Waking up from that incredibly long and vivid dream. Julius instantly clutched his head as if a phantom pain was going on there, then he used his link to check on his spirits and make sure they are fine. Sensing that nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He opened his eyes slowly, seeing the sunlight reflecting through the room's window.
"W-what happened.." Julius muttered, finally regaining his senses. "Last thing I remember was.. Joshua? I was talking to him and then.."
'I'm back in my own bed? Strange. I do not remember coming to my room yesterday. That dream memory.. Wait, but since I'm back here in my mansion then should I not have gone to the palace to meet my lady and the rest of the camp? Though that begs the question as to why I have not gone to meet them already?'
He started thinking back on the strange dream he had just woken up from to seek any answer to those questions but found nothing. Looking out the window he realized it was nearing noon. "Curses! I have slept for far too long!"
He instantly got up and started to change. Picking up his sword, he inspected it carefully. It was his ancestral family's sword that was broken during his fight against the sword saint Reid Astraea. Yet it looked as if it was reforged.
'Curious. When did I get this sword back? Last I remember, I discarded it after it broke and had to use a common sword afterwards. I must say it looks quite better than I remember. I commend whomever reforged it, it looks as if remade in a better quality than before.'
He still wondered what happened to the kingly gift he received from Emperor Vincent. Could it have been a sword perhaps? He could almost swear he had a different sword with him when he returned, or perhaps it was his memories playing a trick on him.
Heavy thoughts were permeating his mind. He had even more questions than before that needed answering. He decided to eat first before doing his swordsmanship practice to clear his thoughts.
Exiting his room he was greeted by his brother.
"Julius!" Joshua immediately hugged him with Julius slowly responding to it.
Joshua let go of the hug, though he looked down. Almost as if he was upset by something.
"Joshua? What's the matter?" Julius spoke as he saw the look his brother had.
"J-Julius... I-I-I'm s-so sorry! I d-didn't mean t-to speak about h-her like that. I f-forgot what you f-felt about her" Joshua stammered an apology, as he thought it was his fault that made his brother faint from grief, or so he assumed. It made Julius confused slightly as he had no recollection of last night's conversation. Merely some parts here and there.
"You have nothing to apologize for Joshua. I'm certain you did not mean whatever it is you said, and I would not hold it against you even if it were. You are my brother after all. Besides, I should be the one to apologize for worrying you as I do not exactly recall how I got to my room so I must have you to thank." Julius mostly said that to ease the guilt that his brother felt, he still had no idea what he said yesterday that made him look this guilty.
"T-thank you Julius. A-and no I wasn't the only one, Marius and H-Helena helped me bring you here. You really w-worried e-everyone you know? Even H-Helena looked slightly on edge, wh-which is unusual from her. B-but I'm glad y-you're alright." Joshua scratched his head as he said that. Julius didn't know how to react to that. He knew he had fainted but he had no idea how they must have felt when that happened.
"Th-That said, w-why don't w-we head down to eat something?"
"Ah indeed. Thank you Joshua. I was actually on my way down to grab something to eat, as it seems that I slept too much that hunger is slightly dominating my mind."
Heading down to eat, they met Marius and Helena along the way, they were conversing until their attention fell on Julius.
"Young master!" "Julius Sama?" Marius stood by smiling and Helena wanted to hug him but she didn't want to give the wrong impression.
"Are you alright, young master? We were just discussing sending for young master Argyle to come and mend you. We wanted to the other night, but alas it was too late in the evening." Marius softly spoke.
"Oh no need for that Marius, I feel completely alright. In fact I would say I feel much better than I did yesterday."
"Julius-sama, please stop using your head to think so much. It makes us all worry when you faint like that." Helena replied though her tone indicated relief. Making Julius chuckle, though Joshua looked guilty and Marius looked stunned at what she said.
"Helena! What's the matter with you? Be kind to the young master and be grateful he is-"
"Haha it's fine, don't worry Marius. Helena, I'm glad to see you too. I'm still not entirely sure of what happened, but I would like to apologize for making you all worry." Julius spoke in an apologetic manner.
"All is well that ends well young master. Regardless, why don't we leave the corridor and head down? I'm certain you must be quite hungry seeing as you missed out on breakfast." Marius being the first to take the initiative to steer the conversation towards something productive.
"I am indeed. Thank you Marius, I hope this also means you both will be joining us like yesterday."
"If that is what you wish for, young master." Marius gave a kind smile. Helena simply nodded.
As they were eating their food. Julius was still lost in thought, yet managing to hold some measure of conversation so as to not worry them. As he still felt truly guilty over the events of last night. From the way they were eating their meal, it looked as if they too had missed out on breakfast in their worry over his state. Furthering the guilt felt by the elegant knight.
He took a few seconds to compose himself as he was deciding to bring up the topic which haunted his mind ever since he awoke.
"Excuse me everyone. I have been wondering, and please bear with me for a moment." Julius spoke to them in an unsure tone to grab their attention. Making them all turn towards him. "Why am I in this mansion?"
All 3 of them were truly confused at what he was asking.
"Eh? W-what do y-you mean Julius?"
"Young master?"
"Where else would you be Julius-sama? I do have quite a few suggestions that fit with your rugged appearance though." Helena coldly replied, receiving a glare from Marius and a sigh from Julius as he continued.
"I realize it may sound confusing, but as far as I'm aware, our lady" He pointed towards Joshua then himself. "Has won. Therefore, since I am her personal knight then should I not be serving alongside her at the palace? So why am I here and not with her at the palace? Not that I do not want to be here of course.. It's just, that question has been sitting in my head since I woke up."
His statement made them all look at him with worry in their eyes. Has he been in denial for all this time? Was that the reason why he fainted the other day? Were filling their thoughts.
It was making some sense now why he behaved strangely yesterday.
"May I ask why I'm receiving those worried looks?" Julius asked, noticing their worried gazes towards him.
"Young master.. I do not know how to tell you this but.." Marius decided to speak up, as he knew Joshua wouldn't be able to explain it well, and Helena would not mince her words.
Julius listened intently to his butler's words
"The young lady is no longer with us. I am truly sorry, young master." Marius turned his gaze towards the ground as a sign of his sadness. Making Joshua do the same in turn, and Helena to some extent.
'Huh? No longer with us implies that she is.. No. That is not possible. I refuse to believe it. I know in my heart that she is alive. She has won the throne and is ruling from the palace. Or atleast from what I have been told.'
"She cannot be dead, she has won. I have heard that she won from the travelers and merchants on my way home, and I know that she lives in the palace now, along with the rest of our camp I imagine." He vehemently denied. Though his statement had a different effect for them. They all felt bad for what Julius is going through.
"Julius-sama... While I would normally ridicule you, but what Marius-san said is not wrong. She passed away in Kararagi due to some unknown illness. Her camp stayed behind to take care of her business." Helena decided to speak up, she had to make him understand and help him move forward from his loss.
'Kararagi? What was she doing there? What were all of them doing there?'
"May I ask why she was in Kararagi? I have not heard of her going to Kararagi on my way here, nor does she have any purpose for being there when I think about it. How recent ago was this event?" Julius questioned, although in a slightly harsher tone than intended. Making Helena turn away from him at this unexpected tone.
"W-we don't k-know why she was there J-Julius. Only y-you and the Iron F-Fang do. She d-died there just b-before the royal selection e-ended."
'Only me and the Iron fang? Aren't the Iron Fang.. the mercenary group led by my friend Subaru and his merchant princess? What were they doing with my lady? Also she died before the royal selection?'
"What do you mean by "she died there before the royal selection"? As far as I'm aware she has won it. The only one that I'm aware of who died was unfortunately my friend Subaru Natsuki's lady."
They all looked even more puzzled than they did before. What was he talking about? How far is his denial going to go?
"Julius-sama, just who do you think your lady is?" Helena decided to ask him to bring him out of this delusion.
That question made Julius freeze. He realized for some reason he could not recall the name of his lady. Her name seemed to have completely slipped out of his mind. He knew her appearance and her characteristics but no name came up to him. It was almost on the tip of his tongue but he could not recall it no matter how hard he tried.
Cursing himself that he did not possess an answer made Julius feel awful. It dawned on him that he failed his knightly virtues by not being able to recall the name of the lady he was meant to serve. He felt deeply ashamed at this. He thought to call her a half elf rather than remember her unknown name, but he knew if he were to say that then the disgrace he would feel would follow him to his grave.
"Julius-sama?" Helena asked him again, worried about his silence. The other two looked at him in the same way.
"I.. Forgive me everyone, I must be still waking up from my long slumber to think properly." He answered her with a tone filled with shame. Before deciding to leave, as he could not look at them from the shame of him forgetting his lady's name. He decided to do his sword training despite not having the heart for it, he wanted to be alone with his thoughts. Telling them a soft goodbye as he headed out.
They all wondered what just happened. Did Julius suddenly remember his loss? That reaction seemed different than being sad over her death. Was present on their minds.
Reaching the training grounds felt like it took forever for Julius. His mind was filled with shame and guilt. He could not believe that he forgot her name. Berating himself for daring to even say that he loved her. His thoughts dropped all pretense of the elegance that he carries.
Taking his sword out to begin his training. His self-loathing exploded.
'My lack of virtue today will always be a stain on me. Just what kind of a knight am I to forget the name of my own lady? How could I even look at her in the eyes when I meet her? I am truly gladdened that I'm not by her side, as to face her now would only bring us both great dishonor.. I can only hope you'll forgive me my lady, for I cannot forgive myself.'
As he was berating himself, he started hearing his spirits hovering over him to comfort him. Giving him words of encouragement, as well as the fact that they too forgot about her name and not only him. But that just made him sulk even further into his training
'Even my own buds have forgotten her name.. I do not deserve to be called a knight. Let alone that title. I have become a fake symbol of all that I uphold. How can I even think about atoning for my sin when I do not even remember her name.. To my utter shame.' Sighing deeply at this as he was still practicing sword maneuvers.
His thoughts were progressively getting worse as he started to swing his swords over and over with no aim.
Suddenly time seemed to freeze around him and his surroundings began to change.
He now stood in an empty area where once it was the training grounds. Sunlight and clear skies turned into moonlight with visible stars. The mansion that was supposed to be behind him was now all but gone. His buds weren't there even if he were to call out to them, he assumed Nes had something to do with this but no answer came.
"Huh? Where am I?"
He took a look around and noticed nothing was visible except for a dark figure a short distance away from him. On closer inspection this dark figure had evil eyes with a red glint to them, and it was snarling at Julius.
"Who are you?" Julius called out but no reply came.
it lifted a hand that held a sword before pointing it towards Julius.
A second passed and soon enough the dark figure charged at him. He couldn't discern anything about it other than the evil eyes that glared at him. It seemed to be the stuff of nightmares. Julius steeled himself as the figure got closer and closer.
They began clashing. With each strike Julius dealt, the dark figure retaliated two more strikes with twice the aggression. With each blow Julius blocked, the dark figure screamed at him yet he couldn't hear it precisely. Each time Julius tried to pause to start a conversation, the dark figure would attack. It seemed to match Julius' skill with the sword through its sheer ferocity.
Soon enough Julius started stepping back as he was losing grounds due to the unpredictable pattern of the attacks. The dark figure's onslaught were brutal and never ending. Even when Julius severed an arm, it didn't hinder the figure nor stop it at its track. Rather a minute later that arm he severed was fully healed, greatly shocking Julius. Meanwhile the wounds that Julius sustained did not heal like his opponent's. Though they were mostly shallow or minor cuts.
The fight continued on and on without an ending neither fighters wanted to yield or retreat. It could have been minutes or hours or days.
Eventually as Julius was beginning to gain the upper hand and seemed very close to winning, the dark figure did something. In an instant Julius's eyes widened as he felt like he couldn't breathe, and even dropped his sword. The dark figure stepped closer and closer to him. Julius accepted his fate, closing his eyes as he waited for the finishing blow. Then nothing.
Opening his eyes. He was back in the training grounds once again, with the sunlight still shining over him and the mansion nearby. His spirits were hovering around him frantically wondering what happened to him. He found himself panting heavily.
'By the Divine Dragon, what just.. Did I.. die? No. I'm still here.. And my wounds?' He began checking his body for any injuries left over by what just happened. 'Nothing at all. Who was that figure? It's highly possible that I've fabricated the whole thing, but still. That felt.. too real.'
He hid his face in his free hand. "Was that my punishment for forgetting her name.."
He felt a hand on his shoulder before a voice spoke, bringing him out of his thoughts and making him lift his gaze.
"Forgive the disturbance, young master. But I saw you deep in thought and I decided a relaxing cup of tea would help." Marius's voice interrupted his thoughts, he brought with him a pot of tea and two cups on a plate. He sat it down on a table near the training ground before he approached Julius. As he got him out of his thoughts he gestured towards a chair for Julius to take a seat which he did. Then he poured a cup for Julius, then for himself as he drew a chair to sit on.
"You have my thanks Marius. Though you did not have to do that. I was just simply.. enjoying the calming sensation of this spot." Julius spoke after taking a sip from his cup.
His poor attempt at a lie made Marius raise an eyebrow before slightly chuckling.
"I have raised you and your brother since you picked your first sword, young master. I know how harsh you think of yourself and I know that you place too much responsibility, values and high ideals on your shoulders to honor and uphold the Juuklius name. What I mean to say is. You can lie to yourself, young master, but you cannot lie to me. " He gave him a gentle, knowing smile as he said that.
Although that made Julius look down. Which Marius noted. "Marius.. I'm-"
"I will not presume to know what you are going through. I can tell it is troubling but I will not pressure you. That said, I want you to know that you are not alone even if you want to think so. We, yes even Helena included, are with you and you will always have support in whatever it is you decide. So do not look down in shame, and do not forget that you have us to bear some of what weighs you down. I beg you to never forget that and I urge you to lift your head instead. What say you, young master? After all, are you not the 'Finest of Knights'? Or is it the 'Greatest Knight' these days?"
Hearing that made Julius perk up. He truly missed his butler and his caring attitude when he was in Vollachia. In many ways Marius was almost like a father or a grandfather figure for both Juuklius siblings. His spirits were also hovering over him agreeing with what the butler had said.
'Marius and my buds are right. I mustn't give up now. I need to redeem myself and restore my honor as a knight. As her knight. I still have much to ponder.. But for now I will simply take solace in this modicum of peace.'
He smiled as he found calmness entering his mind. A genuine smile formed on his face.
"Thank you Marius. Truly." He finally spoke.
"You are quite welcome, young master." His kind smile deepened as he saw the look on his master's face.
"Though I do quite doubt that even Helena would support me." Julius joked, which made them both chuckle a bit before silence fell.
"She worries about you more than you think, young master." Marius whispered that to himself as he enjoyed the calmness that came.
Then they sat in a peaceful silence, enjoying the serenity of the garden. All the while being watched over by a certain maid. It seemed her plan worked. She had seen him distressed before and urged the butler to go comfort him. She allowed herself a shadow of a smile before returning to her duties.
Heading back towards his room with a clearer mind just as dusk was beginning to set in. He ran into his maid Helena. She had been relaxing at a spot in the mansion and looked to be stuck in her own thoughts rather than doing anything.
"You're as diligent as ever, I see." He spoke in an amused tone, instantly making her focus her attention towards him.
"Julius-sama?" She was pleased to see him exuding an aura of calmness. His talk with Marius seemed to truly help him.
He opened his mouth and was about to speak up when she beat him to it.
"May I ask why Julius-sama is staring at me like a crude animal in heat? I can only imagine lewd thoughts going through the empty space you call head, but do elaborate." She spoke in a repulsive tone to gauge his reaction. Though he simply ignored her usual remarks and chose to speak up.
"You know I never did thank you."
"Huh? F-for what?" She was puzzled at his words. This was not a normal reaction she'd gain from him. Was this because of what she did earlier?
"For all your treatment towards me over the years." He spoke, which made her tilt her head towards him in confusion.
"W-what is Julius-sama speaking of?"
"What I meant to say is that.. Everyone else treats me with high esteem, and I suppose the way you treat me makes me feel grounded. It keeps me from not letting my "pride of being finest of knights" get to my head. If that makes some sense. Hence it makes me feel like a normal person."
She nodded but didn't know what to say.
"So thank you for that, Helena." Smiling towards her as he said that, which made her slightly flustered at this.
"I.. I must say I'm surprised. That Julius-sama feels normal like the rest of us. We should probably alert the kingdom of this, the aspiring knights would rejoice." She said while also curious at the genuine smile that formed on his face.
He softly chuckled as he was beginning to leave. "Never change Helena."
She watched him as he left, wondering what just happened. Where did those words come from? The last thing she did was tell Marius to go speak with him instead of her, as she saw him clearly distressed about something and she didn't know the right words to say. Had he somehow known it was her who did it? Not possible she thought.
Julius returned to his room to drop his sword and clean up following his training.
After washing up and not having anything to do until dinner. He started to pace back and forth in his room as he knew it was time to ponder over what he knew and what he needed to know.
'So far I know that my lady has won, which fills me with joy, alongside the fact that she and the rest of the camp live in the palace. Now the question is how do I enter the palace? As far as I'm aware, I have been suspended from duty. A fact for which I have no recollection of, nor did that memory dream show me anything regarding it. Which means that I cannot simply barge in and request a meeting with my lady, even if I'm her personal knight.'
His thoughts kept circling that particular issue.
'Still.. it doesn't make sense for Marcos to do that for no reason. I imagine it had something to do with me, a Lugunican royal knight, being in Vollachia. So it had to have been the Sage's council before they lost their power, but then why hasn't my lady interfered if so? Unless she is unaware?'
"Tsk. Far too many questions and too little answers."
Sighing as he could not find any good answer.
'Regardless, let's leave that for now and focus on the important thing. How do I find out her name again? I cannot simply just ask anyone, the shame would be far too great.' He looked down as he thought of that before reflecting deeper on it. He knew it was on the tip of his tongue but it couldn't come up no matter how hard he tried.
As he was still pacing back and forth in his room, his eye caught an opened letter on his bedside table. He wondered if it had been there all along and not caught his attention or if it arrived today while he was outside.
Picking it up. It seemed like an invitation letter from the palace. It was not signed nor did it have any particular seal, yet it looked valid.
As he started to read it he found something that made him feel very nostalgic:
" Her Majesty the Queen Emilia invites.."
'Emilia?! Is that?! It sounds utterly familiar, so it must be her. No. It definitely is her! Yes. I'm certain of it.' A big smile formed on his face. He finally knew her name.
"That is her name.. finally."
The happiness felt by Julius made his self-loathing of earlier become a distant memory. Despite his shame at requiring a letter to tell him of her name, it mattered not as long as he knew it. He finally found the answer to the one question that lay on top of all the questions he had asked himself earlier.
Reading over the letter with a happy expression on his face. That name brought on the memories from that dream with it.
He seemed as if he was in a trance as he pondered his next actions. How would he present himself to her? It has been an entire year or more since they last saw each other. What would he say? Does he congratulate her first, or does he tell her he missed her beforehand?
His brother's voice broke the trance he was in.
"J-Julius?"
"Y-you seemed to be s-standing still just about n-now. I c-came to tell y-you that it's getting late and dinner is soon when I f-found you l-like that. A-are you alright?" Joshua replied with slight worry in his tone.
"Oh thank you Joshua... I am alright. More than alright. In fact I feel better than I have felt since I woke up, I assure you." Conveying to Joshua that everything was fine, which seemed to work from the great mood he exuded and made Joshua at ease.
"I-if you s-say so. A-anyway you should probably get ready to go d-down. N-noblemen like us shouldn't tarry so l-long." Joshua said as he began to take his leave
"True. Thank you Joshua. You know I thought for certain Marius or Helena would come to inform me about dinner, but certainly not my brother." Julius spoke to Joshua which made him stop in his tracks and look back at him.
"I-it's the l-least I could do. Besides, I w-wanted to. Just this once." Joshua was still feeling guilty about his brother fainting last night, so he was trying to make amends in any way he could. Despite Julius telling him he didn't hold anything over him earlier.
"In that case then let us be on our way. I also have an announcement to make over dinner."
"I wanted to inform you all that I will be departing tomorrow for the royal palace. I know it may sound sudden, but I have to meet with my lady after being gone for so long. And I wish to serve her once again as her knight" Julius spoke to all three of them. It seemed to puzzle them when he mentioned that he will serve her once again. Has he worked with Queen Emilia before? Although he seemed to be happy about this.
"If that is what you wish to do young master then I will not stop you." Marius spoke
"Y-yes I'm with M-Marius on this." Joshua also agreed. He didn't want his brother to leave so soon as their bond is still not fully forged, but he didn't want to stop him.
"I don't mind. But Julius-sama, what about your suspension?" Helena asked though she seemed slightly sad about him leaving.
"Indeed. Helena makes a good point, young master. Wouldn't the knights there question your presence? You would be violating Captain Marcos' order."
Joshua nodded at their valid questions.
Julius simply showed the invitation letter before beginning to elaborate.
"I understand your concerns, in fact I even share them. But I found this on my desk today. I hope it will be enough to make me meet my lady, and I'm more than sure that she will revoke Marcos' order should she become aware of it."
"It sounds like you've thought this through young master. I have never met her majesty, but I have heard she is benevolent and kind to all despite her unfortunate appearance." Marius paused before continuing. "Although, may I suggest that you take Helena with you?" Which surprised all 3.
"Marius?" "M-Marius?" "Marius-san? Why?"
"It is only because I am worried for you young master. To tell the truth we all are. As I have said before, these last few days have been hard for everyone but I cannot imagine how hard they were on you. Helena is someone we all trust. And while she lacks some manners to my regret, she is capable, reliable and trustworthy. She will be someone you can trust at the palace should things go awry." Marius explained, stunning everyone again, especially Helena. She didn't think he would speak like this about her.
Julius spoke before Helena could respond.
"Marius I.. While I share the same sentiment as to what you say. I cannot in good conscience leave the two of you alone in a big mansion while taking Helena with me. I cannot leave the mansion all alone for you to take care of." Julius argued back, making them see the logic in his words.
"It doesn't h-have to be just Marius. I c-can always contribute too. W-We can always hi-hire new p-people to take c-care of the mansion." Came the voice of Joshua, although he didn't want to lose both Helena and Julius so soon, he couldn't go against what Marius had said.
"And pray tell how long would that take? I apologize if I sound harsh, but perhaps Helen-"
"Could you all please stop talking about me as if I do not exist? Julius-sama I understand you may not want me." She paused before continuing, Julius wanted to deny her last statement.
"But that doesn't mean what Marius-san and Joshua-sama said was wrong. I-I mean.. I'm also doubtful about this, but if going alongside you will alleviate their worries then I will join."
Julius took a moment to gather his thoughts before responding.
"Very well. Gather your things for tomorrow Helena, we will depart after breakfast. As for you two. I want you to notify me the instant any event happens while we're gone and I want you to hire someone new as soon as possible." He spoke with conviction befitting a nobleman rather than a knight. Making everyone listen intently to his words and nod.
He looked at all three of them in the eyes before speaking again. "Also I want to take this chance to thank you all, truly. You have helped me in more ways than I would admit and continued to do so. I promise I will repay this one day. I will also visit every chance I am permitted, which will be more often since I will be in the capital. Helena too."
"That's all we could ask from you, young master. But please do take care of Helena while there, I imagine a change of environment will be harsh on her considering the place you are headed to."
Helena pouted at how much he worried about her sake. Then again he was like an adoptive grandfather figure for her.
"You have nothing to worry about Marius. You have my word that I will do as you ask." Julius vowed, making Marius smile in relief. That is until the cold voice of Helena sounded.
"Julius-sama's intelligence is the only thing we should be worried about."
"Helena."
"Sorry Marius-san."
The serious conversation stopped there, and now everyone was having a fond time remembering past events and talking about distant memories. As well as looking forward to what they will talk about when Julius and Helena visit again. A talk that lasted hours until bedtime was ready.
Julius retreated to his bed with a sigh of content. He couldn't wait to reunite with his lady after so long. He thought he might even dream about it. His thoughts soon faded as sleep and exhaustion overtook him.
His lady however wasn't present in his dreams, but rather a heavily distorted figure with purple hair and a scarf adorning its neck. The distorted figure referred to him as "Juli." and spoke in an unusual accent. His unconscious face had tears as he dreamt of the figure.
"An...ia..sama.."
I don't own any of this, all rights and characters belong to Tappei Nagatsuki.
Author's note.
Hello everyone! This chapter is Julius' side of the same day. I hope you enjoyed reading it.
As always I'm grateful for all the reviews and any criticisms!
To answer some of the reviews and questions I've gotten:
Anyways:
To Im The Person: Woops lmao. I'm torn between keeping "Subaro" now or fixing it, thank you though haha. As for NTR. From my understanding it is when a lover/spouse cheats, or is generally unfaithful towards their partner like you said. Hentai is involved I believe. Urban dictionary has many definitions really. I don't see your fic "Sealed" nor "My Lovable Goofball" as NTR though. I don't think Starmegalo implied it that way either, but mainly the OG Lone Star which I can understand why.
To BigSmokeYeet: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
To Son kokun: I'm a new writer so I don't really have experience in writing smut, there might be later on but no comment between whom. Hence it will only be soft or implied for now. I apologize for anyone who wanted to see some heavy action between Emilia and Julius(I know you're out there:P). I don't want to make Subaru suffers more than he should after all. Don't quote me on that last part though:P
To Starmegalo: I see what you meant by Subaru can't just say it's Pandora. I think it's interesting what you said about Subaru not fully faulting the one who started it. I feel bad for Emilia though because it's not exactly her fault if Subaru does blame her. It's partly due to her and the camp misunderstanding what the other is talking about. Same thing with Julius now.
To The Philospher: Thank you!
Without nothing more to say. Thank you for reading. See you on the next chapter!
