"Subaru/Barusu/Natsuki-kun!" Up above, screams erupted from the recently made gaping hole in the Green Room.

But to Subaru, none of that mattered. As he spiralled downwards, the only thing that did matter was the falling girl below him. The world around him seemed to vanish; only she stayed in his view.

Tears slipped from his air dried eyes. He stretched out his arm, reaching for the warmth in the girl's hands. And the girl, Satella, had her arm similarly reaching above to grab his.

—the next moment happened in a flash.

First, their fingers touched mid-air, sending a jolt through their bodies, from the crown of their heads to the tips of their toes. With her hand now firmly grasped in his, he pulled her close into a tight embrace, while shadows wrapped around them both protectively.

Next, their descent halted. However, Subaru's attention was too focussed on Satella to even register the absurd situation they were in. Or, rather, he was forcing himself to remain focussed. If he didn't, he wouldn't be able to get through this situation without thinking of the last time he had experienced this overwhelming feeling of weightlessness from this height.

His right hand was broken from the elbow, bone protruding out from under his limb. His jacket was torn, pinkish muscle visible from underneath his torn skin. Every part of him from his head to his feet lay against the stone staircase from where he'd impacted, crushed to dust and completely unrecognisable.

A chill ran up his spine when finally, they were launched back up to the Green Room with the help of her shadows, all while they remained tightly held in each other's arms. During their ascent, any debris falling towards them was taken care of by Satella's shadows, while her physical hands stroked the shivering Subaru's head.

His mind had become overwhelmed, drifting endlessly. Sometimes, it was Satella that was on the forefront of his mind, sometimes it was the height they were at. Their landing back inside of the partly demolished Green Room was much gentler than he'd expected. And when they were back to safety, with both Subaru and Satella breathing out a sigh of relief.

—Safety?

What was wrong with him? Why the hell had he jumped out of a tower thousands of metres from the ground to save the life of someone who was never in danger in the first place? At the very least, he was glad that he was back on a solid floor, with the soft ivy cushioning his feet and Satella's warm embrace….

"No!" He immediately pushed her away without a second thought. Satella's sorrowful visage watched him retreat back, moving further away from her.

With her fingers no longer touching him, her breath no longer reaching, a sense of loss and despair weighed heavily on him. His soul craved for her.

But at the same time, his mind rejected her. Whether it was Satella or Envy did not matter. She was dangerous. In the end, she was one of the main perpetrators responsible for the destruction of the tower and more than half of his deaths in it.

At that moment, his body became nothing more than a mass of contradictions, fighting over what to feel about the envious half elf.

"Subaru-kun, I'm-"

"Shut up!" Subaru did not wish to hear any excuses she had to say. "Because of you, I…." His voice came out in a soft whisper. But he could not get anything out beyond it. Clutching his head, shutting his eyes, Subaru shook his head in denial.

"Subaru?" A trembling voice drew his attention away from the Witch before him. He raised his head, to find his little blonde spirit looking at him, her quivering butterfly pupils filled with hurt.

And it wasn't just Beatrice.

Subaru surveyed the reactions of everyone else also present. By now, everyone in the room had recovered and no longer seemed frozen by Satella's presence. In that moment, Subaru sincerely wished they still were, for he knew all too well the emotion that now graced all their features.

—Betrayal.

"Natsuki-kun, I believe ya have some explainin' to do." Anastasia cast a suspicious glare at the black-haired teen as his eyes went wide in horror.

'No no no no no! This can't be happening!'

Subaru had believed he'd gotten past all the misfortune the tower could throw at him.

—He couldn't have been more mistaken.

His friends had found out about his connection to Satella and now they were looking at him like he had betrayed them. And there was nothing he could do to fix it.

…

…

…

Or was there?

"No! Don't!" A panicked cry came from none other than Satella herself, as tears started streaming down her face once again. "Don't hurt yourself, please!" She begged him, having correctly guessed his thoughts.

All of them turned their attention to her, surprised by her sudden outburst.

"...I….I'm sorry." She stuttered an apology while she wept. "Subaru-kun…. he always gets sad…. He always gets hurt, even though he hasn't done anything wrong. Please don't hurt him!"

"We would never do any such thing!" Julius spoke out in shock, shaking his head, probably from having heard such a request from the Witch of Envy of all people. "Subaru is our friend. We simply wish to know what is happening. I'm sure–...I'm sure there is a good explanation for this."

Julius turned his gaze to Subaru, who was still on the ground, his golden eyes pleading for him to tell them the truth.

"Subaru, please…. no more secrets." Next, it was the distraught Emilia's turn to speak.

"Barusu, you better have a good explanation for this."

"Subaru…." Beatrice looked at him with pity.

A part of Subaru wanted to come clean and explain everything. He had been waiting for this moment for a long time now after all. But now that it had arrived, fear and doubt began to rear their ugly heads.

'Someone who can withstand that is not human! Monster! A monster!'

Those were the words spoken to him by Louis Arneb. She had said those words while cowering in fear, hugging her head, trying to protect herself. From him. Because of his ability to die again and again.

If even a Sin Archbishop feared him, what would his friends think of him if they found out? Would they still call him their friend? Would they be scared of him? Would they abandon him?

—Would Satella even allow him to tell them everything in the first place?

He directed a questioning glance her way, hoping she could fix this situation. The last thing he wanted was for Envy to return and run rampant again.

"L-Let me explain everything I can.…" Fortunately, it seemed Satella had received his message. "But for that…." Wiping the tears from her eyes, she took a step forward.

"Emilia…."

Emilia gasped, hearing her name being uttered by the Witch of Envy.

"How do you-"

But before Emilia could say anything more—

"Beatrice…."

Beatrice's eyes shot open in shock.

"Ram…. Julius…. Anastasia…. Echidna…. Meili…."

Every person in that room, even Subaru, watched her in bewilderment as she correctly named every person in that room, while slowly inching closer to Subaru. Never would they have thought that the Witch of Envy would know their names.

"But most importantly, Subaru-kun…."

Reaching him, she knelt down in front of him, and raised her hands to cup his face. He immediately flinched back, not allowing her to touch him. Although hurt, her hands did not relent. Despite Subaru's reluctance to meet her gaze, she pushed forward. She had no intention cutting short what she wished to say.

"Please trust me." She looked at him with affection. "I love you…I know it's hard, but please trust me." At her earnest request, Subaru could no longer find the strength to resist her, and her fingers finally reached him. Her hands touched his face, her thumbs gently wiping away the trail of tears running down his cheeks.

Pulling his head onto her shoulder, she gently stroked his hair with her fingers. Feeling her warmth so close to him, the scent of her silver locks tickling his nose, every hair on his body was on its end, every pore was open. The blood coursing through his body was boiling and steaming hot. His breathing was uneven and his heart was beating so hard that it actually hurt.

It was strange. She was neither of the two girls he had confessed to. And yet, in her arms, he found comfort like no other, her kindness helping calm the raging thoughts inside his skull.

"I…. I…." A new trail of tears found its way down his face.

He had died almost twenty time today, half of them due to the ticking time bomb who was now embracing him. He promised to save the Shaula and had unsurprisingly failed to keep his promise. He had failed miserably. But in the end, he had still decided to move forward despite the sacrifices, only for Envy to attack, and almost ruin any progress he had made.

—And she just expected him to trust her?

But the fact was, despite all the pain she'd caused and all the logic telling him to think otherwise, he did trust her. More than anything else in the world.

She was poison. Satella's very existence was like a deadly poison to him. Her only purpose was to melt him, to expose his cracks for all to see.

He wanted to get away from her. But his body disobeyed him. The part of his mind that was resisting was conceding defeat. The part of his mind desperate to feel her touch was celebrating in victory. In the end, he kept clinging to her, unable to let go.

"Disgusting!" Ram laid down her merciless opinion as they had all settled down in the Common Room.

"...Sorry," Subaru whispered out a reply, while trying to shake off Satella's hand wrapped tightly around his, but to no avail. He had calmed down enough to let go of her, but she seemed to be the one clinging to him now. With a defeated sigh, he turned his face away, unable to look Satella or Ram or anyone else in the eye.

Ram furrowed her eyebrows and cast her eyes down at her sister sleeping peacefully on her lap. It was clear to everyone around her that it was not the reaction she was expecting.

Julius had spent enough time with them to know how their banter usually played out. Ram would accuse him, he would vehemently deny it, and then he would begin to talk. But right now, he wasn't even trying to give them an explanation. Instead of opening up to them, her words seemed to have had the opposite effect as Subaru seemed to only further close himself off.

"Why do I feel like something li~ke this has happened once befo~re, onii-san?" Meili pointed out as she played with the little scorpion in her hands, probably in an attempt to distract herself from the tense atmosphere which had filled the room.

Julius had invited her to sit with them, but she had opted to stay in the corner with the tied-up Sin Archbishop, who was happily drooling in her sleep, with the excuse of keeping an eye on her. Meili might've been a child, but even she knew not to get caught up in the argumentative crossfire which had engulfed their party.

"That is because it has happened before, I suppose." Beatrice answered, holding her forehead between her fingers in irritation. Her dissatisfaction with the current situation was most likely compounded even further by their current seating arrangements.

Subaru and Satella sat at one side, and everyone else sat facing the two opposite to them, in fear of angering the Witch. Therefore, Julius couldn't help but feel sorry for Beatrice and Emilia. Even though they wanted to, neither of them were sitting beside him.

"His reaction to Shaula and to…. her is as different as heaven and earth though." Echidna remarked, while Anastasia stroked her soft white fur of the spirit who had comfortably settled on her lap. The merchant princess had mentioned to him once how running her fingers through the fur was an excellent coping mechanism for both of them, able to calm them down in seconds when she was scared or just nervous.

It was either that or counting money, but Anastasia seemed to have decided counting money was inappropriate in this situation. It was a wise choice, but ultimately, he thought she was lucky enough that there was something that could soothe her nerves.

Before his Name was eaten, Julius was known as the 'Finest of Knights'. He took pride in his knightly behaviour, in his ability to remain calm even in the toughest of situations. But the current circumstances had become too nerve-racking for him to keep maintaining his composure.

Julius wished he had developed a habit other than 'Talk to Subaru' in the last two months to assuage his fears. Because he had no idea what he would do when Subaru was not there to talk with him. Like when they would inevitably separate after this journey was over.

Or right now.

"Julius, if ya want to say somethin' just say it. Nothing will come outta just starin' at him." Anastasia whispered into his ear from beside him, spurring him to speak out.

"But-"

"This is…. In this situation, it's hard to not be anxious. I can't think of anythin' to say to him right now, and I'm sure neither can Emilia-san nor Beatrice-chan. Ram and ya' are the only ones to have maintained your calm, but her approach doesn't seem to be workin'. So, ya might as well try to say somethin'."

But even if he were to take his liege's advice, what should he say? He contemplated how to approach Subaru. Eventually, he finally decided on just talking to him normally, as he usually did. Anything to get the conversation going. Taking a deep breath, and feeling Anastasia's hand squeezing his in encouragement, he composed himself.

"Subaru, we are fortunate that everyone is fine but…." Julius began to speak as Subaru turned his gaze to meet his. "It is quite difficult to comprehend this situation unless you explain it with words."

"Julius is right, Subaru! Please…. tell us what is going on." Emilia jumped into the conversation enthusiastically. Julius could only imagine how difficult this situation was for her. Although she had a somewhat blank expression, her fists had been tightly clenching the hem of her dress while she sat between Ram and Beatrice this entire time.

Subaru's lips parted slightly, as if to say something and the others waited in anticipation. While drifting in thought, his dark irises happened to meet Satella's.

An indecipherable expression momentarily flashed through Subaru's face as his gaze landed on the silver-haired Witch. He immediately shut his mouth and turned away with trepidation once again, biting into his lower lip.

Blood trickled down his chin.

"Aah!" Satella let out a small shriek of surprise, while the others looked at him with concern.

Julius didn't know what it was that Subaru was afraid of. And honestly speaking, it truly pained him to force Subaru to talk to them when he was so clearly uncomfortable. But this was too big of a revelation to ignore.

While they were all trying to think of a way to get him to open up without driving him into a corner, a befuddled voice broke them out of their contemplation.

"What are you…." Lifting herself slightly, Satella had gotten closer to a very flustered Subaru's face.

"...Emilia, you're holding Betty's hand too tightly, I suppose."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Emilia fidgeted as she let go of Beatrice's hand. "I didn't mean to..." Julius, Anastasia and Ram sighed and looked to the half elf with pity.

Satella wiped the blood off the surprised Subaru's lips with her index finger and, with a brief glow of her hand, healed it, before seating herself back beside him once more.

"You truly are an incorrigible man, Subaru." Julius sighed. "Seducing two of the greatest names in history."

"...I have absolutely no memory of ever doing anything so scandalous though." He mumbled tiredly, his gaze turned away from all of them, including Satella, his face coloured a light red.

"Unfortunately, Subaru, we won't know that if you don't tell us." Turning his gaze from Subaru to Satella, he requested, "Do you mind explaining everything to us? We would be grateful if you could."

Subaru and Satella glanced at each other in surprise, and then looked at Julius. "You…. don't seem too disappointed by the fact that I know Satella." Subaru asked him weakly.

"That is not entirely true. I am greatly agitated. My fragile spirit quivers at the thought of you sitting beside the Witch of Envy. My heart aches at the fact that you had concealed a secret as big as this from us."

"Why'd you have to make a conversation about you being disappointed sound so graceful-"

"But…." Subaru was interrupted as Julius continued to speak.

Subaru looked at Julius in uncertainty, while the latter had paused his words there. Julius gave a bittersweet smile whilst looking at Subaru.

"—That is that, this is this."

With words unbefitting of that exchange, Julius responded to Subaru.

"..."

Subaru's eyes widened.

"What kind of a brainless conversation is-" Just as Ram was beginning to criticize Julius's words—

"Oh, shut up!" Subaru grumbled out in response. To the others, including Satella's, complete surprise, a small smile found its way onto Subaru's lips. Julius smiled as well, touching his bangs out of habit.

As much as Subaru hated to admit it, Julius knew that Subaru thought of him as a friend, and the same went for Julius. It was no wonder he hated seeing Subaru in such a despondent state like this. So, the fact that Julius's comment managed to elicit a small chuckle from the raven-haired knight made his own spirit rise in turn.

It would be a lie to say he wasn't disappointed by the recent turn of events. But at the same time, he was absolutely sure that there must've been a good reason for all of this.

After all Subaru had done for them, after how Subaru himself was responsible for defeating several Sin Archbishops while putting his own life in danger, there was no way he was a Witch Cultist.

Julius's gaze briefly turned to the blue haired Sleeping Beauty lying on Ram's lap. Then, his eyes trailed to the green coloured sleeve of Subaru's jacket, which covered his blackened arm from view. He remembered the fight with Petelguese. He remembered how panicked he was when Emilia had been kidnapped by Regulus. And finally, he remembered—

'You don't have a personality unimposing enough to forget you in just a few hours, 'Finest of Knights', Julius Juukulius.'

No, Subaru couldn't be a Witch Cultist, Julius ultimately decided. His bias for his friend chose to ignore all evidence pointing otherwise because ultimately, it didn't matter. There was a good explanation for everything, and he was confident Subaru would clear everything up.

"Looks like my noble knight's infatuation with Natsuki-kun saves the day." Anastasia whispered teasingly to Julius.

"You misunderstand me. I merely wished to drive the conversation forward after it had arrived at a standstill. As a knight, I am required to keep my composure under such circumstances, and it enabled me to think and act as required. I decided to appeal to him with words, I believed he would respond to-"

"Yes, yes. We get it." Anastasia sighed and patted his back. He could see looks of delicate pity directed his way from Ram, Beatrice and even Meili.

He felt like there had been a grave misunderstanding. But in the end he simply sighed and hung his head, not wanting to be teased any further by his master. At the very least, he was glad that the earlier tense atmosphere had finally vanished. His idea was indeed correct, talking to Subaru normally was the correct option.

"Subaru and Julius are reaaaally good friends, aren't they?" Emilia remarked, a bit more relaxed now that the present ambiance of the room was much calmer.

"You couldn't be any more wrong, Emilia-tan! Do you seriously think I could ever get along with that arrogant-"

"Subaru-kun is really cute when he's being a tsundere." Satella giggled as she patted Subaru's head in delight at his stubbornness.

"I'm not-... how on earth do you know that word!?"

The Witch and the knight's conversation left the people present in the room in complete perplexity. It did not cease to amaze them as to how…. normal she seemed.

This was the terrifying Witch of Envy that had nearly destroyed the world four hundred years ago?

"Betty had her suspicions of the scent, but to think Subaru was really involved with such a troublesome individual, in fact." Beatrice was the first to take her chance and speak up, drawing the attention of everyone including Subaru and Satella. Subaru wore an expression of guilt as the others directed questioning glances at her.

"You suspected it?" Emilia exclaimed at Beatrice, sitting beside her, in shock.

"It ain't that surprisin'. She's the one that stays with Natsuki-kun throughout the day, right?"

"But still…." Emilia muttered with dissatisfaction. "I…. I don't like the fact that I didn't know anything."

"Emilia-sama, there's no way we could have known anything, especially if Beatrice-sama herself was unaware of it." Ram patted Emilia on the back, and turned her glare towards Subaru, seeking answers.

"Barusu, stop wasting Ram's time and explain this instant!" Ram's words seemed harsh, but her tone betrayed her desperation. "Why do you know the Witch of En-"

"I would if I could!" Subaru cut her off abruptly, the frustration clear in his voice.

"-vy….." With just that, Ram faltered, unable to get any more words out as she looked at the raven-haired knight in bafflement.

"I…. I know Satella's the one here right now, but…. I don't want to say the wrong thing and risk ending up calling Envy here."

"Wha…" Emilia uttered in confusion.

"Natsuki-kun, you're speaking as if Satella and Envy are two different people." Echidna inquired. And she wasn't the only one who seemed to have caught on. Julius could see almost everyone in the room had the same question.

"This one here is Satella. The crazy one that tried to swallow me up an hour ago…. That was Envy. They're supposed to be different somehow. At least, that's what Echidna and the other witches told me." Subaru explained with a sigh.

Beatrice and the fox spirit perked up at the mention of their mother. The rest of the group as well, familiar with the name of the Witch of Greed, were equally astonished at this new piece of information.

"Is that really true?" Anastasia turned to face Satella, and she nodded her head hesitantly.

"I…. Envy is me…. But she isn't…." Satella stuttered, unable to think of a way to clearly explain her situation.

"She was incompatible with the Witch Factor of Envy and it drove her insane." Subaru answered for her.

"What!?" Beatrice's voice drew their attention as her eyes widened.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Ram asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Witch Factors?" A phrase Julius had never heard of before left him feeling confused.

"Witch Factors are the antithesis of the Od Laguna, I suppose. They bestow abilities called Authorities similar to Divine Protections to people who wield them." While Beatrice's explanation certainly helped clear some things up, Julius still found it hard to understand what it had to do with Satella and Envy. And it seemed like the same was true for the others as well.

'Authorities?' Julius's eyes widened. He remembered Subaru mentioning it several times back in Priestella. That was what he called the abilities of the Sin Archbishops.

"...The Witches and….the Sin Archbishops….We use them." Satella attempted to elaborate further from where Beatrice had left off, but was clearly failing to do so. "I'm sorry, i– it's just been so long since I have talked to other people, I–..."

Subaru sighed. "What she's trying to say is that those Authorities that the Sin Archbishops and Witches use, they're from Witch Factors." The raven-haired teen clarified. "I'm just parroting what Louis Arneb had told me but…." He paused. Gritting his teeth, his gaze landed on the sleeping Louis, burning with rage from the mere mention of the Archbishop.

Julius wondered what that Sin Archbishop had done to elicit such a reaction from him. Whatever it was, it put an expression on Subaru at that moment which he did not care for, and it looked like he wasn't the only one. The others seemed equally worried about him too.

Fortunately, Satella somehow managed to calm down the agitated Subaru, gripping his arm tighter, and stroking his hair. Once he had regained his composure, Subaru continued, "What we call them may be different, but in the end, the Sin Archbishops are the same as the Witches of Sin."

"I still don't understand what all that has to do with Satella and the Witch of Envy being different, Natsuki-kun." Echidna inquired, the spirit's eyes filled with curiosity that was reminiscent of her creator.

"Not everyone can use Witch Factors, in fact. They are extremely dangerous to use and if paired with someone incompatible, it will corrupt them, I suppose. —The person will be driven insane, in fact."

"In Satella's case, she developed a second personality…. is how I understand it."

Once Beatrice and Subaru were done with the explanation, Julius and the others were rendered speechless. He pondered just how long Subaru had known all this and had kept it hidden from them.

Julius couldn't help but wonder why something as important as this was never mentioned in the annals of history. But then again, it had been beaten into him by a certain red-haired stick swinger how trusting history books was a bad idea. History was written by the victors; and Satella, or the Witch of Envy or whichever other personality was present in her, truly was responsible for destroying half the world. Even if she seemed like a normal girl, no one could possibly feel the need to defend her.

It did bother him how much history had glorified the three heroes as noble and honourable though. The asshole Sage, the perverted Sword Saint and the senile Dragon. All the notions Julius thought he knew about the world had been crushed in just the span of two days. He felt a dull pain in his chest as tears fell from his eyes.

"Why the hell are you crying!?" Subaru exclaimed, greatly disturbed at seeing the typically formidable knight in such a state. "...No, wait a minute…." Having an epiphany, he screamed, "It's the first time I've ever seen you cry! I was expecting this moment to be more satisfying, but I can't help but feel creeped out…."

"My apologies, I…." Wiping his tears away with the back of his hand, Julius began to speak.

"I'm sorry, Natsuki-kun." Anastasia replied in his place with a bitter smile. "My knight is kinda goin' through somethin' right now. Everythin' he thought he knew has been overturned in the past few days, so it's hittin' him a bit hard." She gave an awkward laugh.

"I can see how, with you being a history buff, this stuff is affecting you, but this is ridiculous!"

"...I can't disagree with ya there." Anastasia let out a sigh.

"Subaru…." A voice reminiscent of silver bells interrupted their conversation.

With her hands clasped in front of her chest, her amethyst eyes glistening with tears, Emilia looked at her knight with sadness. "Her…." Her eyes drifted to her doppelganger, tightly gripping Subaru's arm, as her face contorted into a frown. "How do you know her?"

Emilia had finally addressed the elephant in the room, the following anticipating stares causing Subaru to flinch back.

After a while, he gave in and simply shrugged, "I don't know."

"..."

"..."

"...Huh!?"

"You cannot be serious right now, Barusu." Ram glared at him in annoyance.

"I'm not lying, I swear!"

"You cannot possibly expect us to believe you, right now." Julius too couldn't believe anything Subaru said about this anymore.

"Yu~p. Definitely the sa~me as before!" In a sing-song voice, Meili, who had been quietly listening to the conversation among the adults, remarked.

She was right. But at least, in the previous case, he had the excuse that he was not Flugel and could deny Shaula's claims. But now, he could no longer deny anything after the historical Witch of Envy was fawning over him, referring to him by name and professing her love for him.

Subaru was the man that had moved four hundred years of history. After all of his extraordinary achievements, the theory that Subaru was the Sage was almost entirely plausible. In fact, Subaru being the Sage could be the only thing that could redeem the three heroes in Julius's eyes. Because if Subaru was the Sage, surely he had a reason for everything he had done…..

Julius sighed as he realised he was letting his bias cloud his judgement. He lifted his face to see Subaru arguing with the others, trying to defend himself, but failing miserably.

"I'm telling you, the first time I remember meeting Satella was at Echidna's Tea Party a year ago. I seriously do not know why she is in love with me!"

"I…." Satella pulled on Subaru's sleeve, making everyone stop their arguments and turning towards her.

"—I… love you. If I have to repeat it a thousand times…. I will say it. I love you, Subaru-kun. Even if you don't remember…. I remember. You…. you gave me everything. I love you."

Every single person in that room was blown away by the sheer amount of passion contained in her voice. It was still hard to digest the fact that this was the Witch of Envy. What was more surprising though was Subaru's reaction.

"I get it, I get it!" Subaru shrieked in embarrassment. "You couldn't speak properly to explain everything, but you don't seem to have any problems now!"

"I'm sorry…. I can't help it. When you are sad…. I want to tell you I love you, to cheer you up. When you are happy…. I want to tell you I love you, to make sure you stay happy. I love y—mmph!" Satella's mouth was suddenly covered up by Subaru's hand, who was blushing beet red at that point.

"...It's embarrassing to be confessed to in front of everyone like this, isn't it, Subaru?" Emilia having forgotten her qualms with the seemingly docile Satella at the sight of a flustered Subaru, teased him.

"I'm sorry! I'll never do it again, Emilia-tan!"

Emilia must surely be enjoying this after the countless times he had embarrassed—

"—Hk!" An audible terrified gasp from Meili suddenly changed the atmosphere of the room.

"Woo….ah…." They turned in the direction of where the new voice had originated. Subaru's expression instantly changed to disgust, while Satella pushed him back and stepped in front of him, in a protective stance. Without wasting a second, Julius too ran closer to Meili and dragged her back.

—The youngest Sin Archbishop of Gluttony, Louis Arneb was waking up.

Squirming around due to being tied up, she was unable to release herself from her confines. Eventually, "...Nnnn….uwaaaa!" Louis let out an anguished cry, as the others stared at each other in shock.

Why was the Sin Archbishop whining like a toddler? Julius turned his gaze to Subaru for answers, but Subaru seemed equally perplexed by this development. None of them had any idea what she was trying to achieve.

"—Huh?" Next, in the midst of the noise caused by the wailing Louis, Ram's shocked cry drew their attention.

None of them could believe their eyes. Because what they were witnessing at that moment was nothing short of a miracle.

Both Subaru and Ram's eyes widened as they trembled with indescribable emotion. Emilia's breath got caught in her throat. Beatrice rubbed their eyes, trying to make sure she wasn't dreaming. Meili watched the scene in wonder, witnessing something this amazing for the first time. A small smile of joy spread across Satella and Anastasia's lips. And all Julius could utter was, "Unbelievable!"

—That was a shock that could not be described in words.

"...Ah….um…" For the first time in their lives (except for Subaru obviously), they heard her gentle voice. With her eyelids opening up slowly, revealing her eyes as blue as clear water, the figure on Ram's lap stirred awake.

"—Rem!"

—The Sleeping Beauty, Rem after a year of slumber, had finally woken up.

Beta reading credits to Antic Master.

Sorry this chapter took so long. I honestly had no idea how to continue this, and I probably wrote and rewrote this at least 5 times. But now, it's finally done, so I hope you'll like it.

Now about the chapter itself, things are going too well to be true, don't you think?