Viewing His Trials

by DestinyTheWriter

Nobody deserves to be alone. To change the fate of the world, and to forever change Natsuki Subaru's fate, everyone will see just what he has suffered. They will finally see his trials, and many will finally learn just what the true essence of their hero is. What will happen? What will change? Let's find those answers for ourselves. Spoilers for EVERYTHING ahead.

6. Director's Cut Episode 4

A/N: Spoilers for LN, Webnovel and Anime content ahead. Actually, this entire story is spoilers. If you aren't sure how far, I'd say that this spoiler warning extends up to Arc 6 of the Web Novel. This is far past the current end of the anime, for anime-only watchers. Now then, let us continue on, dear guests.

Symbol Explanation:

[[Example]] - Words encased in the [[]] symbols implies information added from the light novels or web novels that have been mixed into the anime, along with me fine-tuning some details, to make added content flow properly.

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Episode 4: The First Murderer

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Omega's shoulders slumped, her gaze staring forward into the unrelenting fire that roared in front of her.

"This truly is tiring...truly, I never would have believed myself to have to deal with the burden of traveling 'partners'. Though it is true that they quite frankly forced themselves into my journey. However, it was I that relented and allowed them to follow me, after all. Yes, I do suppose it is that way."

Besides her, two girls slept peacefully, hugging one another. One with long, dark hair, and a shorter one, with light brown hair. These peacefully sleeping girls in question were the woman's traveling partners, as she now had to accept it.

"Oh, quiet down. I don't quite care what the rest of you think. I am the one who has to sit out here during this cold night, and watch guard over these two girls, after all. Of course, it isn't quite an inconvenience to me, but I will admit that this body becoming this cold is rather tiresome. I will say that part of it is due to this body requiring sleep, as well. It has been quite long since I required something like 'sleep', after all. I am still not quite used to it."

The girl spoke to herself, addressing voices that seemingly only she could hear. Her source of irritation was quite easy to see – she was currently sitting on a rather uncomfortable log, keeping a watchful gaze on the silent forest around them. Despite all of her complaints, however, a calm smile remained ever-present on her face.

It had not been too long since they set out on their aimless journey, and they were far from any nearby village or town at the moment. The moonlight was their only cover, though of course, light did not protect them from the cold. That was why this fire was set up.

But Colette and Palmyra, the two sleeping girls, were monopolizing all of the space by the fire. Omega had to sit at a distance away from it, on a log that was much less comfortable than the, in comparison, softer ground below.

"...It seems that you have not yet rid yourself of that bad habit. Have you, Echidna?"

An unknown voice filtered into the world from besides her. Yes, the best way to explain it was that it 'filtered' into existence, as if she was only just now being allowed to hear it, despite it being there all along.

Besides her, there was someone sitting. Yet, to Omega's senses, it was like a pure, physical representation of static. Were she to even look besides her, her senses would utterly deceive her mind. Even if she realized that there was a presence there, her senses, or perhaps reality itself refused to recognize it.

It was the true indication of the being she had known once before, one that held a similar relation to knowledge as she did...the Outsider, as she'd known him.

"My…it truly is you, Outsider." Her calm smile widened into something almost like a manic grin. "To think that you would show yourself before me...it seems that life truly is always full of surprises, as it is said. To be quite frank, I had wished to take your soul for myself, into the Castle of Dreams...sadly, that Sage sealed you up before I could. Nonetheless...life is truly full of surprises. You still appear in front of me 400 years later, without my prompting...wonderful."

"…" The voice from besides her was quiet for a few seconds, before speaking up again. "Yes, I suppose so. It has been nearly 400 years. To think that you would still walk this world...even if you aren't quite the same as you once were. No, I suppose we both share that fate."

"Hm. In some ways, you are almost more observant than I...I suppose that is what truly makes you interesting, as always. Then I suppose-ah...wait for a moment, please?" Without warning, Omega took the crystal from around her neck, placing it on the trunk besides her. "That is enough of that. The peanut gallery is not needed, not at a time like this. Especially if you have appeared in front of me."

"For your fellow Witches, you treat them rather callously. I suppose that has always been in your nature. Presupposing your seemingly endless knowledge, I am sure that you understand the true nature of this 'visit'."

"But of course…" Omega's hands moved to her lap, in what could only be called a 'cute' gesture. Yet, her next words were far from accompanying the nature her gesture seemed to indicate. "The 'end' your creator foretold...the one that even I am unable to see...that truly interesting event. It is only elementary that I would be able to figure such a thing out. After all, it is something always on my mind."

"Yes. The truth is…" The Outsider– no, the Host, spoke with an earnest tone. "I am here to call in the favor that you owe to me. I, the Host...wish to form a contract with you. One you cannot refuse. Naturally, your companions are required, as well."

"A contract...a contract that a 'wicked witch' such as I can't refuse?" Her eyes practically shined with interest at the Host's beguiling words. "If I had to give an answer, I am sure that you understand well that for you, the only thing I could say would be 'yes'...but I have only one condition."

"…" The Host remained quiet at the long-eared witch's words, giving her silent permission to continue.

"Just as you have renamed yourself appropriately after your task, so have I. I am now known as 'Omega', as I am sure you are aware of. It means…"

A wide smile came to her face.

"..The End."

With those words, the journey between those four would begin. A journey that would move to change the fate of the world. But that is a journey not told yet.

Another group that would become instrumental in this change awaited, after all.

A group that had just witnessed the horrors on a screen in front of them...

---

After Crusch had spoken, everyone was more than eager to follow her suggestion. Silence reigned over the theater, with only the occasional sob or breath interrupting it.

It wasn't a silence of comfort, but one that threatened to choke all that partook in it. The silence itself threatened to overwhelm everyone inside of the room.

It was a silence that brought absolute despair.

Yet, nobody made a move to break it for an agonizingly long moment – that was, until a certain one-armed knight decided on kicking off the conversation that the group would inevitably need to have, whether they desired it or not.

"That shit was more brutal than the kid just getting disemboweled. Dude got everything around his left shoulder yanked straight off." Al shuddered at the thought. Felix nodded, a serious look in his usually mischievous eyes.

"...Not to mention, he was already weakened and had nausea induced on him by that death curse. I would've hoped that it would have put him out of noticing his pain a bit more, but…"

The doctor's words made everyone think back to those chilling thoughts Subaru had before he died. It was the view of a man whose mind had devolved so far due to pain, that all he could think of was wishing for death.

"His death was that of a dog being forcefully put down. I'm quite sure whoever killed him would issue some pathetic excuse about 'putting him out of his misery'. They could not even be bothered to show their face, as if afraid to properly confront the person whose life they would so eagerly reap." Priscilla rolled her eyes, softly waving her fan in front of her face. The boy's weakness was annoying, but she found the cowardice of the attacker even more irritating.

Rem flinched, her broken mind reeling from the truthful words of the Princess. It had long crossed her mind. Any of her plans to kill Subaru were things to be

"To think Subaru would ever have to be in such pain…" Emilia's voice trembled, her sobs dying in her throat. "I...I can't believe...I can't believe he really just held all that inside! That he wouldn't say anything, and just let himself get broken each and every time like that! I...Even if it ended up sounding ridiculous, I still know that I would've at least listened to him and tried to help him!"

"That's easy ta' say...but we still don't know if Natsuki-kun's keepin' that secret o'his own volition, or 'cause o'somethin else."

Anastasia's words made the half-elf rise her head in surprise.

"After all...we ain't seen him actually try, right? Tha' most he's done s'mumble 'bout it ta' himself, or make offhand jokes 'bout it. Who knows what actually happens f'he says somethin'? It could end up like what happened not too long ago."

Her words were vague, but everyone understood just what she was referring to. That life-or-death situation when Emilia and Subaru's lives had both been threatened by those hands.

"We can't exactly question him, either. Subaru remains asleep, and we can safely assume that the Host would not so easily allow us to intervene. The only presence able to do so was…" Crusch's words evoked the image of those sickly dark hands. It was something beyond them, and yet, the Host had easily stopped it.

What could they possibly do?

"I suppose that's right. For now, all we can do is continue to guess and theorize." Otto let out a sigh. He had proclaimed himself Subaru's friend, but finding out even more how little he truly knew made him feel like a fraud.

"Guessing, guessing...Betty is sick and tired of feeling like a decoration...an object that can't even properly speak on the thoughts of the person who means the most to her! This talk does not even matter right now, I suppose!"

The Great Spirit's sharp declaration cut through everything else in the theater, her strong words reverberating through the cores of everyone there.

"All Betty cares for -hnrk...all she wants to know right now, is…" She forcefully wiped the tears from her eyes. "The sound of those chains...there is only one person in the entirety of this camp that could have produced them."

The air in the theater almost froze, it could almost be heard practically cracking as Beatrice slowly turned a hateful, damning gaze to the mind-broken maid besides her.

"Blue-haired maid...EXPLAIN YOURSELF AT THIS MOMENT!"

Her yell packed enough force to nearly make Rem jump back in shock. Yet, her body did not register that shock. All she took in was the sheer pain and anger in Beatrice's eyes.

The emotions which she had caused by her murderous intent – the fact that she had acted on the killing instinct that lied so deeply within herself.

Ram opened her mouth to defend her sister – to say anything against the fact that it was most likely, if not definitely her...but she couldn't say anything.

"Oi...Oi, oi, oi...what th'hell are ya' sayin', runt…" Garfiel stood up from his seat, looking towards the angered spirit. His eyes shone with anger of his own. "We're all worried 'bout th'captain jus' as much as you are, but we ain't out here makin'….makin' stupid s'hell accusations like that!"

"That's...that's right, Beatrice. Rem would never do something so horrible like, like kill Subaru…" Emilia agreed with the boy…

Yet, both of their words were unconvincing. It was like they were trying to convince themselves, more than anyone else. After all, both knew – that there was only one person they had ever encountered that had a spiked weapon that sounded, and looked, exactly like the one they had seen on screen.

"N-No way! I don't know Rem-nee-sama all that well, but, but, I'm sure she wouldn't do something like...like kill Subaru! She looked like she loved him so much! She seemed like she was becoming such a good friend of Emilia-sama! There's...there's no way she'd ever kill him!"

Petra, despite being the least connected to the maid out of everyone in the camp, was the most heartbroken by the idea that any of them would kill Subaru. As the youngest there, she had the most blind trust in everyone...after losing a friend to murderous motives, the last thing she wanted was for the one place she'd come to belong to fall to the exact same issues.

"I would like to believe that as well, Petra, however…" Frederica lowered her head. Her more mature mindset, regrettably, would not allow her to look so optimistically away from the evidence. "What we have seen speaks for itself."

"We don't need any arguments between ourselves to solve this." Otto, as the Head of Internal Affairs of their camp, was the one to step up, to once and for all settle whatever was about to happen. He turned a pointed gaze to Rem, who was frozen in place by all of their words. "Rem-san...do you believe that you were the one who killed Natsuki-san?"

There was another quietness brought on by the ex-merchant's simple, yet loaded question. Whatever the answer was, the group would more than likely change completely.

"…" Rem wished she could have continued retreating into her mind, but with the gazes of everyone on her, she knew she had to respond. She owed it to all of them to respond.

"...Yes. Rem is the one who killed Subaru-kun."

"YOU BITCH!" Felt nearly lunged at the maid, only held back by her knight from taking out her primal, near feral assault on her. "Don't stop me, Rein...that bitch is a killer, a murderer! She killed big bro, she even knew she did it, too! Why are you holding me back?!"

Reinhard shook his head, keeping Felt firmly in his arms. "My lady, do you not remember what I was saying earli-"

"Does that matter?! Does any of that matter?! Those three thugs were just goons, we can throw them in jail, ignore them, whatever the hell we want to do with them...but big bro...big bro has been living side-by-side with her! Yet...yet she just fucking killed him off the moment she got a chance! What are you going to say to that?! What are you gonna say to big sis and the rest of them?! To just...ignore it?!"

Felt's emotional speech dug deep into the Sword Saint's heart. Despite being practically invincible...it was like her words were a blade made purely to slash away at his core.

"I…"

"It's no use trying to be rational, Reinhard." Julius gripped his fists tightly. "Regardless of the technicalities of looping...the truth is that Rem-san, that maid... has killed Subaru." The swordmaster couldn't say anything back to his friend, seeing the absolute conflicted expression on his face. Both were completely rattled by this turn of events, no matter how badly they tried to hide it.

"So that's what your sister was hiding, Rem-dono…" Crusch's ever-determined gaze wavered, in that moment. She had to look off to the side, bringing a hand to cover her face as she took in a deep breath. It was her own self-assigned duty to keep the group together, but…what could she do?

Subaru was a young man who had fought alongside her, and Rem was practically the same. Crusch had even begun to get slightly closer to Rem herself, almost like a friend. More importantly than that, she had bore witness to the determination Rem held in supporting Subaru, and the belief she had in him.

"It's hard to believe...after seeing those two working together so well, I never would've believed Rem would kill Subaru-kyun, of all things." Felix muttered, looking at the Oni with changed eyes.

"Looks like we were right from th' start. Kid can't trust anyone. Not even th' people who are supposed ta' be takin' care o'him." Ricardo chuckled darkly, giving a slow shake of his head.

All of their words stabbed into Rem's heart, and she felt like she only wanted to twist the knife even deeper, herself. Reinhard's words about these being old looped versions of themselves meant nothing. She had just watched herself carry out the most vile act towards the young boy she was supposed to be caring about.

Still...the worst feelings came from Emilia.

"Rem...how could you?" Emilia's voice cracked, from besides the boy they both sat beside. Rem didn't even need to look to know that Emilia's face was stained with tears...she could hear the absolute betrayal in her words alone.

No, it was more like she didn't want to look. Rem didn't want to look, and see the disappointed face of the first proper friend she had made.

"Look at me, Rem. You can't look away when...when something like that just happened." Her words slammed deep into Rem's chest, practically forcing the blue-haired Oni to look into the teary-eyed gaze of Emilia. She didn't even seem mad, just...saddened. "...Why? I want to hear it...from your lips."

Rem was silent, looking down to the side. "The scent of the Witch...the scent of the Witch that Subaru-kun carries was the reason why, Emilia. That scent...is enough to make Rem lose every bit of rationality she had. From the moment he walked into the mansion, Rem had assumed that he was nothing but a cultist."

It was a simple answer, but almost everyone understood the meaning of her words. There were few people in their world who could sense, or smell the scent of the Witch. Yet, there was always one constant: as far as everyone in the modern era understood it ONLY those who were members of the Witch Cult carried this scent on their bodies.

"I...I see…" Emilia's heart tightened, constricting in her chest. It almost became hard for her to breathe. The Witch...not only had the cursed name of the Witch come to ruin people's perception of her, but it even seemed to affect her innocent knight, to the point where he would be mercilessly killed for it. Treated like a cultist, rather than the innocent young man that he was.

All by the girl who she had just come to know as a friend.

"Please, Rem...just move away from us...move, right now."

"Emilia, I-"

"Do not bother, I suppose." Beatrice spat coldly, shielding the half-elf from view of Rem. "With what you have done, you can never simply ask for forgiveness. Not from that girl, and definitely not from Betty. All that matters to Betty is Subaru...and to think you would have ever caused him such suffering...I may have acted despicable, myself...but I would never have killed him. I can confidently say that no matter the timeline, no matter the reasons, Betty would NEVER kill him. But you cannot even say that, anymore. Do you understand what that means?"

Tears came to Rem's eyes, tears that she could not suppress. She wished to try to explain herself, to try and say anything, to try and yell out about her innocence, how she would have never done this -

But it was useless. Everyone was already staring at her with cold eyes, either filled with hate or distrust. She was like a foreign object in the theater now. Like she didn't belong.

The only comfort she got was the feelings of her sister's reassurance flowing through their connection. Ram hadn't thrown her sister away, but neither was she forgiving or overlooking her actions. After all, she had been silent the entire time, not even looking in the direction of Rem.

"This is all I can do for you, Rem. For the rest...you'll have to atone for by yourself."

Ram murmured in a low voice, as she left her sister to deal with the consequences of her actions. Ram would always look after and correct her big sister – and despite how much she wished for her to be forgiven, to be understood, she knew that now was not the moment to coddle her.

Favoritism couldn't exist here. Not when they were talking about death, in the midst of a large group that cared about the person dying...including Ram, herself.

Rem slowly got up from her seat, giving a gaze at her sleeping hero. The hero who she loved...the hero who saved her...the hero who would forever hold memories of her brutally and mercilessly mauling him to death.

She hesitantly walked her way to the furthest row, sitting on the very edge. Truly, Rem was now all by herself.

'I am sorry, sister…' Ram's hands shook, hidden below the chair. She didn't want to just leave her sister like that, to allow her to be ridiculed, and entirely excluded from the group...yet there was not a single thing she could do to excuse her behavior.

The only thing that Ram could be thankful for was that the environment that the Host had provided meant that Ram was, at the very least, 'physically' safe. But it was easy to see that her dear sister was so close to shattering. 'I should have been able to stop you, when it was so obvious. I am a pathetic excuse of an older sister.'

"I must truly apologize, Emilia-sama." Roswaal gave a bow to the half-elf. Without his clown makeup, or his drawling voice, it seemed much more sincere than usual. "But...I do ask that you forgive Rem. On my behalf."

After all, Roswaal was in no position to judge his maids. He had more than his own fair share of sins, much larger than a girl who simply killed out of paranoia.

"Forgive her…?" Emilia wiped tears from her eyes, gently turning her gaze upwards at Rem, who was now sitting alone. She had not even her sister to comfort her. "Asking me to forgive her is a little too much right now...but...I don't want to completely shun Rem, either. I just...I just need time to think."

"You're far too kind, I suppose." Beatrice let out a sigh, looking to the screen. "Betty will never forgive her, or forget this. Just like she will never forgive herself for what she did that allowed him to die in the first place."

"Rem…" Garfiel gave the blue-haired maid a meaningful look. He was somewhere in-between rage, cycling to shock, and then honest disappointment...because in a way, he understood. At any time...he could be the person there, sitting in solitude, for his sins. "Damn it...ya damn idiot."

"Let's forget th' murderous maid fer now. Or at th' very least, put 'er aside. Th' cruel matter o'fact is that we ain't gonna find out anythin' more if we're jus' sittin' 'round n'pointin fingers 'bout things like this." Anastasia spoke up with a sigh. She honestly was just as repulsed by the maid's actions as anyone else, but she also understood the importance of them moving on.

Their viewings were far from over, just because one of them was revealed as a killer. For all they knew, many of them could have sins waiting to be exposed.

Yet, they couldn't leave this theater, or wake Subaru for good, until they finished. Sitting around and eternally discussing and arguing would do nothing.

"...As much as I hate to simply 'move on' from this, Hoshin-dono is correct." Crusch narrowed her eyes at Rem. "Rem-dono. For now, reflect on your sins. Asking for utter forgiveness is not currently an option for you...so I recommend you simply use this time to think on the mindset that lead this time's version of you to these actions. I don't wish to blame you...but until we can safely be assured that you no longer harbor these thoughts and beliefs…well...I am sure that you understand."

Even a strong-willed person such as Crusch struggled to say those words. After all...to her, Rem was...she was almost something like a friend. Doling out punishment was the duty of a leader, but it was made so much harder when the one involved was a person who you cared for.

All Rem could do in response was give a simple nod. Anything she did or said right now...it would simply hurt her more.

"I still think she deserves more than a damn tongue-lashing and some time in a time-out corner…" Felt grumbled, eyes filled with barely repressed rage. The only thing stopping her from trying to mangle Rem was the damn rules of the Host, and her own knight.

"Then, if everyone is in agreement...shall we continue?" Reinhard rose a hand, gathering the confirmation of those within the Theater.

One by one, they all nodded, or vocalized their agreements. And with each person's confirmation, the counter on screen filled from 0, before eventually…

21/21 – Full cast participation acknowledged. Auto-play system, engaging.

Commencing Viewing of Episode 4.

Subaru wakes with a start, yelling in absolute pain and shifting over to grab his arm, rolling around in his bed before forcing himself to sit up.

"My left arm-!" He checks his now healed body, hyperventilating all the while. "I still have it, right? I went back again… No, maybe I should say I made it back…"

"Made it back...that's the right way to put it. Coming back from each of these deaths has gotta feel like damn trials on its own." Al muttered, shaking his head.

"Ferris has to wonder just how his ability works, to be honest...does it transfer his soul backwards in time, or does his entire body physically transport itself backwards?" The healer wondered aloud, a finger on his chin.

"I'm sure it has to be something like the first." Tivey answered, narrowing his eyes at the screen. "Frankly, it's usually ridiculous to talk about things such as transferring souls, or time travel…"

"But we've already dealt with weirder shit, huh?" Ricardo finished.

His words left almost everyone who was involved shudder as they remembered a certain insane body-hopping archbishop.

"...Right. It might not be wrong to say that his ability is like an Authority, itself. Something that transcends the common sense of this world, beyond anything what a divine protection could grant."

"I see." Reinhard hummed, a slight hesitation in his voice. Such news was not so comforting to the Sword Saint, but it all made sense. After all, even he could not ask for such an ability.

Yet, it only made the question they had yet to receive an answer to even more prominent in his mind – just who, or what, had the power to grant him such an immensely strong ability?

He looks up to see the two maids, holding each other's palms and quaking in fear.

"Oh, sorry. Good morning." He attempts to speak to them, but then his eyes drop in realization. "Right, I guess you don't remember me…"

The boy throws off his covers, energetically striking his usual pose to the skies. "Sorry for the trouble I've caused! Natsuki Subaru will now start over!"

"...Huh? Mister's mood changed suuuuuper fast!" Mimi scratched her cheek, clear confusion present on her face.

"Isn't it obvious, sister?" Tivey let out a sigh, bringing a hand to his face. "That change of mood was just to mask his feelings...it's a fake change of his emotions."

"Truly, the depths of depravity this ability sinks him into knows no bounds...for if he continues to act oddly, he will only be perceived as more suspicious…" Wilhelm spoke grimly, trailing off into silence.

"And if he's seen as suspicious…" Crusch followed the line of reasoning that her butler carried, but was unable to finish it, herself.

Nobody needed to say out loud just what the conclusion was. It was obvious…that Rem would just proceed to kill him.

"Oh.." Mimi's energy left her as she sunk back into her chair, being comforted by a hug from her brother, Hetaro, from the side.

"That's unfair...why does Subaru have to just throw away how he feels like that?! Just so he can live past a week…? Just...just so he doesn't get viciously murdered?!" Emilia seethed, her anguished cry bringing everyone to the Theater into an uncomfortable silence. Especially Rem, who could only look on with an expression filled with nothing but sheer regret.

'Why...why did Rem have to bring so much suffering to Subaru-kun when he was just fine? Just because of Rem's experience with the Witch Cult? Killing an innocent person...for a past that they don't even have a hand in…'

Rem was beginning to see it, now. Just how truly flawed her thinking was, and the consequences of that mindset, that mindset that had allowed her to be filled with vengeful emotions and carry out impulsive actions.

"To think he's faking it…" Beatrice's voice broke the silence of the theater. "To throw aside his true feelings, and so desperately attempt to keep a good relationship with the two of you...Betty doesn't know of the older sister, but you certainly do not deserve such a sacrifice, I suppose."

Rem, the obvious target of the spirit's vicious words could only look away, taking the abuse deep into her system. Even if it was unfair for her to be judged by this 'self', while she was quite innocent of killing Subaru...it was the fact that she was even capable of these things, that wore away at her spirit.

But still, she couldn't just look away and cry. All she could do was continue to watch, and reflect on herself.

"At the very least, the coward is taking the correct steps to redeem herself." Priscilla noted with a pleased hum, looking to the screen. She already disliked the girl for her actions on screen, but she would have further been disgusted by her if she had just run away from all and any responsibility. Truly then, she would have been nothing but a coward.

Yet, she chose to take in everything that was being thrown at her, and was doing the best to understand and attempt to rectify it...at the very least, that deserved the minimum of praise. Praise that Priscilla would never give, not now, at the very least.

His words move the maids from fear to confusion, as he continues speaking. "By the way, what day and time is it?"

Re: ZERO – Starting Life in Another World – Opening Theme – Redo

'It's my third first day in the Roswaal mansion.' Subaru is pacing around Beatrice's library, a finger to his head. 'That chill I felt...Does that mean I died in my sleep the first time due to physical weakness?'

"Natsuki-san's third first day…" Otto let out a sigh, his eyes taking on a tired appearance. "Assuming each of his 'loops' were 5 days...that's 15 days. He's almost looped through the entirety of a month's worth of time, being killed over and over again in this mansion...and only he can remember it."

"Damn it, man. That's absolutely fucked up." Al commented, pressing his hand against his forehead. Even for him, at most, his restricted loops would be a few seconds. For him to go into something like 15 days, he'd have to do something like 200,000+ loops. By then, most people's minds would already be broken, so his ability never needed to reach that kind of number.

The fact that Subaru had to properly live through, and experience 15 days' worth of memories over and over, just to die, made even that hardened, uncaring man shudder.

"Not to mention…" Emilia forced out those words, as they had almost died in her throat. Still, she pushed herself onward, struggling to hold back the tears threatening to spill from her eyes. "This...this is still the wrong line of events. S-Subaru will...Subaru will...he's...he's going to die again!"

Nobody said anything to that. After all, in an almost sick way, they were beginning to become used to just how often their friend, the person they all cared to watch, was just being thrown into death, over and over, like a meat-grinder.

Their compassion did not lessen, but this news didn't affect the cast like it once would have.

After all, each and every one of them had the answer in their hearts, already. Regardless of the things happening on screen, each and every one of them would not look away, or divert their eyes.

"...Thank you for warning us, Emilia-sama." Reinhard added, in a strained voice. Emilia slowly nodded in response, with everyone turning their attention back to the screen, the screen that continued to force them through the gruesome experiences of Subaru's deaths.

Rem felt her heart hollowing itself out once more. She held her palms close to her chest, attempting to steady her breathing. Knowing her hero would die again was a fear that was still embedded deep into her skull, but there was a possibility that scared her even more.

'One time is more than enough...one time, is too much already. Please, please don't let Rem have been the one to hurt Subaru-kun even more.'

Flashbacks are shown of his gruesome second death, highlighting the very audible sound of chains. 'But the second time, there was an attacker. So if I was killed, does that mean the others in the mansion were targets, too?'

More images were shown, now of the final battle against Elsa. 'Because we're involved in Emilia's royal selection, like at the loot house?'

"I suppose it is good that he is at least thinking now, but it is too bad that his analyses is completely off. Though I would have not expected much." Priscilla hummed, clasping her fan closed in front her eyes.

"Can ya' really blame 'im? I ain't sure f'even I woulda' expected th' maid ta' be th' one who tore me up like that. Girl's pretty good at disguising her hatred, 'fter all." Anastasia snickered, throwing a dirty insult towards Rem.

"One shouldn't even have to think about the servants of the house murdering them when they are supposed to be staying there...and especially, one should never kill their coworkers." Frederica muttered coldly, not even bothering to look back at Rem. One could feel the disappointment radiating off of her.

The sharp-toothed maid couldn't help but feel a small hint of disgust in her mind at Rem's actions, there. She saw her fellow coworker dying...and decided to use up her rage on a man who was half-dead.

'How many of our guests have met such an end?..If...If I carried such a scent by accident, would Rem have killed me, as well?'

These questioned would never be able to receive a proper answer – and it was perhaps that that frightened Frederica the most. Petra looked up at her mentor. The innocent, naive light in her eyes seemed to be somewhat dimmed. She brought a hand to her uniform, tugging at it.

'...I don't know if I want to wear this anymore.' She thought. Her very inner being was rejecting the core of the uniform she was currently wearing.

Again, Rem chose not to say anything. The last person anyone wanted comfort from right now was her. Bit by bit, she'd have to build up trust with everyone...make them realize that though she had done those things to Subaru, she could be better than that. Still...she could tell that it would take a long, long time.

Beatrice's head can be seen rotating out of frame, as Subaru keeps pacing in circles around her.

'But even If I know that, I have no proof to explain it, or any way to avoid it. Worse yet, I didn't see the attacker's face, or their victim. My death was totally in vain.'

"To trivialize his death like that…" Felix grumbled, almost growling at the thoughts swirling around in Subaru's head. "For all of the determination Subaru-kyun has, I can't believe he's beginning to rank his deaths as 'in vain'."

"Can't be helped." Al spoke, an odd melancholic tone coming to his voice that wouldn't usually fit the man. "With an ability like that, losing your worth of death is inevitable, ain't it? Dyin' over, and over again, being forced to go through shit a person usually only gets lucky to have to go through once – you said it yourself, didn't you? People aren't meant to experience death so many times."

The cat-eared knight was quiet as Al's words went through him...Truly, he was contradicting himself by acting this way again, even when he had come to believe in Subaru and his humanity.

Even knowing that he was wrong, Felix still wasn't comfortable with the thought, however. After all, despite the fact that he and Subaru weren't exactly 'close' by most measures of the word, Felix still owed him a lot. In a way, like Julius, Felix actually wanted to recognize the fact that he owed so much to Subaru...as a 'friend'.

So, seeing his mind slowly descend like this...it did nothing but drive Felix crazy. He could not watch with the detached perspective he once had watched with. Not anymore.

"You're irritating me to death. Either stop it or get blown away." Beatrice's voice cut in, making Subaru stop his movement.

"You know, you really love to blow people away, dontcha, miss 'Great Spirit'?" Felt murmured, throwing an accusing look the spirit's way.

"It was the only way Betty could think at that time, I suppose. After all, she had a very good reason for not allowing just any fool to step foot within that library…" Beatrice seemed to already have a reply handy, making Felt back off. The ex-thief was not happy with her callous treatment of Subaru, but she could more than tell that there was more behind that behavior than just being 'mean'.

Julius spared a curious look at Beatrice, her words sparking an unusual interest in him. To be frank, he was not used to seeing Great Spirits, so it sometimes threw him off-guard how truly developed Beatrice was, to the point where she seemed to have her own long history.

'I wonder what sort of past such a powerful and ancient Great Spirit would hold…?'

As the Finest Knight, and the only Spirit Knight, Julius Juukulius truly wished to know.

"Oh, sorry. But, somehow, walking around in circles makes the gears in my head turn. Cut me some slack, huh? We're tight, aren't we?"

"Exactly what sort of relationship do you think we have, I suppose? We've only met twice." Beatrice clarified, wrapping her finger around a strand of her hair.

"Ouch…" Ricardo and Al reacted in synchronicity, wincing at the choice of words.

"Beatrice…" Emilia looked down at the little spirit with worried eyes. She knew all too well that Beatrice would blame herself, and the scowl on her face only confirmed the half-elf's thoughts.

"Such careless words...was Betty truly focused on doing nothing but spreading her misery to others, I suppose? While being too pathetic to ever do anything on her own?" She muttered to herself, berating her actions with every single word.

Subaru looked at her with a serious expression, which then changed to a smile. "Well, I won't make trouble for you. Just serve some tea or something, and let me relax." He walked closer, leaning down to eye level with the spirit.

"As if I'll serve you anything, I suppose." She refused, but was met by an uncomfortable silence. "Ugh, you're irritating me!"

Roswaal chuckled to himself, feeling an odd sensation at watching this interaction between the two. 'It seems I truly was correct. After all, despite Beatrice's words, she could have long pushed him out of the room, should she wished. The fact that this conversation itself is even happening is a testament to her interest in Subaru-kun.'

"What's that book you're reading?" Subaru looked down at the fancy, large book in her hands.

"It tells how to get rid of bugs that have gotten into my room, I suppose."

"You've got bugs in the library? That sucks. What kind of bugs?" Subaru murmured, totally missing her sarcastic tone.

"Clueless." Anastasia dryly remarked, a deadpan expression on her.

"Far too clueless…" Felt brought a hand to her face, annoyed at how easily the boy had taken the low-key roast from the little girl.

Beatrice looked up with an annoyed glare. "It's time for you to leave! Your hands have stopped shaking, so you can disguise your fear now, I suppose."

Subaru let out a small sound of surprise. "You could tell?"

"You were trying to hide it, I suppose." The boy hid his hand behind his back. "It's quite vexing to be treated as a mere convenience."

"I see...so the real reason he was attempting to prolong his stay inside of Beatrice-sama's library was because Subaru was afraid...afraid to be out there…" Petra murmured, her mind flashing back to the horrible sights she had witnessed. Seeing Subaru's arms fly off, blood pooling below him, hearing his desperate cries for death in her ears…

Her hands began to shake, from the intense secondhand fear just remembering the experience brought onto her. Frederica wrapped an arm around her charge, gently bringing her into her chest. There were no shallow words of comfort, only the physical presence that let Petra know that Frederica was there, and looking after her.

Felt and Mimi looked at their blood sister worriedly, but in the end, realized they had to leave it to the woman to comfort her.

"...Anyway. It turned out he was damn right to be scared. Big bro already had a big target on his back from the moment he stepped into that mansion."

"Yeah. That bad maid was out there, waiting for mister, after all. And he didn't even know, yet!"

The two spoke in turns, expressions of varying rage on their faces.

"Y-You're right, Felt-chan...it...it really was my fault for bringing Subaru as a guest without even keeping check on him, huh?" Emilia was practically biting her lips as she spoke, the guilt flowing out of her like the air she was exhaling.

"A-ah shoots, big sis, I don't mean it like that-!" Felt immediately correct herself, pointing a thumb towards the lone-sitting Rem, who was in the corner. "It wasn't your fault that you didn't know there was an impulsive psycho like that in your place. I mean, think about it, if she already didn't like the witch's scent, you think she liked you?"

"I…" The half-elf's voice trailed off, as she began to lose even more confidence in her feelings and thoughts.

"Emilia, I-!" Rem spoke up, in an attempt to destroy this thought before it could spread seed. She couldn't lie to Emilia, but she wouldn't let someone else ruin the friendship she was just beginning to build up, after all. Not when they both cared about Subaru so much-

"Don't badmouth my sister like that." Ram spoke in a dark voice, turning to fearlessly look at the candidate. "If I may, Felt-sama, who are you to be questioning the relationship between Emilia-sama and Rem? What we have seen on screen is undeniable. Rem's impulsive nature led her to commit the ultimate crime in that loop, and I will not say that she is not capable of performing such an act in other loops, as well."

Rem looked down, her expression truly becoming downcast. Hearing her sister's usually frank words now turned into a weapon against her, it began to feel truly dark.

Was even her sister going to abandon her to the wolves now? It wasn't as if Rem felt like she was a martyr, deserving of utter forgiveness...but she wished for at least the chance...the chance, at least…

"-..But that is not all that there is to Rem. She was not acting on malicious intent, but simply out of the belief that Subaru was a threat to us, those inside of the mansion. Her hatred of the Witch Cult surely drove her beyond the acceptable threshold of action, but she is not a psychopath, or a person who would freely murder for fun. I won't ask you to forgive my sister, but do not needlessly insult her, either. After all...none of us here can confidently say we are free of any sin towards Barusu."

Even an emotional thinker such as Felt was unable to say anything. No, almost everyone seemed shocked, even Roswaal. It was no secret that Ram cared for her sister, but nobody had heard her speak so much, and with such passion in her voice since they had arrived in her theater.

"...So what are you saying? I'm just not supposed to be putting the dots together? I'm just supposed to not resent her and what she's doing, knowing she's just got big bro in the back of her mind? How do I know she can't do it no-"

"That's enough." Crusch shook her head, disrupting her fellow candidate. "I can't condone any of Rem-dono's past actions or thoughts...but it is without a doubt that she has nothing but love and care for Natsuki-sama. Who in the world would fight to death against two archbishops while believing in a person they hated with their entire heart? Who would throw themselves in the front of a gigantic mabeast to assist someone they have nothing but murderous intent for?"

Nobody could answer to Crusch's truthful, hard-hitting words. While it was impossible to doubt that while Rem, as her past self may have been committed such acts...nobody would do such things for someone they hated to the point of wishing to murder.

"Subaru is a man with an endless limit of forgiveness. After all, never once has he confronted a single one of us about anything we may have ever done to him. All he has done is help every one of us, or push us away from bad habits or thoughts." Reinhard smiled simply, remembering the few times he had gotten to interact with the boy. "So...can we not put aside a single shred of that thought for another, Felt-sama?"

"…" The blonde was hesitant to commit to an answer towards the earnest pleas of her knight. Deep down, she was not a person who so easily forgave, but...but… "Damn it. Fine, fine! Fine, whatever! But whatever she does, I'm still gonna call her out on it. The rest of you guys who think like me should know what I mean. We ain't letting her off the hook...but I guess I was starting to say some really mean crap there."

With that small admission, the group continued forward to watch, the mood among them somewhat lighter. Of course, the composure that the cast had was fragile – most of them knew it could again easily be shattered by yet another death…

But they were prepared for that. Whatever happened, they'd speak their thoughts on it honestly – but they wouldn't become savages who would just do nothing but endlessly blame one another.

After all...the last thing any of them wanted was for Natsuki Subaru to wake up, and find the people he worked so hard to save at each other's throats, all the while saying that they were only doing it for him.

"You're not nice at all...Thanks for the help, though. I'll be counting on you again." He rose a hand, slowly making his way to the exit.

"I don't even want to be counted on, I suppose. So don't come in here again!" She warned, making Subaru turn to look at her. "Shoo, shoo." She vocalized with a sweeping of her hand.

"'Shoo, shoo'?" He then blinked in realization, pointing to his face. "Wait, when you said 'bugs', did you mean me?!"

"Just get out of here this instant!" Reaching her limit, Beatrice held a hand forward.

"Eh?"

"Aaaaaand, here it comes-!" Felt and Mimi yelled together, ready for the undoubtedly large hit that was coming.

Before he knew it, Subaru was launched outside, lamely face-planting into a flower bed outside.

"Outta the park!" The two grinned, sharing a high five together. Felt blinked, looking at Mimi's shy brother.

"Hey, what are you doing, Hetaro? Get in here!"

With her words, the three shared yet another high-five.

Garfiel groaned, looking away from the screen. "That's jus' embarassin', Cap'n...yer jus' gonna get shot outta th'place everytime ya go in?! These guys out here are makin' baseball game jokes 'bout ya!"

"Can't say it wasn't spot on, though. She really sent 'im flyin'. If I had ta' borrow a term from that baseball arcade game again, that's a damn home run right there!" The man snickered, shaking his head as he tried to hold back any further laughter.

"I-If not for this flower bed, that would've been instant death…" He gasped, looking up behind him. He didn't even notice the foul brown marking that had covered the entire front of his body.

"Oh no…" Emilia almost turned red in second hand embarrassment for Subaru, as she realized all too well just what he had landed face-first into.

Rem brought a hand to her face, trying to hide the blush that was forming on her. She couldn't believe that her work would end up causing such a huge embarrassment for her hero.

"What's wrong? Didn't Subaru simply land in a patch of flowers? It's inevitable that he would have gotten some dirt on him." Julius, none the wiser, looked on with confusion. His confusion was only compounded even further as his mistress began to laugh as well.

"Pff...ahaha…!" Anastasia, all too observant, instantly recognized that the brown marking was far from anything but regular 'dirt'. "Julius-kun, it's too funny just how clueless ya' can be 'bout these sorta' things, sometimes."

"Um…" Appearing suddenly, Emilia leaned down in front of him, with an exasperated smile. "Can I ask if you're all right?"

Noticing her, Subaru's expression suddenly changed to one of giddy pleasure, hands on his cheeks. "Emilia-tan, your kindness is the one thing that can heal me."

"You know, Rem just spread manure in that flower bed yesterday."

"Ma...nure…?" Julius repeated, slowly.

The theater was silent...before bursting out into pure, unadulterated laughter. It was a laughter that everyone in there desperately needed, to raise their spirits a little, and to shake the impurities that had begun to cling to their minds and souls from the viewings. Nobody was sparing a laugh, even Priscilla chuckled slightly at the sight.

"M-man, bro never misses, huh?"

"Never, never!"

Al and Ricardo laughed their assess off, practically doubled over at this scene.

"A fitting fate for a man of Barusu's status. Though I would've preferred him to take a dive in it instead of a simple faceplant." Ram brought a hand to her lips, barely hiding her giggle.

"Myyyy, ever soooo sharp, Ram~!" Roswaal was quite amused by the small proceeding, allowing even his intense focus to take a small break.

And of course, the little ones of the group found what was going on all too interesting. However, this time, Felt, Mimi, and Garfiel were all united in loud laughter.

"S-Sorry, Cap'n, I...I jus' cant...s'just too funny!"

"Let it out, Garfiel-san. As brothers, we owe Natsuki-san...to completely laugh at these near perfectly timed moments of misfortune he has!"

Otto's words made the beastman roar in the laughter even harder. Petra, who had previously been cuddled up to Frederica, even managed a few giggles.

This laughter was a well-needed break from the darkness they had been immersed in, something that took them out of the never-ending spiral of ups and downs...a healing laughter.

"Augh-!" Her words finally made Subaru realize what was on him, as he jumped out and tried brushing the foul material off of him and his gown. "Three second rule! That didn't count! That didn't count, right?!"

"Oi, oi, he does know that only counts for food, right? And it ain't even a real rule!" Al snickered, with only Beatrice getting the reason of why.

"Honestly, Betty's contractor can be so foolish sometimes…" The Great Spirit resisted the urge to pinch the boy whose lap she was resting against. Even for her, her hatred against Rem and her own growing self-hatred was momentarily forgotten amongst the overwhelming laughter.

"You know, they say this kind of thing is actually lucky." She spoke, clearly trying to console him.

"Emilia-tan is already shifting into consolation mode…" It had the opposite effect, leaving him saddened at his poor luck.

"Can ya blame 'er? What else do ya' say to a boy covered in dung?!" Anastasia let out one last good laugh at Subaru's complaint.

"T-That's, that's unfair to just put it like that!" Even a straight-laced person like Tivey was forced into laughter, with his boss, captain, and siblings laughing at everything.

The girl just giggled happily, putting a hand on the green gem between her chest. "Puck, wake up."

With a green glow from the crystal, the cat spirit materialized in Emilia's palm, stretching out and yawning. "Morning, Lia."

"Good morning, Puck. Sorry to ask after you just woke up, but could you wash Subaru off?"

"Subaru?" The spirit looked forward to get a better view of the boy, covered in leaves and sticky, disgusting manure. "Oh! Okay, I'll wash you off."

With those words, an ominous looking circle of water appeared in front of Puck's palm, one that left Subaru dreading what was coming. "Here-!"

With that exclamation Subaru was struck with a huge jet of water that turned into a twister, leaving him helplessly spinning around.

"P-Pff...it jus' don't stop!" Ricardo banged his hand down on his armrest, reflexively trying to hold back his laughter, but utterly failing.

"It seems Emilia-sama's spirit is one all too full of character…" Julius smiled. Though he seemed calm on the outside, he was the one trying to hold back his laughter the hardest.

After all, the last thing he had expected Subaru to be unfortunately covered with was not manure, of all things.

"Ferris would've given Subaru the exact same sort of bath! Only even more intimate~!" Felix joked, an ominous edge to his voice. Everyone could imagine that the twister Felix would use would just be even larger and more violent.

"Please don't do so, Ferris. With your control of water, Subaru would end up more than soaked…" Reinhard pleaded, his honest words only making the mischievous cat-eared knight laugh even more.

"Haha, there, all clean! Isn't that nice?" Puck smiled, as a soaked-wet and haggard Subaru fell to a pool of water on the ground, mouth open and eyes wide in shock.

The scene changes to Subaru now sitting on the grass with Emilia and Puck.

"I thought I was a goner…Wasn't there some other way to do that? In fact, you enjoyed that, didn't you?"

"That's not true at all. Hmph, hmph!" The spirit flatly denied, looking off to the side with a comical expression. He didn't even notice when Subaru playfully flicked him on the forehead. "-Nyah!"

"Bubby is a horrible liar. Betty would be able to much more easily able to disguise how much enjoyment she would've derived from such an act, I suppose." Beatrice shook her head at Puck's words.

"Puck was always such a troublesome little spirit…" Emilia giggled, unable to stop herself as she watched these antics. "To see him and Subaru interacting like this...it really makes me happy!"

"Punch-backs!" He yelled, giving Subaru an equally playful hook to the cheek, then punching the air.

"Now you've done it!" Subaru grabbed Puck, tickling him to laughter. "You like that? It's my lethal move, Make the Cat Cry Ha-Ha!"

"C-Cut it out! Tail punch!" Puck wriggled from his grasp, hitting the boy with a light tap from his tail.

"Why you-"

"And I'll finish you with my paw-paw grind!" He pressed his little feet to Subaru's cheeks, holding him at bay. "Grind, grind, grind, grind…"

"Ooooh, this is definitely the battle of the century! They're gonna destroy the whole world at this point!" Felt said in the deepest, most serious tone she could...before promptly falling right into laughter again.

Emilia watched the sight with a beautiful smile on her lips, bursting out into a bout of airy laughter. "Oh, gosh...Sorry, I-I can't...What are you two even doing? Oh, my stomach...I'm dying…"

"Hehe…It seems like this me finds this reeeeeeally funny, like we all did. To see Puck and Subaru interacting like that, what I would've gave…" Emilia's joyful smile shifted to one filled with a slight melancholy.

"No need ta' worry 'bout any silly what-ifs. Th'deal is still on, ya know? I dunno where we're gonna be brought back when we do return, but I ain't a lady that goes back on her words, once th'deal is set in stone. M'sure I can get ya th'crystal yer lookin' for."

The half-elf gave a grateful smile towards the merchant candidate, only to hesitate, bringing a finger to her lips in thought. "...Wait...doesn't that mean that if the deal wasn't set in stone, you would've been willing to go back on your word?!"

Anastasia just made a motion of a zipper over her lips and throwing it away, leaving Emilia only more confused about the seemingly conflicting nature of the greedy, yet sometimes kind Anastasia.

Subaru and Puck looked to each other, before sharing a knowing smile.

"Well, now I've bounced back from my initial bad impression. Thanks for your assistance, Father!" The boy bowed lightly.

"Who are you calling 'Father'? I won't give you my daughter that easily!" Puck put on his best deep voice, standing up proudly.

"These two need ta' form a comedy duo, fer real! I would pay ta' watch th'back and forth jokes they've got goin' on!" Ricardo admitted with a grin.

"It's indeed a sight that you would never see in your whole life – a seemingly normal person being able to casually joke around with and befriend a Great Spirit. Even I am not sure I would be too capable of such a feat." Julius admitted with a small smile, a bit of envy detected in his voice.

"Please stop...You're both too funny…" The girl had to practically wipe her tears.

"Nothing beats your smile, Lia. You agree, right, Subaru?"

"I, totally agree…" Subaru spoke seriously, before striking his usual pose to the skies. "To me, Emilia-tan's smile is the first shining star in the night sky!"

"As ever, he's not afraid of proclaiming those vulgar feelings of those. I am still not quite sure whether to designate him as an honest or foolish boy." Priscilla let out a sigh, shaking her head at the completely unnecessary spunky way Subaru carried himself.

"Does it need to be one? Ferris just sees Subaru-kyun as an honest fool!" The healer snickered, his ears perking up at the thought.

"Not you, too, Subaru...Also, what does 'tan' mean? Where'd it come from?"

"Oh?" Subaru lowered his head. "It's what they call a pet name. Just like when Puck calls you 'Lia'. It's an expression of affection that shows two people's closeness."

There was a moment of silence, before Emilia spoke. "I don't remember getting that close to you…"

"Aaaand, another ouch moment. Man, it's one thing to hear it from some little girl, but imagine hearing that line from the girl you like?" Al shook his head.

"Betty is not a little girl, Betty is older than everyone in this room, I suppose-!"

"Yeah, man. I can't believe that he has ta' hear that line…" Ricardo agreed with a solemn nod, ignoring the little spirit's shrill protests.

Subaru faltered at this. "That somewhat hurts, but I won't lose heart! Think of it as an advance on our relationship. It means I want us to eventually get close enough to call each other by pet names. Okay?"

Emilia blinked in surprise, looking left, then right, then finally blushing and tilting her gaze downwards. "All right, I'll accept that."

"Wait, wait, wait...what was that 'I actually sort of wanted to hear those words' expression on her face?!" Felt pointed out immediately, looking down to Emilia with a devilish grin. "Big sis, explain yourself right now!"

"Yeah, right now!"

"Did you like Subaru from the start?!"

The trio was back in action, with Mimi and Petra adding up to Felt's demand for answers.

"W-Well..well.." Emilia childishly pressed her fingers together, looking off to the side. "I mean, I can't predict my mind here or anything, but...I was probably just happy to have, a person say they wanted to give me of all people a nickname, I guess…?"

"That's it?!" Anastasia and Felt shouted the same thing in unison, with the purple-haired candidate being the one to continue her words. "Ya know, I was thinkin' that Natsuki-kun was the naive one here, but ya' were surprisingly easy ta' please back then, huh?"

"Indeed, that was quite the display, Emilia-dono. I'll be sure to remember this side of you that you seemed to wish remaining hidden." Crusch noted, with a hum and nodding of her head.

Emilia hid her face in her hands, letting out a squeal of embarrassment. "Please forget it..."

"Eh?"

"N-No...Don't look at me!" The half-elf was only further embarrassed by Subaru's surprise.'

"I expected her to cringe, but I got a positive response." He muttered with a blank face. "What could this mean, Commentator Puck-san?"

"She doesn't have many friends, so she craves things like nicknames. She's easy to please."

"My main heroine is easy to please, huh?!"

Subaru's excitement passed, as two voices droned in from behind him.

"Sister, Sister. It's only been a short time, and now our guest looks like a drowned rat."

"Rem, Rem. In just a short time, our guest has turned into a dirty old washrag."

At the sound of these two voices, the mirth that had been filling the air seemed to suddenly vanish. The fact that they were showing up at the garden, together, at this time of day meant…

"I suppose it's already time for the day to move on…" Wilhelm muttered, stroking his beard while giving the screen a thoughtful gaze.

"I almost wish we could have just kept watching this." Reinhard admitted, with a small smile. "Seeing Subaru being allowed these small moments of reprieve in-between the endless trials thrown at him – I am sure it must give him a short moment to breathe."

Almost nobody in the room could disagree with that sentiment. Well, nobody, aside from Priscilla. She was far too interested in observing the boy's actions and potential even further to have nothing to do but watch worthless perspectives of him frolicking around with sunshine and rainbows.

"I know I'm a rat. You don't have to tell me." Subaru replied to the two in-sync maids.

"Our lord, Roswaal-sama, has returned. Please come inside." They spoke in unison, bowing their heads.

Subaru sighed, looking at the mansion. "Here we go…"

'My third first meeting with the lord of the mansion.'

He thought back to his previous dinner meetings, and his last death.

'All I know for certain is that someone will attack on the fourth night. It'd be ideal if I could let them know, but I can't explain where I got the information, so they might think I'm working with the assassin. If I knew even just the attacker's physique, it might be a different story…'

"It would be a very different story." Frederica murmured, resisting the urge to turn her disappointed gaze towards the maid in the back.

"At the very least, he could have left the mansion or something similar…" Otto sighed out those words, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"-But. We can't forget, there is still one issue that would remain, regardless of Subaru-dono's presence." Wilhelm was the one to break these thoughts, narrowing his eyes at the screen. "The curse user."

"Yer right...s'much as blue-haired missy back there is willin' ta' flail that weapon o'hers 'round, she ain't no shaman. Them folk are a rare breed as is, and it's pretty obvious that she ain't one." Anastasia agreed with a nod.

"So it's either face off 'gainst Rem or leave everyone ta' die, huh? Damn it, s'like Cap'n just keeps gettin' pushed into bullshit choice after bullshit choice." Garfiel turned to the side, disappointment in his eyes for an entirely different reason than his sister.

Subaru calmly eats at the dinner table, while continuing to think.

'So this time, I'll use these next four days to gather information and find out who the attacker is. And to do that…'

"-You may have any reward you request. Juuuuuuust name your desiiiire~!"

At those familiar words from Roswaal, Subaru stood up, a hand to his chest.

"In that case, let me live here as a house guest, and eat and sleep all I want!"

"Subaru...took my advice this time?" Emilia's eyes widened at the words that Subaru blurted out, with Anastasia giving a knowing smile.

"It ain't a bad plan. As a guest, he ain't gonna have ta' worry 'bout spendin' most o'his time workin', and can jus' focus entirely on solvin' th' 'mystery' o'who attacked him." The merchant princess analyzed, turning her gaze to the side. "Ooon th' other hand...it's gonna be harder ta' get that information."

"Why would it be harder? If mister has time, doesn't that mean he can just learn whatever he wants?!" Mimi rose a hand, clearly not following the line of thought.

"No...it means that Barusu would likely be even further alienated from those within the mansion." Ram speculated, to which Anastasia nodded.

"That's right. Not only is it gonna mean that anythin' he does could look more suspicious, but he ain't gonna have nearly any chance ta' get anythin' outta th' two maids, who seem ta' be th' real sources o'info in this place."

"So he's already taken a wrong path...still, we only know all of this with foresight. For Subaru, he was diving headfirst into the unknown. After all, his ability is not to tell the future, but only to bring back information on what has already happened." Julius shook his head at the regrettable thought.

Ram let out a large yawn, making everyone turn to her with pointed stares.

"How am I supposed to gather information, though? I guess I'll start with some indirect questioning." Subaru mutters to himself, arms folded while walking through the hallway.

He turns his gaze out the window, seeing Rem tending to a patch in the flower bed, where he had fallen.

"That's where I fell…"

He dashed forward, making his way outside the mansion. Rem turned to face him as he approached.

"That's a rather difficult person to choose as his first target to speak to…" Roswaal noted, bringing a hand to gently grip his chin. He had believed Subaru would immediately go to the most obvious weak link – Emilia, but he seemed to still have some sort of trust in the maids.

"And knowing Rem's dislike of the scent of the Witch…" Ram trailed off, sighing to herself. Of course, she didn't expect Rem to suddenly do something like kill Subaru out in broad daylight, but she was sure her sister's reaction wouldn't be a positive one, either.

"Sorry for the trouble-"

"Yes. If you'll excuse me, sir."

"Wait…" All Subaru could do was hold a hand out to her as Rem abruptly left. "I didn't even get a chance to talk."

"...And there she goes." Al grunted, rubbing the back of his helmet. "Man, she really just doesn't give me good vibes at all. She just went from staring at him to straight up ignoring any effort of conversation. I think shit just got worse."

"Yeah...without them working together, Rem just doesn't really have any reason to get along well with Subaru…" Emilia murmured, finding herself saddened at the fact that she had to agree with the one-armed knight's condemning words.

Rem stared at the screen with a silent, yet longing gaze. She wanted to jump in there, give Subaru the answers, help, and support she knew he needed...not watch her own killing intent show itself for the hundredth time.

Again, all she could do was hope beyond measure that somehow, some way, she would not act on those growing intentions...even if she was beginning to feel that such hopes were fruitless, herself.

He searched around the closet, bedrooms, and even the dining room, finding absolutely nothing and no one.

"I don't see anything out of the ordinary…"

He heard the sound of chains behind him, startling him and prompting him to look around...only to see a certain clown lord, the sound of chains coming from his feet.

"Whaaaaaat do you not see?"

"Ros-chi…" He muttered, relaxing upon seeing the man's smiling face. "Don't scare me like that. It's misleading."

The man just gave a mysterious smirk.

"Man...doesn't he realize that he's only makin' himself look more suspicious by sneakin' round like that? He's jus' askin' ta' be called out as a spy or somethin'!" Ricardo facepalmed.

"I really don't enjoy calling him this, but...Subaru-kyun can really be an idiot sometimes." Felix's ears drooped. He knew that, despite the fake smile on the man's face, the fact that Subaru had been caught looking for 'something' made him an even more suspicious target, already.

"It is quite idiotic, indeed, but it is the path the commoner has locked himself into. Now that he cannot properly glean information from either of the two maids, his only route forward is independent investigation. Though, I very much doubt he will be capable of properly producing any results." Priscilla hummed, leaning back into her chair.

"He could at least learn to sneak around a little bit, like yours truly. Would do him tons of good!" Felt announced proudly, with Emilia turning to stare at her, gently scratching her cheek.

"Felt-chan...I really believe that Subaru can do lots of reeeeally amazing things...but do you really think he could sneak past Roswaal, Rem, and Ram?"

The ex-thief thought it over for a second...sweating the more and more she thought about having to deal with them, as Subaru, without her increased speed or small, nimble stature.

"...You know what, maybe askin' him to sneak around all those monsters is a little too rough, even for me."

Now Subaru is at his desk, writing notes about his experiences. It reads:

'Magic – died of weakness in sleep

Sound of chains

Roswaal's chains X

Misleading!'

"It's quite useful that the screen seems to automatically translate Subaru's writing for us, in these instances. Though, this one seems much more important than the last scribble that he wrote..." Reinhard noted, narrowing his eyes at the words on screen.

"So that's all he has so far...it truly isn't a lot to go off of, with all of the information he has. It's easy to understand now why he felt so helpless when he has to somehow aim to avoid a seemingly pre-determined death with nothing but minor clues." Crusch hummed, folding her arms close to her chest.

The boy rubs the back of his head, clearly at a loss, only to hear knocking from his door.

Nearly everyone tensed up at the sound of knocking, including Rem, who was practically trembling in her seat. Her eyes were glued to the screen, her breath caught in her throat, with nowhere to go.

"Come in!"

It is revealed to be Ram, as she sets down some tea on his desk.

Nearly the entire theater let out a collective sigh. There was no possible way that any of them were ready to see Subaru's unfortunate death this quickly, not when they had just been able to settle in to this life, alongside the boy.

"Here you go, sir."

"Oh, thanks. Want to drink it with me?"

"No, thank you, sir." The maid replied, with an odd politeness.

"Hey, you can be a little more casual with me if you want…" Subaru called after her with an exasperated expression.

The maid simply closed the door behind her, now leaving him alone.

"...Hm." Julius wasn't the only one to notice this change in behavior, but was the first to comment on it. "Just why has her behavior changed so much? From the moment he began working, he seemed to treat Subaru casually, but it seems that the situation has entirely changed."

"I believe she's simply acting the way a proper servant should. Be seen, and not heard, and properly and politely serve your guest and master's needs. Everything else was much too unnecessary, especially the comments she seemed to insist on. Commoner or not, as a guest, his status far transcends hers." Priscilla stated, confident in her assessment.

"...Ram?" Emilia wanted to know what the pink-haired maid thought of her own actions.

"I suppose that would likely be a part of it." Ram agreed, then slowly turned her gaze up to her lone sister. "Of course, part of it would also be Rem. For the most part, I would treat a guest however Rem treats them, excepting very special circumstances. Because Rem treated him aloof, I would hazard that I chose to do so, as well."

"At the very least, I hope you don't begin to pick up her killing habits, older sister." Beatrice spat, seemingly already enraged by the mere mention of Rem's 'behavior'. "Though you are even worse in some ways, I suppose. The blue-haired one foolishly follows her own impulses, while you obey the orders of that brain-addled fool like a faithful dog."

At any other time, Ram would usually say something back to such words, likely something about giving her master the proper respect, or refraining from questioning her integrity as a maid...but the ever-expressive Ram was entirely silent to Beatrice's harsh critique. She was a woman that usually never wavered...but knowing that, at any time, Roswaal could have stepped in and ended this entire debacle, made her question her allegiances even further.

After all, if Subaru had not taken the curse, then Rem would...and if Rem was the one who was cursed...she would die. Ram didn't have any idea on what was in that little book her master carried around, but the fact that he made a convenient departure during the attack on the village was too damning to ignore.

...In other words, this was yet another show that without that book being ripped from his fingers, Roswaal was willing to put anything at risk, even the life of her own sister...and Ram would end up entirely enabling it due to her complete, blinding love towards Roswaal.

"No response?" Beatrice's words broke the pink-haired Oni's thoughts. "An unusual behavior, but Betty does not truly care for whatever excuses would spew from your lips in the first place, I suppose."

Ram, just like Rem, was left unable to say anything to the spirit's verbal abuse. She was not broken up by it, like her sister was, but it truly did make the otherwise unwavering Oni pause for a moment's thought.

"Well, it's my first day. Guess that's to be expected."

The day passes, revealing a new bright day...where Subaru is again standing in Beatrice's library, bothering her.

"Yo!" He greeted casually, with a wave of his hand.

"You come in here every day without even knocking. You truly have no manners whatsoever. It would be in your best interest to leave before you get blown away, I suppose." She began to hold her hand forward.

"Straight to the hand?! Beatrice-sama is mean!" Petra yelled, pouting at the fact that Subaru hadn't even gotten a chance to say anything before being threatened once more with the Great Spirit's 'punishment'.

Emilia just giggled at the sight, looking to Beatrice with a fond smile. "...I'm sure that you never would have imagined you would be making a contract with Subaru, if you were willing to treat him like this, back then. You were reeeeeeally mean to him, Beatrice!"

"...Hmph. It is true that Betty never thought that this fool would be the one to bring her out of her library, I suppose." Beatrice murmured, an annoyed frown on her face. "...But still," She leaned her head back into his chest. "Subaru was the one that Betty chose."

And for Beatrice, that fact would never change, no matter what she saw or heard. To the very end, the only person she would ever place her full loyalty in would be Subaru...so what she did in these loops would never make her waver.

Subaru panicked, hands flailing around in front of him. "Whoa! Wait, wait! I just want to ask you something! Is there any magic that weakens someone, and kills them as if putting them to sleep?"

"If I must answer, then yes, there is." Beatrice closed her book, walking over to the shelves.

"T-There is?"

"But it's not so much magic as it is a curse, I suppose." Subaru walked over to Beatrice who was now flipping through a book as she continued her explanation. "There are many such things among the spells that shamans specialize in.."

Subaru leaned down to look at the book, as Beatrice shifted it for him to look. It seemed to be a map of some kind. "Magicians. However, shamans are a subclass of magic and spirit arts users that originate in the northern nation of Gusteco, I suppose. They're all quite useless, and not to be taken seriously." She pointed further up on the map.

"Shamans, hmm?" Roswaal hummed, tilting his head to the side. "While I do admit they are not quuuuuite useful in a battle, shamans are faaaaaar from useless when it comes to the art of killing someone. Curses aaaare quite potent at ending lives...as we all have seen."

"That's right. If you can find some way to remove it, it's easy, but even that is difficult. Even I couldn't deal with a curse...the only way to do it would probably be to chop off the afflicted limb and heal it back." Felix hummed, ignoring how casually he had spoken such grim words.

Felt winced at the cat-eared healer's bluntness. "Man, that sucks. It's a good thing big bro had someone like the little runt down there, or he would have ended up needing to get his own leg cut off...damn, he really just can't catch a break, no matter what."

"Who are you calling a runt, little girl?!" Betty demanded in a high voice, with Felt wincing at the sudden loud noise. "Truly, it would have been quite the mess if Betty was not there...not to mention, there is the question of if his leg would even be able to be returned, I suppose. Many curses and such abilities leave the part which was afflicted unable to be reattached."

"That means even Ferris could not properly restore that limb...in other words, Subaru-kyun would have been left permanently crippled…" Felix trailed off, shuddering at the idea. It was the limit of healing magic – if you could find a healer close to Felix's levels, lost limbs could theoretically be reattached, as long as they were in good condition...but once too much time had passed, lost limbs were forever lost.

"That's an even darker future than anything we could think of...and there is no such doubt that with the idea of such a life awaiting him…" Wilhelm's eyes darkened, as the implications settled in on the weathered old man.

"Subaru would probably just let himself die to avoid it...all just because he's in a situation where he has to choose between being crippled or being killed…" Emilia's grasp on her knight's arm tightened, as she looked over his mostly unscathed body. Nothing remained of his suffering, but the tired bags under his eyes which she seemed to be able to see now all too clearly.

Rem looked down at her hero, her hands shaking in her lap. Every part of her body was urging her to go down there, to comfort him and hold him, and tell him that she would never do such things to him, never...but she would never be able to forget this fact…

That out of everything, she was as large a reason for suffering towards him as an indiscriminate assassin. It made her feel dirty...it made her feel less self-worth than the already tiny shred that she was barely holding on to.

'I suppose I really am the worse sister. Big sister is rational, perfect, and knows how to properly follow orders...but I couldn't even hold back my rage to kill towards a boy who was obviously innocent…'

More and more, Rem began to see the flaws within herself.

The girl looked up at him. "But there is an easier method than a curse, I suppose."

"Easier?" Subaru asked, leaning back.

"I believe you've already experienced it." She hinted, a dark shadow covering her face, veiling her in an evil lighting. He seemed confused, until she put a hand up to his chest. It near-instantly clicked.

"Wait, you mean…" He thought back to his first, unfortunate meeting with her. "That mana drain you did against my will could actually kill me?!" He jumped back in fear.

"You really do have a penchant for being mean, don't you? I can't believe ya would tease big bro with such a bad-natured joke when he's obviously worried about dying, for real!" Felt grumbled, folding her arms and leaning back against her chair.

"I don't believe it's much of a problem." Julius admitted, looking at the screen with a small smile. "Despite the Great Spirit-sama's lack of reason to share such information, she was kind enough to allow Subaru into her library, and give him that information free-of-charge. On the opposite hand, I believe it is a sign of her growing care towards him. When they first met, she was not even willing to joke, after all."

"At the very least, that pompous knight knows what is correct. This is not a show of something as petty as Betty being 'mean', but rather speaking her genuine thoughts to that lucky boy, I suppose! Would you rather her treat him with placid, fake politeness, like those two maids?" Beatrice hummed, rolling her eyes towards the blonde, who had since huffed and turned her gaze away.

"Whatever...still don't think you gotta be acting that way." She muttered, doing her best to ignore the smug smile that was now showing on Beatrice's face.

"Mana is also one's very life force. If you continually suck it out by force, one could die of weakness, I suppose." Beatrice walked over to the shelf, reaching for a book.

"Wait...You're not the one who killed me, are you?"

"Now Betty's contractor is the one making bad jokes. There is no possible way she would ever spare effort on such a foolish activity. She is not nearly as eager to mercilessly kill as that blue-haired one in the back, after all." Beatrice muttered, taking the moment to gently brush her hand atop the now free right hand of her peacefully sleeping contractor.

As always, Rem shifted uncomfortably, unsure of how to respond to the hatred towards her that seemed to be festering within Beatrice's heart. With each and every word that came out of the spirit's mouth, it was becoming harder and harder to just sit there and stay quiet…

But Rem still wasn't exactly sure of what to say, if she should even say anything.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm busy. I couldn't even spare the effort to kill you." Subaru reached to pass her the book she was struggling to reach.

"Is this what you wanted?" She just took the book with a silent huff, walking away and sitting down as Subaru continued. "So, uh...Oh, yeah. Can anyone do that mana-sucking thing?"

"That's an absolutely terrible way to put it, I suppose. In this mansion, only Bubby and I can. Even Roswaal can't."

"Only those two...so, perhaps it is an ability unique only to spirits?" Tivey pondered.

"No, I am capable of such an ability, too. Of course, it is nowhere near as painful as the Great Spirit's forceful mana drain, but I am capable of putting people to sleep, at the very least." Reinhard shook his head, as he disproved the theory.

"Yeah, I got to experience that waaay too well," Felt grumbled, throwing a glare at the red-haired knight. He chuckled bashfully, rubbing the back of his head in guilt.

"Oh...It's actually a pretty rare skill, then. Don't suck up that stuff too much. Especially me. I'm really short on blood right now, so I'd die in a heartbeat." He pleaded, half-jokingly.

"Yes, all your organs were restored, but your blood wasn't replaced, I suppose. Well, I have no obligation to do that, anyway."

"My organs?" Subaru held up a hand to his stomach. "The way you said that makes it sound like you were the one who healed my wounds. Trying to take the credit from Emilia-tan makes you look bad!"

"That silly girl doesn't have the power to heal fatal wounds yet, I suppose."

"I wish I did…" Emilia sighed, looking down at her two palms. "I mean, if it wasn't for Beatrice, then I would have had to go and look for some reeeeeally expensive doctor for Subaru…and by the time I got one, it would've been too late..."

"Uuuum, hello? Are you forgetting about this big idiot over here? He would have never just stood by and let big bro die like that!" Felt said confidently, patting her knight on the back.

"True, Reinhard is not the type to simply let someone die because of his own interests. Though his eyes were on the recruitment of Felt-sama, I highly doubt he would have left Subaru to die, were he not capable of being properly healed." Julius agreed with a nod.

Reinhard smiled lightly at the faith of his friends, before confirming their words. "Of course, I would never let Subaru die. In a way, he was a benefactor to me, as well. If his words never led me to walking around in the slums that day, Felt-sama would have remained undiscovered. Not to mention, her life..."

"-Not that I wouldn't have minded not bein' a part of this stupid royal race, but yeah, I think I'm more than happy to just be, well, not dead. So don't put yourself down so much, big sis." Felt reassured, looking back to the half-elf with a small smile.

"Geez...alright, alright, if you say so. I'm sure Subaru wouldn't want me to think that way, either." Emilia murmured, looking to the side at her sleeping knight.

"Huh?" Subaru was put off by Beatrice's matter-of-fact declaration.

"She and Bubby stabilized you, and I healed your wounds."

"Huh?! F-For real? You're kidding, right?" Subaru reeled back in shock, before managing to calm down. "Of course...It's a lie. It was a lie! It's not nice to lie! No lying!"

He got closer to Beatrice, practically teasing her as he crossed his fingers in front of her face.

"So ungrateful to the Great Spirit…" Julius murmured, looking at the boy on screen with an exasperated expression.

Anastasia snickered at her knight's uptight attitude at the way Subaru addressed Beatrice. "Now now, I doubt it's anythin' that serious, Julius-kun. I'm sure Natsuki-kun there is just tryin' ta' keep hold o'th' dream that he could have Emilia-san there be th' one ta' heal him."

At these words, Emilia flushed slightly. Beatrice, on the other hand, grumbled, folding her arms close to her chest.

"Betty would give him a good lesson on being so ungrateful for her healing if he were to pull such an act now, I suppose. Hmph!"

"Definitely a tsundere…" Al murmured. He felt an evil presence turning towards him, and managed to quickly turn away, just barely missing Beatrice's rage-filled gaze. The man had never been happier he had a helmet on.

"Shut up, I suppose! You're too averse to the truth. Someone not worth saving should disappear, I suppose!"

And so, with a wave of her hand, a surprised Subaru was sent flying out the door, through the hall, out into the manure-filled flower patch outside.

"Um…Once more, are you all right?" And once more, Emilia was there to check on him.

A roaring laughter filled the theater at Subaru's continual manure-filled misadventures.

"Man, oh man! I can't say that big bro didn't deserve it this time, though. He was honestly asking for it there!" Felt snickered, bringing a hand to her head.

"And y'know what that means, he's gonna have ta' get that water-twister treatment all over again!" Anastasia chuckled, her eyebrows raising ever so slightly in amusement at Subaru's comical actions.

"It's a good thing I was there to check on him...Subaru really can get in so much trouble when you leave him alone like that." Emilia admitted with a fond smile, shaking her head in disapproval at her knight's actions. On the inside, however, she was resisting just bursting out into giggling.

"Aye, Cap'n can get in a ton a'trouble, s'like random crap jus' comes his way! That's what makes hangin' round him so fun, though!" Garfiel remarked, a reminiscent grin on his face. Ram turned to him, huffing and shrugging her shoulders.

"And you wonder why I place you in the exact same category of brash inanity as him, Garf?"

The young demihuman gave a hurt frown, turning to the pink-haired maid.

"Oi, what's that supposed to mean?!"

Rem watched the scene, with the smallest of smiles returning to her face. In a way, it was almost comforting to see her hero going through such a lighthearted situation, when contrasted to what they'd had to watch him go through before.

What she forced him to go through...

It is evening, with Subaru at his desk again.

'So, in the end, the key words are 'curse' and 'chains'. I don't know anything else.' He leaned back, looking out the window.

The laughter died down, as the group returned to a modicum of serious-mindedness, with most keeping a watchful eye on the screen.

'If the conditions for Return By Death are the same, I died three times in the capital, and survived the fourth time. But that doesn't mean I intend to treat this as a throwaway life. That's why I asked Puck to keep an eye on Emilia for me.'

We see said scene, where Puck is floating besides Subaru as they watch Emilia convene with the lesser spirits.

"Sure. This is all really vague, but I can tell that you're asking out of concern for Lia."

"That's good." Felix, of all people, let out a relieved sigh. A small smile came to the cat-eared knight's face. "It puts Ferris' heart at ease to know that Subaru-kyun isn't going to simply treat his life as a tool anytime soon."

"That is nice, but...I wish he would worry a little more about himself, instead of thinking so much about me." Emilia murmured, looking to her knight's sleeping face with a saddened, thin smile. "He's kind, but what he really should be thinking of is himself at a time like this."

"...It's not Subaru-kun's fault." Rem's voice echoed through the theater, turning everyone's gazes towards her. "...He wasn't aware that he was going to be singled out by Rem. So...please blame Rem's cowardly actions instead."

"Hmph…" Beatrice huffed, folding her arms and turning away from the blue-haired Oni. Her eyes narrowed at the screen, holding a certain degree of frustration within them. "At the very least, you're facing what you've done head on, now. However, Betty, and nearly everyone else were already aware of how guilty you truly are, I suppose."

Those words were surprisingly light from the Great Spirit, but far from anything like forgiveness. Emilia turned her same sad smile towards Rem, her purplish-blue eyes glittering with many a conflicting feeling. In the end, she couldn't say anything, forced to look back to the screen, like Beatrice.

Subaru stares at the wall, thoughts resuming.

'On the morning of the fourth day, I'll leave here and-'

With a knock on the door, Subaru would slyly move to cover his notebook, as Ram entered the room.

"What an annoying interruption." Priscilla glowered, her fan slowing at the entrance of the maid.

"It would have been good for us to know just what Natsuki-sama's plan was...after all, it is hard to imagine that he could die in any possible way, if he were to simply leave the mansion." Crusch admitted, her amber eyes attempting to scan the boy on screen, as if to try to read his intentions.

"I suppose we'll just have to watch and find out. I have a rather sinking suspicion that simply leaving isn't all there is to his plan, however. Not for a man like Subaru…" Julius hummed, tapping a finger to his chin.

"Pardon my intrusion, sir. I see you really are studying, sir."

"That's super rude! I am a guest here, you know." He turned around, facing her as she placed down the tea set.

"You're a freeloader calling yourself a guest. That's how I perceive it, sir." She poured him out a cup of tea, which he gladly took.

"Thanks," He replied, slowly drinking it.

"Hmm…" Ram felt slightly off-put by this niceness her other self was suddenly displaying towards Subaru. After all, her convictions never wavered – not when it came to following her master's orders, and keeping herself in line with her sister. Meaning…

'I'm faking it, for some reason. Either to observe Barusu, or to glean information from him.' Those were her instincts, watching the overly-familiar way she treated him.

"I feel sorry for Subaru-sama, in this moment. He's going to have to drink an entire cup of that disgusting tea…" Frederica let out a short sigh, giving a forlorn look to the side. This pulled Ram's attention away from her thoughts. Ram's red eyes practically trailed a crimson light, as she grit her teeth, forcing a polite smile.

"I have no idea what you are referring to, Frederica...I couldn't hear any of that incessant chatter coming from your direction. It must be the sound of this screen overpowering everything."

"The sound? Yes, the sound...if that is what you wish to believe."

The two faced off, giving glares that seemed like they could melt the area around them at any second.

"I didn't realize how scary the fighting between big sis Ram and big sis Frederica can get…" Petra murmured, looking on with a sweatdrop falling from her face.

"Best not to get involved." Otto shook his head at the young maid, discouraging her intervention.

"Yeah, as th' Cap'n would say, let sleepin' dogs lie." Garfiel agreed with his gray-haired brother's words, giving a grim nod.

"...I think I'll be a good girl and just keep watching…"

Petra, as young as she was, perfectly realized the hints that the two were giving off. No, even without them, she knew that the only fate that awaited her for interrupting such a dark rivalry was a grim, cold one.

Rather than leaving, however, Ram poured a cup for herself, taking a drink.

"Ugh, it's still nasty." Subaru complained, as the maid sat down on the edge of his bed.

"See? Even Subaru-sama acknowledges it. I truly feel sorry that he had to suffer through such a horrid experience on his taste-buds." Frederica spoke, a smug smile on her face. Ram just clicked her teeth and turned her head away.

"You're going to incur the wrath of the finest tea leaves in the mansion." She took a drink from her cup.

"Slacking off right in front of your guest? I have no words for that nerve of yours."

Ram showed a small smile as she replied, kicking her feet slightly. "You were the one who told me to be more friendly toward you. I only responded to your demand." Subaru could only let out a sigh.

It was at this moment that those who actually knew Ram began to find her sudden friendliness odd, as well. Of course, there were also some who didn't know her too closely that found it somewhat unusual, still.

"It's a little weird seeing Ram-san of all people treat Natsuki-san as something similar to a close acquaintance…" Otto chuckled, scratching the side of his right cheek with a finger.

"Odd? More like straight out freaky! She only dropped one insult on him since she came in! Compared to the other loops, something just feels hella fishy here, and I ain't liking it one bit." Felt grumbled, slouching back in her chair.

'Sister is pretending to treat Subaru-kun kindly...it is easy to see when she acts so flippantly around him, rather than her usual beautiful honesty…' Rem's thoughts trailed off, as she turned a pointed glance towards her silent sister.

"Umm...maybe Ram-san just decided to treat Subaru as a proper guest after all this time?" Emilia positively added, only for her words to be immediately and silently shot down by blank looks from the crowd.

"That's even more nonsensical than any other theory that anyone else here could have come up with." Tivey quipped, facepalming at the optimism that the half-elf showed.

Deep down, every knew that her optimism was not borne from a simple naivete, however. In some capacity, nearly all of them wished it was something so simple...but the fact was staring them in the face – yet another one of them may be plotting something against Subaru's life, right there on the screen.

"Now, noooow~." Roswaal's drawling voice broke the tension, as he spread his arms out. "There is no neeeeeed to behave so hesitantly...if there is something that we need answered, we need only ask Ram." He turned to his maid with a thin smile. "...Is that not right?"

Ram gave a dry chuckle at her master's words. They sounded reasonable, but it was almost obvious how intentionally he was distancing himself from her actions by asking her to independently confirm her suspicions about herself. Despite losing his gospel, he was still the same scheming man he had always been...

"I believe the Margrave's words to be correct." Reinhard agreed with a solemn nod, turning his piercing blue eyes at Ram. "We don't need another unneeded divide within this theater...Miss Ram, I'm going to have to ask you to divulge any idea of your intentions towards us."

The maid let out a short sigh, fearlessly meeting the Sword Saint's eyes and speaking with blunt honesty. "It is likely that I was faking it, in order to get closer to Barusu. I assume that is either to observe him, or to attempt extracting some form of information out of him...whatever it is, I can only guess. However, I am sure that I would never maliciously plot to kill Barusu, unless I had a proper reason to do so."

Her words were succinct and clear, they held not an inch of doubt or distrust. And neither Crusch nor Reinhard picked up on a single lie coming from the words she spoke.

"...I see. She appears to be telling the whole truth." Crusch let out a breath that had been trapped in her lungs. "I apologize for so roughly questioning you, Ram-dono. It is simply...after what happened previously, it would be better if…"

The strong-willed Duchess couldn't bring herself to finish her sentence, no matter what. However, the conclusion of her words was heard even without being spoken.

Subaru's death would always come as a shock, a horror, a plague that not only befell him, but clouded the minds of those forced to watch – however, at the very least, they could properly confront that reality, if they were aware of what was to happen.

It would be better if they knew. Nothing would change, but at the very least, it would be better.

"Well? Now that the inane and pointless questioning is over, shall we continue? Mineself is curious as to just how the rest of this shall play out." Priscilla demanded, clearly in a hurry to rush along the conclusion that was soon to arrive.

"So? How is your studying coming along?"

"Not bad." He responded, holding up a small green book. "I can read simple fairy tales like these, now. It's interesting how the morals differ just slightly from what I know. It's like true cross-cultural communication. Maybe I should import a few fairy tales from my homeland. Like 'The Red Oni Who Cried'."

Those last words of his got a response out of Ram, who stared at him with sudden curiosity. "The Red Oni Who Cried?" She repeated.

"What an interesting story name…" Ram murmured, finding herself as intrigued as her on-screen counterpart. "Usually, I would not care for Barusu's ridiculous tales, however...this may be something worth listening to."

Rem's eyes lit up in a way similar to her sister's, her attention placed squarely on Subaru's lips. She was irrevocably, inexplicably drawn to it the moment he had spoken the title.

"It's still always so interestin', ta' see how his world parallels' ours. Tha' Oni tribe...f'I remember right, all o'em got wiped out not too long ago, by a Witch Cult attack…" Anastasia murmured, her eyes taking in the information on screen with a greedy glint. "That lil' interestin' fact aside, it's a wonder that Natsuki-kun's world has stories 'bout nearly everythin' from ours."

"That's right...didn't you say earlier that stuff in our world is fantasy to Subaru, right? Does that mean…?" Emilia trailed off, her eyes holding a slight flame of curiosity as well.

"That's right." Beatrice nodded. "While I do hate to have to divulge more information that my contractor entrusted me with...Oni are also a concept that originated from made up, fabricated tales in Subaru's world." The Great Spirit's confirmation sent the room into awe.

"More and more, it truly seems like Subaru's world and ours are linked somehow...only people from his world get sent over, as far as we know, and we share a lot of concepts, while still maintaining enough differences to set our worlds apart." Reinhard pondered, leaning forward while thinking on just what all of this could mean.

"For now, we should keep our minds clear." Wilhelm advised, frowning slightly at the seemingly lost expression that had taken over his grandson's visage. "Right now, let us listen to this story. Our break is the proper moment for us to worry over such concepts."

Reluctantly, the cast let go of the idea that was beginning to form for the moment, relegating their gazes back to the screen.

Subaru's shock faded from his face, replaced by a small smile. "Want me to tell it to you?"

Ram didn't respond, but the fact that she kept her gaze on him was enough of an answer for Subaru.

"All right, your attention, please. Once upon a time, there lived a red Oni and a blue Oni." He picked up a spoon which had a red gemstone, and his quill, which held a blue gemstone. "The two were very good friends.

Ram looked on as he continued. "The red Oni wanted to be friends with the people of the village. But the people were too scared to get close to him."

A small frown came to Emilia as she heard of the Oni's honest, yet ill-fated desire to simply make friends. In her eyes, there was a sympathetic look…after all, being a half-elf with silver hair and dark violet eyes, that alone was enough to doom her to a similar, if not identical fate.

The camera zoomed out, the sunlight outside now looking red and blue, itself.

"The blue Oni couldn't bear to watch, so he devised a certain plan to help his friend."

He held up the blue gemstone encrusted quill. "I'll make a ruckus in the village, so you come and stop me. Then the villagers will be sure to trust you."

"That's dumb," Felt grumbled, turning her head to the side. "He's not gonna get anything out of that."

"Yeah! Mimi would just go somewhere else with her blue Oni buddy to make cooler friends!" Mimi agreed, puffing out her cheek.

"It's so sad...I don't think he should have to sacrifice himself just for those ungrateful people." Petra completed the trio of reactions, huffing at the stupid course of action.

Frederica, seated beside Petra, kept a focused gaze on the screen. She remained silent, yet her eyes were beginning to slowly fill with understanding the more the story went on.

Subaru lifted up the spoon with the red gemstone, Ram's reflection being cleverly hidden on the window.

"The plan worked, and the red Oni befriended the humans. But as time passed, something began to worry him. His friend, the blue Oni, no longer came to visit him."

Ram's fingers subtly shook on the handle of her teacup.

"Sister…" Rem's spoke without even thinking, giving her sister a worried gaze. Yet, even with her worry for her sister, Rem felt more than her own share of self-worry bubbling up in her chest.

Something about this story...it...it just did not sit well with her.

"One day, the red Oni went to the blue Oni's house. The door was tightly shut, and a letter was affixed to it. The letter said…"

The pink-haired maid's face was unreadable as he continued.

"Red Oni-kun, please have fun with your human friends. If I continue to hang around you, they might think you're a bad Oni, too. So, I've decided to go on a journey, but I will never forget you. Goodbye. Please take care of yourself. Your friend forever...Blue Oni."

Subaru took a short pause, as the camera focused on the quill in his hand.

"The red Oni read the letter in silence over and over again. Tears fell as he began to cry. The end."

"...Man. That's one hell of a depressing story." Al muttered, shaking his head at the conclusion.

"Heh…" Garfiel chuckled, giving a knowing glance to Ram. "Ya wouldn't believe how close it hit t'home for some a'these guys, though."

The pink-haired Oni had a blank look on her face, the first bit of hesitation that had been seen on her expression throughout the entirety of this episode's viewing. "...I see. To think that Barusu had such a story tucked away...I should have expected it of a man like him."

Silence filled the room for a few seconds, before Ram eventually spoke.

"That's a sad story."

"Yeah, it is. But I think it's a sweet story, too."

"I think all the characters in it are just stupid. The red Oni, the blue Oni, and the villagers, too."

"I agree. The characters within that story are simply all idiotic. The blue Oni is eager to sacrifice himself, as if some sort of lamb putting themselves in front of the slaughter, the red Oni allowed themselves to use a person whom they called a friend for nothing but petty gain...and the villagers are heathens whom can't even form proper opinions based off of reality."

Priscilla's harsh, blunt words had nothing but venom in them as she clicked her tongue. "Tch. That entire story put mineself in a horrible mood. Al!"

"Right, right…" The knight began to massage his candidate's shoulders, looking forward with an expression unable to be seen behind his helmet.

"Well, as haughty as miss fire-hair is, I agree with her. All of them are dumb. I mean, even Mimi had a way better solution to that whole thing!" Felt threw her hands up in frustration.

Subaru gave an exasperated smile to Ram's frank words. "That's kind of a harsh critique. I mean, I'm not denying it, but...That's why I both love and hate that story."

He put the quill to the side. "The blue Oni's self-sacrifice is really appealing, but it's stupid because he gets nothing out of it. I'm the type that wants to be rewarded for the effort I put in."

"S'a reasonable way o'thinkin'. His idea o'rewards s'a lil' bit lackin', though." Anastasia muttered, her thoughts returning back to the moments Subaru had to gain almost anything he wanted, only to use them for momentary, temporary benefits.

"Such is a commoner's line of thinking. They wish for everything, but when approached with the opportunity to seize their desires, are nothing but wasteful." Priscilla shook her head, finding herself agreeing with the merchant princess' complaints on the boy's line of thought.

Rem turned her gaze downwards as she heard Subaru's words, words that dug deep into her heart. She wondered if that meant that Subaru would approve of the actions she had taken to be where she was today...how she was today.

Not even being her own person, seeing herself as nothing else other than a useful tool – a substitute for her sister, the horn that she could never have again. Even the burning desire for revenge in her chest – it was borne from nothing but her desire to carry on her sister's desire for revenge.

She was exactly like that blue Oni, throwing all aspects of herself away just to serve as a replacement for someone other than herself.

Ram looked towards Subaru. "Is that what you think of the blue Oni? But it's the red Oni that I think is beyond help. He dragged the blue Oni into his own desires, and as a result, he lost nothing. Only the blue Oni lost anything."

Ram gave a sharp chuckle at her own blunt, yet absolutely correct words. In the end, Ram felt absolutely stable with where she was, but she always knew just how hopeless Rem's thinking had become when it came to her own self-identity. Watching her made her feel like a failure as a sister.

Sometimes, she wished she had snapped off her own horn so that Rem would not feel guilty about it. If she had just realized how deeply her sister's self-hatred, self-doubt, and guilt reached earlier, she would have been able to help her.

Sadly, both of them were nothing but children. And even Ram was not equipped to deal with such emotional complexities from an impossibly young age. So it had festered, and festered, and festered...until it became what it was today.

'Truly, quite the interesting tale, Natsuki Subaru.' Roswaal, as stoic as this viewing had forced him into becoming, was forced into smiling by the coincidental, yet striking nature of the raven-haired boy's story.

"Then, what do you think the two Oni should have done?" Subaru asked, as Ram stood up, walking to the window.

"If the red Oni truly wanted to befriend the humans, he should have broken off his horns and gone to them. He should have done that before the blue Oni couldn't bear to watch anymore."

"That's a pretty extreme opinion, too…" Subaru groaned, as Ram set down her cup.

"It sounds extreme, but I somewhat agree." Crusch nodded at Ram's apt words. "If the red Oni wanted nothing more than to be friends with the humans, then he should have been prepared to do whatever was necessary to achieve that goal. Breaking off his horn as a sign of that wish – I'm sure such a genuine action would force its' way into the hearts of those villagers."

"That's right. People don't appreciate nothing more than you just being upright and honest with 'em." Felt agreed, nodding to the Duchess' explanation.

"I still believe it's rather extreme...over time, I'm sure that they could have achieved a somewhat desirable relationship with the villager if they had taken their time with developing a positive relationship. Snapping off a part of their body is somewhat…" Otto chuckled nervously, scratching his cheek.

Emilia stared at the screen silently, and then turned her gaze down to Beatrice. The Great Spirit had blank eyes, seemingly emotionally unaffected by the story on screen. Yet, Emilia could see the same emotion in Beatrice's eyes that was now swirling around inside of her heart – uncertainty.

Both girls knew that this story was practically overlapping with Ram and Rem's past. A past that had warped the two sister's lives beyond anything that anything that they could understand.

"Is that so?" She approached Subaru. "In that case, which of the two ogres would you rather be friends with?"

"Which of the two?"

Ram held out her two index fingers in front of him.

"The red Oni, who can only wish and be taken care of by others, or the stupid blue Oni, who basks in his own self-sacrifice?"

Ram looked on in expectancy, and Rem held her breath, eyes almost closed as she wished to avert her eyes and ears from bearing witness to whatever answer that her hero would give...

Looking between her fingers, Subaru hummed...before eventually just grabbing both.

Nobody in the theater was surprised at the choice he had made.

"...Of course. I did forget that Natsuki-kun has his own brand o'greed." Anastasia smiled, lowering her head in satisfaction at the boy's answer. After all, if you weren't being forced to make some sort of choice, why make yourself?

"Honestly, only Barusu would make such an answer without even thinking about the implications of it." Ram huffed, folding her arms and looking to the side in dissatisfaction...yet she couldn't stop a small smile from coming to her face.

"To think that Subaru-kun would make that decision so easily…" Rem had a feeling she felt she didn't deserve rising up in her chest...that happiness, that relief that always rose up in her chest whenever her hero always gave her those caring words, those happy glances…

It reminded her of why she loved him so much. Subaru was the only one in the world who properly recognized Rem's existence as her own, proper person.

"Heh, Cap'n is th'best! There was no other answer than that, in my amazin' selfs' opinion!" Garfiel grinned, pumping a proud fist into the air. He knew that the man he followed was a man after his own heart, after all, Garfiel would have given the same damn answer. It was always stupid to him, watching those two sisters awkwardly separate themselves.

"Yes, it seems that I underestimated Subaru-sama somewhat…" Frederica admitted, with a genuine smile coming to her face. The blonde-haired demihuman felt her respect for the young man grow, ever so slightly.

"Mmmmh…" Emilia looked as if she was holding in words as she looked between Beatrice and Rem. It was more than obvious that the half-elf had something on her mind, but was either unsure of the timing, or unsure of if she should even speak it.

Beatrice let out a sigh, giving Emilia an annoyed glare. "Hurry up and say whatever you wish to say, half-elf. It is annoying Betty just how desperate and skittish you are looking just to speak, I suppose. If it's something that you must say that badly...Betty will not interfere."

The half-elf gave Beatrice a beautiful, thankful smile…and with a nod, Emilia turned to look at Rem with focused eyes. This story had made her realize – she knew nothing about Rem or Ram, really. Nothing that really mattered. Nothing that would explain to her why Rem was so horrifically focused on revenge, how she could take a life so easily without even thinking about it…

"...Rem,"

The beginning of Emilia's words echoed through the theater, drawing the blue-haired Oni's attention. Emilia's eyes seemed to be scanning Rem, looking for something unseen, for a few seconds.

"Rem, how? I mean, I know you might have had your suspicions he was a Witch Cultist, but...how...were you able to kill Subaru so mercilessly? I...I have to know."

The candidate's words made nearly everyone freeze in place. It was a question nobody had been prepared to ask, themselves, yet, something they all wished to know.

Rem hesitated, but, after looking at Ram and Roswaal, who both had looks of acceptance on their faces, Rem took a deep breath, and prepared herself to tell the full story...the story of how she had become so used to killing.

A/N: (Read the Hidden Village Oni Sisters short story for a deeper explanation of this part.)

And so, Rem gave the entire story of her and her sister's past. The loss of their village to the insane Witch Cultists, who had no motive other than wishing to see their village burn. Rem's despair at that idea, and the fact that she felt nothing but guilt and useless after being happy, of all things, at seeing her sister's horn snap off. Their being saved by Roswaal, and her initial dislike of the eccentric man...and the first time she had been allowed to interact with one of the men who had been responsible for destroying her village.

All of it, resulting in that confrontation...yes, that confrontation, in which she had mercilessly tortured that man. Crushed his limbs, healed him, and then repeated it over, and over, and over again...and the pure nothingness she had felt while doing it. No, all that had filled her mind was making him regret what he had done that day, making him realize that the hell he was feeling was due entirely to his own actions

It had started a little child on the path of revenge – revenge that she wished to carry out not because of her own feelings, but simply because of her single desire to fulfill her sister's wish...to wipe out every last one of the bastards had been the cause of their lives shattering into pieces.

The story left nearly everyone in the room silent, especially Frederica, who looked off to the side. She hadn't heard much from Clind about the situation, but hearing it directly from Rem's mouth was another story entirely.

"...Shit…" Ricardo rubbed the back of his head, almost feeling nauseous. "A kid doin' all that shit...damn it!"

"That's...fucked up." Al agreed, looking off to the side. He wasn't a softie, but hearing shit about a kid basically being forced by circumstances into torture and brutal murder wasn't exactly something he enjoyed hearing in any circumstances.

Priscilla simply had no response to it all. After all, as a child, she had long become used to the idea of death, betrayal, revenge, and pointless killing.

"No child should ever be forced to participate in such actions. Such events can destroy their development for life…" Julius grit his teeth at the injustice of it all. As a knight, it made him feel useless, knowing that far away, out of his reach, such injustices were likely happening every day.

"It's just as we saw with Elsa." Reinhard murmured, lowering his head. "Many of those unfortunate formative experiences during childhood stay. They don't leave you. They haunt you for life, changing you. I know that personally. I...can understand now how Rem-san became capable of what she did."

"Rem…" Emilia's heart ached as she thought of just what the maid...no, just what her friend had been through. At the very least, she'd been blessed with a childhood she was mostly satisfied with. Her only regrets came much later on….but for Rem, she'd had to work just to be acknowledged by her parents. Then, she had her home ripped from her, and was forced into a situation where she had no choice but to torture and kill someone…"Now...I understand."

"But still, bein' 'forced to participate', eh?" Anastasia's voice seemed much less playful than it usually did, as she took in her knight's words. "Call it a suspicion, but I ain't so sure t'was by simple circumstances that Rem-san there happened upon that man...someone like th' Margrave ain't gonna lock up a Witch Cultist in his basement, an' jus' conveniently let Rem-san there stumble on him."

"...Margrave." Crusch spoke up, her steely, determined eyes looking into Roswaal's eyes. "...It seems you spoke on wishing to understand what choice Rem-dono would make...but was that truly a choice? After all...that seems much too coincidental."

Roswaal remained silent, looking off to the side, away from the group. His eyes seemed to be shining with unknown thoughts and feelings...before eventually speaking.

"It is just as Rem said. It was all but an unfortunate coincidence...that is all I can say at the moment." The clown admitted with a small smirk and a shrug, leaving almost everyone dissatisfied with his words.

"I smell nothing but bullshit," Felt spat, kicking her feet up on her chair. "If you're gonna lie, at least try to make it sound convincing, you huge clown."

"Felt-sama-"

"No, she's right, Reinhard." Felix interrupted, narrowing his eyes at the Margrave. "Ferris isn't one to get involved in trifling discussions, but this is serious. The Margrave should have a much better reasoning for his actions than that."

Crusch nodded in agreement with her knight, her own steely eyes looking directly into the Margrave's mysterious, vaguely disturbing eyes. "A noble harboring an unreported member of the Witch Cult in their home, for whatever reason...that alone is a crime. However, allowing one of your servants to stumble upon them, even as a coincidence...truly despicable, that is all that I am willing to say. Truly...I am disappointed in your actions, and the carelessness which you have shown, Margrave."

Nobody could either deny, or add on to the words that the Duchess spoke, a silence coming over all of them that indicated that they all needed time to process the information that had just been uttered.

None of them truly let go of the actions that the maid had committed, but in many ways, they could understand just why she had acted the way she did – even if inexcusable, her foolish upbringing had brought her to commit the ultimate sin of slaying a completely innocent boy.

Beatrice growled, feeling more spiteful than ever. She hated that maid for what she did, but hearing how Roswaal was somehow involved in it, like always, only made her despise that man more than she had already come to.

Emilia felt conflicted, unsure of just what to say towards Rem. Her eyes looked between the girl and the screen, her habit of indecision showing up once more – though in a much more understandable capacity.

Ram looked down, her own feelings more mixed than ever. She'd known her sister had developed an immense hatred for the Cultists, but she'd never have thought her strong hatred and desire for revenge was born out of her sister worrying about...her. She felt like an irresponsible mess of a sister. Ignoring this obvious problem that her sister had inevitably led to this breach in behavior.

And yet, despite avoiding this obvious issue with her sister for more than a decade, she had the gall to want to save and fall in love with the man who had only made her sister's behavior even worse.

'What have I been doing all this time…?' Ram was completely and utterly lost.

Almost as if they needed more time to think, nobody really said anything else meaningful, simply allowing the showing to go on.

"What a foolish answer. If you want to befriend both, you must be the indecisive, adulterous type. You'll regret it one day."

"I don't recall it being that kind of story!" Subaru replied in frustration.

"Heh, Cap'n jus' has a big heart, s'all." Garfiel grinned, rubbing a finger on the bridge of his nose. Even for someone like him...Subaru had opened his heart and forgave him.

"Much too big for Betty's liking!" Beatrice huffed at the demihuman's words, giving her contractor's chest a dissatisfied thump with the back of her head.

"I'll admit, even I'm a lil' surprised with how much Natsuki-kun's willin' ta' give jus' ta' reach a 'happy endin', like he calls it." Anastasia chuckled lightly, her eyes staring in amusement at the boy on screen. The more she believed she understood him, the more incomprehensible he became...

"Putting aside your homeland's fairy tales, did any of these stories leave an impression on you?" Ram held a hand out to the green book.

"Well, the ones that interested me most were the one in the in the middle, about the dragon, and the one at the end, about the witch. I finally know where the name 'Dragon's Kingdom of Lugunica' came from."

"Oh?"

"It said the royal family signed a covenant with a dragon, so it's more a folk tale than a fairy tale, right?"

"Yes, since it's true. The noble dragon still protects this nation from far away, beyond a great waterfall. It will do so until its contract with the royal family is fulfilled."

"So much for that useless contract…" Crusch spat below her breath, eyes narrowing in held-back rage at the screen. Felix looked to his mistress with worry, alongside Wilhelm, who had a slightly solemn look on his face.

The old man was far less involved with the tale, but for Crusch and Felix, who were close, inseparable friends with one of the said royal family members whom had died...they both knew that pain more than anyone else.

Subaru looked up at Ram with confusion. "Wait, didn't the royal family that signed that contract recently die out?"

"Yes, quite abruptly. No one knows what the dragon wants. In the nation's current situation, only the gods know...No, only the dragon knows what the dragon will do, sir."

"That's an apt set of words…" Reinhard sighed, bringing a hand to his forehead. As a royal knight of the country, he well understood the headache-inducing situation they had been suddenly thrown into. At Anastasia's side, Julius felt much the same way.

Priscilla just rolled her eyes, fanning her face. "Mineself finds the entire idea utterly foolish. If a ruler were truly competent, they wouldn't require the help of such an unreliable, ancient creature. That alone shows a lack of capability, itself."

Crusch hummed in a bit of surprise, never having thought she'd agree with anything coming out of the stuck-up woman's mouth.

Ram's words made him hum, before he went on. "Oh, by the way Ram, about this witch story…"

"I don't want to discuss that." The maid was abrupt and blunt as she declined, gathering up the tea set items. "I've stayed here too long. I'll come again to notify you when dinner is ready, sir."

"O-Okay…" Subaru replied, only able to watch as the pink-haired maid left.

Nobody had much of anything to say about Ram's reaction on the tales of the witch – especially not now that they were aware of the past which the two Oni shared involving the Witch Cult. Such a reaction to mentioning the Witch wasn't rare, after all.

The only one who had a reaction of much note was Emilia, who gave a small smile at her knight's ever-present naivete. A part of her felt sad for him being so left out of the loop with their culture at the start, for how much pain it caused him...but another part of her was happy that he'd come to their world that way, with no prejudices or preconceptions.

It was a large part of what made him so extraordinarily special to her...

"The story you told me about the Oni…" Ram paused at the door, turning to look at Subaru. "Don't tell it to Rem. I'm certain she wouldn't like it."

"Sister…" Rem murmured, looking down at her sister with eyes filled with understanding. She'd assumed her sister to be unaware of her behavior, in some misguided attempt to keep her sister from feeling any sort of responsibility for the way she had become...but her reaction to that story, and her words just then confirmed the opposite.

Subaru held the book close to his chest as he fell down on the bed, staring into the book and reciting it's contents.

"A scary witch...a terrifying witch. To even speak her name was terrifying. Everyone called her the Witch of Envy."

The screen turned to black, ominously leaving on the depicted terrifying, demonic image of the Witch…

"What n'ominous spot ta' focus on…" Ricardo muttered, feeling a few chills go up his spine.

The scene changes to Subaru standing at the entrance door of the mansion, being seen off by Emilia, Roswaal, and the two maids.

Emilia was the first to notice just what this scene looked like, her eyes widening. "Hold on...is Subaru...leaving?"

"Now we have even more confirmation that this isn't anything close to the timeline in which we currently reside in…" Otto murmured, tightly grasping the hat atop his head in a mixture of worry, concern, and frustration.

"I can't tell what he's thinking...but it makes sense. Who would wanna stay in a mansion full of psychos?" Felt shrugged. The clown, the two maids, the iffy spirit...Felt would've left that place way earlier.

"Still...the fact that this is not the reality that you are all aware of is enough to speak the answer on how this attempt proceeded, is it not?" Priscilla interrupted, a nasty smile on her face. Her words sent them all into an uncomfortable silence.

"...Let us just continue watching."

With Reinhard's solemn words, the group returned their attention to the screen.

"Are you sure about this? We could call a dragon-drawn carriage to take you to the capital…" Emilia said, with a worried face.

"I'll be fine. One day when I'm the kind of strong, smart, rich man who's worthy of you, I'll come on a white horse to take you away." Subaru reassured, giving a thumbs up.

"Do you have a handkerchief? And water, and lagumite ore, and, and...Will you be able to sleep by yourself?"

"Do you think you're my mom?!" Subaru yelled in reply to Emilia's practically motherly worries.

"Ouch. Bro's manly promise totally got ignored!" Al laughed his ass off, putting a hand atop his helmet as if trying to suppress his laughter.

"Ain't no use, no use. She wasn't even listenin' ta' none a'that!" Ricardo snickered, shaking his head at the boy's misfortune.

Emilia could only blush at the two men's apt words on her oblivious nature, reassuring herself by holding onto Subaru's hands tightly. Even if she wasn't interested in him back then, or, well, too naive to properly recognize whatever feelings might have been blooming in her, the most she could do for him was keep firm hold of them now.

"Well then, Subaru-kun. Be well. And don't lose the gift I gave you. I added a little something equivalent to our three days' worth of memories together." Roswaal made a pinching motion, winking at the boy.

A sly grin appeared on Anastasia's face, her eyes holding a knowing glint as she looked to the Margrave. "Tryin' ta' silence 'im with money? Ya' really do seem like quite tha' experienced schemer, Margrave."

"Your praise means much to a humble magician, such as myself…" Roswaal gave a polite shrug of his shoulders, a small smirk on his face.

"That's not something to be proud of, I suppose. It only reveals your true nature as a snake." Beatrice folded her arms, looking away from the incredibly fake man.

"My, as harsh as always, Beatrice." Roswaal responded with mock hurt.

Felt, Petra, and Mimi huffed in unison, shaking their heads as they spoke one after another.

"Totally deserved, though."

"Too much deserved!"

"Sneaky snake meanie!"

Subaru jiggled the backpack he had and nodded. "Hush money, right? Don't worry, I get it. I won't say anything I shouldn't. I swear to the dragon."

"Talking with you makes any evil scheme seem to lose its purpose. And in this nation, swearing to the dragon is the highest form of promise. Make sure you don't forget it."

"At least Subaru-dono seems aware enough to realize the true purpose of that money…" Wilhelm sighed, with a bit of relief. Even knowing the boy's faith, it was good to see that he still had a level head on his shoulders when it came down to such matters.

He almost felt a bit like a grandfather watching over their grandson, quite frankly.

"That commoner would be far too easy pickings if he wasn't capable of recognizing that much." Priscilla rolled her eyes at the Sword Demon's praise, finding her performance rather lackluster, herself.

Julius sighed while watching the screen, pinching his furrowed eyebrows together. Ignoring Anastasia's venomous as always words, he couldn't help but wonder why the boy had acted so irrationally during the Royal Selection meeting if he had that sort of strategic head on him.

As always, however, the only answer for him, or anyone else among them was to continue observing the screen.

Subaru saluted to the lord. "Got it!" He then turned his gaze to the maids. "You two helped me out a ton. Especially you, Rem-rin, thanks for the delicious food. And Ram-chi…" He seemed to struggle with something to say…

"Yeah! You're good at cleaning toilets, right?"

"Sister, Sister. Our guest is hopelessly bad at flattery."

"Rem, Rem. Our guest has a fatal lack of skill in flattery."

"Oh, shut up! I seriously couldn't think of anything!" Subaru yelled at the two maids, before relaxing into a sincere smile. "Thanks, though."

The two returned it politely. "Yes, sir."

Rem's hands tightened together at seeing her interaction with Subaru. Even after her brutal killing of him, and her obvious bias towards him, he still regarded her by a nickname, and even thanked her for her help before leaving...despite her barely even doing anything for him in this timeline…

"Tch...leaves a bad taste in my mouth, knowin' whats probably gonna happen later." Al muttered, turning his head to the side.

It went unsaid...right now, there was only one of two things that could kill Subaru in this loop – the curse, and Rem. Considering that he hadn't even visited the village this time...it only seemed obvious what was going to occur.

Everyone was so tired, however, that they didn't even wish to bother addressing it. That was all this viewing was beginning to become to them...tiring, emotionally, mentally, and to some, even physically.

Emilia and Subaru are now to the very exit of the mansion, with Subaru staring forward into the dirt trail ahead with a determined gaze.

"Subaru!" Emilia's call made Subaru turn. "Thank you for everything. If you need anything, come visit anytime."

Subaru smiled. "Sure!"

He headed off down the trail, waving goodbye to the half-elf one last time. "Thanks, Emilia-tan!"

Emilia felt a distinct tightening in her chest, as the 'Emilia', on screen, and the 'Emilia' that was her, sitting in the theater, watched the young man depart.

"...I wish I had at least properly seen him off past the village." Emilia murmured, looking down with a forlorn expression.

"...Stop casting blame on yourself, half-elf." Beatrice spoke, causing the half-elf to look at her with surprise and shock. Of all the places for comfort to come from...Emilia hadn't expected it to come from the grudge-bearing spirit. "Why are you looking at Betty with such surprise? Whatever...all Betty is saying is that it's foolish to continue worthlessly blaming yourself. We are already aware of our culprits here, I suppose. The most we can do know for Subaru is to watch and evaluate whatever comes next. Rather than beating yourself up, properly watch."

With each word from the spirit, Emilia could see it – the pain, guilt, sadness and hurt in her eyes, one that was almost as much, if not even greater than what Emilia believed must be in her own gaze...but even beyond that, Emilia saw another light in there...the faint glimmering of determination. A determination that Emilia realized that she had to adopt to, for the sake of Subaru.

Reaffirming her resolve, the half elf looked back to the screen, watching with an attentive gaze.

And with that one last silly gesture, Subaru headed off with a completely serious face, making his way down the path...before shifting off to the side, into the forest.

He walked up a hill, breathing hard, ignoring even the scratches that he received.

Eventually he made it to the top, getting a high view of the mansion down below.

"Okay, this is the place." He muttered. "I can see Emilia's room especially well from here."

"Of all the stupid things…" Ram grit her teeth, the boy's plan immediately coming into mind without any further explanation. He planned on hiding out on top of that rock, and trying to see whoever was going to attack the mansion. But...this was only making him look even more suspicious, when what he needed wasn't information – but instead to just avoid the cause entirely.

"It's not a horrible plan, if he just wants to get information. The problem is…" Tivey sighed, massaging the stress that was building up in his forehead. He almost felt like he was going to get a headache at just how complex and twisted these inter-personal conflicts were becoming.

"The problem is, is that the attacker isn't aiming for the mansion, in the first place…they...no, I...am aiming for Subaru-kun." Rem finished regretfully, lowering her gaze. She didn't even have the will to look at the screen anymore.

Without a doubt – this sort of behavior was the suspicious behavior that she'd use to justify her actions even further – her unforgivable actions of murdering an innocent man.

"Fate just keeps dealing the brother shitty hands. It's like he gets placed in the perfect situations where he's forced to keep dying just to learn more and more…" Al cursed, leaning back into his armchair in frustration.

Even with his ability, he, at the very least, got to choose when to activate it. This kid, on the other hand, just kept getting forced into shitty circumstances that killed him, and made his ability activate, regardless of whether he wanted it to or not.

Al chose when he wanted to die over and over for something, and at least he didn't have to repeat everything in a set timeframe over and over. His territory was limited in area. This kid just kept getting brought to death like a lamb to the slaughter.

"This all jus' becomes more n'more fucked up th'more we watch 't." Garfiel growled, fingernails digging deep into his arms.

"And to think that the place he decided to keep watch on was my room…" Emilia held her knight's hand up to her chest, trying to stop the tears that were already in her eyes from falling. When he was dying so horribly, and even now, facing the prospect of death...how did Subaru focus on her so single-handedly…?

Was this all a part of the 'love' he spoke of? Because if it was...Emilia was beginning to understand just how terrifying the journey Subaru went through to reach to that conclusion must have been.

He leaned against the rock wall. "Now all that's left is to wait for something to happen…" Sitting down, he brought out a familiar knife from his bag.

"...And to stop it."

"He's brave...but he just doesn't have the strength to match up to his desires. It is too bad that his willpower cannot be reflected in his physical strength." Wilhelm murmured. While his face remained stoic, on the inside, he felt as much disappointment and pain as the others within the theater did.

"A foolish struggle by a foolish commoner." Priscilla spat, though her insult had none of its' usual bite. It seemed even she was being affected by this continuous, repetitive cycle of death.

At first, she had just seen the boy as a useless, incapable commoner, but it became clear that his lack of achieving things was not exactly due to any lack of effort on his part – he simply was unfortunate. However, Priscilla considered luck to be a sign of capability as well, in some ways.

And for this boy, who seemed to lack everything but his disgusting ability...even Priscilla could not help but feel some sort of pity for the whelp. Even if only the tiniest of amounts, that she would never admit to in reality.

For a moment, he remembered his times in the kitchen, where he had cut himself with this same knife.

"She'd probably get mad at me for using it this way…" He whispered, gently tapping it to the ground. "I hope she does…"

He looked up to the sky. "I don't want to die."

Felix affixed the screen with a soft gaze. As a doctor, he couldn't stand for seeing a regular person's natural desire for life be toyed around with like this. "He doesn't deserve to die…"

Reinhard shook his head at his friend's words. "Nobody deserves to die…"

The only thing that stopped Beatrice and Emilia from once again blaming themselves for the boy they both cared about having his thoughts reduced to such a desperate plead for survival...was the solidarity that they had formed between themselves.

Both girls held close to his sleeping body, firm in the belief that even if they could not do anything to fix the mistakes they'd already made here, in the past, all they could do was continue to share in his pain, and be there for him when he woke up, in the future.

Rem looked on at the sight with a forlorn gaze, reaching a hand out towards the sight, before stopping herself. The reason why she was here slapped her directly in the face.

She wasn't like Beatrice or Emilia, who had just caused Subaru pain through nothing but negligence beyond their control...she was one who had inflicted a merciless death on him, and was about to do it again.

On the same level as Elsa...she was on the same level as that indiscriminately killing assassin filth. Subaru was barely only 17 when she had murdered him, just two years older than someone like Felt or Petra...a sick feeling arose within her, as she wondered if she would've brutally killed a true, innocent child, just for the scent of the witch.

He then thought about the moments he'd spent with everyone else in the mansion...Puck, Beatrice, Emilia…even Roswaal.

"I don't want to let them die."

For the briefest of moment's Roswaal's eyes widened as he saw Subaru's memories flash to him, of all people. Even his composed attitude couldn't handle such a shocking showing. A small smile eased its' way back onto his face, as the shock faded.

'You truly are unbelievable, Natsuki Subaru-kun...'

"As determined as ever, Natsuki-kun…" Anastasia remarked, a wry smile on her face. The boy's greed was truly one of a kind...but at the same time, it seemed almost inhuman to her.

A greed to protect those he cared about...even at the cost of lowering the value of his own life. The greedy gal wondered, for a moment, if even she could have that kind of resolve.

He grit his teeth, voice raspy. "What did I tell you, Natsuki Subaru?" He stared down at the knife in his hand. "Even if no one remembers what happened when everything repeats, you remember it."

"What a burden to take onto one's shoulders…" Frederica muttered, her hands clasping together on her lap.

"A burden much too heavy for one thrown into a world they're not even properly aware of…" Crusch shook her head, finding herself mixed between and disapproving the boy's resolve. On one hand, she respected his determination...on the other hand, she found the callous treatment towards his value almost disheartening.

Yet, what would she do? For all her strength, Crusch couldn't say with confidence what she would do after dying in painful ways over 5 times...nobody in that theater, besides Al, really could.

Time passed, with the sky changing to an orange evening sun.

"Now that I think about it, I didn't go shopping for Rem this time. Just because the food meant for me was leftover?" He smiled to himself, though faltered as he heard the whistling of the wind.

'It'll still be a while before it gets dark. Focus! Focus!' He berated himself, shaking his head.

Hearing the sound of something sailing through the wind, Subaru looked to the side, only to see...a chained spike flying towards him.

Rem flinched at the familiar sound and appearance of her weapon, tears already freely falling down her face as she prepared herself to cause her hero yet another gruesome, unnecessary death.

He barely rolled out of the way, falling off of the cliff.

Unbeknownst to whoever attacked him, he had a rope attached to his midsection which stopped him barely short of falling to his death.

"Emergency escape!" He yelled, cutting it off and backing away onto his feet.

"Excellent thinking." Wilhelm praised, with most of the combatants in the room agreeing with the wise old man's words.

"But it won't be enough…" Ram muttered, staring at the screen with blank eyes. "Rem's physical capabilities are enough to scale a cliff of that size rather easily. And her running speed far outmatches Barusu."

"Meaning...we're already nearing the end, huh…?" Al muttered, scratching the back of his neck.

"Subaru…" Emilia spoke in a low, worried tone, her eyes looking between the boy she was pressed against, and his past self that was currently about to suffer yet another horrific fate right in front of her.

"I saw it!"

He ran into the forest, throwing his backpack off to make himself as light as possible. "Yeah, I saw it! I saw where the sound of chains came from! But, is it coming this way now?"

Subaru ran forward, only to find himself at a complete dead end.

'Does this mean I played right into the attacker's hands?' Resolving himself, Subaru forced his body to turn to face whoever this attacker was…

Readying for battle, he took off his tracksuit, leaving only his black t-shirt on, which he held in front of him. 'If you're coming, then come!'

"Cap'n s'got s'strong s'a resolve s'ever...but jus' this one time...this one time, damn it...wish he woulda' chose t'run, instead." Garfiel admitted in a low tone, words which he thought he would have never spoken – Garfiel was no coward, but he knew well enough that Rem and Ram were strong enough to the point where they could make a mess of someone like Subaru on the floor anytime they wanted to.

"I understand the sentiment, Garfiel-san…" Otto agreed, wishing that he could simply hide his vision with his hat.

The sound of chains echoed through the forest, before the spiked ball was once more thrown at him.

"Do you have the nerve?!" He exclaimed, grabbing the ball right out of the air with his shirt, managing to deflect it to the side, away from him. The momentum itself still carried his body to the cliff, slamming his back roughly against it.

He recovered quickly however, grabbing the chains tightly. "All right, show yourself, damn it! I've gone through all kinds of hell trying to see your face!" He yanked on the chain, as if demanding the attacker to appear.

All of them within the theater had bated breath, though they already knew whose face it was going to be, as if waiting for confirmation that they already had.

The chain remained taut...before the attacker eventually began to walk forward, the chain loosening with each step forward.

A silhouette could be seen through the forest...one which barely resembled a certain maid, the outlines of Roswaal's maid uniform barely being visible.

The camera zoomed in to them holding the handle of the chain weapon, and revealed even more that this truly was one of the maids…

"Then I have no choice." A hauntingly familiar voice spoke up, as a look of horror crossed Subaru's face.

Slowly...Rem made her way out into the light.

"Why...why Rem...why Rem again?!" The blue-haired maid felt that familiar feeling coursing through her body again – pure, unadulterated despair, an uncontrollable darkness that threatened to take over her mind and body whole.

"Be quiet, maid." Beatrice's ice-cold words echoed through the room, immediately shutting up not only Rem, but anyone else who had anything else 'smart' to say. "Right now, nobody wants to hear your pity party...again, you are about to kill Betty's contractor...the least you could do is continue to think over your actions, while the rest of us have to deal with just what those actions caused."

"The ideal scenario would have been to finish this without anyone noticing."

Subaru looked down at the chains, as if to confirm that it really was her holding them...and his look of horror slowly changed into one of absolute sadness. Of betrayal. Of despair.

"You're joking...Right, Rem?"

The only answer to his question – was the murderous glint in the girl's eyes.

The Sound of Chains

The camera revealed every part of Rem's body...all the way up to her eyes filled with nothing but the intent to kill.

"If you do not resist, I can make your death painless." She added.

"What a thing to say after cornering someone…she's really just gonna kill him, no hesitation at all." Al chuckled darkly, wondering what he would've done were he to end up in such a situation. The best option was probably just to sink that knife in his hand right into her and run the hell away.

No way he would've had any mercy on someone coming after his life, and it was obvious the only way out was to run.

"Why are you doing this…? That's such a cliché, but do you mind my asking?" For now, Subaru remained calm. Answers were what he needed.

"If someone seems suspicious, punish them. This is the rule of maids."

"What a foolish lie." Julius spat, narrowing his eyes at the maid. The knight was not quick to anger, but when it came to such a blatant disrespect of proper conduct, he would not let it stand. "Is it truly 'punishment' when neither your master, nor your fellow maid knew about your true movements?"

"I...I won't have to do anything like that, right, big sister Frederica?" Petra asked with clear worry in her voice. Rem's words made the little girl wonder if this sort of execution was something that maids regularly did – if this sort of gruesome job was going to become hers sometime in the future.

Frederica vehemently shook her head, immediately pushing that thought out of the innocent girl's head. "Of course not, Petra. Rem is just...Rem is just, confused, that is all. Normally, a maid would never do such things. Especially not you."

The blonde meant every bit of her words. Even if that sort of disgusting task were ever to be handed down to them, Frederica would make sure that her innocent, lovely junior would never be forced to take part in it.

Priscilla gave a sideways glance at Rem, a task made easier by the fact that they were sitting on the same row. "Such a transparent attempt to justify your actions behind your mask of being a maid...like a stray dog, you deserve to be thrown out onto the road."

For once, Rem had no justification to say anything back to the stuck-up maid. While she might have not done these actions now, these loops showed that she would have gladly done them, given no intervention by Subaru, who died multiple times to her disposition.

...What was she even doing back then? Killing someone like this, misusing her master's name, lying about her true motives...was she no better than those murderous, destructive, indiscriminate Witch Cultist scum that she so detested?

Rem didn't know any more.

"Does Ram know?" Subaru uttered, pushing through the iciness of Rem's simple words.

"I intend to finish this before my sister sees anything." Rem began to walk forward, tightening the chain in her hands.

"Is that...just how little you trusted me?" He asked, in a low voice.

"Yes." She responded, with no hesitation.

"What a cold answer….Rem-dono…" Crusch stared at the screen with some mixture of unreadable emotions in her eyes. She couldn't believe that this was the same woman who would so readily and strongly express her love for Subaru, even right up to having her memories eaten by an archbishop.

Emilia, who had just began becoming close to the maid, found herself even more lost. Besides Subaru, the maid was shaping up to be her only true next friend...and now she had to face the idea that she had killed Subaru two times...and in both, seemed to harbor not even the slightest bit of regret.

Subaru looked up with nothing but hurt, and despair in his eyes. [[He had already dreaded hearing such an answer, as accepting those words meant that his days in the manor had been completely useless.

He just couldn't help but laugh at his own obliviousness, though.

"Damn, I'm pathetic. I was so sure we were getting along well…"

"N-No, Subaru-kun...please, don't feel that way...Rem...it was all Rem's fault, not yours…" Rem muttered in desperation, her voice becoming weak, and tiny. She wasn't even sure she could keep finding the strength to talk anymore...it was like every bit of life was being sucked out of her body, like she was slowly becoming a shell, watching her own actions.

"...My sister-"

"I don't wanna hear it! Take this!" Subaru held out his cellphone, flashing it right in Rem's face. He took the momentary shock of the moment to roughly shove her aside, caring not for her fallen body as he ran into the forest.

"What the – why the hell didn't he stab her? That was the perfect chance, it would have at least bought him some time!" Al grumbled, raising a hand at the kid's carelessness.

"Stabbing her is somewhat-"

"What, Rein? You gonna say stabbing her is wrong after she tried to eviscerate him? Tried to separate his head from his shoulders? Heck, after she already did it, once? I get it, you don't like that eye for an eye stuff...but this ain't even about revenge. That's just self-defense, at that point." Felt muttered, interrupting her knight's words.

Despite recognizing that it was morally wrong to choose violence...there was something in Felt's words that the man couldn't even deny. After all, who was he to take the high-handed road? Reinhard couldn't remember a single point in time where he'd felt his life to be at risk, and he'd especially never felt like he was going to die.

What could he understand of people like Felt and Subaru, who were people that struggled their way out of deathly situations like this, already?

The boy ran for his life down the hill, knife in hand. He looked up to the evening sun.

If this was just Rem's choice, Subaru thought there were two options for his survival. He could go to the mansion and ask Roswaal for help...but if he agreed with Rem, that would just be dooming himself.

"But even so...there's Emilia…!"

He thought that, for sure, he could trust her.

But, would a royal candidate like her trust him when she had the most to lose from doing so?

"N-No, don't think like that, Subaru! If you had told me...if you had just said something to me, I would've gladly left these careless people behind!" Of that, Emilia was sure. Even if her feelings towards him weren't incredibly strong at that point in time, Emilia was completely sure – if she'd found out the sorts of activities and secrets that Roswaal, Ram, and Rem were undergoing, she would have left that mansion, and somehow managed with herself, Puck, and Subaru.

Rem felt a stinging in her chest at Emilia's frank words, words that she, again, couldn't deny.

Subaru cursed himself as the thought even crossed his mind. If he couldn't even trust Emilia, the girl he'd decided to protect, who could he even believe in?

Right now, he was running for his life through these mountains just because of a plan to protect her. How could he even do that if he doubted her?

Emilia let out a small breath of relief at hearing Subaru's words that reaffirmed his trust in her...though after letting it out, she couldn't help but feel guilty. After all, just as he said...the reason he was running through these mountains was for her...it was all her fa-

"Half-elf." Beatrice's stern voice rang out from besides her, immediately knocking her out of that spiraling train of thought. Emilia turned to look at the spirit, who seemed surprisingly steadfast. She wasn't breaking down into tears, giving in to despair, or losing herself to her anger...instead, Beatrice just watched. She paid deep attention to everything that her contractor was going through…

And Emilia remembered that she had, only minutes ago, agreed to maintain that same sort of mindset.

"Right...I'm sorry, Beatrice."

The spirit let out an annoyed sigh, resisting the urge to flick the girl upside the head. "Don't apologize to me. You already know what you should be doing, I suppose."

And, with another word, the silver-haired witch turned back to the screen.

He felt utterly stupid. Why was he even here running for his life?

He'd been too proud.

He'd been naive.

He hadn't thought it through.

His breath ragged, half-running and half falling down a slope, Subaru's mind had nothing but regrets.

"So harsh on himself…" Wilhelm lamented at the boy's train of thought, shaking his head. "So harsh, when he's truly not even at fault." The man knew that mindset, all too well. He had thrown himself into revenge, into thoughts of his lacking self-worth and uselessness when his wife had died...and then turned those nasty feelings onto his completely innocent grandson.

"As lacking as Subaru-kyun is...it's unreasonable to expect him to be perfect. Ferris can't say if he would have been able to do much better...or if he would have even been able to properly recover from those deaths." Felix agreed with the old man.

"Aye, Cap'n s'awesome…s'just that he ain't got anyone t'tell him all that right now." Garfiel was clearly irked by the display on screen. Not at the thoughts that his captain had in his mind, but instead, at the circumstances that were forcing those sorts of thoughts into his head, in the first place.

Tears clouded his vision, his steps grew clumsy, and he reached a clearing. Then-

A blade of wind struck at Subaru's right leg, slicing it off at the knee and sending it flying.

"That magic-!" Frederica exclaimed, immediately recognizing that all too familiar sound of Ram's magic being cast.

Subaru watched his leg fly away and bounce as he fell down, slamming into the ground. His shoulder bone felt like it exploded as he crashed into the rock.

"AAAAAAAAAGH! M-My leeeg?!"

It didn't immediately hurt. Subaru laid eyes on the pieces of his lost leg strewn into the thickets ahead.

A delayed gush of fresh blood hit the ground...and only then did he feel the pain.

"-!"

Subaru practically clawed at the ground as unspeakable pain rippled through his body. His left hand pressed down on the wound, as his body thrashed and writhed. He pounded his right hand on the ground, clawing it against a tree.

Ram stared at the screen, surprise barely registering on her face. She knew that she would have eventually come to be involved, somehow. After all, when it came to Rem, Ram was capable of anything – even acting against Roswaal's orders...the chances she would have helped the boy rather than assisting her sister was something like a hopeless hope.

Still...she felt sick, knowing that she was now a part of the list of those who were responsible, directly, for the boy's death. The boy who'd helped her to save Roswaal at her selfish request, and was the only reason her sister was even here for her to be with, right now.

Ram was now helping to kill him, in this loop.

"It seems that disgusting trait runs in the family, hmm?" Priscilla gave a muffled chuckle, her lips hidden behind the fan.

"Each and every fuckin' one of 'em…" Al spat in disgust, shifting his gaze to the pink-haired maid with not too-well hidden animosity.

"The pain...the pain he has to be going through right now…" Petra took in deep, shaky breaths, watching the screen with widened eyes. She had chosen to keep watching the screen without Frederica's attention, and only now, was she really understanding how horrifying that was.

The only things keeping her from passing out was the supportive touches from Felt and Mimi on her shoulders.

"Told ya, each an' every one of 'em are pyschos in that damn mansion, except for big sis." Felt spat, finding the entire thing absolutely disgusting.

"I have to greatly question how the Margrave chooses his staff, if they're capable of vile acts such as this." Julius admitted, looking to the man in question, who, as ever, just remained silent, staring at the screen.

Crusch and her camp just watched, unable to even say anything further at this point.

Frederica didn't even know what to think anymore, seeing her colleagues act with such murderous intentions towards a former guest. "He hadn't even done anything...but to think that you two would work together to end his life…with her past and immaturity, I may have understood Rem...but Ram...how could you?"

Before his sister could say anything else, Garfiel interrupted, with a slow shake of his head. "Save it, sis. It ain't somethin' worth talkin' about, anymore."

Frederica turned to her brother with hurt eyes. She expected him to be defending Ram as always, due to the infatuation he had with her...but the expression he wore was one of muted, simple disbelief. One of utter, pure...disappointment.

Garfiel didn't even seem that shocked, though she knew he was on the inside – and his usual anger hadn't even made itself known. Instead, the young boy just seemed utterly disillusioned with the actions of the pink-haired maid. The light in his eyes that showed whenever he was even just thinking about her had...disappeared.

"Had a little more faith in yer than that, Ram."

That single, short sentence hurt the pink-haired maid longer than any diatribe or long speech could. For Ram, who usually always had some sort of response or comeback ready...she was left completely silent.

It felt like he was boiling. It hurt, it hurt, it really hurt.

Knowing he'd lost so much blood...he knew he was dying.

"Mana of Water, grant thy healing."

A soft palm pressed down on Subaru's body. His bloodshot eyes moved to see who it was...and noticed it was the blue-haired Rem.

After she'd tried to kill him, she was now beginning to slightly heal him.

Felix almost bit his tongue, knowing exactly why the Oni was healing his wound, even in such a situation. "I don't know anything about how you are now...but using healing magic for that...that's truly disgusting. I'm surprised that you were even able to use healing magic if you're able to use it for that so easily."

For Felix, the only thing he'd ever use his magic for was for the sake of Crusch. If it was for her sake, he would forsake any kindness and become a demon...but in the context of Subaru being truly innocent and helpless, there was no justification he could speak.

Rem wanted to close her eyes, ashamed of her actions...but the guilt, depression, and dread seizing her heart forced her to continue watching her vile actions.

Everyone who didn't understand this interaction between the two, would come to understand as the Oni spoke her next words.

Shock seized Subaru. He had no idea why she was healing him. Whatever hope he had died in his throat as she spoke.

"I will not be able to ask you anything if I let you die so easily."

"Torture, huh?" Anastasia spoke grimly, her sharp mind catching on to what was about to happen near-immediately. "Can't say I didn't see it comin', after he was left alive, instead a' jus' bein' killed…"

"With how easy she split bro's skull in half, it ain't that surprising that she's able to just trample all over him like that." Felt huffed, shrugging as she lifted a hand in the air.

"Yeah, it was easy to see that she planned on doing something else once she didn't just kill him earlier. Ain't like she didn't have all the time in the world to do it." Al agreed.

Ricardo clicked his tongue, usually strong eyes looking from the screen in distaste. "Don't make it any damn easier to stomach, though."

Words that expressed just how little trust the people in the room had for her...

"Betty regrets every second she spoke trying to extend forgiveness to you, I suppose. If it weren't for her contractor's wishes…" The Great Spirit coldly trailed off, but practically everyone understood the unsaid threat.

Emilia could only watch silently, trying to still her heart and mind. She was even more emotional than Beatrice, and the only thing stopping her magic from leaking out was the fact that there was practically no mana in the atmosphere around them. Her hands remained on Subaru, as if silently pleading him for the strength to continue watching.

"It's only natural. For a coward such as her, it is a given that she would wish to torture him to extract as much information as possible. Not to mention…" Priscilla grinned. "It is quite obvious that a part of it is her simple wish to inflict pain upon the commoner."

Words and faces that showed just how much of a monster she had become in the eyes of those present, the vile desires and impulses of her flawed self, vengeance-seeking self revealed for them to openly prod at in disgust, hatred, and anger.

Rem saw and heard all of these...absorbing all of the negativity into herself in a way that she could not describe. She did not break once more, retreating into herself, no – she felt she didn't deserve such an easy way out of facing this shower of retribution.

But this was not the worst of it, no...the worst for her, was the disappointment.

The disappointment from those who knew her beyond a simple surface level, and were confused by this violence they were seeing on screen.

The fear in little Petra's eyes, who just knew Rem as a kind, if somewhat distant lady who occasionally visited the village by herself or with Subaru.

Garfiel and Frederica – who were both aware of Rem and Ram's past, and well understood why she was currently committing the foolish actions she was on screen, yet were still unable to stomach it.

Otto, who, despite only knowing the girl at a slightly deeper surface level, was absolutely confused at how she could so ruthlessly kill Subaru in one loop, only to become so close to her in others…

Crusch, who well knew the depth of Rem's love and care for Subaru, and just how much she was willing to put on the line for him, her strong eyes filled with a silent disappointment.

And Ram...Rem did not even wish to know what was going on in her sister's mind.

"I'm sorry…"

She murmured those words to herself over and over, tears dripping from her eyes as she held her hands to her chest. "I'm so sorry…"

Of course, nobody answered to Rem's quiet pleas of forgiveness.

Rem stood up after finishing to heal him. She brought her iron ball alongside her, practically holding it where Subaru could see it. It was her way of saying that his life was in her hands.

"I am confiscating this."

She pried open Subaru's fingers, grabbing the knife and turning it in her hand.

"Had you stabbed me with this earlier, you would have been able to flee a little farther."

"He would have, wouldn't he…?" Julius showed a slight smirk at the idea, well-knowing the simple answer of why that boy hadn't taken such a simple, logical action.

Reinhard smiled as well, though his smile was filled with more sorrow than understanding. "Yes. But...this is Subaru we're talking about, after all. Stabbing someone he truly wishes to get along with...I highly doubt it is something he could do."

She spoke like she couldn't understand this illogical act...but for Subaru it was simple.

He couldn't stab Rem. That knife was what he'd used when spending time with Rem and Ram, learning how to peel vegetables.

He couldn't stab Rem with that. His heart did not have the strength for it.

Priscilla scoffed, though as irritated as she was, even she was beginning to become less surprised by these thoughts of the boy more and more. "What a sentimental fool…"

Rem's fists tightened, unable to say anything to this continual consideration and care Subaru gave to someone like her…it was almost surprising just how much he still seemed to care, even despite her clearly going after his life...and torturing him.

Most remained silent, however. After all, they knew well how much Subaru's overwhelming kindness towards others sometimes seemed to dull almost any of his other senses.

For Emilia and Felt, this was especially true, as both of them had their lives saved by Subaru – in circumstances where they would otherwise have surely died without his intervention.

Watching him be brutally tortured, watching him yell out in pain while thinking of his inability to even hurt the one who was causing him such pain – for everyone watching, they understood that they were watching the inner core of Natsuki Subaru be tested and bared in front of them.

"I ask you, are you working with one of Emilia-sama's rival claimants to the throne?" She asked coldly, after throwing the knife away. Her attention was now on Subaru once more.

"...My heart belongs to Emilia."

"N-No, Subaru...just...just…." Emilia didn't even know what to say, shaking her head from side to side, her eyes filled with tears.

"Just what? It is not as if that one up there would let him go, regardless of what she said." Beatrice scowled, her rage barely contained within her voice.

Again, as much as Rem would have wished to refute them, these words were absolutely true. Regardless of what Subaru said, she could tell that in this loop, she had completely convinced herself that Subaru was someone worth killing.

Whatever his answers, his fate was already sealed by her murderous intent.

"I didn't know…"

Rem murmured, wishing to close her eyes completely, to disappear from this theater and curl into a ball where she would not be seen.

If this sort of cruelty was what her wish for revenge was going to bring...Rem wished that she would have just died back in that storage room, away from being able to hurt anyone else ever again.

With his words, the chain lashed across Subaru's upper body. His shirt easily tore open, as did his skin underneath. His scream echoed through the whole forest.

"Who hired you and on what terms?"

"E-Emilia-tan's smiling face is...priceless."

The cast was deathly silent while watching this ruthless torture continue, brutal hit after brutal hit. While many of them were experienced in the darkness of the world, none of them had really done any such things to innocent people.

It would have been one thing if Subaru had any guilt, but, regardless of how suspicious he had acted...it was without question that they were watching an innocent young man receive a punishment worse than the death that was undoubtedly awaiting him at the end of it.

She moved her wrist the other way and repeated the same motion. The maid relished in her skill of being able to strike him in the same place.

She asked him more questions like that, and he made more replies like that.

More times, the chains rang out, and more times, Subaru's painful creams rang out alongside them.

Whenever his consciousness faded, Rem would treat him with healing magic. She had trapped him in a hell of repeated healing and violence, wearing away at his spirit.

He lost consciousness several times...but his heart did not submit.

"Subaru-dono...what mental fortitude." Wilhelm spoke with grim astonishment, eyes downcast in a solemn gesture.

"That's the captain fer ya. No matter what, he keeps goin'." Garfiel muttered, the usual energy entirely missing from his voice. The usual pride when he spoke of Subaru was replaced by a conflicted storm of undetectable emotions lacing his voice.

Otto looked at his friend with worry, but Frederica, most experienced with how her stubborn brother could get whenever he entered a mood just shook her head at the merchant, indicating it wasn't a good idea to pry into his emotions just yet.

"I do wonder just how much that commoner's mind can take before utterly shattering, however? How far does that mental fortitude of his truly extend…?" Priscilla murmured curiously, her eyes looking over Subaru's bleeding form with an assessing gaze.

Nobody had the true answer to that question. After all, Subaru had already gone through more than any of them had physically suffered through in their lifetimes – with the exception of Al, of course.

What was the limit? With every strike of Rem's chains, it was easy to see that he was being pushed towards that unknown limit, more and more...but nobody had any idea of how deep the seemingly boundless mental energy that comprised the man known as Natsuki Subaru went down.

Rem wiped some of the blood spatter from her cheek, looking at the sky. It was easy to tell she must have been tiring of Subaru's obstinate attitude.

"If I do not get back soon, I will be late preparing the meal…"

"...Dinner, huh? What's on the menu today, huh…"

"Let's see. How about mincemeat pie?"

"S-sorry, I think I'll have to skip it…"

"Joking, even in such a situation...honestly…" Felix trailed off with a sigh, narrowing his eyes at Subaru's nonchalant joking, even in the face of this horrendous torture, and his never-ending walk to death.

"Well, I'm already used ta' them weird quirks a' his. Jus' watchin' him s'enough ta' get a grasp a' it." Anastasia smirked, finding the boy's behavior rather interesting, herself. She couldn't help but think back to when what had been praised about the boy most was his ability to 'never give up', a quality that she found rather vague.

Yet, seeing how his mind didn't crumble even in the face of hours of torture, it was hard not to say that he wasn't at least somewhat impressive, even for a tough judge of character like her.

Rem showed her only sign of emotion in a while, sighing at Subaru's ever-flippant behavior.

She fell silent for a bit...before her eyes eventually took on a cold look. Colder than ever before.

"-Are you a member of the Witch Cult?"

"...Here it is." Garfiel growled, long expecting this line of questioning to come up, eventually. Rem seemed to almost flinch at his rough words, knowing well what the young man was implying.

This question was her true purpose for this entire interrogation – something that she had been absolutely sure of when first meeting Subaru. Only now, watching herself inflict the cruelty onto him that she had once wished to commit, herself, did she realize how fruitless her efforts would have been.

Even without her feelings for Subaru...she would have just been torturing an entirely innocent boy who didn't even know what the Witches, the Witch Cult, or what the scent of the witch was.

Subaru was completely confused at her words. He had no idea what she was talking about.

"Answer, please. You are one of the Bewitched, yes?"

"...Be-what?"

"Do not play games with me!"

Her pale blue eyes shot daggers through Subaru in rage. She looked down at him with nothing but pure hostility.

"I don't know them...My whole family's atheist to begin with…"

"Still denying it? It is plain you are involved with the witch. Her stench is all over you!"

"The Witch's scent on Betty's contractor...to think that this sort of murderous, malicious rage would be drawn just through that scent alone…" Beatrice growled, her eyes turning sharply to the maid. "Were you not aware that Betty could sense this smell, as well?! That if that boy were to be making any suspicious movements, Betty would have said something?!"

"B-Beatrice s-sama, I…" Rem struggled through her words, unaware, or perhaps, just unknowing of anything she could say to give a satisfactory answer to Beatrice's outrage-filled questions.

"Don't, Beatrice." This time, it was Emilia's turn to calm down the spirit, her gentle hands resting on Beatrice's shoulder. "Don't...we don't need to continue digging up these same questions, over and over...we already know what's in front of us. What Subaru is going through…"

Her soft words gave pause to everyone in the theater...even momentarily quelling Beatrice's rage.

She was right. No matter how many times any of them yelled at Rem, or even if they were to physically hurt her or restrain her...nothing could be done to take back the pain and suffering Subaru was going through on screen right now. It was an impossible task.

Right now, their words weren't being said out of deep-seated concern, or worry for the boy they cared so much for...it was from rage. Confusion. A deep-seated desire to understand why this was happening to him, when he was nothing but an innocent, if not slightly naive young man.

"...Fine." Beatrice withdrew her words, narrowing her eyes as she held closer to her contractor's free right hand. A right hand that Rem stared at longingly, from her forced seat in the back.

It was a place that she had now lost.

The maid's eyes seethed with nothing but dark hatred. Subaru's eyes widened...this was putting every single thing Rem had ever done in a new light.

"Even if Sister or no one else notices, I can smell it on you! The leftover scent of that monster makes me want to spit in disgust!"

Subaru was silent. Rem, standing before him, bit her lip so hard that she seemed to be grinding her teeth.

"I was anxious and angry when I saw you speaking with Sister. You, someone involved with the one who put Sister through so much...weaseling into our precious home-!"

"This is...too much." Otto murmured, bringing down the brim of his hat over his head.

Priscilla narrowed her eyes at this disgusting, desperate display of yelling that the Oni was putting on. It was almost like watching some sort of beast yell at a perceived threat – an animal threatened by something entering its' territory uninvited.

"I see...so from the start, the boy was never quite a proper guest to those of this mansion, aside from the half-witch, hmm?" She smirked, her nasty words striking immediate understanding into everyone.

"Such dishonesty to one whom is responsible for saving the life of one affiliated with the person you serve…" Crusch's hands trembled, her unwavering gaze filled with the slightest bit of anger, mixed with disappointment. Being one to agree with more noble, honor-based ideals, Julius nodded, finding himself sharing in with the Duchess' ice cold rage.

"That whole damn mansion stinks. The clown stinks, the two maids are fine with being accomplices in murder, the spirit is just fine with letting people die, and there's apparently some sort of traitor after big sis' life. How the hell does this place even stay afloat, huh?" Felt spoke candidly, unafraid to voice the disgust she now harbored towards those associated with the place.

The only people she owed thanks and care to were big bro and Emilia, everyone else was a huge question mark for her.

"Mimi agrees...the people from this place are scary." Though Mimi wasn't some innocent child, long-since exposed to the toughness of life and multiple battles...she wondered how she would feel being around people that have killed her before.

"How does Subaru even bear it...being around all of us…?" Petra murmured, her hands close to her heart. Out of everyone in the Emilia camp excluding Rem, she was the most hurt.

She had looked up to some of these people...wanted to be just like them...the earlier anger she had felt, the disgust in being a maid, even that paled in the trauma that she now felt inflicted upon her.

Did...she even know these people?

Emilia held hands with her knight, her gaze, previously overcome with emotion and worry, now lazer-focused, staring ahead into the screen. The 'Emilia camp', as it was...she felt she would have to make many changes, and address many things, after finding out just what tendencies and actions laid under the surface of people she had previously thought she'd known perfectly well.

After all, what sort of royal candidate can't even look after the safety of her own knight? What sort of candidate would let her entire camp move behind her back, without her permission?

She didn't need Anastasia's objective analytical words, Felt's candid honestly, Crusch's blunt practicality, or Priscilla's harsh, snobby truth to realize it – the entirety of what was being shown on screen was not just the fault of Rem, or Roswaal, or Ram or Beatrice...it was her.

If she'd been more decisive – if she'd taken more notice of the odd atmosphere around Rem whenever she spoke to Subaru, or taken time to better educate the boy on his actions, and their world...things could have been much better.

Instead, she just left him alone to study on her own. Something that could be done any day, something that definitely did not have precedence over the life and comfort of someone who was clearly trying to be a friend for her...one who was trying to look out for her.

There was no need to bend over backwards for Subaru – but Emilia felt like she hadn't even extended the bare minimum of care to him.

"Everyone...let's save such lengthy discussions for later." Crusch's voice, still retaining some of its' usual clarity cut through the uneasy atmosphere of the theater. "For now...we must finish this."

Nobody objected.

Her words of undiluted malice mercilessly bathed Subaru in bitterness.

"I have been watching you since Master Roswaal welcomed you...but the entire time, it hurt to watch you. I could not bear it."

Rem drove the dagger home with her last words. "Even if I knew that the whole time Sister was taking care of you, she was just pretending to be friendly!"

Ram's eyes turned to the side for but a second, her expression just as hard to read as Roswaal's. She didn't even need to turn to look to tell that Garfiel, Frederica, and Petra were looking at her, eyes filled with disappointment, anger, and in the case of Petra...fear.

Unlike Rem, there was no plausible deniability for Ram. Regardless of Subaru's actual suspicion, Ram would do anything for her sister first, and Roswaal last. She was someone who did not operate solely off of things such as kindness, well-being, or care.

Much like Rem, for Ram, that mansion was her only home. And though she was nothing like her sister in her deep, unyielding hatred and suspicion of any possible thing related to the Witch Cult...she well understood that if she were in the same position, she likely would have acted the same way, too.

The only thing that separated Ram from Rem was the fact that she dutifully followed Roswaal's orders, without breaking from them, for the most part. And here...she could not even use that fact to defend herself.

All of Rem's resentment-filled words slammed into Subaru. She stopped speaking as her shoulders shook. Her eyes were filled with rage as she glared at the boy...only for her anger to waver from surprise.

"-What the hell…?"

Subaru had been crying the whole time...he had no hatred in his eyes.

"I knew it was...something like that."

Sobs came from his throat.

"So that's what it was...I knew there was some reason behind all the kindness. But...I was too afraid to ask…"

"N-No, Subaru…" Rem held her hand out, but the gesture itself felt poisonous to her. What would she even say to him if she had the chance?

"What a way to treat a guest." Julius, ever the stickler for manners, found the entire debacle even more disgusting. It was one thing for servants or employees to treat one another with cordiality, rather than close familiarity...however, it was another thing entirely to act as if you truly cared for someone just to choose whether or not they would die at your hand.

"In a way, I can understand wishing to protect one's territory and home. But, Rem...this was simply much too far." Crusch shook her head, finding herself torn at how the man she had come to respect and the maid who had so valiantly sat at his side were so at odds.

No, 'at odds' was perhaps an understatement. It was more like Subaru enduring an undeserved, one-sided hatred from Rem.

"He's...so hurt…" Emilia, ever the caring person, didn't even care about the fact that her knight was assumedly going to die soon...no, as much as she hated it, the fact that any timeline that diverged from theirs practically meant his death was a fact that she'd come to unwillingly accept.

What destroyed her was the utter pain in Subaru's eyes. The betrayal he'd experienced...the physical anguish from the torture and having his leg forcefully amputated, and now, the fact that he was basically being told that every effort he'd put himself through, all of the time he'd made to gain the trust and care of the two maids...was entirely fabricated.

"Bro can never catch a break, huh?" Al snickered at the young man's misfortune, though any sort of joviality was entirely missing from his voice. After all, he understood how the kid had to feel to a certain extent – alone in a new world, death breathing down your neck, weak, and only having one hellish ability at your hands to keep you alive.

At least Al had the advantage of being able to get picked up by a woman he could trust, in a camp he could trust. Schult wasn't gonna be killing him anytime soon, and he could put up with any of Priscilla's shenanigans, even the ones that cost him a few hundred loops in his Territory.

Never once had he had to deal with any of them insidiously plotting his death and faking emotions towards him, though. That was shit far out of his territory.

Everyone in the crowd understood, even if unwillingly, just how much that young man was going through...and nobody found it even the slightest bit amusing.

It was the both of them who had taught him the basics of work into his good-for-nothing self. Ram had scoffed at him for not knowing how to put on a butler outfit. Rem had re-tailored the ill-fitting suit and taught him how to put it on. Ram had patiently stuck with him when he'd been learning characters. Even after his promise to have Rem cut his hair, she'd been staring at him.

To just have people paying attention to him and urging him on, he was happy enough just with that.

"Ta think there's someone who could really jus' be satisfied offa that…" Anastasia sighed, shaking her head. Obviously, she felt sorry for Subaru, but at the same time, she just couldn't wrap her head about how little the young man seemed to value himself.

Nobody would be blamed for feeling angry, for having nothing but vitriol run through their veins after such a large betrayal of trust...but for some reason, all Subaru was thinking about was how much those who had wronged him had done for him.

"It's a strength of Betty's contractor...and an incredibly large weakness, I suppose." Beatrice easily caught on to the merchant's thoughts, and while she was always supportive of Subaru...even she had to draw a line somewhere.

'Did that simple time...truly mean that much to Barusu?' Ram, herself, thought she understood how forgiving and foolishly kind Subaru could be – but seeing it in action was another thing entirely. Not just was he being 'kind', but he was thinking on nothing but the positive memories they'd shared.

She had no idea how she would have felt in this loop, but this version of her, the one who had met Subaru, it was just her keeping watch over an annoying, incredibly suspicious guest, and nothing else. Yet Subaru had attached so much meaning to these simple actions…

'He truly is an incorrigible man.'

Ram knew she currently did not have any right to insult Subaru as always, even if only in her mind...but still, she could not help what she felt.

Those were all kind memories he could never forget.

"I finally learned how to peel veggies without cutting my hand. I learned how to do laundry right. Didn't finish learning how to clean the place, but…"

There was nothing more he wanted from those four days. And he'd thought that if he could get past them there was more to experience…

"Reading...It's just the simple stuff, but I can do that now. I studied like I promised. I read the picture book. It's all thanks to you two…."

"What are you...talking about?" Rem's voice fell, like she was more creeped out by his words than anything else.

"Damnit…" Ricardo turned his head from the screen, with Wilhelm lowering his gaze solemnly, and Al's face remaining as hidden as ever. Crusch grit her teeth, yet never turned her gaze from the screen. For how battle-hardened and tough those people were, it was still too much – watching the boy break down in recalling memories only he knew. Feeling alone in a world that seemed to wish for nothing but to take his life.

The three royal knights, Felix, Julius, and Reinhard, all watched on with varying expressions of pain in their eyes. While they weren't nearly as close to Subaru as others, they all understood that feeling of alienation well, particularly Felix and Reinhard.

And of course, there were those who were outraged, such as Felt, Beatrice, and Garfiel, angered at the hell that Subaru was going through on his behalf.

Emilia, Petra, Otto, and Frederica were all watching with expressions of grief, unable to control the feelings inside of them welling up at Subaru's suffering.

There were odd ones out, such as Roswaal and Priscilla, the clown who watched to witness the results of his sins, and the seemingly heartless princess who only cared to see how the boy would react to his situation.

Anastasia just watched with the eye of an outsider, as one who could only understand the pain of Subaru from a third party. All she could do was give him the sympathy that one would give to another stranger – nothing more, and nothing less.

And there were the sinners...Rem and Ram, who could only watch with a typhoon of emotions in their hearts, as they watched Subaru's mind begin to fragment from the sins they had committed upon him in loops only he would remember.

"I wish I could remember...I wish I could remember, Subaru-kun...you...you have to believe Rem…"

Rem seemed to almost cradle back and forth in her seat, her eyes filled with nothing but guilt and self-hatred. And as for Ram...her face remained as impassive at ever, yet, she was lacking the usual energy that she seemed to have on her face.

Nobody in the theater was left alone from the effects of the pain that was happening to Subaru. None of them could experience it themselves, but for all of them, they at the very least felt something.

"I'm talking about all that you two have done for me…"

"I recall no such thing."

"-WHY DON'T YOU REMEMBER?!"

His sudden burst of rage made Rem take a step back. Subaru forced his body to rise, glaring at Rem with his teeth bared as he shouted.

"Why'd everyone leave me behind?! What did I do to you! Tell me, WHAT DID I DO TO YOU?!"

"Y-You didn't do anything, Subaru-kun...you-you didn't…" Rem almost jumped back in her seat, feeling his words pierce her soul. Had she really been the one to push him so far? The one to destroy his heart and soul and mind like this?

She knew it was just a scene...some pre-recorded memory they were being shown...yet, Rem felt like Subaru was talking directly to her. Not the version of herself on the screen, but the one sitting in the theater, alone, subjected to the personal hell of watching her crime.

Why... …

Yes, nobody there could answer him...after all, he spoke the truth. He was a completely innocent, normal boy, who had no connection to anything magical. There wasn't a shred of combat experience in him, and he was supposed to have lived a life where death was only something far off in the future to ignore…

However, now he sat here. After dying to a horrific assassin, to a curse that drained his very life, and now, to a person whom he thought had come to care about and trust him. All for the fact that he just tried to be kind and interact with others. To save people. To connect to them.

Subaru's heart and soul was crying out. And they were all bearing witness to it.

He couldn't control himself. He knew he'd just be ripped to shreds, but his heart, his very soul, could not stop shouting.

He'd been brought to another world, subjected to senseless things, and in spite of it all, he'd gritted his teeth and pushed forward.

But he'd reached his limit.

"What did I do wrong? What's wrong with me? Why do you girls hate me that much? Even...that promise...I've always…"

"No…" Rem reached her hand out, the light in her eyes flickering.

The battle-hardened grit their teeth, their eyes steadying on the screen. It was coming. Everybody knew it was. It was almost as if they felt an instinctual dread when Subaru's next death was about to occur.

"Subaru…" Emilia tightly held the boy's hand, with Beatrice silently leaning herself even further back into his chest.

Yet, still, it was as if some sort of sick curiosity possessed them. Despite how much they dreaded what was coming next, they all wanted to know – in the midst of such suffering, in the midst of such pain, what would Subaru try to force out before he died? To the ones who had taken his life, betrayed his trust, and destroyed his heart...what would he say?

Priscilla waved a fan in front of her face, her pupils narrowing on the screen. She did not speak, but the sudden reason of her focus was clear – if Natsuki Subaru's true character was yet uncertain, then this would surely reveal who he was at his core...just what he truly desired.

How deep that 'kindness' of his ran.

"-I-"

"I've always lo-"

Before he could say any more, a force bent back Subaru's body. He heard gargling...and realized that his throat was cut.

Gurgled air and bubbles of blood rose from the middle of his windpipe.

"By the dragon…!" Even Wilhelm, an old dog of war, winced at the gruesome scene. The boy's throat had been cut so cleanly, yet he hadn't been fully decapitated, his head barely hanging on strings of skin.

Frederica, although she knew Petra wished to strengthen herself, had to protect her junior maid from this death. Even moreso than the one with the spiked ball caving in his skull, this was not only gruesome, but gave an almost intrusively close angle.

Yet, even as her eyes were covered, Petra wailed. She cried, because she already knew what Frederica covering her eyes meant. Mimi joined in, with the only thing stopping Felt being the large amounts of anger that ran through her body.

Tears silently dropped from Emilia's eyes, her beauty stained by the sorrow that ran down her cheeks. Beatrice wished to share in those tears, but she couldn't...she had to glance at the screen clearly. Take in every detail, even against her will.

Everyone else was equally taken aback by yet another death, however, they were disturbingly not as rattled as the first few times they had gone through this. Experiencing five gruesome deaths, and then adding a sixth...they felt like they were beginning to accept this disgusting fate that lay in wait for Subaru as a reality.

Becoming used to it. To seeing the suffering he went through without any of their knowledge.

Subaru's eyes lost their spark. He couldn't speak. His mind felt like someone had turned off the switch.

There was nothing left – no pain, no sadness...he'd left behind all of his emotions.

But in the end, he had the faint sense he could hear someone's sad voice.

"-Sister is too kind."]]

Garfiel's hands gripped closed tightly, a fist punching harshly into his armchair. A punch that, even without the mana running through his body, echoed throughout the theater.

"...Damnit, Ram."

"Garf…"

Frederica spoke to her brother, but he only responded in silence. After all, he already knew why Ram had done what she did – he understood her thought process well enough. She wasn't one to cause suffering needlessly, even to a villain. A lust for revenge did not drive her like it did her sister.

It was a "mercy kill". To stop Subaru from experiencing any more pain. Or perhaps, simply, to stop him from talking.

Either way, she had spared him further torture by ending his life. Yet, that still did not change the circumstances around which that had to happen. At any time, Ram could have stepped in and stopped the torture. Followed her master's orders and just let the boy go.

Yet, she didn't. It was because of her assistance that Subaru was even tortured in the first place. She had brought about the circumstances through which she needed to provide him a mercy kill, herself.

And that was what Garfiel hated about this. What he hated about her actions. What he hated about thinking...on how many times he may have possibly killed his captain, himself.

Rem was silent, unwilling, or perhaps simply unable to say anything. And Ram...all Ram had left was the silence that kept her so composed...but now...it almost felt like a prison, crushing her into the weight of her actions.

Ram was a confident woman – she usually never felt like she was in the wrong, and did not care what others thought of her actions. She only did what she knew she had to, without any doubt or guilt afterwards.

Yet...watching herself participate in the murder and cover-up of the young man who would save her life, her sister's life, the life of the villagers, free sanctuary, help Garf, and allow her the chance to free Roswaal from his gospel...how could she not feel any guilt? She was a tough woman...but she was not a heartless monster.

However, the most bewildered person was Priscilla, who stared at the screen with shocked, wide-open eyes. She had been listening very closely to his last words...the words he had spent the last fiber of his life to say…

Words of love.

She moved her fan aside, revealing a displeased frown on her face.

"That commoner...is utterly incomprehensible."

Subaru's eyes opened as he awoke back in that same bedroom. His face was stained with sweat, and his irises shrunk to fine points.

He looked out the window, to notice it was morning.

"Another forced morning awakening…" Crusch spat out, her gloved hands gripping tightly on either side of the armchair she sat in.

"Right back in the same room…" Otto sighed, the worry clearly showing on his face.

"And that means…" Felt grit her teeth, feeling her blood boil at the sight of those two murderous maids even daring to come on screen.

"Sir, have you awakened?"

"Sir, you're awake?"

As he heard those two familiar, crushing voices, Subaru began to hyperventilate. His breathing turned into pained gasps, as he laid eyes on their faces.

The faces of the two who had ended his life. The faces of the two who'd been faking everything. The faces of the two who didn't even care for him.

He screamed in pain, with them beginning to distort in front of him-

Rem and Ram watched with shocked expressions on them, yet, they understood well why Subaru's expression and reactions were the way they were. What they were surprised at...was just how much it hurt them. Particularly, Ram.

They were looked at as monsters...mere things crowding around Subaru, who had and would only cause him nothing but pain and suffering the more they stayed around him.

Rem could not even feel sorry for herself, knowing that his outburst probably only caused this version of her to become even more suspicious of him.

"The sheer trauma he's gotta be feelin' ta' jus' scream out like that." Anastasia shook her head, her expression looking a little worried. She'd meant to try and learn more about Natsuki Subaru through this viewing, maybe in hopes of someday being able to use his talent for herself...but she wondered if he was just too damaged to try and use such subversive tactics on. His mental state could not be healthy.

She was a merchant, after all. Not a sadistic, selfish schemer.

"Can you blame him? After what those two maids did to him…" Felt practically growled, the hatred lining her voice not lost on anyone, especially not her knight, Reinhard.

Usually, he would have stopped his mistress, or at the very least, tried to rein in her words...but it was becoming hard for even him to hold in his emotions.

Yet, rather than anger, he felt only disappointment. Disappointment in himself. For how much he'd come to care about Subaru's laid back nature and easygoing ways...yet left him to die like this.

Reinhard knew that despite how powerful he was, he wasn't omniscient. Even if he was the hero everyone built him up to be, he could not save everyone...but at the very least, he wished his power could have been useful to the one whom had allowed him to meet his lady, and who he would call a friend.

"Don't blame yourself, Rein." As if sensing his thoughts, Felt spoke to him, in a low voice, meant only for him to hear. "It's not your fault…it's obviously the fault of the people in that mansion, who've all got some kinda screw loose."

As much as he wanted to deny his lady's words, and continue to blame himself, or alleviate some sort of blame from the people of the mansion...he felt a wretched comfort fill him. He knew these people had hurt Subaru, but he himself still felt guilt at his own lack of ability…

"Subaru, Ram and Rem were really worried. They were unusually despondent, wondering if they'd been impolite..."

Emilia looked at Subaru with worry, now at his bedside.

"Nothing happened between them and me." He replied, voice blank.

"Subaru, are you all right? If anything's wrong, you're welcome to talk to me."

"He should just say it…" Emilia murmured, quietly at first, before eventually shouted, emotion filling her voice. "Even if it sounds ridiculous, even if it's unbelievable, he should just say it! I...I would have never let Subaru be alone, to suffer alone, if I knew what he was going through…"

The pain in the half-elf's voice was clear, as tears ran down her face, unable to be stopped. Everyone knew just why she was crying...because of her weakness, because of her feelings of helplessness in being unable to protect her knight, and for one last reason...the same thing that plagued them every time these 'loops' began anew.

The viewing was not matching up with the "reality" of the memories of those present.

In other words, Subaru was destined to die here. Again.

But nobody wanted to acknowledge it anymore...in some way, they could understand Subaru's feelings of tiredness – they were just tired of what the viewing so cruelly presented to them. The death, the pain, the suffering...it was enough to make one's heart fill and spill over once again.

Subaru leaned over, grabbing his chest.

'If I could tell Emilia that it's no use, that I can't take any more…' He looked up, eyes widening with realization.

"That's it."

"What?" Emilia asked, as Subaru looked up at her.

'All this time, I've been struggling to change things alone, but..'

Everyone looked on in honest expectation. After all, this was the moment they were finally waiting for. Subaru finally extending a hand for help to the woman he would eventually come to serve.

However, the more sly members, like Anastasia, Priscilla, Roswaal, and Beatrice all realized that there was no way that this would go well…

After all, the fact that the entire Emilia camp was unaware of even a bit of his suffering from day one was enough to spell it out: whatever he'd tried to tell her here didn't work. Still...they, at the very least, had to see why.

"Subaru, are you sure you're all right?" Emilia repeated.

"...There's something I want you to know.

"Okay." Emilia's back straightened up at his serious tone.

"Emilia...Several times up until now, I've died and-"

As he spoke, time seemed to freeze. A sickly dark green mist began to set into the room, focusing all in front of Subaru.

With the odd mist filling the room, everyone felt unease gnawing into their bones. It was an eldritch feeling, one none of them understood...except for Roswaal and Beatrice, who looked at the screen with eyes that almost screamed horror.

They well understood that sight...it reminded them of Echidna...no, to be more correct, it reminded him of her nature. The presence of a witch.

Younger, unguarded viewers like Petra, Felt, Mimi, Hetaro, and Tivey found themselves almost unable to breathe at the oppresive feeling clamping down on their chests.

Even for the rest, who had either some experience in combat or risking their lives, had nothing but horror ringing around in their minds, and coursing through their bodies.

"What...is this?" Wilhelm, the most experienced in combat spoke up, slowly opening and closing his gloved hands. It was hard to move, let alone to keep a sound enough state of mind to talk without this hellish fog.

Nobody could answer the man's barely spoken question...but the screen soon answered it for them.

A purple clawed hand emerged from the mist, forcing its way to Subaru's body, up through his chest and towards his heart.

'Whoa...Wait...This is seriously no joke…'

All Subaru could do was scream inside his head, as the hand mercilessly squeezed around his heart.

"Subaru?"

Time seemed to continue, as Subaru's eyes opened, bloodshot. He let out a pained scream, gasping and panting as he leaned back.

Each and every one of them let out sharp breaths, their bodies' faculties only returned to them after after time resumed, and Subaru's cries of pain escaped past his lips.

"What...th'hell...was that?!" Garfiel, as aggressive as ever was the first to yell out, panting as he tore his gaze away from the screen, looking from side to side.

"I...I have no idea. It was the most oppressive presence I have ever felt in my life. Different from killing intent...it was like the feeling of something from an entirely different dimension intruding upon this one…" Julius brought a hand to his head, feeling a pounding pain in the center.

"It was...it reminded me of that presence that we felt earlier. Those hands that seemed to attempt killing Emilia-dono and Subaru-dono." Crusch murmured, her iron will being the only thing keeping her up.

"An' last time, it came out when one a' us tried talkin' about his ability…" Anastasia spoke up in short breaths, supported by Julius' hands. "Meanin'…"

"...Natsuki-san...he….he can't talk about it. And neither can anyone else around him speak any awareness of it." Otto concluded, a look of horror dawning onto the exhausted merchant's face. Everyone else felt the same way...even Al looked on with surprise, hidden through his helmet.

"You're kiddin' me...tha' kid has an ability like that, an' if he tries ta' talk 'bout it...that thing is just gonna squeeze his heart? Damn it…"

The boy's ability was an incredibly cruel one. He could only activate it through dying, could not control where or when it sent him, was the only one who could remember what had happened, and could not even share the fact that he had died before and returned with other people, even if they were capable of believing him.

He was forced to walk the path of a martyr alone. A boy no younger than 17, who had just finished his first set of education...was now, likely, the loneliest person in the entire world.

The girls who cared for him, Emilia, Beatrice, Rem...they could only look on in muted horror, as that inescapable reality set in for both them, and Subaru.

Even Al, who thought himself to hold a bit of kinship with Subaru due to their otherworldly origin and similar abilities, was taken off-kilter by this sudden revelation. It wasn't like he particularly wanted to share his ability with a whole host of people, but at the very least, if he wanted to, he could. But Subaru...he was being strong-armed into keeping his mouth shut, regardless of whatever he was feeling.

An ability that didn't give an absolute shit about what he wanted or thought – that's what Return by Death was.

"That's some real fucked up shit, bro…" He murmured, folding his arms and shaking his head.

Still, even as they were filled with despair, those who managed to keep their wits about them had their minds moving at almost a mile a minute. Particularly Roswaal and Beatrice, who both understood well the seeming origin of Subaru's ability.

It was a power connected to a witch – an Authority. Or at the very least, something similar to that...and with that environment cloaked in shadows, those hands that seemed to jealously envelop everything.

The Witch of Envy.

For whatever reason...Subaru was connected to her.

"Subaru! What happened all of a sudden?" Emilia asked, standing up.

He remained silent, bringing a hand to his heart.

'My body moves. My voice works. My heart doesn't hurt. But…' He wrapped his arms around himself, quaking in nothing but fear. 'The fear is engraved in me…'

"Wh-What's wrong? You've been acting really strange. Subaru, if something's going on-"

"I have a favor to ask." He interrupted.

"Okay."

"Have nothing to do with me." He murmured, in an almost pleading voice. These words left Emilia clearly hurt...but Subaru had no reason to care, simply laying over on his side and placing his head on his pillow.

Emilia remained silent, her gaze despondent at the state that Subaru had been forced into because of her slothful actions. Reduced to a state where he was barely able to even do anything but lay down in a room and let time pass.

Still, nobody could blame him. Becoming a worker meant death, becoming a permanent guest meant death, and leaving the mansion meant death. Whatever he did, death was in his future, and it was all because he had chosen to associate with the people of this mansion, who, for whatever reason, simply did not mesh with him at all.

It would not be a wrong choice for him to just avoid everyone as much as possible.

Of course, anyone in the audience could have spouted words about him needing to get back up and be strong, to fight against the fate he was being nearly railroaded into...yet none of them could confidently spit such words anymore.

If they were betrayed, murdered, and tortured by people they thought were friends, multiple times...could they confidently just shrug it off with a "do better" and move on?

No.

Nobody in the theater could say that, and truly know that they were meaning it. So they all chose to simply remain silent at Subaru's course of action.

Time passed, and we see Roswaal in the room, talking to the boy.

[[Subaru didn't even remember what they'd spoken about. He only remembered something vague about being treated as a guest for however long he wished.

The details didn't matter to him anymore.

If he left the mansion, they'd come to shut him up and kill him. And even if he was nothing but dead weight, Rem would still kill him in the near future.

"A cycle of inescapable death...what a fate to force onto one young man…" Wilhelm shook his head.

Rem and Ram didn't even need to look at one another to feel the guilt transmitting through both of their hearts and minds. After all...they were the perpetrators of that cycle of death. One directly causing it, and one allowing it to happen, and aiding the prime person who caused it in the first place.

"Still cant believe he has to treat them like they're the victims...I bet that blue-haired monster is wondering how to kill big bro, even after being 'sad' about wanting to kill him. She sure didn't regret it when she was smashing his skull to pieces and ripping him apart." Felt spoke candidly, her blunt words not even allowing Rem to retreat into a mental shell and ignore the cause of her crimes.

At this point, she didn't even say anything anymore. She felt like her right to speak, to be understood, to say anything, was revoked.

Subaru was on top of the bed, not moving much. His breaths were quick and ragged.

Fearful of falling asleep, he had used the feathered pen in his room to cut the back of his hand open. Every time he started to fall asleep, he forced himself awake through pain.

Beatrice, seeing this scene, widened her eyes. She gripped at her contractor's sleeves, her eyes narrowing at the screen.

'...So this is where he began to pick up that disgusting habit, I suppose…'

"S-Subaru…"

"Cap'n…"

"Natsuki-san…"

"Subaru..."

"Subaru-sama…"

Those of the Emilia camp who saw this wretched sight found themselves utterly disappointed. Not in the actions of Subaru on screen, but in themselves...to see the usually energetic, lively, and bright teen they knew so completely destroyed and broken down, to the point where he felt self-harm was the only way to keep himself from experiencing an even greater pain.

It was something none of them had ever seen. That boy, who seemed always a beacon of strength, hope, and care...broken down into base components like this.

"...I suppose this is punishment enough for you, maid. To see what your actions have wrought on Betty's contractor. To see just what you and that sister of yours has done, I suppose." Beatrice spoke, venom lacing her voice. Yet, she did not lash out.

After all, the images on screen cut deeper into them than anything she could ever say.

"Still, what a disgusting sight. He wishes to avoid death, so he retreats into a shell, cutting away at himself as if it shall accomplish anything. The commoner seems to switch between being somewhat useful...and simply becoming trash." Priscilla spat, clearly dissatisfied with how Subaru had devolved into this state.

"...Clearly you don't understand." Felix spoke up, a fact which surprised everyone. For as much as the doctor seemed to hate those who simply gave up on their lives, weaklings who were arrogant...he didn't see any of that in Subaru's behavior. "I don't know anything about your past, Priscilla-sama, but Subaru-kyun isn't doing this for attention, or because he is weak...but he is doing this because he wants to live. Desperately. While I don't agree with how he's expressing it...even Ferris, who doesn't know Subaru-kyun that well, can see that."

"Indeed, Ferris." Crusch nodded in approval to her knight's words, finding herself smiling at just how much he seemed to learn of the boy he once considered weak and pathetic. "It is a shame to see him reduced to this state...but even then, Subaru-sama just wants to live. The pain he inflicts upon himself...however ugly and cruel it may be to himself, it is simply proof...of his inner self shouting out its' desire to live, regardless of the hell he finds himself in."

Priscilla clicked her tongue at the quick defense the two seemed to provide, turning her gaze to the side in annoyance.

If he fell asleep...he had no idea what he'd wake up to.

'I can't tell anyone about Return by Death. I've died in this mansion three times. I didn't experience a fourth time in the capital.'

He turned his lifeless eyes to the window besides him, after the lord left.

'If I die again, I might not come back.'

He couldn't find a way to avoid death, but he still didn't want to die. He distrusted and struggled against everything, just to live.

And almost as if clockwork, the words of Felix and Crusch rang true – Subaru's desire was not to die, or to just sit and wither away...he wanted to live. Even if it was a selfish, and ugly desire, the last thing he was doing was completely giving up on his life.

To say that would be a disservice to the person who was Natsuki Subaru, even if he was not in the state that most of them knew him for. In his own way, he was still fighting...life was still in his eyes.

Priscilla, understanding this, found herself quieted even further. It seemed as if every time she challenged his nature, she found something new about the boy's character, something that just rocked her views on him even more than they were already.

Even if he knew he was alone...he would keep fighting, even if it was a lonely, and seemingly hopeless battle, which only looked as if it led to death at each and every corner.

Everyone in the Emilia camp was somewhat comforted by this thought. The fact that he was hurting himself would not disappear, and neither would the image of seeing him forced into this state, yet...at the very least, they could keep some ember of hope that he would recover from this within them.

Anastasia smirked, finding herself just as impressed as Priscilla, albeit for different reasons. Having gone through her own set of hellish difficulties, she found the fact that Subaru could keep life in his eyes rather surprising, honestly. It took a special sort of person to hold that sort of willpower...the type of person who could truly make something of themselves.

Felt just let out a deep breath, finding herself relieved that Subaru was not entirely giving up. After all, there was no way her big brother would just sit down and give up like that.

Still, more and more, she was wishing that Reinhard had just decided to take both of them to his family's manor.

He didn't even notice the passing of time – the churning of his empty stomach. He was just eager to exist.

The pain of his wound felt like it was affirming his existence. The spaces between the holes in his hand vanished.

Pain. Joy. Pain. Joy. Pain. Joy. Pain. Joy. Pain-

"That's quite a cowardly look on your face, I suppose."

Roswaal's eyes widened in surprise at just who showed themselves in the room, placing a hand on his chin.

'Beatrice…? To think she would show herself at this moment, rather than any other…' The man smirked, seeming to come to an understanding of something that he would likely not share with the others in the room.

Subaru looked towards the girl standing at the door with a tired gaze.

"...Why are you here?"

"The brat and Bubby told me to come and check on you."

"Puck and Emilia?"

"Since you were acting strangely, they suspect I did something to you when you first woke up, I suppose. Talk about rude!" She turned her head, narrowing her eyes.

"I mean...didn't she technically drain Subaru of his mana…?" Petra asked confusedly, a question to which Beatrice practically turned red at.

Al shook his head in disapproval. "Don't ask too much questions, kid. You can't ever understand the actions of them tsundere types." He shrugged, with Beatrice looking back at the man in outrage.

"W-Who are you calling a tsundere?!" She exclaimed, with Al just turning away from the Great Spirit and letting out an innocent whistle in reply.

Those who had become a little wise on Japanese culture through the library provided by them, such as Anastasia, Julius, and Tivey well understood the joke, and snickered to themselves.

He looked to the side, away from the girl. "I've got it. I'm okay now. You came to apologize. That's enough."

"Why should I apologize to you, I suppose?! I can't leave until I correct that notion." Beatrice leaned forward, only to step back and pinch the bridge of her nose. "Not only do you look gloomy, but the scent is much heavier now, too."

"...Huh?"

"The scent of the Witch. I feel like it's bending my nose, I suppose."

"The scent of the witch…" Emilia murmured, her eyes widening at the mention of such a being's scent being on him. Technically, it was all something that they were aware of, but the fact that it seemed to decrease and increase at will was what mainly drew her attention, among others.

"I see...the maid didn't mention interestin'ly that Natsuki-kun has tha' smell o' tha' witch all over him, didn't she? Maybe...it's got somethin' ta' do with tha' hands that were comin' for him when he spoke 'bout his ability." Anastasia reasoned, easily connecting the two events together.

"Then…" Reinhard narrowed his eyes, demeanor suddenly serious. "For a reason we can't discern, Subaru has some yet unknown connection to the witch? That is...most troubling."

"But, it makes sense, does it not?" Crusch spoke up, her own gaze sharp. "That presence we felt was no normal one, and we are all well aware of how powerful the Host is...for something powerful enough to cross over into this personal space created by the Host, it could only be an existence that frightening...one of the Witch."

"And if we're assumin' that same bein' s'the same one that stopped Natsuki-kun from speakin' his piece 'bout his ability, then it's obvious that it's the Witch that's got some kinda connection ta' him."

"I suppose it makes sense...after all, he was always easily capable of drawing the attention of the White Whale with but a few simple words…" Wilhelm hummed, thinking back to the battle he had fought alongside the brave young man.

"But still...why?" Otto piped up, asking the one question that mattered...and the one question that nobody could really give a proper answer to, yet.

It seemed yet another topic was added to their list of things to be discussed during the intermission.

"Witch...You mean the Witch of Envy?"

"What else in this world would someone mean when they bring up a witch?"

"Why do you smell her on me?"

"Who knows?" Beatrice shrugged. "Regardless, as someone who receives special treatment from her, you're a burden."

"It's not too comforting to hear I'm getting special treatment from someone whose name and face I don't know."

"If you have nothing else to say, I'm leaving. I'll tell Bubby what you told me, I suppose."

"Wait a minute-!" Subaru called out to the girl who was now leaving. "You feel sorry for what you did to me, right?"

"I do not."

"I'm telling Puck!"

Beatrice grimaced at this threat, turning around and pinching with her fingers. "Well, I might feel just a tiny bit sorry, I suppose."

"I am not sure whether to be offended, or impressed at how easily Subaru is able to convince a Great Spirit to do his bidding…" Julius murmured, with a sweatdrop on his head.

"D-Don't take this as fact! Betty would usually not bow to such threats, but when Bubby is involved, th-then…" She practically scowled, looking to the side.

"If you regret what you did and want my forgiveness, do me one favor that I ask."

"...Let's hear it."

"On the fifth morning, the day after tomorrow...Would you keep me safe until then?"

"…I see...asking for the protection of an outside party." Tivey murmured, adjusting his monocle as he stared forward. "Still, does he truly think she would accept such terms? She did not seem quite so willing to help in the first death this – ach!"

The little demihuman was shut up in place by Beatrice's gaze, which seemed to bear down on his very soul. He had a feeling if he kept speaking unnecessarily, it would get very dangerous for him.

"Ya' should really learn ta' read tha' mood a lil' more, Tivey." Ricardo sighed, ruffling the little mercenary's hair.

Beatrice stared at him blankly, before responding. "I don't want you bringing dissension into this mansion, I suppose. This place is vitally important to me."

"I have no intention of doing anything. I just want to stop any sparks from flying."

"What an admirable motive for one who leaves even that in the hands of others."

"For once, I have no response to that."

"It's still a good way to think. I'd rather hide away for a while instead of having to get my ass kicked." Al shrugged, leaning back into his chair. Priscilla gave him a disapproving stare, though all he could do was shrug once more.

People who weren't monstrously strong had their own ways of fighting, and for Al, avoiding danger in the first place was the way he chose to do things.

Beatrice let out a large sigh looking at his sullen face, and walked forward, offering her tiny hand. "Hold out your hand."

In her irritation at his lack of reaction, she grasped his hand, herself. [[As she did, Beatrice scowled as she looked at the back of his damaged hand.

"Disgusting. Perhaps you are an unsalvageable deviant who delights in self-harm?"

"Roswaal's got the deviant market locked up. I was just trying to give myself a tattoo and messed it up."

"What a horrible lie…" Beatrice murmured weakly, finding herself mirroring the same scowl that she held on screen. After all...Subaru had seemingly kept this habit, and turned it into a regular practice.

A fact she had come to find out for herself, even though she truly regretted how little she was able to do about it but try to comfort her anxious contractor the best she could.

"Your artistic sense, skill, and talent for lies are completely lacking...There is no saving you from that."

Exhaling, Beatrice put her tiny palm on top of Subaru's hand, as if trying to cover the wounds. Their hands were now intertwined.]]

"I shall grant your wish. I, Beatrice, on my honor, am henceforth bound by this contract."

Roswaal chuckled at the ease which with Beatrice offered her services to Subaru. It truly was a sight to see – Beatrice leaving her library was rare enough, her taking the time to interact with someone was even more rare, and her forming a contract, even if only temporary?

Almost unheard of.

Yet, seeing how Subaru was able to so easily move her, Roswaal felt as if his theory was only more and more correct – even if the 'that person' in Beatrice's gospel did not refer to anyone, it was almost as if Subaru truly was made to be 'that person' for her.

...An interesting fact which the man did not neglect to take note of.

"Finally...at least big bro has one person for sure he know will defend him." Felt let out a sigh of relief, a sigh which many others shared.

After all, if there was one person in that mansion who could stand up against Rem, Ram, and Roswaal...then it would be Beatrice.

Beatrice seemed to be placed in a different light in front of him, her eyes conveying an odd aura of mystique.

"Temporary or not, a contract is a contract. I'll grant your nonsense favor."

Those words...Those simple words brought tears and life back to Subaru's eyes, all at once.

"Seri...ously? I'm gonna cry because of a little girl…" He murmured, bringing a hand to his face.

"Heh...let it out, man. Even if it's in front of a little girl, ya should jus' be happy that ya finally took a step forward." Ricardo grinned at the boy's explosion of emotions.

"We definitely ain't letting the captain live that one down though, eh Otto-bro?" Garfiel grinned, fist-bumping with Otto, who seriously nodded.

"Indeed. We shall ingrain this memory of Natsuki-san into our heads."

Emilia gave Beatrice a grateful smile, with Beatrice simply huffing and turning her head away. She didn't need any gratefulness from any of them...she was just happy to know that after being the cause of one portion of his suffering, she could keep him safe in this one.

Yet, this contract being established only further confused the sharp members of the audience.

If a Great Spirit was protecting Natsuki Subaru's life, then...what the hell on the grounds of the mansion could possibly kill him?

"Don't call me a little girl! And if you tell Bubby, you'll regret it, I suppose! Hmph!"

"Is it that important to you?" He showed an ironic smile. "That desperation of yours is demonically inspired."

Rem's eyes widened, before slowly closing. Though a spark had appeared, it was snuffed out as soon as it came to life. After all, while she wanted to protest the fact that that phrase had been used on a person other than her…

There was no way that she deserved to have that phrase attributed at her. Not after what she had done to Subaru.

Beatrice only pouted in response.

It is now nighttime, and Subaru is having nightmares, sweating heavily in his sleep. He coils to the side with a pained expression on his face, remembering his past three deaths.

Subaru is seen walking through a dark forest, eyes wide while he pants. Desperately, he continues forward.

Only to come face-to-face with a wrathful-looking Rem, blood on her face and hatred in her eyes.

He hesitates as she readies her iron ball, yanking the chain and throwing it forward at him.

The blue haired maid wanted to look away from the screen, knowing well that she was the cause for this horrible nightmare that her hero was now having, and possibly even more nightmares in the future...yet, she couldn't. After all, looking away would be to avoid her responsibility...to attempt and ignore the truth that she had truly played a part in traumatizing him.

Surprisingly enough, nobody bothered to berate or yell at the maid, or her sister. No, none of them wanted to drop back into that pit of hatred, anger, loss, and despair. They weren't past those feelings...but they did not want to reawaken them.

Not even Beatrice and Emilia, who just remained silent while staying close to Subaru.

"STOP!" Subaru yells with fear, only for a static-like image to be seen of someone holding his hands.

The nightmare is washed away, replaced with a bright, golden light.

The image of the two people holding his hands is shown more clearly, as Subaru begins to slightly calm down, into a more restful sleep.

"Who...do you think those two hands are?" Petra asked curiously, wondering just what kind people would have so happily held Subaru's hand to wash away his nightmares.

"I dunno." Felt shrugged. "Buuut, if I had to guess, it could only be big sis or that runt down there. You think miss ice-cold and miss murder-crazy are gonna be the ones to do it?"

"Who are you calling a runt, I suppose…" Beatrice slowly turned back to Felt with a flare of energy, one that set the ex-thief shut, her gaze turned off to the side. She gave a satisfied smile, her gaze turning forward. "That is what I thought."

We do not get to see who they are, as the next shot has the two people completely gone.

"Guess it's s'posed ta' remain a mystery for us, huh? It's kinda' frustratin' that we can only see Natsuki-kun's perspective at times…" Anastasia let out a grumpy sigh, holding her scarf closer to her neck.

In every situation, she desired as much information as she could get, so it was only obvious that the same would go for these viewings.

"You can't keep sleeping forever, I suppose."

'Bombadier!' Subaru thinks, as he is sent flying back with a well-aimed kick from Beatrice.

"W-What a truly Subaru-like way to be awoken…" Reinhard murmured, looking a little exasperated at the Great Spirit's choice of waking him up.

"I must second that sentiment…"

"Thirded, nya!."

Julius and Felix agreed with their friend, after all, they were beginning to become quite familiar with the machinations of Natsuki Subaru, and just how rowdy and ridiculous things seemed to

"I came against my will because it's the designated time, yet you seem awfully unconcerned."

Subaru turned over on the floor, looking up to realize that he was in Beatrice's great library.

"Falling asleep on the fourth day? What kind of reckless idiot am I?"

"At the very least, it's better than him continuing to harm himself." Felix let out a sigh, grateful to know that the boy had been dragged away from his unhealthy habit of self-harm just to keep himself awake.

He was a doctor, after all. No doctor in their right mind would enjoy seeing a person inflict such pain and deprivation to their bodies, just to avoid something worse waiting around the corner.

Almost everyone else in the room found themselves agreeing. They didn't need the opinion of a professional to know just how bad of a state Subaru must have been in physically before finally having a chance to rest.

"Quit your grumbling, I suppose. Just sit wherever you want." Beatrice stated, siting down on a stool.

"The forbidden archive?" Subaru looked around, as the odd change truly set in. "Did you carry me in while I was asleep?"

"I'd rather not stay in that room filled with your stench, I suppose. The forbidden library is the only place for me. You need to observe proper manners, I suppose."

Realizing something, Subaru held up both hands in front of his face. "Beatrice, I'm sure I'm wrong, but you didn't hold my hand while I was asleep, did you?"

"You're wrong, indeed. Even if Bubby asked me to, I would refuse, I suppose."

"So cold, Beatrice-sama…" Petra murmured, letting out a loud, disappointed sigh.

"As cold as a blizzard." Felt added, with a sure node.

"Cold, mean spirit lady!" Mimi joined in her sister's protests, with the three of them ducking as soon as Beatrice turned her laser-focused gaze of annoyance towards them.

"One more time...and Betty will have to teach you children a proper lesson of respect." Beatrice gave a scary smile, almost reminiscent of Ram whenever she was simply giving her 'lessons'.

"Scary…"

The three of them spoke in unison, gulping as the spirit slowly turned back around to watch the screen.

"Then I suppose that means it was the princess after all, huh?" Garfiel hummed, finding himself not that surprised at that piece of information.

"Only makes sense, considering it's Natsuki-kun we're talkin' bout here." Anastasia shook her head, finding herself in unison with the beasthuman's unsaid conclusion.

"Indeed. Especially considering that." Otto nodded.

"Ah, yeah. For real, for real!" Ricardo snickered, with Al joining in with his own bout of laughter, stopping rather quickly as Priscilla turned an annoyed gaze to him.

Emilia just looked between everyone, her eyes filled with utter confusion. She felt like everyone was passing around a joke, and she was the only one left out of it.

"W-What? What is it? What is that?"

Yet, sadly, Emilia would never be clued in to the joke, left to wonder what the punchline was forever...

"Flat-out denial, huh?" Subaru looked off to the side. "I'm not sure what you mean by 'proper manners'… So, hey, are you-"

Before he could ask anything else, a book was thrown at his face with immense speed, which he just barely caught.

"You're annoying me with all your questions! Just be quiet, I suppose."

"Now that seems more like Beatrice-sama." Frederica nodded, finding herself somewhat reassured that the spirit wasn't acting entirely out of her usual bounds.

Roswaal, Rem, and Ram nodded in unison, alongside Emilia. Beatrice seemed annoyed that the first three joined in with one another, but seeing Emilia nod as well just annoyed her even further.

"Ngh...the whole lot of you have no manners, I suppose! None at all!" She puffed up her cheeks, sinking into the comforting hold chest of her contractor. It seemed as if, despite being a Great Spirit, everyone was out to tease her as they pleased.

"...Tsundere." Al murmured in a barely audible tone, though he still swore he felt a bit of Beatrice's death gaze on him...

Begrudgingly, Subaru listened to the spirit's command, opening the book that had been thrown at him and reading.

Like that, time in the library passed, with both Subaru and Beatrice reading through an ever-growing list of books.

"Surprisingly...peaceful." Hetaro murmured from besides his sister, to which the rest of the theater found themselves agreeing with.

"A welcome break, compared to the chaos that Subaru-dono has been enduring…" Wilhelm nodded, glad for the moment to be able to rest his weary old bones from worry, if only for a second.

"...How long do you suppose that break will last, however?" Priscilla spoke, an almost knowing smile on her face.

As always, her uncaring, blunt words brought them back to reality. A reality that had been ignored for a while through joking and jesting…

The reality that in this loop, Natsuki Subaru was fated to die yet again.

Only for Beatrice to suddenly look up. "Calling…"

"Huh?" Subaru looked up from his book.

"I've been summoned, I suppose."

With a wave of her hand, reality began to shimmer and distort in the library, with Beatrice turning an eye to a surprised Subaru.

"Oh, right, you're here. I forgot, I suppose."

She began to walk off, but Subaru called out to her.

"H-Hey, hold on! If you go out there now…"

"Then what? There is no way that Betty would allow herself to be taken down by such weaklings, I suppose. Her contractor worries too much." Beatrice huffed, her arms folded in indignance.

"Now, now, Beatrice, you know that that's one of Subaru's strong suits...no matter what, he always looks out for each and every person that he can." Emilia giggled at Beatrice's clearly false anger, just smiling at how some of her knight's old self seemed to have recovered, all thanks to Beatrice's assistance.

"At the very least, Subaru-sama is getting back to his feet. That is the biggest relief of all." Crusch seemed to detect and agree with Emilia's thoughts, with many in the audience sharing a similar sentiment.

"I don't care if you stay here. You'll be safe here, I suppose." Beatrice replied, heading outside before closing the door behind her.

Subaru got up, slowly walking over to the door for himself. He reached for it...only to immediately hesitate.

"Open it, Cap'n!"

"Open it, Subaru!"

"Just open it already, big bro!"

"Open iiiiiiit!"

Garfiel, Petra, Felt, and Mimi shouted in order, as if their words would allow them to help the boy by urging himself forward, if even only by the smallest of amounts.

"Damn it! What the hell is this?"

With those words to hype himself up, he opened the door, and was greeted with...bright sunlight.

"Did I…make it through the fourth night?"

The bright light of the sun was reflected in his eyes, as he let out a short laugh.

"And I thought it was so far away."

He fell to his knees in front of the window.

"It was that easy…"

"For such a simple rising of the sun...it must be like a beacon of hope for him. Finally being able to make it past the constant four nights, which looked as if they were simply going to eternally hold him in their grasp." Wilhelm chuckled at the boy's obvious relief, yet he understood well how much that single moment must have meant to him.

"Heh. That's what happens to ya' when ya' finally get back yer freedom with yer own two hands...even somethin' as simple as tha' risin' sun takes on a whole different meanin'." Anastasia smirked, giving Ricardo a knowing glance, who gladly returned it with a hearty green.

"And there's only even more sunrises for Subar to see, without being trapped by that ability…there...there has to be." Emilia murmured, speaking as if trying to wish her words into reality.

But, reality was cruel. Just because she, and everyone else wished for Subaru to be able to enjoy his freedom...Fate would not stall its' plans just for their feelings and wishes.

His voice cracked, as he eased into laughter...only to be interrupted by a voice from the side.

"Subaru?"

He looked, only to see Emilia.

"Emilia?"

"...Subaru, where have you been?"

"I...I don't like this mood." Otto spoke, easily able to pick up on the odd, almost awkward undertones in this seemingly simple exchange.

"Yeah...this is gonna go to shit real quick." Al muttered, his words being much more blunt, but easy to understand.

The freedom and joy that came with it was only temporary. It seemed, again, that they were going to be dragged through the mud into another type of hell.

"Oh, I was just…"

"-You know…" She shook her head, approaching him with worry clear in her eyes. "No, never mind. Come with me."

Forcefully, Emilia picked him up from his knees, dragging him along with her.

"Huh? Where are we going? Emilia-tan? Why are you making that face?" Subaru asked, looking at her eyes that seemed so dark, as if they were veiled by shadows. "I mean, everything will be fine. Right? I'm alive, and you're…"

"Damn it…" Ricardo grit his teeth, turning his eyes to another direction, any direction was good, besides the screen.

Reinhard, Julius, Reinhard, and Crusch all bowed their heads, readying themselves for what was to come.

Emilia held tight to her knight, and Beatrice kept an attentive eye on the screen.

Garfiel, Mimi, Felt and Petra all watched with expressions of outrage at just how unfair all of this was.

After he had fought his way through all of that suffering, finally managed to find a way to make it, alive, to the next day...he was finally able to talk with such excitement, such life in his voice...but all of that would soon be taken away.

His voice trailed off, before he continued. "-Oh, I know! Let's go to the village! There's so much I want to do and tell you! So much has happened!"

"Subaru…" Emilia turned around to look at him, her eyes wavering with tears.

"Emilia?" He asked, uncertainly.

From within the mansion, a loud scream filled with absolute pain was heard.

"That voice is…" Frederica looked on with worry at the sudden scream, knowing exactly who it was coming from, yet surprised to hear such...pain within. Garfiel and Rem shared similar gazes, their eyes all turning to one person.

Ram, who stared at the screen with her usual blank, analytical gaze.

Subaru, realizing that it was coming from the room right in front of them stepped forward...only to see that the source was Ram, crying at the bedside of Rem, who seemed to be...asleep?

Roswaal and Beatrice were also in the room, solemnly looking over the scene.

Eyes wide open, Subaru immediately realized that she was not merely 'sleeping'.

Rem was dead.

As soon as that realization was made, Ram's eyes widened.

"W-Wait...but why? Why is Rem dead?" Emilia questioned, finding herself lost in the logistics of this convoluted situation of death and despair.

"...The curse." Ram spoke quietly, her blank gaze shifting into one of shock...and regret. "Without Barusu to go shopping with Rem...Rem was the one who was bitten by the Ulgarm disguised as a dog. Meaning...she is the one who was cursed."

Rem's eyes widened in surprise, or perhaps more accurately, disbelief at that incredibly unlucky turn of events. Not only did she seem to be destined to hurt her hero in some way...but she was destined to die, herself…

Perhaps...a fitting fate for someone so driven by blind revenge such as herself.

"How…Why is Rem dead?"

He walked over to the bedside, reaching a hand out...only for it to be violently slapped away by Ram.

"Don't touch her! Don't touch Rem...Don't touch my little sister!" She glared, her expression somewhere between sorrow, and absolute directed hatred.

"Tch...I know that this is a different loop, I know it...but something about her and her sister getting to play the victim now just gets on my nerves! Why is it playing out like big bro is gonna be the one blamed for being at fault for all of this?!" Felt yelled, clearly uncaring at the circumstances that the two siblings were going through.

And why should she? If the circumstances were different, they would end Subaru's life without giving him so much as a chance to plead, but now he had to be the bigger man and save them, or he was gonna look guilty?

"What kind of fucked up logic is that?!" Felt exclaimed, her anger refusing to be quelled.

Any loss of life was one to be mourned...yet, Felt's words posed a question to everyone in the theater – were the two maids worth saving? And would Subaru even be at blame were he to just choose to walk away from the situation?

The cast was split. Some felt as if the twins were getting some sort of retribution for their action, while others felt that they were victims, just as much as Subaru was to their actions.

Yet, there was no conclusive answer for any of them. All they could do was continue to watch.

Subaru looked down, walking away from the bed.

"She died of weeeeakness. It was as if she just fell asleep. The method was more of a curse than a spell."

Roswaal's words sparked realization in Subaru's eyes. He looked back at her with surprise.

'I thought it was Rem who used that curse. So Rem isn't the shaman?'

"My dear guest, have you any idea what might have happened? After this has happened to a dear member of my staff, I seem to be a tiny bit angry."

Ram and Beatrice both turned their gazes to Roswaal, gazes full of hatred and disgust. Neither were sure if he actually felt true sadness for the situation, but both were wondering the same thing…

With his gospel, would he not have been capable of foretelling and preventing this, all on his own? At the very least, would he not have been aware that one of his employees was predicted to be involved in it?

Ram even remembered Roswaal's suspicious timing, seeming to leave the day before the town was attacked, and conveniently returning just as Subaru was going to be killed…

While it was incredibly odd for Ram to feel any sort of real negativity towards the master she...believed she loved, this was another matter entirely. She did not care what Roswaal did to her life. And to some extent, not even the lives of others, if she were so ordered...but using her sister's life like that?

It would be a crime unforgivable by even her. Something she could not simply let go as a mistake made by him while he was under the influence of his gospel.

And of course...the man only smiled, choosing to answer none of the suspicion that brewed within them.

"Subaru…" Emilia reached her hand out to grab the boy's sleeve. "If you know anything, tell us." Her eyes were practically begging him..and Subaru was unable to meet those eyes.

'I just want to spill it all and get it off my chest.' But he then remembered the curse for doing so, and shook his head in denial.

"This is the cruelest part...he...he can't even say anything! Just being able to say a few words would help him, and yet, the moment they ask where he received such information…" Otto grit his teeth, bringing a hand to his forehead.

"That's right...even if Natsuki-kun could give them information, only sayin' that he can't tell 'em is jus' gonna make him look more suspicious than jus' stayin' quiet." Anastasia sighed, narrowing her eyes at the situation.

"It's as if he continues being placed in situation after situation where he is forced into the worst outcome by no fault of his own…" Crusch shook her head, sighing at the continual misfortune that seemed to almost seek out the innocent young man.

A strike of wind magic hit his cheek, opening a cut from which blood spilled forth.

"-Ow!" Immediately, Subaru recognized it. It was this same magic which had slit open his throat.

"Damn it! These guys...can none of 'em keep their cool?! Can't she tell that big bro obviously had nothing to do with it?! He didn't talk to anyone in the mansion, he didn't have an ounce of magical power, he got scanned for malice by two Great Spirits, and he stayed cooped up in a damn library all week!" Felt slammed her fists down on the armchair. "How the hell can they be so trigger-happy and untrustworthy even after all that?! Do you want big bro to die?! Huh?!"

Of course...nobody from the Roswaal mansion could answer that. Crusch and Felt's camps only had people with the Divine Protection of Wind Indication, but that could be tricked with the right mindset and knowledge.

Yet, they had checked Subaru's ability and potential as an enemy high and dry, yet both maids still seemed utterly suspicious of Subaru for no other reasonable reason than a scent which did not even indicate guilt.

Even when he sat in a room and did nothing, he was called out as suspicious for no reason than him being unable to answer questions he didn't even have the answer to.

Their guilt was obvious, and all they could do was remain silent at the words that Felt spat at them.

"If you know something, spill it all!" Ram yelled with hatred, throwing an even stronger concentration of wind magic at Subaru.

"Wait, Ram! That's-"

Before it could reach him, however, Beatrice got in the way, blocking the attack.

"I keep my promises. As long as he remains in this mansion, I am contracted to protect him, I suppose."

"At least Beatrice-sama is there to take his side…" Petra murmured, finding a bit of relief in that small fact.

"Even then, there's Roswaal-sama." Frederica sighed, reminding the girl, and everyone else, that the greatest magician alive was currently still standing in the room...and was currently against Subaru.

"Still, even with that, Beatrice-sama is a Great Spirit. Surely her efforts will at least give Subaru enough time to run and make his way out of the territory without being pursued." Julius reasoned desperately, still finding himself utterly incapable of figuring a way for Subaru to die in this situation.

Yes, everyone there wanted to believe the words of the Finest Knight...but they all knew that such thoughts were only self-serving escapism from the truth of the situation.

Regardless of any intervention...Subaru was still destined to die in this loop.

"Beatrice-sama?" Ram shouted in outrage.

Ignoring her, Beatrice looked to the lord of the mansion. "Roswaal, he spent last night in the forbidden library, I suppose. So he surely had nothing to do with-"

"There is no further need to emphasize the situation at hand." Roswaal's palms opened, as four orbs of different colors appeared in his hands, lighting up the room. "However, to guard him with your life, you must have taken quite a liking to him."

"Save the jokes for your makeup and weird fetishes, I suppose."

"That's a fight that I wouldn't want to be caught in-between." Ricardo shook his head and sighed, a sentiment that Al agreed with with an eager nod.

With the two titans facing off, magic energy filled the room, practically making it shake as if an earthquake were occurring right below them.

"None of that even matters! Get out of the way. Let me through." Ram demanded, her hands tight on her dress. "If you know anything, tell me. Help me...Help Rem!"

"Tch…" Garfiel shut his eyes, Ram's pained shout utterly conflicting him. On one hand, Rem and Ram had caused his captain, the man who had freed him from the phantoms of the past, freed Sanctuary, and saved everyone's lives, unbelievable pain…

Yet, he still knew them and cared about them. They were people who he knew incredibly well, even longer and better than Subaru. But...he couldn't feel the largest amount of sympathy in himself, knowing what they would do to his Captain if given the chance.

"Damn it...why th'fuck is all of this so hard?!"

Otto laid a gentle hand on his friend's back, his eyes remaining on the screen ahead. "It's fine to feel that way, Garfiel-san...after all, we are watching two of our precious friends fight like this...are we not?"

Indeed...for those outside of the Emilia camp, Ram and Rem were just strangers who they had just watched work together to murder an innocent young man. However, for those who knew the two…

They had just seen horrible conflicts that pitted friends against each other like wild animals...drove them to commit acts such as ruthless torture, senseless murder...unending pain.

Regardless of what they had done in these loops, Rem and Ram were still comrades of the Emilia camp. Those who knew them knew they were just well-meaning people led down a path by their much darker master, Roswaal.

So, seeing their pain, even if they knew the pain the two had inflicted upon Subaru...they still felt it.

Ram's cries of despair still reached them.

But nothing could be done about it.

He was unable to say anything, with Ram slowly opening her palm to blast another set of magic at Subaru.

"I'm sorry, Ram. Despite all this, I choose to trust Subaru." Emilia's words left the boy shaken. "Subaru, please. If you can save Ram...If you can save Rem...Please do."

All Subaru could do was look between the two of them, gritting his teeth.

"...I'm sorry." And so, Subaru turned around, leaving the room behind him...and running.

"Damn it, Cap'n." Garfiel grit his teeth, knowing all-too-well what would happen now that Subaru had made such a suspicious move.

"If the commoner's suspicion was not hovering over the minds of those present previously, then his actions just now has permanently cemented it within them." Priscilla waved her fan, giving a disappointed stare at the screen.

"As much as I hate agreeing with her...Priscilla-san is right. Subaru probably...can't go back anymore." Emilia murmured slowly, looking at the screen with saddened eyes.

It was a selfish feeling, but Emilia was happy that, even if it was just a small measure, she had at least properly stood up for Subaru, even in that stress-filled moment of loss.

At that moment, all of the magic in the room went off, and Subaru ran the hardest he could.

"Subaru!"

"I'M DEFINITELY GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Ram's voice echoed across the hall, but Subaru could only cover his ears.

"Now we're in another life-or-death situation, huh? What a shitty turn of events." Felt grumbled, resisting the urge to kick over the chair in front of her out of sheer anger.

"Indeed...with Ram-dono blinded by rage like that...it's clear that there is no possible way to talk her out of her proclamation." Crusch shook her head, knowing that despair-filled voice all too well.

It was just like Wilhelm's words of revenge, when speaking about the monstrous beast known as the White Whale. Words of definite murder that would never be retracted...words that showed just how much that person was hurting on the inside after losing a loved one.

Wilhelm lowered his eyes, wondering for a moment if that was how he became so ostracized from his family. Allowing himself to be blinded with rage and vengeance for the loss of his wife, Theresia, and lashing out at everything that he assumed caused it, just as Rem did.

At the beast who had directly ended her life...and at his grandson, who he pinned an immense amount of blame on. Seeing how Ram looked, allowing those same feelings to overcome her, Wilhelm clearly envisioned how he must have seemed to those around him...to the grandson he was supposed to protect and help to raise.

To the grandson he had abandoned because he allowed his feelings to get the better of him.

Ram, on her part, gave a small, though saddened smile. It was not one of happiness, but a smile of irony at how she had declared such words towards Subaru.

There was only one clear difference in her and Subaru...and that was power. She had the power to kill him anytime she wished, and so did Rem. If Subaru was actually able to resist against them, she wondered if he would have been so forgiving to her and her sister? If he would have even stayed to help them and attempt befriending them?

Even watching herself on screen, she only felt sympathy for the fact that losing her sister would be the worst thing that happened to her in her life...yet, if the viewings were to be believed, not only did he save her life from the Ulgarm curse, but he was the one who convinced the Emilia camp to continue taking care of her in her comatose state.

Two times...Subaru had saved Rem's life, and dragged her out of her self-hating ways, and helped Ram achieve her goals, despite the two of them killing him, and coming after his life in previous loops.

Hearing her words of murderous hatred and wrath towards him...Ram felt herself foolish, for one of the few times in her entire life.

The camera shows Subaru running away from the mansion, through the forest, breathing heavily, and his eyes tinted with despair.

'I ran. I ran away. I ran away from them.'

He stumbled on his feet, falling face-first to the earth.

'I can't go back there again.'

Catching his breath, Subaru spoke to himself.

"What choice did I have?! What could I...And I was...having so much fun!" He forced himself back to his feet, to keep running.

Eyes filled with tears, he thought back to the vicious torture he had suffered at Rem's hands...as he ran past a certain spot.

'This looks like the place where I died.' He then looked to the side.

"To find yourself at a place where you remember dying previously...what must the world look like through eyes such as those?" Wilhelm questioned, thinking back to when he had met Subaru, and seen those unusual eyes of his…

"Do ya even really wanna know that, old man? I dunno bout you, but, s'much as I sympathize with Natsuki-kun, I wouldn't wanna take a single step in his shoes." Anastasia shook her head at the prospect.

While there were some who did not enjoy how crassly she said those words, none could really disagree...despite the pain they all felt at watching him suffer, nobody was exactly eager to truly empathize with everything he felt.

After all, how could they imagine the pain and suffering of multiple, agonizing deaths and betrayals when they would only experience such things once in their lifetimes?

Even Al, who had a similar ability, had an entirely different experience from Subaru. He just cut his emotions off from it entirely, and used it like a tool. If Subaru was being broken down, then Aldebaran was pretty much already broken.

"Subaru...just how...how did you keep all of this inside of you?" Emilia murmured to herself, but of course, she already knew the answer to that question, as cruel as it was.

All of them had seen it. Subaru was forced to keep this secret, forced to be truly alone, and forced to struggle just to keep himself alive.

"...Where I died?" He slowed down, realization coming into his eyes.

"...If I die…"

"No…" Felix narrowed his eyes, immediately catching on to the tone of speech that filled Subaru's voice. Even those with sharper minds didn't realize why the doctor spoke immediately, but as Subaru finished his thought, it became obvious.

'Will I be saved from this whole situation?'

"No, no, no! You..y-y'cant be thinkin' like that, Cap'n!" Garfiel exclaimed in conflicted outrage.

"But...he's correct, isn't he?" Tivey spoke, a shadow cast over his face. "If he dies, he will be able to return...he can redo everything, just as he wishes."

Roswaal smiled a dark smile, happy to know that someone with his line of thinking existed there, within the crowd...but of course, that notion was quickly corrected.

"And, Tivey? Ya 'think that that's gonna leave tha' boy unscathed? Jus' usin' his life like it's some sorta' gamblin' chip?" Ricardo asked, looking at his subordinate with a serious gaze.

"No, I'm just saying...isn't his train of thought correct? Why stay in this loop, when everything has already been ruined? He would have to suffer through death, but-"

"You're cruel! You're just saying that because you don't have to...because you don't want to understand how it feels for Subaru to die!" Petra exclaimed, emotional to the point of tears.

"Yeah, Tivey...Mimi thinks you said a little too much this time." Mimi agreed, the disappointment of a big sister filling her usually cheerful and lighthearted tone.

"Cruel as it may be, Tivey's logically right, ain't he?" Anastasia spoke up, raising an eyebrow. "All he has ta' do s'activate his ability, an' he's golden ta' try everythin' over again. It's tha' ultimate tool fer someone willin' ta' make use of it."

"Hoshin-dono…" Crusch turned her steely eyes to the merchant, her unsaid disagreement being obvious with the way their gazes clashed.

"Man, 'ability' this, 'activate' that, you guys are just lookin' away from the obvious truth. Big bro has to die every time he returns, you know? And just like cat-ears up there said, every time he dies, he loses more and more of his humanity...big bro is just human. You really want him to start going down that kinda path where he gets used to giving his life up to fix every little thing? Huh?" Felt muttered, flipping her dagger around on the tip of her fingers, before grasping it with purpose. "He ain't some wonder fix-all, and he ain't no damn monster."

"Big bro is a person, too."

Those six words from Felt shut practically everyone up.

"Felt-chan is right." Emilia spoke with a surprising authority, holding her knight's arm close. "We shouldn't be getting 'used' to these deaths as tools, and neither should Subaru...each and every one of them matters. Subaru's life...matters. If any of you object to that idea...then you can privately discuss it with me, during the intermission."

And for the first time in that entire viewing...everyone experienced the ice-cold hostility that Emilia held deep inside of her.

A darkness seemed to seep into his voice. "Of course...If I die, everything will change."

'If I struggled and fought so much only to end up here, then what's even the point?'

Subaru eyes were blank, lifeless...as he considered completely throwing it away.

"How hard it must be to even value yourself when it seems as if the world goes against every bit of your efforts…" Frederica murmured. In some way, she could only think of her mother's unfortunate past, and how she seemed to be one of the most unlucky people the maid had ever known.

Rem was quiet, her eyes looking at Subaru on screen with unsaid guilt. After all, she was a part of the forces in his life which had ended up pushing him to such a point...to think...she was a part of reasoning Subaru was trying to use to end his own life.

...It was just as Beatrice said. Rem did not need to be berated by anyone, anymore, to feel like she was still being punished.

He looked in front of him, noticing a certain landmark.

"The cliff…"

Subaru walked to the edge listlessly, standing at the edge and looking down at the fall down below. It was a sheer drop, with nothing but jagged, pointed spikes waiting for him.

'If I close my eyes and take one step, it'll all be over.' He looked up, gritting his teeth and closing his eyes in hesitation. 'What will happen to me if I die again?'

"That's another point...we aren't even aware of if Natsuki-san's ability has a limit on how many times he can be brought back…" Otto murmured, with the realization just coming to him.

"Then I guess ya' really were right, Ricardo. S'like a gamble every time he dies…" Anastasia folded her arms, her usual smirk turning into a thoughtful, neutral expression.

Still, that just made everyone understand that Subaru's sacrifices, in that case, meant that much more…

However, there was just one audience member who absolutely loathed the idea of that boy taking that next step...Felix. Not for a personal care of Subaru, but instead for the sake of his own ideals.

The demihuman narrowed his eyes at the screen, hands digging into his lap. "Come on now, Subaru-kyun...don't give up on your life after struggling your way to get to this point. If you throw your life away for that sort of reason...it will all be worth nothing."

His body trembling, he began to place one foot in front of him..but he couldn't do it.

He fell back onto his rear, still shaking in place. "It's just one step...I can't even...I can't even do something so simple…!"

His words came out in a sob, eyes filled with tears that streamed down his face, coalescing at his chin.

Felix let out a relieved sigh, turning his head to the side. 'It's a good thing that he can at least realize that giving his life away is not such a simple thing...yes, if you're going to die, Subaru-kyun...don't let it be a meaningless death that only hurts those around you. Don't give up...don't kill yourself out of nothing but despair.'

"Something so 'simple'? It's the other way around, Subaru...you shouldn't be able to give up your life so easily...because it means so, so much…" Emilia murmured, holding as tight to her knight as she could.

"Indeed. Not to mention, Betty would not allow such foolish actions that easily, I suppose." Beatrice added, narrowing her eyes at the screen. And, almost as if to directly follow up to the Great Spirit's words…

"I finally found you." A relieved-sounding voice came from in front Subaru, waking the boy up. He had fallen asleep from the sheer stress of the situation.

Beatrice stood in front of him, her small body framed against the orange evening sky.

"Why…"

"What, I suppose?"

"Why did you come for me? I…"

"The contract I entered into was to protect you." Beatrice responded simply, though her words did not dispel the confusion of the boy in front of her.

"I thought you were only supposed to be my bodyguard until this morning."

"You must be mistaken, I suppose." Beatrice took a step towards him. "I don't remember discussing a time limit."

"Tsu-"

Beatrice's energy flared, stopping Al dead in his tracks before he could even finish the rest of his sentence. It was best to leave it alone, considering the fact that there was no way he was coming out alive from a Great Spirit's scoldings.

"Still...even if only Subaru remembers it, it's reeeeally nice to at least see that someone was able to stand by his side at that moment…" Emilia looked to the Great Spirit with a bright smile.

"Yeah, Beatrice-sama may be shy, but I know she's good deep down!" Petra nodded in agreement.

"I swear, the two of you…" Beatrice grumbled, her cheeks red at the words the two dropped upon her.

"But still, to gather the permanent aid of a Great Spirit, even if not in a formal contract...very impressive, Subaru." Julius nodded in approval, wondering if even he could accomplish such a feat.

"I don't know if right now is the moment to be impressed, considering the situation that he finds himself facing…" Reinhard reminded, a stern reminder to everyone at what the boy on screen was currently going through. Julius nodded in solemn agreement, with everyone turning their gazes back to the screen momentarily.

It was only Roswaal who still remained drowned in thought, arms folded and eyes shimmering in intrigue. 'So, Subaru-kun...even then, you were capable of making Beatrice leave that library? Even if it took the worst possible situation...to think that you were capable of getting her help that quickly…'

The man smirked, his thoughts hidden from the rest of the group, as always...or at the very least, so he thought. With his repeated odd actions and silence, Roswaal had eyes on him within the theater.

He would just have no idea who those eyes belonged to, until it was far, far too late.

Subaru looked up at the spirit with eyes that just barely held any light within them...her words had sparked something in him.

"Clinging to faint hope only serves your own convenience, I suppose."

The boy faltered at her words, but Beatrice only continued on with her harsh, real words.

"What was lost can't be reclaimed. You'll have no more chances to explain yourself to the older sister. You threw that away."

"...Ram-san?" Otto looked to the maid questioningly, only for her to nod, her neutral expression not holding even half of its' usual strength.

"Beatrice-sama is correct. Considering that it was a matter involving her sister...there is no possible way Ram would be able to act calmly." She admitted, lowering her head as she spoke the truth.

"Onee-sama…" Rem murmured, shock clear in her voice. It was one thing to see her own obsession towards keeping her sister safe, and living her vengeance...but never once did she expect to see Ram care so much about her.

She had remained quiet earlier, assuming it to just be a spur-of-the moment reaction by Ram for losing someone dear to her...but to know that she would change her usually calm, self-assured sister so much through her death…

In a room full of people who now saw her as nothing but a murderer, it was comforting, yet hurtful...knowing her sister cared so much about a worthless girl like her...and knowing that she was completely wrong for placing herself so low compared to her sister.

"I see...in a way, I understand, Ram." Emilia shared, a sad smile on her face. "Losing your family based on something that feels like your own carelessness...I reeeeally understand." She then looked up, with serious eyes. "But, as much as it might help in the moment...chasing revenge isn't going to do anything. Maybe it might bring closure, but...all it will do is leave blood on your hands. It is only worth doing...to protect others. Not to help yourself."

Emilia was one to speak. After all, her failure to properly control herself did result in her being able to drive away those who had killed and corrupted her dear family...but it also resulted in her permanently freezing all the people that looked after and cared for her in the forest. A situation where she had protected others, while simultaneously harming them.

Ram remained quiet at these words, while Rem's fists gripped onto the edge of her maid uniform, pupils trembling as Emilia's words sunk into her. She could tell that this was the reason Emilia had likely been so disappointed in her...not just the fact that she had hurt Subaru, the boy both of them loved, and who loved them back…

But that she had let it be for such an unsightly, dirty thing as revenge. It hadn't been an accident, she hadn't been forced to do it, and it wasn't like she wasn't given enough clues to be aware that he was truly nothing but a harmless civilian...Rem had just let the suspicious things he'd done, and her own bloodthirsty wishes take her over.

"Wiser words have never been spoken, Emilia-dono. Rem-dono...no, Rem. I hope you can take those words to heart. For your own good." Crusch turned her gaze to Rem, her words truly conveying the message that Emilia had wished to get across. They weren't high-handed words about morals, or saying that killing shouldn't be done at all...but that it should never be for anything but the pure reason of revenge, and revenge alone.

It was only a path to darkness and mistakes...as everyone in the theater had just bore witness to.

His head lowered slightly, as he took in the truth.

"No matter which is lost, those sisters will never be complete again, I suppose."

"But...I cared about those two, and I wanted to protect them-"

"What do you know about them, I suppose? No matter which is lost, they'll never be restored to what they were. They can't be."

"To think that Subaru could still say those things about sister and I…" Rem murmured, finding it utterly unbelievable that Subaru's mind was even still at the point of caring for her after what she had done to him.

"C'mon now, we've been watchin' 'im fer long enough now. If there's anyone who's gonna be greedy enough ta still want his 'happy ending' despite everythin' he's gone through...it's this boy." Anastasia commented, with a dismissive roll of her eyes. Despite not knowing him personally like the others, even she could tell that was what was going on in his mind.

"What a disgustingly greedy commoner, indeed…" Priscilla muttered, though despite her harsh words, she could not turn her eye from the screen, either.

Both of these women, who knew practically next to nothing about Natsuki Subaru, had come to understand his character very well...and both of their interests were piqued. They weren't quite fond of the young man, or anything...but at the very least, they saw him in a light different than one would usually see a stranger.

For the both of them, he was an existence they just could not fully understand, even if some parts of him stood out, like his almost foolish selflessness, even towards people that had killed him.

Beatrice's words truly set in, forcing Subaru to accept the harsh reality that he was now faced with.

"So in the end, I was just making a selfish, disgraceful fuss without knowing anything?"

Even with those hopeless words...Beatrice reached her hand out to him.

"At the very least, you need to die where I cant see you, or I'll have bad dreams, I suppose. So I'll help you escape this domain."

Petra giggled, shaking her head at the spirit's words. "Beatrice-sama really just can't be honest and say that she wants to help Subaru, can she?"

"Indeed...but that is Beatrice-sama's way. And it shows through now, in a moment where she even dares to defy Roswaal-sama and those within the mansion just to help Subaru-sama…" Frederica smiled, though she still felt an uneasy feeling within her chest.

Though she would have usually happy refuted those words, Beatrice could not speak, either. After all...knowing her contractor as well as she did...it was obvious what that fool was going to do next.

Subaru placed his hand into Beatrice's, and slowly got up to his feet. The sensation of her hands reminded him of the two unknown hands that had comforted him during his nightmare.

He looked down at his palm.

"Come to think of it, back then, someone was holding both of my hands…"

His hazy memory slowly faded, as he realized just who it was...those two maids, whom he had ended up hurting so deeply.

"Y-You've gotta be kiddin' me!" Felt said in disbelief, her eyes widened at the reveal. How the hell could those two ever will up the kindness to go and hold Subaru's hands? To the ex-thief, it made no sense.

"It seems...there is much that we did not acknowledge of their inner nature, ourselves…" Reinhard gave a sad smile.

"S'right, while we were all busy judgin' 'em, and bein' disappointed in 'em. Cap'n was jus' tryin' t'justify a way t'save 'em…L-eave it to Cap'n t'see th'good side o'everyone." Garfiel grinned, half-excited to see his Captain's braining turning, yet half-dreading what he was going to do. That was why he left out the last final part of his words.

'...'cept fer himself...'

'Ram...Rem...If they couldn't bear to see me suffer, and held my hands…' The sun glinted ever-so-brightly, as it began to bathe the two in its' last, brilliant spark of light for the day. 'If that's the kind of people they are, how can I leave them?'

"No, no, bro. You're jokin'. You're seriously not thinkin' of what I think you are, right?" Al shook his head, immediately recognizing the change in atmosphere around the kid.

"I'M DEFINITELY GOING TO KILL YOU!" That shout filled with hatred rang in Subaru's mind, as his eyes took on a familiar glint.

'I heard a voice filled with hatred. But more than that…'

He thought back to the cry filled with sorrow and despair Ram had let out upon seeing the body of her dead sister.

'Her cries won't leave my mind.'

"Barusu, you fool." Ram grit her teeth, knowing the boy all too well enough to realize just what he was about to do. Just because she and her sister had comforted him in his nightmare, was he...was he…?

"You're kiddin' me...I knew that his nature was leanin' towards bein' able ta' put himself on tha' side fer people, but...he's really gonna just give up his life like that?!" Anastasia shook her head in disbelief.

After all, there was kindness, selflessness...and then there were simply purely insane acts of sacrifice. Natsuki Subaru was about to dive right into the last category.

He held his hand in front of him.

'I've always been the type to drift towards whichever path was easiest.'

He chuckled to himself, as he thought of the memories he had shared with the sisters.

"Thinking of the memories he shared with them now…" Felt looked to the side, unable to bear even looking at Subaru anymore, if he really was going to go through with what he seemed to be implying. "Tch...damn it, big bro...no one woulda' faulted you for just leavin' a worthless place like that behind..."

'Hey, Subaru, you're thinking of something pretty stupid here.'

"And after I finally managed to save this life…"

"So he's truly going to throw it away, after putting up such a disgraceful act just to make it to the morning of this day? What a foolish one…" Priscilla muttered, waving her fan in front of her face in displeasure.

"To do so much for sister and I...Subaru-kun…" Rem murmured, extremely far to the side of Priscilla. All of the darkness in her eyes was gone, replaced by a surprisingly clear gaze towards the screen.

Her hero hadn't just put his life on the line to save her...he'd given up his life, in one loop, just to bring her back to life, and to allow her to live happily with her sister.

No, he wasn't doing it to be her hero, or anyone's hero...he was doing it...because he genuinely cared about the time he spent with the two of them.

A grin appeared on his face, his eyes now filled with more strength than they had ever shown in a long time.

"I see...Subaru-dono's will is set." Wilhelm gave a solemn smile, lowering his head at the power that was now behind the boy's gaze.

"Yeah…" Felix agreed, with a sigh. "Still, I wish it didn't take Subaru-kyun heading off to his death for him to gain that spark back in his eyes."

"That's right. I saved my life, so…"

'What's wrong with taking the path that's easiest, that will let me live longer? I'll decide-' He closed his palms, visually grabbing the sun within them. '-how I use my life!'

"Damn it, Cap'n...I wish you wouldn't say such cool stuff right before...right before you're about to take that next step!" Garfiel yelled, venting his frustration, and holding back the tears that threatened to come with it.

"You were too slow." Beatrice murmured, looking down as an enraged Ram walked towards them, wind curling and whipping around her.

"I finally found you. I won't let you get away." Ram muttered, eyes narrowed in pure hatred and rage.

"Stay back, I suppose." Beatrice warned, before stepping in front of Subaru and addressing Ram. "So long as my contract exists, I won't hold back, not even against you."

"And you, Beatrice-sama, seem to forget that we're not in the mansion now. We're away from the forbidden library, in the forest. Are you certain you can protect that man from me?"

"How foolish, I suppose." Beatrice narrowed her eyes. "No matter what, Betty would have...she would have protected him from dying yet another meaningless death if she was aware of all he was doing...she would not even have let him think of giving up his life for you two worthless…!" It was only by sheer willpower that Beatrice restrained herself, stopping venomous words from continuing to spill past her lips.

"I know, Beatrice…" Emilia said, with surprising strength in her voice, as she looked on to the screen. Moisture was building up at the corners of her eyes, but she did not give in to the sorrow that threatened to consume her. Instead she watched, her eyes mirroring Subaru's determination-filled gaze. "But...all we can do now is...is watch Subaru choose whatever he wants to."

Despite her words, her hands, holding tightly to her knights', trembled. She spoke with finality, yet...even then...she did not want to see him die again. Nobody did.

Yet, this was different. Not a death of despair, pain, and hurt...but one of hope...to bring forth a better tomorrow. Even if it was surrounded by the darkness of murder and betrayal...everyone there had to respect the choice that Natsuki Subaru had made that day – to take on the task even harder than running away...to stand, force himself back into the past, and fight.

The spirit narrowed her eyes, completely silent to Ram's logical words...only to falter as Subaru behind her took hold of her drill-like hair, pulling the sides to the left and right.

"Boing!" Subaru exclaimed, as the girl let out a sound of surprise. He let them go, putting his hands on his waist. "Oh, yeah, that feels good!"

Even amidst the serious atmosphere that had filled the theater, everyone could not help but to share a laugh. After all, this was Subaru. Even before his death, he was taking the time to lighten up the atmosphere...even if they all knew part of his performance was just to embolden himself.

"Wh-Wh-Wh-What are you doing?! D-Do you want to die?!"

"Don't be dumb. I don't want to die in the slightest. I'm fine with dying just once, at the end of a long life. That's how I really feel." He explained, putting a hand on the spirit's shoulder and moving past her.

"You've got guts. So you finally accept your fate?" Ram spoke, as Subaru now stood in front of her, unshielded.

"I wouldn't call it that. If anything, I'd say I've made up my mind." He gave a bow to her. "Sorry. I caused a lot of grief for you guys by being such a loser."

"Damn it, Barusu...you…" Ram almost drew blood with how hard she bit down on her lip. She always scolded the boy, calling him an idiot, or loser, or pervert...however, she didn't wish to see him apologize to her under these circumstances.

No...Ram didn't even want to see an apology coming out of his mouth, in the first place. Not after what she and her sister had done to him. Yet, here he was...that idiot with a heart much too big for his britches, apologizing for something that wasn't even his own fault.

"You...kind fool…"

Ram's breath hitched in her throat. "So you do know something about Rem?!"

"Nope, sorry, but I honestly don't know a thing. Frankly, there's too much I don't know. But…"

His eyes took on a serious look.

"I decided to learn more about the things I don't know."

"Heh. Of course you would say something like that, Natsuki-san...of course." Otto shook his head, tipping his hat over his face to hide the solemn expression that had now formed over it.

"If only...if only I could show that sort of resolve when it mattered." Reinhard murmured to himself. His lack of knowledge, his lack of ability, had far hurt people in his life already...yet he'd never taken time to properly stand back and assess it. He'd just accepted his role as a hero, his inability to save everyone, and his role as a monster to his family...yet here Subaru was, risking his own life on the line just to change his mistakes.

Subaru...was not perfect by any means...but, his ability to change, and push himself...it put him beyond any normal person out there. Even beyond some of them within the theater.

"How can you say that now?! Rem is already dead! What can you do by learning anything now?!"

"I won't make any cool statements about what I'll be able to do. This is what happened when I couldn't do anything, after all. I know better than anyone that my words aren't convincing in the least."

He gripped his hands closed tightly.

"But I remember. I know parts of you two that you've forgotten!"

Everyone was reminded of the times when Subaru had been tortured by Rem, screaming and wondering just why they had forgotten all of the time they had spent together.

Rem looked despondent, guilt spread across Ram's face...and Emilia quietly lamented her helplessness within all of it. Beatrice looked away in disgust and anger, not at her contractor's words, but at the girls who had caused him the pain that forced him to utter them in the first place...and at herself, for allowing him to die to that curse without even saying anything about it.

"What do you know...about Rem and me?!"

"That's true. I don't know anything that's really important." Subaru admitted freely, Ram's words seemingly just rolling off of his back. "I don't know anything that's really important. But you don't know either, do you?!"

"...Know what?"

He took a deep breath, readying himself...before shouting at the top of his lungs.

"THAT I LOVE YOU GUYS!"

None of them had expected those words to come from Subaru's lips. So clear, concise, determined...so truthful. And least of all who expected it...the girls who had been responsible for ending his life.

The twins looked at the screen with utter surprise, a jolt of paralyzing shock still running through their bodies. Yet, as the words sank in...Rem all but burst into tears, letting out uncontrollable sobs as her head hung low. Ram brought her hand over her face, hiding whatever weakness lied behind.

Neither could take it. The sheer forgiveness and kindness that Subaru must have had in his heart to say those words, even after what they did to him.

Some like Al, Tivey, Priscilla and Anastasia were in utter disbelief. After all, while they had been getting glimpses of Subaru's true character, enough to now know that he would gladly sacrifice himself if it meant a better tomorrow for everyone...they had not expected him to be able to say such kind words to the ones who were a part of souring that better tomorrow in the first place.

And everyone else who knew Subaru personally...was not surprised in the least. No, it was more like they were already resigned to the fact that it was only natural that Subaru would do something so stupid, yet caring. Something so cruel to himself, yet kind to others.

Otto and Garfiel shared knowing looks, and resigned, sad smiles. Being friends close enough to call each other brothers, they knew well about Subaru, obviously...and could only accept their friend's nature and intentions as he was.

Ricardo, Wilhelm, Julius, Crusch Felix, and Reinhard looked on with serious gazes, watching the boy's determination play out to the very end.

Frederica gave a wry smile, one that seemed to radiate a mysterious, almost mature understanding of Subaru's motives.

Roswaal just chuckled, knowing well that it was only obvious that Subaru would make such sacrifices to reach the 'happy end' he so desired. Yet, behind that chuckle, behind the man's carefree nature lied a hellish guilt, one that none would decipher from his character and actions alone.

Felt scowled, partly from confusion, and partly from frustration. She understood her big brother, but...she still just couldn't agree with him putting up his life for Rem and Ram, of all people. And considering Beatrice's similar reaction...she was much in the same boat, almost to the point of exploding in anger.

Mimi and Petra on the other hand just smiled warmly at the screen. While Petra felt sad for Subaru's death, she at least understood enough to know that he was doing it for everyone...and that was enough for her. The same thing went for Mimi, who just found his actions pretty brave and cool.

And Emilia...Emilia just watched silently, the tears finally beginning to flow freely down her eyes. Yet, it didn't overcome her, or leave her unable to function, or leave her desperately clinging to Subaru...no, these tears strengthened her.

Just like Subaru's will strengthened all of them. How it strengthened himself.

Ram's eyes were wide with shock, as Subaru turned around, and without a single moment's hesitation, began running to the edge of the cliff.

"-Wait!"

Beatrice called out in desperation, but Subaru wasn't hearing any of it.

He could only think of the times he'd shared with Rem and Ram, all they had done for him, every single little thing they had helped him with...and not just them, every fun and happy moment he'd had with everyone in the mansion.

Rem, Ram, Emilia, Beatrice, Puck...he thought of all of them, as he neared the edge of the cliff.

"THIS IS SOMETHING THAT ONLY I CAN DO!" He jumped off of the cliff, the wind roaring past him.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Once more, Ram's voice echoed in his head.

And for the first time, Subaru responded.

"I'M GOING TO SAVE YOU!"

The only sound left was that of Subaru's body being bludgeoned against the rocks below.

Natsuki Subaru's Restart

Midway Point of Arc has been reached.

Auto-play mode remains turned on.

Viewing will recommence when all guests have consented.

The room was silent, as everyone took in this most recent death. Unlike the ones before, this silence was not one of sorrow, broken despair, or hopelessness...but instead, a silence that portrayed an unreadable emotion.

Yes...it was just that nobody had anything to say. Not from crushing feelings that destroyed their heart...but from this unreadable, inexplicable emotion that they all felt.

Not even Crusch or Reinhard spoke up, both immersed in the complete silence that filled the room.

Yet, in that silence, someone began to move. Footsteps echoed through the room, as someone slowly made their way to the front of the theater. And as that first step of footsteps neared the front, a second step of footsteps joined it, almost walking in sync.

And eventually, the two made it to the front.

Rem and Ram stood together, under the scrutiny of everyone within the cast, who were still too taken aback by what had just happened to even say anything about their presence.

However, the words that the two of them spoke would soon drag everyone from their stupor.

The twins bowed their heads down, sincerity practically oozing off of their bodies.

"Rem and Ram...have to apologize."

---

Destiny's Author Corner

Total Word Count: 48,780 words (within LibreOffice). changes word count a lot so on the FFNet site this number will probably be more like 50k+words.

Hey guys, Destiny here. Surprise.

This one was a slog to get through. This chapter is more than 2 months in the making. To be frank with you I had this chapter at least half completed for over a month, I just stopped halfway and didn't come back until last week.

I have no reviews I want to address here in length, but I am thankful for readers like always.

Still, I will say I was surprised to see one user in particular hated the idea of Subaru waking up so much. But ah well, you can't please everyone.

I will be realistic with you guys: I still don't know when the next chapter is coming out. I don't know if there will be a next chapter. However, at the very least, I do think that I owe you guys to finish this half-done chapter, if nothing else. Sorry if you notice a quality drop, or a lot of errors, I was really not putting my all into this one.

Until whenever we meet again, see you around, lads. Destiny, out.

**Disappears into a collapsing tunnel**