No POV
-Trade District-
Y/N was drinking some tea, his inner Bri ish-ness showing, he got nothing else to do other than to solve who's behind the time manipulations. Y/N began thinking to himself as it is getting noon and the number of people walking on the streets is getting higher.
'How could this have happened? I certainly know that it's caused by someone, if not, then is this going to be a daily occurrence? Perhaps he or she was doing it on a whim, so complicated. Rubick might have a field day solving this' he thought while drinking tea. A waitress came by his table with a clipboard in her hand.
"Have you decided to take your order, sir?" The waitress said with a kind smile.
"Yeah yeah, could I get these sweet rolls?"
"Right away sir!"
Y/N continued to sip his tea, but a commotion gained his attention.
"Hey, w-wait a minute! You have it all wrong! I'm..." Subaru stopped as he saw everyone around him looked at him strangely. Y/N stood up and approached Subaru casually.
"The fuck happened here, Subaru?" He asked the wide-eyed man.
"You remember me?" He pointed at himself
"What? Of course, I fucking do, how did I know your damn name then?" Y/N sarcastically said
"Can't you just treat me a little bit nicer?" He said as they entered an alley no apparent reason at all. But, it's totally something plot-related.
"That's a no from me" Y/N fixed his tie and cleared his throat "As I said before, what the fuck happened?"
"This may hard to believe this but...I think I can travel back in time. That's just my speculation ok? I might just be dreaming" Subaru said "I have to warn you to stay away from a woman dressed in black"
"Uhh, she doesn't have any two pairs of daggers on her waist, right?"
"She does, why are you asking?" Subaru asked as he kept munching on the chips
"...She's right behind you" Subaru began sweating as his face was filled with fear. He hesitantly turned around to see...no one "Hehehahah, you fool! You fell to the most classic blunder!" Y/N laughed out loud, which made Subaru sigh.
"Don't scare me like that, jeez"
"Wanna go grab lunch? Your treat" Y/N said, completely forgetting about the sweet rolls he ordered. Subaru shook his head, but his stomach rumbled. Y/N let out a small "Heh", Subaru awkwardly laughed as he touched his stomach. as they were about to leave, 3 thugs blocked their way, one large, one small, and one on average height.
"Can you stop already?! No one is this damn persistent!" Subaru yelled angrily
"You think you can mouth off to us?" The Thug asked as he draws his knife.
"Look kid, I'm not in the mood for fighting. So, could you kindly please-" The Thug swung his knife to Y/N, who just slapped the hand away to his left "Wait a minute, Isn't Subaru right beside me?" He looked beside him, just to see the knife embedded into his head.
"Whoops" He said as the world around him was surrounded in darkness. He was back at the place where he met Reinhard again. He sighed and rubbed his forehead "Great, now I've got to find Subaru. If I remember correctly, it would be... that way" He said as he walked in a random direction.
'To your left, dumbass'
'Shut up, I know what I'm doing'
-/ Timeskip in Progress /-
After minutes of finding Subaru, he found him, he was in front of a fruit stand who was staring blankly on the ground. He approached him and was about to tap his shoulder, but the Vendor spoke.
"Well, boy? Do you want this Appa?" He asked, but his sights turned to the man right beside Subaru "You, are you also going to buy some Appas?"
"Nope, I'm fucking broke" Subaru finally came back from his senses and turned to looks at Y/N with confusion.
"What the- when did you get here?"
"Just now" He said. Subaru turned to look at the Appa vendor, who looked annoyed.
"Hey mister...How many times have you seen me?" Subaru asked
"What do you mean? I've only seen you once. So, are you going to buy it or not?"
"Nope! I'm broke beyond compare!" Subaru replied with confidence.
"Then, get the hell outta here! Both of you" Y/N and Subaru walked away and got into a familiar empty alleyway. Y/N leaned on the wall while Subaru sat on the steps. Subaru checked inside his plastic bag, which was the same items from last time.
"Wallet, phone, corn potage snack, cup noodles. My tracksuit and Sneakers are intact too..."
"Now that I took a better look at you. You'd probably be in drip tier"
"Really?" he asked.
"I lied, you're probably going to be at F" a smirk appeared on Y/N's face. Subaru stared at him blankly then sighed.
"...well, there's no doubt about it. I can really go back in time. And, don't think I forgot what you did earlier"
"Well, isn't that cool? Also, it was an accident, jeez" Y/N said
"Nope, I have to die in order to use time travel"
"That sucks. That's an op power with a quite shitty downside" Y/N replied while filing his nails.
"I know, but I'll just have to deal with it and make sure to die as little as possible. But I do come up with a name for it though, I call it, Return By Death. Pretty neat right?"
"How about, Backward Death Time? Sounds pretty cool" Y/N suggested
"Nope, the name sticks"
"Sad. So, are we going to make a plan about dealing with that lady or we just gonna sit here talking?"
"Well, there is only one way to retrieve back the insignia..." Subaru looked at Y/N.
"We going back to the warehouse then?" Subaru shooked his head in reply
"Nope! We have to check where Felt lives first. Then get to the warehouse before Elsa does" Y/N tilted his head in confusion.
"Elsa? Oh, the woman in black"
"Yup, what are we waiting for? Let's go" Subaru walked away as he signaled Y/N to follow,
"That's supposed to be my line" Subaru stood up and walked away, with Y/N following right behind him. But, their way was blocked by the thugs once more "I am so sick of seeing their faces already"
"I know right?" Subaru replied
"What are you babbling about?" The smaller thug asked.
"If you don't wanna get hurt, cough up whatever you've both got!" the thug with the knife asked with hostility.
"Yeah, no" Y/N dashed forward and grabbed the thug with the knife on the face. He proceeded to smash his head unto the wall, embedding him on it. The other two thugs were too shocked to move, Subaru took this chance to 360 kick the small thug, knocking him unto the wall, back first.
The small thug coughed out blood and passed out of shock. The big thug came back from his senses and tried to punch Subaru. Y/N was fast enough to catch the arm and twisted it around.
"Hey, ever experienced having your bones break" The thug didn't respond as he was in too much pain "No? Well, congratulations, you'll experience it today" Y/N punched the elbow, which resulted in a sickening crunch sounded through the alley. Subaru cringed at the sound.
The big thug cried out in pain and dropped to the ground, caressing his broken arm. Y/N got sick of hearing him crying, so he decided to kick his head onto the wall, which worked. "Bitch" Y/N said as the unconscious thug's head began to bleed.
"You were scary for a moment, not gonna lie. You were so cool though! I'm kinda jealous" Subaru complimented
"Heh, this is the power you peasants won't get" Y/N said with pride and confidence
"It seems you took care of them, I was afraid that you were the ones getting beat up" Reinhard said as he arrived on the scene, his hand resting on his sword.
"Umm, who are you?" he asked
"Sorry for not introducing myself, my name is Reinhard Von Astrea, the current sword saint and a knight of Lugnica"
"Knight? You don't look like one"
"I can confirm that he is a knight" Reinhard noticed Y/N.
"It seems we meet again, Y/N"
"You two know each other?" Subaru asked.
"Of course, he's the first guy that I met when I came here" Subaru nodded at the information
"Answering your question earlier, I am off duty today, so that's why I'm not in my uniform. I realized that I don't particularly look intimidating" Reinhard said while kindly smiling.
'His nice guy index is off the charts' Subaru thought.
"Anyways, ummm..." Reinhard didn't finish, letting Subaru introduce himself
"Oh, my name is Natsuki Subaru"
"Subaru...You have quite an unusual hair, apparel, and name. Are you from a different nation? Lugnica is a bit more restive than in peacetime at the moment. If you have any problems, I'd be glad to help"
"Can you come to the loot house?" Subaru quickly said.
"Loot house?"
"N-nevermind...I can't trouble you with that. But, I'd appreciate it if you could a deliver a message from someone"
"I'd be glad to, of course. To whom? And what?"
"Well, I don't know her name, but...Have you seen a girl with white robes and silver hair nearby?"
"White robes and silver hair?" He uttered
"She's also extremely gorgeous!"
"I have a girlfriend. Her name is Siren, and she has blonde hair with a red streak at the side. She carries two pairs of swords around her as well. She's even more gorgeous than the silver-haired girl"
"Hey! You haven't met her yet! And nobody asked!"
"Just stating facts" Y/N shrugged.
"Ahem" Both of them turned their attention back at Reinhard "I haven't seen her"
"If you do meet her then, please tell her to stay away from the loot house, no matter what. I'll find whatever she wants and bring it back to her"
"Very well, I shall relay your messages if I do see them"
"Thanks! I'll repay you someday!"
"Thanks" Y/N said as he and Subaru leave Reinhard with the rest of the unconscious thugs.
"All right, take care!" After they went their way to the slums, Subaru asked a man where Felt lives, with Y/N looking around in boredom.
"Felt's den? Yeah, just go two streets down that way" The man answered
"Thanks, I appreciate it, bro"
"Don't mention it, bro. Live strong"
"Come on, Y/N, let's go" Subaru ordered Y/N , who managed to sleep while standing up. Y/N yawned and rubbed his eyes.
"Yes, master" He sarcastically said and followed Subaru
"The question is whether Felt will return there, what do you think?"
"Why would she go to her house and not straight to the loot house?" Y/N asked
"I don't know, I just have a feeling that she would"
"If she isn't there, then I'll smack you so hard that you'll go flying" Subaru gulped and nodded.
"But, there is- whoa" Subaru grunted as he bumped someone.
"Oh dear!" A woman said in surprise "I'm sorry, are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I may not look like it, but toughness is one thing...I have" Subaru stopped as he fully saw the woman. The one who killed him multiple times.
"What's wrong? You don't have to be so scared, I won't do anything to you"
"I-I'm not scared. What gave you that idea?"
"Your scent. When people are scared, I can smell their fear. Right now, you're frightened. You're also angry, aren't you? Towards me" Subaru's heartbeat began to quicken. Y/N stepped forward and hid Subaru behind him
"Hey, are you Elsa?"
"Hmm? Who's asking?"
"Name's Y/N Adler, an advocate of true gender equality"
'Really?' Alternate asked, raising her eyebrows, if she had one. Y/N ignored alternate, and Alternate began to sulk
"Greetings, Y/N, my name is Elsa Granhiert"
"Okay, Elsa, if you would excuse us, we would be on our way" Y/N dragged Subaru "Excuse me, fuckin weirdo" Y/N whispered the last part. Elsa looked at the walking men.
"Y/N Adler, huh. You are very amusing" Elsa giggled and walked away.
After the interesting interaction between Elsa and Y/N, they went to Felt's den, well...It doesn't look like a suitable place to live, I mean it looks like some wild boar trashed the place.
"Someone actually lives here? I thought it's a dumpsite"
'It's not a dumpsite, it's a fucking landfill' Alternate said.
'That's over-exaggerated, but I like it'
"Well, I don't smell blood, but it does smell horrible" Subaru said, stating the obvious
"Welp, seems like she's not here, time to fucking clap them cheeks"
"W-Wait!" Subaru said as he held his hands up towards Y/N "Umm, peace?"
"Hey! What do you think you're doing? Peeking at someone else's house... Sorry, but there's nothing worth stealing there. So beat it!" Felt said as she arrived behind them, she drew her knife and readied to strike
"No, wait-" Subaru got interrupted by Y/N as he shut his mouth with his hand
"I steal whoever I want, including poor people. Normally I steal their houses too, but yours is shit and it doesn't fit my standards" Y/N insulted her, if that even is an insult
"Shut up!" She rushes in and tried to slash Y/N with a knife, but used a table to block it. As Felt tried to unstuck the embedded knife, Y/N tried to kick her face, but Subaru got in the way and blocked the kick. Which was very surprising for Subaru to do.
"Stop it, Y/N, seriously!" Subaru looked at Felt, who was still trying her best to unstuck the knife "Please hear me out! We just came to see you on an important business!"
"Huh?! You should've said that earlier!" Felt yelled as she finally got her Knife back
"But you were the one who attacked first!" Subaru got up and dusted himself "There's one thing that I want, here and now. I want to buy the insignia you stole!"
"You aren't associated with my client. Are you a business rival?" Felt asked
"Call her a rival, or call her the one who killed my parents...Or even the one who killed me!" Subaru said
"Hold up, your parents are dead?" Y/N asked obliviously. Subaru nudged him with his elbow, which hit his stomach, Y/N grunted. Subaru looked at Felt nervously.
"You make no sense. Well, I'm only interested in selling to whoever pays the most"
"I have something worth more than twenty holy coins. It's what everyone wants these days, it's called a metia!" Subaru used his phone to take a picture of Felt "It can capture and stop a moment in time! What do you think?" He asked as he showed a picture of Felt from his phone.
"You don't seem to be lying. But that's supposed to be me? I'm way prettier" Felt said
"Truth hurts" Y/N whispered to Subaru, both of them giggled quietly.
"It is very unusual, I'll give you that. But twenty holy coins? Not likely. I'm not so stupid as to believe, without question, everything a prospective buyer says"
"Well, of course not" Subaru said
"I did not understand what you just said" Y/N also said as he scratched his head.
"Whatever. At the far edge of the slums is a loot house. The fair thing is to have this codger who lives there, old man Rom, to appraise it"
"So it still comes to that...Okay, I got it. Let's go. Right now...Let's move, on the double!" He said as he dragged Y/N and Felt along with him.
"I'm not a goddamn slow ass man, I can walk myself!" Subaru stopped dragging Y/N and turned to face him.
"Sorry" Subaru apologized sheepishly and continued moving.
"Why are you in such a hurry? And you're full of sweat too. Live strong"
"I heard everyone in the slums say that. That some sort of slogan?"
"Yeah, I'm also curious about it" Subaru said
"Don't lump me with those guys! They're all talk. They aren't strong at all. They're just a bunch of stingy losers in life"
Y/N: "Listen here, you little shit, some poor people in life aren't losers at all . They might have surrendered because they couldn't take up the challenge in their lives. But all of them tried to fight in life but failed due to the lack of knowledge, or skills, whatever. Take my friend for example, he was all alone, no friends, no parents, and all of the people around him hated him, but now he managed to become the leader of their village, and that's because he never surrendered in life" Felt and Subaru shed a tear.
"That was...beautiful" Subaru said as he wiped his eye
"Unless they like butts over boobs, then they're a bunch of losers" Y/N continued
"And the moment has passed" Subaru said
"I'm...Sorry. But I have no intention of living my life in these back alleys" Felt said.
"Do you think twenty holy coins will make your dreams come true?" Asked Subaru
"It's true it's a huge leap towards my goal. Even if I were alone, it isn't as if I couldn't get by with effort"
"If you were alone?" He asked, remembering how close they were with old man Rom back at the loot house at the last loop.
"Nevermind..." Subaru smirked at her "What are you smirking about? You really piss me off!"
"Don't worry about it" He said as he head pats Felt, Y/N saw this chance and took it to piss her off.
"Hey what are you doing?! Hey! Stop it!" Felt angrily said while blushing.
"Aww, is the tsundere loli angry? Do you want your daily milk?" Y/N mockingly said as he also gave Felt a head pat. If taken out of context, that sentence would be weird as fuck.
"You! Shut up! I'll bash you with this rock! And you stop too! Or I'll bite you!"
"Aww, don't cry, little girl, I promise I'll get you an ice cream whenn we get back" Y/N said as he pulled Felt's cheeks, stretching it and turning it red.
Subaru: 'It isn't only for her. I'll change what fate waits ahead of me. In order to do that...' Subaru's thought didn't finish as Felt threw a rock to Kian, who just caught it with ease, Felt also bit Subaru, who cried out in pain. After minutes of walking towards the loot house, they finally arrived and is with Rom appraising the phone.
"So this is a metia, I've never seen one before" Rom said
"Right? It's also delicate so handle it with care. Think along the lines of "If you break it, you die" like, no do-overs" Subaru said
"Yeah, I'm definitely impressed. If I were to sell this, I'd take no less than fifteen...No, twenty holy coins"
"Alright, now this is all finished, I'm going to look somewhere to lodge in" Y/N said as he walked away, none of them noticing that he secretly hid a bottle of booze unto his suit.
"All right! Let's go for drinks and celebrate!" Subaru said as he and Y/N walked away.
"Hold it! Why are you such in a hurry?" Felt yelled, making the duo stop and look at her
"Life doesn't last forever-"
"Yeah yeah, I don't care all about that. Why do you even want the insignia anyway? This is worth a lot than it looks. That's why everyone wants it. In other words, this world sells for more than a metia-" Felt didn't finish as Subaru and Y/N interrupted at the same time.
"Listen here, kid. I am tired of this shit and I want to sleep"
"That's a dangerous way to think, Felt! He already appraised it at over twenty holy coins! Just sell it for that, don't ask for anymore! The woman won't pay you anymore higher than that!"
'Why the fuck does everyone ignore me once in a while?' Y/N thought
'Maybe because you're an annoying ass?' Alternate sassily said.
"How do you know that? You just admitted that you're with them" Felt said, and Subaru started to lose his composure.
"I'll sleep on this floor if you don't mind" Y/N landed on the floor with a thud, face first.
"I don't have any more time...Please!" Subaru begged
"Begging won't help. I acknowledge you as a negotiating party. But not hearing what my client says wouldn't be fair"
"Felt..." Subaru uttered as someone knocks on the door.
"Who's that?" Rom asked
"It might be for me, it's a little bit early though" Subaru started to feel nervous, thinking that the one knocking behind the door might be Elsa.
"Wait! Don't open it! We're going to get killed!" Subaru said, but Felt still opened the door.
"I won't get killed, and that's a fact" Y/N said in a muffled voice.
"Kill you? I wouldn't do something so terrifying" The woman, who entered the loot house that is definitely not Elsa, said. Y/N looked towards the woman. It was the same woman Subaru described, it was Satella.
"...Siren's still way prettier, Subaru"
"Now's not the time!"
Y/N shrugged, he felt like he was forgetting something...
-/ The Capital, Cafe /-
"Alright sir, here are your sweet rolls! Sorry for the wait!" The waitress asked, but she didn't find him and she looked around "Sir?"
A hooded man with a wooden staff came inside and sat down on one of the empty tables. He looked at the waitress, who still had the ordered sweet rolls on the tray "Hey! Mind if I take that? I'll pay for it"
"Ah, well, what if the one who ordered came back? He'll be surely angry"
"And how long was he gone?"
"Umm, I think 4 hours?"
"Then give it to me"
"Ah, fine" she said as he placed the tray on his table.
"Thanks" The hooded man handed her silver coins "Keep the change" The waitress nodded with a smile. The man then proceeded to munch on the sweet rolls.
Phew, that took a lot of me. Now if you will excuse me, I shall finish my homework.