Re: Tales from the Multiverse: Option Two

by Ernalore

Subaru, along with his Camp, his rival Camps, his parents, and Meili, have all suddenly teleported into a theater, controlled by "the Warden". Said Warden has told them that they'd be watching alternate realities, and the Cast would be responsible for what they'd be watching. When everyone saw that the second option mentioned "Subaru's Authority", they chose it, much to his horror.

9. Chapter 9: Strands of Red

Chapter 9: Strands of Red

It was time. Subaru was finally ready to reveal the truth regarding Puck to Emilia until…

… He realized everyone was staring at them.

"Maybe we should take this outside…" Subaru suggested, wanting the reveal to just be the two of them.

Emilia nodded and the two got up from their seats and headed into the halls and made their way to the lounge in the main lobby.

"Subaru, you reeeaaally starting to scare me…." Emilia said nervously. She knew Subaru would never want to hurt her, but sometimes the truth can hurt.

"I know, and I'm so sorry that I have to tell you this, but it's time you knew." Subaru gave a sigh, and looked Emilia dead in the eye.

"Emilia-tan, have you heard of Puck's title?" Subaru asked, wanting to try to ease Emilia into it.

"Yes. People call him "Beast of the End"." Emilia responded.

"Have you ever wondered how he got that title, or even asked him?" Subaru questioned.

"I did ask Puck once, he said that it represented how strong he was and that he could end battles in an instant." Emilia explained what Puck had told her.

Well, that's not exactly untrue… Subaru thought, before thinking how he should approach this.

Then it hit him.

"Emilia-tan, I think the best way for you to understand what I'm talking about, is for you to hear about one of my worst loops…" Subaru explained, not wanting to tell Emilia, but it was the best way to ensure she would accept the truth.

"The loop where I killed you…" Emilia gasped at the impossible sentence her knight said, but allowed him to continue nevertheless.

"It was during my battle against Sloth and the White Whale, and I had finally made it to the Mansion. I tried to convince you to come with me, but you just… wouldn't listen because you didn't want me to come back." Subaru explained, and Emilia could help but feel that old twinge of self-hatred for not listening to Subaru.

"I thought that maybe Return by Death's reveal would finally get through to you… but…" Subaru remembered the day as if it had been yesterday.

"Your heart was crushed." Emilia gasped at the new information. She now knew why Subaru had been so determined to keep Return by Death a secret.

"I was so distraught that I asked Beako to kill me, wanting to reset and try again, but she sent me somewhere else instead… right by Sloth's lair. I tried to protect you, despite knowing it wouldn't have been of any use, and then… Puck appeared." Emilia felt a bit of hope, but it was soon dashed when she saw Subaru's expression.

"He killed all the cultists except Sloth, who tried to use his Unseen hands to crush him… And that's when Puck took on his gigantic beast form. He began to freeze everything, and blamed me for what happened. For coming back to the mansion against your wishes and accidentally killing you, Puck wasn't going to let me live." Emilia couldn't imagine Puck wishing harm on Subaru, even if she died.

"I mean, I couldn't blame him for killing who he considered a daughter, but what he said next is why I stopped liking him…"

""As per our Contract, I shall now destroy the world"." Emilia's heart stopped as she heard Subaru say that.

No. That's not possible. He wouldn't! Puck would never do that!

And yet… one look from her knight told her that he said nothing but the truth.

"But… why…?" Her voice was nearly broken as she spoke.

"Puck has a single minded obsession with you, not unlike how Beatrice was obsessed with finding "that Person". So, if you died, Puck would attempt to destroy the world by freezing it. It happened multiple times during my battle against Sloth, so it's not a fluke."

"But… no… He wouldn't… Puck would never…" Emilia couldn't feel the tears running down her cheeks, causing Subaru to pull her into a hug.

"I know… I'm so sorry I had to tell you, Emilia-tan. I really wish Puck wasn't like how he actually is, but reality is often harsh…" Emilia could only wrap her arms around Subaru and cry into his shoulder as he continued to hold her.

After a few minutes of holding onto each other, Emilia finally calmed down and let go of Subaru, who did the same.

"Are you alright, Emilia-tan?" Subaru asked, concerned for his liege.

"I… don't know." Emilia admitted, "Until I hear from Puck himself, I don't think I can fully accept it."

Subaru looked a bit downtrodden at what she said.

"But I also know you wouldn't lie about something like this." Subaru looked up to see Emilia's soft expression. It was then Subaru knew Emilia trusted him, despite all the secrets he kept.

"How about we head back. Maybe the next options will help take your mind off things?" Subaru suggested, and got a nod from the half-elf. "I mean, the last one wasn't so bad, right?"

"I… suppose not… Subaru?"

"Yes, Emilia-tan?"

"When we next go on break… would you mind telling me about Satella?" Emilia's request surprised Subaru.

"Eh? Why do you ask?" Emilia put her hand over her mouth.

"Well… a lot of reasons I guess. Satella looks… exactly like me, she seems so fond of you, and you said that you wanted to save her… I guess… I want to know her story." Subaru raised an eyebrow.

"I want to know why Satella did what she did, and what kind of person she actually is."

"Well, I'm still figuring out the first one, but I wouldn't mind telling you about when I met her at the Sanctuary."

"Promise?" Emilia asked.

"I know I'm not the best at keeping promises, but I'll do my best to hold you to it." Subaru chuckled a bit.

"Subaruuuu!"

Soon enough, Subaru and Emilia headed back to the Theater, ready to see what new options awaited them.

"Hey, guys, what'd we miss?"

"Ah, Subaru, we're currently debating which option to choose," Julius said.

"Sweet," the black-haired boy smiled. "What do we get?"

Subaru and Emilia turned to look at the screen…

What if Subaru Natsuki met Subaru Natsuki?

OR

What if Subaru Natsuki's memories were eaten?

… and it was not pleasant.

"Oh come on!" Subaru yelled in frustration as he and Emilia returned to their seats.

"Al! Can we get the conditions?"

"Yeah, sure."

Conditions: Occurs after the Everlasting Contract.

References "the Original".

Hector escaped his Seal in Elior Forest.

Conditions: Occurs after the Corridor of Memories.

"Corridor of Memories? What the hell is that?" Subaru wondered. "Hey, Rein, you ever heard of this "Corridor" it's talking about?"

"I'm afraid not, Subaru." Reinhard gave a simple response.

"So, the second option… is Gluttony eating my memories? So, I get amnesia?" While, yes, getting your memories eaten was technically a bad thing, he had a lot of bad memories he wouldn't mind forgetting.

"So, essentially, you become like Crusch-sama before coming here," Felix said.

"I mean… Other than forgetting everything, I can't see a downside to that. Besides, the first one seems like an evil clone one to me, so… who votes for the second option?"

The majority of the Cast voted for the second option.

What if Subaru Natsuki's memories were eaten?

Conditions: Occurs after the Corridor of Memories.

It wasn't until the next morning when Reinhard picked out a tiny detail that was different. Standing there on the outer wall of the city was a brown-haired woman. She looked faint at this distance. Reinhard had no idea who the woman was.

Why is she on the walls like that? Reinhard's sense of duty called him to investigate. He stood up grasping the Dragon Sword in his right hand.

"Huh," Subaru surmised. "So far, so good. It's just Reinhard patrolling."

"Yes, it appears that this will be another peaceful one," Julius said.

"Oh, thank goodness," Rem sighed in relief.

"No, it won't," Crusch said. "While it may appear safe for now, there's still the fact that Subaru will lose his memories. Nothing about that is going to be peaceful."

The green-haired woman grounded everyone back into reality, as they prepared themselves for whatever the screen would throw at them. Too bad it wouldn't do them any good.

It wasn't until Reinhard had walked for a few minutes that he was able to discern something odd about the woman. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. And it was bound at even intervals. It almost looked like a scorpion tail.

Reinhard's blue eyes widened. A memory flashed in his mind. A city flooded beneath him. He stood opposite to a man with white hair. At his side was the very woman that Reinhard now saw on the walls of the Capital.

"Scorpion tail?" Ram repeated.

"Oh my goodness!" Frederica gasped in horror.

In an instant of Ram asking, everyone saw the on-screen's Reinhard flashback to something horrible. They hadn't seen a flashback like that since the first episode.

"What the fuck did we just see in that flashback?" Al asked.

"A flood, an' a white-haired man with th' girl," Anastasia answered.

That's her, Shaula. Reinhard's heart grew even emptier. He was about to fail again. No dread rose within him however. He was used to failing. But that didn't mean he would just let the Capital burn without a fight.

Reinhard's grip tightened on the Dragon Sword. His knees bent. He gathered power in his legs, readying himself to attack the Sage.

"Wait? Shaula? As in… the Great Sage?!" Tivey asked in horror.

"But th' Great Sage izza dude! Right?" Garfiel asked.

"Not according ta this," Ricardo answered.

I can't fail… but I probably will anyway… but I still can't let this happen. Reinhard began to jump, but before he could fully extend his legs and rocket forward, the Capital burst into flames.

Not a single sign had been given in warning. The city was perfectly fine, then the next instant it was consumed with roaring flames.

Everyone was silent as they watched various parts of the Capital begin to be lit aflame, just like how they were with the Sin Archbishop of Pride.

A few of them wondered in abject horror if what they were seeing was similar to the world of that monster in more than simple aesthetical coincidences.

One person in the Theater, however, was wondering something different. That version of me was thinking to himself that he would fail. Almost that it's happened again…

Reinhard stumbled forward. What tiny amount of resolve or hope that he still had left was crushed. He could hear it clearly as the Capital began to burn.

The wood caught fire first. Then the people followed quickly after.

Screams burst into Reinhard's ears from kilometers away. The Sword Saint felt his body crumple. Emptiness and despair filled him anew. They began to overflow within him.

"MAMA!" The voice of a little girl rang out in Reinhard's ears. I need to save what I can. But I'm just going to fail. But I have to.

"This was a planned attack," Crusch hissed.

I'm the Sword Saint, right? Am I really, though… Do I deserve that title?

The screams continued to claw at Reinhard's mind. It doesn't matter. I have to save them.

Before Reinhard noticed it he rocketed forwards. His body was propelled forward by his legs. The city approached quickly. After only a few seconds he landed at the front gate of the city.

He shoved the gate open and rushed into the burning city.

No one said anything as they watched more and more buildings catch fire from the upper pan-out shot of the entire Capital of Lugnica.

It was only once the intro began to play that some life returned to the Theater.

Opening Theme: Polaris

The opening begins with a bright and shining light, as a child's hand reaches for it. The hand then changes to an older one, with a very familiar tracksuit sleeve. The hand changes once more, to one wearing a knight's uniform.

"You know, now that I think about it," Al said. "This intro is really inappropriate."

"How so?" Kenichi asked.

"The music seems super happy, and given what we just saw, and probably what we are about to see, it might be jarring," the helmeted knight explained. "It's kinda like playing a horror movie trailer before a kids movie begins, ya feel me?"

"A little, I guess."

The screen then shows multiple rapid still images. From when he encountered Satella in Japan, to fighting off several Mabeasts, to burning down the Capital. Him and Emilia as children in Elior Forest. Subaru in dark clothes sitting on a throne of shadows. Otto drinking with the female Subaru. Shaula with Elsa and Meili. Halibel with Zarestia. Volcanica and Reid. A smiling Rem. All of these images become background noise to…

Tales from the Multiverse

Volume II

The next shot shows Subaru, along with the rest of the Emilia Camp and the members of the other Camps, looking off into the distance, as Garfiel smiles maniacally. In an instant, the camera changes to show Volcanica, Shaula, Reid Astrea and Alec Hoshin all sitting together, while the next shot shows a silver-haired half-elf in dark clothes, all by herself in a grassy field, holding a black veil next to her, facing away from the camera.

The next shot shows a smiling Echidna, along with the rest of the Witches of Sin, posing for the camera, along with Elsa, Meili, Halibel, Zarestia, Shion, Flop, Medium, Cecilus Segmunt, Vincent Vollachia, and Ryuzu Meyer, all of them smiling happily.

"Hey, doesn't that brown-haired girl look familiar?" Otto asked.

"Yeah, you're right!" Petra exclaimed. "But where have we seen her before?"

Both Roswaal and Subaru had a theory, but they both kept quiet for the moment.

In a long shot, multiple figures appear, all of them moving on and off the screen in rapid succession. First, a smiling Stride Vollachia, followed by a charging Regulus. As the Sin Archbishop gets off the screen, Capella and Zarerstia appear, facing off one another, followed by Halibel and Cecilus. The O'Connell twins appear, followed by the Gluttony triplets of Lye, Roy, and Louis. Shion passes through them, along with Theresia van Astrea, followed by Shaula, Reid and Volcanica. The long shot ends when the dust clears, revealing Pandora and Subaru, both of them engaging in combat.

After all these episodes, we still haven't seen a single mention of Pandora, Subaru sighed.

As the two of them hug and crash down, the scene fades to show Subaru and Satella standing up, and beside them are Echidna and the rest of the Witches of Sin. Softly smiling, Subaru holds onto Satella's hand, giving a determined look, as all eight of them run toward the sunset, with the final shot of the opening being a still image of the eight of them leaping across the screen, all of them smiling.

Episode 8:

Strands of Red

"It's alright, just grab my hand." A few minutes later as the city burned around him, Reinhard attempted to soothe the fears of the small child in front of him. The young boy offered no response. His eyes stared up at Reinhard. Nothing lay in those eyes. No innocence, no guilt, no sadness, all that the Sword Saint could see in those eyes was pain.

Even a man as worthless as him could see exactly where that pain came from. The boy's right arm was practically melted off. The sight and smell of the ashen limb were not what disturbed Reinhard. What truly disturbed him was the boy's silence.

Naoko held her hand over her mouth. "Oh my God, I'm going to be sick…"

"Why? Why isn't he screaming in pain?" Felix asked, his hands begging to heal what he was seeing on this screen. But he couldn't. He knew that from the previous episodes.

"It's almost like he was expecting this…" Roswaal muttered to himself. But why? What could have possibly happened that would make the average citizen accept their death like that?

No screams of pain ripped loose from the boy, and no tears rolled down his face. A hiss pricked Reinhard's eardrums. His eyes snapped open and he reached out. His right arm blocked the boy.

A burning white light entered Reinhard's vision. It rapidly grew closer. I can't fail here, not here. His blue eyes jumped to the young boy. I need to save what I can. I can't fail anymore. The blast of light slammed into his outstretched palm. His white-glove sizzled. The muscles in his arm tightened, and the light drained from the air.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Meili shouted in shock.

"It was the attacker!" Mimi yelled out in realization.

"But who?" Wilhelm asked. "Who in the world has that kind of power?!"

That was the question everyone was asking.

Soon all that remained in his hand was a small stinger. Reinhard stepped in front of the boy, and he directed his eyes in the direction the attack had come from. Using his Divine Protection enhanced eyesight he caught a glimpse of a woman.

The woman was barely wearing any clothes. Her chestnut hair rolled in the breeze. She looked happy as if fulfilled. Though it was difficult for Reinhard to gauge her expression; however, what wasn't difficult to notice was her outstretched hands and the light that glowed within them.

He readied his legs and prepared to kill the woman, but her hands stopped glowing. The woman turned, and Reinhard could just barely make out a hand on her shoulder.

"WAIT A FUCKING MINUTE!" Subaru realized, as he recognized the chestnut-haired woman. "We've seen that girl! She was with Reid and Volcanica in the intro! Twice now!"

"Oh my gosh!" Emilia gasped. "You're right, Subaru!"

"That's Shaula?" Garfiel asked. "Huh. Guess tha' says somehtin' about assumin'."

"But who stopped her?" Beatrice asked.

"My money is on the white-haired guy from Rein's memory," Felt growled.

Someone is capable of commanding the Great Sage like that?! Roswaal shuddered in fear.

The Sword Saint's face curled in agony, he turned around and grasped the hand of the boy he had protected. "It's going to be okay, we just have to get to the palace." He tried to add a soothing tone to his voice. Not a single person could fail to notice the weakness in Reinhard's voice. A small light of pity appeared in the eyes of the child Reinhard had protected.

Reinhard didn't notice the look in the child's eyes and instead focused on the great castle at the center of the city, which was strangely untouched by the fire. It doesn't matter, I just need to get there. I need to trust all my decisions to the kingdom, otherwise, I'll fail. I can't be trusted.

The screams of a woman emanated from a nearby house. He looked at the child who was grasping his hand. I shouldn't make decisions, but I… I can't leave them. He rushed into the building leaving the child alone.

After a few seconds, he emerged with a middle-aged woman in his arms. She was coughing violently from all the smoke in her lungs. I need to keep them safe. Reinhard's eyes looked to the two individuals he'd saved. He couldn't see it but his eyes had changed from the eyes of a corpse. I can't fail anymore. I can't.

Reinhard now possessed the eyes of a drowning man grasping at whatever he could.

Everyone was still in horror of what they were seeing. Slowly but surely, more and more fires were appearing on the screen, as the Capital began looking more and more like the one Pride set, all in an effort to break Reinhard and to have Emilia kill him.

They hoped that's where the similarities ended.

Hours later Reinhard stood at the base of the palace. He looked upon the group he'd rescued. They numbered nearly eighty now. If he could've then Reinhard would've saved far more, but if he left any group of people for too long then the scorpion-haired woman would've killed all that he'd been able to save.

Once more Reinhard's godlike power could do nothing. But to his guilt, he knew that if he wanted to he could've probably killed the woman, but he was just so tired. And it wouldn't have mattered anyway, after all, he would only fail again. There was barely a point in trying to succeed anymore. But that slim possibility of success remained.

"Tired?" Priscilla asked. "The Sword Saint refuses to kill her… because he's tired?"

"Yeah, that doesn't make sense," Al said. "Can he even get tired?"

"The narration isn't talking about physical exhaustion," Ram explained. "Whatever has happened, it has happened so many times that Reinhard is mentally exhausted."

It boggled many a mind that the Sword Saint could be exhausted like that.

As his eyes passed over the group he thought that maybe his small human hands would finally be able to do something.

After a few seconds, he turned and led the group through the great castle gates. His body felt heavy, though he had no trouble moving it. The Sword Saint's watchful blue eyes stared across the horizon. He couldn't let Shaula destroy this group.

With solemn eyes, Reinhard realized that these were some of the last remnants of the Capital. The rest of the population had either burned or been put down by those white blasts.

"Wh-what?" Emilia teared up at the sound of that.

"No way," Felix said. "That's gotta bye an exaggeration, right? Right?!"

Even the Sin Archbishop of Pride's fire would have left more people alive than… just that, Subaru thought to himself, trying to make sure the bile stayed in his stomach.

"What kind of monster would do such a thing…?" Petra asked, holding Frederica.

"And what does it have to do with Natsuki-san losing his memories?" Otto continued.

I failed, didn't I? Reinhard continued to walk forward, a tiny ember of hope glowing in his eyes.

A few minutes of careful travel later his group was able to make it to the Royal Castle. Reinhard stood in front of the great doors. He forced a look of strength onto his face and pushed the doors open.

It didn't take long for a mass of noise to slam into him. Screams of agony, cries of grief, coughing from too much smoke, searches for lost loved ones, and a final sound reigned over the room. The quiet sound of despair. Many stared forward with empty eyes. It was the sound of silent anguish.

"Try and find any of your loved ones, I need to go speak with the Queen." Reinhard tried to push a soothing smile onto his face, but he only succeeded in grimacing. He left the group without another word.

"Queen?" Ricardo asked.

"Someone won the Royal Selection," Julius said in realization.

"But who?" Naoko asked. No one seemed to know the answer.

Reinhard staggered over to the throne of Lugunica. It had once been an ornate seat, but now it was stained with dust, and the gold hadn't been polished in years. All that remained was a cloudy remnant of what it had once been. Just like the woman who now sat upon it.

"What the hell happened here…?" Meili whispered in horror.

The Throne Room of Lugnica was in ruins. Soot and ash cornered the entire room, just like the throne itself, as rubble and tattered flags decorated the room. All of the chairs and tables that once held the Council of Elders were either gone, or destroyed.

This sacred room now looked like Hell on Earth.

Emilia gasped in recognition. This looks just like my Third Trial…

The head of Lugnica's ruler was laid low. Her orange hair was covered in a mess of soot and grime. With all the excess people in the room, he assumed that she'd rushed into the city, and her hair had been stained by ash.

The style of the hair had slipped as well, it was no longer tied up in a complex work of braids, now it hung down the woman's back. The hair itself was a disheveled mess of knots. The Queen hadn't brushed, cared for it, or even cut it in years.

Garfiel squinted a bit. "Wait a fuckin' minute, izzat –?"

"Princess!" Al gasped.

Priscilla was silent as she looked at her counterpart. She could hardly believe that they were both the same person. The on-screen version of her looked like she either grew up in the Slums, or was one of the few survivors of some ongoing world war.

And she was the fucking ruler of this country?!

What could have possibly happened to make mineself stoop so low?

Her neck twitched slightly. So she's noticed me. Reinhard decided not to intrude on the woman's thoughts. Instead, he stood at attention and waited for her to address him. Maybe she'll punish me for my failure.

As soon as the thought of his failure touched his mind Reinhard focused on the sound of fire outside of the castle. His nose could smell the ash that had been dragged in by the rescued citizens.

I failed. I failed. I failed.

His cloudy blue eyes glimpsed outside of the grand windows. It didn't take him long to realize that there was no real city out there. Only a still burning mess.

He had failed in the final mission his Queen had assigned to him. He hadn't protected the city. Reinhard's knees weakened. His face twisted inwards. He looked to be in agony. Tears pounded at the back of his eyes.

His guilt finally settled in.

I failed. I failed. He tried to hold the tears at bay, but just like everything else he tried to do. He failed in the end. His knees bent inward until he hit the ground with a crack of bone striking tile. Tears filled his blue eyes, and water drifted down the Sword Saint's face.

"His final mission?" Rem asked.

"Tha' means tha' whatever threat Shaula an' th' white-haired dude pose has been a long one, one that has managed ta evade th' Sword Saint fer so long," Ricardo guessed.

It was then when they saw something else.

Reinhard crying.

No one had ever really seen the Sword Saint cry, just like they never saw him tired. It was one of those things they considered impossible, despite the fact that he was a person, just like the rest of them. This was just like seeing Reinhard furious when confronting Pride.

Only somehow, seeing this was far worse.

Sobs began to escape the Sword Saint. He failed. He wasn't a monster like his grandfather had once called him, no he didn't deserve the title of monster. Monsters succeed in their horrible actions. And Reinhard couldn't even succeed in his good actions.

As his wails grew louder his body began to tremble. He couldn't even cry in a dignified manner. "I'm sorry." He managed to squeeze in the apology through his weeping.

"I'm sorry." He continued to sob. Guilt overwhelming him, "I failed. I failed. Please don't forgive me, I don't deserve it. I'm a failure. I'm worthle–"

A soft hand landed on his red hair. "Reinhard." It was a light voice. It sounded humbled, yet a tiny hint of confidence peaked through. The Queen lifted her face. Tears rolled down her cheeks, though she wasn't sobbing like the Sword Saint.

"What the fuck," Subaru said out loud, and everyone agreed with his sentiment.

Wilhelm was sorely regretting the things he had called his grandson. He knew that they influenced his behavior, but to this degree? The only monsters the Sword Demon could see was the white-haired bastard that controlled Shaula and himself. Oh, and probably Roswaal.

The second thing that everyone saw that was completely insane was Priscilla crying. The Vollachian Matriarch was prideful to a fault, it was impossible to see any emotion out of her that wasn't either smug arrogance or subtle wrath.

She didn't even show a hint of fear whenever she was threatened by Subaru.

What sort of monster were they dealing with that could make Priscilla cry?

Her eyes met Reinhard's. Those eyes had once possessed a great fire. Now they barely even held an ember. The fire in the woman had been doused by anguish.

"Mineself o-orders you to abandon your despair." She tried to sound arrogant and commanding, but she could barely muster up the tone. Even without the air of command the woman had once held, her words still affected Reinhard.

Priscilla watched in horror, looking at this mirror-version of herself. She looked weak, and the filth all over her wasn't doing her any favors. She was stuttering, like she was afraid, or more accurately, ready to die of fright. In short, she was weak.

And if there was one thing Priscilla Barielle hated, it was weakness.

The Sword Saint's eyes dried up. With great effort, he pushed himself to his feet. "Y-yes, Priscilla-sama."

"Now then," She hesitated for a brief moment, "Go keep watch of all of them." Her left hand gestured to where the many people, that she and Reinhard had saved, were resting.

The orange-haired woman stood up from her throne. She turned to walk towards her chambers.

"Are there any other orders, Priscilla-sama?"

The Queen turned back to him. "Just… keep them safe for mineself." Priscilla Barielle walked off without another word to the Sword Saint.

Reinhard slowly spun from the woman and looked towards the group of people the two had saved. His cloudy blue eyes gazed upon them. This is my true last task.

What do I do if I fail…? It was a question that Reinhard knew the answer to.

"It's like your expecting to fuck-up," Felt said.

"Considering how many times I actually have, I would say that this version of me is expecting to… "fuck up" as you put it aptly," the redheaded knight told his mistress.

While everyone heard the Sword Saint cursing, they really didn't have the energy to call it out, considering what exactly they were watching. There really was no time for jokes.

Priscilla Barielle gazed into the mirror. Her red eyes stared at her own image. Maybe once she would've grown angry at the disheveled reflection she saw, but she hadn't felt real anger in a long time.

Tears filled the corners of her eyes. She didn't try and wipe them away, after all, she didn't care about her appearance. A tiny hint of disgust arose in her stomach.

Don't we still have our pride? A small voice whispered it into the back of Priscilla's mind.

"Pride…" She whispered it softly to herself. The sound of blood splashing exploded within her mind. Pink chunks of brain matter splattered across her dress. Fragments of metal clattered against the ground. The body of a one-armed man collapsed to the blood-covered tiles. A scorpion stinger buried itself in the wall.

"What the fuck did we just see…?" Otto let out.

"Was that… me?" Al squeaked out.

No, that's impossible, he told himself. My Authority would refuse to let me die like that. Unless… I didn't activate in time. But how?! Who the fuck would be able to… predict…

The helmeted knight slowly turned to look at the tracksuit-wearing boy.

Acceptance had already taken her as she summoned her Yang blade and jumped into the hallway. She'd rushed into the city of Picoutatte without hesitation. She'd heard reports of a white-haired young man in the area. Unfortunately, there had been identical reports in Ganaks on the other side of the country. So Reinhard had been sent to investigate those.

Priscilla already knew which reports had been correct. The remnants of Al's brain in her hair proved it. The city catching fire before her eyes only drove the point home.

Once she saw the rising flames she'd rushed back inside to try and find Schult. Within only a minute of searching, she found the pink-haired boy. A hole burned in the spot where his heart should've been. A scorpion stinger buried in the wall behind him.

Priscilla's mind snapped back into reality. She panted softly. Water dripped from her eyes and onto the ground.

The world works in our favor, right? Her own voice questioned again.

A soft chuckle emanated from the girl. It was a sound filled with pain. "The world doesn't care about mineself. I was an idiot for ever thinking it did."

A white-haired boy appeared in her mind. His left eye danced around crazily. He sat on the throne of Vollachia. A scantily clad woman stood next to him.

"Maybe if I act like I'm the top of the world then I can get closer to really being on top. And I can move closer to patching together Subaru Natsuki."

"That voice…"

"N-No…"

"It couldn't…"

"S-Subaru…?"

The Holy Empire of Vollachia didn't last six months after that boy sat on the throne.

Everyone turned to look at Subaru. He did what to Vollachia?

He was still staring at the screen, trying to comprehend what he just heard. He wiped out the entirety of the Capital, he eviscerated a neighboring country, and he…

…he killed so many. Far more than Pride ever did.

"The world doesn't work in mine favor. It works in his." The Queen of Lugnica, Priscilla Barielle, hobbled away from the mirror. Her gaze filled with despair.

Anyone who saw her would think she was nothing more than a commoner.

"The intro," the Japanese teenager realized.

"What?" Emilia asked, as everyone turned to look at Subaru, as Al paused the viewing.

"Do you remember what we saw in the very first intro? Seven different versions of me. One of them was wearing a Witch Cult outfit, one was wearing a black kimono and scarf…"

"...and one of them had snow-white hair," Reinhard ended his sentence.

"No way!" Petra denied what she heard. "You would never do something so evil!"

"I wouldn't be so sure," Roswaal said. "Pride burned down the Capital, and the Purge King murdered many with the flip of a coin. Not only that, but they were also masters of recruiting powerful individuals to their cause. Elsa Granhiert, Halibel, Zarestia…"

Everyone looked at the clown with a mix of anger and sickness as they heard the logic. They hated it, because they knew it was the truth. They had seen it with their own eyes.

"Not only that, but we've seen that these Subarus also have a history of antagonizing entire countries… and the Sword Saint in particular. They also have a tendency to murder members of the Royal Selection, or at least those who are closet related to them."

No one could dispute the mage. He was right. It was a pattern they were all too familiar with. Whenever a Subaru had so much power, the end-result would be… a monster.

Quietly, they all sat back down, as Al played the viewing once more. They all prepared themselves to see their friend as their worst nightmare, once more.

On the other side of the castle, Reinhard stood alone at the doors of the Throne Room. He was inside the grand hall watching the rescued people. He needed to keep a close watch on them to make sure they weren't killed. They were the last people he had a chance to protect. And he couldn't fail now, or…

His blue eyes flicked to his belt. His arm seemed to gravitate towards what lay there.

"Reinhard." The soft voice of Priscilla entered his ears. The last knight of Lugnica forced a slight smile onto his face.

"The last knight…?!" Crusch gasped in horror.

Subaru was silent, as he understood what that meant. He killed them. He killed them all. He killed all of them but Reinhard. He killed Felix. He killed Julius. He even killed Wilhelm.

"Priscilla-sama." He bowed his head to the Queen.

"How are they doing?" She gestured to the ashen group. Her eyes looked downtrodden, especially as she gazed towards a child that was sitting alone. No parents in sight.

"Not well, my lady." Reinhard's voice rang with regret, "I… failed, didn't I?" Self-loathing peaked into his tone.

"I think… we failed." She couldn't bear to offer him any reassurance. Or even look at him, guilt overwhelmed her and the once fiery princess walked towards the orphan boy that was standing alone.

As everyone watched as Priscilla tried to comfort the orphan, Julius looked at Subaru.

Once more, the black-haired, or in this case, the white-haired boy, became a monster. He burned down their nation once more, he recruited living calamites to his cause, and he murdered millions. What was stopping him from doing the same –?!

"Don't you see? We have been given an opportunity to help him, to not have him take on his burden alone! You shouldn't be afraid of him for what he could do, you should be happy that he hasn't gone down that path yet, and you should be helping him stay the course!"

The memory of Reinhard slapping the purple-haired knight back during their break had come back to him. He could only look at himself in shame. He was back to blaming Subaru for a situation that was out of control. Whatever happened in that reality, it was Gluttony's fault.

The Greatest Knight vowed that he wouldn't let that happen in their reality.

Only moments later Priscilla stood above the lonely child. She let off a hesitant aura.

"Hello there," she whispered softly to the young orphan boy.

The boy turned to her, and as soon as his eyes met hers something flashed in Priscilla's vision. It was Schult's form jumping out at her from her memories. She recoiled back. Her eyes snapped open. A pink-haired body stared up at her.

The woman breathed in and out rapidly her mind seemed to be shaking. Guilt suffused her. I failed. Mine luck failed. Why did mineself count on luck?

The orphan boy stared into her eyes. His eyes held the same emptiness that Schult's had once possessed. I was able to help Schult, wasn't I? Schult's eyes had regained their light while he was serving her.

I helped Schult, can I help him? Priscilla reached out to the boy. Her hand trembled with hesitation. "Hey…" Her voice tapered off before she could say anything more. The boy simply stared at her. His eyes were vacant.

I don't know what to do, a humble voice spoke within her.

What happened to the world working in our favor? a prideful voice whispered into her mind.

What happened to our pride?

I found out that I was wrong, a tortured voice trembled. And Pride only got me Aldebaran's shattered helmet.

"Schult?" Petra asked.

"My attendant," the Vollachian Matriarch answered. "He grew up in a small farming village in mine domain. He was starving, and mineself took him in as mine servant. I even gave him his name. He has been a loyal servant ever since then."

Tears rolled down Priscilla's face as she thought of the knight. She had never cried for him until a few years after his death. When she'd been unable to hold the tears in anymore. And now she cried for him regularly.

The disheveled Queen stood up. She wrapped her arms around herself and began to walk from the room. Weeping.

You abandoned your pride. And now you clamber around wrapped in melancholy. Priscilla felt disgust form in the back of her mind. Truly this humility has helped the world. Memories of the burning Capital flashed in Priscilla's mind.

I failed. The world works in his favor. I failed. She tried to ignore the contradiction in those two statements.

So you stopped truly trying. The little piece of the old Priscilla that still remained screamed out. You let the world work in his favor. I never thought mineself could stoop so low.

"She's torn between her two halves," Naoko said, her voice saddened.

Priscilla herself was now wondering something. If Al or Schult were to die tomorrow, as it was very likely given she was dealing with Subaru Natsuki, would she grieve for them?

A part of her wanted to say no. She was a Vollachian, survival of the fittest was their way. If they were to die, then it was proof of their weakness. But now that she knew that people like Subaru existed, that notion was now thrown out the window.

But there was another part of her that was telling her that she should grieve for those she cared about. But that raised a new question: Did she truly care about them?

Priscilla shut herself off from her mind. When she did this she was forced to confront the anguish of the people she'd rescued. Her head turned slightly, and she glimpsed them in the periphery of her vision. Many of them looked to the ground. Unable to lift even their eyes.

But a rare few, the ones who still possessed some level of hope, were staring directly at Priscilla. What little resolve they still held shattered before her eyes.

We haven't even addressed them. Look at us, the Queen. Running in fear from a room of peasants. Truly despicable.

Priscilla tried to ignore the nagging voice. She flicked her gaze to the Sword Saint. The man was looking at his belt, where a small knife lay. A look of confidence was painted on his face, Priscilla could see right through it. Because she was looking at his eyes instead.

The eyes of the Sword Saint were mostly empty, except for the longing that glinted in them when he stared at the knife on his belt.

Everyone soon realized that the situation for this world was nearly hopeless.

Priscilla and Reinhard. They were two constants that maintained the world's sanity. Priscilla was haughty, and believed that the world revolved around her, and Reinahrd was the pinnacle of human strength, someone capable of overcoming every obstacle.

And all it took to destroy that, to reduce them, along with the populous of Lugnica to less than a hundred refugees, was for one person to lose their memories.

Disgusting. That prideful voice commented.

He isn't… he's not disgusting. Priscilla tried to defend the man.

Mineself was not talking about the Sword Saint. You are disgusting. A fool. A humble simple fool.

Priscilla pushed her body towards her royal chambers. Stop. Please stop.

Look at you, to see mineself begging like a pig. How appalling.

Priscilla forced the doors to her room open. Once she closed the door behind her she fell onto her knees. Sobs escaped from her.

While many would have found watching the prideful Priscilla cry entertaining, within the circumstances and the context of this reality, it was just… wrong.

Priscilla's brain just shut down after seeing that. Seeing herself cry was… it just shouldn't happen. She was strong. She ordered over the weak, and only the wake cried. They cried about their lot in life, while Priscilla staked her claim.

Could she really acknowledge that woman on the screen as her?

Now mineself is weeping on the floor. Truly you are disgusting. After running away from a few commoners.

Priscilla Barielle, you are worse than a commoner.

You are the worst piece of filth that mineself has ever seen. Grasping at feeble straws of hope instead of making your own hope. Do you even have a plan for what to do?

I… She responded to the voice in her head. I'm insane. Priscilla tried to deny the voice in her head and force it down.

Yes, you are so insane that you need your own mind to tell you what to do. Instead of just doing it because the world works in your favor. Now let mineself ask again, do you have a plan?

No… Her sobbing grew louder. Despair overwhelmed her.

"No plan…?" was the collective thought of everyone in the Theater.

The leader of a nation, without a plan?

Then again, if the opponent was Subaru, how could there be a plan?

He was unpredictable. He was smart. He was resilient. He could adapt to any situation. He was determined as can be. In short, Subaru seemed like the ultimate opponent.

The only thing that could stop him was a loss of motivation, and it seemed like he was still motivated, given what he had done earlier in the morning.

Truly worse than any commoner. You are more disgusting than anyone I have ever seen.

Then why don't you take over? Priscilla was humble enough to realize she couldn't do everything. She could feel the disgust towards herself skyrocket.

You want me to take over? I can't believe what mineself has become. It truly amazes me but…

The tears coming from Priscilla's eyes came to a halt.

Mineself has become worse than Subaru Natsuki. The prideful voice in her head sounded smug.

Subaru Natsuki. Priscilla responded. A forgotten tone entered her voice. The once fiery woman reached into the space between her breasts. She grasped and pulled out a small box. It felt heavy in her right hand. Her left hand reached over to grab the top of it. Something glinted in her eyes.

Priscilla cracked open the box. Contained within it was a twisted fragment of steel and a lock of pink hair.

Normally, Al would've thought something perverted upon seeing his princess reached into "that" space, but he could feel nothing. He could think of nothing else but how far his princess had fallen. What's worse, he recognized those items.

That was a piece of his helmet, and Schult's hair.

"Subaru Natsuki." Anger rang out in her voice.

Yes. You are worse than Subaru Natsuki.

Priscilla clasped the fragment of Al's helmet and the lock of Schult's hair. "No, I am not worse than Subaru Natsuki."

If that's the case then why do you disgust mineself more than him? Priscilla asked herself.

You aren't disgusted by mineself. She gripped the piece of Al's helmet. She could imagine his voice at this moment.

"Hello, princess." Her knight whispered. "Or are you a Queen now?"

I've made a horrible mistake choosing this episode… Subaru couldn't help but acknowledge that indisputable fact, as he heard the ghost of Al mocking Priscilla.

And yet, a small part of him had hope that this would have a happy ending.

What do you mean? Why wouldn't I be disgusted in mineself?

Because I said so. A crushed flower blossomed within Priscilla. I am mineself. And the world will work in mine favor.

I will destroy Subaru Natsuki. She held her empty palm out to the side. Warmth filled her hand. Priscilla could feel a weapon at the edge of her mind at the edge of reality. The Yang Sword.

Priscilla set the lock of Schult's hair and the fragment of Al's helmet on her desk.

The once heiress to the throne of Vollachia grasped the Yang Sword from the air. It glowed within her palm.

I will make the world work in mine favor.

"YEAH!" Subaru cheered.

The strawberry blonde looked at the Japanese teenager questioning.

"What? Fuck that guy, he's a genocidal maniac!" the black-haired knight said. "He's somehow worse than Pride, so, honestly, you'll be doing the world a favor getting rid of him!"

"The question is: How?" Roswaal asked. "You sort of can't die."

"Maybe she'll find a way to seal evil Bro away?" Mimi asked.

"Let's hope so," Tivey whispered.

Pride is not the answer. A memory of pink chunks of Al's brain stuck in her hair.

Neither is humility. An image of Reinhard's longing gaze as he stared at his belt knife appeared in her mind.

Maybe the answer is somewhere in between, but it doesn't matter, because I will find it.

Priscilla used the Yang Sword to cut off her soot-stained dress. Without an ounce of hesitation, she strode into her wardrobe and took hold of a familiar red dress.

One by one, everyone in the Theater was beginning to cheer for Priscilla's comeback.

The crimson-eyed monarch chuckled at the irony of it all. She always wanted people to praise her, but they've only done it now that she's beginning to rise up from her own darkness.

Reinhard stared towards the knife on his belt. What purpose do I have? I've failed so many times. He dragged his eyes towards the soot-stained citizens. But, Priscilla-sama gave me one last task. I must protect them.

Reinhard's head snapped up. The sound of confident footsteps rang out from the direction of Priscilla's room. The Sword Saint clenched his fist. Please, don't be Subaru. I… just, please.

"Great, I'm this world's boogeyman," Subaru sighed in exhaustion.

"I can't tell whether o' not if th' Sword Saint is afraid o' Bro, o' he just don't wanna fight him," Ricardo said. "Maybe it's cuz Bro always slips away, o' is it cause they're friends?"

"I doubt I would be friends with him at that point," Reinhard said.

"Yeah, and Reinhard is also unkillable, so it's not like he's afraid of me," Subaru said.

Please, please, I can't fail again. Felt's face burned in the back of his eyes. A thousand other faces flashed through his mind. I can't fail.

I died, a small part of Felt whispered in her head. Again.

Oh, shit, I killed that many in front of Rein? Subaru realized. That's fucked up.

Then, everyone seized up as they saw their own faces after seeing all of those civilians. Hell, the only faces who weren't featured were Reinahrd, Subaru, Priscilla, Noako and Kenichi.

But Emilia? There. Beatrice? Also there. Ram, Petra, and Frederica? Also there.

Roswaal. Crusch. Wilhelm. Otto. Garfiel. Julius. Felix. Ricardo. Al. Anastasia. Mimi. Tivey. Felt. Meili. Even people who weren't in the Theater were there. Hetaro. Old Man Rom. Annerose. Climb. Ryuzu. Joshua. Heinkel. Ton. Chin. Kan. Ezzo. Flam. Grassis. Milde. Muraosa. Mild. Cain. Dine. Lucas. Meina. Miklotov. Bordeaux. Marcos. Grimm. Carol. Appa Guy. Plum.

SUBARU HAD KILLED ALL OF THEM, AND MORE.

Subaru was secretly grateful that Rem wasn't one of the flashes, but a small part of him knew it was only because this version of Reinhard forgot she even existed to begin with.

Reinhard forced his face into a piercing expression. But it looked more like the face of a child trying to look strong. And everyone would be able to easily see the exhaustion and self-loathing hidden behind his cloudy blue eyes.

The strong footsteps grew closer. Reinhard readied his body to attack in the case that this was Subaru.

The footsteps stopped at the doors behind the throne. Reinhard's body tightened, and his eyes narrowed.

The doors slammed open. Standing behind them was a single woman. She wore an ornate red dress. The same one she had worn at the Royal Selection announcement. The dress fit her body perfectly. It was perfect except for where on the left edge of the dress, near where the cloth gave way to her collarbone, an odd pin stood out.

"Now that's how someone makes a comeback," Subaru smiled.

"How do you know that, Subaru-kun?"

"You were there for mine, Rem," the black-haired boy smiled.

Rem blushed, and given the situation they were in, it was well-worth it.

It was a makeshift pin, it had only been made minutes before after all. A steel sheen rose from it. Reinhard could see that it was a fragment of a metal helmet. Another color highlighted the ornament. Light pink hair was wrapped around the piece of metal.

Reinhard's eyes moved on to the woman's hair. The color was a fiery orange. Where her hair had once been disheveled it was now styled in the same way it had been during her time in Priestella. A black piece of lace was tied throughout her hair.

Finally, the Sword Saint gazed upon her face, which possessed a look of strength. Confidence exudes from her smile, yet it didn't seem like arrogance. In her eyes, a fire was burning. A fire even brighter than the one that had consumed the Capital earlier in the day.

The woman was the Queen of Lugnica, Priscilla Barielle.

Priscilla nodded in agreement. Good, gain that fire back, and make that imbecile pay for daring to ever stand against you! You can do this! YOU ARE PRISCA BENEDICT!

Al felt a little warm inside at seeing his princess carrying a piece of him with her.

Everyone smiled with pride as they watched the Queen make a comeback.

After a few seconds, she caught Reinhard's eye and then strode across the room to where he was standing. The Sword Saint looked to the woman with an apologetic gaze.

"Priscilla-sama I am sorry for appearing threatening. I thought that you could've been him." He said the name with anguish.

"Foolish commoner," The woman's words seemed inviting rather than prideful as they once had. "Come with mineself."

Reinhard obeyed the request robotically. It only took a few seconds for the two to reach the doors that Priscilla had just emerged from. She ushered him through the doorway and closed it behind them.

"Commoner." Words that once might've been laced with disgust instead sounded full of pity. "Do not blame yourself for what has happened these past eight years."

""EIGHT YEARS?!"" several members of the Cast screamed out.

"I've been terrorizing that world for eight years…?!" Subaru gasped out.

This is insane, he thought to himself. I could have had a family in that amount of time. The Royal Selection would have ended twice over by now! Why? WHY HAVE I DEDICATED EIGHT ENTIRE YEARS OF MY LIFE TO MURDERING EVERYONE I EVER KNEW?!

Sadly, no one could give him that answer.

"But I could've stopped him if I'd just made a better decision, so this is all my fault. Instead, I failed. Like the worthless knight, I am."

"You truly are a fool. Mineself had a clear chance to kill him in Vollachia yet I did not want to work with Vincent." Reinhard tried to raise a protest against the imperious Queen. "Stop, mineself knows exactly what you will say. You will just blame yourself once more."

Priscilla waited for him to refute her guess but nothing came from the man. "Well then," Priscilla slammed her fist into the Sword Saint's jaw. He didn't attempt to dodge or even brace himself, so the hit knocked him straight to the ground.

"Whoa!" Mimi wowed, as she saw Reinhard take that hit.

"Would that even hurt you?" Julius asked.

"I would rather not test that," the Sword Saint answered honestly.

Priscilla felt a twinge in her heart at the mention of her half-brother. Sure, the two of them fought when they were younger, but what siblings didn't? Contempt came with family.

But hearing that the fool had murdered him? It left a sour taste in her mouth.

Reinhard looked up to the woman. Strength radiated from her. "Stop blaming yourself! Commoner!"

Priscilla reached out her pale hand to the red-haired man. "Stand up. We have a rogue knight to put down." Her hand was steady.

Reinhard reached up. Could I really succeed? A bud of hope began to grow within him. He grasped Priscilla's hand.

"Let's go, Reinhard, mineself has a speech to give."

The Cast felt a bit more hopeful, but others still felt the situation was hopeless and Priscilla and Reinhard were going to make one final push.

Still, it was better than waiting around for Subaru to blast them.

Priscilla walked into the throne room with a smile on her face. Reinhard walked behind her, a tiny piece of hope glimmered in his eyes. The fiery-haired woman's steps were confident. It only took her a few strides to reach the throne.

She stood in front of the ornate golden seat and faced towards what minuscule amount of people remained from the Capital.

The populace looked downtrodden. Despair, pain, misery, anguish, and dejection radiated from the group. They milled about whispering silently to each other. No one dared raise their voices any louder. Not because of any imposed rule, but because it reminded them of today's screams.

An aroma of smoke invaded Priscilla's nose. She felt her legs turn to jelly. Her newly regained confidence was balancing upon the knife's edge. Any wrong thought and it could collapse.

Wrong thought? She mused to herself with a tone of humor. I will remain confident this time. I will kill you Subaru Natsuki. I will stop the rest of your plans. Her pale hand grasped the fragment of Al's helmet and the lock of Schult's hair that was pinned to her dress.

"Hey, guys."

"Yes, what is it, Subaru?" Crusch asked.

"If I ever turn into that… thing… you have my permission to destroy me."

While most of the people in the audience were shocked by what he said, Roswaal asked, "And how are we supposed to do that? You cannot die, and I seriously doubt that you would willingly let yourself be sealed away. So, both destruction and imprisonment are out of the question."

"Maybe we should focus on not letting you become something like… that?" Otto asked.

"I guess that could work," Subaru hummed. "Hopefully."

I will give these people hope. I will be humble. But I will not lose my pride.

Priscilla set her stance as if readying for battle. Her eyes scanned the group. An inferno roared within. She slammed her heel into the hard floor.

A click echoed across the entire room. The huddled mass stared at Priscilla. Their eyes empty. Only a few still held onto hope, and it was barely any at that.

Mineself was a failure, but I will not fail anymore. The world will work in mine favor.

"I am disgusted." Her confident words rang out across the room. Many of the people didn't even acknowledge what she had said. They stared at her with vacant minds.

"How truly pathetic." She filled her voice with as much disdain as she could muster. The eyes of the group and Reinhard opened wide. They all began to realize that these were the true thoughts of their Queen.

"Failure, all I see is failure." Priscilla did not care for the shock of the room's occupants. "Failure to stand. Failure to fight. Failure to remain strong." She didn't stop when Reinhard's face fell.

She's right. I am a failure, the Sword Saint thought to himself. The eyes of the crowd began to narrow.

"No, you're not," Felt said.

"What?"

"You saved my life, along with Big Bro and Big Sis," the crimson-eyed blonde said. "And before you refute that, you were the one who fought off the psycho bitch, not Big Bro, you. You're capable of great things, Rein. Put some faith in yourself, like you did in me."

"I… I will do what I can, Felt-sama."

"It's all so disgusting." Pride filled the woman's voice. Anger entered her tone. "So much despair. So much useless anguish. Failure." Her fury awakened something in the people who listened.

"Hey –" One of the men in the audience tried to shout over her. But Priscilla grasped the fragment of Al's helmet, and let loose another furious shout.

"I AM INFURIATED THAT NOT A SINGLE PERSON IN THIS ROOM HAS PICKED THEMSELVES UP!" The Queen of Lugnica raged.

"I am furious that we've let ourselves fall so far!" Many of the audience members tried to shout over her. The anger of the Queen caused their own to spark. And now that fire of rage was spreading through the crowd. A few of the young men all looked at each other. Dangerous implications danced in their eyes.

"I AM UTTERLY DISGUSTED, SICKENED, AND REPULSED THAT WE HAVE LET OURSELVES BE TRAMPLED!" Whispers jumped between the crowd, and a mob began to form. Reinhard tried to step forward, but his legs barely budged. Exhaustion filled his eyes. Hundreds of footsteps moved towards Priscilla.

"WE HAVE LET SUBARU NATSUKI BURN OUR ENTIRE WORLD!" The mob froze in place each one too angry to keep moving forward.

"We didn't let him!"

"We couldn't do anything!"

"The Sage turned against us!"

"The Dragon didn't do a thing!"

"So, Shaula really is the Sage," Julius clicked his tongue at the confirmation.

"And Volcanica didn't do a damn thing again," Crusch growled.

"Hey, Pris, does she mean that literally? Like, I literally burned down the entire world?"

"I… don't know," the Vollachian Matriarch answered honestly, surprising many.

Priscilla held back her fury for a few seconds to let the crowd shout. Her instincts told her that she had to wait.

"THE SWORD SAINT WAS USELESS!"

"Hgk," Reinhard grunted but he didn't raise a single objection to the claim. They're right. I was useless.

I failed. While the words of the crowd drove Reinhard into his mind they drove Priscilla out of hers. Her instincts couldn't stop her, and they didn't try.

"HOW DARE YOU!" Priscilla's words, "What did you do to stop Subaru Natsuki?" She pointed a gorgeously ornamented fan at the member of the mob.

Wilhelm smiled at that.

The man froze. Priscilla's mana radiated outward. "Did you try and rally the Kingdom? Did you try and rouse an army to fight him? Did you try and stop him before he could burn any more cities? Did you try to do anything?"

Upon hearing that, several people in the audience wondered something.

How do you go about stopping someone like Subaru Natsuki?

Sure, Subaru gave them permission to destroy him if he ever turned into something like that, but Roswaal was right in pointing out that killing him would only make him stronger.

How could they stop someone who would be able to adapt to anything they threw at him?

The Cast didn't know.

And that worried them.

The man seemed confused. As did the rest of the mass of people. Those words did not seem directed at the people.

"Did you even do a single thing, or did you lose hope just like everyone else?" Now it felt like she was talking to them. And the question she asked them wasn't very loud yet it was projected across the room.

"I'm asking all of you, what happened to your hope?" Priscilla shook her head, "It's disappointing and so utterly repulsive."

The gazes of the mob grew angry once more, and defiance filled them.

"That is why not a single one of you is disgusting, disappointing, revolting, or hopeless." Her words were a near whisper. The group hesitated. Reinhard looked back to the former princess. Her body trembled. But Reinhard could see that her strength was still intact.

"Mineself was disgusting, disappointing, revolting, and hopeless." Priscilla's words were weak but her tone was glowing with resolve.

"I let you all fall into despair. I let Lugnica neuter itself in anguish. Mineself let Subaru Natsuki burn the world. I am disgusted with the weakling I became." Everyone in the room looked at the woman hesitantly. Except for a single swordsman.

Reinhard stared at her with despair when he noticed the similarity between him and Priscilla. She failed too. We're both failures. His hope diminished further.

"I failed." She admitted to the crowd. New anger glinted in their eyes. Reinhard ignored the buckling in his knees.

Upon hearing that, everyone was shocked.

Priscilla included.

Ever since coming to this Theater, there have been many shocking things they have seen: Subaru's inability to die permanently, the Great Spirit of Murder, the Purge King, the destruction of the Capital, the seven Witches, Andromeda Natsuki, the Sin Archbishop of Pride, Satella.

But the one thing that shocked them the most… was Priscilla Barille admitting she failed.

That was almost on par with her admitting she was wrong about something, or admitting defeat, which she technically did when she backed off as per Subaru's warning.

Huh. The multiverse truly was maddening.

I failed, and I'll just keep failing. The Sword Saint lamented to himself. His body weakened. The measly front that he'd put up began to crack.

The fire of the mob reignited. They began to walk towards her.

"But I will never fail again." The resolve in her words forced the mass of citizens to a halt. And it widened Reinhard's eyes.

Priscilla stood tall. Her eyes burned with resolve. "I will stand against the end. I will make the world work in mine favor once more. Mineself shall bring hope to this dying world." Moonlight streamed in from the windows illuminating the woman, though she did not need it. The fire in her heart burned through any darkness that could challenge her.

A bud of hope matured within Reinhard van Astrea. And new flowers of hope rooted in the hearts of the people listening.

Their anger shifted from the fiery woman before them and towards the white-haired man who had brought the world so low.

Everyone in the Theater also looked at the strawberry blonde on the screen with hope. Hope that she will save their world. Hope that she will stop their fallen friend.

Hope that she will bring about a happy ending to this tragedy.

A glint lit in the woman's eyes. She slammed her right hand into the air in front of her. The light of the moon bent before her will.

"We will unite the entire world under the banner of hope, and then we will march on the Pleiades Watchtower, where we shall save this burning world." Vigor burned within the people. They didn't care that this mission seemed impossible. Because it was so much better than sitting around and waiting to die.

A crimson glow burned in her right hand, and a proclamation tore from her throat.

"OURSELVES SHALL SLAY SUBARU NATSUKI!"

Priscilla Barielle grasped fiery rays of light in her hand. Shimmering metal formed in her grasp. The Queen and Empress held a glowing sword of hope in her palm.

The Yang Sword burned through despair and left hope in its wake.

Several members of the Theater stood up and applauded the on-screen Priscilla's speech. It didn't matter that she was a Vollachian, it didn't matter that the real one had spent the majority of her time antagonizing them, it didn;t matter that she spoke of killing their friend.

They cheered, and cheered, and cheered.

Up in her seat, Priscilla thought, Mineself could get used to this…

An hour later Priscilla strode through the hallways of the castle. Reinhard and one of the few surviving castle managers walked behind her, and nearly fifty citizens followed after them.

They spent the next quarter of an hour getting all of the rescued people organized into rooms. This was especially easy since most of the people who had once occupied this castle were now dead. It was an empty ghost castle in comparison to the bustling center of the Lugunican government that it had once been.

"Jesus Chrsit," Al whispered under his breath.

"Subaru-kyun really cleared out so many of them…?" Felix said, but afraid.

"Plus Ultra," Subaru said, trying to make a joke.

"SUBARU, NO!" Naoko chided her son.

Once that was completed Priscilla worked on how she was going to peacefully unite the rest of the world. Vollachia should be easy, after all the country doesn't exist, and I am the last holder of the Yang Sword. Kararagi might be easy if mineself can impress them, but I know little about Gusteko.

"Oh, thank the Od," Anastasia sighed in relief.

"He hasn't wiped out the entire world yet," Julius smiled.

Small mercies.

She spent the next hour attempting to run through everything she'd once known about Gusteko, but she heard that the burnt country had changed drastically once the Mad Prince had taken over. Mineself and Reinhard may have to eliminate him if we can't bring him to our side.

Ourselves must have every ounce of strength if we are to ever defeat Subaru Natsuki.

But we can defeat him. Resolve thrummed within her. "We can win, Reinhard." She turned to the Sword Saint.

He smiled at her, Priscilla could tell it was fake. "Yes, Priscilla-sama." But those words weren't fake. Heh. Mineself has already restored hope to the Sword Saint. Though… The Queen gazed into his cloudy blue eyes.

Just because he has hope doesn't mean much. He still needs to learn to value himself. And he needs to stop blaming himself for his failures. Mineself needs to work on a way to address those issues. Priscilla turned to her next task but she noticed her heavy eyes.

The woman reassessed her mind. I need mine sleep. "Heeeeeeeeh." Right on queue, a yawn escaped from her lips.

"You should sleep, Priscilla-sama." Reinhard's face adopted a calming expression.

"Yes, mineself needs sleep if she is to kill Subaru Natsuki." Reinhard flinched a tiny bit at the name. It wasn't like the dread that had once arisen in him. Now he was used to the name of his once friend being used in the same way as the Witch of Envy's name.

"I wonder if the people in that world hate me more than Satella now?"

Emilia turned to Subaru and scolded him. "Subaru, that's a horrible thing to think about!"

"What? I just can't help but imagine the title: Subaru Natsuki, Destroyer of Worlds," he chuckled to himself. "Get it? 'Cause it wouldn't be the first time I destroyed a –"

"SUBARU!"

"Can you watch the castle for me?"

"Hgk." Reinhard's breath caught in his throat. Fear permeated throughout his body.

"Reinhard," Priscilla placed a warm hand on the Sword Saint's shoulder. "Yourself can accomplish this. And mineself is trusting you, and after all, the world works in mine favor." Her words could be taken as arrogance, but the strength held within them anchored Reinhard.

"I won't fail, Priscilla-sama." He bowed his head to her.

"Thank you," The tired woman whispered as she left the room.

In their area of the Theater, Felt leaned towards Reinhard and asked him, "Hey, Rein? Do you really not value yourself? Do you blame yourself for your failures?"

"I…" the Sword Saint hesitated, unsure of whether or not to speak the truth. Eventually however, he figured that it would be an injustice to hide his mistress the truth. "I do."

"Then stop it," she commanded. "This is an order from your future King. You're not a failure."

"Heh, I shall obey, Felt-sama," he smiled.

Priscilla's tired body dragged itself into her room. "Heh, heh." she panted to herself softly. Remaining confident like that was far more difficult than it had once been, but she would continue to do it. She would renew the hope of Lugnica. The hope of the world.

"I will kill you, Subaru Natsuki," she whispered it to herself as she threw her body down onto her bed.

Memories of Aldebaran and Schult filled her as her mind slipped into sleep.

"Poor Priscilla-sama," Petra said. She may have not liked the one she was sharing a Theater with, but she could at least feel bad for her exhausted counterpart.

"I wish you the best of luck, Pris," Subaru told the on-screen Priscilla.

"Hmph, I don't need your luck, commoner," the strawberry blonde smirked.

"Oh, is this a scene change?" Meili asked.

"Yes, I believe it is," Frederica nodded.

Priscilla awoke only a few minutes later to a faint sound. Her eyes probed across the room but she could see nothing out of the ordinary. A small feeling of dread entered her stomach. She trusted her instincts and roused her tired mind.

"Well, that was a quick nap," Kenichi joked, trying to lighten the mood.

No one acknowledged the attempt at humor.

Subaru's eyes narrowed. "Something is wrong, I can feel it."

Slipping out from under the covers the soft soles of her feet touched the luxuriant carpet of the room. Her fiery eyes jumped around once more in search of the noise. Maybe I imagined it…?

She idly questioned. Though she dismissed the idea when she realized her stomach was beginning to turn over.

Mine instincts are warning me. Mineself must listen. Priscilla hovered her hand out. Readying her palm to pull the Yang Sword from the air at any moment.

Everyone was still, doing everything they could to stay silent.

No one said a peep, as they watched.

Priscilla explored her room anew in an attempt to discover what was troubling her instincts, though no matter how much she searched she could never find it.

"What is going on?" she softly whispered the question to herself. Her muscles loosened as she strode towards the window sill. The woman's red eyes roamed across the surrounding landscape. It was now an ashen mess and some of the fires were still burning. Gaseous smoke danced across the night sky.

"Ya know, it's kinda pretty," Garfiel said.

"Garf, cease being an idiot," Ram hissed.

"I mean, yeah, it's bad, an' th' context is horrible, but if ya remove that, then the glowin' night iz kinda pretty," the blond demi-human said. "What, is my amazin' self wrong?"

"Eh… I guess not?" Subaru said. "It's kinda like Emilia-tan's coronation in Pride's universe."

"Yes," Crusch said. "Pretty to look at, but the context around them is absolutely horrifying."

Priscilla grasped her stomach. It now felt like she was about to throw up violently. Maybe mineself is just ill, but… I don't think that's what this is. As she turned to her right, away from the window, she caught a glimpse of movement in her periphery.

Priscilla's head snapped in that direction, her neck let off a soft crack. Her fiery eyes probed in that direction. And she finally caught sight of the movement. It was a woman, or at least that's what Priscilla guessed.

Her right hand began to pull the Yang Sword from the air as if it was a mile ahead of her brain. The woman's head turned towards Priscilla. The Queen's eyes caught onto the hair of the woman. It was tied in such a way that it resembled a scorpion tail.

"Shit! It's Shaula!" Al cursed.

"Priscilla-sama will not fall to that woman!" Julius huffed.

"Nyah! She's lived this long, she won't kick the bucket that easily!" Felix agreed.

Priscilla smiled as she saw all of these people rooting for her. They were right! She would not fall to Subaru's lackey! She would succeed and save everyone!

No! "Mineself will not fail here." She whispered to herself as she manifested the Yang Blade from the pale moonlight.

Resolve burned in her mind as she moved to block whatever attack came from the traitorous Sage. "Mineself will kill Subaru Natsuki." She fell into a fighting stance. Her eyes narrowed.

The sound of air being bent emanated from behind her. Quiet footsteps vibrated the floor.

"Tell me, Priscilla Barielle, do you know my name?" A familiar voice violated her eardrums. It was a voice she'd never forget, a crazed voice. Priscilla froze. Her breath caught in her throat.

Oh, shit, the Vollachian Matriarch thought to herself.

While she was confident in her ability to fight off Shaula, hopefully, she had no idea how to take down this murderous Subaru Natsuki. From her counterpart's perspective, he was just a really lucky madman, one she didn't know had the ability to redo everything until success.

Everyone else in the Theater wasn't fairing any better.

"Oh my Od, he's in the castle!" Mimi squealed, holding onto Ricardo.

"How did he even get inside?!" Felt asked, beginning to panic.

No one wanted Priscilla to turn around. They were too afraid of what they would see, as if whatever was behind her would make anyone go mad just by looking at them, as if that thing came out of a horror movie. To them, the owner of that voice was a monster beyond all their collective comprehension, wearing the skin of their friend as a suit.

She'd made so many threats, but in the face of him, her resolve seemed to melt. Her body began to tremble.

"Do you?" Insanity trembled in his voice. As Priscilla tried to regain her resolve the man behind her whispered to himself.

"Don't worry Petra, I can bring him back." Priscilla grasped the fragment of Al's helmet, and she ran her fingers through the lock of Schult's hair.

"Wh-what?" the little maid asked, scared at the mention of her name.

"Isn't Petra dead?" Meili asked, scared. Aren't I dead, too?

Frederica held the little maid closer to her, as she heard her friend's voice becoming more and more crazy. You leave this little girl out of your schemes, you monster.

"You can do this, princess." Al's voice softly whispered into her mind. Priscilla's grip on the Yang Sword tightened. She turned her body and faced the boy in front of her.

His right eye stared at Priscilla. Impatience flowed through the eye. But his left eye was another story. The man's blurred left eye danced across the room as if staring at things that weren't there. With powdery white hair, the man asked her the same question.

Everyone stared at this universe's Subaru. By far, he was one of the most different ones out there. The only ones who could even compare were the Purge King and the female one, due to the fact that one of them had eyebags and looked like a living skeleton, while the other one's different gender was all it took to change their entire physical shape.

Subaru's theory about this version of himself coming from the first intro was correct, but they never imagined that the damage would be this great in magnitude.

"What the fuck happened to me?" Subaru asked himself.

"Why the hell do you have white hair?" Ram asked, horrified.

"Why is one of your eyes different?" Rem asked, confused.

"Do you know my name?"

"Yes mineself does, you are Subaru Natsuki." Disdain filled her gaze.

"I'm sorry to disappoint," Something about the man's bearing shifted,

"Princess we really are sorry," his tone grew relaxed, similar to Al's. Though it shifted back almost as quickly.

"What the fuck was that?" Otto asked, in a low tone.

"That sounded like… me," Al said, his voice betraying his fear.

"What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck?" was all Subaru could ask himself.

"But I am only a worthless imitation of Subaru Natsuki." Blue globes of light burst into existence around him. Minor Spirits.

"For now at least," Subaru snapped his fingers. Priscilla's instincts screamed. And her body sensed a disturbance behind her.

"What does he mean by that?" Emilia asked. "A worthless imitation?"

"M-Maybe he's just an evil clone?" Kenichi suggested.

"No, the clone one was definitely the first option," Subaru disagreed with his father. "This is somehow the result of me losing my memories. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Great, he has an army of Spirits at his beck and call," Beatrice grumbled.

The glass window she'd been staring out of a few minutes ago shattered. Fragments of glass sprayed inward. Little cuts began to form on the Queen's body. Heat radiated from a pale beam that grew closer to the woman.

Without another millisecond of hesitation, her form snapped around, and her arms raised the Yang Sword. She had barely enough time to parry the blast of mana that came from Subaru's partner. After she knocked the attack away another blast followed swiftly behind. Barely blocking it again Priscilla prepared for the next.

And the next. Over and over again she knocked away the screaming lights. Her body danced with resolve as she expertly blocked each attack.

I just need to delay long enough for Reinhard to arrive. A clap resounded from behind her. The constant blasts tapered off. Priscilla watched as the scorpion-haired girl let up on her attacks.

YOU CAN DO IT! Priscilla thought to her counterpart. YOU SHALL NOT FALL!

"KICK EVIL ME'S ASS, PRIS!" Subaru cheered on.

"How do you distract Reinhard?" Subaru's voice slipped through the room. Priscilla turned her head, but she kept her body ready in case Shaula decided to attack once more.

The man's eyes were not pointed towards her, instead, they were directed into the darkness of the royal bedroom. Though that darkness had been pulled back slightly by the minor Spirits that surrounded Subaru.

He nodded his head. Priscilla got the impression that he was listening to someone. Maybe his Spirits?

"But he's not looking towards any of the Spirits," Petra said.

"Ah…" Subaru held his chin in his hand, "Yes that would be great. I guess you really are the best knight. Hmmm." His gaze shifted to Priscilla, no he wasn't looking at her. Instead, he was looking at the girl behind her.

"Best knight?" Felix asked, horrified by what he heard.

"Isn't that your title, Juli…?" Anastasia asked her knight.

"It's an alternate way of saying it, yes," Julius gulped in fear.

It didn't take long for them to figure out who he was talking about.

He clapped his hands twice and began to make odd gestures with his hand. They appeared to be signals. Priscilla flipped back to the woman who'd thrown blast after blast at her earlier.

Shaula was now facing towards Priscilla's right. The scorpion-haired woman was looking directly at the barracks where the Royal Guard once resided. The place where Priscilla had ordered many of the surviving people of Lugnica to sleep.

Priscilla watched as Shaula powered up an attack. Her arms were aimed towards the last people of Lugunica. Priscilla readied herself to jump toward the Sage. The Yang Blade grew brighter in her hand.

Priscilla's knees began to unbend.

"El Shamak." Priscilla's body froze. Her mind was cut off from influencing her body, and in the disorientation, it took her a few seconds to activate her Yang mana, but it was too late. Shaula's attack slammed into the side of the castle. Tremors radiated throughout the great stone structure.

""NO!"" several members of the Cast screamed.

Subaru felt like he was about to throw up. He ordered Shaula to attack them, to lure Priscilla out. At that moment, he didn't care that it was a different version of him.

I murdered those people.

"No!" Her resolve and hope began to fade, but she still had enough to fight. She poured Yang mana into her mind. The hold of Subaru's magic weakened, and she was able to turn her body in his direction. The walls of the castle creaked as Shaula continued slamming blast after blast into the structure.

Priscilla walked toward Subaru, she only got a step before the barrier between her mind and body snapped into place once more. Anger roared within her mind. She directed her fiery eyes towards two black orbs. They glowed a deep purple. A strange rhythm emitted from them as they hovered in front of Subaru. A similar tone was emitted by the dozens of blue Spirits that floated around Subaru.

"Y'know Spirits are very useful. They do what my worthless self can't," the white-haired man mused to her.

"HEY!" A wave of over-exaggerated anger entered Subaru's voice. "Don't get like that Beako, of course, I know that you're a better Spirit," his voice grew soothing and his head patted empty air.

Upon seeing that interaction, everyone's worst fears were confirmed.

"H-he thinks I'm there…" Beatrice whispered in horror.

Subaru was talking to himself, too, but his vice was loud enough to be heard by everyone else, too. "That explains it. Petra… Julius… Al… Beako…"

"..."

"He's talking to his previous victims."

"So, they're nothing more than figments of his deranged mind," Crusch confirmed.

Priscilla tried to force her way out of his magic. Her anger grew greater and greater as she watched the man's insanity.

"I wouldn't get too angry." Something to her left caught Subaru's attention. He tilted his head.

"Yeah, you're right Al. It always gets her in trouble."

Priscilla's mana burst through his magic. "DON'T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT ALDEBARAN, YOU DISGUSTING COMMONER!" Her body rushed forward. A burning red rage filled her eyes.

"Yeah, tha's one was ta piss off tha' lady," Ricardo smirked.

Despite the high-adrenaline situation, everyone in the Theater was still rooting for Priscilla to make it out of there alive, and to end this insane Subaru's machinations.

No! Stop, I'm being impulsive again, mineself can't be impulsive. A small part of Priscilla's mind tried to resist her own fury, but nothing could be done. The Vollachian woman rushed forward, all hesitation and calm absent from her bearing.

Subaru made little motion other than raising his right hand to put it in view of the window. Moonlight glinted off of his desert-tanned skin. Priscilla raised her own right hand in turn and readied to lop his head from his neck.

Time seemed to slow for Priscilla as she brought the Yang Sword down. A shroud of outrage filled her heart. She abandoned all proper fighting form and blindly threw her entire being into this attack.

The soft sound of Subaru's fingers snapping did nothing to dispel Priscilla's rage. Though what came next made quick work of it.

Three sizzling blasts slammed into Priscilla's back. Her anger pulled back, and finally, it shattered when she heard three new sounds.

After the first blast, a single jewel cracked. Priscilla's anger disappeared. After the second blast, another jewel fell apart.

Priscilla's eyes widened, and her worry spiked through the roof. That was mine necklace. I only have one jewel left before it's worthless. No, I will win. I will stop this monster.

The rest of the Theater had other things to say.

""Oh, no!"" Mimi and Tivey cried out.

"She'll be okay, right?!" Felt asked, showing worry for her most-hated rival.

Everyone hoped for the best, when…

Regret rushed through her. Mine impulses got in the way.

The third blast slammed into her back and one last crystal shattered. The confidence that Priscilla had regained melted away.

She still tried to cut off his head, but her heart wasn't in it anymore. And before her arm could move much farther a brilliant light burned through the bone between her elbow and shoulder. The Yang Sword vanished into the moonlight as her forearm and hand careened away from her.

Mineself failed. Sharp pain slammed into her mind as all three of her remaining limbs were blasted away with a sizzling sound. No blood actually left the spots where her limbs had once been. Shaula's attacks had cauterized her injury.

And just like that, the entire Theater was silent.

They didn't win.

Priscilla didn't win. All her hope, all her willingness to save this world, it came for nothing. Good didn't triumph over evil as it always had. No, in this story, evil won.

That was when everyone remembered who was on the side of evil.

Subaru.

Subaru Natsuki will always win, no matter what side he's on.

The world works in his favor. Never in mine own. I can't make the world work in mine favor. I should never have been so prideful as to think I could.

She used what little mana she had left to suppress her pain. I could never succeed could I? Despair weighed down on her mind. She tried to force away Subaru's words but she couldn't.

"Don't worry about this Priscilla, Subaru Natsuki will make it all okay again. I will see you at the second reunion." Three red lights hovered above his head almost like a halo. "Just two pieces now." The red Spirits that hovered above Subaru's head started to glow.

"NO!"

Frederica covered Petra's eyes, while Otto did the same for Meili.

The children didn't need to see this bloodbath.

"Al Goa." He whispered. Flames exploded around him, and the castle started to catch fire. Two of the Fire Spirits then rushed away to set fire to the rest of the castle.

A circle of flames built up around her torso though they stayed at a distance. Priscilla could do nothing as she heard the flames rushing through the Capital, and tremors continued to ring out from Shaula's endless barrage.

After a few minutes, Natsuki Subaru's eyes turned back to her. "Otto says that enough time has passed." He turned his head to wink at nothing. Then he stretched his hand out and flattened his palm toward her.

Dread rushed through Priscilla as his lips parted and a Fire Spirit flickered in front of his flattened palm.

"Goa."

Everyone braced to see Priscilla burn to death, only to see –

"Reinhard?!"

"Goddammit, a scene change?!"

"At least the children won't have to see that…"

Fire burned around Reinhard. The flames had suddenly consumed the shaking castle. He had been on the way to the soldier's quarters, where the rescued people were sleeping, but before he could make it the entire castle began to burn.

That flower of hope within was starting to dry up. But Reinhard would not let Priscilla's words go to waste. He dashed through searing hallways in search of hope. He needed to save the remaining citizens.

That flower was still in bloom as he slammed open the door to the barracks, only to reveal a gaping hole in the castle. The barracks was gone, its populace vaporized. The calm night breeze caressed Reinhard's skin. The warmth of the flames touched his back gently.

That flower of hope caught flames. I've already failed. I couldn't even try. He thought back on Priscilla's speech. She wants to try. We're not the same, I'm such a failure that it's impossible for me to try.

"I'm a failure." Reinhard's eyes gazed at the solid ground at the bottom of the empty hole that was once a room in the castle. It would be so easy to just… He dangled his right foot over the ledge. So easy…

"AHHHHHHHH!" A loud scream shattered his thoughts from the other side of the castle.

"No," Reinhard snapped around, he recognized that voice. "No, no, no, no, no."

Everyone's breath hitched as they heard that screech.

Even if she never did it before in real life, everyone could recognize that scream.

His divinely enhanced legs pushed him through the hallway. Dripping red liquid poured down onto his head from the ceiling. Reinhard barely noticed the heat of a fire capable of melting stone. Whenever a drop touched him it was canceled out by one of his Divine Protections.

He vaulted over a collapsed wooden beam. His glove was singed as he did so. The heat around Reinhard's body grew hotter, though the fire had not changed. His feet landed on the melting tile with a slight splatter of mosaic.

Reinhard forced his tired form to continue through the hallway. Those horrid screams continued grinding at Reinhard's ears. I have to be wrong. That can't be her voice. Please don't let it be her voice. I can't fail. I can't. But I can't succeed.

The real Reinhard within the Theater put his hands over his face, as he knew the truth. He had failed yet again. Felt did everything in her power to comfort him, but it was no use.

Smoke rushed into Reinhard's lungs. A Divine Protection purified the air as it moved through his body. He tried to cast away the Divine Protection but the Od Laguna wouldn't allow it. Tears rolled down his face, but they were not from the ash that filled the room. Again he had a Divine Protection for that.

Divine Protections. They kept Reinhard perfectly safe as he watched Priscilla's corpse melt away in the hellish fire.

Upon seeing the burning corpse of Priscilla Barielle, many had different reactions.

For the young ones like Petra, Meili, Mimi and Tivey, they shielded their eyes behind their guardians, and their guardians made sure they would not see such horror.

For the majority of knights and Royal Candidates, they looked away in respect.

But for one Priscilla Barielle, it was the moment that completely broke her spirit.

This wasn't a fairy tale. This wasn't some story where the hero would slay the big bad villain. The cheers of those within the Theater gave her false hope that she would actually be able to accomplish something.

This was reality. The world never turned in her favor.

Twice now, she was shown that she wasn't as invincible as she perceived herself. Twice now, she was murdered by the man known as Subaru Natsuki.

The world didn't turn in her favor.

It turned in HIS favor.

Right now Reinhard didn't consider them as Protections. Now they were Divine Curses. Things that signified the Od Laguna's influence on him. That influence had turned him into a failure.

A failure. That's all I am. His entire heart was washed with despair. This only spurred on Reinhard's thoughts and it made him realize something. It freed him from a guilt that he'd been holding ever since he was five years old.

I'm sorry, grandfather, but I am not the monster you thought I was. I'm just a failure. The guilt he'd held towards Theresia and Wilhelm vanished.

Just a failure. His blue eyes turned down towards the body of Priscilla Barielle. A girl with red eyes and blonde hair filled his mind. Two mistresses dead because of Reinhard's failure.

What was even the point? I failed. I failed. I'm sorry, Felt-sama. I'm sorry Priscilla-sama, but I couldn't listen to your last request. I just couldn't. I was only ever a failure.

I was always a failure. I never succeeded at anything did I? A white-haired man flashed in his mind. The man stood opposite Reinhard. His eyes gleamed with outrage.

"YOU DARE VIOLATE MY RIGHTS?" The voice of Regulus Corneas filled Reinhard's mind.

Meili knew that voice and body. She never wanted to hear that voice again, or look upon his body, among Mama and many other monsters from the Witch Cult.

"The Sin Archbishop of Greed?" Rem asked.

"Why is Reinhard remembering him?" Crusch asked. "He's never met him!"

"Not yet…" Everyone turned to Subaru, "This hasn't happened yet, so we may encounter Regulus in the future."

I beat him. A tiny part of his mind tried to find a way out of the anguish that now overwhelmed Reinhard, but the rest of his mind soon responded.

I only beat him because Subaru was there. New tears welled up in his eyes as he thought of Subaru. A boy who'd succeeded in all the places that Reinhard never could. Subaru Natsuki had been a true hero better than Reinhard could ever be.

I beat Theresia. The hope within Reinhard let out a gasp.

A true hero? Subaru repeated the phrase in his head. A TRUE HERO?! What kind of hero burns down a country not once, but twice, decides the lives of innocents over the flip of a coin, and murders those he swore to protect over and over again, huh?! ANSWER ME, DAMMIT!

Elsewhere, some people analyzed the Sword Saint's memories.

Wilhelm's piercing sky blue eyes stared at Reinhard in his memory. And what did that get me? Just a grandfather who no longer considered me his grandson.

Wilhelm looked down in shame.

He was right. I'm such a failure that I don't deserve to be loved. I only deserve one thing. Reinhard grasped the knife on his belt. He held it pointed away from him. His hands were wrapped around it and held at the level of his waist.

I failed. I can't do anything. Maybe the world would be better off without me.

"Reinhard." The voice of the world itself whispered into his mind. Od Laguna spoke to him for the first time in half a decade. "You need to protect the world." Its soft voice caressed Reinhard's mind.

Everyone turned to look at Reinard, as Emilia asked, "What was that?"

"That was the Od Laguna," the Sword Saint answered.

"You can actually converse with the Od Laguna?" Julius asked, slightly amazed.

"It's not something I wished for."

The Sword Saint's despair disappeared, but no happiness replaced it. Nothing replaced it. Od Laguna calmed his negative emotions, but it couldn't add any positive emotions. Reinhard was left in a neutral state. His body grew stiff.

He tried to push the knife toward his neck, but he had no misery to push his arms. So the Sword Saint simply remained there. Emotionless. Od Laguna desperately tried to keep Reinhard alive. All of its attention focused on the child it loved most.

"You can't die." The world spoke into his mind. Its voice reverberated across the entire continent, though only Reinhard could hear it.

"What does my life accomplish?" Reinhard asked.

"You need to live."

"Why?" He questioned the world. His body began to quiver.

Everyone's eyes widened in shock as they saw Reinhard debating the Od Laguna.

"Because there are still people who need you." The voice of the world vibrated with a harmonious rhythm.

"What people? They're all gone now. I failed them." The Sword Saint responded with confidence. It was the one thing he was still certain of. Over the past eight years everything he'd once held to be true had been burned away. But this one truth had remained.

Reinhard was worthless. Reinhard was a failure. Reinhard was undeserving of the title of Sword Saint. Reinhard was not a hero.

Reinhard didn't deserve to live.

"NO!" Felt screamed, her eyes flooding with tears, as she saw what happened next.

The Sword Saint attempted suicide with his own sword.

Everyone watched as the sword made it's way towards his neck… but nothing happened.

The hero tried to force his knife into his neck, but Od Laguna held his arms in place by controlling his emotions.

The two entities remained locked in this stalemate for a few moments. Their stalemate seemed like it would last for an eternity.

It didn't.

"Reinhard." A familiar voice whispered from in front of the Sword Saint. A shroud of the air pulled back to reveal a white-haired man. He'd used magic to hide himself after lighting Priscilla aflame.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM, YOU MONSTER!" Felt roared in fury.

Subaru Natsuki revealed himself. "Hey, Rein." His voice was calming, and warm as he stepped towards the red-haired man.

Subaru's movements were soft as if he was approaching a lion, but resolve filled each of his steps. He was a man with a mission to complete.

A sculptor with only a few strikes of the chisel remaining. A sketch artist with only a few strokes of the pencil left. A painter with only a final coat to apply. A farmer with only one last plant to harvest. A carpenter with only one final nail to hammer in. An architect with one last drawing to complete. A writer with only one final scene to write. A brilliant strategist with one last move to make.

"He's comparing all of this… to art?!" Felix exclaimed, in both rage and horror.

"That bastard!" Ricardo growled.

Natsuki Subaru was a weaver with only three threads left before the final picture would be complete. A reader three books away from enlightenment.

He was a man standing in the same room as the final piece.

Subaru stepped up until he was only a foot away from Reinhard.

Subaru Natsuki was a man only a single step away from Subaru Natsuki.

It was then when Subaru understood it. "He's collecting them."

Everyone turned to Subaru in confusion. "What was that?"

"Emilia-tan, don't you see?!" Subaru exclaimed. "He lost his memories to Gluttony, and because of that, he feels like an impostor! He's been killing off anyone who knew him before his amnesia, collecting their memories somehow, in an attempt to recreate himself pre-amnesia!"

That's when Roswaal said something in realization. "The Books of the Dead."

"Roswaal?" Beatrice asked.

"When I was younger, my Teacher spoke of a special kind of book, called a Book of the Dead. The book would be conjured into existence as soon as the individual in question died. Anyone who read that book would then be allowed to live the life of the person in question. For example, if Subaru-kun were to read, say for example, Sloth's book, he would experience the entirety of the Sin Archbishop's life from the moment of birth, to the moment of death."

Upon hearing that explanation, everyone's eyes widened in horror. The white-haired Subaru was murdering all of his friends and relations, reading their Books of the Dead, and hoping that it would allowing to bring back the real "Subaru Natsuki". The one everyone called a hero.

This was a monster of their own creation.

Subaru knelt down. In response, Reinhard slowly moved his knife towards Subaru. His eyes looked terrified. This was the final moment what if he failed again. Fear slowed down his movements as if he was stuck in molasses.

"Don't worry, Rein, it's alright." Subaru's own movements were slow just like his but they were deliberate instead of fearful. There was still some fear in him but that was because he only had one true chance at this. If he died then he would return all the way back to the tower. And if he returned there without attaining Subaru Natsuki then he would have to do this all over again.

Subaru placed his hands on Reinhard's knife. "I understand your desire to kill me, Reinhard. I really do." His words sounded practiced and prepared. However, Reinhard was too distressed to notice this.

"No," Subaru whispered. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no –"

"Subaru!" Emilia shouted, snapping him out of it. "What is it?!"

"He'll fail."

"What?" Rem asked.

"The narration said that the words the white-haired me said were practiced, as if he tested what words wouldn't make Reinhard want to kill him," he explained, as everyone looked at him. "He also knew the entire layout of the castle, he knew how to kill Pris, HE KNEW HOW TO KILL EVERYONE! DON'T YOU SEE?! HE'S BEEN LOOPING!"

"Well, yeah," Al said. "We kinda assumed that –"

"What did he tell to his hallucination of Petra?"

"That he could bring them back," Wilhelm realized.

"Don't you see?" Subaru asked. "He thinks he can just loop back and bring everyone back once he's whole again, but he doesn't know how Return by Death works anymore. Don't you see?! HE WAS DOOMED FROM THE START! HE KILLED EVERYONE FOR NOTHING!"

What Subaru said sank in to everyone, as one by one, they realized that in this universe, each and every death Subaru orchestrated was permanent. There would be no resurrections.

That Subaru doomed himself to an eternity of isolation because of his desires.

Reinhard looked into the eyes of the one he'd once named a friend. The one he'd once knew he had to kill. Despair seeped into Reinhard. Od Laguna tried to hold it at bay, but it was too much. The world could only affect his emotions to a certain extent. And the pain Reinhard felt now surpassed what the entity could handle.

"I need to kill you. I need to fulfill Priscilla-sama's last desire." His voice sounded hoarse as he forced out those words. A burning piece of silk fell from Priscilla's bed and landed on Reinhard's shoulder. The fire spread from the silk and onto the cloth of Reinhard's clothes.

The knight forced his divine curses to hold back. At least to the extent that his clothing began to catch fire. Subaru's eyes stared into Reinhard's own.

Blue eyes full of exhaustion stared into brown eyes full of resolve.

"Reinhard," Subaru began, "What will killing me accomplish?"

"It will…" Reinhard couldn't raise anything. It would fulfill Priscilla-sama's last desire. But she's gone. Priscilla-sama doesn't care about Subaru anymore.

She's free. A tiny hint of envy entered the empty despair of Reinhard's soul.

Wilhelm stared at the screen with a combination of shame, guilt, and sadness. I did this, he thought to himself. I hurt him. I damaged my grandson to this point.

"It will do nothing. I failed. I failed. I can't undo that." Reinhard's skin started to turn bright red from the flames. Reinhard began to muster his own resolve. He butted against the Od Laguna and started to force his divine curses away.

"There is nothing that could undo my failure. No possible way for it to go away." Reinhard felt the truth in his own words. He dropped his arms. His knife fell away from Subaru. Who had been patiently listening to Reinhard.

Subaru gently rubbed hair from Reinhard's eyes. He emitted a friendly and almost fatherly air. "Don't worry about a thing, Reinhard." Subaru forced his expression to remain solemn when excitement threatened to take over. Reinhard didn't notice this struggle. Instead, he continued forcing away Od Laguna's protection.

"Reinhard, did you hear me?"

"Subaru?" Reinhard's neck tilted up.

"You don't have to worry about your failures, Reinhard." Reinhard felt resolve growing in his chest. Maybe these words would have given another hope but Reinhard knew the words that came next. And if his depression wasn't so overwhelming he might've jumped for joy. But there would not be hope in those words. For all the joy they would bring they could never bring hope.

"You can give up. Leave everything to me. Because Rein, I have a way to fix everything." That wasn't entirely what Reinhard had been expecting but it brought a single tear of relief to Reinhard's eye.

"You can really fix it?" That tone from Subaru sounded so trustworthy, and Reinhard was searching for any reason to die. He saw a light at the end of the tunnel. A reason to die, a real reason. One that could accomplish something.

A reason to die? Reinhard thought to himself. I haven't thought of that since childhood…

No, no he can't, Subaru thought to himself. Don't fall for it, Rein, please!

Everyone else watched in a mix of sadness and horror as the Sword Saint looked so happy at the prospect of dying. Some of them wondered if their own red-haired knight had such thoughts bottled within him, too.

If he did, they would make sure to pull him out of that darkness.

"Yes, Rein I have a way to bring back Felt. I have a way to bring back Priscilla, Julius, and Felix. I can bring them all back." He wrapped his hands around Reinhard's own. Subaru helped Reinhard lift the knife up toward his neck.

"You can really bring back Felt-sama?" Tears rolled from Reinhard's eyes and evaporated in the intense fire.

"I can. Just like Subaru Natsuki killed the White Whale, the Great Rabbit, Sloth, and Greed. And just like I killed Lust and Wrath. Exactly like Subaru Natsuki saved Felt from Elsa. I can save Felt, Reinhard."

"Lust and Wrath?" Naoko asked.

"He killed three more Sin Archbishops?!"

"What fucked up future is in the wings for us…?" Al asked.

Reinhard lifted his arms. Subaru's hands left his own but the knife still rose. Resolve burned within Reinhard's eyes. His body tried to stop him from killing himself but Reinhard broke his fear easily.

The knife pricked his neck a trail of blood ran his skin. "I can save Felt. And you can rest. It's alright Rein." Subaru softly patted the hair on the top of his head. It was as if he was comforting a child.

"DON'T DO IT!" Petra shouted, crying. "HE'S LYING!"

"No, he's not," Crusch said, her face also stained in tears. "My Divine Protection isn't going off."

"Which means… that Reinhard's Divine Protection won't go off, either," Roswaal realized.

"Which means… he really believes what he's saying…" Subaru couldn't help but be disgusted that all of… that… was some despicable attempt to save everyone.

Hearing these words Reinhard seized upon his reason to die. He drove his knife straight into his neck, burying it at the hilt.

"NOOO!" Felt screamed once more, not bearing to see her knight do this.

The younger members of the audience looked away, not wanting to see one of their heroes die, by their own sword, but Subaru kept watching, never turning away once.

He deserved this. And worse.

Reinhard's resolve began to melt away. Exhaustion and relief replaced it. The feeling of sleeping after spending an entire day awake focused on work overcame him. Od Laguna removed the pain.

Reinhard forced away the Divine Protection of the Phoenix.

"Divine Protection of the Phoenix?" Tivey asked.

"It's a Divine Protection that doesn't allow me to die."

As the Cast kept watching Reinhard dig his sword further and further into his throat, Subaru remembered when he did the exact same thing, thinking he could save Rem.

How ironic… neither of us will get to see the girl we love…

"REINHARD!" Od Laguna's voice screamed at him. The world seemed afraid. It tried to force a new Divine Protection of the Phoenix on Reinhard, but the Sword Saint rejected it with an apology.

"I'm sorry, but I can't continue. Subaru is right." Reinhard's blood sizzled in the fire.

"Reinhard, please." The world pleaded with him. "You have to keep going."

"I am so sorry Od Laguna but I just can't keep failing. I have no strength left to give you." Blood gurgled in Reinhard's throat as he tried to breathe. His consciousness began to fade, but it was still enough to hold off the Lesser Spirits that were trying to heal him.

"I'm sorry but, I'm done." The hero gave up.

Reinhard van Astrea's eyes slipped closed one final time.

And finally, Taygeta became home to a book named "Reinhard van Astrea"

As the lights went up, no one said a word.

There was no horrified screaming like there was at the ending of Pride.

There were no sounds of disgust like there was at the ending of Wrath.

There was only silence… that was the only sound during the ending of Gluttony.

Pride, for all his crimes, ended up retaining some of his humanity after making Emilia King, and ended up settling down. He never killed Reinahrd, nor was his destruction of the Capital permanent. The Purge King, even if coin-tossing was sickening, his tragedy was understandable, and Ram was able to save him, eventually changing him for the better.

But this Subaru? He had no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

Yes, what happened to him was tragic. He felt like he was an imposter, and not the real Subaru. But what he did was inexcusable, and was far from justifiable, even more so than the last two.

This… Memory Eater… killed indiscriminately. He murdered all of his friends and loved ones with the same gleeful smile as he murdered the Sin Archbishops, made the Great Sage bow to his will, destroyed an entire nation, destroyed the Capital and various other cities, assassinated royalty from different two countires, and worst of all… he murdered Reinhard.

Regardless of who drove the blade into his throat, the Memory Eater was the one who egged him on to suicide, with the promise of Felt. He did something that not even the Sin Archbishop of Pride could do: He succeeded in murdering Reinhard.

Now everyone knew: The Sword Saint was as fallible as any other human.

And the weakest one of them all had succeeded in killing him.

"R-R-Reinhard…" Crusch said, trying to make her voice sound stoic, but failing. "I think… I think that another break would be appropriate. Everyone could use the rest."

"I… agree," the Sword Saint slowly said. "Everyone… we'll be having another break. We shall reconvene here in one hour –"

Before the Sword Saint could even finish, someone stood up.

Emilia looked over to the culprit. "Subaru?!"

"I have to go," he said, his voice low. "Now."

Rem tried to reason with her hero. "Subaru-kun, we don't blame you for –"

Before she could continue, the black-haired boy already took off running.

"WAIT!"

"COME BACK!"

"SUBARU!"

Rushing up the stairs of the Theater, he ran. Dashing past everyone who told him to stop, and informing their pleas, he ran. He exited the main Theater, and into the lobby, turned to the seemingly infinite hallway with the infinite rooms, and he ran, and ran, and ran, and ran.

SLAM!

Finally, he slammed open the doors to one of the many rooms after turning, diving in, and slammed it back closed, while making sure that it was locked.

SLAM!

He dove straight for the bed and slammed a pillow into his face, and then… he let it all out.

He screamed as loud as he could, having made sure that no one could hear him screaming.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

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Author's Note: Well, that was something huh? Oh, and also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! Oh, and happy Thanksgiving, I guess. The original story is called "Strands of Red" by BobDoorman. The link is s/13833398/1/Strands-of-Red on and /works/31759585?view_adult=true on ArchiveofOurOwn. Anyway, time for the comments!

Scattershot98: Actually, the original plan was to have the chapter where Reinhard discovered Subaru's deal with the Witches as the one they would react to, but Infinite convinced me not to go that way. Al will be quite different after these events. Speaking of the Gluttony If, I hope you enjoyed this nightmare of a reaction!

Guest #1: Well, I didn't know those things about Puck, so I hope you're just satisfied with Subaru explaining the Puck's contract included destroying the world if Emilia died.

Guest #2: I'm pretty sure there's a Fembaru story where she's a singer.

Guest #3: Unfortunately, "Wish Upon a Sin" did not make the cut for this.

Sollun: Who said anything about that?!

RushAlias: Well, considering that this universe's competition are four different versions of the Pride If, Wrath If, Sloth If, and Gluttony If, along with a Return by Death reveal, I would say that the title of "best universe" going to yours is a bit of a no-brainer.

Anthonyl6892: While yes, those are all amazing fics that could have been used, the irony is, that none of them are scheduled to be a part of this series. Also, I won't be showing any of the torture scenes of the Re: Forgotten series, just the repercussions.

navyfield858: What the heck is a "Lelouch"? I don't get the reference.

dylanq21: I honestly have no idea what the heck you're talking about.

Pryd: Glad you enjoyed the fluff chapters, because they're officially over! Yeah, the lore is deep in the first option. And I'm glad to see my anti-Lust If messages are sticking.

Commissar Gaunt: I see. Well, I hope the man is resting in peace. On a more light-hearted note, Gluttony did indeed eat Subaru's memories, but Satella did not pop out. And speaking of Re: Forgotten… you might wanna stick till the ending.

5queso: I don't get the joke.

Roku420: Hey, look! Someone finally got it right!

Chuck B. Winanaki: Padoru! Yeah, the idea of Santa Claus might have been terrifying for everyone. I wasn't the one who came up with the idea for Reinhard to wear that disguise! Reading goofs happens to everyone, it's nothing to be ashamed of. Also, the "two conspiracy" joke might now have some solid ground. Hope you enjoy the rest!

Deathenglegamers1144: Well, considering this version of Subaru also has Reinhard by his side, I would say that saving Satella will be a whole lot easier.

R-king 93: Awesome comment.

vtorx: That question is reserved for the sister chapter.

palik: I might ask Rush to pick up his story again. And now that I think about it, you're kinda right. There's not enough Satella. Glad you liked the story, though.

The reader2234: This universe's Priscilla might be a bit too traumatized at seeing her own smoldering corpse to consider loving Subaru. I don't need any writing help, but thanks for asking, anyway. This fic won't be showing any of Subaru's canon deaths. Sorry!

The Knightrider: The only time Subaru would hate another version of himself was if they were blatantly evil. And besides, none of the Re: Forgotten Subarus that are going to be featured are the "commit hate crimes" type, so I think we're good.

MRTrueCopyRight: Subaru's pain is somehow relatable on a universal scale.

strangerwager: Oh, yeah? And what direction would that be?

Raider301: I'll be watching you, pal. ALWAYS WATCHING.

Shador: Yep, the Arc 6 shenanigans are here!

SinisterMagik: I mean, he's gonna find out, eventually. Also, nice profile picture.

tella83220: I don't think that Subaru will hate his Re: Forgotten version,I think he'll be more confused by what happened, and then feel sympathy for the innocent guy who was clearly tortured over and over again. And yeah, Arc 6 isn't Re: Forgotten.

hlglh: Huh, so you can speak English!

Don tico: That's a very weird theory, not gonna lie. Also, yeah, I have thought of adapting Re: Human, but some other things came up, so it never happened. And a fight between Roy and Subaru? I can only think of one fic where that happened.

SenSlice: Trust me, this cliffhanger here is probably far worse.

Terra: And that's the beauty of this series! One timeline might have knowledge the other might not, and you as the reader have the choice of seeing everything!

Imperius: Okay, one, "eaten memories" does not mean Re: Forgotten. And two, you will get everyone traumatized, just… not by that. It's from something far worse.

Canye_NE: THANK YOU! But, no, it's not that Gluttony If spin-off.

Hasona: It's kinda funny to see how many people read "memories were eaten" and immediately jumped to "Re: Forgotten". But about both of the stories revolving around the Gluttony If… eh, you're partly correct. Still, you were better than most.

PraiseBob: I'm fairly certain that several people have recommended "Shattered Kasaneru" as an option for a Greed If fic, but, while I'm not gonna write that, I am going to write a part of the Greed If that will be sure to traumatize everyone!

But before I continue, I have an announcement to make: I'll be taking another hiatus to relax and write up the next batch of the story. The end of the semester has been a pain, and I need to relax. So, both versions of "Re: Tales from the Multiverse" will return on January 5th! Hope you'll all be patient for the third and final wave!

(Hello everyone, sorry that I can't comment on any of the reviews, I've had a busy week. Anyways, hope you guys and gals enjoyed these new chapters, and we hope to see you next time! -Infinite)

Now that that's out of the way, a special thanks to Infinite the Celestain for helping me in making this story, and for being an all-around great guy! If you want to join my Discord server, the link is /xgKPWBES. You can chat with others, post memes and fan art, and I'll drop by with announcements and chat with you all every now and then! If you want to add me as a friend, my username is Ernalore#8663! If you want to read more, check out my other stories! Thanks for reading, see you next time!

- Ernalore

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Next time:

What if Subaru Natsuki joined the Priscilla Camp?

OR

What if Subaru Natsuki ran away from everything?