"Th' hell're we s'posed to watch now!?"
While most of the theater paused itself in contemplation, Garfiel only found himself getting angrier. Garfiel grumbled, pacing angrily in front of his seat without so much as a glance to the people sitting behind him.
They'd been trapped in this room for well over three days watching some of the most ridiculous things he'd seen in his entire life. He'd been forced to acknowledge many uncomfortable truths about himself and others, which he'd done his best to overlook.
If he had to put it bluntly, basically all of them were scum.
His captain, Natsuki Subaru, had died over a dozen times during his short stay in Lugunica. Sometimes pathetically, and other times nobly sacrificing himself on behalf of others. But each time, undoubtedly, their fault.
Within him, laid a power capable of bending fate itself to his whim, should one disregard its terrible activation. Subaru was easily capable of crafting himself a happy life for himself without the interference of people like Garfiel. But out of duty, he'd taken up their lives along with his own.
The young knight had willingly chosen to forsake his life on their behalf.
That was that. They'd finally gotten a glimpse into the horror that was Natsuki Subaru.
Despite his unending admiration for the dedication behind Subaru's actions, the whole thing just didn't sit well with the young demi-human.
It defied human nature to live the way Subaru did.
To the point where Garfiel felt like their entire relationship was a lie.
Not one of maliciousness, no, he would never think Subaru capable of deliberately harming a single one of them. His actions had proven that time and time again.
But it was a lie, nonetheless.
And that lie existed to protect them. To protect the relationship they believed they had with Subaru.
When Natsuki Subaru Returned By Death, immediately feigning normalcy as if nothing was wrong. When he stifled the urge to scream, to let out the pain and suffering he'd felt by simply existing in their presence, he was denying them.
Until now, Garfiel thought that he knew who the 'real Garfiel' was. But clearly, he'd been wrong.
Only Subaru knew.
And he denied them completely.
Made them into better people. Happier people.
Letting them believe that their growth had been all their own. No. . .if anything, he made them believe they'd been good people from the start. How cruel a realization this viewing had been. . . It snatched away all Garfiel had come to believe about himself.
. . .But what had Subaru done wrong?
When one sees dogshit on the side of the road, one's instinct is to clean it off the sidewalk. Or at the very worst, keep walking and let someone else deal with it.
Subaru rejected both premises.
He went above and beyond to change them into something better, leaving him no target for his anger.
"Stop pacing Garf. You're blocking the screen."
Ram, another culprit behind one of Subaru's deaths, spoke these words with little to no emotion in her voice. She, just like several others, understood why Garfiel was angry.
"Didn't th' voice say we'r done? Th're s'no point n'watchin' more f'this!"
Garfiel clenched his teeth together, growling out the last sentence through his bout of self-loathing. Everything that needed to be confirmed had been confirmed, hadn't it? Would showing them even more examples of Subaru being butchered make them any less pieces of scum? Or were some of them still in denial?
If anyone was still doubting it by this point, there really was no hope for them in the first place.
"But the fact remains that there is moooore to watch."
And the worst possible person decided that now was the perfect time to interject!
"Shut yer' mouth! Th' last one f'us needin' confirmation s'you!"
The only one of them who knew of Subaru's ability, and the one who actively took advantage of it. His words held absolutely no weight in this conversation.
"I agree with Garfiel-dono. Continuing to watch these 'episodes' would be distasteful."
Crusch shot a poorly-masked glare at Roswaal whilst voicing her support for Garfiel's implicit suggestion. However, she had different reasons than Garfiel.
For starters, knowing they'd been completely caught up to the present meant that whatever they saw on the screen now likely had nothing to do with Subaru's power. Crusch felt somewhat entitled to the context surrounding his loops as he'd used it to influence her actions in the past. Learning the truth was only for her to equalize the playing ground. In which case, their weak justification for invading his privacy was gone.
What they'd done here was tantamount to invading the young boy's mind and it didn't sit well with her at all.
Additionally, Crusch could tell how much Roswaal yearned for more information to pop up on the screen. If she could deny him that luxury, even if it was just so she could be petty, she'd absolutely follow through on it.
"I don't believe we have a choice in the matter, I suppose."
The drill-haired spirit loli reminded the fuming Garfiel and glaring Crusch that nobody even agreed to come here in the first place. It would be weird for the warden to let them go before they'd finished showing them everything.
"Why don't we put it to a vote then?"
Anastasia cheerily suggested a plan of her own, possibly to sow conflict amongst the remaining viewers that she could later try taking advantage of. However, nobody even gave a glance in her direction.
". . .-hk! Hey ya' know what? Ya'll are no fun!"
The previously upbeat merchant was now pouting with a hint of embarrassment at being ignored, even by her own knight. Her hands aggressively stroked the fox scarf around her neck, from which Ricardo swore he heard whispered pleas for mercy.
"Mineself wouldn't engage in such frivolities as it suggests mine perfect opinion should hold the same weight as you street scum!"
Never missing the chance to throw in a jab at her competitors, Priscilla made her taunting remark while side-eyeing the Felt Camp with a devious smirk on her face. The target not being lost on anyone.
"That bitch. . ."
Felt growled under her breath, but since she'd long become used to Priscilla's obnoxious behavior, she was able to calm herself down.
"E-Eh. . .?"
Emilia, who was still clinging to the unconscious Subaru, started to see a slight flicker of light on the previously black screen.
"What was that, Emilia-sama?"
Reinhard stood up and walked over to where Emilia was sitting, hoping to get a look at whatever it was she just saw.
"U-Umm, I'm not certain, but I believe I just saw a quick flash appear across the screen!"
The red-haired knight raised an eyebrow at this suggestion, and promptly scanned the room for any signs of the warden or clues for whatever it was they were being shown.
*A-hem*
"Warden! Please tell us why we haven't been sent home yet! If we are to watch yet another episode, can you at least tell us what it will be about?"
Reinhard, who'd just cleared his throat loud enough to get the attention of everyone in the theater, called on the Warden to explain to them why they'd chosen to go back on their promise of waking up Subaru by the end of Arc 4 (as well as sending them home).
". . . . . . . ."
Instead, they were greeted by silence.
*Click*
The sound came from the large screen, in conjunction with the appearance of four short words.
Arc 7, Chapter 52: