"HUAphuh" a small blond head got out of one of Priestella's waterways, inhaling a mouthful of air before swimming to the side and pushing up a platinum haired man. "OTTO-BRO! Wake up!"
"Puahgh." Coughed up said merchant, as he threw up all the water he swallowed during their 'tour' for the Priestella Waterway… He wasn't so excited anymore about the city of gates… "I'm, *cough, cough* I'm fine Garfield, and the others?"
As if to answer the question a body clad on brownish fur jumped off the water carrying two more people, once he rested his petite partners Ricardo shook off himself to get rid of the excess water "AGHH! I'm not taking a bath again in a long time."
"Puehhh, talk for yourself, Ricardo-san." Complained the brownish haired dwarf. "I can still taste the water in my mouth…"
"Uweehh" a pigtailed girl with tamed body muttered. "My head goes spinny-spinny."
"Well, that seems to be everyone…" pointed out Otto after checking that they all got out of the troublesome trial… he never wanted to swim again after all that.. yet "At least we got what we looked for" he said after showing of the reward for their bitter task…
An extremely old and frail arm, it was a miracle that Ezzo's magic protected it while the water got them…
"Is that, huff, really why my amazing, hah, self got into so much trouble?" Complained Garfield between tired breaths, trying to swim against the current without knowing where they were going exhausted him, besides he carried Otto who was still hurt from his fight against gluttony. "I feel like it wasn't really worth it…"
"A wild beast like you, huff, wouldn't understand the importance, huph, of an old relic like this." Ezzo argued yet even he didn't understand what made that old, rotten arm so valuable, whatever magic it once had was gone a long time ago.
"Whatever it's used for, the witch cult doesn't have it and we do" replied to everyone Ricardo, he looked at the side to the passerbys who were interested in them, it wouldn't take long for other groups to know they had Typhon's remains, he understood how information networks worked. "I think that the important part is who's gonna keep it."
"If it's not an instrument then count me out"
"Who asked you?!" Said Ezzo to Liliana, already tired of her attitude "I offer that the Felt camp safekeeps it"
"HAH? And why would yer get to stay with it?" Argued Garfield.
"Both of your leaders are away on a mission, and if we give it up to the Emilia camp then it's obvious that the witch cult will come for it." Explained Ezzo towards the rest, yet his main reason for having it was. "Besides, we have Reinhard."
"Don't talk as if my amazing self would just let the witch cult take it away! Yer midget!" Growled Garfield as he dizzily tried to stand up, but...
"Garfield, wait." The green clad merchant stopped him. "It's true that wherever Reinhard goes is probably the safest place on Lugunica." Subaru once told him how much of a 'cheat' Reinhard was, Otto didn't think anyone alive could beat him, yet… "but your camp doesn't have the tools or knowledge to investigate it, am I right?"
"Well, that is…" muttered the mage, it was true that while their faction had him and the strangely knowledgeable Rom their info about witches was severely lacking in comparison to the Emilia camp that had Rosswal, the court mage.
"We have some clues about how to research the arm properly, so while it would undoubtedly be safer with you, it's us who can investigate it properly." Explained Otto as if to finish his argument.
"As far as I see it, the grey midget is right…" finished Ricardo. "Every weapon is useless if you don't know how to use them"
"Hahaha, it's as they say 'The sage is always one step ahead.'" Laughed Garfield as he said another weird quote from his books.
"Arrgh, alright. But I'll send Reinhard for it once you're all done researching it." Stated Ezzo as he gave up.
"Good, now that this is all done…" Exclaimed Liliana as she stood up stretched "I'm gonna go sing all my new songs to Kiritaka, Bye!~" She said before leaving.
"Oy! Come back here, you brat!"
"Let her go Garfield, it's better this way" said Otto as he grabbed the arm and wrapped it in his clothes, he didn't want anymore to do with the troublesome bard girl. "We should be going…"
"Oh, you got somewhere to go? Grey midget"
Otto stopped right on his tracks, he knew that the 'book of wisdom' was more or less a secret in his camp, he couldn't let Ricardo or Ezzo find out as it would be a source of trouble, so he breathed in and did his best move... "Nothing too important, I just have a date later…" lie his ass off, thankfully neither Reinhard nor Crush were here..
"Otto-bro, I knew ya had it in ya!" Exclaimed Garfield quickly, the merchant knew that Garfield would get emotional for it making it harder for the rival pair to question him. "Now, let's go. 'Reid never lets his enemies wait"' Garfield said as he grabbed Otto by the shoulder and carried him off, leaving behind both Ricardo and Ezzo.
"Thanks Garfield, but I think I can walk by myself now." Argued his friend as he tried to break free from the tiger's grasp.
"So, yer going for the book now?" Muttered Garfield quietly once they went far enough.
"Wait, Subaru told you?!"
"Don't yell, he told me to keep an eye on ya after ya received it, just if the witch cult attacked again…" It was true, while they repelled the attack easily there were still witch cultists somewhere and two archbishops ran away.
"Well, if Mr. Darts has it ready then we should be able to go back to the Annerose house, I wonder how long it'll be until Subaru and the rest come back from the Sage's tower." explained Otto as he remembered his friend. "Knowing him there's probably some problem that will take them a while so we got time."
"Alright, then let's hurry for Cap'n!" Exclaimed Garfield as he lifted Otto as a barrel and jumped off to a roof.
"Wait, Garf, nononONONONO!" We're the last words of the platinum haired merchant before being carried off through the city
They opened their eyes again, and breathed in their surroundings no smoke, no ash and most importantly, no poison. That allowed them to calm down a bit, it felt like coming out of the water after sometime diving, it was certainly more relaxing than the last time... Wait, last time of what? What were they doing?
Right, they were shot by the child, they slightly lifted their head to see if the hunter kid was still there.
Seeing no one nearby made them breath in a sigh of relief, and the fact that the girl who shot them before wasn't staring at them anymore made him relax a bit.
As they looked around a bit more they noticed the book on their lap, it had「Natsuki Subaru」 written on it, his name on it so maybe it was his, they took it up and noticed her hands holding it, why were her hands holding his book?
And who was she? They knew he was Subaru, after all it was his name on the book, but who was she?
After looking at their side a bit they noticed the big blonde swirls of hair at their side, they only knew one person with those drills…
"Beako ̶t̶t̶y̶..."
Then was she Beako? What was she doing with his book?
They needed to remember... Backtrack a bit...
She then recalled how she got a hold of Subaru's book of the dead, experienced his death at the hand of the hunter and then read another…
In this one he was also killed by an arrow but the circumstances were different, for starters…
"Rem!"
Once he remembered the newly awakened girl they looked around with hope of finding her again, yet she was nowhere to be seen, after all they were in the Taygeta Library, where she read his book…
As they tried to stand up her legs failed them, almost as if they didn't know how to use them anymore…
Step, step, step*
Then they heard someone walking closer to them… he froze in fear that it might have been the hunter or the girl coming to finish the job, yet she calmed herself down, knowing that it must have been one of her companions…
"BEATRICE-SAMA! WHERE ARE YOU!" And sure enough, it was the voice of the ̶p̶r̶e̶t̶e̶n̶t̶i̶o̶u̶s̶ knight.
"No need to scream, I suppose." Replied Beatrice as she tried to at least sit down more comfortably
"Beatrice-sama! I was looking everywhere for you..." Said Julius as soon as he found her. "I'm glad you're unhurt, did something happen?"
"Hmph, nothing important I suppose, what time is it right now, in fact?" Beatrice asked, they needed to know how long they were out.
"It's almost lunch time, Lady Emilia is worried about you so I offered to come and pick you up." explained the troublesome knight of knights. "If I may ask, what were you doing sleeping here?"
"That doesn't matter to you, I suppose" answered the great spirit dismissively. "I'm fine, in fact, so go help the other girls"
"I know it's rude of me, but I need to ask.." the yellow eyes stared at the small girl with genuine concern "Were you reading a book of the dead?"
That question sent a chill down their spine, they suddenly felt cornered, almost like being interrogated for info... They couldn't talk about it…
"Don't jump to conclusions, in fact." They were thankful that her voice was haughty and hid all of their panic.
"I know it's not my place to ask, but then what were you doing with that book in your lap?"
They could feel a bit of sweat on her back, they had to think fast.."I was just gonna return the ones that fell off during the battle, I suppose." Yes, that was a good lie.
"Oh, right... The library rules..." While a lot of stuff was happening on the tower Shaula ended up turning into a small scorpion, so there was no immediate threat of breaking the rules, but as none of them knew exactly how the tower worked it was decided to keep them up or something worse attack the group... Od knew they didn't need more fights.
"Then would you kindly allow me to help, I can't leave a damsel here alone and without protection" offered Julius selflessly.
While the smile made her heart skip a beat it also made them hold their breath, they couldn't keep hiding this secret from Julius if he stayed in the library... He had to leave.
But maybe asking him for help might be a good idea after all, he could help her solve the mystery after all of Subaru's books…
But they couldn't trust him, he could use them like Todd used him, they couldn't risk telling anything to anyone.
But that was then and this was now, they needed Julius to help Subaru.
Even if Julius was trustworthy there was also Anastasia who would no doubt use the situation for her own benefit, he was sure about it.
But Emilia ̶t̶a̶n̶ would be helpful, she always was on Subaru's side.
Yet he couldn't afford to have her feel their grief and pain if it failed…
"Beatrice-sama, are you ok?"
Hearing Julius talk to her snapped them out of their thoughts "Betty is fine, this was the last book after all, in fact" she replied as they stood up slowly "Just go back to your bothersome lady, I suppose"
"Well, about that..."Julius looked nervous about something as he scratched his back "She went to the top floor with Lady Emilia to draw some blood on the holy dragon, and while it may seem shameful I can't bear witness to... its present state..."
They understood what he meant. It must have been a shock for Julius to see the legendary being of his country acting like an old man with Alzheimer's, yet just his presence around them made them want to scream…
On one side, she wanted to tell Julius about the books and ask for his help at finding out what happened to Subaru
On the other hand, he couldn't trust anyone with what they said, it could cause endless trouble and hurt people…
Beatrice knew she could trust Julius, Subaru trusted him before and his divine protection made her feel calm when talking to him
This info may be used wrong and hurt the ones they care about... and make Rem hate him more...
It was her only way to help Subaru, and she would do anything to lift a bit of the load of his shoulders
The worst was that whenever they did try to say something they could feel S̶a̶t̶e̶l̶l̶a̶something wriggling around their insides... It made made them sick, as if there was a tug of war on their head
"Beatrice-sama, you look bad" Julius observed as he worried more and more about the wellbeing of his friend's contracted spirit "Is this a byproduct of your contract or may you be lacking some mana."
The slight blush on her cheeks while seeing Julius made him feel jealous, after all Beako was his daughter... And she felt ashamed of her own weakness towards Julius's divine protection, after all she was Subaru's contracted spirit...
"Yes, in fact" they said, finally in agreement of their distaste of Julius. "Betty is missing some mana from her contractor, I suppose, nothing serious." Technically it wasn't a lie, as their contract said that they had to hold hands at least once per day Beatrice expected to be punished by the terms of it... Yet, since she read the book they felt strangely comfortable... As if Subaru was still with her in some way…
"U-uhm, I would offer myself to supply with my own but..." Julius knew how important it was for spirit and contractor to share mana, it was a proof of their bond and trust. He knew that none of his maidens would accept mana from someone else, even if it was in a life or death situation, and he knew that his friend would boil in anger at the thought.. "I apologize for my inadequacies, if there's anyway I may help with this issue I promise to do my best to assist you, Beatrice-sama"
"Then bring me some food, I suppose." Answered Beatrice coldly, now in a more stable state of mind than before. "I created a spell to turn food into mana centuries ago, in fact"
"As you order, Beatrice-sama." replied the gentleman as he helped her stand up. "We still have weeks of food left and I certainly hope we won't be staying for long, so I don't think Anastasia-sama would mind if I give you some."
"Good, now get going, snobby knight"
"Hm?" Julius was dumbfounded by the silly insult, he might have expected it from his rough friend, but hearing the great spirit say it so dismissively surprised him, Subaru's antics must be contagious, yet there was another question in his mind at the moment... "Beatrice-sama, aren't you coming down?" He asked.
That made them nervous again, if they went down they would be away from the books, and without the books she couldn't help Subaru, help Subaru, help Subaru, Subaru Subaru SubaruSubaruSubaruSubaruSubaruSubaruSubaruSubaruSubaru... Uh? What were they thinking about just now...? Oh, right! Stay in the library. "Hmph, Betty still has some business to do, in fact" she finally answered
"Beatrice-sama, if you're still feeling unwell then I may carry you down to the fourth floor." offered the arrogant knight. "I don't mind at all and you don't seem to be doing well"
"Hah!?" They were still nervous about what to do with the troublesome knight, they wouldn't be able to lose him if they tried anything... Without choice but to give up they resolved to come down and revisit the library later... "Betty can come down the stairs alone." She said as she walked behind Julius.
The fact that she was still being affected by the arrogant divine protection made them uncomfortable…
They thought about what happened during the quiet walk to the library. She read the book and lived Subaru's life, which meant he was Subaru, and she was Beatrice. It might seem something obvious but it was important to differentiate him and her as their thoughts kept fusing together.
She wanted to help and tell the group about his problems so they may offer a hand.
He wanted her to forget the whole issue, not share his grief and stay quiet.
She thought about telling Emilia ̶t̶a̶n̶, she would help Subaru surely.
He didn't want to show his weak side to Emilia-tan anymore, even if it hurted him a bit more.
She reminded herself that this was her body and mind and Subaru was just a guest in it…
He and she kept arguing mentally for a while, neither side getting the upper hand, maybe once they got down she could ask someone for help and show off the books she found, even if he didn't want to she wouldn't stop... After all, Subaru couldn't win against her four hundred years with just one or two books.
Now that she calmed down and her thoughts were more clear she thought about talking to Julius a bit, he was quiet and clearly uncomfortable during the walk so it might help her focus even more, and she felt they were just passing the perfect topic to talk about…
"Jul-"
It was then that... *Fwish* A small orb of light came down to meet Julius, probably one of his recently evolved spirits.
"What's happening In?" The spirit leaned in Julius's ear and told him something. "That Volcanica did what?!" it must have been important because it drained the colour of his face with pure shock. Beatrice started getting chills again... "My deepest apologies, Beatrice-sama, I'm required by my lady with urgency"
"It's fine, in fact" it wasn't fine, it wasn't fine at all, they had stopped at the worst place possible…
"I would accompany you towards the fourth floor but time is of the essence, so if you would excuse me" Julius started to sprint towards the exit quickly.
Beatrice thought about calling out to him but he was already out of sight…
"Haaaahhh." She sighed before turning her head towards her left "Is this some kind of joke, I suppose?" Sure enough, there were the accursed black books.
"Is this some kind of message or something, I suppose?" Obviously, none of the books answered her question, at least not directly "You won't let Betty tell anyone and we're literally a country apart, in fact.." She said as she grabbed the last book on the bookcase.
"Then this is Betty's only way of helping you, Subaru, I suppose..." She could feel that now her thoughts were calmed down, yet she still had the need to help from the first book and the paranoia and cautiousness from the second, she wondered how this one would twist her mind now... yet
"If Subaru suffered this then Betty will also suffer it with him, in fact" she sat down and rested her head against the bookcase as she rested the book on her lap, she knew that it would only hurt her mind more but if it could help Subaru then she didn't care anymore…
"Subaru, lend Betty some of your strength" and she opened the book…
So, author-sama here, sorry for the delay but I had to read some side stories and stuff.
Now, the reason I'm making this note is to explain a bit how this chapter works:
Imagine a tug of war (title drop) in Beatrice's head about telling Julius or not about the books of Subaru, she against the Subaru from the book, Subaru is represented as him while Beatrice is her, the more prevalent one is during the paragraph the stronger they're pushing, ok? Ok
You might argue that Subaru would encourage her to seek help or forget about the books, not read them again, and you would be right… if that was the original Subaru, yet this is not the 'entire Subaru', think of him as an idea or concept that Subaru left behind after dying and that embodies his last thoughts before RBDing, the first book was his wish to help Rem and save her from danger, while this one was his cautiousness and care with Todd, who tricked him into giving the info needed to burn the forest down, see where I'm going? Yeah.
Anyway, what happened is mostly bad luck and poor timing, if Beako had more time or talked to someone like Emilia (who Subaru trusts without question) she might have been able to say it, yet it didn't happen, and as the 'Book Subaru' was about keeping secrets and staying quiet it fought against Beatrice trying to tell Julius everything, stalling her enough so that the spirit called him off. Then, being in front of the books her desire to save Subaru made it so that her only path left was to keep reading them as that was the only way she (thinks) she has left to help him…
So cruel, don't you think? Why would someone do this to her? Author-sama, out!