Chapter 9: When Night Falls Over Royalty

It would be a sight to see for any common person with no ties to royalty or blessings in the world. A sight many even envy when they notice the shine.

Leaning on a low wall with lavish clothing and serious expressions, the perfect image of noble heroes was presented by the black-haired boy and his great knight. The Sword Saint and the decided fifth royal candidate for the kingdom's throne, standing on a hill that looked over the entire capital. From there, they had a splendid view over the city, as the sun shone from its position in the middle of a cleared, blue sky. Bathing the streets of the market district they were previously in.

"Okay… So…"

"They know," Reinhard replied, rubbing his face with his black-gloved hand.

"How…?" Subaru asked, frowning as he searched in his memory a moment where he could have made a mistake.

"I have no idea." Reinhard continued. "I don't think it is coming from any of us."

Subaru sighed heavily, passing a hand in his hair as he tried to think of the current situation.

"How is that even possible, I don't remember ever saying this to anyone…Rom and Felt couldn't as well, they stayed with us in the manor all this time…" The black-haired boy mused. "Did they tell you how they found out about this?"

"Unfortunately, the only thing they have been able to tell me was an 'anonymous' source that informed them about the fifth candidate being in the Astrea's care," Reinhard explained with a frown.

'Anonymous…' Subaru thought to himself with eyes narrowed.

"Well…" Reinhard replied with a curious and uneasy smile, breaking Subaru out of his thoughts. "And…"

"And…?"

"I needed to confirm everything before going further in this!" Reinhard exclaimed, seated around a table with several other knights.

In front of him was Marcos. The leader of the royal knights.

"Even so, you had your orders," Marcos replied. "You were tasked to inform us about everything you would find related to the fifth candidate. This was your mission."

Understanding he couldn't argue much, Reinhard simply lowered his gaze apologetically, making Marcos nod his head in acknowledgment.

"Well, this is not that big of an issue." Marcos sighed. "We confirmed the presence of the candidate, and we will now proceed to inform the council of wise men. From here on out, Reinhard, you will prepare her for the election. Be sure she is ready."

"…" Reinhard only kept staring at his superior with confused eyes.

"…"

"…"

The duo stayed silent for a moment, looking at each other, one still with his uneasy smile and the other, clearly confused.

"She…?" Subaru said as he tilted his head.

"Yes…She…" Reinhard replied.

"Alright, I know I had some…Experience in the past looking like a lady, but I think it's rather pretty apparent by now that I'm…A man." Subaru explained with a sarcastic tone.

Reinhard only nodded his head as he kept looking towards the candidate until both of them slowly turned their eyes towards the city again as another, legendary, long silence occurred.

"They think it's Felt," Subaru said with a neutral, bored tone.

"Definitely," Reinhard answered with a surprisingly similar tone.

"Well." Subaru waved off, stretching his arms as he walked towards the stairs followed by his friend, to come down in the capital's streets.

"What do you plan to do?" Reinhard asked, still unsure.

The fact that they made up their mind on not revealing anything related to Subaru's candidacy yesterday, only for it to be shattered right this instant, made the Sword Saint all the more worried about their current situation.

He felt like something or someone was there, watching them, spying on them. And whatever that was, surely it wouldn't think of acting this way for Subaru's goodwill.

No, it was something dangerous in the eyes of the Sword Saint. A threat so to speak.

However, since this threat found it preferable to expose his master rather than directly harm him, it was certainly something more special than a regular enemy.

This one was cunning, smart. More reasons for the Sword Saint to keep his eyes open.

"For now, let's just come back home." Subaru sighed in a tired tone, a hand on his forehead. "I want to talk about this with the others."

"I see."

As both of them went down in silence, hearing nothing but the distant chattering of the people in the merchant district, Subaru's eyes slowly turned towards the castle on top of the hill.

'It isn't going to be an easy ride, huh?' He thought to himself.

'It seems I somehow made myself some enemies…Well, with what I'm aiming for, it was obvious…But still.' He lamented, looking at the palm of his hand with gritted teeth. 'If you think that's going to make me lose sight of what I want to accomplish, you couldn't be more in the wrong.'

With the little time he already spent in Lugunica, Subaru already experienced more "adventures" than bs Isekai Main Character did in their first week. Things that would make the average man run away in fear for his life. However, what he lived coupled with the "fate" that had been put on his shoulders, managed to make him feel the exact opposite.

It was not a question about running…But pushing forward. To be sure that what he lived stays something that only he will have to live. And for that…

He had to be a candidate.

"What are you thinking?" Reinhard called, noticing his friend's gaze to be pensive.

"That I'll have to give my all," Subaru answered in a serious, nearly powerful tone.

Even if he was proud to hear his master's determination…This time, Reinhard only nodded his head in approval, his face showing the same will Subaru had.

As they were joining the main streets, Subaru's eyes started to wander around him with no real goal, still lost in his thoughts about the new situation that fell in his arms, along with everything that he lived until now.

"…"

"Is something the matter?" Asked Reinhard, noticing his master about to say something.

"It's just…When I think about it, I still didn't find any way to thank Miss Karsten," the boy spoke with a thoughtful voice, looking back fondly at the memory of the commanding lady that saved him.

"Ah…" The name of the Duchess ringing a bell inside of Reinhard's mind as well as the reason for why his dear friend and master were thinking about her in particular. "I did try to talk about this with Rom-san. But he seemed to say that you would be known as a candidate if that would happen."

"Well, this is not an issue right now, is it?" The candidate-to-be sighed, a smile on his face at the idea of his place in the election getting stolen by the golden-haired thief.

"I wonder how she will react to that." He thought, an amused grin on his face. "She would probably riot."

"…You are not thinking of meeting the Duchess, are you?" Reinhard inquired, a bit of worry in his voice.

"Not necessarily meeting her…" Subaru said as he seemed to search for something with his eyes on the different shops nearby. "But just…You know, buy something maybe."

"Buy something?" Reinhard asked again, surprised.

"You never offered something to a girl? Ah, even though Miss Karsten isn't just a girl, she is a noble too…" Subaru closed his eyes, thinking. "What would she appreciate as a gift…"

"…I honestly couldn't know. This much is unfortunately out of my past experiences." Reinhard admitted, truly lost on what to do.

"Oh, so you never offered anything to a girl? Really?" The shut-in-neet raised an eyebrow of a surprise to the redhead beside him.

"Is that…Surprising?" The knight asked with an uncomfortable face.

"Looking at you?" Subaru laughed off. "And your title as the Sword Saint, I'm honestly surprised no one out there tried to hit on you yet."

"I am sorry, I fail to understand what you mean by that…" Reinhard spoke with hints of confusion and… silent dimming of the light in his eyes at the way Subaru called him the Sword Saint. There were others before him…

Subaru stopped in his tracks for a moment, gazing at his friend's eyes for a few seconds. While he thought that he would get along with his jokes, Reinhard seemed like he was clueless about what Subaru was talking about.

"Wait…You never been in a romantic relationship? Have you ever loved a woman?" He rubbed his head, asking a legitimate question that just came to his mind.

"I… am not sure I understand…" Reinhard tilted his head, expressing his worry.

"You know? Meet a girl that would make your heart flutter…Someone you want to protect and care for…Maybe even marry her and start a family together? If we go further than that…"

"Ah, I understand what you mean." Reinhard smiled in relief, finally able to reply properly. "While it is common for nobility to be in early engagement like you refer to, I have yet to be in anything of the sort for now."

"…That is not what I meant…" Subaru frowned; a bit troubled by this answer.

Suddenly, he widened his eyes, seeming outraged. "Rein, don't tell me you are just waiting to get in a matchmaking or something…"

"I am sorry…?"

"Are you just about to sit there and wait for your father to point towards a girl you have to marry?" Not taking any gloves, Subaru decided to be straight in his words, hoping to get a reaction.

"…Yes…" He answered, not sure if this was the correct word Subaru wanted to hear.

"What?!"

It was visibly not.

"I will be engaged to whoever my family assigns me to…I sure hope to be a satisfactory husband."

"…"

"Subaru?"

"Yeah, no. Nothing." He waved off, shaking his head with a tired smile. "Like that would ever happen."

Not really knowing what to answer to that, Reinhard simply kept silent and followed the steps of his master, still eyeing around him in the hope to find something that would be satisfactory.

"Now I realize that even though I was about to give you lessons…I've never really been there yet either…" He said as he scratched his head. "So far, I've only ever made chocolates for my mother during Mother's Day, along with roses…"

Suddenly, Subaru widened his eyes, a smile of hope on his face as turned to his friend with bright eyes.

"That's it!" Subaru exclaimed. "Flowers!"

"Yes?"

"All girls love flowers, right? There we go! I can just offer her a bouquet of roses!" He said cheerfully.

Thinking for a brief moment, Reinhard nodded his head in acknowledgment, believing that this much should be enough.

"This sounds like a good idea, Subaru." He brightly answered.

"Now, we just need to fin-"

Before finishing his words, however, Subaru's attention was taken by a familiar sight on the side of the streets, a young boy he recognized with his ears down, running towards a direction with what seemed like a bag he was carrying.

"Subaru?" Reinhard called, following the candidate's eyes to the young demi-human running.

"Now I remember what I had to tell you…!"


"They seem to be taking their damn time!" A little blonde exclaimed, pouting in her seat.

In the Astrea yard seated alongside Rom, Felt sulked with her hand, head leaned on the table, seemingly bored and blaming the candidate and his knight for being absent for this. Of course, it would be a lie to say that she wanted to see them only to kill her boredom as her scarlet eyes reflected her worry.

"Now, we don't know what Astrea's situation was all about," Rom answered, leaned on the table with a hand under his chin.

"You think it was that serious?" Felt meekly asked.

"If that tough green-haired one was there, kind of." Rom sighed with something akin to distaste.

"Eh? You know that big knight?" Felt said in surprise, turning to her old man.

Rom glanced at her with an uneasy look as he closed his eyes, clacking his tongue to the memories of his old days coming back to him.

"I used to." He finally answered, not wanting to go any deeper in the subject, something that Felt understood.

"I-I see…"

Seeing the touchy subject she was engaging in, the little blonde decided to not prey any further in it and turned towards the yard again, expecting the both of them to come back under her sight.

Felt knew that old Rom had a past he was keeping for himself, after all, everyone had their secrets. She also knew him enough to know when there was a subject he wasn't fond of talking about.

"…"

"You okay Felt?" Rom called, seeing how the little girl kept sulking.

"I don't know…I have a kind of bad feeling for some reason…" She admitted, closing her eyes and letting her arms fall limp on the table, not feeling like being as cheerful as she usually was with that weight on her stomach.

"A bad feeling?" Rom replied, tapping the table with his finger as he kept his gaze on the sight of the yard.

"This is about these two?"

"…I-"

Before she could speak, the golden-haired girl's attention was taken by the sound of a carriage approaching and parking in the yard before them.

"Uh?" Felt narrowed her eyes in curiosity while Rom raised his eyebrows in surprise.

The carriage that stopped was a noble one, its style, its shape, and its colors were nothing alike of a merchant or any casual commoner could afford.

First thinking of a member of the nobility who would have come to meet with the Astrea's, Felt's eyes took a very displeased, or rather, disgusted feeling and already thought of going away and not meddling with it.

Until the door of the carriage opened, giving place to a silver-haired woman going out of it, accompanied by a pink-haired maid, someone both the giant and the ex-thief recognized right away.

Immediately, the little blonde's face took a far happier expression as she ran to the carriage with glee.

"Big sis!" She yelled while waving her hand.

"Eh?" Emilia widened her eyes in surprise, staring at the girl running up to her. "Felt-chan?!"

"It's good to see you again!" She told her, clearly happy to see the half-elf safe and sound.

"L-likewise!" Emilia replied. "But what are you doing here?"

Emilia's eyes turned to the giant coming closer to greet her as well, a welcoming smile on his face as he was glad to see one of the people he owed his life to.

"Hehe, big bro kind of took us in after he came back from your mansion," Felt explained, rubbing the back of her head.

"Subaru did?" She exclaimed in surprise, her amethyst eyes shining in near admiration for the boy's actions.

Truth is that Emilia herself felt like she should have done something for the giant and his granddaughter. She was still partially responsible for the destruction of their home after all. Even though Felt was the one who initiated all of this by stealing her precious item, she was still a victim of Elsa too, in the end.

"The boy thought my old self and this little one would be useful to him," Rom explained with a snarky voice.

"Yeah yeah but wait!" Felt waved off, focusing on Emilia." Why are you here big sis? Is this for him?"

"Y-yes!" The elven princess stuttered. "I came to see him, to discuss our camps and alliance's matter!"

Ram glanced towards her mistress with thoughtful eyes, as she noticed the glint of excitement in her voice when she mentioned the alliance and therefore, the black-haired candidate.

"I see! Big bro did tell us you two were in some kind of a truce!" Felt said with a hand on her chin, nodding as she remembered him mentioning Emilia when he recruited her.

"Yes…So…" Emilia pondered, her eyes raising towards the mansion and wandering around, trying to catch any signs of Subaru or his knight.

"The boy didn't come back yet, princess." Rom informed, "He and Astrea are just about to come back though, maybe we should wait for them inside."

"Yeah, you're right!" Felt exclaimed back." Let's go inside big sis!"

"I see…T-Then I will gladly accept your invitation." Said the half-elf with happiness beaming off of her face, under the suspicious stare of Ram.

And thus, they started following them both inside of Astrea's mansion, the pink-haired maid being the last, who slowed down in her tracks to turn towards the visible capital.

"Surely, you must have a good explanation for your actions, Barusu."

Once inside, Emilia let her mouth fall in awe at the rich, elegant, and noble interior of Astrea's mansion. Sure, she was accustomed to what kind of style could be provided to nobility thanks to her sponsor, but when Roswaal was a Margrave, the Astrea was far more.

"Yeah, I know it's impressive but in the end, it's nothing more but a show, just for the sake of it." Felt shrugged off.

"It's the first time ya here princess?" Rom asked, noticing the half elf's surprise.

"Yes... I have never been or seen any noble house of the first and second district, so to be in the Astrea's mansion above everything, this is quite the feeling even to me…" Emilia explained.

"I don't get what's so special about this mansion, it just seems like a boring place to me." Felt sighed in disappointment, her hands behind her head.

"The Astrea family is not akin to any other noble house of the kingdom." Spoke a strong, womanly voice.

All eyes turned to the side, seeing a rather old woman coming forward, alongside a manservant of the same age, both coming closer before bowing in respect with the utmost elegance and etiquette a servant of nobility should have.

None of their movements was lacking, everything was proper and gracious, so much that Ram herself gave a nod of acknowledgment in respect.

"Emilia-sama, candidate for the throne of the 42nd ruler of Lugunica, we welcome you into Astrea's humble domain." Spoke the woman as she raised her head.

When she did so, Rom instantly looked the other way, avoiding her look by all means as he felt nothing but distaste when he did so.

The feeling was of course mutual.

"Thank you for receiving us in such a courteous way," Emilia answered in a bright voice.

"Yes. On behalf of lord Roswaal, we thank you for your hospitality."

Upon hearing the name of Roswaal however, the old woman's expression softened, a small and nostalgic smile slowly forming on her lips.

The man by her side simply smiled warmly.

"I see. It is indeed true that the both of you are coming from lord Roswaal's domain." She said in a much gentler voice.

Her sudden change of tone and expression, which didn't go unnoticed by the little group in front of her, awakened everyone's curiosity.

"Do you…Perhaps know lord Roswaal?" Emilia asked innocently to the lady.

"Not the actual lord Roswaal." She answered, turning around and leading the way to the guests. "But I do have a certain history with someone who bore that name, somewhere in the past… 2 generations away already."

Emilia and Ram, both acquainted with the history of the kingdom, widened their eyes in surprise when they understood the meaning behind those words, while Rom simply grimaced in a rather disgusted way. Towards whom, however, this was unknown.

In the end, all simply stayed silent.

"Please, follow us. We will bring you to the living room." She concluded, escorting everyone.

Following the servants, Emilia, Ram, Rom, and Felt arrived in the large and luxurious living room.

As they all took a seat, the servants left and came back with a plate on which they brought tea and snacks for everyone.

Preparing the table and serving everyone with expertise, the old woman had a neutral expression on her face during the entire process, to show her professionalism or for another reason, as she didn't turn her eyes towards the old giant when serving him, only a few knew.

However, the clear resentment they had for one another, was obvious for everyone in the room. But since they stayed silent about it, not one felt the need to point it out.

As such, when they were sure the guests had everything they needed, both the butler and maid bowed in respect and took their leave, allowing the group some privacy.

"So, Felt-chan, Rom-san," Emilia called with eagerness in her voice. "What are you two doing here?"

Felt, visibly taken aback by this question, looked to Rom in confusion as she didn't understand the correct meaning behind what the half-elf meant.

"I'm not sure I get it…" She said as she scratched the side of her head. "I told you, big bro took us in…"

"Oh, I'm sorry! Hum…I just wondered what your role by Subaru's side was!" She clarified, satisfied by her new precision.

"I…"

While the clarification allowed the little blonde to understand the half-elf question better, as she was ready to answer…Reality came back to strike her, as she came to the revelation, the realization…

That her role by Subaru's side was unknown.

"I…Don't know actually…" She weakly answered, her gaze fixed on the ground, trying to think things through.

What did she ever do for Subaru?

"Eh…You don't?" Emilia innocently questioned, not understanding one bit of the conflict that arose in Felt's mind.

"Er, we have no idea how we got here princess." Rom intervened, actually noticing his granddaughter's troubles. "He just decided to take us in randomly after…Meeting us again."

"But why would he do that? It sounds a bit sudden, I think…" Emilia thought, a hand on her chin.

"W-wait, what do you mean!?" Felt exclaimed as she started to perk up.

"Ah! I think Emilia-sama wonders if Barusu forced you in any way." Ram explained.

"What?!"

"Ram-san!" Emilia yelled, turning back to Felt while waving her hands.

"This is not what I meant at all, Felt-chan! I know Subaru isn't that kind of person!" She justified herself. "B-but this was still a bit…odd…So…

"He didn't do anything of the sort." Rom grunted, a bit displeased by how they spoke about the young candidate." He came to us, offering us a job and a possibility to join his camp. We accepted."

Even if she was slightly relieved to know the truth behind this, hearing the distaste in the giant's voice made her eyes look down with a glint of shame.

"Oh? And in what manner are you showing yourself useful to Barusu? Ram asked in a disinterested tone, obviously hiding other thoughts.

"That's the thing." Rom sighed. "Still have no idea what he meant by that. So far the only thing I did was crash here for free and put him into trouble."

Even if he seemed to be smiling, the last part of his sentence let out a tone of guilt, which didn't go unnoticed by the maid and the little blonde, who flinched upon hearing this as the memories of the bedridden and wounded Subaru played in her mind.

"Ah. Then he most certainly just took you in because he felt pity over you two." Ram answered in a cold tone.

"Hey!"

"Ram-san!" Emilia exclaimed, a feeling akin to outrage and shame filling her heart.

"What is it, Emilia-sama?" The maid nonchalantly replied. "I am merely stating correct facts. What's more is, regarding your last words, I suppose you were involved in the incident that, most certainly, caused him to be wounded, if not worse, correct?"

While Emilia was focused on wanting to reprimand Ram for her rather unrespectable behavior, her gaze immediately shot back to the old man when she heard her making mention of Subaru being involved in something.

"What does that mean?" She asked in worry.

"Hey, wait a sec!" Felt shot back, standing in front of her grandfather. "Why are you looking at him like he's the one who did something to big bro?!"

Hearing this much, Emilia somewhat gained her composure back, blinking several times and uneasily clearing her throat when she realized how offensive she might have been. Strangely, she quickly wondered why she acted this way, and the answer fell right from her servant's mouth.

"Because clearly, Emilia-sama is worried for her ally and I, for the actual benefit that this one would bring to lord Roswaal." She continued, not impressed by the golden-haired girl showing her fangs.

"The hell does that mean?!" She growled at the maid.

"Do I really need to elaborate?" Ram spat with a glare towards both the giant and the little thief. "Then let me make this clear."

"What kind of follower brings more harm than good to their master? And thus, what good could an alliance with them bring?"

Speaking cold and bitter words, purposely meant to hurt, Ram stood her ground with a pressuring and piercing gaze towards the giant and the thief, making sure her words would make the desired effect.

"Wait a moment." Emilia cut her. "Ram, I don't know what you're aiming for…But, I still would like to know what you meant just now…About…"

Even if she was hurt and troubled by the maid's words, Felt wasn't lost in the maelstrom enough to not listen and notice what was happening.

She immediately raised her eyes in fury, shooting the pink-haired Oni, eyes threatening.

"You're saying Old Rom is responsible for what happened to big bro?!" She shouted.

"I didn't say anything about it." Ram calmly answered, clearly unimpressed by the little girl. "He did, himself."

Still receiving nothing concrete as an answer, Emilia just looked back and forth between Felt and Rom, her amethyst eyes reflecting worry for the boy she befriended.

Clenching her fist, Felt kept glaring at the maid with her teeth gritted, nearly growling like an animal.

"Oh? First, you are not of any use, then you manage to put the one you support into trouble, and now you threaten a guest, ally, and candidate, behind his back?" Ram commented in boredom.

"So far, the only one I wish to threaten is you, haughty bitch!" Felt spat out, fearlessly showing her disdain towards the maid.

Rom faintly grunted, not happy to hear his granddaughter say such words. Though, he understood why she would.

"And now, you're insulting said guest?" The maid shot back.

"You have no right to speak when you insult big bro every time you mention him!"

"Yes. I have earned that right."

"What the hell do you mean?!"

"Enough!" Rom and Emilia both yelled, taking them both off guard.

"Ram, you're going too far!" Emilia reprimanded.

"Felt, calm down now," Rom said as he tapped her shoulder.

Ram turned to the half-elf, bowing her head as she apologized for her behavior, while Felt simply clicked her tongue, turning her head away in disgust.

"Now…" Emilia said, noticing how everyone fell silent.

"Can anyone tell me what…Happened to Subaru?" She asked worriedly, her hands on her lap shaking in anxiety.

Felt's face slowly turned dark, her angry expression fading away as she remembered once more the state of Subaru and the events in question.

In her rising sadness, she turned her face towards the giant, wincing with equal pain and guilt for what happened to him.

"Felt-chan…" Emilia called again, pleading with the little blonde to tell her what she wanted.

"Listen, princess." Rom decided to speak.

"I got into trouble like the old fool I am, and the boy, he came in to save me." The giant explained, gently squeezing Felt's shoulder.

Emilia's eyes widened in shock, both in worry and surprise to hear that Subaru saved the giant.

"What happened? What kind of trouble?" She continued.

"The kind of trouble that could have cost my life." He said as he winced.

"…"

The elven candidate was left speechless, her mouth left open as she tried to seek the correct words to pronounce to him. In the end, she knew there was nothing to worry about since the old man was alive and well before her, but there was something that was left to say that still weighed on her.

"Then…" Emilia started.

"Barusu risked his life to save you and fix your mistakes." Ram continued for everyone, her voice ringing loud in the giant's ears, who only looked down in shame.

"What?!" Emilia gasped in fear, her pupils shrinking in shock as she shivered in place.

"Subaru did what?!" She yelled this time, directed towards the giant.

"Princess, I-"

"I don't want to hear any justifications!" Emilia exclaimed with worry clear in her eyes. "What happened to him?! What is this story of 'risking his life'?!"

"You…Didn't hear about it?" Felt asked, a glint of surprise as she knew the story of that tavern spread everywhere.

"Hear about what?" Emilia replied in a hushed tone, the situation becoming very stressful for her.

"The tale of the black swordsman and the Duchess," Felt said in a calmer voice, noticing the uneasiness of Emilia. "I thought…everyone heard about it by now…"

Emilia kept her gaze fixated on the little blonde, trying to search in her memory if she ever heard about anything of the sort, which of course she did not. Therefore she turned to Ram, her eyes showing a glint of hurt towards her, as she realized her servant knew about this story and kept silent.

"I am sorry Emilia-sama." Ram said as her eyes met the candidate. "But Ram didn't find it wise to tell you about it, before having any confirmation that it was really about Barusu."

"So…This is pretty recent, isn't it…" Emilia said, her voice showing a bit of resolve.

"Something like 3 days ago," Felt replied. "I'm still impressed how they made a tale about it this quick…"

"This was in the capital, and the Duchess herself was involved," Rom explained to everyone. "Of course, this would make much noise."

"Ram…" Emilia asked with a more composed voice. "Do you know this tale?"

Ram nodded her head, taking a sip of her tea before sighing tiredly with closed eyes, remembering the story, the boy she interacted with, a sentiment of annoyance and anger filling her mind as she imagined him risking his life for something so insignificant.

"Wait, you know the actual tale?" Felt questioned, eagerness slipping out of her tongue.

"I do," Ram answered. "I heard it from a passing bard in the village."

"Didn't you hear the story yourself?" Rom said with a raised eyebrow.

"I heard you telling it to me, I didn't hear the tale…" Felt said as she rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

"The tale of the black swordsman and the Duchess." The maid started. "Speaks about a building situated in the slums of the capital, a tavern, which suddenly got caught in a wave of flames, burning the wooden structure and threatening the lives of every soul misfortunate enough to be trapped in it."

This was nothing but the beginning of the story, and the half-elf royalty already felt a weight growing in her heart, her eyes wide and afraid, for the lives of the people trapped in it and of course, for Subaru, that would somehow be involved in this.

On their side, Rom turned his gaze away in shame, biting his tongue in disgust to his own self for what was to come, as Felt clenched her fists in anger, the maid's words only bringing her memories of her wounded grandfather and big brother.

"Thankfully, the people inside immediately noticed the smell of ashes and burning wood, which made them all flee their seats in fear as the fire, powerful and wide, spread at such great speed, that in a matter of seconds the entire place was already engulfed by the heat, dark smoke, and flames." The maid continued, as a glint of relief was perceived in Emilia's expression.

"However." Ram cut. "The chance of fleeing the place wasn't given to everyone. As those who came out last claimed to have heard the screams and voices of yet living souls inside of the burning furnace."

The faint smile that could have barely been perceived on Emilia's face completely faded away in an instant.

"This was far, far too late. The terrible flames which already grew so much gave no chances to the trapped ones, and no strength to anyone, to even try to help them. All hope was seemingly lost. And many were those who already grieved in respect for the lives of the unfortunates."

This part precisely made the little blonde grit her teeth in fury. Stories and tales were always written in a way to please the audience and hide a more ugly and disgusting truth. A truth, only those with experience could speak about, a truth Felt knew only too well.

"No strength and no hope...Grieved in respect…" She growled furiously for everyone to hear. "What a goddamn joke! No one gave a freakin' care about those who were trapped! They were just glad it wasn't them!"

"Felt…" Rom whispered, a hand on her shoulder, trying to soothe her nerves.

"It's true!" She shot back. "I hate how they are trying to make everyone look like compassionate and good people like they would have done anything even if they could!"

"What do you mean…?" Emilia asked her innocently, a confused and worried tone in her voice.

"Let the maid finish the story first," Rom said, waving off to the half-elf. "That's another matter, princess."

Even though she felt a bit unsatisfied, Emilia nodded in acknowledgment to the giant. She knew that this was more important right now.

"And thus…When there was nothing but pain, helplessness, despair, and grief left to those who watched the fire swallow the building whole…Out of nowhere and as the tale dare say, unpredicted by any odds, to the divine dragon itself…A man, wearing black apparel and a sword at his belt, fearlessly jumped right in the sea of flames, before the eyes of everyone to see."

Even though this story was supposed to be a painful memory for Felt and Rom, both couldn't help but chuckle and scoff at this part.

"Eh, that part sounds nice…" Felt whispered.

Emilia however, faintly gasped with a hand on her mouth, realizing that this description was referring to her dear friend.

"Before this act of bravery, many were those who stood confused, and ashamed. Because even in front of such courage, they still stood paralyzed by fear. That was until the sound of a mighty and commanding voice, coming from a woman with a will and presence unmatched by any, rang in them to rise and stand. To quit being spectators, powerless and afraid, and urge them to follow her will to put an end to the flames." Ram paused, as everyone waited for her to continue with bated breaths.

"The Duchess Crusch Karsten herself."

"Crusch…Karsten?" Emilia uttered with eyes wide, remembering the green-haired candidate.

"What was Duchess Karsten doing here?" She asked with a questioning expression. "Did she know about Subaru coming here?"

"She met with the boy before he came to the tavern," Rom spoke out, earning the shocked eyes of everyone.

"What?! I didn't know that!"

"Subaru…Met the Duchess, Karsten?"

"How come? They know each other?"

Before the storm of questions, Rom put his hands before him, grunting with a troubled face to the storm of questions he received.

"Hey, hey, I have no idea! I'm just telling you what I know! He met with her before he came to the tavern, and apparently, he asked her for help."

"He asked her…? Hold on a second…" Felt noticed, her red eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Much like her, Emilia's expression showed how much confusion arose in her mind, there were so many questions she wanted to ask, so many answers she needed, while the story didn't even end yet.

"Let's resume the story, questions will be for after." He nodded to the maid.

"Very well." Ram sighed, clearing her throat elegantly.

"Hearing the voice of the Duchess, all those who once let fear take them over, stood up on their feet, feeling their willpower coming back under the Duchess's voice, determined to do their best to aid the black swordsman in his task."

"And as all did their best to stop the flames, a silhouette appeared, of a man carrying a giant on his back, out of the burning inferno." Ram continued, glancing towards the giant.

"It was you…Rom-san?" Emilia uttered, her heart beating in fear.

Rom did nothing but nod his head slowly, his eyes closed, making his shame and guilt apparent for everyone to see.

Ram narrowed her eyes a bit to this, having a clear understanding as to why he bore such an expression. He knew himself what kind of danger he exposed Subaru to. He felt guilty for what he felt like he caused. Which was not unnecessarily untrue in the maid's eyes, her belittlement was foremost to see what kind of people the black-haired boy chose to be by his side after hearing this story. But now, she also knew that what she heard was close to nothing out of the real story.

"When they all watched in awe, the figure of the black swordsman carrying the giant out, the Duchess ran to his side, helping him in his task." Ram continued, Emilia, sighing in relief with a hand on her chest.

"That was until like hearing a cry for help only he could perceive, the black swordsman turned around…And stepped into the raging fire one more time, before the very eyes of the Duchess and everyone around her."

"What?!" Emilia exclaimed, her voice echoing in the room. "Why would he do that?!"

Emilia's hands were shaking, even though she knew this story was passed and Subaru was okay, she still felt the fear taking her over to the simple idea of him carelessly facing the flames.

"W-was there…Still someone…?" She asked, turning to the giant, who nodded to her.

"If it was bravery or foolishness, no one knows. But the act of sheer will one had, to risk his life for the sake of another, didn't go unnoticed by the Duchess who courageously raised her voice once more, ordering her followers to not give up the fight."

"Damn, that Duchess is cool," Felt said with a nod of acknowledgment.

"But the flames, growling and raging, managed to burn the ceiling and make it crumble before the only way out, trapping the swordsman and the poor soul inside of the furnace." Ram continued as Emilia stared at her in alarm, her lips trembling.

"This was seemingly nothing close to the resolve of the swordsman, who simply decided to make his own way out," Ram said, earning Emilia and Felt's intense eyes. "By breaking down the burned walls, pulling the man out with him."

"Holy shit!" Felt let out in awe, turning to the giant. "You didn't tell me that either! Is that true?! Big bro broke the wall?!"

Emilia only stared at her maid in shock, unable to close her jaw after hearing this part of the story.

"And this is how, the black swordsman and the Duchess, side by side, came to the aid of desperate people in the bottom of the capital slums, leaving no one behind for the flames to feed to."

"Yeah, they made confusion more beautiful or somethin'." Rom scoffed, remembering the situation to be much more chaotic than heroic.

"So Subaru…Risked his life to save them…Alongside Duchess Karsten…" Emilia whispered, her voice giving no hints regarding what she felt.

She was impressed but…She also seemed somewhat displeased.

"May I ask what you mean by that, Rom-san?" The maid asked, curious as to know the giant's version.

Emilia suddenly raised her head to him as well when she heard this, realizing this was one of the many questions she had.

"You said Subaru risked his life because of your mistake…" Emilia perked up, trying to urge the giant for an answer.

"I was trapped," Rom said tiredly. "They tricked me into joining them here."

"Why?" Emilia asked as she was the only one who didn't know yet.

"Let's just say they had some personal business with me," Rom said, not wishing to say anything that might be too much for the half-elf.

Hearing this made Felt turn to him in pity, still angry for the unfair treatment he received, as Ram simply nodded her head faintly, acknowledging the giant's choice to conceal the truth.

"But then, how did Subaru know you were there? Did you speak with him about it?" Emilia continued, accepting his explanation.

Felt immediately perked up to that, remembering this was the same thing she wondered earlier and expecting an appropriate answer from her grandfather.

Rom raised his eyes to Emilia with a thoughtful expression, silence taking over the room as all eyes were turned to him, waiting for an answer.

"I didn't…" Rom uttered, looking at the little blonde. "I only told Felt that I was going in the slums…I never said anything else to anyone."

"So how did Subaru know you were in danger then?" Emilia thought out loud. "You just said you were going to the slums, right? But earlier you said that Subaru asked the Duchess for help…"

"Then, this means…" Ram answered with narrowed eyes.

"That big bro knows something…" Felt continued, concluding the thought of everyone.

The room fell completely silent after that. The last words Felt spoke managed to echo within everyone's heads, leading to believe in a way or another, that Subaru might be hiding something or even, be involved in what happened.

"Alright, no." Felt voiced loud, taking everyone out of their thoughts. "This is like, totally stupid. No way big bro would ever have something to do with that. I'm sure there is another explanation."

Emilia stayed silent, slowly clenching her dress in anxiety upon hearing Felt's commitment to defend Subaru. She wished to be the one saying this, but the truth was that she had no way to do so.

Rom only scoffed in amusement. He found it funny that people managed to doubt the black-haired candidate.

"You seem to be rather confident," Ram replied with her characteristic cold tone. " Too confident, even."

"Say what?" Felt answered, unimpressed.

"This is clearly suspicious. The mere fact that he managed to rush there, reached the place on time while knowing the old man was in danger without any way for him to know…"

"So, you believe that big bro is involved with what happened to Old Man Rom," Felt cut her.

"I believe there is a possibility." The maid answered. "The mere fact that he is a candidate, meaning he has to appeal to the people for example-"

"Yep, that might be why I really can't stand you." Felt cut her again as she shook her head.

"And what does that mean?" The maid replied.

Felt opened her eyes, smirking in confidence as she raised her finger and pointed at the maid.

"Because you're doing nothing but speaking bullshit over someone you don't even know!" She exclaimed.

"Because of course, you know him well. Someone who just recently took you in, and which you didn't even know existed before nothing but 2 weeks." Ram reprimanded.

"Yup! I know him, for exactly this reason!" The little blonde answered in confidence.

Both Emilia and Ram widened their eyes to the little blonde.

"Because I've been living under the same roof as him. Because I've been hanging out with him every day, because I've spoken to him day and night, getting to know him more and learning more about things that would blow your mind if ever you would hear of it!" She said out loud with a smile. "All things that you didn't do, all things you missed out!"

Emilia kept staring at the little girl speaking, her mouth open as if she wanted to say something, while the words simply wouldn't come out.

But it was simple.

She was envious.

This speech, right there. She had to be the one to say it. She wanted to be the one who says it. She wished to be the one, to be able to speak those words.

If only…

"If…I had taken him with me…" She thought to herself. "If I had insisted on housing him…"

Ram did nothing but listen to the little girl. Her head was down low with strands of her hair covering her eyes.

"That's exactly for that. I know him. If not entirely, at least better than you. And that's why my voice will always be higher, better, and stronger than yours when it comes to speaking about him!" She concluded, standing proudly before the maid.

"Because I believe him!"

"Believe him…?" Emilia whispered, her eyes directed to the ruby-colored pupils of the little blonde, reflecting the fire and will she held for every word she spoke.

The old giant kept gazing softly towards his granddaughter, a proud and fond smile on his face.

"…I see," Ram said as she raised her eyes towards her. "Truly, you speak with a passion that I cannot understand."

"Trust me though," Felt replied, still with her smirk. "You would perfectly know how stupid your "possibility' is if you would know him as much as I do."

"I wonder what is giving you such resolve to believe he couldn't even be slightly involved in this." The maid questioned, eager to see what she would respond to.

At this, Felt simply scoffed, crossing her arms under her chest as she confidently stared right in the eyes of the maid.

"Because big bro is a good person. As simple as that."

Slowly, a smile found its way on the maid's face. Taking a sip of her tea as she closed her eyes, remembering the few moments she passed alongside the black-haired boy.

"Hm…" The pink-haired girl gave a pleasant hum of acknowledgment at those words, dropping her nasty facade and showing that she had just been overprotective of the black-haired candidate. Rom could tell it was a test of personality made by the cunning maid to see how both Felt and the giant fared had anyone insulted Subaru.

"She's really outward about her care for dear friends, eh?" The old demihuman chuckled inwardly at the obscure way the girl behaved.

And this was enough for Felt to know she won.

"Felt, Rom!"

Hearing the shout coming from outside the room of a person they recognized, everyone turned towards the door, especially the little blonde and giant whom the names have been called, as the sound of footsteps came closer and closer.

"We all need to have an emergency meeting!" The speaker said as he opened the door. "We have a pr-"

And before he could continue, Subaru's voice cut short as his eyes met with the silver-haired candidate, looking at him with surprise.

"E-Emilia?! Ram?!" He yelled as his face turned red, hiding something behind his back. "What are you two doing here…?"

Reinhard, upon seeing the candidate and the maid, proceeded to bow in respect.

"Greetings, Emilia-sama, Ram-san." He said with a smile.

Emilia quickly got up to meet with her friend and ally, smiling as she got to finally see him again, all the while she had the story playing in her mind.

"H-hey Subaru…" She said, coming closer to him. "Hello, Reinhard."

As he saw her, however, he noticed something was wrong. Emilia was usually a smiling and cheerful beauty. Now, however, she seemed different, hurt, or even upset. And this was somehow directed towards him.

Subaru glanced towards his red-haired friend in the hope to acquire some help, only to be met with an innocent gaze.

"Ok, what did I do?" Subaru asked with a sigh, ready to accept his fate.

"What…?" The half-elf answered in confusion.

"I mean, you're clearly upset about something…So…" Subaru pointed out.

"Uh? No! No, no, no! I'm not upset…! Well, maybe a bit…" She replied, her voice becoming lower and lower. "A tiny bit…"

Subaru glanced towards his two camp members situated behind, looking for a hint, anything, to help him find the answer about this.

"Ah! You have yet to be out of your problems, Barusu." Ram stated, not bothering to turn around, calmly drinking her tea.

"What does that mean?! Why do you speak like I just did something to you?!"

"Subaru." Emilia intervened, looking up to him with worried yet determined eyes. "Can we talk…?"

"So, what was all that about?" He asked in innocent curiosity, now in his office with the half-elf.

A part of him was worried as to why Emilia got so serious, while another was trying to muster enough courage to not show how embarrassed he was to be in a room alone with the silver-haired beauty.

"Subaru…" She said, looking right in his eyes. "I heard about…Your actions in the slums."

Subaru widened his eyes in surprise to her, trying to find the appropriate words to explain.

"You heard the story from Rom?" He ended up asking, scratching the back of his head.

"No…I heard the tale." She replied, anxiously playing with her fingers and avoiding his look as if she tried to hide something.

"Ah…" Subaru meekly whispered. "This tale spread this fast uh…"

"Mhm…"

"Well…What did you think?"

"Uh?"

Emilia suddenly raised her eyes to him, as Subaru waited for her to answer with a shy grin on his face, his cheeks faintly red as he expected praise to come from his elven friend.

"Well, what did you think of the tale? I haven't heard it fully yet, but I'm quite confident that I looked super cool in it, right?" He explained, raising his voice in cheer to get the lady's attention.

"You…" She said with confusion. "What does that mean?!"

"Wha…"

"Are you taking pride in what you did?!" Emilia inquired furiously, stepping closer to him. "Do you even realize how dangerous this was?!"

"Emilia…"

"What if you were killed in there?! What if things wouldn't have gone as they did?!"

Suddenly, like triggered by the words of the half-elf, Subaru's face took another shape, something akin to outrage, or anger…As memories flashed in his mind. Of a reality that indeed, didn't go like the one he was in.

"And what the hell do you want me to do…" He uttered, his eyes showing a fire that managed to send chills down the spine of the silver-haired princess.

"I…"

"No, come on, I want to hear it." He voiced louder, now stepping closer to her. "Since you seem to legitimately come after me for what I did, surely you had a better idea at my place. Come on, enlighten me."

"W-well…You could have called the guar-"

"No time. No one was around me when I needed them, if I went to search for them, Rom would have already died from blood loss in that tavern." He cut her, his voice unchanged. "Anything else?"

"…W-what about Reinhard?!"

"He wasn't there. My fault I admit, but I didn't know Rom was getting tortured in a cave when I told him to do something with Felt."

"T-then-"

"Then what?" He cut her again, in a dry and bitter tone. "Then what, Emilia? Do you think I didn't try another solution when I knew he was in danger?! Do you think I bluntly decided to rush inside a place on fire because I was in a mood for it?! You think I wanted things to turn out like this?!"

"…"

"I am not like you! Not like anyone here…!" He growled, his fists shaking in frustration. "I am not as fast as lighting, or able to use any power or magic to help me!"

"…"

"I tried." He whispered. "I really did. I tried other ways, I tried asking for help, I tried to parlay…And all of them would ultimately result in Rom's death."

"How…Could you know…" She said, confused by Subaru's words.

When Subaru looked up to her, his eyes met with the amethyst color of hers, reflecting something he quickly understood.

Fear.

She was afraid of him.

Taken aback by what he saw, he turned his gaze away from her, harboring an expression of pain that the half-elf was herself quick to notice.

"I'm sorry…" He sighed. "I-I just…"

"Subaru…" She said as she came closer to him, reaching his chest with her hand.

"Why do you seem to be…In so much pain?" She hesitantly spoke, trying to appease him.

Subaru simply stayed silent, trying his hardest to begone his bloody memories out of his mind. He knew that he was not reacting like himself. He knew something was wrong with him.

What caused him to throw fear in the heart of Emilia, was something he was the one and only culprit. No one had to pay or suffer for his doings… And especially not her.

But it was stronger than him. Like a fire raging, wrath only asking to be unleashed, every time he closed his eyes.

He could only remember.

"You killed innocent people."

Memories from another life, from another reality. But in reality, he had to live nevertheless. It was wrong to think of them as a nightmare or as "dark thoughts." It was so much more.

Oppressing.

Heavier.

Painful.

"Subaru…!"

Hearing the call of his name, he lifted his eyes. Full of pain, guilt, and hopelessness.

Yet, the half-elf still didn't know what to do. Who could blame her? While interactions with other people were already enough of a foreign thing for her, someone in a state like the one Subaru was in was nothing short of an impossible task.

Until she felt an urge to do something. Without really thinking, just listening to her instinct, a memory flashed in her mind of a similar situation.

She raised her white, soft hand to his face trying to reach his cheek.

Subaru's eyes widened, feeling the soft fingers of the silver-haired princess gently caressing his face. Her touch was cold, but somehow appeasing, soothing…And this same touch managed to uneasily have away the dark fog growing in the candidate's mind.

When his eyes grew to be softer, Emilia realized that she made it, and managed to bring Subaru back. Even though questions still stayed in her mind, she knew that a time would certainly come when she would be able to ask them and obtain her answers.

"Well…It took a whole other turn…" Subaru muttered with a smile. "I'm sorry you had to see this…"

"Would you stop?" She frowned with a hint of annoyance in her voice. "I would rather hear a 'thank you rather than a 'sorry' you know."

"While I'm sure this is certainly not what you were expecting when visiting this place..." He chuckled, taking the hand still against his cheek. "Thank you, Emilia."

"Mhm." She shook her head with a smile on her own. "You are welcome. Though, I would feel muuuuch better if you would tell me what happened to you."

Subaru glanced to the side for a brief moment, thinking of a way to describe his thoughts to her in the best manner. "Well, the capital of Lugunica proved itself to be much more stressful and eventful than I thought."

"I did hear this much." She giggled, holding a hand to her mouth.

"I did too. Though, I have mixed feelings about it." A voice echoed from a little figure above Emilia.

"Hey, Puck." Subaru sighed faintly, keeping his eyes away from him. "How have you been?"

"If anything, I have been in a much better state than you, I believe." The grey spirit answered, coming closer. "However, to go as far as to scare my lovely daughter, I hope you have a good explanation."

"Puck?!" Emilia intervened. "I-It's not like that…!"

"I understand."

Both Emilia and Puck turned towards Subaru, waiting for him to continue.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to appear threatening…It was just on the moment itself." He explained calmly, bowing his head down before the spirit.

"I apologize."

While it was true that Subaru gave off a dangerous aura when he spoke with Emilia just before, she was nevertheless quick to understand that it was not meant by him, that something was at fault.

This is what led them to have a wordless understanding of each other, while thanking her for appeasing his pain, Subaru was also thanking her for reaching to him rather than the opposite after he acted as he did.

For Puck, however, as a spirit linked to his contractor, this was different. He shared her emotions, not her mind, thus the only thing he managed to feel during this discussion was nothing close to reassuring to him.

This is why, even if Subaru added another "sorry" towards his silver-haired friend, he needed to apologize. For his behavior towards her, and towards Puck.

"Very well." Puck sighed, sensing the sincerity in the black-haired candidate's words. "I shall accept your words on behalf of Lia. Be grateful, Subaru. We can now continue being all chummy, though it would be wise of you to mind your manners in the future."

"…I saw what you are capable of with ice picks, and I would rather avoid that. So, I will take that advice." Subaru chuckled in response, earning a wink from the cat spirit.

"Was this really necessary…?" Emilia inquired to her father, an uneasy look on her face.

"I am sorry Lia, but understand that as a father, I have my own worries towards my dear child." Puck answered, smiling at her in the hope she would understand.

"This is not a big deal." Subaru intervened, trying to reassure both Emilia and Puck. "If anyone would have acted this way with someone close to me, I would have certainly been a bit mad too."

"I am happy you understand my point so easily, Subaru!" Floating around the boy, the cat cheerfully mused.

While in her mind her father's actions were not what she would call necessary, Emilia decided to keep these last thoughts for herself as she saw the situation before her to be already solved.

"Well, was there anything else you wanted to talk about?" Subaru asked her.

"Mhm." She shook her head. "This was all I wanted to ask about, since…"

"Since?" Subaru questioned, curious.

"S-Since we are in an alliance! Yes! I think that I have the right to know about my ally's actions in this election." She waved off, speaking as fast as she could. "Now, we should join the others. Yes, we made them wait for toooooo long. They will wonder what we are doing, or even be worried. Mhm."

Still, in shock at the speed at which she talked, Subaru slowly turned his eyes towards Puck, who seemed as uneasy as him.

"I guess she is simply not honest with herself…" The cat spirit laughed nervously, rubbing the back of its head. "We should get going too."

Nodding to his proposition, Subaru followed the steps of the silver-haired candidate, heading back to the living room where Ram, Felt, Rom, and Reinhard waited for them.

"You guys are done talking?" Felt asked as Emilia and Subaru entered the room.

"Ah, yes Felt-chan. It wasn't anything serious, just a small matter between our camps." Emilia summarized as she could.

"I see…" Regardless of her suspicions, Felt decided to shake off her curiosity as she turned towards Subaru. "So…You talked about an emergency earlier…"

Hearing her saying this made the black-haired candidate's expression change drastically, remembering once more the issue that he nearly forgot to mention.

"That's true, we may have a situation." He said with a much more serious tone, making everyone around gain focus on him.

"Hum…Perhaps you would like us to…Leave?" Emilia inquired with a hesitant voice, unsure if she had the right to listen to another camp's private matters.

Initially wanting to reassure her on that point, Subaru suddenly remembered his position, the election, and its meaning. While he certainly wanted to keep Emilia close, the fact that she was opposing him in this competition for the throne was also true.

Thus, certain decisions had to be taken. It was not a question of wanting it or not, but rather a question of image and professionalism. What kind of leader would remain as an open book to his opponents, as friendly as they are?

"If I may, Emilia-sama…" Reinhard intervened, unsure about what he was about to say." But…While I certainly appreciate your visit, may I ask…What led you to it?"

First confused by the Sword Saint's words, a glance from him was enough for Subaru to pick up on what he meant.

"The rules of the election…" Subaru said in a low voice, still hearable by everyone.

"What?" Felt raised a brow, still confused. "What's about it?"

Rom simply sighed with a hand on his forehead.

"H-Hold-on! I didn't break the rules!" Emilia contested, trying to keep a composed voice despite feeling a bit pressured. "The rules state that the candidates shouldn't meet before the election, to prevent any fights or assassinations attempts…But I already met Subaru before! And we are in an alliance, so we know each other well enough!"

Throwing a glance at each other, both Reinhard and Subaru stood confused and dumbfounded before her words.

"Emilia…Did you come to this conclusion by yourself?" Subaru asked, suspicious.

"Well…No. Roswaal is the one who said it was okay."

"What the hell is that clown on?!" Subaru yelled immediately, as Reinhard sighed in exasperation.

On the side, Ram simply narrowed her eyes threateningly towards him.

"Eh? What? D-don't tell me…"

"It doesn't work like that, Emilia-sama…" Reinhard said in a tired voice. "I had already warned Subaru-sama when he came to visit you…"

"Nah, I was not an official candidate yet, technically this was legal." Subaru shot back in a haughty, disinterested voice.

"Well…Then why are you all butthurt about this?" Felt intervened, deadpanned.

"Big bro isn't declared yet, right? So the situation is still the same. You can easily cover that up by saying they visited the Astrea mansion for the sword saint." She explained, making Emilia look at her with hopeful eyes of not having broken the law.

Until she noticed that Subaru and Reinhard laughed uneasily, coughing in their fists and sweating heavily.

"What in the world happened now?" Ram voiced out, wanting an answer for that behavior of theirs.

"You guys are good?" Felt asked, troubled.

With one last look at each other, the candidate and the knight resolved themselves to explain the current situation.

"WHAT?!"

As the yell of the little blonde girl echoed in the room, a giant demi-human couldn't stop laughing from the back, trying to calm himself down, while Emilia had to muffle her voice with a hand on her mouth and Ram shook her head in disappointment, over the story they heard.

"Yep…" Subaru murmured with a smile of despair on his face.

"Aaaaaaaaah, this is why that tall knight talked to me when he fetched Reinhard! Damn it why are these guys so stupid?!" She whined with a hand on her forehead.

"Felt-sama…P-please avoid insulting the royal guards of Lugunica…" Reinhard interjected, wanting to defend his order. Even though one could argue she was in the right to use such a vocabulary to describe, this was still not their fault since nothing ever predicted a candidate could have been a male.

"Yeah, yeah."

"Y-yes…Felt-chan…Y-you can't say…T-that…pfft" The half-elf tried to speak, her face hidden down as she felt too ashamed to raise it.

"You know you can laugh right. No one will blame you at this point." Subaru pointed out, looking at Rom shedding tears of laughter.

"N-no…It is okay…I won't…Laugh…" She said in a low voice, her face red as she couldn't get the image of Subaru wearing a dress out of her mind.

"What a joke!" Rom exclaimed, finally calmed down. "So they took ya for the candidate eh?"

"Shut up!" Felt shot back in fury, feeling disgusted by the mere idea of having anything to do with the nobility of the country. "No way I am going anywhere near that!"

"Yeah" Rom sighed, looking up to Subaru." So what is your plan boy?"

Leaning back on his chair, Subaru sighed in as he chuckled in amusement.

"Well guess they'll have a surprise the day of the meeting." He said while looking at Reinhard, who smiled back at him.

"If I understand the situation correctly, the kingdom has been informed of the fifth candidate, is that right?" Keeping cold professionalism, Ram questioned the candidate. "Then, does it mean the election will begin?"

"…I suppose that Captain Marcos is on his way to inform the council of wise men," Reinhard answered. "We will certainly receive a letter informing us of the summon and its date."

Hearing this much made Emilia regain her composure, as she started to slowly clench her fists, realizing that this would mean the beginning of the election…And her competition against Subaru.

"Then does that mean that these two are really in illegality right now?" Rom pointed out, earning a flinch from Emilia and a stare from Ram.

"Either way, no one will know," Subaru responded immediately. "It didn't happen if no one was here to see it, right?"

"Why does it sound so bad?" Felt commented with a weirded expression.

"It only sounds bad when you point out it sounds bad!"

"I appreciate that you would try to look after me, Subaru…But it is maybe better if we go back to our own place now before causing any problems…" Emilia noticed.

"Come on, since you made it all this way already there is no need to feel chased out, you can stay for a little longer…" Subaru answered in an attempt to reassure her.

"Honestly Emilia-sama, at this point I believe that worrying over it is useless since you are already here. Please feel at ease." Reinhard decided to join in, reassuring the candidate.

"Yeah, since you're here, the deed has already been done, no need to spoil the day," Felt added to the group, wanting to reassure the half-elf just like everyone.

Rom did nothing but smile to show his agreement.

While she knew staying here was certainly not the wisest decision regarding her current situation, before everyone welcomed her, the silver-haired candidate for one of those rare times, decided to put her desires before what was right, and decided to stay, even if it was just for a little longer.

"Well…Then I suppose I can…Stay for a while." She said in an embarrassed voice, making the whole group smile.

"Subaru-sama?" A voice called from outside the room.

The candidate turned around to see the old maid making him a sign to come closer, which he did, and got out of the room.

"What is it, Carol-san?" Subaru asked her.

"I am sorry to disturb you Subaru-sama, but it is about the flowers you brought back, I was wondering if I should put them in a vase, or if you attempted to do something with them?" She answered, holding the bouquet in her hands.

"Ah, no, those are a gift for Duchess Karsten, I was supposed to deliver them to her but it looks like it will have to wait…" Subaru mused, scratching the back of his head in thought.

"I am afraid it will be problematic, Subaru-sama. If you wish to hand lady Karsten a proper bouquet, you must offer these as soon as you can." She noticed him, holding the flowers in her hands.

"Uh? Why is that?"

"These types of roses are beautiful, I have to command your eyes for this. However, they are also especially quick to wilt, Subaru-sama." She noticed him, showing him the bouquet closer.

"Ah, shoot!" Subaru muttered in panic. "I had to buy the ones that die quickly, I just had to!"

"You have no reason to be afraid, Subaru-sama. You still have a few hours ahead before they start to wilt. After that, we will have to cut the ends and put them into a vase with water if we want to keep their beautiful colors." She explained.

"…You seem to know your share about flowers, Carol-san," Subaru said, expressing his surprise.

Hearing this made Carol's face became softer, her smile becoming more genuine, as a wave of nostalgia slowly carried her to the memories of another time.

"Indeed...At the time, someone very dear to me…Had a particular love for flowers. Of any kind, any colors, and any shape. She would always cherish them…And share their beauty with us, her closed ones." Carol explained caressing the petals of the rose.

Subaru stayed silent, as he didn't feel like interrupting her.

"She taught me many things, one being that flowers have to be treated just like women. With care, love, and affection." She smiled brightly as she handed the flowers to the black-haired boy.

"Then she certainly was a marvelous woman herself." Subaru softly answered, taking the bouquet with his hands, and earning a warm giggle from the old maid.

"Then…What should we do? Put them in a vase so we can give them to her another time?" He questioned.

"If you plan to gift them, it will surely be more difficult to carry around, and also less gentlemanly." She smiled at him.

"Less gentlemanly?" Subaru chuckled, confused.

"My, Subaru-sama. Have you ever seen a man offering flowers in a vase? The proper etiquette oblige, you have to meet lady Karsten, salute her with a bow of your head, take her hand, put a knee down, and-"

"CUT! STOP STOP! I think you are thinking of another scenario right now!"

"Oh my, I am sorry," Carol said as she coughed in her fist with a small smile. "My old memories just came back to my mind."

"Don't include me in these kinds of fantasies! I'm way too young to think about asking the hand of a girl yet!" He protested, even if he knew that she was teasing him.

"Though…You got a point. I will look like an idiot if I ever do that. I have to offer them as a bouquet…But…" He wondered as he turned around. "I can't just leave my guests behind like that to go to Miss Karsten…And when Emilia leaves, it will certainly be too dark outside for me to show up at her home…"

"Hey, just hand the flowers to me, I'll go!"

Startled by the little voice speaking out of nowhere, Subaru quickly turned around to see Felt smirking at him.

"You scared me! Don't appear behind my back like that! And wait, what are you doing here?"

"You were taking too much time again, so I came to check up on you! And ended up hearing parts of your story, so don't worry I'll handle it!" She told him as she pointed to herself with her thumb.

"Mh…" Subaru hesitantly looked at her, not knowing if it was appropriate to send someone else to his place.

"I do not see an issue with it, Subaru-sama," Carol informed, pleased to see Felt propose herself to bring the bouquet.

"Come on! And you are an officialized candidate now aren't you? You can't just meet the Duchess!" Felt continued, pushing her point towards Subaru. "I will meet her for you!"

"Guess you're right…" Subaru sighed, defeated. "I will leave it to you then. Just hand her the bouquet, and say it is as thanks for the tavern. She will understand."

"Got it!" Felt cheerfully took the bouquet in her hands and went ahead. "I will be back in no time!"

Without waiting for another unneeded comment from the boy, the blonde ex-thief quickly made work of her legs and ran out of the hallway with the banquet in her hands.

"…"

"Subaru-sama?"

"Nah I am…Just surprised. I didn't expect her to be so adamant to do that." He admitted, turning to Carol, relief in his eyes.

"The little one just wants to be useful, Subaru-sama. You cannot blame her for that." The old maid explained.

"…"

"You thought you would simply get away by housing her and her grandfather with generosity?" She chuckled. "This little girl is not someone that would have enough by sitting down all day and getting pampered. She wants to do something, she wants to show that she is a part of this camp and not just a bystander."

She then turned towards Subaru, confidence in her eyes.

"Wouldn't you feel the same at her place, would you be a part of a camp instead of being its lead?"

"…Yeah." He whispered as he smiled at her. "You're probably right about that."

"Now you should come back to your guests, Subaru-sama. I will go ahead and prepare some snacks." Carol said as she tapped his back.

"Ah, you're right. Thanks, Carol-san!" He said as he went to the living room again.

"Well, that was long," Rom commented, seeing the boy coming back alone. "Where is Felt?"

"She went ahead to do something for me in the capital, she will be back soon."

Rom simply nodded his head in understanding, knowing it had something to do with those flowers he saw previously. He was quick to notice those were a gift, and he also knew to whom.

"It seems you have found a utility to this rude little girl," Ram added. "Certainly, running errands should be something she would be able to do."

Narrowing his eyes, Subaru looked at Ram strangely, as he glanced towards Reinhard and Emilia to see if those two had the same feeling as him.

"Okay? What does that supposed to mean?" Subaru picked up, his voice showing that he was not taking this lightly.

"This again?" Rom sighed, shaking his head.

"Ram…" Emilia called, wincing a bit.

Noticing that Reinhard was the only one to be clueless just like him, both candidate and knight deduced that something happened while they were away.

"Did something happen between Felt-sama and Ram-sama?" Reinhard inquired.

"Well…-"

"Nothing more than a disrespectful little girl towards a guest of the house," Ram spoke for herself.

"Disrespectful?" Subaru picked up, looking at the maid in curiosity. "Felt?"

"And who else? While you might be in this category as well, the world doesn't turn around you, Barus-"

"How?" He cut her, in a more serious voice.

Ram simply narrowed her eyes.

"Felt isn't the kind to get spiteful or anything of the sort without a reason, you know," He told her with confidence. "I doubt that she went on her way to be disrespectful out of the blue."

Rom scoffed as he nodded his head to the boy, happy to see that he would take this stance rather than immediately believing words spoken to him.

"Do you believe I am at fault?" Ram asked him.

"I believe that you didn't take any gloves to speak like you always do and ended up getting on her nerves." He voiced his thoughts.

"Ah, he got ya." Rom laughed.

"See?" Subaru said as he pointed at the giant.

"While you could be right, believing a situation in which Ram is at fault automatically makes you wrong. So by following this logical equation, you are wrong, disgusting, and a waste of your kind. You should proceed to die immediately for this crime."

"I thought I just ended up being wrong, but I get a whole package of cons with it…" Subaru replied in shock.

"You are wrong. The rest naturally comes around because your name is Barusu. It is exclusive."

"I kindly refused this honor, thank you."

"It is bound to you by birth. Too bad."

"You two are really going at it uh…" Rom intervened, both amused and wondering how far this could go.

"I still wonder when they grew to be like this." Emilia added with a nervous smile.

"Showing his ugly side to women is a habit of Barusu. Ram cannot say if this is a good one or a bad one, however." Ram shrugged.

"…Sometimes I wonder what a life would be under the same roof as you." Subaru shook his head.

"A definition of paradise for some, and nothing short of hell for me." She waved off.

"Saw that one coming from a mile away."


After a long moment of discussion together, everyone found themselves outside as the sun was on its way to going down, as Emilia and Ram were preparing to go back north.

"Felt's been away for a while now…" Subaru wondered as he looked at the sun, remembering it to be up when she went for the Karsten domain.

"Subaru?" Emilia called him. "Is everything alright?"

"I was just getting worried." He answered as he kept his eyes on the horizon.

"You know, Felt-chan is a veeeeery capable girl. I am sure she has a good reason to be late." She added in an attempt to reassure him.

"Yeah. You're probably right." He replied without a change in his tone.

As she had her eyes turned towards the horizon as well, Emilia turned towards Subaru when she noticed his tone…To see his expression being serious, and somehow, battle-ready.

"When I see you like that…I always wonder what kind of silly actions you are about to do." She whispered to him, smiling in the hope to make him smile as well.

"Why would it necessarily be silly?" He replied in a gentle tone, smiling at her as well.

"I wonder why, mister 'I jump into danger as soon as I see an opportunity.' " Emilia mused with her eyes closed and arms crossed under her chest.

"What can I say? I am unable to stand aside and watch." He laughed at her remarks.

"I would just hope that those situations wouldn't always be…So dangerous." She thought out loud with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"I am not choosing the situations I end up in, unfortunately, I would be looking for trouble if that would be the case, but it's rather the opposite. Trouble finds me…And I'm just a man." Subaru sighed, looking at the horizon again.

"If anything, I can confidently say that I have seen very few men have as much courage as you do." She said in a warm tone, attempting to reassure him a bit.

"While I do feel flattered, I would still rather be able to do something more than running…Maybe if I had my own grey cat to assist me or some magic tricks."

"Mh? You can't use magic?" She asked him in curiosity.

"…Well…I guess? Never really tried…" Subaru admitted.

"Well, it all depends on your gate, but since you have one you should be able to use magic…Though if you never used it before, it is difficult to know which magic attribute you have." Emilia explained to him.

"A gate…?"

"Yes. Mana passes through a gate within your body. You both draw mana in and expel it out through the gate."

"So it's like a faucet for MP's…Is this how you use your magic?" He questioned.

"Since I am contracted with Puck, I am not a magic-user but a spirit arts user. I draw mana from the atmosphere without using my gate." She explained with a raised finger.

"I see…So technically if I have a gate…I should be able to use magic?"

"Normally. But it would be wiser to know your attribute first in order to know which spells you could use."

"And can I know that?"

"I can help!" Puck added as he flew out of the crystal.

"You are still awake?" Subaru said with surprise as he looked at the spirit with confusion and unease. "I guess you still have time…"

"Merely something like a few minutes left, but I still should be able to do this much," He cheerfully added as he came closer to Subaru, putting the tip of his tail on his forehead. "Magic-users are divided into fire, water, wind, and earth attributes. Let's see what is yours!"

Subaru closed his eyes, waiting for the declaration of his attribute.

"Make it fire, make it fire, make it fire…!"

"Eh…" Puck heaved an uneasy sigh as he looked at the boy.

"Eh…What?" Just hearing his voice was enough for Subaru to know something was wrong.

"It's…Shadow."

"Shadow?! Where does that come from?!" He yelled in outrage, not remembering it to be mentioned in the list of attributes.

"Uh? Shadow? This is rare…" Emilia wondered with widened eyes.

"In addition to the four basic attributes, there's also shadow and light." Puck explained.

"Oh…Are those two the rarest attributes because they are the most powerful?!" Subaru added up in excitement.

"Well…With shadow magic, you can obstruct an opponent's vision, block sound, slow their movements, and things like that." Emilia explained to him, not really happy to break his expectations.

"…Only debuffs…" He growled between his teeth, defeated.

"Now, now. Every magic can show itself useful. It all depends on your training and abilities, of course. But you can still cast spells." Puck explained. "An easy one would be something like shamac."

"Oh…That's a blinding spell, right?" Emilia recalled.

"Indeed. Do you want me to show you, Subaru?" Puck added, coming closer to the boy.

"Hold on, Puck…!" Emilia tried to intervene.

"Sure! Let's see!" Subaru replied, ready to see what this spell was about.

Puck then raised his paw and with one straight movement, cast the spell on Subaru.

"Shamac"

Suddenly, Subaru fell into a void of darkness and silence.

He looked around him and saw nothing, he couldn't even see his own body, couldn't even feel anything.

He was left alone with himself.

He tried to scream, but he didn't have a mouth.

He tried to move, but he didn't have a body.

He tried to see but he didn't have eyes.

He tried to hear, but he didn't have ears.

There was nothing…But darkness. And himself.

Paralyzed. And alone.

And in the middle of this ocean of darkness…With nothing but his mind, he heard a voice. The one he feared, the one he heard every time he would close his eyes…

"It's you."

His heart started to beat faster, as fear overtook him.

"You killed them."

He wanted to run away, from this voice that was coming closer, and closer. But as he tried to move, he only felt his legs giving upon him, as he fell.

"You killed innocent people, kid."

"Aaaand that's enough."

And when he reopened his eyes, Subaru found himself kneeled down in the garden, a few meters away from both Emilia and Puck.

"How was it? This was shamac." The spirit cat continued.

Subaru simply breathed in and out slowly, gulping as he realized that this was only the result of the spell.

"Subaru? Are you alright?" Emilia called him, worried about his reaction.

"Y-yeah…I'm fine." Subaru said as he slowly got up, returning towards them.

"That was really something…I was really like trapped somewhere I couldn't see anything." He explained as he looked at his hand. "It does seem pretty effective though…Can I use that?"

"Well…Normally you should, you have to visualize the flow of mana through your body, then expel a part of it out of your body through your gate. But while I would be glad to show you how it's done…" Puck yawned as the sun started to set behind him. "It is, unfortunately, getting too late for me."

"Ah, don't worry about it then. Knowing that I can use magic is already good news to me! We'll practice that another time! Thanks again for your help, Puck." Subaru thanked the grey cat as he disappeared into his crystal, waving his goodbye.

"Rest well, Puck. Thank you for today." Emilia whispered to him.

"Now, it should certainly be time for me to go as well," Emilia said to him, noticing Ram waiting near the carriage.

"Yeah, it's getting late." Subaru nodded his head, but Emilia noticed something was wrong.

"Are you still worried about Felt?" Emilia questioned him.

"Yes…But I'm certainly worrying for nothing." Subaru smiled as he walked with her towards the carriage.

"Thank you, Subaru," Emilia told him with a warm smile, visibly happy with the time she spent here.

"It was all my pleasure, though next time avoids saying something like 'discussing our camps matters' when you just want to see me." He teased her, noticing how red she became.

"T-This is not a joke! This was really the reason why Roswaal told me I should meet you!" Emilia contested a bright blush on her face.

"I see, I see. My bad then." Subaru laughed, as Emilia huffed and entered the carriage.

Closing the door, Subaru walked a bit upfront to meet with the pink-haired maid.

"I hope you had some fun too, Ram." He smiled at her.

"Nowhere near it. But at the very least, it managed to kill a bit of my boredom." She coldly stated.

"Ah, glad to have been useful then." He replied as he handed her his hand to help her climb the front of the carriage.

Raising an eyebrow in surprise, she quickly changed her expression for a smile on her own, as she delicately accepted his support and took her driver seat.

"Anything else you wish to say, Barusu?" She inquired from him, noticing the worries behind his smile.

Subaru nodded his head as he looked up to her with determined eyes.

"Keep an eye out on the road. And go straight home as fast as possible. If anything happens, come right back here." He said in such a serious tone that even Ram felt taken aback.

She stayed quiet for a second, gazing deep into the boy's eyes, before acknowledging his words with a nod.

"Very well. I shall be on guard then."

"Thank you," Subaru told her as he stepped back. "Take care."

And as the carriage departed, Subaru and Emilia's gaze met one last time, sharing one last smile, before the carriage rode away.

Subaru stayed before the gates of the manor for a moment, until footsteps came closer to him, being the red-haired knight.

"Subaru…" He said in worry.

"You didn't find anything?" He said as he turned back with worried eyes.

"I quickly looked around the nobles district, I couldn't find her anywhere…Perhaps she is still at the Duchess' domain." Reinhard informed, looking as worried as his master.

"Yep, no choice then, let's go." He said as he gestured to his friend to follow him.

"You want to visit Lady Karsten…"

"This is no time for rules, Rein." He told him in a voice mixing his fear and determination. "I told you about who is out here in the capital and Miss Karsten is our only hope to get anything on Felt right now."

While he was torn up between his code dictating him to follow the rules of the kingdom and his master's orders, Reinhard couldn't deny that there was a real danger prowling in the capital and that Felt could be targeted by it.

In the end, his decision was already taken the moment he decided to follow Subaru.

"Hold on you two!" A strong voice called from behind, coming from a giant.

"You two are about to look out for Felt?"

Both knight and candidate nodded to him.

"Alright. I'm tagging along," Rom replied, coming towards them.

"…Yeah sure, the more we are, the better are our chances to find her if she's not there," Subaru admitted, welcoming the old man to follow them.

"Even if she told me that she wasn't here for me…" He thought to himself. "But why would she be here for Felt…? It makes no sense to be contracted to kill a kid from the slums…Unless it's her revenge, but then I should have been included…"

He couldn't help but think about this entire situation is somehow related to him as a cause, and this thought slowly ate him from the inside.

"I might have messed up…I might have messed up really bad…" He wondered as he gritted his teeth, the memories of Elsa and the death of Felt flashing in his mind.

"Subaru?" Reinhard inquired, noticing that his candidate was awfully quiet.

"No…It's too early to think like that…" He shook his head. "Sorry guys, I was a bit lost in my thoughts for a moment. Let's find Felt."

When they reached the streets of the capital, it was already dusk. The number of people in the streets started to reduce, while shopkeepers would close their business today and retreat to their homes and families.

However, there were still a good amount of people outside, showing that Lugunica could show itself to be quite lively even at night.

"Lugunica never sleeps uh…" Subaru thought out loud.

"Some people are more used to daytime, and others to a darker atmosphere," Reinhard added as he glanced around him. "As long as they do not commit any crimes, they are free to do so."

"This is not the most reassuring of times though, trust me," Rom said in a warry voice, inspecting his surroundings.

"Nighttime is also when the wolves are out to play. Even if in their cases, it would be much closer to rats than anything." He spat, remembering some of the people of the slums getting their hands in dirty business.

"I guess…" The black-haired candidate replied, looking around him. "Which way is the Duchess' mansion?"

"Up this way." Reinhard pointed towards an upper road, leading to another part of the noble district.

"This is not really far from our place…" Subaru mused out loud. "There is no way Felt would have taken this much time to just give her some roses…"

"Please…Felt, be safe…"

While they were on their way, Reinhard suddenly stopped making a sign for the two others to stop as he heard something.

Up to the place they were, no one seemed to be around. There was no one but the three of them standing in the middle of the streets of the noble district as silence panned all around them, while the Duchess' house was right around the corner.

"What's goin' on?" The demi-human giant urged impatiently, keeping his growl in a low voice. He couldn't hear anything. It was quiet. Dark.

"...!"

"What's going on?!" Rom picked up the immediate widening of Subaru's eyes.

The boy didn't reply as his head zipped towards the direction of what he noticed. As Rom kept his quiet and focused on the small brick wall that formed a corner for the clean marble streets.

All it took was a second for the faint to hear it. A distant broken stream of sobs coming right from behind that corner. It was a girl's sob.

"Damn it…" Rom's grumble was the coldest, darkest thing Subaru thought he'd heard in a long time. Even including all of his loops. And the boy didn't fault the Old man, his blood was raging.

But in the split second the boy and the giant had realized it was a girl that was sobbing, their feet were one second later than the Sword Saint's.

Not losing any time, Reinhard leaped towards the sound coming from the house to find its source, as both Subaru and Rom followed him.

"Subaru-sama!" He exclaimed, making Subaru and Rom rush their way towards him.

And when they reached him…They saw the little thief, hidden behind a drapery she was covering herself with.

"Felt?!" Subaru yelled as he precipitated on her, his nasty eyes widening in shock at her state and his teeth gritted with wrath. "What happened to you?!"

When she saw them, her eyes immediately leaked with tears of relief, her body was covered in blood and sweat, which alarmed the three of them. However, when she got up, the only thing she did was hold her arm, as she did her best to run towards them, her limbs shaking, ending up in Rom's arms.

"I-I-I…" She tried to speak between her sobbing.

"This is not her blood…" Rom informed after a quick glance over her body. "But her arm is…"

"She is petrified…Subaru…" The Sword Saint worriedly looked over her.

"Felt…" Subaru said as he gently put a hand on her shoulder "What happened…"

"T-They came from nowhere…" She said as she held her arm in pain. "A-And they…"

Rom growled as he looked towards Subaru in fury.

"She is shell-shocked, don't ask her to remember what she lived now!" He said to the boy.

Looking over her and her state, Subaru gritted his teeth as well.

"Are they still there…? Felt…"

Felt did nothing but nod her head, remembering how she managed to escape the manor.

"Rom, bring her back to the mansion. Inform Carol and Grimm, all of you stay on guard until we come back." He told him before turning to Reinhard. "We are going to Miss Karsten's."

"Very well." Reinhard nodded his head. "However, may I do something for Felt-sama?"

Subaru looked at him and then to Felt, before nodding his head, knowing he wouldn't do anything that would cause harm.

Coming closer to her, Reinhard raised his hand towards her and quickly sucked the mana in her, making her fall unconscious.

"I was careful to not use too much…" Reinhard informed Rom. "She should be able to rest better like this…I hope…"

Rom nodded his head as he carried Felt in his arms, looking over the two preparing to go the other way.

"Are you guys sure about this? So far this is not our problem…" Rom told them, hoping they would all come back to avoid anything dangerous.

"It became our problem the moment Felt got hurt," Subaru told him, noticing that he wouldn't back down.

"Alright, alright…" Rom nodded his head, not able to argue with that. "You two be careful then…"

Rom then went on his way in haste, while Subaru and Reinhard started to run towards the mansion.

"This became a real mess quite fast uh…" Subaru growled. "At least Felt is alive…But…"

"This is even bigger than we might imagine," Reinhard replied. "We are talking about an attack on a candidate for the throne…"

"We know Elsa wouldn't mind doing it, but it might not be her…" Subaru said as he remembered Felt's words. "She said 'they' meaning we are maybe talking about a group…Could it be an opposing camp? Like, another candidate?"

"I doubt any of the candidates would do that, Subaru. Attacking a candidate is the greatest crime one could do during the selection, especially when you hold the position of a candidate yourself."

"I figured as much…Though, whoever it was, we'll most certainly come to discover it soon."

When they arrived before the gates of the mansion harboring the crest of the lion, Subaru took a quick look at the mansion to see if he could spot anything unusual.

"I don't know if it's because we just rescued our own from here but, it does have somewhat of a sinister atmosphere." He mused as he pushed the gate to enter the courtyard.

He stopped right before setting a foot on the ground and looked at Reinhard with a falsely shocked expression.

"Oh look, Reinhard…" Subaru said as he stepped inside. "We're in. That's it, we broke the rules of the candidacy, we're outlaws now."

"Ah, that's it then. We are done for." Reinhard replied as he closed his eyes in mourning.

As confusing as it could have been for some, Reinhard was quick to understand that this was a friendly jab from his master, aimed to make him smile a bit to reduce the pressure they were feeling by coming closer from this place.

"Really feels like going into a haunted house…" He scoffed.

"Please, by all means, do not stray away, Subaru," Reinhard asked with a steady voice. "I shall deal with any foes that we might face."

"Yeah, got it." He said in a slightly worried voice. "Splitting up is always the cliché way to die in those situations, you're right about that."

When they reached the front door of the mansion, both candidate and knight threw one last look at each other before opening the doors and enter the mansion… And as soon as they set foot into the palace-like entrance, you'd have thought the two stumbled on a sight that made hell itself envious.

Traces of blood and dead bodies were all around the hall, mostly of servants of the mansion, all killed in different and gruesome ways.

"Fucking…" Subaru gulped as he saw the horrible scene, trying to steel himself from throwing up, while Reinhard looked at the bloody mess with horrified eyes.

"What in the world happened here…" The Sword Saint uttered, walking closer to the dead bodies.

Now in the middle of the scene, Reinhard kept looking around, inspecting each body with his heart beating so fast, the drums of each pulse could be heard by anyone standing next to him.

"Rein…" Subaru called, worried to see him in this state.

Clearly, Reinhard was looking for something, or maybe someone.

"I…I just wanted to see if…" Reinhard breathed out, as he didn't find what he was looking for.

Covering his mouth Subaru came closer to him, grabbing his arm and trying to drag him towards the stairs.

"We can't stay here. Come on, we need to see if there are any survivors…" He told him, in an attempt to get him out of this bloodshed.

"Maybe he feels guilty since he was not able to save them…As a knight, it has to be horrific to see this kind of sight…" He thought to himself as he glanced at his friend in worry. "Or maybe he was scared for someone in particular…"

"You are right…" Reinhard replied as he followed him. "We must see if Lady Crusch is okay."

Subaru nodded his head as he continued to go up the stairs with caution, being on guard for anything they could see, as the threat that murdered the servants of the Duchess might still be around.

When they reached the first floor, yet again traces of blood could be found on the walls and carpet of the corridors, along with destroyed furniture and traces of sword slashes, indicating traces of fighting.

"Looks like some people here were in for a fight…" Subaru said as he stepped forward to check the traces of fighting.

"Subaru," Reinhard called, stopping him in his tracks.

When he turned around, Subaru noticed Reinhard's face to take a more hardened expression as he glanced at his back. "We are observed."

"Oh my…And here I was confident in my ability to hide my presence, looks like even my best can't match the Sword Saint." A cheerful, feminine voice rang from the darkness as the sound of her high heels came closer to the duo.

"Why am I not even surprised," Subaru growled as he narrowed his eyes.

"It looks like your suspicions were right, Subaru-sama," Reinhard said as he put himself into a combat stance.

"Oh? Sama?" Elsa giggled. "So this boy became your master?"

"Indeed. As the fifth candidate for the throne of Lugunica, I have been bestowed the honor to be Subaru-sama's knight." Reinhard proclaimed.

"A candidate…? Him?" Elsa questioned with narrowed eyes.

"Surprising? I know, I know." Subaru shrugged with a sigh. "I didn't believe it myself until seeing that insignia glow but hey, I'm not complaining."

He stepped forward, just at Reinhard's level.

"So in the end, you were here for the Duchess…I have to say that I'm quite disappointed."

"Oh? Were you really expecting me to come for you again? My, what a greedy man you are. Wanting to keep all the attention for yourself." The dark-haired assassin smiled as she took her blade out of her coat. "But you shouldn't worry. I didn't kill anyone here. This kind of messy and unprofessional work is not something that I am keen on."

"Unprofessional?" Subaru questioned. "Are you referring to Felt?"

"I am, indeed. To think that they would have left a witness escape during their first mission…Truly a band of amateurs." Elsa gave a nod of approval. "I guess she won't be happy about it."

"What are you talking about…" He grumbled with narrowed eyes. "If it wasn't you, then what are you doing here?"

"Making sure that the job was done and…Cleaning after them if need be." She sighed, pointing towards them.

Throwing a last glance to Reinhard, this one stepped forward to face the assassin.

"Attacking a royal candidate is the highest crime you could perform in the kingdom of Lugunica, Elsa Granhiert." He said in a strong voice. "Therefore, I would recommend you to surrender while you still can. Otherwise, you will leave me no choice but to perform the capital punishment."

"I will happily decline and accept my fate then." She licked her lips as she put herself in position.

"Hold on…" Subaru intervened before the fight would start. "Elsa…Where is Duchess Karsten?

"Who knows?" Elsa hummed. "Maybe you could see for yourself."

And without waiting anymore, she jumped towards her target, going as fast as the sound with her blade pointed towards the knight's stomach, who effortlessly parried her hit with nothing but his wrist.

"Oh? Quite resistant, are you?" She commented before trying to strike him again.

"I am merely tougher than the average man." He off handily replied, parrying another one of her hits.

"Average man my ass!" Subaru yelled in thought, seeing him blocking a blade with his hands like it was nothing.

Behind the sounds of clashing between his knight and the assassin, Subaru looked around him in thoughts to do something, the previous words of Elsa still echoing in his mind. He was nearly sure that the Duchess was probably dead already…But just like he had a bit of hope towards Felt being alive, he felt like he needed to be sure of it for Crusch Karsten as well.

While searching for something to do, his eyes fell on one door, standing at the end of the corridor and seemingly in evidence from the others. When he thought about where the Duchess' room might be, he quickly concluded that it would certainly be the least commonly placed door from the others.

Walking a bit forward, his eyes stopped when he noticed the red color of a petal on the ground, right before the entrance.

Glancing to his back to see that Reinhard and Elsa were still in the middle of their fight and going at it, Subaru decided to go towards this door, rather than standing there, in the hope to find anything on the Duchess, and maybe help her.

When he reached the red petal, his heart started to beat faster, especially when he noticed the traces of blood on the handle of the door.

In front of it, he started to breathe loudly as he slowly raised his hand against the wooden structure, and slowly pushed to open the door, revealing what certainly looked like an office, with a desk with a giant symbol of a lion harboring the wall behind, and three couches in front of it.

Still illuminated by a lamp on the table, some parts of the room could still be seen. Showing a pile of papers and letters on the desk, along with a quill and spilled ink...And blood.

Following the red trail with his eyes, Subaru slowly went forward the desk to take the lamp in his hands, and illuminate the dark part of the room towards which he headed, to slowly reveal the legs of someone, wearing brown boots.

Subaru widened his eyes, gulping down in fear as he stepped closer. Soon, the light showed the blue color of a uniform, with the scabbard of a sword at its waist.

Wincing in pain as he already knew the result of what he would see, Subaru stepped even closer, and ended up in front of the body of the green-haired Duchess, lifeless, lying in a pool of blood.

"God damn it…" He grunted as he put a knee down.

Hesitantly, he reached his hand towards her neck, covered in blood as it seemed to have been sliced on the side, trying to check her pulse in one last attempt of hope…Only to be met with silence.

"…"

Closing his eyes in respect, Subaru stood up and put the lamp back on the desk.

"I'm sorry…Miss Karsten." He sighed, holding a hand to his eyes. "I'm sorry."

Shaking his head, Subaru walked back towards the door, ready to join Reinhard as he might have been done with Elsa…Until he heard breathing coming from behind which froze him in place.

Slowly glancing back, he saw a shadowy figure that began to rise, until reaching a height that stopped approximately under his neck, before leaping towards him.

Thinking quickly, Subaru projected himself on the side immediately, dodging whatever attack that was aimed at him, until the figure stopped and turned around to go straight towards him one more time, swift like an arrow.

Rolling on the ground, he managed to dodge this second strike, though not looking around himself, his side met with one of the couches, the collision stopping him from going further, and blocking him as a perfect target.

He saw the figure turn around and prepare itself for a third attack, only this time, he knew he couldn't get back up and dodge in time. Desperate, he still decided to try and get up as he used the ground as a support until his hand met with what seemed like a leather rod.

Rapidly taking a glance at his hand, he saw the golden hilt of a sword harboring a lion crest, lying just next to his fingers.

And without thinking twice, he grabbed the handle and brought the sword up, blocking the strike from a few centimeters of his face, and forcing it to retreat.

Using this opportunity to get up, Subaru kept pointing the sword towards it, narrowing his eyes as he quickly walked towards the door while keeping an eye on it.

"You're one of the killers, right?" He said as he panted. "I was stupid to think that you guys left the place already…"

"…"

"Are you the one who killed the Duchess!?" He asked in a tone of anger.

"…"

"I'll take that as a yes." He concluded as he kept aiming the figure with his blade.

"…You…Fell in it."

When he heard the voice, he figured this was the one of a girl. But as he stood there, confused by her words, he felt a liquid going down his neck, and on his arm.

"…What the…"

Turning his arm to the light, he saw a red color running down his hand.

Lifting his left hand to his neck, he felt the blood pouring from it, as he suddenly dropped his sword…And slowly, he was the one to fall.

"Too bad…But at least…You resisted longer than the others…" She whispered as she watched him bleed out.

Turning his eyes away from her and wondering what happened, Subaru looked everywhere around him to know if there was someone else, to see what killed him.

And as his eyes closed slowly, as the darkness began to swallow him, the only thing he perceived was a dim light, a thin silver line hanging up over his head, as blood dripped from it.

"You…Fell in it."

And as the darkness one over the last thread of the silver string, Subaru managed to deduce one last thought before the purple visions played.

"S-Strings?"

His last thought before the pain, the light, the image of the thin line that had killed him disappeared completely.

Replaced with the same accursed purple void,

In which a blurry vision, a faint noise,

and in which he finally concluded yet another failed loop.

Subaru Returned by Death. One more time.

"I'll be back in no time!" The excited voice of a little blonde he was all too familiar with made him open his eyes wide with desperation and hope.

He wouldn't fall this time.

To be continued…


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