For a moment I felt as if I were dreaming, as if the voice of Lady Emilia was naught but an illusion concocted by my own guilty conscious to stop me from butchering Elsa, but as I turned my head, watching Lady Emilia approach alongside Miss Ram, Sir Reinhard, Lady Felt, Sir Julius, and a myriad of other knights, I knew that this was no dream.
Lady Emilia had really returned, and she had summoned the calvary along with her.
Though it was terrible to admit, it was true that some small part of me was relieved when I saw Lady Emilia and Sir Reinhard, knowing that I wouldn't have to kill Elsa.
This was not due to any bias I had towards Elsa, nor was it due to the slight connection between us that was formed during our battle. I had resolved myself to kill her, and I seriously intended to do so, knowing it was best for Lady Emilia.
But for me?
I worried that if I took the life of another human being, I would no longer be the same Arthur that my friends and family remembered, and that I would've taken another step to truly becoming the king in both body and soul.
So ultimately, though it was not a good thing that Lady Emilia halted my blade, I struggled to truly consider it a bad thing either.
"Sir Arthur, are you alright?!" With his speed, Reinhard was the first to actually arrive on the scene, placing his hands on my shoulders, his face filled with concern as he shook me. If I wasn't alright, his shaking certainly wouldn't help much, but it was good to see a friendly face after that nightmarish dance to the death.
"Sir Arthur, can you hear my words? Looking at his eyes, he seems to be in shock. This isn't good, Julius, we should bring him to Ferris immediately!" Reinhard turned to his friend with a hint of panic about him, leaving me to wonder whether or not the calm and collected Sword Saint had been replaced with a fake one.
"That seems to be a sensible decision, Reinhard." An unfamiliar, yet familiar voice echoed out, and I turned my head to see the second arrival, Sir Julius, the man I had been waiting for this entire time.
Though he was hopelessly late, I suppose the term 'better late than never' still stood tried and tested, though I must admit I was concerned as to why he brought Lady Emilia with him, let alone half the Knight's Garrison!
Julius turned his head to the defeated Elsa and spoke softly, "Nonetheless, before any further discussion, I believe we should first fully subdue the threat."
"You're completely correct, Julius." Reinhard nodded his head, and quicker than I could blink, he was behind the regenerating husk of Elsa, reaching out his hand. Like that, the Bowel Hunter that had tortured me so thoroughly had her mana drained and was rendered unconscious in an instant.
To be honest, Reinhard's casual display of movement had left me feeling a little stunned. Though I was no longer amped with Magical Energy, his singular step to reach behind Elsa had thoroughly eclipsed my perception, and I had some idea as to how Elsa must have been feeling during our battle.
"Here's the Collar of Submission, Reinhard." Julius handed over the magical device, and Reinhard quickly placed it around Elsa's neck, causing her regeneration to halt.
I was about to open my mouth, but at that moment, I was interrupted, "Sir Arthur!"
Like that, my side was heavily impacted, almost sending me flying. For a brief moment there, I thought I had been hit by an enemy Noble Phantasm, but it was just Lady Emilia jumping at my side.
I looked down at her, her silky silver hair buried into my chest as tears dribbled onto the ground, mixing with the blood, "Are you okay?! Please be okay, Sir Arthur!"
Her tears washed away the confusion plaguing my mind, and the adrenaline coursing through my veins was replaced with a sense of calmness.
It went without saying that whilst fighting Elsa, due to the fear and adrenaline pumping through me, my mind was incredibly chaotic, causing me to behave erratically.
But now, thanks to the reassuring presence of Lady Emilia and the others, I had finally regained my kingly mindset, allowing me to handle the proceeding matters with the carefulness and cautiousness that had allowed me to succeed up until this point.
And with that calmness came a rush of embarrassment.
When I'm done with you, there won't be a body left to bury!
Really, what on earth was I thinking? I was glad that Elsa and I were the only witnesses to my exaggerated outbursts, otherwise I would surely never live down the embarrassment.
I removed my bloody gloves from my hands and gave Lady Emilia's head a good patting to ease her worries, "Don't worry, Lady Emilia, didn't we make a promise? I told you I wouldn't get injured."
"But Sir Arthur, all this blood…" she looked at my clothes dubiously, the concern apparent on her face, warming my heart.
"Fret not, Lady Emilia. This blood does not belong to me, but rather, my opponent." I made a small smile as I ruffled her silky locks, causing her to pout.
"Do you promise you're okay, Sir Arthur?" she looked up at me as crystalline tears dribbled down her rosy cheeks, making her look very endearing.
I smiled softly as I removed my hand from her head, wiping her tears with my finger, "Please don't cry, Lady Emilia, I promise I'm fine, but your clothes on the other hand…" I looked down at Emilia's regal robes guiltily. It must be known I was still covered with Elsa's blood, and now Lady Emilia was hugging onto me like this, her clothes had been utterly ruined, "It seems I owe you an apology, Lady Emilia."
"Don't be ridiculous, Sir Arthur!" Lady Emilia burst out in response, "Your safety is far more important than any piece of clothing! Please don't say such ridiculous things in the future!" she wagged her finger at me, giving me a good scolding.
However, on second thought, the one doing the scolding should be me.
I reached out my slim fingers and pinched onto her chubby cheeks, giving them a good pull.
"Ouch! Sir Arthur?! What're you doing?!" Emilia cried out in shock, her tears halting as her cheeks turned red.
"Young Lady, what do you think you're doing back here?! What was the point of me staying alone to fight Elsa if you were just going to come back?! Don't you know your life could've been in danger here! Elsa is very, very dangerous! If it wasn't for the fact that she has already been dealt with, I really wouldn't know what to do with you!" I wagged my finger back at her.
"Ouch… ouch… Sir Arthur, I give, I give!" Looking at the tears glistening in her amethyst eyes, I could no longer continue tugging at her cheeks, and thus, I let them go.
Nonetheless, I looked at her sternly, ready to give her a good lecturing, "Do you have anything to say for yourself, Young Lady?"
"Isn't it fine?" She looked at me, appearing incredibly wronged, "I'm with Mr. Reinhard and Julius, is there a safer place in the world?"
Well, she got me there.
I fell silent as I desperately tried to come up with a response, but perhaps feeling guilty for Lady Emilia, Reinhard interjected, placing his hand to his heart as he spoke to me sincerely, "Sir Arthur, please do not blame Lady Emilia for this. Regarding the matter of her returning to the guesthouse, it's completely my fault."
"Oh, so you're the one I should be scolding instead?" I looked towards the knight, not impressed at all.
"I would much rather you didn't, Sir Arthur." Reinhard scratched his cheek sheepishly, "After all, I have a reputation to uphold."
To be honest, I did want to give Reinhard a good scolding as well. He had a simple mission: Escort Lady Emilia to the Knights Garrison and send Sir Julius to support me. And yet, somehow, things had gone awry.
Instead of bringing Lady Emilia to the Knight's Garrison, he had brought the Knight's Garrison to me.
"Nonetheless, despite everything, I do owe you my thanks, Sir Reinhard." I let out a heavy sigh and bowed to the young man, "Thank you for bringing my lady back to me unharmed."
"You honor me with your words, Sir Arthur, but to be truthful with you, I hardly did a thing. If not for the assistance of Julius, Miss Ram, and the Knights of the Capital, things could've gotten quite dicey." Reinhard made a rather wry smile.
"Hang on a moment." I stopped him there, raising my hand, "You make it seem like something happened on the way there?"
Seeing the looks on their faces, it was clear I was correct. Something had indeed happened. Anxiety wracking my insides, I turned to Lady Emilia for answers.
"There were indeed a few bumps on the road, but thanks to Mr. Reinhard, Julius, Ram, and the noble knights from the Knights Garrison, we made it out in one piece." She smiled softly.
Hearing that she really was attacked, my heart pounded with worry and concern, "What happened exactly?"
"I'll let Mr. Reinhard do the talking." Lady Emilia responded, gesturing to the red-haired knight.
"Thank you, Lady Emilia." Reinhard made a polite bow before turning his cerulean eyes to me, "Whilst escorting Lady Emilia, we were accosted by a Witchbeast Tamer who had transported a small army of Witchbeasts through the city sewers. Roughly halfway through our journey, she attacked from beneath us, intending to kill Lady Emilia. Thankfully, through sheer luck, I managed to move her from harm's way."
"My goodness!" I couldn't help but exclaim in shock as I appeared next to Emilia, gripping her by the shoulders, looking into her eyes, "Are you alright, my lady?"
"I'm fine, thank you for your concern, Sir Arthur." She smiled at me warmly, "As I said, thanks to everyone, not a single hair on my head was harmed, just like Mr. Reinhard promised."
Hearing her words, I turned my eyes to Sir Reinhard, looking at him with a complicated gaze. I'm afraid the debt I owed him could never be repaid.
Sensing my gaze, Reinhard scratched his cheek sheepishly, "To be honest, it was an incredibly tough battle, and I was almost overwhelmed by Witchbeasts. Thankfully, due to the commotion, Julius and the Knights Garrison were alerted, and with the help of our allies, we managed to neutralize the threats and subdue the Witchbeast Tamer. Though there wasn't time for a proper interrogation, we managed to ascertain that she was working with the Bowel Hunter, Elsa Granhiert. After that, Sir Arthur, we sensed your tremendous mana and rushed over to provide assistance, though it seems that was unnecessary."
His words caused me to fall deathly silent as my blood froze. To think that Meili really did join Elsa in the Capital this time around. I could only thank my own tendency to overthink. If I really did assume that Elsa was left alone and let Lady Emilia escape on her lonesome, or I borrowed Sir Reinhard to help me with Elsa, the world might have been finished just like that.
"Reinhard, I'm afraid that I owe you my life. This debt of gratitude will not go unpaid." I looked at him seriously.
"Sir Arthur, honestly, I hardly did a thing. Your thanks should belong to the honorable warriors of the Knight's Garrison." Reinhard shook his head, unable to accept my gratitude.
"Sir Arthur, Mr. Reinhard is just being overly modest. If it was not for him, I wouldn't be standing here right now." Emilia spoke gravely as she looked towards Reinhard with sparkling eyes.
Her words were not words I could ignore.
"Sir Reinhard, though I'm naught but a third-rate, incompetent knight, if there ever comes the time when you find yourself in need of my assistance, just say the words, and I shall be at your side, sword drawn, ready to combat any issues you might have. That, I swear on the Knights of the Round Table." I placed my hand to my chest and bowed to him.
Reinhard looked back at me with equal severity as the cold winds brushed by, causing his robes to flutter. Dropping all pretenses and modesty, he nodded his head gravely, "I understand, Sir Arthur. But at the same time, I also owe you my life for leading me to find Lady Felt, and as such, if you ever need the power of the Sword Saint, or the power of the Astrea Family, you only need to give the world."
And like that, a solemn vow had been formed between the wielder of the Holy Sword and the wielder of the Dragon Sword.
Julius broke the solemn silence and spoke softly as he looked at Elsa's subdued body, "Sir Arthur… it seems that in your duel with the bloodthirsty assassin, you were victorious. I greatly admire your combative abilities."
Looking at the Finest Knight, I smiled weakly towards him, "Sir Julius, if you had actually witnessed the battle, you wouldn't be saying such things. It was a one-sided beatdown on Elsa's behalf, and if it wasn't for my lucky sword swing at the end, I wouldn't have been able to defeat her."
My words were not a lie. Though I dominated her physically, I was aware that my raw stats were the only reason I was able to defeat her. Whether it was experience, ability, mentality, skill, Elsa had me bested in every way. Though I defeated her physically, in terms of our mental battle, she absolutely destroyed me.
One thing was for sure, I would have to train hard at the Roswaal Mansion, because although I possessed the king's body, comparing myself to the king was like comparing the sun to a streetlamp.
Elsa was just the beginning. I would have to face much more dangerous threats in the future, and with my current strength, I was incapable of protecting my lady.
Julius assessed my body which lacked any wounds and gave a faint smile, "Somehow, I find that hard to believe, Sir Arthur."
Just as I was about to insist, Reinhard turned his head to me, his pale blue eyes sparkling, "Speaking of your battle with Elsa, Sir Arthur, it seems that you ended up honoring that selfish request of mine. At this point, I feel like words of thanks would be meaningless, so please just allow me to apologize for burdening you with my own selfish desire for mercy." He bowed apologetically.
"I cannot accept your apology, Sir Reinhard. I had resolved myself to slay Elsa tonight, but somehow, the battle ended up like this. For a brief moment, I even lost control of my emotions and started to fight like Mordred of all people." I let out a heavy sigh.
"Mordred?" Reinhard raised his eyebrow curiously at the unfamiliar name.
"Forget it." I made a pained smile, shaking my head. My heart ached just thinking about Mordred, I don't think I could bring myself to speak about that child of mine.
To be honest, I was so mentally drained right now I couldn't even be bothered to complain about the fact that Mordred wasn't my child, or that the king was selfishly dumping his thoughts and feelings on me.
"Either way, no matter what, the fact is that my request was honored, and that's not something I will forget about, Sir Arthur." Reinhard smiled, and I smiled back at him.
"Regarding Elsa, what will happen to her now?" I asked the Sword Saint curiously, but it was Sir Julius who responded.
"Sir Arthur, please allow me to explain. We shall escort her to the city dungeons, where she will spend the rest of her life alongside her companion. There will be no trial for either of them. The crime of targeting candidates of the Royal Selection is simply too grave. If it wasn't for the fact they possessed valuable information, we would execute them outright." Sir Julius shook his head.
"I see. Thank you, Sir Julius." I smiled bitterly, cursing my own feelings. The fact that a small part of me was happy that Elsa would at least be with Meili made me feel very guilty towards Lady Emilia.
I was also curious as to what was going to happen next, after all, Meili was the main antagonist of Arc 2. Now that she was locked up in the city dungeons, what fate did the future hold for me exactly?
"Either way," I clasped my hands together, turning to Lady Emilia, "My Lady, tonight, you've accomplished great things. Defeating the Bowel Hunter, Elsa Granhiert, as well as her Witchbeast Tamer cohort… you've fought bravely. As your servant, I'm incredibly proud of you." I gave her a genuine smile.
"P-Proud?" she muttered as tears once again dribbled down her cheeks. Her lips turned upward into a bright smile as she tilted her head, "Thank you, Sir Arthur."
"You're most welcome my Lady." I bowed my head towards her. In the past, I thought Subaru was exaggerating about Emilia's smile, but to be honest, I would be lying if I said that her smile didn't at least lighten the mountainous burdens weighing down on my shoulders a touch.
"Sir Arthur, whilst I hate to spoil the good mood, do you mind explaining what happened here?" Ram interjected, pointing to the pitiful remains of the Roswaal Guesthouse, an odd look on her face.
I cleared my throat awkwardly as I responded, "Would you believe me if I said there was a gas leak?"
Ram just crossed her arms, looking unimpressed, "What do you think?"
"All I can say is that I'm sorry, Miss Ram. I will apologize to Lord Roswaal personally later." I smiled apologetically towards the pink-haired maid.
"Miss Ram, stop giving Sir Arthur a hard time!" Lady Emilia huffed, "Considering Sir Arthur's meritorious deeds this time in the capital, Lord Roswaal will surely forgive Sir Arthur no matter how many houses he wishes to destroy!"
"Uhm, Lady Emilia, though I'm thankful for you defending me, it wasn't actually my intention to destroy the Guesthouse, it was a total accident." I explained helplessly, "I'm still a third-rate knight, and unfortunately, I failed to control my sword strike."
"Speaking of which," Reinhard interjected, "That pillar of golden light…" his gaze rested on my sword as he spoke, "That was quite the powerful attack, Sir Arthur. Thank you for exercising restraint."
"Mm." I nodded my head towards Reinhard, "Thankfully, once the energy was unleashed, it was much easier to control, so I could lead the blast upward as opposed to across the capital."
"I'm most glad you made that decision, Sir Arthur." Reinhard smiled softly.
"That golden light of yours was most beautiful, Sir Arthur, I find it difficult to explain, but my heart lightened just looking at it." Julius turned to me sincerely, "In the future, I hope we can cross swords so I can experience your swordsmanship first hand."
"Though I have a feeling I'd only disappoint you, it would be my honor to spar with you, Sir Julius." I responded back with equal sincerity.
"Also…" Reinhard cupped his chin as his eyes narrowed, looking at me with a somewhat weird expression, "I think I heard the cry of a dragon, though it might have just been my imagination."
"That was most definitely not your imagination, Sir Reinhard, you did indeed hear the cry of a dragon. If there comes a night where all of us knights can share food and drink beneath the moonlight peacefully, I'll be happy to properly explain everything, but quite frankly, now is not the time, nor the place."
Reinhard nodded his head, "That was rude and inconsiderate of me, Sir Arthur, I hope I didn't offend you with my insensitive comments."
"Considering all you have done for me over the past twenty-four hours, Sir Reinhard, I would be genuinely impressed if you managed to offend me." I let out a light chuckle.
Reinhard smiled at my words before turning to address us all at once, "Whilst I admit it's fun to stand around and talk like this, and I have been enjoying myself thoroughly, I believe it's about time we get back to business." He turned to my liege, "Lady Emilia, though I understand this is rude of me to ask, would you accompany me back to the Knights Garrison? The matter regarding the loss of your Insignia can be forgone, but I would still like to fully document the events of tonight so that the citizens and higher ups can gain a full understanding of your heroic exploits in keeping the people safe."
"A-Ah?" Lady Emilia's cheeks turned bright red, but she nodded her head, "O-Okay, I-I can do that."
"Hey, Reinhard – what the hell do you mean by that?" Felt, who had been dozing off whilst we talked, was awoken by his words, letting out a roar of complaint, "I thought I could finally get some sleep, but now you're dragging me back to that stuffy garrison?! A lady needs her beauty sleep!"
"My apologies, Lady Felt." Reinhard made a weak smile in response, "I hope you can bear with us a little longer."
"Hmph, whatever." Felt huffed and crossed her arms, but it was clear she agreed with Reinhard, nonetheless.
"Lady Emilia, if you don't mind, I would like to join you." I turned to Reinhard, "Though it may be irrelevant, I can also offer my first-person report on my encounter with Elsa."
"Though a handwritten account will most definitely be required, Sir Arthur, before that, I shall have Julius here escort you to the Kingdom's finest healer, Ferris. You can write your report whilst you're recovering."
Hearing his words, I couldn't help but frown, "Sir Reinhard, with all due respect, I've only just reunited with my Lady, ideally, I don't want to separate with her again." Though Elsa and Meili had been dealt with, it didn't mean Lady Emilia was out of the woods yet. In the world of Re:Zero, you were never completely safe from danger, and tragedy was always right around the corner. If you let your guard down for even a brief moment, you were sure to have the rug pulled out from underneath you.
"And with all due respect, Sir Arthur, you've just survived an encounter with one of the most dangerous assassins that has ever walked our earth. It would be grossly negligent to let you go without even having a physical check-up." Reinhard's words were filled with concern, but I still couldn't completely agree with them.
"And if I disagree to go to your check up?" I crossed my arms and raised my eyebrow at him.
"Then as a Royal Knight, I'll have no choice but to pull rank with you." he crossed his own arms, not budging an inch.
"Sir Arthur, Mr. Reinhard is correct." Emilia reached her hand out, grabbing onto my sleeve, causing my stubbornness to crumble as if it was made from donuts, "Mr. Reinhard is with me, so I'll be fine. Be a good boy and go see Ferris, okay?" she looked at me with her watery eyes, and naturally, it was impossible for me to decline.
"I see, then I suppose I have no choice. Sir Reinhard, it seems I'll be counting on you again to protect my liege." I bowed my head towards the Sword Saint.
"Don't worry, Sir Arthur, I swear on the Astrea name that nothing will happen to Lady Emilia, so please just focus on your recovery." He smiled, reaching out his hand to pat me on the shoulder reassuringly.
I nodded my head towards the man, turning my head to the finest knight, "Sir Julius, it looks like I'm in your care."
"Please," he responded back with a kind smile, "Just call me Julius."
And like that, Arc 1 had come to a close. The vicious assassin that had reaped Subaru's life on several occasions was instead reaped by my sword without a chance to resist.
I was safe. Lady Emilia was safe. Reinhard was safe. No lives were lost, and dawn was fast approaching.
It was the best end I could have asked for.
And yet, I didn't feel any happiness or excitement. I just had mixed feelings.
Elsa was still alive, numerous threats still lurked in the shadows, and my weaknesses had been exposed for me to see as clear as day.
Personally, I didn't think having weaknesses was an issue per say, it was just vital that I used this as a learning experience to grow before my next dance with death.
Having weaknesses was not a sin, but knowing about your weaknesses and not growing from them was.
Thus I was left feeling weak and exhausted from my battle, yet also strangely hopeful for my growth in the future.
Bidding Lady Emilia and Sir Reinhard farewell, Julius and I headed towards the medical bay to go and meet with the world's greatest living healer, Ferris.
Authors Note:
Well, that has been Chapter 9, I really hope you enjoyed reading! I had a lot of fun writing the fun interactions between everyone again after the more serious chapters with Elsa vs Arthur!
On that note, thank you so much for all the support on my previous chapter! I was really uncertain whether or not you guys would enjoy it due to the mental weakness of Arthur, but I'm very glad that in general you all enjoyed the chapter, that made me extremely happy!
Speaking of happiness, thank you so much to everyone who has viewed, followed, favorited, or reviewed my story. I can't believe we're over 200 favs and nearly at 300 followers already! that really does mean the world to me! :D
As always, thank you so much everyone! Have a great weekend, and I'll see you with the next chapter!