Determination of the Tormented

Eight hours since the Last Death (Five Deaths)

"… I've never told anyone, but the reason I know about the attack is because… I can return by dea-" Julius had promised to help Subaru, so even though doubts were plaguing him, he was willing to listen to Subaru. His honor as a knight compelled him to do so. "Arggggggghhhh!" However, instead of getting the answer he was looking for, Subaru's countenance changed in an instant.

The inventor boy, by no means, had maintained a completely stable attitude. Throughout the conversation, like a person on the verge of collapse, he screamed, threw tantrums, and wailed. But what he was seeing in that instant, was beyond anything he could have seen during the entire conversation. Julius, struggling to show a dignified and composed countenance day and night, let out an involuntary look of astonishment.

Screams of agony, as he had only heard during the worst tortures, reached his ears. Subaru, who had been kneeling in front of him until just a moment ago, was now rolling on the floor. With an anguished grimace, Subaru clutched his chest with both hands, just above where his heart was. With foam gathering at the corners of his lips and his eyes rolling, Subaru convulsed violently.

Julius would have liked to claim that it was all an act. The possibility that Subaru was acting to hide something, including sinister intentions, was a topic that he had already discussed extensively with the leaders of the Fang of Iron. Ricardo, Tivey, Hetaro and Mimi seemed to have doubts about Subaru. Even so, the opinion of the triplets leaned towards the idea that Subaru was not acting. Ricardo, on the other hand, refused to allow Subaru to stay at the inn, due to his suspicions.

Julius, for his part, kept himself in a more neutral position. He was willing to wait patiently while he watched over Subaru, as did his mistress. That was why Anastasia had sent him to Subaru's room, in order to see if they could get something out of him. Perhaps she would have gone there herself, had it not been for Ricardo's resistance; since Subaru seemed to maintain a normal level of consciousness about his surroundings, he represented a danger towards their mistress.

But now the situation was different, and it forced him to act quickly. None of Subaru's symptoms seemed the work of a performance, clearly he was suffering some kind of indescribable torture. Julius started to help him, when he noticed something that stopped him in his tracks for an instant. It was blood, blood was coming from Subaru's throat… no.

Not just from his throat. From his tear ducts, as if it were a hellish cry, drops of blood began to emerge. And the bleeding didn't stop there, as blood also began to gurgle from his nose and ears. Subaru's face was soon bathed in blood, pushing Julius's urgency to the limit.

Taking a piece of the rope with which Subaru had tried to commit suicide, Julius leapt at him and opened his mouth. After inserting the cloth into Subaru's mouth, in order to keep him from biting his tongue, Julius called out to one of the Fang of Iron mercenaries who had accompanied him. There were two men, and each stayed outside the room to stand guard in case something happened. Luckily, one of them was a user of healing magic.

"Julius-sama?" One of them answered the call, leaning over the doorway of the room.

"Olaph, I need you to use healing magic on him immediately!" With no time to explain the situation, Julius called the healing magic user by his name. The demi-human, with the white and orange Fang of Iron uniform, approached them and began to apply his magic, causing Subaru's convulsions and bleeding to gradually stop.

Reacting abruptly, Subaru regained his consciousness, turning away from Julius and the mercenary who was healing him. Coughing violently, Subaru instinctively expelled the piece of cloth from his mouth, as if his body completely refused to accept the foreign object. From the way he reacted, Julius couldn't help but think that there was something else behind that action, although he didn't give it much thought due to the situation.

Subaru, staggering, leaned with his hands on the floor, vomiting blood clots that had collected in his throat. With his eyes stained red from the multiple swollen blood vessels, Subaru looked at Julius. Showing a considerably disturbing image, Subaru kept still, as he seemed to process everything that had just happened to him.

"I can't…" He said abruptly. His countenance was ruled by an image of despair, which might as well belong to someone begging for his life before he died. "I can't tell you how I know." He added, lowering his gaze. His knuckles were white, due to the force he was putting on his fists.

Could it be a very well-crafted hoax? Julius wondered, as he watched Subaru. Sure, the bleeding Subaru had just had could hardly be considered an act. However, it would not be the first case of a spy or assassin taking his act extremely far in order to gain the trust of his target, even at the cost of risking his own life. Still, Julius's very doubts were buried under more doubts.

To what end would he cause so much harm to himself, if it were all an act? Are there not more effective and efficient ways to get closer to the enemy while letting him down his guard? At least Subaru, lacking a past and place of origin, could offer thousands of alibis that could hardly be denied on the spot. So… was it all true? Then…

"Subaru, what's causing you all this? Was the bleeding caused by you trying to speak?" What entity or being had Subaru in that condition? First was the panic attack inside the carriage, which nearly led to him choking to death in his own vomit. Now he was plagued by multiple internal bleeds that may well have ended his life.

"I don't know..." Looking lost, Subaru shook his head, as he replied with a lack of confidence. The situation was becoming more and more complex, and Julius did not know how to deal with it. Should I trust Subaru? Should I distrust him? Whatever the answer, he needed to act fast. If the attack Subaru mentioned happened, it was his duty to stand by his mistress and protect her.

"Subaru… I don't know how to deal with you. Should I put an escort on you and leave you under arrest in this room? Or should I take you to Anastasia so you can give us more information regarding what you said? Are you on our side? Or are you an agent of the assassins you speak of? Or else, are you an infiltrator who wants to distract us by talking about an attack that won't happen?" Expressing his doubts, Julius questioned Subaru, who was still staring straight at the ground. After a moment, Subaru seemed to find the strength to reply.

"Do you think I would've told you if I was in cahoots with the murderers?! I swear, Julius! All I wanna do is prevent innocent people from dying because of me! I'm the one they're looking for, but like I told you, they won't stop just with me! " Going into despair, Subaru crawled towards him, leaving behind a trail of blood. His face, contorted, looked him straight in the eye. "I beg you! Trust me! Please… don't close me off the last way I've left…"

"A misstep." Julius replied, keeping his gaze on Subaru's eyes. "A misstep, a wrong decision, a bad judgment on my part. That would be enough to put Anastasia-sama's life in danger. It's not that I want to believe you or not, Subaru. I just can't afford to make a mistake that leads me to fail my mistress... "

"Julius…" With a pleading groan, Subaru called out to the knight's name. His mind seemed to have cleared, and yet he refused to pay attention to his precarious state. The determination he had seen in his gaze, though clouded by a turmoil of negative emotions, was there. After some of the longest seconds of Subaru's life, Julius finally decided.

"I will believe you. Hence, I do not want you to disappoint me, Subaru Natsuki. Or I will make sure to end your life myself, with the edge of my sword." Firmly, the Valuable Knight exclaimed his judgment.

Nine hours since the Last Death (Five Deaths)

"Are ya sure about this, Julius?!" With a voice loud like thunder, Ricardo expressed his doubt towards his partner's judgment. Julius had just informed Ricardo, and the rest of the Fang of Iron mercenaries gathered there, regarding what happened in Subaru's room. The other actor involved was at his side, while he continued to be healed by a member of Anastasia's camp; in the absence of time to go to a professional healer, that was the only option.

"I already told you. I decided to take Subaru's word for it. That's why I need you to gather, as soon as possible, all the members of the Fang of Iron scattered around Priestella, here in the inn. We don't know when they will attack, but It might as well be tonight. " Expressing his decision firmly, Julius requested the collaboration of the wolf-shaped demi-human.

"Wait, wait! Julius, I'll repeat it again, are ya sure of this? What ya're asking of me isn't an easy thing to carry out. Besides, are ya aware of the danger posed by gatherin' all my men in the same place? Of course ya know! Now that a candidate for royalty's in a border town like this, we'd expose Priestella as a whole to an assault. Which would be completely counterproductive, even if what the boy says is true."

"They will enter through the sewers and their only target is the inn and its surroundings. That's right, isn't it, Subaru?" Julius questioned Subaru, who immediately looked back at him. Along the way to where they were, and with a little more confidence, Subaru had managed to gather the strength to explain the attack a little better to Julius…

Along the way, he had also had time to take a closer look at the information he obtained before and during his previous two deaths. Enduring the nausea caused by the memories, Subaru squeezed each one of them out as much as possible. His first clue came from an especially painful memory.

Elsa, before making the mabeast eat him alive, delivered one last message. Her memories were blurred due to the situation, but the message more or less was that he had made a mistake, had made the wrong decision and that whoever had hired the assassins would see to it that he complied with what some book said. Who had hired the assassins and sent that message? What mistake was he referring to? What was the wrong decision? What was the correct decision? What book was he or she referring to? What was the purpose of that message…?

Was it a merchant or company rival of Anastasia, who wanted to form an alliance with him? That might explain that wrong decision thing, but he still had no idea which book the client was referring to. After a bit more turning the matter over, Subaru decided to put it aside and focus on another topic.

The emerald rock. What was it? Why did he seem able to avoid his death no matter what they did to his body? Apparently, that rock was the tool used by the assassins, to be able to carry out their terrible tortures without killing their victims in the middle of the process. A horrible way to use such a valuable magic item, he concluded.

It was then that his train of thoughts was interrupted by his arrival at the dining room, where Ricardo was with the two boys from the group of triplets. Apparently Anastasia was still in the meeting Julius had mentioned. So the knight took the opportunity to submit the information, which Subaru had told him, to the noisy demi-human, who, according to his personality, reacted by screaming…

Subaru nodded at Julius' question. He could not be completely sure that the assassins wouldn't attack other areas of the city, however, he was quite convinced that this would not be the case. Why? Because during the first attack, Meili seemed quite concerned that no one would approach the alley they were in; indicating that they probably hadn't interfered outside of it. Another reason would be that until now, after his two deaths since arriving in Priestella, Subaru never heard the assassins speak of any more reinforcements besides Meili's beasts.

Sure, it was still a shot in the dark. If it went wrong, it could cost the lives of many, many people. Even so, the situation really called for taking the risk. And, in the worst case, there would be no choice but to take the only remaining way: his death. If there was a chance to prevent the tragedy from happening again, the right thing to do would be to take it. He was completely convinced of it.

"And how the hell does he know all that?!" Ricardo roared, making Subaru wince.

"He can't tell." At Julius' assertion, Ricardo's gesture became more severe. "It seems that he has some kind of curse or magic seal that prevents him from doing so. I saw it with my own eyes, Ricardo. Do you see how he is completely covered in blood? That's because he tried to tell me the reason behind his knowledge regarding the attack."

"But that doesn't make sense!" Ricardo, frustrated, took a deep breath to calm himself and continued. "The healer said there's no sign of interference with his mana, Julius. And while it's true that a particularly skilled mage or warlock might've concealed a curse on him, the probability is... Hmm... Julius, I really don't think taking his word for it's the right decis- "

"Julius's my knight, Ricardo. As such, I'm the one who'll decide whether his judgment's correct or not." Interrupting Ricardo, a beautiful lilac-haired girl dressed in a flowered white kimono with purple details entered the dining room, followed by a kid with orange hair and plushy ears, also dressed in a flowered kimono. Behind them, a group of several well-dressed people entered, probably executives from the Hoshin Company with whom she had been meeting. "Julius, they already briefly reported to me what's happenin'." Facing her knight, despite her short stature, it was Anastasia Hoshin.

"Anastasia-sama, the situation is as reported. Subaru warned me that we are in enormous danger of being attacked, he being the main target. He assures that despite being like this, you are also in danger. I am willing to give him my vote of confidence, so I will accept any punishment in case of-"

"Ya're my knight, Julius. I'll be the one to bear the consequences of your mistakes, not the other way around." At a loss for words, Julius meekly nodded at his mistress's words.

"In that case, miss. What position do ya've regardin' the boy's statements?" Ricardo questioned her, pointing at Subaru.

"Me? Like my knight, I'm willin' to trust him." With a gesture of utter surprise, Ricardo gaped at Anastasia. Apparently the captain of the Fang of Iron was expecting another outcome.

"But…"

"I trust Julius's judgment, Ricardo. Don't ya?" Silenced by the firmness of his employer, Ricardo closed his mouth again. That argument had apparently been enough to silence the demi-human's complaints. "Besides, I also believe in Natsuki-kun. So far, he hasn't acted in a way that led me directly to doubt him, quite the contrary. So I'll give him the benefit of the doubt."

"Anastasia-sama, if I may speak about it, my recommendation would be to contact the city capitol and report that we will need to use the bunkers in the area. We should also call the Fang of Iron patrols scattered around the city as soon as possible. Against the mabeasts, the numbers will be of great help."

"I appreciate it, Julius. Ricardo, send a message to the patrol leaders via metia. Tell them to return to the inn as soon as possible, and to inform us in case they notice any sign of suspicious activity in the city." Reluctantly, Ricardo accepted the order and, using an object similar to a pocket mirror, began to contact his subordinates. After that, Anastasia instructed one of the Hoshin Company executives who had arrived with her, to inform the Priestella Capitol regarding the use of the bunkers. "Now..." With short strides, Anastasia approached the bench where Subaru was standing, until she was in front of him. "Natsuki-kun, 'bout the attack… That's what ya tried to tell me all mornin', right? Ya wanted to warn us about this, but ya couldn't."

"Yeah…" With a depressing whisper, Subaru answered the shrewd girl's question. Nodding satisfied, the girl continued to question him.

"I'm glad ya finally managed to get it outta your system. So, Natsuki-kun, could ya tell me everythin' ya know in your own words?"

"Anastasia-sama..." Julius tried to say something to his mistress, but she stopped him by raising a hand.

"I'm aware of this… kinda curse that threatens Natsuki-kun." She nodded, indicating that she was informed about what struck Subaru every time he said something he was forbidden to say. "Therefore, Natsuki-kun, tell me everythin' ya're able to say to me without getting' hurt." With a sweet smile, Anastasia asked Subaru to reveal as much as he could.

Breathing deeply to strengthen his spirit, Subaru prepared himself to reveal everything possible. "We'll be attacked. I couldn't say exactly when, but it could well be today. Considering that there's a possibility that at this moment we're being watched..."

"That's ridiculous! We've men stationed at strategic points in the inn, no one should be able to enter or leave the place without us finding out." The one who interrupted him was not Ricardo, but Tivey, who was looking at him suspiciously through his monocle.

"Tivey-chan, could ya not interrupt Natsuki-kun? He's trying his best to give us as much information as possible, the least we'd do is listen to him." With a motherly tone, Anastasia rebuked Tivey, who nodded regretfully. With a movement of her chin, the girl motioned for Subaru to continue. From the corner of his eye, Subaru could notice Mimi hitting Tivey with her staff, which improved his mood a bit.

"Thanks." After thanking Anastasia, he continued what he was telling. "As I was saying, the assassins probably already know that we're aware of their siege, so they could attack at any time. To answer Tivey's question, I'll say that the assassin's an extremely skilled woman, enough to cause Julius trouble. " His statement, as expected, caught the attention of the aforementioned knight and raised the tension in the atmosphere of the dining room. "Her name's… E-El… El-sa… Elsa." Losing his composure again, Subaru forced himself to throw up the name.

"I have heard the name." Julius declared. "Elsa Granhiert, the Bowel Hunter. If it is that same Elsa, then Subaru is right in saying that we are dealing with an extremely dangerous person."

"But isn't she supposed to only work at Gusteko?" At Julius's statement, another voice joined in. This time it was Hetaro, who had been listening in silence. Apparently he had also recognized Elsa's name.

"Her area of work is mainly in Gusteko, but she has been seen recently in Lugunica. In fact, Reinhard Van Astrea fought with her a few months ago in the capital. From what I heard from him, the matter seemed to be related to the theft of an extremely valuable object… "Julius, thinking well what was correct to say and what not, decided to put aside that this was how Reinhard met his mistress, Felt, the last candidate for the Royal Selection. "He also mentioned that despite receiving a direct hit from him, she survived and escaped."

"She survived a direct hit from the Sword Saint?! Is she immortal?" Ricardo, who had just finished giving the new orders to his subordinates, joined the conversation again.

"There are rumors that, in addition to being extremely agile with knives, Elsa can withstand several fatal blows without being defeated. She really is an opponent that I would rather not face near Anastasia-sama." Listening to the conversation from the side, Subaru could feel a chill run through his body. After saying that, Julius looked directly at the girl. "That is why I would prefer you to be escorted to one of the bunkers in the city as soon as possible, Anastasia-sama. Besides, I want the triplets to stay with you as your bodyguards."

"Okay, no problem." Anastasia, in addition to Ricardo and the aforementioned triplets, agreed with Julius' request. "Will ya be fine without their help?" She asked, addressing Julius and Ricardo.

"I'm sure that if we divide the burden well, Julius and I'll do it without any problem." Ricardo answered confidently, while showing his enormous canines. Julius, silently, nodded showing that he shared his opinion.

"Terrific!" Folding her hands with a cute gesture, Anastasia was satisfied by the response of her subordinates. "In that case, I'll leave once I've finished listenin' to what Natsuki-kun has to say." Making her intentions clear, Anastasia returned her gaze to Subaru, who had been cast aside.

"O-Okay… Ahem!" Regaining some of the composure he had lost in naming Elsa, Subaru continued. "Elsa's the main assassin, but she's accompanied by a little girl named Meili. I'm not sure what her role is within the team, but I think she's capable of controlling the mabeasts; I'm not entirely confident about it, though." That is another of the conclusions he had reached when analyzing what happened before and during his previous deaths. "And as I said before, they'll enter the city through the sewers and will be accompanied by a large number of mabeasts, though I cannot say an approximate number." Although, if he hadn't locked himself in Anastasia's room, refusing to accept everything that went on outside, he might have a better idea about it. "I'm also sure they'll focus on attacking the inn only." Elsa had mentioned that Meili was buying her time, and was probably referring to Julius and Ricardo, reinforcing his idea that they would focus on attacking a single place rather than carrying out a massive attack on the city. "Unfortunately, that's all I got."

"Hmm… It's not poor information, Natsuki-kun. In fact, it's very accurate information. It really intrigues me how you got access to it, especially considerin' how suddenly you changed the moment we got to Priestella." Squinting her eyes, Anastasia carefully analyzed Subaru's expression.

"I'd tell you if I could, Anastasia. I assure you that. It's just… If I do, it's like the world stops and my heart… Hnk!" Fearing the shadows would return, Subaru abruptly fell silent, clenching his chest defensively.

The sensations had been etched in his mind and body. The indescribable pain, the terror he felt towards the shadow, the hatred, the jealousy... Once he returned to reality, leaving the shadow behind, and regained consciousness, Subaru knew immediately: the shadow would not allow him to speak about it, it would never let him reveal any detail of the Return by Death. He would have to deal with it alone, as he struggles to explain what he knows without being able to mention the Return by Death. Just thinking about it, he understood the hatred that fragment of his mind professed...

Sighing deeply, Anastasia stopped looking at Subaru and turned to Julius. "Natsuki-kun claims to be the main target of the assassin, so we cannot risk leavin' him in a separate bunker from mine without the necessary security. That's why he'll come with me." All the members of the Fang of Iron, in unison, displayed gestures of disagreement. However, Anastasia's expression, which Subaru failed to witness, was enough to keep them silent.

All but one. "Miss, I hope this decision doesn't end up killin' ya. I'd be very upset to be unable to remind ya that I'd warned ya." With a dejected gesture, Ricardo headed for the door as he spoke. "Let's leave at once. We also have to communicate everythin' to the inn staff and begin the evacuation, so we don't have too much time."

Obeying the captain of the Fang of Iron, everyone present began to leave the dining room in an orderly fashion. The first to leave were two mercenaries that Ricardo sent to communicate to the inn staff regarding the need to evacuate immediately. Finally, only the main actors remained inside.

After a brief goodbye, Anastasia, along with Subaru, was escorted out by the triplets, who have just said goodbye to Ricardo. The five of them were about to cross the exit threshold when a thunderous crash shook the foundations of the inn. Feeling fear running through his veins, Subaru remembered that this was how the attack had started the previous time. Once again, he had taken too long. However, this time everyone was informed, maybe they could make it...

"Hmm... It's not fair... With all the trouble we went to preparing everything for this job, so that in the end all was ruined by our target." With a grim smile, Elsa appeared in front of him and Anastasia. "Apparently, our client was right about you..."