The Fruit of Idiotic Obstinacy

Five Months and Fourteen Days since the Last Death (Nine Deaths)

"... Under attack, you say?" Subaru asked, dumbfounded. Admittedly, he had been getting plenty of signs lately to presume that a fatal event was looming, even so, he had never thought it would happen so promptly. He had never thought so, or he had merely shied away from the possibility that tragedy was so close to him, lurking in the background.

"Yessir! As I told ya, it's the Witch Cult!" Replied the giant warrior with tiger-like features, reasserting the fears Subaru was in denial about.

"T-The Witch Cult?!" Otto exclaimed, clearly aghast.

Both he and Leith had been thrown into a deep state of shock by the unpleasant surprise, yet Otto had been the first to bounce back from it. With trembling eyes, Otto observed the mercenary who had abruptly rushed into the room. Utada, who had just answered that same question in the affirmative, merely nodded ominously. There was no way to evade the truth, no matter how much the three colleagues clung to the hope that it was all naught but a terrible misunderstanding, a cruel joke.

"Otto... Leith..." Subaru whispered, after endless seconds of strained silence. Otto turned to him, expectantly; perhaps Subaru would reveal that it was really all a sick joke, and admit that he had coerced his escort into partaking in it. Otto was aware that his thoughts were meaningless, after all, Subaru had never taken their pranks and horseplay that far; still, he persisted in clinging to that foolish hope, that was the pathetic nature of the human being, after all. "We've to get away from here." However, it was the words spoken by Subaru that were responsible for delivering the coup de grace to his hopes.

"What...?" Was as much as Otto managed to answer; his throat was completely parched, to the point where it felt as if he had swallowed buckets of sand, and it was as hard to breathe as it was hard to utter a word.

"We've to escape, if we stay here, we will die." Replied Subaru, who, from the way he spoke, was evidently starting to finally pull himself together. Fear was still rooted in his heart, but the experience he had gained from his previous deaths was enough to keep him from ending up losing his mind in the face of a despairing occurrence like such an event.

I can't afford to stay here, I can't afford to stay here; Subaru repeated in his head over and over again. Ever since Halibel had announced that he would need his help, Subaru had refrained from looking at the reality that approached him, creeping along the rivers of fate. He needed to do so, he needed to believe that he would not have to go through another one of those terrible cycles of death. That was why he had stubbornly insisted on desisting from the help of his greatest ally.

To have accepted Halibel's assistance would have meant accepting that what was unfolding would undoubtedly happen. And his emotional stability hinged on it not turning out that way. However, now that peril was finally knocking at his door, he had no choice but to accept reality and cope with it.

After all, he still had something left, and that was his own life; he would have to figure out a way to survive that event of death. It would be of no use for him to keep escaping from reality; to carry on living, as he had promised Anastasia, was all he had left, and the experience he had acquired in similar circumstances would be his foundation to achieve it.

But... Where would he start? What was the first thing he would have to do? Subaru knew that fleeing Leith's house was only the first step, however, once he set foot on the street, he would be exposing himself to the danger heralded by his bodyguard. In the streets of the capital he was hovering around death, his job would be to circumvent it and find a way to get out alive from the catastrophe that was taking place at that very moment, in which his mind was striving to draw a plan of action based on all the information he had at hand.

The thing is, he barely had any information, if he wanted more, he would have to die and return, and that was not an option for Subaru; at least not an option he would voluntarily opt for... Even so, with what he had at hand, it was not enough to devise any kind of plan. So what would be his first action? Subaru instinctively looked towards the mercenary who was serving as his escort; to stray from him would be his doom, so the first requirement for his survival would be to keep him close to him. "What's your plan, Subaru-sama?" At the prolonged silence of his superior, Utada, looking slightly uneasy, questioned Subaru as to what he had in mind.

"My... plan?" Subaru queried, dismayed. He had been expecting that, given the situation, Utada would offer him a plan of action to follow during an emergency situation like that, not that Utada would ask about a plan from him. Subaru was clearly less aware of what was going on than he was, at any rate.

"That's right! Ya always tend to know how to deal with these sorts of circumstances better than anyone else, Subaru-sama. It's 'cause of your blessin', isn't it? Yer blessin' will help us get safely to where Anastasia-sama and the captain are." Safely? Subaru mentally asked himself. How many expectations did Anastasia's followers have laid upon him? What made him believe that Subaru had the answer?

Return by Death, his blessing and curse was to blame for the members of Anastasia Hoshin's camp deeming him a trustworthy person. Someone weak in body, mind and heart like him had managed to fool them into believing he was of any value, all thanks to the side effect of his ability and the knowledge of his home world.

Had it not been for the fact that upon returning from death he retained his memories of the events prior to dying, Subaru would never have been able to avoid the worst outcome of each of the events of death he came to experience. If he died, he could go back and use the knowledge he had acquired to try to avoid any catastrophic outcome that would have led to his demise. That is exactly why Utada considered him to be reliable in such a scenario.

But Utada was committing a major misconception. He believed that Subaru's ability to deal with critical situations and his correct judgment during catastrophes were the product of a Divine Protection that Subaru had concocted to cloak his true "blessing". If his life was in danger, Subaru would receive a vision of the future; so Utada believed. And Subaru would have claimed exactly this, had he used Return by Death; however, he had not yet done so, and was counting on not doing so as well.

Subaru was at a loss as to how to steer through the stormy waters ahead of them; Subaru knew as much as everyone else present in that room. "Utada..." Subaru uttered, dejectedly. "My blessing has not been activated..." He could not excuse himself with the truth, so he found it necessary to repurpose the artifice with which he had concealed his false blessing.

"In that case, there shouldn't be any problem." Utada stated, satisfied, thus confusing Subaru, who stared at him with a frown.

"What do ya mean, Utada?" He questioned him.

"Your blessin', Subaru-sama. It only triggers when your life is in danger, doesn't it? In that case, as long as it doesn't activate, it means ya'll make it out alive. My job is to protect ya and get ya to the boss alive, so the fact that your blessin' didn't trigger is excellent news. Of course, that's no reason to be overconfident, after all, nothin' assures that the rest of us will make it out alive. For the same reason, we'll be proceedin' with caution; and should ya receive a vision of the future, don't hesitate to tell me."

You're wrong, Utada! Subaru was tempted to shout. His artifice had failed him, his deception had backfired. As long as Utada didn't know the truth, he would believe that Subaru was out of danger; which couldn't be further from the truth. The young man could feel it in his skin, in his flesh, in his bones; his life was on the edge of the abyss, and one wrong step would lead him back to the shadow of death.

"I just couldn't bear it…" He muttered, gripping his right forearm tightly. Was he to continue atoning for his sins? Hadn't fate grown tired of toying with him, with his pathetic life? Utada seemed to have heard him, but before he had a chance to inquire about it, Otto joined the conversation.

"Wait, wait, wait. What are you two talking about? I don't get any of what's going on..." Otto, in both dismay and nervousness, watched Subaru as well as Utada, begging with his gaze for a prompt answer that would clear his doubts.

"Otto... I've already told you about it, haven't I? My Divine Protection... The one that allowed me to come out alive from all the hellish situations I was involved in months ago." Subaru said, looking away from Utada and focusing back on his companion. Otto immediately nodded, signifying that he was aware of it all. "That's what Utada is referring to. As I recall, I was never too straightforward about it, so I'll cut to the chase; my blessing is not like yours, that once you learned to control it well enough, you'd decide when and where to trigger it. Only when my life is threatened, only when I'm close to meeting my death, is my Divine Protection activated."

"And it hasn't been activated..." Otto muttered, a glimmer of understanding appearing in his pupils. Once he understood what Utada and Subaru were speaking of, Otto was finally able to begin to regain control of his emotions, ultimately returning to being the kind, tolerant, and insightful young man he normally was. "In that case... What's the plan, Subaru? If you say we run away, then maybe I can be of help, it's the one thing I consider myself truly excelling at." Otto stated, smiling nervously.

Otto had finally regained his composure, however, this had not minimally solved the problem Subaru was currently dealing with; in fact, it had only exacerbated it. Now not only his escort, Utada, but also his merchant companion, Otto, were waiting for him to point the way forward. Something the current Subaru was incapable of doing.

"Utada, the truth is, without my blessing, I'm no better at dealing with crisis situations than your average civilian, sorry." He hated having to admit his weakness, hated having to admit that, no matter when he had tried his best, he wasn't even useful for what others were counting on him for. He hated depending on others, but he had no choice but to do so; it was either that, or dive back into the murky waters of death. "I think between the four of us..." Subaru was about to propose a way to resolve the predicament they were at, when he finally realized that one of those present had yet to make his presence known.

Not only Subaru, but also the rest of his companions turned to look at the young craftsman who had not uttered a single word since Utada conveyed the terrible news. Leith was transfixed, with an expression of horror on his face, as if a ghostly being had appeared before him and stripped him of his soul. His skin, pale as a corpse, was drenched with sweat and tears streaming down its surface.

Shocked by the disheartening sight of his companion, Subaru set out to speak to him, with the idea in mind to bestow words of encouragement. However, he found it necessary to stop himself before he even began to speak, a dry breath was all that left his mouth. What words of encouragement could he give to his companion, if he himself felt his insides beginning to crumble from the terror of the very idea of dealing with the coming events?

Death was drawing near, of that there was no doubt, so with what lies could he cajole Leith to follow him down the thorny path of uncertainty? The future was unknown... No, that was not quite true; indeed, the future was shrouded in a dense fog, but what it concealed was nothing but a thousand agonizing deaths. Which of all those deaths would be the destination to which that path would lead to...?

This is no time to be thinking in such a pessimistic way! Subaru mentally reprimanded himself. His broken heart and fragmented spirit could only glimpse outcomes of death, after all, all signs pointed to exactly this very thing; however, Subaru was not willing to die.

He feared the uncertain future that loomed over him, but he feared death even more. Besides, he had promised to fight, he had pledged not to give up in the face of such discouraging scenarios. He had to keep going, he had to do everything possible to reach his happy ending without succumbing on the way, even if he had to stain his hands even more with blood, and no matter how impossible it seemed to reach the goal. With that in mind, Subaru raised his head and looked at the disheartened Leith.

"Leith!" He exclaimed, staring into those eyes clouded with hopelessness. "We've got to get the hell out of here! This is no time to lose heart in defeat, we have to move on. We've been fighting for our futures since we met, and this is no time to stop doing so. Stand up, Leith! Together, Utada, Otto, you and I will make it out of this mess! Don't make the same mistake I did, don't let fear consume you..."

Once he had finished his speech, Subaru let the silence flow, unsure if his words would have had the desired effect. After all, it was a generic speech said under pretenses, full of sweet nothings; lip service. Not a single word had come completely from his heart; he had expressed what he wished to express, but he had not expressed what he really felt deep inside. An illusion... Only the last sentence possessed enough weight, enough meaning, enough truth. And yet it was very hypocritical of him to ask for that which he himself was incapable of fulfilling.

Following a moment of tense anticipation, Leith's moistened eyes finally moved. His dilated pupils settled on the trio of men standing in conversation beside the table in the middle of the room. His lips chapped with dryness, Leith finally responded to Subaru's words. "M-My... family..."

"Huh?" After voicing confusedly, Subaru watched Leith silently. A fraction of a second it took his brain to process the two words his colleague had uttered. A considerably slow fraction, at least compared to that of his other companion, Otto, on whom an expression of agony was soon etched, which Subaru soon mimicked. Leith, his cherished companion, who could even be considered a friend, a confidant... was the only one whose family lived in the capital.

In the lower part of Lugunica, near the border between the slums and the commercial zone, was the birthplace of Leith Hendar. There lived his two brothers and his sister, the youngest, a girl of just over ten years of age. His three siblings lived with their parents, a veteran craftsman, from whom Leith had learned all about the trade, and a housewife. Leith rarely spoke of his family.

Leith's family was his everything, his reason for moving forward, his reason for pursuing his dream. Leith was the eldest of four siblings, and had lived for years in abject poverty. Had it not been for the expansion of the capital's commercial area, brought about by the former head of the Juukulius family, Leith would never have known any other life than that of the slums.

Through his father's craft, Leith and his family had finally managed to climb slightly up the social ladder. For a nobleman, it would make no difference, however, for them it meant the difference between struggling each day to fill their stomachs with food, to having three meals a day and a comfortable bed to sleep in at the end of a grueling twelve-hour workday.

Leith seldom spoke of his family, probably because he never felt worthy to do so. He, the son who had left home with the promise of providing a better life for his parents and siblings, only to find himself faced with the harsh reality. One life would not be enough to achieve such a goal; as a simple craftsman, it would never be enough to further improve his family's financial situation.

He had therefore relinquished that cherished dream and had contented himself with amassing enough money so that his children, and his children's children, would not suffer a life of misery and poverty as he had done in his boyhood. Leith considered that he had not done enough for his family, he considered that he had deserted them, so he refrained from defiling their names with his unfaithful lips; even though he had finally achieved the success he thought impossible, and had been sending a significant percentage of his income from the Reinvention Project to his parents.

Leith seldom mentioned his family, but that did not mean he did not love them. Leith adored his family. And now, his family stood in the midst of a city besieged by the most feared group of evildoers in the world. His family was in grave peril, and Leith, pale and trembling, implored his companions, his friends, with a tearful look on his face.

What is Leith expecting us to do? Subaru wondered in frustration. They did not even have any idea where to escape to. They were not even confident of their own survival. What could they do for him? They were his companions, right, but it was entirely out of their reach to do anything for his family. Subaru wanted to assure him that they would save them. But how could he utter such a lie? Could they even survive themselves?

"Utada?" Subaru asked, shifting his gaze to his bodyguard; thus transferring the responsibility of deciding to him. Utada, which way shall we head? That was what his gaze conveyed. The warrior with keen senses did not take long to comprehend the cowardly intentions of his senior.

"I was ordered to take ya to Anastasia-sama in case a situation like this arises, sir. However, to comply with those orders may not be the best course of action, due to the city's circumstances. For that very reason, I consider that ya, by yer own discretion, should be the one to dictate what we shall do." Utada replied soberly, causing Subaru to curse inwardly.

Utada was under orders that would expose Subaru to danger, so he had refrained from making a hasty decision. He would let Subaru decide for himself, so as not to bear the responsibility for the outcome. Was the warrior thinking that way? Or was he just blindly trusting Subaru's faux perspicacity?

Subaru, deeming that the answer to the previous queries lacked in value at that moment, looked steadfastly at Utada and questioned him. "When you came in to warn us of the siege, what was the state of the city, which areas were under attack?"

"It appeared to me that the commercial area and the lower part of the high-class district, Subaru-sama. I heard sounds of fightin' in the market located a few blocks from here, and these were preceded by a plume of smoke; that's how I became aware that the city was under attack."

"In that case, we definitely don't have a lot of time." Subaru muttered, lowering his gaze. He was about to continue with the interrogation, when Otto beat him to it.

"Uhmm... Utada-san... How come you know that the ones behind the siege are the Witch Cult? Couldn't it be riots caused by radicals? With a meeting of the Royal Selection candidates currently taking place, it honestly wouldn't surprise me..."

"Due to their smell." Utada replied, pointing to his nose. "Those closest to the witch possess a rather peculiar scent, I know 'cause my village was attacked by them when I was just a cub. I wouldn't mistake the smell of those swine anywhere. And it's not just any scent, it's a dense, evil, extremely disgustin' and shudderin' one... I'm certain that more than one Archbishop of Sin is in the capital."

Upon Utada's response, Leith's expression of horror became considerably more conspicuous, his pupils, fully dilated, dropped to the floor while with his hand he halted the advance of the vomit that threatened to spill from his throat. Otto's skin paled three shades further, yet the merchant managed to maintain his composure.

Subaru, feeling his heart beating at heart-attack speeds, looked at Utada urgently. "We must go to Anastasia's side. There's a chance that at the castle they don't yet know about the attackers being the Witch Cult, let alone about the involvement of several Archbishops of Sin, so it's our duty to set out there. Besides, with the meeting of candidates taking place, it is without a doubt the safest place in the kingdom; and at the same time, the most dangerous. It is quite possible that it is their target."

"Subaru... Could we take a little detour and stop by my family?" Once Subaru concluded the statement of his conclusion, Leith was the one who, with a pleading look on his face, requested Subaru to make a stop at the house where he was born. Subaru was tempted to refuse, but, remembering all that Leith had done for him, he was unable to.

"Alright... We'll do that." Subaru stated, earning a hopeful smile from Leith. Otto was not devoid of a reaction; nodding in satisfaction, Otto silently thanked Subaru for the kind gesture. Sighing uneasily, Subaru continued. "We'll go to the castle; as we head there, we'll avoid the areas under conflict as much as possible and make a stopover at Leith's parents' house. Utada, you aren't particularly familiar with the capital, so stay in the rear and make sure we are not attacked. Leith, you'll be in charge of guiding us to your parents' house..."

Emilia and her camp, Crusch Karsten and her camp, two candidates for the throne of Lugunica, two people of great prominence in the kingdom; Subaru had toyed with their fates. For better or worse, Subaru had altered the lives of both women through the use of his unnatural ability. How different would their lives have been if Subaru had never meddled? Would Emilia have died? Would Crusch have lived?

How much would the course of fate have changed if he had never interfered with their lives? Emilia might have died at the hands of the Bowel Hunter, even before her candidacy was revealed. Crusch might never have partaken in the hunt for the White Whale. How much would their providences have been altered if he had interfered further in their lives? Emilia might never have had to endure all those events of death that withered her spirit. Crusch might have been saved, along with all the warriors under her command.

So many lives hung in his hands, so many lives ended up leaking from between his fingers. Subaru may have done it unconsciously, but that did not change the fact that he had become the director of the orchestra in the concert of fate of hundreds of people. On his decisions, the futures of as many as his eyes could observe depended. Without wanting to, Subaru had toyed with all those lives...

It is not my responsibility, it is not my responsibility; he had repeated to himself incessantly. Why should he save Crusch Karsten and all of her underlings? Why should Emilia's future concern him? It was a selfish thought, uttered by a frightened and mentally exhausted young man. In his hands danced the destinies of both women, and when he had become aware of it, he had preferred to turn a blind eye.

Yet, after all that had happened with Emilia, he felt once again indebted. He had turned his back on the girl who reached out to him, and now that her present was stained by the blood shed by her allies, the guilt weighed on him as if every drop of it were made of steel. Rivers of blood ran down the river-basin of his shame. Subaru felt indebted, he felt guilty, he felt responsible.

It was not his responsibility, but his actions, and his inaction, had greatly impacted the lives of those who had been associated with him. With the excuse that it was for the benefit of his boss, Subaru had ignored Crusch Karsten's vanishing; it was too late for her. Nevertheless, Emilia was still alive, her candidacy was still standing.

This is my chance to atone for my sins, thought Subaru, as he ran through the devastated streets of Lugunica. His forearms ached acutely, nausea made every step a living hell and his head throbbed as if it was about to explode, yet Subaru kept on going. He did not feel prepared to deal with that which lay at the end of the road he was traveling, but it was too late to hesitate any longer. It was too late for fear and trauma to stop him.

"This way, to the right!" Leith exclaimed, gesturing to a junction stained by the blood of the victims stampeding the streets. Silently and without so much as a sign that they had heard him, the three remaining men followed Leith in sepulchral muteness. Since leaving Leith's house, not a single word had been uttered, and this was not merely out of fear that they might be located; the sight before their eyes was so grisly that it had robbed them of words.

The gazes of everyone present were held high, their pupils not reflecting the catastrophic sight resulting from the Witch Cult's attack. With a blank look and an anguished expression, Leith tried his best to ignore the obvious signs of failure around him. Otto knew that they were searching for a survivor among thousands of corpses, and that the logical thing to do would be to turn around and escape in the direction of the castle, but he simply could not do that to his friend.

Utada cast an inquisitive glance at Subaru. If the young man he was escorting did not say otherwise, he would continue with this farce. Utada knew it was too late, everyone in that area was already dead, proof of that was the picture of death that had been painted on the streets of the capital and the absence of its creators. A single glance would suffice; his job was not to take care of either the merchant or the craftsman, both were expendable. However, that glance did not come. Stepping over the severed skull of an old man, the warrior grunted as he wandered into the streets of the commercial district.

Subaru was not observing the massacre in front of him. Children sliced up, their clothes reduced to piles of thread. Men with their throats slit, daggers stuck in their eyes, resembling sharp glasses. Women flayed, their wombs stuffed with steel, mimicking a disturbing pregnancy of violence. Elders beaten until their flesh was turned into something you might find in the offal of a butcher shop...

Rivers of blood ran under their feet, intestines hung in the doorway of every house served as gruesome decorations. While dishes of eyes, ears and noses at every food stall promised a cannibal feast. Sliced legs, hands and torsos, smoothed and eased each step, as they walked the streets that were once made of stone. Flesh and blood were all his eyes could muster to see in that world of violence, yet Subaru was unable to genuinely see it.

After all, doing something for Emilia because of guilt was still secondary in his mind. Subaru had his priorities straight... He had not interfered in her life after he had failed to keep his promise, and Emilia's life had taken a thorny course, in which great horrors paved its way to the present day. He had done nothing after learning what had happened to Crusch Karsten, and she had been forgotten by history, leaving behind an irreversible calamity.

He could not allow that to befall Anastasia Hoshin. His boss had to live to witness the dawn of a new day. Subaru would not allow Anastasia to die suffering as she had in Priestella. She was still incomplete... The girl who wanted it all, still did not have it all. If something happened, and he was not near her to reverse it, it would be the end of her road to the happy ending she so longed for.

He did not wish to die, but for Anastasia he would make an exception. He hated death, but for her he would embrace it. He was terrified of the blackness of death, but for Anastasia Hoshin would immerse himself in it. For her he would stain himself with blood as much as necessary. Anastasia Hoshin was a key part of his plans, he needed her to move forward. He would endure stark massacres like the one in front of him, if it meant achieving his goal. His arms were already scarred by his sins; he could not pretend that his path would not be one corrupted by blood.

Report to Anastasia and the rest of the candidates? Get to a safe place? They were nothing but excuses, secondary aspects. His real reason for arriving at the castle was to prevent the loss of his boss, his partner, his friend; in his hands danced the fate of Anastasia Hoshin. And unlike Emilia and Crusch Karsten, Subaru did consider himself responsible for keeping the beautiful merchant lady of Kararagi alive; after all, he had promised it, and he would never breach a promise again... All the sacrifices he had made along the way, were for his goals, and hers.

"Here!" Leith exclaimed, pointing to a wooden house.

It was then that Subaru finally snapped out of the trance he was in. That was the first stopover, and the last. Thereafter, he would have repaid Leith's favor, and he would have nothing more to do over there. His pupils then dilated, taking in genuinely for the first time the spectacle of blood and flesh surrounding him. The house Leith was pointing to, his gaze devoid of sanity, was partially collapsed; a huge hand-shaped hole marked the beginning of the end of what had once been the home of his fellow craftsman's family.

"Leith..." Otto mumbled, struggling to hide the disgust and horror welling up inside of him. Both Otto and Subaru, were barely holding back the urge to throw up, as reddish organs decorated the walls of the partially demolished wooden house. Five pairs of eyes served as decoration on its door, five pairs of eyes that silently greeted anyone who approached the porch of the house.

"I'm going in." Leith announced, and then immediately did as he had said. Silently, the three remaining men waited outside the viscerally decorated house, none showing any signs of intending to move, until a piercing scream coming from the wreckage Leith had just entered reached their ears.

The first to enter was Otto, who soon returned with a hand over his mouth, nonetheless failing to contain the streams of sour vomit that seeped from between his fingers. Subaru slowly relieved his fellow merchant and walked into the place, followed closely by Utada. The picture that had been painted inside the wooden house far surpassed the hellish sketches that could be seen on the street.

Four bodies, all contorted in the most unnatural positions, surrounded a fifth body smaller than the others. All had been skinned, all had been stripped of their eyes, and all were pointing to the central fifth body. The small body of the girl, the tiny body of Leith Hendar's younger sister, was the "main course." Inside her eye sockets all her teeth had been embedded, in her mouth the sex organs of the male members of the family had been forcibly inserted. The corpse had been decapitated, and its head rested on what had been the womb of the girl, whose limbs had been torn off and inserted into her vaginal cavity. The fingers and toes of the girl's limbs were visible protruding from her sliced belly, and served as a pedestal for her severed head.

"Utada..." Subaru managed to voice, between retches. "We must head off to the castle..." He got to say, before succumbing to the urge to expel all the contents of his stomach. "… R-Right… f-fucking now!" Forcing himself to stand, Subaru looked at Utada, and then at the bloody horizon visible thanks to the absence of much of the wooden walls and roof. In the distance, the castle came into view, and a hell on earth was what they needed to cross to get there. Death had finally found him...

Okay, I hope that last scene wasn't too disturbing hehehe. Hi! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, the official beginning of the suffering. From here on I can assure that Subaru won't have a break at all, and pretty much like Tappei, this will be the end of the epilogue of my story; I hope what's to come will be to your liking! Anyway, thanks for the constant support, I may not be at Tappei's level, but I do love Re: Zero, so I tried hard to honor the story, so I can't thank you enough for the support you've given to my fic. Anyway, thanks again, Geisterivain out!