Lies Unveiled/Truths Defiled

One Hour and Five Minutes since the Last Death (Fifteen Deaths)

While assisting the mercenary captain during the emergency meeting held in the hall of Anastasia's mansion, Subaru did not cease fiddling with his weapon. He was fully aware that his reinvention of a firearm would never be enough to counter the overwhelming magical powers and hostile forces of that world, and yet, that weapon created from his memories stirred in him a slight sense of security.

Could he feel the same if a sword of steel lay in his hands? Or would a Katana be able to elicit a similar sensation in him? Subaru, in his world, had trained in kendo for a period of time. The skills and knowledge he had acquired had barely been enough to wield a sword without humiliating himself. However, Subaru trained in the art of the sword alongside Julius for several months, and thanks to that his skill had improved considerably.

Subaru considered that if he measured himself against his former fellow kendo trainees, he would undoubtedly defeat them with extreme ease. He could not claim that he would be able to defeat his sensei, nonetheless, he was confident that he would not put up a bad fight. Even so, if at that instant the weapon of his own making were to be taken from him and replaced with a sword, all sense of security would vanish from his body.

Subaru genuinely believed that his months of training with the sword had been a complete waste of time. And this was due to the magnitude of the challenges that lay before him. For no matter how hard he tried to train his body and skills, the massive obstacle that loomed ahead of him would remain insurmountable.

Subaru hailed from a world, from a country that was relatively peaceful, where war was only heard about in history classes or on international news broadcasts. Having been born into a family that was well off in all respects, both economically and socially, Subaru had never found it imperative to face dangers that threatened his pathetic life. He had even indulged himself in the egotistical luxury of dropping out of school, thus becoming a hikikomori NEET.

Subaru had lived his pathetic life slothfully and listlessly, regretting not being the person he wished to be, depressed by his circumstances and constantly shirking his responsibilities. His social life had fallen apart, and he had spent the last few years in his world wallowing in his own misery. If Subaru could go back, the first thing he would do would be to yell at himself, telling himself to start doing something to change what he disliked about himself.

The implication of all this is that Subaru, although he had not completely neglected his physique, was not really prepared to lead a stable life in such a hostile world as the one he was currently living in. People born in countries at war would undoubtedly have spirits and temperaments forged in pain and suffering, and would be able to deal with dangerous situations better than those born in pacific places.

Experiences shape people, times of uncertainty and peril temper their spirits. It is therefore not surprising that the people of that world are more suited to combat than Subaru. People capable of performing fantasy feats with the sword, and people capable of using magic by employing mana or spirits. How could Subaru compare with them? Granted, Subaru could use magic even though he was not originally from that world, yet his skills were below average and proved useless in the face of the magnitude of the dangers that beset him.

The bodies of the people of that world are tougher, they are made to survive in a hostile world like that. For the same reason, even someone like Otto, a simple merchant, a few months ago was capable of beating up Subaru. If Subaru were to face mere crooks and petty criminals, then it could be argued that his training would indeed prove useful, otherwise, Subaru would be at a terrible disadvantage.

Hence, his training had been completely in vain. Even if he devoted his entire life to training alongside Julius, his lack of talent and his physical inferiority would prevent him from approaching an iota of the supreme skill of the knight and his peers of similar rank. Subaru was facing fate itself and the forces of hell, being a mere "reinventor" capable of using the sword moderately well would never be enough.

This is why that reinvented weapon caused in him a faint sense of security and reassurance. Because, although the strength and physical abilities of the people of that world were superior to those of the inhabitants of his world, their technology was not. Because of this reason, Subaru had decided to reinvent objects from his world as a profession, for that knowledge was the only thing he possessed that the people of that world did not. And firearms represented the apex of it.

His "gun", although operated with magical elements, respected the most basic design principles of the modern firearms of his world. If he were to compare it to a specific weapon, it would be a grenade launcher. The handle, in which the fire stones are stored, and which has the button that serves as a trigger, is the most crucial part of the weapon.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that the handle, which also serves as the trigger, is the part that gives life to the gun, the core of it and the truly valuable part of the gun. This part was designed by modifying the design of the lighter, so it could well be said that it is based on it. The handle was created with an Ice Lagmite coating that serves as a cooling system, thus preventing the fire stones from exploding before they are fired. And it works with ammunition consisting of fire stones molded in such a way that they fit perfectly into it. The trigger, the button that functions as a firing mechanism, activates a spring mechanism located in the butt of the gun, which propels out of the barrel the volatile fire stone, which is immediately replaced by another one.

The operation of the gun is considerably simple, especially compared to that of other of his reinventions, however, certain factors, such as preventing the ammunition from exploding when hit by the firing mechanism, complicated the creation of it. Only one functional gun was created, according to Subaru's orders, and those involved were silenced with money.

Alexa was the only one with whom he came into direct contact, and the rest of the people who worked on the secret project were not informed that the orders to manufacture the weapon came from Subaru. And in spite of taking many risks in order to create the weapon, Subaru found himself unable to use it when he finally got his hands on it. Refusing to face reality, Subaru chose to foolishly delude himself with the foolish idea that he would never need to use it.

He accepted Halibel's offer of support, but then kept him away from himself. He went to the trouble of reinventing a gun, but refrained from using it. Subaru painfully understood that he needed to take measures to deal with future dangers, yet he lacked the guts to make use of such measures. Nevertheless, even the most foolish stubbornness would yield to the pain of death...

With his gaze fixed on the handle of his weapon, which was loaded with five fire stones, Subaru waited for the moment when Ricardo would give him the floor again. After gathering the mercenaries who would participate in the rescue operation, and the high-ranking mercenaries who would remain guarding the mansion, Ricardo began to inform them about the state of the capital, basically repeating the same information given by Subaru.

When Ricardo deemed it necessary to elaborate on some aspect, his lips stopped producing words and his gaze immediately moved to Subaru, who was located to his left. The first time Subaru had failed to notice Halibel's gestures, but from the second time on he was ready to respond accordingly to them.

Even when he was immersed in his own internal ruminations, with his gaze completely focused on the weapon that lay in his hands, Subaru had become accustomed to respond to the silences that occasionally took place. Of course, on more than one occasion Ricardo found it necessary to repeat the last thing he had said so that Subaru could proceed from there, but this did not seem to bother the captain of the Fang of Iron.

Subaru was a disturbed young man. How many times had those present witnessed his descent into madness? At breakneck speed, the young man's mental state had deteriorated. The friendly, eccentric boy they had come to know during the trip from the capital to Priestella had died, leaving behind an empty shell of himself. Subaru, when he was not isolated in his own room, actually used to behave as he usually did before the attack at the inn, however, for those around him it was easy to notice that something was wrong with him, he was not quite right in the head.

While Ricardo, and sometimes Subaru, briefed the mercenaries gathered in the hall of the mansion on the situation of the city, several of those present could not help but wonder to what extent Subaru would be affected by all that was happening. Dealing with him when he was losing his mind and suffering from panic attacks was not easy, and those who were in charge of his surveillance could notice that their work would increase enormously from that day on.

"... As I'd mentioned at the beginnin', thanks to the boy's Divine Protection, we've a good idea of how many Sin Archbishops 're in the capital and their locations. If we're careful we'd be able to avoid runnin' into 'em. And I know I've already said it several times, but this is important, so I'm gonna repeat it; it's a priority to avoid comin' into conflict. Our goal's to get to the castle as soon as possible, report the presence of the Sin Archbishops and the state of the south of the capital and, if necessary, rescue the lil' lady."

"Aye, aye, Cap'n!" Responded the subordinates fervently. The vehement response from the mercenaries indicated to Subaru that Ricardo had finally finished the briefing, so he turned his gaze away from the weapon and focused on those present in the spacious room.

On Ricardo's right side stood the two male triplets, and several meters away from them, on one side of the room, stood Halibel, Otto and Leith, observing everything from a distance. In front of them were several of the elite members of the Fang of Iron, including Utada. Subaru also recognized the sorceress woman and the healer with foxlike features. Among the assembled mercenaries were also several individuals that Subaru recognized, due to the fact that they had been assigned to him as bodyguards at one time or another.

"Terrific!" Ricardo replied, satisfied. "Now I'll name those of ya who'll accompany us to the Royal Castle. The rest of ya whom I don't call will stay 'ere under the command of Tivey and Hetaro." The mercenaries voiced their assent, whereupon Ricardo resumed what he was saying. "Utada, the lil' lady assigned ya the task of protectin' the boy, so ya won't stray from him no matter what."

"Roger that, Captain! I'll honorably continue to fulfill my role as Subaru-sama's bodyguard." Subaru instinctively frowned upon hearing Utada's response. Subaru had already assumed that Ricardo would tell Utada something like that, but his displeasure had been no less. He was tempted to respond sarcastically to Utada, but in the end refrained from doing so.

"Maju, Katzu, Tsark and Orph, I'm also countin' on ya." Ricardo then named four more of his subordinates.

The female mage, the fox healer, a cat-like warrior and a sloth-like warrior; the latter was also familiar to Subaru, but he was unable to remember when he had interacted with him. Ricardo named five more mercenaries, but none of them were remarkable to Subaru; after all, Utada, Maju, Katzu, Tsark and Orph were the only ones belonging to the elite, the rest were nothing more than cannon fodder.

Noticing that Ricardo had finished speaking, one of the mercenaries raised his hand; a small hand that was barely visible. It was Tivey, who apparently had a query regarding the rescue operation. "Captain, I hadn't asked anythin' about it cause I thought ya'd talk 'bout it durin' the briefin' of the situation, but what's that Subaru Onii-san's carryin' in his hands?"

"Right, I was wonderin' the same."

"Yeah, what's that thing s'posed to be?"

"Is that a weapon?"

At the little mercenary's question, several of those present began to murmur about the matter. Apparently Subaru's furtive reinvention had caught the attention of the Fang of Iron members. Though that was inevitable, considering how Subaru had been eyeing his own creation.

"Hmm... The boy said somethin' 'bout an artifact, so I guess that's what he meant, but the truth is, I ain't really sure what it's s'posed to be either." Ricardo, who had also not been informed about the weapon, looked towards Subaru.

Sensing that suddenly all eyes in the room had settled on him and his creation, Subaru began to feel cold sweat beading on his neck and forehead. What was the best course of action? Should he tell the truth about the weapon? Or was it best to lie? Subaru felt inclined to pick the second option, but refrained from it as he spotted Utada's menacing gaze among the crowd of mercenaries.

Utada was aware of the weapon and its furtive creation, since Subaru had found it necessary to reveal its existence. Had he had more time back then, perhaps Subaru would have concocted some sufficiently convincing lie. It was now that he regretted not having been able to do so. If he lied, Subaru knew that Utada would not stay quiet about it, so the only option left to him was to tell the truth. Sighing in defeat, Subaru proceeded to speak.

"Maybe hearing what I'm about to say will damage some of the trust most of you've placed in me, but I suppose you'd have to find out about it sooner or later, so I won't beat around the bush and get straight to the point. This is a reinvented artifact that I created in secret from the company, and it's a weapon with which I believe we can greatly improve our chances of survival."

"What?! So ya created it behind the company's back?! Doesn't that mean that the little miss has no idea of the existence of that weapon?"

The first to react to his revelation was Tivey, who with his eye covered by a monocle carefully scrutinized Subaru's face. The smile on Ricardo's face faded the moment Subaru's words reached his ears, but the captain refrained from questioning Subaru, at least temporarily. Ricardo had probably chosen to wait for Subaru to explain himself.

"That's right, Tivey. Anastasia has no idea I created this weapon."

"Wait, I just don't get it, Subaru Onii-san. Ever since the Hoshin Company branch was founded here in the capital you've barely left the mansion, and the few times ya did, Onee-chan and the little miss were with ya. It's impossible for ya to have created that artifact without either of them noticin' it..."

"No, that needn't have been the case, brother. While ya're in recovery with Felix-sama, Subaru Onii-san visited the Hoshin Company headquarters in Kyo on several occasions..." While Hetaro and Tivey were discussing how Subaru had accomplished such a feat, Subaru averted his gaze to the mercenary crowd. They all seemed disgruntled by Subaru's revelation, all but Utada, on whose face a vicious smile had formed. Is this what you expected to happen, Utada? Is this why you didn't say anything about it at Leith's house? Subaru's musings were interrupted by Tivey. "Even so, I don't understand why you went to the trouble of hidin' it, Subaru Onii-san."

"Tivey's got a point, kid." Ricardo cut in, finally daring to voice his own opinion. "Considerin' all ya went through, no one could blame ya for fervently desirin' a means with which to protect yerself. If ya'd talked it over with the lil' lady, she wouldn't have hesitated to lend ya the company's resources to aid ya, of that I'm quite sure."

"She would've aided me? You may be right, Ricardo. Still, you'd never be able to understand. You and all the others insist on refusing to accept the truth of my origin, so you're incapable of understanding my reasons for hiding the existence of this stupid reinvention... You see, I had no choice but to create it. If I weren't so weak, so disgustingly weak, I would never have needed it. I was between a rock and a hard place, I really couldn't allow this world to find out about its existence, but I would've lost what little sanity I had left if I didn't create it... So I decided that the best option, the most reasonable one, would be to create it with as much secrecy as possible. But now that I'll finally need to make use of it, I simply can't afford to keep hiding its existence... Damn, I wish I'd had another alternative!"

Frustrated, Subaru pressed the weapon against his body, as if hoping to make it disappear. Subaru knew that he would accomplish nothing with this, but he was on the edge of an abyss and was completely desperate to find a way out that would solve all his problems. Unfortunately, there was no such convenient way out as that.

"Let me get this straight, boy." Ricardo's voice sounded particularly cold, and the twins' faces did not convey the same brotherly feeling usually directed at Subaru. "Ya mean you don't trust Anastasia-sama? If ya did, wouldn't ya've talked to her 'bout these concerns of yers, instead of creatin' a weapon behind her back?"

Subaru's brow furrowed abruptly. "Don't ever say that again, Ricardo." The tension in the room increased significantly with Subaru's response. One false move could lead to one of the parties suddenly lashing out. Still, one had to wonder, how many would side with Subaru?

"I find that hard to believe too, boy. After all ya sacrificed for the company, for the lil' lady, did ya really have all your efforts come to naught over some stupid doubts?"

"Stupid doubts?! It's with statements like that that you prove me right, Ricardo! You'll never be able to comprehend the damage this artifact could cause if it fell into the wrong hands! I know Anastasia! Maybe not as well as you do, but I know her well enough to know that she would try to profit from something like this! And don't get me wrong, that way of hers doesn't displease me, quite the contrary, but in this specific case I simply can't allow her greed to turn us into murderers!"

"And you just proved ME right, boy! Do ya really think Miss Anastasia has no scruples? If ya'd explained it to her, if ya had asked her, she would've respected yer decision not to sell whatever the hell that thing is." Confronted with Ricardo's assertion, Subaru couldn't help but take a couple of steps back.

"I-I..." Ricardo was right. Fear had clouded his judgment and led him to distrust those around him, even Anastasia. Fearing that his ideas would leak out and result in danger to the people of that world, making him responsible for terrible massacres, he had concluded that it was best to hide the existence of that weapon, even from his beloved boss. Perhaps he had made a mistake. "I really wished I never had to use it... I just didn't want to keep showing my pathetic side to Anastasia... I hate that I needed to create this weapon, it's so embarrassing that fear drove me to do it. I just wanted to keep hiding how pathetic I really am." Although those were only excuses, they also reflected his sincere feelings; his mind was a mess...

At some point, Subaru had come to decide that he would not reveal the existence of the weapon's rough draft to anyone. Nevertheless, since Alexa had accidentally gotten to see it on one occasion, that had prompted him to resort to her, and no one else. Eventually that had led to more people finding out, otherwise his weapon would never have been created, however, the only one to learn of the gun's existence directly from Subaru was Alexa.

His approach might have been the wrong one. But Subaru did not really hide all this from Anastasia because he completely distrusted her. Although, perhaps deep down, he did distrust that greedy part of the girl's personality. Maybe he feared that her lust for making money was too strong and that it would entice her to mass-produce the weapon. Subaru had had different reasons for hiding the creation of the weapon, but having betrayed Anastasia and having distrusted her, if only partially, were really starting to weigh on his conscience.

Still, he had no time to regret it. He had made a mistake, and this was finally dawning on him. Once again, his weaknesses had brought out the worst in him. Therefore, the only thing left for him to do was to make it up to Anastasia. All the more reason for him to continue his efforts to rescue her from the terrible game of fate. He would use that weapon with which he betrayed Anastasia to reach the castle and protect her. Only then would he turn his fear-born failure into success.

"What do ya mean by showin' her your pathetic side? Isn't that what ya do every time ya've a panic attack out of the blue and make a pitiful scene? Isn't that what ya do every time ya lock yourself in yer room and refuse to leave the mansion? Or what ya do when ya skip company meetings? You ARE pathetic, Subaru-sama. So that's no excuse." The one who responded to Subaru's ridiculous excuses was not Ricardo, nor Tivey, nor Hetaro, but Utada.

Surprised, the Fang of Iron leaders abruptly looked at the elite mercenary. The two small demi-humans and the beast-man may have been upset with Subaru, after all they had just learned that he had been working on an artifact behind their backs and behind their boss's back. But that did not mean they would neglect how much Subaru had contributed to the Hoshin Trading Company. Subaru is a person we can forgive after reprimanding him, once we get over this crisis, is what they had thought. However, Utada did not share that view.

"Utada!" Ricardo shouted.

It was not that the Fang of Iron captain disagreed with Utada, simply that Subaru had contributed more to his miss and her company more than anyone else. Subaru was sick in the head, so accepting his pathetic excuses was not that difficult. Ricardo and the triplets were convinced that Subaru had had no bad intentions in hiding the existence of the weapon. So the fact that one of their mercenaries would disrespect Subaru in such a way was unacceptable.

"Are ya fucking blind, Captain!?" Utada questioned his leader, hostile aura emanating from every pore of his body. "What ya've beside you isn't the person ya think it is, it is a parasitic deceitful bastard who has slowly preyed upon our organization and Anastasia-sama's company."

"What are ya babblin' about, Utada, do ya even have evidence to back up such a claim...?!" Ricardo was ready to stand up for Subaru, even if it meant turning against one of his own subordinates, not to do so would be to betray him and his mistress. However, out of the corner of his eye he saw something that rendered him speechless. Why did the boy seem so nervous?

"Captain, Subaru-sama-" Whatever Utada was on the verge of stating was interrupted by a particularly nonchalant voice.

"Excuse me for cuttin' you off, Utada-san. But I'd like ta ask the captain a question." Everyone present turned their attention to the side of the room. There stood a demi-human wearing a shabby black kimono.

"Uhm... Sure, Halibel, what do ya wanna ask me?" Ricardo, puzzled, granted the floor to the most powerful warrior in the room. Utada, burning with anger, watched Halibel with sharp eyes; still, he refrained from refusing the warrior's request. After all, his respect for the shinobi warrior was paramount.

"It's just that I was wonderin'... Aren't you gonna say my name?"

"Say yer name? What do ya mean?" Ricardo asked in reply, even more confused than before. What was Halibel's purpose? Could he not read the mood?

"Yeah. You said ya'd say the names of those who'd be accompanyin' ya to the Royal Castle. And I don't know if it's just that I misheard, but it didn't sound to me like ya said my name." Slightly embarrassed, the black wolf scratched the back of his neck. No one, with the exception of one person, understood what was happening. A frightened expression was slowly taking shape on that person's face.

"No, ya didn't mishear, Halibel. Your talent will be especially needed to keep the mansion safe, so I decided that ya'd stay 'ere." That this answer elicited a quiet chuckle in response was not enough to lighten the tension in the room, quite the contrary.

With a smile plastered on his face and puffing out a small plume of smoke, Halibel began to move with a casual step towards Subaru. Every step she took towards him, Subaru tensed further. When he was finally within three feet of Subaru, Halibel blew out a significant amount of smoke and then said. "It looks like this won't work, Su-san. Today will've to be the day when all the lies are unveiled."

"Shit... It seems you're right, Hal-san." Subaru replied, chagrined.

"What the hell's goin' on?" Inquired an extremely annoyed Utada. Still, Utada was perceptive enough to figure out what was happening in front of his eyes, and it only increased his anger and hatred. That the betrayal included the respectable Halibel greatly compounded his disgust.

"Ricardo, I'm sorry to say there's something else I did behind Anastasia's back." Subaru raised his head and looked the beast-man straight in the eye." Halibel originally asked to follow me, but I refused... though not entirely. I told him to accept Anastasia's job offer, so he would appear to join the Fang of Iron, while he would really be working for me from the shadows. Therefore, Halibel isn't gonna be able to stay at the mansion."

"This is the fuckin' straw that broke the camel's back!" Utada shouted, reacting to the revelation even before Ricardo.

With his claws and fangs on display, the elite mercenary lunged forward, his sharp pupils focused on Subaru's throat. He had opted to wait, had decided it would be best to let his captain deal with him, but now that Subaru's treachery had finally come to light, Utada was no longer willing to wait idly. Once again, Utada's emotions had clouded his judgment.

Utada could already feel the touch of the traitor's weak flesh, when he felt an excruciating pain in his lower back. Abruptly his body ceased to respond to him, losing all mobility. Utada, who was in mid-air, crashed to the floor like a puppet whose strings had been cut. Groaning, Utada looked at the overwhelmed Subaru. However, the black-haired young man sighed deeply and then all traces of emotion disappeared from his face.

"I figured something like this would happen. After all, you're incapable of controlling your emotions, aren't you, Utada? That's why you're destined to betray us... Me, the Fang of Iron and Anastasia." Bold statements were uttered from the lips of Subaru, whose gaze, now icy, was fixed on the motionless mercenary.

"W-What's happenin', Captain?" Hetaro was confused, it was understandable, of all those present, he was the one who understood the least the context of everything that was taking place. Still, that confusion was not unique to the convalescing triplet.

"I'm glad to have you by my side once more, Hal-san. I... I was wrong, you were right." Ignoring the mercenary's concerns, Subaru turned his face towards the Shinobi warrior, who stood a short distance away from Utada, and spoke to him. "That's what you wanted to hear, isn't it? Well there you've it, I admit that, like Utada, I got caught up in my own emotions and fears, and made mistakes, many mistakes. To make it all worse, in my stupidity, I forgot my metia in my room and so I was forced to come all the way here." Subaru then shook his head slightly and the emotions that had begun to seep into his face were once again erased. "I made many stupid mistakes... but now I intend to correct them."

"Hmm... I really meant it as a joke, Su-san. But I'm still glad ya came to your senses. After all, I was already startin' to get bored of playin' mercenary. It was also troublesome that ya refused to accept my protection on the same day the Royal Capital of Lugunica was attacked, but it seems ya suffered enough from it, so it'll be best if we both just put the matter behind us."

"Yeah... That'll be the best."

The witnesses to the conversation between Subaru and Halibel were at a loss for words. An ominous aura formed between them, an aura that prevented them from being interrupted. Have we really been betrayed? Was what more than one of the mercenaries thought. It was obvious to any of them that the relationship between Subaru and Halibel was not one of mere acquaintance.

"What's all this shit s'posed to mean?! Why the hell can't I move?!" Unable to move a muscle, Utada could do nothing but scream to make himself noticed.

"Hmm? I simply severed the connection between two vertebrae in yer spine. But ya don't have to worry, if I remove my kunai from your back and someone quickly cast healin' magic on ya, there shouldn't be any after-effects left." Nonchalantly, Halibel answered Utada's question. Just as the kimono-wearing demi-human said, a black kunai was stuck in the lumbar region of Utada's back, thus leaving him devoid of the ability to move his body at will.

"Can ya see Captain?! They already made their first move, those traitors probably intend to slaughter us all. So don't waste any more time and fight back!" Since he could do nothing by himself, Utada had no choice but to turn to his fellow mercenaries.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha. Me, a traitor? You're wrong, Utada." With a look devoid of sanity, Subaru scoffed at Utada's assertion.

"Yer actions prove it, Subaru-sama. How can ya be so shameless as to claim that I'm wrong, and worse, that I'm the traitor!" Utada replied, radiating a dense bloodlust. "Besides, I ain't just relyin' on what I just claimed to back up my assertions. Ya said that ya come from the other side of the Great Waterfall, and that ya come from a world other than ours, but that's impossible! Divine Protections are only s'posed to be granted to people born in this world! Yet, ya've one!"

Subaru cursed his luck. He had never considered it, but it was true that when those in the know spoke of Divine Protections, it was usually stated that they were a unique trait of people born on the Great Continent. He had never considered that, cloaking Return by Death with a lie, and that not lying about his place of origin, could end up leading to such an annoying contradiction as that. Subaru did not know how to plead his case, however, Halibel was there to help him.

"Utada-san, we really can't know if that really is the case; we simply have no way of ascertainin' it. Su-san's the only one who's claimed to have come from a place beyond the Great Waterfall in many, many years, after all; and we know little of those who did too. He may well be a strange exception and there would be no way to prove it... or deny it, of course."

"Tch! Anyway, that really is the minor reason why I'm sure of that fucker's betrayal." Finally, Utada would reveal the secret he concealed for months. "I've been keepin' an eye on him for months! I don't know if ya've noticed it, but ya most likely have, so I'll cut to the chase and say why I've been doin' it. You stink of the witch's miasma, Subaru-sama!"

"If that were true, wouldn't you've ratted me out months ago?" Granted, Subaru would use Utada's distrust, which prevented him from talking to Ricardo or Anastasia about his suspicions, to his own advantage.

"I couldn't do it, they'd never have believed me 'cause I lacked proof! But now that ya're stupid enough to reveal your plottin's, then I can finally say it! Cap'n, that damn traitor standin' next to ya is an infiltrated member of the Witch Cult! Considerin' the intense smell he emanates, it's likely that he's a Sin Archbishop!" Utada had lost his composure. With a pleading look, the mercenary looked at his captain. Ricardo did not answer Utada's shouts, silently, he kept his gaze fixed on Subaru. After a moment, his snout finally moved.

"Boy, there's no doubt that ya kept things from us and the lil' miss. Besides, it doesn't seem that Utada's claims are entirely a lie. So there's one thing I wish to ask ya… Are ya still loyal to lil' Ana?"

Subaru did not answer immediately. A silent and tense exchange of glances took place between Subaru and Ricardo. It was then that a broken smile crept from the corners of Subaru's lips. "It's true that I was wrong about many things. I made wrong decisions and kept multiple things from you guys. Also, it's true that my body, for some reason unknown to me, oozes the witch's miasma... However, my loyalty hasn't wavered for even a second. Everything I've done, I've done for Anastasia-sama and her goal. I swear by my parents, whom I'll probably never see again, that greedy little woman's the only reason I've left to go on living..."

Despicable unhealthy obsession oozed from his every word. Nevertheless, it simply could not be otherwise. Subaru had given up everything he held dear to focus solely on safeguarding Anastasia's destiny; if he lost her, he would have sacrificed everything in vain. His mind was on the verge of collapse and only Anastasia's existence prevented him from falling completely into the infinite blackness of madness. Tick-tock, fate was smiling at the imminent crumbling of his unstable sanity.