A/N: Back from a hiatus! I've had to rewrite this chapter so many times, then I eventually had to step away for a while.. And that turned into a LONG while.
With Season 3 coming (eventually..) I'm definitely a bit more inspired to hop back in a bit, I just need to remember/find my plans I had for this fic going forward.
Also I still haven't really indulged in the LN/WN past the middle point of Arc 5, so don't expect anything super deep to connect towards Arcs 6, 7, 8 and beyond.
But whatever, I'm back for now, so hope you all enjoy!
Chapter Fourteen
Bonds of Greed
"We will be together forever, won't we, Mother?"
As one of the only remaining windows to the Mansion's foyer exploded from the heat of the rising flames, the semi-melted husk of the fake ice prison was hurled at Subaru and Beatrice by one of Petelgeuse's Unseen Hands.
"Do you think cheap tricks can save you from her wrath? Is there something… wrong with you!?"
Before Subaru could retort with something cheeky, Beatrice held her hand forward towards their looming opponent.
"El Minya."
Pink crystallized spikes began to appear before Beatrice, before shooting upwards rapidly with streaks of purple flames in their wake. They were powerful enough to shred through many of the hands that Petelgeuse attempted to block with, but the real damage was dealt by the ones that seemingly missed him— Only to explode into fragments that shot into him from behind.
"Gahhh…! The debauchery of her gracious power! Cursed insect…! Insect…! INSECT!"
All of the seemingly endless Unseen Hands blasted forward at once, overpowering the onslaught of magic being shot at him.
Beatrice seemed too stuck in continuing her assault to see the looming danger. Subaru figured he'd regret it, but he quickly grabbed the girl's arm and tugged her away, eliciting a gasp from her.
SLAM! The entire room rumbled from the force of the hands destroying the floor where they had just been standing. More began to erupt from the ensuing cloud of dust to attack again before they could recover.
Ram acted this time, the girl sending a rapid flurry of sharpened wind at the attacks, giving Subaru and Beatrice a chance to steady themselves.
"Do not handle Betty like that," the spirit girl grumbled.
"Tch, is it that hard to say thanks..?"
"Hmph, that will be said when it is truly earned, I suppose…"
The group jumped a bit as a Witch Cultist suddenly jumped into the room through the nearest broken window— However, they fell to the floor, incapacitated with a familiar spikey ball-and-chain in their back.
Rem leaped into the broken window, steam rising from her breath as she pulled her weapon back to her, horn radiating brilliantly in the moonlight behind her.
"Sister…" Ram came closer, coughing slightly, and Subaru felt a bit worried about Rem attacking her or something… But she didn't show any aggression towards Ram, despite her furious demeanor. "Are there… many left?"
"There are a lot of scum left out there," Rem said with a slight growl to her voice. "But I won't let them come close."
As if to reinforce her words, Rem suddenly leaped upwards as two more cultists jumped at her from behind, kicking one away and smashing the other in the head with the back of her hand.
Subaru was amazed by her fighting capabilities… But he had certainly noticed how not all the blood on the girl was from their enemies, some visible wounds littered across her tattered uniform.
"Ram…" Subaru looked to the girl, and she nodded, seemingly thinking the same thing.
Letting out a hiss of anger, Petelgeuse, who had grasped a large chunk of the ceiling above the foyer, pulled with Unseen Hands to bring the entire upper floor collapsing down below.
Ram jumped to her sister to help her with the battle outside, while Subaru and Beatrice both rushed towards the nearby hallway, where Subaru and Ram had been during the first assault.
Smoke and dust billowed out from the foyer as the ceiling fully collapsed, the entire room in ruin now, with even the floors above it collapsing inwards. Petelgeuse practically slithered creepily down towards the ruins on the floor, before finally spotting his prey again.
"Beako, it might be time for that…"
"You do not have to tell Betty." She held a hand towards the nearest door, but Petelgeuse suddenly fired off many Unseen Hands their way, forcing them back further into the hall.
"You would rather scatter and crawl than die for your own slothful nature?!" Petelgeuse's words were loud and boisterous over the fire and destruction being caused by his hands, as he pursued them through the hallway.
Eventually, as they came to the hall's end, Subaru knew they had to act. He held his hand forward, fingers in a gun shape— But Beatrice put a hand out to stop him.
"It would be no use, it is not normal Magic, I suppose," she stated firmly. Then she held a hand to Subaru. "Hold Betty's hand, and then use your Shamak."
"Eh? Why?"
"You will channel the spell through Betty and will not break yourself more."
Subaru couldn't argue with that, grasping her small hand and then holding his other towards Petelgeuse, the urge to make it flashy overwhelming to the boy as per usual.
"Shamak!"
A dark ripple of energy emerged to consume the Archbishop, who let out a roar of anger, pushing onwards, sending a flurry of hands wildly towards them.
"Minya…!"
Beatrice fired off a burst of her pink crystals, and Subaru felt like mana had been pulled from him to do so, his legs wobbling slightly.
"Beako…" He narrowed his eyes at her. "Are you using me like a battery or something?"
"I do not know what you mean— But we have just a moment—" She waved her hand towards the last door in the hall, before opening it to reveal the Forbidden Library within.
"Nice! It's that easy huh—-" Subaru released her hand and ran inside, turning the girl, only to find her standing resolute, staring at Petelgeuse. "Beako?"
He looked at the girl, who was staring at the oncoming danger. Subaru remembered her familiarness with the insane man, and the determined expression she held was telling.
Gritting his teeth, Subaru reached out to grab her arm.
"Come on! I ain't taking no for an answer— gah!"
Subaru was flung backwards by a gail of wind summoned by the spirit girl. He tumbled once, then quickly righted himself and stood, though he winced as his body protested his mana usage.
"Bea..ko!" He stumbled forward and reached out a hand, shouting, "Don't be stupid!"
He could tell that his words meant nothing at that moment. With the flickering firelight illuminating her, she slightly turned her head towards Subaru, her lips quivering as she lifted her hand towards the door
"Stop—!"
The door shut itself hard, causing Subaru to run into it full-force, stealing the yell from his throat as he bounced backwards, gasping for breath and clutching at his chest and arms.
The silence was deafening. Inside of the library, it was as if nothing dire was happening— just another peaceful day in the Mansion.
Subaru, needing a minute to recover, eventually managed to pull himself up using the chair and small table Beatrice used while reading. He took a second to rest, his eyes laying upon the strange book that Beatrice had often looked at during his stay.
Dammit… Being reckless is my job! he thought, knowing every second he wasted in here, the more danger everyone was in. I'm the one who can die… Nobody else has to!
Despite his urgency, Subaru's curiosity was overwhelming, and he had to make sure he could get back into the fight without crumpling from fatigue.
If this thing's so precious, why leave it out like this?
He grabbed the book and opened it. The first page was blank, as expected. He flipped through it, only to receive the same result. With a scowl, he put the book down and was about to close it…
Til six words suddenly appeared, as if being imprinted onto the page.
"W-What…?" His eyes widened as he gazed at those words. "But…"
They didn't make any sense. What was the source of the words? Was it somebody else nearby? He could feel his face beginning to sweat even more than when he was in the blazing hallway, as a thousand questions tried to plague his mind… But he knew there just wasn't time.
Finally tearing his eyes away from the book, Subaru ran towards the library's door.
The book's words were forgotten instantly, fading from his mind— a trick of the book's special magic, unbeknownst to him.
Still, the imprint of determination spawned from them filled his heart. He shouldered the door hard, only to let out a yell of pain as it didn't budge. He grabbed the handle and tried, but failed, to push or pull it free.
Please be alive!
Subaru pounded and kicked at the door, before pushing all of his weight against it, yelling in frustration.
Or else I'll have to.. have to..
As he struggled and bruised himself up in his attempts to escape, Subaru nearly thought about killing himself to restart… But those thoughts were quelled as the thought of Meili popped into his head.
"I'll believe in.. you…"
What good was he if he couldn't even try before using Return by Death? Was he doomed to be limited by that ability forever?
He remembered facing the Bowel Hunter, and the other assassins, how insanely out of his depth he was… And yet he pulled through. Couldn't he do that now? Wasn't that the Natsuki Subaru that his friends in this new world knew and counted on?
Bracing himself, Subaru took a second before putting everything he had into a full-on sprint at the door.
"Let me ouuuuuaaahhh!"
The door came open easily, causing him to stumble out into the hallway and faceplant into the wall. Dazed for a moment, Subaru looked around, blinking rapidly.
The hallway he was in seemed untouched, and hadn't suffered from the battles occurring. A glance out the window showed him that he was, truly, in the farthest wing on the second floor from the action.
Blood and bodies were strewn across the mansion's front. It was impossible to tell who was who in the darkness, so Subaru could only hope that Ram and Rem were still alive out there.
One thing at a time, he thought as he started at a meager jog down the hallway, his body protesting. The crazy bowl cut guy comes first! If we stop him, then maybe… Just maybe…!
As Subaru ran like his life depended on it, which it most certainly did, the entire building shook and shifted as more explosions and powerful attacks seemed to be happening the closer he got to the foyer again. Smoke was billowing into the hallways, and when he got close to the large stairway leading down towards the front entrance, it was impossible to see what was happening.
Using his jacket to cover his mouth and nose, his eyes watering from the smoke, Subaru searched frantically, but couldn't see anything.
"Beako…!" His voice was hoarse, and he nearly went into another fit of coughs. "You idiot! Are you still down there?"
A loud crash sounded out as more of the second floor caved in, and Subaru was forced to stumble backwards to avoid it. Bracing himself against the nearby wall, he tried to steady his breathing as best he could, everything coming to him in a flash– All of the emotions swelling into an unbearable weight in his chest.
Everyone… I have to… Have to…
Subaru clenched at his chest and closed his teary eyes.
I have to win!
He ran, blinded by smoke and tears, letting out a desperate yell as he leaped into the unknown.
CRASH! Soon enough, Subaru found himself smacking into a pile of debris, letting out gasps and groans of pain as he tumbled along the ground and eventually came to a stop in a heap on the floor. Down here, the smoke wasn't quite as bad, but the flames that had overtaken the foyer were crackling loudly and were almost blindingly bright.
Slowly rising up onto an arm, Subaru blinked away tears, searching.. Searching..
"B..Beako.."
He smiled a bit, seeing the spirit girl standing, perfectly in-tact, looking just as perfect and dollish as she usually had.
..But the person in front of her was unfamiliar, and he was holding two fingers up against Beatrice's forehead.
"...Is it so much to ask that a single person explain themselves thoroughly around here," the man grumbled. "I already destroyed that stupid village inside that barrier, and yet I also do not see the girl here either. Why is that?"
He wore a regal uniform of white and gold, and his hair was white and pure as snow. It seemed absurd how pure and untouched this strange man appeared, when he was among a hellish, fiery battle indoors. Just from the look in his eyes, however, Subaru could tell quickly that he was no normal man, as his gaze lacked a certain humanity behind them.
Beatrice elicited a soft whimper, her legs visibly shaking a bit. Subaru couldn't understand what was making her so frightened, but it was a testament to the man standing before her for sure.
"Get… away," Subaru croaked, starting a slow crawl towards the scene. "Whoever the hell you are.."
The man barely turned his face to acknowledge Subaru, his gaze a terrifying void of emotion–
Then he glared at him.
"Is intruding on private conversations commonplace for people such as yourself? I try to offer some semblance of understanding towards the plights of others, but to have you simply barge in while speaking to me is quite confounding. Much less the fact that you offered no introduction before making your existence known to me; is that something that you tend to do? I do not like to assume others' intentions, as there may be misunderstandings present, and that would be potentially damning to both of us. Still, I do happen to feel violated by the very fact that a stranger such as yourself is daring enough to approach and belittle myself, and I do very much hope that you can learn to change your ways in the future."
Subaru was dumbfounded by the man's rant, stopping his crawl to gawk up at him in confusion.
"..P-Please, I.. I want to.." Beatrice seemed to be trying to say something, but she trailed off, her lips quivering. "S-Speak to.. Mother.. Can you.." She looked more like a small child than ever before, and Subaru felt his blood boil a bit.
"You.. didn't introduce yourself either, shithead," Subaru commented to the man, gritting his teeth as he pulled himself up onto his other arm, feeling how weak his body was from the constant smoke inhalation and the hits he'd suffered today.
The man's eyes widened a bit and he stood up straighter. "Oh, right. I suppose that was rude of me."
He pulled his fingers away from Beatrice, and in that moment, it was like gravity had turned on its side. The girl flew back down the hallway at an unprecedented speed, like the natural order of the world was pulling her that way. Subaru watched with wide eyes, hearing the brutal crashing of walls that never seemed to end.
"Beatrice!"
The white-haired man adjusted his coat and offered a small, polite bow towards Subaru, who simply glared up at him, starting to try and rise to his feet.
"I am the sin Archbishop "Greed" Regulus Corneas," he stated, offering a small smile that made Subaru's blood run cold. "And you are?"
Another Archbishop…? What the hell…
One was enough, but for two to show up? It seemed unprecedented. What exactly was that girl Emilia to them?
"Subaru… Natuski Subaru…" He had managed to get onto his hands and knees, a bit wobbly as he slowly stood. "Member.. Of the Iron Fangs.. Knight of Lady Anastasia Hoshin," he continued, grinning and knowing how Julius might think of him saying such a thing, "And–"
SLAM! Suddenly, Regulus threw a fist into Subaru's gut. The boy gasped and would have doubled over onto the ground again, if the white-haired Archbishop didn't grab him by his jacket collar and keep him standing.
"You know, I have done a lot of thinking since you decided to call me a rude thing like 'shithead'," Regulus began, as if nothing else Subaru had said had mattered since then. "Why is it that those below my status believe that they are allowed the satisfaction to say these things to me? It has never made sense to do so, especially when one such as yourself has the status of absolute zero. You have risen to try and match my level of ethics, but in doing so you have brought up the muck with yourself. And what for? Is it a vain sense of pride, perhaps? Or is it–"
Subaru had had enough of the ramblings. He suddenly brought his head forward with a yell, slamming his forehead straight into Regulus' own.
A headbutt always works on anyone–!
Well, except for here, it seemed. Subaru felt a strange thing happen, as if he had never made contact with the Archbishop, despite feeling the impact and the pain for a split second. Now… It was all gone, and he stared at the man in disbelief.
Regulus glared at Subaru, his eyes dancing with the red and orange light from the flames rising all around.
That other man, Petelgeuse, was insane, but this one before Subaru right now..
He was on a totally different level.
A crash from behind marked the return of Petelgeuse, the man descending along the wall with his unseen hands and a big grin on his creepy face.
"Have you heard? We are called," he said with a strangely smug tone. "It is something supersupersuper exciting-desu!"
"Tch… Everybody around me is the worst," Regulus commented, before letting Subaru go, the boy falling back hard to the ground. "If she is not here, then I see no reason to mope. But I'm also not following whatever you say."
With that, the white-haired man walked towards the broken front doorway, straight through the flames without a care.
Petelgeuse scowled and brought his fingers up to his face, at first seeming to chew at his nails, but the blood made it apparent quickly that he was actually biting on his fingers.
"Insolence…" He watched Regulus go for a moment, his eye twitching. "Only I need her love.. Me… Me…"
As he grumbled, the man made his exit as well. The fire and smoke was getting overwhelming, and Subaru could hardly see anything anymore.
Beako… Ram… Rem… I'm.. Sorry…!
Then unconsciousness greeted him as the entire foyer began to collapse in on itself.
The sound of chirping birds greeted Subaru's ears, and he shot up into a sitting position, his breathing heavy, eyes darting around frantically.
He was outside.. But where? And how? After a few moments of getting his bearings, he realized he was out on the front steps to the mansion. Turning to look back at the place, he felt his chest tighten at the black, charred remains of most of the huge estate, much of it collapsed and broken.
Not only that, but the blood and bodies all around were astounding. There were dozens upon dozens of people dawning strange black robes and long hooded masks, with jagged daggers lying near each of them.
Rem.. Holy crap..
Subaru tried to rise, but then he stopped when he finally realized something small and cold in his left hand. He looked down, eyes widening in surprise as he saw Beatrice lying beside him, her hand in his.
"Beako? Hey–!"
"Barusu, stop," came the biting tone of Ram. He looked around and then behind himself, seeing the pink-haired maid there, her outfit in tatters, eyes looking exhausted. "Let her take your mana, for now. Or else there may never be any hope of her awakening again."
"S-So she's… Alive?"
Ram nodded solemnly.
"What about–"
"My sister is.. Alive as well," she began, "But she overtaxed herself."
Subaru looked her over a bit. "You look pretty worn out yourself."
Ram shrugged as she placed a bucket she had been holding down onto the ground, wiping some of the soot from her face.
"Somebody had to tend to the mansion and put out the flames before everything was gone," she insisted. "While Barusu snored away the day.
"H-Hey, it's not like I wasn't exhausted too! Do you know the kind of crazy crap I had to–"
Subaru got worked up, but quickly felt his energy waiver. He looked down towards Beatrice, her hand gripping his a little tighter. Ram sighed.
"If you do too much, Lady Beatrice may drain you to death," Ram stated before walking off. "Please try not to die, it may look bad on our Master."
Scowling a bit, Subaru had something come to mind, and he raised a hand towards the maid.
"Wait! Have you heard from the village? From Joshua, or Meili?"
Before Ram could answer, the sound of a screech and then the tumbling of wheels came into earshot, and Subaru looked towards the road.
"Is that…"
"I've been aware of them approaching, but there is no guarantee it is not an enemy," Ram commented. "I will greet them, either way. Friend or foe."
She slowly began to descend the stairs, and Subaru grit his teeth, wanting to follow and stand with her, but knowing that wouldn't be wise.
Since when did I do the smart thing anyways? He thought, slowly rising to his knees and picking up Beatrice in his arms, surprised by just how light she was. Then he rose to his wobbly legs, and slowly began to make his way down to where Ram was.
The pink-haired girl looked annoyed as Subaru stumbled up beside her, but she didn't say anything, whether due to her tiredness with him or in general.
The two stood and watched as a carriage of smooth dark wood and golden trimming being drawn by two armor-clad Earth Dragons made its approach through the gates and across the long road leading to the front steps. It was clear enough already that it was not Otto's carriage at all, and Subaru felt himself tense.
"..How long has it been since the Witch Cult left?"
"It is nearly noon," Ram responded to his question. "So, many hours ago now."
"Are you able to–"
"No, I do not think I can cast much magic at this point."
Subaru sighed. Nothing could come easily, could it? As much as he hated to admit it, he might have to rely on his Return by Death on giving him a "checkpoint" right about now.
The carriage made the final turn, and came to a stop at the end of the steps. An older man in a butler uniform slowly hobbled down from the driver's seat and approached the carriage door, opening it and offering a bow towards those inside.
Roswaal L Mathers exited first, a smile upon his make-up adorned face, his long blue hair cascading down along his extravagant outfit of purple, pink, and red.
Subaru had not seen the man yet, but from the descriptions he'd heard, it was fairly obvious that it was him, especially with the amount of flair the man showed when he exited and turned to offer a hand to the next person leaving.
..But nobody was prepared for who stepped out next, their long silver hair, pale skin, and elegant black dress. Subaru had only seen her for a brief moment, but something was very, very clearly different.
"Lady… Emilia…"
Subaru glanced to Ram, whose eyes were wide, and her lips were trembling. It was shocking to see the girl for sure, but such a visceral reaction from the maid perplexed Subaru.
Roswaal held the half-elf girl's hand, helping her step down, and then offering an arm to her, which she took. Together, the two began a slow approach to the steps, and Ram finally pulled herself together, bowing deeply.
"Welcome back, Master Roswaal… Lady Emilia…"
They stopped just a few steps down from them, and the silver-haired girl offered them a smile. Now this close, Subaru could only stare with a bit of horror at her as her eyes moved to look at him.
Those eyes were black, and very reminiscent of that guy– Regulus Corneas. Missing in the spark that people generally held within.
"I am glad to be home," she stated.
At that moment, Beatrice awoke in Subaru's arms. Before he knew it, the girl scrambled out and kicked him in the face upon doing so, making him yell out. She fell to the ground and rose in a huff, her eyes wide as she gazed at Emilia.
"...Mother?"
A gentle breeze rolled over the group, and Subaru's confusion was only matched by Ram's horror as she raised her head and looked towards her master, who was all smiles at the situation.
Mother…? What the–
Emilia reached a hand out towards Beatrice, petting her hair softly, before speaking deathly words that would have devastating ramifications.
"Beatrice… I release you from your duties."
Subaru had no idea why, but he felt a physical crack come from within Beatrice, the girl falling to her knees, eyes staring downwards, hand shakily reaching towards her chest… And with that, Roswaal and Emilia simply walked past them without a care in the world, as if nothing unusual was going on.
What just… Why can I feel this? Subaru felt at his own chest, the pang of losing something dear connecting him to Beatrice. Then he remembered their pact they had made, when he had been stupid enough to do so without realizing she was a spirit. Is this what.. Someone like Julius feels with his spirits?
It made Subaru ticked off. He had no idea what was going on, but whatever that girl had done, it was devastating to Beatrice. He turned around and took a step towards Roswaal–
"Barusu!"
Ram grabbed his arm in a deathly grip. He looked to her, and was surprised to see such a vicious look upon her face as she stared darkly at him.
"Oh, right," Roswaal said, as if he had forgotten something. He looked over his shoulder back towards Subaru, smiling. "I believe my hospitality has gone far enough, riiiight?~ You are excused, Mr. Subaru. Thank you for your visit, and give Ms. Anastasia our greetings."
Then they continued onwards, straight into the ruins of the mansion. Subaru felt his heart beating wildly, a mix of pain, anger, and sorrow eating at him on the inside.
…What… the hell is going on?!
To Be Continued
Next Chapter: The Broken Ones
A/N: Sorry for any inconsistencies there may be– The second half of this chapter were re-written recently (September/October 2023) so it's very likely that I got some things a bit jumbled up, but if so, let me know! And look forward to the finale of Arc 3 soon (™)
