…
…
…
I love you.
…
…
…
--
Subaru shot out of bed and clenched onto his chest, finally letting out a yell. The boy began to breathe heavily as he realized that he was no longer in any pain.
Finally calming down, Subaru glanced around to only find that he was back in his room. He also noticed two frightened little maids standing beside his bed.
"G-Guest-sama?" Flam started. "Are you feeling unwell? Do you need to see a healer?"
Both Grassis and Flam were shaking a little from the sudden act Subaru caused. From their point of view, the boy sprung out of bed screaming as if he was in pain and the two couldn't help but worry about his well-being.
"I'm fine, girls. I just had a bad dream. No need for any doctors or anything." Subaru waved his hands in front of himself as he quickly came up with an excuse in hopes to calm the little twins' worries.
Luckily, they seemed to have bought it as the two let out a sigh of relief in perfect synchronization. After all this time, he still can't understand how they can do that as if they rehearsed this beforehand.
"Please refrain from causing any sudden outbursts like that in the future, you scared my sister." This time around, the two girls said this at the same time as they gestured to the other in perfect unison as if there was a mirror between them. Yeah, Subaru had to agree with Grassis that one time, this is kinda creepy.
"R-Right, I'll be more careful…" Subaru nervously assured.
With their worries subsided, the twins bowed their heads and Flam started, "Please get ready, Master Reinhard informed us that you'll be joining Miss Felt's candidacy training."
With that said, the two left the room, leaving the boy alone in the room to get ready.
After finally being alone, Subaru let out a heavy sigh. "I died, didn't I…?" He dreaded.
Last thing he recalled was being in a tremendous amount of pain at Felix's place before losing consciousness. Well, he could've been cured and just transferred over here in his sleep. That would be the best case scenario.
Subaru got out of the bed and looked at his phone. He let out another sigh after finding out that the time was set back by a few days. "So I guess this is my new save point, huh?"
The boy started getting ready for the day as he reflected on everything that he knew at this point. There was no doubt in his mind that the shaman was the tailor. The reason behind this was still a mystery.
What he did know was that people would be in danger as long as he lived. He wasn't sure of the exact casualty count but he knew that he himself was one of them and possibly one of Roswaal's staff.
If things go exactly as they had been last time, Roswaal should be showing up. Giving them a heads up would probably do them good. But what if they start questioning him on how he learned of that information? He could possibly die if he tried to tell anyone about return by death and would have to do this all over again.
"All over again…" Subaru muttered. All of those fun times with everyone were just forgotten about, weren't they?
"Ugh… This isn't fair!" He yelled to himself.
"Guest-sama?! Is everything alright? Are you sure you don't need a healer?" Panicked questioning came from behind the door. No doubt it was from the two maids.
"Huh? N-No, I'm fine! I-I'm just having a hard time getting dressed." He lied. The boy didn't want to cause another scene like the last loop.
The twins let out a sigh. From behind the door, it was hard to tell if it was out of disappointment or relief. Regardless, the two little girls let themselves back in.
"In that case, we'll be more than happy to assist you in getting dressed." Flam explained as the two little maids began to inch closer and closer to Subaru.
The spiky haired boy panicked as he instinctively backed up. "I-It's fine, girls. I know how to dress myself."
"You do not need to feel embarrassed, guest-sama. We are maids so it is our duty to aid you in such matters."
"No really, you shouldn't. I'm pretty sure this would be some kind of breach in priv-"
Subaru's pleas were cut short as the two little girls practically pounced on the poor boy. They were very strong so his struggles weren't even noted by the two.
In short, Subaru's pride as a man had been reduced to nothing that day.
--
"You look really well in those clothes, friend." Reinhard commented on Subaru's appearance. He used the clothes the knight left in the wardrobe and it was nice to see him using them very stylishly.
"But at what cost…?" Subaru asked in a defeated tone. Despite him looking rather dashing, his face displayed one of despair as he slouched in his seat.
"Yeah, I gotta agree with big bro. He's starting to look like a noble snob now." Felt backed up.
That wasn't exactly what came to mind but at least Subaru had someone who was on his side. Kind of. Honestly, he wasn't sure but he'll take what he can get right now. "Thanks, lil' sis…"
Felt flinched at that, not expecting to be called by such a nickname. "Lil' sis?" She swayed her head around as she played that name in her mind. Soon enough, she nodded her with a big smile. "Yeah! Of course big bro. Why didn't you wear your other clothes if ya don't like those ones?"
"The thing is…" The boy grimaced. "I wasn't given a choice…"
Felt blinked a few times. "What are you talking about? Wasn't it the two squirts that-" She suddenly stopped herself as she finally pieced it together. In an act of betrayal, the crimson eyed girl broke down laughing. She was even leaning over the table to keep her balance from how out of control her laughter became.
Instantly taking back his usual posture, Subaru stood up from his chair. "Hey! There's nothing funny about this! I was unrightfully assaulted here!"
Felt could barely hold in her laughter. Despite that, the giggling girl answered, "Did you seriously get your ass kicked by those two? That's just way too funny!"
"We'll see who's laughing when it happens to you!"
"Pfft, like I'd ever let a couple of bean sprouts take me down." Felt was all smiles, occasionally chuckling.
"Miss Felt, please refrain from speaking in such a way about the staff." Reinhard scolded which was enough to ruin the mood for the feisty girl.
Felt glanced over at the twins who had that neutral look on their face. "Hey, are any of you two offended?"
The twins shook their heads in unison. "We are not in the least, Lady Felt. Thank you for your concern though."
With a big smug smirk, Felt turned back to Reinhard. "See? It's all good."
While Reinhard continued to lecture Felt over her manners, Subaru began to think about his next course of action. He knew Roswaal should be arriving shortly but he didn't plan to say anything about the curse. Subaru remembered how interrogative Reinhard can be and there's no doubt in his mind that the knight would question how he got that information and he can't exactly say he can return by death.
The best plan he had was to get cursed and have Felix discover it as fast as he can. He would play it out that everything fell on him by pure coincidence without the need of him to explain himself.
"Hello? Anyone in there?" Felt called out to Subaru as she punched his arm.
Subaru held his arm as Felt didn't even try holding back on her punch. Actually, it felt as if she was trying to punch him as hard as she could. "Ouch! You don't have to punch me like that!"
The blonde haired girl shrugged. "I dunno, that silly look on your face is telling me a different story."
"Hey! What part of my face screams 'punch me' to you?!"
The crimson eyed girl let out a little chuckle. "Cmon, don't take it too seriously, big bro. Now will ya hurry up and eat? I want to get these dumb lessons over with."
"Huh?" Subaru noticed that everyone had finished their food already and his plate was left completely untouched. "Was it really that long?!"
"Are you feeling unwell, friend?" Reinhard asked.
"I'm fine, Rein. Just spacing out a little. I'll finish this quickly." Subaru proceeded to chow down his food quickly. He already had his plan thought up so he figured that he should just act normal for the rest of the day. He'd enact his plan when the time was right.
Reinhard gave Subaru an investigative look for a moment before nodding. "Very well, don't hesitate to tell me if anything is ailing you."
Subaru nodded as he rushed eating. He was kinda relieved Reinhard wasn't as persistent this time. He guessed it had to do with not worrying the twins this time. Well, not enough to have them tell Reinhard that is.
--
Everything proceeded normally. Roswaal came by to give Subaru his reward and the boy asked to have the right to visit them anytime.
This time around, Subaru skipped out on the event where Felt gets hauled in by the twins. Instead, he left with Reinhard to see the tailor after the meeting. Luckily, Reinhard didn't seem suspicious about this. He just told Carol to inform Felt that they'll be back shortly.
Perhaps it was because they left earlier than usual but they didn't run in to that murder that took Reinhard's attention during the last two times. Honestly, everything was going smoothly for the usually unlucky boy that he couldn't help but feel uneasy.
"Friend, are you sure that you're feeling alright?" Reinhard started. "Ever since we headed out, you seem very tense."
Subaru tried to give the knight a reassuring thumbs up. "Yep! I'm perfectly alright here. I guess you can say that I'm just feeling a little on edge right now."
Reinhard gave the boy a very inquisitive look for a good moment. "You do have a point. The bowel hunter is still on the loose after all. Rest assured, as long as you're by my side, I will do everything within my power to ensure your safety."
"Thanks Rein, I feel safer already." Subaru gave the knight a reassuring thumbs up.
Eventually, Subaru and Reinhard arrived at the tailor shop without any complications. Before they entered inside, Subaru took a deep breath as he took a quick moment to go over his plan in his head.
He just had to go in, buy the materials, and shake Mendax's hand. He'll ask Reinhard to go see a healer later and then they should find the curse on him and everyone will know it was the tailor without him having to explain return by death.
"Subaru?" Reinhard called out, snapping Subaru out of his thoughts. "If you don't feel well, I'd be more than happy to have you visit a healer."
Normally, Subaru would've continued to assure the knight that he was fine. However, he realized that this could actually work in his favor in getting the ball rolling a lot sooner. "I guess seeing a healer wouldn't be too bad. Let me pick up the things I've been meaning to get here first."
That answer satisfied Reinhard immensely as he nodded. "Of course, friend. I appreciate your willingness to look out for your health."
"Right…" Subaru muttered shamefully considering how reluctant he'd been previously.
The two finally entered the shop. Mendax was inside and gave a friendly smile once they entered. "Welcome dear customers, is there anything I can help you with?" The shopkeeper welcomed them with his friendly demeanor.
Immediately following the script from last time, Subaru stated, "I already know what I need, gimme a moment."
"Oh? You sound well prepared. In that case, take all the time you need." Subaru immediately began to gather all the items he needed to make the doll. As he was doing that, Mendax glanced over to Reinhard as if he just noticed him for the first time. "A knight? Might I know your purpose for being here?"
"Don't pay me any mind. I'm just accompanying my friend." Reinhard informed the shopkeeper.
"I see… Feel free to tell me if anything catches your fancy."
As Subaru was just about finished gathering the items, he realized that he should ask for Mendax's name. He wasn't exactly sure what types of things the knights had to know before pursuing anyone here so he should be safe and ask for it. With Reinhard around, he should make sure he doesn't say any information that he shouldn't know about in this loop just to be safe.
"You know," Subaru started. "I never got your name."
The shopkeeper turned his attention back to Subaru and nodded. "Yes, I believe that I don't know your name as well."
"Right… I'm Natsuki Subaru." It was a quick introduction. A lot less wordy than his usual.
"I see, nice to meet you, dear customer."
…
Subaru sighed internally as a sense of dejavu washed over him. "So, what's your name?"
The shopkeeper perked their brow. "Hm? My name?"
The black haired boy nodded, getting annoyed of having to go through this again. "Yep, I'd like to know your name."
Just like last time, Mendax stroked his chin as if trying to remember what his name was. Seeing him like this was giving Subaru his doubts if he really was the shaman. After a moment, he finally answered. "My name is Mendax."
"Right, so I would like to get all this." Subaru set down the fabrics and stuffing he wanted to get on the counter.
The shopkeeper briefly looked over the items. "Hm, that should be two gold pieces, dear customer."
Subaru was already in the process of pulling that out. However, there was one problem. He forgot to ask Reinhard to lend him some money. The boy nervously chuckled. "Sure… Gimme a second."
Subaru quickly rushed over to Reinhard and whispered to him. "Hey Rein? Could you possibly lend me some money?"
"Don't worry friend, I'll be more than happy to make this purchase for you." Reinhard said with a smile.
Subaru nearly panicked as that could probably make things worse. He was pretty sure that Reinhard didn't have the ability to detect curses considering he made him see a healer for that. So if Reinhard got cursed, it would needlessly put him into danger.
"Hahah… I'd rather pay for my own things. I'm pretty sure it would make me look bad." Subaru tried to reason.
The red haired knight shook his head. "There's no need to worry about that. I won't think any less of you if I perform the exchange."
Subaru began to sweat. "E-Erm… I've never purchased anything here before so I want to get some learning experience!"
Much to his dismay, Reinhard looked at Subaru with a more serious look. "Friend, I know you mean well but I insist on conducting this exchange. I promise to explain my reasoning later."
The boy was at a loss. Whenever Reinhard insisted on anything, he was hardly unswayable. Subaru figured that he'd have to work this out another way. "Alright…" He reluctantly agreed.
Reinhard calmly approached the shopkeeper and placed the two gold onto the counter. "Excuse me, Mister Mendax. How long have you been a tailor here for?"
The shopkeeper lifted a brow by the question that felt as if it came from nowhere. He adjusted his glasses before answering, "Hm, what an interesting question… What brought this up?"
"This building had been vacant only until recently and I was wondering if you're its new inhabitant."
"Ah yes, that is true." Mendax nodded and stroked his chin, taking a second to think. "I've been a traveling merchant for quite some time and I settled here around a month ago."
Reinhard had a stern look on his face. "In that case, may I see this establishment's registration papers?"
Mendax looked to the knight puzzlingly for a moment before returning his smile. "Sure…"
The shopkeeper stepped off to the side to one of the cabinets holding several stacks of papers. After a short while, he took out a few papers and brought them back to Reinhard. "This should be it."
Reinhard looked at the papers and placed his hand down onto the sheet before returning his stern gaze back to Mendax. "These are fake. I'm afraid I'll have to take you to the guard station for some questioning."
The shopkeeper didn't waver his smile, he just went along with it and nodded. "Is that so? If I may ask, what makes you believe that these are fake?"
"The type of ink used for establishment registrations does not match the type of ink here. Now, come with me." Reinhard was very stern this whole time and it even gave shivers down Subaru's body.
The boy in question was just watching this whole exchange in disbelief. He had no idea what brought this up all of a sudden and he didn't know what to really think of it. It was like witnessing a serial killer getting arrested for tax fraud. The person that was most likely the shaman is getting interrogated for a completely different reason. What confused Subaru the most was how Reinhard suspected the tailor for anything. In Subaru's eyes, he shouldn't have had any reason to be suspicious of this guy.
Mendax obliged as he slowly walked around the counter and to Reinhard. "Understood. May I have your name at the very least?"
"I am Reinhard Van Astrea. I will be the one escorting you to the guard station." Reinhard answered without hesitation.
For perhaps the first time, the tailor had an upset look on his face. "You mean the sword saint? I wasn't expecting it to be that Astrea..."
"What do you mean by that?" Reinhard asked, paying close attention to Mendax's words.
The shopkeeper shook their head before smiling again. "Nothing."
After a short moment of silence, Reinhard began to escort Mendax out of the shop. The tailor in question was following him obediently, almost as if he understood very well that there was no way out of this and accepted that fact.
Reinhard spoke to Subaru right before he made his way out. "Friend, would you please return back to the manor? I'm afraid that this will require my attention for the time being."
"I don't mind coming with you, Rein. I'm sure I can help out in some way." Subaru pleaded. He was still bewildered over the sudden actions that took place and he still had a bad feeling about the shopkeeper. It wouldn't be that easy, right?
"That won't be necessary. Since you're not a knight, you wouldn't be allowed inside. Especially if questioning is taking place. I would greatly appreciate it if you returned to the manor and let Miss Felt know that our lesson plan will have to be postponed for now."
Subaru blinked a few times. He almost forgot that they left Felt on her own at this point. "Fine, just, please keep a close eye on him."
The shopkeeper who was waiting patiently up until now looked over to Subaru. "Hmm, have we met before? You sound like we've met before."
Subaru gulped. "Y-Yeah! Remember yesterday when you kicked me out?"
Mendax stared at Subaru for a moment before breaking eye contact. "Ah, so that's what this is about."
Subaru let out an internal sigh of relief. After thinking it over, he believed being near the tailor wasn't a good idea. Knowing that he might be the shaman really helped out with that feeling. "I-I'll be going now. I'll see you later, Rein."
--
Was that it?
Based on how easy that was, Subaru wasn't even sure if the tailor was the shaman anymore. Back with Elsa, her confrontation was lengthy to say the least.
By no means was Subaru disappointed. If it really is over, then good. The thing was, it all just felt very anticlimactic. That feeling just made him wary if this was all really over. In video games, this would be the time where the story makes you think it's over but it turns out the super evil boss was waiting just around the corner all along.
Subaru placed a hand over his head and let out a sigh. This was real life. He wasn't in some kind of anime. The real world was usually pretty dull to even pull something like that off.
"I guess I'll just wait for Rein to get back." Subaru concluded out loud as he started to approach the manor.
As Subaru entered, his neck nearly broke as a wild Felt seemingly dropped from the ceiling and drop kicked down on his head. The poor boy immediately slammed face first into the ground at the sudden ambush.
Despite him clearly being in pain, the inconsiderate girl began to kick his side. "Hey, get up. It wasn't that bad."
"Wasn't bad?!" Subaru immediately shot back up, practically proving Felt's claim right there and then. "You could've killed me! What were you even thinking?!"
"I was wondering where the hell you went for the past hour." The petite girl placed her hands on her hips and gave Subaru a suspicious stare. "You weren't trying to ditch me, were ya?"
"Ugh, I swear, every time I go out to do something, you always jump to that conclusion. You could always come with me if you get lonely that easily, you know." Subaru complained.
The girl's face instantly lit up and instantly punched the unsuspecting boy in the gut, causing him to slump over. "I-I never said I was lonely or anything! I'd just be pissed if you backed out on your promise!"
"Ugh… Yeah… Sure, tsundere…"
Felt blinked a few times. "Soon da-what? Wait! You're trying to make fun of me, aren't ya?!"
Despite all the pain he was in, he managed to give the fiery girl a smug smirk. This of course came with a cost as it enraged the shortie and began kicking the boy repeatedly.
"Get that stupid smile off your face, you damn masochist!"
"I-I'm not- Gah! Enjoying this you- Gah! Hotheaded sadist!" Subaru protested between the kicks.
It took awhile for the two to settle down. After finally getting their bearings, Subaru briefly let Felt in on what was going on.
"No lessons? Sweet!" Felt cheered happily.
"Heh, yeah… So everything I planned for today was promptly crammed into the gutter. Is there anything you wanted to do?" Subaru asked. He honestly had no clue what to really do as he already used up most of his brain power to conduct the 'catch the shaman red handed' plan and to be frank, he was too mentally exhausted to come up with anything else right now.
The golden haired girl thought for a moment. "Hmm… How about we-"
"And no, attempting to escape is not an option!" Subaru butted in, already anticipating that answer.
"I wasn't gonna suggest that! Not while those little devils are here!" Felt defended strongly.
"Little devils?" After taking a moment to piece together what she meant, Subaru suddenly smirked. "Oh? Did those 'bean sprouts' evolve into devils?~"
Felt's face became as red as her eyes as she was quick to respond. "T-That's not what I meant! They're just really strong for their size. Don't go trying to twist my words or anything!"
The black haired boy chuckled. "You got your butt kicked by a little girl~"
Felt didn't know where that came from but it enraged her all the same. "Grr! Do you really want to get your ass kicked aga- H-Hey! What the hell are you doing?!" The poor girl began trying to push Subaru's hand away as he just randomly began to pat her head.
"Don't worry about it, now we're both in the 'get our asses kicked by little girls' club." Subaru said rather proudly.
"Who the hell would want to join such a stupid club?! Now get your hand off of me or I'll reunite you with my teeth!" The feisty girl nearly hissed.
Remembering the pain of the last couple of times he got chomped, he instantly yanked his hand back. "Alright, alright. You don't have to bite me to prove your point."
Felt rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Good. I told ya to at least warn me, didn't I?"
"Hmm…" Subaru rubbed his chin. "So you're saying I can pat your head as much as I want if I tell you first?"
The crimson eyed girl momentarily looked dumbfounded. After realizing her mistake, her whole face reddened. "W-Wait! I don't mean like th-that! Permission! Yeah, you n-need permission first! That's right!" The poor girl sputtered her words as fast as she could in a panic.
Subaru took a moment to contemplate her words before shrugging. He might as well test this theory since he has nothing else planned for the time being. "In that case, can I pat your head, lil' sis?"
The still flustered girl nearly lost her balance before frantically waving her hands in front of herself. "W-What the hell?! Y-You can't just say a whole bunch of embarrassing stuff like that all of a sudden!"
Mmm, he could feel it now. He's just one step away from tearing down that wall. With a very calm expression, he started. "Ah, sorry. I guess you don't want me to pat your head." And with that, he went for the killing blow; "If you're not comfortable with it, then I won't ask to pat your head again."
"W-what?! N-No, I mean… Wait, you c-can't just…!" Felt couldn't come up with the words. It was as if she had finally snapped into a flustered mess. Finally having enough, she let out a loud, "Dammit!" And like that, she snatched Subaru's wrist and began dragging him away.
"Huh…?" Subaru began to feel guilty now. Maybe he went too hard on the poor girl. "Erm… Are you alrig-"
"SHUT UP!"
The boy flinched and did exactly what the clearly pissed off girl said. She eventually dragged him all the way to her room and slammed her door shut. Subaru braced himself for whatever physical torture awaited him.
But, it never came.
Instead, Felt was standing in front of him with her arms crossed as she avoided eye contact. She was blushing madly. "So? W-What are you waiting for?"
Now Subaru reached a new level of confusion. "Erm… Could you clarify maybe?"
Still not making eye contact, Felt answered, "Y-You wanted to pat my head so badly so hurry up. O-Oh! And don't make it weird either!"
"Wait, you're serious?"
"Grr…! Hurry up before I change my mind!"
Not wanting to test Felt's patience any longer, Subaru carefully placed his hand on top of her head. Feeling the girl's soft golden hair without any resistance this time around was pretty nerve wrecking.
"Is that alright?" Subaru asked as his nerves were getting the better of him. He had not once patted this girl's head without putting his fingers on the line so he was feeling a little on edge.
"Y-Yeah, it's fine…" Her words were barely audible. Felt continued to break eye contact, her cheeks as red as cherries.
Subaru had never seen her look so… Vulnerable? Cute? Honestly, this was a side of her that he never thought existed and upon seeing it, he had no idea how to describe this. It was as rare as finding a limited edition figurine on sale.
"Erm… Can I feel through your hair?" Subaru cautiously asked. After all, this was a very rare event and he didn't exactly want to trigger the doom ending by rushing things.
"I-I said don't make it weird!" Felt raised her voice which promptly shut Subaru down.
"R-Right… Sorry…" Subaru shook his head, getting his thoughts back on track as he put all his attention back to the head patting. He was just glad that he didn't get punched for saying that.
…
"Fine… Just be careful…"
Subaru blinked. "Huh?"
Felt kicked the clueless boy's shin. "I-I said it's fine! Just don't go tugging on it."
The kick didn't hurt anywhere near as much as her usual but it was enough to throw Subaru back on track. Without saying another word, he carefully sunk his fingers into her golden hair.
Very slowly, he ran them through, really feeling just how soft her hair was. Felt had messy hair so he paid extra attention not to tug at any folds or knots.
The girl who this hair belonged to had her eyes closed and her cheeks continued to be red. She was keeping still and simply let Subaru do his thing.
Subaru was starting to wonder if this super cute girl in front of him was actually Felt. However, he had his hand bitten enough times to know asking wasn't a smart idea.
The boy audibly gulped as he prepared for a compliment. "Erm… Felt…?"
Felt opened her eyes and glanced up to him, trying her best to not show too much of her boiling face. "Yeah?"
"I think you look very-"
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
The two nearly jumped and backed away from each other. "What is it?!" Felt yelled out, sounding pretty annoyed. Most likely from the moment being stolen from her.
The door opened revealing Carol. "Oh, you're both here. That saves me the trouble. The knights are requesting to see you both." Before the two could respond, Carol squinted her eyes as she inspected them more closely. "My apologies, I didn't mean to interrupt."
"N-Nothing happened!" Felt quickly spoke up. As much as the two wanted to hide it, their bright red faces were more than enough proof that something had indeed been interrupted.
The old maid merely chuckled. "Ah, to be young again… Just come down when you two settle down."
Before any more denials could take place, Carol left.
…
"Well…" Subaru started. "I guess we should get going."
Felt grit her teeth, staring daggers into empty
space. "Grrrr…!"
Subaru looked at the seething girl worryingly. "Lil' sis? Are you alri- Oomph!"
Without any warning, the short girl punched the boy's stomach with all her strength. "What the hell was that?!" She yelled. "Why didn't you say anything, you brain dead moron?!"
"Ugh…" The boy groaned. "W-What were you expecting me to say…?"
Felt shrugged. "I dunno, something that wouldn't give anyone the wrong idea."
"You sure did a great job at that, little miss appa cheeks."
After that cheeky response Felt swung her foot into Subaru's side. He was left on the ground in pain as the flustered hothead kicked him repeatedly.
--
"You two sure took your sweet time."
There sitting in wait was a familiar cat boy. He was impatiently tapping his foot on the ground as he waited for Subaru and Felt to come down. Subaru knew immediately this was Felix but decided to keep quiet since they technically never met yet.
Felt gave a suspicious look at the cat knight. "Who're you? Did Reinhard hire you too?" The last thing the girl wanted to hear was obtaining more hired help.
Much to her relief, he shook their head. "Nyot at all. I just happened to run into Reinhard and he wanted me to give you both a medical examination."
Felt rolled her eyes. "Don't need it. You also never answered my question."
Felix gave off a girly giggle. "Sorry, my name is Felix. I'm a knight. Also, due to certain circumstances, I'm afraid that I must insist on giving you both this examination. This is all for your health after all, nya~"
Circumstances? Subaru thought. Did they find out that the tailor was a shaman? "Say, you said due to circumstances that you need to do a checkup. What's the reason behind that?"
Felt nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'm not gonna do anything if I don't even know what it's for."
Felix shook his head. "That information must be withheld for nyow. I hope you both can understand this."
Not liking the answer, Felt crossed her arms and looked away. "And I hope that you understand that I'm not gonna do it then!"
The cat knight let out an exhausted sigh. "You're Lady Felt, right? I promise you that I'm not doing anything nefarious. I just want to make sure you're both healthy, nothing more."
"Then is it really that hard to tell me why the hell this is being brought up all of a sudden? I already told you I'm not doing something shady unless I know the reason for it."
Before Felix could counter that logic, Subaru spoke up. "If it's alright to ask, does it have anything to do with that tailor?"
Felix let out another exhausted sigh. "Fine, I'll tell you but you both need to understand that this information stays in this room, got it?"
Subaru nodded. "Got it! My lips are sealed."
Felt on the other hand rolled her eyes. "Not like I'll have the chance to go out much anyways."
Satisfied with the answers, Felix continued. "Yes, this is about that tailor. After some investigation, we were able to find out he is a shaman thanks to Reinhard's interrogation. We also have suspicion to believe that he has accomplices. Since his arrest was sudden, the knights are trying to keep silent about this to hopefully get the upper hand."
After the cat boy's explanation, he winked at the two. "Nyow I hope you both keep this a secret."
Subaru agreed. "You got it. I'm just happy this is all over."
Felt perked a brow. "What do ya mean, big bro? You sound like you knew about this already."
The black haired boy flinched. "I-I just felt suspicious around that guy. I'm just glad my intuition was right."
"Ahem, nyow that I told you, I hope you're both ready for your examination." Felix persisted.
Felt waved her hand dismissively. "Yeah yeah, let's just get this over with."
The examination was like the time when Felix checked up Subaru for his curse during the last loop. He used water magic to check for any abnormalities. Felt was just fine and Subaru didn't have a curse on him. Subaru was relieved, the idea of starting out cursed would've been a headache.
With the checkups finished, Felix started to get going. "Thank you for your cooperation. I'll be on my way nyow."
Felt was left a little surprised at how simple that was. But she let it go, a win is still a win after all. "Yeah, thanks for being the first knight that's not trying to abduct me."
"Wait Felix," Subaru stopped the cat knight. "I know that you're pretty busy and all but do you mind telling me when Reinhard will be back?"
"Dyont worry about it, Subaru-kun. Considering the circumstances, ensuring that both of you are healthy is more important. As for Reinhard, nyo idea." Felix finished his last point off with a shrug.
Subaru nodded. The boy still couldn't stop worrying about the whole situation. He knows that Reinhard should be fine considering how strong he is and apparently they discovered the tailor was a shaman without his help. Well, except for bringing the all seeing Reinhard on the scene.
"I guess I'll wait for him to come back then." Subaru assessed aloud.
With that, Felix took his leave. Still with nothing else planned, Subaru decided to take this time catching up on his friendship points with everyone. After all, now that everything has been reset, he's essentially a stranger.
Subaru started wandering the manor aimlessly after leaving Felt to her own devices. Eventually, he came across a very familiar scene of a certain little maid having a hard time reaching something from the top shelf in the kitchen.
"Well, gotta start somewhere."
--
Several hours had passed. Reinhard finally managed to show up right as the current inhabitants just finished eating dinner.
Subaru was both relieved and anxious to see the knight. He was glad that he seemed to be alright and eager to bombard him with questions. However, before he could start with his opener, Reinhard beat him to it.
"Do you have a moment, friend?"
"Yeah! I was actually just about to ask you the same thing."
Reinhard smiled. "What a pleasant coincidence. There is much to discuss so I suggest we settle down somewhere first."
After agreeing, the two settled themselves in a different room.
"I would first like to give you this." Reinhard handed Subaru a sack. The boy looked inside and was shocked to find all the material he picked out from the tailor.
"Woah! You didn't steal these, did you, Rein?"
The red haired knight had a worried look on his face. "I'm afraid to ask what brought you to that conclusion. Rest assured, this was purchased legally. After my duties, I took it upon myself to get the exact items you were seeking from proper shops."
"Oh yeah, that reminds me, whatever happened with the tailor?"
"I took him to the guard station and asked him several questions. After confirming my suspicions, I happened to run into a reputable healer and asked them to check on both you and Miss Felt while I sought for your requested materials. I trust that they treated you well?"
Subaru nodded. "Yeah, Felix was a lot kinder this time around."
The knight lifted a brow curiously. "Oh? Have you two met already?"
Subaru nearly panicked. Luckily, he thought of something immediately. "W-Well yeah! I guess we kinda first met when he healed me from the assassin."
Reinhard gave an understanding nod. "Ah yes, I suppose that is true."
Subaru sighed internally. One thing he noticed was how Reinhard was avoiding to inform him about the shaman. Luckily, he managed to squeeze that out from Felix so he had a viable reason to bring it up now.
"Felix said that the tailor was a shaman. How did you guys come up with that?"
"Felix informed you about that? Hmm, I was hoping to withhold that information for the time being."
Subaru chuckled nervously. "H-Hahah… Sorry about that. I guess I got really curious."
"Well, since you know this much already, keeping it hidden any longer would be meaningless. After questioning his reasons for the falsified documents, he told many lies. I wasn't expecting him to be a shaman at first but after several hours, he eventually slipped up and revealed himself to be one."
Ah, so he was crushed by the pressure, Subaru assumed. "What gave it away?"
"By the time we informed him that he'd be paying a fine, he happily agreed and shook my hand. That's when I knew he attempted to curse me."
Subaru's eyes widened. Reinhard can also detect curses being put on himself? That would've been helpful to know sooner! "H-Hey wait! You did get that curse off of yourself, didn't you?!"
"Not to worry, friend. I have a divine protection that makes it impossible for me to get cursed. I appreciate your worry though."
Subaru stared dumbfounded at the knight. Immune too? Was there anything this guy couldn't do? He wondered. "Say Rein. You wouldn't happen to have some kind of ability that could make me have something like that, would you?"
Much to the boy's misfortune, the red haired knight shook his head. "My apologies, friend. I'm afraid such a divine protection doesn't exist."
Of course there wouldn't. The world just figured that Reinhard should have all the abilities in the world because why fucking not?
Subaru let out an exhausted sigh at the realization that he really was useless. "I guess it really is over, isn't it?"
"It's all thanks to you, friend."
"Eh…?" The boy gave Reinhard another dumbfounded expression. "Hold up, you don't need to be modest or anything. You did all the work of finding him out."
"Not at all. You were also suspicious of the shopkeeper and you did the right thing by having a knight accompany you. If it weren't for that, he never would've been apprehended."
"Wait, how did you know I was suspicious of him?"
"You were acting very strangely this morning and you seemed to get more tense when we entered the shop. I feared that you were going to get scammed so I took it upon myself to ensure such an event never took place."
…
Oh.
So that's what happened.
Subaru inadvertently got the shaman arrested because once again, Reinhard had a BS power that makes him pick up on social cues better or something and they were interpreted the wrong way.
"Regardless friend, I'm glad you're alright. After finding out he was a shaman, I was greatly worried for both yours and Miss Felt's well being."
"Y-Yeah, I appreciate it Rein…" Subaru was still bummed out how useless he felt. Overall, it just felt like he got someone else to fix his own problems. First Reinhard solved the problem with Elsa and now he solved the problem with the Shaman.
He was the one summoned to this world. Where was his spotlight? Was he ever going to have the chance to shine?
"Is something troubling you?"
"Ah, I'm fine, just thinking."
--
?? ago…
--
Today was a day like any other inside the tailor shop. Nothing eventful had occurred for Mendax, the shop owner, for quite some time and overall, it's been quite relaxing.
As Mendax began to check up on his supplies, a customer made their way in. Instinctively, the tailor immediately greeted them. "Hello sir, is there anything I can help you with?"
The person before the tailor was a tall man. He was dressed in a purple attire and wore a matching top hat. The only other notable thing about him was the white face paint he wore.
"Why yes, I was wondering if you happened to be the owner of this fine establishment."
Mendax nodded. "Yes, that would be correct."
The man in the face paint smiled after being informed of this. "Excellent. I was hoping to propose to you a business ooooprtunity~"
"I appreciate the offer but I'm afraid that I'm not accepting any third party contracts at the moment."
The white face customer maintained his smile just as Mendax was. "That's too bad, and here I was hoping to reward you haaaandsomely~"
Before Mendax could follow up, the man continued, "By the way, how long have you owned this establishment for?"
"I'd say for about a week. I just settled down from a trip not too long ago."
"Is that so? I happen to know the head that deals with business licensing for Lugnica. I do hope you didn't have any trouble considering how many people are establishing businesses lately."
"Not at all, I guess I happened to be lucky."
Roswaal's smile suddenly shifted to more of a mischievous one before continuing. "I also happen to know that this building we're in is supposed to be vacant."
Mendax lifted a brow. "Is that so? They must've forgotten to fix that then."
Roswaal nodded. "Yes, I suuuuppose~ so. You mentioned that you settled down here recently after a trip. May I inquire where you've visited?"
"Of course, I did some trading in the west and stopped when I came here."
"Veeery~ interesting. I have one more question then. Are you associated with a shaman?"
…
For the first time during this conversation, Mendax hesitated. After an eerie moment of silence, the tailor finally spoke up.
"That's quite the accusation there, dear customer. What could have possibly brought that to your mind?"
"Just a rumor I recently heard. Nothing to be alarmed of."
"Ah, rumors you say? Who could come up with such a far fetched theory?"
Roswaal clapped his hands together. "Well it certainly has been fun speaking with you! Unfortunately I'm quite the buuuusy individual so I must be on my way."
As the white faced man started to make his way out, Mendax panicked and reached his hand out to him.
"Wait now, I would like to know who's spreading these rumors."
The man stopped and turned to the suddenly desperate tailor. "It's juuuust~ a rumor. Why would you be so eager to know the source of such a silly thing?"
A little flustered, Mendax frantically collected himself. "I erm… I just don't want to lose business from such a lie."
"Oh really now? You look quite desperate right now. If I didn't know any better, I'd have to guess you're hiiiiding~ something."
Mendax flinched at those words. After another moment of collecting himself, he took a deep breath. He knew by now that this man already knew of his identity based on how he was cleverly speaking.
Just to be safe that anyone was listening in, he approached cautiously.
"You said you wanted to do business earlier. I just remember that I had a little free time under my belt."
Delighted by this answer, the white faced man instantly dropped his intimidating stare. "My, what's spleeeendid news!"
The man leaned over the counter before briefing him. "There's an individual who will happen to enjoy your shop quite a bit. What I simply want from you is to give them a 'warm' welcome."
Mendax instantly understood what he was implying. Going along with this, the tailor followed up. "I see, who may this individual you speak of be?"
"They're affiliated with house Astrea. You'll know when you see them. I doubt you'll miiiiss~ them."
"Astrea?" Mendax squinted after hearing that name. He knew this wasn't good. "I'm not sure I could handle such a request."
"Oh? If it's too much for you, then I guess it caaan't~ be helped."
Seemingly giving up easily, the white faced man already started to make his way to the door. "I hope your conversation wiiiith your friend goes well. It would be a shame if you were interrupted."
The tailor's eyes widened. Does he really know about that? No, he can't risk it. "Wait, you said just a warm welcome, right?"
The man stopped right by the door before glancing back at Mendax. That mischievous smile returned to his lips after being called to. "That is correct."
"I suppose I can make it happen then. Where can I find you after it's done?"
"Perfect. I'll be in the western part of the slums in five days. We can fiiiinish~ things there."
With that, the man finally left.
After his departure, the tailor wore a grin expression across his usual smiling face. How could he have known so much, he thought. He knew that he wasn't careless in his actions. Everything was well coordinated. Was there a mole? Actually, that was the most logical explanation. Unless there was some magical way to gather his whereabouts, that was the only way.
Mendax let out a heavy sigh.
"Mother will not like this…"