Gradually everyone came back to their senses, and a single question came to everyone's minds:

"What in the actual fuck?"

Some voiced that question out loud, some did not even try to avoid swearing.

"Is...is everyone seeing this?"

Crusch thought she was having a fever dream, courtesy of the cursed blood in her veins.

For the Finest of Knights the entire foundation of his worldview got flipped on his head:

"Subaru... how… how are you holding the Dragon Sword?"

"With ma hands 'f coz."

One of the things that Echidna noted was, that wasted Subaru was talking in rather messy Kararagi accent.

"So he might be a Prince of Vollachia, exiled to Kararagi, maybe because of Gusteko roots? What if he was born from an affair with someone from there?" Aim higher she-fox, that man is dating a living calamity.

The purple-haired knight was just staring at him and contemplating if he should retort or not. After brief consideration he decided to bite his tongue, as he did not want to end up just like that unlucky table. After all, he just recently thought that Subaru might lunge at him with his fists, should he taunt him too much, with Reid in hand he might just vaporize him in anger.

"'magine being called the Finest of 'nights, and not even 'nowing how to hold a fucking sword. Prick. Felt nice beatin' me with some stick, huh!? What now, punk!?"

Despite him being taller than Subaru normally, Julius looked really small to black-eyed knight right now. The latter was glad that Subaru was just showing off, as he did notice the unnatural speed of his movements when he was wielding Reid. If he was actually mad at him, the Finest would have probably already met his end.

"I thought an average person can not pull the Dragon Sword out, how is this possible!?"

"How did you do it, Nii-chan!?"

"Does this mean Subaru-dono is a Sword Saint as well?"

Everyone begun questioning him all at once, the voices ringing annoyingly in his ears.

"AAAH! SHUT THE FUCK UP! UR GIVING ME A 'EADACHE!"

Swoosh! Another table paid for its insolence, this time with a loud boom instead. The room went silent once again. Reinhard noted an incredible presence his voice held. Surprisingly, even completely inebriated Subaru still had a potent gift of influencing people around him. He was truly a great leader, after all, just recently Subaru gave inspiring speech, rallying the people of Priestella, something Sword Saint could not really hope to achieve. No, Rein, it's not charisma, people just don't want to be vaporized.

Emilia broke the silence:

"Subaru, did you know you could do that?"

The half-elf, who asked her knight, did not believe that he did, otherwise he would have no doubt had it during their first meeting. Imagining him saving her from Bowel Hunter with a Dragon Sword in hand made Emilia a bit giddy. ("He would have been so cool! Even cooler than he was back then.") Subaru would've begged to differ, but she felt that he was quite cool back then.

"'f coz not, Emilia-tan! Dis is all news to me! If I fucking 'new I coulda've pulled it out, it would be a hol lot easier..."

A hint of familiar melancholy returned to the scary-eyed knight.

"Is it possible that Subaru-dono is a descendant of Reid Astrea?"

Wilhelm hoped for that to be the case, being overjoyed at the prospect of the black-haired lad being part of his family. After all to him Subaru was an honorary grandson already.

"Nope! I caaan assure u all that I'm not that guy's descendant. I'm not even redhead. And I'm pr'ty sure there are like zero ikemen genes in me."

Subaru stated that as a matter of fact, pointing at his messy black hair. Satella, observing him, disagreed about the last bit – in her opinion he was very hot, especially with no shirt, and even more so with no pants, and even hotter with no underwear. Yep, she was definitely a peeper, even prior to all this mess.

"How can you be so sure about that, Subaru-kyun?"

Felix knew a thing or two about having unexpected traits from a forgotten ancestor, after all, he was born demi-human from two human parents and was shunned for it.

"The truth is I don't 'ave any ancestors 'ere..."

"I'm certain that it is true. I can not sense any Divine Protections in Subaru, let alone Divine Protection of a Sword Saint."

Reinhard informed the group this after he used his Divine Protection of Judgment on Subaru (it allowed him to perceive Divine Protections of others), implying that he most likely isn't a descendant of the First Sword Saint. He also knew that he was not lying about his lineage, meaning that even if he was Reinhard's lost relative, he did not know about it.

"It is only natural that Betty's Subaru can wield Reid's stick with ease."

"Phrasing, Beako... phrasing. U make me sound like I'm som' gay hoe at a cheap-ass brothel... I'm as straight as a... as a... urgh...can't find word..."

"Reinhard-sama, what happens, or more specifically what should have happened, if anyone without the Divine Protection of the Sword Saint touches the Dragon Sword?"

Otto knew that not just anyone can wield weapons like Reid. Usually they chose their owners, not the other way around.

"I have never seen anyone other than me and my grandmother try to wield it, but I think it supposed to hurt the ones that it deems unworthy, making them unable to use it. I found that even if the sword does not wish to be drawn you can still wield it in its sheath as a blunt weapon."

"Is it possible that the sword wasn't properly sheathed, resulting in Subaru managing to pull it out?"

"No, Julius, otherwise I would have been able to pull it out beforehand."

"And you didn't just forget to properly shyeath it after you tried to pull it out, nyah?"

"Certainly not, Felix."

The Divine Protection of Perfect Recollection could not lie to him.

"Besides, it does not explain how Subaru is capable of wielding it at its utmost extent. The blade does have its own will."

"Nah, Captain is so cool, he does not need your stupid blessings! He just intimidates the sword into submission!"

"Garfiel, you can not intimidate an object."

"Captain can, Brotto, he can do a lot of things. Besides, you heard the Sword Saint – the thing got its own will."

Subaru paid zero attention to them as he still tried to find the exact word that he wanted to say. Eventually, he moved on.

"Anyway, Beako. My type is a silver-haired half-elf with purpl' eyes. Oh, and a blue-haired oni with blue eyes, too. I'm not into guys. I'm down to stand up for a homie, but not lay with homie."

"Ahm, Subaru, could you stop utilizing the Dragon Sword as a walking stick?"

Julius disapproved such rough treatment to the relic, as Subaru begun to slowly stumble back for his bottle. For the former Finest of Knights, Sword Saint wielding the Dragon Sword Reid was an idol, at least during his early days. He knew, of course, that he would never reach the extent of mastery that his friend Reinhard possessed. That is not to say he didn't try to reach it, choosing to truly master himself in all things that he could, thus earning his title of Finest. Still the little child, buried deep inside him, envied Subaru a bit.

"If he can wield it maybe I can as well."

So he reached for the Dragon Sword in attempt to seize it for himself. Surprisingly, half-elf's knight shown no resistance, only stumbling a bit after losing his balance. The purple-haired knight's eyes blinked in the excitement of having the honor to hold the weapon that was used by the legendary Reid Astrea four centuries ago. Julius had to seriously exert himself to keep his noble composure and not let his inner nerd take control.

"Huh, the Dragon Sword feels heavier than it looks. Reinhard obviously wields it with no issues. But, given Subaru's body composition, I expected it to be lighter."

Of course, he will return the sword to its original owner, he only wished to inspect it for a bit. However, as Julius was inspecting both the handle and an edge of the fabled blade, it not only started to feel even heavier than before, but he also suddenly felt a sharp pain in his hands.

"Aaaggghhh!"

The Sword shot out of his hands, returning back to his "true owner" (not to Reinhard, weirdly enough).

"Julius, what happened? Are you alright?"

Reinhard worried about his friend safety while habitually blaming himself in his thoughts for his carelessness.

"I am...alright…"

Knight's body shown no signs of injuries, but the pain still resonated in his soul. It felt like he was just beaten senseless by the Reid Astrea himself.

"It seems that Subaru really does have the special ability to handle the Dragon Sword." "And I am not qualified for it."

As Julius was answering Reinhard, Felix hurried to them and started to check up on him to know if he really was fine, all the while easing any pain he might still feel with his magic.

"Well that certainly proves the pain theory about the blade choosing his owner."

Wilhelm wondered if he could wield the Dragon Sword as he did beat the previous Sword Saint – his wife Theresia – in a duel before. He knew that he was far from the apex of swordsmanship, but he felt, that the new owner was either further, prior to the acquisition. Still he was curious: if that was the case and he could draw the Reid, if his grandson was not able to pull it out on the whim, would he be able to? Why was Subaru-dono the unique exception?

"Hold on, let Betty see."

"It is fine, Gryeat Spirit-Sama, I can treat Julius-kyun."

"Urgh, I'm not interested in the stupid knight, the sword."

"I'd be careful, Beatrice-Sama, You saw what happened to Julius."

"I am not shortsighted enough to touch it, I suppose. Betty just wants to try something."

She reached for the Reid, but instead of touching it:

"Betty will pour some of her contractor's mana into it. If the theory is correct, it should resonate. Everyone, close your eyes."

People immediately did as she told.

Beatrice already experienced wielding similar artifact, or at least something that, she thought, was similar in nature – the metia that she and Felt used against Lye Batenkaitos. Reid was likely simply amplifying effects of mana usage. The only difference being that the Dragon Sword was an actual weapon and delivered its mana directly. It clearly positively reacted to her contractor's mana, as even without functioning gate it allowed him to perform superhuman feats. She wondered just how much it can do if she was pouring mana into it.

For a brief moment she thought she was wrong, but then:

"Agh!"

The flash was so bright it burned through eyelids, along with it came loud boom causing people around to stumble. The glass in the ballroom shattered from a sheer impact. Most mana crystals in the room turned off for a few seconds only to reignite again.

"God dammit, Beako! Don't tinker with the thin' or you gonna render me blind!"

"Betty poured very little mana into it. I suppose, contractor's mana is particularly effective catalyst. Does someone want to try the same to confirm it?"

In the meantime, she cast a simple healing spell to help her contractor's eyes.

"Mhm, I can."

Emilia volunteered. At first, she thought nothing happened. She thought, that her mana simply got sucked into it.

"Slow down, in fact. You already poured ten times more than Betty did."

"But maybe I can still make it..." "...react."

Before she managed to finish a sentence the blade did react – at a rapid pace her right arm (the one she used to inject mana) began to freeze.

"Ah!"

She immediately stopped the mana transfer and began to shake her half-frozen hand in panic. Her contracted lesser spirits swarmed and began to treat it to prevent hypothermia.

"Phew. That was reeealy close!"

"So it did react, it just threw your mana back at you, tenfold. The same happened to the knight, I suppose. Sword Saint, can you do the same trick?"

On her request Reinhard did what he was asked. After concentrating a tiny portion of mana on the blade he pulled back. The result was rather disappointing, but at least there was no feedback:

"It barely glows, even though I utilized around the same amount of mana you used, Beatrice-sama."

"So it is what I thought it was."

"What does it mean, Beatrice-sama?"

"Well, you said the sword has its own will, isn't that right, Sword Saint?"

"I did. It chooses the opponents against whom I can draw it."

"Betty believes the weapon was made using a fragment of the soul. It is the reason for its selectiveness."

"A soul? Who's?"

"Well, given the name, it should only be the First Sword Saint, I suppose."

"But why reaction was so different for my mana, Subaru's and Reinhard's?"

"You should spend more time learning about nature of magic, girl. When your gate absorbs mana from the world around you, said mana does not remain the same, in fact. Your Od influences it, changes it."

"Wait, so if Subaru's mana is reeealy effective, does it mean..."

"...that Captain's soul is aligned with Reid Astrea's?!"

Garfiel interjected into the conversation, finishing the question of the half-elf.

"Eh, sounds 'bout right. We probably 'ere drinking buddies!" Right on target, Subaru.

Ever since events of the Sanctuary, he acknowledged the fact that there might be a hole in his memories. It started with Tella mentioning the reasons why she loved him – they did not feel like a lie or a delusion to him, but at the same time they did not make sense, given his memories. Since he arrived in the same state that he left the convenience store in, he likely wasn't transported prior to the fated meeting with Emilia and forgot about the fact. And this implied that it was the second time he was in this world at minimum. First was around four centuries ago and likely involved Tella, other Six ("They acted in such a way, that they likely knew me before.") and, given the legends, Flugel, Reid and Volcanica as well. The second began a year ago.

Of course, no one took Subaru's words seriously. They should have.

After another gulp of whiskey Subaru had a sudden idea.

"Ayo, redhead! Yeah, you 'scilla, you dumb busty black widow!"

The one addressed raised her eyebrow at his insults, however chose not to retort. After all she could not even call him commoner anymore, given the Dragon Sword in his hand. Silently she approached him, curious what the drunkard knight had in his mind.

"Wanna check s'mthing, get ur sword out."

Of course, she immediately realized what he had in mind. Without any hesitation she drew the Yang Sword, then presented it before the commoner.

"It would be the most amusing if 'tis true."

Dropping Reid like a child discarding a toy he was bored off, Subaru took Yang Sword with both hands.

"Don't want your daughters, you noisy-ass tyrant, Tella's the hottest chick around! Gimme your coolest sword instead!"

The knight effortlessly raised it and swoosh… a swing didn't physically hit anything, however, another table just caught aflame. Fortunately, Subaru did not put too much of his will into the swing, otherwise he could have caused an inferno. Servants quickly tried to extinguish the flames, hoping to save unfortunate table's contents, but they were not fast enough. Those that were proficient in the art of sword-wielding noticed, that Subaru possessed the same supernatural speed, as when he wielded Reid.

Now Subaru casually wielding the second legendary blade wasn't as surprising for party's attendants as the first, still it made others silent yet again. Liliana began to rapidly write the lyrics of her new song about him. She did it with a piece of strawberry on a napkin in a broken I-script, but still, given her inebriation, it was a good effort.

After satisfying his curiosity Subaru effortlessly dismissed the blade. Priscilla began laughing maniacally, clearly incredibly amused by the situation.

"A drunk commoner with two of the strongest blades in hand, against the whole world, pha-ha-hah."

"Siiick, wonder if dere more swords I could try out!"

"Cecilus Segmunt the Blue Lightning wields two more legendary blades – Fiend Sword Murasame and Dream Sword Masayume, location of other swords is unknown to me."

Julius knew about all of them, of course, he liked ancient legends. He heard that the Life Sword was somewhere in Lugunica, but knew not where exactly. Thankfully, he recovered from his attempt to seize Reid.

"Wow… sounds coool. After party in Vollachia anyone?"

"Ahem, Subaru, can you return the sword to Priscilla?"

Emilia did not want to be indebted to red-haired princess. She was still a tiny bit afraid of her, truth be told.

"'Tis not needed, half-wit, your knight was deemed worthy by the Yang Sword, hence it is now his."

Telling that Priscilla drew her own copy of the famed weapon. Looking at her, Subaru drew his own as well, then playfully crossed the two, just as if he was participating in a fencing match.

"Niiice."

"And what happens if person deemed unworthy?"

"It burns their soul 'til nothing is left."

That left a greater impact than a fact of Subaru being worthy of the blade in the first place, as the danger of Subaru's antics finally reached the attendees. Only Subaru and Priscilla were utterly unconcerned by this.

"Eh, dere are worse ways to die." "Being eaten alive for one."

Subaru could mention a couple others too: experiencing two deaths at once – death from suffocation and death from cardiac arrest due to 'fear resonance', like he experienced against Sirius, or being gutted by the Elsa, or slowly dying due to mana deprivation from Wolgarm curse, or being betrayed by the people you trust, or being frozen solid and slowly chipped bit by bit by the Beast of the End, or witnessing deaths of the people you care about prior to your own violent end. Truth be told, he did not have pleasant deaths during his adventures, the most calm one was dying in his sleep during the first stay in the Matter's mansion, and even then the sensation of losing relationships that he build over course of his first loop there felt devastating.

People around him were a bit perturbed by his recklessness, yet no one chose to scold him for it. Not even Emilia, as an image of Subaru with two swords at his back atop of his legendary black steed (Patrasche) crossed her mind. She felt something trembling in her stomach at the thought.

Only one person was grinning at this:

"Hah! Definitely, a Prince of Vollachia!"

"So, Lady Beatrice, I don't suppose you can explain that?"

"Hm, it's probably the same thing, merchant boy."

"The same, as in he's a drinking buddy with both long dead Reid Astrea and someone whose soul went into the Yang Sword?"

"Urgh, maybe not a 'drinking buddy'. The fact remains, his affinity for those is a result of the Od resonance."

"And what about others? Murasame and Masayume?"

"We can only try and see, I suppose."