Chapter 12: Walking on Thorns

After having decided on his weapon of choice, Subaru decided to explain to Wagner his ability with the whip. All that got for him was a smack on his head.

"You idiot!" he yelled. "You coulda saved me so much time if you'd just told me that! Haah, now I gotta pick myself up on my other work…"

"Ah, s-sorry," Subaru said, trying to appease the burly man's anger.

"No, don't mention it. I shoulda noticed sooner. I mean, it's the thing on your hip, right?"

"Huh?" Subaru looked down, then picked on the wrapped whip tied on his belt strap. "Yeah, that's it."

"What's its name?"

"Sorry, but I don't know. I've got amnesia, remember?"

"Hoh? Nevermind then. Do you mind if I appraise it?"

Shaking his head, Subaru unhitched his whip and handed it over to the smith. The smith accepted it by the handle and loosely unfurled it, letting the tied end of the whip rest on the ground. He then used his free hand to brush along and feel up the material of the body of the whip. He even brought it up to his nose to sniff it.

"Hmm, I can see that it's a hide of some kind," Wagner reasoned. "However, this does not feel like simple boar hide. And even though it's treated, it smells unusual. Where'dya get something like this?"

"I had it on me when I woke up after I lost my memories. Sorry, I can't say any more than that. I really don't remember enough for it."

"Sigh, that's alright. Just another thing we gotta discover. But remember, when you finally remember what it is, you gotta tell me, 'kay?"

"Alright! I'll do it for sure! That's a promise!"

"Good boy. Now, for the sake of that promise, I'll hand you this Iron Point for free."

After being handed the same lime-green bodied spear that he had practised with just a moment ago, Subaru eagerly accepted it. However, upon holding it, he couldn't help but frown.

"Um, how do I store it?" he asked.

"Just put it in your summoning inventory, of course! Where else, you dunce?!"

"Ah, about that, I don't have one."

"Huh?! Who the hell – "

"Amnesia, remember?"

Wagner grumbled at that. "That excuse is really getting on my nerves," he said. "I'll whip up a harness for you by tomorrow. Till then, I'll hold on to that."

Nodding, Subaru handed over his new polearm to Wagner once more. Satisfied, and having received his whip back, he turned back to Kaeya.

"Who knew that the one who tied in a tug of war against a mitachurl worked best with a polearm and not a claymore?" Kaeya remarked. "In any case, the fact that you would use a polearm is admittedly troublesome, you know?"

"Troublesome?" Subaru echoed. "Why?"

"Well, there aren't any knights in Mondstadt who use the polearm. It's always either swords, claymores or bows. Some exceptional cases also use catalysts."

"Huh?!" Subaru yelled back. "Wait, so, how am I gonna learn this?"

"The good thing is that there is one person I know that can use a polearm. However, everything rides on whether she would accept you as a student or not."

"Okay, things are becoming even scarier, huh?" Subaru replied. "Seems like I gotta impress this person, or else I won't be able to learn."

"Hey, Stinky Space!"

Recognizing that shrill voice calling out to him, Subaru looked back and smiled to see Paimon and Amber approaching him.

"Ah, it's you two!" Subaru said. "How's it going?"

"Good afternoon, Subaru!" Amber greeted him. "I didn't see you anywhere today morning. Where were you?"

"Oh, Paimon can say this!" Paimon interrupted. "Stinky Space here wanted to become a nerd! He went to the Library! To study!"

"Oh? I'm guessing it's for the exam," Amber reasoned. "Really, that's admirable. I always found it hard to study for my exams. How you're doing it so early on… ah, I'm jealous, and I'm not at the same time!"

"Eh?" Paimon asked. "That… makes no sense, Amber."

"Oh, come on! It just is like that!"

"Well, in any case, Paimon did sum up what I went through," Subaru added. "But after that, I ended up picking out an official weapon with Kaeya-san and Wagner-san!"

"Ooh! Which one did you choose?" Amber was on the balls of her feet as she asked.

"Paimon! Drumroll, please!"

"Eh? Drumroll? But… where are the drums?"

"Psst, hey, come on! Just go *DRRRRRR*."

"Um, Paimon doesn't quite get it, but okay. *DRA* *DRA* *DRA* *DRA* *DRA* *DRA* *DRA*!"

"I got…" Subaru said while Paimon did a feeble alternative to a vocal drumroll. "A polearm!"

"Eh? A Polearm?" Amber asked. "Does anyone in Mondstadt even use those?"

"Aah, what's with that defeated reaction?! Oh, also, according to Kaeya-san, no one in the knights use them!"

"Okay, and where is it?"

"I don't have a summoning inventory, so I can't store it!"

"Huh? You don't have a summoning inventory?"

"I have amnesia! Stop asking!"

"All of Stinky Space's issues just got exposed, huh?" Paimon interceded between the two.

"Now, now, don't worry," Kaeya stepped in, sensing a free spot. "Wagner already said that he'd fashion a harness for him. It'll be available for him to use tomorrow."

"Huh? Kaeya was here?!" Amber retorted, almost taken aback by Kaeya's presence. "What in the world are you doing here?!"

"Who do you think guided Subaru Natsuki here to Wagner? Also, I believe I was taking him to his next location as well before you interrupted."

"Huh?! Where were you taking him next? Knowing you, it's probably nowhere good…"

"If you really should know, I was escorting Subaru Natsuki to meet Rosaria. After all, she's the only one I know who can use a polearm in Mondstadt."

"Rosaria?" Amber echoed. "Oh yeah, she does use one! I forgot! Weird that a nun like her uses one though."

"Huh? A nun?" Subaru asked back. "Why would a nun wield a weapon?"

"Don't worry, you'll understand when you meet her," Kaeya reassured him. "In any case, we still need to go. We're burning daylight, after all."

"Now, just hold on a minute!" Amber interrupted. "From what I gathered from Paimon, had you even allowed Subaru to eat anything from today morning?"

"Hmm? I'm sure that Subaru Natsuki had breakfast. Didn't you?"

Subaru, upon feeling the gazes of the other three on him, couldn't help but sheepishly grin and look away.

"You… haven't eaten anything yet?" Kaeya realised, slowly letting his façade drop into displeasure. "I see. Amber, how about we take him to lunch?"

"Yeah! Let's go to Good Hunter! I've heard that they've got a special on their Veggie Bakes today!"

"I, on the other hand, was considering the option of Angel's Share," Kaeya countered.

"Angel's Share?! You want to take him to a bar in the afternoon?"

"Wait, a bar?!" Subaru noted as well. "I don't drink alcohol, Kaeya-san!"

"Don't worry, you won't have to drink anything. They have kid-friendly choices too. Indeed, they don't serve much food, but Amber here can get something to go from Good Hunter anyway. I'll reward her with a nice, cold glass of Wolfhook Juice."

"Eugh! Why are you reminding me of that thing?! And no, I won't ever consider that a reward of all things!"

"In any case, I was also expecting to meet Rosaria there too. I was considering killing two birds with one stone."

"Rosaria's there?! But isn't the prayer starting soon?"

"She rarely ever attends them. She would most definitely be there, trying to hide from Victoria."

"Ah, okay, I guess that makes sense. Still! Subaru, we're going to Good Hunter tonight, then we'll have some late-night gliding practice, okay?! You missed today morning's session, after all!"

Subaru wouldn't admit it out loud, but he was glad that he'd forgotten about that. He really didn't want to keep tasting the ground, after all. That being said, something told him that after practising the polearm, he would find gliding practice easy.

"Okay then," Subaru concluded for them, Paimon blinking to his side. "To Angel's Share we go! Let's become deviants!"

Subaru didn't know what to expect. Angel's Share seemed like your everyday typical bar. Not that he'd ever seen one in real life, he was talking based on movies.

The building was a two-story one, both floors holding a set of tables and organised chairs. There were a couple people seated here and there, adding some more flair to the area. Otherwise, the pub seemed to have a chocolate tone to it, due to the dark wood it was constructed with. The hall also lacked windows; it was instead lit up with fluorescent lights. It gave the room a much more sombre vibe, one that fit well with the fact that it was a bar.

Subaru couldn't help but feel trepidation as he stepped into the store along with Kaeya and Paimon. After all, he was still 17 at heart, even though he didn't know if he'd grown older in that other world. Meaning that he was still unwilling to drink alcohol, no matter what. He was seriously considering backtracking to meet Amber, who was picking up their food delivery from Good Hunter.

"Hey, Kaeya," Paimon asked from over Subaru's shoulder. "Aren't we here to meet someone?"

"Yes, we are," Kaeya responded. "Rosaria."

"Ah, you're looking for Rosaria?" the man standing behind the counter, the barman, asked them as he leaned onto his own counter. He had light brown hair swept over his left eye, further adorned by a handlebar moustache and a jagged beard.

"Good afternoon, Charles," Kaeya greeted. "Yes, I'm looking for her. Has she come in here recently?"

"Sure has," Charles responded with a nod. "You'll find her on the upper floor. It's also unnatural to see you coming in here to actually meet someone. I'm guessing it's regarding the stranger behind you?"

"Yes, in fact, it is. Thank you, Charles. Could you bring a glass of red wine and two glasses of Wolfhook Juice to the table too?"

"Roger that."

Beckoning Subaru and Paimon, Kaeya guided them further into the bar. Together, they both scaled the spiral steps to the next floor, only to find almost the exact same layout as they had seen below. However, just as they entered the floor, Subaru noticed someone familiar sitting at the very corner of the room, casually sipping her cup of red wine.

"Ah, it's you!" Subaru yelled out, making the woman turn to him. "The one I met yesterday!"

"It's you. Natsuki Subaru, yes?" the woman responded. "I hope you're doing alright now? You don't need another smoke?"

This woman was the same one that had offered Subaru her cigarette the previous day. The same woman who had calmed him down from his last death by Stormterror's hands. Her grey skin and white nun clothes stood in stark contrast against the chocolate ambience of the pub. However, her glass of red wine resonated very closely with her own wine red hair.

"Don't worry, I don't," Subaru responded with a smile. "Didn't I say it already? I'm not gonna be dependent on that. And thanks for that again. It really did help me."

"The fact that you two already know each other saves me from needing to introduce you two," Kaeya said.

"Eh? But Paimon doesn't know who this is?" Paimon ended up asked, not having accompanied Subaru in his visit with her.

"Don't worry, Paimon," Subaru said. "This is… actually, what was your name? You never introduced yourself back then."

The woman smiled as she took another sip of her wine. "Rosaria. That's my name. I haven't met your pixie friend either."

"Oh, Paimon's Paimon. And stop calling me a pixie!"

"May we take a seat?" Kaeya asked as he approached her. "We're here to look for you, actually."

"Hm? What could you be looking for me for?"

Kaeya ended up taking the seat opposing her, while Subaru took the seat next to Kaeya. Paimon kept hovering over the table.

"Subaru Natsuki over here is trying to be a knight," Kaeya introduced the issue. "However, the only weapon he knows to use is the whip."

"A whip…" Rosaria echoed as she gazed at Subaru, crossing her eyes. Subaru couldn't help but look away, feeling unnerved by her gaze.

"Yes, the whip. It seems you understand why we don't want to encourage his use of such a weapon in Mondstadt. However, upon further study, we learned that his skill with the whip can be translated into the use of the polearm. So, that's why we're here."

"I see. You want me to train him in the use of the spear, yes?"

"Exactly. Subaru Natsuki is still training to be a knight, but no one in Mondstadt knows how to use a polearm other than you. That is why I am requesting you to train him."

Rosaria stayed quiet as she stared into her glass of wine. In that silence, Charles managed to bring over their drinks. Just as ordered, he set another glass of wine before Kaeya, then set the two glasses of some indigo-coloured iced drink before Subaru and the empty seat.

As Charles left, Rosaria spoke up. "Is someone else coming?" she asked, gesturing to the unattended Wolfhook Juice.

"Yes, Amber is accompanying him. She's just gone to get us some food from Good Hunter. We still haven't had lunch, after all."

"I see. As for your question, I will have to know more about why I should teach him. Mainly, Kaeya, why are you so vested in getting him into the knights?"

As Rosaria leaned over the table, Subaru couldn't help but look at Kaeya-san, feeling like that question was charged in some way or the other.

"I just believe that Subaru Natsuki here will be a good candidate for the knights, that's all," Kaeya responded, not letting go of his smile. "After all, someone that matches the strength of a mitachurl could certainly help Mondstadt's knights grow."

"Yes, but I thought you'd be more curious about his origins. You normally investigate unusual presences in Mondstadt as part of your job in the Knights, so why are you so trusting of this boy?"

"Well… I just believe that he will make a good knight. I've developed an intuition for this sort of thing, after all. It tells me that we can trust him."

"That's the first I'm hearing of this intuition of yours," Rosaria crossed her eyes in suspicion as she spoke. "I know your style, Kaeya. You normally investigate others, even though you feel they are unsuspicious. It truly is odd that you are so accepting of this boy, one who even claims to have amnesia, of all things. Why could that be?"

Kaeya's grin went lopsided as she made that comment. "I don't understand what you're implying, Rosaria. Could you be suggesting that I'm betraying the Knights of Favonius by assisting a boy who led a battle against almost 100 hilichurls and a mitachurl for Mondstadt?"

"Oh, I made no such comment. Unless… what you just said is the truth?"

"Of course not, that was simply an exaggeration of interpretation. However, I would love to see any evidence you may have for any accusation you may have against me."

"I may or may not have any, but I guess you can say that 'I've developed an intuition for this sort of thing'."

Kaeya smirked as Rosaria echoed his own words back at him. Subaru couldn't help but want to step away from the table for a while until both of them cleared the air between them.

"Oh well, I guess you're right," Rosaria finally relented, although Subaru felt it was out of the blue. "He's just a boy, after all, there's not much harm he can do. Natsuki Subaru, you wish to learn the spear, right?"

"A-Ah, right! Yeah, I do!" Subaru replied, not expecting to be abruptly brought back into the conversation. Nervously, he ended up taking a sip from the glass in front of him. Even though the indigo colour defied it, it tasted a lot like grape juice.

"Very well," Rosaria responded. "After you're done with your food, come to the same spot we'd met last. Bring your own weapon with you. I'll test you and see if you are deserving of being taught by me."

"Alright, thanks!"

"Don't thank me yet. I haven't confirmed whether you can train with me or not, I've just said that you can be tested by me, I haven't approved of you yet."

"Still, thanks. You're still taking time out to do this, right? So, thanks for that!"

Rosaria stayed quiet at that, then swiftly finished her glass of wine and stood up. "I'll see you both there. And Amber too, if she's willing to show up. Oh, and maybe even the pixie too."

"Ah, the fairy loli is here too, huh?"

"Shut up, Stinky Space!" Paimon interceded. "Not my fault you all forgot about me!"

"Yeah, yeah, sorry, Paimon," Subaru appeased her.

After having finished their meals, Amber, Kaeya, Subaru and Paimon all went to the church, with Subaru lugging the spear Kaeya had purchased from Wagner. While Kaeya was going to be there just to keep an eye on him, Amber wanted to stay because she didn't have much else to do. And in her words…

"It'll be fun to see Subaru get beat up. I wish Eula was here; I could've brought her along too…"

"Oi! Don't make my shaming a public commotion!" Subaru yelled out. "And why are you coming, Paimon? I thought you'd be getting second lunch or something?"

"Paimon thought she could stick with you for now! Oh, and Amber's idea sounds awesome too."

"I'm starting to feel like there's no honour to my existence in the slightest."

"Did you ever, Stinky Space?"

"Look alive, everyone, we're here," Kaeya said, making them all look ahead to see the cathedral. "Subaru Natsuki, where was it that you met Rosaria?"

"Oh, I met her behind the church, at the cemetery. It's where I ran off to yesterday, just as I got another memory flash."

"I see. Subaru, could I have a word with you before we meet her? In private?"

"Um, okay?"

Sending an unknowing shrug to a confused Amber and Paimon, Subaru ended up following Kaeya to the other end of the Cathedral's Square.

"Now, Kaeya-san," Subaru started. "I just want you to know that I acknowledge your feelings, but unfortunately, I am not into – "

"Subaru Natsuki, I need you to be careful around Rosaria," Kaeya interrupted him before anyone could start getting any weird thoughts.

"Huh? Careful around Rosaria? Why?"

"You can call it another gut feeling. As long as you are with her, try not to be alone. Try to have someone watch over the two of you. Even if it's Paimon, it should be fine, but it's better to have someone within Mondstadt to keep witness."

"Wait, why are you suggesting this? Is Rosaria dangerous in some way?"

"I would like to say no, but at this point, I cannot say for certain. Not after the last discussion we had with her. So please, be careful."

Upon hearing these words, Subaru couldn't help but shiver. Due to Return by Death, Subaru had gotten exponentially more afraid of dying. He absolutely did not want to die.

However, some part of him wanted to trust Rosaria too. Mondstadt was a safe haven for him; there was no way he would be killed by one of its residents. If he was, he didn't know what he'd do.

"Don't worry about it, Kaeya-san," Subaru replied with a smile. "I'll definitely keep an eye out. I hope you're ready to be called on for almost whole days!"

Kaeya smiled back at him. "Don't worry, Subaru Natsuki. I'll ensure that you're safe. I swear it on my role as Cavalry Captain of the Knights of Favonius."

"Thanks, Kaeya-san!"

Having finished their conversation, both of them wordlessly decided to head back to the others.

"So, you've made it on time. And it seems like all of you are here, too."

"I didn't know there was a time limit for this, Rosaria-san."

Rosaria greeted the four as they went past the bend of the church walls. Now before the cemetery, the five of them stood. Rosaria already had her spear in hand, one that looked leagues more elegant than the one Subaru held. Her spear had a long, sharp tip with an intricate show of a light gold bladed tip, black along the edges outlining another segment of the same gold adorned by an emblem. It was separated from its black and white shaft by a pair of gold protrusions on either side shaped in a feather-like manner, clearly more for show than for efficiency. However, Subaru noticed that this lance had those ends rather sharp as well.

However, what surprised him the most was that Rosaria was not carrying it on hand. For some reason, it hovered behind her back.

"Wait, how is that doing that?!"

"Doing what?" Amber asked.

"I mean," Subaru responded. "Did Paimon's brain juice end up going into that spear behind Rosaria-san? It's flying, just like her!"

"Oi! That's not funny! Paimon tries to keep in as much of Paimon's brain juice as possible!"

"Why am I not surprised that you reacted like that?"

"Now, now, calm down, both of you," Kaeya asserted himself. "Subaru Natsuki, what you're seeing is just another application of the summoning inventory. It is possible to keep certain objects on standby without actually having to access the inventory."

"Oh! So, it's like quickslots!"

"That etymology is unusual, but from the meaning, I believe you understand."

"Hmm, hmm! Didn't expect a summoning inventory to have one, but that's seriously cool! I really want one now!"

"All in due time, don't worry. For now, you should stick with Rosaria and train yourself. From what I gathered after your discussion with Noelle, you are still struggling with our script, are you not?"

"Yeah, it's a bit of a hassle. But don't worry! I've got it! Natsuki Subaru won't be bested by a simple script!"

"Yes, but right now, Subaru Natsuki should not be bested by polearm training."

"Ah, yeah. That takes priority right now."

"Are you all quite finished?" Rosaria finally shut them all up. "Natsuki, I assume you've brought your spear?"

Nodding, Subaru took his spear back from Amber, who had summoned it out of her own inventory. He experimentally hefted it in his hands, getting used to the extra weight it offered.

"Alright, come up."

Subaru walked up to Rosaria's side. Rosaria didn't even reach back for her own spear; she literally dissolved it into sparks and reassembled it in her hands.

"Man, that's the height of laziness," Subaru couldn't help but remark.

"It's actually faster; I've tried it before," Rosaria replied to his inferred question. "We're beginning training."

All of a sudden, Rosaria thrust her blade ahead, aiming right at Subaru's face.

Subaru had not anticipated this in the slightest. Upon seeing Rosaria's blade coming for him, he couldn't help but compare it to the axe of the mitachurl that lopped off his head. When Death's Touch came, you would not stop and compare sizes.

Subaru forced himself away, hearing a sudden clang in the air. Looking down, he noticed that he'd unknowingly brought the head of his own spear at her blade, successfully defending himself against her.

"Rosaria!" Kaeya suddenly yelled out, summoning his sword, gaining a ferocious expression that Subaru had never before seen on his face. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"What do you think? I'm training him," Rosaria coolly replied, as if she hadn't tried to kill him just a moment ago. "Do you really think I would kill a teenager?"

"Then why did you aim your blade at him?!"

"As I said, I was training him. Just as how I was trained. Do you really think my own coach would have held back against me, even if I was a kid? Absolutely not. And yet, that's how I got stronger."

Kaeya grit his teeth, still not dropping his sword nor his battle stance as he kept guarding a stricken Subaru. "Subaru Natsuki doesn't need to learn it like that. Teach it to him like a knight would, giving him stances and training dummies."

"Pssh, just who is going to learn to fight from those alone? This is one of the biggest problems of the Knights of Favonius. None of you are willing to get your trainees in a real fight. And you then complain about not having enough members, because everyone keeps failing your exam. How do you expect a greenhorn like this kid to become an expert if he's just swinging a weapon around all day with no purpose? Why would you ever wish to pick up a weapon if you don't want to attack someone with it?!

"Pray tell, how did the two of you end up training yourselves? Did you become a knight by training against dummies alone?"

Kaeya kept glaring at her, not willing to give her a response. Subaru was now on his butt; he was out of the recoil from the experience, but he was still watching the two of them fight.

"Listen, guys," Subaru started to speak. "I don't think – "

"I learned," Amber was the one to interrupt him, stepping up between the two. "from my grandfather. After I could hit training dummies, he then let me hunt animals out in the wild, along with Draff and the others. And then… one day, he dropped me off at a hilichurl camp.

"He was still standing nearby, but I didn't know that. All I knew was that these monsters were coming after me, ready to hit me in the face. And in my panic, I listened to my training and fired arrows at them.

"If I had not had that initial training, then I would not have been able to fight them! And you're trying to attack Subaru without letting him get his basics down first?!"

"Hey, Amber, don't – "

"I learned from my own father. My adoptive one, that is," Kaeya interrupted him this time. "He taught me and Diluc the basics, and when he deemed us ready, he had us fight each other. As spars, with wooden swords. We never held real swords against each other, not until… Anyway, I still became a knight, even though I never had to face a real threat. I'd only faced Diluc as training. I'd never gone at him intending to kill back when our father was around."

"Come on, Kaeya-san, you don't need to – "

"I know that there's more to that story, Kaeya. Care to tell us more about your falling out with your brother like you almost told me once?"

Kaeya grit his teeth, his eyes blazing in rage. "That's none of your business."

"Maybe not, but I would certainly love to hear the rest of the story. It certainly is a tale to tell, after all."

"WOULD ALL OF YOU SHUT UP?!"

Kaeya nearly jumped ahead in recoil as Subaru screamed from behind him, his expression seething.

"Could you guys listen to me for a moment?!" Subaru yelled, finally making his point known. "I get why you're concerned about the way Rosaria-san is teaching me, but I want to keep doing it."

"Huh?!" Amber yelled back at him. "Then what if you get hurt?!"

"Getting hurt isn't an issue for me; Barbara-san should be in the church as well, right? Even then, I can take a few hits in. Rosaria-san, do you think I can keep up your kind of training?"

"If you're asking me, then I believe so," Rosaria responded in affirmative. "If you had simply frozen up as I attacked you, I would have resorted to doing the traditional forms. However, you defended against me. That tells me that you have a certain amount of combat sense, meaning that teaching you in such a harsh manner would not be fruitless."

"See? If she says I'll be fine, then I'll be fine! You guys don't need to worry so much about this. I mean, the faster I learn how to use this thing, the better, right?"

Subaru missed the way that Rosaria crossed her eyes the moment he said that.

"And why is that?" he heard Rosaria ask instead. "Why are you so eager to learn how to fight?"

Subaru was briefly taken aback by the sudden question. His real answer would be to better prepare himself for the upcoming Stormterror attack, but there was no way for him to reveal that information.

"Ah, well, I just want to be ready for anything, you know? I mean, um, like, what if we end up going out of Mondstadt? Or something like that? I mean, I can't really fight hilichurls with just a whip, right? I don't wanna keep going whack whack all the time, I want to hear some shlicks in there as well, right?"

The other stood stupefied at Subaru's… uncanny response.

"Um, Paimon has never heard anyone describe a weapon like that. Is that a problem?"

"No, it's not, you fairy loli, just keep quiet, please."

"You use a whip, yes?" Rosaria asked, deciding to drop the matter. "If so, then it makes sense why you'd imagine that you'd be better with a polearm due to that. However, the primary attack with a polearm is in its thrusts, not its slashes. You will need to learn to thrust your spear as well. Although, like me, you can develop your own style of wielding your weapon. That will only come with practice, however."

"Ah, I see. Can you teach me the basics of the thrusts first before we spar again?"

"Sure. Hold up your spear against your body, keep one hand against the base and the other up ahead. Not too close to the head; it should be in the middle to the base. Just enough to control the weapon properly without letting its weight imbalance yourself."

As Subaru replicated the stance, Kaeya decided to step away from the two.

"Well, I believe that could have gone better," Kaeya suggested to the other two listening in.

"Paimon's wondering why you and Rosaria hate each other so much, Kaeya?"

"Yeah, I'm wondering that too. I thought you both mainly stayed out of each other's ways?"

"Sorry, but it's in our nature," Kaeya explained to both of them. "Both of us are the types of people that seek out threats to Mondstadt and take care of them. Naturally, we both suspect each other as well."

"Huh? Paimon would have imagined that you both would call that a common point and get along?"

"Real life is not always like that, you know? I've always found that the best romances are between two different assassins since there is such a great border to move around. By nature, we suspect everyone."

"Really?" Amber asked. "But I always thought you treated Subaru well. I mean, it's something new from you, knowing how weird you can get, but you never treated Subaru like anyone else that I brought along."

"About that, I can't really explain it," Kaeya muttered as he kept his gaze trained on Subaru, thrusting the spear out while Rosaria corrected his form by countering them with her own weapon. "I just trust him. Ever since I saw him, I knew that I could trust him… I guess it's just his charisma."

"… For once, Kaeya, I agree with you."

A/N: Just like most chapters, I feel like something is missing from this one. I dunno if it's just the lack of action speaking, but I found this chapter a little boring. There wasn't even any fruitful exposition anywhere. This chapter was just to introduce Subaru's training regimen, that's it. If I'm gonna become an actual author, I need to learn how to deal with my content more appropriately.

Sorry this chapter took so long too. I wanted to get back to my old system of finishing the next chapter before uploading the current one. The next chapter is a long one though, so you have that to look forward to. Also, I'm pretty proud of it as well.

I should warn you, though. Remember episodes 15 and 16 of the Re: Zero anime? Yeah, I don't want to remember them either. The thing is, those episodes are completely normal reactions from Subaru, something you should have understood if you've made it here.

And that's why I'm going to do the same thing with my iteration.

In the next few chapters, Subaru's going to make choices that you won't agree with. He's already been making such choices up until now, so it's best that he peaks in his cringiness in the next few chapters. What I'm trying to say is that Subaru's actions are temporary. He will eventually learn to be better. You'll see the beginnings of that in the next chapter.

Reviews!

kerrowe: Subaru could have ended up learning any of those weapons, honestly. I chose the polearm because he was already used to the swinging motions that it used, meaning that he already knew about half of how to use it already. It was a matter of speed in learning. Subaru had to learn as much as possible in two days, all so he could be ready for Stormterror.

worrierfierce: Glad to hear you enjoy it! I guess I hadn't explained Subaru's nightmares properly, that's my bad. He mainly dreams about how he'd died before, he doesn't remember anything else, after all. Also, good to know that there are no crossbows.

Ken: Well, I did consider making Subaru a Noelle simp due to her appearance and demeanor, but I guessed that with his current trauma, simping over someone would be the last thing on his mind. And yes, I'm sorry to all SubaMilia shippers, but I believe that Subaru is just a simp for Emilia. It's why I support the Rem ship instead; even though it was so abrupt, there is an element of understanding to it. However, I've already had Subaru admit that Noelle is attractive. She's exactly his type, after all. Not only does she share the silver (read: gray) hair of Emilia's, she's also a maid like the one girlfriend that Subaru remembered at that moment.

You've pretty much summed up the entire character arc for Subaru in the upcoming chapters. It's actually good that you do. In my eyes, the best way to make a suspense is to make it clear that it will occur.

The art certainly looks cool, I totally agree with that redditor.

As for the future side stories, I might end up making that as an omake once I'm done with the first book. I'll see what I can do though, but there might be some trouble, since there are more elements to the link between Lugunica and Teyvat.

Maximum Rhapsody: You'll have to see. However, I will confirm for you that the Emilia camp (read: Beatrice) is still looking for a way to get Subaru and Rem back. The issue is that they need to tackle the issue of interdimensional travel.

Senji2: I will agree that I'm leaning towards Subaru x Amber in Book 1 and Subaru x Ayaka in Book 3, but Shenhe is still up for grabs. I'm more leaning towards Ganyu for Book 2. It may be true that Shenhe would have Subaru as her first contact into the human world, but I don't think that that's grounds for a relationship. But in the end, I tend to write as I go, so promises rarely ever work for me.

For being a polearm user, I'll be honest, I had some personal bias involved. I've only recently started using Bennett for his burst, so I don't know enough about his attack animation to compare. However, Rosaria was my Sub-DPS for a while before I got Hu Tao. In Genshin, I love polearm users more than sword wielders. They have a much greater range and area of attack, things that I absolutely appreciate. And since I compared the swinging of a polearm to the movements of a whip, I decided that Subaru should become a polearm user.

The teapot would certainly come in useful for the future. I'm gonna include it, no matter what. If anything, I wished I could have included it sooner.

Piero: Oh yeah, it'll certainly be a struggle, but this series is gonna extend for a while. It's not like Subaru doesn't have the time for it.

DremCaponera: No comment.

That's all, folks! I'll see you next chapter!