Sage's Return, a re:zero fanfic

Subaru was sleeping soundly, not seemingly being bothered by anything, she remained this way for several moments until she started to breath in and out heavily. It sounded quick and frantic, until finally she jolted awake and started screaming in pain. She put her left hand on the left side of her face, Running her fingers over the left side of her face frantically, trying to wear off the burning pain she felt.

She could feel pain in her knee and her stomach… What was that? That dream was far too real to be just a dream…. Subaru was laying in her bed all sweaty from feeling all those…realistic feelings of pain, it felt like a foreboding of something horrible. A power that was so raw in those last moments of the sudden nightmare she fell victim to.

With a feeling of dizziness still lingering in her mind, Subaru looked over the clock at her right and groaned as soon as she noticed the time. Slowly, she got out of her bed and walked towards the mirror with feeble steps to take a look at herself. Her eyes widened for a second as she saw her reflection, but quickly she remembered her condition.

Since she was little, wispy marks of black had grown on the left side of her forehead and down her neck. These marks were thin, and so dark one couldn't tell it was skin at first glance and sometimes confused them for her own raven-black hair.

She always tried to hide them any way she could, cursing her bad luck since the day she woke up with these on her face.

Today she had already learned to live with it, but back then she couldn't help but cry wondering how she could ever show her face to the world again. She and her parents went to the doctors to try and get answers on her peculiar condition, and yet nothing odd was ever found; she was in perfect health for her age.

She delicately passed her fingers over her marks, as if she hoped a little wipe could wash them off her face for good, but alas, all she felt was the sensation of her soft skin. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before taking a few steps back from her mirror, and opened her wardrobe.

Despite what could be thought of her at first glance–being mostly a shut-in girl at the end of her teenage years–Subaru always put a meticulous importance to the clothes she wore, may it be to stay indoors or to go out for a stroll. Her sense of style was always on point, along with her natural beauty and the way she took care of her hair, fitting her so well that people would amaze at her looks and not even gaze at the marks she would successfully hide most of the time. She promptly picked up her clothes, a long light purple skirt, a black turtleneck and a brown blazer.

As she walks downstairs to the main entrance of her home, she sees her mother Naoko humming a tune while cleaning the dishes. Naoko looked up and saw Subaru coming down dressed up attractively. "Oh my! Subaru, you look beautiful! Where are you headed off to?"

"No, just…Going to the convenience store…" Subaru tried to smile, although she couldn't hide her tiredness,"...Do you want anything?"

"No thank you sweetie,"Naoko says walking up to her after drying her hands from cleaning the dishes to see her off, "you be careful on the way there, alright?"

"Of course," Subaru replied while giving her mom a smile, "love you mom…I'll be right back."

Once she began to walk there, her eyes began to wander around the sights around her, as she appreciated the warm breeze of this fine evening. The street lights lead the road to the convenience store, as her eyes begin to lift towards the sky on their own.

Since her youngest age, the stars had captivated her. Millions of lights illuminating the night sky in such a beautiful way that she could stare at it for hours on end, so much so that she hadn't noticed she had reached the store already.

Sighing as she had to let her eyes go off the myriad above she loved, she stepped inside of the store and began to gather what she wanted. Of course, all the eyes turned towards her immediately, some stunned by her looks,others who knew her a bit more and thus were somewhat used to it.

"W-will that be all, Subaru?" The clerk asked as he tried to keep his composure, he was captivated by her beauty.

She was apprehensive to meet his eyes, paid the exact amount for her groceries and picked up the bag, bowing her head slightly, "Yes. Thank you."

Walking out with rather hasty steps, she suddenly felt a creeping sensation on the back of her neck. Her heartbeat rose up in a split of a second as she abruptly turned around in fear, clenching her jacket…But she saw nothing.

Her breathing slowly calmed down when she realised this was just a false alert, and closed her eyes in relief. Once she opened them again, she saw nothing but a bright light, and blinked several times to try and adjust her vision.

Her head was hurting, making her lose her balance and fall on one knee. Flashes of blurry memories suddenly came up to her, albeit she wasn't able to discern any of it.

As she began to calm down, she slightly opened her eyes to see the ground made of cobblestone, while feeling the warmth of the sun on her back, and while her confusion grew, her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a soothing voice coming closer to her, "Um…Are you alright?"

Subaru widened her eyes, realising she did not know where she was. She looked around and found herself in a very busy street, with carriages speeding past her, people with all kinds of clothes and skin colour walking around, wooden stalls with vegetables, fruits, meat, all kinds of food. Soon enough she realised the people around her were not all humans…Some had animal features, cat ears, tails, and lizard-like skin.

Subaru has read those isekai novels but they never really interested her, she did however watch a bit of anime just not to an extreme extent like other teenagers her age…But this was still nothing to rejoice about. Everything felt so real, and it simply made her more afraid, as she began hyperventilating about such unfamiliar surroundings.

"H-hey!" The voice began to stutter in worry, "Miss! What is happening?!"

Subaru lifted her eyes to meet this voice that had been alongside her this entire time, and widened her eyes in amazement to what she saw. She was probably the most beautiful woman she had ever seen, with pale, soft skin and amethyst eyes that looked just like gems, while her hair was of bright silver.

"I…" Subaru uttered, averting her eyes from the girl, slowly getting back on her feet "I'm…Fine. Sorry for making you worry…"

"..." the silver-haired girl winced as she noticed the behaviour she was so used to, of someone who seemed like she did not want to interact with her.

"U-um…Would you tell me where we are?" Subaru asked shyly, taking another look around her.

"Eh?" the girl blinked, not expecting her to interact with her any more, "we are in the capital of Lugunica…"

"The capital…Of Lugunica?" Subaru repeated, her heart throbbing in fear. She had never heard of such a name before, and this only further emphasised what she feared the most.

"So I really was brought into another world…" She whispered to herself, clenching her she saw nothing.

Her head was hurting, making her lose her balance and fall on one knee. Flashes of blurry memories suddenly came up to her, albeit she wasn't able to discern any of it.

"H-hey!" The voice began to stutter in worry, "Miss! What is happening?!"

"I…" Subaru uttered, averting her eyes from the girl, slowly getting back on her feet "I'm…Fine. Sorry for making you worry…"

"..." the silver-haired girl winced as she noticed the behaviour she was so used to, of someone who seemed like she did not want to interact with her. But it was not what was going through Subaru's mind at all.

While looking at this girl, she felt something different. As if she was the only familiar face in this sea of unknown around her, a beaming light in the darkness. However she was sure she had never met her, yet felt like she knew this person.

"U-um…Would you tell me where we are?" Subaru asked shyly, taking another look around her.

"Eh?" the girl blinked, not expecting her to interact with her any more, "we are in the capital of Lugunica…"

"The capital…Of Lugunica?" Subaru repeated, her heart throbbing in fear. She had never heard of such a name before, and this only further emphasised what she feared the most.

"So I really was brought into another world…" She whispered to herself, clenching her jacket.

"The clothes you are wearing…They are quite unusual," the girl wondered aloud, taking a look at Subaru's apparel.

"I could say the same about you…" Subaru looked at the white clothes the girl was wearing, "I have never seen…Anything like that…Are your shoes and thighs together…?"

"You think so…?" She raised an eyebrow, looking at her clothes, "they are but…I-is that weird?"

For Subaru who had such a taste for fashion, the clothes she wore certainly were odd. She would herself never wear that, but it did fit the girl extremely well.

"Not that much," Subaru smiled at her, "simply…Original-looking to me."

Usually, the girl was used to receiving either serious looks,winces, uneasiness and sometimes even fear…However this odd looking black-haired girl seemed different. Her smile did not seem fake, and her eyes did not carry the disdain she was used to seeing.

"Well, if it isn't interesting!" A grey cat suddenly flew from over the silver-haired girl, "a girl that's talking to lia and having no fear?"

Subaru kept staring at the flying cat with awe, surely something like that had to be common in a fantasy world, but to see it from her own eyes was even more amazing. She felt a dying urge to pet this cat, but was too afraid to do so for the mere fact that it was talking. Would that be rude? Should she ask for consent first?

"Puck?!" The girl seemed surprised by the sudden apparition as well.

"...Lia?" Subaru repeated in a low voice, "is…that your name?"

The silver-haired girl gazed at Subaru with unsure eyes, glancing back and forth between her and the flying cat, until she closed her eyes and sighed.

"No…My name is…" She lifted her eyes to meet Subaru's, "Satella."

"Satella…?" Subaru whispered, but didn't have the time to continue as her vision became blurry once more, "what…"

"E-erm…She's losing her balance." Puck pointed out.

"H-hey! What's happening to her?!" Satella exclaimed, catching her before she fell on to the ground, "D-Did I go too far…?"

"What is happening,,," Subaru thought to herself, her mind going blank as the last thing she saw was the worried expression of the silver-haired girl.

"Satella…"

This name kept echoing within her mind. Over, and over again. She didn't understand why but she knew it was of great importance to her, as if something was preventing her from remembering.

But she knew she had to remember…That it was urgent.

"..." She slowly opened her eyes again, her head still in great pain, "where…"

"Ah, looks like she is awake!" Puck exclaimed in glee.

"Ugh…" She turned around, burying her face inside of the soft 'pillow' she felt under her head, "five more minutes…"

"Ah, nevermind." Puck replied in a nonchalant way.

"...Eh?!" Subaru jolted back up as soon as she understood there was someone else beside her, and saw the grey cat from before smiling at her…Although he was bigger, way bigger.

"You're huge…!" She exclaimed without thinking.

"You gave us quite a fright back there little miss," Puck explained as he pointed to the girl waiting behind her, "so Lia brought you here so you could be in the shade."

Subaru turned around to Satella, worryingly looking at her.

"I-I thought you might have had a heatstroke…" She hesitated in her words, "so…"

"Ah…Yeah, thank you," Subaru smiled back at her, removing her jacket as she was fanning herself with her hand, "I…Have never been good with hot weather, Thank you."

"...I see!" Satella seemed to be relieved, "I'm glad I acted quickly then…!"

Puck took back his original form and became a small cat again, flying around Satella, "so little miss, what is your name?"

"...I'm really sorry!" Subaru bowed her head in apology, "I…Completely forgot to introduce myself…My name is Subaru, Natsuki Subaru."

"You don't need to be that formal, geez." Puck chuckled.

"H-he's right, Subaru! You couldn't really think about it in your state, it's fine…!" Satella tried to reassure her as well.

All of a sudden, three people walked into the alley and they didn't look like they were here to be friends. Subaru just remained silent because she thought they were just taking a short cut, while Satella and Puck hardened their gazes, wary of the nature of these people's intentions.

"What do we got 'ere?! Two chicks lost in a dark alleyway?" One of them yelled up, licking his lips as soon as he noticed they both were beauties.

"Didn't daddy and mommy ever tell ya it was a bad spot to hang out? Could be bad people anywhere!" Another one laughed.

"I guess we'll be kind and teach you two that lesson in their stead," the third one said as he tossed a bag towards them, "throw in everything you got, and we'll not mess with these pretty faces of yours."

"Are we…Being robbed?" Subaru backed off in fear, as Satella stepped forward.

"No, we are not," Puck exclaimed loudly, "get lost, before I destroy your miserable existence for even looking with these nasty eyes at my daughter."

"What did he say?!"

"Did that stupid cat just threaten us?!"

"Subaru, stay back," Satella advised as she raised her hand towards the trio, "Puck and I will deal with this."

When she aimed them with her palm, shards of ice began to appear all around her, aiming right at them. Subaru watched her summon ice magic out of thin air like it was nothing, and couldn't help but be amazed by it.

Who says fantasy world says magic, after all.

"What the-"

"She's a spirit art user!"

"No way?!"

The trio all back a few steps in fear, unsure of what to do next.

"It seems like there's still a brain in these heads of yours. If you understand the trouble you are in, run away and don't look back." Puck says in an ominous tone.

"Hey!" In the middle of this mayhem, another voice rang from above as the figure of a little girl fell from the sky, aiming right at where Subaru, Satella and Puck were.

Before any of them could do anything, the little girl snatched something off Satella's waist pocket in the blink of an eye, and immediately jumped back on the wall to flee.

On pure instinct, Subaru grabbed one of the ice crystals and flicked her head toward the new smaller girl with her eyes glowing an ominous amber. She whipped the ice crystal at the girl and it grazed her right thigh, effectively slowing her down.

"Agh!" The girl cursed as she held her thigh, looking back to see Subaru as surprised as herself. She was looking at her hands, confused and wondering how she even did that.

"My insignia!" Satella exclaimed in panic, "she stole it!"

"Damn it!" The little girl promptly focused back on running away, albeit holding her thigh in pain.

Subaru looked back over to the new girl with her eyes still glowing amber… she saw something… she didn't know how or why but she was glowing green and it was leaving a trail… What is this? Maybe it was her own unique skill?

"What is even happening…?" One of the trio looked left and right between the girl and the group they had attacked to begin with.

"I don't know, but we better bail while we still can! They don't look that much like easy targets any more!" As he remembered the sudden strike at the little thief, another waved for them to follow as they ran.

"Damn it…! We'll remember you two cunts!" The third one yelled as he followed.

"Try anything and I will hunt you and your future generations down for the rest of eternity." Puck replied, unimpressed, "are you okay Lia?"

"I'm fine…But my insignia! We must go after her!" She pleaded to Puck, obviously worried to death, "if we go now, maybe we can catch up to her…! Subaru even wounded her earlier, so she can't have gotten far!"

"H-hum…" Subaru narrowed his eyes, catching Satella and Puck's attention.

"I.. can see something… I'm not sure what but I know where she's going…" Subaru says slowly, not even sure she knew what she saw. Subaru blinked several times but whatever she was doing wasn't going away.

"What?" Satella widened her eyes, "R-really?! You know where she went?!"

Subaru nodded her head, "I can see the trail clearly…"

"If that isn't convenient?" Puck smiled widely at Subaru, "see, it was a good idea to help her Lia!"

"I-I'm the one who proposed to help her to begin with!" Satella replied in outrage to the grey cat, "A-anyways! Subaru, please tell me where she went!"

"Well it would appear she went North… and she is only going North… I am not sure where she is heading but we can't go straight… unless we plan to jump up the wall like she did… We will have to go West and then North. So we have to get out of this alley." Subaru looked around for a few minutes as she tried to use her new power to see where else she was going.

Satella looked around, and glanced back at Puck who seemed as lost as she was.

"Why don't you just lead the way, Subaru? We will be right behind you." Puck proposed, to which Subaru hesitantly nodded her head.

"Wait, wait, wait! What am I getting myself in?!" Subaru thought to herself as she began to walk towards the direction of the trail the best way she could, "Shouldn't I leave them on their own?! What if this is dangerous?! As far as I know I can't shoot ice crystals if I'm in danger!"

But was this really appropriate to leave them be? Satella had decided to come forward and help her even though she had no reason to. She could have walked past her like everyone else, and left her confused and lost in an unknown world until something inevitably bad happened to her.

But she had decided otherwise. Shouldn't helping her in this dire moment be the best way to repay her?

Furthermore, there was still that familiar feeling she felt around the silver-haired woman that she needed to understand. A mystery left unsolved that had a meaning greater than it seemed.

"Maybe…There's a reason why I was summoned here in the first place…?" Subaru thought to herself again.

As of now, she decided that her best course of action was to help Satella.

As they kept following the trail the best way they could in the maze that was the slums of the capital, they ultimately reached what looked like a decayed wooden shack, as the sun was setting over the horizon.

"She is in here…" Subaru pointed to the cabin with her finger, "but she is not alone. I can see another person inside…"

"Are you sure?" Satella narrowed her eyes.

"Yes…There is another spot just like the little girl inside, but this one is more…" Subaru looked like she was searching for proper words, "evil…?"

Satella seemed surprised, and after taking a look at Puck, she strengthened her resolve and walked towards the shack and just kicked the door open. She didn't even wait for them to come up with a plan, this greatly confused Subaru who now was forced to follow in after her.

Inside was the little girl they chased with a bandage over her right thigh and another lady sitting at a table, both seemingly surprised by the brute force with which the newcomers made their entry.

"HEY! WHAT DID MY DOOR EVER DO TO YOU?!" A giant old man raised his hands in outrage, "CAN'T YA PEOPLE JUST KNOCK?!"

The other lady that Subaru perceived the evil aura from had purple eyes angled down towards their edges and at first glance, seemed to be a character with a certain level of calmness and gentleness. Below her left eye she has a beauty spot, and had long wavy black hair and it was braided into a long tail on the left side of her head that reached down to her hips. A single purple flower decorated the left side of her head, and the first thought that went through Subaru's mind as she saw her was that she was a woman of incredible beauty. In a way, she wondered if this is what others would feel when they looked at her during her everyday life in Japan.

Her white skin was unusually pale to the point that it could almost be described as sickening. She was dressed in a pair of black elbow-length gloves with purple trimmings at the top, a pair of black high-heel shoes, and a black dress with purple decorations that was both strapless and backless and featured brown tights. The dress, that clung to Elsa's body fairly tightly, also had thigh-high slits on either side and an exposed front that flaunted her belly button and cleavage. The way she was dressed made Subaru arch her eyebrow in sheer confusion, how could a woman dress so shamelessly? Her mother would have certainly blown a fuse if Subaru ever tried to wear anything similar.

Every person in the room now had their attention on Subaru and Satella. Somehow Subaru felt that this was about to go sideways…. This was going to be a long day for her.

Subaru looked between them, something wasn't right here… The blonde haired girl looked at them in shock.

"H-how did you find us!? I was sure I lost you two!" Felt was taken aback, confused between being impressed or disappointed in herself.

For some reason, Subaru didn't feel the need to answer her… why did she feel that way? Why did she just feel the need to tell her to "fuck off"? She didn't know. Rather suddenly the other lady stood up from her chair and spoke.

"Well now that the original owner is here," Elsa sighed as she stood up from her chair, "looks like the deal is off~."

"I do not want to escalate things any further," Satella opened her palm to them, "give me back my insignia, and I will act as if nothing happened."

Felt seemed uneasy, but before she could answer, the lady in black spoke again, "Oh, oh no…This will be unnecessary."

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Subaru thought to herself, glaring at her.

The lady swiftly pulled out a dagger from under her dress, "I will simply end every single one of you~!"

"Of fucking course…!" Subaru cursed in silence, "she had to be a psychopa-"

But before she could finish her inner monologue…The assassin had already dashed forward Subaru in a blink of an eye.

"And since you are responsible for this happening…You will do the honours~!" She said as she plunged her blade towards Subaru's abdomen, slicing right through.

"SUBARU!" Satella yelled, as Puck instantly began counter-attacking with ice shards, forcing the lady to step back.

"I…Is this it? Is this how I die…?" Subaru thought to herself, glancing down to see the puddle of blood coming from her belly.

"I…I don't want to…No…" She felt like crying, trying to stop the bleeding with her hands…But she couldn't move them.

"Not like this…Mom…I want to see you again…" Her vision became more and more blurry, her ears deafened to the sounds of clashes all around her.

Satella looked like she wanted to help her, but was forced to fight back against the incessant assault from the assassin, while the giant tried to help any way he could, and the little girl was paralyzed in fear.

"I can't…Even…Do…Anything…" darkness slowly consumed her, and soon enough, she could not see a thing, "I…Am sorry…"

"You do not need to be." Another voice, oddly similar to her own and yet so different, rang out, "I will protect you."

"Uh?" Subaru opened her eyes, to see a reflection of herself…But this one was different. The marks on her face were greater, her hair was a mix of both black and white strands, and her eyes were of a shining amber colour.

She was inexpressive, cold…And yet Subaru felt safe when she gazed at her.

"Just leave it to me…And rest. You earned it." She told her, before disappearing.

Subaru's eyes slowly closed again, just like falling asleep.

In the meantime, Satella was still fighting a battle she felt more and more lost in advance. Suddenly Rom rose from behind the assassin with a giant wooden club in his hands, trying to strike down onto her with all of his strength but it was futile. She dodged his hit like it was nothing and slashed Rom's club into pieces before trying to attack his neck, which she failed thanks to one of Puck's crystals hitting her foot.

"Don't get distracted that easily, girl." Puck exclaimed as he raised multiple crystals again.

"How exciting~" the assassin licked her lips, breaking the crystal off her foot, "it has been so long since I craved a good fight!"

She effortlessly dashed forward again towards Puck, "show me what the insides of a spirit looks like, would you~?"

She tried to land several blows on the grey cat, all the while Satella tried to strike her…But the assassin's speed clearly outmatched her own, and soon enough she would manage to raise her dagger right at Satella's neck.

"You are too slo-"

In a matter of a second, the assassin was launched against the wall in a loud crash, the strength of the hit so great that she had lost grasp of her daggers.

"Ghk…" she cursed in confusion, embed inside of the wooden wall as she tried to get out of it, and was launched once more, but against the ground this time.

"That is enough." A voice sent a chill down the spine of everyone in the room, as they all turned around to see Subaru back on her feet, the wound on her stomach gone.

"Subaru…?" Satella whispered. She was different…With dark marks covering nearly half of her face, white strands of hair and that dangerous aura she was carrying.

"You will cause no more harm, for I shall put an end to you." She coldly commanded.

Her hollow yet shining amber eyes pierced through the darkness of this cabin, and even through the soul of those who met her gaze.

It was almost certain–even for Felt who had not interacted with her much–that this was not the Subaru that had entered this cabin in the first place.

The assassin jolted back from the ground and grabbed her blade, dashing towards her again, but was suddenly stopped mid-air as if grabbed and paralyzed by an unknown force.

"What is this?!" She growled, meeting the eyes of Subaru, "you-"

"Elsa Granhiert," She spoke in a voice without heart, without life,"You have chosen a wicked path for yourself. You have taken many lives, some innocents, others not."

"What is happening…" Satella whispered, glancing towards Puck who seemed as confused as she was…And even afraid.

"Hell is that…" The giant man grunted as the little thief helped him back up.

"I don't know…But that ain't the same girl that walked in here…" The blonde girl replied with worry clear in her voice.

Subaru glanced towards them, "Cromwell, and…I suppose your name for now should be Felt? You too, should be ashamed of your actions."

"How does she…!" Rom bit his tongue, keeping a protective hand in front of Felt.

"We never told her our names…" Felt whispered with wide eyes, afraid beyond comparison.

"You…Are not the girl we met back then." Puck ended up asking, without any smile or laughter in his voice.

"No. But she is…Dear, to me. I thank you for your care towards her." Subaru replied, still inexpressive.

Right as she finished her words, she threw Elsa against another wall, "scum like you…Do not deserve my mercy."

"W-wait! Subaru!" Satella intervened, noticing how things were about to take an irredeemable turn, "perhaps we could just call the royal guards! You're not forced to kill her!"

"...Satella?"

And for the first time since this entity had appeared, a hint of emotion could be seen through that facade of hers. A singular tear, flowing down her eye at the sight of the silver-haired girl pleading to her.

"U-Um…This name is…"

"No…It is not you…But…" Subaru seemed confused, at a loss of words. Narrowing her eyes as she tried to discern the identity of the girl in front of her.

"Ghk!" Elsa dashed backward, towards the hole previously made by Subaru's strike, and taking the opportunity of her opponent's inadvertence decided to leave before it would be too late for her.

However, before disappearing as the night fell over them, Elsa glanced back one last time to the raven-haired woman, who gazed back right at her.

Subaru did nothing, and let her run away if she chose so.

"She…She's gone?" Felt looked at the hole Elsa disappeared from, "we're…safe?"

"She is gone." Subaru replied, letting her gaze fall to the ground.

"You…Saved us." Satella breathed out, holding a hand to her heart.

"I did it for her. This is what she wished for." She spoke one last time, before closing her eyes, and letting herself fall down.

"Ah!" Satella grabbed her before she hit the ground, "geez…! Why is this happening?"

Puck gazed upon the raven-haired girl, and pondered on his own thoughts while his daughter tried to apply healing magic to Subaru, thinking it would bring any relief.

"...Her wound is gone," she whispered to herself as she moved her hand over her stomach.

Subaru's clothes were still cut open by Elsa's strike, and yet her stomach suffered no injuries. It was incomprehensible to her, as she still saw the puddle of Subaru's blood on the wooden floor.

"Lia…Be careful around that girl," Puck ended up warning, still gazing at Subaru's face.

"...I know. But I do not think she was evil." Satella retorted, to which Puck nodded his head.

"I did not sense any bad intent from her either, but you saw what she is capable of. But as long as she is on our side…"

"Mhm." She nodded her head, smiling faintly as Puck came back into his crystal without saying another word.

"Emilia-sama…?" A masculine voice suddenly came from outside, towards where was once the door.

The silver-haired lady stood back up, and turned towards the sound of footsteps coming closer.

"Reinhard…?"

"I heard from citizens around that there was a great commotion here, so I came to investigate," he saluted her with a respectful bow, "what in the world happened here?"

"It's a long story…" She sighed her eyes now directed to Felt and Rom seated right next to one another, as if waiting for their judgement.

"My insignia." Emilia demanded as she opened her palm to the little thief.

She glanced towards the giant, who moved his head towards Emilia, wordlessly telling her to do as she said.

"I'm sorry, alright? But in these streets, you do what you gotta do to survive," Felt sighed as she picked up the insignia from her pocket, and handed it over to Emilia.

Reinhard blinked as he noticed the royal insignia being handed over from the thief to Emilia. His eyes then wandered towards the black-haired girl lying on the ground, and to the holes on the ground and walls of the loot house.

"...Indeed, it has to be a very long story…" The sword saint thought aloud.