Chapter five: Arlam

Chapter summary: The God finds no quarter. Leo makes a vow and figures out where and when he is. Constructive feedback appreciated.

Disclaimer: I don't own Re:Zero.

[I am God. The only of this reality. I was born from nothing. Given purpose from nothing. I seek to return this existence to nothing. You would deny my function?]

Silence.

[I have assimilated nearly everything. I know nearly everything. Yet fate itself denies me. Fate chose to inhabit this soul, your soul. Why?]

Silence.

[I watch my actions play out. The details escape me, but I know the results. However, I cannot change them. Each step is inevitable. Providence. Fate above God. I witness countless realities. There are some where my actions bear fruit. But I can only watch. Unless the 'one' of you, the only one of you, alters your very self as only you can. Yet you refuse. Why? I only wish to fulfill my design...]

Silence.

-Reborn-

The gray-haired chief raised a brow. "Leo, huh? I can't say I've ever heard of a name like that. You're definitely a foreigner, right?"

Dina stepped in. "Lukas, he needs to rest. I could only tend to what I saw on the outside. He'll need a proper healer by sunup."

Leo was at a loss for words at their kindness. He had never expected villagers, who were understandably hostile to outsiders, to be so welcoming. He swallowed and spoke. "Thank you both. You've been… very kind to me."

"It's no trouble at all, really," Lukas replied. "We'll leave you some clothes here and have you checked by a healer come morning. Don't worry about the bed, we'll sleep in the guest room."

Dina sighed before adding, "Which you ought to have brought him to instead of our room, you big oaf."

Lukas had the decency to look embarrassed. "Ah, yeah, good point."

Leo thanked them again, promising to repay the debt he now owed them. A week's work in the village in return for their aid. The husband and wife left the room giving him much-needed time to reflect.

So, I'm in Re:Zero.

Leo had initially forgotten that the monsters that had chased him through the forest were Ulgrams. Not the worst place to be isekai'd to, all things considered. And it seemed as though he had been given the means to survive. The vessel. He could regenerate. In fact, Leo had noticed that his wounds had been healing at a fluctuating rate. It was slower when he had scraped his knee, and substantially faster when he had crashed into the fence. Did the rate of healing correlate to the extent of the injury? Was there a limit? How would it respond to different injuries? Fascinating. A burning curiosity welled up within him. He needed to know more about this–

Wait, what? That's not normal. Why do I have this urge to study myself…? No, it's obvious, isn't it? My mind has changed as much as my body. Somehow all of my memories are unclouded. I can remember every minute detail of every moment. That must be it. My mind is moving faster and processing things faster. For my purpose…

Leo shook his head to clear his mind. Anyway… I'm very likely in Arlam. I remember the wiki mentioning that Arlam is a unique case, living so close to mabeasts. It's a forested area, not to mention the magic stones I saw earlier. Would it even be called Arlam? I remember that the village name changes with the surname of the current head.

Leo almost felt elated. All of the knowledge that had been useless in his first life found new purpose here. But even so, a somber feeling eclipsed it all. Just why was he chosen? Leo had wanted to die. He would never regret pulling that trigger. And the nothingness that followed? Perfect. It had been as though a thick, warm blanket had embraced him. He had drowned in feelings of peace and contentment. Leo… wanted to resubmerge. He hadn't killed himself for the sake of a delusional fantasy of being isekai'd. He had killed himself because he had wanted to die.

However, Leo had the sinking feeling that he no longer could.

He couldn't pass out. He couldn't sleep. He didn't feel tired, hungry, or thirsty. And if Leo was meant to become a living library, it meant that he would need to last a very, very long time. Fine. As absurd and terrifying as these circumstances have been, he would accept them. Leo's goal was simple. He would collect as much knowledge as possible and then return to that void. This he vowed. He never wanted a second chance. Leo just hoped he'd be able to talk to… whoever sent him here. He pulled on the clothes the couple had given him. A black shirt and brown pants were paired with what looked like boxers and shoes. He'd have to get used to the itchiness.

Morning came. True to their word, Dina took Leo to the village healer. Apparently, Lukas was visiting the local lord regarding security concerns. Leo had a feeling that said lord was Roswaal, though he didn't know which incarnation. The healer was a ragged-looking man with brown hair who spoke with an odd accent. As soon as Dina left, he made an observation.

"Kid, you ain't injured. The hell you comin' in for?"

Leo had anticipated this. "Ah, well, I told Dina that I was fine but she sorta dragged me here, sir…"

"Kettle. Jus' Kettle, none of that sir shit. Name's Leo, huh? Dina told me. You a foreigner too?"

Interesting. The accent tells me… Kararagian? But really… Kettle? Not that it's any worse than my name. Leo replied. "Yeah. Ended up here, one way or another."

Kettle snorted in amusement. "Helluva way to end up here, kid. If yer all good, scram. I've gotta make the rounds–"

Crash!

A yelp and an affronted squawk followed.

Kettle swung the door open and stink-eyed the source of the racket while yelling, "Lily! Just what the hell I'd been tellin' you about ridin' the damn ground dragon?!"

A slurred voice replied. "That… I oughta do it more often, pa?"

"That if yer gonna ride the ground dragon, ya have Lukas help ya first!"

He took a glimpse at Kettle's daughter. Teenager, short black hair and wide violet eyes. Dressed in a dark shirt and blue overalls with brown boots, she fit the farm girl archetype to the letter. Wait, Leo thought, Black hair? Maybe she's a foreigner too? Honestly, she almost looks like–

The farm girl cut off his thoughts. Dusting herself off, she exclaimed, "Hey, you're that Leo guy right? You're pretty big! Nice to meetcha!"

"… Uh, right. Nice to meet you too," Leo said awkwardly.

Lily looked confused, then realized she hadn't introduced herself. "Oh! Right, I'm Lily! Er, well, Lilia, but everybody calls me Lily!"

The reclusive man was unused to talking to someone so energetic. "Alright… Uh, Lily then. A pleasure. Is that, uh, ground dragon going to be okay?" The blue reptile had uprighted itself and turned toward him while snorting and glaring at him.

Lily chuckled before reassuring him. "Ah, don't worry! That's just Betsy being Betsy! She gets like that whenever someone new shows up."

The healer cut in. "Well, Betsy can be Betsy somewhere else, I got shit to do. Get 'er back to the stable, Lily. Hey, kid?"

"Yeah?"

As Lily yelled a goodbye and left, Kettle pulled him aside and asked, "Dina told me ya wanted to help around, right?"

Leo replied, "Yeah, that's right. I owe them."

Kettle narrowed his eyes. "You were smart, asking for a week. Lukas, Dina… They're kind people. Too kind. But you saw the looks you were gettin', didn't ya?"

He saw. Wary glares and eyes full of mistrust. The young man knew that even if the chief and his wife welcomed him, Arlam never would. "I did. I don't plan on staying here any longer after I repay my debt. So don't worry."

Putting a hand on Leo's shoulder, Kettle sympathized. "Believe me, kid. I get it. Ya probably already knew I'm a foreigner from what I said. Lily is too. Been here for 'round ten years and I still get looks. Fuckin' stupid, honestly. Well, you oughta get goin', kid. Start helping by repairing that fence ya crashed into, yeah?"

Leo sheepishly replied. "Yeah, good idea." As he was about to leave he asked, "Hey, Lukas is visiting the lord of this area, right? Who is he?"

Kettle responded, "Yup. Some eccentric fuck named Roswaal… E Mathers, I'm pretty sure. Why'd ya ask?"

"Just curious. Thanks, Kettle."

"Yeah, yeah. Now beat it already, I got work to do."

Leo left the house and began walking towards the fence he had crashed into to assess the damage. Some of the villagers who had been out and about would often stare at him. A few brave villagers and some children would greet him, and the man would politely greet them back. On the outside Leo was calm. Internally, his mind had been whipped into a frenzy.

Roswaal… E Mathers?! Roswaal would take possession of his descendants, and if I remember correctly, there was an event involving Roswaal D Mathers… Except that took place two hundred and fifty years ago! So I've been–

Indeed. Leo had been sent to this world over two hundred years before Subaru's arrival.

Author's notes: Delayed due to: Work, Intrusive Thoughts, and writing dialogue even though I like writing dialogue. I know it's slow now, but the pace will pick up. Leo is a thinker, so expect a lot of sections similar to this chapter. Luckily, we've already met the character that will balance him out. Gee, I wonder who. God, writing a Kararagian accent feels insipid. I just gave up and went with the most western bullshit accent possible. Moving forward, the next chapter might take even longer because I want to set up a proper timeline for the story and really flesh out a few characters.