The Intellectual Infiltrator II: The Tragic Beginnings


"How pitiful. Although there's absolutely no doubt that I hate you, it's still pitiful. But, I do wonder. What could possibly cause such an interesting reaction?"

Echidna wondered to herself as she looked down on the half-elf who's now laying down peacefully on the sea of white grass.

Her hallow black eyes are devoid of any emotion. A look of complete indifference. Even her apparent words of pity were monotonous and lacked any semblance of life.

Regardless, everything in sight remains the same before Echidna said the very words, "Return by Death." The scenery is still the same magical world of white. The skies didn't turn pitch-black. Nor were the pure white grasslands, flowers, and trees tainted with scarlet. Nor was there a terrifying crazed smile on Echidna's face.

It's still the "normal" state of the dream world.

Maybe those scenarios were really only happening in Emilia's perspective, after all.

"It's a mistake on my part for not considering this possibility, I suppose. Heh. But it's not like I'll apologize. As the wicked Witch of Greed, I'm exempt from doing something embarrassing like that. But even so, for you to suffer a pathetic mental breakdown upon hearing [Return by Death]... don't tell me you already…"

Letting out an exasperated sigh, she looks up the cerulean skies.

"But then again, maybe I shouldn't be this surprised, considering your great potential. You are supposedly her 'replacement,' after all."

She let out a nonchalant shrug.

"Well, in any case, it can't be helped. At the end of the day, my intent hasn't changed."

A gush of wind blows against her hair.


After what felt like a long period of slumber, Emilia awakened to a rather familiar scene.

Based on the darkening orange skies preparing to welcome the night, the time is around twilight.

The place she awakened to is an area filled with worn out buildings. The shabby appearance of the buildings is further amplified by the overabundance of dust and the dead trees that span throughout the area. Moreover, the inhabitants were mostly dressed in dirty and ragged clothes. Overall, there's a dejected vibe looming over the place... the oppressed state of the populace can certainly be felt.

With these observations, she was able to acquire her current location; the slums of Lugnica...

... also known to her as the place where she first met the strange boy, Natsuki Subaru.

As for the reason why she suddenly awakened to this place after her encounter with Echidna… well, she wouldn't know the reason, would she? As of this moment, all she can really do is observe the situation.

She spotted several children hiding behind the corners of their house and alleyways. The adults had their spiteful gaze turned on a particular source. They seem to be alerted by someone's presence. It must be someone other than herself because no one appears to be paying attention to her… despite her standing in the middle of the road. In fact, it feels like no one is even alerted to her presence at all.

Due to her appearance that always stands out wherever she goes, it felt strange and unusual to be ignored like this. Hence, she traced where the slum dwellers' gazes were directed.

"Subaru?!"

She exclaimed in surprise upon seeing Subaru.

Naturally, her first instinct was to run towards him and greet him, but he doesn't appear to notice her even when she stood directly in front of him. She was expecting him to express his usual grin and say something really silly upon seeing her, but he's just flat-out ignoring her.

Was he ignoring her on purpose? Was there something she did?

Whatever it may be, coupled with the slum dwellers ignoring her, something definitely felt off about the whole situation.

She stretched an arm out to touch him.

But…

Subaru literally walked past her as if she wasn't there in the first place, phasing through her body like it was nothing… like the road in front of him was just an empty space.

Once Subaru passed her, she saw a girl walking behind him…

Emilia?!

What she saw was like a reflection of herself. A complete and thorough copy of herself; the same eyes, face, hair, body, and clothes.

The only difference… the other Emilia still has the crystal necklace containing Pack…

She instinctively placed a hand on her chest where the crystal used to dangle. She couldn't feel it anymore.

It was a cruel reminder of what she lost…

"U-uhmm?"

In a similar manner to what happened with Subaru, the other Emilia also phased through her like it was nothing... like the road in front of her was just an empty space.

"W-what's going on?!"

She turned around to watch their retreating figures.

They are heading somewhere, for sure.

"I guess I should just follow them for now…"

After following silently behind them for quite some time, she realized no one else in the vicinity can see her. Nor can anyone hear her. It's like she doesn't exist within the realm of reality anymore.

No one can see her. No one can her hear. No one can sense her presence.

She's just there.

Watching.

Observing.

Was this another one of the Witch of Greed's tricks?

Possibly…

As she deliberates her current predicament, Subaru and the other Emilia suddenly stopped in the middle of a small wooden bridge.

Then, the other Emilia closed her eyes, concentrating.

She began mumbling something to herself.

Afterward, a number of lesser spirits appeared, gathering around her.

She appeared to be communicating with them.

Subsequently, as the lesser spirits start to shine brightly around the other Emilia, it gave her the look of an ethereal higher being.

It was a very beautiful scene.

Subaru was looking at her in complete astonishment, stunned by the beauty radiating in front of him.

A look of longing and desire enveloped his expression.

A desire to protect the beautiful half-elf.

His heart skipped a beat.

Once the other Emilia finished communicating with the lesser spirits, she and Subaru continued on with Emilia following behind just as she had been doing. By now, the skies had turned dark. She didn't know where this will lead to, but it's her best option at the moment.

"Does she really live in a place like this?" She heard Subaru asked.

"The spirits said they saw someone who looked like Felt going in this direction." The other Emilia replied.

"They're looking for Felt?" Emilia thought to herself. "Isn't she supposed to be with Reinhard?"

Then, as they took further steps towards their destination, a slum dweller passed them by.

Subaru turned around to greet the man.

"Hey bro! Does a girl named Felt live up this way?!" He asked.

"Huuhh? Felt? Nothing that way but old man Rom's loot house. Haha, did Felt steal something from you guys?" The man asked cheekily. "Well, good luck trying to negotiate it back! Live strong."

Subaru and the other Emilia look at each other in confusion.

"Felt stole something again? Even after it was discovered she has royal blood... I don't think Reinhard would be too pleased about this."

"W-wait."

Realizing something "coincidental" in her memories and the current situation…

"This is… n-no way… it can't be…"

Soon, they arrived in front of a building Emilia recognized as Old Man Rom's loot house. It's the very same loot house where she first met Subaru.

Subaru and the other Emilia are currently engaging in a light-hearted argument. He was imitating her voice and manner of talking, and she joked about how he had actually been holding her back the whole time. Ultimately, Subaru decided he'll help her out no matter what and offered to do the negotiating to recover the stolen item.

The way the two are interacting… people would probably assume they're a cute couple.

"I'll go in first. You stay outside and keep watch." Subaru volunteered like a gentleman.

Then, he added in jest,

"I won't be out too late, but you can have dinner without me."

"Don't say silly things like that! Anyway, be careful."

"Sure, sure. Don't come in until I say it's safe, Satella."

"Satella?!"

This doesn't make sense.

The other Emilia, or perhaps Satella(?), stared blankly at Subaru. There seems to be a hint of guilt based on her expression.

Subaru turned back and asked,

"What?"

"N-no. It's nothing." Satella(?) shook her head. "I'll apologize if you get my insignia back."

Subaru nodded and grinned before entering the loot house.

"SUBARU! WAIT! DON'T GO!" Emilia suddenly cried out.

Her words of warning were too late…

Besides, Subaru wouldn't be able to hear her anyway…

No one can see her. No one can her hear. No one can sense her presence.

She's just there.

Watching.

Observing.

She didn't even know why she tried to prevent him from entering the loot house in the first place. It's not like she knows what's about to happen, does she? It was simply her instinct acting up. A feeling that a tragedy is about to strike…

A feeling of familiarity…

Déjà vu.

Satella(?) starts pacing back and forth as she waits for Subaru's signal. He sure is taking his time. She's starting to grow worried.

"…"

~~THUD! THUD!~~

Suddenly, banging noises were audible from inside the loot house suggesting a scuffle.

"Subaru? What's wrong?"

Upon hearing the sounds, Satella(?) immediately entered the loot house. Likewise, Emilia followed suit.

"…"

It's completely dark inside the building with the exception of a thin ray of light descending through a hole in the roof. But, no traces of Subaru were visible.

"Subaru?"

"…"

"Grkkk… no… krhhh… run away, now!" Somewhere within the darkness, Subaru's voice managed to warn despite his apparent trouble speaking.

Nevertheless, Satella(?) ignored his warning and kept on looking.

~~SWISH!~~

Without warning, Satella(?) was assaulted by someone within the darkness. Hence, she crashed against the ground near where the thin ray of light poked through.

Tracing where the light rested against, Emilia found them…

What lied in front of her was pure horror.

She gasped and covered her mouth with both hands, terrified by the horrifying sight.

Subaru and Satella(?)'s bodies were slumped against the ground next to each other, a puddle of blood surrounding them.

Subaru willed a hand forward until it landed on top of Satella(?)'s lifeless hand.

"Just wait… I… I will… save you!" He promised before succumbing to his wounds.

"…"

An eerie silence filled the lifeless house.

Then...

Tok tok~.

Tok tok~.

Tok tok~.

The sound of footsteps methodically made their way towards the corpses.

"Heh heh heh, now then, let's see how beautiful your insides look, shall we?" Another voice, an alluring one, expressed with maniacal excitement.

Both dead bodies were rudely turned around by someone's boots, exposing their front view and the gruesome slashes on their guts.

~~SWISH! SWISH! SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!~~

Their guts were slashed repeatedly until they were further opened, their innards spilling out of their body.

"HeheheheheheheheHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH! HOWW BEAUTIFUL~!" The killer's tongue made slurping sounds as her breathing grew heavy.

Repulsed by the scene, Emilia turned around and ran out of the loot house.

She ran out of the slums.

She ran out of the capital.

She kept running, running, running and running.

Tears stream uncontrollably out of her eyes.


In this reality, Emilia has never been able to apologize for lying about her name and calling herself "Satella."

In this reality, Subaru knows only of the kindhearted half-elf named "Satella," not Emilia.

In this reality, Subaru and "Satella" died next to each other with their hands held together.

This was the very first time [Return by Death] was activated.


After what felt like a long period of slumber, Emilia awakened to a rather familiar scene.

In this iteration, she still found herself in the slums at around early noon.

Similar to the previous iteration, she saw Subaru heading towards somewhere. Fortunately, the wound on his gut was gone. This time, however, the other Emilia, or perhaps Satella(?), wasn't with him anymore.

"SUBARU!" She cried out.

She charged towards him and attempted to embrace him. She wanted to provide him with a much-needed comfort after she witnessed the gruesome fate that befell him. However, just like last time, she just phased through him... like she doesn't even exist. As a result, she stumbled and crashed on the ground.

"Ow…"

She clutched her scratched knees which collided against the rough ground.

"Why?"

A tear escaped her eye.

"W-why is this happening… what's going on…"

As evident by her aching knees, she doesn't seem to have a problem interacting with the physical world. But why can't any living creatures see her? Why can't they interact with her? Most importantly… why is she being forced to witness the demise of Subaru?

"I guess I just have to keep following him…"

Eventually, he ended up in the same place as before; Old Man Rom's loot house. However, unlike the previous time, someone greeted him after he frantically knocked on the door; the grumpy owner of the loot house, Rom.

After he was invited inside, Subaru asked a string of strange questions such as…

"Have you died recently?"
"Have you seen a silver-haired girl?"

Of course, Rom was baffled and bemused by the questions. But in the end, he answered "no" to both.

Then, the two engaged in a rather amusing back-and-forth conversation as Subaru tried to negotiate a stolen item, revealed to be a dragon insignia. His negotiation bait included a strange snack contained inside a small plastic container named "Corn Rotage." Unfortunately for him, Rom ended up eating the entire pack, curious and impressed by its flavor.

"The very same dragon insignia I lost on the day I met Subaru…" Emilia thought to herself after she picked out the keyword, insignia, in their conversation.

Afterward, she slumped against one of the tables, not really paying attention to the exchange between the two anymore.

She's still not certain about what's going on. Though, she may have picked up clues by now…

The cruel and wicked nature of whatever this "game" is… the way she's being "forced" to watch.

"Who else could it be? This must be a trick of Echidna. Echidna's trick. A trick of Echidna. Echidna's trick."

She murmured to herself over and over again.

After a moment of respite, Subaru and Rom waited for the arrival of the insignia theft herself, Felt, to continue the negotiations.

Continuing where he left off, Subaru introduced an unusual metia called a "cell phone," which he claimed can freeze a moment in time, as a bargaining chip.

After proving its worth by putting it into action, in which he showed how a rapid flashing of light can really capture several moments of Rom and Felt "frozen in time," Rom agreed that the value of the so-called "cell phone" is worth at least 20 holy coins, more than that of some mere insignia with a beautiful gem.

By all means, the negotiations should have been concluded right here and then with Subaru taking the insignia in exchange for the cell phone.

But…

There's to be another negotiator for the insignia… and Felt is determined to make as many holy coins as possible.

Luckily or unluckily, Subaru didn't have to wait long as the recent knockings on the door signaled the arrival of the other negotiator.

Just in time.

Felt dutifully got up to open the door for the newcomer, eager to find out if she can squeeze out more coins.

A captivating black-haired lady wearing clothes that left half of her chest and midsection exposed entered the loot house.

There's a certain aura about her that suggests she's someone extremely dangerous. In particular, her perilous eyes and her unsettling hidden smile indicate the horror that's about to take place.

Unfortunately for the other participants inside the loot house, they remain ignorant about the threat the lady in black possessed.

Which is why…

"SUBARU! RUN! GET OUT OF HERE!" Emilia suddenly stood up from her chair as she cried out in desperation.

Unfortunately, no one heard a word she said. After all, to these people, she doesn't exist.

No one can see her. No one can her hear. No one can sense her presence.

She's just there.

Watching.

Observing.

There's nothing she can do.

And so, a slaughter occurred.

Subaru, Felt, and Rom's dead bodies lay on the ground. Their guts were brutally slashed and ripped apart.

Emilia crashed on her knees, tears flowing down her face.

"T-T-This is…"

Sob.

"This is my fault."

Sob.

"S-Subaru…"

Sob.

"H-he was doing this for me…"

Sob.

"To recover the insignia I carelessly let get stolen from me…"

Sob.

"H… he… he…"

Sob.

"Because of my negligence, he suffered another terrible end…"

She stared in horror at his corpse, his mangled midsection is all there for her to see.

"My fault…"

"My fault…"

"My fault…"


After what felt like a long period of slumber, Emilia awakened to a rather familiar scene.

The scenery is around early noon in the middle of the capital city. The streets were crowded in a typical bustling day.

"WAIT! WAIT! WAIT! SATELLAAAAAA!" A gruff delinquent voice, belonging to Subaru, yelled out.

A silver-haired girl stopped on her tracks upon hearing his words, her head downcast.

Likewise, every other citizen within the vicinity stopped on their tracks, staggered by what they just heard.

"Please don't ignore me! I guess it's my fault for going off on my own and not listening to you! But I was desperate! I went back to the loot house after that, but I couldn't find you." He voiced his case.

The silver-haired girl turned her head half-way.

"I'm sorry for thinking only of myself. But I'm glad you're all right, Satella." He smiled in relief.

Satella(?) fully turned her head to face him. Despite his kind and honest words, she appeared extremely annoyed.

"What's your problem?" She asked with her eyes narrowed.

"Ehh?" He let out a dumbfounded noise, confused by her sharp reaction.

He certainly didn't expect her to react like this. He expected her to be glad to see him… to jump straight into his arms and embrace him upon seeing him safe and sound. Instead, he was met by the harsh reality.

"No… that's not it…" Meanwhile, Emilia was quietly murmuring to herself as she watched the scene. "P-please, this is a misunderstanding. H-he didn't…"

"I don't know who you are. But calling me by the name of the Witch of Envy… what is your problem?!" Satella(?) continued, ignorant of Emilia's presence, and therefore unconcerned about her regrets.

Stunned, Subaru was unable to form a reply.

What happened? Why is Satella(?) reacting like this? He died twice for her sake! In order to help her out! Just what… exactly did he do wrong other than failing in his honest attempt to save her?! What did he do to deserve this cold treatment?! Why isn't he being showered with praise and words of affection instead?!

These sorts of questions emerge in his mind.

"Why did you call me by the name of the Witch of Envy?"

"B-because I was told to."

"I don't know who told you that, but they have terrible taste! The Witch of Envy is the epitome of taboo, and you call me by her name, which most dare not even say!"

"That's right!" A random person in the crowd agreed.

"You went too far, bro!" And so did another one.

Subaru continued to be befuddled, unable to say anything. And since he's too dumbfounded to even explain himself, the silver-haired girl whose name was definitely not "Satella" considered their conversation over.

"If you have nothing to say, I'm leaving. I have things to do."

True to her words, she began walking away.

Then, unaware of her surroundings, Felt suddenly came out of nowhere and swiped something off her pocket before dashing and disappearing elsewhere.

The girl immediately searched her pockets and realized someone of great importance was missing.

Further annoyed than she already was, she turned back to Subaru.

"Were you stalling me?! Are you working with her?!" She accused.

Certainly, in her perspective, the whole act looked like a deliberate attempt to steal the insignia.

"N-no!"

With nothing else to say, the girl gritted her teeth and chased after Felt.

"Hey… wait a minute! It's not like that! I'm!-" Subaru tried to reason but it was far too late.

With no other choice, he chased after her.

Before Emilia's eyes laid Subaru's lifeless body on top of a puddle of blood with a knife stuck on his back.

He's dead.

Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead.

Indeed, there's no getting around it. He's dead.

"If only I hadn't lied to you about my name… then… this wouldn't… i-if I… if only I was honest with you from the very beginning… then…"

"This can only be my fault… I'm solely responsible for your death… because of my carelessness… because of my negligence…"

"My fault…"

"My fault…"

"My fault..."

And so, [Return by Death] was activated once again.


After what felt like a long period of slumber, Emilia awakened to a rather familiar scene.

Fortunately, this time, she's deeply familiar with the events in this iteration. Therefore, this must be "where she came from."

Recollecting her memories about what happened in this particular iteration, assuming everything goes the way she remembered, Subaru, Emilia, Felt, and Rom should all make it safely past the encounter with the assassin.

Hopefully, things would end the way she expected it to end; Natsuki Subaru's first successful loop.

...

As Subaru and Felt continue negotiating over the insignia, the silver-haired girl arrived.

Her sharp amethyst eyes scanned the room for the insignia-theft. Then, a tense standoff between her against Subaru, Felt, and Rom took place.

Subaru tried to clear the misunderstanding. Unfortunately, because he couldn't explain the circumstances involving [Return by Death], his attempt didn't achieve a lot. Moreover, the girl was unyielding. And seemingly convinced that the insignia-theft was among them, she summoned ice shards. Not that she intended to really hurt anyone. She only meant to threaten and intimidate so she could recover the insignia without causing any injury.

Then, out of nowhere, the assassin Elsa arrived and interrupted the party without warning. Thankfully, Subaru managed to call out and alert Pack right in time to shield the silver-haired girl from Elsa's blade.

And so began the dance to the death that culminated with the arrival of the Sword Saint Reinhard.

Ultimately, the red-haired knight managed to defeat Elsa with ease, but the assassin survived and escaped.

With the disaster now avoided and all of the party involved seemingly well and alive, the occasion would normally call for a well-deserved celebration.

Crediting Subaru for saving her life, the silver-haired girl allowed herself to grant him a "reward."

Of course, he chose to ask for her real name.

Up to now, he had only known the kind-hearted girl as either "Satella," or "the silver-haired girl." So, as of this moment, there's nothing more he wanted than learning the real name of the girl who made his heart skip a beat.

"My name is Emilia. Just Emilia." The girl revealed her name with a gleaming smile.

This served as the very first time Subaru knew of her as "Emilia," rather than "Satella."

It was a joyous and momentous scene… at least, it looked that way on the surface.

Regrettably, the euphoric moment didn't last long for Subaru. He suddenly collapsed to the ground, revealing a cut to the gut he suffered while shielding Emilia from Elsa.

Once the wounds he sustained came to light, it was agreed that Emilia took care of Subaru. On the other hand, Reinhard forcibly took Felt away. At the time, Emilia didn't know the reason why. She was even wary of Reinhard's intent, seeing how intimidating he looked. As it turned out, the Sword Saint suspected Felt to be of royal blood and the fifth and final candidate for Lugnica's throne. In the end, his suspicions proved to be correct.

With the [Dance to the Death] event now concluded, it was Subaru's first successful loop.


After the deadly battle with Elsa, Subaru was taken to Roswaal's mansion to have his wounds treated. It took around three days for him to regain his consciousness. After his recovery, he somehow ended up working as a butler in the mansion.

Once he started his work as a butler, he was mentored by one – no, two maids.

Twin maids, to be exact.

As for their names…

"Ram and…?"

Emilia wondered to herself as she watched Subaru struggle with his chores, while the apparent twin maids were scolding him.

She recognized and knew the pink-haired twin Ram. But as for the blue-haired twin _ _ _...

"Ah, that's right. She's the sleeping blue-haired girl Subaru always takes care of…"

"This must be when she was still awake, but I don't remember her in my memories… there's only Ram."

"What… is her name again?"

...

Throughout the course of the week, despite some arguments and banters here and there, he had gotten along quite well with the mansion residents – Emilia and Pack, the Margrave and lord of the mansion Roswaal, the girl at the library Beatrice, and the twin maids Ram and _ _ _.

However…

The scenes have notable differences from the ones Emilia was familiar with in her memories. For instance, the scene where Subaru rested and broke down on her lap was nowhere to be found. It goes the same for other scenes, usually either showing a contrast or not appearing at all.

Which means…

The "world" she's observing right now will not have a happy end.

It will end in tragedy.

After going through several iterations, comparing and contrasting the different "worlds," she came to the conclusion that the events consistent with her memories must be the ones that have a "happy end" considering Subaru didn't suffer any horrific death from the "world" she belonged to. The inconsistent ones must be the ones that will end in his eventual deaths.

Such is the nature of the ability known as [Return by Death].

But alas, regardless of her feelings, regardless of the tragedy that's about to happen in this iteration, she's continuously forced to watch the inevitable tragic death of Subaru.

"What a cruel and unfair method..."

With these depressing thoughts in mind, she continued watching Subaru and Emilia under the night skies. The scenery was illuminated exquisitely by Emilia's communication with lesser spirits.

Due to his busy work as a butler, they haven't had many chances to interact. This was one of the rare opportunity he has the chance to do so.

Emilia lightly poked him on the head. Thereby, he allowed himself to fall on the grass. Then, she sat on the ground beside him.

Afterward, the two gazed at the moon, admiring its unreachable beauty.

"You just don't get it, Emilia-tan. I want what I want at that exact moment, and I want it from the bottom of my heart."

"At that time, I wanted to know your name. In a new land, nervous and unsure of the future, I had no expectations for tomorrow. Looking back on it calmly, I'm sure there were other things I should have wanted."

He explained to her after she called attention to his apparent lack of ambition. For example, when he asked for her name as a reward when he could have so much more. Or when he chose to become a butler in the mansion instead of taking the fortunes offered by Roswaal.

Then, as their conversation drifted into the village kids, Subaru used the pretense of "revenge" against the "cruel" village kids that troubled him to ask Emilia on a date. Straightaway, she refused as she believed being seen with her would cause him problems. However, he persisted, and after he exerted some pressure, she agreed.

"I see. So there was something like this too… this was supposed to be my first true date…"

A tingling sensation arose from her heart.

"A precious memory…"

A tear trickle down her face.

"That was rendered void…"

Indeed, this was supposed to be her first true date… a date that will never come to fruition.

After paying a visit to Beatrice and then subsequently getting kicked out of the library, Subaru went to bed overjoyed due to earning a date with his "EMT."

Unfortunately, in this iteration of the world, he would never wake up again.


After what felt like a long period of slumber, Emilia awakened to a rather familiar scene.

Sadly, after watching and observing the events in this iteration, it's still not the world she's familiar with. So, taking into account her observations of the other iterations, like last time, Subaru will once again face his inevitable death.

The events in this iteration more or less followed the same path as the previous one. Or at least, that's what Subaru intended to do.

With his life ended mysteriously during his sleep, Subaru desperately tried to follow the last iteration's events, while trying to uncover the cause of his death at the same time. Furthermore, he hoped to eventually arrive at the same conclusion, earning a date with Emilia.

Unluckily for him, because of his desperation to replicate the last iteration, a lot of his actions come off as forced and unnatural. Therefore, it's suspicious.

Natsuki Subaru is suspicious.

A suspicious clown.

Both twins, Ram and _ _ _, especially _ _ _, agreed as they secretly observed him from a distant.

Meanwhile, as Emilia was being continuously subjected to the torment of watching Subaru's misfortunes, she felt an unbearable amount of sadness and regrets.

The way he was trying so hard was truly difficult for her to watch. Throughout the whole time they had been together, she had no idea just what he was going through.

To say "ignorance is a bliss" would be a gross understatement.

"Subaru… y-you're working so hard… so hard…"

A set of tears escape her eyes.

"You've suffered so much… you don't deserve this… no one does..."

She tasted the saltiness of her tears when they slid down her mouth.

"This is too cruel… too cruel…"

She wiped them off but more came.

"While you went through so much pain and misery, here I am living in ignorance… unaware of your sufferings…"

"I'm really sorry… for all the pain I caused you… I-I'm so sorry… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"

"This is all my fault."

...

In order to uncover the cause of his death, Subaru stayed awake, waiting for the assailant who must have killed him in his sleep. Confident that he took care of everything to reach this point, he's ready to give retribution against the bastard who screwed with his date with Emilia.

Of course, things won't exactly happen as he hoped.

Because moments later, he started struggling around. Clearly, he was in pain. But, what could possibly be the reason?

Soon, he fell on his knees as he continued struggling.

"S-Subaru?"

No one can see her. No one can her hear. No one can sense her presence.

She's just there.

Watching.

Observing.

But even so, she continued calling out his name in vain.

"Subaru?!"

He stood up from his bed, stumbling all over the place.

Holding his mouth to prevent himself from vomiting, he made it out of his room. It's useless, however, because he ended up throwing up anyway.

"Was it poison from his food? Wait. No. A curse. It must be a curse. For whatever reason, I just know…"

As he continued stumbling around in the darkness, he reached the halls. Then, another pair of footsteps was audible.

The footsteps of a different person.

And along with it…

The sound of chains.

The blue-haired maid, _ _ _, slowly made her way towards the stumbling Subaru.

The intent to kill in her eyes was evident.

"N-no, p-please… d-don't…" Emilia begged.

It was hopeless, but she continued trying anyway.

What was her name again?

"R… R… R…"

Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it.

"R…"

R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _.

"Re…"

Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it. Say it.

R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _. R _ _. _ e _. _ _ m. _ _ _.

A sharp hissing voice urging her to "say it" and scrambled letters overwhelmed her mind. In fact, they were all visualized eerily in her mind…

... because she already knew the girl's name, of course. Subaru had even told her. And even if he hadn't, she should still know her name.

"REM!"

"PLEASE DON'T! STOP IT! REM!"

"STOP!"

No one can see her. No one can her hear. No one can sense her presence.

She's just there.

Watching.

Observing.

Thus, because she wasn't able to do anything, half of Subaru's face and upper body was mutilated by the spiked ball and chains.

Half-dead, Subaru squirmed and crawled around the floor in pain.

"SUBARU!"

Emilia kneeled beside him and attempted to heal him. But of course, it was useless.

Hopeless, she gave up trying to heal him and stood up, glaring at Rem with intensity.

She summoned countless ice shards and viciously sent them flying towards Rem.

Useless, once again.

They just phased through the maid's body like they weren't even there at all.

"REM! PLEASE! STOP!"

Her cries fell on deaf ears.

More ice shards summoned. More useless results.

She knew it's a HELPLESS situation and there's ABSOLUTELY nothing she can do.

Still, there MUST be something she can do to help him.

Whatever it is.

Just something she can do.

She pleaded.

But the cruel gods just laughed at her pleas, ignoring them.

Thus, Subaru died once again.