Re: Avenger

by Just-Another-Marvel-DC-Geek

CONTINUATION IN CROSSOVER SECTION The arrival of a certain young hero shows the world of the Od Laguna just how small it truly is. Basically, Subaru is MCU Spidey and the Re:Zero cast meet Marvel Multiverse madness. Sounds fun, right? (First fic. Shamelessly posting in both regular and crossover sections for reach.)

46. Chapter 38

Chapter 38 – Arach-Knight [Part 1]

A week had passed since the Candidates' Camps had retired all back to their respective lands; in that time, things had occurred as Anastasia had predicted.

The citizens affected by the conflict soon had to return to work, the Market had reopened its shops and the Residential District had regained relative liveliness… However, the scars of battle were quite apparent.

The city outskirts and the Slums saw mass funerals conducted daily, and after the mourning of their own knights and servants that died in battle, most nobility with territories outside of the Capital simply left the city behind. Due to this, even if the shops had opened again, commerce was unbelievably slow, generating a greater feeling of resentment from the general populace towards the nobles, who were perceived as 'cowards' for fleeing the destroyed city without trying to fix it…

Conversely, however, the opposite occurred towards the Candidates themselves. They were sang of as heroes, called for their bravery before the might of the 'armored reapers', and even though they left even earlier than the inhabitants of the Noble District, it was understood that THEY were responsible for the rapid response to the emergency and the invasion.

"Had they not been there, we wouldn't be here."

"I saw them fight, I was there!"

"It's nice to know someone actually cares about Lugunica."

"Maybe the Selection isn't so bad after all."

"Who knows? Perhaps better days come ahead…"

A strong feeling of admiration from the citizens stemmed from these words, even towards Emilia and Felt, who were now called by the proper title of 'Lady' by the civilians. Even if the rest of the Kingdom held mixed opinions over the Selection as a whole, the Royal Capital finally came around to admire the five ladies… and the knights as well.

In the works of reconstruction and debris cleanup still conducted around the city, knights were revered by the common person, even looked up to by demi-humans of all people solely for helping out. They could not go around without civilians offering up their help to them, for it was understood they were the primary vanguard that allowed the common man to escape the bloody conflict.

It was a strange sight from the perspective of outsiders, but seeing soldiers fight tooth and nail to protect the world from an enemy so hell-bent on destruction, defending everyone independent of their status or species… it made quite a lot of people in the Capital rethink their stance on the military.

And when considering Lugunica's warriors, there was a particularly tired, loud and obnoxious pair fussing about in the Castle's empty Arena, since early in the morning…

"…Not convinced. Start from the beginning, once more." Julius ordered a sleepy, slouched and irritated Subaru.

"Oh, please! It's the sixth time already! Aren't you supposed to be organizing my knighting ceremony anyways?! What are we doing here?!" The Avenger pleaded anxiously, to which the knight before him responded hurriedly.

"THIS is part of organizing it, doofus. It is not just about a party, but also the preambles and- Forget that! We wouldn't need to rehearse your presentation SIX times in a row if you had understood it the first time." Julius chastised in clear disgruntlement.

"Augh- Last time was fine enough! I did great! No need to do it agai-!"

"'Fine enough' isn't 'perfect'." The finest knight interrupted Subaru's complaint, admonishing him with a wise expression. "When presenting yourself to a noble, or to anyone of esteem for that matter, you ought to do so with the appropriate respect."

"But are all the theatrics REALLY that necessary?! They are horribly dull!" Subaru cried again, like a toddler who just lost their toy.

"Affirmatively, positively and, most certainly, absolutely." And Julius simply nodded as he corrected the hero's posture.

"Hngh- You needn't emphasize on every word; as if you had to make every little thing so strenuous…"

"*Sigh* You asked and I responded; if you did not enjoy nor like the answer, then that's on you and your substandard expectations, not myself." The knight combed his hair with his right hand as he sighed, fixated on Subaru's lack of manners and on how to correct such behavior. "If I were NOT to make an emphasis on what I tell you to do, I fear my instructions just might enter through one ear and exit right through the other."

"Mgh, you little piece of…! Gah!" Subaru gritted his teeth with impatience, glaring at Julius nastily, taking insult as the knight undersold his attention span. "Why is it so important anyways?! I'm already buddies with Emilia! With Crusch, Felt, Ana and Priscilla too!"

"…Are you?"

"…Maybe not Priscilla, but you get my point! They all know me already! And the same goes with the Council and those panicky hens of the Court-!"

"That's exactly my point, and please, do not refer to the Court as 'panicky hens'." The finest knight explained with rather obvious disapproval on his tone and semblance both. "The situations in which you've met, talked, interacted and even debated with the Candidates and the nobility; they were all exceptions to the rule Subaru."

"Huh?!" The Avenger made a confused expression as Julius described the specifics of his past interactions.

"When you first met Emilia-sama, you saved her life, so she made a note of repaying you by granting you a prolonged stay and a job at Roswaal's Mansion. Then, when you came to the Capital, Crusch-sama made ANOTHER exception by allowing Emilia-sama's group to stay in her Manor prior to the Selection. Keep in mind, this decision alone could have been grounds for both of their candidacies to be put under evaluation, due to the rule of no Candidates intera-"

"T-To be fair, that was Roswaal's idea, to make it so Emilia could form an Alliance with Crusch originally… He must have made some deal with her beforehand, now that I think about it…"

"No, that's irrelevant at the moment; returning to topic… The beginnings of the Selection themselves: a great deal of commoners were allowed inside the Throne Room that day, be them merchants or mages, purely on the basis that they followed closely one of the Camps as backers. And even after that- you understand what I'm saying, don't you? Almost every instance in which you've met someone with the stature of nobility, an exception was made for your presence and behavior!"

"Well, they were all worth it weren't they?! I did help out a lot, even if I was rude!" Subaru pointed out with a bored face, feeling belittled by Julius's statement.

"But it's still veridic truth that your attitude up until now has been crude and unrefined! Now that you are about to be knighted, you will behave appropriately when confronted with a Count, a Viscount, a Baron, you name it! You MUST show respect when referring to them." Julius reiterated in a stern voice. "Now, begin!"

"Piece of…" Subaru quickly wiped the glare from his face and obeyed, proceeding then to kneel respectfully before Julius, his right arm rested on top of his right knee and his head bowed downwards.

"…Now, let me see your face." Julius ordered again, in a calmer voice this time.

"…Like this?" Subaru asked as he raised his head, looking back at the standing Julius with a neutral face.

"*Sigh* Wrong, start from up top again." Julius shook his head with disappointment.

"Whaaaaat?! What did I do wrong now?!" Subaru asked with bafflement as he stood up.

"You talked back, fool! If it's not the initial greeting, then you cannot speak unless given the express permission first!" The knight admonished with irritation.

"Augh, that's just asking me to be servile! How is being a CHUMP being respectful?!"

"It is called 'the code of chivalry'; the rules of conduct, demeanor and mannerisms by which the knight must always behave and live by!" Much to Subaru's frustration, Julius looked rather happy and prideful whilst correcting him. "I do not correct you out of contempt, I simply do so because your general attitude lacks the cordiality required of knighthood!"

"What a shock of values this is… Back home, you'd only kneel like that when proposing to your girl, not when addressing some fatso-!"

"And that's another problem with you! Even behind their backs, you shouldn't be referring to the nobility by insults!"

"Hmph, I'm hardly the only one these days…" Subaru rolled his eyes ironically.

"…The other Capital nobles had business to attend to, like relaying to their own territories what has transpired since Ultron's appearance and defeat. In the case of border nobles, they had to see to diminishing the panic the neighboring nations could provoke within their domains; taking into account they'd have NO knowledge of… other worlds." Julius made a stern remark as he responded to Subaru's comment, the knight's face stuck on a frown as his earlier eagerness vanished. "Much like with Crusch-sama and Priscilla-sama, their manors within the Noble District were all decimated, crushed to smithereens by the raging battles. The lords had to leave eventually as they dealt with their own problems too... Many of them had only remained in the Capital as a courtesy after the Selection began. The only real nobility currently residing in the city are the Council staying as guests at the Castle and all knights still required for maintaining the law."

"Try telling that to the average Joe; most people think they just ran away with the tail between their legs when the going got tough." The Avenger explained as well, with a preoccupied expression for the future of the citizens. "Just yesterday I had to quell an argument between merchants; they lost all business when a Viscount they were seeing left in a hurry for his domains, now they are stuck here with a bunch of jewelry and clothes and no money to show for it."

"Anastasia-sama's contacts have been doing their best by transporting goods and supplies for selling these past few days, but… The Capital isn't going to get by for much longer without a good source of revenue to impulse the reconstruction effort." The knight wondered whilst scratching his chin pensively. "Most outside merchants that weren't contacted before the attack stopped by Hanumas, refusing to approach the Capital's territories further, thinking it is still a warzone. There's very few coming here of their own volition, without a set contract with the Council or the Hoshin Trading Company.

"Jesus… That sounds like a ton of work just for Ana alone…" The Avenger lamented with pity for the merchant princess.

"It's good you are coming to understand my Lady's hardships, but she isn't the only one dealing with such heavy matters." Julius nodded with an approving smirk before continuing his stressing explanation of the city's current state. "Some bordering lords near the Capital have been sending merchants too, but they've been experiencing some hardship just explaining the situation to the more densely populated areas… If the nobility hadn't left to spread the news that the battle was over and that we've won, then the rumor might have gone around that the Capital was under siege; that Lugunica was at war with some unknown enemy."

"What a bother, I'm not good with such a disastrous situation, or rather, with the aftermath. The U.S. had a department of damage control, so they dealt with everything after New York… Hey, can the other big cities around the Kingdom do something? Set up shop, import stuff here for a sec as the Capital gets back up on its feet?"

"It'd be costly, perhaps more than they could afford together. Moreover, it is not as though they fared that much better in comparison to the Capital, despite not seeing battle. Sure, Picoutatte isn't in bad shape, neither is Priestella, yet they cannot cost such investments with no foreseeable return. Whether we like it or not, the Capital has to stand on its own, as the seat of Lugunica's central governing body and example to the rest of the country." Julius meditated with a troubled face, mulling over his thoughts whilst making Subaru on the other hand worry somewhat. "Even if the likes of us can deter most crime for a while, there is not much else we can do to solve the problem of the Market's dismal state. That would be up to the shopkeepers and merchants- the commerce sector and its funders entirely."

"…Not unless we introduce a business that reactivates the commerce between the Capital and the outside world." The hero proposed with a mischievous smirk.

"*Sigh* I know what you are thinking, but the world isn't so ideal that such a thing would work smoothly, not right away." Julius downplayed Subaru's attitude with a knowing voice. "Even after you handed Anastasia-sama and Russel Fellow the plans for those 'portable stove' models, it'll still take at least a couple of months for the product itself to go public, what with seeing to manufacturers, costs of production, distribution-"

"Oh, I knew that- That's not what I was referring to at all, Juli." But Subaru denied, still smiling with ambition, but vexing the knight. Then, from the bag he carried with himself to the Market, Subaru produced a mineral. "Look at my little buddy… A merchant from Flanders I saved from robbers a couple of days ago told me he picked it up on the way here; according to him, it was found inside a crater, smackdab in the middle of the road. When he saw the awe in my eyes, we made a deal: he was giving it to me in exchange for a meeting with Ana during my knighting ceremony."

"That's… A rock." Julius affirmed with bored indifference.

"It's not a rock, it's a boulder! I mean- No, scratch that, Squidward! Look, it may seem like a rock at first glance, but that's just how it looks on the outside, after getting covered in dirt! A closer peek reveals… Ta-da!" Subaru snickered as he wiped the dirt from the mineral's surface with his bare hands.

"Steel mineral? It almost looks…" Julius mumbled with curiosity as the dirt dispersed and fell.

"It's Vibranium!" Subaru affirmed with assurance and jolly.

"What-?! How?!" The knight asked in alarm, stupefied by the fact such a thing could even be around in the outside world. "Isn't- Isn't all of that exotic material from Earth?! The only Vibranium one could even found in our worlds is-!"

"In the Cocoon, in the armor of the androids, in my armor? Not exactly pal…" Subaru denied in amusement, with a slow shake of his head. "Remember the meteor Reinhard destroyed? The giant ball Ultron bombarded us with?"

"-When Reinhard destroyed it, the pieces flew in all directions." Julius reached Subaru's conclusion with amazement. "It cannot be… You mean to tell me chunks of this miracle metal are strewn about our whole Kingdom?!"

"Perhaps even further, maybe even to Kararagi. A~nd have you guessed where the only place it can be processed is located?" The Avenger continued talking with a triumphal giggle.

"…It's here, the Cocoon!"

"Cha-cha! The Cocoon, baby!"

"What insanity this is… Almost like divine intervention for such a material to appear…" Julius grabbed the mineral from Subaru's hand, examining it with care. "Chances are, if we know of this metal's sudden appearance, Anastasia-sama or Crusch-sama must know about it as well-"

"Which means that they must be arriving to the same conclusion we are: we can reactivate the Capital's economy by turning it into a hub for Vibranium processing! For metia development!"

"But if the news go public, miners and blacksmiths alike will all come here with Vibranium chunks from around the Kingdom, looking to make a quick fortune! And with how huge Ultron's projectile was, we'd be looking at a business that could well last for centuries-!" Julius then envisioned Subaru's conclusion with hope before returning to reality with disappointment. "No… No, no, even that would take a good six months or a year before taking effect, and that's IF we made the news public right away! It's not as if-!"

"Metia development sure looks like a profitable endeavor, don't you think?" Subaru stated, stopping Julius's pessimistic rant midway. "I hear Roswaal- Emilia-tan's territories, like Costuul, specialize in Metia development. Paired that with my own ideas, what I want to introduce to Ana later on… You know what I'm saying?"

"Hmph! And how are you planning to finance a workforce for these plans of yours? Even before the royalties for those stoves arrive, you would still need to pay quite a few people in advance. That's right though… The person with right of ownership of that Metia is Rem-dono, due to the negotiations you conducted during the formation of the Alliance…" Julius reminded Subaru, making the Avenger realize he wouldn't be able to utilize his first invention in this world as a means to finance his own endeavors. "Which means it is not you who gets royalties from the stoves, it's the Emilia Camp. You lack foresight if you didn't think of this possibility."

"Tsk! Even if I cannot claim royalties for that, I still gave Rem ownership for the express purpose of uniting forces against the Whale, right?! Moreover, thanks to that, I have an Alliance behind me now! I'm not stupid Julius; I wouldn't plunge into such a job without a safety web… Hehe, get it? Safety web? No?" Subaru jested, trying to defuse the situation as he sensed certain anxiety emanating from Julius's voice and mannerisms. The last thing he wanted was another argument when they were already sleep-deprived.

"The funding of the Candidates alone wouldn't be enough, their riches aren't infinite! Another investor could- Huh… Yes, another investor COULD be the answer…" But as the spark of brilliance flashed through Julius's eyes, Subaru knew he couldn't be so lucky. "What about weapons manufacturing? Lugunica's soldiers could do wonders with weaponry on the level of the legionnaires."

"…" The Avenger remained quiet as the proposal was made, unease creeping unto him.

"Subaru? Is something wrong?" The knight inquired with vexation, failing to realize the young hero's troubled thoughts.

"…I'm not putting all my eggs in one basket, that's for sure. But arms funding? I-I don't think that should be…" Subaru mumbled to himself with worry.

"What? You are not about to tell me an arms deal with the Kingdom's military is a no go, right?" Julius argued with confusion for the hero's words. "I broke many swords during the battle and some of them I had to pick up from… From the corpses of my comrades…"

"…"

"If Lugunica had armament of such high caliber, swords and lances and other such advantages that matched the equipment of the legionnaires, then we needn't see bloodshed on this scale again. I want to ensure the Kingdom's safety, and I know you do too, so perhaps we can talk it over with Marcos and Bordeaux-sama. Surely they'll see the positives from-"

"I have to stop you right there Julius; I refuse." Subaru quickly shot down the idea, sticking to his original plan of Metia development. "I'm not about to introduce advanced weaponry into your world-"

"Subaru, be real." Julius interrupted the Avenger with severity and slight annoyance. "If we know enemies, THREATS of world shattering proportions approach in the horizon, then isn't it our duty to be prepared for them in advance? Isn't it yours, protector you parade yourself to be?"

"…That's…"

"Get over yourself; you are not all powerful and you know you cannot protect everyone all the time. Or do you trust us all that little that you wouldn't acknowledge such a fact?" The knight debated with irritation over Subaru doubts. "The best thing you could do with the Vibranium to protect this Kingdom is to entrust it to us, the knights of Lugunica, so that WE may be prepared for any and all eventualities. It'd be a show of good faith for the figures in the Council that still doubt your intentions if you could just share that technology."

"…You really think TOO much like a knight." The hero stated with hurt as he shook his head, denying Julius's proposal again.

"And you think too little like one." The finest knight retorted with displeasure, bringing his right hand to his forehead in exasperation. "Your investiture isn't just for show, you are about to be handed what is essentially a noble title, and with that comes responsibilities and duties to this Kingdom. Sure, because of how special of a case you are, the exception shall be made; your duty is to be restricted to the Candidates and the Alliance first, instead of to the regent governing of the Council. However, do you think the Candidates would accept wholeheartedly the idea of NOT using Vibranium for weaponry? Not so readily… Not when we know, suffered its potential for war, and even more so when there are creatures out there willing to exploit that potential when you are out here squandering for the sake of moral superiority-"

"What's your problem man?! Lay off! MY show of good faith was mentioning my idea to you first! I thought that, out of all the people here, you'd get my position! Not the Council, not Marcos, YOU! Because hey, dumb as I am, I actually thought we respected each other AT LEAST a little by now!" Subaru argued with anger as he snatched the Vibranium out of Julius's hand, putting it back inside his bag. "Julius, I'm not here to make weaponry, I'm no war profiteer! I was informing you so- that the Alliance could do something about the dwindling economy! Wasn't that one of the Kingdom's worries, even before the Royal Family's demise?! Wasn't that why I was making deals with Ana?! I want to believe I can help these people, YOUR people by doing more than just throwing robbers into a cell! Metia developing COULD be that way, not arms-!"

"Indeed that could be the case, if we were in times of peace… But these are not peaceful times, not when we are awaiting the next Od forsaken danger by the word of some Sorcerer!" Julius reiterated with frustration whilst clenching his fists. "Think a little! It's imaginations with no basis in the real world to think Vibranium shouldn't be for the ready use of the Army! And even if you were NOT to use it for the military, how exactly can you finance these independent ideas of Metia development, huh?! The Candidates aren't going to hand over capital to your every whim-!"

"The rewards of the Whale and the Rabbit! There's centuries of accumulated rewards, right?! Surely Ana and the rest can spare a dime or two from that, a cleaner coin than from weapon development!" Subaru justified, surprising and silencing Julius. "I get the feeling that, between the two of us, you think rather low of the Candidates if you wager altruism is above them! Not everything has to be some- some GRANDIOSE battle endeavor just so it can work! And I don't need to hire a huge workforce right away with the money; a handful could work as a start! Maybe a couple of people would be enough for-?!"

"A handful he says… For the love of- That is such an unrealistic approach to commerce and production, for not saying childish! I would know; the Candidate I serve is THE master at handling these matters! Moreover, don't you dare imply I know Anastasia-sama so little just because you refer to her as casually as you do; unlike you, I have the loyalty to remain with one Candidate!" Julius huffed as he spoke, thinking less of Subaru due to his lack of understanding and naiveté in business, and for being so unrealistically idealistic in the face of future dangers that he'd refuse the army access to Vibranium weapons.

"…So that's your honest opinion of me, huh? Man, I LOVE your honesty, but I'm really not appreciating the tone. And certainly not appreciating your previous guilt tripping either, dipshit." Subaru turned away from him with anger, feeling as though Julius was just trying to use him for his own purposes, just as Roswaal did. Was this the reason behind Marcos ordering the knight assist him? He felt manipulated, as though he had made a mistake in involving himself with the knights if war armament would be the result of said decision. "For what is worth, you are not the only one feeling guilt over the losses of the battle… I'm just doing what I think is best for all of us. Are you?"

"…" In hearing those words, Julius flinched from the instant regret. He finally realized that his fervor in pressuring Subaru for his technology had created a conflict of interests between himself and the hero. As far as trying to get along with the teenager, if that was the mission Anastasia had tasked him with, he had failed miserably. "My- My apologies Subaru. I let a moment of desperation get the better of me just now. I still lack discipline, I see…"

"…Julius?" Subaru made a confused face as Julius bowed to him in apology.

"I still… see their faces, you know? There were knights I trained alongside between them, knights that trained and taught me the ropes, and knights that I trained by myself as well." Julius admitted with remorse and frustration. "I thought I had seen brutality when I faced the destruction left in the wake of the Gluttony and Greed Sin Archbishops attacks… But whenever I close my eyes, I just see the faces of the men I outlived, the faces of the men that died to that steel army. I cannot stand the thought of being defenseless again. That's why I was pushing you to make a deal with the military first… I am genuinely sorry if I offended you doing so."

"…That's fine, I get that. I get that you are feeling under the weather, what with the stress of it all, and so do I. Just- Don't come to me with those ideas again." Subaru looked back at Julius with a measure of understanding. "Look man… I'm sorry too; I know I'm hard to deal with, and we've both had it rough having to deal with the other like this. But I just don't want more blood on my hands; I don't want to take the risk of what I create being used for killing."

"…" Julius swallowed those words bitterly; worrying that Subaru's compassion might actually become a detriment against the future dangers ahead. "Subaru… Let's make a compromise, shall we? I do know I owe you some leniency at minimum, after all the ordeals you've been through just for the sake of our Kingdom."

"Huh?"

"What you can make with Vibranium in the Cocoon, can you show it to me? It needn't be weapons or the like just- whatever it is you are currently working on." Julius requested with great interest, but with even greater conviction of correcting his offense. "Could you trust in me, for at least that much?"

"Hmngh… That's asking more trust from me than from you Juli…" But Subaru reasoned with conflicted feelings, still with some lingering resentment after the previous argument.

"I will not approach you with the idea of making weaponry, but there must be some other kind of Metia you can make that doesn't equate to that. The military doesn't just conduct battle drills; we also assist in emergency areas and with refugees. Firefighting, natural catastrophes and supply management are all duties of ours, as you have seen here. Surely we can make a deal with Marcos for support equipment rather than weaponry, right?"

"That's… Fair game, I guess. To begin with, Vibranium Metias would go public eventually, so having the knights as test subjects could popularize them amongst richer clientele... It'd mean I could get a stable workforce faster…" Subaru agreed with curiosity over the idea. "Hmm… You know what? Meet me at the Mothership at night, I'll show you what I can do there and we can talk it further."

"Understood." Julius nodded with reservation.

"Right… I still have some stuff to do. I'm on patrol duty just about every day anyways-"

"Subaru." As Subaru turned to leave, planning for another patrol around the Market, Julius called out to him.

"…What is it now?"

"Thank you… For forgiving my intrusive arguments."

"…Just don't go giving Marcos any illusions of weaponry when you make your report." Hurriedly, Subaru walked away whilst issuing a resentful assurance, to then hastily dash out of the Arena altogether, leaving the lamenting knight to his own devises. He did not respond to Julius's gratitude with real acknowledgement of his apology, but rather with knowing understanding of what the knight would do next: report to his superiors.

*DASH!*

"*Sigh* Me and my big mouth; there was no reason for venting on him like that. No wonder he took insult…" Julius mumbled with disappointment, frustrated that their somewhat friendly banter had turned into such an intense argument as the theme of Vibranium and the future came up.

There was much to work on if these two were to work together in the future, that was for sure... It was a relationship in the rocks, barely comradery and perhaps not even capable of being called a real friendship, all due to their insecurities regarding the nefarious, looming threats they yet knew nothing about.

Nevertheless, even if they can plan and argue, the present is still very much ever encroaching, ever chaotic and especially so where the Avenger was headed…

"Uuuuh… What do I do, What do I do~?!" A brown haired demi-human girl nervously mumbled to herself whilst readjusting her black headband, trying to soothe her nerves after the slightest stimulation. She was meandering around the Market's stalls and shops, seemingly lost and looking around hectically while flailing her sizeable tail about. "I-I-I was told the big city could be mean to outsiders… But why is it so destroyed?! Did a tornado pass through or something?!"

"…What ya lookin' at, huh?! If yer not gonna buy somethin', then beat it! I've no time fer window shoppin'!" A tall lizard man yelled at the girl as she stood still in front of his vegetables stall, her tail's fur brushing over his helpless product.

"Ah, sorry-!" The girl leapt backwards with apology, startled by the lizard's yell.

*BUMP!*

"Augh- Oi! Look where yer going, I'm busy here!" A young man carrying around a crate full of spices cried as the girl shoulder-pushed him accidentally.

"I'm SO sorry! I'm so-!" The girl cried again as she quickly turned to face the man.

*FWOOP!*

"BURPH-?!" A middle-aged woman walking through the Market groaned in confusion as the furry tail slapped her across the face, the girl proven a disaster again. "Od be damned! You stupid girl, made me drop me groceries! You even know how troublesome it is to buy and sell after that battle?!"

"Yeah! Your tail takes up about half the street!" The lizard man complained as well, protecting his vegetables from the girl's fur.

"What gives?! Can't ya move?! Not gonna say anything?!" The young man with the crate yelped a complaint again as the girl froze in place.

"…Uuu… *Hic!*" The girl mumbled unintelligibly.

"Speak up dammit?! Wanna say something?! We got a problem here?!" The woman insisted whilst picking up her groceries.

"UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA~! I'M SOWWYYYY~!" The girl's tail swung erratically as she ran into an alleyway in shame, sobbing loudly all the way.

"Ungh… Does she have to be so loud, even for crying?!" The lizard man grumbled in annoyance.

*DASH!*

"Unfgh! Uuuugh! *Sob!*" The girl darted and dashed between the alleys of the market, running away from it all, not seeing where she was going.

Ungh! If I had known the big city would be such an ugly place, I woulda stayed back at the village! To begin with, I was just here with auntie for the farm's flour delivery! Why is everyone so mean-?!

*PUSH!*

"Oi! You!" A lanky, foul-mouthed man with grayish-blue colored hair grumbled as the girl fell over. "What gives ya bitch?! Ya trynna start somethin'?!"

"Eeeeeh?! Not again!" The girl cried pitifully as she fell on top of the alley's stone tiles. Her tail's fur straightened in panic as she noticed the intimidating presence of a trio of men towering over her.

"Hmmn? You ain't from around here, ain't cha? Hehehe!" A little boy, no, a little man giggled sadistically as he walked in circles around the girl, sizing her up. "Look at her clothes Ton, she's dressed a lil' TOO cleanly, don'tcha think? Like she got pretty an' all for a meeting!"

Appearance wise, the girl was not that intimidating; in fact, although not fat, she leaned towards a bulkier build, one that could be mistaken as chubby from a distance. Add to this the fact that her buckteeth and petite 5'3" height made her look quite cute, like a giant plush doll, non-menacing; the only noteworthy thing about her the tail that almost doubled her total size. Her clothes suggested a humble origin as well, with a modest undershirt and a long, chestnut colored dress over it, whose hem reached all the way to the ground, dusting it like a broom.

"Hmm, girlie must come from the outside Kan. Look at them nutcracker buckteeth, and those clothes sure scream villager ta me." The biggest of the three laughed along as he flanked the girl from the right. "Ya think she has anything worth the trouble on her Chin?"

"Hmph, she'd better be! She owes it to us after bumping onto me like that and NOT APOLOGIZIN'!" Chin giggled cruelly, suddenly unsheathing two large daggers from behind his back. "Who knows? She may have broken me' arm or somethin'! It'd be awfully rude NOT to foot the doctor's bill, don't you guys think?!"

"Yeah! You gotta pay for injurin' Chin, buckteeth! Shi-shi-shi-!" Kan laughed along whilst swinging a pocketknife around.

"Pay the toll girlie! Wouldn't want to lose that tail, right?! I've been lookin' for a new scarf myself!" Ton menacingly implied whilst firmly grasping the girl's straightened tail.

"E-EEEEEEEP!" The panicking girl squealed as though a child she were, whilst her assailants all drew weapons and began demanding her belongings.

"Them pockets! NOW!" Chin shouted as he swung his knife close to her face, intimidating her further.

"S-S-SAVE ME! MONKEY JOE~!"

*THWIP!*

"Huh-? Wait, NOT AGAIN-!" Chin screamed in panic as white strings enveloped both of his armed hands, then suddenly-

*SMACK!*

"URNFGH-!" The lanky thief passed out on the pavement unceremoniously as someone's foot landed on his face, his recently healed nose breaking again.

"C-Chin!" Kan shouted with surprise, startling the frightened girl.

"Dammit you three, don't you have something better to do than this?! I thought you'd have learned by now!" An armored man spoke with anger while standing on top of Chin's unconscious body, the girl on the ground looking up at him with admiration. "Are those knives you are holding?! You really ARE earning the beating today!"

"Huh?! Who the fuck-?!" Ton mumbled in shock whilst preparing to charge at the attacker, but then, he recognized the appearance of the man in the alley's light. He had encountered him twice before already... "I-I-I-I-IT'S YOU!"

"SPIDER-MAN!" Kan fell on his butt, dropping his pocketknife, for HE was now the one trembling… in fear of the Avenger.

"Waaaaa…" In contrast, the scared girl was awed into silence as she observed her hero, 'Spider-Man'.

The man whose black armor contrasted with the sunlight so dashingly raining upon him, as though he heralded the sun's arrival, the first rays of dawn. His very form was imposing, and his big eyes were fixated in a powerful yet silent glare for all villains and criminals to see and tremble in fear. In the short moments the girl knew of the 'Spider-Man' before her, she had become completely entranced by his presence, infatuated by it in fact.

"Oi! Tan, was it?" Spider-Man pointed menacingly to the bulky would-be robber. "I'm not that good at remembering names, believe it or not…"

"I-I-I-IT'S T-T-TON ACTUALLY-!" Ton confessed whilst throwing all of his weapons to the floor and raising his hands in defeat.

"Whatever! What's going on here?! Didn't I warn you three stooges already?!"

"UH-UH-UH-UH-UH-UH-!" Ton fumbled frantically as he picked up the knocked out Chin, slumping him over his shoulder. "Y-Y-Y-YEAH, WE WERE ONLY- UUUUUUUUUUHHH-!"

"G-G-GIRLIE HERE WAS LOST, SO WE-!" Kan fumbled about as he stood up, mumbling incoherently whilst dropping his other hidden weaponry to the floor. "YEAH, WE WERE JUST SHOWING HER AROUND SO-"

"BYE-BYE-!" Ton cried whilst inching closer to the hero's feet. Next thing Spidey knew, Ton lifted Chin by his shirt and began carrying him over the shoulder.

*DASH!*

The pair and their deadweight friend escaped deeper into the alley, crapping their pants all the way.

"*Sigh* I sure hope those guys would learn their lesson already… But at least my presence will prevent them from troubling anyone for a whi-"

"U-UMM!" Thegirl yelped with surprise as Spidey turned to look at her.

"Are you alright ma'am? Any injuries? Can you stand?" The hero lent the stupefied girl a hand, helping her stand back up again.

*GRAB!*

"AH-AH-AH-!" The girl struggled with speaking, not letting go of Spider-Man's hand even after she had already stood up.

"Woah, hell of a grip! Can feel it even through the armor!" Spider-Man noted with surprise, making the girl notice her action and let go of him.

"Ahahaha- E-Err…" The girl mumbled again incoherently with a shy blush.

"Hey, for real now, they didn't do anything to you? You sure you are fine?"

"Uh-huh…" She nodded slowly, making the arachnid relax some.

"Well then, let's return to the Main Street; the alleys of the Market aren't precisely the safest place around." The hero indicated as he walked past the girl, inviting her to follow him.

"U-Um! Um-!" The girl mumbled once more whilst following close behind.

"Hmm? What is it?"

"A-About those guys…"

"Oh, Ton-Chin-Kan? Yeah, don't worry about them... They are known around these parts, but they always manage to get their asses kicked somehow." Spider-Man explained with a chuckle, looking back at the girl behind him. "I put a tracker on the lanky one just in case, so I'll go arrest them when the knights transport another group of criminals out of the Capital. Err- Don't go… telling any other would-be thieves about that, they'll get cocky if they know we ran out of room at the barracks' dungeons. The Prison Tower collapsed, you see."

"Ah, y-yes-! Uh-huh…" The girl nodded yet again whilst hiding her face behind her tail, avoiding exposing her reddened cheeks to the man. "Sooooo… you are a knight?"

"…I wonder about that; I just butted heads with the knight of knights, so perhaps it'd be more accurate to call me the anti-knight. Or maybe a pain in the butt? Either way, I feel I may have messed up, so did he! Ugh, I get angry just thinking about it!" The hero argued with irritation, strangely making the girl relax somewhat. "Hah… Even after I get knighted officially, I doubt the rest of the order will look at me with anything but the stink-eye."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to-!"

"No, no, you don't have anything to do with my argument, I just…! *Sigh* Look at me, venting on a girl I just met, a girl I'm supposed to be consoling… Good going 'hero'!" Spidey face-palmed with clear shame over his recent words. "I'm sorry, I really am… What was your name again? I didn't catch it."

"I-I didn't introduce myself!" The girl straightened her back, loudly and rapidly announcing herself. "I-I'm- My name is Doreen Green! I recently turned fifteen years old, so this is me- my first j-job! I-I'm a squirrel demi-human hailing from-!"

"Slow down there speedster! Just the name was enough; you are slurring your words some!" The hero quickly calmed the girl down, making her relax a little. "I noticed the squirrel demi part from the start, what with the big bushy tail and all. Then, you are a little older than Garfiel huh… Your auburn hair leans a bit more towards brown, but the cut and color reminds me a little of Petra though!"

"Who?" The girl tilted her head to the side with curiosity.

"Uh, never mind, just some friends of mine. Speaking of which, did you come here to the Capital by yourself or with someone? You seem to be on your own-"

"Ah, no! I ca-came here with my auntie you see…"

"An aunt huh? I have one as well… I'm sure she must be worried sick not knowing where you are, Doreen." Spidey chuckled as he reminisced of his own family longingly. "You make sure you value her company, alright?"

"Hmm!" Doreen energetically nodded in response "I was just so distracted by it all…"

"Of course you would though, with the state of disrepair of most buildings, boarded up windows and doors; everyone's moody attitude at the Market- It has been tough for some people to sell their stuff with so many others either leaving the Capital or straight up losing it all after the battle… There's some families that lost their home and are now stuck in the Slums' encampments without a house."

"A battle?"

"What, you can't tell me you didn't see the giant head in the sky, right?"

"The head that talked about an 'Avenger' right?! It was real?!" Doreen looked amazed by the revelation, almost dumbfounded by it.

"Of course it was real! A REAL battle occurred in the Capital a little over a week ago! How did you not know?!"

"I thought I had hallucinated the head! The villagers back home and I all ate mushrooms for dinner that day, so we kinda figured it was a bad batch and we were making it all up in our minds, haha!" Doreen giggled nervously as Spidey stared at her with dumbfounded, giant eyes, mortified by her hilarity. "We are a bit closer to Flanders, but my auntie usually makes the trip to the Capital 'cuz it's more profitable a sell…"

"That… Would explain why you'd come into such a deplorable place; so you didn't know a thing, huh..." The hero rubbed the back of his head as he processed her words. "I mean, yeah, a giant head IS HARD to explain, so I can see how you'd call it a hallucination… But I don't think you can share your hallucinations with other people though?! The Vibran- Shooting stars either!"

"So it really was real?!"

"For realsies real!"

"T-The head- the tremors- the shooting stars- the lights in the sky- the end of the world- all of that?!"

"Yup!"

"REAL real?!"

"As real as fire is hot, ice is cold and the Whale is dead, yep, yep! And the 'Avenger' you speak of is right in front of you, by the way." Spider-Man pointed to himself with his thumb as the girl's jaw dropped.

"Hold on?! You mean to tell me YOU beat the 'world-sized' head?!" Doreen fangirled for an instant as Spidey blushed under the mask. "You are a hero then!"

"It was more of a collective effort to beat Ultron, but yeah. Oh, and I never did introduce myself either, did I? You can call me Spider-Man, but then again, you already knew that through that trio… A~nd we are here! Main Street again!"

"Huh? Egh, if it isn't that careless girl again-" The lizard man salesman complained as he saw Doreen emerge from the alleyway, her big furry tail annoying him as the hairs swayed in the wind towards his vegetables. "Can't she go somewhere else?! It's hard enough to make a profit these… days…?!"

"O-Oh… C-Crap…" One pedestrian mumbled with fear as Doreen stood still. "That guy is…!"

"S-Spider-Man…"

"Th-The Avenger…"

"M-Mommy, I'm scared~!"

"I-It's fine, I th-think…"

"Why is everyone so scared…?" Doreen asked in confusion as everyone looked in her direction with fear.

"What a trip this is; last time I walked out of an alley with a demi-human girl in tow, it was her they feared… Is this how Emilia feels? If so, I better make sure she can forget all that by the Selection's end." Spider-Man mumbled tiredly as he realized the stares and whispers of terror were due to his presence. As he spoke however, his spider-sense went off. "Hmmn? This feeling-!"

"AHH! WAIT- WAIT! SOMEONE CATCH THAT DRAGOOOON!" A merchant screamed with terror as the reins to his carriage broke down, alarming his ground dragon into a sprint.

*CRASH!*

*DASH!*

"GUAAAAAAAAGH-!" The ground dragon, a green colored specimen resembling Frufroo, cried as it ran amok in the street, destroying stalls and crates in its wake.

"Woagh-!"

"YYYAAAAH~!"

"Careful there-!"

"Looks like trouble, that dragon will run someone over if let alone!" Spidey commented as he prepared to stop it in its tracks. "Stand back Doreen, I'll-!"

"A rebellious girl that looks, hmph!" Doreen however did not listen as the hero spoke; instead, she hurriedly stood right in the middle of the street, taking a sumo stance, ready to tackle the dragon head on.

"GUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" The dragon screamed again, roaring loudly as it approached at magnificent speeds.

"DOREEN WAIT-!" The Avenger yelled in a panic as the ground dragon was about to crash into the girl; however…

*GRAB!*

*LIFT!*

"HMPH!" Doreen managed to grab the dragon by the neck, before then suplexing it hard against the stone tiles.

*CRASHHHH!*

"GUUUGH-!" The dragon passed out on the spot, and Doreen stood triumphal on top of it.

"Yeah! That'll teach ya! Ground dragons should know better than running 'bout so carelessly with kids around; this girl clearly lacks her trainin'!" Doreen claimed as she pointed to the dragon's owner in the distance. "HEY YOU!"

"A-Ah- M-M-Me?!" The owner pointed to himself with a trembling hand as he timidly approached his fainted steed.

"How in the blazes have you been treating this dragon?! Any good owner would know NOT to tighten the reins so much! Look at her neck's scales; they are falling off! No wonder she ran around in a panic!" Doreen then lifted the dragon with two arms, and promptly thereafter, dropped it on top of her owner.

*SLAM!*

"BLEUGH-?!" The owner fell to the curb by the side of the road as his unconscious reptile slumped over him. "HNNGH! C-Can't breat-!"

"Ya better take good care of her once she wakes up, alright buddy?!" The infuriated farm girl ordered as she demeaned the merchant. "Ya gotta treat yer dragons real proper so they don't get rebellious!"

*LIFT!*

"Are you okay?!" Spider-Man asked as he lifted the dragon, interrupting Doreen's speech whilst liberating the poor man.

"*Wheeze!* PUAAAGH~! Tha-thank you so much sir-! A-Ah…!" The merchant was about to thank the Avenger, but then he realized who he was talking to and fell silent with fear. "I-I-I'm so sorry…!"

"Why the hell did you crush that guy with his dragon?! Are you trying to kill him?!" Spider-Man asked the girl with infuriated eyes.

"Hey! I was just handing him his girl back! I-I wasn't trying to kill him or anything!" Doreen protested with frustration of her own. "He could simply lift her back up, just like you and I anyways-!"

"As if! No normal person could lift up a ground dragon like nothing!" But the hero argued back with annoyance. "More like, if you are that strong, how the hell were you getting robbed in the first place?!"

"Wait… Really?! People outside the village aren't THAT strong?!" Doreen mumbled in startle, taking a step back in shock.

"Hell no they are not!" The Avenger complained again, this time with less reproach as he realized how truly isolated the girl was from the outside world. "How clueless can one person be of-?! Ugh... Yeah, that IS right, you didn't know a thing… You are like an odd mix of Emilia-tan and Garfiel, alright…"

"Waaah… In my village, we are all demi-humans, but I'm the second strongest around! B-But because I wasn't that tall, I always thought it was everyone else that was weak…" Doreen didn't take Spider-Man's words negatively, in fact, she took his appraisal of her strength as a compliment. "So you think I'm strong? Ehehehe… Th-Thank you…"

"DOREEN?! DOREE~N!" A middle-aged, black cat demi-human woman screamed from the distance as she recognized Doreen's tail. It was her aunt, calling for her with anxiety after she had gotten lost. "HEY DOREE~N! OVER HERE GIRL!

"Ah! That's my aunite!" Doreen squealed with excitement. "Hey Spider-Man! There she- Huh?!"

As Doreen had turned around to indicate Spider-Man, he had already climbed up to a building's rooftop, looking down on her.

"Doreen! You better stop making your aunt worry after this, and by the way, please stop making ME worry about whoever crosses your way! Just a tip, from your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man!" Spidey yelled to the girl below before raising his arm in the opposite direction of her aunt and shooting a web. "See ya around!"

*THWIP!*

"Wa- wait- Augh…!" Doreen mumbled with disappointment as the hero swung away, leaving her behind. "But I wanted to know more about you~! *Sigh* Spider-Man huh? An Avenger… A hero, eh? Maybe if I…"

As Doreen pondered on her own thoughts and considerations for the future, wishing to meet her arachnid in shining armor once more, said spider swung about across the Market and into the Slums with a clearer head than before.

"That girl… She sure was an oddball, but at least she took the bitter taste of Julius's complaints out of my head. So there are people out there that had NO idea any of what happened was real? Sure will be a shocker once they realize THERE ARE giant heads floating around in space! The news of the incident will really throw some for a loop or two!" The hero mumbled to himself with fascination over Doreen's perspective. "Still, I'm late for my meeting already… Hope Rom's not TOO pissed about it."

And Rom sure was pissed about it.

"OI! BUG-MAN!" Valga Chromwell yelled from the bottom of his lungs with anger, for Subaru arrived to their meeting an hour later than expected. "BEEN HERE SINCE DAWN, YA WALL-CRAWLER! WHERE THE HELL HAVE YA BEEN, HUH?!"

"Sheesh man! No need to yell, you are tearing my ears off! That voice is loud enough as it is!" The teenager covered his ears as the sheer potency of the giant's scream rung across his skull like a bell. "Why are you so mad anyways?! I arrived already, didn't-?!"

"I have a house FULL of orphans, all managed by me'self alone, and YOU keep me waitin' all morning when I coulda been sleeping?! Huh?!" Rom complained again with fury. "Do you even realize how hard it was to keep them lil' fucks from stabbing themselves in the eyes, what with how many stuff I leave in here?! This was my spare storehouse, for all the rusty crap I couldn't sell! Not a damn orphanage!"

"Okay, okay, I get your point man, no need to… Just- go on…"

"I haven't slept in three days from how HARD them toddlers cry, man... If Felt were here, she'd know how to distract them, make them shut up… She always was better at dealing with the young ones, more than I… was… *Yawn~!*"

"Sorry pal… But your storehouse was one of the few houses around in the Slums that didn't collapse during the battle. Soldiers told me it made a GREAT infirmary for the wounded, with how spacious and well-equipped it was!"

"Hmph! Them uniformed dumbasses never paid me back for all the medicines I had stored; simply went and used them all! Might as well have robbed me blind of all me knickknacks." Rom shook his head with clear disapproval of the army for using his only standing property without permission. "I busted my ass fighting to protect the Slums from those armors, protectin' the kids no one bothered evacuate, and these are the thanks I get?! Must be real nice being a knight, not havin' to request shit…"

"Well, I'll be a knight soon, so I can TRY to correct that..." Subaru mumbled along, making Rom flinch.

"Uh, yeah, ya mentioned something like that…" Rom scratched his chin with consideration. "Makes sense they'd knight ya, considerin' the fact you beat that monster… Even before that, you killed the Whale an' all… Rather, 'tis a bit scary what ya prattled 'bout in the Castle came true."

"What I-? Oh, the thing of Avengers-level threat… Rather ominous in hindsight."

"Yeah, who knew someone could beat the Sword Saint; if ya had told me before, ergh… Eesh-! Makes one tremble in their boots!"

"*Sigh* What about you anyways? Never told me why you didn't leave with Felt for Flanders after the Selection began." Subaru inquired with interest for the man.

"Stuff happened, some knights kept a close eye on me… Then I had ta put together my business, close on some deals an' lose ends; ya know what I'm saying." The giant justified himself with a tired frown. "Believe it or not, most no one messes with me here in the Slums; they know better than to get in a giant's way. If I left with Felt right away, some of the people under my protection here would get squashed by the mob of 'wannabe' career criminals… Especially the kids in the storehouse: Some of them might get roped up on it all and join a gang, only to end in the Prison Tower after fuckin' it up."

"I see… Mighty kind of ya, huh?! Maybe the stories of the 'fearsome general' I read about were all just that, fairy tale!" Subaru chuckled with amusement. "I couldn't believe that, out of all people, historians made a point of drawing a portrait of you from the war. I never found one on Wilhelm or even his wife, but I did a pair on you and Bordeaux. You looked rather threatening in comparison to now though…"

"Hah… I won't say I don't have my grievances, but at the very least, I'd like to say I'm an honest man now- To an extent, anyways. I'm not the same guy whatever record you've read on the war told you 'bout." Rom reminisced solemnly as Subaru commented on him, but then he smiled whilst pointing to his wrinkly face. "For one, I'm like wine; the age just makes me irresistible!"

"You keep telling yourself that buddy; maybe someone pretty girl will believe it, given some time! Someone real desperate surely…"

"Oi!"

"Seriously, though, your past is your past and there's not much more you can do now, other than make up for whatever occurred before with good deeds. And protecting orphans from a horde of murder-bots just so happens to be a damn good deed my guy!" The Avenger congratulated the demi-human whilst producing a coin pouch from his bag. "This is the last bit of money I had since Roswaal paid me… Filled to the brim in silver, gold and just a few holy! Should be enough for taking care of those kids for a while longer, at least until we can build a bigger house around here."

"Mighty appreciate it pal." Rom nodded with a grateful smile as Subaru prepared to leave. "One other thing though… Did you find them? Those idiots?"

"Ah, those three? Yeah, I found them by the Market all right. With knives drawn on some poor village girl's throat, trying to rob her." Subaru shook his head with disillusion. "Put a tracker on Chin after I beat him up, hope you don't mind his broken nose though."

"Heh, at least it's good ta know they are alive… Didn't see them around after the battle, so I feared the worst." The giant smirked briefly with relief, surprising the Avenger for a moment.

"'Feared'? You were that worried?"

"Who, me?! Ha! It's Felt who told me to send them douches to Flanders! I just can't see how such morons could help her though!" Rom face-palmed with frustration as Subaru explained to him about their whereabouts. "She's too kind, trynna to take them out of here! Morons like that trio just about mess up everythin' they do; they are like children ya can't take yer eyes off of!"

"Now then, according to my little Spiderling… Get it? 'Spider' plus 'Underling' equals- Uhm- Forget it-" Subaru tried to joke, but Rom's face remained unamused, indicating his boredom to the disappointed teen. "The three of them are about ten blocks south of here. Do they have a base of some kind around these parts? I could go get them right away-"

"Nah, I'm in no rush. Felt will be here in five days, so ya have time enough to lock them in a cell 'til then." Rom reassured with a tired voice. "It ain't exactly a secret the Prison Tower collapsed, so of course it'd be known the knights are stretched thin trying to keep the criminals at bay without cells… Worst comes to worst, just bring those dumbasses ta me an' I'll throw them into a well for a day or two."

"Will do! Now then- I still have a whole day of patrol left in front of me, so… Smell ya later Rom!"

*DASH!*

*THWIP!*

"Oi! Spider! Thanks fer bustin' yer ass beating that head!" Rom smiled whilst waving Subaru a goodbye, the teenager running back into the city in a hurry. There was a brink to his step however, so he seemed in a better mood than when he had arrived. "See ya around kid…"

Subaru's day would be much calmer after his meeting with Rom, and especially far quieter than his meeting with Doreen. All he stopped thereafter was the occasional pickpocket and disorderly dragon on the road, and these persisted all the way into the evening as the Capital attempted a return to normalcy. As twilight turned to dusk, a camp of armed guards around Ultron's Mothership awaited an esteemed guest by its entrance…

*DASH!*

"RUAAAAAAARGH!" A blue ground dragon roared as it rushed on the dark road at top speeds, approaching the lights of torches by the entrance to the gargantuan construct.

"Halt Shaknar; we are getting close." Julius murmured to his steed, making the dragon deaccelerate gradually until standing still right before the Mothership's entrance.

"Julius-san, sir!" One of the knights standing guard, a young man that had been present during Sloth's subjugation, saluted his comrade with respect.

"At ease." Julius calmed the man with a subtle gesture of his hand, motioning to the inside of the ship. "Is there anyone inside?"

"Rem-dono, as well as Beatrice-sama are awaiting for you inside!" The man smiled slightly when mentioning Rem's name, which Julius noted with boredom. "Karen-dono is… Awaiting inside too… Is this really a good idea-?"

"…It's not your duty to ponder on Karen-dono's presence, so keep the intrusive thoughts to yourself please." Julius reproached, making the knight flinch. "We owe her some respect after her and Subaru's deeds, so be polite when dealing as her bodyguard."

"M-My apologies, sir…" The knight looked shameful as Julius chastised his behavior.

"What about Subaru, has he arrived yet?" Julius changed topics as he noticed few ground dragons stationed outside of the Mothership.

"Subaru-dono has yet to report himself, sir!" The knight returned to a formal attitude as Subaru's name was mentioned, although his gaze was more akin to a glare in contrast to his earlier cheer.

"…*Sigh* I cannot really expect cordiality after being rude myself, so I'll let the tardiness pass for now." Julius scratched his head's left temple with worry as Subaru had yet to arrive for their meeting. "I'll be waiting for him inside then."

"Sir! Yes, sir!"

As the finest knight entered the Mothership, walking rapidly across a blue artificially illuminated catwalk, he felt quite… Fearful and out of place amongst the machinery.

Surrounding him were decommissioned and soon-to-be disassembled androids, the same enemies he had struggled, bled and sweated against a week prior. The terrifying foes that had decimated the Capital were now more akin to corpses in their state of disrepair, yet in the back of his mind, Julius knew they were never alive in the first place… And that fact alone made him tremble in place to no end.

Maybe it was a good idea I arrived earlier than Subaru; I wouldn't want him to see me this frightened, this rattled; almost like a mewling child… Pathetic. Moreover, I still doubt he has fully forgiven my intrusive words earlier… If that were the case, he'd specially NOT forgive my other thoughts on the situation at hand.

The knight stopped for a brief moment, shaking his head whilst reorganizing his thoughts. However, he failed, still feeling some lingering insecurities regarding Subaru, the Vibranium… And the Synthezoid acting as his companion and assistant.

Karen-dono. Her lack of pulse, her mannerisms bordering on the artificial, her very appearance… I'm shameful to admit that I find her very presence terrifying, as though she were something so far removed from my understanding, I simply cannot pass her off as a person, like I would with demi-humans or Spirits. She just feels… Alien, as Subaru would say.

'Alien'… I don't remember knowing that word until I met him.

Nevertheless, can we really trust her so openly? Rather, we have no choice if we must go through her to process Vibranium, and yet…

I understand Karen-dono is no threat, in my mind I understand this. But the thought that she could reactivate these puppets at any moment and slay me in a flash is just numbingly terrifying. My heart cannot forget the terror of such uncaring, implacable force, no matter how much I try to forget-!

"Your pulse seems rapid and frantic, Julius. May I recommend some tea for your nerves-?"

"?!" Julius took a step back in surprise as Karen appeared in front of him, right near the end of the catwalk. As he came around to his senses, he realized he was gripping onto his sword with embarrassment. "Ah- Karen-dono, my apologies; you startled me, you see…"

"No worries, it was my fault to begin with for not announcing myself." Karen spoke politely to the knight, but her eyes remained fixated on the sword he had yet to let go off with caution. "Perhaps it wasn't the best option to tell you to meet us inside."

"…" Julius let go of his weapon, recomposing himself whilst shaking his head in denial. "No need to fret about such a thing Karen-dono, it was merely a show of my current inadequacies if I appeared frightened just now."

"Very well then… Please, follow me." Karen indicated to the inner parts of the ship, a door opening behind her.

"Hmm? Julius-san?" Rem said with surprise as the knight entered the Mothership's trophy room.

"Greetings, Rem-dono, Beatrice-sama." Julius bowed back at the maid and the Great Spirit in her arms with cordiality.

"You, knight." Beatrice disrupted his salutations with disinterest however, pointing a finger at him whilst issuing a command. "Where's Betty's Subaru? She felt him closing in here, did you not come together from the city, I wonder?"

"So he is on his way already? That's a relief… My apologies Beatrice-sama, but Subaru and I did not cross paths as I came here; he must have departed from the Capital briefly after myself."

"Then why are you here, if not to bring him before Betty?" Beatrice demanded again with disillusion.

"Beatrice-sama, please… Julius-san likely had some business with Subaru-kun. Perhaps regarding his knighting ceremony." Rem added, making the Spirit look back at her with annoyance.

"Hmph!" Beatrice shook her head with a pout.

"Please excuse her, Julius-san… She's been grumpy since early in the morning." Rem apologized in Beatrice's behalf as the knight stared at the pair with confusion. "Subaru-kun left so early for a meeting in the Castle, and then, he said he had to patrol the city… Needless to say, we didn't have breakfast together, and I doubt he has had lunch or dinner either."

"And he's yet to give Betty her good morning, good afternoon and good evening hugs either!" Beatrice added with childish anger.

"…I can see how one of those things might partially be my fault- I'm the one who summoned him for a meeting at dawn's first light." Julius face-palmed with embarrassment written on his face as Beatrice and Rem both turned to look at him. "If I may ask however, why didn't Beatrice-sama not accompany Subaru on his patrol? Surely you could have pressed him earlier for-?"

"See, Beatrice-sama gets dizzy when Subaru-kun swings around with her-"

"MNGHGHGHGH~! Maid! You are not supposed to reveal such a detail about Betty to Betty's Subaru's rival in fact!"

"I wouldn't exactly consider myself a… 'rival' to Subaru though, Beatrice-sama-?" Julius made a confused face as Beatrice gave him a side-glance in the form of a petty glare. "…"

"Speaking of- There's someone else entering the ship." Karen informed with interest.

"Yes, Betty can feel him alright… Subaru is here." The Great Spirit calmed down as her contractor's presence approached.

"Hello~? Am I the first one to arrive? No? Uuuhh… Rem, you in there?" Subaru's voice echoed in the distance as he advanced through the catwalk. "Man, why was the guard so rude? Saying crap like 'You are late!' while rushing me inside, I'm the only one here-!"

"No, you are not." Julius announced himself, followed by Rem, Beatrice and Karen. "If anything, you are the last one to arrive."

"…Okay, please stop glaring." Subaru dismissed Julius's judgmental gaze whilst walking towards Rem and Beatrice.

*Hug!*

"Sorry for the morning mess-up Beako~! I had to go attend that purple loser over there!" Subaru apologized profusely whilst closely hugging Beatrice.

"…It is fine, I suppose; just don't let go of Betty for a while." Beatrice smiled triumphantly whilst embracing Subaru tightly.

"Subaru-kun!" Rem hurried to the boy's side with a miffed expression, producing a basket packed with food from behind. "You missed your meals again! You didn't even pack lunch!"

"Ergh- yes, well… I wasn't really… Hungry…" Subaru tried to calm the animosity of the maid, only to fail miserably as Julius interjected.

"Missing meals? Subaru, even I make the time for a bite of food, be it just a fruit or some quick confits. Sustenance is an important part for-"

"It's not like I'm avoiding it for the sake of not eating! I simply forgot about it!" The Avenger tried to justify himself, but it was no use.

"How does one forget about eating, I suppose? You've been like this since we beat the Rabbit, in fact." Beatrice chastised with pity.

"You've been eating the bare minimum for a while now, the most Rem has seen you consume has been drinking water or soups, but nothing solid." Rem continued with worry whilst procuring a pork cutlet sandwich from the basket. "Look at this; you are not leaving until you eat all of it."

"M-Meat is a bit… maybe a fruit?" Subaru tried to stop the maid, but she wouldn't let him.

"…I understand if the Rabbit was a scary foe, but just because they were voracious you shouldn't avoid your meals either. It's not healthy." Understanding the root of the problem, perhaps better than the others present did, Karen joined Rem by grabbing the sandwich from her hand and shoving it into Subaru's mouth whole. "Here, open wide."

"BLUGH-?! *Choke-Choke!*" Subaru danced frantically in place for a second as he struggled chewing before strenuously swallowing the sandwich. "*Gulp!* Are you mad?! Are you trying to kill me-?!"

"Your stomach isn't empty anymore, so job's done." Karen dismissed his cries with feigned disinterest as Beatrice in his arms moved to console him.

"Just make sure to take a pause once in a while, Subaru. Betty doesn't want you so tired all the time." The Great Spirit recommended whilst cupping his cheek in her little hand.

"Ugh… Yeah, sorry 'bout that…" Subaru apologized before locking eyes with Julius. "Then… What I called YOU for, pretty boy…"

"…Yes, a deal with the military." Julius nodded as his demeanor turned more formal, stern.

"It's still a proposal from your part though! I haven't agreed to armament…"

"That I understand, and I expressed as much to Marcos. Yet, you did say there were other things you could show, other than weaponry." Julius indicated as he motioned for one of Ultron's alien trophies. "For example, something along the lines of this: such bulky frame must-"

*Grab!*

"Don't… touch anything without permission, please." Subaru warned as he stopped Julius's arm, the hero grabbing the knight's hand for a brief moment as the spider-sense went off.

"…Are these items all so dangerous we cannot inspect them?" Julius swallowed his words as he noticed the severity of Subaru's gaze.

"And you call me butterfingers? Psh…" The Avenger shook his head with hilarity as his mood returned to normal. "It's pretty simple: half of the crap here I don't even know WHAT they do. So Juli, let's just focus on what we DO know… Karen?"

"Immediately." Karen produced some holographic screens across herself, the items of power and trophies Julius had pointed to disappearing into hatches on the walls as another apparatus altogether spawned from beneath in the middle of the room. "Vibranium forge: Activate."

*ZNNNNNNNMMMMMM-!*

"THIS is a forge?! No matter how one looks at it, that is just… I ignore how to even describe it!" Julius spoke with astonishment as layered, hovering rings appeared before him.

It was a total of eight metallic circles of various sizes, some bigger than himself, other smaller, yet all stacked perfectly on top of one another. They seemed like wheels of some sort, all spinning, or rather, vibrating in place as another item floated inside of them.

"Currently, Karen and I were using this forge to repair one of Ultron's trophies: a hero's shield." Subaru pointed to the fractured, circular disk hovering between the rings of the forge; it was painted in red and blue colors, with a five-point star drawn on the center of it. "This forge works not with fire nor heat, but through supersonic beams that interact with Vibranium on the subatomic level. Impressive eh?"

"Because it was broken, I had to perform some calculations in order to nail down the precision required to fuse the pieces, so as to not compromise the tensile strength…" Karen affirmed whilst the rings around the shield began shining, gathering energy from the ship. "The beams produced by the rings cannot actually harm a man… But Vibranium and other metals would be torn to shreds by them in an instant. It'll come handy when dismantling the legionnaires."

"Fascinating… Truly fascinating; such a machine has to be the work of geniuses." Julius affirmed whilst lightly tapping the circles, realizing with impression he could not make them budge an inch even as they floated in air. "…Why a shield? You say it belongs to a hero?"

"See, this shield? You saw Captain Carter carrying a similar one, right?" The Avenger indicated with a smile drawn on his face, making Julius recall with impression. "Back in Ultron's universe, Captain America wielded this shield. And he died, fighting to the very end with it…"

"Is it supposed to represent something then? For you to almost venerate it with such respect…" Julius reformulated his question as Subaru's tone turned solemn.

"Like my mask or the spider on my chest and back- It's a symbol, yeah." Subaru explained with interest. "Or like the Dragon Sword, if we go by Lugunica's standards. I want people to look at these things, when they are in trouble, when they feel hopeless, when they are at their very worst and think… That it's going to be okay."

"As a knight of the Kingdom I'd approve of that message, however, if you asked the average citizen, some would… it really isn't appropriate for me to point this out, but Reinhard's blade has historical significance and connotations some would consider non-admirable. Detestable even." The knight lamented, much to Subaru's surprise. "Still to this day, many see it as a relic of the Kingdom's warmongery, much like with the title of Sword Saint."

"It's not a though all countries are without their own faults though… But yeah, I can see how it'd be difficult for the sword to be admired by all people." Subaru expressed with pity for Reinhard's position. "I guess Rein really has it rough, trying to appease everyone. But with us two around, he needn't do it all alone."

"…" Julius was taken aback in awe by Subaru's words, having not considered himself as someone in the leagues of him or the Sword Saint.

"Believe it or not, I do KINDA appreciate your input; however I'm not planning on armament or the like for the future, Julius. The thought of instruments of mass destruction getting built here just... I don't even want to think about it." The Avenger struggled with telling his ideal to the knight, brazing himself for conflict again. "But a shield… A shield protects; so does armor. Rather than making it so that people can kill each other, I want to be able to protect them from harm in the first place."

"…I can understand that Subaru, but… No, it's better left unsaid for now." Julius looked like he agreed for the most part with the Avenger, but still not without reservations of his own. "For the moment, I suppose Sir Marcos and Bordeaux-sama have to accept a deal in shields and defensive gear; it's far better than nothing at all, and clearly more that they can ask for after the disaster that was your arrival into the Throne Room."

"So you do understand now… Thanks Julius. I really appreciate that." Subaru nodded with satisfaction as the finest knight took his side on the deal at last.

"Then? Is this shield to remain a prototype of some sort, or…?" Julius pointed again at the shield, but Subaru quickly stopped him.

"A-Actually, I was planning on lending it to Garfiel for a while." The teenager added as he slowly lowered Julius's expectations.

"Emilia-sama's servant? The one that patrolled the city with us?"

"He'd rather be called bodyguard… but yes, that blonde kid." Subaru affirmed with a nod. "He had a pair of shields that kinda-sorta crumbled because- stuff…. Mostly my fault, I'll admit that. So until I can make a pair that actually fit him, I'll be lending him this one. Ready Karen?"

"On your command." Karen affirmed as her finger lied on top of the activation hologram.

"Three, two, one… NOW!" Subaru ordered ecstatically, and soon after, the rings began vibrating.

*BBBBBBBBBNNNNNNNNMMMM!*

*KLANG!*

"Amazing…" Julius suspired with astonishment; the broken pieces became one whole disk after a few seconds, as though the shield had repaired itself.

"Neat huh? For the moment, we are still figuring out how to craft more complex stuff, but we've got the welding nailed down to a T!" Subaru alluded as he then approached forge, grabbing the repaired shield and showing it off. "Here, something for your curious hands, should keep you occupied as I show you the rest of the stuff we were working on."

"More? This wasn't your only project?" Julius asked with shock. "Subaru, are you even sleeping?"

"About as much as you are; don't think I haven't seen you returning from the Castle until its near dawn!" Subaru shot back with frustration.

"And thanks to WHOSE knighting ceremony…" Julius grumbled in response.

"Whatever, this wasn't the only thing you are here for- Look at this box right here!"

"These are… Anastasia-sama's bracelet? Crusch-sama's as well! All of them!" Julius inspected the items with care, impressed by the astounding quality. Although they were rather sleek in comparison to before, their shape was unmistakable. It was uncanny how something so practical could go on to appear like fine jewelry after a few touches.

"We improved a bit on them with Vibranium recycled from the androids. Thanks to the crazy tech Ultron had lying around inside the legionnaires, we managed to add an extra power source in the form of Miniature Arc Reactors. See how they have little blue lights, like little Spirits dancing around? High-end stuff, all in all… We are still setting up an antenna on top of the ship though, for communication purposes, so they are offline right now-"

"…" Julius wasn't listening though, instead enthralled by the clear progress, LEAP in technology occurring before him. A month before, the thought of radio waves or electrically powered machinery were unthinkable to him, they did not exist in the first place. Now, he was witnessing the manufacturing of nuclear powered items and smith work based on atom fusion.

"I'm gonna present them to the Candidates as they knight me, and- Hey Juli? Hello~? You hearing me…? Rem, I think I broke him." Subaru murmured to the dazed maid. "Rem?"

"…S-Sorry, Subaru-kun. I was just… Astonished by it all, too." Rem shook her head, dismissing her awe with haste as Subaru spoke to her.

"Huh… Yeah, maybe I got too excited explaining it all. Sorry I confused you." Subaru apologized humbly.

"Hmnn, it is fine. To begin with, Rem wasn't confused, simply…" Rem whispered to the teenager's ear, making him blush a bit. "…Infatuated really; you are amazing Subaru-kun."

"Ehahahaha-eh-haha…" Subaru scratched his head nervously. "Y-You are great too, you know…"

"More than anything, Rem was impressed by how you've handled all of this; I cannot begin to fathom how any of this really works, Subaru-kun." Rem praised again whilst lightly tugging onto his arm. "How you seem so masterful with all of this technology…"

"Masterful? Believe me Rem; we've barely scratched the surface here. If anything, the Fabricator back in the Marveller is more of my thing. I can read that interface better than what Ultron used here." Subaru assured with some disdain for the holograms Karen was managing. "Half of everything the pretentious bastard wrote in his files was in binary. Seriously, what's the point of writing 'today, I will eliminate Subaru' in your journal in ones and zeroes?! You already perfectly understand English! Hell, even Japanese made more sense!"

"Subaru, what about the Fabricator?" Julius interrupted, making the teenager stumble.

"Uhhh- What about the Fabricator? It works, I'm good at it? What?" Subaru asked back in vexation.

"Have you been using it? You said you understood its 'interface'… Whatever that may be." The knight reiterated.

"Yeah, I've been using it; for a couple of days now. You know how we discussed improvements of the knights' equipment- I've been working on my official uniform with it!"

"You've been making your own uniform… For the past two days?"

"Yes! And let me tell you something, it looks fantastic, like you wouldn't believe-!"

"And you weren't about to tell me?!"

"A- wut? A-Are you angry-?"

"Considering I was at my wit's end trying to find a TAILOR still open for business, willing to make your damn uniform?! Yes, I'm angry!" Julius stated with fury, making the hero jump in surprise. "Do you not understand how much time you could have saved me by saying we could make it in the Fabricator right away?!"

"Okay… That one is on me- I did not consider your position as organizer of the ceremony… I'm sorry." Subaru nervously backed away a few steps from the infuriated knight. "L-Look on the bright side Juli! You know now! A-And if we make a uniform on the Fabricator, we could parade it as a prototype of an advanced knight suit during the party! Marcos would like that, eh?!"

"…Knowing you, you must have designed a monstrosity of a uniform, a bastardization of all regulations." Julius fired back with disillusion. "We are going to the Quinjet right away; you must show me immediately what you've been working on, if we have any hope of correcting it in time."

"I-It's 'technically' a Quinjet, but I actually like to call it the Marveller-" Subaru tried to correct the stressed knight, only to be yelled back at again.

"We are going to THE QUINJET! NOW!"

"…"

Thus, the two weeks since the battle passed in a flash, and the day of ceremonies arrived at last…

*CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!*

A crowd gathered steadily by the Market's biggest park, called along by the sound of bells belonging to the Market's standing Time Towers.

"What is going on…?" One befuddled woman asked.

"Now what?" A tired young man asked with worry

"I-Is it another evacuation?!"

Just before noon, as the crowd numbered in the several thousand and the bell's chimes came to a halt at last, the figure of Captain Marcos came into view before them. He was standing atop a wooden stage, surrounded by soldiers in a resting formation.

"Hey, isn't that…?" A cat demi-human male well into his twenties wondered in confusion.

"It's the Captain of the Royal Guard!" His friend amidst the crowd, a human of around the same age, pointed out.

"Why would the commander of the knights come out into public like this?"

"For what other reason?! We are being invaded again!"

"Don't say that-!"

"ATTENTION ALL!" Marcos shouted into the crowd, making the several people quiet down and stare back at him with fear and expectation. However, their fright died down as more people began walking into stage from behind him.

Following the knight came an escort of several soldiers, protecting the Council of Elders and the Royal Candidates themselves.

"Oi, I recognize those faces-!" A dog demi-human noticed with a shaky voice.

"That's Priscilla-sama!"

"Crusch-sama as well…"

"That half-elf is-!"

"Emilia-sama…!"

"Are those old men-?!"

"Yeah, I've seen one of them before! It's the Council of Elders!"

"What?! Why are such important people here?!"

"Is it an announcement about the Selection…?"

"If it were that way, why would it be necessary for all of them to be present…?"

"I dunno…"

"Perhaps it's about the invasion."

"To all present, citizens of the Dragon's Kingdom of Lugunica, merchants and noble visitors from abroad! I am Marcos Gildark, leader of the Imperial Knights, Captain of the Royal Guard!" Marcos announced with a stern tone and stoic face, establishing his strong presence. "Nearly two weeks ago to the date, as all of you may remember, Lugunica came face to face with an enemy from beyond our borders! From beyond all borders we previously understood!"

"What is he saying?"

"What everyone thought and couldn't say…"

"An invader from beyond the Great Waterfall-!"

"You don't think that 'Spider-guy' could be one as well?!"

"I-I don't think he would be… He beat that monster! And the Whale too!"

"But the Cocoon outside the city belongs to him… That's where the armors came from-!"

"This was not an enemy we could have stood against alone, not one any singular warrior could have triumphed against! During this invasion… It was made clear to us that our world, our four nations are no longer alone amidst the stars." Marcos's words became somber for a second before he recomposed himself, making the civilians under him pay all the more attention. "Times are changing, and in the coming days ahead, we must trust in the unity of our Kingdom ever more! For the sake of that lesson, that came about at a great cost of lives, to show our strength to the world, to demonstrate our endurance, how we have PREVAILED in the face of the impossible-! We, the Knights of the Kingdom, present today a reminder of our fallen warriors, before the eyes of the Council of Elders, the Royal Candidates and you… the citizens who trusted us with your very lives. Behold-!"

In one movement, Marcos leapt of the stage, unsheathed his blade and stabbed through the stone floor below him. Following his actions, many other knights too unsheathed and leapt of the stage, sticking their swords hard against the stone- and soon after, the earth began shaking.

*Rumble-rumble-rumble!*

*CRASH!*

"Woah-!" The civilians and merchants, as well as many minor nobles from outside the Capital, all mumbled in astonishment as a five-story tall monolith of pure black rock sprouted from the ground in front of them, almost obscuring the stage. Along the sides of the monolith were the swords Marcos and his knights had stabbed onto the ground, each one inscribed with the names of the soldiers that perished in battle along the edge of the blade.

It was a monument in remembrance of Ultron's victims during the event Lugunica has denominated 'The Red Night'.

"…How good must you be with earth magic to create a rock monolith like that?" Subaru wondered with astonishment in the distance, far away from the main stage, nearing the edge of the park.

"Captain Marcos has been rehearsing that spell for a week now, trying to perfect the shape of the statue." Julius responded whilst observing beside him.

"Really now?"

"Indeed. He said he owed a good dedicatory to his fallen men. They fought and gave their lives for Lugunica under his service, after all…"

It was scheduled to be a busy day handling all the ceremonies, and with the shortage of effectives, Subaru and Julius had been assigned to keep patrolling rather than participating right away.

At noon within the Capital, the Kingdom's high officials would present a commemorative monument for the soldiers that fell in the line of duty against Ultron, as well as hold a mass dedicated for the faithful to the Divine Dragon that passed on during the attack.

As the evening approaches, events would move to the castle, where an awards ceremony will be held in the eyes of Gusteko, Kararagi and Vollachia's official ambassadors. Here, before a crowd of nobility from the rest of the country, key figures in the slaying of the Sloth Sin Archbishop, the White Whale, the Great Rabbit and Ultron will receive their compensations and glory.

And to crown the events of the day, as the Time Towers signal for the midnight, Subaru's knighting ceremony would be held.

"Say, why can't we go on stage? I mean, Ana and Emilia-tan are there; so is just about every important person that was present during the Selection and the battle… Reinhard is up there with Felt too!" Subaru protested with boredom while scanning the crowd for trouble. "Ah, no, he's just keeping her from acting out in that dress…"

"Are you seeking celebration or recognition? Either way, it's rather uncouth of you." Julius reproached, making the hero roll his eyes for the hundredth time that day. "We shall meet them by the evening at the Castle, once the award ceremonies officially begin before the foreign ambassadors. Until then, be patient and keep patrolling… You never know when some fool will attempt a crime at such large gatherings-"

"Like this fool?!" The hero prompted as he shot a string at a man exiting the bulk of people.

*Thwip!*

"Uwaaaa-!" A short man, a dwarf with greying hair, groaned as a web ensnared him, sticking him to the floor. "L-Let go-!"

"Sure, I'll let go… Once you let go of the pouches you were stealing bud! You ain't sleek at all!" Spider-Man laughed as the man cried, letting go of the belongings of attendees he had stolen.

"…You could at least be silent when capturing a thief; you are taking the attention of everyone at the back." Julius face-palmed as the wall-crawler snickered, making some people from the public look at them with strangeness.

However, they weren't the only ones staring at the knight and hero.

"…" Emilia remained silent as she observed Subaru in the distance. It had been two weeks since they had seen each other, and yet, they couldn't meet until the evening ceremony began. To say she didn't feel somewhat lonely… would be a lie.

"Just a little while longer, Emilia-dono." Crusch by her side noticed the half-elf's thousand-yard stare, realizing who she was looking at.

"Crusch-san?" Emilia turned to her with a bit of surprise, feeling some embarrassment for being caught absent-minded in the middle of a ceremony.

"You wish to go greet him, don't you? In all honesty, so do I; however, we still have a duty as Candidates to the throne, and to the people before us." The Duchess reminded Emilia with a sagely voice. "After this funerary rite for our soldiers, we must greet the foreign ambassadors appropriately, and then, the lords from the further reaches of the country that weren't present during the invasion."

"Y-Yes, I know…" Emilia nodded with acknowledgement in a neutral tone, still with her head on the clouds.

"*Sigh*…" Crusch shook her head whilst sighing, worried for the girl. "Emilia-dono-"

"It's not as though I don't realize I'm being selfish, Crusch." Emilia stated, interrupting the Duchess. "I was simply… reminiscing a bit."

"Huh?" Crusch looked puzzled for a second as Emilia talked with some melancholy.

"I was wondering… How different do you think things would be? If Subaru and I hadn't gone our own ways, if he were my knight? Perhaps… Not as good as one might think." The half-elf lamented with frustration as her face became stern.

"…Although you would have potentially triumphed against Sloth, albeit with some losses… My men and I wouldn't be here today, we would have lost against the Whale. And then, there's the chance the warnings of Ultron's presence might have gone unheard." Crusch understood then precisely where Emilia was going with her words. "Things might not go as one plans, Emilia-dono… But this isn't necessarily a bad thing. In this case, it was certainly for the better of all that they didn't happened as pretended. Despite his criticisms that day, I cannot help but feel strangely grateful for what occurred at the beginning of the Selection… Pardon my thoughts however; I know how it might come across as-"

"Mnmn, don't worry; it doesn't bother me that you think that way, Crusch-san. It's just life… It doesn't always go your way. Subaru may not become my knight alone, but in turn, he shall become a knight for the sake of the whole Kingdom AND myself. Somehow, looking back on how we first met… I cannot help but be really, rea~lly proud of him! I'm rea~lly glad I met Subaru!" Emilia seemed delighted as she wondered on the coming night, on the moment she would get to stand face to face with her friend once more. "So I guess that, what I'm trying to say is-!"

"You cannot wait to see him, can't you? Back to square one then…" Crusch shook her head at the antics of the half-elf again, but this time, with a smile painted across her gorgeous face. However, for how infectious Emilia's pretty smile could be, the noblewoman knew better than to focus only on the optimism. "Nevertheless, please refrain from going out of your way to meet him until nightfall. As much as it may be a special day for him, it is also a day for mourning for many too."

"Ah…" Emilia's cheer was reigned by Crusch's words, the Duchess indicating to the newly-titled Margrave to the public beyond the monument, to the grieving faces of those familiar with the fallen in battle.

"Kuh…!"

"*Hic!*"

"So you are really gone, huh…?"

"I told you not to go that day-!"

"You were just a mercenary dammit, what could you have done…?!"

"…" As she paid proper attention to the crowd, she saw crying children, widows, brothers, sisters, fathers and mothers, all with a loved one inscribed in Marcos's monument. Families of the dead soldiers and knights… before her wants, Emilia felt the weight of what could one day be her subjects and fell silent with shame. How could she be acting so jovially when the people that depend on her were lamenting and sorrowful?

"…To see that sorrow in your citizens and endure it for their sake, that too is the duty of a ruler Emilia-dono." Crusch stated with a stoic demeanor, her previous smirk disappearing in an instant as her persona returned to airs of regality and composure, as though a military commander she were. "For how celebratory we may feel after such a victory, today is a day for those we lost as well. It is a reaffirmation of Lugunica's endurance, a reaffirmation to our vows of bettering the Kingdom, for their sake. As a noble you must realize this now as well, new as you may be."

"…Are you telling me to become stronger for my subjects?"

"I'm telling you to BE strong for them; that's our duty, and always will be."

"…Hmn…" Emilia clenched her fists as her gaze became stern and focused, nodding along to Crusch's word with renewed resolve.

"The hurdle of your position is unenviable, but honorable. So please, never forget it from now onwards… You fight and command for more than yourself and your friends, Emilia-dono."

With a somber reminder of her position as the people around them mourned, the Candidates spent the rest of the daylight hours busy with greetings and introductions to the foreign and local ambassadors, introducing them to the 'basics' behind the ceremonies and the past month's events.

And with the sun hiding in the western horizon, behind the looming Cocoon…

The noble gala of the Castle took place at last.

AUTHOR'S NOTES

*Phew!*

Been a while again!

Sorry people, but I'm really taking my time with these last few chapters, mostly because I've been drawing some illustrations for the next one, Chapter 39. (If you read on Wattpad or AO3, you can look forward to those)

I just consider the knighting ceremony in canon to be such a special little chapter in the novel that I really want to give it justice by illustrating it!

You'll notice I did some set-ups here and there for the next Arc already, so look forward to new characters (original, Re: Zero and Marvel inspired ones) being introduced soon!

One last thing before I go, for the FF readers: as of next chapter, I plan to stop posting in the main section and only update the Crossover section, so if you are following the fic, please go follow/fav that one, as it'll become the main one on the site and App.

Next Chapter, the knighting ceremony and a new uniform for Subaru!

See you!