Chapter 1

The Girl Dressed In Shadows

"-I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you."

The words of love flowed out like a river, unheeding of his rejection. They coated the world in them as Natsuki Subaru was swallowed up by the darkness—-

"-I, am Volcanica. In accordance with the ancient covenant, I ask the will of thee who hath reached the summit."

In the next instant, a pale blue light poured down from above, striking the darkness that had engulfed the world. That fierce light then swallowed up the darkness, and the color of the world changed—-

It changed—-

It chan…ged-

"Mmm…"

Ram heard a groan escape Subaru's lips. She squinted her eyes, the light which had dissipated the darkness blinding her.

She slowly acclimated, her vision gradually returning to normalcy, as she desperately tried to make out the two who had been swallowed by the shadows.

Lying flat in front of her was Subaru, his cheeks brushing against the soft ivy of the Green Room floor as he pushed himself off the ground. And beside him lay her sleeping blue-haired twin, unaffected by the events that took place a few minutes prior.

"Barusu! Rem!" she called out in relief, having ascertained their safety.

"Ram!" Subaru looked in her direction, relaxing as he saw the pink-haired tsundere safe and sound.

Ram rushed over to them, immediately hugging her little sister as tightly as she could, as if afraid that Rem would disappear the moment she loosened her grip.

Subaru watched the heartwarming scene with a smile and moved back slightly so as to not interrupt them. As he did, his hand touched against another, making him turn around in surprise.

His relief turned to disgust as he noticed the blonde haired Sin Archbishop, sleeping peacefully beside him, drooling from her mouth.

He pushed her away and jumped up, backing away from Louis, and drawing Ram's attention towards him.

"Barusu, are you alright?" she asked, still refusing to let go of her sister.

"Yeah, I'm fine." he answered, smiling at her protectiveness.

"I see. That's good then….if something had happened to you, Rem would have cried." she heaved a sigh of relief, making Subaru chuckle at her response.

Having made sure everyone was safe, Ram finally asked the question that had been plaguing her mind.

"Barusu, what was that? It seemed to be targeting you."

Subaru's expression turned grave, as he bit his lips drawing blood from it. His actions worried Ram greatly, as she finally let go of her sister and walked closer to him.

"It's nothing, Nee-sama. Just the results of my failures, that's all!" he gave a mocking laugh, making Ram feel extremely uncomfortable. "Anyways, it gone now, so we have nothing to-"

"-Grrrrrr!" there was a growl.

Turning in its direction, the two saw Patrasche angrily glaring in their direction.

"...Patrasche, what's wrong?" the raven-haired knight asked in confusion.

It was then that Ram realised Patrasche wasn't looking at them, but behind them. Turning around, her eyes widened in shock as she tugged on Subaru's sleeves, gesturing for him to turn around.

"What are you-" the moment he laid his eyes on the sight, his pupils shrank, his body shivered and it seemed as if his very soul drained out of his body.

The walls in the corner of the Green Room where the shadow had attacked was very delicately held in place, even a single movement would cause it to break apart and fall, creating a massive hole in the centre of the room. The ivy had rotten away, darkening and losing its green lustre.

—-And at its centre, was a lone girl, with beautiful silver hair and tears in her shimmering amethyst eyes, standing on the crumbling base.

"...Emilia….sama?"

She was wearing a black dress embroidered with yellow flowers, black and yellow ornaments pinning her hair, completely different from what she had ever seen Emilia wear before. She was surrounded by shadows that seemed to resonate with her heartbeat.

"That's not Emilia, Ram!" Subaru whispered, without turning his gaze away from the girl. "Take Rem, and get the hell away from here, as fast as you can!"

"Barusu, what-"

"We don't have time for this now! Just listen to me!" he ordered her.

And yet, Ram couldn't move. She was overwhelmed by an intense fear that threatened to stop her from even breathing the moment she looked at the girl.

Was it the Sin Archbishop of Lust, who she had heard could take on the appearance of anyone she liked? If the Sin Archbishops of Gluttony were here, it wouldn't be that strange for another one to be present.

That was the conclusion she reached, and prayed to the Gods was true. That was the Sin Archbishop of Lust, not her. It could not be her. Afterall, she was currently sealed inside a shrine by the three heroes. It was impossible for her to be roaming free.

"Subaru, what happened? Are you guys alright-" her real liege's voice called out, soon shocked into silence upon entering the room.

Emilia instinctively drew her hands to own face, and lightly touched her features. In mere seconds, even she fell to the overwhelming aura of fear that seemed to emanate from the girl dressed in shadows.

Soon, one after another, all the other members, who had rushed into the Green Room fell to their knees, unable to move in terror, with the sole exception of Subaru, who took a small step back.

The girl ignored the existence of everything else, her eyes rested solely on Subaru and Subaru alone. For her it seemed as if nothing else besides Subaru mattered.

"-Subaru-kun." To their horror, the girl stretched out her towards him and called out his name so passionately, trying to drown him in love.

In complete contrast, the moment his name left her mouth, he let his arms go limp, his shivering stopped and he seemed to relax, as if realising he was no longer in danger.

His lips parted slightly, wishing to speak something but he couldn't find the words.

"-I love you." the silver-belled voice of the girl, the same as Emilia's declared, as she took a single step towards him.

The instant she did, the floor underneath her feet crumbled, sending her falling towards the earth.

With the danger finally gone, the Watchtower squad could relax, despite the words she had left for Subaru before she had fallen down. Their relief turned to horror, when—-,

"NOOO! SATELLA!" Subaru screamed, as he thoughtlessly plunged into the air towards the falling girl.

Beta reading credits to Antic Master. Thanks a lot for the help.