Arc 1: A Parallel Paradise!

Chapter 6: In Which God Denies Thee, Paradise.

The sun was about to set on the horizon by the time they reached their destination.

Even though this place was off the main road, the atmosphere is overwhelming with gloom and depression.

It was as if this part of the city was sick and dying, and there was no sign of life aside from a few ragged looking adults and children here and there. The slum feels like an unborn infant in its mother's womb. Still and silent compared to the rest of the city.

The street they were walking wasn't far from the main route, but the bustling street from the previous part of the city felt faded with each step they took.

The pristine buildings from the main road that they have gone through are now replaced by rundown buildings and dirty streets. A vast contrast between the slum and the livelier part of the city.

"The air, the atmosphere, and most likely, the attitude of people living here is awful. Are you sure she's here?"

Subaru whispers to Satella as they pass by a rundown looking house and a woman peering and glaring at them through the window.


"It might be that Felt girl. You said a nimble little blond girl, right?"

The shop owner looks through the drawing of the blonde hair girl in his hand as his daughter hugged him, his hand resting on his chin as he looks at the drawing up and down.

The shop owner let out a sigh as he turned to look at them.

"She's well-known in the slums. Dunno where she lives, though."

His expression pretty much tells them to give up right then and there, as the slum isn't exactly a safe place. The little green-haired girl cutely jumps on her father's shoulder as she clung to him tightly.


They stop in front of a stair by a rundown small house. Subaru has tried to suggest to Satella that they should call the police or guard since the slum isn't safe, but Satella adamantly refused, even pleading with Subaru to not ask for guards help because of a reason she couldn't disclose. So, Subaru gave up on the thought and agreed with her, it isn't Subaru's place to get more people involved. She has troubled her enough.

―We will be alright, right? We're already saved the little girl…

Subaru let out a sigh as she watched the setting sun on the horizon. Uncertain expression returns to her face. The reason the slump seems to be dark wasn't because of its putrid smells. It's because the sun was about to set, and that was a red flag in Subaru's mind.

"Maybe, someone will tell us if we ask." Satella suggests as she watches the poor people around them.

"No one would sell one of their own, So I don't think that would work." Puck said, giving advice to Satella, his normally energetic voice is replaced with tiredness.

Subaru turned to look at Puck resting on Satella's shoulder, the cat looked like it was about to fall off from her shoulder at any moment as it nodded sleepily.

"Maybe we should come back later."

Subaru suggests as she feels concern for the cat's health, add to the familiar dread atmosphere from earlier that she feels after reading her White Book, and the red flags in this scenario. To put it simply, Subaru is paranoid.

"Whether you should stay or leave, you should decide quickly. I'm almost out of time."

"You're what? Out of time?"

"I have a cute appearance, but I am a spirit. It takes a lot of mana just to appear in physical form."

Puck said tiredly as he leans against Satella silver-hair, nearly dropping himself to the ground.

"So, at night, I return to the crystal I was summoned from and prepare for the emergence of the sun." The cat was so tired that it closed its eyes as it snuggled against Satella's hair before continuing.

"On average, my ideal staying time is from about nine to five."

"Nine to five? You sound like a civil servant. Employment terms for spirits are more severe than I thought…" Subaru mutters, trying to dispel her worries by making a light joke, yet worries and concern filled her voice.

"We'll be fine without Puck. We have to move forward." Satella decides to go through. Her tone suggests there is no room for argument.

"Yeah. But sorry… I'm at my limit…" The cat yawns before its body suddenly becomes transparent.

"It's almost like he's dying when he disappears…" Subaru muttered as she gazed at the scene.

"Sorry to work you so hard, Puck. We'll handle things from here, so get some rest."

Satella pulled out her necklace that had the crystal and held it on her open palm as the cat slowly made its way toward the crystal.

"Don't do anything reckless. If it comes down to it, use the Od to summon me again."

Satella nods.

"All right, take care of the rest, Subaru."

With one final wave toward Subaru, the cat disappears in a glowing light as its body becomes small particles. Then all the particles rush toward the crystal. Subaru was amazed as this is the first time she had ever saw Puck doing something spirit-like.


As they walk through the slum, they stop on a small bridge as Satella suggests that she will be asking lesser spirits for guidance.

Subaru slowly stops and turns to look at Satella as she watches the setting sun.

"Lesser spirits?"

"Lesser spirits are beings that haven't become spirits yet. They grow over time, and when they gain strength and self-awareness, they become full-spirits, like Puck."

Satella explains before closing her eyes in concentration then she chants unknown incantations.

Suddenly, colorful balls of light, the size of a small fist appears around them. Subaru look on amazed at the display of magic, reminding her yet again, that she is far away from home, from her family.

Subaru remembers her time asking around the slum, for some reason, the people around the slum are more friendly toward her than Satella.

Back in preschool, Subaru was a cute child. "His" hair was long, and "he" was often mistaken for a girl. Given her current circumstances, fate and the passage of time is sure a cruel one. For she has become a real girl instead, like fate had played a cruel joke on her. She wonders how her parents will react to her if she ever comes back, which she doubted she would, but she buried this thought deep within her.

Apparently, the people acting friendly toward her instead of Satella wasn't because she looks pretty or anything, it's because she looks like them. The bandits did a number on her clothes, so she looks like she's come from the slum herself, compared to Satella who looks quite rich and regal.

Subaru sighs as she watches Satella communicate with the spirits around her.

With nothing to do, Subaru produced the white book again, and turned to the next page, however what she saw turned her expression into puzzlement and anxiety.

―What the hell does this mean?

There on the next page of the book was confusing words that's read.

[SYNCHRONIZATION ERROR] [REDACTED] [SYNCHRONIZATION NOT MATCHING]

That was what was written all over the next page, as well as the rest of the pages as Subaru skimmed through it.

Subaru stores the book inside her plastic bag, as her heart beats faster. She dearly hopes that everything will be going smoothly and that the book is not broken.


By the time they reach the inner part of the slum, the sun has already set, and the moon steadily rises in the sky, shrouding the hidden part of the city in darkness.

"It's getting lonelier and lonelier." Satella mutters as she tries lightening up the mood.

"Does she really live in a place like this?"

"The lesser spirits say they saw someone who looked like Felt coming in this direction…"

Subaru gazes at the incoming ragged looking man, he has brown hair, and a red scarf was wrapped around his neck, and as they walk past each other, Subaru suddenly stops and calls out to him.

"Hey, bro! Does a girl named Felt live up this way?" Subaru gives her brightest smiles trying to win over the man.

This is the tactics they've been using to gain information since they first set their feet inside the slum. But this is the first time that Subaru just went and said, "Hey bro, how's life." And it seems to be working right now.

"Huh? Felt? Nothing that way but Old Man Rom's loot house."

The stranger put his thumb under his chin.

"Did Felt steal something from you guys? Well, go try and negotiate to get it back. Live strong."

With that he leaves them. Subaru and Satella looked at each other and nodded.


The moon hung high in the sky by the time they reach the so called "Loot House", and on the way to the loot house, Subaru and Satella has been discussing on how to approach and actually get back her insignia, since both of them are penniless, there be no way for them to get back her insignia with paying the stolen loot, and that's in itself is a problem.

Subaru glances at her cellphone in her hand that produces a flashlight, she herself has a way to secure money, but she's reluctant to use it, since this is one of the remnants from her old world.

"Why do I have to pay money to get back something stolen from me?"

Satella asks as Subaru peers through the window using her cellphone flashlight. The loot house itself exists as a place to hold loot, it was pretty tall for a building from the slum, and it's wide enough to the point where it looks like it could be a place for people to sleep and live.

Subaru wants to let Satella take the leads to the loot house since she feels paranoid with many red flags popping out, but since she doesn't want to burden Satella anymore, in their discussion earlier, Satella wants to leave Subaru out so that she will be safe. However, Subaru feels like she's going to be a burden if she doesn't help.

"Well, at any rate, leave this one to me. I'll negotiate with him."

Subaru assures Satella as they both look at each other. Satella had a troubled expression on her face before she reluctantly accepted Subaru's offer.

"All right, I'll leave it to you." She pauses before she continues.

"But… Just run away if there is any sign of danger and… I'll try believing in you." Satella finishes as she looks at Subaru seriously.

"Yeah, I will. I'll go in first. You stay outside and keep watch. I won't be back too late, but you can have dinner without me." Subaru tries to lighten up the mood.

With that Subaru makes her way toward the closed door.

"Don't say dumb things like that. Be careful." Satella berates her.

"Sure, Sure. Don't come in until I say it's all right, Satella."

Subaru turns to look at Satella who falls silent suddenly.

"What?"

"N-nothing. Never mind. If you get my insignia back, I'll apologize."

With those last words, Subaru nods as she slowly opens the door.

"Excuse me…"

No one answers her greeting, just unnatural silence. The dread atmosphere thickens as her mind goes through the words in her book as she takes hesitant steps inside.

―What if it actually hasn't happened yet? What if the book actually warned me about this? What if the Old Man tries to attack me?

Subaru looks around the loot house, the loot house was filled with various kinds of armors and weapons, not to mention goods that can only be found in fantasy worlds. Subaru was quite impressed at this display of fantasy items, making her momentarily forget where she was.

A splashing noise forced Subaru to stop moving forward and inspect what she stepped on.

Her eyes widened as a gasp left her mouth, there, on the ground at her feet, was blood. Blood that seems to be recent judging by the severed big hand not too far from her.

Subaru takes a step backward, her breathing erratic as her mind runs through her book content and goes blank. Her shaky hand forces her makeshift flashlight to shake violently, showing her that, in front of her lies a corpse of a giant old man.

This is serious, unlike the time where she was robbed in broad daylight, now there was no one around her to help her except for Satella. And unlike robbing, this is a murder, which usually meant that death is certain.

"I-I have to call someone."

Subaru quickly turns to leave-

"Oh, dear, you found that? Well, I have no choice, then. Yes, I have no choice…"

A woman's voice calls out to her in the shadow, her eyes widened as she knows what is coming. Before she could even call for help, something with speed that breaks the sound barrier itself brushes past her, sending her rolling on the ground.

Her abdomen feels intense pain as if she were burned as she clutches it. As she clutched it something wet poured out from her wound, it was her blood. Subaru watches shakily as her blood starts pooling around her. Her tracksuit turned dark red and she coughed out blood from her mouth, staining her lip bloody.

Subaru knew what was happening, the Book mentioned about a maiden in need of saving. That maiden was Satella, not the little girl… How foolish she was.

"S-Satella…run."

She calls out weakly, hoping for Satella to run, to leave her behind and live. Unknown to her however, her action causes the half-elf girl to enter the loot house instead. Worries over Subaru's pained and weak voice.

"Subaru… Is something wrong?"

Satella asks as she enters the loot house. Subaru couldn't see what was happening, her body grew cold, her hearing slowly fades, she feels as if her life itself was slowly leaving her body, which no doubt is true. She couldn't afford for Satella to die here too, Satella should live, not Subaru.

In that moment she didn't know what came over her, whether it was her action, unknown instinct, or any other factors, she raised her arm toward the unknown assailant. A sudden heat begins to form on Subaru palm before a ball made of fire the size of a fist materializes.

It seems her action, driven by pure instinct or something else, has caused the assailant to pause in its advance, in that moment Subaru felt the ball weakly leave her palm and went toward the assailant, but in the end, the murderer easily dodges the pathetic magic.

But that's all she needs; this was enough to alert Satella to leave the loot house and call for guard in Subaru's mind.

"Subaru!"

Those were the last words she heard before her eyes closed, as the pale light of Satella ice magic flew past Subaru, the distraught voice akin to chime bell and the cold, whether it was from Satella ice magic or the last sign of life leaving her, it engulfs her completely.

―Ah…I'm a failure. I even failed to make Satella leave.

With that last thought in her mind, Natsuki Subaru died that night.


"Lo…Love…Love you…No…matter…what are you…Lo-"

Subaru feels like she was floating in an endless darkness when a voice suddenly calls out to her, a voice that sounds like a broken static record of a voice.

"This performance was lackluster, you disappoint me Natsuki Subaru…"

A voice that sounds eerily like her own suddenly cuts off the voice from earlier. The voice sound disappoints in Subaru.

"Oh well, I do calculate that you can't run from fate on your first run, anyway now that you and I are fully synchronized…"

The voice pauses, it sounds amused as it watches the motionless Subaru floating in the dark.

"You should die quickly so you could finally synchronize with my body but instead you tried to help that disgusting half-elf find her insignia."

The voice let out a sigh.

"Well, no one can escape from their fate, and that's boring to me. However, now…"

The voice pauses before continuing, its tone filled with amusement in it.

"Take care of my body will you… I can't wait to see how you grow, and I can't wait to see what result this will yield now…"

"Nonetheless, Welcome to this world, Natsuki Subaru."


"Hey, miss. Can you... leave? you're bad for my business…ugh"

Natsuki Subaru's vision slowly adjusted itself, in front of her was the green-haired vendor, his left hand was clutching his stomach, and his right hand shielding his mouth… in short, the person before her looked like he's about to throw up.

Subaru fell to her knees from the shock as memories from the previous encounter forcefully invaded her mind, like something pushed past through her brain despite her pain to fill her with knowledge.

Subaru's wide haunted eyes looked down toward her abdomen, her shaky hands shakily went to the hem of her tracksuit and shirt, raising it up to see her wound. However, to her shock, there was nothing on her flesh, no bloody scar, no open wound, only unmarred pale flesh.

"Stop trying to drive away my customers... And get out of my store!...ughk"

The store owner yells, snaps her attention away from herself as she shakily stands up. The store owner looks one step away from puking his food out. And Subaru noticed that people have been staring at her action, and they too look uncomfortable, like physically ill.

"I-I'm sorry!"

With that Subaru ran away from the fruit shop, her mind running through thousands thoughts.

―Did I die? Or was that all just a dream? Wasn't it night just now? What was that reaction?

Subaru also feels like she'd met someone somewhere, but she can't recall it. Like a dream that can't be recalled after waking up. She shook her head as she buried those thoughts away.

The White Book that predicts the future comes to her mind, if the thing that she experiences was indeed real…

Subaru didn't know what was going anymore, she just ran as everyone around her seemed to avoid her now, and that's what hurts Subaru the most.