Disclaimer (I): Re: zero and its characters belong to Tappei Nagatsuki, and all other references belongs to their respective owners.
A/N: "The Swordsage" story does not belong to "The Legend of the Silver Blade" series, it is a standalone story. I will later include a story of Re: Zero in LOSB's Arc II.
"Huma!"
Another ice lance hit the spot the assassin was standing just a second ago.
"Lia, I am running out of time…" Puck said while firing another salvo of ice lances towards the nimble woman who suddenly changed its way and charged at them. Emilia was forced to cancel her attack and created a shield of ice to stop Elsa's dagger to cut her stomach, then she retreated a few steps. Meanwhile, the little thief called Felt used the window she had created to attack Elsa, but the assassin was faster and nimbler than any other person in that room. She not only swiftly escaped from Felt's attack but also managed to kick her stomach, sending her flying.
Emilia felt at least a little solace at first, seeing the assassin's dagger stuck in the shield, but it became meaningless when she noticed that Elsa pulled out another blade from her waist. "My, my… Don't go yet. I have always wanted to see the innards of a great spirit."
"Yeah, you will wait longer!" Puck said before unleashing a huge chunk of ice on the assassin. Sudden attack, this time, managed to hit Elsa and it seemed like this time she was done for. That attack was enough to kill several men in one hit—
"Fu, fu… It seems I must start to get serious."
Emilia's expression froze once more while the ice block Puck created was sliced in two, and Elsa emerged under it unharmed. The only signs she had received just a second ago were the dried blood on her skin and the tattered state of her clothes.
But that was not the only bad news. From the corner of her eye, Emilia could see the fading beams of the sun, which was meaning they were about to down one more person against an assassin that was clearly superior to them in this state.
On their side, Emilia knew she was a skilled spirit arts user, and this Felt girl and the old man Felt called Rom were definitely strong in their own rights, but this was an enemy those two had never encountered before. It was not that they were not harming her, but for some reason, Elsa was shrugging off her lethal attacks like she made a walk on a pleasant, snowy night.
"Lia, I have run out of mana. I am sorry…"
It was just as she was afraid of.
"It's okay Puck. I can handle it from here. Thanks a lot."
She could not handle it. But she also knew begging Puck to stay would not change anything. Their only option was to escape from the loot house and somehow find some help to repel this assassin.
"Felt!"
The yellow-haired thief turned to her and at one glance she understood what the half-elf was hinting. Her eyes opened wide a few seconds later "Hell no! I am not leaving Old Man Rom behind!"
Emilia turned her eyes in desperation and barely managed to prevent another strike from slashing her. They could not do this much longer—
"Master, it seems we found her!"
A young woman's voice was heard from outside the loot house amidst the battle's chaos. From her voice, Emilia guessed she was around her age, but the tone of her voice gave the feeling of an overly-excited child.
"I can see her Shaula."
Again, another voice. This seemed to belong to a boy around her age, who seemed slightly bored and determined from his tone.
"Can I make the start? Please, please, please!"
Emilia frowned. What was going on?
Before making heads or tails of the situation, he heard the boy's giggle "Okay, okay. Go for it."
"Yay! Hell Snipe!"
The world burned bright for a second. Emilia was disoriented by the power and speed of the attack, as Elsa was too close to her when the attack hit. It was sheer luck that neither Felt nor Old Man Rom was not in the way of the attack, because the attack tore through the building and damaged several others behind it. That attack should have obliterated everything on its way, but once again, they were not done yet.
"Good job Shaula! You are the best!"
"Yay! Praise me more master!"
Emilia heard the boy's laugh once more. "Later..." he said, then his tone suddenly went dark "There is a small nuisance we need to handle first."
Footsteps approached the front door and the owner of the voice appeared. To be honest, Emilia was a little bit disappointed. For a person that seemingly commands another person with such a strong attack, he seemed pretty average. He had black hair combed back, and his eyes had a nasty vibe like he was constantly thinking about his next mischief. He had a grin on his face, his hands were hidden inside the strange clothes he was wearing, they were wrapping his body as a whole. He had a thin, vertical line of scar beneath his left eye.
"Elsa Granhiert, the Bowel Hunter… It seems I finally managed to catch up to you."
His tone was cold, unlike the warm and childish tone he used when speaking with the girl outside. That made the smirk on his face a little terrifying.
"Oh, what an interesting day. Mother told me you were on my tail, but I did not expect you to find me that quickly."
"Well, you can thank Shaula for that. She is a master when it comes to recognizing the smell of people. Now, normally I would destroy this place with you but…" his gaze wandered to Emilia and the other survivors, his gaze softening when it came upon her "It seems there are other people here. So I am giving you a chance to leave."
"Hmm, I think I won't. Mother doesn't let me play with you, but if I said I found you here as a coincidence, she won't say anything."
The boy sighed, but then his smirk returned. "All right, if this is what you wanted. Just let you know, I won't cry if you end up dead. Now, let's go…"
He whispered the last word "…Flugel."
Emilia's eyes widened with surprise and fear.
Right in front of her eyes, the black hairs of the boy turned ashen white with a dark gray tone, then they fell down on his eyes like somehow they were freed from the yoke of oppression. His black eyes turned red and now had a dangerous glint in them.
But that was not all. He took his right hand out of his clothes and swiped it casually. Shadows bent around him and gave him a black robe-like coat. It was just an illusion, Emilia could sense it but it still gave him a kind of oppressive look.
Still, shadows continued to bend until they formed a sheath behind his waist, and inside the sheath, a single minya crystal was formed, its protruding end was shaped like the hilt of a sword. After it was formed, the boy unsheathed it and held it loosely.
"Amazing… AMAZING!" Elsa exclaimed with a tone filled with excitement. "So that's the power of famous Swordsage! How do your innards look like, I wonder…" Then she licked her dagger.
The boy didn't care for it even a little. He casually swiped his crystal sword and the blade was set on fire before he held it in two hands and brought it near to his eyes, its point was towards the assassin.
"Ho? You won't speak to me?"
"I am sorry. Even I can't speak with dead."
Then they dashed at each other, Emilia quickly moved herself, Felt, and the old man out of the way.
"H-He's bleedin'… Please, do somethin'!
Emilia's attention turned to Felt, and her gaze softened. "Of course, leave it to me." She said to Felt before holding out her hands. A soft glow encompassed the injuries on the old man. Unfortunately, Emilia was not a competent healer, all she could do was stabilize the old man's situation, he would later need to be treated by someone more talented in healing magic. When his situation became stable, Emilia turned back to the fight.
Elsa was fast as a storm. Emilia instantly understood that she was just toying with them before. It was too hard for her to even follow her attack route, but somehow the boy (or Swordsage as Elsa called him) was doing it. His flaming sword was moving so fast that she can barely follow it from the red blur it was leaving behind.
Their stalemate was disrupted by Swordsage when his blade turned invisible for a moment just at the same time Elsa hit the ground with a heavy impact. After his sword became visible again, the boy launched himself backward with a flip and send some sort of a shadow rope from his sword. The rope formed a noose around Elsa's neck, and before she understood what was happening, the boy slammed her head to the ground once more, managing to daze her this time.
"Let's go all out this time…" Emilia heard the boy whispering to himself.
He suddenly launched himself at Elsa, his weapon shined with a light resembling a diamond. He hit her and sent her to air without giving her time to gather herself. But before her body could hit the roof…
"What's going on…" Emilia mumbled.
Elsa's body shone with the same light as the sword, and for a few seconds, time slowed down in the whole cabin. It was like the light filled the cabin became somewhat solid and it was slowing down everyone.
Well, not everyone.
Swordsage swung his weapon, and his blade cut the assassin from bottom to up lie cutting hot butter, then he held his blade over his head. The crystal sword was filled with white light and before even the blood from her wound spilled, the boy struck her once more. A white explosion threw Elsa to the western wall of the loot house, then the same wall fell out on her due to the strength of the impact.
A brief silence ensued. Emilia could hear the faint panting sounds from the boy. She tried to approach him but he raised his hand "Don't move. She hasn't died yet."
"It's not funny when you spoil my surprise like that…"
Impossibly she rose up from the rubble. The boy's previous attack had split her dress into two, and that would soon be the only indicator that the boy had cut her through. Cut on the skin was quickly repairing itself.
"You are afraid to go out, despite saying that literally that earlier…" Elsa said, her smile turning feral by the minute. "Come on, I won't go before I see something interesting!"
Swordsage clicked his tongue before turning his head slightly towards Emilia "Um, have you finished healing the old man?"
Emilia noticed he was talking to her, and she nodded.
"Then take cover."
The boy took back his opening stance.
"Bowel Hunter, Elsa Granhiert…" the assassin said while taking her own stance with her blades.
"Swordsage of Dunes, Subaru 'Flugel' Natsuki," Swordsage spoke while his purple crystal blade started to shine with a blue light and Emilia noticed it was actually sucking up the mana around them for a devastating attack.
At the same time, Elsa dashed at him and Subaru swung his sword. Emilia had to cover her eyes from the light, then she heard a huge crush sound. When she opened her eyes back, the image of a cut-down loot house greeted her.
"Shaula, she is trying to escape! Go after her, but do not risk yourself."
"Of course master!"
Emilia noticed it was the boy who was shouting. His hair had returned back to normal and the illusions he cast on himself were gone. He was kneeling on the ground and panting.
"Are you okay? Did she hurt you?" Emilia asked while approaching the boy from behind.
"No, no. I am fine. Just… Big guy takes a lot from me, especially these huge light shows… It seems Elsa really disgusts him."
He stood up and turned to face her. She couldn't find any malice, coldness, or distance on his face. All he could see was the genuine sympathy and amazement in the boy's eyes. Wait, amazement? She had not seen someone looking at her like that except Puck.
"Umm, is there something wrong?"
He suddenly blushed and averted his gaze before coughing inside his fist. "Right, introductions first." After he mumbled that he confidently smirked and pointed to the sky with an awkward pose "I am an old shut-in and now wandering adventurer! Subaru Natsuki, at your service!"
Emilia stood there for a second, the absolute contrast between the boy in front of him and the warrior who tore down the whole loot house was mind-boggling. Then she giggled before smiling at him "Emilia. Thank you for coming to our help Subaru."
"I don't think I deserve your thanks…" Subaru said while looking at the ground. "I… didn't know you were here. I was actually chasing after the Bowel Hunter and your rescue was a coincidence."
"Nevertheless you still aided us. Thank you."
"Yeah, thank you. But couldn't you do that without bringing loot house down on our heads?"
Subaru looked to the unexpected participant of the talk and scratched his head "I am sorry. He is not me, not really you see… But I can honestly say that I really didn't go all out. Even not after Elsa taunted me."
"Really? It's like you are exaggerating!"
"Am not!"
Within seconds they started to argue. Again, the weirdness of the situation hit Emilia, and she blinked a few times before giggling again. Their somewhat peaceful interaction was disrupted by a male voice.
"Hello? Are there any survivors inside? You can come out, it is safe now."
Subaru and Felt stopped bickering and turned their gazes outside. Felt's gaze was slightly cautious while Subaru… Was that disappointment?
Still, they moved out of the building Emilia in the lead, and what they saw was not a unit of knights waiting for them. It was only one knight with red hair, blue eyes, and a white coat. He seemed to be worried, but when he saw survivors his expression relaxed a little. "Greetings. I am Reinhard van Astrea, a member of Lugunican Knights. Are any of you injured?"
"We are fine but there is a wounded man inside. He will need healers…" Subaru answered with a slightly cautious tone.
"I see… Can you tell me what happened here?" Reinhard asked while slowly moving inside the building. Subaru answered once more "An assassin attacked the people inside. I heard the commotion and decided to help them."
Reinhard put his hand on his chin "I see. I take it you are the one who managed to fight off the assassin?"
"I may helped a bit, yeah…" Subaru said casually.
"Helped my ass… He literally tore the building into two!"
Subaru's smile instantly fell and he sent a glare to Felt while Reinhard's eyes opened wide. "Is that so? Can I ask what kind of spell did you use? It seems familiar…"
Emilia was confused. Why was Reinhard asking about it? It had no relation to the ongoing investigation.
Subaru shrugged "I learned it from an old man who was a real pain in the ass, he didn't tell me the name. It is a cool move, but I kinda become useless after I use it."
"I understand…" Reinhard said, his tone saying he was not really convinced Subaru was telling everything, but he turned his attention to the group once again "I take it the assassin is dead?"
"No, sir Reinhard…" answered Emilia "After sir Subaru's attack—"
"Just Subaru, Emilia. I am not a knight."
"Oh, okay. After Subaru's attack, she managed to escape with—"
"Yeah, we totally lost her," Subaru interjected once more, sending Emilia a brief glance. "She was Elsa Granhiert, sir Reinhard."
"Bowel Hunter is in the city? I must inform the knights at once. Do you know why was she here?"
"Well, she paid me to steal this gem from big sis…" Felt said while reaching into her pocket and taking the insignia out "Sorry for that big sis, I—"
"Wait!"
Reinhard suddenly lurched forward and held Felt's arm.
"It's shining. But how… Do you know who your parents are…"
While Reinhard asked a few questions Felt, Emilia looked at Subaru, who was observing their interaction with care. His body was tense, and Emilia did not understand why.
"I see. I need you to come with me."
"It's okay, sir Reinhard, you can let her go. We have talked about it."
"I am sorry Emilia-sama, but this is something different."
"Hey, what are you doin'! I don't wanna—"
Reinhard simply raised his hand and Felt fell unconscious. Reinhard picked the girl in a princess carry before giving Emilia's insignia back. "Here is your insignia, Emilia-sama."
"You are picking female strangers in a princess carry on your first date…" Subaru said sarcastically "You are an Astrea alright."
"I am sorry if I have left such an impression on you…" Reinhard said, his tone truly sad, though it became confused just after "Also I don't know where did you get that kind of an idea about Astreas."
Subaru just smiled while his hands were disappearing in his pockets "I am sorry but I cannot say. Well, I am sure we all have places to go, but before we leave, sir Reinhard…" his tone got colder "I hope you won't keep an innocent child in a position she won't want by force."
Reinhard did not seem to be disturbed "You may relax. I don't intend to do such a thing but nevertheless, I can see your genuine care for this girl. Do you somehow know her?"
At that, Subaru laughed. It was a short one but it managed to confuse Reinhard "Unbelievable. Not even the Sword Saint believes people can do good deeds to strangers." Then he managed to smile "No, I have never met this girl before. But I know when a male knocks out a girl unconscious, it is dangerous and not something anyone must stay silent about."
Reinhard smiled this time "I see. My apologies, I promise no harm will come to her. Now, if you excuse me, I need to return to my duties, umm?"
Subaru held out his hand "Subaru. Subaru Natsuki. It is nice to meet you, Reinhard."
Reinhard bowed his head and left the area with Felt in his arms. Emilia and Subaru looked at his disappearing back for some time.
"Why did you lie to him?"
Subaru turned to Emilia "I am sorry but I cannot allow them to learn about Shaula. They would ask many questions to her, and some of them would not be comfortable to answer. Also, technically I did not lie to him. We have lost the assassin, but Shaula was not included in that we. If I had said a lie, he would instantly detect it."
"Shaula…" Emilia mumbled "Like the Great—"
"Yes and no, now can we please close this topic?" Subaru said while scratching the back of his head. "I am glad you are safe and sound, let's meet in a safer place next time, I really would like to know you better…" Subaru said with a slight blush on his cheeks.
"You… Are you not—"
"What?"
Emilia bowed her head "You know that I am—"
"Cute?"
"No, I'm—"
"Gorgeous?"
"NO! I'm—"
"Well, I do not know you enough to make any other compliments, so you will have to wait until I get to know you better."
"—half-elf?"
"Hmm? Oh, that's the reason?"
She waited for his inevitable disgust and anger.
"Emilia, please look at me…"
She raised her head, only to see Subaru's smile and compassionate eyes "Are you an idiot?"
"Huh?"
"I mean, I have just transformed a warrior with white hair and red eyes in front of you. How normal do you think I am?"
"B-But—"
"Look, there is not a world on this or any other world that you can say that will make me distant from you, just because of your appearance. Your personality maybe can, but I doubt I will dislike it either…" Subaru smiled, his eyes became solemn when his gaze turned to the direction where Shaula went. Emilia followed his gaze.
"Are you worried about her?"
Subaru shrugged "Nah, I know she can handle herself. It's just… I don't like being away from her for too long. She's my first friend, and… the only beautiful thing that stays constant in my life so far."
He looked to Emilia, then he started to frantically wave his hands "I-I mean I am a traveler, and I have been through many hard things..." Then his expression once again calmed while his mouth curled into a smile "She was my biggest supporter."
Emilia nodded, but she was starting to feel too many emotions at once. That boy, standing right before him was changing his personality too much too quickly.
"Anyway, I don't want to bore you anymore. It is better for me to head to an inn—"
"H-Hold on!" Emilia said, "You saved my life. If you don't have any place to stay, my benefactor would surely be happy to host you."
"I don't want to—"
"Please…"
Subaru seemed reluctant for a moment, but then he chuckled "Well, I'll be in your care then."
Emilia nodded before taking the lead as they walked to the place where she and Ram promised to meet.
3 Years Ago
Augria Dunes… The fabled home of the Great Sage, one of the three heroes who braved and managed to seal the Witch of Envy.
It was almost impossible to pass the Sand Time and come here, even Sword Saint had tried and failed when the royal family was in dire need of assistance and they thought only the Sage could help them.
"Where am I?"
But in front of the unapproachable tower was a child about fourteen. He was wearing an orange T-shirt and black tracksuit bottoms. His black hair was combed back, and his red eyes were looking around tiredly at first. Then they began to widen as he processed what he was seeing
"No way… Was I just "isekaied" to another world?!"
He had many questions, he was feeling very excited. But before he can process it further, he heard an enthusiastic female calling him.
"Master! Welcome back!"
This is the story of Subaru Natsuki, who got his dream start somehow. Yet he will soon learn that people don't become strong just to become strong.
They are forced to become strong.
And still, even the strongest people have to live with the memories of their weak moments.
Hello and thak you for reading the first episode of "The Swordsage". This is my first time to write a fan fiction whose main characters are not OC, so I would appreciate your reviews. I will try to write all characters suitable to their canon counterparts except present Subaru(still I will try to write it similar to canon for his past adventures).
I wish you well, and hope to see you in next chapter :)