I'd like to extend my gratitude to all the beta readers, including Nyarlathotep0307 and Anomynion! :)


The last thing he saw was the roaring figure of Volcanica before he felt himself falling into a void...

[omitted]

"You know what it is now… I'll see you eventually..." murmured Satella, and the boy felt a jarring jolt.

Waking up from what was a very long and eventful dream, Natsuki Subaru sat up slowly from the supine position he was in on the side of the street, receiving strange looks from the confused passerby who nevertheless continued with their lives.

I guess I'm homeless once again… and broke, too…hah...

Standing up, stretching, and yawning loudly, Subaru looked at the sky and noticed the same glaring sunlight as the moment he first was summoned to Lugunica, and purposefully began to stroll the nostalgic streets back to the familiar alleyway he had found himself in many times, taking a moment to catch the eye of a certain appa salesman who looked at his clothing with interest.

He began to consider the new situation carefully as he walked in the general direction of the alleyway. Maybe I won't smell of miasma anymore, since I can't die… but I can't die anymore either, can I? Hah, that's funny. I'd better account for Rem anyway, she might still think that I'm a spy. I'd better make a plan soon for the Sanctuary, as well… The most important thing, for now, would be to secure Reinhard for the loot house. As he moved through the crowd, nearing the location of the hooligans, he pondered what he would say to Reinhard upon seeing him again. And then a thought hit him like a brick. Rem. She'll have her memories back… and won't know me. This world truly hates me, doesn't it? He forced himself to stop thinking about those thoughts and focus on the issues at hand, moving faster with a burst of motivation from his anger at his situation.

Upon his arrival at the narrow backstreet, he found three leering gazes on him.

"As expected… " Subaru sighed.

"If you don't wanna get hurt, cough up whatever you've got!" yelled one of the thieves.

"You know… I heard the Sword Saint was patrolling this area today. Are you guys sure you wanna mug me right now?" Subaru slowly smirked while asking.

"What the hell are you rambling about?"

"That's crazy. He's bluffing - get him quick!"

Smiling, Subaru began to scream in a high-pitched voice before any of the nervous thieves could move closer. "Swooooord Saint! Please come save meeeeeeeee!"

The thugs blanched, looked at each other, then pulled out their blades, but before any of them took more than 3 steps forward, a tall, young knight with a head of red hair popped out from behind the corridor. At this unfortunate turn of events, the thieves exchanged astonished glances and promptly turned tail to run, losing out on a potential business prospect in a matter of seconds.

"Good thing you came to save me, Reinhard. Thank you for your help." Subaru grinned at the surprised knight.

"I'm glad we're safe … are you hurt anywhere? Also… I must ask, you seem like a foreigner. Am I that well known in … are you from Gusteko?" Reinhard spoke for the first time to this stranger, appraising the boy's relatively odd appearance. "And how did you know I was here? I'm not even on patrol… if you were relying on my being here, that could have ended badly." He looked at the teenager with a reproachful but worried, and mildly suspicious, look.

"Heh, no need to worry about that. You were free today, right?" Subaru confirmed, to which Reinhard responded affirmatively with an uneasy nod. "Well, it's good that I met you, as I've got important information that the Sage Council needs to hear- I'll need your help with an errand beforehand to get the message there, though," he added carefully.

Reinhard's eyes widened for a moment but quickly settled into an inquisitive gaze. "It seems you know a lot about our country, …" he paused. "Forgive me. It appears I haven't heard your name yet, although you know mine."

The boy held the silence for just a bit too long not to draw any suspicion, averting his eyes, but nevertheless promptly responded, "I'm Subaru. Natsuki Subaru. I, uh… It's nice to meet you." He cleared his throat and raised his face. "Anyways, we should hurry. I'll tell you the details as we go. There are some people in danger as we speak right now."

The knight sucked in a breath and replied, "Lead the way… Natsuki." Eh, it's my day off anyway. What could go wrong? He thought to himself.

The teenager gave him a glance filled with an indescribable emotion at the sound of his name and took off at a fairly fast jog, and Reinhard followed.

"I have a few things to say, so let me finish before you ask any clarifying questions, alright?" Subaru said. "Anyways, first off… I'm going to bring you to the Fifth Royal Candidate." Reinhard almost tripped and fell at this kind of ridiculous sentence he had least expected to hear from a random civilian, but Subaru continued without breaking pace. "Also, she is a thief living in the slums, so that's where we're heading right now. She stole something from another royal candidate, and they're being targeted by an assassin. That's the short version, anyway." Subaru thought about this for a moment. "Hm, that's an interesting coincidence, for a candidate to be robbing another one."

"Well, I obviously have some questions… but I'll put my trust in you for now," Reinhard responded, attempting to conceal his pure shock at the information dumped rather inconsiderately upon him by the (Gustekan? He still wasn't sure) man before him.

After running in silence for quite some time, Subaru spoke up again. "Ah, a few more important details are that the victim of the robbery hasn't made it to where the assassinations will occur. And that the assassin will target the royal candidates in the future, so you will have to kill her, as she is an active threat part of a larger group that will cause problems if not taken care of now."

Reinhard sighed. "Unfortunate, but I'll assume that you're correct for now," focusing on running and processing the detailed information being given to him in such a high concentration, only to be distracted by Subaru breathing a bit heavier than normal as he tried to keep up with the Sword Saint. They had been running for a significant amount of time by this point, and despite the fit body the young man seemed to maintain, it didn't seem to Reinhard like he was significantly physically strong, also, he had the hands of one who was rich enough to not work as a child to support their family. At the same time, he carried himself with quite a good form that didn't really match the trouble he was having keeping up. Interesting combination of traits, he noted to himself.

"Sorry, I can keep up… I'm a bit not used to this body, is all…" Subaru realized what he had just said. "Uh, don't worry about that."

Reinhard chose not to question that statement, which was even stranger than anything the stranger had said so far. However, he began to realize the gravity of the words Natsuki had spoken prior and questioned him, "Can we stop for a moment?"

Subaru gave him a slightly annoyed look. "I'm perfectly capable of… keeping up… " he huffed, clearly barely able to keep up, "Ah, do you have questions? Ask away! I'll answer while we travel, we don't have time to lose."

"The level of knowledge about this you have doesn't seem to make sense," Reinhard observed, "Do you have some kind of odd blessing?" Or are you a member of the assassination group? He posed the question as they continued on their way to the slums, beginning to move out of the clusters of buildings in the actual capital by this point and nearing the slum area.

Subaru carefully thought about the question before answering. "It's more like a curse… I don't know if you would believe this… but I've seen a bit of the near future. I don't think giving the details is a good idea at this time because you would need to have this information verified for it to matter anyway."

Reinhard raised his eyebrows. "Well, that is indeed difficult to believe… but if you do successfully find us the last royal candidate, that would probably be solid evidence. Theoretically, we could check with one of the candidates, Miss Karsten… hmm, who is the other candidate involved in this? And do you know the appearances of the new candidate and assassin?"

"Yep, it's the gorgeous candidate Emilia being the other involved party, and the new candidate looks a young blonde 14-year-old, named Felt. The assassin is Elsa… I'm sure you've heard of her." Reinhard stiffened for a moment in shock at the mention of the infamous Bowel Hunter. "There should be another person there too, an older man named Rom who is well-acquainted with Felt. Since Emilia is likely heading there right now as well, we might want to consider finding her because the assassin will prioritize her, but I'll follow your decision for this since you have the training for these kinds of situations."

"Yes, that would be a good idea- " Reinhard responded, only to be cut off.

"Ah, there she is!" Subaru seemed to forget his fatigue from running for a moment, running over to the seemingly frantic half-elf who had also reached the area where the capital began to merge with the slum sector. Strangely, she didn't seem to be heading to the slums - the opposite, in fact, Reinhard noted. "Hi, uh, Emilia," Subaru greeted the girl.

"Do you know me?" Emilia asked.

"Of course," responded Subaru cheerfully. "You're a royal candidate, of course, I know you. But that's not important right now. Are you missing your insignia?" Reinhard stepped up beside Subaru and greeted Emilia as well, and tried to conceal his surprise that her stolen object was her insignia.

"Oh! Reinhard-san, I didn't expect to see you here... " Emilia greeted him back, then turned to Natsuki Subaru to answer him with a puzzled expression. "Why would I be missing my insignia?"

"What are you talking about? It should have been stolen from you by a girl about … this high," Subaru gestured at about the height of his shoulders.

Even more confused, Emilia furrowed her brow and responded, "No, what are you talking about? I'm the one missing from Ram, not the other way around… " She sighed in exasperation. "I don't even know how I ended up here."

"I can help you get to your maid, if need be," Reinhard mentioned.

"We need to find Felt first, remember?" Subaru thought furiously, trying to puzzle out the implications of Emilia not having lost her insignia. The sky was painted with streaks of red and orange by now- There was no way that Felt shouldn't have been able to snatch the badge, he thought frantically. Is it Roswaal doing something? "And we'll need you, as well, Emilia, since it's your… ah, I have to explain this all again. Anyways, we need your help with something. We'll help you find Ram afterward. Reinhard, care to explain it to her?"

Emilia hesitantly agreed and Reinhard caught her up to speed with the updated information about the fifth candidate possibly being targeted by an assassin, reacting with shock as expected as they moved deeper into the slum sector.

"The fifth candidate was found? That's flabbergasting! How?" Emilia asked.

Who says flabbergasting anymore? Subaru thought to himself.

"Natsuki Subaru, him, says he knows the identity of the candidate," Reinhard responded.

"It's nice to meet you," Subaru smiled at the half-elf.

"... Likewise," Emilia said hesitantly. "How do you know? Because I remember the Council was soooo mad about it when their search failed and they spent sooo much money..." her voice trailed off as she looked with curiosity at Subaru.

Turning his gaze away from the familiar expression he had taken for granted with a nervous gulp, "I just got kind of lucky. I'll be asking for compensation later from the Sage Council, of course." Reinhard looked at the teenager with interest at the somewhat contradictory statement and started to put a few pieces together, realizing that based on his claims he had taken the risk in the alleyway due to knowing Reinhard's presence in the area. What is the extent of his knowledge? He wondered. Such details don't make much sense if he also knows about an event in another area, does it? Or maybe it does… gah, I'm useless. He said it wasn't a blessing, but a curse. Worst-case scenario… connections with the Witch Cult? His offering of help to the Council doesn't make much sense then, even if he is acting as a double agent. Additionally, he was wrong about Emilia's insignia being stolen, so I'll have to stay vigilant and confirm for myself what he's saying about the fifth candidate.

"Soooo... you want to check the new candidate with my insignia?" Emilia asked in understanding as they neared the loot house.

"That's right," Subaru spoke. "We're here." He walked up the rickety porch of the dilapidated building and knocked on the run-down door. "Oiiiii! Roooom! I know you're in there!"

"Does he know what he's doing?" Emilia whispered to Reinhard, who shrugged, the two of them standing back on the ugly, dead grass that filled the slums. Suddenly, very loud crashes could be heard from within the house and the door creaked open to reveal an aged giant who stood comfortably above 7 feet, bending his head down to fit beneath the doorframe.

"What do you want?" The giant grumbled. "If it's not important, don't be a bother."

"We have business with Felt," Subaru responded, and Emilia and Reinhard walked up beside him and greeted the giant as well.

Subaru stared in surprise as Felt walked out next to Rom with an expression of annoyance, murmuring tiredly, "Do ya know us?"

She's at the height Mr. Subaru said the thief was… the last candidate? Emilia thought to herself.

So this is the candidate? They don't seem to know him. How much has he seen of us four? Reinhard too was carefully considering the situation.

"Uh… yea, we have some questions for you, Felt. Can we come in?" Subaru answered.

"... okay," Felt suspiciously glanced at him but made way for the trio to enter the building.

"You must be joking…" Subaru quietly muttered to himself, drawing sharp looks of curiosity from Reinhard and Emilia. Why is she already here? He tried to hide his shock at the odd turn of events.

Once they were all seated, Subaru addressed Felt and asked, "Have you received instructions to steal something recently?"

Felt glared at him. "No. Why are ya bringing that up?! We're going through a bit of tough business right now, can't ya tell by the building?"

It then dawned on Subaru why the current present diverged from what he knew. Shit. I should have known…

"Subaru-san, are you alright?" Emilia asked, concerned at the horrified expression on his face, Reinhard looking with concern as well.

Subaru quickly replaced his expression with a smile, responding "Of course I'm alright! Also, you can just call me Subaru… ah, right, in that case… why don't you let Felt borrow the insignia for a moment?"

At Puck's reluctant agreement, hiding from within her hair, Emilia tentatively reached in her pocket and handed Felt the black badge, Reinhard watching carefully. Felt held it up, toying with the weight as it immediately glowed at her touch. "What is this?" she asked, peering at the shining red crystal at its center. Reinhard immediately moved and snatched the insignia from her, quickly handing it back off to Emilia.

"I'll be using my position as a Royal Guard to order you right now to come with me to the First District right now," Reinhard directed his order at the shocked Felt, who took a step back at the unexpected first words from the knight who began to exude a very powerful aura.

"What do you think you're doing?" Rom growled, stepping in front of the young girl.

"She needs to be transported to the central district as soon as possible. This is an order, not a request. As the Sword Saint, I recommend that you do not attempt to resist or I will be forced to arrest you. If you really feel so inclined, you may come with us." Reinhard answered steelily.

"Old Man, who do these people think they are to order me around like this?" Felt yelled indignantly.

Rom looked down at the knight and reluctantly voiced his opinion. "As long as I can come… I'll need to keep an eye on you to make sure you don't try anything funny," then turning to calm down Felt, "It'll be alright, I'll be with you along the way. Try not to worry too much," Felt calmed down a bit although she still seemed very on edge.

Subaru spoke up, addressing Reinhard. "We need to speak."

Reinhard nodded and the two of them walked off to the side of the room. "It seems like you were telling the truth, although it doesn't seem like there is an assassin, is there?" Reinhard checked.

"Yeah, that's the case. The future has already changed from what I know," Subaru laughed nervously, giving Reinhard an uncomfortable feeling he wasn't exactly able to place. "I know you'll have to take Felt to the Council immediately, but I have a bad feeling about the whereabouts of the Bowel Hunter...I'm going to need backup." Originally, Meili attacked the village regardless of Roswaal… I'm going to need backup for sure if Elsa is going to show up as well. I have only a few days to prepare… I have to make sure to get someone capable.

"I suppose that makes sense. You did mention something about a reward… " Reinhard responded.

"That's not too important right now… I guess you can give my name credit for finding her, though. I'll make my requests later. Is any capable knight able to face off the Bowel Hunter off duty around this time? Taking Ferris would likely be a good idea as well... and now that I've given you a reason to believe me with Felt, I'm going to let you know that there's going to be a Mabeast attack at Irlam Village in a few days- Elsa could be there."

"I'll put my trust in you," Reinhard responded, "currently… I can only imagine Julius being both capable enough and available right now… and, understandably, you need Ferris as well." He thought a bit before responding. "Why don't you head to Irlam? I'll be able to transport Felt quickly thanks to my blessings… ah, I have to account for bringing Rom." he said, appraising the size of the giant.

"This is the worst-case scenario, but if the attack has already started by the time we reach there- the future has already diverged from what I know, after all… then I won't stand a chance against the Bowel Hunter and Mabeasts. It'll be suicide." Subaru shook his head. "Your telepathy probably can't go that far to wherever Julius is, right?"

Surprise flashed across Reinhard's face, and he responded. "No, it can't. How would you know if I used telepathy in the future? That doesn't seem like something you would be able to observe…"

Subaru grimaced and reluctantly answered the question, "We talked through telepathy at one point… in the original timeline. Ah, a car or phone would be nice... I suppose I'll bring Emilia to Ram and we'll take it slow back to the mansion… try to send Julius and Ferris to us as soon as possible. Ah, don't tell anyone about my "future sight" yet… that could change the future too much. Try to act as you would normally."

"Will do," Reinhard agreed offhandedly while trying to imagine the consequences of the teenager not just seeing the future, but actively seeing it by participation in it… just who was he? He hadn't expected to come across such an intriguing case on his off day- the last candidate and a foreigner with an unknown potential of effect on the kingdom. He hurried back to Felt and Rom and called them with him. "Emilia-sama, come with us, we'll bring you back to Ram. Natsuki will come with you back to the Mathers Estate… some suspicious things are going on that we need to be careful about, he'll be there to ensure nothing's wrong." Reinhard glanced at Subaru, who nodded at him.

Emilia nodded, silently watching the seemingly anxious stranger that the reputable knight now seemed to trust more.

In the slightly bumpy carriage, Emilia peered at the strange man snoring gently across the interior of the carriage from under her bangs. It had been several hours since Reinhard-san and Subaru had helped her find Ram in the Capital City, with Reinhard-san then taking his leave with Felt and Rom, and she hadn't been able to fall asleep yet. The teenager had been very friendly to her, and she thought it was quite odd for him to not care about her appearance. He had been oddly pressing quickly on a small tablet in a certain pattern for a while before he had dozed off.

"Who is this man, Emilia-sama?" Ram had asked once the teenager had fallen asleep.

"I'm not really sure… he seems to be acquainted with Reinhard-san, so we should be able to trust him for now… before Puck fell asleep for the day, he told me that he seemed trustworthy and free of malice but also seemed very angry at something..."

Emilia's train of thought was interrupted by the loud growls of the earth dragons. It's been a while, we should be pretty close to the mansion, right? As she slid the window cover to the side and slipped her head through the hole, her face morphed into an expression of horror as she saw smoke rising from where the village was located.