"Let's get straight to the point, Subaru-Sama. Are you a danger to Lugnica? Respond with Yes, or No. Anything else will be taken as a yes." Crusch said.

Wilhelm placed his hand onto the grip of the sword. The blade waiting to feast upon the blood of its next victim. A red aura flared from the Sword Demon, waiting to make use of the name.

"C-Crusch-san? What are we doing here? Didn't we already finish this?" Subaru darted his eyes across the room. He shivered and wrapped his arms around himself. "What's going on!? Why am I back here? The hours I spent here, were they all fake? What was that… thing?!" Subaru bunched up into a ball and started taking deeper breaths.

An eerie feeling dominated the room. His eyes dilated, and the red aura that oozed from Crusch became more predominant. Turning his head slowly, the source of the aura was found. Rapidly, his heartbeat, as Wilhelm readied his pose. "BLACK? If red means menacing, and yellow means relaxed, then does black mean… deadly?"

"Natsuki-Sama, I'll give you one final chance, are you a danger to Lugnica? Yes, or no." Crusch said slowly. She could tell that if she stayed silent any longer, Wilhelm would have no problem cutting off his head. Crusch knew that she wasn't a pacifist, but she did believe in second chances. "Will you take my chance, Natsuki Subaru, or will you force me to dirty my hands." Crusch began to stare deep into his eyes.

"No Crusch, you don't understand!" Subaru tried to deescalate the situation, and explain carefully.

Alas, that was the wrong choice.

Shiiing was the last sound Subaru heard, with a lightning flash, all Subaru could see was black. Subaru's body was knocked down lifelessly, and a small pool of blood dripped from his head.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Natsuki Subaru woke up to a scene he was never expecting to be in. There was water all over his face. His left foot was chained to the wall. He was wearing a prisoner's uniform and had a small bump on his head.

"Agh, what the hell is this headache?! It's killing me!" Subaru thought as he looked at the unsightly state he was in.

"Where the hell am I?" Subaru said. The last thing he remembered was trying to calm everyone down, and stop Wilhelm's black aura. "God damn it, why am I such a dumbass! All I had to do was say no. That's it, and yet I can't say such a simple thing. I can't go to school, I can't make my parents proud, and now I can't even say no to the easiest question in the world! I am a failure. A broken piece of a puzzle." Subaru mentally punished himself for not being able to say such a simple word. He had such little pride in himself because he was never able to match up to the greatness of others. Always in the shadows of others.

"Felix?! Crusch?! Wilhelm?!" Subaru lamented his weakness, but he would still like to know what happened, and how he could get out of here.

"You don't have to shout, Subaru-Kyuh." Felix responded to Subaru's cry. Little did Subaru know, but Felix didn't want him to die. He is a healer, first and foremost, and as such he helped people live. One of the things he hates the most is death, especially if it could have been easily avoided.

"Old Man Will seems to like you, Subaru-Kyuh. I was sure he was going to slice you in half, but in the end, he flipped his sword around and hit you with the bottom of it. His goal was to make you unconscious. I mostly healed your head wound. Crusch-Sama decided to toss you in here until further questioning tomorrow." Felix gave Subaru the summary of what happened after he passed out. Felix could have healed his wound further, but it's always best to keep prisoners a little hurt.

"Felix… Do you know if it's possible to die, and co-" As Subaru was asking Felix a question, the mark on his tongue flared up and kept him silent.

"What you saw, stays with you." A voice warned within Subaru's mind.

"Why did you stop, Subaru-Kyuh? Butterflies in your stomach?" Felix looked at Subaru carefully. He was sweating heavily. Seemingly at random, and for no good reason. This was similar to when Subaru started acting up during the conversation.

"Sorry, never mind. Can I ask you something else?" Subaru stood up and walked the limited amount he could before the chain pulled him back. He placed his hands on the cold, steel bars, and looked Felix directly in the eyes. His eyes showed true fear, and his legs looked like they were about to collapse on themselves. "What time is it?"

"Why would he need to know that? He refused to answer Crusch's last question and now asks for the time. He looks serious too. What if he is planning an attack on Lugnica, and needs to know the time to check if we ruined his plans! If that's the case, it seems best to lie." Felix thought to himself. "It's about midnyowht of the next day. Subaru-Kyuh really is lazy, sleeping for a whole day," Felix turned and began to walk away. He didn't want him to see how disgusted he felt by him. "Here is a piece of advice for you: think about what others say, and most importantly, think about what you say before you speak. I'm a bit busy now, so unless you have any more questions, I'll be heading out." With each step echoing throughout the room, Subaru was now alone.

Once Subaru couldn't hear footsteps, he quickly collapsed onto the ground. "So, freezing to death was a hallucination after all. It should have happened today if it was true. For a second, I thought I had gone back in time or something," Subaru was truly relieved that he wouldn't have to experience that kind of pain again. "But, Felix did say to think about what others say to you. What if they were able to stop the cold because they didn't have to focus on me, or what if Felix… Lied."

His fantasy world experience has been confusing, to say the least. Instead of someone explaining everything to him. He had to figure out everything all by himself. "Until I can confirm that everyone will be safe tonight, I'll keep believing what I experienced to be true." Subaru didn't want to believe he had died that night, but the feeling of death was unforgettable, so for now, at least, he'll believe it to be true.

"What I know about my abilities so far is that I can see people's aura, and they change based on what they are thinking. Black means they are about to attack me, based on the fact that Wilhelm didn't kill me. Red means they are annoyed, mad, wary, or somewhere in between all of them, and yellow means relaxed. So, I guess nothing is just a neutral state? Wait, if that was the case, then why don't more people have yellow auras when I see them around town? Ugh, this is too complicated. So many questions but no answers." He put his head over his head and started massaging himself. "This headache isn't getting any better, but I have to go over all this… It could help later."

"My, maybe, second ability allows me to respawn after I die. Kind of like a video game. I don't know if it has a limit to how many times I die, and I don't know how it chooses where I respawn. For now, I'll try to never use it again... Unless someone I love dies, maybe then, I'll make an exception. Naming has always been my favorite part of getting a new toy… good times. My first ability will be named Aura Reader, and my second will be named Return by Death, yeah, I like it."

Subaru reflected upon what happened and what he could do better tomorrow when Crusch tries to talk to him. He doubts that she would give him the same offer as before due to what happened, but maybe she'd at least let him go free.

That was until he felt a cold wind.

Subaru's eyes widened, knowing about the upcoming disaster. "It's useless, Felix lied to me. I'm going to die here, alone, and afraid." Subaru gave up and slumped to the ground. It was useless to move, and try to live. He was going to die, of this cold. Nothing has changed, he is still useless, and he can't do anything.

What he expected the least was to feel warmth in this freezing cell. A red ball of what seemed to be energy was next to Subaru and started to warm him up. This warmth just barely overcame the sheer cold around him and gave Subaru some energy to fight.

"What the hell is that?" Subaru looked at the ball of what he thought was energy.

It then started moving around Subaru, checking to make sure if he was ok. After it confirmed his status, it went into Subaru's pocket to max out the amount of heat it could give him.

"Maybe it's a fantasy animal! My luck is turning around. Now I just need to get these chains off of me!" Subaru said. Luckily, everything around him has turned into ice. So, Subaru just pulled against his chain, and it broke.

"All right! Now that's more like it." Subaru then proceeded to kick the bars open, allowing him to escape from his prison cell. "Now it's time to get out of here." Subaru followed the path he remembered Felix took to get out of the small prison and managed to escape to the main section of the Karsten manor. The main hallway stretched a long way, but the windows were scarce.

"Everything... Everyone, they are dead, aren't they? Could someone truly survive this cold alone?" Subaru's enthusiasm quickly faded as he saw what had happened to the halls of the manor. The floor has turned to snow, and all the walls froze over completely. Stalactites have already started to form on the roof, and the paintings have been covered in white.

"Should I use it… that power," Subaru said to no one in particular. He then looked at the palm of his hand. "but, what if it has a limit. What if I could only use it once, and I already wasted it." Subaru started going into deep thought.

The fantasy animal that was in Subaru's pocket then proceeded to come out. It moved around his face in a cute way.

"Aw, you're trying to make me feel better. I can't keep being sad when you're trying to help me out!" Subaru was happy that his new companion was already trying to help him out.

What Subaru didn't know was, that the creature was trying to warn Subaru, not make him feel better.

With that, the creature let out a massive flame behind Subaru, completely melting the surrounding ice. The ice quickly reformed.

"What the hell?!" Subaru turned around to find ice copies of what seemed to be a girl. It was hard to make out anything except for the fact that the ice copies seemed to have long ice hair and elf ears. More importantly, they were preparing ice shards to be thrown at Subaru.

With the realization, Subaru did what most people would do. Run the hell away, and so, the chase began.

"Scary, Scary, Scary, Scary, SCARY!" Subaru ran while trying to dodge the ice shards launched his way.

"Look, I don't have a good name for you yet, but for now you'll be called Red, OK?! So, do me a favor, Red, launch some fire at the roof please." Subaru gave the creature the first name he thought of. The color of the creature was red, so why not name it as such.

With the request of Subaru, Red went up and down, a signal that meant he agreed, and then shot a fireball above the ice girls. The roof collapsed right on top of them. Subaru didn't know if they were dead or not, so he kept on running because he didn't want to take the risk.

It was a good idea to keep running because the roof collapsing above them caused a chain reaction of the roof being destroyed. If they stop running, the room will collapse on them.

"MY LIFE KEEPS GETTING WORSE!" Subaru screamed while running away from the avalanche. He finally saw a glimmer of hope once he noticed a corner he could turn. When Subaru finally reached the corner, he jumped out of the way of the avalanche, and barely made it to safety.

That's what he would say if there wasn't another ice soldier right in front of him. There was only one this time, and it looked the same as the other ones, but instead, it had an ice sword.

"Tsh, this lump of EXP is in my way. I think it's close range this time. How the hell do I beat it? I can't make another avalanche." Subaru then noticed a statue in the middle of the room. It was of a warrior he had no clue of. He couldn't read the name on the nameplate, but there was one important thing about it. The statue held a sword that was frozen. Subaru took aikido classes in his old world, so he isn't completely useless with a sword. With the help of Red, he should be able to beat it.

"Red, shoot!" Subaru started rushing to grab the sword. The ice soldier reacted immediately, but a fireball stopped it just on time.

Subaru launched himself off the frozen wall and grabbed the sword mid-air. He landed in front of the ice soldier, so the blade would slice through.

"Take this!" Subaru landed on the ground and hit the ice soldier directly on its head with the sword "Take that you rotten bastard." What Subaru didn't notice was that the ice soldier wasn't the thing that broke, but instead, it was his sword that broke. "Wait!"

The ice soldier then tried to stab Subaru in the face. He was just barely able to dodge the sword, but it still grazed his cheeks. His blood started to drop onto the frozen ground. The scar burned in the winter cold, and Subaru panicked. He was able to maintain focus long enough to avoid tripping on the floor until now, but he finally let up, and as such, he fell.

Red tried its best to distract the soldier, but it paid no mind to it. Red had no more mana to shoot a fireball AND give Subaru enough heat to live.

Subaru looked at the ice soldier's non-existent eyes and prepared to meet his end. "I was hoping I could at least see what was causing all of this… I don't want to die." The ice soldier then brought its hand down to slice Subaru in half.

"GET AWAY YOU BEAST!" The sound of an angry old man echoed throughout the halls. With insanely fast speed and accuracy, Wilhelm threw his sword, piercing the ice soldier through its head.

Wilhelm ran up to the ice soldier and pulled his sword out. He promptly sliced the ice soldier into small bits, which guaranteed its death.

"W-Wilhelm-San?" Subaru said in shock. He thought it would be impossible for even Wihelm to survive without a fantasy creature with him, but alas, he was right in front of Subaru.

"I have yet to know if you are friend or foe, Subaru-Dono. What I do know is, it would be shameful to die to ice." Wilhelm said. He was covered with tiny ice shards. He was also carrying a bag of broken pieces of ice. Subaru wonder why he held it would such passion, but he felt like he didn't deserve the answer.

"How are you still alive?!"

"I could say the same to you, but it's simple for an old-timer like me. I use swords to fight my opponents, so I can save up my mana to just below the point I would get mana poisoning. Currently, I'm using my mana to increase my body temperature," Wilhelm said while helping Subaru get off the floor "I would love to continue our chat, but I need to find the beast that's causing this. I would suggest staying in a safe place, and waiting for me t-" Wilhelm tried to offer Subaru some safety, but he was swiftly denied

'No, I'm not going to stay here like a baby. If dying to an ice soldier is shameful, then staying here and doing nothing must be the definition of shame itself." Subaru's scary eyes stared directly at Wilhelm. This is a new fantasy life, and as such, he needs to leave his old self behind.

"You've passed the test, so you weren't a foe," Wilhelm laughed "Anybody with those eyes couldn't be anyone but a friend."

Before Subaru could respond, the manor started to shake due to how unstable it was. The floors were about to collapse, and the walls weren't going to hold up for much longer.

"Tsh." Wilhelm picked up Subaru, bridal style, and ran away from the collapsing manor.

"Hey! Weren't you just talking about pride?! Why are you carrying me like this." Subaru said embarrassingly

"There is a difference between pride, shame, and foolishness." Wilhelm simply responded.

The roof started closing in on them, but Wilhelm had enough skills to dodge every obstacle. He spotted a window and knew it was the only way out of here alive. With Subaru in tow, Wilhelm crashed through the windows and landed gracefully on his two feet after falling a long distance. The snow below him helps soften the impact. He then placed Subaru on the ground.

"Oh, there seem to be two more bugs I need to take care of before the sword saint shows his face. I'm surprised you made it this long, as such, I'll say my name. Welcome, I'm Puck… the Beast of the End." Puck said with a malicious grin. He didn't plan to have guests for long.

"First the whale takes away the only person I've ever loved, and now a cat takes away the only person I'd ever follow. ALL BEASTS NEED TO BE ERASED WITH THE POWER OF THE SWORD!" In Wilhelm's rage, he pulled out two swords and instantly tried to bridge the gap between the Beast of the End, and himself. Large ice shards were thrown at Wilhelm, but he cut through all of them with grace. "AAAAAHHHHHHHHH, BEAST OF THE END!" Wilhelm shouted his warrior cry.

"Wilhelm-san, wait! It could be a trap!" Subaru tried to stop Wilhelm, but it was too late. Without needing to say a word, a huge ice explosion engulfed the area. Red managed to make a barrier to protect Subaru, but it used all of its mana to be able to do so. Red was still alive, but it now has to use its soul to protect Subaru. This is all unknown to Subaru for now.

"No, NOOO. Wilhelm-San!" Subaru screamed Wilhelm's name

The only thing left of Wilhelm was an ice statue of him. Even then, he was disrespected. With a small movement of his paw, Puck caused an airwave that pushed Subaru back and shattered Wilhelm into pieces. The shattered pieces of Wilhelm... Subaru now understood what Wilhelm was carrying in his bag.

"Crusch.. Felix.. Why, Why, Why, Why, Why, Why, WHY, WHY, WHY, WHY, PUCCCKKKKK, WHYYYY?" Subaru was in disbelief about everything that had happened so far. He just didn't know why everything had to happen the way it did.

"All of you have failed to protect Lia. I have to find the person that can restart this, and mother said that in order to do that, I would have to kill everybody. I'm sorry, but if mother was correct, you won't remember any of this happening. Since you didn't cause me much trouble, I'll make your death swift." With that, Puck unleashed such cold air that not even Red could help Subaru any longer.

"Why, why, why, why, why, why, why?" Subaru repeated over and over like a madman. As Puck promised, he quickly froze Subaru to death, along with forcing Red to completely use the rest of its soul to try and save Subaru.

From head to toe, Subaru was finally frozen and was able to reunite with everyone else in the snow barren world.

"As the sword saint of Lugnica, and as the newest generation Astrea. I will strike you down." A voice was heard echoing throughout the frozen wasteland, as an explosion of light took over.

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."

- Einstein

Note, I have made custom cover arts for this fanfic, but doesn't allow me to post them. So, if you would like to see them, I would suggest checking out this story on AO3, or Wattpad because they have the choice of adding pictures. The story is under the same name and author. If any of you have any suggestions on how I could show the covers here, please DM me.

I finished the first chapter with my new schedule, and I do have to say it's nice having some time to be able to revise sentences to read better, or to clear up some plot holes. It also helps me proofread my grammar. This chapter ended up being 3.7k words long. Which is about 1k more than the chapters before. I'll try to make chapter 5, 4k words long.

Anyhow, did you guys like the chilling turn of events? Arc 1 should be finishing up soon enough, so Subaru should start actually being in the Crusch camp soon.

Hope you noticed the improved quality of writing since I tried quite a bit on this chapter.

Thanks for reading, and see you Saturday. (Or today, depending on what time you're reading this)

-TonkaDev