something within Beatrice did not know if he ever did. But several years later, Roswaal A. Mathers the last person she had known from those days lost his life just on the verge of entering his thirties, and administration of the mansion was passed on to the next generation. \"Greetings, Lady Beatrice. I thought I should say somethiiiing to you in place of my predecessor.\" \"...Did Roswaal die, I wonder?\" \"My predecessor has passed away. However, rest at ease. As current head of the household, I, Roswaal B. Mathers, duly inherit his duty toward you and his debt of obligation toward your mother.\"  He smiled as his eyes, one yellow, one blue, reflected her expressionless face. 3 Little worth mentioning happened after that. The heads of the Mathers family continued to call themselves Roswaal, inheriting the name from previous generations. This was apparently so they would never forget to revere Echidna, Beatrice's departed mother. Even though she understood this, she could not treat them like she had the first generation. Of course she couldn't. To Beatrice, there was only one Roswaal she could consider special. All others were fakes. To maintain the archive of forbidden books, she needed them to provide access to the mansion. Furthermore, even if they offered other amenities, she wanted nothing beyond that, as it was a place for the sake of That Person alone. And so for the sake of her guiding mission, she was alone for a long, long time. Four hundred years passed and in that time, the number of people who reached the Archive were few. \"Your power is simply marvelous. Please, by all means, lend me your power as a spirit.\" Shut up. Go away. \"Even if someone ordered it, making you stay all alone in a place like this is unforgivable.\" As if you understand? This is the precious duty Mother entrusted to me. \"Knowledge should be spread far and wide. If the vast wisdom accumulated here was shared, just how many people do you think it would help? Surely, you understand this.\" I care nothing for the many. Betty only wanted to save the one. \"Let's go together. You've already done enough. Let me save you.\" There is only one person who can save Betty now. Both men and women said all sorts of things to Betty, guardian of the archive of forbidden books. In the end, they all invariably asked her to open the archive. Many times over, their proposals, their commands, and the hands they reached out with made her heart tremble. Every time the door was pushed open, every time someone came in, her expectations rose. Had That Person arrived? But her hopes were always dashed. These visitors knew nothing of That Person's duty, nor did the mystic tome left to her by Mother indicate any of them was That Person. Therefore, Beatrice brushed aside their words, their feelings, and the hands they extended, rejecting them all, clinging to Mother's words alone and continuing to gradually shut herself in a cage of loneliness. Would the key to that cage come from inside, or would it come from outside?  Not even Beatrice herself knew anymore. 4 As that long, empty time passed, an unwanted change arrived at Beatrice's doorstep. Even Beatrice, who tried her hardest not to associate with the outside world, had learned a fair bit about the circumstances of the half-demon girl Puck's contractor whom Roswaal had brought home with him. One might call the unexpected reunion with Puck at Roswaal's mansion one of the few events that had made Beatrice's heart leap in those four centuries of service. Puck was a Great Spirit with origins identical to Beatrice's. However, unlike how she lived according to the will of Echidna the Witch since days long past, he had started a new life long before the birth of the Sanctuary, and she had not seen him since. However, the joy Beatrice felt at being reunited with the spirit who she adored like an older brother was swiftly crushed. Seeing Puck spend blissful days with the half-demon girl he'd contracted with sent cracks running through her heart. She was jealous. No, it was something more than jealousy she was envious that he was fulfilling his duty, something she could only imagine in her wildest of dreams. Therefore, to the greatest extent possible, she did her best to avoid interacting with the half-demon girl who was so precious to Puck. Had she not done so, no doubt someday she would have taken the unease lurking in her heart out on the girl. They would have clashed, and through no fault of anyone's, she would surely make a mistake she could never undo against the girl her beloved older brother considered to be the most precious in the world. She appealed to her heart's self-control. Suppressing her emotions and keeping her words sealed away was her specialty. She had done so over and over across four centuries. Her heart did not fear silence or loneliness at that late hour. In her familiar, tried-and-true fashion, she gave up and chalked it up to the despair she knew so well.  It was during those days of resignation that an anomaly suddenly intruded upon her domain. At first, she assumed he was just another foolish human and held no interest in him whatsoever. He was a traveler the half-demon girl had brought back from the royal capital, and a stupid one at that. By some twist of fate, he ended up staying at the mansion, and on top of that, he had an affinity for Dark magic, making him highly compatible with Beatrice's Passage; as a result, he forced his way into the archive of forbidden books time and time again. He was an odd boy. It was plain as day to anyone with eyes that the boy was completely smitten with the half-demon girl. It was just as obvious that this was no scheme or dark ambition; the only motive was his shockingly simplistic love for her and nothing more. On a whim, she had saved the boy from a curse and offered him words of advice. She regretted this when afterward, he settled down at the mansion indefinitely, insisting on becoming even chummier. But what she found surprising was that he knew of Beatrice's talents yet did not desire them in any way. Indeed, when"}, {"text": "he came to ask about curses, it was Beatrice, and not the archive of forbidden books, he came to consult. The boy harbored no interest in the knowledge left in her care or Beatrice's power whatsoever. Up until then, various persons had arrived at the archive of forbidden books, in which Beatrice placed her fleeting hopes yet Beatrice herself had rejected them, denied them. In the first place, the boy lacked many of the attributes Beatrice hoped for in the person she awaited. First, there was a nasty quality to his eyes. His attitude was awful. His upbringing was deficient. His legs were short. He had someone he already cared for with all his being, and he wasn't kind to Beatrice. She couldn't find even one good thing about him. It genuinely hurt when she tried to understand what the half-demon girl and the younger of the maid sisters saw in him. He had absolutely no redeeming qualities, so Beatrice wished he would know his place and just accept being alone. And given his situation, she thought she could at least be a little nicer whenever he poked his head into the archive. Yet, even though that was how she thought of him at the time   in the end, without a single shred of consideration for Beatrice's bewilderment, time coursed, and the world moved. Beatrice did not know the fine details of what happened outside the mansion after that. But the half-demon girl was summoned to the capital, and when she returned, the boy, who should have been traveling by her side, was absent. When he next reappeared, the boy had acquired an heirloom that belonged to someone whom she had fond memories of. Upon seeing the book, Beatrice gained a keen appreciation of how yet another had left her behind in the world, even as she sent the boy and those with him off to the Sanctuary in accordance with Roswaal's plot. He was going to meet the Witch of Greed, fulfilling the long-cherished desire of his family such were the words Roswaal left with Beatrice when he visited her in the archive before heading to the Sanctuary. From those words and the look in Roswaal's eyes, Beatrice surmised he was going to settle things. Simultaneously, Beatrice settled upon a conclusion of her own. A conclusion about the promised person supposedly recorded in the book of knowledge that had remained blank for four centuries.  That Person would never arrive at Beatrice's doorstep. When the air of death permeated the mansion, Beatrice immediately came to a realization. Even in the presence of such a thick aura, the book of knowledge had nothing written in it about Beatrice's future. Destiny had abandoned her. And for some reason, she accepted this with ease. That was probably because Beatrice had finally caught sight of the conclusion that she had long desired.  That Person would never come. Yet, even so, she had to keep waiting. In which case, Beatrice had no choice but to wait until someone stopped her from waiting any longer. If that also meant robbing her of her life, she didn't care who did it. If it was possible, she would have liked to entrust even a tiny bit of the end of those four centuries to another. Therefore, that night, when the boy Subaru Natsuki raced into the archive of forbidden books, Beatrice vented all her deeply repressed feelings, which were so difficult to put into words. That instant, for the first time, Beatrice wanted some revenge against the destiny that had not tried to save her heart even once. If he could be the one to take her and finally end the pact, then that would be  \"I'm getting you out of here, Beatrice This time, my hand's gonna lead you right out under the big ol' sun, and we'll play around until that dress is totally black from mud.\" ***  So why, when it was far too late, did his hardened resolve tear at Beatrice's heart? All she'd thought about was meeting her end. And yet, the boy showed her a possible future that differed from Beatrice's own hopes. She didn't hope for anything like that. Such hopes had been worn away by four centuries. \"If if you...were...the one I've been waiting for...\" That was how it should have been. Yet, as she listened to the boy's indignant voice, a change began within her. If she put it on her lips, if she spoke the words, her dormant emotions would bubble over and come out onto her face. Beatrice would lose her obsession with Mother's words, which had bound her for four hundred years, and from that moment forward, she would cling to something new, something she would never let go. It was with full knowledge of this that Beatrice posed the decisive question  \"Would you...become That Person for Betty?\" \"You really are an idiot. There's no way in hell I'd become this stupid person or whatever for you.\" 5 She had been in danger of doing something she could never take back. But before she even had a chance to try, the possibility was snatched away.  She felt like she had reduced herself to a frivolous and very cheap clown. \"...Am I just...tired, I wonder?\" In the first place, she was wrong to even think of taking that boy's hand. He did not possess the pure heart of someone who would dirty his own hands for the sake of someone else without a second thought. Just like Beatrice, he possessed a weak heart. He was indecisive and agonized over trivial things; uncertain of himself and hesitant, always ready to pile up one excuse after another instead of facing things head-on. That was why her death would no doubt come in a different form. Just like the intruders who had come into the mansion, enshrouded in a dense halo of death. Or perhaps the flames spreading through the mansion would burn all to ash, like a fiery purgatory. All she had to do was wait for it  \"Aaand I'm back! Hey, you big moron! You really got me good back there, damn it...\" *** \"Gaaagh?!\" When the boy suddenly appeared in the archive of forbidden books like so many times before, Beatrice blew him away on reflex. She was seething, and the attack came swifter than she could think. The boy was struck by a shock wave, shooting him out the door through which he had just entered. The door audibly slammed shut. \"I I am finished speaking with you...and yet, you came again. Just how impudent are you, I wonder?!\" Beatrice couldn't even understand the sheer gall needed for him to show his face again after what he had said to her last. As if to clear her mind, Beatrice took several deep breaths, once more waiting for time to  \"Cut it out with the temper tantrums already! If you resort to violence right away, this conversation'll never  \"You cut it out!!\" \"Waaah!\" A two-pronged flow of magical energy hit him in the face, then in the gut. The boy proceeded to groan in agony as he was hurled out of the room before the door shut again, forcibly ejecting him from the space. \"Is this even remotely funny, I wonder...?\" Murmuring with irritation, Beatrice settled back onto her stool, clutching the blank book of knowledge as she glared at the door, fearful that it might open again. She was scared that her feelings, which had been shoved aside by arbitrary logic and unthinkable emotions, might be forced to the surface. No matter how many times you come, I will continue to refuse you. After all, you are not That Person. You abandoned any right to take Beatrice from here. That is why Beatrice will stay until she and her unfulfilled promise meet their ends.  At that moment, that was the only thing Beatrice thought could grant her salvation. 6 Sent flying out of the archive, Subaru wisely broke his fall the instant he collided with the hallway wall. \"Gah... I'm in one piece!\" Having split off from Petra and Otto, he was hell-bent on trying to persuade Beatrice for the fourth time and thanks to being smacked so much in a short span, he was becoming quite an expert at blunting the impact of the invisible shock waves. \"This ain't the time to polish up stupid techniques like that. My instincts are telling me the fire's getting bad.\" Wiping off his coursing sweat with a sleeve, Subaru crouched, clicking his tongue at the poor visibility. The fire consuming the mansion had worsened, and hovering black smoke now reached every corner of the main wing. The floor below was already enveloped by the tendrils of flames; if he fell through the floor, he would not be able to avoid being charred to a crisp. With the fire having spread to both the east and west wings, it was no longer possible to stop it. The silver linings were that the candidates for Passage had been drastically reduced and that many of the demon beasts had fled due to the inferno, leaving Subaru with no enemies barring his path as he scurried around the mansion. That said, the more of the mansion that was lost to flames, the higher the odds of Subaru burning to death. It would not be long until the mansion underwent a fiery collapse. He had to get Beatrice out of there before it came to that. \"Besides, what's gonna happen to her archive of forbidden books if all the doors are burned to a crisp...?\" If, by any chance, all links to the doors were cut, just where would that archive's door lead? Perhaps it would lead nowhere, and that girl's world of loneliness would continue on for eternity? Or perhaps the archive of forbidden books would share the mansion's fate, consumed by flames and returned to ash? \"As if I'm gonna just stand by and let you end up like that...!\" Taking a deep breath, Subaru ran while staying so low to the ground, he was practically licking the floor. Throwing open the door from which he had been hurled, he put his hand on the next door, opening one after another. The structural materials burned, and there was something like a bursting sound as the mansion where he spent so many irreplaceable days burned to the ground. \" Gah, agh!\" When he grasped the doorknob of a yet-unopened door, he suppressed the urge to cry out in pain from his scorched palm. However, in a short span of time, it was a pain he'd grown accustomed to feeling. The pain sharply stabbed him through his temples as he kicked the door open, racing inside. *** He gasped, breathing in the aroma of old books and seeing an atmosphere disconnected from scalding heat it was the archive of forbidden books. Realizing this, Subaru lifted his face. The girl sitting on the stool was glaring straight at Subaru. \"You again. You do not know when to give up...!\" \"Ha!! Damn right I don't! I'll come to spirit you away as many times as it takes! If you don't like it, come with me already! Do that, and it'll be the last time I barge in here like this!\" \"I have had enough of your flapping tongue! Do you even realize the mansion is on fire, I wonder?! If you do not flee this very instant, all that awaits you is your own fiery death!\" The fifth time Subaru challenged her, Beatrice chewed him out, having deemed him an incorrigible fool. Fierce emotion rested in her blue eyes, her lips quavered, and her fingers dug into her mystic tome. \"You... Have you not realized that you are out of opportunities to speak with Betty, I wonder? You are an unwelcome intruder... Why do you not understand this?!\" \"Well, I don't understand. As long as you're not seriously rejecting me, I'll come as many times as I want.\" \" !! Betty is rejec !\" She was so"}, {"text": "angry, so offended, that Beatrice's words made it halfway out of her throat before she opened her eyes wide. She truly hadn't realized the meaning of Subaru's words. Beatrice's own words, own actions, were contradicted by Subaru's very presence. \"Beatrice, if you genuinely don't want to see me, just hole up here in the archive.\" \"What are you...? At present, can Betty take even a single step out of the archive, I wonder?! And yet And yet, you barge in here all on your...\" \"Nah, you're wrong. If you were serious, I'd never have been able to reach this place over and over in such a short time like this. Your rejection is skin-deep.\" \" I, ah...\" Beatrice grew even more confused. She was at a loss, unable to form the words with which to reject him. Passage was not all-powerful. That was simply fact. However, it came shockingly close. If Beatrice had genuinely wanted to separate the archive of forbidden books from the outside world, it should have been easy to prevent Subaru from entering. Did she not could she not do so because her heart had strayed? *** After considering Subaru's assertion, Beatrice, too, began to doubt her own heart. Even had she not, the promise from four centuries ago that underpinned the current Beatrice was lost, leaving her wavering. She no longer knew whether Subaru's words or her own hopes were correct.  And really, Subaru didn't know, either. Perhaps it was simply that the more the mansion burned away, the more the choices dwindled as well. Perhaps Subaru was conveniently discovering hidden powers at the perfect moment, enabling him to see right through Passage. And perhaps it truly was that Beatrice could not bring herself to reject Subaru sincerely, and therefore Passage's entrance remained open to him. He didn't know which was true but Subaru hoped, prayed it was the last possibility. But whatever the truth, it didn't matter. There and then, every part of Subaru Natsuki was devoted to reaching the possibility of taking Beatrice with him. \"You...you...! You are not That Person for Betty!\" Seemingly unable to contain the inner turmoil swirling inside her any longer, Beatrice grasped the hem of her skirt and raised her voice. Abandoning the thoughts racing within her mind, she seemed ready to burst into tears as she stated her case to Subaru. \"You said yourself that you weren't! You said it yourself! Did you not say it, I wonder? If only you were That Person... Had you said so, even as a lie, Betty would have probably believed you. Even knowing it was a lie, she would have to believe you.\" \"Beatrice...\" \"But did you not say that was wrong, I wonder? You said it was wrong, and you said it was stupid. Well, I suppose you were right. Yes, Betty is an idiot, a huge idiot who cannot bring herself to forget a verbal promise she made four centuries ago... That's why! No matter what you say, is it not already over, I wonder?!\" As Beatrice shouted her rejection, fierce gales spawned around her, enveloping her like a cage. The torrent of magical energy made the girl's dress and hair flap in the wind, and a tragic mood filled the archive of forbidden books. After watching this unfold, Subaru drew in his breath, then began walking forward. His feeble heart was afraid afraid that the squalls would hurt him. Fighting against that fear, he clenched his burned palms tight and used that pain to focus on just looking straight ahead. *** \"I'm not That Person or anything like that. I'll say it as many times as you like. The prince riding a white horse who you're waiting for isn't coming. He'll never come no matter how long you wait here for him.\" As she listened to the repeated denials, the despair in Beatrice's eyes grew deeper. If things ended here again, nothing would change. Yet, if he could just tell her what came after... \"But.\" *** \"I want to be by your side, Beatrice.\" *** \"I want to be there for you so your gentle self won't be sad anymore.\" \"Ah...uuugh...!\" Beatrice's expression twisted up. The surging magical energy lost its focus, and the wind began to whip around indiscriminately, coming closer and closer to harming Beatrice herself. Her face crumpled with grief, anger, and something beyond those things. Then she opened the book on her lap as if to hold on for dear life. The pages flapping in the wind...were white. They were all blank.  The book of prophecy revealed nothing and urged her to make a choice all the same. \" The hell?\" Beatrice closed the book. Simultaneously, there was an unnatural distortion in Subaru's field of view. His vision became hazy, and he fell to his knees, unable to stand. It definitely wasn't anemia or fatigue that brought him down. The real culprit was the archive of forbidden books itself, which was swaying quite violently. The floor twisted, and the bookshelves, having lost their balance, tumbled one after another. The books lining their shelves were sent flying, blanketing the room in a sea of covers, spines, and paper. This was the archive of forbidden books that Beatrice had built if the state of the archive correlated with Beatrice's mental state, then it was clear she was shaken to the point where she could no longer maintain the place. \"Beatrice !\" As everything around him became progressively more warped, Subaru did his best to stand as he reached a hand out toward Beatrice. The area around her was the only place unaffected by the distortion; even then, the girl sat atop the stool. If he jumped, he'd reach her. Trusting in this, Subaru turned toward Beatrice and took a leap of faith. The instant he did, space itself ripped open like a piece of paper, and Subaru's body was only moments away from being swallowed by the tear. \" Oh, cra...!\" He wouldn't make it. Able to do nothing else, Subaru dove into the gap. This was not Passage. It was a leap through space that did not involve a door Subaru had experienced this exact thing once before. It was when he'd let Emilia die. It was when he'd let Beatrice die. *** At the last second, when he turned his eyes toward the rip in space, he saw Beatrice's lips move.  Every part of her face seemed to say the same thing. Good-bye. 7 The instant he emerged from his crossing, the smoke he inhaled sent him coughing. The hot wind felt like it was scorching his skin. \" The entrance?! How courteous. Shit!\" Lifting up his black, grimy face, Subaru realized he was at the entrance of the burning mansion. Looking farther, he was certain the entirety of the building was already engulfed by flames; the inferno touched not only the main wing, where the fire had started, but also the east and west wings. It was difficult to find a place inside the mansion that was still in its original shape. Even the door of the entrance from which Subaru had just emerged had its lower half enveloped by flames. That Passage had worked at all was itself a miracle. He wouldn't be able to leap back into the archive of forbidden books from there No, it was questionable whether there was a single door leading to the archive remaining in the mansion. He wasn't inside the burning mansion; he'd been thrown outside. Beatrice had probably intended this to be her reply. \"Good-bye, my ass How are you gonna act tough, then show me a face like that at the end?!\" Brushing those rising doubts aside, Subaru kicked the burning door in all his fury, rushing into the entryway. He was immediately greeted by a wave of heat incomparable to anything he felt outside, and the agony of his singed windpipe brought tears to his eyes. Charging into a burning building like someone who didn't know better, trying to save lives and be a hero that was the kind of dumb stunt that got people killed. But Subaru had no intention of dying. \"And I'm not letting her die, either!\" Subaru raced across the flaming Roswaal Manor in search of anything that might be connected to the archive. His face, his neck, and his limbs were roasting, and his skin felt pain as if it was being scorched. It hurt to breathe, but not so much that he couldn't run. Subaru shoved everything else out of his mind. If Subaru had been capable of seeing things more clearly at the time, the sheer horror of the sight might have caused his body to quiver uncontrollably. For as Subaru ran through the inferno, swearing he would bring the girl with him, he was enveloped by an incredibly dense black miasma, almost like a cloak of shadow that shielded him. Unaware of this, Subaru broke through a particularly large wall of flame and found the stairs. The first-floor dining room was where the fire had begun. Entryway included, it was highly probable that every door there had burned up. If there was a door still intact, it would be on a higher floor probably at the very top. In such a conflagration, it was naturally unlikely that he could get back up there from the first floor. Even so, without any hesitation, Subaru started climbing the stairs, racing toward the topmost floor. A moment later . *** He heard a sound like something wet was being dragged; Subaru turned about. It had come from the corridor of the main wing, where the fire raged wildly, even though all reason told him it could not be so. After their chain of command collapsed, the demon beasts were fleeing, for this was an inferno of certain death that brooked no living beings. What could be in such a place?  Wait, what the hell is that? A figure dressed in black emerged from the flames: a black-haired woman holding a black blade in her hand. \"Elsa...?\" *** There was no reply. But so far as Subaru knew, it could be no one but that all-black killer. Multiple times in multiple loops, Subaru had run into her and died by her hand. In his latest plan, he'd left the woman to his most capable companion, thinking he would surely never meet her again. And yet here, in a fiery world of life and death, Subaru and Elsa had come face-to-face once more. *** Encountering her in the burning Roswaal Manor, Subaru licked his lips, forgetting his sense of unease. He'd borrowed the strength of many to arrive at that point. Otto. Ram. Ryuzu. Shima. Patlash. Emilia. The people of Earlham Village. Garfiel. Petra. Frederica. They were why Subaru could stand then and there Subaru Natsuki did not doubt his allies. \"Garfiel wouldn't lose to you. There's no way you beat him.\" *** \"You're not Elsa anymore, are you?\" When Subaru posed the question, Elsa nay, the thing that had been Elsa turned its empty black eyes toward him. There was no glint of life within them, only bottomless darkness. Subaru was peering into an abyss. An empty body, a departed soul, and obsession incarnate. Driven by inexhaustible bloodlust, it dragged its smashed lower body along as it crawled toward Subaru through the raging fires. This was far beyond an unnatural vitality that kept death at bay. The power had become nothing but a curse. Just like Subaru's Return by Death, it was nothing save a curse, a yoke placed upon her very life. \"You've got it pretty rough, too, but I don't have time to deal with you. I've gotta get Beatrice \" Out of here, he was stating to the corpse that had once been Elsa, ready to abandon it to the flames. It was certainly crawling slowly enough that he could easily shake it off. But  *** Suddenly feeling death brush against the nape of his neck, Subaru immediately leaped up. After jumping to the flaming landing, he turned around. Behind him, the undead's wicked blade had"}, {"text": "sliced clean through the steps below. Closing the distance, the corpse swung as it came again to claim Subaru's life. Naturally, the blade had not fallen short out of mercy. The swing had missed because the undead's smashed lower body had prevented it from lunging forward properly. \"You're kidding me !\" Subaru instantly kicked away the corpse's hand, which was reaching for the stairs, and dashed away. Smoke from a fire moved upward. Accordingly, it was thicker on the floor above, increasing in its potency. The flames were strong there, too; he couldn't call searching for a door in those conditions very realistic.  More importantly, the undead had not relented in its pursuit for even a second, doggedly pursuing Subaru. \"Shit! Gotta go higher!\" Relentlessly chased by the corpse that had lost all humanity, Subaru kept running to the topmost floor. Stumbling onto the blaze-enveloped third floor, he found himself at the corridor that led to the study where he saw off Petra and Otto. They must have made it out safe and sound. Garfiel and Frederica, too. And judging from the lack of organization among the demon beasts, Meili must have been routed, too. As for Elsa  \"Roooaaah!!\" \"Dah?!\" When that roar and a monstrous set of claws shot out from some nearby flames, Subaru screamed, unable to conceal his shock. The culprit was a demon beast sporting a lion's face. It had lost its mane, and half its body looked hideously burned, but there was no mistake: This was the same Giltirau Subaru and the others thought they had burned to death back in the dining hall. Appearing to be struggling to even breathe, perhaps it was only still standing to obey its master's command. If that was true, then Subaru was truly like a moth to flame the irony of chancing upon it in the middle of a massive inferno was too rich to be funny. *** Roaring, the nearly expired demon beast swung its massive arm toward Subaru. Scraping the wall, it was a lethal blow that whistled through the air as it closed in. Even barely clinging to life, this beast could rob him of his life just as easily as it could mow down some weeds. \"You're both one-trick ponies !\" Subaru evaded the attack by rolling forward toward the demon beast's flank he'd already learned, probably from too much personal experience, that demon beasts had a habit of aiming for the vitals of their prey. Thoroughly embarrassed after missing a clean shot, the demon beast angrily unleashed a follow-up attack  *** It was then that the undead pursuing Subaru bared its fangs toward the demon beast. There was not a single reason the demon beast and the undead should have to fight. To the undead chasing Subaru, the demon beast's hulking body was nothing more than an obstacle on the path Subaru had traversed first. There was no deeper reason behind the undead sending the demon beast's hind paw flying away. Screaming as the wicked blade drew black blood, the beast cracked its serpentine tail at the undead. In a feat beyond the limitations of a human body, the corpse evaded the tail attack, retaliating by slicing the tail off at its base. Unleashing the murderous techniques ingrained into its flesh, the undead cut into the demon beast in a one-sided manner. Subaru, not letting slip the opportunity to turn misfortune into fortune, kicked open one closed door after another on the topmost floor. The stateroom and the reference room were both busts. The battle between undead and demon beast continued, but all he heard were the screams of the demon beast, clearly losing the lopsided fight. \"Please, Beatrice...!\" Finally arriving at the study, Subaru flung the door open with a prayer in his heart. However, uncertainty crept in as the only sight before him was a ransacked office. \"This didn't work, either...! Then the last door is...\" The burning floors below were all wiped out. The other wings were burning up even faster than the main one, perhaps because of the collapses there. Was there even a single intact door left inside Roswaal Manor at that point? \"No, not yet! There's still more! There's one door!\" Biting down any thoughts of giving up, Subaru set eyes upon the wide-open entrance to the spiraling stairs leading to the escape tunnel. If he went down the stairs and arrived at the underground passage there definitely ought to be a door ahead. Previously, when he'd returned to the mansion during a Witch Cult attack, Subaru had headed deep into the escape tunnel, was bathed in cold through the door, shattered into dust, and died that door was still there. Instantly, hesitation arose in the back of Subaru's mind. It was not fear. It was doubt. His thoughts coalesced. Were his actions being guided? All the other doors in the mansion were misses, leading Subaru to the escape tunnel was this Beatrice's intent? Was this all Beatrice's plan so that Subaru might escape outside, so that he might live? \" ! I don't even have the time to think about it!\" Behind him, death throes thundered throughout the mansion as the beast suffered a decisive blow. The demon beast had been unwittingly buying him time, but with that last strike, the cruel undead had surely taken its life.  He had no other options. Subaru was being herded into the hidden passage. The smoke was overwhelming the spiraling staircase leading to the basement of the mansion. With zero visibility and the fact that taking a single breath would spell death and a one-way trip to a world of nightmares, Subaru hardened his resolve, held his breath, and ran down. What had once been extreme cold was now instead scalding hot. Subaru advanced deeper, deeper into the dark underground passage. Finally, ahead of the smoke-infested darkness, he stopped, for he had found the door he sought. \"This is...\" It was the final possibility Subaru drew in his breath as that realization sank in. Subaru had never gone beyond the door in the hidden passage. He knew this escape tunnel ultimately led to a cabin off in the forest. But not once had he actually gone that far. Everything beyond that door was personally unknown to Subaru. Accordingly, to Subaru, this door was the final candidate. It was his last chance to get through to Beatrice. If he really had been guided there by Beatrice's will, it was a poor wager. Fearful of just that, Subaru reached his hand toward the door's handle  \"Daaah! This door again...!!\" His palm felt like it was on fire. His fingers hadn't even touched it. Subaru drew his hand back and glared at the door. The door's reaction seemed to mock Subaru for his fear of what might result and then suddenly, he came to a realization. \"The doorknob's hot...?\"  Even if hot air had crept in, there was no sign of fire in the underground escape tunnel. The hovering smoke and heat had coursed in through gaps in the stone comprising the spiral stairs. There was nothing burning in the tunnel. How could this interior door possess so much heat? \"...Beatrice. If you can hear this, listen to me.\" Keeping his hand away from the door, Subaru slightly craned his neck upward and spoke those words. He believed his voice would reach the girl who was nowhere to be seen. \"You led me this far, didn't you? To be blunt, if you were plotting to bring me to the escape tunnel by making it the only option, blatantly leading me here by the nose, then your plan's a complete failure.\" Even if he'd had to slip past the mansion fire, Elsa, and the demon beast along the way, she'd no doubt hatched a plan and put it into action. If this door was a bust, too, leaving him no choice but to go to the cabin, her goal would have been achieved. \"But it doesn't look like things are gonna go that smoothly... Even if this door's a bust, I'm not running like you want. This isn't talking tough or some bluff saying I don't wanna run, okay? Sure, nine-tenths of how I feel lines up with all that...but this is a serious, legit issue.\" Subaru continued earnestly trying to convince her, not even knowing if the other party could hear him. Subaru tapped the door barring his path with his foot as he let out a sigh. \"If I open this door, I'll probably die. I don't know if you or anyone else gets it, but that's exactly what'll happen...and I know because I have the power of science.\" Though it had failed him miserably with the misfire in the dining hall, the latent modern knowledge sleeping within Subaru was now ringing an alarm. The door in front of Subaru's eyes that moment was a door that had to be left untouched. This was a frequent danger at the sites of fires. In front of him was a door of hellish flame. Behind him was the undead Elsa this was a gambling parlor, and his life was on the line. \"Beatrice. I'm...going to open this door I'll leave it up to you to interpret my words.\" Was his voice really reaching Beatrice? And if it did reach her, would Beatrice believe Subaru's words? Somehow, the idea that his life would be determined by her choice put Subaru's heart at ease. ...Of course it did. \" Beatrice. I...trust you.\" As he spoke, Subaru felt the pain of his palm being burned as he flung the door open. And then  8  The undead arrived underground, not by taking the spiral stairs but by rolling down them. Black smoke invaded its lungs. The heat singed its skin. The flames threatened its life. The undead charged forward, heedless of all the danger. It gripped a wicked blade in its right hand. In its left was the heart of the demon beast it had killed. One would think no sight so ghastly could exist in the world. Regardless, the undead felt an inexhaustible sense of duty as it pursued its prey. Its flesh had been destroyed to the point that it should have been unresponsive. Its life had been whittled away beyond its ability to regenerate. There was no longer a person's will residing within the crawling corpse. That it moved even so was because the undead's reason for existence waited ahead. Finally, wordlessly, cruelly, the corpse arrived at the innermost part of the passage. *** Sensing black, stagnant miasma ahead, the undead instantly lashed out with its blade. The firmly shut door was cut down, so that the life of the prey on the other side might be sliced asunder. There was a dull sound as the door split apart. Kicking away the wreckage, the undead peered into the darkness on the other  *** A faint wind blew past. The undead felt like it was being pulled into the darkness ahead. Before its eyes, white smoke blew in from the depths of the darkness. Suddenly, the white smoke mixed with the black smoke in the corridor, causing a puff of heat. Immediately afterward, oxygen flowed into the tunnel, where incomplete combustion had occurred. The moment the heat and the oxygen-rich air came into contact, everything burst into incandescent flames. Though the earlier attempt to cause a dust explosion had failed, the fire had just produced the explosive phenomenon known as a back draft. This was not something that an undead bereft of all reason could ever have surmised. *** The merciless tendrils of the bursting flames enveloped the undead. The hellish fire instantly burned its body away. Having lost its power to heal, the body of the undead, now nothing more than a rotting corpse, was swallowed up and turned to ash. What remained burned up all at once destroyed by the roaring inferno. The force of the fire was so great that it did not stop there. It barreled down the underground passage, turned the spiraling staircase into"}, {"text": "a sea of incandescent heat, and burst into the study, causing it to ignite as well. That night, everything was enveloped by fire, burning it all down. Roswaal Manor's doors were no more. This time, the flaming Roswaal Manor truly found its end. 9 The sight of the archive of forbidden books, to which Subaru had been invited, made him inadvertently draw in his breath. Cracks ran across the floor and walls, and the tear in space through which Subaru had been expelled remained intact. The toppled bookshelves and scattered books remained as before, and on top of that, flames were rising from a corner of the room. The effects of Roswaal Manor burning down had finally begun to be felt even in the archive. *** However, such sentiments toward the room's interior dissipated with a single glance turned Subaru's way. That moment, he concentrated on the most important thing one little girl.  After all, this was probably his final chance. \"...You are an idiot.\" \"That's the first thing out of your mouth?\" \"Is it not true, I wonder? Even though Betty went through all that trouble so you might escape, you threw it away... Are there any doors left anywhere in the mansion, I wonder? This is a dead end.\" As a matter of fact, she was right. There wasn't a single door left in the mansion for Passage to connect to. The flames that had reached the archive of forbidden books were gradually increasing in force, spreading to the Witch's knowledge that Beatrice had continued protecting across four centuries, turning that promise to ash. Her precious obligation was on fire. It was easily flammable, so it would no doubt burn down, and soon. \"At this rate, you and I are both goners.\" \"...Yes, is this the end, I wonder? Betty wishes for little now. Everything she was to hand to That Person will soon burn away. Is everything now not completely contrary to her promise to Mother, I wonder?\" \"Oh yeah? Then hear me out to the end, okay?\" She'd failed to keep her word. Subaru had failed to persuade her. Beatrice looked toward him with empty eyes. She spoke no words of affirmation or denial. But at the very least, she seemed to be lending him her ears. Even in a situation like that, it just wasn't in her nature to deny someone else to the bitter end. He took a breath. There were words he had been unable to speak when they'd last parted.  This time, he'd tell her everything he wanted to say. \"Beatrice please save me.\" \"...Huh?\" Subaru stated those words boldly with his head held high. Hearing him say such a thing with his face all covered in soot, Beatrice could only stare at him in shock. She'd no doubt imagined countless things that he might possibly say. With both of them facing an unavoidable end, Beatrice had probably run numerous mental simulations about what words Subaru might say to her, no doubt intending to dismiss each and every one.  I want to save you. I won't let you be alone. I need you. Those were the sorts of cool, manly words from That Person that she expected to be greeted with. But if that meant trying to convey false feelings, Subaru just couldn't do it. \"I considered saying cooler-sounding stuff about whisking you away from this loneliness, mind you... I didn't think any of them would work. I figured I'd better come right out and say...what I think of you and what I really wanted to tell you.\" Beatrice was speechless as Subaru poured out his genuine feelings. He figured it was pretty mean to put the ball entirely in Beatrice's court, though. \"Really, you don't need any of my strength. Not for saving you or anything else. You're strong, you're smart, you're cute... You should be able to do anything if you put your mind to it.\" *** \"But even though you're strong and smart and cute, you were scared of living alone. It must have been hard. It must have been lonely. No one can blame you for clinging to the idea of That Person.\" \"Th-that is not for you to... You rejected Betty's feelings... What do you know about it...?!\" Biting her lip, Beatrice glared at Subaru with an emotion that bordered on hatred. However, her trembling did not convey that at all. As the outpouring of fierce emotion threatened to dissipate immediately, Beatrice shook her head, desperately trying to stay firm and resolute. \"I know. I know how kind you are. I know if someone was tossing and turning from a nightmare, you'd hold their hand to put them at ease. If someone was being battered by some trouble they couldn't do anything about, you'd reach out and open the way for them. You feel sad for people who lose someone dear to them, even if you can't help but hate them.\" \"You speak as if you know so...\" \"I'm powerless. I can't save you. But I don't want you to be alone. If there's one thing a guy like me can do, it's to cling to you and beg.\" When Subaru offered his right hand, Beatrice's eyes shot open even wider. His hand was inflamed from burns and was a hideous sight. Even so, it was still in better shape than his left, which had sustained so much damage that the very sight of it was unbearable. He offered the one hand he had that could be cleaned up to pass as something suitable for taking a pretty girl's hand. \"Beatrice. Save me, please.\" *** \"I'll be too lonely to live without you. Save me.\" Really, just how pathetic and unsightly was this arm-twisting of his? He claimed he couldn't go on without her to force her hand. He didn't know what he could do for her, so he was telling her what she could do for him, pressuring her into using it as a reason to live. It was so very selfish, so completely illogical. It was all the coercion that Subaru Natsuki could muster. \"Not fair... This is...not fair.\" The shameless manipulation made Beatrice's lips tremble with intense, barely containable emotions from the bottom of her heart. \"How...how can you speak that way to Betty...now of all times? I mean, you're not even That Person... You rejected Betty...! And yet...!\" She couldn't speak properly. Her words strayed. She hesitated. Beatrice's heart panicked as she agonized over the choice. Beatrice clutched the book within her arms very, very tightly, never taking her eyes away from the hand offered to her. Tears spilled from the corners of her eyes. \"For four hundred years, I have always been alone...! I spent my time in loneliness, and even if I accept your hand here, you'll die right away anyway! The life span of a human being is a blink of an eye to one such as Betty... How?! How can I cling to such a thing now...?!\" \"I can't even begin to imagine the four centuries you spent. I'm not gonna pretend like I understand. Four hundred years? I haven't even lived a twentieth of that. I probably don't understand one thing about your fear of the time after I die.\" \"Then! Then...your words will change nothing...!\" \"But tomorrow, I'll be there to hold your hand.\" *** \"I'll be there tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and the day after that. Even if I can't promise to be around in four hundred years, I can still spend each and every day I have together with you. Even if we can't be together for eternity, I can treasure you tomorrow and right now.\" *** \"That's why, Beatrice pick me.\" Subaru had already made his choice. And he was indicating his choice to Beatrice. The rest was up to Beatrice to choose. Would it be the flames that brought the words of her mother, words she had faithfully upheld across four centuries, to an end? Or would she break her promise to her mother, abandon her hopes for That Person, and take Subaru Natsuki's hand? \"Y-you are not...That Person...\" \"Nope. Don't you dare confuse me with some other guy, okay? I'm me. Subaru Natsuki. This four-centuries-old unrequited love you've held for some bastard whose face you don't even know? Forget all that.\" *** \"Instead of being scared of good-byes that might come one day, come live with me for a guaranteed future. I'm weak, but even so, my dreams are really big... If you stick with me, a busybody like you will have your hands so full, you won't have any time to be bored or lonely.\" \"...Ugh, ngh...\" \"Pick me, Beatrice.\" He'd say the words as many times as it took to sink in. That's because he understood the wavering girl's feelings. The guilt that made the girl hesitate, her sense of shame toward casting promises aside he'd make it so she could pin those things on the selfish high-handedness of the human known as Subaru Natsuki.  So that this girl would never cry alone again. \"Even though you'll eventually leave me...\" \"Nothing lasts forever. The future you're afraid of will definitely come someday. You'll live forever, so we'll probably part ways at one point or another. But you and I haven't tasted nearly enough of life to give up on all the fun we'll have together and live in fear of being pulled apart.\" \"Even though you'll leave me behind...\" \"Let's be together. Let's live life together. Let's do this together. Let's build up so many memories that we can blow away all that fear, puff our chests out, then laugh and say, We sure had fun. We'll do so much that you can make up for the four lonely centuries you spent living here.\" \"Even...if we did all that! Someday, I'll be alone again!\" He saw himself reflected in the girl's trembling eyes. He looked shabby, unsightly, a far cry from the prince on a white horse she'd spent too many years waiting for. The only one who stood there was the same old Subaru Natsuki. \"To someone like you who'll live forever, maybe the time you'll spend with me will be one brief moment. If that's how it's gonna be, then I'll carve my moment right into your soul.\" *** \" And when all's said and done, even weighed up against all of eternity, I'll be so vivid that nothing will fade when it comes to Subaru Natsuki!\" There was a sound like glass cracking. The world known as the archive of forbidden books was breaking down. At some point, the rips in space around Subaru and Beatrice had become enveloped by flames. But in that moment, he no longer felt heat or fear. Inside Subaru, there was nothing except Beatrice. And that moment, there was nothing in Beatrice except Subaru. With trembling arms, Beatrice gripped the book that her mother had given her. Believing her four centuries of loneliness would be healed once she let it go, he reached out with his hand. And he shouted: \"Pick me! Beatrice!!\" \" Ah.\" \" You wanted someone to take you outside! Isn't that why you always sat in front of the door?!\" With a decisive sound, that world finally met its end. The girl's lonely cage, that solitary world known as the archive of forbidden books, was engulfed by flames and vanished. But just before that happened, there was a sound.  The sound of a single tome falling to the archive's floor. 10 Otto and Petra gazed wordlessly as Roswaal Manor burned to the ground. *** The three of them Otto, Petra, and Rem, who was being carried on Otto's back had safely used the mansion's escape route to slip past the demon beasts' perimeter. A barrier had been scrupulously set up around the cabin in the mountains behind Roswaal Manor, to which the escape route led. This made it impossible for not only the wild demon beasts in the region to approach them but even warded off"}, {"text": "the demon beasts participating in the attack. And it was not only Otto and company watching the mansion as it went up in flames. A crowd of the Earlham Village residents who had not headed toward the Sanctuary could be seen gathered around evacuated to the barrier beforehand by Subaru in a determined effort to keep them from being embroiled in the attack on the mansion. Considering the great horde of demon beasts, it was clear that his concern had not been excessive. It was not only Otto who keenly felt that way but the villagers as well. However, no one felt at liberty to raise joyous voices at having arrived there safe and sound. That moment, all any of them could do was gaze at the mansion with anxious hope, waiting for some visible change and believing Subaru and the others still struggling inside the mansion were safe. *** Otto, too, stared at the mansion, deciding to treat his burn wounds later. Petra was right beside him, latched on to Otto's arm with strength unimaginable for one so young. She was doubtlessly worried sick. Anyone could tell the young girl had a crush on Subaru from a single glance. Considering her melancholy, one couldn't help but pray he was safe. To try and put Petra at ease, he gently stroked Petra's brown hair. When Petra looked at him in momentary surprise, Otto smiled at her, turning his eyes toward the mansion once more it was then that he noticed. \"...That's...\" It was from the topmost floor of the main wing of the burning mansion. With incredible force, fire burst out of the office that Otto's group had used as an escape route. The windows cracked, and the outpouring flames engulfed the mansion's topmost floor. Roswaal Manor finally reached its limit, succumbed to the flames, and collapsed. \"Ah...\" The sight brought a tiny sound out of Petra's throat. Next to spread across her eyes would likely be despair. As an adult, Otto tried to wipe that sadness away. \"Mr. Otto! Look!\" \"Gah?!\" Otto had a meek look on his face when Petra slapped the side of it with her little palm. The blow caught Otto by surprise and brought stars to his eyes. But when he saw the delighted expression on Petra's face as she pointed at the mansion, he immediately understood, hastily shaking his shock away. Just like Petra, the people of Earlham Village were raising voices of delight. \"Ha...ha-ha...\"  From Roswaal Manor, aflame and collapsing, a single ray of white light stretched up toward the sky. The light, which was like a shooting star, changed its angle high in the sky, glimmering as it arced and flew far off to the east, as if to signal its destination. Otto knew what lay in that direction. When Petra said, \"There! Just now!\" with a happy look on her face, his expression had already relaxed. \"The rest is up to you all this has really worn me out.\" 11 Simultaneously, just as Otto let his shoulders fall with relief, Garfiel, half-naked and wearing nothing but a tattered cloth around his hips, looked up at the same light and clacked his fangs. \"Ha! Ya sure pulled it off, General! That's my general! Hoshin kept his promises even if it killed him!\" Garfiel, who had escaped the burning mansion and broken through the perimeter of demon beasts, laughed himself silly. He was covered in soot and burn wounds and injuries all over, but his face was full of smiles. \"Gah-ha-ha-ha-ha... Owww?!\" \"Do not get worked up while you're so badly hurt! They will scar!\" As Garfiel laughed, a fist grandly struck the back of his skull. When Garfiel clutched his head and looked back, Frederica stood there with anger on her face. \"A-aren't ya happy that the general and she are safe and sound?\" \"Of course I am... We were right to leave it to Master Subaru. If Lady Beatrice has been saved, then I can rest easier as well.\" Letting out a sigh of relief, Frederica gently patted her own chest. Seeing his elder sister's reaction made Garfiel crack a smile. \"Gotta say, though,\" he said as a preamble. \"Even if ya talk tough, it's hard to look tough when you're all embarrassed while wearin' a single sheet of cloth.\" \" ! It cannot be helped! There was no time to strip my clothes off before transforming!\" Red-faced, Frederica was indignant as she stood there naked save for the curtain wrapped around her. As he endured his sister's anger, Garfiel glanced at the girl sleeping under the shade of a nearby tree Meili and narrowed his eyes. At the height of that ferocious battle, Elsa had gone to save Meili when she was in danger of being crushed by falling debris, letting her favorable chance to win against Garfiel slip away. Had she not done so, the victor and the loser might have been reversed. In the end, Frederica had transformed and pulled Meili out of harm's way, and with all obstacles removed from the battlefield, Garfiel had settled things with Elsa and thus, he had supposedly won. And yet, the feeling that he hadn't really won refused to go away. Was it just that he was still immature? Or was it a lingering symptom of having killed for the first time, one that would not allow him the comfort of immersing himself in victory? Either way  \"The echoes of victory and the feel of killing I can leave that all for later. The rest is happenin' in a place where my hands can't reach no matter how hard I try... Countin' on ya to take care of it, General.\" Thrusting his fist forward, Garfiel glared, baring his fangs toward the trail of light heading toward the eastern sky. Gazing in the same direction, Frederica folded her hands against her chest as if making a prayer. \"'Cause once everything's said and done, there's still that bastard we both needa smack real good!\" 12  She'd been caught. She'd understood, yet she'd been ensnared all the same. She'd known from the start. If she took that hand, if she clung to its warmth, she would never be able to return to those lonely nights again. Even though she'd rebuked herself, saying living by relying on warmth that would someday vanish was foolishness, even madness... That voice had called her. Those eyes had gazed upon her. That hand needed her. She should have known. There was no way that she could reject them.  Subaru. \"Yeah, that's right.\"  Subaru. Subaru. \"That's right. That's my name.\"  Subaru, Subaru, Subaru.  Subaru!! \"You finally said my name, huh?\" 13 The snowfall had become a full-blown blizzard. The world was dotted with enough snow to blanket one's field of vision. It was a hell of extreme cold that could freeze one's breath the instant it touched the outside air. Though exposed to such ferocious elements, powerful will rested in the girl's violet eyes as her silver hair flapped in the wind. \"I absolutely, absolutely...won't lose, not to anyone or anything!\" With faint light entwined around both her hands, the silver-haired girl raised them to employ and release the vast amount of mana within her. The freezing magic, amplified amid that fiercely blowing snow, began to glow, and that pale radiance became countless swords of light that flew across the world, slicing apart each and every one of the white demon beasts atop the snowy plain.  There was a disturbing clacking of their short fangs biting against one another in unison. This was the most unsalvageable thing in the world, the most difficult to coexist with, the great calamity that overshadowed all others since times of yore. Before these beings, the embodiment of appetite, known as Gluttony incarnate, the girl stood, not backing away a single step. However, her breathing was ragged; she had lost control over a portion of her mana, which was so vast that she had yet to master it; and part of her body had begun to be covered in white crystals. At that rate, it would not be long before she was turned into a statue of ice by her very own magical energy.  Even so, she did not retreat. She could not. \"This is for Mother, for Geuse, and for everyone in the present... Besides, as long as I don't forget the words he wrote, I'll never give up.\" Therefore, even if her body was enveloped in ice, the one thing she absolutely would not do was regret. As the demon beasts tightened their encirclement, they gradually closed in on the girl and the people depending upon her. If push came to shove, she was ready to put her life on the line. She was ready. \" You don't need to overdo it, Emilia-tan. Everything's gonna be all right.\" There was a light sound. The girl realized someone had landed right next to her from somewhere far above. She looked beside her. The raging blizzard was in the way, so she couldn't make out their face. But she knew exactly who it was. His voice, his demeanor, and more than that there was no way he wouldn't come when she most wanted him at her side. \"You can stand back and leave the rest to me we've got beginner's luck on our side.\" \"I'm sorry. I don't really get what you're trying to say.\" She sensed he was making a wry smile as he stepped ahead. And tagging along was a second, smaller figure. And then she heard two voices. Voices that leaped, as if they had been waiting eagerly for this moment for a very, very long time  \"I do not have any idea if this will work.\" \"Yeah, we'll manage somehow you and me!!\"  So began the pair's first battle, one of the many, many times Beatrice the spirit and her contractor, Subaru Natsuki, would fight hand in hand. CHAPTER 8 *** 1 In the snow-marred Sanctuary, their fields of vision were filled by the great horde of demon beasts that were Gluttony incarnate. But his trust in the lovely girl at his back and the warmth he felt in his palm were definitely the real deal.  That was why Subaru Natsuki stood there without the slightest hesitation or doubt. \"You sure stomped the heck out of 'em, Emilia-tan...!\" Subaru's face was buffeted by the thunderous blizzard as he praised Emilia's valiant fighting. The falling snow had instantly turned the Sanctuary into the front line of the Great Rabbit's attack. But on previous attempts, by the time that situation arose, the destruction of the Sanctuary was halfway written in stone. This time, he'd averted failure because Emilia had fought valiantly against the demon beasts without retreating a single step. \" You evacuating everyone to the tomb means you cleared the Trials, right?\" Emilia was taking on the demon-beast horde while shielding Echidna's tomb at her back. At the tomb's entrance, he could see people from the Sanctuary and from Earlham Village watching the state of the battle hand in hand. Ryuzu, who was standing at the congregation's head, told him that this union between the two groups was the result of something that went beyond a simple weighing of pros and cons. And the one who'd worked hardest to bring that situation about wasn't Emilia or Ryuzu. \" Ram.\" There was no reply to his call. Her eyelids were closed, and her body was limp, bereft of strength. Ram had remained in the Sanctuary, vowing to fulfill her greatest wish. Now she was continuing to sleep in the arms of Roswaal, who was sitting on the steps of the tomb in a daze, his expression lost and empty. Just what had happened between Ram and Roswaal? At present, Subaru had no way of knowing. \"Subaru, for now, could you focus over here, I wonder?\" Subaru was sinking into thought when he felt a tug from the little hand connected to his own. Hearing that familiar voice address him in unfamiliar fashion, Subaru replied with a spontaneous"}, {"text": "\"uhyah!\" \"...Why are you giving such a bizarre reply?\" \"Er, having you call me by my first name is so fresh and vivid that I have to hold back my joy.\" \"Is that all...? Could you indulge in such deep sentiments later, I wonder? ...S-Subaru.\" \"Beako, you are so cute.\" When Subaru voiced his honest opinion, Beatrice went red-faced, shaking their joined hands around with considerable force. Smiling at her adorable reaction, Subaru gathered himself and let out a breath. \"So, Beatrice. The opponent's the Great Rabbit. You ready for this?\" \"This is the worst situation possible. We have only just formed our pact, the opponent is one of the three great demon beasts, and we are unprepared. My contractor is an amateur, and it has been four centuries since Betty has been in a real fight.\" \"And?\" \"One might call this an appropriate handicap.\" Beatrice smiled impetuously as the clacking fangs pressed upon them all at once. Stepping forward as if to greet them, Subaru gave a thumbs-up to Emilia as she stood behind them. \"Me and Beatrice'll send that horde packing. Emilia-tan, take down any that slip by us, 'kay?!\" \" Understood leave it to me! So the rest is up to you.\" \"Yep, we got this.\" The rule was to assign the right person to the right job. It also reminded him about the saying that the happiest wives were the ones whose husbands were well and often away from home. Emilia exhaled deeply behind him as mana surged all about, forming an icy, defensive line. Standing in front of the zone of freezing cold, Subaru stood face-to-face against the demon beasts filling his vision. In contrast to its adorable appearance, the Great Rabbit was ferocious, its very existence odious. Twice, he had lost his life to those fangs. His fear of slipping away as he was devoured was difficult to forget. But  \"Are you scared, I wonder?\"  as Subaru held his breath, Beatrice posed the question with a composed expression. Seeing her eyes and the profile of her face told him more than mere words they told Subaru exactly who was with him then and there. \"Nah. I'm not scared.\" \"Oh?\" \"I have Emilia behind me and you beside me gotta say, best feeling ever.\" \"As it should be.\" Beatrice smiled wryly. Meeting her adorable, smiling face, Subaru donned a wicked smile of his own. The Great Rabbit Horde raised a disturbing howl, leaping all at once toward the pair, who wore bold, fearless smiles. Faced with that attack no, that act of feeding Beatrice and Subaru raised their joined hands, her left, his right. \"First, how about a minor test, I wonder?  El Minya.\" The moment the chant was complete, a vortex formed in midair, summoning purple-colored crystals all around the pair. The gleaming crystals, which were shaped like icicles, resembled the purple arrows Beatrice had used on a previous go-around to skewer Elsa; it was a spell she'd called her specialty. Yet, the sheer number of arrows loading the sky was incomparable to what he had seen before. Targeting took but an instant. Locking on to the heads of every demon beast that made up the Great Rabbit Horde, the purple arrows shot forward at the same time. Each missile found a skull, slaying every one of the demon beasts. Their dead bodies turned into purple crystals, like the arrows that had felled them, then shattered, unable to withstand the raging snow. The world of white was filled with glimmering purple fragments. With a single blow at the outset of the battle, the Great Rabbit vanguard was nearly annihilated. Of course, it was difficult to call this a painful blow to a demon beast that could infinitely propagate, but the spectacular feat left Subaru amazed. \"Th-that's incredible !\" \"R-really? This is nothing at all. For Betty, this is but a piece of cake, I suppose.\" \"Oh, come on, be real...what's this magic that has so much power?! What element is that?!\" \"The Dark element, of course. Also, is this even a fraction of its full potential, I wonder?\" Seeing Subaru's animated reaction made Beatrice proudly puff out her chest. She took pride in the magic Mother had taught her, the magic she had worked so hard to master. \"I shall demonstrate the mastery of the Dark element and show you that the power of Dark magic is the greatest this world has to offer.\" \"What...should I do?\" \"Would you hold Betty's hand and not leave her alone, I wonder?\" Beatrice spoke such endearing words as she strengthened her grip on Subaru's hand. Squeezing her palm back, Subaru glared at the menace before them, as if to tell Beatrice it was time to let loose. Devouring the fragments of their comrades' corpses, the Great Rabbit host prepared to advance as a ravaging horde once more. But before they could start... \"Subaru, this is a good lesson for a spirit mage rather than use the spirit mage's own mana, as is typical, shall I use magic to directly manipulate the mana in the air, I wonder?\" \"I see in that case, even with my busted Gate... Okay, I'll leave Shamak to you!\" \"Do not expect anything as paltry as Subaru's useless Shamak! Can Subaru, who's equally useless and nothing more than dead weight, do anything for Betty save showering her with praise?\" Beatrice's imperious pop quiz left Subaru falling into thought a little. But as he pondered, the clacking of the Great Rabbit's fangs pressed near, and with nothing but his direct experiences with impending death coming to mind, Subaru shouted. \"I don't know the answer!\" \"Then I should teach you, I suppose. Focus on Betty's hand and imagine it. Imagine the weaving of mana, the power to shape it into the form of an arrow, the power to materialize and shatter our foe imagine a mighty attack.\" \"I imagined it!\" \"Then is there anything left but to chant, I wonder?!\" Beatrice's voice made Subaru snap open his closed eyes and thrust his left hand forward. Simultaneously, Beatrice moved her right hand forward, aiming it toward the Great Rabbit Horde power surged forth. \" El Minya!!\" The two chanted as one. Purple-streaked power manifested in the sky, pouring earthward upon the demon beasts. The explosive, destructive force made the stage known as the Sanctuary glimmer with purple fragments the ferocious battle had begun. 2 To Subaru, using magic had always been an act tantamount to whittling his own soul away. Just as Roswaal and Puck had guaranteed from the beginning, Subaru had no talent for magic. In the end, he'd abused Shamak, the one spell he'd learned, finally wrecking his own Gate, closing the path of the magician to him forever. Therefore, he'd never thought another opportunity to use magic would visit him ever again, but  \"Minya! Minya! This is tough to say, damn it! Minyaaa!\" Relying on the vast surge of mana, Subaru did the seemingly impossible, rapidly casting Great Magic again and again. The purple arrows thus spawned opened one hole in the demon-beast force after another, turning the ferocious Great Rabbit into purple fragments. Glancing at these, Beatrice tugged on Subaru's arm, and with a light step, they sailed into the air. Strangely, Subaru was not surprised by the feeling of weightlessness brought by ignoring gravity. Stepping upon the sky, Beatrice twirled and wove to evade the fangs in what truly looked like the dance of a fairy. \"We're crossing.\" \"Got it.\" An instant after she made her announcement, space distorted, and the pair vanished from the sky. It was a short-range warp that differed from Passage. The jump through space threw off the Great Rabbit; the horde did not notice when Subaru and Beatrice emerged behind it. \"Will you take care of the left, I wonder?\" \"Then I'll leave the right to you.\" Giving form to the magic in his mind, Subaru influenced the world through Beatrice. It felt like he was profiting with someone else's hard-earned money, robbing the moment of any enjoyment. Subaru followed the power of his imagination, loading the sky up with purple arrows large and small, using them as deadly weapons to bore holes into the demon beasts. In his mind, he was loading a gun. He felt like he was creating bullets of mana and then pulling the trigger. But his imagination had an undeniable effect in reality, shooting down the onrushing demon beasts like he was hunting ducks. The Great Rabbit Horde on the opposite side was being similarly attacked by the destruction wrought by Beatrice. Cracks came forth from thin air, and it was like hundreds of the creatures were being shut inside the surface of a painting. The picture fragmented, seemingly being broken apart, and the demon beasts inside were all returned to ash. All Subaru could do was twirl his tongue at the breadth of her magical skill. Unlike Subaru, an idiot who'd learned only one spell, Beatrice could employ multiple varieties in multiple fashions. It was as if she was going out of her way to make plain to Subaru all the cards she held in her hands. \"That said, blasting 'em without a plan won't solve anything. Beako, you have a plan, right?\" \"Of course I have a plan. Is the first stage of it not already complete, I wonder?\" The Great Rabbit increased its numbers every bit as much as they dwindled. As Subaru sensed this special nature put them at a stalemate, Beatrice made a reply that sounded quite dependable indeed. He gave her a look that demanded an explanation, and in response, Beatrice sniffed proudly. \"All that is necessary is to assemble the demon beasts in one place. Have we truly gathered the entire horde in this forest...in this Sanctuary here in front of the tomb, I wonder?\" \"Well, I suppose we have. But they infinitely reproduce. It's not like we've taken a roll call.\" \" Infinite, you say, but that does not mean there is no limit.\" The sentence made Subaru narrow his brows; then comprehension struck him like a bolt of lightning. He looked at the horde of demon beasts. As usual, the white fur balls were visible for as far as the eye could see yet, if they really were reproducing infinitely... \"It doesn't add up... If they could really do that, they'd cover the whole planet and even space...!\" \"Most likely, even if they can propagate endlessly, there should be an upper limit. Therefore, they will not increase beyond that fixed number. In that case...\" \"Get them to that upper limit and wipe them all out in one go!\" Subaru's eyes glimmered as he saw the strategy laid out before him. \"But the problem is in the second stage how should we go about eliminating them, I wonder?\" Beatrice's concern was just how to simultaneously strike down the Great Rabbit, which numbered in the tens of thousands. If you had force on par with some kind of missile, you could just burn them away along with the Sanctuary itself, but if even one of them survived, they would recover in full. The risk was incalculable. It was difficult to wipe them off the map with simple brute force. The other way would be to  \"Your face says you have thought of something.\" \"Like usual, I settled on a plan that depends on you. Sounds good?\" Beatrice used magic even in the midst of their conversation to attract the demon beasts' attention toward the pair. Subaru drew his lips close to her refined ear and whispered his idea into it. Beatrice nodded after a few moments of thought. \"Betty did think of something rather similar, I suppose. But even with Betty and Subaru, these numbers are...\" \"Hey, hey, you've got something wrong here, Beako. You don't get it at all.\" *** \"In a situation like this, it's not like we have to settle everything with you alone or just the two of us, you know?\" Listening to Subaru's reply, Beatrice let an \"ah\" slip out as her eyes shot open."}, {"text": "Then the girl heaved a cloudy sigh as she turned toward Subaru with the faintest of pouts. \"Truly, Subaru...no one in the world is better at relying upon others than you.\" \"I promise in the future I'll become a vibrant, high-end contractor so you'll never get frustrated again.\" \"Did you really think that would sound even slightly convincing when it comes from the mouth of a serial promise-breaker, I wonder?\" She said that with a smile, and Subaru couldn't deny any of it. Seeing his reaction, Beatrice pressed her palm against his chest, nodding deeply with a gaze filled with trust. \"Even Betty requires time to prepare for this. Would you serve as a decoy during that time, I wonder?\" \"Relax. There ain't a single person in Lugunica who can beat me when it comes to distracting powerful enemies.\" Beatrice closed her eyes and sank into contemplation. This was the first step toward putting Subaru's operation into motion. Picking up her tiny body, Subaru powerfully kicked off from the snow. Homing in on Subaru and Beatrice as they raced across the snowy plain, the approaching demon beasts clacked their fangs and moved in for the kill. Too slow. Considering the sticky situations he'd found himself in over the last couple of days, the Great Rabbit swarm he faced now just seemed tame in comparison. \"Outta my way, you little gnats! I don't have time to deal with you right now!\" Evading their fangs, leaping over their heads, Subaru trod upon purple fragments as he raced through their pack. Chanting and loosing purple missiles to force open a path, Subaru continued carrying Beatrice as he rushed right through the battle-worn clearing toward Emilia, who stood in front of the tomb. \"Eh, Subaru?!\" Subaru's sprint made Emilia's eyes bulge wide. Sliding to a stop right beside her, Subaru put Beatrice, still deep in contemplation, down on top of the snow, patting her head as he spoke. \"Sorry, Emilia-tan! It's too tough for Beako and me to handle this on our own!\" \"Th-that's fine. But what should we do? Maybe I can...\" \"Nah, I've thought up a way to beat them, so there's no need for you to wear yourself out trying to land a knockout blow! Actually, please don't even try. It'd make coming this far meaningless.\" It surprised Emilia that he had seen right through her and gleaned she was considering self-destructive techniques to win the day. He wasn't going to let her do it. He absolutely wouldn't let her, now or later. He fully intended to make sure she would never have to do it ever again. He didn't want any part of her thinking it didn't matter how badly she was hurt as long as she could save everyone else. \"Everyone safe, everyone saved. That's obviously the best outcome.\" \"Subaru...\" \"Emilia-tan, I want you to be just a little more selfish from here on. If you can't, I'll think a little harder, but if you can, I just want you to do your best. Let's win this for everyone's sake.\" *** Emilia put a hand to her chest and blinked as if she sensed something in Subaru's words. Subaru tried to hold the demon-beast horde in check with more purple arrows to buy time until she made up her mind. But when he turned forward, it was not purple missiles that smashed into the Great Rabbit Horde but icicles. Emilia had a renewed determination in her eyes as she clenched her right fist and laid into the demon beasts with her magic. \"Got it. Let's do it, Subaru. Tell me what you need. Anything!\" Emilia's reply, containing determination and resolve, made Subaru clench his own fist. \"That's my Emilia-tan let's do this thing!\" 3 The upsurge in magical energy was so incredibly powerful that even Subaru could feel it. Emilia was standing in front of the tomb. Subaru was holding Beatrice within his arms. Believing in Subaru's plan, both of them were fully devoted to controlling their respective mana to bring it to fruition. And it fell to Subaru to buy the time they both needed until they were prepared. \"C'mon, c'mon! I'm your opponent, same as usual! Follow meee!\" Smiling and waving, Subaru mercilessly pounded the horde with a vicious blow. The explosive bombardment created a wild dance of purple light, which sent the demon beasts flying and made them wriggle as one. The horde moved like one gigantic body and began chasing Subaru in a mad dash around the Sanctuary. This was the beginning of the operation. At the very least, his worry that they might hit the tomb first was gone. \"It's not as if you can ignore the smell of mana and my stench, either!\" It was the Great Rabbit's nature to be attracted by mana. It was Subaru's nature to have demon beasts want to devour him. With Beatrice, her eyes still closed, resting in his arms, Subaru Natsuki was a veritable, mouthwatering feast on the hoof as far as the Great Rabbit was concerned. He heard the clacking of fangs. Subaru heard the deadly footsteps chasing them from behind. \" ! For one of the three great demon beasts, you're so slow! You half-wits, do you actually want me to make you extinct like ol' Whaley?\" Biting fear back with his molars, Subaru hurled the unnecessary insults he kept in the far corners of his mind. If he didn't flap his gums to maintain his calm, he'd never be able to conceal that he was trembling to the core. He couldn't look that pathetic to the girl behind him, nor to the girl in his arms. \"Subaru !\" As Subaru put on his own performance, a voice like a silver bell reached his ears through the gale-like snow. When he looked in the snow-filled reaches of his vision, Emilia was thrusting a fist toward the heavens it was the signal that her preparations were complete. Receiving this, Subaru put more strength into his legs, with which he kicked at the snow Emilia was ready, but until Subaru's end was ready a little more, just a little farther, just a pinch, go, go, go! Without even time to let out his breath, Subaru laid a marker on the snowy plain at his own feet. With this, his do-or-die escape from the Great Rabbit, which was hot on his tail, had finally neared its end. With that purple-arrow marker thrust into the snowy plain, everything had come together so he shouted: \"Now, Emilia! Trace the lines !!\" Plowing through the snow as he came to a halt, Subaru relied on magic for his last stand, commanding the purple arrow, \"Let there be light!\" The very next instant, countless purple arrows that had been shot into the clearing began to glow, forming a glittering cage. A horde of tens of thousands of wriggling white demon beasts had been penned up inside that square cage  \"That's Subaru for you! Really good job!\" Praising the splendid outcome, Emilia let up a voice of joy that she'd normally never ever make. Then as her eyes glimmered with equally rare aggression, she trained a graceful finger toward the demon beasts within the cage.  And then she unleashed all the mana she had been forming while Subaru had bought her time. \"Cocytus!\" Applying that incantation, unfamiliar to his tongue, Subaru activated the vast amount of surging mana, transmitting power to the purple crystals, which were arrayed in a square around the clearing, one after another. The lines connected. With a roar, the ground, the snowy plain itself, floated skyward. \"Amazing...\" Seeing this unfold left Subaru dumbstruck. The spectacle was so overwhelming, it left him speechless. Emilia carefully supplied magic energy all along the sides of the cage of purple arrows in the clearing, shutting the Great Rabbit inside a snowy cage and lifting them into the sky. Of course, had they been normal demon beasts, they would surely have noticed the abnormality and escaped from the cage but the Great Rabbit possessed no such decision-making capacity. They were incarnations of hunger, felt inexhaustible urges of Gluttony, and were children gifted with Daphne the Witch's empty stomach  \"That's why now you're all one step from a Giltirau and stuff!\" \" With this, there's nowhere left for you to run!\" As Subaru raised a middle finger and levied his insult, Emilia put on the finishing touches. Emilia used magic energy to weave together an icy lid she simultaneously slammed down onto the patch of snowy ground that had floated into the sky, completing the cage and trapping the massive number of demon beasts. Even if the Great Rabbit had a will of its own, there was no escape now that the icy prison was fully formed. From the snow-stripped clearing beneath the prison, he looked around. Stragglers, zero. Wriggling figures, zero. The whole Great Rabbit Horde had been in one place, enclosed within a square perimeter about twenty yards per side. With this, the conditions had been met. \"Now, the final blow if you please, Great Spirit Beatrice \" Rocking the girl within his arms, Subaru announced it was time to follow the appetizer with the main course. Answering his call, the girl gently opened her eyes that had remained quietly closed up to this point. Then, when she set her gaze upon the spectacle before them, she cracked a smile. She was not surprised whatsoever. She was merely following up on the result she was sure he would deliver  \" Al Shamak.\" A moment after the incantation, the ultimate manifestation of the Dark element dyed the world black. 4  For an instant, the Great Rabbit was whipped around by a feeling of weightlessness before all its weight was slammed against the ground. That impact freed it from the sense of tightness pressing against the entirety of its form. First, it shook its body, ridding itself of the snow that caked its fur. It made a sound through its nose as it swiveled its head around. With its eyes, nose, ears, and whiskers, it searched for prey and consumed it. This was its only desire. It surveyed the area with its red eyes, craving the luxuriant aroma of the mana of its prey that made its whiskers tremble. It felt nothing. Until just a moment before, it should have been surrounded by a feast. The prey was tantalizing, offering soft flesh and sweet blood that might grant it a sense of fulfillment, a momentary respite from its eternal sense of hunger. Its eyes saw nothing. Its nose smelled nothing. Its ears heard nothing. Its whiskers did not tremble. Disappointment. Despair. Foul feelings resembling such things instantly overrode its sense of hunger. To keep the loneliness of its mouth and the emptiness of its stomach at bay, it bit into the clump of white closest to it for the moment. It tore with its mouth, rending the flesh, sipping the blood, and savoring its innards. It violated the clump of meat to its heart's desire, eating it clean, when it realized similar meals were occurring all about. Its prey had vanished. Following its instinct for survival, it was in a daze as it chewed on the white clump that had become its meal, swallowing it whole. This happened over and over again, driven by insatiable hunger, feeding on the next prey, the prey next after that, the prey next after that after that, next after that after that after  Finally, having at some point devoured everything in the surrounding area, it found itself alone. Sipping on clumps of blood, licking up fragments of scattered flesh, it left behind neither dirt nor grass as it savored the fresh blood. If in so doing it had run out of things to eat, it was well and truly alone. On the inside, it continued to be assaulted by a sense of insatiable hunger beyond its capacity for flesh. It raised a cry. It clacked its fangs. The maddening hunger was torture No, it was already mad. For all eternity, it"}, {"text": "was forbidden from sating its inexhaustible hunger and satisfying its limitless cravings; this was the madness of Gluttony.  Did Mother also harbor such feelings? For a single instant, reason bloomed in the back of its mind, which was ruled by hunger. However, it was immediately blotted out. Its body trembled. As a consequence of its madness, it had subconsciously reproduced, creating a being separate from itself. It ate this spawn without the slightest hesitation. There was not even an anguished cry as it stuffed itself with the flesh. Afterward, it suffered again from renewed hunger. Then, as a consequence of its hunger, it birthed another one of itself into the world. It ate. It raged. It birthed. It ate. Over and over. It continued these things over and over. It was alone. It was in a world without any others. There was forest. There was soil. There was air. All that was missing was prey. It was alone. It continued eating. It was alone. Finally, it ate the it that was different from itself, causing it to vanish. It was alone. It was truly alone, yet it ceased to be lonely as its gluttony continued over and over again.  Its insatiable hunger would never be sated. 5 The living darkness swallowed up the cage of ice and snow, compressing it along with the Great Rabbit Horde within. Finally, they vanished without a sound. This, the creation of an isolated space, was the effect of Al Shamak the greatest of the Shamak line of spells. Enveloped by the magic, the Great Rabbit Horde had been blasted into what was essentially another dimension. Regeneration and propagation had lost all meaning, for both were literally sequestered in another world. \"I know the plan was to send them into an isolated space like the archive of forbidden books, but...\" \"Are you dissatisfied, I wonder?\" As Subaru's voice trembled in the face of the overwhelming feat, Beatrice tapered her lips by his side. Putting her hands on her hips with an arrogant posture, she seemed most displeased with Subaru's attitude. \"It really is incredible...\" In Subaru's stead, it was Emilia who voiced words of honest praise. Being far more versed in magic than he, Emilia was doubtless more surprised than Subaru. Now that she had released her combat posture, the freezing across half her body had gradually relented. The worst-case scenario had been avoided. Swiveling his head about, Subaru made sure the Great Rabbit, which once blanketed the clearing, was nowhere to be found. Turning around, he also confirmed the tomb was safe. When he saw the various residents of the Sanctuary and Earlham Village were giving him a thumbs-up, he lifted a hand toward them in return. When he looked closer, he noticed Ryuzu replicas were mixed in among them. Sharing information about what happened in the Sanctuary is gonna be a pain, huh? Subaru mused with a wry smile. And sitting on the steps on the tomb was Roswaal, holding Ram in his arms Ram's hand was touching Roswaal's cheek. His clownish expression contorted, and even from a distance, Subaru could see the tracks of tears. *** The scene swiftly gave Subaru the feeling that a great burden had been lifted from his chest. It wasn't that everything had been resolved. But it was just as he'd said to Beatrice. Subaru didn't need to personally resolve every single thing. The Great Rabbit had been defeated through Subaru's, Beatrice's, and Emilia's valiant efforts, just like how incredible deeds had been accomplished in the Sanctuary and at the mansion both. More than anything, it was the sight of Ram smiling and Roswaal crying that told Subaru as much. \"Hey, Subaru.\" As Subaru exhaled at length, Emilia abruptly poked his cheek with her finger. Emilia tossed him a pleasant smile as she used a hand to indicate behind him. Beatrice was still right there waiting for him, arms folded with a sour look on her face. \"I think you should say something to the one who worked the hardest.\" Subaru couldn't help but give a short sigh when he saw her childish, cheek-puffing gesture. Then  \"Waaah!\"  sweeping an arm under her, he hoisted up her light body. Ignoring her cutesy, plaintive cry, Subaru continued to embrace the girl as he twirled around on the spot. \"You did awesome! That's my Beako! I love you!\" \"W-wait a ! That's not... W-would you let go, I wonder?! Betty is not...!\" \"Good girl, good girl! You're so, so cute! You're wonderful, Beako! You're the best, Beako! Beako forever!\" Grandly singing her praises, Subaru lifted Beatrice way up as he spun all around. Beatrice's face was beet red as she dangled from his arms. Emilia watched the worked-up pair with gentle eyes. Behind her, she heard the various villagers clapping their hands together and raising cheers. And as the contractor continued spinning around with his spirit, expressing joy with the entirety of his body... \"Ah !\" ...his foot slipped, sending the pair tumbling headlong into the snow. *** 1 \" Okay, it's finished!\" Picking up a pair of twigs, Subaru thrust them into the mass of snow before his eyes and wiped off the sweat on his brow. It was constructed in a short time with amateur workmanship, but he was quite proud that it had come out fairly well. Even the onlookers admired his handiwork and went \"ooh\" in praise. \"This really does make me feel like I'm a genius at this stuff. If we're ever short on food money, I can have Emilia-tan make the snow fall, and I'll be a living national treasure as a snow artist.\" \"Goodness, don't say such ridiculous things... But you really did a good job, huh? Sitting on the stone steps, Emilia let out a white breath as she watched Subaru's handiwork. Displayed in her violet eyes were Subaru and the horde of snowmen no, snow-Pucks he had finished. He'd gathered up the snow left in the clearing and had made a dozen snow sculptures. Even to Subaru himself, it was a mystery where he'd mustered the passion to craft Pucks of every emotion and for every occasion. It was probably something like thanks, given how Subaru had heard of Puck's bravery in his absence. \"I am sure this was not his aim, but I think Barusu is indeed an idiot.\" In contrast, Ram, her head propped up on Emilia's lap, gave Subaru's actions a quite harsh assessment. With her burned maid outfit stripped away, Ram's white garment gave her a very different impression. That was probably because it somehow felt like she had finally left behind something that had been haunting her. Of course, her poison tongue cut as sharply as ever. \"Hey, I'm the guy who worked hardest during this whole mess. Aren't you praising me too little?\" \"Mm, I guess that's true. I'm really grateful toward Subaru. But while you were gone, I was the one working hard, so I think it's only natural I would want some praise for it.\" \"Emilia-tan's suddenly gotten a lot more direct, huh...?\" Perhaps this was the influence of her having overcome the Trials. There was a type of confidence blooming from Emilia's demeanor and expression. It was a good trend for Emilia, long prone to putting herself down and understating her own worth. Subaru had been unable to deal with all the problems of the Sanctuary with his own power no matter what he tried. Now that he had others to help cover his weaknesses and deficiencies, enabling this miracle that allowed them all to be together, he wanted to thank her. \"If nothing else, though, I meant to take on the toughest job and stuff...\" \"I won't allow something so thoughtless. If Subaru runs around and does everything, we won't even have a reason to be here. If anything, Subaru has been running around a little too much.\" \"Er, but I'm way short on firepower, so running around is about the only tactic I have.\" \"But that will not be the case going forward, will it?\" Emilia was stroking Ram's head atop her lap as she spoke, smiling at how they were both understating the other's worth. Deducing exactly what her words were getting at, Subaru rubbed under his nose with a finger as he replied, \"Ahhh.\" He'd overlooked a lot of things and had ended up being saved by many people around him, but he'd also gained pretty much everything he needed. He probably would never be worrying about things alone ever again. *** Lifting his face, Subaru turned his gaze from the snow sculptures in the clearing in front of the tomb. Now that the Trial system had vanished, a pair of individuals had stepped inside. He had some idea of what they might be talking about. \"Well, even I can read the mood enough not to intrude on that.\" They'd had untold opportunities to speak to each other, yet they'd never taken advantage of them. All the words left unspoken must have piled high enough to become a mountain. 2  The Witch sleeping in the transparent coffin was just as beautiful as the day she'd died. \"Mother...\" In the small room in the deepest part of the tomb in which the coffin was placed, the remains of Echidna the Witch rested in silence. In front of those remains, Beatrice was stricken with such worry that her feet felt like they couldn't stay grounded. She felt neither the sense of elation from during the battle nor the sense of loss and liberation from losing the archive of forbidden books she felt guilt. The Witch had long, beautiful white hair and a comely face that spoke of intellect and tolerance. Though the instances were rare, her memories of the Witch regarding her with soft smiles came rushing back. There and then, the memories of how her mother looked, which she had been on the verge of forgetting after four centuries, were fresh once more, digging their way into Beatrice's chest. \"Has Betty managed to uphold her promise to Mother, I wonder? ...I am sorry.\" Stroking the edge of the cracked coffin with her finger, Beatrice began their first meeting in four centuries with an apology. Beatrice had lost both the intellect of the Witch and the book of knowledge given to her upon their parting. She had deigned to come crawling back, her promise unfulfilled. \"Betty never met That Person...and the book has been burned away. Are the words I am sorry enough to make up for it, I wonder?\" Beatrice judged herself to be a poor daughter. She was a foolish girl who'd been unable to fulfill Mother's last request with four centuries on hand to do it. She could not help but regret that from the bottom of her heart as she reunited with her mother, who by rights she should have been unable to even face. \"...For all that, you have quite a relieved look upon your face, do you noooot?\" The man on the other side of the coffin Roswaal easily guessed how Beatrice truly felt. As always, the man was disgustingly good at pointing things out. However, Beatrice could not help but put her discordant feelings aside. It was hardly unrelated to the man having taken off his makeup and exposing his bare face. \"You look most relieved of all, Roswaal. It is not like you to stand before Betty without your makeup on... Truly, is it like you at all, I wonder?\" Roswaal said nothing in response to Beatrice's words. All he did was make a lonely smile. That was even more unusual. Lowering her eyes at his reaction, Betty continued: \"Besides, you must have your own things to say to Mother. To you... To your family, meeting Mother again was your long-cherished desire, I suppose.\" More than anyone else, Beatrice witnessed the changes four centuries had wrought upon the House of Roswaal founded by the first Roswaal who apprenticed under Echidna. In the battle against Hector the Devil, Roswaal had lost all his"}, {"text": "capacity to use magic rather than his life. After Echidna's passing, he had entered the archive of forbidden books and immersed himself in search of something, and then he died, entrusting his dream to the next generation. For each and every generation since, the head of the household inherited the name of Roswaal. The genius of the first Roswaal was rediscovered time and time again, and the House of Mathers grew. Roswaal L. Mathers was the living compilation of all that had come before him. Beatrice was actually quite bewildered that his talent surpassed even that of the first Roswaal, who Echidna herself had considered remarkable. The likes of him had never been seen in the past; none other could claim to be the world's mightiest magic user. \"Yet, even with all that talent, you could not escape from the curse that binds the Mathers family. You are ghosts, dreaming of reuniting with my dear, departed mother... I sympathize with you, if only slightly.\" Beatrice was speaking of Roswaal's way of life, able only to obey the destiny laid out generation after generation. His family greatly resembled her, continually bound by a single pact made four centuries prior. Ironically, the moments she had spent with the first Roswaal before the day of that pact four hundred years before remained fresh in her mind. \" May I ask you one thing?\" It was as Beatrice reminisced that Roswaal raised but a single finger and posed that question. The low, earnest tone of his voice made her lift her face. Beatrice tacitly consented with her silence. \"I must wonder, did Young Subaru become That Person for you?\" The question made Beatrice's breath catch for a moment. This was not surprise No, there was surprise. It was just that she felt no impact from Roswaal's words. She was surprised by her own heart, which didn't ache as expected at the words That Person. \"...Why do you laugh?\" \"Ahhh, sorry about that, I suppose. I am not particularly laughing at you. Perhaps I simply find myself amusing at the moment. I truly am such a fool.\" How easy had it been for her to forget the proposition that had bound her heart so much the instant after she had let go of it? It probably was not so. It was not that she had forgotten. She had said good-bye to That Person forevermore. \"That man... Subaru is not suited whatsoever to be Betty's That Person.\" \"Whatsoever, you say... That is a rather harsh assessment.\" \"Is that really true, I wonder? Betty is strict. Is that why every opportunity in four hundred years came to nothing, I wonder? ...Betty's selfishness is why the idea of That Person controlled her fate for so long.\" Beatrice now understood just a little of the feelings of the people who had tried to bring her out of the archive of forbidden books. By no means had all of them stretched hands toward Beatrice out of nothing but their own selfish ambitions. Among them were those who Beatrice had continually driven away with her own thoughts and words. \"Then how was someone like you able to come out? How did Subaru become That Person?\" \"Did I not say it already, I wonder? Subaru is not suited to be That Person whatsoever. But that is fine. Betty has chosen Subaru. Not That Person but Subaru, I suppose.\" Beatrice's reply caused Roswaal's breath to catch as he opened his eyes wide. Perhaps it was an answer difficult for an adherent of Echidna's like Roswaal to accept. Beatrice, standing in the same position just a short time prior, painfully understood just how he felt. It was because she understood that she thought it necessary to elaborate. \"When I wanted Subaru to become That Person, he laughed it off. He prattled on with something like, I can make you happier than some guy whose face you don't even know, I suppose.\" \"That is...a most arrogant answer.\" \"But I do not mind him being pushy.\" Compared with an array of polite words spoken to Beatrice to tell her what to do or a speech on how she should put Echidna's intellect to use, he was akin to an unadorned blade. \"But is that really fine with you? No matter how you might struggle, you will never be Subaru's first. One can tell just by watching how he lives... I know this to be true.\" \"Roswaal, are you misunderstanding something, I wonder?\" \"Misunderstanding?\" \"Betty did not leave the archive of forbidden books because Subaru made her his number one. Did Betty not leave the archive because she wants to make Subaru her number one, I wonder?\"  Pick me. He had said that to her. I'll be too lonely to live without you. Those had been his words. She thought them very convenient words. Yet, they had resonated within Beatrice, shaking her heart. And the instant she took his hand and left the archive of forbidden books, she knew a feeling of liberation that brought tears to her eyes. She was well aware that she was defying both Mother and Roswaal, committing a terrible betrayal against them. But her heart was already set. Her hand had already joined with his. *** Roswaal fell silent as Beatrice awaited his words. Even if he was to accuse her of betrayal, she could do nothing save gently accept them. Such was the resolve within  \" No matter how much time passes, you never change, Beatrice. You are the same as you were then.\" *** His words had an odd ring to them that made Beatrice faintly knit her brows. What he said made Beatrice suspicious, but the tone of his voice even more so. It felt so very gentle, soft, and nostalgic. \"Truly, you and I have not had nearly enough conversations. It has been so ever since we were at Teacher's side.\" \"Teacher...?\" When she heard Roswaal's gentle word, a term that should never have been heard from his lips, a shudder ran through her. Simultaneously, a possibility arose in the back of Beatrice's mind from the very depths of the time she had experienced. It couldn't be. Yet, if it was so  \" Roswaal, is that you?\" \"I have always been Roswaal?\" \"No...! That is not what I... You you surely know what I meant!\" \"I jest. It is precisely so, Beatrice. It is I the very same Roswaal.\" The instant he changed how he referred to himself, Beatrice saw two Roswaals overlap. A tall, handsome man with long indigo hair overlapped with a young man who possessed the same characteristic features. This was the young man who had once doted on Echidna, who had asked the Witch to mentor him, and who Beatrice had lived alongside. \"It couldn't be... Are you using soul transcription, the theory of immortality that Mother pursued? But that failed.\" \"The soul will not graft to an empty vessel. That issue was a temporary impasse...one that I overcame by force. If the issue is compatibility between vessel and soul, this can be eliminated through greater proximity of the two.\" Beatrice could not conceal her utter shock when she grasped the meaning of those words. When Echidna's research into immortality failed and led instead to Ryuzu Meyer becoming the core of the Sanctuary, the Witch attempted to make efficient use of the replication technique created as a by-product, yet in terms of her lust for knowledge, she had erred. In the end, unable to graft the soul of another to an empty vessel, the research was considered a failure but Roswaal had succeeded where she had not. The first Roswaal had transferred himself to the bodies of the Mathers children in an unbroken line, reaching all the way to the present generation. \"Are you going to denounce me as inhuman, Beatrice?\" Such was the question Roswaal posed to Beatrice. Unlike back then, Roswaal's left and right eye colors differed; only half of the blue from his original form remained. Beatrice felt like that tentative blue eye was waiting for her to unleash blame upon him. Did Roswaal wish to be punished again? Just like how she had confessed her sin of breaking her pact with Echidna to her mother's remains?  Did he want to be condemned for his own foolish actions? Condemned by Beatrice, the one who best understood her mother, the woman who was the object of his tenacious, unrequited love that had caused nothing but trouble to others across four hundred long years. \"Roswaal. Would you squat down over here for a moment, I wonder?\" \" Here?\" When Beatrice pointed to the flooring to the side of the coffin, Roswaal closed one eye. When that blue eye saw Beatrice nod, Roswaal seemed dubious as he knelt there on one knee. Gazing upon this, Beatrice removed her right shoe, firmly gripping it with her right hand. \"Clench your teeth.\" \"Clench my... Guh?!\" She slammed the shoe in her hand into the side of his face, currently at just the right height. She made a very pleasant sound as Roswaal's head reeled, eyes wide open. Glancing at him, Beatrice put the shoe in her hand back on her foot once more. The refreshed look on Beatrice's face brought Roswaal, now with a red and taut cheek, back to his senses. \"W-was that something like your very own mark of disdain just now?\" \"Not really. Do I even know why you want me to be angry at what you have done, I wonder? ...Your actions are unworthy of praise. But is there anyone who has the right to blame you save the children whose bodies you have made your own, I wonder? Ugh, is all that Betty thinks of the matter.\" \"Ugh, is it...? Then what was that blow just now for?\" It seems a poor reason to strike me, Roswaal seemed to be trying to say. Beatrice stuck her tongue out at him. Certainly, Beatrice took no issue with the soul transcription. But  \"Is it not obvious this is payback for the archive of forbidden books burning down, I wonder?!\" \" About the mansio \" \"Betty is very generous and therefore will leave it at that... If Subaru forgives you, then perhaps I can, too, I suppose.\" Interrupting Roswaal, Beatrice let the words pour from her lips, preventing further discussion of the matter. The demonstration of her intent made Roswaal fall silent. Enumerating Roswaal's schemes would require far more than the fingers on both hands. If he counted every single one of them, Beatrice would probably be unable to forgive him anymore hence, she would not let him speak them. Besides, if Beatrice's eyes did not deceive her, Roswaal had lost his book of knowledge. *** The mystical tome that was the basis of all his schemes was in his grasp no more. Just like hers had been to Beatrice, Roswaal's mystical tome had been the embodiment of his hopes. He had clung to it, relied on it, yet after walking across four centuries, nothing had changed. At the end of their journey, Beatrice and Roswaal found themselves reunited back at the Sanctuary. Therefore, Beatrice had only one thing to say to him. \"Roswaal.\" \"...What is it?\" \"Welcome home.\" That brief phrase made Roswaal's breath catch. To Beatrice and Roswaal, to Echidna, to Ryuzu, this place represented the old days  That was why Beatrice's words faintly made Roswaal's lips tremble. \"Yes, I suppose I am. I'm back, Beatrice welcome home.\" 3 \"They're not coming out, huh? I'm sure they had a load of things to talk about, but isn't this excessive?\" Growing impatient due to the lack of any new developments after returning from making his thirtieth snow-Puck in the clearing, Subaru turned toward the tomb. It had been just short of an hour since the pair had entered, yet they still had not emerged. \"I understand you're worried, Subaru, but I think you're the one being a little excessive.\" Subaru appeared unable to calm down as Emilia stood beside him, stroking a snow-Puck with what seemed"}, {"text": "like exasperation. Incidentally, Ram, who'd been borrowing Emilia's lap and making Subaru envious for quite some time, seemed largely recovered by that point as she gently sat upon the steps, looking like she was also waiting for the pair to return from the tomb. With Beatrice now enlightened, the possibility that Roswaal would slip into despair didn't even register as a concern to Subaru. \"Maybe I'm just deluding myself that it's all going to just work itself out...\" \"Hee-hee, you've become quite a believer in Beatrice...but you two have always gotten along so well, haven't you? I can really understand how you two formed a pact.\" \"Now and again, I wished she'd talk like we get along a little more... Also, is that Puck?\" Scratching his cheek after hearing Emilia's honest opinion, Subaru then gestured toward the blue crystal on her neck. This had been his trump card in the battle against Garfiel, the same thing that had bolstered Ram's resolve in the Sanctuary, and now served as the icon of the Great Spirit who slumbered in tranquility at Emilia's side. Having broken his pact and pushed himself several times over, this was the sealed bed in which Puck had fallen into a deep sleep. \"I wanted to tell him, Thanks for the assist, but that's not happening in his state, is it?\" \"Mm, no, it's not. Seems he pushed himself a little too hard; there's no way... Even this stone isn't strong enough to wake Puck up. Doesn't look like I'll be able to talk and joke around with him just yet.\" \"But he'll definitely be back someday, right?\" Closing one eye, Subaru confirmed something that didn't even need to be said aloud. For one moment alone, Emilia closed her eyes and said, \"Yes,\" nodding back. The conviction of her expression was exceedingly dignified and beautiful. \"...You've sure changed, Emilia-tan. It's like you're still every bit as cute, but you're stronger now.\" \"If that's so, it's thanks to you and everyone else, Subaru. I've always been on the receiving end before. I need to hurry up and give back to everyone in all kinds of ways.\" \"When it comes to just taking, I feel like I've done a lot of that, too...\" Subaru and Emilia both keenly felt their own powerlessness. That did not mean they would be licking each other's wounds, for they also took pride in having become more dependable. \"Incidentally, Subaru... Um...\" Subaru was immersed in deep sentiments when Emilia abruptly tossed her voice his way. That voice made him go \"ahhh\" and come back to his senses, but Subaru's eyes bulged as he turned toward Emilia. \"E-Emilia-tan?! Your face is super red all of a sudden are you all right?!\" \"I-I'm all right. Completely fine. More importantly, there is something we need to discuss.\" \"R-right. I guess, um, please go right ahead...\" When for some reason Emilia broke into formal language, Subaru stumbled into a formal reply of his own. Emilia, red to the tips of her ears, made no comment about his response, staring straight at Subaru before continuing. \"Um... Subaru, you said you...l-love me, yes?\" \"Er, ah, yes. I did say that. I love you. I super love you.\" \" ! That...that makes me really, really happy, but...\" Subaru got a bad feeling as Emilia, blushing hard, trailed off if he had to put it into words, he was afraid she was about to say, Let's be friends instead. \"W-wait! Wait a sec! I-I'm in this for the long haul, so to speak!\" \"Th-that's... I understand that already. But...if I don't do this properly... Back when we were in the dragon carriage and the time at the tomb, I never gave you a proper reply, Subaru...and...\" Even as an unbearable anxiousness shot through him, Subaru lent his ears to Emilia. The present situation didn't necessarily seem like the worst-case scenario, but his chances didn't seem too great, either. If anything, it was like the status quo ante. As long as she didn't find his repeated confessions of love terribly intrusive, Subaru was ready to bounce back as many times as it took. However, it was about to become crystal clear that they were on completely different pages. \"It's just I think we need to have a proper talk about the baby in my belly!\" \"...Excuse me?\" \"I don't know if it will be a boy or a girl, but we need to give it all the love and attention it needs! Still, I don't know anything about these things... That's why I have to discuss it with the child's father...\" \"Emilia-tan, wait, hold on, like, seriously, please wait a second...\" Emilia's face was red and teary, but Subaru's mind couldn't keep up. Calm. He needed to be calm. A baby in Emilia's belly? Emilia was the mother? Subaru was the father? He didn't know what any of that meant. Subaru was positive that he had not climbed the final stairs of adulthood yet. \"Emilia-tan, by baby, you mean a little kid, right?\" \"Th-that's right. It's a really big deal in the middle of the royal selection...but it isn't the baby's fault it's going to be born, so I want to give the child all the love I can. I just wanted to tell you that.\" He admired the nobility of Emilia's resolute heart. He could even appreciate the beauty in her kind words. But they were talking past each other. It was almost as if people had children differently in this world. \"Emilia-tan, you know babies aren't delivered by birds or harvested from cabbage patches, right?\" \"But babies are made when a man and a woman kiss, aren't they?\" Subaru was in shock. Emilia's lack of knowledge was a part of it, but he was mainly astounded by how adorable her misunderstanding was. \"Subaru? Um, Subaru? What's wrong?\" As Subaru fell silent, Emilia seemed worried as she peered into his face with the look of someone who had accepted her impending motherhood. That was commendable. However, her misunderstanding inflicted a grievous wound upon a pure heart. He couldn't help but wonder if it was better to simply declare himself the father of the nonexistent child. \"Subaru, could it be that you regret kissing me...?\" \"Absolutely not. In fact, I'd love to do it again and again!!\" \"Oh...okay...\" The misunderstanding deepened further still. Her blushing face made Subaru regret how he had replied reflexively. Given Emilia's mindset at the moment, Subaru's words were tantamount to saying he wanted to have lots and lots of children with her. Certainly, there was a part of him that did wish for that, but his top priority was setting Emilia straight. \"C-curse you, Puck...!!\" Subaru directed an angry murmur toward the absent kitty spirit, who continued to sleep deep inside the magic crystal.  In the back of his mind, he felt like he could see the kitty spirit putting a paw on his head and sticking his tongue out with a thbpttt. 4 The instant the blow landed, his cheekbone groaned under the impact. His tall body was easily flung into the air and slammed into the wall. It did not end there. The momentum sent him right through the fragile wooden wall, blowing his body into the snowy outdoors. *** At the end of his somersault, he finally came to a stop, spread-eagle on the snowy plain, unable to move a muscle. The silence that descended made it tempting to assume he had actually expired then and there. Subaru's eyes went wide as he stared at the wall that had been punched clean through, the tall, slender man sent flying through it, and the one who had sent him flying to begin with. During that time, the attacker let out a satisfied breath. \"Phew... Man, I really sent the bastard flyin', huh?\" With an audible clack of sharp, canine teeth, the blond boy Garfiel spoke those words with a sunny, beaming face. Watching as Ram rushed toward Roswaal, who had been the victim, Subaru scratched his head. \"Y-yeah. Sure did.\" That was all the reply he could manage. 5 \"Errr, so now that we've formally settled some outstanding business, I think it's time we had a mutual discussion about the things that happened this time around and the various events going into the future.\" Taking the reins like an MC redirecting a conference's agenda, Subaru surveyed the faces of the people packed into the Cathedral. Those assembled inside were the principal actors involved in the latest incident. That said, it still amounted to quite a large number of people, which made Subaru deeply appreciate just how greatly their proverbial family had grown. The mansion team had caught up on the dawn after Emilia's imaginary pregnancy crisis. Fortunately, everyone who had been present at the mansion fire was safe and sound, with Garfiel and Frederica, Otto and Petra, and Ram all returning in one piece to the Sanctuary via a dragon carriage drawn by Patlash. After, with Subaru plus Emilia and Beatrice of the Sanctuary team, as well as Ryuzu in attendance to represent the Sanctuary, the participants amounted to a whole eleven people. \"From the perspective of the royal selection, this might seem like one small step. But it's one giant step for the Emilia camp...!\" \"Wow, that sounds really impressive... But you're absolutely right. That means I'll have to work even harder now.\" Taking Subaru's silly talk completely seriously, Emilia earnestly sought to repay the trust in her. Setting the whole baby-in-her-belly thing aside, her genuine, forward-looking nature was one of the things that made her beautiful. Indeed, she was a little too serious, which made relieving her of the baby misunderstanding quite an arduous chore. \"Ahem, I'd better straighten myself out before the conversation goes off the rails. Let's get right to the point. Should I assume everyone here knows everything that happened already? What comes after is the jury's verdict in regards to the accused...\" To be perfectly honest, it was a difficult issue to broach, yet there was no means to avoid it. Subaru scratched his face as he moved the conference forward, making all the other Cathedral attendees shift their glances to the rear toward Roswaal, lying limply on a couch as Ram offered her lap to his head. \"...Oh my? Could it be, you have not yet made enough sport of me in my defenseless staaate?\" \"Don't make me out to be the bad guy. That was settling things. Well, some of it was what some might call excessive, though...\" Roswaal's abrasive words made Subaru recall the violent scene that had taken place not long ago. In summary, it was a ceremony where Roswaal, the mastermind behind many of their troubles, was punched once by every one of his victims. What had begun with Garfiel's bare fist was followed by Frederica's beastly fist, Patlash's charge, and so on and so forth. Personally, the one Subaru liked most was Petra swinging a wet towel right into Roswaal's face. The moist slap had a really nice echo to it, instilling force and exhilaration that went beyond what the eye could see. \"Not to trivialize all that, but it's what brought everyone to the same table so we could talk. That said, there is one little thing I wanted to say about your standpoint...\" Cutting off his words there, Subaru looked not at Roswaal but at Ram as she let him rest his head in her lap. Accepting his gaze, Ram said, \"What?\" as she narrowed her pink eyes. \"Even if you're not at full health, you just stood back and watched while people settled things with Roswaal. I was sure you'd flip out seeing him get smacked around that much.\" \"What a foolish thing to say... Even Ram does not think Master Roswaal is someone who is never mistaken. If being punched is the natural course of events, he must accept what he deserves. But Ram is free to treat him with great gentleness after the fact. To"}, {"text": "not comprehend such a thing is the height of foolishness.\" Subaru grimaced hearing her call him a fool at both the head and the tail of her remarks. Beatrice heaved a hearty sigh at Ram's obstinacy in Subaru's place. \"Goodness, does this girl love trouble, I wonder? Even after incurring such severe burns to her belly... Had Betty not been here, scars would have remained for certain.\" \"I am deeply grateful to Lady Beatrice for healing me. However, that does not mean I care to be lectured as to how I may love someone with this life of mine and a body that is alive and well.\" \"...I don't intend to be quite that kind, I suppose. I will merely say it is a difficult life you choose.\" As always, Ram fearlessly pursued her love. During her fierce battle to halt Roswaal's schemes, she had suffered wounds so grievous, they had put her on death's door, but apparently, they were not nearly bad enough to get in the way of her feelings. Since Ram was by no means blinded by her love, Beatrice could only breathe a hearty sigh. Naturally, there was someone else present who couldn't accept things just like that. \" Figures Ram ain't bendin' one bit. But, General, you serious about this?\" Speaking this with a noise from his fangs was Garfiel, standing between Ryuzu and Frederica. He was giving Roswaal a sharp glare in contrast to the smiling face he'd had right after settling prior business. The glint in his eyes held blatant hostility within them. \"You're seriously gonna have this bastard be on our side? Just don't sit right with me.\" \"Garfiel...\" \"Maybe we haven't smacked him enough? Ahhh, yeah, we definitely ain't smacked him enough! How much has that bastard done up until now? If it weren't for the general, the village'd be rabbit food, and the folks at the mansion would've been toyed with and killed by the belly woman! All 'cause that bastard planned it. Ya don't know when he'll come chop our heads off in our sleep!\" Garfiel howled and took a step forward that made the Cathedral faintly tremble. But there was no one present who could immediately refute his words. Garfiel's opinion had sound logic behind it. Roswaal had simply done that much. He'd exposed many lives to danger for the sake of his own objective. As a matter of fact, Subaru had personally and repeatedly witnessed a great many deaths with his own eyes, present company included.  It had taken a miracle to set this situation right. Subaru shared the same anger Garfiel had. He also shared the feeling that Roswaal could not be among them. \"But even so, we need Roswaal's power.\" \"General...!!\" \"There's no replacing Roswaal's cooperation if Emilia's gonna fight her way through this royal-selection business. If we lose him as her sponsor, Emilia will be forced to drop out. Of course he's got to pay compensation...but we can't just go okay, see ya and leave it at that.\" \"Are ya tellin' me to forgive the guy who tried to kill family of mine?!\" Garfiel's words were emotional, yet the terrible pain in them struck Subaru. Even if Subaru tried to suppress them with words and logic, Garfiel still probably wouldn't accept it. Garfiel had nearly lost Frederica and Ryuzu both. To him, having fiercely fought as a one-man army to protect his family for over a decade, it was a betrayal most difficult to forgive. \"I...forgive the master.\" \"Sis?!\" But it was none other than Frederica who refuted Garfiel's assertions. His elder sister's words made Garfiel blink hard before powerfully clacking his fangs. \"What are ya sayin'?! This bastard tried to kill you and everyone else at the man...\" \"Yet, even so, I am alive, thanks to you, Garf.\" \"That's just lookin' at things in hindsight, damn it!! This bastard almost killed my sis and my granny! But I'm supposed to just forgive him?!\" \"...The master has taken care of me for more than ten years.\" Frederica narrowed her jade eyes in the face of Garfiel's ragged voice. The deep affection that could be felt from her gaze showed she was deeply moved by the indignation of her younger brother, who had grown so much in the years they spent apart. \"I have borrowed from the master's power for the sake of my own goal. And I have arrived at this point having learned a great deal in the process. Put another way, I shall use the master's goodwill for the sake of my own goal. In one sense, does lending and borrowing not amount to the same thing?\" \"You're gonna put life and debts on the same playin' field?! Sis, that's how you and Ram get used like tha...\" \"Ahhh, I am sorry to intrude at such a passionate point, but may I have a word?\" Garfiel was still choking on Frederica's words when Otto urged a pause. \"Ahhh?\" went Garfiel, making a sour noise at the intrusion, but Otto deftly ignored it. \"For the moment, let us leave emotional arguments for later and speak of matters pragmatically. In other words, we must discuss to what degree the marquis intends to yield to us.\" \"...Another thing out of the blue. Feels a bit like we can't just drop this, though.\" Otto sought to advance the conversation in a measured, businesslike tone, but Subaru knit his brows, unable to read what his intentions were. At that point, Otto said as a preamble, \"It is a simple matter. To put it plainly, Garfiel's anger is justified. I am quite vexed myself, and by any normal standard, one punch is hardly enough to lay everything to rest.\" \"Gotta say, I feel like you sure put your hips into the one punch you gave him...\" \"I was merely collecting the interest on my losses. At any rate, it is clear to anyone's eyes that this cannot be simply forgiven, yes? I am certain the marquis understands this as well. In other words...\" \" The issue is therefore to what extent I intend to swallow the terms you offer.\" At the end of the explanation, it was Roswaal who sat up and picked up where Otto left off. Closing one eye, he gazed back at Otto with his yellow eye. \"It would be poor of me to accept your terms before you have spoken them, I beliiiieve.\" \"Then I shall take my revenge with all interest accrued.\" Otto was quite collected as he faced the marquis with a great deal of nerve. Roswaal made a pained smile. \"You say that so calmly. Now, returning to the previous subject, Garfiel is concerned that you do not know when I might become your enemy again...but this is an unnecessary worry.\" \"...How can ya be so sure? Ya think we'd believe a promise outta your mouth even a little?\" \"Unfortunately, that would be impossible. So I shall prove it in a form visible to the eye.\" Roswaal slowly shook his head before Garfiel's wariness. He stood up and proceeded to open his tunic, brusquely stripping away the bloodstained bandages wrapped around his upper body.  Everyone held their breaths when they set their eyes upon Roswaal's exposed flesh. It was known to all that Roswaal's body had been injured when the tomb had rejected him. But it was not those wounds that attracted their eyes now; rather, it was the pale, glowing symbols carved into his flesh. Realizing at a glance that the symbols were vestiges of a magical ritual, Beatrice looked at Subaru. \" Is this a vow sealed with a curse, I wonder?\" \"A vow sealed with a curse? The hell? I've never heard of that one.\" However, the malevolent ring of the words certainly fit the symbols perfectly. Beatrice nodded as if to bolster Subaru's impression of them. \"Oaths come in various forms, such as pacts, vows, and covenants. Pacts, like the ones with spirits, are two-party oaths. Covenants extend across bloodlines. And vows bind a single party.\" \"Bind a single party?\" \"Perhaps the one taking the vow expects to gain compensation commensurate with the oath that must be fulfilled, I suppose. As for carving a cursed seal into one's body like this, the effect would be...\" \" I have lost the battle. In accordance with my vow, I can inflict no harm upon you.\" Receiving Beatrice's words, Roswaal divulged the vow he had taken. \"Should I renounce this vow, my soul shall be tainted and my flesh enveloped and burned away by purifying fire. And my soul shall fall into the void, never to return to Odo Ragna again. That is what I have sworn.\" \"S-somehow, that sounds really ominous...\" \"Why? This is only appropriate. Did we not make a wager, you and I?\" He let out a wry laugh, or perhaps a muted, spontaneous laugh. The sentence that had come from Roswaal's loosened lips made Subaru sink into thought, immediately locating the answer he was speaking about the final bet between them. This was the result of the bet Subaru had made when he'd told Roswaal this would be his last attempt. And should Roswaal have been triumphant, Subaru had said he would do Roswaal's bidding  \"My terms were that you'd genuinely come on board if I won.\" \"And so this cursed seal brings those terms to fruition.\" \"...In other words, if I'd lost...?\" \"Then I would have carved this cursed seal into you. Had you defied the vow, you would have been reduced to cinders.\" \"Scary !!\" He felt as if he'd unwittingly signed away his soul with no memory of the act whatsoever. As a matter of fact, it was precisely so, but the better way to view it was that there probably were no loopholes in the process. Besides, whatever the possibilities, the fact remained that Roswaal himself had carved the cursed seal into his own body. \"Roswaal won't betray us so long as that's on him. How about it, Garfiel?\" *** \"Like I said, Roswaal's power is necessary and indispensable for the royal selection. It's on a level that even if we don't want his cooperation, we're tied to him so much that we need it anyway.\" \"...General, that ain't the same as comin' to an agreement.\" \"Yes, it is. We've gotta look for some point of compromise. Roswaal won't betray us. What do you wanna do to Roswaal on top of that? Sorry, but I can't let you actually kill him.\" He was essentially indicating Garfiel's short temper was blocking their path. Of course, if Garfiel was minded to push the issue, he could knock Subaru out of the way easier than a bowling pin. But Garfiel's nature prevented him from being emotional enough to go that far. \"Garf...\" Ryuzu tugged on Garfiel's sleeve with a worried look on her face. The sensation brought Garfiel back to his senses as Ryuzu slowly shook her head. \"Shima chose her own fate. No matter what Young Ros did, it would have always been one of us who needed to serve as the key to lift the barrier.\" *** \"Surely, she believed she had been relieved of her duty, yet it was she who saved us by fulfilling her role as administrator at the very end... That is how we think of it.\" Ryuzu Shima had offered herself as the key to lift the barrier. If there was one person who could be called a sacrifice for the Sanctuary and the mansion, it was Shima herself. It pained Subaru's chest to think of how it hurt Garfiel to learn of this after the fact. It was Subaru's earnest wish to take back everything he could take back, to carry everything with him. But Shima's sacrifice had been the unavoidable key to liberating everyone trapped within the Sanctuary. Subaru couldn't help but be annoyed at how the design of this system seemed emblematic of the rotten personality of the Witch who had crafted it. Of course, Garfiel was angry about that, too."}, {"text": "He couldn't help but look for a place to slam that anger into. \"Shima said she has not been lonely these past ten years. She said that was because of...\" \"...I know that already. Don't make a sad face like that, Granny.\" But Garfiel interrupted his grandmother's words, replying with a coarse yet gentle voice. Surprisingly calm, he let out a deep breath before pointing straight at Roswaal. \"Swear it, Roswaal. I don't care what ya swore before. I want ya to swear it again here and now.\" *** \"Y'all never pull this crap on us again swear it.\" Roswaal's breath briefly caught when Garfiel spoke these words, which were every bit a compromise. Then, tracing the cursed seal carved into his flesh with a finger, he nodded. \"I shall never sacrifice anyone present in this place, nor use you as pawns to achieve some greater goal I swear this upon the soul of my cherished teacher.\" From Roswaal's point of view, just how weighty were those words? Probably only Subaru, Ram, Ryuzu, and Beatrice fully appreciated the significance of that promise. But the depth of his resolve had been conveyed even to those who could not comprehend it in its entirety. \" If ya break your word, I ain't lettin' no fire get ya. I'll crush your head with my own damn fangs.\" It was not swelling, overwhelming bloodlust that made Subaru shudder but fighting spirit. This spirit was being sent squarely toward Roswaal, but just the wake of its passing made the skin of everyone else present feel ablaze. Having made that vow, Garfiel let out a heavy sigh. Then he extended a hand. \"...For now, that's enough for me. Looks like this kid here agrees, too.\" With that, he placed a hand on the head of Petra, who'd been glaring at Roswaal the entire time. The sensation made her grip Frederica's hand tightly. \"But,\" he added, letting out a long breath before continuing, \"talkin' to your parents and friends about this ain't gonna make no one happy.\" At present, the fact that it was their own liege behind the current uproar had not been divulged to the Earlham villagers or the residents of the Sanctuary. Nor did Garfiel think they needed to know it was Roswaal. Petra wasn't in attendance as a representative of the village but because Frederica insisted Petra should be individually recognized as a servant of Roswaal Manor. She also did so partly out of faith that Petra was a clever enough girl to eventually arrive at the truth from fragmentary information alone. \"No matter how much...Master Subaru says so...I don't want to. The master... The lord did terrible things to the village, didn't he, even though everyone trusted their lord? I did, too. I thought he was a good person.\" \"...Those words do wound me deeply.\" The blame levied by the little girl made even Roswaal frown. Cutting out the interests of the faction and the finer circumstances, Petra's feelings as a direct victim were the most appropriate of all. That wasn't because she was a child. It was a straight and honest assessment of just how much faith Roswaal had accumulated as liege lord and just how deep his betrayal had cut. \"But...but I don't want to make things hard for everyone by running my mouth like some ignorant little girl. But that's exactly why I absolutely won't forgive this. Still, that's all I'll do.\" *** When Petra spoke the words with tearful eyes, Roswaal closed his own. Then, as large tears began to spill from her eyes, Petra clung to Frederica and squeezed. Frederica gently embraced her, telling her, \"You did very well.\" \"This is 'cause Sis, Granny, and the girl there allowed it. Better not forget.\" Accepting Petra's tearful voice, Garfiel warned Roswaal to uphold his vow. \"But of course I have been an expert in upholding my oaths for a very long tiiiime.\" That was Roswaal's reply. Everyone's anger had been settled for the moment. \"That's right. Petra's a good girl, and you're shit. So aside from the burned-down mansion, all the trouble caused to the people of Earlham Village and the Sanctuary and other assorted stuff...does anyone else have something to say?\" Subaru waited for Petra to stop crying before seeking a consensus anew. In one sense, the present situation had come about from everyone in their camp scowling at Roswaal all at once. If this meant the end of the first stage of the meeting, they could move on to the issues the future would bring  \"Yes, I do.\" It was then that a sole figure broke the silence and raised her hand. It was Emilia, leader of the group, yet to offer her opinion on how to deal with Roswaal. \"Okay, Emilia-tan. This is the right time, so say whatever you want.\" \"Then I'll indulge myself and say this...\" Thus recognized by Subaru, Emilia stared straight at Roswaal. Receiving her gaze, Roswaal awaited Emilia's words with a meek expression. It was unclear just what thoughts lurked beneath. \"All of you are being really strange. Roswaal still hasn't done the most important thing, has he? We can't end this conversation until he does.\" \"The most important thing...?\" \"When you've done something wrong, you have to say you're sorry.\" Emilia's statement left absolutely everyone taken aback, eyes wide open. \"Earlier, everyone was telling you to prove you've reflected on this and that, and Roswaal swore on his teacher, but there's something he should have said before that, isn't there? Roswaal, have you said it to everyone even once? I sure didn't hear you.\" Emilia was flushed and in a huff as she spoke perfectly bluntly to Roswaal. The contents of her words sounded astoundingly childish, leaving everyone at a loss for words. But Emilia was not speaking in jest. She was expressing her genuine anger. This, she did to make him do the obvious, natural thing that everyone had forgotten about. \" Apologize, Roswaal.\" \"Eh?\" \"It's the least we can expect from a person who's gonna be with us from now on.\" Roswaal looked thoroughly taken aback at Subaru following Emilia's example, boldly speaking those words. Subaru's intentions were conveyed to everyone in the Cathedral. All eyes gathered upon Roswaal. Then Roswaal, consternated at the situation he found himself in after coming this far, drew in his breath, and  \" Yes, that will do.\" After watching Roswaal apologize, Emilia flashed an impressive smile. 6 \"That is quite a miserable-looking face.\" \"...So it's you, huh, Beako?\" Subaru raised his eyebrows as a cute face poked over his shoulder, peering intently at him. He'd been sitting on the floor, deep in thought. Subaru made a pained smile as he realized he hadn't noticed someone had approached him. He dusted his pants off as he rose to his feet. They were in the coffin room in the deepest portion of the tomb. No one else was here, so he'd come to think things over. \"What are you doing in a place like this while staring so intently at the corpse of Betty's mother, I wonder?\" \"I was just thinking of the future like a normal person, but your phrasing is gonna land me in a heap of trouble!\" \"Not really. If Subaru has an unspeakable hobby, I shall not reveal it. I will think ugh, however.\" \"Seriously, if you ever think ugh as soon as I come to mind, then I'm never gonna recover!\" Though they bantered much like before, their intimacy was incomparable to anything prior, even including that exchange. Mysteriously, ever since their pact, Beatrice was just too cute for Subaru to resist. It wasn't romantic love, but it was undoubtedly affection. He wanted his stomach filled with it full-time. That was simply how he felt. Thinking about it calmly, he seemed to have had quite a bit of that feeling even back when he first met her. \"Does your face reveal yet another worthless thought in your head, I wonder?\" \"It ain't worthless at all. I was thinking about you, Beako. You're so adorable, it puts me in a bind.\" \"R-really, now...? Certainly, that would be a problem. But perhaps I prefer to continue doing so, I wonder?\" That was so cute that Subaru picked Beatrice up without a word of warning. This surprised Beatrice, then made her angry at him in turn. She smacked him, but it didn't hurt, so he let it slide. Then, after getting their fill of messing around, Beatrice's demeanor became serious as she shifted her gaze toward the coffin. \"...This is your mother, right?\" \"More importantly, this is Echidna, Subaru. Not the 'Witch of Greed' you are familiar with.\" Subaru echoed a question first hailed by Emilia, wondering about the two different Echidnas. At present, neither she nor Subaru had found a suitable answer to what that actually meant. Subaru, too, had been surprised the first time he'd encountered the Witch's remains inside that room. For Beatrice's sake, he was simply grateful from the bottom of his heart that it truly was her Echidna sleeping there. He was glad Beatrice had been reunited with her mother, even if only Echidna's remains were left, though there were other reunions that could never take place. \"It's...really too bad that Miss Shima and your...friend from the crystal couldn't make it.\" \"...Has it not been four centuries since we parted, I wonder? There is no helping it now.\" Beatrice's halting murmur felt like she was mostly putting on a brave front. Subaru turned his face toward the sky. Echidna's old laboratory site was within the Forest of Cremaldi. When the Sanctuary had been liberated, Ryuzu Meyer and the crystal sealing her, both of which formed the core of the Sanctuary's barrier, had vanished together. He'd been told the coffin where the Witch slept, along with the magic crystal sealing the girl within, had been the keys to the barrier. Shima had sacrificed herself to open these, granting them true liberation. Albeit, perhaps she would be angry at having what she did referred to as a sacrifice truly, it would be just like her to say she'd done her duty, cutting a path open for the youngsters' future. He had little doubt that deep down, it was for the sake of her beloved Garfiel, though. The day was surely approaching when they could match her proud way of life. At the very least, he wanted to swear he would live up to it all, bringing no shame to what she had bequeathed to them. \"Well, even if I made a lofty-sounding vow like that, it wouldn't sound very convincing coming from me.\" \" ? Subaru, what are you smiling to yourself for, I wonder? It feels creepy.\" \"Er, nothi... Wait, creepy?!\" \"Ah, maybe not, I suppose! I did not mean you are extremely creepy! Only a little, I suppose!\" The naked insult and guileless poison thrust several times deeper than anything preceding it. When Subaru fell to his knees, Beatrice hastily and earnestly tried to cheer him up. It took a little while after that for Subaru to recover, at which point he let out a long sigh. \"Whew, I was in danger of dying from shock. I understand a little of how Puck felt...\" \"You have grown quite conceited if you think you can understand Puckie's feelings, Subaru. But could you not forget that feeling of devotion, I wonder? If you do not, you will become a fine spirit mage in no time.\" \"Yeah, yeah... Er, hearing the words spirit mage made me remember just now, but you were seriously awesome. I've never been able to let loose with magic like that before. Sure was one heck of a ride!\" He hadn't had the time to calmly think back upon it, but Subaru's manly heart had danced during that battle against the Great Rabbit. He'd gone with the flow during the collapse of the archive of forbidden books and formed a pact with Beatrice. Subaru's original objective was to bring Beatrice out of the"}, {"text": "archive, so forming a pact relationship, as a spirit mage was nothing but a by-product of that goal. Even so, it had been an incredible experience. Subaru's honest appraisal made Beatrice's cheeks stiffen. Her gaze wandered about. \"Subaru, about that... In other words, I may have something important to say about spirit mages, I suppose.\" \"Oh? Why all the formality?\" \"This is a matter between Betty and Subaru that cannot be put off.\" Beatrice seemed rather subdued as she sat Subaru back down on the floor. He had a bad feeling about this, having barely finished hearing Emilia get similarly formal before talking about her imaginary pregnancy. That said, now that she'd stated it concerned the pair's future, all he could do was quietly listen. \"First, Subaru formed a pact with Betty as a spirit mage...but Betty is somewhat different compared to a regular spirit, I suppose. Therefore, there are certain things that differ from what would be common sense for other practitioners.\" \"Well, you don't usually see humanoid spirits, and I know you're especially cute.\" At present, Subaru knew exactly two spirit mages: Emilia and Julius. Emilia had a pact with Puck but also had formed pacts with lesser spirits besides him. In contrast, Julius had pacts with multiple quasi-spirits more powerful than lesser spirits, which meant he was a powerful practitioner himself. Technically, the evil spirit Petelgeuse had been something similar, but that was a case best left forgotten. \"Betty is an artificial spirit created by Mother. Did you know this, I wonder? Mother infused Betty with special power...but in turn, she has certain flaws.\" \"Flaws, huh? What sort?\" \"Betty's flaws... First is that she monopolizes a contractor, I suppose.\" Betty was red-faced as she explained her own shortcomings. Subaru, girded for whatever issue might come flying out, let out a silly-sounding \"huh?\" at the detail thereof. \"Monopolize you mean you're a greedy girl? Don't worry. Relax, you're the only spirit for me.\" \"That may be so, but that is not the point! The short version is that a spirit mage contracted with Betty is unable to contract with other spirits and lesser spirits, I suppose. There are no exceptions whatsoever.\" \"...Ahhh, that's what you meant. In other words, I'm all out of contracts.\" The gist was that the cost of maintaining Beatrice as a spirit was high, chewing up a spirit mage's entire capacity. No free room remained to employ other spirits because of that. \"So there's no using lesser spirits depending on circumstances or anything like that. Well, that's slightly disappointing, but I'll just take it in stride. No way I'm letting you go so I can pick up other spirits.\" \"...W-well, that's only natural, I suppose. Of course you would not. Might one even call that ordinary sound judgment, I wonder?\" Beatrice was unable to hide how happy Subaru's reply made her. Subaru gave her head another few circular strokes. Beatrice was letting Subaru do so when she cleared her throat with an audible \"ahem.\" \"Actually, there is still more. But compared with the matter just now, is it no great issue whatsoever, I wonder?\" \"So the hurdles got a lot lower. Okay, hit me. Tell me anything.\" \"Er, this is mildly embarrassing... However, Betty is rather...fuel-inefficient.\" \"Now you're talking like you're some kind of car.\" In video games, powerful magic and summoning spells consumed a lot of MP. Efficiency was calculated by comparing the usage cost to power, but he had no idea how hard it was for Beatrice to say something that was probably incredibly difficult to admit. \"Er? You say that, but you hurled huge spells into the Great Rabbit one after another, right? You even let me use your mana, 'cause it's not like you were sucking it out of me.\" \"Was that mana not what Betty stored away over a long period of time, I wonder? Draining Subaru thousands and thousands of times would not be sufficient to suddenly use that much mana in our first battle.\" \"That figures. Incidentally, by stored over a long period of time, you mean...\" \"...I I suppose I was helping myself to mana from everyone at the mansion a little at a time.\" Beatrice was red-faced as she divulged the information, perhaps embarrassing from a spirit's point of view. Subaru didn't have a very clear idea at how unladylike using some kind of mana drain was. \"Beako, it seems like you've done some deep reflection about it, so I won't poke fun at you. Well, as your contractor, I'll just have to put up with whatever you're going to take from me. How much is stored in this vault anyway?\" It hardly needed to be said that Subaru's mana capacity was lower than that of the average person. If he was to work around Beatrice's poor fuel efficiency, he needed to break down how to make good use of what had been stored to date. Naturally, he had to get an idea of just how much magic energy was left, but  \" Nothing.\" \"...Hmm?\" \"Did I not say nothing, I wonder? What was stored across four centuries flew out the door during our first battle. Though I still held on to a majority of it despite the loss of the archive, the Al Shamak that served as the finishing blow...might have depleted it completely, I suppose.\" *** Beatrice's explanation left Subaru silent. He sank into thought. After pondering the matter, he arrived at an answer. In other words, it went something like this. Beatrice's stored mana was zero. It would take all of Subaru's mana just to keep her corporeal on a day-to-day basis. Beatrice could not employ fuel-inefficient high-powered spells, and his pact with her left him unable to rely upon other spirits. \"You're telling me...a duo between a spirit who can't use magic and a spirit mage who can't use magic has just been born?!\" \"W-well, I suppose you could put it in those terms.\" \"How else would you put it?! Eh? No way you're serious?!\" In conclusion, Subaru had become a spirit mage, winning the hand of a little girl and that was pretty much it. \"Should I say, Eh-heh-heh, thbbt, I wonder?\" \"I'm not laughing!\" And that was how an incredibly ill-prepared team of spirit mage and spirit was born. Thereafter, the pair's quarreling voices continued echoing within the tomb for a long, long time to come. *** 1  The dignified great hall's appearance had changed into something completely at odds with what Subaru remembered. A number of candlesticks lined the red carpet covering the floor. The flickering of the red flames lent the chamber a solemn atmosphere that caused those in attendance to unconsciously straighten their backs. Familiar, nostalgic faces were lined against the walls in orderly fashion. It was because those were familiar, nostalgic faces that they looked amusing while dressed in solemn, ceremonial outfits. Particularly hilarious were Garfiel, locked in a brutal struggle with his formal garb, and Otto, who looked every bit the pampered nobleman. The contrast with their normal appearances was really something else. Were they deliberately trying to make him laugh...? Frederica and the other servants treated their work uniforms as their ceremonial clothing, so it made sense that Ram was in her maid outfit as they walked in unison. Subaru drew in his breath when he realized there was someone right beside Ram.  There, sitting in a chair, a blue-haired Sleeping Princess was also in attendance. Perhaps this was Ram's idea of being considerate. Ram was glancing at him with an expression that feigned ignorance. He was so grateful that it hurt. Petra was standing beside them, attending the ceremony with a dignified demeanor, wearing a dress that glimmered so much, no one would ever think she was a simple village girl. He could only let out a strained smile. No stage fright for her. Standing beside Petra was Beatrice, whose normal clothing was plenty elaborate to begin with. She relaxed her lips slightly and stood straighter, feeling reassured at the sight of her partner, Subaru, keeping an eye out for her. Then, when he shifted his gaze from the participants, turning his head toward the innermost part of the great hall  *** Waiting for Subaru was Emilia, looking his way as she wore ornaments beautiful enough to make him tremble. Her silver hair looked like glistening moonlight. Her violet eyes seemed like inlaid gemstones. Her expression was faintly tense with such an important ceremony before her, but that only brought her mysterious beauty into sharper relief. Her attire differed from that for everyday rites, emphasizing purity befitting a formal ceremony. It seemed much like a priestess's attire; the fabric, thin enough to let the color of her skin shine through, made it look like the raiment of a celestial maiden. Before Emilia, all feelings of tension seething within him instantly dissipated. The profound thoughts about the other participants but a moment before became distant. Everyone but Emilia flew off to the far corners of his mind. This was by no means belittling those who were there to watch over the ceremony he was merely putting his heart where it rightfully belonged. *** No one had indicated he should, but Subaru stepped forward as if someone were guiding his hand. He was wearing unfamiliar ceremonial attire with a brand-new knight's sword on his hip. Otto and the others did not laugh at how awkward he looked, but the occasion made him forget such trivial things regardless. He strode over to Emilia, his heart as calm as an ocean breeze. He knelt before the slightly raised platform upon which Emilia stood. He was on one knee, head bowed. Subaru was barely aware of even his own breathing as he focused all his attention on Emilia, who stood before him. Bathed in the audience's comfortable yet seemingly tense gazes, Subaru removed the knightly sword from his hip, drawing it from its scabbard. The steel blade reflected the flames of the candlesticks, causing the same light to reside in Subaru's and Emilia's differently colored eyes. Burning the beauty of the sight into his mind, Subaru presented the knight's sword to Emilia. With graceful fingers, Emilia gently accepted the sword, which was presented to her like an offering. Her violet eyes were filled with deep emotions as she pointed the tip of the knight's sword skyward, seemingly as heavy as the feelings that permeated it. Before Emilia, Subaru bowed his head once more, closing his eyes. A knight's sword was his pride. A knight's body and head constituted his loyal spirit. Here, he offered both.  A knight offering his life to his liege. *** Silence befell the great hall No, the great hall had already been filled with silence throughout. But the silence so far had been suffused with faint excitement, the tranquility laden with quiet zeal. This time was different. It was true silence, with excitement, zeal, and expectations left far behind. The right to break that silence had been granted to but a single one among them. \" O sun watching over the dazzling world beneath. O stars watching over the sleeping world. O wind, O water, O earth, O light, O spirits that fill all.\" The silence was broken. Emilia wove the ceremony's prayer like a song. \" O great world that has accepted you, raised you, and now sends you forth.\" It trembled. His heart trembled. The borders of his mind collapsed. His chaotic soul churned. That moment, all he wanted to do was drown in her blessing. \" O pride, that which supported you, protected you, nurtured you.\" He endured the mania rushing through him. He withstood the searing heat pounding at his heart. He waited for the question to come. \" May you become someone worthy of all that protects you, of the world that has raised you, of the pride that sustains you. May you live without shame. Fear not, cower not, stray not. May your heart remain true.\" The prayer was over. The question was coming. The set structure of"}, {"text": "the ceremony ended there. Not even Subaru knew the answer to the final question to come. \" Just as you have aspired to until now, just as you have done for everything and everyone around you, do you swear to protect me from this moment forth?\"  But his heart already knew the answer to the question Emilia posed. \"On the sun, on the stars, on the spirits, on the world, on my pride and \" That moment, he listed everything in the prayer to express his conviction and his gratitude. And before he put the vow on his lips, Subaru recalled in the back of his mind the images of those to whom he truly needed to convey his gratitude. That was why his lips wove the words seemingly on their own. \" on my father and my mother, I swear.\" *** \"I will protect you. I'll make your wish come true My name is Subaru Natsuki.\" He lifted his head. The radiance of the raised sword overlapped with Emilia's. But the light of mere steel meant nothing to him. All he could see were the dazzling violet eyes gazing back at his own. \"Emilia I am your knight and yours alone.\" \" Yes.\" When Emilia responded to the words he spoke, an irresistible wave of emotions brought tears to her eyes. Yet, even then, Emilia somehow managed to maintain her composure as she gently brought down the sword she had raised. She returned to Subaru, who continued to kneel, the symbol of a knight's pride. Reverently accepting it with both hands, he returned the sword to its scabbard. Completing the ritual, Subaru looked up. With Emilia nodding in assent, he stood on the spot. And then  \"Emilia-tan, it's a bit late to mention this, but you look cute and superhot in that outfit.\" \"Idiot.\"  with the solemn atmosphere of the ceremony shattered, Emilia stuck out her tongue at him with a reddened face. 2 A great variety of food was arrayed atop the table that was being brought into the great hall. At this buffet-style feast, none of the participants in the ceremony paid much attention to stuffy manners and merrily helped themselves in any which way they pleased. \"Everyone sure is having a good time. I've never been so tense before in my life, though.\" Subaru was out on the terrace, showered by the nighttime breeze as he watched the festivities with distant eyes. A dinner plate and drinking glass had been placed on the handrail, but he hadn't touched either. The burning sensation shooting up his neck made it unlikely he would manage to get anything down his throat. Inside the manor, Petra was doing a little dance performance in her dress in the middle of the hall. It looked like a sort of dance that was often performed at festivals in Earlham Village, but Petra seemed to have arranged this one herself; the dignified way she carried herself meant she didn't look out of place even at a nobleman's court. Dragged along by Petra and dancing with matching steps was a red-faced Beatrice. She desperately tried to maintain her composure, but Subaru couldn't help but notice her ears and the tip of her nose were trembling with bashfulness. Mysteriously, Beatrice seemed unable to act headstrong whenever Petra was concerned. Petra seemed to have taken Subaru's words to heart and had somehow managed to make a friend out of Beatrice. The heartwarming scene made Subaru feel more at ease when  \" Watching something like that makes you deeply appreciate having brought Beatrice out, does it noooot?\" \"Ugh.\" A tall body abruptly cut into Subaru's peripheral vision, coming beside Subaru to rest its weight against the handrail. He glanced over to see Roswaal wearing a formal, long-sleeve dress outfit that differed from the norm. With his long hair in proper order and wearing clothing with minimal pomp, he would be very much a handsome aristocrat at a glance. However  \"...All that kinda clashes with the clown makeup.\" \"Oh my, how harsh. But if I don't have this on, it just isn't me. Is that not sooooo?\" \"I wish you'd respect the time, place, and circumstance for self-expression. Not that I'm one to talk, but this is a formal occasion, y'know?\" Subaru flashed an expression of exasperation at Roswaal, who was wearing his clown face without a shred of guilt. He was recalling his own barbaric actions that despoiled the royal-selection conference. This said, that hadn't been a formal occasion, so his judgment was technically sound. \"Speaking of this formal occasion, I gotta say... You sure went all out for this conferring-knighthood thing.\" \"I had reasons to hurry. However, I believe you have yearned for this for quite some time.\" \"Well, you're not wrong about that, but I'm just not cut out for this stuff...\" Roswaal had poked right at the crux of the matter, leaving Subaru with a wry smile on his lips without any words to refute him.  Subaru had craved knighthood ever since he found out about it. It qualified him to stand at Emilia's side. Roswaal had a number of reasons for allowing Subaru this and holding a formal occasion for the event. The ceremony to confer honors on Subaru would play up his meritorious deeds in quelling the White Whale and dispatching the Archbishop of Sloth, spreading the news to even neighboring kingdoms. Ultimately, he wished to announce Subaru had become Emilia's knight to foreign and domestic interests alike. For that, it was necessary to confer knighthood over any mere medal, and with appropriate urgency, pomp, and ceremony at that. \"All that said, isn't allowing a knighthood ceremony in a place we're borrowing and staying at temporarily stretching our goodwill really far?\" \"When you put it that way, it is difficult to denyyyy. Well, the Miload family is a branch of the Mathers family, and its head, Annerose, is head over heels for Lady Emilia. If we must live away until the main estate is restored and can serve in the burned mansion's place, should we not have a little fuuuuun with it?\" \"You sure say that so casually...\" Roswaal tilted his glass as his lips loosened with amusement. Annerose Miload this was the name of the head of the household where Subaru and company were staying for about a month after Roswaal Manor had burned down. Her being a distant relative of Roswaal's and already being on good terms with Emilia beforehand made the place a perfect location for a temporary stay. Seeing how close Emilia and Annerose, age nine, were made Subaru just a little jealous, though. \"Mentally speaking, Anne and Emilia are not as far apart as some might think. If anything, Anne puts on greater airs than Lady Emilia. She might very well be the more mature of the two.\" \"I'm still holding a grudge against her for planting the idea in Emilia-tan's head that babies are made by kissing.\" As the victim of that childish, adorable, and tragic misunderstanding, he absolutely would never forget. *** He and Roswaal let the frivolities lapse. A silence fell over the terrace save for the passing wind. The sounds of music being played, dancing, and voices of delight conveyed the excitement of the feast.  And yet, the terrace seemed the only place apart from the tumult as a faint whiff of tension stretched across it. \"Did you put some kind of people-repelling barrier around us or something?\" \"Your intuition has truly improved. Or perhaps to you, this evening is not...\" Your first, he might have said, but Subaru's gaze silenced those barbed words. It was an insult. He did not want that night, that ceremony, sullied by such slights. \"You made sure it'd be just us at a time like this 'cause you have something to talk about, right?\" \" Teacher was assuredly alone without a single relative. That of course includes any sisters. She had none save Beatrice she could call her own daughter. I know this better than anyone.\" When Subaru sharpened his gaze and pressed the point, Roswaal cut straight to a rather uncomfortable topic. He was talking about Echidna for the issue of the Echidna at the tomb concerned them both. Roswaal's opinion was the same as Beatrice's from back at the tomb. Namely, that the remains in the coffin were those of Echidna, and the being who had imposed the Trials on Subaru and Emilia was someone else. It was difficult for him to nod and accept the being he met was a fake. That Echidna the Witch of Greed in the castle of dreams, along with the other Witches of the Deadly Sins was unmistakably real. There was no way to decipher the mystery. The tomb had lost all functionality, and there was no way Subaru would ever meet her again. Besides  \"So the woman inside the coffin was your goal. There's that cursed seal, too. You...\" \" My objective was to be reunited with Teacher, young Subaru. However, please do not misunderstand.\" \"Misunderstand what? You and Beatrice... You met her... You met Echidna. Now you can...\" \"What I desire is a reunion with blood flowing through her, a soul resting in her a living, breathing Teacher. It is all I desire. It is my greatest wish, and I cannot relinquish it.\" Subaru blinked hard not only at Roswaal's dreamlike speech but also at the content of his words. \"But that means...bringing her back from the dead. Do you have a...way to do that?\" \"No, not a theory that would work upon ordinary souls. But because this is Teacher, a way remains. The liberation of the Sanctuary...the recovery of her remains...these are but preliminary steps.\" So that was why he wanted the Sanctuary liberated. Roswaal had achieved his own objective. But as for a method to revive the dead, and one that would work only upon the Witch in the coffin... \"So as to not give rise to misunderstandings, I wish to be clear about this one thing, young Subaru.\" \"...Say it.\" \"The book of knowledge has burned to ash, denying me my promised future. As I am bound by the cursed seal, I cannot continue any of the machinations I have attempted to date however, I have no intention of giving up on Teacher because of this.\" Tilting his glass to his lips, Roswaal spoke those implacable words without crossing gazes. It was more than enough to send a shiver of fear through Subaru, supposedly in an advantageous position now that Roswaal had given up on his secret plotting. \"I really don't mind you not giving up... Er, this might be gutsy to say to someone like you, but just do whatever you like. Thing is, what can you do to make that goal come true?\" \"It is a simple matter I shall continue watching over you.\" ***  He'd keep watching. This ominous phrase left Subaru at a loss for words. Roswaal turned and faced Subaru with his differently colored eyes and with the same fire burning in both, he continued: \"Fortunately, your goal of placing Lady Emilia on the royal throne aligns your objective with mine. And so we shall continue our relationship as coconspirators just as before... It is merely that, just as before, I pity you for remaining unchanged.\" \"What the hell?\" Subaru raised his eyebrows, unable to easily dismiss the word pity. His reaction made Roswaal pull back his shoulders. He'd deciphered the emotions resting in Roswaal's eyes sympathy and compassion. \"You should have known loss. You should have felt loss so great that you would have become a Sage who would doggedly protect only that most precious to him in my own way, I wanted to save you.\" \"What the hell's wise about that? What does simply accepting loss get you?!\" \"You, who have rejected loss and have decided to carry everything in your arms, will continue to suffer. You will experience wounds that can never be undone, experience loss over and over, and you will rise up for the sake of regaining what you have lost, continuing to add to"}, {"text": "your invisible injuries. That is simply...too cruel.\" *** Roswaal's words carried too much weight to dismiss without a second thought, because the man knew. Even if he didn't know it was through Return by Death, Roswaal knew Subaru repeated events. Accordingly, he was the only one who could realistically imagine just what a road of thorns Subaru walked. \"And now that you have rejected the path of the Sage and chosen the path of the Fool, I will never allow you to compromise. Is this not natural? It is you who wished for this.\" With Subaru unable to speak a word, Roswaal took a step forward, closing the distance between them. Then, reaching out with a hand, he grasped Subaru's shoulder, gently pulled his face close, and whispered into Subaru's ear. \" Hereafter, if you lose someone around you who you should have protected, I will swiftly burn the remaining others away without hesitation and, with the cursed seal, become ash myself.\" *** \"You have decided to shoulder all. You must not abandon anything. I will not allow a lost world to continue into the future. I reject your compromise now that I have lost the book of knowledge, I have only you to guide me to Teacher, young Subaru. You and the path you walk.\" Pulling his face away, Roswaal gave Subaru's chest a light shove. Even though it had little strength behind it, Subaru wobbled as if he had been thrust away, grabbing hold of the railing to support his body.  This was Roswaal L. Mathers, the man who lived for a wish that was four hundred years old. He would never seek to inflict undesired suffering upon Subaru and Emilia again. If Subaru wished it, he would no doubt cooperate to work toward Subaru's objectives, even lending Emilia a hand with his full strength. But if Subaru miscalculated even slightly, Roswaal would flip the table over, rendering everything futile. This was no lie or deception. Roswaal absolutely would do it for the sake of his greatest desire. \"My, there is no need to be so frightened. So long as you remain true to yourself and continue in your duty, I shall cooperate with you fully this is simply the new pact between you and I.\" \"...I've learned that for pacts, you have to check not just the fine print but the guy you're signing it with, too.\" Subaru's sarcasm and anguished sigh made Roswaal widen his eyes. Immediately after, he put his hand to his mouth as he began to laugh. He laughed for a while before saying, \"Ah, yes,\" and lifting his face. \"I only just said I would cooperate in full, so there is something of which I must properly inform you.\" \"You're still holding on to secrets to shake me up?\" \"In the royal capital and this time, that makes it twice that I have hired the Bowel Hunter. But the girl in bonds underground...this Beast Master, I had nothing to do with either of her attacks.\" \" Huh?\" Subaru, on guard for what more might come, could only drop his mouth wide open. The girl held in bonds underground meant Meili, captured at the mansion and kept prisoner since. At present, the death of her partner in crime, Elsa, had left her too uncooperative to deal with in any other fashion. That had hurt his head enough, but Roswaal's next words were a thunderclap out of the clear blue sky. \"This time, my contract only targeted Beatrice. In accordance with the book of knowledge, I was to liberate that girl from her twisted fate... But if I heard correctly, those girls had plans that went beyond my request, did they not?\" \"Yeah, Elsa and Meili were part of the same group, I figure, so Meili was helping her out with her contract. Because if that wasn't the case, who could've tipped them off about the mansion's interior like that...?\" \" In other words, there was another culprit who planned this attack on the mansion besides meeee.\" *** \"Your troubles shall continue. Truly, that is where you shine. You really are cut out for struggling, are you not?\" Letting those words of sarcasm dangle, Roswaal inverted his now-empty glass over his mouth. A single droplet of alcohol fell and struck his lips. With that, he departed from the terrace, advancing in the direction of the great hall. \"Congratulations, young Subaru. Take this as praise from a Witch's apprentice you have won...today, at least.\" Leaving those final words behind, Roswaal left the terrace. A cold wind blew. The chill from wind and his sweat sent a small tremble through Subaru's body. The traces of the fire continued to smolder. Subaru felt the heat of those lingering flames as he let out a very deep breath. 3 \" So this is where you were, Subaru.\" Subaru was resting his weight against the handrail and gazing at the stars in the night sky when a voice called to him. When he lowered his gaze, the moonlight only increased the beauty of the silver fairy standing before him  \"Emilia-tan? I thought an angel or a fairy had come for me.\" \"There you go saying strange things again. Don't tell me that you're drunk?\" \"I messed up bad before, so I'm really careful about alcohol. This time, I'm just drunk on the atmosphere.\" \"So you really are drunk.\" Emilia shot Subaru a smile as she leaned on the handrail right beside Subaru. The white flesh poking out from her pure ceremonial garment, the nape of her neck, and her cheeks were ever so slightly reddened as she made a small, amused-looking smile. \"I've been looking for you this whole time... Where did you run off to, Subaru?\" \"Setting aside the location, event-wise, it sure felt like a long, drawn-out battle against the final boss. Somehow, I got through it, but I feel like it shaved years off my life span. Emilia-tan, will you console me?\" \"Yes, yes. Today, Subaru is drunk on the mood as well as himself.\" Mysteriously, he returned to his normal state after talking with Emilia. Now that he was freed from the weighty mental state left by his exchange with Roswaal, the feeling of exhilaration over the ceremony came rushing right back. Setting that aside, standing in front of Emilia was making him feel awkward, so Subaru put his glass to his lips to conceal his blush. \"By the way, did you manage to make up with Roswaal?\" \"Geh! Ack! Th-that's one hell of a timely question...!\" \"From the looks of it, Roswaal really teased you quite a bit.\" She touched a sore point for him. Her use of the word teased was so cute that it bothered him somewhat, but Subaru made no effort to refute the point. \"A bit, yeah,\" he straight-up admitted with a nod. \"After all that, it almost feels like nothing changed from before...or if anything, it got even worse.\" \"Roswaal's probably afraid of everyone forgetting what he's done. That's why he's doing that to draw everyone's attention to himself. He's really childish deep down, you know.\" Subaru was taken back by how Emilia put her hands on her hips, speaking those words with the faintest hint of anger. He was not taken back by her cuteness it was because Subaru, too, believed this was the truth. The instant he had the thought, his interpretation of Roswaal's earlier admonition changed considerably. \"...You're really something, Emilia-tan.\" \"Is that so? Tee-hee, thank you. I think Subaru's really something, too.\" \"Hmm, I wonder.\" \"Yes, you are! Goodness, Subaru... Hey, look over there.\" Emilia irritably walked over to Subaru, whose face showed scant appreciation for everything he'd done, and then she spread both arms wide to indicate the scene in the great hall.  Inside were all their companions and the visible result of Subaru's, Emilia's, and everyone else's efforts. \"Everyone's having fun, aren't they?\" \"...I suppose you're right. It's like an at-home banquet, kind of the ideal for my small-time, common-man sensibilities.\" \"Mm, I think so, too. This is a really nice scene.\" Her violet eyes contained affection and envy in equal measure. Glancing at them from the side made Subaru's heart tremble.  This was the scene Emilia had wanted to see. In a broader sense, this was the ideal she was seeking to make a reality. The atmosphere offered tranquility for nobles, merchants, commoners, humans, demi-humans, and mixed-blood people, without any discrimination of social standing or race. \" Subaru, you're making a really gentle face.\" \"Guess that figures. I think I'm just happy watching the same scene as Emilia-tan and also thinking how nice everything is.\" \"Ahhh, I get it. I'm happy Subaru feels the same way I do, too.\" \"Hmm, I wonder. I might disagree with you on that. Sometimes, it's fine to be different.\" Even though they were looking at the same thing and sharing the same feelings of happiness, they were still looking at the scene before them two different ways. It wasn't necessary for lovers to be the same in anything and everything. The thought he had that moment was, It's fine to be different. *** Emilia narrowed her violet eyes, gently gazing at Subaru. He didn't know if the entire meaning of his words had reached her. But the important part had been conveyed. If they could share this much, it was plenty. Beyond that was not just extravagance but arrogance. \"...Hey, Subaru. After this, there's something I want to discuss with my knight.\" \"What a coincidence. I have plenty of things I want to ask Emilia-tan, too.\" The words Emilia spoke in a show of courage left Subaru shrugging and flashing a smile back at her. Emilia breathed out in relief, gently offering him the pinkie finger of her right hand. \"It's a promise, then. You did this with Petra. This is a tradition from Subaru's homeland, yes?\" \"Ohhh, it sure is. What sharp eyes you have. Break this promise, and your meals will be needles for breakfast, lunch, and supper.\" \"Oh no, so scary... You better keep this promise, then.\" Nervously, Emilia wrapped her slender finger around Subaru's right pinkie. \"When the celebration is over, let's have an important talk in my room. Don't break our promise this time, okay?\" \"I'm a serial promise-breaker and all, but is it even an option to not keep my word to go to Emilia-tan's room at night after I've been summoned? I'm thinking no.\" \"I'm sorry I don't have any idea what you're talking about.\" The two engaged in such typical banter as they formed that promise between them. Missing the touch of their joined pinkies as they parted, Subaru went, \"Now, then,\" as he winked. \"I'll have fun finding out what this talk's all about.\" \"...I need to talk to you about...me. One night might not even be enough to finish.\" \"If it's that important, I'll be with you as many nights as it takes. I'm your one and only knight, okay?\" \"O-okay.\" She did her best to mimic Subaru's usual jesting tone. Emilia's nervous behavior reflected her underlying concern. She felt uneasy talking about herself. If this was connected to the past she saw in the Trial, Subaru could understand her unease. He understood, but he wanted to tell her it was an unnecessary concern nonetheless. \"It's all right, Emilia-tan. No matter what happens, you'll never disappoint me.\" \"Subaru...\" \"It's just like I told you at the tomb. I love you, so everything'll be okay. That's all there is to it.\" No matter what she'd tell him, no matter what it triggered, nothing would change. \" What's important isn't where you start or what happens midway but how it ends.\" Led to his parents and the thoughts they'd conveyed to him, this was the answer he'd arrived at in the tomb.  He really couldn't hold a candle to his mom. Or his dad, either, for that matter. \"Besides, even if there are issues, it's not like it's a big deal now, right?\" \"...How can you tell?\" \"It was"}, {"text": "the way you looked at the great hall with gentle eyes just now. I can already tell from that.\" The scene spread forth in the great hall of Miload Manor was one without discrimination between human and demi-human, noble and commoner. When Subaru called that his ideal, Emilia accepted it with a look of longing. Whatever ideals might be raised high in Emilia's heart, Subaru had no doubt he could believe in them. \"If you want to make this happen everywhere, I'll help. I think this is a good cause. If that scene becomes a part of why Emilia-tan always works so hard, then I'll be first in line to help you.\" \"Subaru, can I...really depend on you?\" \"What do you think that oath I swore to you earlier was all about? Go and depend on me before anyone else. I'll do anything I can do to help, and if I don't understand something, we'll think about it together.\" *** Emilia's eyes trembled more than at any point before, almost like the reply wasn't the one she had expected at all. She was searching for something appropriate to say. But she couldn't find anything. \" Okay.\" Hence, Emilia murmured that single word, nodding. Then she made a small, lovely, captivating smile.  That was the best answer. It was plenty. \"All right, all doubts cleared up.\" Saying this, Subaru took the glass standing on the handrail and went bottoms up. Then he grasped the now-cold meat pie and stuffed his cheeks, chewing it down. The delicious taste was undiminished by the temperature; he savored the texture as the pie crumbled in his mouth. The flavor was the final product of a rather large commotion involving Garfiel, Frederica, and Ryuzu, but that was another story. Either way, to Subaru, the pie formed by those familial bonds was exquisite. \"Oh. Subaru, if you eat it so fast, you're going to choke on it.\" \"Well. I'm hungry. I'll savor the taste more if Emilia-tan says aah for me, though.\" \"I feel like I've done that before when Subaru was all tired...\" Emilia wore a slight, strained smile as she replied. \"Now then,\" said Subaru, leading her by the hand toward the great hall. As she was led by the hand, Emilia looked up at the sky but once. Then she smiled and let Subaru escort her, entering the hall at his side. The pair's return in the middle of the banquet only served to heighten the excitement. Maybe Otto had imbibed too much; his clothes were all disheveled as he stumbled around in a drunken stupor. Garfiel was right there with Otto, but when he tried to bring alcohol to his mouth, he received a lecture from Frederica about it. Petra and Beatrice had reached the climax of their disparate dancing. Petra had sweat on her brow as she smiled like a flower; Beatrice was putting on quite a passionate performance of her own in her desperation to not be beaten. Ryuzu and Roswaal sat beside each other, lightly tapping their glasses together and exchanging words a little here and there, like old acquaintances rekindling their relationship. Subaru spotted Ram nearby, watching the scene from a distance, her lips relaxing in apparent relief. Instead of staying at Roswaal's side, she stood by the younger sister she had lost all memory of and yet still felt a tangible, lingering bond between them. It was almost like she knew Rem would have wanted her to be close. Others partaking in the festivities included various associates of the Miload family. Numerous demi-human servants busily hurried about, while their mistress, the young lady of the household, was venting in annoyance at a rather courteous butler. Later, Subaru would have to celebrate that special night with his favorite dragon, waiting patiently for him outside the manor.  It was with various such thoughts that he spent the evening of festivities with everyone. \"It's a really nice atmosphere, Emilia-tan.\" \"Yes. This really does represent everything I'm trying to achieve. I'll never forget this.\" They began by entering the great hall at the most prominent place, suddenly joining the two dancing girls. They didn't know the first thing about dancing, but the feelings of enjoyment would probably be the same regardless. Even if the steps were haphazard and offbeat. The knight and the witch now officially master and servant stepped forward amid a mix of bewilderment and laughter. ***  In a dark, cold, and indistinct space, the soft patter of bare feet continued to echo at regular intervals. In that lightless world, that space with nothing but unfathomable darkness spreading forth, the source of those footsteps had arrived without ever going astray. The trip had been made with the ease of someone walking into their own bedroom. The sound of dripping water, the cries of insects crawling about, the sensation of mud and gravel beneath the soles of her bare feet she pushed past them all. Finally, she arrived at the deepest reaches of that darkness. She stretched out a hand and stroked a mossy, slippery wall. Instantly, faint lights floated up and danced around her as a lukewarm wind blew through the wall. Her long pink hair and white cloak flapped in that wind. The hovering pinpricks of light circled around her as she slowly passed through the barrier. \"So the reactivation ritual has remained intact.\" The figure no, the girl murmured offhandedly as she slipped outside. The next instant, a dazzling shaft of light made her close her eyes. After walking through the darkness underground, the sunrays outside were like daggers to her eyes. She blinked several times before she could see the world anew.  In the sky taller than the trees of the forest, she saw the sun had only just begun to rise. \"...Surprisingly, I am unmoved.\" With the sunlight striking her eyes, the girl seemed disappointed as she tilted her head. Just as she had said, there was no surge of emotion visible within her impassive eyes. She'd expected something from seeing the real sun after gazing upon a false one for so long, but it didn't affect her as much as she'd thought it would. All that said, she was free to applaud the trick she had played, the performance she had delivered. She felt a sense of accomplishment. She'd recovered the magic crystal she'd had her eye on from the very beginning, and for the moment, she had nothing to be concerned of while wandering about. \"My only regret is that since I was forced to borrow that thing's help, I was unable to see her crushed by the Trial...but she did lift the barrier. I suppose I shall chalk it up as breaking even.\" Had it not been for that, she no, the vessel would never have been able to venture out from the Sanctuary. She had been in a veritable deadlock, drowning in the cleverness of her own scheme. Atypically, thinking of the girl who'd freed her from that situation made her chest overflow with emotions that were difficult to put into words. \"...Well, I don't really mind. I really can't overwork this body, and I'd anticipated having to walk around for a while to fill in all the blanks. There's no need to obsess over such things...for now.\" The girl opened and closed her hands to check on the condition of her body. This was the result of repeatedly exerting herself on the replica, who had a soul identical in nature to the girl whose body had become the core of the barrier. She'd grafted a piece of her soul inside the replica who had once entered the tomb, taking over bit by tiny bit. Revival by attaching a soul to the body of another strictly speaking, this differed from reviving the dead, but it was unquestionably similar, rough around the edges as it might be. It would take time to become fully accustomed to the body, but there was no way around that. Surely, it was a time to be grateful that she could walk around with her old soul and her new body at all. \"As for a name...it has been so long. Perhaps, in accordance with his knowledge, I should call myself Omega?\" The word bore the meaning of \"the end.\" Given her current situation, there was no name more fitting. The girl relaxed her lips as she stepped onto grass, slipping through gaps between the trees and emerging from the forest. An ever-so-slight discomfort could be detected in her gait, but it was nothing truly significant. Fatigue and pain merely meant body and soul were well and truly connected. She could not help but enjoy the feeling of being alive after so long. \"Beatrice has parted ways with the archive of forbidden books. Roswaal has lost his guiding light. But that young man pulled something from the embers, and Garf... Garfiel, with all that anger stored up inside, is a pile of smoldering coals indeed. From the shadows, I suppose I should watch over their valiant exploits as they face him under the light of day.\" The girl intentionally avoided commenting on her slight mental slip as she walked forth. A world was waiting for her a world where nothing was faded and muted, a mountain filled with treasure to satisfy her inexhaustible greed for knowledge. \"And as I go, perhaps the day will come when I finally understand?\" The girl smiled as she gazed at a single flower along the road. Plucking one of its petals with her fingers, she breathed in its scent and subsequently tossed it into her mouth. The flower, so proudly displaying its beauty to the world, would someday wither. Why did flowers wither? Why did beautiful memories shared by people grow faint one day? \" Ahhh, why does love fade so...?\" The girl walked forward, her long pink hair swaying as she murmured to herself. The Witch had been released unto the world once more. CHAPTER 1 *** 1 The instant Subaru Natsuki flew over the white boundary, his world turned upside down. \" Wha ?! Whoa! Gah!\" This was the natural result when one sprinted at top speed. Whether traveling by car or on foot, no one could just instantly come to a stop. Subaru pitched forward over his feet and plunged face-first into the grass. Instantly, he threw out his hands and rolled, breaking his fall to soften the unavoidable impact, then tumbled until he was sprawled on the ground. His breath was ragged, and his vision flickered from the lack of oxygen. He could feel the grass pressing up against his back. Through gaps between the trees, he caught glimpses of the sky beyond. Subaru breathed in as much fresh air as his lungs would let him. Then he thrust a hand toward the sky and clenched it into a fist. \"Oooaaahhh!! That was rough! Things got really bad for a minute there! But it's over! We made it! We hit the goooal!\" Though Subaru was covered in a sheen of sweat, his face lit up as he shouted with a sense of triumph. His spirit had nearly been irrevocably broken on several occasions, but each time, Subaru refused to give up until he finally reached his goal. The number of repeated failures only made his ultimate success that much sweeter. Finally, he could proudly face his mentor, who had taught him so much. \"Subaru, you've done quite well this time, I suppose.\" As he basked in the moment, a girl entered Subaru's field of view. Strangely enough, she was upside down. She looked lovely with her long, lustrous hair in extravagant curls and her elaborate dress. The sight of the young girl, who had distinct patterns in her light-blue eyes, brought a bright smile to Subaru's face. \"Oh, it's you, Beako.\" \"Obviously. Is it not my duty as a partner to praise you for your hard work day after day, I wonder? Also, Petra was rather insistent that I should bring you a towel.\" \"Ah, thanks. This is nice and cool."}, {"text": "I feel alive again.\" \"Why not thank Petra directly, I wonder? That girl will probably leap with joy.\" As Subaru set the damp towel on his head, Beatrice addressed him with an impassive face. However, he noticed a slight smile on her lips and couldn't help grinning a bit in return. Even though he spent every waking moment with Beatrice, it surprised him how he still hadn't gotten tired of these kinds of little daily interactions yet. They only grew closer with each passing day. \"...Man, to think that it's been a whole year since Beako and I made a pact, huh.\" \" ? What brought this on all of a sudden, I wonder?\" \"Nah, just thinking that time flies way too fast. And that I'm deeply moved by how cute you are today, too.\" \"You always say that, Subaru. But is Betty being cute not something to take for granted, I wonder?\" The fact that she took pride in the compliment was undeniable proof that Subaru had rubbed off on her quite a bit. One year. That was how much time had passed since the string of incidents surrounding the Sanctuary. It was a span of time that seemed so long and so short at once. In that stretch, some things had changed, while others had not. If the biggest constant was the bond between Subaru and his friends, then the greatest development had to be  \" The sheer amount I've buffed up this past year. No one would recognize the old me anymore.\" \"Pffffft. Th-that was a good one... A priceless joke.\" \"I was being serious, damn it!\" Beatrice put a hand to her mouth as she broke into uncontrollable laughter. Subaru shrugged in a show of disappointment. \"Well, maybe I exaggerated a bit, but you don't need to laugh that hard. I mean, look at these biceps, Beako! They're rock-solid!\" \"Fine, fine, I suppose. Betty will support you even if no one else will.\" \"That was not a vote of confidence! I've been trying so hard every day, too.\" Sitting cross-legged on the ground, Subaru wrapped the cool towel around his neck as he gestured toward the area behind him with his chin. Gazing in that direction, Beatrice said, \"True,\" closing one eye as she made the comment. Behind the pair was a clearing where the forest had been cut open. This developed land was a trial Subaru had taken on with determination in other words, he'd created his very own secret training facility. Attracted by the idea of having a place to call his own, he'd secured a fair bit of space in the forest for his personal use. By utilizing wood from felled trees, he'd built a variety of attractions, including various hurdles to leap over and barriers to climb, turning the whole area into an obstacle course. \"The place might look like fun, but when people try to run around and bust through all the attractions within the time limit, its brutal design will make even adults cry... Damn, I made something pretty wild.\" \"Is that not an overstatement, I wonder? For that matter, only you and Garfiel refer to it as a secret base. Will the neighborhood children come by to play, I wonder?\" \"You mean kids are going to treat it like an amusement park? Well, as long as no one gets hurt, they can play all they want. Plus, the master who drew up the blueprints should be satisfied with that.\" Taking the challenge seriously served as a form of training, while tackling it with playful heart made it a fun excursion. The obstacle course contained great potential, and it being popular with children was a happy miscalculation. \"Actually, knowing my mentor, it's possible the whole point was to kill two birds with one stone from the very beginning...\" \"He is certainly a difficult man to understand. He does know his manners, I suppose. The man should be praised for treating a Great Spirit with respect.\" \"I think that's not quite it, though.\" Subaru poked at her apparent misunderstanding, then took a moment to think. His mentor Clind, the ultra-capable butler who had served the Mathers family for many years. He had helped Subaru so much in the past year and taught him a great many things, including how to hone his physique. Subaru's title for him was more serious than not. In terms of ability and personality, Clind was more than worthy of praise, but  \"Why does Subaru refuse to allow Betty to go anywhere near Clind, I wonder?\" \"It's not just you. Same goes for Petra and, depending on the situation, Emilia-tan, too.\" Incidentally, there was no worrying where Ram and Frederica were concerned. For the record, Clind was harmless to Subaru, Roswaal, Otto, and Garfiel as well, for fairly obvious reasons. \"Anyway, it's fine even if this obstacle course is just a secret base in name only. Still sounds cool.\" \"I was shocked. The instant you called it that, Garfiel began helping you fell trees with that glint in his eyes... It's probably impossible to understand why the two of you find it so appealing, I suppose.\" \"It's something that calls to all men. Wait, but then what about Otto?\" Subaru and Beatrice both thought back to Otto's decidedly lukewarm reaction to the idea. In any case, Subaru's prodigious growth was all thanks to the secret training base in the forest. It was only a ten-minute walk from the mansion, and no one except the people from the mansion ever came by. The only real downside was how often they would show up and get in the way of training. \"How ridiculous to consider this getting in the way. Is Betty not merely fulfilling her duty as Subaru's partner, I wonder? And what a chore it is, truly.\" \"Now you've done it. This is what happens to young ladies who get full of themselves!\" \"What are you doing, I wonder?!\" Since she was being so cheeky and cute, Subaru used all his newfound strength to grab Beatrice and put her over his knees, patting her on the head as much as he pleased. \"You're terrible! Isn't this spirit abuse, I wonder?! What a heinous contractor!\" \"Mwa-ha-ha. Well, you're the idiot who made a pact with a guy like me without putting anything in writing.\" Subaru laughed as Beatrice pouted while she fixed her tousled hair. When they first formed the pact, he thought he already adored her as much as humanly possible, but he had been revising that assumption on a daily basis. The so-called Beako Development Diary a compilation of the days he shared with Beatrice had already entered its fifth volume. Subaru was excited to see where their relationship would go next. After all, an album of precious memories beat the hell out of a book filled with nothing but blank pages. And if it was going to be an album, then the more pictures and the more people he recorded, the better. That's why Subaru wanted to cram as much as he could into Beatrice's heart. \"In other words, Beako, my teasing is just another way I show my love.\" \"Did you say teasing just now, I wonder?! I will not let that slide!\" \"I'd prefer it if you didn't casually brush aside the love part.\" \"There isn't much to worry about there, I suppose. I have great confidence that I am loved.\" When Beatrice boasted with a smug look on her face, Subaru only replied with a smile. He had no words to express the joy he felt when he saw how self-assured and full of life she was every day. There was only a deep, indescribable warmth that welled up in his chest. \"Master Subaru! Beatrice !\" Both paused their play-fighting when they heard a high-pitched voice calling out to them. When they looked, a girl was waving as she ran over. The familiar voice and face belonged to an adorable young maid who epitomized the word cute. \"I'm glad to see that both of you are having fun. It's good to know you two are getting along.\" It was Petra, putting a hand to her chest and smiling in relief. Undaunted by the major incident that had occurred one year prior, Petra was currently working at the new Roswaal Manor. As expected of a growing girl, she had gotten a little bit taller and, in Subaru's opinion, a little more charming since then. That said, she was still very much a younger-sister type in Subaru's eyes. \"Hey now, I'm offended you call it playing around. I've been out here doing my best with training and everything.\" \"Well, at the moment, you seem to be patting Beatrice while she's sitting on your lap, so...\" \"Whoa, it's not as simple as just wanting to give Beako head pats. First, you have to bring her out of a burning mansion and then gradually build up your relationship with her. Otherwise, it's impossible.\" \"Doesn't that mean no one but Master Subaru can ever...?\" Her exasperated tone and expression drew a wry smile from Subaru. That was when he remembered the towel around his neck. \"Oh, right. Petra, thanks for the towel. Pretty smart to cool it down like that.\" \"Really? I'm glad it was helpful. Actually, I thought about chilling it with ice, but there was no time, so I asked Big Sis Emilia.\" \"I like that practical part of you, Petra.\" He was fond of how Petra, despite her position as a servant, had no qualms requesting help from the lady of the household. Such open praise elicited a \"hee-hee-hee\" from Petra, who blushed furiously before she remembered something. \"Ah, that's right. Actually, I came here to bring you and Beatrice back.\" \"What is it? Did you bake some super-tasty tarts or something?\" \"What?! That is a matter of great importance, I suppose. I can understand why you needed to summon us so urgently.\" \"Oh, come on, of course that's not it. This is no time to play around.\" Puffing up her cheeks and pointedly raising a finger, Petra scolded the carefree pair. Then she grabbed Subaru's hand and hauled him to his feet. \"There'll be time for tarts later! More importantly, Big Sis Emilia is calling you, Master Subaru. Guests have arrived...and she wants you to be there when she greets them.\" \"Visitors?\" Subaru cocked his head in confusion. He had no idea who it could be. Beside him, Beatrice made the same quizzical gesture as they wondered aloud. \"There are unscheduled guests, and the cute Emilia-tan is calling me over... Doesn't it feel like something's about to happen?\" \"It's the sort of pattern that leads to trouble, I suppose. Petra, tell us what kind of guests have come.\" \"Errr,\" went Petra as she tilted her head at the same angle as the other two. \"One of them is a man who seems like he's in a real hurry. I'd almost say he's fidgeting like he's scared.\" \"Restless and fidgety, huh. In other words, he's basically suspi... No, wait. Can't go judging people based on appearances.\" \"I've learned my lesson once already, so I don't do that, either.\" \"Ohhh, good girl, Petra. Not sure what happened before, but that's really nice of you.\" \"Last year, a stranger with a mean face came to the village. I thought he was a weirdo, but I was completely wrong, so...\" \"An unexpected boomerang!! We'll have to talk about that first impression some other time...\" After surviving that verbal sneak attack, Subaru winked at Petra. After all, based on her report so far, Petra still had more to share. \"Anyway, there are other guests, too, yeah? Pals of restless-fidgety guy?\" Petra's cheeks grew redder as a trace of happiness came over her face. \" He came with a cute kitty cat.\" 2 Viewed from the outside, the new Roswaal Manor looked just like a European-style mansion, closely resembling the old one that had burned down. This mansion was actually considered the main residence, and it had"}, {"text": "been constructed more recently than the one that had been lost in the fire. Accordingly, it was more grandiose and occupied more space than the countryside mansion, which likely made maintaining the grounds all the more arduous for the servants like Petra. \"And here we are, back at this swanky manor.\" After a quick ten-minute walk from the forest, Subaru and the others pushed open the double doors and stepped into the mansion's entry hall. Subaru assumed the guests they heard about must have been brought to a reception room or something. \"For starters, we should poke our faces over the...\" \"Oh, hey! If it isn't Mister! How've you been?\" \"Wha ? Whoa?!\" An energetic greeting and a sudden impact put an end to any other thoughts. The voice was high-pitched, and something thumped into him at chest level. Subaru hastily reached out with his hands and caught something light. Quickly realizing who it was, the expression on Subaru's face changed from shock to recognition. He remembered the super-soft fur and that ridiculously outgoing smile. \"I had a sneaking suspicion after hearing it from Petra...but it really is you, Mimi!\" \"Eh-heh-heh-heh. It's been a while, Mister! How long has it been? Like, a year?\" The beast person wrapped up in Subaru's arms had bright-orange fur and wore a white robe. She was a demi-human, or more specifically, a cat-person. She was shorter than Petra and Beatrice, and she was undeniably cute as a kitten. \"Yeah, it's been a whole year. You seem to be having a good time. I'm glad.\" \"Yep! Mimi's having a super-good time! Also, Mimi's gotten taller! I'm basically an adult now!\" \"What kind of grown woman jumps on someone's head the second they meet?!\" Mimi, who was now standing on the floor, puffed out her chest and swished her long tail. She acted naive and had a super-friendly personality, but she was one of the leaders of the beast person mercenary unit known as the Iron Fangs and a powerful warrior many times stronger than Subaru. She'd also fought by Subaru's side during the hunt for the White Whale and once again later in the battle against the Witch Cult, during which she'd gone ahead and decided she and Subaru were war buddies. \"Well, you sure came a long way to get here. Oh right, let me introduce everyone. The cute maid here is Petra, and the embarrassed baby hiding behind my back is Beatrice.\" \"Ohhh, I get it! So it's Petra the maid, and your child!\" \"Would you mind remembering me in a less unpleasant manner, I wonder?!\" In response to Mimi's questionable conclusion, Petra offered a graceful curtsy, while Beatrice shot a withering glare that broke past the bashfulness Subaru so enjoyed. Then Mimi went, \"Oh!\" Her eyes glittered as she stared at Beatrice. \"Wow, that hair's incredible! How do you get it all curly-wurly? It's so cool!\" \"It was all Mother's idea. This is the pinnacle of hairstyling both practical and elegant.\" \"Uh, elegance aside, no way in hell it's practical. How many times has your hair gotten snagged in all sorts of places? I think you've had your share of problems with that over the past year.\" Whether inside the mansion, outdoors, or nestled within Subaru's arms, Beatrice's hair constantly got in the way. By this point, Subaru's skill at disentangling hair was probably unmatched in the entire kingdom. He practically deserved a title like Bea-trimmer. \"Right, practical and elegant! I don't know what that stuff means, though!\" \"Your gaze is like that of an uncomprehending chi... Hey, would you stop pulling, I wonder?!\" Bursting with curiosity, Mimi took great interest in Beatrice's curls. Mimi's movements were like a cat that had a mouse in its sights. Beatrice meekly looked to Subaru in search of rescue. However, seeing a chance for Beatrice to make a new friend, Subaru left them to their own devices. \"Hey, Master Subaru. Beatrice looks like she's really concerned.\" \"Wrestling with your failings is what makes people grow. Beatrice has a tendency to give up without even trying, so this is her challenge. Let's stay quiet and watch over her like a good mom and dad.\" \"M-mom...? O-okay...\" Petra fell silent with a red face as Subaru stroked his nonexistent beard. The pair stood back and simply appreciated the warm exchange between Beatrice and Mimi. \"Incidentally, since Mimi turned out to be the kitty Petra talked about...that probably means the restless-fidgety man who came with her is Julius, doesn't it?\" Crossing his arms, Subaru felt in his gut that this premonition was most likely accurate. It was plain to see that Subaru was very fond of Mimi personally. At the same time, she was part of the faction working under Anastasia Hoshin, one of Emilia's political rivals in the royal selection. Another person working for the Anastasia camp was Julius Juukulius, a knight who had a complicated relationship with Subaru. At the very least, they didn't have the kind of relationship where Subaru was unconditionally glad to see him. This being the case, he wanted to avoid seeing the man until he had some time to emotionally prepare himself, if he could help it. \"Mister, there's no need to worry! Julius isn't here today. Also, Hetaro and TB and the captain and the lady aren't here, either! Mimi's escorting all by herself!\" \"Phew, that's a relief. But damn, Anastasia's crew has a deep bench.\" Subaru still felt a certain wariness even after learning of the knight's absence. Surely, Anastasia wouldn't send just anyone to serve as an envoy to Emilia, a rival candidate in the royal selection. Anastasia was a big-time merchant, and the Hoshin Company she ran was a massive organization based out of the western city-state of Kararagi. Neither the quantity nor quality of her followers could be underestimated. Subaru decided he had best sit down with this envoy and gauge him sooner rather than later. \"All right, this time, we really are going to the reception room...yes?\" \"Yes. That's where I left the guest. Big Sis Emilia and the others are already there.\" \"Meaning it's Emilia-tan dealing with this guest, plus Otto and Garfiel, plus maybe Ram...? Better go rescue Otto before he dies of a stomachache.\" \"Is there anyone more pitiful, I wonder? His luck ran out the moment you caught him, Subaru.\" \"Hey, stop making it sound like I grabbed him and won't let go.\" Beatrice wore an exasperated face as Mimi, in an unbelievably good mood, kept her left hand glued to Beatrice's right. With Petra leading the way, Subaru followed as they headed to the reception room on the second floor. When the four of them arrived at their destination, they found a single girl standing in the hallway. \"Ram? Why are you out here?\" \"So you've finally come, Barusu. You are quite late, aren't...?\" Ram was a beautiful maid whose charming appearance belied her razor-sharp tongue. Greeting their party with a demeanor reminiscent of someone speaking to her inferiors, she broke off midsentence to narrow her pink eyes. Then she sighed deeply. \"Indecent.\" \"You're the weirdo for thinking this lineup is indecent! How can you find this scene anything but heartwarming?!\" \"Please stop basing everything on whatever passes for virtue in your brain. You would do well to remember this, Subaru. In Ram's world, only Ram's point of view matters.\" \"Wasn't there a lot of inconsistency just now between the first and the last part of what you said?!\" Decrying subjectivity with her own subjectivity was so self-centered that Subaru was at a loss for words. Ignoring Subaru's reaction, Ram crossed her arms as she shifted her gaze toward Mimi. \"Dear guest, if you stay away any longer, your companion will be quite worried.\" \"Ahhh, I guess I should head back, huh? Whoopsie !\" \"Yes, please do. Otherwise, it will be very bothersome, since your absence forced a certain Ram to leave the room to find you.\" Judging by the conversation so far, it seemed that Mimi had raced around the mansion without getting permission from either the master of the house or her companion. It was natural to assume that Mimi of all people wouldn't get up to any funny business even if left alone. Then Subaru turned to Ram as something occurred to him. \"You didn't look for her at all, did you? You've just been standing with your arms crossed in front of the room.\" \"Just a convenient excuse. The atmosphere inside is hard to endure. Otto will probably die if you don't hurry.\" \"I have to give it to you for not having even the tiniest sliver of guilt.\" He had to admire her complete disregard for the fact that they had guests despite her supposedly being a maid. For Ram to say that it was uncomfortable inside the room was sincerely frightening. Still, Subaru braced himself because he found the thought of not being involved even more terrifying. \"Thanks for bringing us over, Petra. Are you going to...?\" \"Ah, I'll be busy baking some delicious tarts, so good luck in there, Dad.\" \"Agh... Since Mom's gone and said it, there's no backing down!\" Now it was Petra's turn to tease Subaru with more banter, like they were Beatrice's parents. Of course, Petra had a job of her own to do. Subaru couldn't expect her to keep him company on a whim. It's not like she's abandoning me or anything. At least, that's what he wanted to believe. Probably. Maybe. \"All right, let's go. Can't catch a tiger cub without going into the tiger's hole.\" \"You mean a butthole?\" \"How vulgar.\" \"I didn't say that! Let's just go already!\" Ignoring Mimi's confusion and Ram's judgment, Subaru knocked on the door to the reception room. The door opened immediately, and a head topped with short blond hair stuck out into the hallway. \"Yo, awful late, ain't ya, General? Our bro's gonna wind up with a hole in his stomach any second now.\" \"Yeah, I know. Honestly, it's only a matter of time before it happens, but I'd like to keep him whole for as long as possible.\" \"No kiddin'! This is basically the Arkel Lake Revolt!\" Subaru and Garfiel exchanged smiles like little mischief-makers. Immediately swinging the door wide, Garfiel still wore that smile on his face as he gestured toward the interior of the room with his chin. \"Come on in. Nothin's happenin' without the general, so it's a pain for the guest, too. Watching Otto and Lady Emilia welcome our visitor ain't nothin' but a comedy act.\" \"Now, that's a performance worth seeing... Gah!\" \"Stop saying stupid things and go in. You're in the way.\" After getting a literal kick in the butt from Ram, Subaru was forced into the room. Stumbling forward as he entered, several sets of eyes shifted toward him. *** Relief, exasperation, and suspicion. This was pretty much what he had expected. He turned away from the two familiar figures to focus on the one regarding him suspiciously. The visitor was a pretty boy with a handsome, delicate face. His lithe body was clad in exquisite ceremonial garments, and he had gathered some of his relatively long hair in a ponytail. He seemed about the same age as Subaru, though his face looked rather tense, and the monocle he wore over his right eye only added to the stern appearance. \"So this is...?\" When this guest made his inquiry with a hard voice, the beautiful girl sitting across from him nodded. \"Yes, that's correct.\" The delicate, silver-haired beauty who wore a charming expression that perfectly reflected her wholesome spirit was none other than Emilia. It seemed like she only became more enchanting with each passing day. She smiled slightly, gesturing at Subaru with a gentle point of her finger. \"I am sorry for the wait. This is my knight, Subaru Natsuki.\" Emilia introducing him as her knight left Subaru's heart trembling. Whenever he heard those words, he often thought back to the time she"}, {"text": "had bestowed the title upon him. The fond memory always bolstered Subaru's frail, fragile heart. \"H-he seems to be rather ecstatic about something...\" \"Subaru, stop making such a strange face. People will think there's something wrong with you if you act like that...and why are you gripping my hand so hard, I wonder? Wait, it hurts! Ow, owww!!\" \" Whoa!! Ah, sorry, I zoned out a bit there without even realizing.\" He had been so preoccupied with his thoughts that he'd almost crushed Beatrice's adorable hand by accident. In any case, Beatrice was right. Their guest was already staring at Subaru dubiously. Deciding that this situation needed to be resolved sooner rather than later, Subaru cleared his throat and raised the customary salute of knights. After standing up straight and composing his face, he put his right hand over his chest and willed his heart to calm down. \"Please excuse my poor manners. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lady Emilia's knight, Subaru Natsuki.\" *** The fact that he was clothed in a track jacket probably cost him points, but Subaru's salute had been drilled into him by a certain versatile butler until he got his seal of approval. It was as perfect as could be. In the past, Subaru had scoffed at all the theatrics of knightly etiquette, but when he tried it for himself, he quickly became captivated by all the trappings. Though he had not been born into the position, the customs and attitude were slowly but surely guiding Subaru Natsuki closer to knighthood. It wasn't something stupid or just for show. It seemed as though Subaru's greeting had impressed everyone present, save the guest. Emilia's smile was especially proud, which boosted Subaru's spirits so, so much. Surrounded by these faces and apparently unwilling to endure any more silence, the visitor rose up and bowed his head. \"...Thank you for your courtesy. I'm here to... I have come to represent Anastasia Hoshin. My name is Joshua Juukulius.\" \"No, thank you. A fine name you have, Joshua...Juukulius?\" In the middle of exchanging perfunctory greetings, Subaru faltered when he heard the familiar family name. Seeing his reaction, Emilia pulled her hands to her chest. \"Ah, it seems you're surprised, too, Subaru. That's right, Joshua is apparently Julius's younger brother. It's really wonderful that both brothers are helping Ms. Anastasia, isn't it?\" Subaru's cheek twitched as he listened to Emilia's explanation, her violet eyes filled with admiration all the while. It was just as Mimi had said. Julius hadn't come himself, but  \"Sir Natsuki, is it? I have heard about you from my older brother, as well as from, shall we say...various rumors.\" Almost seemingly taking advantage of Subaru's distress, Joshua spoke with some amusement. The sharp glint in his eyes and his refined yet biting attitude convinced Subaru that this was most certainly someone related to Julius by blood. Subaru kneaded his brow in consternation before looking back up. \"I'm afraid to find out what he might've said about me to his family.\" \"There is no need for concern. My brother is an exceptionally impartial man.\" These words drew a strained smile from Subaru. Joshua raised an eyebrow, unable to decipher his reaction. That's exactly why was what Subaru wanted to retort, but he refrained. \"Anyway, Julius's younger brother, is it? Now that you mention it, that nast...er, that keen look in your eye, the sarcas...uh, the refined manner of speech, and the terribly...lovely hair color are all the same, huh?\" \"Would you please stop with the unnecessary flattery? It's fairly obvious how bad you are at it.\" Otto, chief domestic adviser of the Emilia faction, could not conceal his cold sweat as he asked Subaru to rein in his choppy attempts at praise. \"Dude, have you lost weight since I last saw you?\" \"It has only been a few hours, but every day is a new struggle! Someday, I will undoubtedly succumb to the chills and stomach pain! Also, I completely heard your conversation with Garfiel earlier!\" \"Well, I wasn't particularly hiding it. I don't intend to keep anything from you if I can help it.\" \"Could you try a little harder to hide some things?!\" Deflecting Otto's complaint with a superficial \"yeah, yeah,\" Subaru smoothly took a seat at Emilia's side. Once there, he sat Beatrice down on his lap, moving his hands around her tummy to support her. This put Emilia, Subaru (plus Beatrice), and Otto in a row on the reception-room sofa. \"Now, then. Sorry to make you wait. Could we continue the conversa ?\" \"W-wait a moment, please! Who is this girl?!\" \" ? Is something the matter with Betty, I wonder?\" Flustered, Joshua pointed at her, and Beatrice cocked her head quizzically. \"Wait, what...? Am I the only one who finds this strange?\" \"No, I am quite sorry. Your reaction is only to be expected. If anything, this is a place where common sense goes to die.\" When Joshua leaned forward with such force that his monocle came loose, Otto apologized with a sympathetic look in his eyes. It seemed that Joshua was not nearly as unflappable as his older brother. Subaru also apologized even as he privately thought that this made Joshua the easier brother to get along with. \"Having Beako on my lap has become so second nature to me that I did it without thinking.\" \"It's so normal now that even Otto didn't bring it up. I'm flabbergasted, too.\" \"No one says flabbergasted anymore...\" Emilia had skillfully woven yet another outdated term into the conversation, but Subaru agreed with the message nonetheless. His and Beatrice's relationship had been normalized to the point that it no longer elicited witty quips from Otto. \"Sheesh, Joshua's so sloooow \" Mimi cut in as she hopped over, settling into her seat beside Joshua. She helped herself to the sweets on the table as she poked Joshua's cheek with her long tail. \"That's Beako! Mister and Miss's child !\" \"What?!\" \"Right, right. This is my and Emilia-tan's adorable baby, Beatrice.\" When Subaru took advantage of Joshua's shock, Emilia immediately slapped him on the shoulder. \"Goodness. Of course not. Now look. You've gone and startled Joshua. I may have kissed you, Subaru, but babies don't come from a kiss. I've learned that much, at least.\" \"Ah, sorry, Emilia-tan. It's really embarrassing, so could you stop revealing details like that so, um, bluntly? I'll stop messing around and introduce her properly.\" Emilia's incredibly innocent openness quickly forced Subaru into submission. Incidentally, Emilia's knowledge of baby-making had yet to progress past the kissing doesn't make babies level. Discussing anything beyond that was a high hurdle for Subaru, and the others generally agreed to a vague consensus of we'll worry about it when she's older. In the end, everyone was simply overprotective. \"See, this is what happens when you use Betty as the butt of a joke. Have you learned your lesson yet, I wonder?\" \"Yes, I've thought long and hard about what I did wrong. From now on, I'll think up even better pranks.\" \"Errr, so this Lady Beatrice's actual position would be...\" \"Ohhh, sorry, got off track again. Beatrice is my contracted spirit.\" \"Contracted...spirit...\" Putting his fallen monocle back in place, Joshua lowered his voice slightly in response to Subaru's explanation. The change in tone and the complicated emotions that reaction seemed to express made Subaru furrow his brow. \"Hey, dear guest. Ya got a problem with the general bringing his Great Spirit with him?\" Garfiel honed in on the young man's distress without the slightest hesitation. \"No,\" replied Joshua, briefly shaking his head. \"I had heard the rumors, but I am merely surprised that Master Natsuki truly is a spirit knight. I believe you are well aware, but my older brother is also a spirit knight...previously the only one in the entire kingdom.\" \"Ahhh, of course we know that. He was a big...gnhhh, big...help to us...\" \"Is that how badly you hate admitting he helped you?!\" Subaru wasn't quite that stubborn. This had more to do with the fact that whenever he thought back to how he had felt during the battle where he fought side by side with Julius, he found it difficult to reconcile those emotions with the pain of the wounds he suffered after his thrashing at the training square plus a whole host of other annoyances. \"I see now. There certainly was talk about another knight who's also a spirit user, I suppose. If that person is your older brother, I offer my condolences.\" \"Condolences? What do you mean by that?\" \"Is it not obvious, I wonder? His eventual downfall is inevitable. It is only a matter of when. At the very least, he can serve as a stepping-stone for Subaru and Betty's spectacular exploits... Gahhh!\" \"Don't go picking fights out of the blue. Besides, my strength can't even compare to Julius's. I've got no chance against him on a level playing field. Who goes around challenging puzzle masters to a puzzle game? You obviously challenge them to a round of Smash Brothers. That's how we win.\" After mussing Beatrice's hair for her provocative remarks, Subaru bowed in apology to Joshua. With her head still a complete mess, Beatrice followed suit. \"Sorry. We have no intention of insulting your older brother. For that matter, I am fully aware that my abilities are beneath his. Forgive my cute and vain girl, would you?\" \"Yes, of course. It's only natural to be humble when compared with my older brother.\" \"Huh? Even though it had seemed like they were getting the conversation back on track, Joshua's sudden haughty statement racked up the tension once more. Not noticing the bewilderment around him, Joshua's monocle seemed to give off a concerning gleam. \"Yes, my older brother is an incredible man. At the young age of twenty-two, he is already recognized as one of the greatest knights in the kingdom and is effectively the second-in-command of the royal guard. Though he is currently not performing that duty to better serve Lady Anastasia, there is no doubt that my older brother shall become captain of the royal guard once she rises to the throne. Even Sir Reinhard, this generation's Sword Saint, cannot compare to my older brother when it comes to knightly virtues. Truly, my brother is a knight among knights! It would be ridiculous to even speak both your names in the same breath.\" \"...R-right.\" The sheer force and speed of the tirade overwhelmed Subaru. Even Beatrice was taken aback. \"Apologies, I didn't get a chance to warn you. This is the second time he's gone on a rant.\" Otto clutched at his head while whispering regretfully into Subaru's ear. When Subaru glanced around, he could see that Garfiel was obviously aggravated, while Ram had now you see? written all over her face. He finally realized what had compelled Ram to flee the room. Joshua's obliviousness here was on par with Subaru's infamous episode during the meeting of royal-selection candidates. Considering how Joshua's sole ally, Mimi, was too busy stuffing her face with sweets to pay attention, clearly someone else had to smack some sense into him... \"Hee-hee. Joshua really likes his big brother, Julius, doesn't he?\" But before anyone inevitably snapped, Emilia smiled at Joshua. She was completely unfazed by his intense demeanor. After that comment brought him to his senses, Joshua went red in the face and put a hand to his ponytail in embarrassment. \"I I am very sorry. I tend to lose my composure when it comes to my family...\" \"Oh, that's no problem. Julius has been a great help to me, too. If you like, I'd love to hear more about you and Julius both...\" \"Whoa there! Let's do that another time. Right now, we need to get down to business! Hey, isn't that right, Otto, Garfiel?!\" \" Eh?!\" When Subaru interrupted, forcibly changed the subject, and asked for aid, it was clear from the pair's reaction that they were clearly thinking, Don't drag us into this! Even so, the"}, {"text": "two immediately nodded, agreeing with Subaru. Though Joshua's eyes lit up for a moment, he seemed to have regained his self-control as he cleared his throat. \"W-well then, I shall recite the tales of my older brother's glory on another occasion. I better be, ahem... It is of the utmost importance to conclude this business and return to Lady Anastasia with all available haste.\" \"Yes, I am looking forward to that... Now, we've put it off for quite some time, but let's get to the issue at hand...\" As Joshua resumed acting as an envoy, Emilia seamlessly shifted back to Royal-Selection-Candidate Mode. Instantly, the atmosphere in the room became ever so slightly weightier. Emilia seemed like a completely different person. Subaru and Beatrice weren't the only ones who had grown over the last year. Emilia had spent that time honing herself in all the fields a royal-selection candidate was expected to handle skillfully. \" Representing Lady Anastasia Hoshin, I shall now convey the words of my master to you, Lady Emilia.\" The noticeable change in the air brought a tenseness to Joshua's expression as he produced a letter from his pocket. He spread it out on the table, revealing its contents, which were written in black ink. \"Lady Anastasia wishes to invite Lady Emilia to the Water Gate City of Pristella.\" \"Pristella...\" Bewilderment lingered in Emilia's eyes as she rolled the name around in her mouth. Subaru was no different. What was the true motive behind Anastasia's sudden request? \"The Water Gate City of Pristella, you say? Why ask us to go there?\" With their leader hesitant to reply, Otto took the initiative on probing for answers. Amusement crept into Joshua's golden eyes as he drew a thin smile. In that moment, his face and expression made him the spitting image of Julius, which gave Subaru a bad feeling about what would come next. \"It would seem my master would like to invite you to a party. Lady Anastasia wishes to call upon Lady Emilia out of goodwill and also to convey that she has found that which Lady Emilia seeks.\" \"What could that be?\" *** As soon as Emilia took the bait, Otto's reaction was instant. It was obvious he was thinking we've been had! and Subaru understood exactly why; Emilia's reply had cost them the chance to discuss the matter among themselves first. Still, Subaru couldn't see where this was going, either. Being late on the uptake had forced them to completely relinquish all initiative. \" A specialist trader in Pristella seems to possess the type of high-quality magic crystal Lady Emilia desires. You are currently searching for a catalyst to call back a Great Spirit, are you not?\" And with that, the next steps were as good as decided. 3 \"I feel bad for Otto that I just decided this all on my own.\" When it was just her and Subaru in her bedroom, Emilia's eyes were downcast as she spoke. Sitting across from her, Subaru wore a concerned smile. \"Well, Otto was pretty shaken up, but I mostly agree with your decision, Emilia-tan. What worries me is the idea of leaping into someone else's backyard without being properly prepared.\" \"But would Ms. Anastasia genuinely try something after sending Julius's younger brother as a messenger? I think that'd be crossing a really dangerous bridge for their side.\" \"You have a point. Sending a blood relative of their knight means they're acknowledging us as peers. I used to wonder why important people who were sent as messengers in Taiga dramas and stuff never got killed. Who would've thought I'd figure it out by living it?\" Subaru understood now that it was an issue of reputation. Anyone who became known for being untrustworthy would quickly find themselves surrounded by enemies. That was a poor way to conduct business, whether you were a Warring States\u00e2\u20ac\u201cera samurai warlord or a royal-selection candidate. The powerful had to take care when it came to subterfuge. In any case, the meeting with the envoy Joshua Juukulius had already come to an end, and evening had fallen on the new Roswaal Manor. It'd be a shame for you to leave so soon, Emilia had said in an attempt to convince Joshua's party to stay for the night, but he had politely declined her offer and departed the mansion with Mimi in tow not long after. He had received a favorable reply, so there was nothing left for him to do here. Well then, when you arrive at Pristella, please visit the Water Raiment. That's where we'll... Ahem, Lady Anastasia's party shall await you there. Later, Garf! I'll be waiting, so make sure you come, okay? As they had said their farewells, Subaru couldn't help but notice the clear expression of relief on Joshua's face. Meanwhile, Mimi had been in an extremely good mood as she addressed Garfiel specifically. Garfiel, who had been escorting their guests out while keeping a watchful eye on them, seemed to be wary. He probably suspected there might be ulterior motives to inviting him. \"There's no way Mimi is up to anything, so maybe she just likes Garfiel?\" \"Mimi seems really fond of Garfiel. I might even be a little jealous.\" \"Yeah, she ranks high on the cuddly scale, that's for sure. I didn't talk to Joshua for all that long, either, but I get the feeling I can get along with him a lot more than with his older brother.\" \"Subaru, you are so stubborn. Are you still holding a grudge because of your fight with Julius at the castle?\" Emilia had a mischievous look on her face as she poked at his old wounds. Subaru winced as he recalled the unpleasant memory. \"I'll admit it's not something I can bring myself to laugh about just yet. I was young back then. I know better now...but I still think he went too far!\" \"I think it's very uncool to cling to the past even though you've already made up and everything.\" \"Nghhhhh...I'm only human!\" Subaru stubbornly turned away when Emilia stared at him with her adorable face. She kept her gaze on him for a while, until finally, her endurance ran out, and she simply burst into laughter. \"Okay, okay. Goodness, Subaru, you really are a stubborn blockhead. But you can't get into fights with Julius in Pristella. You've become a fine knight, Subaru, and knights don't use their strength lightly.\" \"Yes, ma'am. The lady is always right, that she is.\" Playing the fool to conceal his embarrassment, Subaru rubbed his nose with a finger. \"Anyway, I don't know much about this Pristella, but it's a famous city, isn't it?\" \"You haven't been studying, have you? Pristella is one of Lugunica's five major cities and is located on our kingdom's border with the city-state of Kararagi. It's a really pretty city with canals all over.\" \"Interesting. Your explanation makes me wanna print it in a brochure. But man, a city floating on top of water, huh? I guess Venice is the closest thing I can think of. That'd definitely make it an impressive place.\" When he thought of the waterfront cities from his own world, Venice naturally came to mind. It also had canals crisscrossing the city's interior. Images of naturally flowing water winding its way through a stonework cityscape made him want to visit such an enchanting place at least once. Subaru was projecting all that onto the city of Pristella, but the reality was a little different. \"Nah, that ain't right, Subaru. Pristella isn't a city on the water. It's usually known as the Water Gate City.\" \"Wait, what?\" \"Yes, Pristella sits in the middle of a lake, so the city gets flooded when rain falls. That's why they have high walls to protect the city and several sluice gates to control the water levels. Those gates are famous, which is why it's called the Water Gate City.\" \"Somehow, my impression of this place suddenly went from a magical city of water to a watery prison...\" His mental image of a charming city was ruined when he learned about the high walls. He wondered why anyone would choose to build a city on a plot of land that demanded such radical safeguards. \"In the end, we still don't have a clue why Anastasia is asking us to visit a place like that... Hard to think it's just a social call.\" \"Hmm, is it not okay to believe they really might just want to get along?\" \"Unfortunately, for better or worse, the royal-selection candidates all have their quirks. To be honest, there isn't a single one you can trust a hundred percent even under ideal circumstances, masters and servants alike.\" Subaru carefully recalled and considered all the royal candidates and their respective knights before concluding every last one of them could be considered bona fide weirdos. He trusted Crusch because of her character. However, because she had lost her memories due to an encounter with Gluttony, he actually couldn't rely on anything except her intrinsic character traits. Ferris was dangerous because he'd do anything for Crusch's sake, and Wilhelm's issues with his departed wife also made him an unknown element. When it came to Anastasia, he still couldn't get a firm grasp on what she was thinking. That applied to the invitation they were currently considering, too. Though Subaru had very reluctantly come to trust Julius, that didn't change the fact that the leader of the faction was still none other than Anastasia. Also, she had a formidable private army in the Iron Fangs, and that could not be underestimated. Felt's camp included Reinhard and Old Man Rom, both of whom Subaru considered decently trustworthy, but that didn't matter, since he still couldn't figure out Felt. If nothing else, now that she'd committed herself to fully participating in the royal selection, they couldn't let their guard down when dealing with that spirited, crafty girl. If she and Reinhard had formed a close bond, the odds of claiming victory over them would become extremely slim. And when it came to Priscilla's faction, their attitude was honestly the hardest to predict of all. There was no mistaking that master and servant alike were far, far removed from words like trust and faith. Al and Subaru hailed from the same homeland, but Priscilla's knight was a man of strong loyalty. He probably wouldn't give Subaru any special treatment, and Priscilla's own whimsical, irrational character made her akin to a natural disaster. In other words, even after a whole year had passed since the start of the royal selection, the other candidates remained inscrutable. Learning more about them could be accomplished only by interacting more. That was another reason to accept Anastasia's invitation. \"I gotta say, I'm more scared than I want to be at the idea of owing a debt to Anastasia. For starters, how did they know what Emilia-tan wanted?\" Subaru murmured this with twisted lips, referring to the magic crystal Joshua had mentioned as a bargaining chip. The high-purity magic crystal that had been the pretext for Anastasia's invitation was the kind of catalyst Emilia needed for a chance to form a pact with Puck once more. To awaken Puck, who had fallen into a deep slumber after expending all his mana, she absolutely needed a magic crystal infused with great power. For a whole year, she had searched high and low for a suitable one to no avail. \"Everyone at the castle would've seen Puck, and they know I'm a spirit mage. We tried to keep the catalyst thing a secret, but it seems there was no hiding it after all.\" \"Just means people didn't keep it to themselves. Besides, even if we do end up bringing Puck back, from the others' point of view, that's basically us returning to square one. It's a good deal for them to get a chance to put us in their debt.\" That said, if Puck really did return, the benefit to Emilia's mental state would"}, {"text": "be immeasurable. In addition to that, Emilia's combat ability would go up as well, but that was just frosting on the cake. Her individual performance in battle would probably have very little effect upon the royal selection's ultimate outcome. At most, it added more credibility to the camp's claims of victory over the Great Rabbit, which was considered more fictional horror story than anything else.  The Great Rabbit, one of the three great demon beasts that had been soundly defeated at the Sanctuary. Unlike the hunt of the White Whale and the battle with Sloth, the public had not acknowledged their struggle against the Great Rabbit. After all, there were no impartial witnesses, and the Great Rabbit itself had been exiled to another plane of existence, leaving no trace behind. Subaru and the others had long since concluded that no one would believe their words no matter how hard they tried to convince the public. If there were no confirmed appearances of the Great Rabbit for several years thereafter, their claim could be strengthened with a formal report, but there was a distinct possibility the royal selection would be over by then. \"Well, it's not like people would believe we ran into two of the three great demon beasts in such a short time, let alone took both down. At the very least, we can pray that the third doesn't show up, too.\" \" Yes, I agree.\" The last of the three legendary monsters was said to be the Black Serpent. Putting his faith in the power of words, Subaru hoped with all his might that he would never come face-to-face with it. However, Emilia's reply had been strangely hesitant. If he didn't know any better, Subaru would almost think she knew something about this Black Serpent... \"So about Pristella.\" However, she moved on to the next subject before he could follow up. Emilia's behavior made it clear that she didn't want to talk about it. Though that left him a bit uneasy, Subaru had learned enough about her heart to know better than to try and force the issue at a time like this. \"I wonder if it's all right to accept the invitation and go together just like we discussed earlier?\" \"I think it'll be fine. Obviously, that means Emilia-tan will go, and of course, I'll follow you as your knight, with Beako as my partner. After that, Garfiel will come along as our muscle, and Otto will come as our adviser and out of pity. Really, I'd like to bring Petra and Frederica just in case, but...\" \"You know we can't do that. Roswaal's busy gathering the western nobles for an assembly. It's already been decided Petra will go with him as part of her education...even though she really didn't like the idea.\" \"That's because Petra's hate for Roswaal is baked in. Ram doesn't say anything 'cause Roswaal finds it funny, but my heart's always beating hard whenever I'm watching them interact.\" Ever since the series of events at the Sanctuary, Petra's feelings of distrust toward Roswaal ran deep. It was bad enough that it wouldn't be strange if she wrung out a sweaty towel over the tea she served him. Of course, even if Subaru had seen her do something like that, he would pretend not to have seen a thing for Petra's sake. \"Then because we want Petra's mentor, Frederica, to also attend the assembly and keep an eye on her, that leaves Ram at the mansion... Aaand now I'm worried.\" \"There's no need to be concerned, Subaru. After all, the mansion still has \" At that point, Emilia faltered as she lowered her violet eyes. Subaru knew very well what words would have followed, the words she'd tried to say. It was guaranteed that Ram wouldn't shirk her duties. She had plenty of reason not to. \"Well, we should worry less about the mansion and more about what's in front of us... Right, Emilia-tan?\" \"Mm, that's right. Also, I need to apologize to Otto for moving the conversation ahead without him.\" \"He's not the type to take that kind of stuff personally, but he is the type to drag things out. Let me talk to him. I'll say I scolded you until I broke into tears.\" \"Tee-hee, thank you.\" Emilia smiled faintly as she watched Subaru wave his fist around. Then she touched the azure magic crystal pendant resting against the milky skin of her chest. Its blue radiance declared that this was the cradle where Puck the Great Spirit lay as he slept. It was her link with the family member whose existence she could confirm but, at present, with whom she could not speak Emilia gently stroked the surface of the magic crystal with a slender finger, as if wishing she could talk to him somehow. \"I want to talk to Puck, and there's so much I want to ask him. That's why...\" Emilia sank into silence. Shutting her eyes, which had strikingly long eyelashes, she kept the rest of her thoughts unspoken. Seeing her eyes tremble ever so slightly, Subaru quietly scratched his head. A vague understanding of what Emilia was experiencing was all that he could offer. \"Come back soon, kitty spirit. I've got a mountain of complaints with your name on them.\" Though he griped, Subaru was also Emilia's knight, and he hoped her wish would come true. 4 \"I will have you know, I'm always trying to do what's best for everyone!\" Slamming his wine cup against the table, Otto Suwen raged that evening. After talking with Emilia and having dinner, Subaru paid Otto a visit in his room before his nighttime routine, only to find himself humoring the domestic adviser, who was drinking and had many complaints to get off his chest. \"He's been goin' at it this whole time. Even my ears are startin' to hurt.\" Sitting at Otto's workbench with a feather pen in hand, Garfiel wore an exasperated expression. He was taking little sips of the cup of milk he had in his hand while lending his ears to his senior's complaints. Garfiel had turned fifteen over the last year, meaning he could legally drink alcohol according to the kingdom's laws; however, he was surprisingly weak against it. Ever since Otto had tempted him to drink and subsequently gotten him dead-drunk, which had earned the merchant a baleful glare from Ram, the mere sight of a wine bottle was enough to make Garfiel frown. Of course, Subaru also took to heart the laws of his original world and respected that alcohol was off-limits. He chalked up his having once engaged in a bout of drinking at the mansion as the result of his youthful exuberance. Thus, Subaru could only sigh deeply as Otto got drunk and continued ranting. \"Don't be so sore about it. Emilia regrets how things went this time around. Sorry for leaping ahead without consulting you and stuff. To be fair, I think the result would've been the same even if she had talked to you.\" \"The result isn't everything, you know. The process itself is important. Deciding the outcome of a conversation before having the conversation is utter nonsense. This is why I insisted we must not surrender the initiative no matter what...and yet, we played right into our opponent's hand! That was the worst thing we could have done!!\" When Subaru tried to soothe him, Otto only got more worked up, slurring his words all the while. On top of that, even while drunk, he still presented a perfectly sound argument. Subaru had to admit he was impressed. \"Man, you've totally gotten used to being a domestic adviser. The way you deny it every time is kind of a running joke at this point.\" \"Yeah, you've changed so little that it's no fun. That ain't good, Bro.\" \"Well, the two of you have changed so little since I've met you that it's like a splash of water in the face!\" Subaru and Garfiel high-fived when Otto shot back at them for their perfect tag-team combo. With the three being similar in age, a special kind of friendship linked them and naturally led to them spending a lot of time together at the mansion. Their banter had settled into a familiar routine that they had practically gotten down to an art form. At present, Otto was spending his days employed as the chief domestic adviser of the Emilia camp. Armed with the formal education he'd received as a son in a mercantile family and his worldly experience as a traveling merchant, the calculating, quick-witted Otto was an excellent addition to the team. It was a miracle they'd encountered him before he ended up deceived, abandoned on the roadside, or sold into slavery. Albeit, even as he continued work as a secretary, he often muttered to himself that \"it wasn't supposed to be like this...\" He really didn't know when to give up. \"And what exactly is that pitying look in your eyes for?\" \"Well, you know, it's not like you can just back out now after getting to know so much sensitive information... So yeah, I was mostly thinking about what terrible luck you have.\" \"Could you really stop pitying me already?!\" \"Hey, calm down, Bro. You're gonna spill your booze. And, General, don't tease him too much, all right? Last time, we decided we'd do ten Ottos a day.\" \"What are you two even counting?! Why are there ten in a day?!\" Otto was red-faced and shouting, so that was one Otto down. Of course, Subaru and Garfiel weren't toying around with Otto for no reason whatsoever. This was a ritual with the objective of letting Otto yell like he was doing now and blow off all his steam from overworking day after day. \"If we don't do this, you probably wouldn't even be able to eat or sleep. Just leave the stress reduction to us!\" \"I believe the possibility of this backfiring is rather high!!\" \"Hey, hey, don't get so bent outta shape, Bro. If ya keep that up, I ain't gonna make any progress with this letter. Granny asked me to and all.\" Garfiel pointed the tip of his feather pen at Otto, who had been cowed into silence. Otto was a man with the unfortunate physical condition of not losing his senses even when blackout drunk. Subaru smiled wryly as he peeked at the letter Garfiel was penning. \"Whoa, that's some awful handwriting. Is Ryuzu really gonna be able to read this letter?\" \"Ha! Don't make me laugh, General. How long do ya think me 'n' Granny have been together for? Granny can even read the stuff I write left-handed.\" \"That makes Ryuzu really impressive, but it's nothing for you to be proud of.\" Poking fun at Garfiel's display of pride, Subaru faintly lowered the corners of his eyes. Ryuzu was both Garfiel's grandmother and the representative of the Sanctuary presently, she was not dwelling at this mansion but rather at Earlham Village, which was close to the old mansion. The reason was that she bore the duty of granting \"an everyday life\" to the twenty-four people who had been born just like her: replicas derived from Ryuzu Meyer, with bodies constructed of mana just like Ryuzu herself. These replicas had been liberated from the Sanctuary and cast into the world like innocent babes. Stating that it was her responsibility to teach them about life, Ryuzu had parted with her two grandchildren. Though it would be best if she could someday complete that duty so she, Garfiel, and Frederica could live together as a family once more, the circumstances demanded that this be put aside for the time being. And it was this Ryuzu whom Garfiel was drafting a letter for. An unexpectedly prolific writer, he held unconcealable feelings for his grandmother, which resulted in him writing letters with frequency far beyond the norm. \"I have mentioned this before, but Ms. Frederica also sends letters, though I believe not even"}, {"text": "she writes as many as Garfiel.\" \"Well, all joking aside, Garfiel writes every day, so that has to be a mountain of letters.\" Even so, Ryuzu was delighted to receive letters from both her grandchildren. Apparently, she stored every one she received like they were all precious treasures. \"Guess you could almost say I'm taking advantage of Ryuzu's way of thinking, couldn't you...?\" Subaru had been the first to approve of Ryuzu's desire to guide the other replicas. Perhaps it was a poor choice of words, but Subaru just didn't want them to stay \"dolls.\" Or perhaps that was Subaru's self-serving sense of guilt for having used the girls like sacrificial pawns once during a previous loop. \"General?\" \"...Never mind. There's a lot to tell Ryuzu after what happened today, so I'm sure you won't have any problems with your letter. It's a lot worse to have nothing to write about. That's when you got no choice but to try and make up something funny.\" \"Ah, that would be pretty painful. If perchance you end up writing Bro was boring in a letter, I really will have to punch you to make up for it.\" \"Well, relax. I wrote that Bro's bein' plenty funny today. Ah, besides that, General, there's somethin' I wanted to ask ya.\" After using his pen to point out the part about Otto, which earned him a grimace, Garfiel floated Subaru a question. \"I wonder what the enemy's target was this time around. Until now, the other candidates ain't been in any skirmishes, so why go openly pick a fight all of a sudden?\" \"A fight... You sure have a simple way of looking at the world.\" \"As if ya need complicated logic for a fight. It all depends on what the other side wants. Settin' that pale dude aside for the moment... Despite her looks, the cat-person runt who came with him seemed pretty tough.\" Garfiel might have called her a brat, but age-wise, Mimi was about as old as him. The reason Subaru didn't interrupt him with a wisecrack was because he saw the serious look in Garfiel's eyes. \"When I first met her, she gave me a real long stare. Kept that up the whole time we were talkin'. That, there's no mistakin' it's to figure out a good chance to pick a fight with me.\" \"...You sure? I'll admit Mimi's pretty strong, and it's a fact that she talks like a combat maniac, but, uh...\" She didn't strike him as the kind of cunning character to secretly scheme or rely on subterfuge. Her companion Joshua didn't seem well-suited for wickedness, either, in a good way. \"Anyway, if we're takin' 'em up on the invitation, we better stay on guard. General, that means you and Lady Emilia are banned from movin' around on your own. Bro may be one thing, but if our general or the lady get taken out, we're done.\" \"For the record, without me, everything would grind to a complete standstill, got it?! Good grief, I wish you would understand that and appreciate me more already!\" Otto sulked, but of course, Garfiel wasn't slighting Otto at all. Though he was not one to make a big show of saying so, Garfiel actually respected Otto a great deal. Given Garfiel's personality, under no circumstances would he refer to anyone so familiarly were that not the case. It deeply moved Subaru when he thought back to when they'd first met and how far they had come. \"Wha ? What's the big deal with that strange look, General?\" \"I was just thinking how glad I am to have you on our team. You've become really dependable, Garfiel.\" \"Heh, just leave it to me. I ain't much good at any hard thinkin', but I'll buy you time so you can. I'm countin' on ya for the rest, General.\" Speaking those words, Garfiel grabbed his cup of milk and drank it dry, laughing with white all around his lips. This went for Emilia, too, but the trusting gaze Garfiel turned toward Subaru was a strong restraint upon him. It made him think he had to work hard in order to do that trust justice. \"So with Garfiel, that puts us in a safe place fighting-strength-wise...but you're really coming, Otto?\" \"Well, of course I am! If I am not there, I will not have any rest wondering what kind of harebrained conversations Lady Emilia and Mr. Natsuki might be having!\" The unreliability of the pair's negotiating ability to date was still in sharp relief. Emilia was as cooperative and sincere as she looked, and for all of Subaru's personality and stubbornness, he was unversed in the ways of the world. From Otto's point of view, they had to look like a wild duck paired with a green onion easy pickings whether alone or together. \"Also, Pristella is a place deeply connected to Hoshin of the Wastes. As this is a legendary individual to all merchants, I had always wanted to visit it once someday.\" \"But you washed out from being a merchant a long time ago, so why bother now?\" \"I did not wash out! Now, listen, if you think I'll remain your domestic adviser forever, you are sorely mistaken! My dream is to be a great merchant with my very own store! My presence here is nothing but a temporary stop!\" \"Ain't no guarantee that there's a place you're gonna spend the rest of your life at ahead of that stop.\" When Garfiel amusedly chimed in to tease him, Otto grimaced but made no retort. Of course, to Subaru, having Otto tag along was a wish come true. Whatever they might say out loud, neither the negotiations nor the camp itself would go anywhere without him. Everyone in the group understood that. It was because Otto himself was aware of his own worth that he continued carrying such arduous burdens on his back. \"Well, it also feels like you're just a masochist, but I'll set that sentiment aside.\" \"I get the sense that is an even ruder form of acceptance, but perhaps that is just my imagination?\" \"Yep, just your imagination. Either way, our rival is a great merchant and real sharp. I'm counting on you, Otto. Garfiel for the martial, Otto for the cultural, and me to keep things lively.\" \"Work harder, would you?!!\" Subaru's decision was made in accordance with the right man for the right job. Even if Subaru worked himself to death from that moment onward, he would never be as strong as Garfiel, and even if he cost himself sleep at night, he'd never be as useful an official as Otto. But the position in which Subaru Natsuki stood was not so soft that he could simply rot on the vine. \"I'll do whatever I can do. That's the forward-looking way Beako and I are handling the situation after talking it over.\" \"Well, with Lady Emilia 'n' Beatrice there, ya should be all right, General. And I guess that means I gotta protect Bro. Just be careful, 'kay?\" \"That somehow feels like I am the element of greatest concern... It really does not sit well with me.\" Subaru turned serious, Garfiel acted like he was taking on babysitting duty, and Otto complained while bringing more wine to his lips bit by bit. In so doing, their weighty conversation switched to the trivial, adding a pinch of spice as the night deepened. \"Well, I think I'll finally turn in for the night. How about you, Garfiel?\" \"Me, I'm gonna stick with Bro a li'l longer. Letter writin' is done, but I see my chance to finally win at shatranj. Now that he's drunk, it should be a snap.\" Replying as Subaru rose to his feet, Garfiel pointed to the game board on the table. Shatranj was a board game similar to chess or shogi. Otto was fairly skilled at this game, and Garfiel's eagerness to challenge him in a weakened state suggested he'd been on a big losing streak. Incidentally, Subaru was pretty good at othello, but he was bottom-feeder tier at shatranj. \"Well, good luck. Don't stay up too late. You won't grow any taller like that.\" \"Hey, is that even true? I believed that and always went to bed early but don't think it works at my age.\" \"I'm not sure in your case. I think Frederica sucked some out of you.\" \"Damn you, Sis!\" Baring his fangs, Garfiel prepared for shatranj so he could direct the power of his anger toward the game. Subaru let a small smile slip, watching from behind as Garfiel set the pawns in neat rows. \"And don't drink too much, Otto. If you're hungover and useless, Petra's gonna get real scary.\" \"I feel as if that girl is being particularly strict with me of late. Say something to her, would you, Mr. Natsuki?\" \"That she's too soft on the offense?\" \"Could you not ask her to be gentler instead?!\" \"No way, no how. Good night.\" Waving his hand, Subaru left the room as the remaining pair huddled with the game board between them. The color indicated by the magic crystal clock on the wall of the mansion corridor announced that it would soon be midnight. He'd lingered a little longer, making him later than usual. \"It was a talk among men. Gotta let something like that slide.\" Letting slip those words of excuse, Subaru went not to his own room but in the direction of the west wing, where the women's bedrooms were. And then  \" Excuse me.\" Subaru always knocked before entering the room. He knew there would be no reply. Even so, was that any reason to abandon hope? Or perhaps not forgetting to do so was simply to confirm that there was no reply   so that he might never, ever forget the heat of the unquenchable flame that continued to burn within his chest. This room that gave no reply was a simple, unadorned bedroom. It was arranged in a manner unchanged from the mansion's many other rooms, with only the most basic of furniture. The bed at the center of the room, the curtains over the windows, and the simple table with a flower vase on it were the only real furnishings. The flowers in the vase were changed regularly, and the water was replaced on a daily basis. Even though he knew that the beauty and scent of the flowers brought no repose, this was an everyday routine for Subaru. Subaru's sentimental actions were observed in silence by the other people at the mansion.  I think that if he could easily set things aside and just move on, I wouldn't have come to an understanding with Subaru no matter how many times we argued. That's why I really like Subaru as he is. It is a bad habit to be greedy when one is so lacking. Can Subaru be anything save rash and reckless, I wonder...? That is why, now that he is not alone, we shall indulge his avarice even so. That's what the two girls closest to Subaru thought about his behavior. \"They're such softies. Also, Emilia-tan's suggestive comments push my buttons way too much.\" He wished she wouldn't say like and cool so casually. The words clearly conveyed her feelings, but there had been no romantic developments between Subaru and Emilia. Put simply, Emilia wasn't prepared to accept a confession, and Subaru's heart didn't seem prepared for it at all. Two years, maybe three  No, in the worst case, it might take even more time than that. \"It's kind of rude to come here and always talk about Emilia and the others. Petra or someone else would seriously scold me if they heard.\" Perhaps when you got down to it, there really was no one in the Emilia camp who was more of a social person than Petra. The defining feature of Subaru and company was that every one of them sucked at interpersonal relations. The fact that"}, {"text": "a girl not yet thirteen years of age was ahead of them all made for a pretty pathetic tale. \"I've really got to wonder. If you...were awake, Rem, I don't feel like you'd be moving the needle all that much. Either because I'm useless at this whole relationship thing or because you always put me first.\" As he spoke, Subaru pulled a chair over and sat down beside the bed. The girl's sleeping face was exposed just enough that the moonlight filtering in through the gaps of the curtains made it stand out against the night. He could make out her white cheeks, pink lips, and blue hair. Her beautiful figure was clad in a thin negligee. The chest of Subaru's Sleeping Princess rhythmically rose and fell.  That was how this precious girl Rem had continued to slumber for more than a year. \"There's lots to talk about today. An uninvited guest dumped one hell of a problem in our laps. First, this morning, I did the usual \" Subaru had a tender look on his face as he told the still-sleeping Rem his tale. He spun his stories in a witty fashion, and the tone of his voice was very gentle. Speaking with great care, like he would with an infant taking a nap, he amusedly recited the day's events. The girl offered no reply. Even so, these midnight trysts continued. On nights when there was a great amount of news to share, Subaru often insisted on whispering dreamlike tales to the Sleeping Princess until the moon had largely run its course. CHAPTER 2 *** 1 \"As far as I am concerned, Lady Emilia's wishes should be respeeected. Fortunately, there are no urgent matters for her to attend to at the moment... Although, our competition's aim being inscrutable is some cause for conceeern.\" Those were the thoughts that Roswaal shared with Emilia and Subaru after receiving the after-action report on the meeting with the envoy and the invitation to Pristella. They were talking in Roswaal's study the day after the envoy's visit. Roswaal had recently been devoting all his time and effort to maintaining dialogue with other regional power holders in preparation for the upcoming meeting with all the lords of the western marches. Generally speaking, these people followed Roswaal's lead when it came to the royal selection, but they considered dealing with demi-humans and half-elves as a separate matter and harbored deep-rooted insecurities about his open support for Emilia. Over the past year, Roswaal had fought battles of his own with conversation and careful negotiation to consolidate the support of these lords. This assembly was the culmination of all those efforts, and hopefully, it would bring them closer to pledging their genuine allegiance to Emilia. \"I'm sorry that I'll be away from the mansion at such a crucial time.\" \"No, no, worry not. The coming assembly is merely extended preparation for the main event that is still to come. Bringing you to the fore now would be tantamount to foul play...or would you rather give us another masterful performance to silence the seething elites? Just like you did when you grabbed me by the collar and demanded I get my act together?\" \"I think...that's still beyond me. All right, I understand. I'll behave.\" When Emilia pursed her lips and lowered her gaze in apparent frustration, Roswaal nodded with visible satisfaction. Though the sarcasm conveyed by his statement made Subaru want to say something, he held his tongue. Roswaal was dealing with Emilia far more openly than before. This was a million times better than her old treatment as a mere figurehead. At least, that was what Emilia had said. For his part, Roswaal was putting vigorous work into the royal selection. He'd become far more dependable as a sponsor than before. But the remaining uncertainties about his true intentions balanced the scales. \" Goodness. Master truly does not come off as a man who has learned his lesson.\" Having watched that exchange in full, a tall maid lifted her face to the sky and let out a sigh. The maid attending at Roswaal's side was Frederica. The beautiful girl with long blond hair and jade eyes somehow seemed to be in quite a good mood as she glared at the side of Roswaal's face. \"Perhaps you are enjoying everyone's company too much to notice, but I believe that it is rather unsightly to keep dredging up the past.\" \"My, what a severe review, Frederica.\" \"But of course. Incidentally, I must ask you to stop teasing Petra. She is accompanying you because she is a kind child, but please do not ask too much of her.\" Frederica sharply objected to her master's behavior. When she pointed these things out, Roswaal shrugged. \"You win thiiiis time,\" he went, his expression relaxing as he seemed even more amused.  In the year since the incident in the Sanctuary, the attitude that the people at the mansion held toward Roswaal had changed. Some were closer to him, some more distant, and some displayed a sharp drop in restraint toward him; Frederica's demeanor definitely leaned toward the kinder side. \"Either way, no medicine will cure Roswaal's personality at this point. So what kind of opposition are we expecting at the assembly?\" \"Tolerable, one might say. If there is one concern, it is suuurely about young Petra, but Annerose shall be attending this assembly as well. In other words, Clind shall also be present.\" As Roswaal shrugged again, his words made Subaru recall the sight of a particular girl. Annerose Miload a person distantly connected to Roswaal and an adorable girl still ten years old thereabouts. She possessed an aristocratic bearing unusual for her age, and though the lady of the household had Clind to support her, she was more than up to the task of leading the Miload family as its matriarch. As Annerose was incredibly fond of Emilia, she would be a reassuring ally at the assembly. Though, on Subaru's side, Annerose being overly attached made his head hurt whenever he had to deal with her. \"My mentor is going as well, and he's extremely partial to Petra. I'm not sure whether to be reassured or worried.\" \"If you are concerned, why not escort the girl during her on-the-job training? She will surely listen to whatever Barusu has to say.\" When Subaru's voice became uncertain, the last person in the room interjected. Ram sat with her arms crossed in an insolent, un-maid-like fashion upon the sofa. She then brought a cup of black tea to her lips as she glanced toward him. \"Seriously, no one's had a sharper drop in restraint than you, Ram.\" \"I suppose that's true. Ram was too soft before. Are you saying that's simply a sign of how much I've let my guard down? How awful.\" \"Don't go putting words in my mouth!\" Ram turned a glare on Subaru, completely unfazed by his retort. \"But Ram does have a point. If you're worried, Subaru, how about we redo the assignments?\" \"...Nah, it's fine. Petra herself said so. Plus, doing something like that really would be overprotective.\" Letting her leave the nest was just as important as watching over her. He had to respect Petra's desire to go out into the world and seize this opportunity to grow. The least he could do was not get in her way. \"Yes, precisely, Master Subaru. Please rest at ease. I shall take full responsibility for looking after Petra. I shall absolutely not allow that man to get close to her.\" \"Of course Petra's important, but having you say that about my mentor gives me conflicted feelings.\" Frederica, who doted on Petra, had little love for Clind, who would likely also be present at the assembly. Subaru expected that the pair would clash even while both treated Petra like a goddess. Strange. Wasn't the conversation a moment ago about him being worried about Petra? \"By process of elimination, that means Ram will stay behind at the mansion. You do not miiind?\" \"No, I shall do as Master Roswaal desires. You will be lonely without Ram, but please endure.\" \"Yes, I understand. I shall entruuust the mansion to you.\" As Roswaal closed one eye and looked at her with his blue eye, Ram magnanimously pulled back her shoulders. There had been a change in the relationship between Ram and Roswaal as well. Ram remained supremely loyal toward Roswaal, but one might say she'd become a fair bit pushier than before. Roswaal accepted this without a word of criticism. Though their interactions seemed familiar, it differed from the codependence they had previously shared. To put it simply, they understood each other now that's how it came off. \"What are you staring for? Do not lust for others indiscriminately. It is indecent.\" \"Just how much of an incorrigible bastard do you think I am, Big Sis?\" *** When Subaru posed that question, he saw a complicated emotion reflected in Ram's eyes. It was not because she found the question difficult to answer. It was just that Ram always faltered whenever Subaru addressed her as Big Sis. It was a clear sign she still didn't feel like an older sister. Her memories of her actual sister, Rem, remained lost. The days she spent with the little sister she loved most of all were nothing but a blank. The fact that Subaru called Ram Big Sis even so was probably because he relied on her more than most realized. \"Now then, to be honest, I am somewhat anxiooous about sending Lady Emilia and young Subaru off on their own, but if they have Garfiel and young Otto accompanying them, it should be all right. With young Otto, there is no concern about awkwardly fumbling negotiations, and if all else fails, Garfiel can smash everything in sight and allow for an escape.\" \"That would be a really big problem, so I'll try my hardest to avoid that.\" \"No need to worry, Emilia-tan. Whether it's with Anastasia or Julius, I'm a top-class product when it comes to fogging up conversations. The gossip-lovin' Witch herself gave me her seal of approval.\" \"Sheesh, I don't think that's anything to be proud of.\" When Emilia smiled wryly, Subaru gave her a thumbs-up and flashed his own mischievous grin. Of course, Emilia was well aware that Subaru was joking around in an attempt to put her at ease. That exchange made Roswaal close his yellow eye. Then he looked at the entrance to the room. \"It would seem the conversation has concluded well then, I leave protecting these four to you, Beatrice.\" \"Ngh!!\" Raising a yelp at those words was Beatrice, covertly hiding behind the door to the study. When Roswaal drew attention to her eavesdropping on the conversation through the gap, she gingerly poked her head into the doorway. \"H-how long did you realize Betty was there, I wonder...?\" \"From the beginning. I considered letting it slide out of bemusement, but when I thought about it, I would hardly call this good behavior from a four-hundred-year-old child. Former or not, does this not bring shaaame to the title of librarian of the archive of forbidden books?\" \"How infuriating! And will you stop calling me a four-hundred-year-old child, I wonder?! Unbelievable!\" Beatrice rushed into the room and stomped her foot at Roswaal's provocative remarks. All Subaru and the others could do was smile and watch. Their current relationship could also be safely included in the loss of restraint category. Finally, after she had a chance to vent her anger, Beatrice crossed her arms. \"At any rate, I would protect them whether you said to or not. Without Betty, who in this group of klutzes would you trust to get anything done, I wonder?\" \"Ohhh, how reassuring. I am very much relying on you to lead these precious children by the hand.\" \"Hmph, you can count on me.\" Puffing her chest out, Beatrice accepted the offered leadership role. With this, the conversation concluded at last. Subaru, Emilia, Beatrice, Garfiel, and Otto. They"}, {"text": "were the ones who would be heading to the Water Gate City of Pristella. 2 \"Even with a fast dragon carriage, it will be a long journey that'll last more than ten days. There is no particular reason to rush, so let us put safety first and take our time.\" When Otto spoke those words as he plotted the route for the journey, everyone agreed without a word of complaint. Of the members heading to Pristella, Otto was the one most accustomed to travel. Indeed, compared with the other members, it could be said he was almost too used to it. \"I was a total truant, Garfiel lived all fourteen years of his life without leaving his birthplace, Emilia-tan spent a hundred years in cryo-sleep, and Beako's a four-century-old shut-in... I mean, what can you really say about a group like this?\" \"Yes, yes, it is fine. Mr. Fulfew and Ms. Patlash will pull the dragon carriage together. No camping in the wild is scheduled, so that keeps the necessary travel equipment to a minimum.\" \"My body's gonna get dull if I'm ridin' a shaky dragon carriage the whole time, Bro.\" \"In that case, you can get off and run from time to time, Garfiel.\" \"I'll do that, then.\" \"You will?\" One of Otto and Garfiel's typical exchanges thoroughly confused Emilia. And that was how their journey to Pristella began. That said, their itinerary proceeded in good order, and they spent their journey uneventfully. They traveled on well-maintained highways, passing through multiple towns. Though they almost got into spots of trouble with other travelers at various rest stops, they managed to resolve things peacefully by strategically dropping the name of Marquis Mathers. Of course, Emilia's presence was also a major factor. News about the royal selection had already spread throughout the kingdom, and many people knew she was one of the candidates. Regardless of how people felt about it, it was a fact that Emilia had become too well-known for anyone to openly be hostile toward her. Their journey continued in such orderly fashion for about ten days. It was a little too orderly, which was why  \" Yes. This land dragon is very impressive. She deserves some praise, I suppose.\" Sitting beside Subaru in the driver's seat as he held the reins, Beatrice swayed her legs as she casually commented on the ride. Perhaps this wasn't obvious, but holding the reins wasn't only Otto's duty. To be fair, Subaru was dealing with a land dragon that he was incredibly familiar with, but he was certainly capable enough to be entrusted with driving their draft dragons without supervision. However, this only really applied when it involved his beloved dragon, Patlash, and Otto's beloved dragon, Fulfew. He would also be fine with Rascal or Peter, the other land dragons being raised at the mansion. The conditional driver, Subaru, smiled dryly as Beatrice put on airs beside him. \"If you're going to keep talking like a know-it-all, then you should switch with me for a bit. Patlash has enough motherly instincts that I'm sure she'll be kind to you, Beako.\" \"I shall decline. In fact, does the look in that land dragon's eyes not make it seem like she views Betty with some hostility, I wonder? Those are not the eyes of an ally. I suppose that talk of motherly instinct was a pack of lies.\" \"Hey, hey, I won't let anyone talk trash about Patlash, not even you. Emilia-tan, Rem, Beako, and Patlash are the only ones I won't let anyone bad-mouth.\" \"It seems rather strange that Betty is included on that list yet you refuse to let this slide.\" \"If anyone on the list says stuff like that, then she's the bad one.\" As Beatrice made excuses, Subaru grabbed her by the collar and forced her over his own lap. He was about to proceed to tickle her when the wriggling Beatrice's hair grazed his nose. What followed was a grand, spontaneous sneeze and a heavy lurch of the dragon carriage. \"What the ?! Mr. Natsuki! Please take care on the road!\" \"Sorry, sorry! Beako was horsing around too much. I'll be careful. Tickle-tickle!\" \"Is it Betty's fault at all, I wonder?! Subaru decided all on his own to... Wait a moment, do not tickle me! Stop it... Pfft, hee-hee!\" Hearing the voices of the pair playing around on the driver's seat, Otto let out a heavy sigh inside the cabin. Seeing Otto so obviously worn out drew a little laugh from Emilia, seated directly opposite him. \"Those two really do get along well... Even though Subaru and Beatrice being on good terms like that was unimaginable not so long ago.\" \"In my case, I find it far harder to believe there was ever a time they were separable. Beatrice indulging Subaru and Subaru indulging Beatrice it gives me a stomachache.\" \"You might have a point. But...I think it's a good thing. Everyone probably agrees that a smiling face suits Beatrice much better.\" With a twinkle in her violet eyes, Emilia thought of the girl on the driver's seat. To Otto, her expression seemed like the one a loving older sister or mother might wear. Though Otto was not uncivilized enough to say this out loud like a certain Subaru. \"Well, let us allow them to play while we engage in an important conversation. I have said this many times, but our preparations for the impending encounter with one of your fellow royal-selection candidates...is extremely lacking.\" \"So you're saying it won't just be a matter of repaying a debt.\" \"One year has passed in the royal selection, which is scheduled to be decided in three. Surely, each faction has largely finished shoring up its base by now. In our case, the assembly of the western lords shall secure us a good number of supporters. There's little doubt that the other camps are pursuing similar strategies.\" \"And that also goes for Lady Anastasia, I assume?\" The group had been intentionally keeping the fine details of what the other camps were up to away from Emilia. Developing Emilia into a proper statesman took priority over worrying about what their rivals might be up to this was something agreed upon by the domestic policy team consisting of Roswaal and Otto. Accordingly, after discussing the matter with Roswaal, Otto had been assigned the task of moving things to the next stage. \"First, let me speak of the present circumstances of the royal selection. In the beginning, it was viewed as a contest between Duchess Crusch Karsten, the favorite, and Anastasia Hoshin, the primary challenger. Including Lady Emilia, the three remaining candidates were viewed as...without mincing words, only there to fill in the other spaces.\" \"...Yeah, I don't think I can deny that. But based on how you phrased it, that means now...\" \"Yes. At the very least, it is a fact that the public's opinion has gradually changed over this past year. The reason is that the three underdogs in this race have made notable achievements.\" When it came to the Emilia camp, it was difficult to ignore the White Whale and Sloth. The hunt of the White Whale was considered Crusch's achievement, but it was none other than Crusch herself who had stated that the contributions of Sir Subaru Natsuki had made it all possible. And though he had borrowed the strength of not one but two rival factions, the defeat of the Witch Cult that had followed had been achieved under Subaru's leadership. These achievements had made Emilia's existence widely known among the people of the kingdom. At the same time, this also spread the fact that Emilia had been born a half-elf, which for better or worse ensured that she was someone the people would keep an eye on for the royal selection. And the other underdogs Felt and Priscilla had not been idle, either. In particular, Priscilla's talent had flourished. She was the widow of Lyp Bariel, whose lands were on the border shared with the Empire of Volakia, with which the kingdom had engaged in skirmishes for many years. Priscilla had managed to make the most of this unfavorable situation, bringing the faltering and anxious regional power holders onto her side all at once. With cunning that almost seemed to work like magic, she pacified the empire, made allies out of the local nobility, and proceeded to vigorously revitalize impoverished villages and otherwise strengthen her lands. Day by day, the people under her rule were regaining a sense of normalcy. In addition to her ability to dance on any stage provided to her, she possessed beauty far beyond all norms. The south of the kingdom revered her as \"The Sun Princess\" with a fervor that seemed to increase with each day. On the other hand, the Felt camp's one claim to fame was the knight under their banner, the Sword Saint Reinhard van Astrea; they had the most difficult starting position out of all the candidates. Even with the overwhelming influence the Sword Saint held over the knights and the masses, his name alone wasn't enough to convince the kingdom's people that the master he served was worthy of the throne. Even in the Astrea domain, her base of operations, the regional lords regarded her with wariness when they weren't openly distrustful. However, the girl named Felt had broken past those unfavorable headwinds in a manner none had expected. From the very beginning, the strong-willed girl hadn't planned on lobbying the indecisive and cautious weather-vane nobles. Instead, she'd set her eyes on the people who had fallen out of favor in other words, outcasts and pariahs. By taking in the talented who were sidelined due to personality issues and those who regretted their dark pasts, Felt was able to assemble a formidable group. Her flexible thinking and unique perspective had revolutionized her territory. She had little reason or inclination to rely on the rumors that she was a long-lost child of the royal family. She had a discerning eye for character, and assigning people jobs they were best suited to came naturally to her. In that sense, she possessed one of the most crucial qualities needed in any ruler. And with that tiny spark, the lands surrounding the Astrea domain quickly became a beacon of prosperity. Felt's influence had grown so great that the local lords, who had been sitting on the fence, could no longer ignore her. As her small footsteps had made a tangible mark upon history, no one in the kingdom could make light of her claim to the throne any longer. \"That is how things currently look. At the very least, no candidates have fallen out of the running over this past year. Ahhh, it is just...\" \"What is it?\" \"The only place where things have deteriorated is the Duchy of Karsten.\" The pitch of Otto's voice dropped a notch as he elaborated. The reply made Emilia harden her cheeks. Closing one eye in response to her reaction, Otto continued. \"Duchess Crusch Karsten was considered the favorite, but rumors say she has lost her way over the last year, as if she has become a different person somehow. Previously, she was relentlessly active in public and private, and with the support of His Lordship the prior duke, it was considered a matter of course for everyone to acknowledge her. However...\" Whether in the royal selection or politics at large, Crusch's character seemed to have changed a great deal. Her past determination had been so firm that it made her current shortcomings stand out all the more. Though she had formally taken on the important title of a duke, there were some who claimed she had finally revealed her true colors as an incapable woman. \"Apparently, His Lordship the former duke has been brought out of retirement and rushed back into service. After successfully hunting down the White Whale, it initially seemed like the royal selection had practically been decided...but no one can ever know when calamity may strike. Lady Emilia, please take proper"}, {"text": "heed of this.\" \" I guess that's true.\" Otto's admonition made Emilia lower her gaze, her violet eyes filled with melancholy. Otto noticed that she couldn't seem to help but sympathize with her political rival, and he considered it a sign of fragility. It was inevitable that someone would be defeated. It would only invite hesitation if she let that weigh on her excessively. Otto's experiences over the last year had taught him that this applied to politics as much as it did to commerce. \"Please do not dwell on it too much. This is only the beginning of such tales.\" \"Mm, thank you. I understand you're being considerate, Otto.\" \"That is good to know, at least also it would be remiss of me to not note that the complete lack of any decline in influence whatsoever since the very start of the royal selection should establish just how terrifying the Anastasia camp is.\" \"Lady Anastasia has the backing of that big Hoshin Company. Apparently, the company began in Kararagi, but it's expanding into the kingdom.\" \"Yes. In other words, their financial clout is their primary weapon their strongest card is simply to crush any competition through pure economic force.\" Otto hung his head as he ran through the implication, fear settling in his heart. Under no circumstances was his evaluation of her strength biased because he was also a merchant by trade. Making an ally out of a major businessperson was synonymous with allying a pillar of the economy. And so long as the economy continued to maintain the livelihoods society depended on, economic power was simultaneously the strongest offense and defense one could wield. \"Therefore, I believe that the Anastasia camp is the one we should be most wary of at the present. So for them to be putting us in their debt with that invitation... Do you understand just how much pain my stomach has endured?\" \"...Finally, it's really sinking in. I am sorry for deciding all this on my own.\" \"If you understand, that is fine for the time being. If you can refrain from such rash moves in the future... I'll believe that you really do understand, so...!\" As Emilia bowed her head, Otto stroked his stomach and sighed. Thanks to the way that explanation broke everything down for her, Emilia, too, realized what kind of position she was in. Of course, various things about the world of politics were difficult and complex. She'd long understood that bracing her heart with phrases like I'll try my best! and Let's do it together! wasn't nearly enough to get by, but her eyes were spinning at the sheer amount she had to be concerned with. She was happy to finally know what had been kept secret from her for so long, but in turn, her worries loomed larger. \" It is not necessary to try to take it on all by yourself.\" Reading what was in Emilia's heart from the look on her face, Otto flashed a pained smile. \"You might be the star of the show, but that does not mean you must do every little thing yourself, Lady Emilia. It is the same for this dragon carriage.\" \"Really?\" \"Currently, it is Mr. Natsuki who holds the reins. Beatrice is watching Mr. Natsuki so that he does not slack off. Garfiel is above, on guard for anything in the area, and I am planning our itinerary. And with your voice thanking everyone for their hard work, we will move forward by hook or by crook as we head to Pristella.\" Emilia's eyes opened wide as she took in Otto's roundabout analogy. Simultaneously, she found it funny how his meandering approach reminded her of a certain someone. \"Just now, Otto's way of putting that really sounded exactly like Subaru somehow.\" \"Ughhh?! Really? Oh no...could it be that it's spreading to me the longer I hang around him...? P-please don't scare me like that!\" \"Hey, Otto! Having a fun little chat with Emilia-tan, are you? My main source of sustenance is Emilia-tan's adorable smile, so don't go nabbing my food!\" When the topic of their conversation suddenly interrupted them, it gave Otto a fright. Emilia reflexively laughed, and it wasn't long before Otto laughed, too, with a heartbreaking look on his face. \"Wait a...! Why are you two the only ones having fun?! That's super not fair! Beatrice, take the reins for a second. I'm going in!\" \"What?! How is this okay, I wonder?! Stop it! Betty can't... It's tipping over! Aren't we about to tip over, I wonder?! That land dragon's eyes say it's about to happen!\" \"Hey, General! What's up? The ride's shakin' real hard is everythin' all right?!\" Hearing the commotion from the driver's position and overhead, Otto reluctantly rose from his seat. It seemed that Sir Knight of Little Patience had reached his limits. Otto judged that it was best to politely yield his spot so he could soothe the land dragons. \"Otto.\" As Otto thus began shifting from the cabin to the driver's seat, the call of Emilia's voice stopped him. What he saw when he turned around suddenly stole his breath away. The trust Emilia placed in her smile struck him deeply within his chest. \"I've caused you a great deal of trouble, but I will do my best. I'm counting on you.\" \" Yes, please do. I look forward to sharing whatever enjoyment you find along the way.\" \"That reply sounded a lot like Subaru, too.\" Smiling wryly, Otto headed toward the driver's seat.  This is why I work so hard. Truly, master and servant alike were born swindlers. Otto had a need to rise to meet others' expectations of him, and it was like a disease that left him fatally vulnerable to people like Subaru and Emilia. And as their banter continued like this, the twelfth day since departing from Roswaal Manor arrived.  On that day, the Emilia party finally reached the Water Gate City of Pristella without incident. 3 Anyone who wanted to gain entry to the Water Gate City of Pristella had to pass through the main gate that oversaw virtually all traffic in and out of the city. On the border between the Kingdom of Lugunica and the city-state of Kararagi flowed the vast Great Tigrasea River, which resembled an ever-shifting ocean. The city was constructed atop a lake fed by one of the tributaries of this massive body of water. Entering the city required crossing a bridge that spanned this river and passing through a section of the circular curtain wall. There, all visitors had to present papers at the main gate that led to the city's interior. When Subaru's party drove the dragon carriage directly to the gate, the official on duty explained the laws of the city and demanded they fill out entry forms. The details were similar to a vow that basically confirmed I will act in accordance with local laws during my stay in the city. It almost went without saying that city laws were a binding authority separate from royal or noble law, but Subaru didn't take any issue with the city laws of Pristella at a glance. Most of them involved things like not inciting riots, not using magic within city limits without good reason, and so forth. After flipping through the pages, he quickly signed and handed the papers back. Notably, the official became incredibly flustered when Emilia identified herself. That meant he must have known that Anastasia was already staying in the city and had panicked a little while wondering what in the world was going on. \"Suppose they can't help but be all nervous at having more than one royal-selection candidate pop up at the same time.\" \"But it does seem like Anastasia told the people at the gate to expect us ahead of time. They did let us pass right away, after all. Though maybe it was actually Joshua or Mimi.\" \"If you set aside his weird competitiveness, it's possible Joshua might've gone to the trouble, but I don't think Mimi would've.\" He didn't think the cat-girl was capable of that kind of consideration. That wasn't an insult but merely his honest impression of her. \"She's cute, after all.\" \"Yes, Mimi is cute.\" The mysterious persuasive power of Subaru's assertion made Emilia trade nods with him. To be blunt, he couldn't think of any other word to describe her. Also, for some reason, Beatrice stomped on his foot upon overhearing this. He didn't get it. By the time he'd managed to restore Beatrice's sullen mood, he met back up with Otto and Garfiel, who'd stayed with the dragon carriage. It seemed that the check of the dragon carriage's cargo was going to take some time. \"They sure are strict for just heading into the place. Now it seems even more like a watery prison instead of a city of water.\" \"Truly spoken like someone who has little experience with life on the road. A traveling merchant would not even consider this a snag. At least they are honest enough not to demand something under the table.\" \"Under the table? Who the hell keeps anythin' special under that...?\" \"He means a gift. Actually, it'd be bad if you take what I said literally, so just know that phrase means someone is asking for something bad. Don't let anyone catch you saying that, okay, Emilia-tan?\" Gift might have been technically correct in a broader sense, but given Emilia's position, even the hint of bribery was no laughing matter. With that episode out of the way, Subaru and the others continued to an inner gate to finally enter the city proper. As the inner gate slowly opened, the scenery of Pristella gradually came into view  \" Oooh.\" After momentarily squinting from the dazzling light, Subaru spontaneously let out a breath of admiration. And he wasn't the only one; Emilia did the same as she stood beside him. She opened her violet eyes wide as the beautiful spectacle before them left her at a loss for words. \"...So it turned out to be a city of water after all.\" This view made him want to apologize for ever suspecting it was a watery prison. When the prominent features of Pristella had first been described to him, Subaru had imagined Venice from his own world. If one ignored issues of size, the circular city resembled a stadium for holding and watching sporting events. The elevation differed depending on the area's proximity to the city's center, and each stratum boasted its own orderly row of stonework buildings. A network of waterways crisscrossed the entire cityscape, and a particularly large one better described as a canal that ran through the heart of the city divided it into four parts. Subaru could see ferryboats in these waterways gliding in every which way, and the presence of what were essentially gondoliers stoked Subaru's curiosity and sense of adventure.  This was the blue metropolis. The city of water. The Water Gate City of Pristella. \"Originally, Pristella was built on top of this lake using a combination of technologies from four hundred years ago.\" Beatrice abruptly began a lecture about the Water Gate City as if to reinforce the feeling of wonder. She glanced at Subaru and the others, who listened in rapt attention as she continued: \"It is constructed strangely, but if you think of the city itself as if it were built to be a trap, designing it to collect water at the center is only natural, I suppose.\" \"Calling the whole city a trap feels really spot-on. Was this place meant for demon beasts or something?\" \"No records remain of exactly what this trap was intended for. But when gazing at the city like this, seeing how it looks today...does it even matter anymore, I wonder?\" Beatrice narrowed her blue-tinged eyes as she beheld the same stunning sight as Subaru and the others. It seemed like she had been deeply moved by the realization that learning about something academically and experiencing it firsthand"}, {"text": "were fundamentally different. \"...What? Why are you stroking Betty's head, I wonder?\" \"Maybe because you just happened to be nearby. I wanna rub your head for you every chance I get.\" \"That doesn't make much sense, but that's quite enough patronizing!\" Though she fumed with anger, she made no move to bat his hand away. Still patting Beatrice's head, Subaru let out a breath of admiration for the city sights all over again. \"Damn, this is incredible...\" His honest appraisal elicited a wry smile of satisfaction from the soldiers who'd opened the inner gate for them. Seeing the reaction of people admiring the view was probably the biggest perk of the job. Subaru could appreciate that feeling. It was a job suitable for the residents who took pride in their city's beauty. \"Huhhh, I see. Sure is a pretty place. Not the horrible thing Bro painted it out to be.\" \"That appraisal irks me slightly, but... Ahhh, everyone, we cannot remain halted forever when there are others behind us. Please get back in the dragon carriage for now.\" Garfiel, fastest to recover, rubbed his nose as he shared his first impressions. Otto followed up by asking Subaru and the others to get a move on. \"Wow, not a very sentimental guy, are you? I thought you were a big fan of this place.\" \"Of course, for it is a land deeply connected to Hoshin, whom some even call the God of Commerce. Yes, indubitably it is a feast for the eyes. Have no doubt that I am deeply moved.\" \"But apart from that, you have more practical things to worry about? That's a sad way to live, you know.\" Otto flashed a pained smile, but there were echoes of emotion visible in his eyes. Subaru didn't ask why Otto put both his hands together, but Subaru honored his stoicism by politely doing as he instructed. \"So now we go to the Water Raiment Inn Joshua mentioned... He said Anastasia and the others would be waiting for us there,\" Emilia said. \"Yes. The official told me of its location, so I shall guide the way. As travel within the city is chiefly by dragon boat rather than dragon carriage, we wouldn't be able to rely on the provisional dragon-carriage driver, Mr. Natsuki, to safely take us through the tangled paths here.\" \"I'll have you know that as long as I give Patlash a shake and a stare, she takes care of everything else.\" Undaunted by Otto's assessment, Subaru winked at Patlash. The proud land dragon covered in inky-black scales quietly averted her face. For some reason, he got the sense that she would sigh if she could. \"Well, let's get movin'. Time to go!\" \"Yes, into the Water Gate City!\" \"I suppose!\" Emilia and Beatrice added their voices as Garfiel pointed to the city and announced their departure from his vantage point atop the dragon carriage. And so they took their first steps into the cityscape of Pristella. The streets were set at a fair incline. Seeing the scenery outside the windows scrolling by at a leisurely pace made for a pleasant ride. \"But even looking from up here, you hardly see any dragon carriages at all.\" \"Mm, I suppose so. In this city, the waterways are wider than normal streets. Even the shape of the city was decided with waterways in mind, so the roads seem to be really tangled.\" \"Ahhh, I see. So that's why there's all these labyrinth-like twists and turns.\" Just as Emilia had said, the city had been designed to prioritize waterways, meaning that the streets for pedestrian and dragon-carriage traffic naturally had to either straddle them or take detours around them. It felt pretty inconvenient, but when Subaru saw the little boats heading down the waterways, it didn't seem surprising at all. \"Hum, hum, huhummm.\" With the tranquil scenery filling her heart, Emilia began to happily hum. She had no ear for music. The off-key humming served as background music as Subaru rested his cheek on a palm and watched the cityscape. Beside him, Beatrice sat on her knees as she gazed outside, a very childlike gesture indeed. And then... \"Ah, Subaru, look.\" \"Mm? Oh, ohhh...!\" When Beatrice called out to Subaru, a small boat was crossing a waterway he raised his voice at the sight of the long-bodied, serpentlike creature drawing it. Its torso came with short limbs and had a blue, slippery-looking surface. Its head looked more like that of a lizard than that of a snake, with sharp fangs and catfish-like whiskers. It was a water dragon a dragon that dwelled near water. \"Unlike land dragons, which look like dinosaurs, these water dragons are like those from eastern mythology. Maybe I should call them shenlongs?\" \"Would it be wiser not to, I wonder? Unlike land dragons, which easily get fond of humans, water dragons are famous for their difficult dispositions. It takes raising one from the time it hatches until it matures for it to recognize someone as a master, I wonder.\" \"That sure is a lot of time, considering Patlash and I got along from the first glance.\" \"It is a mystery even to Betty why she is so fond of Subaru.\" Unfortunately, Subaru could only agree. Originally a land dragon owned by Crusch, Patlash was the reward Subaru took from Crusch following the hunt of the White Whale. Without Patlash, Subaru wouldn't still be around. That was no exaggeration in the slightest. \"Hmph. These water dragons are nothing. My dear Patlash has a much more refined face.\" \"Subaru, why are you suddenly talking like Anne?\" The way Subaru burned with an oddly antagonistic spirit toward the elegantly swimming water dragon made Emilia give him a mystified look. That moment, though the water dragon surely had not overheard their conversation, it abruptly turned its head in their direction. Then the water dragon jutted its head from the surface as it sent a high-pitched neigh slamming into the dragon carriage. This was not an amiable neigh conveying, Welcome to Pristella! but the sort of sound that implied, Stop staring at me, filthy outsiders! \"That bastard, it's making fun of us, isn't it?! All high-and-mighty just because this is its home turf...\" *** It was Subaru whom Otto had asked to avoid unnecessary disputes, but Subaru's spiteful comments were interrupted by a sharp, vivid, awe-inspiring neigh Patlash's howl. In her master's stead, she had responded to the water dragon's provocative attitude, returning the favor in a gallant fashion. He didn't know what meaning the neigh carried, but the water dragon seemed terrified by her reply, making a small sound as it sank into the water, immediately fleeing and taking the little boat along with it. \"Wait a second, Mr. Natsuki! Please do not make Ms. Patlash do strange things all of a sudden! I really do not want to get involved in trouble so soon after our arrival!\" When Otto called from the driver's seat, Subaru stuck his hand out the window and waved back. Then he blew a finger whistle of thanks toward Patlash. The pitch-black dragon responded with a ladylike sway of her tail. \"Awww. The water dragon looked cool, too, but I think Patlash is the best.\" \"...Well, does Betty not also think our girl is better than that vulgar water dragon, I wonder?\" Concurring with the pleased-looking Subaru, Beatrice seemed both proud and inconsiderate. After he put the girl on his lap, they continued raising voices of admiration over the cityscape for a little while thereafter. \"Come to think of it, it looked like the waterways split this city into four.\" \"Mm, yeah. The Great Waterway in the middle of Pristella divides it into four, and these sections are called the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Districts, respectively.\" \"Just doesn't feel right. How about naming them after the four gods Suzaku, Seiryu, Byakko, and Genbu?\" \"Ahhh, that sounds kinda cool. Me, I'm all for that.\" \"I really do not understand Subaru's and Garfiel's taste. Ohhh...\" Garfiel peered in through the window and shared Subaru's enthusiasm. Beatrice shrugged at the pair when a sudden shudder surprised her. The wind repel blessing ought to have meant they would not feel any effect from the dragon carriage shaking on bad roads. Such an impact even so meant either that the dragon carriage was being bowled onto its side or  \" If we have arrived at our destination, yes? Meaning we have arrived.\" Otto, poking his head into the cabin from the driver's seat, thus announced that the dragon carriage had stopped. \"Faster than I thought. We've barely gotten a chance to enjoy the city.\" \"Please do that on your own free time. I must speak to the innkeeper to have the dragon carriage, Fulfew, and Patlash stabled, so if the rest of you could... No, it is indeed best if you remain at the entrance.\" \"Why the correction? What, you're worried about letting us go ahead of you?!\" \"I certainly am. I can barely contemplate what would happen if you meet Lady Anastasia at the inn before I am able to rejoin you. The marquis did say as much.\" The only thing the culprits involved in the previous offense could do in response to Otto's words was to hang their heads in shame. From there, they unloaded only the hand luggage from the dragon carriage as Otto followed the guidance of the inn staff and brought the dragon carriage as well as the dragons behind the inn. Seeing him and the dragons off, Subaru and the others finally headed to the front door of the inn the Water Raiment. \"Now then, what sort of place should I expect this to be...?\" When Subaru looked up at the structure with high spirits, his mouth dropped open as he stiffened. Beside Subaru, Emilia touched her own cheek with a finger as she gazed at the same inn. \"Somehow, the building seems really mysterious. This is the first time I've seen something like this.\" Emilia's floaty impression was largely the same as those of Beatrice and Garfiel. However, Subaru was the only one who could not help harboring a different impression than them. Of course he couldn't. After all, standing before him was  \"This isn't some ordinary fantasy-world bed-and-breakfast... It's literally a traditional Japanese inn...\" Before his eyes was a blocky building of wooden construction. The entrance had a wooden door with glass facing, the yard had a hedge, there was a path of cobblestones leading from the gate to the front door, and the roof was tiled. This was a city that greatly resembled the famous Venice and came with matching architecture and furnishings. This was the last place Subaru Natsuki expected to encounter an unmistakably Japanese building in the form of the Water Raiment. \" Seems like you're surprised. I was right to pick this place, hmm?\" An amused voice suddenly spoke up. When Subaru turned toward the speaker in a daze, he caught sight of some teasing light-blue eyes peering at him from the other side of the hedge. It was a beautiful girl wearing a white dress paired with an eye-catching fox-fur scarf. The cold season had surely already passed, but her attire had not changed whatsoever since the last time he'd seen her. She had a rather small stature and long, wavy light-purple hair. An elegant smile came over her adorable face, and her big, round eyes somehow seemed bottomless. There was no mistaking that this was the person who had invited Subaru and the others to this city  \" Anastasia.\" \"Yep. Welcome to Pristella. And thank you for coming.\" Anastasia Hoshin beamed as she greeted her guests in person. 4 \"You've come such a long way. You must be tired from your journey... First, let's get you settled into your rooms. Then we can take our time to talk things over.\" When Anastasia smiled and spoke those words, Subaru was too dazed to respond right away. He felt like they'd suddenly been ambushed just like Otto"}, {"text": "had feared. If this continued, Anastasia would completely dictate the pace. That was how everyone must have fe  \" Thank you for going out of your way to greet us in person. It's such a relief.\" Everyone besides Emilia, apparently. There was little doubt Emilia had been just as surprised, but her gentle reply snapped Subaru back to his senses. When he glanced around, he saw Garfiel regarding Anastasia with a wary eye while Beatrice was firmly holding on to Subaru's sleeve. It seemed Subaru had been the slowest to recover. The impact of seeing a traditional Japanese inn here had a far lesser effect on them you'd have had to know of it to be surprised by it. \" Your face has gotten even nicer, huh...\" As Subaru took a deep breath to steady himself, Anastasia gazed at Emilia and murmured. Her light-blue eyes showed no hint of sarcasm, nor did her comment come off as belittling. That tiny exchange showed that Anastasia noticed the ways Emilia had changed over the past year. Emilia must have been barely recognizable. \"Well, her cuteness is the same...actually, maybe that's gone up a level, too.\" \"It has been a long time, Natsuki. We last met when you were honored for hunting down the White Whale and the Witch Cult, I think? It's been a whole year since then, but I assume Marquis Mathers is the same as usual, yeah?\" \"That certainly wasn't us at our best. Thankfully, we have managed to keep it together since then. At the very least, we haven't disintegrated midflight yet.\" \"That so, that so. Lovely news. I must say, I am glad that both of you came together this time. Julius seems eager to meet Natsuki as well.\" When Anastasia made that comment with her hands placed together, Subaru openly grimaced. Emilia and Anastasia both broke into laughter, making him feel even more uncomfortable. He did think that Emilia's reaction differed from Anastasia's in terms of purity and mischievousness. Of course, neither reaction was what he would have preferred. Apparently, it didn't matter how often he insisted that he and Julius didn't get along. \"Sorry to intrude on this peace 'n' harmony stuff, but should we just be standin' around all day?\" The one who cut into that warm and fuzzy atmosphere was Garfiel, who'd maintained his silence up to that point. Clacking his sharp fangs, he glared straight at Anastasia with his jade eyes. The glint in his gaze was blatantly hostile, but Anastasia only deepened her smile. \"What a cute boy. It's plain as day he's concerned about Emilia and everyone.\" \"Heh, she's smilin'. But someday, you're someone we gotta sink our fangs into. Gettin' along now is only gonna make things harder later.\" \"I suppose that's true. Garfiel is kind, so I understand why he would worry...\" \"Dah!! Who you talkin' about?! Really gotta watch what ya say, Lady Emilia!\" Taking unexpected friendly fire, Garfiel lost his composure after a failed attempt to restore some sense of tension to the conversation. Even so, he quickly rebounded and attempted to get back on topic, but  \" Ah! Garf came! Why did the lady keep it a secret ?!\" A high-pitched voice overlapped with a flurry of sounds as the inn's wooden door flew open with great force. The head poking in from the other side belonged to none other than Mimi, her adorable face full of joy. With a flutter of the hem of her robe, she bounded toward Subaru and the others as if leaping clear over a hedgerow. \"Good job finishing such a long journey! Mimi'll show you to your rooms ! And after, you need to explore the inn! There's really amazing stuff to see here!\" \"H-hey, wait, you! Me, I still had more to talk abo... Wait, she's pullin' me along?!\" \"Let's gooo! Let's go right now!\" With all the power in Mimi's tiny body, she dragged away Garfiel while he was still off balance. Of course, if he truly wanted to break free, he could have, but in the end, Garfiel was slowly but surely spirited away. \"Errr...Mimi is...really energetic, huh?\" \"You have my thanks for putting it so politely. Mimi's impulsiveness has caused me quite a bit of trouble on more than one occasion...but even for her, that was rather insistent.\" Emilia's words made Anastasia touch a hand to her cheek in exasperation as she wore a troubled smile. However, that lasted for only a moment. \"I would like to ask one thing,\" Anastasia continued, her face turning serious. \"That boy Mimi was teasing... Who is he? He's an upstanding person, I hope?\" The question carried an edge of wariness one might have about some pest buzzing around a cute daughter or little sister. From that alone, Subaru deduced the true intent behind Mimi's behavior toward Garfiel. Simultaneously, he let out a long sigh as he grasped just how loved and cherished Mimi was in the Anastasia camp. \"...Mr. Natsuki, why do you have such an exhausted face all of a sudden?\" It was just then that Otto, returning after storing the dragon carriage, frankly spoke his mind when he caught sight of Subaru's haggard state as they reunited at the entrance to the inn. 5 Under the staff's guidance, Subaru and the others left their luggage in their rooms and rendezvoused once more at the inn's lobby. The banquet hall of the Water Raiment boasted hardwood floors from wall to wall and a long table at the center. The floor wasn't completely covered with tatami mats, but the atmosphere closely resembled a Japanese inn all the same. \"But points get deducted for not reproducing screens and sliding paper doors. The staff aren't in Japanese outfits, either. I guess for the atmosphere and that hospitality mindset, we can give it a net seventy points.\" \"I do not have even the slightest idea what you just said... Are you all right, I wonder?\" \"I'm just flapping my lips to try and stay calm. I think I'll be fine even without someone holding my hand, though.\" \"...Oh really? Just to be safe, I shall hold your hand for a while longer.\" Beatrice was squirming on top of a square cushion that was placed on the floor as she held Subaru's hand. He didn't speak a word about how she was gripping somewhat harder than usual. To Subaru's right side, Emilia was kneeling on another floor cushion with her knees facing forward and her feet out to the sides as she examined their surroundings, finding the sight rather novel. \"Somehow, this place has a really mysterious atmosphere to it... From the outside, I thought it was an unusual building, but that feeling only got stronger now that we're inside. I mean, sitting on the floor, taking your shoes off...\" \"And the bedrooms have futons in them instead of beds. The closets have yukata in them, too.\" \"Huh, interesting. You seem very familiar with all this, Subaru.\" \"Truly. Just where did you study this much about the Kararagi style?\" As Subaru and Emilia conversed, Otto joined in from his seat beside Beatrice. Hearing him mention the term Kararagi style, Subaru furrowed his brows. \"You mean this inn is Kararagi-style?\" \"Indeed it is. Jabaneez-style architecture is a Kararagi tradition... This inn's design appears to be heavily influenced by it.\" \"Jabaneez-style construction... There's no way that's a coincidence.\" Though it sounded a bit strange, the obvious connection to Japan could no longer be chalked up as a misunderstanding. It was incredibly difficult to believe that such a thing had developed naturally without any influence from Japanese custom. There was no doubt in his mind that this \"Kararagi style\" had been influenced by Subaru's original world. \"In the first place, Hoshin, the hero who founded Kararagi, is the one who built Pristella, inextricably connecting the two. One might call this land the place that the tale of Hoshin of the Wastes' rise to fame and fortune began.\" \"...This Hoshin guy sure did a lot of stuff all over the place.\" \"If it were up to me, it would be Hoshin who would be called the Sage. In any case, his achievements are simply too awesome. Nowadays, Pristella is formally considered the kingdom's territory, but there was a time when it was cause of considerable territorial disputes between Lugunica and Kararagi.\" According to Otto, the two nations had gone to war over it about a hundred years in the past. Geographically, Pristella was part of Lugunica's domain, but the fact that the famous national founder of Kararagi had built it loomed large. Once the drawn-out economic conflict simmered down, the current-day arrangement was born. \"So Hoshin's influence is big here... I guess it'd be safe to assume this Kararagi style is related to Hoshin, too?\" \"It seems that way. In his era, Hoshin was someone who introduced revolutionary ways of thinking and ideas ahead of his time... He reshaped ideology, technology, culture everything.\" \"Interesting.\" Nodding at Otto's explanation, Subaru let out a very deep sigh. He was sure of it now Hoshin of the Wastes, the hero who had founded the city-state of Kararagi, was most likely someone who had been summoned from another world, just like Subaru and Al. Much of the culture linked to Kararagi, and the so-called Kararagi style, fit the world Subaru knew far too well. All of it seemed to have roots there. This made him the third person summoned to another world whom Subaru knew about but the time periods differed drastically. Hoshin came four centuries ago, Al twenty years earlier, and Subaru one year prior. What meaning was there to the time differences? Why had Subaru and the others been selected? Subaru still didn't know why he had been brought to this world. Even after coming to terms with the fact that he'd parted ways with his own world and his past during the Trials in the Sanctuary, nonetheless  \" From the look of things, you seem to be appreciating the Jabaneez inn.\" Abruptly, as if timed to coincide with a lull in the conversation, a voice called to them from outside the hall. A wooden door quietly swung open, bringing Anastasia into view. She was not alone. She had brought a single man who promptly made an elegant bow. \"It has been a long time, Lady Emilia. Originally, I should have been the one to welcome you ahead of everyone else. I apologize for the tardiness of my greeting.\" Swiftly after he appeared, the man's handsome face turned contrite and remorseful as he apologized. Just the fleeting sound of his beautiful voice from across a wall would have melted many a woman. The twinkle in his amber eyes held a passion that clawed at the hearts of any who merely gazed upon them. That was the kind of presence Julius Juukulius possessed. This was the famous Finest of Knights. Emilia responded to Julius's bow with a gentle smile. \"Yes, it has been too long, Julius. I'm glad to see you are also doing well.\" \"I thank you for your generous heart. It is good to see that you have refined your own beauty even further, Lady Emilia. I must say that the loveliness of your eyes is a national treasure nay, a treasure for the entire world.\" That annoyingly roundabout way of speaking and his pompous attitude were what made him the most irritating man alive or so Subaru privately complained as Julius turned away from Emilia, who wore a wry smile. \"It has been quite some time since we last met face-to-face. It seems you are in good health, Sir Subaru Natsuki.\" \"...Don't call me that. It's sending a chill up my spine. What's with the Sir Subaru stuff? Just talk normally.\" \"Even if you say that, it is a well-known fact that Sir Subaru has formally become Lady Emilia's knight. Setting the past aside, you currently occupy a proper position. I merely intended to treat you as a peer.\" \"Merely intended, my ass. It's ruining my mood, so cut"}, {"text": "the sarcasm, or I'll sic Beako on you.\" \"I see. It seems that though your position has changed, it has had little effect upon your demeanor.\" When Julius insisted on propriety to the bitter end, Subaru scowled as he clicked his tongue. Seeing this, Julius's face broke into a slight smile, this time bowing to Subaru. \"Then let us try again... It has been a long time, Subaru Natsuki. May you strive every day not to bring shame upon the knighthood you have been granted.\" \"Ha, damn straight. I don't wanna get beaten senseless by someone 'cause I've gotten too big for my britches again.\" \"I am offended that you would speak as if it was an unprovoked assault. According to my memory, it was merely a sparring match between two people of equal standing with their honor on the line.\" \"You sure don't know when to shut up...\" However, as Subaru had been in the wrong on every level at the time, there wasn't much he could say that wouldn't make him come off as a sore loser. Instead, Subaru devoted himself to being rather petty and refused to let a single insult slide. After studying Subaru's reaction, Julius went \"hmm,\" closing one eye as if finding this development somewhat surprising. Then he shifted his gaze to Beatrice, who was sitting right beside Subaru. Noticing Julius's amber gaze falling on her, Beatrice glared straight back at him. \"What do you want, I wonder? A lady is not to be stared at in excess.\" \"Forgive my great rudeness. I never suspected that a high-ranking spirit such as yourself would be attending.\" \"Betty is Subaru's partner, so is it not natural for me to be here, I wonder? Do not assume I am on the same level as lesser spirits who have no name worth mentioning. Just because you are appealing enough to make Betty's pure maiden heart flutter slightly, you would do well to not get carried away, I suppose.\" \"Wait, wait, wait, wait, flutter?!\" When Beatrice rose from her seat and puffed out her chest, Subaru hastily picked her up. The moment he seemed ready to whisk her far from Julius, Beatrice interjected, saying, \"Calm down. It is not really a matter of appearance, I suppose. Besides, it is the disposition, not the face, that makes the man.\" \"That's no consolation! Wh-wh-why you... How dare you do this to my Beako...\" Subaru glared at Julius hatefully as he fretted over this apparent threat to his relationship with his partner. The sheer intensity made Julius widen his eyes, but his expression relaxed soon after. \"You should not misunderstand her. Your Great Spirit has no intention of betraying you. It is merely that the blessing within me...the blessing of spirit attraction naturally draws spirits to me.\" \"Could you get any worse?! Do you exist just to bring me suffering?!\" \"You wound me. Of course, this blessing has been of great assistance to me. It is thanks to this blessing that one lacking in talent such as I was able to form bonds with the lovely buds, the lesser spirits of the six elements.\" \"Would Betty ever lose to such a blessing, I wonder? I will say this now. Subaru is much more...yes, much better than you!\" \"Thank you! And please don't hurt me any further!\" Beatrice would never betray him; Subaru was confident of that much. At the same time, her inability to find a tangible reason for her loyalty gave him a palpable sense of defeat. Whenever it came to Julius, Subaru always felt a sense of inferiority. That wasn't the only factor, but it certainly was the main reason he disliked Julius. \"As per usual, my noble knight is infatuated with Natsuki.\" \"That is a misunderstanding. I merely wish to advise him as his senior. Now that he is a knight of the kingdom, his conduct has an effect on the reputation of all knights.\" \"In other words, what you want to say is that since everyone is watching, get your act together so no one can look down on you? That's so roundabout. Your flaw is that you're never straightforward about things like this, Julius.\" As Anastasia spoke in a teasing tone, Julius sighed briefly and hung his head. He'd no doubt judged that if his master carried on any further, he would become the butt of the conversation. It seemed like this was a common pattern. For his part, Subaru had already gone through the wringer. Emilia gently patted him on the shoulder. \"I'm really happy to see that Subaru and Julius get along so well now.\" \"That's a hard comment to say thank you for, but thank you.\" The world as seen through Emilia's eyes was a peaceful one. Taking that sentiment to heart, Subaru put Beatrice over his knees after sitting back down on the square floor cushion. Anastasia and Julius also took their seats at the long table across from them. \"Come to think of it, is it just the two of you? Everyone else...Well, we did catch a glimpse of Mimi earlier.\" \"As you guessed, Mimi is getting along very well with your blondie. Hetaro, who really loves his big sister, chased after them in a hurry, so I asked TB to take veeeery good care of things before they get more complicated. If this was a divide-and-conquer plan, you really got us good.\" \"Plan or not, reining in Mimi's your jurisdiction. What about Ricardo and Joshua?\" Subaru understood that Mimi and her siblings were strong, but it worried him that he hadn't seen the rest of the Iron Fangs, Anastasia's private army. Incidentally, that worry included Julius's younger brother, Joshua, too. \"Well, even during a leisurely stay, we're not just sitting around taking it easy. Ricardo and Joshua are both on errands away from the inn... Come to think of it, Joshua wasn't rude to you, was he?\" \"Not as much as you. But you brothers definitely take after each other. If he was slightly better built, he could totally take your place. Hey, why don't you guys actually do that so you can just retire?\" \"That's an amusing opinion, but it would be rather difficult. My younger brother has been physically frail from a young age. Nowadays, there is no concern over him taking extended journeys, but as his older brother, I have often worried about him since long ago.\" Lowering both his gaze and his tone of voice, Julius seemed genuinely concerned for Joshua's sake. Subaru scratched his head and averted his gaze as he felt disgusted bringing up such a sensitive topic over something so petty. Naturally, there was a pause in the conversation. \"Errr, I think it's good to be rekindling old friendships, but if we have everyone in order, we should probably proceed with the formal greetings.\" Otto, who'd maintained his silence up to that point, decided to break the ice. Anastasia responded to his proposal with deep interest and turned her gaze toward him. \"Good idea. I've been wanting to give the shrewd domestic adviser I've heard so much about a greeting myself.\" \"Hey, hey, you got some bad info there. That mistake isn't like you, Lady Anastasia.\" \"I can imagine the source of that rumor, but having it treated as inaccurate hearsay so bluntly can really make someone overly self-conscious. Truly, it can!\" When the \"shrewd\" domestic adviser raised a cry of protest, Subaru only cutely stuck out his tongue. Watching this comedy act between Subaru and Otto, Anastasia made a small smile as she nodded toward Julius. \"Allow me to formally introduce myself. I am Julius Juukulius, assigned to Lugunica's Knights of the Royal Guard, but I am currently serving as Lady Anastasia's knight.\" When Julius introduced himself and elegantly bowed, Otto nodded with an awed look on his face. \"And this is one of the Kingdom of Lugunica's royal candidates, the girl of genius who runs the Hoshin Company based in the city-state of Kararagi, Lady Anastasia Hoshin.\" \"My lady!\" \"Why did you take a knee?!\" \"Wha ?! Oh, no, it was so awe-inspiring, my body moved on its own!\" When Otto got too swept up in Julius's performance, Subaru slapped him on the back of the head. \"Look! Our Emilia-tan is a fine royal candidate! She's just as impressive as theirs!\" \"Yeah, that's right. I'm a contender for the throne just like she is. I'm really trying my best.\" \"Just look at that cuteness. That was E M T through and through!\" \"I must say it feels extremely awkward that I am calmed by such a sight...\" The usual frivolities restored Otto's calm, which caused him to question his state of mind. Then he turned to face the other party, his mood apparently restored. \"Overdue as it may be, I shall introduce myself as well. My name is Otto Suwen, and I am serving as domestic adviser to Lady Emilia... Yes, through some twist of fate, that is my role.\" \"It seems like you have trouble accepting that for various reasons, huh.\" \"Honestly, I should be a traveling merchant. Really, why did it end up like this...?\" \"That sounds rough. Well, if anything happens, you can depend on me. I won't do wrong by you.\" Anastasia spoke with a sorrowful tone, but this was plainly an effort to pluck Emilia's domestic adviser from them. As if hoping to avert this, Subaru stood up and presented Beatrice in front of Otto. \"Incidentally, let me properly introduce her, too. She's my contracted baby girl... Uhhh, I mean, this is Beatrice the spirit.\" \"The incidental treatment offends me, but you may know my name, I suppose. Betty is Beatrice the Great Spirit, and as you can see, I am of a completely different rank, level, and cuteness than your run-of-the-mill spirits. Now that you have a firm understanding of this, might I request black tea and sweet pastries, I wonder?\" \"Uphold your dignity till the end, sheesh.\" With Beatrice unable to separate herself from that mascot-character feeling at the very, very end, Subaru tugged on her curls and pulled her back onto his lap. Then he motioned to Otto to move the discussion along. \"Yes, yes,\" said Otto in response as he took the lead. \"Though it is uncouth of us to force the conversation forward, there are a number of things we would like to confirm.\" \"Tee-hee, that's fine. It's my duty to indulge my guests. Do as you please.\" \"In that case...might I ask you the reason for this invitation to Pristella?\" \"No need to be so wary. I'm not planning anything. It's been a year since the royal selection began, right? We're both in similar circumstances, so I thought I'd give us a chance to talk things over.\" Otto's question got right to the point. Anastasia stroked the scarf on her neck. Anastasia's demeanor and way of speaking were gentle, but the tone of her voice was a pretty ornament with which she concealed her true intent. Finding her hard to deal with, Otto licked his lips; the smile of the great merchant across from him, veteran of countless battles, deepened further. \"Based on recent reports, I feel as if you have lured us with blatant bait, however.\" \"Bait is such a negative way to put it. If I'm going to invite someone, then I should at least have a proper gift prepared. That's all it is. And if I am giving a gift, then it might as well be the best gift possible.\" \"...And how is it you know what the other party desires?\" \"Tee-hee, that's a trade secret. That's no good, Natsuki. Trying to find out anything and everything about a girl... Isn't that rude to the two people beside you?\" Covering her mouth with her sleeve, Anastasia leaned forward and teased Subaru about his question. Subaru spontaneously groaned with a \"gnnnh\" as he was cowed into silence. Beatrice simply sighed, which didn't exactly make him feel better. \"It's not like"}, {"text": "we tried to keep our search absolutely secret. There isn't much we could've done if she simply heard about it from someone.\" Emilia was indifferent as she spoke in the stead of her pathetic knight. Her words made Anastasia widen her eyes. Emilia tilted her head a little as she gazed into those light-blue eyes. \"More importantly, I think if Lady Anastasia tells me where I can find what I'm looking for, it's perfectly fine to be happy about it. That seems to be the best way to go about this.\" \"What a friendly reply. I don't have any intention of telling you anything just yet, though.\" \"But that means you'll tell us in the future, right? Thank you. I don't know what I can do, but I'm sure I will return the favor.\" *** Emilia's smiling reply made Anastasia close her mouth. Glancing at this, Julius's expression relaxed ever so faintly. \"Grrr,\" went Anastasia, glaring at her own knight over his reaction. \"What's so funny, Julius?\" \"Nothing. It is merely that I rarely get to see someone exceed Lady Anastasia's expectations like this. I believe that your genuine reactions are quite beautiful.\" \"Well, you certainly have a way with words... I see I still have a long way to go, too.\" Regaining her composure thanks to Julius's comment, Anastasia turned toward Emilia once more. \"Let me correct myself. Even though a year has passed, you have stayed the same down to your core. Doesn't being like that cause a lot of trouble for Natsuki and the others around you?\" \"Mm-hmm, it's true. I'm still lacking in so many areas, which makes it harder for everyone. I really have to catch up. I'm trying very hard, though.\" \"Let me correct myself further. You are even softer than before. You make me seem like a villain.\" Anastasia let out a sigh, followed by a grinning smile. The sudden change in her demeanor made Emilia widen her eyes this time. After watching this, Anastasia looked at Subaru and Otto. \"Make sure you lend her your strength, all right? If she doesn't put up much of a fight, it'd mean trouble for me as well, so...\" \"I intend to eagerly give it my all, but my basic policy and personal style is to spoil her with praise.\" \"Which is why the rest of the burden falls to me. Ha-ha...how did it end up like this?\" Subaru gave a thumbs-up as Otto's expression grew increasingly morose. Anastasia shrugged at the sharp contrast in the pair's appearances. \"Well, it's fine. Seems like there's no need to worry whether you boys know how much a favor is worth.\" \"A favor, is it? Favors are excellent. You do not have to keep it in stock, nor does it expire by a certain date.\" \"That's right. And more than that \" Anastasia agreed wholeheartedly with Otto as the two merchants locked eyes. \" You don't have to put a price tag on it.\" Their voices were as one. Anastasia smiled, and a listless smile came over Otto as well. Subaru felt like he'd heard such an exchange once before, but apparently, it was a maxim among merchants. Whatever its practical application, the words made merchants sound strong. \"Now then, I suppose I'll get to what you've been waiting for. The thing Lady Emilia is searching for...is a magic crystal that can serve as a catalyst for a spirit mage, with the added conditions that it must be colorless and have a high level of purity, correct?\" \"Yes, that's right. Could you tell me more about it, even if it's just something you've heard of in passing?\" A sense of expectation rested in Emilia's violet eyes as Anastasia indicated she was moving on to the main topic. When they had first arrived in Pristella, Emilia's demeanor had been somewhat reserved. After all, frankly speaking, the sought-after magic crystal in question was Emilia's personal problem. What overcame that faint hesitation was her hope of being reunited with her family at last. To her, a chance to see Puck again was also a ceremony heralding a new beginning. Anastasia smiled broadly at the expectations clearly welling up in Emilia's chest. \"The magic crystal you seek is owned by the son of a great merchant following his father's footsteps here in the city. He has quite some talent in business himself, but in this city, he is more famously known by something other than his name.\" Anastasia paused, as if building anticipation for what might follow before finally proceeding. \" I believe they call him The Man Whose Heart Was Stolen by the Songstress?\" 6 \"The Man Whose Heart Was Stolen by the Songstress...or the Songstress Maniac for short? Weird nickname.\" Subaru gazed at the waterway with a quiet look on his face as he muttered. The overly tranquil time of the Water Raiment conference though it seemed grandiose to call it that had come to an end, and Subaru's party was in front of the inn, preparing to head out. Their next goal was to visit the Songstress Maniac and negotiate for the magic crystal. Anastasia had actually ended the meeting immediately after presenting her information about the magic crystal's owner. Not only that, but she'd also contacted the other party in advance, apparently having already made all the arrangements for a visit. Her sheer thoroughness left Subaru unable to do anything save bite his tongue. \"Of course, whether the negotiations go well is up to us, but...the problem is whether the other party is sane, right? This Songstress Maniac just has to be a weirdo.\" \"I wouldn't be so sure. Your heart was stolen by a single woman, and you publicly pronounced this fact without hesitation do you not find your behavior at the meeting of royal-selection candidates quite similar?\" \"Not that it's some kind of dark secret, but could you not bring that up just to get under my skin?\" Subaru's scowling demeanor left Julius shrugging in exasperation. At the moment, only Subaru and Julius were in front of the inn. Subaru had finished his preparations swiftly, while Julius had arrived in order to see him off. Subaru wanted to meet back up with Emilia and company as soon as possible. He already missed Beatrice's warmth. \"We last met at the honors ceremony, but...how have you been over the past year?\" \"Stop acting like we're buddies sharing recent news. Now, what do you know about this Songstress and the guy who's obsessed with her?\" \"I have not actually met them in person, but both are famous individuals here in Pristella. Not a day passes when this city does not hear the Songstress's voice.\" \"The heck is that about? Is this some recital they hold all the time?\" \"Hmph. You will soon understand.\" Subaru grimaced when Julius snorted and flashed that smug smile. Julius's habit of unnecessarily building suspense only fueled Subaru's irritation. \"I'll pay you back for being a pointless pain in my butt some other time... Anyway, what is this Songstress Maniac's deal? I gotta say I'm not expecting much from meeting him in person.\" \"There's no need to be concerned; he is a man worth speaking with. However, if I had to warn you about one thing...I believe Lady Emilia would not be a problem, but perhaps it would be wiser not to bring Lady Beatrice with you.\" \"What is that supposed to mean?!\" When Subaru immediately asked for a response, Julius was at a loss for words for once as he quickly averted his gaze. Subaru could sense his distress. Maybe this Songstress Maniac guy had a grudge against spirits? \"If he hurts Beako somehow, I'm not confident I'll be able to hold myself back.\" \"No, surely, he would not treat her poorly... She might be the recipient of an excessive welcome, however.\" \"What do you mean by...? Wait. Don't tell me he's a lolicon...?\" \"I do not know what you mean by that term, but...\" Julius trailed off at the end as he searched for an appropriate word within his own vocabulary. However, even a knight as elegant as he could not magically produce something so elusive. Either way, the true reason for Julius's concern was clear, causing Subaru to clutch his head. \"My mentor was already a handful as far as troublesome lolicons go...\" Really, Clind had an aesthetic all his own. Subaru was mostly troubled by the fact that Clind and the Songstress Maniac might well have something in common. Clind prized youthfulness and treasured the childish spirit. In other words, someone with a youthful appearance but a mature mind would be of no interest whatsoever. Accordingly, Clind did not find Ryuzu appealing at all; in contrast, he held Emilia in high regard. Furthermore, he practically treated Beatrice like a princess. \"My Beako is an all-rounder who's attractive to your run-of-the-mill pervert as well as the exacting tastes of people like Clind...\" \"Why is it I feel as if I am being treated rather rudely again, I wonder?\" Beatrice, who had arrived just in time to hear his comment, puffed her cheeks up in a fit of pique. Seeing Beatrice there like that with no sense of danger, Subaru raised his voice, saying, \"Get some sense, dummy! I'm just worried about you! Wake up and realize that you give off a dangerous level of charm just by existing! Be careful so I don't have to worry this much! Damn it, you're so cute...!\" \"Eh, ah, mm... W-well, it's only natural that you would worry about that, I suppose. Tee-hee-hee.\" Even though he'd just warned her about her carelessness, Beatrice simply grasped Subaru's hand with delight. For the moment, he decided to firmly hold on to her hand and never let go. He needed to be especially careful in this city. \"Incidentally, Beako, you came by yourself? Wasn't Emilia-tan in the same room as you?\" \"Emilia and Otto are searching for Garfiel. He must be taking a stroll inside the inn, I suppose. In the meanwhile, Betty has come here so that Subaru wouldn't get lonely.\" \"I see. You're cute even when you're condescending.\" Stroking Beatrice's dazzling hair, Subaru turned his gaze toward the inn. Garfiel was no doubt engaged in arduous combat with the three siblings at that very moment. If worse came to worst, abandoning Garfiel and departing immediately was an option. \"Then again, leaving without him would make it pretty meaningless to have brought him as an escort. No, wait a sec. When you think of it as him drawing away three of the enemy at the same time...\" \"It is not good to think so belligerently. Even if that were the case, who would be my opponent? Hmph, you, perhaps?\" \"You laughed a bit just now, didn't you? You don't think I can cut it? I'll have you know Beako 'n' I are dangerous when we put our power together. You'd be struck with awe, okay?\" \"Precisely. You would be astonished, I suppose.\" When Julius made a provocative remark, Subaru grabbed Beatrice and pushed her to the fore. When he saw Beatrice puffing her chest out, Julius raised both hands in apparent surrender. Then during that exchange among the trio, a voice called out to them  \" Brother, I have just returned.\" A young man waved his hand as he climbed up from a waterway onto a footpath. The new arrival had a delicate face with a monocle Joshua. Seeing him made Julius stand straighter with a smile. \"So you made it in time. Thank you for your hard work, Joshua.\" \"Not at all. Please feel free to leave this much in my hands any time you wish. Also...\" Hearing his older brother's thanks, Joshua's expression relaxed. After that, he looked at Subaru and Beatrice. Instantly, keenly, and very blatantly, the temperature in his yellow eyes turned cold. \"...Both of you, thank you for coming all this way. I believe you have already spoken to Lady Anastasia. I am sorry that I was unable to join you.\" \"Mm, don't"}, {"text": "sweat it... I heard you were out to take care of some kind of business.\" \"Yes. By the command of Lady Anastasia, I went to the trading company to...prepare a dragon boat for you. Please make use of it during your time in the city.\" \"Dragon boat!\" The statement was delivered in an oddly chilly tone, but the content made Subaru's eyes sparkle. Behind Joshua, in the waterway from which he had just emerged, Subaru saw a water dragon with its outstretched head turned their way. \"A pilot has also been provided. I employed Hoshin Company connections to secure a trustworthy person.\" \"That's being very thorough. What's really important is that this is the stuff of dreams and fantasy, so thanks for setting all this up.\" \"Pay it no heed. I mentioned it already, but this was on Lady Anastasia's orders. If anything, I sought to finish preparations as early as possible to keep my older brother from dealing with Sir Natsuki any longer than necessary, but...\" \"You're one hell of a blunt guy, aren't you?\" Joshua's overly forthright nature brought a strained smile to Subaru's face. But Julius was the one surprised in his stead. He raised his shapely eyebrows, apparently unaware of the enmity his younger brother had held toward Subaru until this moment. \"Joshua, all of them are Lady Anastasia's guests of honor, him included. Rudeness toward him is a slight upon the honor of Lady Anastasia, our liege. Refrain from this in the future.\" \"...I I am very sorry, Brother.\" After getting a scolding from Julius, Joshua clenched his jaw as he bowed his head. Julius sighed at the sight, glancing at Subaru and Beatrice with an apologetic look in his eyes. \"I am sorry. I apologize for our impropriety. Normally, my younger brother would absolutely never behave in such a manner... Perhaps the change in environment has him more worked up than usual.\" \"Not that I mind, but if it's really because this is some new, unfamiliar place, then you need to keep a firm grip on the reins as the older brother. I don't wanna have both siblings nipping at my heels, Big Bro.\" \"Hmph, I shall keep that in mind.\" When Julius returned to normal and wore his usual smug smile, Subaru shrugged in exasperation. As he did, Beatrice went, \"Ah,\" her voice trickling out as she held Subaru's hand and trained her gaze toward the inn. Just as Subaru turned to see what had caught her attention, the door to the inn was flung open as several people emerged. \"Hey, General! It's terrible ya just abandoned me like that! This ain't no joke!\" Garfiel came first, his sparkling golden hair all a mess as he clenched his fangs. He'd apparently been at Mimi's mercy for quite a while. \"Sorry to make you wait. We just couldn't find Garfiel and the others any sooner.\" \"They left signs of mayhem throughout the entire inn, so we had to look everywhere.\" Behind Garfiel, Emilia and Otto spoke of the difficulties their search party had to overcome. Just as Anastasia had said, Mimi had whisked Garfiel away, which drove her two younger brothers to take up pursuit and interfere with their date, resulting in scuffles that had apparently broken out all around the inn. \"That was hell. If Bro hadn't come, I'd still be runnin'.\" \"So you've been savoring a meowtiful festival. Satisfied?\" \"Satisfied, my ass. Those little bros tried to kill me as soon as that runt dragged me off. I was racin' around like Gehanon's Fleeing Feet, damn it.\" \"Well, those two little brothers seem to be obsessed with their sister to the extreme. You didn't counterattack?\" \"They were on a rampage 'cause they were worried for their big sis, right? No way I was gonna make 'em cry over that.\" Garfiel had steadfastly chosen to not raise a hand upon his sister-loving comrades. Either way, thanks to timely aid, he had finally been freed from the sibling trio, meaning the Emilia camp was assembled at last. Preparations were in order to pay the Songstress Maniac a visit and engage in direct negotiations. \"Joshua arranged a dragon boat for us, so it's a boat trip from here on out.\" \"Wow, seriously? I really wanted to ride one. Thank you, Joshua.\" Bringing her hands together before her, Emilia smiled and voiced her appreciation. Joshua's cheeks reddened slightly as he tried to respond. \"N-not at all. Your words are wasted upon me. I merely did as Lady Anastasia bade.\" \"We are grateful for your thanks. Please enjoy your boat trip, Lady Emilia.\" The two brothers reacted to her gratitude in very different ways, which Subaru interpreted as a sign of how accustomed each sibling was to this sort of thing. Having bid the Juukulius brothers a farewell, Subaru and the others began climbing aboard the dragon boat. The dragon boat was the size of a small rivercraft and could accommodate seven people including the pilot. The good-natured, weathered-looking pilot lent them a hand, and when he saw that everyone was aboard, he gently launched the boat. \"The size of the boats is apparently set by city law, y'see. It's a compromise 'cause they gotta consider not just pilots like us but the comings and goings of other vessels, too.\" The swarthy-skinned pilot gave that explanation as Subaru and the others looked at the boat like it was a novelty. Subaru hadn't given it much thought, but unlike the dragon carriages speeding down broad highways, something like traffic rules needed to be set for the waterway boats that were the chief means of getting around the city. \"It's my first time crossing the water by boat. Somehow, it has my heart racing.\" \"Seriously? Ahhh, but it's not like this is a sea or anything.\" \"What's a sea?\" \"It's like a...never-ending puddle of water. My homeland had that all around it, see.\" \"Huh, that's incredible. It's nice that you'd never run out of water in a place like that.\" Emilia's eyes glimmered. Subaru smiled at her childlike impression of his birthplace. Unfortunately, using seawater to supplement insufficient drinking water was spectacularly suicidal conduct. As it would be fruitless and complicated to explain that, he decided to simply appreciate Emilia's cuteness. In the meantime, the dragon boat followed the waterway's current, picking up speed as it proceeded into the center of the city. A dragon boat heading down the left lane of the broad waterway gave Subaru pause. Mysteriously, the flow in the waterway's right lane was heading upward. Just what strange physics were at work here? \"Tee-hee-hee. Surprised? Actually, I know why. Look at the edge of the city.\" When Subaru had that question in his mind, Emilia proudly pointed far into the distance. Looking in that direction, he saw that the circular outer wall surrounding the city was connected to some stonework towers. There was one giant stonework tower for each of the cardinal directions west, east, south, north it was impossible to miss them. \"Ahhh, I was wondering about that. What are those towers?\" \"Those are the control towers that regulate the flow of water inside the city. Apparently, the towers themselves are complex metia that use the power of water magic crystals to control the current. It seems like the city's huge water gates are operated there, too.\" \"Heh, so those are giant metia! That's really something.\" Nodding at Emilia's explanation, Subaru now knew the mysterious mechanism behind the waterways flowing in the city. The Water Gate City of Pristella really was different from other cities in quite a few respects. Beginning with its laws and its standing as a completely independent city, there seemed to be many things he ought to study about it. \"Incidentally, please be careful. Sullying the water is a grave criminal offense in this city. This goes especially for Garfiel, who has been gazing at the water with a frightened face for some time now.\" \"It ain't that I'm scared of the water. I just don't wanna end up like some waterlogged cat.\" \"Then could you stop holding on to my cloak with all your strength? Judging by the sound, it might well tear soon.\" Sitting in the center of the dragon boat, Otto sighed at how Garfiel couldn't seem to calm down at all. The exchange brought a smile to Emilia while Beatrice simply shrugged. \"Goodness, everyone is too worked up. Would you behave yourselves and learn from Betty's ladylike example, I wonder? Subaru thinks so as well.\" Beatrice winked toward Subaru as she sought his agreement. Then Subaru gave Beatrice a little nod. \" ad.\" \"...What did you say just now, I wonder?\" It was Beatrice alone who overheard the murmur so small, it was almost inaudible. When her expression stiffened and she took a step back, everyone else turned their attention to Subaru. Looking over each of their faces in turn, Subaru smiled. \"This is bad. I think I'm gonna throw up.\"  In an instant, complete pandemonium broke out on the boat. 7 \"Are you finally better, I wonder?\" \"Nah, just a little longer... Whoa, this is bad. The world's spinning. It's still going... Crap, I thought I had this under control, but it's no use... I guess some things never change.\" Subaru gazed at the current of the waterway as Beatrice stroked his back. They were on a footpath by the Great Waterway, which ran through the center of the city. He understood why passersby were smiling as they watched the two of them sitting together in a corner. They likely mistook them for close siblings that, or recent arrivals who thought the Great Waterway was quite a novelty. \"Not that either of those assumptions is wrong, though... Bleh.\" \"If you are going to retch in the middle of saying something foolish, you can at least behave yourself and catch your breath. There's no need to be concerned. I shall stay with you, I suppose... Get well soon.\" Beatrice was gentle and reassuring to the frail, blue-faced Subaru. Indulging in her kindness, Subaru focused on steadying himself, wanting to recover as soon as possible. Some fifteen minutes had passed since Subaru's sudden bout of seasickness on the dragon boat had caused an uproar. Having gotten off the dragon boat midway, Subaru was left with no option but to rendezvous with the others at their destination by foot, with Beatrice staying close to him to keep him from setting out before taking time to recover. Of course, Emilia had offered to wait until he felt better, but  \"Lady Anastasia has already made arrangements for the other party to grant us his time. The tardier we are, the worse the impression we make, and I would like to avoid giving Lady Anastasia a reason to ridicule us.\" This was the merciless opinion of the domestic adviser who had neither blood nor tears to spare. Thus, Subaru had been abandoned by the party. That said, on top of having no idea how long his recovery would take, Subaru's pride wouldn't allow the issue of his seasickness to slow Emilia down. Then again, he had the sense that his pride had already been shattered to pieces. At any rate, he agreed that Otto's judgment was the right one. \"It's the nightmare from when I rode the ferry on that field trip to the ocean in elementary school all over again...or did they know about my seasickness and took advantage of it to separate me from Emilia-tan...?\" \"Is Emilia someone who would be rendered helpless from the lack of one bumbling Subaru, I wonder? Then what is Garfiel here for?\" \"Suppose you're right. Besides, Julius wouldn't tolerate some underhanded move like that... That guy is always the most chivalrous person in the room.\" Julius's nobility was inflexible. Subaru had no reason to doubt him on that point. Due to that, Subaru didn't feel a strong need to be overly concerned about any conspiracy by the Anastasia camp. \"Pfft, Subaru, do you not trust that man a"}, {"text": "great deal, I wonder?\" \"Huuuh?! No, no, there's no way! I mean, what I wanted to say is that his twisted personality won't let him, no more and no less! That's it let's go already!\" After shouting his protests and pouting, Subaru jumped to his feet. He rotated his arms and legs a little, confirming there were no lingering effects from his seasickness. His limbs felt a little heavy, but if that was the extent of it... \"I'll just hold Beako's hand and cancel it out with heartwarming energy.\" \"You seem to be in quite high spirits. Well, Betty will take care of you whatever happens, I suppose.\" \"Yeah, I'm counting on ya. Anyway, let's hurry and meet back up with everyone before Emilia-tan becomes sad and lonely.\" They were already affectionately holding hands as Subaru winked at Beatrice. In turn, Beatrice's very presence seemed to say leave it to me! as they set out toward the trading company. \"Come to think of it, we've been focusing on this Songstress Maniac guy, but I wonder what kind of chick this Songstress is? A city of water with a songstress, plus Emilia-tan and Lady Anastasia, two royal candidates it all sounds like some major drama's about to break out.\" \"I do not know what you mean by drama, but Betty has an interest in the Songstress as well.\" \"Ohhh, come to think of it, Beako really liked it when Liliana came to the mansion, too, huh?\" Subaru nodded and broached previous events when Beako displayed her interest in the Songstress. It was about one year prior, before the royal selection had begun in earnest. Just a little after the demon-beast uproar had been mopped up, a minstrel came to stay at Roswaal Manor. This minstrel was the same Liliana he had just mentioned. She had a few...troubling personality quirks, but setting that aside, her singing voice charmed all the girls at the mansion to no end. That included Beatrice, long back before she'd opened her heart, as well as Emilia, who was second to none when it came to giving her honest impressions.  And Rem had been a part of the unexpected new fad, too. *** \"...Subaru, shall we go this way, I wonder?\" Subaru briefly fell silent, and Beatrice saw a flash of emotion in his black eyes. When she pulled him by the hand, Subaru lightly sighed and slowly followed her tiny back, grateful for her silent thoughtfulness. Their destination was a trading company that stood on the edge of the Great Waterway at the border between the First and Second Districts. The city's layout prioritized waterways, meaning the paths were unusually inconvenient for pedestrians. But Beatrice leisurely led him through the city streets, walking as if they were as familiar as her own home. After several detours around some waterways and countless bending paths, he crossed the waterway hand in hand with Beatrice. \"Look, Subaru. Is that not a magnificent water fountain, I wonder?\" \"Ahhh, yeah... Is this some kind of park?\" When Beatrice expressed her admiration, Subaru spoke those words while gazing at a city park that enshrined a beautiful water fountain. It had a green lawn, a meticulously maintained flower garden, and a large, beautiful fountain sending up dazzling sprays. This was a place that epitomized tranquility, a place of calm and quiet repose. Had he the time, he would have considered taking a nap right then and there. Yes, if only he had the time. \"But right now, we don't have a minute to lose. Hey, Beako. You've been projecting this whole leave it to Betty, and you can't go wrong, oh-ho-ho energy but you have no idea where we are, do you?\" \"Sigh... Honestly, bringing that up when there's something so beautiful to see is rather heartbreaking. Are you incapable of relaxing, I wonder? As your partner, Betty feels quite embarrassed.\" \"The old you would've tried to desperately hide your mistake while your face went beet-red. You've become a little cheekier lately. It's enough to make Daddy cry.\" Who was the bad influence who had transformed her into such an expert at making excuses? He ignored the fact that had Otto been present, the adviser would have almost certainly made a witty remark, for Subaru and Beatrice had become thoroughly lost. Though there was some truth to the claim that Subaru didn't know how to take it easy, they really couldn't afford to take their time wandering around. If possible, Subaru wanted to rejoin Emilia and the others before the negotiations for the magic crystal were wrapped up. \"In that case, would it not be best to politely ask someone to show us the way, I wonder?\" \"Ohhh...I never thought I'd live to see the day that Beako would say the words politely ask someone. How you've grown...\" \"Oh-ho-ho, Betty is not one to remain at a standstill forever.\" Seemingly forgetting that it was her poor sense of direction that had gotten them lost in the first place, Beatrice proudly puffed out her chest. Since she was basically a walking mass of weaponized cuteness, Subaru refrained from pointing out anything rude and simply stroked her head. Then Subaru started looking for someone to ask for directions. However  \"...What's going on? How is there not a single person in this park when it's the middle of the day?\" \"I suppose this is rather strange. One would think a large throng of humans would be napping in a place like...\" Unable to spot any sign of life nearby, Subaru and Beatrice cocked their heads in confusion. Then Beatrice trailed off midway as she stared toward the back of the park. Curious about her reaction, Subaru turned in the same direction when he suddenly realized something. \" Do you hear that? A song?\" The flowers of the park rustled in the wind. There was the soft sound of water flowing along the waterways. With this natural harmony as a backdrop, the distinct sound of a musical instrument and a person's singing voice tickled their ears. Because of the distance, they could hear only snatches of it. Though they were but fragments of a dancing tune and music, the sounds clawed at Subaru's heart. Naturally, Subaru's no, Subaru's and Beatrice's feet were both drawn toward the singing. *** Then when they arrived at the source of that enticing melody, the pair was overwhelmed, forgetting even to breathe.  At the deepest part of the park, a lone girl was singing in front of some kind of monument. The girl had brown skin. Her stature was short. She had a cheerful face and big, round eyes with bright-yellow irises, and her hair was tied in twin braids with the ends hanging from each side of her head. Her hair and body were adorned with ornaments made from tree fruits and animal bones. In the singing girl's arms was a lyulyre a stringed instrument somewhere between the size of a guitar and a ukulele. With that and her voice, the girl put on a performance of stunning skill, her throat trembling as she wove the song. It was the energy the music carried that was overwhelming. A wind and tremor that should not have existed, a blazing heat that should have been impossible to feel, and uncontrollable surges of happiness, anger, sadness, joy this was what consumed Subaru as the song enraptured him. And it was not only Subaru who felt this way. Nor was it merely him and Beatrice. As the girl continued to sing, an audience of some fifty people had gathered around her. Their breaths were hushed as they listened to the song, just as entranced as Subaru and Beatrice. Finally, the girl's song reached its climax. The audience's emotions reached their zenith  \" No money, no future, no dream, only vanity. Ahhh, what do I see? I see the darkness behind my eyelids. There is nothing beyond the darkness. It is over, over, and it all comes to an end.\" \"Hey, when you listen to the words, this is a pretty horrible song, y'know?!\" \"Hyaaa?!\" The lyrics, which contained neither dreams nor hopes, made Subaru raise his voice as he snapped back to his senses. That instant, the girl cried out in surprise as she nearly dropped the instrument she was holding, which obviously interrupted the performance. The heat that had permeated the place dissipated all at once. The change in atmosphere made Subaru go pale as he realized he'd done something bad. \"Oh crap, I failed to read the mood just like old times! Beako, let's hightail... Owww?!\" \"Stupid Subaru! It is ruined! What terrible manners... Could you be any worse, I wonder?!\" Before he could beat a strategic retreat, he felt sharp pain as nails dug into him. When he looked, his assailant turned out to be a red-faced Beatrice. The genuine anger in her expression made Subaru keenly understand that if Beatrice was grading him, he'd just spectacularly failed. And  \"Er, ah...a song?\" \"The park... I was in darkness until just now.\" \"No, back then, I couldn't help it...\" \"When I grow up, I'll smack Temion and save Draphin!\" \"I wanted to cheer on her dream...\" \"Oh, Tina...\" \"Lusbel...\"  the audience members who had been captivated by the song gradually began returning to reality. Some had broken into tears because of the music, and there were boys and girls who had found that the song lifted their spirits. And as they came to their senses, the crowd slowly turned toward Subaru, who was standing a short distance away. Subaru's body went rigid when he caught sight of the glints in their eyes. \" Don't ruin the moment!!\" The next instant, Subaru paid for his thoughtlessness as they hurled whatever they could get their hands on at the poor boy. 8 \"Ow, ow, ow...that was horrible. Beako, how do I look? Am I bleeding anywhere?\" \"Why should I care, I wonder? This time, not even Betty will take Subaru's side.\" Beatrice harrumphed and turned her head away from Subaru, who was sitting cross-legged on the grass. Apparently, she was really holding a grudge over Subaru's rude interruption. She wasn't going to let him off the hook this time. After ruining the recital earlier, Subaru had endured a hail of insults and projectiles from the enraged audience. If he was being perfectly honest, it had been a year since he'd been that sure death was coming for him. Fortunately, thanks to the singer pacifying the crowd despite being the greatest victim, Subaru had escaped with his life. He'd managed to get away with nothing worse than being trodden on by the majority of the listeners as they departed. \"My left foot feels like it's swollen to twice its size. I'm scared to take the shoe off.\" \"I will not use any healing magic. Perhaps a little pain will help you reflect on your actions?\" \"That's ice-cold, Beako... Well, it'd be a waste of the mana you painstakingly gather up every day, and I get it. It's not good to assume you can just rely on healing magic whenever you get hurt.\" Nodding in agreement, Subaru stomped his aching left foot against the ground. Since coming to this world, he'd gotten used to a life without scrapes and bruises, but it was true that he might have started taking healing magic for granted. Forgetting about wounds and pain led to arrogance. It was something to be wary of. \"Now then, since I've apologized to Beako, I should properly apologize to the offended party.\" After that light exchange, Subaru finally turned back toward the monument. The audience there had already departed. There was only one person left save for Subaru and Beatrice. It was none other than the singer who had finished baring her heart through song. \"Sorry that our conversation kept you waiting after I interrupted your singing like that. I never thought... Huh?\" Subaru closed his mouth in the middle of his apology. The reason was the palm that filled his vision. The girl had"}, {"text": "thrust her hand right into Subaru's face. And then  \"I have it. Listen to this  Doowop doowop, the difference of years in love.\" Leaving the surprised Subaru and Beatrice behind, the girl rhythmically slapped her musical instrument with her fingers. Then she clicked her tongue as a cue to break into song, accompanied by a ferocious melody. \"Hey, do you see it, do you feel it? The difference between the years of love in you and me. People call it strange, but I don't mind at all. My worry is always the difference in years of love between you and me. Hey, wait. Please, wait. A little longer, until I grow a little taller. I don't care about a difference in years. The distance of love between you and me, the distance of soft, enchanting love \" \"The space between lovers shrinks and quietly becomes burning love. Then at last the stork comes past, with a child and a tale of love and bright futures!\" \"Ehhhhh?!\" The song the girl suddenly belted out made Beatrice's eyes spin, but when the battered Subaru joined in as the song was wrapping up, the spirit found that it was beyond her ability to cope. Of course, none of this had been rehearsed in advance. It was an act of reflex, but of course Subaru was a master of such things. As the girl finished her song and offered zero explanation for it, he gave her a high five as they pointed to each other. \"W-will you hold on a moment, I wonder?! Why...? Why did Subaru just break into song and dance? And is it not very strange that you seem to find this all very normal, I wonder?!\" \"Hey, hey, what are you talking about, Beako...? Music transcends borders, y'know?\" \"What fine words! I, Liliana, am so deeply moved that my chest trembles. Not literally, but still!\" \"I-it's unacceptable that you two are making it seem like Betty is the one who's gotten something wrong...\" These two weren't just going at their own pace; they had a my way or the highway attitude, and Beatrice had lost nearly all will to fight it. Subaru gave the spirit's shoulder a couple of pats as he turned to face the brown-skinned girl. \"Right. Just to be clear, don't get the wrong idea about my relationship with Beako. She and I have gotten real, real close, but even if Beako got taller, that isn't going to put her in my strike zone.\" \"Ehhh, but girls change over time! And I'm a great judge of character. I suppose you could chalk that up to life experience?\" \"Beako might look like this, but she's already four hundred years old. I wonder if she'll ever change?\" \"Oh, cooome on. There's no need to make things up just because you're embarrassed\" It was the truth, but it was so unbelievable that she immediately assumed it was a lie. Subaru figured correcting her would be too much trouble. More important, there were higher priorities than clearing up the misunderstanding around Beatrice's age. Namely  \"It's been a while, Liliana! This was a total coincidence, but the most important thing is that you're doing well.\" \"Not at aaaall! Meeting you two in a place like this leaves me so embarrassingly, frustratingly happy that I can barely contain my exciiitewend!\" \"She bit her tongue rather hard, I suppose.\" Elegantly bowing with her musical instrument in one hand, Liliana smiled as an alarming amount of blood spilled from her mouth even as she smiled. The bite must have had shocking force. Liliana pressed a handkerchief to her mouth, quickly dyeing the cloth red. \"Pardon me, I really did a number on myself there.\" \"I can tell. You seriously haven't changed at all. Kinda makes me more worried than relieved, honestly.\" Subaru let out a deep sigh as he experienced a complex mix of emotions that came with this reunion. Liliana was an old friend of Subaru and Beatrice's. She was both the performer in the park and the minstrel who had spent several days with them at Roswaal Manor. During her stay, Liliana had brought singing, music, and her various personal issues to the mansion. In the end, these issues were resolved, and she departed from the mansion safe and sound. \"Who knew that we'd run into you here in Pristella. From what we saw earlier, it seems like you're in peak form, too.\" \"Yes, rest at ease. Since that time, my ample sensitivity has exploded even more, and I have devoted everything to polishing my skills further, so I have nooo trouble earning a living wage even in a city like this.\" \"The way you said that sounded kinda shady and even a bit dirty. I mean, isn't it bad for you to be in this city?\" \"Hmm? Why?\" Liliana gave Subaru's words a mystified look. Subaru sighed at her oblivious reaction. \"You're technically a minstrel, right? But now, this city is home to some huge competition they call the Songstress. Ain't that bad for business?\" \"I am not technically a minstrel; I am a minstrel down to every strand of hair and drop of blood! Also, also, it's so flattering how worried you sound. It's making my body throb aaaaall over.\" \"Whoa, what's with that way you're moving your body? It's creepy!\" \"Did you just call an adorabibble girl creepy?!\" Thanks to her squirming while wiping a fair bit of blood away, Liliana's face was left covered in strange splotches. Unsure whether he should call attention to her ghastly makeup, Subaru ultimately decided to prioritize advancing the conversation. Of course, the conversation itself was rather strange. Based on what he had just heard, it was almost as if  \"Give up, Subaru. Is it not time to face reality, I wonder?\" \"Hold on, Beako. I still want to cling to even the slightest possibility until the very, very end. Any way you slice it, this girl can't be the Songstress. That'd be total blasphemy.\" \"Ah, the Songstress you heard about? That's me. Ahhh, it makes me so blushy blushy.\" \"That's exactly what I was afraid of!!\" As Liliana's face became doubly red, Subaru clutched his head and shouted at the top of his lungs. Being forced to confront a truth he didn't want to acknowledge that Liliana was the Songstress shattered Subaru's expectations for the rumored singer. Beatrice reacted in much the same way; she had a face like a child who had been full of hopes and dreams, only to have a promise to go to an amusement park dashed due to rain. \"Well, we saw for ourselves that the girl's singing voice is quite formidable. So Betty's eyes...or ears did not lead you astray after all, I suppose.\" \"I guess you have a point there... No, wait. If you're the Songstress, then the madman they call the Songstress Maniac is...?\" \"Ahhh, you're referring to Mr. Kiritaka, yes? There's no mistake, none at all!!\" \"Uuuuugh, so he's here, too?\" The name Liliana spoke so cheerfully made Subaru clutch his head once more. Kiritaka was another individual who had visited the mansion during Liliana's stay. He also happened to be one of the problems Liliana had brought to the mansion; in short, he was Liliana's stalker. From a certain viewpoint, he could be mistaken for a patron of Liliana's, enamored by her artistic talent, but as it was not Liliana's skills he was obsessed with but Liliana herself, he was definitely a stalker. That said, Liliana ended up leaving the mansion with him, and everything had been settled peaceably. \"Come to think of it, there was talk of him inheriting some trading company. Don't tell me...\" \"He is indeed the young owner of the Muse Company, which runs this city.\" \"So he even runs the whole city! That's incredible!\" Kiritaka's unexpected jump in status just didn't click with the impression Subaru had gained after seeing him in the flesh. Kiritaka was living proof that someone could change a lot in the span of a single year. \"It's almost enough to make you believe that Liliana could become a songstress in just a year.\" \"Heh-heh-heh. I am honored by your praise. But, but, but bunnies shouldn't just say anything they liiike.\" *** As if saying Why, you sly dog, Liliana ribbed Subaru with her elbow, which made him flick her forehead on reflex. \"Adahhh!\" she cried out like some kind of peculiar creature as she reeled. \"What are you doing all of a sudden? Don't surprise me like that.\" \"H-how brazen of you to flick someone right in the forehead! But I shall forgive you! After all, I have heard the rumors... Right? Sir Subaru Natsuki, the Moppet Mage.\" \"Geh!\" \"Geh, I say!\" The words Liliana spoke with a sparkle in her eyes made Subaru and Beatrice yell simultaneously. Since having knighthood conferred upon him, Subaru Natsuki was permitted to call himself Emilia's knight in name and fact, but during that past year, he was better known by his \"infamous\" nickname. The reasoning was that the knight of the half-elf reportedly spent all his time with a little girl, an individual shrouded in mystery. \"Word has it that you were of extraordinary help in the hunt for the White Whale under the banner of Duchess Crusch Karsten, becoming the benefactor of Wilhelm the Sword Devil in the process! And directly after, with the cooperation of two royal-selection candidates, you destroyed one of the Archbishops of the Witch Cult, which has continued to terrorize the world! A new hero's overwhelming march forward made four centuries of stagnant time move again!\" \"Aaaargh!\" With the expression of a charmed maiden, Liliana put her hands together and rattled off Subaru's achievements. Though some were gross exaggerations, they were all based in truth, so there wasn't much room to protest. Ambushed by this physically embarrassing tirade, Subaru groaned in what seemed like physical pain. Meanwhile, Beatrice made a tiny snort and puffed up with a satisfied look. \"Afterward, it is said he ran all about from east to west in service of The Freezing Witch, together with a young child who is a powerful magic user. You did all that, yes, Sir Subaru Natsuki?!\" \"Oh-ho. This girl understands things rather well, I suppose. Yes, Betty's partner, Subaru, shall sweep aside the famous names of yore and rise to even greater heights hereafter, shining like a brilliantly gleaming star. If you understand this, then you would do well to praise and revere us even more, I suppose!\" \"Tee-hee !!\" \"Don't get cocky.\" When Beatrice turned arrogant and made Liliana bow down before her, Subaru grabbed the spirit by the collar and lifted her up. Suspended like a kitten, Beatrice said, \"Nya!\" as her overbearing lecture was interrupted. \"Sheesh. Liliana, don't let Beatrice take you for a ride like... Wow, what a beautiful groveling technique!\" \"Heh-heh-heh. In my life as a wandering traveler, I have polished the Liliana style of prostration. Not only do bandits spontaneously let me go, but they also want to donate to me, making my travels highly successful.\" \"Invest your points in minstrel-related stats, would you?\" That said, even as a singer, her talents were sufficient to earn her the name of Songstress. Subaru had heard that many geniuses excelling at a single talent were eccentrics, and Liliana most certainly fit that description. Her lack of inhibition just barely fit under what was tolerated even for those of great talent, though. \"Subaru, just how long do you intend to treat Betty like a cat...?\" \"Oh, sorry, sorry. Beako's as light as a wispy dandelion seed, so I totally forgot.\" Gently setting the dismayed Beatrice upon the ground, he stroked and messed up her hair. Liliana widened her big eyes at the sight of Subaru and Beatrice behaving so intimately. \"It really seems like you two have become very close somehow. When I spent time with you at the mansion previously, your friendship was more difficult to pick up on.\" \"Well, there"}, {"text": "have been a lot of twists and turns since then. Even now, those are some precious memories for Beako and me.\" \"Indeed, I suppose.\" It was because of the times when neither was honest with each other that the present had come to pass. Liliana exhaled slightly at Subaru's and Beatrice's words. \" You really have become a hero, haven't you, Sir Subaru Natsuki?\" *** \"Do you recall the promise you made when we last met?\" Quietly, the atmosphere surrounding Liliana changed. Somehow, her voice sounded dignified, even holy, making Subaru feel like she'd suddenly wrapped a hand around his heart. She displayed a passion that rivaled that of her singing voice. \"I am a minstrel. I am a wanderer who travels to every land to spread my songs. For one such as I, destined never to remain rooted in one place, there is something I must not fail to achieve, namely...\" \"...The world's newest legend, was it?\" \"Yes.\" Liliana nodded at Subaru's words. This had been the objective of her journey since their first encounter. To a minstrel, who left behind nothing tangible when she departed, there was no way to leave her mark upon the world, to prove that she had lived, save through song. Creating a song that would be passed down through the ages was her life's ambition. And that had led her to a single answer  \" Sir Subaru Natsuki, you have become a hero, just like you promised. I could not be happier.\" Though Liliana was never serious about anything but music, there was not the slightest hint of mischief in her words now. In response, Subaru closed his eyes. He had no intention of responding to Liliana's earlier recitation of his exploits with a show of humility, passing them off as something anyone could have done. He understood that no one would praise him for behaving like that. All the same  \"Sorry. I'm not a person who deserves to be called that just yet.\" \"Eh?\" When Subaru stared straight at her and told her that, Liliana's eyes shot open. Subaru clenched his fist as he continued. \"I know that I'm only a little more reliable compared with before. I still have a long way to go. My journey's only just begun. There's still things I need to accomplish and things I need to make up for.\" Subaru Natsuki had become a knight with the sole intent of supporting a lovely girl. For Subaru Natsuki to become a hero, he needed to bring the Sleeping Princess back to his side, she who had refused to abandon Subaru when he was still weak and foolish. And  *** Beatrice squeezed Subaru's empty hand, respecting his way of life. That was why Subaru Natsuki would do it. He'd borrow everyone's strength and see it through. \"So hold off on that promise to make a song about me until I've wrapped up everything. After that, I'll tell you about it as much as you like. It ain't cool to rush ahead to the end.\" Whether a hero's epic or a fairy tale, a story ought to have as good an ending as possible. If they could reach a happy ending after everything was over, then who wouldn't want to talk about it? Even Subaru wouldn't say no to bragging about something like that. *** As she listened to Subaru's reply, Liliana had hung her head at some point. With her face turned downward, Subaru could not read her expression; Subaru lowered his own eyes, figuring he must have hurt her. Just as Subaru reflected, wondering if he could have said it in a different way  \"...ord.\" \"Excuse me?\" \" I have your word !!!\" \"Whoaaa?!\" Suddenly, Liliana lifted her head and thrust her fist toward the heavens, leaving Subaru taken aback. Liliana proceeded to close the distance with a red face and ragged breath. \"Y-you you said it just now, didn't you?! Someday, you will speak to me of your legend as much as I like! In other words, the Legend of the Moppet Mage is mine and mine alone!\" \"W-well, I'd like you to do something about that title, but yeah.\" \"Then my ultimate victory is assured! Hip, hip, hooray! Mwa-ha-ha-haaa!\" Wearing an expression of excitement and delight that was rather unseemly, Liliana threw her lyulyre high into the sky. She caught it, then promptly dropped it. She didn't care. She was overjoyed. \"Hey, is that any way to treat your instrument?! And you call yourself a songstress?!\" \"O-o-of course! Isn't that ooobvious? I can't do anything with this. It's my precious; I love it so much! See, I'm kissing it! Smoochie, smoooochie !!\" \"You're really something... In terms of shock factor, you might be the second coming of Petelgeuse.\" \"Oh-ho, I do not know who that is, but it seems you hold this Petelgeuse in high regard. If we should ever have a chance to meet, perhaps I shall gain a worthy rival for life!\" \"He's an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins in the Witch Cult.\" \"Now that's a legend to take your breath away! Oh, you're the best!!\" Despite exposing so much skin that you'd think she was a dancer, Liliana pulled out something resembling confetti from who knew where and tossed it in the air as she showered Subaru with more praise. Subaru sighed deeply when he saw that Liliana had truly reached a feverish pitch. Where had the solemn, dignified atmosphere she'd shown for one brief moment disappeared to? \"What Betty and Subaru saw was probably some kind of daydream.\" Subaru smiled wryly at Beatrice's comment and waited for Liliana to calm down. It would be another five minutes before Liliana morphed from a peculiar creature back to a human being. 9 \"I see, I see, you have business with Mr. Kiritaka's trading company! Actually, I'm here in this city right now thanks to him. I can guide you there.\" \"Awesome, that'd be a big help.\" Having somehow regained enough humanity to engage in conversation, Liliana patted her chest as she declared she would help Subaru and Beatrice. After they explained that they were lost and had business at Kiritaka's trading company, they'd ended up procuring her services as a guide. \"It's just that he told me he had an important business meeting today, so I should stay outside, you see!\" \"Guess you would be a distraction for a serious business meeting. I get that.\" \"That makes sense, I suppose.\" \"Huh?! Against my expectations, are you actually agreeing with him? I'm woundeeed!\" Liliana gaped in vivid dismay, but hers was likely a needless worry. After all, the other party in the important business meeting Kiritaka had spoken of was no doubt Emilia. Kiritaka was greeting a royal-selection candidate and had his own position as a merchant to consider. It would be difficult to have Liliana, who was liable to act up the moment she saw some familiar faces, attend such an important meeting. \"In other words, it's because of how you usually behave. You reap what you sow.\" \"What kind of remark is that?! Wait, I have it. Please listen rough waves, tall waves, the waves of society.\" \"Though deeply intriguing, we do not have time to listen. Could you guide us there right away, I wonder?\" \"Boo-hoo, the waves of society are rough, tall, and so cooold. Also, we're already here!\" Pretending to sob and weep for a moment, Liliana's face immediately brightened up as she rushed forward. Then she spread her arms wide in front of the large building before her. \"This is the Muse Company you've been waiting foooor!\" As Liliana spun around as if she was dancing, Subaru raised his eyebrows as he stared up at the establishment behind her. A stonework structure, the office of the Muse Company, stood between Pristella's First and Second Districts. From what he'd heard, most of the traffic in the city was concentrated in these two districts. The fact that the building was situated on strategic ground between these districts proved the strength of the Muse Company's influence within the city. \"Even Anastasia said he was pretty good. It's enough to make you almost forget his image of being a pampered rich kid...\" As a matter of fact, the man was leading one of the largest trading companies in a major city. There was no mistaking that in the last year, he must've straddled the line between life and death, though in a very different way from Subaru. Just because Emilia was an acquaintance didn't mean Kiritaka was likely to cut her any slack at the negotiation table. \"Hooowever, there's no need to worry! The bonds we share will overcome that somehow! Leave it to Liliana Masquerade to use obligation and sentiment to smash the scaaales!\" \"Smash them? Just what do you intend to do?\" \"It's rare for me to speak so plainly, but it means I'll put in a good word for you!\" Adopting a peculiar pose, Liliana winked clumsily as she replied to Beatrice's question. Her answer left Subaru going \"ow?\" as he tilted his head. \"It's nothing hard! Mr. Kiritaka has a real soft spot for me, so I'm sure if he hears from me, this business meeting will be all smooth sailing. How does that sound?\" \"That doesn't exactly inspire confidence... Are you sure about this?\" \"This much is nothing at all. Sir Natsuki and I are old friends, right, right?\" When Liliana shot him an even clumsier wink, Subaru sank into thought. It felt more than a little unfair, but the chance that Liliana putting a good word in with Kiritaka would be effective was certainly high. Seasickness had caused Subaru to be late, but it might have opened an unexpected door as well. \"Okay, let's go with that plan. I'm counting on you, Liliana.\" \"Yes, milord ! As you command!\" When Subaru indicated he'd go with the idea offered, Liliana looked extremely enthusiastic as she raised a tight fist. However, seeing Liliana like that seemed to make Beatrice more than a bit concerned. \"Subaru, is this really all right, I wonder? Betty is uneasy.\" \"I'm painfully aware of how you feel. But I wanna bet that this is our silver lining. I don't want to end up doing nothing more than being the vomiting, seasick jerk.\" \"Does anyone actually think of you as a vomiting, seasick jerk, I wonder...?\" At any rate, seeing that Subaru had made up his mind, Beatrice said no more. She seemed unable to hide her worry, but they would try trusting in Liliana's stage presence just this once. \"And so Liliana makes her dramatic return. Where is Mr. Kiritaka?\" After Liliana psyched herself up, she shoved open the door to the Muse Company at the head of the group. There was a receptionist right inside the entrance on the first floor, who widened her eyes at Liliana's words. \"Ah, the president is in a business meeting with some guests... Um, Ms. Liliana, why are you here? This is a problem.\" \"Getting that treatment from the very start is already making me worried. What sort of impression did you make here...?\" The receptionist's nervous words were plainly tinged with concern and bewilderment. She was treating Liliana less like a pest and more like she wasn't sure how to deal with a dog that hadn't been housebroken. \"Sure about that? Didn't you hear that some of the guests the president is meeting with were running late?\" \"Yes, I am aware of this. A man and a mop...a young woman.\" Subaru was pretty sure the receptionist was about to say moppet while looking at Beatrice, but she was apparently a polished professional. She made a quick recovery and bowed deeply. \"The president is with the rest of your party on the second floor. Allow me to show you...\" \"Hold on, just leave that part to me! I have something to say directly to Mr. Kiritaka!\" Liliana's statement, burning with a sense of duty, made the receptionist look at Subaru. He nodded back."}, {"text": "\"Liliana and the president here are both acquaintances of ours. Thanks for the concern.\" \"...Understood. Do be careful.\" After Subaru spelled it out for her, the receptionist had no option but to back down. Her parting words provided a glimpse of her conscience. Subaru acknowledged her concern and then headed toward the second floor. \"So what sort of business do you have with Mr. Kiritaka today?\" \"I can't believe you've been so confident even though you didn't even know that much, but it's about an arrangement for a magic crystal. The Muse Company deals in magic crystals, so you must've heard some details, right?\" \"Oh, yes. I did hear they found a gemstone of rare beauty recently... Is that what you mean?\" Apparently, word of it had reached Liliana's ears as well. This rare gemstone was likely the magic crystal they were after. Subaru admired Anastasia's thoroughness in getting hold of such information as the trio arrived at the reception room. Then when Subaru stood in front of the room that had a RECEIVING GUESTS sign hanging from the door... \" So I'm asking if you would please hand over that magic crystal.\" Hearing a voice clear as a bell through the door, Subaru learned that the business meeting was at an impasse. Both sides already knew each other, so the pleasantries of their reunion must have ended quickly, and they'd gotten right to the heart of the matter. Since Emilia was making her plea, the real negotiations over the terms were no doubt beginning. \"Bingo, Liliana. Now we just have to pick the right moment to...\" \"Excuuuse meee!\" \"What are you ?!\" When Subaru tried to wait for the right moment, Liliana immediately flung the door open. Boldly asserting her presence, she marched directly into the room. Inside, Subaru could see five men and women in total. Sitting in tall chairs side by side were Emilia, Otto, and Garfiel, making three. Facing them were a young man who had meticulously combed blond hair and was good-looking overall, plus a man in a white suit standing behind him. The good-looking man was Kiritaka Muse the young head of the Muse Company who ran the city even while being known by his other identity, the Songstress Maniac. There was a table among the five, upon which magic crystals small and large of various types were lined up. It very much looked like everyone was in the middle of a business deal. Kiritaka was understandably shocked at the intrusion. \"L-Liliana? Why in the world are you here?\" \"Isn't that obvious?! Because justice always wins!\" Replying with an answer that wasn't an answer, Liliana pointed straight at Kiritaka. She proceeded to aim her finger at Emilia and the others, who were just as surprised by her sudden appearance. \"I can't, can't, can't believe you would drive me away when you knew Lady Emilia and her friends were coming such villainy, such cruelty! This is much too much I might even burst into tears!\" \"Er, ah, I'm sorry about that. But, my dear Liliana, I want you to listen to me.\" \"Noooo! I have no ears for you! I have no affection left for Mr. Kiritaka! But along the way, I was able to recover thanks to Master Subaru Natsuki, the Moppet Mage!\" \"You're bringing me into this?!\" Spinning around like a dancer, she indicated Subaru with a flourish. All attention within the room instantly gathered upon Subaru. Beside him, Beatrice touched a hand to her forehead. By this point, Subaru was beginning to regret all his choices that had led up to this moment, but  \"Nah, not yet. I should still be able to turn this around.\" \"I owe a debt of gratitude to the magnanimous Master Natsuki as well as his master, Lady Emilia! Mr. Kiritaka, this is a chance to show what kind of man you really are by making it easy for them! Won't you play a role in my dream?!\" Completely unaware of Subaru's struggle, Liliana made her proposition to Kiritaka in a spectacularly brazen fashion. Now completely swept up in her momentum, Kiritaka furrowed his brow. After a little thought, he asked Liliana, \"A role in a dream?\" \"Noooo! My dream! To leave behind a song about the newest legend in the land! That is what Master Natsuki is here for, and he has promised that when he succeeds in this business deal, he will cooperate with my dream by answering my questions about anything and everything no matter how embarrassing! Liliana was nearly brought to her knees!\" \"Eh, eh, eh? W-wait a  That's not what I !\" Liliana had subtly altered his promise inside her head for her own convenience, which threw Subaru for a loop. According to Liliana, he'd already agreed to be the subject of her highly anticipated tale of valor. It was more or less true that he'd intended to share his story, but the level of heroics she expected had apparently changed drastically. \"So please, I ask kindly for your consideration! Make Liliana a womaaaan!!\" \"Think about what you're saying!!\" When Liliana began to storm closer to Kiritaka, Subaru grabbed her and hoisted her into the air from behind. If he let her rampage continue, Liliana the Songstress would turn this into her own impromptu stage. Beatrice and the receptionist had been right to worry. Liliana really was a drama queen. \"Ah, what are you doing?! Hey, hey, let me go! Oh, for crying out loud!\" \"Pipe down! Ahhh, sorry to intrude... Er, more like sorry for bringing someone who intruded, I guess? Anyway, I'll get her out of here so you guys can pick up where you left off...\" *** Still holding the thrashing Liliana aloft, Subaru tried to leave the room. But before he did, a slender figure swayed as it stood up. This was Kiritaka. Moving as if he were a vengeful spirit, he grabbed one of the magic stones in the lineup displayed on the table. Then he shifted his eyes toward Subaru they looked fiendish. \"...na.\" \"Wha?\" \"D-d-d-don't touch my Lilianaaa!!\" The next instant, Kiritaka's voice went shrill as he hurled the blue magic stone in his hand. Just before pure energy exploded, Subaru immediately went from carrying Liliana to casting her aside. That was all he had time to do. An instant later, he was enveloped in blue light. The explosive sound and the shock wave that blew the reception room apart announced that negotiations had fallen through on the first day. CHAPTER 3 *** 1 \"I am sorry it turned out like this after so long apart. Even normally, our young master is rather edgy, but when Ms. Liliana gets involved, he is liable to lose control, as you saw for yourselves.\" At the entrance to the Muse Company, Kiritaka's bodyguard spoke those words and bowed his head to Subaru. The bearded man calling himself Dynas seemed fair-minded and acted accordingly, in contrast to his stern visage. The sight of him apologizing drove home his message that he felt genuinely regretful about his employer's act of violence. \"This is the second time you've bowed your head to us like this, huh? At the time, you guys were almost as edgy as Kiritaka was.\" \"...Ms. Liliana caused you a fair bit of trouble back then as well, did she not?\" With those words, Dynas made what came off like a self-effacing smile, which deepened Subaru's own troubled smile. Just like Liliana and Kiritaka, this wasn't his first time meeting Dynas, either. He, too, had been staying at Roswaal Manor during Liliana's visit. His no, their objective had been Liliana herself, so at one time, he and Subaru were something close to enemies. \"And Kiritaka's the one who mediated at the time... Is that really the same guy?\" \"Small wonder you would ask that. Normally, the young master is excellent, setting his illness aside.\" Dynas put his hand to his forehead as he sighed. Illness was quite an odd way of putting it. Really, Subaru had underestimated Kiritaka's obsession with Liliana, which had even earned him a title as ominous as the Songstress Maniac. He never would've thought Kiritaka might lose himself during a business meeting and become so riled that he'd blow up an entire room of his office building. Of course, the failure of the business deal was due to Subaru's thoughtlessness and Liliana being even worse at reading a room than he expected. On further examination, Subaru realized he was just as bad as she was. Why had he ever thought two people like that could be of help in a delicate negotiation where reading people's reactions was the most important thing? \"I don't even understand it myself... Anyway, from your position as a bodyguard, how does Kiritaka look?\" \"His mood will likely recover tomorrow... I want to think so, at least. I am sorry, but he is not presentable at the moment.\" \"Well, I suppose that figures. Now, as for the Songstress in question...\" Trading sighs with Dynas, Subaru turned around. Liliana, who'd come to see them off just as Dynas had, was exchanging words with Emilia and the others. \"Really, Mr. Kiritaka can be such a pain. To think that even though Lady Emilia and Master Subaru came to visit after so long, we won't get a chance to speak it's so irritating!\" Consumed by her own anger and fury, Liliana's face made it clear she was totally unaware that she was a major part of why the meeting had come to an early close. Emilia and Beatrice were gently soothing Liliana all the same. \"Normally, it's the other way around, right?\" \"One should not expect normalcy of any sort from Ms. Liliana. Ahhh, may I have a moment, young miss?\" Interrupting the exchanges, which Subaru didn't know whether to call charming or shameless, Dynas patted Liliana on the shoulder and addressed her. \"I am sorry, but I simply must ask Ms. Liliana to restore the young master's mood. His schedule is packed today, so please save the rest for tomorrow.\" \".... I understand.\" It took her a fair bit of time to clue in, but even Liliana yielded to Dynas's earnest plea. As a result of the combined efforts of the Emilia camp's Moppet Mage and the Songstress, negotiations had been spectacularly fruitless, dashing any hope Subaru had for a triumphant return. \"Shit, what silver lining was I even thinking about? All I found was more cloud...!\" \"Is that all you have to say for yourself?!\" Waving enough that their hands nearly fell off, Liliana and Dynas bid them farewell and parted ways. When Subaru muttered to himself as the party was walking home, Otto sent spittle flying as he interjected. Adjusting his hat after that outburst, Otto proceeded to vent all his pent-up anger. \"Why, in front of a man they call the Songstress Maniac, did you act so familiar with the very same Songstress? Thanks to that, talks broke down right when we were on the very verge of striking a deal!\" \"Er, I thought I'd try and improve things because everyone seemed to be at an impasse...\" \"There was no impasse whatsoever! We were working out the terms in a gentlemanly fashion!\" \"Ehhh, you seriously mean I made a big fuss over nothing?!\" Naturally, even Subaru had to repent over turning his own worries into misfortune. Otto must have found the other party pretty responsive during negotiations. His dismay at seeing all his work ruined was considerable. Depending on Liliana's efforts, perhaps Kiritaka would be willing to talk again the next day. \"Even if he does, it would be wise to assume he will make his terms more onerous.\" \"Uggghhh.\" That sound was Subaru's only possible response; Otto had read what was in Subaru's mind and hit him right where it hurt most. Then Emilia clapped her hands, saying, \"Yes, that's far enough. Otto, there's no need to be so angry. It's not as if Subaru had any bad intentions, or he'd never be this down about what"}, {"text": "happened.\" \"Emilia-tan... Yeah, that's right. You really understand, don't you? Go ahead and say more.\" \"Subaru, you should properly reflect on what you've done. It's not fair. I wanted to speak more to Liliana, too.\" \"Huh?! So you're on Liliana's side and not mine?!\" As Emilia sulked, Subaru reeled in shock, feeling as if he'd been cut down from behind. Watching the almost playful exchange between master and servant, Otto let out a sigh at the familiar sight. \"Setting aside that Mr. Natsuki should absolutely reflect on his actions... Negotiations have come to a standstill. For the moment, we should return to the Water Raiment and review our plans, but...\" \"What is it?\" \"Actually, I have some business to attend to, so I must depart for a while.\" When Otto raised a finger and spoke those words, Subaru and Emilia both went, \"Business?\" as they tilted their heads. \"Yes. After coming all this way, it is advantageous to create connections that normally I could not. So for today, I will be going around and greeting people.\" \"An unflappably devoted professional, huh...\" Perhaps Otto was simply good at switching gears. Or maybe he kept a couple spare brains tucked away somewhere. Either way, Subaru had to admire his dizzying methods. \"Yes, about that, Otto. You don't need me with you when you go around and greet people like that?\" \"A fine question, Lady Emilia. However, if you were to arrive without sending word ahead, everyone would be conflicted, since they'd be unable to give you a proper welcome. Refraining from rash actions is also a form of consideration. Much like how Lady Anastasia spoke with the Muse Company for us.\" \"I see... Mm, understood. I'll remember that, Teacher.\" Emilia's reply brought a tired smile to Otto's face. Then he said, \"Go home straightaway,\" as if he was speaking to a child, before leaving the party, vanishing in the direction of the Second District. \"Emilia-tan, what's with that Teacher thing just now?\" \"Hmm? Oh, Otto has been teaching me quite a lot lately, including when we were on the carriage ride here. That's why I call him Teacher. Is that weird?\" \"Nah, it's not weird; I'm just jealous. You can call me Teacher, too, okay?\" \"But Subaru is my knight, not my teacher...\" \"Gaaah, so cute...!\" Emilia's adorably conflicted look and hushed words left Subaru weak in the knees. \"The general and Lady Emilia both took a pretty big likin' to that Songstress chick, huh.\" Garfiel joined the conversation with both hands entwined behind his head. He, the only one among them unfamiliar with Liliana's songs, crinkled his nose. \"Me, I wanna hear her stuff, too, if it's really that good. I've gone through a ton of books, but ya can't know what a song is like from just readin' about it, so I dunno what I'm missin'.\" \"Right, Garfiel wasn't at the mansion when they paid us a visit.\" \"So this'll be the first time you hear Liliana's song, huh...? It'll probably rock your world.\" \"Serious? That's some heavy billin'.\" The way Subaru and Emilia talked about her music drew an expression of surprise and expectation from Garfiel. Liliana's songs really did have that kind of power. Subaru previously had a few chances to listen to minstrels other than Liliana, but none of them held a candle to her. It was beyond all doubt that Liliana was gifted enough to be called a songstress. \"I guess for that talent, the gods took a few too many things from Liliana in exchange?\" \"A rather cruel thing of them to do.\" \"I don't really get what ya mean by that.\" Beatrice's face showed how deeply she agreed with Subaru's murmur. Garfiel, the only one left in the lurch with just tangential information to make guesses from, clicked his tongue, seemingly pouting as he glared at the water's surface. Incidentally, the four were taking the long way back to the Water Raiment on foot. Unfortunately, if they went by dragon boat, there was a rather high chance that they'd have to leave Subaru behind due to his seasickness again. \"It's such a pretty city that I think it's nice to have a chance to walk around. Like Otto said, we don't really have anything left to do today.\" \"I sure caused you a lot of trouble...\" \"Ah, I didn't mean to blame Subaru. I'm only a little angry.\" \"So you are angry! I mean, of course you are!\" All that said, it was a fact that he wanted to take his time before returning to the inn where Anastasia would no doubt pry into everything that had happened. Subaru had no reason to object to a detour. \"The only worry besides that is whether I can escort Emilia-tan back to the inn safe and sound.\" \"Do not be concerned. Betty will watch over you, I suppose.\" \"Just to say this out loud, it wasn't only me who dropped the ball today; this involves you, too.\" Beatrice was nonchalantly shirking responsibility for the failure of negotiations, but her passive participation made her an accomplice all the same. That her face showed no recognition of this was cute, though. \"No need to worry, General. My nose remembers the scent of the road all the way back to the inn. Even if I can't smell the building, I know the scent of that rowdy kid, so we ain't gettin' lost.\" \"Heeeh. Hooo. Hmmmm.\" \"Hey, what's with that reaction?\" Garfiel suspiciously crinkled his nose at Subaru's suggestive reaction. He was mostly curious about the way Garfiel brought up Mimi. Mimi's actions were so impulsive that they were hard to understand, but he figured she had nothing but goodwill toward Garfiel. Their ages matched, too, so Subaru expected some interesting developments would come as time went on. Incidentally, Garfiel continued to get the cold shoulder from his own target, Ram. It looked to Subaru like the only love Ram held for Garfiel was the sort one had for family. \"Either way, Garfiel, I wish from the bottom of my heart for you, my little brother, to be happy.\" \"Huh? What's this all of a sudden, General? Well, not that I hate that or anythin'...\" When Subaru patted his shoulder with a warm look in his eyes, Garfiel tilted his head in confusion and gave a blunt reply. Subaru genuinely hoped that his innocent little brother found happiness in this city of water. \"I have to say, this really is a splendid city. Everywhere I look feels like it's calming and peaceful.\" On the way back, Emilia seemed to be in a very good mood as she savored the scenic beauty of the watery metropolis. The waterways cutting through the center of the city might have been slightly inconvenient, but they certainly did not fail to impress. \"According to Beako's explanation, the founding of this city wasn't exactly for peaceful reasons...\" \"But whatever the reasons at the time, how we feel right now is still real, right?\" When Emilia stopped atop a bridge and gazed at the Great Waterway, Subaru was enchanted by her smile. From her charming expression to the words she spoke, she was happy. Whatever the reason, that moment was genuine.  Because what's important isn't where you started; it's where you end. \"I hear ya, Mom.\" \"Did you say something?\" \"Just remembering some magic words from the woman I respect the most in the world.\" Even as time passed since Subaru had heard those words, they still gave him courage even now. Forgetting something didn't mean losing it forever, and he was determined to hold on to whatever he could remember. For one more day, Subaru Natsuki lived on, pulled forward by the feelings he had inherited. \"I suppose we should really head back. The mysterious way the inn's built is really on my mind.\" \"Jabaneez construction, huh? To be honest, I'm interested in that, too. For a different reason than Emilia-tan, though.\" \"Is that so? Tee-hee. We'd better hurry, then.\" Letting go of the handrail on the bridge, Emilia smiled and took a step back. Perhaps it was because she was too giddy from sightseeing that she lightly bumped into someone passing by as she did. \"Ah! I'm so sorry.\" Emilia hastily turned around and bowed her head to the passerby she had bumped into, a man whose entire body seemed white. He had bleached white hair and a white suit. His height was around the same as Subaru's, and their physiques were a close match as well. In short, he was a man without any visible distinguishing features. The man in white shook his head to Emilia's apology. \"You need not be concerned. I was careless this time as well I was momentarily enchanted by you.\" \"...Errr.\" \"Your beautiful silver hair, yes. I once tried to make a woman with hair as beautiful as yours my bride. Remembering this fondly, I found myself unable to avoid you.\" In contrast to Emilia's apology, the man's reply somehow sounded unnatural. His speech seemed intended to sound persuasive, but the sense of hubris was stronger. \"Okay, stop. That's far enough.\" That was the moment Subaru put himself in front of Emilia, motivated by the forthright heart of a knight and the pure heart of a man in love. \"Well, it seems like both people were careless this time around. I'll lecture our girl for being thoughtless later, so please kindly allow us to leave it at that for today.\" \"Wait a second, Subaru. That's no way to speak to someone who...\" \"Go with it, 'kay?\" When Emilia shot him a look of protest, Subaru winked back at her. Getting into some weird quarrel here ran the troublesome risk of others realizing Emilia's identity. He felt more like a celebrity's manager than a knight at the moment, but that was beside the point. \"A mutual encounter and a mutual apology. That's common courtesy in a city of water, right?\" \"Thank you for your politeness. For the time being, I have little reason to pursue the matter. Should we meet again, it will simply be the whims of destiny bringing us together once more.\" \"Yeah, I agree. Well, here's hoping destiny makes our paths cross again in the future.\" As the stranger was speaking poetically, Subaru replied like a delusional middle schooler as he took his leave. Pulling Emilia along by the hand, Subaru let out an audible breath of relief and looked in her direction. When he did, he saw Emilia glancing back a bit, the stranger clearly still on her mind. \"I was definitely a little rude back there, but given your position, I hope you understand.\" \"Eh? Ah, no, no. It's true that Subaru's behavior was a little poor, but it was because I was careless in the first place. But that's not it. I...\" Her words trailed off. There was a faint hesitance in Emilia's eyes. \" I feel like I've met that person somewhere before.\" \"An acquaintance of yours? I think I should know most of them already.\" \"Yeah... I'm not too sure myself. I wonder who he is?\" It had to be really bugging her, because Emilia glanced behind her one more time. However, the man had already crossed the bridge, and all she could see was his fast-receding back. Though it was tugging on something inside her mind, her search for answers seemed to have been in vain. \"Hey, General. Ya look pretty shaken up. Wha, worried some pretty boy was gonna steal her away?\" Garfiel, who had already crossed the bridge and was waiting for them, greeted Subaru with a wave and a question. Subaru understood why Garfiel and Beatrice wanted to give him and Emilia some space, but even so, he sighed over Garfiel's carefree attitude. \"Idiot, this ain't the time to goof off. What are we gonna do if some weirdo hangs around and you're not there? Emilia-tan's gonna be in a pinch if it's not someone I can handle.\" \"Puttin' your"}, {"text": "body on the line to protect her that's how the general shows he's a man, am I right?\" \"Using my body as a shield? I don't think I'm really built for that. As a human being or as a shield.\" Garfiel flashed a grin in response to Subaru's almost humble self-assessment. Garfiel seemed to be taking that as modesty on Subaru's part, but from Subaru's perspective, it was plain fact. If anything, Garfiel held Subaru in too high esteem. \"Hey, relax. Me, if I think a guy's trouble, I'll send him flyin'. On that score, the guy just now is an amateur. The way he walks and moves... Ain't even worth talkin' about.\" \"...Well, I guess that's fine.\" One of Garfiel's odd specialties was his ability to discern an opponent's combat potential from their physique and movement. Subaru could personally attest to that; Garfiel had sniffed out his middle school kendo experience. If Garfiel guaranteed that it was fine, Subaru was probably worried over nothing. \"In that case, let's go, Emilia-tan...or is he still on your mind?\" \" . No, I'm all right. Sorry for being weird about it. Let's go back.\" \"Sounds good. Don't worry when we get back, you can hug Mimi or something and take your mind off it. Hey, I'll be satisfied hugging Beako, so you don't need to pout like that.\" \"Did Betty not refrain from saying anything about it, I wonder?!\" Subaru's words made Beatrice's face redden. Upon seeing this, Emilia broke into a beaming smile. Then she gently touched her hand to her lips. \"I suppose so. If I hug Mimi, I'll feel really relieved. I'll do just that.\" Thus, having seemingly swept her concerns away, she set out walking once more. Beatrice and Garfiel followed behind her. Then Subaru began to join them. *** Abruptly, Subaru stopped and turned around, gazing in the direction of the bridge. The man in white was standing on a city street on the opposite side of the crossing. He turned around and looked directly at Subaru. Finding his gaze supremely creepy, Subaru walked off after Emilia and the others at a rapid clip. It felt like the man's gaze coiled around him, remaining glued to his shadow until Subaru rounded the corner. 2 After that, the stroll back through the city of water proceeded without incident. From time to time, Emilia gazed at the surface of the water and seemed to sink into deep thought, but whenever someone pointed this out to her, she immediately glossed over the conversation with a smile. Emilia was terrible at hiding things, so it was easy to understand that the man from earlier was still bugging her. However, Subaru was certainly mindful of the man himself. That was because  \"Beako.\" \"I know. Did Emilia and Garfiel not notice because both their heads are in the clouds, I wonder? They both require a great deal of supervision.\" When Subaru called her name, Beatrice shrugged in visible exasperation. The concern on Subaru's mind, the one Beatrice had just affirmed, was how the man from before had reacted to Emilia. A year after the announcement that she was running for the royal selection, Emilia was no longer using the \"ID blocker\" robe when going outside, as she had done without fail previously. I think that it's really strange for someone who's trying to get everyone to accept her and who has to work so hard to become the king to walk around hiding her own identity. That was what Emilia had asserted, and certainly, it was a sound argument. Accordingly, Emilia had decided to stop relying on the power of the coat, exposing her adorable face, meaning there was no concealing that she was a half-elf anymore. Even so, the prejudice against a silver-haired elf ran strong and deep, so for better or worse, many of the people who saw her had strong reactions, be they good ones or bad. \"The guy earlier didn't have either. He talked like he knew Emilia, but he didn't give his name... Am I overthinking this?\" \"If Subaru pays no heed, Emilia will be far too vulnerable, so it is perfectly appropriate, I suppose. Betty shall also keep watch around Emilia as much as possible.\" When Beatrice announced that he could depend on her, Subaru gave her a short \"gotcha\" in thanks. This watery metropolis was massive, and he didn't think their chances of bumping into that man again were very high. But it was still more than possible that the stranger would initiate contact on his own. There was nothing to lose by being cautious. \"After all, it's because I didn't think things through enough that today's negotiations failed, so...!\" \"Was that not also caused by the natural disaster called Liliana, I wonder? Repent, but only in moderation.\" \"Hey, General, let's hurry back to the inn already. If we go at Beatrice's walkin' pace, the sun'll go down before we get there.\" \"Would you refrain from saying such impudent things, I wonder? You are younger than I am.\" Subaru and Beatrice had fallen behind the front of the group while whispering to each other, prompting Garfiel to call out to them. When his rude remark left Beatrice peeved, Garfiel went, \"Sorry, my bad,\" with a smile before suddenly stopping. \" The hell? Someone in the direction of the inn smells really angry.\" Turning his head toward a corner in the road ahead, Garfiel audibly sniffed the air as he murmured. A moment later, sure enough, they heard voices arguing farther down the street. It sounded like two men were engaged in a heated argument. \"They seem like they're going at it pretty hard. The excitement never stops in this town.\" \"That sounds more convincin' from the general who made a big shot blow up his own room with a magic crystal. It's like the saying You can boil a pot with the cries of an Azula bird, ain't it?\" \"Pheasants don't have cries, so I wonder if they'd fit the saying... Emilia-tan?\" Subaru was feeling guilty at the mention of what happened at the Muse Company, but beside him, Emilia broke out into a little run. She didn't look back as she spoke: \"Those voices just now I think one of them sounds like Joshua's!\" \"For real? If we're connected to one of the parties, we'd better hurry.\" Even if that wasn't the case, Emilia's personality meant she still wouldn't stand by and do nothing. Chasing her around the curving corner of the road ahead, Subaru and the others also hurried back to the front of the Water Raiment. As they did so and the Jabaneez-style structure came into distant view, in front of the establishment were  \"Don't make me repeat myself! Stop givin' me lip and get your master out here right now!\" \"Faced with someone as crude as you, I refuse to call Brother, let alone my master. Please obediently take your leave of this place while I am the only one dealing with you!\" \"Ya just don't get it, do ya, brat? I'm gonna give ya a good thrashin'!\" A concerning argument raged between Joshua, who barred entry to the inn with both arms spread wide, and a seedy-looking man angrily shouting at the youth. The man had a wiry physique, and both his words and bearing had a violent edge to them; it seemed only a matter of time until his short fuse ran out. \"That's far enough!\" Then before Subaru could ascertain the opponent's might, Emilia inserted herself between the two. The interruption made the man flinch and left Joshua gazing in shock as well. \"L-Lady Emilia?!\" \"If your business is done here, then you should leave. More importantly, what happened? Don't bother people by kicking up a fuss in front of an inn like this. Calm down and talk this out properly.\" With words that sounded like she was scolding a pair of bickering children, she cleared away the tense atmosphere, which had been primed to explode from the slightest spark. Sensing that a fight had narrowly been averted, Subaru let out a tentative sigh of relief. \"So tell me what happened. Ready, set, go.\" \"Er, ah. It would seem I have given Lady Emilia and everyone else cause for worry...\" Under Emilia's earnest gaze, Joshua glanced over at Subaru and the others as he hesitated for a moment. Perhaps he was concerned that entrusting mediation to a rival camp meant putting his own in its debt. Of course, such haggling would never dissuade Emilia even if he spent the next hundred years trying. \"It ain't complicated. We got invited here, but this brat is runnin' his mouth, sayin' we can't go in. Why wouldn't I complain about it?\" Perhaps not caring for the impasse, the man gruffly explained his side of the dispute. The man focused his narrow eyes on Joshua as he shot him an intense glare. The look on Joshua's face said that the gaze had rekindled his willingness to fight. \"I have told you over and over. If you intend to pass yourself off as a noble, you should at least make the deceit more convincing. A tiny bit of grooming cannot hide the unsophisticated ignorance oozing out from you!\" \"Ya really don't hold back, do ya?! I ain't involved in this kind of trouble 'cause I wanna be! I'm tired of bein' sent on errands like this! Awww, hell, there ain't no point even talkin' to you!\" Faced with Joshua's obstinacy, the man clutched his own head and grumbled out loud. It sounded like the situation was truly beyond salvaging, frustrating Emilia after she had gone out of her way to intervene. \"Hey, Subaru, what should I do...? Subaru, what is it?\" \"Er, this might just be my imagination...but I feel like I've seen this guy's face somewhere.\" The man Joshua was arguing with made a sour expression when Subaru, responding to Emilia's question, pointed a finger at him. Then the man realized something, going \"aaahhh?\" as he glared back at Subaru with a foul look. \"The hell are you goin' on about? What, you lookin' for a fight, t...oooo?!\" \"Ohhh, his voice sure went really shrill at the... Aah!\" While glaring at Subaru, the man's face suddenly filled with shock; seeing that expression, something finally dawned on Subaru. He really did know this man. He was a lot cleaner and better dressed than when Subaru had last seen him, but... \"Larry! It's Larry, isn't it?! Whoa, what are you doing in a place like this...? How've you been?\" \"Don't talk to me like we're best pals! And who the hell's Larry?! I'm Lachins that's my name, damn it!\" \"So it is La-something.\" \"Shaddap!\" When Subaru wrapped an arm around his shoulder in a spontaneous act of camaraderie, Larry or rather, Lachins violently shook him off. With that incongruous exchange going on, Emilia asked, \"Is he an acquaintance of yours?\" \"Yeah. An old acquaintance from the royal capital back when Emilia-tan and I met for the very first time. When I got lost in an alley, he and his friends surrounded me, and I almost got stripped bare.\" \"Huh, really...? Er, stripped bare?\" \"And the next time I was in the capital right, I was with Priscilla when I got in a tangle with them, and after, they came back with more friends to try and return the favor. I really have a lot of memories with this guy...\" \"From what Betty is hearing, he is nothing but trash.\" Emilia and Beatrice had different reactions to Subaru's nostalgic comments. Listening to all this, Joshua's gaze turned grave, and Lachins, feeling the tide turn against him, lifted up both hands in apparent surrender as the blood drained from his face. \"W-wait, wait, wait. Yeah, maybe all that happened, but nothin' real bad happened either time, so it's ancient history, right? Let's just call it water under the bridge and talk this out, yeah?\" \"Er, I wouldn't exactly mind, but you can't act so guilty at"}, {"text": "a time like this or you'll make it into a national-defense issue...\" Lachins was trying to salvage the situation, but by any stretch of the imagination, he was at a disadvantage here. It seemed like the smart thing to do was tie him up and make him spit out whatever he was planning to do. \"On that note Garfiel. Restrain him and... Uh?\" *** Subaru wanted to rely on Garfiel's brute strength, but there was no response. Wondering what the big deal was, he looked over to find Garfiel's gaze not on Lachins but trained toward the street in front of the inn. Subaru saw Garfiel open his jade eyes as his pupils shrank to points out of wariness. Every hair on his body was standing up as he stood ready, claws, fangs, and muscles all clearly tense. Realizing from one glance that something had set off Garfiel's fighting instincts, tension raced through Subaru and the others as well, since something was clearly afoot. And so Subaru and the others turned toward the source of Garfiel's alarm  \" Lachins. I wondered what had happened when you didn't return. Is there some kind of trouble?\" For an instant, Subaru was sure that what stood there had to be a blazing flame. It was a red, flickering fire  No, that was a hand waving. This was a human flame. No, just a human being. With hair so red that it could be mistaken for a roaring fire and eyes so blue they seemed to contain the skies themselves, the tall man wearing all-white garb had such a handsome face, it seared itself into your soul for all eternity from a single glance. There was no mistaking the sensation that shot through Subaru's entire body. This was what happened when an ordinary person set eyes upon a hero. That's exactly what this chance encounter was. The only thing you could mistake him for was an open flame. The man's name was  *** Just before Subaru said the name aloud, all sight of Garfiel vanished from his side. With a roar that started at the back of his throat, Garfiel's arm grew bulkier as sharp claws sprang from it. He proceeded to swing it in a frontal attack with incredible force at the man who had just appeared. There was no time to stop Garfiel. It was a preemptive strike that closed to point-blank range in an instant. A direct hit with such a vicious blow would easily slice through an iron plate. As his claw drew near to the side of the man's handsome face  \" My apologies. It would appear that I have startled you.\" With a voice that had the echo of a troubled smile, he blocked the strongest attack Garfiel could muster. *** The superhuman spectacle left Subaru speechless, and Garfiel went rigid with shock. The man's upraised hand had stopped Garfiel's mighty arm. The bestial claw, swung without a shred of restraint, had been blocked by the man's hand as if they were arm wrestling. The only reaction the man showed was the wry smile spreading across his serene face. This man was playing by different rules and operated beyond any notion of common sense. There was no doubt this was  \" Reinhard.\" Subaru seemed out of breath. His whisper brought another soft smile from the young man. Instantly, the sense of surprise and tension that Subaru had felt up to that point was forcibly melted away, changing into sweet relief. With just a smile, Reinhard could instill absolute peace of mind into people. That was proof of just how incomparably strong he was. Then the young man nodded once to Subaru  \"Hi, it's been a while, Subaru. I have heard the rumors. It's good to see you in fine health.\" Yes, the Sword Saint Reinhard van Astrea was apparently delighted at being reunited with Subaru, friendly as always. 3 \"By the way, Subaru, I know it has been a whole year, and there are many things I would like to speak about, but...\" \"A-ahhh, yeah, what is it?\" \"First, could I have you stop him? He is your friend, yes?\" As he spoke, Reinhard was looking at Garfiel, whose arm Reinhard was still keeping locked in place. Of course, Reinhard had no hostile intent, nor any reason to continue. In other words, the reason Reinhard hadn't let his arm go yet was because Garfiel was still ready to fight. \"Calm down, Garfiel. This is Reinhard, my...friend. You don't need to worry.\" Grasping Garfiel by the shoulder, Subaru hesitated momentarily before deciding how to categorize Reinhard. Instantly, Subaru's final memory of Reinhard from a year prior came rushing to mind. It was a bitter memory; Subaru had driven him away when he'd come to apologize for not stopping Julius from giving Subaru a thrashing at the training square. The Subaru of the present keenly understood that his past self had only been lashing out at anyone within reach. \"It is as Subaru explained just now. I am his friend, Reinhard van Astrea. I would be grateful if you told me your name.\" Paying Subaru's internal conflict no heed, Reinhard readily called Subaru a friend. On top of that, he let Garfiel's arm go and looked him straight in the eyes. Under that gaze, Garfiel pulled his arm back and let out a deep, long sigh. \" Garfiel. Garfiel Tinzel.\" \"I see, so you are Lady Emilia's shield. I am pleased to meet you. I'd wanted to meet you at least once.\" As he spoke, Reinhard reached out in search of a handshake. There was no hint of sarcasm in his words whatsoever. There was nothing there save simple praise and delight. After everything that had just transpired, Garfiel's shock must have been tremendous. \" Ah?\" A dazed voice trickled out from Garfiel. While Reinhard waited for a handshake, Garfiel moved a single step backward. That fact, that he had subconsciously retreated, made Garfiel open his eyes wide when he realized what had happened. This was the first time he had ever experienced anything like it. *** Seeing this, Reinhard's eyes flickered slightly with a touch of sadness. But he still pulled back the hand he had offered without delay. \"I am sorry to have offended you. I shall be more careful in the future.\" When he said that, Garfiel shook his head as if something bitter had reached his lips. \"Reinhard, I'm so sorry. Are you hurt?\" It was then that Emilia hurried over with a little run to apologize for Garfiel's sudden act of violence. The overly calm way Reinhard had dealt with it made Subaru momentarily forget that it was problematic conduct indeed. This was the sort of thing that normally threatened to trigger open warfare between two rival factions. \"Lady Emilia, I am sorry to not have been in touch. Fortunately, thanks to Garfiel's aim being very precise, I was able to stop him without any problems. I am relieved we are both fine.\" \"Yes, I'm glad. It's quite a relief.\" But Reinhard acted as if it was nothing it probably really was nothing from his perspective. He was already assuring Emilia that Garfiel's impropriety was not an issue, either. Emilia patted her chest, relieved by his reply. Then she went, \"Right, right,\" clapping her hands together as her violet eyes glimmered. \"I heard all about Felt. She's really been getting a lot done, hasn't she?\" \"Compared with Lady Emilia's spectacular exploits, they are still rather minor, enough that she often berates me for being unable to properly support my liege. In particular, she heard about Subaru's deeds.\" \"Tee-hee-hee. That's right, Subaru's amazing. I'm very proud of my knight.\" When Reinhard gave her a compliment that was perfectly sincere, Emilia proudly puffed out her chest. Subaru was half-proud and half-embarrassed that she talked about him like that. Either way, the cordial exchange showed that things had largely calmed down, so Subaru chose that moment to clear his throat. \"We've strayed a lot, so to get the conversation back on track... You know this Lachins guy?\" Reinhard's arrival had been so momentous that Subaru had to specifically point out Lachins, who had been completely forgotten. \"Yes,\" answered Reinhard, nodding in response to his question. \"Currently, he is working as a retainer for Lady Felt. There are numerous areas where he is still lacking, but he has his good points, and Lady Felt has taken a liking to him.\" \"Felt hired that guy?!\" \"Perhaps this leaves you feeling conflicted. I was also at the scene when they tangled with you in that alleyway, Subaru. But a great deal has happened since then... The three of them are currently in the middle of reforming their ways. I would like you to give them a chance.\" \"Errr, well, I'd be lying if I said it didn't bother me at all... Wait, she hired the whole trio?!\" Subaru looked toward the heavens as he realized just how many tricks fate was playing on him when it came to the three he had once pegged Larry, Curly, and Moe. On the first day he was summoned to this other world, he'd had repeated fateful encounters with a certain gang of three thugs. He hadn't paid them any special mind since those days from long ago, but who would have thought they would be reunited like this? \"Hey, hey, hey, ya see! I was right all along, damn it!!\" It was just then that Lachins, who had kept his mouth shut ever since the tide had turned against him, regained his vigor. He jabbed his finger at Subaru, Emilia, and then Joshua. \"All of you, doubting someone who comes to visit like that! Apologize! Now, on your hands and knees!!\" \"Lachins, I have said this so many times, but you lack awareness as a retainer. Now I understand what brought this situation to a head. Unfortunately, it is difficult for me to support you.\" \"Whose side are ya on here?!\" \"I am the ally of justice. And in this case, I believe that leaves you no choice but to apologize to the younger brother of my friend.\" Reinhard responded to Lachins's shouting dispassionately. Then he shot Joshua a quick smile. Joshua returned the gesture, nodding with a tense expression. \"It has been some time, Sir Reinhard. I apologize for the great rudeness caused by my ineptitude...\" \"That fault lies with us, Joshua. I am sorry our envoy created such a major misunderstanding. Lady Felt is extremely grateful for Lady Anastasia's invitation.\" \"Hearing you say that is salve upon my wounds...\" The stubborn look on Joshua's face made plain that his response was superficial. Reinhard offered a wry smile at his demeanor when Subaru went \"just a sec\" and raised a hand. \"Based on what you just said, is it safe to assume Felt's here with you, too?\" \"Yes, that's right. Lady Anastasia invited her. Let us engage in profitable exchange of information, she said. This being Lady Anastasia, I assumed she was trying to secure some kind of angle, but...\" Trailing off, Reinhard gazed at Subaru and Emilia in turn. \"To think that Lady Emilia and company are here as well. Contrary to my expectations, this may not even be the end of it.\" \"Are you saying there's even more surprises coming?\" \"I am saying that is quite possible. How about it, Joshua?\" When the flow of conversation turned to Joshua, the one in league with the mastermind of this whole gathering, the young man put his fallen monocle back in its proper position. \"Hmm, I wonder,\" he said, playing dumb. This was a clear sign he had regained some of his usual composure. Reinhard nodded and looked at Lachins next. \"Lady Felt is in the middle of looking around the city with Gaston and the others. Please tell them I will be speaking to the people here in advance as instructed.\" \"Yeah, yeah. What, you don't need to head back, too?\" \"If I am with her, Lady Felt will complain"}, {"text": "that she cannot do as she pleases. It is just...Mr. Rom is not with her at the moment. If Lady Felt attempts to do something dangerous, stop her with all your strength. If anything happens, raise the signal. I shall rush over in five seconds.\" \"The fact that you're serious is scary as all hell.\" Sullenly sticking out his long tongue, Lachins raced off like he was fleeing the scene. Along the way, he didn't forget to shoot an angry glare toward Joshua, the one he'd been arguing with. The guy really was pettiness personified. \"Now then, let's head inside. We've gotta go tell Anastasia that Reinhard and friends came over! and stuff, right?\" \"Well, I think that is Joshua's job, but we're all here, so let's go together.\" When Subaru consented to Emilia's proposal, Joshua followed suit, and everyone entered the inn. The one thing tugging at Subaru's mind was Garfiel, tailing the group with the same gloomy expression. It was obviously because of what had happened earlier. Subaru mulled over what to say to him when  \"Is it not a good opportunity for Garfiel to learn that there exists someone above him, I wonder?\" \"Beatrice...\" Noticing Subaru's gaze, Beatrice gently grasped his sleeve and whispered to him. \"Since leaving the forest, Garfiel hasn't faced any serious resistance save the moving of heavy objects. It is good medicine once in a while, I suppose. Think of it as a learning opportunity and let him be.\" \"It's true that the only time his life was really on the line was with the ground spider. I guess it's a disease that most boys get at a certain age... All right. I'll quietly watch for now.\" \"Shall you, I wonder?\" For the moment, Subaru and Beatrice reached a consensus concerning Garfiel's anguish. \"Also,\" said Beatrice before she continued. \"About that Sword Saint...Betty prefers not to get too close to him.\" \" ? What's this all about? Don't tell me it's because he's too attractive like Julius was?\" \"Too dangerous is more accurate, I suppose. In any case, please do what you can.\" Beatrice avoided getting into the details as she quietly and quickly got as far from Reinhard as she could. However, she immediately came to a halt. The reason was that Emilia had gone \"um?\" and tapped Joshua's shoulder as he led them down the corridor. \"Joshua, I think the reception hall is in a different direction...\" \"I am sorry. However, Lady Anastasia is currently receiving guests, so I cannot bring you directly to the reception hall.\" \"I see. Guests...\" Listening to Joshua's reply, Emilia put a finger to her lips and sank into thought. In her place, Subaru murmured, \"Guests, huh... Meaning guests besides Emilia-tan and Felt's envoy, Reinhard?\" \"...You will understand soon enough. There is no need to stare at me with the eyes of a wild beast.\" \"Hey, wild beast's going too far. I don't look hungry and feral enough for that.\" \"You will understand soon enough without you raising your voice like a demon beast.\" \"That's even worse than before. Which demon beast you talkin' about anyway? Dog, whale, rabbit. Pick one.\" Subaru went through the bestiary of detested demon beasts that lingered strongest in his memories. Lately, he'd been wondering where to rank spiders, too. Also, he felt like there was something like a charbroiled lion in there somewhere, but the impression it had left was somehow thinner than the rest. \"Whale, you say?\" As Subaru dug deeper into his memories, Reinhard murmured quietly beside him. When Subaru responded, Reinhard slowly shook his head side to side. \"By whale, may I take it that you mean the White Whale, Subaru?\" \"...Yeah, that's right. The worst whale there ever was. It's a straight-up miracle I got through that fight without dying.\" Really, Subaru thought it was a true miracle that he hadn't racked up more deaths fighting against the White Whale. He'd resolved to die many times over. He'd tasted death many times over. That was how menacing the demon beast was, and the damage it had inflicted was hard to forget. Even in the present, the sacrifices continued to torment Subaru's chest. \"Would you mind telling me the details about the White Whale later? That beast is not an unrelated matter to me. Though I'm sure it will be a long talk once we begin.\" \"Sure. You don't need to tell me about any circumstances that are hard to talk about, either.\" Somehow, he could guess the reason behind Reinhard's clouded expression. To Subaru, the battle with the White Whale was also the resolution and recompense for one man's obsession with the beast that had lasted for over a decade. And he could guess at the relationship between that man and Reinhard. Subaru didn't have any way to know exactly what had happened in their pasts, however. Naturally, it wasn't something he should ask out of idle curiosity. He knew that much. \"Thank you.\" Therefore, that was the only reply Reinhard could offer in return. No more was needed. That was enough. \"We have arrived. Please wait here in the tearoom until Lady Anastasia's meeting is finished.\" Joshua announced that they had reached their destination right as their conversation was over. Seeing the sliding screen partition for what had been dubbed the tearoom, Subaru felt his Japanese spirit throb. What a calculating use of the Japanese spirit, he mused, but such casual thoughts lasted for only a few seconds. \"I am sorry, honored guest. May I leave some other guests here until the rest of your party returns?\" Apparently, someone else was already in the tearoom, and Joshua was addressing him through the screen. When he did so, there were obvious signs of someone stirring within. \" Feel free. I am doing nothing here except gathering dust.\" When the sound of the replying voice reached his ears, Subaru furrowed his brow; then surprise set in. It was a familiar voice, one difficult to ever forget. More importantly, he'd been thinking of the man only a moment prior. Subaru seemed to be the only person in that place who was surprised  No, Reinhard was the sole exception among the others. His soft visage hardened ever so slightly, and bewilderment entered his blue eyes. Not noticing that hesitance, Joshua slid the screen to the side. The paper screen door opened, revealing the small interior of the so-called tearoom. Then the individual kneeling in a traditional fashion upon a square cushion turned his tranquil eyes toward them  \" Grandfather.\" \"Reinhard?\" The initial voices of grandfather and grandson overlapped. This was an unexpected reunion between the Sword Saint and the Sword Devil of the famed Astrea family. 4 The people gathered in the reception hall of the Water Raiment were distinguished in multiple ways. \"I have to say, I'm surprised that Reinhard and Mr. Wilhelm are family. Now that you mention it, both seem to be very good with swords.\" \"That completely absentminded way of looking at things is so E M T that it hurts.\" Assembled around the long table in the center of the room, the respective camps were sitting on square floor cushions in traditional Japanese style. Emilia and Subaru were quietly whispering to each other in a corner where they sat side by side. She might have been nervous, but the contents of her words did not display any particular sense of tension at all. \"Betty is paying close attention, but it will be of no use if anyone makes a sudden move. Subaru, you should focus on not receiving cold stares from everyone present, I suppose.\" \"It hurts to hear you say that because I used to get plenty of experience with exactly that.\" Sitting on Subaru's other side, Beatrice offered those words of caution. Incidentally, Emilia was sitting with her legs to the side, Subaru was sitting cross-legged, and Beatrice was sitting on her knees. This was the result of Subaru daring her to try it, but Beatrice's knees were already beginning to shake. \"Either way, Garfiel is here should anything happen, and with the people present, this is a needless concern regardless.\" With her legs at their limit, Beatrice shifted them to the side. Subaru glanced at Garfiel, who was sitting defensively in a corner of the room. The encounter with Reinhard had to still be on his mind in various respects, but he seemed to have his hands full with Mimi clinging to him. Subaru hoped that Mimi would help distract him a little bit. At present, the main figures from multiple camps were seated in the large reception hall, and other associates were on standby at the edges of the room. That was why Mimi's brothers were also present. Seeing his older sister glued to Garfiel's side, Hetaro was staring daggers at the offending boy, while TB's face made it clear he wanted nothing to do with this fracas. Incidentally, Joshua was at the edge of the spectator seats, his already white face looking even paler than usual. Out of everyone who had gathered in the hall, the one to kick things off was Reinhard, who started with a bow. \"We are truly grateful for the invitation you have offered us. Lady Felt's arrival to the inn is slightly delayed, but as she shall arrive forthwith, allow me to give you our formal greetings in her stead.\" \"No need to be so stuffy. Considering this invitation was on short notice from me, that's plenty... Though there was much more overlap in arrivals than I expected.\" The hostess, Anastasia, softly smiled as Reinhard engaged in the courtesies expected of an envoy. Reinhard nodded in response to Anastasia's words; then he turned toward Julius, who was sitting with a smiling face at Anastasia's side. \"It has been a while, Julius. Since our earlier visit to the Hoshin Company, I believe?\" \"Yes, I suppose it has been. I am sorry for imposing upon you like this. However, it is a good chance to see how everyone is doing. Such opportunities are difficult to come by.\" The mutual friends exchanged greetings that were few in words. Reinhard was also seated at the table. Somehow or other, the seating order had been neatly arranged by camp, with Anastasia, Emilia, a representative of the still-absent Felt camp, and finally  \" It has been quite some time since I have met all of you like this, has it not?\" Speaking with a willowy smile was a woman with a beautiful face and long, lovely green hair. A kindness rested in her almond-shaped, amber-colored eyes, and her alluring figure was dressed in navy-blue attire. It hardly required mentioning, but this person in the long-skirted clothing was the very image of ladylike grace. People who knew the old her would scarcely believe she was the same person. \"It's been a long time, Lady Crusch. I believe the last time we met was at the honors ceremony?\" \"Yes. That it has. I am sorry for having caused you such trouble on that occasion. It was only afterward that I heard of everyone's efforts. I wasn't the least bit surprised.\" Replying to Emilia's greeting was Crusch, giving a rather soft-seeming response. Her previously gallant and decisive demeanor had been lost along with her memories. With her old fearlessness still yet to return, she was the portrait of an aristocrat's beautiful daughter. \"Really, it's been nothing but surprises. I heard it at the honors ceremony, but after the White Whale and the Witch Cult, it was the Great Rabbit next? Subawu, are you out of your mind?\" Sitting at Crusch's side and jabbing at Subaru was the beautiful, kitty-eared girlor rather, young man called Ferris. The greatest healer in the kingdom, he'd also worked part-time as Subaru's physician. There was an edge to his otherwise teasing words that made Subaru sit up slightly straighter. The cause of Ferris's anger toward Subaru was obvious. \"I'm sorry for ignoring your warnings, using magic, and smashing my gate...\" \"I drilled"}, {"text": "it into you that meowch, and in the end, you still rode your broken gate into the ground. It wasn't worth treating you at all. Even now, it wouldn't be strange for it to rupture and go poof if Beatrice wasn't here. You really, really have to treat it with more care.\" \"I get it already. But there ain't a guy in the world who can make Beatrice happier than I do.\" Ferris's tone was flippant, but his warning was dead serious. That's why Subaru replied with equal seriousness. The fact that Beatrice was pounding his shoulder while red in the face was a small price to pay. \"I have to say, I'm amazed that even the Crusch camp got called over. If I hadn't used up all my surprise after running into Reinhard outside earlier, I would've had one hell of a face for you to look at.\" \"Awww. That is quite a wasted opportunity. But it's really something to have so many invited guests gather here today. Even I'm astonished it's this many.\" \"That is only natural, as there was no specific date set. It is rare to have a chance to meet everyone at once like this, so we should consider this accident of timing as the blessing it is.\" It was the final member of the Crusch camp, Wilhelm, who spoke of this coincidence as a good opportunity. Crusch was sitting formally on her knees, while Ferris was sitting with his knees apart in a rather feminine fashion. Wilhelm was also sitting formally on Ferris's other side, but in spite of his butler's attire, his gentlemanly demeanor seemed a perfect fit for the distinctly Japanese ambience. By some quirk, the seating arrangement of the camps had put Wilhelm and Reinhard right next to each other, which was a sight that was bad for the hearts of Subaru and everyone else aware of their relationship. \"Those two aren't meeting each other's eyes, are they...?\" Subaru mentally nodded to Emilia's very quiet whisper. Pairing Wilhelm and Reinhard meant grandfather and grandchild were seated side by side, but the two hadn't spoken a word to each other from the moment of their unexpected reunion in the tearoom to the instant they were all called over. A stifling silence had descended on the tearoom, enough that even the Emilia camp, brimming with oblivious people, hadn't tried to render any support. When Joshua came back, he looked like an angel to them. Either way, Subaru deduced that there were complicated circumstances where the pair from the Astrea family was concerned. Otherwise, the feelings haunting Wilhelm during the hunt of the White Whale couldn't be explained away.  Why had Wilhelm borrowed the power of Crusch's family and not his own? For that matter, why hadn't Reinhard joined the battle to avenge his own grandmother? *** Deep down, Subaru badly wanted to ask. But probing would only rub salt into the pair's wounds and hurt them further. Both might have been in rival camps, but to Subaru, one was a precious friend and the other a person he deeply respected and to whom he owed a great deal. Trust was a castle built atop a pile of sand. Subaru wasn't like Roswaal. He'd stand firm. That was why he simply held out hope that someone would make the conversation naturally flow in that direction. \"Incidentally, why did Lady Anastasia call everyone here?\" \"Oh, you're so suspicious. My objective really is that I just wanted to speak with you all a little. That's why I didn't invite unreasonable people over.\" \"Unreasonable...?\" Emilia frowned as she prompted back. But it wasn't because she was unaware who Anastasia meant just now. In the first place, there was only one camp absent. \"So I take it that you did not invite Lady Priscilla and Sir Al?\" \"They do things completely their own way, so I couldn't come up with any excuse to ask them here. At least with Felt, we got a chance to know each other a little better during that incident with Black Silver Coin, right?\" \"We caused you a great deal of trouble on that occasion. However, you are absolutely right.\" When Anastasia rather easily confessed that she'd left one camp out, Reinhard seemed to agree and backed off with no sign of resistance. It was then that Emilia raised her hand, seeking another opportunity to speak. \"Just now, you used the word excuse... Does that mean you convinced everyone else to come using various reasons like you did with us?\" \"If you're going to come anyway, I should at least prepare a proper gift. All I did was just as I told you before, Emilia, nothing more.\" \"What we want most... But for Crusch and them, that would be...\" When Anastasia replied with a cutesy smile, Subaru glanced over at Crusch and company. What Emilia wanted was a magic crystal to use as a catalyst to call back Puck. And considering the problems facing Crusch and the others, the thing they wanted most was information about  \"We came to Pristella because Lady Anastasia claimed to have some information concerning the incident with the Archbishop of Gluttony.\" *** Crusch had a look of determination on her face. Her words made Subaru unwittingly rise to his feet. He couldn't ignore this kind of news. Subaru glared at Anastasia as if by reflex, whereupon Anastasia flashed a strained smile and stroked the scarf around her neck. \"It's not as if I'm trying to be mean to you, Natsuki. It's just that there's an order of priority. I can sell this to Lady Crusch and company higher than I can to Natsuki... Am I wrong?\" \"...That's the thinking of a merchant all right. It doesn't sit well with me, but I can...understand.\" \"Coming from you, that's quite impressive.\" \"Oh, shaddap. Don't poke me when I'm only just holding it together.\" Expensive merchandise was sold to the highest bidder. That was just a merchant's natural way of thinking. Subaru barely avoided exploding in the face of Anastasia's lecture. However, if Julius landed even one more hit, Subaru was in real danger of blowing up for real. \"But you know... That's just...\" Subaru looked at Anastasia, trying to find some handhold to cling to. Perhaps he should have directed his plea to Crusch for even the slimmest possibility of awakening Rem, the Sleeping Princess, from her slumber. However, faced with the fragile look on Subaru's face, Anastasia let out a deep breath. \"There's no need to put on such a sad face. Don't worry I won't hide this secret from only you.\" \"...R-really?\" \"It's no lie. But you should know that this is a request from Lady Crusch and her people. They're all goody-goody sorts who don't believe it's right to keep the information to themselves.\" As Anastasia shrugged, her words left Subaru flabbergasted as he turned toward Crusch. As he did, Crusch looked back at him, trying with all her might to keep her expression firm. \"Naturally. Of course, I wish to settle the affair of my own memory with Gluttony personally. However, I understand that Master Subaru's fondest wish is to help that girl.\" \"Crusch...\" \"Besides, I believe that the more we are united on this matter, the better. Our opponent is a cunning Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins who has continued to evade all attempts to hunt him down. I shall not hold a grudge regardless of whose blade reaches him first.\" The joking way Crusch put the last part left Subaru bowing his head as relief flooded him. No doubt it was very much her full intention to settle things with the one responsible for stealing her past. Her consideration for Subaru, who had a similar objective, made her bend even on this. Even with her memories lost, the soul of the fair and just woman named Crusch Karsten was in no way diminished. She remained true to her own way of life. \"Really, thank you. I'll do my best to live up to those expectations. Somewhere, somehow.\" \"Even so, we will likely be first. I do not intend to yield to anyone, either.\" As Subaru voiced his determination, Crusch puffed out her chest, undaunted. Her demeanor made Subaru and Crusch exchange an out-of-place smile. Her knight, Ferris, looked upon this without being amused whatsoever. \"Grrr, you seem to be having a lot of fun, Lady Crusch. You need to stop being so fond of Subawu. He should be satisfied with one flower in each hand right meow. He doesn't need any more.\" \"Ferris, is that not a rude thing to say? Master Subaru is not so unfaithful as to make eyes at just anyone.\" \"Yeah, cut it out, Ferris. It's true that Crusch is cute and beautiful, but the line going forward from my heart is... Well, it splits into two midway, but it's still straight and na  Ow, ow, ow?!\" \"No one else would call that a straight line, and that lack of self-awareness makes it even worse.\" When Subaru tried to chime in on the Crusch camp's master-servant dispute, Beatrice gave his ear a mighty pull. But when Subaru objected with a tearful face, Beatrice feigned innocence. Off to the side of that exchange, Crusch lowered her face, cheeks faintly flushed for some reason. \"Oh, dang. Emilia-tan, did I say something weird even for me?\" \"Mm, did you? I think you're always saying similar things to me, though...\" \"Well, yeah. So what's with this reaction...? Maybe if I hold Emilia-tan's hand, the answer will come to me. Can I hold your hand?\" \"Work hard and think for yourself this time.\" When the hand he was unable to grasp slapped him on the forehead, Subaru frowned in silence. After watching the pair's exchange, Ferris discreetly brought his lips close to Crusch's ear. \"See, just look at them. Subawu is indiscriminate. He'll try that with anyone at all if you give him the chance. It's an illness, meow. You shouldn't pay it any attention.\" \"Understood. I'll be more careful. Phew, that really surprised me.\" After taking Ferris's advice to heart, Crusch took an unexpectedly deep breath and put a hand to her remarkably ample chest. The gesture was adorable in every way and convinced Subaru that Crusch doing unexpectedly feminine things was incredibly appealing. Setting that impression aside, Crusch and Ferris smiled at each other like a pair of best friends. \"So to put things back on track...my people are in the middle of sorting out the information Crusch and Natsuki desire. It should be tidy enough to hand over by tomorrow or the day after, so can you hold on a little till then?\" \"Seriously? I just can't stop the urge to speed this up. Can't you give us anything in advance, even a small bit?\" \"Rushing keeps you in Rizzi's debt forever. Not good to flirt with total loss, is it? So calm down.\" \"Ggggh...\" Chided with a saying that probably meant haste makes waste, Subaru groaned and sat back down. Emilia and Beatrice both put a hand on one of his shoulders. At any rate, it seemed that everyone had a reason of their own to come to Pristella. \" Heh, well, isn't this quite a group? According to Lachins, it was only Ms. Half-Elf and Anastasia, but I guess not.\" The door to the reception room forcefully slid open, and everyone's gazes assembled on the girl boldly crossing the threshold. The girl had bright, glimmering, dazzling blond hair and big, round red eyes. What looked like little fangs peeked out from under the lips of her confident, smiling face, which gave off a mischievous charisma. She was still a small girl with a delicate physique, but her femininity seemed to have faintly increased. However, as typical, her clothing style was straight out of the slums, and the always-energetic Felt burst onto the scene with her core remaining wholly unchanged. When she surveyed the faces of those assembled, she seemed very relaxed"}, {"text": "as she closed one eye. \"Even though it's been a year, it's surprising how little you've all changed. Well, I suppose the same goes for me.\" \" Lady Felt, if I may?\" Felt sighed, as if her expectations had been dashed, then immediately broke into a smile. The change in her expression was bewildering, but then Reinhard gently stood at her side. Reinhard knit his refined eyebrows as he gazed at Felt, his own liege. \"A proper set of attire for going out in public was provided to you. What happened to it?\" \"Ha! Who'd go along with your taste in outfits? Sightseeing was just the most convenient way to find a change of clothes. Understand my personality already, Reinhard dear.\" \"Truly, you are so...\" Unbelievable, Reinhard broadcast from the way he covered his face. Felt straddled the threshold of the room, looking positively delighted at having pulled a fast one on the man who was the nation's hero and its strongest warrior. Then when she turned her head toward those assembled in the reception room again, her confident expression softly vanished. \"I am truly grateful that you have invited me here today. Let us have some productive discourse as fellow royal-selection candidates okay, formalities over! Deal me in, 'kay?\" After offering a glimpse of conduct so refined as to be enchanting, Felt swiftly reverted to being a mischievous rascal. The way her uninhibited personality stomped all over decorum left Subaru, at least, feeling good on the inside. The girl's energy had only grown over the past year. \"I have to say, what a weird city, and this is a weird building. All the novelties everywhere wore me right out.\" As she spoke, Felt happened to sit cross-legged on the square cushion Reinhard had been using. Reinhard drew a separate cushion over for himself, putting her between the awkward grandfather-grandson pair. Of course, this hadn't been deliberate on her part, but it was just like her to do something like that purely by instinct. \"A novelty... If that is what you think of it, then I'm happy. Actually, I have other reasons for picking this inn, too... Wanna hear them?\" \"Don't just build suspense. It's a bad habit of yours.\" Felt raised the corners of her lips as she jabbed a finger at Anastasia's transparent scheme. The very casual exchange between the two was a sign of how they had closed the distance between them. It seemed that some encounter Subaru was unaware of had greatly improved the relationship. Acknowledging Felt's request, Anastasia touched a hand to her mouth as she smiled. \"I just can't beat you, Felt. Actually, this inn has a large, wide...hot spring.\" \"By hot spring, you mean a huge bath?!\" Felt's eyes glistened as she practically leaped to her feet. \"A bath sounds great! Back in the slums, a chance to soak in hot water was hard to come by, and I loved it. Hey, you've finished all the important talk, right?\" \"The greetings have already ended...but, Lady Felt? Do not tell me you deliberately came late to the inn hoping to avoid serious conversation...\" \"Ha, not listening. Hey, sisters, let's go to the bath already, bath!\" Ignoring Reinhard's reproachful comment, Felt addressed Emilia and the others. Emilia was surprised she had called out to her, but it didn't take long for her to smile in return. \"Mm, a bath is fine with me. I really want to see what this big bath is like.\" \"I suppose you are right. We are tired from a long journey, so that might well be best.\" Emilia seemed excited, and even Crusch agreed with an elegant smile. Of course, neither Felt, originator of the proposal, nor Anastasia, boaster of the hot spring, was going to object. \"Wait, seriously, a hot spring? With these girls and this setup?\" \"Hey, Mister, don't get in the way of our fun. All right, it's settled, so let's go!\" Felt folded her arms toward Subaru, who had been left scrambling after she started dictating the pace. Then an especially mischievous smile came over her face. \"Today, we bathe! Then we eat! I'm not talking a word about anything else!\" A manly declaration indeed. 5 In the end, Felt had the last word, and it was decided that everyone would split up, reassembling in the large reception room once more at dinnertime. That said, it wasn't as if Subaru objected to Felt's proposal, either. If anything, the offbeat plan to switch things up was so good that he admired her for coming up with it. Subaru had just found the possibility of gleaning information on an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins in a place he never expected it. He wanted to earnestly address this and other worrying elements that concerned the camp as a whole. The most obvious issue was Garfiel having hit a wall. Beatrice had told Subaru to wait and watch as Garfiel overcame it with his own strength, but  \" General, sorry, but do ya mind if I head outside for a bit? I don't think there's anythin', but I better stick an ear out anyway.\" After the initial end of the meeting in the reception room, the men gave a send-off to the girls, who were on their way to the big bath, then were left to their own devices. That was when Garfiel came to Subaru with the request. \"Garfiel, worries or not, you're damn strong.\" \"But I ain't the strongest. That ain't good enough.\" That was the last thing Garfiel said as he turned away and walked out of the inn. Considering his role as their escort, Subaru should have stopped him. But he did not. He trusted that Garfiel of all people could make a recovery of some sort in one night.  Therefore, Subaru could sub in for him for that one night, couldn't he? \"He calls me General and treats me like his older brother. This is the least I can do for him, right?\" In fact, Garfiel's other honorary older brother would've been here if he wasn't walking around the city that very moment or walking and drinking, rather. That meant it fell to Subaru alone to do what he could for their little brother. \"Damn you, Otto, not being here when I really need you... Seriously, what an Otto.\" Praying his younger brother wouldn't grow up to be like that, Subaru headed to the large reception hall when it was time for dinner. When he did so, he saw the girls, who were back from bathing, as well as the men rendezvousing with them at the appointed time  \"B-Beako, your outfit...!\" \"Oh-ho, how is it, I wonder? Today's Betty is a different flavor than the norm.\" Beatrice wore a smug face as she greeted Subaru. Her cheeks were faintly reddened from her recent bath, driving her cuteness to even greater heights, but that wasn't what surprised him. Beatrice was always seen in her extravagant dress, but he was floored by the sight of her in a yukata. \"Ohhh, incredible, just incredible, so they even have yukata here! And it looks really good on you! Beako, you're so pretty! Beako, you're so lovely! Did you manage to put it on all by yourself?\" \"It's only natural, I suppose. To Betty, such a feat is more trifling than a cupcake.\" \"Heh, that figures! Well, that's what Beako would say, but is it true?\" \"Tee-hee, don't doubt her. It's true. Beatrice only tripped on the hem twice.\" \"S-slander, I wonder?! Subaru, between Betty and Emilia, which one do you believe?!\" \"The moment you asked that question, you already lost.\" That was the normal judgment to make, for Beatrice was predictably dishonest while Emilia was entirely too honest. Emilia softly smiled as Beatrice's face became redder still. She was in a yukata as well, with her still-damp silver hair tied up neatly behind her head. This gave him a perfect view of the nape of her neck, which was truly marvelous. She smelled nice, too. \"Subaru, you seem to be breathing heavily through your nose. Do you have a fever?\" \"A slight fever of love, maybe. Emilia-tan, can I braid your hair?\" \"That's fine, but I think we're about to sit down for a meal. Do you mind doing it after?\" As Subaru touched the tip of her bundled hair, Emilia pointed to the table as she pushed her counteroffer. He grudgingly backed down, which was when he abruptly noticed that all the eyes in the room were gathered on them. \"What, did something weird happen?\" \"I'm thinking, it's really hard to pick up how much distance there is between Mister and Miss. That didn't feel all that sexy, and the last time I saw you, your relationship was pretty horrible.\" \"Please do not dredge up what happened at the castle. It doth make my chest hurt.\" Subaru deeply bowed to Felt, who was sitting cross-legged in a yukata as he made his plea. \"Ha! What's this all about? I guess Mister really got his act together, huh?\" His reaction made Felt laugh and look up from the book she was reading, which was something he normally wouldn't picture her doing at all. She closed the book, which had a pressed flower as a bookmark, and said, \"Come to think of it...\" She tilted her head before he continued. \"I heard in the bath that my piece-of-junk knight bullied your blond boy? Sorry about that. I'll set him straight.\" As she spoke, Felt used the book in her hand to thwap Reinhard on the shoulder. She showed little sign of restraint, giving the red-haired knight's brows a constrained look. \"Lady Felt, that manner of speaking will invite speculation. He and I simply had a misunderstanding, and I was a little rough in the way I handled it. That is all... As a matter of fact, he is tremendously powerful despite his young age.\" \"That patronizing lack of self-awareness really isn't convincing. I mean, you're basically merciless toward anyone who shows any promise. You always leave Gaston and the others half in tears after you're done working 'em over.\" Reinhard's assessment of Garfiel's worth made Felt stick her tongue out with an exasperated look on her face. But at the very least, Subaru understood that Reinhard's words were his true beliefs. He'd said that because he genuinely respected Garfiel and acknowledged his might. Perhaps that was the most dangerous part of his character. \"Incidentally, Lady Felt, about that outfit...\" \"What, it's not somethin' a royal-selection candidate would wear? Look around all the other girls are wearin' the same stuff, damn it. I can't be the only one to complain about it.\" \"No, not at all. I only meant to say that it suits you very well.\" \"Shaddap.\" However, it was incredible to see just what vivid invective Felt directed at Reinhard. He was the man most trusted and respected by the kingdom's people. Virtually everyone sincerely praised him as a knight among knights. A sweet word from him would be enough to make many a woman swoon, but Felt batted it aside like it was so much garbage. Subaru was becoming genuinely concerned that things weren't going quite as swimmingly with them as the rumors would suggest. \"On that score, our side's pretty close to ideal...though Crusch's people take number one on that list.\" \"We what now?\" When Subaru put a hand to his chin in thought, Crusch directed a questioning look at him. Of course, Crusch was no exception and wore a yukata as well in a different manner than the dresses she commonly wore now, the thin yukata fabric, which was draped elegantly over her figure, heightened her feminine grace. He knew that the outfits were originally worn as nightwear for evening revelry, but they were top-notch for charm as far as Japanese clothing went. \"Yeah. You and Ferris are really close, but you guys don't have that kind of relationship, right? I'm in a slightly different situation because of the ulterior motives"}, {"text": "I started with, but you guys have, like, a picture-perfect relationship.\" \"When you put it like that, I feel like blushing, tee-hee. Yes, Ferris?\" \"Ferri very much has ulterior motives where Lady Crusch is concerned, though.\" Instantly, Ferris's statement made the air in the reception hall freeze over. Crusch's expression remained locked in a charming smile, while Ferris gazed at her with a grin. Incidentally, Ferris was also wearing a yukata. He'd changed into one at some point, and it suited him just as well as it did any of the girls. At any rate  \"Sorry for exposing a secret no one needed to hear. Let's eat?\" \"Please do not unearth bombs and attempt to flee like that!\" Crusch lamented with tearful eyes as Subaru tried to retreat to dinner. Perhaps it came as a bolt from the blue as far as she was concerned, but Subaru hadn't been deliberately searching for explosive secrets like that, either. What to do? thought Subaru as he let his gaze wander. \"Ferris, I cannot approve of you startling Lady Crusch like this.\" The one comment that changed the mood all at once had come from Wilhelm, who had been holding his silence. Sitting formally in a yukata, the Sword Devil's words made Ferris touch a finger to his own lips. \"Oh no, even Old Man Wil doubts Ferri's feelings?\" \"Respect, affection, romance. Cease courting chaos by teasing the lords and retainers in attendance. I am compelled to note that preying on someone's naivete is not adorable in the slightest.\" \"Boo. You're so strict, sheesh.\" Wilhelm's gravitas-filled lecture made Ferris pout and surrender. After that, Ferris contented himself by snuggling his face against Crusch's shoulder. \"You don't have to get all worried like that. Of course it's a joke. Ferri having all kinds of ulterior meowtives with Lady Crusch would be bad on so many levels.\" \"Y-yes, I suppose it would. Phew, you surprised me. Because I cannot use my blessing properly at the moment, I feel like I might be misunderstanding your feelings about many things, Ferris.\" \" That's not the case at all.\" Crusch was breathing a sigh of relief, but the look in Ferris's eyes that moment tugged at Subaru. For an instant, an intense emotion filled his eyes. It might well have been his personal brand of agony. Though he acted in a frivolous manner, the suffering borne by Ferris over the last year was probably comparable to Subaru's. He painfully understood the regret and anguish at Ferris's very core. \"Errr, preparations for dinner seem to be in order, so would you mind bringing it in?\" Having waited for a natural lull in the conversation, Joshua instructed the inn employees to set the table. As they got to work placing one dish after another atop the long table, surprised reactions sprang up all around. The varied cooking was something Emilia and the others had never before seen, but Subaru's reaction was for a different reason he was shocked by the unexpected familiar sights. Since this world had no seas, cooking with fish meant fishing from rivers. Naturally, this meant there were few truly large fish, making sashimi dishes and the like quite hard to come by. Therefore, seeing such a wealth of fish dishes in a place like this was all the more surprising. \"We can eat it just like this?\" \"How do you like it? Never seen it before, have you? Everything here comes from the Great Tigrasea River nearby and is prepared by experienced cooks. It's good enough to qualify as a specialty here at the Water Raiment.\" It seemed that culinary traditions not bound by the Kingdom of Lugunica's common sense were still being passed down. Either way, one dish emerged after another based on Japanese cuisine, further deepening Emilia's and company's bewilderment. The first one to break through their hesitance was not Anastasia, hostess of the banquet, but rather  \"Here! Like this! This is how you do it right!\" Unfortunately, the utensils were forks, but Subaru thrust his into some sashimi of a fish he didn't recognize, applied the soy-sauce-like seasoning, and tossed it into his mouth in one go. Then as Emilia and Beatrice went \"ah!\" in surprise beside him, he licked his chops. \"Deeeelicious! Ahhh, it's been so long since I had sashimi! This is the best! You're the greatest, Anastasia!\" \"I-it's tasty?\" \"It's a masterpiece! The fish is fresh, so it tastes incredible! It's a shame. If you had sushi vinegar here, I could try copying my dad's sushi-chef pal and make some nigirizushi!\" \"Sorry, I don't understand what you're saying... But I see. So it is tasty, then.\" The gist of Subaru's stream of consciousness had apparently gotten through. Emilia chose to believe only the most critical part and did as he had, putting soy sauce on the sashimi before trying it herself. When she did so, Emilia opened her round eyes wide. \"Mm !\" she went, happily clenching and waving a fist. Seeing the same honest reactions from master and retainer alike, the others in attendance put their hands on the food one after the next. \"Grrr, Natsuki, there you go spoiling my fun again...\" Anastasia had had her thunder stolen, leaving her ever so slightly dissatisfied. But Subaru's and Emilia's idyllic reactions finally made her expression relax. \"Goodness, there's no helping you children... Hey! Leave some for me!\" The dinner party was host to various worries, and certain faces were not in attendance, but even so, all who did participate were able to enjoy a brief respite.  For that one night, the moon and the world seemed willing to allow a tranquil moment when all regular concerns could safely be postponed. 6 As they mutually agreed to forget they were political rivals for the time being, the night wore on. The dinner in the reception hall came to an end, and Subaru finished bathing before returning to his room. The staff seemed to have laid out futons during the guests' absence, so everything was ready for a good night's sleep. \"Subaru! It seems that an intruder snuck in during the time Betty and others were gone!\" \"Yeah, looks like the futon you made a big mess of got all tidied up. What a vandal.\" Chiding Beatrice for her unnecessary wariness over the two futons lined side by side, Subaru gently tucked the sleepy-looking girl into bed. Incidentally, ever since forming a formal pact, it had become the norm for Subaru and Beatrice to share a room. Anastasia had arranged separate rooms for them, but Beatrice would crawl into Subaru's futon in the middle of the night regardless, so he politely declined the offer. Of course, this was not because Beatrice was too much of a child to be able to sleep alone, but because much of the mana drawn from one's Odo was generated during sleep, it was nothing more than consideration for Subaru's physical condition. Therefore, it is not because Betty wants to be with Subaru. Would you not take this the wrong way, I wonder? That was what Beatrice had told him shortly after forming the pact. In this case, it really didn't matter what her true intent might be. Subaru had become very accustomed to hearing the sounds of someone else sleeping nearby over the past year. And it helped him stay warm on cold days, too. \"Is that a mass of green poison, I wonder...? You won't get away lightly if you eat it...\" She must have tired herself quite a bit, because Beatrice was swiftly dragged into dreamland as soon as she got into the futon, moaning in fear from the trauma of the wasabi from supper that evening. Savoring his partner's adorable sleeping face, Subaru gave his back a good stretch in the middle of the room. \"Now then, how about I take a little stroll until I get sleepy?\" Tightening the belt of his yukata, Subaru headed out of the room in high spirits. He hadn't settled on a destination, but he had no intention of walking as far as beyond the inn, figuring that he would get some air out in the garden. He imagined the scenery, which greatly resembled a Japanese garden, would look great under the moonlight. Looking up at the round moon through the corridor's window, Subaru squinted at its silver light. It was a quiet night. In terms of defenses, the hot-spring inn had sections that were overly exposed, but given the lineup staying there at the moment, he could only pity anyone foolhardy enough to try to break in. I do not think anything will happen, but if something does occur in this district, I will hurry over. Please rest at ease. Such were Reinhard's reassuring words when they parted ways in the hall. The fact that he'd used the word district rather than inn was so reassuring, it was downright scary. Given his personality, it was possible he was being modest just choosing to not use the word city. \"Reinhard, huh...\" Thinking of his friend, who quite possibly might still be on guard even at this time of night, Subaru lowered his eyes it was hard to forget how unpretentiously Reinhard had agreed he was Subaru's friend. During the unexpected reunion earlier in the day, Subaru had reforged his broken friendship with Reinhard. But that didn't mean that the terrible things Subaru had said or the loathsome attitude he'd shown on that fateful day in the past were permissible. Friends should be equals. That was what Subaru believed. Whatever Reinhard thought of the matter, Subaru owed him a debt. How could he call himself Reinhard's friend without repaying it? Wasn't there something, anything at all, that Subaru could do for the sake of his friend Reinhard? *** As he pondered such thoughts, his feet brought him to the garden, whereupon Subaru's breath caught at the sight that greeted him. Under a black sky and a silver moon, with clouds draped over the moon to lend the place an even more bewitching allure, he saw a single person standing there, enjoying the refreshing breeze. The man had a sturdy back and a head and beard dyed white. Subaru knew only one person with those distinguishing features. \" Mr. Wilhelm?\" \"Sir Subaru? Did I alarm you?\" Wilhelm had probably sensed a human presence long before Subaru noticed him. Addressing Subaru, Wilhelm put his arms through the sleeves of his indigo-colored yukata as he turned around. The gentleness of his gaze matched his outfit remarkably well. The sight of the Sword Devil putting his hands through the sleeves of a yukata as he stood in a Japanese-style garden somehow came off as picturesque. \"It is a quiet night, yet you were unable to sleep?\" \" . Nahhh, it's not actually like that. I just thought I'd give this garden a look at night. I figured it'd be a good view, so that's what I was aiming for.\" \"I see. Then it was rather boorish of me to intrude on such a solemn nightly occasion.\" The way Wilhelm spoke those words with a sentimental smile and a soft voice left Subaru scratching his cheek. For Subaru, hearing Wilhelm's voice was immensely reassuring. For some reason, it also made him blush a little. Wilhelm was the person Subaru respected most in this world. There were many people Subaru wanted to stand alongside, compete with, and be considered equal to, but it was quite possibly Wilhelm alone who made Subaru think I wanna look up to him while harboring something akin to envy. Wilhelm was pretty much Subaru's ideal, both as a person and a man. Therefore, as Subaru scratched his cheek, he shook his head at Wilhelm's modesty. \"No, no. You're not intruding at all. If anything, the Sword Devil suits a Japanese garden so much that it's carving a photograph into my heart for eternity. I like seeing people under a moonlit sky.\" So far as Subaru knew, the person best suited for a moonlit sky"}, {"text": "was without a doubt Emilia. Her silver hair twinkled and glimmered in a way the sun's rays never did. Emilia's beauty was like fleeting moonlight. That's why Subaru hoped to one day become a star that nestled up to the moon. Accordingly, Subaru found the sight of the Sword Devil standing under a moonlit sky symbolic of his aspirations. \"You should whisper such words not to me but to a woman. What a waste.\" \"With my face, even if I say flowery lines like that, it won't get me very far, and those phrases don't work one bit on the girl whose heart I want to tickle most right now.\" \"One must choose words for the sake of the woman one cares for most... That frustration is part of the joys of love.\" Wilhelm's teasing tone made Subaru's shoulders sag in a comedic fashion. \"Ohhh, it's been a long time since I've seen you with that love-story vibe. So Mr. Wilhelm had times like that, too, huh?\" \"But of course.\" When Subaru bowed reverentially according to established custom, Wilhelm said, \"Well then, I suppose it cannot be avoided,\" looking particularly pleased as he began to tell his tale. He gazed with his blue eyes at something far in the distance as he recalled a beloved memory. \"I am clumsy with my words even today, but my past self was far worse. A man lacking in words. When I first met my wife, the issue of a man with thoughts of nothing but swinging a sword in his mind must have bored her to tears.\" \"But the missus enjoyed talking to you anyway, right, Mr. Wilhelm?\" \"My wife was a profound woman. Even as she suffered under the weight of the destiny she carried upon her slender back, she never spoke one word of that to others. That was probably why I was attracted to her from the first time I ever laid eyes on her...but I was so foolish at the time not to realize any of that.\" Wilhelm's voice held a whiff of regret and shame, no doubt from embarrassment at what an unsociable person he once was. Getting this rare reaction out of him helped Subaru feel at ease. \"Who'd have thought Mr. Wilhelm was, you know, unsophisticated like that once?\" \"I truly had offered up every part of my being to the sword. When I gripped a sword, I forgot all other thoughts, immersing myself as if that was what gave meaning to my life it was my wife who reminded me of the reason why I chose to walk the path of the sword.\" \"Is that when you first realized you liked the missus, by any chance?\" \"...It seems you have seen right through me, Sir Subaru.\" Subaru responded to Wilhelm's listless murmur with silence. Wilhelm probably didn't realize what kind of face he was making just then. That he was comfortable showing him such a face made Subaru deeply proud. Wilhelm's eyes, the creases on his cheeks, the tone of his voice, his gestures... Every part of him was saying one thing. Even at this very moment, from the instant he had first met her, he loved his wife Theresia van Astrea. Seeing that face, anyone would realize he was still in love. *** Without his knowledge, Subaru had come to the verge of tears while looking at Wilhelm's expression. Heat was rising into the back of his eyes. For some reason, his chest got hot like this when he looked at the face of someone in love. It would really put Wilhelm in a bind if he started crying at a place like this, wouldn't it? \"It is as you say, Sir Subaru. It was then that I realized my feelings for my wife.\" As Subaru lowered his head to conceal his tears, Wilhelm continued to recount long-gone days. Accepting his generosity, Subaru listened to the man's tale as the ache inside him only grew stronger. \"Swinging the sword was everything to me. But it was the thoughts I had before swinging the sword, and the thoughts I had from swinging the sword, that made me all that I was. My wife realized that about me as if it was a matter of course. From then on, when I swung my sword, I thought of my wife.\" \"You still do even now?\" \" Then and now, what links me to my wife is the sword.\" Wilhelm paused slightly before weaving the words in response to Subaru's question. As Wilhelm faced Subaru with the moonlight at his back, his eyes had grown damp from complex emotions. He felt pride. He felt regret. He felt hesitance, passion, and shame. Bravery and tragedy were present, too.  But behind all these emotions was love. \"So long as I grip a sword, my feelings for my wife shall no doubt persist. Accordingly, when I die, I want to die with a sword in my hand. To me, that is nothing less than continuing to be with my wife.\" Wilhelm was too clumsy, too blunt, to love her in any other way. Subaru drew in his breath, taking many shallow breaths as if he was gasping for air. His tongue was numb, and he felt like his lungs were convulsing. But he pressed on his chest to suppress his beating heart and forced his tongue to move. That moment, with Wilhelm gazing into the distance before his eyes, he had to say it. \"Please don't say ominous things like when I die. Mr. Wilhelm, you're young, almost too young, and it'll be a real problem if you're always thinking about retirement.\" \"Sir Subaru?\" \"Crusch and Ferris are both super dependent on you. Crush must struggle with not being able to remember her memories, and Ferris doesn't let it show, but he must be stretched pretty thin from supporting her any way he can, so they need you, Mr. Wilhelm. Besides, even I !\" *** \"Even I have lots of things left I want Mr. Wilhelm's help for. Maybe this is a naive way to think when it comes to political rivals. But I...\"  Subaru liked Wilhelm. Wilhelm kept his feelings for his departed wife close even as he struck down his foes. That was why Subaru respected him as a man. Even if Wilhelm had no awareness of it, even if amid repeated loops Subaru had spent no more than ten days as his apprentice, Subaru admired Wilhelm's strength. Subaru was frightened to hear words that acknowledged death emerge from Wilhelm's mouth.  Even more than before, Subaru was sensitive to death among the people he personally knew. His promise with Roswaal was one reason, and it was also the effect of Return by Death altering Subaru's own thoughts. When he thought of someone he knew dying, he lost all control over his emotions. It was enough that he had secret fears where Emilia and Beatrice were concerned. \"It seems that as is typical, I chose my words quite poorly.\" As Subaru stood stiff, Wilhelm closed the distance between them with a pained smile. Drawing closer one step after another, the Sword Devil ended up right before the edge of the porch on which Subaru stood. Then his blue, steely gaze pierced Subaru's flickering black eyes. \"Sir Subaru that may be a virtue of yours, but it is also a weakness.\" The words held no echo of a smile. But nor were they scornful scolding. Somehow, it sounded as if he was debating a point like an elder speaking to his junior. Or if Subaru was to put it more precisely, the tone was like that of a grandfather speaking to a grandchild. \"My wife was very much the same. It was a bad habit of hers to suppress her own feelings, prioritizing the hearts of the people all around her and always placing herself last.\" \"Bad habit, you say... Nah, to begin with, I'm not that saintly a guy. I'm not wishing for everyone everywhere to be happy or anything like that. I'm a guy who thinks that if I can just make sure the people around me are happy, that's enough.\" \"The issue is that the range in question is the people around you. My wife did not wish for it, but she possessed a power unsuited for any single person to wield. Her hopes and her wishes extended far beyond the reach and breadth of that power.\" Wilhelm's wife, Theresia van Astrea, was the previous generation's Sword Saint. Over the last year, even Subaru had become versed in the history of her brief career. She who had led the charge that ended the Kingdom of Lugunica's civil war that threatened to destroy the country, a hero and national savior that was Theresia. Subaru Natsuki could not possibly compare his heroic deeds with hers. \"I understand what you're saying about your wife. But there's no way in the world that applies to me.\" \"In times of peace, my wife was an ordinary woman who enjoyed looking at flowers. The heroes whose names are passed down through history did not continue being heroes in their daily lives. And, Sir Subaru, the extent of your name, and the reach of your hand, is far greater than you currently imagine. Hereafter, it shall only be more so.\" \"That's not...\" \"I am certain of it. For all you are unable to do alone, Sir Subaru, I believe you are a man who can gather others who cannot do these things alone, either and in doing so, you will make success possible where it was not before.\" *** Subaru was in shock. That was all he could feel in response to the exaggerated worth Wilhelm had assigned to him. Subaru wasn't strong, he lacked intelligence or wisdom, and he was half-hearted and weak-willed to boot. Precisely because he couldn't do anything alone, he had to talk other people into doing all kinds of things and always survived by the skin of his teeth over and over again, nothing more. Why was it Wilhelm considered Subaru so valuable in spite of all that? \"Perhaps you are not yet aware of it for the time being. I suppose those who do not realize your worth yet are many. However, someday, you, too, will understand, and so will everyone else.\" \"I'm a puny, helpless guy who's no good at anything, though.\" \"Yes. And it is that puny, helpless you, who is no good at anything, whom I like.\" Punctuating his words with a brief pause, Wilhelm nodded with satisfaction. \"And the number of those who think the same shall surely grow.\" *** Subaru let out a deep breath. Wilhelm really was exaggerating. The words were so unrealistic that they couldn't possibly be true. No one could have faulted Subaru for laughing out loud. That he did not do so was because it was none other than Wilhelm saying it. \" It seems I have rambled too much. I apologize for having kept you here for so long.\" Seeing the melancholy Subaru harbored, Wilhelm bowed his head as if suddenly seized by embarrassment. But Subaru, seemingly regretting that he had made Wilhelm feel that way, shook his head from side to side. \"I'll give what you said just now some proper thought...and I'm kinda sorry. The original point of all this was to listen to stories about your wife.\" \"Not at all. It has been a long time since I have been satisfied... Well, perhaps not quite that, but I am glad to be able to speak of my wife. Neither Lady Crusch nor Ferris have had much time for such things of late.\" \"I just accidentally learned something because Mr. Wilhelm hasn't had his fill of telling romance stories!\" \"I've clearly gotten a little too sentimental. It is finally time to put an old man's long stories to rest.\" Wilhelm flashed a wry smile as he moved a foot from the garden onto the porch. The atmosphere said that the tale was over, so Subaru"}, {"text": "nonchalantly offered his hand to help Wilhelm up to the corridor. *** Wilhelm accepted Subaru's hand and climbed up onto the corridor. Feeling the weight of the elderly swordsman's body through his arm, Subaru suddenly recalled the situation in the reception hall for an instant. Simultaneously, the thoughts he'd had on his way to the garden came back to him. Perhaps this would be very insensitive and brash of him. Yet, even so  \"Mr. Wilhelm. It's not my intention to go from someone sticking his nose into another camp's domestic affairs to thoughtlessly trampling on the hearts of others, but...\" \" . Yes, I am listening.\" \"...Can't you get along with Reinhard? You're family, aren't you?\" He could imagine the complexities that probably surrounded the relationship involving the grandfather and grandson of the Astrea family. Perhaps crudely intruding upon that would cost him the trust he had built up with Wilhelm. But this was what he thought: What value was there in a relationship you merely clung to, not saying anything for fear of hurting the other? And if Wilhelm intruding as he had done was meant to make Subaru think precisely that... \"A thought occurred to me while speaking with you, Sir Subaru.\" *** \"Why is it that I am unable to talk like this with my own grandson?\" This was the source of Wilhelm's agonizing remorse. All expression vanished from Wilhelm's face. He was expressionless but hardly emotionless. These were powerful, powerful emotions locked away deep inside a hardened shell these were undoubtedly regrets. \"I am a man of many regrets. However, there are three regrets I have amassed over the course of my own life for which I have absolutely no excuse. One of them is the cause of the current rift between my grandson and me.\" \"But that frustrates you, doesn't it, Mr. Wilhelm?\" \"I am not allowed to feel frustration over this. That is the weight of the words I pounded into my grandson...into Reinhard at the time. They were egregiously, unforgivably...foolish.\" While emotionless on the surface, there was a fire that raged inside Wilhelm that seemed like it would scorch his very soul. These were the hellish flames of anger that had continued to blaze over those long years in Wilhelm's unforgiving heart. The fires of regret had combined into one great conflagration, the flame charring Wilhelm, not permitted to cease until he was turned to ash. \"For the sake of avenging my wife, I averted my eyes from this regret. And now that I have avenged her, I know this is truly the time to approach him.\" \"But the courage just won't come?\" \"To my great shame. Thinking my grandson hates me even now, I cannot bring my feet to move.\" Wilhelm lamented from the bottom of his heart how disappointed he was in himself. Seeing the old man seemingly shrink dramatically, Subaru was seized by shock. Then after the shock wore off, he couldn't help bursting into laughter. \"Sir Subaru?\" \"S-sorry. I didn't mean to laugh, but I couldn't hold it in.\" Wilhelm was making an incredulous face, but it was Subaru who found what he said hard to believe. There he'd been, resigned to the possibility that the relationship between the two was so hopeless that it might only grow worse, and yet. \"Mr. Wilhelm, it sounds like you don't think you deserve to call yourself Reinhard's grandfather or something.\" \"Yes, it is as you say. Even though I know I am in the wrong, I find myself unable to take a decisive step forward. Such cowardice leaves me greatly frustrated with myself, but...\" \"Yeah, you don't look like anything more than a grandpa afraid of being hated by his grandkid.\" \"...What?\" Wilhelm's expression, clouded up to that point, registered surprise as he blinked hard. That reaction kept Subaru's grin lingering on his cheeks. \"I don't know much about the reason things went sour between the two of you. I might be off the mark for all I know. But from my outsider's point of view, you and Reinhard genuinely want to patch things up. In that case, it's a lot better for the one doing the apologizing to go first.\" \"Surely, Reinhard will refuse to forgive me.\" \"If he won't forgive you right away, keep apologizing until he does. In the first place, apologizing isn't about someone forgiving you, is it? You apologize because you want to. The desire to apologize is selfish and arbitrary. I mean, the person apologizing is the one who did something bad in the first place.\" *** This time, it was Wilhelm's turn to be bewildered by Subaru's shocking leaps in logic. Of course, Subaru was well aware of how selfish and arbitrary the irrational argument really was. Even so, it was something that Wilhelm, scared of speaking to his grandson and frightened of taking the first step, really needed. What he needed in that moment was the ability to be willfully ignorant, to brazenly act as if past regrets never happened, and a brash willingness to be caught up in the moment. And Subaru Natsuki was a master of all these dubious skills. \"So yeah, apologizing all of a sudden after so many years have passed will make someone think, What's with this guy? But over the course of apologizing a bunch of times, that'll start changing. Hard to tell whether it'll become This guy's beyond help or This guy's so annoying, though.\" \"I believe that would count as a change for the worse.\" \"But it's still a change. Wouldn't any progress at all be better than keeping things horribly frozen in place like they are now?\" The popular image of Subaru was that he was someone who started out giving a whole slew of people the worst possible impression of himself. To Subaru, being surrounded by people who thought the worst of him was no big deal. Besides, Subaru saw a chance for victory. After all, Reinhard  \" Reinhard told me he wants to hear about what happened during the fight with the White Whale.\" At the end of all those flippant words, Subaru revealed the fact that would probably become the key. Reinhard had certainly asked Subaru about it on the way to the tearoom. \"I don't know what the White Whale has to do with you two not getting along. But if it is connected, Reinhard knows it's Mr. Wilhelm who struck the White Whale down. He knows that you spent over a decade to avenge his grandma, too.\" *** \"He probably hopes it's high time for things stuck in the past to start moving, too.\" There was no way for Subaru to know how Reinhard truly felt. In fact, it still wasn't clear to him how they'd ended up friends in the first place. There were even times that he worried they'd become friends too easily. Part of that was probably due to his belief that Reinhard had never felt powerless or uninformed.  But there was no way that was true. There was no doubt Reinhard also had things he worried about. Even Wilhelm, who looked superhuman from Subaru's point of view, was just another man, another grandfather, another flawed human being with problems and baggage. Was it so wrong to think Reinhard was the same? If Reinhard was such a man, then there was something Subaru could do for him as his friend. He hoped that all it would take was a single act of meddling. \"I wonder if my grandson...if Reinhard will listen?\" After a brief pause, Wilhelm wrung that question out of himself. Subaru smiled, because this was the exact trigger for taking the first step forward that Wilhelm had been looking for. \"First, you talk to him until he's sick of you. If he brushes you off, that's fine, too. I mean, I always approach Emilia-tan with the mindset that I might only succeed once out of a hundred tries.\" \"Unbelievable \" Listening to Subaru's advice, the unexpected revelations made Wilhelm shake his head in disbelief. Then the old man lifted his gaze, peering up at the silvery moon floating overhead. \"There is no besting you, Sir Subaru.\" It was clear from his voice that he was smiling. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 The next morning, Subaru, who had woken up in high spirits, was standing in the garden as the morning sun shone upon it. Savoring the sensation of the cobblestones beneath his soles, Subaru filled his lungs with the refreshing morning air, going \"Nnn !\" as he stretched his back. The sight drew a small smile from Emilia, who was standing next to him. \"What is it, Subaru? You're in a really good mood this morning. Did something nice happen?\" \"Emilia-tan's wavy braids are super cute this morning, so it was totally worth spending a little time on them before bed last night.\" \"Is that so? I'm so glad. You kind of seemed to have something on your mind last night.\" Smiling as she made that remark, Emilia gently stroked her wavy silver hair. Just as they'd planned it the night before when Emilia's braids were undone, Subaru had given her silver hair a soft wave. Her normal hairstyle was cute, of course, but a beautiful girl had the special privilege of changing the accent of her charm from time to time. Still, it was fact that he had caused so much trouble the day before. And of course he was still reflecting on his failure at the Muse Company, but this was this, and that was that. \"I'll just have to accept it with the gravity it deserves... Beako, what's with you this morning, pouting like that?\" \"I am not pouting or anything of the sort. Would you refrain from making such arbitrary claims, I wonder?\" Averting her face, Beatrice sat on the porch as she gazed at Subaru and Emilia. It's nothing, she stubbornly projected, but the girl had said barely a word since waking up this morning, and on top of that, she'd been constantly glancing around in unease. Even if she said don't worry, Subaru couldn't help but do so. \"It's not cute when you're stubborn like that. If something happened, then just spell it out. It could be important, right?\" \"That's right, Beatrice. If there's something worrying you, let's all worry about it together. I'm becoming dependable, you know.\" \"I am of a mind to object to some of Emilia's words. But...\" Casting a suspicious look at Emilia as the girl pressed a hand to her chest, Beatrice broke down under the two's gazes. She touched one of her hair rolls, then twirled it around her finger as she spoke. \"Actually, one of the inn staff members said something yesterday, I suppose. This employee told Betty alone that at this inn, something inhuman appears at night in a hushed whisper.\" \"Ohhh, something inhuman?\" \"At first, Betty laughed it off, I suppose. But just to be sure, she put her mind on guard. And then sure enough, did something not happen last night, I wonder?\" \"Thump, thump...\" Captivated by Beatrice's tale, Emilia pressed a hand to her chest as her eyes darted this way and that. From that reaction, she was really getting into it as Beatrice's voice grew more heated still. \"In the middle of the night, Betty awoke to a strange presence. And did she gently slip out of the room, so as not to awaken Subaru as he slept with a stupid look on his face, I wonder?\" \"Don't stare at people's faces when they're sleeping. It's indecent.\" \"I I was not staring! Was my glance not as light and graceful as the snow, I wonder?!\" Beatrice had just incriminated herself in a panic, but she was cute, so Subaru decided to let it pass without comment. \"At any rate, Betty pursued that presence. Then just beyond the entryway, I found the source of that aura...\" \"You found it? And then what?\" \"Did I confront that pale face floating in the darkness from the"}, {"text": "front, I wonder?! This face noticed Betty as well, and we entered a contest of stares... The battle continued on, one step forward and one step back!\" \"A staring contest! And then, and then?\" \"Oh-ho, but Betty is a Great Spirit, so the foe ultimately fled in terror, I suppose.\" \"I'm so glad what a relief. I was worried Beatrice might have died right there...\" Having gotten far too invested in Beatrice's ghost story, Emilia's concerns were rather exaggerated. In the first place, if Beatrice were dead, just who was the adorable creature right before them? That said, Subaru admired the fact that the story was fairly well thought out. \"So what actually happened, Otto?\" \"Er, when I was on the verge of being sick just outside the entryway, I noticed Beatrice staring daggers at me... She vanished while I was crouched and feeling miserable, however.\" It was just then that Otto entered the garden with a wobbly gait. Upon hearing the truth about last night from his lips, Beatrice muttered, \"That cannot be...\" in absolute shock. It was said that fear made the wolf or in this case, a drunken Otto seem larger. While Beatrice struggled to reconcile her memories with reality, Emilia tried to comfort her by stroking her head. Probably, the inn staffer who had told her about the apparition had quickly discerned that Beatrice possessed a rare and precious disposition; specifically, she was a really cute when teased character. Given the adorable red face he was looking at now, Subaru could only call this a job well done. \"Incidentally, you weren't back for dinner last night, either, so what were you up to?\" Keeping the charming Beatrice in the corner of his eye, Subaru cocked his head questioningly as he looked at Otto's pale face. Otto's pallor seemed drained of blood so early in the morning as he wobbled to the edge of the porch and sat down. \"I told you before we parted ways, did I not? Since we happened to have come all this way to Pristella, I wanted to meet people with whom it would normally be very difficult to sp-eak wi ughhh.\" \"Sounds like you're living dangerously. You seem about as drunk as the first time we met, man.\" \"...In the case of Mr. Natsuki, I was not drunk when we first met, I believe?\" \"If that's what you remember, then it's probably true. For you, at least.\" Otto seemed to have no recollection of such an event, and at present, his memory was correct. Their first meeting from Subaru's point of view and from Otto's point of view differed greatly in place and subsequent developments. But Subaru had no intention of trying to explain over and over the happenings during various circuits of a loop that had been lost for eternity. Deciding to move on, Subaru shot Otto's suspicious face a wink. \"Anyway, make sure you aren't a bad influence on Beako, or it'll affect her development. Well, I do understand that you were trying your best for the group, though.\" \"This, I did all on my own agh  I had other reasons for doing thish.\" *** \"More importantly...\" Bitterly twisting up his pale face, Otto scanned the garden. \"I do not see Garfiel anywhere. It is unusual for him not to at least poke his face out, is it not? He is always the first to rise, howling from the peak of a mountain or something.\" \"That's because he couldn't find any other high ground to howl from. Errr, jokes aside, he's in a bit of a sensitive state at the moment. For the time being, be gentle if you run into him, 'kay?\" \"To be perfectly honest, I wish I was the one being treated gently at the moment... Ugh, my head hurts...\" Subaru flashed a troubled smile at Otto's Groggy status as he wobbled and crumbled down onto the porch. \"So now that Otto is here, too, what are our plans for today?\" Hugging a sullen Beatrice from behind, Emilia inclined her head and posed the all-important question. Her words made Subaru go \"right...\" as he touched a hand to his chin. \"There's the issue of renegotiating with Kiritaka for sure. What was the plan again, kidnap Liliana and trade her for the magic crystal?\" \"Where did that drastic plan come from?! Did you really reflect on anything you did yesterday?!\" \"Sorry, my smidgen of resentment toward Liliana affected my proposal.\" Subaru apologized as Liliana's blissful face came rushing back to him, but Otto was too busy suffering from the effects of his own shouts on his hungover head to pay much attention. After moaning for a while, Otto continued with tears in his eyes. \"First of all, we are scheduled to visit the Muse Company at fire time today. I would be grateful if we could have White Dragon's Scale mediate, however...\" The name Otto mentioned was referring to Kiritaka's bodyguard, Dynas. White Dragon's Scale was the name of the mercenary company he was part of, which was currently hired to serve as Kiritaka's personal guard. Although, in Subaru's mind, Dynas seemed less like a bodyguard and more like a private secretary whose main purpose was to deal with the Liliana issue. \"For the time being, I must ask that Mr. Natsuki remain here. I shall accept no rebuttals.\" \"Why...is what I'd like to say, but I'll keep it under wraps. Even I know the talks will go smoother without me there...but then what's the point of me coming to Pristella?\" \"To play with Beatrice? It's good to make as many memories with her as you can.\" \"Is Betty somehow being treated lightly for some, I wonder?! I raise an objection!\" Beatrice's indignant protests were for the most part ignored, and with that, the afternoon plans were tentatively set. They weren't very involved plans, though; the gist was that everyone except Otto had free time. \"Well, how about I take Emilia-tan and Beako to a public park?\" \"Eh? Shouldn't I be going together with Otto?\" \"Today, I am only going to obtain a promise to reopen negotiations, you see. Bringing Lady Emilia along for this type of visit would be lacking in etiquette. Having you return ahead of me yesterday was for the same reason.\" After explaining his reasoning to Emilia, Otto added, \"However...\" and shot Subaru a suspicious glance before continuing. \"I do not know what Mr. Natsuki is scheming in citing such a reason.\" \"Calling it scheming makes it sound like I'm up to no good.\" That was all he could muster. Otto was impressive as always even his misses were still somehow on target. Not that Subaru was actually scheming, but he did have a plan. It was a plan that relied heavily on luck, however. \"After I got off the boat yesterday, I found this really pretty park along the way. I was like, I wanna take a walk through there with Emilia-tan, with Beako in the middle and us holding her hands.\" \"Wow, that sounds fun. But should we really take it easy like that? What do you think, Teacher?\" \"I can hardly say no when my pupil is looking forward to it quite this much. Well, assuming he comes back before you go, at least take Garfiel with you... Just do not cause any commotions.\" \"Why are you looking at me when you say that? Say that to Beako. She's the one you want.\" \"How accurate is that, I wonder? Betty is the oldest one here, so it's fairly obvious who should lead the way.\" Mistaking what Otto was concerned about, Beatrice put her hands on her hips with a confident flourish. The way she completely missed the point was adorable, so Subaru affectionately stroked Beatrice's head all over. And as Subaru and company enjoyed the peaceful, friendly atmosphere  \"Yo, everyone's together, huh? Pretty nice morning, ain't it?\" Felt raised her hand in greeting as she stepped into the corridor. \"Morning. I was wondering this yesterday, too, but what are you reading?\" \"Ahhh, I have a bet with Reinhard going. He's gonna give me questions on what's in the book, and I'll answer 'em. If I don't win this, I probably won't be able to see Ilya next time I'm on break...\" In other words, Reinhard was using Felt's competitive spirit to educate her, all in the name of a bet. What a pain, said her grimace. Felt lightly hopped down into the garden. Then the royal-selection candidate pointed at Otto, who was just managing to bring himself to a sitting position. \"That green Mister wasn't here yesterday, was he? He's with you guys?\" \"Yeah, he is. This is our domestic adviser. Well, he's a lot like what Larry is to you.\" \"I am not quite sure what you mean, but I am fairly certain you didn't mean anything good!\" Though there was some rudeness implicit in his statement, it had introduced Otto more than sufficiently. At the end of that exchange, Felt tilted her head and asked Subaru, \"Who's Larry?\" \"I mean that Lachins guy with you. They're minor acquaintances of mine. That's why I lovingly call the trio Larry, Curly, and Moe.\" \"Heh, sounds fine to me. So Lachins, Gaston, and Camberley are Larry, Curly, and Moe to you? Has a nice ring to it fits 'em surprisingly well!\" \"I'm surprised at the miracle of what happened to me a year ago, too. Wish it was a different miracle, though.\" He raised a toast to himself for dubbing them well at the time. Incidentally, since Felt apparently liked the terminology, he raised a toast to the Three Stooges, who would continue to be known as Larry, Curly, and Moe forevermore. \"By the way...,\" said Felt afterward as she glanced between Subaru and Emilia. \"What's that weird dance you've been doing for a while now? Playing some kind of game?\" \"Hey, hey, don't call it a weird dance. These are radio calisthenics, a completely respectable workout.\" Felt had a mystified look as Subaru explained the activity that he and Emilia were doing together. The Emilia camp had assembled at the garden that morning precisely so they could do radio calisthenics. Regardless of whether they were on a trip or whatever their itinerary, they never missed morning calisthenics. \"Good health is the secret to a long life, so this exercise routine is beloved by everyone from little kids to the elderly. When Emilia becomes king, she's going to make it national law to do these every morning.\" \"That's right. It feels really good to do this every morning with everyone.\" \"Yeah...? If it was up to me, anyone who planned to make that public policy definitely wouldn't get to be king...\" As she watched them go through the exercises, Felt murmured with a frown on her face. It was sad that she didn't see the appeal of radio calisthenics, but even if people hated the activity at first, most got used to it as time wore on. As a matter of fact, an unprecedented radio-calisthenics boom was already spreading the exercise routine from the Mathers domain to various other regions. \"Now that I think about it, I heard lots of weird festivals are spreading from that Miss's lands. There's some weird dance involved, playing around with hollowed-out pumpkins, and something about women baking sweets and giving them to men?\" \"Right now, it's treated as some weird custom from the boonies, but I wanna make it my project to spread these customs nationwide. On that note, it'd be nice to have someone like Anastasia cooperating when planning events and stuff.\" It was considered an open secret that the modern iteration of Valentine's Day was a conspiracy hatched in the chocolate corporate world. In other words, a lot of money could be up for grabs, so he felt like Anastasia would pounce at the chance. When Felt saw Subaru sink into thought with a serious look on his face, she glanced at Emilia and spoke in a quiet voice."}, {"text": "\"Hey, is Mister always like this?\" \"Yeah, Subaru's like this most of the time. When he looks like he's just kidding around, he's actually thinking really hard about all kinds of things. Then again, sometimes he looks like this when he really is kidding around, too.\" \"I have no idea why you sound like you're proud of him for that.\" Felt cocked her head in puzzlement when Emilia seemed to take a strange sense of pride in Subaru's behavior. Every so often, when Emilia interacted with people who were ostensibly younger than her, it was sometimes difficult to tell who was actually older, which was an issue of Emilia's mental age. This was one of those situations. \"Come to think of it, you're all alone, Felt. Where's Reinhard?\" \"I ain't a kid, and havin' him around me just means I gotta listen to him fuss. Besides, not that I like admitting it, but if I call him, he'll get here in one second.\" Judging by how Felt's face stiffened as she said that, she probably meant it literally and not a joke. That sort of thing really drove home how extraordinary Reinhard truly was. \"But from what I saw yesterday, it seems like you learned how to get along with Reinhard... Maybe get along isn't the right way to put it... It seems like you guys worked things out even though you had a rocky start.\" \"Oh, really? I thought Felt and Reinhard got along very nicely from the start...\" \"Hey, are those actual gemstones in this Miss's eyes? You'd better polish 'em right so they see straight, 'cause I'm one scary girl when push comes to shove.\" Felt's strangely poetic metaphor made Subaru appreciate how much education and growing she'd benefited from since they last met. \"Well, I can't deny what Mister said about it, though. Not like I can just be irresponsible forever or anything. Now that I've decided I'm doin' this with him, he's my responsibility, so...\" \" Lady Felt, you called?\" \"I did not!!\" Instantly, Reinhard emerged out of thin air. When Reinhard suddenly appeared behind her back, Felt roared with anger at him. Her high-pitched voice made Reinhard raise an eyebrow. Then he addressed her. \"Lady Felt, it is still early in the morning. This is not my mansion, so please do not cause trouble to those around us by raising a ruckus...\" \"Oh, shut up don't lecture me! And what's the big deal with you anyway?! You say you'll come in a second when I call you, and then you come when I'm not even calling at all!\" \"Good morning to you, Lady Emilia. And morning to you, Subaru. A fine day.\" \"Don't ignore me when it's convenient for you, damn it!!\" When Reinhard crisply smiled and offered a morning greeting, Subaru raised his hand in return. Furious at Reinhard's reaction, Felt grabbed him by the collar and shook his head around. Of course, given Reinhard's strength, he could have easily brushed her off, but she still kept a hold of him. \"You see? Felt and Reinhard get along really well.\" \"I guess you're right. That's a classic getting-along-nicely scene.\" \"Somehow, those words are creepy enough that I could just die! I don't like it!\" Grinning and agreeing with the smiling Emilia, Subaru smoothly ignored Felt's shouts. Instead, Subaru looked at Reinhard as Felt was manhandling him. He'd lowered the corners of his eyes in a consternated look, and he wore a troubled smile on his face, but the sight was so natural somehow that Subaru oddly felt a sense of relief. Simultaneously, he had a sudden thought these two had also spent the last year challenging the royal selection as master and retainer. \"Well, hate to spoil the lovely moment, but how about we go get some breakfast?!\" \"I'm not accepting this!\" Listening to Felt's high-pitched voice, Subaru looked up at the clear blue sky and gave a mighty stretch. First the night before, then a morning like this it was going to be a great day. He had no rational basis for thinking that, but he felt confident nonetheless. 2 \" Good morning. Oh, you all seem to be getting along rather nicely.\" Anastasia greeted Subaru and the others as they entered the reception hall, smiling mischievously as she spoke. From her point of view, seeing the Emilia camp and the Felt camp together must have been a surprise. But Subaru was just as surprised by her greeting. The reason was the glossy outfit she was wearing. The sight of Anastasia, wearing a different outfit with her usual scarf around her neck, made Emilia and the others go \"wow\" in astonishment. \"Good, good. It seems I've succeeded in surprising you this morning. I'm so happy.\" \"That outfit is splendid. Is this what you were talking about in the bath yesterday?\" \"Yes, this is a kimono. It's like a yukata, but it takes a little longer to put on.\" Anastasia proudly twirled on the spot, splendidly putting the blue-dyed clothing on display. The dancing, falling petal pattern on it was also very charming. Subaru could only be amazed at Kararagi's ability to reproduce it. \"So those clothes are some kind of Kararagi tradition?\" \"Yes. The design of these clothes has been passed down by tailors since the era of Hoshin and is one of the few pieces of culture from that time.\" \"The era of Hoshin, is it?\" Once again, this mysterious person, Hoshin of the Wastes, stood before Subaru. Just like Subaru and Al, he was probably an other-worlder from the same homeland, summoned four centuries prior  \"Once this is all wrapped up, I really need to look into this Hoshin guy a bit...\" At this point, Subaru had no intention of complaining about the phenomenon of being summoned to another world. He'd long since passed the stages of understanding and acceptance. He knew neither the process of the summoning nor the goals of the summoner, but he'd accepted that the summoning was a one-way trip and that there was no convenient way to travel back. His questions about those things were as innumerable as stars in the sky, but what Subaru wanted to know most at the moment was what kind of marks the one summoned long before him had left upon the world and what became of him. That was all. \"Lady Anastasia, you are even more beautiful this morning. I was worried that you would not allow even me to see you like this, but it seems that was a needless concern.\" \"Eh-heh-heh, this was the jewel up my sleeve! The finished product only arrived in Pristella just a little while ago, you see. It was a real pain hiding it from Julius, heh-heh.\" Afterward, meeting up with Julius in the hall, Anastasia showed her clothes off to her own knight, and Julius lavished her with fawning praise, filling Anastasia with satisfaction. Then she cocked her head to the side. \"Oh? Mimi and the others aren't with you?\" \"Ricardo has not yet returned this morning while out on the business he mentioned. As for Mimi...it would seem she has been leading Lady Emilia's retainer Garfiel all around.\" \"Eh, Mimi's with Garfiel?\" When Emilia's eyes went wide at hearing the name of one of her own, Julius said, \"Yes,\" with a nod. \"Garfiel and Mimi have not returned to the inn since last night. When they learned of this, Hetaro and TB ran into the city with all haste.\" \"You heard about this from Joshua, and I'm only hearing about it now that's how I should take this?\" Anastasia put her hands on her hips, checking with Joshua, who had followed Julius in and was hiding behind his back. The words left the young man with the delicate face downcast, bowing his head with a pathetic expression. \"I I am very sorry. I was... I desperately tried to stop them, but Hetaro refused to listen to reason. And TB was also concerned, so...\" \"That's because when Mimi's there, Hetaro doesn't see anything else around him. If TB's with him, it should be fine... In his place, there is something I would like to ask of you, Joshua.\" Smiling at the cowed Joshua, Anastasia patted the young man's shoulder as he lifted his head. \"I really had meant to entrust this to Hetaro and the others, but I want you to pick up a letter at the main gate it's a very, very important letter.\" As she spoke those words, Anastasia glanced in Subaru's direction. In his mind, the suggestive gaze overlapped with the conversation in the hall the night before, spurring him to say something. \"I'm begging you, Joshua. You're my only hope.\" \"What need is there for you to ask that of me?! Lady Anastasia has already given me her instructions!\" Brushing off Subaru's hands, which had been grasping both his shoulders, Joshua headed for the sliding screen door with rapid steps. And then  \"I shall do as instructed. Leave it to me. I shall complete it without fail in TB and the others' stead!\"  with conviction, Joshua made this declaration to Anastasia and raced out of the hall. Anastasia gently touched her scarf when his ponytail vanished from sight. \"He really could have done it after eating breakfast, though...\" She wore a strained smile as she remarked on this youngster's apparent loyalty and hunger for glory. \" I am sorry that we were a tad late. It would appear we are the last ones.\" Crusch, with her long green hair all tied up this day, was the last to arrive at the reception hall. She remained dressed in a ladylike fashion, with a floral hair ornament and a white ribbon vividly adorning her green hair. No doubt it was Ferris, appearing in the hall after her, who did the coordinating. With light steps, Wilhelm followed immediately behind Ferris, wearing his usual butler's outfit. The sight of the tall elderly man made Subaru's shoulders grow tense. He recalled the many words he had exchanged with the Sword Devil under the moonlight the night before. *** As Subaru reminisced, it was precisely then that Wilhelm spotted him, and they exchanged gazes. Subaru's breath caught in his throat as Wilhelm quietly greeted him with his eyes. Subaru interpreted the message as you need not be concerned. \"So it seems we are all assembled. There are several faces missing, but still...\" \"That goes for our Garfiel, too. If he's with Mimi, that's fine, but that harebrained son of ours...\" To be accurate, it should really be tigerbrained but naturally, even Subaru was worried about Garfiel not returning by morning or failing to stay in touch. Perhaps he'd gone off somewhere to heal that difficult-to-shake sense of defeat. And if Mimi really was with him, Subaru could only hope that things didn't get out of hand in some odd fashion. \"Well, be it worries or work, it can wait until after we've had some food. Rohallo lost because of an empty stomach, they say.\" Clapping her hands, Anastasia invoked what seemed to be a common saying as she took her seat. Emulating her, Subaru and the others similarly sat down, divided by camp as they rested upon square floor cushions. \"Could you please bring it in?\" Seeing that everyone was seated, Anastasia called out to the people waiting behind the screens. As she did, several inn staffers brought plates in, placing them atop the long table. The long table was quickly filled with huge black objects only for even more iron plates to be set down. \"Today we shall enjoy some traditional Kararagi folk cooking it's time for a daisukiyaki feast!\" Anastasia made her pronouncement with great vigor as she swiftly rolled up her sleeves. Everyone in attendance was surprised by how she quickly set to work as the staff swiftly placed oil upon the iron plates and then brought a cart, which had all manner of condiments in round containers sitting atop it, into the hall. Daisukiyaki the echo of that word, the large iron"}, {"text": "plates, the dishes... Glancing among all these, Subaru realized the true nature of the culinary tradition before him  \" Y-you mean this is okonomiyaki?!\" Passed down in Kararagi as daisukiyaki, the Japanese dish of okonomiyaki boldly made its appearance. 3 \"Subaru, look! Look how prettily it turned over! I'm so proud of it! Eat up!\" \"I suppose it came out well enough. Subaru, I went through all the trouble of frying this daisukiyaki, so you might as well eat it.\" Emilia's face was one big smile, whereas Beatrice's was a little shy as both served up some curious-looking daisukiyaki, which they themselves had cooked and which now sat on the iron plates before them. \"Both of you should learn to taste your own cooking before serving it to people.\" Following Subaru's rather sound advice, the pair did as he suggested and promptly writhed in agony. Incidentally, Subaru could boast about his okonomiyaki to an extent, but he was not the most skilled in the Emilia camp. \"Lady Emilia, Beatrice, both of you can have some of what I fried. Ahhh! Lady Emilia, frying it too lightly will ruin your stomach. Beatrice, you used too much sauce!\" Thanks to Otto's feverish efforts, the Emilia camp was at least able to secure a decent breakfast. Glancing at the spectacle, Subaru shifted his gaze to the homemade cooking of the other camps. \"Lady Felt, I have prepared the next dish.\" \"Ohhh, nicely done, nicely done. Looks like at this rate, you're gonna be fryin' lots. I'm pretty grateful for your skill in cooking and making sweets, gotta say.\" With the Felt camp seated directly across from Subaru, he had a front-row seat to Reinhard producing one dish of high-end daisukiyaki after another with incredible skill, before watching all the food disappear into Felt's stomach. As over five daisukiyaki dishes had already vanished into thin air, where Felt stuffed them into her tiny body struck Subaru as one of the deeper mysteries of life. \"Now, now, now, now, now, now ! This is some real, genuine daisukiyaki I whipped up!\" But of course, Anastasia had put on quite a performance given her deep knowledge of daisukiyaki. She'd raced between two separate frying pans, successfully creating two hunks of what appeared to be charcoal. It was a valuable life lesson. Enthusiasm alone wasn't enough. \"As expected of you, Lady Anastasia. However, I prefer it when the frying time is a little briefer. Though it pains me to add to your time and trouble...\" \"It's fine, it's fine, leave it to me. For a boy, you sure have a delicate tongue, Julius.\" Unlike Subaru, who urged the cooks to eat their own food and repent for their culinary sins, Julius ate the hunks of charcoal without complaint and only after finishing every last bite did he suggest improvements. Truly, his demeanor toward his liege was chivalry itself. Subaru had absolutely no desire to follow suit. \"Ahhh, Lady Crusch ! Ferri fried a pretty one. Here, here.\" \"Why, yes you have. But I shall not be defeated. Ha-ha, behold.\" Yes, it was Crusch and Ferris who were involved in relaxed, flirtatious same-sex bonding. That didn't properly describe their relationship, but this was typical for them, so Subaru decided it would be prudent to not intrude. Either way, as befit their impressive dexterity, the daisukiyaki on their iron plates were remarkable Ferris had even taken the time to give them kitty ears. \"Fwoo. Okay, it's time to make you eat Ferri's daisukiyaki made with love. Lady Crusch, please open your mouth and say ahhh.\" \"Eh, eh? Um, errr...a-ahhh...\" Thanks to the tender rich-girl aura Crusch gave off, Subaru got the distinct feeling that he should stop watching. Off to the side of that pinkish scene, Wilhelm was working on his own daisukiyaki, but  \"Mmm...\" Turning over the pieces, the Sword Devil groaned as they broke apart and clung to the iron plate. They had probably been left to cook for a bit too long; Wilhelm seemed to be exhibiting unexpected clumsiness. \"I feel like I'm seeing something I was never meant to see. But that being the case... Er.\" \"Hey, Mister, what you fried looks pretty tasty.\" Right as Subaru thought he'd offer Wilhelm a helping hand, Felt cut him off. Her eyes glimmered as she gazed at the Puck-shaped daisukiyaki that Subaru had fried with his own two hands. \"Nah, I'm sure your guy can cook palace-chef-level daisukiyaki on an industrial scale already. Not that I know if palace chefs actually make daisukiyaki...\" \"Well, you have a point, but sometimes, you just wanna eat something different, right? Even though he's cooking on an iron plate like this, everything that bastard makes comes out elegant...\" \"Then, Felt, why don't you try the daisukiyaki I ma...?\" \"I'm talking about eating food here. Why don't you go and play with the little shrimp over there, charcoal-burner?\" Emilia, finally getting the charcoal-maker treatment, slinked over to Beatrice so she could commiserate with the glum spirit. Subaru wore a concerned smile when he saw how dejected they were. \"Hey now, don't tease my Emilia-tan and my Beako like that.\" \"So not just the Miss but the little shrimp, too... Oh right, that's right!\" Quickly sidestepping Subaru's reply, Felt proceeded to lean toward him. \"Hey, I thought I'd come out and ask. I heard some amazin' rumors about you, Mister. So be real with me: How many of those things are lies?\" \"Come on don't assume most of it is lies from the very start. It almost sounds like that's what you're hoping for.\" \"But there's no way I can believe all that stuff. I mean, I heard Mister sliced the White Whale in two all on his own, smashed the Witch Cult with his bare fists, turned the Great Rabbit into fried rabbit...and ate it!\" \"The info sorta, kinda matches, but there's a lot of chaff mixed in, damn!!\" If Subaru could manage that all by himself, he'd have been made a national hero or even become king by now. He would have just taken the throne by force and made Emilia his queen so they could flirt forever. \" Hmph.\" But Subaru's strong wisecrack was greeted by a slight chuckle from off to the side from a pair of voices at that. The voices belonged to none other than Julius and Wilhelm. \" ? Why are Mr. Finest and Grandpa laughing? Did I say something funny?\" \"It's not just that you said something funny; it's that the whole situation's hilarious. Everything you mentioned rates my contributions way too high. Like, at that point just gimme a Nobel Peace Prize.\" He didn't actually know what winning a Nobel Peace Prize entailed, but at any rate, it was what came to mind when he thought of respectable commendations. Subaru had been recognized at the honors ceremony, but because he didn't really have a firm grasp of how much that was worth, he had little grasp of exactly how his achievements had been graded. It was then that Wilhelm picked up where Subaru and Felt's conversation had left off. \"Not at all. Where the hunt of the White Whale was concerned, Sir Subaru's contributions were incalculable. Without Sir Subaru, my long-cherished desire would never have been fulfilled. I swear this to be true upon my very sword.\" \"It is the same with the Witch Cult incident. That victory was over and done and thanks to none other than his leadership. The assistance that others as well as I had provided were not contributions worthy of boasting about.\" Wilhelm and especially Julius's blunt assessments left Subaru at a loss for words. After, what belatedly arrived was ferocious heat. Subaru's head and ears were burning from embarrassment. \"C-cut it out, guys! Don't put me on a weird pedestal like that! You all know what shameful shit I get up to when I get full of myself!\" \"The results of your efforts after that more than made up for your own shame. There is no need for you to dwell upon that moment forever. Your future exploits are completely separate and should be greeted with pride.\" \"What you have accomplished are things no one else has ever done before. Until my final days, I shall take pride in having galloped across the battlefield alongside you.\" \" Ah.\" Killed by praise. Up to that point, Subaru Natsuki had died over and over. But this was the first time he had glimpsed death in such a frightening manner. Subaru was learning what it meant to be slain by praise. He felt so embarrassed that he honestly thought he might die at any moment. Subaru looked in search of aid toward Emilia, then Beatrice. However, the pair merely offered him adorable smiles with Subaru sandwiched between them. \"That's right. Subaru worked really hard. I'm truly proud, and happy, to have made that Subaru my knight.\" \"W-well, is that not all a matter of course for Betty's partner, I wonder? If anything, the surrounding rabble have been slow to realize just how incredible Subaru is.\" He never dreamed their support would be so unanimous. The frightening degree of indulgence was making Subaru's head spin. And there was not a single person in the hall who refuted these assessments. Indeed, the gazes turned toward Subaru were gentle and kind, one and all  \"Looks like a lot of stuff happened, but Mister's nature ain't changed a bit. What a relief.\" \"Oh, shaddap! Hey, everyone, don't praise me too much! You're gonna make me like every one of you!!\" When Felt neatly tied things up like that, Subaru's voice exploded as he neared his limit. Instantly, the gentle atmosphere in the great hall was shattered as the voices of all present burst into laughter. *** Amid that uproarious laughter, Subaru snuck a glance Wilhelm's way. Subaru hadn't aimed for it, but the atmosphere in the hall was remarkably good. Even with careful planning, it would have been difficult to create a moment better than this for bridging gaps and creating mutual understanding. \"Mm.\" Abruptly noticing Subaru's gaze, Wilhelm lifted an eyebrow. Subaru used his eyes to indicate the broken-up daisukiyaki by Wilhelm's hands, then motioned with his chin toward Reinhard. Realizing the import of the gesture, Wilhelm quietly drew in his breath. Beside him, Reinhard was mass-producing daisukiyaki for Felt's sake once more. The gap in skill between grandfather and grandson was like the distance between the clouds and mud, which was exactly why Subaru thought that this could be a turning point. Wilhelm's blue eyes grew unsteady as he wrestled with the complex emotions warring within him over and over gloom, reluctance, hesitation, indecision. But Wilhelm would surely overcome them all, taking a step forward and  \" Citizens of Pristella, good morning to you. The morn feels wonderful, does it not?\" That was the moment they heard a voice coming from outside the inn no, it was coming from the very sky itself. Emilia and the others' surprised reactions made it plain that the sudden voice was no private hallucination. \"Ohhh? The heck is this? Some bastard out there has a super loooud voice.\" \"Oh, Felt, of course not. This happens each morning in this city... This is a metropolitan-government broadcast using a metia.\" \"A metia broadcast...\" After Anastasia replied to Felt's carefree murmur, Subaru mulled the explanation over under his breath. Metia was a general term for a magic item put together with some kind of magical technology. Some of the objects, such as the one being employed for the broadcast, functioned much like technology back in Subaru's original world. He guessed that this metia worked like a bullhorn or a speaker system. \"There is a broadcast every morning? For what purpose?\" \"I have heard it is preparation for emergencies. Given the construction of the city, there are very few evacuation routes available, so people familiarized them with broadcasts in hopes of avoiding a general panic in case of a real emergency.\" \"Hmm, I see meow. Very logical.\" Julius's comprehensive explanation left Crusch and Ferris"}, {"text": "impressed. Subaru was equally impressed. This was the first time he'd heard of anyone treating a metia as genuinely useful and a critical part of a city's infrastructure. As far as he knew, there was virtually no precedent of using metia for practical purposes. Conversation mirrors just barely made the cut, and even these seemed to be almost exclusively possessed by the Witch Cult, leaving him with a poor impression. But that impression vanished in an instant. He simply chalked it up to strange timing that he hadn't heard of this before. \"Incidentally, Mr. Kiritaka is both the broadcaster and the provider of the metia.\" \"Eh?\" With not a shred of ill will on his face, Otto added to the static in Subaru's mind. Subaru sank into thought for several seconds. The back of his mind flipped through his memories of Kiritaka like a revolving lantern. \"No way.\" \"Could anything be more impossible, I wonder?\" \"Oh, Otto, you can be so funny sometimes.\" \"I can understand Mr. Natsuki and Beatrice, but even Lady Emilia?!\" Subaru and Beatrice's conclusion and Emilia's laughter left Otto dumbstruck. During that time, the broadcast continued, and certainly, words from a somehow familiar voice were reaching every part of the city. Of course, Subaru had heard from people over and over just how capable and respected Kiritaka was, but the impression he had from directly meeting the man loomed far larger in his mind. The appraisals and the real thing simply didn't match up. Even this broadcast seemed  \"And this morning, too, I offer this trifling... Nay! I shall grant you all a wonderful blessing! It is time for Ms. Liliana the Songstreeeessss!\" \"Ah, it's totally him.\" The tension snapped midway as Subaru's memories and the broadcast suddenly aligned. In fact, he no, they had interfered in what would have been a historic moment. That was hardly their fault, but Subaru was already pinching Kiritaka's cheeks in his own mind. There was a noise of the broadcast metia being passed around, and then they heard a tiny throat-clearing sound. \"Hi, everyone, it's Lilianaaa. Being treated like a songstress is a burden as heavy as a mountain, but as I truly want to delight you with my singing and music, please support me with your joyous cheers during our brief time together !\" Liliana's voice reverberated so vividly across the city, Subaru could picture exactly what kind of pose she was making. Instantly, expectant looks sprang up all around; in particular, Emilia, Beatrice, Anastasia and company's faces were bright, knowing full well just how wonderful Liliana's singing voice was. It was probably only Subaru who had a somber, clouded expression among all of them. Mysteriously, Kiritaka's voice had sounded a bit odd over the metia, but Liliana's seemed to have no problem coming through. This was probably due to differences in speaking and compatibility with the metia. Or perhaps Liliana's voice truly had been blessed by some goddess of song. Then when they heard Liliana ready her musical instrument, expectations in the hall swelled even more  \"Now, I shall sing. Please listen this is the 'Love Song of the Sword Devil,' the second act.\" \"Wha ?\" The song was beginning as Subaru almost commented aloud on her selection. The broadcast carried the beautiful melody throughout the entire city, seemingly straight to their hearts. Engulfed by the music and the singing voice, Subaru only had ears for the \"Love Song of the Sword Devil.\" Liliana really was a star-crossed songstress but for all her character flaws, she had a truly magnificent singing voice. 4 A conflicted atmosphere coursed through the reception hall as the reverberations of the \"Love Song of the Sword Devil\" lingered within the city. The word incredible was nowhere near sufficient to describe Liliana's song. As a matter of fact, had there been no other issues, Subaru would surely have gone straight to showering Liliana's song in praise and immediately diving into conversation about it. There was only one issue she had selected the \"Love Song of the Sword Devil.\" It was the tale of the Sword Devil, a man enamored with the sword and the one who pursued the Sword Saint. This was nothing short of the heroic tale of Wilhelm in his youth, the tale of how he and his deeply beloved wife came to meet. In other words, thinking back to Subaru's conversation with Wilhelm the night before, this song could not have had worse timing...at least for Wilhelm, who continued to harbor feelings for his wife that had not diminished even one iota. Of course, there were none in the hall unfamiliar with Wilhelm's relationship to the \"Love Song of the Sword Devil.\" Even Emilia's cheeks hardened; even Felt's face was grave. Accordingly, Subaru turned a gaze of concern toward Wilhelm, who was surely feeling considerable heartache  *** The forthright look that had returned to his blue eyes, like a lake without a single ripple disturbing its surface, made Subaru unconsciously draw in his breath. For a single instant, Wilhelm nodded toward Subaru's black eyes. Then he slowly turned to his left, where his young red-haired grandson was seated. \" Reinhard.\" As if to slice the concerns as well as Subaru and the others around them away, Wilhelm carefully spoke that name aloud. Reinhard opened his eyes wide as he looked at Wilhelm. In turn, Wilhelm received Reinhard's gaze head-on. A silence fell between the pair  No, it enveloped the entirety of the reception hall. Expressions of urgency came over everyone as they sensed that a fateful conversation between grandfather and grandson was imminent. Within the room, the only sound was that of the daisukiyaki already frying atop the hot iron plates. And while it was still unclear whether the silence had lasted for an instant or the span of several breaths  \"You see...\" \"Yes, what is it?\" \"...I am not frying this very well. If there is a knack to this, could you teach it to me?\" That was what Wilhelm said with curt, halting words. Just how much courage did Wilhelm summon to spit those words out? Subaru had some idea. Apparently, Crusch and Ferris recognized this as well, being as wide-eyed as he. From the side, Subaru watched complex emotions ripple across Reinhard's face as he listened to his haggard grandfather's words. Reinhard closed his eyes in sorrow, or perhaps some undefinable emotion, then swept it away with a deep breath. From there, he slowly relaxed and said  \" Yes. I understand, Grandfather.\" As the tension palpably drained from his eyes and mouth, there was no longer any doubt that he was smiling. This was not the hero's smile that Reinhard used to set people at ease on a daily basis. This was an expression that only belonged to the young man named Reinhard, not the Sword Saint. Wilhelm was taken aback. Then he slowly lowered his head. He couldn't immediately accept it. However, even if it didn't seem real at first, a connection had surely been made. The long, deep chasm that had opened up between the pair, between grandfather and grandson, might still require as much time to fill as it had taken to dig it. But now that they had bridged that gap once, all there was to do now was fill it with acceptance. Tracing that future in his mind, Subaru, feeling a flood of emotions, tightly clenched a fist. After all  \" Oh, no you don't, Father. Isn't it too convenient to pull that after all this time?\" Suddenly, a red-haired man opened the screen door and peered into the hall. The sheer malice in his words stunned Subaru, who forgot the very passage of time in his shock. 5 The greatest of moments had been ruined in the vilest way possible. The red-haired man's action could be considered a type of evil no, it was cruelty. A faint whiff of alcohol wafted from this flushed man as he stroked the stubble on his cheek. A repulsive smile came over him. His age seemed to be around forty, give or take. The reason these little gestures and askew grooming instilled even greater disgust than necessary was because his outward appearance was fundamentally handsome. It was a striking rejection and sullying of beauty. The deep-rooted sense of malice from the tall man's appearance was making Subaru sick. \"...Who the heck are you?\" \"Aaahhh?\" As all the others in the hall held their tongues, Subaru was the first among them to raise his voice. He moved a hand behind his hip, grasping hold of something as he made a threatening sound, blood rising to his head in indignation. That moment, everyone should have been wishing for reconciliation between the awkward pair. Subaru felt nothing but anger for the man who'd interfered. His friend and the man he admired were making progress on repairing their relationship, until  \"Answer me. Who the hell are you?\" \"...Those're some nasty eyes ya got there, brat. You got any idea who you're picking a fight with, huh, greenhorn knight?\" \"Don't make me laugh. You're the one picking a fight. I'm just taking you up on the offer.\" Subaru stood up then and there, finally approaching his limit. Beside him, Beatrice quietly sat, putting her hand within easy reach of Subaru. His reliable partner approved of the flames of anger welling up in Subaru's heart. Looking down at Subaru, the man had an annoyed look on his face as he raggedly scratched his head. \"What a noisy brat. Hey, Sword Saint, Julius, or hell, even Argyle cut this rude brat down.\" Pointing at Subaru with his scratching hand, the man ordered Reinhard and the others in a casual voice. Subaru could only interpret his arrogant statement as contempt for all three. This time, Subaru seriously made ready to swing his arm and smack the man across the face  \"I must object.\"  but just before he could act, Julius held Subaru's shoulder in check, forcing him to stop. Julius, who had risen at some point, stood directly to Subaru's right while grasping his shoulder. Turning to glance at Subaru, he set his jaw firmly. Then he glared at the red-haired intruder. \"Currently, I, Ferris, and Reinhard are on special duty and relieved from our normal responsibilities. Accordingly, even the vice captain does not possess command authority over us at the moment.\" \"Right, right. Ferri is Lady Crusch's servant both in name and fact right meow. So I cannot obey your command.\" Seizing the opportunity provided by Julius's assertion, Ferris hugged Crusch's arm as he gave his irreverent reply. Crusch was momentarily surprised to find her knight wrapped around her, but she immediately looked at the man with a sober expression. When Subaru looked around, the other people in the room had similar expressions as they drew close, making no attempt to hide their hostility toward the interloper. Of course not. This was the man who had wrecked the reconciliation between grandfather and grandchild that everyone had been watching with bated breath. \"Hey, hey. What a scary lot. Obviously, that was a joke, so don't get all worked up over nothing. Even if I am a vice captain in name only, I'll uphold the rules of the knighthood at least.\" \"In name only...?\" Subaru knit his brows at the word choice of the drunkard with a thin smile on his lips. Hearing Subaru's murmur, the man shot him another gaze of ridicule. \"That's right, in name only. I am none other than Heinkel the Idle, the despised, ornamental vice captain of the royal guard of the Kingdom of Lugunica.\" \"Don't get passive-aggressive with that idle and despised stuff.\" \"Gah-ha-ha! It hurts my ears to hear that. It hurts, it hurts, it hurts so much, I can't stand it...so shut your mouth, damn brat.\" *** The gloom and darkness brimming in those eyes sent a chill running down Subaru's spine. This wasn't the same fear he felt when confronting a powerful being, such as the White Whale or a Witch. No, this was a separate,"}, {"text": "more personal feeling of revulsion. \"Calm down, Subaru. You mustn't get caught up in the vice captain's rhythm.\" As Subaru drew in his breath, Julius addressed him. The words made the man Heinkel shoot Julius a somber smile. \"Ha! That's the Finest of Knights for you. Such refined conduct and careful choice of words. If those actually amounted to real power among knights, you'd have a proper following of your own.\" \"I am honored that you would praise me so, Vice Captain Heinkel... Incidentally, what business brings you here on this occasion? According to memory, the vice captain should have been assigned the duty of garrisoning the Royal Palace in the capital.\" \"Such graceful sarcasm. The castle's security won't be affected due to my absence, especially with the great Captain Marcus taking care of it...and it ain't like there's a royal family to protect now, is there?\" \"Heinkel!\" It was Wilhelm who rose and shouted in anger at Heinkel's statement, which, considering the place, was insolent to the extreme. The Sword Devil had an incredible look on his face as his lips openly trembled. \"Heinkel...\" \"I heard you the first time. I'm not old enough to be hard of hearing yet. Well, just let that slide as the ramblings of a drunk. More importantly...\" When Wilhelm raised his voice, Heinkel shrugged with an innocent look on his face. Then he surveyed the interior of the room with eyes just as blue as Wilhelm's. \"Not inviting me to the celebration for the hunt of the White Whale... What's the big idea? How cold and callous can you be? It's a big job that took over ten years to complete. I had just as much right as anybody to join the celebration and share in the happiness. Ain't that right, Father of mine?\" \"Heinkel, I...\" \"Reinhard! You feel the same way, don't ya?\" *** Adopting a face oozing with malice, Heinkel dug right into Wilhelm's heart. The old man's expression registered pain as if he was being sliced with a blade, but Heinkel cared not. His voice interrupted Wilhelm's protest, directing his malice toward its next destination: Reinhard. Those words made Reinhard, who had maintained his silence to that point, finally meet Heinkel's gaze. \"Thanks to Father, the burden on your shoulders got lighter, didn't it? This is your magnificent grandfather, the man who avenged his wife, my mother, and your grandmother. You didn't even say one word about him doing a good job, did you? After all...\" Breaking off his speech, Heinkel smeared a healthy dose of poison onto his blade of words. Then he spoke again. \"...he's the one who avenged the predecessor you let die, isn't that right?\"  This man's face, more than any other Subaru had ever seen, deserved to be called...repulsive. Heinkel's words, his face, his demeanor, his voice, his gaze every single thing emanating from his entire existence was drenched with nothing but malice. This was a man of pure contempt, a man whose repulsiveness was his reason for being. \"Stop this, Heinkel! You... Even for you, this is...!\" \"Stop trying to pretty it up after all this time, Father. You don't have any right to criticize me. After all, the first one to scold Reinhard for killing his predecessor...was none other than you.\" *** Heinkel's words were like a curse craftily brewed by distilling all the hatred in the world. And the content of those words was a denunciation Subaru could not bear to hear. The guy was spouting nothing but lies. It was wrong. It was false. It was obviously made-up. It simply couldn't be. And yet, neither Reinhard nor Wilhelm... *** Neither of them opened their mouths to deny it. Why? All they had to say was one word: no. If they swept it all away as made-up garbage, Subaru would believe them without any doubt whatsoever. His friend in arms and his respected mentor versus a drunken excuse of a man there was no need to anguish over whom to believe. That was why Subaru desperately wanted the two to speak the one word that would make this all go away. \"Gone quiet 'cause the truth's inconvenient for ya? That's how it's been for fifteen years. Father hasn't changed one bit, either. If he hasn't changed, no way we're patching things up. You think Theresia van Astrea would allow something as simpleminded as that?\" Silence descended upon the hall as Heinkel's curse persisted. The name he invoked was that of Wilhelm's wife and Reinhard's grandmother  \" My dead mother has cursed us, all three generations of Astreas. We're not allowed forgiveness.\" The man called the prior Sword Saint, Theresia...his mother. That made him Reinhard's father and Wilhelm's son. \"Heinkel van Astrea...\" Saying the name aloud, Subaru could feel its weight. He'd grasped who Heinkel really was. There was no mistake; the man before him carried the name of the Astrea family line even though his character was nothing like the Astreas whom Subaru knew. \"Don't add van to it, brat. I never got the sword name. It's Heinkel Astrea.\" Overhearing Subaru's troubled murmur, Heinkel clicked his tongue. In an instant, pain appeared on Heinkel's face. Perhaps this was simply the first time he had allowed it to be seen since he'd arrived. Now pain ran through his eyes, which had held nothing but dark delight when he disparaged his family earlier. Thinking that this did not amount to consolation of any kind, Subaru instantly cut it aside, but  \"So what is it you came for?\" \"Emilia?\" Everyone in the hall who had witnessed Heinkel's various words and actions received a jolt. The first among them to come forward and pose that question was none other than Emilia. The girl stood in front of Subaru, her silver hair billowing down her back as she voiced a soft-spoken anger. Subaru could keenly feel on his skin that her ire was genuine. She always became upset when others were hurt for no good reason. When she watched Reinhard and Wilhelm get hurt, it had roused her anger. \"...Well, well, so this is Lady Emilia. I've heard the rumors. You're apparently some kind of poor little half-demon princess burdened with a battle she can't possibly win.\" \"I'd like to discuss with you what you think of me at a later point, but I am not speaking of it now. I have only one question. Why have you come here?\" His provocative statement was meant to ridicule Emilia, but Heinkel looked taken aback when his effort backfired. Subaru understood why the other camps within the room were shocked by Emilia's bold demeanor. Considering how Emilia had acted the previous day up to this morning, of course they were surprised by the dramatic change. This was why she pretended to be scatterbrained to conceal her true nature...is what some might believe, but that would be a lie. This was simply the kind of person she was. \"Everyone is gathered here because they were invited by Anastasia. But for everyone to be here at once is already coincidence, and I do not think you would simply happen to plan a visit at a time like this. That's doubly true for someone who's a high-ranking member of the Knights of the Royal Guard. What is the meaning of this? Tell me.\" \"Tch, she ain't like the rumors at all...\" \"Answer properly.\" Heinkel clicked his tongue and furiously scratched his head clear signs that Emilia was overwhelming him. Emilia was angry, but in no way did she resort to a show of force. Her formidable presence was thanks to the indomitable spirit she possessed, not the overwhelming store of magical energy she was emanating. \"Wow, you stormed in all full of yourself only to get shut up by one chick glaring at ya, huh? Hey, Pops, that's really uncool of you.\" \"You have a point. If he wanted to entertain himself with amusing conversation, he should have gone to watch the Songstress. The stories there would have been much funnier and more bizarre.\" \"My, is that so? Then this uncouth individual should leave and by all means spend some time together with the oft-rumored Songstress.\" *** Backing Emilia up, Felt, Anastasia, and Crusch all chimed in. Just as Emilia had done, the three other royal-selection candidates lashed at the boorish interloper with the sheer intensity of their commanding presence. Feeling the pressure coming from all four, Heinkel's cheek twitched. It was almost as if...he was unworthy of standing on this stage. Compared with the people who had earned their right to be there, the gap between him and them was yawning indeed. \"Are you satisfied, vice captain? If you have no other business, I believe it would be mutually beneficial for you to depart from this place as soon as possible.\" Julius made that suggestion as he beheld the contrast between the color of Heinkel's face and the rising temperature from the women. In one sense, he was offering Heinkel a lifeboat. The thought crossed Subaru's mind that if possible, Heinkel's spirit should be broken then and there, but he wanted to avoid dragging out this conversation. He didn't want to have Heinkel in the same room as Reinhard and Wilhelm any longer. \"Ughhh...\" \"Vice captain, your decision. If possible, it would be best for all sides to refrain from speaking of this any fur...\" \" That will not be necessary, commoner.\" The voice that called out was uncommonly charming, filled with the arrogance of one who looked down upon all others as a matter of fact. The stunning voice compelled the hearts of anyone within earshot to submit and imposed the speaker's absolute sense of superiority on them, completely overwriting their perceptions of worth and value. Everyone in the hall shifted their eyes toward the closed screen door behind Heinkel. Already, not a single person paid Heinkel any more attention. Perhaps that was because their attention was gathered solely upon the sunlike heat approaching from beyond the threshold. And then  \"It would seem that the riffraff have been assembled. Marvelous. You have prepared a place suitable for my personal attendance. For this, and this alone, I commend you.\" Her cleavage was provocatively exposed. She was clad in a dress as red as blood. Her arms were wrapped around her chest, propping up her substantial breasts and freely baring her lustrous skin while she flashed a sultry smile. Her crimson eyes seemed to set all aflame. Her gaze seemed to make sport of everything. Her enchanting charisma was bewitchment made manifest, ready to enthrall every male in the world and make them her slaves. Beyond a certain point, beauty could become violence. Her very existence was the embodiment of those words. And her name was Priscilla Bariel. With this, the fifth and final candidate for the royal selection had arrived, apparently uninvited, to the feast. 6 \"I must say, however, you certainly are holding this event in a remote place. It was highly inconvenient locating suitable transport to cover such a distance. Well, the sights of the city and the odd structure of this inn do suit my tastes.\" Concealing her lips behind a crimson fan, Priscilla snickered as she surveyed the hall. The people shocked by her sudden appearance could not muster a response to her statement. Seeing this, Priscilla knit her shapely brows in displeasure. \"What is with this poor reaction, when I have bothered to walk here with my own two legs? Is it not proper custom to touch your heads to the floor and greet my arrival with deeply moved tears?\" \"...Where do you get off acting like a big-shot princess? A scene like that would only happen in a dictatorship.\" \"Mmm?\" Subaru had unwittingly interrupted Priscilla's self-centered dictum. Overhearing his murmur, Priscilla inclined her head and gazed squarely at Subaru with her red eyes. \"...Who might you be? This is a room for fools ignorant of their station attempting to compete with me for the throne. Why is a vulgar peasant such as you"}, {"text": "mixed in among them?\" \"Is she serious?\" Subaru dejectedly slumped at the genuine, threatening disdain trained toward him. She gave no sign that this was a joke, nor any hint of sarcasm or ridicule. In other words, it was just what it seemed. Priscilla was completely unaware of Subaru's very existence. The way they had met ought to have left something of an impression, but she'd already forgotten him entirely. \"Hey, Princess. Even for you, isn't that horrible? Maybe he doesn't stand out to a princess like you, but to me, this bro of mine is plenty interesting, okay?\" Then as if to split asunder the terrible, stagnant pall hanging over the hall, a voice casually called out to Priscilla. The voice was fairly muffled and was accompanied by a faint metallic clinking. A lumbering noise came in from the corridor as a one-armed man appeared to stand at Priscilla's side. The man's head was covered in a pitch-black steel helm, with the rest of him clad in crude clothing that had a rustic, bandit chic to it. This was Al, both Priscilla's retainer and a man in the same position as Subaru he had also been summoned from another world. Al, who was naturally traveling with his liege, wearily shrugged in Priscilla's direction. \"Come on, you remember, right? This is the guy who seriously shamed himself in front of a massive crowd when Princess and the others declared their beliefs back at the castle. That's this bro right here. You grabbed your belly and laughed a ton, didn't you?\" \"I have no memory of such a thing. In the first place, would I ever do something as tactless as grasp my belly and laugh? Do not confuse nobility such as mine with that of these country bumpkins. Next time, I shall remove your head from your shoulders, Al.\" \"Well, there you have it, Bro. Sorry, I just can't cut it. You're gonna have to work hard and raise your affinity points up from scratch again.\" \"You had a whole year, so you could've raised your speech ability a little bit more, damn it!\" Al apologized to Subaru as he swiftly gave up on trying to remind his liege of their first meeting. The frivolous way he went \"sowwy, sowwy\" felt like he hadn't changed one bit in the last year, leaving Subaru with little to do but sigh at the steadfast master and servant. \"Being able to change like you is the privilege of the young, Bro. An old guy like me can't do that, no, sir.\" \"Man, I was just about to revise the rankings on my do not turn into adults like these list though some exceptions apply.\" In contrast to Al's flippant tongue, Subaru ended his reply by glancing Heinkel's way. The man, completely abandoned as everyone's attention went elsewhere, shot Priscilla a servile smile. \"You're late, Lady Priscilla. My liver was freezing, wondering if you'd ever show up...\" \"Do not chirp at me, commoner. If I command you to dance, it is your duty as a commoner to dance until I command you to cease or until your demise. Should you misunderstand this and seek to 'correct' me, your death for your conceit shall be neither brief nor painless.\" \"Ghhh...\" Heinkel's face had momentarily brightened at the prospect of turning things around, but Priscilla's sharp tongue-lashing shut him up. But Subaru raised his eyebrows as the pair's conversation made him harbor suspicions. \"Priscilla, is he with you?\" \"...Who granted you permission to address me without title, vulgar peasant? Even though I am as generous as a compassionate mother, it is quite limited in regards to such behavior coming from anyone but a child.\" \"Princess.\" Al called out to Priscilla as she shot a cruel look toward Subaru. The whiff of supplication contained in his voice caused Priscilla to close one eye and let out a sigh. \"I know not why, but my servant has taken a rather odd liking to you. I will refrain from removing even a single layer of skin off your head, so you should thank Al  No, you should revere me. I shall overlook your impertinence this once.\" \"...I'm grateful for your enormous generosity. Now answer my question.\" \"Whether this commoner is with me or not, was it? In that case, you assume correctly. It is precisely that. I summoned him and dispatched him to this place.\" \" !! What for?!\" \"If I must name a reason, then it is because I thought it would be amusing.\" Subaru was aghast. Bringing an uninvited guest who proceeded to ruin a grandfather's opportunity to reconcile with his grandson Priscilla had created this situation for a terrifyingly cruel reason. As Subaru gazed at Priscilla in dazed silence, she explained further. \"Yes. Such awkward and pitiful attempts to smooth over warped family bonds... There is no way I could calmly allow such an unsightly performance to continue. Accordingly, I have altered the script more to my liking. Quite a spectacle, was it not?\" \"Priscillaaa!\" Her actions had been beyond vicious, and the way she casually talked about it sent Subaru flying into a rage. Spectacle. That was what this woman had called it. Inflicting deep wounds upon the hearts of Reinhard and Wilhelm, a few short steps away from going back to being family... She'd called that a spectacle. \"Quit it, Bro. There's nothing gained from us going toe to toe here. Princess's personality being twisted isn't new. Just think of it as bad luck...the stars being out of alignment.\" \"If you get that, rein her in, damn it. Stars, my ass. You've gotta be kidding me.\" As Subaru's blood ran hot, Al halted him with a push of his right hand. Having only one arm, he couldn't draw his sword like that he was making it clear that he had no intention of fighting. Subaru clenched his teeth tight. He realized he was the only one in the room who'd forgotten himself in a fit of anger. Obviously, this went for the royal candidates, but there was no sign of Julius or Ferris being agitated by events, either. Of course not. This was a graceful assembly of the rising stars aiming to be the next generation to carry the burden of the throne not a single person among them wanted allies who might give in to their emotions and hurt others in a fit of rage. \"But isn't that saying you can hurt people emotionally all you want and it's okay...?!\" \"Subaru...\" When Subaru put his nigh-unendurable anger into words, Emilia called out to him with shaking, forlorn eyes. When he noticed the sensation of his sleeve being pulled, Beatrice was there, too, holding Subaru's hand. Accepting the pair's sympathy, Subaru sighed deeply with a bitter face. \"It would seem that the mongrel has ceased its baying. Today, I have come merely to make an appearance. Now that I have seen your tearful faces, I do not have any particular reason to remain.\" \"Well, isn't that fine and dandy...? You're the only one I didn't tell about what I was doing here. Where did you hear of it?\" Anastasia cut into Priscilla's crowing over having raised such a great ruckus. Wariness resided in Anastasia's pale blue-green eyes as a wry smile spread across her lips. \"And here I was sure that I hadn't slipped up and told any child with loose lips...\" \"Drop the pretenses, you sly fox. When something enters the ears of men, it is inevitable that it shall trickle forth like drops of tears. As the numbers increase, so do the openings. You are not the only one who keeps a close eye on the movements of others.\" \"Heh, now that surprises me. I didn't expect that out of Priscilla of all people.\" The sarcasm mixed with admiration made Priscilla spread out her fan as she broke into derisive laughter. \"Were I a fool who sees only what is on the surface, I would be no different from you commoners. As people competing with me for succession rights, surely you are not attempting to disappoint me with a poor performance, yes?\" \"...You truly are a hard one to put a finger on.\" Exasperation was apparent in Anastasia's voice as she sighed at Priscilla's remark. Subaru completely agreed with Anastasia on that point. He'd misjudged Priscilla as someone who didn't see the other candidates as actual rivals and assumed she strictly followed her own path. But judging from her actions on this day, Priscilla had acquired accurate intelligence, prepared countermeasures, and set her plan in motion without any disdain for detail and so she had brought this most horrible of developments about. \"This old man, he's Reinhard's dad, right?\" Then after having ignored the course of the conversation to that point, one voice wedged itself in with complete disregard for the current situation. It was Felt who had raised her voice while stabbing a fork into the daisukiyaki on her plate. While she merrily stuffed her cheeks, her mouth was marred with sauce as she glared at Priscilla. \"You were acting all chummy back at the castle before, so between that and the talk just now, I get it. It's not like I know all about this guy's family situation...but the old man's relationship with you, now that's different.\" \"...Oh? And what opinion would a mere girl from the slums deign to hold about me?\" \"Ain't like this has nothin' to do with me. The Astrea family is Reinhard's to inherit, right? That's my so-called lifeline, and this old man has it in the palm of his hand.\" As Felt elaborated, Reinhard stiffened his cheeks as he sat beside her. One glance at his reaction was enough to convey to Subaru and the others the enormity of this matter. Felt was an orphan with no other backing. She had no other substantial support save that of Reinhard's family. Over the last year, her activities had been centered upon the Astrea domain, allowing her to raise her name as a royal candidate bit by bit. But what would happen if that sure footing collapsed? What if the control of the Astrea family and the real clout within it was actually held by Heinkel? \"Heh, so your puny head finally caught up? That's slow even for you bunch of half-wits.\" Heinkel sneered as Felt finally grasped what he was thinking. \"That's just how it is. The Astrea family inheritance is in my care. I don't have any intention of handing it to Reinhard, and I never did! Not to Mr. High-and-Mighty Sword Saint who's oh so busy for the nation! I wouldn't dream of entrusting it to someone with such a troublesome and annoying job!\" \"Big talk for a lord in name only. You bastard, do you even know what kind of state you left your lands in? You and the folks around you were all doing whatever you damn well pleased.\" When Felt growled as low as she could, Heinkel mocked her, saying, \"Ooh, scary.\" His provocative words and gestures only added to the disgust and disdain already suffusing the room. Having endured far too many malignant slights, Reinhard finally lifted up his head. He was still striving to maintain a neutral expression as he looked not at his father but toward Felt. \"Lady Felt, I...\" \"Reinhard.\" Reinhard was about to say something, but then he stopped. The cause was Felt thrusting her fork toward the tip of his nose. Reinhard's eyes wavered as his liege's action sealed his lips. Then without even a glance Reinhard's way, Felt  \" Shut up and put on your war face.\" Reinhard opened his eyes wide as Felt casually issued a command. But it was the change in him immediately after that shocked everyone else. \" Yes.\" Reinhard nodded solemnly as light returned to his blue eyes. Though his own father had derided him and wrecked his moment of reconciliation with his grandfather, the pain that had clung to him was gone, at least for that"}, {"text": "single brief moment. \"...If it's not one thing, it's another. Stop messin' around.\" Heinkel clicked his tongue as things once again started going awry. However, after shaking his head, a wicked smile immediately returned to his face. \"Say what you want; your sense of danger is spot-on, oh great master of Reinhard. The Astrea family is mine. And I don't support you.\" To ensnare others and hurt them with cruel speech with no objectives save these, Heinkel swung his words like a blade. \"No one needs me to spell out just who I support, I'm sure. You've worked so hard over the last year. The results are marvelous. And now I'm going to take everything you've built up and hand it to Lady Priscilla as a present...\" \"Commoner.\" \"Aah? Yes, Lady Priscilla? I'm in the middle of an important conversation here.\" \"Silence.\" The tyrannical act that immediately followed made everyone gasp. With no more warning than that one word, Priscilla flashed her fan out toward the wide-eyed Heinkel's skull. The folded fan sliced through the air, inverting his body with incredible force and slamming him onto the floor. The impact made Heinkel's eyes roll, rendering him unconscious in a single blow. But Priscilla's chastisement did not end there. She kicked up the fallen Heinkel with the tip of her shoe, then drew back her hand while he was airborne. And then she began to swing  \"Princess, your tantrum's gone far enough. He'll die.\" Priscilla glared at Al with her red eyes as he grasped her wrist and called for her to stop. But Al's action was the right one. Heinkel would have died if he hadn't stepped in. After all, at some point, a beautiful crimson sword had found its way into Priscilla's hand. The gleaming blade featured an undulating pattern to it. One could tell from a single glance that it was no normal weapon. It had appeared in Priscilla's hand in the blink of an eye and vanished just as quickly. Seeing this, Al slowly released Priscilla's hand. \"Sheesh, gimme a break here. You even drew the Sun Blade. It's bad for my heart... Bnnnfh!!\" \"You are most rude, Al. Whose permission did you obtain to touch my jewellike flesh? It is your business how you deal with your dearth of womanly attention and seething desire, but do not even dream of sullying me in the process.\" Slamming her freed hand into Al's gut, Priscilla made her retainer groan in anguish. She let out a snort, gazing down upon Heinkel with cold eyes as he lay there pathetically on the floor. The uncaring cruelty in those crimson eyes was frightening indeed. \"Though it is not my wont to grant mercy to those committing gross acts of impropriety...Al's words do have some merit.\" \"If you think that, I'd kinda prefer if you treated me a little more gently.\" \"Do not say that. I am not a demon. Later, I shall grant you the reward of being permitted to lick my foot.\" \"Can you stop talking like that'd actually make me happy?! You'll cause all kinds of misunderstandings!\" Priscilla paid no attention to Al as he pleaded on bended knee. Instead, she clapped her hands together. \"Schult, carry that commoner out of here. It would be a waste to discard him just yet. Attend to his wounds.\" \"Right away, Lady Priscilla!\" Appearing the moment she issued the summons was a pink-haired boy who'd apparently been waiting in the corridor. Subaru had seen this person at Priscilla's mansion once previously; he was a boy with adorably curly, fluffy-looking hair. The young, still growing butler raced over to Heinkel with tiny steps. \"Pardon my rudeness, Lord Heinkel.\" With those polite words, he grabbed hold of both of Heinkel's legs and dragged him into the corridor. The method of transportation caused Heinkel some bumps here and there, but Schult faithfully performed his job without a single word of complaint. Seeing the youth's professionalism on display, Al prodded the eye slits of his helm as he made a passing comment. \"Our lovely boy Schult is always so lively, isn't he? You really need to praise him more, Princess.\" \"It is only natural that I should be served with all of one's spirit. That is what I love about Schult. I shall properly reward him. Schult, too, shall be allowed to lick my foot.\" \"That image is waaaay too indecent. Give him a different reward, I'm begging you.\" \"Hmm. Then the honor of sleeping while snuggled up and embracing me, perhaps?\" \"...Well, that much is fine, I suppose. I almost wanna trade places with him now.\" At the conclusion of that carefree exchange between master and servant, Priscilla returned her gaze to the hall once more. Among the people in the room, she turned her eyes toward Felt and the grave face she wore. Come to think of it, those two had glared at each other like this back at the castle, too. Perhaps their compatibility was horrible by nature. \"So was the old man serious just now? He's gonna drive me out and take back his place as lord?\" \"If it was so, what would you do about it? Cry into your pillow and politely back down?\" \"Ha! Don't make me laugh. No matter what anyone says, that's the last thing anyone'll catch me doing. If there's no inheritance and I get driven out of the Astrea domain, it makes things reaaal simple, doesn't it?\" As she spoke, Felt's face contorted into a ferocious smile as she gestured at Reinhard. \"He'll just make that old fart hand over the inheritance. He's pretty laid-back, but he's a hell of a lot more reliable than that jerk. That bastard'll be retiring in no time.\" *** Regardless of whether it was realistic or not, it was a remarkably satisfying declaration. Felt's proclamation made Priscilla narrow her eyes. Then Priscilla covered her lips with her fan once more. \"There is no need to take that commoner's words at face value. Even if rights to the domain were changed on paper, the trust of the populace would remain yours. The masses may be made up of ignorant fools, but their very foolishness means they are slow to forget a grudge. As the only value of the talentless rabble is to callously employ them as pawns, this renders them unusable.\" \"...Then why'd you bring that old man with you?\" \"I have already told you. I brought him for nothing more than my own amusement. In that sense, he has already proved his worth.\" With absolute faith in her own standards, Priscilla spoke without hesitation as she surveyed the room. She was set in her ways. Surrender and serve or confront her with an iron will; there were no other options. *** And the four candidates who stood in opposition to her did not hesitate to assert their own will. Receiving their gazes, Priscilla nodded with profound satisfaction. \"Very good. My victory is inevitable. Therefore, I desire that the path be as turbulent and entertaining as possible. Fan my flames, you who oppose me those are the supporting roles you are all meant to play.\" That was Priscilla's bold pronouncement to her four rivals one year after the royal selection had begun. This was her judgment of the changes that had taken place over that year. This was the conclusion drawn by the crimson eyes of Priscilla Bariel, who had unshakable faith in the belief that the entire world moved for her own convenience. \"I'll make you regret that pride.\" Felt's abrupt declaration of war reflected the views of everyone present. 7  Even when things settled down, it was impossible to restore the hall's atmosphere to what it had been before. After Felt addressed her, Priscilla exited the reception hall with Al in tow and a satisfied look on her face. Coming from Priscilla, that amounted to delight at having achieved her goal. Considering the damage she had inflicted upon Subaru and the others, her actions were selfish to the extreme. In the end, the respective camps that had gathered for a meal rose up, dispersing without a single attempt to resume their pleasant chat and without Reinhard and Wilhelm reaching a peaceful reconciliation. \"We are truly fortunate that Garfiel was not there.\" Those were Otto's parting words as he left for the Muse Company on his own. He certainly had a point. If Garfiel and other hotheads had been present, carnage might well have been unavoidable. Thanks to that, Heinkel had escaped with his life. Of course, had he lost his life in the ensuing clash, the reputation of his killer and their master would have fallen to the level of dirt. \"Don't tell me she made a mess of the place aiming for that... I'm overthinking this, right?\" The frightening mental image of Priscilla's blazing eyes seeing through every possibility arose in his mind. He felt that if he denied it, passing everything off as nothing but coincidence, it was tantamount to accepting that her success was thanks to her good fortune. \"Cool it, you clown... In the end, I'm the only one who blew his lid.\" Looking back at the events that had unfolded in the hall, Subaru truly thought his lack of self-control was pathetic. Even Felt had acted in a logical manner; Subaru had been the most emotional person in the room. He must have been a source of great anxiety for Emilia and Beatrice, too. In an attempt to dispel his agitation, Subaru was walking around the inn, striving for mental calm before going on the scheduled stroll with Emilia and company. The creaks of the wooden floor seemed to reflect the creaks he felt in his own heart. Finding them exceptionally irritating, Subaru marched with heavy steps as if it would help him understand. \"Do not take your frustrations out on the floor. It will cause problems for the inn workers.\" Subaru had been staring intently at the floor when a voice called out to him. Looking around, he spotted Julius watching him from the garden. Subaru had arrived at the edge of the garden at some point without even realizing it. The man looked oddly picturesque as he touched a hand to his slightly unruly purple hair, which was being caressed by a refreshing breeze. \"You are not together with Lady Emilia and Lady Beatrice?\" \"Well, you can see that. Neither of them is a child, and they're both at an age where they want some private time. Even I have enough delicacy to respect that. Besides, we're going on a date later.\" \"There are several terms I have not heard before, but I believe I understand. It would seem even you can learn how to be considerate.\" \"Ghhh, why you...!\" Though Subaru had been quick to pick a fight, it was Julius who had landed the first substantial blow, causing Subaru to lose his cool. But his irritation instantly dissipated when he saw Julius's expression. Julius's eyelashes were quivering, somehow seeming like he was biting back remorse. \"I am sorry. If you really did lack empathy and thoughtfulness, you wouldn't have been so distressed talking to the vice captain earlier if anything, I should be thanking you.\" \"All I did was lose my temper like an idiot while everyone else thought things through and kept their cool.\" \"That is not so. It was only because of your display of anger that those around you were able to maintain their calm, nothing more. I am no exception. Your rashness served a valuable purpose.\" \"You're not really trying to praise me, though, are you?\" Subaru grimaced at the words lavished upon him. \"I get it. I need to be calmer and remember to keep my cool. That's how a knight should act, isn't it? I'm aware that I don't think far ahead enough. After all, I had it marked on every report card I got in elementary school.\" \"...Certainly, if it is chivalrous conduct one seeks, your actions"}, {"text": "cannot be praised. However.\" Julius abruptly broke off his words. When Subaru realized what he was doing, his eyes shot open in surprise. \"Uh, what are you doing?\" \"Precisely what it looks like.\" \"Well, from my end, it looks like you're bowing to me.\" Julius had gone down on one knee, solemnly lowering his head. This was not a knightly salute, nor a custom among nobles. He was simply acting as an individual person. \"You have my gratitude. I wanted to thank you for your righteous indignation in that setting.\" \"...I don't know what you mean.\" \"If one is devoted to chivalry, one must strive to behave in a knightly fashion regardless of the circumstance... One can never act out of emotion, even if his friend is being disparaged or humiliated. But you were not bound by such things.\" His head still bowed, Julius added more words of thanks for Subaru's recklessness. The unexpected response made Subaru blink several times over. However, finally  \"So you're basically thanking me for getting angry in your place man, are you stupid or what?\" When the still-irritated Subaru vented, his words caused Julius to lift his head. Receiving the brunt of Subaru's anger, he let his lips curl into a self-deprecating smile. \"Stupid, you say.\" \"Stupid and a bad joke. Why do I have to be angry instead of you? I'm pissed at myself for the fact that I got angry. It's not like I tried to smack that bearded face for anyone else but myself.\" Subaru was genuinely exasperated with Julius, thinking he had gotten it all wrong. His temper tantrum was nothing as noble as the righteous indignation Julius made it out to be. Subaru knew practically nothing of the issues surrounding the Astrea family. That's why he'd selfishly gotten upset over his own selfish assumptions, nothing more. \"If you didn't like it, you should've gotten angry, too. Because it was just me, he blew me off, but if you had joined in, that dad of Reinhard's would've run with his tail between his legs.\" \"Figurehead or not, he is the vice captain of the Knights of the Royal Guard. It would be reprehensible to act with such rudeness toward a direct superior.\" \"You're not directly under him at the moment, and just now, you called him a figurehead, didn't you? How inflexible can you be, man? The whole time you were dedicating yourself to chivalry, were you also putting armor around your heart, too?\" Pressing Julius into silence, Subaru folded his arms and lifted his face toward the heavens with a snort. It was an infantile argument. Even though he was being thanked, Subaru was lashing out at Julius simply because he didn't care for it. \"Armor over the heart, you say...? Hmph, that remark cuts quite deep.\" \"For me, it sounds like a pretty cool thing to say, but don't think too hard on it. Just the words of a fool.\" \"No, I shall take them to heart. It was pleasant to think I had been saved by you, a thought I would never have even imagined a year prior.\" \"Just so you know, I still have nightmares about that once in a while.\" \"Hmm... Were it possible, I would like to avoid a situation where we reunite in your dreams on a nightly basis.\" \"I'd also far prefer to do this and that with Emilia-tan instead! There's no room for you in my dreams!\" With the appreciative atmosphere from before gone, Julius returned to his normal tone of voice as he ran a hand through his hair. Disgusted with himself for being relieved by the change in attitude, Subaru forcibly switched topics. \"About Beard-face back there... Seriously, the vice captain is Reinhard's dad?\" \"I suppose it isn't surprising that you would have doubts, but it is true. That individual is indeed Heinkel Astrea, vice captain of the Knights of the Royal Guard of Lugunica.\" \"What's the reason for that? Is human resources blind, or did no one even question whether he'd be a problem?\" \"The answers are all in what you overheard. Of course, there is no lack of dissenters who doubt the vice captain's worth, both from the leadership and from within the royal guard itself. As a matter of fact, the position of vice captain was assigned for decorative purposes. Surely, there are none who have witnessed him actually engaged in his duties.\" When Julius shook his head and replied, Subaru conjured the mental image of some high-ranking bureaucrat stepping down to take a cushy job in private industry. That seemed a fitting description for Heinkel's situation an important, high-paying job that required little actual work. \"Don't tell me he used his influence as the dad of the Sword Saint to land that position?\" \"...That is also part of it. But the greatest reason lies not with the vice captain but with Reinhard...or perhaps it is more accurate to say the Astrea family.\" \"The Astrea family... Does that include Wilhelm too?\" \"Well, that man is Master Wilhelm's son and the current head of the Astrea family. He is also Reinhard's own father. What would happen to the kingdom if such an individual rebelled due to discourteous treatment?\" As he rattled off another explanation, Julius strove to keep his replies as emotionless as possible. Listening to his words, Subaru sank into thought for several seconds. Then he immediately arrived at the answer. The reason that man, Heinkel Astrea, was treated so favorably by the kingdom was  \" If Heinkel revolts, that'd mean the family of the Sword Saint becoming an enemy of the kingdom. So he's being treated like a big shot to maintain good relations...? In other words, the kingdom doesn't trust Reinhard, or Wilhelm for that matter?!\" If that was the case, Subaru could only think of such treatment as a grave insult toward Reinhard and Wilhelm both. Considering the pair's personalities, how could anyone think they might betray the kingdom? \"Your anger is justified. However, those in charge of the kingdom must consider all possibilities.\" \"As if that's even possible!! There's no way something like that could even...!\" \"...Master Wilhelm is the former captain of the Knights of the Royal Guard.\" When Julius took a step forward and spoke those words, Subaru's breath caught, his body coming to a halt. \"Fifteen years ago, someone abducted a member of the royal family from the Royal Palace. At the time, Master Wilhelm was in charge of the search for the abducted royal as captain of the Knights of the Royal Guard.\" \"So? Even I've heard about that kidnapping.\" A kidnapped royal would that mean Felt? That incident was supposedly the whole justification behind her taking part in the royal selection. Why was Julius digging up that surreal story? \"I also know that the abducted kid was never found. But what of it? Does that mean Wilhelm has some sort of grudge against the kingdom because he had to take responsibility and quit the knighthood?\" \"That is not so however, the 'Grand Expedition,' the effort to bring down the White Whale that included the prior Sword Saint, took place during the time Master Wilhelm was absent from the capital to conduct the search.\" The words Julius spoke made Subaru's mind go blank once more. Sliding into that blank space were words he recalled hearing from Wilhelm at some time or other. Wilhelm had said he had been unable to be with his wife at the time of her death. \"Because of the incident, he couldn't be there when his wife died, so he holds a grudge against the person responsible?\" \"I do not know Master Wilhelm's true intentions. However, the facts remain that the search was aborted, the Grand Expedition itself ended in failure, and Master Wilhelm resigned from the Knights of the Royal Guard. The guard surely would not have recovered if it were not for Captain Marcus exhausting every effort to do so.\" \"Like I care about what happened after! I'm talking about Wilhelm here. What do you think? Does he still hold a grudge about his wife, and...?\" Did Julius suspect that Wilhelm might rebel against the kingdom? Did he think that this person, Wilhelm van Astrea, was that kind of human being? How could someone look at him and think that about a man so forthright about his love that he'd offered up everything for it? Couldn't you tell from looking at his eyes, his back? And why were the people Subaru liked exposed to such undeserved prejudice? \"Why can't everyone understand he's not that kind of person...?\" Demanding to know why in a choked voice, Subaru glared at Julius. Accepting his withering gaze head-on, Julius's eyes somehow seemed envious as he looked back at Subaru. Subaru knew. He was well aware his anger was misplaced and aimed at the wrong target. In the end, Julius had just objectively recited the tale. In no way did Julius himself doubt Wilhelm, nor was he one of the people who doubted Wilhelm. After all, Julius had thanked Wilhelm after the battle with the White Whale one year prior. He'd praised Wilhelm for pursuing his greatest wish for fourteen long years. \"...Sorry. I'm an idiot.\" \"No, you are not in the wrong. What you say is correct. It is I who is in the wrong and so I shall remain, without a chance to rectify my mistake.\" Lowering their gazes, both of them closed their eyes as they wrestled with such unbearable thoughts. The seeds of distrust about Wilhelm's true intentions still remained. They weren't the sort of thing that could be immediately solved with words and actions. \"...Does this go for Reinhard, too?\" \"The situation is different in his case at one time, Reinhard did whatever Master Heinkel told him to. It was not a period that could be dismissed simply by saying, well, they were father and son.\" Averting his gaze from Subaru, Julius seemed regretful as he spoke. But without touching upon any of the details, Julius took a deep breath and continued his explanation. \"When Reinhard became independent, such behavior came to an end. However, enough happened that a concern remains within the kingdom. Namely, could such a thing not come to pass once more?\" \"...So to make sure Heinkel doesn't give Reinhard insane orders, the kingdom's trying its damnedest to keep Heinkel in a good mood?\" \"Perhaps it is something far worse. In the end, this is nothing more than rumor, but I shall convey it to you nonetheless to you, who expressed indignation in that situation as Reinhard's friend.\" With that worrying preamble, Julius quickly scanned their surroundings. Having confirmed no one might overhear, he turned back toward Subaru. And then  \"The vice captain is suspected of involvement with the royal-abduction incident fifteen years ago.\" *** \"There is no conclusive proof. But the fact remains that I have heard suspicions surrounding a number of circumstances.\" \"Is that even possible? I mean, for him to be involved in the kidnapping.\" \"Whether it is true or false matters little. An individual who is suspected of such things could potentially command the kingdom's greatest warrior any way he wishes. This is seen as problematic.\" Possessing the title of Sword Saint was a spectacular honor however, the revelation of this situation made Subaru feel as if it was not so much an honor as a curse. \"I mean, if that's true, then it'd be Heinkel's fault Wilhelm wasn't able to be there when his wife died.\" \"...That is not the half of it. I have heard that at the time, it was Lord Heinkel who recommended that Lady Theresia, who had already laid down her sword and retired from active duty, participate in the Grand Expedition.\" \"He threw his own mom onto the front lines against that demon beast?!\" \"We have records remaining from that time. The vice captain refused to join the Grand Expedition, nominating Lady Theresia to join the battle in his stead.\" As Subaru learned more about this incident, he couldn't"}, {"text": "help but be stunned. Heinkel had sent his own mother to take his place on the field of battle. There, his mother had been killed in action. To protect himself against his father, who was unable to be with her upon her death, from wielding his blades in vengeance, Heinkel used his son's talent as a shield, spending his own peaceful days in depraved indolence. It couldn't be. A human being actually capable of such a thing couldn't really exist. It wasn't because Subaru wanted to affirm Heinkel's humanity. He couldn't accept the theoretical possibility that a human who was able to live so shamelessly could even exist. \"...I am sorry. I should not have spoken of such things when you were not emotionally prepared for them.\" Julius apologized in a morose voice when he noticed how Subaru was shocked and speechless. Subaru had only been listening, and he could barely control himself. There was no way that Julius could possibly keep his composure when he had to be the one conveying it all. For someone like Julius, who constantly strove to be rational and logical, this behavior was particularly strange. \"...It's not like this is your fault. I'm the one who made you say it.\" \"It is not an attitude worthy of praise. To look at someone else's family and speak with a mixture of rumor and prejudice is extremely insensitive; they are actions that a knight should be ashamed of.\" \"But you made sure to see it through, right? Because you're Reinhard's friend.\" When Julius berated himself, Subaru shook his head side to side. \"I don't know how long you've been his friend, but I get that you're worried about him. That's why it's natural to be ticked off. I don't think there's one thing strange about that. I don't think it's right to politely back off just 'cause it's another family's private business, either.\" For anyone who knew Julius, suspecting him of being an inconsiderate busybody was the height of foolishness. Subaru Natsuki knew what exactly kind of person Julius Juukulius was. What was there to gain from suspecting friendship? \"I've told you before, right? There's no need to obsess with being a well-mannered knight all the time. Right, maybe you should strip off that armor and try being Juli for a while. Maybe being more flexible like that would help you do a whole bunch of things better.\" Juli was the false name Julius had employed when cooperating with hunting down the Witch Cult. Given his position, Julius couldn't be seen joining a band of mercenaries, so he had offered the false name in a desperate attempt to hide his elegance behind his back. In the end, it was a name so useless that even Julius himself forgot to use it, but at the time, Julius had allowed himself to diverge the strict rules of knighthood. \"Juli, you say? That is quite a nostalgic name you have pulled out.\" \"It's the sort of one-and-done plot twist you forget in an instant. I'm proud of myself just for remembering it.\" \"...But when you say not to be bound by chivalry, you suggest a very difficult thing. It is not as if you are unaware of what they call me.\" \"That whole 'finest knight' thing is why you're always so stiff, right? When you get in the bath and take all that armor off, make sure you do some extra stretching before you put it back on again.\" On the spot, Subaru proudly bent his hips and touched his palms to the ground. He meant to show off how limber he had become over the past year. \"If you intended to best me with that little display, I can only sigh at your incredibly lacking powers of observation.\" \"Whoaaa?!\" After a quick remark, Julius opened his legs wide, one in front and one in back as he assumed an extreme pose in front of the triumphant Subaru. Subaru gaped at how far Julius's long legs could stretch. Without moving anything else, he brought his hips to the ground with ease. The detestable man easily surpassed Subaru in every possible area. \"W-well, I'm still really good at singing and playing the lyulyre!\" \"I truly cannot see the significance of winning such a contest, but I am somewhat familiar with musical performance.\" \"Gah! There it is! Even I know that when a guy like you acts humble, it means he's super good at it! Ain't no way I'm joining a band with you! You'll steal the vocalist spot from me in no time!\" \" I see.\" As Subaru continued airing out his grievances, Julius returned his stretching legs to their proper positions and stood up. When Julius let out a short sigh, Subaru knit his brow; faced with that stare, Julius swept his own hair back, a triumphant smile coming over him as he gazed up at the sky. \"So when Juli looks up at the sky, standing in the bracing wind, this is what it feels like.\" \"Wha ?\" \"Now that I think about it, the sky always looked different back then. I feel like I am only just recalling that.\" \"I don't get you. You really are one smug bastard.\" Intentionally ignoring the atmosphere that had been building, Subaru sat down on the raised floor running along the garden's edge. Only flashing a troubled smile in reply to Subaru's insult, Julius half closed his eyes, seemingly dazzled by the rays of the sun. A new mood had swept away the dregs of their awkward conversation. Of course, that didn't wipe away Subaru's memory of what they'd discussed, and the stiffness remaining in his heart would not relent. Even so, he could be cooperative enough to not let it drag them both down.  If anyone had been watching from a distance, they would have seen nothing but a normal pair of friends. CHAPTER 5 *** 1 When Subaru's conversation with Julius, part momentous and part silly, had run its course, Subaru departed from the Water Raiment with Emilia and Beatrice in tow. \"Hey, Subaru. You seemed to be getting along really nicely with Julius in the garden. What did you talk about?\" \"I wouldn't say we really got along or anything, but what do you think we talked about?\" \"Where to go to play next time or something?\" \"What are we, school buddies?!\" Unfortunately, their relationship was not nearly as friendly as Emilia imagined, and even if Subaru and Julius did attend the same school, the natural energies inside a school would keep them from ever being friends. In one sense, a school was as much an exclusivist, discriminatory society as any system of nobility. \"Thinking of it that way, bridging social classes is a really tough thing to do in either case.\" \"There's no need to keep it that secret. You can just come out and tell me.\" \"Hey, we really were just scouting out the enemy a bit. The rest was just some chitchat about the world around us.\" \"Isn't that something friends do?\" When Emilia curiously tilted her head, Subaru tilted his, too. \"Who knows?\" he said. Viewed objectively, it did seem to resemble friendship, but there was no way Subaru and Julius shared that. They were something worse than friends, but Subaru couldn't put his finger on what exactly. \"Well, we're not friends. That much I'm sure of.\" \"So stubborn...\" \"He really is, I suppose.\" Emilia looked exasperated while Beatrice simply sighed and agreed with her. For some reason, the two were so in sync that it made Subaru feel like he was being left out somehow. In any case, setting aside whether he was friends with Julius or not, he had no intention of telling Emilia about the details of what they'd discussed namely, the problems of the Astrea family. He didn't want to thoughtlessly divulge someone else's private family circumstances, but the biggest reason was the burden that knowing such information would inevitably create. The deep-rooted problems of the Astrea family were not the sort that outsiders could approach half-heartedly. Julius had been keenly aware of this when he revealed the details to Subaru alone. Julius had judged him as someone with enough consideration not to burden his own liege with such knowledge. The fact that Julius had thought that much of him had left a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach, though. \"So, Subaru. I'm happy you invited me on a stroll, but what are you up to?\" Then as Subaru wrestled with an unsettling feeling that he struggled to identify, Emilia smiled and asked him. For a moment, Subaru raised an eyebrow in surprise, but he immediately shrugged to try and gloss that over. \"Hey, that makes it sound like I'm plotting something. I'm not up to anything. I just wanted to have a lovey-dovey time in this crazy-beautiful city of water.\" \"Hmm, so that's what you're going with? Subaru, honestly, you're so stubborn and hardheaded. Even I won't fall for your sweet talk in a situation like this.\" When Emilia pouted, Subaru put a hand to his forehead with a resigned look on his face. When he glanced at Beatrice for aid, who was in between Subaru and Emilia and holding one hand of each, she pretended not to notice it seemed she had no intention of taking his side. Meanwhile, Emilia's gaze was relentless. Subaru promptly crumbled. \"I get it; I'm raising the white flag. I wanted it to be a surprise for you, Emilia-tan.\" \"A surprise... You mean, you were planning to startle me with something kooky?\" \"No one says kooky anymo... Hey, I'm sorry, sorry!\" When Emilia puffed her cheeks up in anger at Subaru reacting like he always did, this time, he surrendered for good. Afraid of what might follow otherwise, Subaru suppressed his feelings of disappointment and put everything on the table. \"It's really not anything I'd call a scheme, though. Right now, we're heading for a park in the middle of the city, the one where Liliana performed yesterday.\" \"Wow, really? Then maybe Liliana will sing there today, too?\" \"Your eyes are so cute when they sparkle like that. Well, I'm interested in Liliana's songs, too, but I also want to do some scouting and give Otto some fire support.\" Subaru had no idea just how much trouble he'd caused for Otto, off on his own for solo negotiations with Kiritaka, who Subaru had angered with his botched plan from the day before. It was absolutely not that he lacked faith in Otto's negotiating skills. \"Of course, I have just as much faith that he never gets lucky except at the very last moment.\" \"That does not mean you need to do something as ominous as rely on Liliana again... Well, things with Puckie are riding on this, so I understand why you want to take your chances, I suppose.\" Even Beatrice, torn between the previous day's failure and her partiality for Liliana, did not object to something that would ostensibly help Puck. However, that opinion brought a stern look over Emilia's face. \"But it sounds like you're using Liliana, and that's just...\" \"I know. I thought Emilia-tan would feel that way, too. I really don't like saying this, but...\" \"Yes?\" \"I guess I should say it anyway... Emilia, now and in the future during this royal selection, we can't afford to not be calculating or to ignore the pros and cons of choices and people. Of course, I want you to be able to stay true to yourself.\" *** As Emilia worried about various implications, Subaru tried to dispel her concerns. There was no mistaking that Emilia's honesty, sincerity, and the way she always believed in the good of others were some of her strongest virtues. However, Subaru felt that a virtue founded on ignorance was a weakness all the same. If that virtue was truly a part of who she was as a person, then eliminating ignorance would pose no danger to her way"}, {"text": "of being Subaru wanted Emilia to learn and become stronger without losing sight of herself. That had been Subaru's wish when he vowed to remain at her side ever after. \"Well, even ignoring all the benefits and stuff, you did make a promise to chat with Liliana. You get along really well with her, Emilia-tan, so it's not like you're doing anything bad.\" As Emilia continued to mull over it, Subaru relaxed his tone a little and tried to introduce some levity. Emilia lowered her eyes, which were rimmed with long lashes, and sighed slightly. \"Mm, I understand. I'll try to keep what you said in mind, too. Thank you for always being here, Subaru.\" Emilia nodded with an earnest look on her face. \"You got it,\" replied Subaru. He'd conveyed everything he wanted. The determination he saw in her and her response was enough. At the same time, he felt a small pang of regret over sticking his nose into something that clearly wasn't his business. \"Ahhh, maybe I said something pretty weird. Know what? Let's forget meeting up with Liliana and go on a date instead. I think doing some water-dragon cruising would be pretty romantic.\" \"I'm not sure what you mean by cruising, but you'll get seasick if you get on a dragon boat, won't you, Subaru? I don't really want to walk around the city carrying you on my back.\" \"Besides, the park is already right in front of our noses. Would it not be a waste to turn back now, I wonder?\" Though Subaru was on the verge of giving up, Emilia and Beatrice opted to stick it out to the end. The public park had indeed come into view; this time, Subaru had fortunately arrived at his destination without getting lost. Water gushed up from the fountain, turning into a spray of water that glimmered in the sunlight as an ephemeral scene unfolded before them. This day, a great throng had assembled near that water fountain rather than the commemorative statue. \"Feels like these recitals hold their popularity day after day, but...\" The fervent audience's energy suffused the air in the park, but it was strikingly different compared to what it had felt like the day before. The main cause was probably the hands clapping in time with the music and singing. \"Wow, it looks really lively.\" \"So it would seem. Unlike yesterday, this all sounds rather rowdy, I suppose.\" While Emilia was delighted, Beatrice cocked her head dubiously, sharing some of Subaru's doubts. Liliana's song choices for her performances often contrasted greatly with how she normally behaved. The metia broadcast from that morning was no exception. With song and sound, she lured the audience into another world, giving a bewitching performance that charmed all five senses. However, the song they were currently listening to seemed ever so slightly different from usual. It had the unsettling feeling of some foreign entity adding an impurity to the mix. *** As if trying to determine what that dissonant element was, Subaru had unconsciously joined one edge of the audience. Male or female, young or old, there was a vortex of passion surrounding everyone enchanted by the Songstress's song. Wedging themselves into their ranks, Subaru led Emilia and Beatrice by their hands as he plunged deeper and deeper. Then the instant he emerged onto the front row, his face contorted amid thunderous applause. The beautiful timbre of the lyulyre's final twang signaled that the song had reached its end and that it was time to bid the intoxicating music farewell. Then the Songstress who had just put on a stunning performance turned around to reveal a smiling, satisfied face. \"Such wonderful dancing! Seeing footwork like that almost made my eyeballs fly out!\" \"And your performance was quite entertaining. You have done well. It has been some time since a performer of the arts has amused me so.\" A woman in red smiled charmingly as she exchanged a firm handshake with Liliana the Songstress. Watching this unfold, Subaru let out a long breath as one phrase rose in the back of his mind.  Danger: do not mix. 2 \"I was so moved.\" \"What an amazing dance.\" \"I wanna see that again!\" Commenting as if they were being filmed for a TV commercial, the audience members waved to the Songstress-dancer duo and dispersed. They were every bit as touched as the crowd from the day before. Hearing their praise made Liliana flare her nostrils in a satisfied and very un-Songstress-like manner. Unexpectedly, Priscilla's lips were curled up, showing she was in an exceptionally good mood as she fanned herself beside Liliana. \"And here I was thinking Priscilla wasn't the type to care what others thought...\" \"My, oh my, oh my?! Is that Master Subaru and Lady Emilia over there, and Lady Moppet as well?!\" Right as she said her good-byes to the last of the audience, Liliana noticed the remaining three people left in the park and made her pigtails bounce. How she managed that was totally beyond him. As Liliana raced over, practically flying through the air, her words made Beatrice narrow her brows. \"I believe I heard Lady Moppet. Exactly what might she mean by this, I wonder? Subaru, explain.\" \"Go ask her; she's the one who said it. Here, have a sugar plum and behave.\" \"Do you think you can...lick, lick...distract me with this, I wonder? Lick, lick...\" As Beatrice rolled the candy around in her mouth, Subaru left her behind. He turned toward the pigtailed Liliana darting about in front of him and grabbed her hair with both hands. \"Gah!\" shouted Liliana. But it did stop her from moving. \"Yesterday got all crazy, meaning we couldn't keep our promise, so it's good you were here today, too. Actually, don't tell me... Does Kiritaka show you out the door during work every day?\" \"Why would you put it like that?!! It is nothing of the sort. Certainly, Mr. Kiritaka devotes his heart and mind to his job whenever there's work to be done, but he always tells me that he wants me to be happy doing whatever I like outside!!\" \"So you do get thrown out a lot.\" Kiritaka had his own unique issues, but this was his way of keeping things in order. It made sense if Liliana was at his workplace, there was no way anyone could hold a proper conversation. And if she had to spend her day somewhere, then holding recitals was a fine use of her time, but  \" Since earlier, you have been staring intently at me, have you not? 'Tis most rude.\" Liliana puffed out her nonexistent breasts, which was a lot like stroking a nonexistent beard. Beside her, Priscilla crossed her arms to proudly display her ample bosom, snorting toward Subaru with visible scorn. \"Though it is only natural to be enthralled at the sight of my dance, it is unbearable to have such an obscene gaze turned toward me. Even if my charm does make others lose their way, the likes of you are only permitted to appreciate it from a distance.\" \"Just so you know, I didn't watch you dance, and I don't have any fetishes like that. I prefer pure and lovely girls like Emilia-tan. Girls as over-the-top as you actually make me less excited.\" \"What a pitiful man to pick that thin half-demon over me. However, I am not so narrow-minded as to disallow bad taste. If you know not what true beauty is, it cannot be forced upon you. But someday, I shall pry open that narrow-minded world with my own two hands.\" Their values clashed, but Priscilla's philosophy robbed Subaru of all willpower to shoot a response back. Priscilla considered it a matter of fact that she was the center of the universe; Subaru's idea of common sense held no meaning whatsoever. \"But that means Priscilla was dancing, right? I really didn't expect that.\" \"You should curse your fate for allowing you to miss it. I do not dance, save when the mood strikes me. And that is rarely the case. This artist's song was simply that alluring.\" \"For real? So you're a Liliana fan, too...?\" Subaru acknowledged that Liliana's singing was incredible, but not nearly to the extent that everyone else seemed to. As far as Subaru could tell, every girl who heard Liliana sing became her ally. She had a perfect record. Honestly, if she could woo even Priscilla, her status was pretty much unassailable. \"But to have Lady Priscilla and Lady Emilia both come here, candidates for the royal selection that's the glimmering issue of the day, Liliana is grateful and even moved to tears!!\" Even with the uneasy atmosphere that came with two rival candidates meeting, Liliana's powerful ability to set her own pace was undaunted. Of course, even she understood that relations between Emilia and Priscilla were delicate at best. The profound silliness of her statement was no doubt intentional. \"Mwa-ha-ha-ha, so my songs are that incredible? Oh wooow, I'm gonna blush!\" \"On second thought, maybe she's just being herself.\" Liliana's bashful reaction gave Subaru renewed doubts. He concluded with a shrug that he had simply been overthinking things. After that, Subaru abruptly noticed that Priscilla was alone, lacking even a single escort. \"You're by yourself? Not with Al or the shitty bastard or your cute butler?\" \"Schult gets lost whenever he walks out the door. He is earnest and adorable to console, but that is all, really. Having Al at my side means putting up with his annoying little comments, so I left him behind. As for the shitty bastard, I would not know.\" \"So you also call him that, huh...?\" Subaru was surprised by her unexpectedly blunt replies. He was similarly surprised at just how poorly she treated Heinkel even after taking him as a follower. Granted, he obviously deserved such treatment, but why bring him into the fold, then? \"No doubt that's also 'cause it amuses you.\" \"Reasons are such trifling things. To begin with, he came to me with an offer, and I accepted, nothing more. I shall use him for my entertainment while I can, but if he ceases to have value, I shall discard him instantly. That is the extent of how much I care.\" \"Nah, I wonder about that... If you didn't care about him, you wouldn't have beaten him down like that, would you?\" For that matter, had Al not intervened, she might well have sliced him apart then and there and walked away. Subaru figured Reinhard would've probably intervened and stopped her short of that, though. \"Come to think of it, you've broken my jaw with a kick once before, huh...\" At one point during the loop at the capital a year before, Subaru had once been kicked by Priscilla when he'd procured her ire. His memory of being in a near-death state from a single one of her kicks came flooding back. Thinking of that, he could accept the overwhelming combat strength she'd displayed back at the hall. \"Isn't it dangerous for you to ditch Al and the rest of your crew like that?\" \"And what, pray tell, would suddenly become a threat simply because my three retainers are absent? About the only advantage of their presence is to have eyes to see directly behind me.\" \"So your dancing with Liliana here was just coincidence?\" Emilia's question made Priscilla fold her arms with an audible snort. \"Unlike the dull streets of the capital, this city's sights are salve for my tedium. I was enjoying the flow of the water when this artist's song reached my ears.\" \"I mean, wow, yeah, I didn't know what to expect when she suddenly came in and started dancing. Usually, I give people who get too worked up a good smacking with my song, and most of the time, they settle back down right away...!\" \"You really don't act like a songstress at all...\" Driving interlopers back with your song was way too rock and"}, {"text": "roll. Besides, the only word he had for Priscilla suddenly breaking into dance was shocking. Considering how rapt the audience was, it must have been quite the performance. \"To gather the hearts of so many people and leave me behind is self-centered to the extreme. However, such is the appeal of your music. How about it? Would you care to serve as a singing girl at my side?\" \"Oh, thank you, thank you so very much!! I am honored and very, very proud that you praise me so! But! But! I must respectfully decline!\" Priscilla's invitation showed she had taken a liking to Liliana's singing even more than Subaru had first assumed. Liliana responded with a smiling face and a refusal with virtually no hesitation. Instantly, the park was enveloped by an aura that pricked Subaru's skin. His body tensed up on its own. Liliana had made a frighteningly, spectacularly momentous decision in a flash. She understood nothing about Priscilla's character or the instant and even cruel threat Priscilla could pose. She was totally oblivious. \"Oh, you refuse me? Why do you refuse my invitation?\" Like clockwork, the tone of Priscilla's voice dropped an octave as she responded, her crimson eyes running cold. Even Subaru, who wasn't the target of her ire, felt like a blade had been pressed to his throat. In that situation, where a single word could cost her life, Liliana stroked her musical instrument with her hand. \"I am Liliana the minstrel. Though I have stopped in this city for a time, I am destined to wander again before long, traveling wherever the wind carries me. It is an occupation and way of life of not being bound to any one land or one person.\" \"And so you decline my invitation.\" \"It was the same for my mother, my mother's mother, and their mothers before that. It is our family's way. We leave nothing behind, save for our songs in people's hearts. Just as one cannot fence in the wind, no one can keep us in one place. Your invitation makes me happy, but I must decline. Even I do not know where my songs shall echo. I leave that up to the wind.\" Raising her musical instrument high, Liliana spoke the words proudly, not a single reservation upon her face. Her usual demeanor the way she made fun of everything and consistently got on people's nerves was nowhere to be seen. There was only the simple pride of the creature known as a minstrel those who passed down tales through song. *** After listening to Liliana's answer, Priscilla kept her arms folded and one eye closed. Then her remaining eye shot straight through Liliana, her gaze redder than an incandescent flame. When even this failed to make Liliana falter, Priscilla abruptly let out her breath. \" Very well. Your resolve is commendable. Forgive me; 'tis I who was rude.\" \"Not at aaaall. I'm really sorry I couldn't accept.\" Priscilla's remark made Liliana proudly thrust her chest out as if it was the obvious thing to do. Subaru could only be amazed. He never thought Priscilla would actually accept someone else defying her will. \"What is it, filthy peasant? What is the reason for this distasteful face you are showing me?\" \"Hey, there's nothing on my face except surprise. I was scared because I thought for sure you'd slice Liliana in half for refusing your invitation...\" \"A ridiculous concern.\" Priscilla spat out her reply with a snort, but was it true? Until she heard Liliana's reply, Subaru had no doubt whatsoever that Priscilla's bloodlust was balanced on a knife's edge. Wasn't Liliana spared only because it didn't happen to tilt in the wrong direction? \"But I'm a little surprised by Priscilla, too. I thought she was the sort of person who would do anything to get something she wanted.\" It was then that Emilia spectacularly stepped upon the land mine Subaru had painstakingly tiptoed around. Emilia's blunt impression made Priscilla sigh with displeasure. \"Lowly half-demon, would you cease your prattling? Just what do you know about me when you see with such clouded eyes? Rudeness and insult can be forgiven only so much.\" \"This girl is an expert at being all talk. If she has enough spare time to criticize and lecture others for their outward appearance, would she not be better served spending it reflecting on her own words and deeds, I wonder?\" \"Beatrice...\" When Priscilla's merciless words brought a conflicted look over Emilia's face, Beatrice squeezed her hand. When she shot back at Priscilla in Emilia's stead, Priscilla looked like she'd noticed the girl for the first time. \"Such brave words for a little girl. I shall have you know my tolerance is not dependent on age. Do not beguile yourself with the notion that I will turn a blind eye to your rudeness because of your youth.\" \"Your advice is unnecessary. Do you even realize, I wonder? Little girl, Betty may be cute, but do not think that is all there is to see.\" Instantly, sparks of hostility flew between Beatrice and Priscilla. Both were wearing dresses, but their compatibility couldn't be worse. Of course, Subaru was on Beatrice's side, but just the fact that she was picking a fight with a royal-selection candidate made this problematic. \"Beatrice, it's okay. I'm all right.\" \"Why try to stop me, I wonder? Surely, we cannot simply let her slights pass in silence.\" Fearful of the problem growing larger, Emilia tried to rein in Beatrice, but the spirit refused to budge. After hearing her comment, a realization dawned on Emilia. The same went for Subaru. Beatrice wasn't angry because Priscilla's attitude or insults had bothered her personally. She was angry because Priscilla had belittled Emilia. Emilia was deeply moved by this. Of course, Subaru was, too. \"Beatrice, it's fine. I mean it. I'm really grateful, though.\" Emilia used the hand Beatrice wasn't holding to stroke her on the head. The action made Beatrice momentarily gaze at Subaru and Emilia alone, a tearful look in her eyes. But this was for only a single moment. Immediately after, Beatrice glared at Priscilla with renewed heat. \"I will do as Emilia wishes, I suppose. You should be grateful.\" \"Surely, you speak for yourself. Count your adorable appearance among your blessings.\" With ragged breaths, Beatrice got a hold of her temper; Priscilla responded in kind by suppressing her ghastly aura. Subaru almost felt like the last line was just pure praise for Beatrice's looks. The gist was, You're cute, so I'll let it go this time, which was fine and well with him. Priscilla's thinking remained a mystery. \"You really are a woman I can't understand one bit...\" \"But of course. I do as I please more than any other. It is a gross conceit to even attempt to understand me.\" \"So now it's my fault...? In the first place, this all started because you wanted Liliana for yourself.\" In the end, it was unclear just what had made Priscilla allow Liliana to slip from her grasp. Seemingly gleaning the question from the doubts on Subaru's face, Priscilla hid her own lips behind her fan. \"Everything in this world is mine. Therefore, I need not personally own everything that is beautiful, proud, and valuable in order to appreciate it. It is sometimes best to leave them as they are. That is all.\" *** \"If this entire world becomes my garden, where little chirping birds sing matters not. It would not only be crude but quite unpleasant to place every one of them in birdcages to protect them from all outside dangers.\" This was the first time Subaru had ever heard Priscilla break her aesthetics down into a digestible form. The sheer scale of her inaccessible, overwhelmingly aloof rationale left Subaru at a loss for words. It wasn't that he failed to understand the meaning or the logic. She simply perceived things on a fundamentally different level. Subaru thought that this difference, or perhaps the very scale of it all, was terrifying. But at the same time, those feelings of terror were accompanied by the awe that came from gazing up at an overpowering being. He wasn't sure, but maybe that was why Al stood by Priscilla. \"Now, now, now! With everyone having calmed down a notch, how about I present to you a song in honor of our friendship?! But noooo! Not one song, but maybe two or even three!\" With swift pulls of the strings of her lyulyre, Liliana made an abrupt proposal. \"This time, Lady Priscilla should simply enjoy herself without being concerned about dancing!! And, Lady Emilia, it looked like earlier you arrived just as the song was ending!! This time, we shall joyously celebrate our reunion, and you shall see for yourself how Liliana's unique singing voice lets her make off like a bandit in this city!\" \"My word.\" \"Wow, really?\" \"The result isn't elegant at all, but you are satisfied with this?\" Setting Liliana's assertion aside, the fact remained that her song was currently the key to a peaceful resolution. At present, Emilia and Priscilla stood side by side with an odd sense of distance between them as they prepared to listen to Liliana's performance. It was in that situation that Liliana beckoned Subaru over with her hand. Then when Subaru approached, she whispered in a low voice. \"Could it be that Lady Emilia and Lady Priscilla don't get along too well?\" \"Are you kidding? It should be kinda obvious based on their positions. Incidentally, there's pretty much no such thing as a person who gets along well with Priscilla, and she treats Emilia-tan like that.\" \"My oh my, this is quite a serious matter!!\" Liliana gazed up at the heavens, the tails of her hair furiously bouncing, much like a dog warily wagging its tail. Maybe they were connected to her nerves or something. He had a sudden urge to grab them, pull them, and twirl them all around. \"But, but! Here, I shall do everything in my power to seduce them both with the power of music! Ah, just now, you thought of something dirty because I said seduce, didn't you? You can't do that it's indeeecent!\" \"I'm beat, so could you not make me feel admiration and disdain from the same damn line?\" Even as he sighed, Subaru admired how Liliana could show such consideration amid her fits of madness. Her goal of sweeping away the bad atmosphere with a song was something he could appreciate. As a matter of fact, it irked him a little that Liliana's voice made such a thing actually possible. \"After the song, we'll have a pleasant chat, so could you prepare some snacks, Master Natsuki? Do you not think that sweets will make everyone happy and bring us all closer together?\" \"Not particularly.\" \"After the song, we'll have a pleasant chat, so could you prepare some snacks, Master Natsuki? Do you not think that sweets will help make everyone happy and bring us all closer together?\" \"What is this? Are you an NPC who just repeats your lines until someone picks yes?\" When Liliana stubbornly asked the exact same question without a single change in tension, tone, or even word choice, Subaru gave in and selected yes. Liliana's face brightened, but surprisingly, her proposal was not a terrible one. If the atmosphere improved, maybe they could have a proper conversation with Liliana and Priscilla. \"So while Liliana's singing, I'll head off to buy some drinks. Emilia-tan, stay here, behave, and don't get into any fights while I'm gone.\" \"Well, I don't want to have an argument with Priscilla, either. Don't worry it'll be fine.\" Subaru reminded her to be careful just to be on the safe side, and Emilia responded with a buoyant smile. Of course, even if Emilia wasn't looking for a fight, there was no denying the possibility that Priscilla might offer one regardless. \"Beako, take care of Emilia-tan if anything happens.\" \"I understand, I suppose. Next time that whelp"}, {"text": "says something out of line, I shall reduce her to ash.\" \"Don't pick a fight with her, either, okay?\" After entrusting Emilia to Beatrice, who was possibly a much greater cause for concern, Subaru got ready to leave the park for the time being. But before he did  \"Priscilla, any foods you can't eat?\" \"How unexpected that even an unremarkable man such as you understands how to be considerate. Very well. If you must present me with something, you should prepare something appropriate. Present me something boring, and I shall slice off the hand with which you offered it and place it upon your head.\" \"It's not like I lost at rock-paper-scissors to be the errand boy, so you've got no right to take it that far!\" Subaru decided then and there that if anyone was selling a delicacy advertised as only for the bold, that's what he'd give her. For her part, Priscilla knit her refined eyebrows at Subaru's response. \"Rock-paper...scissors?\" She tilted her head while murmuring in confusion. If she'd forgotten about Subaru, maybe she'd forgotten about rock-paper-scissors, too. In many ways, she was a very hard woman to get along with. \"Subaru, be careful.\" \"If something happens, would you immediately call Betty, I wonder?\" After Emilia and Beatrice saw him off, Subaru waved and rushed out of the park. When he tried to wink at Liliana, he was thwarted because she had closed both eyes. \"Oh...\" A little after that, right when he was reaching the entrance to the park, he heard the melody of the lyulyre echoing behind him. With that sound at his back, Subaru quickened his steps as he headed toward the shopping district. 3  And some ten minutes later after Subaru left the park... \"Man, I'm just a chicken. Really, I am.\" As he exited the store, Subaru glanced at the products inside the bag, and his shoulders sagged. After setting off in the name of procuring sweets, Subaru had found some appropriate stores and finished his shopping in short order. Along the way, his interest had been temporarily drawn by \"gina jelly,\" a strange Pristella specialty, but he hadn't summoned the courage to buy it for Priscilla. It sounded better to say he was fearful of worsening relations between the camps, but he'd simply chickened out. \"But it looked kind of like eel jelly... I'm not brave enough to taste test this one, but I liked that stuff.\" Berating himself for his complex personal biases, Subaru jogged until he reached the street that led back to the park. Fortunately, in the ten or so minutes he'd been away, Beatrice hadn't warned him about something going awry in the park. They were probably in the middle of the recital without any problems. Even though he understood that, he instinctively wanted to return as soon as possible. But  \"Oops, my bad.\"  after rounding a sharp corner a little too fast, he nearly bumped into someone as soon as he entered a public square. After narrowly evading the passerby, Subaru immediately apologized as the other party raised a cry of \"aah?\" with a foul-sounding voice. \"Hey, pal. Is that how ya apologize? You better put more sincerity into... Geh!\" The man with the crude demeanor was in the middle of picking a fight when he noticed Subaru and froze. Simultaneously, Subaru was shocked to realize he recognized this man. \"Huh, it's Larry? You still act like a street thug even though you work for Felt now?\" \"Oh, shaddap! And my name ain't Larry! The hell are you doin' here?!\" The one letting spittle fly as he complained was Lachins, who'd played the hoodlum role just the day before. According to Felt, he'd been assigned errands and was off on independent action within the city. \"Curly and Moe aren't with you? Kinda rare to see you on your own like this.\" \"How the hell would you know what's rare for me? We ain't known each other enough for this to feel like anythin'. Shoo, scram.\" \"Hey, don't be so cold. Aren't we buddies who've gone through life and death together?\" \"I don't remember anythin' like that!\" Lachins shot him a disgusted look when Subaru got too chummy. Even Subaru wasn't very sure why he had a soft spot for the guy. It was probably because Subaru's Everyman Sensor picked up that Larry, Curly, and Moe were fellow commoners. In this world, Subaru had met so many incredible people that seeing ordinary people like them once in a while came as a relief. Though he'd been killed by them once, his fondness for them had actually grown since. \"Anyway! Don't get close to me! I'm doin' work right now!\" \"For you to have work after being unemployed for so long... I'm so happy for you!!\" \"Get lost!!\" As Subaru acted tearful, Lachins clicked his tongue and brushed him off, vanishing into the crowds. Subaru reflected on the fact that the cold reaction was a great relief to him for some reason. Lately, he'd been greeted with receptions befitting his title practically everywhere he went. He was worried that he'd let it go to his head if he didn't get a reality check like this once in a while. Of course, he belatedly realized he really had been a nuisance to Lachins, so he decided to apologize the next time he had the chance. \"Mm?\" Then, with Lachins having vanished into the throng, Subaru turned around and began to walk when he came to a halt.  No, it wasn't just Subaru who'd stopped. Within his field of view, a great many people within the square had come to a halt as well. \"What the ? If it ain't one thing, it's another! The hell y'all lookin' at?!\" Speaking those words, Lachins pushed his way out from the frozen mass of pedestrians. Just like he had complained, everyone had stopped to stare up at a tall building overhead.  This was a spire standing at the back of the square, extremely prominent even in such a large city. A magic crystal clock was embedded into the upper portion of the building; it was a time tower that functioned much like a clock tower. These towers were common in large towns and cities, and several of them were scattered around Pristella. This time tower was simply one among many. But then that changed. \" To all those whose conversations and busy schedules I've interrupted, I offer my apologies.\" At the upper portion of the time tower, a lone figure emerged from an open window to stand precariously on the edge. As all eyes gathered on the stranger standing before them in such a bizarre manner, the voice addressing the crowd trembled, seemingly overcome with emotion at being the center of attention. \"Please lend me but a tiny instant of your time. Thank you.\" The tone of the voice that opened with an apology and a word of thanks was particular to those who were more concerned with their appearance than genuinely showing gratitude. Everyone listening was assailed by an uncomfortable sensation, as if that voice itself mercilessly clawed at their hearts. These disturbing feelings were doubtlessly amplified by the speaker's bizarre outward appearance. This person's head was covered in raggedly wrapped bandages that left one eye visible, gleaming mysteriously as it surveyed the world below. For clothes, they had a black robe with long, misshapen gold-colored chains wrapped around both slender hands, ending in hooks. These were dragging across the floor as the speaker came forward one purposeful footstep at a time, hastily heading to the top of the tower. Glancing at the audience, unable to peel their eyes from the bizarre sight, the speaker smiled at least, the gloomy contortion of their mouth, which was hidden by bandages, made Subaru think that was a smile. \"Thank you, and sorry. I am the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, charged with Wrath \" Voicing that terrifying preamble aloud, the eccentric offered an introduction. \" My name is Sirius Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti.\" 4 In contrast to the other Archbishops, the tone of Sirius's voice was chummy, outgoing, and even cheerful. This strange announcement delivered by someone wrapped in bandages left everyone looking up at the tower and unable to speak. Perhaps it was partly due to the speaker's surreal appearance, but the greater factor was almost certainly the crowd's inability to process what they just heard. Of course, these were nothing more than secondary reasons. There was a reason more fundamental than any other.  How could anyone take their eyes off something that threatened their very lives? \"Eh, wha ?\" \"What did they say just now?\" \"You're kidding, right? The Witch Cult, here...\" The realization and chaos that had been delayed by the initial turmoil began to gradually spread through the mass of people. But not a single person there instantly adopted the best countermeasures available. Everyone listening to the contents of the message doubted their ears, and the only thing rippling through the crowd was confusion. \"Hey, what did that bastard say just now?! Did you hear that?!\" And the same went for Lachins, who noticed Subaru and came running. Lachins kept one eye on what was happening overhead as he wove through the crowd toward Subaru, who also couldn't take his eyes off the eccentric, despite standing apart from the rest of the audience. For some reason, he could tell that letting his attention lapse would be an irrevocable mistake. There was no need to doubt the individual's identity.  That was the exact same malice Petelgeuse had. \"Plus, Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti...?\" The surname the bandaged eccentric had invoked Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, just like Petelgeuse. Of course, as Petelgeuse had been an evil spirit, a blood relative sharing the same name was highly unlikely, but  \"Don't tell me all the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins use the same family name...\" The existence of a famous Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti family within the Witch Cult churning out Archbishops one generation after the next was a concept so twisted that even the thought of it was enough to make Subaru crinkle his nose. Without such trivial thoughts running through his head, Subaru would have already blown his lid. An Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins was right there. It wasn't the Gluttony he was pursuing, but there was an Archbishop right there. \" Gotta nab 'em and make 'em spill the beans.\" He'd blaze a trail to Gluttony one way or another. With that decided, Subaru calmed his blazing heart. Simultaneously, he focused on the link with Beatrice within his chest. By calling out to her, Subaru could convey that something was wrong. This was the firm bond that tied a contractor to his contracted spirit. In the innermost depths of his body, he'd grasp it, pulling it toward him all at once  \" That's quite enough!\" *** But his attempt to call Beatrice was terminated, abruptly blown away by a dry, rupturing sound. This was the sound of the bandaged eccentric clapping their hands together. Subaru's breath caught from the noise, which was so loud that it seemed to reach every corner of the city and rocked the square itself. Then, looking down upon the multitude frozen with shock, the eccentric's exposed, lolling eye wandered around. \"It took twenty-two seconds before everyone fell silent. But I thank you for quieting down. I am sorry. I am also very happy. And...\" Speaking sarcasm along with their thanks, the eccentric Sirius kept both hands together as their body swayed. Sirius really did seem to be enjoying the show, but the crude-looking chains hanging from both hands continued to undermine that impression. The discordant sound of the hooks scraping against the tower's platform and the chains rubbing against the walls really grated on the ears. \"You and you over there, and you two sirs over there also, I am sorry. Do not be so cross. I offer you my heartfelt apology for taking up your valuable time. Sorry, and thank you.\" \"Is...!\" Sirius squirmed all around while doing their best to convey sincerity. The"}, {"text": "only reason Subaru did not instantly shout, Is this a joke?! and go deliver a beatdown was precisely because he was included among those Sirius had pointed to that moment, urging them to not be so cross. Subaru noticed the three others whom Sirius had pointed at a beast man with a sword on his hip, a woman with an eye patch, and Lachins had all gone pale. They were probably the only ones present with any fight in them. This was without doubt a warning: Any sign of hostility, and Sirius would nail them to the floor first. Feeling sweat beading on his brow, Subaru cursed the stalemate he had fallen into. Allowing the Witch Cultist to take the initiative was a terrible misstep. Including Subaru, some thirty people were in the square, trapped in Sirius's field of vision hardly a trivial number. One false move, and there would be instant carnage. Everyone indicated by Sirius's finger understood this, blocking them from making a move. From the expression on his bitter face, Lachins was the only one hesitant in his decision. Lachins probably had a wild card to play specifically calling Reinhard over. If he could do so in time, there was no one who could best Reinhard. It was a certainty that he'd settle matters with a single blow however, the sacrifices incurred in the time it took him to arrive could never be undone. If Lachins didn't care about casualties, he could have Sirius taken care of...hence his inner turmoil. \"Yes, thank you. It would seem that everyone has calmed down a little. I understand that you are uneasy. The ring of the words Witch Cult never fails to leave a poor impression. That is why even I will not ask you to disregard this. I merely wished to have all of you give me this time today because there is something I sorely wish to confirm.\" \"And what's that...?\" \"I am sorry; please do not be noisy. I am not very smart, so if everyone talks at once, I won't know what to do. And then I'll be quite sad. That's not good, is it? But if something's wrong, please let me know. I'll do my best to answer for everyone's sake.\" Sirius's insistence on maintaining a pretense of friendliness and that somewhat logical manner of speaking only made the situation all the more unsettling. Most people also found Sirius's fashion sense, which involved covering everything but their left eye and lips with bandages, predictably disturbing. And if wariness about this was keeping everyone from making a move  \"Can I take you at your word and ask a question?\" When it felt like no one wanted to take the initiative and single themselves out, Subaru Natsuki raised a hand anyway. Even as he sensed a wave of surprise spreading around him, Subaru did not avert his eyes from Sirius, who was still standing overhead. Looking down upon Subaru, Sirius opened their purple eye wide. \"Yes! You over there, please do. Thank you. To think you were so angry before, yet now you are willing to speak with me. What a happy occasion. Ask me anything.\" \"I'm not sure what you want, but I have some girls waiting for me, and four of them at that. I'd like to settle this as quickly as possible and get back to them.\" \"My! That is terrible; I am so sorry. Surely, we are troubling these girls and causing them sadness or maybe even anguish. That is wrong so very wrong impermissible unforgivable.\" \"Um, excuse me?\" As they spoke, the cheer in Sirius's voice faded, their gaze began to grow ominous, and they gasped in surprise when Subaru's bewildered voice called out. \"Oh no, oh no, I was about to get emotional. I am so sorry. I really try to watch out, but I get easily excited. Thank you for your concern.\" \"...Nah, that's fine. I'm just grateful that we can have a nice and calm conversation.\" \"I am sorry you need be so considerate. Thank you. But it's all right. I am famous for being one of the doves of the Witch Cult. I am quite sorry that the others are problematic children to some extent.\" Something shocking dawned on Subaru as he continued having a surprisingly coherent conversation with Sirius. The unexpectedly gentle demeanor, the insistence on keeping the conversation going, and the sheer impact of the initial encounter had shoved this fact aside, but Sirius, the mystery person standing above on the tower, was a woman. Judging from the way the incredibly white fabric wrapped around her head and how it poked out from the standard Cult-issue black robe, her entire body was probably covered in bandages. Even so, Subaru had noticed telltale bulges on the chest of her tall, slender body. That combined with her manner of speech convinced him that Sirius was female. *** Setting aside the issue of gender, Sirius's words and actions conveyed no sense of an immediate threat for the time being. At first, Subaru had been extremely wary, but after conversing with Sirius for a bit, he realized that she came off as more of a true human being than Priscilla did. The initial tension in everyone's expressions fell away, leaving most people more interested in Sirius's true intentions rather than worry and fear. In spite of the hatred he supposedly harbored toward the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, Subaru was no exception. \"Thank you; I am so sorry. Truly, I had not intended to surprise everyone. But I am pleased from my heart that we have overcome this and you are now lending me your ears.\" \"It's not like we've accepted or forgiven you, but we'll at least hear you out first.\" \"I suppose that will do. Well then, I shall get to the point about the reason why I have appeared before you like this.\" As she swayed her body and rubbed the chains on both of her hands together, the high-pitched sound tore at the air around them. Now that he took a good look, her appearance was more comical than creepy. If he thought of her as some sort of clown or entertainer, he had to wonder if she was really that far removed from someone like Liliana. Subaru's expression softened, and the guarded walls he'd raised around his heart slowly crumbled away. There didn't seem to be a need to call over Beatrice anymore. He'd hear Sirius out and then ask her to depart quietly.  Peaceful and proper, not making any waves whatsoever. Wasn't that a good thing? \"So what did you wanna ask?\" \"Yeah, yeah, hurry up and ask already!\" \"That's right, that's right. If ya don't hurry up, I'll be late for work.\" When Subaru prodded her to go ahead, the people around him raised their voices, almost jeering at her. The last man pointed at the magic time crystal over Sirius's head, an act that was enough to provoke uproarious laughter. The wave of laughter made Subaru unwittingly relax his lips. The amicable atmosphere brought a blushy smile over Sirius as she pressed her hands to her cheeks like she wasn't sure what to do. \"Sorry, so sorry. I really am sorry. I know you all must be in a hurry. I will soon be finished, so please bear with me a little while longer.\" \"I told ya, hurry it up already !\" \"Yes! Well then, I shall do just that. Er, you see, there is something I wish to confirm. To come out and say it...it concerns love. Ohhh, I am so embarrassed.\" Thanks to the bandages, he couldn't see the color of her face, but Sirius was covering it with her palms to conceal her own bashfulness. The gesture made Subaru break into spontaneous laughter. There were grins all around him as the gradually warming atmosphere infected others, making Sirius tremble in even greater embarrassment. \"I I expected everyone to laugh, but even so, I can't seem to look you in the face. But thank you for listening. Thank you, and also, I have a request.\" \"A request?\" \"I am so sorry. Could I ask you to put up with me while I try to confirm love?\" Fidgeting, Sirius rubbed the chains from both hands together as she made that request. The pathetic sight elicited a collective that's all? from the audience. As a matter of fact, Subaru had no particular objection, either. His heart warmed by the sight, he politely nodded. When he did, Sirius brightened, her eye twinkling as she clapped her hands together. \"Really?! Thank you, thank you, and also sorry. The world truly is kind. It is kind and filled with love. I am grateful I can savor the feeling like this. We are capable of permitting and yielding to one another. That is why I say not only thank you but I am sorry.\" \"We get it already! Sirius, what are you gonna do now?\" \"Ahhh, so sorry!\" Sirius looked deeply moved when the swordswoman with the eye patch over one eye jeered at her. The voice was casual, as if she was speaking to a friend she'd known for a decade or a classmate at a girls' school, which seemed to help Sirius relax. As if finally remembering something, Sirius walked to the time tower window from which she had emerged, reaching her arms inside the structure. And then  \"I am so sorry to have kept you waiting. Come on right this way.\" *** Calling out with a gentle voice, Sirius pulled something from beyond the window. Thrashing in Sirius's arms was a tiny, moaning figure a boy still early in years, his entire body firmly bound. The child, ten years old give or take, was wrapped in chains from his ankles to his shoulders; there were blood droplets where a chain had bit into his mouth. He was desperately moving what he could above his neck, tears coursing in some kind of muffled plea. \"I am so sorry this is so confining. But you are a boy, so you must not cry. I wished to keep that a secret between us, but you are drenched. Now everyone will know your shame.\" \"Nn ! Nnn!!\" \"Yeah ! It's embarrassin' !!\" \"You're a boy! Don't cry, don't cry!!\" \"There's only three times in a man's life that he can cry, ha-ha-ha!\" Warm voices called out to the tearful boy as the audience joined Sirius in trying to console him. Overcoming the urge to be scared and cry from small frights was something everyone had to go through. There was no malice involved, but a number of the comments were rather lacking in delicacy. \"Yes, yes, everyone, please do not say such things. Certainly, he is cowering a little at the moment, but this is a very brave child. Isn't that so, young Lusbel?\" With his entire body bound by chains, the kid had to weigh a fair bit, but Sirius easily carried him with one arm. Gently stroking the boy's chestnut-colored hair, she turned him toward the crowd while praising his courage. Lusbel the boy squirming with all his might in his effort to escape from Sirius's hand. The contrast looked humorous and laughable, just begging for someone to laugh at how pathetic he seemed. \"Yes! Now then, may I have everyone's attention? This is the young Lusbel Callard. He is a native of Pristella. He is still only nine years old. My, such fine future prospects.\" \"Nn! Nnn!!!\" \"His father is Muslan Callard. He is an observer for the city waterways. His mother, Ina Callard, is currently pregnant and showing at this very moment. Will Lusbel be blessed with a younger brother or a younger sister...? Quite a happy thought regardless of which is born. Young Lusbel has a childhood friend, a cute blonde with curly hair named Tina, who he gets along with very nicely. Since the pair care deeply about each other and seem to have an ideal relationship, I spent a considerable amount of"}, {"text": "time mulling over which one I should bring here. At first, I thought I'd bring Tina, but Lusbel asked me so earnestly, it struck a chord deep within me... Therefore, I yielded to young Lusbel's enthusiasm and had him cooperate with me. He is a very brave child. You all understand that now, don't you?\" For an instant, the tale of Lusbel's courage was greeted by pure silence. But a moment later, riotous applause thundered in the square. The audience extolled Lusbel's courage, regretting the way they had laughed at his tears, for he was a true hero.  No, that wasn't it. It was not the time to feel remorse for their thoughtlessness. It was time to praise courage. \"Lusbel, don't cry! You're the best!\" That was why Subaru raised his voice, celebrating the heroism of the tearful boy. \"That's right, don't you be cryin'! We know ya got stones, so hang in there till the end, kid!\" Beside Subaru, Lachins had tears in the corners of his eyes as he raised a crass cheer for the boy. \"That's right, you go, Lusbel! You're the pride of Pristella!\" \"Lusbel! You're marvelous! I'm sure you'll become a fine man!\" As one, the audience filled the square with cheers, applause, and acclaim for their hero Lusbel. This beautiful scene of human virtue had been made possible by the courage and dedication of a single boy. No matter how unseemly he might have looked, it was genuine courage that gave birth to true light. \"Ahhh, ahhh...thank you, thank you, thank you! Ahhh, this is so wonderful! You all understand. I believed that you would trust in young Lusbel's courage! After all, his way is the way of love! I thought that by knowing him, you would come to love him as well! The more you understand him, the deeper you know him your thoughts become one, and that is love!\" \"Thank you, Sirius! Thank you!\" Sirius hoisted Lusbel aloft with both hands, the bandages on her face drenched with tears. Seeing this, Subaru couldn't hold back the hot tears he hadn't even noticed until moments ago. He felt a poke on his shoulder. Beside him, Lachins pointed at Subaru and laughed at his free-flowing tears. As he did so, tears trickled down his cheeks as well, and before long, everyone in the square was overcome by the same emotion. That moment, everyone's hearts had truly become one. They were linked by an undeniable bond. \"We rifts are born because we do not know one another. Conflict arises because we do not understand one another. And when we give up because we are different from one another, bonds cannot be wrought. Everyone, how are your hearts now?\" \"It's not like that at all! None of us is giving up! Our hearts are one!\" \"Thank you! Thank you! Then I take it that everyone is happy right now?\" \"Damn right we are! It's the first time I've felt like this! Thank you, Sirius! Lusbel!\" With sounds of admiration and applause trained toward him, Lusbel sobbed at the highest point of the time tower. Finally, heedless of the gashes at the corners of his mouth, the boy bled as he desperately raised his voice. \"Gu, gii! Aurr!! S-svv...sv ve...mhhh...!\" \"Young Lusbel, they extol your courage; they extol love! Look down. So many people admire you. Ahhh, thank you! I am so sorry, young Lusbel. This may not be what you intended. But now I know. The world is indeed a kind place!\" Embracing Lusbel, whom she held aloft, Sirius turned her head toward the heavens as she continued in a loud voice. \"Yes, there truly is love in this world. Everyone's hearts have become one. Their feelings of happiness are the same. No one needs tragedy. A world where people must cry is nothing but a nuisance. The greatest emotions come when people's hearts are joined together! No one needs tragedy! No one needs Wrath!\" \"That's right! No one needs tragedy!\" \"Ahhh, abominable Wrath that makes my heart tremble so! Anger in other words, rage! If this is indeed one of the Seven Deadly Sins that afflicts human hearts, if it is fate that it can never truly be cut away, then one should fill the heart with tremendous joy until there is no room left! Just like how it fills everyone's hearts this very moment!\" Letting spittle fly, Sirius shared what she had learned about love from on high as if it were the judgment of the heavens themselves. Then from her upraised arms, she hurled the courage that had received envy from one and all into the sky. \"May I have your applause?!\" Sirius hurled Lusbel into the sky on the greatest stage imaginable. Watching the boy fly toward the sun, everyone clapped. Subaru brought his hands together over and over again as hard as he could. Uproarious applause rang out, blessing Lusbel as he soared into the sky. The tiny body spun in midair, finally reaching the zenith of the throw, then proceeding to plunge straight toward the ground. He was inverted, falling toward the stone-paved square headfirst. The audience cleared his impending point of impact applauded endlessly all the while, awaiting his triumphal return. \"Nnnn!!\" Lifting his head, Lusbel glared at the approaching ground and screamed. Though his strength should have been exhausted, he thrashed wildly, desperately struggling until the very, very end. Sensing they had caught a glimpse of a human being truly worthy of praise, the audience was moved to tears. And then  \" Ahhh, what a kind world!!\"  just before the impact, Sirius shouted. Hearing that voice, the audience's applause became one, growing louder and louder as the echoes boomed.  Then there was a sound of something hard and fragile breaking, like an egg falling onto the floor. Everyone's vision was filled with red. Falling headfirst onto the hard surface, the entire body crumpled, and that which had once been Lusbel transformed into a pile of crimson flesh. Fat globules of blood scattered across the square in all directions as the hero spectacularly flew apart. And then right after witnessing this  \" Bhhh.\"  like applause that refused to end, the sound of countless eggs smashing reverberated across the square. The ground was drowned in a crimson pool of blood. That was how it ended. 5 \"After the song, we'll have a pleasant chat, so could you prepare some snacks, Master Natsuki? Do you not think that sweets will make everyone happy and bring us all closer together?\" Just after he thought he'd blinked, he saw an olive-skinned girl shoot him a clumsy wink. *** As he watched the girl sticking her tongue out in a playful pose, Subaru Natsuki forgot to breathe. When he shifted his unsteady gaze, he saw a silver-haired girl with a soft, charming smile beside him, and also standing there was a redheaded girl, arms crossed with an arrogant look on her face. Then he noticed the presence of a little girl in a dress gently holding his hand  \"Errr, is something amiss? Ignoring? Are you ignoring me? P-please cut that out; it's very depressing... Aah, cut cut that out... D-don't sigh after listening to my song... Don't make such a sad face; forgive meee...!\" As Subaru fell into complete silence, the girl before his eyes Liliana was trembling awkwardly as if she was undergoing some kind of trauma. Subaru set his eyes upon her, and his stiff lips trembled. \"...I feel sick.\" \"Wha ?! H-how can this be?! How can you look at a girl's face and say something so cruel?! Liliana has never been humiliated like this before!! My goodness, on behalf of Master Natsuki's mother, I am completely embarrassed for you!! Compwetewy!! Embawwassed!!\" As Liliana faked anguished tears, her mouth bled from the impressive way she had bitten her tongue. It was a ridiculous and transparently comical sight, but Subaru couldn't bring himself to laugh even if he wanted to. His head was heavy. His vision was flickering. Unable to stand, he sank to his knees then and there. \"Subaru?! What's wrong?\" \"Wait a What happened, I wonder?! Subaru, Subaru?\" Beatrice, who was holding his hand, and Emilia beside them peered at Subaru's face as he hugged the floor. Then with a face so pale that the two unwittingly gasped, Subaru  \" I feel sick.\" Even more than the death loop a year prior, he was at a loss for how to process his death. His knees continued trembling as nausea welled up. \"I feel sick.\" The shock was almost impossible to endure. He felt revolted by the corruption that made his insides roil. His mind and body were buffeted by raging waves of loss. Subaru Natsuki was overwhelmed by a disgust that outweighed even the horror of death. In his memory of the moment just prior to his death, the past felt like the blink of an eye to him. He remembered how the corruption of his soul had blotted out his mind and left him unable to recognize the abnormal for what it was. And then he recalled the mysterious behavior of that disciple of abomination   Archbishop of Wrath, Sirius Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti. Without any doubt, the being was one of the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, kin to Sloth and Greed and Gluttony. They were all envoys of vice and destruction, embodiments of nightmares that by rights should not exist. The feeling of losing himself, of ceasing to be himself only to eventually return, was a first even for him. \"I feel sick.\" The horrifying experience made him shudder. Feeling a chill coming on, Subaru trembled uncontrollably. Like an old friend celebrating their reunion, death had clawed Subaru Natsuki to pieces. What's more, Subaru hadn't even realized it yet. He was only tens of minutes before the scene of his death, from which he had just returned. The time limit was approaching again, at which point he would have to rise, clench his teeth, and fight. A maelstrom of death enveloped Subaru Natsuki once more. And so it began. In fact, it had already begun.  The loop to overcome the worst day in his life was set here in the Water Gate City of Pristella. CHAPTER 1 *** 1  First came the unstoppable impact that rocked his brain to its core. *** His heart pounded like it was pumping confusion through his entire body. He wheezed painfully, forgetting how to even breathe. Convulsions racked his chest, and a heavy sheen of sweat coated his back. The urge to throw up wouldn't go away. All he could hear was an incessant ringing and the cacophony of his own racing pulse. His vision flickered between black and red, as if his fragmented mind was sea-foam rocking on the surface of the water. He had no idea where he was or what he was doing  \" ru.\" For a moment, he heard an unknown sound pierce the veil of hazy oblivion clouding his senses. He blindly searched for the source like someone swimming in the ocean at night, groping around in the murk. Ever so slowly, his thoughts broke the surface of his consciousness, and  \" Subaru!\" The voice sounded like a silver bell. It called out to him again and pulled the loose pieces of his being back to reality. \" Ah.\" After his consciousness returned, Subaru Natsuki rebooted. As he gradually recovered from his blue screen and his eyes turned back on, the first thing he noticed was two dazzling violet jewels or rather, violet eyes staring at him. He saw the concern in Emilia's face as she gazed at him. She gently stroked his cheek with her hand. *** The light touch of her slender fingers urged Subaru's senses to recall their purpose. He could see the garden overflowing with green, smell the hint of flowers on the soft breeze, and hear the playful babbling of the nearby fountain. With these details coloring in the blanks, he finally regained a firm grip on reality. This was the moment that Subaru noticed he had been holding on to"}, {"text": "someone's hand the whole time. It was small, warm, and familiar. When he turned to his side, he was met with a pair of round eyes. \"Bea...trice...\" \"Have you managed to calm down, I wonder? You were worrying me.\" Beatrice let out a soft breath of relief as she continued holding Subaru's hand. Seeing that she was sitting on the grass, Subaru belatedly realized he was on the ground as well. This was also the moment that he realized there were two others present besides Emilia and Beatrice. \"Pheeew, you gave us a real scare, Master Subaru. For a moment there, I was worried I wouldn't make it. Your humble Liliana still has not learned many funeral hymns, you see...\" Liliana the Songstress was expressing her delight at Subaru's apparent recovery with a rather peculiar choice of words. With one hand, she braced her beloved lyulyre against her hip as if to visibly illustrate her incredibly unique concern. Standing beside her was Priscilla, who was wearing an expression that didn't show a single shred of acknowledgment regarding Subaru's poor state. She casually fanned herself with the idle composure of someone who was wholly unconcerned. That was so in character for her that it ironically set him at ease. *** After taking stock of everyone around him, Subaru slowly rose to his feet. His head felt leaden. It was almost like his eyes, ears, nose, and skin were trying to keep up with someone suddenly changing the channel while only his soul stayed behind, still tuned to the old one. That sensation lingered as Subaru took in a deep breath. There was something he had to confirm for himself. \"Subaru, are you sure you don't want to rest a bit more? You really don't look well...\" \"I'm all right. Just a little dizzy from standing up. More importantly, Emilia-tan...weren't you going to have Liliana sing another song right about now?\" \"Wha?! Why is that the first thing you want to know?! Not only did you have no reaction to what I said, but now I'm also being utterly ignored! You wound me, sir! I demand restitution! Restitution for my heart!!\" When Liliana grasped his sleeve with the force of someone determined to drag him off to court, Subaru immediately brushed her aside. The Songstress cried with a \"Gaaah!\" as she was flung away, but Subaru paid her no heed and looked straight at Emilia. Picking up on the intensity of Subaru's gaze, Emilia nodded. \"Yes, that's right. Just now, we were talking about asking Liliana to sing the song we haven't had a chance to hear yet. That's when you and Liliana started whispering about something, and...\" \"Which brings us to the present. Got it. Tha...\" Thank you, and sorry. Right as he was about to thank Emilia for her explanation, something echoed in the back of Subaru's mind. *** It was the verbal tic of the bandaged maniac who appeared at the time tower Sirius Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti. In most cases, those magic words were used to convey gratitude and show consideration for others. But for the moment, Subaru couldn't think of them as anything other than the sinister incantation of some dark sorcery. When he recalled what that basket case had done while reciting those magic words, all he could think of was  \"...Oh. That's right; I...\" Subaru stumbled upon a sudden realization. One moment, he was trapped in Wrath's crazed delusions, and in the next, he was back with Emilia and the others. It wasn't because he had miraculously managed to escape in one piece. No, quite the opposite. At some point in the madness and the chaos, Subaru Natsuki had shuffled off this mortal coil. He had died again. And in death, Subaru Natsuki had returned, so that he might challenge fate once more. \"Shit...\" Coming to terms with that fact, Subaru's breast burned with relief and nigh-unendurable anger. Over a year ago, Subaru refused to willfully hurl himself into the jaws of death, instead resolving to challenge whatever hardship or ordeal that barred his path with every iota of strength he could muster. That was the answer he had reached during the Witch's Trial in the Sanctuary. Despite his big talk, he had failed spectacularly. Never mind resisting death; he'd actually run straight into its waiting embrace without even realizing what he was doing. \" Ah.\" And now another revelation dawned on him. He didn't even have time to feel self-loathing as an eruption of shame consumed him. It had taken him this long to notice. His grasp on the flow of events, his situational awareness, his thoughts all of them had been lacking and superficial. Liliana's second song, the tension that hung over Emilia and Priscilla, Subaru running off to buy them snacks all those things immediately preceded his encounter with the cryptic stranger, at which point he lost his life and promptly Returned by Death. Coming back to this moment in time could only mean one thing. Barely fifteen minutes remained until that eccentric's nightmarish speech would begin again. \"This can't be real...\" Still in shock, Subaru didn't know how to even begin dealing with his new reality. As soon as he realized what situation he'd landed in, he was so overwhelmed by sheer urgency that it felt like his eyes were swimming. His reaction was completely understandable. Never before had his return point been so close to his demise. To date, Subaru had been given loop times ranging from several hours to several days. It had been Subaru Natsuki's fight to make the most of that time limit and change any dead-end futures. For this go-around, that time limit was short extremely, painfully short. What in the world could Subaru accomplish with a mere fifteen minutes? \"...Am I an idiot? No, of course I am. There's no time to screw around. I gotta be the one to put a stop to it.\" As he bemoaned the incredibly harsh limitations he'd been saddled with, Subaru reprimanded himself to force his thoughts back on track. This was an opportunity that no one except Subaru was granted more than once to begin with. It was too much to ask for his second chances to be tailored for his convenience. He had to do his best according to the conditions granted to him. He could complain all he wanted after his life was snuffed out if it came to that point. \"Beatrice! Come with me and...\" \"...And what, I wonder?\" Subaru impetuously turned around, ready to charge ahead when his words caught in his throat. Beatrice cocked her head in confusion. The enemy was an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. Asking Beatrice for help and fighting together with her was the right choice without her, Subaru's options dwindled, and his combat strength wouldn't even amount to half of what it could be. Even though he knew this full well, Subaru hesitated to seek Beatrice's cooperation. It wasn't because he was afraid of exposing Beatrice to danger or because of other sentimental reasons. His relationship with Beatrice had crossed that line of resolve long ago. Then what was causing Subaru to waver? It was Emilia. She was there. *** That eccentric had called herself Sirius Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, the Witch Cult's Archbishop of Wrath. Petelgeuse, also an Archbishop, had doggedly targeted Emilia. Wasn't it safer to assume that Emilia would also be in Sirius's sights as well? That worry had a stranglehold on Subaru's heart. He was afraid of leaving Emilia by herself. It terrified him to even think about letting someone precious to him out of his sight. The tragedy of never-ending sleep that had befallen Rem had struck Subaru with a strain of cowardice that he could not shake off. That's why  \"Beatrice, are you...\" \"Am I...?\" \"...fine with getting the same sweets as everyone else?\" Subaru was still wearing a deadly serious expression when he posed that trivial question. Of course, that didn't sit well with Beatrice as Subaru drew closer to her suspicious face. \" Could you stay with Emilia? I'll rest easier if I know you're with her.\" \"...I suppose there is yet another thing you cannot share even with Betty.\" \"Sorry, but when something comes up, you're the first person I count on.\" Though he knew it was low of him, Subaru was relying on Beatrice while withholding details about what was going on. She sighed at his reply as Subaru turned toward Emilia. \"I'm gonna go for a little run and buy some drinks while getting some air. You can just chill here and listen to the dangerous Songstress's song while looking graceful as always, all right?\" Somehow managing to flash a smile, Subaru spoke in a laid-back tone as he tried to take his leave. But then  \"Wait.\"  right before he was about to break into a run, he felt someone tugging at his clothes and stopped. When he checked to see who it was, Subaru found Emilia grasping the sleeve of his jacket, gazing at Subaru as if she wanted to say something. He'd been incredibly sloppy. Of course Emilia was suspicious. Therefore  \"Subaru, please, please be careful. Don't do anything rash.\" Emilia swallowed her doubts and only asked that he keep his wits about him. Her thoughtfulness made him happy. \"Yeah, of course. Just sit tight and trust me. I'll protect you?\" \"Okay. Take care.\" With that final comment, she let go of his sleeve, blushing a little. \"I have it. Please listen: Show me your mettle.\" \"All right, I'm off! I'll be right back...or at least, it'll feel like I'll be right back!\" Ignoring the Songstress taking inspiration from the scene to fuel her creative juices, Subaru properly broke into a run. Approximately ten minutes remained until the nightmarish speech began a time limit short enough to make him cry. 2 It didn't even take five minutes to sprint to the square that contained the time tower where everything would go down. Since it had taken him some time to confirm the situation after Returning by Death, he had left the park later than his previous time going there. Skipping the shopping trip let him make up some of the lost time, but  \"With a limit of fifteen minutes, there's no telling how fatal it might be to show up a few seconds late.\" That was even truer because he currently had an overwhelming lack of information. The worst of it was that Subaru didn't know what caused Return by Death in other words, he hadn't isolated what killed him. The circumstances surrounding his latest death were simply that bizarre. An Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins had appeared atop a time tower and somehow convinced the audience Subaru included to joyfully listen to her mad speech. In the end, even when Sirius hurled an innocent boy from the top of the tower, Subaru and the others only reacted with eager applause as they watched the young child's head shatter against the ground. That was when his consciousness cut out, followed by Return by Death immediately after, so all he could gather from that was... \"Do I know anything other than the fact that I basically lost my mind?\" Sirius had created an anomaly, but everyone present had accepted it like nothing was out of the ordinary. Many would find it tempting to consider it a type of madness or perhaps some sort of mental corruption. What memories Subaru was able to retain after coming back were heavily influenced by his state during the instant he died. Considering his mental condition at the time, he felt compelled to question the reliability of his memories. \"Man, I already made it.\" Arriving at the square with labored breaths, Subaru surveyed his surroundings. The familiar time tower was deeper inside the square, and lots of foot traffic flowed by its base. This area was part of the most prosperous district in the city. There were far more people than Subaru remembered, and they were streaming around the place without pause. Fortunately, he couldn't spot any"}, {"text": "groups or even a single individual clad in a telltale black outfit among them. He hadn't seen any Witch Cultists around Sirius during the speech, either. Perhaps Sirius was acting alone. Even if that was true, it didn't mean that the threat posed by the Archbishop was diminished in the slightest. \"Now, what should I do? Evacuating the square...would be tough. I'd need way more help to go around convincing people. Besides, doing something like that might tip off Sirius.\" For an instant, he considered causing a commotion to forestall the tragedy that was about to take place, but he quickly decided that was probably a really bad idea. To begin with, Sirius's heinous actions had not targeted anyone in particular. It was indiscriminate terrorism if anything. If he let her get away, she'd eventually just do the same thing somewhere else. That would be a hollow victory. The Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins were creatures of pure evil that had to be rooted out at the source. \"If only I had time to head back to that Japanese-style inn and get one or two people to help... Damn it all!\" After griping about some wishful thinking, Subaru slapped his cheeks with both hands. Then he gazed forward with a firm look of resolve, glaring at the ominous time tower. In a few more minutes, Sirius would appear at the top of that white tower and raise the curtain on her wicked performance. That meant she must already be lurking inside it at this very moment. Of course, Lusbel, her young captive, would be in there as well. \"The hell? It's unlocked...\" He noticed that the entrance was an old iron door set unobtrusively in the rear of the time tower. When he tentatively put a hand on it, the unlocked door swung open with ease. Hesitating for only a second, Subaru quietly stepped into the belly of the yawning structure. *** The interior was dark. The putrid air was cold and reeked of dust. Though they functioned much like a clock tower, time towers were magic crystal timekeepers and did not have any clockwork mechanisms whatsoever. The tower's interior contained only a support pillar at its center and a spiraling staircase, which climbed upward along the walls. Thanks to that, the inside of the tower was quiet and still. Subaru winced at how audible his footsteps were here. \"...Nnngh, mmm, hngh.\" Then a faint, crying voice abruptly broke through the veil of silence. Subaru craned his neck to look higher. The noises of distress were coming from the upper part of the tower. He was sure it sounded like the voice of a child crying while being dragged along  \" Don't cry, don't wail, and don't make a fuss. You truly are a good child. A strong child who protected someone precious to you. Surely your family, and even your younger brothers and sisters you have never set eyes upon, will always think of you with pride.\" He could hear a sinister voice. Those words were undoubtedly directed at the sobbing child. They sounded like both a blessing and a curse overflowing with resentment, an intense mix of love and hate. This was twisted. That one utterance was enough for Subaru to tell that the speaker did not possess a sound mind. *** They were above him. The moment he knew that for certain, Subaru let out a heavy breath, then went still. Putting a hand over his racing heart, Subaru stepped onto the spiral stairs. Fortunately, walking silently was one of the skills that his mentor, Clind, had instilled in him over this past year. Leading with his heels before slowly shifting his body weight forward, Subaru inched toward the top of the tower with stealthy steps. At the topmost floor, there was a window that allowed for inspection of the magic crystal timepiece and was accessed via a loft that served as a maintenance space. Cautiously, he peered into that room from midway up the stairs, managing to catch sight of some silhouettes wriggling in the darkness. There was no sign of anyone else in the vicinity. He was almost certain that these figures were Sirius and the hostage. *** Seeing his chance, Subaru moved a hand behind his hip and slowly drew his weapon a whip from its holster. It shared a deep resemblance with the bullwhip that was favored by a certain archaeologist who often raided old ruins in a world-famous series of films. The main difference was that Subaru's whip was longer, which naturally made it more difficult to use. However, under Clind's strict tutelage, Subaru had somehow managed to rise to an acceptable level of mastery over the last year. The whip that Subaru held now was a custom gift he'd received from his mentor as a sort of graduation present. Taking inspiration from the name of the demon beast that had provided the materials, Subaru had dubbed it the Guilty Whip. It was perfect for tricks and feints and that was precisely why Subaru had chosen the whip from among numerous other weapons. Subaru had laid eyes upon many swordsmen since his arrival. The world of martial arts was not so forgiving that he could match a professional overnight. Furthermore, if he had anything to be proud of, it was his cunning. And thanks to his mentor's tutelage, now even Subaru had cards he could play in a situation like this. \"Looks like it's about a dozen or so feet.\" Eyeballing the distance between the end of the stairs and the shifting silhouettes, he could see that his target was right at the edge of his whip's range. He needed a step or at least half a step closer to guarantee a hit. Either way, a whip didn't pack enough punch to land a one-hit knockout. If he was going to use a whiplash as his opening gambit, he couldn't rely on brute force so instead, he'd make use of height. He took a shallow breath, then held it. He decided to attack from a range where he could hit for certain. Surging forward, he wound up his right hand to ready his whip as he cleared the stairs. The silhouettes still weren't looking in his direction. The initiative was his for the taking. *** Taking half a step forward, he swung his right arm like he was circling it overhead. That sidearm motion emphasized speed over force. As it took flight, the whip was too fast to track with the naked eye. This was another reason Subaru had chosen the weapon: It gave him the ability to quickly land a blow against opponents far stronger than he. At this rate, the whip would reach the defenseless back of his target, wrapping around her neck and giving him a chance to hurl her down the  \" Why are you so angry?\" Right as he thought his attack would connect, his target suddenly posed a question, back still facing him. Almost simultaneously, the silhouette swung her hand without even turning around. With incredible speed and accuracy, the chain that was wrapped around that hand collided with Subaru's whip, robbing it of all momentum and knocking it down. Subaru's eyes shot open, but the moment he felt his whip make contact with the chain, he yanked his arm back hard. \"Oh my.\" The hook hanging from the chain's end had gotten tangled with Subaru's whip, giving him a chance to throw Sirius off-balance. Subaru followed up quickly with a ferocious charge, ramming her with his shoulder. \"Uraaaaah!\" \"Wah!\" Raising a delicate cry, Sirius's unexpectedly light body went over the railing, turning halfway before vanishing from sight. Just as he'd planned, she fell from the landing and was hurtling straight down to ground level. It was more than a sixty-foot drop from the top floor, tall enough to crack open a child's head like it was an overly ripe fruit. \"You okay, Lusbel?!\" Not staying to watch the strange woman twist and fall to her death, Subaru raced over to the other person still on the landing. It was Lusbel, the pitiable boy who was fated to be hurled from the tower. His body was already wrapped in a set of chains, which tightly bound his lower half. He looked like he was in pain, but the most repulsive detail was how the boy was gripping the end of the chain that was wrapped around his own body. There was only one thing that could mean. \"She made him chain himself...?!\" Subaru seethed as he realized the demented events that must have led to this moment. This young boy had been forced to sign his own death warrant. Just how much fear and horror had Lusbel endured while doing this? Simply imagining it made Subaru sick to his stomach. \"It's all right! You've done enough! You don't need to put up with this anymo...\" \"B-but...if I don't keep my promise, Tina will... Tina will...!\" When Subaru tried to undo the chain, Lusbel resisted with tears in his eyes. The name on his lips the name of the boy's childhood friend whom Sirius had mentioned previously made Subaru draw a sharp breath. This boy had accepted a deal with the devil to spare his childhood friend from a terrible fate. Even while enduring such a harrowing ordeal legs shaking, teeth chattering, and tears coursing from his eyes his main concern was still his friend. \"It's...all right. There's...lots of dependable people in this city, so...!\" Subaru did his best to console him. He wanted to be as emphatic as possible to reassure the young boy. At the moment, the Sword Saint, the Sword Devil, and the Finest of Knights were all in the same city. The kingdom's greatest healer was also present. Losing didn't seem possible with all of them a stone's throw away. That's why there was no need to be afraid. Evil would not triumph here. It was true. It had to be true. There was absolutely no need to be afraid. None whatsoever. \"That's why...my legs need to quit shaking already!!\" Subaru raised a frantic yell as he fell to his knees in front of Lusbel, whose eyes had shot open in fear. Subaru's voice cracked, carrying notes of grief and terror. It almost felt as if some alien revulsion was coiling around his entire body and refusing to let go. \" Urhkgh!\" Before his eyes, Lusbel writhed, then bent over and vomited, spewing yellow stomach fluids. Convulsing like he was having a seizure, the boy collapsed onto a pool of his own sick. When Subaru tried to brace him, Subaru was suddenly assailed by the sensation of something clawing at his own insides and he also threw up on the spot. Subaru promptly pitched forward just like Lusbel had  \" That you are so afraid is proof of your kind heart.\" \"Ngh, gaaaah!!\" The same moment he heard that voice, Subaru screamed from the searing pain that struck his left shoulder. With a powerful yank, he was dragged backward until he collided with a railing and flipped over it. He went into a tailspin and was hurtling to his death only to suddenly stop halfway, suspended in midair. \"Wha...?!!\" \"Thank you. And I'm sorry.\" Having cleared the railing and fallen, Subaru had no way to answer. The reason was physical rather than emotional. After all, a chain was wrapped around his neck, while the hook on its end dug deep into his left shoulder. When Sirius twisted and fell earlier, she had apparently thrown her chain to drag Subaru down and used the resulting force to propel herself back up. Now she was the one looking down with a smile at Subaru, who was suspended by the chain around his neck. Subaru flailed as he kicked his legs in the air and vomit trickled from his constricted throat. As she watched Subaru struggle for his life, Sirius nodded several times with visible delight. \"People can understand one another. People have the ability to become one."}, {"text": "Kindness is not for our own sake. It is for the sake of others. Kindness shines brightest when it is offered freely. To be kind to oneself is mere selfishness. A far cry from true kindness! As such, your concern for others makes your kindness bright as the sun! Ahh, ahh, ahh! In other words, it is love!\" \"Ugh, agh, bngh...\" \"Please savor the feeling. Please show me your love, the chains of your limitless kindness, your noble desire to save young Lusbel!\" As blood and vomit continued to spill from Subaru, Sirius embraced the filth-covered Lusbel before him. She rubbed her cheek against Lusbel's, marring her white bandages with the boy's yellow stomach fluids in the process. \"Your gentle soul felt Lusbel's fear. Through you, young Lusbel experienced your fears that had been born from his. And then that additional fear that young Lusbel felt flowed back into you. In this manner, you shall feel the same joy, sadness, terror, and even the pain of being wrung by the neck, until by the loving embrace of death do you part \" Those rambling words rained down on Subaru from above. In that moment, he was far too preoccupied to dismiss her words as delusional and nonsense. The reason was that everything, from voices to the very air itself, had become an object of fear for Subaru. The entire world scared him. If everything that he laid eyes on was scary, then he should have just closed his eyes, but when he realized that darkness itself was terrifying, this thought combined with the worry that he might never see light again if he closed his eyes, making his entire body freeze stiff, because comprehending that fear made him afraid that he couldn't comprehend fear anymore, which was a terrifying thought in and of itself, because if the whole world was made up of terrifying things and fear was the only truth of the world, then fear gave way to fear that would make fear fear's  \"Oh my. It would seem you are at your limit. Compassionate people who love and feel deeply are beautiful but at times fragile... Ahh, people love, and so they suffer. But it is because of love that people's lives have meaning. What a very complicated thing. Well then, I shall borrow little Tina's strength next. Young Lusbel, young man, you two have earned your rest.\"  reason that dulls the value of life which allows creatures to defy their natural instincts and functions meaning fear is necessary so it's only natural for people to feel fear so it's nothing to be ashamed of and if anything it'd be pointless to not be afraid but it would probably be through thought experiments like this that he'd challenge the fear that gripped his entire body because otherwise why was subaru even scared scared scary scared scary scary i dont feel so goobebebebababababababaabararadagaddagagadaradadada  3 \"After the song, we'll have a pleasant chat, so could you prepare some snacks, Master Natsuki? Do you not think that sweets will make everyone happy and bring us all closer together?\" The moment he blinked, the world changed before his eyes. Subaru immediately lost his balance, smashing his head into the girl who was winking and holding out an expectant hand toward him. \"Waaaghaaa?!\" \"Agh!!\" A hard thunk echoed as Subaru saw stars in his eyes. The sharp pain sent Subaru reeling, leaving him wondering what happened as he took a step back. Something crashed onto the grass in front of him, but Subaru paid it no heed as he rubbed his own head. \"Wh-what just...?\" \"What are you muttering about, Subaru?! You just headbutted Liliana out of nowhere! You can't do that. Even if you're upset, you need to at least warn them beforehand.\" \"That's right. Before you resorted to violence, should you not have admonished her right around the time she made that clumsy wink, I wonder?\" \"Was it really that bad?!\" Offended, Liliana leaped back to her feet. Emilia and Beatrice traded looks, seemingly pondering how to reply to her question as she recovered from her fall. Struck by shock at the silent pause, Liliana flopped down and splayed out once more. \"What a ridiculous farce. Do not infringe upon my little bird, peasant. I will not overlook it a second time.\" Unexpectedly, Priscilla actually sided with Liliana. She had apparently taken quite a liking to the Songstress, if the sharp look in her eyes was anything to judge by. But Priscilla's warning did not elicit a single word from Subaru as he checked the state of his own body. \"...Makes me sick.\" That was all Subaru could gloomily muster after his second run-in with that walking enigma, who hadn't changed in the slightest. 4 Upon his second Return by Death, unprecedented fatigue ate away at Subaru's psyche. Experiencing two deaths in a short time frame was undoubtedly a large burden, but the greatest source of his distress was the fact that he had lost his mind twice over. Though both episodes had their differences, he'd tasted mental collapse via mania and psychosis in rapid succession. During the second instance, he'd experienced his very sense of self break down. He never wanted to go through that again. He wondered if the ultimate cause of his second death was cardiac arrest from extreme terror or simple suffocation from being strung up by his neck. Either way, he'd paid a high price for trying to save Lusbel by himself. However, Subaru hadn't died twice in a mere thirty minutes without getting anything out of it. Sirius had been kind enough to explain what was happening to Subaru as his life came to an end, perhaps as a sort of morbid farewell gift. \"Fear heightening as it passes back and forth between people...like a kind of resonance, maybe?\" Subaru had felt Lusbel's fear, and in turn, Lusbel had felt Subaru's. With each subsequent pass, that sensation grew stronger and stronger, culminating in an absolute, all-consuming dread that ultimately led to death. Based on Sirius's statements and his own mental collapse, Subaru deduced that this was his opponent's Authority. He was also finally able to infer the cause of his manic episode during his first visit to the time-tower square. That time, all the anger and disgust in the crowd had been overwritten with joy and delight. And inside the tower, the fear that Lusbel felt had passed back and forth between him and his would-be savior, shattering Subaru's mind. In other words, Sirius's Authority of Wrath  \"It lets her toy with other people's feelings however she likes. Shit, that's bad news.\" Just like Petelgeuse's Unseen Hands, it was an Authority, a special power not subject to the world's normal rules of magic. Befitting the title of Wrath, that sinister ability was closely tied to human emotion. In the end, that was all his second death allowed him to deduce with any confidence. The biggest issue was that he still had no idea what conditions were required for activating this Authority, and he didn't have a single lead on how to resolve this situation. It was fair to say that the strategy he employed against Petelgeuse had heavily depended upon luck. Unseen Hands was the Authority of Sloth, and Petelgeuse himself was an evil spirit who had the powerful ability to possess the bodies of others. Subaru just happened to have ways of countering both. However, setting his means of resisting possession aside, Subaru still didn't know what let him see Unseen Hands. At some point since then, he'd learned a skill he called Invisible Providence, which greatly resembled Unseen Hands, but his suspicions remained just that. \"Since Return by Death seems to have something to do with the Witch, I'd hoped it meant the Witch Cult's rule-breaking tricks wouldn't work on me or something, but...\" He had no choice but to discard that line of thinking after Wrath's power had affected him so deeply. On top of that, based on what he could gather so far, the worst-case scenario was that Sirius's Authority simply activated upon contact. It was a distinct possibility that hearing her voice or seeing her in person was enough for him to become ensnared. In that case, the most reliable strategy against Sirius was to blow her up along with the entire building before she emerged from the top of the time tower. That way, she would have no chance to use her Authority. This plan was only possible because Subaru knew Sirius's exact location due to the short time limit imposed by his Return by Death. If he acted immediately, Sirius could be defeated for sure so long as he turned a blind eye and accepted the sacrifice of one little boy. \" As if I'd ever let that happen.\" There was no way he'd ever invoke phrases like necessary sacrifices. For Subaru, even if it meant exchanging one life to save many, losing that one life was like giving up the entire world. If he had already made up his mind to not sacrifice himself, how could he reduce the lives of others to mere numbers? That was the act of a god or a devil, and Subaru had no intention of turning into either. \"I'll save Lusbel and beat Sirius. Gotta make both happen somehow, huh? Man, being Emilia-tan's knight is tough.\" And yet if he couldn't do that, Subaru Natsuki had no value whatsoever. Naturally, he knew full well that the kind people around him would surely forgive such weakness. That's why he had to do it. Subaru wanted to stand proudly beside the people he cared about. If seeing this through was what it took to make that happen, then so be it. That was Subaru's way. \"I challenged her alone and lost pathetically. It's painfully obvious I don't have enough combat power... I need to borrow someone's strength.\" The ideal recruit was someone with so much pure combat power that they could overwhelm Sirius. It would have to be a person who'd believe Subaru's words implicitly and agree to cooperate with him. On top of that, they had to be able to resist Sirius's Authority. He needed a powerful character who met all those conditions and who was close enough to reach the time tower in under ten minutes. Subaru almost laughed at himself for wanting such a convenient ally. \"Oh, right.\" He tried to laugh, but then it dawned on him. There was a certain memory. His first time in the square, he'd come across a particular man. Since that person had also been influenced by Wrath's Authority, he was far from the perfect counter against Sirius, but even so  \" Reinhard!!\" Right as Subaru began to feel ridiculous for seeking out a wildly convenient answer to his problems, he was finally able to remember that a man who was the epitome of overpowered really did exist. 5 He wasn't trying to make excuses for himself, but Subaru's two very quick deaths were a major part of why he had completely forgotten Reinhard's existence and the fact that Lachins, who had been present in the square, was connected to him.  Subaru had experienced death right after experiencing death, and that made it twice that his psyche had collapsed. It went without saying that going through this unprecedented experience in the short span of thirty minutes had left Subaru rattled. He felt nothing but astonishment at how little time this loop gave him and how it didn't leave any breathing room to calmly figure things out. Accordingly, Subaru had been forced to run ahead at full speed until he rammed into something barring his way forward. Desperately trying to come up with a way to persuade a certain man was no exception. \"I finally found you! You're not getting away! Please call Reinhard over right now! It's an emergency!\" \"Like hell I am! I don't wanna hear another damn word of complaint outta that redheaded bastard! Get lost!\" The"}, {"text": "shouting match that erupted in the middle of the street made passersby glance at one another as they wondered what was up. The atmosphere resembled a sporting match as several curious onlookers hurled jeers at them. It annoyed Subaru, but he didn't have the luxury of paying them any heed. After recovering from the shock of Return by Death, Subaru was following up on his earlier conclusion with swift action. Asking Beatrice to guard Emilia just like last time, Subaru left the park, ostensibly to go shopping when in reality, he was looking for Lachins in the square to convey the imminent emergency. But Subaru had gotten off to a bad start and wasn't making any progress. It had taken him so long to find Lachins that Subaru had accidentally grabbed the man's shoulder the moment he happened upon him. He'd apologized several times, but still. \"Anyway, I need you to calm down and listen to me. I'm not joking around. If you don't want to die, get in touch with Reinhard right now.\" \"Huh? You think a snivelin' brat like you can do me in? I don't need Reinhard for this. I can pay ya back right here, right now.\" \"Damn it, you thick-skulled...\" Taking Subaru's words as a taunt, Lachins let his anger grow even hotter. It was difficult to call Subaru and Lachins's relationship favorable to begin with. On top of that, Lachins seemed to dislike Reinhard a great deal, which apparently made him reluctant to rely upon the knight. Of course, that stubbornness didn't even compare with the threat that the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins posed, but Subaru had good reason to not reveal all the details about the current turn of events. That said, at the rate things were going, the situation would only deteriorate, which didn't leave him much of a choice. Suppressing his instinctual fear, Subaru touched his hand to his chest. \"Lachins, this isn't a joke. I want you to call Reinhard because someone who neither of us can lay a hand on is up to no good.\" \"What are you goin' on about? Talk sense, man.\" Lachins snorted, treating Subaru's plea like it was nonsense. The look on his face made Subaru lower his eyes and breathe deeply  Stay away, he prayed privately as he opened his mouth. \" The people coming...might be from the Witch Cult.\" There, I said it, thought Subaru as he let out his breath. Lachins's expression stiffened almost instantly. A moment after he spoke, Subaru looked down at his chest, but nothing had happened. Even though he'd divulged a piece of information gained via Return by Death, no penalty had occurred. \"Nothing this time, huh? ...Well, shit, that's bad for my heart in more than one way.\" Grasping his own collar, Subaru was flooded with relief as he cursed with minor irritation. It had been a year since he'd experienced Return by Death, but Subaru continued to be regularly tormented by the various penalties that he incurred whenever he'd attempted to divulge the existence of his unusual power. In one notable example, he'd decided to reveal everything to Beatrice once and for all, only to experience truly hellish suffering like never before. It was a special present from the Witch of Jealousy the culprit who stood behind those black hands. The penalty almost seemed to say, Forget about everything that transpired when we parted back at the Witch's Tea Party in the Sanctuary. Given the circumstances, Subaru still had yet to disclose the existence of Return by Death to Beatrice or anyone else. Of course, so long as it didn't call abject suffering down on himself, he fully intended to tell his partner Beatrice everything that he could. He'd spent a long time trying before reluctantly giving up. Either way, the important part was that he'd been able to convey to Lachins the coming Witch Cult attack without activating the penalty  \"Hey, brat, how serious are you about what you just said? This ain't some kinda ruse, right?\" \"It's Subaru Natsuki. Stop calling me 'brat' already, Lachins.\" Lachins, who had lowered his voice, clicked his tongue as he received Subaru's reply. In this world, invoking the names of the Witch of Jealousy and the Witch Cult was indescribably serious, enough that even Lachins had changed his expression as he instantly grasped the gravity of the impending situation. \"Subaru, you piece of shit, where the hell did you hear about somethin' like...? Aww, crap. That's right. You're the one who killed the Witch Cult's Sloth guy, huh? Guess you do have some credibility...\" Flicking his tongue piercing with a finger, Lachins tried to figure out how to treat Subaru's statement. Lachins made some speculation that was a little at odds with the facts, but Subaru's exploits were apparently enough to convince him to play along. \"Anyway, are ya saying those guys are gonna show up in this city? Or right here in this damned square?\" \"So you believe me?\" \"You're the one who said ya ain't playin' around. Look, I hate that redheaded bastard's lectures, but I like starin' death in the face even less. If you get it, then watch what you say and how you say it.\" It wasn't exactly trust or faith, but Lachins had made an unexpectedly logical decision. Subaru responded with a quick \"Gotcha!\" and a vigorous nod. \"All right, I'll keep that mind. To properly explain, it's the Witch Cult's Archbishop of Wrath who's coming. She's gonna poke her face out at the top of the time tower in this square. There's no particular target, so she's gonna aim for everyone here.\" \"That sounds just like the Witch Cult, don't it? Shit, how much time do we got?\" \"Probably less than five minutes. So I'd really like to call him now.\" \"Five minutes?! The hell?! Why didn't ya say that sooner?!\" \"That's why I've been asking you since five minutes ago!\" Lachins raised his voice as he suddenly realized how urgent the situation was, but the time limit was a curse that Subaru could not be more aware of. If he had any other choice, Subaru wouldn't be relying on casting a net out like this, either. \"Hey! This ain't a sideshow! Get lost, ya damn tourists!\" Lachins had judged that you couldn't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs. Rudely howling at the people crowding around his and Subaru's argument at a distance, he thrust his right hand toward the sky. \"Lettin' magic fly inside the city with nothing goin' on is against city regs. Ya better be there with me to explain.\" \"I'll do that much any day. I'll lick someone's boots if I have to.\" \"And you call yourself a knight?!\" An instant after Subaru's reply left Lachins dumbfounded, Lachins unleashed a red light from his palm toward the sky. The flare spread in the middle of the sky, making the heavens glow and glimmer as if he'd launched some small, cheap fireworks. To be blunt, it was hard to expect much from something so puny, but it was surely enough to summon that hero. \"Gotta say, though, never thought I'd be working together with Larry toward the same goal like this...\" Subaru wanted to believe that such deep sentiment was a sign he'd made the right decision. If this brought Reinhard running, then surely it would drastically change the situation.  That vague sense of relief had caused Subaru to forget a natural concern. That moment, he had a thought that would have never occurred to him fifteen minutes ago back during the second go-around. *** The people in the square looked up at the light in the sky, raising voices of surprise and wonder. Accordingly  \" My. A ball of fire off in the distance. It glows so prettily. Thank you.\" Naturally, when she heard the fuss outside, the bandaged enigma came out into the open. 6 Leaning her body forward from the top of the white tower, Sirius seemed to be in a very good mood. Even if the bandages kept her expression hidden, her voice overflowed with emotion. Sirius savored the red, magical glow floating in the blue sky before clapping. \"Yes! Now then, everyone, so sorry to interrupt. Good day to you all!\" The thundering sound of her clap echoed loudly, and the audience, which had been focusing on the Goa spell that Lachins had unleashed, reflexively turned toward Sirius. \"No, don't look!!\" Worried that this was the condition for her Authority activating, Subaru yelled out in warning. However, no one heeded his words and averted their gazes. Of course not Subaru himself had done the exact same thing that they did upon coming into contact with Sirius for the first time. The eccentric was instinctually provocative. Her words and actions made you unable to look away. \"My. You have gone quiet far sooner than I thought. It is surely because these two drew everyone's attention before I came out. Thank you. Applause, please!\" Clapping as she spoke, Sirius indicated Subaru and Lachins with her chain-wrapped hands. Amid sparse applause, Subaru endured the terrible chill running up his back as he desperately turned his head away in the hopes of escaping from the effects of her Authority. However, it was probably too late for that. After all, Subaru already found himself unable to cover his ears. Subaru had deduced that the condition for Sirius activating her Authority was for a potential victim to see her or hear her voice. Therefore, at first, he thought that maybe averting his eyes or plugging his ears might be enough but what did he need to cover his ears for anyway? After all, Sirius's voice was so soothing. \" Ah.\" Before he realized it, Subaru had turned back around, staring right at Sirius. For Sirius's part, she swayed her body with delight when she noticed Subaru was gazing up at her. The hooks at the tips of her chains clattered as they scraped along the floor, and this metallic sound pierced Subaru's mind. \"Yes! It took nineteen seconds until all of you looked in my direction. I'm so sorry, but this is joyous indeed. Also, it would appear there is a child here thinking of me with much more intensity than I expected. Now, I should introduce myself.\" As the massive audience gazed up at her in silence, Sirius politely bowed her head. As she did so, she peered down upon the square with only one eye uncovered. \"I am the Witch Cult's Archbishop of Wrath my name is Sirius Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti.\" Normally, the repulsive being invoking that terrifying name would be regarded as an object of fear and hatred. And yet the throng of people accepted it as if it were the name of a neighbor whom everyone knew. Sirius gently acknowledged this mild reaction, smiling and nodding like a benevolent mother. \"Tee-hee, thank you. I am so sorry to make all of you spare time for me like this. But rest easy, for it will be over in short order.\" Gently, like that of a mother reading a picture book in her child's bedroom, Sirius's voice had a lulling effect. All they wanted was to hear her voice more. That impulse was so strong that  \" Oh, really now? In that case, I should finish this sooner rather than later.\" This new voice was deeper and more caring than Sirius's hollow affections. The emotions that had been sinking deep into the bodies and minds of Subaru and the others in the square were shaken. *** Sirius opened her eye wide while Subaru and the rest of the audience joined her in turning toward the edge of the square as one. Their gazes fell on a waterway flowing behind the square. The normally gentle stream of water was flowing backward as something was moving through it with incredible force, kicking up a spray of water in its wake. His vivid red hair blazed like a beautiful, flickering flame. He had eyes that seemed like a"}, {"text": "polished cut of a magnificent blue sky. He was built so handsomely that any manner of being might fall for him.  This man was the epitome of what all people pictured in their hearts when they heard the word hero. \"Looking for the shortest route took some time. I'm sorry I'm late.\" The hero apologized for running over in thirty seconds rather than five. The Sword Saint stood in the square after taking a path that no one else could as his so-called shortcut or, more specifically, having accomplished the superhuman feat of running upstream. Then when he caught sight of Wrath, who was standing atop the time tower, he took a breath. As he hardened his blue eyes, a short \"I see...\" was all that emerged from the Sword Saint Reinhard. \"I understand why you called me here. You made the right decision, Lachins. Or was it you who summoned me, Subaru?\" Slowly, Reinhard walked over and patted Subaru and Lachins both on the shoulder. Instantly, strength returned to their totally immobilized bodies. \"R-Reinhard...?\" \"Yes, it is I. This seems to be quite a predicament. That's an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, isn't it?\" As Subaru called out to him in an unsteady voice, Reinhard nodded firmly. The palpable wariness visible in his serene blue eyes showed that Reinhard had instantly realized the danger that Sirius posed with a single glance. Gulping at how quickly he'd understood, Subaru replied with an awkward nod of his own. \"She...she has the power to brainwash other people. Seems like we're okay for now, but it happens when you hear her voice or look at her.\" \"No, it's not only her voice and appearance. It would seem that anyone who merely knows she exists is affected. It's possible that I won't be able to maintain my composure for very long.\" \"No way, even you...?!\" Subaru was stunned seeing Reinhard acting so meek. Though he had no basis for his belief, he'd thought that Reinhard of all people would be all right. If even he wasn't immune to Sirius's Authority, then Subaru's plan was already falling apart. And during this exchange between the two, Sirius reacted as well. The bandaged eccentric gazed steadily at Reinhard with a purple eye. \"Could it be...? You with the red hair, are you the famous Sword Saint?\" \"That's correct. I am Reinhard van Astrea, current holder of the title of Sword Saint. Unfortunately, I have yet to merit such a lofty title.\" Reinhard boldly confirmed Sirius's suspicions. Coming face-to-face with the most powerful being to set foot in that square, Sirius was far from being afraid and actually cried out with an \"Ah-ha!\" She shouted and squirmed in place. The eccentric's cracked, high-pitched laughter echoed toward the sky. \"Ah-ha! Ah-ha-ha! Ahh, what a splendid turn of events! What a fortuitous day it is for you to have come like this! You are known as the most splendid knight in all the land! Everyone loves you, and you love everyone! You are the living manifestation of the hope, the very love that I preach!\" \"I wonder about that...\" Sirius writhed with emotion, getting incredibly worked up as she flew into what was truly a wild dance of mad delight. Meanwhile, Reinhard was still engaging in conversation with Sirius, who continued rambling, though he didn't so much as look in her direction. This was far too risky against an opponent with an Authority that joined minds in mutual madness. \"W-wait, Reinhard... It's not a good idea to keep talking with her. It has to be bad. I think...it's bad. I'm not really sure why, though, but...\" \"...So it would seem. Putting my own interests aside, this is not something that should be drawn out for long.\" \"Reinhard?\" \" I will do what you called me to do. It's time to deal with the issue.\" With those final words, Reinhard took a single step forward, slightly bent his knees, and leaped up. His stance made it seem as if he were just jumping over a puddle in front of him but the resulting gale-force winds, the tremors that shot through the ground, and the shock wave left in his wake made everyone in the square draw in their breaths. As astonishment rippled across the crowd that he left behind him, Reinhard used that explosive power to rise high into the air. \"Hee-hee-hee! Ahh, how extraordinary!!\" As the Sword Saint shot out a kick at her from below, Sirius crossed her arms to shield against the blow. Her body was easily launched far into the sky above the tower. \"Wh-what in the...?\"  Isn't...isn't this basically aerial combat...? After taking flight to attack Sirius on the high ground, Reinhard followed up by leaping off the edge of the time tower to pursue his opponent, whom he'd already kicked even higher. \"Hee-hee!! Ahh, what overwhelming power!\" As she watched the hero soar after her from below, Sirius swung her arms as her voice trembled with delight. Hooked chains flew toward Reinhard, slicing through the air with more of a roar than a whistle. Those razor-sharp hooks could easily punch through the human body, and the sinister chains were no less dangerous, as they could shatter bone on impact. The cacophony of chains rattling seemed to make the very air groan, conducting a symphony of violence and destruction as they snaked toward the Sword Saint. Sirius exhibited incredible skill as she freely manipulated the flight path of her chains in midair. There was no mistaking that Sirius's mastery was beyond the ability of any ordinary human. One look was all it took for anyone to grasp this.  That was why what happened next shocked everyone. \"Chains? How troublesome.\" The Sword Saint frowned, focusing on the chains that rattled sinisterly as they homed in on him. Then the spectators were left dumbfounded at how the grimacing Sword Saint dealt with them. \"Hee-hee-hee!!\" Sirius laughed. It was unclear whether the laugh was an expression of enjoyment or desperation. But for everyone else watching, what could they do but laugh as well? She slammed her chains down in a hail of blows but Reinhard did not draw his sword. According to what Subaru had heard once, it wasn't that he chose to not draw his sword. He simply couldn't. The holy sword that Reinhard possessed was designed to be impossible to draw except against a worthy opponent. As such, Reinhard was challenging Sirius unarmed. Even Reinhard should have difficulty fighting her under such circumstances or so Subaru thought, but that was proof that he didn't truly understand Reinhard yet. *** The raging chains attacked in concert, letting out high-pitched cracks as they were thrown back one after another. The sight of the resulting shock waves and scattering sparks was such a ferocious display, it made Subaru and the others on the ground feel like lightning was crackling above them. Reinhard was holding his ground with footwork that surpassed all comprehension. He met the first strike with the sole of his shoe, purposefully wrapping the oncoming chain around his ankle, instantly gaining control of the hook on the end and using it to knock down each and every subsequent attack. All that happened in the span of less than a second, meaning the only ones capable of tracking Reinhard's unconventional movements were the few seasoned warriors present. As soon as they realized what they had just witnessed, they would abandon any attempts to understand what was going on. The audience was suddenly struck with the impulse to laugh. They released the breath they had been holding and let the tension drain from their shoulders. It was good that Reinhard was on their side. If he'd been an enemy, that scene would have left them with buckled knees and weakened bladders. \"Hee-hee, hee-hee-hee! Ah-ha-ha-hee-hee-hee!!\" Seized by a totally different impulse, Sirius kept on laughing. Of the two sets of chains wrapped around the eccentric's hands, one remained coiled around Reinhard's foot. With her options dwindling, Sirius launched a wild flurry of attacks with her left hand to try and beat the hero down, only for her attacks to fail in a shower of sparks. The erupting fireworks showed no sign of stopping or slowing. The blue sky seemed to be burning white. But before the air itself was reduced to smoke and ash, the Sword Saint finally closed in on his mysterious attacker. \"To think you would push me this far! Incredible!!\" \"You are quite skilled yourself. I can't help but be disappointed all the more seeing you use your talents for wicked deeds.\" The instant the two crossed paths, they traded words as well as mighty blows. Reinhard pulled his right foot back, replacing it with his left hand in a chop. Sirius counterattacked with a downswing that had such force, her golden chain seemed ready to split the sky itself in half.  Seeing that solid metal chain being severed with a single hand chop was nothing short of astonishing. A long time ago, Subaru had seen someone use a chopstick to slice a bag of chopsticks as a sort of party trick. If it were Reinhard, he was sure the man could do the same thing to a steel sword like it was made of paper. Reinhard's hand strike was so sharp and beautiful that Subaru believed that with all his heart. The twirling golden chain that Reinhard had severed twirled around, breaking through the time tower's wall and whirling somewhere within. It was when Subaru saw smoke and rubble falling down onto the square that he finally came to his senses. \"I'm such an idiot. This isn't the time to gawk. If Reinhard has her pinned down, then...!\" At that very moment, the boy held captive inside the time tower was out of Sirius's sight. Pulling himself out of his dazed state, Subaru darted through a gap in the crowd and raced toward the time tower. He'd free the hostage Lusbel and get rid of his worries in one fell swoop. He also needed to make sure that Reinhard didn't have to deal with Lusbel being used as a human shield. Even inside the damp and murky air of the time tower, the battle between superhumans was just as audible inside as it was outside. Focusing on the task at hand, Subaru dashed up the long, spiraling stairs. \"Lusbel!\" \"Ngh! Mnnngh!!\" On the topmost floor, Subaru spotted a young child chained up right beside the inspection window. When Subaru picked up the hysterically sobbing Lusbel, the boy desperately shook his head and struggled. Subaru knew he'd taken the place of his childhood friend out of concern for her well-being. \"Don't worry, I'm on your side. That bandaged freak is our enemy, and right now, she's got her hands full with a superhero outside. That's why I'm getting you out of here while I can.\" Patiently explaining the situation to the writhing boy, Subaru seemed to get through, as Lusbel stopped flailing. When Subaru saw reason rather than fear gradually return to the boy's eyes, he nodded reassuringly. \"You just wait. I'm gonna get those chains off right now.\" The still-anxious boy nodded in acknowledgment as Subaru carefully unraveled the chains binding him. When he finally freed him from the chains, which stretched from shoulder to ankle, and removed the one that was serving as a gag, relief finally appeared on Lusbel's face. \"Good, they're off. Can you stand on your own? If not, I'll carry you.\" \"I-I'm all right... Tha-thank you very much...!\" Rising on trembling legs, Lusbel summoned his courage and thanked Subaru. His face was still marred by tears, but Subaru had seen his bravery several times now. It was worthy of praise. Nodding in respect, Subaru turned his attention beyond the window to the ferocious battle still raging outside the tower. \"One wrong move, and this whole place might go down. Let's get outta here. You hurt anywhere?\" \"Earlier, my left hand got a little...\" Lusbel grimaced as he showed Subaru"}, {"text": "his injury. The boy's left arm sported a dark bruise and a cruel laceration, like a snake had been wrapped around it. Seeing how the wound seeped with blood, Subaru twisted his face in anguish. \"Did that asshole really have to hurt a little kid like this? Tying one up wasn't enough?\" \"No, that's not it. This...started hurting all of a sudden when I was tied up earlier.\" \"Wait, what?\" Lusbel's words made Subaru furrow his brows. He recalled that Lusbel's body had been completely ensnared from his shoulders down to his ankles. If the boy's arm hadn't been injured before being tied up, there was no way it could have been injured afterward.  The contradiction left Subaru's chest throbbing with a deep foreboding. \"...Let's go. Either way, we can't stay here.\" Leading Lusbel by his uninjured right hand, Subaru raced back down the spiral stairway of the tower. The two descended down to the lowest floor and proceeded outside. The instant the two emerged, the scene unfolding in the square before them was  *** \" Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!\" There were thunderous calls for murder. The crowd screamed for blood, for the execution of the stranger who was on the ropes. Their eyes were bloodshot, and their teeth were bared. Their hatred was born from the physiological revulsion that accompanied enmity, and every one of their negative emotions culminated in an all-consuming desire to kill.  The sum of these phenomena was wrath. \" Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!\" Standing shoulder to shoulder with complete strangers, they raised their voices for a single purpose. \" Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!\" Before this ordeal, their hearts had coalesced into one, all sense of good and evil superseded by the demands of extraordinary circumstances. \" Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!\" This union, this simple honesty, this pure act of will, this was  \" Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!\" \" To become one is that not love? If so, then this is nothing short of a utopia that gives rise to true love!\" In a scene straight out of Hell, Sirius spoke in a voice that was tinged with ecstasy as the crowd continued braying for blood. With her back against the time tower, the maverick stood on the ground, finally cornered by the hero. The nearby crowd demanded her death, as though their screams would empower the Sword Saint, whom they had entrusted with their bloodthirsty intent. Sirius had apparently completely lost the chain on her left arm at some point in the time that Subaru had spent in the tower. That meant both fighters were now equally unarmed, but not a single person present thought she could beat Reinhard in a fair fight. She was clearly in mortal peril and yet Sirius continued to laugh, her demeanor wholly unchanged. \"Do you have any last words?\" \"Thank you for your thoughtfulness, and my apologies. I shall share a warning. The other Archbishops are not as polite as I. Should you ask them for their last words, a terrible fate shall surely befall you.\" \" I will take your warning to heart.\" In response to Reinhard's charity, Sirius offered a provocative message that seemed to be coming from a place of genuine concern. The Sword Saint dutifully acknowledged her as he raised a flat hand to carry out her execution. \" Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!\" The voltage of the audience rose even higher as Sirius's life seemed to be nearing its end. And yet Subaru, still standing at the entrance of the tower, couldn't ignore the terrible chill stirring in his chest. He desperately searched for an explanation, a clue of some sort, but he simply couldn't think of the right thing to say. If he opened his mouth now, that incomprehensible misgiving would cause a flood of words to pour out. \"To understand one another. To yield to one another. To accept one another. To forgive one another. To become one like this is the purest form of love.\" Heedless of the anxiety gripping Subaru, Sirius opened her mouth to recite her creed. On the surface, what she said sounded correct, but the instant he thought about Sirius's ways, they mutated into the logic of an abominable heretic. This incorrigible distortion was the Witch Cultists' true nature. Reinhard seemed to have reached the same conclusion as Subaru. Deciding there was nothing left to say, Reinhard stepped forward. Sirius simply laughed, stretching her arms toward the sky. The next moment, chains shot out from the sleeves of her robe as if fired out of a cannon when the chains hidden inside her surged forth, they bit into the walls of the tower as they wrapped around the eccentric's body all at once. During that shameless attempt to flee, Reinhard closed the distance, effortlessly slipping through the air. Leaving footprints behind on the paving stones, the red flame chased the fugitive into the sky. His raised, flat hand was an instant-kill weapon equal to a holy sword or a demonic blade the instant it connected, Sirius's life would be forfeit. \" Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!\" The throng's cries would be answered. Unspeakable terror raced up Subaru's spine with incredible force, a harbinger of something irrevocable. \"Reinhard!!\" Obeying his instinct, Subaru called out the name of the hero. And then with equal force, he shouted: \" Kill her!!\" Reinhard's open hand shot forward. Tracing a white line, he neatly bisected Sirius's body from the left shoulder to the right flank. The blow was so keen that it took several seconds until the body noticed that it had been split in two. Belatedly, blood gushed from the massive wound as Sirius's severed lower half fell away. \"...Ahh, what a kind world.\" Sirius whispered deliriously as she split apart, her innards spilling out. With chains still wrapped around it, her upper body scattered gore and viscera as it sailed through the sky, while the lower half trailed blood like a gushing fountain as it spun down toward the square. It was a terrible spectacle that would make most want to avert their eyes. But not a soul in the square did. They could not. \"...No...\" Turning back, Reinhard stiffened as a word of utter shock trickled out. His blue eyes swayed with confusion and remorse. Subaru saw the despair spreading across his beautiful face. And that was the last thing Subaru saw. *** Subaru and the other spectators had all been cleaved in two, transforming the square into a lake of carnage. Each of them bore a wound like a filleted fish, all neatly severed from the left shoulder to the right flank. His blood and organs scattered about, Subaru's mind vanished without any idea of what had just happened. But in his final moment, he thought he felt something. The right hand of the boy... The right hand of the boy, who had been severed in half just like Subaru, seemed to faintly grasp Subaru's left hand in search of salvation. He thought he felt that. 7 \"After the song, we'll have a pleasant chat, so could you prepare some snacks, Master Natsuki? Do you not think that sweets will make everyone happy and bring us all closer together?\" *** \"Oww! Owww! That hurts! That hurts, Subaru!\" A moment after he blinked, a certain voice made Subaru jump in shock. He had been using every bit of strength he could muster to answer the hand that sought comfort from him from right before his consciousness had gone out while squeezing Beatrice's little hand. Subaru's sudden act of violence made Beatrice kick his shin with tears in her eyes. With that tiny spike of pain bringing him back to his senses, Subaru released Beatrice and stepped back. \"Wh-wh-what is the matter? To suddenly try and break Lady Moppet's hand... What a poor way to treat such a lovely hand. I might even offer to lick it, hoo-haaah...\" \"Is that not quite unnecessary, I wonder?! Do not suddenly draw so close with such a repulsive demeanor about you!\" When Liliana tried to rub the injured hand against her cheek, Beatrice shook her off and immediately hid behind Subaru. The inexplicable attack on her hand hadn't dented Subaru and Beatrice's bond in the slightest. Sadly, there was no time to find relief in that happy observation. \"Subaru, are you all right? Your face has suddenly gotten very pale.\" \"E-Emilia-tan...\" Coming near, Emilia gently touched a hand to Subaru's cheek with a look of distinct concern. Subaru drew a sharp breath when he saw himself reflected in her violet eyes, which were rimmed by long eyelashes. He'd returned once again. *** He patted his shoulder and side, checking to see if he was still in one piece. He'd experienced terrible deaths before, including getting his belly torn open and his head smashed apart, but this was the first time he'd died from a proper slashing. At the instant of his death, a sense of surprise and loss won out over pain. But that hadn't been the only cause of his enormous sense of loss  \"This is the first...or, actually, the second time I got done in completely due to friendly fire, right?\" As Subaru tried to make sense of the memories he'd returned with, his death demanded his recognition and acknowledgment of what had happened. And this time, when Subaru looked back at what had occurred in his final moments, he was able to grasp exactly what had brought about his demise. \"But that's just broken...\" Subaru's death was identical to how Sirius had died only moments earlier. They had been killed the exact same way. That incomprehensible fact explained his first death when he watched Lusbel fall to his doom. When they saw Lusbel plummet to his death, Subaru and the onlookers suffered the same fate all at once. In other words, Sirius's Authority not only created a resonance of emotions but also transferred physical conditions. \"What am I supposed to do...?\" Reinhard joining the fight had certainly fulfilled Subaru's goal of striking down Sirius at the cost of a great deal of lives in the square, rendering all their efforts meaningless. Leaving things up to Reinhard had looked like the right choice at first, but knowing what he knew now, it had clearly been a mistake. \"Subaru...\" \"Ah.\" Emilia and the others looked on in concern as they watched Subaru fall into silence with a difficult expression on his face. For the moment, his priority was to avoid needlessly worrying them further about the Witch Cult being in the city. With that in mind, Subaru quickly recomposed himself. \"Ah, yeah, uh, it's nothing, really. I'm just a little... Oh, I know! That daisukiyaki we had this morning came back with a vengeance, and it's giving me some serious heartburn.\" \"Ahh, I completely understand that feeling. The same thing happens to me quite a lot. Sometimes, when I mean to burp, I throw up instead, and other times, I pass a little gas the wrong way, and...\" \"You don't need to finish that thought. You're technically a young lady, you know? Please never bring that up again.\" Stopping Liliana in the middle of what was clearly supposed to be an outrageous joke, Subaru flashed Emilia a smile. For the briefest of moments, that charming smile made Emilia's lips tremble before she replied: \"If you insist, I'll take you at your word, Subaru... But only this time, okay?\" \"Yeah, I hear you. Thanks... Anyway, I'm gonna follow Liliana's suggestion and go play errand boy for a bit. You just sit back and enjoy her song, all right, Emilia-tan?\" Appreciative of Emilia's thoughtfulness, Subaru saluted as he played the fool. Then Subaru took Beatrice's hand in a natural fashion while she hid behind him. \"Beako, you're on shopping detail with me. We can be lovey-dovey the whole way there.\" \"Wh-what are you saying all of a ? Yes, I understand.\" Beatrice's face instantly went red as she instinctively got ready to make some retort, but she calmed down immediately instead the moment she saw Subaru's expression. She'd deduced something when she noticed in"}, {"text": "his gaze the hope that he could rely on her. \"Emilia-tan I'll be back soon.\" \"...Mm-hmm.\" With Beatrice in tow, Subaru said his farewell to Emilia before setting off from the park. He was unspeakably worried about leaving her by herself. At the same time, he could no longer think of any other way to break out of the dead end that he found himself trapped in without borrowing Beatrice's strength. It was in that darkness with no way out in sight that Subaru ran alongside his partner. \" Hmph.\" Little did he know, a certain red-eyed girl stared intensely after them as they left. CHAPTER 2 *** 1 \"And? Would you finally explain what is going on, I wonder?\" After putting a fair amount of distance between themselves and the park, Beatrice determined that Emilia and the others were no longer within sight or earshot. Only then did she relax her pace and ask him about the situation, their hands still joined. As Beatrice tried to stop walking to hold a proper conversation, Subaru said \"Sorry\" as he pulled her along. \"Subaru?\" \"If I could, I'd really like to have a nice, long chat about this in a place without anyone around, but there's no time. We don't even have fifteen minutes.\" \"...Very well. May we at least discuss it while walking, I wonder?\" Seeing the obvious apprehension in Subaru's expression, Beatrice did as he asked without a word of complaint. Relieved by just how quickly his partner had adapted and adjusted, Subaru hurried over to the square as he tried to explain the jumble of thoughts in his mind. \"Right now, we're heading toward a place where a Witch Cultist is about to show up. We've gotta stop 'em.\" \"The Witch Cult...\" As Beatrice drew in her breath, Subaru carefully tried to choose his next words. What made that difficult was the penalty for divulging information related to Return by Death. As long as he only shared the same details that he told Lachins, there shouldn't be any problems. The fact that he didn't know this for certain was one of the things Subaru really hated about the Witch's curse that bound him. Whenever he tried to share information about Return by Death, evil black hands would come to inflict a penalty the severity of which seemed to be based not only on the details contained in Subaru's words, but also whom he decided to tell them to. In other words, the degree of information he could convey depended entirely upon the Witch's whims. If that wasn't the case, what else could've been responsible for crushing Emilia's heart after he revealed the secret to her? He never, ever wanted to go through that again. If someone had to get hurt, then better it be Subaru. Of course, the thought of that frightened him, but it wasn't unendurable and it was far better than watching those terrifying hands turning on someone other than him. Even if the Witch held back somewhat with Subaru, she showed no mercy to anyone else. That was why he was being incredibly careful. \" There's no need to make such a worried face.\" \"Beatrice...\" \"You clearly cannot disclose where you came by such timely information...but do I even need to know, I wonder? If Subaru says it is true, that is enough for Betty to believe.\" When Beatrice gently squeezed his hand and gave him a bold smile, Subaru's eyes went wide. \"...Damn it, Beatrice. You really are a lifesaver.\" The best partner he could ever ask for was supporting his spineless self, assuring him he wasn't alone. \"Heh-heh. Is that not obvious, I wonder? Now, let's start with whatever you can share.\" \"Right. First, the Archbishop of Wrath is gonna show up...and she's a pervert.\" \"...If you think that is the piece of information you absolutely needed to share first, I suppose I have no choice but to immediately take back what I said earlier.\" \"I'm still trying to figure out what's safe to tell you. Looks like talking about occupation and perversion doesn't come with a punishment. Well, next is her Authority... It's like...resonance between senses and emotions.\" \"What does that mean?\" Cocking her head quizzically, Beatrice's eyes made it clear that she didn't understand. She could hardly be blamed. Despite having actually experienced it, Subaru still found it mind-boggling himself. \"...I can't see what kind of threat a synchronization of senses and emotions might pose.\" \"Basically, you stop thinking that dangerous things are dangerous. Anyone affected has their emotions go haywire and can't properly judge situations or act... I've had my fill of that one.\" He remembered how the crowd had raised both arms high to welcome the screams of a boy who didn't want to die. From any objective observer's standpoint, that hellish scene must have been utterly revolting. But what was truly terrifying was that everyone there thought they were in some kind of heaven. \"...I suppose I understand the resonance of emotions somewhat. What is this resonance of senses, then?\" \"If the other person feels pain, you feel it, too. Cut off the Archbishop's head, and everyone watching will lose their heads, too... Insane, right?\" When he said it aloud, the hopelessness of it left him practically in awe. Even if they managed to kill their target, they would die, too. Put bluntly, it was hard to think of an ability that was better at making an opponent hesitate. Because of Return by Death, Subaru had a unique chance to discuss countermeasures beforehand, but it was simply unacceptable to take great pains to win the battle only to get dragged down by the vanquished in the end. \"It's pathetic, but I don't have a single card to play. That's why I want to borrow your strength and intellect.\" \"...Well, of course you do. If anything, isn't relying on Betty the natural thing to do, I wonder?\" As she gradually came to grips with the situation, Beatrice assuaged Subaru's concerns. \"I guess you're right... We could also play Reinhard as a wild card, but...\" He revealed to her the possibility that Reinhard might be their one ray of hope. \"...if Reinhard's there, we don't have to worry about him losing to any enemy. But if the Archbishop dies at his hands, the problem is that everyone else is gonna get annihilated because they'll die the same way.\" That was exactly how Subaru had lost his life last time. The possibility of capturing Sirius alive occurred to him, but with no way to convey the finer details of such a plan to Reinhard, Subaru couldn't eliminate the danger of Sirius's resonance kicking in if she was knocked out. If they made even the slightest mistake in neutralizing her, the entire kingdom might very well be destroyed by her sinister \"soulwashing\" ability. As Subaru mulled over how to make use of Reinhard, Beatrice raised a tiny hand. \"Subaru, there's something I must tell you. It's bad news.\" \"...Seriously? I don't really wanna hear any more bad news than I already have if I can help it...\" \"I suppose I understand what you mean. Still, I must mention it nonetheless... Should Reinhard and I stand upon the same battlefield, your Betty will likely be reduced to simply being an adorable girl.\" \"Huh?\" Beatrice's sudden announcement stopped Subaru in his tracks. \"You don't mean that you won't be able to do anything because you'll be too busy swooning at him, right?\" \"This is no time for jokes... Is it a physical characteristic of his, I wonder? Reinhard is the epitome of abnormalities in this world. His mere presence causes nearby mana to blindly follow suit. Wouldn't any magic user or spirit caught up in that cease to function normally, I wonder?\" \"Wh-what the hell? Is that even...?\" Possible was what Subaru had been about to say when he recalled what had transpired at the Water Raiment the day before. Right after his first reunion with Reinhard in ages, Beatrice had been particularly wary of him. If that hero really did have such an abnormal constitution, then everything suddenly made sense. \"If it's something Reinhard had any control over, Betty would indulge him and play the adorable little girl. However, if it is not an issue Reinhard can resolve by himself \" \"Then a choice that leaves Beako unable to act ain't much of a choice at all, huh?\" The appearance of a new, immense obstacle shattered one of Subaru's sources of hope. As usual, Reinhard defied all convention. Unfortunately, that aspect of him was incredibly inconvenient. \"This is bad... Never mind asking him for help. Him showing up would just make things even more difficult...\" It wasn't anyone's fault in particular. The cards in Subaru's hand just happened to be terribly mismatched. Emilia, Beatrice, Reinhard any one of them was powerful individually, but if they stood together, their conflicting characteristics and the enemy's Authority would prevent them from acting at full strength. All his allies were formidable in their own right. It was Subaru's failure and his alone that he couldn't come up with a strategy that let them reach their true potential. At this rate, he'd end up confronting the eccentric again without so much as a plan  \" Subaru, just maybe... I suppose I might have an idea.\" When Beatrice said that right as they were on the verge of reaching the square, Subaru felt like those words were sent straight from heaven. \"Really?! You have a plan?!\" \"In the end, it is merely a possibility. If the Archbishop's Authority is as you describe, does that not sound very similar to the high-level spell Nekt, I wonder?\" \"Nekt! Yeah, now that you mention it, that spell's effect really does resemble Wrath's Authority!\" Seeing Subaru shouting in surprise, Beatrice raised a finger, wagging it as she nodded. \"Ordinarily, I suppose Nekt is a spell for conveying messages between allies without requiring words. To employ it in this manner... It would be the highest of heresies. Is there anything more unforgivable, I wonder?\" Beatrice took great pride in her magic, so it was natural that she was disturbed by the thought of someone misusing it. Now that she mentioned it, Subaru recalled relying upon Nekt to fight at Julius's side once, though he would've preferred to forget that episode if he could. That was because sharing his vision had been the only way to grant Julius the ability to see Petelgeuse's Unseen Hands. This was the proper application of Nekt. It was never supposed to be used as a power to bind others like a curse. \"Moreover, Nekt is not magic that works on just anyone. At minimum, I suppose you would need complete harmony between both subjects of the spell. The Archbishop's Authority clearly disregards that requirement.\" \"It's probably an Authority that forces people to link together. More importantly...\" \"You want to know a way to counter it, I suppose? Put simply, this is Shamak's time to shine.\" \"It's Shamak time! As per usual, it's way more useful than it should be!\" Beatrice's explanation made Subaru unwittingly shout and clench his fist in celebration. That was how great the existence of the spell called Shamak was to Subaru. In times of suffering, times of bitterness, times of danger, and times of distress Shamak had been there with Subaru through it all. Before he'd formed a pact with Beatrice, it was no exaggeration to say that Shamak had lent its strength to the powerless Subaru just as much as Rem and Patlash had. After Subaru had wrecked his Gate and was unable to use magic on his own, he'd assumed his relationship with Shamak had come to an end but was Shamak now going to come riding to Subaru's aid once again? \"I see... Shamak, huh...? If we use Shamak, I'm sure it'll manage to come through for us somehow...!\" \"Even though it is a beginner-level spell with precious few uses, why do you have such a mysterious level of faith in it, I"}, {"text": "wonder...?\" \"Hold up! I won't let anyone trash-talk Shamak, even if it's you, Beako...!\" \"In all seriousness, what happened to make Subaru this obsessed...?\" Sighing deeply, Beatrice thrust the tip of her finger at Subaru's face even as he got all worked up. \"Shamak forcibly prevents the spell's target from sensing the world around them. The strength of the effect scales with the skill of the caster, but for Betty, casting it on anyone is a simple matter.\" \"Meaning...?\" \"I suppose I could put every person within the enemy's range under Shamak's influence. If our opponent compels comprehension and resonance, then Betty simply needs to sow incomprehension and chaos among them.\" \"Hearing you put it that way makes it sound kind of terrible...but I get what you mean now!\" Subaru slapped his knees, completely convinced by Beatrice's reasoning. Her solution had addressed every single one of Subaru's concerns, and she was proud of herself for suggesting it. \"Okay, let's go! If we can nullify that ability, the battle will swing in our favor. After that... Uh, what comes after?\" \"The only remaining task would be vanquishing the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins without Reinhard, no?\" *** The point that Beatrice bluntly raised pressed Subaru into silence. \"Just so you know, Betty will be focused on using Shamak, and it will also be necessary to cast Shamak upon anyone fighting the Archbishop the moment the enemy is defeated. Won't I be too preoccupied to do anything else, I wonder?\" \"Damn, okay. Well, this ain't good. We're back where we started.\" Having come this far, the initial hurdle had reappeared Subaru lacked combat strength. With Beatrice as Subaru's only backup, even if they could block the soulwashing, defeating Sirius on his own was out of the question. It irked him that the whip he'd practiced with so much would be of little use. \"I'll just have to talk to the people in the square when we... Nah, there's no way to know if they'd buy it. I just happen to know his face, so I managed to convince Lachins to hear me out, but...\" There were several people who seemed like capable fighters at the time-tower square. Unfortunately, the real difficulty was persuading them to cooperate. \"In the first place, how do I get them to help when I don't even know what they're capable of? I need to think of something better than that...\" \" If that's the case, since you know what I can do and you can be sure I'll listen to whatever you have to say, maybe it's my time to shine?\" *** The sound of a voice like a silver bell totally wrecked Subaru's train of thought in the span of an instant. The all-too-familiar voice made Subaru and Beatrice turn around with looks of surprise. Behind them, a beautiful silver-haired girl was standing there with her hands on her hips. Her completely unanticipated presence made Subaru draw in a sharp breath, his lips quivering as he raised a question. \"E-Emilia-tan? What are you doing here...?\" \"You were acting really strange, so I assumed you were involved in something awful. I think it's a bad habit of yours to keep me out of the loop when things like this come up, Subaru.\" Emilia glared at Subaru as she scolded him like he was a naughty child. Subaru was too surprised by her sudden appearance to muster a proper response. \"Didn't you agree to wait in the park? Are you a naughty girl, I wonder?\" Seeing as how Subaru was still in a state of shock, Beatrice answered instead as she peered up at Emilia. Emilia prefaced her reply with a \"Sorry\" before she continued: \"I really did intend to wait. But then Priscilla said...\" \"The girl in red?\" \"She said that if I didn't go after Subaru right away, I would regret it. If nothing was wrong, I planned to go right back...but I can't leave now after seeing you two talk so seriously this whole time.\" Subaru wanted to curse Priscilla, the culprit who'd gone and pressured Emilia to take action. She really did like to stir situations up. This was how she complicated things as if she'd planned it all out in advance. Thanks to her, the situation Subaru had wanted to avoid the most had just come together like it was scripted. \"Emilia, I'm happy you feel that way. I really am, but right now...\" \"The Witch Cult is going to show up, right? I caught a little part of your conversation... Subaru, I won't go back even if you ask me to. I'm not exactly uninvolved when it comes to dealing with the Witch Cult.\" \"Emilia!\" Subaru inadvertently raised his voice as he tried to somehow convince Emilia to change her mind. It wasn't as if Subaru wanted to push Emilia away without good reason. If the opponent wasn't the Witch Cult, he would've immediately asked Emilia for her help. But given who they were facing this time, that was not an option. He didn't need logic or reasoning. It was painfully obvious what a terrible idea it would be. However, Emilia countered Subaru's pleas by drilling into him with her earnest eyes. \"It's no use even if you pretend to be upset. The only time it bothers me when you're angry is when I've done something wrong. It's not me who won't listen to reason right now it's you, Subaru.\" \"Argh...\" Seeing those violet eyes staring straight at him made Subaru falter. On top of that, while Subaru was at a loss for words, Emilia pleaded with him. \"Subaru, I understand that you're doing this to try and protect me. But that just means you'll get hurt again, so I absolutely refuse to turn a blind eye to all this. If you're fighting, then I'm fighting, too. If you're fighting to protect someone, then I'll help, just like you've been protecting me all this time, Subaru...\" *** \"I want a chance to protect you, too, Subaru. I mean, look. You seem like you might cry at any moment.\" He couldn't let his resolve waver, yet Emilia's pleas pushed him to the limit. Subaru had to summon his own courage to keep her away from danger. He needed a heart of steel that could withstand any and all hardship. And yet in that moment, Subaru was afraid. He was scared. He was terrified. Subaru had already lost his life three times in a single hour. Even Subaru Natsuki had never experienced so much death in such a brief span of time. To begin with, even if he had an eternity, it wouldn't be enough time for him to ever get used to dying. Death was always frightening. There was no getting used to it, nor could he allow himself to become numb to it. To be robbed of one's life meant losing a future. It was the denial of one's way of life, trampling on their existence, and a defilement of the soul; that was what being killed meant. Subaru had suffered that fate over and over again. I don't wanna die was the thought that loomed greatest in his mind at any given moment. No matter how much time passed, Subaru Natsuki was unable to conquer that weakness. \"...Subaru, it's time to give up.\" With Subaru unable to mount a sensible rebuttal, Beatrice sighed deeply and spoke for him. \"Beatrice...\" \"Don't you know full well how stubborn Emilia can be, I wonder? Now that she's aware, there is little you can do to dissuade her. Besides, I suppose Betty understands how Emilia feels and has no inclination to convince her otherwise.\" It wasn't that she couldn't. She simply didn't want to. That was what Beatrice, the crux of the operation, had decided. Emilia gazed at Subaru earnestly. Beatrice gazed at Subaru affectionately. Under the pair's gazes, Subaru's heart finally broke. \"...The Witch Cult is probably targeting you. For starters, please put your safety first at all times.\" \"Mm-hmm, okay. I know that you'll come save me even if I get captured, Subaru.\" \"Please don't say something so ominous... Also, how much did you overhear?\" A smile of relief came over Emilia as Subaru capitulated to her demands. Her expression immediately sobered when she recalled what a difficult foe awaited them. \"I caught most of it. A bad person from the Witch Cult who uses magic like Nekt is coming. Beatrice is going to use Shamak to counter that, and we have to beat the bad guy in the meantime, right?\" \"Breaking everything down like that makes it sound like a Sunday morning cartoon, but I guess that's fine. So I can count on your help?\" \"Of course, leave it to me. I've grown lots and lots over the past year, you know.\" Putting both fists in front of her, Emilia assumed an adorable fighting stance. She was a little too relaxed, but she had the plan firmly in her mind. Of course, adding Emilia to the operation didn't alleviate all his worries, but  \"With Emilia-tan and Beako, there's no way we're gonna lose.\" Taking uncertainties and problems and turning them into advantages was just how guys like him rolled. \"On that note, we're here. It's time.\" Between Beatrice's planning session and an unexpected rendezvous with Emilia, they arrived at the time-tower square right before the mysterious interloper was set to appear. The only thing that remained was deciding where to start the operation. To rescue Lusbel from inside the tower, drawing Sirius away from it would be ideal. \"Emilia-tan, that weirdo's gonna pop out at the top of the tower anytime now. When she does, launch a preemptive strike with one big shot, would you? It'd be great if you could knock her off it. After that, assuming Beako can get set up, I want you to start combat on my signal. I'll be providing support.\" \"Yeah, leave it to me. I'll do everything I can.\" Emilia nodded, acknowledging Subaru's instructions. Counting Beatrice, the three-person operation was ready to go. Then right after their plans had been set  \" She's here!\"  the sight of a dark figure leaning out from the time tower's window made Subaru unwittingly tense up. A slender form wrapped in a black robe swayed at the tower's edge. Beneath her, no one else in the square seemed to notice that someone was looking down on them from that vantage point. When seen from a bird's-eye view, it was immediately obvious how fragile the tranquility of a thin layer of ice truly was. With a single action, the stranger peering down from that lofty perch thoroughly shattered the delicate peace. *** Slowly, Sirius spread both arms wide. Though her bandages covered up most of her form, the ecstasy on her face was immediately apparent even at a distance. Finally, just as she was about to bring her two hands together with incredible force  \" Ul Hyuma!!\"  Instantly, a giant icicle appeared directly above the tower and collided with Sirius. A projectile of ice as thick as five Subarus tied together slammed into the tower. The sturdy wall immediately gave way as the icicle's tip impaled the upper structure of the tower. The spectacle nearly made Subaru drop his jaw. \"E-Emilia-tan?\" \"You said to launch a preemptive strike, so I tried my best... Did I mess up?\" \"No, no, good job. You did well... I was just surprised that it was more preemptive than I expected.\" It was Subaru's fault for not giving more precise instructions about the timing, but it was the eccentric's fault for being so unguarded that Emilia didn't even hesitate in her initial attack. That took care of their first problem, at least. Their initial strike had been launched without sparing even a single thought to waiting and seeing what would happen. That was the kind of shock and awe that was needed to score a surprise victory. \"Beako, think we got her?\" \"For the moment, I believe the people"}, {"text": "around us think we did.\" When Subaru posed his question, Beatrice also displayed signs of surprise in her reply. Lowering his gaze to see for himself, Subaru concurred with what Beatrice had said. The people in the square ahead of them were all looking at Subaru and company or strictly speaking, at Emilia after she'd suddenly committed that act of mass destruction. As far as they were concerned, it was Subaru and the girls who were the real terrorists. He could claim This was preemptive attack to prevent actual terrorism all he wanted, but whether the crowd would believe him was anyone's guess. \"Errr, we didn't mean any harm. See, we're...\" \" It's no use, Subaru. Get back behind me.\" Subaru tried to persuade the pedestrians with all the sincerity he could muster, but Emilia pulled him back by his shoulder. Then after she took a step forward to shield him, she raised her right hand and swung it in a downward arc. Instantly, a crack echoed in the air as a blue sword formed within Emilia's hand. It was a beautifully sculpted sword, boasting a slender, icy blade. Emilia trained its tip toward the crowd in the square without any hesitation. \"Whoa, whoa, that's definitely too much! If we talk to them, I'm sure they'll understa...\" \"You're wrong. Look closer, Subaru. Their eyes they aren't sane.\" \"What?\" Gasping in response to Emilia's tense observation, Subaru studied the various people in the square. After a brief examination, Subaru noticed it, too. This was definitely not normal. Bulging veins marred the faces of everyone glaring at Subaru's party, and their bloodshot eyes gleamed red, not white. Every last one of them wore the exact same expression. Their cheeks were twisted, teeth bared like fangs as growls rose from their throats these were the products of nigh-unendurable emotions of wrath. \"Beako! Is Shamak ready yet?!\" Facing a frothing mob to the front, Subaru called out to Beatrice. However, the girl who was the linchpin of their plan ruefully bit her lip at the sight of the throng. \"...I've made a mistake.\" \"What?\" \"This blasphemy is fundamentally different from Nekt! This is closer to a curse or a hex than any proper magic. I suppose you could call it manipulation of souls themselves! This is not something a mere Shamak can deal with!\" Beatrice's voice trembled with anger and distress. Hearing that, Subaru gritted his teeth. He didn't understand the principles at work in detail, but it was enough to know that Beatrice had judged that Operation Shamak could not be salvaged. And the fact that the people in the square were being consumed by a tremendous wave of emotion far beyond the norm meant that  \" It reeks.\" He heard a single word trickle out in a muted voice, like someone was casting a curse. It was a vicious word that seemed to resent all existence. \"It reeks. It reeks. It reeks. It reeks. It reeks. It reeks. It reeks. I?t?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?r?e?e?k?s?! It reeks! It reeks, it reeks, it reeks!!!\" A moment later, cracks ran along the icicle that had slammed into the upper portions of the time tower and impaled itself in the wall. In the span of a single breath, new fissures ran along the entirety of the mass of ice; an instant later, the icicle shattered into glimmering fragments. Standing among that dazzling diamond dust, which scattered under the rays of the sun, a single eccentric stood. She was not unscathed. Half of her white bandages were soaked with blood, and the tower's white wall was marred by the ichor dripping from her dangling left arm. As she stepped clear of the fallen rubble, her gait seemed unsteady. However, the insanity and ferocious emotions residing in the madwoman's eye was nothing like what Subaru had known until then. \"It reeks...horribly... The stench of a woman. The filthy, abominable, awful stench of the half-demon that stole my precious from me. Even though you are not my precious, your fetid odor bears a remarkable resemblance. Aaaah, how dreadful!!\" On the scant remains of the tower's top floor, Sirius clawed at her bloody bandages. He'd never seen her spit blood and send spittle flying as she shouted in pure hatred. Even if she was just as insane as before, her madness was taking a very different form. \"Have you come to test my love, spirit?! Are you not satisfied with stealing my precious from me, filthy half-demon?!!\" Spreading both arms wide in anger, Sirius screamed and lunged forward. As she hurtled from the top of the tower down toward the ground, the madwoman spouted flames from both hands as she raised them overhead. The crimson fire enveloped the chains around her hands, tracing a flaming trail behind her as Sirius landed in the square. Landing on all fours, both of her hands still burning, she lifted her face. She trained her eye upon Emilia, who held her ice sword at the ready, and Subaru, who was standing stiff  No, she was actually focused on Beatrice, who was standing out front as if to shield Subaru. The next instant, Sirius shouted in a voice drenched in enough rage to burn the entire world to ashes. \"I am! A member of the Witch Cult! The Archbishop of Wrath!\" Bathed in the waves of heat emanating from those rising flames, the crowd in the square raised shrill voices, and all of them lifted their arms high. The waves of insanity and flames were completely at odds with Subaru's memories, and within that maelstrom, the madwoman introduced herself. \" I am Sirius Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti!! Shitty half-demon and shitty spirit, I will burn you both to ash, then scatter your remains before the grave of the husband you burned!!!\" 2 With crimson flames residing in both hands, Sirius bellowed in rage, her face as fiendish as an ogre's. She was enveloped by her own dazzling inferno, and the zeal in her eyes burned just as bright. The avatar of Wrath glared at Subaru's party  No, that wasn't accurate. After all  \"It reeks, reeksreeksreeksreeksreeksreeks you reek, you shitty half-demon...!\"  as Sirius hurled more insults, Subaru's existence didn't even register within her eye. Sirius's undivided gaze, one that seemed capable of searing someone to death with looks alone, was aimed at none other than Emilia and Beatrice, the two girls standing at Subaru's side. \"The hell's wrong with her? This is totally different from what she looked like every other time...\" Subaru could not hide his uneasiness at seeing Sirius's wrathful transformation and where her hatred was directed. In a very short span of time, Subaru had confronted Sirius on three occasions, and during each encounter, she had been though he hesitated to use the word normal. In those fleeting meetings, even if it was extremely difficult to call her a person who possessed common sense, she had also never acted like a creature that had abandoned all reason. She'd been logical to the end, a morally bankrupt person trying to impose her pet theories on ordinary folk who failed to understand her vision, and that was it. The version of Sirius before his eyes now stood in stark contrast this was Wrath incarnate. \"I burn you and burn you, and still, you keep crawling out like maggots... You must hold some grudge against me, eh?! I am sad and depressed, yet I cannot be allowed to even grieve! Just how much...how much will you take...?!\" \"...I don't have any idea what you're trying to say.\" When Sirius began sending spittle flying with every word, offering nothing but blame and accusations, Emilia didn't give any ground as she replied. She didn't flinch or pull back a single step from the fiery verbal assault. She steadily trained the sword of ice in her hand on the crowd lined up behind Sirius. \"If you're angry about something, I'll hear you out. I'm the one who attacked you all of a sudden, so it's natural for you to be angry. But this has nothing to do with the people around us. Let them go.\" \"Don't look down on me from your high horse! If you wish for me to yield, then show it through your actions! It's only natural to be angry? Then apologize! Grovel and beg for forgiveness! And then I'll roast you from your ass to your bowels!!\" \"Hmm. Words don't seem to be getting through  In that case, I have ideas of my own!\" Enraged, Sirius blinked hard at Emilia's casual change of tone during their brief exchange. A moment later, Emilia leaped up from the ground, going from a low stance to lunge at Sirius. Emilia's slender body cut through the air as she swung the sword of ice with her arm, tracing a beautiful arc toward the top of the madwoman's shoulder. \"Emilia?!\" \" Tch!!\" Subaru's shout of surprise overlapped with Sirius's sound of irritation. Seeing the icy blade approaching her left shoulder, Sirius instantly raised her left arm in an attempt to counter Emilia's blow with blazing flames. However  \"You shitty half-demon!!\" \"Don't repeat that insult over and over. People will think I'm dirty or something.\"  the pale tip of Emilia's blade did not lose to the flames as it collided with Sirius's raised left arm. However, the coiled golden chains enveloped in wreaths of fire gave off a high-pitched creaking sound as the ice sword crashed against Sirius's flaming limb. But fire and ice battled for only one brief instant. A second later, Emilia's weapon audibly shattered. \"Serves you right!\" Leaving only its hilt behind, the magic blade reverted to mana. Sirius raised a cry of victory and swung her flaming right arm at Emilia. It was a brutal attack with enough force to split stone walls. The moment it made contact, it would burn and gouge its target, leaving terrible wounds. In the blink of an eye, Emilia's unmatched beauty would be scarred forever but something else happened first. \"Take that!\" With a voice profoundly out of place, she knocked away Sirius's arm this time thanks to what had once been Emilia's ice sword. \"Aah, aaah, aaaaaah! How frustrating!\" Screaming, Sirius crossed both flaming arms above her head. Up above, Emilia was swinging her summoned hammer of ice downward with unspeakable force. She'd produced a maul of ice with a broad, blunt face to replace her broken sword. Sirius flew from that heavy, crushing blow, only for Emilia to give chase. \"Yah! Hiyah! Yah! Take that! Uraaah! Hiyah!\" \"You piece of shit! Half-demon! Maggot! Insect! Whore! Disgusting eyesore!\" With extraordinary body movements and her weapon's centrifugal force, Emilia was displaying far greater close-combat capability than Subaru had ever expected. The swings of the icy maul were weighty, keeping Sirius on the defense. It was a one-sided battle after Emilia completely seized the initiative. Thinking that she might prevail at this rate, Subaru clenched a fist hard. \"We can win this... Wait, right now, that's bad! Emilia! The people in the square are still...\" \"Subaru, is it not a bad idea to let your guard down now of all times, I wonder?!\" If Emilia struck Sirius down, the people around them would share the same fate right then and there. When Subaru tried to point out that danger, Beatrice's expression changed as she scolded him. Wondering what was wrong, Subaru looked back, only then realizing that countless gazes were turned toward him. \"\"\"\"\" You shitty insect!!\"\"\"\"\" \"Aw, crap.\" The crowd shouted as they looked at Subaru as one, rage and vilification pouring from their bloodshot eyes. The madness they trained upon Subaru and Beatrice was identical to Sirius's. It was best to assume they'd been completely soulwashed by Sirius's Authority. Then in accordance with their irrepressible rage, they shifted their hostility toward Subaru and Beatrice. \"So it's not just resonance she can brainwash people and make them into her own pawns?!\" \"This is not the time for such musings. Without a plan, I suppose all we can do is buy some time!\" As Subaru clutched his head over how difficult this situation"}, {"text": "was, Beatrice jumped onto his back. He supported her light body with his hands as the throng came rushing at them all at once. \"Emilia, buy us some time, please!\" \"Don't expect me to do anything too crazy!\" Upon hearing Emilia's dependable reply, Subaru sprang backward to escape from the mob. Fortunately, the movements of people who had lost their sanity were as slow and clumsy as a poorly controlled marionette. \"Whoa! Wow! Cutting through, here! That was close! But now we're all clear!\" Dodging the outstretched arms, Subaru evaded with sideways leaps to keep the throng at bay. The sight of a crowd rushing with empty expressions made it look like a scene straight out of a zombie movie. A similar feeling of terror had soaked into his bones. \"Just running ain't gonna cut it! At this rate, all we can do is wait for reinforcements once people notice the huge commotion!\" \"Without a plan to deal with the opponent's power, wouldn't reinforcements only increase the casualties, I wonder? If we inadvertently cause Reinhard to come running, all that will do is turn Betty into a mere adorable little girl.\" \"Then I'll really become the Moppet Mage... For the moment, no worries about summoning that hero right this moment.\" After all, Lachins, the one who would be their best option for sending Reinhard a signal, was currently chasing Subaru, raving at him with a bright-red face. Carried by the rest of the crowd, he looked like he was on the brink of a clash with one or two of his impromptu companions. When Lachins eventually pushed them back, his fellows immediately tripped over their own legs, causing them to tumble downward. Caring nothing for them, the rest of the crowd walked right over the two fallen while moving inexorably forward. It was a frightening sight. \"I don't think they're feeling pain from all that adrenaline, but it'd be pretty dangerous without that, right?\" \"Given the way they are, it doesn't seem strange for them to trample one another to death.\" \"Well, that's not good!\" Subaru didn't want any casualties. That was the biggest objective he was fighting for so hard. Of course, Subaru understood that there were things beyond his own reach. Indeed, there were far more people whom Subaru couldn't reach. There were so many things he wanted to protect. But there was a limit to what he could do. \" Still, I don't have any intention of deciding that limit myself!\" \"There's the Subaru that Betty knows best!\" Receiving the greatest encouragement possible from behind, Subaru drew his whip from his hip holster. He had to save what lives he could. Accordingly, Subaru emotionally resigned himself to inflicting moderate amounts of damage. Charging toward the center of the throng, he locked onto Lachins, running at the head of the crowd. His target was someone whose face he knew. He couldn't call their relationship a good one, but Subaru's heart struggled with the idea of harming him all the same. \"This is gonna hurt, but better than if it's someone I don't know! Sorry, Larry!\" \"Who's Larry?! I'm... Habhhh?!\" As Lachins shouted on reflex, Subaru unfurled his whip, wrapping it around his victim's ankles. Subaru proceeded to yank the whip upward as hard as he could, dragging Lachins, who'd lost his balance, into the people surrounding him. \"Take a time-out and cool your heads!\" Charging toward him, Subaru rammed Lachins in the back, knocking him into the waterway. While Lachins raised a cry, Subaru kicked several others who were tottering down to join Lachins, removing more and more people from the front lines. \"Now that that's taken care of... Lusbel!\" As he whittled down the number of pursuers coming after them, Subaru raced all the way to the time tower. His objective was to secure Lusbel, who was surely still there on the topmost floor where Sirius had left him, intending to use him in her speech. \"Beako, hang on tight!\" Subaru called out to Beatrice, who was on his back, as the crowd blocked the way before him. Their arms and bodies mercilessly barred the way, but Subaru did not hesitate as he charged into their ranks once more. \"Now I'll show you the improvised parkour that my mentor pounded into me!\" As he shouted, Subaru quite literally slipped past countless legs and bodies as he broke through. These were the fruits of his daily training at the secret base in the forest. The skills that Clind had drilled into him greatly resembled the style of movement that Subaru knew from his world as parkour. Making use of his entire body, he stayed nimble and flexible to skillfully navigate the crowd, cutting right through it. Still supporting Beatrice on his back, Subaru tumbled his way into the time tower with amazing vigor. \"I bit my tongue!\" \"Sorry about that! But saving the hostage up top comes first!\" After answering his partner's objection, Subaru raced up the spiraling stairs with great haste. The remaining members of the crowd pursued from behind, but all their jostling was preventing them from climbing the stairs easily. Seizing the opportunity, Subaru and Beatrice stayed ahead of the pack until they finally reached the topmost floor. When he looked around, he saw that because Emilia's initial blow had half-destroyed the place, the wind could now pass through, making the air quality far better than it was in Subaru's memories. For an instant, his blood ran cold as he considered the possibility that even Lusbel had been blasted to bits, but  \"Nngh! Nnngh!\"  the boy bound by chains was there in a space that had narrowly managed to maintain its original shape. Though it was probably a stretch to say he was safe, Subaru raced over after confirming the boy was alive and in one piece. With Lusbel's bindings already complete, Subaru undid the painful-looking gag and tried to choose the best words to put him at ease. \" Behind you!\" \"Bwah?!\" \"Gah, I wonder?!\" Lusbel's teary-eyed warning made Subaru immediately lower his head, taking Beatrice along for the ride. Instantly, he felt the familiar presence of death whistle by his neck as something passed by. When he looked back, he saw a fox-man who'd leaped onto the uppermost floor to unleash a massive sword strike. The man was one of the people initially at the square who seemed capable of fighting. His white tail swayed as he launched another attack. \"Beako!\" \"Shamak!!\" Giving up on challenging such skill head-on, Beatrice instantly activated a spell that quickly enveloped the fox-man in black mist. The beast person lost all fighting capability while lost in the void proof that Shamak was effective. \"That's the all-powerful Shamak for you! Doesn't this mean the link to Sirius got cut?!\" \"Who said anything about that, I wonder?! Even if he really is neutralized, the link is still active! I suppose it's likely that if that degenerate dies, many others will follow suit!\" \"Shiiit, what do we do?\" \"I'm thinking as hard as I can!\" Leaving the unraveling of the mystery to Beatrice, Subaru could only trust in her and buy some time. The problem was how Emilia was shaping up against the real enemy. \"Emilia is...\" Hoisting Lusbel up, Subaru climbed over the wrecked windowsill and raced to the tower's exterior. Beneath him, fire and ice met each other in a furious exchange as Emilia and Sirius remained locked in combat. Subaru knew that over the last year, Emilia had continually trained herself in between her lessons about governance. Subaru knew very well that Emilia was far stronger than he. Even so, Subaru was worried for her. It wasn't an issue of who was stronger. To Subaru, Emilia was the girl he loved. That was the long and short of it. People might call such worries a trifling matter. But to him, that  \"Terya! Soya! Soooi!\" Raising shouts that, as usual, somehow came off as silly, Emilia looked like she was a raging gale as she hounded Sirius with ruthless ice attacks. \"Eeeiiiyah!\" Spinning her body, Emilia danced as she closed in with twin swords of ice. Sirius swung burning golden chains about, shouting insults as she intercepted the blades, only for Emilia to crouch down as she spawned a new spear of ice, which she immediately used to swipe at Sirius's chest. With a painful cry, the force and impact hurled Sirius across the paving stones, leaving her rolling to a stop on the ground.  Emilia was making full use of her vast mana capacity, launching high-speed combo attacks, fully intending to destroy her ice weapons in the process. When she used the martial art that Subaru had dubbed \"Icebrand Arts,\" the fleeting nature of shattering ice engendered such phantasmal beauty, it was like watching the dance of a fairy. The remnants of ice that were smashed during the battle danced and scattered as glittering mana set the stage for the pair. Emilia and Sirius fire and ice employed contrasting weapons as they continued to pursue their deadly duel. \"Uyaaa!\" Pursuing Sirius as the woman rolled, Emilia twirled her icy spear around, lashing out with its haft. Down below, Sirius used crafty groundwork to evade the butt of the spear, then grabbed hold of it herself. \"It is seething zeal that makes the heart tremble! Aa! Aah! Aaah! Wraaaath!\" \"Wha?!\" In an instant, the spear of ice transformed into a spear of flame in Sirius's hands. When the heat made Emilia unwittingly let go, it was Sirius's turn to go on the offensive this time. The bandaged madwoman twirled the spear of flame, pursuing the leaping silver-haired girl to burn her to death in an aggressive counterattack. \"Those lascivious eyes! That seductive bell-like voice! That licentious, glimmering silver hair! That indecent white skin! That indecent face! Aah, what a filthy woman! Is that how you make men swoon over you so?! Is that how you stole my precious from me, you thieving cat?!\" \"Wha?! Wait a  Please do not say such strange things!!\" Dodging the attack by letting it slide just past her chest, Emilia spawned another ice sword in her hand to intercept it. The three-pronged spear of flame was blocked head-on by a broad greatsword made of ice. The ice creaked as it held against the hungry flame, leaving Emilia and Sirius deadlocked as they glared at each other. \"These eyes, this voice, this silver hair all of them were praised by the people I love! They're the same as the coolest woman in the whole world! If you say any more strange things about them, I'm going to be angry!\" \"Anger?! Anger, you say?! Don't make me laugh! That is mine! That is the treasure that I received from my most precious person! This duty, this name everything I have was a gift from my precious! To try to take this from me... Stop! Stopstopstopstopstopstopstop!!!\" Sirius's voice gradually became even more piercing still, eventually rising to a tearful shriek. The spear of flame in the madwoman's arms snapped, at which point she crossed her arms, slamming the shortened pieces together with both arms. To counter the flaming-sword combo, Emilia split her own greatsword in two, turning them into a pair of ice daggers. But under that torrent of blows, it was Emilia who was on the defensive this time. It wasn't because Sirius had become noticeably stronger. It was the opposite  Doubt had crept into Emilia's heart. Rage readily mixed with grief, and the surrounding people in the crowd moaned in agony as they cried tears of blood. That sight in the corner of Emilia's vision threw her thoughts off slightly. It was then that  \" Wah, aaaah?!\" \"Emilia?!\" Subaru's eyes went wide at the sight of Emilia raising a shriek and dropping her twin daggers of ice. When Emilia fell on her knees to the pavement stones, Sirius laughed loudly with both blazing arms raised high. \"Look! This is love! This is love! People loving one another, the ideal of the many becoming"}, {"text": "one! Bonds are forged by our shared feelings, so that we might experience one another's joy and sadness! That is why this ending has been preordained! O pitiful half-demon, doomed to never obtain love here, you shall burn!\" \"...What love?\" \"What?\" As Sirius crowed over the turning of the tables, Emilia's words brought her pealing laughter to a halt. Before the madwoman's fixated, wide-open eyes, Emilia looked squarely at her opponent's face and continued without fear. \"If I am hearing your words correctly, you seem to think I am mistaken... Why?\" The question that Emilia posed was born from her particularly acute sense of curiosity. But such an earnest plea only poured more fuel on the fires of Sirius's wrath. \"That is because you do not even know the great truth! You filthy half-demon, living without even knowing what love is. And so you must perish! The very existence of a half-demon is a sin! Your birth was a mistake. It was a mistake for your father to meet your mother! When shit and an insect come together, a shitty insect is the only possible result. Your shit-smeared tale will now come to an end!\" *** These were insults that even the kindhearted Emilia refused to pass unchallenged. It was absolute slander, condemning not only her existence, but even her parents for giving birth to her. \"Ooh...\" A trail of light drew a tiny voice out of Sirius as she backed up a step. Emilia had held her ice sword down low and slashed upward. The pale sword grazed Sirius, sending the fasteners of the madwoman's black robe flying. One more step forward, one lunge, and Emilia would land a clean hit. It was with this certainty that she raised her ice sword anew. \" Eh?\" \"Nnngh!\"  Then she saw the girl wrapped up in chains within Sirius's arms, and time stopped. \" Tina.\" Dazed, Subaru heard that murmur spill from Lusbel, who was still in his arms, and Subaru cursed Sirius for keeping the most sinister form of insurance on hand. Matching the instant of Emilia's sword attack, Sirius had suddenly yanked a chain out of thin air. Materializing from seemingly nowhere, a lone girl appeared right in Sirius's arms as her evil gambit succeeded. The golden chains that were coiled around the girl were the same as those that Subaru had seen wrapped around Lusbel inside the tower, and a flood of tears flowed from Lusbel's eyes the hostage was Tina, the very same childhood friend whom Lusbel had supposedly been protecting. Right as Subaru realized the new hostage's identity, anger consumed Emilia as she laid eyes on the crying girl. \" That wrath is wasted on you.\" That was the moment Sirius smiled more wickedly than ever before. She then slammed her right arm against the ground, generating a blast of wind that sent Emilia flying backward. The resulting shockwave kicked up black dust over the center of the square. Emilia rolled onto the paving stones, unable to break her fall. She came to a rest faceup on the ground with her limbs spread out. \"Ah...\" Emilia squirmed about a little, but she only stirred to cough painfully, barely able to breathe. Seeing this, Sirius let Tina drop and roll at her feet as she raised both arms to the heavens. At that moment, the intensity of the flames enveloping them made them burn so bright, they seemed ready to split the entire sky asunder. And with flames still entwining her arms, Sirius boisterously applauded Emilia. \"Such sweet passions are not for insects to embrace. Seeing that is just nauseating  Now then, let me say thank you, and sorry.\" Crossing both arms above her head, Sirius increased the potency of the inferno enveloping her. \"Emilia!\" That instant, realizing that he needed to save Emilia, Subaru leaped down from the top of the tower without hesitation. Trusting Beatrice to soften their landing, he focused only on getting to Emilia as fast as he could. With Beatrice's magic reducing his body weight to nothing, Subaru safely slowed as he approached the ground. He got ready to charge forward. Or at least, he tried. \"Move, legs, move!!\" Subaru's limbs rattled and trembled, immobilized as if cowering in fear. The same went for Beatrice on his back and Lusbel in his arms. They couldn't stop shaking with fright. The emotions probably came from Tina, who had fallen at Sirius's feet, spreading from her to them. As she shrank from unprecedented fear, their hearts became one, leaving Subaru and Beatrice unable to shake off the waves of terror. \"...E...milia...!\" With his throat convulsing, his uncontrollable sobbing and nausea left him unable to even shout the name of the girl he loved. Subaru's voice likely would not have reached Emilia either way. What was Emilia thinking as she lay there, powerless before the approaching apocalyptic firestorm?  This, too, would vanish in the hot white of the inferno burning everything to ash, remaining unknown for all eternity. *** The square was scorched by an incredible amount of heat. The heat wave seared skin and lungs alike. The spectacle of flame was so awe-inspiring that it could only be considered a true enigma. \"Suba...ru...\" As Subaru fell to his knees before the sea of flames, Beatrice called out to him from somewhere behind him. Subaru didn't look back. He was still bent forward, every inch of his entire body ruled by fear. He had become desperate even as he denied the reality unfolding before his eyes. Compared with the desolate alternative, he saw fear as salvation. If he didn't have to sear into his own eyes the worst of all worlds that had ever come about, then it would be better to simply stay there, ruled by fear foreve  \"Suba-Subaru! Subaru!\" Even so, Beatrice continued calling out Subaru's name with even greater urgency. She smacked his head multiple times, but Subaru shook his head side to side. He couldn't stand. He had no reason to stand. ...Even if, at that moment, the madwoman stood directly before Subaru's eyes, ready to take his life. \" I made it in time.\" The instant he heard that voice, Subaru's heart gave in to his fear of not knowing. He lifted his head, turning his eyes toward where the flame had fallen onto Emilia and wondering what had happened.  There was a single man. Calmly standing on the paving stones, which spewed black smoke, he acted as if nothing was out of the ordinary. And in his arms, the man carried the girl whom Subaru had presumed lost, the girl whom he was sure had vanished. \"Emi...lia...\" The girl whom he had despaired over, the girl enveloped by the flames that he had failed to save her from she was still there. Eyes closed, she had gone limp unconscious. However, her chest rose and fell almost imperceptibly an unmistakable sign of life. She was not dead. Emilia was alive. \"You're...\" He was now looking at the person who had suddenly appeared to save Emilia from mortal peril. Subaru was glad to see that Emilia was safe, but even then, the fear tormenting his heart had not subsided as he called out to the man's back with a trembling voice. In response, the man slowly turned around. He relaxed his lips. \"I have come for her. I am relieved I arrived in time. Truly.\" \"Come for... What do you...?\" \" I have come to collect my bride. Is that not what one should do as a man nay, as a person?\" Those unexpected words, spoken as if they were the most natural thing in the world, instantly brought Subaru's mind to a grinding halt. While Subaru was as still as a rock, a thin smile came over the young man with a shock of white hair. \"I am the Witch Cult's Archbishop of Greed Regulus Corneas.\" \"As promised I have come to make her my seventy-ninth wife.\" 3 The man in white had abruptly intervened in the battlefield of raging fire and ice. He was neither tall nor short and sported white hair and a symmetrical face that left a somewhat middling impression. His physique seemed to be the theoretical ideal of a man of medium height and medium build. Judging from his outward appearance alone, he seemed to have a weak presence that probably let him immediately blend in with any crowd. But the young man, who lacked defining features, had a name that could not be ignored. \"The Archbishop of Greed...?!\" Before Subaru's shocked eyes, the man Regulus stood serenely in the aftermath of the firestorm in the square. Regulus was calm after picking up Emilia, who was still unconscious, and enduring Sirius's apocalyptic inferno. \"But I truly must say, I am glad I reached her in time. My lovely bride was nearly burned to cinders. Even I, a person who takes pride in requesting little from others, am not so strong as to stoically accept my lovely bride being turned into a pile of ashes. Well, that is only natural. I am not an abnormal person, so of course, I could not simply bear with such degeneracy.\" Looking down at Emilia, who was resting in his arms, Regulus spoke eloquently with an expression of relief on his face. The contents of his words were strangely out of place, but there was no mistaking from what he said that he was already ignoring the urgency of the situation from the get-go. Unfortunately, since Emilia was unconscious, there was no way for his show of concern to reach her, putting it all to waste. Watching Regulus take everything at his own pace, Subaru swallowed hard before he spoke up. \"Wh-what do you think you're...?\" \" Excuse me.\" Suddenly, Regulus looked toward Subaru and interrupted his attempt to say something. Irritation shone clearly in his empty eyes as he sighed with a note of exasperated fatigue. \"Do you not understand the meaning of courtesy? I introduced myself first, didn't I? The only considerate thing to do would be to introduce yourself to ensure that everything can smoothly proceed. Knowing each other's names is the first step to establishing a working relationship, yes? I am the kind of person who considers that important, you see, and so I have introduced myself. Of course, this is a basic level of consideration that normally shouldn't need to be explained am I wrong? I mean, normally, people simply understand. The fact that you did not and could not is that something you did on purpose? Or have you simply lived until this very day in such an obtuse manner? This is incredibly rude. To drop formalities with another is to express that you do not see the other party as worthy of politeness. In other words, that is denying their individuality. It is nothing less than infringing upon another's rights. You are infringing on my rights me, a rational man free of want or desire.\" \"...A all right, I get it. My name is...Subaru Natsuki.\" Seeing that Regulus's eyes were becoming more and more tinged with madness as he rambled on and on, Subaru offered his name, heeding the alarm bells going off in his mind. Instantly, Regulus stopped moving his lips. He slowly narrowed his eyes. \"...Yes, that's good. Respecting others is part and parcel of respecting yourself. Such concerns may be natural, but this is what creates a better world for all parties to live in. One should not yearn for too many things and accept happiness that is appropriate to one's station. By abandoning selfish desires, everyone may live within their means. Such is a wise and praiseworthy way of life.\" Regulus laid out his sound argument with such tranquility that it wouldn't be strange for someone to assume he was joking. But the glimmer in both of his eyes proved that this was no game. Just like with Sirius's logic, Regulus's words sounded like sane if flowery rhetoric at first glance. Yes, his remarks were the same, using superficially sound reasoning to gloss over the abominable statements nestled within  \"Thank"}, {"text": "you for your opinion  Now burn to ashes and begone!!\" The instant he had the thought, Regulus stood there as a fire resembling an overflowing waterfall assailed him. The ferocious heat wave from the apocalyptic inferno enveloping the square made Subaru cover his face. Even though Regulus had introduced himself as a fellow Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins, Sirius had mercilessly scorched the other away for having interfered with her plan. And so without any time to counter her, Regulus and Emilia were engulfed by flame once more. \"Subaru...\" Behind his back, Beatrice's voice trembled as she grabbed onto his shoulder with enough strength to hurt. This was a sign of her concern for Emilia. Subaru knew exactly how she felt, so much so that it stung almost unbearably. But Greed was so off the charts that the pair's concerns held no meaning whatsoever. \"Now just a moment. Who raised you to resort to flames before your words? If you wish to say something, then speak. Or are you a talentless fool who cannot even understand language?\" Waving an arm in annoyance, Regulus extinguished the vortex of scorching flame. The firestorm vanished like it was nothing more than an illusion, with Regulus standing utterly unaffected at its center. Of course, the same went for Emilia there in his arms. Even after those flames had surrounded him, he didn't show a single drop of sweat, never mind a burn mark. \"You and I are both Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, yes? I know that you must be touched in the head. I have enough tolerance to overlook a great many things. However, you see...\" Looking back, Regulus lowered his voice as he glared at Sirius. Taking stock of his gaze, Sirius continued to rub together the golden chains wrapped around both her arms as she gritted her teeth in hatred. \"Just now, you intended to slay this girl by fire, yes? It is somewhat unreasonable to ask me to forgive that transgression. Since time immemorial, every story tells us that when the people we love are harmed, it undoubtedly stokes the fires of anger. That is a right that everyone possesses, and therefore, it is only natural that I am justified in seeking vengeance.\" \"Anger?! Ha, do not make me laugh! A small, superficial man like you should not lightly utter such words! Anger is mine! It is the irreplaceable treasure that my precious bestowed upon me!\" \"What is it with you? Are you still obsessed with that fool who went ahead on his own and died? My, my, how creepy. Only a flawed person would cling to a dead man all this time. If someone you love dies, you should proactively search for another. That is a law of the world, the extent of nature, and to disobey makes you...quite the piece of garbage.\" \"I know you laughed at his death do not dare to speak such lofty words to me!!\" Showered in detached insults, Sirius sprayed spittle as she flew into a rage. Giving in to her anger, the madwoman broke a paving stone as she stepped forward to swing her flame-imbued golden chains at Regulus only for the blow to bounce right off the side of the man's face. The chains made a dull sound as they struck flesh again and again, going left and right as Sirius's blinding rage struck Regulus all over. The flaming trails left in their wake enveloped the young man as he stood perfectly still. \"Begonebegonebegonebegonebegone! Turn to cinders along with that abominable half-demon!!\" The next moment, the cage of fire converged toward the center, enveloping Regulus in a rising pillar of searing flames. Its height surpassed that of the wrecked time tower. Paving stones melted under the intense heat, and enough melted away at the center of the scorching fire, where Regulus stood, that a crater had formed. There was no mistaking that these flames were not something a mere human could endure. However, no matter how apocalyptic the inferno seemed  \" You know, you really should realize it by now. You just don't measure up, you see.\" There, in the crater that was burned by flames all over, a sad smile came over Regulus. Sure enough, he was unaffected by chain or flame. Emilia was intact within his arms as well. Subaru should have been happy to confirm once again that she was safe, but at the same time, he could see an end coming that would be difficult to avoid.  If the fight continued, Sirius would be slain by Regulus. If that was the only issue, Subaru would've been fine with it. If anything, having the number of Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins whittled down through infighting was something to celebrate or it would've been if Sirius's death didn't affect all the surrounding people, that is. *** Even then, the fear racing through Subaru's body was undiminished. His knees buckled, and his lungs were unreliable, racked by pain that refused to subside. But in this situation  \"Subaru.\"  his precious partner called him by name, scolding Subaru Natsuki for shirking and cowering. *** The warmth that he felt through his back lent strength to his bowed knees. They gave him the courage to defy his fear, to stand and face the twin natural disasters that were the madwoman of Wrath and the villain of Greed. If Subaru had been by himself, he probably would have long since succumbed to fear. Standing up would've been impossible. Subaru could only do so now because he wasn't alone. Unlike the people consumed by madness, Subaru had someone right by his side. That was why  \"...Lusbel. Can you stand and run on your own?\" Putting the boy, whom he had carried in his arms, down on the ground, Subaru released him from his bonds. Lusbel gazed at Subaru, and then he turned to look at Sirius's feet out of concern for Tina. \"I know you're worried. But leave that girl to us.\" \"...Okay. Please save Tina somehow...\" With teary eyes, Lusbel entrusted Subaru with his hope. Subaru accepted it with a solemn nod Lusbel's wish was noble. He wouldn't let anyone sully it. \" Beatrice.\" \"I know.\" Communicating his thought with a single call of her name, Subaru and Beatrice advanced toward the chaotic battlefield. Fear had knocked him down. The enemy they faced was almost incomprehensibly dangerous. But most importantly, Subaru had a reason to fight. \"Hmm?\" Right as he was busy glaring at Sirius, Regulus raised an eyebrow, having abruptly felt that something was off. The cause was probably the end of a whip wrapped around his slender neck. After flying through the air, the whip had found purchase on Regulus's neck, tightening along its length to rob him of his freedom. Taking this as a signal, Lusbel raced across the chaotic square. Watching his back... \"Now stop touching my Emilia like she belongs to you...!\" ...Subaru howled, the explosion in his heart triggered by unceasing love. He had no idea whatsoever how Regulus had fended off the flames. He could only assume it was probably the effect of an Authority, something on par with Petelgeuse's Unseen Hands and Sirius's soulwashing. It was safe to assume that he wouldn't be able to hurt Regulus. In that case, what about binding him with a whip to hinder his movements? \" Shamak!\" Additionally, Beatrice conjured Shamak, the greatest of all spells, and enveloped Regulus in a black cloud. Chanting while seated on Subaru's back, Beatrice had plunged the villain's thoughts into the void with perfect timing. If he could only pull the guy down within the darkness and take Emilia back  \"Do you have a death wish? Then you should just wait your turn. Do not make me bother with you.\" With a single step, Regulus completely blew away the black cloud surrounding him. It didn't seem like the spell, which was meant to obliterate the victim's five senses, had any effect on Regulus, who now turned his gaze toward Subaru and Beatrice as they raced forward. Instantly, Subaru felt every hair on his body stand up as he sensed impending death, and so he shouted: \"Beako, now!!\" \"I suppose I'm ready!\" Matching Subaru's voice, Beatrice began a complex ritual.  This evoked one of the fruits of their spending almost every waking moment of the last year together. *** Howling as he chanted, Subaru sent mana to Beatrice directly from his broken Gate. This power served as the activation key to initiate an original spell, the only one of its kind in the whole world. This was E M M, one of the three spells jointly developed by Subaru and Beatrice. Watching it unfold, Regulus looked like he thought he was being pranked as he stretched his right hand toward Subaru. The five fingers he opened without fanfare contained such immense power that Subaru instinctively knew it was the same as death itself reaching for him. If they touched him, dying was unavoidable. However  \"Huh?!\"  the instant he thought he'd killed the pest, Regulus's fingertips brushed the surface of Subaru's body. But that was all. There was no blood spatter, nor was Subaru cruelly transformed into a corpse. This was the effect of E M M an invisible magic field that covered the entire body, an absolute defensive spell that physically cut a being off from the world, designed to prevent anything from interacting with Subaru whatsoever. \"Uraaah!\" As Regulus blinked hard, Subaru aimed a mighty punch right at his shocked face. He felt feedback; the punch had undoubtedly landed. But when Regulus recovered from the recoil, there was no mark on his face or any other sign that anything had happened. He had complete damage nullification in other words, a full-time E M M state. When Subaru thought about how his own E M M dispelled after taking one hit, the difference in power was staggering. \"I'm still charging!\" Before Regulus could counterattack, Beatrice informed Subaru about her progress toward the next spell. In the intervening time, Subaru was defenseless in a situation where both dodging and blocking were difficult meaning he would simply have to sacrifice a bit of his soul. \"Do not act so high and \" \"Come!! Invisible Providence!!\" Subaru howled again. A moment later, an invisible fist crashed into Regulus's irritated-looking face from below, slamming into his jaw. Interrupted by the blow, Regulus was sent reeling. Subaru closed the distance to try and rip Emilia out of his arms but then he stopped as he felt his intestines churning and a hot nausea rising up in his throat. \"Ugh, ubhhh!\" Covering his mouth, Subaru coughed. Blood dripped through the gaps in his fingers this was the cost he paid. The price of using this invisible force, a forbidden art that exceeded his body's capacity, was the corruption of Subaru Natsuki's soul and abject torture for his innards. \"Subaru! Are you all right, I wonder?!\" \"Cough... Sorry, I messed up. Even though I wanted to get Emilia back right then...\" Heaving up the clot of blood stuck in his throat, Subaru gritted his teeth at the fact that he'd been one step too slow. In the one year since the time he'd first used Invisible Providence, his cheap knockoff of Unseen Hands, he still hadn't mastered it. The unseeable, invisible black hand coming out of his chest was an incomplete Authority, and the price that it demanded was pain that racked his entire body and the deterioration of his soul. For all that, the effect was only a single punch a fact that made him want to cry. \"But I still got something out of it... Getting hit by that guy is bad, but his movements are sluggish. Considering all the people I've seen to date, even Larry, Curly, and Moe could probably beat this guy.\" Regulus's style of fighting was amateurish, below even the likes of Subaru; he was barely more skilled than a total novice. His ability to nullify damage was very troublesome, but even lethal blows didn't mean anything"}, {"text": "if they couldn't connect. Annoyed by that appraisal, Regulus adjusted his grip on Emilia. \"What petty trickery... What if you harmed my lovely bride, flailing around like that? Even without someone teaching you manners, is it not natural to treat girls with kindness? Are you incapable of even that?\" \"You just can't stop grating on my nerves, can you? That girl's the one I treat the kindest in the whole world. What do you think you're doing, going 'lovely bride' this and 'lovely bride' that and all sorts of weird garbage?!\" \"I've told you before, yes? Do not make me repeat myself I have come to take this girl as my bride.\" Regulus's brazen reply treated the sacred institution of marriage with such nonchalance that it was incredibly off-putting. Even as he forced his quest of seeking love onto others, he prioritized only himself. His fundamentally warped logic was chill-inducing. \"Previously, I was unable to uphold an identical vow. That is why I shall not yield this time. I will protect her. I will take her as my wife, cherish her, and enjoy the tranquility that I am due. I do not wish for many things, but if it is for the sake of protecting my small slice of happiness, I will not hesitate to exploit the power that I have been granted.\" For the first time, Subaru felt fear coming from Regulus's demeanor as the man shared what seemed to be his genuine thoughts. Seeing Subaru's reaction, Regulus went, \"Ahh,\" seeming to accept something as he nodded. \"I see now... You know, it might be cruel to say this, but it's futile to try and come between destined lovers. It pains me to say this, but everyone knows that it's quite unsightly to pine for someone who is already spoken for.\" \"Shut up! Emilia-tan is my bride. No way am I giving her up to the likes of you!\" \"Heh, so Emilia is this girl's name? It has a nice ring to it. It makes me want to whisper to her, admiring her like a songbird. That name suits this charming girl perfectly, yes?\" \"You don't even...know her name...? What do you see in her that makes you ramble on and on about how she's your lovely bride?\" \"Her face.\" He was stunned. Subaru fell silent after hearing his instantaneous reply. Regulus cocked his head in confusion as the silence made him wonder if he'd been misunderstood. \"Her face is exquisite. When it comes to love, that is everything, isn't it?\" \"Die.\" \"Would it not be better if he was dead, I wonder?\" Subaru and Beatrice's condemnations overlapped out of simple shared enmity. Simultaneously, Beatrice tapped Subaru's shoulder from behind his back, indicating that she was done charging. The details of how Regulus's damage-nullification Authority worked remained unclear, but they still had something to try. This was the third of the original spells from the SubaBeako combo  \" Whoa?!\" The instant he took his first step forward, the ground between Subaru and Regulus suddenly cracked open, revealing a pit of roaring flames. The heat wave billowing up at Subaru made him recoil. He proceeded to back away, glaring at the perpetrator who had cut his counterattack short.  It was Sirius, who had been content to simply observe the fight between Subaru and Regulus up to that point. \"You...! Wait, the girl... Where did you put Tina?\" There was no sign of the girl who'd been taken hostage and ought to have been at the madwoman's feet. However, she did not reply to Subaru, keeping her palms thrust out as she maintained her silence. He wasn't sure what the nutcase had in mind after observing the battle so far, but having her intervene was exceptionally worse. Dealing with Sirius herself was already difficult, especially considering how they had to work around her Authority. Sensing that the situation was deteriorating quickly, Subaru wiped cold sweat off his brow  However, the situation had worsened far more than he had imagined. \" I have found you.\" \" Wha?\" Finally, as she stood still, Sirius looked at Subaru, and  No, she was only looking at Subaru and him alone as she continued murmuring. Sirius suddenly seemed as if she'd completely forgotten her bloodlust from moments before. The madwoman was now ignoring Regulus's very existence, giving her undivided attention to Subaru. Subaru's throat dried out instantly when he saw the crazed glint in her eye. Then the madwoman pulled back both arms, which she had thrust out, and gently pressed her hands against her cheeks. \"I have found you. I have found you. I have found you. Ahh, ahh, ahhhh! Yes, there's no mistake! I am sorry, I am so sorry I didn't notice earlier! But ahh, it really was true!\" \"Wh-what the...?\" \"You were here all along, darling?! I searched everywhere but couldn't find you, and all your spares had been ripped away, nowhere to be found! I have searched for you for so, so, so, so, so, so, so, long...and now you have finally returned! My darling has returned to my side!\" Her shrill, high-pitched voice was born from indecent passion. Continuing to press her hands to her cheeks, Sirius wriggled and writhed about, her slender hips shaking as her voice leaped with joy. When it finally dawned on Subaru that every aspect of her voice and her demeanor was a manifestation of seething romantic passion, he was struck with horror. \"My feelings have reached you! Finally, my love has reached you! After all this time!\" Utterly ignoring Subaru's shock, Sirius stretched both hands out toward him. Then with all the spirit that the madwoman possessed, she pronounced her love in a thundering voice. \"I have been waiting aaaaall this time for you and only you...my beloved, beloved Petelgeuse!\" 4 The repulsive zeal in that violet eye was all aimed at Subaru. The sight of Sirius's ecstatic gaze left him unable to do anything but draw in his breath. \"...She is...staring at you, Subaru.\" \"...I know, so please don't say it out loud and make me feel worse.\" When Beatrice whispered to him from his back, Subaru replied as he suppressed his fear as best as he could. He'd felt this terrible premonition during the first time around that one loop. \"...This Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti family thing almost sounded like an insane joke, but...\" At first, he'd entertained the ridiculous idea of a famous family in the Witch Cult cranking out one Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins after another, but reality easily exceeded Subaru's expectations. \"If you have to be a husband-and-wife team of Archbishops, then you should get to pick your bride... Well, I guess if she is your pick, there's nothing I can do about it, but...\" \"Please do not ignore me, Petelgeuse. You truly are naughty. Always acting so coldly toward me... It just, just, just frustrates me so much!\" Over a year after they last met, Subaru was finding new reasons to resent Petelgeuse and his awful taste. Meanwhile, Sirius squirmed and pleaded with him in an ingratiating voice. Just the gestures from the bandaged madwoman were nightmarish enough, but seeing the soulwashed crowd performing the same gestures made the scene an outright comedy. The fact that their souls were being manipulated to make them go along with the madwoman's delusions really made it more of a tragedy, though. \"And what's her basis for mistaking me for that Petelgeuse bastard in the first place? I don't resemble that jerk at all.\" \"...Goodness, I simply cannot put up with this. Most likely, she saw your earlier trick, spurring her current disturbing delusion. She truly does not know the meaning of shame. Strong women are so difficult to deal with when they become convinced of something. It goes well beyond pitiable and simply becomes unsightly.\" Regulus, now out of sight and out of mind as far as Sirius was concerned, shrugged with unconcealed disdain on his face. But Subaru had learned something it was Invisible Providence that had caused this. Sirius had mistakenly identified that incomplete Authority as Unseen Hands. What made things worse was the fact that the evil spirit Petelgeuse had the power to possess and hijack the bodies of others. There was no room for doubt that the madwoman thought he was dwelling inside Subaru. Setting that deduction aside, Sirius's burning zeal from a moment before vanished like a mirage as she glared at Regulus with frigid eyes. \"Yes, yes, thank you kindly. And so very, very sorry. Right now, I am in the middle of something. Do you understand? Comprehension is quite important, and mutual understanding is just as critical. You've finished what you came for, yes? Would you quickly take your leave now?\" \"Are you giving me an order? Do not make me laugh. Speaking of making me laugh, you called yourself Sirius Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, did you not? Would you notice already that using your feelings for him as an excuse to take his family name as your own without permission is just downright disturbing? In a sense, that is an infringement upon Petelgeuse's rights. Well, dead people don't have rights, so I suppose it's fine, really.\" \"He and I loved each other!!\" Regulus's words, filled with bottomless disdain, triggered another explosion of Sirius's emotions. \"I mean, our eyes met over and over again daily! He never scolded me for taking out his things! He let me have his leftover food and said nothing even as I breathed in the air he breathed out! He never grimaced when I slept in the same bed that he had, and he even praised me for skillfully burning half-demons away! He gave me my name! He smiled! For me, me, me aloooone!!\" Sirius's breath had become ragged, her bandages drenched with tears as she laid her feelings bare. The gruesome sight and the contents of her words made Subaru feel sorry for Sirius for the very first time. In addition, Sirius's indignation resonated, and the surrounding crowd was suffused with roiling emotions once again. Their faces became dark red, and the bleeding from their eyes and noses increased; it was clear from a single glance that their lives were being whittled away. \"S-stop it! If this is for my sake, then don't drag the people around us into this! Behave, please!\" \"Behave, you say?\" Thinking about the collateral damage, Subaru clung to a single thread of hope: trying to play on Sirius's yearning. When Subaru made that dangerous gamble, Sirius stared at him in a daze for a while. \"...Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha, ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!\" Embracing her slender body, Sirius guffawed at Subaru's words. Her reaction made Subaru tense up. Seeing this, Sirius tore her mouth open to form a crescent moon. \"Even if you wish it, I refuse. I mean, we've finally reunited! We have finally met like this once more. And yet once again, you ask me to endure, to hold back?! How dare you tell me to wait while some spirit I've never seen clings to your back!! I will burn you!!!\" Even as she spoke, her emotions raged as Sirius let out a roar and pointed at Subaru no, at Beatrice on Subaru's back. Sirius then shifted her other hand toward Regulus. \"Either way, your real objective is the half-demon that man is carrying, isn't it?! Why are you so partial to a filthy, silver-haired half-demon?! Surely, you understand by now?! Why choose that wretched, vulgar, damned half-demon...?! If you love her that much, then I will burn her before your very eyes...!\" \"Geez, I don't even understand a thing you're saying anymore...\" Screaming and even coughing up blood, Sirius vented her hatred toward both Emilia and the Witch of Jealousy. Wasn't resurrecting the Witch of Jealousy the Witch Cult's goal? Subaru couldn't understand why she treated the supposed object of their worship like it was the one thing she most hated in the entire world. More than that, it meant Sirius didn't share Petelgeuse's long-cherished desire in the slightest, didn't it? In any case, with Subaru's"}, {"text": "hope for a breakthrough dashed, the situation had turned into a three-sided battlefield. That said, the side in the worst state was, without a doubt, Subaru's party. Despite surviving longer than in any other loop this time around, his failure to acquire any information except how dangerous their enemies were left him in all-consuming despair. But he couldn't simply stand there he had to save Emilia and the city. \"Isn't it fine either way, I wonder?\" From his back, the sound of a dependable voice bolstered Subaru's decision. Relying on that voice, Subaru moved to boldly leap toward the two Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins  \" Excuse me, I am sorry to interrupt when you are getting so motivated, but it is finally time, you see.\" \"What?\" Regulus cut in and dashed Subaru and Beatrice's resolve. Still carrying Emilia with one hand, he pointed toward the sky with his empty one.  The next moment, the sound of a bell echoed in the sky above the City of Water. That tolling indicated that noon had arrived. Nodding in response, a melancholic smile came over Regulus as he spoke up. \"With this, I no longer have free time to spare for you. At the very least, you should be thankful to the Gospel that... No. It is meaningless to thank a torn page. You should be thankful to me, then, for doing my part in obeying the Gospel.\" Leaving these words behind, Regulus turned his back on Subaru and Beatrice, having lost all interest in them. Dumbstruck by his sheer gall, Subaru immediately exploded. \"Hold on a minute! 'Time,' you say? What about the time? What the hell are you talking about?!\" \"It is exactly as you heard. My free time has come to an end. We have something that we came to do in this city. Ahh, I do not mean merely me, but also the woman touched in the head over there. Isn't that right, Sirius?\" Replying to Subaru's inquiry, Regulus motioned his chin toward Sirius as the latter stood still. When Subaru looked over, it was shocking how Sirius, who had been so enraged before, was obediently tucking her chains into her sleeves, looking like she wasn't satisfied with the outcome. Nonetheless, she was clearly getting ready to move on just like Regulus. What impudent, selfish, completely conceited people were they to do this much and then just drop it all and walk away? \"Ahh, do not lament, Petelgeuse! I understand! I, too, wish so much to burn what is incomplete! To act like this before you... It fills me with such sadness that I wish to tear my chest apart! Is it not the same for you, darling?!\" In stark contrast to Regulus's composure, Sirius clawed at her face in grief. Swallowed up by the madwoman's emotions, the crowd let out sobs and laments that filled the square. As that painful and revolting scene played out before him, Subaru ferociously broke into a sprint. Regulus was right there, carrying Emilia out of the square as if the conversation was already at an end. \"Wait, you bastard! Don't carry on with the conversation all on your own! Put that girl down! If you don't...\" \"You see, a thought occurred to me.\" Stopping in his tracks, Regulus turned only his head toward Subaru, smiling. That smile petrified Subaru's body almost fatally so. \"It is a lonely thing to have a ceremony without any attendants on the new bride's side, so it would be a little too coldhearted and pitiless of me not to invite you, the illicit lover  Therefore, I will not kill you.\" As he spoke, Regulus lightly tapped a paving stone with the tip of his toe. With a gesture that made it seem like he was only adjusting the fit of his shoe, he shaved the top of the paving stone right off. The resulting debris flew toward Subaru's legs instantly causing his right leg to explode. \" Eh?\" A horrid cross section was revealed as if he'd been gouged by a massive beast's claw, neatly exposing Subaru's white bone, pink flesh, yellowish fat, and gray-colored blood vessels, which had been savagely severed. Incomprehension. Comprehension. A moment later, the pain reached his brain. \"?!! Daaagh! Agaaaagh?!\" His vision went pure white as terrible pain shot through him. It was as if a number of sharp needles had been stabbed into the crown of his head. Screaming, Subaru failed to break his fall as he tumbled to the ground. He then tried to stanch the leg injury with his hands. It was no use. The wound was too big. Subaru's hands alone could not plug it. \"Subaru?! Subaru! Subaru, hold on! Let me !\" Beatrice, falling to the ground alongside Subaru, hurriedly activated a healing spell as she realized the gravity of his injury. Seeing the pair reduced to that miserable state, Regulus nodded in apparent satisfaction. \"Your demeanor toward me has been quite rude this whole time, but with this, let us call it even. I hope this pain serves as sufficient motivation for you to reflect upon your actions. Ahh, there is no need to thank me. I mean, this really isn't enough to thank someone for. It is merely a wake-up call that should be natural coming from any reasonable person.\" \"Aaaaa! Gah, ghh, ugoaaah!!\" That voice wasn't audible anymore. Pain, pain Subaru Natsuki was ruled by pain alone. His eyes were cloudy. He was clenching his back teeth so hard that they seemed ready to split in half. His vision was completely red. He didn't have any sense of up or down, left or right. Incomprehension. Incomprehensionincomprehension. He did not comprehend, but there was something he knew. \"Emiliaaa...! Waghhh, urgh, goeee!\" In the throes of excruciating pain, Subaru called out the name of the girl who was the only thing he cared about in that moment. But it was useless. As he gasped from pain, tiny Beatrice desperately tried to keep him from thrashing about as she continued treating him. However, as if to mock Beatrice's dedicated efforts, the situation continued to worsen. \"...This isn't funny in the least.\" \"My apologies. But this is no joke. This, too, is a matter of natural consequence.\" As Beatrice murmured despondently, Sirius replied from somewhere behind her in a melancholic voice. All around Sirius, people were writhing in pain. They were screaming from the crippling pain in their leg, identical to Subaru's wound. It was as if they'd all been maimed by the same beast. \"If my beloved Petelgeuse had a chance to share a few words, he would say this: Pain makes us savor life, and life exists so that we may prove our love. I believe this to be true as well. That is why I have this wish! After all, love is the wish to become one! To see the same things, to feel the same things, to pass the time together, to end our lives together for love is all about joining with one another!\" Spreading both hands wide, Sirius brought them together before her chest, producing a loud, explosive sound resembling applause. After indulging in the suffering of others with an expression of pure ecstasy, Sirius turned a hateful eye toward Beatrice. \"Everyone should taste the same life as my precious. But I shall allow no such thing for you or for that filthy half-elf. Who would knowingly allow you to share anything with my precious?\" \"...Would you cease being so crazed with jealousy, I wonder? Betty has long become one with Subaru without turning into anything like you. Is Betty not Subaru's, I wonder?\" *** Beatrice gave a retort, conceding nothing to Sirius and her manipulative words. The spirit and the madwoman sternly crossed gazes. But the madwoman quickly averted her eyes from the staring contest. \"For now, I leave him to you, for the instructions of the Gospel must take precedence. Yes, I have little choice in the matter. So sorry. My apologies. But I will come to see you again soon. Yes, very soon indeed.\" To the end, Sirius directed her mad feelings of love toward Subaru, even as unbearable pain stripped him of conscious thought. On a final note, the madwoman gave Subaru a long stare of yearning before departing from the bloody square with a single leap. Beatrice could not even keep her eyes on Sirius's back as she faded into the distance. Before she realized it, all sight of Regulus, and Emilia with him, had vanished from the square. \" Subaru.\" Subaru was unconscious, vomiting stomach fluids mixed with froth. Touching his leg, she continued to treat the still-bleeding wound. The site of the injury was large and deep; if she let her mind wander, he would almost certainly die of blood loss. Subaru's life was Beatrice's first priority. There were nearly fifty other wounded besides Subaru in the square. Thanks to the Authority of Wrath, they had suffered the same exact wound as him, but the effect of Beatrice's healing was not being shared. It was an abominable Authority. \" Subaru, I am so sorry.\" Diligently tending to Subaru's health, Beatrice murmured frailly as she tried to stay strong. A tear fell from her one of her wide-open eyes, leaving a line as it coursed down her white cheek. \"I am so sorry. Could I be any sorrier, I wonder...?\" Beatrice apologized over and over, even though she knew that her voice could not reach Subaru, who had passed out from the pain. Even though she knew that her words changed nothing. \"I am so sorry, Emilia...!\" Sirius of Wrath had toyed with people's hearts, creating a long list of casualties in the process. And after a display of overwhelming might, Regulus of Greed had abducted Emilia.  Two Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins had been unleashed upon the Water Gate City of Pristella. CHAPTER 3 *** 1  Dong, dong, dong. The low, weighty percussions of gongs seemed to come from everywhere at once, near and far. The flow of his blood had slowed it was an unpleasant feeling akin to having mud coursing in his arteries. His internal organs barely seemed to be working, and his guts felt like they were a rough collection of clay work; these kinds of mismatched sensations dominated his body. Oxygen wasn't traveling to his brain properly, either, making it hard to form thoughts, and what thoughts did form were unreliable. He felt a feeling of loss, as if his body was no longer his own  \" Ah.\" Abruptly, he felt his fading self being pulled back from the brink as raspy breaths trickled out from his lungs. Instantly, his hazy consciousness miraculously pieced itself back together, and Subaru Natsuki slowly opened his eyes. After becoming accustomed to darkness, his eyes were not ready to fully accept the white light now shooting into them. A shadow crossed right and left across his indistinct vision. It took him thirty seconds to realize that these were human silhouettes. He sensed the presence of hastily moving people, a dirty ceiling, and air that seemed to have a whiff of rust to it finally, he found that he was lying on something hard and that he was staring at those silhouettes in a daze. \" Ohh, looks like ya woke up, Bro.\" Just when Subaru returned to reality, someone abruptly peered at him from close-up. This person was wearing a jet-black steel helm. From that gear alone, some might have taken him for one of the city's heavily equipped guards, but considering how much skin he exposed from the neck down and his obvious lack of one arm, those characteristics immediately told Subaru this was someone he knew. \"Al...?\" \"Yep, it's Mr. Al. See me once, and you can't forget me even if you tried. This is still one helluva situation, though.\" The man in the steel helm Al shrugged and chuckled at his own words. As Subaru continued to grasp more and more of the situation, his mind began to whip around chaotically. What was a mercenary"}, {"text": "in the employ of the Priscilla camp doing there?  No, to begin with, where was he? Then just as that question occurred to Subaru  \"Aah! Subawu woke up, didn't he?! I told you to call me if he woke up, meow!\" A loud voice rose as someone rushed over with a swift patter of feet. The newcomer thrust a finger not at Subaru, who was lying down, but at Al, who was standing beside him in his familiar steel helm. \"You need to do as you're told, meow! Really, you're useless if you're just going to stand around, doing nothing helpful!\" \"Aren't you bein' a bit harsh? I'm the one who did all the work hauling Bro and the young lady over here, y'know.\" Al shrugged at being chewed out so much, but the one lecturing him didn't pay that the slightest heed. Instead, this person a lovely girl, or rather, a young man dressed like one turned to face Subaru. \"Even Ferris...\" \"Yes, yes. It's Ferri, beloved by one and all. Okay, Subawu Natsuki, let me explain. This is a field hospital, and you were brought in with heavy injuries. Still with me?\" Upon speaking those words, Ferris gave him an adorable wink. That cute gesture was very much at odds with the blood splatters that marred his white cheeks and outfit, a sight that conveyed in simple terms that the conditions here were nowhere near normal. Once he looked around, spurred by Ferris using the term field hospital, Subaru realized that what he first guessed was the scent of rust was actually the heavy odor of blood. He could see a whole slew of faintly moaning casualties. There seemed to be so many that even the gravely injured were lying on nothing more than sheets of cloth. Subaru belatedly found that he was in the exact same state. \"What...is this...? The hell happened...?\" \"It seems you're still a bit confused, meow. Take it slow and remember what went down before you fainted. If you can recall that, then you'll have your answer.\" Ferris spoke to the confused Subaru in a hard and unkind tone. However, this wasn't an effort to dismiss Subaru; it was just a sign of how pressed Ferris was. As healers went, Ferris possessed peerless skill. With such a large number of wounded needing help, it wasn't hard to imagine just how critical his power was. In the first place, what kind of terrible incident could have produced such a large number of casualties ? \"!! The Witch Cult!\" \"That's right... Honestly, they're just the worst, meow. I knew that already, but this made me feel like I didn't really understand until now. I never imagined they'd go this far.\" Biting his lip with regret, Ferris affirmed what Subaru had realized. Subaru understood his anger toward the Witch Cult. But as his memories gradually returned, Subaru had something even more important that he absolutely had to know. \"E-Emilia?! What happened to Emilia and Beatrice?\" *** \"Both of them were in the square with me, and then...\" Sitting up, Subaru grasped Ferris's slender shoulder when his words failed him. This was because from the way Ferris averted his eyes, Subaru could tell he was right to be worried. \"Calm down and listen, okay?\" said Ferris as a preamble to Subaru. \"First, you absolutely need to rest, Subawu. You were badly hurt... As for Lady Emilia, we can't get in touch with her. From what you said just now, it doesn't seem like...you got separated because the city's in chaos, huh.\" Sure enough, Subaru's energy faded as Ferris gave him what could hardly be called good news. Emilia's safety or lack thereof was completely unknown. Paired with his memories from just before fainting, he certainly hadn't been wrong to think that Emilia had been whisked away by Regulus of Greed. Subaru had been helpless to stop him. As for Beatrice, if she was in the same place as he  \"Bro, if you're worried about your partner, she's sleepin' soundly over there.\" *** Al sat cross-legged, pointing toward Subaru's right side as he spoke. When he turned that way on reflex, he saw a curtain covering the space immediately beside him. He rushed over and practically tore it down. On the other side of that curtain, he spotted a girl wearing a dress, slumbering on a sheet of cloth. It was Beatrice. She lay faceup with her eyes closed. He couldn't spot any external injuries. When he took in the familiar sight of her sleeping adorably, Subaru let out a sigh of relief. \"Beako...! Ahh, I'm glad she's safe. Really, I... Er, gyaaah!\" \"Ferri said to rest, yes? Do you understand what 'absolutely need to rest' means, meow?\" Ferris was on him in moments, poking at Subaru's right leg and berating him in a voice that quivered in anger. Instantly, Subaru screamed, feeling as if a thunderbolt had struck the crown of his head. The back of his eyes flickered from pain that was intense enough to make him taste blood inside his mouth. When he looked down, wondering what was up, he saw that there was a thick bandage wrapped around his right leg. \"Bro, when I found ya, it was so grotesque that I got cold, cold feet. Your leg was hangin' by the smallest flap of skin. A little bit more, and you would've ended up one limb short, just like me.\" Al revealed some information about what transpired after Subaru had passed out, indicating his own missing left arm with a flippant tone of voice for a bit of emphasis. His explanation, plus the thick bandage around his leg, made Subaru's hazy memories come back with a vengeance.  Regulus. That man, the white-haired villain who spirited Emilia away, had launched an attack as he was leaving, gouging and ruining Subaru's leg as a parting gift. That was the source of the pain that had rendered him unconscious. \"So you see, lovely Beatrice grafted your torn leg back together, and Ferri treated you on top of that. It should be just about healed right up, but you can't do anything crazy for a while, you hear me?\" Crossing his arms to form an X, Ferris sternly forbade Subaru from straining his body. Subaru nodded listlessly at the instruction, as he was more preoccupied at seeing Beatrice asleep. \"Beatrice...?\" Having spent most of the last year in the same bed as her, he could tell that Beatrice was sleeping very soundly. But he had to wonder if this sleep was a little too deep, even for her. Though he had shrieked right beside her, she hadn't stirred in the slightest. \"Is she really...sleeping? She didn't even twitch, did she?\" \"...Sleep might be the wrong word. Her state is closer to a coma than real sleep.\" \"A coma?!\" Upon hearing that far more dangerous-sounding term, Subaru hastily touched Beatrice's sleeping face. It was cold to the touch. Not a single cute reaction stirred her eyelashes or her lips. The echo of the word coma grew more credible as all traces of blood seemed to drain from Subaru's head. \"It's a reaction from using every last bit of mana she had to spare. I told you, didn't I? Lovely Beatrice desperately grafted Subawu's leg together using healing magic.\" \"That's... But even if she's been almost out of gas forever, I never thought she'd slip into a coma.\" \"That would be true if Subawu was the only one hurt, right?\" Ferris narrowed his eyes as he watched the pale-faced Subaru inhale sharply. Taking stock of the pair's conversation, Al used a finger to toy with the metallic parts of his steel helm as he spoke. \"By the time I got to the square, they were all rollin' on the ground with the same wounds as you, Bro. That moppet managed to treat all of 'em with healing magic. Damn impressive, I gotta say.\" Subaru recognized the faces of the other patients who were lying down on sheets of cloth all around him, just like he was. The fox-man, the eyepatch woman, blood-drenched Lachins, and more, all of them with wounds on their right legs just like Subaru  No, the wounds weren't merely in the same locations. They were identical.  The resonance that came with Sirius's soulwashing had mauled everyone in the square the same way. Beatrice had wrung strength out of herself to heal not only him, but also everyone else as well. \"Is Beatrice all right? You think she'll get better if she keeps resting like this?\" \"...To be honest, I think there's little hope of that. I might be the top healer in the kingdom, but spirits are outside my specialty. I think the best we can hope from letting her rest like this is maintaining her current condition.\" *** Ferris's explanations made Subaru harden his cheeks. If that was the most they could manage, then that meant she would have to remain asleep. When he heard that, the first thing that came to mind was the girl he'd left at the mansion despite how much he'd wanted to keep her near him. Seeing that remorseful reaction, Ferris realized his own slip of the tongue. \"Sorry,\" he apologized. \"I shouldn't have spoken like that just now. But I should mention that letting her sleep won't help her recover, and unlike an injury, it's not something Ferri can heal. The reason she's asleep is because she lacks mana, so if she gets supplied with some, she should awaken, but...\" \"Supply her with mana? If I could do that, things would be easy...\" His insufficient mana supply was a chronic problem that had plagued him and Beatrice ever since they first forged a pact. As a special type of spirit, Beatrice could not accept mana unless it was supplied by Subaru, her contractor. And Subaru, the source of that all-important mana supply, was a louse who was incapable of properly storing sufficient amounts of mana. Subaru's helplessness was always a burden on Beatrice. He already owed her enough that it'd take a lifetime to pay her back, yet his debt to her seemed to constantly be growing. \"It's not just about Beatrice, either. Emilia also needs my help...but here I am, stuck like this...!\" His connection to Beatrice ran deeper than one nearly torn-off leg. Beatrice was also Subaru's connection to the possibilities beyond his reach, to his few fleeting hopes. Emilia was in peril. The city was in peril. He had to do something. If it was for their sake  \"Am I an idiot? Nah, I'm definitely an idiot. If I have time to cry about it... Mnghhh!\" \"Okay, that's far enough!\" When Subaru tried to ignore the pain in his leg and stand, Ferris clamped both his hands down on his face. Ferris then forced Subaru to turn his head toward him, bringing their faces close, until they were only inches away from each other. \"Why does it always have to be zero or a hundred with you, Subawu? Getting all mopey-dopey is bad, but running around willy-nilly puts everyone in a bind, too. Don't you get that?\" \"Mopey-dopey? Willy-nilly...?\" \"It's true, though, right? You don't even have little Beatrice to stand by you right now, so what can you do running off all by yourself? You are absolutely not allowed to waste the life you've been given.\" The way he said it might have sounded silly, but Ferris's words were infused with powerful, sincere feelings. *** After hearing Ferris's plea, Subaru felt the strength drain from his legs as he stopped trying to forcibly stand up. Then he heaved a great big sigh and decided to stay put while sorting out his feelings some other way. \"Sorry. I got too restless... Come to think of it, I didn't thank you for the leg, either.\" \"I don't really do this for words of thanks, you know. Though it's always nicer to hear some than not.\" \"Thanks, really. You're a lifesaver."}, {"text": "I owe you.\" \"You are very welcome, meow.\" When Subaru piled on the thank-yous, Ferris gave a curt reply and finally took his hands off Subaru's face. \"Al, you were a huge help, too. You carried me and Beako all the way here, right?\" \"Yep. By the way, I wanted you to thank me properly, too. That said, there's someone else you really oughtta be thankin' here, Bro.\" When Subaru tilted his head, wondering what that could mean, Al amusedly motioned with the jaw of his steel helm. When Subaru glanced in that direction, he saw a boy holding his knees as he slept in a corner of the room. \"Lusbel...\" \"The little guy called me over with tears in his eyes, so I just couldn't ignore him. I followed him to the square that got painted red, red, red with Bro's and everyone else's blood, y'know? Seriously, I wanna praise myself for not blacking out then and there.\" It was in Al's nature to talk about everything like it was all a long-winded joke, but Subaru really did owe him a great deal. The same went for Lusbel, who had bravely returned with help. Even if he was with an adult, Subaru truly respected the boy for deciding to head back to that terrifying square, knowing full well what awaited him. It was thanks to Al and Lusbel's help that Subaru could hold Beatrice's hand as she slept. \"So Beatrice's condition isn't going to deteriorate right this minute or anything, right?\" \"That, I can guarantee. All I'm saying is that we can't help her wake up right this minute.\" \"Got it... Please fill me in on what's been happening. How's the city right now, and what is the Witch Cult up to?\" Striving to maintain calm, Subaru tried to get a grasp on how things had been developing. When he posed that question, Ferris and Al exchanged looks, wondering where to begin. Before they had a chance  \" It would seem your timing is very good. I was just about to speak regarding precisely that.\" The new voice carried well and was backed by an undercurrent of strength. When he turned, Subaru caught sight of the speaker now arriving at the entrance to the field hospital. Long, green hair danced around her as the refreshing beauty came to a halt  \"Lady Crusch! This place is full of wounded... You didn't have to go out of your way to come here.\" \"I am sorry, Ferris. I had no intention of invading your battleground. However, I heard that Master Subaru has awakened. How could I possibly ask him to come to me in his state?\" As she explained her thought process, Crusch approached the cloth where Subaru sat. As opposed to what she had worn earlier in the morning, her attire retained vestiges of elegance while prioritizing ease of movement. He couldn't help but recall that this was very close to what Crusch looked like before she lost her memory  \"Seems like you're geared up for a fight, too, Crusch.\" \"The circumstances being what they are, I made some preparations. Master Subaru, how is your leg injury?\" \"Thanks to your Ferris, me and Beako made it through somehow. If I tried hard, I think I could jump a couple of times without crying.\" \"That is good to hear...or is it?\" After hearing Subaru's irreverent quip, Crusch innocently tilted her head in apparent confusion. Out of the corner of his eye, Subaru could see Ferris silently mouthing the words You have to reeeeest! Subaru donned a proper and serious look. \"So can you tell me what's going on in Pristella right now?\" \"Of course. However, there is something I must ask of you first Master Subaru, is there no mistaking that you encountered the Witch Cult's Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins?\" \"...Yeah, no doubt about that. My leg injury, and Emilia... Her kidnapping was all their doing as well. I saw them with my own eyes, and no one goes around pretending to be those guys.\" Surely, no one would be so suicidal as to falsely claim the title of an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. Regardless, Subaru had also seen part of Sirius's and Regulus's Authorities. And considering their revolting personalities, their identities were almost certain. After hearing Subaru's reply, Crusch murmured, \"So Lady Emilia really was...\" as she lowered the tone of her voice before continuing. \"...It would seem we should indeed think of that broadcast as fact.\" \"Broadcast?\" Crusch drew herself up as the unexpected term reached Subaru's ears. \"Well, there was a broadcast about one hour ago. Just like the morning broadcasts, it was conducted by using the metia in Pristella's city hall.\" \"...Wait, it was the Witch Cult that made a broadcast? Did they hijack the metia there?\" When Crusch had trouble picking her words, Subaru asked about the worst case he could think of. Crusch, Ferris, and Al nodded in silence, confirming his suspicions. \"The broadcast was sudden, but the culprit's identity is clear. They were considerate enough to openly announce who they were, you see.\" \"Announce... Right, that's exactly what they do. They always announce themselves before doing anything.\" Crusch's words, filled with righteous indignation, drew a deep nod from Subaru. Thinking back to the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins whom Subaru had encountered to date, all of them had stated their names and titles without fail. It seemed like it was the one rule that was actually observed by these morally bankrupt people who were unable or unwilling to uphold any other societal norms. Was it Sirius who'd seized the broadcast, compelled by her incoherent delusions and a twisted desire to enter the limelight? Or was it Regulus, who cloaked himself in self-deception like a suit of armor? \" Capella Emerada Lugunica, the Archbishop of Lust.\" \"...Eh?\" When a totally unfamiliar name made a sudden entrance, Subaru was dumbstruck as he looked at Crusch. She met his gaze head-on, the intensity in her amber eyes only growing stronger. \"The broadcast made this declaration: The Water Gate City of Pristella has fallen into the hands of the Witch Cult.\" 2 \"So you woke up, Natsuki. I'm glad; that's such a relief.\" Anastasia flashed Subaru an elegant smile the moment she saw him come in, with Al lending his shoulder for support. Unlike Crusch, she was wearing the same outfit as earlier in the day: a kimono and her white fox scarf wrapped around her neck. Combining that with her calm outward demeanor, she seemed to be the only one who was acting like this was just another day  No, even she couldn't manage that. Subaru could see faint traces of fatigue pulling at the fringes of Anastasia's face. That only made sense. She was one of the concerned parties that was deeply affected by the Witch Cult's mayhem. \"Sorry for oversleeping, Anastasia. Do I still have a seat?\" \"Not to worry, I have arranged a spot just for you. It's critical to talk to you about the people you ran into as soon as possible, Natsuki. So come on sit, sit!\" Anastasia beckoned him by hand. Subaru favored his right leg as he walked to the round table at the center of the room. Borrowing Al's assistance, he plopped down into his chair, taking a breath as he scanned the room. \"Whew, that's a lot comfier... Uh, so this is where we're gathering?\" \"This is the Witch Cult Disaster Response HQ. It is a bit seedy-lookin' for that, though.\" Chiming in after Subaru, Al played with the metal fixtures on his helm as he heaved a hearty sigh. Overhearing his murmur, Anastasia put her hands on her hips and closed one eye as she scolded him. \"Come now, don't be like that, Al. I can appreciate how worried you are since your precious princess isn't here.\" \"Well, not so much worried as scared. She'll definitely be angry that I'm not by her side in a situation like this.\" He shook his head in dread. The roster of attendees at the meeting certainly made his fears seem credible. They were inside a conference room, which was wide enough to accommodate twelve people. Multiple royal-selection candidates, including Anastasia, had assembled, but Al's master Priscilla was not among them. Of course, she hadn't been present when Emilia was whisked away by Regulus, either. \"Come to think of it, my party's way too short on people. Not even Otto or Garfiel are here.\" \"Unfortunately, it wasn't possible to gather everyone involved in the royal selection. On my end, Mimi hasn't come back since last night, either. Hopefully, Garfiel's with her.\" Anastasia touched a hand to her cheek, concerned that she didn't know the whereabouts of the girl whom she seemed to treat like a precious daughter. \"If they're together, then there's no need to worry about them running into trouble... Anyway, why meet at this place?\" Subaru gestured at the building in general. \"Al called this the Witch Cult Disaster Response HQ, and that really does seem to be spot-on. The situation in the city sounds serious enough to warrant it, too... But why is the HQ set up inside the Muse Company?\" Subaru finally asked the question that had been bugging him for a while now. Indeed, Subaru and the others were currently inside the Muse Company building, which was located on the affluent main boulevard of the city. He'd visited the magic crystal trading company's main store just a day earlier, and now it was operating as an emergency shelter. The wounded were being treated underground, while refugees were given guest rooms. With the state of his leg, Subaru, too, had been carried underground, where it was so overcrowded that coming up to the conference room had been quite a journey. \"It's a nice, big building, so I get the appeal of using it as a shelter when push comes to shove, but a company's still a company, right? They're not usually the first choice for setting up a response HQ.\" \"That's what you'd think at first, right? But there's a good reason. The biggest one is that Kiritaka is on the Council of Ten, which runs Pristella... Really, when you get down to it, he's the leading member of the city's top ten most influential people.\" \"Are we talking about the same Kiritaka? Seriously?\" Subaru's face tensed up as he recalled the not particularly pleasant run-in he'd had with the man just the day before. Of course, judging from Kiritaka's station and how much everyone seemed to trust him, Subaru figured that he possessed a talent that matched his status. It was just that his first impression of the man and the latest incident from the day before were difficult to reconcile with this new information. \" Master Kiritaka is an upstanding and capable man. There's no reason to be concerned, Master Subaru.\" Crusch had read his thoughts right as she joined them in the conference room. Having split off midway up from the underground treatment area to fetch Wilhelm, she'd returned with a freshly dressed Ferris and the Sword Devil in tow. \"Thank you for coming, Crusch. What about Kiritaka?\" \"It would seem he is too busy with the evacuation and dispatching of personnel to attend at this time. He said he would join our conference once matters calm down a little.\" After hearing Crusch's reply, Anastasia went, \"I see, I see,\" with a nod. Watching the exchange, Wilhelm glanced at Subaru in his seat and the bandage on his leg. \"Sir Subaru, what is the condition of your leg?\" \"About as good as it looks. Sorry for the pitiful state I'm in. Wilhelm, you're...\" \"I originally came to seek Sir Kiritaka's opinion on how to best allocate the city's forces. Having completed that bit of business, I am currently escorting Lady Crusch. That man is quite accomplished for his age.\" \"Hnnngh... At this point, that's the only thing I can say...\" With both Crusch and Wilhelm vouching for"}, {"text": "him, Subaru could only conclude that his doubts about Kiritaka's ability had been misplaced. But if that was true, then just how important was Liliana to Kiritaka if she was able to provoke him that much? He brushed those pointless thoughts aside when Crusch called his name. \"Master Subaru, it was immediately after hearing the broadcast that Lady Anastasia immediately suggested we relocate here. Thanks to our acquaintance with Sir Kiritaka and this building being designated as a shelter, Ferris has been able to use his abilities where they are most needed.\" \"The fact that we were able to keep Subawu's leg in one piece was also thanks to that decision.\" Apparently, Kiritaka was so reliable that he was the main reason Anastasia had suggested they set up here. Crusch and Ferris both seemed to concur with that assessment. From the way they put it, Subaru had lucked out, given the terrible ordeal he'd been through. \"Worst-case scenario, I could've bit the dust right then and there and taken Beako with me...\" \"But that didn't happen. That little girl did everything she could to get ya outta there. You're a lucky dude, Bro.\" Subaru managed a smile at Al's lighthearted take on things. If Subaru actually had any luck, he would've made it through the day without dying multiple times. Sadly, reality was not so accommodating. That was why Subaru didn't trust fortune even a little.  Subaru Natsuki's good luck dried up in a back alley on the same day he'd been summoned to another world. \"I'm all out of luck, so the only thing I can do is stay steady and work with what I've got.\" Even now, it was only thanks to Beatrice's sacrifice that he had any moves to make at all. Subaru had to rise to the occasion. \"Incidentally, is everyone here? Setting aside Crusch's crew for the moment, Anastasia's team seems way more understaffed than usual...\" Focusing on the matter at hand, Subaru mentioned the missing faces that he expected to be attending. Otto, who should've been at the Muse Company already for follow-up negotiations, was concerningly absent. Additionally, Julius, Ricardo, and the Iron Fangs, who served as Anastasia's main combat forces, were nowhere to be seen. On top of all that, neither Felt nor anyone associated with her was anywhere in sight. \"Julius, the big doggy-man, and the Iron Fangs escorted Ferri over here. After that, they left to check on the other shelters.\" \"They've been instructed to contact Ferris if they happen upon anyone gravely injured in the hopes of saving even one more life.\" \"Gotcha. That's... Wait, what do you mean, 'contact him'?\" In a world where cell phones weren't widespread or really available at all, there shouldn't have been an easy way to stay in touch remotely. However, Ferris responded to Subaru's doubts by saying, \"Look,\" and raising his hand. In his palm was a folding mirror or more precisely, a metia that looked like one. \"A conversation mirror?!\" \"Heh-heh, that's right. It's the same one we seized after the battle against the Witch Cult a year ago. Lady Anastasia has been keeping it safe, and she let us take it out for a spin.\" Ferris winked as he held up the metia that made it possible to communicate with anyone holding its opposite. It really did perform the same role a phone did. A year ago, this had been part of the spoils of war acquired after the battle with Petelgeuse, the Archbishop of Sloth. Now these metia were apparently seeing use again in another battle against the Witch Cult. \"The ones that can connect with three mirrors at once are rare. It'd be a waste not to break them out at a time like this.\" \"So the other ones got distributed to the guys out on patrol gotcha.\" It was karma that metia once owned by the Witch Cult would end up being used to fight them. Anastasia was incredibly well prepared to have them on hand, ready to go. \"Okay, all that makes sense. But Otto's not involved in that, is he?\" Subaru asked about Otto, who probably would've been irritated that he was being treated like an afterthought. It was none other than Subaru who'd proudly refer to Otto as a domestic adviser who could hold his own in a fight, but compared with Julius and Ricardo, he was overwhelmingly outclassed as a warrior. Subaru figured there was no way he'd be part of the crew that went out on patrol, but his question made Crusch lower her eyes. \"Unfortunately, Master Otto is not here. He was nowhere to be seen by the time we arrived. He might be at one of the nearby shelters...\" \"Th-that guy's bad timing is just legendary...\" Subaru cursed Otto's inability to be at the right place at the right time despite the fact that he was already supposed to be at the Muse Company to begin with. Regardless of where he was or what he was doing, it would be a serious problem if he wasn't safe and sound  \" I guess there's no need to worry. He's the last person I expect to slip up, so I'll save him for later.\" \"I-is that really fine? Perhaps you should worry somewhat more...\" \"Nah, it's all good. In terms of pure fighting strength, he can't hold a candle to a guy like Wilhelm, but...when it comes to staying alive, Otto's basically second to none.\" \"...You must...really trust him a great deal.\" \"It's actually kinda embarrassing, so don't tell him I said that, okay?\" If nothing else, Subaru fully intended to take that secret with him to the grave. Either way, he decided to trust that the patrolling unit was on the right track and that Otto was safe for the moment. The same went for the absent Garfiel. He'd worry about the lack of combat strength later. Setting them aside, the concern that suddenly came to mind was  \"Are Patlash and Fulfew still back at the inn? Both of them are sharp, so there's probably nothing to worry about... Come to think of it, Priscilla's one thing since she's staying in a different inn, but where's Felt and her people?\" \"We currently don't know the whereabouts of either party. I heard Lady Felt left the inn on some errand, but there is one element of uncertainty.\" \"And that would be...?\" \"Apparently, she was planning to have a chat with a certain redhead who ruined the mood this morning.\" A troubled expression appeared on Anastasia's face. Subaru's was much the same. However, the one with the most concerning face of all was Wilhelm, who found it difficult to maintain his composure for obvious reasons. Seeing Wilhelm harden his cheeks as he went silent, Anastasia let out a little sigh. \"That being said, Felt has Reinhard with her, so we shouldn't worry too much... Still, it's scary to not have any idea what that other little princess is up to.\" Changing topics, Anastasia pressed a hand to her cheek as she pointedly tried to probe Al for information. Al simply went, \"Gimme a break...\" as he responded with a throaty voice. \"A guy like me can't tell what the princess is thinking. Well, I don't think she's gotten herself in trouble or anything, but my guess is that she ain't gonna just patiently sit and wait this out.\" \"Come to think of it, Priscilla was with Liliana at the park in the First District. After we split up, I bumped into the guys who turned my leg into a chew toy, so I'm not sure what happened to her after that, but...\" \"The princess was in First District? ...That ain't too far from here.\" Processing the new information that Subaru had offered, Al rubbed his steel helm's jaw and sank into thought. Of course, the proper thing for a retainer to do after learning of his master's location would have been to rush out to her side. \"Well, the princess probably has thoughts of her own. No need to dash off in a panic or anything.\" \"Are...are you sure?\" \"Didn't you say so yourself, Bro? It's all about that trust, man. This is embarrassin', so make sure you don't tell the princess I said that.\" Subaru made a face when Al took his words and turned them around on him. Subaru's reservations aside, both of them understood the thought process behind the other's decision. \"All right, sorry for making you bear with me while I took time to figure things out. Let's get to the topic at hand. Since we're in the Witch Cult Disaster Response HQ, tell me what's the plan?\" \"First, we're waiting for word from the unit we dispatched. However, the very fact that the Witch Cult broadcast originated from the government office's metia means...\" \"There is no mistaking that the city's four control towers have been seized.\" As she said that, Crusch stood by a window and gestured outside with her hand. Following where her fingers pointed, if Subaru squinted, he could make out a stonework tower connected to the city's exterior wall that must have been one of the control towers. These structures were administration facilities that regulated the amount of water as well as the flow rate of the city's always-running waterways. They occupied the cardinal directions, with one each in the north, south, east, and west. Only one of them was visible from the conference room, but  \" What's that flag I see up top?\" In the distance, there was a fluttering banner rising over the tower. Subaru didn't remember seeing one while wandering around the city that morning or the day before. The flag had some kind of strange symbol traced on it using red dye. The eye pattern pricked at an unpleasant part of Subaru's memories. \"That is the symbol of the Witch Cult. It's rare for them to engage in such public displays, but...\" Like Crusch said, that symbol was the same one that marked the signature black outfits of the Witch Cultists. The robe that Sirius had been wearing sported it as well. And now it was on a flag flying over the control tower the message was crystal clear. \"Let me guess: All four control towers have the same flag?\" \"That is correct. Now that they have seized the control towers, should they wish it, our enemies can submerge Pristella in water at any moment... Action must be taken immediately.\" Crusch made it obvious what an awful situation the city was currently in. This was like if a baby was holding the detonator for a nuclear bomb what made it far worse was that unlike a baby, the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins understood perfectly well the value of the switch in their hands. \"Are the city's residents panicking? Hearing that the Witch Cult has taken over the control towers can't be good news.\" \"Thanks to Pristella's extensive preparations for floods, chaos in the city has been kept tamped down to a surprising degree. However, evacuating the city is no simple matter.\" One of Lugunica's five largest cities, Pristella had a population of roughly a hundred thousand. It wasn't impossible, but conducting a major evacuation of that many people without sparking a panic was far from easy. Factoring in the Witch Cult only made matters even more complicated, since it would be essential to avoid drawing their attention. \"The city's main gate is the only real way in or out of the city, and one of the control towers is very close to it, so the enemy's really got us by the scruff of our necks. Speaking of those guys...\" \" The three Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, huh?\" Taking Ferris's meaning, Subaru highlighted the reason that the situation was so dire. Judging by the reactions around the room, everyone else was up to speed. It certainly wasn't good news, but it wasn't particularly surprising, either. They were simply wary of the threat that the enemy posed. \"There's Wrath,"}, {"text": "who wounded me along with the other people in the square; Greed, who carried off Emilia; and Lust, who's apparently broadcasting from the municipal offices... An all-star team of assholes.\" \"You seem unexpectedly calm about this, Natsuki, even though Emilia was kidnapped and everything.\" \"That's exactly why. If losing my cool and going berserk would get her back, I'd raise enough hell to make it into the history books. But it doesn't work that way, so...\" Subaru had already made one blunder by losing his cool. The price was Emilia's abduction. Beatrice had settled the tab in his stead. He couldn't afford any more screwups. He needed a heart of steel so that he could take back everything. \"Sir Subaru's feelings are admirable. I shall do everything in my meager power to assist you.\" \"Thank you so much, Wilhelm. That's super reassuring.\" Wilhelm, who was incredibly invested in helping the two troubled lovebirds for personal reasons, had just pledged his support. That was alone was a big comfort. The Sword Devil's strength was indispensable if they wanted to last in a direct fight. \"? What is it, Al?\" It was then that Subaru abruptly noticed that Al had been watching the exchange between him and Wilhelm in silence. But when Subaru posed the question, Al offered a noncommittal \"Nothing, really\" and shrugged. \"I was just thinking that you're pretty twisted in your own way, Bro  Anyway, let's push on to the main topic.\" \"R-right, suppose we should. Uh, so about that broadcast...\" Even though what Al said bothered him, Subaru turned his attention back to the room as a whole to bring up something that had been bothering him since the initial discussion. Namely  \" This Archbishop of Lust called herself Capella Emerada Lugunica? What's up with that?\" 3  Capella Emerada Lugunica. That was the name the Archbishop of Lust had used to introduce herself. Subaru hadn't personally heard the introduction, but the name alone was more than enough to catch his attention. In particular, he couldn't simply dismiss the Lugunica part. \"The only people with Lugunica as their family name should be in the royal family, right? Why claim that name?\" \"Isn't it just to mess with us? The royal family all dyin' of illness is a pretty famous story, y'know?\" \"There must be some kind of scheme behind it. I believe it would be hasty of us to dismiss the matter as nothing more than a prank in poor taste.\" Al and Crusch aired their respective opinions about the doubt that Subaru harbored. Given this was the Witch Cult, either explanation was entirely possible and worth considering. \" One thing does come to mind.\" It was then that Wilhelm raised a hand, cutting in with a new perspective. \"And what might that be?\" \"While I do not have anything to add about the name Capella...there was most certainly a member of the Lugunica royal family who went by the name of Emerada Lugunica.\" *** Everyone blinked in surprise at this unexpected reveal. Wilhelm touched his chin and half closed his blue eyes as he rummaged through his memories. \"Lady Emerada was alive prior to the Demi-human War...over fifty years ago. I have never met her personally, but records mention that she was a woman of exceptional beauty and wisdom.\" \"So is this a case of them impersonating someone who actually existed? Maybe it's an attempt to ruin someone's good name?\" That would be a rather petty and spiteful thing to do, but such an unsavory pastime was far from unthinkable when the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins were involved. But then Wilhelm retorted with a quick \"No,\" shaking his head at Subaru's remark. \"I do not know the opponent's aim in doing this...but Lady Emerada was not someone who passed away with great deeds to her name. If anything, it is the opposite.\" \"You mean...\" \"Lady Emerada succumbed to illness at a young age. However, not only was her death not mourned by the kingdom, but she was also denied a state funeral, as would be standard. The stated reason was that conditions at the time were too dire to hold a formal ceremony. However, the real reason is that the kingdom's people had no desire to do any such thing.\" Wilhelm's explanation left Subaru with such a disturbing sense of foreboding that he said nothing. Noticing this, Wilhelm let out a tiny sigh. \"Lady Emerada was a terribly beautiful and wise person...but she was also reportedly cruel in the extreme, and constantly shrouded in an unfathomable darkness. As such, though she was part of the royal family, she was branded a heretic, and even news of her passing seemed to have been suppressed for some time.\" It must have been painful for Wilhelm to speak in uncertainties that reflected on the dignity of the kingdom he once served with his sword arm. He had sounded increasingly tongue-tied by the latter half of his tale. In contrast, choosing to go by the name of Emerada seemed to be a comment on the poor character of Lust after this revelation. \"...There's no way it's the real person, so Lust is almost certainly just pretending to be Emerada.\" \"Claiming the name of a royal who fell victim to illness is most likely an indirect form of harassment aimed at those who knew Emerada. I believe that most who masquerade as a member of the royal family do so to invite suspicion and mistrust.\" Wilhelm's conclusion made everyone present sigh with unsettled looks. Unlike Subaru and Al, who did not feel any particular allegiance toward the kingdom itself, Crusch and Wilhelm seemed stricken by what was happening. However, the strongest reaction came from someone besides them. \" That's unforgivable.\" \"Ferris?\" Murmuring in a low growl, Ferris was shaking a fist. Though Ferris usually seemed ever aloof, rarely concerning himself with anything besides Crusch, he currently wore a mask of raw anger. The sight shocked Subaru. Lust's evil intentions were tantamount to spitting on the faces of the royal family of Lugunica. There was no doubt that to Ferris, a knight of the royal guard, this was a desecration of the highest order. At the same time, Subaru sensed that there was another reason for Ferris's rage that had nothing to do with fealty for the kingdom. \" Ah.\" As Ferris harbored such deep, silent anger, Crusch moved close, gently taking his hand. Instantly, Ferris gasped and lifted his face, only to be met by Crusch's steady gaze and soft smile. \"I-I'm sorry, Lady Crusch. I shouldn't have lost control like that...\" \"It is fine, Ferris. I am the one who should be sorry, for I suspect your anger is largely on my behalf.\" *** From the way Ferris lowered his head, Crusch's words must have hit the mark. It was probably true that Crusch's lost memories were the source of his aggravation. That they could not share that burden gnawed at him, undermining the powerful bonds that should have connected the liege and her retainer. \"Yes, yes, let's all simmer down. Getting worked up at every little bit of mayhem our opponents cause would just be playing into their hand.\" It was then that Anastasia gathered everyone's attention with a resounding clap. As Subaru had surmised, she was quite accustomed to presiding over meetings with large numbers of people. She looked at everyone in the room before continuing: \"Whatever Lust might be planning doesn't change the fact that she's our enemy. And it doesn't change the fact that she holds the control towers, which means she has us by the scruff of our necks.\" \"Man, you change up fast... No wonder you're the one Princess pays the most attention to.\" \"Why, thank you. The way you put it wasn't the most comforting, though.\" As Anastasia restored their focus and cleared the air, Al praised her by using his own frame of reference, drawing a troubled smile from Anastasia. Then he twisted his neck and said, \"If anything, these Archbishops are so messed up in the head that trying to find the logic in their plans is probably a waste of time. More importantly, what are we gonna do about their demands?\" \"Demands? Wait, wait, this is news to me. What demands?\" \"Ahh, right, I was just about to bring up the contents of Lust's threat to get you up to speed, Natsuki.\" Subaru voiced his surprise at Al's mention of demands, and Anastasia confirmed that an explanation was coming. Her word choice hinted at the menace they were facing. \"The Witch Cult took over the control towers and the city hall, but it would seem their objective is different than, say, destroying the city or massacring the residents. According to Lust, they're searching for something, and threatening the populace is simply a means to that end,\" Anastasia explained. \"Then...in other words, they've taken the city hostage as some act of terrorism?\" The reason he hadn't ever considered the possibility of the Witch Cult doing this sort of thing was simply because terrorists took hostages as a means of negotiation. Such rational acts of evil didn't match up with Subaru's internal idea of what the Witch Cult stood for and how they operated. \"Natsuki, are you all right? You seem startled.\" \"Nah, nah, I just didn't see that coming from their crew... Sorry, getting sidetracked. Anyway, what are they looking for?\" It probably wasn't anything decent. There was also the possibility that with Emilia already secured, they had already gotten what they came for, but from the looks of things, that was unlikely. As Subaru made those deductions, Anastasia gently stroked the white fox scarf around her neck before she replied: \" The Witch's bones.\" \"...What?\" That answer was so far beyond Subaru's expectations that his brain was unable to process those words. While he was reeling, Anastasia spoke up again. \"The Witch's bones. That's why they came to this city.\" *** When that incomprehensible fact was thrust in his face once more, Subaru's words failed him. Trying to imagine what the Witch's bones were and their significance was a demand far beyond Subaru. In the first place, the very notion of the Witch having left her bones behind as some sort of relic sounded like a complete hoax. After all  \"The Witch of Jealousy, who swallowed up half the world long ago, was never destroyed and continues to slumber in a land far to the East, still coveting the world or so goes the tales that have been passed down for generations.\" Still holding Ferris's hand, Crusch directly addressed the source of Subaru's agitation. Swallowing, he simply responded with a \"yeah\" and a nod. \"I heard that from Beako, too. The Witch of Jealousy isn't dead; she's just sealed away. But if that's the case, then how would she leave bones behind?\" As he spoke, he couldn't help but remember his fleeting encounter with the Witch of Jealousy in the Sanctuary. She was a black shadow of a woman who exchanged only several scant words with him in the span of a few moments but for some reason, Subaru's heart rejected, stubbornly, the notion that she was dead in any way. He had no choice but to reject it. Subaru's soul wanted to cry out: It's impossible for her to be dead. And someday you will come to kill me, yes? Yes, those words, which were not a real promise, demanded and begged for him to reject the possibility that the Witch was dead. \"That's right. There's no way that's true. It can't be...\" The uneasiness filling Subaru made his breathing uneven. \" Calm down, Bro. Look, about these Witch's bones... It's not like they have to belong to the infamous Witch of Jealousy, right?\" \" Wha?\" Al grasped his shoulder, speaking those words in an effort to soothe him. Everyone else in the room turned their eyes on Al, though they couldn't see his expression under his steel helm. \"So how about it? Like Bro and the young duchess"}, {"text": "were sayin', the most famous Witch was sealed away and all, but there were other Witches, too, right?\" \"There are beings besides the Witch of Jealousy who we call witches as a term of convenience. During the Demi-human War, magic users cooperating with the Demi-human Alliance were often called witches as well, and they were greatly feared.\" \"Meaning there's a precedent. Then...\" \"Well, it's a little different for this city. If a witch is mentioned here, then it must be about a real one rather than some imitation who's only a witch in name.\" Wilhelm had been the first to answer Al, but Anastasia's follow-up confidently drew a conclusion that Subaru found difficult to accept. \"From that manner of speaking...I take it that Lady Anastasia has something in mind?\" \"Even I wouldn't be talking like this if I wasn't almost certain. The reason I wanted to meet up with Kiritaka after hearing Lust's broadcast is because of that same hunch, even if it meant going out of my way to make it happen.\" Anastasia narrowed her light-blue eyes as she divulged what she'd kept hidden up to that point. She then surveyed everyone's faces all at once. \"Anyone can find this out with a little digging, but does everyone know how this Water Gate City came to be?\" \"...I heard that way back, this was originally supposed to be a trap for catching something.\" Subaru recalled that upon first arriving in Pristella, Beatrice had given him a history lesson as he admired the beautiful urban landscape. She hadn't elaborated on exactly what was supposed to be trapped, though. \"That's correct,\" said Anastasia, nodding at Subaru's reply. \"Apparently, this city was a trap set for the Witch. The Witch met her end here when the entire place was flooded. According to legend, her bones remain somewhere in this city, even today.\" \"But the Witch of Jealousy was sealed and...\" The full story about the city's past had been revealed in an unexpected fashion. Still, nothing seemed to add up. As Subaru began to disagree  \" Typhon drowned in a flood, right...? So this is where that happened, huh?\"  he was interrupted by a faint, halting murmur that originated from inside a steel helm. *** When Subaru looked over in surprise at the unanticipated mention of a certain name, Al was blithely playing with the metal fixtures of his helmet, having fallen deep into thought. But Subaru had no doubt that he'd just said the name Typhon. This was the name of the Witch of Pride, one of the six other Witches from the same era as the Witch of Jealousy. \"The answer to your question is simple, Natsuki. There are Witches besides the Witch of Jealousy. There are almost no records remaining, but there certainly are oral legends. And one of them states that in this city...\" \" This is where the bones of the ancient Witch remain.\" Neither Anastasia nor Crusch heard Al's murmur as they steadily advanced the conversation. As a result, Subaru missed his chance to investigate deeper into Al's cryptic remark. Of course, when he took a moment to consider their current priorities, it was obvious this wasn't the time to get sidetracked. But if what Al murmured under his breath really was true, the Witch of Pride, whom Subaru had encountered at the Sanctuary the Witch who was a bundle of youthful innocence had perished in the very city that Subaru currently stood in. The thought alone made Subaru's chest ache. \"What is the connection between the Witch's bones and Lady Anastasia making haste to meet with Master Kiritaka?\" Returning to the topic at hand, Crusch once again asked about Anastasia's true intentions. Anastasia began her reply by winking. \"The existence of the Witch's bones is a closely held secret in the Water Gate City...and the only people familiar with the legends and supposed whereabouts are on the Council of Ten. I figured I might as well try asking one.\" \"Meaning only the big shots of the city have any idea... Anastasia, does that mean what I think it means? That you think it's better to give in to Lust's demands?\" \"Of course not. Complying with someone who threatens people to get what they want will only end with you being taken advantage of every single time. Anyway, I just wanted to confirm the current location of the bones... There's no guarantee that one of the Council of Ten won't do something stupid and tell Lust where they are, right?\" \"...I suppose that's true.\" Unlike Subaru's shallow mindset, Anastasia's assessments were swift and accurate. Negotiating with terrorists often did make things worse. In their current situation, the Archbishops would almost certainly flood the city the instant they recovered the Witch's bones. That was how assured Subaru was about their deceitful character. \"See, I was looking into the details of this while you were asleep, Natsuki. When Kiritaka makes it up here, we can talk about these bones in more detail. Then we can decide on a proper response.\" \"By 'response,' you mean...\" \" Whether to fight or to flee, of course.\" There was quiet determination in Anastasia's low voice. It was as if an angry blue flame had been lit within her. \"I'm the one who called all the royal-selection candidates here to Pristella. Of course I feel responsible for the way things have turned out... I need to extract some compensation from these unexpected visitors after all they've done.\" Anastasia was the owner of a major company who didn't have any notable ability in combat worth speaking of. And yet her soft-spoken pronouncement made Subaru feel like a great beast had just clamped its fangs down on his neck. This was a sharp reminder that Anastasia Hoshin was one of the last people he wanted as an enemy. \" Ahh, wait, wait. The conversation mirror's responding! It must be Julius and the others.\" Just as the conversation reached a lull, Ferris raised a hand with a look of surprise. He was holding the metia up, showing how the mirror's surface glowed white in search of a response. Setting it down on the round table so that everyone could see, Ferris gently touched the surface of the mirror with his hand. \" It seems that Ferris and...everyone else is over there. I take it you can see me?\" A tall, handsome man with purple hair rose to the mirror's surface. It was Julius Juukulius, who had gone out into the city to save lives. As soon as it was clear that Julius was on the other end, Anastasia rushed to place herself in front of the mirror with a rapid patter of feet. \"Julius, I was getting worried after you didn't get in touch for a while. How's it looking outside?\" \"I am very sorry to have troubled you. The situation in the city is chaotic. The residents are becoming increasingly enraged by the Witch Cult... More importantly, there is something I must urgently convey without delay.\" Quickly cutting his reunion with Anastasia short, Julius instantly vanished from the mirror's surface. Displayed in the mirror in the stead of the tall, handsome man was a little cat-person wearing a monocle TB. It turned out that he, one of the three sibling lieutenants of the Iron Fangs, had been accompanying Julius. \"TB? What's wrong? You seem upset...\" \"L-Lady Anastasia, this is very, very bad. Has my older sister returned yet?\" Interrupting Anastasia, TB asked a frantic question. Bewildered by his disheveled appearance, Anastasia answered with a quick no, shaking her head. \"Mimi hasn't been back. I was worried about her, too...TB?\" A profound sense of dread could be felt from the other side of the mirror. However, there was still more to come. Suddenly, what looked like a ripple glided across the conversation mirror's glass surface. \"Excuse me! Is Lady Anastasia there?! This is bad! Hetaro says that Mimi's in trouble!\" An instant later, the third of the linked conversation mirrors connected to the call. Displayed on the mirror's surface was the dog-man Ricardo, staring into the mirror with his mouth wide open. But as soon as the image became clear, Ricardo's head was immediately pushed aside by a teary-eyed kitty-person. \"Lady! Lady!! Big Sis is  She's...!!\" The one pleading in a tearful voice was Hetaro, TB's almost identical-looking brother. While the boy normally wore a meek expression, his face now was twisted up in abject sorrow. \"Hetaro, calm down. What happened? Speak slowly and clearly.\" \"Th-the effects of our blessing  It's flowing from Big Sis and into us! Sh-she must've gotten hurt really bad... At this rate, Big Sis won't...!\" \"'Blessing'... You mean the blessing of thirds, yes? In other words, Mimi got injured at some point, and it's affecting Hetaro and TB, too? Do I have it right so far?\" Hetaro and TB nodded simultaneously to confirm Anastasia's deductions. Listening to the conversation from behind, Subaru recalled hearing from Mimi that the blessing of thirds the one that tied the three siblings together made them share wounds and fatigue. Once upon a time back at the Roswaal Manor, a sudden change came over Ram when Rem had been in danger. This was similar to what Mimi and her brothers had which meant Mimi was currently in trouble. Urgency raced through everyone present, including on the other ends of the conversation mirrors, as they grasped this new development. Just as they processed the striking revelation that one of their own was clearly in mortal danger  \"Yoo-hoo, yoo-hoo-hoo, yahoo-hoo!\"  a brash voice that seemed to not care about the situation at all reverberated throughout the city. \"What the...?\" Subaru, unsure how to react to this abrupt announcement, instinctively turned his face toward the ceiling. The voice was coming from somewhere above. Not from the ceiling, but quite literally from the sky itself. This was the work of a metia that reached every corner of the city and the one using the municipal office's facilities to make this broadcast was the same Archbishop of Lust who had come up in conversation several times already. \"To all you meatbags in the city: Are you having fun? Have you gotten hammered and horny from hearing my lovely voice for the umpteenth time today? Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!\" It was a high-pitched, grating laugh. That haughty voice paid no heed to the feelings of those who were forced to listen. This was an assault on the ears of every person in the city. It had only taken Subaru moments to come to a realization the person making this broadcast had a vicious, ugly character. \"So this is Lust... Man, does she have perfect timing or what?!\" \"Now then, all you meatbags who can't help but get hot and heavy at the sound of a beautiful girl's voice, I have a very important announcement from your oh-so-gentle and merciful broadcaster! So listen up! Pay attention! Cleaned out your ears yet?!\" In contrast to Subaru, who was unable to conceal his restlessness, those hearing this kind of broadcast for the second time displayed a variety of reactions. Wariness, anger, hatred in any case, they were not nearly as shaken while waiting for the words that were bound to follow. What was the owner of this maddening, agonizing voice going to tell them? \"Soooo it turns out that even though I asked you so, so nicely, a couple of people who clearly didn't get the message decided to target the municipal offices... This upsets me so much! Really, I can't exaggerate what complete and total morons you ignorant meatbags are!\" \"...We're not putting up with this anymore. Ricardo, Julius, listen closely: Go back to the municipal offices with Hetaro and TB and have them find out where Mimi wen \" As the broadcast continued, Anastasia decided to address the most pressing issue. She gave orders to her knight and her loyal hound through the conversation mirrors to try and secure Mimi's safety. However, even as Anastasia strove to maintain her calm, the change in the situation made sport of even her.  And"}, {"text": "this came in what was, to all concerned, the worst of all possible forms. \" Who goes there?!\" Abruptly, Wilhelm shouted sharply toward the entrance to the conference room. As the Sword Devil readied his now-drawn blade, Subaru and the others turned in the same direction. An instant later, the door practically burst open as a lone figure raced into the conference room. For a moment, the sudden appearance of an intruder startled Subaru and the others, but the first to shed his surprise and raise his voice was none other than Subaru himself. \"Garfiel?!\" The familiar voice made Garfiel, out of breath and slick with sweat, lift his face. Noticing Subaru's presence, he drew near with a tottering, uncertain gait. Subaru only belatedly realized the cause of this uncharacteristic behavior and the strange atmosphere that had befallen the room. Garfiel was carrying something in his arms. No one was able to speak a word as Garfiel stopped before Subaru. Once he got that far, Garfiel crumpled to his knees, lowering his head as if clinging to Subaru. Then when he presented what lay in his bloodied arms, his throat trembled. \"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry, General!! I'm...! I'm useless! Worthless...!!\" There was a shriek. Garfiel howled in grief. Cradled in his bloodied arms was Mimi, who was visibly at death's door. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 Rewinding time to the day before Garfiel raced into the shelter  *** As he walked along a city street at dusk, Garfiel's breath caught when he abruptly noticed someone's gaze on him. Standing at a street corner on the other side of a crowd was a black silhouette of a woman. Her reflection swayed gently on the water's surface. She was a familiar figure whom he saw at the edges of his vision from time to time though Garfiel knew full well this was not a real person, but the phantom of a woman who had once existed. He could not smell her. Given Garfiel's nose, it was impossible for him to miss picking up the scent of someone within eyeshot never mind the scent of blood that had hung around that woman, so poignant that it was ingrained in his nostrils, never fading no matter how much time passed. That was why Garfiel could speak with certainty: This woman was a phantom. Besides, he had also been the one who killed her Elsa Gramhilde with his very own hands. *** But all that time later, the woman's phantom continued to stare at Garfiel. Her smile had been so blackish red, like the darkest blood, that he could almost swear that he smelled the colors. Those lips made his chest ache to this day. The first time he'd noticed the wraith was about two months after leaving the Sanctuary. Right after an incident involving him as well as Subaru and Otto in a certain town, Garfiel started seeing her flickering into the edges of his vision every so often. Somehow, he understood the cause this echo reflected the weakness in Garfiel's heart. Garfiel had never properly put that incident behind him. Even though he saw himself as nothing but a coward, Subaru and the others kept saying over and over again that Garfiel had done well. When he thought back on it, he realized they'd always done that. His companions always overlooked his faults. But Garfiel had not forgotten everything he had done to the people who were now his comrades. One wrong step, and he surely would have ripped into Subaru and Otto with the very claws that he used to protect them. Even if he lacked the courage to do so, it would have become all too easy if he had fallen into despair. That was why Garfiel could not forgive his own weakness or his cowardice. Accordingly, Garfiel had accepted that he was seeing Elsa the first life he had ever taken because she was the manifestation of his weakness. The phantom's blood-colored smile mocked Garfiel the instant his heart foundered  \"Hey, Garf, are you listening? Right now, Mimi's talking about some really good things! Mimi really is!\" A bubbly grin entered his view, blocking off that blood-colored smile in the distance. If this girl brought her beaming face any closer, he'd be able to feel her breath. Garfiel recoiled. \"...Uh, right, I'm listening.\" \"Good! Anyway, Hetaro and TB are such spoiled kids. It's really hard on me as their big sister!\" Garfiel's reply was listless, but judging by her cackling laugh, the girl hadn't noticed. She had orange fur and round eyes that were overflowing with innocence. For whatever reason, the cat-person Mimi, a member of a rival camp, kept hanging around Garfiel every chance she got. At present, Garfiel and Mimi were taking an evening stroll through Pristella together. Garfiel would have preferred to be alone, but he'd blundered by letting Mimi find him and tag along. There was no way she had the ability to pick up on subtle social cues. Somehow, ever since arriving in Pristella  No, ever since their first meeting at Roswaal Manor, she'd been particularly fond of him. At first, he'd assumed this was a vigilant investigation of a rival candidate's combat strength, but the way she talked and acted had made his initial suspicions fade. At this point, he assumed she'd simply taken a liking to him. Without any idea of why she might think that, he usually agreed to go along with most of her whims. \"Grrr! Garf, you're making a weird face! Did something funny happen?\" \"Does this look like a happy face to you...? I don't wanna talk about it, and I got no obligation to.\" \"You shouldn't use hard words like obligation and courtesy the way Joshua does, okay? Mimi thinks it's good to use regular words. Plus, smiling like an idiot like you always do is way cooler, Garf!\" \"The hell did you just say to my face?!\" Perhaps she was sincerely trying to praise him, but Garfiel just got irritated and bared his fangs at her. The girl cried out with a \"Waaah!\" and smiled as she broke into a run. After going a short distance, Mimi came to a stop, grinning as she waited for him to catch up and the phantom who had surely been there earlier was nowhere to be seen. Garfiel had rushed out of the Water Raiment that evening because of the lingering effects of his interaction with Reinhard the Sword Saint. The current Sword Saint was known as the strongest not only in the Kingdom of Lugunica, but in all four of the great nations. Not only had Garfiel heard the run-of-the-mill rumors, but he'd also heard about the man directly from Subaru, who had met the living legend. That was why Garfiel had been longing for a chance to meet him in person someday. He'd firmly believed that this was a necessary rite of passage for him to become the strongest. To Garfiel, being called the strongest held a special meaning. He was sure that anyone who was born a man must have dreamed of being the strongest at least once. And everyone who had that dream forgot about it at some point over the course of a long life, yearning for that which they had abandoned. Garfiel did not want to forget that dream. That title was an absolute necessity for the cowardly Garfiel to protect the things that were most important to him. With that thought in mind, he chased after it without rest. That was why the fact that he had subconsciously backed down the instant he was face-to-face with the strongest was currently driving him to despair. He'd lived for a scant fifteen years, yet Garfiel had spent the majority of his life in training. He poured all his effort into mastering the martial arts, proving he could uphold his oath to protect what was precious to him with his own two hands. The instant he yielded ground in the face of real strength, it felt like he had betrayed his oath. Before he could make the Sword Saint draw his sword, before he could make the man brush away his honed fist, Garfiel had already lost. Garfiel, worries or not, you're damn strong. That was how Subaru tried to console Garfiel as he struggled in the quagmire of defeat. Those words ate at him so much that he thought it was an achievement he wasn't wailing pathetically that very moment. Provoked by those feelings, which were swirling in his chest with no outlet, she became visible the woman he had slain. Unable to ignore her presence, he'd raced into the Water Gate City at dusk all by himself. That had been the plan anyway. \"Garf! Garf! Look, look! Hey, you can really see the sunset on the water it's so red! That's amazing! Look! So pretty!\" Running around all excited, Mimi tugged on Garfiel's sleeve, pulled on his hair, and even leaped onto his back. His self-styled companion seemed not to know the meaning of thoughtfulness or mercy. Thanks to her, he couldn't even find a moment to wallow on his own. \"Hey, simmer down already! Don't you get that I'm down in the dumps?!\" \"Hmm, nooope!\" \"Who answers right away to a question like that?!\" Grabbing onto his arm, Mimi kept on tugging him along, forcing Garfiel to accompany her wherever she pleased. He could have flung her away and fled if he was of a mind to, but that would only end with her chasing him through the city. He wanted to avoid causing trouble for Subaru and the others. Ram and Frederica had also given him a strict warning before the group had set off for Pristella. He was to make sure his eccentricities bothered no one save Otto, who was an expert in cleaning up other people's messes. \"Mm? What's with the gloomy face, Garf? Some kind of anvie...anpie...anmiety?\" \"Are you tryin' to say anxiety?\" \"That's right, anxiety! So what is it? Tell me, tell me!\" Then and there, Mimi went, \"Mm! Mm-hmm!\" as she thrust a fist out to emphasize her request. Seeing the girl so eager for conversation made Garfiel clack his fangs, feeling like all the bitterness had simply drained away. Garfiel turned his gaze toward the waterway, narrowing his jade eyes. \"...I guess the scenery is nice, eh?\" \"Yeah, for sure! It's amazing! It's super amazing! I wish the young lady could see it, too!\" He only half listened to her rambling, but the sight of the sinking red sun reflected on the waterway was undeniably beautiful. With the sunset drenching the world in cinnabar red, its rays left vivid patches of yellow and white on the water's surface, burning that sweet, dazzling scenery into the hearts of all who laid eyes upon it. *** As that scene mesmerized him, Garfiel realized that his heart had become oddly peaceful. He should have been all alone, wallowing in the feelings of helplessness oozing out of him due to his disheartening defeat, but the sunniness of the girl by his side had kept Garfiel from sinking into a pit of despair. \"Hmm, hmm, hmm.\" Standing next to Garfiel was Mimi, the girl in question, humming in high spirits. She tugged on Garfiel's loincloth as she swayed her head back and forth, clearly enjoying herself. All of a sudden, he realized that her hair and tail were the color of a vivid sunset. When he unwittingly reached a hand out and stroked her head, Mimi stretched her body up in apparent delight. \"Fluffy, huh? Our lady does that a lot, too. She says it has heawing properties!\" \"Ahh, the general talks about healing properties and stuff, too. I feel like I kinda get what he means now.\" \"Hey, Garf. Is feeling up Mimi's fluffiness good for you?\" \"Hold on, you made it sound really wrong just now!\" Mimi only went, \"Huh?\" and innocently tilted her head, causing Garfiel to burst into laughter. The exchange made what negative emotions were still swirling"}, {"text": "in his chest dissolve and go away. He could tell that his competitive spirit, presumably dampened by humiliation and a sense of defeat, had defiantly rebounded. \"...No one becomes the strongest overnight. Me, I'm still in the middle of climbin'.\" \"Oooh, that hill to become the strongest sounds really, really tall!\" \"Heh, you understand surprisingly well, don't ya? Yeah, that's right. That's what the road to becoming the strongest is like.\" When Mimi thrust a fist upward, Garfiel touched the white scar on his brow and clacked his fangs. He hated to admit it, but he'd regained his competitive spirit thanks to Mimi. If he'd brooded over things all by himself, who knew how long it would have taken for him to reach the same conclusion? \" Ah! Garf, over there!\" Right as he realized he felt grateful and couldn't bring himself to openly admit it, Mimi tugged hard on his sleeve. Her gaze was trained on a waterway that was glimmering bright red. When he looked over there, Garfiel saw it, too. A boat was moving by itself in the Great Waterway, which cut through the city. Some rope that had been keeping it moored to the opposite shore must have come undone. But that wasn't the real problem. \"Those kiddies!\" Mimi shouted in alarm at the vessel sitting in the path of the small boat that was running adrift. Five children were playing on the moored craft, unaware of the approaching boat. Upon hearing Mimi's voice, people in the vicinity of the waterway quickly recognized the danger of a collision. The nearby boat owner hastily ran toward the children, but he wouldn't make it in time. Noticing the ruckus, the children's faces went pale as they finally saw the approaching ship as well. At this rate, mere seconds remained until disaster  \" Hey, runts. You better thank that big sister over there for bein' the first to notice.\" \"Garf!\" Clearing the waterway in a single bound, Garf landed in the vessel that the children were aboard. The children's eyes went round with amazement at how Garfiel had appeared on a vessel in the water almost without making it sway at all. Taking advantage of their surprise, Garfiel scooped up all five children in one go, leaping once more to escape. Hardly a moment later, the two ships collided and foundered in the waterway. \"There we go!!\" Caught up in the capsizing of the two vessels, other boats began tipping over like dominoes. Having dropped the children off by the bankside, Garfiel grabbed hold of the rope connecting the remaining ships to the docks and pulled on it hard to right them by force. \"Well, that's that!\" As the force of the waves lessened, Garfiel meticulously retied the slackened ropes and flashed a smile at the children, who were now safe and sound. Afterward, he helped recover the two capsized vessels, and the boat owner bowed his head several times over in gratitude for Garfiel's strength and for keeping the damage to a bare minimum. Patting the shoulder of the unlucky boat owner, Garfiel paused to take a breath. It was then that  \"M-mister, thank you very much!\"  the children he saved spoke words of thanks all at once. When Garfiel looked over, he found that their gazes no longer contained surprise they were filled with awe. It was as Garfiel was having his moment with those children that applause began pouring down from all around. Enduring this with an embarrassed look, Garfiel lightly rubbed the scar on his forehead. \"Don't even mention it. It was just coincidence I happened to... The damp evenin' wind told me, that's all. If someone in this Water Gate City started cryin', these waterways would overflow!\" The sounds of applause suddenly dwindled when Garfiel responded with pride. For some reason, the voices of acclaim became distant, and the cheering became sparse and awkward. But unlike the other people around them, the reactions of the children remained just as dramatic. \"Th-that was crazy!\" \"So cool!\" \"No retreat! No surrender!\" \"Ohh, that's a good one! Just like The holy lady's fist splits the ground asunder!\" \"Mister, what's your name? What should we call you?\" As Garfiel puffed out his chest, one of the children posed that question. Instantly, Garfiel bared his sharp fangs, revealing a ferocious smile. \"I'm no one important enough to be givin' out my name. If ya gotta call me somethin', then... Me, I'm a tiger. Yeah, a golden tiger. So people call me Gorgeous Tiger!\" \"Gorgeous!\" \"Tiger!!\" When Garfiel struck a pose, stretching both arms up at an angle toward the heavens, the children got even more worked up, and they all imitated Garfiel. \"Garf, that's amazing! Super cool!!\" It was then that Mimi, running a roundabout route about the waterway, met up with Garfiel and the children at last. Her eyes glimmered like the rest of the group as she joined in, making the same mysterious pose. \"Gorgeous!\" \"Gorgeous!\" \"Gorgeous Tiger!!\" With all applause and cheering long gone, the boat owner was the only other person still on the waterway, his cheek twitching as he observed in silence. 2 After quickly taking a shine to the children, Garfiel ended up buying them food at a nearby stall. Then he stood tall and triumphant as he strutted around the city. \"And then I said this: 'I've seen through your evil deeds, third-raters. Your wickedness and wicked faces ain't gettin' by my general and my bro!'\" \"Wow! That's so cool!\" \"Whoa! I got goosebumps!\" As the fast-approaching night began to color Pristella's sky, Mimi and a blond boy cheered Garfiel on as he spun his tale. The latter was only six or seven, and he was one of the children whom Garfiel had saved on the waterway. The story that Garfiel was telling at the time was the cursed-goddess-statue incident, the one that had left the deepest impression upon him out of everything that had happened in the last year. At any rate, the trio of Subaru, Otto, and Garfiel had soon gotten deeply involved, and as a matter of course, they encountered the owner of a metia. Needless to say, a great deal of trouble ensued. Garfiel clacked his fangs cheerfully at having an audience so happy to listen to his stories. All three were currently on the way to the blond boy's residence; they were escorting him home. After taking the children to a food stall, Garfiel had a responsibility as the eldest person present to safely return them home. He'd already delivered the other four safe and sound. This child was the last. \"Gotta say, for little runts, you kids sure went a long way from home.\" \"Errr... Actually, we went to the park in the First District to hear the Songstress...\" \"The Songstress, huh? Accordin' to the general, she's got one hell of a singin' voice...\" Garfiel crinkled his nose at the innocent admiration coming out of the boy's mouth. The boy was talking about Liliana, the famous Songstress of Pristella. It had been brief, but Garfiel had met the real deal at the Muse Company. To be blunt, she seemed like an extremely willful person, and he felt like she had fatal flaws irreconcilable with the rumors that she was a songstress of uncommon talent. \"Garf, you haven't heard the Songstress sing? What a shame! Somehow, she's reaaally good!\" \"What, you actually got a good listen?\" \"Yeah! I didn't fall asleep till the very end! That's a huuuge achievement! Mimi's incredible, right? Praise me!\" When Mimi presented her head, Garfiel gave her a perfunctory pat. Mimi went, \"Yaaay!\" anyway, racing forward with great delight as Garfiel turned toward the boy. \"So did ya get to meet this Songstress you admire?\" \"Nah, seems we were a little too late... I wonder if my sister will be upset.\" \"Sister? Why would she be upset?\" \"...Because I...left without telling anyone.\" \"Ahh \" From the boy's sullen face, it appeared that the plan was to keep his promise with his friends a secret from his family. But because he would be returning home later than expected, he couldn't help but be afraid of how his family would react, particularly this older sister of his. Garfiel understood that feeling painfully well. Older sisters were powerful creatures. He might even go as far as to say they were formidable walls that little brothers could never surpass. That's how it was for him when he finally reunited with his own sister even after spending ten years honing his body. One look at the young boy they were escorting home, and it was obvious that even contests of strength were hopeless. There was a despairing difference in power between older sisters and their younger brothers. \"Got it. Just leave it to me.\" Though worried, the boy blinked hard when Garfiel reassuringly patted his own chest. \"I know how scary big sisters can be, y'see. Me, I got a big sis, too, and the woman I love has a younger sister too. Kid, if your sister is upset, I'll listen to her lecture with you.\" \"Gorgeous Tiger!\" Deeply moved, the boy hugged Garfiel tightly. Garfiel hugged the boy back, only for Mimi to latch onto him from behind as well. Thus, with cargo hanging from the front and back, Garfiel pressed on toward the boy's house with wobbly steps and newfound resolve. \"Gorgeous Tiger, huh?\" The fact that the boy had called him that just then made Garfiel clench his fangs. The feelings of powerlessness that had driven him from the inn had not completely vanished by any means. He still lacked the confidence that he could bump into Reinhard at the ryokan and maintain his composure. Even so, the female phantom who was dressed in black and symbolized his sense of weakness was nowhere to be seen. This was probably thanks to the children who now revered him as Gorgeous Tiger, and the incomprehensible energy Mimi had instilled within him  \" Fred!\" Right as Garfiel was beginning to dive into sentimentality, his ears shuddered when he heard that sharp, high-pitched voice. When he lifted his face, he saw a small figure racing toward him. Her long, blond hair flapped about as the stranger closed in on them like a comet. She came straight in, charging toward the boy, who was hugging onto Garfield. \"Ah, Big Si... Gwah!\" \"Just how much were you trying to make me worry about you?!!\" The boy had been clinging to Garfiel right up until his sister's kick sent him flying. Garfiel found himself admiring her kicking form and the impressive way she landed. That instant, the girl swiftly turned about, driving her heel into Garfiel's foot as she howled: \"You shady goon! What were you doing with my Fred?!\" \"That hur... Well, I guess it don't actually hurt, but could you get off my foot, runt?\" He'd already had his fill of runts, but Garfiel called the girl that nonetheless. From her silent reaction, the girl was a little taken aback that her preemptive strike had been ineffective. Perhaps looking at Garfiel's face up close made her suspect that she'd picked a fight with a violent person. Garfiel was similarly taken by surprise. To think that there existed another older sister besides Frederica who'd attack her younger brother without so much as a warning the moment they were reunited. Incidentally, Mimi leaped to catch the flying boy with a \"Pwah!\" and both of them ending up rolling to a stop, unharmed. All the same, Garfiel felt compelled to comment. \"Can't really compliment a big sis kickin' her own little bro!\" \"Argh... W-well, sorry about that, but what's your deal anyway?! Just so you know, I won't let you lay one finger on Fred or me! I'm scary when I get angry!!\" Garfiel's choice of words made the girl clench her teeth as she acknowledged the error of her own ways. She may have been the boy's older sister, but the girl was only about ten years old"}, {"text": "herself, give or take right around the age when kids got too big for their britches. Taking Garfiel for a street punk based on appearances alone, she'd challenged him while wringing out all her courage with tears in her eyes. She was probably doing her best to divert attention away from her little brother. However, things were not going to go according to plan. \"G-Gorgeous Tiger...please don't eat my sister...\" The younger brother wedged himself between the tiger and his teary-eyed older sister. The pleading boy's words made the shielding girl open her eyes wide. However, the girl clenched her teeth and stood firm at her younger brother's side. Garfiel wasn't exactly sure what was happening, but this brother and sister had a beautiful, caring relationship. \"Not that I approve of ya treatin' me like the villain here!\" \"Bad, bad! Garf, you can't be a bad guy! You're Garf! You're Gorgeous Tiger!\" Joining back in after a short dash, Mimi bounded up and poked Garfiel in the forehead. It didn't hurt, but he felt like he shouldn't just ignore it, either. As Garfiel mulled over how to clear his name  \" Dear? Did you find Fred?\" It was the sound of someone entirely unexpected that shattered the stalemate. It was the soft, gentle voice of a woman. The instant he heard it, he thought the sister and brother before his eyes might glance at each other's faces, but instead, they broke out running toward it in great haste. \"The hell?\" Right as Garfiel blinked in a daze at their sudden vigor, a new figure appeared from across the way. When the individual rounded a corner and came into sight, the siblings leaped into her arms. \"Mommy!\" \"Mom, there's a scary stranger!! That Gorgeous something or other was holding Fred, and I...!\" Catching the two as they tearfully clung to her was a casually dressed woman with long, blond hair. Going by what the siblings said, this was their mother, but Garfiel dearly hoped the mother didn't go by their words and assume he was someone suspicious. It would probably become incredibly complicated if she took her daughter at her word. Either way, having an adult capable of rational conversation come out was a huge help. Garfiel stepped forward, wanting to explain the situation before someone called the city guards  \" Huh?\" With the children still clinging to her, the small smile she turned toward him stopped him dead in his tracks. \"Garf?\" Garfiel's jerky movement made Mimi look at him with a mystified face. However, Garfiel could not respond to Mimi's call. He was too preoccupied. His heart and eyes were filled with bewilderment. He was a storm of emotions, and his thoughts had fallen into utter chaos. Of course that was what happened. It was only natural. \"Um, it seems that you were looking after my children. If you like, could we speak more at our house? It's very close by.\" Gently, the woman spoke with a tone that harbored no misgivings whatsoever. When the unguarded woman closed the distance, Garfiel widened his eyes at the sight of her. His sharp fangs refused to line up. The woman tilted her head curiously at the clattering sound of his teeth. That expression, that demeanor, that voice they shook Garfiel to the very core of his being. After all, standing there was  \" Mom?\" That raspy voice was all that he managed to spill out from his throat for a reunion that should never have happened. 3 \"I am so sorry. I didn't think we would have guests, so I didn't have a chance to tidy up very much.\" \"Aww, don't worry about that! It's all right! Compared with Mimi's room, it's waaaay cleaner!\" \"My my, you are a girl, so that simply will not do. You must keep your own room clean.\" The woman gently stroked Mimi's head as the latter sat on a sofa, waving her feet around. Mimi purred happily and seemed to immediately relax. Garfiel kept his mouth shut tight as he gazed at the pair. The woman had long, luscious blond hair, fair skin, and a delicate physique. Her face was gentle, and there was softness in her jade eyes which, up close, greatly resembled those of Garfiel's older sister. From her youthful appearance, she looked like she was in her twenties, but her actual age had to be in the latter half of her thirties. After all, fifteen years had already passed since then. In spite of that, her appearance had changed little since he last saw her a fact that tore at Garfiel's heart with frightful intensity. \"Mr., um, Gorgeous Tiger? Are you not fond of tea? I'm sorry. I went and prepared some without asking what you prefer...\" As Garfiel held his silence, the woman a woman claiming the name of Liara Thompson lowered her eyes with a troubled expression. Garfiel replied with \"Nah, that's not it\" as he hastily raised his cup. \"It ain't anythin' like that. I was just a little...surprised at how big this place is.\" \"My, so that was it? True, our home is quite large. It is very much a chore to clean it every day and takes a fair bit of time... But it's strange, really.\" \"...What is?\" \"I always ask guests what leaves they prefer, but this time, I just went ahead and picked this.\" How odd, Liara's smile seemed to say as she pressed a hand to her cheek. Garfiel brought the cup to his lips without a word. The taste and the temperature were exactly to his liking. Deeply disturbed by this, Garfiel searched for any disparities between Liara before him and the woman from his memories. Liara's attire and behavior suited someone living in a stately mansion. The woman in Garfiel's memories was a simple person who wore simple clothes and gave off the impression of naivete, knowing little of the world around her. This was one area in which they differed immensely. And yet everything about her presence that smiling face, that gentle voice, the tiniest of gestures led Garfiel astray. *** She had to be someone else. He was sure this was a different person. Liara treated Garfiel like she would with any acquaintance of her children. Furthermore, his mother wasn't such a skilled actress that she could pull this off. In his own mind, Garfiel desperately came to the conclusion that Liara Thompson was someone other than his mother Lisha Tinzel. This woman only looked identical. Garfiel was still nursing when he last saw his mother. The reason his memories of his mother were so vivid despite that was, regardless of how he felt about it, because the Sanctuary's Trial had shown him the past in normally unknowable detail. Thanks to that, Garfiel remembered his mother's face, voice and love. And that was how Garfiel learned of his mother's unfortunate death, which occurred right after she had separated from her own children. Therefore, a reunion with his mother was a wish that Garfiel would never see granted. This was just a different person who greatly resembled her. But if she was a different person, then why was her scent so familiar? \"Mimi, the fur around your ears looks very fluffy. I wonder... May I touch it?\" \"Of course!\" When Mimi offered her head, Liara happily patted it, savoring the comforting sensation of her fur. Her innocent, doe-like smile, the way she didn't know how to doubt others, and the unguarded way she'd invite a suspicious-looking man and a kitty-girl into her own home were really quite something. Everything about her behavior made Garfiel suspect that this Liara really might be his mother.  Lisha, the mother of Garfiel and Frederica, was an unlucky woman. When her family was suffering under a crushing debt, she'd been sold to an illegal slave trader at a young age. After this slave trader was raided by demi-human bandits, she became the slave of beast people instead. Several years later, the bandits readily abandoned Lisha when she became pregnant with Frederica. Afterward, following one twist after another, she gave birth to Frederica while she was the captive of a different group of bandits. Garfiel had heard from his older sister, Frederica, that her first memories were of her time with the bandits. His sister had not spoken of what happened during that time, but judging from how they up and disappeared the instant Lisha became pregnant with Garfiel, it could not have been a wholesome environment at all. Spending her time with one misfortune rolling in after another, Lisha, with a young daughter in tow and a swelling belly, finally entered the care of Roswaal in the peaceful land of the Sanctuary. Your mother... Lisha, was it? I had few opportunities to exchange words with her, you seeee. She was quite a mysterious woman. Or rather, should I describe her as incoooomprehensible, perhaps? She is a woman who seemed to keep happiness very close to her. I believe she motivated herself by living for tomorrow since she was very young... Ahh, yes. I must have been jealous. This is probably why I  Those were the uncharacteristic words that Roswaal used to describe Garfiel's mother. It was the first night that Otto had convinced Garfiel to try alcohol. That same night, Garfiel had gone to visit Roswaal in a drunken stupor. As Garfiel snapped at him with even more venom than usual, Roswaal abruptly spoke about his impressions of the young boy's mother. Garfiel thought he'd die from his hangover the next morning, but he hadn't lost the memories of the night before. Therefore, his recollection of Roswaal speaking about his mother was still fresh. Garfiel was more than a little grateful to the alcohol for leaving him with that much. At any rate, looking at the big picture, his mother was apparently an airhead whose brain had probably been permanently set to feel happiness. Had that not been the case, why would she have ever left a place of such peace in search of Garfiel's father, of whom Garfiel had nothing but painful memories? In the end, she'd ended up dying almost immediately after setting off. What in the world had she been thinking?  Even after all that time later, he'd still never found the answer to where his mother's happiness had come from. \"Mom, I'm getting hungry.\" It was then that the siblings returned hand in hand from their room after getting a new change of clothes. The older sister looked over the heads of their guests to call out to her mother and promptly hurried over to her side, sternly glaring at Garfiel with her jade eyes all the while. \"Hey, Mom. It's suppertime already, so shouldn't our guests head on home?\" \"Oh, how can you say that? Mr. Gorgeous and Ms. Mimi helped Fred out, after all. He was apparently in danger of drowning while playing on a boat.\" \"Hmph, are you sure about that? Wasn't it really this Gorgeous guy who probably rocked the boat in the first place? I bet he was probably planning on coming here to try and milk us for lots of money.\" \"That's enough, young lady... But now that you mention it, he did save Fred. We should show him our thanks, so maybe offering some money would be the most proper.\" \"Mom!!\" Apparently, the girl felt like she had to do everything she could to protect her family. Unfortunately, her fervent efforts weren't quite clicking with her mother; Garfiel couldn't help but feel that she was flailing in the air. But the heartwarming exchange between parent and child bitterly pained Garfiel, like he was walking barefoot over a path of thorns. It was so agonizing that he could barely stand staying there any longer. \"...Seems like we ain't all that welcome, so maybe we should head on out.\" \"Ehhh, whyyy? Let's hang out just a little bit more!\" \"No way. This is like sculpting the Kokran, damn it.\" Mimi protested when Garfiel attempted to leave, but Garfiel wouldn't brook"}, {"text": "any objections as he tried to forcibly drag the girl out with him. Liara made a sad face at Garfiel's assertion, whereas her daughter took the opportunity to stick her tongue out at him as she watched him go. As for the little brother  \"Don't go, Gorgeous Tiger!\" Grabbing onto Garfiel's sleeve, he tried to bar Garfiel's path. Instantly, Garfiel hesitated to shake off those tiny fingers. He wasn't sure why he paused, but... \"Sorry, kid. I got people waitin' for me. They'll be worried if I'm late. That's why I'm goin', okay?\" Still unable to figure out why he froze for a moment, Garfiel put a hand on the boy's head as he explained. He'd been welcomed in, yet here he was, making his escape. If this was how it was going to be, he should never have accepted the invitation to begin with. Regret, regret, regret the only thing left throbbing deep in his chest was regret. \"Fred, I know you're sad, but you have to let go of Mr. Gorgeous's clothing.\" Heeding Garfiel's words, Liara gently removed her son's fingers. Garfiel was relieved to have his sleeve free again. \"We must not cause our guests distress by forcing them to stay. As the saying goes, For guests, hospitality, and a Sowarie.\" And then Liara's next words cut deep into Garfiel's defenseless soul. He had let his guard down after that initial wave of relief, only for that single phrase to shear through them, dredging up his memories. His sense of defeat toward Reinhard, his sense of powerlessness at having betrayed his own dream, his shock the instant he first set eyes upon Liara compared with that phrase, those were almost inconsequential. It was enough that he almost thought that his body was being torn asunder  \"Garf, let's go.\" It was then that Mimi, who had been so reluctant to leave, gently pulled on Garfiel's arm. When she proceeded toward the door, Garfiel silently followed along. Right as the two of them were headed to the entrance  \"I'm home... Oh, we have guests?\"  the door ahead of them opened, and a gentlemanly man sporting a full beard raised his eyebrows at the unexpected sight. He wore finely tailored clothes and had a lively air about him. His face looked like that of a capable man who was calm inside the home. His position was clear even before the children reacted to his return. \"Errr, I don't believe we've met. Who might you be?\" \"Dad, this is Gorgeous Tiger!\" \"A shady person!\" \"Ehhh?\" The starkly contrasting descriptions delivered by his son and daughter left the man their father rather confused. In search of rescue, he shifted his gaze to Liara, who was standing beside the children. The man's warm gaze caused Liara to loosen her cheeks slightly. That was unmistakably love on her face. Garfiel had hit his limit. \"We're nobody. Nothin' to worry about. Time for us to be headin' out.\" Garfiel swiftly said his good-byes, continuing to hold Mimi's hand as he left the room with her in tow. Pushing past the man, who hastily gave way, Garfiel raced out, fleeing the house. \"Gorgeous Tiger!\" From behind, the boy called out to Garfiel in a sad voice. However, Garfiel had nothing left in him to muster a reply  No, he just wasn't worthy.  When he glanced over, he saw a black phantom encroaching on the edges of his vision. Smiling at him mockingly was a woman who was surely dead. Gorgeous? Tiger? Where was the golden tiger in him now? A tiger was strong. A tiger was mighty. Nothing ever shook a tiger. What part of him was a tiger just then? Would a real tiger be broken up over something like this?!! \"Garf! Stop already!\" *** Just as his thoughts were clouded in a crimson haze, one voice brought him back to his senses. When he turned, Garfiel realized that he'd been half dragging Mimi along. She had pleaded in pain. Looking closer, he could see that the girl's slender wrist had gone blue from the grip of his hand. \"S-sorry... I didn't mean to...\" \"Garf, are you all right? You've been reaaally weird since earlier. Does your tummy hurt?\" When Garfiel tried to apologize in a shaky voice, Mimi peered at him with concern. This was not a look of resentment over her wrist injury, but one of pure consideration alone. This pushed Garfiel's already sinking heart to even lower depths. An awkward silence fell over the two as a damp nighttime breeze blew over them. The sun had already set, and the city streets under the night sky were dotted by magic lamps. As the light of the magic fixtures reflected that of the setting sun, the waterway took on a tranquil, mysterious beauty, but Garfiel had no room left in his heart to enjoy the sight. \"Pardon me, both of you!\" It was then that the voice of an out-of-breath man drew near the pair that was standing on the street at night. When they looked over, they saw the man from earlier illuminated under the magic lamps. With his coat stripped off, he had finally reached the pair, his breath ragged as he rested his hands on his knees. \"Haaah! Haaah! I managed to catch up with you. This really will not do... I had plenty of physical energy back in the day, but I've wasted away since I started doing nothing but desk work...\" \"...What is it? You got business with us or somethin'?\" There was a barb in his voice when Garfiel addressed the man who'd caught up with them. It wasn't to the extent of Liara and the siblings, but there was no mistaking that he, too, was poison so far as Garfiel was concerned. Garfiel didn't intend to converse for long. He wanted to get out of there as fast as he possibly could. Seeing Garfiel's attitude, the man seemed to pick up that he was not being welcomed with open arms. \"I heard the story from my wife. You two saved my son, didn't you? And yet I let you leave without speaking a single word of thanks. The height of impropriety.\" \"...Ain't no big deal. Exaggeratin' stuff like that just ends up being a pain in the butt for me.\" \"Everything about my children is very important to me. Please allow me to thank you. I am Galek Thompson, one of the officials in charge of running this city. If there is anything I can do for you...\" \"There really ain't anythin'...\" When Garfiel tried to rebuff the tenacious man, Galek, his words got stuck in his throat. Suddenly, he had a thought he, Liara's husband, might know who she really was. \"There's just one thing I wanna ask ya.\" \"Yes, by all means. If it is something my position allows me to answer, I shall.\" Galek nodded toward Garfiel with an amicable smile. It was the same for Liara and for his son, Fred. Galek included, the Thompson family was far too fond of people. That daughter was the only one with a proper level of wariness in the bunch.  That was how outside threats like Garfiel were able to take advantage of them. \"Your wife... Is Liara her real name?\" *** Instantly, the atmosphere changed. When Garfiel posed his question, Galek dropped the smile he'd worn to that point. Both his voice and expression were quiet as he rolled Garfiel's question over his tongue. \"I wonder what do you mean by that?\" \"I mean what I said. Reid always faced his challengers head-on. I don't like roundabout stuff. Your wife... Is Liara her real name or not?\" When Garfiel cut right to the point, the expression coming over Galek was one of clear consternation. He opened and closed his mouth several times, breathing hard in search of air and words. \"You... Are you saying you know something about my wife?\" \"I'm the one who wants to know about her.\" Garfiel replied sincerely to Galek's wavering question. Detecting the genuine emotion at the core of that reply, Galek went silent, sinking into thought. As Garfiel waited for the words that would follow, he felt Mimi grasp his hand with her opposite hand from earlier. When he shifted his gaze in her direction, Mimi simply went, \"Heh-heh \" with a bubbly smile. \"...It would seem I should speak truthfully with you.\" Breaking the silence, Galek uttered those words with a sigh. A deep weariness infused that voice, along with an unconcealable sense of guilt, causing Garfiel to narrow his brows. Then as Garfiel maintained his silence, Galek began to speak. \"My wife, Liara...has no memories from before I met her fifteen years ago.\" \"! No memories, ya say?\" \"It was a stormy night. I was just another merchant returning from a business deal when I came across the site of a large landslide. My future wife was caught up in that disaster and had been buried alive.\" The terms that Galek relayed landslide, buried alive made Garfiel's breath come to a halt. Bubbling up in his mind was the glimpse into the past he'd seen in the Sanctuary. An unsalvageable past, in which his mother had left Garfiel and Frederica behind, setting off from the settlement only to become engulfed in a landslide and lose her life   But had his mother really died? He'd never even considered other possibilities. *** That terrifying concept made Garfiel clench his teeth hard so that they wouldn't chatter. He'd thought for certain that his mother had died. Even if his mother had been safe, if she had been tethered to life, he couldn't possibly imagine a reason why she wouldn't have returned to Garfiel and Frederica's side. \"After she was rescued, she hovered on the edge of life and death, opening her eyes several days later just as I came to check on her. Then she spoke these words loud and clear  'Who am I?' she asked.\" Galek lowered his eyes, shaking his head from side to side. \"Perhaps it is a side effect of her heart nearly stopping once. She didn't remember anything. All she knew, from the name tag on the clothes she wore, was that there was a Li in either her family name or her given name. And so she took the name of a flower that blooms at night. I have called her Liara ever since.\" After that, Galek's gaze grew distant as he spoke, but there was not a great deal to tell thereafter. After he took her into his care, the bonds between them naturally deepened, and it was not long before they fell in love. And ever since he'd taken Liara in, Galek's business had grown by leaps and bounds. Galek never questioned his belief that this good fortune was from bringing Liara back with him. Because of her, Galek had worked in this city as a man, a husband, and a father until the present day. That was why  \" I love my wife. I dearly love our children. Once upon a time, her past weighed upon my mind, but not anymore. No matter what happened to her before we met, she is my wife, the woman most precious to me.\" Galek spoke those words firmly and plainly with his chest out. These were the unshakable feelings that Galek felt for his wife, carried through from the moment they'd met to the present. *** Listening to his tale to the end, Garfiel silently looked up at the murky night sky. How did the waxing moon and the stars dotting the darkness feel as they gazed down at him in that moment? As Garfiel chose to stay silent, Galek's lips trembled more than once. He was hesitating. But then he firmly closed his eyes, brushing that hesitation aside. \"I am truly sorry to ask you this. However, I wish to inquire nonetheless.\" *** \"How...are you related to my wife, Liara?\" Just how cruel a question was that to ask someone? Confronted by"}, {"text": "the last thing he wanted to be asked, Garfiel slowly shifted his gaze from the sky back to the ground, and then finally to Galek. Galek looked at Garfiel with quiet, unshakable resolve in his eyes. Even Garfiel wasn't insensitive enough to miss the significance of those words and the emotions invested in them. More than that, he knew exactly what response he should give. *** He opened his mouth once, then closed it. He breathed in and out, in and out, over and over. His pulse was racing. His eyes felt unsteady. His head throbbed with pain. The urge to vomit kept welling up. He felt a storm of emotions raging inside as well as the ultimate sense of loss. During it all, Mimi held Garfiel's hand. \"Me, I...\" *** \"I don't have...any relationship with your wife.\" He did it. He'd said it aloud. With those words, the torrent of emotions swirling inside his chest rapidly dissipated. What remained was a yawning, cavernous loss, an emptiness that made his limbs run cold. \"I am...very sorry...\" Lowering his eyes, his shoulders trembling, Galek bowed his head to Garfiel. But Galek's apology was not something Garfiel wanted. Enough. Just stop it. Don't hurt me anymore. What went wrong? Who's to blame? Who do I have to smash, to rip to shreds, to send flying, to get over this? What am I supposed to do with the pain in my heart that just won't go away? \" Darling! Ahh, I'm so glad you're with Mr. Gorgeous and Ms. Mimi.\" *** He wanted to scream. He was on the verge of wailing like a weak little boy. In that moment, seeing her was more terrible than any poisoned blade for Garfiel. \"Liara, why...?\" \"Because I thought you ran out in such a hurry that you would probably manage to catch them. I thought it was terrible for them to leave empty-handed, too...\" Galek was just as surprised by the sudden appearance of his wife as Liara came over in a little run, passing by her husband's side. Then with Garfiel still rigid from shock, she gently extended a bag toward him. \"These are some Sowarie sweets I made. Perhaps it is not so great a reward, but I have confidence in their taste. Please take this.\" \"Ah...\" With a perfectly innocent smile, she offered Garfiel the cruelest of gifts. Galek agonizingly lowered his face at the exchange between Garfiel and his wife. It was too painful for anyone to intervene. No one who understood the true nature of this meeting could do more. That was exactly why  \"Ohh! Yaaay! I love sweets! I'm gonna brag to the lady!\" Grabbing the bag from Liara's hand, Mimi bore an outgoing, smiling demeanor that was completely out of touch. It was so at odds with the atmosphere from a few moments ago that it took a short while for Galek to accept what was happening. But only Liara, unaware of the circumstances, greeted Mimi's honest delight with a beaming smile. \"I am so glad to hear you say that. Please give my best regards to this lady of yours.\" \"Yep, yep, uuuunderstood! Super understooood!\" Taking the sweets in her still-pallid hand, Mimi smiled as she gave a playful salute. Stuffing the bag in the satchel she carried over one shoulder, she used her long tail to thwap Garfiel on the back. \"Time to go for real! Gorgeous Tiger and Gorgeous Mimi will be leaving now!\" \"Yes, do be careful. Mr. Gorgeous, take care not to fall into the waterway at night.\" When Mimi set off with a big wave of her hand, Liara gave a little wave back. With the pair trading hand-waves, the two men watched the exchange with morose faces. *** From there, Garfiel followed the pull of Mimi's hand and trailed behind her. Neither Mimi nor Garfiel said anything for a while, continuing to walk as Liara and Galek receded from sight. Finally, when Garfiel judged that they were far enough, he came to a stop. \"Hey, runt... Er, whoa?!\" \"Hiyahhh!\" The next instant, Mimi jumped, stretching Garfiel's arm. Kicking off from the ground in a flash, the pair leaped onto the roof of a nearby building. After going up three stories in one bound, Mimi stretched her back. \"Mmm!! Amazing! It feels so good!\" \"Hey, don't gimme that! What gives all of a sudden...?\" Mimi was enjoying the bracing wind as he drew close. But when she stared back at him with her round eyes, Garfiel was at a loss for words. He was oddly uncomfortable seeing how he looked reflected in her eyes. With Garfiel pressed into silence, Mimi abruptly tilted her head. \"Garf, you look like you're gonna cry.\" \"...Huh? What the hell are ya sayin'? No way I'm gonna do that.\" \"I know you're strong, Garf, but that doesn't mean you have to act tough. Liara is Garf's mom, right?\" *** When Mimi stepped into the crux of the matter, Garfiel drew in his breath, utterly unprepared. \"Why do you...think that she's...?\" \"I mean, Garf's and Liara's scents are reaaally alike. And the scents of Liara's kids are a little like Garf's scent, too. So I figured just maaaybe \" She didn't learn of Garfiel's family from the course of the conversation. Mimi had accurately arrived at the truth based on a feral sense of smell and base instinct. Words could be fabricated or suppressed. But Garfiel had no rebuttal for something based on a part of you that never changed. \"What the hell...?\" Garfiel sluggishly sank down then and there, leaning his listless head backward. Overhead, the stars and moon in the sky stared back down at him, their glimmering unchanged from before. \"So am I right? Is Liara Garf's mom?\" \"...I dunno. Is that person...really my mom?\" He didn't know. Truly, that was how Garfiel felt from the bottom of his heart. But just as Galek had told him and as demonstrated by Liara's own behavior, she had completely forgotten her own past as Lisha. Having forgotten everything, she'd given birth to children as Liara, living together with them as a happy family. \"Ha. Now that I think of it, doesn't that make those two my little brother and sister?\" He hadn't totally wrapped his head around it yet, but if they were siblings by a different father, then his relationship to them was exactly the same as what he had with Frederica. In other words, that boy and girl were his adorable younger siblings. Always the youngest child, Garfiel finally had the younger siblings he'd always wished for.  Setting aside that no one wanted such a relationship. \"Me tellin' her who I am ain't gonna help at all...\" Liara had parted with her past life as Lisha. Even if Garfiel revealed everything he knew, it would not change the fact that she had spent fifteen years as Liara or that Lisha had lost those fifteen years. It would only hoist the burden of fifteen years' worth of guilt onto Liara and elicit a sense of loss over the time that Lisha would never get back. Galek would have to watch his wife struggle, and her children would no doubt be unable to understand their mother's suffering when they knew nothing of the circumstances.  All that just for Garfiel's self-satisfaction. Even if Liara was recognized as Lisha then and there, the only one who would derive any closure from that was Garfiel. There was no way that Frederica or Ryuzu could have known Lisha had survived like this. If Garfiel did not tell them, then they surely would never know. Unless Garfiel spoke of it, there was no way for Liara's family to find out about the past, either. Their time as a happy family would remain protected and unchanged, peaceful as ever. If Garfiel could keep it all bottled up in his chest and just abandon his true desires, that would settle everything once and for all. And yet  \"Why am I...?\" The resolve to cast them aside, the decision to forget, the courage to lock them away why is this so hard? Tiger, where have you gone? Show me the right path, the right way to be. Show me the strength to bear anything, to carry anything, and to stand up even so.  Oh, tiger, please tell me... Because a real tiger wouldn't lose to anyone. *** Squatting down, biting back what was welling up inside, he felt an intense yearning clawing at his heart. Just when Garfiel wanted to cast everything aside, it was then that he noticed. \"Gooood boy.\" Someone was hugging his head against their tiny chest and stroking his hair. *** As Garfiel sat there, Mimi embraced him from behind. Placing her chin against his crown, she gently stroked Garfiel's head with her little palm. It almost felt like the soft sensation was lessening the pain of the raging thoughts crawling around inside his skull. \"The hell...do you think you're doin'...?\" \"Mm, I figured Garf wanted to cry, see... But you know, Mimi heard that men don't cry unless you make a place for them to do it, and that sounds like such a pain! That's definitely what the lady told me!\" It was something that resembled an answer, but it wasn't quite all there. Trying to keep his heart and his voice from trembling, Garfiel had chosen those sparse, halting words with great care. Still embracing Garfiel, Mimi smiled teasingly at him. \"So I bet you were thinking, I'm not sure where I am anymore, but it's probably in a woman's arms? That's what you figured, right? Yeah! A man can cry in the arms of the woman he loves!\" \"...Who'd fall in love with a little kid like you?\" The first person who came to Garfiel's mind didn't behave like Mimi at all, acting cold and dismissive whenever he wanted kindness. And then she suddenly treated him nicely when he least expected it, only to punch him twice as hard later. What a dangerous woman. The girl before his eyes didn't have those things in common with her whatsoever and yet Mimi continued smiling. \"Mm, but it's all right! Even if Garf hasn't fallen for Mimi, Mimi's already fallen for him! And now you're in Mimi's arms! The arms of the girl who loves Garf! So it's all right to cry!\" \" Ah.\" Her opinion was just too stupid. What is this, some kind of wordplay? A kid making things up as she goes along? This is a convenient excuse nothing more. It's nothing, so stop messing with me.  Tiger, tiger, where have you gone? Come back inside this chest right now. Let out a ferocious roar, smack this shrinking back of mine, drag me back to my feet, and do something about these unbearable feelings. If you don't...I won't make it this time. \"Mom...\" Stop, stop, please stop. I don't wanna cry, I don't wanna be weak, I don't wanna talk in a tearful voice like this. I'm a tiger. A tiger. I'm the strongest. The mightiest. A stronger, harder shield than anyone else. That's  \"Mom! ...Mom! ......Mom...!!\" \"Good boy.\" \"Why?! Why did you forget me?! After all this... Meeting you after all this time!! You won't even say my name... You won't...f-forgive me......!!\" \"It's all right. Garf, you're a very good boy!\" \"Moooooommm... Mooommm... Mooommm...!\"  Tiger, tiger, where have you gone? What do I look like right now? Stars, moon, sky, won't you tell me? What do I look like right now? *** If a tiger would never howl in pain, then what do I look like right now?!! 4 \"All dry!\" \"Shaddap don't say that over and over!\" The next day, well into Fire Time, Garfiel was wandering through the city alongside Mimi with a guilty look on his face. Mimi cackled as she tugged at the part of her white robe over her chest that was still dirty from Garfiel's tears, snot, and drool, though it was completely dried now. \"That's filthy."}, {"text": "Go wash it off at some waterin' hole somewhere.\" \"Mm, isn't it fiiine? I'll change when we get back to the inn... I didn't return yesterday, so the lady's gotta be real mad! Hetaro and TB will probably be crying!\" \"...Sorry about that.\" \"Don't worry about it... Mimi told Garf he's a good, good boy and let him cry himself dry that's all.\" Garfiel's meager apology brought a naive smile to Mimi's face. He couldn't lift his head up at all. He'd made a fool of himself, crying all night long, and before he realized it, he'd slumped down and fallen asleep in her arms. He was somehow remaining calm at the moment, but he couldn't keep up with Mimi's everyday antics at all today. In the end, Garfiel harbored feelings of guilt and couldn't bring himself to say proper words of thanks. \"So what are we doing this morning? Going to meet your mom?\" \"Pfft...! Wh-what are you talkin' about?! Meet her...? Like hell I am!\" Garfiel was deep in thought when that explosive suggestion made him open his eyes wide in shock. Mimi simply responded with an \"Oh really?\" as she tilted her head with an innocent look on her face. \"But Liara is Garf's mom, right? Don't you have lots to talk about?\" \"You really didn't pay attention to anything that came up yesterday, did you?\" Though she had instinctually cut right to the heart of the matter, Mimi apparently hadn't picked up on any of the finer details. Mulling over how he ought to explain to her his difficult position in relation to that family, Garfiel quickly discarded the idea. The answer came out with his tears the night before. \"It's fine. Mo... That person is better off not knowin' I'm her son.\" \"Garf, you're fine with that?\" \"It's fine... Ah, haven't thought about if I should tell Sis or Granny, though.\" If they knew the facts, Frederica and Ryuzu would probably agonize over it just like he was. If that's really what came to pass, Garfiel might eventually end up regretting speaking to them about it. But if the situation was reversed, Garfiel absolutely would have wanted to know the truth. After all, even if the only thing that accomplished was sharing that cruel conclusion, both women were still family to Garfiel. \"Mm, that's so complicated! Mimi doesn't even know for sure if she has a mother!\" \"...You don't know your own mom?\" \"That's right... Mimi and Hetaro and TB none of us know anything about our parents. Seems like we got abandoned because it was too hard to raise triplets. So Rossi took us in, and now we're with the lady and the captain! We're all family!\" \"...That's a pretty big family, huh?\" He was able to glean that Mimi had lived a hard life. From the casual way she spoke, it hadn't been all tragic, but he somehow understood that it certainly wasn't easy. Mimi didn't let any of that show, however. Without any deep thought behind it, Garfiel patted her on the head. \" Wah!\" Instantly, Mimi brushed his hand aside and hopped backward. Garfiel was surprised by her dramatic reaction. Mimi went, \"Ughhhhhh,\" making noises with a red face. \"For some reason, I've been feeling weird since yesterday. I get all mushy and tingly when I get close to Garf.\" \"O-oh, I see. That sounds rough... Maybe we should walk a little farther apart, then?\" \"I don't wanna. So we should stand not too far but not too close!\" Inching slightly closer, Mimi walked alongside him, just out of arm's reach. He felt that Mimi's face was a little red as she made a beaming smile from that position. \"Ah, come to think of it, we have Sowarie! Let's eat some!\" \"Ahhh, right.\" Seemingly trying to distract him from the redness on her cheeks, Mimi took the bag of sweets out of the satchel slung over her shoulder. For an instant, Garfiel's chest throbbed in pain at the sight of the bag, but he accepted the sweet that Mimi offered to him, gazing at the treat in the palm of his hand. A Sowarie was a sweet-tasting baked pastry fashioned out of bread dough with cream and bean jam inside; it was a noontime snack that was tasty and filling. Given the time of day, they were basically having big, round Sowarie for breakfast. \"Mm-hmm! Sweet! Tasty! Yum-yum!\" \"...They're good, huh.\" Mimi's praise was over-the-top, but Garfiel found the flavor striking as well. It was impressive not too sweet and incredibly soft and fluffy. They would've probably tasted even better fresh. If this had been his mother's specialty, perhaps he'd had a number of chances to savor this himself  \" Man, I'm getting too sentimental.\" Clicking his tongue at those lingering attachments, Garfiel stuffed the remaining Sowarie into his cheeks whole. Mimi opened her mouth wide in an attempt to copy him and managed to get cream all over her face. Garfiel sank into thought once again as he helped her wipe it off. Truthfully, the previous day had been full of ups and downs. Each event had served as a trial, but one unambiguously good thing had happened. Though he'd put on such an unsightly display the day before, the phantom was nowhere to be seen this morning. If that phantom was a representation of weakness in Garfiel's heart, it wouldn't have been strange for the events of the previous night to trigger it and bring it into even sharper relief. But that hadn't happened at all. Just maybe, that phantom might never appear before him ever again. If so, this was an opportunity granted by the sheer presence of the girl who'd stayed beside him  \" Ahem, ahem! Can all you meatbags hear this?\" That instant, a voice suddenly greeted Garfiel and Mimi's eardrums. \"If you meatbags are listening to my voice, go ahead and shake in your boots, and any meatbags not listening, would you just drop dead and save me a whooole lot of trouble? Bwa-ha-ha-ha!\" After exchanging looks as that voice continued rambling, Garfiel and Mimi simultaneously turned to the sky. It was because that voice seemed to be calling out to them from there. \"What the hell's with that stupid-soundin' voice...?\" \"Mimi knows! This voice is coming from some super-awesome metia! In this city, you can hear singing every morning thanks to it. Yesterday, I slept through it, though!\" As Garfiel questioned the source of the voice, Mimi raised a hand up and rattled off a quick explanation. Garfiel assumed she meant that they were hearing someone via the power of a special metia and not that it was simply a very loud voice. The whole time that exchange was going on, that high-pitched voice continued pouring down from the sky. \"So, so, so did any idiots take me up on that offer and die just now? If there aren't any, then so be it, but it sure would put a damper on my mood after I got all excited to talk up a storm!\" The annoying voice reverberated across the Water Gate City, drawing looks of surprise and bewilderment from every pedestrian who heard it. Even they didn't seem to have any idea who the speaker was as they, too, stared up at the sky in confusion. According to Mimi's explanation, the metia was normally used to send singing to every corner of the city each morning, but Garfiel was thoroughly convinced that the owner of this voice was incapable of anything so sensitive. Her objective was unclear. Her character was vulgar. What he did know  \"Breathe in, breathe out: That's all it takes for mongrels like you to ruin my mood. You really are pieces of trash with no redeemable value at all, aren't ya?! If all you do is eat, go into heat, and drool without doing anything with your lives, then it'd be better if you were corpses instead! Know what? Just die already! Please just die already! Really, I'm begging you! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!\"  was that the speaker was incredibly twisted. \"Garf... This is reaaally creepy.\" With the speaker's motive still unclear, that unpleasant voice made Garfiel clench his fist in anger. Tugging at his sleeve, Mimi's normal sunniness had been subdued as she gazed at the sky with concern. Seeing her like that really got to Garfiel somehow. That kind of expression didn't belong on her face. \"Now then, all you meatbags ignoring my entirely valid opinion, have any of you ignorant slobs finally noticed the purpose of this broadcast? The reeeal purpose?\" \"Hmm...? What purpose is there besides gettin' on everyone's nerves...?\" \" The fact that my voice is reaching you means that I...or rather, we have taken control of this city's heart, doesn't it? Ah, incidentally, the four control towers at the edge of the city are also in our hands!\" \"!! The control towers?!\" That ominous statement dripped with malice and made Garfiel's breath catch. He'd heard that the four control towers in the city were crucial facilities for regulating the volume of water across the entirety of Pristella. It was said that their functions were unchanged from when the Water Gate City was used to trap a being of tremendous power so very long ago and now they had fallen into the hands of this mysterious entity. It was tantamount to this maniac holding the entire city hostage. \"Now this city is a miniature garden where we can go around amusing ourselves, abusing and toying with you as we please, oh my! You meatbags are just like insects in a cage, aren't you?! No cards to play! No bright prospects! No dreams or hopes! Do you get what that means, huh?!\" Garfiel grimaced as the sadistic voice being broadcast across the city cracked. Simultaneously, the people in the surrounding area were only now beginning to belatedly comprehend the gravity of the situation; disorder and dismay were spreading. Seemingly pleased at the mounting chaos, the announcer spoke even shriller, becoming more self-absorbed. \"Do you get it? Did you get it through your thick skulls? You're so pathetic, every last one of you running around in a panic as you finally realize what I've been telling you all along! It's too pathetic! Anyway, I, a being of profound beauty and mercy, have happy news for you irredeemable, pathetic bastards!\" *** \"My objective is the Witch's bones kept somewhere in this city! I want them. I want them so much that it aches and keeps me up at night, so could you please put in some effort? If you deliver what I ask...I'll probably even reconsider the control-tower thing!\" Having taken the entire city hostage, the speaker now presented her demand. The item she mentioned, the Witch's bones, made Garfiel grimace, but the surrounding unrest only deepened. The high-pitched voice cackled, as if the speaker had been waiting for that very moment above all others. \"Bwa-ha! Oh nooo, if I don't finally introduce myself, people like you will start trying to escape from reality right about now, huh? That's why I, one of the wise and marvelous, will point out what's happening loud and clear so that even you can understand it!\" With that malicious voice leading the city by the nose and chaos beginning to swirl around them, Garfiel and Mimi drew shoulder to shoulder, girding themselves for whatever might get announced next. It was then that the now-familiar voice declared in the broadcast with complete satisfaction  \"I am the Witch Cult's Archbishop of Lust  \"It's me, Capella Emerada Lugunica! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!! Revere, worship, kneel, and beg and piss and shit in your pants as you pathetically wail, meatbags! Bwa-ha-ha-ha!!\" 5  Immediately after that malicious broadcast, the situation began to move fluidly, like flowing water. The appearance of the Witch Cult and someone claiming to be an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins had sown chaos and disorder, but arguably, the citizens of Pristella were still moving in an orderly manner. Even if they were unsettled, they did as"}, {"text": "the city's everyday rehearsals trained them; the surrounding people began leading the way toward the nearest shelter. The citizens guided any outsiders unfamiliar with the procedures. The people close to Garfiel and Mimi called out to them, too, but the pair declined, hurrying to link back up with their comrades. If they didn't meet up with Subaru and the others at the Water Raiment and put a stop to the Witch Cult's tyranny  \" Ahh, Mr. Gorgeous!\" *** The voice made Garfiel reflexively freeze in place. When he looked back, running down the street behind Garfiel and Mimi was Liara, who was reassured to have found people she knew. Enduring the aching in his chest, Garfiel turned to face her. \"Ms. Mimi, I'm glad you're safe, too. That broadcast had me worried.\" \"Yep, I'm all right! Ah, the Sowarie were delicious! We had a feast!\" Since Garfiel failed to respond immediately, Mimi replied for both of them. Garfiel thought it was pathetic of him even as he rested easier knowing that Liara was unharmed. \"Glad everyone's safe and sound. Now get movin' toward the shelter. We've gotta...\" \"Yes, I am all right... But, um, Mr. Gorgeous...\" Even when Garfiel bid his farewells and tried to extricate himself as quickly as possible, Liara continued still in an awkward voice. Then she clasped both hands together in front of her. \"Have you seen my children? They went out early this morning to play...but neither of them were at the nearest shelter.\" \"?!! Those kids?\" Surprised by the unexpected development, Garfiel plucked out one of his own short golden locks in frustration. \"Well, shit, of course you're worked up about that...\" \"Y-yes. Also, that broadcast... The metia required to conduct it is at city hall, where my husband works... I'm worried about whether something happened to him.\" Voicing her concerns, Liara bit her lip as she looked in the direction of the building. City hall lay at the center of Pristella, which itself was divided into four districts: north, south, east, and west. It was the place that governed all core city functions. It was also the place that Lust had declared to be under her control.  Just what kind of damage had the perpetrator of such a cruel, deranged broadcast inflicted on the people at city hall? Deep in his chest, Garfiel's heartbeat sounded like an alarm bell, and his thoughts were extremely limited. His unseen younger brother and sister, Galek left behind in a danger zone, Liara running around at that very moment out of concern for her family where danger to this group was concerned, Garfiel couldn't just calmly sit back and watch. \"General, Lady Emilia...\" Subaru, Emilia, Beatrice, and Otto all appeared in the back of Garfiel's mind. It was none other than them whom Garfiel had come to the Water Gate City to protect. What good was he if he wasn't at their side then and there? He didn't offer much beyond his fighting ability. But simultaneously, his heart could not turn from his newly found younger siblings, Galek, and the sight of his mother standing before his very eyes.  It was time to choose. A decision pressed upon Garfiel that would determine which path his fate would take. \"I am sorry for troubling you like this... Please forget everything I told you, Mr. Gorgeous.\" \"...Ah.\" \"I am being exceptionally unfair to you right now. It's quite all right. Those children hear the city broadcasts every day, too, and since long ago, nothing ever slips by that man...\" Liara put on a brave smile to appease the hesitant Garfiel. But her hands, which were apparently folded in prayer, trembled. Her face had gone pale, seemingly drained of blood. It was a desperate performance. She was trying not to saddle Garfiel and Mimi with duties they were not obligated to take on.  Just like she'd tried to do when she left him and his older sister in the Sanctuary to search for his father in the outside world. His heart had swayed between the two choices, but that throbbing memory made him come to a swift conclusion. \"...I'll find your children, and your husband.\" \"Mr. Gorgeous?\" Liara opened her eyes wide with surprise at his unexpected reply. Nodding firmly in Liara's direction, Garfiel looked down at Mimi's hand as it gripped his own. During the time he was thinking and the time he was deciding, she'd simply waited in silence for Garfiel to choose. She had little brothers and other people she wanted to protect, too. He couldn't force her to go with his whims any longer. \"From this point on, it's just me bein' selfish. You go back and... Owww!!\" \"As if!\" In the middle of saying his good-bye, Mimi dug her heel into Garfiel's foot. Her body was light, but that kick was angled to provide maximum penetrating force. Garfiel groaned from the pain as Mimi puffed out her chest. \"Mimi's offended that Garf thinks she'll run away after he said something so cool! Mimi's coming, too! Totally coming!\" \"Why ...? Nah, I get it sorry.\" \" This is where you say thanks!\" \" Yeah, thanks.\" \"You are very welcome! Yay!\" When a silly smile came over Mimi's face, Garfiel smiled back, feeling like a great weight had been lifted. As Liara watched in astonishment, the pair turned to face her once more. \"We'll find 'em. You go stay at the nearest shelter. Better to stick with the others and wait for us to take care of this.\" \"B-but...why are you going this far for me?\"  Indeed, why was he? Liara's shaking eyes pressed Garfiel for the true reason behind his decision. This was not out of worry or doubt. She had a simple misgiving this was an act of benevolence without any basis that she could think of. Garfiel clacked his fangs at her words and flashed a fiendish smile. \"Because I'm the golden tiger! I'm Gorgeous! Tiger!!\" \"And because Mimi is Gorgeous Mimi!!\" Shouting those words in excessively loud voices, they glanced down at Liara, who blinked in surprise as the pair leaped away as one. With his mother far below, Garfiel turned to face the wind and make full use of his nose. \"Garf, what'll we do?\" \"Track 'em by scent. I remember how they smell just fine!!\" \"All righty!\" Settling on a plan while almost yelling to be heard, Garfiel and Mimi practically flew as they raced through the Water Gate City. Mimi was sticking with him in his moment of recklessness as he put off his duties and prioritized his personal matters even as various factors tried to convince him to reject that choice. Wrestling with them all, Garfiel touched the scar on his forehead. He decided he would think it through later and simply followed his heart. In the end, this was just faster. There was no reason to pick and choose when he could take everything. This was the way of the Emilia faction something Garfiel had picked up over the past year. \"Garf! This scent! It's coming from over there!\" \" Yeah, no mistakin' that! Good work!\" Garfiel belatedly confirmed that Mimi had sniffed out the scents they were searching for. They had found lingering traces of the two siblings. They were leading toward District One he recalled the conversation he'd had with Fred the night before. \"I get it now! So those two went off to see the Songstress at that park again this mornin'?!\" Meaning the younger brother had risen early after reflecting upon his mistake the previous day, and his foulmouthed sister had ended up going with him as a result. Therefore, he reasoned that they had to be at the shelter located close by. The park was close to the Water Raiment, and it was a place where they could quickly rendezvous with Subaru and the others  \" City hall.\" A moment before kicking off the ground, Garfiel had caught a glimpse of city hall. There, at the center of the city, which had fallen to Lust, was the final person he was searching for  Once more, it was time to choose. \"Garf, what'll we do?\" When Mimi asked, pressing him to decide, Garfiel asked himself that very question. Just what kind of person should Garfiel peg Galek as? Should Garfiel think of him as the hateful man who stole his mother away or see him as the great benefactor who saved his mother's life? Unlike the siblings, who were linked to him through his mother's blood, he and Garfiel were not connected in any way. If he was basing his choices on blood connections, Garfiel had no duty to rescue Galek. But what would happen to Liara and the kids if they lost him? A blank space in a family could never be filled Garfiel knew that better than anyone. \"...City hall that's where the Archbishop who did that damn broadcast earlier is holed up.\" \"Mmm, probably, yeah.\" \"She shook the city all up, and between the general and your little bros, there's lots to worry about... But a mettore's heart is in its head. If we smash the cause of everythin', we can settle this real fast.\" \"! You mean we can save everybody! Amazing! That's amazing!\" Mimi leaped at Garfiel as he explained the logic behind his decision. But her long tail immediately rose up, its tip pointing toward city hall. \"But is that really all right? I'm getting a sort of bad feeling that's making my hair stand up.\" \"Can't underestimate intuition. My ears got tired from how many times the general told me that the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins are bad news. Still...\" The only person Garfiel knew who was connected to Witches was the Witch who had a foul personality and was slumbering in the Sanctuary's tomb. It was a fact that she was imbued with incredible power. But Garfiel never, ever had felt like he'd lose to her in a contest of strength. Whatever the case, the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins had to be taken down for the city to be freed. \"It'd be great if we could just shut her up. At the very least, I wanna get a good look at the enemy's face.\" \"You mean ree-con? Mm...okay! Let's go do some ree-con!\" Though Mimi had seemed initially cautious about the dangers, she agreed with Garfiel's plan in the end. Mimi readied the beloved staff that she carried on her back, and Garfiel slipped his silvery shields onto both arms. After giving his gear a final check and confirming that the steel was wrapped around his thick arms, Garfiel was ready for combat. \"Let's go.\" With that brief declaration, the two broke into a run toward city hall. The Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins Subaru'd beaten a year earlier apparently had a considerable number of followers with him. The combat power of the disciples had been middling at best, but at any rate, there'd been a lot of them. And of course, they were good at blending into crowds. They'd have to deal with that on the fly and take back city hall by force. Garfiel had presented it as reconnaissance to Mimi for expediency's sake, but in his heart, he intended to overwhelm the enemy with speed and violence.  At least, that was the plan until he picked up the exceptionally dense odor of blood seeping from city hall. *** As the pair stopped, that thick stench of iron was wafting over from the street right in front of them. If they went straight ahead and turned the corner, city hall would be right in front of their noses. There was no doubting from whence the scent hailed. \"Garf, don't! Don't...!\" The instant Garfiel tried to advance toward the scent of blood, Mimi grasped his loincloth. She shook her head in rejection, almost in tears as she repeated, \"Don't.\" But he couldn't turn back. If he retreated, he wouldn't be able to fulfill Liara's Lisha's wish. \"If you don't wanna go, stay here. Me,"}, {"text": "I'll rip this asshole's head off alone if I have to!\" \"Garf!\" Shaking off Mimi's grip, Garfiel raced down the street. Rounding the corner, his vision opened up. City hall was right before him, and when he laid eyes on the square that led to the building a tragedy awaited him. *** The scent of blood was so strong that it made him crinkle his nose, and a single glance was enough for him to recognize the traces of a gruesome slaughter. The square in front of city hall, which was surrounded by waterways on three sides, was overflowing with so much blood that it was almost impossible to tell what color the paving stones used to be. A great many had already perished, their corpses tumbled into pools of their own blood based on their equipment, these victims had been Pristellan guardsmen. They'd likely heard the broadcast and had valiantly come running in defense of their city. Then their lives were savagely torn asunder. The corpses numbered thirty or so, but even that grisly detail was not what attracted Garfiel's attention most.  Rather, it was the two figures standing side by side at the center of the square, surrounded by those corpses. *** The first was a huge man, large enough that Garfiel had to look up to stare at him. He was gripping large swords in both hands, calmly gazing toward Garfiel's way. The other was a figure with a slender, feminine physique, and this one held a long, slim, single-edged blade, her stance exhibiting such beauty that it made Garfiel tremble. Both were dressed in black outfits from head to foot. Garfiel couldn't get a good look at their faces. \"...But judgin' by the way you carry yourself like a warrior and that smell of blood comin' off ya, you two are the ones who did this, right?\" Garfiel clacked his fangs as he spoke to the two standing boldly in that bloody square. But neither opponent responded to his provocations. He felt the scar on his forehead throb. \"Garf... Those two they're reaaally strong!\" With a pattering of footsteps, Mimi caught up with Garfiel and stood alongside him. As he had expected, she, too, was floored by the gruesome state of the square, but her tiny form was taut with caution that exceeded her surprise. His earlier impression that their opponents had shown no reaction had been in error the moment Garfiel and Mimi stepped into the square, they were struck by a ghastly, malevolent atmosphere and a cutting aura that seemed sharp as a blade itself. The pair waiting in the square were so dangerous and hostile that it was immediately obvious they were exceedingly difficult foes. Garfiel felt so threatened that his throat suddenly went dry; it was as if the point of a sword was resting against his beating heart. Their enemies were clearly masters who had stepped beyond the realm of mere mortals and unless he surpassed these sentinels, he could not fulfill his oath. \"Ha, this is gettin' interestin'...!\" Smiling, Garfiel banged together the shields covering his arms before his chest in an attempt to rouse himself. The screech of metal on metal and a shower of sparks illuminated the beast contained within his timid heart. But even as Garfiel worked himself up, Mimi spread both arms wide and stood in front of him as she shouted. \"D-don't! Garf! Not these two! They're too strong! Mimi and Garf can't take them alone! Stop!\" \"! Can't know till we try it. Ain't no way I'm acceptin' absolutes as set in stone.\" The words that Mimi used in an attempt to stop Garfiel stabbed at the cracks in Garfiel's heart. Clicking his tongue at his sore insecurities, Garfiel indicated the pair with his chin. \"Besides, even if we tuck our tails and run, those two ain't gonna just let us walk outta here. Someone's gotta do this.\" \"Th-then only once! We go clang, pull back, and run. Anything else is no good! Just Mimi and Garf aren't enough! It's hopeless without the captain and Julius!\" Seeing that Mimi still wanted to run, Garfiel firmly dug in and refused. Mimi's pleas were the right call. Each of the two before them possessed superhuman might their danger level was equal to, if not greater than, that of the Bowel Hunter. Garfiel largely agreed that facing them unprepared was suicidal. Or at least, he agreed in theory, but accepting it as fact was a different story. The two before his eyes were a wall. Blocking his path with overwhelming power, they represented a wall that he had to challenge and overcome. Having lost to Reinhard without a fight, could he really bear to run from his opponents twice over? He yearned to be the strongest. He had pride in himself. He was aware that he was the shield for his precious comrades. And in a different form than he had wished, he'd reunited with his mother and her new family. To his mother, the safety or peril of the man who had saved her was  *** Mimi gave Garfiel a concerned stare as these bewildering emotions whirled about inside him. The sight of her waiting for his decision made him recall the night he had spent protected by her warmth. Instantly, Garfiel shook his head as the obstinacy that held him in place had melted away. \"...All right. We'll do like you said. Give it all we got for just one hit, then we pull out. We'll gather our crew and then come back to mount our real attack that's fine, right?\" \"Mm! Yeah! Let's go and do our best-best!\" Mimi looked relieved that Garfiel had reined in his recklessness. Now on the same page, they turned as one to face their enemies. The pair opposing them had watched their exchange in silence. It wouldn't have been strange for them to attack during Garfiel and Mimi's debate, but they had not, be it out of pride, mercy, or composure  Garfiel and Mimi would make them regret that. *** Without any signal, Garfiel and Mimi simultaneously launched themselves at their opponents. Garfiel ended up matched up against the woman with his strength, and Mimi, the big man with her maneuverability. As Garfiel drew near with the speed of an arrow, the woman remained calmly poised, not moving a muscle. The distance between them vanished in the blink of an eye, and at five to four paces out, Garfiel initiated the first attack, swinging up with a bestial claw.  Instantly, a sword flashed with such entrancing beauty, it was enough to make anyone watching lose themselves in it. \" Gah!\" That moment, Garfiel threw his right shield up to intercept the sword as he kicked toward the woman's open chest. She dodged it without even the slightest wasted movement. As her body twisted away, her blade, which had been caught on his shield, was freed for a renewed attack. Neck, shoulder, arm the longsword twisted like a snake to defend them all as a chorus of sword meeting shield rang out. Evading a strike, Garfiel instantaneously retaliated with another kick; the woman blocked this with her scabbard as she was sent flying back. \"The hell?\" Garfiel raised an eyebrow at how light the woman felt. To his right, Mimi ran circles around her huge opponent and slipped under his massive greatswords, waving her staff to conduct a magic attack. When a blue explosion rocked her opponent and put him on the back foot, it seemed like that was as good a time as any for them to evacuate from the square. The huge, tottering man wouldn't be able to catch Mimi. It shouldn't be difficult for her to escape unscathed. As for the woman he'd driven back, she was in no position to withstand a follow-up attack from Garfiel. \"For starters, we'll take one down!!\" Therefore, he decided it was time to strike. Garfiel bared his fangs and leaped toward the woman. With her blade still where the shield had last deflected it, he whipped his claw toward the woman's wide-open torso. \"You're min !\" He had her right where he wanted her the instant he was certain of this, death closed in on him from behind. *** The distance between him and the giant vanished. That ghastly aura was the only warning Garfiel got. Curtailing his attack, he flipped his body back and leaped up. Not a moment later, a greatsword swung downward and smashed his body into the ground. \"Gah, arghhh?!\" Caught up in the shock wave, the force blew Garfiel's thoughts away as he hacked up a clump of blood. After bouncing off the ground, he felt another blow close in on him from the side. He was lucky that his arm made it just in time to catch the greatsword with his shield. Even with the lessened impact, he was still sent skipping across the ground and the surface of the water. Pursuing Garfiel as he soared through the air, the giant and the woman simultaneously leaped up. Death was near. Aiming to catch him in a merciless pincer attack, they came in from both sides, keeping Garfiel pinned in the middle. He deflected the longsword coming from the front with a shield and evaded a savage greatsword swing from behind by kicking the weapon away at the last moment. Guessing the path the sword would take, Garfiel miraculously managed to parry it. But as a shower of sparks scorched his cheeks, Garfiel's body was crushed by greatsword swings that came from above and below. \"Gwuh!\" His hip bones and ribs strained, then snapped. The blunt trauma alone left his vision bloodred as he was pushed to the brink of death. Even as groans of pain and globules of blood spilled from his mouth, he never stopped searching for a path that would lead him to survival. However, these two powerful foes would permit no such thing. Still speechless, his attackers turned their soundless slashes into heartless bloodlust as they continued to assail Garfiel. The woman's swordsmanship was sharp, representing the epitome of how beautiful death could be. The weight of her individual blows could not compare with that of the giant, but the skilled footwork and technique with which she wielded her long blade meant that the slightest misstep on Garfiel's part would inevitably result in a lethal blow slipping past his guard. The large man's fighting style was crude and violent, but the chaos and lack of polish served to optimize its destructiveness. He swung swords that a normal person would struggle to lift up even with two arms, while he wielded them with a single hand each, raging like an implacable storm of destruction incarnate. \"Ngh! Aaaaaah!!\" On one side, there were dazzling sword slashes that flowed like water. On the other, there were destructive sword swings that would crush anything that stood in their path, like an implacable maelstrom. Battered by these two very different styles of swordsmanship that sat at the opposite extremes of sound and motion, Garfiel's mind was reaching its limit. He was avoiding and parrying death on pure instinct, only narrowly escaping from multiple fatal blows. At this rate, he would inevitably be sliced to death or crushed by the sheer weight of heavy sword strokes  It is because you will kill me that you are my first love, Garfiel Tinzel. The instant death entered his thoughts, that sweet, dark invitation to what lay beyond life echoed loudly within him. Instantly, his head seethed as he abandoned those clouded musings. He roared: \"Graaaaaah!!\" His explosive increase in aggression diminished the ferocity of the incoming attacks ever so slightly. The skeletal structure of Garfiel's face audibly changed, and both of his muscular arms bulged in size as golden fur began covering all his exposed skin. Transforming only his upper body usually lowered his ability to reason and replaced it with an animallike combativeness, but if anything, his thoughts grew clearer. Roaring at the silent pair, he used his"}, {"text": "blessing of the earth spirit to make the ground beneath his feet explode. Sending blood and gravel flying as he flew across the gore-drenched battlefield helped interfere with the enemy's coordination. The sudden change in footing had caused the woman to lose her balance because of her light weight. A bestial claw, sharp as any blade, didn't miss this opportunity. Just before the blow struck the woman's windpipe, the giant got in between to shield her. A single blow from the mighty tiger was about to rend that thick mass of flesh  *** An explosive sound rang out, leaving Garfiel thunderstruck. Garfiel's blow had been halted by the massive man's arms. However, these were not the same arms carrying the greatswords. Opening up his outfit, the giant had used additional, hidden arms to stop Garfiel's attack with brute force. All told, four arms were now out, leaving no obvious openings. This overwhelming combination of attack and defense completely stymied Garfiel's counterattack. Instantly, the mighty tiger that should have been the epitome of aggression was brought to a standstill. In other words, in a battlefield where life and death were decided from moment to moment, his life was unguarded and exposed. Circling around from behind the towering man, the female attacker closed in on Garfiel from his blind spot, sword at the ready. Her attack almost seemed like a beautiful sword dance. And in his current state, she could easily lop off Garfiel's head like he was a scarecrow. Even as death approached from behind, Garfiel had no moves to make. Sensing death coming from the front and the back, he caught a shadowy figure in the corner of his vision flashing him a bloody smile as she laughed  \"Choyasaaa!!\" A powerful shout interrupted, summoning a blue magic wall that blocked the woman's sword. The wall made a sound like ice cracking as the blade slid across the barrier's surface and thrust harmlessly toward the ground. Mimi had returned to the field of battle, saving Garfiel in the nick of time. \"Garf, you said you'd run right away!\" As Mimi clutched her staff, her first words were a blunt criticism of Garfiel's refusal to follow their plan. Hearing her voice coming from behind his back in his half-transformed state, Garfiel realized what a fool he had been. Desperate for results, he'd courted death by misjudging how formidable his opponents were. If Mimi hadn't been there, Garfiel would have undoubtedly met a grisly end his life cut short without ever achieving his dream of becoming the strongest. \" Ohooooaaaaagh!!\" Pushing aside the relief that he felt at being saved, Garfiel howled and yanked his arm free from his grappling opponent. Kicking the giant in the chest, he didn't bother to see the results as he leaped clear to rejoin Mimi. Putting an arm around her slender waist, he poured strength into his legs. It was time to take Mimi and retreat. Following her initial suggestion, they'd gather their comrades and return in force. *** Right before he could jump, the woman pursued him in a low stance. Mimi turned her staff toward the approaching woman, deploying a triple-layered magical barrier surpassing what she'd summoned before and using the thick walls to bar the woman's path. Garfiel was glad he had Mimi here with him. She'd saved him time and again. As that thought occurred to him, Garfiel was already flexing his legs, and  \" Ah.\" There was a soft, strained cry and a light impact. He heard something that sounded like ice breaking. This caught him by surprise, and he wondered what had happened as he finished leaping away. Paving stones shattered as the half-beast sailed into the sky, seemingly streaming a trail of fresh blood in his wake.  Fresh blood... Where the hell was it coming from? \"Hey, shorty?\" The moment he called out to her, Garfiel swiftly released his half-transfiguration and returned to human form. However, the chill that ran up his spine was all that occupied him, to the point that he didn't even notice the unsettling feeling of his fur falling out. Mimi was limp in his arms. When he looked down, he saw that the woman was peering up at Garfiel in the sky, pulling back the longsword she had thrust at them. He noticed that the longsword was stained in blood along half its length. *** He could feel something warm spreading across his stomach. The girl in his arms was not moving. Her staff...was falling to the ground. He landed, then bounded once more. Leaping onto the roof of the nearest building, Garfiel fled without regard for anything else. There was no pursuit. The two foes simply watched as the wounded weaklings escaped. What their enemies thought of them and their abilities wasn't important at the moment. Jumping five more times to distance them from the square, Garfiel broke the roof of the building that he picked to land on, then set down the girl in his arms. Mimi's eyes were closed. A great deal of blood was still coursing out of her pierced chest. Hastily, he stripped away her clothes around the source of bleeding and checked the wound. Fortunately, it apparently missed her vitals. Of course, she was in danger if she wasn't treated immediately, but a user of healing magic was right there with her. Pressing a hand to the wound, Garfiel poured magic energy into Mimi's body. Well aware that he wasn't cut out for the role, he'd put his soul into learning healing magic. He wanted the power so that he could manage if something happened to anyone in the Sanctuary. That was why Garfiel had focused his efforts on studying healing magic, and in the process, he had learned a decent amount about treating the wounded in general. It was time to put all that hard work to use. It was an opportunity to show how far he'd come. This was surely the exact situation he'd wanted to prepare for. Even a wound this serious would close up in a flash with some healing mana. Touching his palm to the open wound, he could sense the blood coursing beneath the skin, the flesh, the innards, and the healing magic he was pouring in. He poured and poured, but   the wound... It wasn't closing. \"Why won't...?\" He heard someone speaking in a very frail voice. He wanted to kill whoever was speaking in such a pathetic voice at a time like this. Lifting his face, he looked around. There was no one else there. He immediately realized that the voice...had been his own. I was the one who sounded that weak? Why did I let out a voice like that? That's just... That's just like...like  \"!! Close! Close, close, damn it! Heal, heal, healhealheal!!!\" He kept pouring all the mana his body could muster into the healing magic. Ignoring his own wounds, he sent waves of healing energy into Mimi's battered body, filling it with gentle power. And yet the wound that needed to close would not. \"...No...way.\" Unable to accept the reality before him, Garfiel spat out in a frail voice once more. Then he slugged his own cheek, cutting his lip with his own fangs, and used the pain to rouse himself. This wasn't the time to wallow in despair. There had to be a way. There just had to. He knew it existed. Of course it did. He was just too stupid to realize it. He had to think. Not knowing was no reason to give up. At any rate, he had to do something to save this girl. She was the one who'd helped Garfiel cry. It wasn't right for this girl to die for his sake. *** Clacking his fangs, Garfiel was still in a daze as he leaped off that roof. Keeping pressure on the girl's wound, he tried to stop the bleeding as he continued attempting his ineffective healing magic. There was a scent of blood, and death, hanging over the city. He didn't spot another soul as he reviewed all available information in his mind. I'll take anyone who can help. Please just save this girl. Someone, somewhere, please show me a miracle. Please tell me. If there's anything that I can do, then tell me how to save this girl. He was so desperate that he was even willing to trade his life for hers if it came to it. Garfiel focused everything on his sense of smell. The scent of water, the scent of blood, the scent of violence fanned by emotions run amok, the scent of scorched flesh amid those countless smells, Garfiel's nose picked out the one he wanted. He knew this one. And it was the one that Garfiel had been searching for. Leaping over obstacles, racing forward, Garfiel was feverish by the time he finally reached his destination. He arrived at the same building he had visited just the day before and rushed into one of the rooms inside. A large number of people were shocked to see his bloodied form. He had no time to explain. Swiveling his head, Garfiel searched for the man he could rely on. \"Garfiel?!\" Someone called his name. Turning, he spotted the one he was looking for. He lifted his head. Straight ahead at the back of the room, he saw Subaru. Subaru Natsuki. To Garfiel, this man symbolized miracles; he was the personification of the ray of light that revealed hope in the direst of situations. With tottering feet and a heavy head, he raced toward his hope while carrying an all-too-light weight in his arms. Subaru's cheeks stiffened as he got a good look at Garfiel. He had noticed Mimi's limp body in his arms. \"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry, General!! I'm...! I'm useless! Worthless...!!\" Dropping to his knees in front of Subaru, he held up Mimi. Then he despaired, cursing his own foolishness. He hadn't protected his family. He'd failed to fulfill his oath to serve as a shield. He'd challenged the enemy on his own judgment and been routed, and as a result, this kindhearted girl was now on the brink of death. \"Garfiel, what did...? No, we'll leave that for later! Ferris!\" \"I know! Quick, lay her down!\" Taking Mimi from Garfiel's arms, Subaru set her down on the long table. Garfiel simply watched as the nearby, pretty cat-eared girl put a hand upon Mimi's wound. The next instant, an overwhelming amount of healing mana swelled up. This was incomparable with what Garfiel could wield. If Garfiel's healing magic was a drop of rain, this person's power was a thundering waterfall. It was so great that even bringing the dead back to life seemed within reach. Garfiel felt like his soul slipped out of his body as he gazed upon such godlike healing power in a daze. Then Subaru gently rested a hand upon his shoulder. When Garfiel slowly looked up at him, Subaru nodded. He only noticed now that Subaru's leg was heavily bandaged. \"Not gonna sugarcoat it and call this a good situation, but you did well getting this far. With Ferris here, it's the best place you could've brought her. We'll be able to save Mimi thanks to you.\" \"Thanks...to me...?\" What was Subaru saying? Thanks to Garfiel, Mimi would be saved? What was he even talking about? Wasn't it Garfiel's fault that Mimi had ended up like this to begin with? Even so, Subaru had naturally arrived at the conclusion that she'd been saved by Garfiel's good judgment. But that was all wrong. He felt lost. His thoughts were empty and hollow. The disgust and guilt tortured him and seemed like they would never stop. There was a persistent ringing in his ears that wouldn't go away. He found the insistent pain of his own wounds laughable and out of place. I want blame. I want pain. I don't want anyone to forgive me for my stupidity. Garfiel's wish was one that would be granted."}, {"text": "After all, the world was not so forgiving. There would be a price to pay for his errors but the bill would come in the most loathsome way possible. \"Ferris, what's the matter...?\" Sensing that something was wrong, Subaru suddenly asked a tentative question. In front of him, the treatment to save Mimi's life was still underway. An incredible stream of mana was flowing. It was so awesome that even the residual energy seemed powerful enough to cure all ills. And yet the girl employing this breathtaking power had a desperate look about her as she shook her head. \"Why...? The wound...isn't closing! I can't help her like this! I don't understand!!\" As that pained report echoed through the room, Garfiel slumped against the wall and crumpled to the ground. The wall was cold. The floor was cold. He was covered in blood. The wound would not heal. *** As Garfiel hung his head, the phantom woman in black gazed upon him. She said nothing. She didn't make a sound. She didn't even smile. Her black, hollow eyes told him nothing. Nothing except that the price for his mistake was being repaid in blood. CHAPTER 5 *** 1 \"Old Man Wil! Carry her! I can't stop the bleeding here!\" Seeing Ferris change his expression, Wilhelm did as he instructed and picked up Mimi's bloodied body. The two proceeded to rush out of the conference room with urgent steps, heading to the field hospital in the structure's basement. With healing magic being ineffective, they had no choice but to fall back onto ordinary medical treatments. Fortunately, Ferris was skilled not only in healing magic, but also surgical techniques as well. If not for that, it was likely that there would be nothing else they could do but despair. \"Has my heartache reached any of you even a little? Really, for beings lower than insects trapped inside a box, how are you so slow on the uptake? I wuv it! Bwa-ha-ha-ha!!\" Even as some of them were making heroic efforts to save a life, Lust continued her menacing broadcast. In truth, this could no longer be considered a broadcast that was meant to intimidate its listeners. It was simply being used to mock and scorn, to spit upon the valiant efforts of others. It was a sadistic ritual. *** Under that downpour of malice, Subaru looked at Garfiel, who had flopped against the wall. Covering his face with both hands and hanging his head, Garfiel sported wounds all over his body. They were definitely not the kind that could be ignored. However, the gravest wound was not to his body, but his heart. \"You scum are even lower than insects! And now that you've deeply hurt me, I really want some payback for this pain to my heart! My heart will be assuaged by what I said before! I expect great things from the smarter meatbags among you!\" Lust redoubled her malice during that time as well. Subaru focused on her voice, searching for a way to land even a single retaliatory blow against this villain who kept rambling without a care for those who were forced to keep listening to her. Information, weaknesses, clues about the enemy, anything would do with that mindset, he noticed a particular sound. Besides Lust's high-pitched, earsplitting voice, there was also the sound of her clapping and stomping her feet. She acted like a child who was struggling to settle down, and that certainly also grated on Subaru's nerves but he was focused on something else. He heard...another sound. The source was most likely right beside the broadcasting metia, unintentionally mixing in with her voice and reaching Subaru's ears through the broadcast. Then Subaru's sense of reason instinctively rejected the identity of that sound. Don't pay attention. Stop. You don't need to know  Don't give in to your cowardice. *** Biting down hard on his lip, Subaru used the pain to come back to his senses. He clenched his teeth as he examined the nature of what he had just rejected. Concentration, rejection, comprehension, rejection, comprehension, comprehension, comprehension  That was what hummed in Subaru's ears. The buzzing of an unbelievable quantity of insects was mixed in with the threatening broadcast. It was incredibly anxiety-inducing, the manifestation of a nightmare that provoked an instinctive disgust, and the instant Subaru realized that, he  \"Incidentally, isn't it about time for the smarter meatbags among you to notice something that you really should've kept ignoring?\" \" Ah.\" She pointed out with terrifying timing that she'd planned for them to hear it all along. \"Bwa-ha-ha-ha! You should've just been enchanted by my beautiful voice, but now you're paying the price because you just haaad to do something pointless. Speaking of which, the stupid try-hards who tried to force their way in should be having a real bad time right about now.\" Subaru was stunned. She had basically just revealed that they were still dancing in the palm of her hand. Toying with their minds like this wasn't enough to sate Lust's malicious appetite. She smacked her lips and made sure everyone could hear it. \"I'm so deeply hurt that you would slap away the hand that I held out! That's why I figured it's time to stop holding back and time to tighten up a bit around here. And all you meatbags who got excited when I mentioned making things tighter just now, I'll have to teach you what the word serious really means! Bwa-ha-ha-ha! Bwa-ha-ha! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! ...Haaah.\" Her laughing gradually lost strength, and by the end, only a tedious sigh trickled forth. That sharp drop in emotion made it sound like Lust had decided to forsake everyone else as she continued: \" I'll start by turning the meatbags at my feet into mincemeat.\" *** \"If you want to avoid that, I've only got one demand. If you're going to surrender, then just get it over with already and bow your heads as low as you can. That's the smart thing to do, right?\" Calmly, with none of the excitement she had shown just moments ago, Lust thrust her demand onto the city. That sudden reversal and a threat that promised gore made Subaru gasp for breath. Then Lust's disturbing moment of composure ended with such ease and speed that Subaru could have sworn the change was audible. \"Well, that's all from little ol' me! ...And I said this already, but here's a friendly reminder that we've set up camp in the control towers, so don't try anything funny. The sight of a drowning human's face is so awful, I almost can't bear to look at one again! Bwa-ha-ha-ha!\" With one last screeching laugh, the spiteful broadcast finally came to an end. It had been a completely one-sided statement of intent that left just as suddenly as it had arrived. Her way of speaking was perfectly in character for an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins a manifestation of ugliness in a new form. \"M-messing with us like that...\" At the same time the broadcast ended, Subaru no longer heard the buzzing that had put his heart in a vise. His body instantly relaxed, and as soon as it did, the first words out of his breathless mouth were grumbles. Of course, trash-talking someone who couldn't hear it was little more than the distant whimpers of a beaten dog. Subaru clenched his fist in frustration at his total inability to even say a retort that would reach their enemy. \" Subaru, can you hear me?\" Abruptly, Subaru heard a voice calling his name from the round table. When he looked over, he saw that the conversation mirror, which had been abandoned in haste, had not lost its glow and was currently displaying a morose knight's face upon its surface. \"Yeah, I hear you. You caught the broadcast just now, right?\" \"But of course. Loath as I am to say it, that voice surely reached every corner of the city. There is Mimi's condition to consider as well. TB and I shall return to you. We will speak again once we arrive.\" \"Yeah...\" Once he finished that short exchange with Julius, Subaru closed his eyes once before turning toward the conference-room window. \"...We can talk it over soon.\" The red-eyed flag fluttering atop the control tower in the distance looked like it was laughing at the Water Gate City. 2 A short time later, Julius and the others who had ventured outside returned to the designated shelter. \"B-Big Sis, hang in there...!\" \"Keep fighting, Big Sis...\" Concerned for their unconscious sister, Hetaro and TB continued calling out to Mimi. Feeling their sister's wounds due to their shared blessing even now, both brothers had pain and grief carved onto their faces in equal measure. \"Every second counts! Keep pressure on the wound to stem the bleeding... Argh! This method is so outdated...!\" Ferris was too worked up for anyone else to get a single word in. Everyone present understood what was at stake. Critically wounded, Mimi could be entrusted to none but him. \"Sir Subaru.\" It was then that Wilhelm called to Subaru with an austere expression. Sensing unconcealable anguish from the man's subdued voice and seeing the deep creases marring his forehead, Subaru nodded. He had a pretty good idea what was upsetting the elderly butler. \"Mimi's wound won't close. It's probably...\" \"...It is almost certainly due to the blessing of the grim reaper.\" Picking up where Subaru left off, Wilhelm spoke those words with resolve. The blessing of the grim reaper was a terrifying power that afflicted any wound caused by the bearer of the blessing with a curse that kept it from healing. Based on what they had seen, there was little doubt this was why healing magic had no effect on Mimi's injury. Additionally, from all Subaru had heard, there was only one individual he knew who possessed such a blessing. Theresia van Astrea, the prior generation of Sword Saint Wilhelm's departed wife. \"I'm scared to ask this...but, Wilhelm, is your arm...?\" *** When Subaru asked, Wilhelm stripped off his butler's jacket without a word. The old wound on his left shoulder was concealed under bandages it was the unhealed gouge that his wife had left upon him. The bandages wrapping the wound that had been carved in him by the blessing of the grim reaper were faintly red and wet. \"If that's still bleeding, then...\" \"My old wound has reopened. It seems that I cannot pretend to be uninvolved.\" Putting his jacket back on, Wilhelm quietly murmured. Subaru couldn't think of anything to say to him. However, what dwelled in Wilhelm's eyes was neither hope nor relief, but anger. Even though he'd discovered the possibility that his wife, the one he had supposedly lost so long ago, might still be alive  \" My wife passed away fifteen years ago. That fact has not changed.\" Pushing down the roiling emotions he must have been feeling, Wilhelm refuted what Subaru had been thinking as he leveled his gaze directly at him. That moment, Subaru thought he could feel a small part of Wilhelm's surging desire to fight. \"Someone out there is involved in her death, in the desecration of her soul. I swear upon my sword and the days I spent together with my wife they shall pay.\" With an indomitable resolve, the Sword Devil had become as tenacious as hardened steel. Anyone who set eyes upon this man would realize that there was nothing else to be said. Cheap condolences and consolations would only be an affront to his determination. *** Standing beside Wilhelm, Subaru quietly took a breath. Ferris continued doing everything he could while Hetaro and TB stayed huddled at Mimi's side. Ferris soon shooed away the rest, sending them to an adjacent waiting room. Subaru and the others continued discussing plans as they changed locations. He was still deeply worried about Mimi's condition, but the city's situation didn't allow him to focus on Mimi alone. The most pressing issue they needed to discuss was  \" As you have"}, {"text": "all heard, the Archbishop made a second broadcast. The lives of the hostages at city hall may not have very long.\" One of their group raised a hand and shed the jacket of his white suit as he kicked off the conversation. He was a man with meticulously combed hair and an elegant face however, his expression was taut. This palpable desire to deal with the formidable problem left before them belonged to none other than the president of the Muse Company, Kiritaka Muse. Right up until moments before, Kiritaka had been doing his best to get a grasp on the situation while suppressing disorder across the entire city as one of the Council of Ten, but after hearing the earlier broadcast, he decided to participate in the urgent meeting that was currently being held. Given that he was a central figure in the city, Subaru had wanted to confirm something with him right at the start. \"There's no time, so I'll get straight to the point Kiritaka, could you give us an explanation about the Witch's bones?\" It was Anastasia who cut to the chase without the slightest hesitation, taking a position at the front of the waiting room. She discarded the demure attitude she usually adopted, turning a sharp, serious look toward Kiritaka. Realizing from her keen gaze that Anastasia was serious, Kiritaka nodded and assented to her request. \"I suppose there is no point hiding it at this juncture. Therefore, in brief... The Witch's bones do exist, and they are here in the city. Only the people on the Council of Ten know where they are... Of course, I am one of them.\" \"...So the bones seriously exist?\" When Kiritaka confirmed as much, everyone present drew in a small, short breath. It was tangible proof that the establishment of the city four centuries prior had indeed been related to a Witch. But Kiritaka met their general reaction with a \"However\" before continuing his explanation. \"I must say this bluntly. The Witch's bones absolutely cannot be moved. Accordingly, we cannot comply with the opponent's demand. The bones cannot be used as a bargaining chip.\" \"Master Kiritaka, is it simply your opinion that they should not be moved?\" \"No. I am not saying they cannot be moved due to custom or adherence to ancient history. In a situation where human lives hang in the balance, such things are not even worth considering.\" \"Then are you saying that...?\" \"They physically cannot be moved.\" Kiritaka's reply to Crusch's question was firm, but his follow-up to Subaru's words was mostly listless. It was an oddly roundabout way to ultimately say they could not be moved even if someone wanted to. The Witch's bones if Al's murmur was to be believed, the chance that they were relics of Typhon was high. She'd been a young girl and barely any different from Beatrice in stature, so it was hard to imagine that the difficulty in moving them was due to size or weight. There had to be another reason. \"Maybe it's more about where they're currently located or the role they play?\" \"That would make sense. If the Witch's bones truly do exist but they're kept a secret from everyone except the city's council, there should be a fairly important reason for it.\" Anastasia quickly agreed with Subaru's conjecture. The pair's hypothesis made Kiritaka visibly tense up before letting out a resigned sigh. \"...As you have surmised, special power dwells within the Witch's bones power sufficient to serve as the foundation of this city. Without the bones, the Water Gate City is unsustainable.\" \"What happens if they're moved?\" \"It seems that all present are aware of how this city was founded. Should the bones be moved, the city will undoubtedly sustain damage on par with that legendary event... No, it would likely be an even greater disaster than that. The result would be the same as if the Witch Cult flung the water gates of this city wide open.\" \"...I see. And that's why you can't move 'em.\" As he made that remark, Subaru glanced at Crusch. She shook her head side to side in response. The power of the blessing of wind reading allowed Crusch to tell whether the words of others were truth or lies. There were a number of loopholes, but it was a pretty safe bet that this meant Kiritaka's statement was not willful deception. In other words, handing the Witch's bones over was tantamount to destroying the city. By including such a terrible condition in her proposed deal, Lust had clearly miscalculated. \"Or perhaps we should assume that she came up with her terms knowing full well what it would mean for the city.\" It was then that Julius murmured an alternative explanation with a faint crease in the brow of his forehead. Having returned with TB and joined the renewed meeting, he swept his hair to the side when he noticed all attention gathering upon him. \"After visiting several shelters, I can safely say that the residents of the city have endured well. Even so, there will be no end to the number of people who find this current situation hopeless. Without understanding the consequences it will entail, some may even demand that the Witch's bones should be handed over.\" \"You mean Lust is getting off on seeing the city rip itself apart? ...That's a sick joke.\" It was a pessimistic bit of speculation, but at the same time, it was difficult to rule out. When Capella, the Archbishop of Lust, made her broadcast, all of them had gotten a glimpse of the joy she got out of sadistically toying with people's hearts. Perhaps the real objective of making the entire city hear her voice was simply to tyrannize the hearts of others  \" We ain't handin' over those bones, and we sure as hell ain't entertainin' their stupid demands. It wouldn't change a damn thing.\" It was a quiet declaration. The tenor of that voice made Subaru lift his face with a strong sense that something was off. He found the quietness of that voice deeply unsettling. This was because the one who just spoke was always so strong and spirited a far cry from the impression of the subdued, muted emotion the voice gave off now. Sporting charred-brown fur and a large, muscular frame, the demi-human dog-man Ricardo was normally bold with his words and his actions. Like Julius, he had returned from his excursion and now stood in silence with his thick arms crossed, seemingly thinking hard about something. Then he slowly walked over to the wall and broke the silence again. \"I didn't say thanks yet. Bro, if ya hadn't brought Mimi here, there's no doubt in my mind she'd be dead. I owe you one. Big-time. Seriously, thank you.\" Ricardo sank down and sat cross-legged, pressing his head to the floor as he conveyed his gratitude. His words were directed at none other than Garfiel, who was still slumped against the wall, his head hanging like a rag doll's. *** Despondent, Garfiel had only barely managed to do as Subaru instructed and cast healing magic upon his own wounds. He opened his jade eyes, revealing a frail, clouded gaze filled with bewilderment and remorse. Based on what Garfiel had wailed when he brought Mimi in, it was clear he felt responsible for Mimi's condition. As her guardian, Ricardo had a right to blame him for what had happened. And yet instead of accusing Garfiel, Ricardo had chosen to bow his head. Ricardo's sincerity stabbed deep into Garfiel's heart, driving the boy further into the grasping hands of guilt. \"Well? Shouldn't we stop dancin' around the issue here and ask what we need to ask?\" It was Al who pointed out their inactivity from his seat at the long table. Fiddling with the seams of his helm, he surveyed all those present. \"That nutty broadcast earlier can't be unrelated to those two rushing in here all a mess. They're crucial live witnesses who just returned from city hall. That's a big deal, am I right?\" Though wounded, Garfiel jerked his chin up. Al shrugged with a familiar disinterest. His aloof demeanor came off as insensitive, but he asserted that was what the situation called for. There was no doubt that Garfiel and Mimi had confronted their enemies at city hall. Perhaps that had been a hasty decision, but the two had tried in their own way to do the best they could. And they'd paid the price in fact, Mimi was still paying for it even as they spoke. \"Garfiel, it might be tough to talk about it, but please tell us what happened. I get that no chump could've put you through the wringer like that. But...\" *** \"...we have to give a serious thrashing to all the morons who attacked this city. We'll need your strength to make that happen. I can't afford to let you stay down in the dumps like this.\" He knew it was a cruel demand to make. But Subaru gave it to Garfiel straight and spoke from the heart. Garfiel had challenged the enemy based on his personal judgment but had failed to protect Mimi. It was easy for Subaru to imagine what crushing regret and responsibility must have weighed on Garfiel's chest. That was only natural. Subaru himself felt the exact same way Garfiel did. \"...We heard...that broadcast. Me and the runt headed for the center of the city all because I wanted to give that bastard broadcastin' out of city hall a good beatdown.\" Haltingly, his face still angled toward the floor, Garfiel began to speak. Suspending his treatment, he clenched a fist so hard that it nearly broke the bones in his hand. That was the only way he could keep his churning emotions from exploding. \"There were a whole lotta dead people in front of city hall. I think they were city guards. The ones who did them in were a pair, a big man and a thin woman. Both fought with swords, and they...\" Garfiel's fangs trembled as his words trailed off. What he had left unsaid were no doubt Garfiel's defeat and the cause of Mimi's wound, which refused all attempted treatments. What made Subaru want to doubt his ears was that it was a complete mystery who that pair might be. The fact that they were acting in concert with Lust meant they were definitely Witch Cultists. But as Subaru knew, no Archbishops matched the physical characteristics that Garfiel had mentioned. They were unknown Witch Cultists who weren't even Archbishops. What's more  \"Both of 'em are a match for... Actually, I think they're stronger than me.\" Garfiel seemed weak, seemingly shrinking in on himself as he agonized over that thought. His awe at his opponents' might and his guilt for letting Mimi get hurt left Garfiel looking incredibly small. \" Looks like ya got a pretty good grasp on the strength and weakness of your opponents.\" \"Ricardo...\" Ricardo had kept his head pressed to the floor right up until he made that comment. An instant later, a terrifying, ferocious, and bestial presence filled the room. \"Tell me, Bro. Of the two ya mentioned, which one is it? Which one do I cut apart to avenge Mimi?\" If Ricardo's exhaustive thanks were sincere, then he was equally sincere in just how far he would go to rip and tear his enemy to sate his thirst for vengeance. Taken aback by that daunting show of brutality, Garfiel hesitated slightly. \"...It was the woman who got the runt. It happened when Mimi covered for me.\" \"That was Mimi's choice. I ain't gonna criticize her decision.\" \"I get it. I get ya. No one... Not a single person's blamin' me...but I do! That's why I gotta give it to that woman...!!\" Practically flying to his feet, Garfiel wore a mournful look on his face as he shouted his desire for retribution. Rising in turn, Ricardo stared down at the boy across their"}, {"text": "difference in height. \"That was a good howl. A man never goes back on his word. Now stand up and fight.\" \"Yeah...yeah! Damn right I will! I'm gonna do it...!\" Garfiel howled as if he was tearing into something with his jaws as the light returned to his clouded eyes. There was some bravado at work, but now angry, Garfiel had sworn to Ricardo that he would avenge Mimi. Acknowledging his resolve, Ricardo nodded and glanced momentarily toward Subaru. Though it should have been Subaru giving Garfiel that extra push he needed, Ricardo had thoughtfully acted in his stead. The captain of the Iron Fangs was as good at helping people back to their feet as Subaru expected. \"Thanks to Garfiel's report, we now know the degree of danger that awaits us at city hall...and have learned about the sacrifices made by the guards who fought with the resolve to die in defense of the city. Next...\" Now that Ricardo had lit a fire under Garfiel, Julius pulled the conversation back on topic, faintly narrowing his yellow eyes as he looked at Subaru. \"Subaru, what would you do?\" \"...Whoa, that's an awfully sloppy way to pass the reins over to someone else.\" Subaru grimaced at Julius's uncharacteristically haphazard manner of speaking. Julius's only response was a smug chuckle. \"I was simply thinking back to the battle with Sloth. I was hoping that you might be particularly effective against the Witch Cult once again. As such, I reasoned that you might come up with a plan that would not have occurred to me.\" \"Don't get carried away, man. If I was that effective against 'em, my leg wouldn't have ended up like this.\" \"That is unfortunate. However, there is also the matter of Lady Emilia. Surely, you do not wish to leave her in her current predicament. I simply wish to confirm what you intend to do.\" It may not have been the answer he hoped for, but Julius didn't seem particularly disappointed. Of course, he of all people hadn't expected Subaru to turn out to be some kind of mystical Witch Cult killer. Subaru himself immediately understood that it was the second issue Julius had brought up that was the real point. \"...Greed is the one who kidnapped Emilia. Even now, his selfish pet theories have every hair on my body standing on end. I don't wanna leave Emilia with that bastard one second longer than I have to.\" \"By that, you mean you are prioritizing Lady Emilia's rescue?\" \"Damn right I am is what I'd like to say, but...\" When he tried to give Julius's question a confident answer, Subaru broke off with a sigh. He did want to get Emilia back as soon as possible. That was, without question, Subaru's true feelings on the matter. The idea of leaving Emilia in the hands of someone with such warped thinking for any period of time made him want to hurl. But the city's dire state and Lust's demands did not permit Subaru to act out of emotion. \"We can't let Lust do as she pleases. If we don't stop her, she's gonna wreak absolute havoc with people's minds  Plus, that metia is a serious problem.\" \"Agreed. The metia in city hall is a chain that binds everyone in the city.\" A voice that could reach every part of the city was plenty menacing enough. Lust was clearly aware of its efficacy, but Subaru had a different concern in mind. There was someone else inside the city, someone with an Authority that amplified emotions and made them resonate with those of anyone in the vicinity. If that ability was augmented to a despairing degree by that metia, what would happen? A pandemic of explosively irresistible madness would spread, and the city would be annihilated. To save Emilia, they had to prevent the destruction of the city and regain control over that metia. Both goals required defeating Lust at city hall. Accomplishing this was the first step on the path to rescuing Emilia from Greed's clutches. \"The enemy has seized the four control towers as well as the municipal offices at the center of the city. That said, the priority target is obvious. Getting Lust out of city hall comes first. Plus, if Lust was serious during that broadcast earlier, the lives of the people inside city hall are more at risk the longer we wait.\" \"I see... A most valuable opinion. It largely matches my own thoughts.\" When Subaru detailed his plan, Julius nodded in apparent satisfaction. In all likelihood, the handsome knight had internally come to the same conclusion much sooner. Perhaps making Subaru say it out loud was to test whether Subaru had lost his cool and reached a hasty conclusion. \"Good, good. Let's review and take stock.\" Lightly clapping, Anastasia resumed her self-appointed duty as master of ceremonies. Spreading her hands, she fixed Subaru with her round, light-blue eyes. \"I support following Natsuki's plan. I agree that leaving the broadcast metia in that person's hands is dangerous... The longer we let her be, the greater the chance the city's residents might lose the will to carry on and force our hand.\" \"I also concur with the two of you. If we allow the enemy free rein, our options shall gradually diminish. If we are making our move, the sooner the better.\" With a crisp posture, Crusch agreed with Subaru and Anastasia's conclusion. Just as she had said, they were currently well staffed and ready for a fight. The Muse Company was currently housing Garfiel, Ricardo, Julius, and Wilhelm, distinguished warriors all. Adding in the Iron Fangs and Kiritaka's private forces, the White Dragon's Scale, would enhance their strength even further. However, Kiritaka interrupted that line of thought as he shook his head side to side with a grim face. \"I am very sorry. Currently, my personal troops are carrying out a different mission at my direction. They are securing the members of the Council of Ten and escorting them here.\" \"Shit, that's... Nah, that's something you need to do. If one of them blabs, the city'll be destroyed by something other than the water gates. That said, I'd love to improve our chances somehow...\" If it was possible, Subaru would've preferred to face the enemy at the same strength they'd been able to field during the battle with Petelgeuse at minimum. After all, they were currently facing no less than three Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, so by simple arithmetic, he assumed the fight would be three times as tough. \" Nah, you probably don't need to worry about that, right?\" \"Al? What do you mean?\" Al suddenly interrupted Subaru's train of thought. Twisting his neck, he said, \"Well, you know?\" as a preamble. \"Bro, you're worried about city hall turning into a haunt for the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins, right? But didn't they say in that last broadcast that they've set up camp in each of the control towers?\" \"? What of it? Is there something odd about that?\" \"!! Ohhh, I get it now! Yeah, you're right!\" Ricardo voiced his confusion, but Subaru grasped what he was getting at. Apparently, they'd each stationed themselves in different control towers and what did that expression imply? \"The Archbishops took over the control towers at the same time...but I don't think they're working together like a big happy family. They're the kind of people who'd be willing to start turning on one another even as their enemies close in on them.\" Subaru pointedly recalled how Sirius and Regulus had nearly gone for each other's throats. Had it not been for Subaru being in the way, the falling-out in the time-tower square would probably have ended with one of them going down. In the first place, the terms harmonious and group activity didn't suit them in the slightest. Could such hyper-individual personalities really rein it in and coordinate properly? \"The fact that no one else spoke during Lust's broadcast seems to support that theory. They're all way too keen on promoting their own causes to leave something like that to anyone else.\" \"I cannot call that anything other than a very subjective opinion... However, it is oddly convincing.\" Subaru's conviction left Julius furrowing his refined eyebrows as the man shut one eye and considered the plausibility of it all. There was no question that this was the most speculative theory they had discussed so far. However, Subaru was certain in his deductions. Having come face-to-face with three Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins and having had indirect contact with a fourth, Subaru Natsuki believed wholeheartedly in their warped character. Then just as their counterattack on city hall suddenly seemed genuinely within reach  \" Whew. Somehow, I managed to finish the treatment.\" The door to the adjacent room opened, and Ferris emerged, covered in a sheen of sweat as he tottered forward. Covered in bloodstains despite having already changed clothes once, he wiped his brow with a towel as he gave Anastasia his report. \"Lady Anastasia, I have done everything I can. The rest...\" \"How's Mimi? Can ya save her? You will, right?\" Ricardo's breathing was ragged as he talked to Ferris over Anastasia's head, hoping for good news. Behind Ricardo, Garfiel stared at Ferris as if clinging to his every word. With their gazes and earnest pleas focused on him, as well as the attention of everyone else in the room, Ferris lowered his eyes. \"The wound still isn't closed. For now, I did what I could and stopped the bleeding using primitive methods... Then borrowing the power of the blessing shared between Mimi and her little brothers, we're somehow keeping her going for the moment.\" \"By 'blessing,' do you mean the blessing of thirds? What's that gonna do to them?\" \"That blessing gives the power to share wounds and fatigue between the three of them to begin with, right? They forced that bond to strengthen, taking a greater share from Mimi's wounds than they normally would. That's extended our time limit, but...\" \" When Big Sis's life runs out, it means we will die as well, I presume.\" From the door to the other room, someone behind Ferris cut in with a voice that was short of breath. When Ferris moved to the side, everyone could see Hetaro and TB sitting on the floor of the adjacent room. A simple cot lay between them, and resting on it was Mimi. Their older sister continued to sleep as the two younger brothers gently held her hands  However, their free hands were pressed to their own chests in obvious signs of pain. \" Ya pair of fools. I swear the both of you don't have a lick of sense.\" \"...When I think of this as Big Sis's pain, I feel a little bit happy I can share it with her.\" \"I am not quite as taken with this as my older brother seems to be. Therefore, captain, I trust that you will do something about this as soon as possible  After all, should we die, the three of us will absolutely haunt you.\" Shouldering a portion of their sister's wounds, the two little brothers braved the same mortal danger. Their courage made Ricardo's fangs tremble. In an attempt to console him, Ferris put a hand on his shoulder and said, \"Don't be angry with them. These kids are just desperate to help Mimi.\" Ferris was standing up for the choice that the two cat-people made. But really, his voice was thick with his own regrets over his lack of ability. \"It isn't your fault, Ferris. Besides, I'm guessing those two came up with that idea on their own, didn't they? These children are such a handful. They never stop to think whenever their beloved big sister is involved.\" With a thin smile, Anastasia indicated that she understood her subordinates' her family's decision. Then Anastasia seemed to slowly bite down on her teeth. \"Ricardo.\" \"If we're gonna do it, we do it fast. Otherwise, there ain't"}, {"text": "no point. Am I wrong, boss?\" When called upon, Ricardo replied without hesitation. From his low growl, it was clear there was no one capable of calling a halt to his determination to fight nor was there anyone who failed to comprehend the feelings urging him onward. With a click of his heels, Julius straightened his back and gave Anastasia a reverent knight's salute. \"Lady Anastasia, should you command it, all members of the Iron Fangs can move at once.\" \"Thank you. Our Iron Fangs will secure the route to city hall. After that, ideally, the elites will launch their assault and take control of the building without delay. Our enemies are a looming man, a slender woman, and the Archbishop of Lust.\" \"On our side, we've got Garfiel, Ricardo, Wilhelm, and Julius, right?\" \" I shall participate as well.\" It was Crusch who raised her voice. Her long, green hair was tied back, and a longsword hung at her hip. She retightened the straps of her boots as she boldly volunteered for the front lines. \"Are you sure you're up for this, Crusch?\" \"I may not be as I once was, but I have retrained with Wilhelm as my teacher. I also have the power of the blessing of wind reading. I have no intention of weighing anyone down.\" Before she'd lost her memory, Crusch had been mighty enough to be one of the heavy hitters during the battle against the White Whale. But now Subaru wasn't sure where she stood in strength. If he was blunt, even her gravitas didn't compare with the old Crusch, and he didn't think her current personality was suited to fighting, but  \"Lady Crusch's natural talents have not waned whatsoever. Her strength with the sword is sufficient. I guarantee it.\" Apparently wanting to dispel Subaru's concerns, Wilhelm gave his firm stamp of approval. Touching a hand to the hilt of his own sword, he turned both of his blue eyes toward his master. \"However, please do not overexert yourself. I respectfully ask that you prioritize your own safety.\" \"It is a noble's duty to stand before the masses, endure the rigors of combat, and shed blood, if need be. Shirking that responsibility in the name of self-preservation would only cause the blameless populace to suffer instead. I will fight, Wilhelm.\" \"...What a headstrong liege I serve. Of course, this is exactly why I have pledged my sword to you.\" Crusch held strong even as Wilhelm cautioned her. Seeing him stand straighter in approval at his master's reply, Ferris swiftly raised a hand. \"Yes! Yes! Me too! Your lovely Ferri will accompany you! Please let me come along!\" \"Ferris, go to the other shelters and treat whoever is in need. I am happy you are thinking of me, but even if it is for my sake, do not lose sight of which battlefield you should be attending to.\" \"Uuuuuuurgh...\" His request denied, Ferris desperately racked his brain for some way to protest. But unable to find any fault with Crusch's eminently reasonable argument, he soon gave in with a tearful face. \"Old Man Wil, take care of Lady Crusch. You absolutely have to keep her safe.\" \"Of course. I shall see it through, even if it means I will meet my end in this land.\" Wilhelm's reply was brimming with powerful, noble determination. In the end, with Crusch added to the mix, the core force tasked with retaking city hall numbered five people. Just as he was reviewing their roster, Subaru noticed Al sitting on the stairs. \"Can we depend on you for the coming fight? I've never seen you duke it out, but...\" \"Weeell, actually, about that... This pep rally is real inspiring and all, but...\" \"? What's up?\" Al scratched the back of his neck as he stood up. Then while pressing a palm against the scabbard of the falchion resting on the back of his hip, he turned his head and looked somewhat uncomfortable. \"Sorry about this, but I can't go to city hall. The situation's changed. I've gotta split off from you guys to go find Princess and link up with her.\" \"Huh?! The hell are you talking about at a time like this?!\" \"I said sorry, didn't I? I really am about all this.\" When Subaru was taken aback by his sudden declaration, Al gave a vague apology, but this wasn't something that could be settled with a quick apology. He wanted to know what in the world Al was thinking. \"For starters, weren't you the one who said you didn't need to worry about Priscilla?\" \"That was before I got all sorts of new data and had to revise everything. Besides, even if I'm there, I ain't no use in a boss fight at city hall. If I'm just gonna hold the crew back, I might as well not be there. Am I wrong?\" \"Y-you...\" When Al asserted his own powerlessness, Subaru couldn't do anything but gape. Al had been a full participant in the meeting up until that point, so he understood exactly what was at stake. If they didn't take back city hall and send Lust packing, the entire city would be in danger. There was no way he didn't understand that. \" Sir Al, you will not reconsider?\" Setting Subaru's bewilderment aside for the moment, Julius took the opportunity to pose an additional question toward Al. Turning to address The Finest of Knights, Al simply said, \"Yeah,\" and nodded without enthusiasm. \"Sorry, I won't be changing my mind... Unlike you guys, I haven't been able to hook back up with my master.\" \"It is only natural for a vassal to think of his liege. I shall not criticize you for that.\" \"That's appreciated. I'm glad you understand.\" Al's reply to Julius's elegant words somehow came off as cold. It was just that he seemed guilty for going against everyone's decision and opting to act on his own. Then he looked at Subaru once more. \"This isn't exactly what I was talking about, but you're in the same position, right, Bro? I think I've gotta prioritize a woman who's important to me over going to city hall.\" *** \"That said, I'm pretty sure there's a limit to what you can do with that leg anyhow.\" Al's assertion made Subaru's face crumple as if he'd sustained a painful blow. In a sense, Al's position was totally reasonable. Whatever spin Subaru might put on it, Emilia's safety was not assured whatsoever. It was completely possible that she was in peril that very moment. And with his leg so badly injured, Subaru had few sane choices to pick from.  In response to Al's words, there wasn't much Subaru could do. \"Aaarghhhhhhh...!\" \"W-wait Subawu?! What are you doing?!\" Enduring the excruciating pain in his right leg, Subaru somehow managed to rise to his feet. Seeing Subaru exert his grievously hurt leg so terribly, his physician, Ferris, hastily rushed over and slapped him on the head. \"Owww, that hurts.\" \"Of course it hurts! I told you, you have to rest, so why do you keep being so reckless?! Do you have a problem with Ferri's diagnosis? Because it wouldn't be strange if your leg fell right off!\" \"I, uh, wanted to prove my resolve, or something like that. Ferris, you of all people should understand how I feel.\" \"Uuugh...\" Caught by Subaru's intense black eyes from up close, Ferris pouted and struggled to form a response. This was Subaru's reply, both to Al's words and to his companions who were heading toward a place of death. If his choices had decreased due to his leg wound, he would simply have to push through on grit and guts alone. Al had cited his lack of power as a reason not to participate. That undoubtedly applied to Subaru as well. But Subaru had the heart of a trickster. If he could at least support the others with that, then  \" There's meaning in pushing myself. This is what I can do for Emilia's sake.\" \"...Are you saying even if you lose your leg, you'll have no regrets?\" \"Of course I'd have regrets. But they'd only get worse if I back down here and now.\" \"Sigh... If you're going to go this far, you might as well have kept acting cool right up until the very end.\" Sighing in exasperation, Ferris reached a hand toward Subaru, who was breathing hard as he endured the pain. Then he stroked the thick bandage over his patient's right leg. \"I'll use my special trick, then.\" \"What's that? Er...wait a  Ow, that hurts! That hurts a lot! Wait, ow, ow, ow! It really...doesn't...hurt?\" Gradually, his leg was enveloped in the faint light and heat coming from Ferris's hand. Bit by bit, the stabbing pain was drawn out, and soon, it felt better than ever. \"Hey, are you serious...?! If you had such convenient magic all along, don't be stingy and just use it sooner! Yes, yes, yes! I can move! I can...\" With the pain completely gone, Subaru emphatically stomped on the floor several times. After that, he slapped his leg where the wound had been. When he did so, he felt something wet on his palm. He saw that it had become deep red. His right leg's wound had split open and was bleeding with a fair bit of force. \"Whoa, whoa, whoa, it's not healed?!\" \"I never said I healed it. I only asked if you'd regret losing the leg. All I did was remove your sense of pain. If you try hard enough, you should even be able to run around.\" Subaru was stunned by how much he was bleeding as Ferris tied a fresh bandage over the wound. Just like he had explained, his leg didn't hurt at all. It was painfully obvious that this rather unnatural state did mean he could push it to some extent. \"Any strain you put on your leg will absolutely have serious effects, so try to be careful!\" \"...Got it. This is a huge help. I owe you.\" \"...There's absolutely no way Subawu is going to listen to what Ferri says, is there?\" As Subaru checked the condition of his leg and nodded, Ferris puffed up his cheeks and turned away in a huff. Subaru would have loved to protest and say, That's not true, but he had no idea what he'd resort to until the choice was upon him. He had learned not to make promises he couldn't keep. \"All right, I'm adding myself to the team that's mounting an attack on city hall. Just letting you know in advance, there's no use trying to stop me. It's true that I can't exactly contribute a ton in raw power, but even I have stuff I can do...\" \"What do ya mean, 'try to stop ya'? A guy like you is worth a hundred men. We're dependin' on ya.\" \"I can do things like... Wait, what?\" Expecting a hail of objections, Subaru was ready to justify his presence, but Ricardo accepted his proposal without any hesitation. Noticing that Subaru was surprised by his reply, he elaborated and said, \"Bro, I saw how hard ya worked, both during our rumble with the White Whale and when we fought Sloth. It ain't just Julius and Wilhelm who rate ya highly.\" *** Ricardo's unexpected appraisal left Subaru struggling to find words. When he looked around the room, seeking answers, he saw Julius shrugging and Wilhelm nodding deeply. It seemed that neither had any objections. On top of that, Crusch was faintly smiling as well. \"Needless to say, I would be glad to have your support. By all means, Master Subaru, join us.\" \"You serious? This seems a little weird, but...\" Subaru was totally confused, unaccustomed to being counted as someone who could contribute in battle without question. \"Geez, you gonna be that reckless here...?\" When that string of exchanges brought a grumble spilling out of Al, Subaru turned toward him. \"I get what you're saying, but"}, {"text": "I still think this is the best call. I do feel sorry, though.\" \"No need to say sorry to me. You should just do what you want, Bro. I'll be doing the same  Ah, I will give ya one piece of advice, though.\" \"Advice?\" When Al abruptly raised a finger and said something unexpected, Subaru cocked his head. Then in a voice that sounded totally emotionless, he said one thing. \" If Gluttony shows up, don't say your real names.\" A shudder ran up Subaru's spine. That word of caution had come with no warning, and simply hearing it was enough to claw at his heart. Eyes wide, Subaru stared straight at Al. Glancing at his dumbfounded face, Al shrugged nonchalantly. \"Hope the two of us meet again safe and sound, Bro.\" He left him with those carefree words. 3  The Water Gate City of Pristella had gone so quiet that the events of that morning felt like a mirage. As Subaru walked along the paving stone\u00e2\u20ac\u201clined streets, a slight glance to the side would have been all it took to get a perfect view of the peacefully crystal clear waterway, belying the crisis currently gripping the city. Looking at the serenely flowing water might have seemed like it could wash away the vortex of chaos swirling inside his chest, but that would be a lie. The melancholy that he felt could not be relieved with such simple means. \"Priscilla and her people always leave a mess behind... Man, did he lay down a real doozy before he left, though.\" Subaru was grumbling about the explosive parting message he had gotten right as they were on the verge of departing from the Muse Company. His surprise at hearing Al bring up Gluttony was no small thing in and of itself, but that wasn't the only piece of information the cryptic man had offered up. Afterward, Al had added one more thing. \"...So it's possible that all the Archbishops are in Pristella right now, huh?\" Now that he thought about it, that was more than plausible. At present, three Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins had already been confirmed to be inside the city. Plus, they knew the Witch Cult had taken over the four control towers on top of seizing city hall. Given that five places had been captured, if each was under the control of one of the leaders of the Witch Cult, then Wrath, Greed, Lust, Gluttony, and Pride were all in attendance. \" You are too deep in thought, Subaru. You should calm down a little.\" \"Argh...\" While brooding over the possibilities, someone abruptly tapped his shoulder. It was only then that Subaru noticed he'd forgotten to even breathe. When he glanced over, he saw Julius was right beside him, staring with an anxious look on his face. Subaru recoiled immediately. That overreaction made Julius snort with a \"Hmph,\" before continuing to speak. \"From the looks of it, you have regained your senses.\" \"Yeah, I'm actually pretty grateful for that... I really did wade in a little too deep.\" \"Little wonder. To be blunt, you have too much hanging over you. There is taking back city hall and securing Lady Emilia's safety. And then there is the potential presence of your fated foe, Gluttony.\" *** \"Were I in your position, I would have my doubts whether I could remain as calm as you are. On that score, your efforts are more than sufficient. You should take pride in them.\" \"What's with you...? Don't creep me out like...\" Subaru furrowed his brows, feeling a chill after receiving that overly considerate compliment. He understood that Julius meant him no ill will, but how his friendly demeanor made him feel was a separate matter. Still, thanks to Julius's thoughtfulness, Subaru regained enough composure to properly examine his surroundings.  At the moment, with Subaru included, the six members of the group tasked with retaking city hall were walking through the city. Garfiel and Ricardo, both boasting keen senses of smell, led the group from the front. Crusch and Wilhelm followed behind the pair, and Subaru and Julius brought up the rear. They walked in formation, on guard against attacks the Witch Cult might launch, but fortunately, there was no sign of any enemy presence so far, let alone an assault. Instead, what came into sharper relief were the various things smoldering deep inside each of the members of the assault team. In Subaru's case, the injury to his leg, his fraught escape with Beatrice, and, more than anything else, not knowing whether Emilia was safe ate at him. The added flicker of Gluttony's presence left his mind teetering on the edge. Much like him, the other members of the party harbored various issues in their own minds. Garfiel and Ricardo were concerned for Mimi's well-being; Wilhelm's wound, which was left by his departed wife, had deep implications; and Crusch was struck by the possibility that Gluttony, to whom she, too, was tied by destiny, might be somewhere in the city. Before heading out, Subaru had sworn to the sleeping Beatrice that he'd come back with good news, but his worries did not abate in the slightest. \"On that point, you're pretty much the only one here with a calm and collected mind, aren't you?\" \"Considering my concern for Mimi and the others' well-being, I would hardly claim to be calm. I am, however, striving to be as calm as I can manage.\" \"And I'm thankful for that... Hey, you think we can win?\" Gently, Subaru averted his eyes and posed the question in a quiet voice so that none but Julius could hear. He detected Julius's breath catching ever so slightly. \"...It is rather unusual for you to ask me, in particular.\" \"I think I'm being stupid, too... I'd rather have our strongest guy here and not have to worry like this, though.\" \"...In this sort of situation where the innocent could be hurt, it is inconceivable that Reinhard would not move. The very fact that he has not yet revealed himself should be taken as an indication that some kind of commensurate problem has befallen him. This includes the likelihood that he is engaged with Witch Cultists somewhere else.\" Even though Subaru hadn't named anyone in particular, Julius listed off all the possibilities he could think of. As a matter of fact, Subaru had already experienced a lap where Reinhard had engaged the Witch Cult in combat. But this time, the man hadn't been seen ever since the Witch Cult had attacked in earnest. Naturally, this conspicuous absence and the question of exactly whom he and Felt had sauntered off to meet were major points of concern. \"Gahhh, how long am I just gonna grope around in the dark? If he ain't here, he ain't here. Worrying's not gonna make worries go away, and it's not about whether we can win; it's that we will win. Time to get my head in the game...!\" Continuously stressing about every concern that came along would summon dark clouds over any warrior. Subaru slapped his cheeks with both hands, brushing aside his welling feelings of frailty as he let out a strong and sharp breath of air. Glancing at the sight, Julius narrowed his eyes a bit without a word. Thinking the reaction odd, Subaru tried to press the issue when  \" Smells of blood. A lot of it, too.\" Still on point, Ricardo scouted ahead with his nose. Garfiel nodded in silence. Right then, the report from their top two trackers confirmed that they were getting close to the tall building visible on the other side of the street city hall. It was here where Subaru and the others halted for a moment to make their final preparations. *** Garfiel equipped his shields on both arms, and Ricardo adjusted the way he carried his large hatchet. And with a look resembling a quiet sea breeze in Wilhelm's eyes, those three projected a sense of incredible tension. To Garfiel and Ricardo, the opponents waiting for them in the square ahead were targets for vengeance, and as for Wilhelm...exactly what this impending encounter would mean to him was something Subaru just had to know. \"I had my flower buds survey the area, but it seems there is no sign of troops lying in ambush. According to Mr. Kiritaka, the only entrance into city hall is from the front  There is no option save challenging them head-on.\" Julius had used a number of his six contracted greater spirits to check the surrounding area; he was enveloped by pale lights as they gave him their reports. Subaru was simply grateful for the news that there was no ambush lying in wait for them. \"Can't you get the spirits to take a look inside the building, too? If we could find out where the enemy is and how they've set up, this'd be a lot easier.\" \"Unfortunately, I am not inclined to force the ladies to go that far. There is no guarantee that the enemy has not learned from Sloth's defeat and taken anti-spirit measures.\" \"Yeah, nothing good'll come from them getting nailed and depleting your fighting strength, huh?\" Julius's power was directly connected to the number of greater spirits he had and the number of options they put at his disposal. Plus, Subaru wanted to avoid the risk of them probing too deep for recon and alerting the enemy to their imminent attack. Above all else, the longer it took them to act, the greater the danger posed to the hostages in city hall. \"Let's go, just like we planned it. The exact details are gonna depend on the enemy's composition and positioning, but basically, we'll stack several people to fight each one. Relying on numbers, we'll focus 'em down one at a time and then take back city hall. But \" \"If we believe we are at a disadvantage, we must instantly make the decision to retreat...correct?\" When Subaru spoke, taking the reins of the group as if by nature, Crusch turned a serious look toward him. Replying to her with a firm \"That's right,\" Subaru surveyed the faces of everyone present. In his companions, he saw tension, wariness, and, more than anything else, the will to fight. He nodded and gave the signal. \" Let's go!\" On his call, Subaru and the others broke into a run toward city hall as one. Rounding a corner, they rushed into the square that sat in front of city hall. Swift as ever, Garfiel ran at the head of the pack, and when the square came in sight, he narrowed his green eyes and shouted: \"The square's full of guard corpses! Don't let it shake ya or slow ya down...\" The instant they charged into the square, the scent of blood that Ricardo had mentioned slipped into Subaru's nostrils. And filling his vision was a mountain of corpses, just as Garfiel had spoken of or not. \" Eh?\" Garfiel had just yelled for them to not stop moving. And yet the instant he set his eyes on that sight, Subaru couldn't help but slow down, dropping the speed of his sprint a notch. But it wasn't just Subaru. The other five were no exception. That was how completely the sight that greeted them in the square exceeded their expectations. *** According to Garfiel, the square was filled with the numerous corpses of the guards who had fallen in an attempt to take back city hall. And it was true that the current condition of the square seemed to also point to that ghastly truth. There was a dense odor of spilled blood, and the paving stones were dyed red to the point that it evoked the expression a sea of blood. However, there was not even a single corpse lying around. In their stead were bizarre creatures. They were pink-colored masses of flesh. As far as descriptions went, Subaru felt that this was the most fitting. Their pink-colored surfaces were glossy, warped, and irregular"}, {"text": "in form, like mud dumplings made by little children. They were large enough that Subaru couldn't comfortably put both arms around one, and there were at least twenty of them. The flesh piles of unknown origin formed a sporadic line. The reception put everyone's footsteps out of kilter  \" It's them!!\" Immediately after, Garfiel, running first among them, looked overhead and howled. With the shock over the flesh creatures yet to recede, everyone forced their gazes upward. Two figures were leaping straight down at them from city hall's upper level, jumping right toward them with a slash of the swords they wielded. \"! Here I go!!\" As their enemies sailed down before them, Crusch valiantly stepped forward and held her longsword at the ready. Then she unleashed invisible blades this was her skill One Blow, One Hundred Felled. Slicing the air at an angle, this was Crusch's lethal sword technique that took full advantage of her blessing of wind reading. The slicing attack was carried on the air, extending the reach of her sword strikes by tens of yards and providing her with an ultra-long-range option. This slicing attack had deeply wounded even the White Whale, and now it was hurtling forward. A moment later, it scored a direct hit on the two figures in midair. \"You got 'em?!\" \"No! They were able to defend! I did not land a hit!\" When Subaru's voice went shrill from excitement, Crusch shook her head with a bitter look on her face. The pair, a giant man and a slender woman, landed as they fended off the blades of wind with their respective weapons. Paving stones exploded under the huge man's feet; the woman stood quietly in the pool of blood without even disturbing the air around her. They appeared on the stage as polar opposites, with a pair of greatswords and an uninscribed longsword. The sight of the black outfits covering them from head to toe was emblematic of the horrid fashion sense displayed by adherents of the Witch Cult. The moment after Subaru took this all in, the two enemy figures leaned forward ever so slightly and launched their counterattacks. However, before those two varieties of wicked blades could reach him  \"Even if they have fended off Lady Crusch's sword blows, there is no escaping the rainbow's yoke!\"  three different, dazzling colors circled around the Witch Cultists' heads, summoning a cylindrically shaped aurora to seal the enemy's movements. Of the six greater spirits serving Julius, three acted in unison to catch the cultists. The cylinder of light must have had incredible restraining power, for the Witch Cultists went down on their knees from incredible pressure upon them. It was then that Garfiel, Wilhelm, and Ricardo launched savage, ferocious attacks. *** Blunt and edged, each of the respective blows was an attack able to inflict a mortal wound. Ricardo aimed for the big man's head with his huge hatchet, while Garfiel's fist and Wilhelm's sword aimed at the woman, all of them entering lethal range  *** The kneeling woman spun around the longsword in her hand, sweeping at Garfiel's and Wilhelm's feet. Instantly, the two leaped to evade her sword, but the woman turned her body to move perfectly parallel to the sword's arc, spreading one of her long legs to snag Garfiel around his neck and forcing him to pull her out of the effective range of the magic spell. \"The hell?!\" With the rainbow-colored force field throwing off his movements, Garfiel was stooped over as the woman broke the bridge of his nose with her knee. She then grabbed hold of Garfiel's arm as he recoiled, using its shield to easily deflect Wilhelm's flurry of sword attacks. The unbelievable technique left Garfiel raising a painful cry, whereas Wilhelm let out a groan. The price of that stagnation was a spinning kick that dug into the aged swordsman's abdomen, with the blow causing Wilhelm to bend forward; after a half spin around his stooped body, the woman launched a backward spinning kick that laid him out on the ground. *** At the same time, the sound of an eruption exploded between Ricardo and the giant. The large hatchet swinging down at the crouching man was blocked by two greatswords crossed over his head. The screech of steel creaking against steel rang out, at which point Ricardo punched down several times with his unoccupied fist. The blunt blows hammered the great hatchet from behind, bringing the dull cuts ever closer to the huge man's head. But finding himself this pressed, the giant promptly reacted by unleashing a new pair of arms from the inside of his black robe. Now using four arms to block his blows, the bizarre creature made Ricardo's face twist up, bringing a savage expression to his face. \"I've heard of your kind before, member of the many-armed tribe! Four arms ain't nothin'!\" Though his enemy tried to block him, Ricardo spurred himself onward, heedlessly banging on his great hatchet. If his opponent had four arms, he'd just have to wring out more power from his two. But Ricardo's intentions were betrayed when the giant unveiled yet another hidden trick. Two more arms appeared from under the black robe, along with two more greatswords. \"The hell...?!\" Four arms were devoted to defending with two greatswords, while two more arms and greatswords went on the attack. With one turn, the attacker and the defender had switched completely; Ricardo backed up a step as the tide turned against him. \" Garghhh!\" A seventh and an eighth arm came flying from the giant's back, punching, punching, and punching Ricardo's chin some more. The giant man caused blood to spill from Ricardo, sending him crashing into the far side of the square. *** The group supposedly had the initiative, but the attacks of all three of the close-range team were intercepted, with the woman sword fighter and the giant launching merciless follow-up attacks. \"As if I'm letting that happen!\" It was then that the slow-footed Subaru finally caught up and made his move. He launched his whip at a significant range, making a rending sound as it struck the paving stones with force. The snapping sound from the whip, which ripped through the air at close to the speed of sound, caused a moment's hesitation in the two cultists. \"Fusion magic Ul Gora!!\" Immediately after, Julius rattled off an incantation as his greater spirits returned to him, generating a crimson whirlwind in moments. The swirling wind was then engulfed in fire, the resulting flames forcing the Witch Cultists to leap away to safety. The heat wave of the enormous inferno made Subaru unwittingly gawk. \"The hell is that?! Were you always a hardcore spell caster?!\" \"No, this is nothing more than a bluff. It is too unrefined to be used as a proper attack. Accordingly...\" When Julius replied bitterly to Subaru's question, the scene before them proved his words true. Having fallen back in the face of the flaming whirlwind, the retreating woman lashed out once with her longsword and that was all it took to sever the wind's core, disturbing the spell's composition and causing the whirlwind to collapse, then vanish. The frighteningly keen sword sense that the woman sword fighter boasted combined with the giant's four massive swords and eight arms, making them seem like twin heralds of doom. Fear shot up Subaru's spine as he continued watching them pull off superhuman feats that were even more impressive than the ones he'd heard them do. \"Going all out at them and having nothing to show for it is a pretty major shock.\" When he glanced over, Garfiel and the others, who had escaped thanks to Julius's backup, were all wiping off blood and catching their breath. But the sense of despair at the fact that their melee fighters had been mostly overwhelmed was not something so easily brushed aside. However, it would have been wrong to assume they had run out of cards to play. \"We know they're pretty nuts in close combat, but they're seriously wide-open against long-range attacks.\" Julius's magic, Crusch's wind blades, and even Subaru's whip had been effective to varying degrees. It was possible that even if his whiplashes did hit, they would be easily shrugged off and ignored, but there was no mistaking that Julius and Crusch could launch attacks that might make the difference between victory or defeat. *** The repulsive piles of flesh dotting the surrounding area weighed on his mind, but he tore his attention away from those unearthly objects. The right thing to do was prioritize taking down the two in front of them  \"Everyone, let's attack again. We'll make Julius and Crusch our main attackers, and...\" \" Bwa-ha-ha-ha! You came, you came, you really came, didn't you?!\" *** Suddenly, the scene was interrupted by high-pitched, silly-sounding laughter that seemed completely out of place on the battlefield. This incredibly grating voice brought the giant and the woman to their knees on the spot. Simultaneously, as nigh-unendurable terror urged Subaru and the others to hold their breath, the laughing voice still trembled in derisive mirth. \"All it took was a few threats to reel such big fish in. How do you meatbags even live when you're this stupid, ugly, and shallow-minded? I wouldn't be able to deal with that! Bwa-ha-ha-ha!\" \" It can't be.\" Searching for the source of the voice, Subaru's gaze wandered when he noticed Crusch gasp right beside him. Her amber eyes had shot wide-open as she looked toward the roof of city hall. Realizing that the speaker, Lust, had to be over there, Subaru turned in the same direction. That was when he finally understood the true meaning behind the raspy echo of Crusch's dazed murmur. \"Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!! What's with that face?! Such a stupid face! Did you practice it just for me? If you did, I want to reward you!! How about my spit? Would my saliva make you overjoyed? That should literally be mouthwatering for meatbag scum like you!!\" The nonsensical laughter echoed as the speaker standing on the roof of city hall no, standing above it gazed down upon Subaru and the others from her vantage point with scorn. Then she flapped the large, malevolent black wings on her back once. \"Let me reintroduce myself! I'm the Witch Cult's Archbishop of Lust!!\" Her red eyes glimmered with cruel delight as she Lust laughed with renewed disdain. The single, black dragon claiming the title of the Archbishop of Lust gazed down at the surface, laughing scornfully. \"Capella Emerada Lugunica that's meee! Now die, you rotten sacks of meat!!\" 4  Circling in the sky high above city hall, the black dragon continued its mocking laughter. It had sharp, ferocious fangs, magnificent black wings that gathered the wind underneath to soar through the skies, plus a daunting face, and it was encased in a hide of rocklike scales this was well and truly what Subaru imagined a dragon would be. Some of its features resembled Patlash, the land dragon, but they were incomparable in the size of their frames and the raw power they possessed. If a land dragon was on par with a horse, then the black dragon overhead was best likened to an elephant. The sight of it spreading its wings and leisurely gliding around brought no words to mind save nightmare. \"Gawking at me with those passionate gazes means you're all turned on, aren't you? What, are you animals in heat the whole year? Are you enjoying this chance to ogle me? Oh noooo, whatever shall I do?!\" \"...Well, this dragon's so expressive that it gives me chills.\" Writhing in midair, Capella the black dragon twisting its reptilian form into vulgar shapes behaved in a way that left Subaru unable to conceal his disgust. How could he take anything else away from the mouthy dragon's first impression being this twisted? It was impossible not to feel repulsed by Capella, who came off as human in all the wrong ways. \"If it was doable, I would have liked to confront Lust in order.\""}, {"text": "Checking the heft of his knight's sword, Julius peered up at the dragon overhead as he commented in a quiet voice. Mentally agreeing with those words, Subaru saw the pair of sword fighters down on the surface apparently stiffening from awe at the appearance of their comrade, the winged dragon overhead. The two of them knelt as if in reverence for the winged dragon that was their master, even as they kept an eye on Subaru and the rest of the party without ever letting their guard down. They were such formidable foes by themselves that adding in the black dragon would put the group at an overwhelming disadvantage. However  \" When fighting a dragon, the important thing is to break its wings as soon as possible, bringing it crashing to the ground. If we permit it to fly in the sky as it pleases, it will rain dragon breath upon us unopposed. We must avoid this at all costs.\" With all of them unsettled by the appearance of the dragon, Wilhelm delivered that bold pronouncement at the center of their formation. His words, filled with such certainty, made Subaru unconsciously glance over toward the Sword Devil. \"From how you said that just now, it kinda sounds like you have experience fighting dragons.\" \"Once, nearly four decades ago, I crossed swords with Bargren the Black Dragon, who appeared in the south of the kingdom. Compared with that one, this dragon is far too small. Should we lop off her head once, she will surely perish.\" \"What, once wasn't enough for this Bargren guy?\" \"I lopped off all three of his heads.\" There is only one to lop off this time, implied his deeply reassuring words. The evocative tale of that legendary duel to the death bolstered Subaru's spirits as he adjusted the grip on his whip. Privately deciding that he needed to hear that heroic tale in detail later, he girded himself to rejoin the battle. The others' morale had recovered as well. Seeing that Subaru and company's hearts were unbroken, Capella went, \"Wuh?\" as if totally taken off guard. \"My, my, a die-hard bunch, aren't you? Normally, after being screwed around with so much, reinforcements arrive, and oh, look, it's the Archbishop!! The usual routine is for weaklings like you to try to run with your little tails between your legs. Or did I mistake you for the wrong kind of insect?\" \" Quit yappin' on and on! I don't care whether you're a big lizard or an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins! Everyone who gets in my way, I'm gonna smash 'em, send 'em flyin', and beat 'em down!\" When Capella made her bizarrely long tongue dance and form such wicked words, Garfiel turned his fist on her. Detecting such incredible hostility directed toward her, Capella went, \"Eh? Ehhhhhhh?\" and laughed. \"Bwa-ha! I think beaten dogs howling in the distance are the annoying ones. Ohh, that's right, you're not a beaten dog you're a beaten cat, was it? Meow, meow, meow, meow, your face went beet red when you cried over that kitty girl dying didn't you? Poor widdle kitty!\" *** Garfiel listened to nearly unendurable words of abuse as they clawed at the weakness in his heart. Seeing the painful look on the side of his face, Subaru took a step to stand in front of Garfiel. \"General...\" With his adorable little brother calling his name out, Subaru glared at Capella overhead without saying a word. Noticing his gaze, the black dragon narrowed its red eyes, clearly finding it unpleasant. \"Huh? What's with you? Even compared with the other meatbags, you have the most out-of-place scent, you know? How did you even get mixed in all this? Did you get loooost?\" \"Shut up. The more you talk, the more you're ruining my internal idea of dragons. Also, quit claiming the name of that princess. I feel sorry for her.\" \"Claiming? What in the world are you talking abou...?\" \"Also, you people are so sloppy, it's painful to watch! You big shots should be biding your time and coming out one by one! Who the hell just shows up all at once without paying any attention to the pacing?! Who do you think you are, trampling on people's daily lives looking like that? Are you pretending to be a god?!\" *** The caustic words that Subaru unleashed with the force of a volley of arrows made Capella open her eyes wide, taking her aback for a moment. Seeing a black dragon look dumbfounded was quite a spectacle in and of itself, but that hadn't been Subaru's aim. Of course, he couldn't deny that his tirade contained more than a fair bit of his real feelings, but the actual purpose was  \"That's enough stalling from me! Nail her, Julius!\" \"On occasion, I admire your brashness from the bottom of my heart.\" As Subaru clapped his hands together, Julius immediately replied from behind, gathering light upon the tip of his knight's sword. When all six greater spirits assembled within the blade, The Finest of Knights swung it like a musical conductor. \"What a petty little trick you're trying to use on...!\" \"Burn under the light of the rainbow!  Al Clauzeria!\" The tip of the sword, which he thrust out, emitted a rainbow-colored beam, unleashing a swirling aurora. The rainbow attack, which contained the combined might of six greater spirits, shot out in a straight line, aimed right at the black dragon circling directly overhead.  Instantly, the beam burst apart, enveloping the roof of city hall with an explosion of light. The sky was dyed in the surreal colors of the beautiful aurora a purifying ritual to purge all evil. The spell, which had been wielded so fiercely in the battle with Petelgeuse, now bared its fangs at Capella. \"Gaaaaaah!!\" Struck by a direct hit from the rainbow light, Capella raised a high-pitched shriek. *** With this strike serving as a signal for combat to resume, the kneeling pair of sword fighters kicked off the ground once more, quickly approaching Subaru and the others. A fluttering longsword and several whirling greatswords were intercepted by the white-haired Sword Devil and a ferocious golden-haired tiger. \"As if I'd let ya!!\" Making his battered will to fight burn even higher, Garfiel blocked the giant's greatswords with both shields. The vigorous impact rocked Garfiel back on his heels, but he did not retreat a single step. Beside him, the swordswoman was being pressured by Wilhelm's slashing sword attacks, forcing her backward. \"Do not assume you can retreat with ease! I must know for certain!\" The Sword Devil dealt out more attacks without mercy. However, the woman skillfully wielded her longsword, parrying each and every sword blow while evading pursuit with highly polished footwork. Her body almost seemed like it was designed for the sole purpose of wielding a sword. Wilhelm was exhibiting swordsmanship on the same level that he had brought out during the fight against the White Whale. The swordswoman engaging him displayed excellence in technique and creativity, along with a superhuman sense of balance. Lashing blades whistled through the air and scraped against the ground as they ran along their paths, parrying, redirecting, and defeating each other's blows. Not even sound could intrude as their incredible sword duel continued, each attack and defense so polished that it was no exaggeration to call it the pinnacle of the sword. \"Uraaaaa!!\" The other battlefield nearby was a cruder scene as half-beast and giant swordsman clashed head-on. Garfiel raised a battle cry as he and the giant slammed into each other with mighty blows. This was a contest of wild savagery that was incomparable with the elegant battle of sword masters. The fighting style of the sword-wielding giant could not be cleanly categorized as that of a trained swordsman. Against an opponent employing what was ultimately refined brutality, Garfiel counterattacked with his personal brand of brawling. Bones creaked, flesh ruptured, and souls cracked in the grand, chaotic battle of titanic blows, with the clashing of shield against greatsword reverberating like a symphony of percussion instruments. Their fight also sent sparks flying everywhere, distracting the eyes as well as the ears. Wilhelm's duel had gone eerily silent, while Garfiel's battlefield was a roaring thunderstorm. Lacking the ability to intrude upon any of those matches, Subaru was left alone in the three-sided battle. But there was no time to bemoan his lack of strength. Before he had a chance, a new move revealed itself upon the game board. And this was  \"Master Subaru, look out!!\" \"Pull back!!\" Right after two voices called out, Crusch came flying in from the side, tackling Subaru. Pinned under her soft body, he watched as Ricardo stepped forward. Ricardo opened his large maw and let a howl erupt from the space between his rows of sharp fangs  \"Wahaaah!!\" His howling voice made the very air quake as the resulting sound became a shock wave that was imbued with enough destructive force to reshape the world around them. It was a Howling Wave an attack similar to what Mimi and her little brothers had used to great effect during the battles against the White Whale and Petelgeuse. However, the frightening thing was that Ricardo could, on his own, unleash a blow on par with what had required the cooperation of all three siblings. *** Ricardo's target had been a plume of hungry black flames that was chewing through the aurora and descending onto the surface. The thick spouts of fire, which was blacker than darkness itself, collided head-on with the Howling Wave in midair. Instantly, the flames were snuffed out by the shock wave without offering any resistance, leaving the lingering embers to scatter here and there all over the field of battle. But if anything, this helped the black flames become even more effective. \"The hell's with this black fire...? It ain't goin' out?\" The flying black flames continued to blaze ceaselessly, whether they sat atop paving stones, waterways, or masses of flesh. The area that was covered by the wave of writhing flames expanded bit by bit, encroaching upon the world more and more as if they were alive. Like setting oil on the surface of water aflame, the black flames continued asserting their presence. *** The downpour of black flames had not touched Subaru or the others, erasing the aurora in their stead by disrupting its magical composition. Julius's wary gaze was still focused on the black dragon, which had spewed the black flames. Following his lead, the sight of the black dragon entered Subaru's vision as well  \" Eek! Oh no, oh no, staring at someone from such a harsh angle is turning you on, isn't it? Stooop, don't look! Stop violating me with your eyes! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! If I told you that it's forbidden to touch the dancing girls, are you going to say searing them with magic doesn't count as touching...? Bwa-ha-ha-ha!\" Unleashing another stream of vulgar words, Capella looked fine and well as she landed on top of the city-hall roof. But this was not in the sense of being unscathed  If anything, the effects of Julius's spell had been profound. As the black dragon rested her wings, both of those wings were still aflame from coming into contact with the aurora, with bone poking out from molten membrane in some places. The damage did not end there; her internal organs were boiling from the scorching heat deep in her seared abdomen, and the right half of the dragon's head had been sent flying, leaving that stupidly laughing tongue in tatters as one of her eyeballs hung freely. Half-alive and half-dead didn't even cover it. From this terrible spectacle, she was already on the brink of death. However, it was not this alarming sight that caused Subaru to swallow his breath, Julius and Ricardo to narrow their eyebrows, and Crusch to inadvertently raise a feminine-sounding yelp.  All those terrible wounds were regenerating at a speed that was outright disgusting. Blood vessels wriggled, flesh"}, {"text": "swelled up, bones broke audibly, torn tissues mended, and Capella's destroyed flesh repaired itself with swiftness that was a far cry from any norm. The speed of this healing ability made her cells seethe, vaporizing the blood coursing through them and causing it to rise as a ghoulish red vapor. \"So are you satisfied now that you've caused even my beautiful viscera to be exposed for everyone to see? You're all perverts with such uncontrollable lust that you'd do anything to see even your beloved meatbag's rectum, aren't you? Hey, hey, are you satisfied? Hey, are you totally sweaty because you had your fill?\" \"You're... What the hell...is that?\" \"Asking something you can figure out the answer to just by looking makes you a fool through and through, doesn't it? But I will reply because of the depths of my compassion. As you can see, I have conquered death! I am a complete being!!\" As Capella embraced herself with her healed wings, her grandiose words rocked Subaru. A complete being put another way, Capella was calling herself immortal. And after seeing half her head get blown away only to heal it at great speed without relinquishing life, there was a strong case to be made that she was telling the truth. One had bodies to spare, one dragged others to the grave, one was an invincible being, and one was an immortal monster  \"! Damned Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins!\" \"Ah, somehow, I feel like you lumped me in with those jerks just now. Could you please stop that? I mean, come on! People will start calling my character into question!\" When Subaru resentfully clicked his tongue, Capella rejected him with vivid displeasure. In that time, the black dragon, her body largely finished regenerating, slowly raised her heavy hips  \"Oops. Whoa there. Coming through.\" The next instant, the distant ring of the time tower's bell echoed across the city's sky. Hearing this, Capella's motions came to a full stop, and when the black dragon tilted her long head, she let out a languid \"Ahh \" as she gazed wistfully at the sky, watching evening approach. \"Seems like it's the appointed hour. Your clumsy faces really aren't bad, but a bigger stage awaits me, so excuse me while I go back inside!\" \"Huh?! W-wait!\" \"Why should I?! My beautiful voice needs to echo across the sky! How exactly will these fools stuck in the insect cage suffer? Stay tuned for the broadcast and find out! As for you, do entertain my minions and then die and rot as you see fit! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!\" Laughing loudly, Capella unilaterally declared that the time for talk was over and then turned around on the spot. The black dragon's huge body then promptly vanished into the roof. It seemed that Lust was genuinely intent on leaving the battlefield. Of course, the right thing was to think she was making Subaru and company lower their guard as part of some sort of ruse, but  \"If we let her go, there is no telling what she might finally inflict upon the hostages. We must make haste.\" \"If she broadcasts it live, morale will crumble, and panic will spread across the city like wildfire. Shit! No way forward except through, huh? Man, we have to chase her in there? In a situation like this?\" It was clearly a bad move, but they had no other cards to play. In the first place, they'd challenged the enemy at city hall because rescuing the hostages and stopping the broadcast was a top priority. If that meant dancing on the enemy's palm, they just had to grin and bear it. \"Guess that's settled, then. Leave the folks outside to me and those two. Julius, Bro, and Ms. Crusch will charge in.\" Ricardo announced his plan to Subaru and Crusch as they pondered. Subaru's eyes questioned whether he had any basis for his unwavering judgment. \"Ain't nothin' special. Just intuition, Bro! Intuition! ...The mountain of intuition I've built up from surviving a ton of battles!\" \"So we're just trusting your gut?! Maybe that's the best thing to rely on...!\" Concurring with Ricardo's judgment, Subaru leaped up on the spot. Then lending a hand to Crusch, who'd saved him from the black dragon's flames, he helped her to her feet. \"You really saved me back there, Crusch. Usually, it's the other way around.\" \"Let's keep it a secret from Ferris and Lady Emilia.\" His eyes went round at the unexpected reply, but he grasped that this turn of phrase was Crusch's way of lightening the mood. As he focused on the task before him, Subaru clenched his teeth then and called out to Garfiel, who was still caught in a battle of frenzied blows. \"Garfiel! We're going ahead to stop Lust! Once we're done here, we gotta go save Emilia! Don't lose!\" \"!! Go and get it done, General! Me, I'm seein' this through!!\" Slipping between the gaps of whipping greatswords, Garfiel sent sparks flying as he howled his reply. \"Wilhelm, I leave this place to you!\" \"Understood!\" Beside Subaru, Crusch shouted a few brief words of encouragement to the Sword Devil, who replied as he unleashed a flurry of countless silver flashes. Finally, Subaru and Crusch broke into a run, heading straight for city hall with Julius taking point. Of course, the two warriors whom Lust had entrusted with guarding the place tried to move to bar their way, but  \"Line up like that, and you're basically just food for me!!!\" Ricardo leaped toward them and used his powerful shout to blow both sword fighters away as they attempted to impede Subaru and the others' advance. The giant and the swordswoman used their own evasive techniques to avoid taking any damage from the howling wave. But the partners of the dances that the enigmatic pair had pulled out from prematurely did not let them escape without a fight. \"Do not be so cold. I am right here, devoted to you every step of the way!\" \"Don't go showin' your ass in the middle of a fight! I'll tear your tail fur out and give you a real thrashin'!!\" Sword against sword, and fist against slam furious blows met again and again, allowing no one in that square even a moment's respite. The two Witch Cultists were being hindered, and if they insisted on giving chase, Ricardo would stop them by force. With reliable allies covering their backs, Subaru and the others headed straight for city hall, reaching it by the shortest possible route. \"Subaru! I will carve you a path! I entrust Lady Crusch to you!\" On the verge of racing into the building, Julius raised his knight's sword high as the greater spirits gave off a dazzling radiance. Wondering what was happening, Subaru blinked furiously when, right before his eyes, Julius was enveloped in an explosive wind that materialized directly below him, his mantle fluttering as Julius sailed into the sky. \"Why did yo...?! Crusch, pardon me!\" Feeling the same wind buoying his own legs, Subaru forcefully picked up Crusch as she ran alongside. Lighter than I figured, he idly thought; a moment later, Subaru's legs peeled away from the ground as he shot into the air. \"Waaaaaaaaaah!!\" Picked up so suddenly and unsure how to deal with the abrupt weightlessness, Crusch raised a loud yell. The two kept on going, sailing over the wall surrounding city hall and finally flying all the way to the roof. \"Crusch, hang on tight!\" Shouting, Subaru supported Crusch with one hand as he drew his whip out with the other. Holding her breath, Crusch clung to Subaru for dear life as he used his whip and instantly wrapped it around the roof's railing. Taking advantage of this foothold, Subaru and Crusch traced a large, semicircular arc toward city hall's roof. The instant they landed, Subaru spread his legs wide as he fell to the floor. \"Guhohhhh!!\" Feeling a numbness that was impossible to ignore run through his legs, Subaru heard an improper sound coming from his right leg. Having so swiftly betrayed Ferris's admonition telling him not to push it, Subaru released Crusch from his arm. \"...Crusch, are you all right?\" \"I I am fine. But, Master Subaru, your leg...\" \"It's all right don't worry about it. It doesn't hurt. Also, if you mention this to Ferris, he might kill me, so, uh...\" Genuinely fearful of such a future, Subaru gingerly turned his eyes toward the roof. What he saw was not Capella, who'd been burned by the rainbow, but only a roof that had been wrecked by the black dragon's movements. The only thing on the roof itself was a single door leading to the building's interior. According to Kiritaka, the metia was located on the building's uppermost floor. Having moved Subaru and Crusch here and taken the shortest route to pursue Capella, Julius brushed back his mantle and looked at the pair. Flipping off the handsome knight with his middle finger, Subaru tried to race to the door leading inside when  \" Ah-ha-ha. Settle down right there, ladies and gentlemen.\" Loud laughter stopped Subaru in his tracks. Suddenly, the metal door was kicked apart from the inside, blown off its hinges. A new person came on the scene with the sound of bare feet, stepping upon the door, which had fallen so dramatically. ***  At a glance, their newest opponent seemed like a young boy. One thought so because he was small in stature with a youthful face, and the voice they heard sounded like it had yet to crack from puberty. But one glance at the boy's eyes was enough to realize that such sentiments were deeply mistaken. No proper human being would have such warped eyes that seemed like all the vices of the world were fermenting within them. \"We're so happy. We're so glad. We're so delighted. We're so overjoyed. Happy thoughts help us feel happy! Drink! Gorge!! The longer we have to wait, the emptier our belly becomes! And the more we savor the very first bite!\" His scorched-brown hair was tied up in a braid, and his small physique was wrapped in a long robe, with long hems, cuffs, and sleeves that hung about. There was a sadistic smile plastered onto his youthful face, and his smile showed that he had teeth like a shark's. All these characteristics matched the identity of someone Subaru had heard about before. \"Hmm? Why do you look so annoyed, mister? Could it be that you have some kind of grudge against one of us guys? We're tryin' and tryin' to remember, but we're really bad at faces. Really, we're no good at remembering at all...\" Enduring Subaru's withering gaze, the boy adopted a cruel smile that was reminiscent of a cat toying with a mouse. This attitude grated on Subaru's nerves as he exhaled, striving to remain calm. \"Hey, you shitty brat. If you just walked in here because you have no sense of direction, now's the time to surrender. That's pretty stupid, but it's forgivable. Still...\" \"We are the Witch Cult's Archbishop of \" Subaru did everything he could to remain calm. To try and keep a cool head. He tried and tried and tried. \" Gluttony, Roy Alphard!\" Attempting to maintain his calm any further was impossible. \"Gluttonyyy!!!\" The instant the boy openly declared himself as Gluttony, Subaru unleashed the fastest and mightiest whip blow of his life. The tip of the whip tore through the air, mercilessly scoring the face of his greatest foe. A direct hit should have peeled the skin back and rent the flesh, leaving a scar so severe that anyone who saw it wouldn't dare look at it twice, and this blow  \" Well, lots of people hold a grudge against us because of our feeding.\" Catching the tip of the whip with his teeth, Gluttony spoke those words without a single ounce of shame. 5 Subaru's merciless blow, literally the greatest blow he had ever mustered in his life, had been stopped"}, {"text": "cold without much fanfare. Still biting the tip of the whip, Gluttony the one who had presented himself as Roy Alphard waved his hands in the air as if appealing to the audience. Faced with this foe, Subaru could feel his thoughts boiling. This Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins was the key to awakening the still-sleeping Rem. \"Your luck's run out!\" \"You shall not escape! Prepare yourself!\" Standing at Subaru's side as he shouted, Crusch unleashed her One Blow, One Hundred Felled skill at Alphard of Gluttony. The raging blade of wind sliced through the still air of the rooftop, allowing the resulting violent gales to engulf the air in its wake. This scattered shock waves in all directions, and of course, the slicing attack bore down mercilessly upon Alphard  \"Ha-ha-ha, that's really something! As a funny parlor trick, that is.\" *** Alphard went low, dropping onto all fours to evade the invisible blade of wind. He proceeded to bend and fold his short limbs, licking his chops as he turned to fully face Crusch. \"From the feel of that move of yours, your flavor might be right up our alley!\" The instant after he spoke the words, Alphard shot up like a bullet, exhibiting enough explosive force to smash through the roof. Unhinging his yawning jaws, the sight of his bare, sharp fangs made Subaru think of a feral, starving beast. But the level of danger that this boy posed was incomparable with any mere animal. This was one part of the nightmarish chaos that had befallen the city. In contrast to Alphard, Crusch put her hips into her sword attacks, unleashing a thrust that was too fast to be followed by eye. Her target was the enemy's face, aiming to mercilessly impale the brain behind it  \"Good form! But! Not enough polish!! As you are now, you're barely gonna be an appetizer to us!\" As he howled, Roy Alphard rotated his arms disturbingly, as if he didn't need to bother with his joints. Instantly, a fierce scratching sound tore through the blue sky, and Crusch's arm was immediately thrown back. This was thanks to the concealed weapons known as tiger claws, which Alphard had equipped on the fingertips of both hands. \"As if I'll let you!\" A moment before Alphard could claw out Crusch's beautiful face, Subaru wrapped his whip around her slender hips. \"Eep!\" cried Crusch as Subaru yanked her over to safety, pulling her right out of the range of the claws. But dismayed at having his prey snatched from him, Alphard altered his route with a single bound  \"Good, nice, great, wonderful! Did you think you could escape?! If anything, we'll get you and your pal over there, too! Drink!! Gorge!!\" Carrying Crusch, Subaru fell back, with Alphard drooling in hot pursuit. The chase made Subaru twist up his face. \"I didn't think...my role is...\" \" To always play the decoy. Even now, you are incredibly effective!\" \"Whaaa?!\" By wholeheartedly pursuing Subaru, who looked like an easy target, Alphard had left himself wide-open in turn Julius, now in midair, had waited for that moment to pound his rainbow-sword blow home. Instantly twisting his body, Alphard attempted to evade the glimmering sword flash. However, the brilliant arc of The Finest's sword strike homed in on his foe and drew fresh blood from Gluttony, who rolled onto the floor. \"Gaaah! Now that's a surprise! Er...\" \"Then I shall provide you with further surprise. Blossom, my lovely flower buds!\" When Alphard slapped the floor and leaped to his feet, Julius pursued him with a merciless follow-up attack. The six greater spirits swirling above the knight's head glimmered like a rainbow as they swept across the roof in a beautiful display. \"Don't push yourself too much, spirit mage!!\" \"Formally, I am a Spirit Knight. I have heard rumors that you are a gourmet, but will you grant my lovely buds a warm reception?\" \"Oh, I'll give 'em a real passionate welcome! I'll rip 'em apart like the annoying pests they are!!\" As the approaching aurora seared his vision, Alphard brimmed with slavish appetite. To seal off his enemy's avenues of escape, Julius pursued Gluttony with seemingly endless sword strikes from every angle. Subaru would have liked to support him without a moment's delay, but Alphard's almost-feral movements, which had him darting all over the roof, prevented Julius from landing a clean hit. He had to do something with Gluttony with Alphard right there  \" Remember your objective, Moppet Mage!\" Just then, a voice's shout reached the rooftop, calling out with a completely inappropriate moniker. *** In accordance with Al's warning, Julius had concealed Subaru's true name while communicating with just his yellow eyes whenever he could. As the knight continued with his rainbow swordplay, Subaru didn't need him to spell everything out to understand his intent.  Julius was saying to let him deal with Gluttony while Subaru went to stop the slaughter and broadcast. \"Hey, hey, hey, hey, you sure about runnin'? Pal, you have a grudge against us, don't ya? Destined foes always, like, taste the richest. The ultimate in deep delights? To eat, gnaw, eat, lick, nibble, eat, bite, tear, crush, gorge! Drink!! Let me do all that, okay?!\" Leaping around, Gluttony hurled insults, trying to draw hesitance out of Subaru. In fact, Gluttony had. To Subaru, defeating Gluttony was the singular goal he had pursued for over a year. He'd dreamed of this day so many times that he'd stopped counting. Defeating him would save a girl. Subaru would be able to see her again. He'd come this far believing that. To just let that chance slip through his fingers  \" Master Subaru.\" Subaru's melancholy was shattered when Crusch looked up from his own arms and called out to him. From up close, he could see a powerful, powerful conviction and an ever-so-slight sway of regret.  It was none other than Crusch who had as powerful a link to Gluttony as he. To her someone who had her memories stolen by Gluttony, someone who was forced to go forward groping through a world that was blank when it shouldn't be the foe before them was the key to getting her memories and her old self back. Even knowing that, she had chosen to fulfill her duty over helping herself. They were badly lacking both time and the strength to soundly defeat their greatest enemy. Subaru and Crusch's standpoints were the same. That was exactly why Subaru was the only one able to fully appreciate how noble her decision was. He was hesitant. He was reluctant. He'd probably regret this. But   Sorry, Rem. Please wait just a little longer. \" Damn it all! Fine, I get it! Hey, Juli! Don't you dare lose on me!\" \"That is my line. Make sure to fulfill your duty as the substitute knight of the Valkyrie!\" \"Let us entrust this to Master 'Juli' and go, Master 'Moppet Mage'!\" Scratching his head, Subaru set his rueful thoughts aside and took Crusch's hand. Then relying upon the boundary lines generated by the aurora, they escaped Gluttony's attack range. Their destination was the door leading inside or not. They would have to veer toward the rooftop's bent railing. Vaulting it in one stride, Subaru supported Crusch as he took one last look at the battle unfolding behind them. \" Go!!\" However, noticing his gaze, Julius wouldn't permit him to waste time worrying about him until everything was settled. Internally clicking his tongue at that annoying attitude, Subaru swore to complain to his face later. Then grabbing Crusch by her slender hips, he launched himself into the air once more  \" Crusch, plan B!\" \"Pl-please do not let go!\" Ferris'll kill me if he hears about this, Subaru mused as he crouched, holding on to Crusch tightly and then leaping down from the roof of the city-hall building in one go. Naturally, gravity pulled on them, and soon, they were plummeting headfirst toward the square. Halfway through the fall, the whip, which had been anchored to the railing above, reached its limit and brought them to a stop, leaving Subaru bearing the weight of two people on his shoulders. \" Nghhh!\" Enduring the pain of his creaking bones with sheer willpower alone, Subaru and Crusch traced a large curve through the air as they swung toward the wall. Then with both feet extended toward the glass window in their path, Subaru slammed into it and broke right through. \"Raaaah!!\" \"Eeeep!\" Glass fragments flew all over the place as Subaru and Crusch rolled into the room they'd aimed for. Pushing hard on the floor with one hand, Subaru let up a second cry as he released Crusch from his grasp. Instantly settling down, the pair looked around, confirming that this place was indeed their objective. This was the room on the topmost floor of city hall, in which the metia for broadcasts was placed. The assault team had worked out beforehand that they would fly to the uppermost floor. Of the various methods Subaru had devised, he'd ended up using the most dramatic, but with the exception of what happened to his leg, the operation had mostly gone off without a hitch. Subaru pictured Ferris's indignant face in his mind as he glanced toward the back of the room, for the enormous presence of the device set into the wall stole his thoughts. Even in this city, this was the most precious and important thing  \" So this is the metia?\" It was the most peculiar metia of all the ones that Subaru had seen to date. The device he spotted was designed for expanding and enhancing the user's voice, increasing the range of its reach. Relying only upon magic crystals for its power source, this was a \"machine\" shaped like a pipe organ. And while Subaru was unwittingly letting the metia steal his attention  \" Master Subaru!!\" The sharp cry and the shock wave erupting from a savage collision of sword and claw behind him brought Subaru back to his senses. His body went rigid as he turned around and saw Crusch engaged in a mesmerizing sword dance, delivering a painful blow to the scales of the black dragon sitting at the back of the room. Howling in agony was the black dragon of Lust, the culprit of repeated acts of evil that targeted the residents of the city. \" Capella!\" Leaving Subaru behind as he shouted, the black dragon and the Valkyrie engaged in a ferocious back-and-forth that covered the entire room. The room contained not only a metia, but also a conference table, chairs, fixtures, and the like along the walls. Naturally, these furnishings were quickly blown away one after another by the powerful shock waves that marked the furious battle, leaving the items broken beyond recognition. But in this back-and-forth, Crusch's masterful attacks held the upper hand. In that room, the dragon was clearly at a disadvantage, unable to freely swing her large frame about. This was probably because the black dragon had never expected Subaru and Crusch to come flying through the window. The black dragon had probably been keeping watch over the room's proper entrance, its flame trained toward it the whole time. While she was busy guarding that side, Subaru and Crusch launched a surprise attack by coming in from the roof this was their plan B. \"Yaaaaah!\" Freed from her fear of high places, Crusch raised a valiant battle cry as she drove her sword home again and again. Crusch's wind attacks exhibited their true might not in long-range combat, but up close. In an enclosed space with nowhere to run, the invisible blades mercilessly bit into the black dragon's hide. \" Orrrggghhh!!\" \"Look out! Get...down?\" Caught up in the moment, Subaru did his best to roll and flee when the dragon bellowed and breathed a stream of pitch-black flames. However, in the middle of his dramatic escape, Subaru realized something.  There was a bound, squirming girl wriggling under the bleeding black dragon's feet. *** Instantly, Subaru felt the urge to vomit as he realized Lust's"}, {"text": "lowly scheme, in which she cunningly used a hostage in the same way that Wrath had. In the end, the Archbishops of the Seven Deadly Sins resorted to similar means to make their opponents falter. He'd been defeated by the same ploy before, and as a result, Emilia had been whisked away from him. \"Uooooh!!\" With that fact lighting a fire in his heart, Subaru exhibited his greatest level of concentration as he slid directly under Capella's feet. Ducking under her head, he slipped between her legs, resolutely sliding over broken glass as he went straight to the girl. Picking up her trembling body, he also slammed his whip into the black dragon's back. It did no apparent damage, but it did certainly make him feel better. However, Crusch followed up with a sword slash that was not nearly so gentle. *** \"No quarter! Pay for the wicked deeds that are bringing calamity and disorder to the city!\" As the black dragon clutched her head in a show of fear, Crusch sliced her blade down at her from the front. Perhaps the Archbishop was just that brittle when forced onto the defensive, for Capella continued to endure a stream of attacks, seemingly helpless against the steel blade. Her wings were rent, her fangs were broken, and the scales of her long neck were shorn, making the dragon scream from the pain. Crusch raised a long, slender leg, delivering a powerful kick to the dragon's torso. The force must have been far greater than any kick Subaru could muster. The strength of that attack pushed the huge dragon backward, forcing it toward a still-intact window. Hers were not the actions of someone with a chance of victory. She was simply buckling under the weight of Crusch's strength. \" It ends here!\" *** Not lending her ears to Lust to the very end, Crusch slammed her blades of wind into the black dragon's torso and wings, sweeping across her neck and slamming her massive body into the wall again. Finally, the window gave way, and Lust was completely blown outside. Plummeting with the remains of the window, the black dragon instantly spread her wings, but one wing was broken at the root, and the other was ineffective due to countless lacerations. Her regeneration wasn't fast enough and so her fall was inevitable. A few seconds later, the sound of Lust slamming into the ground reached them. It was a heavy, wet splat, like meat being slammed against a wall, or a wet mop being dropped on the floor. \"I shall check and keep watch. Master Subaru, please see to that girl.\" \"R-right, gotcha.\" Crusch walked over to the window that the black dragon had fallen through, never lowering her guard. Feeling reassured as he watched her from behind, Subaru gently released the captive girl from her bonds. \"Auuugh...\" \"It's all right. Just now, that strong, beautiful lady over there taught the bad dragon a lesson. We can't really afford to take our time, so let me cut to the chase... Do you know what happened to...the other people?\" Subaru spoke to the girl, who still seemed disoriented by the sheer fear and bewilderment that naturally came with getting caught up in a battle between a warrior and a dragon. Kneeling to talk to her at eye level, Subaru posed his question as gently as possible. The young girl blinked several times, not responding right away. Then slowly, she seemed like she was gasping for air as she moved her lips several times. \"Th-the room over there... Everyone's in there.\" Her voice shaking, the girl pointed to a door on the other side of the room that was still marred with the fresh signs of combat. Setting his eyes upon that door, Subaru somehow refrained from putting to his lips the question that immediately rose in the back of his mind whether the captured people were dead or alive. But asking the girl such a thing was far too cruel, and far too thoughtless. But seeing as how there was no sign of activity or life of any kind after the massive battle that had just occurred, he was not very hopeful. *** Patting the still-worried girl on the head, Subaru slowly turned toward the other room. His limbs grew heavy and cold. Subaru keenly felt the sheen of sweat forming on his back. He wanted to believe that this being a broadcast room, no sound was leaking out simply because of soundproofing. \"Master Subaru?\" \"It's all right. I'll check in a sec... What about Lust?\" \"...There is no problem over here, either. For whatever reason, there is no sign of her moving from where she fell.\" Crusch replied as she warily kept an eye on Lust below. Hearing this, Subaru took a deep breath and stood before the door. Then he reached his hand out to the knob. It was possible there were still Witch Cultists lurking behind this door as well. Despite that consideration, Subaru had no better option than to simply check. However, for some reason, he was convinced that there was no need for such concern. And as a matter of fact, he wasn't wrong. There were no Witch Cultists standing guard inside the room.  After all, the room didn't need guarding. *** Gazes. They were gazes. Gazes, gazes, gazes, gazes. g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?g?a?z?e?s?.  As Subaru screamed, he saw countless, wordless gazes.  No, it was nothing more than Subaru's impression that they were looking at him. Subaru had no way to know if they actually observed the world around them. He could not comprehend such a thing. All he could do was scream. This was what being at a loss for words truly meant. His mind had frozen over, unable to assemble even a single thought. However, he did know one thing.  Now he knew the true nature of the ear-grating background noise he'd heard during Lust's threatening broadcast. \"...What...is this?\" When an incoherent voice finally managed to trickle out, that noise filled the room all at once. What greeted Subaru was endless buzzing that brought feelings of fear, delight, rejection, and many countless others. Within that dimly lit room, a vast quantity of multifaceted eyes glowed red as they wriggled, moving to and fro as they stared at Subaru, who stood perfectly still. These were...flies. They were, without a shadow of a doubt, flies.  The room was jammed full of...a huge number of human-size flies. \"!! Master Subar... Ah.\" \"?! Crusch?!\" Subaru, his brain bleached white by the revolting sight, turned back when he heard a sudden scream. Even as the buzzing of the flies' wings pervaded his ear in response to the scream, Subaru looked and saw what happened.  He saw Crusch crumple to the floor, and the wretched smile coming over the girl, who was kicking her. The girl stroked her short, blond hair with her palm, her red eyes gleaming and glimmering as she stared at Subaru. \"Bwa-ha-ha-ha! Really, how can you be such suckers? Did you really think you were getting one up on me? Me?! That's not even worth a laugh! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!\" As Crusch lay prostrate in a pool of her own blood, the girl stomped on her, cackling in a high-pitched voice a voice that Subaru only realized then was familiar to him. There was no doubt. \"It's me, your dear Capella! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!!\" Sticking her tongue out, Capella winked and posed for effect, laughing with utter disdain at Subaru for his impudence. 6 Behind him was the giant insect cage, packed with flies. A pool of the black dragon's blood, which had splattered inside the room, spread farther. Standing amid the gruesome spectacles she herself had brought about and trampling all over Crusch was the small girl no, the Archbishop of Lust. A fang-like tooth poked out of Capella Emerada Lugunica's mouth as she continued to laugh. \"Wha-what the hell is this...?!\" \"It's pointless for meatbags like you to even think about it! Ain't the best thing just accepting the facts in front of your own eyes? A beautiful girl trembles and quakes before you, but behold! She is actually an Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins!\" Subaru was unable to hide his inner turmoil as Capella danced before him, sticking her tongue out in a vulgar fashion. Crusch had fallen at Capella's feet, and her eyes had rolled back. Her convulsions were a dangerous sign of her current condition. No noticeable external wounds caught his eye, and he didn't know exactly what had happened to her. But those were grave symptoms. If he didn't get her out of here immediately, it would soon be too late. \"Your heads aren't much for thinking to begin with, are they? In this situation, why would there be a little morsel of meat just sitting around here at city hall? How you can even live with that stupid, moronic Ahh, a girl's in trouble I have to save her mindset is beyond me!\" \"Sh-shut it. There's all kinds of things I wanna ask you right now...but first, get your feet off her.\" \"Huh? Aren't you so glad to see my bare feet that you're breaking out in a sweat? Or do you have an obsession with the slab of meat currently savoring the soles of my feet? I do have such an erotic body, after all. You just can't get enough of me, can you? Bwa-ha-ha-ha!\" \"!! She's not someone a person like you should be stepping on!!\" Capella stepped on Crusch's chest, grinding her heel in. With her acts of casual violence and mocking laughter driving him past the boiling point, Subaru's emotions raged as he rose off the ground, whip at the ready. \"Ohh?\" Raising a voice feigning ignorance, Capella opened her eyes wide as she watched Subaru move. Subaru swung his whip, aiming not at Capella, but at a piece of the rubble that was a by-product of Crusch's fight with the black dragon. Subaru deftly entwined his whip around a handful of stones, twisting his wrist to launch them at Capella's head. *** Not knowing his enemy's means of attack, close combat would be the height of idiocy. In the first place, Subaru lacked the power to directly engage an Archbishop in combat. Even though the blood was rushing to his head, he was still painfully aware of his own powerlessness. That was why Subaru needed to prioritize not the annihilation of his foe, but finding a way out of this situation.  He needed to recover Crusch, get away from this place, and link up with one of his comrades. The debris that he hurled had more than enough mass to cave in an unprotected human skull. Whether his impromptu projectile was blocked or evaded, he couldn't get Crusch up and moving while she was still firmly under that girl's feet. So his plan was to create an opening to collect Crusch and then  \"Come on, hit!\" \"Fine by meee.\" *** When Subaru shouted to rouse himself, Capella shot back with a calm and measured reply. Immediately after, he heard the sound of something hard breaking flesh and bone. Then blood began pouring from Capella's head as it snapped back. Struck on the defenseless side of her skull, the girl had her forehead torn open; her blond hair was stained a dark crimson. The girl's face, lovely and sweet, was cruelly crushed and deformed as he watched on. \" Uuugh.\" Having the left eye from that half-smashed face stare at him was a startling sight that unexpectedly seized Subaru's heart. He'd only meant to create an opening. He'd just done what some might have called the most foolish thing possible. \"Why do you all hate dancing in the palm of my lovely hand this much? I just adore how you're all such hopeless idiots. Bwa-ha-ha-ha!\" \" Grrraaahhh!\" The instant his thoughts froze, Capella's mocking laugh and a black whirlwind slammed into Subaru from the side and sent him flying. Struck on the entire right side of his body, as if he'd"}, {"text": "been slapped by the hand of a giant, Subaru skipped across the floor, taking a desk in the room with him as he tumbled away. Completely battered and beaten up, Subaru came to a stop when he bumped into the far wall. Coughing, he lifted his head, wondering what had happened. That was when he saw  \"Bwa-ha, what's with the face? Am I so beautiful that your voice won't come out?\" \"...What...are those?\" \"Mmm? Ah, you mean these. Well, well, well. I wonder what they look like to a meatbag like you?\" When Subaru forgot his pain, his voice barely coming out, Capella turned her back to him and amusedly waved her butt back and forth. There was something strange jutting out from the shapely behind she thrust out toward him, something that did not belong. This was a black, thick reptile's  No, it was a dragon's tail. A dragon's tail protruded from her backside. Having reached that conclusion, he belatedly realized that it must have been that tail that had hit him earlier. \"Don't tell me you're a...dragon taking human form?\" \"Yes, there it is. The irrational argument that you can't help spouting because of your low brain capacity and a total lack of critical thinking! I've been so kind to sprinkle these breadcrumb clues, but it turns out scum like you need a good kick to see the whole picture!\" Her mood souring from Subaru's apparently incorrect deduction, Capella swung at him with her huge tail once more. Instantly evading with a quick jump to the side, Subaru watched as she crashed her long tail into the floor and created cracks. Then he took a breath of  \"Letting your guard down at this point just makes all your other effort pointless!\" \" Gah!\" A huge fist slammed into Subaru's wide-open face without warning. When he rebounded off the floor from the force of the impact, he was then launched into the ceiling by the tail, which had been waiting for him. His body collided with the ceiling then, and as he helplessly spun and fell, countless bladelike feathers tore him up on the way down, scattering droplets of blood all over. \"Gngh, gaaaaah!!\" A painful cry escaped his throat as his back was slashed and gouged. When Subaru hit the floor again, he desperately tried to get his mind working again. He'd just been slugged, thrown, and cut up what did that mean? Subaru's face had been punched with the massive arm of a beast. He'd been tossed into the air by the black-dragon tail, and he'd been sliced open by sharp, bladelike bird feathers and all these had spawned from the body of the girl, who was looking down at Subaru as he wheezed in pain. \"Shouldn't you be able to figure out the answer by now?\" A huge bestial arm, a black dragon's tail, a monstrous bird's wings. Each could only be described as grotesque. As he set his eyes upon her form, no other words could come to mind. If something came to mind other than words, it was physiological disgust at encountering an unnatural being that shouldn't exist. She was a grotesque monster, a fiend, et cetera. Her true nature was  \"Transmutation, transformation...!\" \"Bwa-ha!\" For the first time, Subaru's muted reply drew a laugh of genuine satisfaction from Capella. \"I am the Archbishop of Lust, Capella Emerada Lugunica  I exist to monopolize all this world's love and admiration for myself. I, the one who deserves to be loved the most, can answer anyone's perverse desires. I am the ultimate manifestation of any aesthetic that exists. I can even transform into a beautiful girl according to your tastes. I am a devoted woman, after all! Bwa-ha-ha-ha!!\" As she said whatever she pleased, Capella freely altered her form in front of Subaru. She shifted from her grotesque form to that of a rustic-looking boy, then immediately lengthened her limbs and turned into a voluptuous femme fatale. In what seemed to be the blink of an eye, she changed again, becoming the apparent epitome of an unfortunate village girl, and an instant later, she took the form of a very young girl, an obscene smile rising to her cherubic face. \"See? So which me do you like the most?\" *** He was speechless. Words refused to form. All his heart comprehended was that this was the worst thing possible. Her morals were seemingly nonexistent. Though a plain and simple ability, Lust's Authority allowed her to violate and trample upon anyone's system of values. It specialized in putting herself on display. When he looked, the terrible wound that had been caused by the hurled debris was already closed, and there was no sign she was ever hurt. Perhaps she had covered up the scar with her incredible regenerative ability or used her transformation ability instead. Either way, he'd uncovered the trick behind the black dragon and the little girl, the two forms Capella had taken. At first, he'd suspected she had a Petelgeuse-like ability to possess others, but   If this was the case, the whole incident with the black dragon getting blown outside city hall through a window didn't make much sense. \"The fact that it did nothing except breathe fire should've been an obvious clue. Also, setting aside that I left the lizard in the exact spot you'd expect a trap to be, where'd all your doubts go when it didn't immediately move to respond to your intrusion and it didn't speak with my beaaaautiful voice?\" \"...Wait... Waitwaitwait, wait up a second.\" Reading Subaru's thoughts from the minute changes in his facial expression, Capella cackled with contempt. Her form became that of a graceful woman with long, swaying hair, then a gentleman with a crimson mustache and beard; even the tenor of her voice changed, leaving him questioning whom he was talking with. But the instant that misgiving spawned inside his chest, it led to an appropriate, logically consistent deduction that refused to vanish. If Capella's Authority of Lust allowed her to freely transmute and transform then what if this wasn't limited to her body alone and could be used on others as well? \"Even with your head and its limited blood flow, you should understand where that lizard and those flies really came from, right?\" Touching a hand to her mouth, Capella acted like a malevolent stage performer as she pressed Subaru for an answer. Aware that he was forcibly following her script, Subaru replied, his teeth shaking at their roots. This most awful, most terrible, most wretched of nightmares was  \" All of them are people in city hall who were transformed by you?\" \"Yes, that's correct. But you're too slow, so no prize! You're a slow, clumsy bag of meat, and whatever purpose you exist for, shockingly, is beyond even my understanding!\" \"You can't...understand?  That's what I want to say to you, goddamn it!!\" Capella had confessed to her cruel, monstrous actions with an expression that didn't have the barest pangs of conscience. In the dimly lit room, the multifaceted eyes glowed red and stared at Subaru as one. They flapped wings that they could not use to fly, desperately broadcasting that incessant sound. Probably because they were crying for help. \"I don't get it! Turning people into...into flies? What's the meaning of that?!\" \"Are you saying it's repulsive?\" \"It makes every hair on my body stand up! You...! You people are just...!\" \"Well, can't be helped if it makes you feel bad. You can't avoid feeling disgusted is that what you're saying?\" *** There were no longer words that could accurately describe what Subaru felt. Changing people into flies, toying with their lives it was far worse than merely killing them. It was the worst. It was the lowest. In a span of a few hours, Subaru had met four Archbishops whom he would never be able to coexist with even if he had a whole eternity. Sirius of Wrath toyed with other people's emotions and was a madwoman obsessed with her own self-centered love. Regulus of Greed forced his own values onto others and was a villain who placed himself above all others. Alphard of Gluttony was a blasphemer who stole the names and memories of people, trampling upon the proof of their very existence. And Capella of Lust was a monster who spat upon and blotted out the values revered by ordinary human beings. Each and every one was accursed, beyond saving, and stark raving mad. The gap between him and them absolutely could not be filled. That conclusion alone made Subaru's vision go red. However, Capella gazed upon Subaru's anguished expression of righteous indignation as she continued: \" Yes. You hate what you find repulsive, what makes you feel bad. So what of it?\" She smiled, as if there was nothing that could make her happier. *** He didn't understand what she was getting at. He didn't have the means to understand it to begin with. They might as well have been the words of an alien from outer space. He couldn't understand. Her values and her very way of life were just too different. \"When you saw all these stupidly huge flies, you felt an instinctive revulsion. You thought it was disgusting. Well, you're right. No one could love creatures like that. It'd be unnatural.\" She continued changing her form left and right, talking in a jumble of voices as she kept altering her speech alongside her rapidly shifting appearance. \"They're ugly and creepy to anyone's eyes. I changed those piece-of-trash meatbags into filthy insects that are too pitiful to even look at. You can't love any of them, either. Of course you can't.\" The monster before him had pitch-black eyes, eyes that saw nothing, eyes filled with bottomless darkness. \"People are creatures who can't live without loving someone. But since they're creatures who can't love something that's strange or revolting, then by process of elimination, they can't live without loving something they can love.\" Capella spoke with a passionate voice, almost as if she was speaking about how ordinary lovers fell in love. *** Subaru's mind had gone blank. He could not understand the confession of the monster tilting her head, acting like she had made the greatest discovery of the modern age. He wanted to get away that very moment. He didn't want to breathe the same air as her for a single second longer. He didn't want to be anywhere he could see her. He didn't want to feel her on his skin. He didn't want to hear her voice.  After all, this monster loved Subaru Natsuki. It wasn't just Subaru. The victim she turned into a black dragon, the great many people she turned into flies, Crusch, whom she was even now trampling underfoot, Julius fighting above them, Garfiel, Wilhelm, and Ricardo, and the giant and the woman they were fighting in the square, all the people in the city she loved...all of them. It was because she loved them that she did everything she could think of to make them love her. To this monster, that was simply how love worked. \"So you see, I am kind and deeply compassionate, and I am simply a woman drowning in the love of the many. I monopolize all the love and admiration in the world for myself, but that means I can't slack off in my efforts to be loved, you see. To be loved by you, I'll turn into whatever version of me best suits your tastes. To make you look at me, I'll rob you of all interest in anything else. I don't mind if you loved someone else to begin with. After all, this is the end for you. You'll come to love me. I'm giving it my all to make sure you do, see? My personal charm only goes up and up and up and up and up and up and up! The charm of the meatbags who aren't me only goes down and down and down and down and down"}, {"text": "and down and down!\" \"...Just...kill me now.\" \"Hah? Why? I'm all about making people love me. I wouldn't even dream of doing something so barbaric. Even if you're a completely useless sack of meat, you have value so long as your love is focused on me... My desire for recognition is just a tiiiny bit stronger than most people's. That's why I want even one more person to tell me one more word of affection and to love me for even one more second. Get it? That's all I'm asking.\" *** \"Got it.\" \"Ohh, you finally came around? Well then, put your love for me into words, dissolve in love right there, and turn into a mass of flesh to my liking...\" \"Die.\" Lacking the luxury of free thought, Subaru wished only for the death of the monster standing before him. This was his enemy. He didn't want or need any more information. He swung his whip, slamming it at his feet. Taken aback, the monster instantly backed away, finally freeing Crusch. Subaru crouched down and picked her up. How many times had he done that today? Her light body secure in his arms, he immediately leaped away. Realizing what had just happened, Capella's eyes filled with powerful, all-consuming hatred. \"So in the end, you're just a male piece of meat that's obsessed with female meat, huh? Don't even bother denying it. You can put whatever pretty spin on it you want. Ohh, you love a girl because she's pretty. Oh, you love a girl because she's cute. You love soft things that make you feel good, don't you? Don't get all high-and-mighty with me!!\" \"Whoooa?!\" Glaring at Subaru as he drew away, Capella let spittle fly as she reached out with both arms. One arm transformed and grew a serpent's head while the other formed a lion's head  The grotesque limbs stretched out to chase Subaru, weaving through the room to sink their fangs into him and tear him apart. His right leg was bleeding again. He didn't feel any pain, and at this point, he sincerely didn't care if it tore off in the process. Putting the entirety of his soul into protecting the warmth cradled within his arms, Subaru focused all his athletic ability into evading Capella's pursuit. \"Is that breeding mare really that important to you?! Then you'd better hang on to her tight in the next life, hugging her and never letting go! That body of a filthy temptress! Those eyes that invite sympathy! Those lips whispering sweet nothings! That nice-feeling fleshy flesh-flesh! You just can't get enough! That's why you're trying so hard, right?!\" \"! You ass, stop putting words in my mouth! That's not how it is between me and her!\" \"Oh, shut up! There's a heady, female scent coming from that female meat! That goes the same for the male scent coming from your male meat! Did it really never come to mind? Can you swear you haven't had even one indecent thought for just one second? If you have, even for a second, that means you're just a male slab of meat desperately searching for a female slab of meat! How am I wrong?! Just try telling me how I'm wrong!\" A serpent's fangs, a lion's maw, a dragon's tail, enormous bestial arms, and monstrous bird feathers were tearing the room apart. Letting out an anguished cry, Subaru searched for the remotest chance for victory in that raging storm of destruction. Even if he tried to escape, Capella was barring the room's entrance. Her form was in flux, swelling and contracting and constantly shifting between woman, girl, boy, and elder, creating an anomaly so ugly that it scarcely seemed real. \"You haven't stroked her hair? You haven't touched her lips? You haven't embraced her body? Haven't you adorned those tawdry, sweaty thoughts of yours with that pretty word love? Give me a break. You're just mistaking love for something else. You all just went off on your own, smugly dressing up carnal desires with such flowery words and phrases.\" There was a glower of madness in Capella's eyes as she stared at Subaru, transforming into her most repulsive form yet. Her hair was long and silver, glistening in the moonlight. Her eyes were violet, like encrusted gemstones. Her skin was white, reminiscent of powder snow. Her limbs were long and slender, her body amply curved. Some fine details were different, but what appeared there was  \"You just don't wanna be open about all your carnal passions out in public! Don't go dressing them up with words like love. How about it? How's this, how's this? This is how hard I'm working to be loved by you! Look at this! Can you still speak? Do you still have something to say? Tell me your promised, inevitable denial!\" Taking the form of a beautiful silver-haired girl, the monster howled as it made a face that she would never, ever have made. \" I love her because I was attracted to her heart! I was attracted to her nobility, her gentleness, her compassion, her open mind, her smiling face when she looks at the sky, her devoted way of life, her stubborn refusal to brook any unfairness, her weak side that she only shows to me, her determination to always do what she can and try her best, her voice that puts my heart at ease, her affectionate eyes, her gaze that tickles my heart, her lips that whisper love, her hands that warm mine, her touch that makes my heart beat faster, and her beautiful hair that flutters in the wind! I believe with all my heart that we were destined to be together. Because she was the only one who acknowledged me. Because she was the one who stayed by my side when things were hard. Because she was the one who taught me what was truly important. Because we've always, always been together. Because I want to live the rest of my life seeing and feeling the same things as her. Because we promised. Because I'll never forget that promise. Because she knows the version of me that I can't show to anyone else. Because she's the only one who knows the real me. Because she's the one whose eyes I'll never be able to fool. Because she knows how deep my loneliness goes. Because she's the one who lets me forget my bitter memories. Because she's the one who taught me how to love. Because you were the one wiping the tears I cried. Because you found me in the middle of everything else that was happening. Because you showed me things I'd never seen before. Because you're the only one who truly understands me. Because I can't live without you. Because you're everything to me. Because you make my chest run hot. Because when you're around, all the colors in the world seem brighter. Because without you, I can't feel happiness. Because I can't live without you anymore. Because in the middle of a life full of lies, this is the only feeling that's real.\" Rattling off the words like she was chanting a curse, the silver-haired monster's expression died a little with each additional phrase. But as she rambled on and on about all the reasons one might claim to love another, Capella raised her head, her beauty and charm and obscenity all twisted up in a strange, bizarre expression of adoration and hate as she shouted: \" Those are just flowery words every last one of them!!\" *** \"Don't think you can just use words that sound nice and leave out the rest! All this stuff about what's on the inside, blah blah, personality, blah blah, our natures are compatible, blah blah it's all just noise! External appearance, facial appearance the only thing that attracts your meat to other meat is visual stimulation! If love really tied two people together, then why don't you try dressing things up with those glimmering words, stare with those glimmering eyes, and talk about your glimmering future after your lover's been turned into a fly?! Can you love her? Of course you can't! It repulses you, doesn't it?! It's disturbing, isn't it?! You can't help but feel disgusted, right?! You're the one who said that to me, loud and clear!!\" Her crazed, feral, abusive words, her persecution complex, her jealousy, her hatred, and her profound delusions were how she kept herself from falling apart. Spraying her spittle as she ranted, Capella seemed to be losing even her tenuous grasp on her sanity, destroying more of the room as she wailed hysterically. The great serpent hissed, the lion roared, and soon, Subaru could no longer hear Capella's shouts. They became a storm of noise, and the room crumbled in multiple places. Caught up in the shock wave, Subaru couldn't figure out where to move or even where to look beyond the hovering cloud of dust particles. Were his feet still touching the ground? Was his half-torn leg still in one piece? The only thing he was sure of was the beating heart of the woman resting in his arms. That one certainty suffused his body with courage. But this valiant struggle suddenly came to a crashing halt. \"Meatbag, look at meeeee!\" \" Gaaah!!\" Plowing through the dust cloud, the lion head wildly charged at Subaru and sank its fangs into his leg. His right leg was already barely hanging on, so when the lion tore into it, the limb came off at the femur and flew into the air. Exceeding the effects of Ferris's special technique, the intense pain of losing the leg made his brain boil, and his vision went red. He hit the ground. Crusch spilled out of his arms. He flailed around, his blood pouring out in great, big surges. Putting pressure on the wound was out of the question. His leg was gone. His lifeblood flowed out like he was a waterfall. His near-shattered mind vaguely understood that all that red represented what little remained of Subaru Natsuki's life. \"Haaah, my head hurts. My oh my, it seems I lost myself in a moment of arousal. How embarrassing. Bwa-ha!\" Subaru was lying faceup, the whites of his eyes showing as he weakly convulsed. He'd managed to put his palm on the wound, but it was not up to the task of stanching the flow. But the force of the bleeding was gradually lessening. This was because all the blood in his body was draining quickly. \"Oh no somehow, you seem to be dying. Seeing a meatbag in such agony makes the pain in a person's heart too easy to understand. It's too bitter a sight for me, really.\" \"Ah, aah, ah \" \"The female meat will probably die, too, huh? How regrettable. Her body suits me just right, so there were all kinds of things I still wanted to try  Ahh, that's right \" He could see nothing. He understood nothing. Something...was breathing close by... Crouching down at Subaru's side, the smiling monster gently put a hand on his leg wound. \"Well, I suppose I should see just what kind of unsightly mass of meat I can turn you into, huh?\" Capella held her own wrist in the air, using her opposing hand to slice it at the wrist and causing it to bleed. The pitch-black ichor spilled out with incredible force, flowing toward the wound in Subaru's right leg. Blood mixed with blood. Subaru's red blood and Capella's black blood were coming together, dissolving into each other and causing a festering scent to rise. A moment later  \"?! Ooh, aaaghOOAO?!\" \"Bwa-ha-ha!! Does it hurt? Hey, tell me, does it hurt? My blood is so much more highborn than the likes of yours. After all, it's mixed with the blood of a dragon. It's gonna be really something if you lose to the curse in the blood. Between you and the female meat there, I wonder who's gonna hold on longer?\" Capella made an amused sound in her"}, {"text": "throat, but it was impossible for Subaru to reply. In a state close to death, a point where even pain was a vague concept, he'd received a sudden shock. The black blood that had been poured onto him wriggled on top of Subaru's wound, ever so slowly penetrating deeper into his body. He was being overwritten by something that was not him. This was different from pain or agony. It was fear that originated from another dimension entirely  Yes, fear was the only word that fit. It was scary. Scary. Terrifying. He didn't understand. He wasn't even being allowed to die. Crusch or him, the monster had said. If so, was she undergoing the same torment as him? Subaru was just so weak, unable to do...anything. Crusch, Beatrice, Rem, Emilia, everyone, everyone, everyone  \"Eh, iii, aaagh \" \"Bwa-ha-ha-ha!! Oh my, oh my, once again, you reject my love. That means you'll be reborn as an unsightly pathetic piece of meat, doesn't it? Now, it's finally time for me to...\" Gazing adoringly as Subaru fainted in agony, Capella slowly rose to her feet. Her form returned to that of the blond, red-eyed girl once more whereupon Capella suddenly looked back. There, where the glass window and the wall had been broken, a crisp breeze was blowing in  \"Heh, you're one tough customer, aren't you?\" *** Crawling up from ground level, to which it had fallen, the black dragon let out a roar upon sighting its hated foe and released a stream of black flames straight at Capella from its wide-open maw.  The next instant, the upper floor of city hall was engulfed in pitch-black flames. 7 Sensing someone calling her name, Emilia felt her consciousness flitting back to reality. When she slowly emerged from her slumber, the first thing she noticed was something smooth enveloping her. It was a pleasant sensation, as if she was embraced by an animal with warm, soft fur. Previously, this was a feeling she could savor on a daily basis, and it was something that made her hazy memories throb. \" Ah.\" The nostalgia left her eyelids damp and heavy. Wiping those teardrops away with the back of her hand, she cut her lingering attachments to that warmth and chose to wake up instead. Slowly, she opened her eyes, which were rimmed with long eyelashes, and took in the world around her with her large, round, violet eyes. She saw a tall ceiling, and a room with unfamiliar furnishings. It wasn't a place she had ever been to before. She was atop a bed, wrapped in blankets that felt high-class. \"Where...am I...?\" With a shake of her still somewhat fuzzy head, Emilia slowly sat up. She felt a bit languid, but she couldn't feel any pain or distress troubling her body. The familiar feeling of sluggishness was an aftereffect from using too much magic and abusing her Gate, which she was not yet used to exerting. Then having remembered that far, Emilia recalled exactly what had happened. \"That's...right. I was in the square, fighting the woman in the bandages...\" If she closed her eyes, she could almost see the madwoman, her entire body wrapped in bandages the one calling herself the Archbishop of Wrath. A shudder ran through Emilia as she remembered the hatred and the terrifying combat capability that had been directed her way. Emilia had held the advantage for a time during the fight, but the tables eventually turned, and she had been assailed by an overwhelming flame  \"I...fainted after that. But I'm still alive and well.\" There was no mistaking that she'd been on the losing end of that battle and had subsequently faced mortal peril. Surviving despite such dire straits meant that someone had to have saved her. Of course, Subaru's face was the first that came to mind. The leading candidate was surely Subaru. If anyone was going to come and save Emilia, she hoped from the bottom of her heart that it would be him. Though if she had lost out to Subaru after so much grandstanding, it'd be too mortifying to bear. \"Mmm, this isn't the time to be in the dumps. I'm so far behind already; I don't have time to stop and reflect. I'll think about it while I walk.\" Touching her hands to her own pale cheeks, Emilia roused herself and slipped off the bed. Given the bed and the blanket, someone had definitely been nursing her. She reminded herself to thank that person, find out what had happened since she was last awake, and figure out what had happened to Subaru and the  \"Uhhh, why am I naked?\" Just when she was about to boldly set off, Emilia realized that she didn't so much as have a shift dress. With her naked body fully exposed, Emilia tilted her head as she wrapped the blanket around herself like a cloak. She looked around the room, but nothing else wearable was there to be found. \"Mm, what'll I do? I believe it's considered unladylike to walk around like this, but...\" Bashfully reserved was a phrase that Puck had pounded into her during his time as her father figure. Now that Puck was gone, she had continued her studies with Annerose serving as her substitute mentor. According to Annerose's teachings, Emilia was clearly a failure of a student for wandering about in her current, nearly nude state. \"But I'm worried about everyone else right now, and it's an emergency situation, so she'd make an exception, right?\" She had to confirm as soon as possible whether things had been settled with the Archbishop of the Seven Deadly Sins. Citing those circumstances as her just cause, Emilia left the room with a single blanket over her. Exiting into the hallway, she confirmed that this was definitely a building she'd never seen before. It was just that the interior of the room she had woken up in clashed badly with everything else. A cold, antiseptic atmosphere seemed to permeate the corridor and the rest of the building. It was probably the room with the bed that was the only exception. Thinking this, she quickly accepted the mismatch between the atmospheres of the building and the room. This building was not for living in, but rather, it was supposed to be a place for work. The proof was in the faint, lively sound of water, and the mechanical sound of some kind of gears turning  \" Ahh, it seems that you have awakened. I am truly glad. I feel heartfelt relief knowing that you are safe.\" When that voice was suddenly called out to her, Emilia felt a twinge of surprise as she turned around. As she did, she spotted a lone young man, whom she had previously bumped into on the city street, now standing there in the corridor. While he smiled as he watched Emilia, she noted his white hair and his nearly all-white clothing. The young man still had a friendly smile on his face as he casually walked over to her. \"But I cannot commend you for walking out as soon as you awoke. You put a great deal of stress on your body in various ways. If something happened to you, it might be an issue later, would it not? I would sincerely like you to take proper care of yourself. I mean, that body is no longer yours alone.\" \"Errr, and you are?\" Emilia's eyes went round at the sheer force with which the young man spoke in such rapid succession. They were surely strangers, and yet the way he closed the distance to within a single pace of her felt a lot like how she would interact with Subaru. However, the decisive difference between him and Subaru was the warmth or lack of in their words. Subaru's consideration for others was one of his cowardly virtues, but the young man standing before Emilia possessed none of that whatsoever. Where his own words and actions were concerned, it was clear that he did not spare a single effort toward the flattery of others. Emilia had been getting such a strange impression of the young man since that single exchange. The young man gave a generous nod in response to her question, with Emilia's internal thoughts left aside. \"Ahh, that's right. Sorry, sorry. I was able to gaze upon your sleeping face, but this is the first time you are looking at me, yes? Ahh, strictly speaking, it is not the first time, but there is little point in speaking of that. Even if you and I share a relationship of future blessings, I cannot be careless about the proper order of events. I apologize without reserve. See, I am a person capable of such a thing.\" \"Er, uhh...\" The eloquent words that the young man used without pause left Emilia feeling like any reply she could muster would be rather awkward. This was partly due to her being overwhelmed by the firmness of his demeanor, but more than that, a growing suspicion that something was deeply wrong kept eating away at Emilia. It was pleading to Emilia from a distant corner of her mind.  She just couldn't shake the feeling that she knew this young man from somewhere. \"It is unfortunate that such an important event is taking place in such a dreary corridor. Yet surely, you will look back upon this as a special memory of ours as well. People are filled aplenty with small bits of everyday happiness. I think that will be especially true in my time with you. Don't you think so, Emilia?\" \"I...don't remember giving you my name... So who are you?\" \"Oh, I'm sorry. It is a bad habit of mine that I lose sight of everything around me when my feelings swell and crest. Even I think my own overly sensitive personality is lamentable when it gets all like this. This time, I was daydreaming too much while conversing with you, perhaps? Ahh, yes, my name.\" In a truly convoluted, roundabout manner, the young man's words finally arrived at the topic at hand. The unease that Emilia felt about him personally, and her odd, persistent foreboding that accompanied his strangely familiar presence both lit a fire within Emilia, leaving her unable to pull her eyes away from the young man's actions. Emilia instinctively understood that whether she lived or died was directly linked to the slightest move of his hand. The young man suddenly spread both arms wide, reverentially bowing to her. \"My name is Regulus Corneas. I work for a certain organization. However, that is not important where you are concerned. To you, there is but one thing you need to know about me. I am your precious husband, and you are my beloved seventy-ninth bride.\" \"...Eh?\" The young man, who introduced himself as Regulus, seemed enthralled as he spoke these words, but she did not understand their meaning. Emilia was perplexed as she furrowed her delicate brows. However, Regulus did not even notice her subconscious refusal, as he simply gazed at Emilia and the single layer of fabric wrapped around her body. \"That outfit is poison to the eyes. Wait, I will have fresh clothes brought to you. Rest at ease. Your dress will be changed by my wives, others in the same position as you. They are accustomed to dressing someone in bridal attire.\" \"Wait, what do you mean by that? No, more importantly, what do you mean by 'your bride'...?\" \"That's right, I forgot something very important! Oh, what was I thinking? That was a very close call.\" Regulus, who literally had ears yet did not hear, grasped Emilia by her shoulders. Emilia grimaced at the strength he put into his fingertips, but the young man did not pay her discomfort the slightest heed. All he did was bring their faces so close that their foreheads nearly touched as he peered into her violet eyes. \"I forgot a very, very important question. The wedding ceremony comes after. Emilia, this is very important, so"}, {"text": "I want you to answer me straight from your heart. It is very important for our future.\" *** The bizarre level of intensity made Emilia hold her breath as she maintained her silence. Regulus smiled, perhaps taking Emilia's silence as tacit consent. As he smiled, he asked, \"Emilia, are you a virgin? That is the only truly important thing, you see.\" *** His head was hot, and his mind was ablaze, but a chill coursed through his veins, and he felt like he was gradually freezing over. \" Rghaaa!\" He gritted his teeth and slammed his fists together ferociously, willing his sluggish blood to start moving again. Skillfully using the silver steel covering his arms, he shield-bashed his enemy's thick arm, the impact shattering the stone pavement below them. That attack contained every scrap of strength he could muster, and he could feel a powerful reverberation shooting through his shoulder, but there was no indication that it had been a decisive blow. If anything, victory seemed to be getting further and further away with every move he made. The enormous, black-robed inhuman figure before Garfiel was unmoved. Its eight arms were moving wildly, absorbing his attacks, deflecting them, and delivering their own destructive counters with a practiced precision optimized for killing. Garfiel's cheeks, chest, and legs were all battered, bleeding, or both. He desperately tried to hold his ground even as his thoughts threatened to scatter from the pain and impact of each blow. He knew his opponent's four swords were a complete offensive and defensive package they were the famed set called the Devil Cleavers, the legendary blades wielded by the ultimate god of war. And Garfiel's opponent was using those famed weapons like an extension of its body. No, not like an extension. For a warrior who had true mastery and enough experience, a weapon really could become a part of the body.  In which case, based on how this mysterious warrior was using the Devil Cleavers, then maybe  \" Gah?!\" A solid punch connected with Garfiel's jaw, taking advantage of an opening right as his thoughts had started to wander. \"Bh, gh...aaaa!\" His bones groaned, and his vision started going red. The punch had rattled his brain, draining the strength from his knees for an instant. But that brief moment of vulnerability was more than enough to be lethal in mortal combat. And the war god who had once claimed to be the strongest in the land would not miss that moment. Each following its own path, all four swords raced toward a different vital point. The head, the neck, the chest, the waist if any of these swings connected, Garfiel would die or, at the very least, be unable to keep fighting. And at the moment, he could do nothing to drive back the specter of death fast approaching. Gritting his teeth, he looked around his reddening world, searching for any way out. And as he desperately clung to life, a phantom came into view, as if amused by his impending doom. A woman in a black robe with a crimson smile was peering down at him in his unsightly state. \" Eyes up, numbskull!\" A roar rang out, followed closely by the sound of steel clashing and the dull thud of something biting into flesh. A broad, furry back appeared in front of Garfiel, shielding him after he failed to move in time. Ricardo had blocked the swords with his big hunting knife, using his torso to catch the one attack he'd failed to parry. \"Gh, gaaah! That hurt, ya son of a bitch!\" Coughing up blood, Ricardo pushed back with all his might, knocking away the swords. Taking advantage of the momentum, the war god leaped backward to gain some distance. Now that he had some breathing room, Garfiel shook his head and adjusted his stance as he stepped forward, lining up alongside the man who had protected him. \"My bad, tha \" \"This ain't the time for that! Are your eyes workin'?!\" Ricardo cut off his apology. \"It's do-or-die!\" \"Y-yeah, don't have to tell me twice!\" Hearing that, Garfiel tried to harden his resolve. \"We gotta go all out just to have a shot at winning...\" But even now, he was having trouble. His spirit was flagging like he was a drenched alley cat. Irritation, impatience, and a growing sense of self-loathing churned in his chest, almost as if they were trying to put an end to his miserable self. And his head was filled with a vortex of pointless thoughts, so maybe he really was trying to get himself killed. A powerful enemy was standing before him, one he couldn't afford to take his eyes off of, and yet a corner of his mind couldn't help but focus on the black-robed woman flitting in and out of view at the edge of his vision. Even though the city hall they needed to reclaim was right in front of him. Even though his comrades were up there waiting for them to come to the rescue. Even though every second longer he took meant another second of suffering for the girl he needed to help at all costs. \"Hoo-ooooooooohh!\" Recalling that bloody moment of regret sent his rage past the boiling point, and all the hair on his body stood on end. Goose bumps stood out for a moment before golden fur started appearing as he transformed into a beast. His body creaked as his bone structure changed and his small body grew larger. He would stifle all his unnecessary thoughts, all his self-hatred everything and become a tiger to obliterate the foe standing in his way. Transform, Garfiel Tinzel. Mow everything down. If you can do that  \" But will that really undo everything?\" All of a sudden, a bewitching woman's voice tickled his ears, penetrating the consciousness that had been on the verge of dissipating. It was a voice that shouldn't exist. And just when it stole away his focus  \"What?!\" There was a thunderous boom from above, and Ricardo was looking up, eyes wide. Seeing that, Garfiel looked up, too, his green eyes finding a scene that left him dumbfounded. Flames erupted out of the top floor of the building. An enormous explosion blew out the windows, spewing fire hot enough to melt glass. The source was a black dragon sticking halfway out of the building, its wings covered in blood as they flapped.  That black dragon had to be the loathsome Archbishop of Lust. \"General...!\" As Garfiel called out to the person who was supposed to be fighting the dragon, the strength he had put into his clenched fangs started slipping away. For a split second, the charred black corpse of his friend appeared in his mind, and his heart leaped into his throat. And because of that, he was slow to react to the violent change that came immediately afterward. *** Far in the distance, an ear-shattering roar erupted near the city's walls. The sound of something enormous groaning echoed throughout the city as a fearsome harbinger of what was to come. Something colossal was approaching the city center, drawing closer to city hall, preceded by a growing tremor running through the ground. When he felt the vibrations beneath him becoming more intense, it set off alarms in Garfiel's head. \"C'mon now, this ain't even funny......\" Beside him, Ricardo's face stiffened. Even someone as brave and fearless in combat as he grew hoarse when faced with something so implacable. It was only natural, though. Because the tremors they were feeling and the deafening boom they had heard were actually  \" Sir Garfiel! Sir Ricardo! Get to high ground!\" A sharp voice broke through the mental freeze that had held Garfiel. The warning came from the Sword Devil, the old man who had been trading blows nearby with the longsword-wielding cultist for the past two minutes. After crossing blades with his opponent one last time, Wilhelm quickly put some distance between them as he prepared to heed his own warning. But even leaping straight up, Wilhelm was unable to clear the gargantuan wave crashing toward them. \"Gh.\" Wilhelm was swallowed up by a wall of water taller than most of the surrounding buildings. After witnessing that, Garfiel was only a moment away from suffering the exact same fate. He dug in his heels on the stone pavement, readying himself for the shock  \" Bgh!\"  But his stance was easily broken by the intensity of the onrushing water. Hit by a force like the power of nature itself given form, Garfiel's body was completely engulfed and at the mercy of the pitch-black world he'd been thrust into. After what felt like an unbearably long time, his fingers caught on something, so he pulled with all his might, at last dragging his head out of the water. \"Ghah! Daaaamn it all! Where did...everybody go...?!\" Having grabbed the metal railing on a rooftop, Garfiel scanned his surroundings. The force of the churning water was ruthless, and everything around him had been consumed by the muddy torrent. Only a handful of particularly tall buildings were just peeking out of the water, and he was barely holding out against the powerful current. \"Boss man! Sword Devil...!\" He called out to the other two members of his party, who must have gotten caught up in the same disaster, and he was concerned about where their enemies might have gone off to but that thought was erased just moments later. As he clung there unable to move, he noticed something happening at the half-submerged city hall. The black dragon spread its wings and started flying away, leaving the upper floor still burning. The dragon was covered in wounds, and its claws dexterously held two people a green-haired woman and a black-haired boy. \"Gen \" Garfiel's eyes widened, and he started to call out, but water rushed into his mouth, and he couldn't breathe. His fingers slipped, and he could do nothing but watch as the two of them were taken away by the enemy  *** Filled with shame, Garfiel desperately fought to keep his eyes on the damned black dragon. And as he did, he saw the dragon's flight suddenly get disrupted as it let out a shrill cry. The reason was the fangs of a great serpent that bit into the black dragon's wing. The serpent had suddenly appeared and lashed out at the dragon, calling the dragon a coward and viciously tearing into its wings. An instant later, the boy was released from the dragon's claws as it shuddered violently. *** His eyes wide open, Garfiel could only watch as it happened. He could only watch as the boy was swallowed up by the roiling waters that were in the process of consuming the entire city. He had fallen beneath the surface unconscious and was undoubtedly being carried away by the current, unable to resist, going far away, to a place where Garfiel could not reach him. \"Wait...\" Stretching his hand out toward the silhouette that instantly vanished somewhere below, Garfiel was dragged away by another surge. He desperately kept his head above water, shouting as he was pulled farther and farther away. \"Aaaaah!\" Eventually, he slipped beneath the surface, still seeking Subaru Natsuki and cursing his own uselessness. Screaming without making a sound. CHAPTER 1 *** 1 \"Emilia, are you a virgin? This is crucial.\" For a split second, Emilia couldn't process what she was being asked. *** She was surprised by the suddenness of the question, but the situation being what it was, she struggled with how she should respond to such an odd confrontation. With only a single blanket to cover herself, Emilia took a deep breath. As she was forced to confront such an incomprehensible situation and try to understand what was going on, Emilia's instinct was to try to recall everything that had happened so far.  Following an invitation from Anastasia, a fellow royal-selection candidate, she had traveled to the Water Gate City of Pristella, one of the five great cities in the Kingdom"}, {"text": "of Lugunica. During her time there, she met with Crusch and Felt, two other candidates who had also received invitations from Anastasia, and they all enjoyed the welcoming, peaceful atmosphere. The next day, after a rather tense breakfast, she set off into town with Subaru and Beatrice, running into the Songstress Liliana...and then finding out that Subaru and Beatrice were facing off against one of the Witch Cult Archbishops by themselves. As soon as she learned this, Emilia quickly joined the fight. Their enigmatic foe may have been covered from head to toe in bandages, but she proved to be a powerful opponent, wielding flames and chains with equal skill. Emilia fought her hard, but they had been pushed to a point where defeat was looking inevitable when  What did happen after that? When Emilia came to, she was lying on an unknown bed in a room she did not recognize inside an unfamiliar building. And when she stepped outside the room to see what was going on, she found herself in the hallway face-to-face with a white-haired man dressed in an all-white suit. Standing before him, she was unable to move, even forgetting to breathe.  Who is he, where are we, and why am I here? Now, as Emilia caught her breath and started to think  \"Ah, my apologies. It seems I've surprised you. I must admit that was an error on my part.\" The white-haired man Regulus Corneas smiled and raised his hand. \"I am sorry for the sudden question. Truly, I apologize. You see, I'm the sort of man who can genuinely apologize when I believe I am in the wrong. There are utterly unbearable louts in this world who refuse to recognize their own faults and merely shift blame with an unending stream of excuses, but on a fundamental level, I stand apart from such lowly, inferior people. You agree, don't you?\" \"Ummm... Yes, it's important to be able to apologize from your heart, sure...\" \"Just so! That's it exactly. Being able to apologize is crucial. Thank goodness. People who can't even understand something as simple as that are far more common than you would think, but since we both share that understanding, I'm sure we will get along famously in our married life. That's a relief. There is no mistaking we were fated to be joined together.\" Regulus's eyes sparkled excitedly as he nodded to himself over and over, completely ignoring Emilia's apparent shock. After looking her up and down, he continued. \"You see, I'm not inquiring as to your chastity out of a vulgar curiosity. As I said, we are husband and wife, and spouses must of course be joined together out of a powerful bond of mutual love and understanding. In order to maintain a relationship like that, it is only natural that it is a requirement that both parties must entrust all of themselves to their partner. Which is why I would like to be sure.\" \"Sure of what...?\" \"Sure that you have not been touched by another man. But to be clear, I ask this with only love in my heart, so while it might cause you some small amount of discomfort, I really must insist. It's my duty both as your husband and as a man.\" Regulus's thoughts flowed out with great expressiveness and verbosity. Emilia felt something was off about Regulus himself as she was tossed about by the flood of words. *** She was overwhelmed by the vehemence of his insistence, but that was not all. His figure, his voice...something about him was stirring the depths of her memories. But she couldn't seem to figure out why, and it soon slipped away, before she could manage to figure it out. But she could say one thing for sure this man was incredibly focused on one certain word. \"So please allow me to ask again: Emilia, are you a virgin?\" \"Um, can you explain what that means? I'm sorry, that's not a word I'm very familiar with.\" Faced with the same question once again, Emilia averted her purple eyes apologetically. It was clearly something that held great meaning to Regulus, but she simply didn't understand what he was getting at. \"...What?\" Regulus's expression tensed when he heard that. Right as Emilia was starting to feel uneasy, his eyes suddenly widened. \" Marvelous. You truly are the manifestation of my ideal maiden!\" Regulus exclaimed, grabbing her hands as an animated smile crossed his face. Emilia's eyes widened in shock, but Regulus paid no heed to her response and celebrated like a child who had just gotten his hands on the toy he had been dreaming of for so long. He nodded to himself over and over, and his eyes gleamed with a feverish light as he stepped in closer. \"Yes, I knew it! I had always had some misgivings as to whether using virginity as a metric was really the best way to answer this question. But that's it exactly true purity lies in the heart. Physical virtue is only natural and expected! But what truly matters is being immaculate in spirit as well... As fulfilled as I am, you have still managed to reveal a new truth to me!\" \"Ah, um, that's nice, I think...?\" \"Indeed it is. And let me say, you pass with flying colors. You are perfectly suited to be my wife. And in the future, I won't have to do something as silly as inquiring into the virginity of my brides. Anyone impure enough to understand the very concept would only diminish the value of the station. A woman who has committed adultery in her heart is not fit to be my wife.\" Letting go of Emilia's hand, Regulus rapturously regaled her with the future he saw for them. She still couldn't quite grasp the true meaning of what he was saying. In fact, all of his talk about being husband and wife had come out of nowhere. In her mind, husband and wife described the loving relationship her father and mother shared, which seemed at odds with Regulus's idea of marriage. Maybe he was thinking of something else that merely sounded similar? \"Ah, how careless of me. I've said too much. I shouldn't leave you standing there in such a state for so long. Let's get you a change of clothes.\" Noticing Emilia's bewildered silence, Regulus clapped his hands. \"Come along, #184.\" A door opened on his command, and a doll-like figure joined the two of them in the hall. *** The beautiful woman in a white dress approached, elegantly trailing long blond hair. Her pure, unblemished white outfit must have been coordinated with Regulus, whose appearance radiated all white. Standing silently at Regulus's side, she politely curtsied as she looked at Emilia. There was no emotion in the woman's expression. Emilia's breath caught as she noticed the lifeless, doll-like eyes. \"Prepare a change of clothes for her for #79. Once she is ready, go help the others prepare for the ceremony. She will be joining all of you, so do try to get along and look after her.\" *** \"Mm-hmm. You've stopped smiling like I requested. Good girl. You are an excellent wife.\" Regulus smiled, satisfied by the woman's silence and lack of expression as she did nothing more than nod. He then stepped toward Emilia, who still had not grasped what was going on, and, as if it were nothing, he reached his hand out and caressed her silver hair without a hint of hesitation. Her body stiffened in response to a gesture that felt entirely different when a certain black-haired boy did it. \"Well then, I shall see you later. She will make you even more beautiful.\" \"Right...\" Emilia was filled with doubt and resistance, but at the same time, her instincts were telling her not to openly defy this man, that Regulus Corneas possessed great power. A horrifyingly vast amount of power. \"Good girl.\" Nodding at her short response, Regulus smiled and leisurely turned away. She watched him disappear down the hall, and when he was finally out of view, her shoulders gradually relaxed at last. Her body had instinctively tensed up, completely on guard against him without her ever realizing it. His mere presence felt just as menacing as the horde of great rabbits  \" This way.\" The woman's voice was beautiful, like a perfectly tuned harp. But there was no emotion in her voice, either. And something about that pained Emilia. \"Your clothes.\" \"Um, I really appreciate it, but I have a lot of questions. Like where is this, for starters? I was in the great plaza in Pristella, and then  Ah! Wait!\" Ignoring Emilia's questions, the woman had quickly started walking. \"Um, could you please listen? I really need to send a message to my friends. I'm sure they're all worried about me, and I'm worried about what happened to them, too...\" *** \"Excuse me, are you listening? Can you hear me? ...Arghhhh.\" The woman just kept walking forward, back straight, not lending an ear to Emilia. And as Emilia started to pout after all her questions were ignored, the woman finally led her to the room beside the one she had woken up in. It held all sorts of clothes and accessories, almost like the dressing room in a castle. But just like the place she had woken up in, something about this room made it feel different from the coldness that the rest of the building radiated. \"There are so many clothes, but...this wasn't originally what this room was for, was it?\" \"These were all brought here by our husband. Please get dressed, #79.\" \"...Is that number supposed to mean me? He Regulus called me that, too. Who are you?\" \"I am #184, one of his wives just like you.\" Closing the door, her back to it, the woman who called herself #184 responded. Her voice was as cold and emotionless as before, but Emilia was still a bit relieved to just be able to talk with her. \"Thank goodness you finally responded. Um, what should I call you again...?\" \"#184. Please be careful; he is picky about the numbers.\" Hearing that warning, Emilia placed her hand on her own chest. \"...That number thing is bothering me, too, but I assume it's safe to say that when he was talking about marriage and spouses, he meant me? If so, I don't recall ever agreeing to marry Regulus...\" Thinking back, she could not remember ever arranging anything of the sort. #184 narrowed her eyes ever so slightly. \"You may not have such intentions, but he most certainly does. And your will has no bearing on his desires.\" \"That's strange, though. Marriage is something two people who love each other do together, right? I don't even know him.\" This discussion about marriage didn't mesh at all with how Emilia understood the concept. And from what #184 was saying, Regulus sounded less like a good husband and more like... \" It's like he's one of the wicked kings I've read about.\" *** Emilia was still busy studying for the royal selection, and the names of many kings filled the pages of history, including some whose names were recorded for not particularly flattering reasons. Dictators, for example rulers who refused to listen to others and insisted on obstinately following their own course above all else. \"That's a perfect description of him.\" \"Huh?\" \"His bearing is undoubtedly that of a king... He is well deserving of the title 'the little king,'\" #184 murmured softly. Emilia could not catch what the woman had said, so she asked her to repeat it, but #184 tightly pursed her lips. \"......Your clothes.\" \"What? Wait...\" #184 was even more unyielding than before to cover up her momentary slip of the tongue. She stepped forward to remove the blanket Emilia was using to cover her body  \" Gh?!\" Without warning, a loud noise and violent tremor rocked the town. \"Watch out!\" Emilia caught #184, who had stumbled from the sudden jolt and blast. Emilia swung her head around"}, {"text": "and then leaped to the window of the changing room. Searching for the source of the noise, she saw something unbelievable. \"That's...the floodgate?!\" Her lips quivered, and her purple eyes opened wide as she watched a huge floodgate one of the massive devices that controlled the flow of water in all the city's waterways open with an ominous groan. With nothing to hold it back any longer, the water rushed into the city all at once. Pristella was laid out like a bowl, designed so that water would flow toward the lower levels to the center of the town. In the distance, the heart of the city was visible city hall. And that tall structure was already being swallowed up by water. \"That's...\" The roads were flooded as a rolling wave swept away people and goods alike. Emilia clutched the windowsill in shock, hearing the imagined pandemonium in the back of her mind. It was beyond anything she could imagine, and while she watched in shock, all the people were tossed about, desperately struggling to survive. What had happened? The city's residents and her fellow candidates who had also traveled here were they safe? And there was another who came to mind. \"Subaru...\" Her knight was somewhere out there, too. Was he safe? She closed her eyes, imaging his smile as she prayed for his safety. Praying, pleading, Emilia kept her eyes shut tight. 2 Voices were echoing far, far in the distance. *** Voices that he could not identify. Male, female, young, old? Were they coming from above him or below him? He couldn't say. It sounded like a battle cry. Then it was more like a grieving wail. A scream, a sob, an enraged bellow, a jagged lamentation. All these sounds rained down around him like a waterfall, crashed over him like a giant wave, swirled around him like an inescapable vortex. It was almost like someone he had finally met after a long, long time was opening up about everything they had held back for years. And, swallowed up by the unending deluge of voices, he lost track of where he even was. *** Hands, legs, head, bottom, chest, back it all blurred together. In that enormous swell of voices, his sense of self was gradually melting away, losing shape. He was becoming indistinct, fading and scattering until the countless voices were all that remained. The voices became dark and stagnant, intent on breaking down his identity, reducing and draining it. He was sinking into that darkness, unable to resist. But right when he was about to resign himself to merciful oblivion, he realized there was a thread bound inextricably around his core that rejected the stagnation around him. *** There was something writhing deep inside him, a thread that refused to stop fighting the black stagnation the two forces claimed ownership of his self, fighting, each trying to steal him away, to kill the other off. And then finally...finally  3 \" Imbecile. How long must you insist on imposing your clueless, carefree face on the world?\" \"Gh, aaaaaaaah!!!\" Subaru Natsuki awoke with a scream as he experienced the feeling of his face being gripped by a crimson flame. He jolted up at the intense heat enveloping his face, and the pain of it scorched his eyes. He groaned and flailed on the ground while cradling his face. His heart was pounding, and it felt like all the blood in his body was boiling from the heat  \"Wh-what what happened...?\" \"Ohh, what a pitiful creature. Such an ill-kept head to begin with, and now that it has been bleached out by all the water, apparently nothing remains on the inside. At this rate, you won't even be fit for your role as a jester.\" \"That outrageous arrogance and lack of consideration for others...\" Subaru wiped away the tears welling up as he turned toward the source of the caustic voice verbally lashing him. His blurry vision gradually cleared, and what appeared was a beautiful girl who seemed like a walking personification of the color red  \"So it is you, Priscilla.\" Priscilla sniffed haughtily, crossing her arms, almost like she was deliberately emphasizing her well-endowed chest. \"Who else would I be? As if another as beautiful as I could exist in this world. If your eyes fail to detect something that obvious, it would be best to spoon them out and at least save yourself the trouble of carrying around such useless appendages.\" \"There's no way that would be better! And I feel obligated to point out that when it comes to beautiful women, the other royal-selection candidates are all top-tier knockouts... Not that that matters anyway!\" Subaru had gotten sucked into Priscilla's pace and reflexively retorted before he got ahold of himself. He had been unconscious and had woken up to discover Priscilla was with him. His first thought was that he had died and restarted another loop at the park, which would've placed him just before the Archbishop of Wrath, Sirius, was scheduled to start her atrocity in the plaza by the time tower. Right as Subaru started to wonder why he had been returned to that point after dying... \"Where is this...?\" That guess went out the window as he realized he did not recognize his surroundings. There was none of the natural greenery that filled the park. He was in a narrow alley. And for some reason, it was muddy and filled with puddles. \"And it's not just the ground, either... I'm practically dripping here.\" Grabbing the sleeve of his tracksuit, Subaru was baffled by his waterlogged condition. His whole body was wet. As if he had cannonballed into a bath with all his clothes on. Had there been some torrential rainstorm while he was out? If not, then  \"Did I fall into the canal? Or was there some terrible flood...?\" \" Yes, sirree! That's exactly what happened! Your humblest Liliana was trembling so much in awe at it all that it's almost like I've invented a new dance! See!\" Subaru's fearful guess was affirmed by the surprise entry of a voice that came with musical accompaniment. The source of both suddenly appeared from behind Priscilla. Dark skin and an oddly aggressive manner of speech marked her as the city of water's peerless Songstress. \"Liliana! I'm glad you're safe... Turns out you were with Priscilla!\" \"I mean, you and Lady Emilia and the little lady all left me behind with Lady Priscilla in the park! And with the whole town gone topsy-turvy like this, I was so scared, I couldn't bear to move a single step away from the oh-so-reliable Lady Priscilla's side.\" She didn't hesitate at all to whine before latching on to Priscilla's waist. It was the sort of brazen behavior that normally would've earned her a one-way trip to the executioner's chop from Priscilla, but for some reason she was extraordinarily tolerant of Liliana because of her rare talent. Liliana was trembling like a fawn as Priscilla nodded and patted her head. \"As the diva said, soon after you left the park, a boorish rabble defiled the waters of the city. Exceedingly merciful as I might be, even I cannot forgive such an outrage. I was on my way to relieve them of their heads when I noticed a certain foolish commoner floating in the water.\" \"Ahh, I see. And this foolish commoner floating in the water... Did you perhaps mean me by that?\" Subaru asked, pointing to himself. Priscilla just sniffed as if to say, Who else could it be? Choosing to interpret that as an affirmative, Subaru felt his confusion grow. \"I was floating in the water...? Why? That doesn't make any sense...\" He thought back to the last thing he could remember: Subaru had been on the top floor of the city hall building. He had been defeated by a dreadful monster, the Archbishop of Lust. Capella had used Lust's Authority to freely transform herself into a beastly form, and unable to withstand her fierce barrage of attacks, Subaru's right leg had come free. After losing a lot of blood, he had been writhing in pain... \"But I've still got my leg. It's still connected. The bandage is coming undone, but... Ugh?!\" The wrap around his badly wounded leg had gotten filthy from being drenched in blood and fetid water. But as he removed it to check his leg, he shouted in disgust at what lay beneath. \"Wh-what happened?! Ugh?! Wh-wh-wh-what is that?!\" *** Drawn by Subaru's response, Liliana came closer out of curiosity and immediately turned pale. Beside her, Priscilla peered down, eyes filled with revulsion. All three of them were looking at Subaru's right leg, which should have been torn off during the fighting with Capella. But despite his remembering differently, it was still attached and covered by hideous black flesh. *** He felt no pain in his foot. Caught up in the shock of seeing the condition of his limb, he rolled up the leg of his pants, revealing the full extent of the black, wriggling, vein-like protrusions extending up from his foot. A cautious touch confirmed the leg had some give to it, similar to that of normal human flesh. Ignoring its appearance, he could even call it fully healed. \"To be clear, your limbs were all attached when we found you. That hideous leg has nothing to do with us. And judging from the look on your face, it's clear you weren't born this way.\" \"...Thanks for catching me up while I was dealing with the shock of finding this nasty stuff that someone embroidered on my leg without my permission... There's no way this is the result of healing magic, right?\" Nodding along to Priscilla's response, Subaru ruled out what seemed to be the most likely way it could have happened. As far as he knew, healing magic operated under the basic principle of increasing the natural recovery ability of a patient's body. It was not regeneration, so scars would be left after healing. In fact, there were plenty of those on Subaru's body already. But the dark mass on his leg was nothing like those scars. He could confidently say it was not the result of healing magic. The healing magic he knew was a gentler, warmer, miraculous power that saved not only bodies but even souls. The sort of thing that Ferris was proud of, that Beatrice had mastered as if it came naturally to her, that Garfiel had studied for the sake of his wish, that Rem had so earnestly offered freely. This black mark on his leg was a blasphemous desecration of that sort of miracle. \"Just to be sure, commoner, am I correct in assuming that your leg was not originally some sort of oddity that could reattach itself even after being violently removed?\" \"That sounds like you're asking just to ask, but yeah, my body doesn't work that way. I've had my leg torn off before, but I died... Almost died that time.\" \"You've had a body part torn off before?! What a life!\" When Liliana heard such an absurd answer to an absurd question, her excitement bubbled up. But when he thought back to what had happened before, at least during that first loop, there had been no sign of his body gluing itself back together. And there hadn't been any situation later in which he'd ever displayed any kind of hyper-regeneration, either. Priscilla nodded and simply said \"I see\" at his response. \"Don't raise your voice,\" she ordered curtly as she swung the fan in her hand with the flick of a wrist. Unable to follow the red fan's path, Subaru and Liliana peeled their eyes in an attempt to figure out what was going on, but her target became all too clear before long. \" Gh!\" There was a faint numbness, and then Subaru's leg was struck by a burning heat. The edge of her fan had grazed his leg, leaving a sharp gouge in his thigh. Subaru was hit by two different shocks: The"}, {"text": "first came from the realization of how skilled she must be to do something like that with a fan, and the second came from the realization that she was the kind of person who could slice open someone else's leg with zero hesitation. But both thoughts were erased by the even greater shock of what happened next. The cut on his leg was deep enough to reveal bone until the black flesh swallowed it up. Within seconds, it was as if it the wound had never been there at all. *** Subaru gingerly touched the spot with his finger, at a loss for words at the revolting miracle that had just taken place. The site of the wound was completely fine. The pain had disappeared, too. \"Ummmmmm, I could be wrong, but there might be something wrong with your leg...,\" Liliana commented nervously. \"It's weird how normal it feels. What is even going on with my body...?\" Subaru was shocked by the unnatural healing. Something is wrong with my leg. What the hell happened? \" Wait, is it because Capella dripped blood on my leg...?\" It had happened when his consciousness was fading from the pain and the loss of so much blood after he lost his right leg. It was not a clear enough memory for him to be absolutely sure, but he was fairly confident he remembered her cutting her own wrist and dripping the blood over his wound. Capella had said something about it while he was suffering from the unbearable pain. \"Something about becoming a hideous lump of flesh and doing the same thing to Crusch...\" \"Sharing her blood, you say? That sounds rather like some sort of curse. I've heard that many of the rituals that northern practitioners of such arts are fond of using involve such roundabout rites. Perhaps it's something along those lines?\" \"Curses, curses... Right, a blood curse. That's it! A dragon! She said something about dragon blood!\" Priscilla's low voice triggered something in the foggy recesses of Subaru's memories. Right before he had passed out, while he was writhing in pain from coming into contact with her blood, she had claimed that dragon blood flowed in her veins. Whether that was metaphorical or just a straight-up fabrication, it might be a good clue worth following up. \"Dragon blood... That's one of the three great treasures left to the royal family of Lugunica by the Holy Dragon.\" \"I dunno any details, just that something like that exists...\" Subaru furrowed his brow. \" It grants abundance to lands withered and barren, rejuvenates all destruction that has been wrought, heals the most incurable illnesses in an instant, and becomes a light to wash away indelible despair. Those are the properties of the blood of the great and Holy Dragon.\" *** A lyrical response reached Subaru's eardrums. There was a mysterious look on Liliana's face as she plucked her lyulyre and softly sang. Acknowledging Subaru's gaze, she bowed solemnly. \"It's a verse from the fellowship of the Holy Dragon Volcanica as passed down in the Kingdom of Lugunica. The great treasures bequeathed to the kingdom were the dragon's blood, the Dragon Tablet, and the Covenant.\" \"...That dragon blood sure sounds like it could do just about everything.\" Subaru was a bit taken aback by how different Liliana could be when it came to songs and folklore, but he was more concerned with what her verse had described. Rejuvenated destruction and healed illness came pretty close to describing his leg's strange condition, but the parts about treating barren lands and light that washed away despair felt more questionable when he looked at the hideous black pattern on his body. And when he considered that this hunch was based on something Capella had said, it became even more dubious. \"I don't know what caused it, but considering the wounds I had before going into that fight were healed, too, I guess I should count it as a plus... Gh! Hey, that hurts! What do you think you're doing?!\" \"You really do insist on being noisy. Don't make a fuss over something so minor,\" Priscilla responded in a bored tone after grazing the nape of Subaru's neck with her fan. She looked at the edge of her fan and flicked it with her finger. \"Hmmm, wounds to other parts of your body don't appear to be affected. If we were to tentatively accept that leg of yours as the blessing of the dragon's blood, it would seem the sacred dragon is a far cry from the legends that have been passed down.\" \"What?! What are you saying, Lady Priscilla?! No matter how voluptuous and beautiful and buxom you are, there are certain things that cannot be said! No matter how voluptuous you are!\" \"Oh, you would dare oppose me? Disdain for the Holy Dragon must sit quite poorly with you.\" \"Naturally! The Holy Dragon Volcanica is a living legend! To we who sing to preserve the legends of the past for the future, to us bards, the Holy Dragon is our greatest benefactor! If I let contempt for the Holy Dragon pass without comment, I and my honor would both cry!\" \"That spirit is admirable. But now what? How will you make me retract my words?\" \"Please remove Sir Natsuki's head from his neck! Right here and now! Then watch and behold as the Holy Dragon's blood and its miraculous power rejoin his severed head with his body where he stands! If you would please!\" \"There's no way that would work!\" Subaru howled at the absurd one-act play unfolding before him. Unfortunately, the nape of his neck was still hurting. As Priscilla had said, it looked like the healing was limited to his right leg, and it would probably be safer to assume it was really just the parts around the black flesh. \"Anyway, this isn't the time for experiments. The authenticity of the dragon blood aside, if my leg is like this, I'm more worried about Crusch. If she suffered something along the lines of what happened to my leg...and also, before that...\" Setting aside the oddity of his leg, Subaru finally returned to his first question. The one that the weirdness with his leg had made him forget why had he been floating in the water? \"What happened to everyone? Garfiel and Wilhelm and the others were fighting with me...\" \"Ah, um, as to the reason, you see, the truth is...\" Liliana raised her hand. \"Wait, you know what happened?!\" As Subaru leaned in, she pointed out into the distance. Following where she was pointing, Subaru was baffled by the sight. He could not see anything particularly special or out of the ordinary. It was just the wall surrounding the city and one of the four floodgates that held back the water around the city  \"Wha ?\" After getting that far, Subaru remembered that both he and the ground were soaking wet. Liliana had even said it at the start. The canals had overflowed. \"No matter how dull a fool you might be, even you should understand by now.\" The crimson-eyed girl nodded when she saw Subaru's ashen face. Priscilla opened her fan with an audible crack and covered her lips with it as she spoke. \"It is as you suspect. One of the great floodgates was opened, and a torrent of water surged into the city. You were floating because you had been caught in the flood.\" 4 One of the city's great sluice gates had been opened, allowing a deluge of water to consume Pristella. The mass of water had left the confines of the city's channels, creating a flash flood that spilled out into every corner of the city. That much water was unheard of, and almost half the city had been submerged at one point. The still-flooded roads scattered here and there around the city were a remnant of that. It was miraculous that Subaru had survived the flood and was simply plucked out of one of the canals. \"The one silver lining is that the gate that was opened was quickly closed again, which is way better than just leaving it open. And almost all the residents managed to escape to the shelters, too...,\" Liliana explained. \"But not all of them.\" \"...Most likely, yes. It's sad and unfortunate and heartrending to say, though,\" she said, nodding in response to Subaru's regretful murmur. Thanks to her, he had a general grasp of what had happened to the city while he was unconscious. A massive flood from the gate being opened, which would have required access to the control towers that controlled the gates. The only ones who could have done it were the members of the Witch Cult, who were currently occupying the towers. Meaning the flood had been their doing, and  \"It was revenge for attacking city hall, then. Makes sense.\" Priscilla had reached the same conclusion as Subaru. \"Ngh.\" Subaru grimaced. \"What, do you mean to tell me you didn't expect your actions to have consequences? If you act, so will your enemy. Making an example early on is just standard practice,\" Priscilla declared mercilessly. \"If anything, this feels almost half-hearted,\" she continued, fanning herself gently as she tried to deduce the Witch Cult's aims. \"I would have expected something even more despicable if they are as disgraceful a rabble as the rumors say. I suppose I should assume they value the items they demanded on the broadcast as too important to allow themselves to get too carried away.\" Hearing her cold, calculating deductions, Subaru was chagrined to realize that his actions were likely what had brought about the current situation. Ever since coming to the city of water, he had suffered a string of complete and absolute failures: He had been killed by Sirius three times; Emilia had been kidnapped by Regulus; Beatrice was in a coma after saving him; he had gone to city hall in order to face Capella with his friends, only to end up being toyed with by her; and to top it all off, the town had been almost totally flooded by the cultists in retribution. He was on the verge of exploding in anger at how pathetic he was. Subaru covered his face with his hand and stared up at the sky. \"Um, um... Please don't brood, Sir Natsuki. The situation is definitely awful, though almost 'What's next, tying my arms and legs and throwing me in a lake?!' levels of terrible!\" Liliana was waving her hands and legs as she held her lyulyre against her scrawny body, and her twin tails flapped around on either side of her face. That she still did not give in to despair, even in this dire situation, was splendid, truly worthy of praise. And  \"Aaaargh! Damn it! You think I'll let it end like this after losing this much?!\" \"Wah?!\" The hand covering Subaru's face clenched into a fist as he howled. Liliana, who had been intending to raise his spirits, leaped backward instead to cling to Priscilla in shock at the sudden shout. Naturally, Priscilla dodged the bard and casually knocked her aside. Ignoring Liliana's cute cry as she hit the ground, Priscilla looked at Subaru with something akin to interest for the first time. \"That's unexpected. So you refuse to break over something so trifling, I take it?\" \"Setting aside the question of whether this is trifling or not, that's the general idea. This is nothing compared to that nasty Witch's trials. It's way too early to be giving up on anything.\" Every battle had been a loss, his right leg was covered in some alien black substance, and the city was headed downhill fast but he wasn't about to give in just because of all that. Now that he had a firm grasp on the current situation, he steeled his will as he came to a conclusion about what he should do first. \" I need to meet up with everyone who stayed back at the Muse Company. Once we regroup,"}, {"text": "we can kick those assholes out of the city for good.\" \"Can you really do that?\" \"That isn't the real question. It's whether we do it or don't. And I'm not about to choose don't. Whatever we do, though, priority number one needs to be rejoining the crew. What are you going to do?\" *** There was a flame dancing in Priscilla's eyes. She stood there silently, waiting for Subaru to continue. \"You know, I still haven't forgotten what happened back at the Water Raiment Inn if anything, I'm still holding a grudge about it but this and that are two different things. But being with someone you know is good for peace of mind, and Al was with us, too, not long before this. It might be easier for you to find him if we stick together.\" \"Al was with you?\" \"Yeah, though he left before the fight. He was wandering around the city looking for you.\" Al had split off from the group before the assault on city hall, but Subaru was still a little worried about whether he had gotten caught up in the flood. He wanted to assume Al was safe, what with how aloof and perceptive he seemed to be, but... Hearing that, Priscilla thought for a moment. \"I understand your line of thought, but I have something I must see to first. And I have no intention of accepting your invitation if it means putting that off.\" \"What could be so...?\" \"But your show of resolve wasn't half bad. So I'll grant you a reward.\" \"A reward?\" Subaru cocked his head at the unexpected response. Priscilla reached out and grabbed Subaru by the shirt and pulled him to the ground, where he fell down next to Liliana with a grunt. He looked up in order to give Priscilla an earful for suddenly throwing him down  \"What the hell was that for all of a...? Wha ?!\"  until he saw a misshapen silhouette leap out violently at Priscilla. *** The grotesque being howled sinisterly as it launched itself high into the air. It had four short, hound-like legs and twisted fangs lining its mouth. Just that would mark it as little more than a particularly ugly beast, but everything else was abnormal. It had swords and spears protruding from its back and torso. Not hanging from its body. Not stuck into it. The weapons were growing out of its body. It was literally a fusion of flesh and steel creating a truly hideous silhouette. \"That's...not a demon beast! What is that?!\" \"Ahhhhhhh! That's a demi-beast!\" Liliana screamed as she crawled across the ground. While that was going on in the background, the grotesque monster that Liliana called a demi-beast took aim at Priscilla's pale neck. Its sickening, unclean fangs drew near, but Priscilla easily deflected it to the side with the fan in her hand, forcefully knocking it down. One of the swords fused with its body gouged the earth underneath, creating a groove in the ground between Subaru and Liliana. A shout froze in his throat as he saw how sharp and dangerous it was. \"Well? Unsightly, isn't it? These hideous, inferior brutes are rampant in the city right now. Not even beasts, and yet insufficient as tools. Incomplete from birth, a botched job from creation thus demi-beasts.\" Priscilla stood there calmly, having knocked aside the demi-beast with her fan as Subaru watched stiffly. He was shocked by how at ease she appeared as he pulled Liliana away from where the demi-beast had fallen. Behind them, the demi-beast writhed in agony as it leaped up, its spit-flecked jowls twisting around as it searched for the one who had attacked it. Something about it felt off to Subaru, and he quickly realized why. Its eyes. \"It doesn't have any eyes... Did something blind it? Wait, did it just never have them to begin with? What?\" Its head looked similar to a dog's. It had a snout with a vaguely canine nose and jaws, but there were no eyes where there should have been. It was true that some creatures simply didn't develop vision, then, but this one had empty, hollowed-out pits where eyes would have been. It had eye sockets but no eyeballs. There were no scars or any other signs that they'd been removed, either. It was all incredibly cryptic. What were demi-beasts? \"Look closely, commoner. If you would wander this city, you might encounter one of these monstrosities at any time. They are coarse and incomplete creatures, but they have enough strength to easily hunt down one or two helpless fools.\" \"Hey, who's supposed to be helpless?! I've...\" Subaru reached for his trusty whip to drive home his point, but he had lost it either in the fight with Capella or else when he fell into the water. Farewell, Guilty Whip. And with him unable to deny the helpless-fool point anymore, Priscilla intentionally made a sound with her shoe, drawing the demi-beast's attention toward her. Gnashing its fangs, it obediently bounded toward her, drawn by the sound. \"Look how it clings to sound. It is comical how inexperienced they are in dealing with their world without sight. That shows this is not their natural state. But that is just the sort of being they are.\" \"What are you saying...? Hold on a second! You said they're all over town? There are more like this out there?!\" \"They have spawned everywhere. Without eyes, without ears, without a mouth...like a mockery of a living creature, they are all flawed in some form or another. One can only assume their creator's sense of beauty is catastrophically broken.\" Right after Priscilla said that, the demi-beast launched itself into the air again. Unable to see, it relied on its ears to leap toward her approximate location. Naturally, she swayed out of the way of such a clumsy attack with ease. When the demi-beast's fangs caught only air, it quickly turned after landing and prepared to attack again  \" What a truly pitiful existence. In my great mercy, I shall grant you rest.\" And, having said that, Priscilla slowly drew a crimson sword from the sky. *** Subaru was shocked by the sudden appearance of the sword, but more than that, he was enchanted by the sword's beauty. The bright-red blade that appeared was gilded with strange and beautiful ornamentation. It was radiant enough to be easily worthy of being called a treasure sword. From the hilt to the blade, it was entirely scarlet, and in Priscilla's hand it glimmered brilliantly, like she held a living flame. \" Ah.\" Cloaked in an inferno that enchanted all who beheld it, the sword flashed as Priscilla allowed the blind demi-beast to experience the blade firsthand in all its glory. The creature split down the middle and then burst into flames. There were no dying cries as the single crimson slash transformed the demi-beast into cinders. \"The gleam of this sword of sunlight and the knowledge that demi-beasts abound are my reward for your determination,\" Priscilla said as Subaru watched the demi-beast's death with eyes wide open. Looking over at her, he saw that the crimson sword was already gone from her hand, replaced by her usual fan. It almost felt like it had been an illusion, but the demi-beast's ashes were proof enough that it had been real. \"That's quite the foolish look on your face. Don't tell me you missed your opportunity to see something you will never see again? If so, my whim shan't visit again, so you have only your own unworthiness to blame.\" \"...There's so much to comment on there that I'm not even sure where to start. What even is your actual power?\" \"What an empty question. I can't even work up the will to answer.\" Priscilla fanned herself leisurely as she openly ignored Subaru's question. Liliana, whom Subaru had forgotten he was still holding under his arm, started flapping her arms and legs. \"Come on, Sir Natsuki!\" \"Huh? Ah, my bad. Did I touch somewhere inappropriate? Though where would that even be on you?\" \"How rude! They may be small, but they are there! But this isn't the time for that!\" Twisting her body, she slipped free from Subaru's arm, hit the ground with a thud, and quickly leaped to her feet. She left Subaru and Priscilla behind and ran to the intersection up ahead. Peering around the corner, she waved at them to come over. \"I knew it! Look! There is someone hurt here! Help! Please help him!\" \"There is?! Were they attacked by that demi-beast?!\" Subaru frantically rushed over to Liliana. There was a young man lying facedown in a pool of blood. He had wounds on his shoulder and back. \"Are you okay?! Hey! Crap, he's totally out of it. The wounds aren't too deep, but...\" There was no response when Subaru called out to the young man. After checking his wounds, Subaru quickly tore the man's shirt and performed simple first aid. \"You seem quite familiar with how to deal with this sort of thing...\" \"It's the product of my mentor's spartan training. I'm amazed you noticed he was here, though.\" \"Yes, I was sure I heard something. Like a heartrending voice pleading for aid.\" \"What are you, some hero of justice...? All righty, that'll do for first aid.\" Subaru sighed in relief after stopping the bleeding and tying off a splint. The wound did not look life-threatening, at least. \"But we can't just leave him lying here, either. What do we do...?\" \"Then carry him, commoner. My goal is the shelter down this street. If you take him there, they should be able to stabilize him.\" \"There's a shelter nearby? Right, you mentioned having some errand or other when you turned me down...\" \"Let's go. Do not slow me further.\" Paying no heed to Subaru, Priscilla said whatever she pleased and then started walking away. Subaru silently shook his head and then lifted up the unconscious man. He felt a dark irony that he was practically relying on his blackened right leg to brace himself as he followed Priscilla. Liliana tottered along behind them, still full of concern about the young man's fate. \"Time and again you really do seem to be a man with good timing.\" \"What?\" Priscilla flashed a dark, crimson smile. \"You should etch into your eyes one more time just what the current state of this city is.\" 5 There was an odd air to the area. Even Subaru could notice almost immediately from the way his skin crawled. *** When they stepped into the shelter carrying a wounded person, they were met by many different gazes. A moist, cloying, depressing emotion rested within those eyes. An oppressive, vague negative feeling that was uncomfortable to be around and made it hard to breathe. This location was apparently a shelter that had been constructed in the basement of one of the buildings in the fourth district. It had been designed to protect residents in the event of flooding, and its sturdy door had been sealed, keeping all the water out. But even so, the mere fact that they had escaped the flooding was not enough to soothe everyone's worries, given all the danger threatening their city. That much was clear enough from the way they buried their heads in their knees and from the potent fear that appeared in every face that wasn't just looking down at the ground. \"This is bad for the heart. What is this feeling...?\" Leaving the injured man in the care of the healer on duty in the simple medical room setup at the shelter, Subaru slowly looked around the underground area, gulping bitterly. There were a lot of people. There were enough crowded here belowground to make the shelter feel cramped. But it was quiet. Very quiet. They were holding their breaths, avoiding one another's gazes, looking down in silence. As if they were trying to avoid drawing attention to the fact that they were still alive."}, {"text": "\"I see, he's not here, either.\" Priscilla was cast from a different mold, though, able to carry herself without any hesitation even in this uniquely oppressive environment. On the one hand, it was certainly a regal quality to remain so unaffected by one's surroundings, but it also did nothing to ease the fear and uncertainty gripping people's hearts, which made her seem more like a tyrant than anything else in the moment. Almost naturally, something akin to annoyance started welling up in Subaru's chest. Priscilla was always so full of arrogant self-confidence, and he felt a sudden urge to tear at her face, to peel away that haughty mask  \"At the end of the day, a mediocre man remains a mediocrity. You've been completely bewitched after such a short time.\" \"Wh-what are you talking about...?\" \"There was a barbarous gleam in your pupils. It is only natural that the mere sight of me ignites lustful passion, but the desire to harm beauty is mere brute savagery. Can you truly say you know not of what I speak? Well?\" Interrogated by the woman whose face he had just considered clawing off, Subaru was suddenly dumbfounded. *** Why had his emotions boiled over so suddenly? It was not that odd for him to feel antagonistic toward her, but there had been no reason for it to suddenly get so intense and violent.  It was almost like he had lost control of his emotions. \"No way...\" As that thought occurred to him, a chill ran up his spine. The discomfort grew and grew until his arms and legs were trembling, and he couldn't keep his teeth from chattering. The way his emotions were unnaturally shifting in a way he could not control reminded him of something. \"Sirius... Wrath's Authority...? Is that what's causing this?!\" Subaru pinched his cheek, clearing his head with a dose of pain as he gritted his teeth. Naturally, Sirius was not in the shelter. Subaru could not hear her voice, either. But he could not escape that sense of gloom, that unpleasant sensation of being tossed into a pot of simmering emotions until they were all scorched black. The moment after Subaru realized what was happening and how dangerous it was  \" What's your problem? The hell do ya think you're staring at?!\" A middle-aged man near the back of the shelter shouted, teeth bared and face red. His rage seemed to be directed at a younger man near him. His anger still obvious on his face, the older man approached the younger man and gave him a hard shove in the chest. \"If you've got something to say, then say it! Well?! What's your problem?!\" \" Ngh! Fine, you really want to know?! Take a look around you! You aren't a boy anymore! Have some self-control! We don't all need to know how pissed you are! It's a pain in the ass for the rest of us, you washed-up piece of shit!\" \"Stop it! Stop it! Please, just stop it!\" The younger man's rage exploded at the older man's provocation, and the woman beside him started crying as she cradled her head. Unable to hold back her emotions, she started sobbing uncontrollably, which only stoked the older man's anger and the younger man's righteous fury. And the explosion of emotions did not stop there. \"This isn't good! The other people are getting affected...\" It was slow at first but quickly picked up speed a wave of intense emotions spread throughout the shelter. The explosive increase in noise after the previous silence made it feel like pandemonium had broken out in the blink of an eye. \"This isn't good! Priscilla! If we don't do something, people are gonna die!\" \"Fool. You've lost your calm as badly as they have. Just sit down and shut up.\" \"Is this really the time for that?! Even in a situation like this, you're still... Gh.\" Impatience turned his vision red, and he tried to grab Priscilla, but she evaded his hands with a simple sway and grabbed his hair, pulling his face close to hers. \"Gah?!\" \"Listen, commoner. Your fears will become reality. The unpleasant feeling that corrupted this city's water will warp people's hearts, steal their rationality, and rob them of their kindness. However \" Priscilla coldly explained the tragedy that would befall the shelter as Subaru's face tensed and his lips quivered. But as she trailed off, she looked to the center of the room. Subaru naturally followed her gaze. Standing there was... \"Hark. Lend me your ears Pristella wavers, reflected in the water's surface.\" The plucked strings of the lyulyre created clear, high-pitched chords that pierced the pandemonium. In an instant, that sound shattered the rage and grief that had gripped the shelter. Everything paused for a brief moment. And into that split-second gap, something slipped: Music. *** Right as feverish emotions were about to boil over, an ephemeral melody emerged from the lyulyre's strings. And everyone who heard it was shaken to the soul by the voice that accompanied it. Liliana's tongue danced, giving form and shape to the song welling up inside her. That strain of music struck the people, Subaru, and even Priscilla alike, captivating the crowd from the moment the sounds hit their ears and making their bodies, their minds, and their very souls tremble. Her song had stolen their hearts. There was no other way to put it. They were taken back and returned to their rightful owners. Subaru could feel himself being set free from the confining emotions of Wrath's invisible web. This was the power of song. The brilliance of Liliana's music, the music the Songstress unleashed, was a power beyond reason capable of shaking people to their very core  \" Thank you very much for your kind attention,\" Liliana said with a bow. By the time she finished, the dark emotions that had dominated the shelter were long gone.  There was only a thunderous round of applause that welled up naturally from all sides. 6 \"Thank you! Thank you! My apologies for such an embarrassing sight.\" \"You...\" With her performance over, and after the ripples of her singing voice had faded, and she had finished introducing herself to her tearful audience, the Songstress faded away and Liliana took her place. When Liliana winked awkwardly and gave Subaru a thumbs-up, his shoulders slumped not because of some inexplicable emotion but because of his own exasperation. \"So you've returned to your senses. That is quite the accomplishment by the diva.\" \"I don't really have room to argue. You seemed fine even without the song, though...and for some reason that actually makes sense to me. Wrath's Authority was creating a resonance with everyone's emotions.\" For Priscilla, whose ego was so strong and whose sympathetic impulses were so limited, it made sense that the effect of Wrath's Authority would be weaker. At least that was how Subaru interpreted it, given the calm demeanor she had projected both before and after the song. The pandemonium in the shelter was unmistakably the effect of Sirius's ability. The worst possible outcome had been avoided thanks to Liliana's song, but it gave Subaru chills to think of what might have happened without her. Most likely, the original impetus had been something trivial, but everyone in the shelter was under intense stress from the oppressive, closed-off atmosphere and the presence of a dangerous group in the city. And when they were unable to fully manage that pressure, darker thoughts started to slip into their hearts, which Sirius's Authority then amplified until even the most minor friction with someone else in the shelter could set it all off. And when it exploded, the resulting damage created a pandemic of intense emotions that could lead only to tragedy. And that was  \"That is the unsightly, meaningless reality currently occurring everywhere around the city.\" *** \"You described this unpleasant atmosphere as an Authority, did you not? 'Wrath's Authority.'\" \"...Yeah, that's right. This is the work of one of the Witch Cult Archbishops.\" Priscilla's crimson eyes narrowed in distaste. Even without the effects of any Authority, Subaru could sympathize with the ire resting deep within her gaze. Subaru had thought he had a sufficiently healthy respect for how dangerous Sirius's ability to amplify and propagate emotions was, but his understanding had been too simplistic. It seemed all too possible now that Wrath's Authority had extended its reach across every part of Pristella. And the majority of people in the city had fled to the shelters. If they felt the effects of that ability with so much fear and unease in their hearts, the potential for disaster would be unimaginable. \"The careful training to always go to the shelters if anything happens has totally played into their hands here.\" If Wrath's ability could share and amplify people's emotions, the strength of the effect should be proportional to the number of people inside the area of effect. The people around you became mirrors for emotions, and you in turn became a mirror for them, accelerating and amplifying the effect. People being near others strengthened Wrath's ability and increased its potential to infect more people and spread. This observation spoke to the lie Sirius was hiding. Hers was not a power for allowing people to understand one another at all. It was a nightmarish power that forced people to isolate themselves and remain alone in a situation where fear and unease dominated the mood. \"That makes me a tiny smidge vexed, so I believe I shall have to hold out a bit longer.\" \"Liliana...\" Subaru absorbed Liliana's words with quiet surprise as she pointed to the deepening furrows in her brow. It was clear now that her music had the ability to free people from Sirius's Authority. And she, fully aware that it had that effect, had been traveling from shelter to shelter, singing as she went.  When she had been staying at Roswaal's manor and her music had invited trouble, she had gone so far as to say \"I don't want my singing to be used as a tool,\" even when her life was hanging in the balance. For that same Liliana to use her singing like this  \"What the situation calls for is captivating people with song, which is right up my alley!\" Liliana said with another lousy wink. There was no denying she was the city's Songstress. \"So then that goal you mentioned before is helping Liliana go around to all the shelters?\" Subaru asked Priscilla. If that was the case, that would mean Priscilla was also acting out of concern about the chaos that had struck the city. Right as Subaru was on the verge of reconsidering his view of her and realizing that perhaps he had badly misunderstood what lay in her heart, that train of thought was suddenly interrupted. \"Fool, as if I would bother with something so inconsequential as that.\" Subaru pursed his lips at the textbook Priscilla response. \"Inconsequential? ...Fine, then what is your goal? Why are you visiting all the shelters?\" \"I'm looking for Schult. If I don't, he will almost certainly cry. And I cannot stand seeing a child's teary face.\" *** Subaru's mind froze at the unexpected response. It was something only Priscilla would say. Not noticing his reaction, Priscilla shrugged as if to indicate she had little choice in the matter. \"Al can take care of himself. The fate of another fool is of no concern to me. But Schult's charm is irreplaceable, so I have to recover him personally. He's quite the troublesome retainer.\" Considering there were no stronger emotions in her voice, it was a fair guess that was how she really felt. But the reason she gave for moving around a city embroiled in such trouble to search for her lost young retainer was not something Subaru had expected. It was surprising, but he could accept it. It was indisputable that she was busily walking around looking for her servant, after all. And she just happened to be helping Liliana with her"}, {"text": "goal as well in the process. \"What's that look on your face?\" Priscilla looked over at him suspiciously, but Subaru waved it off with a vague \"It's nothing\" and a sigh. But he felt like he understood. And that was enough, given the situation. Taking a deep breath and filling his lungs, Subaru looked out at the now-stable mood of the shelter. \"This shelter should be fine now. I'm going to go now like I said before. I need to meet back up with everyone.\" \"Aye-aye! Lady Priscilla and I are going to another shelter now. Music is still needed... I am grateful to be a bard, so now's the time to cash in and earn some more self-respect!\" \"Phrasing!\" Despite the grave situation, Subaru could not help laughing and latching on to how she put it. He turned to Priscilla again. It had only been a short while, but he was grateful for the many things she had given him. He never would have guessed the day would come when he could interact with her so genuinely. \"Thank you for all your help. Let's meet again after all this is over. And you should really look for Al, too.\" \"As if I would lend an ear to anyone's instructions. I will simply do as I please. You should run along now and worry about cleansing this city's befouled waters. If you manage to actually accomplish something, I shall personally reward you.\" \"Just so you know, unlike your retainers, I don't have any particular interest in licking your boots.\" And with that, Subaru turned away from them as Liliana saluted, and Priscilla was not even bothering to look at him anymore. He departed from the shelter and started racing through the city. Priscilla and Liliana would head to another shelter to stop another latent explosion of emotion that was just waiting to go off. He could trust them to take care of that, so Subaru would need to follow through on his own role. \"First is Muse... If everyone is still okay, then that's where they would go.\" The Muse Company was far from the fourth district. But he had all the motivation he needed. All that was left was to steel his nerve. This isn't even close to being over. Not by a long shot. And I'm going to prove it. 7 *** A blind, bloody-smelling demi-beast was sniffing at the ground in front of him. Holding his breath to keep from being noticed, Subaru examined it, feeling a sense of righteous anger as he compared it to the other demi-beasts he had come close to encountering. The demi-beasts Priscilla had labeled hideous, and Liliana had scorned earlier for their inability to sing, came in a multitude of forms, and Subaru had felt reluctant to lump them all together under the same repulsive description. In exchange for lacking something eyes, ears, mouth their bodies were fused with swords or shields or other inorganic objects. They had been transformed into something that could not naturally occur in some horrible design. The demi-beasts were the unnatural creation of an aberrant mind. So turning it around, if he could accept that they were unnatural life-forms, then it was entirely believable they had actually been designed. And there was at least one being currently in the city who was capable of manipulating the bodies of living creatures. \"Capella, you piece of shit...\" The demi-beasts' parent, or perhaps creator would be the better word, appeared in Subaru's head. The Archbishop of Lust, Capella, practically an embodiment of all the malice of the human world. Subaru could absolutely believe that she would create such incomplete creatures as demi-beasts and set them loose all around the city. But that thought raised a question: Then where is she getting the ingredients for the demi-beasts? *** \"Ah.\" When he gritted his teeth, he inadvertently twisted his foot slightly, grinding a pebble against the ground beneath his heel. The blind demi-beast immediately turned its head toward the sound and violently dashed over toward Subaru. The ax growing out of its head was heavy, making it look absurd as it ran. The edge of the ax scraped the ground, sending sparks flying continuously as it closed in. Subaru leaped aside as it approached. Then he used a slight groove in the wall as a foothold to acrobatically launch himself over the demi-beast. \"And up we go!\" His right leg was in disgustingly good shape, and he could move better than ever because of it. He easily leaped over the demi-beast and left that stretch of road behind as it frantically spun around searching for him. \" Girrrrrrrrrrrah!\" All of a sudden, an awkward shout rang out. Subaru evaded the surprise attack by jumping straight up and spreading his legs. The demi-beast passed under him, but having lost his balance, Subaru rolled when he hit the ground. He was planning to use the momentum of the roll to start running away when  \"...Crap...\" Right in front of him was another demi-beast, quietly standing there, barring his path. It was one without a mouth, which was why it had grumbled instead of roared. The one whose charge he had just dodged had no ears, meaning all three types roaming the city were represented here. *** They were surrounding him front, back, and to one side, cornering him. Looking to the open side, he saw the wall of a dilapidated building that was deteriorating from age and lack of maintenance. With enough momentum and motivation, it wouldn't be impossible to get over. The goal would be something like what Felt had done when they first met. The way she had run, leaving Subaru behind begging for help with Larry, Curly, and Moe surrounding him thinking back on it now, he could not help feeling an odd sense of fate that those four had ended up in the same camp. Soothing his nerves with some pointless thoughts, Subaru crouched. The demi-beasts surrounding him bent their knees, but Subaru was ready to go for the wall one step ahead of them  \" Please don't move, Subaru. I don't want to miss.\" But a voice that was far surer an option than trying to get out of the situation on his own made him abandon that desperate plan. The three demi-beasts barreled down on Subaru as he stopped, all aiming to hit him with their blend of ax and fangs, swords and claws but none of them reached him. Because each and every one of their attacks was deflected and knocked back by a single slender knight's blade. \"My apologies, but his continued survival is necessary for this city. I humbly request that you withdraw!\" The elegant knight Julius Juukulius attacked the three demi-beasts simultaneously with sword and spirits. His sharp blade cut through the eyeless beast's torso in a single broad sweep while the earless and mouthless ones were swallowed up in a red glimmer and consumed by flames. Purged by a raging inferno, the warped creatures turned to ash and collapsed without a sound. But the blind beast continued to attack despite having sustained an obviously lethal wound. \"Julius!\" \"You need not worry.\"  The eyeless beast's head was sent rolling by an elegant, arcing slash. This was not the time nor place for idle thoughts, but it was truly a beautiful slash, one that held Subaru's gaze. The flash of steel precisely struck at the weakest point of the demi-beast's neck, ending its life without prolonging its pain. If there could be any mercy in the act of ending a life, then that attack had been the embodiment of it. No matter how incomprehensible the creature's unnatural vitality might be, losing its head was still lethal. The same went for reducing its entire body to cinders. Subaru felt a strong sense of pity for the demi-beasts as they fell. \"Are you unhurt, Subaru?\" Flicking the blade that had cut down the demi-beast, Julius turned to Subaru. \"Yeah.\" Subaru nodded. \"That was a dangerous spot to be in, though. Thanks for the help. And from the looks of it, you're doing okay, too.\" \"I cannot deny that. In the end, I was swept up in the flood from the gate opening, which left the battle at city hall unsettled. I was concerned when I saw you fall into the water and lost track of you.\" Julius shook his head slightly as he placed his hand on Subaru's shoulder. Surprisingly, there was an unconcealable trace of relief in the gesture. As if he was still processing the fact that Subaru had returned alive. \"What happened at the tower? Honestly, I can't really remember much of the back end of the fight with Capella...with Lust.\" \"You don't remember? A black dragon attacked the upper floor and carried you and Duchess Crusch away. I immediately went after the black dragon to try and retrieve the two of you when the floodgate opened...\" \"And in the chaos, I ended up falling into the water and getting washed away?\" \"If I was to be honest, I had thought your chances of surviving were fifty-fifty at best. You did well to make it back safely.\" Julius kept nodding to himself, his hand still on Subaru's shoulder, welcoming his return. Hearing that, Subaru realized his situation had been far more dire than he realized. But against all odds, he had returned safe and sound. And now he had been reunited with Julius. \"What about everyone else? Are they safe? I remember Crusch was in trouble. I was hurrying to get back to the Muse Company just now...\" \"I understand the feeling, but for now calm yourself, please. Allow me to alleviate your first concern: Everyone who went to take back city hall returned alive... Knowing that you have survived and are safe, I can now say that confidently.\" \"Everyone made it back alive... I see...\" Overcome by relief after hearing that news, Subaru slumped down to the ground. He had been more anxious about that than he had realized, and for a moment he could not force his quivering knees to carry his weight. \"After facing so many powerful enemies, I'm glad everyone survived... And there weren't any losses to that flood, either?\" \"It was a perilous situation. From what Sir Wilhelm said, they were close to being overwhelmed by the enemy when the water hit, and it was entirely possible we would have suffered losses if the battle continued. It's ironic to think that was the Witch Cult's doing.\" Subaru furrowed his brow. There was more scorn directed at himself than regret in Julius's voice. From what he was saying, it sounded like that flood that had exacted such a terrible price from the city as a whole had actually been a massive boon to Subaru and the others fighting at city hall. And it was probably at least partially because of it that Capella had failed to kill Subaru and Crusch when they were at death's door. Which meant that the Witch Cult had shot itself in the foot by opening the floodgate when it had. Though it was also doubtful whether it put much stock in the outcome of a single battle. \"There are several other things that I have to tell you, but for now, it's good that we did not miss each other. Currently, the Muse Company is empty, and no one is there. You were about to waste a trip.\" \"No one? Why? Anastasia, Ferris, and my Beako should still be there...\" \"Regarding that, try to remain calm while I explain.\" Subaru gulped as things took a disquieting turn. Seeing that, Julius took a breath before continuing. \"...While we were attacking city hall, the Muse Company was also attacked. Their aim was the gentleman Kiritaka of the Council of Ten, but in the end, Lady Anastasia took command, and those who remained were forced to abandon that base.\" \"It was attacked?! But it was a shelter! There were lots of wounded people"}, {"text": "there, right?!\" Other than the Iron Fangs members there as guards, the vast majority of the people at the company had been noncombatants including Beatrice, who was in a coma, and Mimi, who had sustained an incurable wound from the blessing of the grim reaper. Hetaro and TB shared the burden of their sister's wound and were in a dangerous condition, too. There was no way they could have safely fled an attack with so many people in that sort of condition  \"Wait! What happened to Beatrice? To everyone?!\" \"They succeeded in just barely getting all the wounded out safely at immense personal effort. Lady Beatrice and Mimi and her brothers were also safely carried away. However, the whereabouts of Mr. Kiritaka Muse and the members of the White Dragon's Scale who stayed behind with him at the Muse Company are currently unknown... We don't know whether they survived.\" \"Damn it! I'm sure Liliana would be sad if she heard that...\" Even hearing that Beatrice was safe, Subaru could not really be happy given the losses that might have been incurred. Considering the enemy's goal, it made sense that Kiritaka would be targeted. The Witch Cult's demand was for the Witch's bones to be turned over to them, and only members of the Council of Ten could tell them the location. \"Having lost the Muse Company, we have shifted to using city hall as a base. We should head there. Everyone is worried about you, and Garfiel in particular is running himself ragged.\" \"That's not good, but we're heading to city hall? We took it back?\" \"When the gate was opened and our battle there was cut short by the massive surge of water, our enemies abandoned the building. However, they broadcast one final message before they did so. Did you hear it?\" \"...That was right around when I was bobbing in the water.\" Subaru pursed his lips. It did not sound like recovering city hall was really something that could be celebrated. Hearing his response, Julius furrowed his brow and hesitated for a moment before responding. \"It was after they caused the canals to overrun and were wreaking havoc in every part of the city. I was struggling to grasp the chaotic situation myself when Lust's voice rang out from the sky.\" *** Subaru quietly urged Julius to continue. Seeing that, Julius nodded and took a long, deep breath. \"Lust...or perhaps I should say the Witch Cult placed additional demands in order to free the city as punishment for attacking the tower. In addition to the Witch's bones, they had three new demands.\" \"...Which were?\" \" A book called the book of knowledge. An artificial spirit. And also...\" Just those two alone were more than enough to provoke Subaru, but the final demand actually made Julius pause even after he'd said that much. Seeing him hesitate, Subaru steeled himself as he wondered just how repulsive the final demand could possibly be. However, Subaru quickly realized that that hesitation was out of consideration for him. Because the final demand was the most absurd, the most out of place, and the most impossible for Subaru to accept. \"...the wedding of the silver-haired maiden. Something you would surely never allow.\" CHAPTER 2 *** 1 Looking out at the flooding city, Emilia gripped the windowsill tightly enough to warp it. There was another booming sound as the opened floodgate closed again. It was over in the blink of an eye. The city had escaped being completely flooded, but the damage was still massive. Buildings had been destroyed, and there was no question that people must have gotten hurt or worse. Thinking of the damage the water was causing, Emilia frantically started to go out the window  \"Whatever you might be thinking, it would be wiser to stop.\" A cool voice stopped Emilia, who had already stepped onto the windowsill and was getting ready to leap down. It was the cold beauty #184, who seemed entirely unshaken by everything that was going on. Faced with her piercing gaze, Emilia narrowed her purple eyes sharply. \"Wiser how? You saw what just happened, didn't you? I have to go help!\" \"Your feelings are understandable, but were you to leave now, it would only cause even more suffering, since he...our husband does not wish for you to leave.\" \"That again?!\" Emilia bit her lip in irritation that Regulus could overtly restrict her freedom. It was clear from their interactions up to that point that #184 was entirely subservient to Regulus, but that was not how Emilia felt. She was resolute that she was not his wife. \"Even if you disagree, can you truly not imagine what he might do if something he found undesirable was to come to pass?\" \"That's...\" \"First he would punish the wife who acted against his wishes. Then he would punish whatever or whoever motivated his wife to act against his wishes. I am absolutely confident that is how he would respond.\" Hearing that, Emilia thought back to her brief encounter with Regulus. He liked to talk, but that by itself was not necessarily bad. The boy Emilia knew so well also often had a lot to say. But unlike him, Regulus showed absolutely no regard for the person he spoke with. His speech and actions and focus were all one-sided because of his sense of omnipotence. Regulus Corneas was stronger than almost anyone else Emilia had ever encountered before. He might even be a match for Reinhard. And now #184 was earnestly warning Emilia not to upset him. And yet  \" That isn't enough of a reason for me to stop.\" \"...Even if your life is in danger?\" \"There are people out there who are in danger right now. If I just secretly slip out and then slip back in, wouldn't that still be fine?\" Emilia's magic should be useful in dealing with flooding. She could freely shape ice, manipulating it in such a way that it would not cause any problems when it melted. If it would be a problem for Regulus to find out, then she could just do it stealthily, even if that was not really her forte. #184 paused for a few seconds and then let out a long sigh. \"...Are you actually serious?\" \"Huh? I was really serious... Did I not sound serious?\" Emilia asked in shock. She had been trying to plead as earnestly as she could, so if it had come across as a joke, that would be a problem. Seeing Emilia's reaction, #184 looked outside. \"If you are concerned about harm befalling the residents due to the flooding, you needn't worry. The vast majority of people should have already fled to the shelters and should have escaped the worst of the flooding.\" \"Shelters...? Right, the morning broadcast mentioned that! Then everyone is hiding out there?\" \"Since several hours ago.\" \"Oh, I see... That's a relief, then.\" Emilia placed her hand on her chest. Of course that would not make the physical damage of the flooding disappear, but it was fortunate. At least that meant there would be no tragedy of countless people getting swallowed up in the floodwaters. \"...You trust what I just said?\" \"Eh? Should I not?\" \"I am his wife... Do you really think I wouldn't lie for my husband's sake?\" #184 was clawing away at Emilia's heart, as if testing her. And accepting that provocation, Emilia considered her words for a brief moment. \" But you seemed sincere, so I'm sure you weren't lying.\" Emilia shook her head, choosing to believe in #184's sincerity rather than assume malice. And if she was going to lie, there would have been easier, more convincing lies, but she had responded without any doubt at all in what she was saying. Because her conscience did not trouble her about it. \" Ah.\" #184 opened her eyes slightly in surprise. Seeing that reaction, Emilia felt like it was the first time she had gotten a glimpse of her natural range of expression. \"So you can actually look surprised. Maybe we can finally have a proper conversation.\" \"...That was unbecoming of me. Anything more will incur his ire.\" \"Getting upset that his wife showed a little emotion when she would be so much more beautiful if she could smile just seems really weird.\" \"Weird doesn't begin to describe it... Ngh  I should warn you.\" Her emotional control fraying in the face of Emilia's smile, #184 quickly caught her breath before continuing. \"What he likes is your normal face, that exact expression. I suggest you not change it in front of him do not get visibly happy or sad, things like that. It would probably be best if you don't open your mouth as well.\" \"I shouldn't talk? Why not?\" \"Because no one knows what might draw his ire.\" #184's behavior around Regulus was dictated by her fear of crossing one of his lines. Fear was limiting her emotions. Emilia wanted to do something to help her. She could tell from talking with her that she was wise and the sort of beauty who could light up a room with a smile. \"You mustn't furrow your brow, either. It upsets him.\" \"I'm thinking as hard as I can about what I can do to keep Regulus from getting between us having a proper conversation,\" Emilia responded earnestly. Hearing that, #184 caught her breath slightly. There was the slightest hesitation in her cool eyes. \"Ummm...\" Something about what #184 was starting to say was different. But  \"Hello, all you meatbags! I hope this finds you in good health as you tremble in the fetal position! In my deep and praiseworthy benevolence, I'm broadcasting my beautiful voice for you little shits to cling to for comfort! Are you happy now? Are you having fun? Are you dancing and singing and writhing in agony? Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!\" A shrill voice rang through the air, cutting #184 off. \" Wah! Wh-what's that?!\" Emilia looked around in shock as a callous voice suddenly filled the sky above the city. Instinctively looking up, Emilia realized that it was a broadcast using a metia. The same one that had been filled with concern for the people of the city in the morning, and the same one that had carried Liliana's singing across the whole city. The impression the broadcast imparted could change dramatically depending on how the speaker used it. At the very least, Emilia certainly did not believe that the person speaking now had much claim to deep and praiseworthy benevolence. \"Well then, I have an important announcement for all you twisted sacks of shit! Somehow, even after all the warnings you were given, a swarm of incompetent meatbags came after me in a good old-fashioned raid! Well, not that I expected any less, so I had already made arrangements to greet them. But it's still annoying, you know!\" The voice was light, and the broadcaster almost seemed to be indulging in the moment, but there was also a clear irritation mixed in as the sinister proclamation continued. \"Anyway, I was honestly thinking, Ah, whatever, screw it. Just open the floodgates and sink the whole place to the bottom of the lake, and them's the breaks, you know? I mean, it's hurtful when people just straight up ignore everything I make the effort to say! In fact, I've still got some wounds aching from it all. It's an affront and an assault on my goodwill and on me personally!\" \" Ngh.\" Emilia shuddered at the threat of opening the floodgates. The massive flood that had just happened was from just one gate being open for just a few seconds. If they were all flung open it would cause far, far more damage. The shelters were currently still safe, but if the entire town was completely flooded, they would surely not escape the destruction. For such a sadistic broadcaster to have that sort of power was immeasurably dangerous. \"But...\" Emilia noticed that the broadcaster did not seem to have any intention of actually following through on"}, {"text": "that threat at the moment. If they were really serious, they could have just left the gates open to begin with. But they had not done that. There had to be something they wanted more than they wanted to submerge the city. \"But I'm not some witch, after all. I'm magnanimous. Like the loving mother you never had. So in light of my generosity, I decided why not give you shitheels one last chance.\" And just as Emilia was thinking there must be more they wanted, the voice on the broadcast offered an alternative, confirming her hunch. However, it was not going to be an alternative that demonstrated the speaker's magnanimity and loving, motherly generosity. \"Hooooowever! Out of consideration for how you've hurt me, damages have to be considered, too. Just accepting the previous ask won't be enough! So in addition to my first request, there are three new ones...ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Three more things we want!\" The voice continued huskily. \" The first is the charitable donation of the book of knowledge, which I'm sure someone has brought into this city.\" The voice continued mockingly. \" The second is the charitable donation of the artificial spirit that's wandering around this city.\" The voice continued sneeringly. \" And the third is... Huh? Ah, the wedding of the silver-haired maiden... In other words, just don't get in the way of it happening. As if I know what that's about, though.\" The voice continued detestably. \"And finally, the Witch's body that I requested before makes four! Fulfilling these four requests is the one and only thing you mooks can do to survive! Everything else is pointless! Impossible! Mad! As proven by how that little attack on city hall failed!\" The broadcaster's voice one-sidedly and abusively assaulted all corners of the city. And just like Emilia had thought, the enemy had made demands in exchange for not flooding the city entirely. But her gut was also telling her that there was no way they would honor their end of the deal. They would surely open all four of the floodgates around the city the moment they got everything they wanted. \"Aaanyway! That's all the happy news from me! I suggest you start your unsightly scramble to find the things we want so you can beg for your lives! Every one of them is definitely somewhere here in this city! Figure out which of your neighbors or which of the bigwigs or whoever is hiding them so you can steal them and present them to me! Ah-ha-ha-ha!\" High-pitched laughter was the final sound anyone heard before the broadcast abruptly ended. As the echoes of that sharp laugh faded, all that remained was oppressive silence. When Emilia felt like a restraint had suddenly been removed, she finally realized that she had been holding her breath. It had been a terrifying voice with the power to ensnare the hearts of those who lent it an ear. It was not just a natural devilishness, either. The person behind it was extraordinarily skilled at using her voice to manipulate others. It was a skill born from natural talent carefully honed and fully brought to bear. \"That voice just now...\" Emilia touched her hand to her throat. \" That was the Archbishop of Lust, Capella Emerada Lugunica,\" #184 responded coldly. Looking over at her, just an arm's length away, Emilia saw that all emotion had disappeared from her expression and eyes. Emilia felt both frustration and shame when she saw her emotionless gaze. Just before the broadcast, she had been about to tell Emilia something, but  \"As you heard, currently the town is at the mercy of the Witch Cult. They will not hesitate to punish careless actions. I'm sure you understand that, yes?\" \"Wait... I understand about the Witch Cult, but before I came here, I ran into someone else who called themself an Archbishop. Not Lust though, Wrath...\" \"Yes. There are multiple Archbishops here in this town currently. Our husband is one as well,\" #184 said, averting her eyes. \" Regulus is...an Archbishop.\" When she heard that, it all clicked for Emilia. The pressure she had felt from him was similar to what Sirius had radiated when Emilia had encountered the Archbishop of Wrath in front of the time tower. If that was true, then there were at least three Archbishops in Pristella, and they had the ability to control the floodgates. And the broadcast just then as well as the current situation were demonstrations  \"So do you finally understand now what a precarious position you are currently in?\" \" ? My position?\" \"...Please recall the four demands that Archbishop Capella mentioned.\" Emilia thought back to the broadcast. Setting aside the Witch's bones and the book of knowledge, which did not ring a bell, she could think of a connection for the artificial spirit. And the other one, which did not make any sense... \"'The wedding of the silver-haired maiden'... That one seemed weirder than the others.\" \"\" #184 stared at her silently. \" Wait, you don't mean... Is that last one about me?\" Emilia finally realized what that demand might mean and went wide-eyed. She had never been called something like a silver-haired maiden before, and she had no interest in getting married, so she had been slow in realizing she was part of the Witch Cult's objectives. But if the broadcast's demands were for the things the Archbishops wanted, then the only person who would be planning a wedding had to be Regulus. And Emilia was the only person to whom he was proposing marriage. So if Emilia ran away without a plan  \" Pristella will be turned into the bottom of a lake.\" \"It seems you now understand the situation. Let us take care of your clothes. Fortunately, I took your measurements while you were sleeping. A bridal outfit matching his tastes has already been prepared.\" #184 reached out to the blanket Emilia was covering herself with. For a second, she froze, but thinking back to the broadcast, she stopped resisting. Besides, her running around with nothing but a sheet for clothing would have deeply bothered Puck and Annerose. \"So then, you were the one who undressed me?\" \"Did you think he did that? He would not touch a woman's skin in that way. He just wants to assert his ownership... That's the reason why he inquires about his wives' virginity, too.\" \"There's that virginity thing again. What does that mean?\" \"...I could hardly believe it before, but do you really not know?\" Apparently, it was entirely standard knowledge, but Emilia in her ignorance was hit by a cool response from #184. She made a note to herself to make sure to look it up later. Once everything was over. \"I wonder if Subaru and the others are okay...\" If the entire city was under the control of the Witch Cult, then she was certain Subaru and Beatrice were doing their best to take back the town. And there were other candidates for the crown besides Emilia in the city. It would be nice if they were all safe... \" You mentioned that name before as well. Is it the name of a male?\" \"Yes. He's my knight. I'm sure he's really worried about me. But I'm at least as worried about him... I hope he isn't doing anything too reckless.\" Or so she said, but she still knew he almost certainly was pushing himself terribly hard. And she had definitely made him really worried by disappearing like that.  The worry that Subaru might have died did not even cross her mind. He had Beatrice with him, and she could not really imagine him ending up in a life-threatening situation in the first place. He could probably manage to find a way out no matter what happened around him. But that did not keep her from being worried about him or feeling guilty for making him worry. Emilia was badly disappointed in herself for troubling him. \"......\" #184's eyes opened slightly as she watched Emilia thinking about Subaru. \"Please be careful never to mention that man's name in front of our husband.\" \"...Just to be sure, why?\" \"To put it in his terms, because he will start to doubt whether you truly are a virgin at heart.\" \"There's that word again...\" Having that used as a reason without any explanation of what it meant was bothering Emilia. But #184 just picked up the white dress she had prepared for Emilia and held it up to her body before nodding in satisfaction. It looked resplendent while feeling refined to the touch. It was a truly beautiful dress that was very obviously of high quality. \"It looks a little hard to move in.\" \"It would be wise not to say complaints aloud. Now, let's get you dressed.\" Emilia did as she was told as #184 helped her with practiced ease, slipping Emilia's arms into the sleeves. For now, she decided to do as #184 and Regulus said. A thoughtless attempt to escape would only expose the city to further danger. She would need to carefully plot her actions. 2 \" You useless !\" When he entered city hall, the first thing Subaru heard was grief-stricken rage. His ears were assaulted by a cracking, agitated voice. It was a familiar voice, but that was the first time he had ever heard such raw emotion in it. The shout was filled with unbearable resentment and accompanied by a sharp, dry slap that filled the room. \"Quit it! What's the point of tryin' to pin the blame like this! It's not any one person's fault, and you know that as well as any of us!\" A heated argument was taking place in the lobby, fracturing the mood. Seeing that, Subaru bit his lip, feeling pathetic as a twinge of regret hit his chest. The lobby was big, with a reception counter and a waiting room. There were still signs of the struggle, broken chairs and tables pushed up against the walls, but it had at least been cleaned up some. And in the very center of the lobby were three people: a teary-eyed Ferris, Ricardo, who had grabbed his arm and whose fangs were showing, and Wilhelm, whose cheek was red after he'd stood there and taken Ferris's slap to the face. The old swordsman looked down weakly, his blue eyes remorseful as the other two argued. \"...I have no excuse.\" \"Make one up! Tell me there was some reason, any reason why there was no other way! Give me something so I can accept what happened! Apologizing won't change anything!\" \"I get how you feel. We're all feeling rotten about what happened. But...\" \"'Feeling rotten'...? How is that supposed to help anyone? You're useless! Spineless cowards! Every last one of you! Why...why didn't anyone help Lady Crusch...?\" Ferris was breathing raggedly as he glared at Wilhelm and Ricardo before falling to his knees. Neither of them had any response to his tearful reproach. Ferris clawed at the hard floor as they Subaru and Julius included could only watch. His beautifully kept nails and fingers warped painfully, almost like he was punishing himself. \"...What's the point of fame and title if I'm useless in a moment like this...?! Worthless! ...Worthless, worthless, worthless!\" Tears poured from his eyes as he cursed himself. It would almost have been easier if he had pointed his rage at any of the people around him, but knowing that his rage was directed at his own powerlessness, no one could do anything to ease his grief. Everyone in the room was already regretting their own weakness, their own failures. \"...You made it back, Bro. And you too, Julius.\" Unable to say anything to Ferris, who was collapsed on the ground, Ricardo called out when he noticed Subaru and Julius standing at the entrance. Subaru nodded slightly and walked over to the three of them. \"Sir Subaru...it's good to see you safe.\" \"You too, Wilhelm. Ricardo. Though it's not all sunshine...\" \"Apologies for such an unseemly scene... Ferris...\" \" I know, I"}, {"text": "know.\" Nodding to Subaru, Wilhelm called to Ferris. He violently wiped his face with his sleeves and stood up, acting like nothing had happened. He reached his hand out to Subaru's body, examining him as he stood there, still shocked by the scene he had walked in on. Finally, Ferris peered into Subaru's eyes. \"...Yeah, you seem fine. Nothing strange or out of order. What's your name and where are you from?\" \"Huh? Oh. The name's Subaru Natsuki, and I'm from Japan.\" \"It must be deep in the countryside, because I've never heard of it... Anyway, I'll be with Lady Crusch.\" Ferris listlessly brushed off Subaru's answer as a bad joke before turning away and departing from the lobby. Subaru could not think of the words to say as his slender frame moved away. \"Sir Subaru, apologies, but I'll be taking my leave. I'll also be with my master,\" Wilhelm said before following Ferris. When the two of them left, the tense air of the lobby softened ever so slightly. \"I got word from Julius that he went out to get you. The lass there and Wilhelm happened to get into an argument, and, well...\" \"It's understandable. Ever since we joined back up, Ferris has been concentrating on healing the wounded and caring for Lady Crusch above all else... Though, it has been a particularly harsh time for Sir Wilhelm,\" Julius said as he tapped his conversation mirror in his pocket. He had used that metia to give Ricardo a heads-up that he was coming back with Subaru while they were on their way. Ferris had come down to check out Subaru, which led to starting that scene. \"Haaah, what a shit show...\" Subaru couldn't get Ferris's voice, or the grief and rage he directed at himself and everyone else, out of his head. But he also felt uneasy, wondering what about Crusch's condition could be that bad. \"By the way, you dropped this, Bro.\" \"Hmm? Wait, what?! This is...\" Ricardo tossed something over to Subaru, whose expression had started to cloud. He caught it only to realize it was a shiny black whip Guilty Whip, his trusted weapon that he thought he'd lost forever. \"You found it for me? Thanks. That gives me a couple more cards I can play if needed, at least.\" \"You don't have to thank me. You were the one who used it to tie the duchess girl and that black dragon together. All I did was just untie it and hold on to it.\" \"If I tied the black dragon and Crusch together, then...? What happened...?\" Ricardo's response just left Subaru with more questions as he hooked the whip back on his hip. \"Exactly what it sounds like. The black dragon that sped out of the top floor flew you and Lady Crusch away from Lust. The duchess was unconscious, so you tied her to the dragon using your whip to keep her from falling.\" \"And then, after managing that final act, I ended up falling myself? If she ended up okay in the end, I'd call it a pretty clutch play if I do say so myself, but...\" \"\" Julius paused slightly before affirming Subaru's suspicion. \"Ferris has been trying everything he can, but the duchess's condition remains poor.\" Crusch had been bathed in Capella's blood, just like Subaru remembering the fleshy black pattern on his right leg, Subaru felt his mouth dry out. \"Can you be a bit more specific?\" \"...I'm sure it has to do with something Lust did. A foreign substance has taken to Lady Crusch's body and is afflicting her. Ferris's lack of composure is the result of her current state. It is unbearable to see.\" Julius's tone dropped. Judging from that, Crusch's condition was very serious. Subaru had experienced the terror of something foreign eating away at him right after he was splashed with Capella's blood. It was not just pain or distress it was repulsive on an entirely different level. If Crusch was suffering the same torment that Subaru had felt in that moment, then... \" Right! Dragon blood! Capella said something about dragon blood!\" \"Dragon blood? You mean the Holy Dragon's blood passed down in the kingdom?\" Julius asked, furrowing his brow. \"I don't know if it's anything as showy as some sacred dragon or whatever. Did Crusch say anything herself?\" \"No, the duchess has yet to regain consciousness, so I'm sure Ferris has not heard anything about it.\" \"So she hasn't woken up... Do you think the blood thing might at least give us a clue?\" \"I could not begin to say, but Ferris might be able to figure something out, so we should let him know as soon as possible.\" \"Ah, yeah, that's right. I'll hurry...\" \" Hold up, Bro. I'll go for you.\" *** It was something that might be able to change the situation. Subaru leaped at the mere possibility, but Ricardo stopped him short. The massive dog-faced man who was like the dictionary definition of a kindhearted person had folded his arms with a rather gentle look on his face, shaking his head with a depth of consideration fitting for a man of his age. \"You haven't seen her yet. Better off stayin' that way.\" \"...What do you mean by that?\" \"Exactly what I said... She's a beautiful lass, which makes seein' her like that all the harder.\" It was an answer that not only fanned Subaru's unease but actively made him imagine an even worse situation but Ricardo was not trying to hide anything, either. He was simply telling Subaru to accept and understand the situation. He was a nice guy, but he was not trying to protect some youngster's heart from everything bad in the world. In that sense, his was a fittingly wild way of living that respected strength. He did not treat Subaru like a child. He had an adult's thoughtfulness, but he made it clear he was not going to always watch over him like that, either. \"I'll take care of this. You take him to see my boss.\" Ricardo scratched his head before grabbing Julius's shoulder with his big hand. \" And this ain't like you. Straighten up, ya blockhead.\" \" My apologies. I'll leave Ferris to you.\" Julius furrowed his brow in self-reflection. \"See ya later, Bro. I'm glad you made it out okay,\" Ricardo said before heading deeper into the building. \"We are using a large room upstairs as an infirmary. Lady Beatrice and Mimi, Hetaro, and TB are there, too, naturally. But Duchess Crusch is...\" \"In a different room, right...? Do you agree it'd be better for me not to see her?\" \"...Unless the duchess herself desires it.\" In other words, he agreed with Ricardo. Honestly, Subaru wanted to confirm with his own two eyes that Crusch was really okay. Even if his comrades were all advising against it. But that was Subaru's ego talking no one wanted him to go see her in her current state. \"Over here. You should speak with Lady Anastasia.\" In the end, Julius brought him to the center of the building without his being able to say anything. As they left the battered lobby, the walls and floor of the hallway they walked down still showed traces of meaningless destruction. It was clear just what sort of acts the Witch Cult had committed while in control of the building. Naturally, this was not the only building hit, either. Similar destruction had been visited on several other important structures, but Lust and Gluttony had gone wild on city hall in particular.  Lust and Gluttony. Thinking of them again caused feelings of shame to well up in Subaru's breast. \"Julius, about Gluttony...\" \"...Both sides suffered casualties, but there was no decisive blow. Like the battle on the ground, the chaos of the black dragon's appearance and the flood made escape possible.\" \"I see...,\" Subaru murmured faintly. From the fact that it had not come up yet at all, it had seemed the hope of actually defeating Gluttony was pretty slim, but hearing confirmation that Gluttony had gotten away was unexpectedly depressing. In just a single day, he had crossed paths with four Archbishops, but Gluttony the one who had sent Rem into a slumber from which she could not wake, the very person who had removed all memory of her from the world was special. Honestly, if nothing else, Subaru wanted to tear Gluttony limb from limb with his own two hands. \"...My apologies, I failed to accomplish the task you entrusted to me.\" \"Stop it. If you keep apologizing for everything, it'll turn into a habit. Ricardo already mentioned that you're not yourself lately. Don't make me call you a blockhead, too.\" *** \"We all screwed up here, so all of us are going to have to work together to fix it or is the Finest Knight going to call it quits after one little blemish on his record?\" Julius's eyes opened wide as Subaru shrugged provocatively. Julius's lips quivered. \"...You really don't hold back. Talking so big even in a situation like this... You really don't know the meaning of fear, do you?\" \"I know the meaning of fear. I know the scariest thing there is in this world. I've experienced it, too. Which is why I'm always struggling so hard to avoid going through it again.\" Subaru was painfully aware of what had gone wrong. He blamed himself, too. He was reflecting on his own failures. Which was exactly why he could not stop moving forward. The scariest thing in the world was losing the connections he shared with someone precious. No longer being able to wish for the shared blessings that should have been. To have that possibility cut off for all eternity. And that most terrifying of possibilities was currently threatening every person in the city. So  \"There are still things we can do.\" Putting his renewed determination into words, Subaru nodded to Julius. If you mess up, then make up for it by taking action. You aren't the only one who's frustrated. Before the threat was broadcast, Julius's brother Joshua had left the inn in order to gather information about Gluttony. From the fact that his name had not come up since, it was safe to assume his whereabouts were unknown. In a way, that gave Julius and the rest of them a strong connection with Gluttony, too  \" Well, you look better than I expected. That's a relief.\" As Subaru was thinking about that, a voice called out from the other end of the hallway. Looking up suddenly, he breathed a sigh of relief on seeing the woman at the other end. The beautiful woman with a soft, gentle face the woman Julius had sworn to serve, Anastasia. \"What, were you listening? That's not very nice.\" \"I was walking around a bit to clear my head when I happened to hear your voice. I thought it'd be rude to interrupt y'all in the middle of such an important conversation.\" Anastasia elegantly touched her hand to her cheek before turning her pale-aqua eyes to Julius and thanking him for his service. \"It's good you managed to bring Natsuki back. Now Garfiel will finally be able to calm down and talk some when he gets back.\" \"From the sound of that, I guess Garfiel isn't here.\" \"He's running all over the place out there, hardly taking a break at all. Checking the situation at nearby shelters, hunting down those odd brutes who appeared in the center of the town...and more than anything, searching for his precious general.\" \"He was looking for me...?\" It was obvious once he thought about it. Subaru had gotten swallowed up by the flood and gone missing in the middle of the fight. There was no way Garfiel would be able to sit still in that kind of situation. He would definitely try to use his nose to go looking for Subaru, so it was not strange at all that he would be rushing all around the city. \"But with the situation being"}, {"text": "what is, even Ricardo said the scent was gone or too muddled together with everything else. It's funny that Julius was the one to find you when he was originally just going to the Muse Company.\" \"So then Garfiel's still running around town without knowing anything?\" \"I told him to come back and check in here once every hour to be sure, so the next time he comes back, you should be able to see him. But more importantly...\" Anastasia slipped into a deep silence as she looked Subaru over. Subaru instinctively straightened his posture, feeling like his body was being appraised by her intellectual gaze. Anastasia's expression suddenly softened a bit when she saw his reaction. \"Yeah, it doesn't look like you're forcing yourself. There's no hiding from my eyes.\" \"I'm not trying to hide anything. So now that you've decided I'm healthy, what of it?\" Anastasia stepped closer to Subaru. \" I was kinda hopin' to have an important conversation with ya, Natsuki,\" she said quietly. Subaru lightly deflected both the close range and the pressure behind her voice with a simple \"What kind of important conversation?\" \"You heard it, too, right? Before she left the tower, the Archbishop of Lust changed the deal and added a bunch more demands  You aren't planning to just give in to them, right?\" \"Damn straight. I'm pretty pissed. About ready to snap, even.\" When he realized she was referring to the unacceptable marriage demand, a vein practically popped out on Subaru's forehead. Hearing that, Anastasia nodded, satisfied. \"Julius, I'm going to have an important conversation with Natsuki now. Can you manage things while I'm doing that?\" \"If those are your orders. However, what might be the nature of this important conversation?\" \"You don't have to worry; I won't do anything bad to him honest.\" A not-very-cute, impenetrable smile crossed Anastasia's face as she puffed out her chest. Acknowledging his master's clear-cut orders, Julius did not question her any further. Looking away from her knight, Anastasia turned back to Subaru. She smiled as he caught his breath, lost in her pale-aqua eyes. \"So then, let's have a little chat. This is a big one, since it'll affect the fate of this city.\" Anastasia casually stated this as she put a hand to her white fox scarf. 3 An important discussion that would affect the fate of the city. Most likely that was what she really thought and not an idle exaggeration. And quickly realizing that made Subaru far more tense. It was like his disorganized resolve and determination had been given direction. \" After I split off from Priscilla and Liliana, I headed for the Muse Company by myself. And along the way I met up with Julius, which is how I ended up back here.\" Subaru took a little breath after briefly explaining what had happened to him. The two of them were talking in a conference room on the second floor of the building. A map of Pristella was spread out on the table in the center of the room with various characters and signs written on it. The floodgate control towers at the four edges of the city, the floodgates, and even more precise details  \"All the shelters, too? No surprise a city this big has a ton of shelters... That really minimized the damage from the flooding, but they're causing their own problems, too.\" The chaos he had encountered at the shelter flashed through the back of his mind as he looked at the map. Sirius's Authority amplifying the feelings of unease and trapping the city's residents into a negative feedback loop. That same sort of scene was surely happening all around the city. And the ones dealing with that problem in an unexpected way were  \" Mm-hmm, mm-hmm... Yeah, thank you. That explains a lot. I wouldn't have guessed the missing princess gallivanted off to do that, but if anything, I guess that's very much her kind of thing.\" \"Ah, yeah, I get you there. She's reliably unpredictable.\" Anastasia's mouth curled into a vague smile when they briefly mentioned how Priscilla's insane drive for action was often directed in an entirely unpredictable way, but her expression tensed again just as quickly. She looked straight at Subaru. \"So about that leg of yours that got torn off and then stuck back on... Is it really okay?\" \"Fortunately, there haven't been any issues even when I'm running or jumping around. It looks terrible, but I can show you if you want.\" \"Yeah, let me see it.\" Anastasia immediately nodded. Subaru was a little surprised, but he rolled up the right leg of his pants. Seeing the blackened flesh consuming his leg, Anastasia winced slightly. \"It really doesn't hurt? It looks like it should be aching.\" \"I won't ask if you want to touch it, but yeah, it really doesn't hurt. It feels the same when I touch it, too. But anytime I get injured here, it seems to heal faster.\" \"...I assume that isn't the greatest feeling, either. But if it doesn't cause you any issues while running or jumping, then I guess that's good, since we're going to be needing you to do a lot more before this is over.\" While she still had some hang-ups, Anastasia had accepted the situation as it was and come to the same conclusion Subaru had. There was no way to get rid of the blackened flesh, but it was not affecting his ability to act. Given that, it could drop to the back of the priority queue, and they could focus on more immediately pressing problems. For example  \" The victims of Lust's Authority, the people working here who were turned into flies... For now, they've all been gathered in one place here on the third floor.\" \"How did you find out about them without me or Crusch...?\" \"The black dragon that was carrying the duchess. We managed to figure out how to communicate. And the people who were turned into flies were still conscious and willing to follow our directions... I can't really say whether it was the right thing to do, though.\" Subaru did not have an answer for her doubts, either. If their brains were changed along with their appearance, then there would not be any worries about their anguish at getting transformed, but that would be the same as them losing their sense of self, which would be its own unbearable problem. But was it even possible to say that they maintained their sense of self after being transformed into entirely different entities? That was not a question that could begin to be answered by someone who had not experienced it firsthand. \"They can't even control their bodies freely, which has at least prevented any suicides. But I'm sure some of them still haven't accepted what has happened to them... It was at least good that we could protect them before it came to that.\" \"Suicide? That's just...\" \"Do you really think that's something we don't need to worry about?\" \"Ugh...\" Subaru did not have an easy answer for that question, either. But it was clear that even with how far off the rails the situation had gotten, Anastasia was dealing with things in a much more coolheaded way than Subaru. And it was also clear that she was genuinely relieved at having managed to get things there without letting anyone get hurt or getting hurt themselves. \"As long as you're still alive, there's still hope. But if your body or spirit dies, then hope dies with it. Don't stop, no matter how grim things seem. Just stay alive,\" Anastasia murmured, more to herself than to Subaru. And if that strained, desperate clinging was her view on life and death, then Subaru was in full agreement. Stay alive no matter what, even if it meant guzzling down mud to survive. As long as life remained, a chance to fight back would come someday. And in order to get that chance  \"There's a mountain of other problems to deal with. Wrath's Authority running rampant, Lust's victims going through hell, Gluttony wherever they are and whatever it is they want, and Greed, who doesn't make any sense at all...\" \"All we can do is take it one step at a time and crush them one by one.\" Subaru clenched his fist. Anastasia looked up at him from her seat in front of the map on the table. Subaru met her gaze before taking a deep breath. When he stopped to think about it, it was an odd situation. He never would have imagined that, by themselves, he and Anastasia would try to figure out how to deal with the problems afflicting a city that had been plunged into chaos. \" We haven't spoken face-to-face like this since the night before the White Whale hunt, have we?\" \"What a coincidence. I was just thinking the same thing. We were talking about facing off against a dangerous enemy that time, too, huh...? I guess this'll be our second time as witnesses to history in the making,\" Subaru replied. \"Witnessing history, huh? That's a pretty haughty way to put it. But yeah, I suppose it's true.\" Subaru looked dubious as Anastasia nodded to herself, mulling something over. It felt out of character for her. She was usually so direct about everything, but she seemed to be hesitating for some reason. \"Let's not beat around the bush, Anastasia. I guess we don't really know each other well enough to say we don't need to hold anything back, but you went out of your way to have Julius leave us alone, so you must have something you wanted to talk about, right?\" She had instructed Julius to leave the two of them alone because she had a reason. And hearing that, Anastasia said \"Yeah\" with a nod and exhaled. And then she looked Subaru in the eye as she began to speak. \"Let me ask you directly, then: Beatrice is an artificial spirit, isn't she?\" *** Subaru caught his breath. Something about Anastasia's question made it sound like she was already certain of the answer. Beatrice was an artificial spirit who had been created by the Witch of Greed, Echidna. But there was no way anyone outside Emilia's camp would know that. Which meant that regardless of Anastasia's apparent confidence, Subaru could just play dumb. But  \" Yeah, that's right. Beatrice is an artificial spirit, and most likely the cultists had her in mind when they mentioned it in their demands.\" Subaru quietly acknowledged Anastasia's suspicion without trying to dodge the subject. Of the three demands added in the broadcast after the flood, the one about turning over the artificial spirit meant, in other words, giving the cultists Beatrice. Which was one of the two main reasons Subaru's response to them was to flip them the bird and tell them to buzz off. \"Her origin is a little unique, but other than being incomparably cute, there isn't anything particularly special about her. I can't even guess what they might want with her.\" Not that there was no cause for concern, though. Her mother was that nasty Witch, after all. It wouldn't be that shocking if the same Witch of Greed who had tried to make Subaru a puppet in order to indulge her curiosity had also left some kind of bomb lying dormant in Beatrice, and it was possible the cultists were after her because of something like that. \"I doubt anyone else in the city is carrying around an artificial spirit, so it's safe to assume that they are after Beatrice... Anastasia...?\" Having said that much, Subaru cocked his head. Anastasia was listening to his answer with wide eyes and a look of shock on her face. \"Huh? Uh, yeah...\" She nodded, still surprised. \"You're awfully...open about it. Even though it might put her in danger.\" \"We're trying to figure out who the enemy are after, right? They're the only ones who would benefit if I held back now. And"}, {"text": "given the situation, I'm the one who needs everyone's help the most, so it's natural I lay my cards on the table first,\" Subaru responded with a shrug. \"...Yeah, they really are the only ones who benefit from us holding back...\" Anastasia's soft response had a heaviness to it, but before Subaru could probe further, Anastasia touched her scarf, which was seeming more and more like a nervous habit of hers, before shaking her head. \"I had thought it would be difficult to say in front of everyone else, but I guess I was worried over nothing.\" \"Everyone in our camp knows about Beako, so it would've gotten out sooner or later. Besides, I have no intention of negotiating with terrorists, and I assume we're on the same page there, right?\" \"Agreed. I don't know what a terro-whatever is, but I refuse to let the cultists get even one of their demands met. If we gave them what they wanted, there's no mistaking they would just sink the city anyway and I refuse to let that happen.\" Anastasia's suddenly overwhelming resolve gave Subaru goose bumps. Feeling it that powerfully from up close finally made him realize what the source of her intense emotions was. She was burning up from a rage that she could not fully tamp down. It had been hard to notice with her beautiful figure and gentle demeanor and the calm way she behaved, but even so, her wrath had lit a fire inside of her. And the source of that anger was surely something that had happened before she fled to city hall  \"Anastasia, what happened at the Muse Company?\" He had heard from Julius that the Muse Company had been attacked and that at the end of a deadly fight, Anastasia and the others had barely managed to escape with their lives, but at the cost of Kiritaka Muse and the White Dragon's Scale, one of the city's council members and his personal guards, going missing meaning the already grave situation had only gotten worse. And on top of that, the normally calm and collected Anastasia could not fully control her own emotions. Subaru was careful broaching the topic, aware that something particularly bad had likely happened. \"...It was after Julius and Ricardo went with y'all to take back city hall.\" Anastasia did her best to contain the emotion creeping into her voice. At the same time that they had been fighting over there, Anastasia and the Muse Company had been viciously attacked  \" An Archbishop with bandages covering her whole body attacked us.\" 4 \"Lady Anastasia, we've ascertained something troubling.\" Kiritaka looked pale as he broached the subject. Anastasia furrowed her brow. She had just received a report from her conversation mirror on the table that the squad dispatched to retake city hall was engaging the cultists. Once the battle started, all she could do was sit and wait for good news. It was frustrating, but given that she could not take part in battle, her only choice was to ride out times like this with prayers and faith in her people. That was why she had silently prepared herself in front of the conversation mirror like always, but  \"That doesn't sound like good news. What happened?\" \"I imagine you are aware that I've ordered my subordinates to protect the members of the Council of Ten.\" \"You mentioned that, yes. If they are captured by the other side, then it would only be a matter of time before the location of the Witch's bones you are hiding gets out. You don't mean to say...\" Anastasia's expression clouded. \"Has someone been caught and the location already been revealed...?\" \"...No, it is far graver than that. The Council of Ten has been wiped out. According to the reports, every last member other than me has been slain.\" \"What?\" Anastasia had prepared herself for the worst, but that was even darker news than she could have imagined. Seeing her reaction, Kiritaka shook his head, visibly agitated. \"Every last one. My subordinates confirmed they were all found dead either at their homes or in their workplaces. Judging from the conditions of their bodies, they were likely dead before the first broadcast occurred.\" \"Wait a minute; that doesn't make any sense. Aren't they after the remains...?\" Getting that far, Anastasia suddenly came to a perfectly reasonable explanation. She had just naturally said \"they,\" but the Witch Cult was not the sort of group that logically worked together toward a single goal. Currently, there were at least three different Archbishops whose presence in Pristella had been confirmed, but the plan to take back city hall had been predicated in part on the assumption that they were ill-suited to working together. When she considered that as well as the fact that the members of the council had been killed, a hypothesis started to present itself. Though it was hard to believe... \"Only members of the Council of Ten know the location of the Witch's bones. And the recovery of the remains is their goal. And yet someone is murdering the people who know that location one after the other... It doesn't make sense unless there are two competing goals at work here.\" \"One faction that wants the Witch's bones, and another faction that wants to stop them?\" Kiritaka had apparently reached the same conclusion. \"...If Natsuki is to be believed, it might not even be only two different sides.\" Anastasia responded with an even more unappealing thought. Honestly, it would almost be funny was it not so deadly serious: The cultists were maliciously illogical. Their inability to work together was both an opening to exploit and one of the sources of their utter unpredictability. And as galling as it was to say about the lost members of the council, their deaths could not even really be called the worst outcome, since they meant the remains were still safe from being stolen, and the city wouldn't be immediately plunged beneath the waves. But they also made clear  \"I'm sure you realize it, too, Mr. Kiritaka, but...\" \"Their next target is surely this company and me. Lady Anastasia, you should prepare to evacuate the premises.\" \" What are you planning?\" Dispensing with the details, Anastasia questioned Kiritaka directly about what he intended to do. She recognized his resolve as a representative of the city and his strong sense of duty as a member of the Council of Ten. She could understand his position, but  \"Don't go throwing your life away, y'hear? No matter what happens, just keep breathing.\" Kiritaka raised his eyebrows in surprise as Anastasia forcefully stared him down. \"...I'm surprised. I would have expected you to be more inclined to cut losses.\" \"Did you think I was obsessed with money above all else? My company trades under the motto 'Your friendly neighborhood shop.'\" \"Pardon me. Were time permitting, I would have loved to get to know you better over a meal, but...\" \"You've got your Songstress you've set your heart on, right? Don't go cheating on her behind her back.\" \"Yes, you're right and unfortunately time won't permit it, either.\" Anastasia's jaw clenched. He was right. There was no time. If the enemy who was after the council members was coming for Kiritaka next, then the Muse Company would be an ideal hunting ground and there were far too many people there who could not fight. \"I'm aware it is not my place to do so, but I've already ordered my subordinates to begin escorting all those who fled here as well as anyone who is injured to the nearest shelter. You should take the members of the Iron Fangs and Ferris and escape as well. My subordinates and I will act separately. It is too dangerous for me to go with you.\" \"You have some place in mind to go, right?\" \"Of course. I have no intention of sitting around waiting to die...\" Kiritaka straightened the sleeves of his white outfit and flashed a smile.  And then, all of a sudden, a shock wave shot through the building, breaking all the windows at once. \" gh!\" The crashing sound of a storm of broken glass pummeled Anastasia's ears. She immediately dove to the floor. Always be on guard  Was it not for the habit she had formed as a young girl, it would not have been a pretty sight. She would have been showered by a wave of jagged glass shards. Slipping the conversation mirror she had reflexively grabbed into her pocket, Anastasia looked up. Kiritaka had also dropped to the floor, but he immediately leaped up and shouted out the door. \"What happened?! Someone report...\" \" Sorry? And thank you.\" The voice sent a shudder down Anastasia's spine, and she immediately grabbed Kiritaka's sleeve and pulled him down with all her might. She was light, but when she used her full body weight, the slender Kiritaka could not resist and fell down backward. A golden chain tore through the stone wall, passing right through where he had been standing. A cloud of dust jumped into the air, accompanied by the grating cacophony of destruction as the golden chain spun and wreaked havoc across the entire floor. *** Kiritaka just barely avoided the attack thanks to Anastasia pulling at his sleeve. Just a second slower, and he would have been split in two at the stomach. After just barely avoiding disaster thanks to that split-second reaction, the two merchants had barely any time to recover before an unwelcome guest greeted them. \"Ahh, aaaaah, magnificent. Caring for one another, helping one another, entrusting oneself to another those bonds are what allowed you to survive! You've shown me something so...so wonderfully beautiful. It deserves a round of applause.\" A high, cracking voice rang out as someone approached, glass crunching underfoot with each step. Anastasia and Kiritaka caught their breath as the footsteps finally reached them. The half-broken door was kicked in. Breaking through the door by force, a grotesque figure emerged from the dust cloud a hideous presence covered from head to toe in white bandages, with silver hair and purple eyes that seemed to be glaring at everything in the world. It was someone who matched a description Anastasia had heard just recently  \"...The Archbishop of Wrath...\" \"Oh, to think you would know little old me without even needing an introduction! How embarrassing. My reputation precedes me, apparently. It would be nice if it wasn't due to nasty rumors.\" When she put her hand in front of her mouth, the chain rattled intrusively. And there did not seem to be any deceit in the way she showed embarrassment. It seemed to be her genuine reaction, which only made her seem all the more abnormal. Her figure, her presence, her speech it was almost like she was a foreign entity in the world. \"I am Sirius Roman\u00c3\u00a9e-Conti, serving as Archbishop of Wrath. I hope you'll treat me kindly.\" The monster, Sirius, bowed politely, greeting them with unreserved affection. In the face of such a twisted being, Anastasia could not help but gasp for air, as if her soul were desperately trying to free itself. The monster smiling endearingly at them had just seconds earlier wrought destruction on the building. It was weird that she did not seem to feel any shame at that. That she did not seem to think anything at all of it. \"Can you stand, Lady Anastasia?\" The monster was just a stone's throw away. Kiritaka cursed his quivering knees as he forced himself to his feet. Anastasia had started to respond when she felt a swell of animosity rising in her heart. \"Huh? Wh ? Do you even need to ask...?\" A swell of fear rose, threatening to break her spirit as she tried to stand. She could not maintain the strength in her slender legs, and her gasping for breath grew more and more pained. Forget standing; she was on the verge of collapsing on the spot. But right as that concern flared  \"Ugh!\" \"Hah!\" \" gh?!\" An intense shock wave"}, {"text": "turned the shards of glass scattered around the room into a deadly whirlwind. The bandaged creature absorbed the full brunt of it with a groan and fell back. The ceiling cracked between the monster and Anastasia, and two shadows fell to the ground two small figures, orange ears and tails standing on end, the cat siblings howling on all fours. Anastasia had been overwhelmed by dread, but when she saw them, her eyes shot open. \"Hetaro! TB!\" \"Are you safe, miss?!\" \"That's the Archbishop... Gh!\" They only glanced back, still focused on Sirius. Their high shouts stirred Anastasia's heart. She stomped her foot with everything she had. \"I'm...fine. This is nothing! But are y'all okay?!\" The kitten siblings were supposed to be sleeping and recovering from the heavy wounds they had endured in order to keep their elder sister Mimi alive despite the incurable wound she had received. They should not have been able to move, and yet here they were. Anastasia was worried that something terrible had happened to Mimi, but... \"That's not it, Lady Anastasia!\" \" F-Ferris?\" Overhead, Anastasia spotted a cat-eared girl who turned out to actually be the knight who specialized in wind, Ferris peering down from the hole the two had made in the ceiling. Ferris shook his head as he pointed to Hetaro and TB. \"Ferri used a forbidden technique! The same thing I did with Subawu's leg!\" \"Natsuki's...\" Hearing that, Anastasia remembered what condition Subaru had been in when the attack squad departed. After encountering cultists earlier, Subaru had been badly wounded, to the point where he had trouble even walking. But he was still determined to fight, so Ferris had performed a special intervention, using a technique that let him not feel the pain. But if that was the only reason TB and Hetaro were standing, then  *** Blood was pooling at their feet. Crimson already stained the bandages wrapped around their bodies beneath their white robes. In exchange for not feeling pain, the two of them no, all three of them were having their lives shaved away. Unease swelled, tearing at Anastasia's heart, burning away inside her  \" Miss! Eyes forward!!\" \"Hetaro...\" \"Sis would have told us to help you no matter how much it might hurt! We're just following through! What about you? What will you do, miss?\" *** Anastasia gulped at Hetaro's question. He was normally so well behaved and reserved, usually having to be the responsible one who held back the uninhibited Mimi or the boisterous Ricardo. But this time, he was howling and coughing up blood. Faced with that, what would Anastasia what would Anastasia Hoshin do? \" Hetaro, TB, stall for time. Can you two hold out for two minutes?\" The strain visible on her face, she asked them to carry a heavy load on their small backs. The two of them did not even turn, their long tails swaying left and right. \"Sis would say, 'Leave it to me!'\" \"We'd be pretty cool if we could pull it off!\" Hetaro and TB were still smiling, even in the face of everything. They kicked off the floor and then the wall, closing with the enemy. Sirius blocked their staffs with her arms. Faced with the two brothers' teamwork, the monster's purple eyes flared. \"Such adorable sibling love. Are you twins? Ah, how truly endearing...\" \"Sorry, but !\" \"We're the younger two of triplets!\" The metallic chain spun, crashing into a blue magic barrier. Leaving the battlefield being viciously carved away to the brothers, Anastasia looked up. \"Ferris! Use my people to get Mimi and Beatrice out of here! We'll meet back up outside!\" \" Ngh. Y-yes, ma'am! Understood!\" Seeing Ferris slip away from the hole, Anastasia grabbed Kiritaka's sleeve and ran to the window. The door out of the room had become a battlefield that the two of them could not pass, so they would simply have to use an emergency exit, and it wasn't like there were any other choices. \"Ugh, kh...\" Stepping out of the window frame, she set one foot on the ledge outside. At the lip was an emergency ladder that was set up to allow travel downstairs along the outside of the building. Anastasia clenched her fingers tightly, using the pain to stop trembling before climbing down. They had been on the third floor of the building, so they went back inside at the second-floor window. \"It's a little...too soon...to breathe easy...\" Hetaro and TB were still fighting strong on the floor above. The longer it took, though, the more dangerous it became for them, and the more dangerous it became for Mimi, too. It would not be difficult for Ferris to get everyone out of the fourth floor if he directed the Iron Fangs well. The problem was where to go after escaping the Muse Company building  \" Meeting up with everyone who went to city hall would be best,\" Anastasia concluded after getting her head in gear. \"Agreed. It would be best to preserve the greatest chance possible of you joining up with them,\" Kiritaka said, panting. She understood what he was getting at. It was the same sort of logic he had expressed before Sirius appeared. The enemy was after the Council of Ten, so they needed to limit the damage while preserving a way out as well as they could. Knowing just how hard it would be to get away with that Archbishop harrying them while they tried to escape. \"Try to hurry to the center of the city as quickly as you can. My subordinates and I will draw that thing's attention.\" Anastasia could not say anything in the face of his determination. The more calmly she tried to think it through, the clearer it became that that was the most reasonable conclusion. They could not save everyone, so at the very least they needed to make deliberate decisions that would save the most people instead. \"Young master, we've made our preparations. Let's do this in style.\" As the two of them went out into the hall, Kiritaka's subordinates, the White Dragon's Scale, were gathering. Seeing them already prepared for battle, Kiritaka calmly shrugged. \"In style, huh? You know, I was always more partial to reserved and calm performances...\" \"I don't want a lecture about reserve from the man who fell head over heels for Liliana! What a crock!\" The men waiting for the order to rush past the line between life and death burst into laughter. It was too close a relationship to be described by a word like subordinate, but Anastasia could see herself in Kiritaka. He loved the White Dragon's Scale just as she loved the Iron Fangs, and he was putting his life on the line to protect his beautiful city alongside his beloved comrades. No one who saw it could fail to be struck by the tragic heroism of it. The faces of men going off to fight for something they loved, for something they took pride in. \"...That's not fair at all...\" Anastasia murmured to herself. \" Lady Anastasia, I leave Pristella in your hands.\" Kiritaka entrusted Anastasia with his beloved city as he prepared to set foot on the battlefield. Anastasia bit her lip at his earnest plea as he continued his voice filled with love, expectation, and devotion. \"Please protect this beautiful city...and my beloved Songstress from these villains.\" 5 \"Mr. Kiritaka and the folks from the White Dragon's Scale stayed behind while we retreated with Hetaro and TB that's what happened at the company building.\" \"And you joined back up with everyone else here at city hall?\" \"Mm-hmm. It was rough with the floodgate opening while we were in the middle of moving everybody. If we'd been any slower to notice, we'd be up the creek by now...but we avoided the worst of it.\" Anastasia paused, having finished telling her lurid story. Subaru heaved a big sigh. They had done well to hold off Sirius's assault on the Muse Company and then escape with such minimal losses considering how little fighting power had stayed behind after they committed almost everything to the city hall assault. \"The city's representatives, the Council of Ten, have been destroyed. Mr. Kiritaka's gone missing...and that same Mr. Kiritaka left this town to me to protect and there's no way I'm not living up to that promise.\" Anastasia shook her head at what Subaru was thinking, her clenched hands white as her nails dug into her palms, almost like she was engraving the duty with which she had been entrusted into her skin like a curse. Subaru finally realized what the real source of the rage she was feeling was. \"Getting saved is a debt, and debts have to be settled. That's my pride as a Kararagi merchant and my obligation if I'm gonna call myself Hoshin.\" Anastasia's powerful, pointed determination, her firm stance, made it clear to Subaru just how fierce the struggle at the Muse Company must have been. There was no telling how bad the damage would have been was it not for Kiritaka and his party's heroic rearguard action and that did not even begin to describe the true impact of the events that had transpired there. If it had not been for him, not only Anastasia but also Beatrice would have been in danger. Every one of Subaru's comrades there, everyone he knew at the Muse Company, had been saved by Kiritaka's decision. \"Debts have to be settled, huh...? Then I don't have much choice but to pay my dues as well.\" Subaru apologized from the bottom of his heart to the man who had gone missing for all the rude things he had thought about him before. After everyone did every last thing in their power to hold the line, they had managed to just barely hang on to a chance to stage a comeback but there were still many dead who could not be saved anymore, a fact that tortured Subaru's heart. And it only made it worse, given how much he now owed the man, to think that Kiritaka was likely one of them. \"Sorry for going out of order on you. But the gist of it is: I've got my reasons to not back down. And I'd bet you're in the same spot, right?\" \"Yeah, you got that right. I dunno what they want with an artificial spirit, but I'll be damned if I let them lay a finger on my Beako.\" Subaru clenched his fists, his hatred for the cultists clear to see. \"Mm, that'll do, then.\" Anastasia looked down at the map on the table again and pointed to the control towers at the four edges of the city. \"In that case, let's press on. The other things the cultists demanded...\" \"About that, I've got something I should tell you.\" Of the four demands the cultists had listed in the broadcast, they had covered the artificial spirit, but there was another one that Subaru happened to know about. Naturally, since what they were asking for was  \"The book of knowledge it no longer exists in this world anymore. Burned to ashes.\" \"...Care to explain? I couldn't figure anything out about that book, and it has been bothering me.\" If he was being honest, it was nothing more than an abominable cursed tome as far as he was concerned. It had been the impetus for Roswaal's actions behind the scenes while they were in the Sanctuary and had driven Beatrice to four hundred years of solitude in the archive of forbidden books. It would be hard for him to view it in a positive light even if he tried his hardest. And that was also because it was unique in what it contained. \"How do I put it...? The book of knowledge is sort of like a prototype of the Gospels that the cultists have...it's what the Gospels were originally based on and is also a more complete version. It's set up to predict the future the same way the Dragon Tablet works, apparently.\" \"That sounds pretty hard to believe, but you"}, {"text": "said it was burned?\" \"Yeah. There were two books, and they were both burned. So it shouldn't exist anymore.\" \"You keep saying 'exist.' Where'd you hear that?\" \"...From the Witch who made them...\" Subaru's face screwed into a scowl. Anastasia's eyes widened at his response. She chewed over the word Witch for a moment, as if making sure she'd heard him right. \"And this isn't your usual joking around, right? You're serious?\" \"Yeah, deadly serious. You said it before yourself, right? There were other witches besides the Witch of Jealousy. One even died in this city, and her remains are still here somewhere, right?\" \"That's a dead one, though. That's still believable. But from what you said, it sure sounds like you actually met a witch and talked to her. And from the look on your face, it wasn't exactly pleasant, either.\" \"Yeah, I met one and talked to her, all right. And got tricked and set up by her, too. And, well, a lot happened. You get the picture.\" It would be a long story if he talked about everything that had happened in the Sanctuary and in the tomb. It was a bit rude, but there was not much Subaru could say about the Witch Echidna. Or more bluntly, he really did not want to talk about her. For better or worse, Echidna had lodged some sharp thorns deep in Subaru's heart that were not going to just go away. \"Anyway, the only two copies of it that existed in this world were both burned, so the cultists missed their mark there. It should be safe to just ignore that demand of theirs.\" \" But can you really trust what that witch you met said?\" Anastasia fired back adroitly. *** Subaru was at a loss for a moment, his eyes snapping open in shock at how the gears in his head had just stopped turning. \"You've got your thoughts about her and clearly don't trust her at all. But you still believe what she said. Sounds like she is a bit of a troublesome sort of person for you.\" \"...I couldn't agree more. You pretty much summed it all up perfectly. I have no intention of trusting her, so it's weird that I don't doubt that at all.\" The things Echidna had said, the understanding she had shown: They had all been a performance in order to turn Subaru into her puppet. But did that mean he should assume everything she'd said was a lie? And was that vague uncertainty just him wanting to believe there was more to her, or was he still just getting led around by the nose by that know-it-all Witch? The same Witch who had sympathized with how painful Subaru's Return by Death was. \"I can't comment on your connection with that Witch, and I'm grateful to at least get a little more information. But...\" \"But?\" Subaru furrowed his brow, his uncertainty about what he really thought leaving a bad taste in his mouth. \"The cultists went out of their way to demand it on the broadcast. Maybe they just didn't know the book had been burned, but...I think we should consider other possibilities.\" Subaru looked down as Anastasia gently talked around the point. It did not exist; that was what Subaru wanted to believe: The book of knowledge did not currently exist. If that was a lie, it would mean Echidna had lied to Subaru again. And while he could not explain why, that would make him feel disappointed for some reason. \" Natsuki.\" But as he slipped into a sea of thoughts, Anastasia's voice pulled him back. \"Ah, my bad. Um, so what's left is...\" \"There's still the Witch's bones, but we can just leave that for now. The city hasn't been sunk, which is proof enough they don't have the bones yet...though it doesn't tell us anything about Mr. Kiritaka's current status.\" \"Yeah...and the last demand was...\" \" 'The silver-haired maiden's wedding.'\" Anastasia supplied the words Subaru struggled to say. Her gaze bore only a simple question. There was no particularly deep meaning to it, just a doubt born of not being able to grasp what his aim was. There was no one who could fail to guess who 'the silver-haired maiden' meant. As for why the cultists insisted on that demand  \"That bastard doesn't have any ulterior motive or anything. He absolutely meant it exactly how it sounds. He's serious about putting on a wedding.\" \"...With everything going on here?\" \"He's an Archbishop of the Witch Cult. He'd do what he wanted in the middle of Armageddon. They all would. And what pisses me off even more is he has the strength to make it happen.\" The image of the white-haired man carrying Emilia under his arm flashed through his head. When he was taking her away, he had insisted that all that mattered was appearance. A villain with nothing less than a loathsome level of transcendent strength the Archbishop of Greed, Regulus Corneas. Subaru could not say exactly who was responsible for the other demands, but he could confidently say that the marriage demand was 100 percent Greed's. \"That freaking nutjob... No, I guess that fits all of them. Beatrice, the book of knowledge that may or may not even exist anymore, the fate of this whole city, and Emilia! You think I'd let them have anything?! Over my dead body!\" It was hard to believe they could concoct a more insane setup. The only explanation he could come up with was that they were all, every last one of them, living under some different idea of rationality or common sense, some extradimensional way of thinking.  A monster, a blasphemer, a mystery, and a villain. Throw in the not-so-dearly-departed, crazed evil spirit for good measure. They were a gathering of all the mortal realm's sins, incarnations of the world's dark side: the Archbishops of the Deadly Sins. \"...I was hoping for just that sort of reaction, but that was even better than I expected.\" Seeing Subaru breathing hard after getting so worked up, Anastasia relaxed her expression in a moment of approval. But there was no mistaking it for a cheerful smile. It was a manifestation of the rage that had created an unstoppable impulse in her heart. \"You looked an awful lot like Ricardo there.\" \"I'll pretend I didn't hear that. Can't go messing things up between us until after we take back the city,\" Anastasia joked before her expression turned serious again. \"Like we discussed, we won't give them anything. I've got a duty to see through here. To Mr. Kiritaka, for sure, but also to Emilia and Crusch.\" *** \"Emilia and Crusch and the rest of you came to Pristella on my invitation. All of you are my guests. Letting you get hurt like this... I ain't gonna take this humiliation lying down.\" Her pale-aquamarine eyes were filled with deep resolve, and she stared into Subaru's eyes, asking if he was ready to fight. \"We'll need to be prepared to make the necessary sacrifices. Looks like you've made up your mind, too.\" \"Necessary sacrifices...\" \"Everyone's shrinking back 'cause we lost, but can y'all accept where things are standing right now? I sure won't. I'm gonna fight with everything I can lay hands on. I'll worry about excuses for why I lost when I'm dead.\" Her usually gentle, peaceful expression was consumed by a savage drive. \"There is always another chance, as long as you're still alive. I won't let people throw away their lives. It's too heartbreaking.\" The determination welling from her small, slender body was powerful enough to make Subaru forget she was not someone who spent her time out on the battlefield  No, that wasn't quite right. They were already standing on her battlefield. And when it came to talks like these, Anastasia Hoshin was a grizzled veteran. \"It's entirely possible Lust has the ability to change Crusch and the people she transformed back. And we still don't know where Mr. Kiritaka is, but that's all. And you aren't planning on just leaving your precious princess in some stranger's hands, either, right?\" \" Hell no! If they're going to give us four demands, then we should hit back with a little something of our own.\" Subaru was tired of getting pummeled so one-sidedly. Fed up with just doing what he was told. \"We'll save Emilia from that freak, kick Gluttony's ass and get him to spit out Rem's memories, bash Sirius for screwing with the entire city's emotions, and make Capella beg for mercy while changing everyone back! Then we save the city, and boom, everybody lives happily ever after!\" \"Yeah, that sounds good to me.\" Subaru thrust out his fist, and Anastasia gently wrapped her hand around it. It was not the reaction he'd expected, but it was at least proof they were on the same wavelength. Anastasia still wanted to put up a fierce fight, and Subaru could stand behind that sentiment wholeheartedly. So  \"Let's save this city, Ms. Anastasia. We'll do it with our own hands.\" Nodding to Anastasia, Subaru looked down at the map on the table again. It marked every location in the city, but it could not show the faces of the people living there. So he closed his eyes and imagined something else instead. He etched Emilia, Rem, and all the people he wanted to save onto the insides of his eyelids.  In order to keep fighting to save the city and all the people who were precious to him. 6 \"Milady. And Subaru, too. So you were here.\" Julius was standing in the doorway, a trace of relief appearing in his eyes. Stepping over the crack running through the floor with his long legs, he entered the room and approached the two of them. In what was surely an unconscious habit, he touched his bangs as his golden eyes looked out across the trampled, scorched-black room on the top floor of the tower. \"Why are you here?\" \"Natsuki said he wanted to check something. We only just came up here,\" Anastasia said, gesturing with her chin to where Subaru was kneeling on the sooty floor. Subaru was looking farther back in the room, to where a distinctive-looking metia was located. It was the broadcast metia used to communicate with the entire city. It should have been swept up in the battle with Capella and the black dragon's attack, but it had almost miraculously avoided any damage. Subaru breathed easily as he made sure it was still working. \"I see... How did your discussion with Subaru go?\" \"It went a little long, but I'd say it was a constructive talk. It looks like he's had it up to here with everything, same as me. How are things on your end?\" \"As you instructed, I set the members of the Iron Fangs to patrol in shifts. For better or worse, there have not been any noteworthy developments...\" \"That sure sounds like bad news. Without an obvious turn for the better, things are just gonna get worse as time passes... That's just how unease works,\" Anastasia responded as she gently caressed her scarf. Subaru looked up at Julius. \"I visited one shelter before coming here. Any word how things are at the other ones?\" \"It pains me to be unable to share good tidings, but unfortunately the situation is poor everywhere. In most shelters, the people are currently in no condition to act, and most are just staring at their feet in fear and anxiety. The cultists' proclamation has had a profound effect on morale.\" Subaru stood up and murmured, \"Proclamation...\" \"Lust's final threat before abandoning city hall. In addition to announcing the four demands, she also announced that those of us who attacked the tower had been turned back.\" \"...So she told everyone we lost. Framing it as a defeat is definitely exacerbating things.\" Which was precisely what Capella had been aiming for. Sirius's Authority combined perfectly with the psychological effect of"}, {"text": "the broadcast. Between that and Sirius's attack on the Muse Company while they were going after Capella at the tower, despite their not making any effort to work together, they'd still managed to create the worst possible duet. And because of that, the townspeople's will had been broken, and they were getting pulled into a downward spiral, which was inexorably dragging them further into the depths of despair. \"It pains me to say, but it would be good fortune if they merely lost the will to remain standing. There are many who are responding in other ways. Several places are on the verge of crossing a dangerous threshold.\" \"What's happening with those shelters?\" \"We are rushing over as fast as we can to limit injuries to the best of our ability, but...\" Julius hesitated, but that was more than enough to make the dark implication obvious. Still  \" There's no stopping the flood once the dam bursts. Some shelters are beyond saving. And there have been more than a few deaths, too. It's cowardly to avert our eyes from reality.\" \"...Milady...\" Anastasia's words forced him to face head-on the fact that there had already been losses. A more satisfactory look finally appeared on Julius's face, and seeing that, Anastasia focused her increasingly scrutinizing gaze on her knight. \"Pretending you don't see it won't make it disappear. The truth is all around us... What's gotten into you, Julius?\" \"I would never...\" \"This isn't like you at all.\" At first her voice was harsh and stern, but it gradually grew softer and more fragile, her eyes wavering. For just a second, the concern she was feeling for him was visible. But she hid it again in the blink of an eye, reopening her pursed lips. \"...There have been victims. And there will be more. Given that we are trying to save as many people as possible, there is no avoiding the fact that we'll have to give up on a few. We don't have enough hands to do everything. So at the very least we can't turn a blind eye to what that entails.\" *** \"At least Natsuki is properly standing on his own two feet. Accepting that there have been losses and demonstrating the resolve for what's to come. But what about you, Julius?\" Doubt filled Julius's golden eyes no, it had been there the whole time, swaying faintly, unsteady. And seeing that doubt in Julius's eyes, Subaru finally realized something.  Wrath's Authority was affecting city hall, too. Ferris wallowing in his grief, Wilhelm bound by self-doubt and self-reproach, Ricardo baring his fangs in righteous indignation and annoyance, Garfiel running all over town in a fit of anxiety, Anastasia almost desperately doing her best to meet the expectations of the duty she had been entrusted with, and Julius struggling to break free from his indecision. They were all expressing their emotions, baring their hearts more because of the influence of Sirius's ability. And Subaru was surely doing the same, too. *** As Subaru came to that realization, Julius and Anastasia stared at each other. Julius was unable to escape his doubts, and a look of anguish crossed his handsome face as he closed his eyes. Anastasia's logic was sound. She was telling him not to look away from the reality in front of him and demanding he show the resolve to face a fight in which sacrifices would be inevitable. And hearing that, Julius knew that he needed to set aside the troubles eating away at him. He tried again to steel his resolve. To join his master on the path to a victory that would only open up after he made many sacrifices and suffered many losses. If you tried to carry a giant armful of abbles, it would be impossible to avoid letting one or two slip away. And eventually the whole thing would come falling down. In order to avoid that, you had to pick which abbles to carry and which to leave behind. Even a child could understand that concept. However  \" I think you're misunderstanding something, Anastasia,\" Subaru cut in for the first time. The other two looked over at him. While the feelings in their eyes were different, Subaru could tell they were not just emotional. Both were still thinking. \"I swore to rescue this city together with you, but I have no intention of trying to sacrifice the few for the sake of the many.\" \"...We decided on our main goal. I was pretty sure of that from what we discussed.\" Anastasia's eyes narrowed. \"Don't tell me you're gonna start with that unreasonable stuff now, too? If so, then you haven't changed at all from that first time I laid eyes on you back at the castle. Even if it wasn't the usual path, you've become a proper knight now, haven't you?\" \"That's right. I'm a full-fledged knight. And because I'm a knight, there are some things I just can't give up on. That I refuse to give up on. If I gave up on them now, my reputation as a knight would be ruined,\" Subaru said as he changed positions, moving next to Julius. He shrugged as Julius stood there frozen in place looking at him, and then Subaru puffed out his chest. If you were holding an armful of abbles, it was only natural that you eventually could not hold on to all of them. But because he was a knight, the things that Subaru was holding in his hands what Julius was holding in his hands they were not just a bunch of abbles. They were something far more precious. Something irreplaceable. They were not abbles that would not say anything if you gave up and let them fall. They were the lives of people. People who could cry and who got angry, too. People with families, with friends and people they loved. \"I have no intention of letting a single one of them fall. Talking about resolve and determination sounds cool, but that's just giving up with extra steps. And there's nothing cool about that.\" \" Ngh. Again with your foolishness... There were sacrifices during the battle with the White Whale and in the fight with the cultists afterward, too, but you weren't spouting this same stupidly stubborn stuff then.\" \" Don't take me for a fool, Anastasia.\" Subaru's gaze sharpened when Anastasia brought up the White Whale and Petelgeuse. He was not going to back down on that point or let it go unchallenged. She was barking up the wrong tree if she thought that was how things would go. \"The people who fought and fell in those fights were ready to give their lives. It's sad that they died, and they definitely didn't want to die, but they knew what they were getting into. And that makes all the difference we can't assume the residents of this city are the same.\" It was a convenient argument, and maybe it did not really follow, and it was certainly easy to point to the double standard of criticizing one form of resolve while holding up a different kind. But it was a fact that there was a discernable difference. There was a certain resolve required in situations where lives were being put on the line. \"The cultists made this city a battlefield, and that's on them. But it's wrong to let yourself get dragged into that same thinking and start talking about resolve when it comes to the normal, everyday people who got caught up in all this.\" \"Whether we like it or not, the decision the cultists made is going to cause a lot of people who aren't resolved to get hurt anyway, at which point they're just going to have to steel themselves.\" \"There. That's wrong. The cultists have made their own decision, and people who actually have the resolve should be the ones to go after them. If you ask me, having that resolve while always keeping that distinction in mind is what it means to be a knight. That's how I would hope a knight would act, and that's what I teach the kids in the village, too.\" After he had been knighted and gotten fawned over here and there, when Subaru finally became a proper knight like he had always imagined, that was the path he had naturally chosen. And when he swore to always live that way, the children had looked at him with sparkling eyes, so ever since he had tried to never bring shame to that vow.  And because when Emilia, who had been beside him, heard it, her eyes had shone, too. \"I'm Emilia's knight. I want to fight for her. But that doesn't mean I'm only fighting to protect her. Julius is your knight, Anastasia. He wants to fight for you more than anyone else. If you order him, he'll listen to you but that isn't enough to be satisfied. Because knights are by nature greedy people who want to look cool.\" *** \"I always try to look cool even if it kills me. And so does Julius. Because he's the Finest of Knights. That means he tries harder than anyone else to look the part.\" Subaru pointed to Julius with his thumb as Anastasia fell silent. Partway through, Julius, who had been listening silently, suddenly caught his breath, and his eyes widened. An out-of-place, satisfied grin appeared on Subaru's face when he saw how badly that had caught the both of them off guard. \"You talked about necessary sacrifices before. But what I said was 'Let's save this city.' Cities and countries aren't just a bunch of buildings or swaths of land. They're made up of people. At least according to a bunch of mangas and games.\" Choosing at the outset to give up on someone and trying to save someone but failing were two different things. It was easy enough to convince yourself to discard a person in order to create a world you could be satisfied with, but  \" Infecting other people with that self-satisfaction is what makes you no good. That there's a heroic delusion that'll swallow a crowd whole.\" *** Another person suddenly butted in right as Subaru was in the process of trying to turn his naive belief into an idealistic theory. Subaru caught his breath and turned around. It was a slightly muffled voice that sounded familiar. There was almost a hint of irony in the voice, a cynical, pessimistic, philosophical tint to those words as the man wearing a black helmet met Subaru's gaze. \"Stare as hard as you like, it's not going to change the fact that I didn't bring you any presents. You'll just have to make do with my smile. Not that you can see it like this, though.\" \" Al.\" The man in the iron helm shrugged as he joked with Subaru from the doorway. He had chosen to act independently before Subaru and the others left for the assault on city hall, and his whereabouts had been unknown ever since. He slowly stepped into the room and headed over to them. Still under the influence of her intense emotions just before, Anastasia responded gruffly. \"You're back awfully early.\" \"Strictly speaking, I'm not back, since this is a different place from before, but I feel bad about appearing again right after leaving, too. Sorry for being a nuisance, but I didn't come here because I particularly wanted to, either.\" Al remained aloof in the face of Anastasia's sharp response, but he wasn't making light of the situation. As the mood in the room tensed, Subaru spoke up again. \"Hey, I've got a lot I'd like to say, but at least you made it out safe. I was worried you got washed away.\" \"...I was lucky I happened to be on high ground when the water level started rising. And by chance, I happened to get a message for you, Bro. So don't go shooting the messenger.\" Subaru furrowed his brow as Al responded with a casual tone and a"}, {"text": "shrug. Given the situation, Subaru was hard-pressed to imagine whom the message could be from. \"Messenger? Who would send a message in a situation like this...?\" \" It's from your precious, precious princess.\" \" ?! From Emilia?!\" Subaru was thunderstruck by Al's startling revelation, and he stared wide-eyed as if questioning whether the man was serious. Because of Al's obscuring helmet, there was no way to glean any information from his eyes, but he nodded. \"Even I wouldn't joke about something like that. It's exactly what I said, a message from your young master she's seriously doin' crazy stuff behind enemy lines. Scaaaary,\" Al said with a causal shrug. In contrast to his usual flippancy or his stinging irony, he gave an actual sigh. He looked Subaru in the eye and continued. \"The blushing bride is waiting for her Prince Charming to come take her away before the wedding I'm jealous, Bro.\" CHAPTER 3 *** 1 \" Yes, that's it exactly. As I thought, white really suits you.\" \"...Thank you...\" Regulus responded cheerfully to seeing Emilia in her new white dress. After getting dressed by #184, she had been led from the changing room to Regulus's room, where he was waiting. *** This room was adorned with a twisted splendor far removed from the building's overall cold feeling. Emilia furrowed her brow slightly, chalking it up to Regulus's tastes. Also, he was wearing a different outfit from when she had seen him in the hallway. It was still all white, but this time it seemed more formal. Noticing Emilia's gaze, he lightly plucked at his collar. \"Our wedding is a special occasion, after all. I considered wearing my standard, unadorned outfit, but I would never think to embarrass you with a pointless fixation. Consideration for each other, a mutual give-and-take that's the ideal relationship between a husband and wife. And of course, you needn't worry yourself about troubling me over something as minor as this. I just want you to understand the depths of my generosity and willingness to change myself to a reasonable degree for your sake.\" As usual, he talked a dizzying amount. As far as Emilia could follow, the basic content of what he was saying was entirely reasonable, but for some reason, she could not help but hesitate a bit before nodding along. But one thing she could say for sure was that he was unmistakably one of the Witch Cult Archbishops. It was clear enough from the broadcast and what #184 had said, and understanding that and then actually standing across from him again in person, it was impossible to ignore the bizarre presence he had. Her instincts were screaming out in her head. They were telling her that an immense threat to her life was standing there before her. And that reality caused her soul as it would cause any person's to cower and want to plead for mercy. That was why he felt so abnormal. \"You look down. A sunken look does not suit your face at all... No, this complex expression is cute in its own way, but it isn't your best look. Is there something troubling you?\" *** Emilia froze as Regulus casually touched her cheek. She had not thought that she had looked away, but he had closed the wide gap between them in the blink of an eye. Regulus closed one eye as he examined Emilia's still-tense expression. \"#184, did something happen while she was getting dressed?\" Regulus pressed the woman standing next to Emilia when Emilia did not immediately respond. \"...Apologies, but perhaps it might be the effect of Lady Capella's most recent broadcast,\" #184 responded smoothly, as if she had already thought of the response. \"Broadcast? Ah, that. I just ignored it, since that animalistic reprobate's voice is as grating as ever, but I see hearing that for the first time could certainly upset a girl. That was an oversight on my part.\" Loathing and scorn crept into Regulus's expression as he scoffed, accepting that explanation. \"You need not worry yourself about the vile slurs of that blighted, shallow-minded mass of inferiority complexes masquerading as a woman. Unlike her, utterly unworthy of any being's love, your face is worthy of my affections. From the day you were born, you stood above that thing. Have confidence in yourself.\" \"Ummm...\" \"Still troubled? That reprobate really went overboard. I cannot stand seeing that hideous face, but I'll have to lodge my complaints with her directly after this is over. Setting that aside for now, though...what should we do in order to rescue the bride's mood with our joyous ceremony right before us?\" Regulus asked, cocking his head. Emilia thought carefully about how to respond. She could imagine two main choices if she wanted to escape. The first was to break free from her position as essentially a hostage. Honestly, she could most likely slip away from #184 and get out of the building without too much difficulty. But if she did that, the floodgates would be opened, drowning the city. And from what she had seen of Regulus so far, if she was asked whether he would really go that far, she would be forced to say he almost certainly would. There was just too much risk involved with that gamble, so she had no choice but to scrap that plan. There was the bank shot where she fought and beat him then and there in a surprise attack but that was most likely impossible. Her instincts were telling her that she could not defeat him by herself. The fundamental problem was a lack of options, so Emilia chose the other path: the bitter, painful choice of avoiding a rash decision and devoting herself to using this as a unique opportunity to gather information. \"Such a troubled expression. I was merely asking what to do in order to improve your mood, but do you not have an answer? It is true that we are not officially husband and wife until the ceremony is carried out, but in effect, we should for all intents and purposes already treat each other as such. Given that, what should a proper wife do for her husband? For the sake of our future harmonious matrimony, should you not also strive to fulfill your duty, nay, responsibility?\" Regulus's speech accelerated as he quickly grew impatient with Emilia's silence. \"Ah, I'm sorry. Right... I may be a tad tired still. Would it perhaps be okay for me to rest a bit?\" \"Tired?\" Regulus arched his brow, putting his hand to his chin, repeating the word tired several times. \" I see. I was not attentive enough. My apologies. I shall strive to do better. It's only natural that you would be tired with all the sudden happenings occurring all at once. In that case, there is no issue with you returning to your room and resting for a while. There is another outfit planned for you for the ceremony, so you need not worry about lying down in the dress you're currently wearing. My wives and I will take care of the venue's preparations.\" \"The venue...\" \"Yes, there's a chapel attached to this building. It is modest, but well suited for our purposes. We are preparing for the wedding ceremony there. All my wives are here to welcome the newest member of our family. I'm sure that's reassuring news for you. My pride and joy, my admirable, beautiful wives.\" He nodded to himself smugly as he threw open the window of the room and waved Emilia over. Standing next to him like he gestured for her to do, she could see the neighboring building by looking out the window. It was a chapel or more precisely, a building where weddings and other ceremonies were held. She could see the bustling activity happening inside through the open doors and the big windows lining the walls that allowed in voluminous sunlight. There were several figures moving around the building, bringing in decorations and ornaments and generally preparing for the ceremony. Every person she saw working down there was a beautiful woman, and every last one was wearing a stunning outfit. \"I have had a total of two hundred and ninety-one wives...though sadly, death has forced me to part with many of them. Currently, I have fifty-three wives with me, and that will rise to fifty-four once our ceremony is complete. It goes without saying, of course, that I love all of them equally. Twisted does not begin to describe the idea of a husband who plays favorites. I would never do something so dishonorable. I share the appropriate love in the appropriate way at the appropriate time for all I will love you and all of them equally.\" \"Th-thank you... I'll be...sure to keep that in mind...\" Emilia was taken aback as she carefully, nervously tried to find her way to an answer that was maybe correct. She was behaving almost exactly the same way #184 reacted in her fear of Regulus. Being constantly exposed to his violently oppressive presence was enough to wear down even the strongest hearts. That was likely the main reason his wives all had their will to resist sapped away. \"Good girl. Now head on back and rest. I'll have someone send for you once the preparations are complete.\" Fortunately, her limp response did not seem to have hit a nerve, and he merely indicated she should return to her room out of a seemingly genuine concern for her condition. Not resisting, Emilia stepped away from him and headed for the door with #184. She could go back to her bedroom and start planning how to get out of the situation  \"I was thinking, though, it was careless of me not to notice my bride's fatigue, but does it not strike you that the person who was by her side the most should have noticed it, too?\" ***  when Regulus's voice called out right as she was about to open the door. A chill ran down her spine, and she immediately grabbed something else with her outstretched hand. \" Watch out!\" \"Eh?\" #184 widened her eyes at suddenly being grabbed. Emilia pulled her close and leaped to the side. And immediately afterward, a breeze blew through the spot where #184 had been standing, and the wall and door exploded like they had been hit by a giant's hand. The floor peeled away, and the destruction continued in a straight line out into the stone hallway. *** The wave of devastation splintered the room and crushed the entrance. Seeing that overwhelming show of force, Emilia was speechless as she clung to #184. Realizing the target of that destruction, #184 tensed and curled up, making herself smaller. Regulus, who had only casually swung his right arm, tilted his head at the two of them. \"Ah, apologies, apologies. That was careless of me thank goodness nothing happened to the two of you.\" *** \"Anyway, I have something to attend to, so I'll be in the other room. Oh, and perhaps we should have your hair done up before the ceremony? I think that would really amplify your natural allure. You are lovely as is, of course, but no effort should be spared at becoming even more beautiful. Naturally, I am content with my happy and satisfied state, but I would never protest your efforts to improve yourself. Doing one's best for someone who loves you is the most fundamental level of etiquette a person can express, after all.\" Regulus smiled at Emilia as if that earlier act of destruction was of little note, then he left behind his wife and soon-to-be wife, holding each other on the ground. Once his white back was no longer visible down the hallway, Emilia let out a long breath. \"...What was that?\" It made no sense at all. Both the reason for the action and the way that he acted, neither of them made any sense. \"...Thank you for saving me,\" #184 said before slipping free from Emilia's dumbfounded embrace. The agitation she had just felt"}, {"text": "disappeared from her face, and she stood up and adjusted her hair. And then she began to clean up the destruction wrought by a wave of Regulus's hand. \"Wait! This doesn't make sense at all! You were almost killed just now!\" Emilia took issue with how #184 accepted the violence of just a moment before and moved on to another task. Regulus's presence was menacing, and maybe there was some logic guiding his actions and words that others could not follow, but even if that was the case  \"If I hadn't pulled you away, that would have hit you. You were even trembling.\" \"And what of it? I thanked you for saving me. Please don't expect any more than that from me. Anything more would be overstepping bounds.\" \"This isn't about bounds or obligations! It's more important, more precious than that!\" #184 stubbornly refused to face Emilia. And Emilia could tell that it was simple self-preservation that was keeping her heart locked away. She could understand it, but that did not mean she could accept it. \"Regulus said that everyone was equal. So does that mean that all the wives in the chapel are like this, too? Everyone is just cowering in fear of him, always watching him, trying to get by without drawing his attention? Just accepting that he tried to kill you... It doesn't make sense at all!\" \"That's just one dynamic between husbands and wives. Once you've experienced it more, you will grow used to it...or if you don't, then that will be the end of you.\" #184 did not even turn to answer Emilia's desperate pleading. It was enough to make Emilia feel like she and #184 were living in two different worlds. \"That doesn't make any sense at all... Isn't getting married what people who are happy together and love each other do? But I'm not happy, you don't look happy, and none of them look happy, either. Am I wrong?\" \"...Yes, you are wrong. Being happy together is not a requirement for getting married. There is no requirement that a husband and wife love each other, either. The only requirement is being around each other all the time you get used to being married.\" #184 did not deny that she did not want to be in her current position, and yet she still affirmed her current status. It was a twisted, misguided point of view. Marriage was something that was supposed to be desired, not just something that couples got used to. \"Please do as he said. Go back to your room and try to rest. Take the dress off if you would like. I will come by before the ceremony to do your hair.\" *** With that, #184 focused on cleaning up the rubble and tidying the wrecked room. Emilia tried to say something to her, but her words faltered and failed to come out. No matter what words she chose, they would not have any weight to them as long as she was unable to do anything about Regulus. She pulled back her outstretched hand, clenching her fist regretfully at her inability to reach out. 2 \" All right, that should be good!\" Wiping her forehead with her forearm, Emilia nodded in satisfaction at her handiwork. Rejected by #184, she had returned to her bedroom, but she had not sulked at her own powerlessness in a fit of depression or anything cute like that. She had of course been depressed at her powerlessness, but it also spurred her on. She could not abandon #184 and the other women forced to be Regulus's wives and constantly endure his whims. Her spirit was roiling with determination. But no matter how much she screamed or pouted, there was probably no way she could change Regulus's mind. And if she tried to fight fire with fire, she would just lose against his overwhelming strength. So she had searched for another path forward, following Subaru's example. \"Subaru wouldn't just rush into things without thinking it through first. It all starts with preparation.\" She pulled the sheets over the ice sculpture shaped like her that was lying on the bed, making it look like she was obediently sleeping. No one looking in from the door would be able to notice it was not really Emilia. And having done that, she would spend the time until the ceremony  \"Here we go.\" She smoothly slipped out the window and headed out to gather more information. Raising her hands, she crafted a ledge of ice on the outside of the building and easily escaped her room. She could have simply escaped at this point, but that was out of the question, given the situation, so she started looking for useful information instead. \"This really was one of the floodgate control towers.\" Emilia had headed for the top of the building first in order to get a grasp of her surroundings and where she was being kept, and it perfectly matched the control towers she had seen earlier.  With the cultists occupying the towers, they had control of the city's floodgates. There was a sinister red flag hoisted from the top of the tower, emphasizing that it was being occupied. And the three other towers all sported the same red flag. \"They took all four of the towers, so the city is helpless...\" Straining her purple eyes to see the other towers in the distance, Emilia slipped into thought. Just a single gate opening had caused that much damage, so even if she entirely froze the tower she was in to prevent it from activating, there were still three more. \"If only there were four of me...\" If there were, she could freeze all four towers at once. And also, if there were four of her, two of them could teach each other her studies while one learned how to cook and the other chatted with Subaru. It would solve a lot of different problems all at once, but unfortunately, things were not that simple. \"There's still just one of me, no matter how much I might wish otherwise...which means I'm going to have to get someone's help.\" Her reliable friends and the other candidates would surely be planning something to take back the city. And they were all either clearer thinkers or stronger or able to do more than Emilia. But Emilia was probably the only one who had been caught by the enemy, which meant she was the only one who could probe the enemy position from the inside.  I'm alone. I was separated from everyone else and now I'm in the middle of enemy territory. Turning that hopeless situation around in her head was something she had learned from Subaru Natsuki. \"There is a chapel right next to the tower, so that means this should be the tower in the third district. With so many Archbishops here, it should be useful to know which one is in which tower.\" As best as Emilia could tell, the upper hand in the fighting would be more an issue of compatibility than one of true strength. Regulus and Sirius were powerful, too, but beating them would come down to which people were arrayed against them. And unfortunately, Emilia could not imagine how to defeat someone as powerful as Regulus. \"If they can just tell who is where, though, then they should be able to think of a way to pull it off.\" Putting a massive amount of trust in that assessment, Emilia leaped down from the roof in order to carry out her role. The hem of her white dress fluttered in the wind as she used a scaffold of ice to clamber down. If anyone looking up happened to see her, they would almost undoubtedly think her a witch beyond human ken, but there were not many in the town with the courage to raise their heads and look to the towers where the Witch Cult's flag flew. Emilia flew down the control tower, enjoying that one small blessing. 3 \" Tell me, do you think I want to be having this pointless conversation right now?\" The moment she heard that annoyed voice, Emilia landed on a larger ice foothold, leaned her back against the wall, and held her breath Regulus's voice was coming from a room in the chapel right behind her.  Emilia had learned a lot in just a short time running all around the tower. First of all, there were no signs of any cultists other than Regulus at that tower she could not see any trace of anyone other than his wives. She had struggled to believe it, but she had even carefully approached the control room for the floodgate, so it was safe to say the tower's defense was full of holes. It was hard for her to determine if it was from carelessness, confidence, or was just natural given Regulus's impossible strength, but she took it as good news that they did not have to worry about anyone other than Regulus here. But that was still not enough. She needed to get something more decisively useful. And just as she was thinking that, she heard his voice. Emilia created a foothold from ice just beneath the window to his room and hid there, listening to what was happening inside. Her nerves tensed when she realized he was talking to someone. She was afraid it was one of his wives, in case he was about to attack her like he just had #184. If that happened, she would have to stop him, even if it meant revealing her rebellious intentions. *** Emilia pursed her lips as she made a mirror of ice in her hand and carefully peered into the room. The cool mirror reflected a waiting room on the second floor of the chapel. Unlike the control tower, it had a majestic appearance appropriate for a building where ceremonies were held. The waiting room was not gaudy; instead, it gave off a tranquil and sublime feeling.  Or at least, it would have if not for the ominous and dreadful white-suited figure standing in the middle of the room. \"...No one's there?\" Tilting her ice mirror to look around the room, Emilia furrowed her brow. There were no other people visible in the room. Had it only been a loud complaint to himself? That would not have been that shocking, but straining her eyes, Emilia realized it was not that, either. He was definitely talking to someone more specifically, he was addressing a mirror in his hand. \"How many times must I repeat myself? I only came here to find my fated bride. And having found her, I am holding a wedding. A wedding is something to be celebrated and certainly should not be disrupted. A brute who would do such a thing betrays themself to be a petty, small-minded villain who begrudges others their happiness. Though I am well aware you all have always been filth.\" Regulus was talking to someone on the other end of the mirror. It was a conversation mirror a metia that allowed its user to speak with whoever had the other mirror, wherever they were. Regulus was using it to talk to someone somewhere else. \"It is not as if I have any particular interest in your actions. But opening the floodgate, that is unacceptable. It is not a part of the plan. And I can only interpret your willingness to do something unplanned that upsets my bride as a desire to ruin the wedding I'm painstakingly preparing. And clouding my bride's face, sullying the joyful occasion of my blessed marriage what should be the most sunny and happy of stages in my life that is an injurious infringement of my rights.\" Regulus's annoyance was growing as he spoke. Emilia could feel a burning sensation on the back of her neck as she realized that he must be talking to another cultist, seemingly one connected to the flooding that had just hit the city  *** \"You are aware, are you"}, {"text": "not, that I can see your tower quite clearly just across the city from here?\" Regulus said, suddenly throwing the window open. Just beneath the window, Emilia stifled a shout at the sudden movement. She held her breath, praying that he would not notice her below as she focused on what he was saying. Fortunately, he seemed oblivious to her presence and continued speaking from his vantage point like nothing was out of the ordinary. \"It isn't even so far away that I can't see it. It would be a simple matter for me to blow your tower away from here if I so desired it. A word of caution: Do not assume that you and I are equals. You'd best treat this with the imperative of an order... What?\" Judging from how Regulus was looking off into the distance, Emilia gathered that the person he was talking to was in the tower directly across the city. And that person was  \"You weren't the one who opened the floodgate? What sort of excuse do you think that is supposed to be? You were the one who made that grandstanding threat on the broadcast, were you not? Claiming now that you were not the one who opened the floodgate is utterly unconvincing... You shouldn't tell such pointless lies, you repulsive reprobate.\" *** \"Well, either way, I've conveyed my demand. And after your tactless display, at least the people in the city won't interrupt the proceedings between my bride and me... Once the stage is properly set, I shall hold my marriage, and then I will leave the city with my wives. It is on you to achieve whatever it is you want before then.\" Spitting that out, Regulus closed the cover on the mirror in his hand. Standing at the window, he narrowed his eyes as he brushed back his hair. \"What an asinine excuse. 'Some rat sniffing around.' Do you take me for a fool? Trying to hide your own incompetence while treating it as a word of caution. You only confess your own pettiness by clinging to such trivial pride. And assuming just because you were had that others would be, too, is the mark of a rotten character, though that is not the only thing rotten about you, I suppose.\" Regulus expressed a heartfelt loathing for someone who belonged to the same organization that he did. Sitting outside the window, Emilia was the only one who heard his muttering, and recognizing Regulus's remoteness from others, the way he was in conflict with everyone and made no effort to change that, she felt a gloomy despair. Just then, there was a knock on the door. \" May I enter, sir?\" \"...Come in.\" A woman stepped into the waiting room. Another woman besides #184, though she was also beautiful and similarly dressed up. It was clear at a glance from her frozen eyes and expression that she was another one of Regulus's wives. \"The preparations for the ceremony are continuing apace. We have begun the interior decoration, however...as you requested to direct the interior design personally, I came to let you know we are ready,\" the woman responded with a polite curtsy. \"Ah, it's already time? Yes, right. Let's get to it, then.\" Regulus nodded. He walked away from the window and left the room together with the woman. The door closed, and Regulus's presence faded into the distance. Silence fell over the waiting room. \"Haaaah... That was close. I almost made a sound.\" Emilia patted her chest as she hopped through the window and into the room once she was sure it was safe. She still had plenty of mana in reserve, but that bit of covert movement had drained her mental reserves. Taking a deep breath at clearing the first hurdle, Emilia parsed what she had heard. \"The control tower visible straight across from here... If I'm right, this is the third district's tower, so the one across the city is in the first district and based on the conversation, the one there should be the Archbishop of Lust.\" Parking herself where Regulus had been standing, she looked out in the same direction he had, confirming her guess for the location. He had not mentioned a name, but he had identified the person he was talking to as the one behind the broadcast and called them a reprobate, which all but confirmed he had been talking to Lust. That meant that Lust was based in the first district, and Regulus was in the third. Even just that much should be at least a little bit useful for the others. The only remaining problem was  \"How do I tell them?\" Emilia cocked her head in thought as she crossed her arms. Sharing the information she had gathered was the most challenging part. Even though she had managed to get something worthwhile, it would be meaningless if she could not find a way to share it. The only thing she could think of was perhaps making a big sheet of ice on top of the tower and writing it out on that, but that would be visible to anyone and would likely fail. She could maybe rush over to them directly to tell them and then slip back into the control tower as if nothing had happened... \"If I was out that long, it would definitely get noticed...\" The defenses seemed full of holes, but counting on that to save her was as good as acting without a plan at all. She could not endanger so many people's lives on such a risky gamble. \"If only there was some reliable way... Huh?\" As she looked around the room, desperately trying to think of something, she arched her brows. It looked the same as when she had peeked in using the ice mirror, but there was something on the desk that caught her attention. The conversation mirror that Regulus had just been using. He had tossed it down in a fit of frustration after he was done. Picking it up, Emilia stared at it. \"If would be nice if it could just connect to any mirror...\" But unfortunately, conversation mirrors were not that convenient. They could only communicate with mirrors imbued with matching magic. There were some capable of communicating with more than just a single paired mirror, but for the most part, they only worked in fixed pairs. Even if Emilia activated it, the person on the other end would be none other than the Archbishop of Lust. \"It would be nice to try to talk with that Lust person once.\" But Emilia didn't have it in her to hold a composed conversation at the moment, and it would only reveal that she was moving around behind Regulus's back. Thinking about it realistically, she had no choice but to give up on using the mirror to communicate with everyone. She could also just break it there to keep Regulus out of contact with the other cultists, but  \"It doesn't really seem like they are working together anyway. What do I do...?\" She could not afford to take a pointless risk that would reveal the presence of a mole. But while Emilia grappled with what to do, something happened.  The mirror she had set on the desk activated, and a white light shone out from behind the cover. \"Ah.\" Emilia took a step back from the desk in surprise. But the light from the mirror did not stop. It meant that the person on the other end was trying to connect. All Emilia had to do was open the cover, and it would connect. But she was not sure what to do. It went without saying that the person on the other end was almost certainly someone connected to the cultists, if not Lust herself. There was no benefit to answering, but it was also possible for things to be leaked via the mirror, as they had been when she overheard Regulus. In one sense, it was possible to justify turning a blind eye to the downsides. After worrying and thinking about it, Emilia decided to  *** She flipped the mirror so it was pointing away from her before opening the cover. The two mirrors connected, but the person on the other end would not be able to see Emilia. They would surely notice something was off, but if she was lucky, they might let something slip first. That was her working theory, at least, and she ended up getting rewarded from an entirely unexpected angle. \" Oh, there's a response. Wait, there's no one there. What's going on? That ain't how it's supposed to work. Did I mess something up?\" \"Eh?\" Unexpectedly, the voice she heard through the mirror was a man's voice. She was caught off balance after having assumed she would be connected to Lust. But that was not the only reason for her shock. The voice was familiar. She had heard it just that morning at the Water Raiment Inn  \" Al? Is that you, Al?\" \"...Whoa, whoa, hold up, it went this route?\" Emilia flipped the mirror, blinking as she saw who was on the other end. It was Priscilla's black-helmed retainer, Al. Naturally, he could see her, too, and even though she could not see his face through the helm, she could tell he was shocked as well. \"Um, this is unexpected. How did you happen across this conversation mirror?\" \"The truth is: I'm in the middle of sneaking around investigating things. And just as I was looking around the room where this mirror happened to be, it started flashing... Oh, right!\" \"Wh-what?\" \"Hey, Al, can you get in contact with Subaru and the others? There was something I wanted to let them know.\" Eyes sparkling at the miracle of someone she knew having been on the other end of the mirror, Emilia decided to make the best of the situation. Caught up in her momentum, Al responded without thinking too deeply on it. \"Y-yeah...I guess so? I'll let him know you're safe and want him to come save you...\" \"Tell him Regulus, the white-haired Archbishop, is in the control tower in the third district. And also the Archbishop of Lust is apparently in the first district's tower. There aren't any other cultists in the third district, but Regulus is really strong, so don't let your guard down.\" *** \"It would be better if I could investigate the other towers, too, but I don't know where Sirius is. But there was that broadcast, too, so tell him to make sure to protect Beatrice, too. And, um...\" \" Wait a second.\" Emilia was going through the list of things to tell Subaru when Al stopped her. Hearing that, she looked surprised as she asked, \"What is it?\" \"I knew you were tough and hyper-positive, but there's gotta be some other things on your mind, too, right? Considering the situation you're in and all.\" \"This was all I could manage after thinking hard about what to do and following through... Was there a better way I missed?\" \"Nah! That's not what I mean... I mean you don't have to be trying so hard, forcing yourself to do this and that. You're a captured princess, after all.\" \"Hmm...\" Emilia's eyes wavered as she caught her breath, taken aback by his strong tone. \"No need to be reckless or try the impossible. It's okay to want Bro...Subaru Natsuki to save you...\" \"I'm sorry for worrying you, Al. No, I should say thank you but it's okay.\" \"It is...?\" \"I'm not forcing myself to keep going. And it might sound a little strange, but \" Emilia naturally broke into a smile. Despite being all alone behind enemy lines, despite being so close to such a powerful being, and despite being in the most danger she had ever been in in her life. \" I never doubted that Subaru will come save me. That's why I want to do everything I can to make it less dangerous when he"}, {"text": "eventually does.\" *** That was unmistakably how she truly felt. She was absolutely sure that Subaru would come save her. But she was also determined to not just sit back and leave everything to him. \"Please, Al. I'll be sure to apologize to Priscilla later for asking for your help with such a selfish favor...\" \"...You really don't doubt that there will be a later, do you? Damn, that's sure something.\" Touching the seam of his helm with his finger, Al heaved a deep, heavy sigh. \"Fine, I got it. I'll let them all know what you told me. You can rest easy and just play the captured princess now. All that's left is for you to wait for Prince Charming to save you.\" \"Subaru's the one who will save me, though, not some prince...\" \"Ah, right! Bro, right! My bad! I messed that up! But seriously, just sit still and don't do anything crazy. This isn't a game.\" \"Mm-hmm, I understand. You be careful, too, please.\" Emilia nodded at the serious warning that followed Al's joking response. Hearing that, Al snorted a little and then shut off the mirror. The light disappeared from Emilia's end, and it went back to being a simple mirror. \"...Phew. Now it will at least get back to Subaru and the others.\" Blessed with an unexpected opportunity to share what she had learned, for once Emilia was grateful for her fortune. Putting the mirror back on the desk, she left out the window again, careful not to leave any traces of her having been in the room, and then returned to the control tower and back to her room. She judged that she had reached her time limit for wandering around gathering information. The mirror's connecting to Al had been a coincidence, not something that would ever happen again. Considering that, she really had been blessed. It was unbelievably lucky that it had just happened to connect with someone outside the Witch Cult so she could send a message and that that someone had been Al, of all people.  If it was Al, he would definitely be able to get her message back. \"...Huh? Why am I so sure of that?\" Emilia was confused as to why she was so confident that her preparations were perfect after having left the rest to Al. But an answer soon started to form in her head. Something about Al reminded her almost of Subaru. That was probably why she was so sure. Emilia did not think about it more deeply than that as she scrambled back up the ice scaffolding. 4  The blushing bride is waiting for her Prince Charming to come take her away. After claiming to be a messenger sent by Emilia, that was what Al said. Subaru caught his breath and then slowly chewed it over. \"Don't gimme that 'I wouldn't lie to you' bullshit. There's no way Emilia would say something that on point. Don't make me kick your ass.\" \"Sheesh, the two of you together couldn't find a funny bone if it smacked you in the face. Got me worrying I'm losing my edge.\" \"Like I give a damn about your edge! Quit screwing around, man...\" Al could not hide his disappointment, his shoulders slumping as Subaru shouted. Subaru started to approach him to seriously demand what he really meant, when  \" General!\" \"Whoa?!\" He was stopped by a bolt out of the blue that came tumbling into the room and ran straight into him. Subaru took a big step back to keep from being bowled over by the unintentional tackle. Somehow managing to stay on his feet, when he looked down at his waist, he saw a blond mop of hair clinging to him. Between the shout and the hair, he quickly realized it was the little-brother figure he had not seen for a few hours. \"Garfiel! You were all right! Where'd you come from all of a sudden...?\" \"That's my line! You were...and I...I was...!\" \"Wh-whoa, are you crying...?\" From the way his voice was catching and how he was hiding his face, Subaru was worried he might be crying, but Garfiel looked up with his face all disheveled. \"I'm not crying! I was a little on edge is all...! You and Bro and Lady Emilia and Beatrice and everyone were all...\" His eyes were just barely still dry, but he was red all the way to the ears, almost failing to hold back the tears that were threatening to come bubbling up. But this was not the time or place to be teasing him. It was plain to see exactly how distraught Garfiel had been. Everyone he had come to Pristella with had been either unconscious or missing. And on top of that, he had come as a guard, and yet he was the only one who had made it out safe. Just imagining the despair he must have been feeling was plenty uncomfortable. And in the end, he had spent the past several hours not listening to Anastasia or anyone else and constantly searching all over the city for Subaru. \"I'm sorry for worrying you. But as you can see, I'm okay. Though I came back a little darker in some places...\" \"Huh? Darker? What do you...?\" \"We can discuss that later. So is it just a coincidence that you showed up at almost the same time as Garfiel?\" Subaru asked Al as he patted Garfiel's head. \"I can wait if you want,\" Al said, cocking his head. \"This is your moving reunion with your little bro, right? Take your time.\" \"A part of me is screaming that this probably can't wait. So what is it?\" \"Well, in that case... Yeah, you ain't wrong. I agreed to deliver your princess's message, but it's not like I can just be casually wandering about, you know?\" Al nodded in confirmation before alluding to the dangerous state of the city. He most likely was referring to the demi-beasts prowling the streets in search of prey, and perhaps he even meant people who had lost control and were acting under the impulses of Sirius's Authority, too. \"So you just happened to encounter Garfiel while headed here?\" Julius asked. \"...I was searching for the general since he got swept up in the water, but because of the floodgate opening, the whole city got sloshed, and I couldn't track his scent. I was still desperately lookin' for any new scent, but just when I thought I found somethin' similar...\" \"It was me. I wish I could show you how fast he just deflated. It's not like I did anything wrong, either, but I still felt kinda bad,\" Al explained lightheartedly. But it was no laughing matter for Garfiel, and as expected, he glared at Al angrily. \"Who asked you, coward? And I sure as hell wouldn't be bringin' ya here if ya didn't claim to have a message from Lady Emilia.\" \"That makes two of us. It's not like I wanted to go out of my way and come here if she hadn't asked me to deliver a message. I haven't even found my own princess yet.\" Between Al's going his own way before the city hall fight and this most recent spat, he and Garfiel did not get along well. Subaru slipped between the two of them, holding Garfiel back as he started to snap at Al. \"Quit making fun of someone not even half your age. And if you're still looking for Priscilla, I ran into her in the fourth district. She was there with Liliana, the Songstress, going around to all the shelters looking for that Schult kid.\" \"Really? Weird how we ran into each other's masters like that. Was she all right?\" \"It looked like she was doing fine. She's a weird one.\" Subaru had originally chalked Priscilla up as unaffected by Sirius's Authority due to some inherent inability to empathize with others, but he'd eventually realized that wasn't really the case. Which meant either there were differences in how much it affected individuals, or else  \"We've gotten a little off track, but...do you really have a message from Emilia? Or was that just another one of your bad jokes?\" Growing increasingly exasperated by the aimless conversation, Anastasia finally asked Al for the message directly. \"The former,\" Al said as he scratched the visor of his helmet. \"I wasn't lying about her waiting to be saved, either, but that's not the main point. Since she was up close and personal with the enemy, she seized the chance to gather some information about their positioning and managed to get word back to us.\" \"She did what? ...Emilia-tan? She did something that smart?\" \"You're Lady Emilia's knight, are you not? You should take more care when speaking of your master,\" Julius scolded. Still, Al's message from Emilia was unexpected in any number of ways. Most importantly, the information she had passed along would be unfathomably useful. \"Lust is in the control tower in the first district, and there is a white-haired Archbishop in the third district. She also said the white-haired guy didn't have any cultists with him. And that you have to take care of Beatrice.\" \"Those are all pretty important, even that last bit...and that's a huge help, actually.\" Emilia had somehow managed to figure out where two of the Archbishops were stationed and had successfully passed her findings to Al. Knowing how impossible Regulus was to deal with, it wasn't hard for Subaru to imagine the dangers she must've braved in order to secure that information. But  \"How did you manage to get in contact with her? There's no way you could have just stumbled into each other out on the street.\" \"Like I said before, it was just by chance. The stars were all aligned or something. I was out walking around in the city when I picked up a conversation mirror that the cultists were using. And it happened to connect to her.\" \"How lucky can you be...?\" Al's explanation was lacking, and it was clear he had no intention of being more forthcoming. But it was not an out-and-out lie, and it clearly wasn't a joke or just him shooting the breeze, either. Subaru could sense a certain seriousness to Al's response that made him trust it. \"I know it's weird to say when I'm the one who brought this guy here, but are you seriously gonna take him at his word, General?\" \"I believe him. The last bit about being worried for Beatrice sounds exactly like something she'd say.\" *** \"That's not enough to be sure, but...I'd like to think Emilia would do her best and not give up, even in this crappy situation.\" If she could be that single-mindedly positive and believe in Subaru despite everything that had happened, then he would give his all and try to save her in the same way. \"Though, it would be nice if she didn't overdo it and try anything too reckless, either...\" \"I'm with you there, man. She's way too energetic for someone stuck behind enemy lines.\" Judging from Al's reaction after he'd actually spoken with Emilia, she was not at all acting the part of the damsel in distress, even if she seemed like she was born to play one in some theater show or movie. If anything, that unusual bravery was just like her, which made Subaru proud. \"Anyway, that was her message, so my job's done here... So what are all you doin' here, and what's that huge metia for?\" \"Naturally, this is the headquarters for the take-back-the-city-from-the-cultists squad. And the metia back there is a broadcast device that can carry a voice to the entire city... It's our trump card for turning this thing around.\" \"You don't say.\" Al chuckled at Subaru's self-assured response. On the other hand, Garfiel was shocked enough for the both of them. His sharp fangs were trembling as he looked at Subaru. \"Did you think of something that can"}, {"text": "turn everything around, General?\" \"Yeah, something that might have a decent shot  Do you know how to use this metia, Anastasia? Or if not you, does anyone else?\" Subaru asked as he looked over at it. \"...Something like this wouldn't be too hard for me to get going,\" Anastasia responded. Subaru nodded to himself as he continued looking around the room. Garfiel and Al, plus Julius and Anastasia four people who were well suited for sounding out his idea. \"As you all know, Wrath's Authority is currently putting everyone inside the shelters around the city on edge, and these places are ready to blow. It's okay as long as they're still just smoldering, but there's no telling when they might go off.\" \"Yeah, you've got that right. I checked in on a bunch of them while lookin' for you, but...\" Garfiel's expression clouded. He must have seen something unsettling in the short time that he'd been running around. It looked like he was struggling to stay calm, as if there was something bothering him besides his general concern for their friends. Subaru noticed it but decided to keep the focus on the current topic first. If things went the way Subaru was imagining, then whatever was bothering Garfiel might be resolved in the process, too. \"Between the cultists' broadcast and the current state of the city...it's only expected that everyone's worries would balloon while they're stuck far from home and forced to hide out without any sign of things getting better. And that only gets worse when people are crammed into a small space together. The shelter system is actually stoking the fire...though, even without them, people would end up congregating anyway, I guess.\" \"That is the most insidious aspect of Wrath's ability. It makes you feel more alone, eats away at your heart, and even threatens your life. It's absolutely unforgivable,\" Julius commented with quiet anger. Anastasia glanced over at him as she touched a hand to her fox scarf, then looked at Subaru. \" I have a good idea what exactly it is you are thinking of doing.\" \"Well, yeah. I mean, I did come all the way up here to make sure the metia was still functioning, after all,\" Subaru said, grinning awkwardly as he scratched his head. Al and Julius also caught on from their exchange and turned toward the metia in the back of the room. Garfiel alone hadn't figured it out yet, cocking his head in confusion. \"What...? What are you planning to do, General?\" \"Basically, Bro is thinking of turnin' Wrath's Authority on its head.\" \"Huh? What does that mean...?\" \" Sirius's ability is amplifying the unease that all the residents of the city are feeling. And Lust's nasty broadcast was what lit the fuse. In which case...\" \"We just need to inspire people's hopes the same way that the cultists preyed on their fear.\" Julius said, finishing the thought, and Subaru nodded in hearty agreement. Sirius's Authority shared and amplified people's emotions but that was all it did. While it could heighten existing emotions, it couldn't do anything to emotions that weren't already there. And if that was true, then if they could just paint over the unease and fear running rampant through the city and replace it with hope... \"That hope would spread and fill the city instead.\" \" ! Ohhhhh! That's right! If you do that, no one'll start killing one another! And all the people who've given up will feel better...!\" Garfiel's eyes shone as he punched his fists together in front of his chest. There was a resounding crack as they hit. \"Time to make it happen!\" Garfiel grinned. \"We've got the metia right here. No point wasting time. Let's do it now...\" \"Wait. It ain't that simple. It's not like I didn't consider that option, too.\" Anastasia cut in, putting the brakes on the idea. \"Huh? Why are you stopping us? You know what's happening out there right now.\" \"Yes, I do, and I've thought about it at least as much as you have. But that's exactly why I can't just say do as you please... How do you think the cultists will react when they hear the broadcast?\" Garfiel gulped. \"The floodgate opened after we attacked city hall, almost like it was meant as retaliation or like they wanted to show what happens when people go against them. If that happens again, they might not close the gates next time.\" \"I'm worried about that, too...but there's something about that theory that doesn't quite fit.\" While agreeing with her concern, Subaru glanced at Julius. \"Yes?\" Julius's eyes narrowed. \"Allow me to ask, what is it that seems off to you?\" \"...I was unconscious, so I can't really say for sure, but the person who got transformed into a black dragon carried Crusch and me away from Capella, and right after that the floodgate opened, and the water interrupted the fighting. That's when I fell into the water. Does that sound about right?\" \"Yes. That matches what I remember of the events. What of it?\" \"Doesn't the order of events seem kinda off? And which floodgate was it that opened?\" \"Which floodgate? If I recall, it was the one in the first quart... Ah.\" As she thought back to answer Subaru's question, Anastasia's eyes widened. A moment later, Julius also murmured, \"Oh-ho.\" \"The first district's gate was the one that opened. But if Lady Emilia's information is correct, then that would be...\" \"But Lust wasn't in the tower then, right? And the timing of the gate opening doesn't make sense at all. Because the flooding was what helped us escape, and then it closed again immediately after, right? It's true that the cultists don't act super consistently, but there should still be some logic to what they do.\" It would be foolish to write off everything the cultists did as irrational just because they were cultists. The Archbishops all acted on thought patterns that were incomprehensible to normal people, but each still followed their own twisted logic or set of rules. And in that context, opening the floodgate at that point just did not make any kind of sense at all. It was almost like someone else with a different goal had been behind it. Of course, it was possible that that whole line of thought was off base, but  \"They left the metia here without breaking it. And after we were gone, they even sent out another broadcast before leaving. They had plenty of time to break this if they wanted to.\" \"So are you saying that us using the metia is part of their calculations? What could they possibly get out of that...?\" Anastasia's voice trembled as she tried to understand. \" They don't have a reason for anything,\" Al cut in with a husky voice. Then, as if regretting his unintentional remark, he clicked his tongue in annoyance. When he caught Subaru looking at him, he shook his head slowly. \"They don't care one bit about anything we do. They've never lost, and they've never even considered the possibility. A dragon doesn't give a damn what some ants crawling around its feet are planning,\" Al spat. He sounded awfully confident in his analysis. *** Al looked away as if he had said something he shouldn't have. His behavior was very unusual lately. Was it because of Wrath's Authority? If so, what was being amplified? Anger? Sadness? The only thing Subaru could say for sure was that Al had given them advice about the Archbishop of Sloth before they had gone to the tower before. It was clear he knew something about the Witch Cult that he wasn't sharing. But even if he pressed Al on it, it was clear as day he wouldn't answer. Right as that thought crossed Subaru's mind  \" Let's go for the broadcast plan, then.\" \"Anastasia...\" Perhaps having reached the same conclusion as Subaru, Anastasia changed her vote. The main strike against the plan was that they didn't know how the cultists would react. But if she was satisfied on that point, then there was just one hurdle left. \"So who do we get to do the broadcast, and what do they say to inspire the townsfolk?\" \"Who...?\" Subaru furrowed his brow and looked over at the metia. The broadcast would have to inspire hope in the people around the city and blow away the unease eating at their hearts. The person best suited for that  \"Aren't you perfect for the job, Anastasia? You're a royal-selection candidate and famous around these parts to boot. If you tell them we're still fighting the good fight, then...\" \"It really pains me to say this, since it's practically admitting I'm not good enough, but I don't think you should really expect me saying somethin' here to have that big of an effect.\" *** Anastasia outright rejected Subaru's suggestion. He couldn't understand why, though. She was one of the candidates for the throne. It had been announced all throughout the country, so the people in Pristella would all recognize her. And she was famous enough that few could claim to be as well-known as she was in the whole kingdom, let alone in Pristella. \"If all we were talking about was fame, then sure, I'd be a solid choice. If that was all it took, then I'd gladly say whatever I had to. But that just ain't how these things go. My name doesn't have the sway to rid people of their fear of the cultists. I'm better than someone they've never heard of, but only just.\" \"B-but !\" \"That's not enough, and you know it. They need hope. The kind of hope that can blow away all their fears and convince them to stand up again.\" Subaru was speechless. Honestly, he wanted to tell her she wasn't being strong-willed enough and that she should reconsider. But it was painfully obvious that she was the one most disappointed in herself for her lack of power. *** Seeing her small fists white and trembling as she clenched them tight, Subaru tamped down his irritation. She hadn't spoken up without thinking. It was the opposite. After thinking it through from every angle, she had correctly judged that she was not the right person for the job. \"If it was enough to just trick them, then it wouldn't be impossible. I could probably convince half the people listening. But that's not what you want to do, right? You're the one who didn't want to cut our losses before we even tried anything.\" \"That's... In that case, what about Crusch? She had a gravitas to her words during the ceremony at the castle and during the White Whale fight, too. If it's her, then...\" \"...Yeah, if it were her, then that might be enough. But we're talking about the Crusch from back then. She doesn't have that same gravitas now, and in her current state, we can't drag her up here and stand her in front of the metia anyway.\" *** Subaru was the only one who hadn't been able to confirm her condition with his own eyes, so he didn't know what was causing Anastasia's pained expression or the pity drawn on Julius and Garfiel's faces. Ferris and Wilhelm's grief from earlier flickered at the back of his mind. \"Then what about you, Julius? You could...\" \"Apologies, but I cannot meet your expectations.\" \"Mm-hmm... I'm proud of my knight, and he's certainly an elite member of the Royal Guard. But how well do his personal accomplishments stack up when it comes to dealing with the Witch Cult? If we're just talking fame, then I'm more famous, and if you wanted skill at speaking, then I'd still be more likely to succeed.\" Crusch could not fill the role, and both Julius and Anastasia shot down the possibility of putting Julius forward. In that case, the only choices left were Wilhelm and Ricardo, or maybe if they could pull Priscilla or Liliana away from their tour of all"}, {"text": "the shelters in the city  \"...Ummm...\" As Subaru struggled with all the options being shot down after they'd finally come up with a way to deal with Wrath, Garfiel raised his hand. His clear green eyes widened as he looked straight at Subaru. \" Is there any reason you can't do it, General?\" \"...Huh?\" Subaru was completely caught off guard. He opened his mouth, not totally sure what he had just heard. He could not believe that Garfiel would joke around in a situation like this  *** But that thought shattered when he was faced with the gleam in the boy's straightforward gaze. A blank formed as his thoughts crumbled. And Garfiel stepped firmly into that opening. \"There's no one but you. Not a royal-selection candidate, not a knight from the Royal Guard, and not the famed Sword Devil. You. I mean...it's obvious.\" \"Garfiel...\" \"You're the one who has already defeated a Witch Cult Archbishop you defeated Sloth. No one else's got that to their name. And right now, that means more...it means more than anythin'.\" There was passion in Garfiel's voice, and his gaze grew gradually more intense. Gritting his teeth, he looked up at Subaru pleadingly. \"Here's a man who's already beat one Archbishop in this town occupied by cultists. There can't be anyone better for the job. Maybe the Sword Saint Reinhard if he were here, but there's only Subaru Natsuki! You're the only one, General!\" Garfiel spread his arms, almost howling. \"Ngh!\" Overwhelmed by the force of his words, Subaru unconsciously took a step back, bumping into someone standing right behind him. Glancing back, he saw a tall, slender figure supporting him. It was Julius. He looked at Subaru with the same straightforward eyes as Garfiel and nodded. \"I agree. If we're going to do this, then you're the only choice that makes sense, Natsuki.\" \"Not you too...\" Behind Julius, Anastasia was burying her face in her scarf. There was a swirl of indignation and annoyance at herself for her own inability to play the part, but it was also colored by a silent understanding because she wanted to protect the city whatever the cost. Having understood that point at last, Subaru finally realized the huge burden of hope that had just landed on his shoulders. \"You too, Julius? Are you serious?\" \"...Do you remember back at the castle, your outburst at the knights and when I defeated you on the training grounds?\" Julius asked. Subaru caught his breath and then slowly exhaled. \"That moment is a finalist in my top three for regret and humiliation. I'll never forget it for as long as I live.\" \"I remember it well, too. Your baseless proclamation, the disgraceful way you besmirched the knightly order...but I also remember you joining in the Battle of the White Whale after that, and when you managed to defeat Sloth as well.\" *** \"If there is anyone in this city whose voice could ease the fear and unease of the people...then I believe that person must be none other than you. I know that if you ever asked for aid, I would gladly be there to heed your call and lend my hand. And there would be many others who would answer the call as well. Garfiel would surely stand at the head, and I would of course be there, too. You would do well to remember that.\" This was an oath sworn out of an incredibly powerful sense of trust. *** Subaru lost his bearings, shocked to his core, and he struggled to breathe at the level of trust he'd been granted. Swiveling his head, he saw Anastasia. She nodded. Turning again, he looked to Garfiel. He flashed a toothy grin and held out his fist. Julius's eyes had never left Subaru. Turning to face Subaru head-on, he nodded elegantly.  How badly can you overestimate someone? *** He had felt this way before as well, when interacting with Wilhelm and Crusch and Reinhard. They were misunderstanding who he was. They were badly mistaken. They were all far more worthy of praise. They worked far, far harder than he did. They were indescribably nobler. And the way they all praised Subaru, reached out to him, and treated him as a friend as if it were the obvious, natural thing to do that had always tormented him. These people he respected, people who treated him as an equal, people whom he could never hope to match... He didn't want them to acknowledge him like that. It made him anxious. He was sure that, at any moment, his real self would slip out and he would just end up disappointing them. He would only disappoint them and make them regret everything when they realized that the real Subaru was pathetic, weak, helpless. He had always believed that. And yet... \" General.\" Garfiel, Anastasia, and Julius were all expecting so much from Subaru. Even though he was always so desperate, always on the verge of being crushed under the weight of their expectations, they were adding more and more to the load, as if his desperation was not enough. That...that was the path Subaru Natsuki walked. The path of a boy who had once sworn to be a single girl's hero. Somewhere along the way, he realized that he couldn't stay just her hero. He'd needed to  \" If you're not sure, then just leave it be, Bro.\" Subaru's face tensed as a gruff voice called out. Looking up, Subaru was greeted by a gloomy gaze. \"You're spoutin' that crap now of all times?!\" Garfiel exploded. Rushing in, Garfiel grabbed Al's thick neck, as if to say he could snap it at any time if he wanted, glaring daggers at him all the while. \"You shut your damn mouth! What do you know about the general?! Nobody asked you!\" \"I could say the same to you. Is saying 'General' supposed to cast some magic spell? That the name of some superman who can solve any problem?\" Al fired back coldly. *** Al touched Garfiel's arm. Garfiel's expression suddenly changed, and he quickly pulled away. Garfiel was clearly not sure why he had reacted that way as Al leaned into his face, headbutting Garfiel with his black helm. \"Looks like you're leaning on him pretty hard, but is he really all that special? You could beat him in a straight-up brawl, and when it comes to smarts, he wouldn't beat that young lady or her knight over there.\" \"Who asked you? Don't talk about the general that way! You don't know just how much he...\" \"If only he could just put the whole world on his shoulders and keep on rollin'. Now, that would be somethin' to see. Awe-inspiring, even. Just what you'd want from the star at center stage. But your average background character can't carry that kinda weight. I can't, and Bro can't, either. And now you're forcing him to take on this massive burden...for what? You ever think about how he must feel?\" That last line caused Garfiel's expression to tremble. He had seemingly realized something, and the powerful momentum he had been riding dissipated. Al pulled back and looked over Garfiel's head at Subaru. \"Hey, Bro, that girl is the most important thing to you right now, isn't she?\" There was a hint of disappointment in Al's voice. As if he knew the answer already and had no expectations of Subaru at all. *** Anastasia and Julius were silent, watching the two of them. They had already said what they had to say. All that was left was to leave it to Subaru's judgment. \"I I...I... Ge-gen...\" Garfiel looked up and then immediately back down again, unsure what to say. He was hesitating. He'd started to call Subaru General like always, but he could not finish saying it when he thought about the meaning it held. And the one person there who had no expectations of Subaru at all continued. \"I'm gonna do what I have to for my princess, for Priscilla. I'm just gonna leave everything else for later. If I can just protect her and myself and Schult, then that's enough for me.\" \"Al...\" \"You should do the same, Bro. Just focus on that little lady... Save Emilia, and that'll have to be enough. The cultists are just vermin that'll pop up again somewhere else even if you go out of your way to exterminate them here. They're like a demon that just keeps coming back to haunt you. Getting involved with them'll only make things worse,\" Al said, his voice wavering a little uncontrollably, as if he was clinging to something. Al's suggestion was one possible answer. Subaru was in complete agreement with him about the cultists being vermin. There was nothing to be gained by getting too deeply involved with them. There was no denying that. But that was not the choice before him. The cultists had already gotten involved with them. Subaru was going to have to act in order to deal with the sparks they had set off. From Al's point of view, though, that would just lead to the question \"Why?\" Naturally, it was true that the situation was bad with Emilia held captive. But even if she was not involved, Subaru would not be able to choose to run away. That was because... \"I wouldn't need a reason to pull a kid back to the sidewalk if they wandered out on a red light. I wouldn't even think twice... It's probably something like that.\" *** Al caught his breath at that. Only Al, though. The meaning was lost on the other three, but Subaru was satisfied that he had gotten his point across. \"I'm not going to worry about the little things. I'm here, so I want to do the most I can to help. I know full well there are lots of things I can't do. But still.\" It was surely something Subaru Natsuki should not do. \" If you're going to do this, Bro, then you're going to be carrying the full weight of that heroic delusion.\"  Heroic delusion. Al had said that when he had first entered the room. He kept his eyes on Subaru to the end. \"You can't afford to lose. You have to win. You'll be fighting while carrying everyone's hopes and expectations, all while leading them to some happy future. If you make that choice now, you'll have to follow through.\" \"...Not being able to afford to lose is how it's always been for me.\" \"The weight ain't the same at all. If you lose, then it won't just end with your loss, Bro.\" He couldn't understand what Al was getting at. It was always like that for Subaru. Every time he fought, losing meant risking far more than just one fight. It meant losing everything that he wanted to protect. It was like that every single time. There was never a time it had not been like that. If he could lose without losing anything, then he would never fight in the first place. The reason he still fought was that there were things he could only protect by fighting. And right here and now, those things were many and enormous. \"That's all? That's how it's always been.\" *** Exhaling, Subaru made up his mind. His heart, which had been pounding badly before, was calm, and his eyes were clearer than ever. Al caught his breath. Subaru could tell he was dumbfounded even without seeing his face. \"You don't have to hold back, Garfiel. Just call me what you always do.\" \" Ah.\" \"It was embarrassing at first, but at this point it just feels right. I can't promise I'll be able to live up to your expectations, but I'll do everything I can.\" Subaru smiled at Garfiel, who was floundering in front of him. For some reason, it felt like he was smiling particularly naturally. Seeing that, Garfiel caught his breath. \"General... Ahh! General! You are definitely my general...!\" Garfiel's fists clenched, and his fangs"}, {"text": "trembled as he repeated the nickname like an incantation. \"You aren't making any sense at all.\" Smiling wryly, Subaru turned back to Anastasia and Julius. \"Let's do this, Anastasia. If you think my voice can reach the people, then I'll do it.\" \"...You sure? If you choose to be the symbol of hope all by yourself...\" \"It won't change what I'm going to do in the end. Hero has a nice ring to it. Well, actually, it's embarrassing as hell, and calling yourself a hero is sort of...\" Subaru scratched his nose in a show of bashfulness. \"But if it's playing the role of the hero, then I already decided to do that a year ago. If I don't follow through now, I could never show my face to those people looking up to me. And I wouldn't be able to keep up with the person I'm trying to catch.\" \" If you say so. No helpin' it, I guess; boys are always tryin' to look cool.\" Anastasia smiled hopelessly and held out her fist in front of Subaru's chest. He answered in kind by holding out his fist and bumping it against hers. It was proof they were on the same wavelength, even though they had messed it up once downstairs. \"Don't laugh if I screw up the lines. And don't sigh, either. In fact, you'd be doing me a huge favor if you just don't listen at all.\" \"I won't laugh, nor will I sigh. And I shall listen closely until the very end,\" Julius shot back. \"Tch.\" Then Subaru turned his head to Al. \"Thanks for worrying about me, Al  Thanks to that I was able to find my resolve.\" He said nothing more. And Al probably did not want to hear that thanks, either. But Subaru had felt it was necessary to at least say that much, so he had. *** Subaru turned to face the subject of all that debate: the metia waiting in silence at the other end of the room. He thought about what he should say while standing in front of it. Naturally, he did not have the contents of the speech in mind yet. He didn't even know if there was a right answer. But for some reason there was no unease or confusion. It was all rather mysterious. Perhaps because in his mind it really was the same as always.  Because he knew that he was just going to have to try to look good, like always. 5  A gloomy silence had fallen over the shelter. *** The air was filled with faint, stifled sobs and the restless rustling of people unable to hold still. A girl hugged her knees and looked down as she heard those noises unpleasantly breaking the silence. She was a small girl with blond hair. Resting her chin on her white knees, she drew closer to the weight beside her the young boy leaning against her left shoulder. He was her younger brother and had been sobbing just moments earlier. Now he was exhausted and had slipped into a fitful slumber. She started to caress her brother's head, but she paused, afraid of waking him up. She was sure that if he could sleep, then it would be better for him to get some rest. Staring into her brother's tearstained face, she prayed that he could at least find peace in his dreams, because the world outside of dreams was far too cruel for her brother, who was still so young. It had been half a day since the broadcast announcing that the control towers for Pristella's floodgates had been captured. She and her brother had been out in the city plaza that morning when they heard the announcement. The announcement itself had been hard to believe, and the voice making the proclamation had sounded almost like it was chanting a hideous curse. Scared for their parents, the girl had taken her frightened little brother by the hand and fled to a nearby shelter with the adults in the plaza. Faced with the unexpected, they had done as they had always been told and sought shelter. That was the result of the instructions that were broadcast every morning. If she was being honest, the little girl never really listened closely to anything in the morning broadcasts other than the Songstress's singing, but she was astonished at the adults' foresight and planning. But everything that had happened after they had fled to the shelters had been too unpredictable even for the adults.  The appearance of the Witch Cult. Occupation of the control towers. Cryptic threats and demands and then the flooding that came not long after. The vicious woman's voice had riled up unease and hatred in the hearts of all the people cowering in the shelters. Her unbearable voice and unsettling words had been more than powerful enough to sink the whole city into despair. They were locked away in a gloomy shelter with no way to contact anyone outside. There were no signs of anything getting better, and one of the floodgates had even been opened for a second, forcing them to hear the sound of all that water crashing over the city. The shelters had originally been constructed as a countermeasure against intermittent flooding, so there had not been many injuries or deaths due to the earlier flood but that meant very little to the people still cowering in fear. The voices that had encouraged everyone at first had gradually weakened and then started to grow uneasy and angry at the silence, and before long there had been people making no effort to hide their rage, which had spread, creating a mood of aimless disagreement and annoyance, becoming a silent madness that scratched at everyone, spreading everywhere like wildfire. And then the flooding had snapped the last thread of their nerves, bringing on the collapse. A swelling, violent mood filled the air, a dangerous atmosphere that could quickly devolve from people glaring at one another to their yelling at one another to their hurting one another to their even killing one another, all with just a single spark. \"Agh.\" The only reason it had not exploded yet was that right as their nerves were strained to their limit, the girl's little brother had started crying. The seething adults had still had the good sense and pride not to be violent in front of a sobbing child.  But even then, they had come dangerously close to the edge. In the end, though, the explosion had been delayed by her brother's crying. And the girl had cried softly as she patted her brother's head, hugging him from behind. After that, there had been no more quarrels in their shelter. But that was only holding thanks to a fragile equilibrium. Everyone knew it was just a temporary respite. If another buildup began, a child's tears would not be enough to keep the peace. And because they knew that, the people in the shelter who should have been working together were all staying away from one another, trying to protect themselves by not provoking anyone else. For their own sakes for everyone else's sake, it was best for everyone to not draw any unwanted attention, to remain apart and isolated. They waited for time to pass, desperation on their faces. Trusting themselves to the faint, fragile hope that something, anything might get better. *** The girl suddenly looked up, noticing an omen of that change. Waiting quietly, eagerly for news of any development, the girl noticed a slight change in the air. Several people around her looked up for the first time in hours, too, noticing the same thing she had. It was a familiar feeling to anyone living in Pristella. The precursor of a broadcast by the metia at city hall. Sensing that, the girl tensed, holding back the urge to vomit welling in her throat as best she could. She had wanted a change, but she'd meant a change for the better. A broadcast could only mean the terrifying Witch Cult was about to say something again. What new impossibility would that earsplitting voice demand of the city while spewing so much bile? But the girl's the people's pessimistic prediction was  \" Um, can everyone actually hear me through this? Mic test, mic test. One, two. One, two.\"  turned on its head by the voice of a young man who sounded almost like he was playing around. *** Unlike in the last two broadcasts, this was the voice of a boy who sounded unsure of himself. Not the familiar, famous man from the daily broadcasts or the boisterous Songstress this was a voice she had never heard before. The girl's eyes widened, and so did the adults' as they glanced at one another, wondering what was happening. But not noticing their reactions, the boy spoke several more times, making sure that his voice was heard by everyone across the entire city, before finally clearing his throat once he was confident it was working. And then  \"It looks like this is actually broadcasting, then. First of all, let me apologize for surprising you. I imagine a lot of you were worried or steeling yourself wondering what you would be told next. But please don't worry. I'm not a member of the Witch Cult.\" \"...It's not the Witch Cult...\" The volume of the boy's voice was wavering slightly as he used a metia he had never handled before. But the shock at what he was saying easily outweighed that, and no one bothered dwelling on that small point. The people's gloomy expressions started to change as they looked up at the broadcast echoing down from on high. \"A-are we...saved?\" someone murmured, as the faint seed of hope they had been holding on to started to grow. The hope conveyed by that murmur spread to the whole shelter to the whole city. It was natural. If someone who was not a cultist was using the metia at city hall, then that meant that someone had to have taken back the building from the invaders. If there was someone who could reconquer city hall, then they could seize the control towers, too  \"Run all of those hooligans out of here...!\" \"And I'm sorry for getting your hopes up, but the cultists are not gone yet. We've taken back city hall, but they still hold the control towers. Their demands have not been met yet, and there is still a danger of the city being flooded. I'm sorry, but you deserve to know the truth.\" *** However, their fragile hope was shattered by none other than the boy on the broadcast. The way he spoke, it was almost like he was reading the minds of the people in the shelters. It seemed a cruel thing to do, to smother the seed of a faint hope so immediately. The eyes that had been filled with hope clouded again as they were told that their belief that they would be freed from their fears was mistaken. And soon, their anger was pointed not at the cultists, who were like a natural disaster, but at the boy speaking to them. \" I'm sorry.\" But he had also anticipated the masses' venting at him. \"Where are you all right now? I imagine most of you are in the shelters, but there are probably some of you who didn't go to the shelters. I'm sure you are all feeling worried and anxious. I can understand feeling scared and wanting to just curl up. And I'm sure there are some of you wondering who I think I am, going and getting everyone's hopes up for nothing.\" *** \"I'm just a regular guy. I've been tossed around by this crazy situation just like all of you. I'm on the verge of being crushed by the madness of it all. Just like you. My knees are quaking in fear. Just like you. That's all I am. I actually had a bit of an argument with the people telling"}, {"text": "me to do this before I agreed to talk to you like this. I still think this is too big, too important a job for me. If I'm being honest, I think there are probably other people who would have been more suited to talking to all of you like this. In fact, I'm sure of it.\" His voice was wavering as he spoke, as if showing that he really did understand how they all felt in a sea of fear and unease. He was open and honest, sharing his timidity, his insecurity. Everyone listening, the girl included, was past the point of suspicion or disappointment and could only feel confused. Everyone wanted a little hope. Even if it was fake, even if it was fragile, they wanted something to hold on to. So why was he the one standing in front of the metia? He'd said it himself, hadn't he? There must be someone else better for it. So then, why was he ? \"But right now, it's just me. I'm the one here speaking to you. People way more special than I am told me that I should do this. That there was a meaning in me doing it... My voice is trembling, isn't it? I'm not the sort of guy meant to be standing in front of a crowd. I don't have the words or the charisma to lead everyone. I'm weak, pathetic, and even in a moment as important as this, I can't help wanting to run away...\" His tone gradually sank, drawing everyone listening gradually to the depths of despair. His weak, hoarse voice grated on their hearts, which were already tortured by fear, causing their stomachs to constrict. If he had been somewhere they could reach, they would have wanted to shut him up as soon as possible. \"Sister...\" At some point, her younger brother had woken up, and he called out to her. She hugged her brother tight and held him close. Desperately clinging to him so that the weak, penetrating voice from the metia would not reach his ears, so that he would not be crushed by that hopelessness and despair. And while she was protecting her brother, her own ears were exposed, forcibly swept along on the path of the boy's weakness as he continued. \"...and hoping that I can just plug my ears and ignore everything while someone else takes care of everything because I don't know what to do...\" \"Nooo...\" The girl closed her eyes tight, shaking her head, trying to keep away the grief and despair. The boy's words described exactly what everyone in the shelters, everyone in the city cowering in fear of the cultists was feeling in the depths of their hearts. That was the weakness eating away at the girl's heart and the cowardice that had taken root in the depths of the adults' hearts and the fear that plagued her little brother's mind. This was the despair that no one would be able to fix. She could not bear the boy's voice forcing her to face the unresolvable reality in front of her. It was so unbearable, so terrifying... \" But even so. Even with all that, I can't run away from this. So I'm going to fight. That's the sort of person I am.\" She could hardly believe what he said, his voice still wavering. \" Eh?\" She opened her eyes and looked up, sure that she had just misheard him. She could not see the voice's owner. But she did see other faces around the room looking up with the same shock she was feeling. There was a beat of silence as he chose his words and got his voice under control. And then  \"Let me ask you again: Where are you right now? Did you flee to a shelter? Are you hiding in your home? Are you all alone and scared? Is someone else there with you? Is that person someone precious to you? Even if you didn't know them before, are they familiar now after all these harrowing hours together?\" *** \"I know it's not my place to say this, and it might be difficult for you, but please try not to wall yourself off. When you are all alone, it's easy to fill your head with all sorts of meaningless thoughts. I know, I've been there, too. So please try not to be by yourself. Stay together with someone else. And also \" He inhaled, a faint hesitation in the back of his voice. \"If you can, try to look that person in the eye.\" *** As if led on by his words, the girl slowly looked down into her arms. Her brother was looking up at her. She met his quavering, uncertain green eyes. \"Whose face did you look at? Was it someone special to you or someone you had never met before a few hours ago? Or maybe it was a friend... They probably look terrible right now. Was their face teary? Pained? I doubt anyone is smiling right now. No, maybe there are some people. Trying their best to put on a smile to keep you from worrying. If they are, then they are truly amazing people. If someone precious to you smiled for you like that, you should be proud. And then you should compare their expression now to the smile you remember.\" Her brother's eyes were wet and weary. He was all rumpled and looked like he might burst into tears again at any moment. And seeing herself reflected in her brother's eyes, she saw that she had become expressionless and had a vacant look on her face. \" Are you really okay with things staying like this?\" \"...No...\" A soft reply slipped from the girl's lips. It was weak and faint. A voice she could barely hear herself. And yet... \"I'm not. I can't forgive it. I don't want to accept it.\" The boy's voice continued strongly, almost as if he had heard her. \"I have people I care about. I have comrades who mean the world to me. And I can't forgive the people who made them suffer and feel so sad. And I don't want them to force themselves to smile for me, either. It's enough to make me want to scream. I'm not stupid; I know her real smile is way more beautiful than that.\" \"Sister...\" \"I can't just let it end like this. I could never live it down if I just gave up now. There's no way I can let things stay this way. They're the ones who are wrong, and I'm not going to sit back and let the bad guys win. I don't want to admit I lost to them.\" \"Fredo...\" She gently pulled her brother closer as he called out to her, pressing her forehead to his. It was warm. The warmth of life. She could not tell whether the heat was coming from her brother or her, but she could feel it nonetheless. \"I want to run away, but I can't. I want to cry, but I can't just cry. The enemy is dangerous, but I don't want to just lose. So I'll fight. I know full well that I'm weak, that I'm not smart. But I'll still fight. Because they are the ones who are wrong. I'll fight to prove to the people I love that the ones who made them so sad were wrong. That's why I'm fighting and I want you all to fight, too.\" *** Her breath caught in her throat as it became tight. She felt pathetic for her moment of weakness. Because the tremor in his voice disappeared, and she could hear in his voice the path that he was pointing to. She understood his feelings. The meaning of his words was painfully clear to her. That was exactly how she felt, too. She wanted to fight. She wanted to run the bad guys out of the city if she could. But she and her little brother were small and young. They couldn't do anything. They were powerless, ignorant, weak, so there wasn't  \" Please don't misunderstand me, though.\" But the boy's voice provided shelter as she berated herself for her weakness. \"When I say I want you to fight, I don't mean rush out into the streets with whatever weapons you can find. In fact, please don't do anything so rash. I don't mean you should form a mob and go running around looking for cultists to fight. What I want is for you to keep your head up.\" \"Keep my...head up...\" \"Nothing changes when you stare down at your feet. You can't burn a hole in the ground no matter how long you look at it, and even if you could, that wouldn't help anyone... So please, keep your head up. Keep your eyes in front of you.\" Raising her head, she looked not at her knees or her brother's blond hair but at the shelter. And as she looked around, she met the gazes of others who had also been struck by despair. They had all instinctively looked up at the boy's urging, just like she had. \"If you look around you, I'm sure you'll meet someone else's gaze. They are feeling the same unease, the same desire to just run away from it all, but...they also don't want to lose. Your loved ones, and the person whose eyes you just met, and if you count yourself, that's already three people. And depending on where you are, it might be even more people than that.\" Like he said, when she looked up, she could see several different people's faces. The feelings in their eyes were complicated and muddled, and her eyes probably looked the same to them. But somewhere along the way she'd stopped feeling like she was just cowering in fear. \"I hope you understand now that you are not alone. That feeling is a powerful thing even all by itself. Not wanting to see the sad face of someone you care about. Not wanting to look lame to the person whose eyes you just met. I can't be the only one who's that shallow and stubborn, can I?\" *** The voice was pleading with them, calling out to them, trying to raise their spirits and inspire their courage, and yet it sounded to the girl almost like the boy was looking for something to cling to himself. And finally, she realized. His heart had not changed at all from the very beginning of the broadcast. Even as he hated his own weakness, even as he regretted the things he lacked, he had not given up. He talked about himself that was the only weapon he had. And he spoke to everyone about the things he was sure they all had in common. \"I want to believe. I'm weak. And pathetic. But I haven't given up yet. Please let me believe that I'm not the only weakling who doesn't know how to give up.\" It was a cowardly voice and a cruel request. In a situation where everyone was pleading for help, here he was, shamelessly pleading with them, begging them all to give him something to believe in  \"Or am I really the only one?\" His voice faltered and lost confidence. No, there had never been any confidence in his voice from the start. Irritation welled. Stop it! Even if she did not know what to shout  \"...No...\" It was as soft as a gnat's buzz, just a faint voice that barely crossed her lips. She would not reach him with a voice that soft. Louder. She had to answer his question. For the weak guy on the other end who was also afraid of being alone  \"Am I the only one who can still keep going...? Who still wants to fight?\" *** The girl's eyes flared as she screamed. The voice carried through the shelter. And her voice was not the only one. *** She and another person who had"}, {"text": "raised their head had responded. Their cries struggled against the sadness, the weakness, and the fear that rested in their hearts. If that had been what the boy was planning, then they had played right into his hands. But why should she care?! If that weak, trembling voice, that unreliable rebuke, that meager encouragement, and that trust desperately clinging to faith alone had been nothing but a cheap performance, if he really had played them that perfectly, then there was no reason to feel bad about falling for it.  But if it wasn't an act, if that had been what he truly believed, warts and all, then they couldn't let him stand alone. \"I'm not, right?\" *** \"You can still fight, right? You won't let the weakness consume you, right?\" \"I won't lose... I don't want to lose!\" There was a fire in her chest now. Her jaw clenched as an emotion different from anger welled up inside her. And she was not the only one. All around her were people swallowing that same feeling as it turned into an inferno of emotion. Just minutes earlier, all of their hearts had been consumed by unease, but now a different, fierier emotion was uniting them. \"If the person beside you is special to you, then hold their hand and have faith. If your neighbor is someone you don't know, then give them a nod and do your best to stand together. Do your best to fight so that neither you nor they break. And as long as you all don't give in, I'll keep fighting without giving up, too. I'll fight...and I'll win.\" *** They were in a shelter far away from city hall, after all. No matter how much they raised their voices and shouted, there was no way their yells would reach him. And yet it sounded like there was a sense of relief in his voice, as if he had heard their cries, and his voice quivered as he made that declaration.  I'll fight...and I'll win. No one doubted he could do it. They absolutely trusted he could make it come true. Just like he had trusted that they would not give in to despair. They believed that the boy would be victorious in the most dangerous battle to come. How could they believe that? Because his voice was sure  \" I am Subaru Natsuki, the spirit user who defeated the Witch Cult Archbishop of Sloth.\" There was a stir when he revealed his identity. It was a proclamation that the girl did not understand, but the people around her did. The shock was enormous, but not in a negative way. First was astonishment, and then understanding and finally hope and trust began to spread explosively, swallowing up the girl's heart in the swell of emotions. \"My comrades and I will take care of the cultists in the city! So please, trust us and keep fighting, too. Hold the hand of someone precious to you and give that feeling of weakness a good thrashing. And as for the rest...\" *** \"...just leave everything else to me!\" Voices cried out as a singular hope multiplied and spread. Looking down at her brother cradled in her arms, she could see hope lighting up his green eyes, too. Confirming that, she hugged him tight. His arms timidly wrapped around her waist, too, and she looked up at the ceiling as she felt the warmth of his hug. The boy who could not hide his own fear, his own unease, who could not hide anything from them, had sworn he would still fight, carrying the hopes and expectations of all the people in the city on his back until the very end. She did not know his face, but in her heart, he was a picture-book hero, and she closed her eyes as if praying that he would be blessed with every good fortune she could imagine. Because he would surely break if she didn't.  Because he was just your average, everyday boy who was struggling against the outrageous for someone precious to him. 6 \" Haaaaah.\" Moving away from the pipe organ\u00e2\u20ac\u201cshaped metia, Subaru took a deep breath. Wiping away the sweat on his brow, the expression of all his worries and nervousness, he suddenly realized his legs were trembling and his jaw was tensed, and he hoped that his current mess of emotions had not come out in his voice. \"Ahhh, that was rough...\" Subaru sighed as he rolled his neck at the unexpectedly heavy exhaustion. Honestly, he had lost himself in talking partway through and could not remember the details of what he'd said. It was not all gone, but parts of it were fuzzy. Had he actually conveyed everything that had been in the draft note that Anastasia had given him? \"Huh?\" As he contemplated what he had done, he suddenly realized that the room was awfully quiet. The people who had been watching in the room, Anastasia and everyone else, were silent. *** Anastasia, Garfiel, Julius, and Al had all been watching, and somewhere during the broadcast, Ricardo had joined them. They were a group not known for being short on words normally, and yet they were all silent. Subaru could only assume he must have really badly screwed up the broadcast. \" Natsuki.\" \"Ugh! I'm sorry! I swear I'll do better next time!\" \"Huh? Why are you apologizing? You really are an oddball.\" All wound up from self-doubt, Subaru reflexively started to apologize, but Anastasia just laughed in confusion as she elegantly touched her hand to her cheek. \"It's a bit of a strange question to ask after that, but are you by any chance ?\" \"Am I what?\" \"A former con artist or something?\" \"Where'd that come from?! As you can see, I'm just your average, everyday schoolboy... Well, I guess in a sense, I'm not even that!\" \"Ah, that's not what I mean. I didn't mean it as an insult. The way you wound them up was just too perfect... Bringin' the audience down low and then liftin' them up to a new high. You had the process down cold like you've been doing it for years,\" Anastasia said, waving her hand as she nodded in a combination of admiration and praise. \"Huh?\" Subaru cocked his head. \"I don't know anything about that. Honestly, my head went fuzzy somewhere in the middle, and I had no clue what I was saying. I only remember up to when the note started looking blurry, and I stopped trying to read from it.\" \"You pretty much totally ignored my draft from that point on. And you even started going on some tangent that was totally different from what we discussed beforehand. Do you have any clue how much I was worrying watching you from over here...?\" \"Ugh... I'm really sorry about that! But wasn't it basically the gist of the draft? If it was that far off, you would have stopped me, right?\" The note that he had forgotten in the heat of the moment had been filled with Anastasia's negotiation techniques and the little mood-lightening jokes and witty remarks that Subaru had put in to clear away the fear the people of the city were feeling. Even if he had messed up reading it back, it should be fine as long as he had hit the high notes  \"Not much point in dwelling on it now, but you didn't really even touch on anything we wrote down. Not even a little bit.\" \"Eh?\" Anastasia breezily denied Subaru's optimistic view. Subaru stiffened, and he looked around the room for confirmation from the others. But the four other people all confirmed what Anastasia had said in their own ways. \"Lady Anastasia is correct, Subaru,\" Julius said, stepping out and tilting his chin austerely. \"Your speech was certainly not what we discussed beforehand. In particular, I was of a mind to press you on why you did not reveal that you had defeated Sloth until near the end, when that was supposed to be shared early on.\" \"Wait, really?! If I didn't even say that much, then I was just some nobody for most of that! If it was that bad, you should have stopped me! Even if it messes up the mood, if you thought it would be better to start over, then you should have stopped me!\" \"Start over? That would be absurd.\" Subaru could only judge that he had screwed up badly enough to ruin the whole point of the broadcast, but Julius shook his head with a serious look on his face. It almost seemed like he was feeling some sort of respect for Subaru. \"It was a splendid speech.\" \"...Huh?\" Subaru stared at him dubiously. \"Forgetting the contents of the draft was not a problem at all. You managed to come through even better than we could have hoped when you put it in your own words. I have nothing but praise for your performance. I cannot help but see in you the same Subaru I witnessed during the battles with the White Whale and Sloth.\" Julius hailed him with praise that was far more than he deserved. It was unlike him, and Subaru could sense a silent excitement radiating from the Finest of Knights. And when he realized that, it immediately felt absurd to him. \"Don't make fun of me. For a while now, it's felt like your jokes aren't funny at all.\" \"If it sounds like a joke to you, then it is because you think too little of yourself. But that is also part of why you were able to give the speech that you did. That was something that no one other than you could have done.\" \"You really are just taunting me, aren't you?\" Julius's unbending stance even in such an urgent situation annoyed Subaru. He was used to Julius's sarcastic jabs, but this was not the time for another pointless back-and-forth. If he had screwed up the speech, then they needed to do something else quickly. \"That was supposed to quell everyone's fears, so it would be a problem if it made everyone even more unsure. Someone else should do the next one...\" \"There should be limits to how self-deprecating you can be, right? It's not like anyone else enjoys hearing it,\" Anastasia cut in, annoyance blazing in the backs of her eyes as she glared sharply at Subaru. \"It looks like you really don't remember it at all, so I'll come out and say it for you your speech was perfect. Much better than what I thought up. You're a natural demagogue.\" \"The lady's right! Yeaaah, that was sure somethin'! You really have a way with words! That was smooth, Bro! With a gilded tongue like that, you could get all the ladies or talk a kid out of his snack.\" \"I would never take candy from a baby! And 'demagogue' sure doesn't sound like a compliment, either!\" Subaru's eyes flared at Anastasia and Ricardo's explanations. But the two of them just glanced at each other and then shrugged, seemingly without any ill will. It half looked as if they had practiced their timing, but they also did not seem to be messing around with Subaru. It was clear from Garfiel's expression, too, from the way he was holding his breath and peering at Subaru's face. \"What did you think, Garfiel? How was the broadcast?\" \"...That's why you're my general. I wasn't wrong to follow you out of the Sanctuary. That's what I thought.\" \"...Your expectations are always just a little bit too heavy for me...\" \"But it's 'cause of what you always do to earn them,\" Garfiel said, breaking into a toothy grin. \"Then I guess I should quit trying to escape responsibility,\" Subaru said, scratching his head. Everything that had happened since he started speaking into the metia still didn't really feel real. \"I sort of feel like I said something along those lines during the speech, too.\" \"You did.\" Anastasia laughed,"}, {"text": "rubbing her scarf. \"If anything, I'm worried you inspired them too much, and people might try to do something unwise. Even we felt the effects up here, thanks to Wrath's ability.\" \"When you put it that way, it sounds more and more like a lie... If it were true, that would be some blessing of eloquence\u00e2\u20ac\u201clevel performance,\" Subaru joked as he looked over at Al, who had started moving to the corner of the room at some point. Noticing his gaze, Al silently looked away and made a point of slumping his shoulders. Al had been against the broadcast, so if he was reacting like that, then that had to mean Subaru really had pulled it off like everyone was saying. \"It will be a big help if the people can calm down a little bit now. Is there anything else we can do?\" \"If you want anything more than that, all that's left is to get rid of the source of all this. They're gonna know we're coming, after your great performance.\" \"Even so, they're still just going to do whatever they have planned out. I guess we'll have to count on their irrational thinking when it comes to that, but we have to try to settle things as quickly as possible.\" Regardless of how well the broadcast had gone, the cultists still had the ability to destroy the city.  We have to kick their asses for sure this time before they can do what they came to do. \"And in order to do that, we need to take down all four control towers at the same time, huh?\" \"There are four Archbishops and two powerful people helping them. There's the demi-beast problem to deal with, too, so we're gonna have to figure out how to divide our forces to deal with 'em.\" The key to saving the city was capturing all four control towers simultaneously, which meant concentrating all their fighting power in one group like they had during the first raid on city hall would be hard. If they targeted the control towers one by one, then one of the other Archbishops could just open the floodgates. Subaru could not imagine them managing to successfully pull off that gamble four times in a row. There were six people on the enemy's side. Meanwhile, Crusch was down for the count. They were low on cards and pieces to play  \"Then how about adding a trump card to the field?\" *** As Subaru was going over the numbers they had, a voice suddenly interrupted him. Spinning around, he saw a figure standing in the doorway. Subaru's eyebrows rose, and then he exhaled and flashed a wry smile. \"Disappear for a few hours and now you think you're a trump card?\" \"Certainly not in comparison to the man who took on the task of addressing the masses... And here I was, sure that I didn't have any heroes for friends. I guess that was an oversight on my part.\" \"I don't think that really fits me, either.\" Subaru shrugged and walked over and gave the newcomer a high five. As he saw their lighthearted exchange, Garfiel's eyes gleamed. \"Bro!! You were okay?!\" \"I was running for dear life, but somehow I managed to get out alive.\" It was Otto Suwen, their missing friend looking worse for wear but seemingly uninjured. Otto held his hand up for another high five as Garfiel dashed over, but Garfiel leaped into him at full speed, wrapping his arms around Otto's waist. \"Wah?! Wh-what?! Wh-what is it, Garfiel?! Were you really that happy to...? Owww! Ow, ow, ow! Too strong!\" \"Aahhh, thank goodness... Not that I was worried about you at all, though...!\" \"Y-you aren't very convincing... Ngh...\" Just like with Subaru, Garfiel rejoiced with all his might at reuniting with Otto. After a little bit, and after Garfiel released him, Otto steadied his breath and then flashed a wry smile. \"Still, though, I'm glad to see the both of you safe. You are both far more stubborn and resilient than I am, so I wasn't too worried.\" \"You don't say. Actually, I wasn't that worried about you, either. I wonder why?\" \"Hard to say. I guess that's just Otto's natural virtue?\" \"Come on, it doesn't have to be as much as Garfiel, but you should have been at least a little worried about me, Mr. Natsuki! I was running around headlong into this dangerous emergency situation all by myself!\" But there was not really much weight to what he said, either, since he actually had managed to join back up with everyone safely. Still, though, as they were enjoying their happy reunion, Anastasia broke in, clapping her hands and saying, \"Yeah, yeah.\" \"What a relief, what a relief. I'm glad you made it out alive, Otto. There's a lot I'd like to ask about what you were doing during all this, but before that...\" Her tone shifted as she looked Otto in the eye. \"What you said earlier sounded rather important... Would you care to explain what exactly you meant by that?\" \"You mean the trump card, right? It's quite simple, really. I brought someone with me, though if he'd entered first, the celebration of my safe return would have gotten completely drowned out.\" Otto explained the sad fact as he stepped aside, clearing the way. Taking that as a sign, the person who had been patiently waiting on the other side started walking in. And when that person stepped into the room  \" My apologies for being late.\" Just that one line was enough for them to feel like a whole army had just shown up at the gates. *** It almost felt like a breeze was blowing, fanning a flame that had suddenly ignited before them. What's more, he really was that strong. The fighting power they had been desperate for, the ultimate support, had finally arrived, and it set their hearts ablaze. \"Reinhard van Astrea of the Sword Saint lineage  It is late, but allow me to join you as well.\" Saying that, the fire burning bright, the Sword Saint announced his desire to join the battle. CHAPTER 4 *** 1 \"I am sorry for being unable to aid you at the crucial moment. I have no excuse for my failure.\" Reinhard apologized as everyone's attention focused on him. And as the Sword Saint lowered his head, no one could muster an immediate response. It would be simple enough to smooth the awkwardness over on a surface level, but they could not hide their true feelings with something so half-hearted. It was still true that during the few hours when they most desperately needed every last bit of fighting power, Reinhard had been nowhere to be found. They could not help wondering what would have happened if he had joined the assault on city hall. Because of that, none of them could assure him that it was all water under the bridge. No one except  \"You got that right, you jerk. Do you know how much trouble we had while you were gone?\"  Subaru, who followed that up with a pointed little jab to the Sword Saint's chest. His only reaction was to look at Subaru apologetically. Subaru simply snorted. \"And if you were gonna come at all, you should have done it fifteen minutes earlier. I ended up having to give a performance way outside my comfort zone thanks to you. That was supposed to have been your job.\" \"Forgive me... However, that was an excellent speech worthy of your reputation. Even if I had been asked to do the same, I would not have been able to manage a broadcast that stirred the people's courage so magnificently. You were the right choice for that task.\" \"I think people would be looking for different things if it was you and not me.\" Subaru jabbed Reinhard in the chest once more for good measure after receiving his wry smile and praise. And then, as the hero still looked apologetic, Subaru held his finger out in front of Reinhard's face. \"Reinhard, forget a hundred other people. I'd take you over a thousand soldiers. So how 'bout it, can I pin that much hope on you? I'll be counting on you.\" *** Even that did not even begin to describe how reassuring his presence was. Having Reinhard's help was like knowing a full army of reinforcements stood at their back. Reinhard blinked his blue eyes at how open Subaru's anticipation was. But his surprise soon faded as the Sword Saint's lips curved into a smile. \"Yes, you can count on me. If that is what you want, then I'll live up to your expectations.\" \"Oooh, so reliable... I can feel my heart fluttering.\" Subaru flashed Reinhard a smile, putting him at ease before turning to the others and pointing back at him. \"All right, we've got Reinhard with us now. You guys should say whatever you want to say while you can. At times like this, it feels way worse to be all awkward and careful around one another. Besides, it isn't every day you get a chance to tell off the Sword Saint when he's practically begging you to be mad at him. Let him have a piece of your mind.\" *** \"And once you're done picking on him, let's get down to business and figure out how to save everyone,\" Subaru announced with an easy wink. He could hear some startled breaths but saw that Otto and Garfiel simply broke into grins at Subaru's familiar tough act. Well, it was fine as long as at least one or two people could tell how he really felt.  He had just done a whole speech about not shouldering everything yourself, after all. 2 Afterward, everyone voiced their own complaints with Reinhard (details omitted), and then they got settled in the conference room and prepared to discuss the best way to retake Pristella. Otto and Reinhard had rejoined the party and while Otto's fighting power was negligible, Reinhard's assistance was a game changer. With that in mind, Subaru wanted to move the discussion along, but before that  \"By the way, what happened to Felt? She was with you when all this started, right?\" Subaru asked Reinhard before they broached the first subject. Reinhard's expression darkened a bit at that. Though he had been looking like that most of the time since getting there. \"To be clear, I'm not blaming you or anything. It's not like I think you just holed up somewhere safe to protect Felt or anything...,\" Subaru said, softening the blow. \"Agreed,\" Anastasia added nonchalantly, \"but I would like to know what you were doing and where you were doing it while we were out of communication. It's not like we're playin' house here, after all.\" She petted her fox scarf as she looked Reinhard directly in the eye. The focus of her question was what Felt's faction had done that morning the group had apparently gone to see Reinhard's father, Heinkel, to discuss something and what their members had done since. Wilhelm obviously didn't get along with him, but it seemed like everyone in the Astrea family found interacting with Heinkel rather awkward. Subaru was probably not the best person to say it, but it almost felt like  \"It's like a family that gives the cold shoulder to a kid who holed up for years and turned into a professional NEET...\" \"Apologies for interrupting while you indulge in your odd imagination, but if Mr. Reinhard is finding it difficult to speak on the matter, perhaps I can elaborate?\" Hoping to set aside Subaru and the alien analogy he was entertaining, Otto offered to clear things up. The way he looked at Reinhard almost made it seem like he already knew what had happened. \"Oh yeah, you were with Reinhard, but don't tell me that was from before all this even started?\" \"Not since it started. I only met up with them at the very end of"}, {"text": "it all... Even so, I have a general grasp of the situation.\" \"Thank you, Otto. But it is my family's problem, and it involves Lady Felt as well. This is a difficult subject for me, but I should be the one to explain.\" Reinhard shook his head, and then, after pausing for a second, said, \"First of all, I've said it many times already, but allow me to apologize once more. I should have been the first person to come your aid, and yet it was only at this late hour that I was able to join you. You have my deepest apologies.\" \"...On that point, I do believe our position is unchanged. It is difficult to wholeheartedly forgive your absence, but you are nonetheless essential to the coming battle. If you wish to make amends, I ask you do it with your sword,\" Julius responded, nudging Reinhard forward in his own way. Reinhard's expression softened at his friend's words, and he added a soft \"Thank you\" before continuing. \"When the Witch Cult carried out their first broadcast, Lady Felt and I were leaving the second district to go speak with Vice-Captain Heinkel.\" Reinhard's voice was wooden as he referred to his father by his official title. That alone was sufficient to show just how strained their relationship must be and how wide the gulf between them truly was. \"It's not exactly my place to comment, but she really decided to go talk to him after everything that happened at breakfast?\" asked Subaru. \"She is not so irresponsible as to shirk what must be done out of mere personal discomfort. She set forth fully intending to negotiate with the vice-captain. And naturally, I accompanied her in that.\" \"Incidentally, I suppose I shouldn't ask how the negotiation went.\" \"That does involve internal matters, after all. But it would be fair to say that discussions were not overly favorable.\" Reinhard's tone obliquely indicated how much of a struggle the meeting had been. And even without that clue, it had been a negotiation between Felt, who was still impulsive and straightforward by nature, even if she had grown, and Heinkel, who made no effort at all to hide his base vulgarity. It was not hard to imagine things getting complicated fast. And while they were going at it  \"That was when the first broadcast occurred. I could hardly believe my ears, but I immediately thought to act. I had actually made certain arrangements beforehand in the event of an emergency. In fact, I even prepared a way for Lachins and the others to reach me if the need arose.\" \"Ah, yeah, I know. I...well, I had a chance to talk to Lachins.\" Subaru was familiar with the magic signal that Reinhard could use as a beacon to home in on after spotting it in the sky. Lachins had actually used it during one of the loops when Subaru asked him to summon Reinhard. Unfortunately, the \"just call Reinhard\" plan had been put on hold because of Sirius's nasty ability. But Reinhard had not been exaggerating about intending to come immediately if he got the signal from one of his allies. And yet he had not been able to do anything for hours while the cultists had free rein. What could possibly have stopped him ? \" Lady Felt was held hostage by Vice-Captain Heinkel.\" *** For a second, Subaru failed to understand. And it was not just him, either. Everyone in the room was at a loss for words at the absurdity of that statement. \"It was an irrevocable failure on my part. And with Lady Felt at sword point, I failed to find an opening to counterattack and remained held there.\" As he gritted his teeth at the shameful memory, Reinhard's expression was etched with the regret burning inside him. Hearing that, Subaru realized why Reinhard's face had darkened when he was first asked what had happened. The master he had sworn to serve had been taken hostage by his own father, of all people. And because of that, he had been unable to leave. It was shocking to think about how troubled he must've been and how much heartache he must have endured. And it had not ended there, either. There was an even darker possibility. \"...So then...what? Was he an agent of the cultists?\" Reinhard's shocking admission opened the door to a cruel and terrible possibility. Subaru had heard that cultists sometimes wormed their way into local governments undetected, but he didn't want to imagine what it might be like to discover someone in your family could be one. Particularly not after learning about all the different terrible, nauseating Archbishops who existed besides Petelgeuse. \" I don't know. If he was, then...\" But Subaru's theory seemed to be provoking complex feelings in Reinhard. Subaru himself looked dubious, as did half the people around the table, but Anastasia, Julius, and Otto all seemed to have reached a different conclusion. Reinhard furrowed his brow and slowly shook his head. \"I have no intention of defending him on the basis of our blood relation, but the vice-captain is almost certainly not connected to the cultists. At the very least, there is no reason to suspect that based on what he said after taking Lady Felt hostage.\" \"That's absurd. Why would he take her hostage, then? What would be the point...?\" That was when Subaru noticed it. Given Reinhard's melancholic expression and the matching miserable looks that Otto, Anastasia, and Julius all sported, there was a reason Subaru could think of for Heinkel to do that. It was a terrible reason, utterly beyond redemption, but not one that he could simply laugh off as unthinkable. \"You can't mean...he stopped you from leaving...in order to protect himself?\" \" . He said so himself. 'Your precious master and the father whose blood runs in your veins are both here. Would you really abandon them to save some strangers you've never seen before?'\" \"What kind of father would say something like that?!\" Subaru's anger boiled over, and he slammed his fist into the wall. He had been weathering extreme flashes of emotion all day, ever since morning, but he never would have guessed such rage would be caused by someone not connected with the Witch Cult. If he was going to end up hating people, it would've been preferable to limit it to just people connected to the Cult. \"Lady Felt said that he was just bluffing. That she would be fine and that I should go fight. But I disobeyed her command and stayed. I'm the one to blame.\" \"Like hell you are! There isn't anyone here who doesn't know exactly who's to blame!\" \"Even so, that choice was mine. I am the one who made it.\" Reinhard would not yield responsibility, no matter how much Subaru might shout. He could only regret that stubbornness verging on a perverse, meaningless obstinacy. \"In the end, it remained a stalemate. I was unable to act in the aftermath...and the situation remained unchanged during the second broadcast as well... I'm sure Lady Felt was disappointed in me.\" He could not hide his own disappointment in himself. It was practically dripping from his expression, which just made it all the sadder that he did not realize how hurt he looked. Based on what he had seen that morning and the night before, it looked to Subaru like Felt and Reinhard's relationship had changed quite a bit over the past year. And it seemed the insertion of his father into all of it had brought about another major shift. \"So then, what happened to Felt?\" Anastasia directed the conversation forward again, not touching on the look on Reinhard's face. She was the only royal-selection candidate present, as well as having been entrusted to decide the fate of the city by Kiritaka, a representative of the Council of Ten. At the very least, she was keeping her sympathy to herself while prioritizing the smooth continuation of the discussion. \"You're here now, so is it safe to assume the problem was resolved?\" \"Yes, Lady Felt has met up with her retainers, and at her judgment, she is currently standing by at a shelter with the vice-captain, who has been placed under arrest.\" \"Under arrest? As in you caught him?\" \"His arms and legs have been bound, and he has been gagged. Lady Felt contented herself with meting out that much punishment. Was it not for Otto's help, it might have been much more difficult.\" \"Wait, that's when Otto showed up?\" Subaru was surprised, given there had been no sign of Otto making an appearance before this. \"It's true,\" Otto himself said as he adjusted his hat. \"Though it was sheer happenstance that I stumbled upon them. Having seen their interactions at the inn, though, I quickly grasped the gist of the situation.\" There had been the incident in the morning that had touched on the deeply rooted problems of the Astrea family and the territory managed by Felt's faction. Having seen all that and then actually bearing witness to Heinkel holding Felt hostage just to keep Reinhard from leaving, a person didn't have to be a genius to guess what was happening. \"I judged it the worst possible situation for Mr. Reinhard to be unable to act while the cultists were freely running around. Just the thought of it was bone-chilling, so I knew I had to do something.\" \"And that's when you pummeled Heinkel and saved Felt?\" \"Wait! Wait! Don't just nod along like that's obviously how it would go! I wouldn't do something that rash! I merely distracted him with a simple spell to create an opening for Lady Felt to escape.\" Otto sighed as he corrected Subaru's mistaken guess. \"Thankfully, there was no difficulty finding everyone, what with your big performance. It would have been nice if I could have helped sooner, but I had quite a lot on my plate.\" There had been a few digressions, but Reinhard was nodding, acknowledging that Otto had indeed come to their aid. Otto had really put in a lot of work behind the scenes, like always. He was the ultimate behind-the-scenes talent. \"Still, though, what were you doing up until then, Bro? Honestly, given your strength, wandering around out on the streets would be suicide.\" \"I was a little surprised at how vigorous your concern for me was earlier, but I really did endure all sorts of twists and turns... I suppose I should elaborate.\" Clearing his throat, Otto pointed outside the tower. \"This morning, as I had planned, I headed to the Muse Company alone in order to reinitiate negotiations with Mr. Kiritaka. However, I had some time to spare, so I got off the dragon boat early to walk the rest of the way... That was where I encountered the Witch Cult.\" \"You mean the broadcast? No, wait, that would've been too early.\" Capella's first broadcast had been after the noon bell. Even with a leisurely detour, there was no way Otto wouldn't have reached the company before noon. Otto nodded. \"Correct, it was not the broadcast. On the way to the Muse Company, I encountered the actual Witch Cult... In fact, I encountered someone who called themself an Archbishop. Near the second district's control tower.\" \"An Archbishop appeared before the broadcast went out?!\" Subaru was shocked, but it was not that unbelievable a story when he thought it through. Sirius and Regulus had also been doing as they pleased at the time tower before the broadcast. Other than Capella, who was occupying city hall, the Archbishops had apparently been free to wander the town and take in the sights. And the one he had encountered could not have been any of the aforementioned three. \"So then, the one you met was...the Archbishop of Gluttony, huh?\" \"...Yes. At least that was how they identified themself. And I cannot imagine any reason to lie about it, so I am certain it's true. They looked like"}, {"text": "a child, but I doubt actual age has any bearing on their appearance.\" Otto's description matched with the Roy Alphard Subaru had seen. He didn't want to know the standard for selecting Archbishops, but Gluttony had been a child. A child whose arms and legs were not fully grown and who had clearly never finished maturing...a child with a hideous, scornful grin. \"I assumed it was some thoughtless child's mischief at first, but when I tried to draw the attention of the person guarding the tower...he was pulverized. Literally. With a splat.\" *** \"After watching someone's entire body get smashed flat, I had no choice but to believe. The nearby guards and the city's security forces quickly surrounded the Archbishop...but they did not stand a chance.\" The way Otto's face paled spoke to how gruesome the encounter with Gluttony had been. An average person could not hope to lay hands on Gluttony, and Otto had been powerless to do anything. Dragged into the battle without any choice, Otto had given it his best shot, but  \"In the end, the control tower was captured, and I could not say whether anyone else managed to escape.\" \"You did well coming away from something like that still in one piece. You were facing an Archbishop, after all.\" \"That was through no action of my own. It was only thanks to the people around me. Members of the White Dragon's Scale who joined the battle recognized me and gave their all to allow me a chance to escape.\" \"...Them again, huh?\" Kiritaka's personal troops had played a crucial role there, too. They were the cornerstone of Pristella's defenses, and the majority of them had gone missing, together with Kiritaka himself. And now it was clear that at least some of them had given their lives fighting Gluttony in order to fulfill their duty. \"I fled into the waterways during the confusion. Hearing the cultists' broadcast later, I realized I could no longer act carelessly, so I moved discreetly...which is when I encountered Mr. Reinhard's group.\" \"So that's how you met up.\" And then resolving the stalemate over there brought them back to the present. Subaru's face twisted up as he listened to the tightrope walk that Otto had endured to survive and meet back up with everybody. His path had been no less trying or death-defying than anyone else's in the room. \"And there were even people who sacrificed themselves to buy you time to escape. That's rough.\" \"Truly it pains me as a merchant to be unable to repay my debts.\" Otto bit his lip, mortified by the weight of what he was bearing. Debts must be settled Anastasia had said it, too, but it was a pet saying that Otto had a habit of pulling out. Under that creed, he had to do something to make good on his debt. \"So I shall pay it back by guaranteeing the fate of this city and judging by your performance earlier, I suppose I can count on you to do enough work for the both of us, Mr. Natsuki.\" \"Damn it, Otto...\" Subaru's anxious nerves relaxed a bit at the sudden change in tone as Otto gave him a wink. The tightness in his shoulders went away tension that had been there ever since he began his speech. *** What Otto was getting at was that he had his own reasons to fight. And by conveying that, he was letting Subaru know that he wouldn't let his friend shoulder the fate of the city alone. He was trying to tell Subaru there was no need to get too worked up. \"Ngh...\" Subaru's face felt hot, an intense embarrassment welling up at having his tough-guy act seen through. Who did Subaru think he was? Someone who could decide the fate of a city? A symbol of hope and the people's wishes? It was ridiculous to even imagine. The city and the people who resided within it were not so insignificant and light that Subaru could shoulder them all by himself. How had he forgotten that until Otto pointed it out? \"If you take your little bit of strength and add in my little bit of strength and top it off with Garfiel's stupid amount of strength, it all adds up to something quite sizable. Why not think of it like that?\" \"'None can lift the quain stone alone,' huh? Every once in a while, you're kind of amazing, you know that?\" Subaru pulled out one of Garfiel's inscrutable sayings and found himself amazed yet again by Otto's steady hand. Otto was always saving him. He suspected that even if he tried his hardest, he would probably never be able to pay him back for everything he'd done, so he decided to do whatever he could to be worthy of his friend. \"Ain't that a nice group you've got there? Really know how to keep things moving, don't ya? It's heartwarming.\" \"Ah, my bad, we kind of started talking like it was just the two of us.\" \"It's fine, it's fine. Besides, it looks like Natsuki's finally relaxed a bit,\" Anastasia teased, welcoming the change. She had noticed how tense he really was. Scratching his head sheepishly, Subaru quickly changed topics. \"Now that we've covered what you two were doing, the next topic we should be discussing is...\" \" I would like to address the four demands that the Witch Cult made,\" Julius proposed. His golden eyes narrowed as he pointedly held up four fingers and looked around the room. \"They are not to be negotiated with, of course, but it is crucial to know what they are after. We know the silver-haired maiden, and we know about the Witch's bones from what Mr. Kiritaka told us, but...\" \"An artificial spirit and the book of knowledge...\" Reinhard furrowed his brow. \"I've no clue as to what that book might be, and as for the former, the very idea of an artificial spirit sounds dubious as well. Does such a thing even exist?\" His doubts were shared by many in the room. No one outside of Emilia's camp would have heard of either of those things before. Other than Anastasia, whom Subaru had told earlier. *** Subaru glanced over at Anastasia. She was just looking at him, and as if sensing his intent, she nodded. Subaru decided that he would have to explain the two demands to everyone as well. \" Sorry to interject yet again, but if I may.\" But before Subaru could say anything, Otto raised his hand. Seeing that, Subaru guessed he was thinking of revealing that Beatrice was an artificial spirit. He had been about to explain that himself anyway, so he wasn't against it, but  \"If it's Beako, then I can...\" \"No, this is about the book of knowledge, not Beatrice.\" \"Hn?\" Subaru's eyes widened in surprise. Not looking at Subaru, Otto sighed slightly in resignation. \"I'm sorry I'm the one who brought that into the city.\" 3 Everyone in the room was utterly shocked by Otto's explosive confession. They weren't sure such a book even existed, and yet the person in possession of it had just announced himself to them all. Surprise was a natural reaction, but Subaru's shock was immeasurable because he had been so sure that he had already seen the last of that book that both copies were burned and gone from the world. \"Wh-why did you?\" \"First, I should be clear to prevent misunderstandings. While I did bring the item that would be called the book of knowledge into the city, I am not the one currently in possession of it. And the cultists' demand was a bolt out of the blue for me as well.\" \"That's a roundabout way of puttin' it. What exactly do you mean?\" Noticing Subaru's troubled reaction and Otto's studiously calm response, Anastasia cocked her head. \"Allow me to explain.\" Otto nodded. \"I suspect that most of you are not aware of the book of knowledge. Put frankly, it is apparently the origin from which the Gospels that cultists possess are derived those suspicious magic tomes that record the future of their owner. Its passages are also supposedly far more precise than the Gospels.\" \"The origin of the Gospels? When put that way, it makes some sense that they would want it. It is a blasphemous comparison, but I suppose it is similar to the Dragon Tablet?\" \"Unfortunately, it's a bit difficult for me to say, because the book of knowledge was largely burned by the time I obtained it and was little more than charred scraps.\" \"Charred scraps...\" Otto's words also described the fate of the two tomes in Subaru's memories. Beatrice's book had been burned in the fire along with all the rest of the contents of the forbidden archive. Meanwhile, Roswaal's book had been burned by Ram and lost in the Sanctuary. As he had told Anastasia before, both of the books had been burned to ash. Which meant that if Otto had picked up the charred remains of one, it was most likely to have been Roswaal's copy. \"Ah, I think I know what you were after, Otto. The restorer Darts, right?\" \"...There's no hiding anything from you. Yes, that was it precisely.\" Otto nodded in resignation at Anastasia's quick thinking. And Julius and Reinhard both seemed to understand as well from that exchange. \"Wait up there. Don't go leaving me behind as the only one not getting it. What's this 'restorer' thing about?\" \"Exactly what it sounds like. A specialist in magic who restores items. Darts is particularly well-known for his skill when it comes to this craft. If it's him, then he could even restore a book from its mere ashes.\" \"From its ashes?! Wait, that's actually possible?!\" \"On the strength of that reputation, I secretly requested the restoration of the book of knowledge. So unless he took it during the evacuation, the book is currently being kept in Darts's workplace,\" Otto said, revealing the location of one of the objects the cultists demanded. \"...When did you have time to ask him to do a job like that, Otto?\" \"After the negotiations at the Muse Company collapsed and I parted ways with everyone yesterday. Darts is deeply curious about ancient and rare items, and he was quite enthusiastic about taking the job...\" When he had heard the cultists' demand during the broadcast, Otto had probably been thrown for a loop. And his story explained how the burned book of knowledge could be in the city. But what Subaru could not understand was what Otto's real reason for restoring the book had been. As had been made eminently clear, Subaru did not think highly of the book of knowledge. And considering the pent-up grudge he bore against the Witch who'd made it, he had honestly felt pretty good about its being burned to ashes. So why had Otto wanted to restore that devil's book? \"I will have to ask that you allow me to leave out how I came to be in possession of it and what my goals were in restoring it. I merely wanted to make clear that the book actually exists and where it is currently. Any further, and it becomes an internal matter.\" \"At the very least, one of the factions in the Witch Cult has named the book of knowledge as its goal. Where do you believe that the blame for that lies?\" Julius pressed. \"I believe that there is no point in trying to pin responsibility for the actions of the Witch Cult on anyone other than the Witch Cult themselves. If I were to be hounded regarding that, though, then I would have no choice but to respond with similar boorishness,\" Otto fired back, his eyes narrowed as he looked at Anastasia. Between the lines, he was clearly asking whether blame should also be placed on the one who had invited the royal-selection candidates to the city in the first place; whether blame was not to remain solely with"}, {"text": "the cultists. Seeing that, Julius shook his head. \"Apologies, that was wrongheaded of me. Naturally, I did not mean to blame you. Their crimes are their own, of course, and they are the ones who must atone for those crimes.\" \"I agree.\" Otto nodded. Then, faced with Subaru's doubts, Otto looked him in the eye and said, \"We can discuss it later.\" He meant he would reveal his true goal in due time. That meant he was asking Subaru to set aside his doubts for the moment and come back to the topic later in private. \"Either way, it is clear that the book of knowledge actually does exist. In which case, we should assume for the sake of our planning at least that the artificial spirit also exists,\" Reinhard said, shifting to a new topic with the previous one more or less settled. And that meant the topic that Subaru had started to bring up before Otto's unexpected confession. \"On that note, Anastasia, I was thinking of telling them...\" \"Mm. Yeah, I guess we should.\" *** Anastasia's gaze seemed distant for a moment. Feeling odd about her reaction, Subaru clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. \"Can I have your attention? Sorry for always talking, but I've got something to say about the artificial spirit.\" \"Are you sure, Mr. Natsuki?\" Otto checked, realizing what Subaru was going to say. It was a topic that touched on Beatrice's origin, so he probably judged it to be a delicate subject, but Subaru had decided that it was necessary to explain. Everyone in the room was an ally, and the conflicts among different camps could be set aside for the moment. \"I'm not going to hold anything back here. The artificial spirit they're after is my partner Beako Beatrice. Right now, she's recuperating with the injured.\" \"Lady Beatrice? I see. That makes sense...\" Julius nodded in acceptance. \"Makes sense?\" Subaru cocked his head. \"Ah.\" Julius touched his hair. \"I knew that Lady Beatrice was a powerful spirit, but I felt a somewhat mysterious signal coming from her. Upon my learning that she is not a natural spirit, it makes sense.\" \"...Is that just something that any decent spirit user would recognize?\" \"I'm not sure what you are getting... Ahhh, you are worried about her. I see.\" \"If they could tell at a glance, or by getting close to her, that would be a problem.\" Currently, the cultists had demanded an artificial spirit, but they had not named Beatrice specifically, so it was unclear just how much information they really had about the artificial spirit. If the enemy did not know what she looked like or her name, then they could simply keep Beatrice's true identity a secret and not let anyone else find out. But if the enemy had a way of checking, then it would be a lot harder for Subaru to leave Beatrice's side. \"You need not worry,\" Julius said to put Subaru at ease. \"The reason I felt an oddity was because I have been blessed with so many opportunities to interact with spirits due to my blessing. It would be safe to assume that most people would not be able to notice under normal circumstances.\" \"I see... Gotcha. That's...yeah, that's a relief.\" Hearing that, Subaru exhaled the weight that had built up in his lungs. Reinhard and everyone else nodded, indicating that they had not noticed Beatrice was a special spirit in that regard. At least Subaru would not have to worry about her drawing all sorts of dangerous attention. \"Still, though, that crazy book, and the spirit thing, too basically everything comes back to your place.\" \"...You don't have to tell me that. I'm starting to despair for the world. Maybe I got cursed somewhere along the line or something.\" \"Despair for the world? That's a riot!\" Ricardo opened his mouth wide, and his booming laugh shattered the mood building in the room. That unrestrained laughter helped Subaru right himself just a bit. *** The truth was just like he said, though. The cultists were coming straight for Emilia's faction with their demands. Otto and Julius's back-and-forth had ended with an agreement that no one was to blame for what the Witch Cult did other than the Witch Cult itself, but with so many things overlapping, it was entirely possible that the others would start to turn a cold eye on Emilia's camp. But by making a point of saying it like that, Ricardo nipped the friction in the bud. He rarely fussed about the details, or perhaps was just plain careless, but as expected of the leader of the Iron Fangs, Ricardo could read the room and set the mood like the best of them. Although  \"If anything, I'm almost startin' to wonder if you're actually human yourself! You lived through gettin' washed away by the flood, after all. You hidin' anything from us?\" \"You are reading the room, right? That was intentional, right? It's starting to feel like that was just natural, which is a scary thought.\" \"You're best off not thinking too hard about it. By and large, he's not thinking anything at all when he does that.\" Subaru was starting to regret his admiration for Ricardo's rude act, which seemed less and less like an act, but Anastasia just shrugged it off before continuing. \"Anyway, the artificial spirit definitely exists, too. Naturally, just like with what Otto was sayin', we aren't gonna give 'em anything they want. Right, Natsuki?\" \"Damn straight. I'm not giving up Beako until I die of old age. And I'm gonna cuddle up with her to sleep even when I'm an old man. So there's no way in hell I'm gonna let the likes of them get their hands on her.\" Seeing Subaru's unyielding determination not to give in to the cultists' demands, Reinhard nodded firmly. \"Understood. We cannot afford to accept even one of their demands. Depending on the situation, the wedding ceremony could perhaps have been overlooked, but \" \"No! That's a hard-and-fast nay! Because the person that white-haired asshole is trying to marry is my Emilia-tan!\" \" ?! I had a bad feeling about it, but it really was Lady Emilia, then! I had assumed her not being here was because she had taken shelter...!\" Reinhard stared in wonder, and Otto turned pale in shock. Seeing that, Subaru apologized for not explaining sooner. \"I'm ashamed to admit it, but she was taken away right before my eyes. That 'silver-haired maiden' is Emilia. But I'm not going to let that happen. I'm the one who's gonna marry Emilia.\" Subaru pounded his chest with an eruption of righteous indignation and love. *** Otto clutched his head at Subaru's out-and-out proclamation, and Reinhard's eyes widened. \"...Huh? Did I say something weird?\" \"Not weird so much as... I'm surprised to hear you actually say it out loud. I was astonished by your performance over the metia earlier as well, but I just felt it again now. You're a real man's man, ain't ya, Natsuki?\" \"What's with that tepid response?! I really did say something weird, didn't I?!\" Anastasia shook her head no as Ricardo obviously snickered. And Garfiel's nodding with arms crossed and Otto's slumping were just the usual responses. \"Even you're looking at me weird, Reinhard.\" \"I was surprised and astonished like Lady Anastasia I suppose. I had, to some extent, sensed how you felt, but I would not have expected you to express your feelings toward Lady Emilia so explicitly and confidently.\" The surprise fading, Reinhard's cheeks softened, and from the look in his eyes he appeared to be genuinely moved. Subaru could hardly believe he was getting teased by someone as honest and forthright as him. Which would mean Julius, that paragon of knightly chivalry, must be pretty annoyed  *** \"Julius?\" However, when Subaru nervously turned around, Julius's reaction was nothing like what he'd expected. Julius's golden eyes were narrowed, watching Subaru with what almost felt like jealousy. An earnest yearning that stirred the depths of his heart. \"\" Julius returned to his senses after a moment. \"Apologies. I was just thinking about something. Did you need something?\" \"No, it's fine... Ah! Anyway, moving on!\" Realizing he had lost track of the conversation for a moment, Subaru spun around to take in the room. \"I'm going to get Emilia back with my own two hands, and I'll kick Greed's ass to do it. There's no room for negotiation on that.\" \"Very well, then that's what we shall do. If that is how it is, then he is not someone who can be overlooked or forgiven.\" As he agreed with Subaru's determination, Reinhard's eagerness for battle welled up. Getting goose bumps from that, Subaru continued, \"Also, it looks like you're feeling pessimistic, Otto, but it isn't all bad. Even after she was caught, Emilia-tan didn't just sit around waiting for us to make our move, either. She managed to get in contact with Al once and pass us some info on the enemy.\" \"Lady Emilia did something that sophisticated?! Is she all right?!\" \"You could at least comment on how dangerous that must have been, man... Anyway, can you fill them in on what she told you, Al?\" It was clear from his reaction just what Otto had expected of Emilia, but Subaru lobbed the conversation to the man leaning against the wall in the corner of the room. *** Al slowly raised his head and stepped away from the wall sluggishly. For some reason, he had been like that ever since Subaru's speech. Between that and the intense exchange before the speech, everything about him seemed very different from usual. It was really starting to bother Subaru. But Al just nodded listlessly as Subaru focused a concerned gaze on him. \"Yeah... That little lady wasn't discouraged at all about being behind enemy lines. Maybe she was confident she wouldn't be killed since Greed wanted to marry her.\" \"Yeah...I'm not so sure about that part.\" Subaru tilted his head as Al scratched at the seam of his helm. It was not that unreasonable a thought, but in Emilia's case, Subaru suspected she would have done basically the same thing even if the situation had been drastically different. For better or worse, she always prioritized others over herself. That side of her made Subaru happy, but it was also incredibly worrying at times. He had wanted more information about her and wanted her to be safe while she was captured, so even just knowing that much was fortunate, but... \"...Emilia let us know which control tower is controlled by Greed and which one is controlled by Lust. And from Otto's story, we can be fairly confident which tower contains Gluttony, right?\" \"Correct, it was the control tower in the second district. And from Emilia's timely intelligence report, we know Lust is in the first district and Greed is in the third district, which makes the fourth district Wrath by process of elimination. That's valuable enough information to merit her doing something rash,\" Anastasia summarized. \"So there you have it,\" Subaru said with a light snap and a wink. Greeted with wry smiles, Subaru, undiscouraged, turned his finger to Al. \"And we're grateful to you for bringing this information back, too...so what are you sulking about, Al? Is it just 'cause I didn't listen to your warning...?\" \"I ain't sulking. An old guy like me gettin' bent out of a shape like that wouldn't be cute anyway.\" \"Cute's got nothing to do with it... I don't really want to admit it, but we got our asses kicked pretty hard the last go-round, and I don't want to fall into the same trap as before.\" Subaru spread his fingers, holding out his hand to Al. Al looked down at the hand through his visor and then looked back at Subaru dubiously. \"I want you to help us out this time. Fight the good fight so I can save my love.\" Subaru papered over his more earnest feelings"}, {"text": "with a joke as he waited for Al's response, trusting that in the end he would just crack wise and give in. But  \" If that's really how you feel, then I'm not against helping out.\" There was no intimacy in Al's voice as he brushed Subaru's hand away in seeming annoyance. *** \"Uh...\" Subaru felt a chill down his spine. The tone that was so clearly different from normal and the gaze he could not read behind the pitch-black helm caught him off guard. In that moment, Al pointed a wild, frayed rage right at Subaru. Subaru recognized that mysterious, almost violently aggressive feeling as something he had encountered before. But he could not remember where he had sensed it or the form it had taken then. He simply couldn't connect the two. And while he continued struggling to make sense of it all, their awkward stare-down continued  \"Hark. Please lend me thine ears  Thine eyes evoke a heated, racing heart.\" \"Ugh ?!\" \"Eep?!\" Totally caught off guard by the sudden interjection, Subaru spun around, sending the newcomer flying with a shocked gasp. She went rolling backward for some distance before dramatically crashing into the spare tables lining the wall. \"Ugyah! My elbows! My knees! The pain of every bone in my body breaking! All six of my ribs just snapped! I'm sure of it!\" The small figure curled up under the tables, writhing in pain with an earsplitting scream. Subaru's eyes widened as he turned around and caught his breath. The girl rolling around on the floor, unleashing every last bit of her quirky personality, was  \"Liliana?! Wait, if you're here, then that means...\" \" Naturally, I brought her here myself, commoner.\" \"Oh.\" Right after confirming Liliana's presence, the owner of that voice, the walking embodiment of arrogance, stepped into the room. Footsteps rang out, luxuriously and magnificently, emphasizing the overwhelming aura of the brilliantly red woman. Her bloody crimson eyes lorded over the occupants as she pulled a fan from her voluptuous cleavage. \"The actors have all gathered. I suppose I should praise your prudence in waiting for the guest of honor to assume her seat. Be sure to maintain that diligent attitude going forward.\" Smiling and apparently in a very good mood, the crimson beauty Priscilla Bariel joined the fray. 4 \"P-Princess! You were safe!\" Everyone, Subaru included, was surprised by Priscilla's sudden appearance. But among them all, the quickest to snap back to reality was her retainer, Al, who quickly dashed over to her. \"I was worried, since I couldn't find you anywhere I looked... Gragh!\" \"You fool.\" The joy at reuniting with her lasted but a moment, though, as she smacked Al upside the head with a splendid crack. The sound echoed in the conference room, and Al was sent flying, only coming to stop after landing in a heap next to Liliana. Knowing from personal experience just how powerful that fan could be, Subaru reflexively groaned. \"Explain yourself, Al. Not only did you fail to accompany me, but I find you here playing around with these commoners. You and Schult have a duty to watch me, heed my voice, bask in my scent, and obey my every command. Nothing more and nothing less. And you, Schult: making your master personally search for you? Does your impudence know no bounds?\" \"Ugh. My humblest apologies, Lady Priscilla...\" As she mercilessly kicked Al, a young, pink-haired butler peeped nervously out from behind her back Schult, the person she had been searching for. \"So you really did manage to follow through on that... That really is some amazing tenacity.\" Priscilla had led Liliana and Schult through a city filled with menacing demi-beasts where violence and chaos could erupt at any moment thanks to the cultists' devious machinations. The way she carried herself and her general sense of absolute confidence easily surpassed Subaru's wildest expectations yet again. \"It was like that at the inn this morning, too. You really like to surprise people, don't you?\" \"You commoners merely collapse into shudders when faced with my peerless beauty and presence. If you would then bow your head in that awe, I might grant you mercy, but every last one of you is utterly lacking in charm. Of particular note...\" Priscilla and Anastasia did not seem to get along particularly well, and they engaged in a bit of verbal fencing, but after that, Priscilla turned her eyes to Subaru as she trailed off. The pressure made him a little claustrophobic as he managed to ask, \"What?\" \"...That clumsy broadcast earlier. That was your voice, was it not?\" \"...And what if it was?\" \"Hmph. There is no need to be so tense. I am fair in judging results. I simply call it like I see it and currently, the eyes of the masses have turned to you. And I have decided to take them back with my own hands.\" \"...Ummm, so in other words...?\" \"Do not make me spell everything out for you. My noble lips do not need the pointless labor.\" Her eyes narrowed confrontationally as she sat herself down in one of the seats around the table, leaned back with a squeak, and crossed her arms, emphasizing her buxom figure. \"So report the current situation and be quick about it. You will become my hands and legs and fulfill thy roles. And be grateful, for I shall reward you by joining your plan.\" \"W-wait, Princess! Are you seriously planning to go at it with those cultists?!\" \"Would you have me flee, Al? If so, impudence would not begin to describe your transgression.\" Al tried to argue with Priscilla, who had sat down and announced her participation in the plan, but she glared back at him, causing the iron-helmed man to tremble. \"It was I who decided to visit this city, and it will be I who decides when to leave this city. I will brook no other person's directions. Particularly not the mad ramblings of zealots.\" *** \" Everything in this world exists for my convenience. As my retainer and jester, you should know as much, Al. My very existence is the embodiment of the will of the world. My actions themselves are divine providence.\" There was no breaking Priscilla's steel will no, diamond would probably be more accurate. And Al should have known that better than anyone else there. \"Um, uh, that is just how Lady Priscilla is, so...\" \"...Yeah, I know. Sorry for worryin' ya, Schult.\" Al shrugged his one arm weakly and smiled wryly at Schult, who had struggled to find the words to comfort him. The prickly air he had directed at Subaru moments earlier disappeared. He had made up his mind Priscilla's domineering personality had finally done the job. \"Otto, maybe we could step out for a real quick moment?\" \"Yes, of course.\" Al lost out to Priscilla's demands and started calmly explaining the situation to her. Taking advantage of that lull, Subaru led Otto out into the hall to pick up a certain topic the restoration of the book of knowledge and to press him on what he had been thinking when he'd decided on that wild course of action. \"Garfiel, call us back once the conversation's moved on,\" Subaru said before leaving the room. They stood across from each other out in the hall. Otto looked at Subaru quietly before starting in. \"It was one year ago. Immediately after cleaning up the problems in the Sanctuary. After the marquis's snowstorm melted away, while I was looking around the village, I found it by chance... No, it was not by chance. I was explicitly searching for it due to what Ms. Ram had said.\" \"If you found it there, then that would mean there's no mistake that it was the remnants of Roswaal's book.\" \"Yes. His was the one whose contents I wanted to confirm. And for once, I was in luck.\" It was a bit of self-deprecating humor about his naturally poor fortunes, but Subaru was not in the mood to share a laugh when it came to these books. There was already a bad taste lingering in his mouth from talking about them, and when he saw that, Otto's smile disappeared as well. And then he took a deep breath and sighed heavily. \"What do you honestly think of Marquis Mathers?\" \"Of Roswaal?\" Subaru thought about it for a moment. \"I think I can't let my guard down around him. And there was the thing a year ago, too. But his real goal is clear now, and as long as our goals are aligned, he isn't a threat. Right now...he's more of an accomplice.\" \" I cannot find it in myself to trust Marquis Mathers in the least,\" Otto responded bitterly, almost seeming to write off Subaru's thoughts as far too easygoing. The sharpness of that response made Subaru catch his breath. \"'The thing a year ago'? Yes, that's right. There was the situation last year in the Sanctuary. And before that, he seems to have schemed many different things as well. Though when it comes to this topic, both you and Lady Emilia seem to have been content to easily forgive him.\" \"...I haven't forgiven him at all. I'm still pretty pissed about what he did, and it still bothers me. But that doesn't change the fact that we need him. I just think that getting all up in arms about it won't help anything, and Emilia's the same.\" \"And I'm saying that that, that right there, is naive. I did not, however, say that it was a bad thing.\" Otto glared at Subaru as if he was looking at something incredibly vexing. Subaru could understand the irritation he was feeling, he really could, but... \"It is all right. You and Lady Emilia can be that way. There is no need for either of you to change at all. Because I will be there on guard where you are not.\" \"Be on guard?\" \"My job is taking care of internal matters, so I have had many opportunities to interact with the marquis. And during the past year of observation, I have not noticed any signs of schemes or suspicious artifice. However, that is only in the present tense. I cannot speak to what he might have done in the time before that. Say, for example, if he had perhaps arranged some sort of long-term scheme.\" Subaru was at a loss for words. He could feel the weight of how much Otto was watching out for them, constantly thinking and planning and observing. The doubts he had regarding Roswaal were well-founded. And it was only natural that every action would provoke a reaction. For better or worse if anything, precisely because it was bad. \"If he was obeying the directions for the future laid out in the book of knowledge, then by looking at the book, it should be possible to determine what, if anything, he arranged. And that will surely be beneficial at some point in the future.\" Otto explained with clenched fists, as this time Subaru experienced irritation welling up inside himself. Just like Otto had said, he had been the one best able to observe Roswaal from up close during the past year. And Otto had watched his each and every move without letting down his guard the entire time. And having done that, he'd judged that there had been no traces of hidden machinations over that time. That was a relief, but an inability to let it go at that was Subaru's worrisome friend's bad habit.  In his own way, Otto wanted to trust Roswaal. But regardless of how he felt about the current Roswaal and his future actions, he could not just easily forgive the past schemes that might or might not even exist. \"So what you wanted out of the book of knowledge wasn't anything about the future.\" \"It was what was recorded in the past. I wanted confirmation that no one else inside our camp will be hurt. That is why I retrieved the book and"}, {"text": "sent it out to be restored... I'm sorry for my selfish actions.\" Otto lowered his head and apologized. Subaru had nothing to say, since he or Emilia also should have noticed the things that Otto had been worrying about. He was struck again by just how much Otto was saving him day in and day out without his even realizing it. Why would he go so far for ? \"I'm not going to talk about that. It would just be boring.\" Realizing what Subaru must have been thinking from his expression, Otto raised his head and cut him off. In the end, the discomfort just deepened as Subaru scratched his head and sighed. \"I understand now. And I can understand why you picked up the book. I'm not mad, either...but them wanting the book is definitely a problem. What are we going to do about it?\" \"Regardless of the result, I was thinking of recovering the book now, whatever state it might be in. It's quite possible that Darts has been injured in all of this, and I don't want it to fall into the cultists' hands even by chance. It is my responsibility.\" \"...Taking back the four towers is our top priority. We can't afford to divert any fighting forces for that.\" \"Need I remind you that I managed to make my way through this dangerous city and even bring the Sword Saint with me? And while I may look like this, I'm particularly skilled at finding a way to survive by relying upon the aid of animals around me,\" Otto explained, pointing to his lips in a veiled reference to his blessing of language. In actual fact, when it came to just staying alive, Subaru trusted Otto more than anyone else. And with the enemy's main forces holed up in the towers, Otto's chances of success were not terrible. \"That's not enough to remove all doubt, but that's the same for everyone simply by being here in this city, and you have to put all your effort into recovering Lady Emilia. We both have weighty responsibilities.\" \"I know. I'll slap Greed down and marry Emilia. Those are my jobs here.\" \"Feel free to do your best on the latter if you'd like, but that's the spirit, at least.\" Seeing Subaru steel his resolve again, Otto turned back toward the meeting room. Nodding at his suggestion to return, Subaru started to turn toward the door as well  \" Sir Subaru.\" A soft voice called from the stairway, stopping him in his tracks. Turning back, he was met by Wilhelm's gaze. The same Wilhelm who should have been by Crusch's side. \"You go back first, Otto.\" \"Understood. I'll keep the discussion on track.\" Nodding to Wilhelm, Otto returned to the meeting room. Meanwhile, Subaru headed over to Wilhelm, who bowed slightly. \"My humblest apologies for not joining the meeting. I've caused you all nothing but trouble.\" \"It is what it is, Wilhelm. No one thinks badly of you for it. And um...how is Ms. Crusch?\" He had heard that she was in a poor state in fact, he had practically been told she had been hurt badly. Badly enough that it would be difficult for her to be seen like that, given her beauty. Seeing the concern that Subaru could not fully hide, Wilhelm averted his blue eyes. \"She opened her eyes just moments ago. It is still too early to say for sure, though...\" \"She woke up?! That's a huge relief! I was so worried.\" \" Lady Crusch asked me to call for you. Could I perhaps trouble you to accompany me?\" Subaru rejoiced at the good news, but he cocked his head at Wilhelm's next statement. Of course he would gladly welcome the chance to talk to Crusch. And he wanted to be able to confirm with his own two eyes that she was safe. But  \"She has requested it herself. Still, please understand that Ferris is by no means excited about it.\" \"...No, he wouldn't be, would he?\" What Ferris had said before was still eating away at his heart. Subaru had been the only person in the position to save Crusch during the battle with Capella on the top floor of the tower. Ultimately, he hadn't been able to give her any reliable help, and Ferris likely hadn't forgiven him for that yet on an emotional level, even if he understood the reasons. And Subaru could understand that feeling so badly it hurt. \"Ferris might say something impolitic, but please do not heed it. And if possible, I would ask you to forgive it. He understands, but there are some feelings that he just cannot help.\" \"I can understand hating everyone around you when you can't do anything to help someone precious to you. I don't want to assume that one moment's darkness is all there is to a person.\" If venting like that could help him calm down a little bit, then who could blame him? Subaru had the resolve to stand there and take it if that was what he needed. \"...This way.\" Closing his eyes at that, Wilhelm led Subaru to his master's room. For a moment, their two sets of controlled footsteps echoed in the hallway. \"Sir Subaru, there is one thing I would like to report from the battle at the tower.\" \"What? Something other than Crusch...?\" \"It is about the cultists who accompanied the Archbishop...those two fighters.\" Subaru caught his breath slightly. It was a problem he had imagined. Mimi had received a wound that would not close, and Wilhelm's old wound had reopened. The two extraordinarily powerful swordsmen that the cultists had brought with them  \"One of them is Eight-Arms Kurgan. A general of the Empire of Volakia and a swordsman who desired to be the strongest above all else. He was an eight-armed greatsword user who wielded four different greatswords. He died over ten years ago.\" \"If he died already, then, um, doesn't that...?\" \"And the other one...\" Wilhelm continued, cutting Subaru off. He stopped walking and Subaru stopped as well. His back to Subaru, Wilhelm remained silent. Subaru instinctively took a step forward, coming up beside him and immediately regretted it. That was something he should not have seen. \" The other is the previous Sword Saint, Theresia van Astrea. My wife, who should have fallen to the White Whale and died in the expedition fifteen years ago.\" His voice remained calm. That alone spoke volumes about how sturdy his mental fortitude was. But it didn't matter one bit when Subaru saw how painfully warped the Sword Devil's face was. Rage and pain and a swirling, dark emotion that could not be described in a single word were threatening to tear the man apart. \"Is there any chance that your wife and the empire's general are somehow both still alive...?\" \"...No, it is not possible. My wife and Kurgan are both dead. That is an indisputable fact. However, there is a fool somewhere on this earth who has disgraced their memories in death.\" Wilhelm gritted his teeth as he confirmed that his wife really was dead. Subaru thought about that.  A blasphemous desecration of the dead. In other words, a type of necromancy. Some sort of magic to manipulate corpses was a staple of fantasy genres. Naturally, in a fictional world, it would not be that odd for a magic for reviving the dead to exist, but there was no convenient magic like that in this world. The dead could not be revived. That was an unwritten ironclad rule that Subaru had learned over the course of the past year and change. So Kurgan and Theresia's being there was not the result of resurrection, but of someone using magic in order to turn the dead into puppets. \"There were once those who could manipulate the dead using a forbidden technique. During the Demi-human War decades ago, several people joined the demi-human side during the kingdom's internal struggle and became the kingdom's greatest enemies by raising a host of corpses to add to their ranks.\" \"The kingdom's greatest enemies, capable of raising a host of the dead...\" \"The hero of the demi-humans Libre Fermi, the great strategist Valga Cromwell, and \" Wilhelm paused for a second. \"The witch Sphinx. A being most foul who caused an ocean of blood to be spilled by both humans and demi-humans alike without even batting an eye. The one and only witch other than the Witch of Envy who left her bloody name in the kingdom's history.\" 5 Wilhelm named a witch Subaru had never heard of before. The witches Subaru knew were Envy Satella and the six others associated with the deadly sins, whom he'd met in Echidna's tomb. That there were more witches came out of nowhere. \"Then, do you think that that Sphinx is connected with this situation now?\" \"No. My apologies, I was not clear enough. The witch Sphinx was destroyed back during that war and is most certainly dead. She is surely not connected to the current incident.\" \"She's dead? You're sure, right? A witch pretending to die in order to be able to act freely sort of fits the mental image I have of them.\" There was the way Satella appeared whenever Subaru came close to the taboo of revealing his Return by Death ability, and there was the way Echidna was living it up in her domain after having died, too. \"They don't die no matter how many times you kill them, almost like cockroaches...\" \"I cannot speak to the sort of impression you may have of witches, but Sphinx was merely referred to as a witch out of convenience. The more important point is the magic that Sphinx used.\" \"Which is a magic to raise the dead...?\" \"At the time, they were commonly called corpse soldiers. That taboo technique is the most likely culprit behind the current situation.\" Corpse soldiers was a blunt, easy-to-understand, and brutal phrase. A dead person, someone who had been lost, was moving again, and calling them a corpse soldier hammered home the reality of the situation. And Wilhelm's beloved wife was being used as one of those corpse soldiers. Subaru could not even begin to imagine what he was feeling. \"My wife passed away. I was unable to protect her.\" *** Subaru regretted his bitter expression, because it had made Wilhelm feel compelled to say it again. His foolish inability to keep his emotions from showing had forced Wilhelm to repeat it. There was nothing he could say as he watched the older swordsman's face. Not a single thing. \"Apologies for keeping you here so long. I mustn't make Lady Crusch wait any longer. Please proceed inside.\" Wilhelm bowed and pointed to the door at the end of the hall. The farthest room. That was where Crusch was waiting for Subaru. His feet were heavy, like the bottoms of his shoes were clinging to the floor. That was surely an expression of the weakness of his heart as he started to feel daunted. \" It's me. Subaru Natsuki. Crusch?\" Knocking on the door, he called out hoarsely. There was a moment's silence, and then the door slowly opened inward. \"Subawu...\" Ferris appeared on the other side. His gruesome appearance made Subaru catch his breath. His eyes were swollen and red from crying, and his chestnut hair was an absolute mess. His body was covered in spatters of blood that belonged to other people, and perhaps because he had not even spared a thought to wipe them away, there were even dried blood spots on his cheeks and neck. \"...Ah, I was...I was told Crusch asked for me...\" \"Mm. She's in bed... Don't you dare pull anything.\" His voice was strained, a hint of hatred seeping into the warning. But the hatred was not directed at Subaru. It was an all-encompassing hate. What was consuming Ferris was an aimless rage, a hatred of everything in the world. Taking a deep breath, Subaru continued inside behind Ferris. The room was not"}, {"text": "very large. Originally it had been a break room, and it was divided into several little spaces with beds for naps. And Crusch was in the one farthest to the back. The woman lying on the simple bed noticed Subaru. \"...Sir Su-baru?\" Her lips moved, calling his name. In trying to respond, Subaru felt his throat clench. Steeling himself and feigning calm, responding in such a way as to keep her from worrying he could not even do something as simple as that. \"A-pologies for my un-sightly appear-ance...\" \"...No, no... That's not...that's not it...at all...\" Seeing Subaru stiffen, Crusch apologized weakly, but Subaru desperately spoke up, trying to smooth things over, flustered by her pained demeanor. She had been afflicted by a horrific black curse after having been bathed in Capella's blood. Her neck, arms, legs huge swathes of her skin were covered in a mottled black pattern. It was not hard to imagine that it was the same for the skin that was not showing as well. The network of black veins spreading across her body pulsed unnaturally, like a venomous snake constricting itself around her slender body. The hideous curse was an insult to her hale, unblemished skin. And of course the affliction did not stop at her neck. Her dignified, sharp beauty, which brought to mind the keenest of blades the whole left side of her face was enveloped by a mottled splotch of black. The right side of her face remained clear, almost as if by malicious design, forcing Subaru to constantly compare the two sides, evoking an anger that something so noble had been so deliberately defiled. Her left eye was covered by an eye patch, and he was hesitant to even imagine what the eye underneath looked like. He could understand why everyone had so adamantly insisted on his not seeing Crusch in her current state. The sheer difference between how badly they had been affected it was just too cruel. \"Is this...is this really the same dragon's blood curse as I have?\" If so, then what could possibly explain the cruel difference between their conditions? The same black pattern was covering his right leg, but beyond the appearance, there had been no effect on his leg at all. It did not hurt, and nothing about it felt off. But it was clearly different for Crusch. Her pained wheezing, the way she trembled every time the network of vessels pulsed as if she were experiencing tremendous pain... \"Ferris...\" He turned to Ferris, one of the best healers in all the kingdom, to ask if he could do anything, but that did nothing more than rub salt in the wound as Ferris bit his lips at his own powerlessness. He dug his nails into his arms as he looked down. He regretted his powerlessness more than anyone else ever could. Given what he knew about their relationship, Subaru could be sure that Ferris had tried every possible method to help her far more things than Subaru could begin to imagine. \"Crusch... Why...?\" Why had she called for him when she was clearly suffering so much? He doubted she could do anything. Was there something she wanted to say? Did she want vengeance against Lust for doing that to her? To curse Subaru? He placed his ear close to Crusch's lips as she wheezed painfully, not wanting to miss anything she might say. \"...Th-ank good-ness you are safe...\" *** \"I heard...you were exposed to the blood...like I was...\" She seemed relieved. There was a gentleness to her voice. The next moment, Subaru realized what he had really been feeling and almost wanted to die from anger at his own pettiness. He had been thinking that it would be so much easier if she just blamed him. Because of that, he had looked down on her noble spirit and doubted her virtue. She had simply been worried for him, worried that he was suffering the same excruciating pain that she was. \"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry...\" For doubting her, for her having to suffer like that, for being unable to do anything to relieve her pain: It all melded together into one great ball of remorse. He instinctively reached out, taking Crusch's limp hand. Her hand was covered by the mottled blackness. It looked distorted and was slick to the touch, which only emphasized the terrible state she was in. But  \"Gh, ahh?!\" For a moment, an intense pain coursed through his veins, like he had grabbed a red-hot iron. Pain shot through his hand, and he reflexively let go of Crusch's hand and looked at his own.  His hand, which should have been normal, now had the same black pattern. \"Let me see your hand!\" Ferris took his hand, examining it as he stared in shock. The light of healing magic enveloped the dark veins, but there was no trace of pain nor sign of the black affliction fading. But Subaru realized what had happened instead. \"Ferris! Crusch's hand!\" \"What...?\" Spinning around, Ferris widened his yellow eyes. The reason for his shock was Crusch's right hand, the one that Subaru had held. The swollen blackness on her right hand had faded ever so slightly. \"Did it shift to my body from hers...?\" There didn't seem to be any other way to explain the way their bodies had reacted. The stark difference in what their hands looked like now was proof. The curse afflicting Crusch's body had shifted to Subaru. \"B-but nothing happened to me! I touched her countless times while caring for her... See? It isn't moving! I I...\" Hearing Subaru's hypothesis, Ferris touched the black flesh and tearfully shook his head. He was overwhelmed with anguish not by the possibility of a treatment, but at his own inability to do anything. The stark reality before him his own inability to save his master was just a never-ending series of difficult-to-bear blows. \"Even though I can't help her...\" \"Move aside, Ferris... I need to test this...\" He felt bad for Ferris and the shock he must have been feeling, but verifying what was happening took precedence. Setting Ferris aside, Subaru faced Crusch again. She looked confused at what was happening as she looked up at him, her right eye tearing up. Subaru held out his hand, touching her cheek so that his hand covered her left eye, the one masked by an eye patch. \"Gh-gaaaaaaaaah!\" Immediately after, it felt like his brain was being seared and magma was flowing through his veins. The curse afflicting Crusch's body traveled through his fingers, seemingly burning, melting, and bursting his nerves as they went. Was this what Crusch was feeling with every moment that passed? She had been bearing something like that and even still had been worried about him? In that case, he would  \" Ahhh.\" Before realizing it, Subaru fell back to the floor, his mouth puckering and sputtering like that of a fish out of water. Beside him, Ferris, who was watching Crusch... \"That's...\" Had it had at least a little effect? Crusch's right eye was blinking in shock. The sign of the curse, the black pattern running across her left cheek, had faded somewhat. Seeing that, Subaru knew he had gotten some response. Lifting himself heavily, he prepared to try again. If it could change that much from one time, then if he repeated the action enough, she could be saved  \"You mustn't, Sir Subaru... Have you not noticed?\" \"What?\" But it was Crusch herself who stopped him. Her amber eyes were focused on his outstretched hand. Following her gaze, he noticed what she was seeing and belatedly understood what she was saying. His right arm was covered by swollen black masses just like his right leg. That part was fine, though. He had successfully taken the curse from Crusch. That change was exactly what he wanted. That alone would not shake his resolve. But the amount of curse he had gained was also clearly not commensurate with the amount that had been taken from her. He had just lessened the curse on her left hand and part of her face, but his right arm from his elbow down to the back of his hand was covered in the black mass. It was not a one-to-one exchange. It was one to ten, maybe even more. \"That's not enough to stop me.\" The instant he absorbed it, it hurt. But once it was inside him, it showed no sign of hurting or eating away at him. Unlike Crusch's, his pain only lasted for an instant. And there was no question which of the two of them was better suited to bearing the hideousness of the curse. If it would save Crusch, then he could put up with parts of his body getting hideous-looking welts. \"You mustn't, Sir Subaru... I cannot accept that.\" \"Don't be stupid. I'm fine with a little bit of pain. This is way better than getting an impulsive tattoo, anyway. So...\" \"There is no guarantee it will remain that way... If the both of us are unable to fight...that would be fatal given the current situation...\" Crusch was worried more about the people of the city than about her own fate. That was a logical point, but Subaru didn't think everything could be decided so logically. \"Ferris, stop Sir Subaru...\" \"I I... Lady Crusch, I...\" \"Please. Right now, the people need him more than they need me...\" Ferris hesitated precisely because Crusch was absolutely the most important thing to him in the entire world. And no one could blame him for that hesitation and doubt. No one in the room was wrong. But merely not being wrong did not make them right. \"Do not be swept away in a burst of emotion. Please, Sir Subaru...\" \"I understand what you're trying to say, Crusch, but I still \" \"You said it, did you not? 'Just leave everything else to me.'\" *** His desire to prioritize the ones closest to him was broken by Crusch's plea. The words she chose, the strength with which she spoke, had he really said that himself? And, having heard him say that, Crusch was now telling him to follow through, to keep his word? \"Say it to me, too, please.\" *** \"'Leave everything else to me.'\" She waited for Subaru's response with a pained smile. Catching his breath, moving his tongue inside his dry mouth, Subaru quietly closed his eyes. Having been scolded for clinging to the chance to save someone right in front of him without thinking of what would come later, having been told something he should not have needed to be told, then at the very least  Then at the very least, for that one moment, he should do what she wanted  \"Crusch, please take your time and rest.\" \"...Sir Subaru...\" \"You can leave everything else to me.\" \" Thank you.\" He could at least fulfill the role asked of him, say the words that she wanted to hear from him. *** Hearing that, she exhaled a deep breath, as if relieved. Then she weakly closed her eyes proof that she had only been carrying on as she had through sheer force of will. Her breathing became shallower, and she was soon too busy battling the encroaching curse again to pay attention to anything else. In order to free her from that even a minute sooner  \"Sorry, Ferris, but I have to go.\" \"...What should I do?\" Adjusting Crusch's blanket, Subaru stood up and spoke softly. Ferris looked exhausted as he turned to Subaru for some sort of consolation. Honestly, he wanted to just tell him to stay by Crusch's side. But Ferris's abilities would not allow that, given the situation. \"We need your strength. There are sure to be more people hurt going forward. There are going to be a lot of people we won't be able to save without you. So please.\" \"...But I couldn't even save the one person I most wanted to save...\" \"Ferris...\" \"Sorry, that was stupid of me... Let me stay here with her"}, {"text": "a little longer.\" Turning away, Ferris sat down in the chair next to the bed. Subaru tapped his shoulder lightly, glanced at Crusch's resting face, and then left the room. When he entered the hallway, he was greeted by Wilhelm, whose head was lowered just like when he had left. Perhaps realizing what had happened inside, he thanked Subaru. \"You have my gratitude for answering Lady Crusch's wish.\" \"It's not anywhere near as noble as you make it sound. If anything, she lit a fire in my belly... What the hell is going on with my body, though?\" Absorbing Crusch's curse, and also seemingly weakening the effects of the dragon's blood, and then the resistance to the Witch Factor, and his ability to Return by Death... It was all incredibly shady. Would he ever get a proper answer to all these questions? \"Either way, I'm going to have to try this again with her after everything else is all cleared up.\" \"Is your right arm truly well?\" \"Yeah, though I know it looks terrible. Guess I'll have to stick to long sleeves and maybe some gloves, too. But if a couple of permanent scars are all it takes to save a pretty girl, then you won't find me complaining.\" It was his body, and he did feel a certain amount of reluctance. But his flippant statement was also fairly close to how Subaru truly felt about it. If there was no other solution, then he would be fine with bearing her curse for her. Even if it ended up covering his whole body in that nasty mottled black, he could just apologize to Emilia and Rem and Beatrice and ask for their forgiveness. \"That's something to worry about once we get through all this. Let's head downstairs. They should be getting to how to attack the towers around now.\" \" Reinhard is down there now.\" As Subaru started to hurry to the conference room, he was stopped in his tracks by Wilhelm's murmur. For a split second, he flashed back to the scene at the Water Raiment Inn. The reconciliation between grandfather and grandson, and the way it had been ruined and their chance at reconciliation stopped in its tracks  \"Please do not misunderstand, Sir Subaru.\" However, Wilhelm shook his head, allaying Subaru's fears. \"I do not feel any resistance to fighting together with Reinhard. But I have one request for you.\" \"A request?\" \" Could I ask you not to reveal the identity of the corpse soldiers to Reinhard?\" *** Subaru was at a loss, unsure what the meaning of Wilhelm's soft-spoken request was. He had only just heard about them from Wilhelm: a technique that desecrated the dead and had been used in the city this time to  \"Do you mean don't tell him about your wife...about his grandmother?\" \"Yes. I don't want him...I don't want my grandson to have to deal with my wife being turned into a corpse soldier. He would surely blame himself. And it is no one's fault but my own.\" \"Your fault? It's \" He wanted to say it was not Wilhelm's fault at all. But he could not say something like that so thoughtlessly. Recalling the scene from that morning, he also remembered what Heinkel had said. Something that should have had no credibility at all but even so, Wilhelm had not denied it. He'd said that Wilhelm had blamed Reinhard for his wife's death. It was hard to believe, but neither of them had denied the charge. \"Sir Subaru, are you aware that the blessing of the Sword Saint is a unique one?\" \"...Not particularly. Mostly just that it's a blessing that all the people called Sword Saint in history had and that having it made them super powerful.\" \"At a high level, that is not mistaken, but there is one point where the blessing of the Sword Saint is notably different from all other blessings. That point is that it is an inherited blessing.\" \"An inherited blessing?\" Wilhelm nodded as Subaru exhaled. The old swordsman's eyes were closed, his expression twisted as if he was remembering a painful past. \"It was inherited through the generations, passed down from the original Sword Saint, Reid Astrea. The blessing resides in the Astrea family's bloodline, and the next Sword Saint always arises from a descendent of their house. My wife inherited it from the last Sword Saint, and Reinhard inherited it from her.\" \"A blessing inherited among family... I see, so that's how it was. So when you lost your wife, it was inherited by Reinhard.\" Something caught in Subaru's head as he tried to understand the situation. The previous Sword Saint had fallen to the White Whale, and as a result, Reinhard had inherited the blessing. It was a painful past, but in a sense, it was just the natural order of succession as well. But the argument that the Astrea family had had earlier that morning did not fit with the official story. Wilhelm's grief, Heinkel's scorn, and Reinhard's silence all of them seemed to be arguing against the legitimacy of the blessing's inheritance in some shape or form. And the reason for that was  \"It occurred in the midst of the battle with the White Whale.\" *** \" Reinhard inherited the blessing while my wife was in the middle of the hunt. She lost her blessing during the fighting and became nothing more than a single regular woman, which left her unable to support the rear guard alone.\"  That was the origin of the rift in the Astrea family. The blessing had been transferred to the next generation while she was right in the middle of fighting during the White Whale hunt. This would have left the former Sword Saint on the battlefield without her blessing. And entrusted with the rear guard of the enormous force, she'd fought to protect the lives of the many soldiers who depended on her and breathed her last in the course of duty. \"It was none other than I who stole the sword away from my wife. It was I who made the woman beloved by the Sword God abandon her sword. And that was what invited her doom.\" \"Wilhelm...\" \"The Sword God did not forgive my wife for her betrayal. Imagining what she must have thought, having her blessing go away on the battlefield, leaving her nothing but the sword I had made her abandon to rely on...I could not accept it. It is true that I berated Reinhard for inheriting the blessing. Fool that I was, I could not forgive my young grandson, who was grieving his grandmother's death and struggling with the far-too-heavy fate he had been burdened with. I assure you I regret it deeply.\" The regret he had shared with Subaru the night before this was the mistake he had made. Reinhard was not at fault at all, but despite understanding that, in his grief, Wilhelm had refused to acknowledge the fact. As a result, a fatal fracture had split the Astrea family, dividing them. \"I do not want to go through that pain again. Because Reinhard was not to blame at all for her death. There is no reason for my grandson to shoulder that burden at all.\" Because of that, he wanted to resolve it with his own sword, without revealing the truth to Reinhard. Subaru could understand those feelings, that regret, and that resolve so badly it hurt. In which case  \"Crusch and Ferris, and your wife and Reinhard... If you try to carry everything by yourself, you'll be crushed under the weight of it all. And even if I keep quiet about the corpse soldiers, they'll still show up somewhere.\" \"That is an unnecessary concern.\" \"Eh...?\" Subaru was trying to warn him that it was an unrealistic gamble with poor odds, but Wilhelm merely smiled. The Sword Devil's expression warped into a fiercely valiant grin. \" There is no way that my wife that Theresia won't come to meet me.\" 6 *** The mood tensed when Subaru returned to the conference room. The reason was Wilhelm. He and Reinhard traded glances, and after a silent exchange of sorts, they adopted positions standing on opposite sides of the room. Subaru could not help the complex feeling he had knowing what Wilhelm had on his mind, but there was nothing he could say, so he reclaimed the empty seat at the table between Garfiel and Otto. \"Sorry for the delay. Where are we at?\" \"The explanation is more or less done. How were things up there...? What of Lady Crusch's condition?\" \"...Not great. Not hopeless, either, though. There might just be something we can do for her, but it'll have to wait until we've dealt with the cultists first.\" \"I see. That, at least, is a bit of good news.\" Otto straightened himself up, and the others sitting around the table looked a little bit relieved. Unfortunately for them, Subaru was not going to explain exactly how he could help her. He knew that if he did, someone was sure to try to stop him, so he would just ask for forgiveness instead of permission if things came down to it. Though the best thing would obviously be if they could beat Lust and find a way to get rid of the mottled blackness entirely. \"Either way, it is unlikely Crusch will be rejoining the fight. And Ferris wants to stay with her, so that means the relief squad and the people from the Iron Fangs will probably need to stay here. How's that sound to you guys?\" \"City hall's right in the middle of the city, so it makes sense to set up our command post here. It's not going to change the basic plan for a simultaneous attack on all four of the control towers, either. But...\" \"But?\" \"There's someone who's got her own thoughts about that plan.\" Anastasia glanced over the table at the person sitting across from her. It didn't take much imagination to guess whom she meant without even needing to look. Even in their current predicament, the crimson candidate casually fanned herself, showing no spirit of cooperation at all. \"Priscilla? What crazy idea do you have now?\" \"It sounds as if you presume to know me, commoner. Then tell me, could you predict this? I shall go to the control tower in the fourth district to behead that Wrath or whatever resides there.\" \"Wh...?\" Priscilla looked smug as her majestic declaration caught Subaru entirely off guard. He was well and truly taken aback by her plan. Anastasia nodded when she saw the shock on his face. \"See? She's been like that the whole time. I've been trying to figure out what to do about it.\" \"We have to stop her, obviously...is what I'd like to say, but...\" Ordinarily, her suggestion would be unbelievably rash, but when he thought it through coolheadedly, there was a certain merit to her plan, too. Crusch had joined the attack on city hall earlier, so he could not reject Priscilla's suggestion just because she was a royal-selection candidate. And there was no way to argue that she was lacking in strength. At the very least, she was powerful enough to easily slay the ferocious demi-beasts roaming the city. She did not pale in comparison to Crusch in her swordsmanship, either. As an amateur who had observed dozens of experts, that was how Subaru rated her strength. \"This is asinine. I possess both strength and beauty. So what reason is there to hesitate? Do not think me a fool who renders herself useless in the opening scenes or some weakling who never had the strength to stand and fight in the first place.\" \"I do not believe I can allow that to pass without comment. I am certain you could not possibly be referring to my master as a fool, could you?\" \"It sounds as if you have someone in mind, old man. Being forced to leave the stage during a warmup before the main performance even"}, {"text": "starts could hardly be called the action of a person fated to play a leading role. I suppose it was just a misjudgment on my part to have expected more.\" Priscilla and Wilhelm were clashing dangerously from word one. Ordinarily, it was a situation to just let something like that go, but for various reasons, Wilhelm was not quite composed enough to let it slide. And Priscilla was so totally unchanged from her normal self that it was hard to imagine her ever not behaving like that. \"Yeah, yeah. I'm the weakling and the fool, so let's just move on. Quit arguin' among ourselves.\" \"I'm not so kind as to unconditionally lend an ear to the prattling of a weakling, she-fox.\" \"Being weak isn't the same as being incapable of winning. And how are you going to get the people around you to act how you want without a little show of magnanimity? We're all pissed off here, so just have a little patience.\" \"Hmph.\" Subaru was amazed at Anastasia's mediation skills as he watched her talk the both of them down and silence their squabbling. They both still looked annoyed, but Priscilla retracted her prickly attitude, and Wilhelm sheathed his sharp aura. Of course, the mood could hardly be called harmonious. Given the situation, they had to prioritize moving the conversation forward regardless of how some people felt about one another. \"Then, would that mean Sir Al will be accompanying you to slay the Archbishop of Wrath?\" \"Spare me your nonsense. Bringing that jester would only darken my glorious procession. And obviously, I will be leaving Schult here as well. He is only with me to be a pet.\" \"...In that case, were you perhaps actually intending to go there by yourself?\" Julius pressed in a sharp tone, as if to say there was no way that that could be acceptable. \"Yeah, Princess,\" Al responded, agreeing with Julius. \"Even you can't just declare you'll be fine alone. At the very least, take the Sword Saint with you...\" \"Don't go giving away our strongest trump card with a cheap 'at the very least'! And you, do you actually have some plan that makes you think you can win?\" \"Of course. And in the first place, don't jump to conclusions. I never said I would be going alone. The diva there and I shall hunt the Archbishop of Wrath together.\" Priscilla snapped her fan closed and pointed it at the corner of the room. \"The diva...\" Liliana was sitting cross-legged on the ground there, dozing off with her lyulyre in her arms. She snapped back to reality at suddenly being called onstage. Her jaw dropped as she responded. \"Y-you chose me?! And for what reason would you suddenly do that?!\" \"Commoner, there was no lie in the previous conversation, correct? That irksome chaotic presence proliferating throughout the city was something evoked by the Archbishop of Wrath's impudent Authority?\" \"Y-yeah, there's no mistaking it...\" Remembering how the residents in the shelter had been set free by Liliana's singing, Subaru inhaled sharply. He had considered using Liliana's music to counter Wrath's Authority as well, but the problems were the danger of bringing her to a battlefield and her reluctance to use her singing as essentially a weapon a tool to counter that Authority  \"Can you explain, Subaru? What is the connection between Miss Liliana and the Archbishop of Wrath?\" asked Anastasia. \"...You heard about how Wrath's Authority works, right? It creates a resonance between the hearts and minds of the city's residents, which has been causing unrest and panic to spread unchecked. We used the broadcast to amplify and spread courage, but Liliana's singing can do the same thing. Honestly, it can probably do an even better job.\" After all, they only had to hear Liliana's singing. There was no need for the tightrope walk that Subaru had carefully navigated after carefully choosing his words and mustering what little courage he had to offer. Her music was the real deal just her singing could captivate people's hearts, and experiencing that pure passion firsthand was enough to free people's hearts from Sirius's Authority. \"How much did your singing move the masses' hearts when we were going around between the shelters before? You need only do the same again. Merely steal away the hearts of the vulgar masses.\" \"Wh-what a violent logic! B-but I only encouraged people with my singing. I don't have any confidence at all that I can meet such a weighty expectation...\" \"I see. So then you do not have faith that the music you have inherited from your forebears in eras long past will succeed.\" The way Priscilla sniffed expressed such disdain that it caused Liliana's eyes to change instantly. She had been trying to beg out of the fight with a servile, polite smile, but her expression suddenly turned serious. \"What do you mean by that?\" \"It should not require deep thought to understand. Those are the songs you have so devoutly continued singing, and yet in the moment when people's hearts are crying out for salvation, you shrink back and fall silent? I have no need for such a craven, whipped dog. At least a wild mutt still howls freely. Hark, a eulogy for a whipped dog.\" \"A-ah, ah! You said it! There are some things you just shouldn't say! Fine, then! I'll do it! I'll let you hear it! If I remained silent now, I would lose everything! If I hesitated now, Mr. Kiritaka would spin in his grave!\" Priscilla's tremendous instigation brought on a terrific explosion from Liliana. Her face was bright red as she fired back, plucking the lyulyre's strings at high speed. \"I was of a mood to sing a requiem for the fallen Kiritaka, but nay! A scramble to steal away hearts? I say let them come! The songs that I have inherited would never lose to some mysterious ability no one has ever heard of! Because the power of music is even more mysterious!\" In a fit of excitement, Liliana leaped atop the round table and played her lyulyre while lying down. Flustered by her performance, Otto and Schult quickly pulled her back down to the floor. Subaru ignored Liliana, who was starting to compose a rock ballad in the corner of the room, as he looked Priscilla in the eye. \"I know full well that both her singing voice and her stupidity are on the level of national treasures. And I also agree she could be a perfect counter for Wrath's ability. But there's no proof it will work as planned, either.\" \"I would never embark on a fight where I had any chance of losing. The very logic of this world proceeds only in the manner that is most convenient to me. And there is no one who values her singing more highly than I. I shan't allow her to suffer a single scratch above her shoulders.\" \"...Singing starts with the diaphragm, so I'm pretty sure it won't mean much if there's anything missing from her waist up.\" Priscilla was showing no sign of yielding, but Subaru wanted one final nudge. If there was at least some proof they could point to that Liliana's singing would work against Sirius, then... \"Hey, Reinhard, by any chance, do you have some kind of ability to see the power that people have right, blessings? Do you have some kind of ability to see blessings or something?\" \"There is a divine protection called the blessing of judgment that allows one to know people's blessings. I see. If she truly does bear a songstress blessing, then that could serve as evidence to accept Lady Priscilla's contention.\" Reinhard rested his hand on his chin in thought. Subaru had turned to him because he figured he might as well try, but it was only natural that Reinhard did not just magically have the solution to something like that. \"Don't worry about it.\" Subaru waved him off. \"That was too much to hope for. Anyway, if we could just get a little bit of data about how much effect Liliana's singing has...\" \"There is no need for that I was just blessed with one.\" \"Huh? Blessed with what, a child? You've got to be kidding me, right?\" That was the first thing that came to mind at that turn of phrase. Smiling awkwardly at Subaru's reaction, Reinhard looked closely at Liliana. Liliana seemed to writhe under his gaze, but he ignored her reaction. \"That is surprising. She is indeed a bearer of the blessing of telepathy.\" \"I'm more surprised by you than her blessing, honestly. Huh? Wait, what did you just say? You were granted something?\" \"This isn't the time for joking around. Put simply, the telepathy blessing is one that allows the bearer to convey their feelings to others. Ordinarily, it just acts on a level that allows one to share one's thoughts with another who is particularly intimate, but...singing? I had never considered that possibility before.\" Reinhard was purely admiring the power of Liliana's songs, but Subaru still had not scooped up his jaw from where it had dropped when Reinhard started explaining the blessing. He had called Reinhard's strength a cheat and beyond superhuman before, but this was just too much. He was way too beloved by God, the world, or fate. Whatever was responsible, simply granting the blessing the moment Reinhard desired it... *** When he thought it through that far, Subaru noticed something tripping him up. There was not really any way for him to describe what had just happened other than by saying Reinhard had received the blessing he desired on the spot. In and of itself, that was an incredibly envious position. But it also felt like something was tremendously wrong about it in a way that he couldn't quite place. Either way, though  \"Nay! Please entrust this task to me! I shall surely follow through. Have no fear. I shall do nothing but sing. Nothing but...sing. Just singing...right? There's nothing else, right? Right? Right, Lady Priscilla?!\" \"Where'd that concern come from all of a sudden...? Anyway, for now I suppose we can leave the Archbishop of Wrath to Priscilla and Liliana? And we've got Reinhard's seal of approval that she should be able to counter Wrath's Authority.\" \"I guess I can accept that. Everyone else okay with it?\" Ignoring Liliana, whose face was blinking back and forth between stop and go, Subaru checked around the table, with Anastasia responding for the group. There was still some reservation on everyone else's face, but they all seemed ready to accept it on a theoretical level. The only one who looked entirely at ease was Priscilla herself. \"How absurd. I'm the one whose life is being staked on this diva's voice. Do you really believe I would risk my fate on something I did not trust completely? Her singing is worthy of that much.\" When she put it that way, Subaru really didn't have anything else he could say. It was true, after all. Priscilla was the one who had seen the potential in Liliana, and she was the one who would be fighting Sirius while entrusting her fate to that potential. There was no mistaking that she was heroic in her own right and excelled in ingenuity and prudence despite how she spoke and behaved. \"Still, though, I want to do whatever I can to reduce the risks...\" \"Why? It would never happen, even hypothetically, but were I to die it would only benefit your master. Her greatest obstacle would disappear without any effort on her part. Shouldn't you welcome that?\" \"Don't you dare assume that.\" *** Subaru immediately shot down Priscilla's intimation with a cold look. Trying to win by increasing the odds of another candidate's dying in order to boost Emilia's chances would be the lowest of the low. He didn't want anyone to die. And he would certainly not welcome that result if it truly did come to pass. \"You got what you wanted,"}, {"text": "right, Princess? Let's just let it be now... Princess?\" \"...It's nothing, I was just caught unawares by a thought I had not considered.\" *** \"What, are you sulking? How cute for such a hulking man.\" \"...It's not that at all.\" Looking away, Al propped his head up on his arm as if it was no concern of his. Priscilla harrumphed and leaned back in her seat, done speaking. Finally the discussion could move on to the next topic. \"After several twists and turns...as for the other groupings...I have a suggestion. The first district, where Lust is waiting, the one we all have a bone to pick with that is probably where the enemy's greatest concentration of forces will be. The Archbishop as well as two cultists. And possibly a slew of demi-beasts, too.\" \"You suspect that they are all Lust's personal forces?\" \"Given how the demi-beasts look, it seems a safe bet they are connected to Lust. As for the two cultists...\" \" They are most likely sword masters being manipulated by a technique to control the dead: corpse soldiers,\" Wilhelm interjected. Subaru was a little bit surprised that he'd volunteered that information himself. \"Corpse soldiers,\" Julius murmured to himself. \"I've seen note of them in past records. The result of a deplorable, forbidden technique from the era of the Demi-human War. The witch Sphinx's taboo magic.\" \"She has claimed to be a member of the royal family who is long dead and claimed to have the dragon's blood that is locked away in the castle. Even if the claim about dragon blood is in fact merely a bluff, she does appear to have an extreme obsession with the kingdom and its history. It is possible she is capable of employing forbidden techniques that have been sealed away in the kingdom's dark past.\" \"It feels as though that logic is a tad of a reach... Can you truly be sure?\" As expected of Julius, he was latching on precisely where Subaru would rather he not dig too deeply. He could always just say that one of the corpse soldiers was Theresia, and that would be proof enough, but that was exactly the point that Wilhelm had asked him not to bring up around Reinhard. This meant Subaru was stuck trying to figure out a way to get out of it without saying that too explicitly. \" If they were corpse soldiers, then the one I was duking it out with had to be Eight-Arms Kurgan.\" And it was Garfiel sitting right next to him who came to the rescue. Garfiel had his arms crossed and was scowling with his teeth bared. \"A swordsman that strong with eight arms...there ain't anyone else it could be. Not that I can think of, at least. You got anyone else, Finest Knight?\" \"You fought with them personally, so if you say so, then I would defer to your experience. Among the many-armed tribes, it is exceedingly rare for one to be born with eight arms. If that someone was also extraordinary strong, then...\" \"There ain't anyone else it can be. And that other woman's gotta be on the same level as him.\" \"Corpse soldiers, you say? And going so far as to use a woman as well. Lust is a rather detestable opponent.\" Miraculously, Garfiel and Julius had managed to advance the conversation just enough without dwelling on Theresia's true identity. Reinhard's brow furrowed a bit at the point about one of the corpse soldiers being a woman, though  \"There's no mistaking they are using corpse soldiers. Fortunately, they don't seem to be able to turn the whole graveyard on us. There's either some kind of limit on numbers, or maybe Lust just prefers quality over quantity.\" \"And the taboo technique of corpse soldiers that disgraces the dead is a fitting technique given the Archbishop of Lust's self-avowed interests. I see. It is painful to wrap my head around the possibility, but there is a logic to it. I can accept it.\" \"The convincing piece of evidence being how terrible her personality is is a pretty grim indictment, though,\" Subaru said, grimacing bitterly. There were similar expressions around the table as they all nodded in agreement. Capella was the one who had conducted the citywide broadcasts, so she was the one cultist everyone could immediately recognize as being utterly twisted and rotten to the core. And as luck would have it, that shared recognition was enough to convince the room. \"Anyway, back to what I was going to say before... I wanted to leave dealing with Lust to Wilhelm, and if possible Garfiel as well.\" \"Wh ? General?!\" Once he decided the room was ready, Subaru put forth his original proposal: sending Wilhelm and Garfiel to deal with Lust. Their reactions were polar opposites. Wilhelm nodded quietly, having already expected this, while Garfiel, who was completely caught by surprise, opened his eyes wide in shock. From his perspective, that was a natural reaction  \"You're going to go save Lady Emilia, aren't you, General? In that case, I should...\" \"I'm grateful you'd say that, and trust me, it'd be incredibly reassuring to have you with me. But I think this is our best answer from a force-distribution perspective... Besides, you have your own scores to settle, right?\" *** Garfiel fell silent. That line hit right where it hurt. Wilhelm was not the only one with a connection to Lust and her troops. The man who had been changed into a black dragon by Lust's Authority was someone Garfiel knew. And also, Lust's subordinate, the corpse soldier Theresia, had  \"Mimi got it bad, and her two brothers shared it, too. All three of them have been unconscious since fighting to get away from the Muse Company  You get it, right?\" The blessing of the grim reaper was extraordinarily powerful. Just a single wound would continue eating away at someone until their life force gave out. There was no escape from that death without defeating the person who possessed the blessing. Garfiel had his reasons to be fighting on that battlefield just like Wilhelm did. \"As you are all aware, my master, Lady Crusch, is currently suffering due to the effect of Lust's contemptible ability. As Lady Crusch's vassal, I have a duty to fight for my master.\" \"If possible, I was hoping to learn more about this supposed link to dragon blood from Lust. Was that also part of why you're rarin' to go there, Mr. Wilhelm?\" asked Anastasia. \"It is as you suggest. Because of that, I would like you all to leave the slaying of Lust to me...\" Wilhelm's swirling bloodlust filled the room. Everyone hesitated to argue with his unshakable resolve and his loyalty to his master. All except for his one blood relation. \" I am against this proposal.\" \"...Reinhard...\" \"You are not calm and collected, Grandfather. I can understand your hostility toward the Archbishop who so grievously harmed Lady Crusch, of course. However, that anger will only cloud your sword strikes.\" \"...You would argue that I cannot adequately serve Lady Crusch while insufficiently calm?\" \"Out of concern for Lady Crusch, we cannot afford to fail to defeat Lust. In that case, it should be I who takes that role. At the very least, I will not fall behind the enemy in terms of composure.\" Reinhard's logic was sound and based in a desire to resolve things in the surest way possible. And it was true enough that Wilhelm was not entirely coolheaded about the fight that lay before him. But when Reinhard said it, Wilhelm's no, the Sword Devil's lips curled into a sneer. It was by no means a kindly old man's smile it was the grin of a ferocious beast. \"My not being calm and collected is only natural, Reinhard.\" \"Yes, but...\" \"Who do you think I am? What do you think your grandfather is? I am the man hailed as the Sword Devil. A hopeless man stuck in the middle of transforming himself into a mere blade, and unable to follow through with conviction, ended up falling in love with a woman. But it is precisely because of that half-heartedness that I never once held back in the slightest in the face of what needed to be done.\" His fierce grin had banished his gentle expression. And now that he had broken free of that facade, what appeared was the face of a devil starved for blood and the clash of steel. The devil who was bewitched by the blade, his blue eyes only ever seeking a single other light  \"When I've decided to bare my sword, my heart burns with an unbearable heat. Not coolheaded? That is how I always am on the battlefield. And yet I've still lived to this ripe old age. I have no interest in rotting away without fulfilling my duty to my master. Your concern is neither needed nor desired.\" \"That argument is mere idealism...\" \"Conviction is nothing but idealism backed by a resolve to see things through to the very end. Having persisted fourteen years, my rusted blade was still sharp enough to claim vengeance for my wife it is too soon for me to sheathe it for the last time.\" It was Wilhelm's conviction that had avenged Reinhard's grandmother in the Battle of the White Whale. And there was nothing Reinhard could say in response to that. However, he averted his eyes, still unable to fully accept it. \"The battlefield that needs you is elsewhere, Reinhard,\" Wilhelm continued. \"And where exactly might that be?\" \" Please take Reinhard with you in the battle you are about to embark on, Sir Subaru.\" The Sword Devil looked Subaru in the eye. \"You will have to face Greed in order to recover Lady Emilia. Please have Reinhard be your blade for that battle.\" \"Wilhelm...\" Subaru scratched his cheek and sighed softly at Wilhelm's proposal. He then turned to face Reinhard and met his blue-eyed gaze. \"I was going to get to that next, but...yeah, I want you to help me fight Greed. There's no way we can beat that crazy narcissist without you.\" It was possible to generally guess the Authorities of the Archbishops from the phenomena that happened around them, and based on that, the Authority that Regulus had was on a whole other level in terms of lethality. There was no way to explain what happened as being the result of anything other than something absurd like invincibility. He didn't want to believe it was true invincibility, with no weakness or opening of any kind, but  \"We need someone strong enough to fight Regulus head-to-head in order to figure out how to defeat his apparent invulnerability. In terms of offense and defense, if we compare them head-on, he's almost certainly the most powerful of the Archbishops by far. So I want you to lend me your strength.\" *** \"If you frame it as me planning to slam invincibility and the most powerful force into each other to see what happens, that makes it sound like some weird test of strength.\" Pair the illogical with the illogical and the absurd with the absurd. Even if he wanted to fight fire with fire, that was not usually an option, so the one time he actually got the chance to do it, Subaru was not going to be picky about it. He was sure that that was the best choice. \"An opponent who is unaffected by attacks of any kind, you say? Certainly, if there were a monster like that, then I would be the best choice. But...\" \" I'm asking you, too. Could you please help the general and Lady Emilia?\" Reinhard was still unsure, even after hearing about Regulus's invulnerability, but to his surprise, Garfiel stood up and lowered his head. He kept his forehead pressed to the table as he bowed low in order to plead with Reinhard. \"I'm a failure as a guard. Since coming to this city, I haven't been able to carry out any of the roles I"}, {"text": "was given, the things I had to do no matter what. Because of that, on the biggest stage of this huge fight, I'm here desperately trying to repay the debts I owe other people instead of being able to fight for my own camp...so please!\" Garfiel's fangs were trembling as he accepted his own weakness and the results of his own failures. \"Garfiel...\" The red-haired Sword Saint fell silent for a moment  \" Then give me your word. Just as you have your expectations of me, I will hold you to the same standards. Give me your word that you will surely follow through on your end as well.\" \"Ah...yeah. Yeah, leave it to me! Between me and the Sword Devil, there ain't no enemy that can stand in our way!\" Garfiel straightened up, his fangs grinding. \"Okay. Then I will trust in your and my grandfather's victory and I shall become Subaru's blade.\" Reinhard nodded. *** And like that, the Sword Devil and the Sword Saint grandfather and grandson, two fellow swordsmen exchanged gazes and shared a firm nod. With Reinhard finally agreeing to join his fight, Subaru was sure he wouldn't feel more confident even if he had an army a million strong at his back. \"Sorry for the selfish request, Reinhard.\" \"It's fine. I don't mind. No matter the battlefield, I will always do my best. So if I can help you and Lady Emilia in the process, then all the better.\" \"I really am sorry for always relying on you. I know I've already relied on you far too much because of how strong you are, but...I'll do my best to make up for anything you might be lacking, so you can count on me.\" *** For a second, Reinhard fell silent, and his eyes widened. Subaru cocked his head at the odd reaction, but Reinhard just shook his head and chuckled softly. \"No, it's nothing to you, I imagine  Yes, I'll be counting on you to take care of whatever I cannot.\" \" ? Yeah, feel free to get your hopes up, 'cause I know I've got high hopes for you.\" With that, they had confirmed the groups that would be attacking the first three control towers. That left just one  \" By process of elimination, Ricardo and I will be tasked with Gluttony.\" Julius spoke stiffly, drawing everyone's attention. As he said, of everyone who had gathered in city hall who could fight, the only ones left who could face Gluttony were he and Ricardo. But  \"...Are you all right, Julius? You've seemed a bit off for a while now.\" \"My apologies for worrying you. However, I am well. If we are talking about physical condition, then I cannot really complain with Subaru here.\" \"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?\" \"Naturally, a consideration for the state of your right leg. Please don't snap at me like that. I had no intention of getting into it with you in this moment.\" \"Mrgh...\" Subaru felt a little sad getting parried so flatly. Anastasia was not the only one who felt Julius was acting rather strangely. Subaru did as well. But he couldn't tell what the source of the strange behavior was. And Julius declined to answer the deeper question as he nodded gracefully, a resolute gleam in his eyes. \"Ricardo and I shall take the remaining Archbishop, Gluttony, an opponent we encountered at city hall and have a connection with  In other times, he is an opponent you or Sir Wilhelm would have preferred to have drawn, but having been entrusted with him anyway, rest assured that we will prevail.\" \"...Yeah, I guess so.\" Julius said aloud exactly what Subaru had been thinking.  Defeating the Archbishop of Gluttony was precisely what Subaru had wanted to accomplish himself. And Wilhelm, with Crusch suffering on the floor above, was in the same position as Subaru. Gluttony's Authority, the ability to consume memories and names when Subaru thought of how Rem had suffered due to that power and was even now in a wakeless slumber, he wanted nothing more than to crush Gluttony with his own two hands. Punch, kick, stomp, and make that cultist regret everything until there was nothing but tearful pleas for forgiveness that was what he wanted to do. And he was yielding that chance to someone else  \"I really don't want to leave it to anyone else. You know I wanted to bring Rem back myself. I believed that was my role.\" *** \"But still, if I don't get a choice about it, if I have to leave it to someone else, then I want to leave it to you. Don't get the wrong idea, this was process of elimination... Still, you are the person I trust with this. As much as I don't like it, you are one of the few people I could bear to have take my place.\" Rem's memories and her very existence were still being held hostage. Emilia was being held hostage and was waiting to be rescued. They were both precious to Subaru, both people who had to be saved no matter what. He wanted to be able to show off for both of them.  Because Subaru was Emilia's knight and Rem's hero. \"I'll defeat Greed and bring Emilia back, so I'll let you beat the crap out of Gluttony this time... Don't screw it up.\" \" I shall live up to your expectations. This time, this time for sure.\" Julius nodded deeply, accepting Subaru's faith in him. The Finest Knight then looked to Wilhelm and nodded slightly. \"Sir Wilhelm.\" \"Sir Subaru managed to say most everything that I wanted to say. It is true that I cannot forgive Gluttony for what happened...therefore I shall entrust that to you as well, Sir Julius. There are just slightly too many rogues in this city at the moment.\" \"Agreed. I shall accept your thoughts.\" Bathed in Wilhelm's keen battle aura, Julius quietly closed his eyes, taking encouragement from it. And watching their exchanges quietly, Ricardo opened his toothy mouth wide. \"Man, y'all sure like to talk like I'm not here! Not that it really bothers me, though! And I can't say you're wrong about this bein' the best deployment, either.\" \"You're the kinda guy who's down for just about anything. And there's nothin' cute about a guy as big as you gettin' all pouty... Take care of Julius, though.\" \"Don't you worry. You ever known me to tell a lie, Lady Anna?\" \"...Could you quit with the names already? I am your master.\" Ricardo guffawed as Anastasia's cheeks puffed out in a cute pout. Ricardo's black eyes were filled with a pained kindness as he looked down at Anastasia. \"In that case, all the matchups are settled.\" Looking around the table, everyone nodded at Subaru's concluding statement. \"The fourth tower, Wrath, will go to the Priscilla-and-Liliana pair. And Al will stay behind for defense... That's all right with you, yes?\" \"A fool who would dare try to control people's hearts while I remain on this earth? Absurd. I will grant that empty-headed dunce a fitting punishment.\" \"I shall sing, sing, and sing, for I am but a mass of flesh whose purpose is naught but to sing. I shan't regret my life, but I shall regret my stage. All right, I can do this. I can feel it now! I've got this!\" *** Priscilla was fanning herself as Liliana focused her all on a mysterious sort of auto-suggestion. Al's expression was hidden, but it was clear as day that he had not really come to terms with the situation yet. And it was just as clear that Priscilla had no intention of paying his discomfort any heed. There were still a lot of questions about how their pair was going to work, but they were the ones most confident of success. \"Next is the first district, Garfiel and Wilhelm taking down Lust.\" \"Yeah! This is gonna be like Mezoreia's panorama. I'll grab it all with this fist of mine.\" \"Please leave it to us we shall settle things with the corpse soldiers as well.\" They had a difficult battle ahead of them, but the two of them probably had the strongest spirits. The Sword Devil Wilhelm fighting out of fealty to his master and for the sake of the beloved wife he had never forgotten. And Garfiel in search of a resolution to the shapeless emotions rumbling around in his soul. They were both setting out for a battle with things they could not concede hanging in the balance. \"And the second district. Julius and Ricardo, you two are taking on Gluttony.\" \"It is the role I've been entrusted. If I cannot live up to that trust, then I can hardly call myself a knight.\" \"My family got hit real hard by those bastards. I'll knock 'em around 'til they're beggin' for mercy.\" When it came to connections with the cultists, the two of them had been relatively far removed from them until today. But having people close to them fall in battle and having been entrusted with the feelings of Subaru and their other comrades, they had more than enough reason to fight. They would be able to wield their swords freely. They were comrades with whom Subaru had walked the fine line between life and death before. He did not need a reason to be able to trust them. \"And finally, Reinhard and I will take Greed in the third district. I'll be counting on you.\" \" Yes, leave it to me. And I'll be counting on you as well, Subaru.\" Reinhard nodded easily. However, that alone was more than enough reassurance, proof that his mind was already clear and focused even before the fight began in earnest. As they were about to take the fight to the cultists, they couldn't afford any mistakes. Subaru pointedly straightened up and stood tall. And with the deployments all confirmed, Anastasia clapped her hands. \"In that case, if everything's decided, all that's left is handing out the conversation mirrors... We have three. Assuming I keep one here at the base, who's going to take the other two?\" \"If possible, I'd like the Wrath team to have one. As for the other...either the Lust or Gluttony team would be fine.\" \"Why's that?\" \"Wrath's Authority is affecting the entire city. That being gone or not changes the situation in a big way, so it would be best to get that report as soon as possible.\" Hearing that, everyone nodded. As for the remaining one, he figured it was fine for either of the two remaining non-Greed teams to take it. The reason for that  \"Put bluntly, Reinhard is handling Greed. His Authority seems to be some kind of conditional invincibility, so while I don't want to be overly optimistic, there is a nonzero chance of us finishing up with him real quick. If that happens, I want Reinhard to be able to join up with whichever team needs the most help.\" \"And depending on how the conditions in the city change, we can give directions to the general populace from here using the broadcast metia. That's another thing that becomes a more viable option once Wrath is down,\" Otto added. \"That's quite prudent. You're gettin' awfully reliable, ain't ya, Natsuki?\" Anastasia smiled in admiration before tossing the mirror in her hand over to Priscilla, who deftly caught it with her fan and rolled it over to Liliana. \"Wh-wh-wha ?!\" \"You take it, diva. I do not carry anything heavier than silverware.\" \"You lazy... As if that fan of yours isn't heavy enough with all those decorations.\" \"Don't be ridiculous. Can you not appreciate its elegant design? Do you not comprehend the beauty of this chasing and engraving? It does not begin to compare to that shoddy item lying there. Do not dare hold it to the same standard as mere silverware.\" \"So it is heavier than silverware...\" Priscilla's obstinacy aside, it was decided that Liliana would take the conversation mirror. After watching her slip it"}, {"text": "into the bosom of her small outfit, they gave the last one to Wilhelm. It was Julius who made that decision, sliding it across the table to the older gentleman. \"In consideration for the differing number of enemies in both locations, it would be best for the Lust team to have a means of instant contact. I don't believe either of you is likely to fail, but please report in if you deem the situation to be dire.\" \"Understood. Though I agree that such a situation is unlikely to occur.\" Wilhelm slipped the final mirror into his breast pocket in accordance with Julius's suggestion. With that, they had divided up the squads and distributed the items they had to pass around. They had made their preparations for the decisive battle. \"Let's wait a little bit, and then all of us should leave at once. This is the official start of our plan to take back the city,\" Subaru said. There was tension in everyone's face as they all nodded. There was a quiet weight closing in on them that felt wrong to Subaru. \"Do you guys not get the feeling that us looking all serious and depressed like this is just going to lead to everything going wrong?\" \"That's another odd thing for you to say, Mr. Natsuki. What are you talking about?\" Otto responded with a bitter expression. \"It's not odd at all. It's important. It's an iron rule of life that no matter how many or how few people you manage to bring together, a group with no morale and no unity is just a mob. So what do we do to keep that from happening? Maybe have everyone say something all at once or something? Even if it's just for show.\" Subaru stood up and clapped his hands together loudly. Then he held his fist up for all of them to see. \"Let's do this, guys! We're gonna throw everyone who gets in our way out of the city! We'll show those cultists who's the boss and get our happy ending back!\" *** Hearing that, everyone looked at one another, and then, a half beat later, they held their hands up one after the other. \"Ooooaaah!\" They all raised their voices, and Subaru's lips cracked into a smile as he felt the electric excitement crackling over his skin. Their cries were all over the place, they felt aimless, and it was hard to say those gathered were really united given the mixture of fists and palms raised in the air. But these were Subaru Natsuki's comrades. The people he would fight alongside in order to retake the city. It was hard to come by a group as fine as they. They had been beaten up good, cornered badly enough that for a moment there it had looked like they were not going to be able to recover. But they had returned to fight.  The final decisive battle for the Water Gate City was beginning. \" We're gonna win this fight!\" And the meeting of the round table ended with that final, fittingly Subaru-esque line. 7  Having finished her secret conversation with Al, Emilia had returned to the bedroom and disposed of the ice sculpture that she had used as a body double. Nothing seemed to have been disturbed, so it appeared her absence had gone unnoticed. Or else they had been thrown off by the finely crafted ice sculpture. Emilia regretfully returned the sculpture to mana as she appreciated her handiwork. \"...I'm surprised. I did not expect you to return.\" \"Eep!\" All of a sudden, a voice called out from behind her, causing Emilia to jolt in shock before turning around. When she did, she saw #184 standing at the entrance, looking right at her. She had last seen her cleaning up the room Regulus had destroyed, but there she was, her eyes narrowing as she watched Emilia panic before letting out a small sigh. \"You went to such effort to leave a replacement behind. Did you have a change of heart?\" \"What? A replacement? I'm not sure what you mean. I've been resting here the whole time since I was tired. Right here in bed... Ah, it's cold! Ah, I mean it's not cold at all!\" *** The bed was absolutely freezing from having an ice sculpture lying on it the whole time she was gone, so it was practically rejecting her body warmth. But admitting that would only confirm her lie, so she resolutely endured the cold and went to lie down in the bed. \"See, I've been here all along. I would never have done something like run away.\" \"...Yes, of course. My mistake. But that would truly be odd. Why did you not simply run away while you could?\" #184 asked quietly. \"...If I did that, it would have been bad for you and the other wives and the people in the city,\" Emilia responded, sticking her legs out of the covers and sitting on the edge of the bed. #184's eyes were cool and emotionless but something about her felt off to Emilia. At first it was just a vague feeling of unease, but it gradually came into a fuzzy focus. The emotion hidden deep in her eyes looked almost like a desperate plea. \"Did you by chance want me to run away?\" *** \"But why? If I did that, then it would be bad for you and the others.\" Thinking back on their exchange, Emilia started to wonder if #184 had noticed the ice sculpture left on the bed but chosen not to report it to Regulus. By doing that, she would delay the realization that Emilia was gone, which would've given her more time to get away. In reality, Emilia had had no intention of fleeing, so her effort had gone to waste, but  \"No, if you hadn't hidden it for me, Regulus would have found out I was sneaking around investigating. So thank you anyway...\" \"Please don't thank me. In the end it did not amount to anything I had intended to muster just a little bit of bravery at the end of my life, but even that was meaningless.\" *** With that, #184 tightly clenched her arms. Her hands were visibly trembling. Emilia realized that her delaying the report she was supposed to give had taken every last bit of her courage. Regulus had casually tried to kill #184 out of nothing more than a mild irritation. If that was an everyday sort of occurrence, then she and all the other wives were living day in and day out with death hanging right over their heads. How much courage had it taken to endure that level of terror that had become an everyday phenomenon? \"Why did you come back?\" \" Um.\" \"It would have been better if I had just been consumed by his anger after you never returned. Whatever became of the city, whatever became of us. This just means it will go on and on. This unchanging, never-ending time will just continue until it all ends.\" #184 spoke fervently, half clinging to Emilia, half cursing her. Biting her lip, Emilia stood up. \"In that case, if you could stand up once, then let's try again together. I haven't given up yet.\" \"I can't. I gathered what little willpower I had left and got nothing in return. Just thinking about trying again makes everything inside me freeze... Anything more is impossible.\" #184 shook her head desperately as Emilia watched, unable to say anything. Her eyes locked on to Emilia as she continued, the light in her eyes frozen no, dead. \"You are free to decide that you will not give up. However, I will never have that choice ever again. And I'm sure the other women in this hell are the same.\" *** \"I was just a normal girl living in a small village in a mountain valley with my family. In order to marry me, he eradicated my mother and father, my siblings, my neighbors, and all the villagers who merely knew my name and face. All his wives have experienced similar fates.\" Her eyes dead and dull the whole while, #184 spoke of what had happened when Regulus demanded her hand in marriage. It was a horrific, almost unbelievable story, but the only ones who could laugh it off as a joke would be those fortunate enough not to know Regulus. He was more than capable of committing such heinous acts. That was unmistakably something he would do. He had created a paradise of his own making, served by the wives he had forcibly wedded. \"...Regulus said there were two hundred and ninety-one...\" \"Yes. And two hundred and thirty-eight have already passed away, leaving only the fifty-three here in this city.\" \"Those wives who passed away...\" \"Do you really need me to spell it out?\" Her hoarse response scoffed at Emilia's question. No, it was more self-deprecating than that. #184 was exhausted with existing and with the curse that had consumed their lives. She had reached the present day at the cost of her very will to resist. And after trudging her way through those terror-filled days, she'd stumbled upon evidence of Emilia, the one whom Regulus had chosen to be his new wife, running away. What had #184 felt in that moment? Her statement that she would never have the will to resist again had surely been true in a far deeper sense than Emilia realized. Emilia had only just begun to scratch the surface of what it took to spend a life with Regulus, but for #184 for all the women here, it was something that had already shaved away pieces of their very souls. *** Though it had not been intentional, Emilia realized just how important a thing she had shattered, and realizing that, she lost sight of what she could possibly say to #184. Even if she said something baseless in the heat of the moment, it would never reach this woman. She frantically searched for the words, anything she could possibly say to reassure or bolster #184. She was desperately, desperately searching, but she could not come up with anything. There didn't seem to be a right answer. No ideal or essential wisdom. No matter how she looked, she could not find the words to tell #184 the thing she most wanted to convey. Emilia was terrified from the depths of her heart, as if it would all slip away from the palm of her hand. A cold despair crept into her heart. And at just that instant  \" Um, can everyone actually hear me through this? Mic test, mic test. One, two. One, two.\"  the voice Emilia most wanted to hear rang out from above, as if extending a hand to her. 8 It was a faltering performance. Even if a listener was inclined to be generous, it could not be called impressive. \"It looks like this is actually broadcasting, then. First of all, let me apologize for surprising you. I imagine a lot of you were worried or steeling yourself wondering what you would be told next. But please don't worry. I'm not a member of the Witch Cult.\" Even though it would have been fine to lie, it was brutally honest even where it did not need to be, not even hiding the sort of thing that would cause the people listening to feel more anxious. And yet, at the very end of it all, it said, as if to kick away everyone's unease  \" But even so. Even with all that, I can't run away from this. So I'm going to fight. That's the sort of person I am.\" It was a shock and almost certainly exactly what Emilia wanted most in that moment. It was the thing that the people of the city most wanted in that moment. \"I want to believe. I'm weak. And pathetic. But I haven't given up yet. Please let me believe that I'm not the only weakling who"}, {"text": "doesn't know how to give up.\" Ahhh, it really is not fair at all. Trembling and meandering but obviously his best effort, it made anyone listening almost want to cry. It almost felt like the speaker's pulse could be heard through his voice, even though that was obviously impossible. It nearly brought tears to her eyes. \"Or am I really the only one?\"  No, no you're not. \"Am I the only one who can still keep going...who still wants to fight?\"  No, I'm okay. I can keep going. \"I'm not, right?\"  No, you're not. Absolutely, from the bottom of my heart, you're not alone. \"You can still fight, right? You won't let the weakness consume you, right?\"  I can hear your voice, so I'm okay. It's fine. I'm not scared of anything. \" I am Subaru Natsuki, the spirit user who defeated the Witch Cult Archbishop of Sloth.\" Just hearing that alone was enough to blow away all the cold despair encroaching on Emilia's heart. Even though just a little while earlier it had felt like she had fallen into an inescapable dark abyss. Even though she had been unable to move forward or backward, cursing her own powerlessness. Just hearing that voice had relieved her. Had satisfied her. Because he had said it. Emilia's knight had said it. \" Just leave everything else to me!\" He had said to leave it to him. So no matter how dark things might seem, he would blow it all away. No matter how impossible or absurd, he would overcome all the odds. There was no doubt he would succeed. That was why  \"...That voice just now...\" \" That was my knight. He's always really trying his best.\" The broadcast ended as suddenly as it had begun, leaving a stunned #184 in turmoil. And standing before her, Emilia held her hand to her heart and smiled softly. *** Looking into Emilia's eyes, #184 opened her own eyes wide, and she was at a loss for words. It was because of how Emilia looked as she spoke about her knight, but Emilia did not realize it. She then looked #184 in the eye as she continued. \"I won't run. I won't disappear and leave you all here.\" \" ! Why?\" \"You shared your painful past with me, as well as what you're feeling now. But as scared as you must have been, you still tried to help me.\" Even if it was only once, even if she felt broken down and lost, she had fought back; she had conquered her fear even if only for an instant. So Emilia would do the same she would do her best not to bend or break. \"I want you and everyone else to be able to find happiness. A wedding is a ceremony to bring happiness to two people who love each other very much. The bride has to be happy, too.\" When she thought of marriage, she imagined a scene of blissful happiness between two people who adored each other. In the back of her mind, she saw the image of Fortuna and Geuse they had not been married, so they never became husband and wife, but that was what Emilia wished for them. For their sakes, Emilia dearly wanted them to have been able to be married. Their relationship, the way they loved each other that was surely what a proper marriage should be like. \"I know people who loved each other but weren't able to get married. And to this day, it makes my heart hurt to think of them.\" That was why  \" I can't stand the idea of a marriage that isn't happy. I don't want that sort of relationship for anyone.\" Just thinking of it made her stomach roil. She hated the very idea of it. Emilia fundamentally refused to give in to something like that, so she would not give up on the city or on #184 or any of the women here. She would carry them all in her own hands. And if that was not enough, she would borrow someone else's hands, too someone like her knight. \"Th-that is a lovely thought, but...as I said before, if there were anything to be done, it would be for you to escape alone.\" \"Alone...? No, that isn't what we should do at all.\" Emilia shook her head, gently rejecting #184's statement. #184 had revealed she was alone in the world, with no one left to turn to but that wasn't true. Not any longer. It was none other than Emilia's knight who had revealed that when his voice could be heard all throughout the city. But she had no intention of just leaving everything to him. \"I was never alone. That was dangerous; I almost forgot that.\" \"What are you planning?\" Even though she was insistent that it was none of her concern, #184 was still asking what Emilia's plan was. Seeing her riled emotions, her frozen emotions stirring into life, Emilia could not help an odd feeling that that was the same sort of thing Subaru saw. To #184's shock, her response was \"We're going to hold a wedding ceremony.\" CHAPTER 5 *** 1 The preparations for the ceremony in the chapel continued apace as planned. Fortunately, Regulus's irritation had not exploded in the chapel, and the austere, dignified building was still standing. The gleaming decorations for the ceremony were safely in place. Having decided to face the wedding ceremony, Emilia was in the wardrobe room getting her hair styled to look the part of a bride by #184 and a couple of Regulus's other wives. It had been a long time since she'd had her hair set in a style this complex. Puck used to tweak her hair every morning, but she had neglected it ever since he had vanished. She mostly went without doing anything complicated to her hair, excepting the rare occasions when Annerose did something fancy for her. Her long silver hair was braided and carefully done up. Her outfit was adorned with accessories to accentuate the beautiful, pure white of her dress without verging on ostentation. With that, Emilia's bridal makeover was complete. Seeing herself in the mirror, she was amazed by their skill. It was quite different from her usual appearance. She mostly just kept things simple and tied her hair back without much effort unless Subaru was helping out that day, and she usually made a point of not wearing accessories in order to be able to move more freely, but her current hairstyle and accessories were solely focused on enhancing her ladylike allure. \"It feels like this is all just wasted on me, though...\" The women who had helped her change all sighed heavily at that. Just like #184, they had all said nothing more than the bare minimum necessary while helping her change. Feeling inadequate when she heard their heavy sighs, Emilia straightened her back. Her silver hair shimmered like moonlight streaming against her slender back. \"Let's go. Be careful to not upset our husband,\" a tall, red-haired woman said before taking the lead, with Emilia following behind her. #184, who had been ordered to accompany the procession, was helping carry the train of her dress. *** She intentionally kept her expression motionless, but there was a faint unease in her eyes. As the only person who had heard Emilia declare she would face the ceremony in her own way, she had especially turbulent emotions. She had no idea at all what Emilia had in mind for the coming ceremony, but she had apparently chosen not to mention her unease to Regulus. And that was enough. Her simple presence was enough to support Emilia's resolve.  In the chapel, the guests present were already gathered, waiting for Emilia's arrival. *** There was a red carpet over the central path, with the guests beautifully arrayed along either side of the carpet. They were all Regulus's wives fifty women every last one besides the three in Emilia's procession. And waiting in front of the altar at the end of the carpeted aisle was Regulus, standing calmly in a white tuxedo. The red-haired woman led Emilia directly to him. Emilia glanced at the expressions of the women lining the aisle but found nothing more than calculated, practiced, expressionless faces. Beneath the gaze of this masked audience, Emilia approached the altar. The women in her procession stepped away, taking their places among the women lining the aisle. All except for #184, who moved to the opposite side of the altar, a faint tension on her face as she began officiating the wedding ceremony. Her body still facing #184 and the altar, Emilia turned to look at Regulus. \"I'm surprised. The previous dress was magnificent, but this wedding gown is truly unmatched. My eyes were not mistaken when I first saw you. We really are the most fitting pair in the world.\" Regulus nodded to himself, satisfied with Emilia's appearance. He brushed back his white hair. \"Still, seeing this, I can see I was right to leave the seat of #79 open. I had a feeling that there would someday be someone worthy to take it. And the confidence and decisiveness to trust in that decision and follow through are quite amazing, if I do say so myself. Believing in yourself through thick and thin is not something just anyone can do.\" \"About that number... Why was there an open seat?\" Now that she had entered the chapel and was standing before the altar, the first words out of Emilia's mouth were a question. Her question clashed heavily with the mood of the ceremony and didn't complement Regulus or his self-satisfied, flowery rhetoric. But the question didn't dampen his mood. He merely cocked his head. \"Hmm? Ah, that. Previously, there was another woman I set eyes upon who I thought would be fitting for that number. Unfortunately, before we could be wed, I judged her to be unsuitable. But when it came to the most important point of appearance, she was incredibly close to my ideal. I left the seat unfilled in order to remember her, out of a sense of lingering attachment, I suppose...but thanks to that, I was able to meet you. Truly, ours was a fated encounter.\" \"Before...\" As Regulus spoke of fate, Emilia was hung up on another part of what he'd said. Something that felt very off. A clear oddity that came whenever she interacted with him; an invisible unease that was gradually coming into view, but one she still could not quite pin down. And as she was thinking that, Regulus adjusted the collar of his matching tuxedo. \"Well then, shall we exchange our vows? Unfortunately, we will have to settle for a shortened ceremony without official witnesses, but you don't mind, do you? Such an important ceremony is not for fussing over details but for cementing our binding love. Fretting over appearances only to neglect the substance of it all is truly nonsensical, and yet, it is a rather trite and common mistake. Naturally, I would never stoop to such folly.\" #184 began her preparations behind the altar as Regulus's torrent continued unabated. #184 performed the preparations that the officiant was normally supposed to take care of with a practiced ease that indicated this was not the first of Regulus's weddings that she had presided over. \"Obsessing over appearances and losing sight of the point is just absurd. Form over substance? It's all the more unsightly because people like that don't even realize that everyone is laughing at them behind their back. Though I suppose that by living in ignorance, they are happier for it.\" Regulus did not even pay any attention to #184 and her sadly practiced ease. She seemed something like the leader of the wives. And from the fact that Regulus had tried to kill her on a whim, it was clear that he did not view his wives as actual people. It was a little late to be reaching that conclusion there, but she simply couldn't forgive his"}, {"text": "revolting behavior. \" Hey, Regulus. There are a few things I would like to tell you before the ceremony.\" Because of that, she had a declaration for him while she was standing there, face-to-face with him. #184's face tensed at that. There was a slight wave of unease spreading among the wives lining the pews as well. \"That's true. Once we've exchanged vows, we are man and wife. There are things that can only be discussed before that.\" But unexpectedly, Regulus responded with an approving nod. \"In fact, I also have something I should disclose about our upcoming married life. It could wait until after the ceremony, but it is important to be mentally prepared when embarking on something this important. It would be a tragedy for a marriage to suffer the fate of 'This wasn't what I had imagined.' In order to avoid that, we should both freely share our thoughts. As future husband and wife and as individuals. Right?\" \"Yes, exactly. It's really important since we are individuals.\" \"Yes! Fantastic! It seems like we can truly understand each other. Then, I have insisted on a few promises from my other wives, so I suppose I should start there. Don't worry, the promises are the same for everyone, so it isn't anything too demanding. If anything, you could even say they are almost natural for a wife.\" Regulus shrugged humorously as he held up a finger. \"The first is once we have exchanged vows, you are forbidden to smile.\" \" Huh?\" Emilia furrowed her brow, clearly failing to understand the point of his demand. Still holding his finger up, Regulus slowly shook his head. \"You see, I like your face. Truly, I love it. I choose my wives based on their faces. A beautiful, sweet, and alluring face is a requirement for my wives. Every last one of the two hundred and ninety-one wives I've wed has had a beautiful face. And your face is lovely as well. That is why I chose to make you my wife. Do you understand?\" *** \"This is something I've thought about for a long time, but there are many people in this world who simply do as they please. Far more than you would imagine. It is common to hear tales of lovers or married couples whose love has faded, no? They presumably loved each other at some point, and yet when they actually began living together, various areas where they were incompatible were revealed. Food preferences, habits, hobbies, schedules... There is a truly large number of people who are trash and offer up selfish excuses for falling out of love with someone they supposedly loved once. From the depths of my heart, those people are utterly worthless.\" Regulus was still smiling, truly enjoying himself as he spoke about such detestable garbage innocently, unrestrainedly, and with a sense of righteous indignation as well as a lack of understanding for people who made light of love. \"They are each and every one of them selfish. You loved them? Then why would you drift apart over something as trifling as mere aesthetic differences? Isn't that the height of foolishness? That is why I choose partners based on their faces. As long as they have a face that I love, my love will never fade, no matter what kind of person they end up being. Because it is their face that I love. As long as that remains, my love will be eternal.\" *** \"Whether they are the sort of person who doesn't pick up their clothes, whether they are a serial murderer who only kills children, whether they can't cook even if their life depended on it, whether they were sold off by their family to pay off a loan, whether they don't make any effort to prevent colors running in the laundry, whether they are the sort of off-kilter person who snuffs the life from small animals, whether their sense of style is absolutely appalling, whether they are obsessed with money, whether they don't bathe and smell like refuse, or whether they were genuinely planning to destroy the whole world I don't mind.\" Regulus pointed to the other fifty-three women in the chapel one after the other as he spoke. Emilia could not say how many people in the building actually fell into any of those categories. But she could at least say that he was not lying. He would love anyone without distinction. It was impartial. He was talking about an unquestioning love proclaiming that he loved each and every one of his wives without qualification. But Emilia could not see the connection between that treatise on love and the requirement he was asking of her. \"What is the correlation between that and not smiling, though?\" \"It's simple. There are people whose normal expression is cute and beautiful, and yet when they smile, they become ugly, aren't there? I can't accept that. That's why. I said 'forbidden to smile,' but really any and all changes of expression are out of bounds. Basically, the thought that your lovely face might become ugly is unbearable to me. It would be a net loss for the world. That is why. So don't laugh. Don't cry. Don't get mad. Don't rejoice. Just stay like this with your beautiful face, always.\" *** The second part had been a command, with Regulus grabbing her chin and leaning in so close that she could feel his breath on her skin. That was the promise Regulus wanted. Though it could hardly be called a promise, since it was clear as day what would happen to anyone who disobeyed. But if it had simply been a command or a demand of obedience, then at least it would not have a hollow ring to it. \"You said you wouldn't fall out of love with someone as long as you liked their face. So what happened before?\" \"Hmm?\" \"If I hadn't grabbed her arm, she would have died by your hand.\" Emilia pointed to #184 on the other side of the altar. #184 froze as Regulus glanced over at her. And after thinking about it for a second, he nodded slightly, as if remembering. \"Ah, that is an unfortunate misunderstanding. That had nothing to do with a change in my love for her. It was merely that she upset my mood because of her inadequate attention. That was why I thought she should take responsibility for it.\" \"What? If that isn't fickle, then...\" \"No, that isn't it at all. I still love her face. Therefore my love is unchanged. It would remain unchanged even if she was to die. It's a common thing to hear, right? Even when someone you love dies, they will still live on in your heart. Your love will continue on without fading. That is precisely how I feel.\" *** Holding his hand to his chest, Regulus spoke in the clear voice of a stage actor. It was a perfect, flawless logic that started and ended with him. It left no room for other people's thoughts to intrude. It was entirely flawless in its incompleteness. In the face of how much he had built up and refined his way of life, Emilia felt completely let down. Even in that moment, she had wanted to believe. She had wanted to believe that even if he was one of the Archbishops of the Witch Cult, there was some way they could get through to each other. \"By any chance...do you happen to have some complaint with me? If you did, that would be just a little bit vexing. I've made so much effort and compromised on so much out of consideration for you, and you won't even acknowledge it? That's one of those things that make you question a person on a fundamental level. If you ask me, that simply wouldn't happen if you would just spend a little effort thinking about others and putting yourself in their shoes.\" When he noticed Emilia's silence, for the first time Regulus's brow furrowed suspiciously. That probably meant that this was the first time he was truly seeing his bride-to-be. But nothing else changed about how he interacted with her. \"Concern for others is the most basic of basics when dealing with people. And negligence in that most fundamental of things is a sign that you don't view the person you are interacting with as worthy of even that much effort. In other words, it is an action that reveals a contempt for me as an individual. A grievous infringement of my rights. That is not something I can forgive.\" A dangerous mood radiated from Regulus's whole body as he spoke. It warped the air around him, and a dangerous air filled the chapel that almost seemed to grip everyone else's lungs. And standing directly in front of the madman responsible, Emilia inhaled softly. \" I think that marriage is something really happy.\" \"...Huh?\" \"It's a ceremony that gives shape to the thoughts of people who love each other and truly want to be together. It is something that happens when a person finds another person that they really love out of all the people in the world, and that person loves them back...and I think that is really amazing.\" Regulus looked suspicious as he saw Emilia smiling there in her bridal attire. But while he could not read the situation, the expressions of the women in the pews and #184 behind the altar clouded over. They were expressions that showed fear of the direction the wedding ceremony was taking and concern for Emilia, who stood at the center of it all. They were wonderful, kindhearted souls who were worried about what was about to happen to someone else. \"Regulus, why do you refer to your wives by number?\" \"A fixation on form of address? That's just another mode of obsessing over form. A truly surface-level relationship. It is simply proof of a lack of confidence in your ability to continue your love without unnecessary trappings. I am not swayed by such trivial self-aggrandizement. My love is unqualified and pure, so that truth will remain without any unneeded elements getting in the way. Isn't that just the truth of the matter?\" \"It is but I don't hate it when Subaru calls me Emilia-tan.\" \"Subaru...?\" Suddenly hearing something that he could not let pass, Regulus raised his eyebrows in displeasure. But Emilia ignored the dangerous change and continued. \"The way he feels is all there in his voice when he calls me Emilia-tan. And when he sometimes just calls me Emilia, it is always obvious that it's a special moment. I don't think that is meaningless at all. A name should have that sort of thought behind it.\" \"You spoke very eloquently on that subject, but who exactly is Subaru? That's a person's name, right? A man's name, right? Isn't a woman mentioning the name of another man when she's standing at the altar about to be married just a little too irrational? Even if he was someone you had hardly any interaction with, it would be hurtful to your partner. It is hurtful, in fact. You know that, right?\" \"He isn't someone I've had hardly any interaction with. Subaru is my one and only knight, the one who calls my name while saying that he loves me.\" \"What?!\" Regulus's dreadful aura swelled at those words. #184 and all the other wives tensed up at the sudden, violent shift in demeanor. \"Don't move! If you do, I'll erase everything below her head.\" *** \"Let's have an explanation. Be careful with your words and do your best to make sure there are no misunderstandings. I don't want this wedding to turn into someone's funeral. You understand, right?\" Regulus's shoulders trembled as he shouted, biting back the humiliation he was feeling. Everyone in the pews froze, but Emilia faced his swelling rage with an unchanged, calm expression and a clear state of mind. The broadcast had given Emilia courage. She wanted to be able to live"}, {"text": "up to that. \"Marriage is something two people who love each other share together. But I don't have the qualifications for that.\" *** \"I've never once loved a man as a woman before. So when Subaru tells me so insistently that he loves me, I can't give him the answer he is hoping for, or the other answer, either. And I know how hurtful that is and how much it has bothered him. But...\" Regulus fell silent. However, Emilia no longer saw the man standing before her. Everyone in the chapel could tell. Regulus was not reflected in her eyes at all. But Regulus could not accept that fact as he bit his lip. \"I've never experienced falling in love with someone. But I am sure that I will fall in love with someone someday. I will love someone as a woman. And when that happens, I already know who it will be. So...\" Taking a breath, she looked at Regulus while focused on someone else entirely. \" I will not be yours.\" \" ! So that's how it is! I certainly don't have any more intention of wedding such a selfish, wanton woman as you! So that's a relief!\" When he accepted Emilia's rejection, Regulus's face turned red as he grew enraged. He extended his fingers in a fit of anger as a chill welled up from Emilia's body and she prepared to attack. Her first clash with his incomprehensible destructive ability  *** Just as both of their attacks were about to start, a powerful crack resounded through the chapel. Something flew through the air like an arrow, striking Regulus head-on. What hit him as he stood there in his white tuxedo was a wooden door one of the two great wooden doors that stood at the entrance of the chapel sent flying by a tremendously powerful impact. It had flown all the way from the entrance and struck Regulus. And  \"We both kicked in at the same time, but the results were so different. What are your legs even made of?!\" \"Apologies, I failed to hold back. I did at least aim properly at the target, though, so could you perhaps forgive my earlier mistake?\" \"Yeah, but our coolness levels are totally different now. My kick opened the door, but your kick turned the door into a direct attack...\" Two figures appeared in the doorway of the magnificent chapel, joking around with each other. A black-haired boy and a red-haired young man. \" Ah.\" Emilia's eyes widened at the sight of them, and Regulus brushed aside the door like it was an annoying gnat. He was wholly uninjured, but there was a tremendous displeasure in his eyes as he glared at the two interlopers. \"That is some nerve, barging your way into a sacred wedding. Who are you and what gifts have you brought, I wonder? Well?\" The two wedding crashers glanced at each other in response to Regulus's bluster and then nodded at each other. \"Subaru Natsuki, a spirit knight whose spirit is currently not present.\" \"Reinhard van Astrea of the Sword Saint family.\" Reinhard took a step forward as he introduced himself. Beside him, Subaru winked at Emilia and then pointed to Regulus, his expression hardening. \"I object to this wedding! I'll be taking that bride!\" 2  The battle that would decide the fate of the city of water the simultaneous assault on all four control towers had begun. Relying on all the information they had gathered, both actively and accidentally, the fighting forces of each camp gathered themselves into their various units and set off for their respective targets, leaving those who remained behind at the base to wait with bated breath for reports of victory. Or at least, that was the unpleasant fate to which Otto Suwen would have liked to resign himself, but it was not to be. Instead, he had left city hall alone and was stealthily running around a city roiling with danger around every bend. \"I should be stoppin' ya, but I can't deny wanting to be sure about where the book of knowledge they were wanting actually is  You drew the short end of the stick this time, Otto.\" That was what Anastasia had said when she saw him off back at city hall. She would have preferred that Otto stay put, and she probably had wanted to use him as another set of eyes to analyze the reports that would be filtering in from the battlefield. With the group at city hall taking the command role for this battle, the more eyes and more heads the better. But Otto had a personal responsibility when it came to the book of knowledge. They were working together with the other factions, but if the situation somehow managed to actually be resolved, it would become a competition again, and he had to avoid any chance the other camps might get their hands on the book of knowledge. If he was being honest, he would have preferred not discussing exactly what sort of magical book it was in front of everyone else, either, but Subaru and Garfiel were not fond of that sort of covert politicking. Feeling like he was the bad guy for some reason, Otto heaved a sigh. \"When did I end up becoming the sort of person to run all around like this for other people's sakes...?\" Adjusting his hat, Otto ran into a question that he'd struggled with countless times during the past year. His position was unexpected, his relationship to other people was unexpected, and his own feelings were unexpected. What would his family think if they saw him running all around with nary a thought about how to turn a profit from it? \"Even Oslo would probably make fun of me, let alone Regin...\" Imagining his older and younger brothers' differing reactions, Otto curled his lips slightly into a wry smile. Slipping into an emotional train of thought that Subaru, were he there, would surely start raising alarms about triggering death flags and whatnot, Otto ran through the narrow streets of the city, on guard against demi-beasts. The malformed and grotesque creatures were guarding the control towers being occupied by the Archbishops and were incredibly threatening to any noncombatants wandering the city. But they could be managed with enough caution. That was something Otto had learned during his time out in the city before he joined up with everyone else at city hall. Because of that, the danger he faced was minimal. If he could not demonstrate the pride of a member of the team who couldn't fight directly in battle now, who knew when he would get another chance? \"...Heh, would have been nice if I could have at least tricked myself.\" He clutched his chest, and Otto's expression melted into a self-deprecating laugh as he felt just how badly his heart was racing. The Witch Cult, Archbishops, cultists they were all things tied to terrifying memories for Otto. The events that had led to his meeting Subaru and everyone else a year earlier were just the flip side of how he had almost lost his life. He could not forget the fear he'd felt toward the Archbishop then, no matter how he tried. He could not forget the Archbishop of Sloth's sunken, dark eyes in the moment he'd thoughtlessly stolen away someone else's life. He would never forget the image of the mad fanatics who'd offered up their own flesh in accordance with his orders without any thought of pain or suffering. He could not forget the silence that had filled the world around him as he pleaded for someone, anyone to help him. He had never been more terrified than in that moment. He had never feared the void as he had then. Facing off against Garfiel, running away from the Bowel Hunter, and being attacked by a mob of demon beasts all paled in comparison.  That was how dark a pall the encounter with the Witch Cult had cast on Otto's heart. And yet, there was no mistaking that he would have to face that fear again. He had chosen of his own volition a place to call home where he would surely have to face the Cult again. He could not just leave Emilia, Subaru, Beatrice, Garfiel, Ram, Frederica, and Petra alone Otto cared about all of them. He had never intended to stay in any one place, and yet somewhere along the line it had just become too comfortable. Even knowing he would encounter the enemy that terrified him the most, he could not abandon his home. If it would protect that place he called home, if they needed him to stand beside them, then he would stifle his fear and support them in all the ways they could not support themselves. Because of that  \"No matter what it takes, I have to take care of my job myself.\" His words were to reinforce his fearful heart and also a warning for the enemy to hear. When Otto stopped moving, there was a small figure standing in front of him. There was a stone bridge over a canal just ahead, and on the other side was a plaza, where the small figure was standing. There were actually several figures in the plaza, but in the moment, Otto's attention was focused on a single one standing in the midst of them. The world grew quiet. Painfully so. He could not hear anything at all. The voices of living creatures fell silent as they desperately tried to hide their presences and blend into the background. Otto Suwen knew that feeling. And because he recognized it, his heart was surprisingly, truly, astonishingly calm, even as the figure before him slowly lowered its arms and its long mess of brown hair and turned around. \" Hello, mister.\" The figure's lips cracked sinisterly as it flashed a terrifying grin. \" I am Lye Batenkaitos, the Witch Cult Archbishop of Gluttony. Welcome to my feeding ground!\" His red tongue danced inside his toothy mouth as the Archbishop who should not have been there cackled.  Another unexpected life-and-death battle begins for a noncombatant as well."}]