As Emilia returned to the Roswaal manner, Roswaal read his black book seeing that Emilia failed.
'I don't understand how this happened? As long as I follow what the book tells me, nothing has gone wrong, so why now? Did this world go beyond where I can achieve my goal?'
Emilia was exhausted and hadn't slept the entire night. When she returned, she was welcomed by an oddly calm Roswaal.
"Soooo, did you do your job?" Roswaal questioned, knowing she didn't
Emilia frowned, "No, but please, I beg Lord Roswaal, please don't give up on me. I can still win. I don't get why Subaru is so important to you.."
Roswaal smiled, "It's understandable that a fool would not understand. I have decided to remain your sponsor, but you will spend three months at the sanctuary. It's a small village in my domain. You will spend that time reflecting on your actions."
Emilia was relieved, she was ready for too lose her sponsorship for the Royal Selection, and any hopes she had to free the elves in the Eliofor forever would go to waste.
"Okay, thank you for your mercy Lord Roswaal. I won't disappoint you," Emilia smiled.
Roswaal prepared a ground dragon and gave her instructions for entering the sanctuary. Unknowing Emilia, Roswaal sent her to prison.
Felt's camp was also on the move, making their way to Flugul's tree. It was only Subaru, Miss Felt, and Reinhard. Subaru has got a lot stronger and better with the sword. He also seems to be learning to control his return by death power and alter the authority to use the time-altering effects for other abilities. So far, he has only been able to make an apple rot within five minutes but is still learning to use this new power.
Felt looking at Subaru and Reinhard, who were in the front of the carriage, "So ya think Crusch is already here, or are we getting here early? It seems quiet?"
Subaru shrugged, "We either got here early or there all already dead."
Reinhard simply frowned at how carelessly he said those words. Still, as they discussed the matter, they accidentally ran into Cruschs, many carriages with the small army she brought.
'Oh shit'
Crusch seeing the carriage and then seeing Reinhard and the boy from the Royal Selection, was confused. She led her carriage over to ask what they were doing here.
"Wonder if she's going to be pissed," Subaru asked the two with him.
"Well, they'd all be dead if we ain't came. That bitch is crazy trying to take down a beast that's been alive for four hundred years," Felt remarked.
Crusch then arrived at the carriage containing Felt and her camp.
"Hello Reinhard, and forgive me, what's your name again?" Crusch said, looking toward Subaru
"Subaru, guess I didn't leave much of an impression," Subaru laughed.
Crusch figured out what was happening fairly quickly. They came here to take credit for the White Whale subjugation.
"So, Felt is trying to claim credit for the subjugation of the White Whale?" Crusch said in a bit of anger after she had planned for so long for this attack
"Nah, ya got the wrong idea. Y'all all just gon die if we didn't come," Felt said, smirking.
Crusch, annoyed by that comment, began speaking, but before she could, Subaru said, "Does it really matter? Lives are on the line, and you are worried about politics? You can take full credit for the attack. We just wanted to ensure your entire camp wasn't dead."
Crusch could tell he wasn't lying. However, Subaru was, in a way, lying. He carefully chose his words, knowing her divine protection by saying 'You can' rather than saying they would allow it, and it seemed to work.
Crusch simply nodded to the agreement, "We aren't sure the exact time, but the White Whale will appear here soon. I appreciate your concern, Subaru, Reinhard, and Miss Felt."
The trio was surprised by Crusch's humility. They never really saw that side of her before. Reinhard was simply waiting for the coming conflict with his grandfather.
"We will wait here as a flank force. We won't get in the way if you aren't having trouble and will only step in if your lives are in danger," Subaru stated
"Alright, I will account for this in my strategy" Crusch nodded and returned to her small army.
Subaru grinned. He planned this out well, and everything was working correctly. Although he was surprised that Crusch acted the way she did, he had already planned an entire list of points to defend Felt for joining the battle, but Crusch thanked them.
"Well, that went well," Reinhard said to Subaru, smiling.
Subaru noticing Reinhard looking uneasy, asked, "Is everything alright, Reinhard? You seem a bit off?"
Felt nodded, "Ya, ever since we got here, you seem to be acting weird. Ya afraid of the White Whale, Mr. Sword Saint?" she laughed.
Reinhard just looked down, "No, my grandfather is here. We don't exactly have the best relationship."
Subaru just nodded. He knew Reinhard had been through the pain of his own. When he first met Reinhard, he thought he was just some classic 'hero' character in some anime. Still, he learned that when one has so much power, they become both feared and respected and are barely treated as a person. Subaru hated how the Kingdom treated Reinhard, like a guard dog for the Kingdom instead of a human being.
As the three waited, they heard a loud noise and the Crusch camp signaling the arrival of the White Whale.
"Well, that was quick," Felt commented.
Subaru stared at the monster, "Why does it seem to be heading our way?"
Reinhard quickly, realizing the monster was head diving directly towards them, ignoring the attacks from the Crusch camp, asked Subaru for his sword and prepared a spell.
"Felt, Subaru, get down," Reinhard commanded, and the two swiftly followed.
Reinhard questioned what exactly was happening. The White Whale never has been known for having any sort of intelligence. However, it was responsible for the late Sword Saint's death, so perhaps the whale has some intelligence and targets Sword Saint. The explanation didn't make sense to Reinhard, but it was the only thing he could think of.
The White Whale quickly nose-dived towards the carriage where Subaru and Felt hid as Reinhard ran in front and prepared an attack.
"Die," Reinhard said as all the mana from the atmosphere collected around his sword, and he sliced the White Whale in half. The whale then turned into three different whales, one smaller and one larger.
Crusch camp and was lost entirely, "What the hell is going on?" Crusch said to herself, but Wilhim heard her.
"I'm not sure, but I do have a guess. The White Whale was responsible for my wife's death, and she was a sword saint. The White Whale never showed the behavior for targeting individual people, nor was it known to have the intelligence to do so. However, I think this may be the only way to explain what is happening currently," Wilhelm explained.
As Wihilm and Crusch talked about the possibilities of what happened, Reinhard finished off the three whales, and the battle ended highly anticlimactic.
Once the White Whale was defeated, Reinhard returned to confirm Felt and Subaru's safety. Once he saw Felt and Subaru were fine, he sighed.
Subaru also noticed what was happening but felt Reinhard's theory was wrong. He wouldn't question it since it works to their benefit.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT? WHY DID THAT THING JUST CHARGE US?" Felt yelled in fear as moments ago she thought she was going to die
Subaru shrugged again, "I think it has something to do with Reinhard being a sword saint."
"We should discuss this with Crusch's camp and bring the carcus to the capital," Reinhard stated
Subaru and Felt agreed, and they headed to the Crusch camp and discussed their theory that the White Whale may be intelligent and target sword saints. Since nobody had any idea or reason to doubt the explanation for the whale's behavior, everyone seemed to agree with him. Wilhim even admitted it was most likely, which surprised Reinhard.
"Reinhard, if this beast targets sword saints for that reason alone, I won't hold anything against you for slaying the beast. I hope you know that," Wilhim told Reinhard, knowing their past and noticing how uncomfortable Reinhard seemed.
"Thank you," Reinhard said with a smile.
"Well, this whole thing was boring," Felt laughed.
Crusch and the rest of her camp got a bit irritated at Felt's attitude, but Crusch knew that, most likely, they would get credit as they didn't do anything.
"Felt, I got an idea," Subaru said
Felt ran up to him smiling, "What's up, Subaru."
Subaru returned the smile, "I think we should form an alliance with the Crusch camp, it may not make sense to you right now, but I promise you it will make sense later."
This shocked everyone as Reinhard and Felt thought this would be an excellent time to take full credit for the subjugation of the White Whale. Why form an alliance?
Felt seemed confused but nodded, "If big bro says it's a good idea, I'm game."
Subaru nodded and turned to Crusch, "Since you were the one to find the location and time the White Whale would appear, we should share credit and form an alliance if you are interested."
Crusch was utterly lost on the situation transpiring. She had no idea why Subaru seemed to be doing her a favor for no reason. Regardless it was by far the best outcome of this situation.
"Yes, I agree to this alliance," Crusch said quickly, wondering if he would change his mind.
Subaru just smiled, "Great, then it's settled. The Felt-Crusch alliance starts today. Let's head to the capital and show this carcass!"
The troops cheered as they were happy to be able to be involved in the defeat of a beast who had tormented the lands for four centuries.
Subaru did all this to stack the odds against Emilia even further and help Felt gain support from the knights and nobility. Being in alliance with Crusch will give her a better image which was his entire goal. Although he was surprised by Crusch's actions, she didn't seem to scheme or plot, unlike Emilia. Everything she said was direct and genuine, something he respected.
The carriages headed to the capital with the White Whale. Reinhard, Felt, and Subaru are in one of the carriages, and Subaru notices Crusch alone at the front.
"I think I'm going to go check on Crusch," Subaru said
"Why?" Felt questioned
Subaru just frowned, "She seems down, so I want to check on her relax."
Felt just nodded, and Subaru made his way to the front carriage.
"Subaru?" Crusch said surprised
Subaru sat beside her, "You seem a bit down. Everything alright?" Subaru said sincerely
Crusch questioned why a member of an opposing camp would care to ask that even if they formed an alliance but decided to let her guard down.
"Nothing, I hate to admit it, but we probably would've died if your camp didn't show up. Reinhard made it look easy. But my entire camp felt as if the White Whale would easily kill them the moment it appeared, including myself. If your camp didn't show up, we'd all be dead, and it would be my fault," Crusch said with an emotionless tone to Subaru.
Subaru put his hand down gently on hers, "We all make mistakes. Being able to take responsibility and admit your weaknesses is a strength not many have. I respect you for that. Don't focus on the what if or what would have happened, and just be happy with the results," Subaru said gently.
Crusch was a little shaken by Subaru's actions. Logically, it made no sense to be this friendly to another camp. Still, Crusch remembered he was initially in Emilia's camp, "Subaru, thank you. May I ask you something?"
Subaru nodded
"Weren't you in Emilia's camp? I saw you defending her at the Royal Selection. Then you joined Felt's camp," Crusch asked, instantly noticing a different look on Subaru as she mentioned this.
Subaru nodded, "Yes, that's correct. After the Royal Selection, she told me to leave her camp to embarrass her. Suppose it wasn't for Miss Felt and Reinhard taking me into their camp. In that case, I'm not sure what I would've done" Subaru's eyes changed to eyes filled with a vengeance even thinking of the subject.
Crusch thought for a moment. She remembered that at the Royal Selection, Subaru seemed to love Emilia. She didn't understand why Emilia would abandon someone. Not to mention he was trying to defend Emilia.
Crusch quickly realized what had transpired and was angry at the thought, too. She wasn't even aware of the hell Subaru endured beforehand. Still, the information she knew alone made her think differently of Emilia.
Crusch frowned, "I see. I'm sorry for bringing that up."
Subaru noticed Crusch's anger and could tell she connected the dots of how Subaru ended up in the situation he did. Subaru felt weird, almost grateful for Crusch's understanding and empathy for him.
Subaru just smiled, "It's alright. I honestly haven't really talked about the situation to someone that didn't know me before."
Subaru moved his head up to whisper in Crusch's ear, "Once the Royal selection ends, regardless of who wins, maybe we can get to know each other better" he then moved his head away and winked at Crusch.
Crusch's face slowly turned from blush to her face turning red, but before she could respond, Subaru saw a man on the road.
"Move! You'll get hit!" Subaru yelled to the man on the road as the carriage approached him.
Regulus hearing this and noticing the carriage decided to move out of the way. The man who asked did not violate his rights, so he has no reason not to move out of the way even though the carriage would do nothing to him. But he didn't move fast enough, and the carriage flipped as the left wheel hit Regulus's foot, causing the entire carriage to flip over.
Subaru knew Felt would be safe with Reinhard and used his body to shield Crusch from the fall. Crusch lay on top of Subaru briefly before quickly getting up.
"What just happened?" Crusch said confused
"Yeah, I got no clue," Subaru laughed, completely lost.
Reinhard quickly appeared next to Crusch and Subaru, unaware of what had happened.
"Did we hit something? What happened?" Reinhard asked
Regulus begins talking to the three, "We came to see the carcass, that's all. I'm not like that other guy. I really hate violence."
The three looked confused, and Subaru asked, "My name is Subaru. May I ask yours?"
Subaru could tell this man was powerful. He wasn't sure how but even if Reinhard was here, he could still harm Crusch and Felt along with the others.
"Sin Archbishop representing Greed, Regulus Corneas," Regulus responded.
Reinhard and Crusch hearing this looked ready to attack, but Subaru had a gut feeling that fighting him was a bad idea. He moved his hands in front of both of them, shocking the two.
"Regulus, if I remember correctly, you simply want to see the whale carcass and don't desire any conflict?" Subaru said to Regulus
Regulus was confused, he assumed they would simply fight him regardless, but this Subaru was smart and respected his rights. "Yes that's correct however the other one is a nuisance"
Subaru thought momentarily, realizing there were two of these people, which most likely meant the other was in the back where Felt was.
"Reinhard, go guard Felt now," Subaru said
Reinhard quickly went to Felt, but when he arrived, he saw an unconscious Felt and a weird-looking boy with two blades on the ground. Reinhard promptly grabbed the sword that Felt had and killed the threat standing before him before he even had the chance to speak to him.
Meanwhile, Subaru was playing a mind game to not get killed by Regulus.
"Regulus, if I may ask if this other person gets involved in conflict or killed, will you avenge his death?" Subaru said, assuming he is a very selfish person by the title greed. This assumption will either cost him his life or work perfectly. Subaru nearly forgot he had returned by death by the pleasure he was in currently.
"Avenge hIm? Why would I even care? I already completed my job" Regulus laughed and began walking away as the Gospel said Rye had died. Regulus didn't like Rye, so they didn't care.
Subaru let out a sigh of relief while noticing Reinhard making his way toward the man.
"REINHARD, STOP. HE'S NOT INVOLVED IN THE CONFLICT," Subaru yelled. He knew Reinhard wanted to ask questions, but the risk of battling this strange man was too high. If he does not wish to engage in conflict, then that's the best option.
Reinhard heard this questioning why but assumed Subaru had an excellent reason. Regulus disappeared, and Reinhard came to Subaru, who was standing in front of Crusch, which he had been this entire time.
"Why did you tell me to stop?" Reinhard questioned in anger
"He's an enemy that we have no idea of his power, and he's why the entire carriage flipped. I don't know his abilities, but his foot touching the left wheel of this carriage to flip, and he didn't even show a scratch of dirt on him," Subaru explained.
Reinhard was a bit annoyed. He was overestimating this enemy, he thought.
"Is Felt okay?" Subaru asked
Reinhard questioned himself for a minute, the name seemed familiar, but he couldn't remember, "Who's Felt?"
Subaru eyes widened.
"Crusch, don't tell me you don't remember?" He turned to Crusch
Crusch frowned, "If you're referring to a person named Felt, then no, I don't."
'What the hell is going on? Regulus wasn't responsible for this, which means the other one was. Felt can't be remembered or something? I don't get it.'
"I did fight the person that the Regulus man mentioned and killed him, though I don't remember why I would even go for a kill straight off the bat, something weird is going on," Reinhard said
"Yes, because your memory of her most likely remained then. The golden hair girl is Felt, a Royal candidate, and you were his knight, Reinhard," Subaru said, hoping this would jog his memory.
"Wait what?" Reinhard said confused
Subaru sighed, attempting too not to lose it. Felt saved him when he needed someone the most, and now everyone forgets about her? Whoever did this will pay, but they are already dead.
Subaru saw Felt's body, she was alive but unconscious, and nobody remembered her existence.
"Crusch, isn't there five royal candidates for the selection?" Subaru asked, trying to see if that would cause them to remember her existence of her.
"Yes, you're the fifth candidate. Are you okay?" Crusch told him
'What the hell is going on? This is beyond any average power. How would it turn me into a royal candidate? It can't even be a man? What is wrong with this world? Why was I even summoned here? What the fuck? Why does everything keep going wrong god damn time I think things are getting better. I get stepped on like an ant.'
Subaru no longer felt sadness or despair. Vengeance was the only thing he could handle, he loved Felt like a little sister, and now she's gone. History rewrote itself to match this new development.
'Wait, if I was a candidate, this changes everything. I would've never met Emilia hell, none of this would've happened. Way too many events would need to be corrected. It's a paradox only I'm aware of.'
Subaru looked at the corpse before him with a vengeance seeping almost like an aura around him.
'I'm going to try to return his life by reversing time on his body, then get him to fix this, or I'll kill him in a much slower and more painful way.'
Subaru held out his hand, and a purple aura emitted around it towards the body of the boy that Reinhard killed. Slowly his body began reversing, and after around thirty seconds, he regained his life.
"What the?" Reinhard and everyone else there was shocked at what they had just watched.
"What is your name," Subaru told the boy, who was just as shocked as the others for being alive.
"Lye, Sin Archbishop of Gluttony," Lye responded.
Subaru eyes even scared Lye, "I revived your life. You took away someone dear to me, and your actions rewrote history to account for the change. Now I require that you return the memories of Felt. If you do so, you will be free to leave alive. If you don't, you will die again."
Lye thought about the question. He just got revived from death and didn't value one person's memory and name over his existence.
"I will accept your offer," the boy responded, and suddenly history corrected itself, and Felt woke up.
"You may leave," Subaru spoke as Lye sprinted away in fear. The man brought back his life from the dead. That's not a power that should even exist.
Felt got up confused, and everyone's memories returned, and they slowly realized what Subaru was doing.
Reinhard smiled, "Subaru, I don't know how you did it but thank you."
"Don't thank me. Felt saved my life. I would die for her if it was needed," Subaru said
Felt confused about what was going on as Subaru explained the entire situation.
"Holy shit, thanks, big bro. That would've been bad if you didn't figure out how to fix this. Did history really remake you to be the candidate?" Felt asked amused
Subaru frowned, "Yes, and if that reality would've continued, I would've lost it. That sounds like hell."
Felt laughed, "Now ya know how I feel."
The group was waiting for more carriages from the capital to clean up the mess. Regulus reading his Gospel, was shocked to find out Rye seemed to return from the dead. He had no idea how but assumed the Subaru he talked to earlier was responsible.
Crusch was at a loss for words. She didn't know what she felt as she had never felt it. Subaru seemed just perfect to her. He handled every situation perfectly and even managed to solve a crisis that would rewrite the history of Lugina to account for a falsehood. She was more than impressed, but not just impressed. She remembered how he stood before her during the confrontation with Regulus. She did consider herself a fighter. Still, she enjoyed the feeling of someone protecting her like that. But she also knew she could never admit these feelings due to the Royal Selection.
Felt and Subaru hugged, and Reinhard was utterly lost for words on what he saw transpire. He had no idea what power Subaru had or how he had it. No ability ever recorded in history could bring a dead person back to life.
Once the other carriages arrived, Crusch came to Subaru's carriage.
"Subaru can we talk about something," Crusch asked.
Subaru at first wondered if it was about the attack but then realizing not based on her tone, "Sure, I'll be right back," he told Reinhard and Felt.
Felt didn't care about any of the Royal Selection formalities and could tell what was happening, "Ya know if ya wanna get together I don care Subaru" she laughed.
Crusch's face turned red, and Subaru just played dumb, "What do you mean?" he said, enjoying the face Crusch had. Subaru thought few people had ever seen her embarrassed like this.
"What do ya mean? Y'all already acting like a couple n like I said, I don't give a damn bout the Selection's dumbass rules, so you're free to enjoy yourself a bit, Subaru," Felt said, winking.
Reinhard gulped, attempting to hold back a laugh. Subaru could continue a deadpan expression but decided not to and let his emotions out, blushing. Compared to Crusch, however, it was nothing.
"Okay, I'll be back shortly," Subaru said
"Make sure to stay within a reasonable distance. You don't want kids this early" Felt started laughing hysterically, and Reinhard couldn't help but chuckle a bit too.
Subaru sighed and grabbed Crusch's hand to take her to a different carriage as she seemed unable to move.
"Okay, Crusch, what's up?" Subaru asked
Crusch regaining her lost composure, "Just wanted to thank you for your help today. I look forward to the Felt-Crusch alliance going forward," she said with a slight blush.
'I wonder how far I can take this... By not taking this opportunity with someone both beautiful and honorable, I would be doing something Emilia would want, so I should do the opposite. Revenge still is my goal, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy myself on the path of it.
Subaru found his logical excuse and leaned toward Crusch, kissing her before continuing what she mentioned earlier, "Yes, I agree. Regardless of who wins, the future of Lugina will be bright."
Crusch couldn't even think of politics right now. Her mind was completely gone. That was her first kiss, and she never thought she'd enjoy it that much. She started to consider what Felt mentioned about not caring about the formalities. She was curious about Subaru, though, his mysterious power. Wait, she didn't even know his origin or anything about him.
Crusch finally spoke after thirty seconds of thinking which Subaru just sat there confused, "Subaru, I just realized I barely know anything about you... Like where your from or your parents or anything."
Subaru thought for a moment. He had yet to tell many he was beyond the great waterfall. Still, Crusch could be trusted, "Believe it or not, I'm from beyond the great waterfall. I didn't even find this out until after I told Reinhard about how I got here, and he explained there is a term for that."
Crusch was shocked, "Wait, so you from a different world like the Great Sage?"
Subaru nodded, "Yes, I am. My home country in my world was called Japan."
Crusch was shocked. She was just amazed at how unique Subaru was. She didn't need to use her divine protection to know he wouldn't lie.
Crusch realizes, "Wait, I'm guessing you probably want to return to your own world..."
Subaru thought for a moment, assuming it was possible, to begin with, "I may have if Felt and Reinhard didn't save me. They are family to me, and I wouldn't leave them behind. Not to mention this beautiful girl I know seems to like me."
Crusch blushed, but Subaru continued, "Honestly, I still am alright after everything that happened. Sometimes I wonder if this is just a setup to make me lose even more later. I guess you can't lose anything if you don't have anything."
Crusch realized what he meant. He was wondering if he was still in some nightmare or not. She caught Subaru off guard and kissed him. Then said, "Don't think like that, Subaru. The difference is now you have people to protect, and you will. I saw it today and have no doubt in you."
Subaru realizes it's getting dark, and due to the weight of the whale carcus, the trip is going to take three days just lays down in Crusch's carriage and thinks.
'Maybe she's right, but I still need to figure out what power I have, and a few other things feel off. I doubt this fight is over, but I won't let Crusch, Felt, or Reinhard die. I mean Reinhard, I don't even think he can die. Once this is over, regardless of who's the King, I won't mind living here.
Crusch is just staring at Subaru, who passed out in her carriage.
Felt and Reinhard came to check on Subaru, wondering if he was okay, and found a sleeping Subaru and Crusch staring at the sleeping man.
"Reinhard, when we get back, I expect my twenty holy coins and for you to allow me to do whatever I want for a week," Felt laughed.
Reinhard just frowned
"Oh, we bet on if y'all was gon get together or not n looks like I was right," Felt smirked, explaining to Crusch.
Crusch was starting to get used to this feeling of embarrassment, so he was able to speak better, "Well, since we're in an alliance and we both agree some of the rules don't matter, I guess it's a secret," she said with a devilish smirk.
Reinhard sighed, "What a great knight I've become."