This was all wrong.
Did they make a mistake in their planning? Or was it arrogant of them to even try and defeat the white whale. Crusch Karsten didn't know.
She knew it would be difficult, she knew it would be dangerous. Despite that, she had still underestimated the beast. A costly miscalculation.
Her soldiers had been wiped out. How many of them had been killed? And how many more of them had been erased, unable to even have dignity in death? She didn't know.
The whale had multiplied into three, and her forces were scattered. Unable to communicate, and unable to organize, they had been wholly routed by the wicked mabeast.
And then things went from bad to worse. As she and felix escaped the animal, they were faced with another threat, this time of a more human variety.
The short, tan fellow had introduced himself as Lye Batenkaitos, but Crusch remembered him by his title: The Sin Archbishop of Gluttony.
He didn't seem like a threat. He didn't seem dangerous. This was Crusch's second miscalculation. She had nearly been annihilated. She should be dead.
It was only thanks to Felix, who had intercepted an attack directed at her, that she had managed to escape unscathed.
Now she was riding on her ground dragon, Gia. She held onto both the reigns and the unconscious Felix as she rode away from the carnage she had brought upon herself.
/ Of everyone who came, I'm the one who least deserves to live. / She thought to herself.
Crusch looked at the map she kept in her satchel. She needed to get to a powerful healer. There was only one person she thought might be able to help her. The court magician of the Kingdom of Lugunica, Roswaal L. Mathers.
"Arlem..." She read out the name of her destination.
Crusch flicked the reigns of the dragon to go faster. Time was of the essence.
* Scene Break *
They made good time on their way back. It had them over two weeks to get to Banan, but it took them just ten days to get back to the Mathers domain. They didn't stop for anything, travelling from dusk to dawn everyday.
They decided to drop Meili off in the capital, which was on the way. Halibel left them, saying he would find Meili's sister to drop her off. He would join them at the mansion after he had done that.
Subaru didn't think it wise to go on without Halibel, but he didn't say it. He could tell Rem was anxious to go check on her sister.
Finally, Subaru and Rem were nearly at the mansion.
"Rem, let's not tell your sister about the baby. I don't want to distract us from dealing with Roswaal." Subaru said.
Rem nodded. "That's fine." She said simply.
Rem looked preoccupied, hence her curt answer. Subaru figured she was worried about her sister.
"Are you picking anything up from your synesthesia?" He asked her.
Rem shook her head. "Nothing unusual."
"No news is good news right?" Subaru gave her an expression from his world.
"Yes." Rem was nervously scratching her palm. She didn't seem very convinced.
Subaru steeled himself. / Ram... Emilia... Just wait for us. / He slapped the reigns of the dragon carriage, picking up the pace for the final stretch.
The mansion was coming into view now. It was quiet and calm, nothing seemed out of place.
They got out of the carriage, and made there way to the massive doors of the main entrance.
Subaru knocked loudly.
A minute passed. "Ram!" He called out. He was getting a little anxious.
The door creaked open, and a pink haired maid peered her head out. Ram was half hiding behind the door, only her face was showing.
"Rem..." Ram's eyes widened. "I thought I told you not to come."
"How is Rem supposed to do that? If sister is in trouble, then of course Rem is going to come." Rem responded.
Ram let out a sigh. "Well, as you can see, I'm fine." Ram paused. "You should leave."
She tried to quickly shut them out, but Subaru stuck his foot in the door.
"What's going on Ram? We come home after two months and you're not happy to see us? That's too heartless." Subaru called her out.
"My instruction to you was clear. You shouldn't have come back." Ram was a little annoyed. "So kindly go away!"
Ram pushed the door harder, squeezing it against Subaru's foot.
"Owwww." Subaru let out a pained yelp. "Can you not?"
"Sister is acting suspicious." Rem said seriously. "Please let us in."
Ram stared at her sister.
"We're not leaving until you do." Rem finished.
Ram let out a sigh, she seemed to have resigned herself. She opened the door to them, revealing the rest of her body.
Before they even went in, Subaru and Rem noticed something odd.
On Ram's chest, between her collarbones, there was a conspicuous tattoo. It looked like a wheel, with odd runes written around it.
"Sister, what is that." Rem pointed out the tattoo.
Ram rubbed a hand against her forehead. "Just come in, we'll catch up over tea."
They followed Ram to the dining room where Subaru had been employed on his first day in the mansion. / It feels good to be back. / Subaru thought.
"Emilia-sama!" Ram shouted out Emilia's name.
Rem and Subaru heard footsteps approaching, and Emilia appeared. On her chest there was a tattoo identical to Ram's.
"Subaru! Rem!" Emilia gave them each a hug. "It's good to see you again!"
"I missed you Emilia-chan." Subaru said.
Emilia fidgeted a bit with her hair. "The mansion is very quiet without you two."
Subaru grinned. "I do tend to light up the room." He said cockily.
Emilia laughed a little, but there was a sad expression on her face. Subaru could tell something was wrong.
Ram came out from the kitchen, and the four of them sat at the table, with Ram serving them tea.
"Tell Rem what happened." Rem's tone was deadly serious.
Ram let out a sigh.
"When I wrote to you, Roswaal-sama was going off the rails." She began. "He was clearly unwell. That tome of his was causing problems for him psychologically. I knew I had to get him away from it."
Ram continued her explanation. "I had a plan to take it from his study, but it seems he predicted I would do that. About a week ago, I tried to sneak into his office, in the dead of night, to destroy that damn book." There was venom in Ram's voice, clearly she had a hatred for this book.
Subaru wanted to ask her what the book was exactly, but held back from questioning her. He would let Ram finish her story.
"He caught me red-handed. That's when I got this thing." She rubbed a finger against her tattoo. "He held me down and seared it into me."
Violent anger was visible on Rem's face. "What is it?"
"...It's a curse mark." Ram answered slowly. "If I leave this property it'll activate, and I'll die."
Rem was clenching her fist in rage. This was a disgusting piece of magic, to be used on slaves and prisoners. Not something her sister should ever be subject to.
/ That bastard. / She thought to herself.
Ram continued her story.
"It seems he put one on Miss Emilia too." Emilia's eyes were downcast as Ram spoke. "I couldn't do anything to stop him... He was too strong." Ram said.
Subaru felt his blood boil. It was obvious now: Roswaal was a villain. He had always found the margrave to be unsettling, this just confirmed his suspicions.
"He left after that. He hasn't come back to the mansion at all." Ram said.
Rem had a slight look of panic. "Sister, your mana... How are you-"
"It seems Roswaal thought of that too. He infused it with quite a bit of mana. Enough to keep me alive for at least another month." Ram explained how Roswaal had foreseen the problems with Ram's mana deficiency.
"I see..." Rem said.
Subaru spoke up. "Two things." He held up his index and middle fingers.
"Where is Roswaal now?" Subaru asked the pink haired maid.
"I don't know. He didn't say anything before he left." Ram responded.
"Tchh." This was frustrating, but Subaru had expected that kind of answer.
"Okay." He put down his middle finger.
"My second question: What is this book?" He asked the question Ram seemed to be avoiding.
Ram was silent.
Despite everything that happened to her, Ram was still loyal to Roswaal. If she told Subaru now, there was good chance Subaru would go kill the margrave.
"Ram, please..." Rem eyes were begging her sister. "We need to know what we're dealing with. If we understand him better then we can-".
"Then we can what?" Ram interrupted her. "Trap him? Kill him? I know what you and Subaru will do to him." Ram's expression was pained. It reminded Subaru of when they had been killed by Puck.
Ram understood how powerful Subaru was with his return by death. She didn't want them to do anything to Roswaal.
"Why did you come here!? I told you to stay in Kararagi!" She was shouting now.
Rem was taken aback. Her sister, who always had such poise, was raising her voice, pleading them not to act.
Subaru stood up. He was a bit pissed off. "Tell us Ram. This isn't all about you." He pointed to Emilia's tattoo. "He was willing to hurt you. He was willing to hurt Emilia. I don't doubt he'll hurt others too."
Ram didn't have a response.
"I know you care about him, but don't let your stupid crush blind you to reality! It's obvious he's up to no good, we can't let him-"
"Stupid crush?" Ram's tone was ice cold, and her eyes hardened at Subaru. "What do you know, Barusu? Explain to me what the hell you actually know about me, or about Roswaal!"
"I know he can't be trusted-"
"Just shut up!" Ram's glare was deadly. "Your entitlement is disgusting. You don't know a damn thing, so don't pretend you do!"
"Disgusting huh? If trying to do the right thing is disgusting, then I don't know what that makes you." Subaru was seriously pissed off.
/ Just stop it Ram. Your selfishness going is to get people killed. / Subaru said to himself.
Ram shot up from her chair. "The right thing? Don't make me laugh. The right thing was for you to stay in Kararagi, and to keep my sister out of harms way! Don't try and lecture me about the right thing Barusu - you confuse your own ambitions with a sense of righteousness." She spat those words out, laced with spite. "Subaru Natsuki, always wanting to play the hero. Well it's time for you to stop acting. Ram knows how pathetic you are in fact."
"What!?" Subaru was angry. "Play the hero? I'm just trying to keep everything in order, to help you and Emilia."
"Well no one asked you to!" Ram was angry too.
"Stop it."
Ram and Subaru turned to Rem.
"Just stop it! We shouldn't be fighting." It hurt her to see the two people she cared most about at each others throats.
Subaru and Ram became quiet.
"I agree." Emilia chimed in. "We can't start arguing, we won't get anywhere."
Subaru could see Ram giving him a dirty look.
/ Stop looking so damn smug. / It infuriated Subaru.
He pulled a face, baring his teeth at her.
"Rem can you remind your sister that the world doesn't revolve around her?" Deep down Subaru knew it was time to stop this, but his pride wouldn't let him.
Rem stayed silent.
"Be quiet." Ram said sharply.
"Oooooo scary, are you on your period?"
That remark crossed the line. Ram slapped him, and the crisp sound of skin hitting skin rang out.
"Fuck off. Nobody even wants you here." Ram moved to leave the room after saying that.
"Yeah walk away." Subaru said to her as she left. "Never mind the blood on your hands."
Subaru turned to Rem, who had the most shocked look on her face.
"What?" He asked her.
Rem couldn't believe what she was seeing. Her Subaru, who was always kind, was acting like a...
/ You're being a prick Subaru. /
Rem shook her head at him. She got up and jogged to go follow her sister.
Subaru turned to Emilia, who had a hesistant look. If she was honest, Emilia agreed with Subaru on this matter, especially after what Roswaal had done to her. Still, the way he had gone about it left a bad taste in her mouth.
Under his anger, Subaru felt a pang of sadness. He could see that Emilia was disappointed with him. The half-elf got up and went to Rem and Ram.
Subaru was alone in the room now. He was still fuming. He left the dining room.
Subaru started pacing around the mansion, brooding over his anger.
/ Quit being so hard-headed Ram. Can't you see Roswaal is a bad dude? /
Subaru bit on the inside of his lip. He realized he couldn't afford to ruin his relationship with Ram. Not with Rem being pregnant.
/ Always the freaking in-laws! / He exclaimed internally.
The sun was setting now, and Subaru looked out the window at the landscape around him. The garden of the manor was well-kept, and it was pretty in the soft light of the evening.
Subaru had spent a similar amout of time in both Banan and the mansion, but he didn't know which he prefered. Kararagi was quaint and the food was better, but Banan itself was quite isolated being in the middle of the desert.
In comparison, Lugunica was much more grand. From the mansion, you could easily get to the capital, aswell as a number of smaller cities, so there was more to do.
As he pondered this, Subaru just continued to walk absent-mindidly around the mansion. By now, his emotions had stilled.
/ I should probably go apologize. I know I'm right on this, but I need Ram's cooperation - she knows Roswaal the best of anyone. / He reckoned.
Subaru made a one-eighty, and started walking towards the common room in the east wing. That common room functioned as a break room for the maids when he was a butler, so he figured they might be there.
He got to a long corridor, which ran the whole length of the east wing. He made it about halfway down when he noticed someone was turned the corner at the end of the hall. It didn't look like any of the girls...
Subaru squinted his eyes. It was a tall figure, dressed in purple.
/ Is that Roswaal? / He realized who he was looking at.
It was Roswaal.
From the distance, Subaru could make out a twisted smile on the clown's face.
/ What the hell? /
Subaru turned around and started walking away.
One step. Two steps. Three steps.
Subaru looked over his shoulder. Roswaal was walking towards him briskly.
Subaru broke out into a run.
He rounded a corner, and went down a flight of stairs. He could hear the clanging of dress shoes against the stone stairs as Roswaal chased him.
/ Crap! This is bad. / Subaru remembered that Roswaal might know about return by death.
He reached into the inside pocket of his kimono, and pulled out a kunai that Halibel had gifted him. This blade wasn't for Roswaal though.
/ I can't afford to let him catch me! / Subaru stared at the knife in his hand.
/ I need to find the others. / He ran faster.
For a second time, Subaru looked over his shoulder. He got a jumpscare.
Roswaal looked absolutely terrifying. His irises had gone a blood-red color, and he was grinning madly. He was smiling so hard that his whole face had contorted into a disgusting visage. Subaru could also see the shiny red blood that coated Roswaal's hands. This wasn't the normal Roswaal. This Roswaal was demented.
Subaru ran for his life.
He could feel that Roswaal was closing the distance, little by little the space between them was decreasing.
He looked at one of the doors further down the hall. It looked like any other door, but somehow Subaru could tell...
/ The forbidden library! /
Subaru rushed to the door just as Roswaal was closing in on him. This had to work.
He grabbed the handle and forcefully swung the door open. He got inside, and saw Roswaal standing just outside as he slammed the door in his face.
"Gahh-" Subaru had ran so hard he thought he was going to puke. He leaned forward, placing his hands on his knees. His vision was pulsing from his pounding heartbeat. He stared down at the checkerboard floor of the library for a bit, catching his breath.
The first thing he noticed was the smell. The library smelt like sulphur and rotting meat. Subaru straightened himself out and took notice of his surroundings.
It was dark in the library, the luminite crystals that usually lit up the room were only shining dimly. Subaru looked at the stool in front of him. Subaru realized that Beatrice was missing. There was only an empty stool, with a blank book open on it, as proof of her existence.
"What's happening? This must also be Roswaal's doing..." He said to himself.
Suddenly, a thought slammed into Subaru. / Rem, the others... I need to get to them! /
Subaru turned to see the door to the library. He put his hand on the doorknob, but he froze up. He couldn't open it.
Something was stopping him. Not in the physical sense, but mentally.
The image of that clown flashed through Subaru's mind.
/ If I leave this room, I will die. / Subaru was certain of this.
He tried to gather his courage. He thought about Emilia, about Ram, about Rem.
/ Why do I have to die? / Subaru could feel his heartbeat quicken as fear overcame him. / I don't want to die. Why do I have to play this messed up game of cat and mouse! I don't want to die!/
He knew what would happen if he didn't go, but the human instinct of self-preservation wouldn't let him open the door.
Hot tears fell down his cheeks, as he slammed the side of his fist into the door.
"I don't wanna die... Dammit!"
He thought about the promise Rem had made to him when they had first met. He remembered her words clearly.
"Subaru-kun. This is Rem's promise okay. Rem promises she is not going to let you die. No matter what." Her voice echoed in his mind.
/ How naive... / Subaru thought. / That was before Betelgeuse, before Tia, before all of this shit started happening. /
/ Am I cursed to get into these situations? / He questioned. / Is that why I was brought to this world? To suffer? /
He thought about the baby. Maybe that would give him the motivation he lacked.
He tried to open the door again, but failed. He couldn't surmount the fear in his heart.
It was one thing to die in the moment, but walking into it yourself... That actually took balls. Subaru cursed his cowardly nature.
"Ram was right, wasn't she. I am pathetic." he chuckled faintly as he spoke to himself.
It had been at least twenty minutes, and Subaru hadn't moved from the door. Now, he pulled himself away from it.
The smell had been bothering him this whole time. He felt a tug of curiosity, and walked to the back of the library.
The smell got stronger as he walked across the rows of bookshelves.
Then he saw a flash of yellow on the floor.
/ What is that? /
Subaru walked down the aisle, and approached the thing.
He couldn't determine what it was. It yellow and pink. The yellow was...
/ Is that hair? /
He had a bad feeling as he got close. The smell was becoming more intense.
/ No way... A body? /
It was a skinned body. Subaru could see the anatomy of this person, who had had all her skin removed. Hesitantly, he reached down to flip the body. He might know this person.
He put a hand on the corpse. It was cold, stiff, and sticky. Subaru felt a strong sense of revulsion.
He rolled the body over, to see the face. He recognized the large, sharp teeth, that were now fully exposed with the cheeks missing.
/ It's Frederica. / Subaru had only briefly met the maid, but it seems she had met her end.
The white's of her eyes had turned grey. Patches of mold has started to form over the congealed layer of dried blood that covered her. They were the source of the putrid odour.
Subaru knew he should be scared. Logically, this was a terrifying sight. Yet, this first hand witnessing of death seemed to give him the courage to stand up.
/ I'm sorry Frederica. I couldn't make it in time. Rem, Ram, Emilia - I will save them in your name. / Subaru marched to the door.
His reality had become surreal. The emotions that had been dragging him down seemed to have melted off him, and he could hear white noise ringing in his head.
All that was left was a mission. He would not let this happen again. If he died, so be it.
Subaru's psyche was dissociating from the events happening around him. His face was completely blank.
It was just another chip away at his humanity, and at his sanity.
He opened the door smoothly, no longer afraid. He jogged mechanically towards the dining room where they had split up. The whole mansion was quiet. Horror started to creep up on Subaru. Behind any of these doors, Roswaal could be waiting for him. He was like the child snatcher from that old creepy, german fairytale.
He got to the dining room, and saw it was trashed. The chairs had been flung all over the place, and there was a trail of blood that led to the kitchen. Subaru followed it.
He entered the kitchen, where the lights were off. It took a second for his eyes to adjust to the darkness.
Subaru froze.
"..."
Blank.
"..."
He slowly began to understand the image in front of him.
It was Rem, and Ram, and Emilia. They were... They were hung up on the wall of the kitchen, a few feet above the floor. They had been crucified.
Kitchen knives and other sharp objects pinned their bodies to the wall.
Emilia and Ram were bad enough, but Rem...
Rem!
Subaru ran up to her.
"Rem! Rem! Say something! Please! Rem!" He gently patted the girls face. No response.
"Huh? What is this?" Subaru could feel his shoes getting wet. A red liquid was oozing out of Rem and onto the floor. It was blood.
He hadn't registered it, but Rem had been disembowled. Her abdomen was bloody, mangled mess.
"Rem. Rem. Wake up! Please! You have to wake up right now!" Subaru cried into her.
He thought he had prepared himself. He thought he couldn't feel anymore. He thought the pain was over, that he could ignore it. He was wrong. "REM!" He shook the girl, but she was already long gone.
"I had to get everyone." A squeaky voice called out behind him. "Even the one inside her."
Subaru turned to face the attacker. It was Roswaal, but the voice did not match Roswaal's voice. Roswaal's red eyes had a violent aura.
"Roswaal?" He said meekly. "Why?" Tears poured out of his eyes. He wasn't even angry. Shock and grief and sadness had shattered his ego. He didn't have the capacity to be angry now.
Roswaal snickered. "Not Roswaal. He's off taking a little break at the sanctuary."
Roswaal's body started to bubble and morph, twisting into a smaller shape. Fleshy lumps coalesced to reveal a petite blonde girl with bright red eyes.
"Felt?" Subaru was shocked.
The girls lips turned upwards into an amused smile. "Hihihihihi!" Her laugh was creepy.
The girl rushed forward. What looked like a giant insect stingers exploded from her wrists. Subaru was too rattled to even react, and was promptly impaled by the large, black spike.
"It's Capella." Capella kissed his forehead as Subaru fell onto his knees. "Sin Archbishop of Lust."
The wound wasn't enough to kill Subaru, but he wasn't strong enough to put up a fight.
"Why?" He breathed out.
Capella's smile was unbroken. "When the boyyyyyy and the blue haired girl appear, kill everybody. Do that and I'll giveeeeee you the tome of wisdom." Capella perfectly impersonated Roswaal's voice.
Subaru felt a burning sensation where he had been stabbed. Capella removed her stinger from him, and Subaru fell to the ground.
He began seizing up "poi...son...".
He was foaming at the mouth. He looked like a fish out of water, flopping around stiffly, gasping for air, but unable to breathe. Pain seared across his entire body, a body he was no longer in control of.
"Neurotoxin. Black Mamba." Capella admired the stinger she had created, holding it up to her face. "A real classic, if I say so myself."
Subaru stopped shaking.
Everything went dark.