15: A Dim Light on the Horizon
"It's not your fault, Beako…It's not your fault…"
He whispered quietly so that only she could hear him. Emilia looked worried as she asked, "Subaru, are you okay? What's wrong?"
"Subaru, did you have another vision?" Julius asked with a concerned voice.
The pleading, shaky tone in Subaru's voice made Beatrice's eyes widen. What wasn't her fault? Something terrible happened, and she was involved, but why was he pleading with her like that?
"Subaru, we're all okay, I suppose," she said. "I-If you don't stop, you might scare Bu—Emilia, in fact."
He stopped pleading, but continued to breathe erratically as she embraced him in return to try and help calm him down. Crusch called outside, "Wilhelm, stop the carriage, Subaru may have just seen a vision. We shouldn't continue until he can tell us what's going on."
The carriage came to a stop, and Subaru's breathing started to stabilize. He finally loosened his grip on Beatrice, and she sat herself down in his lap as she held his shaking hands.
"What did you see, Subaru?" She asked. He closed his eyes, and she took that to mean she needed to speak telepathically.
I'm listening, I suppose, she thought.
Rather than say anything, her eyes widened as she saw what he was imagining.
The Great Rabbit…Sin Archbishop of Sloth…and B-Bubby?
The violent imagery from the scenes alarmed Beatrice. Before she could get her mind back on track, she heard her own voice through his memory:
B-Betty is sorry, I suppose. As a Great Spirit, I should've been able to protect you…
The pain and bitterness of her own voice cut her deeply, even as the memory came to an abrupt halt. She shook her head to prevent herself from crying right then; she realized that right now, whatever led to him hearing that was a far more grievous wound to him than for her having heard it. He squeezed her just a little bit tighter, though not enough to cause her any real discomfort.
A-Are you okay, in fact? She telepathically asked. If the experience was that bad, Betty can tell everyone for you.
He shook his head and thought, Give me a minute. I want to warn them…but don't mention Puck. I can't have them turning on Emilia now.
She quietly sighed, accepting his answer. He finally opened his eyes and said, "Everyone, listen closely. We're about to be attacked by the Great Rabbit."
Emilia and Ferris gasped, while Crusch and Julius tensed up. Crusch said, "The accursed beast—it's coming straight for us?"
He nodded. "We have to be careful, though. It's not all we're about to be fighting. We're also in danger from the Witch Cult along with their Sin Archbishop of Sloth later tonight. They will be directly attacking the mansion, and he intends to sacrifice Emilia."
The aforementioned half-elf shivered and grabbed onto his arm as she fearfully asked, "The—The cult wants to sacrifice me? B-But, why?"
"They thought it would bring back the Witch of Envy," he bitterly explained. "But it didn't work."
The implication hung heavy in the air as Julius, Crusch, and Ferris' faces fell. Julius quickly suggested, "Should we turn around? We can go back to the capital and get some backup. Even though not all of us are part of your camp, we still can't willingly put her in such grave danger."
Subaru said, "I don't know. If we do, then the Great Rabbit will devour a village whole, and the Witch Cult will kill the maids at the Mathers Mansion."
"No!" Emilia interrupted, "W-We can't abandon these people, e-even if my life is in danger. I won't force you to come along, Lady Crusch, but I can't let the maids or that village die because someone wants me dead."
Subaru wanted to argue, but he was silenced by Crusch who calmly replied, "Lady Emilia, have you forgotten that we are allies now? Knowing that you're in danger, I could hardly call myself a good ally if I turned tail and ran back now. We will simply have to figure out how to make do with what we have instead."
He couldn't help but to lightly shake his head with a grin. Crusch has been his friend for what, a year and a half now? This is exactly the sort of person she is; he was a fool to ever think she'd ever accept anything but to be there at the front, keeping her promises. After a deep breath, he caught their attention again.
"I can help with that," Subaru said as everyone looked at him. "We can defeat the Great Rabbit, because we did in my vision. Emilia can summon walls of ice to trap it, and then we launch a single large attack to kill every rabbit at the same time. But, we can't use Julius' ultimate attack because we need to save our mana for the next battle tonight."
Emilia seemed to swell after hearing that she was so useful in the vision. Julius commented, "I can't use that, then? It'll certainly make this fight more difficult."
Why is he being secretive about his power? We all know what it is! Subaru thought as he lightly rolled his eyes.
Julius thought for a moment before continuing, "Perhaps if I used my Clauzel in combination with Lady Crusch's hundred-man strike while you and Miss Beatrice helped Wilhelm to clean up the rest? As long as Lady Emilia can hold up the walls, we should be fine."
Emilia said, "Well, I'm sure Puck won't have any trouble with it. His ice powers are super-duper strong!"
Subaru suppressed a groan. Here comes the hard part.
"Crusch, Ferris, Julius," he said as he quickly butted in, "Can you exit the carriage for a moment? We're near where the rabbit will attack, I just need to talk to my lady alone for a moment. Well, I guess Beako can stay too, but we need some privacy, for Emilia's sake."
While the other three were hesitant after seeing the look on his face, they seemed to understand. Julius said, "We'll be waiting for you out here, Subaru," and they left Subaru alone with Emilia and Beatrice.
Beatrice asked, "Why did you ask them to leave, I wonder? Is it—because of what you saw?"
He said, "Yes, but not that. Emilia, can you try to call out Puck now?"
She grew nervous at his request, but she acquiesced. "Puck, can you come out? Baru-tan wants to talk to you."
Subaru waited, and as he expected, Puck didn't appear. Emilia asked again, "Puck, now isn't a good time to play a prank on me. We're about to face a terrible monster, we need your help!"
"I'm sorry, Emilia," Subaru sadly said, "but I saw this, too. He won't respond during the fight, and not even after it's over. I need you to remember how to use your magic, because we have to fight without his help."
Her grip on his arm tightened as her eyes widened in shock. "B—But, how? Why? Puck's contract says he has to respond! The day isn't even half over, he shouldn't be sleeping."
He squinted in pain at her surprisingly strong grip, but he tried to explain, "I don't know why he disappeared, but don't worry. I told you that you were able to make walls of ice, right? Not Puck. You. You are more capable than you think, Emilia-tan."
Conflicting feelings filled the half-elf. While she was happy that Subaru believed in her so much, she could hardly remember the last time she used magic without Puck being a call away. Despite her fear, though, she knew that he was counting on her. He'd seen what would happen, and he needed her to make those walls of ice happen, Puck or not. In a way, the fact that he knew she could do so was comforting, but the whole situation still left a knot in her stomach.
She quietly said, "A—Alright, Subaru. I'll do my best for you. You've been there for me for so many hard moments, now I need to be here for you after suffering through that vision."
Some vision indeed, he thought before putting on a brave smile. "Thanks, Emilia-tan. Beako, let's take Emilia and go defeat that eldritch monster."
"Betty won't even break a sweat, in fact," the spirit responded with complete self-assurance. He smiled, and took both their hands as they left the carriage. Thankfully, the rabbit was still not visible when they met up with the rest of the group, giving them a few valuable minutes to come up with a more mana-conservative strategy.
"Any of Beako's more powerful spells are out," Subaru thought out loud. "She's going to need as much mana as possible for later. This would be so much easier if mana batteries were a thing!"
The others gave him a cockeyed look as they wondered what a 'batter-ee' was. Suddenly, Emilia loudly heaved as she knelt down, putting her hand over her chest.
"Emilia! Are you alright?" Subaru knelt down as he asked to check on her.
She responded, "Y-Yes, I'm alright. I just felt—something strange. When you asked me to use my magic, I wasn't sure what to do because I couldn't remember how to feel my gate, but I just found it. Subaru, I have more mana than I know what to do with! Maybe…I'm that 'mana batter-ee' that you were wishing for earlier?"
Ferris said, "Lady Emilia, please allow me to check, nya!"
She allowed the catboy to touch her shoulder, and his eyes widened in shock. He announced, "Lady Emilia, Ferri has never felt so much mana inside of a person in his entire life! Syubaru was right, you are the key to winning this battle, nya!"
Subaru suddenly said, "I've got it! Emilia, with your magic, you can defeat it all by yourself!"
Crusch said, "You did mention earlier she could trap the beast between walls of ice…Ferris, do you believe she could conjure a ceiling in addition to those walls?"
The catboy nodded his head. Subaru said, "Of course she can, because Emilia-tan is just awesome like that!"
Emilia's cheeks and the tips of her ears slightly reddened as she said, "S—Subaru, you're embarrassing me in front of another candidate, that's so not fair."
He helped her back up to her feet. She held onto his hand as she said, "That's okay, though. Thank you for believing in me." She put on a brave face and stared off into the distance, where the Great Rabbit was finally coming into view.
Subaru called out, "Everyone, get behind me and Emilia! Don't attack unless some of the rabbits manage to avoid Emilia's ice cage!"
As the others acknowledged him and got behind him, Emilia closed her eyes and focused her energy. She imagined towering shelves of ice that even the greatest of mabeasts would have trouble breaking through, and then imagined something even greater. She thought, If Subaru says I can do it, then I can.
As the rabbit multiplied, several massive chunks of ice came together overhead as the ambient temperature lowered just slightly. Emilia waved her hands, and they slammed down on every side of the rabbit, effectively confining it to a single space they couldn't escape from.
"Well done, Emilia-tan!" Subaru said as he gripped her hand just a little tighter. "Now, you just need to bring a ceiling down on them. Can you do it?"
She nodded. "Y—Yes, I still feel like I have a lot of mana. I'll do it!"
More chunks of ice melded together into the sort of massive spike-laden roof that would make any video game final boss drool. With a flick of her wrist, the solid roof came crashing down with a deafening thud, destroying the outer walls and much more in the process.
They all had to close their eyes as debris went flying. After a few minutes, the silence of the field convinced them to finally open their eyes, to behold an incredible sight.
"It's—dead, I suppose," Beatrice said. "Betty can't detect any signs of life from the crater, in fact."
As Beatrice said, where there had been a field in front of Flugel's Tree, there was now a crater large enough to fit the mansion's courtyard into. Subaru's jaw went slack seeing the damage Emilia's drop ceiling caused.
Without even thinking, he wrapped Emilia up in a hug and exclaimed, "You did it, Emilia-tan! You crushed the Great Rabbit like it was just an ant! You're incredible!"
She was so overwhelmed between both the discovery of her power and his praise that she couldn't do anything besides just absent-mindedly stare into the distance as he tightly held onto her. Beatrice tugged on Subaru's shirt and chided him, "Subaru, B—Emilia's going to end up catatonic if you don't give her some space, in fact!"
He realized how stiff she'd become, and quickly released her. He said, "Sorry, Emilia-tan, I got a little excited there. Are you alright?"
She slowly nodded her head and said, "Y—Yeah, I—I'll be fine, Subaru. I'm not upset, I just, well, wasn't expecting that, is all."
Crusch came over and said, "Lady Emilia, that was an incredible performance. You were eager to prove in your speech that you were able to protect the oppressed, but you've proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that you're more than capable of it. I can't think of anyone else besides perhaps the Sword Saint that could single-handedly destroy a Great Mabeast. As it stands, right now your camp could rightfully claim full credit for the destruction of it, seeing how all we did was stand back and watch."
"Indeed," Julius agreed as he joined in. "Even if I can't claim any credit for the Anastasia Camp, knowing the beast is gone is enough for me. Actually, that reminds me, we have another fight to prepare for, don't we?"
Subaru and everyone else's faces fell a little as they recalled. The Sin Archbishop of Sloth…Petelguese Romanée-Conti, he thought.
"Yes," Subaru said. "The only problem is, I don't know where he is, otherwise we could launch a pre-emptive strike. I only remember that he attacked well after the sun had gone down. Emilia, when we get back, we need to make a fortified position so that—"
He choked up a little thinking about the screech he remembered hearing, but picked back up, "So that you'll be safe from the cultists. I hate to say it, but I think having you on the battlefield with us would ultimately be the best thing to do so we can protect you."
"I agree," said Wilhelm as he and Ferris joined the circle. "There is no better place for her than side by side with the rest of us. Of course, we all know she is far from defenseless, but having all those sets of eyes around will keep her even safer."
Crusch added, "We'll all be a part of that battle." A smile appeared on her face as she continued, "It looks like I'll get to repay your favor of defeating the Great Rabbit back right away, Lady Emilia."
After the group finished recovering, they found a somewhat-intact rabbit corpse and Emilia flash-froze it so they'd have proof of its defeat. They restarted their trip to Roswaal's mansion as they continued to discuss strategy within the carriage.
"What do you know about Sloth, Subaru?" Julius asked.
Subaru answered, "He's a difficult opponent. He has a powerful, invisible attack as well as some kind of barrier that protects him from most attacks. He seems to need to concentrate to keep that barrier up, so some attacks can get through if we attack him enough. Honestly, the hardest part is that he isn't just one person. In my vision, we did take him down, but then another person appeared who spoke the same way and also gave the same name, Petelguese Romanée-Conti."
Beatrice's eyes widened as she heard the name. Emilia found the name incredibly familiar, but she couldn't understand why, so she tried to ignore it for the time being.
Crusch mused, "More than one person? That makes it far more complicated. Who knows if it's two, five, ten, maybe even a hundred Sloth clones?"
Subaru corrected, "No, calling them clones isn't quite right. The first Sloth was a shambling corpse of a man, seemingly held together by magic. The second seemed like a fairly ordinary young woman, but she had the same abilities as the shambling corpse."
"Sounds like possession, in fact," Beatrice suggested. "It could be that the Sloth Archbishop is a spirit, I suppose." She looked down as she realized she knew everything she needed to know about her old tutor, and as soon as she heard his name she knew she would have to spill the secret for her new contractor's sake.
"A spirit?" Subaru asked. "I guess that does make sense, but I never would've guessed spirits were capable of possession."
Julius said, "Certain powerful spirits are capable of possession, it's just rare to see because most spirits don't reach a high enough power level to become capable of it. Perhaps 'Petelguese' is one of these rare greater spirits?"
After thinking for a moment, he smiled and said, "If that's the case, then it's good that Lady Emilia enabled us to save our mana. We will need to use spirit arts and magic in order to attack the spirit directly and not just the body it's possessing."
Beatrice said, "The purple haired knight is right, in fact. Most spirits are vulnerable to attacks of a magical nature."
"I guess that's the plan then," Subaru said. "Well, we should try to get a little rest before we get to the mansion. We'll have just enough time to eat before we need to start scouting the forest for cultists."
The others silently nodded in agreement. Subaru leaned back in his seat when Emilia leaned her head on his shoulder. She said, "Subaru, can you please hold me? I know we have a plan, b-but I'm still scared after you talked about your vision."
They believed it would bring back the Witch…but they were wrong.
He gently wrapped his arm around her shoulder as she closed her eyes and cuddled into his side. It wasn't long before her breathing became heavy, and he realized she'd once again fallen asleep on him in front of everyone else.
As he faced his amused company, he sheepishly asked, "I don't suppose I can ask you all to keep this a secret?"
After the remainder of the ride, they arrived at the mansion right as Emilia awoke again. They all stepped out of the carriage to find Rem, Ram, and Flora waiting for them as Subaru expected, though this time there was no sign of a struggle thanks to Emilia's power.
"Welcome back, Lady Emilia, Sir Subaru, and Miss Beatrice," Rem said with a smile. "We also welcome our honored guests, Lady Crusch, Sir Wilhelm, Blue, and Sir Julius."
Flora added, "We were just getting ready to prepare dinner if everyone is ready."
"Thanks for the welcome," Subaru said, "but things aren't as good as they seem. We fought the Great Rabbit on the way back home."
The maids' eyes widened. Ram asked, "You say you fought it, Sir Barusu, but it doesn't look like any of you have been in a fight."
Julius presented the frozen corpse of the rabbit. "I'm afraid it's true. We were fortunate that Lady Emilia was able to single-handedly destroy the vermin before it could bring us any harm."
"We're also going to be attacked by the Witch Cult," Subaru casually added as though he was talking about the weather.
The twins both exclaimed, "The Witch Cult!?"
Ram chided, "Sir Barusu, if you think this kind of sick joke is funny—"
"It's not a joke, I suppose," Beatrice interrupted. "Betty has reason to believe he's telling the truth. Sometime after the sun goes down, the Sin Archbishop of Sloth will attack."
Rem lightly shivered as she said, "So, they're coming for us after all."
Subaru shook his head. "I don't think they're coming for any of you. Their goal is to sacrifice Emilia to The Witch."
Flora covered her mouth. Rem asked, "How do you know, Sir Subaru?"
He explained, "I saw it in a vision. I also saw the Great Rabbit, so that's why I'm certain we'll see this Sloth Archbishop."
Ram sighed and said, "Loathe as I am to admit it, Sir Barusu's visions have proven helpful so far."
Flora shook her head and said, "Well, if they're attacking after sundown, we should prepare a quick meal so you're all ready to face off against the cult. Hard to fight on an empty stomach, I'm sure."
The group agreed, and they went inside. Rem and Flora prepared sandwiches since Subaru had assured them they had some time, and they quickly ate as they prepared for the upcoming battle. Once finished with the power meal, most of the group began preparing fortifications.
Before he left, Subaru stopped Ram for a moment and asked, "Ram, do you know where Lord Roswaal is? Having him to help out would probably make things a lot smoother."
"That's a decent idea coming from you, Barusu," Ram said with a hint of a compliment, "but Lord Roswaal is not here. He left about an hour before you arrived, saying that he needed to visit another noble in the domain. We must fight without him present."
Subaru's eyes widened. He thought, But, how? He was here last time, why did he suddenly do something else? D-Don't tell me that I don't go back in time, but merely get shifted to an alternate reality…
"Barusu."
He re-focused on Ram, who was now firmly but not roughly holding his shoulder. She held a neutral face as she told him, "I know that not having him here will make it harder, but we have to fight anyway. As I recall, Lord Roswaal entrusted the leadership of the Emilia Camp to you, which means you need to be able to do this. If Lord Roswaal believes you're up to the task, then that means that I will reluctantly support you too. Ram will do everything in her power to help you, as long as you don't let her or her sister down."
Despite her claim of reluctance, this was clearly her attempt at encouragement. He still had his misgivings about Roswaal suddenly being absent, but he would have to fight his way through it without Roswaal.
"Of course, Ram. Thanks for reminding me of my duty," he said calmly. Contrary to her normal behavior, Ram put on a slight smile and nodded as she released him. While it surprised him a little, he didn't let it linger, and he went to help with the fortifications.
Quite a while later, most of the mansion's residents were outside in the courtyard. The sun had just sunk below the horizon, and the final fortifications had just been completed. Just like the previous attempt, Meili demanded a place on the battlefield, and Subaru allowed her because he knew she could be trusted. Emilia stood in the middle as Subaru's hastily-gathered alliance surrounded her on all sides, including a few flying mabeasts that hid just out of view to prevent aerial attacks. Beatrice stood near Subaru so the two could directly protect Emilia while giving her enough room to still cast her magic.
The group silently waited as the sky grew darker and darker, until:
"How unexpected…it seems the vessel's protectors have served her on a silver platter just for me? How diligent, diligent, diligent!"
"Fura!" Ram shouted as a wind blade flew in the direction the sound came from.
"Hehehe, so you are planning to fight?"
"El Huma!" Rem shouted in the new direction of the voice.
An invisible force tried to sweep them all off their feet, but all were able to dodge since Subaru had warned them about the power previously.
The shambling green archbishop finally came into view as he clapped and said, "Suuuch diligence, being able to dodge the invisible! BUT! Can you keep dodging…when I speed up?"
"No need!" Julius shouted as he raised his sword. "Clauzel!" he shouted as a bright white shone forth from his blade while he swung.
The archbishop dodged, prompting Emilia to follow up with an "Ul Huma!"
Wilhelm quite literally lept into battle along with Julius as the two rushed after him.
"Hehehe! You would try to deny me the destiny my lady has blessed me with, but I, Petelguese Romanée-Conti, will win out over a few knights and their help!"
Crusch yelled, "This'll teach you to refer to me as 'help'!" She charged up her wind powers and released her signature attack, the Hundred Man Strike. Her wide-angle attack was what finally connected with him, sending the zombified archbishop flying backwards as the surrounding trees were casually demolished by her attack's raw power.
Before Petelguese could do anything else, Beatrice added, "The green-haired one is right, I suppose. I am the Great Spirit of the Forbidden Archive, not some helpless sidekick! El Minya!"
Beatrice's favored attack quickly surrounded the still-recovering archbishop, and ruthlessly pelted him. As the dust cleared, they watched as he no longer moved—he had been turned into a statue by her time-stopping magic.
"Remember, it's not over yet!" Subaru reminded everyone. They all nodded as Meili's mabeasts were finally overwhelmed by the number of cultists who'd shown up to fight. The multitude of attacks from the alliance kept them all at bay while the remaining mabeasts continued to thin their ranks from left to right.
"El Goa!" Subaru called out, and he was surprised to see he could still use his fire magic even with just Beatrice as his contracted spirit. His large blast of fire landed in the middle of a large group of cultists, stalling their advance long enough for Wilhelm and Julius to quickly cut them down.
Beatrice smiled as she smugly said, "Betty promised you would still be able to use the magic your previous spirits could, didn't she?"
Subaru gave her a thumbs up and said, "That's why you're the best, Beako! Let's keep going!"
"Hehehe!"
He turned around to shield Emilia as the same young woman from the last attempt tried to backstab her. Beatrice called out, "El Minya!", which the woman was able to dodge just in the knick of time.
She appeared to frown as she said, "How unexpected. It's as if you were waiting for me to reappear and attack her. Were you aware that I was coming? No, that can't be. The Gospel said nothing of it!"
While the other cultists continued attacking, the woman Petelguese took out a book and began madly flipping through the pages. She became increasingly distressed as she realized how the attack was slowly turning out nothing like how the book predicted it.
"Of course, of course, OF COURSE! You're cheating, that's what's wrong!" She madly declared. "The vessel was supposed to be inside the manor in the first place. How could I have foreseen that the Gospel would be wrong? Bah, I'll stop playing around and just kill you all before we commence with the Ordeal!"
The unseen attacks suddenly came from all directions, throwing Subaru and company out of whack. The strike that hit Subaru was so swift and strong that he was sent flying far from everyone else, which he only realized once he roughly landed and began looking around.
Shit, he thought, Petelguese has split us up! Emilia's in danger!
He hobbled back onto his feet only to realize that one of his ankles had been badly sprained, and he was in no condition to run. Thankfully, he soon felt a tug at his sleeve.
"I'm here now, Subaru," Beatrice reassured. "It took Betty a moment to find you, but I'm ready to help. I'll cast Murak so you can run despite your injury. Once we find everyone else, the catboy can fix your ankle."
She silently cast the spell as Subaru briefly patted her head. He lifted her up, since she was under the effect as well, and was able to hobble-run now that his weight was no longer an issue. They dashed through the forest as the duo tried to find anyone else, but it wasn't long before he heard that horrible sound again.
"No!" Subaru cried out as he collapsed on the ground. It was Emilia's scream; once again, Sloth caught them off guard and killed her with no one around to protect her.
Beatrice lifted his arm up and said, "S-Subaru, get up, we still have a chance to regroup with the others and defeat Sloth! Betty knows—knows what that scream means, but we should at least try to avenge her."
He sadly shook his head. "It's too late, Beako. It's all over now. He'll be here soon."
"What do you mean, 'he'—" Her eyes widened as she recalled the image of a gargantuan Puck. "No…No, no! Betty won't let him hurt you!"
Right on cue, the Beast of the End appeared and towered over the forest as a howling blizzard quickly lowered the atmospheric temperature.
Beatrice cried out, "Stop this right now! You—You can't destroy the world just because of one girl! What about me and my contractor!?"
He responded, "I will uphold my contract to end the world, Beatrice. Subaru didn't work hard enough to protect my daughter, and deserves to die with everyone else. Sleep now."
Powerful energy radiated around Beatrice as she shouted, "I won't let you hurt Subaru! Fell Minya!"
Subaru didn't recognize the level of magic with which Beatrice just called upon, but he watched as hundreds of delivery-truck size Minya crystals appeared in the air just before flying toward Puck. He could feel both his and her mana quickly drain as she sent wave after wave of what was evidently her most powerful offensive spell at him in her anger.
The Beast responded with a roar, matching her attack with similarly sized ice crystals. Beatrice tried hard to vary her pattern to get past his defenses, but the few hits she was able to get in didn't do nearly as much damage as she thought that it would.
"I—I don't understand…this is my most powerful spell, which Mother helped me invent. The yin power of these crystals is potent enough to destroy a dragon; why can't I even scratch him?" Despite her despair, she continued her assault as she stretched hers and Subaru's mana ever thinner.
Subaru pleaded, "Bea—ko…don't do this. Just…just be with me instead."
"You should listen to your contractor, Beatrice. He knows when he's lost."
As tears rolled down her face, she rebuked, "I won't stop, not until I've turned you into an ugly statue frozen in time forever! Even—Even if I have to burn through my Od, I won't let you hurt Subaru."
Subaru finally got up and grabbed Beatrice as he shouted, "No! Beako, no! I—I don't want you to destroy yourself trying to fight him."
Because of his sudden move, her concentration was broken, and her spell dissipated into the air. He collapsed back on the ground, having spent what was left of his energy grabbing her and holding her tight. As his grip loosened, she was able to look at him in the eyes, and they both began to cry.
She said, "S-So, this is how it all ends. I'm sorry, Subaru. This—This is what you saw in your vision, isn't it? You knew that we couldn't win against him if Emilia died…all you wanted was to have someone with you when it came to an end. B-Betty was being selfish…she'll grant your wish of staying with you now. Th-Thank you for taking me outside the mansion again…it was nice, in f-fact."
She nuzzled herself into his chest as the snow piled up around them, quickly freezing the doomed duo solid as Subaru despaired over failing twice now against the dreaded Sloth Archbishop.
"It happened again, I suppose."
He was back in the dragon carriage, again. Tears formed in the corners of his eyes as Beatrice grabbed onto his hands and asked, "Subaru, what happened? What did you see?"
Everyone else turned around upon hearing Beatrice. Subaru wiped his face and quietly said, "Great Rabbit…is coming."
They wasted no time stopping the carriage and preparing to fight the beast once more, though they had no idea that this was the third time this group had faced the beast. The stresses of the last few loops, as he started seeing them as, were starting to weigh too heavily and he found himself unable to offer much support.
He simply told Emilia, "Emilia-tan…I saw you defeat the rabbit by yourself. I believe in you, Emilia-tan. I—I'm so sorry that I can't help you, but I know you can do it."
She was very concerned about Subaru, but she said, "Okay, if you say so, Baru-tan. I'll try not to let you down!" She exited the carriage, leaving a near-catatonic Subaru with Beatrice.
"Subaru," Beatrice gently said, "you really aren't well. Betty has never seen you so…in agony, I suppose, from one of these 'experiences' before. Is there really nothing else you can tell me about it, I wonder?"
He furrowed his brow as he tried to think of another way to explain it without literally saying time rewinds when he dies. Any mention of Return by Death, or even an allusion to death, was forbidden, but he wondered how close to the truth he could get without triggering the penalty.
"Beako," he weakly explained, "have you ever had a dream?"
She answered, "Betty typically doesn't dream, but she could if she wanted to. What about dreams, I suppose?"
He said, "Imagine that it's something like being in a very realistic dream. I don't just catch glimpses of things to happen, I guess? I feel like—"
I really experienced them, he thought he said, before realizing everything had stopped. Looks like he'd said too much. The dark hand of the Witch crept out from wherever it came from, and reached into his chest. He tried to prepare himself—
—but there was no pain. Instead, the hand vanished as a figure appeared in front of him. He realized he recognized who it was: the half-elf from the nightmares he'd forgotten, and the one who helped him defeat Capella. Satella, known to the world as the Witch of Envy.
She gently walked forward and placed her hand on his cheek as she said, "That's too close to the truth, my love. For now, you will just have to tell Beatrice that you can't say anything else, lest you anger the one who cursed you."
She paused for a moment before adding, "I hope you can forgive me, my love. You never should have reappeared at this accursed point…it's all my fault for not being vigilant enough. I'll do my best to fix things, but—please, try to hang in there. I will explain when I can. Goodbye for now, my love."
She faded away as time resumed. Beatrice said, "You said it was like a realistic dream, I suppose?"
He nodded and said, "I can't say anything else, lest I anger the one who cursed me. I'm sorry, Beako."
"Don't be sorry," she reassured him. "It can't be your fault that you're burdened with such a curse, I suppose. Even if it can help us in the end, it's unfair that it all falls to you to bear it. If the effects are becoming too much for you, you can tell Betty, in fact, and she will be there by your side to help you recover."
Though tears continued to fall down his face, he smiled a little as he scooped her up into a hug. He told her, "Thank you, Beako. You really are the best spirit a person could ask for."
Her eyes widened as the complement soaked into her. She responded, "B-Betty is glad you feel that way, Subaru. I hope that you'll always feel that way about me, in fact."
Unfortunately, the tender moment was broken apart when they heard outside, "Puck? Puck, come out! Subaru's counting on me, where are you?"
Oh no. Subaru had forgotten to mention a crucial detail in his admittedly-pathetic attempt to reassure Emilia, and now he was about to pay the price for his failure.
"Beako, we need to get out there!" he suddenly said. "Shit, I completely forgot! I forgot to tell her about Puck! He won't come out no matter how many times she calls!"
Beatrice replied with alarm, "That's ridiculous, I suppose! Betty knows her contractor was under a lot of stress, so she doesn't blame him, but she wonders why Puck would fail to respond to his contractor. It's up to us, I suppose!"
The two dashed out as the Great Rabbit was surrounding everyone. It had spread out so much that making a box around them seemed like an impossible task, and Subaru began to despair. He quickly told Beatrice, "Beako, do you think you could use that spell you and your Mother came up with?"
Her eyes widened as she disbelievingly asked, "How do you know about that—no, you must've seen that in your 'experience'. Against an enemy this spread out, I can't effectively target them all with it, I suppose. It would eat up all our mana for no real return, in fact."
He then asked, "Then, how about my Ul Minya? Do we have enough mana to turn them all into statues as they surround us?"
She responded, "No, I suppose. At best, we could get half of the horde with the mana we have."
Before he could say anything else, he suddenly heard Crusch call out, "Lady Emilia, move back now!"
He looked over, and he went from feeling despair to horror as Emilia turned and a rabbit sent her head flying off her shoulders.
"NO!"
Once again, he collapsed to his knees. He shut out the world around him as everything grew cold again, blaming himself for not being strong enough to help Emilia get through it. Even as Beatrice tried to break him out of his daze, he simply resigned himself to dying in Puck's snowstorm. After all, it was his fault for being slothful and not being there to be Emilia's pillar when she needed it most. Accepting his death was a penance to pay for failing so miserably. He closed his eyes, and quickly froze to death.
"It happened again, I suppose."
He quickly shook his head and refocused on what was around him. He reached out and grabbed Beatrice's hand as he announced, "Everyone, I had a vision."
They all turned to pay attention as he said, "We're about to be attacked by the Great Rabbit. We need to start getting ready now if we want to have time to fight it."
Without a word, the carriage stopped, and everyone aside from Emilia and Beatrice shuffled off to prepare. Emilia said, "The Gr-Great Rabbit? Do you think we can beat it, Baru-tan?"
He nodded. "We can beat it, Emilia-tan. First, though, I need to tell you something else I saw. Puck won't help us in this fight."
She grabbed his arm as she disbelievingly said, "What—what do you mean, he won't help us? Puck, you'll help us in this fight, surely?"
No response.
He brought his hand up to take her hand and said, "Emilia, I need you to listen closely. You have an enormous amount of magic that you can use even without Puck around. In my vision, you used your magic to destroy the Great Rabbit without even breaking a sweat, so I know you can do it."
She shrunk back while continuing to hold his hand and said, "M-My own magic? I haven't used it in so long, though…Puck has been managing my mana for me. B-But, if you say I can do it, then I'll trust you, Subaru."
He put on a brave smile as he said, "I'll be there with you, Emilia. If you find yourself faltering, just look at me, and I'll help you, I promise."
She looked fearful, but she shook her own head and put on a look of determination. She said, "Thank you, Subaru. I'll—I'll do my best to live up to your expectations."
The three all got up and left the carriage as they joined the ranks of the others in preparation for the fight. Emilia focused inward as she searched for her magic, Subaru drew his sword and shield, and Beatrice began concentrating so she was ready to use her arts.
The first rabbit appeared, and began duplicating right away. Subaru told Emilia, "You can do it, Emilia-tan. Try to surround them with walls of ice."
She nodded and continued focusing until she finally found her gate, and she released a massive surge of mana that created the walls they needed, slamming them onto the ground around the rabbit before it could expand too large for her to surround.
Subaru exclaimed, "You did it, Emilia-tan! Now, there's just one more step: create another block of ice as large as those walls, and use it to destroy the rabbit."
She nodded, and the ice began to form in the air. A large ceiling formed, somewhat similar to the one he saw in a previous loop, and she brought it hurtling down on the rabbit. The tremor forced them all to shield themselves as dirt and grass went flying in every direction.
When it settled, they looked to find a giant crater filled with the crushed corpses of the Great Rabbit. Not a single one was left alive, permanently ending the threat once more.
"I don't believe it," Crusch said. "Lady Emilia, that was quite the display of magic. Had I known you were capable of this, I might've considered the alliance even without the promise to find the White Whale. Regardless, the deed is done, and the Great Rabbit is dead for good."
Subaru held himself back from commenting on whether the Great Rabbit was, in fact, dead for good. He did add, "It's good we've defeated it, because we've got another fight coming up soon. His name is Petelguese Romanée-Conti, and his title is the Witch Cult's Sin Archbishop of Sloth."
"Another fight?" Julius asked with a concerned look. "You foresaw more than one fight?"
He sadly nodded and said, "He's a dangerous opponent. He's a spirit, and is capable of possessing other members of his cult. Because of that, he won't be defeated until we destroy every single member of the cult that comes for us tonight. They intend to attack the manor just after sundown. Their target…is Emilia."
The mentioned half-elf quickly and fearfully grabbed onto Subaru's arm. Crusch quickly said, "Well, looks like we get to pay back Lady Emilia right away for defeating the Great Rabbit. Do you know anything else about this 'Petelguese'?"
He explained what he knew so far: invisible attacks, personal barrier, the Gospel, and his large cult. Wilhelm said, "This Sin Archbishop certainly sounds like a dreadful opponent. While our group consists of powerful fighters, it may be best to simply turn around and return to the capital for Lady Emilia's protection."
"No!" Emilia suddenly shouted. "No, we can't go back and leave the mansion's maids in danger. What if the cult shows up, finds I'm not there, and kills them in a rage? I—I couldn't bear putting them in danger because I ran away."
She's nothing if not consistent, Subaru thought with a soft smile. She always puts others before herself…I doubt I could convince her to run away now. If I'm being honest, though, I don't want anything bad to happen to Rem and Ram either.
"Crusch, Wilhelm, Ferris, Julius," Subaru said, "will you aid us in our time of need? We don't have time to find new allies; we have to face this on our own."
Julius let out a laugh and confidently said, "Do you honestly believe we wouldn't?"
The other three smiled and nodded in agreement. Subaru met their smiles as best he could and said, "Well then, let's get underway. We've got a Sin Archbishop to fight."
Things played out as expected. Emilia fell asleep in the carriage, Subaru asked for their silence, they told the maids, made preparations, and nightfall reached the mansion as they all stood ready for Petelguese's appearance.
"Hehehe…so, you've brought the vessel right out for me? How diligent, diligent, dili—"
"El Minya!" Subaru and Beatrice shouted, catching the monologuing archbishop off-guard. The zombie was now a statue, and the first Sloth was down.
"Rude, rude, rude! Haven't you ever been told to respect your elders? Hehehe!"
Julius sliced at the young woman who'd appeared, but she dashed away before his strike could connect. She continued, "I can't fault your diligence, now can I? It seems an introduction is unnecessary, but I will say it anyway! Presenting the Witch Cult's Sin Archbishop of Sloth: Petelguese Romanée-Conti! Feel the love of the Witch as I share it freely!"
The group jumped at once at Petelguese attempted to sweep them all off their feet. In the air, Julius called out, "El Clauzel!" and slashed at the young woman. Caught unaware, she screamed out in pain.
"Spirit arts!? How, how, how? Why would you think to use those horrible, terrible arts?" She complained. "The vessel should not be so hard to obtain. The Gospel said nothing about this!"
"Damn you and your Gospel!" Subaru shouted. "Wilhelm, Crusch, back me up!"
Wilhelm dashed forward with a speed unthinkable for a man his age, and Crusch brought down her blade infused with wind magic as Subaru called out, "El Drosta!"
The dark hands of Drosta latched onto Petelguese, preventing her from moving as Wilhelm lopped off one of her arms and Crusch's blow utterly obliterated the possessed young woman.
Subaru said, "That's two down, let's see how many more we have to go through!"
The other members of the Sloth cult broke through Meili's mabeasts once again, forcing Rem and Ram to start using their magic to assist the beasts in thinning the cultists out and keeping Emilia safe. Subaru saw something from the corner of his eye, and turned to pull Emilia toward himself as a strange, shadowy hand passed within inches of her face.
"What is this, what is this, WHAT IS THIS!? How did you see the Unseen Hand?"
An angry but astounded-looking man came out of the crowd, and Subaru could see several such shadowy hands around him; some simply hovered above him, but a few were continuously rotating around his body, acting like a shield of sorts. He demanded, "How can you see? How has The Witch forsaken me—"
The man stopped to sniff the air as the group continued to fight the cultists. He announced, "The Witch's love…you are so blessed by her love! Why would someone so loved by The Witch be protecting the vessel from the Ordeal? My brain…trembles!"
Subaru adopted a nasty grin as he responded, "Hate to break it to you, but Lady Luck has always favored me! The only thing you're blessed with is being freaky!"
His compatriots wondered who 'Lady Luck' was, but chalked it up to some weird saying of his as they kept fighting. The new Petelguese said, "I must be more diligent, diligent, diligent! I will prove that I am the one that The Witch favors most of all! DES!"
Now that he could perceive the Unseen Hand, Subaru was finally able to dodge strikes that had taken him out previously. As he pulled Beatrice with him, she asked, "How are you able to see when it's coming, in fact?"
"I have no idea! More importantly, how much mana do we have?"
She reported, "We still have plenty, I suppose!"
One of the Unseen Hands tried to strike from above, prompting Subaru to pull Beatrice with him to the side. Beatrice called out, "Murak! Subaru, Betty will use her connection to you in order to dodge the strikes. Just do what you can against him, I suppose, and I'll help you!"
He gave her a thumbs up before he looked back at the third Petelguese and said, "Ul Goa!"
A large fireball shot out directly behind the archbishop, catching him off guard and sending him flying toward the group. Wilhelm yelled out, "He's all mine! Keep your guards up!"
With one slash, Wilhelm cleaved the man in two, ending his threat. He said, "Three down, Sir Subaru!"
The strength of the cultists began to diminish as the group kept destroying them left and right. Subaru shouted, "Keep an eye out for the next Sloth! He's bound to be nearby!"
While Emilia hadn't contributed heavily to the fight, she tried to keep on the offensive by launching more ice crystals at the cultists. She was also able to keep Meili safe by her side as the young girl commanded the mabeasts to continue their attacks on the cult. As she focused on some cultists ahead of her, she felt a strong tug on her arm that made her fall over.
"Ah!" She cried out as she landed.
She realized Meili had brought her down, but before she could say anything, Meili said, "Get up, elf-lady! We're in danger!" She pointed behind Emilia, where a cultist was standing, having just narrowly missed a prime opportunity to strike.
"Impossible!" the cultist called out. "How could one as young as you have seen me coming? I am too slothful, slothful, slothful!"
Emilia shouted, "El Huma!" and chased the newest appearance of the Sloth Archbishop off. Meili helped her back to her feet, apologizing for making her fall over.
"I'm sorry, elf-lady," Meili said.
Emilia patted her head softly and said, "It's okay, Meili-chan. And remember, you can call me Emilia. Now, we need to focus on our new problem."
Meili perked up a bit and said, "Okay, el—Emilia. Chompy friends, help me with this one!"
Several mabeasts rushed Sloth at the same time, forcing him to fall back as the group rushed to regroup and surround Emilia once more. Subaru said, "Good job, Meili and Emilia! Sorry we were apart for a bit. Time to destroy another Petelguese!"
"It appears to be my turn!" Julius shouted as he rejoined Subaru. "By the might of my blade, Petelguese, taste defeat! Al Claurista!"
A magnificent beam of light pierced the darkness surrounding them as Julius raised his sword in the air. While the current Sloth stumbled, Julius mightily swung and pulverized him as well as many surrounding cultists with the power of his ultimate attack. Subaru had to close his eyes as dirt and dust filled the air, making him and the others stumble around blindly for a brief moment.
He felt someone bump into him, and he instinctively grappled and tackled them to the ground. A girlish voice said, "H-Hey, stop that!"
Subaru recoiled, having accidentally grabbed one of his companions. He stumbled over his words as he apologized, "Oh geez, I-I'm sorry! Is that you, Emilia?"
The dust cleared, revealing a slightly red-faced and dirtied-up Crusch directly underneath him. His own face turned a light shade of red as he quickly got up and blubbered incomprehensibly. She sighed as she sheepishly asked, "Subaru, can you help me off the ground? We need to regroup with the others."
He could only pause for a moment before taking a breath, shaking his head, and helping her back to her feet. She murmured, "You really need to be more careful, Subaru. You're lucky that we are already friends. I believe I see Lady Emilia and the others just over that way, let's get back in formation."
How he and Crusch had ended up in the same place away from the others, he didn't know, but he was sure glad Emilia didn't witness what'd just happened. The two quickly caught up with the rest of the group, finding a lull in the battle. He asked Julius, "What happened? Did Sloth run away, or did we defeat him?"
Julius shook his head. "It's too soon to make a conclusion. I was able to sweep away the cultists, but they may be regrouping for another offensive right now. There's also the matter of Petelguese—I've destroyed another body he possessed, so we need to keep an eye out for the next incarnation."
Subaru nodded and moved back to Emilia's side. She grabbed his hand and whispered, "I was worried for a moment when you vanished! Please stay by my side if you can, Subaru." He nodded as Beatrice and Meili grouped in closely with them.
Right as he was about to take a deep breath, Wilhelm suddenly slashed the air, revealing another cultist attempting to take them by surprise. Everyone raised their weapons as the haggard woman declared, "I must admit, I rarely face such a diligent group! To think you've already cut down several of my Fingers, perhaps I should not have taken you so lightly. But, but, but! I will show that I am the most diligent one of them all!"
Before any of them could even blink, dozens of invisible hands lashed out at once, decimating the defense. Luckily for Emilia, Subaru had seen a hand coming directly for her, so he was able to jump in front of her and take the hit as it sent the two flying across the woods. They violently tumbled as Emilia held tightly onto him, only letting go when they rolled to a stop. She immediately asked, "Subaru, are you alright? That couldn't have been—good—"
Tears began to flow down her cheeks as she saw the state he was in. He barely had the light of life left in his eyes as blood freely poured out of a hole in his chest. She immediately began casting healing magic as she desperately pleaded, "No, no no no no no, please don't die on me Subaru! Not after jumping in front of that attack for me…you can't die here. Oh, Puck, why aren't you here? If only you were here, maybe I could've kept him safe, he wouldn't be dying…it's all my fault. I'm so sorry Subaru, you deserve so much better than to die protecting a useless girl like me."
Subaru didn't have the strength to even wheeze out a retort despite his earnest wishes. The last thing he perceived as he bled out was Emilia slumped over him, crying out, "Someone, anyone, please save my knight!"
"It happened again, I suppose."
Petelguese won again. Subaru could only take solace in the fact that this time, he was able to keep Emilia from dying. He turned to face Beatrice, who saw the look of absolute despair written all over his face. She quietly asked, "Subaru, what did you see? Are you alright, in fact?"
It wouldn't be so bad if he didn't keep appearing right here before the Great Rabbit. After everything Satella did to aid him before, why was she unable to change his save point from this horrible spot? However, he couldn't afford to spend any time thinking about that. He needed to warn everyone, and fast.
"Everyone, I had a vision," he announced. Everyone quickly turned to face him as he continued, "We're about to be attacked by the Great Rabbit. Don't worry, I have a plan, but when we stop, I need to talk with Emilia and Beako first. I promise I won't take long."
Crusch, Julius, and Ferris nodded. Once Wilhelm brought the carriage to a stop, the three got out and began preparing for the fight as Subaru sat alone with his two closest companions.
Emilia asked, "Baru-tan, what was it you wanted to talk to us about? Was your vision really bad and you just didn't want the others to see you in a bad state?"
He shook his head and replied, "Well, I'm not going to say it wasn't horrible, but that's not what's wrong. Emilia, it's about Puck. I don't know why, but he didn't respond to your calls in my vision."
Beatrice worriedly said, "Bubby not responding to calls? That's entirely unlike him, in fact."
Emilia put her hands on her crystal as she said, "That can't be right. Puck, you'd never fail to come when called, right?"
Just like in the previous loops, Puck did not respond when called. Subaru pre-emptively put his arms around Emilia and said, "Emilia, I know this is a lot to ask, but I'm counting on you for this fight. You're capable of defeating the Great Rabbit on your own, without Puck's help. When this is all over, I promise I will help you find out what happened, but right now, I need you in order to beat this thing."
Emilia was conflicted on how to feel. She couldn't feel Puck and was terrified without his reassuring presence, but Subaru's faith in her still made her feel like she could do it. After a moment's hesitation, she put her arms around Subaru and said, "Alright, Subaru. I'll try my hardest to not let you down." She briefly tucked her head into his chest before pulling back and putting on a brave face for him. He saw right through her facade, but he smiled back anyway so she could be strong.
He took both Emilia and Beatrice's hands and said, "Come on, we have a Great Rabbit to slay."
Outside the carriage, the Great Rabbit was just starting to come into view. Subaru walked over to the others with Emilia and Beatrice and said, "Alright, here's the plan. Emilia doesn't realize it, but she's an incredible magic user and she's capable of destroying it single-handedly, so we're going to let her do so."
Emilia's face turned bright red as she stammered, "W—What? S-Subaru, I know you said you needed my help, but don't you think that's exaggerating my abilities? I've only ever worked alongside Puck."
He gave a cheeky smile and said, "The magic has always been inside you, right? All Puck ever did was manage it for you. Find that magic again, Emilia, and show us all how awesome you are."
Beatrice couldn't help but silently roll her eyes over how cheesy Subaru sounded. She had to admit to herself, though, that it was still very compelling cheesiness. She watched as the red-faced Emilia took a deep breath and began looking inward before a surge of magic came to the surface that she had never witnessed before.
"Subaru," Emilia said, "I, uh, I think I found it. What should I do?"
He explained, "Create four large walls of ice. Imagine walls so large that even the largest mabeast couldn't jump over them, and then make them twice as large! Surround the Great Rabbit on all sides with them!"
She nodded, and closed her eyes as she focused on the mana inside herself. She released a huge amount as four massive walls of ice appeared above the Great Rabbit and crashed down. She opened her eyes, shocked by the sound of the crash, witnessing her own success.
Subaru said, "You did it, Emilia! Now, just one more thing. Make a ceiling of ice, and bring it down to destroy the entire Great Rabbit at once."
Once more, she summoned the ice ceiling and brought it downward, destroying everything beneath it in an instant. As the dust settled, Subaru slowly opened his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief, having successfully encouraged Emilia to destroy the Great Rabbit once again. His relief was short-lived, though, as he considered his next course of action. The Archbishop of Sloth was next, he didn't know how to defeat him, and was both afraid to die again and watch those he loved grieve over him.
He thought, What if I don't say anything this time? I can let Emilia-tan and everyone else go back to the mansion, then I can make some excuse to go wandering in the woods? Maybe I can find Sloth and his cult before they attack tonight.
That plan, he realized, came with a strong ramification. He would have to intentionally sacrifice his life in a desperate attempt to gather information. Not only that, but he wasn't even totally sure which direction they were coming from. It would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack, and he would only have a few hours to search. If he doesn't find them, they'll attack the mansion with zero warning, and likely kill Emilia with little effort.
I can't let that happen either, he thought. That left him with one other idea: Return to the mansion, collect Rem, Ram, and Flora, and evacuate. There's a chance they could wreck Roswaal's mansion, but surely Roswaal would forgive some damage in return for his sponsored candidate being safe?
"Subaru?" Emilia asked, "Are you okay? You've been staring in the distance for a while."
She got his attention, and he turned to find everyone with a worried expression. He shook his head and said, "S-Sorry, everyone, I got a little distracted there. Looks like we beat the Great Rabbit! Well, I say 'we', but it was really Emilia who took care of it."
The tension seemed to disappear from most of the group as Crusch replied, "That she did, Subaru. I'll have to make sure I don't underestimate the ability of my newest ally."
At that moment, Subaru decided he needed to ask them all for help again. With the help of his friends, surely they can all figure out a solution.
"I hate to bring down the mood," he started, "but our fight isn't over yet. I saw another fight in my vision, against a terrible being called the Archbishop of Sloth."
Julius asked, "Sloth? What have you learned about him from your vision, Subaru?"
Subaru answered, "Petelguese is a powerful foe. He seems to be a powerful spirit that inhabits a body, and can possess other members of his cult that he calls Fingers. His main method of attack is with an invisible attack he calls the Unseen Hand. Unfortunately, that's all I know. I don't know how to beat him, and I don't know how many Fingers he has."
Julius, Crusch, and Ferris all looked down as they contemplated the new knowledge. Wilhelm suggested, "If this Sloth calls those he can possess Fingers, perhaps it's because there are only ten? If we include Sloth himself, that means we need to defeat him in eleven forms."
Beatrice said, "That seems logical, I suppose. My intuition tells me that this spirit might not be the most creative with naming schemes." She didn't mention why she felt that might be the case, and she silently asked her old mentor for forgiveness.
Subaru chided himself for not realizing it earlier. Nevertheless, they now had a concrete goal: Defeat Sloth and the ten Fingers. The primary problem was Sloth's ability to blast them all away using his dozens of Unseen Hands at once, and he typically waited until the group was already somewhat exhausted before he used it.
"I just thought about something," Subaru said. "In my vision, I noticed two things. First, I can see his Unseen Hands. Second, he can produce dozens upon dozens of these Unseen Hands and blast us all away in a single stroke. Is there any way we can counter the second using the first?"
Julius answered, "We may be able to use one of my special abilities, Nect. I would be able to see everything you see, Subaru, including the Unseen Hands. If we can form a defensive perimeter and keep you out of harm's way, then I should be able to fight Sloth and his Fingers highly effectively."
Crusch asked, "Subaru, do you know why you were able to see the Unseen Hands?"
Subaru shook his head. "I don't have a clue. All I remember is that Sloth was distressed when he realized I could see his attacks."
Ferris added, "I thyink if we work together, Wilhelm, my lyady, and lyady Emilia, and Syubaru's Great Spirit should be able to make a strong enough defense that I can help him keep his eyes open!"
"You can do that?" Subaru asked.
Ferris responded, "I am the best water magic user in the kingdom, nya! You learn a lot of tricks when you have as much expertise as me!"
With a plan in place, they froze one of the rabbit corpses and brought it on the carriage to Roswaal's manor.
Another carriage ride where Emilia fell asleep on Subaru later, the group arrived. Rem, Ram, and Flora awaited them at the entrance, where Subaru explained what was happening once more. The three maids helped unload and quickly prepare a meal before the next fight ensued.
After the meal, Subaru took a few minutes to collect himself while most of the group prepared defensive battlements. Beatrice sat beside him, holding his hand. She asked him, "Subaru, how bad was your 'experience'? You seem more affected by it than usual, I suppose."
He hesitated before answering, "It's hard to really describe. It would probably break one of the rules if I told you why this time seems so bad."
Beatrice looked down as a light pout formed on her face. She said, "Such a terrible way to learn of future events, I suppose. Betty wishes she could ask whoever, or whatever, did this to you what exactly is going on so she could support you better, in fact."
I wish that too, he thought. If I could just have one, maybe two people who were allowed to know about my Return by Death, that I could talk to about it, it wouldn't be so difficult.
He held her hand a little tighter and said, "Don't worry too much, Beako. It helps that you're by my side trying to help as much as you can. I have to say, though, after our initial meeting, I never imagined that you'd end up being one of my closest confidants."
Her cheeks turned a bit pink as she said, "Betty wishes she would have recognized you were a great contractor from the start, in fact. All she can do now is try to be a good spirit for her contractor and support him as much as possible."
He reached his free hand over and gently rubbed her head as he said, "And you've done a great job so far. Anyway, we better get going. The Archbishop of Sloth isn't going to wait for us to come out before he attacks." Beatrice nodded, and the two left to join the group outside.
Right outside the door, Emilia was waiting with Rem. The maid asked, "Are you ready, Subaru? My sister told me that the temporary fortifications are nearly ready."
He nodded. Emilia smiled and held out her hand, which Subaru took. She said, "Come on, Subaru. We're all going to do our best to keep you safe so you can help Sir Julius defeat that nasty Sloth Archbishop."
The three arrived at the relatively simple stone and wood construction in the woods. It was a simple two-wall fortification that would cover their rear, allowing Crusch to wait behind and keep it clear from rear attacks. Wilhelm, Rem, and Ram would keep the sides and direct front clear while Emilia, Beatrice, and Ferris would provide immediate protection for Subaru so he could watch for Petelguese, the Fingers, and their Unseen Hands while Julius worked to finish them off as quickly as possible. Meili, who also insisted on joining, would keep as many of the other cultists occupied as possible by ordering the local mabeasts to attack.
Night fell, and the group prepared for their imminent attack. Julius used Nect, and he began to see through Subaru's eyes. He was shocked when he noticed a figure approaching through the woods; several of the Unseen Hands wiggled around as they protruded from his backside, making it incredibly obvious who he was.
"What's this?" Petelguese mockingly cried out. "A small group of knights and their helpers would stand in the way of the Witch Cult? Ha! It will be no issue for this diligent one to cut right through and collect the vessel for the Ordeal!"
Subaru smirked and said, "Not this time, you zombie cretin. Julius, you've got this!"
Julius shared in the smirk and replied, "It'll be my pleasure, Subaru."
As Julius closed his eyes and charged, Petelguese attempted to intercept him with his Unseen Hand. To his shock, however, the knight dodged all his hands and struck him right in the chest!
"What!? I-I-Impossible! How could you possibly see my Unseen Hand!?" the ghoul shrieked. As Julius continued his attack, Crusch let loose a Hundred-Man Strike against the cultists approaching from their rear.
Petelguese roared, "Wide-range magic? That can't be, the Gospel predicted the Great Rabbit would've taken up all the magical power of the defenders already!"
Subaru was shocked when he heard that. He thought, Their Gospel predicted the arrival of the Great Rabbit just before their attack? That's hardly fair!
Julius responded, "Too bad for you, fiend! No mere Great Rabbit can put a stop to this band of heroes! Claurista!"
He weaved his blade between several Unseen Hands and struck the shambling corpse's head, vaporizing it in a blink. Subaru announced, "One down! I'll look for the next one!"
He scanned around as Julius waited for the next sign. He quickly spotted another instance of the Unseen Hand waving over a figure concealed by the night. Julius quickly ducked behind some cover as he prepared to ambush the first Finger.
The cloaked figure cried out, "Did you miss me? It is I, Petelguese Romaneé-Conti, and I'm back!" She threw off her cloak, and cultists came rushing in from all around her.
Wilhelm, Rem and Ram fought off the cultists while Julius got in close. Without a word, he leapt out of a bush and struck down the first Finger before she could even react. Subaru called out, "That's two! Keep it up!"
Julius followed the same pattern, waiting until Subaru caught sight of the next Unseen Hand, and then preparing an ambush. The second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth Fingers all fell one after another as Julius kept finding ways to get them off guard. Since no one else needed to worry about the Unseen Hands, they had been able to keep Subaru and Emilia completely free from harm.
Subaru continued to scan the horizon as he waited for the appearance of the seventh Finger. Ferris continued using his magic to enhance Subaru's sight as much as possible, but he was struggling. More cultists were continuing to attack without a leader in sight, keeping the group on its toes and unable to aid Subaru in his search. Finally, Subaru caught a glimpse of something that looked like an Unseen Hand. Julius quickly began making his way over, but the Unseen Hand rushed into the fray before he could respond.
"Emilia! I need an ice wall!" Subaru quickly ordered. Emilia produced a large wall, blocking the Unseen Hand from reaching them, but also blocking his vision temporarily. Thankfully, Julius was able to catch up and slice the Hand, getting the four out of immediate danger.
With the threat away, Subaru was able to get his focus back on the newest Finger, a slender older man. He cried out, "How frustrating, frustrating, frustrating! Being able to see my Unseen Hand is cheating! If I can't get to you individually, then it's time to sweep you all away at once!"
Subaru momentarily panicked. Crap! This is the point where he splits us all up and either kills me or Emilia, which will end the loop and bring me right back to the Great Rabbit!
Through Nect, while Julius didn't catch his thoughts, he felt the massive anxiety Subaru felt, and realized this was the large attack Subaru had warned them about before. Julius swiftly raised his weapon and declared, "You'll not get the chance to get us, I'm afraid! Al Clauseria!"
An incredible, bright light shone forth from his blade, illuminating the darkness. The Finger was forced to cover his eyes as Julius swung down, annihilating the Finger entirely.
Julius called back, "Don't worry, Subaru! I got him in time!"
Subaru breathed a quick sigh of relief before refocusing. There were still three more Fingers to defeat: eight, nine, and ten. In the back of his mind, he hoped that this was finally the successful loop, and they could finally go back and get their well deserved rest. To him, it was as if he hadn't slept in days now.
He spotted number eight on their way. Julius decided not to lie in ambush; if the fiend was prepared to use his wide scale attacks, he couldn't afford to stand by and wait for the perfect strike anymore. Once Subaru had a clear view of the Finger, he wasted no time engaging her.
"So eager, eager, eager to fight!" the Finger clamored. "The fact you haven't exhausted yourself yet is most concerning to me. You couldn't have possibly known I was coming…could you?"
Julius smirked and answered, "I'm sure you're used to the Witch Cult having better intelligence than the kingdom, but this time, we have an ace up our hole, and you're going down."
The Finger frowned. "Bah, grandiose talk! No information is better than the Gospel. Only the Witch has such power of foresight!"
Julius answered, "Soon, it won't matter. El Clausel!" With the power of his spirits, he quickly cut down the Finger as he dodged her Unseen Hands once again.
"Just two more to go," Subaru muttered. He felt his pulse rise as he noticed several large Unseen Hands directly to the front, and Julius went on the offensive again.
The ninth Finger cried out, "How is this going so badly? I was supremely diligent in preparing for this battle! I followed the Gospel to the letter! I guided the Great Rabbit to the field to weaken the vessel's defenders! I brought all the Fingers, and every loyal follower of the Witch under my command! With the advantages I have, this fight should have been over without even my main body perishing!"
Subaru called back, "Perhaps your so-called Witch doesn't love you quite like you think! All she did was lead you into a trap to be destroyed by us!"
"Preposterous!" the Finger retorted. "I have always known the Witch's love! Even with what I have remaining, I will complete the Ordeal like I was meant to!"
In the Finger's anger, he didn't notice Julius appear, who lopped his head right off. He called out, "One more, Subaru!"
I sure hope so, Subaru thought. Knowing his luck, there was another group called the Toes just waiting for Subaru and his group to let their guard down. He shook his head, banishing the thought. The final Finger was soon upon them, a very tall and intimidating-looking man.
"Your diligence is impressive, I have to admit!" He exclaimed. "In the end, however, my diligence is the greatest! Suffer defeat at my hands!"
From the back of the man sprouted dozens of Unseen Hands going in every direction, desperately demolishing everything. Subaru yelled out, "Take cover! He's trying to level everything!"
As everyone else tried to stay low, he continued to focus so Julius could finish off what they all hoped was the final threat. Julius raised his sword and called out, "Taste my ultimate attack once again! Al Clauseria!"
A rainbow of light enveloped Julius, illuminating the entire forest, before directing the energy at the tenth Finger, obliterating him on the spot.
As the light subsided, the forest finally grew quiet. Subaru let out the breath he felt he'd been holding for multiple loops before collapsing on the ground. All the other members of the group quickly ran to his side as they feared the worst.
"Subaru!" Emilia exclaimed, "Are you alright? Did that horrible person hurt you?"
He opened his eyes, bringing relief to everyone. He said, "No, I'm sorry. I've just been, you know, nervous, since I didn't know how this was going to turn out. All that collective anxiety must've finally caught up to me."
Emilia sighed before her worried expression became a smile. "Don't worry anymore, Subaru. We're all okay now." She gently lifted him back up onto his feet and said, "I'll help you get back home, Subaru. It couldn't have been easy keeping your eyes peeled like that for Sir Julius."
Despite how little physical effort he'd put into the battle, maintaining his focus for such a long time had been a draining task. That coupled with the trauma of witnessing his friends dying over and over again meant that he knew he had to accept Emilia's offer, even at the expense of his pride as a man. She gently smiled as she put her arm around his waist and allowed him to lean on her.
As if Emilia knew what he was thinking, she looked at Crusch and asked, "You wouldn't think less of Ferris if he was in this sort of situation, right?"
Crusch giggled a little and answered, "Well, I can't say I wouldn't tease him for it, but I'd believe he'd earned his reprieve. I certainly don't think less of Subaru after what he's endured to help us today."
Rem and Ram walked up beside them. Rem said, "Sir Subaru worked very hard today. Rem think's it's alright for a knight to rely on the help of their lady from time to time too!"
Ram added, "If Sir Barusu becomes too heavy for you, Lady Emilia, there is no need to worry. My sister and I are both accustomed to hauling sacks of potatoes back to the manor from much further distances than this."
Subaru sighed as he complained, "Of course Ram would compare me to a sack of potatoes."
"Even if the potatoes would consider it an insult," the pink-haired maid said with a wink. "Ram is not without her compliments, however. I recognize that you've done a good job today as a leader for our camp. I will be happy to inform Lord Roswaal of your deeds today when he returns."
Beatrice huffed as she added, "My contractor is my contractor, after all. Whether it's defeating an Archbishop of the Witch Cult or a Great Mabeast, since he is my contractor, he will always succeed."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Beako," Subaru said half-heartedly. The tsundere Great Spirit walked over and took his free hand, pretending not to be jealous of the extra attention her contractor was currently getting.
Despite the teasing, Subaru was happy. He finally got through a personal hell in the making, and he couldn't wait to finally get the rest he so desperately needed. All they had to do was walk back through the quiet, empty woods—
CLANG
They turned to find Wilhelm, sword out, clashing with what Subaru could barely make out as a messy, long-haired boy wearing an outfit made of rags.
"You saw us coming, Sword Demon? Wonderful, wonderful…you'll truly be gourmet…~tsu. We are Ley Batenkaitos, Archbishop of Gluttony, representing Gourmet. You will all…make a fine meal, ~tsu."
Subaru furrowed his brows and muttered, "You've got to be fucking kidding me."
Once again, apologies for the wait. For those of you who still follow and read my work, thank you so much. I returned to college recently and didn't have a lot of fspare time, but I regained some of my creative spark once the smeester was over and finished this chapter up. The next has been started, and I hope I can get it written and published before the end of summer break. Feel free to leave comments!
